Grazing Rights In New Mexico

New Mexico consists of almost 78 million acres of land. More than 90% of that land is native vegetation used for livestock and wildlife grazing. Approximately 34% of our land is controlled by Federal agencies, and 13.4 million acres are controlled by state land trusts. In many cases a single ranch encompasses private land, state trust land and federal land. This results in a complicated management plan as each entity has its own regulations, permits, terms and authorities.¹

Ultimately, we want to protect the rangelands while still helping to meet the needs of ranchers. We need to elect someone who has a fair-minded understanding of the different agencies involved and can work a balanced plan to support the agriculture of New Mexico. It’s very important we elect someone to the office of Commissioner of Public Lands that understands our way of life in New Mexico and will seek to develop and enrich it. Larry Marker is such an individual. Write him on the ballot on November 8th!