Santa Fe New Mexican, Dec. 30, 2023

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N.M. state lawmaker seeks bill to ban sex abuse of bodies

What ‘cord cutting’ is going to cost you come 2024

TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS Lady Horsemen stay on fire with 1st final game win in 9 years SPORTS, B-1

LOCAL & REGION, A-7

Locally owned and independent

PAGE A-10

Saturday, December 30, 2023 santafenewmexican.com $1.50

Downtown parking plan aims to boost some workers

2 0 2 3 T H ROUG H R E P O RT E RS’ E Y ES : PA RT 2 O F 2

‘New Mexican’ staff writers reflect on this year’s most memorable moments

From honoring veterans to remembering an N.M. icon

City pilot program set to begin next year creates incentives for restaurant, bar and bistro employers to pay for staff permits By Carina Julig

cjulig@sfnewmexican.com

Paying for parking in downtown Santa Fe and in the Railyard District is a mild inconvenience for tourists. But for employees who staff the restaurants, bars and bistros that make Santa Fe a tourism hot spot, the expense can add up. The city government is expected to roll out a pilot program in January creating an incentive for employers to pay for parking passes for their staff. “It’s what keeps downtown alive,” City Councilor Amanda Chavez said of the service industry. The pilot program comes from a resolution sponsored by Chavez and Councilors Jamie Cassutt, Signe Lindell, Renee Villarreal and Lee Garcia in fall 2022. Chavez, who spearheaded the resolution, said she thought of the idea after speaking with her constituents in District 4, many of whom work downtown and told her they struggled with transportation. The pilot program is designed to make it more affordable for employees to park downtown while also lowering the cost to business owners, Chavez said. She added she was disappointed it has taken so long to get the program off the ground, with delays due to turnover in the Parking Division. The city currently offers $35-a-month parking passes for employees who earn less than $15 an hour including tips, which would amount to an annual salary of $31,200 or less. For those who earn more than the $15 threshold, the rate rises to $68.20, which can be cost-prohibitive. The one-year pilot would allow qualifying business owners to apply for $25 monthly passes for employees who Please see story on Page A-6 GABRIELA CAMPOS/NEW MEXICAN FILE PHOTO

Army veteran Fernando Lucero, 88, is embraced in June by each of his great-grandchildren, including Emma Estrada, 8, who told her “papa” how much she missed him as he returned to the Albuquerque International Sunport from an Honor Flight to Washington, D.C.

Ballot fights over Trump pressure high court to act

The New Mexican

R

eporters open their eyes and ears and turn on their recorders during a full year of news. In the last week of 2023, this is what staff members at The New Mexican remember most.

Honored to be an observer They say many military veterans, particularly those who served in combat, don’t want to remember the past because the recollections of what they did and saw are too painful. But the 25 military veterans who took part in a visit to several military memorials in Washington, D.C., had no choice but to recall those bygone days and work out the pain. In some cases, they cried. In June, I accompanied a group of former soldiers, Marines, sailors and airmen who were part of Honor Flight of Northern New Mexico, which flies vets at no cost to the monuments that honor those who fought in Please see story on Page A-4

Conflicting state decisions on whether former president can vie for nomination adding urgency to calls on justices for clarity By Gregory Korte, Stephanie Lai and Greg Stohr

Bloomberg News

Local supporters said Cameron is only the third Miss Rodeo America from New Mexico and the first in 55 years — and called her success a “huge” inspiration for the state. She not only won close to Emma $30,000 in college scholarCameron ships at the pageant — she plans to pursue a doctorate and eventually go to law school to advocate for the agricultural industry

Former President Donald Trump’s latest round of court battles opens a new legal front and tests an arcane constitutional provision preventing insurrectionists from holding political office. Pressure is mounting on the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether states can bar Trump, who is the Republican party’s leading candidate, from the ballot. The case would be unprecedented and brings Trump’s conduct after losing the 2020 election back to the forefront of his likely 2024 rematch with President Joe Biden. Donald Trump On Thursday, Maine’s top election official blocked Trump from the ballot, citing his actions related to the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. That ruling followed a groundbreaking decision in Colorado last week declaring him ineligible to be on the ballot there. “A single state is a random decision. Two states becomes a trend,” said Republican pollster Frank Luntz. And if a third state were to join, that would be “truly impactful,” he said. Other states, including most recently California on Thursday, have said Trump can appear on the ballot. The conflicting decisions add urgency to calls for clarity from the Supreme Court, with the Republican nominating process starting in just over two weeks in Iowa on Jan. 15. Trump has faced lawsuits from voters across the country who say he cannot seek another term because of Section

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Please see story on Page A-6

LUIS SÁNCHEZ SATURNO/NEW MEXICAN FILE PHOTO

People gather outside the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi to see pallbearers carry the remains of former Gov. Bill Richardson in September following his funeral Mass.

Santa Fe native crowned Miss Rodeo America Supporters say Cameron, who is only third person from state — and first in 55 years — to win pageant, a ‘huge’ inspiration for New Mexico By Maya Hilty

mhilty@sfnewmexican.com

Emma Cameron’s mother once grounded her for two weeks because she refused to dismount her horse. Cameron was 4 years old at the time. “For two whole weeks, I was not allowed to ride, touch, feed or even clean up after my horses,” Cameron, now 24, recalled in a speech during her successful bid in 2017 to become the

Pasapick pasatiempomagazine.com

Index

Classifieds B-6

Miss National High School Rodeo Queen. The native Santa Fean’s early passion for rodeo carried her to several title wins before she was crowned this month as Miss Rodeo America 2024 — which is “truly the biggest dream I’ve ever had,” she said. Cameron won the honor Dec. 10 after an eight-day pageant at the South Point Hotel in Las Vegas, Nev. The event is held each year in conjunction with the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

Chatter North

Today

Obituaries

Piano recital by Judith Gordon of J.S. Bach’s “Goldberg Variations;” 10:30 a.m., spoken word performance by Kristen Patton follows; Center for Contemporary Arts, 1050 Old Pecos Trail, 505-982-1338; $5-$17; chatterabq.org/boxoffice.

Mostly cloudy.

Carlos S. “Kojak” Ortega, 65, Dec. 8

High 44, low 26.

Virginia Lee Fryer, 102, Santa Fe, Nov. 23

More events Fridays in Pasatiempo

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Sports B-1

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Crosswords B-6, B-9

Design and headlines: Nick Baca, nbaca@sfnewmexican.com

Local & Region A-7

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Opinion A-9

Time Out B-9

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Are missile silos toxic for crews? Hundreds working near nukes are reporting cancer diagnoses. PAGE A-2

174th year, No. 364 Publication No. 596-440


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