LAS VEGAS, N.M. (AP) — A federal judge says portions of a Mora County ordinance that bans oil and gas drilling in the rural northern New Mexico county are unconstitutional.
U.S. District Judge James Browning said some of the ordinance’s provisions are “pretty wild” and inconsistent with federal law.
His comments came during a motions hearing this week in Albuquerque as one oil company seeks to strike down the ordinance.
Attorneys for SWEPI, a subsidiary of Shell, say the ordinance is so blatantly unconstitutional that there’s no need to go to trial. They say the ordinance effectively destroyed the value of the company’s drilling leases.
The Las Vegas Optic reports that Browning has yet to decide whether to strike down the entire ordinance or invalidate those portions that cross the line.
