AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas on Monday joined the growing number of states that will stop paying the federally funded $300 in extra pandemic-related weekly unemployment aid as businesses that scaled back or shuttered during the pandemic are reopening. The extra benefits in Texas will end June 26, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said in a letter to the Biden administration. …

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas on Monday joined the growing number of states that will stop paying the federally funded $300 in extra pandemic-related weekly unemployment aid as businesses that scaled back or shuttered during the pandemic are reopening. The extra benefits in Texas will end June 26, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said in a letter to the Biden administration. …

Debra Hicks was surprised when she received a letter from the New Mexico Department of Workforce Services last month, asking her to confirm an application for unemployment insurance in her own name. About a mile away, Beckey Waldrop has been inundated with letters from the department. She said she’s received probably 20 letters since mid April, requesting information to verify …

LOVINGTON — Lea County officials want New Mexico, the nation’s third highest oil production state, to join other states fighting President Joe Biden’s moratorium on federal oil leases. Lea County is the nation’s No. 1 oil producer among counties, with more than 50 percent of oil production coming from federal lands. At a recent meeting of the board, county commission …

LOVINGTON — Lea County officials want New Mexico, the nation’s third highest oil production state, to join other states fighting President Joe Biden’s moratorium on federal oil leases. Lea County is the nation’s No. 1 oil producer among counties, with more than 50 percent of oil production coming from federal lands. At a recent meeting of the board, county commission …

The City of Hobbs’ annual water conservation period, which include domestic and commercial water usage for garden, lawn, or other exterior watering or sprinkling applications, starts Saturday and runs through Sept. 15. Residents living at even numbered street addresses may use outdoor water only on even calendar days. Residents living at odd numbered addresses may use outdoor water only on …

ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Oilfield equipment that emits smog-causing pollution would be targeted by New Mexico environmental regulators under a proposed rule made public Thursday by the state Environment Department. The release of the proposal marks the next step in a process that started nearly two years ago as Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and other top Democrats in the state announced …

EUNICE — Email bantering over the weekend left Eunice’s gross receipts tax revenue still in question, with possible legal action in the works. The $158,617.96 withheld from the small Lea County city’s April distribution remains unexplained, with state officials claiming no legal reason to explain it. Eunice’s budget is based on a pandemic-reduced monthly estimated revenue of $300,000 after a …

EUNICE — Email bantering over the weekend left Eunice’s gross receipts tax revenue still in question, with possible legal action in the works. The $158,617.96 withheld from the small Lea County city’s April distribution remains unexplained, with state officials claiming no legal reason to explain it. Eunice’s budget is based on a pandemic-reduced monthly estimated revenue of $300,000 after a …

EUNICE — Backyard RV rental spaces are on the way out of Eunice. The city council on Monday repealed a 13-year-old “Temporary Emergency Housing Act,” giving residents six months to return to building code compliance. In May 2008, while the City of Eunice was busting at the seams with new people coming in to build additions to the URENCO plant …