New Mexico 2025 Regular Session

New Mexico House Bill HB169 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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28	28	HOUSE BILL 169
29	29	57
30	30	TH LEGISLATURE
31	31	-
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33	33	STATE
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35	35	OF
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37	37	NEW
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39	39	MEXICO
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42	42	FIRST SESSION
43	43	,
44	44
45	45	2025
46	46	INTRODUCED BY
47	47	Andrea Romero and Eleanor Chávez and Harold Pope
48	48	AN ACT
49	49	RELATING TO COURTS; ENACTING THE PUBLIC EXPRESSION PROTECTION
50	50	ACT; ENACTING AND REPEALING SECTIONS OF THE NMSA 1978.
51	51	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
52	52	SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be
53	53	cited as the "Public Expression Protection Act".
54	54	SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] SCOPE.--
55	55	A. Except as otherwise provided in Subsection B of
56	56	this section, the Public Expression Protection Act applies to a
57	57	cause of action asserted in a civil action against a person
58	58	based on the person's:
59	59	(1) communication in a legislative, executive,
60	60	judicial, administrative or other governmental proceeding;
61	61	(2) communication on an issue under
62	62	consideration or review in a legislative, executive, judicial,
63	63	.229758.2 underscored material = new
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90	90	administrative or other governmental proceeding; or
91	91	(3) exercise of the right of freedom of speech
92	92	or of the press, the right to assemble or petition or the right
93	93	of association, guaranteed by the United States constitution or
94	94	the constitution of New Mexico, on a matter of public concern.
95	95	B. The Public Expression Protection Act does not
96	96	apply to a cause of action asserted:
97	97	(1) against a governmental unit or an employee
98	98	or agent of a governmental unit acting or purporting to act in
99	99	an official capacity;
100	100	(2) by a governmental unit or an employee or
101	101	agent of a governmental unit acting in an official capacity to
102	102	enforce a law to protect against an imminent threat to public
103	103	health or safety; or
104	104	(3) against a person primarily engaged in the
105	105	business of selling or leasing goods or services if the cause
106	106	of action arises out of a communication related to the person's
107	107	sale or lease of the goods or services.
108	108	C. The Public Expression Protection Act is intended
109	109	to confer substantive immunity from suit, and not merely
110	110	immunity from liability, for any cause of action concerning
111	111	protected speech or communication pursuant to that act.
112	112	D. As used in this section:
113	113	(1) "goods or services" does not include the
114	114	creation, dissemination, exhibition or advertisement or similar
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143	143	promotion of a dramatic, literary, musical, political,
144	144	journalistic or artistic work; and
145	145	(2) "governmental unit" means a public
146	146	corporation or government or governmental subdivision, agency
147	147	or instrumentality.
148	148	SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] SPECIAL MOTION FOR EXPEDITED
149	149	RELIEF.--Not later than sixty days after a party is served with
150	150	a complaint, petition, cross claim, counterclaim, third-party
151	151	claim or other pleading that asserts a cause of action to which
152	152	the Public Expression Protection Act applies, or at a later
153	153	time on a showing of good cause, the party may file a special
154	154	motion for expedited relief to dismiss the cause of action or
155	155	part of the cause of action.
156	156	SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] STAY.--
157	157	A. Except as otherwise provided in Subsections D
158	158	through G of this section, upon the filing of a motion pursuant
159	159	to Section 3 of the Public Expression Protection Act:
160	160	(1) all other proceedings between the moving
161	161	party and responding party, including discovery and a pending
162	162	hearing or motion, are stayed; and
163	163	(2) on motion by the moving party, the court
164	164	may stay a hearing or motion involving another party, or
165	165	discovery by another party, if the hearing or ruling on the
166	166	motion would adjudicate, or the discovery would relate to, an
167	167	issue material to the motion pursuant to Section 3 of the
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196	196	Public Expression Protection Act.
197	197	B. A stay pursuant to Subsection A of this section
198	198	remains in effect until entry of an order ruling on the motion
199	199	pursuant to that section and expiration of the time pursuant to
200	200	Section 9 of the Public Expression Protection Act for the
201	201	moving party to appeal the order.
202	202	C. Except as otherwise provided in Subsections E, F
203	203	and G of this section, if a party appeals from an order ruling
204	204	on a motion pursuant to Section 3 of the Public Expression
205	205	Protection Act, all proceedings between all parties in the
206	206	action are stayed. The stay remains in effect until the
207	207	conclusion of the appeal.
208	208	D. During a stay pursuant to Subsection A of this
209	209	section, the court may allow limited discovery if a party shows
210	210	that specific information is necessary to establish whether a
211	211	party has satisfied or failed to satisfy a burden pursuant to
212	212	Subsection A of Section 7 of the Public Expression Protection
213	213	Act and the information is not reasonably available unless
214	214	discovery is allowed.
215	215	E. A motion pursuant to Section 10 of the Public
216	216	Expression Protection Act for costs, attorney fees and expenses
217	217	is not subject to a stay pursuant to this section.
218	218	F. A stay pursuant to this section does not affect
219	219	a party's ability to voluntarily dismiss a cause of action or
220	220	part of a cause of action or move to sever a cause of action.
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249	249	G. During a stay pursuant to this section, the
250	250	court for good cause may hear and rule on:
251	251	(1) a motion unrelated to the motion pursuant
252	252	to Section 3 of the Public Expression Protection Act; and
253	253	(2) a motion seeking a special or preliminary
254	254	injunction to protect against an imminent threat to public
255	255	health or safety.
256	256	SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] HEARING.--
257	257	A. The court shall hear a motion pursuant to
258	258	Section 3 of the Public Expression Protection Act not later
259	259	than sixty days after filing of the motion, unless the court
260	260	orders a later hearing:
261	261	(1) to allow discovery pursuant to Subsection
262	262	D of Section 4 of the Public Expression Protection Act; or
263	263	(2) for other good cause.
264	264	B. If the court orders a later hearing pursuant to
265	265	Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of this section, the court shall
266	266	hear the motion pursuant to Section 3 of the Public Expression
267	267	Protection Act not later than sixty days after the court order
268	268	allowing the discovery, unless the court orders a later hearing
269	269	pursuant to Paragraph (2) of Subsection A of this section.
270	270	SECTION 6. [NEW MATERIAL] PROOF.--In ruling on a motion
271	271	pursuant to Section 3 of the Public Expression Protection Act,
272	272	the court shall consider the pleadings, the motion, any reply
273	273	or response to the motion and any evidence that could be
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302	302	considered in ruling on a motion to dismiss, motion for
303	303	judgment on the pleadings or motion for summary judgment.
304	304	SECTION 7. [NEW MATERIAL] DISMISSAL OF CAUSE OF ACTION IN
305	305	WHOLE OR IN PART.--
306	306	A. In ruling on a motion pursuant to Section 3 of
307	307	the Public Expression Protection Act, the court shall dismiss
308	308	with prejudice a cause of action or part of a cause of action
309	309	if:
310	310	(1) the moving party establishes pursuant to
311	311	Subsection A of Section 2 of that act that the Public
312	312	Expression Protection Act applies;
313	313	(2) the responding party fails to establish
314	314	pursuant to Subsection B of Section 2 of that act that the
315	315	Public Expression Protection Act does not apply; and
316	316	(3) either:
317	317	(a) the responding party fails to
318	318	establish a prima facie case as to each essential element of
319	319	the cause of action; or
320	320	(b) the moving party establishes that:
321	321	1) the responding party failed to state a cause of action upon
322	322	which relief can be granted; or 2) there is no genuine issue as
323	323	to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to
324	324	judgment as a matter of law on the cause of action or part of
325	325	the cause of action.
326	326	B. A voluntary dismissal without prejudice of a
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355	355	responding party's cause of action or part of a cause of action
356	356	that is the subject of a motion pursuant to Section 3 of the
357	357	Public Expression Protection Act does not affect a moving
358	358	party's right to obtain a ruling on the motion and seek costs,
359	359	attorney fees and expenses pursuant to Section 10 of that act.
360	360	C. A voluntary dismissal with prejudice of a
361	361	responding party's cause of action or part of a cause of action
362	362	that is the subject of a motion pursuant to Section 3 of the
363	363	Public Expression Protection Act establishes for the purpose of
364	364	Section 10 of that act that the moving party prevailed on the
365	365	motion.
366	366	SECTION 8. [NEW MATERIAL] RULING.--The court shall rule
367	367	on a motion pursuant to Section 3 of the Public Expression
368	368	Protection Act not later than sixty days after a hearing
369	369	pursuant to Section 5 of that act.
370	370	SECTION 9. [NEW MATERIAL] APPEAL.--A moving party may
371	371	appeal as a matter of right from an order denying, in whole or
372	372	in part, a motion pursuant to Section 3 of the Public
373	373	Expression Protection Act. The appeal must be filed not later
374	374	than thirty days after entry of the order.
375	375	SECTION 10. [NEW MATERIAL] COSTS, ATTORNEY FEES AND
376	376	EXPENSES.--On a motion pursuant to Section 3 of the Public
377	377	Expression Protection Act, the court shall award court costs,
378	378	reasonable attorney fees and reasonable litigation expenses
379	379	related to the motion:
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408	408	A. to the moving party if the moving party prevails
409	409	on the motion; or
410	410	B. to the responding party if the responding party
411	411	prevails on the motion and the court finds that the motion was
412	412	frivolous or filed solely with intent to delay the proceeding.
413	413	SECTION 11. [NEW MATERIAL] CONSTRUCTION.--The Public
414	414	Expression Protection Act shall be broadly construed and
415	415	applied to protect the exercise of the right of freedom of
416	416	speech and of the press, the right to assemble and petition and
417	417	the right of association, guaranteed by the United States
418	418	constitution and the constitution of New Mexico.
419	419	SECTION 12. [NEW MATERIAL] UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND
420	420	CONSTRUCTION.--In applying and construing the Public Expression
421	421	Protection Act, consideration shall be given to the need to
422	422	promote uniformity of the law with respect to its subject
423	423	matter among states that enact it.
424	424	SECTION 13. [NEW MATERIAL] APPLICABILITY.--The Public
425	425	Expression Protection Act applies to a civil action filed or
426	426	cause of action asserted in a civil action on or after the
427	427	effective date of that act.
428	428	SECTION 14. [NEW MATERIAL] SAVING CLAUSE.--The Public
429	429	Expression Protection Act does not affect a cause of action
430	430	asserted before the effective date of that act in a civil
431	431	action or a motion pursuant to Section 38-2-9.1 NMSA 1978.
432	432	SECTION 15. REPEAL.--Sections 38-2-9.1 and 38-2-9.2 NMSA
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461	461	1978 (being Laws 2001, Chapter 218, Sections 2 and 1) are
462	462	repealed.
463	463	SECTION 16. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
464	464	provisions of this act is July 1, 2025.
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