This bill amends Section 3-18-17 of the New Mexico Statutes to allow municipalities to retain the total amount of assessed penalties and fines for nuisance violations related to traffic signs, signals, and speeding offenses. Specifically, it removes previous provisions that required municipalities to remit a portion of these fines to the state treasury and instead mandates that all collected penalties be used for municipal traffic safety programs and to cover the municipality's costs associated with administering these programs.

Additionally, the bill establishes a process for contesting nuisance ordinance offenses, allowing respondents to choose between a hearing conducted by a court-appointed officer or a mail-in form alternative. The burden of proof lies with the municipality, and any penalties imposed cannot exceed those specified in the nuisance ordinance. The effective date for these changes is set for July 1, 2026.

Statutes affected:
introduced version: 3-18-17