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Boston Globe
20 hours ago
- Business
- Boston Globe
In one of the country's poorest states, crippling budget cuts loom
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'You couldn't design a budget-reconciliation package that would be worse for the state of New Mexico,' Sen. Martin Heinrich said at a health care forum. Advertisement But after years of robust federal spending in the state, some Republican legislators, who are in the minority in both chambers, are predicting that the new domestic policy bill will help root out waste and provide some tax relief. 'Just take a deep breath,' said state Rep. Mark Duncan, a Republican who sits on a new legislative subcommittee on federal funding. 'This is not going to happen tomorrow, for the most part.' The state estimates that it will lose $2.8 billion annually in Medicaid funding, and as much as $352 million from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which helps low-income families buy groceries. Six to eight rural hospitals could close within the next 24 months. Advertisement And out of roughly 22,000 jobs in state government, more than 2,000 are wholly funded by the federal government, while an additional 3,800 are partially funded, Wayne Propst, secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration, told the funding subcommittee. To be sure, state budgets around the country have been generally strong of late thanks to billions in COVID-19 relief money and a record-breaking stock market. New Mexico has also been buoyed by robust oil and gas revenues. But few sectors of the state will be untouched. The Santa Fe Farmers' Market. MERIDITH KOHUT/NYT Manny Encinias, a cattle rancher and longtime vendor at the Santa Fe Farmers' Market, said some of his customers paid with SNAP food tokens. 'Suddenly, the rug has been pulled out from beneath us,' he said. For now, here's how some New Mexicans are sizing up the new normal: Medicaid and SNAP The New Mexico Health Care Authority, which administers Medicaid and SNAP, estimates that 88,000 residents could lose Medicaid, and 58,000 could lose SNAP. Many officials are worried about bureaucratic snarls and widespread confusion. Paulina Verduzco, 20, a restaurant host in Santa Fe, is already experiencing whiplash. After being uninsured for two years, Verduzco was recently approved for Medicaid. But a few weeks ago, she received a $300 bill for a one-hour intake call, done over Zoom. Panicked, she talked to a case worker and was told it was a mistake. She was also approved for SNAP, and on a recent Saturday at the Santa Fe Farmers' Market, she used her food tokens for the first time. She and her aunt purchased plants for cherry tomatoes, poblano peppers and lemon cucumbers to grow in their own tiny garden. Advertisement But two weeks later, Verduzco received a text informing her that she would no longer be receiving SNAP because she wasn't working enough hours -- even though she has been asking her employer for more hours. She is not sure if the cutoff was a result of the new federal policy, but work requirements are about to become even more stringent. 'You aren't making enough money to receive government money -- make that make sense,' Verduzco said. Gutting SNAP could squeeze the state's Double Up Food Bucks initiative, which enables recipients to buy fresh local produce at half the price, and bolsters ranchers and farmers, said Encinias, who owns Trilogy Beef and Buffalo Creek Ranch in Moriarty, and is also executive director of the Santa Fe Farmers' Market Institute. 'We're going to be impacted significantly,' he said. Nonprofit groups, which have often provided aid that supplemented government programs, are also under pressure. A recent survey of 200 nonprofits commissioned by three New Mexico foundations reported that 20% received at least half of their funding from federal grants -- grants that are now in jeopardy. The Food Depot, which serves northern New Mexico, has already announced that its Regional Farm to Food Bank program is ending. 'Make absolutely no mistake,' Jill Dixon, the group's executive director, said at a recent community meeting. 'The charitable food system cannot compensate for the loss that we are facing.' US Senator Martin Heinrich, Democrat of New Mexico. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Public Lands In a state nicknamed the Land of Enchantment for its striking landscapes and cultural history, outdoor recreation provided 29,000 jobs and generated $3.2 billion in economic impact in 2023. Advertisement To operate on lands controlled by the Bureau of Land Management or the Forest Service, it is necessary to have permits, adequate access points and working restrooms and campgrounds, said Nick Streit, whose father opened the Taos Fly Shop in 1980. But among the federal workers who lost their jobs in the first rounds of layoffs were several who worked on recreation and permitting. Those workers, Streit said, usually bought their waders and other outdoor equipment at local businesses and supported the local guide industry by maintaining standards. 'Those permits are important, because when members of the public come and they hire somebody, they know they're safe, they have insurance, they have training,' said Streit, who is also the executive director of Friends of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. Will Blackstock, who owns Far Flung Adventures, which offers white-water rafting trips on the Rio Grande, said that at the beginning of this summer, 'things were looking very bleak' as a result of the federal budget and staffing cuts, with a significant reduction in the number of river rangers who patrol the nearby Rio Chama, a major tributary of the Rio Grande. One more ranger has been added back since then. 'It's far less than the river program needs, but it is better than we thought it was going to be,' Blackstock said. Conservation group leaders said they were relieved that a plan by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to sell millions of acres of public lands was abandoned after intense pushback, including from many of Trump's supporters. Advertisement But Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins did rescind a long-standing rule prohibiting road construction and timber harvesting in remote areas of federal forests, which conservationists fear will threaten vulnerable species and compromise wilderness values on public lands. The announcement was made in Santa Fe. 'We are so on edge right now, I can't even tell you,' said Garrett VeneKlasen, the northern conservation director of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance. Natural Disasters In New Mexico, concerns often turn to the basics: fire and water. Summers are drier now and extreme heat more frequent, heightening wildfire concerns. Jane Lumsden, whose family has long owned a natural foods store in Las Vegas, New Mexico, lost her custom-built home in the devastating Calf Canyon-Hermit's Peak blaze in 2022. But she is grateful to the experts who predicted the fire's path and to the emergency responders who kept residents regularly apprised of fire dangers. Otherwise, she said, 'People most certainly would have died.' Now, as her family incorporates timber salvaged from their burned home to rebuild across the street, she is worried that the federal cuts could affect reforestation efforts and could make it more difficult to fill thousands of vacant firefighter jobs. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has also lost a quarter of its full-time staff since Trump took office. 'Climate and natural disasters are accelerating and without these kinds of warning systems and support, we will be at risk,' she said. 'Look what happened in Texas.' About 60 miles to the northwest in Chimayo, Champe Green, an elected member of the Santa Fe-Pojoaque Soil and Water Conservation District, worries often about the earthen Cañada De Ancha Dam, one of the state's most dangerous. Advertisement Champe Green near the earthen Canada De Ancha Dam in Chimayo, N.M. MERIDITH KOHUT/NYT Built 60 years ago, the dam has retention ponds that are now so choked with sediment that any significant rainfall could cause overflowing or breaching. An estimated 1,000 people, many of them poor and working-class, live within the potential flood area, according to the federal Department of Agriculture. The state has pledged $8 million to remove the sediment. That funding is contingent, however, on a federal match of roughly $11 million. Congress is considering the appropriation of up to $7 million in watershed rehabilitation funding for the next fiscal year -- for the entire country. 'There's not enough to pay for our one little project, much less all the projects around the country,' said Green, a retired biologist and ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service and the Army Corps of Engineers. And now it is monsoon season. 'If we got 2 inches in an hour, that would be scary,' he said. 'If we had 4 inches in 24 hours, I'd be scared to death.' Arts, Culture and Native Americans Robert K. Meya, general director of the Santa Fe Opera, has his own concerns related to wildfire threats. The opera's annual insurance rates doubled from 2024 to 2025. With its open-air productions each summer, performed against a breathtaking desert backdrop, the opera has installed air-quality sensors to gauge whether it is safe to perform. 'If you cut off the funding for the Forest Service and you're not maintaining these forests correctly,' Meya said, 'then the possibility for a fire will only increase significantly.' Apprentices rehearsed at the Santa Fe Opera. MERIDITH KOHUT/NYT In recent months, a $55,000 federal grant for this summer's premiere of Richard Wagner's 'Die Walküre' has been rescinded (though it is being appealed). And $100,000 spent on installing solar panels, which previously would have been eligible for tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act, may never be recouped. Similar concerns weigh on organizations catering to the arts, education and Native Americans. Rose Eason, a board member of Creative New Mexico, an arts advocacy nonprofit, said at least $1.5 million in federal grants earmarked for two dozen organizations statewide had been terminated. Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute -- one of only two federally run colleges for Native Americans -- is facing a proposed 83% cut in federal funding. And the impending cuts to public broadcasting could shrink funding by 20% for KSUT, one of the country's first tribal radio stations. It provides Indigenous news, music and emergency alerts to rural northwestern New Mexico. 'It's one giant ecosystem,' Meya said. 'No one is immune.' This article originally appeared in
Axios
03-07-2025
- Axios
NWA nonprofits grapple with federal victim aid reductions
Northwest Arkansas nonprofits are facing budget concerns because of a depleted federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) fund, and the region stands to receive a disproportionately low amount of grant money compared to other parts of the state. Why it matters: The organizations at risk provide services to domestic violence and child sex abuse victims, some of NWA's most vulnerable populations. State of play: Just under $7 million is available in total for Arkansas for October 2025 through September 2026, compared to $13 million four years ago, according to documents on the state Department of Finance and Administration's website. Case in point: Springdale-based Peace at Home Family Shelter, which offers emergency shelter, counseling and legal services for domestic violence victims, received $1 million a year prior to 2021, executive director Teresa Mills told Axios. But the most any organization can apply for this year is $250,000, according to the state. Peace at Home has launched an endowment campaign to try to make up for the shortfall, and other organizations are also ramping up fundraising and applying for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission's new Community Assistance Grant Program. VOCA funding accounts for about 17% of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Northwest Arkansas' $1.7 million budget, and the organization anticipates losing the funding will hurt its ability to serve children in foster care, according to CASA's website. The state supplemented some of the VOCA money using federal American Rescue Plan Act funding during the last application cycle in 2023, but Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration spokesperson Scott Hardin confirmed the state will not supplement grants this year. By the numbers: The Children's Safety Center of Washington County's 18 staff members provide free services like counseling and forensic interviewing for children suspected of experiencing sexual abuse that cannot be done by volunteers, executive director Elizabeth Shackelford told Axios. About 740 children received services last year. The Children and Family Advocacy Center in Benton County has applied for $80,000 this year, despite receiving about $280,000 in the past, executive director Natalie Tibbs told Axios. The organization primarily sees children suspected of experiencing abuse and also has a shelter for families, most of whom have experienced domestic violence, Tibbs said. Friction point: While the northwest region includes 14 counties home to a third of the state's population, it will receive a sixth of the remaining VOCA funding because the state is now divided into six geographic regions, compounding the challenge. "We have to turn, in a sense, competitive against each other," Shackelford said, speaking of the other child advocacy centers that typically collaborate with one another as they have a common cause. What they're saying: "VOCA's federal guidelines prohibit direct awards to victims, which is why population levels do not determine award amounts," Hardin told Axios in an email. Flashback: VOCA started in 1984 and is funded by fines paid by people or entities convicted of federal crimes, which have decreased in recent years and resulted in a depleted fund. Former President Biden signed a bill with a plan to give the fund a new source of revenue.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansans consuming more than 6,000 pounds of marijuana a month in 2025
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The most recent figures from the Department of Finance and Administration show marijuana consumption in Arkansas is increasing in 2025. The figures through May of the year show that over 6,000 pounds of marijuana are purchased from state dispensaries each month. Records show that revenue ranges from a low of $21.9 million in February, when 6,069 pounds were sold, to a high of $25.5 million in May, when dispensaries sold 6,744 pounds. May is the last month tabulated so far for 2025. Smoke it or eat it, cannabis is bad for your heart, new research shows The total pounds of marijuana in 2025 through May is 32,474, up from 30,000 for the same period in 2024. Officials stated that the total revenue for the period from Jan. 1 to May 31 is $121 million, collected by the state's 37 dispensaries. Revenue totals represent a $7.2 million increase from the 2024 figures for the same period. DFA spokesperson Scott Hardin said marijuana sales are putting millions of dollars into Arkansas through tax revenue. 'Tax revenue from medical marijuana is averaging $2.68 million a month in 2025, also an increase over last year,' Hardin said. 'With daily medical marijuana sales averaging $806,000, we are on track to surpass the 2023 sales record of $283 million.' Secretary of state disqualifies Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment over signature questions Hardin said the state has 109,854 active medical marijuana patient cards. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansas medical marijuana sales 'on track' to reach new high, DFA says
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Medical marijuana sales in Arkansas topped $121 million through May, setting a pace that could break the state's annual sales record. Medical marijuana sales in Arkansas totaled $121,024,696 from January through May 2025—an increase of about $7.2 million compared to the same period last year, according to the Department of Finance and Administration. During those five months, dispensaries sold 32,474 pounds of product, up from roughly 30,000 pounds in early 2024. Monthly sales broke down as follows: January: $23.6 million February: $21.9 million March: $25 million April: $24.9 million May: $25.5 million So far this year, tax revenue from medical marijuana is averaging $2.68 million per month. Daily sales are averaging $806,000, which puts the state on track to surpass 2023's record of $283 million in total sales, DFA spokesperson Scott Hardin said. In 2024, total sales reached $275.9 million, with dispensaries selling 75,598 pounds of product, up from 62,227 pounds in 2023. The rise in volume was attributed to lower prices, which led to increased purchasing even as total revenue declined. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Arkansas Game and Fish Commission announce new outdoor education pilot program As of the latest count, 109,854 of around three million Arkansans hold active medical marijuana patient cards, according to the Arkansas Department of Health. In April 2025, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders vetoed a bill that would have allowed medical marijuana deliveries via dispensary vehicles or drive-throughs. Sanders said in her veto letter that '[t]his legislation would expand access to usable marijuana, therefore I am vetoing.' On October 21, 2024, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that votes for a medical marijuana expansion measure would not be counted because its ballot language was 'misleading' and did not fully explain the effects. Although early voting had started, the measure stayed on the ballot but any votes cast for it were discarded. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Replacement driver's licenses temporarily processed online as Arkansas officials focus on REAL ID
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways REAL ID Arkansas driver's license (Courtesy of the Department of Finance and Administration) Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration officials announced Wednesday that duplicate driver's licenses can be ordered online and delivered by mail beginning May 12. The temporary online processing of duplicate and replacement licenses and ID cards will allow DFA officials to focus on issuing REAL IDs, according to a press release. New, first-time licenses may still be obtained at any State Revenue Office. Renewals will also continue normally for licenses and IDs within 90 days of expiration, as has been the policy for years, according to the release. As of Wednesday, REAL IDs, which are signified by a gold star on a driver's license or state-issued ID card, are required for Americans boarding domestic flights or entering certain federal buildings. REAL IDs began with a 2005 law passed by Congress in response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Instituting REAL IDs statewide 'will help fight terrorism and reduce identity fraud,' according to the state finance department website. State officials said DFA has issued record numbers of REAL IDs this week, about 10,000 per day, ahead of Wednesday's deadline, according to the press release. More than 132,000 were issued between April 1 and early May. This week, DFA will focus on ensuring those with immediate travel plans have access to a REAL ID, according to the release. The state agency will continue issuing REAL IDs after Wednesday, and Arkansans may obtain a REAL ID at any of the state's 134 Revenue Offices. More information, including what paperwork is needed to obtain a REAL ID, is available on the state finance department's website. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
