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If you walk up to someone on the street and ask them what the Bernalillo County assessor does, you鈥檇 probably get a lot of blank stares. For good reason too 鈥� not many people are knowledgeable about all of the work that goes into assessing the value of properties and property taxes. 

Having served as Bernalillo County assessor since 2023, I can confirm that it is a lot of work. I am blessed to have amazing staff members who work tirelessly each day to ensure our assessments are fair, equitable and transparent. We are striving to make the county鈥檚 property tax system as progressive as possible. Our motto in our office is, 鈥淲hen everyone pays their fair share, the tax burden is shared, not shifted.鈥�

Here鈥檚 what I鈥檝e learned: What county residents most want and deserve is trust and confidence that their assessor is ethical. And that is a big point of differentiation between me and my opponent, Linda Stover.

My mother brought my siblings and me to the United States when I was just 6 years old, with nothing but four boxes of clothes. We all worked the potato and onion fields of southeastern New Mexico as migrant farmworkers. My mom sacrificed everything for us. She taught us to welcome the stranger, feed the hungry and poor, and heal the sick. Simple but true words. She also told us how important education was. After graduating high school, I attended Brown University and then earned my law degree at the University of New Mexico. In private practice, I represented immigrant victims of domestic violence. Working hard and working ethically is in my blood, and I鈥檝e brought this work ethic to the Assessor鈥檚 Office.

That is why I was so surprised to see Stover attacking my ethics last week. First she had a Republican supporter file a complaint with Bernalillo County, alleging that my office placed public service ads from the Assessor鈥檚 Office in the Journal to advance my reelection campaign. She then repeated these charges (and others) in an op-ed in the Journal last week.

Here鈥檚 the truth: The Assessor鈥檚 Office has placed these public service announcements in the Journal every year, to coincide with the annual mailing of Notice of Value letters. This year鈥檚 ads also alerted veterans of their new property tax exemptions, passed recently by the New Mexico Legislature.

When Stover鈥檚 ally was informed by the county鈥檚 compliance officer that she had to swear by her complaint, she withdrew it. Why? Because it was frivolous and she knew it. 

Here鈥檚 another thing I have learned. Voters see through a politician鈥檚 hypocrisy 100% of the time. 

Stover was found to have violated the county鈥檚 code of conduct less than a year ago, when she violated Bernalillo County鈥檚 鈥渞evolving door鈥� rule by accepting a $160,000 deputy treasurer county job 鈥� a position that was created just for her. After the ruling, she went on the attack, filing a frivolous counter-claim against Commissioners Barbara Baca and Eric Olivas. Her case was dismissed.

But it gets even more ridiculous. Stover herself is featured in ads playing around the clock right now, paid for by the Treasurer鈥檚 Office with taxpayer dollars 鈥� at the very moment she is accusing me of doing the same. Why is the newly hired deputy treasurer featured in multiple ads for the Treasurer鈥檚 Office during her primary election instead of the treasurer himself 鈥� is it because she鈥檚 now running for office?

I was raised to know that if you committed a wrong, you took responsibility, apologized and tried to do better next time. Instead, my opponent refused to take responsibility and instead, went on the attack. To me, that鈥檚 not ethical behavior at all. 

There will undoubtedly be more attacks forthcoming. I will continue to defend my office and character.

Damian Lara was elected Bernalillo County assessor in 2022 and is running for reelection.