Are the meetings of the New Mexico Activities Association (the body that runs middle and high school sports and activities) covered by the state's Open Meetings Act?

Plain-English summary

Senator Maestas asked whether the New Mexico Activities Association, which governs interscholastic athletics and other activities for over 88,000 New Mexico middle- and high-school students, has to follow the state's Open Meetings Act.

The Attorney General said yes. NMAA presents itself as a private nonprofit organized in 1921, but Section 22-2-2(L) of the New Mexico Statutes makes the Public Education Department responsible for approving the rules of any organization that regulates a public school activity, and explicitly directs PED to require those organizations to comply with OMA. PED's regulations (NMAC 6.13.2.2 and 6.13.2.6) name NMAA as such an organization. NMAA's own handbook also says its Board meetings are conducted in compliance with OMA.

That OMA obligation extends to NMAA's committees and subcommittees, including the Hardship Review Committee and the Appeals Review Committee. The OMA still allows closed sessions for matters that fit its existing exceptions, and meetings on short notice for time-sensitive issues are permitted, but the framework of notice, agenda, and member-action transparency applies.

The opinion declined to reach the equal-protection questions about how NMAA treats out-of-state, public-to-public, public-to-private, and private-to-public student transfers, because those questions are pending in court and would require fact-finding outside the AG's opinion authority.

What this means for you

If you are a student-athlete, parent, or coach

You are entitled to public notice of NMAA Board meetings and to attend most of them. The schedule is published annually. If a hardship appeal or eligibility decision affects your student, the meeting where the decision is made still has to comply with the OMA's procedures, even if the substance of the discussion can be in closed session for privacy reasons. Final actions on a personal matter (like an eligibility ruling) need to occur in a way that produces a public record of the action taken.

If you have concerns about a meeting, compare the notice and procedure with OMA and NMAA's own rules. The opinion does not decide a particular meeting's compliance or describe remedies for a violation.

If you are an NMAA Board member, committee member, or staff

Treat every meeting as an OMA meeting. That means: published annual schedule, agendas posted in advance, public notice of any special or emergency meeting (with the OMA's reduced notice timing where applicable), action items voted on in open session unless a closed-session exception applies, and minutes that document any actions taken.

The opinion says sensitive Hardship Review and Appeals Review matters may be closed to the public under applicable OMA provisions, but the committees remain bound by OMA. Check the particular statutory basis before closing a meeting; the opinion does not analyze FERPA or decide which exception covers a specific student matter.

If you sit on a committee or subcommittee, the OMA reaches you too. Quorum and policy-making bodies trigger the duty (see Benavidez v. Bernalillo Cnty. Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs, 2021-NMCA-029). Even informal-sounding subgroups that make recommendations binding in legal or practical effect on the parent organization are likely covered.

If you are a school administrator, athletic director, or principal at an NMAA member school

The PED's designation means NMAA and its committees must comply with OMA. If an NMAA meeting affects your school, you can review the meeting notice and NMAA's rules. The opinion does not address a member school's liability for relying on an NMAA decision.

If your school is a private member school, your participation in NMAA is voluntary and brings the OMA's reach over your activities through PED's authority over NMAA. If your private school's NMAA representative is part of a meeting, the OMA still applies to that meeting.

If you are a journalist or member of the public

NMAA's handbook says its Board meeting schedule is published annually. The opinion says NMAA committees remain subject to OMA even when sensitive meetings are closed or scheduled on short notice. It does not decide access to particular materials or meetings.

If you are an education-law or sports-law attorney

The opinion grounds NMAA's OMA obligation in the statute (Section 22-2-2(L)), the PED rules (NMAC 6.13.2.2 and 6.13.2.6), and NMAA's own handbook commitments. That gives you three independent footholds in any compliance dispute. The opinion expressly avoids the equal-protection transfer questions, which remain in litigation, so this opinion is not a tool for the merits of those constitutional claims.

Common questions

Q: NMAA is a nonprofit, not a government agency. Why does OMA apply? A: The Legislature, in Section 22-2-2(L), gave the Public Education Department authority over rules promulgated "by an association or organization attempting to regulate a public school activity" and directed PED to require those organizations to comply with OMA. PED designated NMAA as such an organization. The opinion did not need to decide whether NMAA is a quasi-governmental entity to reach its conclusion.

Q: Does this mean every NMAA committee meeting has to be on a public calendar? A: Yes, with the OMA's standard rules. The Board's regular schedule must be published annually. Special and emergency meetings have their own notice rules under OMA. Subcommittees that make policy or recommendations binding in any legal or practical way on NMAA are also covered (Benavidez).

Q: What about student privacy in eligibility hearings? A: The opinion says sensitive Hardship Review and Appeals Review matters may be properly closed to the public under OMA, but the committees remain subject to the Act. It does not decide the procedure for a particular eligibility hearing.

Q: Can a hardship review hearing be held with little notice? A: Yes, NMAA's handbook contemplates short-notice scheduling for hardship and appeals matters. OMA's emergency-meeting and special-meeting provisions accommodate that, but the OMA's procedures still apply.

Q: Did the AG decide whether NMAA's transfer rules violate equal protection? A: No. The AG declined to address the equal-protection questions because they are pending before a court and would require fact-finding beyond the scope of an AG opinion under Section 8-5-2(D).

Q: Does this affect private member schools?
A: Indirectly. Private schools are voluntary NMAA members and submit to NMAA's rulemaking. When NMAA must follow OMA, the meetings affecting private school members are also subject to OMA.

Background and statutory framework

NMAA is the New Mexico organization that governs interscholastic athletics and activities for over 160 high schools and 200 middle schools, affecting about 88,000 students across 14 sports and 24 activities. It was organized in 1921 as a nonprofit, with member schools providing governance through representatives on the Board and on committees.

Section 22-2-2(L) is the bridge between this nonprofit structure and state regulation. It directs the Public Education Department to approve or disapprove all rules of "an association or organization attempting to regulate a public school activity," to invalidate any rule conflicting with PED rules, and to require compliance with OMA. PED's rules at NMAC 6.13.2.2 and 6.13.2.6 designate NMAA as the relevant organization and confirm its rulemaking is subject to PED approval.

The Open Meetings Act, NMSA 1978, § 10-15-1, sets the open-meeting framework: notice, agenda, open-session voting on actions, and limited closed-session exceptions for personnel, attorney-client matters, real-estate negotiations, and other categories enumerated in subsections (H) through (J).

The opinion applies the standard statutory-interpretation rule that statutes are read first for plain meaning (Albuquerque Bernalillo Cnty. Water Utility Authority v. N.M. Pub. Reg'n Comm'n, 2010-NMSC-013), and reads OMA exceptions narrowly while construing OMA's reach broadly (N.M. State Inv. Council v. Weinstein, 2016-NMCA-069). Subcommittees that exercise policy-making or binding-recommendation authority are also OMA bodies (Benavidez v. Bernalillo Cnty. Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs, 2021-NMCA-029).

The opinion declines to reach the equal-protection issues raised in questions 4 and 5 because they are pending litigation and require fact-finding. The AG's authority under Section 8-5-2(D) is limited to questions of law.

Citations and references

Statutes and rules:

• NMSA 1978, § 22-2-2(L)
• NMSA 1978, § 10-15-1 (Open Meetings Act)
• NMAC 6.13.2.2; NMAC 6.13.2.6
• NMSA 1978, § 8-5-2(D)

Cases:

• Albuquerque Bernalillo Cnty. Water Utility Authority v. N.M. Pub. Reg'n Comm'n, 2010-NMSC-013
• Benavidez v. Bernalillo Cnty. Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs, 2021-NMCA-029
• N.M. State Inv. Council v. Weinstein, 2016-NMCA-069

Source

• Landing page: https://nmdoj.gov/publication/opinion/2025-12-opinion-whether-new-mexico-activities-association-nmaa-is-subject-to-the-open-meetings-act-oma/
• Original PDF: https://nmdoj.gov/wp-content/uploads/AG-Opinion-2025-12-NMAA-Open-Meetings-Act-Question.pdf

Original opinion text

October 20, 2025
OPINION
OF
RAÚL TORREZ
Attorney General

Opinion No. 2025-12

To:

Senator Antonio "Moe" Maestas

Re:

Attorney General Opinion – Whether New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) is subject to the Open Meetings Act (OMA) Introduction

The New Mexico Department of Justice (NMDOJ) plays a central role in ensuring that government operates in an open, accountable, and accessible manner. The Open Meetings Act (OMA) is a fundamental tool in this work, requiring that public bodies in New Mexico provide notice to the public about what actions will be considered at meetings and to take those actions in the open. From conducting trainings to publishing compliance guides for government to taking enforcement actions, NMDOJ has developed significant legal expertise in the reach and nuances of the OMA. This request raises questions of great public concern – impacting nearly a hundred thousand middle and high school students – regarding the application of the OMA to the governing body of school sports, the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA). By statute, we are authorized to give an "opinion in writing upon any question of law submitted to him by the legislature or any branch thereof." Section 8-5-2(D) NMSA. In this opinion, we focus our analysis on the application of OMA to the NMAA, specifically questions 1 through 3 below. We typically do not answer mixed questions of law and fact, especially when the questions are actively pending before the court as is the case here. Accordingly, we refrain from answering questions 4 and 5 below. Questions and Short Answers The questions posed to the NMDOJ, with accompanying short answers, are as follows:

1. Is the NMAA a quasi-government entity performing a government function? And therefore
   does it need to follow all applicable laws pertaining to those functions?

New Mexico Department of Justice
408 Galisteo Street | Santa Fe, NM 87501 | (505) 490-4060 | NMDOJ.GOV

Pursuant to Section 22-2-2(L) and its own rules, the NMAA is subject to OMA. We need not reach the question of whether NMAA is a quasi-governmental entity to come to this conclusion.

2. Does the NMAA have to follow OMA pursuant to NMSA 1978, § 22-2-2(L) (2004)?
   Yes. Section 22-2-2(L) provides that the Public Education Department (PED) is responsible for approving all rules promulgated "by an association or organization attempting to regulate a public school." Further, Chapter 13 of Title 6 of the New Mexico Administrative Code, explicitly names the NMAA as being subject to Section 22-2-2(L). The NMAA's own rules similarly subject itself to OMA.
3. Do NMAA committees or subcommittees, such as the Hardship Review Committee and
   Appeals Review Committee, have to follow OMA pursuant to § 22-2-2(L)? Yes. Having found that the OMA applies to the NMAA, its committees and subcommittees would be subject to OMA as well.
4. Are all NMAA rules and decisions bound by the equal protection clauses of the New
   Mexico and United States Constitutions? In particular, are students protected against unlawful discrimination for their parents moving in and out of geographic areas or for their parents putting them in or taking them out of private schools? As noted above, we do not address these questions as they are currently pending before the court. Addressing them would require us to assume certain facts and any answers would necessarily turn on mixed questions of law and fact.
5. Assuming New Mexico students are entitled to equal protection under the law: Can the
   NMAA treat out-of-state transfers differently from in-state transfers? Can the NMAA treat public school to public school transfers differently than public school to private school or private school to public school transfers? Again, as noted above, we do not address these questions as they are currently pending before the court. Addressing them would require us to assume certain facts and any answers would necessarily turn on mixed questions of law and fact. Background Pursuant to the NMAA Handbook (which contains its governing regulations), the NMAA "was formed in 1921 as a private/non-profit organization whose principal purpose is the regulation, direction, administration and supervision of interscholastic activities in the State of New Mexico
   . . .[it] is a membership led organization. Member schools have an active voice in establishing all rules and regulations in regards to interscholastic activities and athletics." Section 1.3, NMAA Handbook, available at https://www.nmact.org/file/Section_1.pdf. The NMAA membership "is comprised of New Mexico public and private middle/junior high and senior high schools." Id. (Emphasis added.) With "over 160 member high schools [and] more than 200 middle schools," the NMAA impacts approximately 88,000 New Mexican students "participating in 14 sports and 24 activities each school year." New Mexico Activities Association. (2024). 2023–2024 Annual Report (p. 3). https://www.nmact.org/file/2023-24_Annual_Report.pdf. Analysis Section 22-2-2(L) provides that the Public Education Department (PED) is responsible for approving or disapproving all rules promulgated by an association or organization attempting to regulate a public school activity and invalidate any rule in conflict with any rule promulgated by the department. The department shall require an association or organization attempting to regulate a public school activity to comply with the provisions of Open Meetings Act…. (Emphasis added.) Although Section 22-2-2(L) refers to public schools, NMAA's membership also includes private school members who contribute to NMAA rulemaking and have otherwise "opted in" to NMAA's governance over their extracurricular activities. NMAC 6.13.2.6 states,
   [t]he purpose of this rule is to set forth the requirements applicable to the regulation of interscholastic activities by the [NMAA,] . . . [which] may establish rules for the organization, regulation and enforcement of interscholastic activities for its member schools, subject to the approval or disapproval of said rules by [PED]. (Emphasis added.) Member schools are comprised of both public and private schools, which have representatives both on the main governing Board and on NMAA committees. While all public schools within NMAA's membership are subject by statute to the governance of PED, private schools in NMAA's membership, as voluntary members of NMAA, subject their associated extracurricular activities to NMAA's rulemaking and regulation—and, thus, to PED's oversight. Section 22-2-2(L) enables PED to oversee an association or organization, such as NMAA, to regulate extracurricular activities. PED, in its rules, has officially designated NMAA as such an association. NMAC 6.13.2.2. Section 2.2(D) of the NMAA Handbook states that "[t]he NMAA Board of Directors' regular, special, and emergency meetings are conducted in compliance with
   [OMA], and the schedule of meetings is published on an annual basis as determined by the Board each June." Available at https://www.nmact.org/file/Section_2.pdf. Meetings and hearings that address sensitive matters, including those by the Hardship Review Committee and the Appeals Review Committee, may be properly exempted from the public, but they are still bound by OMA, even when they are "not open to the public and . . . scheduled on short notice in order to accommodate a particular activity or event." See id.; see also NMSA 1978, § 10-15-1(H)-(J) (2013) (addressing closed meetings under OMA).

In short, NMAA must follow its own rules and regulations as approved by PED. NMAA's own regulations subject it to the Open Meetings Act. Moreover, by the plain language of the statute, Section 22-2-2(L) mandates that PED shall "require an association or organization attempting to regulate a public school activity to comply with the provisions of [OMA]." See NMSA 1978, §§ 12-2A-1 to -20 (1997) (Uniform Statute and Rule Construction Act); Albuquerque Bernalillo Cnty. Water Utility Authority v. N.M. Pub. Reg'n Comm'n, 2010-NMSC-013, ¶ 52, 148 N.M. 21 (reiterating that courts interpret statutes first by evaluating the plain language of the statute and giving words their ordinary meaning and only proceed further when ambiguity exists in statutory language). This includes any small groups or committees that may be formed as a part of the association or organization. See § 10-15-1(B); Benavidez v. Bernalillo Cnty. Bd. of Cnty. Comm'rs, 2021-NMCA-029, ¶ 51 (explaining that a non-statutory committee "may constitute a policy-making body subject to . . . OMA if it makes any decisions on behalf of, formulates recommendations that are binding in any legal or practical way on, or otherwise establishes policy for the public body" (emphases added) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted)); N.M. State Inv. Council v. Weinstein, 2016-NMCA-069, ¶ 73 (reiterating that courts "construe . . . OMA's provisions broadly and their exceptions narrowly"). Conclusion NMAA and its committees and subcommittees are bound by OMA both under the plain language of Section 22-2-2(L) and NMAA's own rules and regulations as approved by PED.

Please note that this opinion is a public document and is not protected by the attorney-client privilege. It will be published on our website and made available to the general public.

RAÚL TORREZ
ATTORNEY GENERAL