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Tainted Land Office

Mr. Patrick Lyons, the Land Commissioner shows a lack of knowledge of his own State Land Office.  He constantly regurgitates that the revenues he raises go directly to the school children – a good political slogan.   He uses the same rhetoric in his expensive radio ads.   Regardless, in New Mexico, state trust land revenues are used to offset not supplement funds for education from the general fund.  Revenues from state trust lands become part of the Public School Fund, which in combination with General Fund monies, goes to meet state equalization payments, transportation costs and certain supplemental distributions.  The trust land revenues represent about only thirteen percent of the state’s overall pre K-12 budget.  Mr. Lyons might like to know that trust revenues do not necessarily translate into increased educational funding in the state.  In addition, the public should know 96% of all revenues derive from and gas and oil royalties. So why is Mr. Lyons selling our trust land?

Commissioner Lyons is trying to exploit the steady growth of Las Cruces to benefit developers, who have contributed to his political campaign. The Surface Resources Management Program is supposed to identify trust lands ideally suited for development.  Such projects often take years to plan carefully.  Unfortunately, Mr. Lyons avoids this long process to quickly turn over trust land to a developer.  Mr. Lyons is the first Land Commissioner to reduce our state land trust. He has failed to enhance value from trust lands by letting millions of dollars of profits flow into the hands of land developers through dubious land contracts. He is planning to do the same thing with Moon Mountain in Ruidoso. I hope someone will bring our reckless Land Commissioner to bay. We also need state legislation to reform the State Land Office.

Greg Lennes,
Las Cruces

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