The US Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing creating a conservation area in an area that would include Taos County. The agency wants to create the San Luis Valley Conservation Area, which would cover our area, plus Rio Arriba County, and several counties in Colorado... the idea is to protect wildlife habitat and migration paths. the public has until june 8th to comment on a draft environmental assessment of the proposal. The area also would include three national wildlife refuges in southern Colorado... one part of the proposal includes protecting hundreds of thousands of acres with conservation easements bought from willing sellers... that would keep the land from being developed.

The trial of a Taos man accused of killing his child - goes on this week. The trial for Christopher Barney started wednesday... he's accused of stabbing his one-year-old son in May of 2010, while the child slept. Barney faces one charge of child abuse resulting in death. The trial is expected to go through next week. Police found the child dead in his crib with a chest wound... and Barney was on the bed next to the crib and suffering from self-inflicted stab wounds.

Taos County leaders say they might spend some time evaluating the county's land use code. early this year, after several days of public debate, the county decided to cut the code... but commissioners say they'd like to take another look at it, possibly early this summer.

A national magazine highlights Taos as one the reasons New Mexico is the next hot spot to retire. Smart Money magazine says the state is becoming popular for retirees, noting that retirees are finding good deals with a cost of living 5-percent below the national average... highlighting Taos, Santa Fe, and Las Cruces. Taos also is noted for outdoor activities and cultural attractions...but the article also says Taos is far from the santa Fe regional airport. Smart Money also touts new mexico's lower real estate taxes, and an income tax rate of 4-point-9-percent.