Tuesday’s Top Stories
- City of Albuquerque plans to purchase abandoned Franklin Plaza property
- The effort to recruit and retain more New Mexico school teachers
- Albuquerque man accused in Amazon warehouse theft case
- City of Albuquerque approves transportation projects
- APD: Albuquerque man caught exposing himself to teens
- Los Angeles schools shut down as staff begin 3-day strike
- Ukraine, Russia trade claims after blast rocks Crimean town
Tuesday’s Five Facts
[1] New Mexico lawmakers send few crime bills to Governor’s desk – Crime and safety is a major topic for lawmakers in New Mexico. However, out of the many proposals, few made it to the governors desk. This year out of 97 crime and punishment bills, only 16 reached the governors desk. Some of the crime bills that did pass focus on robbery and retail crime, catalytic converter thefts, and cyber security. Lawmakers also approved more funding for law enforcement.
[2] More rain and snow around New Mexico Tuesday – It is a drier Tuesday morning, but there are spotty rain showers in central New Mexico, and snow showers in northwest New Mexico. Precipitation will push northward, allowing the Metro to dry out from mid-afternoon to evening, and keeping southern and eastern New Mexico dry today. Snow will be adding up in the northern mountains, and the winter storm warnings remain in effect until Wednesday night.
[3] Mayor Tim Keller battles city councilors over $12M in budget amendment – There’s a fight over $12 million in the City of Albuquerque. A majority of city councilors voted to put the unspent money away and save it. The mayor vetoed the idea because he wants to have the freedom to use it. On Mar. 8 Mayor Keller vetoed the amendment stating it would severely limit the administration’s ability to close out the year and effectively deliver expected services and programs. City council failed to override the mayor’s veto on a 4 to 5 vote on Monday, Mar. 20.
[4] Albuquerque wants to hold chronic speeders accountable – Last year, the Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) program was introduced throughout Albuquerque. With some refusing to pay their fines, the city is proposing an update to the system. The new change would would allow the city to boot offending drivers’ vehicles when parked on city streets who haven’t paid three or more ASE fines. If the legislation is passed, drivers will be notified that they are at risk of a parking citation and vehicle towing when they have two or more unpaid ASE fines.
[5] Heavy snow impacting fire season and ski resorts in New Mexico – New Mexico has been getting more snow than usual and it’s impacting the state from the ski resorts to the fire season. The National Weather Service says the heavy snowfall will help during the upcoming fire season. They say this year’s snow pack will benefit the water supply in the river basins. The heavy snow is also impacting the ski resorts and giving them the opportunity to stay open longer.
