our Q&A series<\/a> with people involved in New Mexico politics and government.<\/p>\nKeller, a former state senator from Albuquerque who has been New Mexico’s auditor since 2015, shared other ideas to better equip his office to carry out its mission, including making obstructing a government audit a crime.\u00a0And he discussed some changes he’s already made, including creating a Government Accountability Office to “shine a light on how our government is working, or in some instances not working.”<\/p>\n
Keller is often mentioned as a possible candidate for governor or another office in 2018 — when he’s wrapping up his first term as auditor — and we asked about that too.<\/p>\n
“I have to eventually consider what is next, but I\u2019ve always felt the best credential for any future position is doing well in your current job,” Keller said. “…\u00a0Having been born and raised here, I hope to continue to help our state throughout my life and will consider how to best be of service.”<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s our\u00a0full interview, with questions in bold and Keller’s\u00a0answers immediately following:<\/p>\n
What have you found to be most surprising about the job of state auditor since taking office in January 2015? What have you found to be most challenging?<\/strong><\/p>\nGiven the many needs in New Mexico, the biggest surprise was that the amount of unspent funds sitting in government is much larger than anyone would have guessed. We shined a light on the issue by producing the nationally recognized \u201cFund Balance Report,\u201d a tally of unspent funds from the annual audits of state agencies. These are dollars that were already allocated by the Legislature in areas that mean a lot to our state \u2013 water projects, job creation, and school infrastructure. Due to red tape and differing priorities, the money isn\u2019t moving out the door and much of it is sitting stagnant. Activating even a small fraction of these dollars could make a big difference in terms of our economy and meeting the needs of New Mexicans.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Past auditors have complained that the office\u2019s budget is too small to hire the number of people needed to effectively root out waste, fraud and abuse in state and local government agencies. Does your office need additional funding? If so, how much and how would you use it?<\/strong><\/p>\nIn addition to fielding and investigating a high volume of cases from whistleblowers, we oversee financial reporting of about 1,000 government entities across the state \u2013 agencies, counties, cities, school districts, land grants, hospitals and more \u2013 with expenditures totaling billions of dollars. But we only have a funded staff of about 30 employees with a small budget, which was cut 4 percent for next year. Fully funding the State Auditor\u2019s Office would be the single best way to protect taxpayer dollars in New Mexico. The office was created to provide independent oversight of how government is handling the public\u2019s money. If our state wants to be serious about ensuring accountability and effectively fighting fraud, waste and abuse, we need to provide the resources to do so.<\/p>\n
Another example of how our office can assist communities is the $160,000 in grants we provide each year to small entities, such as acequia associations and conservation districts, to help them get caught up with their audits. By helping with the costs of financial reporting, we are helping these rural communities safeguard their money while also removing obstacles that have historically prevented these communities from receiving infrastructure funding.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Government corruption has been a significant problem in New Mexico in recent times. How are you approaching investigations into allegations of problems, including possible corruption, in government \u2013 especially if they involve members of your own political party? Can you give some examples?<\/strong><\/p>\nWe have a Special Investigation Division dedicated to rooting out fraud, waste and abuse in government. Most fraud is uncovered as a result of whistleblowers so we have a confidential hotline at 1-866-OSA-FRAUD. Our investigators, who are non-political professional staff (i.e. they are subject to the State Personnel Act and cannot be let go without legal cause), conduct fact-finding procedures for each case, regardless of party affiliation or level of government. We have investigated serious allegations that span every corner of our state and government officials from both parties. These range from a former Albuquerque police chief \u201cgreasing contracts\u201d for TASER, an Espa\u00f1ola principal stealing from a candy fundraiser, a Cibola County Commissioner who spent taxpayer dollars on an AR-15 rifle and baseball tickets, and a Cabinet secretary\u2019s abuse of power in dealings with a former client. While our investigations can sometimes lead to criminal referrals, these types of cases also serve as a public deterrent.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve also conducted dozens of special audits involving issues that may not be criminal in nature but demonstrate shortcomings in how public funds are being handled. For example, we\u2019ve released reports on the City of Santa Fe\u2019s misuse of millions of dollars in park bonds, Do\u00f1a Ana County\u2019s Sheriff Department\u2019s practices in managing federal Stonegarden grants, McKinley County Sheriff\u2019s Offices use of DUI funds, the Public Education Department\u2019s funding of special education programs, and more. The special audits can result in improved practices that better protect taxpayer dollars.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
In your experience as a state senator and now auditor, are state and local governments becoming more transparent and accessible? What can your office do to help that happen?<\/strong><\/p>\nThanks to open government advocacy and other efforts, we have seen some improvements but there is clearly more work to be done. When I became State Auditor, we created the Government Accountability Office specifically to shine a light on how our government is working, or in some instances not working. The word \u201caudit\u201d does not sound exciting but think of the information they contain about your school district, your city, or your water system. Our reports, like \u201cThe Findings Report,\u201d compile audit data and find patterns that would otherwise not be readily accessible to the public. When we noticed the troubling statewide trend of school personnel not undergoing background checks or licensing requirements, we issued a Risk Advisory to alert school officials and the public and called on the oversight agency, the Public Education Department, to address the issue immediately.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
You\u2019ve highlighted unspent capital outlay dollars allocated for infrastructure projects and issued recommendations for best practices when lawmakers are allocating such money. What type of reform would you like to see to the state\u2019s capital outlay system and why?<\/strong><\/p>\nEvery capital outlay dollar tied up in red tape is a dollar that is not circulating in New Mexico\u2019s economy. Our \u201cFund Balance Report\u201d found that our state\u2019s capital project funds are the most vulnerable to unnecessary accumulation. The report identified $1.2 billion in unspent capital project funds throughout state agencies in the last fiscal year alone. Our economy would benefit exponentially from reforms that address both the front end — how funds are appropriated — and the back end — how funds are actually spent. This means fully funding projects up front, using statewide project prioritizing, having a centralized reporting and tracking system, and including a firm \u201cuse it or lose it\u201d date in all related appropriations.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
You recently traveled the state to conduct audit trainings in several cities. Tell us about what you were doing and why it\u2019s important.<\/strong><\/p>\nWe conduct training sessions all over the state about best practices in how to protect taxpayer dollars in our communities. Hundreds of government employees and independent public accountants attend from Raton to Las Cruces and from Gallup to Clovis. Rural New Mexico governments are often faced with limited training opportunities and struggle with a lack of access to capable financial employees as long time staff retires. Thus, each year the training we do tends be more and more important and we\u2019ve seen a proportionate increase in attendance.<\/p>\n
Two areas we emphasized this year was how to use our new online contracting system and a new accounting standard that is going to be a game-changer for transparency, called GASB 77. Moving forward, audits will include more detailed information about certain tax breaks. Policymakers have long fought to access this data because it can reveal whether the state\u2019s many tax carve-outs are truly supporting economic growth. Collecting this information in audits is the first step on a path towards creating an informed and effective tax system.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Are there any changes you\u2019d like to see to state laws regarding government audits? If so, what changes are needed and why?<\/strong><\/p>\nWe develop an agenda each year to improve government accountability in our state. For years our office has supported making \u201cobstruction of an audit\u201d a criminal penalty in our state. The lack of \u201cteeth\u201d regarding our office\u2019s ability to enforce some of our investigative work stems from not having this provision in the law. In addition, we continue to support broader efforts for transparency and accountability, many of which I also championed as a State Senator, including the Ethics Commission, tax expenditure budget, tax reform, capital outlay reform, Sunshine Portal enhancements, procurement reform and reversion of unspent funds.<\/p>\n
One of the truly impactful changes we are working on, in collaboration with the survivor advocacy community, is our state\u2019s backlog of Sexual Assault Evidence Kits, commonly referred to as \u201crape kits.\u201d Our office helped complete the first ever statewide count of kits that remain untested at law enforcement storage facilities. Having an accurate count of the number of untested rape kits was the first step at reducing the backlog and arming policymakers with information needed to bring justice and closure to cases. The number of untested kits in our state is 5,410 and each of those represents a survivor. We are in the process of conducting a statewide, multi-agency audit to get at the bottom of why the backlog occurred, how the state can clear it, and how to prevent it from happening again. This will likely require changes in the policies and procedures of law enforcement agencies and crime lab facilities.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
How does New Mexico\u2019s Office of the State Auditor compare to auditor\u2019s offices in other states in terms of funding, structure, and governing laws? What can New Mexico learn from other states to improve the effectiveness of the auditor\u2019s office here?<\/strong><\/p>\nNew Mexico benefits from having an independently elected State Auditor who is directly accountable to the public rather than to an individual or committee for appointment. About 17 states have auditors who are elected by the public while others select their auditors legislatively or by appointment. Our office works cooperatively with other states, especially in sharing lessons from groundbreaking efforts, such as the Kentucky Auditor\u2019s Office that conducted the first Sexual Assault Evidence Kit audit.<\/p>\n
The first 50 years of the State Auditor\u2019s history is replete with efforts by the other branches of government to eliminate the independence of the office. This was finally put to rest with a Supreme Court Ruling that stated the broad and independent powers of the office: \u201cHistorically and fundamentally, the Office of State Auditor was created and exists for the basic purpose of having a completely independent representative of the people, accountable to no one else, with the power, duty and authority to examine and pass upon the activities of state officers and agencies who, by law, receive and expend public moneys.\u201d Thompson v. Legislative Audit Commission (1968)<\/em>. However, our office\u2019s scope is limited by the constitution to the finances of New Mexico governments. This means that non-profit organizations, businesses and private individuals are outside the jurisdiction of the office.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nYou\u2019re often mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for governor in 2018. That would be at the end of your first term as state auditor. Are you considering running for governor?<\/strong><\/p>\nI\u2019m honored to serve as State Auditor and am focused on doing the job effectively. Naturally given my age and term limits, I have to eventually consider what is next, but I\u2019ve always felt the best credential for any future position is doing well in your current job. I left the private sector to pursue my passion for public service and I reflect on where I can have the most impact in advancing innovative ideas for New Mexico. Having been born and raised here, I hope to continue to help our state throughout my life and will consider how to best be of service.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Are you considering running for any other offices, such as U.S. Senate or House?<\/strong><\/p>\nSame as above.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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