CD3 Candidate Valerie Plame Meet & Greet Tonight
GOP Women Hold February Meeting Thursday
LAFRW News:
The Los Alamos Federated Republican Women will host its February meeting Thursday, Feb. 13.
The business meeting will begin promptly at 11:30 a.m., and all registered Republican women are invited to attend. At noon, the group will welcome CD3 candidate Alexis Johnson to speak.
All county Republicans are invited to hear about and meet this candidate.
all Cathy Walters at 505.690.2309 for the meeting address. Call Shona Neff at 505.470.3177 for further information. Read More
NM Delegation, Governor Urge Military Officials To Utilize, Develop State’s Space Assets For U.S. Space Force
Congressional Delegation News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) and Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.), along with New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, sent a letter Tuesday to General John W. Raymond, the first Chief of Space Operations for the U.S. Space Force and Commander of U.S. Space Command.
The letter urges General Raymond to utilize New Mexico’s existing public and private sector space capabilities as the United States Space Force develops its infrastructure and Read More
Leadership Dispute Erupts At Legislature
House Speaker Brian Egolf
By JENS GOULD
The New Mexican
Relations between Democratic and Republican leadership in the New Mexico Legislature were quite balmy through the first two-thirds of this year’s session.
Not anymore.
As the streets of Santa Fe froze over during a winter storm that blew in early this week, so did dialogue between the two parties.
Minority Leader Jim Townsend
House Speaker Brian Egolf on Tuesday accused Republicans of deploying a strategy of extending debate on bills with bipartisan support to decelerate the process of passing legislation they don’t like. Read More
Legislative Roundup: 9 Days Remaining In Session
Legislative Roundup
SFNM News:
Senate flunks food fees: The state Senate rejected a bill Tuesday to increase fees paid by restaurants for food safety inspections by up to $700.
Senate Bill 209, sponsored by Sen. Clemente Sanchez, D-Grants, would have raised close to $1 million more annually for the state, according to Sanchez, who argued the legislation was necessary to deal with a shortage of food safety inspectors. Republicans and a handful of Democrats defeated the proposal, which failed 13-24.
Substitute retirement fees: The Senate approved legislation to undo a requirement that some Read More
Legislative Roundup: 10 Days Remaining In Session
Legislative Roundup
SFNM News:
Comeback for ex-senator: The Senate voted 37-5 Monday to confirm former Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez to the State Board of Finance.
Senators from both political parties praised Sanchez, D-Belen, during a congenial discussion on the Senate floor. This differed from a debate in the Senate Rules Committee, where Sen. Mark Moores, R-Albuquerque, gave a blistering critique of Sanchez as a senator.
“You did not treat the minority [party] well. You were incredibly vindictive,” Moores said.
The committee chairwoman, Sen. Linda Lopez, D-Albuquerque, Read More
Governor Signs Senate Bill 4, Delivering Additional $8 Million To New Mexico Census Efforts
Monday at the Roundhouse Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signs SB 4 that delivers $8 million to ensure an accurate New Mexico count in the 2020 Census. Courtesy photo
STATE News:
SANTA FE — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Monday signed Senate Bill 4, an essential bipartisan measure that delivers $8 million to ensure an accurate New Mexico count in the 2020 Census, which is essential for securing federal funds over the next decade.
This emergency appropriation bolsters the $3.5 million in Census funding secured by the Legislature and governor last year.
“We all have to pull together on the Census,” Read More
Joint Statement From Concerned Legislators And CYFD Regarding Open Meetings Act And CYFD Task Force
STATE News:
All involved parties thank the Attorney General for providing quick clarification that the Child Protective Services Task Force is not subject to the state’s Open Meetings Act because of its advisory-only nature.
Leadership with the Children, Youth & Families Department met with Representatives Dow, Fajardo and Gallegos within hours of those lawmakers’ public request that the Attorney General’s Office intervene.
In that meeting, the Department showed that it had been making task force meetings as publicly accessible as appropriate: There is time for public comment Read More
New Mexico GOP Headquarters Vandalized
GOP News:
ALBUQUERQUE – Albuquerque Police are working with the Republican Party of New Mexico in investigating another case of vandalism at the Republican Party Headquarters at 5150A San Francisco Road NE in Albuquerque.
The vandalism occurred around 2:37 a.m. Saturday. Surveillance video picked up a vehicle parking in
The Safer Communities Act Passes House Judiciary
The Roundhouse in Santa Fe. File photo
STATE News:
- Public safety package supports first responders and increases penalties for repeat offenders
SANTA FE – In response to communities around the state pushing for more to be done to curb violent crime in New Mexico, Saturday The Safer Communities Act, a bipartisan public safety package, passed the House Judiciary Committee.
House Judiciary Committee sub for House Bill 6, introduced by Rep. Marian Matthews (D-Albuquerque) and sponsored by Rep. Dayan Hochman-Vigil (D-Albuquerque) and Rep. Bill Rehm (R-Albuquerque), consists of four public Read More
League Of Women Voters Honored At State Legislature
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham reads a proclamation honoring the centennial of women’s suffrage and the founding of the League of Women Voters during League Day at the Roundhouse Thursday in Santa Fe. Photo by Akkana Peck
League of Women Voters scarecrow mascot ‘Vicky the Voter’ sits on the League of Women Voters of Los Alamos table while League members assemble with Rep. Christine Chandler, center, Thursday at the Roundhouse. Photo by Dody Richardson
LWVLA News:
Members of the League of Women Voters of Los Alamos gathered for League Day at the New Mexico Legislature Thursday in Santa Fe.
Proclamations Read More
PRC Commissioners Vote To Oppose HB11
STATE News:
SANTA FE — The Public Regulation Commissioners voted Wednesday to oppose HB11: Reorganizing the Operating Structure of the PRC during the Commissioners weekly open meeting.
“Staff shouldn’t be punished for the decisions we make as a commission as we do our job to protect the public interest and 3 commissioners voted to oppose the bill,” Commissioner Valerie Espinoza said.
The three commissioners who voted to oppose HB11 are Espinoza, Theresa Becenti-Aguilar and Jefferson Byrd.
PRC experts on the subject matter have been excluded from the deliberation process up to the drafting Read More
Educators Serving In The Legislature
Rep. G. Andrés Romero
By DILLON MULLAN
New Mexican
G. Andrés Romero offered up granola bars he paid for out of his own pocket while his students compared after-school jobs tossing pizza dough and waiting tables. After asking a transfer student about where his last history class left off, Romero divided the class into groups to examine U.S. involvement in World War I.
“Mr. Romero, he’s chill,’ junior Jaiden Smith said. “He’s got snacks. When we work, he plays music.”
At Atrisco Heritage Academy, Albuquerque’s largest high school with nearly 2,500 students, Mr. Romero teaches American history Read More
The New Mexico Legislature … A Tangled Web Of Relationships And Potential Conflicts Of Interest
Lobbyist Scott Scanland
Scott Scanland, one of the most influential lobbyists in the New Mexico Legislature, recently surveyed a Senate committee room during a hearing on a bill aimed at more stringently regulating electronic tobacco products.
Scanland represents Altria Client Services Inc., parent company of tobacco giant Phillip Morris USA and a variety of other tobacco and cigar brands. Altria also has a 35 percent ownership stake in JUUL Labs Inc., a leading e-vapor company.
The lobbyist happens to be married to state Rep. Doreen Gallegos,
Heinrich On Plans For Bears Ears; Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) has issued the following statement after the Department of the Interior finalized resource management plans for the reduced Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah by releasing two Records of Decision:
“The Trump administration is steamrolling forward on the president’s unprecedented—and, I believe, illegal—order to drastically shrink the boundaries and weaken protections in two of America’s national monuments.
“The landscapes and significant cultural sites Read More
House Advances Bipartisan Public Safety Bill Package
By CYNTHIA MILLER
New Mexican
New Mexico lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee advanced a bipartisan package of public safety measures Saturday that proponents said are aimed at reducing violent crime in communities across the state and aiding law enforcement officers who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Provisions in the omnibus package that would provide funding to train officers in “community-oriented policing” and ease access to treatment for officers with PTSD received broad support from the law enforcement community, advocacy groups and committee members. Read More
Bill To Radically Change PRC Moves Forward
By ROBERT NOTT
The New Mexican
The House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee voted 8-5 along party lines to approve a bill that would significantly alter the structure of the state’s Public Regulation Commission.
House Bill 11, introduced by state Reps. Linda Trujillo, D-Santa Fe, and Nathan Small, D-Las Cruces, would move many of the divisions currently under the commission’s authority to a department within the governor’s administration.
It also would give the governor the right to appoint the PRC’s chief of staff for a term of six years, following an initial Read More
CIR Presents Former U.S. Ambassador At Large For War Crimes Issues David Scheffer Feb. 20
David Scheffer
CIR News:
The Santa Fe Council on International Relations (CIR) has announced that the former U.S. Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues (1997-2001) David Scheffer will speak 5-7 p.m., Feb. 20 at Hotel Santa Fe, 1501 Paseo de Peralta in Santa Fe.
Ambassador Scheffer will discuss his latest book, The Sit Room: In the Theater of War and Peace (Oxford 2019), focusing on foreign policy under the Trump Administration. Generously supported by the Quezada Jacobs Family Agency: Allstate Insurance.
The Sit Room is a compelling story about the day by day decision-making that transpired Read More
Legislative Roundup: 13 Days Remaining In Session
Legislative Roundup
SFNM News:
Help the animals: The Senate passed the Wildlife Trafficking Act Saturday, which aims to halt the trafficking of endangered species and animal parts through the state. Senate Bill 75, sponsored by Sen. Mimi Stewart and approved by a vote of 22-9, would create civil penalties for wildlife trafficking and help New Mexico quash the sale of endangered species and their parts.
“Right next door to us, El Paso is one of the top five ports of entry for wildlife trafficking in the nation,” Stewart said. “Much of that contraband is moved through New Mexico as it’s distributed, Read More
NM Senate Approves High-Profile Gun Legislation
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham speaks about the Extreme Risk Protection Order Act passed Friday by the Senate. She is flanked by the bill’s sponsors, Sen. Joseph Cervantes, to her right; Rep. Daymon Ely, far right, and Rep. Joy Garratt, left, as well as Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth. Photo by Jens Gould/New Mexican
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham speaks about the Extreme Risk Protection Order Act passed Friday by the Senate. Photo by Jens Gould/New Mexican
By JENS GOULD
The New Mexican
The New Mexico Senate approved high-profile gun legislation in a narrow vote Friday, likely clearing Read More
