Bernalillo County, NM Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Encampment Sanitation (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- arroyos, drainage/irrigation channels, piping ROW
- Public agencies covered
- County, City of Albuquerque, AMAFCA, MRGCD
- Step 1
- written warning required before citation
- No warning on file
- officer issues trespass notice instead
- General penalty
- up to $300 fine / 90 days (§1-6)
- Adopted
- Ord. 2022-28, amended Ord. 2024-2
Summary
Bernalillo County Code Section 54-33 makes it unlawful to enter, remain, camp or loiter in any arroyo, drainage channel, irrigation channel or piping right-of-way owned or maintained by a public agency, including AMAFCA and the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, unless the person is public-safety or agency personnel.
(b)Unauthorized presence in a water conveyance system prohibited. It is unlawful for any person to enter or to remain in a water conveyance system which is owned, maintained or operated by a public agency and which is not designated as an open space area or recreational path, except for public safety personnel and employees of the public agency that owns, maintains or operates said water conveyance system, or those persons authorized by such agency.(c)Unauthorized camping or loitering in right of way prohibited. It is unlawful for any person to camp or loiter upon any part of the right of way in which a water conveyance system owned, maintained or operated by a public agency is located, including any portion of such right of water that designated as "open space."
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 92).
Full Breakdown
Section 54-33 defines a "water conveyance system" to include an arroyo, drainage channel, irrigation channel, or piping owned, maintained or authorized by a public agency, meaning Bernalillo County, the City of Albuquerque, the Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority, or the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, and covers the full right-of-way, not just the channel itself. Subsection (b) bans entering or remaining in a water conveyance system that is not designated open space or a recreational path, except for public safety personnel and agency employees or those they authorize.
" Subsection (d) bans remaining in an open-space area or recreational trail within such a right-of-way once an agency employee, representative, or law enforcement officer has instructed a person to leave for a public-safety reason or to allow maintenance work. Subsection (e) bars operating a motor vehicle or off-highway vehicle in the right-of-way, with the same personnel exceptions. Subsection (f) sets the enforcement sequence: before a citation or arrest, an officer must first verify a written warning was already issued for that violation; absent one, the officer must issue a criminal trespass notification instead, unless immediate danger justifies a verbal warning followed directly by enforcement. The section was adopted by Ordinance No. 2022-28 on October 11, 2022, and amended by Ordinance No. 2024-2 on January 23, 2024.
Violations & Fines
Before a citation or arrest, an officer must first verify a written warning was issued; if none exists, the officer must issue a criminal trespass notification instead of a citation or arrest, unless there is immediate danger, in which case a verbal warning may precede direct enforcement. Violations otherwise carry the Section 1-6 general penalty: up to a $300 fine, 90 days in jail, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I be arrested immediately for camping in an arroyo?
What counts as a "water conveyance system" under this law?
Are open-space trails along an arroyo covered too?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bernalillo County
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