Las Cruces reduces delay in issuing Emergency Declarations

NEW MEXICO – The Las Cruces City Council adopted a new ordinance to amend Section 9-38 of the 1997 Municipal Code (LCMC), with the intent of streamlining the process for emergency declarations.

The new amendment allows the Mayor and City Council to use their emergency powers more effectively.

Almost two years ago, on March 27, 2020, the Council passed Ordinance 20-083, which amended LCMC, 1997 to include the Emergency Declaration Ordinance, LCMC Sections 9-35 through 9-41. The amendment authorizes the Mayor and City Council to exercise their emergency powers by issuing a proclamation.

Under these provisions, the time limit for a proclamation is three days. The amendment approved by the City Council deletes a portion of Subsection C of Section 9-38 which had stated, “but such period shall not exceed 14 days.”

The City Council approved the Declaration of Emergency Ordinance in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Mandate 20-083 gives the Mayor and City Council the ability to respond quickly to emergencies without having to wait for a regular Council meeting, to supplement the New Mexico Governor’s provisions exercised by executive order.

On March 11, 2020, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham issued Executive Order 2020-004, which declared a state of public health emergency and invoked her statutorily authorized executive powers to address the Covid-19 pandemic. Since then, numerous executive orders have been issued to address the problem.

Also, the mayor has issued numerous emergency proclamations in support of the quarantine orders and mask requirements implemented by the governor, while the City Council expanded the issuances with several resolutions.

According to the City Council, numerous extensions were needed because the pandemic has been a crisis since 2020 and Section 9- 38 of the LCMC Emergency Declaration Ordinance only extends one publication every fourteen days.

The creation of these resolutions to address the effects of the pandemic utilized the resources and time of staff and elected officials, authorizing the City Council to tailor its response to the Mayor’s emergency proclamations by extending one publication to coincide with the Governor’s Executive Orders and avoid the need for repeated provisions.

Source: MEXICNOW Staff