New Mexico Republicans Push For Ban On Using SNAP For Soda, Candy
By Margaret O’Hara
The Santa Fe New Mexican
Republican state senators have introduced legislation that would restrict shoppers from spending federal food aid on sodas and candy.
Senate Bill 186 takes a page out of the Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again playbook, with both U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. encouraging states to remove sugary foods from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program eligibility.
Some of New Mexico’s neighboring states — including states with Read More
FBI: Convicted Drug Trafficker Pleads Guilty Mid-Trial To Methamphetamine Trafficking
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — After one day of trial testimony, an Albuquerque woman pleaded guilty to methamphetamine trafficking.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, May 18, 2023, the FBI Violent Gang Task Force executed a search warrant at the northeast Albuquerque residence of Nora Baca, 67. During the search, agents located approximately three pounds of methamphetamine in the bedroom of Baca’s housemate and codefendant.
Sept. 10, 2024, following an investigation into a significant intergang drug trafficking conspiracy involving both incarcerated and non-incarcerated Read More
Los Alamos Big Band Valentines Dance Saturday
House Passes Bill To Crack Down On Violent Armed Felons
STATE News:
SANTA FE — The New Mexico House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to strengthen penalties for convicted violent felons who possess firearms illegally, sending House Bill 49 to the Senate in a bipartisan show of support for public safety.
The legislation, approved on a 54-9 vote, increases the penalty for firearm possession by a serious violent felon from a third-degree felony to a second-degree felony, punishable by up to nine years in prison — three years more than current law allows.
“Raising the penalty for serious violent felons who flout the law by possessing Read More
Legislative Roundup: 10 Days Left In Session
Marilyn Converse, a volunteer with the Santa Fe Animal Shelter, and Perla hang out in the grass on the east side of the Roundhouse Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026, Animal Protection Lobby Day at the Legislature. Photo by Matt Dahlseid/The New Mexican
The Santa Fe New Mexican
Nuclear bill bombs: A bipartisan proposal to add nuclear power facilities to the state’s definition of renewable energy resources was shot down Tuesday in the Senate Conservation Committee.
Democratic senators’ concerns expressed during the hearing on Senate Bill 78 centered largely on nuclear waste and where it Read More
Measure To Fully Fund Free Childcare In New Mexico Gains Momentum, Guardrails
By Daniel J. Chacón
The Santa Fe New Mexican
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s much-hyped initiative to offer taxpayer-funded childcare to every family in New Mexico, regardless of income, is closer to becoming reality.
The chair of the powerful Senate Finance Committee, Sen. George Muñoz, D-Gallup, is championing a bill that would allow the Legislature to spend an additional $1 billion from the Early Childhood Education and Care Fund over the next five fiscal years to shore up the initiative — without requiring any copays.
“We’re investing in people in New Mexico, and we’re Read More
Posole Mio Española Valley Opera Chapter Fundraiser At Moving Arts Española Theater Feb. 15
COMMUNITY News:
The Española Valley Opera Chapter invites you to join us for our annual winter gathering, POSOLE MIO 1-4 p.m. (MST), Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026, at Moving Arts Española Theater.
This festive event is a fundraiser for EVOC that features homemade posole and desserts and a wine and cider cash bar by Black Mesa Winery. Guests will also be able to enter a fun raffle and bid on silent auction items which will include original art and gift certificates to area restaurants and resorts.
Entertainment will include live mariachi music by Mariachi Divino during the food and drink service between Read More
Robinson: It’s Been A Long Road To Involuntary Mental Health Treatment
By SHERRY ROBINSON
All She Wrote
©2025 New Mexico News Services
He was sprawled across the exit lane of a busy shopping center as I was trying to leave. I stopped my car and ran over to do something, but what? Two other good Samaritans joined me.
We dragged him out of traffic and called 911. He told me he was having a seizure, but it seemed more likely that he was wasting away from years of substance abuse. The fire department arrived in minutes, and the senior officer greeted the man by name.
“We see this guy ALL the time,” the firefighter said.
I knew the police have to contend repeatedly with the same folks Read More
Canes & Canines Low Vision Support Group Meeting Today
Obituary: Lenora Chavez July 31, 1943 – Feb. 4, 2026
LENORA CHAVEZ July 31, 1943 – Feb. 4, 2026
Lenora Chavez, a resident of Los Alamos since August 15, 1943, passed away in Albuquerque, NM.
Lenora was born in Albuquerque, NM to Trinidad and Juanita Chavez. She was proceeded in her death by her brother Ignacio Chavez, sister Dolores Chavez, and her parents Trinidad and Juanita Chavez.
Lenora is survived by her brother Dimas Chavez of Bethesda, Maryland, aunts Dolores Siegel of Chevy Chase Maryland, Daniela Raymond of Rockville, MD, and Ana Barros of Maputo, Moszembuque West Africa. Lenora was not married and had no children. A private Read More
New Mexico Outdoor Adventures 2026 Show Opens Feb. 13
Courtesy photo
NMDW News:
Love to get out? Join the New Mexico Department of Wildlife for three days of activities for all ages, outdoor vendors and wildlife presentations at the 2026 Outdoor Adventures Show Friday, Feb. 13 through Sunday, Feb. 15 at Expo New Mexico in Albuquerque!
Kids can jump into hands-on nature exhibits, a wildlife scavenger hunt, an interactive OHV activity, beginner-friendly archery and wildlife education led by Department conservation officers eager to share their knowledge.
Come check out this year’s vendors, with booths featuring outdoor gear, kayaks, Read More
Los Alamos Faith And Science Forum Presents ‘One Song: The Science of Oneness’ Feb. 18
COMMUNITY News:
The Los Alamos Faith and Science Forum and Unitarian Church are co-hosting a presentation entitled ‘One Song: The Science of Oneness,’ presented by JD Stillwater at 6 p.m., Feb. 18, at the LA Unitarian Church, 1738 N. Sage Loop St.
With humor and depth, and a little help from some intrepid dung beetles, science ambassador JD Stillwater takes us on an immersive multimedia tour of discoveries from mainstream science that reveal an underlying connectedness in everything from human bodies to ecosystems to the very fabric of space-time.
JD Stillwater, a Cornell graduate, has written Read More
Three Public Safety Bills Pass NM House Addressing Mental Health Intervention, Support For Police And Families
STATE News:
SANTA FE — The New Mexico House of Representatives on Monday passed Senate Bill 3, House Bill 43 and House Bill 61 to improve mental health crisis intervention, correct sentencing disparities for assaults on law enforcement officers and strengthen benefits for families of police, firefighters and correctional officers killed in the line of duty.
“These three bills represent an important part of my administration’s ongoing strategy to make New Mexico safer and to support law enforcement officers and first responders who put their lives on the line each day to protect us,” Gov. Read More
New Mexico Public Safety Workers Call On Senate To Go With Governor’s Higher Pay Plan
Bryanna Vargas, sergeant at the Springer Correctional Center, speaks in support of 6% raises for state public safety employees to be included in the state budget during a news conference in the rotunda of the state Capitol Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. Photo by Matt Dahlseid/The New Mexican
By NATHAN BROWN
The Santa Fe New Mexican
Public safety workers are urging lawmakers to take up Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s proposal for bigger raises for corrections workers, police and firefighters, arguing the current pay rates put safety at risk by contributing to high vacancies.
“We show up every single Read More
Lawmaker: NM In Talks With Some Dozen Data Centers
Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces
By LILY ALEXANDER
The Santa Fe New Mexican
A New Mexico lawmaker pitching a bill to regulate microgrids like one planned in Southern New Mexico to power a massive AI data center said he has learned the state is in talks with up to a dozen other data centers.
Democratic Sen. Jeff Steinborn of Las Cruces, the co-sponsor of Senate Bill 235, which is largely a response to Project Jupiter in Doña Ana County, said he learned of the scope of New Mexico’s data center recruitment plans during a recent conversation with the state’s economic development secretary. Read More
County Secures Lease For Piñon Pool
COUNTY News:
Considering the impact on the swimming community during the Olympic Pool Re-plastering Project, Los Alamos County staff have been communicating with the local and regional pools to secure an alternative space during the closure of Olympic and Therapy Pools, Feb. 22, 2026, through October 2026.
The Los Alamos County Community Services Department is happy to announce that it has secured a lease for the Piñon Pool, located in White Rock.
The Piñon Pool Association previously ran Piñon Pool; however, they closed the facility in 2025 due to a lack of memberships. Los Alamos County Read More
Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard Calls On Law Enforcement To Investigate Allegation Involving Burials On Land Surrounding Epstein’s Zorro Ranch
Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard
LAND OFFICE News:
SANTA FE — New Mexico State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard sent a letter Tuesday calling on the U.S. Department of Justice and the New Mexico Department of Justice to ensure a thorough criminal investigation into allegations that two girls were buried in the hills surrounding convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch in Santa Fe County.
Epstein’s company, Cypress Inc., held two leases for state land in the vicinity of the ranch that were issued in 1993, but Commissioner Garcia Richard terminated them in Read More
County Issues Traffic Advisory For Mobilization Of 50-Ton Crane Through Town Toward Los Alamos Golf Course
COUNTY News:
As part of the ongoing project to install a new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system at the Los Alamos Golf Course Clubhouse, a 50-ton crane will mobilize through town today, Feb. 11.
The crane will travel via N.M. 502/East Road to Trinity Drive and Diamond Drive before arriving at 4244 Diamond Drive.
Mobilization is scheduled at non-peak hours between 8:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. to minimize disruptions to travelers.
The west end of the Los Alamos Golf Course parking lot will be closed, 6:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., for crane maneuvers. All crane operations will be contained within Read More
Op-Ed: Protecting Northern New Mexico’s Land, Water, And Communities From Wildfire
By Sen. Bobby Gonzales, D-Los Alamos
New Mexico District 6
In northern New Mexico, wildfire is not an abstract threat—it is something we have lived through, endured, and are still recovering from.
Communities across Taos, Mora, San Miguel, and Colfax counties know this all too well. The Hermits Peak–Calf Canyon Fire burned hundreds of thousands of acres, displaced families, damaged acequias, destroyed grazing lands, and forever altered watersheds that our villages and pueblos rely on. The scars remain visible today—not just on the land, but in the lives of the people who depend on it.
Our Read More
Daily Postcard: An Arial Ballet Across Evening Sky
Daily Postcard: The last act of an aerial ballet in the sky Saturday from Velarde. Photo by Johnnie Martinez Read More
