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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Salazar
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
2-8-2007
HB HM 14
SHORT TITLE Acequia de Chamita on Historic Register
SB
ANALYST Dearing
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT (dollars in thousands)
FY07
FY08
FY09 3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
Total
$20.0
Non-
Recurring General
Fund
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Duplicates SM21
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Responses Received From
Cultural Affairs Department (CAD)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
House Memorial 14 requests the Department of Cultural Affairs include the Acequia de
Chamita on the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties in addition to recommending the
Acequia de Chamita for inclusion in the
National Register of Historic Places.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
There is no appropriation associated with this memorial. The State Historic Preservation Officer
at the Cultural Affairs department states that the research and preparation necessary for state and
national register designation would incur an expense of at least $20,000.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
According to the Historic Preservation division,
“Acequias are a time honored cultural element in New Mexico, and archaeologists have evidence
that diversion irrigation was practiced by some New Mexico Indian communities before the
pg_0002
House Memorial 14 – Page
2
coming of the Spanish. The Acequia de Chamita is recognized as an early acequia and worthy of
inclusion on the New Mexico Cultural Properties List and the National Register of Historic
Places.
The Cultural Properties Act of 1978 created the Cultural Properties Review Committee (CPRC)
as the policy making advisory body to the Historic Preservation Division of the Cultural Affairs
Department on matters of cultural history and preservation. Members of the CPRC are ap-
pointed by the Governor based on their knowledge of New Mexico’s cultural heritage. Under
the Act, the CPRC lists in and keeps up to date the official register, composed of properties iden-
tified by the committee as having historical or other cultural significance and integrity, being
suitable for preservation and having educational significance.
And according to the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, the CPRC rec-
ommends properties to the Keeper of the National Register for inclusion in the National Register
of Historic Places.
For properties to be listed successfully on both registers requires in-depth historic research and
photographs augmented by oral histories and maps. A professional historian experienced in writ-
ing nominations will be needed to prepare these nominations."
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
State and national register designations require that a professional historian research, conduct
oral histories, photograph and produce the nomination. The research and preparation necessary
for state and national register designation is estimated at $20,000. The Historic Preservation di-
vision has stated that the work associated with this memorial will cause a budgetary hardship.
PD/nt