Komadina questions SAD process By Eric Maddy State Sen. Steve Komadina has
filed a written request for an Attorney General’s opinion on whether
proper procedures have been followed regarding the city of Rio Rancho’s
proposed Special Assessment District 7.
Senator asks AG if procedure was proper
The SCORE
“They received letters between Christmas and New Years and have only until January 8, 2008 to respond if they are not in favor of it.
“Many constituents I have contacted have yet to receive any notification!
“My concern is that it is a very complicated matter and I fear many of the resident’s will lose their homes without true due process. I have included one set of comments from a typical constituent, but I can supply you with other names and contact information if needed.
“I would appreciate your opinion concerning the creation of this district and if statues are being correctly carried out. Rio Rancho is a wonderful place to live, but the majority of the residents in the SAD 7 district have no idea what this will mean to them.
“Perhaps it is the correct approach, but I worry about the process and the expansion of the project to $70 million when less would have addressed the acute problems of the area caused by the 100 year flood in 2006.”
Requests by legislators are logged in, then posted on the attorney general’s web site. Komadina’s request has not been posted, but Phil Sisneros, the chief spokesman for Attorney General Gary King, confirmed the letter has been received and assigned for investigation.
“I requested the Attorney General’s opinion to see if the process was a violation of people’s notification,” Komadina said in a telephone interview. “Fifty percent of the people I talked to never received a letter, and the letters were mailed out between Christmas and New Year’s, with a week and a half for them to respond to a 1,700 page document.
“The comment I got back from the Attorney General’s office is ‘We don’t have the time to give you an opinion by Wednesday (the protest deadline.) I said, ‘That’s the point. You’ve gotten more notice than some of the people that this is going to effect.”
Komadina said his intent was to “question the process, not the actual SAD. That’s two different issues. Once people really understand it, maybe it is a wonderful thing. I don’t know. I don’t understand it, from what I’ve been told.”
Komadina was out of town for Wednesday’s Governing Body meeting, but had heard reports of the overflow crowd.
“When I heard there were going to be extra police at the meeting, I said, ‘Isn’t it sad when public officials have to fear the people that they’re the public servants of because of their actions. That should say something. They certainly should have gotten a message.”