SANTA FE — The Smokey Bear Fire Prevention license plate is now available for New Mexico vehicles.

The plate has been made available after the passage of House Bill 251 in the Legislature earlier this year, which was signed into law by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

The Smokey Bear Fire Prevention plate is a special vehicle registration plate that raises money for fire prevention efforts. It is not available for motorcycles or other vehicle types that have designated plates, such as recreational vehicles.

The plate will cost $50 on the initial purchase and $40 each year for registration renewals.

Revenue from initial purchases is distributed as follows: $12 to the Motor Vehicle...

The FBI and Rio Rancho Police Department are seeking the public’s assistance to identify the Bandit in Black, who robbed New Mexico Bank & Trust located at 4001 Southern Blvd. in Rio Rancho around 4:30 pm on July 5.

The Bandit in Black is reportedly a man who is about six feet tall. He has a medium build, and was last seen wearing an entirely black outfit, including shoes, pants, a hoodie, gloves, and a mask that covered his entire face.

The suspect entered the bank waving a black handgun and demanded money from the teller. The teller handed over an undisclosed amount of money to the suspect. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $2,000 for information leading to the arrest and...

New Mexico’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.8% in May, unchanged from the rate in April and up from 3.6 percent in the previous year. The national unemployment rate in May was 4%, up from 3.9% in April and up from 3.7% in May 2023.

Total nonagricultural payroll employment grew by 15,700 jobs, or 1.8%, between May 2023 and May 2024. The majority of gains came from the private sector. The private sector was up 9,000 jobs, or 1.3%, while the public sector was up 6,700 jobs, or 3.6%. Within the private sector, the private service-providing industries were up 8,600 jobs, or 1.5%, while employment in the goods-producing industries was up 400 jobs, or 0.4%, from the level in May...

The City of Gallup will be closing some streets around the city starting July 8.

The project is expected to go on until July 26.

Princeton Avenue from McKinley Drive to the end of the curb and Wilson Avenue from McKinley Drive to a dead end will be milled during that time. The mining is in advance of paving that will happen at a later date.

The crew will work from 7 am to 7 pm on weekdays.

"Road closed" and "Detour" signs will be posted.I

For questions or concerns, contact John Lastyona at 505-863-1237.