Las Cruces extends mayor's emergency proclamation, passes new virtual public input rules

LAS CRUCES - The city council has extended Mayor Ken Miyagishima's citywide emergency declaration order over the coronavirus pandemic.

At a special Friday meeting, the Las Cruces City Council voted unanimously to extend the declaration, which was first proclaimed April 7, extended by council vote on April 10 and ran until April 24.

Read more:Doña Ana County government declares emergency to respond to coronavirus

The city plans to run the emergency proclamation concurrent with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's stay-at-home public health order, which lasts until May 15. The city council could, however, vote to rescind it before that order expires.

The council approved an emergency powers provision for the mayor last month, since the city previously had no mechanism for the mayor to declare an emergency. 

Miyagishima declared the citywide emergency April 7 to make it easier for the city to receive federal aid reimbursements for expenses incurred by the city as it fights the effects of the pandemic.

The emergency declaration gives the mayor the authority to enact restrictions on residents to fight the pandemic, but Miyagishima hasn't said he'll do that. Instead, the declaration has only advised residents to follow state orders to minimize coronavirus spread.

The emergency declaration also makes it easier for the city to spend money and allocate staff and resources as a way of addressing the pandemic, should the need arise.

Others are reading: City approves $684,000 in additional aid, extends mayor's emergency proclamation

There’s not a cap on how much the city is allowed to spend during the emergency proclamation.

Additionally, the city council approved a resolution allowing public comments to be read during virtual meetings. The council has been holding meetings on Zoom video chat since the end of March to conform to social distancing guidelines.

According to the city, the public can email comments to the city clerk or the mayor, and the mayor will read them during virtually held meetings. The public input rules apply only during emergencies when virtual meetings are necessary.

"The emails for specific items should include the resolution number as well as the participant’s name for the record," the city said in a news release. "Other emails not related to a specific resolution will be read during public participation."

Keep reading: Mayor Ken Miyagishima declares citywide emergency due to coronavirus

Miyagishima can limit the number of emails he'll accept and read each meeting and the comments must comply with the city's social media policy, which says the comments generally cannot include threatening, discriminatory or vulgar language or cannot be off-topic.

The public comment policy will go into effect at the May 4 council meeting. The city is now accepting comments, which can be emailed to mayor@las-cruces.org or crivera@las-cruces.org. 

Michael McDevitt can be reached at 575-202-3205, mmcdevitt@lcsun-news.com or @MikeMcDTweets on Twitter.