State Auditor Balderas' mettle will be tested in a fight with Maes Modrall.

In one corner we have Paula Maes and the Modrall Law Firm.

In the other, the new State Auditor Hector Balderas.

In dispute; a forensic audit of the entire leadership of the Albuquerque Public Schools.

A recent audit of the APS Financial Division by Meyners & Co;
revealed that the billion dollar a year budget for the public schools has been vulnerable to corruption and incompetence for years.

The audit revealed that the APS Financial Division does not enforce, in fact they do not even have;

"... financially sound policies and procedures."Nor, according to the Meyners Audit; do they keep "adequate records" on the spending of more than a billion tax dollars a year.

Former APS School Board President, Paula Maes, and her husband's law firm; the Modrall, have sworn that they will not allow a forensic audit. Maes is on the record stating that she will not allow APS senior administrators or board members to be individually identified by the results of any audit.

Nor has one been.

She specifically excepted APS Deputy Superintendent Tom Savage from audit scrutiny.

Tom Savage over saw the public corruption and criminal conspiracy in the APS Police Department. He over saw the APS Financial Department for years, while it remained vulnerable to corruption and incompetence.

Paula Maes and the Modrall are committed to continuing to hide the corruption and the corrupt in the leadership of the APS.

Standing in diametric opposition to the interests of Maes Modrall, is State Auditor Hector Balderas.

He is pretty much stakeholders' last hope.

United States Senator Pete Domenici, founding father of
Character Counts, would rather see a mockery made of
the Pillars of Character Counts, than stand in their defense
against Maes and Modrall.

Governor Bill Richardson, will acknowledge APS earned
statewide reputation for their lack of accountability,
but will not audit them.

Mayor Marty Chavez wants to take over the school board because they are so unaccountable. But he will not utter the words; forensic audit. Likely because he would not survive such an audit of his own administration.

The District Attorney Kari Brandenburg has already joined Maes Modrall in the effort to cover up the criminal misconduct in APS' Peanut Butter Gate by failing to act on evidence in her possession.

Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White is part of the cover up of the same scandal. He has yet to offer any candid, forthright and honest explanation, defense, or even acknowledgment of his part in the cover up.

State Attorney General Gary King has been of no help.
His office continues to allow the APS Modrall to play games
with public records.

Veronica Garcia; State Secretary of Education manifest her mettle in the bungled Grade Gate investigation. She failed to ask then APS Superintendent Beth Everitt even one question on the record.

The New Mexico Educator Ethics Bureau, under Paul Calderon is a public service embarrassment.

The Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education cannot
claim a single member who will stand in defense of an audit.
Nor, will they defend their position not to conduct an audit.

APS School Board Members; Marty Esquivel, Mary Lee Martin,
Delores Griego, Gordon Rowe, Berna Facio, and Robert Lucero
can only stonewall on the issue;

the only defense of an indefensible position.

Incoming APS Superintendent Winston Brooks
is inexplicably silent on the issue.
Inexplicable at least, by any explanation except that
he has no intention of auditing APS' good ol' boys into oblivion.

The local media, Thomas J Lang, Kent Walz, Michelle Donaldson, Mary Lynn Roper, and Rhonda Aubrey have a record of investigation and coverage of the issue of a forensic audit of the leadership of the APS;

their record is that they have not said one word.

Not one word on the real possibility of ending public corruption
and incompetence in the leadership of the APS for ever,
with a full scale forensic audit.



Which leaves us with State Auditor Hector Balderas.


Does Balderas have the balls to stand up to Maes and Modrall?


Or will Maes, Modrall, and the media,
put him in his place as well?



State Auditor Hector Balderas responded to the "Open Letter" post;

His response;

Charles,

I do care.

Thank you for your continued concern
about public dollars and resources.

Respectfully,
Hector Balderas

See, he says he cares.


We will find out just how much he cares
in the next few days, I would suppose.