|
 E-mail Story Print Friendly
Opinion editorials Handling of Pit Appeal Calls for a Time-Out |
Front Page 
opinion editorialsThis editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by editorial page staff and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers
.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Foundation's Spending A Lesson to Nonprofits
Nonprofits 101:
Use of public capital funds generally is reserved for "bricks and mortar" construction-related costs, not operational expenses like salaries so staffers can chat up legislators to get more capital funding.
Yet apparently the latter is how the foundation that raises cash for the National Hispanic Cultural Center had been doing business — with the apparent blessing of Richardson Administration officials.
In 2007 and 2008, legislators designated $812,500 in capital outlay funds for a fresco by New Mexico artist Frederico Vigil to be painted in a torreon at the center's entrance. Now the state Department of Cultural Affairs is auditing the project and wants about $380,000 — including $150,000 for salaries over three years — returned because public works money should have been used on the fresco, not administration.
Foundation head Clara Apodaca says she takes full responsibility and admits mistakes were made — then in the same breath deflects blame to the Richardson administration and then-Cultural Affairs chief Stuart Ashman, whose office she says signed off on the expenditures that were paid without question.
"They didn't give me instructions," she says. "It was very poor accounting, actually, on their part."
She adds her staffers were paid to be in Santa Fe to inform legislators about the center and the fresco, not lobby per se. And she "didn't think anybody was ever going to question how this money was being spent, because we completed a very historical exhibit."
The problem is, ends don't justify means and public money needs to be accounted for. The center's questionable spending emphasizes the need for oversight — but all entities that get public money should know the rules that apply to spending taxpayer money.
You also can send comments via our comment form
|
|
