Here’s a look at today’s headlines:
The New Mexico Department of Health announced yesterday that a rabid fox from Lincoln County that bit a woman last month had a strain of rabies that has never before been identified. The genetic sequencing of the virus was done in the Rabies Laboratory at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. The woman received a series of rabies vaccinations that has prevented her from developing the disease, which is usually fatal.
Fire crews on the Reserve Ranger District report that the Kelly Fire has grown to 11 acres despite intermittent rain and snow showers over the weekend. The fire shows very little potential for growth while some logs and litter continue to burn within the perimeter. Due to the remote nature of the fire and firefighter safety, minimal suppression actions will be taken. The fire was detected May 14 approximately 11 miles south of Reserve, New Mexico on the Gila National Forest. The fire is being managed under a confinement suppression strategy.
As the chance for a special legislative session continues to dwindle, Senate Democrats refused to support a bipartisan tax package which included proposals from both Republican and Democrat lawmakers. Many of these proposals were designed to level the playing field for local “mom and pop” shops across New Mexico as well as attract new small business to the state. This set of proposals was an example of Democrats and Republicans working together with solutions everyone can agree on. However, the deal fell through and will likely not be revived. One important proposal was extending a tax deduction specifically designed to benefit working families and the elderly who seek expensive medical care, and would have allowed the costs of some medical expenses to be deducted from one’s taxes.
A media mogul’s ranch is a big part of the Mexican Gray wolf debate in New Mexico. Ted Turner owns Ladder Ranch in the Gila Wilderness in southern New Mexico. It’s held gray wolves for decades as part of a plan to re-introduce them, but Game and Fish Department officials said they don`t know what the ranch is up to and how it fits into the recovery program.
U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich joined a group of senators in introducing the Strong Start for America’s Children Act to expand quality preschool programs in New Mexico and throughout the country. The Strong Start for America’s Children Act is a 10-year innovative federal-state partnership to expand and improve early learning opportunities for children from birth to age 5.
