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SENATE BILL 7
57
TH LEGISLATURE
-
STATE
OF
NEW
MEXICO
-
FIRST SESSION
,
2025
INTRODUCED BY
William E. Sharer
AN ACT
RELATING TO MUNICIPALITIES; AUTHORIZING MUNICIPALITIES TO
ACQUIRE, OPERATE AND MAINTAIN A MUNICIPAL UTILITY TO PROVIDE
FOR STORM WATER SERVICE AND CHARGE A FEE OR ADVANCE PAYMENT FOR
THE STORM WATER SERVICE; ADDING STORM WATER FACILITIES TO THE
DEFINITION OF "MUNICIPAL UTILITY" IN THE MUNICIPAL CODE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. A new section of the Municipal Code is enacted
to read:
"[NEW MATERIAL] STORM WATER MUNICIPAL UTILITY--AUTHORITY
TO ACQUIRE FACILITIES AND PROVIDE SERVICE--FEE.--
A. A municipality may, by ordinance, acquire,
operate and maintain a municipal utility to provide for storm
water service for the collection, treatment, storage or
disposal of storm water.
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B. A municipality may require each person owning or
controlling real property in the municipality to pay a just and
reasonable fee for storm water service provided by a municipal
utility."
SECTION 2. Section 3-1-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1965,
Chapter 300, Section 14-1-2, as amended) is amended to read:
"3-1-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Municipal Code:
A. "acquire" or "acquisition" means purchase,
construct, accept or any combination of purchasing,
constructing or accepting;
B. "business" means any person, occupation,
profession, trade, pursuit, corporation, institution,
establishment, utility, article, commodity or device engaged in
making a profit, but does not include an employee;
C. "census" means any enumeration of population of
a municipality conducted under the direction of the government
of the United States, the state of New Mexico or the
municipality;
D. "county" means the county in which the
municipality or land is situated;
E. "district court" means the district court of the
district in which the municipality or land is situated;
F. "governing body" means the city council or city
commission of a city, the board of trustees of a town or
village, the council of incorporated counties and the board of
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county commissioners of H class counties;
G. "municipal" or "municipality" means any
incorporated city, town or village, whether incorporated under
general act, special act or special charter, incorporated
counties and H class counties;
H. "municipal utility" means sewer facilities,
water facilities, gas facilities, electric facilities, storm
water facilities, generating facilities or any interest in
jointly owned generating facilities owned by a municipality and
serving the public. A municipality that owns both electric
facilities and any interest in jointly owned generating
facilities may, by ordinance, designate such interest in
jointly owned generating facilities as part of its electric
facilities. Generating facilities shall be considered as part
of a municipality's electric facilities unless the municipality
designates, by ordinance, the generating facilities as a
separate municipal utility, such designation being conclusive
subject to any existing property rights or contract rights;
I. "public ground" means any real property owned or
leased by a municipality;
J. "publish" or "publication" means printing in a
newspaper that maintains an office in the municipality and is
of general circulation within the municipality or, if such
newspaper is a nondaily paper that will not be circulated to
the public in time to meet publication requirements or if there
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is no newspaper that maintains an office in the municipality
and is of general circulation within the municipality, then
"publish" or "publication" means posting in six public places
within the municipality on the first day that publication is
required in a newspaper that maintains an office in the
municipality and is of general circulation within the
municipality. One of the public places where posting shall be
made is the office of the municipal clerk, who shall maintain
the posting during the length of time necessary to comply with
the provisions relating to the number of times publication is
required in a newspaper of general circulation within the
municipality. The municipal clerk may, in addition to posting,
publish one or more times in a newspaper of general circulation
in the municipality;
K. "qualified elector" means any person who is a
resident of the municipality and is registered to vote under
the provisions of the Election Code. Persons who would
otherwise be qualified electors if land on which they reside is
annexed to a municipality shall be deemed to be qualified
electors:
(1) upon the effective date of the municipal
ordinance effectuating the terms of the annexation as certified
by the board of arbitration pursuant to Section 3-7-10 NMSA
1978;
(2) upon thirty days after the filing of an
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order of annexation by the municipal boundary commission
pursuant to Sections 3-7-15 and 3-7-16 NMSA 1978 if no appeal
is filed or, if an appeal is filed, upon the filing of a
nonappealable court order effectuating the annexation; or
(3) upon thirty days after the filing of an
ordinance pursuant to Section 3-7-17 NMSA 1978 if no appeal is
filed or, if an appeal is filed, upon the filing of a
nonappealable court order effectuating the annexation;
L. "revenue producing project" means any
municipally owned self-liquidating projects that furnish public
services to a municipality and its [citizens ] residents,
including but not necessarily limited to public buildings;
facilities and equipment for the collection or disposal of
trash, refuse or garbage; swimming pools; golf courses and
other recreational facilities; cemeteries or mausoleums or
both; airports; off-street parking garages; and transportation
centers, which may include but are not limited to office
facilities and customary terminal facilities for airlines,
trains, monorails, subways, intercity and intracity buses and
taxicabs. "Revenue producing project" does not mean a
municipal utility as defined in Subsection H of this section;
M. "street" means any thoroughfare that can
accommodate pedestrian or vehicular traffic, is open to the
public and is under the control of the municipality;
N. "warrant" means a warrant, check or other
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negotiable instrument issued by a municipality in payment for
goods or services acquired by the municipality or for the
payment of a debt incurred by the municipality;
O. "mayor" means the chief executive officer of
municipalities having the mayor-council form of government. In
municipalities having other forms of government, the presiding
officer of the governing body and the official head of the
government, without executive powers, may be designated mayor
by the governing body. Wherever the Municipal Code requires an
act to be performed by the mayor with the consent of the
governing body, in municipalities not having the mayor-council
form of government, the act shall be performed by the governing
body;
P. "generating facility" means any facility located
within or outside the state necessary or incidental to the
generation or production of electric power and energy by any
means and includes:
(1) any facility necessary or incidental to
the acquisition of fuel of any kind for the production of
electric power and energy, including the acquisition of fuel
deposits, the extraction of fuel from natural deposits, the
conversion of fuel for use in another form, the burning of fuel
in place and the transportation and storage of such fuel; and
(2) any facility necessary or incidental to
the transfer of the electric power and energy to the
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municipality, including without limitation step-down
substations or other facilities used to reduce the voltage in a
transmission line in order that electric power and energy may
be distributed by the municipality to its retail customers;
Q. "jointly owned generating facility" means any
generating facility in which a municipality owns any undivided
or other interest, including without limitation any right to
entitlement or capacity; and
R. "joint participant" means any municipality in
New Mexico or any other state; any public entity incorporated
under the laws of any other state having the power to enter
into the type of transaction contemplated by the Municipal
Electric Generation Act; the state of New Mexico; the United
States; Indian tribes; and any public electric utility,
investor-owned electric utility or electric cooperative subject
to general or limited regulation by the public regulation
commission or a similar commission of any other state."
SECTION 3. Section 3-23-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1965,
Chapter 300, Section 14-22-1, as amended) is amended to read:
"3-23-1. MUNICIPAL UTILITY--SERVICE CHARGES--DEPOSITS--
DISCONTINUANCE OF WATER SERVICE FOR NONPAYMENT OF CHARGES--
SUPPLEMENTAL METHOD.--
A. A municipality, including an entity established
pursuant to Section 72-1-10 NMSA 1978, may require a reasonable
payment in advance or a reasonable deposit for water,
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electricity, gas, sewer service, geothermal energy, refuse
collection service, [or ] street maintenance or storm water
service.
B. If payment of any price, rent, fee or other
charge for water, sewer service, refuse collection or street
maintenance is not made within thirty days from the date the
payment is due, the water service may be discontinued and shall
not be again supplied to the person liable for the payment
until the arrears with interest and penalties have been fully
paid.
C. The provisions of this section are intended to
afford an additional method of enforcing payment of charges for
water, sewer service, refuse collection, [or ] street
maintenance or storm water service furnished by the
municipality."
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