SANTA FE — Outdoor Recreation Director Axie Navas has been elected to chair an organization of 13 states where developing and protecting recreation opportunities are now policy priorities, Economic Development Department Secretary Alicia J. Keyes announced Jan. 19.

The Confluence of States is a bipartisan agreement between states to promote and grow the outdoor economy in the U. S. The Confluence signatories commit to practices that protect and sustain our water, air, land, and wildlife for current and future generations and the betterment of the economy. The agreement is based on four pillars: 1. conservation & stewardship; 2. education & workforce training; 3. economic...

to clean up homeless campsCity Council approves funds

Gallup wants to clean up its transient camps, which will require the city to spend more than it usually would, given that contractors must wear personal protective equipment to shield themselves from coronavirus.

With that in mind, members of the city council unanimously approved $75,000 on Jan. 12 for the planning and development department’s clean and lien program to help it get through the next budget cycle, which ends mid-year.

“It’s very costly, but it is necessary. It is a life, health and safety issue that we need to stay on top of as best we can,” C.B. Strain, planning and development director for the City of...

60-DAY SESSION AIMED AT ROARING BACK TO LIFE

Staff Reports

SANTA FE – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s agenda for the first session of the 55th New Mexico Legislature announced on Jan. 13, includes the Executive Budget Recommendation for Fiscal Year 2022,  and positioning for a swift and robust recovery from the pandemic to provide for sustainable progress and continued forward momentum in public education, economic development and public health and safety beyond the COVID-19 crisis.

“New Mexico will recover from this challenging year,” Lujan Grisham said. “The question is what kind of future we want to make for ourselves after we put these crises behind us. We still have the...

A criminal complaint has been filed against the president of the McKinley County Federation of United School Employees and Lincoln Elementary (451 Boardman Dr.) pre-school teacher Patrice Carpenter, charging her with three petty misdemeanors, also referred to as battery on Dec. 7 in Gallup Magistrate Court.

According to the complaint, a parent named LaNisha Coble heard from her daughter that a juvenile male was being grabbed and dragged by their teacher, Patrice Carpenter. Coble spoke with the boy’s parents, Tamera Madrid and her husband.

Also, according to a police report submitted by Officer Nicole Diswood, the girl who reported this to her mother said the teacher had pinched her...