0001| AN ACT | 0002| RELATING TO NATURAL RESOURCES; CREATING THE RIO GRANDE BOSQUE ADVISORY | 0003| COUNCIL TO ACT AS ADVISORY BODY TO BOSQUE MANAGEMENT AGENCIES; | 0004| ENACTING THE RIO GRANDE BOSQUE MANAGEMENT ACT. | 0005| | 0006| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: | 0007| Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Rio | 0008| Grande Bosque Management Act". Section 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.-- | 0009| A. The legislature finds that the Rio Grande bosque is an | 0010| important natural resource that is undergoing rapid ecological change | 0011| that endangers the future existence of native biological communities, | 0012| especially riparian gallery forests of cottonwood and willow. | 0013| B. The institutional structure that manages the middle Rio | 0014| Grande is composed of many federal, state, local and tribal entities | 0015| that often operate independently to address irrigation, flood control, | 0016| drainage needs, recreation, law enforcement and wildlife management | 0017| without complete coordination to achieve ecosystem management and the | 0018| balancing of compatible uses of the bosque. | 0019| C. Those portions of the middle Rio Grande bosque that lie | 0020| within Indian reservations are subject to management by individual | 0021| Indian governments as sovereign entities. | 0022| D. The middle Rio Grande conservancy district is one of the | 0023| primary entities charged with managing the bosque and will play a | 0024| major role in the coordination of ecosystem management. | 0025| Section 3. DEFINITION.--As used in the Rio Grande Bosque | 0001| Management Act, "bosque" means: | 0002| A. all land between the flood control levees, excepting the | 0003| levees themselves, and the river bank from Cochiti reservoir to | 0004| Elephant Butte reservoir, provided that where there are no levees, | 0005| bosque includes the following: | 0006| (1) where there is a riverside drain, such lands as | 0007| exist between the riverside drain, excepting the riverside drain | 0008| itself, and the river bank; or | 0009| (2) where there is no riverside drain, the lands | 0010| between the river bank and the limits of the historic flood plain; and | 0011| B. all other lands that are ecological components of the | 0012| middle Rio Grande riparian system, provided that the owners of the | 0013| lands voluntarily agree to allow the Rio Grande bosque advisory | 0014| council to offer suggestions for their management. | 0015| Section 4. RIO GRANDE BOSQUE ADVISORY COUNCIL--CREATED-- | 0016| MEMBERS.-- | 0017| A. The "Rio Grande bosque advisory council" is created to | 0018| advise public and private landowners within the bosque as defined | 0019| above, to promote coordination among all government agencies having | 0020| authority in the bosque and to promote the protection and enhancement | 0021| of bosque and river ecosystems. | 0022| B. The Rio Grande bosque advisory council may consist of | 0023| the following members or their designees as voting members according | 0024| to the following categories: | 0025| (1) the mayors of Albuquerque, Belen, Bernalillo, | 0001| Bosque Farms, Corrales, Los Lunas, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, Rio | 0002| Rancho and Socorro; | 0003| (2) the county commission chairmen from Bernalillo, | 0004| Sandoval, Socorro and Valencia counties; | 0005| (3) the governors of the following pueblos: Cochiti, | 0006| Isleta, Sandia, San Felipe, Santa Ana and Santo Domingo; | 0007| (4) one representative each from the United States | 0008| army corps of engineers, the bureau of reclamation, the natural | 0009| resources conservation service and the United States fish and wildlife | 0010| service; | 0011| (5) a representative of the middle Rio Grande | 0012| conservancy district; | 0013| (6) the secretary of energy, minerals and natural | 0014| resources, the secretary of environment, the director of the | 0015| department of game and fish, the state engineer, the commissioner of | 0016| public lands, the chairman of the interstate stream commission and the | 0017| secretary of agriculture; | 0018| (7) four private bosque landowners nominated by the | 0019| landowner committee; | 0020| (8) one representative of a local organization in the | 0021| middle Rio Grande region that is dedicated to protection and | 0022| enhancement of the bosque or the river and one representative of a | 0023| regional or national environmental organization. The environmental | 0024| representatives shall be designated by the speaker of the house of | 0025| representatives and the president pro tempore of the senate and shall | 0001| be individuals who have an established knowledge of issues affecting | 0002| the river and the bosque and who have been involved in attempting to | 0003| protect and enhance bosque and river ecosystems; and | 0004| (9) one member each from the Socorro soil and water | 0005| conservation district, the Valencia soil and water conservation | 0006| district and the Coronado soil and water conservation district. | 0007| C. The business of the Rio Grande bosque advisory council | 0008| between meetings shall be conducted by a nine-member executive | 0009| committee, with one member selected from each category of membership | 0010| as set forth in Subsection B of this section. | 0011| D. The secretary of energy, minerals and natural resources | 0012| or his designee shall serve as the chairman of the Rio Grande bosque | 0013| advisory council for the first fiscal year of the council, and | 0014| thereafter a chairman shall be elected by the membership of the | 0015| council. | 0016| E. The Rio Grande bosque advisory council shall hold at | 0017| least two open meetings each year. The executive committee shall meet | 0018| as needed. The council shall promulgate public notice of each meeting | 0019| and provide interested members of the public with the opportunity to | 0020| present written and oral comments. | 0021| F. The Rio Grande bosque advisory council is | 0022| administratively attached to the energy, minerals and natural | 0023| resources department but shall have authority, independent of the | 0024| department, to carry out its assigned functions as defined by the Rio | 0025| Grande Bosque Management Act. | 0001| G. Members of the Rio Grande bosque advisory council not | 0002| otherwise eligible shall receive per diem and mileage as provided for | 0003| nonsalaried public officers in the Per Diem and Mileage Act and shall | 0004| receive no other compensation, perquisite or allowance. | 0005| Section 5. COUNCIL--POWERS AND DUTIES.-- | 0006| A. The Rio Grande bosque advisory council shall adopt, | 0007| after a public hearing, a set of principles to advise appropriate | 0008| government agencies on actions that may affect the bosque. The | 0009| principles shall be based on the concept that the bosque is an | 0010| integrated system of biological, physical, social and cultural | 0011| components. The principles shall encourage the protection and | 0012| enhancement of bosque and river ecosystems, and in formulating the | 0013| principles, the council shall review, implement and update to the | 0014| extent possible the recommendations from the report, "middle Rio | 0015| Grande ecosystem: bosque conservation of the middle Rio Grande | 0016| bosque". | 0017| B. The Rio Grande bosque council shall act as advisory | 0018| council to the middle Rio Grande conservancy district regarding the | 0019| management of bosque lands within the boundaries of the district. The | 0020| council shall also advise other management authorities, landowners and | 0021| regulatory agencies that own, control or exercise authority within the | 0022| bosque. | 0023| C. The Rio Grande bosque advisory council shall request | 0024| participating agencies to enter into a memorandum of agreement for | 0025| cooperation in implementing the set of principles established pursuant | 0001| to Subsection A of this section and in undertaking coordinated | 0002| resource management programs for the bosque. | 0003| D. The Rio Grande bosque advisory council shall: | 0004| (1) maintain information on the biological, physical, | 0005| social and cultural conditions in the bosque; | 0006| (2) establish an information clearinghouse for public | 0007| comment and distribution of information to the public; | 0008| (3) foster mediation to resolve conflicts and | 0009| disputes regarding the bosque; | 0010| (4) publish an annual "state of the bosque report" | 0011| and report annually to the appropriate interim committees of the | 0012| legislature and to the board of the middle Rio Grande conservancy | 0013| district; and | 0014| (5) establish committees to assist it, composed of | 0015| members of the council and members of the public. One committee shall | 0016| be a landowner committee and one shall be a committee composed of | 0017| private citizens. The citizen committee shall have authority to | 0018| consider any and all matters affecting the welfare of the bosque and | 0019| to receive oral and written public comments. Prior to the issuance of | 0020| the council's state of the bosque report, the citizen committee shall | 0021| submit a written report and recommendations for the council's | 0022| consideration. The council shall review the citizen committee's | 0023| report and recommendations for possible incorporation into the state | 0024| of the bosque report. | 0025| E. In order to carry out its duties, the Rio Grande bosque | 0001| advisory council shall have the following powers: | 0002| (1) adopt bylaws to govern the structure and | 0003| operations of the council and council meetings; | 0004| (2) solicit and administer grants and in-kind | 0005| services and use its funds as the local cost share to obtain federal | 0006| funding for projects to assist it in carrying out its obligations | 0007| under the Rio Grande Bosque Management Act; and | 0008| (3) sponsor mediation services. | 0009| Section 6. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE--POWERS AND DUTIES.--The | 0010| executive committee of the Rio Grande bosque advisory council shall: | 0011| A. employ and fix the compensation of those employees | 0012| necessary to discharge the duties of the council; | 0013| B. set executive committee and full council meeting dates, | 0014| locations and agendas; | 0015| C. prepare draft advisory principles on government actions | 0016| that affect the bosque, taking into consideration the reports and | 0017| recommendations of the council and the citizen and landowner | 0018| committees; | 0019| D. prepare and disseminate an annual "state of the bosque | 0020| report"; | 0021| E. develop an annual budget; and | 0022| F. be subject to the provisions of the Open Meetings Act. | 0023| Section 7. TERMINATION--DELAYED REPEAL.--The Rio Grande | 0024| bosque advisory council is terminated on July 1, 2007 pursuant to | 0025| the Sunset Act. The council shall continue to operate pursuant to | 0001| the Rio Grande Bosque Management Act until July 1, 2008. | 0002| Effective July 1, 2008, the Rio Grande Bosque Management Act is | 0003| repealed. |