0001|                            HOUSE BILL 259
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0002|     43rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 1997
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0003|                            INTRODUCED BY
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0004|                           MIGUEL P. GARCIA
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0005|     
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0006|     
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0007|     
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0008|                                   
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0009|     
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0010|                                AN ACT
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0011|     RELATING TO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES; AMENDING THE LIQUOR CONTROL
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0012|     ACT TO PROVIDE A PETITION METHOD FOR DENIAL OF A TRANSFER OF A
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0013|     LICENSE TO A LOCATION IN A HISTORIC COMMUNITY.
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0014|     
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0015|     BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
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0016|          Section 1.  Section 60-6B-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1981,
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0017|     Chapter 39, Section 40) is amended to read:
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0018|          "60-6B-4.  ISSUANCE OR TRANSFER OF LICENSE--APPROVAL OF
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0019|     APPROPRIATE GOVERNING BODY.--
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0020|               A.  Prior to the approval of the issuance of a new
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0021|     license, and prior to the approval of any transfer permitted by
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0022|     Section <s>[39 or 113 of the Liquor Control Act]</s> <u>60-6B-3 or
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<u></u>0023| <u>    60-6B-12 NMSA 1978</u>, the director shall notify the governing
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0024|     body of his preliminary approval of the issuance or transfer of
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0025|     the license.  Notice to the governing body shall be by
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0001|     certified mail.
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0002|               B.  A governing body which has received a notice of
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0003|     preliminary approval of the issuance or transfer of a license
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0004|     from the department may approve or disapprove the issuance or
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0005|     transfer of the license in accordance with the provisions of
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0006|     this section.
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0007|               C.  Within forty-five days after receipt of a notice
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0008|     of preliminary approval from the department, the governing body
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0009|     shall hold a public hearing on the question of whether the
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0010|     department should approve the proposed issuance or transfer.
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0011|               D.  Notice of the public hearing required by
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0012|     Subsection C of this section shall be given by the governing
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0013|     body by:
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0014|                    (1)  publishing a notice of the date, time and
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0015|     place of the hearing at least once a week for two consecutive
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0016|     weeks in a newspaper of general circulation within the
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0017|     territorial limits of the governing body.  The notice shall set
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0018|     forth:
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0019|                         (a)  the name and address of the
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0020|     licensee;                (b)  the action proposed to be taken
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0021|     by the department;
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0022|                         (c)  the location of the licensee's
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0023|     premises; and
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0024|                         (d)  such other information as may be
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0025|     required by the department; and
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0001|                    (2)  sending a notice by certified mail to the
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0002|     applicant of the date, time and place of the public hearing.
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0003|               E.  The governing body may designate a hearing
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0004|     officer to conduct the hearing.  A record shall be made of the
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0005|     hearing.
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0006|               F.  The governing body may disapprove the issuance
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0007|     or transfer of the license if:
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0008|                    (1)  the proposed location is within an area
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0009|     where the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited by the laws
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0010|     of New Mexico;
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0011|                    (2)  the issuance or transfer would be in
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0012|     violation of a zoning or other ordinance of the governing body;
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0013|     or
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0014|                    (3)  the issuance or transfer would be
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0015|     detrimental to the public health, safety or morals of the
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0016|     residents of the local option district.
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0017|               G.  Within thirty days after the public hearing, the
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0018|     governing body shall notify the department as to whether the
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0019|     governing body has approved or disapproved the proposed
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0020|     issuance or transfer of the license.  If the governing body
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0021|     <u>approves the proposed issuance or transfer of the license or</u>
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0022|     fails to either approve or disapprove the issuance or transfer
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0023|     of the license within thirty days after the public hearing, the
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0024|     director may give final approval to the issuance or transfer of
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0025|     the license, <u> unless the issuance or transfer has been
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<u></u>0001| <u>    disapproved as provided in Section 60-6B-4.1 NMSA 1978</u>.
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0002|               H.  If the governing body disapproves the issuance
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0003|     or transfer of the license, it shall notify the department
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0004|     within the time required by Subsection G of this section
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0005|     setting forth the reasons for the disapproval.  A copy of the
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0006|     minutes of the public hearing shall be submitted to the
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0007|     department by the governing body with the notice of
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0008|     disapproval.  If the governing body disapproves of the issuance
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0009|     or transfer of the license, the director shall disapprove the
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0010|     issuance or transfer of the license.
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0011|               I.  If the governing body approves the issuance or
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0012|     transfer of the license, it shall notify the department within
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0013|     the time required by Subsection G of this section of its
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0014|     approval.  If the governing body approves of the issuance or
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0015|     transfer of the license, the director shall approve the
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0016|     issuance or transfer of the license."
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0017|          Section 2.  A new section of the Liquor Control Act,
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0018|     Section 60-6B-4.1 NMSA 1978, is enacted to read:
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0019|          "60-6B-4.1.  [<u>NEW MATERIAL</u>]  DENIAL OF APPLICATION FOR
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0020|     LICENSE TO BE LOCATED IN A HISTORIC COMMUNITY--PETITION
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0021|     REQUIREMENTS.--
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0022|               A.  The director shall disapprove the issuance or
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0023|     transfer of a license to a location within a historic community
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0024|     if:
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0025|                    (1)  the property owners in the historic
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0001|     community present their findings showing by a preponderance of
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0002|     evidence that the issuance or transfer would be detrimental to
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0003|     the health, safety or morals of the community and petition the
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0004|     director based on those findings to disapprove the issuance or
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0005|     transfer of the license to that location;
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0006|                    (2)  the petition is submitted to the director
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0007|     and to the governing body of the local option district within
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0008|     forty-five days after the governing body of the local option
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0009|     district has received notice from the director of preliminary
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0010|     approval of the issuance or transfer of a license to a location
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0011|     in the historic community; and 
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0012|                    (3)  the petition contains the signatures of at
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0013|     least seventy-five percent of the owners of property located
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0014|     wholly within one thousand feet of the exterior boundaries of
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0015|     the proposed licensed premises.
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0016|               B.  The petitioners must present to the director
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0017|     with the petition signatures:
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0018|                    (1)  a survey showing the location of the
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0019|     proposed licensed premises and the properties located wholly
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0020|     within one thousand feet of the exterior boundaries of that
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0021|     proposed licensed premises;
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0022|                    (2)  a letter from the county assessor
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0023|     certifying the names and addresses of the owners of the
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0024|     properties in Paragraph (1) of this subsection;
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0025|                    (3)  documentation certifying that the
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0001|     community is a historic community; and
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0002|                    (4)  the findings of the property owners in the
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0003|     historic community showing by a preponderance of evidence that
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0004|     the issuance or transfer of the license to the proposed
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0005|     location would be detrimental to the health, safety or morals
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0006|     of the community.
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0007|               C.  The county assessor of the county in which the
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0008|     historic neighborhood is located, upon the request of property
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0009|     owners proposing to petition the director pursuant to
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0010|     Subsection A of this section, shall certify in writing the
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0011|     names and addresses of the property owners of property located
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0012|     wholly within one thousand feet of the proposed licensed
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0013|     premises that is the subject of the petition.
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0014|               D.  The director shall determine within thirty days
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0015|     of receipt of a petition pursuant to Subsection A of this
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0016|     section whether the petition meets the requirements of
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0017|     Subsections A and B of this section.  If the petition meets the
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0018|     requirements of Subsections A and B of this section, the
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0019|     director shall disapprove the issuance or transfer of a license
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0020|     to the licensed premises within the historic community,
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0021|     notwithstanding the approval of the governing body of the local
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0022|     option district pursuant to Subsection 60-6B-4 NMSA 1978.
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0023|               E.  As used in this section, "historic community"
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0024|     means a community or town established prior to 1848 that was
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0025|     acknowledged as being part of a grant of land made by the
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0001|     government of Spain or the government of Mexico that was
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0002|     confirmed by the United States congress, recognized by the 1891
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0003|     court of private land claims or recorded under United States
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0004|     patent laws as described in Section 49-1-2 NMSA 1978."
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0005|          Section 3.  A new section of the Liquor Control Act is
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0006|     enacted to read:
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0007|          "[<u>NEW MATERIAL</u>]  INTERFERENCE WITH HISTORIC COMMUNITY
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0008|     PETITION.--It is a violation of the Liquor Control Act for a
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0009|     person to interfere with or influence the petition process
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0010|     undertaken by property owners in a historic community pursuant
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0011|     to Section 60-6B-4.1 NMSA 1978."
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0012|                              
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