RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE TAX CREDIT

SB0093

SENATE BILL 93

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Crystal Brantley
and
Carrie Hamblen
and
Gabriel Ramos

AN ACT

RELATING TO TAXATION; CREATING THE RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE
CORPORATE INCOME TAX CREDIT; ALLOWING THE TAXATION AND REVENUE
DEPARTMENT AND THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO SHARE
INFORMATION CONCERNING RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE CORPORATE INCOME TAX
CREDITS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

SECTION 1.
A new section of the Corporate Income and
Franchise Tax Act is enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE CORPORATE INCOME TAX
CREDIT.--

A. For taxable years prior to January 1, 2036, a
taxpayer that is a railroad that incurs qualified
reconstruction or replacement expenditures or qualified new
rail infrastructure expenditures may claim a tax credit against
the taxpayer's tax liability for that taxable year imposed
pursuant to the Corporate Income and Franchise Tax Act. The
tax credit provided by this section may be referred to as the
"rail infrastructure corporate income tax credit".

B. The purpose of the rail infrastructure corporate
income tax credit is to incentivize incremental expansions or
improvements to rail infrastructure that would not reasonably
occur but for the availability of the credit, increase freight
capacity, reduce highway externalities and enhance the
competitiveness of New Mexico businesses.

C. The amount of credit that may be allowed
pursuant to this section shall be equal to fifty percent of a
taxpayer's qualified reconstruction or replacement expenditures
or qualified new rail infrastructure expenditures; provided
that:

(1) for qualified reconstruction or
replacement expenditures, the amount of tax credit shall not
exceed an amount equal to the product of five thousand dollars
($5,000) multiplied by the number of miles of railroad track
owned or leased in the state by the taxpayer as of the close of
the taxable year; and

(2) for qualified new rail infrastructure
expenditures, the amount of tax credit shall not exceed one
million dollars ($1,000,000) for each new rail-served customer
project of the taxpayer.

D. A taxpayer that seeks to claim a tax credit
provided by this section shall apply for a certificate of
eligibility from the department of transportation during the
taxable year in which, or within three months after, the
qualified reconstruction or replacement expenditures or
qualified new rail infrastructure expenditures are incurred.
The application shall include the number of miles of railroad
track that the taxpayer owns or leases in New Mexico, a
description of the amount of qualified reconstruction or
replacement expenditures or qualified new rail infrastructure
expenditures completed, supporting expenditure detail and the
amount of tax credit requested.

E. A taxpayer shall apply for certification of
eligibility for the credit provided by this section from the
department of transportation on forms and in the manner
prescribed by that department. The total annual aggregate
amount of credits that may be certified in any calendar year is
six million dollars ($6,000,000). Completed applications shall
be considered in the order received. Applications for
certification received after this limitation has been met in a
calendar year shall not be approved for that calendar year, but
shall be considered for certification in the following calendar
year. The department of transportation shall publish on its
website on a regular basis the number of rail infrastructure
corporate income tax credits that have been certified in each
calendar year.

F. If the department of transportation determines
that a taxpayer is a railroad and meets the requirements to
claim a tax credit pursuant to this section, that department
shall issue to the taxpayer a dated certificate of eligibility
providing the amount of the tax credit for which the taxpayer
is eligible and the taxable year in which the credit may be
claimed. The department of transportation shall provide the
taxation and revenue department with the certificates of
eligibility issued pursuant to this subsection in an electronic
format at regularly agreed-upon intervals.

G. A certificate of eligibility issued pursuant to
this section may either be submitted by the taxpayer with that
taxpayer's return or be sold, exchanged or otherwise
transferred to another taxpayer for the full value of the
credit. The parties to such a transaction shall notify the
department of the sale, exchange or transfer within ten days of
the sale, exchange or transfer. The notification shall include
the names, addresses and taxpayer identification numbers of the
parties to the transfer, the amount of the credit being
transferred, the year that the credit was originally allowed to
the transferring taxpayer and the taxable year or years for
which the credit may be claimed.

H. To receive a tax credit provided by this
section, a taxpayer shall claim the credit on forms and in the
manner prescribed by the department within twelve months
following the calendar year in which the certificate of
eligibility was issued. The claim shall include a certificate
of eligibility issued pursuant to this section.

I. That portion of a tax credit that exceeds a
taxpayer's tax liability in the taxable year in which the tax
credit is claimed shall not be refunded but may be carried
forward for a maximum of five consecutive taxable years.

J. The department of transportation shall analyze
the effectiveness and cost of the credit and whether the credit
is performing the purpose for which it was created and shall
report the number of jobs retained or created as a result of
the credit and any other information required by the
legislature to aid in evaluating the effectiveness of the
credit.

K. The credit provided by this section shall be
included in the tax expenditure budget pursuant to Section
7-1-84 NMSA 1978, including the total annual aggregate cost of
the credit.

L. The department of transportation may promulgate
rules necessary for administering the provisions of this
section.

M. As used in this section:

(1) "qualified new rail infrastructure
expenditures" means gross expenditures for new rail
infrastructure incurred by a taxpayer, including the new
construction of industrial leads, switches, sidings, rail
loading docks and transloading structures involved with
servicing new customer locations or existing customer
expansions adjacent to a railroad located in New Mexico;

(2) "qualified reconstruction or replacement
expenditures" means gross expenditures for maintenance,
reconstruction or replacement of railroad infrastructure,
including track, roadbed, bridges, industrial leads, sidings
and track-related structures in New Mexico that are owned or
leased by a taxpayer claiming the credit provided by this
section. "Qualified reconstruction or replacement
expenditures" does not include expenditures used to generate a
federal tax credit or expenditures funded by a state or federal
grant;

(3) "railroad" means a railroad that is
classified by the federal surface transportation board as a
class two or class three railroad located wholly or partly in
New Mexico or an owner or lessee of a rail siding, yard track,
industrial spur or industry track located in New Mexico on or
adjacent to a railroad; and

(4) "rail-served customer project" means
construction of railroad infrastructure to provide rail
service."

SECTION 2.
Section 7-1-8.8 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019,
Chapter 87, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:

"7-1-8.8. INFORMATION THAT MAY BE REVEALED TO OTHER STATE
AND LEGISLATIVE AGENCIES.--An employee of the department may
reveal confidential return information to the following
agencies; provided that a person who receives the information
on behalf of the agency shall be subject to the penalties in
Section 7-1-76 NMSA 1978 if the person fails to maintain the
confidentiality required:

A. a committee of the legislature for a valid
legislative purpose, return information concerning any tax or
fee imposed pursuant to the Cigarette Tax Act;

B. the attorney general, return information
acquired pursuant to the Cigarette Tax Act for purposes of
Section 6-4-13 NMSA 1978 and the master settlement agreement
defined in Section 6-4-12 NMSA 1978;

C. the commissioner of public lands, return
information for use in auditing that pertains to rentals,
royalties, fees and other payments due the state under land
sale, land lease or other land use contracts;

D. the secretary of health care authority or the
secretary's delegate under a written agreement with the
department:

(1) the last known address with date of all
names certified to the department as being absent parents of
children receiving public financial assistance, but only for
the purpose of enforcing the support liability of the absent
parents by the child support enforcement division or any
successor organizational unit;

(2) return information needed for reports
required to be made to the federal government concerning the
use of federal funds for low-income working families;

(3) return information of low-income taxpayers
for the limited purpose of outreach to those taxpayers;
provided that the health care authority [
department
] shall pay
the department for expenses incurred by the department to
derive the information requested by the health care authority
[
department
] if the information requested is not readily
available in reports for which the department's information
systems are programmed;

(4) return information required to administer
the Health Care Quality Surcharge Act and the Health Care
Delivery and Access Act; and

(5) return information in accordance with the
provisions of the Easy Enrollment Act;

E. the department of information technology, by
electronic media, a database updated quarterly that contains
the names, addresses, county of address and taxpayer
identification numbers of New Mexico personal income tax
filers, but only for the purpose of producing the random jury
list for the selection of petit or grand jurors for the state
courts pursuant to Section 38-5-3 NMSA 1978;

F. the state courts, the random jury lists produced
by the department of information technology under Subsection E
of this section;

G. the director of the New Mexico department of
agriculture or the director's authorized representative, upon
request of the director or representative, the names and
addresses of all gasoline or special fuel distributors,
wholesalers and retailers;

H. the public regulation commission, return
information with respect to the Corporate Income and Franchise
Tax Act required to enable the commission to carry out its
duties;

I. the state racing commission, return information
with respect to the state, municipal and county gross receipts
taxes paid by racetracks;

J. the gaming control board, tax returns of license
applicants and their affiliates as provided in Subsection E of
Section 60-2E-14 NMSA 1978;

K. the director of the workers' compensation
administration or to the director's representatives authorized
for this purpose, return information to facilitate the
identification of taxpayers that are delinquent or noncompliant
in payment of fees required by Section 52-1-9.1 or 52-5-19 NMSA
1978;

L. the secretary of workforce solutions or the
secretary's delegate, return information for use in enforcement
of unemployment insurance collections pursuant to the terms of
a written reciprocal agreement entered into by the department
with the secretary of workforce solutions for exchange of
information;

M. the New Mexico finance authority, information
with respect to the amount of municipal and county gross
receipts taxes collected by municipalities and counties
pursuant to any local option municipal or county gross receipts
taxes imposed, and information with respect to the amount of
governmental gross receipts taxes paid by every agency,
institution, instrumentality or political subdivision of the
state pursuant to Section 7-9-4.3 NMSA 1978;

N. the superintendent of insurance, return
information with respect to the premium tax and the health
insurance premium surtax;

O. the secretary of finance and administration or
the secretary's designee, return information concerning a
credit pursuant to the Film Production Tax Credit Act;

P. the secretary of economic development or the
secretary's designee, return information concerning a credit
pursuant to the Film Production Tax Credit Act;

Q. the secretary of public safety or the
secretary's designee, return information concerning the Weight
Distance Tax Act;

R. the secretary of transportation or the
secretary's designee, return information concerning the Weight
Distance Tax Act
and return information concerning rail
infrastructure corporate income tax credits for which
eligibility is certified or otherwise determined by the
secretary or the secretary's designee
;

S. the secretary of energy, minerals and natural
resources or the secretary's designee, return information
concerning tax credits or deductions for which eligibility is
certified or otherwise determined by the secretary or the
secretary's designee;

T. the secretary of environment or the secretary's
designee, return information concerning tax credits for which
eligibility is certified or otherwise determined by the
secretary or the secretary's designee; and

U. the secretary of state or the secretary's
designee, taxpayer information required to maintain voter
registration records and as otherwise provided in the Election
Code."

SECTION 3.
APPLICABILITY.--The provisions of this act
apply to taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026.

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