# New Mexico SB 21: POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM ACT

New Mexico SB 21, POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM ACT, is a 2025 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Peter Wirth (Democratic); status signed, last action 2025-04-08 (Signed by Governor - Chapter 112 - Apr. 8) (as of 2026-10-16).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-SB21-2025
- As of: 2026-10-16
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: New Mexico SB 21
- State: New Mexico
- Session: 2025 Regular Session
- Title: POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM ACT
- Status: signed
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2025-01-21
- Last action: 2025-04-08, Signed by Governor - Chapter 112 - Apr. 8
- Sponsor: Peter Wirth (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 2
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 2 (68 yes, 41 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 11

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Communities get cleanup funding and input: benefit, low. The law creates a fund for investigating and cleaning up water, soil, and soil-vapor contamination. It receives appropriations, gifts, grants, donations, department receipts, and specified contamination-related recoveries; unused money remains available. The law sets no total funding amount. The En…
- Communities get notice of water permits: benefit, low. The commission must set notice procedures for groundwater permit applications and drafts covering new permits, changes, and renewals. Surface-water draft permits also require public and affected-agency notice. Groundwater notices include newspaper ads in English and Spanish. Notice methods must con…
- Applicants pay fees for water permits: cost, low. The commission must set fees for discharge permits and general permit coverage under the water-quality programs. Fees pay for rulemaking, application review, permits, enforcement, compliance help, monitoring, inspections, records, and legal or administrative work. The law does not set fee amounts.…
- Responsible parties face retroactive cleanup costs: mixed, high. Responsible parties can owe cleanup costs for actual or threatened contaminant releases, including releases before the 2025 law's effective date. Liability includes state cleanup, others' necessary response costs, natural-resource damage and assessment costs, and qualifying health studies. Parties…
- Discharge permits have fixed time limits: mixed, low. Most permits have fixed five-year terms. Surface-water discharge permits can last up to 10 years. For a new discharge, the term starts when the discharge begins. That permit cannot extend beyond seven years after its issue date.
- Dischargers face state water permit rules: mixed, low. Pollutant releases from a point source into federally covered waters require a state permit, with farm, forestry, and uncontaminated-runoff exceptions. The state cannot issue a permit over a written federal objection. The commission can also require permits for water-contaminant discharges and disp…
- Land projects get limited fill exemptions: mixed, low. Dredged or fill discharges with federal approval do not need a separate state permit, but harm must be avoided and minimized. Remaining harm can require compensating restoration or other mitigation. Listed exemptions cover routine farming, forestry, ranching, structure repairs, ponds, acequias, dit…
- Permit applicants get safeguards and limits: mixed, low. Agencies must justify each permit condition as reasonable and needed, considering the site and applicable industry rules. Applicants can review and comment on added conditions and must receive a written explanation. Agencies must deny permits, general coverage, or federal certifications for dischar…
- Some dischargers avoid extra water permits: mixed, low. Discharges with a qualifying federal or state pollutant-discharge permit do not need a separate Water Quality Act permit. Other exemptions cover return flows entirely from irrigated farming and listed forestry runoff following standard industry practices. Mining and oil-and-gas stormwater qualifies…
- Water users get limited regulatory exceptions: mixed, low. The law preserves water-property rights and limits rules for pollution confined to one property when the water never mixes with other waters. Activities under specified other-agency powers have exclusions, but these do not block pollution cleanup or septic-waste and sludge controls. Oil-conservatio…
- Water violators face daily financial penalties: mixed, low. Agencies can issue compliance orders, suspend or end permits, assess penalties, or bring court actions for Water Quality Act violations. Permit-related violations covered by the specified permitting section carry penalties up to $15,000 per day. Other violations carry penalties up to $10,000 per da…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Peter Wirth (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Kristina Ortez (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Roberto "Bobby" J. Gonzales (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2025-03-19 | House | Final House Vote | pass | 43 | 25 |   |
| 2025-02-26 | Senate | Final Senate Vote | pass | 25 | 16 |   |

## Actions (11)

- 2025-04-08: Signed by Governor - Chapter 112 - Apr. 8 (Senate)
- 2025-03-19: Passed in the House of Representatives - Y:43 N:25 (House)
- 2025-03-11: HENRC: Reported by committee with Do Pass recommendation (House)
- 2025-03-04: HAAWC: Reported by committee with Do Pass recommendation (House)
- 2025-02-27: Sent to HAAWC - Referrals: HAAWC/HENRC (Senate)
- 2025-02-26: Passed in the Senate - Y:25 N:16 (Senate)
- 2025-02-26: fl/aaaa (legislature)
- 2025-02-21: SFC: Reported by committee with Do Pass recommendation (Senate)
- 2025-02-13: SJC: Reported by committee with Do Not Pass but with a Do Pass recommendation on Committee Substitution (Senate)
- 2025-01-30: SCONC: Reported by committee with Do Pass recommendation (Senate)
- 2025-01-21: Sent to SCONC - Referrals: SCONC/SJC/SFC (Senate)

## Bill text

- Final Version, 2025-04-09: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/final/SB0021.pdf)
- HENRC Committee Report 3/11/25, 2025-03-11: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021EN1.pdf)
- HAAWC Committee Report 3/04/25, 2025-03-04: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021AA1.pdf)
- Senate Floor Amendment 1 2/26/25, 2025-02-26: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS1.pdf)
- Senate Floor Amendment 2 2/26/25, 2025-02-26: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS2.pdf)
- Senate Floor Amendment 3 2/26/25, 2025-02-26: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS3.pdf)
- Senate Floor Amendment 4 2/26/25, 2025-02-26: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS4.pdf)
- SFC Committee Report 2/21/25, 2025-02-21: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FC1.pdf)
- SJC Committee Report 2/13/25, 2025-02-13: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021JU1.pdf)
- SJC Committee Substitute 2/13/25, 2025-02-13: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021JUS.pdf)
- SCONC Committee Report 1/30/25, 2025-01-30: [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021CO1.pdf)
- Introduced, 2025-01-21: [HTML](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021.html), [PDF](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021.pdf)

## Related bills

- HB 2: GENERAL APPROPRIATION ACT OF 2025 (signed)
- SB 45: COUNTY HEALTH CARE ASSISTANCE FUND USE (signed)
- SB 343: TEACHER SALARY RATES CHANGES (signed)
- SB 345: TEACHER & INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORT LICENSURE (signed)
- SB 133: EDUCATIONAL RETIREES RETURNING TO WORK (signed)
- HB 157: NEW SCHOOL LICENSES (signed)

## Sources
- [Final Version (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/final/SB0021.pdf)
- [HENRC Committee Report 3/11/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021EN1.pdf)
- [HAAWC Committee Report 3/04/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021AA1.pdf)
- [Senate Floor Amendment 1 2/26/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS1.pdf)
- [Senate Floor Amendment 2 2/26/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS2.pdf)
- [Senate Floor Amendment 3 2/26/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS3.pdf)
- [Senate Floor Amendment 4 2/26/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FS4.pdf)
- [SFC Committee Report 2/21/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021FC1.pdf)
- [SJC Committee Report 2/13/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021JU1.pdf)
- [SJC Committee Substitute 2/13/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021JUS.pdf)
- [SCONC Committee Report 1/30/25 (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021CO1.pdf)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021.html)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/25%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0021.pdf)

## Related
- [HB 2: GENERAL APPROPRIATION ACT OF 2025](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-HB2-2025)
- [SB 45: COUNTY HEALTH CARE ASSISTANCE FUND USE](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-SB45-2025)
- [SB 343: TEACHER SALARY RATES CHANGES](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-SB343-2025)
- [SB 345: TEACHER & INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORT LICENSURE](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-SB345-2025)
- [SB 133: EDUCATIONAL RETIREES RETURNING TO WORK](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-SB133-2025)
- [HB 157: NEW SCHOOL LICENSES](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-HB157-2025)
- [New Mexico bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/new-mexico/bills)
- [New Mexico state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/new-mexico)
- [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/NM-SB21-2025 (as of 2026-10-16).