Local News

The Los Alamos Commerce & Development Corporation (LACDC) today announced the appointment of Stephanie Garcia Richard, Emma Canlas and Tom Netuschil to the LACDC board of directors.
The board also unanimously approved the reappointment of Jim Hall, Denise Lane and Johnnie Martinez.
The LACDC board of directors is comprised of 15 individuals from the Los Alamos community and functions to direct the company in its initiative to promote sustainable economic progress in Los Alamos and the region.
The new appointees are expected to bring insight to the board based on their unique professional backgrounds and community involvement.
Stephanie Garcia Richard is a lifelong educator who has worked both locally and abroad. She currently serves as the State Representative from New Mexico House District 43.
Emma Canlas is the Chief Financial Officer at the Los Alamos Medical Center.
Tom Netuschil is the owner of the Netuschil Development Corporation and the former developer of Central Park Square, the retail and office complex located in downtown Los Alamos.
 

No one knows the ultimate outcome of a decision to put test well drilling in White Rock on hold indefinitely, but the hiatus has given some concerned residents a reason to hope.
“I am certainly glad that the council seems to be open-minded and trying to reach what I consider to be a more satisfactory closure than what we had,” said Milt Gillespie, whose home is within the radius that will be affected by the drilling. “I look forward to whatever discussions go forward and I certainly expect to let my opinions be made known.”
Los Alamos County Council Chair Geoff Rodgers and Utilities Board Vice Chair Tim Neal jointly announced the decision last Friday. A statement issued by the county reads:
“This hiatus will allow councilors time to better understand issues surrounding the San Juan/Chama water rights, determine appropriate policy steps, and provide direction to the Board of Public Utilities.”
Drilling at least one test well is the first step in a project to utilize the county’s 1,200 acre-feet San Juan-Chama water allotment and secure the county’s water rights. An independent legal review several years ago recommended that the county take steps to secure the water rights in order to avoid possibly losing them in the future.

Former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson collected nearly half a million dollars in questionable payments from four federally funded nuclear labs after she left office, the Energy Department's inspector general says in a new report.

Wilson failed to provide documentation for the work she did to earn $20,000 a month from the Los Alamos and Sandia national labs in New Mexico from January 2009 to March 2011, the report said. Officials at the Nevada Test Site and Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee acknowledged there "were no deliverables" associated with $30,000 the two labs paid Wilson. Sandia had Wilson lobby for more defense dollars, an apparent violation of her contract, the report said.

In total, nearly $450,000 in questionable payments were identified, the bulk from Los Alamos and Sandia.

In a statement, LANL defended Wilson and her work.

“LANS, LLC has reimbursed the government approximately $195,000 in potentially unallowable costs related to the consulting arrangement with Heather Wilson,” the statement said.