NM Stat § 29-13-7 (2021)
2021 New Mexico Statutes|Chapter 29 - Law Enforcement|Article 13 - Law Enforcement Protection Fund|Section 29-13-7 - Expenditure limitation; control. (Effective July 1, 2022.)

A. Except as provided for the academy and the department of public safety in Subsections B and C of this section, amounts distributed from the fund shall be expended only for the following:(1) the repair and purchase of law enforcement apparatus and equipment, including the financing and refinancing thereof, that meet minimum nationally recognized standards;(2) the purchase of law enforcement equipment, including protective vests, for police dogs;(3) expenses associated with advanced law enforcement planning and training;(4) maintaining the balance of the peace officers', New Mexico mounted patrol members' and reserve police officers' survivors fund at a minimum amount of three hundred fifty thousand dollars ($350,000);(5) complying with match or contribution requirements for the receipt of federal funds relating to criminal justice programs;(6) no more than fifty percent of the replacement salaries of municipal and county law enforcement personnel of municipalities or counties participating in basic law enforcement training;(7) a law enforcement officer retention payment in the amount of seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500); provided that:(a) the distribution is requested by a municipality or county law enforcement agency that on January 1, 2018 had a staffing vacancy rate of at least ten percent to retain a law enforcement officer who is certified in accordance with the Law Enforcement Training Act [Chapter 29, Article 7 NMSA 1978] and has at least twenty years of actual service credit earned under a municipal police member coverage plan as determined by the public employees retirement association;(b) the municipality or county law enforcement agency provides seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500) in matching funds to the law enforcement officer; and(c) the distribution and the matching funds paid to a law enforcement officer shall not constitute the officer's base salary or wages and shall not be considered to be salary or otherwise be used to determine a pension for the purposes of the Public Employees Retirement Act [Chapter 10, Article 11 NMSA 1978]; and(8) recruiting, providing bonuses for and training law enforcement officers engaged in community-oriented policing.B. For the academy, amounts distributed from the fund shall be expended only for providing tourniquet and trauma kits and training on the use of tourniquet and trauma kits pursuant to Section 29-7-7.7 NMSA 1978.C. The amount distributed to the department of public safety:(1) shall:(a) be used only to offset overtime-pay-related expenses incurred directly by the department of public safety from the special deployment of state police officers or other emergency assistance to counties or municipalities in response to critical circumstances as authorized by the governor; and(b) not be expended to hire new personnel; and(2) may be expended for costs, including travel, fuel, overtime, per diem and ammunition.D. Amounts distributed from the fund shall be expended only pursuant to approved budgets and upon duly executed vouchers approved as required by law.History: Laws 1983, ch. 289, § 7; 1985, ch. 29, § 2; 1988, ch. 96, § 4; 1993, ch. 179, § 9; 1994, ch. 53, § 2; 2002, ch. 78, § 7; 2013, ch. 10, § 1; 2017, ch. 35, § 5; 2018, ch. 74, § 3; 2020, ch. 54, § 1; 2020, ch. 67, § 6.ANNOTATIONS2020 Multiple Amendments. — Laws 2020, ch. 54, § 1, effective July 1, 2020, and Laws 2020, ch. 67, § 6, effective July 1, 2022, enacted different amendments to this section that can be reconciled. Pursuant to 12-1-8 NMSA 1978, Laws 2020, ch. 67, § 6, as the last act signed by the governor, is set out above and incorporates both amendments. The amendments enacted by Laws 2020, ch. 54, § 1 and Laws 2020, ch. 67, § 6, are described below. To view the session laws in their entirety, see the 2020 session laws on NMOneSource.com.The nature of the difference between the amendments is that Laws 2020, ch. 54, § 1, expanded permissible expenditures from the law enforcement protection fund, and Laws 2020, ch. 67, § 6, placed certain limitations on how the department of public safety may use funds distributed from the law enforcement protection fund.Laws 2020, ch. 67, § 6, effective July 1, 2022, placed certain limitations on how the department of public safety may use funds distributed from the law enforcement protection fund; in Subsection A, in the introductory clause, after "the academy", added "and the department of public safety", and after "Subsections B", added "and C", in Paragraph A(6), after "municipalities or counties", deleted "rated as class 1 in Paragraph (1) of Subsection C of Section 29-13-4 NMSA 1978"; and added new Subsection C and redesignated former Subsection C as Subsection D.Laws 2020, ch. 54, § 1, effective July 1, 2020, expanded permissible expenditures from the law enforcement protection fund; in Subsection A, in Paragraph A(7), after the paragraph designation, deleted "contingent upon the availability of funding and until June 30, 2021", and added new Paragraph A(8).