New Mexico Supreme Court dismisses petition challenging governor's line-item vetoes

SANTA FE — The New Mexico Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition challenging the legality of some of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s line-item vetoes of a $161 million state spending bill.

The state’s highest court did not provide an explanation in its unanimous order to dismiss the lawsuit, which specifically targeted partial vetoes made by the governor while signing a spending measure passed by lawmakers in a October special session.

The petition was filed by Duke Rodriguez, a cannabis industry executive who is weighing a possible 2026 gubernatorial bid as a Republican.

His attorney, former state Sen. Jacob Candelaria, said the Supreme Court has the authority to dismiss the petition without a full written opinion but called the decision to do so a missed opportunity.

“In the absence of any explanation from the court, people are going to fill in the blanks,” Candelaria said. “I think New Mexicans and my client deserved an answer to the questions that were raised here.”

However, a Lujan Grisham spokesman said an adverse ruling in the case could have stripped millions of dollars in funding from vulnerable state residents.

“We are grateful that the court saw Mr. Rodriguez’s lawsuit for what it was: A frivolous and unfounded attack on executive authority in New Mexico,” the governor’s spokesman, Michael Coleman, said in a statement.

Specifically, the petition claimed Lujan Grisham had overstepped her executive authority by striking out timelines and other guardrails from the spending bill, which appropriated state funds for food assistance programs, food banks and public television and radio stations, among other initiatives.

But the governor’s attorneys responded by claiming the governor’s vetoes actually ensured vulnerable state residents — including elderly and disabled New Mexicans — were not denied food assistance benefits.

“At bottom, Gov. Lujan Grisham simply vetoed erroneous language that would have prevented the executive from carrying out the purpose for which the funds were appropriated,” the governor’s chief general counsel, Holly Agajanian, wrote in her court-ordered response.

The Governor’s Office also said Lujan Grisham had worked closely with legislators to craft the funding package.

The spending bill was one of several bills approved during a two-day special session called by Lujan Grisham to address the state-level impact of a sweeping federal budget bill.

Before signing the bill, the governor struck down several provisions requiring appropriated funds to be spent by June 2027. She also vetoed language stipulating that any money still unspent by that time revert to the state general fund.

While the Supreme Court’s order means the vetoes remain law, Candelaria said the decision could lead to future governors pushing the limits of their line-item veto authority.

New Mexicans will elect a new governor next year, as Lujan Grisham is barred under the state Constitution from seeking a third consecutive four-year term in 2026.