Sponsor
Teresa Leger Fernandez
Representative · D-NM
Representative · D-NM
The bill gives tribal, state, and local partners flexibility to extend project deadlines—reducing legal risk and enabling higher-quality implementation—at the cost of delaying final costs and prolonging disruption and schedule uncertainty for nearby communities.
Tribal governments (the Pueblos) and state/local partners can mutually extend project deadlines, reducing the risk of missed statutory deadlines and avoiding legal or administrative penalties.
Mutual extensions allow work to proceed without being rushed, enabling more thorough, higher-quality implementation of settlement obligations and improving long-term outcomes for tribal communities and nearby residents.
Taxpayers and federal budget overseers may face longer timelines and delayed cost resolution or fiscal uncertainty when project deadlines are extended.
Extensions reduce schedule certainty for residents and businesses near the projects, prolonging disruption, inconvenience, and uncertainty about when benefits will be available.
Based on analysis of 1 section of legislative text.
Allows the Pueblos, the U.S. (through the Secretary), the State, the City, and the County to jointly agree to extend settlement dates by determining substantial completion is delayed.
Official title: To amend the Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act to modify a provision relating to the extension of certain dates for the completion of the Regional Water System, and for other purposes.
Introduced December 18, 2025 by Teresa Leger Fernandez · Last progress December 18, 2025
Amends a provision of the Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act to allow the schedule dates in the Act to be extended when the Pueblo tribes, the United States (through the Secretary), the State, the City, and the County all agree an extension is reasonably necessary. It also revises the subsection heading to label a conditions-precedent/expiration paragraph and adds a new paragraph authorizing joint agreement to determine substantial completion and extend deadlines.