commission. A. The compact member states hereby create and establish a joint government agency whose membership consists of all member states that have enacted the compact, known as the "social work licensure compact commission". The commission is an instrumentality of the member states acting jointly and not an instrumentality of any one state. The commission shall come into existence on or after the effective date of this compact as set forth in Section 14 [11-22-14 NMSA 1978] of the Social Work Licensure Interstate Compact. B. The commission shall satisfy each of the following requirements with respect to membership, voting and meetings: (1) each member state shall have and be limited to one delegate selected by the member state's licensing authority. The delegate shall be either: (a) a current member of the state licensing authority at the time of appointment who is a regulated social worker or public member of the state licensing authority; or (b) an administrator of the state licensing authority or the administrator's designee; (2) the commission shall by rule or bylaw establish a term of office for delegates and may by rule or bylaw establish term limits; (3) the commission may recommend removal or suspension of any delegate from office; (4) a member state's licensing authority shall fill any vacancy of its delegate within sixty days of the vacancy; (5) each delegate shall be entitled to one vote on all matters before the commission requiring a vote by commission delegates; (6) a delegate shall vote in person or by other means as provided by the commission's bylaws. The commission may allow delegates to meet by telecommunication, video conference or other means of communication; and (7) the commission shall meet at least once during each calendar year. Additional meetings may be held as set forth in the commission's bylaws. The commission may meet by telecommunication, video conference or other similar electronic means. C. The commission shall have the power to: (1) establish the fiscal year of the commission; (2) establish a code of conduct and conflict of interest policies; (3) establish and amend rules and bylaws; (4) maintain the commission's financial records in accordance with the bylaws; (5) meet and take actions that are consistent with the provisions of this compact, the commission's rules and the bylaws; (6) initiate and conclude legal proceedings or actions in the name of the commission; provided that the standing of any state licensing board to sue or be sued under applicable law shall not be affected; (7) maintain and certify records and information provided to a member state as the authenticated business records of the commission and designate an agent to do so on the commission's behalf; (8) purchase and maintain insurance and bonds; (9) borrow, accept or contract for services of personnel, including employees of a member state; (10) conduct an annual financial review; (11) hire employees, elect or appoint officers, fix compensation, define duties, grant persons appropriate authority to carry out the purposes of this compact and establish the commission's personnel policies and programs relating to conflicts of interest, qualification of personnel and other related personnel matters; (12) assess and collect fees; (13) accept any and all appropriate gifts, donations, grants of money, other sources of revenue, equipment, supplies, materials and services and receive, utilize and dispose of the same; provided that at all times the commission shall avoid any appearance of impropriety or conflict of interest; (14) lease, purchase, retain, own, hold, improve or use any property real, personal or mixed or any undivided interest therein; (15) sell, convey, mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, abandon or otherwise dispose of any property real, personal or mixed; (16) establish a budget and make expenditures; (17) borrow money; (18) appoint committees, including standing committees, composed of members, state regulators, state legislators or their representatives, consumer representatives and other interested persons as may be designated in this compact and the commission's bylaws; (19) provide and receive information from, and cooperate with, law enforcement agencies; (20) establish and elect an executive committee, including a chair and a vice chair; (21) determine whether a state's adopted language is materially different from the model compact language such that the state would not qualify for participation in the compact; and (22) perform other functions as may be necessary or appropriate to achieve the purposes of this compact. D. The executive committee established by the commission shall: (1) have the power to act on behalf of the commission according to the terms of this compact. The powers, duties and responsibilities of the executive committee shall include: (a) overseeing the day-to-day activities of the administration of the compact, including enforcement and compliance with the provisions of this compact, the commission's rules and bylaws and other duties as deemed necessary; (b) recommending to the commission changes to the rules or bylaws, changes to this compact legislation, fees charged to member states, fees charged to licensees and other fees; (c) ensuring compact administration services are appropriately provided, including by contract; (d) preparing and recommending the commission's budget; (e) maintaining financial records on behalf of the commission; (f) monitoring compact compliance of member states and providing reports to the commission; (g) establishing additional committees as necessary; (h) exercising the powers and duties of the commission during the interim between commission meetings, except for adopting or amending rules, adopting or amending bylaws and exercising any other powers and duties expressly reserved to the commission by rule or bylaw; and (i) other duties as provided in the rules or bylaws of the commission; (2) be composed of up to eleven members, as follows: (a) the chair and vice chair of the commission shall be voting members of the executive committee; (b) the commission shall elect five voting members from the current membership of the commission; (c) up to four ex-officio, nonvoting members from four recognized social work organizations. The ex-officio members shall be selected by their respective organizations; and (d) the commission may remove any member of the executive committee as provided in the commission's bylaws; and (3) meet at least annually, and: (a) executive committee meetings shall be open to the public, except that the executive committee may meet in a closed, nonpublic meeting as provided in Subsection G of this section; (b) the executive committee shall give seven days' notice of its meetings, posted on the committee's website and as determined to provide notice to persons with an interest in the business of the commission; and (c) the executive committee may hold a special meeting in accordance with Paragraph (2) of Subsection F of this section. E. The commission shall adopt and provide an annual report to the member states. F. All meetings of the commission shall be open to the public, except that the commission may meet in a closed, nonpublic meeting as provided in Subsection G of this section. The commission: (1) shall provide public notice for all meetings in the same manner as required for notice of rulemaking under the provisions of Section 12 [11-22-12 NMSA 1978] of the Social Work Licensure Interstate Compact, except that the commission may hold a special meeting as provided in Paragraph (2) of this subsection; and (2) may hold a special meeting when it must meet to conduct emergency business by giving forty-eight hours' notice to all commissioners on the commission's website and by other means as provided in the commission's rules. The commission's legal counsel shall certify that the commission's need to meet qualifies as an emergency. G. The commission, executive committee or other committees of the commission may convene in a closed, nonpublic meeting for the commission, executive committee or other committee of the commission to receive legal advice or to discuss: (1) noncompliance of a member state with its obligations under the compact; (2) the employment, compensation, discipline or other matters, practices or procedures related to specific employees; (3) current or threatened discipline of a licensee by the commission or by a member state's licensing authority; (4) current, threatened or reasonably anticipated litigation; (5) negotiation of contracts for the purchase, lease or sale of goods, services or real estate; (6) accusing any person of a crime or formally censuring any person; (7) trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential; (8) investigative records compiled for law enforcement purposes; (9) information related to any investigative reports prepared by or on behalf of or for use of the commission or other committee charged with responsibility of investigation or determination of compliance issues pursuant to this compact; (10) matters specifically exempted from disclosure by federal or member state law; or (11) other matters as promulgated by the commission by rule. H. If a meeting or portion of a meeting is closed, the presiding officer shall state that the meeting will be closed and reference each relevant exempting provision, and the reference shall be recorded in the minutes. I. The commission shall keep minutes that fully and clearly describe all matters discussed in a meeting and shall provide a full and accurate summary of actions taken and the reasons for taking the actions, including a description of the views expressed. All documents considered in connection with an action shall be identified in the minutes. All minutes and documents of a closed meeting shall remain under seal, subject to release only by a majority vote of the commission or order of a court of competent jurisdiction. J. With respect to financing, the commission: (1) shall pay or provide for the payment of the reasonable expenses of its establishment, organization and ongoing activities; (2) may accept any and all appropriate revenue sources as provided in Paragraph (13) of Subsection C of this section; (3) may levy on and collect an annual assessment from each member state and impose fees on licensees of member states to whom it grants a multistate license to cover the cost of the operations and activities of the commission and its staff, which shall be in a total amount sufficient to cover the commission's annual budget for which revenue is not provided by other sources. The aggregate annual assessment amount for member states shall be allocated based upon a formula that the commission shall promulgate by rule; (4) shall not incur obligations of any kind prior to securing the funds adequate to meet the obligations; nor shall the commission pledge the credit of any of the member states, except by and with the authority of the member state; and (5) shall keep accurate accounts of all receipts and disbursements. The receipts and disbursements of the commission shall be subject to the financial review and accounting procedures established under the commission's bylaws. All receipts and disbursements of funds shall be subject to an annual financial review by a certified or licensed public accountant, and the report of the financial review shall be included in and become part of the annual report of the commission. K. With respect to defense and indemnification: (1) the commission shall defend any member, officer, executive director, employee and representative of the commission in any civil action seeking to impose liability arising out of any actual or alleged act, error or omission that occurred within the scope of commission employment, duties or responsibilities, or as determined by the commission that the person against whom the claim is made had a reasonable basis for believing occurred within the scope of commission employment, duties or responsibilities; provided that nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit that person from retaining that person's own counsel at that person's own expense; and provided further that the actual or alleged act, error or omission did not result from that person's intentional or willful or wanton misconduct; (2) the commission shall indemnify and hold harmless any member, officer, executive director, employee and representative of the commission for the amount of any settlement or judgment obtained against that person arising out of any actual or alleged act, error or omission that occurred within the scope of commission employment, duties or responsibilities, or that such person had a reasonable basis for believing occurred within the scope of commission employment, duties or responsibilities; provided that the actual or alleged act, error or omission did not result from the intentional or willful or wanton misconduct of that person; (3) nothing in this compact shall be construed as a limitation on the liability of any licensee for professional malpractice or misconduct, which shall be governed solely by any other applicable state laws; (4) nothing in this compact shall be interpreted to waive or otherwise abrogate a member state's state action immunity or state action affirmative defense with respect to antitrust claims under the federal Sherman Act, the federal Clayton Act or any other state or federal antitrust or anticompetitive law or regulation; and (5) nothing in this compact shall be construed to be a waiver of sovereign immunity by the member states or by the commission. History: Laws 2026, ch. 6, § 10.
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