Adrian Hedden and Mike Smith
Carlsbad Current-Argus
achedden@currentargus.com
msmith@currentargus.com

Former Lea County Manager Mike Gallagher has been selected as county manager for Eddy County.

Gallagher’s appointment was announced Thursday, Dec. 5. He replaces Steve McCutcheon, who served as interim county manager for about four months after Roberta Gonzales stepped down as county manager in August.

Gallagher will assume the manager’s post Jan.1 He said his contract included a $249,500 salary for an indefinite period, a slight increase from the $246,000 he was paid in Lea County.

The county manager oversees day-to-day operations and all of Eddy County’s government departments, including its regional fire service, sheriff’s office, clerk’s office and public works department.

He said he looks forward to leveraging his experience in Lea County and its similarities with Eddy as a leading oil and revenue producer for the state.

“I think there’s a lot in common with Eddy and Lea County economically, and our way of life,” Gallagher said. “I’ve represented Lea County at the federal, state and local levels and I believe that will be applicable in Eddy County.”

Lea and Eddy counties share the Permian Basin in the southeast corner of the state and are New Mexico’s top producers of oil and gas. Eddy and Lea were also the fastest growing counties in the state since 2010, according to the 2020 U.S. Census. Eddy County’s population growth during that period was 15.8% and Lea County’s population increased by 15%.

The region is a “driver” for the state, Gallagher said, due to its heavy oil and gas production. It’s a story he said needs to be told on a state-wide level, not just for the benefits but the costs associated with supporting the industry for needs like road maintenance.

He said during his tenure as county manager, Lea County partnered with oil and gas companies to help fund projects, but also coordinated projects with extraction operations “to minimize interruptions and make sure our roads are safe.”

“I think Eddy and Lea counties, with other counties, we have the ability to educate the state on some of our local costs with oil and gas,” Gallagher said. “A lot of counties are envious of Eddy County. Eddy County is very blessed. Not a lot of counties are sympathetic that we don’t get our fair share (of revenue) back.”

Eddy County Commission Chair Bo Bowen said 12 people applied for the job, and the field was narrowed to six before Gallagher was chosen.

Bowen said he looked forward to working with Gallagher.

“I was pleasantly surprised he put in his resume and intent to interview with Eddy County,” Bowen said. “From my perspective, he was the right candidate. His expertise, his leadership, his experience in a similar county is going to transfer well to Eddy County.”

Gallager served as Lea County’s manager for about 14 years beginning in December 2010, according to his LinkedIn page. During that time, he oversaw an annual budget of about $680 million and more than 400 employees, the page read.

Gallagher worked as an advanced urban and regional planner at the New Mexico Department of Transportation in the Las Cruces region from 2008 to 2010, and as an urban planner with Dona Ana County from 2005 to 2008.

Gallagher brings with him to Eddy County his wife Rachel Gallagher, who serves and will continue to as a vice president at New Mexico Junior College in Hobbs, along with his son and four daughters ranging in age from 21 to seven.

He’s originally from St. Louis, Missouri and attended college, like his wife, at New Mexico State University before moving to southeast New Mexico in 2010.

“I think Eddy County is a great community,” he said. “Me and my family love Artesia, love Carlsbad and the river walk. “Folks (in Eddy County) have a desire to make some impressive legacy decisions, to flourish and be a leader in the state. Eddy County has all the right ingredients.”

McCutcheon, who retired as Carlsbad city administrator in 2018, served mostly in an advisory role ahead of Gallagher’s appointment, collecting a salary of $10 a month during his time with the county.

Gonzales took the county manager job in 2023 to replace retiring Al Davis. She was promoted from the county finance director position she held for the previous nine years. Gonzales returned to that job after stepping down as county manager.