New Mexico
Judge says he's leaning toward nixing FEMA rule denying fire victims payment for emotional losses • Source New Mexico
Hundreds of millions of dollars could be awarded to victims of the state’s biggest wildfire for the hardship they endured when the federally caused wildfire roared across their land in 2022, based on a judge’s comments Tuesday in federal court.
Judge James Browning said at the end of a hearing Tuesday afternoon he was “leaning” toward ruling on behalf of fire victims who sued the Federal Emergency Management Agency last year. He said he would issue a ruling as soon as possible, but likely not until next month.
If Browning does indeed side with the fire victims, which lawyers on both sides of the courtroom expect is likely, FEMA could be required to establish a system to quantify and compensate fire victims not only for the economic losses they suffered in the state’s biggest wildfire but also for the emotional harm.
For thousands of victims, that could mean additional compensation for the “annoyance, discomfort and inconvenience” of the “nuisance” or “trespass” the fire caused, victims’ lawyers said.
A few others could get sizable payments for their “pain and suffering” resulting from physical injuries they suffered in the fire, in addition to the medical costs. So far, the only recourse for those who were injured or for families of those who died in the fire or ensuing floods has been filing time-consuming and uncertain lawsuits in federal court.
Gerald Singleton, whose San Diego-based firm is representing about 1,000 fire victims, estimated these sorts of emotional harm losses could amount to about $400 million.
He also said the payments could result in a more-equitable distribution of fire compensation funding, as renters or those with low incomes would receive additional compensation beyond just the dollar value for their limited losses in the fire.
Even with the expected ruling, it’s not clear how quickly these payments could arrive in victims’ bank accounts. Because the legal battle centers around a regulation FEMA created, the agency’s lawyers said in court it would have to go through a whole new, formal rulemaking process. That could take months.
Feds try to skirt responsibility in lawsuit for people who died after state’s biggest wildfire
The money would come out of a nearly $4 billion fund Congress established in September 2022 that members hoped would “fully compensate” victims of the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire, started earlier that year by two federal prescribed burns that escaped and combined to destroy several hundred homes and scorched a 534-square-mile area.
As of Sept. 24, the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Claims Office had paid $1.35 billion of the fund in 10,417 different claims from households, nonprofits, businesses and local and tribal governments.
Jay Mitchell, director of the claims office, watched the half-day court hearing Tuesday. In a brief interview with Source New Mexico after the judge’s comments, Mitchell suggested the compensation required by the expected ruling could be challenging to administer.
Even though $4 billion might seem like a huge number, “It is a limited fund,” Mitchell said. He suggested the ruling could open the door to a flood of new claims seeking damages for “nuisance” or “trespass” from people whose properties were touched by wildfire smoke.
“Smoke goes where it goes,” he said as he walked into a meeting with lawyers representing FEMA after the hearing.
Did Congress intend to limit damages?
Singleton’s was among four firms representing dozens of named plaintiffs who sued FEMA last October, alleging the agency improperly denied so-called “non-economic damages” to fire victims in a final set of regulations it published last summer. The rules limited compensation to only economic damages, which are the type of losses with a price tag: things like cars, homes, business expenses and cattle.
The rule was based on the agency’s interpretation of the Hermits Peak-Calf Calf Canyon Fire Assistance Act, written and sponsored by U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez and U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján, both Democrats from New Mexico.
Luján’s office did not respond to a request for comment. U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich’s office said the senator would wait until the ruling to weigh in. Leger Fernandez’s office told Source NM she couldn’t comment due to the pending litigation, but she’s “following the issue closely.”
The victims’ lawsuit alleged the agency was wrong when it interpreted the act as excluding non-economic damage payments. To make their argument, lawyers parsed the act’s language to try to determine congressional intent and analyzed state law about what recourse victims would have under New Mexico law if a private company had started the fire and not the federal government.
Months of back and forth between lawyers centered on what Congress meant when they wrote the act. Browning on Tuesday questioned victims’ lawyers and the United States Attorney’s Office about what they think Congress intended by language such as “limited to,” “allowable damages,” “injured person” and “actual compensatory damages.”
In the scar of New Mexico’s largest wildfire, a legal battle is brewing over the cost of suffering
For example, the law says payments “shall be limited to actual compensatory damages.” Victims’ lawyers argued, with numerous citations in New Mexico law and elsewhere, that “actual compensatory damages” historically means both economic and non-economic damages. FEMA’s lawyers interpreted the clause to mean that Congress was imposing a limitation: Only economic damages were allowed.
The lawsuit occurred after a Supreme Court ruling that removed deference to federal agencies when they write regulations based on ambiguous laws passed by Congress. It’s not clear how much the court’s ruling on the so-called “Chevron deference” precedent impacted the judge’s comments. But plaintiffs’ lawyer Tom Tosdal repeatedly cited Justice Neil Gorsuch’s ruling in his arguments Tuesday, and the judge wondered aloud whether it applied.
By the time the hearing started Tuesday, Browning said he’d already made up his mind on one important aspect of the lawsuit: He agreed that New Mexico law allows non-economic damages to be paid to victims in a scenario like the fire. That’s important because of a provision in the law requiring the calculation of damages to be based on what’s allowed under state law.
He cited an opinion from the New Mexico Attorney General that concluded emotional hardship payments are allowed for victims of “nuisance and trespass” here. An official at the New Mexico Department of Justicewrote the opinion after a request from two state lawmakers made shortly after a Source New Mexico and ProPublica article on the legal battle.
Victims’ lawyers have a ‘better reading’ of the law, judge says
In describing his inclination to side with the fire victims over the government, Browning also cited one piece of language that lawyers on both sides argued showed congressional intent to either exclude or include emotional hardship payments.
One of the laws’ sections is titled “Allowable Damages” in capital letters and goes on to list three categories of payments: Financial, business or property. To FEMA’s lawyers, Congress was listing all the types of allowable payments, which they said in a legal brief was “implied” by the phrase “allowable damages.”
FEMA has paid out just 2% of fund to help wildfire victims rebuild. Some can’t wait much longer.
To the fire victims’ lawyers, Congress was just specifying some types of compensation the act allowed but not limiting payments to those categories of loss.
The judge agreed: “Plaintiffs have a better reading,” he said. He seized on the fact that FEMA’s lawyers wrote in their brief that Congress “implied” its intent to limit damages in that section of the law. An implication is not enough, he said.
Browning also said he would try to issue a ruling as quickly as he could, and discussed with lawyers the best way to avoid further delays in getting the compensation to victims. He cited previous delays in the claims office compensation as the reason for his urgency.
“I don’t live under a rock,” he said. “I know that there has been a lot of criticism of how slow the process was.”
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Emergency crews are responding to a tank battery fire in the area of Frying Pan Road and Anthony Road in southern Lea County.
Officials are asking people to avoid the area and follow directions from emergency personnel and law enforcement. Multiple agencies are responding to the fire. No other information has been release, this is a developing story.
Enter your email and we’ll send a secure one-click link to sign in.
KRQE NEWS 13 is provided by Nexstar Media, Inc., and uses the My Nexstar sign-in, which works across our media network.
Learn more at nexstar.tv/privacy-policy.
KRQE NEWS 13 is provided by Nexstar Media, Inc., and uses the My Nexstar sign-in, which works across our media network.
Nexstar Media, Inc. is a leading, diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports, and entertainment content across its television and digital platforms. The My Nexstar sign-in works across the Nexstar network—including The CW, NewsNation, The Hill, and more. Learn more at nexstar.tv/privacy-policy.
New Mexico
Think New Mexico Hosts Four 2026 Summer Leadership Interns To Assist In Researching And Developing Policy Proposals – Los Alamos Daily Post
Gathered for a luncheon Tuesday at La Plazuela at La Fonda Tuesday in Santa Fe, front row from left, Think New Mexico 2026 Summer Leadership Intern Viviana Ornelas, Board President Roberta Ramo and Intern Marly Fisher. Back row from left, Think New Mexico Field Director Noah Apodaca, Intern Ian Hernandez, Think New Mexico Board Secretary Liddie Martinez, Intern Awlen Salazar and Healthcare Reform Director Lauren Leland. Courtesy/TNM
Gathered Tuesday at La Plazuela at La Fonda in Santa Fe, front row from left, Think New Mexico 2026 Summer Leadership Intern Viviana Ornelas, Board President Roberta Ramo and Intern Marly Fisher. Back row from left, Think New Mexico Intern Ian Hernandez, Think New Mexico Board Secretary Liddie Martinez and Intern Awlen Salazar. Courtesy/TNM
Think New Mexico News:
Each summer Think New Mexico offers four paid Leadership Internship positions to college or graduate students. Interns have the opportunity to meet with Think New Mexico board members and leaders in state government, as well as to assist Think New Mexico’s staff in researching and developing policy proposals.
The 2026 Summer Leadership Interns include:
Marly Fisher grew up in Albuquerque and graduated from Albuquerque Academy in 2023. As a senior in high school, she and three peers spearheaded a successful effort to pass a bill implementing period products in New Mexico’s public schools. She has since interned for Representatives Melanie Stansbury and Gabe Vasquez. Fisher is a senior in the dual degree program between Sciences Po Paris and Columbia, majoring in Political Philosophy and History, and serving as Senior Editor of the Columbia Political Review. She is passionate about improving education in New Mexico.
Ian Hernandez was born and raised in Santa Fe and graduated in the top 1% of his class from the MASTERS Program Early College Charter School. He was a 2023 recipient of the Davis New Mexico Scholarship, which allowed him to attend and graduate from the University of Denver this past June. Hernandez earned his B.A. in Socio-Legal Studies and History and hopes to begin law school in the fall of 2027. As an undergraduate, He interned with U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO). He also worked as a teen journalist for the Santa Fe New Mexican, and as a teacher and tutor for Breakthrough Santa Fe. Hernandez hopes to use his education and life experiences to improve the lives of as many people living in New Mexico and the American Southwest as possible.
Viviana Ornelas is a Santa Fe native who graduated as Valedictorian of her Capital High School class. She received Davis and LANL scholarships to study at the University of Chicago, where she is earning a B.A. in Psychology and Public Policy with a minor in Education and Society. In high school, Viviana led a chapter of the New Mexico Dream Team. As an undergraduate student, she has worked as a research assistant in Dr. Levine’s Cognitive Development Lab where she helped conduct studies to understand the relationship between solving math word problems and spatial skills. Ornelas has also worked as a tutor for the Neighborhood Schools Program in Chicago and a teacher for Breakthrough Santa Fe. She hopes to return to New Mexico to pursue a career in education policy.
Awlen Salazar is a graduate of New Mexico State University (NMSU), where he earned a B.A. in Political Science with minors in Public Administration & Policy and Public Law. He is pursuing a Master of Public Policy at the University of New Mexico. Throughout his time at NMSU, Salazar was a part of the Associated Students of NMSU, where he held roles in the legislative and executive branches as public relations officer and as one of three standing committee chairs for the Senate. At the start of his senior year, Salazar re-chartered the NMSU College Democrats after the club’s two-year hiatus, and he served as President of the club until his graduation in May 2026. Since then, he continues to be involved in the Young Democrats of New Mexico, where he now serves as National Committee Representative. Off campus, Salazar worked closely with nonprofit sector leaders throughout Doña Ana County. In the summer of 2025, he interned for the Doña Ana County Resilience Leaders, where he helped advocate for policies to mitigate adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s) and expand access to affordable housing. Salazar also worked with NM Comunidades en Accion y De Fé (NM CAFé) as Social Media Associate.
Think New Mexico is New Mexico’s think tank – a results-oriented think tank whose mission is to improve the lives of all New Mexicans, especially those who lack a strong voice in the political process. It fulfills this mission by educating the public, the media, and policymakers about some of the most serious challenges facing New Mexico and by developing and advocating for enduring, effective, evidence-based solutions.
Its approach is to perform and publish sound, nonpartisan, independent research. Unlike many think tanks, Think New Mexico does not subscribe to any particular ideology. Instead, because New Mexico is at or near the bottom of so many national rankings, its focus is on promoting workable solutions that will lift all New Mexicans up.
Consistent with its nonpartisan approach, Think New Mexico’s board is composed of Democrats, Independents, and Republicans. They are statesmen and stateswomen, who have no agenda other than to see New Mexico succeed. They are also the brain trust of this think tank.
Think New Mexico began its operations Jan. 1, 1999. It is a tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. In order to maintain its independence, Think New Mexico does not accept state government funding. However, contributions from individuals, businesses, and foundations are encouraged, appreciated, and tax-deductible.
As an independent, statewide, results-oriented think tank, Think New Mexico measures its success based on changes in law or policy that it helps to achieve.
Think New Mexico’s results include:
- Making full-day kindergarten accessible to every child in New Mexico;
- Repealing the state’s regressive tax on food and successfully defeating efforts to reimpose it;
- Creating a Strategic Water Reserve to protect and restore New Mexico’s rivers;
- Establishing New Mexico’s first state-supported Individual Development Accounts to alleviate the state’s persistent poverty;
- Redirecting millions of dollars a year out of the state lottery’s excessive operating costs and into college scholarships
- Reforming title insurance to reduce closing costs for homebuyers and homeowners who refinance their mortgages
- Winning passage of three constitutional amendments to professionalize and streamline New Mexico’s Public Regulation Commission
- Modernizing the state’s regulation of taxis, limos, shuttles, and moving companies
- Creating a one-stop online portal to facilitate business fees and filings
- Establishing a user-friendly health care transparency website where New Mexicans can find the cost and quality of common medical procedures at any hospital in the state
- Enacting the New Mexico Work and Save Act to make voluntary state-sponsored Individual Retirement Accounts accessible to New Mexicans who lack access to retirement savings through their jobs;
- Making the state’s infrastructure spending transparent by revealing the legislative sponsors of every capital project;
- Ending predatory lending by reducing the maximum annual interest rate on small loans from 175% to 36%;
- Repealing the tax on Social Security for middle and lower-income New Mexicans with incomes under $100,000 as individuals or $150,000 as married couples;
- Enhancing the training and transparency of local school boards;
- Leading a campaign to make financial literacy a high school graduation requirement, now in place in 46 districts reaching nearly 48% of New Mexico students; and
- Establishing a $2 billion permanent trust fund for Medicaid.
Think New Mexico is headquarters in the historic Greer House at 505 Don Gaspar in Santa Fe, at the corner of Paseo de Peralta and Don Gaspar, directly across the street from the state Capitol. To learn more, visit thinknewmexico.org.
-
Tennessee3 minutes agoTennessee woman arrested after allegedly trying to drown one of her children in backyard pool
-
Texas9 minutes agoHow a man once ordered to pay libel damages helped launch an investigation into Islamic private schools
-
Utah15 minutes agoUtah Jazz vs Portland Trail Blazers Summer League recap and final score
-
Vermont21 minutes ago
VT Lottery Mega Millions, Gimme 5 results for July 17, 2026
-
Virginia27 minutes agoMaryland, Virginia elections officials push back on Trump assertion that system is ‘broken’ – WTOP News
-
Wisconsin39 minutes agoWisconsin Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 results for July 17, 2026
-
West Virginia45 minutes agoWest Virginia Wesleyan College to keep Governor’s School for the Arts through 2030
-
Wyoming51 minutes agoRacines runs unopposed for Wyoming State Auditor
