A. If the condemnor is unable to secure the written consent of the condemnee pursuant to Section 42A-1-8 NMSA 1978 and, if applicable, any other person known to be in actual physical occupancy of the property, he may apply to the court in the county where the property to be entered is located for an order permitting entry.

B. After notice by the condemnor to the condemnee and, if applicable, any other person known to be in actual physical occupancy of the property and unless good cause to the contrary is shown, the court shall make its order permitting and describing the purpose of the entry and setting forth a description of the property and the nature and scope of activities the court determines are reasonably necessary to accomplish the purposes of the proposed taking and authorized to be made upon the property. The order may include terms and conditions with respect to the time, place and manner of entry and authorized activities upon the property which will facilitate the purpose of the entry and minimize damage, hardship and burden, and may require a deposit pursuant to Section 42A-1-10 NMSA 1978.

C. The condemnor shall have delivered any order issued by the court to the condemnee, if known and, if applicable, any other person known to be in actual occupancy of the property personally or by registered mail or certified mail, return receipt requested.

History: 1978 Comp., § 42A-1-7, enacted by 1980, ch. 20, § 9; amended and recompiled as § 42A-1-9 by Laws 1981, ch. 125, § 5.

Recompilations. — Laws 1981, ch. 125, § 7, recompiled former 42A-1-9 NMSA 1978, relating to the modification of orders permitting suitability studies, as 42A-1-11 NMSA 1978.

The 1981 amendment substituted "condemnee" for "owner" once in each subsection, substituted "Section 42A-1-8" for "Section 42A-1-6" in Subsection A, inserted "by the condemnor" in the first sentence of Subsection B and substituted "Section 42A-1-10" for "Section 42A-1-8" in the last sentence of Subsection B.

Jurisdiction of proceedings. Because the 2000 amendment to Section 62-6-4A NMSA 1978 exempted generation and transmission cooperatives from the regulatory jurisdiction of the public regulatory commission, the district court had jurisdiction under N.M. Const. art. VI, § 13 to consider an application under this section by a generation and transmission cooperative to enter and survey land for condemnation suitability studies. Tri-State Generation & Transmission Ass'n. v. King, 2003-NMSC-029, 134 N.M. 467, 78 P.3d 1226.