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NM Dems add wildfire money, education into federal bill
Democrats in New Mexico’s congressional delegation yesterday announced a potential additional $1.45 billion for New Mexicans who were impacted by the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire. According to a news release, the funding is part of the disaster supplemental section in the omnibus appropriations bill that will be voted on this week, and is in addition to the $2.5 billion in aid from the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire Assistance Act. “Once passed and signed into law, this funding will help New Mexicans to recover from wildfires and flooding and provide vital support to repair and replace the Las Vegas water treatment facility,” US Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-NM, said in a statement. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to get this appropriations bill across the finish line and provide the full relief and support that New Mexicans deserve.” US Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-NM, said the additional funding followed “long negotiations,” adding in a statement: “We knew that our communities needed more than the earlier $2.5 billion to recover from the devastating wildfires and floods that have ravaged our beautiful communities, forests and acequias. This additional funding is what justice looks like—the federal government is taking responsibility for the harm it caused and answering the stories, voices, and calls for help to rebuild.” The more than 4,000-page omnibus spending bill—which includes $1.7 trillion in funding for the government—also includes language that provides necessary congressional authorization for a constitutional amendment New Mexico voters approved last month to tap into the Land Grant Permanent Fund for early childhood education funding.
AG: NM to receive $132 mil more from opioid retailers
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas announced yesterday New Mexico will receive within the next 90 days more than $132 million under an opioid settlement between the state and pharmacy chains Walmart, CVS and Albertsons. According to a news release, with the latest settlement, New Mexico has received more than $368 million in funds that are divided between the state and local governments and must be used to address the opioid crisis statewide. The AG’s office will be coordinating efforts between local governments in the coming months. Those funds include a $60 million settlement with Kroger earlier this month and more than $195.5 million from Johnson & Johnson, AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson announced last spring. The AG also recently ended a two-month trial against Walgreens, a decision for which should be forthcoming in the next few weeks; drug manufacturers Teva and Allergan, along with drug distributor Anda, are currently scheduled for trial in the state’s opioid litigation in March 2023. “I’m incredibly proud of the extraordinary work of my team in securing this historic settlement, and it is imperative that these funds are invested in treatment services to begin the healing in our communities,” Balderas said in a statement.
SFPD arrest gallery burglar
During a downtown patrol yesterday at about 2:30 am, Santa Fe Police say an officer “noticed a suspicious male peeking from behind a wall in a parking lot,” who attempted to flee when he saw the officer. The suspicious male was detained and the police officer “observed a blue athletic-style bag and a sledgehammer sitting next to the wall where the male had been peeking from; the bag was open, and several gems, rocks, silver and large and small decorative skulls were visible inside, along with several other times.” While the officer interviewed the male, the Santa Fe Regional Emergency Communications Center received a call regarding an alarm at Earth Fire Gems Gallery, 121 Galisteo St. The suspicious male was identified as Santa Fe resident Justin Romero, age 40, and all items—more than $131,000 in stolen property—were returned to the business. SFPD arrested Romero for four fourth-degree felonies: burglary; possession of burglary tools; criminal damage to property; possession of a controlled substance; and an unrelated warrant for his arrest out of the Santa Fe Police Department. You can watch the arrest here.
COVID-19 by the numbers
Reported Dec. 20: New cases: 329; 656,049 total cases. According to the most recent report on geographic trends, the state had a nearly 48% decline in reported cases for the seven-day period ending Dec. 19 compared with the week prior. Deaths: six; Santa Fe County has had 376 total deaths; 8,775; total fatalities statewide. Statewide hospitalizations: 142. Patients on ventilators: four
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent Dec. 15 “community levels” map, which uses a combination of hospital and case rate metrics to calculate COVID-19 risk for the prior seven-day period, shows three counties categorized as “orange”—high risk—for COVID-19, versus eight last week. They are: Union, Guadalupe and San Juan counties. Santa Fe County remains “green,” classified as lower risk. Fifteen counties are “yellow,” with medium risk. Corresponding recommendations for each level can be found here.
Resources: Receive four free at-home COVID-19 tests per household via COVIDTests.gov; Check availability for additional free COVID-19 tests through Project ACT; CDC interactive booster eligibility tool; NM DOH vaccine & booster registration; CDC isolation and exposure interactive tool; COVID-19 treatment info; NMDOH immunocompromised tool kit. People seeking treatment who do not have a medical provider can call NMDOH’s COVID-19 hotline at 1-855-600-3453. DOH encourages residents to download the NM Notify app and to report positive COVID-19 home tests on the app.
You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
Listen up
Need to get into the Christmas spirit? Look no further than New Mexico PBS’ special program, A Southwest Christmas, which examines the religious and folk tales of the Spanish, Mexican, Native American and Anglo cultures, surrounding the Christmas season as told through four stories, with a special emphasis (and beautiful visuals) from New Mexico (complete with a hands-on demonstration for making biscochitos and holiday music from Santa Fe Desert Chorale).
Santa Fe makes top 40 “arts-vibrant” list
Following a small break, the SMU DataArts, the National Center for Arts Research, recently released its seventh Arts Vibrancy Index Report, its first since 2020, “which examines the level of supply, demand and government support of the arts in more than 900 communities across the country.” The report also lists the 40 most arts-vibrant communities of 2022: 20 large cities, 10 medium and 10 small. Santa Fe—the only New Mexico city on the list—appears in the roundup of medium-sized communities. The 40 chosen aren’t ranked—a decision made due to the impact the COVID-19 pandemic had on the arts and culture sector and the discrepancy in reopening patterns and resources, an executive summary of the report notes. However, the report does drill down into metrics for each of the top 40 (you can read more about the methodology here). For instance, Santa Fe ranked third for arts providers; 17th for arts and culture employees; and sixth for government support—interestingly, 267th for state arts dollars and first for federal arts grants. You can also explore the data via an interactive map.
Decking the pasillos
We support spontaneity at Ye Olde Holidays, but if you’re a planner, you’re in luck as Santa Fe is back in the swing of things as we ring out the old year. You’ll find lots of options for the forthcoming days of Chanukah, Xmas, NYE etc. (check out SFR’s calendar for the full lineup), but a few suggestions: Chanukah on Ice goes down from 4 to 6 pm tomorrow (Dec. 22) at the Genoveva Chavez Community Center. Take a break from socializing and sit in a dark theater, specifically the Jean Cocteau Cinema, which will show Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas on Dec. 24-25. Santa Fe Pro Musica’s Holiday Bach Festival also is underway through the holiday season. As for traditions, obviously the annual farolito walk on Canyon Road takes place on Xmas Eve, with the city providing continuous shuttle service for walkers between the South Capitol Rail Runner Station and New Mexico’s Visitor Center at Old Santa Fe Trail and Paseo de Peralta. And the newer but equally fun and free NYE party on the Plaza kicks off at 8 pm with free hot chocolate and biscochitos from the Kiwanis Club, followed by dignitaries, music and, of course, the rising Zia symbol at midnight. Also going down on NYE: Joe Illick and the NYE Orchestra at the Lensic Performing Arts Center, featuring countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo. Altar Spirits, El Rey Court and Meow Wolf also have special NYE parties planned. As for New Year’s Day, Santa Fe Community Yoga Center will hold a fundraiser, 108 Sun Salutations for World Peace ($25 suggested donation) from 3 to 6 pm in the Railyard Performance Center and online.
Hello, darkness
Happy Winter Solstice. The earth’s tilt away from the sun will be at its maximum in New Mexico at 2:48 pm today. As such, it will be a short day and a long night. More specifically, the National Weather Service forecasts a sunny day with a high temperature near 43 degrees and north wind 10 to 15 mph becoming west in the afternoon. If you’re traveling, keep an eye on the “bomb cyclone” forecasts. If you’re staying put, Santa Fe is likely to have a partly sunny, kinda windy Christmas with temps in the 40s. Until then, here is a poem about the winter solstice by Ray McNiece.
Thanks for reading all year! The Word is escaping the cold for the holidays and will return on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023. She’ll be listening to NPR’s top 100 songs of 2022 for the remainder of the year—and currently has the number four song playing on repeat.
