Bernalillo County’s new treasurer says state law supports him in his choice for a recently termed-out county clerk as his deputy, despite a County Commission policy that requires elected officials to wait a year before taking a county staff position.
Two commissioners disagree with Eichenberg’s interpretation of applicable state law and have called for a special meeting to resolve the issue.
Tim Eichenberg took the oath of office Wednesday, alongside other new county officials. Former County Clerk Linda Stover was sworn in as Eichenberg’sEichenberg’s deputy.
The commission in December voted to keep in place a one-year “cooling-off period” in the county’s code of conduct for former elected officials before they can accept employment or consulting work with the county.
Eichenberg told CityDesk ABQ Thursday evening that his interpretation of the county policy is that it’s aimed at preventing commissioners from seeking employment with the county after leaving office and it doesn’t apply to other elected officials.
Furthermore, he said, state law gives him extensive control over the selection of his deputy.
An August opinion from New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez says elected county officials can appoint their own deputies, but doesn’t address a cooling off period. Torrez wrote in his opinion, regarding a case in McKinley County, that county treasurers and other elected county officers have exclusive statutory authority to hire and supervise deputies and other employees of their offices.
“I get to pick,” Eichenberg said. “The code of conduct does not supersede state statute.”
Commission Chair Barbara Baca said she sees the code of conduct covering all county elected officials, and that Eichenberg’s interpretation of the law makes a special commission meeting necessary. She and Commission Vice Chair Eric Olivas have asked county staff to set up the meeting, which he said would be a closed session, as it relates to personnel issues or potential litigation.
Olivas said Stover was elected clerk with the code of conduct in place and considers her to have implicitly agreed to the cooling-off period. He noted that Torrez’s opinion permits a county commission to adopt a merit-based hiring system or similar personnel policy governing certain terms of employment for county employees “as long as it does not improperly infringe upon the treasurer’s ability to perform the duties of the office.”
New Mexico’s Natural Resources Trustee and former County Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins served on the commission from 2009 to 2019 and was involved in three rewrites of the code of conduct. She said commissioners consistently intended the rules to apply to all elected officials.
“It was a recognition that electeds have control over resources and staff,” Hart Stebbins said. “We thought it was important to prevent the appearance of any conflicts.”
Eichenberg said his choice of Stover as his deputy was based on her experience with the county and her expertise in managing a department that swelled to 1,000 employees during elections.
“I think I made a good choice,” he said. “I’m glad she accepted when I said, ‘You want to come and work for me?’”
Stover officially started her duties as deputy treasurer Thursday with an orientation. Her annual salary is $128,265, or about 30% more than the $99,627 she was paid as county clerk.