By TRÂN NGUYỄN SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order Thursday to direct state agencies on how to remove homeless encampments, a month after a Supreme Court ruling allowing cities to enforce bans on sleeping outside in public spaces. Newsom’s order is aimed at the thousands of tents and makeshift […]
Housing & Homelessness
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, New Mexico Statewide News
Homelessness has increased by 50%; affordable housing is scarce
There are an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 people in New Mexico who experience homelessness each year; there is a shortage of 32,000 low-income rental housing units; and there are more than 40,000 housing units across the state in need of rehabilitation, such as a functioning kitchen or adequate plumbing. New Mexico’s urgent need for affordable […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, State Government #nmgov, Syndicated
No lawmaker has signed up to sponsor NM Gov’s panhandling bill
By PATRICK LOHMANN With less than a week until a special legislative session focused on public safety, no lawmaker has yet signed up to sponsor a bill pushed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham related to pedestrian safety and panhandling. Lawmakers will gather in Santa Fe on July 18 to address a handful of proposals related to […]
Reader-supported
Will my trash be picked up on July Fourth? Answers to your questions about city services over the holiday week
When a big summer holiday comes during the middle of the week, lots of local government services we take for granted change their hours or close. So will trash be picked up? Can I go to the library to beat the heat? Are city pools open? The answer, according to the City of Albuquerque, is […]
Posted inAlbuquerque, Housing & Homelessness
Albuquerque Health Care for the Homeless ups roving outreach
The city’s unhoused population — particularly near Downtown — often get health care and other services at the main campus of Albuquerque Health Care for the Homeless (AHCH). But in recent years, the nonprofit’s street outreach has expanded and reached scores more. Of 1,212 people experiencing homelessness who were contacted through outreach between July 2021 […]
Posted inBernalillo County, Housing & Homelessness, Local Gov.
What projects will county residents vote on this November?
Bernalillo County voters will get to decide in November whether to support $40.5 million in capital projects ranging from a wrought iron fence to several new athletic fields. On June 25, the Board of Commissioners approved the list of projects for the general obligation bond issue and the questions that will be placed on the […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, National News, Politics & Elections, Syndicated
Trump’s debate references to ‘Black jobs’ and ‘Hispanic jobs’ stir Democratic anger
By MATT BROWN WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump warned during his debate with Joe Biden and again at a Friday rally that migrants were taking “Black jobs” and “Hispanic jobs” from Americans, angering critics who called it a racist and insulting attempt to expand his appeal beyond his white conservative base. While President Joe Biden’s […]
Reader-supported
ABQ advocates, officials weigh in on Supreme Court decision on homelessness
Advocates for those experiencing homelessness in Albuquerque reacted to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Friday with concerns about what it might mean for the city’s unhoused population. City officials, meanwhile, were also considering the implications of the decision. The court issued a decision Friday in the highly anticipated Grants Pass v. Johnson case. Siding with […]
Posted inAlbuquerque, Housing & Homelessness
‘I didn’t like who I was becoming, and I was afraid’
Life changed in an instant for Ragina Smith on April 18, 2023, when her husband of five years was killed in a motorcycle accident. “One night he left and just didn’t come back,” Smith said. “He only had the bike three months.” The couple was living in Jacksonville, Florida, where Smith, 43, worked as a […]
Posted inCongress & Federal Gov., Housing & Homelessness, Syndicated
Supreme Court allows cities to enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outside
By LINDSAY WHITEHURST WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court decided on Friday that cities can enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outdoors, even in West Coast areas where shelter space is lacking. The case is the most significant to come before the high court in decades on the issue and comes as a rising number of people in the […]