A. Whenever a program or project undertaken by an agency will result in the displacement of a person, the displacing agency shall provide for payment to the displaced person for:

(1) actual reasonable expenses in moving the person or the person's family, business, farm operation or other personal property;

(2) actual direct losses of tangible personal property as a result of moving or discontinuing a business or farm operation, but not to exceed an amount equal to the reasonable expenses that would have been required to relocate the property, as determined by the displacing agency;

(3) actual reasonable expenses in searching for a replacement business or farm, supported by documentation that the displacing agency by regulation may require; and

(4) actual reasonable expenses necessary to reestablish a displaced farm or business at its new site, in accordance with criteria to be established by the displacing agency but not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000).

B. A displaced person eligible for payments under Subsection A of this section who is displaced from a dwelling and who elects to accept the payment authorized by this subsection in lieu of the payments authorized by Subsection A of this section may receive an expense and dislocation allowance that shall be determined according to a schedule established by the displacing agency.

C. A displaced person eligible for payments under Subsection A of this section who is displaced from the person's place of business or from the person's farm operation and who is eligible under the criteria established by the displacing agency may elect to accept the payment authorized by this subsection in lieu of the payment authorized by Subsection A of this section. The payment shall consist of a fixed payment in an amount to be determined according to the criteria established by the displacing agency, except that the payment shall be not less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) nor more than forty thousand dollars ($40,000). A person whose sole business at the displacement dwelling is the rental of the dwelling to others shall not qualify for a payment under this subsection.

History: 1953 Comp., § 22-9A-6, enacted by Laws 1972, ch. 41, § 6; 1989, ch. 121, § 5; 2015, ch. 136, § 1.

Cross references. — For payments not to affect welfare benefits, see 27-1-4 NMSA 1978.

The 2015 amendment, effective April 10, 2015, increased the amount authorized for payment to a person or business displaced by an agency program or project; in the introductory sentence of Subsection A, after "displacement of", deleted "any" and added "a"; in Subsection A, Paragraph (1), after "expenses in moving", deleted "himself, his" and added "the person or the person's"; in Subsection A, Paragraph (3), after "documentation", deleted "which" and added "that"; in Subsection A, Paragraph (4), after "not to exceed", deleted "ten thousand dollars ($10,000)" and added "twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000)"; in Subsection B, deleted "Any" and added "A", and after "dislocation allowance", deleted "which" and added "that"; in Subsection C, deleted "Any" and added "A", after "displaced from", deleted "his" and added "the person's", after "business or from", deleted "his" and added "the person's", and after "($1,000) nor more than", deleted "twenty thousand dollars ($20,000)" and added "forty thousand dollars ($40,000)".

The 1989 amendment, effective March 30, 1989, in Subsection A deleted "the acquisition of real property for" following "Whenever" in the introductory paragraph and substituted all of the language of that paragraph beginning with "displacing" for "agency may make a payment to any displaced person upon proper application as provided by regulation or ordinance of the agency for"; inserted "displacing" in Paragraph A(3); added Paragraph A(4); substituted all of the language of Subsection B beginning with "receive" for "receive: (1) a moving expense allowance, determined according to a schedule established by regulation of the agency, not to exceed three hundred dollars ($300); and (2) a dislocation allowance of two hundred dollars ($200)"; and rewrote Subsection C.