A. A police officer with the New Mexico state police division of the department of public safety, having reason to believe that the weight of a vehicle and load is unlawful, may require the driver to stop and submit to weighing of the vehicle and load by means of either portable or stationary scales and may require the vehicle to be driven to the nearest scales approved by the department of public safety if the scales are within five miles. A police officer shall not require a driver to weigh a vehicle on a private scale.

B. When a police officer with the New Mexico state police division of the department of public safety or a transportation inspector, upon weighing a vehicle or combination, determines that the gross vehicle weight or combination gross vehicle weight exceeds the maximum authorized by Sections 66-7-409 and 66-7-410 NMSA 1978, the officer or inspector shall require the driver or owner of the vehicle or combination to unload that portion of the load necessary to decrease the gross vehicle weight or combination gross vehicle weight to the authorized maximum.

C. A driver of a vehicle who fails or refuses to stop and submit the vehicle and load to weighing or who fails or refuses, when directed by a duly authorized police officer with the New Mexico state police division of the department of public safety or a transportation inspector, upon a weighing of the vehicle, to unload the vehicle and otherwise comply with the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.

D. A shipper or a person loading the vehicle who intentionally overloads a vehicle that the shipper or person has reason to believe will travel in that condition upon a public highway is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined in accordance with Section 66-8-116.1 NMSA 1978.

E. In all cases of violations of weight limitations, the penalties shall be assessed and imposed in accordance with Section 66-8-116.1 NMSA 1978.

History: 1953 Comp., § 64-7-411, enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 35, § 482; 1980, ch. 56, § 1; 1991, ch. 160, § 20; 2003, ch. 141, § 2; 2007, ch. 209, § 10; 2015, ch. 3, § 36.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, provided the New Mexico state police division of the department of public safety with the authority to investigate and weigh vehicles suspected of exceeding weight limitations, and struck the schedule of penalties for vehicle weight violations in this section, and specified that penalties for weight violations would be imposed pursuant to Section 66-8-116.1 NMSA 1978; in Subsection A, after "A police officer with the", deleted "motor transportation division or the", and added the last sentence relating to private scales; in Subsection B, after "When a police officer with the", deleted "motor transportation division or the"; in Subsection C, after "authorized police officer with the", deleted "motor transportation division or the"; in Subsection D, after "in accordance with", deleted "Subsection E of this section" and added "Section 66-8-116.1 NMSA 1978"; in Subsection E, after "in accordance with", deleted "the following schedule" and added "Section 66-8-116.1 NMSA 1978", and deleted the remainder of the subsection relating to excess weight and penalty assessments.

The 2007 amendment, effective July 1, 2007, increased the fines in Subsection E for excess weight.

The 2003 amendment, effective June 20, 2003, in Subsection A, substituted "police officer with the motor transportation division or New Mexico state police division of the department of public safety" for "New Mexico state police officer or enforcement employee of", and inserted "of public safety" following "department"; substituted "a police officer with the motor transportation division or New Mexico state police division of the department of the public safety or a transportation inspector" for "the officer or employee" in Subsections B and C; and substituted "inspector" for "employee" in Subsection B.

The 1991 amendment, effective July 1, 1991, in Subsection A, inserted "New Mexico" near the beginning, substituted "department" for "division" near the end and made a minor stylistic change; substituted "the officer or employee shall" for "he shall" in Subsection B; substituted "unload the vehicle" for "stop the vehicle" near the end of Subsection C; rewrote Subsection D which read "Any shipper who intentionally overloads a vehicle which he has reason to believe will travel in such condition upon a public thoroughfare shall also be fined in accordance with Subsection E"; and substituted "1 to 3,000" for "1,000 to 3,000" in the first line in the schedule in Subsection E.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 7A Am. Jur. 2d Automobiles and Highway Traffic § 203.

60 C.J.S. Motor Vehicles § 32.