- LEGISLATURE-NEW MEXICO-THE LATEST
The Latest: New Mexico House OKs ethics commission billSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico House of Representatives has approved a revamped proposal that would create a new ethics commission after intense negotiations with the Senate.
House lawmakers voted 66-0 late Friday to move a compromise bill that gives a judge subpoena powers and allows claims to be public after 30 days if probable cause is determined.
In November 2018 elections, voters across the state approved a constitutional amendment to create the seven-member commission in the wake of a series of high-profile corruption scandals.
House lawmakers approved a bill earlier this session but it faced fierce opposition in the Senate. Sen. Linda Lopez, an Albuquerque Democrat, particularly drew strong criticism from advocates for wanting the ethics commission to operate in secret.
The proposal now goes back to the Senate.
- INDIGENOUS PEOPLE'S DAY-NEW MEXICO
New Mexico Legislature approves Indigenous People's Day billSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A proposal to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous People's Day has won final approval in the New Mexico Legislature.
The Senate voted on the bill after a lengthy floor debate Friday, sending it to the governor.
Numerous cities nationwide, including Albuquerque, have moved to shift the October holiday's focus away from honoring Christopher Columbus by passing resolutions and measures that instead call for celebrating indigenous cultures.
But only a small handful of states so far have removed Columbus Day from their calendars and replaced it with Indigenous People's Day.
Sponsors of the bill include Rep. Derrick Lente, of Sandia Pueblo, who said during this year's legislative session that Columbus' expeditions of the Americas five centuries ago had resulted in a violent legacy.
New Mexico is home to 23 tribes.
- SANTA FE SCHOOLS-SNOW DAYS
Santa Fe schools use up all allotted snow days(Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, http://www.santafenewmexican.com)
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Santa Fe's public schools have used up the current school year's allotted four snow days, and officials say that creates the possibility that another weather-related closure could force the erasure of a holiday in April or the addition of a school day.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that weather-related issues resulted in classes being canceled on Nov. 12, Jan. 18, Wednesday and Thursday.
Officials say an analysis will determine how much breathing room remains.
New Mexico requires students in first through sixth grades to have 5½ hours a day, or 990 hours a year, of school-directed programs, not including lunch. For students in grades seven through 12, the law requires six hours per day, or 1,080 hours per year.
Each total adds up to 180 full school days.
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- NAVAJO NATION-MISSING GIRL-THE LATEST
The Latest: Navajo authorities have yet to find 3-year-oldANETH, Utah (AP) — Navajo Nation authorities say they have yet to find a missing 3-year-old girl who reportedly wandered away from her home in southeastern Utah.
Navajo police say officers searched for Andanndine Jones until nightfall Friday without locating her. The San Juan County Sheriff's Office, Montezuma Creek Fire and Rescue and volunteers have helped in the search effort that began Thursday afternoon following the girl's disappearance.
The search for her is expected to resume Saturday morning.
In a statement Friday evening, a police spokeswoman said the search has been focused on an area along the bank of a creek.
A Navajo Nation Council spokesman says dogs had been observed barking there.
He says the location is several miles from where the creek feeds into the San Juan River.
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- IMMIGRATION-NEW MEXICO-THE LATEST
The Latest: Officials: More migrants expected in Albuquerque(Information from: Albuquerque Journal, http://www.abqjournal.com)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Between 200 and 300 migrants are expected to be bused to New Mexico's largest city over the weekend as shelters closer to the U.S.-Mexico border fill up.
Officials with the city of Albuquerque provided the latest estimate Friday.
Shelters in El Paso, Texas, are running out of room as more people cross the border. That has resulted in asylum-seeking migrants being housed at faith-based shelters in the Las Cruces area and now at hotels in Albuquerque moving on to stay with family or sponsors as they await formal hearings.
Officials with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection El Paso sector, which includes New Mexico, has been processing an average of 500 people a day.
Numbers released by the agency last week show the apprehensions of family groups in the sector have increased exponentially compared to the same period last year.
- ENDANGERED WOLVES-REMOVALS
Cattle kills prompt removal of Mexican gray wolvesALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Wildlife managers have removed two Mexican gray wolves from the wild and are looking for a third as they try to address conflicts with ranchers in southwestern New Mexico.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the two wolves were recently captured in an area of the Gila National Forest where ranchers reported a dozen instances of livestock deaths in four months.
Agency spokesman Mark Davis says wildlife managers caught two young females suspected of being the culprits. Tests are being done to determine if they have the right animals.
Environmentalists have asked that the animals be released and that the removal order for the third wolf be cancelled. They contend more should be done to mitigate the conflicts, saying the carcasses of cows that have died from other causes need to be removed to discourage scavenging.
- IMMIGRATION-BUS DROPOFFS
APNewsBreak: Migrant families must wait outside bus stationsPHOENIX (AP) — Greyhound Lines Inc. is no longer allowing U.S. authorities to drop off immigrant families inside bus stations, forcing those who have been released from custody to wait outside until they have a ticket.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed Friday that it had been asked to leave migrants outside the facility.
Greyhound spokeswoman Crystal Booker said the company is experiencing an "unprecedented increase of individuals" at certain bus terminals and that travelers need tickets to get in.
For years, ICE has dropped off migrants at Greyhound stations after releasing them pending court hearings, often for asylum. They often wait long hours until someone can buy them a ticket.
Outside the Phoenix station Thursday, about 15 adults and five children were waiting in a shaded area near a parking lot. Some said they had been there for about seven hours.
- STOLEN PAINTING-UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
Recovered de Kooning painting back in the spotlightPHOENIX (AP) — More than 30 years after it was stolen from an Arizona museum, a Willem de Kooning painting worth millions of dollars is going on display where it all began.
The University of Arizona Museum of Art is giving a glimpse of "Woman-Ochre" Sunday as part of a fundraiser before the piece undergoes restoration work.
A New Mexico antiques dealer bought the oil painting in 2017 and realized it was the same piece taken in the heist.
Curator Olivia Miller says the FBI, which still has the case open, officially released the painting back to the museum in November.
Police say a couple swiped the painting the day after Thanksgiving in 1985.
It is one in an iconic series by the Dutch-American abstract expressionist that explores the female figure.