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SANTA FE, N.M., April 21, 2026—Representatives of the Town of Edgewood (Town) and Santa Fe County (County) today announced principles of agreement for a new agreement under which the County Fire Department would continue to provide fire suppression services, fire prevention services, and emergency medical services (EMS) in the County portion of the Town after June 30, 2026. These principles of agreement must now be turned into a new joint powers agreement and approved by the Town Commission, Board of County Commissioners, and New Mexico Secretary of Finance and Administration.

Here is a summary of the principles of agreement:

• Continuation of Fire and EMS Services by County. The County would continue providing fire suppression, fire prevention, and EMS services in the County portion of the Town after June 30, 2026. 
• Historic payment structure preserved. The anticipated new agreement would preserve the historic payment structure that has existed since 2005, whereby the Town, in essence, replaces revenue that the County lost upon the Town’s incorporation. Specifically, the Town would pay the following for future services:
  • the equivalent of the 0.25% County area fire excise tax (adjusted to include food and medical services deductions) that applies in the unincorporated areas of the County; and
  • impact fees equivalent to what the County would collect on new development in the unincorporated areas of the County.
• Stability and lengthy transition period. There would be no automatic termination date in the new agreement.  Instead, with limited exceptions for material breaches and change in gross receipts tax structure, the new agreement would continue indefinitely unless either party terminated it on five years’ notice.
• Cooperation in potential creation of Town Fire Department. The new agreement:
  • would commit the County to providing the Town with technical support in evaluating whether and how to develop its own Fire Department; and
  • subject to State Fire Marshal approval, commit the County to offering the Town serviceable surplus apparatuses during the term of the new agreement. This means that apparatuses that the County is prepared to donate to other Fire Departments would first be offered to the Town, so that it can begin to build out its apparatus fleet with limited upfront cost.
• $2,270,000 paid in installments as consideration for technical consultation, technical support, capital for continued services (e.g., replacement ambulances and other apparatus), and donations of surplus fire apparatuses. The Town would make an initial payment of $50,000, followed by 222 monthly payments of $10,000 with no interest and no prepayment penalty.
• Reconfirms that Santa Fe County’s primary service area does not include portions of Town in other counties. The Town will need to develop alternative models to serve portions of the Town outside of Santa Fe County, which could include paying the County 100% of the costs of serving those areas.
• Security for future payments. To secure future payments, the Town would:
  • have its fiscal agent bank immediately disburse to the County estimated payments upon receipt of gross receipts tax revenue from the State; and
  • provide the County with a confession of judgment, which could be immediately filed with Court to allow collection in the event of future default.

In addition, the parties would reconcile payments on a quarterly basis to ensure accurate payment calculations and proper recording of payments received.

County and Town representatives will now draft a new joint powers agreements based upon the principles of agreement, which must be reviewed and approved by counsel for both parties, as well as their governing bodies and, ultimately, the Secretary of Finance and Administration. 

The Town Commission hopes to consider the new agreement at its April 28, 2026, meeting.

The Board of County Commissioners has stated that (1) it will not consider the new joint powers agreement until it has been available to the public for review for one week and (2) it will hold a public hearing on the new agreement, which in this context means only that all interested persons will be heard before the Board takes action.

The Board of County Commissioners scheduled a special meeting on Friday, May 1, at 3:00 p.m. to receive public feedback and consider action on the anticipated new JPA.

“The payment structure under the old and new potential joint powers agreement is conceptually sound and not unfair to the Town, which is primarily responsible for providing fire and EMS services within municipal boundaries,” Gregory S. Shaffer, County Manager said. “The new agreement would ensure that Town residents, visitors, and property owners within the County continue to receive first-rate fire and EMS services from the County’s dedicated, highly capable and trained firefighters.”

"This new agreement lays the groundwork to ensure continued services while also recognizing community preferences and supporting the Town's long-range planning needs," Town Mayor Mike Rariden said. "Working together through cost-sharing and technical support services brings long-term security and added value to our constituents."

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