New Mexico Statutes
Article 1A - Horse Racing Act
Section 60-1A-14 - Testing specimens. (Repealed effective July 1, 2022.)

A. The commission shall adopt rules applying to the handling of pre- and post-race, out-of-competition and necropsy testing of blood serum plasma, urine or other appropriate test samples identified by the commission to be taken from racehorses, following guidelines that meet or exceed the standards established in model rules published by the association of racing commissioners international, incorporated, or a successor organization or, if none, by another nationally recognized organization that has published substantially similar guidelines that are generally accepted in the horse racing industry as determined by the commission.
B. Each specimen taken from a racehorse shall be divided into two or more samples, and:
(1) one sample, designated as the "official sample", shall be tested by the commission or its designated laboratory in order to detect the presence of unauthorized drugs, chemicals, stimulants, depressants or other prohibited substances as defined in guidelines published by the association of racing commissioners international, incorporated, or a successor organization or, if none, by another nationally recognized organization that has published substantially similar guidelines that are generally accepted in the horse racing industry as determined by the commission; and
(2) the remaining samples, each designated as a "split sample", may be forwarded by the commission to the scientific laboratory division of the department of health or maintained by the commission in a manner that meets or exceeds the guidelines identified in Paragraph (1) of this subsection.
C. After a positive test result on the official sample tested by the commission or its designated laboratory and upon a written request from the president, executive director or manager of the New Mexico horsemen's association on forms designated by the commission, a corresponding split sample shall be transferred to an independent laboratory in a manner prescribed by commission rule.
D. All samples shall be kept in a controlled environment for a period of time specified by the commission in each case.
E. The commission shall contract with an independent laboratory to maintain a quality assurance program. The laboratory shall meet or exceed the current national laboratory standards for the testing of drugs or other foreign substances in a horse, as established by the association of racing commissioners international, incorporated, or of a successor organization or, if none, of another nationally recognized organization that has published substantially similar guidelines that are generally accepted in the horse racing industry.
History: Laws 2007, ch. 39, § 14; 2013, ch. 102, § 2; 2013, ch. 103, § 3; 2015, ch. 140, § 1; 2017, ch. 28, § 3; 2017, ch. 145, § 3.
Delayed repeals. — For delayed repeal of this section, see 60-1A-29 NMSA 1978.
Repeals. — Laws 2015, ch. 140, § 3 repealed Laws 2013, ch. 102, § 2, effective June 19, 2015.
Duplicate amendments. — Laws 2017, ch. 28, § 3 and Laws 2017, ch. 145, § 3, both effective July 1, 2017, enacted identical amendments to this section. The section is set out as amended by Laws 2017, ch. 28, § 3. See compiler's note below.
Compiler's notes. — Laws 2017, ch. 28, § 3, was signed into law by the governor on March 30, 2017.
Senate Bill 184 (Laws 2017, ch. 145), enacted by the Fifty-Third Legislature, First Session, 2017, was vetoed by the governor on March 15, 2017. Pursuant to the First Judicial District Court's decision in State ex rel. New Mexico Legislative Council v. Honorable Susana Martinez, Governor of the State of New Mexico et al., D-101-CV-2017-01550, and affirmed by S.Ct. Order No. S-1-SC-36731, on April 25, 2018, which held that Article IV, Section 22 of the New Mexico Constitution requires that objections must accompany a returned bill, Senate Bill 184 was chaptered into law by the Secretary of State.
Pursuant to 12-1-8 NMSA 1978, the section was set out as amended by Law 2017, ch. 28, § 3.
The 2017 amendment, effective July 1, 2017, clarified the designation and handling of testing samples taken from racehorses; in Subsection B, after "two or more", deleted "equal", in Paragraph B(1), after "one sample", added "designated as the 'official sample'", after "depressants or other", deleted "performance altering substances" and added "prohibited substances", after "as defined", added "in guidelines published", in Paragraph B(2), deleted "second sample shall" and added "remaining samples, each designated as a 'split sample', may", after "department of health", added "or maintained by the commission in a manner that meets or exceeds the guidelines identified in Paragraph (1) of this subsection"; in Subsection C, after "positive test result on the", added "official", after "designated by the commission", deleted "the scientific laboratory division shall transmit the corresponding second sample to the New Mexico horsemen's association" and added "a corresponding split sample shall be transferred to an independent laboratory in a manner prescribed by commission rule"; and in Subsection D, deleted "The scientific laboratory division shall keep", after "All samples", added "shall be kept", and after "period of", deleted "at least three months" and added "time specified by the commission in each case".
The 2015 amendment, effective June 19, 2015, required the racing commission to adopt drug testing rules that meet or exceed standards in internationally recognized model rules; in Subsection A, after "handling", deleted "and" and added "of pre- and post-race, out-of-competition and necropsy", after "taken from racehorses", added the remainder of the sentence.
The 2013 amendment, effective June 14, 2013, provided a nationally recognized classification of prohibited substances; in Subsection A, after "handling and testing or", deleted "urine and other specimens" and added "blood serum plasma, urine or other appropriate test samples"; in Subsection B, in the introductory sentence, after "two or more", added "equal"; in Paragraph (1) of Subsection B, after "depressants or other", deleted "foreign substances not naturally occurring in a horse" and added the remainder of the sentence; in Subsection C, at the beginning of the sentence, after "After", deleted "an inclusive or" and added "a"; and in Subsection E, added the second sentence.
Retesting of specimens. — This section does not prohibit retesting of specimens after a clear official test has been had and the purse for the race released. Claridge v. N.M. State Racing Comm'n, 1988-NMCA-056, 107 N.M. 632, 763 P.2d 66 (decided under former law).