SENATE BILL 272

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2017

INTRODUCED BY

Gerald Ortiz y Pino

AN ACT

RELATING TO STOLEN VEHICLES; REQUIRING THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY TO PREPARE A REPORT RELATED TO COSTS IMPOSED ON AN OWNER TO RECOVER A STOLEN VEHICLE; REQUIRING A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TO NOTIFY THE OWNER OF A RECOVERED STOLEN VEHICLE BEFORE THE VEHICLE IS TOWED OR STORED.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] STOLEN MOTOR VEHICLES--TOWING AND STORAGE FEES--REPORT.--By July 1, 2018, the department of public safety shall submit a report to the legislature that includes:

          A. for the previous five years, the number of vehicles that were stolen and the number of those vehicles that were recovered, in the state and in each county in the state;

          B. in each county in the state, the average towing and daily storage fees imposed on vehicle owners to recover the owners' stolen vehicles, and information on if and how those fees vary according to time of day or calendar date;

          C. for the previous five years, the number of recovered stolen vehicles that are not reclaimed by the vehicles' owners and are ultimately sold at an auction;

          D. a review of the stolen vehicle towing and storage fee policies implemented in other states, including any states that allow the owner of a stolen vehicle a designated time period to recover the owner's vehicle and during which fees are not charged to the owner; and

          E. an examination of the public benefits and costs of requiring vehicles to be towed to a storage area or to a vehicle owner's residence.

     SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] STOLEN MOTOR VEHICLES--OWNER NOTIFICATION.--A law enforcement agency that recovers a stolen vehicle shall notify the owner of the vehicle, if the owner's identity is ascertainable, before the vehicle is towed or stored.

- 2 -