County treasurer resigns

QCS Senior Writer

The Quay County Commissioners Monday accepted the resignation of Quay County Treasurer Nadine Angel, effective May 30.

Commissioners read Angel’s resignation letter during a closed session and accepted her resignation in open session at Monday’s meeting, which was held in Nara Visa.

Angel is resigning for personal reasons, she said Tuesday.

She was elected to her post in 2013 for a four-year term, which would have ended in December 2016. She was appointed to the post in 2011, she said. Beginning in 2001, she had served two terms as treasurer.

The commission on a two-to-one vote approved language for an advertisement for the treasurer’s position. Commission chair Franklin McCasland and Commissioner Mike Cherry voted to accept the advertisement’s language, but Commissioner Sue Dowell voted against the advertisement, saying she wanted to see more documentation.

At Monday’s meeting, Quay County Manager Richard Primrose discussed updating the County's Land Use Plan to accommodate federal environmental regulations related to clean air and endangered species. At a meeting in Grady, he said, he learned that by updating some definitions in the plan, the county is more likely to gain federal cooperation when dealing with clean air and endangerered species matters.

McCasland said the the Canadian River Soil and Water Conservation District would also like to work with the county to develop a memorandum of understanding that would be included in the land use plan.

The commissioners also approved making a quarterly payment of $315,000 in mill levy and gross receipts tax money to Dan C. Trigg Memorial Hospital.

Primrose said gross receipts tax revenues have decreased over the past few months, possibly due to a drop in gas prices that may have encouraged residents to shop out of town. Reduced gross receipts tax collections are likely to remain lower because there are no major construction projects in the county and because the New Mexico Department of Transportation has scheduled no Interstate 40 construction in the county this summer.

Ellen White,the county’s chief deputy county clerk, said she had testified against proposed legislation that would require county governments to absorb all county election costs.

“I was one of several clerks from smaller counties who testified and presented budgets to show the impact and burden such a legislation would have on the county,” White said.

She reported that the cost of February’s school board elections, totaling $12,817, have been reimbursed to the county from Logan, San Jon, Tucumcari and House. The county has also been reimbursed the $4,605 cost of Mesalands Community College's trustee election and $1,792.42 for recounting votes in the state land commissioner race from November’s general election.

The commissioners also:

• Approved updating the county's certified road mileage total to 1,113.86.

• Approved an application for Rural Primary Healthcare Act Funding for the Quay County Health Center.

• Approved Public Employee Retirement Association service certification for volunteer fire fighters.

• Approved the purchase of a fire attack truck for the Rural 1 Fire Department. The commission accepted a low bid of $167,419 from Steele Fire Apparatus of Haskell, Texas.

• Approved application for a $45,000 Federal Emergency Management Administration grant through the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security to update the County's hazard mitigation plan. County Emergency Coordinator Curtis Simpson said the plan will attempt to identify all the man-made and weather hazards that could develop in the county and improve emergency response.