Official was driving state vehicle on suspended license | News

KOB Eyewitness News 4 has learned Public Regulation Commissioner Jerome Block Jr. was driving a state vehicle on a suspended license.

It was our investigation that turned up $9,000 in questionable gas purchases on Block's state-issued gas card.

We talked to the PRC chief of staff Saturday about how he uncovered Block's suspended license.

PRC Chief of Staff Johnny Montoya said when he took his post, he requested a review of all PRC driver's licenses. That's when he discovered Blocks's suspended license.

A spokesman for the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department confirms Jerome Block Jr.'s license was suspended in July of 2010.

Montoya says as soon as he discovered the license was suspended, he confronted Block, and Block voluntarily gave up his driving privileges with his state vehicle.

That didn't happen until late June or early July—nearly a year after his license was suspended.

Montoya says every four years employees must take defensive driving courses. It's at that time their driving records are checked.

Montoya says when he became chief of staff back in March, he asked that each PRC's driving status be reviewed—before the mandatory four years. That's when he discovered Block's suspension.

Montoya says not all the records are back, but as of Saturday night, Block is the only license returned with a problem. The PRC has over 100 employees.

Montoya says he's unsure if there could be any repercussions for driving on a suspended license in a state vehicle, but he wants to change PRC policy to require individuals with suspended licenses to self identify their status.

> See the gas card records, extended interview