HM 62

                                1  HOUSE MEMORIAL 62
                                2    57TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 2026
                                3  INTRODUCED BY
                                4  Nathan P. Small
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                                10  A MEMORIAL
                                11   REQUESTING THE TAXATION AND REVENUE DEPARTMENT TO CONVENE A
                                12   TASK FORCE TO CONDUCT A COMPREHENSIVE STUDY OF TAX
                                13   CENTRALIZATION, UNIFORM SHORT-TERM RENTAL CLASSIFICATION AND
                                14   THE BROADER ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF SHORT-TERM RENTALS ON TOURISM,
                                15   WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND LOCAL SERVICE
                                16   FUNDING.
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                                18  WHEREAS, short-term rentals have become an integral
                                19   component of New Mexico's hospitality and tourism ecosystem,
                                20   generating more than one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) in
                                21   statewide economic impact and supporting thousands of jobs in
                                22   communities throughout the state, including rural and high-
                                23   tourism regions such as Taos, Santa Fe and Bernalillo counties;
                                24   and
                                25  WHEREAS, short-term rentals support diversified lodging
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                                1    that attracts visitors to New Mexico's cultural, historic and
                                2    outdoor assets, directly benefiting restaurants, retail
                                3    establishments, guides, outfitters and other small local
                                4    businesses; and
                                5  WHEREAS, economic activity involving short-term rentals
                                6    has a measurable employment multiplier, expanding work
                                7    opportunities for cleaners, maintenance professionals,
                                8    freelance contractors, virtual property managers and service
                                9    workers who contribute to workforce development and local
                                10   business vitality; and
                                11        WHEREAS, short-term rentals also provide supplemental
                                12   income that enables New Mexico families to sustain home
                                13   ownership and invest in their communities, thereby reinforcing
                                14   the entrepreneurial spirit prevalent across the state; and
                                15        WHEREAS, inconsistent property tax classification
                                16   practices by county assessors, including disparate
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                                17   reclassifications of short-term rental properties from
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                                18   residential to nonresidential status, have introduced
                                19   regulatory uncertainty and the potential for significant tax
                                20   increases that could unintentionally destabilize tourism-
                                21   related supplemental income streams; and
                                22        WHEREAS, rural municipalities often lack a dedicated
                                23   administrative capacity to uniformly collect occupancy taxes
                                24   and gross receipts taxes, resulting in revenue leakage that
                                25   could otherwise be directed toward essential local services,
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                                1    public safety, road maintenance, water and wastewater
                                2    infrastructure and broadband expansion in rural New Mexico; and
                                3  WHEREAS, centralized tax collection mechanisms and uniform
                                4    classification frameworks, developed with robust stakeholder
                                5    participation, may provide a path to ensuring that rural cities
                                6    and counties receive their fair share of revenue to fund
                                7    infrastructure and core services equitably; and
                                8  WHEREAS, the work group convened by the taxation and
                                9    revenue department, the tourism department and the economic
                                10   development department pursuant to House Memorial 52 passed
                                11   during the 2025 regular legislative session provided valuable
                                12   insights into the economic impacts, tax variability and
                                13   classification challenges statewide, underscoring the value of
                                14   a comprehensive statewide study prior to codifying permanent
                                15   tax or classification changes;
                                16        NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF
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                                17   REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the taxation
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                                18   and revenue department, in coordination with the tourism
                                19   department, the New Mexico municipal league and the New Mexico
                                20   association of counties, be requested to convene a task force
                                21   to conduct a comprehensive study of:
                                22  A.   the feasibility and fiscal impacts of
                                23   centralized collection and remittance of local lodgers' tax and
                                24   gross receipts tax related to short-term rentals, including
                                25   potential implications for rural and under-resourced
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                                1    communities;
                                2  B.   a uniform framework for short-term rental
                                3    property classification that balances residential property
                                4    protections with appropriate contributions and provides
                                5    consistency across all of the counties in New Mexico;
                                6  C.   the broader economic contributions of short-term
                                7    rentals to workforce development, small business opportunity
                                8    creation and the entrepreneurship ecosystem in New Mexico; and
                                9  D.   the potential for centralized tax revenue
                                10   structures to enhance funding for rural infrastructure, public
                                11   safety, affordable housing initiatives and essential local
                                12   government services; and
                                13        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force include
                                14   designated representatives from the taxation and revenue
                                15   department, the tourism department, the New Mexico municipal
                                16   league, the New Mexico association of counties, the New Mexico
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                                17   short-term rental association, a short-term rental platform,
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                                18   the New Mexico association of realtors, rural municipal
                                19   officials, county treasurers and workforce development and
                                20   small business stakeholders; and
                                21        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all county assessors be
                                22   requested to pause any new or ongoing property tax
                                23   reclassifications of short-term rental properties until the
                                24   findings and policy recommendations of this study have been
                                25   presented to the appropriate interim legislative committees;
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                                1    and
                                2  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the comprehensive study
                                3    include recommendations on alignments with requirements of the
                                4    Lodgers' Tax Act, potential statutory changes to support
                                5    centralized tax collection and strategies to direct economic
                                6    gains toward public infrastructure and local service funding in
                                7    under-resourced communities; and
                                8  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be requested to
                                9    submit its findings and recommendations to the appropriate
                                10   interim legislative committees by October 1, 2026; and
                                11  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
                                12   transmitted to the governor, the secretary of taxation and
                                13   revenue, the secretary of tourism, the president of the New
                                14   Mexico municipal league and the president of the New Mexico
                                15   association of counties.
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