[LWVNM Action] New Mexican article

[Judy Williams]

New land grant committee formed after outcrySeveral officials raised
objections after dissolution of group in final moments of December’s
legislative session

   - Santa Fe New Mexican
   - 14 Jan 2022
   - By Daniel J. Chacón dchacon at sfnewmexican.com

After getting pushback over plans to dissolve a legislative committee that
dealt with land grants, acequias and other issues affecting rural New
Mexico, House Democrats have created a new committee to give those
interests a voice in the Legislature.

The new Rural Development, Land Grants and Cultural Affairs Committee,
which will be established during the 30-day legislative session that begins
Tuesday, will be chaired by Rep. Susan Herrera, D-Embudo.

News of the new committee came after a meeting with land grant and acequia
community leaders Wednesday.

“I am grateful for the advice and input that we received today from land
grant and acequia leaders,” House Speaker Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe, said in
a statement. “I am glad that we have charted a path forward which will
result in a new committee structure that will both elevate land grant and
acequia issues and bring positive change for every land grant heir and
acequia parciante.”

In addition to creating the new committee, two other standing committees
have been renamed.

The State Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee will now be
known as the Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee. The
Agriculture and Water Resources Committee is now the Agriculture,

Acequias and Water Resources Committee.

“Together, these committees will respond effectively to the needs of land
grant and acequia communities within the Legislature,” House Democrats
wrote in a news release.

Paula Garcia, executive director of the New Mexico Acequia Association,
expressed gratitude for the changes, saying in a statement land grants and
acequias have sustained communities in New Mexico for centuries.

“We remain devoted to the well-being of our families by sustaining our
culture and protecting land and water for future generations,” she said.
“We are encouraged that House leadership is listening to our needs and
concerns and that there is a commitment to

work with us now and in the future.”

Egolf, who created the new committee in consultation with other leaders in
the Roundhouse, sparked outcry after he announced in the final moments of
the special legislative session in December the Local Government, Land
Grants & Cultural Affairs Committee had been dissolved.

Members of Congress and others decried the decision after it was reported
by The New Mexican.

“I’m deeply disappointed and disheartened that California-style
progressives in New Mexico want to erase the history and progress we’ve
made over the years on land grant issues,” former state Rep. Joseph Sanchez
wrote in a My View opinion piece published Jan. 2 in The New Mexican.
“Rather than working with impacted communities on these issues that have
played a critical part in the history of our state, progressives have
erased one of the only venues that gave an official forum and voice to
those who are impacted by policy decisions, thinking they know better than
the generations of families who live on and work the land.”

U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján said he, too, was “deeply disappointed” by the move
to dissolve the committee.

“After communicating with Speaker Egolf, I’m encouraged that he’ll be
sitting down and meeting with leaders from land grant and acequia
communities on how best to move forward,” Luján said in a statement last
month. “This committee is not only part of our history, but part of our
future.”
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