N.M. AUDITOR PROPOSES TO CONDUCT MORE FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS
New Mexico Auditor Hector Balderas wants to send a message to the public and would-be whistleblowers: alert his office to potential fraud, corruption or mismanagement.
Balderas, a lawyer and former legislator from Wagon Mound, N.M., has served as auditor for just under two weeks as of press time, but has big plans for the office.
“We want to definitely develop our investigative capacity,” Balderas said.
He plans to ask the Legislature for a budget increase — about $600,000 — to hire 10 to 13 additional workers, mostly auditors and investigators. He also proposes to establish a hot line, which would allow people to call with tips of potential waste, fraud or abuse in governmental operations.
The auditor has an operating budget of about $3 million this year. The office is authorized to have 31 full-time employees, although there are a number of vacant positions Balderas is trying to fill.
Gov. Bill Richardson is asking the Legislature to consider a package of ethics measures. By law, the auditor must conduct a financial audit of every state and local governmental body each year. The office also can perform special audits to look into allegations of fraud or the failure to comply with laws and regulations. Balderas plans to expand those operations.
“Currently we have 270 pending allegations or open case files internally that we are assessing whether it’s necessary to have a special audit or not,” Balderas said. “It’s not 270 alleged criminal activities, but the cases all … address fraud, mismanagement or potential abuse.”
He contends there should be a greater emphasis on auditing and accountability measures. He recommends a “1 percent concept,” in which that share of overall spending — potentially more than $50 million based on the current $5.1 billion budget — be devoted to auditing, investigating and performance controls of government operations.
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