# 119-hr-2785: New Mexico Land Grant-Mercedes Historical or Traditional Use Cooperation and Coordination Act

119-hr-2785, New Mexico Land Grant-Mercedes Historical or Traditional Use Cooperation and Coordination Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3] (D-NM); status in_committee (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2785
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-2785
- Congress: 119
- Title: New Mexico Land Grant-Mercedes Historical or Traditional Use Cooperation and Coordination Act
- Status: in_committee
- Introduced: 2025-04-09
- Sponsor: Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3] (D-NM)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**Would protect and formalize historic noncommercial uses by New Mexico land grant-mercedes on Federal land through cooperative agreements.** The bill would set rules for memoranda of understanding, allow fee reductions or waivers for community users with socioeconomic need, and require managers to consider these uses in Federal land-use planning. - Families and community users: Would be able to seek permits for long-standing noncommercial activities like water use, grazing, small-scale gathering, subsistence hunting and fishing, and cemetery or monument maintenance and would have a process to request fee reductions or waivers based on socioeconomic need. - New Mexico Land Grant Council and governing bodies: Would be authorized to represent qualified land grant-mercedes in developing and implementing MOUs and to participate in notice and comment on land management decisions. - Federal land managers: Would have to negotiate an initial MOU with the New Mexico Land Grant Council within 2 years after enactment and include procedures for permits, fees, vehicle and equipment use, and consultation with Tribes in those agreements. - Tribes and state authorities: Would require consultation with affected Tribes and would explicitly preserve treaty-reserved tribal rights and State authority over water and game management.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Stansbury, Melanie A. [D-NM-1] (D-NM), 2025-04-17T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Include traditional uses in planning: benefit, low. If enacted, the Secretaries would be required to consider historical or traditional uses by qualified land grants when making or revising land‑use plans under Federal law. The Secretary would decide what is appropriate and must act consistent with existing legal requirements. This would formally ad…
- MOUs for land grant uses: benefit, low. If enacted, the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior would have to sign an initial MOU with the New Mexico Land Grant Council within two years. The MOU would set permit and land‑use procedures, list fees and fee‑waiver processes, set vehicle and materials rules, require Tribe…
- Protect tribal and state rights: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would say it does not change treaty‑reserved tribal rights, state water or game rules, valid existing rights, or any existing permitted uses of Federal land. The bill would not create any new legal right to use Federal land.
- Who counts and what uses: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would define who is a community user and what counts as historical or traditional use on Federal land. Examples include small gathering, small-scale grazing, cemetery upkeep, and subsistence hunting or fishing. These definitions would take effect upon enactment.

## Related bills

- 119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act
- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act
- 119-hr-3971: Domestic Workers Bill of Rights Act
- 119-hr-5356: National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2025
- 119-hr-3069: Medicare for All Act
- 119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026

## Sources
- [119-hr-2785 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/2785)

## Related
- [119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7977)
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [119-hr-3971: Domestic Workers Bill of Rights Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3971)
- [119-hr-5356: National Infrastructure Bank Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5356)
- [119-hr-3069: Medicare for All Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3069)
- [119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7853)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2785 (as of 2026-09-21).