(Rio Rancho Observer)—Rio Rancho’s incoming finance director was in the same role for the city of Albuquerque two years ago, when the city council approved a $250,000 sponsorship with a Planned Parenthood chapter in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s bombshell decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, according to a civil complaint filed in state court.
Stephanie Yara was Albuquerque’s director of finance and administrative service in May 2022, when the council voted 6-3 to sponsor Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains following the leak of the high court’s opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, wrote Paul Gessing, founder of the Rio Grande Foundation, and Care Net Pregnancy Center of Albuquerque in their lawsuit filed in Second Judicial District Court in January 2023.
Gessing alleges that the council’s sponsorship violates the state constitution’s anti-donation clause. He also alleges that the city did not open the sponsorship to a request for proposals that could have included Care Net and Project Defending Life for consideration. Gessing wants a judge to invalidate the sponsorship and have Planned Parenthood give any money back to the city. In court filings, attorneys for the city of Albuquerque denied the claims and ordered the case be dismissed.
A trial is scheduled for Aug. 18, according to court documents.
The spotlight on the lawsuit involving Yara came as the Rio Rancho Governing Body voted unanimously May 8 to approve her nomination for director of the city’s financial services department. Yara, who has served as finance director for the pueblo of Sandia since December 2023, will succeed Carole Jaramillo, who is set to retire in October.
Reilly Stephens, senior counsel at the Texas-based Liberty Justice Center, a nonprofit involved in the case, said in an interview that Yara was sued in her official capacity, not personally. Since she no longer works for the city of Albuquerque; her name will be dropped from the case and replaced with the current Albuquerque finance director. However, Yara might be called as a witness at trial, Stephens said.
While the complaint merely said Yara is “responsible for overseeing all aspects of the city’s finances, including its issuance of checks to grantees,” Stephens questioned in an interview her role in issuing city funds to Planned Parenthood.
“We think this was an illegal thing, so perhaps she should have had the good judgement to point that out and say, ‘We shouldn’t do this,’” Stephens said. “I don’t know, internally, if she was gung-ho about this or if she was voice saying, ‘Hey, wait, this is a violation of the New Mexico Constitution.’”
He added that his firm is not accusing Yara of “maleficence or misuse” of funds.
“I want to give her credit that she was doing what the city council told her to do,” Stephens said.
In an interview, Yara said she had no opinion on the Planned Parenthood donation. She added that had nothing to do with the funds or negotiation of contracts — and she did not sign checks for the city. That was the city treasurer’s job, she said.
Yara said Albuquerque’s attorney would be the one to review whether a sponsorship was unconstitutional.
She did not want comment on the fact that she was named in the lawsuit.
But, Yara said, she would confer with the Albuquerque city attorney before any potential testimony.
Lauren Keefe, the city’s attorney, said the finance director has duties to allocate money as directed by the city council and Yara was compliant. After the contract was negotiated and signed, the finance department issued payments to Planned Parenthood. Though Yara was in charge of the finance department, she likely didn’t personally process the payments, Keefe said.
Rio Rancho spokesperson Jaley Turpen wrote in an email to the Observer that if City Manager Matt Geisel had concerns about Yara, he would not have recommended her appointment to the governing body. She referred all other questions to the city of Albuquerque.
Yara appeared at the governing body meeting as councilors voted to approve her nomination. She did not speak at the meeting, but told the Observer prior to the decision: “I’m appreciative of the opportunity they’re giving me, and I look forward to working for the city.”