Morning Word: La Frontera's Future Uncertain

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ore groups want the governor to call a special session. That, plus a behavioral health provider from Arizona is still figuring out whether to stay or go. Plus, we've got more news by the numbers and the obligatory April Fool's Day spoofs, which we promise includes no rotten

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It's Wednesday, April 1, 2015

The status of one of those Arizona-based outpatient mental health and substance abuse service providers is still uncertain. Officials at La Frontera plan to decide their future operational plan here later this week.

Read more at the Las Cruces Sun-News.

Services have already been cut back in Chaves County after another Arizona company, Turquoise Health and Wellness, closed. New Mexico Public Health Project reporter Marisa Demarco has details on how the state is filling the void there. Listen to her report here.  KUNM’s call-in show tomorrow will have panelists on to discuss how difficult it can be getting health care to rural New Mexicans and how telemedicine and the Internet are helping to solve the problem. Read a preview here.  Three bills that will protect children and victims of violent crime will become law after clearing Gov. Susana Martinez' desk. Read it at the Santa Fe New Mexican  Business groups and the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce are encouraging Martinez to call a special session to approve capital outlay money and a new tax package. Read more at Albuquerque Business First.  U.S. Border Patrol agents working close to the Columbus Port of Entry have rescued a 12-year-old girl from a group of immigrant smugglers who were holding her against her will.

The Deming Headlight has more on the rescue.

News by the Numbers:

4 Bosque Fires 

Albuquerque firefighters scrambled to put out four fires in the bosque on Tuesday. The suspicious timing and space between those tiny fires raised some questions Tuesday night about what (or who) started them. Officials were reminding people that camping, open flame cooking and smoking restrictions remain in place year-round. [

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Not 1 

District Attorney Kari Brandenburg says the Albuquerque Police Department hasn't forwarded her office one police officer-involved shooting to review in months.

Jeff Proctor has a list of the cases Brandenburg is still waiting to be sent to her office. [

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4-Year Extension 

The US Department of Education has granted New Mexico a four-year extension to its “No Child Left Behind” waiver. The governor says the feds recognize her efforts to help struggling students. New Mexico joined Virginia, Minnesota, North Carolina and Kentucky in receiving this fast-tracked waiver extension. [

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$9.75 Electric Bill Bump 

If the Public Service Company of New Mexico gets its 16 percent residential rate increase, customers will pay, on average, $9.75 more a month for their energy. The Public Regulation Commission still has to approve the deal, but a renewable energy group and the Albuquerque water utility want regulators to require PNM to resubmit their rate case due to math errors and lack of details. [

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10 Top Santa Fe Water Guzzlers 

Justin Horwath has the annual list of the top water users in Santa Fe. [

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$165 Million Jury Award 

Yesterday, attorneys for FedEx and the relatives of a family killed by a delivery truck on I-10 haggled over details of the state’s largest jury award. The shipper told District Judge Francis Mathew they plan to post a bond on the total amount while it appeals the verdict. [

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7,700 Acres of  Green Chile 

The green chile war with Colorado may be escalating, but New Mexico’s hot stuff still rules. Stuart Dyson found out the US Department of Agriculture doesn’t even count Colorado chile production, and Colorado’s own state Agriculture Department treats it like a garden vegetable, not a crop. Dyson reports that consumers who want the authentic stuff should look for the official New Mexico Green Chile label on their packages. [

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28 Percent Less Gas 

As part of a global treaty aimed at preventing the worst effects of climate change, the US will pledge to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by up to 28 percent. [

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523 Years Late 

Spain is about to offer citizenship to 2.2 million descendants of Jews expelled from the country in 1492 because they wouldn’t convert to Catholicism. [

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It’s April Fool’s Day, and political blogger Joe Monahan has all the spoof news you can stand.

Read all the silliness here. 

Santa Fe Reporter