HOUSE BILL 458

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Rhonda S. King

AN ACT

RELATING TO TRAFFIC CITATIONS; PROVIDING FOR SUSPENSION OF VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND NONISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF TITLE FOR PERSONS WHO FAIL TO APPEAR IN COURT WITH RESPECT TO A CITATION; ALLOWING THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF THE COURTS TO PROVIDE INPUT ON THE FORM OF THE UNIFORM TRAFFIC CITATION.

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

     SECTION 1. Section 66-3-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, Chapter 35, Section 27, as amended) is amended to read:

     "66-3-7. GROUNDS FOR REFUSING, SUSPENDING OR REVOKING REGISTRATION OR CERTIFICATE OF TITLE.--The division may refuse, suspend or revoke registration or issuance of a certificate of title or a transfer of registration upon the [ground] grounds that:

          A. the application contains a false or fraudulent statement or that the applicant failed to furnish the required information or reasonable additional information requested by the division or that the applicant is not entitled to the issuance of a certificate of title or registration of the vehicle under the Motor Vehicle Code;

          B. the vehicle is mechanically unfit or unsafe to be operated or moved upon the highways;

          C. a commercial motor vehicle is operated by a commercial motor carrier that is prohibited from operating the vehicle by order of a state or federal agency;

          D. the division has [a] reasonable [ground] grounds to believe that the vehicle is a stolen or embezzled vehicle or that the granting of registration or the issuance of a certificate of title would constitute a fraud against the rightful owner or other person having valid lien upon the vehicle;

          E. the registration of the vehicle stands suspended or revoked for any reason as provided in the motor vehicle laws of this state;

          F. the required fee has not been paid;

          G. the motor vehicle excise tax has not been paid;

          H. the weight distance tax has not been paid;

          I. international fuel tax agreement taxes have not been paid;

          J. if the vehicle is a mobile home, the property tax has not been paid;

          K. the owner's address, as shown in the records of the division, is within a class A county or within a municipality that has a vehicle emission inspection and maintenance program and the applicant has applied at an office outside the designated county or municipality; [or]

          L. the owner is required to but has failed to provide proof of compliance with a vehicle emission inspection and maintenance program, if required in the county or municipality in which the owner resides; or

          M. the owner has failed to fulfill a signed promise to appear or notice to appear in court as a consequence of a charge or conviction pursuant to the Motor Vehicle Code or the laws of a tribe, as evidenced by notice from a state or tribal court."

     SECTION 2. Section 66-8-128 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, Chapter 35, Section 536, as amended) is amended to read:

     "66-8-128. UNIFORM TRAFFIC CITATION.--

          A. The department shall prepare a uniform traffic citation containing at least the following information:

                (1) an information section, serially numbered and containing spaces for the name, physical address and mailing address, city and state of the individual charged; the individual's physical description, age and sex; the registration number, year and state of the vehicle involved and its make and type; the state and number of the individual's driver's license; the specific section number and common name of the offense charged under the NMSA 1978 or [of] local law; the date and time of arrest; the arresting officer's signature and identification number; and the conditions existing at the time of the violation;

                (2) a notice to appear; [and]

                (3) a penalty assessment notice with a place for the signature of the violator agreeing to pay the penalty assessment prescribed; and

                 (4) any additional requirements provided in writing by the administrative office of the courts.

          B. The department shall prescribe how the uniform traffic citation form may be used as a warning notice.

          C. The department shall prescribe the size and number of copies of the paper version of the uniform traffic citation and the disposition of each copy. The department may also prescribe one or more electronic versions of the uniform traffic citation, and these electronic versions may be used in the issuance of citations.

          D. Any entity that wishes to submit uniform traffic citations required to be submitted to the department by electronic means [must] shall secure the prior permission of the department."

     SECTION 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions this act is July 1, 2011.

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