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

SPONSOR Vigil

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/27/08 HB 356

SHORT TITLE No Liquor Licenses Near Interstate Highways

SB

ANALYST Wilson

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

Significant Non-Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

REVENUE (dollars in thousands)

Estimated Revenue

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

FY10

($0.1)

($0.1) Recurring General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Revenue Decreases)

ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT (dollars in thousands)

FY08

FY09

FY10 3 Year

Total Cost

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

Total

$0.1

$0.1

$0.1 Recurring General

Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)

Bernalillo County Metro Court

Department of Public Safety (DPS)

Regulation & Licensing (RLD)

House Bill 356– Page

2

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 356 adds a new section to the Liquor Control Act that bans the issuance of new retail

or restaurant liquor licenses within one-half mile of an interstate highway in New Mexico.

The bill also requires the director of the Alcohol and Gaming Division (AGD) of the Regulation

and Licensing Department for transfer to promulgate rules that provide for the transfer of

licensed premises, including reimbursement for moving a restaurant or retail establishment, if the

licensed premises lie within one-half mile of a United States interstate highway on July 1, 2008.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

There will be a minimal administrative cost for statewide update, distribution and documentation

of statutory changes. Any additional fiscal impact on the judiciary would be proportional to the

enactment of this law and any challenges to the law and to reimbursement amounts for moving

an establishment. New laws, amendments to existing laws and new hearings have the potential

to increase caseloads in the courts, thus requiring additional resources to handle the increase.

RLD states that the economic impact of this bill could run into the millions. This bill provides for

reimbursement of moving expenses for those licenses located with the one-half mile zone

described in the bill. It is unknown at this time how many licenses would be affected or what

reasonable costs for relocation would be.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

Interstate 40 and Interstate 25 run through the heart of the city of Albuquerque and a number of

other cities and towns. In Albuquerque alone, numerous hotels and restaurants line the frontage

roads and sides of the highways. These businesses, as well as convenience stores would be

affected, and would be required to re-locate or sell their licenses under this bill.

The Bernalillo County Metro Court states any rules promulgated that provide for the transfer of

licensed premises may be insufficient to defeat a lawsuit alleging an unlawful taking without just

compensation under the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

Processing the applications required to transfer all of the affected licenses would greatly increase

the workload of the Alcohol and Gaming Division.

DW/mt