Peer Review - National State Auditors Association

September 15, 1999

Mr. Domingo P. Martinez, CGFM
State Auditor
State of New Mexico, Office of the State Auditor
2113 Warner Circle
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505-5499

Dear Mr. Martinez:

We have reviewed the State of New Mexico, Office of the State Auditor's system of quality control. The purpose of our review was to obtain reasonable assurance of the Office of the State Auditor's compliance with government auditing standards. This review included the audit report issued during the period from January 1, 1998, through December 31, 1998. We conducted our review in accordance with the policies and procedures for external quality control reviews established by the National State Auditors Association (NSAA). Our review included tests of the audit engagement for compliance with the Office of the State Auditor's quality control policies and procedures as deemed necessary in the circumstances.

In performing our review, we considered the general characteristics of a system of quality control as described in the external quality control review guidelines issued by NSAA. Such a system should be appropriately comprehensive and suitably designed in relation to the Office of the State Auditor's organizational structure, its policies, and the nature of its functions. Because individual performance can vary in any state audit organization, adherence to all policies and procedures may not be possible in every case. However, adherence to prescribed policies and procedures is expected in most situations.

In our opinion, the State of New Mexico, Office of the State Auditor's system of quality control for the audit issued during the period from January 1, 1998, through December 31, 1998, was operating effectively and provided reasonable assurance of compliance with generally accepted government auditing standards.

Gary L. McCrary, CPA
Team Leader
National State Auditors Association
External Quality Control Review Team

Ronald Swanson, CPA
Concurring Reviewer
National State Auditors Association
External Quality Control Review Team

Relmond P. Van Daniker, Executive Director for NASACT
2401 Regency Road, Suite 302, Lexington, Kentucky 40503
Telephone (606) 276-1147, Fax (606) 278-0507, email rvnasact@mis.net
and 444 N. Capitol Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001, Telephone (202) 624-5451
Fax (202) 624-5473, email masactdc@sso.org