1. A. A person shall not:

   1. (1) discharge a pollutant to waters of the United States without a permit for the discharge issued pursuant to the program;
   2. (2) violate an applicable standard, limitation, permit condition or other requirement of a permit issued pursuant to the New Mexico Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or a rule adopted pursuant to that act;
   3. (3) make a false statement, a representation, a certification or an omission of material fact in an application, a record, a plan, a form, a notice or a report required by a permit or other document submitted or maintained pursuant to the New Mexico Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or a rule or permit adopted or issued pursuant to that act;
   4. (4) falsify, tamper with or render inaccurate a monitoring device, method or record required to be maintained pursuant to the New Mexico Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or a rule or permit adopted or issued pursuant to that act;
   5. (5) fail to monitor, sample or report as required by a permit issued pursuant to the New Mexico Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or a rule or permit adopted or issued pursuant to that act; or
   6. (6) violate a filing requirement pursuant to the New Mexico Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or a rule or permit adopted or issued pursuant to that act.
2. B. A person who knowingly violates or knowingly causes or allows another person to violate Subsection A of this section is guilty of a fourth degree felony and shall be sentenced in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act [Chapter 31, Article 18 NMSA 1978].
3. C. A person who is convicted of a second or subsequent violation of Subsection A of this section is guilty of a third degree felony and shall be sentenced in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act.
4. D. A person who knowingly violates Subsection A of this section or knowingly causes another person to violate Subsection A of this section and thereby causes a substantial adverse environmental impact is guilty of a third degree felony and shall be sentenced in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act.
5. E. A person who knowingly violates Subsection A of this section and knows at the time of the violation that the person is creating a substantial danger of death or serious bodily injury to any other person is guilty of a second degree felony and shall be sentenced in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act.
6. F. A person who willfully or negligently violates Paragraph (2) or (6) of Subsection A of this section may be assessed a criminal fine of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per day for each violation.
7. G. A person who knowingly violates Paragraph (3) or (4) of Subsection A of this section may be assessed a criminal fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation.
8. H. A single operational upset or event that leads to simultaneous violations of more than one pollutant parameter shall be treated as a single violation.
9. I. The attorney general has the authority to enforce this section.

History: Laws 2025, ch. 112, § 16.

ANNOTATIONS

Effective dates. — Pursuant to N.M. Const., art. IV, § 23, Laws 2025, ch. 112 did not pass with the required two-thirds vote of each house. Therefore, the effective date of Laws 2025, ch. 112 was June 20, 2025.