Here’s a look at today’s headlines:
Gila National Forest officials are notifying the public of changes to the special use permit administration process that will go into effect this year and remain in place until withdrawn. Two forest-wide outfitter and guide changes are: The deadline to submit outfitter and guide proposals for the 2014 operating season is June 1st, 2015. All permitted outfitters and their guides on the Gila National Forest must carry a copy of their special use permit and their operating plan when operating on National Forest System Lands.
Mayor Michael Morones at their recent meeting recommended to staff that they continue working with the Bridge Community Board on their project to construct a senior care facility offering all levels of care due to a current lack of this care in Silver City. Also at the meeting, the Silver City Arts and Cultural District reported an increase in tourism this year, and the Silver City MainStreet Project stated that only 12 percent of downtown buildings are vacant despite the perception the number is higher. The Silver City Public Library Director described a survey that will soon be released to the public and asked that people complete the survey so the staff can meet better the needs of the community.
The Cobre School Board at their meeting Monday evening heard plans from the Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition for increasing the youth council members to three from each high school and middle school in the county. Superintendant Mendoza notified the board that Freeport McMoRan had awarded a grant of $50,000 to upgrade technical needs. He also had a list of student fundraisers for the board to look over. Student representative Jose Rubio reported on recent student affairs, and ended his presentation with the announcement that Cobre’s Softball team had won the sportsmanship distinction of “Compete with Class” for the month of March.
US Senator Martin Heinrich marked National Equal Pay Day and called for passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act, a bill aimed at combatting wage discrimination on the basis of gender. Senator Heinrich is a staunch proponent of equal pay for equal work. In the state of New Mexico, women earn 82 cents for every dollar a man makes, and nationwide women earn 78 centers per dollar. Equal Pay Day, which this year is April 14th, marks how far into 2015 a woman must work in order to catch up to what a man earned in 2014.
US Senator Tom Udall express support for the administration’s decision to remove Cuba from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism. Udall is a longtime advocate for normalizing diplomatic relations with Cuba and supports legislation permitting US citizens to freely travel to Cuba, efforts to open the Internet, and end the embargo blocking US trade with Cuba.
The National Weather Service in El Paso has issued a Red Flag Warning through 9 o’clock tonight for the southwest deserts and lowlands, south central lowlands, and the southern Rio Grande Valley. A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures will create extreme fire growth potential. Outdoor burning is not recommended.
