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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR HJC
DATE TYPED 3/6/05
HB 772/HJCS
SHORT TITLE Failure to Yield Right of Way Penalties
SB
ANALYST Wilson
APPROPRIATION
Appropriation Contained Estimated Additional Impact Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
FY05
FY06
FY05
FY06
See Narrative
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
The House Judiciary Committee substitute for House Bill 772 provides the following penalties
upon conviction for failure to yield the right of way:
•
Failure to yield the right of way causing no great bodily injury or death is guilty
of a misdemeanor and shall be punished pursuant to Section 66-8-7 NMSA 1978
which punishes a misdemeanor with a fine of not more than $3 hundred or by im-
prisonment for not more than ninety days or both.
•
Failure to yield the right of way causing great bodily injury or death is guilty of a
fourth degree felony and shall be punished pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA
which punishes a fourth degree felony with eighteen months imprisonment.
This bill provides that “conviction,” as used in the act, means an adjudication of guilt and does
not include imposition of a sentence. The bill also defines “great bodily injury.”
Significant Issues
The PDD noted that current law provides that if a person is driving recklessly and commits
homicide by vehicle or causes great bodily harm, he is guilty of a third degree felony. The likely
scenario for this to happen is while a person is entering an expressway and fails to yield to the
through traffic. If charged under existing law, a person has an argument that this bill is more