Representatives of a broad coalition of New Mexico organizations released the following statement March 9 after the House Appropriations & Finance Committee’s strong bipartisan vote of 17-1 with a “do-pass” recommendation on Senate Bill 9: The Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund, that would create the state’s first dedicated and long-term funding stream for land and water conservation. SB9 passed the full Senate Feb. 14 with a 33-7 vote. It now heads to the full House of Representatives for consideration, with a final appropriation amount to be determined as part of the larger budget bill known as House Bill 2.

“We’re grateful that bipartisan members of this committee and House...

Food assistance recipients lose a COVID bump this month

Low-income breadwinners are bracing for a shock this month, as one of the last remaining COVID benefits comes to an end.

Recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – commonly referred to as food stamps – will see their benefits shrink with the expiration of the COVID-related federal emergency allotment.

According to the state Human Services Department, 39.6% of McKinley County’s population receive SNAP benefits. How much of a reduction each household will see depends on how many people are in it and income level.

While the extra allotment was in place, a family of three received a maximum benefit of $740...

Crownfunding campaign online now

In a medical emergency, even seconds may count. Peter Hunt-Rosado thinks about that a lot because he works as an emergency nurse at Gallup Indian Medical Center, where patients may have to travel long distances for care. He worries that it’s unnecessarily costing lives.

“You hear the stories or get a report from EMS that [a patient] has been down for an unknown amount of time since the first call was received, two hours prior to the arrival in the ER, or even six hours,” he said. “We’ve had patients that have been having heart attacks that have gotten into a car and driven themselves an hour just to get to us for emergency treatment. In...

A man who is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation is facing a charge of aggravated sexual abuse after he allegedly sexually assaulted a child.

According to the indictment and other court records, Pedro Lee Benally, 29, of Montezuma Creek, Utah, allegedly engaged in a sexual act with a child. The alleged assault occurred in San Juan County on the Navajo Nation.

Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced March 1 that Benally made an initial appearance in federal court facing two charges of aggravated sexual abuse in Indian Country. A federal grand jury indicted...