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Everyone keeps moving away

What in stagnation?

Well, it's probably good news for the water. New Mexico's population has been nearly unchanged since 2010. Some elements of that have a bit of a silver lining, such as lower birth rates. But it's problematic when demographers look at who's leaving: professionals and their families. Since the end of the recession, New Mexico has ranked 48th nationally in the growth of business and professional jobs.

AG goes after Griego’s pension

For his 19 sessions in the Senate, Phil Griego gets a mostly taxpayer-funded pension of roughly $1,350 a month. After a jury convicted him last week of four felonies and a misdemeanor in his public corruption trial, the attorney general is asking a judge to stop those payments. Griego made a fraudulent $50,000 commission on the sale of a state-owned building.

ARCA investors nervous

Authorities arrested ARCA Space Corporation founder Dumitru Popescu last week on fraud and embezzlement charges. The alleged crimes relate to a transaction with a Chicago-based company, and now local investors in the upstart aerospace company are worried they may be holding greatly diminished shares in the company. ARCA offered New Mexico residents a stake in the company, which has developed a single-stage rocket capable of reaching low orbit, as well as nascent hoverboard technology. Popescu was still in jail as of the weekend.

Shattered faith

It's been a while since a judge unsealed hundreds of pages of records from the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, giving an unprecedented look at how the church dealt with accusations of sexual abuse by priests. The release happened after local TV station KOB asked the court to release the documents. A fair bit has already been reported by other news outlets, but here's the start of KOB's series.

Lone GOP candidate bows out of lieutenant gov’s race

Kelly Zunie says she hasn't lived in New Mexico for five years straight, as is required to run for lieutenant governor. So, she's backing out of the race. Zunie was the only candidate for Republicans, who will now have to find someone to put on the ticket with presumptive nominee (so far) Steve Pearce.

More pre-K

So, we're pretty clear on not paying for expanded pre-kindergarten programs with a tax on sugary drinks, but the state still says putting money into early childhood education is a wise investment. A staffer delivered that analysis to a panel of lawmakers, pointing out that kids who have some experience in a school setting before kindergarten do better than their peers. A word of caution from that report: Not just any old system will do. Analysts urge money be prioritized for districts that do pre-K the right way.

Champs!

The University of New Mexico women's cross country team won its second national title in the past three years on Saturday, and Ednah Kurgat won the individual title for the Lobos. Kurgat dominated the field and set an NCAA record en route to her win. The Lobos put four runners in the top 14, a crazy feat, and bested a tough field to claim just the third national title for all sports in the school's history.

Excuse me, sunny

Fall just keeps on keeping on here in the Land of Enchantment. In Santa Fe this week, it'll be sunny and rather chilly at night, but high temperatures will climb back up into the low 60s by Thanksgiving—perfect for backyard football, a turkey trot, a walk around the neighborhood, or passing out in a recliner in a turkey coma.

Thanks for reading! The Word should probably at least try to go for a jog.

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