Bill > SB47

This bill amends Section 49-1-2 of the New Mexico Statutes Annotated (NMSA) 1978 to include the Santa Cruz de la Canada Land Grant-Merced as a land grant governed under Chapter 49, Article 1. Specifically, the bill adds a new subsection (CC) to the existing law, which details the land grant's location in Rio Arriba and Santa Fe counties, its confirmation by the court of private land claims in 1900, and its patent by the United States to the grant's heirs in 1910. The bill ensures that this particular land grant will be subject to the same governance provisions as numerous other land grants in New Mexico, which typically involve management by a board of trustees and preservation of historical land rights. The legislation will become effective on July 1, 2025, and continues the state's ongoing process of formally recognizing and protecting historical land grants that trace their origins to Spanish and Mexican land tenure systems established before New Mexico became a U.S. territory.