A. The county assessor is responsible and has the authority for the valuation of all property subject to valuation for property taxation purposes in the county except the property specified by Subsections B and C of this section.

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B. The department is responsible and has the authority for the valuation of all property subject to valuation for property taxation purposes and used in the conduct of the following businesses:

(1)     railroad;

1978;

(2)     communications system as that term is defined in Section 7-36-30 NMSA (3)     pipeline;

(4)     public utility; and

(5)     airline.

C. The department is responsible and has the authority for the valuation of property subject to valuation for property taxation purposes when that property is:

(1)     an electricity generating plant, whether or not owned by a public utility, if all or part of the electricity is generated for ultimate sale to the consuming public;

(2)     mineral property and property held or used in connection with mineral property as defined in Sections 7-36-22 through 7-36-25 N.M. Stat. Ann.; or

(3)     machinery, equipment and other personal property of all resident and nonresident persons customarily engaged in construction that involves the use during a tax year of the machinery, equipment and other personal property in more than one county. For the purposes of this paragraph, “construction” means leveling or clearing land, excavating earth, drilling wells of any type, including seismograph shot holes or core drilling, or similar work, or building, altering, repairing or demolishing any:

(a) road, highway, bridge, parking area or related project; (b) building, fence, stadium or other structure;

(c) airport, subway or similar facility;

(d) park, trail, athletic field, golf course or similar facility;

(e) dam, reservoir, canal, ditch or similar facility;

(f) sewerage or water treatment facility, power generating plant, pump station, natural gas compressing station, gas processing plant, coal gasification plant, refinery, distillery or similar facility;

(g) sewerage, water, gas or other pipeline; (h) transmission line;

(i) radio, television or other tower; (j) water, oil or other storage tank;

(k) shaft, tunnel or other mining appurtenance; or

(l) similar work.

D. The entity having responsibility and authority for valuing the property described in Subsections A through C of this section shall also have responsibility and authority for classifying that property as either residential or nonresidential under the provisions of Section 7-36-2.1 N.M. Stat. Ann..

E. The secretary by regulation may delegate authority to the county assessor for the valuation and classification of property subject to valuation for property taxation purposes for which the department is responsible pursuant to Subsections B through D of this section only if:

(1)     the property is held or used in connection with the transmission, storage, measurement or distribution of water and the transmission, storage, measurement and distribution is conducted by a single person entirely within a single county; or

(2)     the property is held or used in connection with a communications system as defined in Section 7-36-30 N.M. Stat. Ann. and the system operates entirely within a single county.

F. The department is authorized to enter into one or more agreements with each county assessor, subject to approval of each agreement by the appropriate board of county commissioners, under which the county assessor agrees to perform the valuation of property for which the department is responsible under Subsection B of this section but which property is not subject to the special methods of valuation set forth in Sections 7-36-27, 7-36-28 and 7-36-30 through 7-36-32 N.M. Stat. Ann..