Los Alamos County Councilor Melanee Hand visits the Los Alamos Daily Post to discuss Tuesday’s council meeting. Video by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com Read More
Politics
Yvette Herrell Takes Senior Role In Trump Administration
Former U.S. House Rep. Yvette Herrell
RPNM News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Former U.S. House Rep. Yvette Herrell was confirmed Thursday night as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Congressional Affairs, giving her a senior role in the Trump Administration. The U.S. Senate approved her nomination in a 53–43 vote as part of a late push that cleared about 100 nominees.
“We are thrilled for Yvette and cannot wait to see her serve in the Trump Administration,” Republican Party of New Mexico Chairwoman Amy Barela said. “President Trump’s second term has been filled with unprecedented accomplishments Read More
Luján, Fischer Lead Senators To Preserve States’ Ability To Use Broadband Infrastructure Funds As Congress Intended
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Media, and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Chair of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Media, sent a letter to Arielle Roth, the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), urging the administration to preserve states’ ability to use their non-deployment Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program funds consistent Read More
DOE Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office Awards N3B 95 Percent Of Contract Available Fee
N3B loads transuranic waste into a container to ship to WIPP in Carlsbad. Courtesy/EM-LA
N3B loads the transuranic waste containers onto a truck for shipment to WIPP in Carlsbad. Courtesy/EM-LA
EM-LA News:
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Environmental Management Los Alamos Field Office (EM-LA) legacy cleanup contractor, Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos, LLC (N3B), earned more than $15.8 million, or 95 percent, of the fee available during the performance evaluation period of fiscal year 2025, according to a recently released scorecard.
As part of EM-LA’s commitment to transparency Read More
Luján, Heinrich, Rosen Press Meta On Dramatic Rise In Antisemitism On Social Media Platforms & AI Models
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) pressed Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Meta’s failure to address antisemitic content on its platforms and potentially promote antisemitism through its artificial intelligence models. Specifically, the senators highlight how a rise in antisemitic content can be linked to the recent changes in community standards and content moderation practices, which were announced by Meta in January. Additionally, in the letter, the senators press Meta to disclose its policies and Read More
EM-LA Updates Los Alamos County Council On Efforts To Resolve Chromium Plume
Images of EM-LA’s various meetings with stakeholders regarding the hexavalent chromium plume. Courtesy/LAC
By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com
For more than 20 years, the Department of Energy (DOE) has been attempting to successfully eradicate the hexavalent chromium plume in the aquifer 1,000 feet below Mortandad and Sandia canyons.
Los Alamos County Council learned about DOE’s Environmental Management-Los Alamos Field Office’s (EM-LA) progress on resolving this long-term issue during its Tuesday night meeting.
EM-LA Manager Jessica Kunkle emphasized Read More
AI Boom Drives Demand For Power … New Mexico Asks: Who Pays?
A rendering of the planned Hermes 2 facility near Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where Kairos Power will build a molten‑salt‑cooled small modular reactor to help fuel Google’s expanding data centers. Source: Kairos Power
By MARLENE WILDEN
Los Alamos Daily Post
marlene@ladailypost.com
New Mexico is racing to keep up with a surge in electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence, high-performance computing and data center expansion. State officials are increasingly focused on making sure residential and small-business customers aren’t left footing the bill.
The tension surfaced Read More
Heinrich & Sheehy Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill To Reduce Deadly Roadway Collisions
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) introduced the Wildlife Road Crossings Program Reauthorization Act, bipartisan legislation to make permanent the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Wildlife Crossings Program and authorize funding for the program through 2031.
U.S. Representatives Ryan Zinke (R-Mont) and Don Beyer (D-Va.) introduced companion legislation in the House.
The Wildlife Crossings Program is a competitive grant program established under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, legislation Heinrich championed Read More
White House: Illicit Fentanyl Is Closer To Chemical Weapon Than Narcotic
RPNM News:
ALBUQUERQUE — The White House officially designated fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction. This historic announcement will change how the drug is viewed by the Department of Justice, the State Department, the Department of War, and law enforcement. The Trump Administration is ensuring illicit fentanyl isn’t just approached as a deadly narcotic, but as a chemical weapon responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of Americans.
“Fentanyl is one of, if not the single biggest threat facing Western civilization today, and I could not be more proud of the Trump Administration Read More
Luján, Heinrich Applaud Senate Passage Of Legislation To Amend Water Rights Settlements, Return Earned Interest To New Mexico Tribes
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, and U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) applauded Senate passage of the Technical Corrections to the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act, Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, and Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act, legislation led by Senator Luján that authorizes the release of $18.312 million in water settlement interest funds to New Mexico Tribes to support water development projects.
Specifically, the bill authorizes the appropriation of $6.3 Read More