Saturday, July 28, 2007

Ethics committee meets in Socorro

Group questions who should elect the state auditor

Evelyn Cronce El Defensor Chieftain Reporter

On March 31, Gov. Bill Richardson reconvened his bipartisan ethics task force to recommend legislation to deal with ethics reform.

The task force was originally formed by the governor last year following the scandal in the State Treasurer's Office. They continue to look at ways to change the laws to prevent such problems in the future.

The current task force met on July 23 at the New Mexico Tech library. Meetings are held around the state to accommodate members and the general public. Rep. Don Tripp is a member of the committee.

At this particular meeting, the task force was debating issues such as how to best maintain the independence of the state auditor to allow the most unbiased investigations and how should jurisdiction be established when an elected official is accused of wrongdoing.

Under the leadership of former Gov. Garrey Carruthers, the committee was addressed by New Mexico State Auditor Hector Balderas and Phillip Baca, who represented the State Attorney General's Office.

One of the questions being addressed by the committee is whether or not the state auditor should continue to be elected by the people or if the auditor should be appointed by the governor, and what, if any, qualifications should be required for the position.

Balderas, who is a lawyer, told the group that he did not believe the auditor needed to be a certified public accountant as staff is made up of several CPAs.

The group discussed the possibilities of requiring the auditor be a certified fraud examiner, or an experience district attorney or attorney, or a certified public accountant.

The members debated whether the auditor should be accountable to the governor by appointment or to the people by elections.

The problem most worrisome to the group seemed to be that of removing a public official from office where there has been a charge of malfeasance or criminal charges. Currently that can only be done by legislative impeachment procedures.

At this time, malfeasance is a misdemeanor charge. The group seemed to be in agreement that it should be changed to at least a fourth-degree felony change.

"I think if you've violated the public trust, they should throw the book at you," said New Mexico State Treasurer James Lewis.

Baca told the group the Attorney General's Office is planning to use prosecutors, forensic specialists and investigators specializing in white-collar crime to combat government corruption. He noted New Mexico is one of the few states that does not provide protection from retaliation for "whistle-blowers."

Suellyn Scarnecchia, dean of the University of New Mexico Law School who is co-chairman of the task force, said there had been a bill passed by the last legislative session offering protection for whistle-blowers that had been vetoed by the governor.

Baca told the committee the legislation proposed by the Attorney General's Office does not include punitive damages to state officials, as did the bill vetoed by the governor.

The attorney general's proposal is still in draft form, according to Baca. The proposal gives the authority to prosecute to the attorney general.

"There would be no district attorneys fighting to take over a case or to avoid being involved in it," Baca said.

There is a currently a five-year statute of limitations on prosecution for malfeasance is counted from the day the crime was allegedly committed. The proposal would change the time to 10 years and would count the time beginning with the first discovery of the crime.

Also, the proposal would make it illegal for someone who sets up the bid process on a project to submit a bid on that project themselves.

Finally, the proposal would prohibit legislators from insider trading or by profiting from inside information.

Tripp asked why the sudden interest in reviewing ethics by many states. Baca said the problems came to light because of Hurricane Katrina. The FBI set up a hotline to allow citizens to lodge complaints of corruption and mismanagement. The hotline was swamped, so the FBI decided to do it nationally.

Baca said the Attorney General's Office is planning to set up a similar hotline.

"We view the ethics committee as receiving and acting on complaints," said Carruthers.

Before adjourning, the task force reviewed follow-up reports on campaign contribution limits, publicly financed campaigns. The committee will continue to hold meetings until the members have agreed what legislative recommendation will be made to the governor and to the Legislature.

ecronce@dchieftain.com

E-mail this story Printer-friendly version