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FEMA hints it might lift 25% cap on tree reimbursements for northern NM fire victims
Officials at the Federal Emergency Management Agency are still finalizing rules and accepting public comments on how it will spend about $2.5 billion on victims of the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire. But the director of the compensation program on Thursday, in a public meeting in Las Vegas, N.M., suggested one frequently criticized draft rule would […]
To fill empty social work positions, CYFD secretary requests a bigger budget
The state’s child welfare department is in need of more social workers to ease caseloads, reduce burnout and better help kids in a state with some of the worst outcomes for children, the department secretary told lawmakers Wednesday. The New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department has 509 vacancies across six offices, according to a […]
Sen. Ben Ray Luján: Billions for northern NM fire victims still up in the air in DC
U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján said negotiations are fluctuating daily on a congressional spending bill that includes almost $3 billion more for victims of the biggest fire in New Mexico history. This funding would come in addition to the $2.5 billion Congress voted to send to the state earlier this year. Luján, a Democrat, told […]
‘Our acequias are struggling’: Mayordomos from across NM gather to call for help
About 15 acequia stewards stood in a line at a Las Vegas, N.M. meeting hall on Saturday, each of them holding a few ounces of water they pulled from their home irrigation ditches. One by one, they emptied their glasses into a large ceramic pot. The longstanding ceremony – called the Bendición de las Aguas, […]
FEMA hosting job fairs to help it run $2.5B claims office for NM fire victims
The Federal Emergency Management Agency on Thursday announced two job fairs next week to find locals able to help the agency administer a mult-billion-dollar program aimed to compensate victims of the biggest fire in New Mexico history. FEMA is working to set up the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire Claims Office, which was created by an […]
NM water experts: Upcoming legislative session ‘existentially important’
A group of local experts says the upcoming legislative session represents a crucial pivot point for the state’s water future. The New Mexico Water Ambassadors, a group convened at the direction of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, has met since June to come up with recommendations to handle the state’s water crisis. Mike Hamman recently left […]
Court of Appeals rules that landlords must wait three full days before bringing eviction cases to court
The New Mexico Court of Appeals ruled recently that lower courts erred when they allowed the eviction of a Las Cruces tenant in 2018, a ruling advocates say will help renters across the state resolve issues with landlords before they go before a judge. New Mexico Legal Aid represented the tenant in local court and […]
Congress passes law to crack down on exports of sacred Native American items
A cherished, century-old Acoma shield was stolen from the pueblo in the 1970s. Decades later, it showed up in a French auction catalog. Congress this week sent a bill to President Joe Biden’s desk that aims to crack down on the export of Native American patrimony, defined as objects with lasting historical or cultural significance. […]
What’s the deal with New Mexico’s PRC?
If you’ve never heard of the state’s Public Regulation Commission, you’ve likely still observed the consequences of its decisions in your daily life. On your electricity bill, for example. Or your gas bill. Your water bill. Commissioners also have a hand in broadband and telecommunications around the state, and field consumer complaints. Transportation, too. Staff […]
President Biden asks for almost $3 billion more for northern New Mexico wildfire victims
President Joe Biden has asked Congress for another $2.9 billion for New Mexico to recover from a wildfire ignited by the United States Forest Service, the largest in the state’s recorded history. If passed, victims would be in line to receive more than $5 billion total in federal compensation. Biden in late September signed a […]
Opiate addiction experts call on lawmakers to remove a barrier to rural methadone treatment
Advocates are optimistic the New Mexico Legislature will change a law during the upcoming legislative session to allow nurses to administer methadone, a barrier they say is making it harder to help those with opioid addictions, especially in rural areas. State law allows only pharmacists to dispense “take-home” doses of methadone or buprenorphine, commonly known […]
New map shows damage status of 50+ acequias in the northern NM burn scar
Many historic irrigation canals are still damaged in the 530-square-mile swath of charred land the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire. After the acequias were scorched by the largest fire in state history, ensuing floods forced debris and silt into the waterways. Members of the New Mexico Acequia Association are marking headgates and walking each mile of […]