NM governor approves $500K for statewide wildfires, including McCauley Springs Fire in Jemez
—Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Tuesday issued an emergency order granting $500,000 to a state agency to help address a rash of wildfires across the state, including the McCauley Springs Fire near Jemez Springs.
According to the governor’s office, at least 16 wildfires are currently burning across the state. That includes the 700-acre McCauley Springs Fire in Sandoval County, which prompted evacuations and a partial forest closure, and the Beehive Fire near Tres Piedras, which had grown to more than 4,000 acres Tuesday after first being discovered Friday.
Moreover, “conditions for more are expected to increase,” Maj. Gen. Miguel Aguilar, interim cabinet secretary for the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said in a statement. “We are doing everything we can to support the responders and the residents who are facing these disasters.”
The flurry of large wildfire ignitions marks the end of a relative “reprieve” the Southwest region enjoyed throughout the beginning of wildfire season, Matt Hurteau, a professor at the University of New Mexico and director of the Center for Fire Resilient Ecosystems and Society, told Source NM.
While the state experienced an above-average number of ignitions in the first six months of the year, at least on state and private land, bursts of moisture have enabled crews to quickly contain them and minimize destruction, Hurteau said. But fires erupted across the region in recent days, sending crews scrambling to restrain them, he said.
“All of a sudden things have started picking up, and we just haven’t had any moisture in a while,” Hurteau said. “We’re starting to hit the dry-lightning part in the prelude to monsoons kicking off. Until we start getting some rains, everything’s really dry. And then just add ignitions.”
Over the weekend, state crews worked with local emergency managers and state agencies to help with the McCauley Springs Fire, according to the governor’s office, including clearing a roadway following a mudslide and installing sandbags. The governor’s order notes that the wildfire has placed “significant strain” on local resources. The blaze was 43% contained as of Tuesday morning.
The Beehive Fire burning 15 miles west of Tres Piedras had 0% containment as of Tuesday morning after igniting Friday, and its cause remained undetermined, according to Forest Service officials.
High winds Monday spurred the wildfire and contributed to its growth of more than 1,000 acres since Monday morning. While the fire does not threaten any structures, officials are urging hikers on the Continental Divide Trail to bypass the area and warning drivers that smoke could reduce visibility along nearby state Highways 64 and 285.
National Weather Service forecasters on Tuesday issued a Red Flag warning in northwest New Mexico, noting the high wildfire risk in that area, and said the rest of northern New Mexico could see scattered thunderstorms, which bring the potential for rains to limit wildfire spread but also the risk of lightning and unpredictable wind.
Hurteau told Source NM that New Mexico has an acute need for steady monsoon rains, both to address the ongoing rash of wildfires but also amid ongoing drought and following record-low snowpacks across the west.
“If it started raining consistently, starting tomorrow, that would be a wonderful thing for us in the Southwest,” he said.
New Mexico residents say their names used without permission to support Project Jupiter data center
—Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico
Residents from three New Mexico cities say their names falsely appeared on letters urging state environment officials to approve air quality permits for the controversial Project Jupiter data center after they were approached by canvassers for the project.
Residents in Las Cruces, Albuquerque and Rio Rancho in interviews said that canvassers in Project Jupiter T-shirts approached them while they were pumping gas or leaving the grocery store and asked for their opinions on the $165 billion data center development under development in southern New Mexico, which is expected to support Oracle’s and OpenAI’s operations.
All three recalled telling the canvassers either that they were skeptical or outright opposed to the development, citing concerns about its water use and environmental impact. None of them voiced support for the project, they said.
As each of them ended the conversations, they said the canvassers asked for their email addresses so they could provide more details about Project Jupiter.
All three told Source NM that soon afterward they received emails thanking them for making public comments on the New Mexico Environment Department’s online portal. The public comment period for project developer Yucca Growth Infrastructure’s air quality permit application ends July 6.
If approved, the air quality permit would allow developers to use fuel cell technology to power the data center campus. While the proposal is anticipated to emit fewer pollutants than the developers’ previous proposal to build natural gas plants, documents show it would still emit more greenhouse gases than Albuquerque and Las Cruces — New Mexico’s two largest cities — combined.
In each case, the residents’ names appeared at the bottom of identical form letters.
“I am writing to express my support for Project Jupiter, which I believe offers significant benefits for our community,” the letter reads, citing the development’s promised 4,000 construction jobs, 1,500 “project-supported” jobs and multimillion-dollar investments in local schools and drinking water systems. “I urge the New Mexico Environment Department to approve this important project.”
One such letter was signed by Las Cruces resident Johnny Acosta. However, Acosta recalled to Source NM that he told canvassers who approached him while he was pumping gas that he had deep reservations about the project.
“I gave her my email and the next day that’s when I saw that whole thing, like I had written it,” he said. “How do people do that?”
Acosta is not alone. Albuquerque resident Dawn Martinez told Source NM she had a similar experience leaving the grocery store last week. She said a man in a Project Jupiter T-shirt asked her for her opinions on the development, and she told him she opposed it on the grounds of water usage and environmental impact.
She said the man then asked her if she would rate their conversation positively and asked for her email address.
“I was assuming I was going to get a survey or something in my email,” she told Source NM. What she received instead was the same letter bearing Acosta’s name.
“It basically was like, ‘I’m Dawn Martinez, in support of Project Jupiter,’” she said.
Katie Yelin, a Rio Rancho resident who recently moved across the river from Albuquerque, recounted a nearly identical experience. There are several similar cases found in the Environment Department’s online public comment portal, where residents have written to clarify that supportive comments bearing their names were submitted without their knowledge or consent.
New Mexico Environment Department spokesperson Drew Goretzka in an email to Source NM said department officials were unaware of the allegedly falsified letters until Monday — when Source NM reached out to the department for comment.
NMED “does not condone these actions and is looking into the issue,” he wrote.
If people see public comments made under their names without their knowledge or consent, Goretzka urged them to immediately alert the department via Pamela.Jones@env.nm.gov.
Pushes to sway public opinion in favor of Project Jupiter have come under scrutiny in recent months.
The State Ethics Commission in April filed a lawsuit against an anonymous company behind a pro-Project Jupiter ad campaign and accused it of violating the state Lobbyist Regulation Act after Source NM revealed the mailers’ out-of-state origins.
Developers also converted a long-awaited town hall in Sunland Park into a career fair earlier in June, which prompted hours of irate public comment at a recent Doña Ana Board of County Commissioners meeting.
Also in June, Source NM revealed that the firm behind the state’s award-winning Medicaid re-enrollment social media campaign was recruiting Instagram influencers to promote Project Jupiter.
“What was so frustrating to me was for him to lie and to misrepresent ‘do you mind giving me your information?’” Martinez, the Albuquerque resident, said about her interaction with the canvasser. “You can’t trust anything these people say. Who knows how many of these comments they’ve submitted aren’t right?”
Several of the companies involved with Project Jupiter, including OpenAI, STACK Infrastructure, Bloom Energy, BorderPlex Digital Assets and Yucca Growth Infrastructure, did not respond to requests for comment.
An Oracle spokesperson in a statement acknowledged its use of canvassers in New Mexico, but denied any wrongdoing.
“Project Jupiter representatives are conducting community outreach to answer questions, provide information and encourage participation in the public permitting process. Our outreach teams are supervised, clearly identified as Project Jupiter representatives, and trained to ensure that any public comment is submitted only by residents who voluntarily choose to do so,” the spokesperson wrote. “We do not authorize or condone the submission of public comments without a resident’s knowledge and consent, and residents who are not ready to submit a comment are provided printed educational materials so they can review the information on their own.”
Iran war oil prices driving $500 million in N.M. state revenue, LFC says
—Santa Fe New Mexican
The State of New Mexico’s trust funds have received about half a billion dollars worth of unanticipated revenue as a result of higher oil prices resulting from the U.S. war on Iran.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that a Legislative Finance Committee economist shared that information with state lawmakers on Monday.
The New Mexican reports that roughly $500 million is going to permanent endowment funds, including the Early Childhood Education and Care Fund, the Medicaid Trust Fund, and the Behavioral Health Trust Fund.
The New Mexican reports every $1 increase in the average New Mexico price of oil results in an additional $57.3 million impact on state revenue.
Santa Fe City Council rejects appeal of proposed hotel at Cerrillos and St. Francis
—Santa Fe New Mexican
A proposal to put a 150-room, four-story hotel near one of Santa Fe's busiest intersections appears to be moving forward.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that the Santa Fe City Council voted 4-1 — with one abstention and two councilors absent — to deny an appeal of the Planning Commission's approval of the project.
The New Mexican reports the vote came at the end of a more than five-hour public hearing on the matter Thursday evening.
The appeal was filed by the Old Santa Fe Association.
This site is near the intersection of Cerrillos Road and St. Francis Drive and is across the street from the New Mexico School for the Deaf.
Albuquerque-based Titan Development has proposed a four-story hotel at the location.
NM Sen. Pope staying in Dem lieutenant governor race even after losing Haaland endorsement - Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
New Mexico Sen. Harold James Pope Jr. (D-Albuquerque) is pressing forward with a campaign to become Deb Haaland’s running mate in the upcoming gubernatorial election, despite Haaland’s endorsement Friday of state Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard for the Democratic ticket.
Pope ran for lieutenant governor in the Democratic primary against Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, who withdrew from the race on June 18 due to unspecified health reasons. Pope lost that race June 2 by a wide margin, earning just 20% of the vote.
But he told Source NM on Monday that his experience as part of that campaign, including visiting every county in New Mexico and meeting party officials during the pre-primary convention in March, makes him a “front runner” in what he sees as a continuation of the campaign for lieutenant governor he launched last year.
“I want to be clear: I’m not entitled to this nomination because I’m the only one left,” he told Source NM. “But I do believe that I ran a race, and I have a lot of support, and I should be able to compete, because while I didn’t win, tens of thousands of people voted for me across the state.”
On July 25, the Democratic Party of New Mexico’s State Central Committee is scheduled to vote on who should replace Toulouse Oliver on the ballot. The roughly 500 SCC members hail from every county in the state and include elected officials, as well as party officials and volunteers.
Haaland announced Friday that she had selected Garcia Richard from a list of five candidates, including Pope, state Sen. Leo Jaramillo (D-Española), former Department of Veterans Services Secretary Sonya Smith and attorney Antonia Roybal-Mack.
Haaland’s endorsement prompted Roybal-Mack to withdraw from the race, and Jaramillo suggested in a Facebook post Monday that he was also exiting, though he did not respond to Source NM’s request for clarification. Smith also told Source NM via text message Monday that she is no longer pursuing the seat.
The deadline for aspiring lieutenant governors to apply to the Democratic Party is July 3, according to spokesperson Daniel Garcia.
Still, three members of the State Central Committee told Source NM on Monday that they anticipate the election will be between Pope and Garcia Richard, in what they all described as an unusual process that is less democratic than would be ideal.
Democratic Party of Bernalillo County Chair Jacob Trujillo, who is also an SCC member, told Source NM that he’s received more than a dozen calls from Garcia Richard supporters and several from Pope supporters in recent days.
Approximately 40% of SCC members hail from Bernalillo County, he said.
As a committee voter for the lieutenant governor spot, he is trying to stay as open-minded as possible and emphasizing to Democratic voters that the party will be united despite the upcoming election.
In doing so, he said he is seeking to allay the “nightmares of 2024” held among many Democrats, in which following former President Joe Biden’s exit from the race, former Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate without a new primary election and ultimately lost to President Donald Trump.
“Although it’s none of our ideal situations,” he said of the SCC vote, “I think a lot of us are taking a fair route, and truly treating this as a brand new campaign and really listening to folks.”
Trujillo said he is looking out for ways to make the process of filling vacancies more transparent going forward and said he expects legislation during next year’s legislation session regarding the lieutenant governor position.
He noted that many states empower gubernatorial candidates to choose their lieutenants without a separate election for lieutenant governor. According to the National Lieutenant Governors Association, the gubernatorial nominee in 21 states chooses a running mate for the general election.
Another option in these cases would be to hold entirely new elections, he said. For his part, he’d like to see the SCC expand to include more members empowered to elect candidates in such circumstances.
State Rep. Patricia Roybal Caballero (D-Albuquerque), an SCC member and vocal Pope supporter, told Source NM that while it is Haaland’s “prerogative” to endorse whomever she likes, she would have preferred the Democratic gubernatorial candidate to have let the SCC process play out without weighing in.
“I would have wished that the Haaland team would have just waited and had more faith in those of us on the SCC,” she said.
In an emailed statement, Felicia Salazar, Haaland’s deputy campaign manager, told Source NM in an email that Haaland “respects the role the SCC plays in this selection.”
“Deb also respects the overwhelming majority of voters who trust her to ensure working families in New Mexico have leadership that is ready to deliver lower costs, better education, safer communities, and access to healthcare where they live,” Salazar said
Despite Haaland’s endorsement for Garcia Richard, Roybal Caballero said Pope’s momentum is building and that SCC members are growing to appreciate the movement he built over the long months on the campaign.
“We’re getting a real strong sense that they are more and more aligning with the sentiment of the voters from that grassroots level, and so I really believe that I believe Harold Pope’s going to win this election at the SCC,” she said.
Kimberly Skaggs stays in jail ahead of trial - Algernon D’Ammassa, Albuquerque Journal
Kimberly Skaggs, the business woman and former state Republican Party officer charged with leaving the scene of a fatal traffic crash a week ago, will remain in custody while awaiting trial, a judge ordered Monday.
State District Judge Conrad Perea found that the estimated speed of Skaggs' vehicle when it struck a bicyclist on a two-lane road in the Fairacres community demonstrated she posed a danger to the community.
He further found that no conditions of release — including daily check-ins, GPS monitoring or restrictions on driving or travel — could reasonably ensure public safety.
Monday's hearing also provided additional details about the crash investigation.
Skaggs is charged with felony counts of leaving the scene of a crash resulting in a fatality and tampering with evidence. She attended Monday's hearing with family members and supporters seated behind her in the courtroom gallery. Since turning herself in to authorities last Wednesday, she had been held at the Doña Ana County Detention Center.
On June 22, Andrew Brown, 40, was struck while crossing North Fairacres Road on his bicycle. Doña Ana County Sheriff's Office Deputy Fabian Fernandez testified that Brown suffered severe injuries, including a compound leg fracture with bone protruding through the skin.
Brown died at the scene. A photograph displayed in court showed him lying on the roadway. The image, taken by a witness, captured a woman who told investigators she saw a woman exit the black Cadillac Escalade SUV involved in the crash, walk around the scene and then drive away. The photograph also shows pieces of the bicycle and skid marks behind the departing vehicle.
Although the image captured only part of the license plate, investigators identified a matching vehicle using a Flock surveillance camera about 1 to 2 miles away. They traced the registration to Skaggs' business, 50 State DMV, which assists customers with vehicle titles and registrations, according to testimony.
Deputies used OnStar GPS data to track the vehicle to an unoccupied property owned by Skaggs a few miles away. The SUV was parked beneath a rear carport, out of public view and behind a locked gate. Deputies seized the vehicle after obtaining a search warrant.
Fernandez testified that the electronic key fob remained inside the SUV, which showed front-end damage and damage to one wheel well consistent with debris from the crash scene. Investigators also found what appeared to be blood, bicycle tire sealant, bicycle tire tread marks and scratches consistent with bicycle pedals.
Fernandez said investigators measured 208 feet of skid marks and estimated the SUV was traveling between 49 and 69 mph on a road with a posted speed limit of 40 mph. The lower estimate assumed the vehicle's braking system was in optimal condition.
Perea said that assumption favored the defense but said he believed the SUV was likely traveling closer to 65 mph when it struck Brown.
Prosecutors also presented evidence that someone sought a new registration number and a different style of license plate for the Escalade on the day of the crash, even though its registration does not expire until May 2027. Perea highlighted that evidence in announcing his ruling.
In addition to serving as an officer with the Doña Ana County and state Republican Party organizations, Skaggs has run three times for the state Legislature and served on several volunteer and civic boards in Tularosa and Las Cruces. She recently resigned from the board of Alma d'Arte Charter High School in Las Cruces. Following her arrest, the state GOP cut ties with Skaggs in a brief statement Thursday.
Schanen Yates-Unser, a friend of Skaggs who volunteered with her in Tularosa, testified for the defense. She said Skaggs' family responsibilities, business and character gave her every incentive to comply with court orders and resolve the case.
"Kim is not the type of person who runs from issues," Yates-Unser said. "Kim has always faced things head-on."
Prosecutor Heather Chavez countered that Skaggs fled the crash scene instead of calling 911, remaining at the scene and cooperating with investigators.
"She made a horrible, horrible choice," Chavez said.
Prosecutors also cited roughly a half-dozen prior traffic stops for speeding. Contrary to initial reports, a 2025 stop for alleged street racing resulted in a warning, not a citation. Records also showed that of six traffic stops spanning more than a decade, most were dismissed, and Skaggs was found guilty in only one case.
Skaggs' attorney, Brock Morgan Benjamin, moved Friday to disqualify Perea from presiding over the detention hearing, but Perea heard the case Monday. He ruled that clear and convincing evidence supported holding Skaggs without bond pending trial. It was not immediately clear whether Skaggs would appeal.
Over the weekend, Brown's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Skaggs in New Mexico's 1st Judicial District Court. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Brown's minor child and the child's mother, seeks damages for medical and funeral expenses, lost income, loss of Brown's relationship with his family, punitive damages and other costs.
3 firefighters killed in Western wildfire were trying to shield themselves from flames - By Ty Oneil, Matthew Brown and John Seewer, Associated Press
Three firefighters killed over the weekend in a wildfire along the Colorado-Utah border were trying to shield themselves from flames by deploying tent-like shelters when they were overcome, authorities said.
The firefighters were part of a specialized crew that goes into remote areas by helicopter to quickly put out new and rapidly escalating wildfires, federal officials said Monday.
Their deaths Saturday came almost 13 years to the day since an elite crew of 19 wildland firefighters died when they were trapped in a steep canyon in Yarnell, Arizona.
Like this weekend's victims, the men in Arizona tried to deploy emergency shelters that are a "last resort" for firefighters when there's no other way out. Investigators didn't blame anyone for the deaths in 2013, but cited radio communication problems that contributed to the Granite Mountain Hotshots becoming trapped. Arizona's workplace safety commission also fined the state's forestry division for not pulling them out.
Wildfires have erupted over the past week all across the West, fueled by months of dry weather and a record lack of snow in some places this past winter. Wildfire experts have warned for months that extreme fire dangers are likely this summer.
U.S. Wildland Fire Service Chief Brian Fennessy said he would not speculate about whether the crew overrun by the weekend fire in Colorado should have been where they were.
"I will say the fact that they were there was, I'm 100% sure, based on good decision-making," Fennessy said during a news conference Monday. "The fires in this region over the decades, you know, killed many firefighters. They weren't being foolish. They weren't being careless. They were there because they thought they could do what needed to be done to suppress that fire. And many times the weather changes."
With more than two dozen large fires burning, almost 8,000 wildland firefighters and dozens of firefighting helicopters have been deployed. About half the largest blazes are in Alaska while the rest are mostly in Western states.
Even as firefighting resources were increasingly strained, evacuations were ordered near seven fires, including in Arizona, Washington state, New Mexico and Utah. About 800 people living in and around the small town of Beulah in eastern Colorado were told to evacuate as a wildfire threatened the area on Monday afternoon, Gov. Jared Polis said.
"We're really at the mercy of the winds," Polis said.
Firefighters were part of a specialized crew
The U.S. Forest Service and Interior Department identified the firefighters killed as Emily Barker, 38, of Clinton Township, Michigan; Nick Hutcherson, 27, of Glendale, Arizona; and Sydney Watson, 26, of Warrior, Alabama.
Two others who were with them sustained burn injuries. They were in stable condition but remained hospitalized in the Denver area, officials said at Monday's news conference.
"The loss we experience here is not felt by just one agency. It is felt by an entire wildland fire community," Fennessy said. "We grieve together, we support one another and we continue the mission together."
A long line of fire trucks and vehicles from a wide array of emergency response agencies made their way slowly through Grand Junction, Colorado, Monday with their lights flashing. A scattering of people, some with their hands on their hearts, watched silently from the sidewalk as they passed.
The procession ended at a cemetery, and the bodies of two of the firefighters draped in American flags were taken into a funeral home as officials from fire agencies saluted.
The three killed were assigned to a Helitack crew that can be dropped into remote areas by helicopters and whose mission is to prevent new fires from growing into out-of-control blazes. But it can be extremely dangerous, often taking place in areas where fires are rapidly expanding.
Watson worked for the Wildland Fire Service and the other two firefighters who died were assigned to the Forest Service. All were part of an interagency response to fires just west of Grand Junction.
The Snyder Fire in the area has burned about 44 square miles (114 square kilometers), authorities said.
Watson's death was the first within the the new Wildland Fire Service, which was created within the Department of Interior earlier this year to coordinate firefighting on public lands.
The deaths are being investigated by the Forest and Wildland Fire services, a process that typically results in recommendations for how to prevent or reduce the risk of a similar accident. Agencies can also convene an accident review board to suggest any further actions.
High wildfire threat for much of this week
More hot, dry and windy weather across the Southwest will elevate the fire threat at least until the weekend, according to the national Storm Prediction Center.
Among the concerns were high winds in the mountains of Colorado and Wyoming, in the Black Hills of South Dakota and across portions of the High Plains.
Utah already has restricted firework usage going into the July Fourth holiday.
The national "preparedness level" for wildfires was increased to a 4, on a scale of 1 to 5, the National Interagency Fire Center said Monday. That's a sign resources are beginning to be strained, and officials warned of a high potential for new, large fires in multiple parts of the country in coming days.
There are enough firefighting resources for now across the Rocky Mountains to deal with the blazes, said Mike Morgan, director of Colorado's Division of Fire Prevention and Control. But that could change quickly if conditions worsen in other parts of the country, Morgan said, adding that crews that battle fires on the ground already are in short supply.
"We know hand crews are always a hot commodity. We're getting a little short on those, so that would be one I would say we're a little concerned with," Morgan said. "At the moment, I would say I feel pretty good about where we're at, but I'm very concerned about where we go."
So far this year, wildfires have burned more than 4,800 square miles (12,400 square kilometers) — the most by this point in the year since 2022 and significantly above the 10-year average.
___
Brown reported from Billings, Montana, and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio.
NM U.S. Rep. Vasquez, a Democrat, urges state Health Care Authority to bring down SNAP error rate - Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) sent a letter Friday chiding state leaders for errors administering a federal food assistance program and urging them to implement fixes to avoid a federal penalty of at least $149 million.
The letter to Health Care Authority Secretary Kari Armijo and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham reminded state leaders that the budget bill President Donald Trump signed last year imposes stiff penalties for states that have a high rate of over- or underpayments to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients.
Vasquez said he disagrees with many provisions of the Republican spending bill also known as H.R. 1, including provisions that impose “drastic cuts to programs such as Medicaid and SNAP to fund tax cuts for American billionaires.” But he also stressed that the state needs to work swiftly to ensure it is not misappropriating taxpayer funds when it sends food payments to the roughly one-in-five New Mexico residents who participate in SNAP.
“When New Mexicans pay their taxes, they deserve to know that their hard-earned dollars are being spent responsibly, lawfully, and for the good of the public. We must do better to maintain the public’s trust in government,” wrote Vasquez, who is running for re-election for New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District against Republican Greg Cunningham.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, which oversees SNAP, New Mexico’s error rate was 16.8% in the federal fiscal year that ended Sept. 30 of last year. The vast majority of those errors came from overpayments to SNAP recipients, according to data the USDA released last week.
New Mexico’s rate ranks far above the national average of about 10.6% and is the third highest in the country, according to the new USDA data, behind only Alaska (23.2%) and the District of Columbia (18.7%).
The federal budget bill requires states with high error rates to use state funds to pay for a percentage of SNAP payments to recipients in a program that is otherwise 100% federally funded. Under the bill, states like New Mexico with error rates higher than 13.3% have additional time to bring down their rates, but they must reduce their rates to below 6% to avoid any penalties.
A recent Legislative Finance Committee evaluation focused on the Health Care Authority’s efforts to reduce its error rate and combat SNAP fraud found that the state could be penalized as much as $173 million if it fails to drastically reduce its error rate over the next two years.
Armijo told lawmakers during a hearing June 16 that she is implementing a plan to reduce the error rate, including targeting specific field offices that have a particularly high rate of errors; improving data sharing to ensure benefits are paid correctly based on household size and income; and boosting the use of artificial intelligence to ensure accuracy overall.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, in a statement Sunday to Source NM, said she spoke with Vasquez on Friday regarding the state’s error rate and said while she shares “his commitment to protecting SNAP for New Mexicans,” it was clear to her “that he didn’t have all the facts before he wrote the letter, which she said cited “inaccurate data” and based its findings on LFC recommendations “that were already completed or are well underway at the Health Care Authority.”
In her statement, she said the LFC provided “ inaccurate data about what New Mexico owes the federal government”— namely that the maximum penalty is roughly $150 million, not $173 million — and said at present the state doesn’t owe “anything related to the new federal SNAP provisions at this time, and as we reduce our error rate, the penalty will diminish.”
But she said the state is doing its best to avoid any federal penalties, despite a new federal law that makes doing so “nearly impossible, particularly when the same law is cutting the federal support states need to do that work.”
She urged Congress to help the state reduce its staffing shortage, which she said is making addressing the error rate even more difficult.
“We are committed to reducing the error rate, but New Mexicans deserve to know that the biggest threat to their food assistance isn’t an error rate — it’s a federal law written to make these programs harder to administer and easier to cut,” she said.
State orders Doña Ana County to appoint fiscal agent - Algernon D’Ammassa, Albuquerque Journal
In the wake of a recent special audit of Doña Ana County government operations, the state has ordered the county to appoint an outside fiscal agent to oversee the handling of state appropriations and grants.
In a letter sent Friday to the Board of County Commissioners and obtained by the Journal, the state Department of Finance and Administration informed the county it would impose special conditions on state grant funds and require a fiscal agent before the county may request capital outlay or special appropriation funds.
The letter cited “systemic, pervasive, and long-standing failures in Doña Ana County’s management of public funds” from 2020 to 2025, as identified in the April special audit report. The report was presented in a public session before the commissioners in May.
The audit identified 42 findings across multiple departments. The DFA letter highlighted 19 findings, including deficiencies in procurement, grants management, internal controls over public funds and conflicts of interest.
The DFA said those 19 findings were classified as material weaknesses, a category of serious deficiency contributing to what the Office of the State Auditor described as "a high-risk environment in which fraud, waste, abuse and misuse of public funds could occur and remain undetected."
The DFA confirmed the letter but declined further comment.
The agency ordered the county to designate a fiscal agent acceptable to the DFA who would be responsible for "reviewing compliance, submitting notices of obligation, processing and submitting payment and reimbursement requests, and preparing all necessary reports for current and future grants related to capital outlay or special appropriations awarded to the County."
In addition to overseeing those transactions, the fiscal agent would be tasked with overhauling the county's internal controls and business procedures and training staff on the new processes.
The county was also directed to submit a corrective action plan addressing the audit findings with specific changes to procedures, documentation and processes. Approval of transactions — including those for county projects receiving state funds — will be contingent on compliance with that plan.
The county also must implement procurement checklists, provide additional documentation required under New Mexico's Procurement Code, enforce conflict-of-interest reporting and separate duties among employees involved in procurement and contract approvals.
The DFA ordered the county to document its plan to appoint a fiscal agent within 10 business days, with the contract executed and the fiscal agent in place within 30 calendar days.
By that deadline, the county also must submit its corrective action plan and amend existing capital outlay and special appropriation agreements to incorporate the new conditions.
The conditions will remain in effect until State Auditor Joseph Maestas determines all 42 audit findings have been remediated and the county has demonstrated sustained improvement in management and governance.
The letter warned the county could face additional sanctions, including suspension or termination of grants and reimbursements for projects, along with more severe actions available to the state.
County Commission Chairman Manny Sanchez told the Journal the county plans to appeal the DFA's decision but declined further comment.
"When the Office of the State Auditor identifies systemic risk, it triggers real consequences," Maestas said in a statement to the Journal. "This is a clear example of safeguards being put in place to protect the public funds of Doña Ana County residents."
Maestas ordered the special audit last year after the Board of County Commissioners and Sheriff Kim Stewart separately requested one amid ongoing disputes over the sheriff's authority on hiring decisions and the commissioning and decommissioning of deputies.
The resulting 355-page report examined county operations beyond those disputes, including financial management, human resources, legal compliance, the commissioners' governance and compliance with transparency laws.
Among the findings was an apparent misappropriation of money belonging to county jail inmates that surfaced in 2022 but was never reported to the state auditor, as required by law. County officials attributed the lapse to a communication failure and said they would update reporting procedures.
Addressing commissioners in May, Maestas said the county must rebuild its organizational culture as it works to resolve the audit findings.
Special meeting on Estancia water crisis set for Tuesday evening - KOAT-TV
In Torrance County, the Town of Estancia is in a water crisis. A public meeting on the matter is scheduled for Tuesday evening.
Town officials issued an emergency declaration regarding the water situation on June 25.
KOAT-TV reports that the crisis is the result of the wells that typically supply Estancia with water now running very low.
Last week' s emergency declaration did not include water restrictions, but did ask residents to conserve water and be ready for whatever restrictions or other actions the town might adopt.
Mayor Pro Tem Albert Lovato told KOAT that water pressure in Estancia is very low due to the existing wells producing very little water.
Lovato says water shipments are arriving by truck three or four times daily, with anywhere from 1,600 to 6,000 gallons of water.
Lovato says a new well is scheduled to come online by the middle of August.
Estancia, which is the county seat of Torrance County, has a little more than 1,200 residents according to the 2020 census.
KOAT reports the town’s water needs include the needs of the Torrance County Detention Facility, which is operated by the Tennessee-based private prison company CoreCivic.
A public meeting on the water emergency is scheduled for 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, June 30, at the Torrance County Administrative Building, 205 9th Ave., in Estancia.
