Prescribed Burning

NMSA 1978 ch. 68, art. 5

in effect

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-1 Short title

68-5-1. Short title Sections 1 through 8 [68-5-1 to 68-5-8 NMSA 1978] of this act may be cited as the "Prescribed Burning Act". Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 1.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-2 Definitions

68-5-2. Definitions As used in the Prescribed Burning Act: A. "certified prescribed burn manager" means a person certified pursuant to the prescribed burn manager certification program; B. "department" means the energy, minerals and natural resources department; C. "division" means the forestry division of the department; D. "extension service" means the New Mexico state university cooperative extension service; E. "pile burning" means the burning of vegetation, usually sticks, limbs or boles of trees and brush, resulting from land management activities, that have been stacked in piles, but does not mean the burning of a single or few small piles of yard waste or pruning debris on an individual's property; and F. "prescribed burn" means the controlled application of fire to existing vegetative fuels through pile burning or the burning of vegetation over predefined areas under appropriate weather and environmental conditions for purposes of community protection, watershed resilience, silviculture, wildland fire hazard reduction, fuels reduction, rangeland improvement, wildlife management, habitat improvement, invasive species management and ecological maintenance or restoration, but does not include agricultural burning to clear fields of stubble or slash or to manage invasive species impacting crop production, as part of orchard management or to clear irrigation ditches of vegetation and debris in order to improve or restore efficient water flow and delivery. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 2.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-3 Prescribed burn use

68-5-3. Prescribed burn use A. Prescribed burning is considered in the public interest and not a public or private nuisance. B. Except as limited in Subsection C of this section, a private landowner or a private landowner's agent, contractor or legally authorized designee shall have a right to conduct a prescribed burn on the landowner's property, except when the state forester or a county or municipality issues restrictions prohibiting a prescribed burn because of drought or wind conditions; provided that the prescribed burn is conducted with appropriate precautionary measures, including: the use of sufficient personnel and equipment; the prior notification of local fire officials; burn and contingency planning; and the use of appropriate prescribed burn techniques that cause the fire to be confined to a predetermined area. C. A prescribed burn shall not be started when the national weather service has issued a red flag warning for the area where the prescribed burn is planned to take place. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 3; 2023, ch. 88, § 1.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-4 Civil liability

68-5-4. Civil liability A. A private landowner or a private landowner's agent, contractor or legally authorized designee who is a certified prescribed burn manager and who conducts a prescribed burn is liable for any damages to property or for personal injury caused by the prescribed burn, including the reignition of a previously contained prescribed burn, if that person was negligent in starting, controlling or extinguishing the prescribed burn. B. A private landowner or a private landowner's agent, contractor or legally authorized designee who is not a certified prescribed burn manager and who conducts a prescribed burn is liable for double damages to property or for personal injury caused by the prescribed burn, including the reignition of a previously contained prescribed burn, if that private landowner or that private landowner's agent, contractor or legally authorized designee was negligent in starting, controlling or extinguishing the prescribed burn. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 4.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-5 Model prescribed burn permits

68-5-5. Model prescribed burn permits The department shall promulgate rules establishing a model prescribed burn permit for use by counties or municipalities. The rules shall provide for required terms and conditions of a prescribed burn permit, including: A. common terminology and definitions; B. standards for data collection regarding the ownership of land, fuels used, size of the prescribed burn, location of the prescribed burn and entity conducting the prescribed burn; C. the types of prescribed burning authorized by the permit; D. procedures to coordinate with the requirements of the department of environment's smoke management program; E. requirements for the distance of the prescribed burn from structures, buildings and fences; F. the number of acres and estimated number of burn piles authorized under the permit; G. requirements for notification of the public and of appropriate personnel, such as fire dispatch personnel, fire department personnel and county or municipal fire marshals, prior to and upon ignition and termination of the prescribed burn; H. procedures to permit prescribed burns that cross jurisdictions; and I. procedures to aggregate permit data and report annually on the effectiveness of the model prescribed burn permit. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 5.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-6 Criteria for counties or municipalities issuing prescribed burn permits

68-5-6. Criteria for counties or municipalities issuing prescribed burn permits A county or municipality may adopt an ordinance to require a private landowner to obtain a permit to conduct a prescribed burn. A county or municipality that requires landowners to obtain a permit to conduct a prescribed burn shall use the model prescribed burn permit adopted by the department. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 6.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-7 Prescribed burn manager certification

68-5-7. Prescribed burn manager certification A. The division shall create a prescribed burn manager certification program accessible to private landowners and private landowners' agents, contractors or legally authorized designees who conduct prescribed burns. The certification program shall include training, which shall be provided by the extension service, on all relevant aspects of prescribed burn, including legal requirements, safety, weather, fire behavior, smoke management, prescribed burn techniques, public relations, planning and contingencies. B. The department shall adopt rules to create the prescribed burn manager certification program, including the training and certification of certified prescribed burn managers; training components and engagement of subject matter experts; application processes; qualification for and terms and durations of certification; types of certification, if applicable; oversight of the program; grounds and processes for renewal, suspension and revocation of certifications; and application, certification and renewal fees. C. The department, by rule, may establish a fee at an amount not to exceed the amount required to recover costs that the division incurs in providing certification and processing applications for persons seeking certification as certified prescribed burn managers pursuant to this section. All proceeds from that fee shall be deposited in the forest land protection revolving fund. D. Nothing in this section may be construed as creating a mandatory prescribed burn manager certification requirement to conduct prescribed burning. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 7.

NMSA 1978, § 68-5-8 Prescribed burn training

68-5-8. Prescribed burn training The extension service shall provide the training required for prescribed burn manager certification as specified in rules adopted by the department. The extension service may collect fees for providing the training. The fees shall not exceed the amount required to recover costs that the extension service incurs in providing the training. Laws 2021, ch. 13, § 8.

Source: New Mexico Compilation Commission (nmonesource.com)URL: https://nmonesource.com/nmos/nmsa-unanno/en/item/18571/index.doFetched: 10/20/2026