By Bill Richardson
New Mexico Governor
With the possible exception of water, nothing gets New Mexicans more worked up than threats to private property rights.
From our ancient tribes and pueblos to our traditional land grant communities, we have a long history of fighting for what is ours. I share this strong connection to the land and that is why I am so concerned with the implications of the U.S. Supreme Court's eminent domain decision in Kelo v. The City of New London.
This decision has been widely criticized for eroding the property rights of individual homeowners and local communities. The court's ruling appears to be a win for the big developers and it poses a threat to the strong private property protections in New Mexico law.
Kelo sends the wrong message to New Mexico's property owners, and I want to make absolutely certain that our families, farmers, ranchers and small business owners are not put in peril because of this decision.
That is why I am fighting to protect our private property rights. The Task Force on the Responsible Use of Eminent Domain that I recently established by executive order will help recommend ways for New Mexico to prohibit abusive condemnation practices. This task force will closely examine the Kelo case and recommend any needed fixes to New Mexico law before the next legislative session.
Once I have this task force's recommendations in hand this fall, I will put forward a strong eminent domain bill in the 2007 legislative session. This bill will patch any private property rights holes created in New Mexico by the Kelo decision while retaining the reasonable eminent domain powers local communities need to extend water lines and build roads.
Eminent domain helps us provide the infrastructure we need to keep the state moving forward. But it has to be used judiciously and with a light hand, as has historically been the case in New Mexico. The broad local government, legal and business representation on this task force will make sure that this balanced approach continues.
Eminent domain is also a complex legal issue that needs thorough consideration before a fix is made. I was forced to veto an eminent domain bill after the last legislative session at the urging of cities and towns including Rio Rancho, Alamogordo, Carlsbad, Elida, Elephant Butte, Truth or Consequences, Tijeras, Pecos and Los Lunas. That bill was hastily written, overly vague and unfortunately left several loopholes that would have hit rural communities particularly hard.
Local communities are on the front lines of our fight against crime and illegal drugs. These communities often use condemnation powers as a tool to clean up blighted areas. The eminent domain bill that passed during the last session may have needlessly curtailed this important power and posed a threat to revitalizing and rehabilitating communities devastated by illegal activity.
This bill also threatened the use of eminent domain powers to build roads and extend utilities as towns grow. Eminent domain is an important tool in a growing state and few places are growing as quickly as Rio Rancho. Continuing the smart, fair use of eminent domain powers will make sure that needed infrastructure continues to grow along with this emerging city on the mesa.
I am confident that by working with this task force and the Legislature during the next session we will be able to take care of this issue once and for all.
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