News From The Capitol

The 2007 legislative session can be called a victory for the environment.

New Mexico made major policy strides toward combating global warming, while fending off some of the most potentially negative bills that could have damaged New Mexico's air, water and land.

Although this session took place in what was dubbed the Year of Water, it could have more aptly been called the Year of Clean Energy, for the dozens of renewable energy and energy efficiency bills that were introduced, many of which succeeded, thanks to the leadership of Gov. Bill Richardson and committed legislative champions.

It's wasn't all good news by any means, but the following is a look at some of the biggest victories for New Mexico's environment:

Senate Bill 418 - Increasing the Renewable Energy Standard. This bill to increase the percentage of renewable energy produced by utilities to 20 percent by 2020 and extend the program to electric cooperatives with a 10-percent-by-2020 target passed both houses and was signed by the governor.

This 20 percent standard, among the strongest in the country, will help us to fight global warming while cleaning up our air and providing rural economic opportunities.

Senate Bill 463 - Tax Incentives Bundle for Renewable Energy. This extraordinary collection of tax bills creates a new sales tax exemption for solar energy equipment and installations and new tax incentives for "green buildings."

It also increases the production tax credits for "concentrating solar power" producers and opens the production credits up to more producers, including farmers and small businesses, enhancing New Mexico's clean energy industry. It also creates incentives for producers and providers of biodiesel and for advanced energy equipment manufacturers, such as solar manufacturers.

House Bill 610 - Changing Building Codes to Require Solar Ready Roofs. This bill is an important new driver for solar installations on homes and will provide big clean-energy gains and global warming reductions in the future.

House Bill 318 - Reducing Mercury Emissions and Exposure. This bill amends the Air Quality Control Act to provide for the best available control technology for mercury emissions from power plants.

House Memorial 42 - Studying Water Development Planning. This memorial creates a stakeholder process to examine ways to improve local water development plans, so that they include specific, consistent criteria, are updated regularly and are made public and approved by the local governing body.

House Bill 178 - Fighting an $85 million Tax Subsidy for the Desert Rock Coal-Fired Power Plant. Faced with broad opposition from Navajo Nation residents, environmentalists and public health advocates, proponents of the Desert Rock plant failed to win passage of a massive subsidy that would have gone to a 1,500-megawatt power plant being planned for the Navajo Nation.

Moreover, another bill, Senate Bill 994, passed. It prohibits state incentives for non-carbon-sequestered coal plants. The Desert Rock Plant would emit more than 10 million tons of carbon dioxide, ozone, mercury and other pollutants into the air each year and wipe out major gains being made to reduce New Mexico's global warming emissions.

House Bill 2 - Gov. Richardson protected the Gila River by vetoing a spending provision that would have provided funding to develop and dam New Mexico's last free-flowing river.

If New Mexico is going to balance its water use with a renewable supply, protect open spaces and truly reign in our carbon emissions at the level scientists say we need, much more needs done.

But this session represents a good step forward, and we applaud the work of New Mexico's legislators, Gov. Richardson and the state's advocates for helping New Mexico move in the right direction.