[Editor's Note: This article is the fourth of a series of articles on the Grant County Commission work session on June 6, 2023 and the regular meeting on June 8, 2023. This one focuses on the public input from the regular meeting, which would be pertinent for the special meeting on June 20, 2023.]

By Mary Alice Murphy

The public input at the Grant County Commission regular meeting on June 8, 2023 addressed the issue of pay for the Sheriff's officers and deputies.

The first to speak was a 35-year resident of New Mexico Bobby Sherling (spelling?) and an 8-year resident of Grant County. "I am speaking on behalf of the hard work of the Sheriff's Department. We live in a rural area, and when we need their services, the department members are very effective. They are underpaid. I want to support higher wages for them. In rural areas, the activities are not always nefarious, but the department needs night vision goggles. It takes taxpayer dollars to support the Sheriff's Department. Their equipment needs include wages and night vision equipment. I live in District 4, and I will be in touch with my Commissioner Billy Billings. Our neighbors have great respect for our Sheriff's Department as well as our volunteer fire departments."

José Diaz, Bayard city councilor, said he was speaking as a citizen of Grant County. "We have a lot of vandalism and break-ins in Grant County. My issue is public safety. The Sheriff is running short on staff. They are paid unbelievably low wages. I fear that our public officials are not putting public safety as their first priority. You have talked about vandalism at Bataan Park. The only way the Sheriff's staff will feel valued is to pay them better. We are losing deputies to municipalities because the pay is better, even for those uncertified officers. The way they will feel valued is to have more money in their paychecks."

Officer Randy Orosco said: "Daily we meet all different crimes. Yes, it's our calling and I'm a proud member and happy to serve the county. But we are among the lowest paid in the area. Deputies can apply to other agencies. They need a competitive salary to support their spouses and children. I ask you to invest in us. My fellow deputies ask you to invest in us as a cooperative relationship."

Detective William Mide said he has 17 ½ years of service. "I have been offered up to $28 an hour. I'm making $4 less than that. A 5 percent raise is a slap in the face. I'm trying to stay with the sheriff's department, but I ask for higher wages."

Cpl. Brandon Reese said the department is a wonderful place to work, "but pay causes us to lose a lot of good cadets to other agencies because our pay is so low. Because we are short-staffed the department is running us until we're tired. Smaller agencies are competing with us. We need more people so we can patrol more areas. I am asking for better wages."

Deputy Justin Foster said the administrative staff "isn't bad, but it has to do with wages. I make $18.31 an hour and I have 11 years of experience. Our call volume has increased in 2023. Some of us work 15 days straight. We are losing people because of the pay. We need to provide for our families. We're dealing with the public. We ask for higher wages."

Cpl. Jake Benavidez said he has been in law enforcement for six years. "Starting salary in the sheriff's department is $17.53 an hour. The starting salary at the nearest agency is $22. Silver City increased it to $23 an hour this year and Bayard recently adopted $24 an hour. Other agencies are also catching up to our free insurance. Other counties pay about $4 more an hour. I understand that some are larger, but this month already, we've had 50 municipal calls for those that do not have 24-hour coverage. We signed up, but when we put in extra work, we ask for better wages."

Cpl. Aaron Ordonez said he started in the sheriff's department, has worked in other agencies, but returned to the sheriff's department. "I'm only making about a dollar more than what I made here before. The difference is I have more experience. Wages mentioned are for cadets straight out of the academy. They are making at least $22 an hour. We're falling way behind. Once we were the highest paid in the area with the addition of benefits. Because of the extra calls for municipalities, we can't keep up with rural areas. We're asking for consideration of a raise in wages. Hurley has a new chief and an uncertified officer, who is making more than some of us with years of experience. I ask you to make it better. Even the number of applicants to the department has dropped. I ask you to commit to better wages. Keeping the community safe is a dangerous job."

Sgt. Armando Medina said he has 19 years of experience. "I will retire soon. Right now there are very few of us with more than 15 years of experience. I can retire next year. I always said I wanted to work until my youngest son was graduating. I would love to keep working, but not if our pay cannot increase. I would love to stay to mentor younger guys. Please consider pay raises. We appreciate what you do for us."

Deputy Eric Arambula said: "we have had staff exposed to fentanyl, shots fired, domestic violence situations all in one month. They are being paid $14.97 an hour. Please consider pay raises."

A deputy, who has served for three years, said he would love to work with the county all the way through his career. "Even Catron County is paying $23. Unless something changes, I will not be able to support my family and I will have to go elsewhere. We're being hammered. I want to stay, but I may not be able to."

Lt. Jesus Palacios said he has spent 20 years at the sheriff's department after two years in Hurley, then Bayard. "I show my support for those who haven't had a raise in 7 years. The times have changed. Please take this group's thoughts into consideration."

No action was taken because it was not on the agenda.

To visit the previous articles, go to https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78763-grant-county-commission-held-work-session-060623-part-1; https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78798-grant-county-commission-held-work-session-060623-part-2 ; and https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78852-grant-county-commission-held-work-session-060623-part-4.