Clerk: Election bill won't change Arch Hurley board

Quay County’s clerk told the Arch Hurley Conservancy District’s board of directors she anticipated few, if any, changes for the board from an election bill working its way through the New Mexico Legislature.

County Clerk Ellen White during the board’s meeting Feb. 8 gave details about Senate Bill 6, an elections security and administration measure she said probably would be enacted into law.

White said if the bill is enacted, the Arch Hurley board must approve a resolution in 2022 that states a declaration of its makeup. Members didn’t discuss the bill much last week, but in previous meetings they have voiced an inclination to keep the board structure as it is.

Arch Hurley elections have been under a one-person-one-vote format since 2018. White said that can be undone by a resolution and revert it to district landowners having more voting power. However, she said such a move would remove Class B landowners from the district’s tax rolls.

“You can do that, but it would be a huge hit to your budget,” she said.

In summary, White said the bill should have little effect on Arch Hurley.

“There’s nothing to change in this election bill unless your board wants to change it,” she said. “Honestly, I don’t see anything really changing for you all.”

Board President Robert Lopez signaled he saw no need to alter the board’s structure.

“As long as we have a majority of farmers on the board, there usually isn’t a problem,” he said.

In other business, Lopez reported Conchas Lake’s level was at 4,161.28 feet that morning.

That was down slightly from the previous month’s 4,161.4 feet. The district faces a second straight year of not allocating water for area farmers this spring due to the lake’s low level. Quay County and much of New Mexico have been mired in drought conditions for many months.

The Arch Hurley district typically does not allocate water unless the lake is at 4,174 feet or higher.

District manager Franklin McCasland, whose wife had died several days before, did not attend the meeting.