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.
Senate candidate Martin Heinrich has received two endorsements from major labor groups in recent days. So far, he’s the only top-tier Democratic candidate in the race and the endorsements may stop other top-tier candidates from entering the race.
This time around Democrat Diane Denish claimed the eye-popping contributions and raised the most out-of-state money. But two six-figure contributions and nearly $600,000 in out-of-state money wasn’t enough to power Denish past Republican Susana Martinez in dollars raised during the waning days of the 2010 New Mexico governor’s race, campaign finance reports filed Thursday show.
The Public Regulation Commission (PRC)’s Tuesday meeting erupted into a heated debate overa national auditors’ report that was sharply critical of the agency’s Division of Insurance. Although the report was released after a public records request, the agency announced that a new, more restrictive PRC-wide policy about employee contact with news reporters is being drafted.
Embattled Secretary of State Mary Herrera and her Republican challenger Dianna Duran raised almost exactly the same amount in the last quarter, with Duran bringing in $29,070 to Herrera’s $28,681. But while Herrera’s still got $74,465.04 cash on hand, Duran only has…
Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry’s proposed budget for next year doesn’t raise any taxes to make up the city’s revenue shortfall, nor does it furlough or lay-off any employees. But it does balance the budget in large part by squeezing wages and salaries. Public employee unions presented alternatives to the city council on Wednesday, claiming that there are other options for balancing the budget that weren’t considered by the administration.
Public school teachers and state workers would pay more toward their retirement while several, but not all, state agencies would get fewer dollars next year under a state budget plan approved by a powerful Senate committee on Thursday.
Also roughly 250 more state jobs across state government would disappear than in a House-approved state budget plan that served as the starting point for the Senate proposal. Many of those targeted state government positions are already vacant, legislative officials said.
New Mexico would eliminate more than 900 jobs and reduce state workers’ salaries by 2 percent to balance the state’s out-of-whack budget, if it followed a budget proposal released Monday by the Legislature’s budget committee.
The government workers’ union is asking Governor Bill Richardson to veto the part of the recently passed budget bill that requires him to cut state agency budgets by 7.6 percent. ”Additional cuts of nearly 8 percent, which is closer to…
Albuquerque’s public financing system is set up so that if outside groups spend a certain amount of money on behalf of a candidate — by sending campaign mail, for example — then the other candidates will receive matching funds in the same amount. But if that mail is sent from an organization only to its members, that expenditure can’t be tracked, and therefore can’t trigger matching funds. It’s a loophole in the law that can likely never be closed because of strong First Amendment protection of free speech, experts say.
A group of City of Albuquerque blue collar works gathered on Civic Plaza mid-afternoon last Friday to give a symbolic endorsement to mayoral candidate Richard Romero.
Although Local 624 comprises the biggest subset of City workers, it is just one…
Some rank and file members of Local 624 may want to endorse Richard Romero for mayor, but AFSCME leaders say the union’s endorsement of incumbent mayor Martin Chavez is solid.
The endorsement of incumbent mayor Martin Chavez by the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal employees is seen as a major coup by Chavez. The endorsement was the first for Chavez by AFSCME, which has several union locals that represent various groups of City of Albuquerque workers.
Today, Local 624–which represents the City of Albuquerque’s blue collar workers–will break with that endorsement and give a nod to the candidacy of former State Senate President Pro Tem Richard Romero.
The Santa Fe New Mexican’s Kate Nash reported today that American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 18 is seeking back pay for nearly 10,000 state workers.
The recent discord within AFSCME local 624 — which represents City of Albuquerque blue collar workers — over the endorsement of Marty Chavez for mayor has been, in the words of one political commenter, a rare glimpse of internal union conflict spilling over into public view.
Three incumbent Albuquerque city councilors won the endorsement of one of the city’s most influential public employees unions.
Here comes the judge. More accurately, here comes a judge.
The courts on Monday were asked to settle a question raised about one of the budget fixes the Legislature passed during this year’s 60-day legislative session.
Four of New Mexico’s public employee unions are suing the state to stop the enactment of a new law that decreases the state’s payment into public employee pension funds by 1.5 percent for two years.
The political action committee for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents some 3,500 city workers in Albuquerque, has endorsed Mayor Martin Chávez in his bid for re-election.
It’s the…
The first candidate forum of the campaign for Albuquerque mayor was hosted tonight by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Hopefuls Richard Romero and Rudy Serrano both expressed support for unions and answered questions about labor issues. Click the headline to read the transcript.
The first candidate forum of the campaign for Albuquerque mayor will be hosted tonight by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).
Although the public employee union forum is open only to union members and their…
