Gov. Susana Martinez’s spouse starts new job

Serving as New Mexico’s first gentleman only pays a small, ceremonial salary of about a couple of dollars a year, along with free accommodations in Santa Fe.

So, the outgoing governor’s husband got another gig, back in the couple’s former hometown of Las Cruces.

Chuck Franco started work Monday as the chief deputy assessor of Doña Ana County, the website NMPolitics.net reports.

Franco takes the job as his wife, Gov. Susana Martinez, prepares to leave office at the end of the year with no publicly announced plans for her next steps.

Franco, a former Doña Ana County undersheriff, told NMPolitics.net he is still interested in running the local jail.

But Franco landed the new job, which pays $34.08 hour, after the chief deputy to outgoing assessor Andy Segovia left for other work.

“Andy asked me to help him out for his last three months,” Franco told the website.

And this is not Franco’s first day job as first gentleman.

Back in 2012, he started working as a security officer at the U.S. Courthouse in downtown Santa Fe.

The Las Cruces job means the two will travel between between New Mexico’s second-largest city and the state capital as Martinez serves out her term.

“I’m here during the week and I’m back and forth on the weekends,” Franco told NMPolitics.net. “Or vice versa — I’ll go up there; she’ll come back down here.”