Santa Fe HR seeks HRIS manager and boosts benefits funding in FY27 request

Sarah Bolater Gonzales, interim human-resources director, presented the human resources portion of Santa Fe's fiscal-year 2027 operating budget and asked the governing body to consider a new HRIS manager FTE to bring technical HR work in-house.

Bolater Gonzales said the proposed HR budget "increased by 1,400,000 or 444.4% from the original budget," noting a request for $25,700,000 to cover employee health, dental and life insurance claims and $197,848 for tuition assistance. She said the HRIS position would allow HR to "reduce the overall amount of funds the city is currently allocating to contracted work" and support tasks such as mass salary changes, recruiting modules and training-management improvements.

Councilors asked for details on what contracting the city expects to move away from; Bridal Montano, the HR organizational-development and training manager, and Alvin Valdez, benefits and wellness manager, said much of the current work involves contracted HCM subject-matter experts and IT contracts. Valdez told councilors there would be no changes to plan design for FY27 and that premium rates were expected to remain flat, noting a current plan surplus of about $1,520,000.

Councilor Chavez and others pressed for mentorship and tiered career ladders tied to accountability; HR said it would prioritize negotiations with AFSCME on classifications and explore incentive structures while emphasizing training rollout that the department says will increase internal capacity.

Next steps: the HR package will move with the rest of the operating budget through the finance committee and any council amendments must be submitted in writing ahead of that committee review.