House Bill 418, a wide-ranging update to the Mobile Home Park Act, cleared the Consumer & Public Affairs Committee after extensive testimony from tenants, advocacy groups and landlord representatives.

Sponsor Representative Patahone said the bill aims to "balance the rights of landowners while also strengthening the protections of manufactured homeowners." Experts from the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty described manufactured housing as a major source of unsubsidized affordable housing in the state and noted many residents are seniors on fixed incomes.

Key changes in the bill include requirements for written leases to commence tenancy, expanded notice and cure periods (including a 30-day cure period in some instances), limits on reasons for termination so that violations must be "material," and a private remedy that allows tenants to seek damages and civil penalties for unlawful conduct by landlords. The draft increases some civil penalties and changes the remediation period available to tenants.

Tenant witnesses and advocates said the changes are necessary because many mobile-home owners rent the lot but own the home; eviction can force owners to abandon a home that is costly or impossible to move. Several seniors described surprise sales of park land and eviction notices that left them at risk of losing homes they could not relocate. Conservation Voters New Mexico, AARP New Mexico, and local residents urged passage.

Opponents including the New Mexico Association of Realtors and some park owners urged caution, arguing the bill is overly prescriptive in places. They objected to a mandatory 24-month initial rental term and to new 12-month notice requirements in the event a park owner changes the use of the land. A realtor lobbyist also cautioned that new "materiality" standards for terminations could create uncertainty.

Committee members asked multiple technical questions about how the new cure periods would work for different violations, whether criminal acts such as drug manufacturing would be exempt from longer cure periods, the interplay with existing eviction law and local zoning, and whether inclement infrastructure problems (gas lines, water) would be treated differently. Sponsors and experts said criminal conduct remains subject to law-enforcement responses and that the bill aims to preserve residents' substantial property interests while providing landlords remedies for serious violations.

The committee voted 4–2 to advance the bill. Several members said they appreciated the protections but urged clarifications on items including the mandatory initial 24-month term, exceptions for violent or criminal acts, and the level of civil penalties.