New Mexico v. Texas
Headline: Court confirms and establishes the New Mexico–Texas boundary along the Rio Grande between 32° and 31°47' north, orders official maps delivered to state leaders, and splits the costs equally.
Holding:
- Establishes official New Mexico–Texas border along Rio Grande between specified latitude lines.
- Requires delivery of official maps and report to state leaders and Interior Department.
- Splits the legal costs of the boundary work equally between the two states.
Summary
Background
The dispute involved the States of New Mexico and Texas and a Commissioner named Samuel S. Gannett who was appointed to run, locate, and mark the boundary in the Rio Grande Valley from the parallel of 32° north latitude south to the parallel of 31°47' on the international boundary with Mexico. The Commissioner presented his written report and accompanying maps to the Court on October 6, 1930. No objections or exceptions to that report were filed within the allowed time.
Reasoning
The central question for the Court was whether to accept and finalize the Commissioner’s work. The Court reviewed the report and maps and pronounced the report “in all things confirmed,” declaring the boundary line shown there to be the true boundary between New Mexico and Texas for the described stretch. Because the Commissioner had completed his assignment under an earlier Court decree, the Court discharged him from further duty. The Court also ordered the Clerk to send certified copies of the decree, the report, and the maps to the states’ Chief Magistrates and to distribute copies to the Secretary of the Interior, while keeping three copies on file in the Court.
Real world impact
The decision makes the Commissioner’s line and the accompanying maps the official record for that portion of the Rio Grande boundary. State leaders and the Interior Department will receive the documents needed to act on the boundary. The Court directed that the costs of this cause be borne equally by New Mexico and Texas.
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