New Mexico Statutes
Article 20 - Soil and Water and Watershed Conservation Districts
Section 73-20-36 - Soil and water conservation districts; modification of existing districts.

A. Unless otherwise provided by this section, petitions to modify the boundaries of an existing district shall be subject to the same requirements for notice, hearing, determination of necessity and desirability, referendum and determination of administrative practicability as are required for petitions for the organization of a district pursuant to the Soil and Water Conservation District Act [73-20-25 to 73-20-48 NMSA 1978].
B. Petitions for including additional land within an existing organized district, signed by twenty-five registered voters residing in the district or within the boundaries of the additional land proposed to be included or signed by two thirds of the owners of the additional land proposed to be included, whichever is less, may be filed with the commission. If the petition is signed by two thirds or more of the owners of the additional land proposed to be included in the district, the commission may enter its determinations without hearing or referendum. The commission shall advise the department of all petitions filed pursuant to this section.
C. Petitions for severing land from the defined geographical area of an existing organized district, or for its severance and inclusion within another existing organized district, signed by twenty-five registered voters residing in the district or within the boundaries of the land proposed to be severed or signed by two thirds of the owners of the land proposed to be severed, whichever is greater, may be filed with the commission. If the petition is signed by two thirds or more of the owners of the land to be severed or is submitted by the board of supervisors of each district affected, the commission may enter its determinations without hearing or referendum.
D. Petitions for consolidating two or more districts or for separating an existing district into two or more districts may be filed with the commission by the board of supervisors of each district affected. After due notice, a public hearing shall be held in each district affected. If petitions have been filed pursuant to this subsection and approved as provided in the Soil and Water Conservation District Act [73-20-25 to 73-20-48 NMSA 1978], it shall not be necessary to obtain the consent of the registered voters within the districts prior to the consolidation or division.
E. The commission shall give written notice to the secretary of state of any modification in the defined geographical area of an existing district; the notice of modification shall describe and portray by map the modified geographical area. The secretary of state shall note, file and record each modification and shall issue, under state seal, a certificate of reorganization to each district affected. Certificates of reorganization shall have the same effect as the certificates they supersede.
F. The commission shall supervise reorganization of the affairs of the district when boundaries are modified.
G. In the event a supervisor of a district is disqualified from holding office by the modification of the district, the supervisor shall be deemed to have resigned and a successor shall be appointed to serve the unexpired term by the commission.
History: 1953 Comp., § 45-5-51, enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 85, § 1; 1997, ch. 137, § 6; 2003, ch. 88, § 9.
Repeals and reenactments. — Laws 1978, ch. 85, § 1, repealed 45-5-51, 1953 Comp. (former 73-20-36 NMSA 1978), relating to modification of existing natural resource conservation districts, and enacted a new section.
The 2003 amendment, effective June 20, 2003, inserted present Subsection A and redesignated the subsequent paragraphs accordingly; in Subsection B, inserted "signed by twenty-five registered voters residing in the district or within the boundaries of the additional land proposed to be included or signed by two thirds of the owners of the additional land proposed to be included, whichever is less" following "organized district" near the beginning and substituted "commission" for "department and shall be treated in the same manner as petitions for the creation of a proposed district" at the end of the first sentence; in Subsection C, inserted "signed by twenty-five registered voters residing in the district or within the boundaries of the land proposed to be severed or signed by two thirds of the owners of the land proposed to be severed, whichever is greater" following "organized district" near the middle, and substituted "commission" for "department and may be treated in the same manner as petitions for the creation of a proposed district" at the end of the first sentence; in Subsection D, deleted "and no action can be taken without the majority approval of the voters present at the hearing" at the end of the first sentence, and substituted "registered voters" for "landowners" near the end of the second sentence; deleted "organized" following "existing" near the beginning of Subsection E; added Subsection F and redesignated former Subsection E as present Subsection G; and substituted "commission" for "remaining supervisors of the district. In the event two or more supervisors are disqualified from holding office by the modification of a district, their successors shall be appointed to serve the unexpired terms by the board" at the end of Subsection G.
The 1997 amendment, effective July 1, 1997, substituted "department" for "division" throughout the section; in Subsection A, added the last sentence; in Subsection C, substituted "as provided in the Soil and Water Conservation District Act" for "as herein provided" in the last sentence; in Subsection E, substituted "board" for "commission" at the end of the last sentence; and made a minor stylistic change.

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