- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico health officials are reporting an additional 175 COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 23,160 since the pandemic began. Friday's tally marks another day of lower daily case counts as state health officials look to keep the numbers from spiking again. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said during a briefing earlier this week that as long as the state can sustain lower case counts, the potential for reopening parts of the economy become greater. Case counts are just one metric that health officials are tracking. Others include the rate of spread, hospitalizations and the capacity for contact tracing.
- PENSION FUND-PRIVATE PRISONS
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Policies that guide pension investments for New Mexico teachers and other educational retirees would have to change if the Educational Retirement Board wants to divest in private prison companies or other individual stocks it disapproves of for social reasons. Questions about socially responsible investments dominated Friday's meeting as teachers' unions and immigrant activists have called on the board to stop investing in Florida-based GEO Group and Tennessee-based CoreCivic. Currently, investments are handled by managers as part of index funds that consist of numerous companies. Legal and fiscal experts stressed to board members that they have a responsibility to be prudent and ensure the greatest return for retirees.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez is urging all schools on the tribe's reservation to use online learning during the fall semester to help reduce the risk of spreading the coronavirus. Nez's statement released Thursday night cited all public and private schools, including charter schools, schools operated by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs and those controlled by the tribe. Over 9,300 confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported on the reservation, which includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah..
- CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has named three members of a nine-member commission on civil rights. The announcement Friday means the commission can get to work on proposing legislation to tackle policing accountability in the 2021 regular legislative session. The New Mexico Civil Rights Commission was formed through legislation in June during a special session that focused on coronavirus budget woes. But it took place as massive protests around the country called for policing reform in the wake of the death of George Floyd and other Black Americans in police custody. The commission is required to report its suggestions by Nov. 15.
- ELECTION 2020-HOUSE-NEW MEXICO
RIO RANCHO, N.M. (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Xochitl Torres Small and Republican challenger Yvette Herrell have agreed to at least two televised debates in a closely watched race in southern New Mexico. Torres Small and Herrell said this week they agreed to participate in a KOB-TV debate and another sponsored by KOAT-TV and the Albuquerque Journal. Both say they'd like to add some more debates in the El Paso, Texas, market, which is home to many residents in the southern part of the district. Torres Small defeated Herrell by less than 4,000 votes in 2018, but the two never faced off in a televised debate.
- AP-US-COLORADO-RIVER-FUTURE
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — Levels in two massive lakes in the U.S. West are projected to remain high enough to avert severe water cuts in states that rely on the Colorado River. The levels forecast Friday will only trigger voluntary reductions in Arizona and Nevada that haven't yet trickled down to homes. Despite optimistic forecasts, officials say they must prepare for a drier future as climate change and prolonged drought shrink the amount of water available for cities and farms. With a combination of conservation and alternative sources, officials hope to avoid painful cuts to their water supply from the river that serves 40 million people in seven states.
- VIRUS-OUTBREAK-CHILD CARE
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Working parents in New Mexico are scrambling to find child care as summer programs and in-person public schooling is delayed until at least Labor Day. Hundreds of child care centers remain shuttered due to staffing shortages stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham says New Mexico will fall short on meeting everyone's child care needs in the short term. Efforts by Lujan Grisham's newly created child care agency could help, but parents still are having to decide whether to pay for private schooling, cut back hours or create home schooling groups.
- RACIAL INJUSTICE-LAS CRUCES
A New Mexico city will seek to adopt racial bias training for police and may require officers to intervene in possible excessive force episodes following the choking death of a Latino man. An agreement announced Thursday between the city of Las Cruces and a lawyer for the family of Antonio Valenzuela was part of the relatives' push to reform the city's police. Police say then-Las Cruces Officer Christopher Smelser applied the chokehold after Valenzuela fled during a traffic stop in February. Valenzuela died at the scene. Smelser was later fired and faces a murder charge. His lawyer says the charge was a political move meant to grab headlines.