Gun protection bill advances
Hundreds turned out yesterday for the first hearing over a controversial law, which, if passed, would allow law enforcement here to confiscate guns from people deemed a threat to themselves or others ($TNM). The Senate Public Affairs Committee voted 4-3 for SB 5, aka the Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act. The bill now goes to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Known as a red-flag law, the bill has the backing of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who has cited its potential impact on suicide in the state. Bill co-sponsor Rep. Joy Garratt, D-Albuquerque, who also is an educator, said in yesterday's hearing she thought its passage could help address school violence as well: "I can't tell you how scary it is to train kindergartners on how to do lockdowns and exits," she said. "This is one tool, only one tool, to address individuals who pose an imminent threat." Law enforcement, however, splits on the issue, with 30 of the state's 33 sheriffs opposing it, but New Mexico State Police Chief Tim Johnson and top Albuquerque Police Department officials in support. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hear the bill next.
And then there were three
Yesterday, the City of Santa Fe confirmed that out of 21, three developers' proposals have made the short-list for the Midtown campus. Central Park Santa Fe; KDC Real Estate Development & Investments/Cienda Partners; and Raffles Education Corp remain in the running following evaluations by the Midtown Campus steering committee and Midtown project manager Daniel Hernandez. A city news release says the "mixed-use development" will include components local residents identified as important during community input sessions last year, such as affordable housing, higher education, local businesses, tech development, the film industry and green space. While the city hasn't released the specific proposals, SFR takes a look at the three finalists.
Power up
Oral arguments begin today before the New Mexico Supreme Court in a case that could determine whether the Public Regulation Commission considers the state's new energy goals as it oversees the closure of the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station near Farmington. In December, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, New Mexico legislators and Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez petitioned the court to intervene after the PRC skirted application of the new Energy Transition Act as it related to Public Service Company's plan for closing the plant. Consumer and environmental groups hope the court will force the PRC to take into account the new law. The governor also is backing a bill introduced this week that would completely restructure the PRC, a proposal with historical precedent, as SFR writes this week.
Dope talk
Legislators began discussions yesterday regarding a bill that would legalize and begin cannabis sales next year in New Mexico. SB 115, the Cannabis Regulation Act, was passed along party lines yesterday by members of the Senate Public Affairs Committee. It still has to be heard by both the Senate Judiciary and Finance committees before it can reach a floor vote by the Senate. In yesterday's hearing, skeptics said legalizing marijuana would make it difficult for employers to enforce drug-free workplaces; cops to keep impaired drivers off the road; and would, ultimately, increase crime given the lack of technology for assessing whether or not someone is stoned. "The technology simply doesn't exist," said Terri Cole, president and CEO of the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce. "This creates serious challenges." Sen. Jacob Candelaria, D-Albuquerque, who presented the bill, pointed out that police already have methods for determining whether people are impaired and that criminalization of cannabis disproportionality impacts youth and people of color.
Listen up
In Episode 7 of "Your New Mexico Government," a podcast devoted to the 54th Legislature, KUNM's Hannah Colton discusses some of the education bills that are on deck at the roundhouse. She also breaks down how you can find out more about the bills yourself. "Your New Mexico Government" is a collaboration between SFR, New Mexico PBS and KUNM radio.
Santa Fe’s atomic history
BBC Travel takes a spin around Santa Fe, specifically 109 E Palace, the secret location where 1940s scientists such as Enrico Fermi and Richard Feynman began work on what would come to be known as The Manhattan Project. Robert Oppenheimer established the location in 1943 as the US government sought to keep the work under wraps. Today, local shop owners tell the BBC visitors continue to show up looking for the former clandestine location. "People come in to ask about it every day," said Beverly Andorfer, who works at Chocolate + Cashmere, which, although located at 109 E. Palace, is a different location than the former office due to remodeling on the street years ago.
LANL spy docs unveiled
Speaking of spies, Los Alamos National Laboratory recently declassified documents related to a Soviet spy, code named Godsend, whose infiltration at Los Alamos historians revealed last fall ($NYT). A NYT story this week examines those documents, which reveal that Godsend, aka Oscar Seborer, likely "played a crucial role in Moscow's ability to quickly replicate the complex device," in 1949. "It's fascinating," Harvey Klehr, an author of the original paper, said in an interview with the Times. "We had no idea he was that important." The Los Alamos documents reveal that Seborer had significant inner knowledge of the bombs and helped devise the bomb's explosive trigger, among other items. These revelations significantly contrast with the known history of espionage, in which the three previous identified spies gave Moscow overviews of the bomb.
Trump’s impact on NM lands
The Montana-based Western Values Project issued a report yesterday on the Trump administration's impact on New Mexico's outdoor resources. The report states that the biggest oil drillers in the state have connections to and are benefiting from the current administration. Specifically, the report names: BOPCO LP (owned by Exxon), COG Operating, Devon Energy, EOG Resources, Marathon, Mewbourne and Occidental Petroleum. The report details the connections, noting that "while these sweetheart deals are making the Trump administration's allies very wealthy, they are a bad deal for New Mexico taxpayers and public lands." Western Values' Deputy Director Jayson O'Neill, in a press release about the report, states that "everything from ancient cultural sites to the air all New Mexicans breath has been endangered by the Trump administration's rampant corruption and unchecked recklessness."
Port in the storm
We have a 30% chance of scattered snow showers today, primarily after 2 pm. Increasing clouds, with a high near 39 degrees and north wind 5 to 15 mph becoming east in the afternoon. Forecasts predict a total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. Same likelihood of snow showers tonight. Mostly sunny tomorrow, but slight chances of snow again tomorrow night.
Thanks for reading! The Word feels compelled to read this Atlantic story ($) that breaks down Facebook's new Off-Facebook Activity tool, which reveals apps and websites with which Facebook has shared users' information (purportedly part of Facebook's pact to users following the Cambridge Analytica scandal). On the other hand, it might be nice to not spend the day subsumed by existential nausea.
