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Western New Mexico residents say federal officials need to either move the tailings from an abandoned uranium mill near Milan or relocate the owners of about 75 nearby homes.

The Albuquerque Journal reports (http://bit.ly/14hXzJK) that residents told a top U.S. Environmental Protection Agency official Tuesday that a cluster of cancer cases in subdivisions near the Homestake Mining Co. uranium mill show a need for immediate action by the agency.

Legislation that would transfer management of the Valles Caldera National Preserve in northern New Mexico to the National Park Service has passed one of its first hurdles.

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted in favor of the legislation Tuesday.

Under the proposal, hunting, fishing and grazing would continue on the 89,000-acre preserve.

The preserve is home to vast grasslands, the remnants of one of North America's few super volcanoes and one of New Mexico's most famous elk herds.

State wildlife and agriculture officials are teaming up with a nonprofit group to help New Mexico ranchers defray the extra cost of hauling and pumping water during the drought.

The Department of Game and Fish has made a one-time allotment of $40,000 to the Department of Agriculture as part of an effort to provide the state's wildlife with water.

The money will pass through the New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts, where ranchers can apply for up to $350 to pay for things such as fuel to haul or pump water.

The Albuquerque Police Department is holding a water drive for the village of Magdalena, whose well has gone dry.

The effort, which runs through Thursday night, will collect bottles and jugs of water at the Prisoner Transport Center, across the street from the main police station in downtown Albuquerque.

All of the donated water will be transported to the town of Magdalena in south-central New Mexico Friday morning.

Federal auditors are recommending that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recover more than $6 million in grant funding from New Mexico.

The EPA's Office of Inspector General says three bureaus within the New Mexico Environment Department did not always comply with federal requirements when it came to charging labor, fringe benefits and indirect costs to federal grants.

UPDATE 6/18 9a: The Silver Fire grew to over 30,000 acres overnight. 

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New Mexico's largest wildfire this year is expected to grow significantly today. The Silver Fire, which is burning in the Gila National Forest, is threatening the small historic mining town of Kingston, although so far fire crews have been successful at protecting the town.

Smoke from the blaze created a 30,000 foot column of smoke on Tuesday that was visible from El Paso, Texas, over 100 miles away.

One out of every five senior citizens in New Mexico isn't getting enough to eat, according to a report from United Health Foundation. New Mexico ranks 49th in the nation for food insecurity.

The America's Health Ranking Senior Report looks at general health and food insecurity, among other issues facing the aging population.

The number of people in New Mexico receiving disability payments through the Social Security system has exceeded even the increasing national trend.

The Albuquerque Journal reports (http://bit.ly/11I1zzV) that a review of data from the Social Security Administration showed that the number of former workers in New Mexico getting Social Security Disability Insurance grew by nearly 66 percent from 2002 to 2011.

During the same period, the growth nationally was nearly 55 percent.

Three state biologists are being honored for their work rescuing threatened and endangered species.

Department of Game and Fish herpetologist Charlie Painter, fisheries manager Kirk Patten and recently retired Gila Trout Recovery Coordinator David Propst received the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Recovery Champions awards for their work rescuing threatened and endangered species.

The mayor of Las Cruces is seeking help from Los Angeles' mayor and Albuquerque's former mayor to erase outstanding debt from his re-election campaign two years ago.

The Las Cruces Sun-News reports (http://bit.ly/11jh9Xm) that Mayor Ken Miyagishima is working to convince Los Angeles mayor Anthony Villaraigosa and former Albuquerque mayor Martin Chavez to participate in an upcoming fundraiser.

Miyagishima says Villaraigosa is working on his schedule and Chavez may join too.

Villaraigosa is Los Angeles' mayor until July 1.

The Senate has confirmed New Mexico U.S. Attorney Ken Gonzales to be the state's next federal judge.

Senators voted unanimously in favor of Gonzales Monday evening, and the state's two senators immediately recommended that President Barack Obama appoint one of his assistants, Damon Martinez, to replace him.

Martinez has served as an assistant U.S. attorney since 2001 and currently supervises the Organized Crime and Gang Section in Albuquerque.

Gonzales says he is "humbled by the opportunity to continue to serve the public in a judicial capacity."

More than 30,000 state and local government workers face a 15 percent increase for their health care insurance starting next month, but it could be only the beginning of higher costs as New Mexico's self-insurance program digs out of a financial hole.

There have been no premium increases for workers for the past five years when government budgets were squeezed. Yet, the fund covering health benefits was projected to be almost $70 million in the red in the upcoming budget year if the state did nothing to the insurance program to deal with rising health care costs.

New details have emerged about changes that were made to a grant proposal the state submitted to the federal government related to the state's Health Insurance Exchange.

Domestic violence statistics are often shocking. One organization says that these statistics won’t change until men get involved. Now, a Native American advocacy organization and leader are getting people involved in the group A Call To Men.

Ted Bunch, with A Call To Men, recently gave a presentation to about two hundred people at Northern New Mexico College in Espanola.

Officials say crews have contained the majority of the 94 square miles of wildfires raging throughout the New Mexico.

The Thompson Ridge Fire, the state's largest blaze at 37 square miles, is now 80 percent contained as of Monday. On the other side of the Santa Fe National Forest, the nearly 16-square mile Tres Lagunas fire north of Pecos was 90 percent contained.

Crews on Tuesday night will begin transporting a 910,000-pound electric transformer from Kewa Pueblo to Chili.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports (http://bit.ly/ZVRinb) that the transformer for Jemez Mountains Electric Cooperative Inc. will arrive at its final destination Wednesday.

The trailer will take up two lanes along the route and travel at speeds varying from 5 to 30 mph.

Hunters still have a chance to get a license to hunt deer or javelina in New Mexico in the 2013-2014 season.

The state Game and Fish Department is holding an online sale later this month of more 2,500 deer hunting licenses and nearly 900 javelina licenses.

The licenses were left over after the department's annual drawing for hunting permits.

New Mexico's congressional delegation has introduced a bill aimed at improving tribal education and preserving Native American language in schools.

The state's two senators and three representatives all signed on to the proposal, which they say would remove barriers that tribal leaders often encounter in teaching Native languages at school, improve on existing programs and partnerships and create new incentives and scholarship programs to encourage educational success throughout Indian Country.

About 85 percent of 276 oil and gas well sites inspected in southeastern New Mexico over the past six weeks have failed to pass after-the-fact electrical safety inspections.

Correction notices were issued to those sites that received a "failed" grade. None has been ordered to stop operations.

The latest domestic energy boom is sweeping through some of the nation's driest pockets, drawing millions of gallons of water to unlock oil and gas reserves.

Hydraulic fracturing, or the drilling technique commonly known as fracking, has been used for decades to blast huge volumes of water, fine sand and chemicals into the ground to crack open shale formations.

But now, as energy companies vie to exploit vast reserves, fracking's new frontier is expanding to the same lands where crops have shriveled and waterways have dried up due to severe drought.

Some people, especially many in Santa Fe may be feeling a bit overwhelmed with the ring of fire that has surrounded the state's capitol city. 

But State Fire Information Officer Dan Ware wants everyone to know that, really, the whole state is not on fire.

"There are millions of acres of public lands open for business," Ware says. "State parks, national forests. These areas are open and ready to have folks visit. There are fire restrictions in place." 

Ware says "know before you go."

Over the past year, a group of Taos High School students have been literally trying to cure cancer. Specifically mouth cancer caused by chewing tobacco.  After long hours toiling over laboratory equipment, their extracurricular endeavor has paid off.  The multi-ethnic crew, who call themselves the Wyrmies, have been chosen as finalists in the E-Cybermission competition for their use of the traditional Native American herb Cota.

The federal government is being asked to cough up more than $60 million for damages from the 2011 Las Conchas fire and subsequent flooding in northern New Mexico.

According to the Santa Fe New Mexican, the Forest Service faces damage claims filed Thursday by the Cochiti and Jemez pueblos and four individuals who own a ranch.

The claims allege losses due to burned timber, habitat loss and erosion and flood damage from the fire. It burned nearly 244 square miles and destroyed 63 homes.

With each dry thunderstorm that moves across New Mexico, the chance of another wildfire breaking out goes up.

Crews are battling a handful of blazes in the Santa Fe National Forest, on private land near Whites Peak and in rugged territory in southern New Mexico.

The flames are being fueled by overcrowded forests, the terrain and dry conditions.

However, New Mexico State University wildland fire management specialist Doug Cram says the wind hasn't been as big of a factor. In 2011 and 2012, the state broke records with three massive wind-driven wildfires.

Fire managers say infrared mapping shows a wildfire burning in the Pecos Wilderness of northern New Mexico has not burned as much territory as originally thought.

Fire information officer Lawrence Lujan says heavy smoke, intense heat and rugged terrain have made it difficult for managers to size up the Jaroso Fire.

On Wednesday, they estimated it had ballooned to 12 square miles. An overnight infrared flight now puts the burned area at more than 5 square miles.

A top-level management team assumed responsibility for battling the fire Thursday.

Veterans with combat disorders joined their families this week to express their frustration at how long it takes to get veterans services. Congressional representatives Steve Pearce and Michelle Lujan Grisham hosted the public forum in Albuquerque Monday.  

A legislative report shows New Mexico's endowment and pension funds grew by nearly $1.9 billion during the first quarter of the year.

The Legislative Finance Committee reports (http://1.usa.gov/17FHX87 ) that the Public Employees Retirement Association had investment returns of 5.4 percent during the first three months of the year, with pension fund assets of $13 billion.

The Educational Retirement Board had quarterly returns of nearly 4 percent, with assets of $10 billion at the end of March.

Prosecutors overseeing a fraud case on the Navajo Nation have asked a tribal judge to dismiss more defendants from a civil complaint.

Dozens of former and current tribal officials were accused of defrauding the tribal government in the use or management of $36 million in discretionary funds.

Prosecutors filed a motion this week to drop Sampson Begay, Ralph Bennett, Nelson Gorman Jr., Ervin Keeswood Sr., Preston McCabe Sr., and Mel R. Begay from the complaint. They say evidence doesn't support allegations against them.

It's back to captivity for a pair of Mexican gray wolves that federal wildlife managers had planned to release in Arizona's Apache National Forest.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Wednesday that the male and female wolves will not be released.

The pair had been transported from a captive breeding facility in New Mexico to southeastern Arizona in late April. The wolves have spent the last six weeks in a temporary pen so they could acclimate to their new surroundings.