BoomGov - Council agenda 1-14-25
Council to discuss budget projections, wildlife ordinance, and local business engagement
Welcome to our BoomGov agenda preview for the upcoming Los Alamos County Council meeting!
What’s up: Council will hold a work session on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, at 6 p.m. at Fire Station No. 3 in White Rock. If you can't make it in person, you can join via Zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85448619994.

Agenda overview:
Here's a quick look at what's on the agenda:
Public comment: As always, there’s time set aside at the beginning of the session for public comments on items not requiring Council action or not on the agenda. If you want to comment on one of the topics that is on the agenda for a vote, there will be time for public comment before each individual action item.
You can also submit e-comments here until 11:45 a.m. on the day of the Council meeting (scroll to the topic you want to comment on, then click “comment.” See annotated screenshot below for reference). These comments become part of the public record, and councilors receive them before the start of the meeting.
Business items: These are the key topics the Council will discuss in detail:
FY2026 Budget Guidance
Draft Wildlife Feeding Ordinance
Council Engagement with Small Business Community
Potential Ordinances to Consider in 2025
More details:
FY2026 budget guidance: Council will review preliminary budget guidance for the upcoming fiscal year, with County staff seeking Council's endorsement of key financial parameters.
The guidance focuses on managing costs while maintaining services, proposing a 6% salary increase for non-union employees (3% structure, 2% merit, 1% other), a 5% increase for group health benefits, and a 10% rise in interdepartmental costs. The proposal aims to keep general fund increases to 3%.
Notably, updated 10-year projections show some financial challenges ahead. While FY2024 ended stronger than expected due to one-time capital spending increases, staff projections show Los Alamos County (LAC) may need to consider a GRT (Gross Receipts Tax) increase before July 2026 to support future capital plans and operational budgets.
County Manager Anne Laurent, Administrative Services Director Helen Perraglio, and Budget Manager Erika Thomas will present the guidance, which will shape department budget development through March before budget hearings in April.
Wildlife feeding ordinance: The Council will continue discussing an ordinance prohibiting feeding wild animals within county limits. In case you missed it, here’s the backstory on this initiative: After significant community pushback against a wildlife feeding ban proposed in December 2023, LAC staff have drafted a revised ordinance that takes a more targeted approach to the problem. The new version, which Council will consider Tuesday, explicitly exempts bird feeding, which was a major source of controversy in the previous draft.
The ordinance bans the intentional feeding of wild animals like deer, bears, and mountain lions, with fines starting at $25 for first offenses and increasing to $100-$750 for subsequent violations. County officials appear to have studied legislation in other communities — Ruidoso passed a similar ban in 2019.
New Mexico Game and Fish Officer Tyler Carter, who manages wildlife calls in Los Alamos County, gave a presentation to Council last month that supported a targeted wildlife-feeding ban that leaves out bird feeding: “From my experience, correctly placed bird feeders, placed for the purposes of attracting birds, or recreational gardens and fruit trees grown for human consumption, do not appear to be the root cause of incident clusters," he said. "However, the misuse of these same attractant types do.”
In other words, if someone is feeding birds properly, they won’t be targeted, but if someone is routinely dumping bags of birdseed to feed deer and bears, that is a “misuse of attractants” and would be subject to fines.
The revised ordinance could provide enforcement tools for dealing with the dozen known residential feeding stations that Game and Fish has documented in the county, while focusing on education and warnings before moving to stricter enforcement.
Small-business engagement: Following poor marks from a recent community survey, Council will consider new ways to strengthen ties with local businesses.
The 2024 National Community Survey showed that Los Alamos residents rated LAC below average in several key areas: overall quality of business establishments, variety of businesses, downtown vibrancy, and shopping opportunities. These results, combined with goals from the county's 2025 Strategic Leadership Plan to support business growth and retention, have prompted the Council to explore new engagement strategies.
Council Chair Theresa Cull and County Manager Anne Laurent will present several options for consideration. These include forming a Council Working Group with up to three councilors and community experts, creating a formal task force with appointed members and specific objectives, or having councilors participate in existing business organizations.
This discussion aligns with other items on Tuesday's agenda, including budget guidance for FY2026 and long-term financial projections.
2025 ordinances: Finally, Council will discuss several potential ordinances that have generated significant public interest:
The single-use plastics discussion has evolved from earlier proposals for an outright ban. Council will now consider implementing a fee structure instead, marking a shift from previous attempts dating back to 2015 when 80% of surveyed residents opposed a ban.
The vacant properties ordinance returns to discussion after a 2022 attempt based on Raton's model. That version included registration requirements and fees for empty commercial buildings but was sent back to staff for revisions.
The minimum-wage proposal is also getting another look following unsuccessful legislation in early 2024. The previous ordinance, which failed in a 3-4 vote, would have set rates at $15 for regular workers, $3.75 for tipped workers, and $13.50 for student workers.
Additional topics for potential ordinances include traffic cameras to address speeding and requiring hands-free cell phone use while driving. Council will discuss what problems each ordinance aims to solve and what public feedback should be gathered before moving forward.
Mark your calendars and stay informed!