Opinion No. 61-28
April 7, 1961
TO: Mr. Donald C. Davidson, Director of Personnel, State Capitol, Santa Fe, New Mexico
QUESTION
QUESTION
You have submitted a list of State agencies, departments, commissions, boards and institutions and ask our opinion as to which of these are subject to the new Personnel Act passed by the 25th Session of the Legislature, being Chapter 240, Laws of 1961, being House Public Affairs Substitute for H. B. 25, H. B. 144 and H. B. 162.
CONCLUSION
See analysis.
OPINION
ANALYSIS
The criterion set forth in the above-mentioned Act which determines which agencies, etc., are subject to the Act is found in Section 4 and covers all State positions except:
1. Officials elected by popular vote or appointed to fill vacancies in elective offices except for the governor, and employees unless the elected officials elect to have their employees covered by the Act.
2. Members of boards and commissions and heads of agencies appointed by the governor.
3. Heads of agencies appointed by boards or commissions appointed by the Governor.
4. Those in educational institutions and in public schools.
5. Those in the Governor's office.
6. Those in the State Militia or State Police.
7. Those in the judicial branch of the government.
8. Those in the legislative branch of government.
9. Not more than two assistants in the office of each elected official and in the office of each head of an agency and one secretary in the office of each gubernatorial appointee who serves in a full time capacity.
10. Those of a professional or scientific nature which are temporary in nature.
11. Those of an emergency nature where the term of employment does not exceed 90 days.
12. Those filled by patients or inmates in charitable, penal or correctional institutions.
The list you have submitted is as follows:
Accountancy Board
Adjutant General
Architects Examiners Board
Armory Board
Attorney General
Auditor
Bank Examiner
Bar Commission
Bar Examiners Board
Barber Examiners Board
Board of Osteopathy Examiners
Basic Science Board
Board of Finance, State
Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors
Boys' Industrial School
Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources
Capitol Buildings Improvement Commission
Capitol Custodian
Carrie Tingley Hospital
Cattle Sanitary Board
Chiropractic Examiners Board
Civil Air Patrol
Collection Agency Board
Commission on Alcoholism
Commission on Uniformity of State Laws
Compilation Commission
Commission on Indian Affairs
Contractors License Board
Corporation Commission
Cosmetology Board
Courtesy and Information
Criminal Code Study Committee
Dairy Industry Indemnity Board
Dental Examiners Board
Department of Agriculture
Department of Development
Department of Education
Department of Finance and
Administration
Department of Game and Fish
District Judges
Dry Cleaning Board
Eastern New Mexico University
Educational Finance Board
Educational Retirement Board
Electrical Administrative Board
Embalmers and Funeral Directors Board
Employment Security Commission
Fair Employment Practices Commission
Fire Marshal
Fish and Wildlife Service
Forest Conservation Commission
Girls' Welfare Home
Governor's Veterans Approval Committee
Governor (Staff)
Grasshopper Control Board
Highlands University
Highway Department
Interstate Streams Commission
Intertribal Indian Ceremonial
Institute of Mining and Technology
Labor and Industrial Commission
Land Office, State
Law Library, State
Legislature
Legislative Council
Legislative Fiscal Analyst
Liquified Petroleum Gas Commission
Lieutenant Governor (Staff)
Los Lunas Hospital and Training School
Medical Examiners Board
Merit System Council
Mine Inspector
Miners' Hospital
Motor Vehicle Department
Museum of International Folk Art
Museum of New Mexico
New Mexico Historical Society
New Mexico Military Institute
New Mexico School for the Deaf
New Mexico State University
New Mexico School for the Visually Handicapped
New Mexico Western University
Northern New Mexico Normal
Nursing Board
Office of Civil Defense Mobilization
Oil Conservation Commission
Oil and Gas Accounting Commission
Old Lincoln County Memorial Commission
Optometry Examiners Board
Park Commission, State
Parole Board
Penitentiary
Personnel Office
Physical Therapist Licensing Board
Planning Office, State
Plumbing Administrative Board
Podiatry Board
Probation Officer
Public Employees Retirement Board
Public Health, State Department of
Public Service Commission
Public Welfare, State Department of
Racing Commission
Real Estate Board
Revenue, Bureau of
Secretary of State
Sheep Sanitary Board
Soil Conservation Committee
State Bar
State Engineer
State Fair Commission
State Hospital
State Investment Council
State Library Commission
State Police
State Purchasing Agent
State Records Center
State Treasurer
Supreme Court
Supreme Court Building Commission
Superintendent of Insurance and Insurance Board
Superintendent of Weights and Measures
Surplus Property Agent
Tax Commission, State
Traffic Safety Commission
Tuberculosis Hospital
University of New Mexico
Veterans Service Commission
Veterinary Examiners Board
Vocational Education Board
Vocational Rehabilitation Division
Youth Commission
Of this list, we are of the opinion that the following agencies and departments are exempt from the Personnel Act if they elect to so exempt themselves:
Attorney General
Auditor
Corporation Commission and the following departments thereunder
Fire Marshal
Superintendent of Insurance
Insurance Board
Department of Education, and the following divisions thereunder
Vocational Education Board
Vocational Rehabilitation
Division
Surplus Property Agent
State Land Office
Lieutenant Governor
Secretary of State
The following agencies, departments, etc., are exempt from the Personnel Act because of specific exemptions contained in Section 4 of the Act:
Adjutant General
Criminal Code Study Committee
Eastern New Mexico University
Governor's Staff
Highlands University
Institute of Mining and Technology
Law Library
Legislature
Legislative Council
Legislative Fiscal Analyst
New Mexico Military Institute
New Mexico School for the Deaf
New Mexico State University
New Mexico School for the Visually Handicapped
New Mexico Western University
Northern New Mexico Normal
State Police
Supreme Court
University of New Mexico
The following departments, agencies, offices, etc., are exempt from the Personnel Act because, in our opinion, they are either (1) not State positions within the meaning of the Act or (2) they are not official State agencies within the meaning of the Act:
District Judges
New Mexico Historical Society
Probation Officers
It should be noted under Section 4 of the Act, certain positions within departments subject to the Personnel Act are made exempt from the provisions of the Act. We have not attempted to set forth those individual positions within the departments. We have merely set forth departments and divisions as a whole which we deem subject or exempt from the Act.