Governor Signing Legislation Today Banning Texting While Driving
STATE News:
Santa Fe—Gov. Susana Martinez will sign legislation prohibiting texting while driving in New Mexico. Senate Bill 19, sponsored by Sen. Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe and Rep. James Smith, R-Sandia Park, bans texting while operating a motor vehicle, except when summoning medical or other emergency help.
The Governor is scheduled to sign the bill at 2 p.m., today at the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator in Albuquerque. Read More
Governor Signs Bill Protecting Parental Rights of Deployed Service Members
Gov. Susana Martinez
STATE News:
ALBUQUERQUE—Gov. Susana Martinez signed into law Saturday legislation that protects the parental rights of deployed service members.
SB 130, the Service Member Child Custody Act, ensures that child custody arrangements cannot be modified while a parent is deployed for military service. The increased deployment of service members in recent years has raised difficult child custody issues that profoundly affect both children’s welfare and service members’ ability to serve their country efficiently.
“With this new law, our Read More
Los Alamos Divers Place at State
Los Alamos High School’s Annika Bronkhorst, shown doing a layout twist, placed 9th at the State diving championships last weekend. Courtesy photo
Los Alamos High School’s Madeleine LeScouarnec, shown doing a front double pike, placed 8th at the State diving championships last weekend. Courtesy photo
Los Alamos High School’s Madeleine LeScouarnec doing a front double pike. Courtesy photo Read More
Senators: Assess Risk; Deploy Mobile Monitors to WIPP
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad. Courtesy/wikipedia
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy Thursday asking her to provide public health analysis and deploy mobile environmental monitoring units to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad.
The mobile monitors would conduct independent tests and help respond to questions that have arisen from the community about safety following the Feb. 14 radiation leak at WIPP.
“The health and Read More
Gregory Fouratt Appointed New Cabinet Secretary of Department of Public Safety
Gregory J. Fouratt
STATE News:
ALBUQUERQUE—Gov. Susana Martinez has announced her appointment of Gregory J. Fouratt as Secretary for the New Mexico Department of Public Safety (DPS).
Fouratt has nearly 17 years of experience as a federal prosecutor, where he prosecuted a wide variety of crimes, from drug trafficking and racketeering to violent crimes such as assault, child abuse and homicide. Fouratt also retired as a lieutenant colonel after having served for more than 20 years in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve and the New Mexico Air National Guard.
“Greg Read More
Secretary of State Dianna Duran Keynote Speaker At Los Alamos GOP Dinner
Secretary of State Dianna J. Duran
GOP News:
The Republican Party of Los Alamos will hold a fundraising dinner at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 26 at the Research Center, 4200 W. Jemez Road.
Secretary of State Dianna Duran will be the keynote speaker. Price is $50 per person. Checks should be made payable to Republican Party of Los Alamos and mailed to P.O. Box 832, Los Alamos.
For more information, contact GOP Chair Robert Gibson at 505.662.3159.
About Secretary of State Dianna Duran:
New Mexico Secretary of State Dianna J. Duran was born in Tularosa, attended public schools there, Read More
Heinrich Votes to Advance Veterans Benefits Package
U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Tuesday, Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. voted to advance an omnibus veterans bill that includes key provisions he fought for on behalf of veterans and military families across New Mexico.
S.1982, the Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act, introduced by the Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Senator Bernie Sanders, and cosponsored by Heinrich, passed by a vote of 99-0 today. clearing the way for a Senate debate on the bill.
The omnibus veterans Read More
Uncovering the Secret World of the Plastisphere
SEA Education Association scientist Greg Boyd holds recovered foam floats containing invertebrates and microbial biofilm. Courtesy/Erik Zettler, SEADEA on Arrest of ‘El Chapo’
Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera. Courtesy/DEA
DEA News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Remarks made by retired Drug Enforcement Administration Agent Phil Jordan and those of other retired DEA agents do not reflect the views of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Jordan, who spent three decades with the DEA and headed the agency’s El Paso Intelligence Center, said the arrest represents a huge blow to the Sinaloa cartel.
“It is a significant arrest, provided he gets extradited immediately to the United States,” Jordan told CNN. “If he does not get extradited, then he will be Read More
New Mexico House Majority Leader Rick Miera To Retire Dec. 31
House Majority Floor Leader Rick Miera
SANTA FE—House Majority Floor Leader Rick Miera has announced he will not seek reelection as the New Mexico State Rep. in Dist. 11 (the downtown corridor of Albuquerque) – a position he has held for the last 24 years.
Miera says the decision was a difficult one since he has dedicated so much of his life to the legislative process, especially involving the issues of educational equity, juvenile justice and health care access issues. However, he feels the time is right to pass the torch.
“I have made a difficult decision to step down from State Read More
