Briefs
NM State Investment Council withdraws $8M in Russian stocks and bonds
The New Mexico State Investment Council on Tuesday voted to get rid of nearly $8 million in investments in Russian stocks and bonds. The unanimous vote comes amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, an act that has drawn sanctions and boycotts from countries and companies across the globe. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham called for the […]
Gallup hospital org names new CEO, a first step to avoid being kicked out
The nonprofit running a major Gallup medical center has named a new chief executive officer to lead the troubled hospital. Robert Whitaker, currently the president and CEO of Southwest Medical Center in Liberal, Kansas, will take over at Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital. The Gallup hospital is the biggest in the region, apart from one run […]
U.S. House speaker hints at bigger COVID aid push after $15 billion yanked from spending bill
The need for federal funding to address COVID-19 may be greater after lawmakers removed a $15 billion relief package from an omnibus spending bill last week, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday. Amid reports of rising case levels overseas, Pelosi said the United States may need more than the amount negotiated with Republicans that […]
Interior Department research into the history of abusive boarding schools should be released in the coming weeks
The U.S. Department of the Interior is expected to begin releasing information next month from its investigation into federal boarding schools and their impact on Native American communities. Secretary Deb Haaland said the department is close to completing its research into boarding school sites and the location of possible burial sites “at or near school […]
Federal funding for Pueblo irrigation projects could be stirred into the water act
Another attempt to fund irrigation projects in Pueblos across New Mexico is being considered by Congress. U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) is asking the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure to include several proposals benefiting the state’s water infrastructure in the 2022 Water Resources Development Act.. “Our communities across the Southwest are gripped by the […]
Court’s new order details when eviction ban lifts in ABQ, rest of state
The New Mexico Supreme Court on Wednesday released an order that will lift the state’s eviction moratorium beginning in April. The court-ordered stay on evictions for non-payment of rent has been in effect since March 2020, a response to rapidly rising coronavirus case counts, a devastated economy and fears about overpacked homeless shelters. Two years […]
U.S. Senate confirms Shalanda Young as first Black woman to head up White House budget agency
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate made history Tuesday when it confirmed Louisiana’s Shalanda Young as White House budget director. Young, former staff director for the House Appropriations Committee, will become the first Black woman to head up the Cabinet-level agency that releases the president’s budget request, oversees federal agencies’ performance and reviews significant federal regulations. […]
State pulls staff off compiling COVID numbers, plans to remove and obscure some info
Starting Monday, it will be more difficult to find daily data on the pandemic maintained by the New Mexico Department of Health. The daily COVID-19 updates will no longer be available broken down by county, officials said. A staple information source for two years now, the daily county-level updates have long been how the public […]
Biden to tap Navajo health head to lead Native American health agency
President Joe Biden intends to nominate Roselyn Tso to lead the Indian Health Service, the White House said in a news release Wednesday. Tso, a member of the Navajo Nation, is the Navajo area director for the IHS, overseeing federal health care for nearly 250,000 Native American people in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. Tso […]
No pool for you — A look at NM governor’s capital outlay vetoes
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Wednesday approved the spending of more than $820 million on construction projects across the state, things like acequia improvements, new housing and upgrades to municipal buildings. She also vetoed $4.6 million in projects approved by lawmakers during this year’s legislative session. That money would have gone to about 25 projects. […]
A look at the four cases against people from NM charged with Jan. 6 crimes
Federal prosecutors charged four people from New Mexico with crimes committed during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Investigators found two of suspects by reviewing Capitol surveillance footage and phone GPS data. They found two others by reviewing their posts on social media as thousands of election-deniers stormed the building in […]
Congress members from NM, Texas work to ban interim nuclear fuel storage funding
A bipartisan group of members of Congress introduced a bill that would prevent federal money from going toward private interim nuclear waste storage facilities, an effort to prevent such sites from being built in Southeastern New Mexico and Western Texas. Elected officials and environmental groups fear so-called “interim” sites will become permanent nuclear storage sites. […]