2023 New Mexico Statutes › Chapter 60 - Business Licenses › Article 3A - General Provisions › Section 60-3A-8.1 - Investigative authority and powers.

A. For the purpose of enforcing the provisions of the Liquor Control Act, the director is authorized to examine and to require the production of pertinent records, books, information or evidence, to require the presence of any person and to require the person to testify under oath concerning the subject matter of the inquiry and to make a permanent record of the proceedings.
B. The director is vested with the power to issue subpoenas. In no case shall a subpoena be made returnable less than five days from the date of service.
C. Any subpoena issued by the director shall state with reasonable certainty the nature of the evidence required to be produced, the time and place of the hearing, the nature of the inquiry or investigation and the consequences of failure to obey the subpoena, and shall bear the seal of the department and be attested to by the director.
D. After service of a subpoena upon a person, if the person neglects or refuses to appear or produce records or other evidence in response to the subpoena or neglects or refuses to give testimony, as required, the director may invoke the aid of the New Mexico district courts in the enforcement of the subpoena. In appropriate cases, the court shall issue its order requiring the person to appear and testify or produce the person's books or records and may, upon failure of the person to comply with the order, punish the person for contempt.
E. The director may exchange identification records and information with law enforcement agencies for official use. Identification records received from the United States department of justice, including identification records based on fingerprints, shall be used only to effectuate the licensing purposes and provisions of the Liquor Control Act. The department shall not disseminate such information except to other law enforcement agencies for official use only.
F. For the purposes of this section, "director" means the director of the alcohol and gaming division of the regulation and licensing department.
History:
Laws 1981, ch. 39, § 7; 1978 Comp., § 60-4B-4 recompiled and amended as § 60-3A-8.1 by Laws 2015, ch. 3, § 30.
ANNOTATIONS
Recompilations.
— Laws 2015, ch. 3, § 30 recompiled and amended former 60-4B-4 NMSA 1978 as 60-3A-8.1 NMSA 1978, effective July 1, 2015.
Cross references.
— For identification of criminals generally,
see
29-3-1 NMSA 1978 et seq.
For subpoenas generally,
see
Rule 1-045 NMRA.
The 2015 amendment,
effective July 1, 2015, provided for the reorganization of the department of public safety by providing the director of the alcohol and gaming division of the regulation and licensing department with investigative authority and the powers to enforce the Liquor Control Act; in Subsection A, after "production of", deleted "any", and after "require", deleted "him" and added "the person"; in the first sentence of Subsection D, after "subpoena upon", deleted "him" and added "a person", after "if", deleted "any" and added "the"; in the second sentence of Subsection D, after "produce", deleted "his" and added "the person's"; in Subsection E, at the beginning of the second sentence, deleted "Any"; and added Subsection F.
Director's power to investigate for public interest.
— Authority rests in the chief of the liquor control division (now director) to make investigations, personally or through his employees, and he may reach his determination upon what he thus learns and upon what he deems to be to the public interest.
Yarbrough v. Montoya
, 1950-NMSC-006, 54 N.M. 91, 214 P.2d 769.
Types of evidence considered during investigations.
— In his investigations the chief of the division of liquor control (now director) is not limited in his determinations to considering what would constitute admissible evidence in a court of law.
Yarbrough v. Montoya
, 1950-NMSC-006, 54 N.M. 91, 214 P.2d 769.
Determination of facts required prior to license cancellation.
— Before cancelling a license pursuant to his duty to cancel, the chief of division (now director), must, of necessity, determine the facts which would authorize the cancellation.
Crowe v. State ex rel. McCulloch
, 1971-NMSC-017, 82 N.M. 296, 480 P.2d 691.
Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. —
48 C.J.S. Intoxicating Liquors § 177.