SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Thursday, March 9, legislators approved a bill to help ensure New Mexico keeps moving towards renewable energy. House Bill 95 would do just that by requiring the State Land Office to operate a “renewable energy office.”

New Mexico’s State Land Office is tasked with overseeing New Mexico’s oil, gas, and mineral rights. In essence, the office works to ensure that New Mexico’s land can be appropriately leased for energy production.

House Bill 95, sponsored by Rep. Tara L. Lujan (D-Santa Fe) and Rep. Debra M. Sariñana (D-Abq.), directs the State Land Office to “advance the production and development of renewable energy.”

The State Land Office already does that. But by putting the words into law, the bill could ensure that current efforts to develop renewable energy continue to be carried out in the future, no matter who is elected as commissioner of New Mexico’s public lands.

Now that the bill has passed both the House and Senate, it heads to the governor’s desk for final approval. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has until April 7 to make a decision.