Spring 1999 Bulletin

Legislative Update

The 60-day session of the New Mexico legislature has just ended as we go to press, but the battle to protect the Río Grande is not over yet. Because NM Governor Gary Johnson vetoed both general appropriations bills passed by the legislature––leaving state government without a budget for the next fiscal year––a special legislative session will be called later this spring to resolve the budget deadlock. The special session provides another opportunity to establish the New Mexico Rivers Information System and democratic access to river information. NMRIS was not included in either of the appropriations bills this session, despite the long hours and many successes of our two dedicated volunteer lobbyists, Michael Coca and Ross Ulibarrí. With the invaluable help of NMRIS's principal sponsors, Representative Max Coll and Senator Carlos Cisneros, we stand a very good chance of having the NMRIS proposal included in the final appropriations bill during the special session. NMRIS legislation requests a $150,000 appropriation to the Environment Department to create an easily accessible public database of river-related information, information currently disbursed among dozens of government agencies. Comprehensive and unbiased information about New Mexico's rivers will be available to the general public via the Internet, complete with optional layers of GIS (Geographic Information System) graphics. NMRIS would give individuals a chance to assess the health of any stretch of river, and provide information on everything from fish consumption warnings and water levels to recreational facilities, endangered species, contaminant levels, and archaeological data. Please contact your representative, senator, and the governor, to ask that they support the NMRIS (HB 731 and SB 72) because it's a simple, sensible, and money-saving information tool, that is important both for New Mexico's rivers and for it's citizens. We are happy that other conservationists chose not to introduce instream flow legislation in this session, and thereby avoided an unnecessary and very contentious fight with acequia interests. Simply put, "instream flow" means allowing rivers to have a legal "right" to water. While Amigos Bravos strongly supports healthy stream flows, we will continue to stand by our policy that we will support instream flow initiatives only if and when they address the concerns of acequias. Many acequia advocates see instream flow as another threat to already-imperiled community water rights. With the aim of addressing those acequia concerns, as well as many other issues, Amigos Bravos, along with a spectrum of New Mexico water interests, will soon begin our Somos Vecinos (We Are Neighbors) Project, which seeks to establish a long-term, ongoing dialogue and develop collaborative policy recommendations.

Please return to Spring 1999 Bulletin Index.