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Residents and attorneys spar over Luna County proclamation on presidential authority for monuments
Summary
A proposed proclamation urging congressional oversight of national monument designations drew sharp public comment: some urged protection of the Antiquities Act and local benefits from monuments, while attorneys warned the draft mirrors H.R. 521 and could be read as seeking to abolish the law.
A draft proclamation before the Luna County Board of County Commissioners calling for limits on presidential authority under the Antiquities Act prompted a prolonged public debate Tuesday, with longtime public-land lawyers and residents sharply divided about the documents language and intent.
Wes Light, a former county attorney and public-land practitioner, urged caution and criticized the drafts title and wording. "The very title of this proclamation is ending presidential overreach on public lands act... the same exact title as H.R. 521," he said, warning that the draft could be interpreted as seeking to remove presidential authority rather than simply urging congressional oversight.
Opponents of changing current federal authority spoke as well. Lara Jackson Potorf and Gary Starkweather said the Antiquities Act has preserved nationally significant landscapes and bolstered tourism and jobs; Starkweather noted that removing or degrading the law could impair protections established since 1906. "We need to think of future generations and give access to all people to public lands," Jackson Potorf said.
Supporters of the proclamation said the document before the board only asks Congress to adopt oversight measures and does not call for abolishing the Antiquities Act. Chair Colette Chandler and other commissioners repeatedly emphasized they were discussing the proclamation language as written in the packet rather than seeking an elimination of the law.
No formal action was recorded during the work session. Commissioners and staff were asked to clarify the proclamation's provenance and to consider public feedback and suggested redrafting before any formal endorsement or referral.
The exchange highlighted tensions in rural New Mexico over federal land management, local control and the economic trade-offs of monument designation.
