SANTA FE – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Wednesday announced the appointment of Mike Hamman as state engineer. Currently serving as the state’s water advisor in the Office of the Governor, Hamman will officially begin at the Office of the State Engineer on Monday, February 7.

“Mike Hamman is a consummate expert in his field and a homegrown New Mexico professional widely respected across the state,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham. “In light of a warming climate, protecting our most precious resource and planning for New Mexico’s future is more important than ever. I am grateful to Mike for his continued commitment to New Mexico’s water future and look forward to his leadership at the Office of the State Engineer.”

“I am grateful to Governor Lujan Grisham for this opportunity to build upon the state’s work to secure a resilient water future for New Mexicans,” said Hamman. “In the face of current and future water resource challenges statewide, it is critical that we take immediate action to mitigate the impacts of increasing temperatures in our arid climate and employ every available federal resource coming to New Mexico to improve and adapt our water infrastructure. I look forward to continuing my work with the dedicated staff of the Office of the State Engineer and partnering with state, federal, and tribal agencies, as well as water user groups and local communities, to bolster water resiliency and preservation across the state.”

Prior to beginning his work as state water advisor, Hamman served as the chief engineer and chief executive officer for the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, overseeing river flood control, drainage and irrigation that includes managing 30,000 acres of bosque lands and coordinating with multiple jurisdictions at the local, state and tribal levels to deliver water to 60,000 acres of irrigated farmlands. Prior to that, he worked for 17 years at the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, ending his tenure there managing multiple federal water projects from the San Luis Valley in Colorado to Fort Quitman in Texas. He also worked for the Interstate Stream Commission, the City of Santa Fe and the Jicarilla Apache Nation, where he was instrumental in the development of the Nation’s $45 million water and wastewater treatment and delivery systems project. Hamman has served on the Interstate Stream Commission since 2019. He was raised in Taos and has a degree in civil engineering from the University of New Mexico.

The governor extends her gratitude to John Romero for serving as acting state engineer since the start of the year; Mr. Romero will return to his role as Director of the Water Rights Division of the Office of the State Engineer.

The Office of the State Engineer is charged with administering the state’s water resources. The state engineer has authority over the supervision, measurement, appropriation, and distribution of all surface and groundwater in New Mexico, including streams and rivers that cross state boundaries. The state engineer also serves as Secretary of the Interstate Stream Commission.