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HOUSE BILL 121
57TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 2025
INTRODUCED BY
Kathleen Cates
AN ACT
RELATING TO COUNTY REDISTRICTING; ENACTING THE COUNTY
REDISTRICTING ACT; REQUIRING COUNTIES TO CREATE A COUNTY
REDISTRICTING COMMISSION; ESTABLISHING REQUIREMENTS FOR
CREATING COUNTY DISTRICT PLANS AND PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN THE
PROCESS; PROVIDING PROCEDURES TO APPEAL A SELECTED DISTRICT
PLAN.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be
cited as the "County Redistricting Act".
SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the
County Redistricting Act:
A. "commission" means a county redistricting
commission;
B. "community of interest" means a contiguous
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population that shares common economic, social or cultural
interests;
C. "county" means a class A county;
D. "district" means a county district for purposes
of electing members of a county's county commission;
E. "district plan" means a plan of single-member
districts for electing members of a county's county commission;
F. "length-width compactness" means the absolute
value of the difference between the length and the width of the
district, as measured by the distance from the northernmost
point or portion of the boundary of a district to the
southernmost point or portion of the boundary of the same
district and the distance from the westernmost point or portion
of the boundary of the district to the easternmost point or
portion of the boundary of the same district;
G. "lobbyist" means a person who is required to
register as a lobbyist pursuant to the provisions of the
Lobbyist Regulation Act;
H. "perimeter compactness" means the distance
needed to traverse the perimeter boundary of a district;
I. "political party" means a political party that
has been qualified in accordance with the provisions of the
Election Code; and
J. "public official" means a person elected to an
office of the executive or legislative branch of the state.
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SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] COUNTIES REQUIRED TO CREATE
REDISTRICTING COMMISSION--MEMBERSHIP--TERMS.--
A. Each county shall create a county redistricting
commission.
B. A commission shall consist of five members,
selected as follows:
(1) two commissioners, each from the two
political parties with the largest number of registered
qualified electors in the county;
(2) two commissioners who decline to state a
party affiliation or who are members of a minor political
party; and
(3) one commissioner selected by the four
above mentioned commissioners and who shall chair the
commission.
C. The county clerk shall solicit commissioner
applications from the public, and the selection shall be
conducted randomly in a public meeting. Commissioners shall be
selected not later than January 1 of each year ending in the
number one and shall serve until a district plan is presented
to the secretary of state and until legal challenges to the
district plans, including appeals, if any, have been resolved.
D. When a member of a commission dies, resigns or
no longer has the qualifications required for the
commissioner's original appointment, the commissioner's
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position on a commission becomes vacant, and the chair of the
commission shall inform the county clerk, and a new
commissioner shall be appointed from the pool of original
applicants who are of the same political affiliation of the
commissioner vacating the commission. The vacancy shall be
filled no later than fifteen days following notification of the
vacancy.
E. A commission shall meet as necessary to carry
out its duties pursuant to the County Redistricting Act.
F. Commissioners are entitled to receive per diem
and mileage reimbursement as provided in the Per Diem and
Mileage Act and shall receive no other compensation, perquisite
or allowance.
SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSIONERS--
QUALIFICATIONS--LIMITATIONS.--
A. To qualify for appointment to a commission, an
applicant shall:
(1) be a qualified elector of New Mexico; and
(2) not be, or in the two years prior to
appointment not have been, in New Mexico, any of the following:
(a) a public official;
(b) a candidate for public office;
(c) a lobbyist;
(d) an office holder in a political
party at the state or federal level;
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(e) a relative in the first degree of
consanguinity of a member of congress, the legislature or a
board of county commissioners; or
(f) an employee of congress, the
legislative or executive branch of government or the county
government.
B. Before entering upon the duties of the
commission, a commissioner shall review the County
Redistricting Act and take the oath of office as provided in
Article 20, Section 1 of the constitution of New Mexico.
SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSION--POWERS AND
DUTIES.--
A. Beginning January 1, 2031, and every January 1
of each year ending in the number one thereafter, a commission
shall:
(1) no later than September 1 of each year
ending in the number one, adopt a map of the districts in the
county at issue;
(2) adopt the district plans as rules in
accordance with the provisions of the State Rules Act;
(3) hold no fewer than two public meetings,
either virtually or in various regions of the county, before
issuing the district plans as proposed rules for public
comment;
(4) hold no fewer than two public rule
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hearings, either virtually or in various regions of the county,
for the purpose of adopting district plans;
(5) conduct all meetings pursuant to the
requirements of the Open Meetings Act; and
(6) compile, index, maintain and provide
public access to the commission's record for each district plan
it adopts.
B. Beginning January 1, 2031, and every January 1
of each year ending in the number one thereafter, a commission
may:
(1) develop, adopt and promulgate the rules
for public hearings;
(2) contract for legal and technical
assistance for the creation of alternative district plans; and
(3) hire staff and enter into contracts and
interagency agreements as necessary to accomplish the duties
set forth in this section.
SECTION 6. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSION MEETINGS BEFORE
PROPOSING DISTRICT PLANS.--
A. Before a commission issues proposed district
plans for public comment, the commission shall hold no fewer
than two public meetings at which the commission shall receive
testimony, documents and information regarding the
identification of communities of interest and other testimony,
documents and information regarding the creation of district
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plans. A commission shall provide the public with notice not
later than thirty days before these meetings, and the notice
shall include information about how the public may participate
and submit testimony, documents and information. A commission
shall hold meetings either virtually or in various regions
across the county.
B. A commission shall compile, index, maintain and
provide public access to all testimony, documents and
information received in the meetings conducted before issuing
proposed district plans for public comment.
C. The proposed district plans that a commission
issues for public comment shall be based, in part, on the
testimony, documents and information received.
SECTION 7. [NEW MATERIAL] DISTRICT PLANS--REQUIREMENTS
AND PROHIBITIONS.--
A. When proposing or adopting district plans, a
commission shall:
(1) create district plans composed of
single-member districts;
(2) create district plans composed of
contiguous territory; provided that districts that meet only at
the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous; and
(3) comply with all applicable federal laws.
B. When proposing or adopting district plans, a
commission may:
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(1) use, rely upon or reference precincts; and
(2) use, rely upon or reference the most
recent federal decennial census data provided by the United
States census bureau as well as other reliable sources of
demographic data, as determined by a majority of the
commission.
C. When proposing or adopting district plans, a
commission shall not:
(1) propose or adopt district plans to favor a
political party or incumbent;
(2) use, rely upon or reference partisan data,
such as voting history or party registration data; provided
that voting history in elections may be considered to ensure
that the district plan complies with applicable federal law;
(3) create district plans to intentionally
dilute the representation of communities of interest; or
(4) create district plans to intentionally
preserve the cores of existing districts; provided, however,
that district plans may intentionally preserve the cores of
existing districts so long as the district plan meets all other
requirements provided by this section.
D. When proposing or adopting district plans for
the county, a commission shall create districts that are as
close to equal in population as possible; provided that any
deviation from equal population across districts shall not
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exceed plus or minus five percent and shall be based on:
(1) compliance with applicable federal law;
(2) consideration of tribal government
boundaries;
(3) the avoidance of diluting the
representation of communities of interest;
(4) the avoidance of fragmenting governmental
subdivisions; or
(5) the preservation of the core of existing
districts; provided that the district plan meets all other
requirements provided by this section.
E. When a district plan satisfies all of the
requirements provided by Subsections A through D of this
section, a commission shall adopt those district plans that are
most compact, as determined by a measure of length-width
compactness or perimeter compactness. The absolute compactness
values computed for individual districts may be cumulated for
all districts in a district plan to compare the overall
compactness of two or more alternative district plans for the
state or for a portion of the state. The total perimeter
distance computed for individual districts may be cumulated for
all districts in a district plan to compare the overall
compactness of two or more alternative district plans for the
state or for a portion of the state.
F. Based on length-width compactness, a district
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shall be most compact when the length of the district and the
width of the district are equal.
SECTION 8. [NEW MATERIAL] COMMISSION ADOPTION OF DISTRICT
PLANS.--A commission shall adopt a district plan at an open
meeting. After a commission adopts the district plans, the
commission shall provide written evaluations of the district
plan that address the satisfaction of the requirements set
forth in the County Redistricting Act, the ability of racial
and language minorities to elect candidates of their choice, a
measure of partisan fairness and the preservation of
communities of interest.
SECTION 9. [NEW MATERIAL] DELIVERY OF THE DISTRICT PLAN
TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE.--A commission shall deliver its
adopted district plan for the county to the county clerk and
secretary of state no later than six months after the receipt
of the census data. Those district plans shall be used in the
next general election and subsequent elections until
redistricting occurs following the next decennial census.
SECTION 10. [NEW MATERIAL] CAUSE OF ACTION--VENUE.--
A. A person who submitted data, views or arguments
orally or in writing at a public hearing conducted by a
commission shall have a civil cause of action for review of a
district plan adopted by the commission. Such action shall be
filed in the district court within thirty days after a
commission adopts the district plan at issue.
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B. The district court shall not award fees to the
prevailing party unless required by federal law.
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