Summary:

 Senate Memorial 14 (SM 14) affirms the state's commitment to protecting and preserving Mount Taylor as a traditional cultural property and opposes uranium mining projects that threaten Mount Taylor's cultural and environmental integrity 

 

Legislation Overview:

 Senate Memorial 14 (SM 14) affirms the state's commitment to protecting and preserving Mount Taylor as a traditional cultural property and opposes uranium mining projects that threaten Mount Taylor's cultural and environmental integrity 

SM 14 finds:
•	In 2009, following significant advocacy by the Pueblos of Acoma, Laguna and Zuni, the Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation, Mount Taylor, a sacred landmark for the region’s Indian nations tribes and pueblos, was formally nominated and designated as a traditional cultural property on the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties;
•	The nomination of Mount Taylor as a traditional cultural property recognized its profound cultural significance, including its role in origin stories, traditional practices and ceremonies and as a place of prayer and pilgrimage for indigenous peoples;
•	The state supreme court, in a landmark 2014 decision, affirmed the validity of Mount Taylor's traditional cultural properties designation;
•	Proposed uranium mining may deplete and contaminate the San Andres-Glorieta aquifer and related aquifers and springs, which serve as primary water sources for the Pueblos of Acoma and Laguna and the surrounding communities, posing significant risks to water security and public health;
•	The ongoing legacy of uranium mining in New Mexico has resulted in long-term environmental contamination, such as poisoned aquifers and negative health impacts on Indian nations, tribes and pueblos and local communities, highlighting the need for stronger ecological protections for Mount Taylor and all of the state's natural resources; and
•	The protection of this sacred mountain is essential for the continuation of traditional practices and ceremonies and the preservation of cultural identity of Indian nations, tribes and pueblos.

SM 14 requests:
•	The senate to affirm its commitment to protecting Mount Taylor and oppose any uranium mining projects that threaten its traditional cultural properties designation, environmental integrity and sacred status; 
•	The senate to urge federal and state agencies, including the US Forest Service and the Mining and Minerals Division of the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD), to deny permits or authorizations for uranium mining projects within the Mount Taylor traditional cultural properties boundaries;
•	The senate to call upon the US Congress to reform the federal General Mining Act of 1872 to prioritize the protection of sacred cultural sites and to require meaningful tribal consultation in decisions that impact tribal resources;
•	The US secretary of the interior, the US secretary of agriculture, the New Mexico congressional delegation, the governor, the commissioner of public lands, and the EMNRD each receive a copy of SM 11.
 

Current Law:

 Rayellen Res. Inc. v. N.M. Cultural Props. Review Comm. 2014-NMSC-006
The pueblos of Acoma and Laguna intervened in the lawsuit.
 

Amendments:

 2/28/25
The Senate Rules Committee amended SM 14 (SM 14A SRC) by requesting that the Cibola Board of County Commissioners, the city of Grants and the village of Milan each receive a copy of SM 14A SRC as well as the entities and officials already listed.