Montano v. Gabaldon
New Mexico Supreme Court
766 P.2d 1328 (1989)
- Written by Darius Dehghan, JD
Facts
The Valencia County Board of County Commissioners (the board) (defendant) entered into a lease-purchase agreement (the lease) with a private contractor. The contractor would build a new jail facility and would hold title to the facility. The board would make rental payments for the use of the facility and would have an option to purchase the facility from the contractor. But if the board made rental payments for the entire 20-year lease term, the board would automatically acquire ownership of the facility after the final payment. Further, the lease contained a nonappropriation clause that granted the board the right to terminate the lease by electing not to appropriate funds for rental payments. The lease was not approved by Valencia County voters. Salomon Montano (plaintiff) brought suit against the board, contending that the lease was unconstitutional. The district court found that the lease was constitutional. Montano appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Scarborough, C.J.)
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