Pub. 14 2017 Issue 3

O V E R A C E N T U R Y : B U I L D I N G B E T T E R B A N K S - H E L P I N G N E W M E X I C O R E A L I Z E D R E A M S 10 n Tim Eichenberg  continued from page 9 the program has already helped STO increase diversification and reduce interest rate risk. What qualifications do you think are crucial to run the state treasurer’s office? I think the most crucial qualification is that the Treasurer is a person of integrity. Also, the State Treasurer must have the experience, knowledge, and vision to ensure taxpayer investment program safety and retiree fund solvency. As Treasurer, you serve on many boards, including the State Board of Finance, State Investment Coun- cil, and the Mortgage Finance Authority Board to name a few. Tell us about the importance of some of these boards. For the State Board of Finance, theMortgage Finance Author- ity, and the Small Business Investment Corporation, I seek to secure investments in job creation and infrastructure. For the State Investment Council, the Council Members ensure that the asset allocation is correct to meet performance. It’s SIC’s per- formance that guarantees the distribution to the General Fund. For the Public Employees Retirement Association, the Educa- tional Retirement Board, and the Retiree Health Care Authority, we want to continue providing current and future members with the defined benefits that they’ve worked so hard to earn. The Renewable Energy Transmission Authority and the New MexicoEducational Assistance Foundation go to the foundation of NewMexico: better educationand renewable energy for our future. My responsibility as an elected official on all of these boards is to help ensure continuity, cooperation, integrity, and trans- parency. How is the State Treasurer’s Office dealing with the ever-increasing threat of hacking to keep New Mexico’s funds safe? Our office uses multiple levels of redundant and interlocking protection needed in today’s environment of daily (if not hour- ly) attacks on the internet. The State Treasurer’s Office does its best to keep cybercriminals at bay by controlling access both into and out of our networks. These many systems are validat- ed via third-party security auditors. We believe our systems to be secure, but cybersecurity experts give us their independent opinions. What have been your most important accomplish- ments thus far as state treasurer? We’reworking on implementing a TreasuryManagementmod- ule to the state’s accounting program that will improve the State Treasurer’s Office’s ability to track each agency’s interest in the State General Fund Investment Pool. The system will integrate functions that are currently processed in disparate computer programs and spreadsheets. This will improve efficiency of the office andminimize repetitivemanual data entry. It will leverage the state’s existing investment in its financial accounting system, ultimately saving taxpayer money. On amore personal note, the NewMexico Legislature enacted the “Accounts for Persons with Disabilities Act” in 2016. This state version of the federal “Achieving a Better Life Experience” (ABLE) Act allows qualifying people with physical and intellec- tual disabilities to establish tax-free savings accounts to cover expenses—including assistive technology, personal assistance services, housing, and healthcare—without losing their eligi- bility for public assistance. We’re working on the New Mexico program right now and it will be available very soon to help New Mexico families. n