Efforts to prevent impaired and drunken driving during holiday season in New Mexico are now underway. New Mexico Senator Tom Udall, Attorney General Hector Balderas, along with Mothers’ Against Drunk Driving and law enforcement officials in the Albuquerque-area announced the heightened activities on Monday.
They gathered to—among other things—announce that they’re joining forces to remind New Mexicans to plan ahead this holiday season and designate a non-drinking driver to get them safely home from holiday festivities. Udall, Balderas and the others also reminded motorists of the sanctions facing them for driving impaired
The event where they spoke featured a New Mexico family tragically affected by drunken driving--having recently lost a family-member in a head-on car crash. But there are many others. In New Mexico last year, 166 people were killed in crashes involving drunken drivers — crashes officials stress were 100 percent preventable. And statistics show the holidays are a particularly deadly time of year, with DWI-related crashes and deaths spiking from Thanksgiving to New Year's.
MADD-New Mexico executive director Aisha (Eye-Eee-Shuh) Smith:
Smith-1 :22 q: that occur in New Mexico.”
New Mexico historically has ranked high among states in drunken-driving fatalities. MADD’s Smith sees that as creating opportunities for improvement.
Smith-3 :21 q: very far... in our population.”
Senator Tom Udall says new in the efforts against impaired driving at the federal level is getting new preventive technologies in vehicles. The Democrat has teamed with MADD to pass measures to combat drunken driving, including funding to develop the “DADS,” or so-called “Driver Alcohol Detection Systems for Safety.”
Udall-1 :30 Q: this kind of research.”
Udall says these devices would prevent a driver with an illegal blood-alcohol level from starting a vehicle equipped with such a device. Udall says the DADSS—now in the prototype phase—could save thousands of lives each year by preventing intoxicated drivers from getting on the roads. I asked the Senator when the technology would be in cars and trucks—He told me, soon:
Udall-2A :26 Q: looking very good.”
Senator Tom Udall.
New Mexico Catholic Bishops say they are praying for state lawmakers to come to an agreement on a "fair" two-tier compromise regarding New Mexico driver's licenses. The bishops said in a statement Monday they hoped a proposed compromise will continue to allow immigrants suspected of being in the illegally to obtain licenses and make the state compliant under the federal REAL ID act. State lawmakers are expected in January to begin work on revising a state law that grants New Mexico driver's licenses to immigrants regardless of status. The move follows a decision by the federal government to deny New Mexico an extension from imposing tougher federal requirements on state driver's licenses. Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Marsha Catron says a decision on commercial air travel will be announced by the end of the year.
The U.S. Department of Interior is entering into an agreement with water managers in New Mexico that marks the next step in a long, contentious process as the state looks to develop its share of the Gila River. The department's approval came Monday despite opposition from environmentalists and others who contend a diversion project along the Gila could end up costing a billion dollars. Critics submitted 54-thouand petition signatures to the department last week. Supporters argue that the project is vital to supplying communities and irrigation districts in southwestern New Mexico with a new source of water. The department's signing of the agreement is procedural. Federal officials say approval does not guarantee construction of a diversion system along the Gila, but rather triggers a series of environmental and economic feasibility reviews.
A shrimp farm in Lemitar is getting a federal grant to expand its marketing efforts across New Mexico. USDA Rural Development State Director Terry Brunner is scheduled to present a certificate of obligation to the owners of Southwestern Seas this morning. The company qualified for a nearly 50-thousand-dollar ‘Value Added Producer’ Grant from USDA Rural Development's Business program. The money will be used to help the small business market its locally grown shrimp. Southwestern Seas will be marketing to various local farmers' markets to expand its sales.
Santa Fe Weather: Sunny today, with a high near 55. Tonight: Partly cloudy with the overnight low, 33. Tomorrow: Partly sunny with the high, 56.