DeBaca hires representation

FORT SUMNER — New federal regulations went into effect April 1 regarding the lesser prairie chicken; regulations that a number of New Mexicans and Texans see as usurping private property owners’ rights.

On April 3, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller issued a news release in which he labeled the new lesser prairie chicken regulations as a continued attack on agriculture from the federal government.

County commissioners in Curry and Roosevelt counties have voted to pass resolutions against the new lesser prairie chicken regulations. The DeBaca County Commission recently appointed Commissioner Becky Harris to represent the county as part of a regional committee monitoring the issue.

Miller hailed the filing of a lawsuit challenging the designation of the lesser prairie chicken as an endangered species by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Miller reported the Texas Department of Agriculture is a named plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who successfully achieved an injunction recently in federal court preventing the new rules from taking effect.