{"id":2160,"date":"2007-08-28T10:58:00","date_gmt":"2007-08-28T16:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/08\/nmsu-audit-identifies-628000-in-cost-overruns\/"},"modified":"2007-08-28T10:58:00","modified_gmt":"2007-08-28T16:58:00","slug":"nmsu-audit-identifies-628000-in-cost-overruns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/08\/nmsu-audit-identifies-628000-in-cost-overruns\/","title":{"rendered":"NMSU audit identifies $628,000 in cost overruns"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The audit that led last week to changes at New Mexico State University\u2019s Office of Facilities and Services<\/a> identified cost overruns totaling more than $628,000 on nine projects, and a university document indicates that all senior managers have been temporarily reassigned or placed on leave while the situation is addressed. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

I reported last week that one employee is facing misdemeanor charges of larceny and embezzlement and four were placed on leave as a result of the university\u2019s investigation. In addition, authority over OFS has been moved from Senior Vice President Ben Woods to a team led by an administrator who works directly for the president as the university begins to address the problems.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

University President Michael Martin<\/a> sent an e-mail<\/a> to the university community Monday evening announcing the release of the audit, stating that, \u201cin keeping with a philosophy of transparency in operations, we have decided to release their report even though our internal review is not yet completed.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

You can read the audit, conducted by R.L. Townsend & Associates of Plano<\/st1:city>, Texas<\/st1:state><\/st1:place>, by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The nine projects examined by the auditors included work on three parking lots and two roads, in addition to utility and roof projects. The actual costs for the nine projects overran the estimates by a combined $628,148, auditors found. In all, the projects cost almost $3.9 million.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

That total cost included more than $410,000 in overtime for employees, auditors found. The overtime is due in part to the fact that \u201csome major projects are assigned at the last minute with hard completion dates,\u201d the report states, adding that none of the projects examined \u201cwere completed on a timely basis,\u201d and some \u201clinger for months after they have been started.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Supervisors in OFS told the auditors that overtime had been \u201cpadded\u201d by some employees, the report states.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The auditors also noted that there are no checks in OFS to ensure that employees are purchasing materials \u201cfor legitimate purposes,\u201d adding that \u201cemployees were trusted to do the right thing.\u201d They noted one invoice for almost $120,000 for roofing material included more than $21,000 that \u201cappeared to be purchased in excess of the amount required\u201d for the project.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The report identifies a number of problems that have resulted in a lack of internal controls and makes suggestions for improvement.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Action plan released<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The university also released on Monday evening its preliminary action plan<\/a>, which is being implemented by the team led by Christina Chavez Kelley, senior assistant to the president.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The action plan reveals further information about the four university employees who were placed on leave last week, whose identities have not been released because of personnel laws. It states that \u201csenior managers within OFS have been temporarily reassigned or placed on leave while the internal review is completed.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Sources tell me two assistant vice presidents and two directors were placed on leave.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The current review of \u201call university labor and materials transactions\u201d is scheduled to be completed by Friday. Its purpose \u201cis to determine whether there are any similar patterns of control weaknesses within the university,\u201d the action plan states.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The team led by Kelley, which is currently overseeing the review, will give oversight of OFS on Saturday to James McDonough, a former business and finance president who will be paid as a consultant, the action plan states. All business and systems functions in OFS are under the authority of the business office.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The review is scheduled to result in recommendations about a new organizational structure at OFS within six months. Kelley will remain the public spokesperson on the situation throughout.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Charged roofer no longer works for NMSU<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the roofer who was charged last week with larceny and embezzlement, Rene Quezada, \u201cis no longer an employee of NMSU,\u201d Kelley told me. The Las Cruces Sun-News<\/a> reported this morning that Quezada, according to the criminal complaint filed against him in Magistrate Court<\/st1:address><\/st1:street>, admitted using university materials to do repair work at an off-campus home in April.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Quezada was arrested on Aug. 16 but has been released on a $2,000 bond, the Sun-News reported. He has pleaded not guilty, court records<\/a> state.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The district attorney\u2019s office is reviewing the NMSU police investigation to determine whether any other charges are warranted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The audit that led last week to changes at New Mexico State University\u2019s Office of Facilities and Services identified cost overruns totaling more than $628,000 on nine projects, and a university document indicates that all senior managers have been temporarily reassigned or placed on leave while the situation is addressed. I reported last week that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2160\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}