A. If as a result of investigation the commission has good cause to believe that any person is violating any provision of Subsection A of Section 70-3-18 NMSA 1978 or any regulation adopted by the commission under the Pipeline Safety Act, the commission shall, when practicable and except in the case of a knowing and willful violation, give the person notice of the violation and an opportunity to comply. If the commission is unable within a reasonable time to obtain voluntary cooperation to prevent the continuing violation, the commission may apply for an injunction in the district court of the county in which the violation occurs to secure compliance. The failure to give notice and afford an opportunity to comply shall not preclude the granting of injunctive relief.

B. The trial before the district court shall be before the court without jury, and the court shall enter judgment and orders enforcing the judgment as the public interest and equities of the case may require.

C. Any person owning or operating gas pipeline facilities or engaged in the transportation of gas or owning or operating oil pipeline facilities or engaged in the transportation of oil who has been determined by order of the commission after hearing to have violated any provision of Subsection A of Section 70-3-18 NMSA 1978 or any regulation promulgated under the Pipeline Safety Act applicable to intrastate pipeline facilities shall be subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for each violation for each day that the violation persists, except that the maximum civil penalty shall not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000) for any related series of violations.

D. In determining the amount of the penalty, the commission shall consider the nature, circumstances and gravity of the violation and, with respect to the person found to have committed the violation, the degree of culpability, any history of prior violations, the effect on ability to continue to do business, any good faith in attempting to achieve compliance, ability to pay the penalty and other matters as justice may require.

E. Judicial review of any provision of this section may be accomplished in the same manner as is found in Section 70-3-15 NMSA 1978.

F. Any person who willfully and knowingly injures or destroys or attempts to injure or destroy an intrastate pipeline facility shall upon conviction be subject for each offense to a fine not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) or imprisonment for a term not to exceed fifteen years, or both.

G. Any person who willfully and knowingly damages, removes or destroys any pipeline sign, right-of-way marker required by the Pipeline Safety Act or any regulation or order issued pursuant to that act shall upon conviction be subject for each offense to a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) or imprisonment for a term not to exceed one year, or both.

History: 1953 Comp., § 65-4-23, enacted by Laws 1969, ch. 71, § 9; 1971, ch. 89, § 1; 1993, ch. 185, § 2; 2007, ch. 223, § 2; 2017, ch. 128, § 1.

The 2017 amendment, effective July 1, 2017, enhanced the civil penalties for violations of the Pipeline Safety Act; in Subsection C, after "civil penalty in an amount not to exceed", deleted "twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000)" and added "one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000)", and after "shall not exceed", deleted "five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000)" and added "one million dollars ($1,000,000)".

The 2007 amendment, effective June 15, 2007, eliminated the provision that in an enforcement action of the Pipeline Safety Act or regulations of the commission, the commission shall be represented by the attorney general.

The 1993 amendment, effective June 18, 1993, substituted "Subsection A of Section 70-3-18 NMSA 1978" for "Section 8A of the Pipeline Safety Act" in the first sentence of Subsection A; designated the former second and third sentences of Subsection D as Subsections E and F; deleted former Subsection E, which provided for a civil penalty for violation of Section 8A of the Pipeline Safety Act or certain regulations and redesignated the remaining subsections accordingly; rewrote Subsections D and E; substituted "Section 70-3-15 NMSA 1978" for "Section 5 of the Pipeline Safety Act" in Subsection F; and added Subsections G and H.