New Mexico homeowners facing skyrocketing insurance premiums and policy cancellations could benefit from federal legislation aimed at understanding how wildfires drive the insurance crisis affecting one in eight properties in the state. U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., introduced the Wildfire Insurance Coverage Study Act on July 25, legislation requiring the […]
Category: Housing & Homelessness
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, Local Gov.
Bernalillo County to accept millions in state housing funds at Monday meeting
Bernalillo County commissioners will vote Monday to accept millions in state legislative funding that could help address the county’s need for 28,000 additional housing units by 2035, potentially impacting thousands of residents struggling with housing costs. The Bernalillo County Commission will consider authorizing County Manager Cindy Chavez to accept and budget funding awarded from the […]
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Opinion: New polling shows any candidate could beat Keller for mayor, but take it with a grain of salt
Pat Davis is the founder and publisher of City Desk ABQ and nm.new.s He is a recovering politician having served eight years as an Albuquerque City Councilor and, in another life, he served as a police officer and nonprofit organizer. Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the polling group did […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, Sandoval County
Rep. Vasquez finds overcrowded ICE facility detaining mostly non-criminal immigrants
New Mexico’s largest immigration detention facility is over capacity and holding hundreds of people without criminal records, according to U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez. Vasquez found the Otero County Processing Center “bursting at the seams” with over 1,100 detainees in a facility designed for 1,089 people, with more than 80% having no criminal charges or convictions, […]
Posted inLocal Gov.
Fire chief defends paramedic changes, disputes union claims
Albuquerque Fire Chief Emily Jaramillo is moving forward with her paramedic deployment plan, set to begin Aug. 23, and disputing union claims that firefighters have been shut out of the process. The changes come after a months-long tension between the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 244 and Mayor Tim Keller’s administration over how the […]
Posted inGeneral Interest
ART security calls skyrocket, but actual violence plummets
Less than three weeks after a city bus driver fatally stabbed a passenger near Coors Boulevard, new data shows security calls to Albuquerque’s transit system have jumped 81% over the past year. The July 9 stabbing followed an argument on board that spilled onto the street. Surveillance video shows the 41-year-old driver pursuing the passenger, described as […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, Sandoval County
Sen. Luján leads Democratic push to reverse health care cuts affecting 89,000 New Mexicans
Up to 89,000 New Mexicans could lose their Medicaid coverage and six to eight rural hospitals could close within 18 months under Republican health care cuts that Sen. Ben Ray Luján and Senate Democrats are now trying to reverse through new legislation. Luján led Senate Democratic leadership Wednesday in introducing the “Protecting Health Care And […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, Sandoval County
Trade policy uncertainty stifles New Mexico manufacturing growth
New Mexico manufacturers are sounding the alarm about how federal trade policies and tariffs are damaging their bottom lines and threatening the state’s economic growth, according to discussions held Monday with U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez. During a July 28 roundtable meeting in Sunland Park, plant managers and business leaders from Santa Teresa’s manufacturing sector told […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
Albuquerque mayoral candidates split on Trump homelessness order threatening $167M in federal funding
Albuquerque mayoral candidates are sharply divided over President Trump’s executive order threatening to cut off federal funding to cities that don’t enforce civil commitment laws for homeless individuals. Signed July 24, the order requires cities to prioritize involuntary treatment for people with mental illness or substance use issues and penalizes those that allow urban camping, […]
Posted inEnvironment, Conservation & Climate, Housing & Homelessness
Water district sets public meeting for farmers during centennial year
Bernalillo County farmers and irrigators who help fund most of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District’s operations will have a chance to hear updates on water management during a public meeting on July 31. The meeting, set for 9 a.m. at the South Valley Multipurpose Senior Center, comes as MRGCD celebrates its 100th anniversary while […]