GALLUP BENGALS AND MIYAMURA PATRIOTS FACE OFF SPORTS, A5
a Gallup Sun VOL V 11 | ISSUE 513
www.gallupsun.com
5 January 24, 2025
Best of the Best lives on NEW CONTRACT WORKED OUT BETWEEN WALT EDDY, CITY By Molly Ann Howell Managing Editor
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fter an April Gallup City Council meeting last year, many people may have wondered about the future of the Best of the Best, one of the community’s beloved rodeos and city events. The event’s organizer Walt Eddy did too. At the meeting he told the council that he wouldn’t put on the event if the funding issues weren’t resolved. “I mean, it’s no big deal,” he told the councilors. “Say you guys don’t want to do it, you don’t want to promote Gallup….” But this year the situation is much different. During the Jan. 14 city council meeting, new city manager Frank Chiapetti Jr. apologized to Eddy for the previous confusion. At a previous meeting, the councilors asked multiple questions about the rodeo, and city staff didn’t have all the information for them. Chiapetti said he believed this did Eddy a disservice. “I don’t think that put [Walt] in the best of light,” he said. “So I’d like to apologize to him and thank him for his time and effort.” Chiapetti then proceeded to go over an information packet that answered the councilors’ previous questions. PAYING OUT RIDERS AND WORKERS First, he answered a question about other events going on during the rodeo. He explained that jackpot roping was often held during the Best of the Best rodeo. Contestants paid cash to enter the jackpot roping
events nightly. In the past, Eddy has tried to give the cash to the city, but since there were no receipts, the city never accepted the money in case of possible audits. Chiapetti suggested creating receipts so that the city can accept the money from this event in the future. When they enter the rodeo, participants pay $250 per event. Of the $250, 80% goes to the payouts of the winners. The other $50 is used to cover the cost of livestock. The livestock owners charge $25 per run, and there are two regular runs for each contestant and then a short run for the top 12 contestants. With this method, the entry fee funds are consumed within the event. STALLS AND CAMPING SPACE During the April city council meeting, councilors questioned how much the city would receive from the event. In the past, the rodeo was considered a city event, so they saw the revenue from it. However, McKinley County took over the park management of Red Rock State Park from the City of Gallup in August 2022, and 2023’s Best of the Best rodeo was the first time the event was under the county’s control. Leading up to the 2024 event, the city staff were left wondering if they’d see any revenue from the event. Despite the 2023 change, the county and city worked out an agreement in which the city still received the revenue from the horse stalls and RVs rented by the people who competed in the rodeo. During the April meeting councilors voiced concern about the fact that the county hadn’t paid the city
back yet. At the Jan. 14 meeting Chiapetti shared that the county had finally paid the city for the stall/camping rentals. The city received over $64,000. THE COST OF EVERYTHING When it comes to the finances of the event, Eddy asked for over $194,000 from the city to fund the event’s 2024 advertising efforts. But he only used just over $176,000. After taxes, he returned over $3,600 to the city. In total, the city spent over $190,000 on the event and brought in almost $102,000. The city lost over $89,000 from last year’s event. It all comes down to how many people attended and participated in the event. Chiapetti said almost 300 people participated in last year’s event. As for attendance, Eddy said 9,200 people attended the event in 2024. That number was down by about 50% from previous years. Another part of the problem comes from the fact that many of the contestants bring campers when they visit Gallup for the event. Thus, they are not using hotels and motels and not contributing to Gallup’s lodger’s tax. The event didn’t even receive any lodger’s tax funding last year. MAKING UP FOR LAST YEAR’S LOSS In an interview with the Sun, Eddy blamed the limited amount of advertising he had for last year’s low turnout. The city didn’t accept his RFP until May, so he only
See BEST OF THE BEST, Page A4
Coming in swinging TRUMP SIGNS 26 EXECUTIVE ORDERS ON FIRST DAY BACK IN OFFICE Staff Reports
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resident Doonald Trump was sworn in for his second term Jan 20. He immediately began his second term by signing a multitude of executive orders. There are two types of executive actions: executive orders, which are legally binding written orders to the federal government that do not require congressional approval. Presidents also issue proclamations, which are generally not legally binding. Executive orders outline the president’s agenda in running the federal government. These can include
President Donald Trump directives for federal agencies or requests for specific reports. Many orders can be unobjectionable, such as giving federal employees the day after Christmas off, and they can also establish major policies. New presidents
often issue orders to cancel orders of their predecessors. The executive orders can’t be directly overturned by lawmakers. However, Congress can prevent an order from being carried out by cutting funding or imposing other obstacles. So what did Trump declare by signing those executive orders? SECURING THE NATION’S BORDERS In his inaugural address, Trump promised that “all illegal entry will be halted” and that millions of “criminal aliens” will be deported. As part of his decisions, Trump declared a national
emergency at the U.S.Mexico border, ordering the deployment of troops to enhance border security. He resumed the construction of the border wall initiated during his first term in 2017 and reinstated the “Remain in Mexico” programme, which required asylum seekers to wait in Mexico during their U.S. immigration proceedings. “All illegal entry will immediately be halted,” Trump said. “And we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they
See EXECUTIVE ORDERS, Page A4
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