By Rodd Cayton
Town of Bernalillo leaders have another budget process under their belts. The Town Council approved a $12.07 million spending plan for fiscal year 2027 on July 25, shortly before the state deadline. The budget includes a 4% pay increase for non-union employees. Wages for those represented by unions were determined by collective bargaining agreements.
Mayor Jack Torres expressed disappointment with Bernalillo Public Schools’ reducing district funding for school resource officers for financial reasons. Torres said Superintendent Matthew Montano warned him that month that the parties would need to find another funding source for officers for the 2027-2028 fiscal year, but that the district would be able to pay its share for this fiscal year.
“Friday, I got a text from him saying that they had some changes in their finances, and so they were only willing to support one resource officer,” Torres told councilors, adding that Montano later increased the BPS commitment from 50% of the officer’s salary to 75%. The prior arrangement, he said, covered 85% of the salaries of two officers, one each at the middle- and high-school levels.
Torres said the school district may be reconsidering, but that he would prefer three resource officers, and understaffing in that area affects the safety of students as well as school staff.
The council also approved $128,100 in lodger’s tax awards. Economic & community development director Christina Jones said the Lodgers’ Tax Board received 12 applications requesting a total of $155,800, which it discussed at its June 17 meeting. The awards range from $600 for advertising for The Nightmare Before Halloween (a free outdoor community market and spooky festival) to $20,000 for the fourth annual Enchantment Games.
Police Chief Chris Stoyell noted that his department will be observing National Night Out at 7:30 p.m. at Rotary Park. The event is focused on police-community partnerships. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet K-9 Officer Diesel and a police drone operator.
Criminal offenses in the town last year, he said, included two homicides, five robberies, nine residential burglaries, and 10 auto burglaries. Officers made 506 arrests, Stoyell said, including 41 DWI arrests, 34 domestic violence incidents, and 61 drug arrests.