Cindy Chavez will be on the job Wednesday as Bernalillo County Manager.
It’s a homecoming of sorts for the Alamogordo-born Chavez, who has spent much of her career in California, most recently serving as an elected member of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors.
Chavez was chosen in June to replace Julie Morgas Baca, who retired effective June 30. The Bernalillo County Board of Commissioners in August approved a contract to pay her a $230,000 annual salary.
County Board of Commissioners Chair Barbara Baca said Chavez will bring a wealth of experience in public service to the job, resulting in improved quality of life for county residents.
“After a national search and a professional hiring process, we are excited to welcome Ms. Chavez, whose commitment to public service and experience in local government can be brought to bear here as the chief executive of Bernalillo County,” Baca said.
In addition to serving as a county supervisor, Chavez has also been vice mayor of San Jose, California and chaired the board of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority.
As a supervisor, Chavez’s priorities included public health, affordable housing, and criminal justice reform, according to a county news release.
Chavez will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the county and overseeing a budget topping $1 billion.
She was chosen from three finalists after a public forum in which candidates met commissioners and the public.
The process has been contentious at times, with commissioners sparring over how to put together a search committee. The New Mexico Department of Justice later found that the commission violated the state’s open-meetings law by discussing possible search committee members through phone and email communications outside of scheduled meetings and without notifying the public.
Commissioners rectified the violation by ratifying the previous actions at an acrimonious special meeting, at which Olivas accused Commissioners Steven Michael Quezada and Walt Benson of not taking the search seriously and Benson in turn saying he and Quezada were insulted for questioning the legality of the board’s actions.
Shirley Ragin, Deputy County Manager for finance, served as interim county manager through the transition between Morgas Baca and Chavez.