FBI agents are investigating how a left-leaning political action committee obtained hundreds of e-mails sent to Martinez, her staffers and advisers through an e-mail address linked to the governor’s 2010 campaign for office.

This is a place where you can bring your gun almost anywhere. You can even carry your weapon openly in the Capitol, if you wish — one of only a few states that allows open or concealed carry in their statehouses, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

A number of states have proposed legislation to oppose the orders," he said. New Mexico is the forefront with a bill introduced by the county's legislative delegate, State Rep. Nora Espinoza, R-Roswell. House Bill 114 contends the executive orders violate the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, violate the true meaning and intent of the country's founders and that the state has a duty to prevent any infringement on those rights, he said. "The resolution requests the legislature adopt measures necessary to nullify any federal regulations adopted in violation of the Second Amendment," Morel said.

Eight uniformed officers of the Otero County Sheriff’s Office put up yellow crime-scene tape around the Chaparral polling place. Then they intimidated volunteers whose only mission was to make sure voters could stick it out long enough to exercise their right to cast a ballot, said Mariaelena Johnson of the community group New Mexico Café.

Today, Smith has the same cautions for Martinez, a Republican who wants to reduce the highest corporate income tax rate by one-third, to 4.9 percent from 7.6 percent, at a cost of $130 million to the general fund, according to estimates. It is those estimates that make Smith uneasy as he points out that two recent tax-relief measures for businesses have cost more than expected: the credit for high-wage jobs (passed under the Richardson administration) and a break to manufacturers on gross-receipts tax calculations (passed last session). In both cases, the tax cuts far exceeded what lawmakers were told.

Oversight of New Mexico’s State Use Act is missing some key elements that citizens expect from the government, such as accurate meeting minutes and records about contractors. It’s also missing a key element that a government board expects from the government: help.

Santa Fe Police Department officers collected about 225 guns by 2 p.m. during the second no-questions asked gun buy-back program sponsored by the city of Santa Fe. The event was held at the police department’s south-side station on Camino Entrada.

I propose in a new blog to publish from you, the reader, some of your favorite political stories. I only ask that you mail them to me at NMPoliticalLore@gmail.com. I will not edit them nor change them, but this process will allow for some discretion in keeping away some crazy stuff. You may have a byline or not but the comments page will be open for other views.

His goals include trying to fix what he sees as what’s ailing APS, he says. And that boils down to too many students in each class, not enough classrooms and not enough opportunities for students to achieve career goals. He’s also a big supporter of charter schools.

“For me, the big thing is money,” Quezada said. “We need more teachers with smaller classes, and we need more choices. Is that too simple? I don’t know yet. It seems like it would be easy.”

New county treasurer Laura Montoya explained the tax loophole to commissioners during Thursday night’s county commission meeting. The loophole was an unintended consequence that has arisen when a lot is divided or combined, resulting in property owners being legally obligated to pay only the first of two yearly payments after making changes to the property, and not having to pay taxes the following year once that property has been sold.

An ad hoc committee is pushing a series of projects aimed at honoring the late-George I. Sanchez, a scholar credited with helping bring attention to the plight of poor Mexican-Americans in the 1930s. Those projects include naming a street and building after Sanchez, said Luisa Duran, a retired University of New Mexico bilingual education professor.