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HOUSE BILL 339
57
TH LEGISLATURE
-
STATE
OF
NEW
MEXICO
-
FIRST SESSION
,
2025
INTRODUCED BY
Angelica Rubio and Andrea Romero
AN ACT
RELATING TO HUMAN RIGHTS; AMENDING THE HUMAN RIGHTS ACT BY
PROVIDING THAT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION BASED ON A HOUSING
APPLICANT'S SOURCE OF INCOME, INCLUDING THE USE OF AN INVALID
SCREENING PROCESS, IS AN UNLAWFUL DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICE
PURSUANT TO THE HUMAN RIGHTS ACT; PROVIDING FOR ENFORCEMENT BY
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR CERTAIN DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICES
RELATED TO HOUSING.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 28-1-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969,
Chapter 196, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:
"28-1-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Human Rights Act:
A. "person" means one or more individuals, a
partnership, association, organization, corporation, joint
venture, legal representative, trustees, receivers, or the
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state and all of its political subdivisions;
B. "employer" means any person employing four or
more persons and any person acting for an employer;
C. "commission" means the human rights commission;
D. "director" or "bureau" means the human rights
bureau of the labor relations division of the workforce
solutions department;
E. "employee" means any person in the employ of an
employer or an applicant for employment;
F. "labor organization" means any organization that
exists for the purpose in whole or in part of collective
bargaining or of dealing with employers concerning grievances,
terms or conditions of employment or of other mutual aid or
protection in connection with employment;
G. "employment agency" means any person regularly
undertaking with or without compensation to procure
opportunities to work or to procure, recruit or refer
employees;
H. "public accommodation" means any governmental
entity or any establishment that provides or offers its
services, facilities, accommodations or goods to the public,
but does not include a bona fide private club or other place or
establishment that is by its nature and use distinctly private;
I. "public contractor" means a person who receives
public funds as a result of contracting with a governmental
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entity;
J. "political subdivision" means any:
(1) county;
(2) incorporated city, town or village;
(3) drainage, conservancy, irrigation, water
and sanitation or other district;
(4) mutual domestic association;
(5) public water cooperative association; or
(6) community ditch association;
K. "housing accommodation" means any building or
portion of a building that is constructed or to be constructed,
which is used or intended for use as the residence or sleeping
place of any individual;
L. "real property" means lands, leaseholds or
commercial or industrial buildings, whether constructed or to
be constructed, offered for sale or rent, and any land rented
or leased for the use, parking or storage of house trailers;
M. "secretary" means the secretary of workforce
solutions;
N. "unlawful discriminatory practices" means those
unlawful practices and acts specified in Section 28-1-7 NMSA
1978;
O. "physical or mental disability" means a physical
or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of a
person's major life activities. A person is also considered to
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have a mental or physical disability if the person has a record
of a physical or mental disability or is regarded as having a
physical or mental disability;
P. "major life activities" means functions such as
caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking,
seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning and working;
Q. "applicant for employment" means a person
applying for a position as an employee;
R. "sex" means a person's categorization as male,
female or intersex based on biology, physiology and physical
characteristics;
S. "sexual orientation" means a person's physical,
romantic or emotional attraction to persons of the same or a
different gender or the absence of any such attraction;
T. "gender identity" means a person's self-
perception, based on the person's appearance, behavior or
physical characteristics, that the person exhibits more
masculinity or femininity or the absence of masculinity or
femininity whether or not it matches the person's gender or sex
assigned at birth;
U. "gender" means an individual or societal
expectation or perception of a person as masculine or feminine
based on appearance, behavior or physical characteristics;
V. "reasonable accommodation" means modification or
adaptation of the work environment, work schedule, work rules
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or job responsibilities, and reached through good faith efforts
to explore less restrictive or less expensive alternatives to
enable an employee to perform the essential functions of the
job and that does not impose an undue hardship on the employer;
W. "undue hardship" means an accommodation
requiring significant difficulty or expense when considered in
light of the following factors:
(1) the nature and cost of the accommodation;
(2) the financial resources of the employer
involved in the provision of the reasonable accommodation;
(3) the number of persons the employer
employs;
(4) the effect of the accommodation on
expenses and resources;
(5) the impact of the accommodation otherwise
upon the employer's business;
(6) the overall financial resources of the
employer;
(7) the overall size of the business of an
employer with respect to the number, type and location of its
facilities;
(8) the type of operation of the employer,
including the composition, structure and functions of the
workforce of the employer; or
(9) the geographic separateness or
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administrative or fiscal relationship to the employer of the
employer's facilities;
X. "cultural or religious headdresses" includes
hijabs, head wraps or other headdresses used as part of an
individual's personal cultural or religious beliefs;
Y. "protective hairstyles" includes such hairstyles
as braids, locs, twists, tight coils or curls, cornrows, bantu
knots, afros, weaves, wigs or head wraps;
Z. "race" includes traits historically associated
with race, including hair texture, length of hair, protective
hairstyles or cultural or religious headdresses;
AA. "state" means the state of New Mexico or any of
its agencies, departments, boards, instrumentalities or
institutions;
BB. "governmental entity" means the state or any
public body;
CC. "public body" means a state or local
government, an advisory board, a commission, an agency or an
entity created by the constitution of New Mexico or any branch
of government that receives public funding, including political
subdivisions, special tax districts, school districts and
institutions of higher education;
DD. "services" means any function, program,
activity or benefit; [and ]
EE. "military status" means a person's active
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membership in the armed forces or state defense force or being
a veteran of the armed forces or state defense force and
includes a spouse or child of an active member or veteran of
the armed forces or state defense force;
FF. "source of income" means any lawful and
verifiable source of money, funds, payments or other monetary
consideration, including:
(1) income from a lawful profession,
occupation or job;
(2) social security benefits;
(3) pension, annuity, alimony or child support
income; or
(4) any form of federal, state or local
government or nonprofit organization assistance or housing
assistance, including vouchers paid directly to a housing
provider even if the assistance includes requirements for
inspections, administrative processes or contracting
agreements;
GG. "invalid screening process" means a screening
process used to determine the sufficiency of income or assets
of an individual or a housing applicant that:
(1) fails to include all of the individual's
or the housing applicant's sources of income; or
(2) fails to limit the calculation of an
applicant's income requirement to the remaining ratio of income
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to housing payment due after income from federal, state, local
or tribal housing assistance has been subtracted from the total
amount of the housing payment; and
HH. "housing applicant" means an individual
applying to rent or own a housing accommodation ."
SECTION 2. Section 28-1-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1987,
Chapter 342, Section 18) is amended to read:
"28-1-4. POWERS AND DUTIES.--
A. Except as provided in Section 28-1-7.3 NMSA
1978, the commission may:
(1) hear complaints and issue orders,
including cease and desist orders concerning alleged unlawful
discriminatory practice; and
(2) hold hearings, subpoena witnesses and
compel their attendance, administer oaths, take the testimony
of any person under oath, order depositions and require the
production for examination of any books, records,
correspondence, documents and other evidence relating to any
matter under investigation or in question before the
commission. Contumacy or refusal to obey a subpoena issued
pursuant to this section constitutes contempt punishable by the
district court of the judicial district in which the witness
may be found. No individual shall be excused from attending
and testifying or from producing evidence in obedience to a
subpoena issued pursuant to this section on the grounds that
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the testimony or evidence required of [him ] the individual may
tend to incriminate [him ] or subject [him] that individual to a
penalty or a forfeiture. However, no individual shall be
prosecuted or subjected to any penalty or forfeiture concerning
any matter for which [he ] the individual is compelled to
testify or give evidence after having claimed [his ] the right
against self-incrimination. Nevertheless, the individual so
testifying shall not be exempt from prosecution and punishment
for perjury committed while testifying.
B. Except as provided in Section 28-1-7.3 NMSA
1978, the human rights bureau of the labor relations division
of the workforce solutions department may:
(1) receive and investigate complaints of
alleged unlawful discriminatory practice;
(2) seek to eliminate discrimination through
conciliation and persuasion by voluntary conferences with
interested parties;
(3) recommend application by the director to a
district court in the county where the violating party resides
for specific performance of any conciliation agreement or for
enforcement of any order issued by the commission;
(4) endeavor to eliminate prejudice and to
further good will. The [division ] bureau, in cooperation with
the [state department of ] public education department and local
boards of education, shall encourage an educational program for
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all residents of the state, calculated to eliminate prejudice,
its harmful effects and its incompatibility with principles of
fair play, equality and justice;
(5) encourage voluntary advisory groups to
study problems of discrimination in all fields, to foster,
through community efforts, good will and cooperation in this
state and to make recommendations to the secretary for the
development of policies and procedures [which ] that the
secretary may recommend to appropriate state agencies;
(6) seek and enlist the cooperation and
contributions and grants of individuals and foundations,
private, charitable, religious, labor, civic and benevolent
organizations and the federal government for the purposes of
this section;
(7) issue publications and release the results
of investigation and research [which ] that in the secretary's
judgment will tend to promote good will and prevent or
eliminate discrimination; and
(8) submit annually a written report of all
its activities and recommendations to the secretary, the
governor and the legislature."
SECTION 3. Section 28-1-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969,
Chapter 196, Section 7, as amended) is amended to read:
"28-1-7. UNLAWFUL DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICE--EMPLOYER--
LABOR ORGANIZATION--APPRENTICESHIP COMMITTEE--EMPLOYMENT
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AGENCY.--It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for:
A. an employer, unless based on a bona fide
occupational qualification or other statutory prohibition, to
refuse to hire, to discharge, to promote or demote or to
discriminate in matters of compensation, terms, conditions or
privileges of employment against any person otherwise qualified
because of race, age, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, physical or mental disability, serious medical
condition or military status, or, if the employer has fifty or
more employees, spousal affiliation; provided, however, that 29
U.S.C. Section 631(c)(1) and (2) shall apply to discrimination
based on age;
B. a labor organization to exclude a person or to
expel or otherwise discriminate against any of its members or
against any employer or employee because of race, religion,
color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation,
gender, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition
related to pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation,
physical or mental disability, serious medical condition or
military status;
C. any employer, labor organization or joint
apprenticeship committee to refuse to admit or employ any
person in any program established to provide an apprenticeship
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or other training or retraining because of race, religion,
color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation,
gender, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition
related to pregnancy or childbirth, physical or mental
disability, serious medical condition or military status, or,
if the employer has fifty or more employees, spousal
affiliation;
D. any person, employer, employment agency or labor
organization to print or circulate or cause to be printed or
circulated any statement, advertisement or publication, to use
any form of application for employment or membership or to make
any inquiry regarding prospective membership or employment that
expresses, directly or indirectly, any limitation,
specification or discrimination as to race, color, religion,
national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender,
gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, physical or mental disability, serious
medical condition or military status, or, if the employer has
fifty or more employees, spousal affiliation, unless based on a
bona fide occupational qualification;
E. an employment agency to refuse to list and
properly classify for employment or refer a person for
employment in a known available job, for which the person is
otherwise qualified, because of race, religion, color, national
origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender
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identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation, physical or
mental disability or serious medical condition, unless based on
a bona fide occupational qualification, or to comply with a
request from an employer for referral of applicants for
employment if the request indicates, either directly or
indirectly, that the employer discriminates in employment on
the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry,
sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, pregnancy,
childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or childbirth,
spousal affiliation, physical or mental disability, serious
medical condition, unless based on a bona fide occupational
qualification, or military status;
[F. any person in any public accommodation to make
a distinction, directly or indirectly, in offering or refusing
to offer its services, facilities, accommodations or goods to
any person because of race, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, spousal affiliation, physical or mental disability
or military status; provided that the physical or mental
disability is unrelated to a person's ability to acquire or
rent and maintain particular real property or housing
accommodation;
G. any person to:
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(1) refuse to sell, rent, assign, lease or
sublease or offer for sale, rental, lease, assignment or
sublease any housing accommodation or real property to any
person or to refuse to negotiate for the sale, rental, lease,
assignment or sublease of any housing accommodation or real
property to any person because of race, religion, color,
national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender,
gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation, physical or
mental disability or military status; provided that the
physical or mental disability is unrelated to a person's
ability to acquire or rent and maintain particular real
property or housing accommodation;
(2) discriminate against any person in the
terms, conditions or privileges of the sale, rental,
assignment, lease or sublease of any housing accommodation or
real property or in the provision of facilities or services in
connection therewith because of race, religion, color, national
origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender
identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation, physical or
mental disability or military status; provided that the
physical or mental disability is unrelated to a person's
ability to acquire or rent and maintain particular real
property or housing accommodation; or
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(3) print, circulate, display or mail or cause
to be printed, circulated, displayed or mailed any statement,
advertisement, publication or sign or use any form of
application for the purchase, rental, lease, assignment or
sublease of any housing accommodation or real property or to
make any record or inquiry regarding the prospective purchase,
rental, lease, assignment or sublease of any housing
accommodation or real property that expresses any preference,
limitation or discrimination as to race, religion, color,
national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender,
gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation, physical or
mental disability or military status; provided that the
physical or mental disability is unrelated to a person's
ability to acquire or rent and maintain particular real
property or housing accommodation;
H. any person to whom application is made either
for financial assistance for the acquisition, construction,
rehabilitation, repair or maintenance of any housing
accommodation or real property or for any type of consumer
credit, including financial assistance for the acquisition of
any consumer good as defined by Section 55-9-102 NMSA 1978, to:
(1) consider the race, religion, color,
national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender,
gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
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pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation or physical or
mental disability of any individual in the granting,
withholding, extending, modifying or renewing or in the fixing
of the rates, terms, conditions or provisions of any financial
assistance or in the extension of services in connection with
the request for financial assistance; or
(2) use any form of application for financial
assistance or to make any record or inquiry in connection with
applications for financial assistance that expresses, directly
or indirectly, any limitation, specification or discrimination
as to race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex,
sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, pregnancy,
childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or childbirth,
spousal affiliation or physical or mental disability;
I.] F. any person or employer to:
(1) aid, abet, incite, compel or coerce the
doing of any unlawful discriminatory practice or to attempt to
do so;
(2) engage in any form of threats, reprisal or
discrimination against any person who has opposed any unlawful
discriminatory practice or has filed a complaint, testified or
participated in any proceeding under the Human Rights Act; or
(3) willfully obstruct or prevent any person
from complying with the provisions of the Human Rights Act or
to resist, prevent, impede or interfere with the commission or
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any of its members, staff or representatives in the performance
of their duties under the Human Rights Act;
[J.] G. any employer to refuse or fail to
accommodate a person's physical or mental disability or serious
medical condition, unless such accommodation is unreasonable or
an undue hardship;
[K.] H. any employer to refuse or fail to make
reasonable accommodation for an employee or job applicant with
a need arising from pregnancy, childbirth or condition related
to pregnancy or childbirth; or
[L.] I. any employer to require an employee with a
need arising from pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth to take paid or unpaid leave if another
reasonable accommodation can be provided unless the employee
voluntarily requests to be placed on leave or the employee is
placed on leave pursuant to federal law [or
M. a governmental entity or a public contractor to
refuse or otherwise limit or put conditions on services to a
person because of race, age, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, physical or mental disability, serious medical
condition or spousal affiliation; provided that nothing in this
subsection shall be construed to require a governmental entity
or a public contractor to provide services or programs beyond
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services or programs to the specific populations that the
governmental entity or public contractor is tasked with
serving]."
SECTION 4. Section 28-1-7.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003,
Chapter 231, Section 1) is amended to read:
"28-1-7.1. [PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST ]
PROHIBITED DISCRIMINATORY ACTS --SENIORS IN CERTAIN VOLUNTEER
SERVICE--GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES--PUBLIC CONTRACTORS--GOVERNMENT
PROGRAMS OR SERVICES--CONSUMER GOODS FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE .--
A. The state or a political subdivision of the
state, a governmental entity or a public contractor shall not:
(1) exclude [a person] an individual who is
older than sixty years of age from volunteer service as long as
the [person] individual is physically, mentally and
professionally capable of performing the services involved.
For the purposes of this section, "professionally capable"
means having the ability to demonstrate reasonable proficiency
and having any relevant certification in accordance with the
laws, rules or technical standards that may govern the
particular profession; or
(2) refuse or otherwise limit or put
conditions on services to an individual because of race, age,
religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual
orientation, gender, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or
condition related to pregnancy or childbirth, physical or
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mental disability, serious medical condition or spousal
affiliation; provided that nothing in this subsection shall be
construed to require a governmental entity or a public
contractor to provide services or programs beyond services or
programs to the specific populations that the governmental
entity or public contractor is tasked with serving.
B. It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice
for any person to whom application is made either for financial
assistance or for any type of consumer credit, including
financial assistance for the acquisition of any consumer good
as defined by Section 55-9-102 NMSA 1978, to:
(1) consider the race, religion, color,
national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender,
gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation or physical or
mental disability of any individual in the granting,
withholding, extending, modifying or renewing or in the fixing
of the rates, terms, conditions or provisions of any financial
assistance or in the extension of services in connection with
the request for financial assistance; or
(2) use any form of application for financial
assistance or to make any record or inquiry in connection with
applications for financial assistance that expresses, directly
or indirectly, any limitation, specification or discrimination
as to race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex,
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sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, pregnancy,
childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or childbirth,
spousal affiliation or physical or mental disability ."
SECTION 5. A new section of the Human Rights Act, Section
28-1-7.3 NMSA 1978, is enacted to read:
"28-1-7.3. [NEW MATERIAL ] UNLAWFUL DISCRIMINATORY
PRACTICE--PUBLIC ACCOMMODATION--PUBLIC HOUSING ACCOMMODATION--
ENFORCEMENT.--
A. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a
person in any public accommodation to make a distinction,
directly or indirectly, in offering or refusing to offer its
services, facilities, accommodations or goods to any individual
because of that individual's:
(1) race, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, spousal affiliation or military status; or
(2) physical or mental disability; provided
that the physical or mental disability is unrelated to that
individual's ability to acquire or rent and maintain any
particular real property or housing.
B. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a
person to refuse to sell, rent, assign, lease or sublease or
offer for sale, rental, lease, assignment or sublease any
housing accommodation or real property to any individual or to
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refuse to negotiate for the sale, rental, lease, assignment or
sublease of any housing accommodation or real property to an
individual because of that individual's:
(1) race, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth, condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, spousal affiliation or military status;
(2) physical or mental disability; provided
that the physical or mental disability is unrelated to an
individual's ability to acquire or rent and maintain particular
real property or housing accommodation; or
(3) source of income; provided that the use of
an invalid screening process shall be evidence of a source of
income discriminatory practice.
C. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a
person to discriminate against an individual in the terms,
conditions or privileges of the sale, rental, assignment, lease
or sublease of a housing accommodation or real property or in
the provision of facilities or services in connection therewith
because of that individual's:
(1) race, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth, condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, spousal affiliation or military status;
(2) physical or mental disability; provided
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that the physical or mental disability is unrelated to the
individual's ability to acquire or rent and maintain particular
real property or housing accommodation; or
(3) source of income; provided that the use of
an invalid screening process shall be evidence of a source of
income discriminatory practice.
D. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a
person to print, circulate, display or mail or cause to be
printed, circulated, displayed or mailed any statement,
advertisement, publication or sign or use any form of
application for the purchase, rental, lease, assignment or
sublease of any housing accommodation or real property or to
make any record or inquiry regarding the prospective purchase,
rental, lease, assignment or sublease of any housing
accommodation or real property that expresses any preference,
limitation or discrimination as to an individual's:
(1) race, religion, color, national origin,
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
pregnancy, childbirth, condition related to pregnancy or
childbirth, spousal affiliation or military status;
(2) physical or mental disability; provided
that the physical or mental disability is unrelated to an
individual's ability to acquire or rent and maintain particular
real property or housing accommodation; or
(3) source of income; provided that the use of
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an invalid screening process shall be evidence of a source of
income discriminatory practice.
E. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a
person to whom application is made for financial assistance for
the acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, repair or
maintenance of any housing accommodation or real property to:
(1) consider the race, religion, color,
national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender,
gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or condition related to
pregnancy or childbirth, spousal affiliation or physical or
mental disability of an individual in the granting,
withholding, extending, modifying or renewing or in the fixing
of the rates, terms, conditions or provisions of any financial
assistance or in the extension of services in connection with
the request for financial assistance; or
(2) use any form of application for financial
assistance or to make any record or inquiry in connection with
applications for financial assistance that expresses, directly
or indirectly, any limitation, specification or discrimination
as to race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex,
sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, pregnancy,
childbirth or condition related to pregnancy or childbirth,
spousal affiliation, military status, source of income or
physical or mental disability.
F. A complaint alleging an unlawful discriminatory
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practice in violation of this section:
(1) shall be filed with the attorney general.
The complaint shall be written and shall state the name and
address of the person alleged to have engaged in the
discriminatory practice. Upon receipt of a complaint, the
attorney general shall review the complaint to ensure the
alleged discriminatory practice falls within the scope of this
section, and if so, the attorney general shall conduct an
investigation and determine any further action as provided in
this section; or
(2) may be instituted by the attorney general
in a civil action on behalf of the state alleging an unlawful
discriminatory practice in violation of this section if the
attorney general has reasonable belief that a person has
violated this section and that instituting a proceeding against
that person would be in the public interest. The action may be
brought in the district court of the county in which the person
alleged to have violated that act resides or in which the
person's principal place of business is located. The attorney
general shall not be required to post bond when seeking a
temporary or permanent injunction in the civil action.
G. The attorney general shall have the authority to
investigate a complaint pursuant to this section and may:
(1) request and review relevant documents,
records or communications from any person alleged to have
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engaged in discriminatory practices;
(2) issue subpoenas to compel the production
of evidence or testimony necessary for the investigation;
(3) conduct interviews or depositions of
individuals with knowledge of the alleged discriminatory
practices;
(4) initiate civil proceedings in a court of
competent jurisdiction to enforce compliance with the
provisions of this section and seek appropriate remedies,
including injunctive relief, civil penalties or other equitable
relief as deemed necessary; and
(5) refer matters for criminal prosecution if
evidence of willful or egregious violations is discovered.
H. In a civil action brought under this section, if
a court finds that a person willfully committed an act in
violation of this section, the attorney general may seek to
recover a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars
($5,000) per violation, in addition to any equitable relief
imposed by the court.
I. The attorney general may, in addition to or as
an alternative to pursuing a civil action as provided in this
section, pursue criminal charges against a person for an
alleged violation of this section under the applicable
provisions of the Criminal Code. Venue for any criminal action
shall be in the judicial district where the violation
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occurred."
SECTION 6. Section 28-1-10 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969,
Chapter 196, Section 9, as amended) is amended to read:
"28-1-10. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE--COMMISSION--BUREAU--
ATTORNEY GENERAL.--
A. Except for a complaint alleging a public
accommodation or a public housing accommodation violation, as
provided in Section 28-1-7.3 NMSA 1978 , a person claiming to be
aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice and a member
of the commission who has reason to believe that discrimination
has occurred may file with the human rights bureau of the labor
relations division of the [labor ] workforce solutions
department a written complaint that shall state the name and
address of the person alleged to have engaged in the
discriminatory practice, all information relating to the
discriminatory practice and any other information that may be
required by the commission. All complaints shall be filed with
the division within three hundred days after the alleged act
was committed.
B. The director shall advise the respondent that a
complaint has been filed against the respondent and shall
furnish the respondent with a copy of the complaint. The
director shall promptly investigate the alleged act. If the
director determines that the complaint lacks probable cause,
the director shall dismiss the complaint and notify the
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complainant and respondent of the dismissal. The complaint
shall be dismissed subject to appeal as in the case of other
orders of the commission.
C. If the director determines that probable cause
exists for the complaint, the director shall attempt to achieve
a satisfactory adjustment of the complaint through persuasion
and conciliation. The director and staff shall neither
disclose what has transpired during the attempted conciliation
nor divulge information obtained during any hearing before the
commission or a commissioner prior to final action relating to
the complaint. An officer or employee of the [labor ] workforce
solutions department who makes public in any manner information
in violation of this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor and
upon conviction shall be fined not more than one thousand
dollars ($1,000) or imprisoned not more than one year.
D. A person who has filed a complaint with the
[human rights division ] bureau may request and shall receive an
order of nondetermination from the director without delay after
the division's receipt of the complaint and in jointly filed
cases, after the federal complaint has been closed. The order
of nondetermination may be appealed pursuant to the provisions
of Section 28-1-13 NMSA 1978.
E. In the case of a complaint filed by or on behalf
of a person who has an urgent medical condition and has
notified the director in writing of the test results, the
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director shall make the determination whether probable cause
exists for the complaint and shall attempt any conciliation
efforts within ninety days of the filing of the written
complaint or notification, whichever occurs last.
F. If conciliation fails or if, in the opinion of
the director, informal conference cannot result in conciliation
and the complainant has not requested a waiver of right to
hearing pursuant to the provisions of Subsection J of this
section, the commission shall issue a written complaint in its
own name against the respondent, except that in the case of a
complaint filed by or on behalf of a person who has an urgent
medical condition, who has notified the director in writing of
the test results and who so elects, the director shall issue an
order of nondetermination, which may be appealed pursuant to
the provisions of Section 28-1-13 NMSA 1978. The complaint
shall set forth the alleged discriminatory practice, the
secretary's [regulation ] rule or the section of the Human
Rights Act alleged to have been violated and the relief
requested. The complaint shall require the respondent to
answer the allegations of the complaint at a hearing before the
commission or hearing officer and shall specify the date, time
and place of the hearing. The hearing date shall not be more
than fifteen or less than ten days after service of the
complaint. The complaint shall be served on the respondent
personally or by registered mail, return receipt requested.
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The hearing shall be held in the county where the respondent is
doing business or the alleged discriminatory practice occurred.
G. Within one year of the filing of a complaint by
a person aggrieved, the commission or its director shall:
(1) dismiss the complaint for lack of probable
cause;
(2) achieve satisfactory adjustment of the
complaint as evidenced by order of the commission; or
(3) file a formal complaint on behalf of the
commission.
H. Upon the commission's petition, the district
court of the county where the respondent is doing business or
the alleged discriminatory practice occurred may grant
injunctive relief pending hearing by the commission or pending
judicial review of an order of the commission so as to preserve
the status quo or to ensure that the commission's order as
issued will be effective. The commission shall not be required
to post a bond.
I. For purposes of this section, "urgent medical
condition" means any medical condition as defined by an
appropriate medical authority through documentation or by
direct witness of a clearly visible disablement that poses a
serious threat to the life of the person with the medical
condition.
J. The complainant may seek a trial de novo in the
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district court in lieu of a hearing before the commission,
provided the complainant requests from the director, in
writing, a waiver of complainant's right to hearing within
sixty days of service of written notice of a probable cause
determination by the director. The director shall approve the
waiver request and shall serve notice of the waiver upon the
complainant and respondent. The complainant may request a
trial de novo pursuant to Section 28-1-13 NMSA 1978 within
ninety days from the date of service of the waiver. Issuance
of the notice shall be deemed a final order of the commission
for the purpose of appeal pursuant to Section 28-1-13 NMSA
1978."
SECTION 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
provisions of this act is July 1, 2025.
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