- New Mexico reports 349 new COVID-19 cases and 13 more deaths
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Health officials in New Mexico on Sunday reported 349 new COVID-19 cases and 13 more deaths as the coronavirus outbreak in the state continued to slow. The latest figures released by the Department of Health increased the state's totals to 177,556 and 3,399 known deaths since the pandemic started. The number of infections is thought to be far higher than reported because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick. But rolling two-week averages of daily new cases and daily deaths in New Mexico both dropped over the past two weeks.
- Navajo Nation reports 71 new COVID-19 cases, 3 more deaths
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — Navajo Nation health officials have reported 71 new COVID-19 cases and three more deaths. The latest numbers released Saturday night raised the totals to 28,872 cases and 1,056 known deaths since the pandemic began. U.S. President Joe Biden recently signed a long-awaited major disaster declaration for the Navajo Nation. It will provide more federal resources and prompts the release of federal funds for the reimbursement of emergency funds expended to address the COVID-19 pandemic on the Navajo Nation which covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. The tribe has tribe extended its stay-at-home order with a revised nightly curfew to limit the spread of COVID-19.
- Immigrants, activists worry Biden won't end Trump barriers
HOUSTON (AP) — President Joe Biden rushed to send the most ambitious overhaul of the nation's immigration system in a generation to Congress. And he signed nine executive actions to wipe out some the toughest measures to fortify the U.S.-Mexico border implemented by his predecessor, President Donald Trump. But a federal court suspended Biden's 100-day moratorium on deportations, the immigration bill hasn't been passed and many of the new president's orders will take weeks, months — perhaps even years — to implement. In the meantime, there is likely to be more overlap in the Biden and Trump hardline immigration policies than many of the activists who helped generate Latino support for Biden in the election had hoped.
- New Mexico releases data on child poverty and welfare
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — New data from New Mexico shows that the southern portion of the state continues to lag behind the rest of the state in child poverty and welfare. The 2020 New Mexico Kids Count Data Book was released to provide state legislators child welfare data and showed that the state is still 48th in child poverty among U.S. states. Emily Wildau, the New Mexico Kids Count research and policy analyst, says most of the data released was from 2019. She says that in the data's timeframe, 11 of 16 indicators of child welfare had improved. Despite the improvements in some categories, the south of the state is still experiencing problems with child poverty and welfare.
- New Mexico lawmaker changes affiliation after abortion vote
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A Republican lawmaker in New Mexico who voted in favor of a Democratic-backed abortion bill has left the Republican Party. House Minority Leader Jim Townsend said on Friday that state Rep. Phelps Anderson of Roswell changed his voter registration to a "declined to state" after voting to repeal a 1969 law that criminalizes abortion. Anderson sided with seven Democrats in repealing the law, drawing criticism from his constituents as well as calls for his resignation. Anderson was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and won reelection in 2020. He also served in the House from 1977 through 1980.
- New Mexico reports 424 additional COVID-19 cases, 8 deaths
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico on Saturday reported 424 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases and eights deaths as the coronavirus outbreak in the state slows. The latest figures released by the Department of Health increased the state's pandemic totals to 177,214 cases and 3,386 but rolling two-week averages of daily new cases and daily deaths dropped over the past two weeks. According to data from The COVID-Tracking Project, the rolling average of daily new cases dropped from about 847 on Jan. 22 to around 571 on Friday and the rolling average of daily deaths dropped from 29 to 18.6.
- Structure fire in village spreads into New Mexico forest
SACRAMENTO, N.M. (AP) — U.S. Forest Service officials say a fire that started Friday night in a structure in the southern New Mexico mountain village of Sacramento spread into an adjacent national forest before crews stopped its growth overnight. Officials say numerous volunteer fire departments and two fire engines completed lines around the fire, limiting its size to 17 acres of private land and Lincoln National Forest. Officals said crews on Saturday were mopping up and monitoring the fire to ensure that fire lines continued to contain the fire. Sacramento is in Otero County and 24 miles (39 kilometers) east of Alamogordo.
- Endangered wolves sent from Arizona to Texas to aid species
PHOENIX (AP) — Two endangered Mexican gray wolves and three of their pups have moved from the Phoenix Zoo to the El Paso Zoo in a bid to bolster the number of predators. The Arizona Republic reports that three other pups stayed in Phoenix and are now adjusting to an emptier den and establishing a new hierarchy. Phoenix Zoo officials say that while it doesn't have a breeding pair anymore, it plans to change the enclosure to make it appealing to a breeding female wolf. The other wolves were transferred under a cooperative breeding program that aims to help the Mexican gray wolf survive.