The legislature finds that:

A. due to the United States supreme court decision in Strate v. A-1 Contractors, there is uncertainty in the allocation of jurisdiction between the state and a tribe within rights of way granted to the state by a tribe, and all future road projects through tribal land are put in jeopardy of being postponed, delayed or left unresolved;

B. New Mexico has entered into agreements with the Navajo Nation through the state police and various counties to resolve issues of jurisdiction in law enforcement as well as many other areas;

C. New Mexico has traditionally negotiated right-of-way agreements for either a definite term or for the life of the highway;

D. the state land office has negotiated regarding easements permitted through state land, and the terms of those agreements are either for the life of the highway or for a fixed term that is not permitted to exceed thirty-five years;

E. the state highway and transportation department has negotiated and agreed to pay Indian nations for easements through Indian lands in the past;

F. New Mexico wants to foster and develop improved government-to-government relations between the Navajo Nation and the state; and

G. New Mexico desires to resolve the uncertainty presented by the Strate decision regarding jurisdiction within grants of rights of way by the Navajo Nation and to reconcile questions regarding the granting of rights of way through negotiation with the Navajo Nation.

History: Laws 2001, ch. 210, § 1.

Compiler's notes. — Strate v. A-1 Contractors, referred to in Subsections A and G, appears as 520 U.S. 438, 117 S. Ct. 1404, 137 L. Ed2d 661 (1997).