Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
CLOVIS — Facing a 10-year renewal of a gross receipts tax to offset costs for the Eastern New Mexico Rural Water System, Clovis City Commissioners on Thursday decided a little flexibility was a good tool to navigate unknown waters.
The commission, by a 7-0 vote, renewed a 0.25% gross receipts tax first implemented in 2011, but added a qualifier that money acquired through the tax could go toward “other city of Clovis water projects.” The original tax was implemented with the caveat that money must go to the ENMRWS — better known as the Ute Water Project, with plans for a pipeline from the Ute Reservoir in Quay County to provide potable water to Clovis, Portales, Texico and Elida.
“The water issues we're facing are complex,” Clovis Mayor Mike Morris said. “As we seek solutions as a city, (along with) the water authority and other entities that are at work trying to find the longterm solutions to our water issues, it's possible it could be wise to create some flexibility in how this money is used.”
Morris suggested the addition of the city water projects clause, along with a requirement the fund always maintains a minimum balance of 1.5 times the city's most recent annual obligation to the authority.
Mayor Pro Tem Chris Bryant and Commissioner Juan Garza, the city's representatives on the six-member authority board along with former Clovis Mayor David Lansford, wanted to include references to acquisition of water and domestic water supply projects.
District 1 Commissioner Leo Lovett had concerns the term “domestic” could be too far-reaching, and did not want a situation where water would be sold for commercial use. There was disagreement among commissioners, but it was never heated, and Bryant noted that any use of the money outside of authority obligations would require a separate approval process from the commission.
Morris said the “domestic” back-and-forth was an argument about something that might or might not matter a few years from now, but “the minimum balance, we have to have that in there.”
City Manager Justin Howalt said keeping a balance was vital because at a certain point the city's authority-related expenses would exceed what is gathered from the tax. In the interim, he said the authority has done a good job of acquiring federal dollars and it was good practice to keep some funding available to provide local matches.
Lovett moved to approve the ordinance with Morris' suggestions, and the unanimous vote followed.
The last two fiscal years saw just over $1.8 million annually collected from the tax, with $936,670 collected in the first six months of the current fiscal year.