City Council Allots Funds To Recruit And Retain Police Officers - Albuquerque Journal, Associated Press
The Albuquerque City Council voted on Wednesday night to commit $8.2 million to recruit and retain police officers.
The Albuquerque Journal reports this comes as the number of officers declines. The funds will give most officers a 5.9 percent raise and will help restart a program that provides extra pay to encourage more officers to stay on the force rather than retire.
Councilors also approved $5 million to help settle a lawsuit brought by the police union over raises withheld in 2010.
The number of officers has declined from nearly 1,100 in 2010 to 831. As part of a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice there is a staffing study underway that may recommend upping the number officers in APD.
Councilor Don Harris noted that eventually the city may have to spend $24 million to bring on 300 officers. Councilor Diane Gibson cast the lone dissenting vote against the pay incentives. She said APD had issues with auditors over similar programs in the past.
New Mexico Proposes Pay Hike For New Teachers – The Associated Press
New Mexico Education Secretary Hanna Skandera wants to increase starting salaries for public school teachers by $2,000 to $36,000 next year to better compete with neighboring states.
The 6 percent pay increase would apply to nearly 3,700 new teachers in the fall of 2017 if funding is approved by the Legislature.
An earlier effort by Gov. Susana Martinez's administration to boost base pay by $2,000 was approved by the Legislature during the 2015 session.
Skandera on Thursday urged members of the Legislative Finance Committee to combine the increase in base pay with strategic salary increases for the state's top performing teachers.
Skandera is proposing to double funding for one performance-based incentive program to $15 million.
Audit Points To Weaknesses In Oversight Of Los Alamos Lab – The Associated Press
Investigators are raising flags about weaknesses in the way federal officials keep track of deficiencies, concerns from employees and contractors and other problems at one of the nation's premiere nuclear weapons laboratories.
The findings of the U.S. Department of Energy's inspector general were outlined in an audit released Thursday.
Investigators say the National Nuclear Security Administration's office that oversees operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory has failed to implement an effective management program that includes tracking actions taken to fix problems at the lab.
Watchdogs say the findings are serious since the NNSA's field office serves as the primary check on the lab's safety and operational integrity.
The lab has been docked in recent years for operational and safety violations.
NNSA officials plan to address the recommendations in the audit.
State Seeks Alternate Proposals For New Child Welfare Office – The Associated Press
New Mexico officials are holding off on spending roughly $10 million to buy and office complex to house the Albuquerque offices of the Department of Children, Youth and Families, instead seeking competitive proposals for leased space.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that the administration of Gov. Susana Martinez says it may still fall back on the previous plan to purchase the Albuquerque campus that sold for $1.5 million last spring.
The administration signed an expression of intent to purchase the campus complex at the higher price. Officials said in November that they were not aware of the previous sale price.
At an appearance before the Legislative Finance Committee on Wednesday, CYDF Secretary Monique Jacobson said the General Services Department may be continuing to negotiate for the purchase of the campus, but is pursuing alternate options as a cost-saving measure.
State Officials Expect Spike In Insurance Enrollment – The Associated Press
Though many New Mexico residents have been slow to obtain health insurance through the government's online exchange, officials say they expect a spike in enrollment as deadlines near.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that Dec. 15 is the deadline for those who need health insurance starting Jan. 1 and the second deadline is Jan. 31.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Andy Slavitt says the federal healthcare.gov call center has received millions of calls in the past week and some 65,000 people are visiting the website a day.
New Mexico is one of 37 states that use the federal portal for individuals to purchase insurance.
Statistics indicate New Mexico had 14,675 enrollees as of Dec. 5 compared to 17, 556 on Dec. 15, 2014.
Test Missile Streaks Across Southwest Leaving White Contrail – The Associated Press
An early morning missile test in New Mexico left a white contrail that quickly turned into a corkscrew that was visible for hundreds of miles Thursday.
The unarmed Juno target missile was launched at 6:55 a.m. MST from an old military depot in northwestern New Mexico.
It was aimed at White Sands Missile Range, some 215 miles away, but a White Sands spokesman says it was successfully intercepted over the range by a Patriot missile and disintegrated midair.
Range spokesman Luciano Vera says a second Patriot fired from White Sands self-destructed after the first Patriot hit the target.
The corkscrew-shaped contrail was visible in Phoenix, 245 miles southwest of the launch site.
Child Abuse Cases Overwhelm Social Workers In New Mexico – Associated Press
Child welfare officials are seeking a $12 million budget increase in hopes of lightening the caseloads of the state's overburdened social workers.
The New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department appealed to members of a key legislative committee Wednesday, saying some workers face caseloads that are three times that of federal recommendations.
Of the request, $5 million would pay to fill vacancies and hire 50 new caseworkers to protect neglected children.
The agency says its investigators handle about 17 cases at a time when federal guidelines recommend between 10 and 12 cases.
Once abuse is confirmed, social workers attend to 19 or 20 cases on average when federal guidelines call for no more than 17.
Sen. Howie Morales of Silver City pointed to Socorro County, where he said caseloads reached 43 per worker.
Tribes Express Concern About Reactivation Of New Mexico Mine – Gallup Independent, Associated Press
Leaders form the Laguna, Acoma and Zuni tribes say they are concerned about the possible reactivation of Rio Grande Resources' underground mine in western New Mexico.
The company has applied to change the status of its permit for the Mount Taylor Mine from standby to active.
The Gallup Independent reports that Mount Taylor is a site of cultural and religious significance for as many as 30 Native American tribes. The mountain also sits atop one of the richest uranium ore reserves in the Grants Uranium Belt.
Zuni Tribal Council member Carlton Bowekaty said at a hearing Friday that the Pueblo of Zuni is opposed to mining where cultural properties are affected.
Laguna-Acoma Coalition for a Safe Environment Vice President Petuuche Gilbert said it is vital that tribes be consulted about any action taken on Mount Taylor.
Prosecutors Say Verdict In Transient Deaths 'Just' – Associated Press
Prosecutors say a second-degree murder conviction against a 20-year-old Albuquerque man in the deaths of two homeless men is "just."
Assistant District Attorney Vincent Martinez says that while his team pushed for a jury to find Alex Rios guilty of first-degree murder, prosecutors are satisfied with Wednesday's outcome.
Rios and two teenagers were charged with beating Kee Thompson and Allison Gorman to death with cinder blocks and other items as they slept in July 2014.
Rios' attorney, Daniel Salazar, had argued that his client witnessed the attack in a vacant lot but didn't participate.
He says the verdict shows jurors didn't find Rios as "culpable as the others" accused in the case. Salazar says he believes jurors held Rios accountable for his inaction the night of the killings.
Interior Secretary: No Criminal Acts In Colorado Mine Spill – Associated Press
Interior Secretary Sally Jewell says she's seen no evidence of criminal negligence in a toxic wastewater spill triggered by federal workers at an inactive Colorado gold mine.
Jewell said during congressional testimony Wednesday that the 3 million-gallon spill was clearly an accident by a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency crew. She says the Aug. 5 case highlights the hazards posed by tens of thousands of abandoned mines across the country.
Republicans counter that Interior's investigation into the spill amounted to a "whitewash" that fails to hold the EPA accountable.
House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop is asking the non-partisan Government Accountability Office to review Interior's investigation.
The spill from the Gold King Mine unleashed a surge of arsenic, lead and other contaminants that fouled rivers in Colorado, New Mexico and Utah.
Army Preps For Missile Launch To Spur Calls Across Southwest – Associated Press
Authorities across the Southwest are preparing to be inundated with calls and emails from people who might catch a glimpse of the contrail that will be left behind by an early morning missile test.
Officials at White Sands Missile Range say the Juno missile will be launched Thursday morning from an old military depot in western New Mexico.
On its way to White Sands, the missile will drop a booster into a safety zone north of Datil, New Mexico. Roadblocks have been set up in the area.
A similar launch in 2012 created a buzz when reports flooded in about a colorful contrail that was visible from southern Colorado, Salt Lake City, Phoenix and Las Vegas.
This time, officials are sharing information about the launch with communities as far away as Palm Springs, California.
Activists Eye 'Letters Of Support' For New Mexico Muslims – Associated Press
Advocates in Albuquerque say they will launch a letter-writing campaign in support of New Mexico Muslims.
Activists from the Blessed Oscar Romero Catholic Community and the Albuquerque Center for Peace & Justice are scheduled to meet Thursday to write letters and sign postcards in support of the Islamic Center of New Mexico in Albuquerque.
Rev. Francis Quintana of the Catholic group says the campaign is aimed at fighting anti-Muslim sentiment after comments by GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump.
The candidate recently suggested the country should halt all Muslim immigration and said the federal government should monitor Muslim Americans.
Quintana says the letters will offer support and solidarity to members of the Albuquerque-based mosque.