NM
New Mexico House Bill HB334

New Mexico 2025 Regular Session

New Mexico House Bill HB334 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
OldNewDifferences
11 underscored material = new
22 [bracketed material] = delete
33 1
44 2
55 3
66 4
77 5
88 6
99 7
1010 8
1111 9
1212 10
1313 11
1414 12
1515 13
1616 14
1717 15
1818 16
1919 17
2020 18
2121 19
2222 20
2323 21
2424 22
2525 23
2626 24
2727 25
2828 HOUSE BILL 334
2929 57
3030 TH LEGISLATURE
3131 -
3232
3333 STATE
3434
3535 OF
3636
3737 NEW
3838
3939 MEXICO
4040
4141 -
4242 FIRST SESSION
4343 ,
4444
4545 2025
4646 INTRODUCED BY
4747 Meredith A. Dixon and Anita Gonzales and Jack Chatfield
4848 and Joseph L. Sanchez and Harlan Vincent
4949 AN ACT
5050 RELATING TO LIABILITY; ENACTING THE RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
5151 WILDFIRE LIABILITY ACT; REQUIRING WILDFIRE MITIGATION PLANS;
5252 PROVIDING FOR A REVIEW BY THE FORESTRY DIVISION OF THE ENERGY,
5353 MINERALS AND NATURAL RESOURCES DEPARTMENT; PROVIDING FOR
5454 APPROVAL BY THE PUBLIC REGULATION COMMISSION; REQUIRING PUBLIC
5555 NOTICE; ESTABLISHING LIMITS ON LIABILITY AND DAMAGE AWARDS;
5656 ESTABLISHING A TWO-YEAR LIMITATION ON THE FILING OF CLAIMS;
5757 AMENDING SECTION 30-32-4 NMSA 1978 (BEING LAWS 1882, CHAPTER
5858 61, SECTION 7, AS AMENDED) AND SECTION 37-1-4 NMSA 1978 (BEING
5959 LAWS 1880, CHAPTER 5, SECTION 4).
6060 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
6161 SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--Sections 1
6262 through 8 of this act may be cited as the "Rural Electric
6363 Cooperative Wildfire Liability Act".
6464 .229738.1 underscored material = new
6565 [bracketed material] = delete
6666 1
6767 2
6868 3
6969 4
7070 5
7171 6
7272 7
7373 8
7474 9
7575 10
7676 11
7777 12
7878 13
7979 14
8080 15
8181 16
8282 17
8383 18
8484 19
8585 20
8686 21
8787 22
8888 23
8989 24
9090 25
9191 SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the
9292 Rural Electric Cooperative Wildfire Liability Act:
9393 A. "commission" means the public regulation
9494 commission;
9595 B. "division" means the forestry division of the
9696 energy, minerals and natural resources department;
9797 C. "economic loss" means a monetary loss resulting
9898 from a medical expense, interruption in income or business
9999 operation or property damage. "Economic loss" includes the
100100 monetary cost of a replacement service and to the extent
101101 allowed under law a burial;
102102 D. "electric cooperative" means:
103103 (1) a cooperative nonprofit membership
104104 corporation as defined in Section 62-15-2 NMSA 1978; or
105105 (2) a person, other than an investor-owned
106106 public utility or a public utility owned by an investment fund,
107107 with electric generation and transmission facilities organized
108108 in this state or in another state, independent power producers
109109 or developers providing wholesale electric power to a
110110 cooperative nonprofit membership corporation organized pursuant
111111 to the Rural Electric Cooperative Act;
112112 E. "noneconomic loss" means discomfort,
113113 disfigurement, future pain and emotional distress, loss of
114114 consortium, loss due to death, loss of enjoyment of life, loss
115115 of use, mental anguish, pain and suffering and the value of
116116 .229738.1
117117 - 2 - underscored material = new
118118 [bracketed material] = delete
119119 1
120120 2
121121 3
122122 4
123123 5
124124 6
125125 7
126126 8
127127 9
128128 10
129129 11
130130 12
131131 13
132132 14
133133 15
134134 16
135135 17
136136 18
137137 19
138138 20
139139 21
140140 22
141141 23
142142 24
143143 25
144144 life itself;
145145 F. "plan" means a wildfire mitigation plan; and
146146 G. "wildfire" means a fire originating from an
147147 unplanned ignition, such as an accidental human-caused fire, a
148148 fire caused by lightning or a prescribed fire that is declared
149149 a wildfire by a federal or state emergency management or land
150150 management agency pursuant to authority granted by law.
151151 SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE WILDFIRE
152152 MITIGATION PLAN--REQUIREMENTS.--
153153 A. To receive the benefits under the Rural Electric
154154 Cooperative Wildfire Liability Act, an electric cooperative
155155 shall prepare a plan that includes the:
156156 (1) electric cooperative's size and a detailed
157157 description and map of the electric cooperative's:
158158 (a) service area; and
159159 (b) electric system within the electric
160160 cooperative's service area;
161161 (2) methods that the electric cooperative uses
162162 to assess wildfire risk within the electric cooperative's
163163 service area;
164164 (3) procedures and standards that the electric
165165 cooperative uses to perform vegetation management;
166166 (4) electric cooperative's inspection and
167167 maintenance procedures for the electric cooperative's electric
168168 system;
169169 .229738.1
170170 - 3 - underscored material = new
171171 [bracketed material] = delete
172172 1
173173 2
174174 3
175175 4
176176 5
177177 6
178178 7
179179 8
180180 9
181181 10
182182 11
183183 12
184184 13
185185 14
186186 15
187187 16
188188 17
189189 18
190190 19
191191 20
192192 21
193193 22
194194 23
195195 24
196196 25
197197 (5) electric cooperative's design and
198198 construction procedures and standards for the electric
199199 cooperative's electric system;
200200 (6) electric cooperative's situational
201201 awareness program, including weather monitoring and forecasting
202202 procedures;
203203 (7) electric cooperative's emergency response
204204 procedures in the event of a wildfire;
205205 (8) electric cooperative's operational
206206 procedures during wildfire conditions, including red flag
207207 warning protocols and alternate recloser settings procedures;
208208 and
209209 (9) electric cooperative's procedures to
210210 restore the electric cooperative's electrical system in the
211211 event of a wildfire.
212212 B. An electric cooperative's plan shall also
213213 include:
214214 (1) a description of the electric
215215 cooperative's awareness efforts regarding the electric
216216 cooperative's wildfire mitigation efforts, including vegetation
217217 management and operational controls;
218218 (2) confirmation that the electric
219219 cooperative's plan and annual reports are made publicly
220220 available;
221221 (3) a description of the plan's mitigation
222222 .229738.1
223223 - 4 - underscored material = new
224224 [bracketed material] = delete
225225 1
226226 2
227227 3
228228 4
229229 5
230230 6
231231 7
232232 8
233233 9
234234 10
235235 11
236236 12
237237 13
238238 14
239239 15
240240 16
241241 17
242242 18
243243 19
244244 20
245245 21
246246 22
247247 23
248248 24
249249 25
250250 measures, including modifications to facilities, and
251251 preventative programs that the electric cooperative is
252252 implementing to reduce the risk of the electric cooperative's
253253 equipment igniting a wildfire, including pole and right-of-way
254254 inspections;
255255 (4) the factors that the electric cooperative
256256 considered to balance the components of the plan with the need
257257 to provide continuous electricity service to the electric
258258 cooperative's service area and the costs and feasibility; and
259259 (5) the potential impact of the plan's
260260 mitigation measures on public safety, first responders and
261261 health and communication infrastructure.
262262 SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] WILDFIRE MITIGATION PLAN--
263263 REVIEW--APPROVAL.--
264264 A. An electric cooperative's plan shall be
265265 effective for five years upon the date of approval by the
266266 commission. An electric cooperative shall update and resubmit
267267 its plan for approval by the commission at the end of each
268268 subsequent five-year period following the initial approval by
269269 the commission.
270270 B. An electric cooperative shall submit its plan to
271271 the division for review and recommendations prior to submitting
272272 the plan to the commission for approval.
273273 C. An electric cooperative shall include the review
274274 and recommendations of its plan from the division in its
275275 .229738.1
276276 - 5 - underscored material = new
277277 [bracketed material] = delete
278278 1
279279 2
280280 3
281281 4
282282 5
283283 6
284284 7
285285 8
286286 9
287287 10
288288 11
289289 12
290290 13
291291 14
292292 15
293293 16
294294 17
295295 18
296296 19
297297 20
298298 21
299299 22
300300 23
301301 24
302302 25
303303 submission of the plan to the commission; provided that, when
304304 the electric cooperative has not received a response from the
305305 division within forty-five days of submitting its plan for
306306 review, the electric cooperative may submit the plan to the
307307 commission without the division's review.
308308 D. The commission shall approve or reject a plan
309309 within forty-five days of submission of a plan pursuant to this
310310 section. When a plan has not been approved or rejected by
311311 commission, the plan is approved as a matter of law. When the
312312 commission rejects an electric cooperative's plan, the
313313 commission shall issue a decision in writing detailing the
314314 specific reasons for the rejection. An electric cooperative
315315 shall then have thirty days to modify and resubmit the plan to
316316 the commission for approval.
317317 E. Within thirty days of receiving approval of a
318318 plan, an electric cooperative shall post a non-confidential
319319 version of the plan that excludes elements that would
320320 compromise the security of its electric system on its website
321321 in a clearly identifiable and accessible manner.
322322 SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] ANNUAL REPORT--PUBLIC NOTICE.--
323323 On July 1, 2026 and on July 1 of each subsequent year, an
324324 electric cooperative shall post a report on the electric
325325 cooperative's plan on the electric cooperative's website in a
326326 clearly identifiable and accessible manner. The report shall
327327 include a description of the electric cooperative's compliance
328328 .229738.1
329329 - 6 - underscored material = new
330330 [bracketed material] = delete
331331 1
332332 2
333333 3
334334 4
335335 5
336336 6
337337 7
338338 8
339339 9
340340 10
341341 11
342342 12
343343 13
344344 14
345345 15
346346 16
347347 17
348348 18
349349 19
350350 20
351351 21
352352 22
353353 23
354354 24
355355 25
356356 with the plan, modifications or updates that have been made to
357357 the plan and the plan's approval status pursuant to the Rural
358358 Electric Cooperative Wildfire Liability Act.
359359 SECTION 6. [NEW MATERIAL] WILDFIRE MITIGATION PLAN
360360 APPROVAL--EFFECT ON LIABILITY--RECOVERY FOR LOSS.--
361361 A. In a civil action or claim made against an
362362 electric cooperative, upon providing proof that the electric
363363 cooperative's plan has been approved by the commission and that
364364 its annual reports adhere to the requirements as set forth in
365365 Section 5 of the Rural Electric Cooperative Wildfire Liability
366366 Act, or that the electric cooperative was denied the ability to
367367 comply with an approved plan by a federal agency, landowner,
368368 member of the electric cooperative, state or tribal government,
369369 the electric cooperative is:
370370 (1) presumed to have reasonably and prudently
371371 prepared for and mitigated the risk of wildfire for the
372372 electric cooperative's electric system and operations;
373373 (2) exempt from liability for losses resulting
374374 from a wildfire; and
375375 (3) not liable for failure to implement a
376376 public safety power shutoff policy unless one is mandated by
377377 the commission.
378378 B. A plaintiff may recover economic losses or
379379 noneconomic losses from an electric cooperative as a result of
380380 a wildfire when the plaintiff demonstrates, by a showing of
381381 .229738.1
382382 - 7 - underscored material = new
383383 [bracketed material] = delete
384384 1
385385 2
386386 3
387387 4
388388 5
389389 6
390390 7
391391 8
392392 9
393393 10
394394 11
395395 12
396396 13
397397 14
398398 15
399399 16
400400 17
401401 18
402402 19
403403 20
404404 21
405405 22
406406 23
407407 24
408408 25
409409 clear and convincing evidence, that an origin and cause
410410 investigation conducted by a national wildfire coordination
411411 group or wildland fire investigator certified pursuant to
412412 federal law has determined that:
413413 (1) the cause of the wildfire is a powerline
414414 or related in any way to the electric cooperative's equipment
415415 or operations;
416416 (2) the electric cooperative's conduct
417417 intentionally set the wildfire or intentionally caused the
418418 wildfire to be set while knowing that to do so was wrong and
419419 that harm to others might be the result; and
420420 (3) the electric cooperative's conduct was the
421421 actual and proximate cause of the wildfire and loss to the
422422 plaintiff.
423423 SECTION 7. [NEW MATERIAL] LIMITATIONS--FILING CLAIMS--
424424 DAMAGE AWARDS.--
425425 A. A claim against an electric cooperative for loss
426426 resulting from a wildfire shall be filed in district court
427427 within two years after the date of ignition of the fire or it
428428 shall be forever barred.
429429 B. A plaintiff in a civil action against an
430430 electric cooperative for loss due to a wildfire, or the estate
431431 thereof, may recover for:
432432 (1) economic loss; and
433433 (2) noneconomic loss to the extent that the
434434 .229738.1
435435 - 8 - underscored material = new
436436 [bracketed material] = delete
437437 1
438438 2
439439 3
440440 4
441441 5
442442 6
443443 7
444444 8
445445 9
446446 10
447447 11
448448 12
449449 13
450450 14
451451 15
452452 16
453453 17
454454 18
455455 19
456456 20
457457 21
458458 22
459459 23
460460 24
461461 25
462462 noneconomic loss is due to death or bodily injury resulting
463463 from a burn. A claim for noneconomic loss resulting from a
464464 burn shall be denied unless the plaintiff submits to the court
465465 a diagnosis in writing by a medical provider that the burn is
466466 the result of the wildfire that serves as the basis of claim.
467467 C. A state agency or a fire response agency that
468468 incurs costs to suppress a wildfire may file a suit in district
469469 court to reclaim the incurred costs pursuant to the limitations
470470 on liability in the Rural Electric Cooperative Wildfire
471471 Liability Act.
472472 D. The total damages for any and all claims that
473473 can be awarded against an electric cooperative and its insurer
474474 per wildfire, no matter the total number of claimants or suits
475475 or actions as a result of that wildfire, shall not exceed two
476476 million dollars ($2,000,000).
477477 SECTION 8. [NEW MATERIAL] NO LIMIT ON DEFENSES.--Nothing
478478 in the Rural Electric Cooperative Wildfire Liability Act shall
479479 limit the defenses that an electric cooperative may be entitled
480480 to raise in an action for damages caused by wildfire.
481481 SECTION 9. Section 30-32-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1882,
482482 Chapter 61, Section 7, as amended) is amended to read:
483483 "30-32-4. DAMAGES TO PERSON INJURED.--Except for an
484484 electric cooperative operating pursuant to a wildfire
485485 mitigation plan approved pursuant to the Rural Electric
486486 Cooperative Wildfire Liability Act , if a person sets on fire
487487 .229738.1
488488 - 9 - underscored material = new
489489 [bracketed material] = delete
490490 1
491491 2
492492 3
493493 4
494494 5
495495 6
496496 7
497497 8
498498 9
499499 10
500500 11
501501 12
502502 13
503503 14
504504 15
505505 16
506506 17
507507 18
508508 19
509509 20
510510 21
511511 22
512512 23
513513 24
514514 25
515515 any woods, marshes or prairies, whether the person's own or
516516 not, so as thereby to occasion damage to another person or that
517517 person's property, the person shall make satisfaction in double
518518 damages to the party injured to be recovered by civil action,
519519 unless the person is conducting a prescribed burn pursuant to
520520 the Prescribed Burning Act."
521521 SECTION 10. Section 37-1-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1880,
522522 Chapter 5, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:
523523 "37-1-4. ACCOUNTS--UNWRITTEN CONTRACTS--TORTS--FRAUDS--
524524 GENERAL PROVISION.--[SEC. 4. Those] Excepting actions brought
525525 against an electric cooperative for damages due to wildfire
526526 pursuant to the Rural Electric Cooperative Wildfire Liability
527527 Act, actions founded upon accounts and unwritten contracts,
528528 [those] actions brought for injuries to property or for the
529529 conversion of personal property or for relief upon the ground
530530 of fraud and all other actions not [herein ] otherwise provided
531531 for in Chapter 37, Article 1 NMSA 1978 and specified shall be
532532 brought within four years."
533533 SECTION 11. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
534534 provisions of this act is July 1, 2025.
535535 - 10 -
536536 .229738.1