MSNBC in 'Full-Blown Freakout' Mode as Bernie Sanders Cements Status as Democratic Frontrunner. ... "Nazi comparisons, commentators near tears, and even a stunning admission that maybe they don't understand the country anymore."  CommonDreams  

(Note: Assange extradition trial begins today) -Roger Waters on Julian Assange  Craig Murray  

Chief magistrate in Assange case received financial benefits from secretive partner organisations of UK Foreign Office. ... The senior judge overseeing the extradition proceedings of WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange received financial benefits from two partner organisations of the British Foreign Office before her appointment, it can be revealed.  Daily Maverick  

Assange’s Extradition Case: Critical Moment for the Anti-war Movement.  CounterPunch  

Chelsea Manning's Lawyers Demand Her Release, Decry 'Punitive' Incarceration. ... "No matter how much you punish me, I will remain confident in my decision," said the whistleblower.  CommonDreams  

Leaked Reports Show EU Police Are Planning a Pan-European Network of Facial Recognition Databases.  Intercept  

New Mexico Sues Google For Collecting Children’s Data In Schools. ... The suit accuses Google of using its “education services package” to spy on children and their families.  HuffPost  

Bloomberg Versus Bernie: The Upcoming Battle?  CounerPunch  

Google to move UK citizens’ data to US, putting it under control of Trump government.  Independent  

The CIA Complicity in Recent Global Atrocities Revealed
TruthDig  

Factchecking NPR’s Attempted Takedown of Bernie Sanders.  FAIR  

‘The only uncertainty is how long we’ll last’: a worst case scenario for the climate in 2050  Guardian  

The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Was a Cover-Up, Not a Cleanup  TruthDig  

Newly Released Database Shows How China Criminalized Muslim Faith. ... The information offers the fullest view yet into how Chinese officials decided who to put into and let out of detention camps.  HuffPost  

Here’s Mike Bloomberg’s Soon-to-Be-Released Higher Education Plan.  Intercept    Related:  Michael Bloomberg's education 'reforms' would be a disaster for public schools. ... Like Trump, Bloomberg is a fervent backer of privatizing and dismantling public schools across the country.  Guardian  

Religion is a Repeating Chapter in the History of Politics.  CounterPunch    Related:  The Wonders of Modern Life Briefly Explained: An Anthropology of the Industrial Revolution.  CounterPunch  

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WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY 21-23, 2020

There are few real heroes in Congress. Betty McCollum, who just put out a statement that refers to AIPAC as a “hate group,” is one of them. Her comments come just days after AIPAC pulled ads that targeted pro-Palestine lawmakers and implied they were worse than the terrorist group ISIS.

Weekend Read: Chaos: Charles Manson, the CIA and the Secret History of the Sixties by Tom O’Neill.  A journalist's twenty-year fascination with the Manson murders leads to shocking new revelations about the FBI's involvement in this riveting reassessment of an infamous case in American history Indie Bound 
Rolling Stone review 

Pardoning Julian Assange: Trump, WikiLeaks and the DNC.  CounterPunch   Related:  Julian Assange case is the Dreyfus of our age, says John McDonnell. ... Shadow chancellor compares US extradition case to 19th-century treason trial  Guardian  Related:  Lawyers to seek asylum for Julian Assange in France. ... Assange’s European defence team say it is their duty to raise case with Emmanuel Macron. Guardian  

Bernie Sanders and the Revenge of the Superdelegates. ... Unless Bernie Sanders wins enough delegates to capture the Democratic Party nomination on the first ballot, he is not going to be the nominee. The reason will be that the superdelegates–those same people who were his wrath in 2016–will come back to deny him the nomination.  CounterPunch  

Mike Bloomberg Ran Stasi-Style Police and Surveillance Operations Against Muslim Americans.  Intercept  

Seeing Through the Lies – US Edition. ... The Guardian has, in a feat of some skill, contrived to give its readers the impression that (Roger) Stone has been convicted for Trump/Wikileaks links, when that is in fact the precise opposite of the truth.    Craig Murray  

NPR and the Escalating Attack on Single-Payer Health Care. CounterPunch    Related:  Trump’s War Budget Slashes Support for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.  Real News Network  

Trump vowed to not cut Social Security and Medicare -- hours before proposing just that The president is either brazenly lying about his 2021 budget or doesn’t know what’s in it.  Vox  

Robert Reich: Trump Could Try to Rig the 2020 Elections. TruthDig  

Economic Update: Capitalism’s Uneven Development. ... an introductory discussion by Professor Wolff on the heavy social costs which flow capitalism's systematically uneven economic development.  Real News Network  

Dr. Justin Frank: "On a fundamental level, Donald Trump does not believe in America" ... Psychoanalyst and author on Trump's "God complex" and our dangerous collective addiction to his unhinged behavior. ... Two weeks ago, the Republican Party crowned Donald Trump a de facto king and dictator through his show trial and "acquittal" in the U.S. Senate. Trump and his regime's enforcers, agents, sycophants and other minions have taken that travesty as permission to launch a full-on assault on the rule of law, the Constitution, democracy and the American people. 
Salon  

Trump’s Acquittal Has Ushered in a New Era of McCarthyist Purges.  TruthOut   

Corporate America Can’t Handle Any Form of Dissent. Shareholder activism is a limited tool for mitigating the worst abuses of corporations. But now, major business groups are fighting to restrict people’s ability to engage even in that.  Jacobin  

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FEBRUARY 20, 2020
US is the supplier for 79% of the world’s weapons trade, 4 times more than the next 9 countries combined…

Donald Trump 'offered Julian Assange a pardon if he denied Russia link to hack'. ... WikiLeaks published emails damaging to Hillary Clinton in 2016. ... Offer claim made at WikiLeaks founder’s extradition hearing.  
Guardian    Related: Trump offered to pardon Assange if he covered up Russian interference in US election, court told. ... Wikileaks founder allegedly has evidence of visit from Republican congressman to Ecuadorian embassy on president’s behalf.  Independent  

Palestinians Reject Trump's Middle East Plan en Masse .  TruthDig  

Even With Corbyn Gone, Antisemitism Threats Will Keep Destroying the UK Labour Party. CounterPunch  
Related:   The electability business: is Bernie Sanders America's Corbyn? ... Jeremy Corbyn and Bernie Sanders have similar histories and similar messages, but where do they differ?  Guardian  

U.S. Judge Sides With Migrants Over ‘Inhumane And Unsanitary’ Border Patrol Conditions. ... The ruling bars the agency from holding migrants more than 48 hours if they’ve been fully processed.  HuffPost  

Migrant Children Are Still Being Detained in Chicago. ... Heartland Alliance describes itself as a human rights and anti-poverty organization; but it operates five child migrant detention centers in the city.  In These Times   

Fox Has Been “More Fair”: Why Bernie’s Team Has Had It With MSNBC. ... The liberal network’s talk of “digital brown shirts” and Fidel Castro admiration has Sandersworld seeing red. (More like “MSDNC,” says Glenn Greenwald). The blowback is classic Sanders-campaign ref-working -- and a sign of a deepening Democratic divide.  
Vanity Fair  

Sinn Fein’s Victory is Ireland’s ‘Brexit Moment’ When Left-Out Voters Turn on the Elite.  CounterPunch    Related:  Sinn Féin’s Day Is Coming... Last Irish election was a historic breakthrough for Sinn Féin, the most-voted party for the first time. An organizer for the party writes how austerity drove a working-class backlash — and how Sinn Féin plans to turn voter revolt into real change.Jacobin

Buttigieg and Centrist Dems Want a Military Response to Climate Change. That’s Dangerous. ... The Pentagon sees climate victims as threats.  In These Times   Related:  War Is an Enormous Threat to the Climate Movement... Unless challenged, U.S. military power imperils any serious response to the climate crisis. In These Times

‘This Is an Apocalyptic Future That We’re Facing’ ... CounterSpin interview with Karl Grossman on the weaponization of space  FAIR  

When Bloomberg News’s Reporting on China Was Challenged, Bloomberg Tried to Ruin Me for Speaking Out.  Intercept  

Bill Barr Is Even Worse Than You Realize
The attorney general is on a tear, shredding the rule of law, just as he threatened he would.  The Nation  

Time Warp UK.  Craig Murray    Related: Cummings and Johnson face backlash over sacking of advisrs.  Guardian  

Trump Is Blowing Up a National Monument in Arizona to Make Way for the Border Wall.  Intercept  

Trump’s Gutting of NEPA Will Cut the Public Out of Public Lands Decisions.  CounterPunch  

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FEBRUARY 19, 2020
MSDNC’s Joy Reid making the case for Bloomberg: “If you wanna beat a Republican you have to know how to fight like a Republican. And he IS a Republican.”

Netanyahu Boasts That He Destroyed Free Speech in America.  ... Netanyahu, who has been indicted for corruption and is facing an election soon, just boasted that his ministry of strategic affairs has managed to undermine First Amendment protections for free speech in the United States by lobbying state legislatures to pass laws forbidding the boycott of Israel.   TruthDig  

Extradition of Assange Would Set a Dangerous Precedent.  TruthOut  

Julian Assange Must be Freed, Not Betrayed.  CounterPunch  

Julian Assange: Australian MPs call on UK to block US extradition. ... Politicians from WikiLeaks founder’s home country have flown to UK to visit him in jail.  Guardian

Donald Trump’s Plan for America: Make it Ignorant.
CounterPunch  

Company Behind Iowa Caucus App Has a Deeply Troubling Plan to Manipulate Voters.  TruthOut      Related:  Docs: Shadow Inc. Directly Tied to Liberal Media Operation. ... “The fact that we are getting framed as nefarious for doing what the right has been doing is bullshit,” said Acronym CEO Tara McGowan.  Vice  

“We Americans claim to be a peace-loving people. We hate bloodshed; we are opposed to violence. Yet we go into spasms of joy over the possibility of projecting dynamite bombs from flying machines upon helpless citizens. We are ready to hang, electrocute, or lynch anyone, who, from economic necessity, will risk his own life in the attempt upon that of some industrial magnate. Yet our hearts swell with pride at the thought that America is becoming the most powerful nation on earth, and that she will eventually plant her iron foot on the necks of all other nations.
Such is the logic of patriotism.” - Emma Goldman

Trump, Barr and the Radical Republicans Are Out for Revenge. ... And Just as Their Biden Derangement Syndrome Gains Traction, the Former Vice President’s Election Prospects Fade.  DC Report  

Timeline: How the DNC Manipulated 2016 Presidential Race. CounterPunch  

Who's Afraid of Democratic Socialism?  TruthDig  

Ralph Nader on Bloomberg’s Plot to Stop Bernie, the Rot Within the DNC, and His Recent Call With Pelosi.  Intercept  

New Hampshire 2020: In Supreme Irony, the Horse Race Favors Bernie Sanders. ...Sanders and Trump are political opposites, but they’re on the same path to victory.  Rolling Stone  

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FEBRUARY 18, 2020
Trump’s 29th Trip To Mar-a-Lago Brings Golf Tab To 334 Years Of Presidential Salary. The president often brags about not taking a paycheck, but his golf hobby has now cost taxpayers $133.8 million.

The New Rules of the Game. ... The quadrennial political game of least worst, or how to scare the public to vote for presidential candidates who serve corporate power, comes this season with a new twist. Donald Trump, if he faces Pete Buttigieg, Joe Biden, Amy Klobuchar or Michael Bloomberg, will continue to be an amalgamation of Adolf Hitler, Al Capone and the Antichrist. But should Bernie Sanders manage to evade the snares, traps and minefields... TruthDid/Hedges  

Rep. Rashida Tlaib: Trump’s “Racist” Plan Would Legalize the Theft of Palestinian Land.  DemocracyNow

Students’ university essays reported to police under ‘overzealous’ government counter-terror measures. ... Exclusive: Free speech is being stifled and trust destroyed because of Prevent, experts say.  Independent  

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APR WATER GRAB - SEC - LOCAL ENVIRO. & NEWS

February 20, 2020 -
Reforming Expectations to Save Western Rivers. ... Recently, former Interior Secretary Babbitt proposed an alternative to the highly controversial yet difficult-to-kill Gila River diversion project, which would dam and divert water from the last free-flowing river in New Mexico  CounterPunch    Related:   Damming the Gila a vampire proposal  Santa Fe New Mexican  

February 20, 2020 -
How the Military is Raiding Public Lands and Civilian Spaces Across the Western Front. CounterPunch  

February 18, 2020 -
(In the view the APR might try to bottle the water) Washington state takes bold step to restrict companies from bottling local water. .... State senate passes bill to ban new permits for water bottling operations, calling process ‘detrimental to public welfare’.  Guardian  

February 13, 2020 -
NM Enviromental Law Center February newsletter
Lawsuit filed over fuel spill at Kirkland Download  

February 12, 2020 -
SEC amends its declaratory judgment filing Chieftain

February 11, 2020 -
The War on Wolves is Part of the Culture War. CounterPunch  

February 5, 2020 -
New Mexico deserves wild, scenic Gila River - Howie Morales, NM Lieutenant Governor.  Chieftain Letter  

February 5, 2020 -
Co-op to vet trustee candidates; intervenes in Tri-State case .  Chieftain   

February 1, 2020 -
New Mexico WIld February newsletter. Download

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January 29, 2020 -
City: No (SEC) permanent agreement is in place.
Chieftain   

January 29, 2020 -
Transparency, independence are fundamentals electrical co-ops need to reinstate. Letter to Chieftain

January 29, 2020 -
Wolves Play a Beneficial Role in Wildlife Management.   CounterPunch  

January 26, 2020 -
Global Groundwater Is Threatened by Unsustainable Practices Amid Climate Crisis . ... As the planet’s thermometer continues to inch upwards, one sought-after resource is only going to increase in value: groundwater.  TruthOut  

January 25, 2020 -
A rewilding triumph: wolves help to reverse Yellowstone degradation  Guardian  

January 24, 2020 -
Trump Rule Threatens New Mexico Waters. NM Enviromental Law Center Green Fire Report     Related: EPA water rule change called disastrous for New Mexico  New Mexican   Related:  EPA, Army finalizes U.S. waters definition; promises water protection, economic growth  WV News  

January 23, 2020 -
Tri-State embraces renewables  Chieftain  

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January 22, 2020 -
Bosque Winter 2020 news letter  

January 16, 2019 -
APR's docketing Statement dated 12/13/19.
Download  

January 15, 2020 -
New Mexico Environmental Law Center Changes in leadership.  Download announcement  

January 9, 2020 -
Where’s the juice? 500 MW line open for business ... With the first annual payment of a $1.9 million “transmission charge,” the Navajo Nation is securing the rights to use or sell access to 500 megawatts of electrical transmission capacity for 35 years starting Dec. 23.  Navajo Times

January 10, 2020 - APR Update -
Below is a brief summary of where we, the community, stand with regard to the Augustin Plains Ranch LLC’s application to mine water in the Plains aquifer.

It’s been quiet, but we know that the APR LLC has appealed Judge Reynolds’ decision denying their application, and we are preparing to meet them in the Appeals court whenever a hearing is scheduled

To that end, we have started spending the money raised to hire a hydrologist. As you may remember, Tom Myers has been here and looked at the situation on the ground. We have now asked him to put together a model of the hydrology of the Plains aquifer so that we can be prepared if the Appellate Court decides there should be a hearing on the substance of the application. I don’t know anyone attempting to say what the Court will do, so we must be prepared for every possibility.

Of course, the best possibility is that this court will agree with Judge Reynolds decision, but we dare not become complacent. This note is to recognize the contributions everyone has made: it is only our determination as a community to keep our water that has carried us this far.
Thanks! Carol Pittman - Datil. Download the message

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December 30, 2019 -
APR Court filing update. Bill of Costs. Certificate of Costs 12/30/19. Download  

December 19, 2019 -
Megafarms and deeper wells are draining the water beneath rural Arizona – quietly, irreversibly  AZ Central

December 17, 2019 -
Court filing update. Docketing Statement court of appeals dated 12/17/19. Download

December 19, 2019 -
Socorro only has month-to-month franchise (SEC) agreement  Chieftain  

December 12, 2019 -
SEC files lawsuit against Socorro  Chieftain  

December 5, 2019 -
Nestlé cannot claim bottled water is 'essential public service', court rules. ... Michigan’s second-highest court rules in favor of township in case that could damage company’s effort to privatize water.
 Guardian  Download story  

December 4, 2019 -
New Mexico Wild Newsletter   Download  

November 26, 2019 -
Latest APR v Blaine court filings (Notice of cross appeal)
Download    

July 31, 2019 -
Letter to Water and Natural Resources Committee. From: Max Yeh, Percha/Animas Watershed Association (PAWA) Re: Report and update on NMCC’s water rights litigation Download

November 22, 2019 -
Holloman Air Force Base in Alamogordo wants to expand its F-16 pilot training airspace across southwestern New Mexico. Meeting time and more information here

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November 20, 2019 -
Court amends order in APR decision. Chieftain
Download (See November 13, 2019 below)

November 14, 2019 -
Trustees assert membership elected them to make rate decisions Chieftain

November 13, 2019 -
Order on State Engineer's Motion to Reconsider.
… It is hereby ordered that paragraph 5 of the August 23, 2019 final order be amended to state "The Augustin Plains Ranch's 2014/2016 Application to appropriate groundwater from San Agustin Basis is dismissed with prejudice" Download the document      (See Nov. 20, 2019 above)

November 13, 2019 -
Light Pollution Is Taking Away Our Night Skies. Here’s Why That Matters. ... Some cities and states are trying to protect our night sky “for the health and wellbeing for all living things.”  HuffPost  

November 8, 2019 -
New Mexico Postcard: The Call of the Sandhill Cranes.  CounterPunch  

November 8, 2019 -
San Carlos Apache Leader: Proposed Oak Flat Mine Is an Environmental Injustice. Phoenix New Times

November 8, 2019 -
October 23, 2019 APR v Blaine court filings:
- Request for hearing by Office of State Engineer
  Download

- The State Engineer's Notice of Completion of Briefing.
   Download  

-  State Engineer's Reply to Consolidated Reply to Responses to Motion to Reconsider.  Download

- Updated list of all court filings as of Nov 8, 2019
  Download

November 7, 2019 -
PRC says "no" to SEC's request. Chieftain

Monday the 11th, Veteran’s Day, there will be an event at CWB Gallery, in Magdalena at 2:00 in the afternoon.
Eric Shimamoto coming from Albuquerque will do a presentation. He did extensive research into the voting records of New Mexico Senate Democrats for the past several legislative sessions, and developed a shocking slide presentation about the way a block of Democrats in the Senate vote with the Republicans to stop progressive legislation.

Siah Correa Hemphill, a candidate for State Senate in District 28 also plans to meet with us. I heard her speak about her candidacy at a recent meeting of the Catron County Democratic Party and can attest to her positive, common sense plans for the future of our state.

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October 4, 2019 -
More Water or More Wild: The Decades-Long Struggle over the Gila River’s Fate.  NM In Depth

November 5, 2029 -
Report on Forest Plan webinar:
Presentation slides  
How to write a letter to the editor  
Sample letters to Forest offices of
Cibola.docx    Carson.docx    Santa Fe.docx

November 2, 2019 -
Learn How to Comment on New Mexico's Forest Plans!
Please join us for a webinar from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4, that will provide you with background on the draft management plans for the Carson, Cibola, and Santa Fe National Forests and guidance on how to effectively submit your comments to each forest.  Register Here 
Download Press Release

October 31, 2019 -
Village moves forward on water improvements.Chieftain

October 29, 2019 -
The fight to stop Nestlé from taking America's water to sell in plastic bottles. ... Creek beds are bone dry and once-gushing springs are reduced to trickles as fights play out around the nation over control of nation’s freshwater supply. Guardian  

October 25, 2019 -  
Fire and Logging Myths. CounterPunch  

October 24, 2019 -
October GreenFire Report from NMELC  

October 24, 2019 -   
USDA Forest Service Resumes Select Timber Management Activities ... Court approves stipulation modifying the injunction on certain activities in New Mexico and Arizona. Download press release

October 24, 2019 -
Spotted Owls and the National Christmas Tree ... the Forest Service has unilaterally restricted (firewood collection, etc) in an attempt to engender hostility between people who otherwise support environmental protection. It’s a cynical effort to divide people instead of being accountable to the law. CounterPunch  

October 22, 2019 -
Court Filings update as of October 22  Download 

October 22, 2019 -
Friends of the Bosque Fall Newsletter  

October 18, 2019 -  
Leadership Lacking for Wolf Protection  CounterPunch

October 17, 2019 -
Clock ticking on SEC appeal.  Chieftain  

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October 14, 2019 - Southwest Seminars
Mother Earth Father Sky 2019 Lecture Series
Perspectives on Natural Science and Environment in the West - Expect lively, informed, and engaging speakers on: Archaeology - Art Geology - Natural History Biology- Cultural History Literature.
Mondays at 6pm - October 14 – December 16 *
Hotel Santa Fe, a Picuris Pueblo Enterprise
(and occasionally at Santa Fe Women’s Club)
$15 at the door, subscriptions available.
In honor of the New Mexico Environmental Law Center
* For schedule, see southwestseminars.org

October 12, 2019 -
Please join us in congratulating the Law Center's fearless founder and leader, Doug Meiklejohn, for being named a Santa Fe Living Treasure! Download Press Release - Download full press release here

October 10, 2019 -
County commission’s opposition to Western Spirit power lines.  Chieftain    Related:  Our low-income population will bear the burdens of this project. ... Martha Salas, Chair Socorro County Commission.  Chieftain  

October 9, 2019 -
 -  Catron County Board of County Commissioners'
    Response to State Engineer's Motion to Reconsider.
    Download  (5 pgs)  

 - The Community Protestants' Response to State
    Engineer's Motion to Reconsider. Download (12 pgs)

 -  Latest court filing list in APR v Blaine  Download  

October 4, 2019 -
SEC Co-op defies PRC ruling. Chieftain  

October 3, 2019 -
APR stands firm, case advances to Court of Appeals.
Chieftain     Related: Notice of Appeal mentioned in the artcicle:  Download

October 4, 2019 -
... the final Environmental Assessment for Military training in the Cibola National Forest has been published. Objections are accepted until October 14.
Download the Plan here  

In the Draft Decision Notice the Forest Service has determined that there will be no significant impact from the training, despite the fact that:
· 3 additional helicopter landing zones will be established (just as in the previous proposal)
· The number of helicopter sorties in the Madalena Ranger District will quadruple (keep in mind that currently there are 2,964 allowed sorties per day at one Helicopter Landing Zone, which include 8,892 day landings and 8,892 night landings).
· Helicopter flight paths go directly over residences
· Training areas have not been moved – and in fact still encompass private property
· Environmental impacts have not been adequately addressed.

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September 26, 2019 -
From NM Environmental Law Center explaining the APR appeal:

“The Augustin Plains Ranch filed an appeal to the Court of Appeals. The Ranch is seeking to have the Court of Appeals rule that Judge Reynolds made the wrong decision. We do not know the specific grounds that the Ranch will argue, but the gist of the appeal will be that Judge Reynolds made one or more mistakes and the Court of Appeals should reverse his ruling.

“The motion filed by the State Engineer is separate from and not related to the appeal filed by the Ranch. The State Engineer is not asking that Judge Reynolds change his decision denying the Ranch's application. Rather, the State Engineer has asked Judge Reynolds to correct three mistakes that he made. The State Engineer has asserted that:

“1) Judge Reynolds only had authority to dismiss the Ranch's appeal from the State Engineer ruling, and Judge Reynolds did not have authority to dismiss the Ranch's application;

“2) Judge Reynolds did not have authority to dismiss the Ranch's application with prejudice because that means that the Ranch cannot ever file an application to appropriate water again; and

“3) Judge Reynolds's order should have specified that it was limited to the application filed by the Ranch in 2014 and amended in 2016.” Download the above  

September 26, 2019 -
Grant County Passes Wild & Scenic Resolution!
Download

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September 23, 2019 -
The APR has appealed. Now we wait for the Court of Appeals to move on the appeal.

State Engineers Motion to Reconsider - Download  

NOTICE OF APPEAL - Pursuant to Rules 12-201 and 12-202 NMRA and NMSA 1978 Section 72-7-3 (1923),
Applicant-Appellant Augustin Plains Ranch, LLC hereby appeals from the August 23, 2019 Final Order Granting Summary Judgment in Favor of the Community Protestants and the Catron County Board of County Commissioners and Dismissal With Prejudice, attached hereto as Exhibit A (“Order”). The Court’s July 24, 2019 Memorandum Decision on Motions for Summary Judgment, to which the Order refers, is attached hereto as Exhibit B Download

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September 20, 2019 -
Tri-State: wholesale rates unchanged - Chieftain

September 12, 2019 -
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission voted 4-1 to deny the rate increase and adopt the Recommended Decision made by the Hearing Examiner.   
Download the PRC final ruling  

September 12, 2019 -
Cibola forest plan meeting in Magdalena. ... An open house meeting to discuss the Draft Plan and draft of the Environmental Impact Statement will be held Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2109 at Magdalena Schools' Fine Arts Center, from 5-7 pm  Chieftain Download   

September 12, 2019 -
BLM to host public meeting on Borderlands Wind Project. ... The Bureau of Land Management will host a public meeting on Sept. 18 on the proposed Borderlands Wind Project. The meeting will start at 5pm , at the Quemado Elementary School, 3484 Highway 60.
Chieftain

September 10, 2019 -
Socorro City Reply to Socorro Electric Co-op August 2019 newsletter related to "The City of Socorro is proposing to create a municipal electric utility and to begin "siphoning off " Members of SEC."  
Download SEC newsletter  
Download Socorro City reply to SEC newsletter  

September 5, 2019 -
City: SEC wants a 'second bite at the apple' Chieftain

September 5, 2019 -
Socorro County needs economic development, lower electric rates. Letter to the editor Chieftain  

August 28, 2019 -
SEC says rate increase is just, reasonable.Chieftain
Download      Related: August 22, 2019 - SEC response to PRC Download  

August 28, 2019 -
Plains of San Agustin aquifer safe .. for now. Chieftain

August 28, 2019 -
New Mexico Law Gives Private Utilities Unchecked Power Over Shift to Renewables.  TruthOut  

August 23, 2019 -
Hearing Examiner: SEC rate increase should be denied.  Chieftain  

August 22, 2019 -
Lawsuit claims SEC responsible for Quebradas fire.
Chieftain  

August 22, 2019 -
Cibola forest plan meeting in Magdalena. ... An open house meeting to discuss the Draft Plan and draft of the Environmental Impact Statement will be held Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2109 at Magdalena Schools' Fine Arts Center, from 5-7 pm  Chieftain Download   

August 23, 2019 -
Final order granting summary judgment in favor of the Community Protestants and the Catron County Board of County Commissioners and dismissal with prejudice. (heart of the matter):
"THE COURT FINDS THAT" ...

1 - The motions for summary judgment filed by the Community Protestants and Catron County are granted;

2 - All other motions for summary judgment are denied as moot; and

3 - APR's appeal from the State Engineer's August 1, 2018 Order denying the Augustin Plains Ranch's 2014/2016 Application to appropriate groundwater is dismissed with prejudice . Download document  
Related: August 23, 2019 - Court case actions update D-728-CV-201800026.  Download  

Note: The APR has 30 days to appeal if they so desire.

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August 21m 2019 Update: Clarification - In response to the request of Judge Reynolds to write an order denying the Augustin Plains Ranch LLC’s application to mine water in the San Augustin basin, the New Mexico Environmental Law Center and the Catron County Board of County Commissioners submitted its order by the August 20 deadline. See pages 7-8 in the submission - Download Aug. 14, 2019 document  

August 14, 2019 -
Notice of submission of final order granting summary judgment in favor of The Community Protestants and the Catron County Board of County Commissioners and Dismissal with Prejudice.  
Download Aug. 14, 2019 document  

August 14, 2019 -
Before the NM Public Regulation Commission
In the matter of the filing of advice notice number 69 by the Socorro Electric Cooperative Case No. 18-oo383-UT. ... Statement of the case:
On December 3, 2o18, Socorro Electric Cooperative, Inc. (SEC) filed Advice Notice No.69 for a proposed rate increase…. Etc.   Download  

August 13, 2019 - Augustin Plains update
Confused about the legal maneuverings surrounding the APR case? Here is what our attorneys Doug Meiklejohn and Jaimie Park say:

1 Judge Reynolds issued a Memorandum Decision on Motions for Summary Judgment on July 24

2 Judge Reynolds requested that Community Protestants and Catron County submit a proposed final order by August 15

3 He requested that if any party disagrees with the proposed final order they must submit their own proposed order by August 20

The Judge can select an order or he can write his own. There is no deadline for the Judge

Once the Judge issues an order the APR will have 30 days to file an appeal to the Court of Appeals, if they choose to do so

It is still a bit up in the air when it comes to knowing for sure what will happen when, and no one is predicting what the Judge or what APR will do. After 12 years, we can wait a little while longer.

Note: A court order is an official proclamation by a judge that defines the legal relationships between the parties to a hearing, a trial, an appeal or other court proceedings. A final order concludes the court actions.
Download news

Related:
July 25, 2019 -
From Douglas Meiklejohn -
Attorney - NM Environmental Law Center
Subject: Judge Reynolds's memorandum
Download the Memorandum  

Congratulations! Judge Reynolds ruled in our favor on the Augustin Plains Ranch application.

From pp 5-6 of the Judge's Memorandum, is the part you will find of greatest interest:
"By August 15, 2019, Counsel for the Community Protestants and Catron County shall jointly submit to the Court a proposed final order granting summary judgment and dismissing APR's latest application with prejudice. The people of New Mexico should not have their water tied up any longer with possibilities. If any party disagrees with the form of the order, they shall submit their own proposed order by August 20, 2019."  Download press release  

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August 8, 2019 -
Proposed rate structure is inequitable, regressive - Letter to the editor.  Chieftain    Download  

August 3, 2019 -
Email from Ray Martinez, Co. Commissioner, reguarding NM Census Download  

August 3, 2019 -
“Voices of the Gila” – local community members who love the Gila River and believe it should be protected for generations to come through Wild and Scenic designations. Voices  

August 1, 2019 -
Creative, flexible power supply partner welcomed.  
Reyes, Jr OpEd   Chieftain

August 1, 2019 -
There will be a regular meeting of the San Augustin Water Coalition board on Tuesday, August 13th, at 6:00 p.m. at the Datil Baptist Church hall. The public is welcome .

August 1, 2019 -
It's time for face to face with Tri-State  
Chieftain    Download

Water Grab Archive:  2018-2019 -  2017 - 2016

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