A group of democratic state legislators are pushing to block President Donald Trump’s proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall.
House Bill 292, proposed by New Mexico Rep. Javier Martinez, would block federal use of state land for building a wall between the state and Mexico.
“The idea of dividing an entire people in or out is ludicrous,” Martinez said.
Rep. Bill McCamley, who co-sponsored the bill, said he supports legislation to block a border barrier because it “would be a huge waste of money.”
He also noted that trade with Mexico, a state-wide economic bright spot, may drop as a result.
“Building a wall doesn’t address the issues we have — it is a symbol that doesn’t represent us as a people,” Rep. Angelica Rubio said. “Whichever way you look at it, there is a strong community of Mexican people who are giving back to our state. By putting up a barrier, we say we’re a people that are divided.”
Amidst the legislative push to block a wall, other state leaders are pushing for a different outcome.
New Mexico Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn wrote a letter to the president, stating that he didn’t “wish to be part of political fodder for any side of this issue.”
He also proposed a land exchange with the Bureau of Land Management and Department of Homeland Security. Under Dunn’s deal, state trust land within three miles of the border would be swapped for more valuable assets in Chavez, Lincoln and Otero counties.
Under the New Mexico Administrative Code there are no rules blocking the State Commissioner from exchanging state owned lands for the state’s benefit. The proposed legislation may change that.
The legislation outlines no trust land could be sold, leased, or “transferred,” for use as construction for the border wall.
Pursuant to its emergency clause, the bill would go into place immediately after passed, which may prove to be a political roadblock for a Trump administration that needs to own the entire stretch of border land to build a wall.
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The New Mexico-Mexico border runs nearly 160 miles and includes 50 miles of state-owned trust land mineral rights, Dunn said in his letter to the White House.
All revenue generated from state trust lands contribute to a permanent fund to support institutions like UNM, New Mexico State University and other state public schools, as outlined in the 1910 New Mexico Enabling Act.
For federal easement of these lands, the Trump administration would have to pay nearly $3 million in fees, according to the New Mexico Land Commissioner’s Office.
Some have said Trump’s border wall — a staple promise of his campaign that ended in victory — could ignite a trade war that may spell disaster for the already struggling state economy.
According to data from U.S. Department of Commerce, New Mexico exported $1.68 billion to Mexico in 2015, making the country New Mexico’s largest market for products from the neighboring country. The state ranks fifth for highest percentage exports to Mexico.
“Jobs will be lost, and real people will be hurt by a trade war,” McCamley said. “Rational relationships with Mexico will help us build a 21st century economy that creates jobs. Building a wall, an idea from the 12th century, will only make life harder on New Mexicans.”
Like McCamley, Martinez fears New Mexico’s economic efforts will be wasted.
“We’ve invested hundreds of millions to expand border trade and the economy in Southern New Mexico,” he said. “Building this wall would be detrimental to trade, detrimental to the economy, and put millions of taxpayers’ dollars at risk.”
Brendon Gray is a news reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @notgraybrendon.
