Otero County Commissioner Responds to Alamogordo Withdrawal from Dispatch Authority

In what appears to be a defensive tit for tat between the Alamogordo City Commission and Otero County Commission: Otero County Commissioner Amy Barela Responds to City of Alamogordo’s Withdrawal from Joint PSAP (TBRDA) Otero County, NM — Wednesday, April 23, 2025

In response to the City of Alamogordo’s decision to withdraw from the joint Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), known as the Tularosa Basin Regional Dispatch Authority (TBRDA), Otero County Commissioner Amy Barela has issued the following statement:

"I am deeply disappointed in the City of Alamogordo’s choice to walk away from the TBRDA partnership. As a commissioner, I urged a joint work session between the Otero County Commission and the Alamogordo City Commission in hopes of finding resolve and understanding. Unfortunately, that request was adamantly refused by the City.

The reason for my request was simple: many of us on both commissions are not fully informed on the root causes of the breakdown in this partnership. A joint meeting would have opened the door for transparency, cleared up misunderstandings, and most importantly, resolved communication barriers that I believe are at the heart of this issue.

I’ve been told that some of the matters discussed at the city commission meeting were not representative of the full picture. This decision appears to be driven by a power struggle and personal agendas rather than the needs of the people. Because of that, taxpayer dollars have essentially been flushed down the toilet. This is not how responsible governance should operate.

The citizens of Alamogordo and Otero County deserve better. They deserve collaboration, not division.

As we navigate this transition, I pledge to help ensure that our dispatch center continues to improve and provide the best possible service and emergency response to all constituents of Otero County. I know the County and the TBRDA team share that commitment—public safety must always come first.

While I believe the city’s decision is not fiscally responsible, I have no doubt that Alamogordo will overcome this setback and build a strong dispatch center once again. But the road forward didn’t have to be this difficult. Our residents deserve leaders who can put differences aside and do what’s right."

Note to our readers: if one watches the city commission meeting there is a condescending dialogue by Commissioner Rardin towards Mayor Susan Payne. Reason was valid in his point that the governing body should be the board appointed to oversee the agency however Payne and the City Manager made it clear that the county commissioners believe otherwise that they have governing control. The dispatch authority had a $4 Million dollar budget and rising with the city of Alamogordo without direct oversight and direct vote concerning leadership or operations in how management has operated the last year. The city per the city manager will be loosing most funding that it had in the past in state and federal matching grants in the operations with rising costs. The city of Alamogordo Police Chief and the Fire Chief were both united in their presentations the city should pull out. The Fire Chief was especially critical of the existing operations and the risk that operations was placing on his staff due to errors and incorrect information.

Rardin argued that it is a financial mistake to withdraw. The City Manager suggested that with spiraling costs over $1 Million and increasing annually without real cost oversight by the city that the taxpayers were at significant risk. She added that in the long run risks from potential lawsuits and a better trained internal staff would eventually lower risks to the city.

The mayor suggested open meeting rules had been violated by the oversight group headed by Sheriff Black and that the postponement indefinitely of up to 6 public meetings would not be condoned by the state if the commission acted in such a manner and should not be condoned for this government body.

The city will have to have a new internal center in place within 180 days. That will be housed at the Alamogordo Police Department headquarters where dispatch was previously held. 

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