News

New Mexico State University's Cooperative Extension Service has created a new position for a wildland fire management specialist.

NMSU is one of only two land-grant universities in the U.S. to create this type of position. The University of Hawaii was the forerunner in developing such a position.

NMSU officials say that after back-to-back record-breaking fire seasons in New Mexico, natural resource managers are facing significant challenges in fire-damaged areas. That includes massive erosion events.

The Santa Fe Police Department is being recognized as the best in the state for working to stop drunk drivers.

The New Mexico Traffic Safety Division and Safer NM Now selected the department this month as No. 1 out of about 70 for the way it used Operation DWI grant money.

Lanny Maddox of Safer NM Now says the Santa Fe Police Department was selected based upon productivity, funding management, report submissions and overall participation in the ODWI program.

  The Census Bureau reports that Lea County, in the heart of southeastern New Mexico's bustling oil patch, was the fastest growing in the state last year but two-thirds of the counties lost population.

Lea County's population grew by 1.8 percent from 2011 to 2012. State demographer Jack Baker attributes much of that to the booming oil field economy

Sandoval County, which includes Rio Rancho, grew by 1 percent last year.

Memorial Day weekend marks the kickoff and 84th anniversary of Carlsbad Caverns' summer bat watching program.

Park rangers have presented summertime bat flight programs since 1929, making Carlsbad Caverns National Park one of the best-known bat colonies in the world.

During the nightly programs, rangers dispel myths and extol the virtues of bats as the nocturnal creatures spiral out of the cavern on their nightly forage for insects.

Live NPR Coverage of Presidential Speech Thu. 5/23 12p: President Obama will give a major speech today on drone airstrikes overseas and issues with detainees at Guantanamo prison in Cuba.

We'll bring you live NPR coverage of the President's speech followed by analysis from NPR's counter-terrorism reporter Dina Temple-Raston and Senior Washington Editor Ron Elving. 

New Mexicans qualifying for extended unemployment benefits next month will have their payments reduced by 25 percent because of federal spending cutbacks.

The Department of Workforce Solutions estimated Wednesday the cuts initially could affect 2,100 people.

The reductions won't apply to people currently in the state-funded unemployment compensation program offering 26 weeks of benefits. However, they will face cuts if after June 2 they qualify for assistance through federally-financed extensions of benefits, which can continue payments for an additional 28 weeks.

A transgender student at an Albuquerque high school has skipped his graduation over a dispute about what color robe he had to wear.

Officials at St. Pius X Catholic School insisted that because Damian Garcia was born as a girl, he must wear a white robe along with the other girls at Wednesday's graduation ceremony.

Garcia wanted to wear a black robe like other male students.

He was named Brandi until legally changing his name last year.

Some critically ill New Mexicans could end up paying more for their health care this year.

Almost 16 hundred New Mexicans are slated to be shifted out of a state high risk medical insurance pool into a new federal health coverage plan on July 1st. That's because the federal government is cutting funding for the state program to just over 12 million dollars.

But the new plan would cost more for the patients, many of whom suffer from HIV/AIDS, cancer, and diabetes -chronic diseases that are often quite expensive to treat.

The New Mexico Supreme Court has unsealed records indicating that a San Miguel County probate judge faced allegations of misconduct when he retired in March.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that the records included a Judicial Standards Commission notice of former proceedings against then-Judge Joe Horace Lucero.

A judge in the case of a former Albuquerque police officer accused of killing his wife has agreed to unseal most of the pre-trial documents sought by media outlets.

But Sandoval District Court George Eichwald ruled Wednesday that some documents should remain private because he is concerned that if potential jurors hear the information Levi Chavez won't get a fair trial.

Eichwald last month had granted a request from Chavez's attorney, David Serna, to seal all pretrial motions in advance of the June trial.

The family of a 21-year-old woman killed in a February automobile collision involving an Albuquerque police vehicle is suing the city.

The lawsuit filed May 15 in state District Court by the family of Ashley Browder contends the Albuquerque Police Department has a history of illegal and unsafe driving by officers.

Browder was killed Feb. 10 when an SUV driven by her sister collided at an intersection with a police SUV driven by Sgt. Adam Casaus. The sister was seriously injured.

Santa Fe has a new, four-legged jail officer.

Bixi Von Der Critterden is a 19-month-old drug-sniffing German Shepherd.

Warden Mark Gallegos says the jail hired Bixi as a proactive approach to meeting the goal of a drug-free jail. She has been on the job about a month, and Gallegos says her performance is outstanding.

Bixi was trained by Kevin Sheldahl, who runs and certifies K9 Services for Federal Agencies as well as for the New Mexico Department of Corrections.

The New Mexico Game Commission will be meeting in Roswell to consider revising the hunting season for squirrels and grouse and the renewal of a lease that would allow access to state trust land.

The daylong meeting is scheduled for Thursday at the New Mexico Military Institute.

The grouse and squirrel proposal is aimed at simplifying the current hunting seasons, which are divided into north and south zones with different dates.

The federal government has awarded more than $15 million to water reclamation and reuse projects in California and New Mexico.

The Interior Department announced the funding Tuesday. The money comes from the department's WaterSMART program and can be used for planning, design and construction.

In New Mexico, nearly $1.9 million was awarded for the Albuquerque Metropolitan Area Water Reclamation and Reuse Project, which calls for expanding the treatment system at the Southside Water Reclamation Plant.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez has been named to a National Governors Association task force on health care.

The organization announced Tuesday the panel will consider how states can improve the delivery of quality health care while controlling the costs of Medicaid, a program jointly financed by states and the federal government to provide medical services for the needy.

Other members of the task force on health care sustainability are governors from Oregon, Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, California, New York, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Maryland and Nevada.

New Mexico children could win a trip to Disney's Animal Kingdom or ride in a hot air balloon with Gov. Susana Martinez under a program that state officials hope will encourage students to read when they aren't in school.

The governor is to announce several reading contests on Wednesday in Albuquerque. The state is partnering with private and public organizations, including the city of Albuquerque, the University of New Mexico and the Albuquerque Isotopes.

Oil production in New Mexico has increased by nearly 50 percent over the last three years, making it one of five western states that have helped boost national production over the last three years.

Statistics from the U.S. Energy Information Administration show onshore oil production increased nationally by more than 2 million barrels a day — or nearly two-thirds — between February 2010 and February 2013.

North Dakota and Texas have been the driving forces, but New Mexico along with Oklahoma, Wyoming, Colorado and Utah account for 15 percent of the growth.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez will travel to the presidential battleground state of Ohio next month to deliver the keynote speech at a Republican Party dinner.

Ohio GOP Party chairman-elect Matt Borges said in a statement that Martinez will speak at the state party's annual dinner June 29 in Columbus.

Martinez is the nation's first female Hispanic governor and the first woman elected as governor of New Mexico.

The first-term governor recently was named by Time magazine to its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

The U.S. Marshals Service in Albuquerque has auctioned seized vehicles and raised more than $200,000.

The agency said the auction over the weekend netted $212,175 for law enforcement and victims of crime groups. Among the items auctioned were a 1980 Chevrolet Corvette that sold for $3,800 and a 2005 Chevrolet Corvette that sold for $20,500.

Officials say the items auctioned once belonged to individuals and companies involved in criminal activity.

New Mexico State University is seeking to help ranchers with wildlife management and brush control amid a dangerous fire season.

The school is hosting a wildlife management round-table discussion Tuesday at the Southwest Center for Rangeland Sustainability for area ranchers.

Shad Cox, ranch manager of the Corona Range and Livestock Research Center, says reduced income for ranchers due to drought conditions has made managing wildlife for income diversification a very important component to land management.

The Sundance Film Institute says four Native American filmmakers will be on the Mescalero Apache reservation in Southern New Mexico this week. The visit is the first stage of development for Native writers and directors hoping to release independent films in the coming years.

New Mexico Department of Health officials want to help any victims of an unlicensed tooth doctor who was operating as a "mobile dentist" out of a sedan around Santa Fe.

State health officials are offering counseling and testing services for any victims of a man known as "El Dentista."

The services include no-cost confidential blood tests and referrals for additional services if needed.

Santa Fe police are trying to build a strong case against 36-year-old Eliver Kestler, also known as Eliver Lopez.

New sets of twin arrows are beckoning travelers on Interstate 40 in northern Arizona.

A grand opening for the Twin Arrows Navajo Casino Resort is set for Friday. It's the Navajo Nation's first casino in Arizona, about 20 miles east of Flagstaff.

The 267,000 square-foot building sits across the interstate from an old trading post and rest stop known for the giant twin arrows that point toward the ground.

The League of United Latin American Citizens says two recent cases of Spanish being banned at New Mexico high school games are examples of a "disturbing" pattern.

Ralph Arellanes, New Mexico LULAC state director, said Monday that the group has heard of a least five cases of high school players being ordered this school year not to speaking Spanish. Arellanes says LULAC will begin an aggressive effort to monitor future cases, and if necessary, will file lawsuits.

  Thousands of people in New Mexico are still looking for work or at least better jobs even as the state's unemployment rate is down.

The Department of Workforce Solutions reports that New Mexico's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.7 percent in April, down from 6.9 percent in March and 7 percent in April 2012.

The department says New Mexico gained about 7,900 jobs during the past 12 months, for a 1 percent growth rate.

The New Mexico Arts Commission says seven artists and supporters of the arts are recipients of this year's Governor's Awards for Excellence in the Arts.

An awards ceremony is scheduled Sept. 27 in Santa Fe at the New Mexico Museum of Arts and there will be a reception in the state Capitol.

The recipients are Rio Rancho painter and printmaker Edward Gonzales, Santa Fe painter Darren Vigil Gray, Taos musician Jenny Vincent, Taos painter and furniture maker Jim Wagner and Santa Fe potter Frank Willett.

Albuquerque's Board of Ethics will hold a preliminary hearing over a complaint filed by Pete Dinelli's mayoral campaign against incumbent Richard Berry.

The Albuquerque Journal reports that Dinelli's campaign has alleged Berry violated the city's ban on accepting campaign donations from city contractors.

The Berry campaign contends it's in full compliance with campaign laws.

The U.S. Forest Service expects to close its public comment period in mid-June on a draft environmental impact statement for the proposed Roca Honda uranium mine near Mount Taylor.

Strathmore Minerals Corp. and Sumitomo Corp. of Japan propose to sink one or two shafts to depths of 2,000 feet or more below three sections of Forest Service and state lands about 22 miles northeast of Grants.

The proposal has plenty of support from the local business community, but faces strong opposition from environmental and Native American groups.

The Navajo Nation Police Department has gone five years having without a permanent leader.

The police chief's position has been vacant since April 2008 when Police Chief Jim Benally was put on paid leave.

Officials haven't given an explanation as to why Benally was placed on leave.

The Farmington Daily Times reports that the police department has had district commanders take turns filling in as police chief.

Gila National Forest officials say another portion of the popular Catwalk National Recreation Trail is expected to open soon.

Forest employees are replacing an additional quarter mile of the trail and hope to have the work done by Memorial Day.

Glenwood District Ranger Pat Morrison says the U.S. Forest Service recognizes the importance of the trail to local residents and tourists.