Crooked Bough News Round-up

— Trump orders list of ‘sanctuary cities’ to target for funding freeze

 

at 4/28/25 6:55pm

President Donald Trump speaks during an executive order signing in the Oval Office on Feb. 11, 2025. Trump signed two immigration-related orders on Monday in an event closed to press photographers. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Monday evening signed executive orders targeting so-called sanctuary cities by threatening to revoke federal funding and providing legal services and national security assets to law enforcement. The signings fell on the eve of Trump’s first 100 days of his second term, during which his administration has enacted an immigration crackdown that has led to clashes with the judiciary branch and cities that do not coordinate with federal immigration authorities, often referred to as “sanctuary cities.” “Some State and local officials nevertheless continue to use their authority to violate, obstruct, and defy the enforcement of Federal immigration laws,” according to the executive order regarding sanctuary cities. “This is a lawless insurrection against the supremacy of Federal law and the Federal Government’s obligation to defend the territorial sovereignty of the United States.” The order directs the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security to publicly list local jurisdictions that limit cooperation with immigration officials, but do not stop immigration enforcement. Jurisdictions on the list will then be reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget to “identify appropriate Federal funds to sanctuary jurisdictions, including grants and contracts, for suspension or termination, as appropriate.” This is not the first time the Trump administration has targeted jurisdictions that don’t fully cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.  The Justice Department recently filed a lawsuit against the city of Rochester, New York, over its immigration policies after local law enforcement did not assist federal immigration officials in an arrest. The Trump administration argued those ordinances in Rochester were impeding federal immigration enforcement. The president also signed an executive order in January that threatened to withhold federal funding from states and local governments that refused to aid in federal immigration enforcement activities. A federal judge in San Francisco last week blocked the Trump administration from withholding federal funds from 16 so-called sanctuary cities. Republicans have also scrutinized those policies, including during a six-hour hearing of the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that included grilling mayors from Boston, Chicago and Denver, on their cities’ immigration policies.  The executive order also aims to curb any federal benefits that may extend to people without permanent legal status. That executive order directed DOJ and DHS to “take appropriate action to stop the enforcement of State and local laws” that allow for students without proper legal authorization to receive in-state tuition, which would include those with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Last week, administration officials cheered the FBI arrest of a Wisconsin judge who they say helped an immigrant in the country without legal authorization escape detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The arrest followed the third appearance by ICE officers seeking to make arrests at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, a practice some experts believe hinders local law enforcement. Law enforcement resources A second executive order Trump signed Monday provides legal resources for law enforcement officials “who unjustly incur expenses and liabilities for actions taken during the performance of their official duties to enforce the law.” The order also directs coordination among the departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security to “increase the provision of excess military and national security assets in local jurisdictions to assist State and local law enforcement.”  Earlier Monday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the executive order relating to law enforcement will “strengthen and unleash America’s law enforcement to pursue criminals and protect innocent citizens.”  

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics, alan webber, Albuquerque, New Mexico, sanctuary cities, Santa Fe, Tim Keller, Trump]

— Feds arrest former New Mexico judge and wife for alleged evidence tampering in immigration case

 

at 4/28/25 4:31pm

Jose Luis “Joel” Cano and Nancy Cano. (Photos courtesy of the Doña Ana County Detention Center)Federal authorities arrested a former New Mexico magistrate judge and his wife on April 24 on criminal charges of evidence tampering related to the prosecution of an alleged gang member from Venezuela. The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday announced it had charged former Doña Ana County Magistrate Jose Luis “Joel” Cano with one count of evidence tampering and his wife Nancy Cano with one count of conspiracy to tamper with evidence. Prosecutors allege that Jose Cano told Homeland Security Investigations agents that he had destroyed a cell phone belonging to Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, a Venezuelan national prosecutors allege has ties to the Tren de Aragua gang. HSI in February searched the Canos’ home and arrested Ortega-Lopez for illegal possession of guns and ammunition, according to the DOJ’s news release. The DOJ said agents seized three of Ortega-Lopez’s cell phones, but he told them about a fourth one, which prompted another search wherein Cano allegedly admitted to destroying it with a hammer. “Judges are responsible for upholding our country’s laws. It is beyond egregious for a former judge and his wife to engage in evidence tampering on behalf of a suspected Tren de Aragua gang member accused of illegally possessing firearms,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison for the District of New Mexico said in a statement. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to dismantling this foreign terrorist organization by disrupting its criminal operations in New Mexico. That starts by prosecuting those who support gang members — including judges.” The DOJ announced the charges against the Canos in the same news release in which they announced the arrest of a Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah C. Dugan for allegedly allowing a Mexican immigrant charged with domestic violence to temporarily avoid arrest by federal agents. “The allegations against Judge Dugan and Judge Cano are serious: no one, least of all a judge, should obstruct law enforcement operations,” U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “Doing so imperils the safety of our law enforcement officers and undermines the rule of law. The Department of Justice will continue to follow the facts — no one is above the law.” In the New Mexico case, immigration authorities arrested Ortega-Lopez in December 2023 in Texas for unlawfully entering the U.S., and released him in April 2024 because of overcrowding at the detention center where he was being held, according to court records. An anonymous source in January tipped off the Homeland Security Investigations office in Las Cruces that Ortega-Lopez and two others were living in an apartment behind the Canos’ home, an HSI special agent wrote in an application for a search warrant. The Judicial Standards Commission on March 5 petitioned the Supreme Court to suspend Cano for allegedly committing misconduct by allowing three members of the gang to live on his property in Las Cruces and to have access to firearms. In a response, Jose Cano wrote to the Supreme Court justices that Ortega-Lopez told Nancy Cano that the trio “all had their legal papers to remain in the U.S. pending their Asylum Court hearings, which were already scheduled,” and that he had verified their court dates. Jose Cano resigned as a magistrate judge on March 21, according to court records. The New Mexico Supreme Court on April 22 barred Cano from holding any judicial office or exercising any judicial authority.  Both Canos are scheduled for preliminary and detention hearings Tuesday morning in federal court in Las Cruces. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Criminal Justice, Gov & Politics, Immigration, immigration, public corruption]

— The Office of the Child Advocate could help CYFD earn back our trust

 

at 4/28/25 2:06pm

The State of New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department, 1031 Lamberton Place NE in Albuquerque, photographed on Friday December 18, 2015. (Dean Hanson/Albuquerque Journal)As an advocate for children in foster care and a former foster parent myself, I was heartened to see lawmakers prioritize reforms to the state’s Children, Youth, and Families Department (CYFD) during the recent legislative session, and grateful to see several critical reforms signed into law. These new laws will help bring much needed transparency, accountability, and oversight to the troubled agency, so it can better serve New Mexico’s kids and their families.  But I am deeply troubled that Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham line-item vetoed crucial funding for one of these important reforms: the Office of the Child Advocate, a new, independent office that will oversee child well-being in the state. Earlier this year, the governor pleasantly surprised me by acknowledging the need for significant change at CYFD in her State of the State speech. For several years now, her administration has resisted calls from advocates like me, members of the public, and lawmakers for greater oversight of the agency. I felt like maybe our calls were finally being heard.  Since then, however, her words and actions tell a different story. While the governor signed the legislation creating this office, House Bill 5, she wrote a poison pen message as she did so, accusing those who championed the bill of pursuing a “vendetta” against her and attempting to “intimidate” CYFD staff. She even told a reporter that she was concerned the bill’s supporters were using children and families “as some sort of political effort to harm or discredit another elected official.”  The harms we should be worried about are not political. Too many children have already paid the price for CYFD’s mistakes and failures. Too many kids have been harmed or even killed on CYFD’s watch. Those of us who are pushing for change are doing it for one reason only: to better protect our kids.  While I know that most of the agency’s frontline staff are hardworking individuals who are dedicating their careers to helping kids, the agency has long been plagued by a culture of secrecy and defensiveness. That culture has undermined CYFD’s ability to accomplish its mission and resulted in a loss of public trust that makes it harder to hire new caseworkers and recruit foster families.  The Office of the Child Advocate will help restore that trust by giving kids a stronger voice within the system that is supposed to keep them safe. The Child Advocate will investigate and resolve complaints from children and families involved with CYFD and report on the agency’s progress and challenges to help us understand what else needs to change.  Legislators allocated $1 million dollars in this year’s $10.8 billion dollar state budget to help the Office of the Child Advocate get off the ground. That’s a small price to pay to improve the well-being of the most vulnerable children in our state and help CYFD begin to earn back our trust.  Thankfully, New Mexico’s Attorney General has indicated that the state’s Department of Justice can help make up for the vetoed funding. By vetoing this funding and taking efforts to reform CYFD personally, the governor has only proven the necessity of outside oversight.

[Category: Commentary, AG Raul Torrez, children, CYFD, foster children, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, maralyn Beck, Youth and Families Department]

— The Office of the Child Advocate Could Help CYFD Earn Back Our Trust

 

at 4/28/25 2:06pm

The State of New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department, 1031 Lamberton Place NE in Albuquerque, photographed on Friday December 18, 2015. (Dean Hanson/Albuquerque Journal)As an advocate for children in foster care and a former foster parent myself, I was heartened to see lawmakers prioritize reforms to the state’s Children, Youth, and Families Department (CYFD) during the recent legislative session, and grateful to see several critical reforms signed into law. These new laws will help bring much needed transparency, accountability, and oversight to the troubled agency, so it can better serve New Mexico’s kids and their families.  But I am deeply troubled that Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham line-item vetoed crucial funding for one of these important reforms: the Office of the Child Advocate, a new, independent office that will oversee child well-being in the state. Earlier this year, the governor pleasantly surprised me by acknowledging the need for significant change at CYFD in her State of the State speech. For several years now, her administration has resisted calls from advocates like me, members of the public, and lawmakers for greater oversight of the agency. I felt like maybe our calls were finally being heard.  Since then, however, her words and actions tell a different story. While the governor signed the legislation creating this office, House Bill 5, she wrote a poison pen message as she did so, accusing those who championed the bill of pursuing a “vendetta” against her and attempting to “intimidate” CYFD staff. She even told a reporter that she was concerned the bill’s supporters were using children and families “as some sort of political effort to harm or discredit another elected official.”  The harms we should be worried about are not political. Too many children have already paid the price for CYFD’s mistakes and failures. Too many kids have been harmed or even killed on CYFD’s watch. Those of us who are pushing for change are doing it for one reason only: to better protect our kids.  While I know that most of the agency’s frontline staff are hardworking individuals who are dedicating their careers to helping kids, the agency has long been plagued by a culture of secrecy and defensiveness. That culture has undermined CYFD’s ability to accomplish its mission and resulted in a loss of public trust that makes it harder to hire new caseworkers and recruit foster families.  The Office of the Child Advocate will help restore that trust by giving kids a stronger voice within the system that is supposed to keep them safe. The Child Advocate will investigate and resolve complaints from children and families involved with CYFD and report on the agency’s progress and challenges to help us understand what else needs to change.  Legislators allocated $1 million dollars in this year’s $10.8 billion dollar state budget to help the Office of the Child Advocate get off the ground. That’s a small price to pay to improve the well-being of the most vulnerable children in our state and help CYFD begin to earn back our trust.  Thankfully, New Mexico’s Attorney General has indicated that the state’s Department of Justice can help make up for the vetoed funding. By vetoing this funding and taking efforts to reform CYFD personally, the governor has only proven the necessity of outside oversight.

[Category: Commentary, AG Raul Torrez, children, CYFD, foster children, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, maralyn Beck, Youth and Families Department]

— Trump border czar defends removal of U.S. citizen children

 

at 4/28/25 12:35pm

White House Border Czar Tom Homan talks with reporters on the driveway outside the White House West Wing on March 17, 2025. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)WASHINGTON — White House border czar Tom Homan on Monday blamed the parents of U.S. citizen children the Trump administration sent to Honduras over the weekend. At a Monday morning press conference, Homan defended the government’s actions to remove three young children from two different families alongside their mothers who were in the country without legal authorization but participated in a program that allows otherwise law-abiding migrants to stay in their communities. “If you enter this country illegally, it’s a crime,” Homan said. “Knowing you’re in this country illegally, you put yourself in that position. You put your family in that position.” The children, all under the age of 10, were placed on deportation flights to Honduras on Friday after their mothers checked in with a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in New Orleans as part of the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, which allows immigrants to stay in their communities while undergoing immigration court proceedings. An attorney for one of the children, Gracie Willis at the National Immigration Project, said the 4-year-old U.S. citizen with Stage 4 cancer was deported without access to his medication. Homan has argued the mothers requested to be deported with their children, but attorneys for the families argue they were “denied access to legal counsel, and swiftly deported without due process.” Due process concerns U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty, whom Trump appointed to a seat on the Louisiana federal bench in 2018, expressed concern that a 2-year-old U.S. citizen had been deported, despite her father’s wishes she remain in the U.S., according to court filings. Doughty scheduled a May 16 hearing because of his “strong suspicion that the government just deported a U.S. citizen with no meaningful process.” “The government contends that this is all okay because the mother wishes that the child be deported with her,” Doughty wrote in his order. “But the court doesn’t know that.” Willis, from the National Immigration Project, raised concerns about a lack of due process and how the deportations have separated families. “What we saw from ICE over the last several days is horrifying and baffling,” she said in a statement. “These mothers had no opportunity to speak with their co-parents to make the kinds of choices that parents are entitled to make for their children, the kinds of decisions that millions of parents make every day: ‘what is best for our child?’” Homan has argued the children were deported at the request of the mothers and that the Trump administration was “keeping families together.” “What we did is remove children with their mothers who requested their children depart with them,” he said. “When a parent says, ‘I want my 2-year-old baby to go with me,’ we made that happen. They weren’t deported. We don’t deport U.S. citizens. The parents made that decision, not the United States government.” Wisconsin judge Monday’s remarks from Homan come the day before President Donald Trump will mark the 100th day of his second term. His early days in office have centered on carrying out his campaign promise of mass deportations of millions of people in the U.S. without permanent legal status. Trump will sign two executive orders on immigration late Monday: one relating to border security and another to require the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security to publicly list so-called sanctuary cities that do not coordinate with federal immigration law enforcement. Homan also stood by the Trump administration’s decision to arrest a federal judge in Wisconsin on the grounds she obstructed immigration officials from detaining a man attending his court hearing. It marked an escalation between the Trump administration and the judiciary branch, raising concerns from Democrats. The arrest of Judge Hannah Dugan was highly publicized after she was handcuffed in public and FBI Director Kash Patel bragged about the arrest on social media. Attorney General Pam Bondi said on Fox News that the Trump administration was going to continue to go after judges who “think they’re above the law.” “When you cross that line to impediment or knowingly harboring, concealing an illegal alien from ICE, you will be prosecuted, judge or not,” Homan said.   

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics, border, deportation, immigration, tom homan, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcemen, White House]

— New Mexico Democrats elevate labor leader as top party official

 

at 4/28/25 12:00pm

From left: DPNM Chair Sara Attleson, Vice Chair Cam Crawford, Secretary Brenda Hoskie, and Treasurer Julie Rochman. (Courtesy photo)Democratic Party of New Mexico insiders this month chose a labor official to lead the party for the next two years. Sara Attleson is the new chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico, according to voting results announced on Sunday. Attleson, of Albuquerque, chairs the party’s Labor Caucus, as well as the Albuquerque Teachers Federation’s Committee on Political Education. She defeated Marisol Enriquez, Letitia Montoya and Joseph Weathers to lead the party. Former Chair Jessica Velasquez did not seek reelection. Attleson said in a statement she wants to work with county-level Democratic parties “to make sure we have a presence in every community.” “Democrats across the country have our work cut out for us,” she said in a statement. “But here in New Mexico, we have the energy to make sure that MAGA Republicans and Donald Trump are never able to get a foothold here.” DPNM announced the results at the spring meeting of its governing body, the State Central Committee, at the Albuquerque Little Theater following voting by 466 SCC members via online absentee ballot from April 19-26. The new party officers’ terms end in 2027. Party members elected Cameron Crawford as vice chair. Crawford, of Santa Fe, defeated incumbent Manny Crespin and Augustine Montoya to win the seat. “In an era of unprecedented political turmoil, I will go to counties red and blue to rebuild community by showing up for everyone, regardless of who they vote for,” Crawford said in a statement. “Politics is about making people’s lives better, and I’m more than prepared to take that message far and wide.” The party elected Brenda Hoskie as its treasurer. Hoskie, from Springstead, is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation and chair of the McKinley County Democrats. She defeated Daniel Alfredo Garcia and Barbara Jordan to become secretary. Members elected Julie Rochman as Secretary. Rochman, of Albuquerque, defeated Joseph Ortiz to become treasurer. The Republican Party of New Mexico elected its party officers in December. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Gov & Politics, Democratic Party of New Mexico, DPNM, labor, party politics]

— Biden wanted Medicaid to pay for weight-loss drugs. Trump just said it doesn’t have to.

 

at 4/28/25 11:31am

In this photo illustration, the injectable weight-loss medication Wegovy is available at New City Halstead Pharmacy on April 24, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. More than 3 million people with Medicare could be eligible for the difficult-to-find and expensive weight-loss drug under new guidance which can cover the medication for patients who are obese or those who have a history of heart disease and are at risk of a heart attack or stroke. (Photo Illustration by Scott Olson/Getty Images)The Trump administration this month scrapped a Biden-era proposal that would have required state Medicaid programs and allowed federal Medicare to pay for some GLP-1s for obesity treatment. Instead, state Medicaid programs will retain the choice of whether to cover the high-priced medications for their residents. The drugs, which have historically been prescribed to diabetic patients, also help patients lose weight and have grown in popularity among doctors and patients. But they are generally too expensive for most people to afford without insurance. While doctors and patient advocates say these drugs are critical to helping patients struggling with obesity and can save money in the long run by reducing comorbidities such as heart disease, others say the medications are just too expensive for most states to afford. More than a dozen state Medicaid programs have opted to cover GLP-1s for obesity treatment, and the proposed Biden rule would have asked all states to figure out how to pay for them. But now, advocates fear these drugs may continue to be out of reach for many. “It’s unfortunate that they’re excluding a whole class of medications that seem to have a tremendous number of health benefits to patients,” Dr. Nicholas Pennings, chair of family medicine at Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina, said in an interview. I think that’s just part of the inherent bias towards the treatment of people with obesity. – Dr. Nicholas Pennings, chair of family medicine at Campbell University GLP-1s, which stand for glucagon-like peptide-1, are a class of drugs that balance blood sugar levels. They’ve long been prescribed to patients with Type 2 diabetes. But since the drugs also curb hunger signals, doctors may prescribe these drugs — including popular brands Wegovy and Ozempic — to help patients lose weight. Medicaid is a joint federal-state funded program that mostly serves people with lower incomes under the age of 65 or who have a disability. The federal Medicare program focuses primarily on people above the age of 65, no matter their income. How and whether to cover expensive treatments and drugs can be a significant deliberation for state Medicaid directors. In North Carolina, where 70% of people struggle with being overweight or obese, officials opted to begin covering the drugs for weight loss last year. That coverage has been a game changer, said Pennings, who continues to treat Medicaid patients. “They are expensive, but there’s a lot of other medications that are expensive too. Why is it that obesity medications and diabetes medications are being selected out?” Pennings said. “I think that’s just part of the inherent bias towards the treatment of people with obesity, feeling like it’s cheating or not necessary.” The list price for Wegovy is around $1,300 per month, and for Ozempic, around $1,000. Even so, the skyrocketing popularity of these drugs has prompted at least 14 state Medicaid departments to begin covering these drugs to treat obesity in the past decade. In addition to North Carolina, those states include California, Delaware, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin. An annual survey of Medicaid directors from health policy research group KFF recently found that half of the 47 responding states not already covering the drugs were considering doing so. As demand for weight-loss drugs rises, states grapple with Medicaid coverage In January, the National Association of Medicaid Directors told the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services that state Medicaid departments had “significant concerns over the fiscal impacts” of the Biden proposal to require coverage of GLP-1s, and “strongly recommend that CMS maintain the current state option to cover or not cover anti-obesity medications.” But others say covering the drugs will yield long-term savings. John Cawley, a professor of economics and public policy at Cornell University who has studied the economic impacts of obesity, has found that obesity essentially doubles a person’s annual health care costs due to comorbidities such as heart disease, fatty liver disease and kidney disease. He’s found that weight loss among those with extreme obesity, with a BMI of 40 or higher, can yield substantial reductions in medical care costs. Cawley added that state Medicaid programs “have a lot of flexibility” in ensuring costs don’t get out of control, by, for example, covering a newly available generic version of GLP-1s, requiring prior authorization, and asking patients to try behavioral programs before getting a prescription. North Carolina’s Medicaid department began covering GLP-1s for obesity in August. The state has been able to afford GLP-1 coverage by negotiating rebates, or discounts, with drug manufacturers, and by getting the federal government to cover some costs. Department leaders think lowering obesity will save the state money in the long run, said Jay Ludlam, deputy secretary for North Carolina Medicaid. He said that one of the benefits of Medicaid is that “we get to choose, as a state, where we want to make kind of those extra investments or not.” He added that covering the medications could be potentially financially feasible for other states. “Each program is different and has its own pressures. It would be welcome to be able to come together with other states to be able to negotiate broader deals,” Ludlam said. “If North Carolina is able to get a good deal, I don’t know why other states wouldn’t be able to participate in that.” States consider high costs, possible savings of covering weight-loss drugs for their workers In 2023, Connecticut enacted a law requiring Medicaid to cover obesity treatment services. The program began covering GLP-1s for weight loss, but costs were significant enough that the state told providers this year that it is now focusing on other obesity treatments instead. Sean Scanlon, the Connecticut comptroller, said that not covering GLP-1s is “shortsighted, bad policy.” The state health plan, which takes care of teachers and other state employees, has been covering the drugs for weight loss since 2023. The plan controls costs by only prescribing GLP-1s after patients go through some online weight-loss counseling, said Scanlon. “The most fiscally conservative thing we can do is give people tools that will save the taxpayers money in the long run,” he said in an interview. “And GLP-1 drugs are one of the best tools that we have to ensure that the taxpayers are not going to pay more money for the health care of hundreds of millions of people in the long run.” It’s unclear whether the federal government will reverse course. In the past, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has recommended “three good meals a day” and behavioral changes rather than weight-loss medication. But this month, Kennedy told CBS News he’s considering a regulatory framework to have Medicare and Medicaid cover these “extraordinary drugs” in the future, once their cost goes down. “Ideally, over the long-term, we’d like to see those drugs available for people after they try other interventions,” Kennedy said. Stateline reporter Shalina Chatlani can be reached at schatlani@stateline.org.   Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org.

[Category: Uncategorized]

— Two small NM fires erupt Sunday, including one in Grants neighborhood that burned 14 structures

 

at 4/28/25 11:15am

Members of the Mimbres wildland firefighting team dig fire line during a wildfire in 2024. (Photo Courtesy NM Forestry)Two small wildfires prompted evacuations and burned a few structures in the Grants and Socorro areas Sunday, though a state Forestry spokesperson said Monday that crews were making progress.  Witnesses spotted the Otero Fire in the bosque east of Socorro and the Alamo Fire in a neighborhood in Grants on Sunday evening. The Grants Fire is fully contained at between 3 and 5 acres, said Forestry spokesperson George Ducker. Despite progress overnight in Socorro, where crews built a fire line across the northern edge of the 360-acre fire, the Otero Fire is 0% contained, Ducker said.  The causes of both fires remains under investigation, Ducker said, though they occurred amid high winds and ongoing drought across the state. The National Interagency Fire Center earlier this month warned that most of the state would experience above-normal wildfire risk, and that the risk would spread to the western two-thirds of the state as May approaches. A new forecast is expected in the next few days.  High winds around 7 p.m. pushed the Alamo Fire on the east side Grants into structures, burning eight structures and six outbuildings and prompting evacuations. Residents are being allowed to return this morning, Ducker said, and crews will focus on watching for hotspots and dealing with the burned structures, now that the fire is fully contained.  In the Socorro-area fire, crews detected active wildfire burning on the south end of the perimeter. They plan today to hold and increase containment lines. No structures are threatened in that fire, and no evacuation orders are in effect.  !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}}))}();

[Category: Environment & Climate Change, wildfire]

— Only one NM college president signs letter opposing ‘unprecedented government overreach’

 

at 4/28/25 11:10am

Southwestern College President Thom Chesney at the graduate-level school's Santa Fe Southside campus. (Danielle Prokop / Source NM)Hundreds of leaders at colleges and universities from across the United States recently signed  an open letter to the Trump Administration, rebuking “the unprecedented government overreach and political interference now endangering American higher education.” Only one New Mexico higher-education leader signed the letter — from a small college in Santa Fe. In the first 100 days, the Trump administration has frozen billions of dollars in research grants and threatened further cuts if universities fail to comply with policies to reshape admissions, curriculum and speech on campus. Broadly, the Trump and Republicans have alleged higher education indoctrinates students with left-wing ideologies, and are using federal funds as leverage to require universities to change campus policies. Last week, Harvard University sued the Trump administration over its freezing of $2.2 billion in grants after the school refused to comply with federal demands to limit activism on campus. The letter from academics, released last week by the American Association of Colleges and Universities, pushes back against the Trump Administration, penning a defense of higher education. “We are open to constructive reform and do not oppose legitimate government oversight,” the letter states. “However, we must oppose undue government intrusion in the lives of those who learn, live, and work on our campuses. We will always seek effective and fair financial practices, but we must reject the coercive use of public research funding.” As of Monday morning, the letter had amassed 523 signatures from colleges, universities and scholarly societies. Leaders from University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University, the state’s largest schools, did not sign on.When reached for comment, Cinnamon Blair, a spokesperson for UNM wrote: “What I can share is that UNM’s participation in any statements is an internal administrative decision, and will be reflected in the public record.” New Mexico State University spokesperson Amanda Bradford confirmed the administration had not signed the letter, stating: “The university has no further comments on this topic at this time.” As of press time, Thom Chesney, president of Southwestern College, a private graduate-level school tucked away on Santa Fe’s Southside, remains the only New Mexico school leader on the list. Southwestern College offers a variety of graduate-level programs and certificates, including: master’s degrees in counseling, art therapy and consciousness in action; as well as a Ph.D in visionary practice and regenerative leadership. In an interview with Source NM, Chesney said higher education is facing unprecedented threats at multiple levels. Chesney took the position at Southwestern College eight months ago, following three years as president at Clarke University in Iowa and nearly eight years as president of Brookhaven College in Texas, among other academic postings. He’s been in higher education for nearly 30 years and started his work in academia teaching English, American and British literature and the humanities. “We’ve not seen this before,” Chesney said. “The federal government stepping in and making demands about how we admit, who we admit and what we teach — that flies directly in the face of independence, of building a curriculum.” Chesney told Source NM that this was the right time for his college to speak out, and said other New Mexican institutions are trying to navigate a difficult position. “I’m going to defend my colleagues, my peers from the public and private institutions in New Mexico, who havent signed the letter,” Chesney said. “Theyre not on the sidelines, theyre not silent, in assent or giving in — we cant assume any of that. They are absolutely, I believe, thinking through where their space is, at this time, for this type of response.” Chesney said the letter he signed offers the chance to be part of “a collective, unified voice.” “It fits in with not only the mission of my institution, but also the broader need to respond in a call to action for dialogue, for decorum to come together and recognize we have a shared space, to identify the successes, the flaws — all of that, rather than react reactionarily,” he said. Chesney noted that all higher education institutions face threats, regardless of size and programs. Southwestern College’s enrollment is just over 320 students. While his institution does not receive federal research grants, some of the students rely on Title IV funds to attend college. The college also offers a counseling center at which its counseling and therapy students receive real-world experience and provide low-cost or no-cost services for 500 Santa Fe residents. “If someone comes in and says ‘you can’t do that anymore,’ that’s a threat,” he said. “That threatens the wellness of Santa Fe’s Southside, Santa Fe in general and ultimately New Mexico, in my mind.” Not only did Chesney sign the letter, he hopes his participation in a national dialogue creates an opportunity for students to become more engaged with faculty and administrators in addressing the future of higher education. And he has a message for prospective students who are considering further training or schooling: “Don’t become cynical.” “No one should give up on that dream or that aspiration to do the kind of learning that leads them into opportunities to serve and create and have jobs that are for the greater, common good,” Chesney said. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Education, higher education, New Mexico State University, Southwestern College, university of new mexico]

— An infamous group of Russian-linked hackers appears to have launched a crippling cyberattack on WNMU

 

at 4/27/25 7:19am

Western New Mexico University’s main campus in Silver City. Courtesy of Western New Mexico University Posted inFeatured For nearly two weeks, Western New Mexico University’s website and digital systems have been held hostage by what officials in internal emails have called the efforts of a “foreign hacking group.” The university has not publicly addressed the severity of the attack, but documentation obtained by Searchlight New Mexico indicates that an infamous Russian-speaking hacking group is behind the attack and claims to have access to employee payroll data, Social Security numbers and driver’s licenses. “If you refuse to communicate with us and we do not come to an agreement, your data will be reviewed and published on our blog,” the ransomware on WNMU employee computers says. “Data includes: Employees personal data, CVs, DL, SSN. Complete network map including credentials for local and remote services. Financial information including clients data, bills, budgets, annual reports.” In an image of an employee’s computer shared with Searchlight, a note that threatens to leak the employee’s Social Security number, driver’s license and the university’s “complete network map” is signed by Qilin, a hacking group that the federal government has accused of running a “ransomware-as-a-service” operation. Qilin has earned a cutthroat reputation for being willing to go after anyone. Last year, it was accused of being involved in a cyberattack that forced a hospital system to cancel more than 1,000 appointments and operations. Earlier this year, it made headlines for its role in stealing the Social Security numbers and driver’s licenses of journalists who work for newspapers owned by Lee Enterprises. Since April 13, the WNMU website has been inaccessible to the public. Faculty members told Searchlight that they and their students can use digital platforms like Canvas, which are hosted by a third party, but they’re unable to use classroom tools that connect to the internet, like printers or projectors. In an image shared with Searchlight, one employee’s laptop screen displayed the same threatening ransomware message whenever they attempted to open a file on their work computer. The message was signed “Qilin,” and its contents bear the hallmark signs of ransomware, in which hackers hold sensitive data hostage until they receive a ransom payment. Even if they do receive a payment, groups like these may leak the sensitive information anyway. A Western New Mexico employee’s laptop displayed several threatening ransomware messages, apparently signed by the foreign hacking group known as Qilin. “We have downloaded compromising and sensitive data from your system/network. Our group cooperates with the mass media. If you refuse to communicate with us and we do not come to an agreement, your data will be reviewed and published on our blog,” the message says. “Data includes: Employees personal data, CVs, DL, SSN. Complete network map including credentials for local and remote services. Financial information including clients data, bills, budgets, annual reports.” The note instructs recipients to download a Tor browser — commonly used to access the dark web — and visit a specific site to begin negotiations with the hackers. “You need cipher key/our decrypt software to restore your files … the police or authorities will not be able to help you get the cipher key. We encourage you to consider your decisions.” Payday delayed On April 25 — a Friday, payday at WNMU — hourly and student employees said they had not yet received their direct deposits. In an email to employees reviewed by Searchlight, the university said the problem “stemmed from an unexpected complication during the file upload process to the bank” and said some employees might experience further delays in receiving the payments. “If this delay results in any overdraft fees, the university will reimburse those charges,” the email said. The cyberattack comes at an inopportune time for university leaders, who are working to rebuild trust with the faculty senate, student body, state government and the surrounding Silver City community. Since December, when former university president Joseph Shepard resigned from his post and the governor demanded the resignations of the sitting regents, the campus has been without a permanent leader. New regents have only been on the job since late March, and now find themselves leading a university in disarray. Threats like these have become common enough in local government that in 2022 the U.S. Department of Homeland Security launched the “State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program,” the first of its kind, to help upgrade and protect IT networks across the country. It awarded nearly $280 million in grant funding for fiscal year 2024 — nearly $4 million of which went to New Mexico — and anticipated awarding $1 billion over four years. In an email to executive managers on April 14 — one day after the attack — Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Jack Crocker said WNMU “experienced a cyberattack from a foreign hacking group” and said the university had the “ongoing collective support and assistance” of the New Mexico Higher Education Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and “other university cyber experts to help us combat the attack.” In an email to Searchlight, Higher Education Department spokesperson Auriella Ortiz said the agency was working closely with the state Department of Information Technology to “evaluate” the issue. “WNMU is undertaking a formal investigation to identify the scope of the incident and to facilitate necessary remediation efforts,” she wrote. “Our primary objective as state agencies is to support the university in restoring and continuing normal business operations following this incident.” Whether that collective firepower will be enough to combat the hacking group remains to be seen. Qilin has developed a reputation for wreaking havoc wherever it goes. Last year, it was accused of being involved with an attack on a healthcare provider in London that forced hospitals to immediately halt operations. Qilin has been operational since 2022 and operates “ransomware as a service,” according to a 2024 report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This allows independent hackers to use its digital tools in exchange for a 15 to 20 percent share of the ransom payments. The 2024 report says that the group’s typical demand for ransom is $50,000 to $800,000. “Actors practice double extortion and operate a data leak site where victims are posted. Victims are directed to communicate with the attackers via dark web portals or encrypted messaging services, ensuring the attackers’ anonymity and complicating law enforcement efforts to track interactions,” the HHS report says. “Payments are demanded in cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin or Monero. However, even after payment, there is no guarantee that victims will receive the decryption tools required to recover their data.” System outage or cyberattack? Meanwhile, the severity of the situation hasn’t come through in the school’s public messaging (“While select systems remain offline,” a recent WNMU Facebook post said, “key academic and communications platforms continue to be accessible.”) For nearly two weeks, WNMU’s website has been down and employees have had varying degrees of access to their emails. Everything on the university website — minutes and agendas for Board of Regents meetings, campus announcements and calendars of events — has been blocked from public view, and students have had to use alternative login methods to access online homework, lectures and exams. In public social media posts and emails to students, the university has not blamed a cyberattack or other nefarious activity for leading to the outages. Instead it has simply said it is “working through technical issues.” Internal communications, however, show that the situation is more serious than the university’s public depictions. The university has also enlisted the help of private cybersecurity companies. A number of Wi-Fi hotspots have been installed on campus and students have received instructions on alternative ways to access Canvas, an online coursework program used by universities around the nation. “In the meantime, the plan is to keep campus open,” Crocker wrote in his email to managers. “Face-to-face classes will meet and alternative access to online/hybrid classes is being created. However, university internet, email, phones, and connections outside WNMU are inoperable at this time and must remain so until the issues are resolved. Scheduled events, such as the scholarship luncheon, softball games, Cultural Affairs lectures will continue.” While faculty and hourly employees have received different communications from the top, students have seemingly been left in the dark as to the serious nature of the system outage. In an email to students last week, the university made no mention of a cyberattack. Instead, it told students that WNMU “is currently addressing technical issues affecting access to several key web-based services.” It also told students that “protecting your personal data — including your student status — is a top priority.” In a statement Friday, university spokesperson Mario Sanchez said “impacted individuals” would be notified if their personal information was involved in the attack. “The university’s investigation into this incident is ongoing. If the investigation determines that personal information was involved, impacted individuals will be notified in accordance with applicable law. We understand there was an issue with payroll processing for the current pay period, but our bank has let us know that the issue has been corrected and payroll should be posted today.” This article first appeared on Searchlight New Mexico and is republished here under a Creative Commons License.

[Category: Gov & Politics, Uncategorized, digital systems, hacking, Russia, website, western new mexico university]

— Arrest of Wisconsin judge ‘escalation’ in Trump-judiciary conflict, Democrats warn

 

at 4/25/25 4:10pm

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee during her confirmation hearing on Jan. 15, 2025. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)WASHINGTON — A handful of Democratic U.S. senators sounded the alarm Friday after federal agents arrested a Wisconsin judge on charges she obstructed immigration officials from detaining a man in her courtroom, saying the arrest marked a new low in President Donald Trump’s treatment of the law. Some congressional Democrats framed the FBI’s Friday morning arrest of Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan as a grave threat to the U.S. system of government, saying it was part of Trump’s effort to expand his own power and undermine the judiciary, with which the administration has become increasingly noncompliant. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer decried the judge’s arrest on social media late Friday afternoon as a “dangerous escalation.” “There are no kings in America. Trump and (Attorney General Pam) Bondi can’t just decide to arrest sitting judges at will and threaten judges into submission,” wrote Schumer, a New York Democrat. Trump administration officials, including Bondi, defended the arrest as legitimate. The FBI had been investigating Dugan after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers sought to detain an immigrant without legal authority to be in the country who was in her courtroom on a misdemeanor charge. Bondi wrote on social media just after noon Eastern, “I can confirm that our @FBI agents just arrested Hannah Dugan — a county judge in Milwaukee — for allegedly helping an illegal alien avoid an arrest by @ICEgov. No one is above the law.” Democrats object Democrats in Washington who sounded their objections to the arrest Friday argued it subverted separation of powers. Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, said Trump “continues to test the limits of our Constitution — this time by arresting a sitting judge for allegedly obstructing an immigration operation at the courthouse.” In a statement, Durbin added that local courtrooms should be off limits to immigration enforcement agents. “When immigration enforcement officials interfere with our criminal justice system, it undermines public safety, prevents victims and witnesses from coming forward, and often prevents those who committed crimes from facing justice in the United States,” Durbin wrote. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who represents Wisconsin, issued a statement shortly after news of the arrest, calling it “a gravely serious and drastic move.” “In the United States we have a system of checks and balances and separation of powers for damn good reasons,” Baldwin said. “The Trump Administration just arrested a sitting judge,” Arizona’s Ruben Gallego said in a social media post. “This is what happens in authoritarian countries. Stand up now — or lose the power to do so later. The administration must drop all charges and respect separation of powers.” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, who also sits on the Judiciary Committee, was more careful in his criticism but said Trump is “constantly challenging” separation of powers laid out in the Constitution. “I don’t know what happened in Wisconsin, but amplifying this arrest as the Attorney General and FBI Director have done looks like part of a larger intimidation campaign against judges,” the Rhode Island Democrat said in a statement. In a since-deleted post on Bluesky, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey accused Trump of “using immigrants to justify an all-out assault on our democracy and rule of law. “After openly defying a Supreme Court order, calling for judges to be impeached, and bullying and belittling judges, today his FBI director took the extreme step of ordering a sitting judge arrested,” Booker wrote, referring to the high court’s order that the Trump administration “facilitate” the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who is being held in El Salvador. Spokespeople for Booker did not respond to a late Friday inquiry about why the post was taken down. Trump officials back up arrest Administration officials boasted online following the arrest. FBI Director Kash Patel deleted a post on X in which he wrote Dugan  “intentionally misdirected federal agents away” from Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, a 30-year-old Mexican immigrant accused of misdemeanor battery. Trump posted a screenshot on his social media site from the conservative activist account “Libs of TikTok” that featured a photo of Dugan and celebrated her arrest. White House Border Czar Tom Homan said that Dugan crossed a line in her opposition to the administration’s agenda. “People can choose to support illegal immigration and not assist ICE in removing criminal illegal aliens from our communities, BUT DON’T CROSS THAT LINE,” he wrote on X. “If you actively impede our enforcement efforts or if you knowingly harbor or conceal illegal aliens from ICE you will be prosecuted. These actions are felonies. More to come…” Trump vs. courts Trump and administration officials have publicly attacked judges online, including calling for the impeachment of District Judge James Boasberg for the District of Columbia after he ordered immigration officials to halt deportation flights to El Salvador. The administration allowed the flights to reach Central America, and is now at risk of being held in criminal contempt of court as a legal fight plays out. The president’s verbal attacks on Boasberg prompted a rare rebuke from U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts in mid-March. And the administration has seemingly refused to do anything to facilitate the return of Maryland resident Abrego Garcia from a notorious El Salvador mega-prison, despite a Supreme Court order.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— Health officials report additional Eddy County measles case

 

at 4/25/25 2:57pm

Vials of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine are displayed on a counter at a Walgreens Pharmacy on January 26, 2015 in Mill Valley, California. (Photo by Illustration Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)New Mexico Health officials reported one additional New Mexico measles case Friday, this time an adult in Eddy County, bringing the total reported infections to 66. The slow drip of cases in recent weeks does not indicate the outbreak is abating, according to New Mexico Department of Health Communications Director Robert Nott, who told Source NM that symptoms can appear a week or more after infections. “The seemingly slow increase in measles cases in New Mexico should not be taken as a sign we are anywhere near out of the woods with this outbreak,” Nott said in a written statement. “We see continued measles spread in bordering areas — Mexico and Texas, for example — so there is always the potential for a new introduction of cases in New Mexico.” Nott also noted that cases may rise in coming weeks after recent Easter weekend gatherings, given that “symptoms of measles do not appear until roughly a week (or more) after infection.” The majority of measles cases in New Mexico remain in Lea County, which has 61 cases; the state has had six hospitalizations since the outbreak began in neighboring Gaines County, Texas, just across the state line. Cases in Doña Ana and Chaves counties remain unchanged, with one reported case each. Texas health officials on Friday reported cases increased by an additional 22 infections, bringing the total there to 646. Measles is highly contagious, spread through contact with airborne droplets from an infected person. Infected people can spread the disease several days before symptoms such as fever, red eyes, cough or spotty red rash appear. Two doses of the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine offers 97% protection against catching the measles, according to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control. While the majority of health professionals continue to recommend two doses of the vaccine as the safest and most effective prevention from contracting measles, a recent poll from nonpartisan health research organization KFF found nearly a quarter of their sample believed false claims about the vaccine. Poll: Belief in false measles claims correlated with lower vaccination rates Also this week, researchers from Stanford Medicine published findings that determined if vaccination rates drop further, measles (and other infectious diseases) could return in the U.S. after decades of eradication. Using a mathematical model to simulate the spread of diseases, researchers also found that if vaccination rates remain the same, measles may still make a comeback in the next two decades. Pediatrician Dr. Melissa Mason told Source NM she sees a measles comeback as a matter of potential life and death. “With vaccination rates as they stand, without dropping more, were still gonna see people get measles — get sick and die from this,” she said. Mason, who chairs the immunization committee for the New Mexico Pediatric Society, said she’s been impressed with efforts from New Mexico health officials to vaccinate people in the Southeastern corner of the state. Statewide vaccination rates are nearly double from the same time frame last year, according to data released Tuesday. “These are gold star efforts, and that’s going to make a difference,” she said. “But nationally, in other areas that continue to have lower rates than 95% coverage, we’re going to continue to see measles.” Julia Goldberg contributed to the reporting of this story.

[Category: Health, measles, measles case, measles outbreak, measles vaccine, MMR vaccine, vaccine rates]

— New Mexico Supreme Court asked to weigh in on Tesuque wastewater conflict

 

at 4/25/25 1:30pm

Bernadette Romero-Jaramillo, a lifelong Tesuque resident and Protect Tesuque board member told Source NM the issues over wastewater 'are bigger than us, it's not just a Tesuque Village concern, it's a state concern.' (Danielle Prokop / Source NM) A dispute over sewage disposal in a village outside of Santa Fe is leaking into the New Mexico Supreme Court, as residents contend state environmental agency actions surrounding a draft waste permit were unconstitutional. Dozens of people gathered at blue cafeteria tables and the bleachers lining the Tesuque Elementary School gymnasium Wednesday night to hear the latest in the ongoing fracas over a permit for a leach field to dispose of treated wastewater from Bishop’s Lodge hotel and 82 adjacent homes in Tesuque Village. Democratic Santa Fe elected officials also attended the town hall, including County Commissioner Justin Green in the room, and Rep. Andrea Romero and Sen. Peter Wirth virtually. Tensions in the case have been building for the last year, as residents oppose multiple proposals for sewage disposal by the resort. The meeting followed the latest development in the case: On April 22, attorneys for the nonprofit Protect Tesuque requested the state’s highest court order the New Mexico Environment Department to halt the permitting process for the hotel and homes, arguing in an emergency petition that the agency wrongly applied state environmental laws in the permitting process. Specifically, they say the limitations in liquid waste laws should also apply to larger permits — dischargers disposing more than 5,000 gallons, which are regulated under another law. State environmental regulators disagree. “The New Mexico Environment Department maintains full confidence in its legal position that the Bishop’s Lodge wastewater treatment system falls under ground and surface water quality regulations,” said NMED spokesperson Jorge Estrada in a written statement. “NMED has consistently affirmed that the facility meets — or exceeds — all applicable state water quality standards.” An administrative hearing officer on April 7 rejected Protect Tesuque’s request for the department to deny the permit. Protect Tesuque’s argument to the state Supreme Court is that NMED’s permitting process for large dischargers ignores the regulations passed by the Legislature, and the agency doesnt have the legal authority to make exceptions to those laws. NMED is making their own laws, Hnakso told Source. Their whole basis for doing what theyre doing is only applying the law if youre discharging less than 5,000 gallons per day. If its more, they apply a different law — but thats not what the Environmental Improvement Act says. He called it a separation of powers issue. The plain language is that the executive branch has to apply the law as written by the legislature, Hnasko said. If they dont, its a constitutional violation. On Wednesday, attorneys for both NMED and Bishops Lodge filed court documents requesting that justices either dismiss the case or issue a schedule with deadlines for responses. Thomas Hnasko, an attorney representing the nonprofit Protect Tesuque, in comments at the town hall to the approximate 60 attendees, said he was unsure if the state’s highest court would hear the emergency petition, and noted that the arguments had to contend with years of agency permitting. Dozens of residents gathered Wednesday, April 23, 2025 in the Tesuque Elementary school to hear the latest in a dispute with the state over a disposal permit for Bishops Lodge hotel and 82 surrounding homes. (Danielle Prokop / Source NM) “Its a heavy lift because thats the way its always been done,” Hnasko said. “Its really difficult when youre taking a position thats gonna upset the apple cart and not only affect Tesuque, but have an effect statewide.” But lawmakers, Hnasko said, could clarify which laws guide NMED’s permitting decisions. “If changes need to be made or variances need to be applied for, that can happen in the Legislature,” he said. “But right now, the Environmental Improvement Act does not allow what theyre doing.” Background on the dispute Tesuque Village, with a little over 1,000 residents, depends mostly on septic tanks for sewage, and private wells for drinking water. When Bishop’s Lodge’s 1970s-era wastewater treatment plant stopped working, the resort began trucking wastewater into Santa Fe for treatment, which the owners described as expensive and inefficient. “Bishop’s Lodge and the Hills & Villas Community have worked closely with the New Mexico Environment Department Groundwater Quality Bureau to replace their old wastewater treatment system,” Chris Kaplan, the head of Asset Management at Juniper Capital, which owns Bishop’s Lodge, said in a written statement. “The new system, installed in 2024, is a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment facility designed to meet or exceed all local and national water quality standards.” The resort changed its plans in response to community pushback, he added. The original plan to release the fully treated effluent to surface water was abandoned in favor of an on-site, low-dosing area that will capture the fully treated effluent in the winter months.” The current state permit authorizes Bishop’s Lodge to discharge about 14,700 gallons per day into two leach fields on the property. The new request would allow for discharge of up to 30,000 gallons of treated wastewater into a new leach field. Tina Davila, a Tesuque Village resident, inspects a model of the watershed at the town hall Wednesday. (Danielle Prokop / Source NM) Protect Tesuque opposes the new disposal plan, writing on its website that the proposal fails to meet “engineering, siting, and contamination safeguards required by our state laws,” and pushes potential impacts downstream. Residents Wednesday night expressed concerns about the costs of well testing and the potential loss of home values and safety if contamination occurred in the aquifer. “I dont want to have to spend $3,000 every year having my well tested test just to have somebody tell me they  screwed up my water and I lost, you know, a considerable value in the house and I wont be able to sell,” resident Brian Corcoran said. A week-long hearing on the draft permit is scheduled to start May 19. ‘You’re moving too slowly’ In Wednesday’s town hall, local officials suggested longer-term initiatives that could help address some of the issues at play. For instance, Commissioner Green announced a plan to start engineering a regional water system that could move forward, after securing the final signature from the Pueblos of Tesque, Nambé, Pojuaque and San Ildefonso earlier that day. He said work on the study should begin in the next few months. “That said, these things dont happen very quickly. This is a large capital project, this will take years and years and years to do a lot of this groundwork,” he said. Wirth agreed that ultimately the long-term solution must be developing a regional water and sewage system. Residents said the solution isn’t fast enough. “Im sorry. But youre moving too slowly,” said Donna Amos, a resident who lives near Shidoni Gallery, garnering applause from other attendees. “We will all be dead by the time a regional water system is done.” Both Wirth and Romero, after multiple requests from audience members, committed to meeting with Juniper Capital representatives, but hesitated on further actions, such as introducing legislation, both saying it would be important to see if the state’s Supreme Court will weigh in on the issue. After the town hall, Bernadette Romero-Jaramillo, a physical therapist and member of Protect Tesuque, said she believes the situation is no longer just a local fight, but one with statewide implications if the court takes up the case. “Ours is a community that is here to fight to the bitter end to protect our village, our resources — it’s about our future,” she said. “We need a resolution for the now.” GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Environment & Climate Change]

— Court grants NM Tech student temporary restraining order against Homeland Security

 

at 4/25/25 11:53am

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is named as a defendant in a complaint filed in federal court by a New Mexico Tech student challenging her agency's decision to terminate his student status. Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images)The U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico on Friday granted a Ghanaian doctoral student at New Mexico Tech a temporary restraining order so his legal team can continue challenging the termination of his F-1 student status by Homeland Security, ACLU of New Mexico announced. ACLU-NM, which is representing the student — known as K.O.D. in court records —along with Huffman, Wallace & Monagle LLC, on Wednesday filed a motion for a temporary restraining order and a complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. As Source reported earlier this week, according to court records, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on April 9 abruptly terminated the student’s status in the Student and Exchange Visitor (SEVIS) system, placing K.O.D. in danger of immigration detention and deportation, his attorneys wrote. “Losing my F-1 status puts my education, research, and career trajectory at risk, and I fear being forced to leave the country before I can complete my Ph.D. program,” the student wrote in a sworn statement included in court records. “This sudden disruption has made me feel vulnerable and anxious, not only about my immediate situation but also about the stability and direction of my life in the years to come.” In a statement Friday, attorney Shayne Huffman said the courts ruling reaffirms that every person within our borders, regardless of where they were born, deserves to be protected from arbitrary actions by the U.S. government. The court has recognized that K.O.D., like other international students, cannot simply have his status terminated without notice or explanation. K.O.D. can now continue his doctoral research without the immediate threat of detention or deportation hanging over his head. According to an ACLU-NM news release, New Mexico universities have approximately 2,000 international students. K.O.D.s lawsuit against Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons will continue, the release notes, and seek permanent relief. Todays ruling sends a clear message that the government cannot arbitrarily target international students,” ACLU of New Mexico senior staff attorney Rebecca Sheff said in a statement. “This is an important first step toward justice for K.O.D. and potentially hundreds of other international students facing similar situations

[Category: Immigration, ACLU NM, Homeland Security, k.o.d., new mexico tech, Republic of ghana]

— New Mexicans share their fears about threats to Social Security

 

at 4/25/25 11:14am

Cinda Gillilan (right) pictured with her partner. (Photo courtesy Cinda Gillilan)When Pat Serrault retired at 72, she thought her 58 years of hard work and paying into Social Security would mean she’d be set for her later years. “It’s my money. It isn’t a whole lot in the scheme of things, but I earned it,” Serrault told Source in a written statement. “The system put it away for me and I would like to keep it so that I can remain independent for the time I have left. In recent months, the Trump Administration has made cuts to Social Security Administration staff and department budgets, prompting concerns over timely receipt of payments and the possibility of reductions in payments. Serrault, an 84-year-old Las Cruces resident, told Source NM that she is just one missed payment away from being unable to afford rent and other necessities. “I dont know whats going to happen if they hit Social Security and they also hit Section 8 [housing]. Im going to be on the street, unless theres some kind of safety net that could be developed,” Serrault told Source in a phone interview. Serrault added that after paying her bills, she is left with about $250 to $300 for food each month, if she’s “lucky.” Members of NM congressional delegation demand state’s Social Security offices remain open U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), as well as U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM)  joined more than 100 members of Congress this week asking the Acting Commissioner of the Social Security Administration to keep local field offices open. The letter followed reports that the General Services Administration had targeted some of the offices for closure, which the Social Security Agency has denied. “Field offices provide vital services to Social Security recipients, and beneficiaries need the opportunity to seek assistance from SSA in person,” the letter reads. “Closing any of these field offices will make it harder for individuals to access their benefits.” New Mexico hosts 10 field offices throughout the state and, according to a news release from Heinrich’s office, more than 468,000 New Mexicans receive benefits from the department. More than 55,000 additional New Mexicans receive Supplemental Security Income. Many New Mexicans receiving social security benefits share these concerns, according to a survey conducted by Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez’s team. Out of the nearly 600 constituents who responded to the survey, about 87% expressed uneasiness. Vasquez’s team shared respondents first names, ZIP codes and comments with Source, which then selected several people from the list for interview requests. Vasquez’s representatives provided Source’s email contact to those willing to talk. Cinda Gillilan, 63, lives in Silver City and works as an administrator at an assisted living facility. Gillilan has multiple degrees and has spent the last decade working in social work, but due to limited pay, she and her partner have little in savings and no 401K. She told Source that she and her partner plan to retire when they are 70 and live off of Social Security, but worries that changes and cuts to the Social Security Administration will leave them with very little. “When we looked at the cost of living throughout the country, even here in New Mexico in Silver City, our rent has gone from $700 to $900 a month. And on Social Security, that would be a huge portion of one of our two checks,” Gillilan said. “Were seriously considering leaving the country in 2032 when were both 70.” She said they are looking at relocating to Costa Rica, Portugal, Italy or Malta, where their money from Social Security will go further than in the U.S. However, Gillilan told Source that she worries that in the next seven years “there won’t be a functional system by the time we’re ready to use it.” She said she hears similar concerns in her work at the assisted living facility. One man is facing the possibility of losing Medicaid assistance and having to leave the facility. “I think it’s incumbent upon the state to start thinking about what do we do if people start losing Social Security? What do we do if people lose their Medicaid benefits or their Medicare benefits? How do we respond?” Gillian said. “And I think they have to get ahead of that curve and get proactive.” Like Gillilan is considering doing, Carolmarie Seager, 66, chose to retire and move out of the country. She moved to the United Kingdom in 2018 and now lives in a town in Wales, but still maintains a Las Cruces address. “What did I leave behind? My five adult children, a granddaughter, and now a new grandson. I left behind friends, siblings, their families, my sweet mother, and much more,” Seager told Source NM in a written statement. “In addition to the political nightmare, I chose to leave the U.S. because NM was getting too hot to live in inexpensively, and I knew my medical care would become more expensive without my mild Multiple Sclerosis condition getting any worse.” Seager said she lives on a combination of benefits that includes Social Security, and that her payment was “quite late this month with no explanation.” She said she wouldn’t be able to pay her living expenses if her Social Security payment was changed, and she wouldn’t be able to afford to move back to the U.S. Alyna LaValley (right) pictured with her husband. (Photo provided by Alyna LaValley) Alyna LaValley, 66, lives in Truth of Consequences with her husband. She told Source NM that they both live off of their social security benefits, as well as long-term disability. LaValley’s concerns are compounded because she is a transgender woman and moved to New Mexico from Florida because the state was restricting transgender rights. The Trump administration has taken multiple steps in recent months to rescind rights and support for transgender people at the federal level, including denying new passports, restricting gender-affirming care and reinstating a ban on transgender people serving in the military. LaValley told Source that she fears for her safety and worries about even leaving her house at times. And she added that if their benefits are cut in anyway, they will likely lose their house. “We’ll be on the street,” she said. “There is no American dream. People cant afford to buy houses. Theres no way to get ahead. Its gone. And I feel bad for the world that my grandchildren are going to live in.” GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Economy, Gov & Politics, DOGE, Rep. Gabe Vasquez, Rep. Melanie Stansbury, retirement, Sen. Martin Heinrich, social security, Social Security Administration\, transgender, transgender rights, trump administration, U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján]

— FBI arrests Milwaukee County judge

 

at 4/25/25 11:10am

The Milwaukee County Courthouse. (Photo by Isiah Holmes/Wisconsin Examiner) FBI agents arrested Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan on Friday, accusing her of obstructing an immigration enforcement action last week. Dugan was arrested at 8:30 a.m. at the county courthouse, according to the U.S. Marshal’s Service. She was scheduled to make an initial appearance in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Dries at 10:30 on Friday. According to a criminal complaint, she’s been charged with obstructing or impeding before a department or agency of the United States and concealing an individual to prevent his discovery and arrest. The agency’s director, Kash Patel, wrote on the social media platform X that Dugan had “intentionally misdirected federal agents away” from Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, a 30-year-old Mexican immigrant accused of misdemeanor battery. In the now-deleted post, Patel accused Dugan of creating “increased danger to the public.” Flores-Ruiz appeared in Dugan’s courtroom on April 18 for a pre-trial conference on charges of misdemeanor domestic battery. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported that when Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents appeared outside Dugan’s courtroom, she led Flores-Ruiz and an attorney out a side door and down a private hallway. ICE agents later apprehended Flores-Ruiz on foot. This is the third time since March that immigration agents have appeared at the Milwaukee County courthouse to conduct arrests — a tactic that local officials have said threatens to undermine the work of the local justice system by making immigrants fearful of coming to the courthouse to testify in court. Dugan-Crim-complaint In a statement, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said he was aware of Dugan’s arrest and that the legal process should be allowed to play out. “Like any individual in this country, I believe she is entitled to due process,” Crowley said. “We should let the facts come to light and the legal process play out.” U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said the administration of President Donald Trump is attacking democratic values. “In the United States, we have a system of checks and balances and separations of power for damn good reasons,” she said. “The President’s administration arresting a sitting judge is a gravely serious and drastic move, and it threatens to breach those very separations of power. Make no mistake, we do not have kings in this country and we are a Democracy governed by laws that everyone must abide by. By relentlessly attacking the judicial system, flouting court orders, and arresting a sitting judge, this President is putting those basic Democratic values that Wisconsinites hold dear on the line. While details of this exact case remain minimal, this action fits into the deeply concerning pattern of this President’s lawless behavior and undermining courts and Congress’s checks on his power.” U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Milwaukee) said the arrest was “shocking.” “This Administration’s willingness to weaponize federal law enforcement is shocking and this arrest has all the hallmarks of overreach,” Moore said. “Federal law enforcement coming into a community and arresting a judge is a serious matter and would require a high legal bar. I will be following this case closely and facts will come out, however, I am very alarmed at the increasingly lawless actions of the Trump Administration, and in particular ICE, who have been defying courts and acting with disregard for the Constitution.” This is a developing story and will be updated   Wisconsin Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Wisconsin Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Ruth Conniff for questions: info@wisconsinexaminer.com.

[Category: Gov & Politics]

— State seeks diverse members for new Medicaid Council

 

at 4/25/25 10:41am

(Getty Images)New Mexicos Health Care Authority on Friday put out a call for members for a new 15-member Beneficiary Advisory Council for New Mexico Medicaid, launching July 1. Applicants should be current or former Medicaid recipients, or parents, guardians or caregivers for Medicaid participants. An HCA news release said the Council should reflect the diverse Medicaid population in New Mexico and specifically encouraged applications from: People of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds Non-native English speakers LGBTQ+ individuals Parents of young children Young adults People with disabilities Individuals with behavioral health conditions Urban, rural, and frontier residents Members from Tribes, Pueblos, and Nations Dual-eligible members (enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare) “Medicaid serves more than 800,00 New Mexicans with critical health care services, and no one understands its strengths and challenges better than the people who rely on it every day,” New Mexico Medicaid Director Dana Flannery said in a statement. “This council will help ensure that the program reflects the real experiences and needs of New Mexicans. Council members, who will attend quarterly meetings either in person at the HCA office in Santa Fe or online from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. will provide feedback on topics such as: medicaid programs, policies, and services barriers to care and suggest practical improvements initiatives to increase access, quality, and equity They will also serve as liaisons between Medicaid members and leadership, according to the news release. Applicants who are chosen will be notified by June 30. Learn more and apply here.

[Category: Health, Health Care Authority, Medicaid, New Mexico]

— Tax policy, Medicaid funding cuts could scuttle Republicans’ ‘big, beautiful bill’

 

at 4/25/25 10:14am

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune and U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson hold a press conference on the Republican budget resolution at the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2025. The Republican leaders each face a challenge in uniting their divided conferences to pass a massive tax and spending plan supported by President Donald Trump. (Photo by Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)WASHINGTON — Republicans in Congress have a difficult few months ahead of them as they look to broker agreement within their exceptionally narrow majority on policy issues that have already begun to divide centrists from far-right members of the party. The negotiations will be the first test of the sort for Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who weren’t in the top posts eight years ago when the GOP passed its last reconciliation package. Tax law and funding cuts to Medicaid are the issues most likely to prevent one “big, beautiful bill” from moving through both chambers and reaching President Donald Trump’s desk. Republican leaders will also need to be cautious as the package takes shape about what types of proposals their more vulnerable members vote on, especially if they hope to hold onto at least one chamber of Congress following next year’s midterm elections. “The swing-district Republicans are in a tougher spot because their voters do want to see some of those tax cuts extended, but they don’t want to see it at the expense of programs like Medicaid,” said Dr. Ben Sommers, Huntley Quelch professor of health care economics at Harvard. “And so they’re walking a tightrope,” he said. “And at least until there’s a final bill on the floor, a lot of them are going to just keep pushing that final decision down the road and hope that something else happens and that they don’t have to make that tough call.” The decision to bundle together a permanent extension of the 2017 tax law, hundreds of billions in new spending on border security and defense, a rewrite of the nation’s energy policy and spending cuts means that centrist Republicans will have to cast one take-it-or-leave-it vote. Breaking up the sweeping package into two or more bills would have given at-risk Republicans the opportunity for more tailored votes, but GOP leaders ultimately rejected that idea — a choice that will put moderates under increasing pressure as the legislation takes shape in the coming weeks. Democrats in both chambers are expected to unanimously oppose the package. Normally that would present a challenge in the Senate, where 60 votes are usually needed to limit debate on a bill and move onto final passage. But GOP leaders are using the reconciliation process to pass their bill, meaning they only need the support of a simple majority in the Senate.  Slim margins House committee chairs are expected to release and mark up 11 bills after the chamber returns from a two-week break in late April, though that’s only the first step. Once the pieces are all bundled into one package, it will need to get across the House floor without losing more than three Republican votes, a much narrower threshold than the dozen GOP lawmakers in that chamber who voted against the final version of the 2017 tax law. Republican leaders will then need to keep the party from making significant changes to the package in the Senate, where lawmakers will be able to offer as many amendments as they want when the bill comes to the floor. That vote-a-rama will test party unity, with Democrats likely to propose amendments re-writing or eliminating specific sections of the bill — especially those addressing tax provisions benefiting the wealthy or corporations, and Medicaid spending cuts. If more than three Senate Republicans break from the party to alter various elements, it could endanger final approval. However, if GOP senators from swing states vote to keep unpopular provisions in the bill, it could lead to them losing their next reelection bid to a Democrat. Difference of opinion on Medicaid The disagreement between centrist Republicans and far-right lawmakers over potential spending cuts to Medicaid is already on full display. During floor debate on the budget resolution that cleared the way for Republicans to write the massive reconciliation package, Texas Rep. Chip Roy excoriated the state-federal health program for lower income Americans and some people with disabilities. “Medicaid is debilitating the vulnerable, not helping them,” Roy said. “We are shoveling money out to the able-bodied on the back of expansion of Obamacare.” On the other ideological side of the conference, a group of 14 centrist House Republicans sent a letter to GOP leaders a few days after voting to adopt the budget resolution to announce they “cannot and will not support a final reconciliation bill that includes any reduction in Medicaid coverage for vulnerable populations.” “Cuts to Medicaid also threaten the viability of hospitals, nursing homes, and safety-net providers nationwide,” they wrote. “Many hospitals — particularly in rural and underserved areas — rely heavily on Medicaid funding, with some receiving over half their revenue from the program alone. “Providers in these areas are especially at risk of closure, with many unable to recover. When hospitals close, it affects all constituents, regardless of healthcare coverage.” Failed Obamacare repeal Republican leaders in Congress will want to avoid a repeat of the last time the party tried to overhaul health care in a reconciliation package. During Trump’s first term, following years of GOP politicians pledging to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, they sought to do just that through the same complex reconciliation process they’re using now. Ultimately, twenty Republicans voted against the bill in the House and three GOP senators — Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski, Arizona’s John McCain and Maine’s Susan Collins — blocked that chamber’s repeal-and-replace bill. Collins said in a floor speech at the time she voted against the House’s version of the bill for several reasons, including that it would have made “sweeping changes to the Medicaid program — an important safety net that for more than 50 years has helped poor and disabled individuals, including children and low-income seniors, receive health care.” Murkowski wrote in a statement that she voted against the Senate’s so-called “skinny” repeal bill because “both sides must do better on process and substance.” “I know that access to affordable care is a challenge for so many. I hear from fishermen who can’t afford the coverage that they have, small business owners who can’t afford insurance at all, and those who have gained coverage for the first time in their life,” Murkowski wrote. “These Alaskans have shared their anxiety that their personal situation may be made worse under the legislation considered this week.” Medicaid cuts could hurt state budgets GOP lawmakers in Congress won’t be the only members of the party that leaders need to keep in the fold. Republican governors may not have a vote in either chamber, but they do have considerable sway with their congressional delegations and many red states have a substantial percentage of their Medicaid programs covered by federal dollars. Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo released a letter last month seeking to assuage fears about potential federal cuts to Medicaid, writing that he was “actively engaged in conversations with the White House and others in the federal government to relay our state’s concerns.” “An abrupt reduction in federal funding would not only disrupt care for those who rely on Medicaid, but would also destabilize public and private healthcare providers, leading to workforce reductions, service limitations, and financial strain on already overburdened health care facilities,” Lombardo wrote. National Governors Association Chair Jared Polis, a Colorado Democrat, and Vice Chair Kevin Stitt, an Oklahoma Republican, wrote in a joint statement released in March that the organization is “committed to advocating for a robust and efficient health and human services system, including Medicaid.” “Without consultation and proper planning, Congressionally proposed reductions to Medicaid would impact state budgets, rural hospitals and health care service providers,” they wrote. “It is necessary for Governors to have a seat at the table when discussing any reforms and cuts to Medicaid funding.” Federal spending cuts to Medicaid could lead some of the 40 states that have expanded the program under Obamacare to roll it back, though Missouri, Oklahoma and South Dakota have the expansion in their constitutions, making the impact of congressional action more complicated for their budgets and residents. Leighton Ku, professor of health policy and management at The George Washington University, said during an interview that even though GOP governors aren’t members of Congress, they still hold “powerful influence.” “We’re talking about deep cuts in federal spending that will have profound effects on state economies and state employment,” Ku said. “Governors, particularly those who expanded Medicaid, should feel fairly nervous about: What are the implications for their states in terms of both their political futures as well as what it will do to their state economies?” “Again, we’re talking about the possibility of maybe somewhere on the order of a million jobs being lost simply because of the Medicaid cuts,” he added. “And that should cause some trepidation among governors.” Republicans in Congress, Ku said, are trying to reduce spending. But when it comes to Medicaid, where the cost of administering the program is split between states and the federal government, any change to the federal share will come at the expense of the states. “So the states end up being losers,” he said. “And this will cause states’ governors some unease. Again, it depends on where they lie politically: They may still be willing to accept cuts if it fits in with their ideologies.” State and local taxes Republicans also find themselves in a sticky situation when it comes to a major tax provision set to expire at the end of 2025: a limit on the amount of state and local taxes a taxpayer can deduct on their federal tax return. The limit is often simply referred to as the SALT cap. Like proposed Medicaid cuts, the SALT debate has potential to change the calculus of Republicans willing to vote for the one large reconciliation bill. For many years prior to the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, taxpayers were able to take full advantage of deducting state and local taxes from their federal taxable income. But in that law, GOP lawmakers changed course and enacted a $10,000 cap on the SALT deduction to raise revenue to cover some of the law’s massive tax breaks. The ability to deduct all eligible state and local taxes on federal tax returns was a win for wealthy households located in states and municipalities with steeper taxes. At the time, Democrats, who wholesale opposed Trump’s tax agenda, saw the SALT cap as an attack on high-earning, high-tax blue states. But the SALT cap drew ire from across the aisle as well, said Kyle Pomerleau, senior fellow and federal tax policy expert for the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. “The original bill also had a few Republicans that didn’t vote for it because of the cap. So this has been controversial to some degree from the very beginning,” Pomerleau said. With such a narrow majority in the House, Republicans from high-tax areas, including those representing New York’s Long Island and Staten Island and California’s wealthy suburbs, will have leverage in the coming debate. “Republicans generally don’t come from those states. There’s only a handful of them. But that brings us back to the vote margin that Republicans have,” Pomerleau said. “They have a lot of power this time around to really get what they want. These lawmakers who represent people that are concerned about this cap are going to want that cap raised.” The issue is one of the few tax topics not polarized by party because it is defined by location, said Garrett Watson, director of policy analysis at the Tax Foundation, a think tank that generally supports lower taxes. “It’s an interesting sort of debate, just because a lot of tax policy debates have political, partisan, ideological components, right? That’s somewhat predictable,” Watson said. “What’s interesting about SALT is actually it’s also a strong geographic story.” Watson published the Tax Foundation’s 2023 county-by-county maps of state and local taxes paid as well as deducted from federal taxes in 2020. The data showed the top reporting counties were concentrated in California and New York. Raising cap would cost federal government But many Republicans would be happy if the cap on SALT deductions stayed in place to offset the cost of extending the 2017 tax cuts. Raising the cap beyond the current $10,000 limit could reduce federal revenue between $200 billion to $1.2 trillion over the next decade, depending on what level Congress decides, according to a January analysis from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, a nonpartisan think tank that leans center-left. In other words, households deducting more from their federal taxable income means the federal government reaping less revenue. “Just to give you some order of magnitude, we looked at what would happen if you raised the cap from $10,000 to $20,000. That would cost (the federal government) $250 billion over 10 years. That’s a big number,” said Howard Gleckman, a senior fellow at the Tax Policy Center. Deficit hawks, like Roy of Texas and Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, have spoken out in recent months against raising the cap. And while more federal revenue is lost with each dollar the cap increases, the benefit mainly goes to high-income earners, according to another Tax Policy Center analysis. “We estimated when you raise the (SALT cap) from $10,000 to $20,000, 93% of the benefit goes to the top …20% , which are people making more than $200,000,” Gleckman said. “And half of it goes to people in the top 5% who are people who make more than $400,000.” Most taxpayers take the standard deduction, which in 2025 sits at $15,000 for single taxpayers or $30,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly. “That’s why the vast majority of people get no benefit from this. It’s only people who make a lot of money, who itemize, and who pay a lot of tax who get caught up in the cap,” Gleckman said. But they may have an outsized voice as Congress hammers out its reconciliation bill in the coming months. Johnson, a Louisiana Republican whose constituents would not benefit from raising the SALT cap, will have a “tough balancing act,” Gleckman said. “Mike Johnson looks at the narrow majority he has in the House, and he sees if he loses half a dozen seats from places like New York and California because he doesn’t fix the cap then he could not be speaker anymore,” he said. Republicans in the bipartisan SALT caucus include Reps. Mike Lawler, Nick LaLota, Andrew Garbarino and Nicole Malliotakis, all representing New York, as well as Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey, and Young Kim of California. Rachel Snyderman, managing director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, said “complicated political tetris” is likely to emerge as lawmakers negotiate the reconciliation bill. “The caucus that has called for (the cap’s) elimination over the past years has only gotten louder and more vocal and see this year as the opportunity to flex their muscle,” Snyderman said.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— Juan Sanchez announces public land commissioner candidacy

 

at 4/25/25 5:00am

Former Democratic Party of New Mexico vice chair Juan Sanchez is the first candidate to announce a bid to become the next Commissioner of Public Lands. (Courtesy photo)While Belen resident Juan Sanchez only decided to run in the 2026 Democratic primary for New Mexico Land Commissioner in the last few months, hes been thinking about it for longer, he says.  “Ive been traveling the state for the last 10 years, working in natural resources, conservation and public engagement, and some of the things Ive realized while doing that is, we are a state that is so rich in our lands and our culture and all the things around us, and it feels like it came to me over the last few months that this is something I think I could do,” Sanchez told Source NM. Sanchez so far is the only candidate for land commissioner in the 2026 election. Voters twice sent current Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard to the State Land Office, and so the state constitution term-limits her from running again. She is instead seeking the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor, the Los Alamos Daily Post reports. A former natural resource specialist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and consultant for the New Mexico Acequia Commission, Sanchez also is a former vice chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico, and worked as political director for U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), who endorsed his candidacy. “I’m a 13th-generation New Mexican, Sanchez said. “I learned to start caring for the land at a very young age, from my grandfather, who was a rancher, and just like his father and his father before them, all on the same piece of property in northern Socorro County. Im really proud of the experience Ive accumulated, and the people Ive met because I learned so much from our elders, and want to continue a legacy of managing land in New Mexico for generations to come.” The following interview has been edited for clarity and concision. Source NM: Can you talk about equitable access to state lands? What does that mean to you, and why is it a priority for your campaign? Juan Sanchez: We live in a place where the State Land Office manages over 9 million acres of public lands, and the other 13 million acres of mineral rights as well. But of those 9 million acres, theres 1 million of them that are landlocked and are not accessible to the public. As someone who takes a lot of pride in accessibility to the outdoors and making sure folks in communities around the state can go and enjoy those areas, it’s something I plan to make a priority. We live in a beautiful place to go out, explore and learn about the land and our culture. But also, theres opportunities with the outdoor economy, as well: teaching our young students and our young children in our schools about these lands and creating equitable access, and being able to open up these lands to all these different folks is definitely a priority.   Your campaign website talks about ensuring rural and Indigenous communities have a voice in land use decisions. What does that mean for people who don’t understand what land use is, and how will you ensure it ? That’s something Id like to build on from Land Commissioner [Garcia Richard], who I think has done a great job in creating the Cultural Resources Office. Theyre going into these communities and finding out what makes them special or sacred. Some of these areas definitely do need some protection. A great example of this is the Caja Del Rio up in Santa Fe County, which the current land commissioner has protected from mineral exploration, oil and gas, as well as large transmission. She was in consultation with tribal communities, with traditional Hispanic communities that have been there for centuries, and learning about how sacred and important that land is to the way of life.   Looking at Garcia Richard’s time in office, is there anything else you would continue? The Cultural Resources office is absolutely one of those; the other one is the Office of Renewable Energy, she created that, and then it was put into statute a couple years later by the Legislature. The Cultural Resources Office has not been put into statute yet, so the next commissioner can decide whether or not to keep that or no longer have that. With the Office of Renewable Energy, continuing to try to expand and diversify some of the money we make off our state lands is something that will be important to me. Its important to maintain a relationship with the oil and gas industries. They are the revenue that comes from our state lands, predominantly. I appreciate the most recent work that was done this last legislative session, the royalty rate increase; thats something I support. I think itll be great for New Mexicans and for our public institutions.   Is there anything you would do differently? A lot of the work at the Surface Resource Division is something I’d really like to expand upon, make my own and try to find ways to diversify our economy through outdoor recreation and accessibility to lands, whether that be hiking, hunting or fishing. We have communities like our tribal and historical land use Hispanic communities that have been collecting wood in these areas for keeping their homes warm.   What does the phrase ‘water is life’ mean to you, both as a new Mexican and as a candidate for this role? I’m a content creator and I have about 100,000 followers on my social media. Just this morning, I posted about how, when I was on a run yesterday, I was running along one of our acequias, and the water just started coming through for the first time in the year. You could actually watch the water pouring in. Look, I spent about five years as a consultant with the New Mexico Acequia Commission, working with leaders across the state, predominantly in Northern New Mexico, maintaining water access and traditional way of lives. Whenever we talk about our acequias, our water, were talking about the life blood to our lands and to our life. As the waters start pouring through our acequias, they start to grow in our fields, they start to feed our plants, they start to give water to the animals we end up eating later on. It’s a balance. Our communities cannot survive without clean water, and Im really adamant about the idea of protecting that and protecting the ways of life, learning from our tribal and our historical communities on how theyve survived with scarcity of water, and finding ways to continue to protect it, for us and for future generations. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Election 2026, Environment & Climate Change, Gov & Politics, climate, conservation, environment, lands commissioner, natural resources, state land office]

— NM Aging department commits to helping seniors age ‘in place’ and ‘autonomously’ in new draft plan

 

at 4/24/25 5:10pm

The New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department released its draft 2025-2029 Plan on Aging, committing the department to assisting seniors retain their autonomy. (Photo courtesy of New Mexico Aging Services)As New Mexico’s population of seniors continues to grow, the state’s aging department is proposing expanded initiatives to help seniors maintain their autonomy while also supporting family caregivers. The New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department released a draft of its 2025-2029 State Plan on Aging on Thursday and is receiving feedback from the public and stakeholders through May 15. The document states that it is expected to go into effect in October 2025. The plan details three goals to help New Mexicans age in place and reduce instances of abuse and neglect, including: administering programs to support seniors aging in their own homes, as well as their caregivers; responding to “social determinants of health,” such as food security, housing security and access to healthcare; and reducing instances of abuse, neglect and exploitation in the state while also preserving seniors’ autonomy. According to the previous plan, more than 377,700 New Mexicans were 65 and older in 2018. This number grew to more than 391,200 in 2020 and is projected to grow by 122% by 2030, meaning more than 475,600 New Mexicans will be 65 and over. The current draft plan states that New Mexico is currently the 13th state in the U.S. with the highest percentage of population falling into this age category. “In the past five years a lot has changed including the growth of our aging population and increased needs such as transportation access and caregiver support,” an unattributed written statement from the aging department to Source NM reads. “The new plan strives to address these changing needs including standing up new programs like New MexiCare that support family and friend caregivers.” The New MexiCare program provides caregivers with financial and training support to then help aging New Mexicans remain in their own homes. The program is currently available in 31 of the state’s 33 counties, excepting Doña Ana and Bernalillo counties, but aging department representatives have said previously the goal is to eventually expand the program into those counties as well. The department also noted in its statement that only an estimated 22% of the 60 and older population receive services such as home-delivered meals, congregate meals, transportation, case management, adult day care, respite services and homemaker services – all of which fall under the Older Americans Act Title III services and are provided by the Area Agencies on Aging in the state.  “The advocacy responsibilities remain a quintessential aspect of the work that ALTSD engages in daily,” the statement reads. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE

[Category: Gov & Politics, Health, Aging and Long-Term Services Department, Area Agencies on Aging, caregivers, Older Americans Act, senior citizens, seniors]

— Trump DOJ asks U.S. Supreme Court to reverse ruling allowing transgender troops

 

at 4/24/25 5:09pm

The U.S. Supreme Court building. (Photo by Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom)WASHINGTON — The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court Thursday to block a lower court’s decision allowing transgender individuals to continue enlisting and serving in the armed forces. Administration officials are seeking a stay of a broad district court ruling in late March that applied to all troops rather than only to those who challenged President Donald Trump’s executive order in court. The U.S. Appeals Court for the 9th Circuit upheld the lower court’s ruling Friday. The government contends its policy does not discriminate against an entire class of people, but rather finds a diagnosis or history of gender dysphoria to be disqualifying. Gender dysphoria is recognized by medical professionals as distress caused by an incongruence between a person’s gender identity and their sex at birth. In its application to the Supreme Court Thursday afternoon, the Department of Justice argued it’s likely to succeed in the case because the newly adopted policy does not differ widely from those in place under former secretaries of defense. “The policy was based in part on the findings of a panel of experts convened during the first Trump Administration, which found that service by individuals with gender dysphoria was contrary to ‘military effectiveness and lethality,’” wrote John Sauer, Trump’s solicitor general. Sauer also argued the district court’s universal order violated the power of the president. Trump issued an executive order on Jan. 27, asserting the “adoption of a gender identity inconsistent with an individuals sex conflicts with a soldiers commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle, even in ones personal life.” Further, the order said that being transgender is “not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member.” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued the new policy a month later, reversing former President Joe Biden’s order allowing service members to transition and serve openly under their preferred gender identity. Trump’s order immediately drew court challenges, including a separate case now in the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia. A Department of Justice attorney arguing before the D.C. Circuit Tuesday alerted the judges that the administration would “imminently” appeal the 9th Circuit decision to the Supreme Court. Lambda Legal and the Human Rights Foundation, who are representing plaintiffs in the 9th Circuit case, released a statement in response Tuesday asserting, “Transgender service members have been openly serving our country with honor and distinction for almost a decade and have met and are meeting every neutral service-based standard.” “The U.S. Supreme Court should reject the invitation to stay the district court’s injunction so that they can impose their discriminatory ban while the litigation proceeds,” the statement said. The administration’s emergency application to the high court Thursday is just the latest in the administration’s whack-a-mole battle against lower federal court rulings that have blocked White House actions, particularly on immigration. 

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics, armed forces, courts, SCOTUS, transgender, Trump, U.S. Supreme Court]

As of 4/29/25 8:11am. Last new 4/28/25 8:08pm.