DEMING, N.M. — Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows has directed lawmakers to study whether one or more New Mexico counties could be annexed into Texas, according to a report in the Albuquerque Journal.
Burrows included the directive in a set of interim charges instructing a legislative committee to examine the constitutional, legal and economic steps required for Texas to absorb territory from a neighboring state. The committee was asked to review what state and federal processes would be necessary, including voter approval, legislative action in both states and potential involvement from Congress.
The discussion has centered on southeastern New Mexico, where counties such as Lea, Eddy and Roosevelt share strong economic and cultural ties with West Texas. Those counties sit atop the oil‑rich Permian Basin and have periodically been the focus of secession talk from Santa Fe.
According to the Journal, Burrows’ order follows earlier efforts by some New Mexico lawmakers to explore whether counties should be allowed to leave the state. That proposal did not advance, but it prompted Texas leaders to signal openness to the idea of welcoming disaffected New Mexico counties.
Any annexation would face steep hurdles. Changing state boundaries would likely require approval from voters in the affected counties, approval from the New Mexico Legislature, approval from the Texas Legislature and action by Congress and the president. Neither state constitution currently provides a mechanism for transferring counties from one state to another.
New Mexico officials have rejected the notion of losing territory, emphasizing that the counties remain firmly part of New Mexico and that annexation is not on the state’s agenda.
Burrows’ study order ensures the issue will remain part of Texas’ interim legislative work, even as legal experts and political observers note that the chances of any actual border change remain remote.