New Mexico 2025 Regular Session

New Mexico House Bill HB61 Compare Versions

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

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28	28	HOUSE BILL 61
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
38	38
39	39	MEXICO
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41	41	-
42	42	FIRST SESSION
43	43	,
44	44
45	45	2025
46	46	INTRODUCED BY
47	47	Christine Chandler
48	48	AN ACT
49	49	RELATING TO CONSUMER PROTECTION; AMENDING DEFINITIONS IN THE
50	50	UNFAIR PRACTICES ACT; INCREASING THE CIVIL PENALTY FOR
51	51	VIOLATIONS TO THAT ACT.
52	52	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
53	53	SECTION 1. Section 57-12-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967,
54	54	Chapter 268, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:
55	55	"57-12-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Unfair Practices
56	56	Act:
57	57	A. "person" means, where applicable, natural
58	58	persons, corporations, trusts, partnerships, associations,
59	59	cooperative associations, clubs, companies, firms, joint
60	60	ventures or syndicates;
61	61	B. "seller-initiated telephone sale" means a sale,
62	62	lease or rental of goods or services in which the seller or the
63	63	.229218.1SA underscored material = new
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90	90	seller's representative solicits the sale by telephoning the
91	91	prospective purchaser and in which the sale is consummated
92	92	entirely by telephone or mail, but does not include a
93	93	transaction:
94	94	(1) in which a person solicits a sale from a
95	95	prospective purchaser who has previously made an authorized
96	96	purchase from the seller's business; or
97	97	(2) in which the purchaser is accorded the
98	98	right of rescission by the provisions of the federal Consumer
99	99	Credit Protection Act, 15 U.S.C. 1635, or regulations issued
100	100	pursuant thereto;
101	101	C. "trade" or "commerce" includes the advertising,
102	102	the sale, lease, rent or loan, the offering for sale, lease,
103	103	rent or loan, the extension of credit or collection of debts or
104	104	the distribution of any services, including services provided
105	105	by licensed professionals , [and] any property, tangible or
106	106	intangible, real, personal or mixed , and any other article,
107	107	commodity or thing of value, including any trade or commerce
108	108	directly or indirectly affecting the people of this state;
109	109	D. "unfair or deceptive trade practice" means an
110	110	act specifically declared unlawful pursuant to the Unfair
111	111	Practices Act, a false or misleading oral or written statement,
112	112	visual description or other representation of any kind
113	113	knowingly made [in connection with the sale, lease, rental or
114	114	loan of goods or services or in the extension of credit or in
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143	143	the collection of debts ] by a person in the regular course of
144	144	the person's trade or commerce, that may, tends to or does
145	145	deceive or mislead any person or other unfair methods of
146	146	competition or unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the
147	147	regular course of trade or commerce and includes:
148	148	(1) representing goods or services as those of
149	149	another when the goods or services are not the goods or
150	150	services of another;
151	151	(2) causing confusion or misunderstanding as
152	152	to the source, sponsorship, approval or certification of goods
153	153	or services;
154	154	(3) causing confusion or misunderstanding as
155	155	to affiliation, connection or association with or certification
156	156	by another;
157	157	(4) using deceptive representations or
158	158	designations of geographic origin in connection with goods or
159	159	services;
160	160	(5) representing that goods or services have
161	161	sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses,
162	162	benefits or quantities that they do not have or that a person
163	163	has a sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation or connection
164	164	that the person does not have;
165	165	(6) representing that goods are original or
166	166	new if they are deteriorated, altered, reconditioned,
167	167	reclaimed, used or secondhand;
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196	196	(7) representing that goods or services are of
197	197	a particular standard, quality or grade or that goods are of a
198	198	particular style or model if they are of another;
199	199	(8) disparaging the goods, services or
200	200	business of another by false or misleading representations;
201	201	(9) offering goods or services with intent not
202	202	to supply them in the quantity requested by the prospective
203	203	buyer to the extent of the stock available, unless the
204	204	purchaser is purchasing for resale;
205	205	(10) offering goods or services with intent
206	206	not to supply reasonable expectable public demand;
207	207	(11) making false or misleading statements of
208	208	fact concerning the price of goods or services, the prices of
209	209	competitors or one's own price at a past or future time or the
210	210	reasons for, existence of or amounts of price reduction;
211	211	(12) making false or misleading statements of
212	212	fact for the purpose of obtaining appointments for the
213	213	demonstration, exhibition or other sales presentation of goods
214	214	or services;
215	215	(13) packaging goods for sale in a container
216	216	that bears a trademark or trade name identified with goods
217	217	formerly packaged in the container, without authorization,
218	218	unless the container is labeled or marked to disclaim a
219	219	connection between the contents and the trademark or trade
220	220	name;
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249	249	(14) using exaggeration, innuendo or ambiguity
250	250	as to a material fact or failing to state a material fact if
251	251	doing so deceives or tends to deceive;
252	252	(15) stating that a transaction involves
253	253	rights, remedies or obligations that it does not involve;
254	254	(16) stating that services, replacements or
255	255	repairs are needed if they are not needed;
256	256	(17) failing to deliver the quality or
257	257	quantity of goods or services contracted for;
258	258	(18) violating the Tobacco Escrow Fund Act; or
259	259	(19) offering or providing unposted or
260	260	unadvertised pricing or service based on the buyer's gender or
261	261	perceived gender identity; provided, however, that this
262	262	provision does not apply to persons regulated by the office of
263	263	superintendent of insurance pursuant to the New Mexico
264	264	Insurance Code; and
265	265	E. "unconscionable trade practice" means an act or
266	266	practice in connection with [the sale, lease, rental or loan,
267	267	or in connection with the offering for sale, lease, rental or
268	268	loan, of any goods or services, including services provided by
269	269	licensed professionals, or in the extension of credit or in the
270	270	collection of debts] trade or commerce that to a person's
271	271	detriment:
272	272	(1) takes advantage of the lack of knowledge,
273	273	ability, experience or capacity of a person to a grossly unfair
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302	302	degree; or
303	303	(2) results in a gross disparity between the
304	304	value received by a person and the price paid or value
305	305	exchanged."
306	306	SECTION 2. Section 57-12-11 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1970,
307	307	Chapter 38, Section 2) is amended to read:
308	308	"57-12-11. CIVIL PENALTY.--In any action brought under
309	309	Section [49-15-7 NMSA 1953 ] 57-12-8 NMSA 1978, if the court
310	310	finds that a person is willfully using or has willfully used a
311	311	method, act or practice declared unlawful by the Unfair
312	312	Practices Act, the attorney general, upon petition to the
313	313	court, may recover on behalf of the state [of New Mexico ] a
314	314	civil penalty [of] not exceeding [five thousand dollars
315	315	($5,000)] ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per violation and an
316	316	additional amount not exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars
317	317	($25,000) per violation if an unfair or deceptive trade
318	318	practice or unconscionable trade practice arises out of a
319	319	disaster or state of emergency as declared by a federal, state
320	320	or local official. The attorney general may also recover the
321	321	costs of investigation and enforcement whenever a court imposes
322	322	a civil liability."
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