Maverick County Treasurer Rito J. Valdez, III cited for non-compliance of official duties
By: Jose G. Landa, Copyright 2014, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.
Maverick County Treasurer Rito J. Valdez, III, was cited for non-compliance with Texas law regarding his official responsibilities to reconcile the bank accounts of Maverick County by Maverick County Auditor Fidencio C. Ortiz.
According to a June 16, 2014 letter and a Report on Review of Bank Reconciliation Performed by Maverick County Treasurer by County Auditor Fidencio C. Ortiz to County Treasurer Rito J. Valdez, III, a total of 81 Maverick County bank accounts controlled by County Treasurer Rito J. Valdez, III and four bank accounts controlled by an elected official were reviewed for compliance with state law bank reconciliation requirements. The County Auditor’s Office found that 76 of the 81 bank accounts (94%) controlled by County Treasurer Rito J. Valdez, III, “have not been reconciled and are not in compliance with the reconciliation process, one (1) bank account or 1% has been reconciled and is in compliance, and four (4) are not required to be reconciled at this time. As a result of the findings, we believe the bank accounts are not in compliance and do not agree to the financial records of the County.”
The June 16th report states that “the County Auditor’s staff reconciled all bank accounts to County financial records through September 30, 2013. On October 3, 2013, the reconciliation process was turned over to the [County] Treasurer’s department which is charged by state law with reconciling all County bank accounts. The County Treasurer agreed to this time line in order to commence compliance with state law.”
County Treasurer Valdez was nominated by Maverick County Judge David R. Saucedo and approved by Commissioners Court on March 20, 2013 to fill the vacancy of Roberto Ruiz, who was appointed to County Commissioner of Precinct 4 by Judge Saucedo. Valdez registered as a candidate for County Treasurer in November 2013 with the Maverick County Democratic Party and easily won election unopposed to become the Democratic Party’s nominee at the March 4, 2014 Texas Democratic Party Primary Election. Valdez seeks election to a full four year term as Maverick County Treasurer in the November 4, 2014 Texas General Election without any Republican, Independent, or Write-In opponent.
In addition, Valdez is a publicly elected Board of Director of the Maverick County Hospital District where he is Vice-President of the Board. Valdez is subject of a pending Office of the Texas Attorney General Opinion request to determine if he has a conflict of interest serving as both a Maverick County Hospital District Board of Director and Maverick County Treasurer.
The June 16th County Auditor’s report provides that “the County Treasurer, who is the chief custodian of the county’s finance, shall: receive all monies belonging to the county from whatever source; keep and account for all monies in a designated depository; pay and apply or disburse all monies in such a manner as Commissioner’s Court may direct, by law; and all official receipts belonging to the county must be turned over to the county treasurer daily. The county treasurer often acts as the chief liaison between the county and all depository banks. He or she maintains records of all deposits and withdrawals, and reconciles all bank statements, thus assuring their accuracy and the safety of county funds. The county treasurer, who may be designated as the county’s investment officer, is required to submit regular reports on county finance to the members of the commissioner’s court to inspect and verify.”
The County Auditor’s report states that the cause of County Treasurer Valdez’s non-compliance with state law to reconcile bank statements is because the “County Treasurer staff do not have the requisite requirements. No staff member including the [County] Treasurer has an education or experience in basic bookkeeping required for reconciling bank accounts. The time and effort needed to update all accounts has not been put in by staff.”
The June 16th County Auditor’s report recommends that “bank reconciliations for all bank accounts need to be brought current.” The report suggests that the County Treasurer and his staff members “consider taking basic bookkeeping courses to assist them in understanding basic concepts of bookkeeping in order to comply with bank reconciliation procedures and to increase the time and effort to bring all accounts up to date.”
In his June 16th report, County Auditor Fidencio C. Ortiz requests County Treasurer Rito J. Valdez, III, to “communicate to us your corrective action plan on the findings. This communication should be completed within ten (10) days.” As of July 22, 2014, County Treasurer Valdez had not communicated nor submitted a plan of corrective action to Maverick County Auditor Fidencio C. Ortiz regarding the deficiencies cited in the June 16th report.
The June 16th County Auditor’s Report was conducted pursuant to state law which requires the County Auditor to review and inspect the County Treasurer’s compliance with bank reconciliations and agreement with the financial records of Maverick County. The County Auditor’s staff reviewed the County Treasurer’s compliance with state law on May 6, 2014.
