New Mexico Pension Program Hires New Administrator

Wayne Propst

Albuquerque Journal - The Public Employees Retirement Association has selected Wayne Propst as its top administrator for the pension system serving New Mexico government employees. The pension board announced Friday that Propst will become executive director of the $12 billion retirement fund effective May 14. Propst has been executive director of the New Mexico Retiree Health Care Authority since August 2008. He succeeds Terry Slattery, who left last year for a job with a retirement program in Iowa. Kurt Weber has been serving as PERA’s interim executive director. Propst takes over as the board and the Legislature consider possible changes in benefits and retirement eligibility to shore up the fund’s long-term finances. The pension system covers about 64,000 active public employees, including state and municipal workers, judges and legislators, and about 31,000 retirees. Read More News New Mexico 

New Mexico Pension Program Hires New Administrator

PBS NewHour host to host NM town hall

Ray Suarez

KRQE -  A teacher town hall in Albuquerque that focuses on New Mexico's high dropout rates, especially among Latino students, is drawing PBS NewsHour senior correspondent Ray Suarez as part of a campaign to bring national attention to the increasing number of students who don't graduate. Suarez is scheduled to moderate next week's town hall, which is expected to draw close to 200 teachers from around the state. The forum at the University of New Mexico will give teachers a chance to offer solutions amid planned reforms in the state, he said. "There are interesting things happening in New Mexico," Suarez told The Associated Press in a phone interview. "So, it'll be great to talk to teachers there ... and also some schools that are representative of the problem." The Albuquerque event comes after Gov. Susana Martinez announced her administration is developing a new teacher evaluation system this summer. A teacher evaluation proposal passed the House earlier this year but died in the Senate. Martinez said this week she will use administrative rules to make the changes the Legislature did not. Read More News New Mexico

PBS NewHour host to host NM town hall

NM governor asks feds to stop horse slaughterhouse

Susana Martinez

Businessweek - New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez said Friday she is asking federal officials not to allow a southeastern New Mexico company to open the nation's first slaughterhouse for horses since 2007. Martinez plans to send a letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture asking it deny a Roswell meat company's request for inspections that would allow it to operate. "Despite the federal government's decision to legalize horse slaughter for human consumption, I believe creating a horse slaughtering industry in New Mexico is wrong and I am strongly opposed," Martinez said in a statement. Valley Meat Co. has filed an application with the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its 7,300-square-foot plant outside of town. Documents obtained by the Humane Society of the United States and Front Range Equine Rescue show that horses would be "custom slaughtered" and processed for human consumption at the plant, the Albuquerque Journal reported ( http://bit.ly/IlnrcB). Valley Meat didn't immediately returns calls from the Associated Press on Friday. USDA officials said they were preparing a statement. Horse slaughter has effectively been blocked since Congress withheld funds for USDA inspections of horse meat plants in 2006. But a recently passed agriculture bill provides the money. The last horse slaughterhouse closed in Illinois in 2007. Since Congress renewed inspection funding, several plants are under consideration, including one in Missouri that would process up to 200 animals a day. More than 100,000 American horses are shipped out of the country to plants in Canada and Mexico for slaughter each year, and their meat is bound for markets in Europe and Asia, according to the Humane Society. Although there are reports of Americans dining on horse meat a recently as the 1940s, the practice is virtually non-existent in this country. Read More News New Mexico 

NM governor asks feds to stop horse slaughterhouse

A New Williams Stapleton Controversy

Sheryl Williams Stapleton

Capitol Report New Mexico - Rep. Sheryl Williams Stapleton (D-Albuquerque) is in the middle of another controversy — actually two new controversies. Last night on KRQE-TV, reporter Tim Maestas disclosed that Rep. Stapleton allegedly tried to back-date some Albuquerque Public School documents — possibly in reaction to the station’s story last fall about Stapleton taking paid leave of absences — and also may have sent a letter to the station’s general manager complaining about KRQE story puporting to be APS Superindendent Winston Brooks. Read full story here: News New Mexico

A New Williams Stapleton Controversy

Las Cruces Firm Nationally Recognized

LAS CRUCES, NM — Spence Asset Management of Las Cruces has been nationally recognized as the nation's "Mid-Cap Manager of the Year" by Emerging Manager Monthly, a publication of Financial Investment News, in their April 2012 issue. Spence Asset Management was critically evaluated among other firms nationwide based on the review of a committee made up of financial industry experts.

"While most investment firms are located in and around major cities, Spence Asset Management shows there is something to be said for escaping the noise of the big cities," said the editors of Emerging Management Monthly. "The Las Cruces, NM-based firm enjoyed a successful 2011 that saw its mid-cap growth equity returns rank in the top five percent of its peers." Spence Asset Management's strategy returned 5.77% last year, compared to -1.55% by the Russell MidCap Index.

Portfolio Manager James Spence welcomed the national recognition. "Our firm strives to exceed our clients' expectations in an ever-changing market. We are dedicated to independently researching and evaluating investments while maintaining the strictest discipline and financial strategy. We believe this independence and steadfast approach have allowed us to deliver strong absolute and risk-adjusted returns," Spence said.

“Being named the top Midcap manager in 2011 is especially meaningful. For the last ten years we have beat our comparison benchmark, the Russell Midcap Index, which has nearly doubled the rate of return of the more widely followed S & P 500 Index,” Spence continued.

Las Cruces Firm Nationally Recognized

National union gives $190,000 to Independent Source PAC

CWA Triangle 

ALBUQUERQUE - Independent Source PAC, a liberal Super-PAC run by Bill Richardson's former private investigator, today filed their quarterly report with the Federal Elections Commission showing that they received another $90,000 from the Communication Workers of America, a national labor union. The PAC has now received a whopping $190,000 from the national union to fund their smear efforts against Governor Martinez. While ISPAC claims to be a watchdog group, we now learn ISPAC itself is under federal investigation by the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) and their latest report raises serious questions about potential fraud. In March, the FEC notified ISPAC that they were in violation of federal law. Among other issues, the FEC alleged that the PAC illegally failed to report campaign expenditures and their balances didn't add up. Read the letter:  http://query.nictusa.com/pdf/914/12330003914/12330003914.pdf#navpanes=0 In the finance report released today, ISPAC states that expenditures for television ads were to support the Presidential campaign of Barack Obama. But the only ads that have been produced by the PAC and placed on TV are about state issues — attacking Governor Martinez on education and the state fair. See video here. "Bill Richardson's former private investigator appears to be picking up where his former client left off — skirting the law. Independent Source PAC is providing fraudulent information to the federal government about their activities and the Republican Party of New Mexico will be notifying the Federal Election Commission of the new violations disclosed in today's report," said Republican Party of New Mexico spokesman Annaliese Wiederspahn. 

National union gives $190,000 to Independent Source PAC

Amtrak Service in Northern NM at Risk

From krqe.com - While the railroad has been a significant part of Albuquerque’s history for decades, it may not be around for much longer. Representatives of Amtrak and the BNSF Railway Co. met with leaders from New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas on Tuesday to try and figure out how to keep the daily Southwest Chief train between Chicago and Los Angeles on its current, longtime route.  That train stops in Raton, Las Vegas, Lamy and Albuquerque on its way west and return to Chicago. Amtrak officials, however, estimate it will cost $100 million to fix or replace the tracks along the route, while another $10 million a year is necessary to maintain the tracks. "We need to have a good idea that this is all going to come together by 2014,” said Amtrak spokesperson Marc Magliari. “Because by 2016 the current agreement we have where BNSF Railway maintains this goes away and the entire cost of this falls on Amtrak."  More here

Amtrak Service in Northern NM at Risk

ACLU Sues City of Roswell and Police Dept.

From therepublic.com -The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico is suing the city of Roswell and its police department for repeatedly arresting two local street preachers. The ACLU's suit says the arrests violate the free speech rights of Joshua and Jeremy De Los Santos. The brothers are members of Roswell's Old Paths Baptist Church and believe they have a duty to preach in public. ACLU-NM Executive Director Peter Simonson said Thursday that the First Amendment gives all a right to express their religious beliefs in public. The ACLU says charges were dismissed after every arrest. ACLU-NM Executive Director Peter Simonson said Thursday that the First Amendment gives all a right to express their religious beliefs in public. Roswell police referred questions to the city attorney's office, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Joshua De Los Santos was arrested twice and Jeremy De Los Santos five times in two years.  More here

ACLU Sues City of Roswell and Police Dept.

Roswell Police Still Suffering From Officer Shortage

From therepublic.com -The city's police department is still short more than a dozen officers as the city faces high rates of gang violence, officials said. In January, Roswell police announced it was 25 officers down, and Police Chief Alfonso Solis notified the Roswell Independent School District that he was pulling the resource officer from the schools to work patrol. The department is down 17 officers from the normal complement of 96, The Roswell Daily Record reported. Since January, eight entry-level officer positions have been filled, and Solis said 11 officers are undergoing the hiring process. "We're hoping by October we'll be, hopefully, if not fully staffed, very close to being fully staffed," Solis said. From the time a person is offered a job with Roswell police, it takes around a year before they are fully certified to work as an officer. Of the eight new officers, those who are already certified will have to undergo training and others will have to attend the state's six month police academy, in addition to the training.
More here

Roswell Police Still Suffering From Officer Shortage

Obama Campaign Opening 3 New Offices in NM

From krqe.com -The Obama campaign is ramping up its New Mexico outreach this month with the opening of three new campaign offices.  The campaign, which currently has offices in Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Las Cruces, is opening a grassroots volunteer office in Rio Rancho on Friday and another on Albuquerque's West Side on Saturday. Later this month, the campaign will also open an office in Las Vegas. Campaign officials say the openings demonstrate the campaign's commitment to Hispanics, the middle class and New Mexico. New Mexico is one of several Western states that both Republicans and Democrats are focused on winning in November.

Obama Campaign Opening 3 New Offices in NM