By Hannah Grover
The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish could receive a face lift in the future should Senate Bill 5 become law. The proposed changes are intended to improve the management of wildlife species throughout the state, including some that do not currently receive state oversight.
“What this bill is about, and what this bill is trying to fix is a game department and a game commission, which has not been performing as we would like,” bill sponsor Rep. Matthew McQueen, D-Galisteo, said.
SB 5 passed the state House of Representatives on a 42-26 vote on Wednesday. It now heads back to the Senate so senators can consider the amendments made in a House committee.
The bill changes how the commission is appointed, including creating a nominating committee to submit names to the governor for appointment. It also would increase some hunting license fees, though it includes a discount on license fees for New Mexicans who are enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
The most controversial section in the bill — at least during the House debate — was changing the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish to the Wildlife Department and expanding its scope to allow the department to manage a broader array of wildlife including insects and other invertebrates.
McQueen said there are limited resources in New Mexico and just because all species could be eligible for management and protection does not mean they will be. He said the department would focus on protecting species of greatest conservation needs.
“We’re not asking them to regulate every species, they don’t have those resources,” he said.
Some opponents argued that the expansion to include additional wildlife species could negatively impact ranchers.
House Minority Leader Rep. Gail Armstrong, R-Magdalena, said ranchers’ biggest fear is that expanding the department’s scope would allow it to “pick and choose what species they might want to regulate.”
“I can’t shoot woodpeckers. I hope people in here know that you can’t shoot a woodpecker. It doesn’t matter if it’s pecking on your house and tearing up your house, you can’t shoot them,” Armstrong said.
Rep. Harlan Vincent, R-Ruidoso Downs, proposed an amendment that he said would ensure the expanded wildlife oversight will not impact livestock operations or nearby communities. Additionally, he said the amendment would prevent the use of hunting and fishing license fees to support the expanded mission.
“I don’t think that hunters and anglers ought to be subsidizing this new group of people that we have that are going to manage butterflies and bugs and things like that,” he said.
Vincent said he doesn’t really care for the butterfly, which prompted Rep. Kristina Ortez, D-Taos, to say, “I care about the butterfly quite a bit, and so do hunters and anglers all around the country.”
Many game and fish species rely on healthy insect populations as sources of food. For example, young game birds such as turkeys rely on insects for food and many fish, including trout, also eat insects.
McQueen said the commission does not have the authority to regulate land use and the department already uses some of the hunting and fishing license money to support other operations.
“Your amendment runs contrary to how the department already operates,” he told Vincent.
He noted all the grazing restrictions Vincent and others mentioned were put in place by federal agencies, not by the state Department of Game and Fish. Those examples included efforts to protect the New Mexico meadow jumping mouse habitat, which was listed as endangered in 2014.
“All the dire consequences have come from the feds,” McQueen said. “If you want to avoid those consequences, you want a strong Department of Game and Fish, because that’s the agency that keeps our populations healthy and avoids federal listing.”
Rep. Nathan Small, D-Las Cruces, noted that ranchers do not apply to get grazing permits from the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. Those permits are managed by land management entities such as the New Mexico State Land Office, the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.
Vincent’s proposed amendment was tabled on a 37-29 vote.
When Vincent proposed a similar amendment, which was ultimately tabled on a 40-28 vote, that would prevent livestock from being removed from grazing lands, McQueen called the amendment unnecessary and Small reiterated that the department does not and will not oversee grazing permits.
“If you had an example of the state Department of Game and Fish acting in this way, that would be front and center,” McQueen said.