Ex-Labor Official Says Safety Threats Prompted Resignation – Associated Press
The former leader of the state Workforce Solutions Department that oversees unemployment benefits said his resignation in April was linked to threatening messages and incidents at the agency and elsewhere, in a string of Twitter posts Thursday.
Former Cabinet Secretary Bill McCamley announced the reasoning behind his decision to resign from the agency in a stream of 15 tweets. He did not respond to calls and texts to his cellphone.
"I left the position for no other reason than the safety of myself and my family," said McCamley, a former state legislator and county commissioner, in a tweet. "I have received threats before as a public official, but this time seems different."
McCamley indicated that he intends to relocate his home outside of New Mexico as a safety precaution.
The statements were made the day after state analysts reported that New Mexico may have overpaid unemployment insurance benefits by as much as $250 million during the coronavirus pandemic amid a backlog in claim investigations.
McCamley said his concerns about personal safety grew after a state-owned car was destroyed by an incendiary device and a possibly deranged man called the state labor agency to blame McCamley for unemployment problems and to ask for McCamley's address.
It was unclear whether McCamley sought out police protection as a Cabinet secretary for Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and whether the threats and unsettling events he described had been investigated or prosecuted.
Lujan Grisham spokesman Nora Meyers Sackett said that "protocol prevents us from talking about security measures the state has taken or may take for employees facing threats."
McCamley said security threats against public officials in Arizona and Michigan weighed in his decisions, along with the Jan. 6 siege on the U.S. Capitol.
DA Says No Jail Time For 7 In New Mexico Monument Vandalism Case - By Cedar Attanasio Associated Press / Report For America
Seven of the protesters charged with tearing down a historical marker in the Santa Fe plaza last fall have agreed to a diversion program that will spare them jail time, the district attorney said in a statement Thursday.
As part of the deal, they agreed to perform community service and participate in restorative justice mediation.
"The Obelisk case defendants meet the criteria I set out for diversionary programming. We have reached a resolution after months of careful investigation and negotiation between defendants, their attorneys, and my office that ensures justice while working toward community healing," said District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies, in a statement citing a promise to divert non-violent and first-time offenders.
The restorative justice program aims to "shape a resolution that is agreeable to all parties" between defendants and victims, DA spokeswoman Jennifer Padgett Macias said. Police, city employees and other community members will be invited to join the program.
Defendant and art gallery owner Steven Fox did not accept the deal.
Around 40 people participated in the destruction of the stone obelisk Oct. 13, as part of a nationwide protest against atrocities committed against Indigenous people.
The monument was erected to honor Union troops who battled the Confederacy during the Civil War and fought with Native American tribes.
One face of the monument honors "heroes" who died in battle with "savage Indians." The word "savage" was chiseled out by an activist in the 1970s and never replaced.
Statues of Spanish conquistadores long venerated by many in New Mexico's Hispanic community have been removed from public view in the past year out of fear they too would be destroyed.
Ex-Las Vegas Mayor Convicted On Public Corruption Charges – Associated Press
A former northern New Mexico mayor was convicted Thursday on two felony counts of public corruption.
A sentencing date hasn't been set for ex-Las Vegas Mayor Tonita Gurule-Giron. She faces up to 18 months in prison on each of the counts.
Gurule-Giron was accused of using her position to give her then-boyfriend city contracts in exchange for kickbacks. A jury found her guilty of one count of receiving illegal kickbacks and one count of ethics violations.
Gurule-Giron initially faced six felony charges. A judge threw out four of them, saying the attorney general's office didn't have sufficient evidence to proceed.
State Attorney General Hector Balderas said in a statement Thursday that prosecuting public corruption is difficult "yet our office will always take appropriate action to ensure the public's confidence in government is restored."
Gurule-Giron didn't testify in the trial that started earlier this week. Her attorney, JoHanna Cox, told jurors in opening arguments that the only thing Gurule-Giron did wrong was to be in a bad relationship.
The boyfriend, Marvin Salazar, 53, faces multiple charges including offering or paying an illegal kickback and making or permitting a false public voucher. His attorney, Alan Maestas, declined to comment on the case earlier this week.
New Mexico State Fair Plans In-Person Return This Year – Associated Press
The September spectacle featuring funnel cakes, turkey legs, livestock and art exhibits, and carnival rides plans an in-person return this year.
The New Mexico State Fair was scrapped in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, although some events took place virtually. The event held in Albuquerque drew about 475,000 visitors from around the state and region in 2019.
Spokesman Wyndham Kemsley said Thursday that officials are confident the event can be held safely in person, with more hand-washing and sanitation stations, and social distancing.
"We have one of the biggest properties in New Mexico so we have a lot of open space," he said.
The fair is scheduled Sept. 9-19. Organizers are looking to hire hundreds of employees.
Ticket sales for another big event, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, are expected to start in July. The fiesta, too, was canceled last year.
Its early morning mass ascensions, fireworks shows and launches of special-shaped hot air balloons attract hundreds of thousands of spectators from across the globe and hundreds of balloon pilots and their crews. The fiesta is scheduled Oct. 2-10.
The New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs announced Thursday that all of the state museums have reopened, and several of its historic sites.
New Mexico Official Takes Aim At Oil, Gas Bond Requirements - By Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press
New Mexico's financial assurance requirements for oil and gas wells, pipelines and related infrastructure fall far short of what would be needed to offset closure and cleanup costs, according to the findings of an independent study released Thursday.
The research was commissioned by the state after concerns were raised last year about taxpayers being left on the hook if companies go bankrupt or abandon their operations without plugging wells, decommissioning pipelines or cleaning up.
While bonding requirements can vary widely depending on the location and the type of well, the study estimated the bonding gap for companies operating on state trust lands and private land at more than $8 billion. For example, closure and cleanup costs for an oil well on state trust land were estimated at more than $218,000 while financial assurance amounted to just $3,500.
For pipelines on trust land, the study estimated average financial assurance is about $51 per mile, while the average decommissioning and surface reclamation cost is likely to top $211,000 per mile.
Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard called the gaps in financial assurance staggering. She said the state needs to ensure companies are adequately bonded so the costs of plugging wells, remediating spills and contamination, and reseeding disturbed areas will be covered.
"No one can afford these obligations if they have gone bankrupt. That is why we need companies to be adequately bonded on the front end," she said.
The New Mexico Legislature in 2018 increased the amount of certain financial assurances. Industry officials said not enough time has passed to determine if the new rules are working as intended.
The State Land Office is planning a series of public meetings on how increasing bond amounts for oil and gas operators would affect communities, workers and small businesses.
Oil and gas is a driving force of New Mexico's economy and the state budget. The State Land Office reported oil and gas royalty earnings of nearly $110 million in April, which marked a record. Much of that money goes to support public education and other trust land beneficiaries.
Bonding concerns go beyond New Mexico. A 2019 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) highlighted bonding shortfalls on federal lands and found that oil and gas bond amounts largely have not been updated in 40 years or more and fail to serve their intended purpose.
Abandoned wells have been an issue across much of the West. Some officials are concerned the problem could grow given the increase in development in places such as the Permian Basin, which straddles the Texas-New Mexico border.
The New Mexico Oil Conservation Division last year tallied the number of orphaned and abandoned wells in the state at more than 700, of which only 6% have been plugged. While the state has a restoration program funded by a tax on oil and gas operators, officials say its $5 million budget would be drained quickly considering the number of wells needing to be plugged and remediated.
According to a 2020 legislative analysis, the State Land Office pulled one bond for a produced water spill in Lea County that occurred more than five years ago. The estimated cleanup cost was over $600,000, but the bond only covered $10,000.
"Highlighting rare and selective cases doesn't demonstrate the need for broad bonding reform, only that it's possible for outlier cases to exist. It's simply impossible, and illogical, that all oil and gas wells and infrastructure would require plugging and remediation at the same time as the report suggests," said Robert McEntyre, a spokesman for the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association.
The study highlighted the differences among various state agencies' bonding requirements. The Oil Conservation Division requires financial assurance to fund well plugging and land restoration efforts if a permit holder doesn't comply. However, that assurance is not intended to secure payment for landowners whose livestock, crops or property may be damaged.
The study also found that under current requirements, the largest users of private and state trust lands often carry the lowest marginal amounts of financial assurance coverage.
Activist Files Complaint Over New Mexico Governor's Expense – Albuquerque Journal, Associated Press
The editor of a conservative media outlet has filed an ethics complaint against New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's reelection campaign, claiming she improperly used campaign funds at her daughter's beauty business.
In October last year, the governor's reelection campaign made a payment of $1,040 to "Beauty By Erin Grisham" for media preparation, the Albuquerque Journal reported Tuesday.
John Block, a conservative activist and editor of online publication Piñon Post, said in his complaint filed last Thursday that the payment to Erin Grisham's business was not a permitted campaign expense because he said it was for cosmetology, not media preparation.
According to Beauty By Erin Grisham's website, the business is "a freelance hair and makeup artist" service.
Block cited a state campaign finance guide published in 2019 that listed hair, nail and makeup services as personal – and not campaign – expenses.
"No public servant in New Mexico should be above the law regardless of what office they may occupy," Block said in the complaint.
A Lujan Grisham campaign spokesperson said that the media preparation spending was justified and related to her appearances before the Democratic National Convention last year.
"These routine political expenses were for the governor's speech and 14 other events she addressed for the Democratic National Convention in August 2020," said Jared Leopold. "This type of event preparation expense is a common and necessary political expenditure for politicians of both parties."
Leopold said that Lujan Grisham's predecessor, Republican Susana Martinez, reported a similar campaign expenditure for "styling" in 2010. He called the ethics complaint "frivolous and sexist."
Regulations issued by the New Mexico Secretary of State's Office allow campaign funds to be spent for purposes "reasonably attributable to the candidate's campaign" but not for personal or living expenses.
A spokesman for the Secretary of State's office, which shares jurisdiction with the State Ethics Commission over campaign rules and complaints, said he couldn't comment until there's a ruling, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
New Mexico Summer Programs For Youth Include New Internships - By Cedar Attanasio Associated Press / Report For America
New Mexico education officials are budgeting up to $10 million in pandemic relief money to create internships for high school students, while nonprofits and school districts are bringing back summer enrichment opportunities to meet rising demand.
As many as 2,600 students across New Mexico could participate in the internship program, according to the Public Education Department, which announced the program on Tuesday. The department started developing the program last year, and is in the process of hiring up to 150 part-time adult coordinators.
Seven tribal and 18 county governments have signed up to coordinate internships in their offices or at partner nonprofits, including summer camps.
"I think there's a lot that they can do in our summer program setting," said Colby Wilson, CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Central New Mexico, which is planning on placing some of the interns through a partnership with county officials. "And it's good for the high school kids to get that experience, just basic soft skills of showing up on time and working with a team and planning for different programs."
Some parents are unsure about sending kids to group activities, and Wilson said registrations have been a little slower. Summer program signups coincide with a vaccine rollout for children aged 12 and up, and demand could return to normal. On Wednesday, state officials said that over 50,000 residents aged 12-18 registered for the vaccine during the first week of May.
A third of New Mexico children were not in a summer program in 2019 but would have enrolled if they could, according to a survey released Wednesday by America After 3PM and the Afterschool Alliance, indicating a gap in demand for as many as 100,000 children.
Responses came from 428 New Mexico households polled between January and March of 2020. Parents cited high costs and lack of transportation as barriers.
Other nonprofits are scaling up now.
"Now I'm fully going back in person," said Lina Germann, founder of STEM Santa Fe, which offers technology camps. And this time we have spots for 160 kids," says STEM Santa Fe founder Lina Germann.
Child care centers are expected to return to full capacity after cutting half the spots last year, according to Early Childhood Education and Care Department spokesman Micah McCoy. They're also expanding early literacy and school readiness programs this summer.
New Mexico officials say a big challenge will be providing rural summer programs.
"We are working with our out-of-school time network providers to try to make sure that we can (meet demand) — especially in those areas of the state where there aren't established ecosystems for summer learning and summer enrichment," said Education Secretary Ryan Stewart.
The Summer Enrichment Internship Program for high school students could help, especially with the many rural tribes and counties that have signed up to receive workers.
School districts will likely take the lead, after receiving over $1 billion in pandemic aid. At least 20% must be spent on helping students recover academically and socially in programs like summer school and camps, though they have a few years to spend the funds.
More than $200 million in state funds is also available for schools to add 10-25 learning days. But at least 18% of school districts will turn down most of the funds, according to a Public Education Department preliminary survey last month.
Some nonprofit leaders say they could better use the federal funds.
"Schools cannot do this on their own," said May Sagbakken, New Mexico Out-of-School Time Network executive director.
She urged the state to move quickly to fund nonprofit summer programs so that parents can sign up, saying, "They can't wait until June or July or May to plan that."
Wilson said funding uncertainty stems from the late passage of federal funds, creating a domino effect of delays. His group is waiting for a response on grant applications with the state and Albuquerque Public Schools.
"Now everyone is scrambling to get this money to the right people," Wilson said.
The Public Education Department says it's aiming to ink contracts with partners by the end of May, meaning much of the intern hiring might not start until June — when Wilson said the club starts its summer program.
"That seems tough to me," Wilson said.
Pandemic Emptied Unemployment Trust, Left Fraud Unchecked - By Morgan Lee Associated Press
New Mexico probably overpaid unemployment insurance benefits by an estimated $250 million during the coronavirus pandemic amid a backlog of investigations into potentially fraudulent claims, the budget and accountability office of the Legislature announced Wednesday in a research report.
Analysts briefed members of the Legislature's lead budget writing committee on the trajectory of record-setting unemployment claims during pandemic.
New Mexico has paid out more than $3 billion in unemployment claims through the state's Workforce Solutions Department since the local outset of the pandemic in March 2020. That put the state unemployment trust fund into insolvency and in debt to the federal government.
The Workforce Solutions Department last year reassigned staff to help keep pace with a tide of claims as jobs and personal income dried up and drafted workers from other state agencies to answer phones from people who lost jobs and were desperate to sign up for unemployment payments.
"The surge and staffing reassignments exacerbated already rising rates of improper payments," financial analysts at the Legislative Finance Committee found. "Staff estimate the state has made $250 million in benefit overpayments since the start of the pandemic."
Analysts attribute $133 million of the estimated overpayments to fraud, including $16 million linked to support intended for gig workers and self-employed contractors. The remainder was linked to a variety of overpayments not involving intentional deception.
The revelations arrive amid turbulence at the Workforce Solutions Department, where Bill McCamley departed as agency secretary a month ago and a review is underway of inflated tax rates on employers for unemployment insurance.
Acting Workforce Solutions Secretary Ricky Serna said the agency was in a bind as it struggled to keep up with an unprecedented tide of legitimate unemployment claims amid brazen fraud schemes by criminals trying to get payouts. Serna said fraud schemes also tied up phone lines with robocalls and appropriated the identities of state unemployment regulators.
"You don't have enough time to certify that everyone who applied meets the program requirements because you don't want those people to wait five or six weeks for their money," he said. "But then five or six weeks later, after they've been receiving their money, you realize that wasn't right, or this was inaccurate or you didn't provide this. So we need to revisit eligibility. And to be sure, in some instances, it resulted in overpayments."
Serna, who is performing double-duty as director of the State Personnel Office, said the challenges of limiting overpayments was compounded by new federal pandemic initiatives.
The federally subsidized program that extended unemployment benefits to previously ineligible gig workers and contractors presented huge challenges in terms of verifying applicants' past income without the help of employers. And the federal paycheck protection program provided bursts of backpay to people already receiving unemployment benefits.
Serna said two specialists are re-evaluating that agency's workflow, including the backlog in investigations. He said unemployment officials had an emergency plan in place for a possible economic recession that was overwhelmed by the financial downturn of the pandemic.
The state's rate of unemployment claims peaked in July 2020 with a record 197,000 applications for assistance in New Mexico, which has a population of about 2.1 million residents.
The state has borrowed $278 million so far from the federal government to meet unemployment insurance obligations.
Lawmakers are wrestling with strategies for paying off the debt and restoring trust balance without triggering a sharp tax increase on employers. More than 100,000 people statewide continue to draw unemployment benefits as the economy gradually reopens.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham in April vetoed a plan to funnel $600 million in new federal pandemic relief to the state's unemployment payments trust — citing uncertainty about spending restrictions. She allowed a separate $100 million contribution to the trust from the state's general fund.
The U.S. Treasury is allowing states to replenish unemployment funds to pre-pandemic levels — a $460 million balance in New Mexico's case.
Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, has not yet provided a specific unemployment trust solvency plan. Serna said the state's unemployment debt would eventually have a compounding effect on tax rate increases for businesses.
New Mexico last week reinstated a requirement that people receiving unemployment benefits show they are actively searching for work.
The state has no plan to end a $300 weekly federal supplement going to roughly 96,000 jobless residents. A growing number of states are halting the $300 payments.
Sarah Dinces, a program evaluator on income support with the Legislature's accountability office, said that current unemployment benefits in New Mexico may provide a strong disincentive for people to return to work. That is a consequence low median household incomes and robust wage replacement.
Republican state Rep. Jack Chatfield, a rancher and restaurant owner from Mosquero, said businesses, including his own, are struggling to find workers.
"We just can't get anybody. We can't get people to come to work," he said.
Serna said Workforce Solutions is studying the issues and that some parents still can't return to work because of a daycare shortages, combined with lingering fears of the contagion.
New Mexico Officials Cite Progress In Vaccinating Students - By Susan Montoya Bryan Associated Press
The head of the New Mexico Public Education Department said Wednesday that progress is being made when it comes to vaccinating the state's middle and high school students now that eligibility has been expanded to include those 12 and older.
Education Secretary Ryan Stewart said during a briefing with reporters that more than 27,000 children between the ages of 12 and 18 are now fully vaccinated. Nearly 13,800 students have received at least one shot and more are scheduled.
Stewart pointed to the decline in new COVID-19 cases being reported each week among students and teachers, saying the vaccination effort is working as the number of schools on the state's watch list is down by half from just two week ago. Only two schools — a high school in Albuquerque and a middle school in Clovis — were forced to close because of newly reported cases over the last 14 days.
Schools are not driving community spread, Stewart said. Requirements call for unvaccinated students or staff who were exposed outside of school to be quarantined. Close contacts also are being tracked as a way to limit spread.
"Even in those instances where COVID has shown up in a school, we've got the right systems in place to keep that from spreading to others," he said.
Overall, the percentage of New Mexicans 16 and older who are vaccinated neared 53% on Wednesday. While the pace has slowed somewhat, state officials expressed confidence that New Mexico would meet its 60% goal by the end of June. That will trigger the end of its color-coded system for determining risk in each county and the removal of most pandemic-related restrictions on commercial activities.
Currently, all but one county is classified as turquoise. That level includes the fewest restrictions on commercial and day-to-day activities.
As part of the effort to sway more New Mexicans to get vaccinated, state health officials warned that those who have not been vaccinated are about 10 times more likely to be infected as the virus mutates. State officials said more than 98% of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases are in unvaccinated people.
Nearly 530 infections have been reported among people who have been vaccinated in what officials call breakthrough cases, with a few dozen of them being hospitalized. State officials confirmed one death was attributed to COVID-19 while confirmation of another was pending.
Human Services Secretary Dr. David Scrase said there's still more to learn about these cases as many of the patients showed no symptoms.
"The pandemic is not over," Scrase repeated. "We have to keep up the full-court press here — vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals — to keep cases down."
Kickback Trial For Former New Mexico Mayor Is Underway – Associated Press
A trial started this week for a former mayor in New Mexico after she was accused of using her position to give her then-boyfriend city contracts in exchange for kickbacks.
Fourth Judicial District Judge Abigail Aragon is presiding over the trial of former Las Vegas Mayor Tonita Gurulé-Girón, which is expected to last until Friday in Las Vegas, about 100 miles northeast of Albuquerque.
Gurulé-Girón, 63, pleaded not guilty last year to multiple criminal charges including engaging in an official act for personal financial gain, soliciting or receiving an illegal kickback, conspiracy to commit making or permitting a false public voucher and demanding or receiving a bride by a public officer or employee.
A criminal complaint claimed Gurulé-Girón pressured city employees to give contracts to her boyfriend's construction company without going through the proper process. The complaint also alleged that the invoices were made out in amounts that exceeded the company's original bid without additional approval.
Charges were filed in December 2019. The case was delayed several times because of the coronavirus pandemic and for other reasons.
Defense attorney JoHanna C. Cox argued in her opening statement that Gurulé-Girón was innocent, saying the only thing she did wrong was have a bad relationship with her boyfriend.
"A single woman dating a single man is not a crime in New Mexico, rather the Attorney General is going to put their tumultuous relationship on trial for you," Cox said. "You're going to hear that it was not the best relationship. Even not having the best relationship, ladies and gentlemen, is not a crime in New Mexico."
Assistant Attorney General Andrew Coffing said the prosecution plans to prove Gurulé-Girón used her position, information and influence to unlawfully sway the bidding process to help her boyfriend and that she received financial benefits in exchange.
"The types of gifts that we're talking about are going to seem occasionally like everyday items. It's roses, it's an expensive dinner, it's a phone, it's occasionally help with utilities," Coffing said. "These are all items that you might consider would be part of a normal dating relationship."
The boyfriend, Marvin Salazar, 53, faces multiple charges including offering or paying an illegal kickback and making or permitting a false public voucher. A trial has yet to be scheduled, and Salazar's attorney, Alan Maestas, declined to comment on the case.
Navajo Nation Reports 9 New COVID-19 Cases And 2 More Deaths - Associated Press
The Navajo Nation on Wednesday reported nine new confirmed COVID-19 cases and two more deaths.
Tribal health officials said the latest figures pushed the total number of cases since the pandemic began more than a year ago to 30,747 on the vast reservation that covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
The known death toll is now 1,297.
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said more than half of the reservation's adult population has been vaccinated.
"We are seeing consistently low numbers of new COVID-19 infections. But the Navajo Department of Health has noted that if you look at the overall number of cases over the last seven days, we've had 71 new cases reported," Nez said in a statement Wednesday. "I point this out to remind our Navajo people that we are not out of this pandemic.
"Yes, we are seeing good improvements and progress is being made, but there remains risk of the virus in our communities which includes the variants that have been identified here on the Navajo Nation," Nez added. "Our best weapons to push back on COVID-19 are the vaccines and wearing a mask in public."
