Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 124, No. 79 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
April 2, 2015
Thursday
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Wooley has several bills passed by Legislature By Jeff Tucker Record Staff Writer State Rep. Bob Wooley sponsored 14 bills in the 2015 legislative session in Santa Fe, one of which has been signed into law and three of which await action by the governor. Wooley said Wednesday he’s been informed two of those three bills awaiting the governor’s action have been or would be signed into law soon by the governor, raising his bill enactment count to three. “All in all, I guess I can’t complain,” Wooley said Wednesday. “I had a good session by getting three
bills through and signed by the governor.” On March 17, Wooley had the honor of receiving Gov. Susana Martinez’s first bill signature of the session, when Martinez signed into law House Bill 49. House Bill 49 allows county assessors and treasurers to issue tax notices by email, if the property owner requests electronic notices. The law takes effect July 1. The governor said allowing county assessors and treasurers to send tax notices via email, instead of first-class mail, would save counties money on postage
and reduce the time taxpayers need to respond to notices. House Bill 49 was passed by the New Mexico House of Representatives on Feb. 16 by a 59-0 vote, and adopted by the New Mexico Senate on March 14 by a 39-0 vote. “It passed the House and Senate without a ‘No’ vote,” Wooley said. “I think that was a neat thing.” Wooley, R-Roswell, also sponsored three other bills that were passed by both the Republican-controlled House and the Democrat-controlled Senate, and await the governor’s signature or veto.
Wooley sponsored House Bill 348, which would add language to state law allowing county commissioners to increase annual incentive pay for appraisers in the offices of county assessors between $1,500 to $3,000, based the level of appraiser certificates. “Under current law, the additional incentive pay for holding a certificate of appraiser 2, 3, or 4 is limited to an additional $1,000 per year,” states a fiscal impact report of the bill prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee. House Bill 348 passed the House on March 7 by a 62-0 vote and passed the
Senate on March 17 by a 41-0 vote. It awaits the governor’s official action. However, Wooley said Wednesday he’s been informed the governor had signed House Bill 348, although the governor’s office had not made the announcement as of press time Wednesday. The governor has 20 days from the March 21 end of the 2015 legislative session to sign or veto legislation approved by both the House and Senate. The deadline to do either is noon April 10. Any legislation not signed within the 20-day window is pocket-vetoed and there-
by not enacted. House Bill 431, sponsored by Wooley, also awaits the governor’s action after passing the House on Feb. 26 by a 59-0 vote and passing the Senate on March 19 by a 31-5 vote. House Bill 431 would provide an exception to concealed carry firearm fees and firearms training course requirements for current members of the New Mexico Mounted Patrol. The bill was amended in the Senate to broaden the exceptions to retired members of the NMMP, any law enforcement officer, a See WOOLEY, Page A3
Egg hunt to feature the Easter Bunny
Bouncin’ around
Staff Report
Timothy P. Howsare Photo
Cayson Fax, 5, and his aunt, Colette Moody, both of Roswell, enjoy spending quality time together Wednesday on that bouncing thingamajigger at Spring River Park and Zoo. Thingamajigger is a real word to those of us who have read Dr. Seuss books. Cayson is homeschooled but proudly announced that he gets to take a spring break just like the kids who are schooled in the classroom. Commenting on the weather, Cayson said, “It’s hot out!”
Kids will have the chance to hunt for candy and meet with the Easter Bunny this Saturday. The annual Easter Egg Hunt, hosted by the Parks and Recreation Department, will start at 10 a.m. at Spring River Park and Zoo. The event has been going on since before 1997, said Sara Hall, Yucca Recreation Center recreation leader. “It’s been going for quite awhile,” she said. In the past, kids were separated by age group. Each age group had its own section of the park and kids searched for eggs at the same time. This year, each age group will go at a different time to make the event a little longer, Hall said. “It’s hard on families who have, say a child in the 8- 10-year-old age group and then a child in the 4- 5-year-old age group,” she said. “They’re having to be in two different areas.”
By having each age group go at a different time, parents can relax and watch their children hunt for eggs. While the hunts are going on, there will also be sack races, boon races, three-legged races, a hula hoop contest and an egg toss. The Parks and Recreation Department paired with MainStreet Roswell this year for the event, so people can come to the Easter Egg Hunt and practice their racing skills before heading to the courthouse lawn and entering those races. Hall estimates a couple thousand families will come to the hunt this year. She said there will be small prizes and kids can meet the Easter Bunny. The train and the carousel will not be running this year, Hall said. “It’s a lot of fun,” she said.
Land office signs Forecasters: Weather creating optimal SE NM land deals conditions for wildfires throughout NM
Staff Report
SANTA FE — New Mexico State Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn has signed unitization agreements with five southeastern New Mexico landowners to increase access to state trust lands for sportsmen and decrease the potential for trespassing on private lands. Dunn said the agreements he signed, representing 11,030 acres, will also provide private landowners greater opportunities for better game management.
“Anytime we can work together to provide better opportunities for improving access for our sportsmen, and decrease potential conflict, it’s good for all,” Dunn said in a news release. “I appreciate the continued cooperation of the landowners, sportsmen, and the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish in making this happen.” Under the agreements, five landowners in southeastern New Mexico signed See LAND, Page A3
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Forecasters are warning that low humidity and strong winds are creating critical conditions for wildfires in much of New Mexico. The National Weather Service says a red flag warning is in effect into late Wednesday in west-central New Mexico and along and east of the central mountain chain. The service also issued a fire weather watch for Thursday afternoon and evening for much of northern and cen-
tral New Mexico due to strong winds and low humidity. Meanwhile, the Albuquerque Fire Department said investigators determined that four fires in the wooded area along the Rio Grande on Tuesday were mostly likely human caused. The fires were contained within 40 minutes. AP Photo
Fire fighters head to battle a grass fire Tuesday in Bosque.
RPD hopes to add SRO, enhance contact between children and law enforcement Submitted by RPD Increasing positive contact with students in Roswell schools and reaching out to all citizens to gain their trust, as well as their help in addressing crime issues, while also focusing on dealing with known highcrime areas, are among the initiatives the Roswell Police Department is carrying out to help reduce and prevent crime. Police Chief Phil Smith discussed these efforts and plans during a recent interview with radio stations KSVP and KTZA. He spoke about the department’s hopes to be able to add
a fourth school resource officer to its roster by the time the next school year begins in August. RPD currently has three SROs, with one based at Roswell High School and one at Goddard High School, while the third SRO splits time between the two middle schools (Sierra and Mesa) that are within the city limits. Adding another SRO would enable RPD to provide each in-city middle school with its own SRO. The ultimate goal is to eventually add a fifth SRO that could serve University High School and other schools. Currently, the three SROs also respond to
elementary schools as needed. Chief Smith wants to see kids graduate without a criminal record already in place. He believes “positive interaction with the police” can help that occur, as well as reduce future crime by pointing these students toward better life choices and promoting productive options for them to pursue when they leave school. “I want my officers to engage the younger people of this community, not just as enforcement personnel, but as a resource for them, a role model for them,” the chief said. “I want to display the talent I have in
Today’s Forecast
Today’s Obituaries Page A6
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• Earsley “Chico” Barnett III • Lester Glass
this building (the police station) and I want it to be utilized by the younger people in the community before they’ve made the bad decision.” RPD is also addressing issues in the general community in various ways. One initiative is what Smith describes as the “allocation of resources at the problem (area),” meaning RPD is having some officers each shift spend a little extra time patrolling and talking to people in the areas that crime data has identified as “hot spots” for criminal activity. It’s part of the department’s “investment of resources in the neighborhoods,”
according to Smith. “We’re going to allocate our resources in the police department at the target,” he explains, “places where the targets (criminals) are causing the problems.” And the utilized resources are not limited to policing alone. RPD is working with other city departments to make the most of turning troubled areas into better places. Smith points to things such as more lighting, enhanced traffic flow and improved parks as ways to try to make positive changes in neighborhoods that could use that type of boost. Index
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