NM health exchange rated as "high risk"

New Mexico was among the states rated as "high risk" after government security experts reviewed the vulnerability of computer systems being used to roll out President Barack Obama's health care law.  

Documents show more than two-thirds of states had potential security problems with systems designed to tap into federal computers to verify sensitive personal information. But officials in charge of implementing New Mexico's insurance marketplace questioned those findings Tuesday. 

They say New Mexico is still developing a state-run exchange for individuals, and the marketplace created for small businesses, employees and insurance providers isn't linked to the federal data system. New Mexico exchange spokeswoman Debra Hammer says there's still an opportunity to learn from the experience of other states as New Mexico prepares to bring its individual exchange online in October.

Information from The AP.

NM health exchange rated as "high risk"

Should abuse victims carry guns in gun-free zones?

From MiNBCNews.com - by Walter Smith-Randolph - SAGINAW TOWNSHIP -- A Saginaw County lawmaker wants abuse victims to carry guns in gun free-zones but domestic violence workers say there may be other options. Schools, churches and malls--they're called 'gun-free zones' but state representative Tim Kelly wants to change that for abuse victims.
     “Over 85-percent of women are victims of domestic violence,” says Rep. Tim Kelly (R-Saginaw) “Over 75-percent of women are stalking victims,” he adds. Saginaw was named “The Most Dangerous City for Women” by Forbes Magazine.
     “(I) felt like this would be a good piece of legislation to take care of a vulnerable population,” says Kelly. The victims would be trained and licensed to carry the firearm. Not so fast says Valerie Hoffman of Saginaw's Underground Railroad.
     “It appears to me that we're just giving up that protection---that responsibility for protection and just putting it on the victims to protect themselves,” says Hoffman. She’s been counseling victims for 20 years. Hoffman says lawmakers should focus on protecting victims and cracking down on abusers.
     “Why does she need to carry gun?” questions Hoffman. “Isn't it society's job to protect the victim?” she adds. “I think this is common-sense, bi-partisan legislation that can help protect women,” says Kelly. Currently, the only people who can carry guns in gun-free zones are law enforcement officials. More

Should abuse victims carry guns in gun-free zones?

Tours to start at Old Main prison in Santa Fe

Tickets are now available for upcoming tours of a closed New Mexico prison where one of the nation's deadliest riots took place.

 The New Mexico Department of Corrections said this week the state is selling tickets for "Old Main" prison tours that begin in May. Tours of the prison outside of Santa Fe are scheduled twice a month and will continue through October. Last year, corrections officials opened the historic site for limited public tours. 

In February 1980, inmates at the prison killed 33 fellow prisoners in a violent clash that included beheadings, amputations and burned bodies. More than 100 other inmates and guards were hurt in the 36-hour riot fueled by overcrowded conditions.

 Officials hope to eventually to turn the site into a museum.

Information from The AP. 

Tours to start at Old Main prison in Santa Fe

More radiation detected in Southeastern NM

More airborne radiation has been detected in southeastern New Mexico from a leak at the nation's first underground nuclear waste dump. 

 The U.S. Department of Energy said Monday the results are from samples collected last week at numerous air monitoring stations at and around the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad. 

Last week, DOE officials confirmed the first-ever leak at the facility. It stores plutonium-contaminated waste from Los Alamos National Laboratory and other government nuclear sites.  The results are consistent with the kinds of waste stored at the plant, but officials say there's no public health threat. 

Carlsbad's mayor scheduled a community meeting Monday evening. 

Waste shipments to the site were halted earlier this month after a truck caught fire underground. Officials say they don't think the incidents are related.

More radiation detected in Southeastern NM

NM Legislature passes more bills this year

The New Mexico Legislature approved more bills this year than it did during the last 30-day session. 

However, nearly all of the legislation was passed late in the session shortly before lawmakers adjourned. Records of the Legislative Council Service show that the House and Senate passed 91 bills - all but two of those during the final three days of the session. Also approved were three resolutions proposing constitutional amendments.

 In the 30-day session in 2012, the Legislature approved 77 bills and four constitutional amendments. This year's proposed constitutional amendments will be placed on the November general election ballot for voters to decide. 

One of the proposals is to give the state more flexibility in making international investments with permanent fund assets. 

The Legislature's 30-day session ended on Thursday.

Information from The AP. 

NM Legislature passes more bills this year

New Noise on Climate Change—a winning issue for Republicans

Commentary by Marita Noon - The Democrats think that climate change is going to be a winning issue for them in 2014—and, if they handle it correctly, this could be a winning issue for the Republicans. You know, nothing comes out of the Obama White House by mistake. Everything is planned, analyzed, and focus group-tested. Last June when President Obama presented his Climate Action Plan at Georgetown University, some environmentalists hailed it. In response, Frances Beinecke, the then-president of the Natural Resources Defense Council, said: “The president nailed it.” The Huffington post reported that some environmental groups were wary that “Obama would follow through on the ambitious goals he laid out. Bill Snape of the Center for Biological Diversity described it as too little, too late.”
     But, environmentalists haven’t been “thrilled with the administration’s record.” In January, 18 groups sent Obama a strongly worded letter telling him that he “needs to address climate change more aggressively.”
     Obviously, Obama heard the complaints—making clear which group of constituents holds sway: billionaire environmentalist donors who believe Democrats have wavered on climate issues rather than the economically hard-hit middle class he claims to champion.
     Earlier this month, the Obama Administration announced the creation of 7 “climate hubs”—which the New York Times called: “a limited step” but said it “is part of a broader campaign by the administration to advance climate policy wherever possible with executive authority.” It is unclear what these “hubs” are or will do, but the stated goal is “to help farmers and rural communities respond to the risks of climate change, including drought, invasive pests, fires and floods.”
W     ashington Examiner columnist Ron Arnold calls the new hubs “propaganda spigots” and cites Steven Wilmeth, a southern New Mexico rancher, who said: “It’s another one of those ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help’ deals. All I can say is, ‘Don’t help me.’ We hear the talk, but they’re not telling us what regulatory burdens these climate hubs will add to the overwhelming load we already carry.”
     Then on February 14, President Obama announced a new $1 billion “climate resilience fund” that “would go to research on the projected impacts of climate change, help communities prepare for climate change’s effects and fund ‘breakthrough technologies and resilient infrastructure.’” read full column

New Noise on Climate Change—a winning issue for Republicans

Gov. survey shows more farms and ranches in NM

A new government survey shows New Mexico has more farms and ranches than it did five years ago. 

The survey also shows the state has seen significant increases in the number of young farmers and minority farmers in recent years. 

State Agriculture Secretary Jeff Witte says he's glad to see a wider diversity of people getting into farming and ranching across the state. He says that diversity will help create more opportunity. Witte also says the younger farmers will help ensure agriculture remains a viable part of the economy for years to come. 

The 2012 agriculture census shows there are more than 24,700 farms and ranches in New Mexico, an 18 percent increase since 2007. That bucks a long-term national trend that has seen the number of U.S. farms drop.

Gov. survey shows more farms and ranches in NM

Boy shot in Roswell school shooting returns home

Nathaniel Tavarez

A 12-year-old boy who was seriously injured in a shooting at a Roswell school last month has returned home. 

The Roswell Daily Record reports that hundreds of people lined the city's streets, cheered and held up signs Friday in support of Nathaniel Tavarez. The boy suffered wounds to his head and stomach in the Jan. 14 shooting at Berrendo Middle School. 

A seventh-grader is accused of taking a shotgun to school and opening fire on Tavarez and a 13-year-old girl. 

Tavarez's mother says doctors were unable to remove the shots in his brain and he still cannot see, but may regain some sight in his right eye. She says her son holds no grudges and just wants to go back to school because he loves his teachers and friends.

Boy shot in Roswell school shooting returns home

Amtrak still in question after legislative session

The New Mexico legislative session has failed to make any commitment to fund the state's share of costs to keep Amtrak's Southwest Chief on its current route.

 The session ended Thursday with none of the five bills seeking ways to maintain the passenger train line passing. 

Amtrak has proposed that New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas all chip in to improve and maintain more than 600 miles of track through their states. The company says the Southwest Chief's route might change otherwise, causing some communities to lose passenger service. The rail operator would need to reach a deal with Burlington Northern Santa Fe, which owns the track Amtrak uses. 

A legislative panel earlier this month agreed to commission a study on whether the state should pay.

Amtrak still in question after legislative session

Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman arrested in Mexico

From The El Paso Times - By Diana Washington Valdez - The world's most wanted reputed drug kingpin, Joaquin "Chapo" Guzman — who was indicted in El Paso was arrested Saturday morning in a hotel in Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexican and U.S. officials said.
     Guzman is the reputed chief of the Sinaloa drug cartel, which is considered among the most aggressive of the cartels in Mexico. The Sinaloa drug cartel battled violently with the Juárez drug cartel for control the lucrative Juárez-El Paso corridor. That battle was one of the bloodiest in Mexico and made Juárez one of the most dangerous cities in the world.
     The war claimed more than 10,000 people since 2008. As a result of the violence, many Juárez residents chose to flee the city and a significant number moved to El Paso.
     When former Mexican President Felipe Calderón took office in 2006, he deployed thousands of soldiers to drug hot spots, including Juárez. Since then, more than 70,000 people in Mexico have been killed in drug violence, the Associated Press reports.
     Violence in Juárez has declined because several key figures in the drug underworld were arrested — some of whom have been convicted in El Paso. The Sinaloa drug cartel has members working in the El Paso area.
     Guzman was arrested without incident just before 7 a.m. at a hotel in Mazatlán, a popular tourist area in northwest Mexico. Read more

Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman arrested in Mexico