The Las Cruces City Council will meet at 1 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, in Council Chambers at City Hall, 700 N. Main St., for a work session.
Two items will be discussed by City Council during the work session, a review of the natural gas rate charged to Las Cruces Utilities customers, and a quarterly update of the City’s General Obligation Bond projects.
In December 2018, the Las Cruces Utilities Board of Commissioners authorized a rate review for the natural gas utility. It was later determined there is a $1.46 million gap in natural gas revenues.
Three options for increasing natural gas rates to meet system needs were presented to LCU natural gas customers and to City Council for consideration. A fourth option was recommended by the Customer Advisory Group to the Las Cruces Utilities Board of Commissioners.
On Dec. 9, 2021, the LCU Board voted and determined its recommendation to City Council is that new rates will be phased-in over three years for all customer classes, no new debt will be included in the revenue requirement calculation, and that new rates will not be implemented until the Emergency Commodity Recovery Surcharge is complete.
City Council will be presented with possible next steps it could consider at Monday’s work session.
Also at Monday’s work session, City staff will present a quarterly update on the status of General Obligation Bond projects. The update is intended to provide City Council with current information about the projects by highlighting background, status and the estimated timelines for the construction phases of implementation.
All GO Bond projects are scheduled to be completed by the end of this year. Information about GO Bond projects is available online at https://www.las-cruces.org/1892/General-Obligation-Bond-Projects.
The agenda for Monday’s City Council work session is available online at https://lascruces.civicweb.net/Portal/MeetingInformation.aspx?Org=Cal&Id=380.
Monday’s work session will be televised live on CLCTV, Comcast Cable channel 20, and in high definition on Comcast Cable channel 928. The work session will also be available online at clctv.com and at YouTube.com/clctv20.
Prior to the work session, City Council will meet at 11 a.m. Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, at City Hall for a closed meeting. The Council will discuss pending litigation.
Immediately after the Council work session, a brief Agenda Setting Meeting will be conducted in Council Chambers to set the agenda for the March 7, 2022, City Council meeting.