DA County Commissioners expected to vote on extending county manager’s contract

Dona Ana County Commissioners Tuesday are expected to make a decision on County Manager Julia Brown’s future.

Brown on Monday told ABC-7 the existing commission should make a decision on her future. Her contract expires this November.

Three new commissioners will take office in 2017 and Brown feels the existing commission should not defer, saying they are obligated to make a decision.

“The voters elected them to do their job and to be county commissioners until their term is over. So, not only do they have statutory authority to take action, I believe they have an obligation to go ahead and do their job until their term is over,” Brown said.

Brown started managing the county three years ago and her yearly salary is $130,000. She said she gets a lot of positive feedback from the community and is confident she has done a good job. “I have begun to make a difference in this county,” she said.

Monday, County Commissioner Ben Rawson declined to comment and said he would not be at Tuesday’s meeting because of a family emergency. Commissioner Billy Garrett will be in attendance. “Julia has been working on difficult issues and is making progress. She has my support,” Garrett said.

Commissioner Wayne Hancock also told ABC-7 he is satisfied with Brown’s performance. “She has had to overcome a lot of obstacles. She is slowly getting policies in place that are needed such that deal with rights violations and bullying,” Hancock said. Commissioners David Garcia, Leticia Benavidez, and Hancock are termed out. Garcia and Benavidez could not be reached for comment.

Brown told ABC-7 that under her leadership, employees have been given pay increases and there is an extensive review and analysis of human resources policies and procedures.

The county manager’s relationship with the county sheriff has been strained. Brown said there is always some degree of politics with both appointed and elected officials. “I would hope (commissioners) would vote their conscience and not be swayed by negative politics and statements and things that are roaming around that are less than accurate,” Brown said.

When asked about recent lawsuits settled by the county, Brown said most were filed before she was hired. She said he has learned to take a harder look at the way the county imposes discipline and making sure managers and supervisors are trained to understand how to utilize corrective and progressive discipline.