DFA can’t approve
city’s
budget
Says
financial
reports are
late
By
Fred Mramor
of the Desert Journal
The
New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) has notified
Truth or Consequences city commissioners that it will not be able to
comply with state law in approving the city’s Fiscal Year 2001/02 budget
because the city has failed to submit its periodic financial reports.
The
city has not submitted its December 2000 and March 2001 quarterly
financial reports, according to DFA’s Gloria Gonzales in her June 27
letter to city officials. The letter states that city staff were contacted
by phone on several occasions and by written correspondence regarding the
problem.
Gonzales
in a March 14 letter to City Manager Sam Isom said the city was in
violation of state law failing to file financial reports for September and
December 2000.
In
a May 4 letter to the city manager, Gonzales said she is unable to take
action on the city’s budget resolutions of February, March and May of
this year because the city had not submitted quarterly reports for periods
ending in December and March.
The
June 27 letter states that, absent an approved interim budget, the city
will not have statutory authority to expend funds or incur liabilities and
that any employee raises or capital purchases in the city’s interim
budget cannot be implemented.
Gonzales’
letter advises city officials that it is critical that the city begins
filing quarterly financial reports.
Gonzales
further advises commissioners to note state statutes regarding the power
of the secretary to suspend officials and take charge of their offices and
statutes regarding the removal of officials for malfeasance.
Sam
Isom in a special meeting Thursday afternoon informed city commissioners
that City Financial Manager Ray Ortiz has completed and filed part of the
requested reports and will be able to submit the rest of the reports today
(Friday).
"Commissioners
in January authorized us to hire another person for the city’s finance
department on the advice of the city’s auditor,” Isom said, but due to
circumstances he didn’t specify, no one was hired and city officials
proceeded to plan the city’s FY 2001/02 budget.
Isom
said the city will advertise soon for the position but that help is needed
immediately as Ortiz has been out sick for three weeks and another Finance
Department employee has been trying to complete the work himself.
To
hire help as quickly as possible, Isom suggested that an accountant Ortiz
knows be hired on an emergency basis, possibly by Monday.
Commissioners
accepted the recommendation on condition that the emergency hire will be
eligible for permanent hire after six months but will not be guaranteed
the job as commissioners will wish to consider other applicants after the
position has been advertised. Starting pay for the Accountant I position
will be $11 an hour.
Though
reluctantly agreeing to the emergency hire, Commissioner Lois Reaver-Black
pointed out that shortly after Ray Ortiz was hired as the city’s finance
director an assistant was hired for him and a second assistant was hired
some time after that.
Reaver-Black
was most upset by DFA’s notices, which, she said, the city has been
getting “for months and months.”
Noting
that commissioners are ultimately responsible for city staff submitting
financial reports in a timely manner, and that commissioners can be
charged with malfeasance, Reaver-Black said, “It scares me, it should
scare all of you.”
Reaver-Black
said outside the meeting she doesn’t recall that the city’s former
financial director had ever submitted financial reports late even with no
assistants.
Sam
Isom two years ago fired former Finacial Director Sharon Roberts for
insubordination and disloyalty.
<<<
>>>
|
