Jury finds Angel Fire mayor 'knowingly violated' state procurement code in million-dollar marketing contract - John Miller, Albuquerque Journal
An 8th Judicial District Court jury has found that Angel Fire Mayor Barry "B.J." Lindsey "knowingly violated" the New Mexico Procurement Code after hiring a marketing agency for the village outside of a competitive bidding process and under a contract that included an illegal prepayment clause.
The New Mexico Ethics Commission sued the mayor in 2024 after investigating a series of complaints that alleged Lindsey and his staff failed to issue a request for proposals seeking competitive bids for the contract, which Lindsey awarded to Carristo Creative Consulting LLC of Albuquerque that year for over $1 million.
Following a jury trial this month before Judge Steven Romero in Colfax County, the jury found on Feb. 17 that Lindsey attempted to circumvent the fair bidding process under an exemption in the Procurement Code that allows a public body to allocate funding for "purchases of advertising in all media."
After the civil suit was filed in 2024, the village canceled the contract and issued an RFP for advertising services for the community, which is home to less than 2,000 full-time residents in the Moreno Valley, roughly 24 miles east of Taos.
“I ran for mayor to serve my community, not to spend two years defending myself in court,” Lindsey said in a statement. “Small-town leaders deserve guidance and communication before they’re hit with a lawsuit.”
Lindsey and his attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit in August of that year, arguing that he and his staff should be granted the opportunity to redress the matter under the Campaign Reporting Act, but were denied.
“New Mexico is full of small towns led by everyday citizens,” Lindsey added. “When state agencies move straight to lawsuits instead of working with local governments, it sends a message that discourages people from stepping up to serve.”
The commission reached a separate settlement with Carristo for repayment of the amounts it unlawfully received under the contract, according to a press release from the ethics commission.
A political newcomer who took office in January 2024, Lindsey cast the tie-breaking vote to award the contract to Carristo, which was named as a party to the civil lawsuit along with several village staff, including Julie Kulhan, chief procurement officer.
The lawsuit also asserted that the mayor and his wife maintained personal relationships with the creative agency, which could not immediately be reached for comment Monday regarding the outcome of the lawsuit.
“In New Mexico, government entities cannot bypass normal competitive procurement requirements and award a no-bid $1 million contract to a public official’s friend simply because a contract is related to advertising in some general sense,” Amelia Bierle, deputy director of the New Mexico Ethics Commission, said in a press release after the lawsuit was filed in 2024.
The verdict follows a court order granting partial summary judgment in favor of the ethics commission in June 2024, when the court ruled that the procurement code was germane to the contract awarded to Carristo and that it did not fall under any allowable exemptions under state law.
“The Procurement Code exists to ensure fairness, transparency, and public trust in government contracting,” Bierle said in a statement. “(The) verdict reaffirms that public officials are accountable when they knowingly disregard those requirements.”
With funding infusion on tap, multistory office building next to Capitol set to move forward – Dan Boyd, Albuquerque Journal
After years of delays and false starts, plans to build a new three-story executive office building next to the state Capitol are back on.
Lawmakers appropriated $95 million for the on-again, off-again project as part of a $1.2 billion capital outlay bill that's awaiting final approval on Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's desk.
The bill, Senate Bill 240, passed in the final days of this year's 30-day legislative session, which ended Thursday. The governor has until March 11 to act on the measure, which is subject to line-item veto.
If the appropriation survives the governor's veto pen, the design phase of the project could be finished by October and bids for construction could be issued by the end of this year, state General Services Department spokesman Joe Vigil said.
He also said the current plans for the office building involve a 165,000-square foot structure with an underground parking structure featuring 585 spaces.
Backers of the plan have insisted the construction of a new downtown Santa Fe office complex would save money in the long run, by allowing the state to reduce its reliance on leasing office space and consolidate government agencies in a more centralized location.
Currently, the state pays millions of dollars per year for its more than 300 active leases around the state, according to General Services Department data.
House Speaker Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, voiced support for the project on Monday, describing it as necessary to alleviate a current space crunch at the Roundhouse.
"As we continue to modernize our Legislature, office space is becoming increasingly important so we can appropriately build the capacity necessary to continue delivering for New Mexicans today and meet our needs in the years to come," Martínez told the Journal.
Specifically, the new office building would house six different state government agencies, Vigil said. Some of those agencies are currently based at the state Capitol complex, while others are spread across Santa Fe in leased buildings.
The agencies currently slated to be moved to the new executive office building include the Secretary of State's Office, the State Treasurer's Office, the State Auditor's Office and the Lieutenant Governor's Office. Two Cabinet-level state agencies, the Department of Finance and Administration and the Higher Education Department, would also be relocated to the new building, Vigil said.
The idea for a new state government building near the Capitol was first floated nearly 20 years ago, with the project's initial price tag estimated to be $22 million. But the project ended up stalling due to concerns about parking and compliance with Santa Fe building ordinances.
Those concerns have persisted in recent years, with groups like the Old Santa Fe Association opposing plans to demolish four historic casitas built around 1930 to make way for the new office building. The group has called for the casitas to be repurposed, perhaps as affordable housing, while describing the proposed new structure as "bureaucratic bloat" on its website.
In addition, a 2011 archaeological review of the area commissioned by the New Mexico Office of Cultural Affairs unearthed more than 1,500 artifacts. But no prehistoric or Spanish colonial deposits were uncovered, and no human remains were found.
After initially opposing the idea, a Santa Fe historic review commission voted in December to allow the demolition of the four historic casitas. In addition to the casitas, the existing Concha Ortiz y Pino Building, a 31,000-square-foot structure, would also have to be razed to make room for the new building.
With historical concerns no longer blocking the project, funding has been the last obstacle stopping it from moving forward. State-level approval was granted in 2021 by the Capitol Building Planning Commission, a group made up of legislators, Cabinet secretaries and elected officials.
In addition to the $95 million earmarked by lawmakers in this year's capital outlay bill, a total of $85 million was previously appropriated for the project in 2022.
While a final design for the new building has not yet been selected, former Legislative Council Services Director Raúl Burciaga said in a 2024 memo it would be built to match adjacent state buildings and would allow for easy pedestrian access to the Roundhouse, located just to the east.
"The goal is to achieve harmony with other buildings with the use of similar materials, color, proportions, and details," Buricaga said at the time.
Record snow drought persists in New Mexico and across the West, despite recent precipitation – Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
Record high winter temperatures and ongoing snow drought are leaving New Mexico with a fraction of its typical snow pack and at higher risk of wildfire, even after accounting for February storms, according to a recent briefing from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists.
Like the rest of the West, the state is experiencing a record snow drought resulting from above-average temperatures since November. New Mexico and nine other states experienced the warmest three-month period between November 2025 and January 2026 in at least 131 years, said Dan McEvoy, a scientist with NOAA’s Desert Research Institute, in a video the administration posted online Monday afternoon.
The higher temperatures mean Western states have experienced far more rain than snow this winter, leaving snow cover at fractions of previous averages. An atypical dry spell that afflicted New Mexico through much of January meant the Rio Grande Basin’s snow-water equivalent, a measure of the amount of water in snowpack, was at about 3.5 inches as of Feb. 17.
That amounts to 6% of the median the basin has experienced each winter since the 1990s, according to McEvoy’s presentation, a percentage that increased only slightly after recent storms.
“We do see that the storms over the past week have had some impact on this basin, and this is all good news to get this snow and water in the snow pack,” he said. “But again, it’s not nearly enough to get close to those median values.”
Projections from the National Resources Conservation Service, which don’t include current weather forecasts, predict snow pack in the basin won’t exceed 10% of the median throughout the rest of the winter. The Rio Grande Basin typically experiences peak snow pack in late February or early March, at median levels of about eight inches, according to the NOAA.
Even with a sharp increase in rain or snow over the coming weeks, both the Colorado and Rio Grande Basins will likely have far-below-normal snow packs this winter, NOAA scientists concluded.
That lack of snow pack and ongoing drought could result in bigger wildfires across the West, particularly in the grasslands in Eastern New Mexico, according to Tim Brown, another Desert Research Institute scientist who spoke at the briefing.
Snow pack compacts tall grasses and makes them less conducive to wildfire spread. Less snow pack makes for a “continuous fuel bed across miles and miles.”
“If an ignition begins in there, and you have hot, dry, windy conditions, that will carry that fire. That’s what we’re seeing currently in some of these parts,” he said, referring to ongoing wildfires in Oklahoma, “even in the middle of February.”
A National Interagency Fire Center forecast published earlier this month shows much of Eastern New Mexico experiencing above-normal wildfire potential. By March, the wildfire risk will grow to include all of Central New Mexico, as well, according to the forecast.
Brown predicted that drought and reduced snow pack will mean fewer opportunities this winter for prescribed burns to remove hazardous fuels, and higher-elevation vegetation could become more fire-prone in the meantime.
Still, he said some precipitation in the coming months could cause a “green-up” that propagates wildfire fuels, the timing and extent of which could spur bigger wildfires than if the region stayed dry through winter.
“It really comes down to what happens in between that snowpack, the runoff, and then when the fire season really kicks in,” he said.
Taos County Detox Facility aims for 'soft launch' in April –
Taos News
The government of Taos County has announced that its planned detox facility is on schedule to open with what officials are calling a "soft launch" in April. A specific opening date has not been set.
The Taos News reports that Taos County and Rio Grande Alocholism Treatment Program are preparing to open the detox center in three phases, with the first phase being a 12-bed recovery unit.
Phase 1 includes a 12-bed non-medical withdrawal management program, with 24-7 staffing and on-site case management.
Rio Grande Alcoholism Treatment Program executive director Lawrence Medina told the Taos News that once state certification is secured, leaders plan to seek Medicaid credentialing to help ensure long-term sustainability.
The area’s previous detox facility, which was owned by the Town of Taos and operated by Tri-County Community Services, closed in 2015.
Taos Schools approves first $7M in bond sales – Taos News
The Taos Municipal Schools District Board of Education voted to approve selling $7 million in general obligation bonds this spring.
The Taos News reports the move is the first installment of a $50 million bond package approved by74 percent of voters in the Nov. 4 regular local election.
The $7 million will fund long-deferred campus projects around the district. Among them is a new middle school, a project supported by state matching funds.
The school board will finalize a list of bond-funded projects, then formally vote on the bond sale structure at its March 11 regular meeting.
BCSO sergeant killed during I-40 traffic stop - Nakayla McClelland, Albuquerque Journal
A sergeant with the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office was killed while on duty when his vehicle was struck by a tractor-trailer on Interstate 40 on Monday, the department said.
"The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office is heartbroken to confirm that one of our sergeants was killed in the line of duty this evening,” BCSO spokesperson Jayme Gonzales said in an email.
Sgt. Michael Schlattman, who had been with the department since 2012, was conducting a traffic stop late Monday afternoon on I-40 eastbound near Carnuel when the incident occurred, Gonzales said.
"While he was outside the vehicle, a semi truck struck the rear of his department-issued vehicle, ultimately pinning him beneath," she said in a news release early Tuesday morning.
Schlattman died on scene.
Sheriff John Allen battled tears in the early hours Tuesday morning as he spoke of Schlattman, also known as Schlatty to his colleagues.
"He was known for being a true leader in the field, as you saw him today during the traffic stop," Allen said. "He was always wondering what was going on with the agency and wondering what he can do better and how to help the deputies and how to help us become a better agency."
Schlattman, who became a sergeant in 2024, worked in various capacities for BCSO, including time as a detective in the special investigations and auto theft units and as a task force officer with the United States Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
At the time of his death, Schlattman was a sergeant in the East Mountains.
Allen said there were a "couple people" who were injured, including the semi-truck driver. All of them were treated at the University of New Mexico Hospital.
BCSO said investigators were reviewing dash-cam footage of the traffic stop and that multiple people were affected by the incident.
"We just want to make sure since this is so fresh and raw that we're giving everything time," Allen said. "We always want to make sure we give our community that we serve with transparency and facts ... and they're still developing."
Allen added that the department would continue the work that Schlattman had done to the standards he would have expected.
"That was his last call tonight and we'll take it from here," he said. "That's always been the tradition of law enforcement; we have no other choice. That's what we signed up for, that's what we'll continue to do."
Both lanes of I-40 were closed for hours on Monday while authorities investigated, and the lanes remained blocked early Tuesday morning.
Schlattman is the first officer killed in the line of duty in New Mexico this year. Two officers, Antonio Aleman of the Doña Ana County Sheriff's Office and Timothy Ontiveros of the Bloomfield Police Department, were killed in the line of duty last year.
A procession for the BCSO sergeant began late Monday night along I-40 and went through the city to the Office of the Medical Investigator.
A memorial service for Schlattman will be held, and information will be shared with the public, when his family is ready, Gonzales said.
"Sergeant Schlattman was a servant leader and a protector in the truest sense," Allen said. "He was the kind of supervisor who never asked a deputy to do something he would not do himself. Our hearts are broken, and we are asking our community to carry this family and this agency in your prayers.”
Data shows water systems with high PFAS count as NM writes new rules for ‘forever chemicals’ - Danielle Prokop, Source New Mexico
New Mexico environment officials released data showing higher levels of so-called “forever chemicals” in water systems across the state ahead of hearings starting this week to write rules for phasing out their use in makeup, upholstery, cooking gear and more.
The data, published Friday, showed 15 New Mexico water systems — Albuquerque veterans hospital, a Placitas elementary school and several mountain villages — have PFAS levels exceeding federal drinking water guidelines, potentially affecting about 4,200 people statewide.
PFAS is the catch-all term for per-and-polyflourylalkyl substances, a class of thousands of synthetic chemicals that resist breaking down. PFAS were used for decades in everyday materials for waterproofing and have been found to build up in soil, water and people’s bodies. Studies on PFAS’ health impacts remain ongoing but have been linked to kidney cancers, reproductive impacts and more.
While much of the focus in New Mexico has been PFAS contamination from firefighting foams into drinking water around military bases, New Mexico Environment Department Secretary James Kenney told Source NM on Friday these results “connect the dots” that buildup from consumer goods also impacts the state’s groundwater.
“We need to understand in New Mexico that it’s not simply living on or near an Air Force base that should raise people’s concern about these chemicals in the water, it is consumer products also,” Kenney told Source NM in a phone call.
The release of the data comes as the state begins to tackle new rules, following a law passed by lawmakers in 2025 to mandate a new labeling system for goods containing PFAS, phasing out and eventually banning the use of chemicals in certain consumer goods. The law, making New Mexico one of nine states implementing a PFAS ban, has prompted pushback from national chemical industry groups.
Despite the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Trump Administration delaying implementation of the tougher standards until 2031, New Mexico is trying to address current PFAS levels in smaller water systems, Kenney said.
“We’re doing this as a way to help them get ready for when they actually have to comply, but that doesn’t really mean they should take no action when their levels are high now,” Kenney said.
Kenney said state officials will work with water systems to address treatment for high PFAS levels in coming months. He said the department is also encouraging the systems to issue reports to residents about the water quality
“With the release of this information, it really does put the burden on those water systems to begin a dialogue with their ratepayers and their consumers of their water to ensure that they’re having that conversation about what’s in the water,” Kenney said.
Leaders at Children’s Garden Montessori, a small daycare serving 40 children in Santa Fe, said the state informed them of several PFAS levels exceeding limits in their well at the end of December and alerted parents shortly after.
“We were able to buy filtration pitchers for our drinking water and are waiting to hear from the state about possible grants for treating our entire well,” said Julee White, the pre-K’s director, in a phone call with Source NM on Monday.
The largest water system that exceeded federal levels was the New Mexico Veterans Affairs Health Care System in Albuquerque, which reported at least one reading of PFOA, one of the most common variants of PFAS, at double the limit.
Jessica Jacobson, a public affairs officer in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, requested additional time to comment on the findings when reached by Source NM on Monday.
Joy Junction, a family shelter in Albuquerque, recorded PFOA levels at more than three times the federal limit. Chief Operating Officer Marcos Atwood told Source NM in a call the state has not reached out on the next steps as of Monday, but that the shelter has plans to transfer to city water.
Just north in Sandoval County, the well supplying the Placitas Elementary School, with about 150 people had results of a common compound Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) at more than four times the limit.
Wally Gurule, the school’s water operator, told Source NM the school is working on a plan to treat the water, but did not have a timeline for implementing treatment.
“It’s just a matter of monitoring and sampling, and then doing what we’ve got to do,” Gurule said.
The New Mexico Environment Department collected two to four samples from 523 water systems statewide, the majority of which had no detections of PFAS. An additional 127 eligible water systems have not yet been tested.
The 15 exceedances are based on the 2024 federal limits on drinking water, which have included limits on certain PFAS limits to four parts per trillion — which can be imagined as four drops of water in 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools — and others to 10 parts per trillion. The federal rules limited six types of PFAS, while New Mexico typically tests for more.
Santa Fe hearings on the proposed PFAS rules are scheduled in Santa Fe starting Monday through March 6 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with an opportunity for public comment allowed from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. daily. Virtual links are available on the environment department hearing calendar.
Near-record February heat headed for New Mexico - Nakayla McClelland, Albuquerque Journal
Warm weather will sweep through the state this week after a spring-like storm brought whipping winds earlier this month.
Temperatures across the Land of Enchantment will reach highs of 80 and 90 degrees, potentially bringing in record-high weather for this time of year, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Brian Guyer.
"It's going to be really nice and much warmer this week, in fact, well above normal and some record highs are possible," he said on Monday. "It should be nice and warm, more like late March and April."
An unusually strong area of high pressure developing over the southwestern United States is causing temperatures to scale higher than average, Guyer said, causing New Mexico to feel the embrace of spring much earlier than its actual arrival.
The forecast is a stark contrast to weather in the East Coast, where a powerful winter storm has pummeled the area with intense rates of snow that shuttered New York and caused snow plows to be knocked out of commission in Rhode Island.
Albuquerque will see temperatures gradually creep up throughout the week, starting in the low-70s on Tuesday before warming up to the mid-70s around Wednesday afternoon. By the weekend, Guyer said, temperatures could reach 80 degrees in Albuquerque.
"If we did hit 80, that would be the earliest on record for Albuquerque," he said.
Wind speeds in Albuquerque are forecast to peak around Tuesday or Wednesday at around 30-35 mph. The highest wind speeds are expected to occur near Las Vegas and Clines Corners.
Whipping winds may shake up piñon and juniper trees across the state, which could cause pollen counts to soar and increase allergens, Guyer said.
Northern New Mexico, including Santa Fe and Taos, are expected to see temperatures in the low- to mid-60s before warming for the weekend, with wind speeds expected to be between 5 and 15 mph.
Eastern New Mexico will feel the heat more than the rest of the state, with cities like Roswell reaching close to 90 degrees by Wednesday with high humidity later in the week.
The entirety of the eastern portion of the state will be under a red flag warning on Tuesday and Wednesday, meaning that the area will have critical fire weather conditions that can increase the potential of wildfires.
Wind speeds that are expected to sail through eastern New Mexico will also elevate the risk of rapid fire spread in the area, according to the NWS website. Across the region, gusts could range between 40-5o mph.
"Folks need to be cautious with any sparks or open flames," Guyer said. "Don't park on dry grass and properly discard cigarettes and things like that."
Gallup schools votes to settle suit with virtual provider after state blames district for budget gap - Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico
Gallup-McKinley County Schools leaders voted on Monday to settle a lawsuit with the district’s former virtual learning provider. The state education secretary and state lawmakers recently blamed the arrangement for a $35 million shortfall in the education department’s budget.
State lawmakers first became aware of the issue in December, when the state Public Education Department secretary mentioned a $35 million shortfall in her agency during a budget request presentation. The district canceled its contract with virtual learning company Stride Inc., formerly known as K12, which displaced about 3,000 online students, PED Secretary Mariana Padilla said at the time. Other districts stepped up to absorb the students, she told lawmakers, but Gallup-McKinley County Schools continued to draw money for students it no longer taught because districts are funded based on the prior year’s enrollment numbers.
Lawmakers quickly took the issue up during the 2026 legislative session and in late January, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed into law an emergency bill aimed at recouping the money. Senate Bill 19 gives state education officials extra time to figure out whether there was an overpayment to the Gallup schools and then to come up with a plan to recover it.
“This was caused by one school district…I was so pissed off,” Sen. George Muñoz (D-Gallup) said from the Senate floor at the time. “They should have returned the money.”
Previously, there was no law on the books that would let the state recoup the money, he said.
In an interview with Source NM Monday, the school district’s Board of Education President Kevin Mitchell said he believes the issue is a misunderstanding. Like Deputy Superintendent Jvanna Hanks previously told Source NM, Mitchell said the district is not continuing to draw money for students it no longer teaches. He likened the scenario to paying an auto mechanic — you typically pay after the job is done.
“All the money we’re getting this year is for services rendered last year,” Mitchell said. “We ended their contract at the end of last school year…they were obligated to give us that money due to prior year services rendered. I don’t know why they can’t see that.”
District leaders indeed terminated Stride’s contract at the end of the 2024-2025 school year. Since the state funds school districts based on the prior year’s enrollment numbers, Mitchell said it makes perfect sense for the district to receive that funding one last time.
State lawmakers’ interest in the Stride contract is just the latest development in a nearly year-long saga that has been a thorn in the side of district leaders.
In an April 2025 complaint to the New Mexico State Ethics Commission, Stride accused then-Superintendent Mike Hyatt of attempting to “leverage his position as superintendent to secure a lucrative job” with Stride. It alleged that Hyatt applied to a job posting for the company’s vice president of academic innovation and requested an annual salary of $235,000. After Stride declined to hire him, “he sought to terminate the district’s” contract.
The next month, the district officially canceled its contract with the online learning provider Stride for allegedly breaching its contract and failing to comply with special education law. Hyatt later retired from the district.
The state Legislature’s interest in the matter seems to be an example of “legislators wanting to pin blame” on someone for PED’s reported $35 million shortfall, Mitchell said Monday. “It’s just that they don’t want to be wrong.”
The lawsuit was moved to the U.S. District Court of New Mexico in September. In it, school district leaders accused their former virtual learning provider of “intentionally and knowingly” boosting their profit margins by cutting back on the number of teachers and staff members they employed.
Mitchell declined to provide a settlement amount with Stride, which his board approved after spending nearly two hours in a closed-door session. He said he hopes the settlement and the impending decision to hire a new superintendent signal district leadership’s desire to put the ordeal behind them.
“We’re striving to move forward,” he said. “We need to have some type of closure here.”
Corrales K-8 principal placed on leave pending investigation - Kevin Opshal, Albuquerque Journal
The principal of Corrales K-8 has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation, an Albuquerque Public Schools spokesperson confirmed last week.
Alvaro Ramazzini, who has led the school since July, stepped away from his duties Feb. 6, according to APS spokesperson Martin Salazar.
Salazar could not provide information on what led to the investigation because it is a personnel matter, he wrote. Salazar added that Ramazzini, who was hired by APS in October 2023, is the only staff member at the school on administrative leave.
The New Mexico Public Education Department has not received any complaints regarding Ramazzini, according to agency spokesperson Janelle Garcia.
Casey Reid Kadlec, the principal of Inez Elementary School in Albuquerque, is overseeing Corrales K-8, according to Salazar.
The school, at 200 Target Road, served elementary students for decades before recently expanding into a K-8 school. The expansion began with a sixth-grade class during the 2023-24 school year, adding an additional grade every school year until this school year.