NMSA 1978, § 7-20E-25 — 7-20E-25

County regional spaceport gross receipts tax; authority
to impose; rate; election required.

# A.

A majority of the members of the governing body of a county that desires to
become a member of a regional spaceport district pursuant to the Regional Spaceport
District Act [5-16-1 to 5-16-13 NMSA 1978] shall impose by ordinance an excise tax at a
rate not to exceed one-half percent of the gross receipts of a person engaging in
business in the district area of the county for the privilege of engaging in business. A tax
imposed pursuant to this section may be imposed by one or more ordinances, each
imposing any number of tax rate increments, but an increment shall not be less than
one-sixteenth percent of the gross receipts of a person engaging in business in the
district area of the county, and the aggregate of all rates shall not exceed one-half
percent of the gross receipts of a person engaging in business in the district area of the
county. The tax may be referred to as the "county regional spaceport gross receipts
tax".

# B.

A governing body, at the time of enacting an ordinance imposing the tax
authorized in Subsection A of this section, shall dedicate a minimum of seventy-five
percent of the proceeds of the revenue to the regional spaceport district for the
financing, planning, designing and engineering and construction of a spaceport or for
projects or services of the district pursuant to the Regional Spaceport District Act and
may dedicate no more than twenty-five percent of the revenue for spaceport-related
projects as approved by resolution of the governing body of the county.

# C.

An ordinance imposing a county regional spaceport gross receipts tax shall not
go into effect until after an election is held and a majority of the voters of the district area
of the county voting in the election votes in favor of imposing the tax. The governing
body shall adopt an ordinance calling for an election within seventy-five days of the date
the resolution is adopted on the question of imposing the tax. The question shall be
submitted to the voters of the district area of the county as a separate question at a
general election or at a special election called for that purpose by the governing body. A
special election shall be called, conducted and canvassed substantially in the same
manner as provided by law for general elections. If a majority of the voters voting on the
question approves the ordinance imposing the county regional spaceport gross receipts
tax, the ordinance shall become effective in accordance with the provisions of the
County Local Option Gross Receipts Taxes Act [County Local Option Gross Receipts
and Compensating Taxes Act]. If the question of imposing the county regional
spaceport gross receipts tax fails, the governing body shall not again propose the
imposition of an increment of the tax for a period of one year from the date of the
election.

# D.

The governing body of a county imposing a county regional spaceport gross
receipts tax shall transfer a minimum of seventy-five percent of all proceeds from the tax
to the regional spaceport district of which it is a member for the purposes in accordance
with the provisions of the Regional Spaceport District Act. The governing body of a
county imposing a county regional spaceport gross receipts tax may retain no more
than twenty-five percent of the county regional spaceport gross receipts tax for
spaceport-related projects as approved by the resolution of the governing body of the
county.

# E.

As used in this section, "district area of the county" means that portion of a
county that is outside the boundaries of a municipality and that is within the boundaries
of a regional spaceport district of which the county is a member; provided that if no
municipality within the county has imposed a municipal regional spaceport gross
receipts tax, "district area of the county" may mean the area within the boundaries of the
county that is within the boundaries of a regional spaceport district of which the county
is a member.