Adrian Hedden
El Rito Media
achedden@currentargus.com

Newly elected and reelected Eddy County commissioners will be sworn in during a ceremony at the Jan. 7 commission meeting in the body’s chambers at the Eddy County Administration Building in Carlsbad.

The incoming commissioners were elected to four-year terms in the Nov. 5 general election along with the county’s new sheriff and treasurer.

District 5 Commissioner Sarah Cordova of Carlsbad will return to her post while Hayley Klein of Artesia will take over the District 2 seat after Artesia Mayor Jon Henry stepped down to run for state representative in New Mexico’s 54th House District. He ran unopposed.

Phillip Troost will be sworn in as District 3 commissioner, succeeding Fred Beard who opted to not seek another term. Commission Chairman Bo Bowen’s term as District 4 commissioner runs through 2026.

Commissioners will vote to elect a chairman and vice chairman for the coming year.

Incoming Sheriff Matthew Hutchinson, formerly the county’s undersheriff, succeeds Mark Cage who will assume the position of undersheriff. Cage was ineligible to seek reelection after serving two four-year terms as sheriff.

Hutchinson ran unopposed in the November election after defeating Victor Martinez in the June Republican primary.

Patricia Carrasco is the incoming county treasurer, succeeding Laurie Pruitt who chose not to run again.

The newly elected officials will benefit from a new pay scale for elected officials adopted last month by the county commission. The sheriff’s annual salary will nearly double from $78,000 per year to $153,000; the country treasurer’s salary jumps from $75,000 to $129,000; and commissioners’ pay jumps $18,000 per year, from the previous level of $26,000 to $44,000.

Commissioners Bowen and Ernie Carlson (District 1) will not receive the higher salaries because they still have two years to serve on their current terms and the state constitution prohibits public officials from increasing or diminishing the salaries of incumbents during their terms in office.

The salary hikes were made by possible by New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 4, which the state’s voters approved in the Nov. 5 general election. Passage of the amendment transferred authority for setting salaries for the county’s elected officials from the state Legislature to county commissioners.

Other business

Also on the commission’s agenda is a discussion requested by Hutchinson about the undersheriff’s salary. No official action will be taken.

Carrasco and Pruitt will present the annual treasurer’s report for 2024, detailing the year’s finances.

The report showed Eddy County had about $166 million in its general fund, with about $2.6 million in property valuation. Other key funds were the building construction fund ($110.2 million) and the capital improvement fund ($124.6 million). The county had about $635.4 million in total claims on cash, according to the treasurer’s report.

Tuesday’s meeting will be the first to include new County Manager Mike Gallagher, who was appointed last month. He previously served as Lea County manager.

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.