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A DACC instructor demonstrates a construction technique to several students gathered around a workbench during a building construction lab.
DACC Featured

DACC building construction program earns national reaccreditation

Doña Ana Community College's Building Construction Technology Program has earned three more years of NCCER accreditation, allowing students to receive nationally recognized construction credentials.

Organ Mountain News
Members of the Piro-Manso-Tiwa Indian Tribe stand outdoors holding long ceremonial staffs in a desert landscape.
Art Featured

Branigan Cultural Center to feature Piro-Manso-Tiwa Indian Tribe exhibit

The Branigan Cultural Center will feature the Piro-Manso-Tiwa Indian Tribe Pueblo of San Juan de Guadalupe in a rotating exhibit from July 18 through Oct. 10.

Organ Mountain News
Silhouette of an oil pumpjack against a red-orange sunset.
Environment Featured

One abandoned New Mexico oil well cost $5M to plug. The state just sealed 114

New Mexico plugged a record 114 orphan oil and gas wells in fiscal year 2026, including costly cleanup work aimed at reducing pollution and protecting groundwater.

Organ Mountain News
NM State men’s basketball coach Jason Hooten speaks into an ESPN microphone during a courtside interview.
Aggie Basketball

Conference USA slate set for NM State men’s basketball in 2026-27

NM State men’s basketball will open Conference USA play Dec. 31 against FIU as the league returns to an 18-game home-and-home format.

NM State Athletics
An aerial view shows the Project Jupiter data center construction site amid desert terrain in Doña Ana County on June 26, 2026.
Project Jupiter

New Mexico AG to investigate ‘alleged fraudulent’ letters supporting Project Jupiter data center

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez opened an investigation into allegedly fraudulent public comments supporting Project Jupiter’s air quality permit.

Joshua Bowling
U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez gestures while speaking with a hiker in a burned area of the Gila National Forest on July 10, 2026.
Outdoor Spaces

Vasquez says Forest Service cuts threaten wildfire readiness, public lands in Gila

U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez toured part of the Gila National Forest on July 10, raising concerns about Forest Service staffing cuts, wildfire readiness and trail maintenance.

Organ Mountain News
Floral graphic reading “3rd Annual Latiné in Leadership Awards” in burgundy, teal and gold lettering.
Community

Nominations open for 2026 Latinés in Leadership Awards

The Latinés in Leadership Awards are accepting nominations through Sept. 11, with honors spanning business, education, public service, STEM, agriculture and community advocacy.

Organ Mountain News
Multiple light poles stand above a Las Cruces park with trees, buildings and the Organ Mountains in the background.
Public Safety

Las Cruces police warn of copper wire thefts from light poles, construction sites

Las Cruces police are asking residents to report suspicious activity near light poles and construction sites after roughly 100 copper wire thefts since November.

Organ Mountain News
Portraits of Martin Heinrich, Ben Ray Luján, Melanie Stansbury, Gabe Vasquez and Teresa Leger Fernández arranged side by side.
National

New Mexico delegation presses DEA over reports agents let fentanyl shipments continue

New Mexico's congressional delegation is demanding answers from the DEA after reports that agents allowed millions of fentanyl pills to continue circulating during criminal investigations.

Organ Mountain News
A DACC manufacturing student wearing safety glasses operates a milling machine surrounded by metal shavings.
DACC

DACC receives $15,000 grant for manufacturing scholarships

Doña Ana Community College received a $15,000 Gene Haas Foundation grant to provide scholarships for students pursuing manufacturing and CNC training.

Organ Mountain News
Aerial views show extensive grading, roads and construction activity at the Project Jupiter data center site in Doña Ana County.
Project Jupiter

Climate advocacy org urges New Mexico leaders to adopt data center moratorium

Food & Water Watch says Project Jupiter illustrates the air pollution, water and energy risks posed by hyperscale data centers as New Mexico lawmakers weigh a statewide moratorium.

Joshua Bowling
A bright green Cash App logo with a white dollar sign appears beside three debit cards against a dark background.
Consumer Safety

New Mexico to receive more than $388,000 in Cash App fraud settlement

New Mexico will receive more than $388,000 from a multistate settlement alleging Cash App misled users about fraud protections and failed to adequately help victims.

Organ Mountain News
The 50-unit Amador Crossing apartment complex under construction on the Community of Hope campus in Las Cruces on July 8, 2026.
Community of Hope Featured

As homelessness changes in Las Cruces, so does Community of Hope

As Mesilla Valley Community of Hope expands its campus and services, Executive Director Nicole Martinez says more first-time homelessness and rising housing costs are reshaping how Las Cruces responds to housing instability.

Damien Willis
U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich speaks into a microphone during a Senate hearing, with staff seated behind him.
Sen. Martin Heinrich

Heinrich presses DOJ over missed HALT Fentanyl Act deadline

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich and two colleagues are pressing the Justice Department to explain why it missed a January deadline to implement research provisions of the HALT Fentanyl Act.

Organ Mountain News
Logo of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission beside the agency’s name in large blue lettering.
Elections

New Mexico secretary of state condemns removal of federal election commissioners

Maggie Toulouse Oliver says eliminating the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission’s remaining leadership threatens public confidence months before the November midterms.

Organ Mountain News
The entrance to the New Mexico Supreme Court building in Santa Fe, framed by tall trees and a lawn.
New Mexico Supreme Court

New Mexico Supreme Court upholds murder conviction in killing of Alamogordo police officer

The New Mexico Supreme Court upheld Dominic De La O’s first-degree murder conviction and life sentence for fatally shooting Alamogordo police Officer Anthony Ferguson in 2023.

Organ Mountain News
Annotated maps of Zorro Ranch appear beside aerial photos of the Santa Fe County property once owned by Jeffrey Epstein.
Attorney General Raúl Torrez

New Mexico AG says DOJ is hindering Epstein investigation by withholding unredacted records

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez is demanding unredacted Epstein records from the U.S. Justice Department, arguing the federal government is obstructing the state's criminal investigation into alleged crimes at Zorro Ranch.

Organ Mountain News
Stuff the Bus 2026 graphic with the July 11 event time, DACC East Mesa campus location and logos for Nusenda, DACC and Bravo Mic radio stations.
DACC

Stuff the Bus returns Saturday with free backpacks, haircuts and family fun at DACC

Families can enjoy free backpacks, haircuts, first-day-of-school photos, games and more Saturday at DACC while helping collect school supplies for local classrooms.

Damien Willis
Organ Mountain News

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You’re free to republish our stories — with credit. Our journalism is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Please edit only for style or length, include attribution and a link back to Organ Mountain News. AP and Getty images may not be reused. See our republishing guidelines for more.