New Mexico Begins Sewage Testing For COVID At Prisons – Associated Press
New Mexico has begun monitoring sewage from prisons and youth rehabilitation facilities to more efficiently detect COVID-19 outbreaks in the southwest of the state.
The state Environment Department announced the initiative Wednesday. The goal is to sample human feces in group-living situations to quickly identify coronavirus outbreaks.
The results may be used to more effectively deploy individual testing to pinpoint infections and halt the spread.
Initial sampling will take place at federal, state and local jails, along with facilities overseen by the state Children, Youth and Families Department.
Environment Department spokeswoman Maddy Hayden said the initial effort comes at a cost of about $300,000, utilizing federal relief funds. Lexington, Massachusetts-based ERG was contracted to perform the sewage testing.
The southwest region was selected for the initial phase of testing because of high rates of positive testing along with limited access to testing.
State health officials reported 1,759 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday and 34 additional deaths.
There are 917 people hospitalized with COVID-19 and health officials warned this week that the state faces the prospect of rationing care if the coronavirus pandemic worsens.
New Mexico Education Spending Plan Focuses On Student Equity - By Cedar Attanasio Associated Press / Report For America
The New Mexico Public Education Department is proposing a new formula for funding schools with high numbers of low-income students.
Education Secretary Ryan Stewart told a panel of state lawmakers Wednesday that a more detailed analysis of student household incomes could help the state meet a court-ordered mandate to provide adequate education for low-income students.
The proposed index would aggregate family income data at the school level.
Stewart also put forward a plan to fund councilors, tutors and other services to help students who are falling behind due to remote learning.
The Public Education Department is under pressure to provide more support for low-income school districts after a judge ruled in 2018 that the state is failing its constitutional obligation to provide an adequate education for children, particularly to Native Americans, English language learners and low-income students.
The overall budget request for the fiscal year beginning in July asks for a post-pandemic service fund of $95 million.
The idea is to get students back on their feet through counseling, tutoring and work experience programs following what is expected to be more than a year of online learning.
Predictions Vary On New Mexico Higher Education Enrollment - By Cedar Attanasio, Associated Press/Report For America
Higher education leaders and lawmakers debated the future of New Mexico college enrollment in a legislative hearing Tuesday.
While New Mexico's higher education secretary believes it will rise like it did after the 2008 recession, some lawmakers think it will continue declining.
Officials said Tuesday that preliminary data suggests freshman enrollment is up this fall at state-funded universities.
But some current students are failing to complete credits because of financial and childcare disruptions. Some lawmakers are concerned that high school students won't graduate and as a result won't have college as an option.
Public high schools are shuttered across the state with students learning online. And grades for New Mexico high school students are down, with many schools reporting significant rises in the number of students failing classes.
During the five years before the pandemic, enrollment in state schools declined by 13%, according to an October report by legislative researchers.
Child public school enrollment is down about 4% in New Mexico, according to preliminary data published in November by the Public Education Department, which oversees K-12.
The Higher Education Department is requesting $803.2 million for the state's colleges, $24.5 million for state financial aid programs, $7 million for adult education, and $3.9 for operating costs.
It oversees billions of dollars in tuition scholarships, including the lottery scholarship, which funds 4-year college tuition and the "opportunity scholarship," which funds 2-year college tuition.
Navajo Nation Reports 191 New COVID-19 Cases, 5 More Deaths – Associated Press
Navajo Nation health officials on Wednesday reported 191 new COVID-19 cases and five more deaths.
In all, the tribe has now reported 18,575 cases and 693 known deaths since the pandemic began.
Navajo Department of Health officials say nearly 177,000 people on the vast reservation that includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah have been tested for COVID-19 and more than 10,000 have recovered.
But officials have identified 77 Navajo Nation communities with uncontrolled spread of the coronavirus since late last month.
Tribal officials say nearly all intensive care unit beds on the reservation are being used as COVID-19 cases surge.
The Navajo Nation has extended its stay-at-home order though Dec. 28 in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus.
New Mexico Panel Recommends Raising Medical Pot Plant Count - By Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press
An advisory board is recommending that New Mexico clear the way for licensed medical marijuana producers to grow more plants.
The board during a meeting Wednesday voted in favor of a petition that sought to significantly increase the current plant count limit. The medical marijuana industry has pushed for eliminating the limit amid patient complaints about high costs and a lack of variety.
The state health secretary will have the final say on the recommendation.
Ultra Health, one of New Mexico's largest producers, has argued in public meetings and as part of court challenges that the limits established by the Health Department are arbitrary.
However, some participants in the program have voiced concerns that the nonprofit model established by the state has devolved into a monopoly in which producers grow mid-grade marijuana and charge what they want.
Officials with New Mexico's medical cannabis program noted that previous increases in the plant count failed to bring down prices and that another increase already is in the works for next year.
The board also is recommending that the state adopt changes to rules governing reciprocity for those patients whose authorization to use medical marijuana originated in other states.
Officials with New Mexico's marijuana program said the goal is to provide access for people who may be traveling through or living in the state on a temporary basis.
The proposed changes would close a loophole allowing New Mexico residents to see a provider online and get authorization out of state rather than enrolling in New Mexico's program.
Board members denied a petition to allow medical marijuana as a seizure therapy for pets.
Gas Pipeline Project In New Mexico Halted Amid Pandemic – Carlsbad Current-Argus, Associated Press
A natural gas pipeline that would have connected an oil field in New Mexico and Texas to markets in the Gulf Coast has been halted as the fossil fuel industry struggles during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Carlsbad Current-Argus reported that officials with Permian Global Access Pipeline, a subsidiary of Houston-based natural gas producer Tellurian, withdrew its application to build the 625-mile pipeline.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission first approved the request to begin the application process in September 2019.
Permian Global Access Pipeline LLC President Joey Mahmoud said that current market conditions meant the project was not financially viable and that the company could resume if the market recovers.
State health officials reported 1,759 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday and 34 additional deaths.
There are 917 people hospitalized with COVID-19 and health officials warned this week that the state faces the prospect of rationing care if the coronavirus pandemic worsens.
New Mexico Prepared For Rationing Care If Pandemic Worsens - By Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press
Top health officials say New Mexico has a solid plan in place to stretch hospital and health care resources as far as possible before having to ration care.
But they also warned during an update Tuesday that the state could face that prospect if the coronavirus pandemic worsens.
Human Services Secretary Dr. David Scrase said there are hospitals around New Mexico facing extremely high demands and state health officials are expected to formally declare soon that providers are at a stage where rationing care is possible.
Such a step is likely despite a slowdown in the rate of spread and a decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases being reported daily in the state.
Under a crisis standards of care declaration, an established framework and guidelines would be used for making ethical decisions about triaging care.
Local triage boards are up and running at hospitals around the state and a centralized call center has been helping to identify which hospitals have room and which ones need help.
Unlike other states, the idea early on was for separate providers in New Mexico to work together to pool their resources since the state already ranked near the bottom nationally for the number of hospital beds per 1,000 residents.
Officials stressed that the tools used by the local triage boards to make decisions are objective and based on equity and fairness. They also said the foundation for developing those tools is rooted in plans that have been crafted over recent years and months by experts both nationally and in New Mexico.
The only criteria that would determine the allocation for resources and care is whether a person would be likely to survive a COVID-19 infection, officials said.
As resources become more scarce, officials explained, the duty of health care providers shifts from focusing on the individual patient to making sure decisions maximize benefits for all patients.
Confirmed infections in New Mexico are close to 110,000 since the pandemic began, with roughly half of those being reported in November. The number of related deaths reported in a single day hit record highs twice last week, and hospitalizations still are hovering over 900.
Economists Predict Rebound In New Mexico Government Income - By Morgan Lee, Associated Press
State economists are predicting a rebound in New Mexico state government income for the fiscal year that starts in July 2021, on top of multibillion-dollar financial reserves.
Economists for the Legislature and three state agencies said Tuesday that the state anticipates an increase in general fund revenues of $163 million over current annual spending obligations. That's roughly a 2% increase.
The state is likely to finish the fiscal year in July with $2.4 billion in financial reserves. That leaves New Mexico well-positioned to maintain funding for essential services in public education, public safety, health care and more amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Finance and Administration Secretary Debbie Romero told a panel of lawmakers state agencies are scrapping plans for spending cuts and instead are preparing for sustained or increased spending in the fiscal year that runs from July 2021 to June 2022
Still, economists warn of uncertainty linked to the presidential transition, possible new federal relief and the path of the virus.
Dawn Iglesias, chief staff economist at the Legislative Finance Committee, said that direct federal relief to the state bolstered state finances by about $1 billion, as state reserves have swelled to record levels.
Crucial state income from gross receipts taxes on sales and business transactions has been propped up by a variety of federal pandemic relief — ranging from supplemental unemployment checks that ran out in September to cash infusions to businesses under the federal paycheck protection program.
Iglesias told legislators that privately collected data on consumer spending shows a dramatic shift to online spending, and that revenues among small businesses statewide may be down 40% in November versus the same month in 2019. New Mexico still doesn't fully tax those sales under a phase-in of gross receipts taxes for online retailers.
Budget Analysts Caution Legislators On Film Subsidy Growth - By Morgan Lee Associated Press
The budget and accountability office of New Mexico's Legislature is cautioning that the cost of film tax credit payments to producers such as Netflix could grow quickly and unpredictably in coming years.
A Legislative Finance Committee report on Tuesday said preliminary estimates indicate that new production commitments by Netflix, announced in November, could increase annual tax credit payouts by $25 million beginning next fiscal year.
The state expects to pay out nearly $100 million in film production tax credits in the coming fiscal year, starting in July 2021, and $147 million the following year.
Budget analysts say costs to taxpayers could quickly grow further through partnerships with the film industry, with no way for the state to mitigate spending.
New Mexico offers a rebate of between 25% and 35% on in-state film production costs. In 2019, it increased incentive offerings to the film and television industry amid efforts to trim the state's economic reliance on federal funding and oil and natural gas development.
That legislation also increases the reporting requirements to determine the effectiveness of the film production tax credit.
In November, Netflix announced plans to establish one of the largest production hubs in North America with an expansion of its existing studio complex in New Mexico.
The expansion plan calls for a total of $24 million in state and local economic development funding, and industrial revenue bonds would be issued by the city of Albuquerque to help reduce some taxes for Netflix.
Albuquerque Plans To Turn Old Hospital Into Homeless Shelter - Associated Press
City officials say they plan to buy a former Albuquerque hospital and turn it into a homeless shelter and services hub.
Mayor Tim Keller said Tuesday that the city is working to purchase the former Lovelace hospital although the price wasn't immediately disclosed.
Keller told the Albuquerque Journal that the property would provide emergency shelter beds, an around-the-clock dropoff site for first responders and a home for on-site medical and behavioral health services.
New Mexico is currently leasing 360,000 square feet of the facility as a COVID-19 emergency hospital and Keller says the city's purchase would not disrupt that.
The building has some other existing tenants, which Keller said brings ongoing lease revenue.
Albuquerque is currently providing emergency shelter for about 630 people.
Virus Outbreak In Texas Army Base Alarms New Mexico Leaders - By Cedar Attanasio Associated Press / Report For America
The New Mexico congressional delegation is raising questions about a coronavirus outbreak among a group of soldiers in El Paso, Texas, which borders their state.
The Oregon Army National Guard unit recently returned from a month-long deployment in the southern European country of Kosovo as part of a NATO peacekeeping force. The Senators and Congress members say they've learned 70 soldiers have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Tuesday.
In a letter to the Pentagon, the delegation asks for details about how the army will test and contact trace among soldiers in the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas.
It also asks if contact tracing has detected spread from members of the unit to people outside of it.
The base is about 45 minutes from Las Cruces, New Mexico, and 20 miles from Otero, New Mexico, which has shooting ranges and other training facilities used by soldiers and law enforcement officers.
Sex Abuse Victims Want Archdiocese Eliminated, Lawyer Says – Albuquerque Journal, Associated Press
An attorney for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe has claimed that alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse and their lawyers are seeking to eliminate the archdiocese in New Mexico by seeking information about the church's holdings.
Three lawsuits claim that the archdiocese illegally transferred about $245 million to parishes and their trusts before the archdiocese filed for bankruptcy.
An attorney for some of the victims called the accusation made at a court hearing Monday unconstructive and untrue.
The archdiocese's website lists 79 priests and clergy members who were "credibly accused" of sexually abusing children.
The archdiocese previously filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in 2018 after a slew of child sexual abuse claims against clergy were reported.
The Albuquerque Journal reported the archdiocese and parishes want the New Mexico lawsuits placed on hold while they appeal an Oct. 9 ruling that allowed the alleged victims to pursue the cases.
The archdiocese is among 29 Catholic dioceses and religious orders in the U.S. that have filed for bankruptcy because of sexual abuse accusations.
Navajo Nation Reports 159 New COVID-19 Cases, 6 More Deaths - Associated Press
Navajo Nation health officials on Tuesday reported 159 new COVID-19 cases and six more deaths. In all, the tribe has now reported 18,324 cases and 688 know deaths since the pandemic began.
Navajo Department of Health officials say over 175,000 people on the reservation have been tested for COVID-19 and more than 10,000 have recovered. But officials have identified 77 Navajo Nation communities with uncontrolled spread of the coronavirus since late last month.
Tribal officials say nearly all intensive care unit beds on the reservation are being used as coronavirus cases surge.
The tribe has extended its stay-at-home order though Dec. 28 in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus.