Republicans' proposal to create new DOGE-inspired legislative panel voted down - Dan Boyd, Albuquerque Journal
Top-ranking Democratic lawmakers have squashed a GOP proposal to set up a new DOGE-inspired interim committee to examine possible fraud and financial abuse in the New Mexico state government.
During a meeting last week of the Legislative Council, a group of leading lawmakers from both major political parties, several Democrats said creating such a panel would be redundant since the Legislature already has several interim committees focused on budgetary and tax policy matters.
They also pointed out that some existing committees struggle to get a quorum for many of their meetings due to members facing scheduling conflicts.
“No one here supports fraud, waste and abuse,” said House Speaker Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, who also suggested there were political motivations behind the GOP proposal.
But Republicans suggested at least some misspending of taxpayer dollars is not getting sufficient legislative scrutiny, citing questionable spending by the state Department of Transportation and a 14.6% error rate in the state Health Care Authority’s administration of a widely used food assistance program.
“We need to drill down to see what’s going on, instead of just having the newspaper tell us what’s going on,” said Senate Minority Whip Pat Woods, R-Broadview.
The proposed new interim committee was ultimately voted down Friday on a party-line vote, with Democrats voting in opposition and Republicans in favor. Following the vote, both the House and Senate GOP caucuses criticized majority Democrats in social media posts.
State spending has increased by more than 70% since Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham took office in 2019, as unprecedented oil production in southeast New Mexico has led to record-high revenue levels.
In addition to increased spending, lawmakers have also used the revenue windfall to establish new trust funds intended to provide future funding streams for early childhood programs, conservation initiatives and Medicaid services.
Meanwhile, the GOP-backed push to create a new legislative interim committee to study fraud, waste and abuse comes roughly one year after a similar proposal to create a DOGE-inspired office in state government stalled at the Roundhouse.
At the time, State Auditor Joseph Maestas said the proposed office would have overlapped with the constitutional mandate of his office. He also said the State Auditor’s office has struggled to obtain sufficient funding amid a growing shortage of certified public accountants.
During last week’s meeting, Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, pointed out the Legislature already has 24 different interim committees set up, though some meet more often than others. Such interim committees typically meet while the Legislature is not in session to study issues and hear reports from state agencies and outside groups.
“I personally think we have too many committees,” said Stewart, who also said she has tried unsuccessfully to reduce the number of committees in recent years.
In fact, the Democratic-controlled Legislature created an additional committee just last year — a panel tasked with researching the implications of federal funding reductions in New Mexico.
That panel, which issued a report last year but did not propose any specific legislative action, was extended last week for another year. In addition to federal funding reductions, it will also be tasked with investigating possible state-level policies to address affordability issues.
The Federal Funding Stabilization and Affordability Subcommittee will be co-chaired by Rep. Patricia Lundstrom, D-Gallup, and Sen. Cindy Nava, D-Bernalillo.
Lawmakers seek probe into missing nuclear experts, including missing former Kirtland commander - Nakayla McClelland, Albuquerque Journal
At least 10 scientists and researchers involved in nuclear technology have mysteriously disappeared or died in recent years.
One of those disappearances includes retired U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland, a 68-year-old from Albuquerque who was reported missing on Feb. 27.
McCasland is a former commander of Kirtland's Phillips Research Site and Air Force Research Laboratory, as well as a Kirtland Partnership Committee board member.
Now, U.S. House Republican lawmakers are demanding that the FBI, Department of Energy, NASA and other federal agencies open an investigation into what they believe is a “possible sinister connection” in the disappearances.
“These reports allege that at least ten individuals who ‘had a connection to U.S. nuclear secrets or rocket technology’ have ‘died or mysteriously vanished in recent years,’” wrote James Comer, R-Kentucky, and Eric Burlison, R-Missouri, in a Monday news release. “If the reports are accurate, these deaths and disappearances may represent a grave threat to U.S. national security and to U.S. personnel with access to scientific secrets.”
Lawmakers in the release state that they have growing concerns over the disappearances, which began in 2023 after Michael David Hicks — a scientist who worked at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory from 1998 to 2022 — died from unknown causes at the age of 59. Hicks studied near-Earth asteroids and comets.
Another scientist, Monica Reza, disappeared in June 2025 while hiking in California. She served as director of the NASA Lab’s Materials Processing Group.
In McCasland’s case, the search took investigators and the FBI from his primary home in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains to southern Colorado, where clothing was found inside his Pagosa Springs home. McCasland took his wallet and a gun with him, but left behind his bio-tracking wearables.
No further information has been released to the public and McCasland remains missing.
In a letter sent to Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, lawmakers allege that Reza and McCasland may have had a “close professional connection” through an Air Force-funded research program in the 2000s, adding to the security concerns that connect the missing researchers.
Additionally, the letter states that two individuals affiliated with the Los Alamos National Laboratory were dead or missing, though no further details were stated.
On April 16, the DOD said there were no “active national security investigations” into any missing people who have or had a former DOD clearance. However, the Oversight Committee said that the department’s response was unsatisfactory and left the committee with “many unanswered questions.”
President Donald Trump on Thursday told reporters that he had held a meeting on the reported missing scientists and said that it was “pretty serious stuff,” according to The Hill.
“We request a briefing on any information regarding these deaths and disappearances, as well as the processes and procedures in place to protect American scientific secrets and ensure personnel safety,” Republican lawmakers wrote.
Major US fitness provider acquires New Mexico Sports & Wellness - Kylie Garcia, Albuquerque Journal
A handful of Albuquerque sports clubs are now under new ownership.
Genesis Health Clubs, one of the nation’s largest privately held fitness companies, announced last week that it acquired New Mexico Sports & Wellness, which has five locations across Albuquerque.
The deal also included the acquisition of Colorado Athletic Club, which has four locations in Colorado. Denver-based fitness company Wellbridge had owned both Colorado Athletic Club and New Mexico Sports & Wellness. Genesis spokesperson Paul Hansen declined to share the acquisition cost.
The acquisition expands Genesis’ footprint in Colorado while marking a first-time entry into the New Mexico market.
“This is a big step forward for us,” said Rodney Steven II, Genesis’ owner and president, in a statement. “These are great clubs with great teams. We’ll build on what’s working and keep raising the standard.”
Genesis launched in Wichita, Kansas, in 1986, according to the company’s website. Steven purchased the business in 1994, aiming to build a service-oriented, results-based fitness center company, the website says. With the Colorado and New Mexico deal finalized on April 16, Genesis now operates 86 gyms across 14 states.
“Colorado has been a strong market for us, and New Mexico is a natural extension with great clubs, great teams and strong regional support,” Steven said.
The company in a news release said the foundation of these clubs will not change but that “the level of investment, consistency and long-term focus” will. Over time, members could see facility upgrades and enhanced programming, Hansen said. New Mexico Sports & Wellness members can also now access other Genesis clubs across the country.
All employees at New Mexico Sports & Wellness have been offered roles with Genesis, Hansen said, adding that the company is “focused on maintaining continuity for both the team and our members.” Hansen said the clubs will reflect the Genesis name, though it’s yet to be determined when those changes will be made.
“We recognize the strong brand equity of New Mexico Sports & Wellness in the local market, and that’s an important consideration,” Hansen said.
Local businessman Scott Garrett founded the Albuquerque gym business in 1983, according to New Mexico Sports & Wellness’ LinkedIn page. The clubs offer personal, group, family and youth fitness programs; massage and spa services; and facilities for basketball, tennis, racquetball, squash, cardio, aerobics, yoga and weightlifting.
Wellbridge purchased the business in 1988, according to Hansen. The spokesperson declined to share member numbers for the clubs but said “strong memberships and deep community roots” were part of the draw for Genesis.
“Honestly, we’re just excited to be there,” Hansen said. “When we walked into the clubs, you could feel it right away — the energy, the people, the sense of community. … For us, it’s about coming in, supporting that, making smart investments and just continuing to build on it. There’s a lot here, and we’re excited about what’s ahead.”
Pedestrian deaths in state, Albuquerque area fall for second straight year - Matthew Reisen & Gregory R.C. Hasman, Albuquerque Journal
Seven fewer people were fatally struck by drivers on Albuquerque’s streets last year — the second straight annual decrease in pedestrian deaths since a post-pandemic spike. Driven to some degree by the decrease, New Mexico — for the first time in eight years — relinquished its rank as the state with the worst pedestrian death rate in the nation.
The Governors Highway Safety Association released its biannual report in March that placed the state ninth behind Nevada and Alaska, with a rate of 1.27 fatal pedestrian crashes per 100,000 people between January and June, down from 2.49 in that same timespan in 2024.
New Mexico recorded 89 pedestrian deaths in 2025, down from 102 in 2024 and the lowest total since the pandemic hit in 2020. The GHSA said the rankings, and data behind them, are preliminary and a full accounting of 2025 will be released at a later date.
Albuquerque and its surrounding roadways saw 43 fatal pedestrian crashes last year, according to data compiled by Albuquerque police, Bernalillo County deputies and New Mexico State Police. The total is a decrease from 50 in 2024 and the record-high 56 deaths in 2023.
The drop comes on the heels of the city’s largest financial commitment, $5 million, to pedestrian safety projects in a historically underserved area that sees the highest death toll. The mostly completed projects include a road diet, safety lighting and median fencing along the 3-mile stretch of Central between San Mateo and Eubank, which has seen 40 pedestrian deaths since 2018.
The five deaths in that part of town last year brought the number to 45.
In a news conference Thursday, Mayor Tim Keller acknowledged that Albuquerque is “one of the worst in the country” when it comes to pedestrian deaths.
“Now we've been working on some major changes to try and turn that around,” he said, noting the recent back-to-back decline in pedestrian deaths. “But it’s much, much too early to tell.”
At least 30 of the fatal pedestrian crashes last year happened within city limits. The other 13 happened along the highways and in unincorporated parts of Bernalillo County that abut the city.
‘Hopefully this is a trend’
Professor Nick Ferenchak, from the Civil Engineering Department at the University of New Mexico, said it remained to be seen whether the drop in pedestrian deaths was part of a nationwide trend or a result of safety measures.
“I think there's been a lot of work in this area. Hopefully these numbers are changing because of that, and hopefully this is a trend,” he said, pointing to the GHSA’s finding of a decrease nationwide in pedestrian fatalities.
Ferenchak added, “We're still above pre-COVID levels. Not to be negative, but it's not like we solved the issue here, yet.”
Shannon Glendenning, director of the Traffic Safety Division at the state Department of Transportation, said it’s hard to attribute the decrease in pedestrian deaths in Albuquerque or statewide to “any one factor.”
"Part of it is how we're thinking holistically," she said, crediting the results to the “safe system approach” adopted by the DOT.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the safe system approach involves anticipating human mistakes by designing and managing road infrastructure to minimize the risk of those mistakes. The approach, Glendenning said, emphasizes safer people, speeds, roads and post-crash care with the goal of eventually eliminating all traffic-related fatalities.
"The major principle around it is that death and serious injuries are not acceptable," she said. "Zero is the only acceptable number."
Until then, Glendenning said, NMDOT is continuing to improve pedestrian safety using infrastructure enhancements, education and road safety audits.
In an audit, engineers and statewide stakeholders look at intersections or corridors and "really do a deep dive," looking at daytime and nighttime conditions and crash history, and making recommendations for improvements, she said.
So far in 2026, 19 people have been killed by drivers across New Mexico, six of them in Bernalillo County, according to fatality reports compiled by UNM. Of the six, five were in Albuquerque city limits. By this time in 2025, there had been 11 pedestrian deaths in the city.
Multilayered approach
During the news conference Thursday, Keller cautioned against celebrating the decreases early.
“We just want to make sure that this continues. So this is like the first, sort of, crack in the clouds — that maybe we're actually making a difference in this and we're shining light on this problem,” he said.
In the past several years, the city has added dozens of speed cameras and several HAWK push-button crossings — with several more planned — in the most dangerous corridors. But the majority of recent pedestrian safety measures were focused on East Central, which has had a stubbornly high death toll.
Among the largest infrastructure changes is turning two lanes on Central into business access and transit (BAT) lanes, leaving four lanes for regular traffic.
Other changes include 200 solar-powered pedestrian safety lights, metal fencing in the medians to discourage jaywalking and repurposing wildlife crossing technology for a sign that flashes when walkers are detected.
Keller said the multilayered approach has shown some success.
“It's really all of the things together,” he said. “We know because we tried to do these things in one-off ways before, and we didn't see an impact. It wasn't until we had four different solutions on Central that now we're seeing results.”
Ferenchak said he couldn’t speak to the efficacy of the BAT lanes, which are identified by a solid white line, have no physical barriers and do not change the actual width of the street.
He said, however, that physically shrinking the roadway has data to back it up.
Ferenchak said in a study of pre-and post-Albuquerque Rapid Transit, he found a 65% drop in serious-injury and fatal crashes along Central where a lane was removed for ART. He said the HAWK crossings may improve safety in the immediate vicinity but become “a Band-Aid” when intersections are sometimes a half-mile apart.
“Maybe you've improved safety at that one little point, but 99% of that corridor is still — people are going to be darting across, and we're going to get the safety outcomes that we've got,” Ferenchak said.
He said reducing lanes and finding other ways to slow vehicles down — where even if a crash occurs, death is less likely — has “proven to be the most effective approach.”
“There's two ways to get to zero pedestrian fatalities, you can make a really safe, walkable city, or you can just get rid of the pedestrians,” Ferenchak said. “You know, putting up fencing to tell people ‘don't walk here.’ OK, we might cut down on fatalities, but is that a city you want to be in?”
Hearts and minds
The newest effort from the city is aimed at driver behavior.
The “Stop For Everyone” campaign will try to change the hearts and minds of those behind the wheel. Keller said when most people hear “reckless driving,” they think of a teen swerving across the road.
“Reckless driving is looking at your cellphone, that's what it is, or it's consistently going over 10 miles over the speed limit,” he said. “That is actually like a societal challenge that we have. I catch myself a lot, I'm just like everyone else, and I'm like, ‘Oh my goodness, I can't believe on Tingley I was going that fast.’”
Keller noted two crashes that captured headlines and spurred near-immediate change: the death of a student in a crosswalk outside Cleveland Middle School and, more recently, city employee Kayla VanLandingham, who was struck while riding her bike across Carlisle. No one was charged in either case.
“These were all, in general, people who weren't doing anything in their minds they thought was terribly wrong, right? They were just distracted driving type situations or there was ambiguity about the law,” he said.
Keller said thanks to an ordinance passed by the City Council, there is "no ambiguity anymore” for drivers who come across a person in a crosswalk, both marked and unmarked: “If you see someone, you have to stop — not slow down — you have to stop. That’s the law.”
Jennifer Turner, director of the department of Municipal Development, said the campaign will run ads on TV and signage at the Sunport. She said there will also be billboards across the city “including on Lomas, which is one of our dangerous corridors.”
Turner said she was unsure if there were plans to have a billboard along East Central. But, she said, it is expected to be put up at bus stops.
“And so even if it's not a full digital billboard, you'll see it at bus shelters,” Turner said.
Independents' ranks swell after implementation of new voter registration system - Dan Boyd, Albuquerque Journal
For the last three decades, the ranks of New Mexico independent voters have been growing at a more rapid rate than registered Democrats or Republicans.
But that trend has accelerated in advance of the state’s first semi-open primary election — set to take place in June — and after implementation of a new statewide automatic voter registration system.
Since the new system was enacted in July, the number of independents in New Mexico, or those who decline to affiliate with a political party, has increased from 314,017 to 371,380 as of March 31 — a 57,000-plus voter increase that averages out to nearly 6,400 new voters per month.
In the three months prior to the implementation of the system, the number of independent voters had increased by an average of about 1,500 voters per month.
At a glance:
The June 2 primary election will be New Mexico’s first under a semi-open primary system adopted last year. Here are some key dates and numbers to keep in mind:
- May 4 is the last day for voters affiliated with a major party to change their party affiliation.
- Unaffiliated, or independent, voters can request either a Democratic or Republican ballot when voting.
- As of March 31, the breakdown of registered voters by party was as follows:Democrats — 573,554 (40.5%)Republicans — 443,598 (31.3%)Independents — 371,380 (26.2%)Other — 27,916 (2%)Total — 1,416,448(Information courtesy of Secretary of State’s Office)
In contrast, the number of registered Democrats over the last nine months increased by an average of just 371 voters per month, according to Secretary of State’s Office data. As for Republicans, the number of GOP voters during the same time period grew by an average of roughly 913 voters per month.
Looking at it another way, about 82% of the state’s newly registered voters since last summer declined to state a party affiliation.
Longtime New Mexico political observer Brian Sanderoff said the proportion of independent voters in the state has been increasing for years but ramped up noticeably after the state began automatically registering eligible residents to vote last summer at Motor Vehicle Division field offices.
“Newly registered voters under the automatic voter registration system are just more likely to register as unaffiliated,” said Sanderoff, who is the president of Albuquerque-based Research & Polling Inc.
While he said he does not anticipate a high vote turnout among independent voters in this year’s primary election, he said the meteoric rise could lead to big changes to the state’s political landscape in the future.
“I think this trend, in conjunction with the change in law allowing independents to vote in primary elections, will have a major impact over time,” Sanderoff said.
He also said the semi-open primary law could eliminate an incentive for new voters to affiliate with a political party, since independent voters can now cast a ballot in either the Republican or Democratic primary.
Independent voters were previously barred from voting in New Mexico primary elections unless they changed their party affiliation, but that is changing this year under the law signed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham that created a semi-open primary system.
Political impact of independents’ rise
The recent surge in independent voters hasn’t gone unnoticed by candidates running for statewide office this year.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Duke Rodriguez said last fall the rise of unaffiliated voters could mean New Mexico voters are shedding traditional political labels.
Another GOP candidate, small business owner Doug Turner of Albuquerque, attributed the trend to New Mexicans’ core identity.
“I think that speaks to the fact that we are a wildly independent state,” Turner said at a recent Journal town hall event. “People like to run their own show and keep their business their own business, but they want to support people who also agree with them.”
However, Sanderoff cautioned that independent voters, who tend to be younger than registered Democrats and Republicans, have voted at lower rates in recent election cycles.
In last year’s regular local election in Albuquerque, for instance, only about 21.7% of registered independents voted, compared to 41.5% of Democrats and 36.8% of Republicans.
In addition, Sanderoff pointed out that independent voters who do cast a ballot in the June 2 primary election will be split, since some will select a Democratic ballot and others will opt to receive a Republican ballot.
If 10% of the roughly 371,000 unaffiliated voters end up casting a ballot, that means the 37,100 votes will be divided between the two major political parties, which could dilute the impact of independents in determining races’ outcomes.
Will new voters end up voting?
The new automatic voter registration system was launched last year under New Mexico’s latest plan to expand voting access.
The system stems from a 2023 state election bill approved by lawmakers — via a vote that broke down largely along party lines — and signed into law by Lujan Grisham.
Since the system’s launch in July 2025, a total of 62,653 new voters have been registered in New Mexico at Motor Vehicle Division field offices, according to Secretary of State’s Office data. That represents the bulk of the state’s 70,199 total newly registered voters during that time period.
An additional 201,371 voters have used the system to update their registrations, while 671 new registrations have been declined because applicants did not meet necessary requirements to be voters.
Lindsey Bachman, a spokeswoman for the Secretary of State’s Office, said it’s possible there’s a link between the launch of the new system and the surge in independent voters statewide, but said the office could not “confirm a correlation.”
She also said individuals are given the option of selecting a party affiliation on electronic signature pads they use when completing MVD transactions.
But how many of the newly registered voters end up casting a ballot is a big question as election officials ready for voting to begin next month.
Only 25.2% of registered voters cast a ballot in New Mexico’s last primary election in a non-presidential year, which took place in 2022.