NEW MEXICO COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC LANDS
Leads the State Land Office, which manages 9 million acres of land and 13 million acres of mineral rights held in trust to support public schools, universities, hospitals, charitable purposes and penitentiaries. Must be at least 30 years of age, a United States citizen, and have resided continuously in New Mexico for five years preceding his/her election. Four-year term with no more than two terms in succession.
1. What qualifies you to be Commissioner of Public Lands?
Thanks to the trust the voters have placed in me, for the last 4 years, I am proud to say I have raised the MOST money, closed the most wells & protected more acres than any previous land commissioner. I’ve tripled renewable energy production and issued executive orders on freshwater and the Greater Chaco Region, saving millions of gallons of freshwater and protecting over 70,000 acres from future oil and gas development. I’ve established programs to hold bad actors accountable and ensure remediation and removal of abandoned wells sites, saving New Mexicans millions in cleanup costs.
2. What are the greatest challenges facing the State Land Office?
Diversification is the biggest challenge we face. The billions we raise from oil & gas will not always be here and we need to look to protect our environment and raise money from other sources like: renewable energy, economic development and border commerce.
3. How would you balance responsible stewardship of state trust lands with the need to generate revenues for the support of the beneficiaries?
For the last 4 years that is what we have done! We established the 1st ever comprehensive enforcement and accountability program to hold industry accountable for the use of YOUR public land, closed the most wells of any state agency, protected more acres and saved millions of beneficiary money by making industry clean up their own messes.
4. Should the Land Commissioner improve enforcement of environmental regulations on state trust lands?
We have gone above & beyond any previous land commissioner to enforce environmental regulations. In addition to closing more wells, demanding stricter methane and produced water regulations, and protecting more acres, as well as saving taxpayers from footing the bill and earning more money than any other land commissioner, we have saved New Mexico taxpayers over $20 million dollars because we are not above taking companies to court when they are not willing to clean up their messes.