NMSA 59A-52-16. Flammable liquids rules; nationwide standards;
AI-assisted research summary: The state fire marshal must adopt safety rules for flammable and combustible liquids, and those rules must follow current safety standards and allow some existing facilities to keep operating in limited circumstances.
59A-52-16. Flammable liquids rules; nationwide standards; definition. A. The state fire marshal shall adopt rules for the safe vehicular transportation, storage, handling and use of flammable and combustible liquids; provided that the state fire marshal shall not adopt any rule conflicting with the jurisdiction of the department of environment over the regulation of storage tanks pursuant to the Hazardous Waste Act [Chapter 74, Article 4 NMSA 1978] or the Ground Water Protection Act [Chapter 74, Article 6B NMSA 1978]. B. The rules shall be in keeping with the latest generally recognized safety standards for flammable and combustible liquids. Rules in substantial conformity with the published standards of the national fire protection association for vehicular transportation, storage, handling and use of flammable and combustible liquids shall be deemed to be in substantial conformity with the generally accepted and recognized standards of safety concerning the same subject matter. C. The rules shall include reasonable provisions under which facilities in service prior to the effective date of the rules and not in strict conformity therewith may be continued in service. Nonconforming facilities in service prior to the adoption of the rules that are found by the state fire marshal to constitute a distinct hazard to life or property may not be excepted from the rules or permitted to continue in service. For guidance in enforcement, the rules may delineate those types of nonconformities that should be considered distinctly hazardous and those nonconformities that should be evaluated in light of local conditions. If the need for compliance with any rule is conditioned on local factors, the rules shall provide that reasonable notice be given to the proprietor of the facility affected of intention to evaluate the need for compliance and of the time and place at which the proprietor may appear and offer evidence thereon. D. As used in Chapter 59A, Article 52 NMSA 1978, the term "flammable liquid" means any liquid having a flash point below one hundred degrees Fahrenheit, and "combustible liquid" means any liquid having a flash point at or above one hundred degrees Fahrenheit and below two hundred degrees Fahrenheit. History: Laws 1984, ch. 127, § 962; 2001, ch. 325, § 1; 2020, ch. 9, § 43.