A Bernalillo County judge last week ruled against County Treasurer Tim Eichenberg’s attempt to immediately hire former County Clerk Linda Stover as his deputy, upholding the county’s ethics rules that require a one-year waiting period before former elected officials can accept county employment.
Second Judicial District Court Judge Joshua A. Allison ruled in favor of the Board of County Commissioners, ending a months-long legal battle that began when Eichenberg hired Stover on January 1, 2025, the day after her term as county clerk expired.
The court’s decision prohibits Eichenberg from employing Stover for pay as deputy treasurer until January 1, 2026. The ruling aligns with a May decision by the Bernalillo County Code of Conduct Review Board that found Stover violated the county’s ethics rules.
Bernalillo County’s “cooling-off period” has been part of the county’s Code of Conduct since voters approved the County Charter in 2017. The provision prohibits former elected officials from entering into any arrangement for paid work with the county for 12 months after leaving office.
Eichenberg had argued that state laws provide absolute authority for him as County Treasurer to appoint a deputy, and that this provision in the Code of Conduct unlawfully limited his authority. However, the county maintained that, as a constitutional Urban County, no state laws supersede, deny or limit the county’s authority to enact that section within the Code of Conduct granted by the County Charter under state law.
Judge Allison, who serves as Presiding Civil Court Judge for the 2nd Judicial District Court, also upheld the county’s requirement that changes to the Code of Conduct need a supermajority vote to be amended.
“I have great respect for the wisdom of the court in upholding the basic right of the people of Bernalillo County to govern themselves under the County Charter,” County Commission Chair Eric Olivas said in the press release. “Our county has the highest ethical standard in the state, including a one-year cooling-off period for former elected officials, because the citizens of our state’s largest county deserve a government rooted in transparency and accountability.”
The controversy began when Eichenberg, who took office in January 2025, hired Stover with an annual salary of $128,265 — about 30% more than her previous county clerk salary of $99,627. The hiring prompted a call for a special meeting, leading to a formal ethics complaint.
Previous coverage by New Mexico Political Report and City Desk ABQ tracked the controversy from its beginning, when commissioners questioned whether the hiring violated county ethics rules.
In May 2025, Stover wrote in an ABQ Journal opinion piece that she believed the district court would ultimately rule in Eichenberg’s favor. However, the court sided with the county commissioners’ interpretation of the ethics rules.
The cooling-off period recently survived an attempt to modify it. In December 2024, commissioners voted 3-2 to eliminate the waiting period for certain positions, but the proposal failed because changes to the Code of Conduct require a 4-1 supermajority vote.
Olivas concluded his statement by looking forward to working with Eichenberg now that the matter is resolved, saying the county government must focus “on making our community a healthy, safe, and more vibrant place to call home.”