WASHINGTON - Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-NM, co-founder of the Electrification Caucus and member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, joined U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm, and White House National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy as they formally announce historic levels of funding to establish the new nationwide network of electric vehicle charging stations included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law on Feb. 10.

The event was held on the plaza at the Department of Transportation headquarters.

The program will provide nearly $5 billion over five years to help states create a network of EV charging stations along...

The City of Gallup inspects local hotels and motels annually to ensure they are up to code and suitable for guests. During the Jan. 25 city council meeting, Gallup’s Planning and Development Director Clyde Strain shared the 2021 findings.

He said six motels received red tags and were told they had to close their businesses due to code violations. The six were the Hacienda Motel, Blue Spruce, Arrowhead Lodge, Lariat Lodge, Zia Motel, and Redwood Lodge.

“What I can tell you is I’ve been doing these inspections for 20 years … and progressively these particular motels have just gotten worse and worse and worse,” Strain said. “They haven’t gotten better over the...

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats —those were the subjects the Lodgers’ Tax Committee focused on Jan. 6 as they met with Gallup Tourism and Marketing Manager Jennifer Lazarz to develop ideas to bring tourists to the city.

Committee member Jason Arsenault brought up the city’s location as one of its strong points. He mentioned its proximity to I-40 and its distance from major cities like Albuquerque and Flagstaff, Ariz.

“[When] I’m somewhere and, say ‘I’m from Gallup, N. M.,’ even if they’ve not spent time here, the majority of the people always kind of know where that is,” Arsenault said. “So I think that’s an amazing, amazing positive for our...

Clean energy and how to create it continues to be a topic of discussion among government entities. The state’s representatives began discussing another option during the second session of the 55th New Mexico Legislature.

On Jan. 25, Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham announced the introduction of House Bill 4, the Hydrogen Hub Development Act, which will expand the clean energy economy in New Mexico while lowering greenhouse gas emissions through incentivizing low-carbon hydrogen production and export.

According to a press release from the governor’s office, President Biden’s administration plans to invest $8 billion to encourage the development of four regional hydrogen hubs to...