The New Mexico Environment Department in June 2025 issued an administrative compliance order to the U.S. Department of Energy and its contractor SIMCO (Salado Isolation Mining Contractors), which operates the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
Winning the GOP nomination in District 66 is tantamount to winning the November general election since no candidate ran in the district’s Democratic primary.
The June 10 decision came two weeks after 13th District Judge Cindy Mercer of Valencia County issued a preliminary injunction blocking Barela from serving as chair amid her primary campaign for the Republican nomination to seek reelection to the Otero County Commission.