The Dunigan family has given the government until the end of 1999 to buy the Baca Ranch. U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici has worked out a deal with the Clinton administration on how to manage the land if the government buys it. Domenici wants it operated like a working ranch and has said that he wants it to be self-sustaining. Domenici also wants the Baca Ranch to be run by a nine-member board of directors--New Mexicans with expertise in things like recreation, wildlife and grazing-- so that it won't be subject to normal rules and regulations that govern the operation of other federal lands. Domenici wants the ranch operated as a national preserve or a special unit within the National Forest Service. The $40 million that has been set aside so far has come from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. That fund gets its money from royalties on the sale of oil and gas.