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Commission adopts preliminary 2025–26 budget for submission to state; dispatch funding still pending
Summary
The commission adopted a preliminary fiscal 2025–26 budget for submission to the state Department of Finance and Administration; staff noted several technical corrections and said final dispatch-related budget items will be added before the July deadline.
The Alamogordo City Commission on May 27 approved a resolution adopting a preliminary fiscal 2025–26 budget for submission to the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration (DFA). The preliminary approval is required for the city to meet DFA’s timetable.
Finance staff noted several corrections since the budget hearings, including a reduced Law Enforcement Protection Fund (LEPF) estimate ($167,000 actual award versus ~$170,000 estimated) and reclassification of utility maintenance salary entries that had not appeared on earlier reports. Staff also corrected workers’ compensation projections for Recreation Center seasonal lifeguards and adjusted salary projections for youth assistance positions.
The commission heard that the city is still developing final cost estimates relating to dispatch operations. The preliminary budget retains approximately $900,000 budgeted for dispatch; staff said the final submission before July 31 will include a more detailed operating and capital estimate for the dispatch center and that carryovers will be reflected in the final budget.
Commissioners asked about contingency and professional-services lines in the legal budget; staff said the larger professional/contract line anticipates a range of outside legal services (employment law, municipal law, other specialty counsel) and included a contingency to avoid midyear transfers. Finance staff said unrestricted general fund cash is estimated at about $1 million under the preliminary figures.
The motion to approve the resolution was made by Mayor Pro Tem Sharon McDonald and seconded by Commissioner Warren Robinson; the vote was 7-0.
Staff said they expect additional changes before the final budget and will return to the commission with carryovers and dispatch figures prior to the statutory July deadline.
