N.M. Stat. » N.M. Stat. / Chapter 17 / Article 1
New Mexico Statutes

N.M. Stat. § 17-1-1 (2026)

[Declaration of policy.] (Repealed effective July 1, 2026.)

✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section NM-LEGnmonesource.com JustiaChapter on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar 
It is the purpose of this act and the policy of the state of New Mexico to provide an
adequate and flexible system for the protection of the game and fish of New Mexico and
for their use and development for public recreation and food supply, and to provide for
their propagation, planting, protection, regulation and conservation to the extent
necessary to provide and maintain an adequate supply of game and fish within the state
of New Mexico.

History: Laws 1921, ch. 35, § 1; C.S. 1929, § 57-101; Laws 1931, ch. 117, § 1; 1941
Comp., § 43-101; 1953 Comp., § 53-1-1.

                                     ANNOTATIONS

Delayed repeals. — Laws 2025, ch. 9, § 13 repealed 17-1-1 NMSA 1978, effective July
1, 2026.

Compiler's notes. — The words "this act" were substituted by the 1931 amendment to
this section for the words "this bill", which appeared in the 1921 act. If referring to the
1921 act, they would refer to 17-1-1 to 17-1-4, 17-1-14, 17-1-27 and 17-2-6 NMSA
1978. If referring to the 1931 act, they would refer to 17-1-1, 17-1-5, 17-1-15, 17-1-26,
17-2-1, 17-2-5, 17-2-7, 17-2-9 and 17-2-10 NMSA 1978.

Cross references. — For transfer of radio communication property of remote sites from
department of game and fish to communications division of department of general
services, see 15-2-4 NMSA 1978.

For public lands generally, see Chapter 19 NMSA 1978.

For the Off-Highway Motorcycle Act, see 66-3-1001 NMSA 1978.

For water law generally, see Chapter 72 NMSA 1978.

For animals generally, see Chapter 77 NMSA 1978.

Wild game elk. — The game and fish laws in Chapter 17 are expressly intended to
cover free-roaming, wild game elk; the animal statutes in Article 18 of Chapter 30 of the
Criminal Code do not apply. State v. Parson, 2005-NMCA-083, 137 N.M. 773, 115 P.3d
236.

Allocation of licenses based on residency, impermissible discrimination. — The
allocation of licenses for bighorn, oryx and ibex by the state game commission on the
basis of residency discriminates impermissibly against nonresidents under the federal
constitution. Terk v. Gordon, No. 74-387-M (D.N.M., filed Aug. 25, 1977), aff'd, 436 U.S.
850, 98 S. Ct. 3063, 56 L. Ed. 2d 751 (1978).

Fee structure, although discriminatory, not offensive. — The present fee structure
in 17-3-13 NMSA 1978, which discriminates against nonresidents, is not offensive to
either the privileges and immunities clause, U.S. Const., art. IV, § 2, or the U.S. Const.,
amend. XIV. Terk v. Gordon, No. 74-387-M (D.N.M., filed Aug. 25, 1977), aff'd, 436 U.S.
850, 98 S. Ct. 3063, 56 L. Ed. 2d 751 (1978).

The state's power over public waters is plenary. State ex rel. State Game Comm'n v.
Red River Valley Co., 1945-NMSC-034, 51 N.M. 207, 182 P.2d 421.

State's powers are dedicated to fishing and recreation. — Since public waters of the
state by legislative enactment are dedicated to public uses of fishing and recreation,
Conchas Lake is covered by these provisions. State ex rel. State Game Comm'n v. Red
River Valley Co., 1945-NMSC-034, 51 N.M. 207, 182 P.2d 421.

Enclosing public waters cannot prevent fishing or hunting. — Fact that an
adjoining landowner encloses waters which belong to the public does not make thereof
a privately owned enclosure, and its treatment as such by the state would involve
granting of a special "right" or "privilege" which is prohibited by the constitution, so that a
license holder could not be prevented from fishing or hunting on the enclosure. State ex
rel. State Game Comm'n v. Red River Valley Co., 1945-NMSC-034, 51 N.M. 207, 182
P.2d 421.

Carrying firearms before hunting season opens may be prohibited. — Powers
granted to state game commission include authority to prohibit the carrying of firearms
in hunting areas for specified periods of time before opening of the big game season.
1948 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 48-5135.

Law reviews. — For student article, "Preventing the Extinction of Candidate Species:
The Lesser Prairie-Chicken in New Mexico", see 49 Nat. Resources J. 525 (2009).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — Waste of fish, constitutionality and
construction of statutes for prevention of, 38 A.L.R. 1198.

Applicability of state fishing license laws or other public regulations as to fishing in
private lake or pond, 15 A.L.R.2d 754.
Validity of regulation or prohibition of fishing to protect public water supply, 56 A.L.R.2d
790.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1997–2026 · leading case: State v. Cleve, 980 P.2d 23 (N.M. 1999).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
State v. Cleve, 980 P.2d 23 (N.M. 1999). · cites it 6× “By contrast, the unlawful hunting statute serves to enforce the authority of the Commission in defining the manner and conditions of lawful hunting and fishing in New Mexico and to ensure that hunting and fishing in New Mexico is carried out in a manner consistent with the…”
State v. Cleve, 949 P.2d 672 (N.M. Ct. App. 1997). · cites it 4× “On appeal, Defendant argues that the State Game and Fish Commission has exclusive authority to regulate the manner in which game animals are killed, NMSA 1978, § 17-1-1 (1953), thus preempting the cruelty to animals statute.”
State v. Parson, 2005 NMCA 083 (N.M. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 3× “See NMSA 1978, §§ 17-1-1 to 17-8-6 (1912, as amended through 2003).”
Animal Prot. of New Mexico v. New Mexico Game Comm'n (N.M. Ct. App. 2019). · cites it 4× “{1} Various individuals and wildlife protection organizations (Appellants) filed a direct appeal to this Court from the New Mexico Game Commission’s (the Commission) 2016 amendment to a bear and cougar management and hunting rule (the Cougar Rule) promulgated under the New…”
Animal Prot. of New Mexico v. New Mexico Game Comm'n (N.M. Ct. App. 2019). · cites it 3× “To reach that 15 conclusion, we need only examine and contrast the Commission’s general 16 responsibilities under the Fish and Game Act with its specific obligations under the 17 WCA.”
Kiehne v. N.M. Dep't of Game & Fish (N.M. Ct. App. 2026). “Compare Los Ranchos III, 1994- 13 NMSC-126, ¶¶ 24-25 (describing the municipality’s authority), with NMSA 1978, 14 § 17-1-1 (1921); § 17-1-26 (establishing the Commission’s authority to regulate); 15 §§ 17-1-5, -9 (delegating authority from the Commission to the Department), and…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.