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LAS CRUCES 鈥� A proposed public land swap between state and federal governments took a procedural step Monday when the Las Cruces City Council passed a resolution in support of the exchange.

New Mexico鈥檚 State Land Office and the Bureau of Land Management are proposing to transfer 84,000 acres of state trust land to the BLM in exchange for federal land in Do帽a Ana County of equivalent market value.

The State Land Office is responsible for over 9 million surface acres of state trust land and 13 million subsurface mineral acres, managing leases that harvest revenue for public schools, hospitals and other beneficiaries in New Mexico.

The office brought in $2.56 billion for the state in the 2024 fiscal year. More than 90% of that revenue was derived from oil and gas industry royalties though leases on state trust lands. The lands also include uses for housing and business including renewable energy infrastructure.

The office is overseen by an elected Public Lands Commissioner, currently Stephanie Garcia Richard, a Democrat in the final year of her second term and barred by the state Constitution from running again. The next commissioner will be elected in November.

The parcels of state land are landlocked within the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument. The purpose, according to the State Land Office, 鈥渋s to connect the entire monument, help the BLM manage the monument, and prevent future development within the monument on those state land parcels.鈥�

While the federal land received in exchange would likely amount to fewer acres, the State Land Office said the market value would allow for lease revenue that funds the , which include public schools, universities and hospitals.

BLM鈥檚 Las Cruces office said the federal land contemplated for the swap includes parcels located near the city鈥檚 industrial park on its west side and among industrial areas in Santa Teresa, near the county airport, industrial parks and the port of entry.

While the BLM said the federal lands hold 鈥渆xceptional potential鈥� for leasing to renewable energy development and rights-of-way for transmission infrastructure, the office said current leases for cattle grazing would continue in effect after transfer to the State Land Office.

The exchange was not discussed by the council. The resolution appeared as an item on a consent agenda, in which public officers vote on a list of items at once without discussion.

In a town hall last September, BLM and State Land Office staff said the state鈥檚 holdings within the OMDP comprises 76,547 surface-and-mineral acreage plus 40 surface-only acres and 8,566 mineral-only estate. The 鈥渃heckerboard鈥� of state lands within the 496,330-acre monument complicated BLM鈥檚 management of the OMDP, the agencies said, while consolidation could increase access for recreational use.

The encompasses mountain ranges circling Las Cruces, comprising the Organ Mountains, Desert Peaks, Potrillo Mountains and Do帽a Ana Mountains. A shows that the state trust lands are especially concentrated among the Robledos, Sierra de Las Uvas and the Potrillos.

Greg Bloom, the State Land Office鈥檚 assistant commissioner of mineral resources, was present for the meeting and told the Journal the next procedural step would be to seek a resolution of support from Do帽a Ana County.

According to the BLM, completing the exchange will also require an environmental assessment under federal law, a process that will include seeking public input from residents and tribal and local governments.

Algernon 顿鈥橝尘尘补蝉蝉补 is the Journal鈥檚 southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com.