Albuquerque town hall to focus on oil and gas drilling

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Two elected officials in New Mexico's largest metropolitan area want to talk about oil and gas development and whether there's a need for an ordinance to govern drilling in the Albuquerque area. City Councilor and Democratic congressional candidate Pat Davis along with Bernalillo County Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins are sponsoring Tuesday's town hall. An industry group that represents producers around the state says there's no interest in the area as no major oil and gas basin exists in Bernalillo County. Most drilling occurs in New Mexico's share of the Permian Basin in the southeastern corner and in the San Juan Basin in the northwest. Robert McEntyre with the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association called the town hall a political ploy, saying it will distract from economic and public safety concerns facing the metro area.