New Mexico Releases Details Of Child Vaccine Exemptions - The Associated Press
New Mexico health officials have released the number of vaccine exemptions per school district for 2014, and Quemado tops the list.
The sparsely-populated district in western New Mexico has the highest rate of exemptions per 1,000 students at 40.3. The Santa Fe district has a rate of nearly 21, while the state's largest district in Albuquerque stands at 7.2.
State law requires children be vaccinated to attend school, but it allows exemptions for medical and religious reasons. Schools have to maintain records of the child's immunization records or their exemption forms.
The figures released Thursday show a total of 3,322 students had exemptions in 2014. That's less than 1 percent of New Mexico's school-age children.
Childhood vaccine has been a hot topic amid a measles outbreak that has hit more than 140 people across the nation.
New Mexico House To Take Up Abortion Bills - The Associated Press
The New Mexico House is expected to consider two abortion bills, one banning late-term abortions and the other requiring parental notification 48 hours before ending a minor's pregnancy.
An analyst at the New York-based Guttmacher Insitute says the bills go further than any others proposed in state legislatures across the country. They carve out exemptions for more medical professionals and use "personal conviction" as a reason to refuse services to women seeking abortions.
The legislation comes before the full House Friday afternoon after hours of testimony and debate in committee hearings.
Supporters say the late-term abortion ban is designed to bring New Mexico in line with 42 other states and to give voice to the unborn.
Abortion-rights advocates say women need safe access to abortions, not government interference.
School Votes For Communism-Themed Dance Dubbed 'Prom-Munism' – The Associated Press & KRQE
Seniors at a New Mexico high school have voted to hold a prom with a communism theme, which they've dubbed "prom-munism."
KRQE-TV in Albuquerque reports that Cottonwood Classical Preparatory School students voted online this week for the theme.
Senior Sarah Zachary says many of her classmates are jokesters and they wanted the prom to be funny. But She says lots of students also are intense about politics.
Cottonwood executive director Sam Obenshain says the school's students are in the International Baccalaureate program and are very academically focused.
Obenshain says he plans to talk to students to make sure that the communism theme is something they want to embrace.
Sophomore Cole Page says she didn't find it funny.
The prom is scheduled at the Albuquerque Aquarium on April 25.
New Mexico Senate Panel Eyes Bill On Concussion Rules – The Associated Press
A New Mexico Senate panel is set to debate a measure setting strict guidelines when a middle or high school student athlete could return after suffering a concussion.
The Senate Education Committee is scheduled Friday to discuss a bill that would create rules for coaches when they could allow an athlete back in a game after showing signs of brain injury.
Under the proposal, coaches may let the student resume participation after a week.
The measure also would require coaches to go through training on recognizing brain injuries.
An Associated Press analysis of the 51 youth concussion laws — one in each state and the District of Columbia — found that fewer than half contain all of the key principles in a strict bill passed in Washington state in 2009.
ENMU To Host Two-Week Writing Retreat In Portugal - The Associated Press and Portales News-Tribune
Eastern New Mexico University has announced it will host a two-week writers retreat this summer in Lisbon, Portugal.
The Portales News-Tribune reports that the European retreat will take place from Jun. 28 through July 10.
ENMU English professor Stefan Kiesbye says the school wanted to give students the chance to go abroad and meet internationally renowned authors.
Officials say there will be 12 guest writers at the retreat including Lidia Jorge, whose 2002 book, "The Wind Whistling in the Cranes," received the grand prize of the Portuguese Writers Association.
Kiesbye says the retreat will include workshops and peer reviews to help writers.
Gov. Martinez: Protesting Students Need To Return To Class - The Associated Press and KOAT-TV
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez says students protesting a new required exam have a right to march but they need to return to class.
The Republican governor told KOAT-TV in Albuquerque on Wednesday that the new rigorous test is the best option for New Mexico students.
She says so far the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers exam, or PARCC, is working.
Martinez says when it's time for class, students need to stop protesting and return to their seats.
Her comments come as hundreds of high school students across the state walked out of schools this week to protest the PARCC.
The backlash came as millions of U.S. students started taking the rigorous tests aligned with Common Core standards that outline math and language skills that should be mastered in each grade.
Effort To Blast Right-To-Work Bill To Senate Floor Fails - The Associated Press
Contentious right-to-work legislation has been assigned to three committees following the objection of Republicans who were unsuccessful in forcing a hearing before the full Senate.
A motion by Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle to bypass the committees failed 25-17 Thursday.
The bill that garnered hours of heated testimony and debate on the House side prohibits requiring workers to join a union or to pay dues as a condition of employment and includes a 50-cent-per-hour minimum wage hike.
The bill would apply to both public and private sectors.
The GOP-controlled House passed the legislation 37-30.
The Democratic leadership in the Senate has said it's united in stopping the legislation, and referring the bill to three committees with two weeks remaining in the 60-day session may help to accomplish that.
New Mexico House Panel Oks New Requirements For Sheriffs - The Associated Press
A proposal that would tighten eligibility rules for all sheriffs in New Mexico has cleared its first hurdle.
The House Safety and Civil Affairs Committee voted unanimously Thursday to approve a bill that would call for sheriffs to have at least seven years of professional experience in law enforcement.
Under the proposal, sheriffs cannot have been convicted on a felony and must be a certified law enforcement officer.
The New Mexico Sheriff's Association supports the changes.
Current state law allows anyone to run for sheriff.
The move comes after former Rio Arriba County Sheriff Thomas Rodella was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for abusing a driver in a bizarre, off-duty traffic stop that prosecutors described as a fit of road rage.
Application Process For New Mexico's Med Marijuana Program - The Associated Press
The New Mexico Department of Health has opened the request for applications period for the licensing of non-profit producers for the medical marijuana program.
There currently are 23 licensed non-profit producers in the program, which are located throughout the state.
No new licensed non-profit producers have been added since 2010.
The health department will accept applications until May 1.
The department also finalized rule changes for the medical marijuana program in February and increased the maximum number of plants that licensed non-profit producers can grow from 150 to 450.
The changes are made to increase the availability of medical marijuana to qualified patients in the program.
Currently, there are 20 qualifying conditions to get in the program and 13,310 patients.
A Million Gallons Of Water Lost In Eunice As Line Breaks - The Associated Press and Hobbs News-Sun
Officials in the southeastern New Mexico city of drought-stricken Eunice say a waterline break has spilled between one to two million gallons of water.
The Hobbs News-Sun reports that the break occurred Tuesday but workers were unable to reach the waterline Wednesday morning because of muddy grounds caused by rain.
The waterline runs from the city's water fields near Hobbs to Eunice
Public works workers located the problem in a break in the line on ranch property north of Nadine.
The break comes on the heels of a water ordinance recently passed by the city council to conserve potable water supplies.
Lawsuit: Albuquerque Police Violated Rights In Shooting - The Associated Press
The estate of a man who was shot and killed by Albuquerque police is suing the department over allegations of civil rights violations.
The lawsuit filed this week in Albuquerque District Court says infrared police helicopter video in the 2013 fatal shooting of 41-year-old Parrish Denison conflicts with an officer's account.
Authorities say Denison, whose name is spelled Dennison in police records, was shot by officers following a two-hour search and chase. Police say he had pointed a gun at officers during the chase involving stolen goods.
The lawsuit says the video shows Denison didn't point a gun before the shooting.
An Albuquerque police spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Court records showed Denison had felony convictions for burglary, drug trafficking and burglary plus other arrests that didn't result in convictions.
Scientists Outline Research Wish List For Nuclear Energy - The Associated Press
Engineers and researchers from national laboratories and universities around the country say the United States needs to develop a proving ground where the latest innovations in nuclear energy can be put to the test.
Until then, scientists and investors will remain frustrated. They say designs already have been finding their way to China and other countries where they can be tested.
Groups gathered at the University of New Mexico, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a few other sites around the country Thursday. It was as part of an effort by U.S. Energy Department to narrow the list of critical research problems the nation needs to address when it comes to nuclear energy.
The findings outlined by the six groups are meant to guide decisions on what research to fund.
Albuquerque Police: Man Hugged 4 Woman At College, Bit 2 - The Associated Press
Albuquerque police are trying to identify a man who hugged four women at a community college and then bit two of them.
Police say the attacks occurred late Tuesday at Central New Mexico Community College's main campus. Details on any injuries from the biting were not released.
Police said they think they have a possible suspect but that they're waiting for the victims to review a photo lineup.
The women reported that they were walking to class when a man who was smiling and wearing a backpack approached them.
The college sent out an alert Wednesday morning that that a man had physically harassed students.
College officials later explaining the alert's timing by saying they were gathering information and trying to determine what happened.
Horse Show To Move To Oklahoma City From Albuquerque - The Associated Press
A prominent national youth horse show is leaving New Mexico for Oklahoma.
The 2015 Arabian and Half-Arabian Youth National Championship Horse Show is slated for July 18-25 in Albuquerque but the Albuquerque Journal reports that the event will move to State Fair Park in Oklahoma City in 2016 through at least 2018.
The event has been held each July at Tingley Coliseum at Expo New Mexico in Albuquerque since 2000.
Expo New Mexico officials said the aging state fairgrounds simply couldn't compete against the Oklahoma facility.
Glenn Petty of the Aurora, Colorado-based Arabian Horse Association, said a key factor in selecting Oklahoma City over Albuquerque were millions of dollars spent on improvements to State Fair Park.
The show draws hundreds of competitors.
Difficult Driving Reported On Some New Mexico Highways - The Associated Press
Difficult driving conditions are reported on numerous highways in northern and eastern New Mexico due to winter weather.
Those highways include Interstate 25 near Raton, between Watrous and Bernal and between Rowe and Villanueva.
The National Weather Service said patches of freezing fog along the eastern slopes of the central mountain chain will lower visibilities to a mile or less Thursday morning.