Here’s a look at today’s headlines:
The 2016 District 4-H Contest was held in Glenwood June 15th and 16th. Grant County 4-Hers competed well, placing 2nd and 4th in Archery, 1st and 4th in the junior age group Open Freestyle Archery, and 3rd in the Novice Age group Rifle Test. A number of individual competitors also did well as High Point Individuals. Congratulations to all youth who competed at the district competition for their hard work and dedication.
In sports news, senior Calum Hill and junior Bobbie Pierson were selected as WNMU’s Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Scholar-Athletes of the Year. Administrators from each of the 16 RMAC institutions chose a male and female student-athlete as their honorees. To be eligible for the award, individuals must compete in one of the conference sponsored championship sports, carry at least 3.30 GPA, be a starter or reserve on their respective team, be of good character and must have competed at the active member institution for two or more seasons.
The Office of the State Auditor received reports from multiple sources that the Department of Health has not processed applications for medical cannabis patient cards within 30 days as required by state law. The Office of the State Auditor received reports that patients have experienced processing times up to 90 days, and plans to monitor the Department of Health’s progress coming into compliance until the backlog is addressed. If the department fails to comply, the Auditor may take additional actions, such as selecting the agency for a special audit.
During a Senate Armed Services Committee nomination hearing, US Senator Martin Heinrich fought for additional resources for counter drug efforts along the Southwest Border to address the heroin and opiate epidemic in the United States. During the hearing, Senator Heinrich underscored that while New Mexico shares a 179-mile border with Mexico, the state is only provided with enough funding for five National Guard personnel to prevent drug trafficking. The existing model used by the Department of Defense allocates funds nationally based on a number of metrics rather than prioritizing where drugs actually enter the country.
The State Canvassing Board is scheduled to order publicly-funded recounts of two legislative primary elections in Southern New Mexico that were decided by narrow margins. Both recounts will be paid for from the Secretary of State’s budget under a law that mandates a recount if the final margin between legislative candidates is less than one percent of votes cast. The recounts will include the Democratic primary in House District 38 where Mary Hotvedt won the race by 29 votes over Karen Whitlock, and the Republican primary in House District 32 where Vicki Chavez won over Scott Chandler by only 16 votes.
