N.M. Senate passes background checks on private gun sales SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Proposed legislation to expand background checks to nearly all private gun sales in New Mexico cleared its last major hurdle with approval from the state Senate on Thursday.The 22-20 Senate vote highlighted a marked shift in the politics of firearms regulation in a state with a …
New Mexico county aims to buck lawmakers with gun resolution TUCUMCARI, N.M. (AP) — A small New Mexico county has passed a resolution in protest of gun control legislation in the Legislature.KRQE-TV reports Quay County has declared itself a “Second Amendment Sanctuary County” under a resolution approved by commissioners. New Mexico House Republicans, who do not have control of the …
GOP senator’s bill calls for state-run pot shops By Steve Terrell sterrell@sfnewmexican.com A Republican state senator on Thursday introduced a bill that would legalize recreational marijuana but, unlike a Democratic House bill, would have the state operate retail marijuana stores. Sen. Mark Moores of Albuquerque said in a phone interview Thursday that, considering the number of western states that have …
Recreational pot bill proposing 9% tax clears first hurdle By Andrew Oxford aoxford@sfnewmexican.com Proponents of legalizing marijuana have long pointed to a prospective windfall they say state and local governments could enjoy by taxing products that now circulate on the black market. But the sponsors of a bill to legalize marijuana in New Mexico have an unlikely goal. They don’t …
Bills raise public records issues on costs, expunction By Robert Nott rnott@sfnewmexican.com State Sen. John Sapien says he wants the general public to bear a greater share of the cost for public records. Sapien, D-Corrales, has introduced a bill that would require people to pay up to a dollar per page for electronic copies of these documents. “It’s not nefarious,” …
House votes to repeal criminal law on abortion in NM By Robert Nott rnott@sfnewmexican.com Following three hours of impassioned testimony and debate, the state House of Representatives late Wednesday voted 40-29 to repeal a 50-year-old law that made it a fourth-degree felony to perform an abortion in New Mexico. Although a 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision rendered the law unenforceable, …
Health officials say 5 cases of measles confirmed in Texas HOUSTON (AP) — Health officials say five cases of measles have been confirmed in southern Texas, including four children under the age of 2. The cases, which were announced Monday, include three in the Houston area, one in Galveston County and one in Montgomery County. A possible sixth case in …
Minimum wage hike advances despite restaurant industry’s fight By Andrew Oxford aoxford@sfnewmexican.com Democrats campaigned last year on a promise to raise New Mexico’s minimum wage, which has remained at $7.50 an hour for a decade. How high it will go, exactly, is a question that quickly has become wrapped in a battle waged by the restaurant industry and could get …
Sanctuary bill advances on party-line vote By Milan Simonich msimonich@sfnewmexican.com A panel of Democrats in the New Mexico Senate used their superior numbers Friday to advance a bill that would prohibit state and local police agencies from using any resources to enforce federal immigration law. The Public Affairs Committee voted 4-3 for the measure, Senate Bill 196. All the Republicans …
With Democrats in control of both houses of the Legislature and a new Democratic governor, the fear is that they’ll go on a “spending spree.” This is the favorite phrase of Republicans, who regard themselves as a check on Democratic excesses. So let me assure you: There will be no spending spree because Democrats have the same fear. Last week …
