The New Mexico Supreme Court granted plaintiffs’ petition for writ of certiorari seeking review of an intermediate appellate court’s decision ordering dismissal of their claims under the New Mexico Constitution that the State’s system for regulating pollution from oil and natural gas violated the plaintiffs’ rights. The Supreme Court said it would review all five issues presented by the petition: (1) Did the appellate court fundamentally misapprehend its duty to enforce positive constitutional rights, wrongly ignore relevant constitutional jurisprudence from New Mexico and other states, and effectively erase the Pollution Control Clause by finding Plaintiffs’ claims under the Clause nonjusticiable and beyond judicial review?; (2) Did the appellate court erroneously conclude, on motions to dismiss, that Defendants have fulfilled their duties under the Pollution Control Clause by holding that any amount of pollution control and revenue raised from the extraction of oil and gas fulfills the duties imposed?; (3) Did the appellate court misconstrue and limit the power of the Declaratory Judgment Act?; (4) Did the appellate court err in deciding that substantive due process under the New Mexico Constitution cannot be invoked to protect residents from state actions permitting oil and gas pollution that harms their life, liberty, property, safety, happiness, and beautiful and healthful environment?; and (5) Did the appellate court err in deciding that the New Mexico Constitution’s equal protection clause can never protect classes of people disproportionally harmed by state actions permitting oil and gas pollution?

Lawsuit asserting that the State of New Mexico and other State defendants violated the plaintiffs' rights under the New Mexico Constitution by continuing to authorize and promote oil and gas production without assuring protection of the environment.

Atencio v. State

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New Mexico Supreme Court Agreed to Hear Appeal from Dismissal of Lawsuit Alleging State’s Oil and Natural Gas Regulation Violated State Constitutional Rights

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Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

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Oil is a combustible liquid fossil fuel composed mainly of hydrocarbons, occurring as crude oil and refined into petroleum products such as petrol, diesel and kerosene.

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New Mexico Supreme Court Agreed to Hear Appeal from Dismissal of Lawsuit Alleging State’s Oil and Natural Gas Regulation Violated State Constitutional Rights

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Fossil fuel

Economic sector