Albuquerque, Santa Fe to sue state
Has the state's Taxation and Revenue Department been shortchanging New Mexico cities when it comes to gross receipts tax? Albuquerque—and soon Santa Fe after a City Council vote last night—is suing the state, saying unauthorized adjustments in payments by the collection agency to cities have caused them to receive millions less in tax payments. Farmington, Moriarty and Artesia are also named in the suit that Santa Fe now plans to join. The city estimates it may have been shorted more than $4 million.
‘The real work is just beginning’
Those were the words of the co-chair of an affordable housing advisory group in Santa Fe, which presented its findings to the mayor and City Council after five months of studying the issue since its last update in June. The group says the city needs to execute the plans it has in place and redouble its efforts to address a crisis in homelessness, affordable rental availability and home ownership, including pumping $3 million a year into the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
The last nursing home
Rio Arriba County's only remaining nursing home is closing its doors at the end of the year ($). It's owned by Preferred Care, Inc. The Plano, Texas-based company declared bankruptcy last year after a series of allegations about mistreatment of residents and potential Medicaid fraud. It sold two facilities it owns in Santa Fe, but decided to close the Española home. The Rio Arriba County Commission is holding a special meeting tomorrow. The home has roughly 70 residents.
Southwest hearing begins
The details of the disaster aboard a Southwest Airlines flight that killed Albuquerque's Jennifer Riordan are hard to read. But the National Transportation Safety Board began a hearing yesterday into the accident, in which a fan blade on an engine snapped and was sucked into the jet, spraying shrapnel into the cabin, breaking a window and causing Riordan to be partially pulled out of the plane. The Federal Aviation Administration knew there were issues with the fan's manufacture, but hadn't ordered immediate inspection of the fan blades.
True expansion
Gov. Susana Martinez could do worse than to hang her hat on the "New Mexico True" marketing campaign for tourism. The branding has been widely praised (anyone recall what Richardson's thing was? There had to have been one) and credited for boosting visits to the state. Incoming Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham says she might build on the brand's success. She could also create a state office to promote outdoor recreation.
Why
Technically, that's a question, though it's largely rhetorical, so we're leaving out the punctuation (at least that's the plan before sending this to the copy editor). (Update: Copy editor says OK.) Rhetorical because of course there was a fight between adults at an elementary girls' basketball game ($). It's the playoffs, you know, so these kids need to understand how important victory is. And respect. And sportsmanship.
Remaking the grade
New Mexico's much-scorned school grading system will be getting a makeover under a new governor. Yesterday, lawmakers heard a proposal to create a dashboard-style school rating system that provides information about a school at a glance, rather than an A-F letter grade that can be overly simplistic. The dashboard would still contain achievement data.
Deafening silence
A new report by a Seattle-based group says police departments across the country need to do a better job of reporting the disappearances and deaths of Native women. The Associated Press' Mary Hudetz reports it has been a growing problem in recent years and tribes have been pressuring police and the US government to provide more resources to address it.
Thanks for reading! The Word plans to spend a few minutes in the sun today.
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