in Lea County

Three major laws, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the American Rescue Plan, passed during President Biden’s first two years in office, make game-changing investments in our community, tackle the pressing challenges that New Mexicans face, and build economic prosperity for all. 
Watch this space for more local news about the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
AIRPORTS
New Mexico’s 46 airports are key economic drivers for our state,” – Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM)
Lea County Regional Airport (Hobbs)
  • '21 and '22 funding = $2,035,000
  • See more here
  • Other funding to provide a runway extension and runway safety improvements
​Zip Franklin Memorial Airport (Lovington)
  • '21 and '22 funding = $223, for improvements to the airport
  • The funds can be invested in runways, taxiways, terminals and roadway projects
Lea Co./Jal Airport
  • '21 and '22 funding = $223,000 for improvements to the airport.
  • The funds can be invested in runways, taxiways, terminals, and roadway projects
BROADBAND
“It’s a game changer for New Mexico. It’s a game changer for agriculture, it’s a game changer for anybody in rural areas, because they can live the way that urban America has.”
~ John Diamond, Beaverhead Ranch Group
Distance Learning, Telemedicine and Broadband Reconnect Program
  • a $25 million grant via the Department of Agriculture
  • The grant will fund Leaco Rural Telephone Cooperative, a Hobbs-based telephone and Internet cooperative, to provide high-speed internet to 2,970 people and 56 businesses in Chaves County and Lea County.
  • The internet service is expected to be affordable; customers can use the Federal Affordable Connectivity and Lifeline programs, which provide discounts to eligible customers.
Your household may be eligible to receive a monthly discount on an internet service plan with the Affordable Connectivity Program. Find out if you qualify and sign up here:  
COMMUNITY SAFETY
Plugging Abandoned Oil Wells will stop pollution 
Abandoned “Orphan” wells will be plugged in Lea County; see more here
  • These wells were never sealed and there’s no owner on record.
  • Toxic chemicals from these wells poison groundwater which is used by livestock, animals and people.
  • Orphan wells leak methane and other gases which contribute to respiratory illnesses, including children’s asthma
  • Orphan wells are a significant contributor to national greenhouse gas emissions.
  • The average cost to plug a well is $42,000.
  • Plugging the wells provides employment that will allow oil and gas workers to transition to less-pollutive energy sources
 
Senator Ben Ray Luján introduced an act that made plugging abandoned wells a part of the Infrastructure Law. It’s called the REGROW Act (Revive Economic Growth and Reclaim Orphaned Wells Act of 2021 Act because plugging the wells provides good-paying jobs while stopping pollution, a Win-Win.
 
New Mexico was allocated a total of $43.7 million, so far, to plug orphan wells. But that’s not all!
 
There will be more funding for plugging orphan wells through 2027.
Senators Heinrich and Luján led the way to pass the Abandoned Well Remediation Research and Development Act  which will provide more national funding to identify, study and plug orphan wells: 
  • $30 million in 2023
  • $31.25 million in 2024
  • $32.5 million in 2025
  • $33.75 million in 2026
  • $35 million in 2027
ROADS & BRIDGES
Road projects in Lea County funded through the Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration include:
  • Railroad Crossing 943760V Nm-18 Near Eunice
  • US 380 Milepost 230 to Milepost 242
  • Maintenance, restoration & rehabilitation US 380, Tatum Urban Section
  • Downtown Lovington Construction Phase I, see more here
  • West of Eunice
  • US 62/180 & NM 18 Intersection Improvements
  • US 62/180 to TX State Line
  • US 62/180 Milepost 74.4 to 90.1
  • NM 128 Milepost 48 and 52.5
It really is our infrastructure moment for a generation. 
– Sen. Martin Heinrich
You can save $$ by electrifying at home thanks to the
​Inflation Reduction Act 
​Learn more here!  
MEDICARE RECIPIENTS BENEFIT
  • Caps on out-of-pocket annual prescription costs,
  • Expanded eligibility for premium subsidies,
  • For the first time Medicare will be able to begin negotiating pricing for some drugs.
  • A $35 monthly cap for insulin!
RURAL RESIDENTS BENEFIT
  • An improved rural electrical grid, to make sure it remains strong and resilient for decades and to avoid the kind of blackouts we’ve seen in Texas.
  • Climate-smart agricultural funding that supports farmers while reducing pollution and emissions.
  • Support for rural electrical co-ops and renewable energy projects, USDA conservation programs, and debt relief for distressed farmers.
  • New Mexico tribes will receive expanded broadband, guaranteed loans, money to mitigate drought, and funding for projects such as fish hatcheries
BUSINESSES BENEFIT
  • Tax credits for 159,000 small businesses in New Mexico to improve energy efficiency, install solar power and buy clean trucks and vans for commercial fleets
  • Businesses can “stack” credits. For instance, on top of a 30% tax credit, a developer can earn more credits by paying the prevailing wage for labor, using apprenticeship labor, or using U.S.-made steel and aluminum.
  • For every federal dollar ($2.3 billion available for NM), the public and private sector will spend $2-$3, making it a $10 billion deal.
  • Between now and 2030, $15 billion will be invested in new and existing businesses that will generate and store clean power in New Mexico.
  • 8,000 small businesses and self-employed adults in New Mexico now qualify for lower premiums through the Affordable Care Act.
ALL OF US BENEFIT
  • Wildfire prevention and protection of water sources.
  • A rebate program to help make our homes safer and greener with insulation and windows, solar panels, heat pumps, and by replacing old fossil-fuel appliances.
  • Restoring fairness to our tax code: attending to the backlog of paperwork that’s allowed the ultra-rich to avoid paying what they owe. Plus a 15% corporate minimum tax rate that will allow us to plan for our country’s future and build an economy that works for all Americans.
The Inflation Reduction Act will provide a historic investment in a clean energy economy.
​–Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-NM) 
You lived through the fastest recovery in three decades!
All because of the 
​​American Rescue Plan
THE ECONOMY RESCUED
The U.S. had the fastest recovery of any nation in the world.
  • New Mexico’s unemployment rate fell to 3.5% in December 2022 from 8.2% in January 2021
  • New Mexico added 70,000 jobs due to the American Rescue Plan
  • New Mexicans applied for 51,000 new Small Business Applications, the highest 2-year total on record.
  • Hispanic unemployment saw its fastest 1-year drop and reached its lowest annual rate ever in 2022 nationwide.
  • Restaurants rescued. 602 New Mexico restaurants received vital relief through the American Rescue Plan's Restaurant Revitalization Fund
FAMILIES & YOUNG PEOPLE RESCUED
  • 23 child care programs in Lea County received money to help keep their doors open
  • Working families got tax relief: 252,000 families with 420,000 children In New Mexico benefited from the ARP’s Child Tax Credit.
  • 56,000 New Mexico students received 145,000 Internet-connected devices (including hotspots) to close the homework gap
  • Emergency Rental Assistance was provided to thousands of hard-pressed renters in New Mexico
    • 73,000 payments to help families meet their ongoing rent and utility costs
    • 60,000 payments to help families address past due rent and utility bills
  • 93,000 New Mexico college students received direct financial relief through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Program in 2021 to help them stay enrolled and cover their bills in 2021.
PEOPLE RESCUED
  • An expanded Earned Income Tax Credit provided up to $1,500 of tax relief to an estimated 134,000 New Mexico workers without dependent children
  • 41,000 more New Mexico homes and businesses will receive affordable, high-speed internet through the American Rescue Plan's Capital Project Fund
  • Over 230 million Americans are fully vaccinated, up from 3.5 million when President Biden took office.
  • 46,000 New Mexicans saved hundreds of dollars on their health premiums from the American Rescue Plan. With the Inflation Reduction Act's extension of these savings, 41,000 New Mexicans signed up for quality, affordable care in the 2023 ACA open enrollment period.
 
COUNTIES, CITIES AND TRIBES RESCUED
Direct pandemic recovery funds were provided to the county, cities, municipalities, and tribes to avoid cuts and to invest in public safety, housing and the workforce:
  • Lea County, $14 million
  • Hobbs, $10 million
  • Lovington, $3 million
SCHOOL DISTRICTS RESCUED
Hobbs Municipal Schools, Lovington Municipal Schools and other school systems in Lea County received recovery funds for academic recovery, student mental health and to reopen schools safely.
More jobs have been created in one year than in our nation’s history.
​– Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-NM
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