Tribes, environmental groups ask US court to block $10B energy transmission project in Arizona - By Susan Montoya Bryan and Ken Ritter, Associated Press
A federal judge is being asked to issue a stop-work order on a $10 billion transmission line being built through a remote southeastern Arizona valley to carry wind-powered electricity to customers as far away as California.
A 32-page lawsuit filed on Jan. 17 in U.S. District Court in Tucson, Arizona, accuses the U.S. Interior Department and Bureau of Land Management of refusing for nearly 15 years to recognize "overwhelming evidence of the cultural significance" of the remote San Pedro Valley to Native American tribes including the Tohono O'odham, Hopi, Zuni and Western Apache.
The suit was filed shortly after Pattern Energy received approval to transmit electricity generated by its SunZia Transmission wind farm in central New Mexico through the San Pedro Valley east of Tucson and north of Interstate 10.
The lawsuit calls the valley "one of the most intact, prehistoric and historical ... landscapes in southern Arizona," and asks the court to issue restraining orders or permanent injunctions to halt construction.
"The San Pedro Valley will be irreparably harmed if construction proceeds," it says.
SunZia Wind and Transmission and government representatives did not respond Monday to emailed messages. They are expected to respond in court. The project has been touted as the biggest U.S. electricity infrastructure undertaking since the Hoover Dam.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are the Tohono O'odham Nation, the San Carlos Apache Reservation and the nonprofit organizations Center for Biological Diversity and Archaeology Southwest.
"The case for protecting this landscape is clear," Archaeology Southwest said in a statement that calls the San Pedro "Arizona's last free-flowing river," and the valley the embodiment of a "unique and timely story of social and ecological sustainability across more than 12,000 years of cultural and environmental change."
The valley represents a 50-mile (80-kilometer) stretch of the planned 550-mile (885-kilometer) conduit expected to carry electricity linking massive new wind farms in central New Mexico with existing transmission lines in Arizona to serve populated areas as far away as California. The project has been called an important part of President Joe Biden's goal for a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035.
Work started in September in New Mexico after negotiations that spanned years and resulted in the approval from the Bureau of Land Management, the federal agency with authority over vast parts of the U.S. West.
The route in New Mexico was modified after the U.S. Defense Department raised concerns about the effects of high-voltage lines on radar systems and military training operations.
Work halted briefly in November amid pleas by tribes to review environmental approvals for the San Pedro Valley, and resumed weeks later in what Tohono O'odham Chairman Verlon M. Jose characterized as "a punch to the gut."
SunZia expects the transmission line to begin commercial service in 2026, carrying more than 3,500 megawatts of wind power to 3 million people. Project officials say they conducted surveys and worked with tribes over the years to identify cultural resources in the area.
A photo included in the court filing shows an aerial view in November of ridgetop access roads and tower sites being built west of the San Pedro River near Redrock Canyon. Tribal officials and environmentalists say the region is otherwise relatively untouched.
The transmission line also is being challenged before the Arizona Court of Appeals. The court is being asked to consider whether state regulatory officials there properly considered the benefits and consequences of the project.
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Ritter reported from Las Vegas, Nevada.
Authorities safely dispose of bomb mailed to US Attorney's office–KUNM News
A bomb was mailed to the US attorney’s office in Albuquerque today, and another went off outside the adult probation office in Deming.
In a statement, the US Attorney Alexander Uballez said the device in the package was “Detected, isolated and then safely detonated” by authorities.
No injuries were reported in either event, and The Deming Police Department says it has a suspect in custody after a pursuit on the highway.
Authorities have not said whether the two cases might be related.
Two other bomb scares were reported today, one in Las Cruces and another in Downtown Albuquerque, that both turned out to be empty boxes.
New Mexico State Police are directing questions to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who are working with US Marshals and other state, local and federal organizations in the investigation.
SCOTUS to hear oral argument on Rio Grande Case - By Danielle Prokop, Source New Mexico
The nation’s highest court will hear federal objections against a deal to end more than a decade of litigation over the Rio Grande, according to a U.S. Supreme Court order issued Monday.
First filed in the high court in 2014, the lawsuit centers on allegations by Texas that New Mexico’s groundwater pumping below Elephant Butte Dam siphoned off Rio Grande water allocated legally to Texas.
Texas alleged that New Mexico was violating the Rio Grande Compact, an agreement set in 1938 that splits the river’s waters between Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas. The agreement, ratified by Congress in 1939, also notes federal agreements with Pueblos and its federal treaty with Mexico. The case is formally called Original No. 141 Texas v. New Mexico and Colorado, but the allegations stem between Texas and New Mexico.
No clear datesThere is no clear scheduling for when oral arguments will take place, and spokespeople at the supreme court directed Source NM to lawyers in the case. We’ll update the story as we know more.
The lawsuit itself sparked from years of legal battles in lower courts that sprung up after severe droughts shocked the region in the early 2000s.
As the case slowly winds its way through the court system, taxpayers are on the bill for tens of millions of dollars. Those legal fees are determining issues such as allowing the federal government to intervene as a party member in the case in 2019.
Last year, U.S. 8th Circuit Judge Michael Melloy, the special master who is overseeing the case, heard arguments from attorneys representing the three states on a compromise plan to resolve the case.
Parts of the compromise plan would include moving the delivery of Texas water from Elephant Butte Reservoir in New Mexico, to the Texas state line, and include new guidelines for adjusting to drought conditions. To prepare for the deal, the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer said it would have to cut 17,000 acre-feet of groundwater pumping from below Elephant Butte, a heavily agricultural area.
Attorneys representing the federal government objected that the deal was made without its consent and would overreach by requiring federal agencies to change operations.
Melloy recommended that the U.S. Supreme Court sign off the states’ deal, over the federal government’s objections.
In his 123-page report, Melloy concluded that the proposed plan was “fair and reasonable” and said the federal government’s objections could be resolved in state courts and other proceedings.
The federal government filed formal objections against Melloy’s report in the Supreme Court. These are supported by the Elephant Butte Irrigation District and El Paso County Water Improvement District No. 1.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
New Mexico recorded second deadliest year for alcohol deaths in 2022 - By Ted Alcorn, New Mexico In Depth
Alcohol killed more than 2,000 New Mexicans in 2022, according to new data from the Department of Health, the third straight year the state exceeded that grim threshold.
Although New Mexico has long suffered the nation’s highest rate of alcohol-related deaths, the crisis has often been overshadowed by the state’s other problems, such as gun violence, an issue Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham spotlighted last week in her State of the State address.
She made no mention of alcohol, however. In recent years, deaths by drink in New Mexico have outstripped deaths by bullets nearly four to one.
Arriving as the state’s 30-day legislative session gets underway, the alcohol mortality data underscored the enormous stakes of debates about New Mexico’s drinking problem, which policymakers have clashed over in previous years but largely failed to address, even as the crisis worsened. The number of alcohol-related deaths in 2022 was 28% higher than 2018, the year Lujan Grisham was first elected governor.
Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, D-Albuquerque, called the numbers “disturbing,” and said there was a moral obligation to respond. “We are not going to move the needle on so many social problems in our state until we seriously address alcohol misuse,” she wrote in a text message.
Asked whether the state was making sufficient efforts to respond, a health department spokesperson emailed that the agency “acknowledges the gravity of the situation and is committed to addressing this public health issue.”
But there has been little evidence of action. After last year’s session, the governor touted the start of a new Office of Alcohol Misuse Prevention, but the health department spokesperson confirmed that nearly a year later, it has yet to fill more than one of its 11 allocated positions.
A death is defined as ‘alcohol-related’ if its cause is attributable to drinking, whether it is a motor-vehicle crash with an intoxicated driver, lethal violence involving alcohol, or a deadly illness brought on by chronic drinking such as liver disease or some cancers.
In terms of these causes, 2022 was New Mexico’s second-deadliest year on record, down 9.1% from 2021. Alcohol-related deaths due to chronic illnesses, which made up nearly two-thirds of the total, fell 12.5%, whereas deaths involving acute intoxication, including those due to violent injuries, fell only 3.6%.
As Lujan Grisham urges state legislators to pass a raft of gun safety measures, scientists said the overlap between alcohol and violence is considerable and underappreciated. Because drinking inhibits reasoning and fosters impulsivity, it is commonly implicated in shootings. An investigation by New Mexico in Depth showed that over the last decade, 42% of the state’s homicide victims were drinking immediately prior to death as were 32% of people who died by suicide.
“There is no way to comprehensively reduce firearm death and injury without tackling the role of alcohol,” wrote Josh Horwitz, co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, in an email. To prevent gun violence, he said New Mexico could limit the hours and days when alcohol can be served, raise alcohol taxes, and temporarily prohibit gun possession by people convicted multiple times for driving under the influence.
If anything, New Mexico has done the opposite. In 2022, Lujan Grisham signed a bill expanding days and hours of sale for alcohol, over the objections of the state’s alcohol epidemiologist in her own health department.
As for alcohol taxes, Sedillo Lopez and other Democratic legislators filed a bill to raise rates 25¢ a drink.
The governor has not publicly indicated whether she opposes or supports their proposal.
Carbon credit swap proposal moves forward in committee - By Megan Taros, Source New Mexico
A bill that could limit the carbon intensity of transportation fuels such as gasoline and diesel faced eclectic support and opposition in the House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee on Saturday as people from both political wings took varying sides on the issue.
House Bill 41 seeks to lower carbon intensity by rewarding fuel companies for investing in cleaner options by allowing them to purchase carbon tax credits that it can then sell to companies that are producing high-carbon fuels like traditional gasoline and diesel.
Producers that make high-carbon products will have to purchase carbon credits to be allowed to continue manufacturing such items.
The bill passed the committee on a party-line vote of 7-4.
Bill sponsor Rep. Kristina Ortez (D-Taos) said it was time for New Mexico to capitalize on growing investments in clean energy. She estimated that the passage of the bill would lead to up to $240 million in new investments in clean energy, creating 1,600 or more new jobs.
Last week, the United States Department of Agriculture announced $19 million in grants for U.S. business owners in 22 states to expand the production of biofuels, which blend ethanol into gasoline. This includes $4.9 million for Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores to retrofit 704 new ethanol pumps at stations across 18 states, including those in Albuquerque.
“Without this bill, the new energy boom that we’re experiencing all around the country will leave New Mexico behind,” Ortez said at Saturday’s committee hearing.
Reactions across the boardIn the nearly five-hour hearing, Republicans and lobbyists for agriculture and small petrol producers criticized the bill for having too many unknowns and argued it would pass costs on to consumers. Supporters said that the bill would not affect gasoline prices, drawing skepticism from Republicans in the committee.
“That would be the first business cost I knew or ever heard of that didn’t get passed on to the consumer,” said Rep. James Townsend (R-Artesia). “Somebody pays. And that’s what I think most people have not fully grasped.”
Others who spoke in public comment claimed the bill didn’t take all stakeholders in account and some groups were excluded.
Climate activists also criticized the bill for not going far enough to compel industries to meaningfully reduce emissions, calling carbon credits “gimmicks” to allow industries to continue polluting at the same rate.
“This not only allows producers to make more money without achieving any environmental benefits, but also raises doubts about the credibility of these offset programs,” said Destiny Ray, an activist with the climate nonprofit Earth Care. “We need laws that result in effective, new and permanent emissions-reducing activities.”
Democrats, climate nonprofit representatives and some utility companies like the Public Service Company of New Mexico and Exxon Mobile praised the bill as a step in the right direction.
“For too long, this state, the fossil fuel industry has considered the health effects collateral damage,” said Jim MacKenzie, co-coordinator of the climate nonprofit 350 New Mexico. “It’s time we take the health effects of this industry as real people. They are not only costs, they are people who hurt.”
In contrast to smaller energy producers, Exxon Mobile representatives said the bill would be a cost-effective and efficient way to reduce emissions faster.
The bill aims to reduce emissions by 20% by 2030, resulting in a decrease of 16 million metric tons of carbon emissions over six years – less than 10 million metric tons short of emissions released in a year in New Mexico, according to the Environment Protection Agency.
According to the American Lung Association, one in seven New Mexicans has a respiratory condition like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The annual cost of treating asthma is about 10% of New Mexico’s median income of, which is about $3,100 in health care costs per person, per year the study shows.
Republicans argued the decrease in emissions would be insignificant and would require a high cost for little reward.
“I think we’re really trying to do something here, but we can’t quantify it,” said Rep. Rod Montoya (R-Farmington). “We’re hoping that it will help with asthma and other breathing issues, and we don’t know how or how much. And with the numbers presented earlier, I don’t think it’ll make a difference at all.
Future revenue source for the state?The proposed legislation is a reflection of similar plans enacted in Oregon, Washington and California. In Washington, the state’s first auction of carbon credits netted $300 million.
New Mexico’s bill would require companies that sell credits to invest the revenue in infrastructure projects. An amendment to the bill that did not come in on time to be heard in the committee changed the language to stipulate that 50% of the investments must go toward low-income and underserved communities.
The credit swap program would be run by the New Mexico Environment Department that can collect fees on transactions.
While Rep. Angelica Rubio (D-Las Cruces) ultimately voted yes on the bill, she reiterated concerns that the bill did not go far enough to protect communities of color that are disproportionately affected by climate change and environmental racism.
Much of the frontline communities in oil and gas production in the state are immigrants and people of color.
“Organizing is slow and governing is that much slower,” Rubio said. “I hope that in my tenure serving in this committee and in this institution that we’ll one day truly prioritize the needs and challenges of tribes, frontline communities and youth through real action in the way, if not more than, that we do for extractive industries and car culture.”
Grand jury indictment against Alec Baldwin opens two paths for prosecutors - By Morgan Lee, Associated Press
Alec Baldwin once again is staring down a felony involuntary manslaughter charge after a grand jury indicted the actor in connection with the fatal 2021 shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie in New Mexico.
The lead actor and a co-producer on "Rust," Baldwin pointed a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during rehearsal on a movie set outside Santa Fe when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza.
A new analysis of the gun opened the way for prosecutors to reboot the case, after dismissing an involuntary manslaughter charge last year. A new one-page indictment delivered by the grand jury Friday alleges Baldwin caused Hutchins' death — either by negligence or "total disregard or indifference" for safety.
Defense attorneys for Baldwin indicate they'll fight the charge, which carries a potential prison sentence of up to 18 months.
Here are some things to know about the case.
NEXT STEPS
Baldwin can enter a formal plea with or without a court arraignment, setting in motion preparations for trial.
The indictment provides prosecutors with two alternative standards for the felony involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin. One would be based on the negligent use of a firearm.
Baldwin has said he pulled back the gun's hammer, but not the trigger, and the weapon fired. But a recent analysis of the gun used by Baldwin from Lucien and Michael Haag of Forensic Science Services in Arizona concluded that "the trigger had to be pulled or depressed sufficiently to release the fully cocked or retracted hammer of the evidence revolver." Michael Haag testified to the grand jury this week as a witness, according to the new indictment.
An earlier FBI report on the agency's analysis of the gun found that, as is common with firearms of that design, it could go off without pulling the trigger if force was applied to an uncocked hammer — such as by dropping the weapon. The gun eventually broke during testing.
A second alternative for prosecutors is to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Baldwin caused the death of Hutchins without due caution or "circumspection," also defined as "an act committed with total disregard or indifference for the safety of others."
BALDWIN AS CO-PRODUCER
Prosecutors declined to answer questions Friday after spending about a day and a half presenting their case to the grand jury.
Santa Fe-based defense attorney and former prosecutor John Day, who is not connected to the case, believes the indictment gives prosecutors a possible opportunity to address Baldwin's safety obligations as a co-producer.
"We don't know exactly what their theory is," Day said. "It could be that they're including his role as basically CEO of the production ... not having a safe workplace and somebody dies and you're at the top of the pyramid."
The company Rust Movie Productions has paid a $100,000 fine to state workplace safety regulators following a scathing narrative of safety failures in violation of standard industry protocols, including testimony that production managers took limited or no action to address two misfires on set before the fatal shooting.
TWO RELATED TRIALS
Separately, special prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis are preparing for a February trial against "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering in the case.
That trial is likely to proceed independently — and could give Baldwin's attorneys insights into prosecution strategies and testimony from key witnesses who are likely to also testify in proceedings against Baldwin.
"His attorneys will certainly be watching the armorer's trial closely," said Los Angeles-based entertainment litigator and defense attorney Kate Mangels, who is not involved in the case. "It could offer a preview of the prosecution's approach and potential witness testimony."
Baldwin's case was assigned to Santa Fe-based state District Court Judge T. Glenn Ellington, a specialist in criminal cases. The Gutierrez-Reed case is overseen by a different judge.
"We look forward to our day in court," said Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, defense attorneys for Baldwin.
POTENTIAL WITNESSES
Two of the witnesses seen at the courthouse included crew members — one who was present when the fatal shot was fired and another who had walked off the set the day before due to safety concerns.
"Rust" assistant director and safety coordinator David Halls pleaded no contest to unsafe handling of a firearm last March and received a suspended sentence of six months of probation. He agreed to cooperate in the shooting investigation.
New court filings Friday indicate that "Rust" prop master Sarah Zachry has signed an agreement to cooperate with special prosecutors in return for leniency. Zachry worked closely to secure guns and ammunition on set with Gutierrez-Reed.
Mangels said a grand jury indictment is by no means an assurance that prosecutors will prevail at trial.
"Just getting an indictment from a grand jury in no way means the prosecution has a slam dunk case or even a strong case," she said.
Defense attorney targeted in federal raid denies wrongdoing - Elise Kaplan and Bethany Raja, City Desk ABQ
The federal investigation into several Albuquerque Police Department officers also appears to involve at least one defense attorney, whose office was searched Thursday morning.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the investigation.
But there has been widespread speculation among law enforcement and the legal community that the investigation involves defense attorneys and police officers cooperating to dismiss cases.
Attorney Kari Morrissey, who has one client whose case was dismissed, said that the investigation is not entirely out of the blue.
“I will say that as a lawyer who has been practicing criminal defense in Albuquerque for almost 25 years, I am not surprised as to these developments,” Morrissey said.
Neighbors say they saw nearly a dozen FBI agents swarm the office of Thomas Clear, in a residential Northeast Albuquerque neighborhood on Thursday. The front door was boarded up on Friday.
Around the same time on Thursday, the home of at least one officer was searched and an APD spokesman said that because of the “sensitive nature of the investigation, some officers have been placed on administrative leave, and others will be temporarily reassigned within the department.”
APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the department has been working with the FBI for months on the investigation into its own. He said APD leadership is working closely with the federal authorities.
Marcus Burnham, who lives near Clear’s office, said around 8:30 a.m. he saw about 10 FBI agents pull up in vehicles and get out wearing tactical vests. He said they approached the front door of the house and called out for about 10 to 15 minutes until it became apparent that no one was there.
“So they got a breacher to run to the front of the door and the breacher seemed like he broke the front door down,” Burnham said. “Then of course, they proceeded their stack procedure into the house.”
Burnham said he saw different agents coming in and out and one of them mentioned bringing in a computer scientist or a forensic scientist for the computers. He said the agents were there for the majority of the day, until about 5:30 or 6:30 p.m.
“After they went inside everything was pretty calm,” he said. “You could just see they were doing whatever they were doing inside and had one or two people outside just kind of hanging out making sure everything was safe. So not a lot of action took place after that.”
When reached by phone, Friday afternoon, Clear told City Desk ABQ that he had woken up early the previous morning feeling sick and was in the hospital when his office was raided.
“I didn’t even know it was happening,” Clear said. “The neighbor texted me the pictures.”
He said he did not know anything about possible allegations against him.
Clear was the chair of the Public Defender Commission, a separate oversight group made of appointed volunteers that appoints the chief, monitors litigation and advises but does not administrate the department, said Maggie Shepard, a spokeswoman for the Law Offices of the Public Defender. The commission does not direct daily operations at LOPD.
His term was set to end in June 2024 but he resigned Friday, Shepard said.
Clear has five clients on the list of 152 cases that were dismissed by the Second Judicial District Attorney’s Office, more than any other private defense attorney.
The DA’s Office dismissed 144 cases on Thursday—“in deference to an ongoing federal investigation”—and another eight Friday morning.
District Attorney Sam Bregman said in a statement that it’s a “gut punch.”
“I’m sick to my stomach for dismissing more than 150 DWI cases, but my prosecutorial ethics require me to dismiss them,” he said.
Meanwhile, defense attorneys are abuzz trying to figure out their next steps.
“We are closely monitoring this situation,” Jonathan Ibarra, President-Elect of the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association. “We are acutely aware of how important it is for a complete investigation to be conducted into any and all allegations, and we will fight to protect the rights of our clients and all New Mexicans.”
Attorneys with the Law Offices of the Public Defender are in the process of identifying which clients are impacted by the dismissals and examining whether “there are other cases that may need additional scrutiny.”
And private attorney David Reyes—who has two clients on the list—said he’s been trying to figure out what’s going on since he got an email from prosecutors yesterday.
“I have two clients who are very happy but I’m trying to connect the dots and there is very little information out there,” Reyes said.
He said he did notice the same names recurring on the list of dismissals, including one officer whose name appears dozens of times.
Western New Mexico University president defends spending as regents encourage more work abroad - By Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press
Regents at Western New Mexico University threw their support behind President Joseph Shepard on Friday as he faces scrutiny over spending on overseas trips and his wife's use of a university credit card.
At a regular meeting of regents held on campus in Silver City, faculty members and foreign students also packed the audience to show their support for Shepard, who is starting his 13th year at the helm of the school.
Speaking to the gathering, Shepard said he welcomes a financial review by the state auditor and his staff has been working on a review of university policies and procedures in the wake of questions being raised about spending over the last five years.
He reiterated to regents that trips to Zambia and elsewhere have helped put Western New Mexico on the map and attract more foreign students. Other members of his leadership team ticked off statistics on enrollment, graduation rates among foreign students and fundraising that has boosted university programs.
"What happens is when you go to these places and start to interact with other cultures and other ideologies and so forth, you yourself gain tremendous knowledge and you yourself begin to do research," Shepard said.
Participation in international conferences by WNMU faculty projects the school as "a real player" and creates opportunities for networking, he added.
Regents approved a motion Friday backing up that position, affirming the importance of WNMU's international partnerships and pointing to existing agreements and new negotiations with academic institutions from elsewhere in the Southwestern U.S. to Mexico and Brazil.
Regents declined to stop international travel, in a direct response to a recommendation by the state Higher Education Department calling for the university to suspend it pending the completion of a cost-benefit analysis.
In a letter to WNMU in early January, the department expressed concerns about such spending and asked whether it was necessary for regents to attend some of the international trips.
The letter also referenced spending by Shepard's wife, former CIA operative and activist Valerie Plame. It said non-state employees should not be issued or authorized to use state procurement cards.
New Mexico lawmakers also have been asking questions about Shepard's expenditures, noting that tuition around the state has been increasing and that they have a duty to ensure taxpayer dollars are being used efficiently.
Regents agreed Friday to conduct a broad review that will include their handbook, travel policies and other procedures in the coming months. They also agreed to a proposal by Shepard to create an ad hoc committee that can work on updating policies.
Shepard acknowledged at the gathering that it can be difficult to quantify the benefits of building relationships with institutions overseas, as some of those benefits are tangential.
"How do you quantify it?" he asked. "It's a system. It's bigger than just simply saying, 'Well, we got X amount of dollars from this particular student who came from that particular place.' It's bigger than that."
The university known today as WNMU has a history that dates back to its founding in the 1890s, before New Mexico became a state.
Legislation seeks to stop libraries from banning books – New Mexico Political Report, KUNM
A bill in the state legislature proposes preventing public libraries from banning books based on political or religious views from what one of the bill’s sponsors calls “hate groups.”
HB 123 aims to prevent public libraries from receiving funding if they do not adopt and comply with the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights which includes a requirement that library materials not be removed based on “partisan or doctrinal disapproval” based the author’s race, nationality, gender identity, sexual orientation or political or religious views, the bill states.
“We’ve had some areas around the state where hate groups have wanted to override an already existing process of vetting the books that are in our public library and they wanted books removed based on a disagreement with the subject matter that is book banning,” bill co-sponsor Rep. Kathleen Cates, D-Rio Rancho, told NM Political Report. “This bill will require, or notify, public libraries that if they override their current processes, to ban books based solely on a hate group’s request, they will risk losing their state funding.”
The bill also requires public libraries have a written policy prohibiting book bans. It also prevents political subdivisions from reducing a library or library system’s funding for adhering to the bill.
However, challenging library materials is still permitted.
“The provisions of Subsection A of this section are not intended to curtail the right of individuals to challenge library materials as part of an approved library collection development policy following established library materials challenge procedures,” the bill states.
“The New Mexico legislation responds to disturbing circumstances of censorship and an environment of suspicion—not because there is a problem that needs to be solved,” ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom Director Deborah Caldwell-Stone told NM Political Report in an email. “State legislatures have an increasing interest in legislation that bans book bans, and ALA sees that as a call to everyone to stand up against censorship and call it what it is, a threat to our children’s education, to our civil liberties and individual freedoms and to our democracy.”
The bill only applies to public libraries. Public school libraries are under the jurisdiction of the Public Education Department. Similar legislation would have to be introduced to prevent school libraries from banning or removing materials based on political or doctrinal disapproval of those materials, Cates said.
Alamogordo Public Library You Services Librarian Ami Jones was optimistic about the proposed legislation.
“HB 123 looks like it will provide an important protection for the citizens of New Mexico,” Jones told NM Political Report via email. “Libraries MUST remain an unbiased source of information for all citizens, regardless of their beliefs, situation or background.”
Jones began keeping a spreadsheet of banned and challenged materials when she started her job at the Alamogordo Public Library 20 years ago, she said.
“That list has exploded over the past couple years, and there are now over 2,700 titles on it. Happily, only a couple such cases happened in New Mexico!” Jones said.
Entries include Tomi DePaola’s Strega Nona which was listed for black magic and Alan Schwartz’ Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series which was listed for occultism and violence.
Many of the entries were banned or challenged due to depictions of racism, depicting a non-traditional family or for defining oral sex as in the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary challenge.
Jones is aware of one challenged book in Alamogordo Public Schools which was brought to her attention following an inquiry by NPR.
The book was Neil Gaiman’s 1996 novel Neverwhere.
“We did not at that time have a copy in our collection, but quickly ended up with three copies, as everyone in town seemed to want to know what the fuss was about,” Jones said.
Book bans and challenges are not good publicity for authors, Jones said.
“(Book bans) can result in ‘soft censorship’, in which librarians afraid of being attacked do not order books that someone might object to, which creates a grave disservice to the patrons who want and need those books,” Jones said.
Beyond the book bans, parents have the right to determine what their children can read, Jones said.
“(Parents or guardians) do not have the right to determine what anyone else’s child may or may not read. We encourage parents to share and discuss with their children both what they are reading and what the children are reading on a regular basis. Library staff are always happy to assist patrons with finding the materials that are just right for them,” Jones said.