New Mexico in Focus (A Production of NMPBS)

NMiF senior producer Matt Grubs talks about New Mexico’s pretrial detention conundrum with the director of the Administrative Office of the Courts, Artie Pepin. The office recently asked UNM social researchers to evaluate the 2nd Judicial District Court’s (Bernalillo County) effectiveness at keeping the right people free until trial, an innocence-before-guilt approach reinforced with a voter-approved 2016 change to the state constitution. While prosecutors and police say New Mexicans are safer with more people locked up as they await a decision on their innocence, Pepin says the study suggests otherwise.

Source New Mexico launched it's website more than a month ago. An independent, nonprofit news organization, the organization says it's goal is to shine a light on governments, policies and public officials so readers get the information they need to make choices. We get more on the Source's mission and meet the editorial team (taken from a Facebook Live event).

Host

Gene Grant

Correspondent

Matt Grubs

Guests:

Artie Pepin, director, Administrative Office of the Courts

Marisa DeMarco, Source NM

Austin Fisher, Source NM

Shaun Griswold, Source NM

Pat Lohmann, Source NM

Chris Fitzimmon, States Newsroom 

The Line opinion panel breaks down the latest campaign finance numbers in the governor’s race. While the general election is still a year away, the most recent reporting period sheds new light on the Republican primary field. State Rep. Rebecca Dow says her $440,000 take makes her the frontrunner. Meanwhile, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham took in $2.5 million as she looks to build an unassailable war chest.

The groups also explores the problem of a burned-out, stressed-out health care workforce. New Mexico’s health care system wasn't in the best of shape even before the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in rural parts of the state. Now, many health care workers are leaving the profession. Are vaccine mandates contributing to the exodus or is it mostly due to overwhelmed workers in an overwhelmed system?

New Mexicans love to get outside and hit the hiking or bike trails and explore our varied landscapes. But for people without cars, it’s next to impossible to reach most hiking trails, even state parks or national parks here in the state. For young men of color, there are even more challenges to feeling safe and comfortable outside. This month we head out with Together for Brothers, which works on issues like transit equity and raising young men of color to lead in their own communities—including to lead their friends and family members out to the trails.

With the IATSE strike deadline of Monday threatening to shut down film and television production, Gene Grant speaks with Gene Maddaus, a senior media reporter from Variety, and with local union members to find out what’s at stake and what workers are demanding from producers and studios. The movie and television industry’s largest union voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike by “below-the-line" workers who do things like set dressing, lighting and accounting.

Host

Gene Grant

Correspondent

Laura Paskus

Line Opinion Panel:

Merritt Allen, Vox Optima public relations

Sophie Martin, attorney

H. Diane Snyder, former state senator

Guests:

Gene Maddaus, senior media reporter, Variety

Jessica Hoffman, IATSE Local 480 field representative

Shaun Garcia, IATSE Local 480 member

Christopher Ramirez, Executive Director, Together for Brothers

David Grubbs, Jr., Together for Brothers

Alejandro Villezcas, Together for Brothers

Some 60,000 behind-the-scenes workers in the film industry could soon walk off the job, after a historic vote from union members to approve a possible strike. Many of those employees live and work right here in New Mexico, and are members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE). It's a union that is more than 100 years old, and never dealt with a situation quite like this. 

The standoff is over working conditions, from pay and health care benefits, to limits on work hours, breaks and weekend turnaround. Negotiations continue behind closed doors, but we wanted to get to the bottom of the disagreement and what the potential impacts of a strike could be here in the Land of Enchantment.  

Host

Gene Grant

Guests

Gene Maddaus, enterprise reporter, Variety magazine

Liz Pecos, president, IATSE Local480

Marisa Frantz, Secretary-Treasurer IATSE Local480

Jessica Hoffman, Field Representative IATSE Local480

Shaun Garcia, IATSE Local480 member

This week on New Mexico in Focus, as voting begins in local elections across the state, NMiF teams with the New Mexico Black Voters Collaborative to present a mayoral forum in the state’s largest city. Incumbent Mayor Tim Keller has three challengers, including one write-in candidate. The other two challengers – Eddy Aragon and Manny Gonzales – joined Keller on stage at Highland High School to talk about key issues and styles of governance. The event was hosted by Cathryn McGill, frequent panelist on The Line and founder of the New Mexico Black Leadership Council. 

Hosts:

Guests: 

Standardized testing was so sparse in New Mexico in 2020 and 2021 that the state isn’t bothering to release last year’s testing results. COVID protocols and remote learning caused the lack of usual standardized measurements, but it’s easy to see that students have fallen way behind in reaching grade-level markers in math and reading. New Mexico’s public education budget is $3 billion. How is that money best spent to increase student achievement? The Line panelists discuss possible tactics.

Former state senator and lifetime activist Dede Feldman gets personal in her latest book, “Ten More Doors.” While she and her husband have lived in New Mexico for decades, Feldman recalls learning about her Albuquerque North Valley neighborhood by knocking on the front doors of the people who lived near her and being willing to engage in their lives.

This month, the state’s Climate & Water Science Advisory Panel released a report, “Climate Change in New Mexico over the Next 50 Years: Impacts on Water Resources,” that’s going to help guide the state’s 50-year water plan. Environmental Correspondent Laura Paskus discusses the study with Tricia Snyder of WildEarth Guardians and let's you know how you can get involved and make sure your voice is heard in those planning processes. 

Line Panel:

Dan Foley, former state representative

Laura Sanchez, attorney

Michael Bird, public health expert

Guests:

Dede Feldman, Author “Ten More Doors: Politics and the Path to Change”

Early and absentee voting is just days away for many New Mexicans, including in Albuquerque, where voters will be picking a mayor. This week, New Mexico in Focus livestreamed the New Mexico Black Voters Collaborative Candidate Forum with incumbent Tim Keller and challengers Manny Gonzales and Eddy Aragon. The Line opinion panelists break down the race so far, and offer predictions about whether or not the campaign to lead New Mexico’s largest city is headed to a run-off election.

With Balloon Fiesta just around the corner, this is the time of year when eyes are drawn upward to our beautiful fall skies. But, the safety and oversight of the ballooning community is also drawing plenty of attention as a National Transportation Safety Board investigation continues into a deadly crash last summer. Senior Producer Matt Grubs talks with the founder of a local balloon tour company, Rainbow Ryders, about what changes he’d like to see and why some companies choose to monitor their pilots more closely than the industry requires.

Correspondent Russell Contreras (also the race and justice reporter for Axios) speaks with recent “Genius Grant” winner, MacArthur Fellow Monica Muñoz Martinez. The educator and public historian was awarded the prestigious fellowship earlier this week for her work to address racial injustice, particularly anti-Mexican violence in border territories. The pair talks about the common threads between 19th, 20th and 21st century incidents and how the past informs the way America views power.

Line Panel:

Dan Foley, former state representative

Laura Sanchez, attorney

Michael Bird, public health expert

Guests:

Scott Appelman, President & CEO, Rainbow Ryders

Monica Muñoz Martinez, University of Texas Historian

Riley Gardner, Santa Fe Reporter

It's been another challenging year for New Mexico’s farmers and ranchers, who have experienced drought and, in some places, extreme precipitation events. New Mexico Department of Agriculture Secretary Jeff Witte spoke with environment reporter Laura Paskus about conditions and what they mean for farmers, as well as consumers. Witte also talks about how what’s happening in the Colorado River Basin, cannabis, climate change, and the “highest and best” uses of water in the arid Southwest.

New Mexico’s premiere fall event is just days away, and we now know there will not be a vaccination requirement to attend this year’s International Balloon Fiesta. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s administration expressed disappointment over the lack of a vaccine requirement, but Fiesta officials say they are following all CDC guidelines, including social distancing and mask mandates indoors as well as outdoors in large crowds. The Line opinion panel reacts to the decision and discusses how it might set a precedent for other high-profile events in the coming weeks and months.

Plus, we catch up with the chairman of the Citizen Redistricting Committee (CRC), former Supreme Court Justice Edward Chavez, to find out how the once a decade process is going so far, and what comes next. Also joining host Gene Grant are Brian Sanderoff of Research and Polling Inc. and Lilly Irvin-Vitela, the Community Liaison for the CRC. 

Guests:

Jeff Witte, New Mexico Agriculture Department Secretary

Line Panel:

Tom Garrity, The Garrity Group

Martha Burk, political psychologist and author of “Your Voice, Your Vote”

Serge Martinez, UNM Law School

Quannah Chasinghorse is having a moment. The Native model (Hän Gwich’in, Sicangu/Oglala Lakota) walked in several shows during New York Fashion Week and then made a turn on the red carpet at the Met Gala wearing a gold gown and stunning Navajo jewelry. Correspondent Antonia Gonzales speaks with the 19 year old about her environmental activism and bringing more Native voices to the fashion industry.

As passionate as the debate over abortion access can be, there’s little doubt that a new law in Texas will impact New Mexico. Lawmakers in Texas crafted a bill that bans abortions as early as about 6 weeks into a pregnancy. As a result, women are already seeking the procedure in New Mexico. Before the bill, Texas clinics conducted far more abortions annually. Attorney General Hector Balderas recently said the potential impacts to New Mexico women could be significant. The Line opinion panel discusses implications for New Mexico, the coming court challenges, and the impact of local elections.

The Line opinion panel also discusses the final weeks of the Citizen Redistricting Committee’s work to develop recommended maps for the state’s political boundaries and congressional districts. The commission released proposed revisions last week, and now enters a whirlwind tour across the state with 8 public meetings in 11 days. The maps won’t be binding for lawmakers, and the group talks about whether the commission’s maps will carry the weight reformers hope they do.

Guest:

Quannah Chasinghorse, fashion model

Line Panel:

Tom Garrity, The Garrity Group

Martha Burk, political psychologist and author of “Your Voice, Your Vote”

Serge Martinez, UNM Law School

Growing Forward podcast co-hosts Megan Kamerick and Andy Lyman talk to three members of the state’s cannabis regulation advisory board about efforts to provide equitable business opportunities as the state rolls out new recreational cannabis laws.

The Line opinion panel debates vaccine and mask mandates.   Will the federal vaccine mandate make it easier for businesses to lay the blame at the feet of the government? Also, New Mexico has just extended the indoor mask mandate at least through October 15. Will there be more pushback against Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s public health orders?

Kahlil Ekulona is a familiar face and voice to public media audiences across New Mexico. He has worked on segments here at New Mexico in Focus, and also hosted the Your NM Government and No More Normal podcasts at KUNM. He recently took a new job launching a daily talk show at WPLN, the NPR affiliate in Nashville, TN. Host Gene Grant talks with Khalil about the new opportunity and how his time and experiences in New Mexico will impact how he approaches this new gig. 

Correspondents:

Guests:

Dr. Steve Jenison, physician & former NM medical marijuana board chairman  

Khalil Ekulona, former No More Normal host (KUNM)

Line Panel:

Dede Feldman, former state senator  

Growing Forward podcast

When our homes and our forests are threatened, we all appreciate the federal wildland firefighters who show up for us from all over the country. But they face bigger challenges every year, especially as climate change lengthens fire season and spawns bigger and more severe fires. They also face struggles the rest of us never see, including long assignments away from their families and support networks, low pay, and mental health challenges. In this segment, we hear from three current and former federal wildland firefighters from around the West about those problems and potential solutions.

Crime often tops the list of problems facing New Mexicans, yet cities and counties say it’s hard finding enough police officers and deputies to tackle the issue. In Albuquerque, less than half of the force of 959 sworn law enforcers are patrol officers. The Line opinion panel examines police staffing problems in Albuquerque and the rest of the state.

Teacher’s assistants and early childhood educators are key to child well-being, yet workers in those positions are some of the lowest paid. The Line opinion panelists debate a pay plan for teacher’s assistants and early childhood educators.

Host:

Gene Grant

Line Panel:

Dede Feldman, former state senator  

Correspondent:  

Guest:

Marcus Cornwell, federal wildland firefighter

Jonathon Golden, former wildland firefighter

Kelly Martin, President, Grassroots Wildland Firefighters

For More Information:

Grassroots Wildland Firefighters, https://www.grassrootswildlandfirefighters.com/

Wildland Firefighter Foundation, https://wffoundation.org/

U.S. Hotshots Association, https://ushotshots.com/