President Donald Trump’s administration wants to sell public lands to states, tribes and local governments. According to a new five-year strategic plan from the Interior Department, the administration wants to “decrease the size of the federal estate.”
The document does not give details on the scope of the potential sales. Some members of Congress last year sought to sell or transfer vast tracts of land in Utah and Nevada. The effort failed amid bipartisan opposition. The Interior Department oversees about 20% of U.S. land, putting it at the center of a decades-long debate over whether the government controls too much land.
US Senator Martin Heinrich has said that federal lands “belong to the American people, not private interests looking to cash in.” It is unclear if the administration can reach its goals without cooperation from Congress.
Taos County considers data center moratorium
Taos County is the latest New Mexico municipality to consider a data center moratorium. The county council discussed a draft ordinance that would halt data center development for 18 months.
The Taos News reports that one commissioner likened the data center construction boom to a gold rush, noting the potential impacts on land, water and noise. The draft ordinance would also limit nondisclosure agreements between the county and data center developers, making it harder to hide deals from the public.
Governor-Elect Deb Haaland has promised to implement a statewide data center moratorium when she takes office. Socorro, Sierra and Santa Fe counties have already enacted moratoriums.
The Taos County Council did not vote on the ordinance but may consider it at the council's December 15 meeting.
ICE targets New Mexico construction sites
New Mexico homebuilders have reported a sharp increase in immigrations raids in recent weeks. At construction sites in Santa Fe and Albuquerque, arrests are delaying projects while a statewide housing shortage persists.
The CEO of the New Mexico Home Builders Association told Source NM he's received around 20 calls and texts from builders in the last week reporting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. He said agents often show up to construction sites in unmarked vehicles and detain multiple workers at a time.
Homebuilders have said the apparent uptick in ICE activity is slowing down construction around the state. Many workers are not showing up for work, even some who have legal status.
The Trump administration has revoked millions of immigrants' work permits in the last two years.
