September 7, 2016
For immediate release
New statewide ads: Big donor pushed for law to cut the public out of public streams, his company profits in return
Second in a series of ads highlighting the influence of big money on public policy decisions destroying New Mexico’s heritage of environmental stewardship
ALBUQUERQUE – The New Mexico Wildlife Federation joined the “Put New Mexico First” campaign today, with a new civic engagement project to bring the public’s attention to the impact big donors are having on our shared cultural history of public lands and water access in our state.
The new ads, titled “Traditions,” highlight the fact that a Texas businessman pushed for a law to cut the public out of public stream access, which then benefitted his company in return.
The ads are airing on broadcast, cable, and satellite television in the Albuquerque and Las Cruces media markets aided by statewide radio and social media advertising. The television ad can be viewed online at http://putnewmexicofirst.org and www.nmsac.org.
In 2015, Governor Martinez signed a bill, SB226, giving private landowners’ new rights to cut off public access to public streams. Fences have now gone up in streams throughout New Mexico and landowners can charge thousands of dollars to fish in streams the public still owns. The Texas businessman who supported the bill, Dan Perry, bought up thousands of acres of New Mexico land and then gave Gov. Martinez the maximum campaign donation. The Albuquerque Journal reported that the bill moved “at warp speed on the next-to-last day of the 60-day session.” Governor Martinez then signed the bill.
This ad is the second in a series produced in partnership with the ProgressNow NM Education Fund to expand the public’s understanding of conservation issues and political decisions that impact them in New Mexico. This is a critical issue for the anglers, sportsmen and women, outdoor recreationists, and families of New Mexico. The New Mexico Stream Access Coalition, a group consisting of a wide variety of outdoor enthusiasts, is excited to be working together on this important issue.
“New Mexico has always been at the forefront of land conservation in the United States, since the designation of the Gila as the world’s first wilderness area in 1924,” said Executive Director of New Mexico Wildlife Federation Garrett Vene Klasen. “Access to national, public lands is an American birthright, and we aim to protect our lands against those who seek to privatize them. What do we become as a people and a nation without access to our mountains, lakes, rivers and streams? The stream access bill, and other efforts like it to transfer, swap and sell our public lands, peddle away our cultural connection to the past, making future preservation and access to our lands uncertain. Absolutely not. New Mexico is not for sale.”
Discussing the concept behind the overall campaign, ProgressNow NM Education Fund Executive Director Pat Davis said: “Public land and water use in the state of New Mexico is under threat by those who have expanded their political influence as their contributions to political campaigns have exploded in recent years. We know that New Mexicans hold our responsibility to protect and pass down these places dear to us as our obligations to family. We hope that more New Mexicans will see a need to become civically engaged if they understand what’s at stake.”
“Stream access is as American as apple pie, guaranteed by the Declaration of Independence,” said Backcountry Hunters and Anglers President and CEO Land Tawney. “Our waterways belong to all of us. Unfortunately there are those who would take them for their own, harkening back to the European model where only the privileged have access to lands, waters, fish and wildlife. Access to the high water mark is more than reasonable and provides opportunities for anglers, hunters and boaters while respecting private property rights. We look forward to working with New Mexicans to restore stream access, a bedrock tenet of who we are as Americans – and something that separates us from every other country in the world. ”
“Sportsmen in America enjoy a vast public lands estate. Unfortunately, that legacy is undermined by efforts to deny access to certain public waters,” added Lew Carpenter, National Wildlife Federation Regional Representative. “Do I have access to private, gold-medal trout waters? Yes. Would I share that access in exchange for increased opportunities elsewhere? In a heartbeat!”
