Latest news with #stateaudit
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
State auditor releases full report on Mesalands Community College
Jul. 14—A state auditor's report into Mesalands Community College in Tucumcari dating back several years found the school's spending at one point put it in danger of shutting down. The report found the college submitted inaccurate fiscal reports and increased salaries for certain high-level staff members, among other examples of financial mismanagement. It also scrutinized the school's contracting process on at least two occasions and that the president had hired family members. The New Mexico Office of the State Auditor intervened in 2023 and plans to assist the college until 2028. The auditor predicts that by next year, the college could be financially stable. However, the auditor's office said the situation at Mesalands could have been caught earlier and pointed the finger at the state's Higher Education Department (NMHED) for not recognizing the issues at the school sooner. "While inaccurate reporting was provided to NMHED over many years, NMHED did not take action or begin to request the necessary corrective measures from the college until November 2022," State Auditor Joseph Maestas said in an interview last week. "This delay in oversight allowed the college to continue operating without the required financial transparency and independent oversight for a significant period." In a letter obtained by the Journal sent to NMHED Secretary Stephanie Rodriguez, Maestas said the "audit determined that the statutory authority of NMHED was significantly undermined" and also that he "strongly urge(s) the implementation of robust review and verification protocols to independently confirm the accuracy of financial reports submitted by higher education institutions across the state." "Who's to blame here? I think it's a draw, and that's the way that this is posed, but our letter to NMHED is we're telling them, 'Hey, this happened on your watch, and you guys really need to double-check the breath and the substance of your oversight of higher education institutions across the state,'" Maestas said. He also thinks it's possible the agency dropped the ball in Silver City, failing to provide adequate oversight to Western New Mexico University, where its former president, Joseph Shepard, was hit with an investigation in 2024 by the auditor's office — and a subsequent lawsuit from the state's ethics commission — for "lavish" spending. NMHED acknowledged the letter Monday and said that it "provided governance and financial oversight for the college to address the concerns." "The New Mexico Higher Education Department fully supports the concerns outlined in the audit and in the letter from the Office of the State Auditor, as we have been collaborating on this effort for some time now," NMHED spokesperson Auriella Ortiz said in a statement. The repot found that the college awarded a contract to a company owned by someone employed by the school, and another contract was awarded to a company owned by the spouse of someone who was a high level employee of the college's, both raising concerns about conflict of interest. Additionally, the report said that then-President Gregg Busch hired his wife and son to positions at the university — raising the question of nepotism — and that he also took multiple trips of "questionable value" to the college. The report also states that at one point, the school's financial health reached the point of "insolvency," and conversations took place about Eastern New Mexico University taking over the community college, which Eastern New Mexico confirmed on Monday. The state auditor said that the sale likely would have happened and would've "sent a chill" in the community had his office and NMHED not gotten involved. "Mesalands offers a very unique kind of careers, I think nursing and renewable energy, they have that niche," Maestas said. "I think that would be thrown into this period of great uncertainty, and it could have had negative economic consequences on the city." The college, which serves just under 1,000 students in the city of roughly 5,000, increased its reserve fund to around $2.1 million by the end of 2024 fiscal year, a sizable improvement, according to David Peña, director of policy for the auditor's office. The college's leadership also feels it's turning a corner. "I feel like we're in a really great position right now where we can actually start expanding the programs that we can offer our community," Mesalands President Allen Moss said in a phone interview on Monday. Moss joined the college in 2022, leaving his job as superintendent of a rural southern Missouri school district to become the director of Mesalands' small business development center and was eventually promoted to interim, then full-time president of the school. While he said he was not surprised by the auditors' report findings and appreciates the office's assistance to the college, he takes issue with the report's tone. "It's difficult not to take those things personally because even though a lot of my staff and I weren't a part of that, you're still talking about the college," Moss said.
CBS News
20-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Keller: Audit finds "mismanagement" in Massachusetts emergency shelter system, no-bid contracts
The opinions expressed below are Jon Keller's, not those of WBZ, CBS News or Paramount Global. The migrant deluge that overwhelmed the state emergency shelter system is mostly over, for now. But the fallout from the way it was handled continues in a scathing 74-page report from State Auditor Diana DiZoglio. No-bid contracts The audit hits the state agency in charge - the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) - for "mismanagement" and "failing to assess" the surging numbers, and bungling oversight of spending on food, transportation and housing costs while handing out no-bid contracts. Some examples highlighted in the audit: The state overpaid a food delivery vendor by almost 10%. A a cab company hired to take migrants to critical appointments billed the state at inflated rates. In Boston, a one-mile cab ride costs around $5. One company charged the state almost $147. "People are concerned about the lack of fairness when it comes to the execution of millions of taxpayer dollars," said DiZoglio in a WBZ-TV interview. "The administration was unable to provide evidence that they had really gone through a process of any kind." Number of families in shelters decreasing In response, EOHLC issued a statement, saying in part: "The Healey-Driscoll administration inherited an unprecedented surge in families due to failed immigration policies and a flawed shelter system not equipped to handle it. Since that time, we have made major changes to make the system safer and protect taxpayers.... Now, the number of families in shelter and the cost to taxpayers is going down, more than 85% of families seeking shelter are now long-time Massachusetts residents, and we just announced that we will be out of hotels this summer, months ahead of schedule." But while Healey and her defenders say the size of the migrant influx came as a surprise to everyone, DiZoglio says they should have known by early 2023 that tighter controls were needed. "EOHLC then waited January, February, March, April, May, June, July, and then only in August decided to consider these options for food and transportation," DiZoglio told WBZ. "Let's make sure that we are not allowing these types of circumstances to repeat themselves." Potential political fallout Predictably, the governor's critics are all over this audit, claiming Healey wasted billions and showed little regard for state procurement laws. This is sure to be an issue in a governor's race that already includes two former officials in the administration of former Gov. Charlie Baker, who was still in office when the migrant crisis began. And tension between Healey and DiZoglio herself shows up in the audit when it questions the administration's concern for taxpayer dollars. The crisis may be dying down, but you'll be hearing about it for some time to come.
