44TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 1999

RELATING TO OCCUPATIONAL LICENSES; ENACTING THE WATER WELL DRILLERS LICENSING ACT; REQUIRING LICENSURE; CREATING A BOARD; PRESCRIBING POWERS AND DUTIES; CREATING A FUND; PROVIDING PENALTIES; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

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

Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Water Well Drillers Licensing Act".

Section 2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act:

A. "board" means the water well drillers advisory board;

B. "installer" means a person licensed by the state engineer to install or repair water well pumps and equipment; and

C. "water well driller" means a person licensed by the state engineer to drill water, inject wells, de-water wells or monitor wells.

Section 3. LICENSE REQUIRED.--

A. It is unlawful for a person to:

(1) represent himself as a well driller unless he is licensed pursuant to the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act; or

(2) continue to act as a well driller if the license issued pursuant to the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act has expired or been revoked or suspended.

B. Driller trainees under the direct on-site supervision of a water well driller are exempt from the provisions of this section.

Section 4. BOARD CREATED--MEMBERS--QUALIFICATIONS--TERMS--VACANCIES--REMOVAL.--

A. The "water well drillers advisory board" is created.

B. The board is composed of seven members, five appointed by the state engineer, among whom:

(1) four are water well drillers and:

(a) are residents of New Mexico;

(b) have ten years or more experience as well drillers; and

(c) represent the four geographic quadrants of the state; and

(2) one is representative of the general public.

C. The remaining two members of the board are the state engineer or his designee and the secretary of environment or his designee.

D. Members of the board shall not be employed by or own an interest in the same business.

E. The initial appointed members of the board shall serve staggered terms, one of the members appointed for a term ending July 1, 2000, one for a term ending July 1, 2001, one for a term ending July 1, 2002 and two for terms ending July 1, 2003. Thereafter, appointments shall be made for terms of four years and be made in such a manner that the terms of no more than two board members expire on July 1 of each year. Vacancies shall be filled by appointment by the state engineer for the unexpired term within sixty days of the vacancy. Board members shall serve until their successors have been appointed and qualified.

F. A board member who misses three consecutive meetings without being excused may be removed by the state engineer as a member of the board.

G. The board shall meet at the call of the state engineer who shall serve as the chair, and appointed board members shall serve at the pleasure of the state engineer.

H. Appointed members of the board may be reimbursed as provided in the Per Diem and Mileage Act, but shall receive no other compensation, perquisite or allowance.

I. The board is administratively attached to the office of the state engineer and shall advise the state engineer on administration of the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act.

Section 5. STATE ENGINEER--DUTIES.--The state engineer shall:

A. adopt and file in accordance with the State Rules Act rules to carry out the provisions of the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act and enforce the rules;

B. determine the qualifications of a water well driller;

C. establish standards of water well construction to protect ground water quality;

D. conduct the examination process for licensure and issue licenses;

E. review complaints concerning the conduct of a water well driller;

F. establish a record system for water well driller licenses;

G. consult with the board on the administration of the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act;

H. establish requirements for continued proficiency in water well drilling and pump installation; and

I. establish ethical standards of conduct for water well drillers, including that a water well driller shall:

(1) disclose all known adverse conditions about the quantity and quality of ground water in the area of a prospective well;

(2) recommend that clients have well water analyzed;

(3) inform the board of any unethical or unauthorized conduct known to the water well driller;

(4) accurately represent to the prospective client the qualifications and capabilities of the licensee and the licensee's equipment;

(5) not offer to perform services except in the class of well for which the water well driller is licensed and qualified by experience or knowledge;

(6) not evade contractual responsibility;

(7) not enter into a partnership or agreement with or give the water well drilling equipment to a person not legally qualified to perform the services to be rendered; and

(8) not falsely promote services, mislead or deceive.

Section 6. REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSURE.--The state engineer shall issue or renew an annual license as a water well driller or installer to an applicant who:

A. files a completed application accompanied by a required fee of one hundred dollars ($100) for a resident license or two hundred dollars ($200) for a nonresident license;

B. is at least eighteen years of age;

C. has two years or more of experience in the well drilling or pump installation business;

D. passes an examination administered by or demonstrates to the state engineer at least ten years of experience in water well drilling or pump installation;

E. demonstrates at least ninety days of residency prior to submission of the application for licensure or holds a valid license from another state that provides reciprocity for New Mexico residents;

F. has no criminal record;

G. complies with all other requirements of law as a person doing business in the state; and

H. agrees to comply with ethical standards established by the state engineer.

Section 7. LICENSE AND REGISTRATION TERMS AND RENEWAL.--

A. The water well drilling license shall be displayed in a conspicuous place in the principal place of business.

B. A water well driller shall notify the state engineer within thirty days after a change in his address or any other information required by the board under conditions of the license.

C. No water well drilling license is transferable or reassignable.

Section 8. BOND REQUIRED.--

A. No license shall be issued pursuant to the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act unless the applicant files with the state engineer a surety bond in the sum of five thousand dollars ($5,000). The bond shall run to the state, shall be executed and acknowledged by the applicant as principal and by a corporation that is licensed by the superintendent of insurance to transact the business of fidelity and surety insurance, as surety.

B. The surety bond shall provide for suit by a person who has a cause of action pursuant to the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act or rules adopted pursuant to that act.

C. No action shall be brought on a bond after the expiration of three years from the date of the occurrence of the act upon which a claim is based.

D. The bond shall be continuous in form and remain in full force concurrently with the license and any renewals unless terminated or canceled by action of the surety.

E. Upon the filing of thirty days' written notice with the board by a surety company of its withdrawal as the surety of a licensee, the board shall give notice by certified mail to the licensee of the withdrawal. The license of a licensee shall be void upon the termination of the bond by the surety company unless, prior to termination, a new bond has been filed with the board.

F. Should the license of a company to transact fidelity and surety insurance business in this state be canceled, revoked or otherwise terminated, all water well drilling business bonds for which the surety company is surety are canceled. Upon the cancellation, the license of any water well drilling business having a bond posted is suspended and shall remain suspended until a new and valid bond is filed. Failure of a licensee to file a new bond within thirty days after being advised by the state engineer revokes the license.

Section 9. DENIAL, SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF

LICENSE.--In accordance with procedures set forth in the Uniform Licensing Act, the state engineer may deny, suspend or revoke any license held or applied for under the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act upon grounds that the licensee or applicant:

A. made a false statement or gave false information in connection with an application for a license or renewal or reinstatement of a license;

B. violated any provision of the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act;

C. violated a rule or ethical standard of the state engineer adopted pursuant to the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act;

D. has been convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude or illegally using, carrying or possessing a deadly weapon;

E. has made a material misstatement of facts in a well record report or has failed to submit a well record report;

F. has failed to mark a water well rig;

G. has failed to advise a person for whom a well is being drilled, deepened or otherwise altered that injurious water has been encountered that poses a potential pollution hazard, and the well must be plugged or properly completed in accordance with the state engineer's rules;

H. has aided and abetted an unlicensed person to evade the provisions of the state engineer's rules;

I. has knowingly conspired with or acted as an agent, partner or associate of an unlicensed person;

J. has performed a service incompetently;

K. committed or permitted an employee to commit an act while the license was expired that would be cause for the suspension or revocation of a license or grounds for the denial of an application for a license;

L. has been chronically or persistently inebriated or addicted to the illegal use of dangerous or narcotic drugs;

M. has been adjudged mentally incompetent or insane; or

N. while unlicensed or under suspended license, represented himself as a water well driller.

Section 10. FUND CREATED.--The "water well drillers fund" is established in the state treasury. All license fees received by the state engineer pursuant to the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act shall be deposited in the fund and shall be used by the state engineer for the administration of that act. The state treasurer shall invest the fund as other state funds are invested, and all income derived from the fund shall be credited to the fund. All money in the fund is appropriated to the state engineer to carry out provisions of the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act. Disbursements from the fund shall be drawn on warrants of the secretary of finance and administration pursuant to vouchers signed by the state engineer or his authorized representative. All balances in the fund shall remain in the fund and shall not revert to the general fund.

Section 11. PENALTIES.--

A. A person who fraudulently represents himself to be a water well driller is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a definite term of imprisonment of less than one year or a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) or both.

B. A person who violates a provision of the Water Well Drillers Licensing Act, except as provided for in Subsection A of this section, is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a definite term of imprisonment of not more than six months or by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500) or both.