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HOUSE BILL 553
57TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 2025
INTRODUCED BY
Harlan Vincent and Roberto "Bobby" J. Gonzales
and Jimmy G. Mason and Doreen Y. Gallegos
and Meredith A. Dixon
AN ACT
RELATING TO TIMBER; ENACTING THE TIMBER GRADING ACT; PROVIDING
FOR IN-STATE STRUCTURAL TIMBER GRADING CERTIFICATES; PROVIDING
FOR THE USE OF STRUCTURAL TIMBER THAT IS GRADED AND LABELED IN-
STATE; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.
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 "Timber Grading Act".
SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the
Timber Grading Act:
A. "building inspector" means a person certified by
the construction industries division of the regulation and
licensing department and certified by one or more trade bureaus
to conduct inspections of permitted construction work to ensure
that all work performed by a contractor or homeowner complies
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with applicable building codes;
B. "certificate" means the document provided to a
person after completion of a program that allows that person to
engage in timber grading and labeling as a grader;
C. "division" means the forestry division of the
energy, minerals and natural resources department;
D. "grader" means the owner of a sawmill or a
person employed by a sawmill who is certified to inspect, grade
and label structural timber at that sawmill;
E. "label" means a document that provides
information on the grade of structural timber that was milled
in-state;
F. "program" means the structural timber grading
certificate program; and
G. "structural timber" means dimensional lumber,
structural beams and vigas milled in-state.
SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] DIVISION POWERS AND DUTIES--
STRUCTURAL TIMBER GRADING SYSTEM--STRUCTURAL TIMBER GRADING
CERTIFICATE PROGRAM--STRUCTURAL TIMBER GRADING CERTIFICATE.--
A. The division shall:
(1) create a structural timber grading
certificate program accessible to sawmill owners and the
employees of sawmills to provide training on structural timber
grading and labeling. The program may be provided by a public
post-secondary educational institution;
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(2) develop a state-specific system to grade
and label structural timber based on the system used by the
American lumber standard committee;
(3) issue a structural timber grading
certificate to a person who completes the program; and
(4) promulgate rules to carry out the
provisions of the Timber Grading Act, including for the:
(a) awarding of certificates;
(b) training components of the program;
(c) qualification of program
instructors; and
(d) grounds and processes for the
suspension or revocation of certificates.
B. The division may charge a fee not to exceed two
hundred fifty dollars ($250) for the issuance of a certificate.
C. A certificate shall include the name of the
recipient and the date of issuance and shall expire after five
years.
D. The division may suspend or revoke a certificate
for good cause as provided by rule. The grader shall be given
notice of the reason for suspension or revocation and given the
opportunity for a hearing. Procedures for the notice, hearing
and final decision shall be provided by rule in conformity with
the Uniform Licensing Act. A final agency decision may be
appealed as provided in Section 39-3-1.1 NMSA 1978.
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SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] STRUCTURAL TIMBER GRADING
LABEL--USE OF STRUCTURAL TIMBER IN CONSTRUCTION.--
A. A grader shall prepare a label for structural
timber that has been graded and shall provide the label to the
purchaser of the structural timber. The label shall include
the following information:
(1) the name of the grader;
(2) the name and location of the sawmill where
the timber was processed;
(3) the name of the timber species;
(4) the quantity and type of structural timber
that was graded and labeled;
(5) the location where the timber is to be
used;
(6) the date that the timber was cut and
processed;
(7) the date on which the timber was graded;
and
(8) the moisture content of the timber at the
time of grading.
B. A grader shall only grade and label structural
timber that the grader has processed at the sawmill the grader
owns or is employed by.
C. Structural timber that has been graded and
certified in-state may be used in all residential and
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commercial buildings in the state.
D. The end user of structural timber that has been
graded and labeled in-state shall provide the label to the
building inspector in lieu of a grade stamp, and the label
shall be accepted as proof of grading. Timber that has been
graded and labeled in-state is equivalent to structural timber
grade stamped by an accredited lumber grading or inspection
agency.
SECTION 5. APPROPRIATION.--One hundred fifty thousand
dollars ($150,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the
energy, minerals and natural resources department for
expenditure in fiscal year 2026 to contract with timber grading
experts to establish the structural timber grading certificate
program and to develop curricula for the program. Any
unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of
fiscal year 2026 shall revert to the general fund.
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