NMAGO 05-04.

• Case Date: August 24, 2005
• Court: New Mexico

New Mexico Attorney General Opinions 2005. NMAGO 05-04. August 24, 2005OPINION OF PATRICIA A. MADRID Attorney General Opinion No. 05-04 BY: Stephen R. FarrisDirector, Water, Environment & Utilities Division David M. Pato Assistant Attorney General, Water, Environment & Utilities Division TO: The Honorable Joseph CervantesState Representative 2610 S. EspinaLas Cruces, NM 88001 The Honorable Richard CheneyState RepresentativeP.O. Box 15044Farmington, NM 87401 RE: WATER PROJECT FUNDQUESTIONS: 1. Must the legislature also have amended NMSA 1978, § 7-27-10.1 (2003) for the directive in 2005 N.M. Laws, ch. 293 to be effective? 2. After enactment of 2005 N.M. Laws, ch. 293, must ten percent of all funds in the water project fund established by NMSA 1978, § 72-4A-9 (2005) be dedicated to water rights adjudications?CONCLUSIONS: 1. No. The directive in 2005 N.M. Laws, ch. 293 is effective even though the Legislature did not also expressly amend NMSA 1978, § 7-27-10.1 (2003). 2. Yes. The Legislature's amendment of NMSA 1978, § 72-4A-9 is sufficient to direct that "[t]en percent of all water project funds," including severance tax bond proceeds appropriated in Section 7-27-10.1, "be dedicated to the state engineer for water rights adjudications, and twenty percent of the money dedicated for water rights adjudications shall be allocated to the administrative office of the courts for the courts' costs associated with those adjudications." BACKGROUND: In 2001, the Legislature established the water project fund and directed that money in the water project fund be "used to make loans or grants to qualified entities for any project approved by the Legislature." NMSA 1978, § 72-4A-9(A) (2001). The water project fund was to consist of "distributions made to the fund from the water trust fund and payments of principal of and interest on loans for approved water projects," of "any other money appropriated, distributed or otherwise allocated to the fund for the purpose of supporting water projects pursuant to provisions of the Water Project Finance Act," and of "[i]ncome from investment of the water project fund." NMSA 1978, § 72-4A-9(A) (2001). Additionally, the Legislature authorized the New Mexico Finance Authority to "issue revenue bonds payable from the proceeds of loan repayments made into the water project fund upon a determination by the authority that issuance of the bonds is necessary to replenish the principal balance of the fund." NMSA 1978, § 72-4A-9(C) (2001). In 2003, in a separate section of law, the Legislature directed that the Board of Finance Division of the Department of Finance and Administration "estimate the amount of bonding capacity available for severance tax bonds to be authorized by the legislature," directed that the Division "authorize ten percent of the estimated bonding capacity each year," and authorized the State Board of Finance to "issue severance tax...