CLEAN WATER PROTECTION BILL SIGNED INTO LAW
New Mexico’s waters scored a monumental victory in the 2025 state legislative session. Senate Bill 21, the Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act, packaged two crucial bills together to achieve state-level clean water protections after federal rollbacks of the Clean Water Act left up to 95% of New Mexico’s streams and 88% of the state’s wetlands vulnerable. Due to New Mexico’s arid climate, most streams no longer qualify for federal protection because they do not flow year-round, and many wetlands lack the required continuous surface connection to a stream. Nonetheless, these waters play a critical role in ensuring safe and healthy drinking water for New Mexico communities, ensuring farms and ranches have a clean water supply, mitigating against flood and drought damage, and protecting New Mexico’s wildlife habitat and other areas.
SB 21 also transfers pollution prevention permitting for waters that are still federally protected from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to New Mexico, a move that 47 other states have already taken.
The bill also establishes additional groundwater protections by giving the Environment Department the authority to hold polluters responsible for hundreds of neglected contaminated groundwater sites and by allowing the state to take the lead on clean-up for sites that have no clear responsible party.
At the time of publication, the bill awaited a signature by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. New Mexico Wild Rivers and Waters Program staff worked on this bill and would like to thank sponsors Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, Sen. Roberto “Bobby” J. Gonzales and Rep. Kristina Ortez.
STRATEGIC WATER RESERVE STRENGTHENED
In another tremendous win for New Mexico’s water, Senate Bill 37 cemented crucial improvements to the Strategic Water Reserve. The reserve was created in 2005 through broad bipartisan support and allows the Interstate Stream Commission (ISC) to acquire water or water rights through voluntary transactions. This water can be kept in New Mexico’s waterways for two purposes: to meet our obligations under interstate compacts and to benefit threatened or endangered species, including to prevent future listings. SB 37 improves the reserve by creating a non-reverting fund to ensure money will be available until a water rights transaction can be completed. The bill also adds aquifer recharge, an essential use that supports healthy groundwater levels, as a third purpose for the reserve. Lastly, the bill allows the ISC to prioritize transactions that benefit supplementary uses, like recreation or cultural uses, as well as the primary purposes. The Strategic Water Reserve is an important water management tool, and thanks to the passage of SB 37, it now has the structure and resources it needs to reach its full potential. Thanks to sponsors Sens. Liz Stefanics and Peter Wirth and Reps. Meredith A. Dixon and Matthew McQueen. At the time of publication, the bill awaited a signature by Gov. Lujan Grisham.
GAME COMMISSION REFORM PASSED AND SIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR
The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish manages the state’s cherished wildlife, an ecological and economic resource that is deeply tied to our traditional land use values and helps sustain our $3.2 billion outdoor recreation economy. New Mexico’s outdated and underfunded wildlife management system has been suffering from a politicized game commission, a crisis of funding and an inadequate mission that leaves many crucial native species unprotected. Senate Bill 5 renames the agency the New Mexico Department of Wildlife and provides the tools needed for a 21st century wildlife management system to oversee the state’s important wildlife species, including but not limited to game and fish species.
SB 5 passed the House and Senate with bipartisan support. Thanks in part to the voices of New Mexico Wild members and supporters, the governor was persuaded to sign the bill on March 20. Unfortunately, she used a line-item veto to remove a critical part of the legislation that would have mandated a judicial process to remove commissioners. New Mexico Wild and its legislative team are committed to addressing this in future legislative sessions.
New Mexico Wild and the entire SB 5 coalition thank Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, Sens. Pete Campos and Crystal Brantley, House Speaker Javier Martinez, Reps. Matthew McQueen and Nathan Small, and House Majority Whip Dayan Hochman-Vigil for their leadership on this bill protecting our wildlife, cultural traditions and recreational opportunities.
$50 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR WILDLIFE CORRIDORS SECURED
Over 1,200 wildlife-vehicle crashes are reported annually across 60 hotspots in New Mexico, and that is likely an undercount. Legislators appropriated $50 million for the Wildlife Corridors Fund this legislative session to help address this deadly hazard. Last year’s proposed $50 million appropriation was cut to just $5 million but New Mexico Wild staff and partners came back to the table this session to secure full funding.
Before the appropriation this session, only $8.5 million was available for wildlife collision mitigation as called for by the 2019 Wildlife Corridors Act. Wildlife crossings like overpasses and underpasses are the gold standard of mitigation strategies, but more fiscally viable projects like fencing, lit signage and maintenance of existing collision mitigation infrastructure make a difference and will now be funded thanks to this appropriation. Special thanks to Gov. Lujan-Grisham, President Pro Tempore Mimi Stewart, Rep. Small, Sen. George Muñoz, Rep. Hochman-Vigil and all of our legislative champions who supported this important appropriation.
UPPER PECOS WATERSHED PROTECTION STALLS IN COMMITTEE
House Joint Memorial 5—which supports federal action to safeguard critical water resources, the local economy, the environment and cultural heritage in the Upper Pecos watershed—passed on the House floor in March. The memorial—which was sponsored by Reps. Anita Gonzales, Joseph Sanchez and Tara Lujan, House Majority Floor Leader Reena Szczepanski and Sen. Stefanics—expresses official state support for federal administrative action, such as the proposed mineral withdrawal initiated by the Department of Interior in December 2024, and federal legislative action, such as the Pecos Watershed Protection Act introduced by Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján and Reps. Teresa Leger Fernández and Melanie Stansbury to establish permanent protections for this ecologically and culturally significant area. Unfortunately, the bill was tabled in the Senate Rules Committee and didn’t reach the Senate floor for a vote. New Mexico Wild and our partners will continue to support efforts to secure permanent federal protections for the Pecos Watershed.
