Chapter 66 — Chapter 66

A. The bureau, with the approval of the governor, may accept on behalf of the state any gift, grant or money given to the bureau for any and all purposes specified in the Traffic Safety Act. Any special grant shall be held by the state treasurer in a special fund and shall be exp…

A. There is created in the state treasury the "traffic safety education and enforcement fund". The fund shall be invested in accordance with the provisions of Section 6-10-10 NMSA 1978 and all income earned on the fund shall be credited to the fund. B. The traffic safety educatio…

A. The "safe routes to school program" is created within the department to increase and make safer a student's ability to walk or ride a bicycle to school. B. The program may be established to: (1) provide assistance to the state, counties and municipalities to identify school ro…

A. The driver of an authorized emergency vehicle, when responding to an emergency call or when in pursuit of an actual or suspected violator of the law or when responding to but not upon returning from a fire alarm, may exercise the privileges set forth in this section subject to…

animal-drawn vehicles. Every person riding an animal or driving any animal-drawn vehicle upon a roadway shall be granted all of the rights and shall be subject to all of the duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle by Article 7 of Chapter 66 NMSA 1978, except those provisions…

The provisions of Article 7 of Chapter 66 NMSA 1978 shall be applicable and uniform throughout this state and in all political subdivisions and municipalities therein and no local authority shall enact or enforce any ordinance, rule or regulation in conflict with such provisions …

A. The provisions of the Motor Vehicle Code [66-1-1 NMSA 1978] shall not be deemed to prevent local authorities, with respect to streets and highways under their jurisdiction and within the reasonable exercise of the police power, from: (1) regulating the standing or parking of v…

Any person who fraudulently uses a false or fictitious name in any application for the registration of a vehicle or a certificate of title, or knowingly makes a false statement, or knowingly conceals a material fact or otherwise commits a fraud in any such application shall upon …

department; penalties. A. It is a felony for a department employee or private retail agent or other contractor of the department to: (1) knowingly issue an identification card, driver's license, driving authorization card, vehicle or vessel registration or vehicle or vessel title…

to comply. Any motor vehicle owner who has been issued a citation for an illegible registration plate and who fails to comply with the terms of the citation requiring the acquisition of a duplicate or replacement plate within thirty days of the date of the citation is guilty of a…

A. Homicide by vehicle is the killing of a human being in the unlawful operation of a motor vehicle. B. Great bodily harm by vehicle is the injuring of a human being, to the extent defined in Section 30-1-12 NMSA 1978, in the unlawful operation of a motor vehicle. C. A person who…

A. Injury to pregnant woman by vehicle is injury to a pregnant woman by a person other than the woman in the unlawful operation of a motor vehicle causing her to suffer a miscarriage or stillbirth as a result of that injury. B. As used in this section: (1) "miscarriage" means the…

drugs; aggravated driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs; penalties. A. It is unlawful for a person who is under the influence of intoxicating liquor to drive a vehicle within this state. B. It is unlawful for a person who is under the influence of any drug t…

Where the complaint or information alleges a violation of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978, any plea of guilty thereafter entered in satisfaction of the charges shall include at least a plea of guilty to the violation of one of the subsections of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978, and no othe…

concentration level for driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs. No municipal or county ordinance prohibiting driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs shall be enacted that provides for an unlawful alcohol concentration level tha…

A. A fee is imposed on a person convicted of driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs in violation of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978 or adjudicated as a delinquent on the basis of Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of Section 32A-2-3 NMSA 1978 or a p…

A. The department of public safety, in collaboration with the motor vehicle division of the taxation and revenue department and the traffic safety bureau of the department of transportation, shall develop and periodically review and update standard arrest reports and procedures t…

penalty. A. Driving while intoxicated with a minor in the vehicle consists of a person committing a violation of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978 when a minor is in the vehicle and when the minor does not suffer great bodily harm or death. Whoever commits driving while intoxicated with…

relief from liability. Only a physician, licensed professional or practical nurse, emergency medical technician or certified phlebotomist or a technologist employed by a hospital or physician shall withdraw blood from a person in the performance of a chemical blood test. No such …

or direct test except in performance of official duties. Nothing in Sections 66-8-103 or 66-8-104 NMSA 1978 is intended to authorize a police officer or a judicial or probation officer to make an arrest or to direct the performance of a chemical blood test except in the performan…

Sections 66-8-105 through 66-8-112 NMSA 1978 may be cited as the "Implied Consent Act." History: 1953 Comp., § 64-8-105, enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 35, § 513.

ANNOTATIONS Repeals. — Laws 1990, ch. 120, § 45 repealed 66-8-106 NMSA 1978, as enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 35, § 514, relating to definition of "director", effective July 1, 1990. For provisions of former section, see the 1989 NMSA 1978 on NMOneSource.com. For present comparable p…

A. Any person who operates a motor vehicle within this state shall be deemed to have given consent, subject to the provisions of the Implied Consent Act [66-8-105 to 66-8-112 NMSA 1978], to chemical tests of his breath or blood or both, approved by the scientific laboratory divis…

Any person who is dead, unconscious or otherwise in a condition rendering him incapable of refusal, shall be deemed not to have withdrawn the consent provided by Section 66-8-107 NMSA 1978, and the test or tests designated by the law enforcement officer may be administered. Histo…

additional tests. A. Only the persons authorized by Section 66-8-103 NMSA 1978 shall withdraw blood from any person for the purpose of determining its alcohol or drug content. This limitation does not apply to the taking of samples of breath. B. The person tested shall be advised…

intoxication; mandatory charging. A. The results of a test performed pursuant to the Implied Consent Act may be introduced into evidence in any civil action or criminal action arising out of the acts alleged to have been committed by the person tested for driving a motor vehicle …

revocation of license or privilege to drive. A. If a person under arrest for violation of an offense enumerated in the Motor Vehicle Code [Chapter 66, Articles 1 through 8 NMSA 1978] refuses upon request of a law enforcement officer to submit to chemical tests designated by the l…

notice of revocation and right to hearing. A. On behalf of the department, a law enforcement officer requesting a chemical test or directing the administration of a chemical test pursuant to Sections 66-8-107 and 66-8-111 NMSA 1978 shall serve immediate written notice of revocati…

effective date; hearing; hearing costs; review. A. The effective date of revocation pursuant to Section 66-8-111 NMSA 1978 is twenty days after notice of revocation or, if the person whose driver's license or privilege to drive is being revoked or denied requests a hearing pursua…

A. Any person who drives any vehicle carelessly and heedlessly in willful or wanton disregard of the rights or safety of others and without due caution and circumspection and at a speed or in a manner so as to endanger or be likely to endanger any person or property is guilty of …

A. Any person operating a vehicle on the highway shall give his full time and entire attention to the operation of the vehicle. B. Any person who operates a vehicle in a careless, inattentive or imprudent manner, without due regard for the width, grade, curves, corners, traffic, …

A. Unless written permission setting out pertinent conditions is obtained from the chief of the New Mexico state police, and then only in accordance with such conditions, no person shall drive a vehicle on a highway in any race, speed competition or contest, drag race or accelera…

of assessments. A. As used in the Motor Vehicle Code and the Boat Act [Chapter 66, Article 12 NMSA 1978], "penalty assessment misdemeanor" means violation of any of the following listed sections of the NMSA 1978 for which, except as provided in Subsections D through F of this sec…

As used in the Motor Vehicle Code [66-1-1 NMSA 1978] and the Motor Carrier Act [Chapter 65, Article 2A NMSA 1978], "penalty assessment misdemeanor" means, in addition to the definition of that term in Section 66-8-116 NMSA 1978, violation of the following listed sections of the N…

As used in the Motor Vehicle Code and the Motor Carrier Act [Chapter 65, Article 2A NMSA 1978], "penalty assessment misdemeanor" means, in addition to the definitions of that term in Sections 66-8-116 and 66-8-116.1 NMSA 1978, violation of the following listed sections of the NMS…

History: 1978 Comp., § 66-8-116.3, enacted by Laws 1989, ch. 318, § 35, Laws 1989, ch. 319, § 14 and Laws 1989, ch. 320, § 5; 1990, ch. 57, § 2; 1993, ch. 273, § 6; 1996, ch. 41, § 8; 1997, ch. 242, § 5; 1997, ch. 247, § 2; 1998 (1st S.S.), ch. 6, § 4; 2000, ch. 5, § 7; 2003, ch.…

A. Unless a warning notice is given, at the time of making an arrest for any penalty assessment misdemeanor the arresting officer shall offer the alleged violator the option of accepting a penalty assessment. The violator's signature on the penalty assessment notice constitutes a…

ANNOTATIONS Repeals. — Laws 1981, ch. 360, § 21, repealed 66-8-118 NMSA 1978, as enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 35, § 526, relating to failure to pay penalty assessment, effective January 1, 1982. For present provisions, see 66-5-25, 66-5-26 and 66-5-30 NMSA 1978.

A. The division shall remit all penalty assessment receipts to the state treasurer for credit to the general fund. B. The division shall remit all penalty assessment fee receipts assessed prior to July 1, 2024 and collected on or after July 1, 2024 to the state treasurer for cred…

Every person who commits, attempts to commit, conspires to commit or aids or abets in the commission of any act declared herein to be a crime, whether individually or in connection with one or more other persons or as a principal, agent or accessory, shall be guilty of such offen…

It is unlawful for the owner, or any other person, employing or otherwise directing the driver of any vehicle to require or to permit the operation of such vehicle upon a highway in any manner contrary to law. History: 1941 Comp., § 68-2603, enacted by Laws 1953, ch. 139, § 184; …

Whenever any person is arrested for any violation of the Motor Vehicle Code [66-1-1 NMSA 1978] or other law relating to motor vehicles punishable as a misdemeanor, he shall be immediately taken before an available magistrate who has jurisdiction of the offense when the: A. person…

A. Except as provided in Section 66-8-122 NMSA 1978, unless a penalty assessment or warning notice is given, whenever a person is arrested for any violation of the Motor Vehicle Code or other law relating to motor vehicles punishable as a misdemeanor, the arresting officer, using…

A. No person shall be arrested for violating the Motor Vehicle Code [66-1-1 NMSA 1978] or other law relating to motor vehicles punishable as a misdemeanor except by a commissioned, salaried peace officer who, at the time of arrest, is wearing a uniform clearly indicating the peac…

A. Members of the New Mexico state police, sheriffs and their salaried deputies and members of any municipal police force, may arrest without warrant any person: (1) present at the scene of a motor vehicle accident; (2) on a highway when charged with theft of a motor vehicle; or …

A. It is a penalty assessment misdemeanor for a person to violate that person's written promise to appear in court given to an officer upon issuance of a uniform traffic citation regardless of the disposition of the charge for which the citation was issued. B. A written promise t…

Sections 66-8-122 through 66-8-125 NMSA 1978 govern all police officers in making arrests without warrant for violations of the Motor Vehicle Code [66-1-1 NMSA 1978] and other laws relating to motor vehicles, but the procedure prescribed is not exclusive of any other method presc…

A. The department shall prepare a uniform traffic citation containing at least the following information: (1) an information section, serially numbered and containing spaces for the name, physical address and mailing address, city and state of the individual charged; the individu…

ANNOTATIONS Repeals. — Laws 1990, ch. 120, § 44 repealed 66-8-129 NMSA 1978, as enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 35, § 537, relating to the form on the back of uniform traffic citations, effective July 1, 1990. For provisions of former section, see the 1989 NMSA 1978 on NMOneSource.com.…

ordinance to establish similar program. A. The uniform traffic citation, in paper or electronic form, shall be used by all state and local agencies enforcing laws and ordinances relating to motor vehicles. A municipality may, by passage of an ordinance, establish a municipal pena…