House Bill 148 -- OUTLAWS CERTAIN INTERSTATE FIREARM PURCHASES

Another one...

HB 148 Rehm (R31)
OUTLAWS CERTAIN INTERSTATE FIREARM PURCHASES
Analysis (new): Repeals a section of the Criminal Code, thereby abolishing the law that allows residents of contiguous states to purchase firearms in New Mexico and residents of New Mexico to purchase firearms in contiguous states.

I heard the sponsor was very pro gun rights and asked him what was up with this bill.

He says the NRA requested it because federal law supersedes it and allows the purchases anyway. The current state law on the books was confusing some retailers in non-contiguous states who could have sold to NM residents by federal law but weren't because they were afraid it was illegal by NM law.

Basically it's just a cleanup to improve NM residents' ability to purchase in other states.

That's correct. More importantly, it was more restrictive than the Federal Law is.

Again - on it's way to House Judiciary.

Texas did the same thing two sessions ago, for the same reason: the old statute said Texas residents "may" buy long guns in contiguous states. It did not say they "may only" buy in contiguous states.

The original GCA'68 restricted all gun purchases to the state of resident, except that long guns could be purchased in contiguous states if both states' laws allowed it. The GCA's contiguous requirement was removed in 1986 as part of FOPA (I think), but lots of states still had similar language on the books.

A few years back ATF creatively interpreted the Texas statute as if it restricted long gun purchase to only contiguous states, so Texas changed the law.

Sounds like exactly the same case here: it doesn't "outlaw" anything, it removes a restriction. With no restriction, it's legal.

How does this affect handgun purchases?

Edit:
Nevermind, was just waking up and forgot that fed law doesn't allow out of state handgun purchases without shipping to in state FFL.