Political News

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

U.S. Sen. Tom Udall 
 
SENATE News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C.  U.S. Sen. Tom Udall issued the following statement today in honor of Women’s History Month:
 
“This Women’s History Month, we celebrate the resiliency and strength of generations of women in New Mexico and nationwide, who have marched, organized and rallied for equality in the face of great opposition. And we are reminded of the responsibility we have to the brave leaders of these feminist movements to build on their work to create equal opportunity for women
Read More

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

By RICHARD NEBEL
Los Alamos 

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

Read More

Lunch With A Leader Features New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Daniels March 21

New Mexico Supreme Court Justice Charles W. Daniels
 
LWVLA News:
 
This month’s Lunch with a Leader features Chief Justice Charles Daniels of the New Mexico Supreme Court at 11:45 a.m., March 21 in Mesa Public Library.  
 
Justice Daniels will discuss bail reform in New Mexico — working to improve public safety while protecting individual rights. He was initially appointed to the Supreme Court in October 2007 by recommendation of the nonpartisan Judicial Nominating Commission. He was unopposed in the 2008 primary and general elections and elected to continue in the position.
Read More

Letter To The Editor: Background Checks Needed For All Gun Sales

By CATHY WEBER
Los Alamos
 

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

By KHALIL J. SPENCER
Los Alamos
 
I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry when I read the latest pro “background check” letter (by Amber Espinosa-Trujillo) in what seems to be an orchestrated letter writing campaign by Everytown for Gun Safety/Moms Demand Action.

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]
Read More

Letter To The Editor: Strip ’Em To Their Skivvies And Light One Off!

By Dr. T. DOUGLAS REILLY
Los Alamos
 

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

Read More

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

Read More

AFTNM On Senate Passage Of House Bill 2

Read More

House Approves Bill To Protect Nonprofit Volunteers

STATE News:
 
SANTA FE The House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill to protect volunteers from personal liability when they are performing services for nonprofit organizations.
 
House Bill 224 is sponsored by Reps. Yvette Herrell (R-Otero) and Bob Wooley (R-Chaves, Lea & Roosevelt).
 
The provisions of the legislation would cover properly trained volunteers acting in good faith and within the scope of their assigned duties. The legislation would only apply to individuals who are not compensated for their services, and it would not exempt board members
Read More

Heinrich On 16 Million New Private-Sector Jobs

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich
 
U.S. SENATE News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich issued the following statement after February’s employment report showed more than 16 million private-sector jobs have been created over the past 84 months.
 
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the economy added 235,000 jobs in February.
 
“Today’s jobs numbers make clear what we have known for some time: President Trump did not inherit a mess, in fact he inherited one of the longest expansions in American history. The challenge before us is how to put that
Read More

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?

Read More
Search
LOS ALAMOS

ladailypost.com website support locally by OviNuppi Systems