press releases

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following statement welcoming an announcement by the Biden-Harris Administration to increase pay for wildland firefighters. The announcement today includes unprecedented actions Senator Heinrich has advocated for on behalf of the wildland firefighter workforce that is funded...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) announced that President Joe Biden has approved a request to expand federal assistance eligibilities for Colfax, Mora, and San Miguel...

WASHINGTON (June 7, 2022) – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) are calling on President Joe Biden to approve a request from Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham for expanded federal...

WASHINGTON – In the wake of wildfire devastation that has impacted communities and homes across the state, U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) and Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) issued the following statement welcoming news that President Joe...

ALBUQUERQUE – On Tuesday, May 31, at 10 a.m. MT, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) will tour the Whitfield Conservation Area to receive an update on damage sustained from the recent Big Hole Fire.  Senator Heinrich will meet with members of the Valencia Soil & Water Conservation District and Friends of the Whitfield...

ALBQUERQUE, N.M. – On Tuesday, May 31, at 1:30 p.m. MT/ 3:30 p.m. ET, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) will highlight over $15 million he secured to upgrade facilitates at the Cibola National Forest Air Tanker Base at Kirtland Air Force Base to allow the use of Very Large Air Tankers (VLATs) to fight wildfires. Media are...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) are calling on President Joe Biden to approve a request from Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham for additional federal assistance for the...

WASHINGTON – Today, during a key Appropriations hearing, U.S. Senator Martin (D-N.M.) requested the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack to reduce cost-share requirements for disaster recovery programs and to send additional personnel and resources to New Mexico to help communities affected by wildfires access federal...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich’s (D-N.M.) staff will hold a series of in-person Mobile Office Hours in Peñasco, Las Vegas, and Glorieta Today, Friday, May 6, and tomorrow, Saturday, May 7, to provide direct assistance to New Mexicans who have been impacted by fires. Senator Heinrich’s staff will be on...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) announced that President Joe Biden has approved a Major Disaster Declaration for New Mexico in the wake of severe wildfires. Today, the...

WASHINGTON – As many areas in New Mexico continue dealing with the devastation and mitigation of wildfires across the state, U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), and Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) are calling on President...

WASHINGTON – As areas of New Mexico continue dealing with wildfire mitigation and devastation, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, cosponsored legislation to strengthen the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) wildfire preparedness and response efforts. “In...

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, welcomed $4 million in funding for New Mexico through the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program (CFLRP) aimed at reducing the risk of severe wildfires, supporting local economies, creating jobs and enhancing forest and...

ALBUQERUQUE, N.M. – On Saturday, April 16, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) met with the Southwest Are Type 1 Incident Management Team 2 for a fire briefing and tour of key impacts areas of the McBride and Nogal Fires.  Senator Heinrich also met with Lincoln County and Village of Ruidoso Emergency Managers to discuss recovery...

WASHINGTON (Nov. 3, 2021) – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is applauding the Senate passage of a bipartisan Senate resolution he cosponsored to recognize the bravery and sacrifice of wildland firefighters and first responders in New Mexico and across the U.S. The...

TAOS, N.M. – At 9:15 a.m. MT on Wednesday, May 5, 2021, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) will meet with Carson National Forest staff and community members participating in the Forest Mayordomo Collaborative Forest Restoration Program (CFRP) near Valdez, New Mexico. The group will highlight wildfire safety and fire protection...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), the first AmeriCorps alum to serve in the Senate and a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, today unveiled legislation to expand national service programs to help address the historic COVID-19 joblessness crisis by establishing a 21st Century Conservation...

As firefighters across the West continue to battle what experts are describing as one of the most destructive wildfire seasons in recent memory, a group of U.S. senators, including Democrats Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, are trying to get a sense of how prepared the National Guard is to help combat large-scale blazes. Udall and...

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) joined a group of 12 senators in a letter to Chief of the National Guard Bureau, General Daniel R. Hokanson requesting an assessment of the  National Guard’s current firefighting capabilities to better coordinate resources with state and local efforts. The...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) participated in a key Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing on wildfire management in the midst of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The impacts of COVID-19, combined with high levels of drought throughout the West, will create unprecedented wildland...