Legislators in the Yazzie/Martinez case seek answers

As the new school year gets underway in the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, educators are doing everything they can to secure the necessary equipment to ensure their students have the capability and access to remote learning.

While larger school districts in urban areas are likely to be better prepared, districts in rural areas face a number of unique challenges that were highlighted during a Legislative Finance Committee meeting on Aug. 28.

These comments were given by counsel for plaintiffs in Yazzie/Martinez v. the State of New Mexico, who then urged the state to develop and implement a comprehensive plan for overhauling...

Gallup mayor feels disappointed

On the first day of September, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and the Dept. of Finance and Administration announced $150 million in CARES Act grants to local governments across the state to cover the costs brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In applying for CARES Act funds, Gallup Mayor Louis Bonaguidi said he took into account the three city lockdowns, police checkpoints and setting up motel rooms for homeless people being tested for COVID-19.

Bonaguidi told the Gallup Sun Sept. 1 that there was some confusion about how to fill out the request for the grant.

A news release from Gallup City Clerk Alfred Abeita says Gallup requested about $1.7...

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer issued a letter on Sept. 2 to New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Public Education Secretary Ryan Stewart, reaffirming the Navajo Nation’s position that federal Impact Aid dollars should not be used to address the mandates set forth by the 2018 Yazzie/Martinez court decision that found that the state of New Mexico had failed to comply with its constitutional mandate to provide sufficient education for “at risk” students including Navajo students.

In July 2018, Judge Sarah Singleton ruled that all New Mexico students have a right to be college and career-ready and that the state...

As pollution from oil and natural gas aggravate respiratory conditions and worsen symptoms of COVID-19, New Mexico lawmakers are currently in the rulemaking process for methane/ozone regulations.

New Mexico political leaders hosted a webinar on Aug. 26 to discuss climate and public health issues within the state.

Topics addressed by the panel included the effects of global warming and air pollution across the state.

Pollution from oil and natural gas, according to data from the state, can “aggravate respiratory conditions and worsen symptoms of COVID-19.”

“Passage of the Energy Transition Act has put our state on a path to ensure that by 2045, the electricity grid will be 100...