The highest salary in Bernalillo County government goes to the County Manager,Thomas Zdunek, who pulls down ten cents short of $148,000.  He makes less than his predecessor, Thadeus Lucero, who received $150,000 annually.  But the county’s manager continues to make than man who manages a larger workforce and bigger budget at Albuquerque City Hall.  (See Top 250 Salaries in Albuquerque City Government).

Ten Bernalillo County employees earn over $100,000 (exclusive of overtime, bonuses and benefits).  Thirty-three make above $90,000.  Twenty-five get paychecks above $80,000.

Aside from the County Manager, Bernalillo County’s payscale across the board is considerably less than Albuquerque’s, where fifty-eight people earned over $100,000 and the rest of the top 250 earners received above $81,600.

Like the City of Albuquerque, Bernalillo County deserves high marks for its willingness to share its payroll information with the public.

Marcos Portillo, the Rio Grande Foundation intern who obtained this information from both the county and city governments, reported that Bernalillo County responded to his request within 2 days.  “They were professional,” he states. ” The city was definitely more personable and prompt [the city responded within 24 hours], but I  can’t really complain over the county’s cooperation in gathering this information and sending it to me in excel format already sorted.”   We are honored to have the services of Mr. Portrillo, who previously served as a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, and is now studying economics at the University of New Mexico.  

The top 250 salaries in Bernalillo County government may be found at this link.  It is a Google spreadsheet requiring you to scroll to the right to see the salary figures corresponding to each employee and their job title.