JUDICIAL DEVELOPMENTS

January 2006

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New Mexico Court of Appeals Affirms District Court Recognition of Municipal Authority to Prohibit Drilling of Domestic Wells Permitted by State Engineer
Stennis v. City of Santa Fe

In a decision filed on August 9, 2006 but revised by the court in October, the New Mexico Court of Appeals revisited the issue of a municipal ordinance prohibiting drilling of domestic wells that have been permitted by the Office of the State Engineer (OSE). In a previous decision, Smith v. City of Santa Fe, 139 N.M. 410, 133 P.3d 866, 2006-NMCA-048, the New Mexico Court of Appeals held that the City of Santa Fe was within its home rule powers to enact the ordinances at issue. In this case, however, the court extended the holding in Smith to find that the municipal ordinance was still valid in spite of the fact that a statute giving municipalities authority to prohibit drilling of domestic wells was issued after said ordinance.