The Hobbs City Commission approved Resolution 7650 to allocate lodgers‑tax funds to a slate of local events after staff presented prioritized recommendations. The measure passed unanimously.

What passed: Assistant finance director Toby Spears outlined staff recommendations for multiple events: United Way of Lee County ($17,650 recommended), Mitchell Junior College Homecoming ($6,600 recommended), Hobbs Airfield Speedway ($6,000 recommended), New Mexico Rodeo Pageant and Scholarship Association (staff recommended $5,000 for an event estimated to generate 70 overnight stays), and a fall tournament (listed as a recurring fall tournament) for $9,000. Staff noted Option Incorporated requested $5,100 but reported zero overnight stays on its application; staff recommended no funding for that request.

Public comment and follow-up: Robert Guthrie, representing Option Incorporated, asked the commission to reconsider funding for the organization’s first-time fashion-show event, saying it was a community-driven quality-of-life event and that Option has previously placed clients in local hotels when needed. Guthrie requested guidance because the lodgers‑tax advisory board had not heard the request; commissioners and staff directed Guthrie to present the event and supporting documentation to the lodgers‑tax board at its next regular meeting, scheduled for Oct. 9, and to supply records showing “heads and beds” (hotel room utilizations) the nonprofit can document from prior activities.

Staff guidance: Spears and the commission encouraged Guthrie to provide background materials to the lodgers‑tax board — including any documentation of overnight stays the event is expected to generate — and to work with staff to determine whether the project meets the ordinance’s heads‑and‑beds criteria. The commission voted to approve the staff recommendation for the current allocations.