The New Mexico State Game Commission on Friday elected Deanna Archuleta, a Washington DC energy lobbyist, to serve as commission chair.
Archuleta, who has served on the commission since last spring, takes over as chair from Sharon Salazar Hickey, who will continue to serve as a commissioner.
The commission also unanimously elected Commissioner Tirzio Lopez to serve as vice chair. There are still three vacancies on the seven-member panel.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham appointed Archuleta to the commission last March as replacement for former Commissioner David Soules, a well known environmentalist, who died the year before.
Archuleta’s appointment raised concern from some environmental groups because the commission seat she filled had been designated for an environmentalist.
Earlier this month, Washington DC lobbying firm The Vogel Group announced that Archuleta had joined the firm from ExxonMobil as a principal in its government affairs practice.
Before Archuleta’s work for ExxonMobil, she had worked as an advisor to the U.S. secretary of the interior and was the deputy assistant secretary for water and science under President Barack Obama.
Searchlight New Mexico, an independent journalism website, reported last year that Archuleta is a longtime donor and supporter of Lujan Grisham, who endorsed Archuleta’s run for Albuquerque mayor in 2017. In her capacity as a lobbyist, Archuleta donated at least $12,500 to Lujan Grisham’s campaign, according to lobbying reports.
Salazar Hickey nominated Archuleta to serve as commission chair at Friday’s virtual commission meeting.
“She has a wealth of experience serving as a public servant in many capacities,” Salazar Hickey said of Archuleta. “And her broad-based experience makes her not only a phenomenal commissioner as our designee on conservation, but I think her experience is phenomenal when it comes to a leadership role.”
In other action, the commission approved the following schedule for its meetings in the coming year around the state:
_ April 28 in Roswell
_ July 21, either virtual or in Albuquerque
_ Aug. 25 in Raton
_ Oct. 20 in Farmington
_ Jan. 24 in Santa Fe.