Against county policy, treasurer hires former elected official

Newly sworn-in Bernalillo County Treasurer Tim Eichenberg has hired former county clerk Linda Stover as his deputy, violating an in-house policy that bars elected officials from returning to certain county jobs for a year after they leave office.

In August, the County Commission voted to repeal this “cooling off” period, and despite a 3-2 vote, the measure failed. Commissioners Barbara Baca and Eric Olivas voted against the code of conduct change, killing the policy amendment that required a 4-1 majority.

The intention of the cooling-off period is to prevent “undue influence,” Baca told the Journal in an interview Friday.

“It’s just good government,” Baca said.

On the other side, Eichenberg argues that state statute is on his side and supersedes county rules.

“Statute trumps ordinance,” Eichenberg said. “Why penalize a good public servant?”

Stover has served as county clerk since 2016, and reached her term limit this year.

“It wouldn’t matter who this was,” Olivas, commission vice chair, said in an interview with the Journal. “It’s about the rule of law.”

Breaking the code of conduct is a slippery slope, he said. The code of conduct is there to prevent bribery and corruption, Olivas said. To him, circumventing the rules “flies in the face of basic ethics and morality.”

Eichenberg contends that the commission is “interfering” with his office and trying to oust a qualified candidate unnecessarily.

The Department of Justice sides with Eichenberg. In an August opinion, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez wrote that county treasurers have “exclusive statutory authority” over hiring within their office.

Stover is set to make $128,265 annually, a 30% pay increase from her previous position as clerk. Stover makes nearly $19,000 more than others in the same position.

Santa Fe County Deputy Treasurer Patrick Varela makes $109,429 annually, according to the county’s transparency portal.

With the commission in disagreement over the cooling off period and Eichenberg forging ahead anyway, Baca called a special closed-door meeting for Thursday to discuss next steps.