Chris Clark

Report: Minority Families In New Mexico And Nation Falling Behind

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VFC News:
 
ALBUQUERQUE — A sharp racial/ethnic divide has emerged within the world of low-income working families, posing a critical equity and economic challenge to New Mexico and the nation, a new study concludes.
 
Hispanics and African-Americans, who will continue to emerge as a larger segment of the workforce, will remain under-prepared and underpaid unless lawmakers in New Mexico are willing to pursue policies that would improve conditions. 
 
The disturbing portrait of America’s low-income working families was sketched by the Working Poor
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House Passes Bill To Protect Pregnant Women

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Rep. Terry McMillan

STATE News:

SANTA FE ― The New Mexico House of Representatives passed legislation Wednesday that will protect pregnant women in the workplace and exceed federal guidelines. 

Rep. Terry McMillan, R-Doña Ana, of Las Cruces is the sponsor. The bill (HB 409) passed by a bipartisan 63-3 vote.

“This legislation balances the need to protect pregnant women in the workplace as well as the economic needs of our local small businesses,” McMillan said. “Today, the House took a huge step forward to protect women in

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SFI: Finding Cultural Holes – How Structure And Culture Diverge In Networks Of Scholarly Communication

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Jevin West
University of Washington

SFI News:

The Santa Fe Institute is hosting a colloquium with Jevin West at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 17 at Noyce Conferance Room at the SFI in Santa Fe. 

Abstract: Divergent interests, expertise, and language form cultural barriers to communication. No formalism has been available to characterize these “cultural holes.” Here we use information theory to measure cultural holes and demonstrate our formalism in the context of scientific communication using papers from JSTOR.

We extract scientific fields from the structure of citation

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House Passes Bill To Reduce Renewable Energy Standards

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Rep. Larry R. Scott
STATE News:
SANTA FE ― House Bill 445, “Reduce Renewable Portfolio Standards” sponsored by Rep. Rep. Larry R. Scott, D-Lea County has passed the House by a close vote of 33-32. Several Republicans voted against the measure.
HB 445 repeals part of the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) that requires New Mexico public utilities to generate 20 percent of their electricity from renewable energy by 2020, as required in the Renewable Energy Act. This bill would eliminate a portion of that act, keeping the rate at the current 15 percent and preventing it from
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Legislature Urged To Change Lottery Scholarship, Restore College Affordability Fund

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VFC News:

ALBUQUERQUE—Making college more affordable for its low-income population would pay the state big dividends down the road.

Having a better educated workforce would help attract higher-paying jobs to the state, which would lead to more economic activity. In addition, boosting the educational level of the state’s adults would improve the educational outcomes of our children. Those are among the points made in a report just released by New Mexico Voices for Children.

“Education and money are inexorably linked,” said Veronica C. García, Ed.D., executive director of the child

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DOE Releases Wind Report, Examines Industry Future

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DOE News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C.―In support of the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy to diversify the nation’s power supplies, the Energy Department just released a new report looking at the future of wind power through 2050 and the economic benefits that come with a robust wind industry.
 
The report, Wind Vision: A New Era for Wind Power in the United States, confirms that with technological advancements driving projected cost reductions, in combination with continued siting and transmission development, wind power can be economically deployed to provide
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VIDEO: Heinrich On Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act

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SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C.―U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus, delivered a speech on the Senate floor last week on the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act of 2015.

Heinrich introduced the bill with Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, to enhance opportunities for hunters, anglers, and outdoor recreation enthusiasts. The bill, which has growing bipartisan support, would reauthorize key conservation programs, improve access to public lands, and boost the outdoor recreation Read More

IRS Weekly Filing Statistics

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IRS News:
PHOENIX ― Americans have turned to IRS.gov nearly 200 million times so far this tax filing season where they can find answers on topics ranging from tax preparation to checking their refund status.
This is a 10 percent increase in comparison to the same time last year, according to IRS statistics released last week.
In addition to various interactive tools, IRS.gov is the gateway to many more resources and answers about many tax matters. Try Interactive Tax Assistant, Tax Topics, Tax Trails, Frequently Asked Questions, and the IRS Tax Map.
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Supreme Court: Every Person Must Report Child Abuse

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STATE News:
 
SANTA FE―The New Mexico Supreme Court has ruled that every person – no matter their profession – has the duty to report child abuse, siding with Gov. Susana Martinez and House Republicans who have both led the fight to clarify the law in recent years.
 
“Today, the Supreme Court delivered a win for New Mexico’s children,” said Nate Gentry, R-Bernalillo, who carried two bills last year that would have clarified the law. “I thank Governor Martinez for leading the charge to change this law. As a prosecutor who spent her entire career putting child abusers behind bars, she truly
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House Passes Legislation To Protect Children and Mothers From Rapists

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STATE News:

SANTA FE ― The New Mexico House of Representatives passed legislation Wednesday that would give women the option to terminate the parental rights of a biological father when the pregnancy is the result of rape.

Republican Rep. Conrad James and Democratic Rep. Georgene Louis sponsored the bill (HB 387), which passed by a unanimous 65-0 vote.

“A mother has every right to protect her child from a convicted rapist,” James said. “Passing this bill is the right thing to do for New Mexico’s children and mothers.”

Currently, someone who committed rape is entitled to child

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