CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M. – United States Representative Yvette Herrell has found herself in a row with both the New Mexico State Legislature and US President Joe Biden’s agenda as she works to combat the president’s plan to stop oil and gas drilling permits, a move the representative fears would damage the economy of New Mexico.
The state legislature, which Herrell was a part of before her first run at congress in 2018, is set to hear three separate bills meant to aid the president’s agenda in hastening the end of oil and gas drilling in New Mexico.
The Democrats supporting the bills say that the efforts will help to reduce the impact of global warming and preserve the planet for the future.
The bills
House Bill 9 was introduced by five state legislators, four state representatives, and one state senator, including Rep. Nathan Small (D – Las Cruces), the husband of former US Congresswoman Xochitl Torres Small who Rep. Herrell replaced in the new congress.
HB 9 calls for a Climate Leadership Council to be formed to work toward developing a strong economy for a New Mexico without oil and gas drilling. The bill would create specific greenhouse and gas emission standards to be followed and direct all state agencies to begin following those specifics.
House Bill 51 was introduced by three state legislators including President Pro Tempore of the New Mexico State Senate Mimi Stewart (D – Bernalillo). The bill creates a statewide environmental database that would be free for the public to access and keeps track of all things environmental, from state parks to active and inactive oil and gas wells. The bill orders the University of New Mexico to house this program.
House Bill 106, introduced by four NM legislators, seeks to lay the groundwork to begin the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies, particularly solar power. The bill works to create “community solar facilities” in communities across the state to replace coal and other non-renewable energies.
President Biden’s plan
“It’s not time for small measures,” President Joe Biden said on Jan. 26 when he signed an Executive Order to put an end to all new oil and gas drilling on federal lands. The executive order also orders all federal agencies to begin changing their vehicle fleets to all electric vehicles.
Many New Mexico State legislators have made the argument that the Executive Order will damage the state’s economy. Cibola County has seen ramifications from renewable energy changes. McKinley County’s Escalante Power Generating Station, which was heavily staffed by Cibola County citizens, closed after NM Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Energy Transition Act, passed by the state legislature, to help decrease New Mexico’s dependency on the oil and gas industries.
To replace jobs lost in the non-renewable energy sector, the Biden Administration is employing the power of the purse to purchase new electric vehicles. This is expected to add “one million jobs to the automobile industry,” according to President Biden.
The president aims to create “prevailing wage jobs” that are unionized to develop a new energy infrastructure across the country; several million more jobs will be created to seal off and clean old oil and gas wells.
Rep. Herrell’s response
Congresswoman Herrell is one of the leading congresspeople, alongside US Rep. Steve Scalise (R – LA), on the Protecting our Wealth of Energy Resources Act of 2021.
Herrell’s office explained that New Mexico is projected to lose 60,000 jobs, roughly seven percent of the state’s full workforce, due to the Executive Order signed by President Biden.
If passed, the proposed POWER legislation stops the executive branch from preventing any energy or mineral leasing on federal lands and stops the executive branch from allowing agencies to withdraw their services from federal land without congressional approval.
If passed, this bill does not affect the current EO signed by President Biden but would stop any future presidents from being able to employ a similar executive action.
Herrell’s office said that they are currently looking at ways to stop the current executive action and help save jobs.