Sandoval County approves balanced 2027 budget, eyes salary commission changes

Sandoval County commissioners approved a balanced fiscal year 2027 operating budget, but the larger question hanging over the county is how long that balance will hold and who should decide what elected officials are paid.

The county’s forecasted revenues for the year that begins July 1, 2026, total $60,924,836, while general fund expenses are projected at $42,771,321. With a beginning cash balance of about $60.9 million, the county entered the new budget cycle without a deficit. State law required the preliminary budget to be sent to the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration by June 1, and commissioners gave the proposal unanimous approval with no significant debate.

Finance Director Cassandra Herrera warned, however, that some revenue streams are tightening. She told commissioners that gross receipts tax collections for infrastructure have fallen, and investment income has also slipped as most of the county’s American Rescue Plan Act money has already been spent. Herrera also flagged a larger unknown: how recent changes to veteran property-tax exemptions could affect future county revenue.

That uncertainty stems from House Bill 47, signed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on March 20, 2025. The law raised New Mexico’s standard veteran property-tax exemption from $4,000 to $10,000 and created a proportional disability-rated exemption starting in tax year 2026. County finance staff are watching the impact closely, especially since Sandoval County Assessor materials still describe the older $4,000 exemption.

Alongside the budget, commissioners began discussing a draft ordinance to create a five-member Sandoval County Elected Officials Salary Commission. Under the proposal, each of the five commissioners would appoint one community member to the panel. The appointees could not be county employees, current elected officials, or immediate family members of either group. The commission would study comparable county positions, use staff support, and set salaries before each county general election, without sending the decision back to the county commission for approval.

The idea reflects a shift in authority approved by New Mexico voters in Constitutional Amendment 4 on Nov. 5, 2024, which moved salary-setting power for county elected officials from the state Legislature to county commissions. New Mexico Counties says salary increases for county officials historically had to be sought through legislation every three to four years, with prior bills in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2009, 2013 and 2018. The statutory cap on county official salaries was last raised in 2018.

County Manager Wayne Johnson discussed the proposal with commissioners Jordan Juarez and Jon Herr, and Juarez described it as a way to avoid the awkwardness of officials voting on their own pay. The commission’s May 27 agenda also included a $1,262,500 appropriation for the planned animal shelter, two DWI grants worth up to $283,204, a fiscal year 2025 audit with an unqualified clean opinion, and an economic-development presentation. For now, Sandoval County’s books are balanced. The pressure points are showing up in revenue forecasts and in the question of who should have the final say over county pay.