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Report shows CYFD needs a fresh start

On April 8, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez released a scathing 224-page report by the New Mexico Department of Justice of the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department and the department’s negligent mishandling of child abuse and neglect children cases. The report highlights in graphic detail case studies of child abuse and child neglect. The NMDOJ’s investigation points unmistakably to one conclusion: CYFD wholly abandoned child safety as its guiding principle to preserve the family unit at all cost.

Upon release of the report, CYFD and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham made excuses and claimed progress over the last seven months. The claims of progress were offensive in comparison to the preventable mental and physical damage that has been inflicted upon New Mexico’s children over so many decades because of poor performance and dereliction of duty by CYFD.

Enough is enough. The level of corruption and dereliction of duty by CYFD to New Mexico's children is so extensive over so many decades that it would be best to abolish the department and start all over because of the level of incompetence and physical and mental injury inflicted to so many children. All the suffering of New Mexico’s children was preventable and must be stopped immediately, and damned be the excuses by CYFD and the governor.

New Mexico courts need to intervene with a complete takeover of CYFD with the appointment of a special master to bring the department under control until the Legislature can act. The New Mexico Legislature needs to step in and abolish the CYFD and create a new, independent agency that is overseen by a governing board, much like what has been proposed by New Mexico Speaker of the House Javier Martínez.

Pete Dinelli

Albuquerque

Federal policies are creating higher levels of greenhouse gases

The entire front page of the featured three articles under the headline “The changing West,” about this winter’s record-breaking warm weather in the western ����������ϼ� States. The consequences include low snowpack, changes in wildlife behavior, increased risk of rivers drying up, water shortages and a “nasty fire season.”

Human actions creating higher levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere caused the warmer weather. We have the power to change our behaviors to reduce greenhouse gases. As we observe Earth Day on April 22, we should take action to slow global warming in every way that we can.

Regrettably, the Trump administration and its Republican allies in Congress are doing everything in their considerable power to increase greenhouse gas emissions and thus accelerate the warming patterns we’re already seeing.

The Trump administration has rescinded the Environmental Protection Agency’s greenhouse gas endangerment finding. This decision effectively eliminates the EPA as the federal government’s primary force for limiting greenhouse gas emissions.

The Trump administration is overturning restrictions on oil and gas drilling on federal public lands, including in the area around Chaco Canyon. It has weakened rules on methane releases from oil and gas production, and promoted coal-fired and natural gas-fired electric generation stations.

The Republican-controlled Congress passed Trump’s so-called One Big Beautiful Bill, eliminating financial incentives for renewable energy generation and for consumers to buy electric vehicles. Congress also eliminated the authorization for states to encourage consumers to purchase vehicles with lower emissions.

The next time we break high temperature records, remember that actions taken by the Trump administration and its Republican allies are bringing you higher temperatures.

Contact your members of Congress, urge them to protect your right to vote, and be sure to vote, with the goal of changing policies that now promote greenhouse gas emissions.

John Maddaus 

Albuquerque

GOP won’t be able to sway far-left voters

As noted in Brandon Vogt's well-written piece on the ineffectiveness of the GOP in New Mexico, the Democratic Party here has been hijacked by the far-left fringe. Our state is rich with oil and gas revenue which makes for a perfect environment for giving away free stuff, which is the anchor for the far left. Even before Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham achieved free child care — and now gubernatorial candidate Deb Haaland pushing free universal health care — a large percentage of New Mexicans were on some kind of welfare. Any platform that the GOP could come up with will not sway voters who love free stuff. It appears as if this train has left the station.

Gary Hays

Bernalillo

SIC funds should purchase majority share of PNM

I am writing in reference to the proposal before the Public Regulation Commission for Blackstone Infrastructure to purchase TXNM Energy, the parent company of Public Service Company of New Mexico. I am a lifelong Albuquerque resident, and my husband and I chose to settle and raise our children here. We hope that our children will choose to return to New Mexico after college and contribute to our beautiful state.

New Mexico is unique in many ways, including the diversity of our population and the way diverse individuals and groups work together to make life livable for everyone. Public ownership of PNM is a better option than allowing Blackstone to control our access to electricity. The New Mexico State Investment Council manages over $70 billion in assets, and could acquire a 51% share of PNM for less than 4% of its assets. The SIC is a public entity, so revenue generated by PNM would return to the state, and New Mexicans would have a say in how PNM operates — how it spends its money and how it treats its customers.

This means that we would have voting power over things like rate hikes, disconnecting the electricity of vulnerable citizens, and whether or not PNM will invest in and devote energy and money to data centers which deplete our resources and sully our beautiful landscape. Contrast this with Blackstone, a private equity firm whose first responsibility is to investors including Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. In pursuit of profit, Blackstone has a track record of exploiting and failing its customers and its workers.

The PRC can do better. Public ownership of PNM will allow (even require) ratepayers to be treated with fairness and dignity, and profits will return to the state making life better for everyone.

Brigid Ovitt

Albuquerque