New Mexico Officials To Roll Out New Revenue Estimates – Associated Press
New Mexico's top finance officials are expected to outline new revenue projections that will shape how lawmakers begin to set budget priorities ahead of January's legislative session.
How much money they'll have to spend depends largely on the state of the energy market and oil prices, which have dropped from over $100 a barrel in June 2014 to less than $50.
According to analysts, every $1 change in the price of oil has a $10 million effect on New Mexico's general funds.
The head of the state Department of Finance and Administration will outline the latest projections during Monday's meeting of the Legislative Finance Committee in Santa Fe.
In August, the department estimated that New Mexico could see $293 million in new revenue for the 2017 fiscal year.
Gov. Martinez: Obama 'Politicizes Tragedy' With Gun Control – The Associated Press
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez says President Barack Obama's call for stricter gun control only "politicizes tragedy" after the San Bernardino, California, shooting.
The Republican and nation's only Latina governor said Monday in Albuquerque that Obama's call to ban those on the federal "no-fly" list from purchasing firearms would have done nothing to stop the shooting. She says such gun control measures would only take firearms from Americans.
Martinez says some Americans also appear in the federal "no-fly" list by mistake.
Martinez, a rising star in the GOP and a gun owner, says Obama's address to the nation on Sunday night gave "no solutions, nothing new whatsoever" to fighting terrorism.
The president's speech followed Wednesday's shooting in San Bernardino, California, that killed 14 people and wounded 21.
New Mexico Dairy Employee Sentenced In Animal Cruelty Case – The Associated Press
A former employee at a New Mexico dairy has been sentenced to 364 days behind bars after pleading no contest to animal cruelty.
Prosecutors say Jose Luis Zuniga-Lira was one of four Winchester Dairy workers charged in April after undercover video showed them whipping cows with chains and wire cables and kicking and punching the animals.
Cases are pending for three other employees, who are facing a total of seven counts of animal cruelty.
Zuniga-Lira entered his plea last Friday in Chaves County District Court.
The dairy near Roswell ceased operations in September 2014 after an undercover investigation by Los Angeles-based Mercy For Animals.
Winchester Dairy subsequently halted milking operations, stopped shipments to all vendors and dispersed thousands of cows to other dairies with strong track records in animal welfare.
PRC Says Uber Still Dodging State Rules – Santa Fe New Mexican
The Public Regulation Commission says ride sharing service Uber is still operating in New Mexico even thought it does not have legal authority to do so.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that the PRC Commissioner Valerie Espinoza says no state body has moved to halt Uber's operations. The PRC regulates other motor services such as buses and cabs. Uber has argued here and elsewhere that it should not be subject to the same rules as those other carriers because it’s merely connecting independent drivers and customers via smartphone.
Attempts to pass legislation to clarify rules governing ride sharing services like Uber and Lyft have failed so far. The PRC did enact rules earlier this year but dropped those several months ago and plans to revise them.
Meanwhile cab companies have sued to get the Supreme Court to block Uber from operating. Rep. Monica Youngblood told the New Mexican that she will introduce legislation in the next session to provide guidelines for ride sharing services.
Martinez Wants Judges Monitored In Drunken Driving Cases – The Associated Press
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez wants to step up roundups of drunken-driving fugitives and have citizen watchdogs monitor judges who are routinely lenient on drunken-driving suspects.
Those are parts of new executive orders the Republican announced Monday to "crack down" on crimes related to drunken driving.
The moves comes days after police say a man accused of drunken driving killed three people in an Albuquerque crash. Authorities say he was previously arrested on a DWI charge, but prosecutors failed to make court deadlines and the case was dismissed.
Martinez says she has ordered an increase in state police presence along highways in Farmington and Gallup where the state sees its highest drunken-driving related crimes.
Last month, Martinez announced a $300,000 ad campaign featuring police officers telling stories about drunken-driving crashes.
New Mexico Lawmaker Will Take Work Leave While In Santa Fe – The Associated Press
A New Mexico state representative plans to take an unpaid leave of absence from his work as a Bernalillo County attorney while serving in Santa Fe during the upcoming legislative session.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that the requirement for unpaid leave is written into Rep. Ken Martinez' contract with the county. The Grants Democrat says he volunteered to take leave without pay to avoid any controversy.
Bernalillo County commissioners are set to consider the two-year agreement Tuesday. Martinez would take over as county attorney later this month.
A 30-day legislative session begins in January. Martinez has said he won't run for re-election after his term expires at the end of next year.
He has served in the Legislature for 17 years and is a former speaker of the House.
Albuquerque Test-Driving Electric Buses – KOB-TV, Associated Press
Albuquerque's public transit system has been testing out buses completely powered by electricity.
KOB-TV in Albuquerque reports ABQ Ride has been trying out buses that do not need diesel fuel.
ABQ Ride spokesman Rick De Reyes says the city is considering the buses as one way to lower the amount of emissions and save potentially thousands of dollars in fuel costs.
The buses take three hours to charge and can go for up to 150 miles.
De Reyes says the buses are also a lot quieter.
Bus and coach company BYD employees are test-driving them.
According to ABQ Ride, a regular diesel bus costs about $850,000.
An electric bus costs an estimated $1.2 million.
Credit Union's Name Will Adorn New Mexico's Tallest Building - The Associated Press & The ABQ Journal
New Mexico's tallest building will display the name of a credit union, breaking a pattern of banks seeking signage rights on the state's skyscrapers.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that U.S. Eagle Federal Credit Union's name will replace the Bank of Albuquerque sign on the 22-story Albuquerque Plaza building in downtown.
The building is owned by an investment group led by local businessman Jim Long. He says he's thrilled to have U.S. Eagle FCU acquire the rights and says he's used the credit union for nearly five decades.
U.S. Eagle President and CEO Marsha Majors said in a statement that the signage rights are a unique opportunity for New Mexico's oldest credit union.
The Bank of Albuquerque has had its name on the building since the end of 1998.
'Breaking Bad' Photographer Set To Share Images From Show – The Associated Press
A still photographer for the AMC-TV hit "Breaking Bad," and its spin-off prequel "Better Call Saul," is set to share her images at a special Albuquerque Museum event.
Ursula Coyote is scheduled Sunday to discuss her favorite images from the Albuquerque productions as both television shows continue to generate interest in the city where it was filmed.
"Breaking Bad" follows former high school teacher Walter White, played by Bryan Cranston, producing methamphetamine with a former student, Jesse Pinkman, played by Aaron Paul. It ended in 2013.
"Better Call Saul" follows Jimmy McGill, played by Bob Odenkirk, who later changes his name to Saul Goodman and becomes an attorney for drug lords in "Breaking Bad."
"Better Call Saul" is scheduled to begin its second season Feb. 15.
Group Challenges Ruling On State Funding Private Textbooks – Farmington Daily Times, Associated Press
A religious-liberty advocacy group is challenging a New Mexico Supreme Court ruling that the state's practice of buying textbooks for private and religious schools is unconstitutional.
The Daily Times in Farmington reports that an Albuquerque law firm representing the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty filed a motion for rehearing last month.
The high court issued its ruling Nov. 12, reversing a previous Court of Appeals decision that said the practice was allowed.
Advocates of the program say that money for the books is governed by federal law because the funds are provided by federal mineral leases.
Attorney Eric Baxter says the court wrongly assumes that some of the funds were from state land and are subject to the New Mexico Constitution.
The ruling stems from a 2012 lawsuit.
City Records Indicate Possible O'Keeffe Museum Expansion – Santa Fe New Mexican, Associated Press
The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe is considering a major expansion, according to city documents.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that documents obtained through an open-records request reveal emails and sketches that reference a future museum at the current site of the O'Keefe Education Annex.
Roxanne Decyk, president of the museum's Board of Trustees, denied a proposed project was in the works when reached by phone Saturday.
Decyk says the museum can't afford any expansion.
The newspaper says the documents show museum and city officials have been having discussions for months about an expansion that could affect a $2.5 million transit center improvement project.
The museum is considered one of Santa Fe's biggest tourism draws since it opened in 1997.
Nearly 160,000 visited last year.
Rape Charges Refiled Against Former New Mexico Police Chief – Albuquerque Journal, Associated Press
A former New Mexico police chief is again facing charges that he raped a woman while she was in police custody.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that former Jemez Springs Police Chief Shane Harger was indicted Friday on multiple charges including criminal sexual contact and kidnapping.
The case was dismissed in September because of prosecutorial errors.
The refiled charges include four additional counts of tampering with evidence and one of making a false report.
Prosecutors say the 19-year-old woman and three men were stopped by police in 2013.
She alleges Harger later raped her at the police station.
Thomas Grover, an attorney for Harger, did not immediately return a message seeking comment Saturday.
Harger was fired in February 2014 after Transportation Security Administration agents discovered he had two names.
Poet Laureate Herrera To Give Albuquerque Reading – Associated Press
The first Mexican-American poet laureate of the United States is making a visit to New Mexico for a series of events.
U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera is scheduled Monday to hold an educational writer's exchange and public reading at the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque.
A question and answer session and book signing will follow the public presentation.
Herrera, who was named poet laureate by the Library of Congress, is the son of migrant California farmworkers. He earned his master's degree at the Iowa Writers' Workshop and is author of 28 books of poetry, novels for young adults and collections for children.
His poetry books include "Half the World in Light" and "187 Reasons Mexicanos Can't Cross the Border."