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Latest New Mexico news, sports, business and entertainment at 1:20 a.m. MDT

  • MARIJUANA-NEW MEXICO

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A proposal to legalize recreational marijuana in New Mexico appeared to falter in the final hours of a 60-day legislative session as the Senate postponed a floor debate and turned to other bills. Legislators had until noon Saturday to send the legalization initiative to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. Advocates for marijuana reforms have clashed amid divergent approaches to complex issues of taxation, public safety, regulatory oversight and licensing rules. Lujan Grisham spokeswoman Nora Meyers Sackett said Friday evening that the governor would call a special session of the legislature later if the legalization effort does not come to fruition on Saturday.

  • LEGISLATURE-NEW MEXICO

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico legislators raced against the clock Friday to provide final approval to major initiatives, from increased tax breaks for working families to the final touches on a $7.45 billion budget. The state House of Representative on Friday signed off on Senate amendments to a spending plan for the coming fiscal year that starts July 1. The bill increases general fund spending by nearly 5% to bolster public school education, environmental oversight and public salaries at state agencies and schools. The state Senate endorsed up to $73 million in annual tax breaks through an expansion of the state's working families tax credit and earned income tax credit.

  • PASS THE TRASH

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico state Senate has unanimously passed a bill to expand background checks on school employees. It also directs state agencies to more closely track teachers who abuse children and mandated school staff and volunteers to take training on how to recognize and report abuse. The Public Schools Insurance Authority says the number of abuse cases stemming from public schools has decreased in recent years. But the severity of the cases has increased, and so have the court settlements for victims. Settlements don't affect individual school budgets but have driven up liability insurance costs for schools by 9% since 2018.

  • LEGISLATURE EDUCATION ROUNDUP

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico lawmakers have advanced sweeping educational funding reforms during the legislative session. Some measures could change schools and early childhood education for decades to come, including a constitutional amendment that calls for increasing withdrawals from the $20 billion Land Grand Permanent fund. Others are short-term fixes aimed remote learning and the coronavirus, like pegging school bus budgets to pre-pandemic mileage. Some legislation does not have "education" in the title, but will affect how students learn in the future, including a law against hair discrimination and an overhaul of New Mexico's broadband expansion efforts.

  • VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Department of Health is launching an app that will enable your phone to tell you in some instances if you have been exposed to COVID-19. KRQE-TV reports that the app called NM Notify and intended to help slow spread of the coronavirus will go live Tuesday. The department says NM Notify is a voluntary program that works by exchanging anonymous keys through Bluetooth with other nearby phones that also have the exposure notification app activated. When a person tests positive for COVID-19, they will get a text with a verification that, when activated, will let other phones nearby know of exposures. 

  • VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Grocery store employees, home caregivers, farm workers, other essential workers and people over 60 are now eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine in New Mexico. The state Health Department on Friday announced it was moving to new phases in its distribution plan. The move comes as New Mexico and other states aim to meet a federal mandate of getting more people vaccinated by May. New Mexico has administered more than 1 million shots and remains ranked top in the U.S. for vaccine distribution. State officials also pointed to another key milestone: more than 60% of those already eligible have received at least their first shot.

  • LEGISLATURE-PAID LEAVE

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico legislature has passed a sweeping mandate for employee sick leave, sending the bill to Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. If the bill passed early Friday is signed into law, it would require most employers to allow employees to accrue sick leave starting on their first day on the job. It would require a minimum of 1 hour of sick leave per 30 hours worked. The law would not take effect this year. The Lujan Grisham administration is signaling support for the bill after it was amended to delay the requirements until July 2022.

  • MARIJUANA-NEW MEXICO

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Legislation to legalize cannabis in New Mexico is scheduled for a decisive Senate floor vote under a framework that emphasizes government oversight of pricing and supplies along with social services for communities where the criminalization of pot has led to aggressive policing. Democratic Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth scheduled a vote on a bill Friday to legalize cannabis consumption and sales to people 21 and over. Critics say the proposed regulatory framework may foster a powerful, government-protected monopoly. Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham says the pot industry can help the state economy emerge from the pandemic slump. Legislators have discarded a Republican-sponsored proposal that stressed low taxes.