Use it or lose it: Across the West, exercising one’s right to waste water
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“Use it or lose it” clauses give farmers, ranchers and governments holding water rights a powerful incentive to use more water than they need. Continue Reading
Thirteen years and counting: anatomy of an EPA civil rights investigation
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Deborah Reade filed a complaint with the EPA’s Office of Civil Rights in 2002. It still hasn’t been resolved. Continue Reading
Gold King Mine spill hits Navajo Nation hard
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While the Colorado governor drank water from the Animas River on Wednesday to demonstrate that conditions are improving, downstream, people on the Navajo Nation continue to deal with the very real effects of an environmental disaster. Continue Reading
Cities consider whether public financing combats big money
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In Las Cruces, city policymakers are considering creating a brand-new public financing system. Common Cause New Mexico is also pushing for improvements to existing programs in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. Not all believe their efforts will help combat big money. Continue Reading
Officials pledge to ‘make the EPA pay’ for Animas River spill
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Government officials from New Mexico and the Navajo Nation were among those working through the weekend to try to understand and respond to the Environmental Protection Agency’s inadvertent triggering of the spill of an estimated 3 million gallons of toxic waste into the Animas River last week. Continue Reading
In Republican debate, little talk about big money
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Donald Trump says the nation’s campaign funding system is ‘broken,’ but other presidential hopefuls largely avoid the issue. Continue Reading
State auditor uses Gmail account for public business
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It’s legal, but that doesn’t mean using private email is a good idea. The N.M. Foundation for Open Government has concerns about Tim Keller’s Gmail account. Continue Reading
Las Crucens sound off about church blasts
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Explosions outside Calvary Baptist Church and Holy Cross Catholic Church in Las Cruces have had a significant impact on many people. Some have shared their personal stories, thoughts, and feelings with NMPolitics.net on Facebook. We decided to republish many of their comments here. Continue Reading
Top defense contractors spend millions to get billions
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The Pentagon’s top contractors sent an army of more than 400 lobbyists to Capitol Hill this spring to press their case for increasing the nation’s spending on military hardware, in a massive effort costing tens of millions of dollars of their own funds from April to June alone, according to an analysis of public lobbying data by the Center for Public Integrity. Continue Reading
Las Cruces plans to start posting campaign finance reports online
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Starting with this year’s Nov. 3 election, the Las Cruces City Clerk’s Office plans to make campaign finance reports available on its website free of charge. Continue Reading
View Las Cruces’ 2011, 2013 campaign finance reports
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We’re posting Las Cruces’ 2011 and 2013 campaign finance reports online in advance of this year’s municipal election. Click on the headline to view them. Continue Reading
Less Than Zero: Despite decades of accepted science, California and Arizona are still miscounting their water supplies
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If these states stopped effectively double-counting their resources, they would have to change laws, upend traditional water rights and likely force farmers and cities to accept even more dramatic cuts than they already face – a political third rail. Continue Reading
Public financing counters big money, increases participation, some say
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By changing how elections are financed in Las Cruces, some hope to counter big money they fear arrived in the city with the recent failed recall attempt. They also hope to open up elections to more people. Continue Reading
Cabinet secretary denies wrongdoing in tax case
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The head of the state’s Taxation and Revenue Department did not pressure employees to give special treatment to a taxpayer she used to work for, a spokesman says. Continue Reading
Petition asks Hobbs City Commission to begin webcasting
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The petition drive began last week, even as some city officials said almost no one has shared with them a desire for webcasting. Continue Reading