Amerigreen Organics’ economic development deal,
Same auditing firm for fourth year, Putting public comment back on agenda for second meeting of the second meeting of the month
TO ATTEND
The Truth or Consequences City Commission will hold a regular meeting at 9 a.m., Wednesday, May 13, which cannot be attended physically by the public due to the Governor’s coronavirus executive order prohibiting more than five people in a room.
Please join the meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/311846557
You can also dial in using your phone.
United States: +1 (786) 535-3211 Access Code: 311-846-557
Public comment may be submitted by email to torcpubliccomment@torcnm.org, by fax at (575) 894-6690, or a hard copy can be dropped in the Utility drop box at 505 Sims Street, Truth or Consequences, NM. Please submit any input you may have by Monday, May 11, 2020.
There are four main agenda items, amendment of the back-to-work resolution, an economic-development application from Amerigreen Organics, hiring an auditing firm for the 2019-2020 fiscal year and putting public comment back on the agenda for the second meeting of the month.
BACK-TO-WORK RESOLUTION
The City Commission will consider whether to amend the back-to-work resolution it passed at its May 4 special meeting. One criticism by the public has already been addressed, which requested that all “shoulds” be changed to “shalls,” making the force of the resolution stronger. The public also wanted the City to address testing for the coronavirus, which was ignored in the resolution.
AMERIGREEN ORGANICS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEAL
There is an ordinance on the agenda that covers an economic-development deal with Amerigreen Organics, which may or may not be approved for publication by the City Commission. If it is approved, it will go to public hearing next month.
The State’s Economic Development Act requires that a city pass an “Economic Development Plan ordinance” before it will disburse any state money toward local economic development. The City passed such an ordinance Jan. 12, 2016, according to the agenda packet.
Secondly, the State will not disburse state money to a proposed economic-development project until the local entity passes an ordinance recognizing the applicant as a “qualifying entity” and submits a “project participation agreement.” The ordinance in the City packet accomplishes both.
The project participation agreement states the City will be the record keeper and will disburse state funds it has set aside in a separate account to Amerigreen Organics, which is applying for up to $500,000 of state economic development funds. The City will not match any of these funds, according to the ordinance, beyond the administration efforts of overseeing disbursement funds.
Amerigreen Organics is to establish a “hemp manufacturing and processing facility at 1900 N. Date St.,” providing 50 full-time jobs, which is a “target” figure.
A full-time job is defined as 32 hours a week and those workers are to be offered the same benefits as other full-time workers. What benefits Amerigreen offers its full-time employees, if any, is not specified.
The contract runs from June 30, 2020 to June 30, 2025, although Amerigreen is expected to remain in the area for many years, the ordinance states.
Should the State award the company $500,000, the first $250,000 will be disbursed when the company is issued a certificate of occupancy and has 10 full-time employees. The company must show receipts for land acquisition, permanent infrastructure, construction improvements, materials and services. The money cannot be used for lease payments or equipment.
The second disbursement of $150,000 is dependent on having 35 full-time employees for six consecutive months, as well as submitting receipts for above-listed qualifying expenses.
The third disbursement of $100,000 requires 45 full-time employees be on staff for six consecutive months.
A “clawback” schedule is also proposed, which gives the company employment milestones it needs to meet, otherwise the State and City can ask the company to pay the money back. But since the company has half a year to “cure” any hiring shortage, the clawback requirements are loose guidelines.
AUDITOR TO BE HIRED
City staff is proposing the City Commission hire Pattillo, Brown and Hill again, for the fourth year, to do the City’s yearly audit. The State Auditor’s rules strongly suggests multi-year contracts, but limits them to no more than three years, supposedly to discourage a local government from getting too chummy with its auditor.
The City is not renewing the old contract, but submitting a new one. A deputy with the State Auditor’s Office, Natalie Cordova, has written a letter approving the hiring, but it states the hiring must conform with the State Auditor’s rules. It is unknown if she was aware this will be the fourth year the City is contemplating hiring the same firm.
PUBLIC COMMENT MAY COME BACK TO SECOND MEETING OF THE MONTH
The three new City Commissioners, Brendan Tolley, Randall Aragon and Amanda Forrister, have vowed to return transparency to city proceedings, starting with changing the City Commission’s rules of procedure.
About a year ago the City Commission changed the rules to exclude public comment from the second meeting of the month. It looks like the new members are trying to change it back.
Also highlighted in the rules-of-procedure document is the other change the City Commission made a year ago—City Manager Morris Madrid’s “town halls,”—a misnomer for one-on-one conversations he has at 6 p.m. the second meeting day.
Although Madrid, according to the rules, was supposed to be reporting what discussions he had with residents to the City Commission, he has never given such a report, contributing to the transparency problem. Perhaps the new City Commissioners will do away with the “town halls.”