A billboard put up by Bernalillo County is not winning over a lot of people in the community.

Advertisement Price tag of county billboard stirs controversy Bernalillo County advertises 'County Government Month' Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A billboard put up by Bernalillo County is not winning over a lot of people in the community.The billboard is alongside Interstate 25 near Montgomery and says, "April is County Government Month." Below the sentence, Bernalillo County's website is listed.The National Association of Counties designated April as "County Government Month" nationwide in 1991.According to the association, the point of the designation is to encourage counties to actively promote the services and programs they offer.But what is rubbing some folks wrong is how much the county spent on the billboard while it wrestles with a budget shortfall.County spokesperson Tia Bland said the billboard cost the county $5,000. Bland said the billboard was her idea and the money spent on it comes from funds she's given to advertise for the county.Bland said she decided on the billboard to get folks thinking about the duties Bernalillo County performs."It's an opportunity to educate the community on what their local government is doing for them," Bland said.But while education is the billboard's intention, Bland herself admits that it's not enough to achieve her goal."I don't think one billboard is sufficient for a community-wide educational campaign, but it was what we could afford," Bland said.Action 7 News replied to Bland's comment with the question, "Then why have a billboard then?"Bland replied, "Well I think one is better than not having any presence at all in the community."Folks we talked with on the street told Action 7 News the billboard is pointless and serves no purpose."It tells me that New Mexico doesn't know what it's doing with its tax dollars," Jeff Robb said."How do we benefit as taxpayers?" another man said while driving near the billboard.Bland hopes people start seeing the billboard differently."Some people couldn't even tell you that they live in Bernalillo County, so it's good to educate people about what we're doing and that we are a part of local government," Bland said.The board will only be up for the month of April.