Posted inCourts, Justice & Safety, New Mexico Statewide News

Bloomfield officer dies after traffic stop shooting

Bloomfield Police Officer Timothy Ontiveros has died from gunshot wounds sustained during a traffic stop last week.  On May 26, Ontiveros and another officer stopped a driver who refused to cooperate. After an eight-minute negotiation, the officers attempted to arrest the individual, who then opened fire, hitting Officer Ontiveros. The second officer returned fire, killing […]

Pocket veto of promising wild horse bill leaves issues unresolved

Despite overwhelming bipartisan support and years of advocacy, New Mexico’s long-awaited free-roaming horse management bill has quietly died through a pocket veto, causing frustration among lawmakers, county officials and animal welfare advocates. House Bill 284, co-sponsored by Rep. Matthew McQueen, D-Galisteo, and Sen. Pat Woods, R-Broadview, passed 54-4 in the House and 38-0 in the […]

Protect the firefighters who protect our homes and forests

Riva Duncan is a contributor to Writers on the Range, writersontherange.org, an independent nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation about the West. She is vice president of Grassroots Wildland Firefighters. By Riva Duncan, Guest columnist. You probably don’t see wildland firefighters on the job because they usually work in remote areas. But with wildfires moving […]

How reliable was your electric utility in 2024?

Officials from the Public Service Company of New Mexico say electricity was available for the average customer more than 99% of the time last year, however, there were outages, including ones in the East Mountains, Clayton, Santa Fe, Albuquerque and Las Vegas. The three investor-owned electric utilities in New Mexico presented reliability metrics to the […]

Drought Task Force activated as New Mexico faces severe drought conditions

The New Mexico Drought Task Force has begun implementing an executive order from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham declaring a state of emergency due to persistent and severe drought and escalating fire risk across New Mexico. The Task Force met today to begin implementing the order, which directs state agencies to take immediate action to mitigate […]

New Mexico lawmakers warn of cuts to federal programs at Albuquerque town hall

U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) and U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (D-NM) held a town hall meeting in Albuquerque on Tuesday to express concerns about proposed Republican legislation that they say would drastically cut critical federal programs. The lawmakers warned that Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and SNAP benefits for New Mexicans are at risk. An […]

Posted inEducation, New Mexico Statewide News

Scholarship program empowers Mexican-origin youth in New Mexico

On May 23, the Consulate of Mexico in Albuquerque and the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce Foundation signed a historic memorandum of understanding to officially launch the IMME-Becas (Scholarships) Program. The Instituto de Mexicanas y Mexicanos en el Exterior—Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Institute for Mexicans Abroad (IMME)—seeks to expand educational opportunities for […]

Posted inEducation, New Mexico Statewide News

By the #s: New Mexico’s highest high school graduation rate in at least 15 years

By Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico — As high schoolers across the state don caps and gowns for graduation, state education officials are noting the state’s highest graduation rate in at least the last 15 years.  While still below the national average, last year the highest percentage of New Mexico high-schoolers graduated on time since […]