New Mexico
Mediation starts in Rio Grande legal fight among New Mexico, Texas and Colorado • Source New Mexico
A new chapter in the decade-long lawsuit in the U.S. Supreme Court over Rio Grande water is set to begin.
After a close, 5-4 ruling from the Supreme Court dashed a proposed deal to end the litigation, the federal government and states of Colorado, New Mexico and Texas have been ordered back to mediation, which begins Tuesday in Washington D.C.
In addition to the parties, there will be attorneys for groups including farming interests, the cities of Albuquerque and Las Cruces, water utilities and irrigation districts, joining the talks.
In 2013, Texas sued New Mexico, alleging that groundwater pumping in southern New Mexico diverted water out of the Rio Grande owed to Texas violating the 86-year old agreement called the Rio Grande Compact. Signed in 1938, the compact divided use of the Rio Grande between Colorado, New Mexico and Texas.
Only the Supreme Court has the power to rule on disputes between states.
A dispute over baselines for groundwater
One of the core disagreements between the federal government and the three states is determining how much groundwater pumping needs to be cut along the Rio Grande in southern New Mexico. In the arid region, water is crucial for growing crops like chile and pecans, and both groundwater and water from the Rio Grande are used for irrigation.
In the rejected settlement agreement, the states requested a baseline adjusted to more groundwater pumping and drought conditions determined by an equation called the “D2 curve.”
The D2 curve was used as part of a 2008 settlement ending a fight between the irrigation districts and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation over drought concerns.
Alternately, the federal government has previously asked for the states to adopt restrictions from when the compact was first signed.
The states will continue to argue for the D2 curve baseline, said James Grayson, the chief deputy for the New Mexico Department of Justice.
“In 1938, there was essentially no groundwater being used, and so the United States is essentially advocating to go back to that time and that way of using only surface water,” Grayson said.
The City of Las Cruces and the New Mexico Attorney General have urged federal officials in recent months to make a deal with the states before the start of Donald Trump’s presidency in January and compromise on its position to drastically limit groundwater pumping in southern New Mexico.
New Mexico’s congressional delegation asks feds to wrap up Rio Grande lawsuit
In a Nov. 14 letter, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat, appealed to U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Halaand to drop the objections.
“Time is running out,” Torrez wrote. “And I am pleading with you to resolve this issue for the benefit of all parties, but especially for the people of southern New Mexico, rather than leaving the matter to become a political bargaining chip for the next administration.”
In an October letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, the City of Las Cruces stated that cutting pumping to a 1938 level would reduce the city’s groundwater use by 93%.
This action “would cripple farmers, families and communities in southern New Mexico,” and would require the state’s second-largest city to find a new source of water, requiring a $1 billion investment and take about 15 years to put into place.
In 2023 testimony before lawmakers, state officials said New Mexico would need to cut groundwater use in southern New Mexico by at least 17,000 acre-feet to meet the deal set by the D2 curve baseline, by reducing pecan and chile fields. If the 1938 standard was required, cuts would need to be in the hundreds of thousands of acre-feet.
How we got here
The contours of the dispute have changed since the case was first brought in 2013. Drought conditions in the early 2000s sparked a protracted series of water lawsuits in lower courts between the federal government, states, cities and counties and irrigation districts along the Rio Grande.
In 2019, the high court unanimously allowed the U.S. federal government to intervene as a party in the case, arguing that a series of federal dams, irrigation canals and ditches were threatened by New Mexico’s groundwater pumping. That federal infrastructure is used to deliver Rio Grande water to Mexico under a 1906 treaty and also meets agreements with two regional irrigation districts.
While the federal government initially sided with Texas in the lawsuit, a series of compromises eventually put the states in one camp and the federal government (and the regional irrigation districts) in another.
Colorado, New Mexico and Texas came to an eleventh-hour settlement in 2022, but the federal government objected and said that the deal couldn’t be made without their agreement.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the federal government’s objections, rejecting the proposed deal.
Earlier this year, justices appointed a new special master, who oversees the progress of the case.
After an October hearing, Judge D. Brooks Smith ordered the parties into mediation, which starts Tuesday and will end Thursday, but could continue to be extended. If mediation talks break down entirely, the parties will resume going to trial.
Courtesy of Utah State Athletics
LOGAN, Utah – Utah State men’s basketball concluded its final season in the Mountain West with a championship Saturday afternoon in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, defeating New Mexico 94-90 to secure the outright regular season championship and the No. 1-seed in the upcoming MW Tournament.
This is Utah State’s third all-time Mountain West championship, and its second outright title since joining the league in 2013. The Aggies had secured at least a share of the title prior to the game, but were able to prevent the second-place Lobos from claiming a share with the victory. This is the second time USU has won the MW title outright, joining the 2024 squad as the only Aggie teams to do so.
The Aggies conclude the 2025-26 regular season 25-6 overall and 15-5 in conference play. This is the 12th 25-win season in program history, and the first time the team has ever won 25-plus in four-straight seasons.
The senior class showed up in a big way on senior night, combining for 62 of Utah State’s 94 points in the contest. In his final game in the Spectrum, senior guard MJ Collins Jr. led the way as he went for 27 points with a season-best six rebounds, an assist and a steal. This was the second-best scoring performance of the season for Collins Jr.
Other seniors honored following the game included guards Drake Allen and Kolby King, and forwards Zach Keller and Garry Clark. Each senior gave a major contribution — Allen going for 14 points, Keller for eight, King finishing with seven and Clark going for six.
The Aggies led from nearly start-to-finish in the victory, leading for over 38 minutes while trailing for less than one. USU shot an efficient 50 percent from the field and found its rhythm from deep as well, connecting on 10-of-27 3-pointers. Despite the hot shooting, however, the Lobos held strong and remained in the contest throughout, shooting 48 percent on their end of the court.
Utah State set the tone early with 10 makes in its first 15 shots, opening up a double-digit advantage six minutes in at 17-7. The Aggies remained decisively in front through the rest of the half, until a 7-0 New Mexico run to close the half gave the Lobos their first and only lead of the contest, going into the locker room up 94-90.
The second half started the same as the first, the Aggies pouncing to quickly regain control. USU opened the final 20 minutes with a 12-2 run out of the gates, sparked by back-to-back triples from Collins Jr.
While the Aggies never took another double-digit lead, they remained on top the rest of the way. Despite a cold streak where it made just three of 13 shots, USU kept itself in control at the charity stripe, connecting on 83 percent of its free throws including going 18-of-21 in the second half.
Along with Collins Jr.’s big scoring performance, junior guard Mason Falslev showed out for the Aggies with 15 points, three boards and four assists. Junior guard Karson Templin provided a spark in 23 minutes off the bench, going for 15 points and five rebounds.
Allen accompanied his 14 points with a team-best seven assists, while also pulling down five boards, two steals and a block.
In total, Utah State shot 50.0 percent (27-of-54) from the floor, 37.0 percent (10-of-27) from 3-point range and 83.3 percent (30-of-36) at the charity stripe. New Mexico shot 47.5 percent (29-of-61) from the field, 44.8 percent (13-of-29) from behind the arc and 73.1 percent (19-of-26) at the free throw line.
UP NEXT
Utah State will now travel to Las Vegas for the Mountain West men’s basketball tournament, taking place next week from March 11-14 at the Thomas & Mack Center. The Aggies will be the No. 1-seed and will play at 1 p.m. (MT).
FOLLOW
For more information on Utah State’s men’s basketball program, follow the Aggies on Facebook at usumensbasketball, on Twitter at @usubasketball and on Instagram at @usubasketball. Fans can also watch USU men’s basketball highlights by visiting youtube.com/utahstateathletics.
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The Pentagon and the Federal Aviation Administration agreed to conduct anti-drone laser tests in New Mexico after the military’s deployment of the lasers led the FAA to suddenly close airspace in Texas twice in the last month.
The newly announced testing was being carried out to “specifically address FAA safety concerns,” the military said Friday in a statement. It was to take place Saturday and Sunday at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
Lawmakers were concerned about an apparent lack of coordination after the Pentagon allowed U.S. Customs and Border Protection to use an anti-drone laser in early February without notifying the FAA. The federal agency that ensures safety in the skies decided to close the airspace over El Paso for a few hours, stranding many travelers.
The Trump administration said it was working to halt an incursion by Mexican cartel drones, which are not uncommon along the southern border.
On Feb. 26 the U.S. military used the laser to shoot down a “seemingly threatening” drone flying near the U.S.-Mexico border. It turned out the drone belonged to Customs and Border Protection, lawmakers said.
The incident led the FAA to close the airspace around Fort Hancock, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of El Paso.
“We appreciate the coordination with the Department of War to help ensure public safety,” the FAA said of the testing, in a separate statement. “The FAA and DOW are working with interagency partners to address emerging threats posed by unmanned aircraft systems while maintaining the safety of the National Airspace System.”
The military is required to formally notify the FAA when it takes any counter-drone action inside U.S. airspace.
Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the ranking member on the Senate’s Aviation Subcommittee, called previously for an independent investigation after the two February incidents.
New Mexico Lobos (22-8, 13-6 MWC) at Utah State Aggies (24-6, 14-5 MWC)
Logan, Utah; Saturday, 4 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: New Mexico takes on Utah State after Deyton Albury scored 22 points in New Mexico’s 82-74 loss to the Colorado State Rams.
The Aggies have gone 13-1 in home games. Utah State scores 82.7 points and has outscored opponents by 12.2 points per game.
The Lobos are 13-6 in conference matchups. New Mexico is second in the MWC allowing 70.1 points while holding opponents to 41.7% shooting.
Utah State makes 50.1% of its shots from the field this season, which is 8.4 percentage points higher than New Mexico has allowed to its opponents (41.7%). New Mexico scores 9.9 more points per game (80.4) than Utah State gives up to opponents (70.5).
The teams square off for the second time this season in MWC play. Utah State won the last matchup 86-66 on Feb. 5. Mason Falslev scored 19 points points to help lead the Aggies to the victory.
TOP PERFORMERS: Michael Collins Jr. is scoring 17.3 points per game with 2.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists for the Aggies. Falslev is averaging 15.4 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 50.0% over the past 10 games.
Jake Hall is shooting 48.6% and averaging 15.8 points for the Lobos. Antonio Chol is averaging 1.3 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Aggies: 7-3, averaging 79.5 points, 28.5 rebounds, 16.6 assists, 7.2 steals and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting 47.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.4 points per game.
Lobos: 6-4, averaging 79.8 points, 32.0 rebounds, 14.0 assists, 7.0 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 47.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 74.6 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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