1. For the purposes of Chapter 17 NMSA 1978:
2. A. "commission" or "state game commission" means the state wildlife commission;
3. B. "department" or "department of game and fish" means the department of wildlife;
4. C. "director", "warden", "state warden", "state game warden" or "state game and fish warden" means the director of the department of wildlife;
5. D. "hunt code" means a description used to identify and define the species, weapon type and time frame authorized for a specific hunt;
6. E. "outfitter" or "guide" means a person who advertises or holds themself out to the public for hire or is employed or accepts compensation for providing, within the unit where a hunt occurs, facilities, equipment or services for hunting activities; provided, however, that "outfitter" or "guide" does not include a person who only cooks, cuts wood or performs other comparable or incidental duties not directly related to hunting activities; and
7. F. "unit" means a geographically bound area in the state that is used to manage game species.

History: Laws 1996, ch. 89, § 3; 1978 Comp., § 17-2A-1, recompiled and amended as § 17-1-1.1 by Laws 2025, ch. 9, § 1.

ANNOTATIONS

Recompilations. — Laws 2025, ch. 9, § 1 recompiled and amended former 17-2A-1 NMSA 1978 as 17-1-1.1 NMSA 1978, effective July 1, 2026.

Repeals. — Laws 1997, ch. 119, § 4B repealed Laws 1996, ch. 89, § 6, which provided for the repeal of this section on June 30, 1999.

The 2025 amendment, effective July 1, 2026, defined "commission", "department", and "director", as used in Chapter 17 NMSA 1978; and added new Subsections A through C and redesignated the succeeding subsections accordingly.

Application of "hunt code" to rule regulating the hunt of bighorn sheep. — Where the current population levels of rocky mountain and desert bighorn sheep made it impossible for the New Mexico state game commission [state wildlife commission] (commission) and the department of game and fish [department of wildlife] to assign a single hunt code to each hunt area during each hunt window for the bighorn sheep hunting season without running afoul of the statutory allocation requirements for resident and nonresident hunters dictated by NMSA 1978, § 17-3-16(B), the commission’s application of the term "hunt code" that combines the rocky mountain bighorn sheep by sex and weapon type in several hunt areas and over several hunt windows under one hunt code, and, similarly, that groups the hunting season for desert bighorn rams in several hunt areas and over several hunt windows under one hunt code does not violate this section. The commission’s application of the term "hunt code" to its rules regulating the bighorn sheep hunting season is lawful, in that it incorporates the elements [species, weapon type, time frame, specific hunt] that make up the definition of "hunt code," while also giving effect to the requirements of § 17-3-16(B). New Mexico State Game Comm’n’s Application of the term "Hunt Code" (4/5/22), Att’y Gen. Adv. Ltr. 2022-01.