The petition drive that would have put the question of whether to form a special hospital district in Sierra County on the November ballot came up 119 signatures short.
Special hospital district petition fails Read More »
Webb, who previously served as county manager in Grant and Roosevelt counties, will receive the same salary as her predecessor earned at the end of his tenure.
Sierra County Commission signs contract with new county manager Charlene Webb Read More »
The AG’s Office determined that descriptions of agenda items involving the appeals either lacked the specificity required to adequately inform the public of the nature of the business to be discussed or to cover actions subsequently taken by the commission. As a result, the commission must reconsider an order denying the appeals and its imposition of a monthly $50 meter-reading fee on residents who wished to retain their analog meters.
Truth or Consequences has recently begun to charge a fee of 25 cents per page to deliver electronic records requested under the Inspection of Public Records Act. FOG responded to a citizen request to determine the fee’s validity.
The Joint Powers Commission, the financial overseer of Sierra Vista Hospital in Truth or Consequences, is leading a quiet petition drive to place the question of whether to create a special hospital district on the November ballot. The JPC has yet to make the public aware that, in addition to simplifying governance, a special hospital district has taxing authority that enables it to seek voter approval to hike property taxes.
“New taxing district” missing from messaging so far on special hospital district Read More »
The Truth or Consequences city commission has approved a new taser policy, received a briefing on the selection process for the new police chief and discussed behind closed doors possible litigation involving two police officers.
T or C police news roundup Read More »
With less than a month’s service as the city manager of Truth or Consequences, Bruce Swingle has ushered in good government procedures that reverse years of decision-making by staff behind closed doors instead of by city commissioners in open meetings.
T or C Manager Swingle tightens city procedures and money belt Read More »
A legal ad in the Sierra County Sentinel’s May 21 edition was the first public notice and acknowledgment that two more wells in the city’s eight-well field are in trouble. Four others are offline, raising questions about the city’s water delivery capacity and the water department’s transparency about the health of the well field.
At Wednesday’s meeting councilors passed a resolution affirming the seats that will be up for election in the fall and approved a preliminary budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Councilor Gerald LaFont submitted his resignation, effective July 1, without explanation.
Elephant Butte City Council news roundup Read More »
At its bimonthly meeting last week, the commission approved a key promotion and established a new utility-bill collections policy, but declined to address the question of who should speak for the city to the press.
T or C City Commission news roundup Read More »
Commissioners tried to cut the municipal court’s budget during their May 12 meeting, but were blocked by Judge Beatrice Sanders’ citation of New Mexico’s constitutional separation-of-powers clause that forbids executive interference with the judiciary.
Last fall a law went into effect in New Mexico requiring law enforcement officers to wear and activate body-cameras during all encounters with the public and to safeguard the resulting footage should it be needed as evidence. Last week the Sierra County Sheriff’s department asked the county commission for a 2021-2022 budget allocation to upgrade its existing body-camera equipment and hire a clerk to process the digital data.
Sheriff’s department to upgrade body-cameras to meet new state mandates Read More »
In addition to contending with a $1.6 million deficit in the fiscal year 2021-2022 draft budget, new city manager Bruce Swingle informed the city commissioners that they must play a lead role in identifying departmental spending priorities and cuts. Here are summaries of their discussions of budgeting and policy issues facing the utility office, community service and fleet maintenance departments and the municipal golf course and animal shelter.
Swingle brings transparency and reality to T or C’s budgeting process: Part 3 Read More »
In addition to contending with a $1.6 million deficit in the fiscal year 2021-2022 draft budget for Truth or Consequences, new city manager Bruce Swingle informed the city commissioners that they must play a lead role in identifying departmental spending priorities and cuts. Here are summaries of their discussions of budgeting and policy issues facing the police and fire departments and the municipal pool and airport.
Swingle brings transparency and reality to T or C’s budgeting process: Part 2 Read More »
In addition to contending with a $1.6 million deficit in the fiscal year 2021-2022 draft budget, new city manager Bruce Swingle informed the city commissioners that they must play a lead role in identifying departmental spending priorities and cuts and devising a plan within two years to end the practice of balancing the budget with transfers from utility fees.
Former Truth or Consequences City Manager Morris Madrid has been hired as the community college’s “vice president of finance,” according to his LinkedIn profile. The college’s website identifies him as “chief financial officer.”
Morris Madrid now CFO at Luna Community College Read More »
New Mexico and the greater Southwest will see little reprieve from the historical megadrought.
Report: Historic drought and record temps expected to continue Read More »
A subsidiary of Sacred Wind Communications, which is working in Sierra County to bring broadband to all residents south of Williamsburg, must notify and obtain right-of-way permission from 1,400 potential broadband customers before the Bureau of Land Management will grant a permit to begin construction of the necessary fiber optics network.
The fee Truth or Consequences charges residential customers for solid waste collection is the highest among four other cities of like size in the state.
Solid waste rate comparison among cities similar in size and isolation to T or C Read More »
Tech 45 Services owner Chad Rosacker or his employees are obligated to work 20 hours a week, as well as be on call from 4:30 p.m. to 3 a.m., Monday through Thursday. While stipulating that the work can be performed on site and remotely, the contract specifies that three weekends a month a Tech 45 employee will be present at the airport on “Friday, Saturday and/or Sunday.”