Buckman board delegates chair to sign short extension of LANL MOU to allow further negotiations

The Buckman Direct Diversion Board voted April 3 to delegate authority to the board chair to sign an amendment extending the current memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Department of Energy on technical monitoring and coordination related to Los Alamos National Laboratory.

"The recommendation we're bringing to you this evening is to delegate to the board chair authority to entertain a new extension," said Kyle (staff), presenting the item. Staff said the extension is intended to preserve the current MOU while parties negotiate a replacement agreement; two unresolved items identified by staff are the amount of monitoring funding and the configuration of the E-110.7 gauge replacement.

Board members discussed scope and precedent for delegating signature authority. Councilor Romero Worth and other members said the city vice chair should participate in follow-up calls; legal counsel clarified the motion mirrors prior delegations that authorized a chair to sign a limited extension rather than to conclude a full replacement agreement. Board members said they favored a shorter extension to spur timely negotiation rather than a long, open-ended extension.

The board approved the motion to delegate the chair to execute an amendment extending the MOU; the roll call vote was unanimous of members present. Staff said the chair would coordinate with city and county representatives on follow-up negotiations and report back to the full board.

Ending: Staff will schedule follow-up calls with LANL and report results to the board; the chair has authority to sign the short-term extension to allow negotiations to proceed.