1. A. Unless otherwise provided in the Property Tax Code [Chapter 7, Article 1 NMSA 1978], property taxes in the amount of ten dollars ($10.00) or over are payable to the county treasurer in two equal installments due on November 10 of the year in which the tax bill was prepared and mailed and on April 10 of the following year. A board of county commissioners may, by ordinance, provide that property taxes under ten dollars ($10.00) are due and payable in a single payment on November 10 of the year in which the tax bill was prepared and mailed. No demand for payment of property taxes is necessary.

2. B. If a taxpayer remits an amount in payment of the taxpayer's property taxes that exceeds the total property tax liability shown on the property tax bill, together with any applicable penalty and interest computed to the date payment is received by the county treasurer, a refund of the amount in excess shall be made to the taxpayer if either of the following conditions are met:

   1. (1) a written request for the refund is made by the taxpayer and received by the county treasurer within sixty days of the date the excess payment is received by the county treasurer; or
   2. (2) the county treasurer on the county treasurer's own initiative determines by June 30 of the year following the year for which taxes are imposed that an excess payment has been made.
3. C. The secretary may by rule permit or require rounding to the nearest five cents ($.05) of any amount due pursuant to the Property Tax Code [Chapter 7, Article 1 NMSA 1978].

History: 1953 Comp., § 72-31-38, enacted by Laws 1973, ch. 258, § 78; 1975, ch. 121, § 1; 1977, ch. 77, § 1; 1982, ch. 28, § 16; 1983, ch. 216, § 1; 1987, ch. 166, § 2; 2026, ch. 31, § 14.

ANNOTATIONS

The 2026 amendment, effective July 1, 2026, authorized the taxation and revenue department to round cash tax payments to the nearest five cents; in the section heading, after "overpayments" added "rounding"; and added new Subsection C.

Temporary provisions. — Laws 2020 (1st S.S.). ch. 4, § 4, effective June 29, 2020, provided:

A. Notwithstanding Sections 7-1-67 and 7-1-69 NMSA 1978, no interest shall accrue and no penalty shall be assessed to a taxpayer for:

(1) tax liabilities pursuant to the Income Tax Act or the Corporate Income and Franchise Tax Act for failure to pay the tax that became due April 15, 2020 through July 15, 2020; provided that the failure to pay the tax was made without intent to evade or defeat the tax; and provided further that payment for the unpaid payments is made in full on or before April 15, 2021;

(2) tax liabilities pursuant to the Withholding Tax Act for failure to pay the tax that became due March 25, 2020 through July 25, 2020; provided that the failure to pay the tax was made without intent to evade or defeat the tax; and provided further that payment for the unpaid taxes is made in full on or before April 25, 2021;

(3) gross receipts tax, local option gross receipts tax or compensating tax liabilities for failure to pay any of those taxes that became due March 25, 2020 through July 25, 2020; provided that the failure to pay the tax was made without intent to evade or defeat the tax; and provided further that payment for the unpaid taxes is made in full on or before April 25, 2021; and

(4) tax liabilities assessed between September 3, 2019 and January 3, 2020 as the result of a managed audit performed in accordance with a managed audit agreement pursuant to Section 7-1-11.1 NMSA 1978; provided that payment for those liabilities is made pursuant to terms of the managed audit agreement on or before December 31, 2020.

B. Notwithstanding Sections 7-38-49 and 7-38-50 NMSA 1978, no interest shall accrue and no penalty shall be assessed to a property owner for unpaid property taxes that became due April 10, 2020 pursuant to Section 7-38-38 NMSA 1978; provided that:

(1) the unpaid property taxes did not become delinquent because of an intent to defraud by the property owner;

(2) payment for the unpaid property taxes is made in full on or before May 10, 2021; and

(3) the subject property does not have property taxes that became delinquent pursuant to Section 7-38-46 NMSA 1978 prior to May 10, 2020.

Payment of taxes by mortgagee. — Since mortgage contained provision stating that monthly payments were to be applied to taxes before being applied to interest or the mortgage loan, and that mortgagor would pay to mortgagee any amount necessary to make up the deficiency between balance of escrow account for payment of taxes and amount of taxes owed, on or before date when taxes become due, mortgagee who applied entire amount of January monthly payment to taxes due and payable, under 72-5-1, 1953 Comp., on November 1, was not liable for conversion of that payment even though such taxes would not become delinquent under 72-7-3, 1953 Comp., until May 1. Evans v. Mortgage Inv. Co., 1973-NMCA-032, 84 N.M. 732, 507 P.2d 793.

Law reviews. — For article, "Constitutional Limitations on the Exercise of Judicial Functions by Administrative Agencies," see 7 Nat. Resources J. 599 (1967).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 72 Am. Jur. 2d State and Local Taxation §§ 834, 835, 1074, 1075.

When right to refund of state or local taxes accrues, within statute limiting time for applying for refund, 46 A.L.R.2d 1350.

Mistake: right of property taxpayer to recover back taxes voluntarily but mistakenly paid a second or successive time, 84 A.L.R.2d 1133.

84 C.J.S. Taxation §§ 607, 608, 624, 631, 632.