44TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 1999

RELATING TO SUPPLIERS OF LIVESTOCK FEED; PROVIDING FOR A LIEN.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act".

Section 2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act:

A. "customer" means any person, business, association or corporation buying livestock feed for livestock;

B. "livestock" means beef cattle, dairy cattle, sheep, goats, hogs, horses, ratites and poultry;

C. "livestock feed" means commercial feeds and customer formula feeds; and

D. "supplier" means a person, business, corporation or other entity engaged in the business of selling livestock feed.

Section 3. EXTENT OF LIEN--PROPERTY SUBJECT TO LIEN--ATTACHMENT AND COMPLETION.--

A. In addition to all other rights and remedies that are provided by law, a supplier who sells livestock feed to a customer under contract, express or implied, has a lien upon the livestock to which the livestock feed was provided, upon the meat, milk, skins or wool derived from the livestock and upon the issue or increase from the livestock.

B. The lien shall be limited to the agreed price of the livestock feed sold and shall attach to the amount due at the date of filing the lien.

C. Unless the lien is released by payment or security as provided in Section 8 of the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act, the lien is complete when payment of the amount due is more than sixty days overdue from the date of delivery of the livestock feed or from the date of the last delivery if there is a series of deliveries.

Section 4. NOTICE AND INFORMATION REQUIREMENT.--

A. Before a lien can be applied, notice shall be provided to the customer at the time of any sale on credit in substantially the following form:

"The sale of livestock feed on credit is subject to the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act. Failure to pay the amount owed for the livestock feed may result in the attachment of a lien to the proceeds of the livestock for which the feed is used or the proceeds of the livestock products produced from the livestock.".

B. Notice may be provided by stamping or printing the language in Subsection A of this section on the credit application or by stamping or printing that language onto invoices.

C. In addition to notices given by application or invoices, a supplier shall provide additional notice information to the customer by certified mail before the lien may be imposed. The notice information shall include the following:

(1) the fact that a lien will be imposed if the payment of the amount owed is more than thirty days overdue and that the debtor has three alternatives:

(a) to allow the lien to be filed;

(b) to enter into an agreement granting a security interest; and

(c) to pay the amount owed; and

(2) the notice shall also state that the debtor has until the tenth day after the date on which the notice is received to select one of the three alternatives and that a lien may be filed at any time after the tenth day that the debtor actually receives the notice.

D. Notice of the lien shall also be given by certified mail to all previous creditors filed of record holding a security interest on the livestock or the proceeds from the livestock.

Section 5. FILING OF LIEN.--

A. The lien provided for in the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act shall be filed in the office of the secretary of state and in the office of the county clerk of the county in which the livestock or livestock product is situate.

B. The filed lien shall contain the following:

(1) the name and address of the supplier;

(2) the name and address of the customer;

(3) the location of the livestock;

(4) a statement that the amount owed is more than thirty days overdue;

(5) the amount that is overdue;

(6) a form statement that the supplier gave notice to the customer, that more than ten days have passed since the notice was given, that the customer has not paid, given a security interest, made arrangement for payment satisfactory to the supplier or consented to the filing of the lien and a declaration that a copy of the lien is being forwarded to the customer within ten days; and

(7) the signature of the claimant, supplier or his agent within ten days of its filing.

Section 6. EFFECT OF SUIT TO ENFORCE LIEN.--If a suit is brought by the supplier to enforce a lien, the lien shall remain in effect, except as provided in Section 7 of the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act, until:

A. the supplier receives payment of the amount owed for the livestock and livestock product;

B. the clerk of the court in which any action is pending receives a deposit in the amount of the lien or claims; or

C. a court issues a judgment.

Section 7. LIMITATION OF ACTION TO ENFORCE.--No lien provided for in the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act remains valid for a longer period than one year after the claim of lien has been filed unless proceedings have been commenced in a court of competent jurisdiction within that time to enforce the lien.

Section 8. METHOD FOR RELEASE.--A lien under the Livestock Feed Supplier Lien Act may be released by:

A. payment made to the supplier for the amount owed;

B. a corporate surety bond, cash deposit or other security, if the value of the claim on the livestock or livestock product is secured; or

C. arrangements being made for payment that are satisfactory to the supplier.