LAS CRUCES - Legislation that would give landowners training and liability protection to conduct prescribed burns has advanced to the floor of the New Mexico House of Representatives after clearing the Judiciary Committee Monday, Feb. 1.
House Bill 57 passed unanimously and without opposition, but there were concerns that the bill does not give agricultural lands the same level of protection.
Sponsor Matthew McQueen, D-Santa Fe, said the bill is in response to a state statute dating back more than 100 years that was intended to prevent forest fires. It provides for double damages against a person who sets a fire, even if there was no negligence.
That represents a theory of forest management that has long been discredited, and has resulted in overgrown forests with trees densely packed together, leading to more devastating wildfires in years of drought, he said.
“This is a change in policy that’s more than 100 years in the making,” McQueen said. “For years we’ve suppressed fires, even though we know they’re part of a healthy ecosystem. We have a lot of work ahead of us to avoid these massive forest fires.”
The state Energy Minerals and Natural Resources Department has said that hundreds of thousands of acres in New Mexico’s forests are at risk of high-severity wildfire, and that prescribed burns are the best way to reduce the severity of future wildfires.
The bill would provide a training and certification program to be run by New Mexico State University. Landowners who completed the training would no longer be subject to double fines.
Even for those who are not certified, negligence would have to be proven for a person starting a fire to be held liable under the new law.
During the public comment section, leaders of both the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association and the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau spoke in support of the bill.
The bill was amended in the House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee to exclude agricultural burning to clear fields or maintain irrigation ditches. McQueen said the exemption was requested by farmers and ranchers, who may not have understood the bill.
But Rep. Greg Nibert, R-Roswell, said he was troubled about those exemptions.
“I’m a bit concerned that the ag community stood up in favor of this when it’s not providing any real protection for what I would consider common burning practices on farms,” he said. “Burning ditches and burning stubble is commonplace and an active part of ag management. So I’m a little concerned that the average farmer might not know they’re subject to double damages.”
Rep. Micaela Cadena, D-Mesilla, expressed similar concerns. Nibert said he was considering offering an amendment, but McQueen suggested that he reach out to agricultural leaders first.
State Forester Laura McCarthy said the legislation is the result of more than a year’s work by a group of state officials and various stakeholders.
“We feel we have captured the essential elements to promote prescribed burning while keeping it as narrow as possible,” she said.
The bill has now completed the committee process, and will go onto the House calendar for consideration at a future date.