After public hearing, council keeps police and fire reporting to city manager and retains 'Community Health and Safety' name

The Santa Fe governing body on Feb. 26 held a public hearing and finalized an ordinance that clarifies departmental reporting for police and fire while preserving the Community Health and Safety department name. The council adopted the ordinance as amended after a lengthy public comment period and debate.

Why it matters: Several residents and local advocates urged the council not to reduce community oversight or create perceived distance between police and civilian oversight. Council sponsors said the ordinance’s objective was administrative clarity — to align the city code with how the departments have been operating in practice and to ensure the city manager retains direct oversight over police and fire.

What happened in the hearing: Dozens of members of the public spoke, including residents and local advocates who urged the council to retain or even strengthen civilian oversight of policing. Speakers included Greg Weager (resident), Miguel Acosta (director, Earthcare), and John Paul Granillo (immigrant-service organizer). Their remarks emphasized community trust, concern about use-of-force trends and the need for sustained oversight and transparency.

Council sponsors said the change is largely technical and reflects the operational reality that police and fire have been reporting directly to the city manager after a staff reorganization, rather than to the Community Health and Safety director. City Manager Mark Scott told the council, “It is part of a city manager’s job to provide that level of oversight,” and said he preferred maintaining a direct relationship with department chiefs for rapid operational oversight. Police Chief Ben Valdez and Fire Chief Brian Moya both described working relationships with civilian directors and emphasized that the department chiefs continue to collaborate with community-focused staff even where reporting lines differ.

Amendments and outcome: Councilors adopted an amendment to leave the Community Health and Safety department title intact (the original draft would have changed the title). The council then approved the ordinance as amended. The governing body also discussed follow-up items — several councilors asked staff to return with concrete proposals to strengthen civilian engagement and oversight, such as clearer complaint and review processes, resident advisory committee improvements and metrics for accountability.

Votes and motions: The council first rejected a motion to deny the ordinance. After discussion the council approved the ordinance as amended to retain the department name. Roll-call votes were taken and the motion to adopt the ordinance as amended passed by the majority of councilors present.

What councilors said: Supporters argued the ordinance aligns the code to operational practice and preserves the capacity of the city manager to exercise oversight during critical incidents. Opponents and some residents said the change should not weaken or replace community oversight and asked the council to move forward with recommendations from the 2023 Community Health and Safety Task Force, including a civilian oversight mechanism for police. Several councilors asked staff to return with proposals to implement task-force recommendations about civilian complaint processes and resident advisory committee roles.

Next steps: Councilors asked staff to provide options and timelines for strengthening civilian oversight mechanisms and for clearer public reporting on complaints and discipline. The council’s amendment keeps the department name and preserves the council’s ability to pursue additional oversight measures in follow-up policymaking.