Bills Limiting School Testing And Restricting Use Of Restraint And Seclusion Head To Governor
STATE News:
- Bills Aim to Improve the Quality of Student Life at New Mexico Schools
SANTA FE – Monday night, the House concurred with two bills to improve the quality of student life at New Mexico schools.
House Bills 185 and 75 will now head to the Governor’s desk. House Bill 185 sets limits on the amount of time that students spend taking standardized tests.
“This bill puts teaching ahead of testing, and makes sure students aren’t missing out on valuable classroom time,” said Rep. Joanne Ferrary (D-Las Cruces), one of the bill’s sponsors. “We can’t continue to waste money and Read More
Senate Sends School Restraint Bill To Governor
Rep. Jim Smith
SENATE News:
SANTA FE – This afternoon, the Senate approved House Bill 75, a bill to limit the use of restraint and seclusion techniques in schools. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Jim Smith (R-Bernalillo, Sandoval and Santa Fe), passed on a bipartisan 30 to 4 vote.
House Bill 75 specifies conditions when restraining and seclusion techniques may be permitted in schools, and it requires New Mexico’s public schools to adopt policies and procedures for the use of restraint and seclusion techniques in their school safety plans. The bill also requires that schools develop procedures for Read More
McMillan To Testify At House Armed Services Panel
LANL Director Charlie McMillan
Staff Report
The public will get a first glimpse under the hood of the next era of American nuclear weapons this week, when key officials in the complex stand for questions during a hearing of a House Armed Services subcommittee scheduled for Thursday.
Los Alamos National Laboratory Director Charlie McMillan is set to be among those appearing before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. The meeting at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. will address “Oversight Review of Infrastructure Needs and Projects Ready for Immediate Implementation in the Nuclear Read More
Anti-Hazing Bill Advances Past House
Rep. Monica Youngblood
STATE News:
SANTA FE – This afternoon, the House of Representatives passed House Bill 427, a bill sponsored by Rep. Monica Youngblood (R-Bernalillo) to prevent hazing in New Mexico’s schools. The House approved the bill by a 56 to 2 vote.
Youngblood’s bill would require every New Mexico educational institution to adopt, post, and enforce a hazing prevention policy. The bill defines what actions are considered hazing and lists the areas that hazing policies need to address to ensure the policies are consistent statewide.
According to recent statistics, forty-eight Read More
Udall Celebrates Women’s History Month
House Passes Bill Benefitting New Mexico Businesses
STATE News:
- HB 356 Uses LEDA Funds to Create Jobs & Promote Local Businesses
SANTA FE — The New Mexico House of Representatives passed House Bill 356, which uses Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) funds to increase local economic growth and create jobs.
HB 356 sponsored by Representatives Rudy Martinez (D-Grants) and Daymon Ely (D-Corrales), targets $2 million in investment dollars specifically for resident businesses in both rural and urban New Mexico.
“When our small businesses thrive, our state thrives,” Rep. Martinez said. “This piece of legislation prioritizes New Read More
Bipartisan Bill To Rein In Predatory Loan Practices Passes House
STATE News:
SANTA FE — The New Mexico House of Representatives has passed House Bill 347, a bill to rein in predatory loan practices, in a sweeping bipartisan vote of 64-2. Sponsored by Rep. Patty Lundstrom (D-Gallup) and Rep. Debbie Rodella (D-Española), HB 347 is part of a bipartisan effort to limit the fees and charges financial institutions add to installment loans, also known as payday loans, and to implement financial literacy programs in the state.
“We need to make sure the consumer financial market works for everyday New Mexicans, not just the well-connected,” Rep. Read More
Letter To The Editor: Slanted Press Is Nothing New
This is in response to letters from Ms. Dolejsi (link), Ms. Remillieux (link) and Mr. Visel (link) about “Freedom of the Press”.
One thing that Mr. Visel states in his letter is that “No one can trust CNN or the mainstream media anymore”. The part I take issue with is the “anymore” part of the statement. The press has always been slanted.
Many of the newspapers that were founded in the 19th Century were founded and owned by the political parties. For instance, the Chicago Tribune was founded by the Republican party. Do you think they were interested in “fair
Lunch With A Leader Features New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Daniels March 21
Letter To The Editor: Background Checks Needed For All Gun Sales
I am writing because I support requiring background checks for all gun sales. As a mom and member of Moms Demand Action, I know gun safety is good for kids and families.
Right now, the New Mexico legislature is considering bills that would expand criminal background checks for gun sales to include purchases from unlicensed sellers over the Internet and at gun shows. The background check bill would close the dangerous unlicensed sale loophole and make it harder for criminals to buy guns from strangers in unlicensed sales at gun shows.
Weak gun Read More
Letter To The Editor: If You Really Want A Background Check Bill Passed … Tell ‘Moms’ And ‘Everytown’ To Sit Down, Shut Up, And Listen
Indeed, it has probably been the tone-deafness and intransigence of that group (both “Everytown” and “Moms” are names for “Astroturf” organizations supported by New York City billionaire Michael Bloomberg) that have stood in the way of a background bill passing out of the legislature.
The out of state lobbyists and their Read More
Governor Acts On Three More Bills
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez
STATE News:
SANTA FE — Gov. Susana Martinez acted on the following legislation Saturday:
- Signed House Bill 12 – Close Certain Taos & Colfax Magistrate Courts [MESSAGE]
- Vetoed Senate Bill 200 – Certified School Employee Program Units [MESSAGE]
- Vetoed Senate Bill 6 – Industrial Hemp Research Rules [MESSAGE]
Letter To The Editor: Strip ’Em To Their Skivvies And Light One Off!
Back in the 1970’s, Harold Agnew,* third director of Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (LASL), presented a Director’s Colloquium to explain his congressional testimony regarding a proposed Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). He feared the world’s leaders would soon forget the destructive power of nuclear weapons, so he proposed the following:
“Every five or so years, gather the world’s leaders on an uninhabited island in the South Pacific, ‘strip ’em to their skivvies,’ and ‘Light one off!’ First they’d be blinded
Bill Restricting Isolated Confinement Passes House
STATE News:
- HB 175 Restricts New Mexico Correctional Facilities’ Use of Outdated & Inhumane Practice
SANTA FE – The New Mexico House of Representatives passed House Bill 175, the Isolated Confinement Act, in a 38-22 vote Saturday evening.
HB 175 restricts the use of isolated confinement in New Mexico prisons and jails for pregnant women, minors and those suffering from severe mental illness. It also sets a 48-hour maximum for isolated confinement in cases of emergency and a five-day maximum upon initial booking.
“Isolated confinement is overused and misused Read More
Letter To The Editor: Internet And Gun Show Sales
I am hopeful that this is the legislative session when we will close the background check loophole on Internet and gun show gun sales. We have lost too many lives to senseless gun violence in New Mexico.
A fews years ago, my daughter came home excited because they installed bulletproof glass at Kearny Elementary, and it would be safer if an active shooter came to the campus. Really, is gun violence what we want our kids to be worrying about as they go to school? For this reason, I am a member of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Let’s do what we can and
AFTNM On Senate Passage Of House Bill 2
American Federation of Teachers New Mexico President Stephanie Ly
AFTNM News:
- Changes to Previously Passed House Version Prioritize Education
SANTA FE – American Federation of Teachers New Mexico President Stephanie Ly released the following statement on the New Mexico Senate’s passage Of House Bill 2:
“Senate Finance Committee amendments to the General Appropriations Act of 2017 (House Bill 2/a), builds upon the work from the House of Representatives, and continues to keep the needs of the New Mexico’s public schools in the forefront of budgetary priorities in an extremely difficult
House Approves Bill To Protect Nonprofit Volunteers
Heinrich On 16 Million New Private-Sector Jobs
House Passes Memorial To Protect Chaco Canyon
Kin Bineola is an Ancestral Puebloan great house and archeological site 12 miles from Pueblo Bonito in Chaco Culture National Historical Park. Courtedy/NPS
STATE News:
SANTA FE — Tonight, House Memorial 70, the Protection of Chaco Canyon Landscape, sponsored by Rep. Derrick Lente (D-Sandia Pueblo), passed the New Mexico House of Representatives in a 31-28 party-line vote.
HM 70 requests that the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) respect their established relationship with tribal entities by consulting with tribes on any hydraulic fracking operations around Read More
Letter To The Editor: What’s Next For The Sheriff?
A brief lull between elections is a fine time to reflect on recent results. Particularly the fate of the Sheriff.