Jun. 23—Kevin Sourisseau’s career in government centered on the relationship between private interests and public resources.
As a tax man, an auditor and chief financial officer of the city of Albuquerque, Sourisseau witnessed and played a role in taxing and spending the people’s money. It’s not a responsibility that he took lightly. But it is something he’s had a long time to consider.
Sourisseau retired as the city of Albuquerque’s chief financial officer earlier this month. His time at the highest echelons of Tim Keller’s administration had the career government man overseeing a record budget, navigating a revenue slowdown and dealing with an ever-changing city council. He often served as the mayor’s point man for combative inquiries from the city council.
After years of ensuring people paid a fair share and a year of spending it on behalf of the city, Sourisseau said he maintains a belief that the government does not exist to make a profit but to provide support.
“We’re not a corporation. We shouldn’t be making a profit. We should bring in enough money to provide the services that we’re committed to providing and the maintenance of our facilities,” Sourisseau said. “There’s a balance there.”
Sourisseau earned his bachelor’s degree of business administration from the University of New Mexico in 1991 and became a Certified Public Accountant in 2000.
“The story I tell is that food service was too hard,” Sourisseau said. “So I became a CPA.”
He also worked for the New Mexico Auditor’s Office and the state Taxation and Revenue Department.
For the city, Sourisseau also spent two years as the city’s chief operations officer. He also previously held the roles of deputy director in the Department of Municipal Development and associate chief administrative officer.
Sourisseau was appointed CFO in early 2024 to fill the shoes of Sanjay Bhakta, who’d held the role for nearly a decade.
“I may write a book,” Sourisseau said.
His last council meeting as a public servant June 16 featured praise from the city council, including one of the staunchest critics of Keller, Councilor Dan Lewis.
“I’m sure you could’ve spent other time in the private world and made a whole lot more money and maybe had to deal with a whole lot less crazy city council at times,” Lewis said.
Next for Sourisseau is nothing.
Following retirement wisdom from his uncle, Sourisseau said his goal is to start each day with an empty to-do list and finish with half the items completed. But in the same breath, he also said he wants to run more triathlons without having to worry about taking time off from work.
“I’ve met a lot of great people, and we’ve got a lot of great people still doing the work, and I’m very happy for that, and I’m I’m sad to leave them behind,” he said.
For the city, a spokesperson said Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Matthew Whelan will be acting CFO until a a search finds a full time replacement.