Bernalillo County commissioners are set to revisit a high-stakes resolution aimed at tightening oversight of large data center and AI infrastructure projects when they meet Tuesday in Albuquerque. The “Holding Data Center Projects Accountable in Our Community” measure, introduced at the Jan. 13 meeting, would condition county incentives on clear community benefits and sustainability standards. Under […]
■ Local Government
Posted in■ Local Government, City Desk ABQ
“A complete betrayal”: Council rejects enforcement of renters rights against predatory landlords
Albuquerque renters will not receive local protection from excessive fees after the City Council rejected an ordinance Wednesday that would have enforced the state’s Senate Bill 267 in limbo. The 5-4 vote leaves the law, which caps application fees at $50 and limits late fees to 5% of rent, unenforced at the local level. Since […]
Posted in■ Local Government, City Desk ABQ
Who runs Albuquerque day-to-day? Meet the city’s reappointed CAO
When your trash is picked up, a pothole disappears or you spend an afternoon at the BioPark, you’re seeing the work of Samantha Sengel even if you don’t know her name. The Albuquerque City Council unanimously reappointed Samantha Sengel as chief administrative officer (CAO) Wednesday. The city’s most powerful non-elected position oversees 6,000 employees and […]
Sandoval Signpost
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National security urgency meets local alarm as Project Ranger breaks ground
Dozens of state and local officials made the expedition on Wednesday to a windswept dirt lot west of Rio Rancho for the groundbreaking of Project Ranger, a 1,000-acre solid rocket motor manufacturing campus that will be the largest in the United States, according to Castelion executives, and will produce components for hypersonic missiles. Gov. Michelle […]
Posted in■ Local Government, City Desk ABQ
Frustrated by delays, Council proposes fix for contentious City Hall Q&A
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include information about a new Q&A process proposed to replace the repealed agenda item, if passed, as well as reactions from councilors. The mayor’s administration and Council President Klarissa Peña have a plan to make the most frustrating and contentious parts of the council meetings more useful […]
Posted inCity Desk ABQ
City promised fraud reports in 15 days, still waiting after 300
A months-long fight over transparency erupted at Albuquerque City Hall last fall after nine Inspector General fraud investigations were completed. Of those investigations, the public has only seen two final reports; four remain unreleased and one was formally rejected. The controversy began in April when the Albuquerque Accountability in Government Oversight Committee deferred six reports, […]
Posted in■ Local Government
The future with Fred
Fred Hashimoto’s mayoralty of Corrales is starting to take shape. Hashimoto, who was sworn in Jan. 2, told the Corrales Comment he has been preparing for the job by meeting with various local organizations and with councilors and others in village government. “I’ve spent the last two months meeting with a lot of people,” he […]
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Bernalillo County moves to regulate AI data center expansion
With Project Jupiter, a controversial campus of data centers slated for Doña Ana County, in the works, the Bernalillo County Commission took a first step Tuesday toward imposing some of the state’s strictest regulations on data center development, introducing a resolution that would tie taxpayer-funded incentives to aggressive hiring, wage and environmental standards. Sponsored by […]
Posted in■ Local Government
New leadership takes the gavel in Bernalillo County
The Bernalillo County Commission elected the new chair and vice chair of the commission in its first meeting of the 2026 calendar year, where Adriann Barboa took over as the commission chair with Frank Baca as her vice chair. The commission voted 5-0 for Barboa to take over the gavel from outgoing chair Eric Olivas. […]
Posted in■ Local Government
Inside the push to save Albuquerque’s aging Main Library
The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Library Advisory Board has raised $925,000 in pledges from state, city and county officials to replace the Main Library’s 50-year-old heating and cooling system, bypassing traditional district boundaries. The board still needs $1.6 million to reach its $2.5 million goal. The 100,000-square-foot downtown library relies on a 1975 “air handler” system […]