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The New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) is providing notice that due to inadequate budget to fund the Air Quality Bureau (AQB), the review and issuance of all air quality permits will be delayed. Effective immediately, NMED’s AQB will issue letters to businesses seeking an air quality permit or an air quality permit modification that such applications will be delayed.
NMED has not raised its air quality permit fees in two decades, yet our permitting workload has increased a staggering 2,234 percent in the last decade given New Mexico’s robust economy. In addition, NMED’s operating costs increased during this same timeframe. NMED’s AQB employees and contractors are paid exclusively by air quality permit fees. Last year, NMED sought to increase air quality permit fees for the first time in 20 years. However, this hearing was contested by the New Mexico Mining Association and the Independent Petroleum Association of New Mexico. The Environmental Improvement Board (EIB) denied NMED’s petition based on insufficient evidence for the proposed fee schedule. While this created challenges for NMED’s AQB operations, we planned to use a greater portion of our air quality permitting fees in 2025 to continue to provide such services to the business community and petition the EIB again in 2025 to raise air quality permit fees.
However, on January 17, 2025, the Legislative Finance Committee objected to NMED utilizing a significant portion of the remainder of its air permitting fees fund balance stating “NMED stated it intends to raise permit fees on industry; however, those increases have not been enacted, raising concerns about sustainability of funding and subsequent programming.” The LFC letter can be viewed on the Permitting webpage. Given this objection, the NMED Cabinet Secretary will soon issue a temporary emergency rule pursuant to NMSA 1978, Section 14-4-5.6 to suspend the permitting timelines placed upon the Department. Until that time, NMED will continue to grant itself extensions to act on new and modified air quality permits as provided by the Air Quality Control Act and its implementing rules.
For contested air quality permitting matters in adjudication, NMED will move to delay these matters until resources become available.
While NMED understands our lack of funding creates uncertain permitting timelines for businesses looking to expand their operations in New Mexico, we remain committed to raising air quality permitting fees and using those fees to improve the services we offer to the business community.
For additional information concerning this bulletin, please contact Michelle Miano, Director, Environmental Protection Division, New Mexico Environment Department 1190 St. Francis Drive, PO Box 5469, Santa Fe, NM 87505. michelle.miano@env.nm.gov
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