NOTE:  As provided in LFC policy, this report is intended only for use by the standing finance committees of the legislature.  The Legislative Finance Committee does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of the information in this report when used for other purposes.

 

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F I S C A L   I M P A C T   R E P O R T

 

 

 

SPONSOR:

Hanosh

 

DATE TYPED:

3/4/03

 

HB

863

 

SHORT TITLE:

Commercial Driver’s Licenses DWI Revocations

 

SB

 

 

 

ANALYST:

Chavez

 

APPROPRIATION

 

Appropriation Contained

Estimated Additional Impact

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY03

FY04

FY03

FY04

 

 

NFI

NFI

 

$1.6

Non-recurring

General Fund

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

 

Conflicts with HB 250 and SB 242

 

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

 

Administrative Office of the District Attorney (AODA)

Taxation & Revenue Department (TRD)

New Mexico State Police (NMSP)

LFC Files

 

SUMMARY

 

     Synopsis of Bill

 

House Bill 863 amends § 66-5-68 of the New Mexico Commercial Driver’s License Act, §66-5-52 through § 66-5-71 NMSA 1978 to provide for lifetime disqualification of a person from driving a commercial motor vehicle if convicted of a violation of driving a commercial motor vehicle under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs in violation of § 66-8-102 NMSA 1978, an ordinance of a municipality of this state or the law of another state.

 

  • Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978 provides:
  1. it is unlawful for a person who is under the influence of intoxicating liquor to drive a vehicle within this state;
  2. it is unlawful for any person who is under the influence of any drug to a degree that renders him incapable of safely driving a vehicle to drive a vehicle within this state;
  3. it is unlawful for a person who has an alcohol concentration of eight one-hundredths or more in his blood or breath to drive a vehicle within this state;
  4. Aggravated driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs consists of a person who:

·        Has an alcohol concentration of sixteen one-hundredths or more in his blood or breath while driving a vehicle within this state;

·        Has caused bodily injury to a human being as a result of the unlawful operation of a motor vehicle while driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs; or

·        Refused to submit to chemical testing, as provided for in the Implied Consent Act and in the judgment of the court based on evidence of intoxication, presented to the court, was under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs.

 

·        Currently, a commercial operator with a 0.04 or higher blood alcohol content (BAC) and a driver in violation of existing DWI laws (see above Section 66-8-102)(BAC 0.08 and above) are ineligible for a commercial driver’s license for a minimum of one year.

 

·        This bill would leave the current law unchanged with regard to those commercial operators with a 0.04 or higher blood alcohol content.  However, for those convicted of driving a commercial motor vehicle in violation of existing DWI laws, Section 66-8-102 (BAC 0.08 and above), the law is changed to make such drivers ineligible for life—not just a minimum of one year.

 

·        This bill places a conviction for DWI while operating a commercial vehicle on an equal level with use of a commercial motor vehicle in the commission of any felony involving production, transportation or distribution of controlled substances.

 

     Significant Issues

 

The Taxation and Revenue Department (TRD) states that if this bill is an attempt to get the New Mexico commercial driver’s license law into compliance with federal law and regulations, it must also lower the blood alcohol content limit to .04 for commercial vehicle drivers. 

 

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

 

The bill does not contain an appropriation.  However, there will be a minimal administrative cost for statewide update, distribution, and documentation of statutory changes. TRD indicates that the cost estimate for systems-related changes would be $1.6. 

 

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

 

According to TRD, aside from the systems-related changes, any other administrative impact should be insignificant.

 

CONFLICT

 

House Bill 863 conflicts with HB 250 and SB 242.  HB 250 lowers the BAC for conviction threshold of a person operating a commercial motor vehicle to .04.   It is stated by the New Mexico State Police that HB 250 and SB 242 are supported by TRD, SHTD and DPS since these bills are designed to bring the state into compliance with the Federal Commercial Drivers License requirements.  The state has been found to be in non-compliance with the federal requirements and is in jeopardy of losing federal highway funds.

 

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

 

It is suggested by the AODA that an alternative to this legislation is to impose a period of ineligibility shorter than life but greater that what the present law establishes (minimum of one year).

 

FC/ls