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LAS CRUCES — New Mexico State Auditor Joseph Maestas granted a request from Doña Ana County to extend a special audit, ordered a year ago, by a few more months in order to assess dozens of potential findings.

At their public meeting last week, county commissioners approved a resolution requesting an extension to June 23 to review and respond to 43 potential findings listed in a probe into management conflicts between the sheriff’s office and other county departments.

County Manager Scott Andrews said the requested extension also required amending the purchase order for the outside auditor with a new deadline, but it did not increase the cost.

“This has no monetary impact whatsoever,” Andrews said. “This is just to make sure that we have adequate time to address all these findings.”

Maestas granted the requested extension on Monday, telling the Journal in a statement, “We have issued an approval letter of the time extension today. The special audit remains active, and the approved extension will be incorporated into the revised timeline with the independent public accountant.”

The county’s response to audit findings is included in the final audit report, which will be released to the public after the process is complete. None of the potential findings or details of the report were discussed in open session.

The audit stemmed from ongoing disputes among Sheriff Kim Stewart, human resources and county managers over issues including the promotion, demotion and commissioning of deputies, extending back to Andrews’ predecessor, Fernando Macias.

Maestas ordered a special audit last April after receiving separate requests from Stewart and the county. The purpose of the audit, Maestas stated at the time, was to make an even-handed examination of “controversial commissioning practices for deputies … accusations of governance failures, rampant mismanagement, and deep-seated interdepartmental dysfunction.”

Stewart had threatened to cease commissioning deputies because county HR rules prevented her from stripping commissions from officers under her command as the elected sheriff. The county countered that deputies are public employees protected under its merit-based system and filed a court petition seeking a judge’s intervention. Stewart subsequently commissioned a class of cadets and the petition was dropped. Meanwhile, she welcomed a special audit, provided its scope included the county manager and human resources departments.

Previously, Stewart publicly opposed a return-to-the-office order by Macias in 2021 ending remote work at the county, including for her staff, following the COVID-19 pandemic. She has also faced lawsuits from former deputies and employees complaining of workplace hostility, retaliation and other issues. It is not clear whether the audit will encompass those disputes, as some cases are still pending in state district court. 

Assistant County Manager Stephen Lopez said commissioners would be presented with the audit documents and management’s response in an upcoming closed session.

Final approval of the audit report will come from Maestas, which by law must be released to the public — or sooner, if the audited agencies waive the requirement.

Algernon ��’A������������ is the Journal’s southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com.