More fields could go unplanted under New Mexico water plan - By Susan Montoya Bryan Associated Press
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's top water adviser on Tuesday warned New Mexico lawmakers that snowpack runoff is expected to be grim this spring and that the arid state needs readily available tools so it can accommodate years with particularly slim supplies.
Mike Hamman told members of a legislative committee that short-term voluntary programs like leaving some agricultural fields unplanted for a season or two would help New Mexico meet its water delivery obligations to neighboring states.
Other southwestern U.S. water users already are taking action such as leaving water in Lake Mead and sending more water to Lake Powell to ensure obligations along the Colorado River will be met.
In New Mexico, officials are seeking a $48 million appropriation to expand a fallowing program along the Rio Grande in which farmers would be paid to not plant their fields.
Warmer temperatures, more evaporation and less snowpack have resulted in record low flows of the Rio Grande in recent years. One of the longest rivers in North America, the Rio Grande provides drinking water and irrigation for millions of people from Colorado south to Texas and Mexico.
"The unfortunate thing is many of our senior water users rely on the surface supply and that's the most variable supply that we have," Hamman said. "So we've got to figure out ways to help deal with that fluctuation in the surface water supplies in a fair and reasonable way."
New Mexico already is running a deficit in its water deliveries to Texas and that has caused summer shortages for farmers and for the Rio Grande itself. Hamman said the emergency drought appropriation is aimed at getting ahead of what appears to be a very difficult water year and putting a dent in the deficit.
Officials estimate that the program could result in as much as 9.7 billion gallons in additional water being delivered to Elephant Butte Reservoir, which stores water for Texas.
The irrigation district that manages water for farmers along the Rio Grande in central New Mexico started its fallowing program last year with federal dollars and is looking to triple the number of acres taken out of production to 3,000 to meet endangered species requirements.
Hamman explained that the state wants to encourage another 15,000 acres to voluntarily be fallowed to address water delivery obligations to Texas. He said fair payment would be offered to farmers to avoid competition with the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District's program.
If the March stream flow forecast is low, Hamman said he believes there will be a lot of interest in the program from farmers since severe drought over the summer would surely lead to high agricultural losses in the four counties that make up the district.
He said the program also would help farmers on the lower Rio Grande because water owed to Elephant Butte Reservoir would be available the year following the two-year program.
With the goal of taking the program statewide, Hamman said there could be benefits for the Gallup and Clovis areas, the lower Pecos River, the Rio Chama, and other rural water users.
Hamman said state officials are working on a 50-year water plan and that recommendations from a water and infrastructure task force are expected in July.
"It's looking bleak," he said of the forecasts. "But we have possible solutions and opportunities."
Bureau of Land Management: Petroglyphs damaged near Santa Fe - Associated Press
Federal officials are investigating spray-painted graffiti and other damage to petroglyphs dating back thousands of years at a site west of Santa Fe.
The damage to La Cieneguilla Petroglyphs likely occurred Jan. 18, U.S. Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman Jillian Aragon told the Santa Fe New Mexican.
The agency's field office in Taos has ordered supplies to try and remove the paint, but the long-term effects are unknown, Aragon said.
"What we do know is that the more these types of occurrences take place, the more likely it will be for these resources to be damaged beyond repair," she said. "It's taking away from critical scientific, historical and social resources that cannot be recreated."
According to a news release, those convicted of damaging cultural sites face penalties of up to two years in prison and a $20,000 fine per charge under the Archaeological Resources Protection Act.
APS amends ‘enhanced’ COVID rules - By Nash Jones, KUNM News
Student athletes with Albuquerque Public Schools will no longer play in front of empty stands as the district amends the stricter COVID rules it temporarily put in place.
APS implemented “enhanced COVID-safe practices” district-wide last week, which included a two-week ban on non-essential visitors and event spectators.
The district announced revisions to the rules yesterday [MON].
Beginning tomorrow [WED], each student will be able to have two people attend their game or other indoor event.
Students must give school staff the names of their guests beforehand and the district says attendees could be asked to present ID.
APS also clarified its temporary outdoor masking rule, saying in a statement it’s only required when a space is crowded or if close contact is necessary.
The stronger COVID rules are scheduled to last district-wide through next Wednesday.
APS says individual schools that continue to have a 14-day positivity rate above 5%, like Eldorado and Volcano Vista high schools, will keep the stricter practices until spread is brought more under control.
Bernalillo County begins distributing rapid tests - By Nash Jones, KUNM News
The state’s largest county is beginning to distribute its share of the state’s COVID-19 rapid test kits.
In a press release Tuesday, Bernalillo County said the kits from the Department of Health are intended for underserved and at-risk residents, as well as those who live in areas with the highest rates of COVID spread.
Those include communities in Albuquerque’s Westside, South Valley, Downtown, Old Town, and International District.
The county will begin passing the test kits out Wednesday from sites across the target neighborhoods. Click here for a full list of locations and operating hours.
Organizations that would like to order test kits for their employees can do sohere.
Governor puts ‘second chance’ bill on the agenda – Austin Fisher, Source New Mexico
The New Mexico Legislature will consider a bill prohibiting the sentencing of young people to life without parole after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham authorized the topic for the 30-day budget session Monday morning.
Lujan Grisham wrote to the Senate approving Senate Bill 43, sponsored by Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, D-Albuquerque.
People who are under 18 but tried and convicted as adults and sentenced to life have to serve 30 years before being eligible for parole. Sedillo Lopez’s proposal would cut that time in half.
For Jessica Brown, a change in state law would mean her husband would become eligible for parole this year. She is a founding member of the New Mexico Coalition for the Fair Sentencing of Youth, which has led public pressure on the governor’s office to consider the proposal, often referred to as the second chance bill.
Michael Brown was sentenced to life plus 41-and-a-half years at 16-years-old. In February, he will have been in prison for 28 years.
Jessica Brown said when she heard the news today she cried.
“We’re just really, really hopeful that this goes through,” she said. “The bill getting messaged gives a lot of people a lot of hope, and I know that my husband is going to be so excited about it.”
Brown’s husband has served 28 years in prison for a crime he committed when he was 16. She called him Monday to share the good news.
In a letter to the governor in August 2021, Sedillo Lopez and two other lawmakers in the House of Representatives argued their bill is a “measured” solution to a longstanding problem in the state.
New Mexico has failed “to hold its children accountable in age-appropriate, trauma-informed ways” that focus on young people’s capacity for change and rehabilitation, they wrote.
But the lawmakers are quick to point out this is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. People sentenced to life before they’re 18 would not be guaranteed release under their proposal. Instead, there’s an opportunity after 15 years for them to demonstrate that they’ve gone through rehabilitation and deserve a shot at life outside prison walls.
“The parole board — with law enforcement and community safety expertise — will make the ultimate decision as to who has been sufficiently rehabilitated to return home safely to the community,” they wrote.
The legislators pointed to research showing that among 174 young people who’d been convicted and later released based on this kind of change in law, there was a recidivism rate of only about 1%.
New Mexico considers clampdown on violent criminal cases - By Susan Montoya Bryan Associated Press
Mothers who lost their sons to violence in New Mexico testified Monday that something has to be done to keep suspects accused of brutal crimes behind bars ahead of their trials — marking the official start of a legislative debate over a proposed change to the state's troubled pretrial detention system.
Joined by district attorneys, the mothers told House committee members that legislation to keep the most dangerous defendants accused of murder, rape and other violent crimes jailed pending trial would help close a revolving door that many blame for record homicides in Albuquerque and other crime elsewhere in the state.
Demands have reached a feverish pitch for New Mexico lawmakers to reconsider bail reforms that were initially intended to prevent low-risk defendants from languishing in jail for months before their trials while still giving judges the ability to mandate detention for defendants considered dangerous.
Angel Alire said her 22-year-old son was fatally shot by a teenager who was out on bail while awaiting trial for other crimes. The defendant was wearing an ankle monitor at the time of the shooting and Alire said she later learned there was no monitoring of the suspect after hours, on weekends or holidays.
Johnnie Trujillo, the former police chief of the small city of Socorro, told lawmakers about a defendant who cut off his ankle monitor on the courthouse steps, saying such conditions of release haven't been effective in his community.
District Attorney Dianna Luce, who represents three counties in southeastern New Mexico, said she has handled cases in which defendants accused of criminal sexual contact of a minor have reoffended while released released pending trial.
Alire said critics of the legislation have suggested that the current system is working.
"Well apparently it's not working because my son is dead and there are plenty of other examples of the flawed system," she said. "Can anyone tell me or look me in the eye and say one life isn't worth trying something new? I can't tell you with 100% confidence that these bills will work but enough talk — we need action. It's worth a shot."
Policy experts with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, public defenders and criminal defense attorneys told lawmakers that the proposal raises serious constitutional questions and that more legal challenges would emerge if the state shifts the burden to defendants to prove they are not a danger to the community.
They also argued that detaining more people would put more pressure on overburdened county jails and the court system.
Supporters disputed the claim, saying the legislation would be narrowly tailored to only certain crimes.
In 2017, New Mexico joined a growing number of states in adopting risk-based approaches to releasing defendants that put less emphasis on financial assurances, after voters approved a constitutional amendment the previous year to allow judges to deny bail to defendants considered extremely dangerous.
The constitutional amendment also granted pretrial release to suspects who are not considered a threat but remain jailed because they cannot afford to post bail.
The public has been frustrated with the outcome and some politicians have acknowledged that changes need to be made in the pretrial justice system. That includes Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is running for reelection this year.
Rep. Damon Ely, D-Corrales, said there is wide recognition of the violence problem in New Mexico, but called the legislation a "hot mess."
He described it as contradictory and pointed to a recent legislative analysis that showed arrests and convictions have either been flat or declining despite the increase in crime in recent years.
The legislative analysis described the phenomenon as an accountability gap, indicating the system has failed to deliver swift and certain justice and thus create an effective deterrence for crime.
Ely said the proposed legislation would not address that problem.
Democrat Sen. Joseph Cervantes of Las Cruces, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said during a presentation by prosecutors, public defenders and other experts that the Legislature needs to spend more time getting to the heart of the issue.
District Attorney Raúl Torrez blasted the legislative report, saying the data doesn't take into account cases that were referred to the federal court system and included cases that stemmed from the processing of decades-old rape evidence kits that were part of a massive backlog.
He pointed to the elimination of access to the grand jury and other procedural obstacles faced in his jurisdiction and suggested lawmakers also consider the competency and sufficiency of pretrial supervision.
"We have to have an honest conversation about what's going on," he told lawmakers.
With the legislative session set to wrap up in three weeks, it's unclear whether the proposal could win approval before adjournment.
Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller and others have suggested that Lujan Grisham should call a special legislative session to focus on crime if lawmakers can't get the bill passed before Feb. 17.
New Mexico considers taxing Virgin Galactic tickets - Associated Press
New Mexico lawmakers are considering taxing tickets purchased by Virgin Galactic passengers.
A bipartisan bill introduced in the state Legislature seeks to close a loophole that excluded spaceflight passenger tickets from gross receipts taxes. The move aims to harvest revenue from ticket sales as Virgin Galactic prepares for regular commercial service from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico
Virgin Galactic told investors last fall it had about 700 reservations for flights. With a ticket price of $450,000, the tax would be at least $31,000, the Las Cruces Sun-News reported.
Virgin Galactic said it was aware of the proposed legislation and would continue working with the state "on policies that support our combined goal of growing aerospace in New Mexico."
New Mexico taxpayers have invested millions for the construction and operation of the spaceport, for which the state has been promised returns in the form of high-paying aerospace jobs, related economic development and tourism.
The legislation would amend a statute that excludes receipts "from launching, operating or recovering space vehicles or payloads in New Mexico" from gross receipts taxes. It would clarify that sales "for transporting any person into or near space" would be taxable.
A 2019 ruling by the state Taxation and Revenue Department on the question of taxing flights to space essentially treated passengers as freight, stating that it seemed reasonable to consider passenger revenues as receipts received for the operation of a space vehicle.
"When those exemptions were drafted, it was not in anyone's mind that people would be a payload," said Republican Rep. Jason Harper of Rio Rancho, who is co-sponsoring the bill.
Democratic Rep. Matthew McQueen, the bill's other sponsor, said if the Virgin Galactic flights become regular, local communities and the state could benefit from gross receipts tax revenue.
"I can't think of a particularly good reason why we wouldn't tax this activity," McQueen said.
Analysts: Bail reform is not driving violent crime in Albuquerque – Austin Fisher, Source New Mexico
N.M. politicians are pushing to jail more people before their trials, but legislative analysts say that’s not likely to put much of a dent in violent crime rates. Little evidence exists to suggest that bail reform is driving violent crime trends in Albuquerque, state legislative staff reported last week.
As lawmakers weigh a change to state law that would make it a defendant’s burden to prove they are not a threat to the community and so don’t have to be jailed while waiting for a hearing, two program evaluators sent a memo Jan. 17 to the head of the Legislative Finance Committee.
People who are arrested while on pretrial release represent a small fraction of overall crime reported in Albuquerque, according to the memo.
The LFC analyzed crime and arrest data over a three-year period and found that arrests for violent crimes among pretrial defendants made up just 5% of total arrests for violent crimes by the Albuquerque Police Department, meaning people who’ve been released ahead of their day in court are relatively small contributors to the city’s overall violent crime problem.
The report looked at the potential effect of a previous bill that was similar, if not identical, to the one Republican Rep. Bill Rehm proposed this session: House Bill 5. It states that the bill “may lead to prolonged detention of defendants who are never convicted of the crimes they are accused of.”
The findings raise questions about how the measure’s sponsors balance the constitutional rights of people accused of crimes with their stated goal of reducing crime in the state.
Asked to comment on the report’s findings, Rep. Meredith Dixon, a co-sponsor of HB 5, said lawmakers have a responsibility to make sure the people they represent can be safe in their own homes and communities.
“This bill is one tool that we can apply in a targeted and narrow way to prevent the most violent and dangerous criminals from being prematurely released, so they cannot cause more harm while awaiting trial,” Dixon said in a written statement. “I also think it is important to note that this bill is part of a larger, holistic approach to public safety that includes long term investments in our communities and behavioral health to address the root causes of crime.”
Rep. Marian Matthews, arguably the bill’s most prominent sponsor in either chamber, has not yet commented. We will update this story if she does.
The bill’s three other co-sponsors did not respond to requests for comment on the report.
THOUSANDS WOULD BE NEEDLESSLY HELD
The measure the analysts were reviewing would have led to the unnecessary detention of about 2,400 people during the period of study, LFC staff wrote.
By comparison, they would have prevented 253 arrests of people accused of violent crimes and 300 accused of non-violent crimes over four years, the memo states.
Aggravated assault was the most common violent crime that would have been prevented. None of the homicides committed by people on pretrial release during the four-year study would have been prevented by the reforms, because none were committed by the population targeted by the bill, the LFC staff wrote.
The findings are consistent with national research on pretrial detention that has found little evidence supporting charge-based detention policies, according to the analysts.
Under state law, defendants are only eligible for detention if they are accused of a felony and if a prosecutor files a motion that they be held, the memo states.
“Using a defendant’s current criminal charge as the primary determinant for detention is a values-based approach, not an evidence-based one,” they wrote.
From the latter half of 2019 through the first half of 2021, 40% of defendants whom prosecutors sought to detain before trial were not ultimately convicted, a chart in the report shows.
By contrast, nationwide, 74% of felony cases end with guilty pleas and only 18% are dismissed, according to the National Center for State Courts.
Chief Public Defender Bennett Baur said Jan. 20 that as lawmakers consider criminal justice bills, they should know about the fiscal consequences of their decisions.
At a meeting of the Bernalillo County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, Baur encouraged officials, the Metropolitan Detention Center and the courts to speak with lawmakers about the crime bills going through the Roundhouse this year — especially the preventative detention proposal.
Baur said the Law Offices of the Public Defender will give lawmakers data on how they think the bill will impact their staff and contract attorneys.
“So whether or not you’re in favor of it or not, I don’t know that this is a place to discuss it. I think there’s a serious financial impact which we should be discussing with the Legislature.”
According to the LFC memo, the cost to taxpayers of more detention exceeds the savings resulting from the any crime prevention achieved by reforms like House Bill 5.
The LFC found that keeping these defendants in jail while they awaited trial would have cost state and local government $23 million while providing savings of $15 million due to crime prevention over the four-year period, amounting to about $2 million in addition costs every year.
Those figures do not account for costs borne by victims of the alleged crimes nor the value of life lost, the memo states.
For context, New Mexico public defenders are already dealing with huge workloads and do not have enough staff to handle cases, according to a study by the American Bar Association published three days before the LFC memo.
The state’s public defenders need more than 600 new attorneys to meet the national standards for indigent defense, the association found.
“Additional costs to defendants, their families, and the economy from unnecessary detention are difficult to quantify but include loss of employment, loss of housing, and increased recidivism,” the LFC memo states.
Some legislators in New Mexico tire of amateur status - By Morgan Lee Associated Press
The nation's only unsalaried legislature is considering whether to abandon its amateur status that has endured for 110 years since New Mexico became a state.
A Senate panel, including top ranked Democrats, endorsed a proposed constitutional amendment to provide a salary to legislators, who collect a daily stipend of roughly $165 during legislative sessions and reimbursements for travel.
Approval by the New Mexico Legislature would send the measure to a statewide vote on whether to amend the state constitution. Similar proposals have stalled repeatedly in recent years.
Democratic state Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto of Albuquerque — cosponsor of the initiative — said legislative salaries would be set by the State Ethics Commission, ensuring lawmakers won't set their own pay or approve raises directly. A similar House-sponsored initiative would set salaries for legislators through a specialized public salary commission.
"By having salaries set by an independent body, that would address the voters' concerns," Democratic Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth said. "They don't want us setting our own salaries."
New Mexico's "citizen legislature" of volunteer politicians has long been a source of civic pride in the state. Members receive a roughly $165 daily stipend during sessions and some money for gas. Longstanding legislators qualify for an optional pension plan.
Critics of the system say legislative salaries would help younger candidates from working households serve as lawmakers and alleviate conflicts between legislative duties and private careers.
The proposal drew favorable comments from advocacy groups ranging from the League of Woman Voters, which promotes civil participation in government, and progressive-leaning advocacy groups including Retake Our Democracy.
"We're going to really expand the universe of people who are able to serve if we do have a salaried legislature. Right now, it's largely the rich and retired," said Democratic Sen. Katie Duhigg of Albuquerque, noting the challenges of juggling legislative duties with the separate demands of full-time work and family as a single parent.
Duhigg last year championed successful legislation to legalize, tax and regulate nonmedical marijuana, later cofounding a law practice that caters to the cannabis industry.
New Mexico's Legislature meets for as few as 30 days a year, with 60-day sessions in odd-numbered years. There are more extensive duties and travel for members of year-round budget and policy committees.
The salary initiative advanced on a 7-1 committee vote on party lines with Democrats in support. Senate minority leader Gregory Baca of Belen cast the lone "no" vote without comment. No other Republicans participated.
The State Ethics Commission was authorized by voters in 2018 in the wake of a string of public corruption scandals as an arbiter of complaints against public officials, lobbyists and contractors. Its members are appointed by leading legislators from both parties and the governor.
The initiative from Ivey-Soto and Sen. Bobby Gonzales of Taos also would authorize the ethics commission to set salaries for all elected officials in state government.
Renewable energy tax breaks pull big public support in NM – Shaun Griswold, Source New Mexico
Three pieces of legislation offering tax incentives for renewable energy use saw broad support this weekend even as they were passed through committee on a partisan vote.
One bill benefits New Mexicans with solar panel systems, another for those with geothermal systems and the third offers tax incentives to kickstart renewable energy storage systems at homes or businesses. People from conservation groups, local governments, tribes and energy business leaders voiced support for the measures.
Opposition focused on the small impacts these efforts have on climate change. For instance, the tax credit under House Bill 11 is capped at $1 million over the next two years, which supporters say would subsidize the install of 200 storage systems for solar energy.
Rep. Larry Scott (R-Hobbs) voted against all three pieces of legislation and in his argument fighting HB 11, he questioned advocates about the measurable adjustment to climate change the legislation would bring.
Abbas Akhil, who testified in support of the bills, said while there is not a significant impact on climate expected from HB 11 alone, the effort is necessary to get the ball rolling on renewable energy in New Mexico.
Akhil served a term in the state House before choosing not to run for reelection last year. In his brief experience, he has already seen the makeup of the legislative body change how renewable energy is prioritized.
He said passing HB 11 would mean homes or businesses would have a store of unused solar to use in a power outage or that could be shared with energy companies that fold it into their services.
“So it is not really addressing climate change just by deploying 200 systems,” Akhil said. Instead, the legislation’s supporters are hoping that after renewable storage is introduced and costs come down, “this will take off on its own.”
HB 11 was passed by the House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee on a 7-4 vote split along party lines.
All Republicans on the committee also voted against a tax credit—$6,000 max— for anyone who installs solar panels and tax credits for people who install geothermal ground heat pumps.
Republican arguments focused on the concern that tax breaks for renewables would create dependence on state subsidies.
“These products that require state subsidies to be economically competitive eventually have to get weaned off,” Scott said. “And right now, I just don’t see that happening.”
Scott didn’t mention the billions in state and federal subsidies that oil and gas industries receive in New Mexico. While oil and gas is responsible for the record budget surplus in the state, renewable energy advocates argue the industry is unstable — especially after anxious pandemic estimates pointed toward less production and a possible recession.
Of course, that didn’t happen, but the reliance on an unstable market is prominent in the argument for supporting measures like the tax incentives offered by HB 11, HB 34 and HB 35. Every small step is necessary, says Jim DesJardins, executive director of the Renewable Energy Industry Association New Mexico, because oil and gas money won’t last forever.
“It’s going to dry up in 10 years,” he said. “This is outside of the concerns about climate change, but just from a business standpoint, from a revenue standpoint, from the state we need to prepare to transition.”
Money seems to be the common ground for support across the aisle. Even Republicans who voted against the tax incentive bills acknowledged the potential for economic growth. While that may not follow the pressing need to address climate change, it can provide an entryway to get opponents on board, said Sammi Kao with Conservation Voters New Mexico.
“It’s not about the politics of climate change or anything,” she said. “It’s just about passing good policy that’s going to help New Mexicans integrate this kind of renewable technology into their lives in a way that helps the climate, that is good for the economy.”
Tom Solomon with the renewable energy advocacy group, 350.org said the urgency to boost this sector is key in the plan to get New Mexico’s power grid to 100% renewable energy by 2050. Right now, it’s about 7%, he said.
“Fifty percent cut by 2030 is kind of the benchmark that science has put out there for how much we have to cut carbon emissions. And getting 50% renewable by 2030 is basically the way you get there,” he said. “Renewable energy is still a bit more expensive than we’d like it to be. And if you can provide tax credits for lower income communities, then it allows people at that end of the economic scale to take advantage of it.”
2 unapproved New Mexico COVID-19 testing sites shut down -Santa Fe New Mexican, Associated Press
Two New Mexico COVID-19 testing sites that were not on the list of facilities approved by state public health officials have closed indefinitely.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that the New Mexico Attorney General's Office said in a statement it will investigate the Illinois-based operator, Center for COVID Control.
The operator ran roughly 300 testing sites nationwide including one in Santa Fe and one in Albuquerque. According to its website, sites are closed so that all staff can undergo more training.
Center for COVID Control has been plagued with allegations including falsely billing the federal government for tests for people who actually had health insurance, falsifying test results and being unhygienic.
The Rolling Meadows, Illinois company is facing state investigations elsewhere.