Human trafficking continues to be a problem in the state. The National Human Trafficking Hotline had 350 reports from New Mexico in 2021, the most recent data available. It’s an issue that also intersects with the 193 missing and murdered Indigenous people here. Two organizations spoke with lawmakers last week about how they could help.

National and local incidents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement have escalated fear in communities with numerous immigrants. This is true in places like Los Angeles, but also here in Albuquerque. The Albuquerque Police Department spoke with KUNM about what it’s doing to improve communication with residents and maintain public safety.

Native students in New Mexico’s largest school district miss class more than their peers and score lower in reading, science and math. Now, the district is partnering with Native-led groups in what officials say is an effort to change that.

The Early Childhood Education and Care Department has a new assistant secretary focusing on the state’s Native communities. The office is designed to strengthen state-tribal early childhood partnerships and officials say it will be rooted in respect, sovereignty and collaboration, stemming from the 2019 law that created the department. KUNM spoke with Joannie Suina about what led her into this work and her future goals for the office.

KUNM will lose 12% of its budget, or about $275,000, after the House and Senate passed the rescission bill that was put forth at the request of President Donald Trump. The station’s new General Manager, Jeff Pope, said the cut could have drastic effects, but remains confident the station will find a way to forge ahead.

Federal private defenders, already overwhelmed by new military buffer zone, now working for free.

More than half of Native Americans in New Mexico live in urban areas, and many rely on programs to help them transition from the reservation to cities, including workforce training. But the Trump administration is proposing federal cuts that could defund such programs.

Jet fuel leaking from Kirtland Air Force base into the ground beneath Albuquerque was first discovered nearly 26 years ago in November 1999. So some residents may be surprised that the cleanup process has yet to begin in earnest. While some interim measures have been taken to stop the fuel from getting into the city’s drinking water, experts told lawmakers Tuesday that only the first phase of the process, the investigation, is finally nearing completion.

On the 80th anniversary of the Trinity Test, downwinder and uranium miners discuss New Mexico’s nuclear legacy — and finally receiving recognition from the federal government.

The increased presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials has caused alarm for many in New Mexico. Now it’s part of Albuquerque’s mayoral race, with two candidates sparring over how the city should, or should not, work with ICE. A third candidate says there are more things the city can do that ensure public safety and protect civil rights.