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HB 212

Motor Vehicles, Titling and Registration - As enacted, creates new specialty earmarked license plates; extends certain specialty earmarked license plates; authorizes the funds generated from the issuance of the Historic Franklin new specialty earmarked license plate to also be used to provide financial support for the Chester Inn State Historic Site; authorizes the issuance of motorcycle plates for paratroopers. - Amends TCA Title 55, Chapter 4.

114th Regular Session (2025-2026) Introduced by Dan Howell

New Mexico's PFAS Protection Act bans intentionally added PFAS in consumer products, requires disclosure and testing, and enforces phased bans with penalties and private action.

Pub. Ch. 479
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Bill Summary · HB 212

HB 212 — Per‑ and Poly‑Fluoroalkyl Substances Protection Act (New Mexico, 2025) — Summary

Status: Enacted (First Regular Session, 2025) — signed by the Governor.
Primary subject: Environment / Business & Industry

Main purpose

HB 212 (the "Per‑ and Poly‑Fluoroalkyl Substances Protection Act") creates a regulatory framework to restrict the intentional addition of PFAS (per‑ and poly‑fluoroalkyl substances) to products sold or distributed in New Mexico, requires disclosure and testing for products containing intentionally added PFAS, and authorizes state rulemaking and enforcement measures to phase out PFAS where alternatives exist.

Key provisions

  • Definitions: establishes terms (e.g., “per‑ or poly‑fluoroalkyl substance,” “intentionally added,” “consumer product,” “firefighting foam,” “juvenile product,” etc.) to set the scope of the Act.
  • Prohibition and phase‑outs:
    • Prohibits certain products that contain intentionally added PFAS; the Environmental Improvement Board (EIB) is authorized to adopt rules to identify additional products/categories for restriction or ban.
    • The bill includes specified timelines in committee language for procurement and sales prohibitions (committee analyses indicated a state procurement ban beginning January 2027 and manufacturer sales prohibitions beginning January 2028 for products deemed harmful under state or federal law).
  • Disclosure and testing:
    • Requires manufacturers or sellers to disclose information and test products sold, offered for sale, or distributed in the state that contain intentionally added PFAS (subject to trade‑secret protections).
  • Exemptions and “currently unavoidable uses”:
    • Exempts products where federal law preempts state authority, used/resold items, medical devices and drugs regulated by FDA, certain HVAC/refrigerants, and other categories.
    • EIB may designate uses as “currently unavoidable” where essential for health, safety, or functioning of society and no reasonable alternatives exist.
  • Waivers and limits:
    • Waivers are narrow and limited to building systems/areas that cannot feasibly use non‑fossil alternatives (in other related building code language); financial cost alone is not a sufficient basis for waiver.
  • Enforcement, penalties, and remedies:
    • Civil penalties for noncompliance; committee language places an upper cap ($15,000 per day) on civil penalties in some drafts.
    • Proceeds of fines are directed to the state “recycling and illegal dumping fund” per committee analysis.
    • The Act establishes a private right of action, allowing individuals to sue to enforce the law.
  • Rulemaking and agency roles:
    • The EIB and the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) are charged with rulemaking, testing protocols, enforcement, and determinations of unavoidable uses.
    • The Attorney General’s office has enforcement/defense responsibilities as needed.

Who is affected

  • Manufacturers, importers, distributors, retailers and brand holders of consumer, commercial, and industrial products sold in New Mexico (especially producers of textiles, food packaging, cleaning products, firefighting foam, cookware, and other PFAS‑using goods).
  • State procurement agencies (subject to procurement bans).
  • Consumers (changes in product availability and potential price effects).
  • State agencies (NMED, EIB, AG) — increased regulatory, monitoring and enforcement workload.
  • Local governments and small businesses: compliance costs, potential product reformulation needs; small businesses are expected to face meaningful impacts.

Fiscal and implementation impacts

  • State agency costs: Legislative Fiscal analyses estimate material implementation costs for NMED (analysis suggested hiring ~10 personnel and roughly $1.8 million recurring) and additional Attorney General resources (estimated 3–4 FTEs; ~$516k recurring in one estimate). The bill also increases rulemaking and administrative obligations.
  • Potential large downstream costs: long‑term remediation, water treatment, and PFAS cleanup can be extremely costly (analyses cite multi‑billion dollar statewide estimates in other states); those costs are outside the immediate fiscal estimates but are an important context.
  • Business compliance costs: testing, reporting, reformulation, supply‑chain changes and labeling requirements will impose costs on manufacturers and sellers; the bill may prompt reformulation or withdrawal of affected products from the NM market.
  • Effective timing: committee and fiscal documents referenced phased timelines for bans and procurement prohibitions (e.g., Jan 2027/Jan 2028) and noted the rulemaking and enforcement phases; actual dates depend on implementing regulations and final statutory effective date.

Practical effect and next steps

With enactment, the state gains authority to restrict intentionally added PFAS in products, require manufacturer disclosure/testing, and enforce penalties. The real‑world impact will be shaped by EIB and NMED rulemaking (which determines product lists, testing standards, and “unavoidable use” categories), the schedule for phased prohibitions, and litigation or private enforcement actions that may follow. Businesses selling into New Mexico should review product formulations, supply chains, and compliance capabilities; consumers and local governments should expect gradual market changes and new reporting/disclosure information.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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