Politics

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich’s Bill To Block Illicit Vapes & Tobacco Products From China Becomes Law

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U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich

U.S. SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that his Ensuring the Necessary Destruction of (END) Illicit Chinese Tobacco Act was signed into law.

The provision grants the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clear authority to destroy adulterated, misbranded, or counterfeit tobacco products — such as unauthorized e-cigarettes produced in the People’s Republic of China and intercepted upon attempted import into the country. It was enacted as part of the Fiscal Year Read More

Los Alamos County And DestinationiQ To Host Tourism Town Hall Wednesday Dec. 10

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COUNTY News:

Los Alamos County invites community members to attend a Tourism Town Hall at 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 10, at SALA Event Center, 2551 Central Ave.

The event will be co-hosted by the County and its tourism marketing partner, DestinationiQ.

The Tourism Town Hall invites residents and business owners to connect with DestinationiQ and get an inside look at what’s next for tourism in Los Alamos County. The event will showcase new strategies to strengthen the local visitor economy and highlight how DestinationiQ will support these efforts through research, collaboration, and community Read More

Aging Budget Strengthens Safety, Support For NM Seniors

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Aging Secretary Emily Kaltenbach

ALTSD News:

SANTA FE – The New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department (ALTSD) is requesting $8.2 million in general funds, representing an 11 percent general fund increase from the previous year.

“New Mexico’s older adults need a strong, responsive support network,” Aging Secretary Emily Kaltenbach. “Each year, we see more aging seniors aging in need — this budget strengthens frontline services families rely on, invests in protection for our most vulnerable, and positions us to be prepared for the future.”

The FY27 budget request focuses on the Read More

Luján Delivers $202 Million For Vital New Mexico Projects

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From the Office of U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) announced more than $202 million in federal funding secured for New Mexico in the Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill and Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies (MilCon-VA) Appropriations Bill.

In both appropriations bills that were signed into law, Sen. Luján successfully secured $202,188,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending for 13 critical Read More

Denish: Hope And Aspiration

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By DIANE DENISH
Corner to Corner
diane@dianedenish.com

Most people I talk to have never heard of a small museum in Dallas called the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. I didn’t recognize the name either when a friend I was planning to visit mentioned it. “You know,” she said, “the Texas Book Depository?” Of course—the building forever linked to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

The building, completed in 1903 to replace an earlier structure destroyed by fire, has always served as a warehouse or storage facility. In 1963, the Texas School Book Depository Company leased space there Read More

Defense Technology Company Castelion Chooses New Mexico As Home For ‘Project Ranger’ Hypersonic Manufacturing Campus 

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Castelion Co-founder/CFO Andrew Kreitz

STATE News:

          • Solid rocket motor facility will create 300+ high-paying jobs 

ALBUQUERQUE — Castelion, a defense technology company, announced that it has officially selected Sandoval County as the site for Project Ranger, a 1,000-acre solid rocket motor manufacturing campus. 

The campus is projected to create more than 300 high-paying jobs and generate more than $650 million in economic output over the next decade. The company plans to invest more than $100 million over the first four years of Project Ranger’s development, with more capital to follow.  Read More

Los Alamos County Council Regular Session Nov. 18

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COUNTY News:

Los Alamos County Council will hold a Regular Session at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 18, in Council Chambers at the Municipal Building at 1000 Central Ave.

During the meeting, Council will issue a proclamation designating Dec. 2, 2025, as Giving Tuesday in Los Alamos County.

The meeting is open to the public.

The agenda for this meeting has been posted and can be found here. Read More

Robinson: Fire Hazard Mounts As FEMA, Forest Service Shrink

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By SHERRY ROBINSON
All She Wrote
© 2025 New Mexico News Services

A woman from Mora County told me recently: “We always said we were land rich and cash poor. Since the fire, we don’t even have the land.” Besides fire and flood damage to family property, a road washed out, and nobody has rebuilt it.

U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-NM, joined by U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Lujan, have chided FEMA’s New Mexico Joint Recovery Office for its sluggish payout of claims for damages caused by the massive Calf Canyon-Hermit’s Peak blaze three years ago. In their recent letter they said the claims Read More

Acting Governor Howie Morales Appoints Sandy Ray Jones To Sierra County Commission

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Acting Governor Howie C. Morales

STATE News:

SANTA FE — Acting Governor Howie C. Morales on Friday announced the appointment of Sandy Ray Jones to the Sierra County Commission for District 2. 

Jones will fill the remainder of the term previously held by Travis Day.  

Jones, of Williamsburg, founded and operated Sandy Jones Construction for 40 years, completing large-scale civil construction projects including highways, road paving and infrastructure developments across New Mexico. He served as chairman of the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission from 2010 to 2014, where he oversaw Read More