I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
Gov. Bill Richardson signed a bill today that will require the state to create an online, searchable database of all state government contracts worth more than $20,000.
Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, who pushed for the approval of House Bill 546, sponsored by state Rep. Al Park, D-Albuquerque, hailed the database as a way to increase transparency in state government.
“New Mexicans deserve to know who is doing business with their government. This law will enable all citizens to track state government contracts, follow the flow of public money and understand how it is being used,” Denish said in a new release. “Ethics reform in government starts with transparency, and I’m proud to have worked hard on this effort which guarantees more sunshine on the business of government.”
While most bills approved in the session that just ended take effect in June or July, lawmakers decided for some reason that this bill shouldn’t take effect until Jan. 1, 2010, so don’t expect to see a publicly accessible online database for awhile.
