SANTA FE – The New Mexico State Auditor’s Office announced on March 15 that a Public Education Department audit revealed more than 200 shortcomings.

The State Auditor’s office gave PED about a month to come up with an action plan to correct what the Auditor’s office called “weaknesses.”

State Auditor Tim Keller said in a press release the issues his office found were not minor.

“The problems that have been identified are far from technicalities, they are serious shortcomings in our state’s ability to ensure quality education to students across the state,” Keller said.

Auditors uncovered mismanagement of public funds and a lack of background checks at some charter...

Every dollar tied up in red tape is a dollar not circulating in New Mexico’s economy

SANTA FE – The Office of the State Auditor issued best practices regarding New Mexico’s system of funding capital projects.

The Fund Balance Report, released earlier this year, found that New Mexico’s 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.

The OSA developed and released the best practices to help guide policymakers in addressing inefficiencies in the current capital project system.

“New Mexico’s capital project system is mired in...

A sudden overhaul in governance of the state’s largest public medical institution has left several people questioning the motivations behind the changes and its aftermath.

One such skeptic is Mel Eaves, a now-former community member of the board of directors that made recommendations on the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center. HSC operates the university’s medical school, nursing school, two hospitals and the cancer center.

This piece also appears in the March 23 edition of the ABQ Free Press.

To Eaves, the motivation for the overhaul stems from other entities wanting a piece of HSC’s $220 million sitting in reserves, earmarked in part for the construction of a new...

Bill contained $200K for detox purposes

Gov. Susana Martinez has vetoed a bill pertaining to funding the Na’nizhoozhi, Center, Inc. The bill contained $200,000 in funds earmarked for Gallup’s sole institution that teats substance abuse.

“It was a surprise that (Martinez) vetoed the bill,” Sen. George Muñoz said. The bill was one of several sponsored by Muñoz during the 2016 New Mexico Legislative session. “We really needed it.”

The veto came about two weeks after U.S. Congressman Ben Ray Luján held a meeting in which officials from the city of Gallup, McKinley County and the Navajo Nation talked about nailing down a permanent funding pattern for NCI.

At one point...