Recently, a report was published by the Legislative Finance Council regarding a funding method utilized by New Mexico Department of Game and Fish to compensate landowners for conservation practices essential to maintaining critical habitat provided to wildlife on their private property. The report prompted Sen. Martin Heinrich to write a critical letter outlining his disapproval, as well as an article by the Albuquerque Journal. Designed with input from numerous stakeholders, the Elk Private Land Use System has taken the NMDGF decades to perfect and has been credited as a model system among other western hunting states.

EPLUS provides landowners with elk hunting authorizations through...

Food Insecurity, Depression Among the Biggest Problems

ALBUQUERQUE, — New Mexico performs well on access to health care, but is falling short on food security and mental wellness, according to the recent household data in Kids, Families and COVID-19: Pandemic Pain Points and a Roadmap for Recovery, a 50-state report developed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation analyzing how families are faring during the COVID-19 crisis.

This KIDS COUNT report examines data from weekly surveys conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau that demonstrate how families across the country are challenged to meet basic needs during the public health crisis while managing school, work, and mental health. The...

Editor’s pics : Top 5 story categories for 2020

Because the COVID lifecycle generated many stories in many categories in 2020 from the declaration of the global pandemic to how it impacted the economy, closed the schools, overwhelmed the hospitals and medical centers, the competition to get personal protective equipment and ventilators, the realization that certain populations were hit harder due to poverty, race-related factors and pre-existing medical conditions, alcoholism, homelessness and cultural issues found on the reservations, including lack of running water and crowded lifestyles, it was hard to choose a single story to represent all of these and more.

So, I chose TWO: The...