OBAE Proposes $10 Million For Broadband Affordability
OBAE News:
SANTA FE — The New Mexico Office of Broadband Access (OBAE) and Expansion (OBAE) has announced legislation to authorize $10 million in broadband funding to help low-income families afford broadband service.
Senate Bill 152 was introduced by Senate Majority Whip Michael Padilla (D-14) and prepared by OBAE in consultation with the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (PRC).
The funding would come from the State Rural Universal Service Fund, which by current statute, has $40 million specifically earmarked for broadband programs.
The legislation is called the “Low-Income Read More
Los Alamos National Laboratory: FY 2025 Economic Impact
Evening view of Los Alamos National Laboratory. Courtesy/LANL
LANL News:
- $2 billion in employee salaries across 6 northern New Mexico counties; $752 Million spent with local businesses
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) released its annual Economic Impact Report detailing spending during fiscal year 2025, which ended Sept. 30. With an annual budget of $5.28 billion, the Laboratory is a major economic driver in the state.
“For more than 80 years, Los Alamos National Laboratory has played a critical role in New Mexico’s economy and its communities,” Laboratory Director Thom Mason said. Read More
LAHS Hockey To Host Senior Night Saturday Evening
SPORTS News:
The Los Alamos Varsity Hilltoppers hockey team will celebrate Senior Night this weekend as they take the ice for a special home game at 6:15 p.m. Saturday at the Los Alamos County Ice Rink.
The Hilltoppers will face off against the New Mexico Ice Wolves in what promises to be an exciting and meaningful matchup.
Senior Night is an opportunity for the community to recognize and honor the dedication, hard work, and leadership of the team’s senior players, who have contributed years of commitment to the program.
Fans, families, and community members are encouraged to attend and show their
LAAC Daytime Performance Series To Feature Jubal Feb. 11
New Documents Added To LANL’s Legacy Cleanup Contract Reading Room
LANL News:
New documents have been added to the Los Alamos Legacy Cleanup Contract Electronic Public Reading Room.
All legacy cleanup documents required to be posted after April 30, 2018, are available on the site linked above.
For legacy cleanup documents that were posted prior to April 30, 2018, please visit the LANL electronic public reading room.
- Notice of Disapproval Supplemental Investigation Report for Material Disposal Area T, at Technical Area 21
https://ext.em-la.doe.gov/GovFTPFiles/api/GetFiles/GetFile?fileName=EMID-704150_NOD_MDA_T_SIR_012226.pdf - Notice of
Canadian Manufacturer Endurance Technologies, Inc. Picks Las Cruces For First U.S. Facility
Representatives from the Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance, City of Las Cruces, New Mexico Economic Development Department and Endurance Technologies Ltd. in Las Cruces last week celebrating the company’s U.S. Expansion. Courtesy photo
NMEDD News:
LAS CRUCES — A Canadian pipe manufacturing company, Endurance Technologies, Inc., has selected Las Cruces as the site of its first U.S. facility, bringing dozens of jobs and more than $50 million in economic impact to New Mexico over the next decade.
Over the next five years, Endurance plans to create 43 jobs in Las Cruces, Read More
Community Invited To Toppers Varsity Hockey Senior Appreciation Night And Game Jan. 31
SPORTS News:
The Los Alamos Varsity Hilltoppers hockey team will celebrate Senior Night this weekend as they take the ice for a special home game at 6:15 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 31.
The Hilltoppers will face off against the Albuquerque NMICE Ice Wolves in what promises to be an exciting and meaningful matchup. Senior Night is an opportunity for the community to recognize and honor the dedication, hard work, and leadership of the team’s senior players, who have contributed years of commitment to the program.
Fans, families, and community members are encouraged to attend and show their support as Read More
Traveling Exhibition At New Mexico Museum Of Natural History & Science Showcases Armor In Animal Kingdom
The ancient mammal Doedicurus, with Smilodon on top attacking. This specimen on view in the traveling exhibition Animal Armor: The Evolution of Armor in Dinosaurs. Courtesy/NMMNHS
NMMNHS News:
ALBUQUERQUE — The New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science (NMMNHS) welcomes a new traveling exhibition exploring the natural defenses that animals have evolved over millions of years. Animal Armor: The Evolution of Armor in Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals will be on view when the museum reopens this spring.
“From Ankylosaurus to armadillos, animals have been evolving new ways to Read More
NMSOP To Host Patient Advocacy Day At Roundhouse
NMSOP News:
SANTA FE — Patients, survivors, and advocates from across New Mexico will gather at the State Capitol on Friday, January 30, for Patient Advocacy Day, hosted by New Mexico Safety Over Profit (NMSOP).
Patient Advocacy Day will center the voices of New Mexicans who have been directly impacted by the state’s health care workforce shortage, unsafe hospital conditions, and barriers to accountability when preventable harm occurs. Participants will meet with lawmakers to share why NMSOP’s legislative priorities are critical to improving access to care without weakening patient Read More
LANL Foundation Awards $100,000 In STEM Framework Grants To Support STEAM Education In Northern NM
LANL Foundation News:
ESPAÑOLA — Sixteen schools and community-based organizations throughout Northern New Mexico received grants to support the work they are doing to innovate STEAM education.
Made possible by $100,000 in funding from the National Nuclear Security Administration for STEM career pipeline development, this one-year grant initiative will support hands-on learning and help to build a regional STEAM framework — an educational approach that integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Math to foster inquiry, critical thinking, and problem-solving Read More
New Mexico Senate Committee Discusses Harsher Penalties For Felons With Guns
By ESTEBAN CANDELARIA
The Santa Fe New Mexican
The illegal possession of a firearm by a person previously convicted of a crime carries serious penalties in New Mexico — at least three years in prison.
Still, hundreds of people have been charged with the offense in recent years.
So, how can New Mexico better deter the problem?
That was the question lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee pondered Monday afternoon, as the Legislature gears up to consider several proposals designed to curb violent crime in New Mexico during this year’s 30-day session.
For Ben Baker, senior public safety adviser Read More
Life After 50: 2026 Community Asset Awards
The 2026 Spirit of the West Award created by Richard Ronquillo, owner of Rich Welding LLC. Courtesy photo
By BERNADETTE LAURITZEN
Executive Director
Champions of Youth Ambitions
This weekend, Champions of Youth Ambitions (C’YA) will host the annual CommUNITY Asset Awards. Forty adults and youth have been nominated for charitable deeds, done in and around our community, to make life better for others. The event is designed for them to learn who nominated them and why.
One person is selected from all submissions to be recognized for the Spirit of the West Award. The award was named for Los Alamos Read More
House Advances 10 Bills To Expand Access To Quality Affordable Healthcare In New Mexico
STATE News:
SANTA FE — Jan. 26, the New Mexico House of Representatives advanced 10 pieces of legislation to improve healthcare access across the state by lowering out-of-pocket costs, expanding access to care, and recruiting and retaining more providers.
The House Judiciary Committee unanimously passed seven bills today that would expand access to healthcare through participation in interstate healthcare compacts, which allow states to expedite licensing for qualified healthcare providers who wish to practice in multiple states.
“By joining interstate compacts, New Mexico can Read More
Legislative Roundup: 24 Days Left In Session
Flamenco dancer Kayla Lyall performs for an audience in the rotunda of the Roundhouse Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. Photo by Matt Dahlseid/The New Mexican
The Santa Fe New Mexican
Medical school funding: The University of New Mexico School of Medicine is one step closer to a new home.
Lawmakers in the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee offered initial approval Monday to Senate Bill 6, which would provide nearly $547 million in state funding for the construction of a new medical school building at UNM’s Albuquerque campus.
The new building — which will be located on the corner of Lomas Read More
Obituary: Royce Dean Taylor Feb. 10, 1941 – Jan. 20, 2026
ROYCE DEAN TAYLOR Feb. 10, 1941 – Jan. 20, 2026
Colonel Royce Dean Taylor was born Feb. 10, 1941, in Boles, Arkansas. He passed away at age 84, Jan. 20, 2026, just 20 days shy of his 85th birthday in Los Alamos, NM.
He is survived by his wife, Holly Kenney, his children Jennifer Waller (Jay), Amy Klabunde (Kevin), Royce Taylor (Sonja), grandchildren Haley Waller, Olivia Wallace (Ian), Sydney Bloomenstein (Zach), Alexi Tscherner (Nico), Trevor Klabunde, Isaac Taylor, and Lily Taylor, and great-granddaughter Etta Wallace. He was preceded in death by his parents, Monroe and Rosie Taylor, Read More
Hundreds Rally For Immigrant Rights At State Capitol
House Speaker Javier Martínez, right, marches with members of Somos Acción and other demonstrators along Paseo de Peralta while heading to the state Capitol Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, during an Immigrant and Worker Day of Action rally. Photo by Matt Dahlseid/The New Mexican
By CLARA BATES
The Santa Fe New Mexican
Undeterred by subfreezing temperatures, hundreds of immigrant rights advocates from across New Mexico gathered at the state Capitol in Santa Fe on Monday to call for a ban on local government-contracted immigration detention centers, stricter privacy protections and workforce development Read More
FBI: Albuquerque Man Gets 19 Years For Online Sextortion
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — An Albuquerque man was sentenced to 19 and a half years in prison for coercing a 15-year-old girl into producing sexually explicit images over several years and for sexually exploiting a second victim who was 12 years old.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court records, between 2019 and 2022, Adrian Puentes, 26, engaged in an ongoing pattern of sextortion and sexual exploitation involving two minor victims. Beginning when Jane Doe 1 was in eighth grade, Puentes used multiple social media platforms, including Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok, to Read More
Mountain Lion Prints Spotted In Walnut Canyon
Mountain Lion prints spotted in the snow on Sunday in Walnut Canyon. Photo by Michael Smith
Mountain Lion and cub prints spotted in the snow on Sunday in Walnut Canyon. Photo by Michael Smith Read More
Local Author Earns A Top Spot In Pasatiempo Contest
Local writer Kelly Dolejsi holds up her collection of poems, The Missing Sea, in the Los Alamos Daily Post office. Dolejsi recently earned a first-place spot in the Santa Fe New Mexican’s 2025 Pasatiempo Writing Contest. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com
By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com
Local writer Kelly Dolejsi earned the top spot in the Santa Fe New Mexican’s 2025 Pasatiempo Writing Contest in the adult fiction category.
Dolejsi tied for first place with Santa Fe writer Jennifer Edelson.
Dolejsi’s short story, “Siren”, about a woman who may or may Read More
After Paying $1.23 Million For Office Units, NMDOT Sells Them Back To Vendor For $375,000
By DANIEL J. CHACÓN
The Santa Fe New Mexican
As the New Mexico Department of Transportation takes center stage amid a push to pass a $1.5 billion bonding package, a costly and embarrassing mistake is percolating behind the scenes.
In July 2024, the department bought five mobile office units for $1.23 million. Problem is, they didn’t meet permitting requirements in a commercial setting, prompting staff to make the decision to sell them back to the vendor for $375,000 — resulting in a net loss of $857,000.
The foul-up is one of a handful of instances in which the department was out of compliance Read More
