SENATE BILL 197
57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2025
INTRODUCED BY
Pete Campos
AN ACT
RELATING TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS; ALLOWING MONEY IN THE EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FUND TO BE REDIRECTED TO THE NEW MEXICO FINANCE AUTHORITY TO MAKE LOANS TO PURCHASE EQUIPMENT FOR EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS FOR WHICH FUNDING HAS BEEN GRANTED PURSUANT TO THE EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FUND ACT; REPEALING LAWS 2019, CHAPTER 210, SECTION 1 TO RECONCILE MULTIPLE AMENDMENTS TO A SECTION OF LAW; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1973, Chapter 395, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:
"3-31-1. REVENUE BONDS--AUTHORITY TO ISSUE--PLEDGE OF REVENUES--LIMITATION ON TIME OF ISSUANCE.--
A. In addition to any other law and constitutional home rule powers authorizing a municipality to issue revenue bonds, a municipality may issue revenue bonds pursuant to Chapter 3, Article 31 NMSA 1978 for the purposes specified in this section.
B. Utility revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing or otherwise improving a municipal utility or for any combination of the foregoing purposes. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the net revenues from the operation of the municipal utility or of any one or more of other such municipal utilities for payment of the interest on and principal of the revenue bonds.
C. Joint utility revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing or otherwise improving joint water facilities, sewer facilities, gas facilities or electric facilities or for any combination of the foregoing purposes. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the net revenues from the operation of these municipal utilities for the payment of the interest on and principal of the bonds.
D. Gross receipts tax revenue bonds may be issued for any municipal purpose. A municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the gross receipts tax revenue received by the municipality pursuant to Section 7-1-6.4 or 7-1-6.12 NMSA 1978 to the payment of the interest on and principal of the gross receipts tax revenue bonds or for any area of municipal government services. A law that imposes or authorizes the imposition of a tax authorized by the Municipal Local Option Gross Receipts and Compensating Taxes Act or that affects the tax, or a law supplemental thereto or otherwise appertaining thereto, shall not be repealed or amended or otherwise directly or indirectly modified in such a manner as to impair adversely any outstanding revenue bonds that may be secured by a pledge of such tax unless the outstanding revenue bonds have been discharged in full or provision has been fully made therefor. Revenues in excess of the annual principal and interest due on gross receipts tax revenue bonds secured by a pledge of gross receipts tax revenue may be accumulated in a debt service reserve account. The governing body of the municipality may appoint a commercial bank trust department to act as trustee of the gross receipts tax revenue and to administer the payment of principal of and interest on the bonds.
E. Gasoline tax revenue bonds may be issued for laying off, opening, constructing, reconstructing, resurfacing, maintaining, acquiring rights of way, repairing and otherwise improving municipal buildings, alleys, streets, public roads and bridges or any combination of the foregoing purposes. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the gasoline tax revenue received by the municipality to the payment of the interest on and principal of the gasoline tax revenue bonds.
F. Project revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing, improving, constructing, purchasing, furnishing, equipping and rehabilitating any revenue-producing project, including, where applicable, purchasing, otherwise acquiring or improving the ground therefor, including acquiring and improving parking lots, or for any combination of the foregoing purposes. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the net revenues from the operation of the revenue-producing project for which the particular project revenue bonds are issued to the payment of the interest on and principal of the project revenue bonds. The net revenues of any revenue-producing project may not be pledged to the project revenue bonds issued for a revenue-producing project that clearly is unrelated in nature; but nothing in this subsection shall prevent the pledge to such project revenue bonds of any revenues received from existing, future or disconnected facilities and equipment that are related to and that may constitute a part of the particular revenue-producing project. A general determination by the governing body that any facilities or equipment is reasonably related to and constitutes a part of a specified revenue-producing project shall be conclusive if set forth in the proceedings authorizing the project revenue bonds.
G. Fire district revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing, improving, constructing, purchasing, furnishing, equipping and rehabilitating any fire district project, including, where applicable, purchasing, otherwise acquiring or improving the ground therefor, or for any combination of the foregoing purposes. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenues received by the fire district from the fire protection fund as provided in the Fire Protection Fund Law and any or all of the revenues provided for the operation of the fire district project for which the particular bonds are issued to the payment of the interest on and principal of the bonds. The revenues of any fire district project shall not be pledged to the bonds issued for a fire district project that clearly is unrelated in its purpose; but nothing in this section prevents the pledge to such bonds of any revenues received from existing, future or disconnected facilities and equipment that are related to and that may constitute a part of the particular fire district project. A general determination by the governing body of the municipality that any facilities or equipment is reasonably related to and constitutes a part of a specified fire district project shall be conclusive if set forth in the proceedings authorizing the fire district bonds.
H. Law enforcement protection revenue bonds may be issued for the repair and purchase of law enforcement apparatus and equipment that meet nationally recognized standards. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenues received by the municipality from the law enforcement protection fund distributions pursuant to the Law Enforcement Protection Fund Act to the payment of the interest on and principal of the law enforcement protection revenue bonds.
I. Except for the purpose of refunding previous revenue bond issues, no municipality may sell revenue bonds payable from pledged revenues after the expiration of two years from the date of the ordinance authorizing the issuance of the bonds or, for bonds to be issued and sold to the New Mexico finance authority as authorized in Subsection C of Section 3-31-4 NMSA 1978, after the expiration of two years from the date of the resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds. However, any period of time during which a particular revenue bond issue is in litigation shall not be counted in determining the expiration date of that issue.
J. Emergency medical services bonds may be issued for the purchase of equipment for emergency medical system improvement projects or emergency medical services vehicles for which funding has been granted pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Fund Act. The municipality may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenues received by the municipality from the emergency medical services fund distributions pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Fund Act to the payment of the interest on and principal of the emergency medical services bonds."
SECTION 2. Section 3-31-1.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 274, Section 2) is amended to read:
"3-31-1.1. DEFINITIONS.--As used in Chapter 3, Article 31 NMSA 1978:
A. "bond" means any obligation of a municipality issued under Chapter 3, Article 31 NMSA 1978, whether designated as a bond, note, loan, warrant, debenture, lease-purchase agreement or other instrument evidencing an obligation of a municipality to make payments;
B. "emergency medical services bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection J of Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978;
[B.] C. "gasoline tax revenue" means all or portions of the amounts of tax revenues distributed to municipalities pursuant to Sections 7-1-6.9 and 7-1-6.27 NMSA 1978;
[C.] D. "gasoline tax revenue bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection E of Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978;
[D.] E. "gross receipts tax revenue" means the amount of money distributed to a municipality pursuant to Section 7-1-6.4 NMSA 1978 and transferred to a municipality pursuant to Section 7-1-6.12 NMSA 1978 for any municipal gross receipts tax imposed pursuant to the Municipal Local Option Gross Receipts and Compensating Taxes Act;
[E.] F. "gross receipts tax revenue bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection D of Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978;
[F.] G. "joint utility revenue bonds" or "joint utility bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection C of Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978;
[G.] H. "pledged revenues" means the revenues, net income or net revenues authorized to be pledged to the payment of revenue bonds as specifically provided in Chapter 3, Article 31 NMSA 1978;
[H.] I. "project revenue bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection F of Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978; and
[I.] J. "utility revenue bonds" or "utility bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection B of Section 3-31-1 NMSA 1978."
SECTION 3. Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1992, Chapter 95, Section 1, as amended by Laws 2019, Chapter 210, Section 1 and by Laws 2019, Chapter 274, Section 4) is amended to read:
"4-62-1. REVENUE BONDS--AUTHORITY TO ISSUE--PLEDGE OF REVENUES--LIMITATION ON TIME OF ISSUANCE.--
A. In addition to any other law authorizing a county to issue revenue bonds, a county may issue revenue bonds pursuant to Chapter 4, Article 62 NMSA 1978 for the purposes specified in this section.
B. Gross receipts tax revenue bonds may be issued for any county purpose. A county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenue received by the county pursuant to Section 7-1-6.13 NMSA 1978 for payment of principal and interest due in connection with, and other expenses related to, gross receipts tax revenue bonds or for any area of county government services. If the revenue is pledged for payment of principal and interest as authorized by this subsection, the pledge shall require the revenues received to be deposited into a special bond fund for payment of the principal, interest and expenses. At the end of each fiscal year, money remaining in the special bond fund after the annual obligations for the bonds are fully met may be transferred to any other fund of the county. Revenues in excess of the annual principal and interest due on gross receipts tax revenue bonds secured by a pledge of gross receipts tax revenue may be accumulated in a debt service reserve account. The governing body of the county may appoint a commercial bank trust department to act as trustee of the proceeds of the tax and to administer the payment of principal of and interest on the bonds.
C. Gasoline tax revenue bonds may be issued for the acquisition of rights of way for and the construction, reconstruction, resurfacing, maintenance, repair or other improvement of county roads and bridges. A county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the county gasoline tax revenue for payment of principal and interest due in connection with, and other expenses related to, county gasoline tax revenue bonds.
D. Utility revenue bonds or joint utility revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing or otherwise improving water facilities, sewer facilities, gas facilities or electric facilities. A county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the net revenues from the operation of the utility or joint utility for which the particular utility or joint utility bonds are issued to the payment of principal and interest due in connection with, and other expenses related to, utility or joint utility revenue bonds.
E. Project revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing, improving, constructing, purchasing, furnishing, equipping or rehabilitating any revenue-producing project, including, as applicable, purchasing, otherwise acquiring or improving the ground for the project and acquiring and improving parking lots. The county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the net revenues from the operation of the revenue-producing project for which the particular project revenue bonds are issued to the payment of the interest on and principal of the project revenue bonds. The net revenues of any revenue-producing project shall not be pledged to the project revenue bonds issued for any other revenue-producing project that is clearly unrelated in nature; but nothing in this subsection prevents the pledge to any of the project revenue bonds of the revenues received from existing, future or disconnected facilities and equipment that are related to and that may constitute a part of the particular revenue-producing project. A general determination by the governing body that facilities or equipment is reasonably related to and constitutes a part of a specified revenue-producing project shall be conclusive if set forth in the proceedings authorizing the project revenue bonds.
F. Fire district revenue bonds may be issued for acquiring, extending, enlarging, bettering, repairing, improving, constructing, purchasing, furnishing, equipping and rehabilitating a fire district project, including, as applicable, purchasing, otherwise acquiring or improving the ground for the project. The county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenues received by the fire district from the fire protection fund as provided in the Fire Protection Fund Law and any or all of the revenues provided for the operation of the fire district project for which the particular bonds are issued to the payment of the interest on and principal of the bonds. The revenues of a fire district project shall not be pledged to the bonds issued for a fire district project that clearly is unrelated in its purpose; but nothing in this section prevents the pledge to such bonds of revenues received from existing, future or disconnected facilities and equipment that are related to and that may constitute a part of the particular fire district project. A general determination by the governing body of the county that facilities or equipment is reasonably related to and constitutes a part of a specified fire district project shall be conclusive if set forth in the proceedings authorizing the fire district revenue bonds.
G. Law enforcement protection revenue bonds may be issued for the repair and purchase of law enforcement apparatus and equipment that meet nationally recognized standards. The county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenues received by the county from the law enforcement protection fund distributions pursuant to the Law Enforcement Protection Fund Act to the payment of the interest on and principal of the law enforcement protection revenue bonds.
H. PILT revenue bonds may be issued by a county to repay all or part of the principal and interest of an outstanding loan owed by the county to the New Mexico finance authority. A county may pledge irrevocably all or part of PILT revenue to the payment of principal of and interest on new loans or preexisting loans provided by the New Mexico finance authority to finance a public project.
I. Emergency medical services bonds may be issued for the purchase of equipment for emergency medical system improvement projects or emergency medical services vehicles for which funding has been granted pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Fund Act. The county may pledge irrevocably any or all of the revenues received by the county from the emergency medical services fund distributions pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Fund Act to the payment of the interest on and principal of the emergency medical services bonds.
[I.] J. Except for the purpose of refunding previous revenue bond issues, no county may sell revenue bonds payable from pledged revenue after the expiration of two years from the date of the ordinance authorizing the issuance of the bonds or, for bonds to be issued and sold to the New Mexico finance authority as authorized in Subsection C of Section 4-62-4 NMSA 1978, after the expiration of two years from the date of the resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds. However, any period of time during which a particular revenue bond issue is in litigation shall not be counted in determining the expiration date of that issue.
[J.] K. No bonds may be issued by a county, other than an H class county, a class B county as defined in Section 4-36-8 NMSA 1978 or a class A county as described in Section 4-36-10 NMSA 1978, to acquire, equip, extend, enlarge, better, repair or construct a utility unless the utility is regulated by the public regulation commission pursuant to the Public Utility Act and the issuance of the bonds is approved by the commission.
[K.] L. Any law that imposes or authorizes the imposition of a tax authorized by the County Local Option Gross Receipts and Compensating Taxes Act or that affects that tax shall not be repealed or amended in such a manner as to impair outstanding revenue bonds that are issued pursuant to Chapter 4, Article 62 NMSA 1978 and that may be secured by a pledge of the tax unless the outstanding revenue bonds have been discharged in full or for which provision has been fully made."
SECTION 4. Section 4-62-1.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 274, Section 5) is amended to read:
"4-62-1.1. DEFINITIONS.--As used in Chapter 4, Article 62 NMSA 1978:
A. "bond" means any obligation of a county issued under Chapter 4, Article 62 NMSA 1978, whether designated as a bond, note, loan, warrant, debenture, lease-purchase agreement or other instrument evidencing an obligation of a county to make payments;
B. "emergency medical services bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection I of Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978;
[B.] C. "gasoline tax revenue" means the revenue from that portion of the gasoline tax distributed to the county pursuant to Sections 7-1-6.9 and 7-1-6.26 NMSA 1978;
[C.] D. "gasoline tax revenue bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection C of Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978;
[D.] E. "gross receipts tax revenue" means the revenue attributable to the county gross receipts tax transferred to the county pursuant to Section 7-1-6.13 NMSA 1978 and any distribution made pursuant to Section 7-1-6.16 NMSA 1978;
[E.] F. "gross receipts tax revenue bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection B of Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978;
[F.] G. "PILT revenue" means revenue received by a county from the federal government as payments in lieu of taxes;
[G.] H. "pledged revenue" means the revenue, net income or net revenue authorized to be pledged to the payment of particular revenue bonds as specifically provided in Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978;
[H.] I. "project revenues" means the net revenues of revenue-producing projects that may be pledged to project revenue bonds pursuant to Subsection E of Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978;
[I.] J. "public project" means "public project" as defined in Subsection E of Section 6-21-3 NMSA 1978;
[J.] K. "utility" means a water, wastewater, sewer, gas or electric utility or joint utility servicing the public; and
[K.] L. "utility revenue bonds" or "joint utility revenue bonds" means the bonds authorized by Subsection D of Section 4-62-1 NMSA 1978."
SECTION 5. Section 24-10A-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, Chapter 178, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:
"24-10A-3. EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FUND CREATED--FUNDING.--
A. The "emergency medical services fund" is created in the state treasury. Money in the fund shall not revert at the end of any fiscal year. Money appropriated to the fund or accruing to it through distributions, gifts, grants, fees or bequests shall be deposited in the fund. Interest earned on investment of the fund shall be credited to the general fund. Disbursements from the fund shall be made upon warrants drawn by the secretary of finance and administration pursuant to vouchers signed by the secretary or the secretary's authorized representative.
B. The bureau shall administer the fund and provide for the distribution of the fund pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Fund Act and rules adopted pursuant to the provisions of that act.
C. In any fiscal year, no less than seventy-five percent of the money in the fund shall be used for the local emergency medical services funding program to support the cost of supplies and equipment and operational costs other than salaries and benefits for emergency medical services personnel. This money shall be distributed to municipalities and counties on behalf of eligible local recipients, using a formula established pursuant to rules adopted by the department. The formula shall determine each municipality's and county's share of the fund based on the relative geographic size and population of each county. The formula shall also base the distribution of money for each municipality and county on the relative number of runs of each local recipient eligible to participate in the distribution.
D. In any fiscal year, no more than:
(1) twenty-two percent of the fund may be used for emergency medical services system improvement projects, including the purchase of emergency medical services vehicles, local and statewide emergency medical services system support projects, the statewide trauma care system program and the emergency medical dispatch agency support program; and
(2) three percent of the fund may be used by the bureau for administrative costs, including monitoring and providing technical assistance.
E. [In any fiscal year, money in the fund that is not distributed pursuant to the provisions of Subsection D of this section may be distributed pursuant to the provisions of Subsection C of this section] The state treasurer is authorized to redirect a distribution to the New Mexico finance authority to make loans for purchases authorized pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Fund Act and by ordinance or resolution passed by the municipality or county and a written agreement of the municipality or county and the New Mexico finance authority."
SECTION 6. REPEAL.--Laws 2019, Chapter 210, Section 1 is
repealed.
SECTION 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2025.
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