HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 55

46th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2004

INTRODUCED BY

Jim Trujillo

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE STATE ENGINEER TO REPORT ON THE HISTORY AND STATUS OF WATER RIGHTS IN THE VILLAGE OF AGUA FRIA.

     WHEREAS, the traditional village of Agua Fria was settled in the seventeenth century; and

     WHEREAS, the lands in and around Agua Fria were farmed and irrigated for over three hundred years; and

     WHEREAS, it is estimated that as much as eighty percent of the water rights that were attached to those lands have been lost or taken; and

     WHEREAS, many of these water rights may have been lost or transferred without sufficient due process; and

     WHEREAS, the current owners of those lands have not received an adequate explanation of how those water rights were lost or taken;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the state engineer conduct a study and report on the history and status of water rights of lands in the vicinity of Agua Fria; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the state engineer report his findings to the appropriate legislative interim committee by November 1, 2005 and submit copies of his final report to the appropriate interim committee and the legislative council service library; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this memorial be transmitted to the state engineer.

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