Berkeley

Is Santa Fe’s proposed soda tax a sweet deal for kids?

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Next month, Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales may face the biggest test of his mayoral career so far as voters decide whether or not to approve a tax increase on sugary beverages that he’s championed. The idea is to tax sugary beverages 2 cents per ounce. That money will pay for 1,000 spots in existing pre-kindergarten education facilities around the city for children of low-income families. Matt Ross, a spokesman with the mayor’s office, said that the city doesn’t need to use the additional revenue to create a public early childhood education program because of existing private and nonprofit preschools in Santa Fe. “The capacity is there, there’s just a lack of affordability,” Ross said in an interview.

Immigration

Santa Fe weighing lawsuit against government over ‘sanctuary city’ executive order

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The city of Santa Fe hasn’t made a decision on whether or not to sue the federal government over its sanctuary city status, but it is an option on the table. This comes after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to withhold federal funding from “sanctuary jurisdictions.”

“We are working on our legal strategy to clarify our standing, marshal our strongest possible arguments, and consider ways to address the executive order on so-called Sanctuary Cities,” city spokesman Matt Ross said in a statement. “One of those avenues may very well be a lawsuit, so it’s certainly on the table, but we’re not there yet.”

The city of San Francisco sued the federal government last week over Trump’s executive order. Ross noted that City Attorney Kelly Brennan brought up the issue at a city council meeting Wednesday night. “There was a good discussion and general agreement to get that process started, to have conversations with the legal community in Santa Fe and with advocates like the ACLU, and then to report back to the Council for a final decision,” Ross said.

Bill Richardson

Richardson cited for failing to report accident

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The city of Santa Fe has confirmed that former Gov. Bill Richardson was cited for failure to report an accident, though said there were few details. City of Santa Fe spokesman Matt Ross said that it was his understanding that the accident took place this morning, but did not have the exact time. Related Story: More details from the police report. KOB-TV was the first to report on the accident by the former governor. The officer has not filed a police report yet and there will be more details when that happens.

Susana Martinez

AUDIO: Governor calls 911 after hotel asks her to be escorted off property

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Eldorado Hotel staffers called police in Santa Fe this weekend after a loud party. Then, someone identifying herself as Governor Susana Martinez demanded to know why police were called, insisting she and others were just “eating pizza.”

Related Story: See Gov. Martinez’s response to media outlets following this report. Update: The City of Santa Fe released more audio. NM Political Report obtained audio of three calls to police. One was from the front desk of the hotel, saying those in the room had been warned multiple times and asked for police to come and escort those in the room off the property.