Water Planning
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Water Planning in New Mexico
Introduction
Water runs through everything — through our homes and farms, shaping our rivers and landscapes — and increasingly, water is one of the greatest challenges we all face in New Mexico. An ongoing drought, paired with climate change, is causing water supplies to decline across New Mexico while use continues to grow. But in New Mexico, we’re not waiting; we’re learning from each other, getting more creative, and connecting through the challenge.
About the 2023 Water Security Planning Act
The Water Security Planning Act (WSPA) is New Mexico’s guiding legislation for regional water planning and management. It was passed in 2023 to secure a resilient water future for our state, replacing the 1987 regional water planning statute.
The WSPA fosters regional engagement, local leadership, and scientific rigor by laying the groundwork for sustainable water management and coordination across New Mexico. It prioritizes the unique needs of local communities, makes use of the best available science and data, and ensures compliance with federal and state laws.
What Has Happened So Far:
Open Houses April-August 2024 |
Initial Reports |
Discussion Draft |
Rule Promulgation |
The first phase of implementing WSPA focused on public engagement. In 2024, NMISC collected feedback from more than 2,300 New Mexicans at a series of 16 in-person open house meetings across the state, including a virtual option. The public engagement process resulted in more than 25,000 individual feedback points which were organized, coded, analyzed and compiled into reports (available on mainstreamnm.org/data-and-reports/).
Along with the public engagement, NMISC coordinated with New Mexico Indian Affairs Department to form the Water Security Tribal Advisory Council (WSTAC). This group, required by WSPA, was formalized in late 2024 and has continued meeting through the current phase.
The public engagement reports, along with recommendations from WSTAC, informed the proposed regional boundaries as well as the Discussion Draft of the Rule and Guidelines, a document that provided New Mexicans a chance to comment before the official promulgation, or rule-making, process began.
NMISC received over 100 responses on the Discussion Draft Rule and Guidelines and took the time to read and consider all the feedback that was provided as part of this process. This resulted in numerous substantive and structural changes to the Proposed Rule to make it as informed and useful as possible going forward.
July 17, 2025, NMISC has initiated the rulemaking process, and a hearing is set for October 15-17. All comments submitted to the public comment portal or made at the hearing will be included in the rulemaking record for Commission consideration. Please visit https://www.ose.nm.gov/RulesRegs/rulemaking.php to view the Proposed Rule, all docketed materials, and make a comment.
What Is Next:
Once the WSPA rulemaking hearing is completed, the Commission will deliberate and may adopt, amend, or reject the proposed Rule. After adoption of a Rule, the WSPA Guidelines will be revisited by the NMISC Planning Program staff to see if any adjustments need to be made. The proposed Guidelines would then be presented to the Commission for input and adoption at one of their scheduled meetings. Once finalized, the NMISC will begin to convene Regional Water Security Planning Councils, or support self-convening Councils. A schedule for formation of Councils will be provided this winter.