The objective of this Part is to establish policies to administer the Colonias Wastewater Construction Grant Program including compliance with Federal "cross-cutting authorities such as the National Environmental Policy Act, Davis-Bacon Act, etc. The New Mexico legislature created the Water Quality Control Commission ("Commission") to take all action necessary and appropriate to secure to the state the benefit of the Clean Water Act. NMSA 1978, 74-6-3.E. NMSA 1978, 74-6-4 states that the Water Quality Control Commission "may accept and supervise the administration of loans and grants from the federal government and from other sources, public or private, which loans and grants shall not be expended for other than the purpose for which provided." The Commission is an unfunded agency of the state. The Commission has no budget or funds allocated to it, rather, it is administratively attached to, and receives staff support from, the Environment Department. NMSA 1978, 74-6-3.F and 9-7A-6.B. The Commission, therefore, exercises its independent functions while the Department provides budgeting, record-keeping, and related administrative functions for the commission. NMED is one of the Commission's constituent agencies. In 1983 and again in 1986, the Commission delegated to the NMED authority to administer the Wastewater Construction Grants Program.
N.M. Admin. Code § 20.7.9.6