NM Regulators Accused Of 'Chummy' Relations With Utility – Associated Press
An environmental group says members of a powerful New Mexico regulatory body are too "chummy" with utility executives and should not be making any decisions about the fate of a coal-fired power plant that serves customers around the Southwest.
Santa Fe-based New Energy Economy filed a motion late Wednesday with the Public Regulation Commission, seeking the recusal of four of the panel's five members.
The motion hinges on numerous emails and phone calls that make reference to private meetings, dinners, coffee dates and invitations to conferences and sporting events.
A commission spokesman says the motion was being reviewed by legal counsel.
The commission is considering a plan by PNM that calls for shuttering part of the San Juan Generating Station and replacing the lost capacity with a mix of coal, nuclear, natural gas and renewable energy.
2nd Human Plague Case Is Confirmed In Bernalillo County – The Associated Press
A second human plague case has been confirmed in New Mexico's Bernalillo County.
The New Mexico Department of Health says a 59-year-old woman from Bernalillo County is recovering.
Her name isn't being released.
It's the third human case of plague in New Mexico this year and the second in Bernalillo County.
The other cases in the state occurred in a 52-year-old woman from Santa Fe County who died from the illness and a 65-year-old man from Bernalillo County who recovered.
Plague is a potentially fatal illness in people that occurs in many parts of New Mexico.
It is caused by bacteria found in rodents, especially ground squirrels, rabbits and hares.
Most human cases of plague are acquired through the bite of infected fleas.
Supreme Court To Decide If Judge Must Release Data – The Associated Press
The New Mexico Supreme Court will decide whether judges are subject to public record requests in a case associated with a proposed horse slaughterhouse.
The Albuquerque Journal reports the court heard arguments Wednesday in the case of Valley Meat Co., which requested communications and campaign page Facebook messages from State District Judge Matthew Wilson of Santa Fe.
The company is facing a lawsuit from state Attorney General's Office. The office wants horse slaughter permanently blocked.
In January 2014, the judge issued an injunction to block the company's proposed horse slaughter plant.
Lawyers for the company say Wilson exceeded his judicial immunity by asking his wife, a law library worker, to proofread a draft of the injunction.
Attorney Scott Fuqua is representing Wilson. He argued parties in a lawsuit suing the judge for information may result in intimidation and harassment.
AFT National President To Unveil New Mexico Preschool Plan - Russell Contreras, Associated Press
The American Federation of Teachers is scheduled to unveil a plan aimed at expanding early childhood education in New Mexico amid a stalemate over funding.
AFT national president Randi Weingarten is slated today to join Democratic Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez at a Los Ranchos De Albuquerque preschool to discuss efforts to put pressure on state lawmakers and Gov. Susana Martinez to expand the program.
Under the proposal sponsored by a coalition of groups, a revamped state early education program would include a substitute educator pool, a paid sick leave trust fund and "a scientifically-based" professional development program.
The proposal comes after proponents of expanding early childhood education have clashed with some state lawmakers over tapping into New Mexico's permanent land fund to finance an expansion.
Jail Cells Cleared For Occupancy But Repairs Still Underway – The Associated Press & The Clovis News Journal
Officials say mold is no longer a problem at the Curry County Detention Center, but inmates are still being kept out of their cells while repairs are in progress.
The Clovis News Journal reports an air quality test performed at the jail May 23 detected mold and elevated levels of carbon dioxide in the medical office. Officials said Wednesday that evidence of mold had been removed and carbon dioxide levels are back to normal.
Curry County's public services director and interim jail administrator, Sandra Stewart, says maintenance crews are working to finish paint jobs and ceiling repairs.
She says inmates will return to the vacant pods in about two weeks when the $593,000 roof repair is complete.
Judge Seals $1.5 Million Deal For Dona Ana County Employee – The Associated Press & The Las Cruces-Sun News
A judge has approved more than $1.5 million in damages against the county in the case of a former Dona Ana County internal affairs investigator who says she was wrongfully terminated.
The Las Cruces Sun-News reports the judge signed off on the award Wednesday. Kim Stewart was awarded in July after a jury determined county officials violated her rights under New Mexico's Human Rights Act and Whistleblower Protection Act.
Stewart was fired in 2010. She claims she was dismissed in retaliation, because she had conducted an investigation into Curtis Childress, who was accused of discrimination against Hispanic and African-American county employees.
The county's attorney didn't return a request seeking comment.
Although she was allowed to return to her county position, Stewart's attorney says his client has decided not to.
Teens Take On Preservation Work At National Monuments - The Associated Press
A crew of Native American youth has spent the summer helping on a preservation project at Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico.
The project is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's HOPE initiative, or Hands-On Preservation Experience.
The trust teamed up with the National Park Service and the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps. The goal was to train more young people in preservation skills while helping historical sites on public land. From New Mexico and Arizona to Virginia and Vermont, crews worked on some 30 projects this summer.
At Bandelier, the work has taken on a greater significance because the teens have been restoring structures that were built by their ancestors centuries ago.
House Committee To Investigate Charges Against Sec Of State – Associated Press
The speaker of New Mexico's House of Representatives says he's created a special committee to investigate charges against Secretary of State Dianna Duran.
Don Tripp says he believes it's the "appropriate and responsible next step" for the House to begin the process of determining whether the charges have merit and rise to the level of impeachment.
The state Attorney General has leveled allegations of fraud, embezzlement and money laundering against Duran, who is New Mexico's top elections official.
She is facing a 64-count complaint stemming from allegations she funneled campaign donations into personal bank accounts and withdrew large sums of money from those accounts while frequenting casinos around New Mexico.
Duran's attorney says she hopes the case isn't politically motivated and she's looking forward to addressing the allegations in court.
Body Found In Sandias During Search For Missing Hiker ID'd – Associated Press
A dead body found in the Sandia Mountains has been identified as a hiker who had been missing since last weekend.
New Mexico State Police say the body of 40-year-old Bryan Conkling of Rio Rancho was located around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday about two miles from the top of the La Luz Trail.
The Office of the Medical Investigator will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
Conkling went for an overnight hike on the trail Saturday. He was reported missing when he didn't return home by Sunday night.
Search crews Monday found Conkling's vehicle parked at the La Luz trailhead along with items belonging to him in an area off the trail.
Searchers used canine teams due to rugged terrain with jagged inclines, deep canyons and rocky peaks.
San Juan County Declares State Of Disaster After Storm – The Daily Times, Associated Press
The San Juan County Commission has declared a state of disaster following a violent storm that swept through Aztec and caused what officials estimate is more than $1 million in damage.
The Daily Times reports the commission approved the resolution Tuesday, allowing the county to request state funds to repair public property that was damaged by the Aug. 26 storm.
Officials say the storm's quick rainfall overwhelmed culverts, cut streams into dirt roads, flooded buildings and closed SunRay Park & Casino's horse racing track for the season.
Clay Anderson, a National Weather Service meteorologist, says Aztec and nearby communities were hit with heavy rainfall that totaled between 1.5 and 2 inches. Some residents reported almost 4 inches of rain during the storm.
Mine Spill Prompts Changes In Warning System – The Associated Press
A wastewater spill from a Colorado mine has prompted state officials to expand the list of downstream users they warn after such accidents.
Colorado officials notified only agencies inside their state after 3 million gallons of water tainted with heavy metals gushed out of the Gold King mine Aug. 5, eventually reaching rivers in New Mexico and Utah.
Colorado health department spokesman Mark Salley says the agency is changing its guidelines and will warn downstream states in the future. He says Colorado officials didn't know the magnitude of the spill when they issued their warnings.
New Mexico officials are unhappy because they say the federal Environmental Protection Agency never alerted them, even though an EPA-supervised crew inadvertently triggered the spill.
EPA officials didn't immediately respond to phone calls Wednesday.
New Mexico Collects More Than $150K In Unpaid Child Support – Associated Press
Gov. Susana Martinez says New Mexico's annual bench warrant sweep has collected more than $150,000 in unpaid child support this year.
The governor's office says this year's bench warrant round up led to 110 arrests with a total of almost $77,000 collected so far.
The bench warrant amnesty period led to the collection of about $73,500 from 183 non-custodial parents.
The total amount of child support collected from the round up so far — combined with collections from the amnesty period — is more than $150,000.
The New Mexico Human Services Department's Child Support Enforcement Division, New Mexico State Police and local law enforcement partners across the state acted on more than 550 child support warrants during this year's roundup.
Texas Court Strips Lesser Prairie Chicken Of Protections – Associated Press
A federal court in Texas has vacated Endangered Species Act protections for the lesser prairie chicken.
The ruling is a victory for Texas oil and gas companies that argued the conservation efforts are working. The Permian Basin Petroleum Association said regulations would impede operations and cost hundreds of millions of dollars in oil and gas development in one of the country's most prolific basins.
The nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity said Wednesday that the lesser prairie chicken has lost 85 percent of its habitat.
But the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies says the population increased by 25 percent this year to 29,000 birds.
The U.S. Senate in January rejected an amendment by Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran to remove the lesser prairie chicken from the government's threatened species list.