Records: Gov. spent $58,000 from unaudited fund in 2017

Contingency spending will have additional public oversight under future governors after Martinez signed bill this year

Gov. Susana Martinez spent more than $58,268 from a state expense account last year, mostly on food, drinks and events, according to records obtained by The New Mexican.

The state has long provided its chief executive with what is known as a contingency fund — cash deposited in a bank account under the governor’s name, expressly exempt from audit and earmarked vaguely for any expenses associated with her official duties.

Amid mounting scrutiny in recent years, Martinez signed legislation last month that would move the account into the state treasury, ensure it is audited and require the governor submit itemized lists of expenses each month to a legislative committee.

The catch: That law takes effect in 2019, after Martinez has left office.

For now, the public’s oversight of the fund’s use is limited to one-page reports the governor submits quarterly to the Department of Finance and Administration.

Obtained by The New Mexican under the state’s Inspection of Public Records Act, those statements show Martinez spent nearly $33,400 on food and beverages in 2017.

Martinez reported spending about $3,900 on supplies, such as decorations, cleaning products and office materials for the governor’s mansion.

And she reported spending about $3,100 on contract services for events, such as caterers, as well as another $3,368 on what are labeled as subscriptions.

About $14,500 in expenses fell under a miscellaneous category. These could include the costs of entertaining dignitaries, postage and “congratulatory, condolence and gratitude notes and items.”

In all, the governor spent about $477,000 in contingency funds during her first seven years in office. That is an average of about $68,000 a year. The governor also receives a salary of $110,000 and a residence.

The New Mexican’s review of seven years worth of quarterly contingency fund reports indicate the governor’s spending peaked in 2016, when she spent about $116,000.

At the time, unspent money rolled over from year to year. But it appears that the governor began reverting unspent funds back to the state in 2017, after then-Democratic state auditor Tim Keller raised the issue.

A Republican, Martinez has made a point of using the fund more conservatively than her predecessor, Democrat Bill Richardson.

“When Governor Martinez took office, she cut the size of the fund by a significant amount and voluntarily issues spending reports three times more often than what is required by law,” spokesman Mike Lonergan said in an email Friday.

Lonergan said that Richardson received up to $90,000 a year in contingency funds.

Richardson was known for hosting dignitaries and celebrities at the governor’s official residence in the hills north of downtown Santa Fe.

A former U.S. secretary of energy and ambassador to the United Nations, Richardson played host to former Polish President Lech Walesa and stars including Robert Duvall, Kevin Spacey, Ted Nugent and Jessica Simpson.

Lonergan did not provide any specific examples of how Martinez has used the fund when asked, but he said in an email: “We’ve explained the various types of things that the fund is used for — to include dinners and receptions for business leaders, educators, and dignitaries, as well as subscriptions to publications, official state gifts for protocol meetings, and things like cards or flowers to express condolences or congratulations when necessary. The governor also hosts a few receptions each year and occasional staff appreciation events.”

The governor drew particular attention to the fund in late 2015 when she used it to pay for what turned out to be a raucous holiday party that prompted complaints to police. That party was at a hotel in downtown Santa Fe.

Legislators this year approved a bill by Sen. Sander Rue, R-Albuquerque, that will overhaul how the money is doled out and overseen.

An analysis of Rue’s bill by legislative staff raised questions about whether such an account is even needed.

Legislative aides found that the state’s budget has long provided for “contingent expenses.” But historically, these funds were meant to address unforeseen costs.

Setting aside money for urgent, unexpected expenses may have made plenty of sense when New Mexico was still a young state with a Legislature that only met every other year.

But the analysis suggested: “After 100 years of statehood, the state has the experience to understand its needs and appropriate and budget accordingly and not have to use an antiquated idea of a contingent expense for discretionary purposes.”