WASHINGTON — Everything is bigger in Texas, but could the state get even larger? Texas lawmakers have begun exploring whether to annex a part of neighboring New Mexico, where many residents say they would prefer to join the Lone Star State. However, key officials in New Mexico are dismissing the idea.

State Rep. Carl Tepper, R-Lubbock, told Spectrum News that Texans have a lot in common culturally with those from the eastern portion of New Mexico. He said hospitals, companies and universities in his community have many people from there. 

“These are oil producers. They’re cattlemen. They’re farmers. They are fiercely independent. They don’t rely on government. Texas is a smaller government state, less regulations, less taxes,” Tepper said. “They feel much closer to us than they do the government in Santa Fe.” 

And that is why he believes the Texas Legislature should explore annexing a part of New Mexico.

Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, directed the governmental oversight committee to study the constitutional and economic implications of adding a couple of counties in southeast New Mexico to Texas. The Republican state lawmakers in Lea and Roosevelt counties in New Mexico, just west of Lubbock, have expressed an interest in leaving their state.

In a statement to Spectrum News, Burrows said, in part, “This conversation is ultimately about culture, opportunity, and the right to choose a path that reflects the shared values of the Permian and Delaware basins.”

Tepper agreed. He said it would be “historic” if the Republican-led Legislature could pull it off.

“There’s a vast amount of conservative voters out there. People who are conservative economically, with their faith, and are very frustrated with the core urban high-density areas and the voters there ruling over vast portions of the geographic areas of these states,” Tepper said.

“If we could find a way to essentially liberate these New Mexico counties into Texas, I think we would also be cutting a path for other counties that are frustrated with their centralized governments being overbearing in other states and bringing them over to more conservative states,” Tepper continued.

New Mexico Democrats are dismissing the idea. A spokesperson for the governor reportedly called it “not serious,” and the New Mexico House speaker said on social media, “Dude, over my dead body, man. No way, no way.”

Legal experts said under the U.S. Constitution, not only would New Mexico and Texas need to agree on annexation, but Congress as well.

“It’s very, very hard to imagine winning that trifecta,” said Sanford Levinson, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law. “It’s hard for me to imagine that New Mexico would be delighted to lose this population, even if the Democrats who run the state probably have no love lost for the Republicans who want to leave.” 

Levinson said one big reason the idea is a non-starter is that because of the population change under the new borders, New Mexico would likely lose a congressional seat and Texas would gain one.

He added that conservatives in Oregon and Illinois are also looking at leaving their states.

“The polarization that we talk so much about is found as much within states as among states and the United States, that if you look at practically any state in the union, you find these sharp divisions,” Levinson said. 

And despite the sharp divisions, new state lines are hard to draw. 

Those whose outdoor plans include fires will need to review updated rules to stay in compliance with state law. The New Mexico Forestry Division is enacting statewide fire restrictions in an effort to reduce the risk of wildfire starts.

The new restrictions taking effect today, April 6, apply to all “non-federal, non-Tribal and non-municipal lands in New Mexico”:

Prohibited:

• Flaring of gas related to oil and gas production
• Smoking
• Fireworks
• Campfires
• Prescribed, open, agricultural and/or debris burning

The agency cited unseasonably hot weather and dry fuel conditions in its announcement Monday morning. Erin Taylor, acting secretary of the New Mexico Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department, said nine of 10 wildfires in the state are caused by humans, and therefore can be prevented.

“Fire restrictions are about individual actions that protect our communities as a whole,” Taylor said in a news release. “We’re asking that every resident and every visitor take extra precautions during a particularly risky wildfire season.”

The National Weather Service’s seasonal outlook shows persistent drought for most of New Mexico through June. The release states that the annual monsoon season is expected to arrive on time in July, potentially bringing above-average precipitation.

These restrictions will remain in place until rescinded. Exceptions are allowed for certain prohibited actions in specific cases or when specific conditions are met, the release states, and the state forester may allow additional exceptions upon receiving a written request.

“If monsoon rains are productive, the state could see these restrictions lifted,” the release states. “However, high temperatures are predicted to persist, and high fuel loads will continue to pose a risk across the state.”

Related

New Mexico leaders are pushing colleges to keep tuition flat, saying strong state funding should mean lower costs for students and families.

New Mexico offers tuition-free college through the Opportunity and Lottery Scholarships, but hikes can still hurt graduate students, out-of-state students and some student-athletes.

Higher Education Department Cabinet Secretary Stephanie Rodriguez said the University of New Mexico, New Mexico Highlands University and Eastern New Mexico University have so far kept tuition unchanged.

Rodriguez said keeping tuition low is important not only for students currently covered by scholarships, but also for protecting the long-term promise of tuition-free college in New Mexico. She said if state revenues decline in the future, scholarship funding could face pressure.

She also said community colleges have generally seen somewhat higher tuition increases than four-year institutions.

According to the Higher Education Department, statewide enrollment has increased for four consecutive years and is up about 13.4% since 2022. Freshman enrollment is up 18.2% over the same period.

Rodriguez said affordability is helping attract students and encouraging them to remain in New Mexico after graduation.

“Nationally, tuition has increased astronomically, and that has to do with inflation, the increased cost of construction, and just– but here in New Mexico, we are seeing the lowest tuition increases that we have seen since the implementation of the lottery scholarship in 1996,” Rodriguez said.

She also said New Mexico now ranks 20th in the nation for higher education, up from 50th seven years ago.