Lordsburg district reports $1.625 million bond sale; board affirms intent to maintain current tax rate

A presenter who identified himself in the transcript as Von told the Lordsburg Municipal Schools board the district sold $1,625,000 in bonds through the New Mexico Finance Authority and expects closing roughly a month later on April 17.

Von told the board the bonds mature between 2026 and 2039, carry a 10‑year call date beginning in April 2036, and the transaction produced a true interest cost of about 2.02 percent. He said total interest paid over the life of the bonds is about $169,000 and that the total debt service on the issue will be roughly $1,794,000. Von also said the district qualified for a New Mexico Finance Authority disadvantaged program that allowed about 10 percent of the issuance to be priced with a 0 percent coupon.

“When we priced these, we were fortunate to come in with a TIC barely over 2 percent,” Von said, noting market pressure that could make refinancing or later issues more expensive.

After the briefing, administration presented a tax‑rate resolution stating the board’s intent to maintain the district’s debt‑service tax rate at 6.71 cents for tax year 2025. The board discussed the resolution’s scope and limitations; the presenters emphasized the resolution is an expression of intent and that actual future tax rates depend on collections and the district’s tax base.

The board approved the mill‑levy intent resolution by roll call as reflected in the meeting record. The transcript records affirmative responses but does not provide a full name‑by‑name tally in every case; the resolution carried.

What happens next: The presenter offered to remain available to answer questions during the rest of the meeting and reiterated the April closing timeline. The resolution itself is an administrative expression of the board’s tax‑rate goal and does not by itself set final tax levies, which depend on later calculations and statutory processes.