A. In any commission-manager municipality, any elective executive or commissioner is subject to a recall election for malfeasance in office, misfeasance in office or a violation of oath of office based upon acts or failures to act occurring during the current term of the official sought to be recalled. Recall of an elective executive or commissioner in a commissioner-manager municipality shall be conducted pursuant to the provisions of the Recall Act [Chapter 1, Article 25 NMSA 1978].
B. If all commissioners are recalled at the same election, the district court shall order an election.
History: 1953 Comp., § 14-13-16, enacted by Laws 1965, ch. 300; 2018, ch. 49, § 1; 2019, ch. 212, § 182.
ANNOTATIONSThe 2019 amendment, effective April 3, 2019, revised the procedures to recall an elective executive or commissioner in a commission-manager municipality, and provided that the recall process of an elective executive or commissioner in a commissioner-manager municipality shall be conducted pursuant to the Recall Act; in the section heading, deleted "ballot; effect; filling vacancies"; in Subsection A, after "elective", deleted "officer" and added "executive or commissioner", and after "official sought to be recalled.", added "Recall of an elective executive or commissioner in a commissioner-manager municipality shall be conducted pursuant to the provisions of the Recall Act"; deleted former Subsections B through F and redesignated former Subsection G as Subsection B; in Subsection B, deleted "A vacancy created by a recall election shall be filled in the same manner as other vacancies on the commission are filled.", after "same election,", deleted "the municipal clerk or, if there is no municipal clerk", and after "order an election", deleted "as provided in Section 3-14-8 NMSA 1978 for the election of five commissioners".
The 2018 amendment, effective May 16, 2018, provided grounds for the recall election of elective officers in commission-manager municipalities, required a determination by the district court whether probable cause for recall exists, and made technical and conforming changes; in Subsection A, after "subject to a recall election", deleted "Upon petition seeking the recall of an elective officer" and added "for malfeasance or misfeasance in office or a violation of the oath of office based upon acts or failures to act occurring during the current term of the official sought to be recalled." and moved the remainder of former Subsection A to new Subsection C; added a new Subsection B and new subsection designation "C"; in Subsection C, added "If the district court determines that probable cause for the recall exists, the recall petition may be circulated. The recall petition shall cite the grounds of malfeasance or misfeasance in office or violation of the oath of office by the official concerned. The cited grounds shall be based upon acts or failures to act occurring during the current term of the official sought to be recalled. The grounds for recall in the petition shall be as found by the district court in its finding of probable cause. The recall petition shall be"; added new subsection designation "D" and redesignated former Subsections C through E as Subsections E through F, respectively; and in Subsection D, added "The municipal clerk shall verify that the persons who signed the petition are qualified electors in the district and that the petition contains the proper number of signatures. If the municipal clerk has so verified the petition", deleted former subsection designation "B", after "name of the officer, the" added "title of the", after "office", deleted "he holds", and after "candidate for office", added "the officer who is the subject of recall is recalled from the office and".
Section contrary to constitution as to removal of municipal judges. — Since N.M. Const., art. VI, § 32, created a judicial standards commission and explicitly provided for grounds for and general procedures to be followed in removing judges from office, no legislatively created means of removing judicial officers was contemplated. Therefore, this section, which provided for recall of elective officers in commission-manager municipalities, was contrary to that section insofar as it pertained to removal of municipal judges. Cooper v. Albuquerque City Comm'n, 1974-NMSC-006, 85 N.M. 786, 518 P.2d 275.
Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 56 Am. Jur. 2d Municipal Corporations, Counties, and Other Political Subdivisions § 187.
62 C.J.S. Municipal Corporations §§ 437 to 441.