- POLICE OVERTIME-ALBUQUERQUE
Albuquerque police chief plans reforms after overtime flapALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Albuquerque's police chief says the city's officer overtime system is outdated and "full of loopholes" that many officers used.
Chief Mike Geier announced Tuesday that his department would fix a system he described as a carry-over from 2015, when the force faced extreme understaffing.
The planned overhaul follows an oversight agency report that found Officer Simon Drobik, a police spokesman, was paid simultaneously for his work at the department and hours put in at private businesses.
Under what's known as the "chief's overtime" program, companies can pay the city for an officer to patrol their properties on their off hours, and officers earn overtime pay.
Drobik was the city's highest paid employee in 2018, earning $192,973.
Geier outlined reforms, including a plan to better track overtime data.
- HIGHLANDS UNIVERSITY-PROTEST
Highlands University student protest cuts to work-study pay(Information from: Las Vegas Optic, http://www.lasvegasoptic.com)
LAS VEGAS, N.M. (AP) — A group of students is showing its anger over recent changes to work-study pay at Highlands University.
The Las Vegas Optic reports about 40 Highlands students joined in a protest Monday over moves to cut work-study pay amid a budget shortfall.
The university's administration recently asked departments to dock student's pay to $7.50 an hour and set a cap at 20 hours a week until the end of the summer semester.
Highlands University spokesman Sean Weaver says the cuts were needed to balance the school's budget. He says academic departments also have been asked to hold off on purchases that aren't urgent.
Student Regent Rebekah Peoble says the administration made the decision without input from students.
___
- SHOOTING OVER BANANA TOSS
Police: Boy, 15, shot over banana being thrown at car(Information from: Hobbs News-Sun, http://www.hobbsnews.com)
HOBBS, N.M. (AP) — A 15-year-old New Mexico boy is recovering from gunshot wounds after police say a 17-year-old boy shot at his car in retaliation for a banana being thrown.
Hobbs Police Department Interim Chief Brian Dunlap told the Hobbs News-Sun the 15-year-old boy was struck three times Sunday and was in stable condition.
According to police, the shooting occurred just hours after the annual prom at Hobbs High School. Witnesses told police a teen in the car threw a banana at another vehicle before someone inside that vehicle fired shots.
Authorities say the injured boy was flown to a hospital in Lubbock, Texas, after being treated at Lea Regional Hospital.
Police say a 17-year-old boy was charged Sunday with shooting at or from a vehicle involving great bodily harm.
___
- SANTA FE-AIRBNB
Santa Fe to keep voluntary collection deal with Airbnb(Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, http://www.santafenewmexican.com)
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's picturesque capital will keep a voluntary collection agreement with short-term lodging rental company Airbnb despite pressure.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the move comes after American Hotel & Lodging Association recently urged governments to drop such deals following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
The June 2018 U.S. Supreme Court Wayfair v. South Dakota decision ruled that states may charge tax on purchases made from out-of-state sellers.
The group has said voluntary collection agreements give Airbnb an unfair advantage by creating a tax and regulatory haven for Airbnb lodging operators.
Tourism Santa Fe Executive Director Randy Randall says he sees no harm in leaving the agreement in place.
___
- ETHICS COMMISSION-NEW MEXICO
New Mexico ethics commission takes shape with 2 appointmentsSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's fledgling State Ethics Commission is taking shape with the appointment of two commissioners.
Democratic House Speaker Brian Egolf announced Monday his appointment of former deputy state attorney general Stuart Bluestone of Santa Fe to serve on the new seven-seat commission.
The commission will oversee the conduct of public officials, political candidates, lobbyists and government contractors.
Frances Williams also was appointed with an eye toward her past experience as an equal opportunity manager at White Sands Missile Range. Her appointment came from Democratic Senate President Mary Kay Papen of Las Cruces.
Voters approved the creation of the ethics commission by statewide ballot last year amid a string of political corruption scandals.
Further appointments are pending from Republican legislative leaders and Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
- ALAMOGORDO BURGLARIES-SENTENCE
Man gets 16-year prison term for 2 Alamogordo criminal casesALAMOGORDO, N.M. (AP) — A man convicted of eight felony charges for his involvement in two criminal cases in Alamogordo has been sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Prosecutors say 38-year-old Michael Cook was sentenced Monday.
He was convicted of non-residential burglary and possession of a controlled substance in a 2017 case.
Cook was accused of breaking into a storage shed and stealing.
Authorities found the items in his truck along with 2 grams of methamphetamine.
In March 2018, Alamogordo police were called about a house being broken into and severely damaged and a car among many missing items.
A cellphone was found and authorities discovered Cook was the owner.
Cook pleaded guilty or no contest to residential burglary, receiving stolen property, larceny and other charges.
- REFERENDUM PETITIONS-NEW MEXICO
Groups seek to 'veto' New Mexico laws by referendumSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Self-proclaimed patriot groups have initiated long-shot efforts at overturning progressive-minded state laws by referendum.
Michael Harris of the Eddy County Patriot Group said Tuesday efforts are under way to initiate a 2020 referendum on newly approved laws aimed at protecting wildlife, creating a state university affiliate in Mexico and renaming Columbus Day to honor Native Americans.
His group this week submitted applications with the New Mexico Secretary of State's Office to authorize four signature petitions seeking veto referendums.
Agency spokesman Alex Curtas says petition requests are under review and that the state Constitution sets a high bar for revoking laws by popular vote. If allowed, petitions still need more than 70,000 signatures from eligible voters to succeed.
The Roosevelt County Patriot Group wants referendums on three other bills.
- BEHAVIORAL HEALTH-NEW MEXICO
Bernalillo County officials push behavioral health trainingALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Officials say they will expand training in New Mexico's most populous county for caseworkers and other professionals in an attempt to address the state's high rates of mental illness and substance abuse.
Bernalillo County Commission Chair Maggie Hart Stebbins and County Manager Julie Morgas Baca say the program is crucial in helping to round out the county's behavioral health services.
Voters approved a major tax increase in 2014 to better fund the programs after a spate of deadly shootings by Albuquerque police, including the shooting death of James Boyd, a homeless man who had suffered from mental illness.
That same year, a University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center review found Bernalillo County residents with chronic mental illness and substance abuse issues lacked ongoing-care options.
The behavioral health training program was announced by county officials Tuesday.