0001| SENATE BILL 199 | 0002| 43RD LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 1998 | 0003| INTRODUCED BY | 0004| MANNY M. ARAGON | 0005| | 0006| | 0007| | 0008| | 0009| | 0010| AN ACT | 0011| RELATING TO LAW ENFORCEMENT; ELIMINATING THE TAXATION AND | 0012| REVENUE DEPARTMENT'S LAW ENFORCEMENT POWERS RELATING TO MOTOR | 0013| CARRIERS; TRANSFERRING THE POWERS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT | 0014| PERSONNEL TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY. | 0015| | 0016| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: | 0017| Section 1. Section 65-1-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, | 0018| Chapter 19, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read: | 0019| "65-1-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Motor | 0020| Transportation Act: | 0021| A. "combination" means any connected assemblage of | 0022| a motor vehicle and one or more semitrailers, trailers or | 0023| semitrailers converted to trailers by means of a converter | 0024| gear; | 0025| B. "combination gross vehicle weight" means the | - 1 - 0001| sum total of the gross vehicle weights of all units of a | 0002| combination; | 0003| C. "commercial motor carrier vehicle" means any | 0004| motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of twelve thousand | 0005| pounds or more used or reserved for use in the transportation | 0006| of persons or property for hire, compensation or profit or in | 0007| the furtherance of a commercial enterprise or any vehicle | 0008| designed, used or maintained primarily for the transportation | 0009| of property or for drawing other vehicles so designed, used or | 0010| maintained; | 0011| D. "converter gear" means any assemblage of one or | 0012| more axles with a fifth wheel mounted thereon designed for use | 0013| in a combination to support the front end of a semitrailer, | 0014| but not permanently attached thereto. A "converter gear" | 0015| shall not be considered a vehicle as that term is used in | 0016| Chapter 66 NMSA 1978, but weight attributable thereto shall be | 0017| included in declared gross weight; | 0018| E. "declared gross weight" means maximum gross | 0019| vehicle weight or combination gross vehicle weight at which a | 0020| vehicle or combination will be operated during the | 0021| registration period as declared by the registrant for | 0022| registration and fee purposes. The vehicle or combination | 0023| shall have only one "declared gross weight" for all operating | 0024| considerations; | 0025| F. "department", without modification, means the | - 2 - 0001| taxation and revenue department, the secretary of taxation and | 0002| revenue or any employee of the department exercising authority | 0003| lawfully delegated to that employee by the secretary; | 0004| G. "director" means the secretary; | 0005| H. "division" or "motor transportation division" | 0006| means the department; | 0007| I. "evidence of registration" means any | 0008| documentation issued by the department identifying a motor | 0009| carrier vehicle as being registered with New Mexico or | 0010| documentation issued by another state pursuant to the terms of | 0011| a multistate agreement on registration of vehicles to which | 0012| this state is a party identifying a motor carrier vehicle as | 0013| being registered with that state; provided that evidence of | 0014| payment of the weight distance tax and permits obtained under | 0015| either the Special Fuels Supplier Tax Act or Trip Tax Act are | 0016| not "evidence of registration"; | 0017| J. "field ~[enforcement]~ |inspection|" or "in the | 0018| field" means ~[patrolling of the highway, stopping of | 0019| commercial motor carrier vehicles or]~ establishing ports of | 0020| entry ~[and roadblocks]~ for the purpose of checking motor | 0021| carriers and includes similar activities; | 0022| K. "fleet" means one or more motor carrier | 0023| vehicles, either commercial or noncommercial but not mixed, | 0024| that are operated in this and at least one other jurisdiction; | 0025| L. "freight trailer" means any trailer, | - 3 - 0001| semitrailer or pole trailer drawn by a truck tractor or road | 0002| tractor and any trailer, semitrailer or pole trailer drawn by | 0003| a truck that has a gross vehicle weight of more than twenty- | 0004| six thousand pounds, but the term does not include house | 0005| trailers, trailers of less than one-ton carrying capacity used | 0006| to transport animals or fertilizer trailers of less than three | 0007| thousand five hundred pounds empty weight; | 0008| M. "gross vehicle weight" means the weight of a | 0009| vehicle without load plus the weight of any load thereon; | 0010| N. "motor carrier" means any person or firm that | 0011| owns, controls, operates or manages any motor vehicle with |a| | 0012| gross vehicle weight of twelve thousand pounds or more that is | 0013| used to transport persons or property on the public highways | 0014| of this state; | 0015| O. "motor vehicle" means any vehicle or device | 0016| that is propelled by an internal combustion engine or electric | 0017| motor power that is used or may be used on the public highways | 0018| for the purpose of transporting persons or property and | 0019| includes any connected trailer or semitrailer; | 0020| P. "one-way rental fleet" means two or more | 0021| vehicles each having a gross vehicle weight of under twenty- | 0022| six thousand one pounds and rented to the public without a | 0023| driver; | 0024| Q. "person" means any individual, estate, trust, | 0025| receiver, cooperative association, club, corporation, company, | - 4 - 0001| firm, partnership, joint venture, syndicate or other | 0002| association; "person" also means, to the extent permitted by | 0003| law, any federal, state or other governmental unit or | 0004| subdivision or an agency, department or instrumentality | 0005| thereof; "person" also includes an officer or employee of a | 0006| corporation, a member or employee of a partnership or any | 0007| individual who, as such, is under a duty to perform any act in | 0008| respect of which a violation occurs; | 0009| R. "preceding year" means a period of twelve | 0010| consecutive months fixed by the department, which period is | 0011| within the sixteen months immediately preceding the | 0012| commencement of the registration or license year for which | 0013| proportional registration is sought. The department, in | 0014| fixing that period, shall make it conform to the terms, | 0015| conditions and requirements of any applicable agreement or | 0016| arrangement for the proportional registration of vehicles; | 0017| S. "properly registered" means bearing the | 0018| lawfully issued and currently valid evidence of registration | 0019| of this or another jurisdiction, regardless of the owner's | 0020| residence, except in those cases where the evidence has been | 0021| procured by misrepresentation or fraud; | 0022| T. "public highway" means every way or place | 0023| generally open to the use of the public as a matter of right | 0024| for the purpose of vehicular travel, even though it may be | 0025| temporarily closed or restricted for the purpose of | - 5 - 0001| construction, maintenance, repair or reconstruction; | 0002| U. "secretary" means the secretary of taxation and | 0003| revenue and, except for the purposes of ~[Sections 65-1-10 | 0004| and]~ |Section| 65-1-33 NMSA 1978, also includes the deputy | 0005| secretary and any division director delegated by the | 0006| secretary; | 0007| V. "state" or "jurisdiction" means a state, | 0008| territory or possession of the United States, the District of | 0009| Columbia, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a foreign country | 0010| or a state or province of a foreign country; and | 0011| W. "utility trailer" means any trailer, | 0012| semitrailer or pole trailer and includes house trailers that | 0013| exceed neither eight feet in width nor forty feet in length, | 0014| but does not include freight trailers, trailers of less than | 0015| one-ton carrying capacity used to transport animals or | 0016| fertilizer trailers of less than three thousand five hundred | 0017| pounds empty weight." | 0018| Section 2. Section 65-1-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, | 0019| Chapter 97, Section 8, as amended) is amended to read: | 0020| "65-1-6. FIELD ~[ENFORCEMENT OF]~ |INSPECTION PURSUANT | 0021| TO THE| MOTOR CARRIER ACT AND ~[REGULATIONS]~ |RULES|.--The | 0022| department has the authority to: | 0023| A. ~[enforce]~ |perform inspections| in the field | 0024| |pursuant to| the provisions of the Motor Carrier Act and the | 0025| ~[regulations]~ |rules| promulgated by the state corporation | - 6 - 0001| commission pursuant to that act; and | 0002| B. maintain sufficient personnel in the field to | 0003| ~[enforce]~ |perform inspections pursuant to| the provisions | 0004| of the Motor Carrier Act and the ~[regulations]~ |rules| | 0005| promulgated by the state corporation commission pursuant to | 0006| that act." | 0007| Section 3. Section 65-1-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, | 0008| Chapter 97, Section 11, as amended) is amended to read: | 0009| "65-1-9. DEPARTMENT TO ENFORCE LAWS.--The department | 0010| shall enforce and collect all excise taxes, license fees and | 0011| other fees and charges of every nature and perform all | 0012| inspections and collect all information considered necessary | 0013| to enforce the laws ~[of all departments, commissions and | 0014| other agencies of state government, in addition to those]~ | 0015| specifically assigned ~[by law]~ to the department. | 0016| ~[whenever the department is so requested and agrees and the | 0017| agreement is in writing containing all reasonable detail | 0018| concerning the responsibilities of the parties to the | 0019| agreement.]~ The department shall also assist, as far as | 0020| practicable and in accordance with a proper written agreement, | 0021| in the enforcement of statutory, administrative and judicial | 0022| provisions of the federal Motor Carrier Act. ~[Enforcement | 0023| employees of the department shall be considered to have the | 0024| same powers as the enforcement officers of the department, | 0025| commission or other agency having the primary | - 7 - 0001| responsibility.]~" | 0002| Section 4. TEMPORARY PROVISION--TRANSFER OF PERSONNEL, | 0003| PROPERTY, CONTRACTS AND REFERENCES IN LAW.--On the effective | 0004| date of this act: | 0005| A. all personnel of the taxation and revenue | 0006| department who are certified law enforcement officers pursuant | 0007| to the provisions of the Law Enforcement Training Act and who | 0008| are charged primarily with enforcement of the Motor | 0009| Transportation Act, the Motor Carrier Act or other laws or | 0010| rules relating to motor carriers are transferred to the | 0011| department of public safety; | 0012| B. all appropriations, money, records, property, | 0013| equipment and supplies of the taxation and revenue department | 0014| and primarily associated with the personnel described in | 0015| Subsection A of this section are transferred to the department | 0016| of public safety; | 0017| C. all contracts and agreements of the taxation | 0018| and revenue department relating to the activities of the | 0019| personnel described in Subsection A of this section are | 0020| transferred to the department of public safety; and | 0021| D. all references in law to law enforcement powers | 0022| of the taxation and revenue department pursuant to the Motor | 0023| Transportation Act or the Motor Carrier Act shall be deemed to | 0024| be references to the powers of the department of public | 0025| safety. | - 8 - 0001| Section 5. REPEAL.--Section 65-1-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws | 0002| 1967, Chapter 97, Section 9, as amended) is repealed. | 0003| Section 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the | 0004| provisions of this act is July 1, 1998. | 0005|  |