HOUSE BILL 121
57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2025
INTRODUCED BY
Kathleen Cates
AN ACT
RELATING TO COUNTY REDISTRICTING; ENACTING THE COUNTY REDISTRICTING ACT; REQUIRING COUNTIES TO CREATE A COUNTY REDISTRICTING COMMISSION; ESTABLISHING REQUIREMENTS FOR CREATING COUNTY DISTRICT PLANS AND PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN THE PROCESS; PROVIDING PROCEDURES TO APPEAL A SELECTED DISTRICT PLAN.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "County Redistricting Act".
SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the County Redistricting Act:
A. "commission" means a county redistricting commission;
B. "community of interest" means a contiguous population that shares common economic, social or cultural interests;
C. "county" means a class A county;
D. "district" means a county district for purposes of electing members of a county's county commission;
E. "district plan" means a plan of single-member districts for electing members of a county's county commission;
F. "length-width compactness" means the absolute value of the difference between the length and the width of the district, as measured by the distance from the northernmost point or portion of the boundary of a district to the southernmost point or portion of the boundary of the same district and the distance from the westernmost point or portion of the boundary of the district to the easternmost point or portion of the boundary of the same district;
G. "lobbyist" means a person who is required to register as a lobbyist pursuant to the provisions of the Lobbyist Regulation Act;
H. "perimeter compactness" means the distance needed to traverse the perimeter boundary of a district;
I. "political party" means a political party that has been qualified in accordance with the provisions of the Election Code; and
J. "public official" means a person elected to an office of the executive or legislative branch of the state.
SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] COUNTIES REQUIRED TO CREATE REDISTRICTING COMMISSION--MEMBERSHIP--TERMS.--
A. Each county shall create a county redistricting commission.
B. A commission shall consist of five members, selected as follows:
(1) two commissioners, each from the two political parties with the largest number of registered qualified electors in the county;
(2) two commissioners who decline to state a party affiliation or who are members of a minor political party; and
(3) one commissioner selected by the four above mentioned commissioners and who shall chair the commission.
C. The county clerk shall solicit commissioner applications from the public, and the selection shall be conducted randomly in a public meeting. Commissioners shall be selected not later than January 1 of each year ending in the number one and shall serve until a district plan is presented to the secretary of state and until legal challenges to the district plans, including appeals, if any, have been resolved.
D. When a member of a commission dies, resigns or no longer has the qualifications required for the commissioner's original appointment, the commissioner's position on a commission becomes vacant, and the chair of the commission shall inform the county clerk, and a new commissioner shall be appointed from the pool of original applicants who are of the same political affiliation of the commissioner vacating the commission. The vacancy shall be filled no later than fifteen days following notification of the vacancy.
E. A commission shall meet as necessary to carry out its duties pursuant to the County Redistricting Act.
F. Commissioners are entitled to receive per diem and mileage reimbursement as provided in the Per Diem and Mileage Act and shall receive no other compensation, perquisite or allowance.
SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSIONERS--
QUALIFICATIONS--LIMITATIONS.--
A. To qualify for appointment to a commission, an applicant shall:
(1) be a qualified elector of New Mexico; and
(2) not be, or in the two years prior to appointment not have been, in New Mexico, any of the following:
(a) a public official;
(b) a candidate for public office;
(c) a lobbyist;
(d) an office holder in a political party at the state or federal level;
(e) a relative in the first degree of consanguinity of a member of congress, the legislature or a board of county commissioners; or
(f) an employee of congress, the legislative or executive branch of government or the county government.
B. Before entering upon the duties of the commission, a commissioner shall review the County Redistricting Act and take the oath of office as provided in Article 20, Section 1 of the constitution of New Mexico.
SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSION--POWERS AND DUTIES.--
A. Beginning January 1, 2031, and every January 1 of each year ending in the number one thereafter, a commission shall:
(1) no later than September 1 of each year ending in the number one, adopt a map of the districts in the county at issue;
(2) adopt the district plans as rules in accordance with the provisions of the State Rules Act;
(3) hold no fewer than two public meetings, either virtually or in various regions of the county, before issuing the district plans as proposed rules for public comment;
(4) hold no fewer than two public rule hearings, either virtually or in various regions of the county, for the purpose of adopting district plans;
(5) conduct all meetings pursuant to the requirements of the Open Meetings Act; and
(6) compile, index, maintain and provide public access to the commission's record for each district plan it adopts.
B. Beginning January 1, 2031, and every January 1 of each year ending in the number one thereafter, a commission may:
(1) develop, adopt and promulgate the rules for public hearings;
(2) contract for legal and technical assistance for the creation of alternative district plans; and
(3) hire staff and enter into contracts and interagency agreements as necessary to accomplish the duties set forth in this section.
SECTION 6. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSION MEETINGS BEFORE PROPOSING DISTRICT PLANS.--
A. Before a commission issues proposed district plans for public comment, the commission shall hold no fewer than two public meetings at which the commission shall receive testimony, documents and information regarding the identification of communities of interest and other testimony, documents and information regarding the creation of district plans. A commission shall provide the public with notice not later than thirty days before these meetings, and the notice shall include information about how the public may participate and submit testimony, documents and information. A commission shall hold meetings either virtually or in various regions across the county.
B. A commission shall compile, index, maintain and provide public access to all testimony, documents and information received in the meetings conducted before issuing proposed district plans for public comment.
C. The proposed district plans that a commission issues for public comment shall be based, in part, on the testimony, documents and information received.
SECTION 7. [NEW MATERIAL] DISTRICT PLANS--REQUIREMENTS AND PROHIBITIONS.--
A. When proposing or adopting district plans, a commission shall:
(1) create district plans composed of single-member districts;
(2) create district plans composed of contiguous territory; provided that districts that meet only at the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous; and
(3) comply with all applicable federal laws.
B. When proposing or adopting district plans, a commission may:
(1) use, rely upon or reference precincts; and
(2) use, rely upon or reference the most recent federal decennial census data provided by the United States census bureau as well as other reliable sources of demographic data, as determined by a majority of the commission.
C. When proposing or adopting district plans, a commission shall not:
(1) propose or adopt district plans to favor a political party or incumbent;
(2) use, rely upon or reference partisan data, such as voting history or party registration data; provided that voting history in elections may be considered to ensure that the district plan complies with applicable federal law;
(3) create district plans to intentionally dilute the representation of communities of interest; or
(4) create district plans to intentionally preserve the cores of existing districts; provided, however, that district plans may intentionally preserve the cores of existing districts so long as the district plan meets all other requirements provided by this section.
D. When proposing or adopting district plans for the county, a commission shall create districts that are as close to equal in population as possible; provided that any deviation from equal population across districts shall not exceed plus or minus five percent and shall be based on:
(1) compliance with applicable federal law;
(2) consideration of tribal government boundaries;
(3) the avoidance of diluting the representation of communities of interest;
(4) the avoidance of fragmenting governmental subdivisions; or
(5) the preservation of the core of existing districts; provided that the district plan meets all other requirements provided by this section.
E. When a district plan satisfies all of the requirements provided by Subsections A through D of this section, a commission shall adopt those district plans that are most compact, as determined by a measure of length-width compactness or perimeter compactness. The absolute compactness values computed for individual districts may be cumulated for all districts in a district plan to compare the overall compactness of two or more alternative district plans for the state or for a portion of the state. The total perimeter distance computed for individual districts may be cumulated for all districts in a district plan to compare the overall compactness of two or more alternative district plans for the state or for a portion of the state.
F. Based on length-width compactness, a district shall be most compact when the length of the district and the width of the district are equal.
SECTION 8. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSION ADOPTION OF DISTRICT PLANS.--A commission shall adopt a district plan at an open meeting. After a commission adopts the district plans, the commission shall provide written evaluations of the district plan that address the satisfaction of the requirements set forth in the County Redistricting Act, the ability of racial and language minorities to elect candidates of their choice, a measure of partisan fairness and the preservation of communities of interest.
SECTION 9. [NEW MATERIAL] DELIVERY OF THE DISTRICT PLAN TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE.--A commission shall deliver its adopted district plan for the county to the county clerk and secretary of state no later than six months after the receipt of the census data. Those district plans shall be used in the next general election and subsequent elections until redistricting occurs following the next decennial census.
SECTION 10. [NEW MATERIAL] CAUSE OF ACTION--VENUE.--
A. A person who submitted data, views or arguments orally or in writing at a public hearing conducted by a commission shall have a civil cause of action for review of a district plan adopted by the commission. Such action shall be filed in the district court within thirty days after a commission adopts the district plan at issue.
B. The district court shall not award fees to the prevailing party unless required by federal law.
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