Status of Recommendations

Recommendations Not Fully Implemented After One Year The Omnibus Audit Accountability Act of 2006 January 2022 REPORT 2021‑041 CALIFORNIA STATE AUDITOR 621 Capitol Mall, Suite 1200 | Sacramento | CA | 95814 916.445.0255 | TTY 916.445.0033 For complaints of state employee misconduct, contact us through the Whistleblower Hotline: 1.800.952.5665 Don’t want to miss any of our reports? Subscribe to our email list at auditor.ca.gov For questions regarding the contents of this report, please contact our Public Affairs Office at 916.445.0255 This report is also available online at www.auditor.ca.gov | Alternate format reports available upon request | Permission is granted to reproduce reports Michael S. Tilden Acting State Auditor January 11, 2022 2021‑041 The Governor of California President pro Tempore of the Senate Speaker of the Assembly State Capitol Sacramento, California 95814 Dear Governor and Legislative Leaders: Consistent with the Omnibus Audit Accountability Act of 2006 (California Government Code, sections 8548.7 and 8548.9), the California State Auditor (State Auditor) presents this special report to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, Joint Legislative Budget Committee, and Department of Finance. This report notes that from November 2014 through October 2020, our office issued 208 reports on audits and investigations of state agencies. Those reports included 1,623 recommendations, and state agencies had fully implemented 1,336, or 82 percent of them, as of November 2021. However, we identified 287 recommendations not completely addressed that were more than one year old. Similarly, we issued 83 reports to nonstate entities, such as counties or school districts. Those reports included 823 recommendations and as of November 2021, the nonstate entities had implemented 647, or 79 percent of them. In addition to identifying which recommendations have and have not been fully implemented, the State Auditor’s website contains written responses from each state agency explaining the status of each recommendation. For recommendations that have not been fully implemented, the website also provides agency responses regarding when or if these recommendations will be fully implemented. Our audit and investigative efforts bring the greatest return when agencies act upon the findings and recommendations. For example, in November 2018, our office released an audit concerning the California High‑Speed Rail Authority’s (Authority) contracting and cost control practices. During the audit, we found that in nine planning, engineering, and consulting contracts we reviewed, few contract managers could provide evidence of reviewing each monthly invoice for accuracy, none maintained tracking logs of deliverables, and most were unable to demonstrate how they ensured the quantity and quality of the work for which the Authority paid. As of November 2021, the Authority fully implemented 15 of 17 recommendations designed to reduce the risk of additional cost increases. By implementing the recommendations, the Authority can demonstrate the funds spent on its contracts are necessary and appropriate while also reducing the risk of incurring unnecessary costs. If you would like more information about any of the background or recommendations in this report, please contact our Public Affairs Office, at (916) 445‑0255. Respectfully submitted, MICHAEL S. TILDEN, CPA Acting California State Auditor 621 Capitol Mall, Suite 1200 | Sacramento, CA 95814 | 916.445.0255 | 916.327.0019 fax | www.auditor.ca.gov Blank page inserted for reproduction purposes only. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 v January 2022 Contents Introduction 1 Table 1 Recommendations Made to State Entities That Are More Than Five Years Old and Are Still Not Fully Implemented 5 Table 2 Recommendations Made to State Entities That Are More Than One Year Old and Are Still Not Fully Implemented 11 Table 3 Recommendations Made to Nonstate Entities That Are More Than One Year Old and Are Still Not Fully Implemented 59 vi California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 Blank page inserted for reproduction purposes only. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 1 January 2022 INTRODUCTION As required by the Omnibus Audit Accountability Act of 2006 (Accountability Act), the California State Auditor (State Auditor) presents our report on the status of recommendations that are more than one year old and have not been fully implemented by the audited entities. The Accountability Act requires state agencies audited or investigated by our office to provide updates on their implementation of audit recommendations. In September 2021, we provided our annual reminder to relevant state agencies about such recommendations that we issued more than a year ago and that they had not yet fully implemented. Subsequently, we reviewed agencies’ responses and corresponding evidence. The following report of the status of these recommendations is current as of November 2021. Throughout the year, our website at www.auditor.ca.gov contains the most up‑to‑date information on the status of all audit recommendations. RESULTS IN BRIEF State Entities From November 2014 through October 2020, the State Auditor issued 208 reports that related to audits or investigations of state agencies. These reports were requested through the Joint Legislative Audit Committee or legislation, were initiated by the State Auditor through the state high‑risk program, or came about as the result of an investigation.1 The State Auditor made 1,623 recommendations to the audited state agencies in those reports, of which 1,336 have been fully implemented. However, the State Auditor identified 287 recommendations made to 46 agencies that had been outstanding at least one year and remain not fully implemented as of November 2021.2 Nonstate Entities From November 2014 through October 2020, the state auditor issued 83 reports that included nonstate entities, and made 823 recommendations to these entities. As of November 2021, the State Auditor identified 176 recommendations issued to 51 nonstate entities that are more than one year old and not fully implemented. Importance of Implementing Recommendations The State Auditor’s audit and investigative efforts bring the greatest return when agencies act upon the findings and recommendations. For example, in November 2018, the State Auditor released an audit report concerning the California High‑Speed Rail Authority’s (Authority) contracting and cost control practices. In nine planning, engineering, and consulting contracts the State Auditor reviewed, we found few contract managers could provide evidence of reviewing each monthly invoice for accuracy, none maintained tracking logs of deliverables, and most were unable to demonstrate how they ensured the quantity and quality of the work for which the Authority paid. 1 The statewide single audit (financial and federal compliance audits) is mandated as a condition of California receiving federal funding. The State Auditor follows up on recommendations made in those audits each year in the State Auditor’s annual report on California’s Internal Control and State and Federal Compliance. As of January 1, 2010, the State Auditor began reporting as required on the status of recommendations made in investigative reports. The State Auditor initiated the investigations in response to whistleblower complaints or other information suggesting improper governmental activities. 2 Excludes recommendations for legislative changes. Those recommendations are included in a separate report to the Legislature. 2 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 The audit also found that the costs to date have been significantly greater than originally projected because the Authority moved forward before it completed many critical tasks such as purchasing land, planning how to relocate utility systems, or obtaining agreements with external stakeholders. To address these and other issues found during the audit, the audit made several recommendations that, if implemented, would improve the Authority’s contracting and cost control practices. In response to our recommendations, the Authority has taken a number of steps including completing an assessment of its active contracts by evaluating its contract managers’ compliance with contract management procedures and reporting, by tracking and resolving all non‑compliance issues, and by indicating it will continue this evaluation going forward. In addition, the Authority revised its contract invoicing and payment policies and procedures to require its contract managers to provide backup documentation to validate the work performed to ensure invoiced costs are allowable under contract terms. As of November 2021, the Authority fully implemented 15 of 17 recommendations made by the State Auditor. By implementing the recommendations, the Authority can demonstrate the funds spent on its contracts are necessary and appropriate while also reducing the risk of incurring unnecessary costs. In September 2021, the State Auditor mailed notices to audited and investigated entities regarding recommendations more than a year old and not fully implemented, corresponding to reports issued from November 2014 through October 2020. The tables beginning on page 5 summarize and provide information on these recommendations. Table 1 shows recommendations more than five years old, issued to state entities between November 2014 and October 2015, which have not been fully implemented as of the agencies’ latest response. Because the recommendations shown in Table 1 are more than five years old, the State Auditor will not reassess them in subsequent reports. Table 2, beginning on page 11, summarizes recommendations that have not been fully implemented for audits and investigations pertaining to state entities and issued between November 2015 and October 2020. As indicated on Table 2, the State Auditor did not always agree with agency assertions that certain recommendations were fully implemented. Two columns in Table 2 provide the State Auditor’s reason for disagreement. Table 3, beginning on page 59, summarizes recommendations more than one year old made to nonstate entities and their current implementation status. The symbol appears in the tables next to the audit number whenever an audit has recommendations to more than one agency appearing in this report. Please refer to the index on page 3. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 3 January 2022 Index Reference for Reports Featuring Recommendations to Multiple Entities REPORT ENTITIES WITH RECOMMENDATIONS State Entities With Recommendations—Included in Tables 1 or 2 A 2014‑116 California Department of Technology, Department of Consumer Affairs B 2016‑126 California Department of Justice, California Department of Social Services C 2016‑130 University of California, University of California, Board of Regents D 2017‑109 California Department of Public Health, Department of Health Care Services, Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development E 2017‑117 Department of Health Care Services, Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission F 2018‑113 California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, California Prison Industry Authority, California Rehabilitation Oversight Board G 2018‑132 California Department of Justice, California Gambling Control Commission H 2019‑105 California Department of Public Health, Department of Health Care Services I I2018‑1 California Correctional Health Care Services, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation J I2020‑2 California Department of Education, Department of State Hospitals Nonstate Entities With Recommendations—Included in Table 3 K 2015‑115 County of Alameda, County of Santa Clara L 2015‑134 City of Novato, City of Pasadena M 2016‑141 Acton‑Agua Dulce Unified School District, Antelope Valley Union High School District, New Jerusalem Elementary School District N 2017‑032 Bakersfield College, Peralta Community College District O 2017‑101 Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Sacramento County Sheriff's Department, San Diego County Sheriff's Department P 2017‑104 Los Angeles County Office of Education, Los Angeles Regional Adult Education Consortium, Montebello Unified School District Q 2019‑108 Sacramento City Unified School District, Sacramento County Office of Education R 2019‑118 Fresno Police Department, Los Angeles Police Department, Marin County Sheriff's Department, Sacramento County Sheriff's Department S 2019‑119 Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, San Francisco Department of Public Health State and Nonstate Entities With Recommendations—Included in Tables 2 and 3 T 2015‑112 California Department of Education, Long Beach Unified School District U 2017‑102 Cerritos College, Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, Foothill‑De Anza Community College District, Los Rios Community College District V 2017‑118 Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board, State Water Resources Control Board W 2018‑106 Alameda County Sheriff's Office, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation X 2019‑103 Butte County, California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, County of Sonoma, County of Ventura Y 2019‑104 California Department of Education, San Bernardino City Unified School District Z 2019‑116 Board of State and Community Corrections, Kern County Probation, Los Angeles County Probation Department California Department of Education, California Department of Public Health, Charter Academy of the Redwoods, Heartland Charter School, AA 2019‑125 Kern High School District, San Francisco Unified School District, Ukiah Unified School District Additional information on each recommendation is available at the State Auditor’s website. The website includes each agency’s response to the current status of outstanding recommendations. The website also includes the audit or investigative report and summary, the text of the recommendation, and the State Auditor’s assessment of whether the agency has fully implemented the recommendation, based on the agency’s response, supporting documentation, and inquiries. 4 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 Blank page inserted for reproduction purposes only. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 5 January 2022 Table 1 Recommendations Made to State Entities That Are More Than Five Years Old and Are Still Not Fully Implemented (Reports Issued From November 2014 Through October 2015) NUMBER OF YEARS ESTIMATED REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN COMPLETION THIS REPORT BUSINESS, CONSUMER SERVICES, HOUSING Department of Consumer Affairs California Department of 17. To the extent that Consumer Affairs chooses to implement BreEZe at the 6 July Consumer Affairs’ BreEZe phase 3 regulatory entities, it should first complete a formal cost‑benefit 2025 System: Inadequate Planning and analysis to ensure that BreEZe is a cost‑effective solution to meet these Oversight Led to Implementation regulatory entities’ business needs. To make certain this analysis is at Far Fewer Regulatory Entities at complete, it should include an assessment of the potential changes these a Significantly Higher Cost regulatory entities may require to be made of the BreEZe system and the associated costs. Consumer Affairs should complete the cost‑benefit 2014‑116 analysis before investing any more resources into the implementation (February 2015) of BreEZe at the phase 3 regulatory entities, and it should update this analysis periodically as significant assumptions change. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery California Department 2. To ensure it can demonstrate that its fraud prevention efforts are 6 December of Resources Recycling maximizing financial recoveries for the beverage program, CalRecycle 2022 and Recovery: should both modify and annually update its fraud management plan to The Beverage Container include the following: Recycling Program Continues • By December 31, 2014, formally establish a systematic process for to Face Deficits and Requires analyzing, monitoring, and responding to the risk of fraudulent Changes to Become recycling of out‑of‑state beverage containers. Financially Sustainable • Develop fraud estimates—by type of fraudulent activity—that 2014‑110 quantify the potential financial losses to the beverage program and (November 2014) the methodology CalRecycle used to develop these estimates. • Identify the amount of actual fraud in the prior year by type of fraudulent activity, such as the financial losses resulting from the redemption of out‑of‑state beverage containers or the falsification of reports used to substantiate program payments. • Identify the amount actually recovered for the beverage program in the form of cash for restitution and penalties resulting from fraud. 3. To allow for public input and to prevent any legal challenges claiming 6 December that its policies and procedures regarding prepayment holds constitute 2024 unenforceable underground regulations, CalRecycle should adopt these policies and procedures as regulations in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act. GENERAL GOVERNMENT California Public Utilities Commission California Public 3. To ensure that policy makers, enforcement officials, and the general 6 † Utilities Commission: public have access to accurate consumer complaint data in CIMS, the It Needs to Improve the Quality branch should continue to implement its quality management team of Its Consumer Complaint program component focused on reviewing the categorization of Data and the Controls Over Its complaints and correcting identified errors. Information Systems 4. To ensure that policy makers, enforcement officials, and the general 6 † 2014‑120 public have access to accurate consumer complaint data in CIMS, the (April 2015) branch should develop and implement tools by September 30, 2015, to measure the quality management team program’s effectiveness. continued on next page . . . 6 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 NUMBER OF YEARS ESTIMATED REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN COMPLETION THIS REPORT 11. The commission should ensure that it complies with all policy 6 December requirements in SAM Chapter 5300 no later than April 2016. 2022 16. The commission should revise its existing recovery plan to include a list 6 December of applications supporting critical business functions, their maximum 2022 acceptable outage time frames, and detailed recovery strategies for each application. 17. The commission should revise its existing recovery plan to include 6 December detailed procedures for rebuilding its technology infrastructure at an 2022 alternate processing site. 18. The commission should conduct regular tests and exercises to assess 6 December the sufficiency of the revised recovery plan and refine the plan 2022 when necessary. GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS California Department of Technology California Department of 14. To ensure that IT projects have the oversight needed to better position 6 † Consumer Affairs’ BreEZe them for success, CalTech should develop thresholds relating to IT A System: Inadequate Planning and project cost increases and schedule delays to inform and better justify Oversight Led to Implementation its decision to allow an IT project to continue. If a department’s IT at Far Fewer Regulatory Entities at project reaches or exceeds these thresholds, CalTech should require a Significantly Higher Cost the department to conduct a cost‑benefit analysis for the project and include this analysis in an SPR. CalTech should consider the results of 2014‑116 this analysis in its decision to approve or deny the SPR and, if warranted, (February 2015) take action to suspend or terminate the project so that it does not allow projects with significant problems to continue without correction. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES California Department of Public Health California Department of 2. To increase its efforts to prevent and control diabetes, Public Health 6 Will Not Public Health: should develop a process for identifying and applying for federal Implement Even With a Recent Increase in funding opportunities, including routinely and proactively searching Federal Funding, Its Efforts to for grants. In addition, Public Health should seek funding for a grants Prevent Diabetes Are Focused on specialist position to identify and apply for federal and other grants. a Limited Number of Counties 2014‑113 (January 2015) Follow‑Up—California 8. To ensure it can provide effective oversight of labs as state law requires, 6 Winter Department of Public Health: Laboratory Services should address staffing issues by preparing and 2022 Laboratory Field Services Is resubmitting to Public Health a recruitment and retention proposal, Unable to Oversee Clinical developing a succession plan, and taking necessary steps to implement Laboratories Effectively, but a its planned reorganization. Feasible Alternative Exists 9. To ensure it can provide effective oversight of labs as state law requires, 6 Winter 2015‑507 Laboratory Services should ensure that its information technology data 2022 (September 2015) systems have necessary safeguards, contain accurate and complete data, and support its program needs. 10. To ensure it can provide effective oversight of labs as state law requires, 6 Winter Laboratory Services should update and develop its regulations as 2022 necessary to ensure consistency with existing state law. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 7 January 2022 NUMBER OF YEARS ESTIMATED REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN COMPLETION THIS REPORT California Department of Social Services Follow‑Up—California 4. To ensure that counties’ use of foster family agency placements 6 Will Not Department of Social Services: is justified, Social Services should take action to implement the Implement Although Making Progress, It recommendation we previously made in our 2011 audit. Specifically, Could Do More to Ensure the Social Services should require counties to give licensed foster homes a Protection and Appropriate higher priority than foster family agencies for children that do not have Placement of Foster Children identified treatment needs. 2015‑502 5. To ensure that counties’ use of foster family agency placements 6 Will Not (July 2015) is justified, Social Services should take action to implement the Implement recommendation we previously made in our 2011 audit. Specifically, Social Services should require counties to prepare a detailed justification for any child placed with a foster family agency. Follow‑Up—California 5. To make certain that counties receive the greatest benefit from the 6 † Department of Social Services: resources they spend on antifraud efforts related to CalWORKs and It Has Not Corrected Previously CalFresh cases, Social Services should, using the results from the Recognized Deficiencies in Its recommended cost‑effectiveness analysis, determine why some Oversight of Counties’ Antifraud counties’ efforts to combat welfare fraud are more cost‑effective Efforts for the CalWORKs and than others. CalFresh Programs 6. To make certain that counties receive the greatest benefit from the 6 † 2015‑503 resources they spend on antifraud efforts related to CalWORKs and (June 2015) CalFresh cases, Social Services should seek to replicate the most cost‑effective practices among all counties. Social Services should work with its legal counsel to determine whether to withhold information about these practices from public disclosure. 7. Social Services should track counties’ prosecution thresholds for welfare 6 Will Not fraud cases and determine whether they affect counties’ decisions to Implement investigate potential fraud, with a focus on determining best practices and cost‑effective thresholds. If Social Services’ analysis determines that varying prosecution thresholds do affect counties’ decisions, it should then work with counties to implement the consistent use of these cost‑effective prosecution thresholds. 9. To make certain that counties receive the greatest benefit from the 6 † resources they spend on antifraud efforts related to CalWORKs and CalFresh cases, Social Services should address and promptly act on the four remaining recommendations that its steering committee provided in 2008. 12. To make counties’ review of match lists more efficient, Social Services 6 † should revive its efforts to work with the state and federal agencies that prepare the match lists to address the counties’ concerns about match list formats, content, and criteria. Department of Developmental Services California Department of 2. To ensure timelier fee assessments, Developmental Services should 6 Will Not Developmental Services: hold regional centers accountable for providing the monthly placement Implement Its Process for Assessing Fees Paid reports and copies of information letters required by state regulations. by Parents of Children Living in To encourage compliance, Developmental Services should specify in Residential Facilities Is Woefully its regional center contracts that noncompliant regional centers will Inefficient and Inconsistent pay financial penalties equal to the amount of revenue lost because of their inaction. 2014‑118 (January 2015) continued on next page . . . 8 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 NUMBER OF YEARS ESTIMATED REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN COMPLETION THIS REPORT Department of Health Care Services California Department of 6. If Health Care Services finds significant errors in a health plan’s provider 6 December Health Care Services: directory, it should work with that health plan to identify reasons for 2022 Improved Monitoring of Medi‑Cal the inaccuracies and require the health plan to develop processes to Managed Care Health Plans eliminate the inaccuracies. Is Necessary to Better Ensure Access to Care 2014‑134 (June 2015) California Department of 1. To ensure that it provides claiming units with reasonable opportunities 6 Will Not Health Care Services: to address concerns with its decisions or actions, Health Care Services Implement It Should Improve Its should, within three months, begin preparing regulations to establish Administration and Oversight of and implement a formal appeals process that allows claiming units to School‑Based Medi‑Cal Programs directly appeal Health Care Services’ decisions. 2014‑130 2. To ensure that it provides claiming units with reasonable opportunities 6 Will Not (August 2015) to address concerns with its decisions or actions, Health Care Services Implement should, within three months, inform all stakeholders, including claiming units, of the existence of this appeals process. 4. Until the Legislature implements our recommendation in Chapter 2, 6 Will Not Health Care Services should immediately resolve weaknesses in its Implement oversight of local educational consortia and local governmental agencies to ensure that these entities sufficiently meet their responsibilities under the administrative activities program and meet the terms of their contracts with Health Care Services. Health Care Services should complete the oversight reviews for at least three high‑risk local educational consortia or local governmental agencies by December 31, 2015, and post the results to its website. 5. Until the Legislature implements our recommendation in Chapter 2, 6 Will Not Health Care Services should immediately resolve weaknesses in its Implement oversight of local educational consortia and local governmental agencies to ensure that these entities sufficiently meet their responsibilities under the administrative activities program and meet the terms of their contracts with Health Care Services. Health Care Services should complete the oversight reviews for any remaining high‑risk local educational consortia or local governmental agencies by June 30, 2016, and post the results to its website. 10. To streamline the organizational structure of its administrative activities 6 July program and to improve the program’s cost‑effectiveness, Health 2023 Care Services should implement a single statewide quarterly random moment time survey and develop and implement a plan to take over responsibility for conducting quarterly time surveys and performing related activities as soon as reasonably possible. 11. To streamline the organizational structure of its administrative activities 6 July program and to improve the program's cost‑effectiveness, Health Care 2025 Services should implement a single statewide quarterly random moment time survey and develop and issue a request for proposals to identify a responsible vendor to assist in implementing a statewide quarterly random moment time survey. 12. To streamline the organizational structure of its administrative activities 6 July program and to improve the program's cost‑effectiveness, Health Care 2022 Services should implement a single statewide quarterly random moment time survey and draft revisions to regulations as appropriate and to applicable documents, including the manual, oversight strategies and plans, and policy and procedure letters. 13. To the extent that local educational consortia and local governmental 6 Will Not agencies are no longer involved in the administrative activities program, Implement Health Care Services should develop and issue a standard contract for claiming units to sign to participate in the program. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 9 January 2022 NUMBER OF YEARS ESTIMATED REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN COMPLETION THIS REPORT 17. To better maximize federal reimbursements for the administrative 6 Will Not activities program, Health Care Services should, within six months, Implement develop and implement a method to oversee and track the outreach efforts that local educational consortia and local governmental agencies use for ensuring that nonparticipating claiming units understand the benefits and consider participating in the administrative activities program. 21. To provide the public with the ability to participate fully in developing 6 December the rules governing the administrative activities program, Health Care 2022 Services should, in accordance with California's Administrative Procedure Act (APA), immediately develop and adopt the regulations cited in the four subdivisions of Section 14132.47 of the California Welfare and Institutions Code. California Department of 20. To make certain that it meets the requirements of the new state law 6 Will Not Health Care Services: and that its performance measures are accurate, Health Care Services Implement Weaknesses in Its Medi‑Cal should establish the provider‑to‑beneficiary ratio statewide and Dental Program Limit Children’s by county as performance measures designed to evaluate access Access to Dental Care and availability of dental services and include this measure in its October 2015 report to the Legislature. 2013‑125 (December 2014) 23. To ensure that Health Care Services and its fiscal intermediaries 6 August reimburse providers only for services rendered to eligible beneficiaries, 2022 Health Care Services should obtain Social Security's Death Master File and update monthly its beneficiary eligibility system with death information. HIGHER EDUCATION University of California, Davis University of California, Davis: 4. UC Davis should collect all late fees that its licensees owe. 6 Will Not It Has Not Identified Future Implement Financing for the Strawberry Breeding Program nor Collected All Available Revenues 2014‑121 (June 2015) LEGISLATIVE, JUDICIAL, AND EXECUTIVE California Health Facilities Financing Authority Children’s Hospital Program: 1. The authority should amend its regulations to bring them into accord 6 Will Not The California Health Facilities with the 2004 act, thus allowing any eligible hospital to apply for the Implement Financing Authority Has 2004 act’s funds that remained as of June 30, 2014. Generally Complied With Laws and Regulations and Resolved Its Issue Related to High Fund Balances 2015‑042 (September 2015) continued on next page . . . 10 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 NUMBER OF YEARS ESTIMATED REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN COMPLETION THIS REPORT Judicial Council of California‡ Judicial Branch of California: 1. To ensure that the compensation the AOC provides is reasonable, 6 Will Not Because of Questionable Fiscal the Judicial Council should adopt procedures that require a regular Implement and Operational Decisions, and thorough review of the AOC's compensation practices including the Judicial Council and the an analysis of the job duties of each position to ensure that the Administrative Office of the Courts compensation aligns with the requirements of the position. This review Have Not Maximized the Funds should include comparable executive branch salaries, along with a Available for the Courts justification when an AOC position is compensated at a higher level than a comparable executive branch position. 2014‑107 (January 2015) 3. To ensure that its compensation structure is reasonable, the AOC 6 Will Not should mirror the executive branch's practices for offering leave Implement buyback programs in terms of frequency and amount. 4. To increase its efficiency and decrease its travel expenses, the AOC 6 Will Not should require its directors and managers to work in the same locations Implement as the majority of their staff unless business needs clearly require the staff to work in different locations than their managers. 11. To reduce its expenses, the AOC should cease its excessive 6 Will Not reimbursements for meals by adopting the executive branch's meal and Implement travel reimbursement policies. 14. To ensure that it spends funds appropriately, the AOC should develop 6 Will Not and implement controls to govern how its staff can spend judicial Implement branch funds. These controls should include specific definitions of local assistance and support expenditures, written fiscal policies and procedures as the rules of court require, and a review process. 19. The AOC should conduct a comprehensive survey of the courts on a 6 Will Not regular schedule—at least every five years—to ensure that the services Implement it provides align with their responses. The AOC should re‑evaluate any services that the courts identify as being of limited value or need. 20. To justify its budget and staffing levels, the AOC should conduct the 6 Will Not steps in CalHR's workforce planning model in the appropriate order. Implement It should begin by establishing its mission and creating a strategic plan based on the needs of the courts. It should then determine the services it should provide to achieve the goals of that plan. The AOC should base its future staffing changes on the foundation CalHR's workforce planning model provides. Finally, the AOC should develop and use performance measures to evaluate the effectiveness of this effort. 21. To ensure that it provides services to the trial courts as efficiently 6 Will Not as possible, the Judicial Council should explore implementing a Implement fee‑for‑service model for selected services. These services could include those that are little used or of lesser value to the trial courts, as identified in our survey that we discuss in Chapter 3. 22. To justify the budget and staff level of the AOC, the Judicial Council 6 Will Not should implement some or all of the best practices we identified to Implement improve the transparency of AOC spending activities. † Contrary to the State Auditor’s determination, the audited agency believes it has fully implemented the recommendation. ‡ In July 2014, the Judicial Council of California retired the use of Administrative Office of the Courts to refer to the Judicial Council’s staff. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 11 January 2022 Table 2 Recommendations Made to State Entities That Are More Than One Year Old and Are Still Not Fully Implemented (Reports Issued From November 2015 Through October 2020) STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION BUSINESS, CONSUMER SERVICES, HOUSING Board of Registered Nursing Board of 5. To ensure that BRN is using up‑to‑date, 1 December Registered Nursing: accurate, and objective information to inform 2022 It Has Failed to Use the governing board's enrollment decisions Sufficient Information and to assess clinical capacity for student When Considering placements, by April 1, 2021, BRN should do Enrollment Decisions the following: revise its regulations to require for New and Existing nursing programs to report any changes Nursing Programs they make to their use of clinical facilities within 90 days of making a change and report 2019‑120 annually if the program has made no changes. (July 2020) 6. To ensure that BRN is using up‑to‑date, 1 October accurate, and objective information to inform 2022 the governing board's enrollment decisions and to assess clinical capacity for student placements, by April 1, 2021, BRN should do the following: compile and aggregate the information from the facility approval forms into a database and take reasonable steps to ensure that the information is accurate and current. 7. To ensure that BRN is using up‑to‑date, 1 October accurate, and objective information to inform 2022 the governing board's enrollment decisions and to assess clinical capacity for student placements, by April 1, 2021, BRN should do the following: annually publish clinical capacity information on its website for public use. 9. To identify additional facilities that 1 October might offer clinical placement slots, by 2022 October 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, BRN should compare its nursing program database with OSHPD's list of health care facilities. BRN should share the results of its comparison with nursing programs by publishing this information on its website. Board of 7. To ensure that BRN resolves complaints 4 †  Registered Nursing: regarding nurses in a timely manner, by Significant Delays and March 1, 2017, it should establish a plan to Inadequate Oversight eliminate its backlog of complaints awaiting of the Complaint assignment to an investigator. Resolution Process Have 10. To increase its pool of expert witnesses, 4 Will Not Allowed Some Nurses by June 2017, BRN should take the steps Implement Who May Pose a Risk necessary to increase the hourly wage it pays to Patient Safety to expert witnesses. Continue Practicing 2016‑046 (December 2016) continued on next page . . . 12 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Department of Housing and Community Development California Department 14. To ensure that it maximizes the benefit of the 3 June of Housing and funds it has invested in CAPES's development 2022 Community and to support its ongoing efforts to Development: improve CAPES's usability, HCD should, by Its Oversight of January 1, 2019, develop a documented Housing Bond Funds process to ensure that all data in CAPES are Remains Inconsistent accurate and complete. This process should include all phases of contract management, 2018‑037 including monitoring. HCD should implement (September 2018) a routine periodic review of this process and update the process as necessary. 16. To ensure that it is able to meet its 3 June administrative monitoring obligations 2022 and that it uses housing bond funds in compliance with state law, regulations, and program guidelines, HCD should develop a long‑term plan by January 1, 2019, for how it will avoid exceeding the administrative cost limits of those programs in the most immediate danger of overage and for how it will address instances when it has exceeded administrative cost limits. The plan should identify the programs at risk of exceeding the limit; the actions HCD will take for each program to gain efficiencies; its plan for moving staff between programs; a request for more money or legislative changes such as modifying the statutory limit on administrative spending, if necessary; and an evaluation of the consequences of not fulfilling its monitoring obligations. 18. To ensure that it complies with state law, 3 June prudently uses administrative funding, and 2022 promotes transparency, HCD should calculate and retain only funds equal to its actual administrative costs in instances when it does not disburse awarded funds to a recipient and subsequently grants the funds to another recipient. 19. To ensure that it does not exceed 3 June administrative cost restrictions and that it 2022 maximizes the funds intended to address target populations' housing needs, HCD should estimate when it will run out of administrative funds for any specific program, document its projection methodology, and provide underlying data and support for its estimates. The projections should include, but not be limited to, actual staff time spent on the program, the number of awards being monitored, and the length of monitoring. Staff should provide these projections and methodologies to management for review and approval by December 1, 2018, and then at least biannually thereafter. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 13 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Mobile Home 20. To ensure that it is aware of any potential 1 †   Park Inspections: conflicts of interest that its inspectors may The Department have, HCD should by September 2020 of Housing and develop procedures to review the annual and Community assuming‑position Form 700s of all inspectors Development Must with reportable financial interests to identify Improve Its Inspection potential conflicts of interest. Processes to Better 21. To ensure that it is aware of any potential 1 †   Protect Park Residents conflicts of interest that its inspectors may 2019‑111 have, HCD should by September 2020 develop (July 2020) procedures to ensure that staff promptly notify the Form 700 filing officer of all inspectors hired or leaving HCD employment. 22. To ensure that it is aware of any potential 1 September conflicts of interest that inspectors may 2021# have involving real property, HCD should by January 2021 amend its conflict‑of‑interest code to require inspectors to disclose financial interests in real property. 26. To ensure that HCD evaluates LEA oversight 1 †   of mobile home parks effectively, by January 2021 HCD should continue its efforts to finalize its policies and procedures for evaluating LEAs and ensure that staff members follow its procedures for handling complaints it forwards to those LEAs. CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION California Correctional Health Care Services Investigations of 14. Ensure that scheduling staff use the 3 April Improper Activities appropriate post codes in the scheduling 2022 I by State Agencies software for all nursing staff so their time is and Employees: accurately reported. Misuse of State Time, 15. Ensure that all other nursing staff assignments 3 April Economically Wasteful to ad hoc posts are appropriate, and require 2022 Activities, and Misuse of schedulers to enter a note in the scheduling State Property software indicating an employee’s duties I2018‑1 while in a general ad hoc post. (July 2018)‡ California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation California Department 1. To increase public safety and reduce 1 April of Corrections and the likelihood of recidivism, Corrections 2022 Rehabilitation: should establish a separate category in It Has Poorly the appropriate data system to track the Administered the individuals who would have qualified for the Integrated Services for integrated services program. It should also Mentally Ill Parolees ensure that staff in the institutions, including Program, and With mental health clinicians and staff involved in Current Funding Cuts, prerelease planning, coordinate with parole to It Must Find Ways to assign these individuals to parole agents with Transition Parolees to specialized caseloads who have the training County Services and experience to serve this population. Corrections should focus its efforts on at 2020‑103 least the eight counties that are losing the (August 2020) integrated services program and complete the steps noted in this recommendation by February 2021. continued on next page . . . 14 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 2. To increase public safety and reduce the 1 December likelihood of recidivism, Corrections should 2021 continue to meet with the appropriate staff in the behavioral health departments of the eight counties where the integrated services program currently operates to facilitate coordination among Corrections' staff, the providers, and the counties. The coordination should focus on smoothly transitioning current program participants to the county services they need and on developing processes for future parolees with mental illness and issues with homelessness who will transition to county services. Corrections should begin holding these meetings by October 2020 and continue them until all necessary processes are in place. 3. To increase public safety and reduce the 1 December likelihood of recidivism, Corrections should 2021 create a regular forum for subject‑matter experts to share information regarding their respective efforts to smoothly transition current program participants to county services and to develop processes for future parolees with mental illness and issues with homelessness who will transition to county services. Corrections should include its staff from the eight counties in which the integrated services program will no longer operate, including staff in the institutions, such as mental health clinicians and staff involved in prerelease planning, parole agents, and parole outpatient clinical staff. Corrections should also include the providers currently under contract, county services staff, and others as necessary. The forums should offer Corrections' staff the opportunity to receive updated training as necessary, and Corrections should begin hosting these forums by October 2020. 4. To determine whether parolees with mental 1 May illness who have housing needs are receiving 2022 necessary services and support during their parole terms, Corrections should review its processes for connecting these individuals to county services by determining the appropriate metrics to evaluate its processes and setting goals related to those metrics. 5. To determine whether parolees with mental 1 May illness who have housing needs are receiving 2022 necessary services and support during their parole terms, Corrections should review its processes for connecting these individuals to county services by ensuring that it is collecting sufficient, consistent data to review those metrics. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 15 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 6. To determine whether parolees with mental 1 May illness who have housing needs are receiving 2022 necessary services and support during their parole terms, Corrections should review its processes for connecting these individuals to county services by establishing a timeline for conducting reviews regularly, but at least every three years. Corrections should develop its plan by July 2021 and include at least the eight counties formerly served by the integrated services program. Corrections should complete its first review by December 2021. 7. To determine whether parolees with mental 1 July illness who have housing needs are receiving 2022 necessary services and support during their parole terms, Corrections should review its processes for connecting these individuals to county services by reporting on its success in meeting its goals to the Council on Criminal Justice and Behavioral Health and the public. Corrections should develop its plan by July 2021 and include at least the eight counties formerly served by the integrated services program. Corrections should complete its first review by December 2021. 8. To determine whether parolees with mental 1 December illness who have housing needs are receiving 2022 necessary services and support during their parole terms, Corrections should review its processes for connecting these individuals to county services by using the reviews to identify changes to improve its processes for connecting parolees to resources, including improving training for Corrections' staff. Corrections should develop its plan by July 2021 and include at least the eight counties formerly served by the integrated services program. Corrections should complete its first review by December 2021. California Department 2. Corrections should immediately require 4 Will Not of Corrections and mental health staff to score 100 percent on Implement Rehabilitation: risk evaluation audits in order to pass. If a staff It Must Increase Its member does not pass, Corrections should Efforts to Prevent require the prison to follow its current policies and Respond to by reviewing additional risk evaluations to Inmate Suicides determine whether the staff member needs to undergo additional mentoring. 2016‑131 (August 2017) 16. To ensure that prisons comply with its policies 4 Undetermined related to suicide prevention and response, Corrections should continue to develop its audit process and implement it at all prisons by February 2018. The process should include, but not be limited to, audits of the quality of prisons' risk evaluations and treatment plans. continued on next page . . . 16 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION California Department 1. To ensure that Corrections has reliable 2 November of Corrections and tools for assessing the needs of its inmate 2021# F Rehabilitation: population, it should validate COMPAS and Several Poor CSRA by January 2020 and revalidate all of its Administrative Practices assessment tools at least every five years. Have Hindered 8. To increase the space available for 2 †  Reductions in Recidivism rehabilitation programs, by January 2020 and Denied Inmates Corrections should analyze and report on its Access to In‑Prison current infrastructure capacity compared to Rehabilitation Programs its needs for the programs. The report should 2018‑113 include the current space available and the (January 2019) square footage needed. If the report indicates that additional space is necessary, Corrections should work with the Legislature to address those needs. 9. To improve the inmate enrollment rates 2 Fiscal Year in CalPIA's vocational education programs, 2021–22 CalPIA and Corrections should require a CalPIA representative to attend all classification committee meetings at all nine prisons where CalPIA offers vocational education. Corrections should also ensure that it enrolls eligible inmates in CalPIA's vocational programs before filling spots in its own vocational programs. In addition, if the CalPIA recidivism study indicates that CalPIA's vocational programs are better at reducing recidivism than Corrections' vocational programs, CalPIA should request funding from the Legislature to expand its vocational training program. 13. To ensure that Corrections effectively and 2 †  efficiently allocates resources and reduces recidivism, it should collaborate with C‑ROB during fiscal year 2019–20 to establish annual targets for reducing recidivism and determining the cost‑effectiveness of the programs. Corrections should also request federal grants tied to setting targets for recidivism reduction. Correctional Officer 21. To ensure the health and safety of its 3 †   Health and Safety: officers when interacting with inmates, W Some State and County CIM should provide annual training that is Correctional Facilities specific to preventing and responding to Could Better Protect gassing attacks. Their Officers From the Health Risks of Certain Inmate Attacks 2018‑106 (September 2018) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 17 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Investigations of 17. CDCR should enforce its current procedure to 4 July Improper Activities retain Institutional Worker Supervision Pay 2022 by State Agencies (IWSP) documentation. and Employees: 19. CDCR should train all employees, supervisors, 4 July Misuse of Resources, and personnel staff who receive, approve, 2022 Inaccurate Attendance or issue the extra pay to ensure that they are Records, Disclosure familiar with the requirements of the IWSP of Confidential procedure and Pay Differential 67. Information, and Improper Payments I2017‑1 (March 2017)‡ Investigations of 20. Fully implement and continue to follow 3 July Improper Activities recommendations from prior investigative 2022 I by State Agencies reports involving similar inappropriate inmate and Employees: supervision pay at other CDCR facilities, Misuse of State Time, including the recommendation to train all Economically Wasteful employees who receive, approve, or issue the Activities, and Misuse of inmate supervision pay. State Property I2018‑1 (July 2018)‡ California Prison Industry Authority California Department 10. To improve the inmate enrollment rates 2 †  of Corrections and in CalPIA's vocational education programs, F Rehabilitation: CalPIA and Corrections should require Several Poor a CalPIA representative to attend all Administrative classification committee meetings at all Practices Have nine prisons where CalPIA offers vocational Hindered Reductions in education. Corrections should also ensure Recidivism and Denied that it enrolls eligible inmates in CalPIA's Inmates Access to vocational programs before filling spots in its In‑Prison Rehabilitation own vocational programs. In addition, if the Programs CalPIA recidivism study indicates that CalPIA's vocational programs are better at reducing 2018‑113 recidivism than Corrections' vocational (January 2019) programs, CalPIA should request funding from the Legislature to expand its vocational training program. California Rehabilitation Oversight Board California Department 16. To ensure that Corrections is taking 2 Will Not of Corrections and steps to reduce recidivism, C‑ROB should Implement F Rehabilitation: monitor whether Corrections is developing Several Poor appropriate recidivism targets and, in its Administrative Practices annual report, should evaluate Corrections' Have Hindered progress toward meeting those targets. Reductions in Recidivism and Denied Inmates Access to In‑Prison Rehabilitation Programs 2018‑113 (January 2019) continued on next page . . . 18 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Department of Rehabilitation Department of 3. To comply with state laws and regulations 3 January Rehabilitation: and help ensure that staff involved in making 2022 Its Inadequate Guidance governmental decisions during the grant and Oversight of the process are impartial, Rehabilitation should Grant Process Led to ensure that they receive ethics training, which Inconsistencies and includes conflict‑of‑interest training, at least Perceived Bias in Its every two years. Evaluations and Awards 6. To increase transparency and ensure that 3 January of Some Grants applicants have the information necessary to 2022 2017‑129 understand the grant process, Rehabilitation (July 2018) should include in its RFAs clear scoring criteria and descriptions of the evaluation, award, and appeals processes, including the process it will use to address applications that receive tied scores. 11. To increase the transparency of its selection 3 January process and to ensure that it receives the most 2022 qualified evaluators possible, Rehabilitation should issue a public solicitation for evaluators for each grant that includes a description of essential and desirable qualifications. 13. To ensure that it provides sufficient oversight 3 January of the grant process, Rehabilitation should 2022 ensure that the technical review teams it assigns to grants provide the director and chief deputy with a memorandum summarizing the evaluation process and the evaluators' recommended grant awardees. Rehabilitation should also designate an individual responsible for reviewing and approving the memorandum and recommended awardees before it publishes its notice of intent to award. 14. If it finds errors in an evaluation that merit 3 January restarting the grant process, rescoring of 2022 applications, or convening a new evaluation panel, Rehabilitation should resolve any issues before it begins the rescoring process. It should also notify applicants to ensure that they are aware of any changes to the process due to the errors. Further, it should consider promulgating regulations and amending its grant manual to permit staff to request evaluators to rescore applications or convene a new evaluation panel when it finds issues with an evaluation. 15. To ensure that it consistently and thoroughly 3 December evaluates appeals, Rehabilitation should 2022 establish in state regulations and its grant manual that staff at the appropriate level of authority are to acknowledge all appeal requests, notify intended awardees that could be affected by the appeals, and inform the appellant of the qualifications of the review committee members. Staff at the appropriate level of authority must also notify all affected parties of the review committee’s final decision within the time frame Rehabilitation establishes in regulations. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 19 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 16. To ensure that Rehabilitation has appropriate 3 January oversight of its grant process and can 2022 sufficiently demonstrate that it followed the process, it should designate staff, separate from those involved in the respective grant process, to conduct a review of each grant process for procedural errors, evaluator prejudice, and whether evaluators supported their scores with evidence from the relevant applications before it awards grants. 17. To comply with federal and state 3 December requirements, and to ensure consistency and 2022 fairness in its grant process, Rehabilitation should revise and formalize the policies and procedures in its grant manual to incorporate the rules adopted by regulation and to address the recommendations in this report. The grant manual should specify that any deviations from the required grant process must be for good cause and be documented. 18. To ensure that it consistently and thoroughly 3 December evaluates appeals, Rehabilitation should 2022 establish in state regulations and its grant manual a process for the review committees to request additional information from appellants or program staff. To allow time for an adequate review of any additional information, Rehabilitation should consider extending the time for review committees to issue their decision on appeals from 30 days to 45 days. 19. To ensure that it consistently and 3 December thoroughly evaluates appeals, 2022 Rehabilitation should establish in state regulations and its grant manual that to be able to rescore applications when necessary, the review committee members should be subject‑matter experts or, if they are not subject‑matter experts, the review committee should have the authority to recommend a new evaluation panel instead of rescoring applications itself when it identifies a reason to invalidate previous evaluations. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION Department of Toxic Substances Control California Department 3. To ensure that the public and policy makers 1 October of Toxic Substances have the information they need to make 2022 Control: informed decisions, DTSC should, by no later The State’s Poor than April 2021, identify and publicize a date Management of the by which it expects to complete cleanup Exide Cleanup Project for all properties that meet or exceed the Has Left Californians standard for lead contamination of 80 ppm at Continued Risk of identified in DTSC's cleanup plan. It should Lead Poisoning post this information on its website and, at least every six months, publish an update that 2020‑107 indicates whether it is on track to meet (October 2020) that expected completion date based on its rate of progress. continued on next page . . . 20 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 4. To ensure that it has sufficient funding to 1 July clean up all lead‑contaminated properties 2021# in the cleanup site, DTSC should do the following: • Identify the full amount of funding it needs to complete the cleanup of the 3,200 most contaminated properties and the remaining 4,600 contaminated properties. It should submit a request for funding in time for spring 2021 budget discussions that includes a range of funding options that spans from funding for the full cleanup to funding for only a portion of the remaining contaminated properties. • Immediately revise its cost estimation methods to encompass the factors that it now knows will affect its overall costs. If needed, it should contract for expertise in determining accurate and complete estimates of the remaining cleanup cost. State Water Resources Control Board Investigations of 1. Take appropriate corrective action against 5 Unknown Improper Activities the district engineer and the supervisors for by State Agencies their participation in or failure to address the and Employees: conflict of interest. Conflict of Interest, Violation of Post‑Employment Ethics Restrictions, Waste of State Funds, Misuse of State Resources, and Incompatible Activities I2016‑2 (August 2016)‡ State and Regional 7. If the State Water Board believes regulations 3 Pending Water Boards: are necessary to ensure that the regional V They Must Do More boards and local jurisdictions follow its to Ensure That Local guidance regarding adequate and consistent Jurisdictions’ Costs to information pertaining to their costs for storm Reduce Storm Water water management, the State Water Board Pollution Are Necessary should adopt such regulations. and Appropriate 11. The State Water Board should revise its trash 3 Will Not 2017‑118 policy to focus it on local jurisdictions that Implement (March 2018) have water bodies that are harmed by trash, as identified by the polluted waters list. In addition, the State Water Board should review the polluted waters list at least biannually to identify any additional water bodies recently determined to be harmed by trash and impose its trash policy on the applicable jurisdictions. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 21 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION GENERAL GOVERNMENT Board of State and Community Corrections Juvenile Justice Crime 20. To ensure that counties include accurate 1 March Prevention Act: information in their comprehensive plans and 2022 Z Weak Oversight Has year‑end reports, Community Corrections Hindered Its Meaningful should review the information counties Implementation submit to it and follow up with them to obtain missing information or to clarify information 2019‑116 that seems incorrect. (May 2020) 21. To better promote effective local efforts 1 May related to the JJCPA, Community Corrections 2022 should include on its website the capability for stakeholders, counties, and other interested parties to review and easily compare the JJCPA information of multiple counties. Specifically, its website should allow users to be able to select a specific type of JJCPA‑funded program and easily review information the counties submitted for all programs associated with that program type. Community Corrections should determine the cost of providing this additional service and, if necessary, request additional resources. California Department of Food and Agriculture California Department 1. In order to ensure a fair and defensible grant 1 †  of Food and Agriculture: award process for the Pet Lover’s program, Poor Management Food and Agriculture should immediately Threatens the Success adopt and begin following policies and of the Pet Lover’s procedures that direct its staff to verify and Specialized License document that grant applicants are eligible Plate Program for funding from the Pet Lover’s program before forwarding the applications to the 2019‑121 technical review panel. (March 2020) 2. In order to ensure a fair and defensible grant 1 †  award process for the Pet Lover’s program, Food and Agriculture should immediately adopt and begin following policies and procedures that direct its staff to have multiple reviewers score each application that progresses to a technical review. 3. In order to ensure a fair and defensible grant 1 †  award process for the Pet Lover's program, Food and Agriculture should immediately adopt and begin following policies and procedures that direct its staff to select the highest‑ranked applications to receive grant awards, and document the reasons for these selections. 4. To correct its error in making grants to 1 †  ineligible entities, by June 2020 Food and Agriculture should complete efforts to either cancel those contracts and recoup unspent funds from the two ineligible organizations or work with those organizations to ensure that they meet eligibility requirements. continued on next page . . . 22 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 5. To ensure that the Pet Lover's program 1 †  remains viable, Food and Agriculture should immediately begin using marketing and promotional strategies similar to those used by other specialized license plate programs to encourage vehicle owners to purchase the Pet Lover's plate, and should continue to ensure that the Pet Lover's plate remains on DMV flyers. 6. To improve the effectiveness of marketing 1 June of the Pet Lover's program, by August 2020 2022 Food and Agriculture should contract with an eligible nonprofit organization, as state law allows, to carry out additional marketing and promotional activities for the program. Gross Mismanagement 1. CDFA: Ensure that its audit office conducts 2 Unknown Led to the Misuse of biannual compliance audits for all district State Resources and agricultural associations and that the office Multiple Violations of prioritizes auditing district agricultural State Laws associations on the watch program. I2019‑4 4. CDFA: To the extent that its authority 2 Unknown (August 2019)‡ allows, oversee implementation of our recommendations to the association. 5. Association: Take appropriate disciplinary 2 Unknown action against the CEO, the maintenance supervisor, and all other permanent and temporary employees who engaged in the improper governmental activities that we identified. 12. Association: Formally adopt, train staff on, 2 Unknown and follow the Fairs and Expositions branch’s accounting procedures manual, as well as CDFA’s Controlled Substances and Alcohol and Incompatible Activities policies. California Department of Veterans Affairs California Department 10. To ensure that the veterans homes receive all of 2 Will Not of Veterans Affairs the funding to which they are entitled, by the Implement and Department of May 2019 budget revision, CalVet should seek General Services: an augmentation to its appropriation for the The Departments’ homes equal to the lease revenues it generated Mismanagement of from July 2015 through June 2018. If CalVet the Veterans Home believes the state law requiring lease proceeds Properties Has Not to augment its appropriation is outdated, it Served the Veterans’ should seek a change to state law. Best Interests and Has 11. To monitor whether lessees are current on 2 September Been Detrimental to payments, CalVet should track payment 2022 the State compliance for all lease payments that it 2018‑112 receives and promptly follow up with lessees (January 2019) that do not pay as required. This should include collecting sufficient records from lessees that pay rent based on a percentage of sales to calculate the amount that each is required to pay to ensure that the lessees are making the correct rent payments. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 23 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Disabled Veteran 11. To ensure that its outreach efforts are 2 October Business Enterprise effective and result in a greater number of 2022 Program: DVBE firms available that can provide the The Departments of necessary goods and services awarding General Services and departments are seeking, CalVet should Veterans Affairs Have work with awarding departments to identify Failed to Maximize the types of goods and services for which Participation and to they struggle to find a DVBE contractor Accurately Measure or subcontractor. Program Success 13. To ensure that its outreach efforts are effective 2 July 2018‑114 and result in a greater number of DVBE firms 2022 (February 2019) available that can provide the necessary goods and services awarding departments are seeking, CalVet should develop an outreach plan to include outreach activities found to be effective in the past based on its assessment. This plan should also emphasize outreach to increase the number of DVBE firms that provide the types of goods and services that awarding departments struggle to obtain from DVBE firms. 17. To ensure that its outreach efforts are 2 July effective and result in a greater number of 2022 DVBE firms available that can provide the necessary goods and services awarding departments are seeking, CalVet should conduct periodic surveys of businesses owned by disabled veterans that attended its outreach events but chose not to become DVBE certified to determine the reasons for not applying for the certification. The department should use this information to improve its outreach and any other areas of the program. California Gambling Control Commission Bureau of Gambling 9. To prevent unnecessary delays and use of 2 July Control and California resources and to ensure its compliance with 2022 G Gambling Control state law, the commission should, following Commission: the Legislature's amendment of the Gambling Their Licensing Act that we recommend, revise its regulations Processes Are Inefficient and policies for conducting evidentiary and Foster Unequal hearings. These revisions should specify that Treatment of Applicants the commission may vote at regular meetings on a final basis to approve or deny licenses, 2018‑132 registrations, permits, findings of suitability, (May 2019) or other matters and that it is not required to conduct evidentiary hearings unless applicants request that it do so. continued on next page . . . 24 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 13. To better align the revenue in the Gambling 2 Unknown Fund with the costs of the activities that the fund supports, the bureau and the commission should conduct cost analyses of those activities by July 2020. At a minimum, these cost analyses should include the following: • The entities’ personnel costs, operating costs, and any program overhead costs. • Updated time estimates for their core and support activities, such as background investigations. • The cost of their enforcement activities. • Using this information, the bureau and commission should reset their regulatory fees to reflect their actual costs. Before conducting its fee study, the bureau should implement our recommendations to improve its processes for assigning applications, ensuring the completeness of applications, and developing time‑reporting protocols. California Public Utilities Commission California Public 6. To ensure that the CPUC fulfills its statutory 2 July Utilities Commission: requirement for auditing all water utilities, 2022 It Could Improve the it should immediately begin to follow its Transparency of Water Standard Practice when auditing Class A water Rate Increases by utilities, or develop policies and procedures Disclosing Its Review by May 2019 to ensure that the reviews Process and Ensuring Public Advocates conducts of general rate That Utilities Notify cases demonstrate compliance with the legal Customers as Required requirement for audits of these utilities. 2018‑118 7. To ensure that the CPUC fulfills its statutory 2 July (December 2018) requirement for auditing all water utilities, 2022 it should immediately develop a plan to complete audits of Class A water utilities and small water utilities in a timely manner. California Public 2. To ensure that the choice of a vendor is 5 †   Utilities Commission: sufficiently justified and that the vendor It Should Reform represents the best value, the CPUC should Its Rules to Increase explain in its final decision how the vendor Transparency and was the most qualified in all cases when Accountability, and Its the CPUC does not competitively select the Contracting Practices vendor it directs utilities to contract with. Do Not Align With 4. To avoid the appearance of inappropriate 5 Will Not Requirements or relationships, the CPUC should adopt a policy Implement Best Practices to prohibit commissioners from accepting 2016‑104 gifts from regulated utilities and energy (September 2016) companies and free travel from organizations with significant ties to regulated utilities and other parties with financial interests in CPUC proceedings. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 25 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 8. To ensure that its contracting practices align 5 February with state requirements and best practices, 2022 the CPUC should designate a limited number of project managers for each division at the CPUC, and provide those individuals with training on the CPUC's processes related to contracting, including how to monitor progress of a contractor's work. 13. The CPUC should update its regulations to 5 Will Not require parties joining a proceeding by filing Implement a protest or response to an application or petition, or by filing comments in response to a rulemaking proceeding to fully disclose their interests in the proceeding. GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS Department of General Services California Department 2. To ensure long‑term efficient and effective 5 February of General Services’ delivery of projects, the division, in its 2022 Real Estate Services planned implementation of its new project Division: management system in July 2017, should To Better Serve Its ensure that the project management Client Agencies, It system can centrally track and extract all Needs to Track and data regarding project status, including Analyze Project Data time delays, cost overages, and the reasons and Improve Its for each. Management Practices 3. To ensure long‑term efficient and effective 5 February 2015‑117 delivery of projects, the division, in its 2022 (March 2016) planned implementation of its new project management system in July 2017, should track the reasons that projects are pending to identify its true backlog of projects. In doing so, it should develop a process to follow up on those projects that are pending to ensure that they are not on hold unnecessarily and are appropriately moving forward. 4. To ensure long‑term efficient and effective 5 February delivery of projects, the division, in its 2022 planned implementation of its new project management system in July 2017, should, at least annually, use the centrally tracked data to identify common themes in the causes for project delays and cost overages and develop solutions to address these issues. Further, it should report the results of its review to General Services’ executive management. 5. Until the division implements its planned 5 Will Not project management system, it should, by Implement September 2016, develop a process to, at a minimum, identify project status and reasons for project delays as well as cost overages. Using these data, the division should modify its project management processes to ensure the efficient and effective delivery of projects. continued on next page . . . 26 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 6. The division should develop and implement a 5 Will Not process for preparing reasonable time frames Implement and cost estimates for its projects within the building management branch. To better inform the development of this process, the division should evaluate the branch’s structure, which should include a staffing analysis, to determine whether it is effectively organized and whether it should add cost estimator positions. 7. To ensure that client agencies are paying 5 Will Not equitable rates, by December 2016 General Implement Services should develop and implement a strategy for allocating its administrative costs equally among all the projects it completes for client agencies, including those portions outsourced to private firms. 8. To ensure that the project management 5 Will Not branch charges its client agencies a Implement competitive hourly rate, by December 2016 and every two years thereafter, the division should conduct a rate analysis that fully accounts for differences between the project management branch’s rate and private firms’ rates. If it finds that the rates are not competitive, the division should identify and implement strategies to ensure that the project management branch’s rates are as competitive as they can be with those of its private firm counterparts. Further, the division should explore and implement any other reasonable methods to ensure that it is delivering projects as cost effectively as possible. 10. To improve its communication with client 5 February agencies, the division should develop a 2022 process for providing periodic detailed bills and invoices to client agencies clearly describing the work for which it is charging. 11. To effectively evaluate the performance 5 †  of its branches in delivering projects, the division should develop meaningful goals and objectives and a method of measuring its success in achieving them as part of its strategic plan that is focused on ensuring that projects are delivered on time and within budgeted cost estimates. 12. To ensure that its project management 5 †  staff are adequately trained and have the information necessary to deliver projects as efficiently and effectively as possible, the division should conduct a comprehensive survey every other year of all of its client agencies to inform necessary improvements to its processes and training program and, in the interest of transparency, make the survey results public. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 27 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Department of General 3. To improve its oversight of the State’s 4 Will Not Services and California noncompetitive contracts, General Services Implement Department of should, within 90 days, create plans for Technology: regularly performing statewide analyses Neither Entity Has to identify potential abuse or overuse of Provided the Oversight noncompetitive contracts. These analyses Necessary to Ensure should include, but not be limited to, That State Agencies calculating the proportional value and Consistently Use number of the State’s competitive and the Competitive noncompetitive contracts and amendments, Bidding Process examining trends in agencies’ use of noncompetitive contracts and amendments, 2016‑124 and identifying unusual patterns among (June 2017) vendors receiving state contracts through noncompetitive means. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES California Department of Public Health Childhood Lead Levels: 6. To ensure that local prevention programs' 1 October Millions of Children outreach results in a reduced number of 2021# H in Medi‑Cal Have Not children with lead poisoning, CDPH should, Received Required by December 2020, require local prevention Testing for Lead programs to demonstrate the effectiveness Poisoning of their outreach in meeting this goal. If the local prevention programs are unable 2019‑105 to demonstrate the effectiveness of their (January 2020) outreach in reducing the number of children with lead poisoning, CDPH should analyze the cost‑effectiveness of other approaches, including proactive abatement, and require the local prevention programs to replace or augment outreach to the extent resources allow. 11. To better ensure that children with lead 1 December poisoning are identified and treated, 2022 CDPH should prioritize meeting legislative requirements related to these issues, including doing the following by March 2020: Finish developing the lead risk evaluation regulations and include in them multiple risk factors, such as those used in lead risk evaluation questionnaires in other states. It should also commence the formal rulemaking process. continued on next page . . . 28 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Skilled Nursing 8. As the Legislature considers changes to state 3 †  Facilities: law, Public Health should take the steps D Absent Effective State necessary to ensure that its oversight results Oversight, Substandard in nursing facilities improving their quality Quality of Care Has of care by amending its application licensing Continued reviews by developing a defined process that specifies how an analyst will determine 2017‑109 whether an applicant has demonstrated (May 2018) its ability to comply with state and federal requirements. This process also needs to ensure that analysts conduct complete and standardized reviews of each nursing facility application within each class of facility. Specifically, these processes should clearly outline what factors analysts will consider when determining whether an applicant is in compliance, how analysts will weigh those factors for each class of facility, and what objective thresholds will prompt analysts to elevate applications for review and approval by higher‑level management. Additionally, Public Health should document the additional factors higher‑level management will consider if applications are elevated for their review to ensure that Public Health conducts standardized reviews of nursing facility applications of the same class. Finally, Public Health should develop processes ensuring that it documents its decisions adequately. 9. As the Legislature considers changes to state 3 August law, Public Health should take the steps 2022 necessary to ensure that its oversight results in nursing facilities improving their quality of care by ensuring that it issues citations in a timely manner, especially for immediate jeopardy deficiencies. 11. To improve the availability and transparency 3 December of information, Public Health should upload 2021 all inspection findings to Cal Health Find and review ownership data by May 2019. Youth Suicide 6. To support LEAs’ efforts to provide mental 1 Unknown Prevention: health services, Public Health should establish AA Local Educational the support program for school health centers Agencies Lack the as state law requires. If Public Health lacks the Resources and Policies funding to do so, it should request additional Necessary to Effectively funds as needed. The support program should Address Rising Rates assist LEAs in establishing school health centers of Youth Suicide and and in identifying and applying for available Self‑Harm funding as authorized by law, such as Medi‑Cal reimbursement and MHSA funds. 2019‑125 (September 2020) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 29 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION California Department of Social Services California Department 10. To ensure that Social Services evaluates 4 January of Social Services: the risk individuals may pose to vulnerable 2021# B Its Caregiver populations in its licensed care facilities Background Check as quickly as possible, by July 2017 Social Bureau Lacks Services should establish time frames Criminal History for staff to evaluate individuals who are Information It Needs present in their facilities and who have to Protect Vulnerable received administrative actions from other Populations in Licensed departments. In addition, it should monitor Care Facilities and follow up with the appropriate staff regarding the status of their assessments of 2016‑126 these individuals and their final decisions. (March 2017) 13. To comply with state law and better protect 4 Will Not vulnerable populations in California’s Implement licensed care facilities, Social Services should immediately change its policy to require that its exemption analysts evaluate all infraction convictions, other than minor traffic violations, before granting exemptions to individuals. If Social Services believes it is not feasible to evaluate all of these convictions, it should report to the Legislature by June 2017 how it ensures that vulnerable populations are not at risk and should request that the Legislature change the law to eliminate infraction convictions as a crime category that Social Services must evaluate in order to grant an exemption. 16. Until the Legislature requires that Social 4 January Services receive both California and federal 2021# criminal history information before issuing a clearance or processing an exemption, to better protect vulnerable populations, Social Services should immediately revise its policy to require its regional offices to obtain all self‑disclosure forms for individuals who submit fingerprints to Justice as part of an application to be present in a licensed facility. The regional offices should then forward to the CBCB all self‑disclosure forms that identify a conviction. 17. Until the Legislature requires that Social 4 January Services receive both California and federal 2021# criminal history information before issuing a clearance or processing an exemption, to better protect vulnerable populations, Social Services should immediately change its practice of allowing individuals who have not submitted a self‑disclosure form to Social Services to have access to licensed facilities, thus reflecting the requirements of state law. In addition, the CBCB should develop a process to ensure that individuals cannot receive a clearance or an exemption without the CBCB first receiving both California and federal criminal history information if a regional office does not have a self‑disclosure form for the individual. continued on next page . . . 30 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 26. To ensure that regional offices pursue legal 4 January actions in a timely manner, by July 2017 2021# Social Services’ headquarters should identify a resource—such as a unit—to monitor and follow up with the regional offices regarding the status of their legal actions related to substantiated address matches of registered sex offenders at licensed facilities. California’s 30. To improve the oversight of psychotropic 5 Will Not Foster Care System: medications prescribed to foster children, Implement The State and Counties Social Services should collaborate with the Have Failed to counties and other relevant stakeholders— Adequately Oversee including Health Care Services, as the Prescription necessary—to develop and implement a of Psychotropic reasonable oversight structure that ensures Medications to Children the coordination of the State’s and counties’ in Foster Care various oversight mechanisms as well as the accuracy and completeness of the information 2015‑131 in Social Services’ data system. (August 2016) Department of Developmental Services Department of 5. To ensure that in‑home respite vendors are 5 Will Not Developmental providing quality services and that vendors Implement Services: are adhering to state requirements, DDS It Cannot Verify That should issue regulations requiring regional Vendor Rates for centers to conduct periodic and ongoing In‑Home Respite Services reviews of vendors’ programs, employees, Are Appropriate and That and consumer records. Regional Centers and 6. To ensure that in‑home respite vendors 5 July Vendors Meet Applicable comply with vendor requirements on an 2022 Requirements ongoing basis, DDS should require the 2016‑108 regional centers to develop a process to (October 2016) conduct biennial reviews of the vendor files the regional centers maintain and document the outcome of the review in the files. DDS should require the regional centers to take appropriate action to ensure that vendors comply, up to and including terminating the vendorization, if necessary. 7. To ensure that it is providing oversight 5 †   in accordance with state law and federal requirements, DDS should ensure that it performs audits of each regional center every two years as required. In conducting these audits, DDS should consistently include a review of in‑home respite services. Department of Health Care Services Childhood Lead Levels: 1. Because of the severe and potentially 1 January Millions of Children permanent damage that lead poisoning 2022 H in Medi‑Cal Have Not can cause in children, DHCS should ensure Received Required that all children in Medi‑Cal receive lead Testing for Lead tests by finalizing, by December 2020, its Poisoning performance standard for lead testing of one‑ and two‑year‑olds. DHCS should use 2019‑105 its existing data to assess the progress (January 2020) of managed care plans in meeting that performance standard and impose sanctions or provide incentive payments as appropriate to improve performance. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 31 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 2. To ensure that families know about the lead 1 December testing services that their children are entitled 2021 to receive, DHCS should send a reminder to get a lead test for children who missed required tests. It should send this reminder in the required annual notification it is developing to send to families of children who have not used preventive services over the course of a year. 3. To increase California's lead testing rates and 1 Will Not improve lead test reporting, DHCS should, Implement by no later than June 2020, incorporate into its contracts with managed care plans a requirement for the plans to identify each month all children with no record of receiving a required test and remind the responsible health care providers of the requirement to test the children. DHCS should also develop and implement a procedure to hold plans accountable for meeting this requirement. Department of 4. By September 2019, and periodically 2 †   Health Care Services: thereafter, DHCS should conduct another Although Its Oversight risk assessment and ensure that it includes a of Managed Care Health comprehensive evaluation of which contract Plans Is Generally areas—including conflicts of interest—it Sufficient, It Needs should focus on in its annual medical audits. to Ensure That Their 5. Going forward, DHCS should conduct 2 †  Administrative Expenses a comprehensive risk assessment and Are Reasonable ensure that it reviews health plans' and Necessary conflict‑of‑interest controls at least once 2018‑115 every three years. (April 2019) 6. DHCS should develop and issue an All‑Plan 2 †  letter or other binding guidance by March 2020 to the health plans that specifically defines what constitutes reasonable and necessary administrative expenses. 7. DHCS should provide guidance to health 2 Will Not plans on what is a reasonable bonus program. Implement In doing so, DHCS should perform the necessary oversight to ensure health plans comply with this direction. Department of 1. To ensure that beneficiaries in Regional 2 Will Not Health Care Services: Model counties have adequate access to Implement It Has Not Ensured That care, DHCS should identify by August 2020 Medi‑Cal Beneficiaries the locations requiring additional providers in Some Rural Counties and the types of providers required. It should Have Reasonable Access also develop strategies for recruiting and to Care retaining providers in those locations. If it requires additional funding to complete 2018‑122 this assessment or to implement actions to (August 2019) address its findings, DHCS should determine the amounts it needs and request that funding from the Legislature. continued on next page . . . 32 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 11. To ensure that it makes informed decisions 2 Will Not regarding the extension or renewal of Implement its contracts with managed care health plans, DHCS should immediately begin the practice of requesting annual feedback from the counties that the health plans serve and of using that feedback in its decision‑making process. 13. To ensure that beneficiaries in the Regional 2 Will Not Model counties have reasonable access to Implement care, DHCS should evaluate by June 2020 whether the structural characteristics of a COHS Model would be better suited to providing reasonable access to care in the Regional Model counties and notify the counties whether a COHS would improve beneficiaries' access to care. If some or all of these counties desire to transition to a COHS, DHCS should assist them in making that change after their current contracts expire. 14. To ensure that beneficiaries in the Regional 2 Will Not Model counties have reasonable access to Implement care, DHCS should evaluate by June 2020 whether it has the financial resources to provide assistance to counties interested in establishing a COHS or other managed care model after the current Regional Model contracts expire. If DHCS does not have the required financial resources, it should seek an appropriate amount of funding from the Legislature. Department of Health 2. To recover inappropriately spent funds, 3 December Care Services: prevent future erroneous payments, and 2022 It Paid Billions in ensure eligible individuals' access to care, Questionable Medi‑Cal Health Care Services should resolve the Premiums and Claims discrepancies we identified and recover Because It Failed erroneous payments where allowable by June to Follow Up on 30, 2019. Eligibility Discrepancies 3. To prevent future erroneous payments, Health 3 December 2018‑603 Care Services should implement procedures 2022 (October 2018) by December 31, 2018, to ensure the timely resolution of system discrepancies. These procedures should include Health Care Services regularly following up on recurring, unresolved system discrepancies with the responsible county. 4. To prevent future erroneous payments, Health 3 June Care Services should establish procedures by 2022 December 31, 2018, that define when it will use its authority as defined in state law to sanction unresponsive counties that do not remedy known discrepancies. 6. To assist counties in addressing discrepancies, 3 December Health Care Services should reevaluate and 2022 update its guidance to the counties related to prioritizing MEDS alerts by December 31, 2018. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 33 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Department of 6. To increase access to preventive health 2 Will Not Health Care Services: services for children in areas where they Implement Millions of Children are needed most, DHCS should identify by in Medi‑Cal Are Not September 2019 where more providers who Receiving Preventive see children are needed and propose to the Health Services Legislature funding increases to recruit more providers in these areas. 2018‑111 (March 2019) 8. To ensure that eligible children and their 2 †  families know about all the preventive services they are entitled to through Medi‑Cal, DHCS should include by May 2019 clearer and more comprehensive information about those services in its written materials and by September 2019 ensure annual follow‑up with any children and their families who have not used those services. 11. To ensure that plans address underutilization 2 †   of children's preventive services, DHCS should require plans by September 2019 to use their utilization management programs to identify barriers to usage specifically for these services and hold the plans accountable to address the barriers they identify. 12. To better ensure the accuracy of its data and 2 †  ensure that California receives all available federal Medicaid funding, DHCS should require its EQRO to perform its encounter data validation studies annually using the most recent set of data available, and it should implement recommendations from its EQRO studies. 13. To ensure that plan provider directories are 2 January accurate, by September 2019 DHCS should 2022 begin using a 95 percent confidence level and not more than a 10 percent margin of error on its statistical sampling tool and should require at least 95 percent accuracy before approving a plan's provider directory. In addition, DHCS should ensure that its staff adhere to its policy to retain all documentation related to its review of provider directories for at least three years. 14. To mitigate health disparities for children of 2 January differing ethnic backgrounds and language 2022 needs, DHCS should revise by September 2019 the methodology for its EQRO's health disparity study to enable it to better make demographic comparisons, and it should use the findings to drive targeted interventions within plan service areas. It should publish this study annually. 16. To help increase utilization rates, DHCS should 2 †   begin by September 2019 to monitor and identify effective incentive programs at the plan level and share the results with all plans. continued on next page . . . 34 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 18. To improve its ability to ensure that children 2 †  are receiving recommended preventive health services, DHCS should create by September 2019 an action plan to annually address the EQRO's recommendations relating to children's preventive services, including recommendations left unaddressed from the previous two years' reports. Mental Health 6. To ensure that local mental health agencies 3 December Services Act: appropriately spend MHSA funds, Health 2021 E The State Could Better Care Services should publish its proposed Ensure the Effective regulations in the California Regulatory Use of Mental Health Notice Register by September 2018. It should Services Act Funding then develop and implement an MHSA fiscal audit process, independent of the Medi‑Cal 2017‑117 reviews, to review revenues and expenditures (February 2018) for the most recent fiscal year. Skilled Nursing 12. Health Care Services should use current data to 3 †   Facilities: revise and update the peer groups it uses to D Absent Effective State set Medi‑Cal rates. In doing so, it should take Oversight, Substandard into consideration the consolidation of the Quality of Care Has nursing facility industry. Continued 2017‑109 (May 2018) Department of State Hospitals Investigations of 1. Within 30 days, the Department of State 1 Unknown Improper Activities Hospitals (State Hospitals) should consult J by State Agencies with the California Department of Human and Employees: Resources (CalHR) to obtain its determination Wasteful and about whether telepsychiatrists meet the Improper Personnel criteria for safety retirement benefits. If CalHR Decisions, Improper determines that telepsychiatrists do not meet Contracting, Conflict the criteria for safety retirement benefits, take of Interest, Misuse immediate action to reclassify telepsychiatrists of State Resources, to the appropriate retirement category and and Dishonesty notify all affected employees. I2020‑2 3. Within 60 days, State Hospitals should 1 Unknown (October 2020)‡ distribute CalHR's policy on the safety retirement benefits designation to HR staff at each state hospital facility and instruct staff to consult with CalHR as the law requires. Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission Mental Health 10. To ensure that the MHSA‑funded triage grants 3 †  Services Act: are effective, the Oversight Commission E The State Could Better should require that local mental health Ensure the Effective agencies uniformly report data on their Use of Mental Health uses of triage grants. It should also establish Services Act Funding statewide metrics to evaluate the impact of triage grants by July 2018. 2017‑117 (February 2018) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 35 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development Skilled Nursing 10. To ensure that it provides the public with 3 †  Facilities: nursing facility information that is accurate D Absent Effective State and comprehensible, Health Planning should Oversight, Substandard update its regulations to do the following: Quality of Care Has • Append additional schedules to the Continued template for the annual cost report to 2017‑109 enable nursing facilities to fully disclose (May 2018) related‑party transactions. • Provide a single location in the annual cost report template for nursing facilities to enter related‑party transaction amounts next to the amounts they are claiming for Medi‑Cal reimbursement. • Create an additional schedule in the cost report template that depicts how a company is investing in quality‑of‑care improvements. HIGHER EDUCATION Chancellor of the California Community Colleges California 4. To ensure that students with disabilities have 3 †  Community Colleges: equal access to instructional materials, by U The Colleges Reviewed June 2018, the Chancellor's Office should Are Not Adequately develop guidance for the community Monitoring Services for colleges on periodically monitoring the Technology Accessibility, accessibility of instructional materials and and Districts and on providing training to all instructors in Colleges Should making their materials accessible to students Formalize Procedures for with disabilities. Upgrading Technology 7. To assist all community colleges in 3 Will Not 2017‑102 increasing transparency of their shared Implement (December 2017) governance decision‑making processes, by September 2018, the Chancellor's Office should issue guidance to the community colleges on establishing procedures to document the attendees, input received, and agreements reached during department meetings, including those to consider technology equipment requests. The California State University California State 3. To improve CSU's financial transparency 2 †  University: with students and other stakeholders, It Failed to Fully the Chancellor's Office, with the approval Disclose Its $1.5 Billion of the trustees, should revise CSU policy Surplus, and It Has Not by October 2019 to require that it publish Adequately Invested in information about CSU's discretionary surplus. Alternatives to Costly At a minimum, the Chancellor's Office should Parking Facilities revise its reserve policy to establish and justify a minimum sufficient level of reserve 2018‑127 for economic uncertainty and require the (June 2019) Chancellor's Office to provide additional oversight to ensure that CSU maintains that level. This oversight should include monitoring, approving, and notifying the trustees of any uses of the reserve for economic uncertainty. continued on next page . . . 36 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 9. The Chancellor's Office should require that, 2 March by October 2019, the campuses publish 2020# the names of the alternate transportation committee members, the committee meeting minutes, and the committee meeting schedule on their parking and transportation services websites. California State 3. To improve the oversight of CSU’s 4 May University: management personnel, the Chancellor’s 2022 Stronger Oversight Office should work with campuses, bargaining Is Needed for Hiring unit representatives, the Public Employment and Compensating Relations Board, and others as necessary to Management Personnel come to an agreement on the appropriate and for Monitoring classification of coaches. The Chancellor’s Campus Budgets Office should take into account the concerns that San Diego State has raised about the 2016‑122 labor market for these employees. (April 2017) 10. The Chancellor’s Office should finish 4 December developing the Common Human Resources 2024 System and implement it as scheduled by December 2019. California State 3. To ensure that CSU campuses adequately 1 April University: identify the need for their proposed 2022 The Mandatory Fees mandatory fee amounts, the Chancellor's Its Campuses Charge Office should revise its fee policy to require Receive Little Oversight campuses to justify amounts for new or Yet They Represent an increasing fees by providing supporting Increasing Financial documentation demonstrating the need Burden to Students for the fees, how they calculated the fee amounts, and how they determined that no 2019‑114 other source of funding could pay for the (May 2020) needed services. 4. To ensure that CSU campuses adequately 1 April identify the need for their proposed 2022 mandatory fee amounts, the Chancellor's Office should extend its review responsibilities to include increases to existing mandatory fees. 5. To ensure that CSU campuses adequately 1 April identify the need for their proposed 2022 mandatory fee amounts, the Chancellor's Office should increase the rigor of its fee proposal review and approval process to better ensure that it detects campuses' violations of the fee policy. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 37 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION University of California Native American 2. To ensure that the affiliation, repatriation, 1 December Graves Protection and and disposition processes are timely and 2021 Repatriation Act: consistent across all campuses as the The University of Legislature intended, the Office of the California Is Not President should publish its final systemwide Adequately Overseeing NAGPRA policy no later than August 2020. Its Return of Native 3. To increase oversight and ensure that 1 November American Remains campuses consistently review claims, the 2021# and Artifacts Office of the President should require 2019‑047 campuses to provide reports about all (June 2020) current claims for affiliation, repatriation, and disposition, as well as any associated decisions, to the systemwide committee for biannual review no later than January 2021. 4. To ensure that tribal perspectives are 1 November appropriately represented in repatriation 2021# decisions, the Office of the President should ensure that membership of campus and systemwide committees complies with state law by including appropriate tribal representation no later than November 2020. The University of 5. To determine the amount of money that it can 4 †  California Office reallocate to campuses and to ensure that it C of the President: publicly presents comprehensive and accurate It Failed to Disclose Tens budget information, by April 2018 the Office of Millions in Surplus of the President should implement our Funds, and Its Budget recommended budget presentation shown in Practices Are Misleading Figure 11 on page 40. Specifically, the Office of the President’s budget presentation to the 2016‑130 regents should include a comparison of its (April 2017) proposed budget to its actual expenditures for the previous year. It should also include all its expenditures and identify changes to the discretionary and restricted reserves. The Office of the President should combine both the disclosed and undisclosed budgets into one budget presentation. 22. To determine the amount of money that it 4 †  can reallocate to campuses and to ensure that it publicly presents comprehensive and accurate budget information, by April 2019 the Office of the President should continue to present a comprehensive budget based on the presentation in Figure 11 to the regents, the Legislature, and the public. 23. To ensure that its staffing costs align with the 4 †  needs of campuses and other stakeholders, by April 2019 the Office of the President should set targets for any needed reductions to salary amounts using the results from its public and private sector comparison and adjust its salaries accordingly. continued on next page . . . 38 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 32. To determine the amount of money that it 4 †  can reallocate to campuses and to ensure that it publicly presents comprehensive and accurate budget information, by April 2020 the Office of the President should evaluate its budget process to ensure that it is efficient and has adequate safeguards that ensure that staff approve and justify all budget expenditures. If the Office of the President determines that its safeguards are sufficient, it should begin developing a multiyear budget plan. 34. To ensure that its staffing costs align with the 4 †  needs of campuses and other stakeholders, by April 2020 the Office of the President should adjust its salary levels and ranges to meet its established targets. 36. To ensure that its staffing costs align with the 4 †  needs of campuses and other stakeholders, by April 2020 the Office of the President should reallocate funds to campuses when adjustments to its salaries and benefits result in savings. 39. To ensure that its staffing costs align with the 4 †  needs of campuses and other stakeholders, by April 2020 the Office of the President should report to the regents on the amount of funds it reallocates to campuses as a result of implementing our recommendations. The University of 8. To ensure that the university achieves its goals 4 †   California Office of obtaining services at the lowest cost or of the President: best value and of providing vendors with fair It Has Not Adequately access to contracting opportunities, the Office Ensured Compliance of the President should revise the university’s With Its Employee contract manual to incorporate the best Displacement and practices found in the State Contracting Services Contract Manual for limiting the use of amendments to Policies repeatedly extend existing contracts. 2016‑125.1 9. To ensure that the university achieves its 4 †   (August 2017) goals of obtaining services at the lowest cost or best value and of providing vendors with fair access to contracting opportunities, the Office of the President should revise the university’s contract manual to narrow the exemption from competition to only selected professional services, similar to the State Contracting Manual. 15. To maximize benefits from the systemwide 4 September procurement initiative and to ensure that the 2022 university uses those benefits for its teaching, research, and public service missions, the Office of the President should study ways to measure actual procurement benefits—possibly focusing this effort on benefits from larger dollar amounts—and if such measurement is not possible, it should clearly disclose to the regents and the public that the amounts it reports are based on estimates. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 39 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 16. To maximize benefits from the systemwide 4 September procurement initiative and to ensure that the 2022 university uses those benefits for its teaching, research, and public service missions, the Office of the President should, if actual benefits are measurable, implement a process to monitor and report annually to the regents the estimated and actual benefits. The University 1. To meet its commitment to California 5 Will Not of California: residents, the university should replace Implement Its Admissions and its “compare favorably” policy with a Financial Decisions new admission standard for nonresident Have Disadvantaged applicants that reflects the intent of the California Resident Master Plan. The admission standard should Students require campuses to admit only nonresidents with admissions credentials that place them in 2015‑107 the upper half of the residents it admits. (March 2016) 2. To meet its commitment to California 5 Unknown residents, the university should amend its referral process by taking steps to increase the likelihood that referred residents ultimately enroll. 3. To ensure that campuses’ interpretations of 5 Ongoing admission standards do not adversely impact residents, the university should implement a thorough process to annually evaluate the qualifications of students who apply and students who are admitted. These evaluations should highlight instances when campuses admit nonresidents who are less qualified than residents and should include corrective action steps. Moreover, this evaluation should include resident and nonresident undergraduate enrollment in majors at each campus. The university should make the results of this evaluation—including details of the academic qualifications of students who applied and who were admitted— publicly available. 8. To ensure the reasonableness of the 5 Unknown compensation the university pays its executives, it should include—to the extent possible—all items of compensation when setting or adjusting salaries and benefits, when conducting surveys and studies, and when comparing the compensation packages of its executives to those in similar positions outside the university. 10. To improve the transparency and timeliness of 5 Will Not its annual compensation report, the university Implement should streamline the process it uses to prepare the report so it can be issued by April of each year. continued on next page . . . 40 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 12. To maximize the savings and new revenue 5 Ongoing from the Working Smarter initiative and ensure that the university uses them for its academic and research missions, the Office of the President should immediately require that the campuses fully participate in all projects unless they can provide compelling evidence demonstrating a harmful effect. 13. To maximize the savings and new revenue from 5 †  the Working Smarter initiative and ensure that the university uses them for its academic and research missions, the Office of the President should, by June 30, 2016, to the extent possible, implement a process to centrally direct these funds to ensure that campuses use them to support the core academic and research missions of the university. 14. To maximize the savings and new revenue 5 Ongoing from the Working Smarter initiative and ensure that the university uses them for its academic and research missions, the Office of the President should ensure that it substantiates that projects are actually generating savings and new revenue and that it can demonstrate how the university uses these funds. 15. To ensure that its recruiting efforts benefit 5 Will Not residents, the university should prioritize Implement recruiting residents over nonresidents. In particular, the university should focus its recruiting efforts broadly to ensure that it effectively recruits resident underrepresented minorities. For example, the university could establish a limit on the amount of funds it dedicates to nonresident recruiting. Further, it should develop a process to better track its nonresident and resident recruiting expenditures. 16. To determine if the campuses are using 5 †  funds to further the goals of the University of California system and the Legislature, the Office of the President should begin regularly monitoring and analyzing how campuses are using both state funds and nonresident supplemental tuition. If, after the close of the fiscal year, the Office of the President determines that campuses are not using state funds and/or nonresident supplemental tuition in accordance with those goals, the Office of the President should take steps to correct the campuses’ spending decisions as soon as possible. 17. To ensure that it spends state funds prudently 5 †  for programs that do not directly relate to educating students, the university should track spending from state funds for programs that do not relate to educating students. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 41 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 18. To ensure that it spends state funds prudently 5 †  for programs that do not directly relate to educating students, the university should reevaluate these programs each year to determine whether they continue to be necessary to fulfill the university’s mission. 19. To ensure that it spends state funds prudently 5 June for programs that do not directly relate to 2022 educating students, the university should explore whether the programs could be supported with alternate revenue sources. 22. To ensure that its rebenching efforts lead to 5 June equalized per‑student funding among the 2022 campuses, the university should adopt a methodology that it can use, at least every three to five years, to update its weighting system to ensure the weight factors take into account campuses’ actual costs of instruction, using the cost study that we recommend in Chapter 1 and other revenue sources if necessary. 23. To ensure that its rebenching efforts lead to 5 Will Not equalized per‑student funding among the Implement campuses, the university should exclude from its rebenching calculation all state funding it uses for programs that do not directly relate to educating students. The university should exclude these programs only after it has evaluated them in accordance with the recommendation we made previously. The University 1. To protect the fairness and integrity of its 1 †  of California: admissions processes, the Office of the Qualified Students President should establish systemwide Face an Inconsistent protocols for admissions processes by the and Unfair Admissions fall 2021 admissions cycle that prohibit System That Has Been the following: Improperly Influenced • Giving authority to any one person to make by Relationships and a final admissions decision. Monetary Donations • Consideration of an applicant’s familial or 2019‑113 other personal relationships to university (September 2020) staff or faculty in an admissions decision. • Communication between a campus’s development office and its admissions office about applicants and prospective applicants. continued on next page . . . 42 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 2. To protect the campuses’ athletics 1 †  admissions process from abuse, the Office of the President should require each campus to do the following by the fall 2021 admissions cycle: • Have at least two reviewers verify the athletic talent of all prospective student athletes before their admittance. At least one of these reviewers should be from a department other than the athletics department. Each campus should develop standards for the level of talent that prospective student athletes for each of its teams must possess and then use those standards to verify the talent. • Track student athletes’ participation in the sport for which they were recruited. If a student does not participate in the sport for longer than one year, the campus should determine the reason why the athlete stopped participating and, if necessary, conduct a review of the circumstances that led to the student’s admission to identify signs of inappropriate admissions activity. • Review donations to athletic programs to determine whether those donations made before or after an athlete’s admission may have influenced the athletic department’s decision to request the athlete’s admission. 4. Beginning with the fall 2021 admissions cycle, 1 Will Not the Office of the President should oversee Implement UC Berkeley’s admissions process for at least three years. The Office of the President should ensure that all admissions decisions are merit‑based and conform to the university’s policies on admissions. Further, the Office of the President should facilitate the establishment of a culture of ethical conduct in admissions by providing regular training to admissions and development staff, conducting reviews of admissions decisions, and monitoring the admissions office’s communications about applicants to ensure no inappropriate factors influence admissions activities. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 43 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 5. To ensure that the university maintains a fair 1 †  and consistent admissions process, the Office of the President should require each campus to take the following actions: • By March 2021, document and implement a selection methodology that describes how it will choose applicants for admission, particularly when the applicants have received similar ratings from application readers. Further, the selection strategy should specify the reasons why a campus may choose an applicant with a low or uncompetitive rating instead of an applicant with a higher rating. • Develop and implement processes to use when selecting applicants for admission for identifying applicants whom it has selected for admission and who are not eligible for admission to the university, and record their rationale for admitting those applicants despite their ineligibility. 6. To provide assurance that campuses' use 1 †  of the admission by exception policy is aligned with the policy's purpose, beginning in June 2021, the Office of the President should annually select a random sample of applicants admitted by exception and verify that campuses recorded a rationale for each admission and that each rationale aligns with BOARS's guidance. 7. To ensure that the university maintains a fair 1 †  and unbiased admissions process, the Office of the President should require each campus to take the following actions: • By March 2021, establish acceptable levels of application reader proficiency and maintain training and monitoring programs that ensure that its readers attain and sustain those levels. In addition, it should report annually to BOARS on those efforts and on reader consistency levels, including the frequency with which reader ratings align with campus guidelines for rating applications. • Beginning with the academic year 2021–22 admissions cycle, require each campus that does not admit all eligible transfer applicants to ensure that two readers review all transfer applications. • Beginning with the academic year 2021–22 admissions cycle, ensure that the second readers cannot see the ratings of first readers for both freshman and transfer applications. continued on next page . . . 44 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 8. To better ensure that implicit bias in the 1 Will Not evaluation of applications does not affect Implement applicants' chances at admission, the Office of the President should remove potentially biasing information from the application information that campuses can access. 9. To ensure that it properly protects all 1 †  admissions activity against improper influence, the Office of the President should require each campus’s undergraduate admissions office to do the following: • Identify all other campus departments that participate in or provide information that affects admissions decision making. • Obtain, evaluate, and approve a description of the criteria and processes that these departments use in rating and selecting applicants to recommend for admission. • Annually obtain a roster from each of these departments of the individuals who will participate in admissions decision making and their roles and ensure that no single individual is responsible for such decisions in any given department. • Ensure that each individual whom a department includes on the roster it submits has received training on appropriate and inappropriate factors on which to base admissions decisions and has agreed to abide by the campus’s conflict‑of‑interest policies with respect to admissions. 10. To better safeguard the integrity of the 1 †  university’s admissions processes, the Office of the President should, by July 2021, begin conducting regular audits of the admissions processes at each of its undergraduate campuses, ensuring that it reviews each campus at least once every three years. These audits should be conducted by systemwide audit staff and include, but not be limited to, verification of special talents, communication between admissions staff and external parties regarding applicants, and other avenues for inappropriate influence on admissions discussed in this report. The audits should also endeavor to identify inappropriate admissions activity and deficiencies in the admissions process. The Office of the President should make the results of the audits public. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 45 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION University of California, Board of Regents The University of 7. To ensure the ongoing accountability of the 4 †  California Office Office of the President, the regents should C of the President: require it to implement our recommendations It Failed to Disclose Tens and report periodically on its progress. of Millions in Surplus 14. To ensure that the Office of the President’s 4 †  Funds, and Its Budget staffing levels are justified and that costs Practices Are Misleading are reasonable and align with the needs of 2016‑130 campuses and other stakeholders, the regents (April 2017) should require the Office of the President to implement our recommendations and report periodically on its progress. K–12 EDUCATION California Department of Education California Department 1. To strengthen its administrative reviews 4 Will Not of Education: and help ensure that school food authorities Implement It Has Not Ensured That comply with the Buy American requirement, School Food Authorities Education should update its written Comply With the procedures to include a requirement that Federal Buy American reviewers collect and retain evidence for Requirement all items they evaluate for compliance with the Buy American requirement. This update 2016‑139 should occur no later than October 1, 2017. (July 2017) Community 4. To make its appeal process more accessible 3 Will Not Child Care Council of to families who may not receive a satisfactory Implement Santa Clara County: resolution from its contractors, Education Because It should, by October 2018, require that its Disadvantaged Some contractors share key information in their Families and Misused communications with families about the State Funds, It Could process for appealing notices. The required Benefit From Increased information should include valid grounds for a Monitoring by the family to file an appeal as well as information California Department or documentation Education would need in of Education order to review the family’s appeal of adverse decisions regarding their child‑care services. 2017‑116 Education should also require contractors to (April 2018) incorporate this information into contractually mandated staff training and into publicly available policies and procedures. 11. To ensure that its contractors can effectively 3 Will Not make program improvements and maintain Implement successes in ways that are meaningful to their stakeholders, Education should adopt measures to ensure its contractors follow the terms of their contracts by demonstrating that their board members conduct a critical appraisal of each education program. continued on next page . . . 46 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Investigations of 6. Education should work with the California 1 October Improper Activities Department of Human Resources (CalHR) to 2021# J by State Agencies determine whether Education's delegated and Employees: authority to approve higher‑than‑minimum Wasteful and salaries should be withdrawn. If CalHR allows Improper Personnel Education to retain the authority, Education Decisions, Improper should work with CalHR to develop eligibility, Contracting, Conflict review, and documentation criteria for of Interest, Misuse of higher‑than‑minimum salary approval and to State Resources, provide training to HR staff. and Dishonesty I2020‑2 (October 2020)‡ School Library 23. To better understand the condition of school 4 Will Not Services: libraries statewide and to raise stakeholders’ Implement Vague State Laws and awareness of the State Education Board’s a Lack of Monitoring adopted model standards, Education should Allow School Districts to identify school districts that reported Provide a Minimal Level employing significantly fewer teacher of Library Services librarians in fiscal year 2015–16 than in previous years and verify the accuracy of their 2016‑112 fiscal year 2015–16 reports. (November 2016) Student Mental 3. To ensure that all LEAs comply with federal 5 Will Not Health Services: special education requirements, Education Implement T Some Students’ Services should require them to include directly in Were Affected by a a student’s IEP document reasons for any New State Law, and the changes to student placement or services. State Needs to Analyze 8. To enable it to review additional areas of 5 Will Not Student Outcomes and its special education program for quality Implement Track Service Costs assurance, Education should collect 2015‑112 information about the frequency of the (January 2016) provision of each service contained in all students’ IEPs. Education should then use this information to annually review the frequency of mental health services and follow up with SELPAs when it observes a significant reduction in the frequency of services. 9. To ensure that LEAs comply with federal 5 Will Not and state requirements, Education should Implement require all LEAs to use the IEP document to communicate the rationale for residential treatment and any potential harmful effects of such placement. 18. Education should analyze and report to the 5 Will Not Legislature, by May 30, 2016, on the outcomes Implement for students receiving mental health services statewide, including outcomes across the six performance indicators we identified, in order to demonstrate whether those services are effective. Once it has reported this statewide information, Education should provide each LEA throughout the State a report regarding the outcomes for the students the LEA served. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 47 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 20. To ensure that the State knows the amount 5 Will Not LEAs spend to provide mental health Implement services for student IEPs, before the start of the 2017–18 fiscal year, Education should develop, and require all LEAs to follow, an accounting methodology to track and report expenditures related to special education mental health services. 29. To ensure that the State provides special 5 Will Not education and related services to all eligible Implement students, Education should investigate the difference between the estimated number of school aged children statewide who have a severe emotional disturbance and the number receiving mental health services through an IEP and determine the reason for such a discrepancy. Education should then take any steps necessary to assist LEAs in identifying and providing services to children who are severely emotionally disturbed. Uniform Complaint 3. To ensure that it consistently processes 4 December Procedures: complaints and appeals in a timely manner 2022 The California and that it investigates and reviews all UCP Department of complaints and appeals in compliance with Education’s Inadequate state law and regulations, by July 2017 Oversight Has Led to Education should designate a central office a Lack of Uniformity to receive all complaints and appeals. This and Compliance in central office should distribute complaints the Processing of and appeals to the correct divisions for Complaints and Appeals investigation or review. 2016‑109 4. To ensure that it consistently processes 4 December (January 2017) complaints and appeals in a timely manner 2022 and that it investigates and reviews all UCP complaints and appeals in compliance with state law and regulations, by July 2017 Education should designate a central office to receive all complaints and appeals. This central office should establish a single database to record and track all investigations of complaints and reviews of appeals. This database should capture all data necessary for Education to effectively make informed decisions related to UCP complaints or appeals. At a minimum, the database should capture the date on which Education received each complaint or appeal, the date on which it forwarded the complaint or appeal to the appropriate division for investigation or review, and the date on which it sent the decision to the complainant. The database should also include the type of complaint or appeal, the LEA involved, and the decision. continued on next page . . . 48 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 5. To ensure that it consistently processes 4 December complaints and appeals in a timely manner 2022 and that it investigates and reviews all UCP complaints and appeals in compliance with state law and regulations, by July 2017 Education should designate a central office to receive all complaints and appeals. This central office should track the divisions’ progress in processing complaints and appeals to ensure the divisions meet all UCP requirements, including documenting exceptional circumstances that constitute good cause for extending investigations beyond 60 days. 6. To ensure that it consistently processes 4 December complaints and appeals in a timely manner 2022 and that it investigates and reviews all UCP complaints and appeals in compliance with state law and regulations, by July 2017 Education should designate a central office to receive all complaints and appeals. This central office should work with divisions to establish policies and procedures for the divisions to follow when investigating UCP complaints and reviewing appeals. The procedures should identify the individuals or units responsible for investigating complaints and reviewing appeals, the steps and time frames for conducting investigations and reviews, the requirements for issuing decisions, and the documentation that should be retained in the files. 7. To ensure that it consistently processes 4 December complaints and appeals in a timely manner 2022 and that it investigates and reviews all UCP complaints and appeals in compliance with state law and regulations, by July 2017 Education should designate a central office to receive all complaints and appeals. This central office should establish and distribute a standard investigation report format that includes the required elements for the divisions to use when processing UCP complaints. 8. To ensure that it consistently processes 4 December complaints and appeals in a timely manner 2022 and that it investigates and reviews all UCP complaints and appeals in compliance with state law and regulations, by July 2017 Education should designate a central office to receive all complaints and appeals. This central office should monitor the divisions’ decisions and reports on complaints and appeals to ensure that they comply with requirements. 16. To increase the efficiency and effectiveness of 4 Will Not LEAs’ UCP processes, Education should work Implement with those LEAs throughout the State that receive a disproportionately high number of non‑UCP complaints through the UCP process to assess the potential benefits of establishing similar mechanisms. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 49 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 22. To ensure that its regulations are consistent 4 Will Not and align with state and federal requirements, Implement Education should revise its regulations to allow LEAs to extend investigations under exceptional circumstances that constitute good cause if the LEAs document and support with evidence the reasons for the extensions. 23. After it makes the recommended regulatory 4 Will Not changes to allow extensions under exceptional Implement circumstances, Education should review LEAs’ extensions to investigations as part of its Federal Program Monitoring to ensure that LEAs’ documentation is sufficient and that their reasons adequately justify such extensions. Youth Experiencing 34. To ensure that it has the resources necessary 1 Unknown Homelessness: to effectively meet its responsibilities under Y California’s Education federal law, Education should complete a System for K–12 staffing analysis by May 2020 to determine the Inadequately Identifies resources needed to meet its responsibilities and Supports for homeless education. This analysis should These Youth consider the resources needed to implement all of the recommendations in this report. 2019‑104 (November 2019) 35. If Education determines that it needs 1 Unknown additional resources, it should take the necessary steps, including reallocating existing resources within the department, to secure the needed resources. 38. To ensure that all LEAs receive necessary 1 †  guidance and training, Education should review the guidance documents and templates, including the housing questionnaire and poster, that Education makes available on its website for LEAs and ensure that all the documents reflect current best practices. For example, the questionnaire and the posters should include the rights and protections afforded to youth experiencing homelessness and their families to alleviate any apprehensions of identifying themselves as experiencing homelessness. Education should then make all LEAs aware of these revised documents. Youth Suicide 2. To promote the adoption of the best practices 1 November Prevention: that it has identified, Education should remind 2021# AA Local Educational LEAs of the elements in its model policy. To do Agencies Lack the so, it should annually send a notice to all LEAs Resources and Policies that describes suicide prevention resources, Necessary to Effectively such as the model policy, and encourages their Address Rising Rates use. Education should also work with external of Youth Suicide and organizations that maintain model policies, Self‑Harm including the School Boards Association, to encourage the development of policies 2019‑125 that are consistent with state law and best (September 2020) practices by no later than September 2021. continued on next page . . . 50 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 3. To encourage LEAs to incorporate elements 1 November of suicide prevention training that provide 2021# teachers and staff with the knowledge necessary to assist students at risk of self‑harm and suicide, Education should remind all LEAs of the statutorily required elements for suicide prevention training. 4. To support the provision of suicide prevention 1 November education to students at LEAs operating 2021# through distance learning, Education should complete and issue to LEAs the resources and guidance it is developing on how to conduct suicide prevention education remotely. LABOR AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT Department of Industrial Relations Department of 4. To ensure consistency and transparency in 1 May Industrial Relations: overseeing QMEs, DWC should, by April 2020, 2022 Its Failure to Adequately develop and implement written policies and Administer the Qualified procedures that define and specify its internal Medical Evaluator processes for disciplining QMEs, including Process May Delay timelines for taking disciplinary action and Injured Workers’ Access for scheduling hearings or responding to to Benefits settlement proposals. 2019‑102 5. To ensure consistency and transparency in 1 May (November 2019) overseeing QMEs, DWC should, by April 2020, 2022 develop and implement written policies and procedures that define its internal process for reappointing QMEs and how that process should proceed if any disciplinary investigations are pending. Employment Development Department Employment 2. To reduce the risk of identity theft for 2 April Development its claimants before it completes its 2022 Department: modernization project, EDD should, by Its Practice of Mailing December 2021, implement one or more of Documents Containing our proposed solutions or another viable Social Security Numbers solution to discontinue its use of full SSNs as Puts Californians at Risk unique identifiers on all documents that it of Identity Theft mails to claimants. Further, it should prioritize addressing documents with the highest mail 2018‑129 volumes, and it should make changes to these (March 2019) documents by March 2020. When providing us with the status of its implementation of this recommendation at 60 days, six months, and one year after the issuance of this report, and annually thereafter, EDD should note which documents it has addressed since the release of our report, how it has addressed them, and the dates by which it expects to address the remaining documents containing full SSNs that it mails to claimants. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 51 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 3. To ensure that it eliminates any unnecessary 2 December uses of personal information in its external 2021 communications and to ensure that it fully protects its claimants' privacy, EDD should, by May 2019, implement its recently developed plan for reviewing new, revised, and existing documents. EDD should provide documents to us indicating the progress it has made to implement this recommendation at 60 days, six months, and one year following the release of this report. Finally, it should, by December 2021, complete its full review of existing documents and remove any unnecessary instances of personal information. LEGISLATIVE, JUDICIAL, AND EXECUTIVE California Department of Justice Bureau of Gambling 7. To minimize the degree to which its process 2 September Control and California to change its regulations may result in the 2021# G Gambling Control disparate treatment of card room owners, Commission: the bureau should temporarily approve or Their Licensing deny its backlogged games applications by Processes Are Inefficient July 2019. and Foster Unequal 12. To better align the revenue in the Gambling 2 June Treatment of Applicants Fund with the costs of the activities 2021# 2018‑132 that the fund supports, the bureau and (May 2019) the commission should conduct cost analyses of those activities by July 2020. At a minimum, these cost analyses should include the following: • The entities’ personnel costs, operating costs, and any program overhead costs. • Updated time estimates for their core and support activities, such as background investigations. • The cost of their enforcement activities. Using this information, the bureau and commission should reset their regulatory fees to reflect their actual costs. Before conducting its fee study, the bureau should implement our recommendations to improve its processes for assigning applications, ensuring the completeness of applications, and developing time‑reporting protocols. 21. To ensure that it can provide useful and 2 Dependent on accurate data on the locations where Funding enforcement employees spend their time, the bureau should equip its time‑reporting system by November 2019 with the capacity to track all hours employees spend at each card room and casino continued on next page . . . 52 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION California Department 19. To ensure that it has complete disposition 4 †   of Social Services: information, Justice should coordinate with B Its Caregiver the Judicial Council at least once a year to Background Check share information about court reporting Bureau Lacks Criminal gaps and to determine the need to distribute History Information additional information to courts about It Needs to Protect reporting requirements and the manner in Vulnerable Populations which to report. In addition, Justice should in Licensed Care reconvene its advisory committee and meet Facilities on a regular basis to discuss, at a minimum, improving the frequency and timeliness with 2016‑126 which courts report dispositions to Justice (March 2017) and law enforcement agencies report arrest information to Justice. 20. To ensure that it is receiving all arrest 4 Will Not information from law enforcement agencies, Implement at a minimum, Justice should consider trends in the number of arrest reports each law enforcement agency sends it and the number of reports that it might expect to receive from an agency given the agency’s size, location, and reporting history. Whenever Justice identifies a law enforcement agency that it determines may not be reporting all required information, it should request that the agency forward all required arrest information. Hate Crimes 4. To increase the effectiveness of hate crime 3 †  in California: prevention and response efforts, DOJ should Law Enforcement provide additional guidance to law enforcement Has Not Adequately agencies by analyzing reported hate crimes Identified, Reported, in various regions in the State and sending or Responded to advisory notices when it detects hate crimes Hate Crimes happening across multiple jurisdictions. It should also seek the resources to implement 2017‑131 these efforts, if necessary. (May 2018) 7. To ensure that law enforcement agencies 3 †  effectively engage with communities regarding hate crimes, DOJ should provide guidance and best practices for law enforcement agencies to follow when conducting hate crime outreach to vulnerable communities within their jurisdictions, such as collaborating with a county human rights commission. It should make the outreach materials available to law enforcement agencies and should include in them presentation materials for various types of communities, including immigrants and Muslims, among others. It should seek the resources to implement these efforts, if necessary. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 53 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION The CalGang Criminal 10. As the Legislature considers creating a public 5 †   Intelligence System: program for shared gang database oversight As the Result of Its Weak and accountability, Justice should guide Oversight Structure, It the board and the committee to identify Contains Questionable and address the shortcomings that exist in Information That May CalGang’s current operations and oversight. Violate Individuals’ The guidance Justice provides to the board Privacy Rights and the committee should address, but not be limited to, developing best practices 2015‑130 based on the requirements stated in the (August 2016) federal regulations, the state guidelines and state law, and advising user agencies on the implementation of those practices. The best practices should include, but not be limited to reviewing criminal intelligence, appropriately disseminating information, performing robust audit practices, establishing plans to recover from disasters, and meeting all of the State’s juvenile notification law requirements. Justice should guide the board and the committee to develop these best practices by June 30, 2017. 11. As the Legislature considers creating a public 5 †  program for shared gang database oversight and accountability, Justice should guide the board and the committee to identify and address the shortcomings that exist in CalGang’s current operations and oversight. The guidance Justice provides to the board and the committee should address, but not be limited to, instructing user agencies that use CalGang to complete a comprehensive review of all the gangs documented in CalGang to determine if they meet the necessary requirements for inclusion and to purge from CalGang any groups that do not meet the requirements. Justice should guide the board and the committee to ensure that user agencies complete this review in phases, with the final phase to be completed by June 30, 2018. continued on next page . . . 54 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 12. As the Legislature considers creating a public 5 †  program for shared gang database oversight and accountability, Justice should guide the board and the committee to identify and address the shortcomings that exist in CalGang’s current operations and oversight. The guidance Justice provides to the board and the committee should address, but not be limited to, instructing all user agencies to complete a comprehensive review of the records in CalGang to determine if the user agencies have adequate support for the criteria associated with all the individuals they have entered as gang members. If the user agencies do not have adequate support, they should immediately purge the criteria—and, if necessary, the individuals—from CalGang. In addition, the user agencies should ensure that all the fields in each CalGang record are accurate. Justice should guide the board and the committee to ensure that user agencies complete this review in phases, with the final phase to be completed by September 30, 2019. California Department of Tax and Fee Administration§ State Board of 2. Unless the Legislature directs the board 5 †  Equalization: to eliminate the compliance fund’s excess Its Tobacco Tax fund balance within a time frame of more Enforcement Efforts than a year, the board should eliminate the Are Effective and excess fund balance by June 30, 2017 by Properly Funded, but using it to offset the licensing program’s Other Funding Options annual funding shortfall. The board should and Cost Savings also limit the fund’s future balance to no Are Possible more than two months’ worth of licensing program expenditures. 2015‑119 (March 2016) The Bradley‑Burns 6. To help address California’s e‑commerce tax 3 Will Not Tax and Local gap and further ensure out‑of‑state retailers’ Implement Transportation Funds: compliance with state law regarding nexus, Changing the Allocation Tax Administration should implement a Structure for the two‑year pilot of its authorized reward Bradley‑Burns Tax program for information resulting in the Would Result in a More identification of unreported sales and Equitable Distribution use taxes. of Local Transportation Funding 2017‑106 (November 2017) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 55 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services California Is Not 12. To ensure that it fulfills its responsibilities 1 October Adequately Prepared under state law, Cal OES should, by no later 2022 X to Protect Its Most than June 2020, issue the guidance that state Vulnerable Residents law requires it to produce related to access From Natural Disasters and functional needs, including guidance related to establishing disaster registries and 2019‑103 guidance on evacuating people with access (December 2019) and functional needs. 13. To ensure that it adequately equips local 1 †   jurisdictions to send alert and warning messages in languages that their residents will easily understand, Cal OES should do the following: provide clear direction to individuals who speak English so that they know which of the translated messages they should use in what specific circumstances; revise the messages it has provided so that local jurisdictions can more easily adapt them for use in a variety of disaster situations; expand its style guide to include terminology that emergency managers are likely to need to effectively modify their local messages and also to include translations for the other commonly spoken languages in the State. California State Lottery Commission California State Lottery: 4. To adhere to the Lottery Act's education 1 Will Not The Lottery Has funding requirements, beginning with Implement Not Ensured That It fiscal year 2020‑21, the Lottery Commission Maximizes Funding should require its staff to demonstrate that for Education they have planned for education funding to be maximized and aligned with the 2019‑112 proportionality requirement of the Lottery (February 2020) Act, and approve only those budgets that plan for such funding. It should then monitor actual education funding and ensure that it complies with the requirement. 7. To ensure that it receives value for the funding 1 Unknown it spends on its fairs program, by January 2021, the Lottery should determine whether the program has increased its brand strength, customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, ticket sales, and profits. If the analysis determines that the Lottery has not achieved these benefits, it should terminate the program. continued on next page . . . 56 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Commission on Judicial Performance Commission on 14. To maximize the resources available for its 2 Unknown Judicial Performance: core functions, CJP should immediately begin Weaknesses in Its exploring options for relocating its office to a Oversight Have Created less expensive location and relocate as soon Opportunities for as possible. Judicial Misconduct to Persist 15. To ensure that it obtains the resources 2 May 2022 necessary to fulfill its mission, CJP should 2016‑137 report to the Legislature by May of each of the (April 2019) next three years about the following: • Its progress in implementing our recommendations and any associated effects on its workload. • The steps it has taken to realize efficiencies in its operations. • Its evaluation of whether the investigations manager is a full‑time position and any funding it will need in the future to support that position. • Its progress in purchasing and implementing a new electronic case management system. • Its progress in relocating its office space to a more affordable location. • Any savings or unforeseen costs arising from the changes we identify above. Secretary of State’s Office Santa Clara County 11. The Secretary of State should adopt 4 December Registrar of Voters: regulations establishing clear criteria for 2022 Insufficient Policies mistakes in election‑related materials that and Procedures Have constitute reportable errors and require Led to Errors That May counties to report these errors to it after Have Reduced Voters’ each election. Confidence in the 12. Beginning in December 2018, the Secretary 4 December Registrar’s Office of State should implement annual risk‑based 2022 2017‑107 reviews of a selection of county election (October 2017) officials' offices to ensure their compliance with state election laws and regulations. 13. To inform and enhance the guidance it 4 December provides to county election officials, the 2022 Secretary of State should analyze error reports and its risk‑based review results to focus its guidance on topics most relevant to improving elections throughout the State. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 57 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION State Bar of California State Bar of California: 10. To ensure that it maximizes the revenue from 2 Unknown It Should Balance its San Francisco building, State Bar should Fee Increases With lease all available space and ensure that Other Actions to its leases reflect market rates. Raise Revenue and 11. To ensure that it maximizes the revenue from 2 Unknown Decrease Costs its San Francisco building, in the event of any 2018‑030 future staff growth, State Bar should avoid (April 2019) adding space by reducing its space allocations when practical to more closely match industry standards. The State Bar 6. To assign purchasing cards only to 4 †   of California: appropriate staff, ensure that the State Bar's It Needs Additional records of employees' credit limits reflect Revisions to Its Expense those established with the bank, and to Policies to Ensure That It verify that staff use purchasing cards only for Uses Funds Prudently allowable and necessary expenses, the State Bar should immediately develop a policy that 2017‑030 requires justification of the business needs (June 2017) for employees to receive purchasing cards, and use this policy to limit the number of staff issued a purchasing card. 7. To assign purchasing cards only to 4 †   appropriate staff, ensure that the State Bar's records of employees' credit limits reflect those established with the bank, and to verify that staff use purchasing cards only for allowable and necessary expenses, the State Bar should immediately restrict the use of purchasing cards to its original purpose, which was for low‑dollar and frequently occurring purchases. For purchases above $5,000, the State Bar should require the vendor to bill for payment. 9. To ensure that its costs are reasonable and 4 †   appropriate, the State Bar should update its meal and catering policy to align with the meal policy of the State's Executive Branch and should require individuals attending committee meetings for the State Bar to comply with standard meal per diem rates. State Controller’s Office Investigations of 24. The SCO should determine whether other 2 Pending Improper Activities managers or supervisors at the SCO also by State Agencies allowed employees to informally switch and Employees: their RDOs. If so, the SCO should review Inefficient Management the attendance records for the relevant of State Resources, employees to verify that they accurately Misuse of State recorded their time off and hours worked. Time and Inaccurate To the extent that the SCO determines Attendance Records, other employees improperly accounted and Inadequate for their time, the SCO should recover Supervision any overpayments or adjust their leave balances accordingly. I2019‑2 (April 2019)‡ continued on next page . . . 58 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION DATE OF AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE COMPLETION THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Superior Court of California, County of San Mateo Judicial Branch 13. To ensure that it properly authorizes 4 Will Not Procurement: payments and purchases only allowable Implement The Five Superior Courts items, the San Mateo court should We Reviewed Mostly process payments in accordance with the Adhered to Required requirements and recommended practices of and Recommended the Judicial Council and the State. Specifically, Practices, but Some the San Mateo court should amend its bottled Improvements water service contract to ensure that water is Are Needed purchased for use by jurors and court room staff only. 2016‑301 (November 2016) NATURAL RESOURCES Department of Water Resources Department of 7. To ensure that DWR manages WaterFix in an 4 June Water Resources: effective manner, DWR should complete both 2024 The Unexpected the economic analysis and financial analysis Complexity of the for WaterFix and make the analyses publicly California WaterFix available as soon as possible. Project Has Resulted in Significant Cost Increases and Delays 2016‑132 (October 2017) TRANSPORTATION California High‑Speed Rail Authority California High‑Speed 4. To enable policymakers and the public to 2 †  Rail Authority: track the Authority's progress toward meeting Its Flawed Decision the federal grant deadline of December 2022, Making and Poor the Authority should, by January 2019, begin Contract Management providing quarterly updates to the Legislature Have Contributed to detailing the progress of the three Central Billions in Cost Overruns Valley construction projects using an earned and Delays in the value model that compares construction System’s Construction progress to the projected total completion cost and date. The Authority should 2018‑108 base these updates on the most current (November 2018) estimates available. 5. To ensure that it is adequately prepared if it 2 †   is unable to meet the federal grant deadline of December 2022, the Authority should, by May 2019, develop a contingency plan for responding to such a scenario. † Contrary to the State Auditor’s determination, the audited agency believes it has fully implemented the recommendation. ‡ Before publishing a report of an investigation, the State Auditor provides the head of each department or agency involved with a copy of the investigative report, including any recommendations. Therefore, in calculating how long a recommendation has been outstanding, the State Auditor uses the date the investigative report was provided to the department or agency, not the date the report was published. § In July 2017, the State Board of Equalization was restructured and transferred certain duties to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. # In its latest response, the audited agency did not update its estimated date of completion. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 59 January 2022 Table 3 Recommendations Made to Nonstate Entities That Are More Than One Year Old and Are Still Not Fully Implemented (Reports Issued From November 2015 Through October 2020) STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION NONSTATE ENTITIES Acton‑Agua Dulce Unified School District Charter Schools: 11. To ensure that it has a method to hold charter 4 †  Some School schools accountable for their educational M Districts Improperly programs, Acton‑Agua Dulce Unified should, Authorized and as a best practice, strengthen its authorization Inadequately Monitored process by using the State Education Board’s Out‑of‑District criteria for evaluating petitions. Charter Schools 13. To ensure compliance with state law, 4 †  2016‑141 Acton‑Agua Dulce Unified should (October 2017) immediately review petitions to ensure they include all of the requirements in state law at the time of their approval. 18. To better ensure effective oversight of its 4 †  charter schools’ finances, Acton‑Agua Dulce Unified should place a district representative as a nonvoting member on each charter school’s governing board. Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Correctional Officer 27. To ensure that it is able to identify high 3 †   Health and Safety: risk situations and deter repeat offenders, W Some State and County Santa Rita should specifically track all gassing Correctional Facilities attacks and use the tracking data as a tool to Could Better Protect prevent future gassing attacks. Their Officers From the Health Risks of Certain Inmate Attacks 2018‑106 (September 2018) Alum Rock Union School District Alum Rock Union 3. To strengthen its ability to oversee district 2 November Elementary expenditures, the board should require the 2021# School District: district by August 2019 to prepare monthly The District and summaries that report the total amounts Its Board Must it paid to each of its contractors, along Improve Governance with descriptions of the purpose of those and Operations to payments, and to include the summaries Effectively Serve the with the monthly warrant lists it provides to Community the board. 2018‑131 5. By November 2019, the district should 2 †   (May 2019) develop contract monitoring procedures with defined staff roles and responsibilities, including retaining evidence of monitoring efforts. The district should also train its staff to follow these procedures. continued on next page . . . 60 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 6. By November 2019, the district should 2 June develop procedures specifying a designated 2021# location for staff to retain contracts and related documentation and identifying those staff who are responsible for ensuring that these documents are stored appropriately. The district should also train staff to follow these procedures. 7. By November 2019, the district should 2 †   work with the county office to ensure that its new financial system includes unique identifiers for contract payment authorization documents. 8. To identify its contracted personnel's 2 †   potential conflicts of interest, the district should develop and implement a process by November 2019 to assess whether contracted personnel should be classified as consultants and are therefore subject to the district's code for disclosing financial interests. 9. The district should immediately follow its 2 †   conflict‑of‑interest code to ensure that all required individuals file Forms 700. 12. To ensure compliance with government 2 †  transparency laws in future meetings, the board should ensure that it publicly identifies all parties involved in real estate negotiations prior to entering closed sessions. 17. To ensure that it provides a clear strategic 2 January direction for the district, the board should 2020# develop a vision and establish goals for the district by November 2019 and regularly monitor progress toward achieving these goals, as district policy requires. 19. To increase the board's accountability and 2 †   ensure the prudent spending of district funds, the board should implement procedures by August 2019 requiring that its members document on their requests for reimbursement how their travel complies with district policy. 22. To demonstrate its commitment to 2 †   improving its governance over the district's operations, the board should immediately direct district staff to track and prioritize the implementation of the remaining outstanding recommendations from the FCMAT audit report. The board should also direct staff to analyze the recommendations relating to its terminated contracts with Del Terra, identify those recommendations that will continue to be relevant after the appointment of a new construction manager and a new program manager, and implement policies to strengthen the district's monitoring of those contractors. The board should then monitor the status of the recommendations to ensure their implementation. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 61 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 24. To reinforce the ethical principles, laws, 2 †   and policies that the board must follow, the district should establish a policy by July 2019 to provide biennial training to board members on ethics, applicable government transparency, conflict‑of‑interest requirements, and district policies. 26. To ensure that the bond committee 2 †  includes representatives from all required constituencies, the district should verify and document representation of the committee members that the board appoints. 28. To ensure that district staff have appropriate 2 †   guidance when awarding contracts under emergency conditions, the district should create and implement by November 2019 policies and procedures describing the protocol for awarding emergency contracts, including the use of the district's standard contracting forms. The district should also train staff to follow these policies and procedures. Antelope Valley Union High School District Charter Schools: 30. To better ensure effective oversight of its 4 Will Not Some School charter schools’ finances, Antelope Valley Implement M Districts Improperly Union should place a district representative Authorized and as a nonvoting member on each charter Inadequately Monitored school’s governing board. Out‑of‑District Charter Schools 2016‑141 (October 2017) Bakersfield College Clery Act 19. To ensure Bakersfield requests and reports 3 July Requirements and Clery Act crimes from local law enforcement, 2022 N Crime Reporting: the institution should by August 2018 Compliance Continues create and begin following a procedure, to Challenge California’s in conjunction with a written agreement Colleges and with local law enforcement, to obtain crime Universities statistics for the annual security report. 2017‑032 (May 2018) Butte County California Is Not 2. To best prepare to protect and care for 1 †  Adequately Prepared people with access and functional needs, X to Protect Its Most the county should revise its emergency Vulnerable Residents plans by following the best practices that we From Natural Disasters included in our report. The county should begin implementing these practices as soon 2019‑103 as possible. By no later than March 2020, (December 2019) the county should develop a schedule for completing updates to its emergency plans. continued on next page . . . 62 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 5. To ensure that the county maintains updated 1 Will Not emergency plans that are consistent with Implement current best practices, the county should adopt ordinances establishing requirements for the frequency with which the county must update its emergency plans and should set that frequency at no greater than five years. 8. To ensure that the county’s emergency 1 Will Not planning efforts more fully account for people Implement with access and functional needs in the future, the county should adopt county ordinances that require the county’s emergency managers to do the following during each update to the county’s emergency plans: when planning to protect people with access and functional needs, adhere to the best practices and guidance that FEMA, Cal OES, and other relevant authorities have issued; report publicly to the boards of supervisors during emergency planning about the steps they have taken to address access and functional needs; consult periodically with a committee of community groups that represent people with a variety of access and functional needs; require that representatives of the community group committees present to the board of supervisors their review of the adequacy of the emergency plans. Central Basin Municipal Water District Central Basin Municipal 23. To ensure it is efficiently using its resources, 5 Will Not Water District: the district should eliminate its board Implement Its Board of Directors members’ automobile or transportation Has Failed to Provide the allowances and instead reimburse them Leadership Necessary for based on their business mileage or It to Effectively Fulfill Its transit use. Responsibilities 2015‑102 (December 2015) Cerritos College California 11. To ensure that all instructors are aware of 3 †   Community Colleges: the accessibility standards for instructional U The Colleges Reviewed materials, Cerritos should include in its Are Not Adequately next collective bargaining negotiations a Monitoring Services requirement for instructors to periodically for Technology attend accessibility trainings. Accessibility, and 13. To ensure that its technology master plan 3 †  Districts and Colleges supports the strategic goals of the district, Should Formalize Cerritos should update its master plan by Procedures for June 2018, and should ensure that the plan Upgrading Technology includes detailed steps to accomplish its goals. 2017‑102 14. To increase the transparency of its annual 3 †  (December 2017) review process, by June 2018, Cerritos should establish procedures requiring its departments to document attendees, input received, and agreements reached during meetings to consider instructional technology equipment requests. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 63 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Charter Academy of the Redwoods Youth Suicide 7. To ensure that their teachers and staff 1 †  Prevention: have the information necessary to respond AA Local Educational consistently, promptly, and appropriately to Agencies Lack the reduce suicide risk, the six LEAs we reviewed Resources and Policies should revise their policies by March 2021 to Necessary to Effectively comply with state law and incorporate the Address Rising Rates best practices in Education's model policy. of Youth Suicide and 19. To improve their students' access to mental 1 †  Self‑Harm health professionals, Kern High School 2019‑125 District, Ukiah Unified, Gateway Charter, (September 2020) Redwoods Charter, and Heartland Charter should coordinate with their respective counties to request MHSA funding to employ additional school counselors, school nurses, school social workers, and school psychologists. City of Irvine City of Irvine: 2. To improve fiscal accountability and 5 Will Not Poor Governance of to ensure that audits are performed to Implement the $1.7 Million Review appropriate standards, Irvine should adopt of the Orange County an internal audit function by December 2017. Great Park Needlessly 6. To make certain that Irvine complies with 5 Will Not Compromised the the intent of competitive bidding for Implement Review’s Credibility professional services, beginning immediately 2015‑116 it should not include provisions in its RFPs for (August 2016) potential future services that are above and beyond the desired scope of work. 9. To maintain appropriate, transparent fiscal 5 Will Not accountability, Irvine should amend city Implement contracting and purchasing policies by December 2016 to make certain that all of its contracts and contract amendments with a proposed cost exceeding the threshold requiring city council or other approval receive the appropriate approvals, including approval for sole‑source contracts. Further, city policies should require appropriate approvals when increases in spending authority are accomplished through a purchase order or other means. 10. To provide the public with adequate 5 Will Not information regarding the city council’s Implement spending decisions, Irvine’s city council should, by December 2016, include in its policies a requirement that motions by the council to appropriate revenue to fund a specific contract should name the recipients and proposed use of the funds. continued on next page . . . 64 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 11. To foster public confidence in its processes 5 Will Not and findings, Irvine should conduct Implement self‑initiated investigations, reviews, or audits in an open and transparent manner that ensures independence. Specifically, Irvine should not establish advisory bodies exempt from open meeting laws to oversee these investigations, reviews, or audits. Instead, any required reports from contractors conducting such investigations, reviews, or audits should go to the city council or a standing committee of the city council to be discussed in either open or closed session, as appropriate. City of Irwindale City of Irwindale: 1. To address the structural deficit in 4 †  It Must Exercise More its general fund, the city should seek Fiscal Responsibility long‑term solutions to balance its budget Over Its Spending So so that its expenditures do not exceed its That It Can Continue to revenues. These solutions should include Provide Core Services eliminating the reliance on one‑time gains to Residents to fund ongoing expenses and identifying opportunities to further reduce spending. 2016‑111 The city should document its approach in a (November 2016) long‑term financial plan that should account for the following: a forecast of at least five to 10 years into the future, updates to long‑term planning activities as needed to provide direction to the budget process, and an analysis of its financial status; revenue and expenditure forecasts; and plan‑monitoring mechanisms, such as a scorecard of key indicators of financial health. 2. To ensure that employee compensation 4 †  aligns with job statements, the city should review its salary incentives and modify the eligibility criteria so that they match the job requirements. 3. Considering that the city’s retirement benefits 4 Will Not are more generous than those of most Implement comparable cities, and in light of its financial situation, the city should reduce its employee benefits costs by negotiating with employee bargaining groups and key management employees for the elimination of further city contributions to the PARS supplemental benefit plan or at least and increase in participant contributions to cover the full employee share of the plan’s costs, recognizing that under California case law the city may not destroy vested pension rights legislatively. 4. To minimize the use of its reserves to reduce 4 Will Not long‑term liabilities, the city should annually Implement determine whether it has sufficient funding to cash out employee leave balances. Additionally, in future labor negotiations, the city should explore the possibility of eliminating or reducing voluntary leave balance cash‑outs by employees, and eliminate sick leave cash‑outs altogether. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 65 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 6. To reduce costs, the city should consider 4 Will Not eliminating its current resident prescription Implement drug benefit program and replacing it with the prescription discount card program offered by the League of California Cities that would provide discounts on prescriptions to residents at no cost to the city. 7. If the city chooses not to participate in the 4 Will Not prescription discount card program offered Implement by the League of California Cities, it should at least take the following step related to its current prescription drug benefit program: Align its prescription drug benefit program with its established purpose —to treat conditions proven to be caused or worsened by the city’s mining activities—and limit the availability of benefits to only those medications approved for the treatment of such conditions. 8. If the city chooses not to participate in 4 Will Not the prescription discount card program Implement offered by the League of California Cities, it should at least reduce the cost of its current prescription drug benefit program by enacting limits‑‑similar to those in its resident vision benefits‑‑on the number or dollar amount of prescriptions an individual can receive each year. 9. To reduce the costs of its resident 4 Will Not prescription drug benefit program, the city Implement council should follow the recommendations of its consultant by approving the following: align copayments by increasing those paid by residents 50 years of age and older to the same level as those paid by residents who are 49 years or younger. 10. To reduce the costs of its resident 4 Will Not prescription drug benefit program, the city Implement council should follow the recommendations of its consultant by approving the following: implement coordination of benefits provisions, where applicable, to designate the city as a secondary payer to residents’ primary insurance coverage. 11. To eliminate the need for police officer 4 Will Not overtime, the city should evaluate the Implement possibility of contracting for police services with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department or another law enforcement agency as an alternative to operating its own police department. 13. While the city is considering 4 Will Not recommendation #11, and if it should choose Implement not to contract for police services, it should promote public safety and equity among its police officers by implementing a rotational order for scheduled overtime to prevent some officers from working excessive shifts. continued on next page . . . 66 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 16. The Housing Authority should consider 4 Will Not options to provide low‑income housing Implement opportunities to more people. Additionally, if the Housing Authority intends to continue providing low‑income housing opportunities in the future, the city should examine the available funding mechanisms to continue providing low‑income housing before it exhausts its Housing Authority Fund balance. 17. To ensure that all residents have an equal 4 June chance to participate in the Housing 2025 Authority’s housing programs, the city should remove the long‑term residency priorities from any future housing programs. City of Lincoln City of Lincoln: 1. To ensure that it complies with state law, 2 August Financial Lincoln should immediately review all of its 2022 Mismanagement, outstanding interfund loans to determine Insufficient whether the borrowing funds can repay Accountability, and the loans according to the terms. For any Lax Oversight Threaten loan that is from a restricted fund and that the City’s Stability does not have the capacity to be repaid, Lincoln should develop a plan that ensures 2018‑110 repayment within a reasonable time frame, (March 2019) including seeking possible alternative financing or revenue sources, such as the general fund, bonds, one‑time revenue, or a tax increase, to address the obligation. 17. To ensure that it applies the correct fee 2 August credits to developers, Lincoln should develop 2022 policies and procedures by September 2019 for establishing fee credits and maintaining adequate documentation to justify modifications to fee credits, including credits it awards based on changes in fee schedules and updated development agreements. City of Novato Residential 2. To ensure that it is aware of the degree of 5 Will Not Building Records: property owners’ compliance with its resale Implement L The Cities of San Rafael, record ordinance, Novato should implement Novato, and Pasadena procedures that can help it monitor the sale Need to Strengthen the or exchange of properties that require resale Implementation of Their record inspections. The city should work with Resale Record Programs applicable stakeholders, such as realtors, to aid in this effort. 2015‑134 (March 2016) 5. To verify that new property owners are aware 5 Will Not of the health and safety concerns at their Implement properties and any corrections they need to make, Novato should develop a process to ensure that it receives homeowners’ cards. 34. To ensure that the resale record fees it charges 5 Will Not is appropriate, Novato should establish a time Implement frame to periodically determine whether the fees are commensurate with the cost of administering the resale record program. The city should ensure that it retains any documentation used to support its analyses and any subsequent adjustments to fees. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 67 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION City of Pasadena Residential 9. To ensure that it can monitor the satisfaction 5 †   Building Records: individuals have with the resale record L The Cities of San Rafael, program and that it has a uniform approach Novato, and Pasadena for resolving complaints, Pasadena should Need to Strengthen the develop a formal process for tracking the Implementation of Their complaints it receives. In addition, Pasadena Resale Record Programs should develop a formal policy that describes how staff should evaluate complaints, and it 2015‑134 should document its activities associated with (March 2016) resolving complaints, such as the resolution and the rationale for the resolution. The city should also establish a designated location in its database to record this information. 40. If Pasadena subsequently requires its resale 5 Will Not record inspectors to have International Code Implement Council certifications, it should ensure that those staff maintain them in good standing to perform their necessary job functions. County of Alameda Dually Involved Youth: 9. Alameda County probation department should 5 December The State Cannot update its existing procedures to ensure 2022 K Determine the that its staff are accurately recording family Effectiveness of Efforts reunification service components within the to Serve Youth Who statewide case management system. Are Involved in Both the Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice Systems 2015‑115 (February 2016) County of Fresno Indian Gaming Special 1. If the Legislature appropriates funding from 4 Depends on Distribution Fund: the distribution fund for mitigation grants Legislative The Method Used to in the future, to comply with state law, Action Mitigate Casino Impacts the benefit committee for Fresno County Has Changed, and should ensure that it obtains sufficient Two Counties’ Benefit documentation from grant applicants to Committees Did Not demonstrate that the requested funding Ensure Compliance represents the correct proportionate share of With State Law When the costs attributable to casino impacts. Awarding Grants 2. If the Legislature appropriates funding from 4 Depends on 2016‑036 the distribution fund for mitigation grants Legislative (March 2017) in future years, Fresno County’s benefit Action committee should revise its procedures to include specific steps to verify that grantees will place grant funds into interest‑bearing accounts when awarding any mitigation grants. These steps should include requiring grantees to report the interest accrued in their quarterly reports and to substantiate those reports with bank statements or other reports of interest earned, and following up with the grantee when the grantee reports no earned interest for the period. continued on next page . . . 68 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION County of Los Angeles County Pay Practices: 7. To ensure that they consistently demonstrate 5 Will Not Although the Counties that candidates are hired for permanent Implement We Visited Have Rules in civil service positions based on valid and Place to Ensure Fairness, job‑related criteria, regardless of their Data Show That a Gender sex, each county should develop policies Wage Gap Still Exists requiring hiring managers to document the reasons why they chose the selected 2015‑132 candidate over others from the certified (May 2016) eligibility list. County of Santa Clara Dually Involved Youth: 16. To identify their population of dually involved 5 Will Not The State Cannot youth, Santa Clara County’s CWS and Implement K Determine the probation agencies should designate the data Effectiveness of Efforts system they will use for tracking the dates and to Serve Youth Who results of joint assessment hearings. Are Involved in Both 22. To identify their population of dually 5 Will Not the Child Welfare and involved youth, Santa Clara County’s CWS Implement Juvenile Justice Systems and probation agencies should provide 2015‑115 guidance or training to staff on recording (February 2016) joint assessment hearing information consistently within the designated system. County of Sonoma California Is Not 3. To best prepare to protect and care for 1 January Adequately Prepared people with access and functional needs, 2022 X to Protect Its Most the county should revise its emergency Vulnerable Residents plans by following the best practices that we From Natural Disasters included in our report. The county should begin implementing these practices as soon 2019‑103 as possible. By no later than March 2020, (December 2019) the county should develop a schedule for completing updates to its emergency plans. 9. To ensure that the county's emergency 1 †  planning efforts more fully account for people with access and functional needs in the future, the county should adopt county ordinances that require the county's emergency managers to do the following during each update to the county's emergency plans: when planning to protect people with access and functional needs, adhere to the best practices and guidance that FEMA, Cal OES, and other relevant authorities have issued; report publicly to the boards of supervisors during emergency planning about the steps they have taken to address access and functional needs; consult periodically with a committee of community groups that represent people with a variety of access and functional needs; require that representatives of the community group committees present to the board of supervisors their review of the adequacy of the emergency plans. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 69 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION County of Ventura California Is Not 4. To best prepare to protect and care for 1 †   Adequately Prepared people with access and functional needs, X to Protect Its Most the county should revise its emergency Vulnerable Residents plans by following the best practices that we From Natural Disasters included in our report. The county should begin implementing these practices as soon 2019‑103 as possible. By no later than March 2020, (December 2019) the county should develop a schedule for completing updates to its emergency plans. 7. To ensure that the county maintains updated 1 June emergency plans that are consistent with 2021# current best practices, the county should adopt ordinances establishing requirements for the frequency with which the county must update its emergency plans and should set that frequency at no greater than five years. 10. To ensure that the county's emergency 1 June planning efforts more fully account for 2021# people with access and functional needs in the future, the county should adopt county ordinances that require the county's emergency managers to do the following during each update to the county's emergency plans: when planning to protect people with access and functional needs, adhere to the best practices and guidance that FEMA, Cal OES, and other relevant authorities have issued; report publicly to the boards of supervisors during emergency planning about the steps they have taken to address access and functional needs; consult periodically with a committee of community groups that represent people with a variety of access and functional needs; require that representatives of the community group committees present to the board of supervisors their review of the adequacy of the emergency plans. Fallen Leaf Lake Community Services District Fallen Leaf Lake 7. To rectify the excessive reimbursement 2 †   Community Services amounts it received for strike team District: assignments, the district should, by Its Billing Practices December 31, 2019, develop and implement and Small Electorate a plan for returning to the paying agencies Jeopardize Its Ability to the excessive reimbursements it received for Provide Services 2016 through 2018. 2018‑133 8. To rectify the excessive reimbursement 2 June (July 2019) amounts it received for strike team 2021# assignments, the district should, by December 31, 2019, work with Cal OES to identify the amounts of excess reimbursements the district received for 2013 through 2015 and then develop and implement a plan for returning those amounts to the paying agency. continued on next page . . . 70 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 10. To improve its financial viability and 2 June safeguard its ability to continue providing 2021# services to the Fallen Leaf Lake community, the district should, by December 31, 2019, monitor the financial risks it may face in the future, forecast their impact on its finances and budget, and plan and implement appropriate changes to its budget as necessary throughout the fiscal year. 11. To improve its financial viability and 2 June safeguard its ability to continue providing 2021# services to the Fallen Leaf Lake community, the district should, by December 31, 2019, limit the extent to which it relies on volatile revenue sources to balance its budget. 13. To improve its financial viability and safeguard 2 September its ability to continue providing services to 2020# the Fallen Leaf Lake community, the district should, by December 31, 2019, develop a five‑year forecast of estimated revenues and expenditures and a plan to guide its decisions and actions in the event of fluctuations. Foothill‑De Anza Community College District California 15. To ensure that it is fulfilling requests for 3 †   Community Colleges: alternate media services from students with U The Colleges Reviewed disabilities in a timely manner, by June 2018, Are Not Adequately De Anza should establish procedures for Monitoring Services monitoring its timeliness in responding for Technology to such requests so that it can periodically Accessibility, and Districts review its performance in completing the and Colleges Should requests. Specifically, it should record Formalize Procedures for and track sufficient information to be able Upgrading Technology to review how long it takes to complete requests. Additionally, De Anza should 2017‑102 calculate the number of days it takes to (December 2017) complete requests, and periodically evaluate its performance against its time‑frame goals. Further, to evaluate its performance, De Anza should establish a time‑frame goal for completing alternate media requests. 16. To ensure that it promptly addresses any 3 †   complaints it receives related to web accessibility and alternate media requests, De Anza should follow its new procedures for tracking and reviewing complaints related to accessibility. 17. To ensure that students with disabilities 3 †   have equal access to instructional materials, by June 2018, De Anza should develop procedures to monitor and periodically review the accessibility of instructional materials. For example, De Anza could develop an accessibility checklist for instructors to complete when developing or selecting instructional materials, from which the college could periodically review a sample of course content to ensure that instructors completed the checklist and that the instructional materials comply with accessibility standards. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 71 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 18. To ensure that its website complies with 3 †   accessibility standards, by June 2018, De Anza should develop procedures to monitor website accessibility and incorporate steps to prevent instructors from publishing inaccessible content on the college’s website. These procedures should include a tracking mechanism to demonstrate how many accessibility errors the college identifies and how long it takes to fix those errors. 19. To ensure that all instructors are aware of 3 †   the accessibility standards for instructional materials, De Anza should include in its next collective bargaining negotiations a requirement for instructors to periodically attend accessibility trainings. 21. To increase the transparency of its annual 3 †   review process, by June 2018, De Anza should establish procedures requiring its departments to document attendees, input received, and agreements reached during meetings to consider instructional technology equipment requests. Fresno Police Department Automated License 1. To ensure that its ALPR policy contains all of 1 †  Plate Readers: the required elements as specified in state R To Better Protect law, by August 2020, Fresno should review Individuals’ Privacy, its policy and draft or revise it as necessary. Law Enforcement Must Also by August 2020, Fresno should post its Increase Its Safeguards revised policy on its website in accordance for the Data It Collects with state law. 2019‑118 3. To protect ALPR data to the appropriate 1 †  (February 2020) standard, by August 2020 Fresno should perform an assessment of its ALPR system data‑security features, and make adjustments to its system configuration where necessary to comply with CJIS policy best practices based on that assessment. 9. To ensure that ALPR system access is 1 †  limited to agency staff who have a need and a right to use ALPR data, by April 2020 Fresno should review all user accounts and deactivate accounts for separated employees, inactive users, and others as necessary. continued on next page . . . 72 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Heartland Charter School Youth Suicide 9. To ensure that their teachers and staff 1 †  Prevention: have the information necessary to respond AA Local Educational consistently, promptly, and appropriately to Agencies Lack the reduce suicide risk, the six LEAs we reviewed Resources and Policies should revise their policies by March 2021 to Necessary to Effectively comply with state law and incorporate the Address Rising Rates best practices in Education’s model policy. of Youth Suicide and 15. To ensure that their teachers and staff 1 †  Self‑Harm have the knowledge necessary to identify 2019‑125 and assist students at risk of self‑harm and (September 2020) suicide, the six LEAs we reviewed should do the following: • Revise their suicide prevention training materials by June 2021 to align with state law and incorporate the best practices in Education’s model policy. • LEAs that provide suicide prevention training should conduct it at the beginning of the school year. 21. To improve their students’ access to mental 1 †  health professionals, Kern High School District, Ukiah Unified, Gateway Charter, Redwoods Charter, and Heartland Charter should coordinate with their respective counties to request MHSA funding to employ additional school counselors, school nurses, school social workers, and school psychologists. Kern County Probation Juvenile Justice 6. To determine the effectiveness of its 1 May Crime Prevention Act: use of JJCPA funds, Kern should include 2022 Z Weak Oversight Has in its year‑end reports to Community Hindered Its Meaningful Corrections descriptions or analyses of how Implementation its JJCPA‑funded programs influenced its juvenile justice trends, as required by law. 2019‑116 (May 2020) Kern High School District Youth Suicide 22. To improve their students' access to mental 1 October Prevention: health professionals, Kern High School 2021# AA Local Educational District, Ukiah Unified, Gateway Charter, Agencies Lack the Redwoods Charter, and Heartland Charter Resources and Policies should coordinate with their respective Necessary to Effectively counties to request MHSA funding to Address Rising Rates employ additional school counselors, of Youth Suicide and school nurses, school social workers, Self‑Harm and school psychologists. 2019‑125 (September 2020) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 73 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Long Beach Unified School District Student Mental 14. To better understand the effectiveness of 5 †  Health Services: the mental health services in its special T Some Students’ Services education program, Long Beach should use Were Affected by a the six performance indicators we identified New State Law, and the to perform analysis annually on the subset of State Needs to Analyze students receiving mental health services. Student Outcomes and Track Service Costs 2015‑112 (January 2016) Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health Lanterman‑Petris‑Short 6. To ensure that it connects patients who have 1 January Act: been placed on multiple short‑term holds to 2022 S California Has appropriate ongoing treatment, Los Angeles Not Ensured That should, by no later than August 2021, adopt Individuals With Serious a systematic approach to identifying such Mental Illnesses Receive individuals, obtaining available mental health Adequate Ongoing Care history information about these individuals, and connecting these individuals to services 2019‑119 that support their ongoing mental health. (July 2020) 8. To ensure that conservatorships do not 1 Will Not terminate because of the absence of Implement testimony from doctors, Los Angeles should immediately implement a comprehensive solution to this problem, such as using its own staff as expert witnesses when individuals’ treating physicians are unable to testify. In addition, by no later than August 2021, it should develop a revised approach to scheduling conservatorship hearings and trials so that it significantly reduces the rate at which doctors’ failures to testify result in terminated conservatorships. Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services Los Angeles County 6. To ensure that its staff appropriately 2 December Department of Children use SDM assessments to identify safety 2022 and Family Services: threats and risks, the department should It Has Not Adequately incorporate SDM instructions into its policies Ensured the Health and and procedures by July 2019 and provide Safety of All Children in mandatory annual SDM training for applicable Its Care staff, supervisors, and other members of management by May 2020. 2018‑126 (May 2019) Los Angeles County Office of Education Montebello Unified 1. To ensure that Montebello takes the steps 4 Unknown School District: necessary to prevent state intervention and P County Superintendent regain its positive financial certification, Intervention Is Necessary the county superintendent should direct to Address Its Weak Montebello to submit a corrective action plan Financial Management to address the issues identified in this report and Governance including balancing its budget, amending and adhering to its hiring procedures, and 2017‑104 establishing adequate safeguards to ensure (November 2017) that policies related to bond proceeds, conflicts of interest, and the approval of expenditures are implemented and followed. continued on next page . . . 74 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 2. To ensure that Montebello takes the steps 4 Undetermined necessary to prevent state intervention and regain its positive financial certification, the county superintendent should assist Montebello in developing a plan to justify its workforce size and cost in terms of its current and projected enrollment, including evaluating the necessity of current staff levels and personnel costs. 3. To ensure that Montebello takes the steps 4 Undetermined necessary to prevent state intervention and regain its positive financial certification, the county superintendent should evaluate the necessity of executive positions and adjust executives’ salaries based on an analysis of the number and cost of executives in comparable districts. 4. To ensure that Montebello takes the steps 4 Undetermined necessary to prevent state intervention and regain its positive financial certification, the county superintendent should ensure that Montebello implements all of the recommendations detailed in the report. Los Angeles County Probation Department Juvenile Justice 11. To adequately assess the effectiveness of 1 Fall Crime Prevention Act: its programs at reducing juvenile crime and 2022 Z Weak Oversight Has delinquency, Los Angeles should collect data Hindered Its Meaningful on all participants in each JJCPA program Implementation and for each service it provides. 2019‑116 15. To accurately assess the effectiveness of its 1 Fall (May 2020) programs, Los Angeles should determine 2022 how to accurately identify in its case management system the JJCPA programs and services in which each individual participates or should enhance its system to provide this capability. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Concealed Carry 1. To ensure that its CCW licensing decisions 3 Will Not Weapon Licenses: align with its CCW policy, Los Angeles Implement O Sheriffs Have should only issue licenses to applicants Implemented Their Local after collecting documentation of specific, Programs Inconsistently personal threats against the applicants so and Sometimes as to satisfy its definition of good cause. If Inadequately Los Angeles believes that its public licensing policy does not include all acceptable good 2017‑101 causes for a CCW license, then by March 2018 (December 2017) it should revise that policy and publish the new policy on its website. It should then immediately begin processing applications according to that revised policy. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 75 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 2. To ensure that it only issues licenses to 3 March individuals after receiving evidence of 2018# residency, firearms training, and good moral character that aligns with its policy, Los Angeles should only issue licenses after verifying that it has received this evidence. To avoid overlooking required evidence, Los Angeles should create procedures by March 2018 for its staff to follow to ensure that each CCW file contains the evidence its policy requires before issuing the license. 10. To ensure that it is only charging fees 3 †   that state law allows, Los Angeles should immediately cease charging applicants fees in addition to its license processing fee. Los Angeles should reimburse applicants who paid the unallowable fees. Further, if Los Angeles believes its license fee does not recover its entire cost of processing an initial application, it should complete a cost study and, if appropriate, revise its fee according to the results of that study and the maximum allowed fees under state law. Los Angeles Police Department Automated License 15. To ensure that its ALPR policy contains all of 1 †  Plate Readers: the required elements as specified in state R To Better Protect law, by August 2020, Los Angeles should Individuals’ Privacy, review its policy and draft or revise it as Law Enforcement Must necessary. Also by August 2020, Los Angeles Increase Its Safeguards should post its revised policy on its website for the Data It Collects in accordance with state law. 2019‑118 16. To protect ALPR data to the appropriate 1 †  (February 2020) standard, by August 2020, Los Angeles should identify the types of data in its ALPR system and, as Los Angeles reviews or drafts its ALPR policy, ensure that it clarifies the types of information its officers may upload into its ALPR system, such as, but not limited to, information obtained through CLETS. 17. To protect ALPR data to the appropriate 1 †  standard, by August 2020, Los Angeles should perform an assessment of its ALPR system data‑security features, and make adjustments to its system configuration where necessary to comply with CJIS policy best practices based on that assessment. 21. To ensure that ALPR system access is 1 †  limited to agency staff who have a need and a right to use ALPR data, by April 2020, Los Angeles should review all user accounts and deactivate accounts for separated employees, inactive users, and others as necessary. continued on next page . . . 76 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 25. To enable auditing of user access to and user 1 †  queries of ALPR images, Los Angeles should ensure that its ALPR policy makes clear how frequently Los Angeles will audit its ALPR system, who will perform that audit, who will review and approve the audit results, and how long Los Angeles will retain the audit documents. Los Angeles should have in place by February 2021 an audit plan that describes its audit methodology, including, but not limited to, risk areas that will be audited, sampling, documentation, and resolution of findings. 26. To enable auditing of user access to and 1 January user queries of ALPR images, by June 2021, 2022 Los Angeles should implement its audit plan and complete its first audit. Los Angeles Regional Adult Education Consortium Montebello Unified 31. To ensure that state adult education 4 June School District: funds are used in the most efficient and 2020# P County Superintendent effective manner, the consortium should, Intervention Is within one year, complete an assessment Necessary to Address of Montebello’s ability to meet the Its Weak Financial requirements of its adult education plan to Management and determine whether its use of state funds Governance has been effective. If Montebello is found to be consistently ineffective, the consortium 2017‑104 should immediately recalculate the adult (November 2017) program’s fund allocation for the future. 32. To ensure that state adult education funds 4 December are used in the most efficient and effective 2019# manner, the consortium should, within one year, develop policies and procedures to ensure the proper collection and reporting of enrollment, attendance, and expenditure data by consortium members. Periodically review enrollment, attendance, and expenditure data to ensure their accuracy. Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board State and Regional 18. Los Angeles should correct its pollutant 3 June Water Boards: control plan where it miscalculated two 2022 V They Must Do More pollutant limits. to Ensure That Local Jurisdictions’ Costs to Reduce Storm Water Pollution Are Necessary and Appropriate 2017‑118 (March 2018) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 77 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Los Rios Community College District California Community 24. To ensure that students with disabilities have 3 †  Colleges: equal access to instructional materials, by U The Colleges Reviewed June 2018, American River should develop Are Not Adequately procedures to monitor and periodically Monitoring Services review the accessibility of instructional for Technology materials. For example, American River Accessibility, and could develop an accessibility checklist for Districts and Colleges instructors to complete when developing Should Formalize or selecting instructional materials, from Procedures for which the college could periodically review Upgrading Technology a sample of course content to ensure that instructors completed the checklist and 2017‑102 that the instructional materials comply with (December 2017) accessibility standards. 25. To ensure that its website complies with 3 December accessibility standards, by June 2018, 2019# American River should develop procedures to monitor website accessibility and incorporate steps to prevent instructors from publishing inaccessible content on the college’s website. These procedures should include a tracking mechanism to demonstrate how many accessibility errors the college identifies and how long it takes to fix those errors. 26. To ensure that all instructors are aware of 3 Will Not the accessibility standards for instructional Implement materials, American River should include in its next collective bargaining negotiations a requirement for instructors to periodically attend accessibility trainings. 28. To ensure that it fully implements its 3 December technology master plan, by June 2018, 2019# American River should establish an implementation plan with detailed steps for achieving the goals in its technology master plan that it has not yet accomplished. Further, it should develop an implementation plan in conjunction with the development of its future technology master plan. 29. To increase the transparency of its annual 3 †  review processes, by June 2018, American River should establish procedures requiring its departments to document attendees, input received, and agreements reached during meetings to consider instructional technology equipment requests. continued on next page . . . 78 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Marin County Sheriff’s Department Automated License 27. To ensure that its ALPR policy contains all of 1 March Plate Readers: the required elements as specified in state 2021# R To Better Protect law, by August 2020, Marin should review Individuals’ Privacy, its policy and draft or revise it as necessary. Law Enforcement Must Also by August 2020, Marin should post its Increase Its Safeguards revised policy on its website in accordance for the Data It Collects with state law. 2019‑118 37. To ensure that ALPR system access is limited 1 †   (February 2020) to agency staff who have a need and a right to use ALPR data, by August 2020, Marin should develop and implement procedures for granting and managing user accounts that include, but are not limited to, requiring that supervisors must approve accounts for users, providing training to users before granting accounts, suspending users after defined periods of inactivity, and requiring regular refresher training for active users and training for users before reactivating previously inactive accounts. Marin should also ensure that it has procedures in place to deactivate an account immediately for an account holder who separates from the agency or who no longer needs a user account. 39. To enable auditing of user access to and 1 †   user queries of ALPR images, Marin should ensure that its ALPR policy makes clear how frequently Marin will audit its ALPR system, who will perform that audit, who will review and approve the audit results, and how long Marin will retain the audit documents. Marin should have in place by February 2021 an audit plan that describes its audit methodology, including, but not limited to, risk areas that will be audited, sampling, documentation, and resolution of findings. 40. To enable auditing of user access to and 1 †   user queries of ALPR images, by June 2021, Marin should implement its audit plan and complete its first audit. Montebello Unified School District Montebello Unified 5. To improve its current financial condition and 4 †   School District: ensure future viability, Montebello should, P County Superintendent within 60 days, revise its fiscal stabilization Intervention Is plan and make the necessary cuts to fund its Necessary to Address ongoing commitments. Its Weak Financial 6. To improve its current financial condition 4 †   Management and and ensure future viability, Montebello Governance should create a robust budgeting process 2017‑104 within 90 days using best practices of the (November 2017) Government Finance Officers Association to ensure Montebello’s ability to meet its priorities while maintaining the required level of reserves that buffers the district from drastic cuts in times of economic instability. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 79 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 7. To improve its current financial condition and 4 †   ensure future viability, Montebello should, within 90 days, implement an effective budget monitoring process with regular budget‑to‑actual comparisons. This process should include safeguards against spending in excess of budgeted expenditures and require advance board approval of such spending before it occurs. For example, Montebello should require that the budget manager perform monthly reviews of budget‑to‑actual figures and provide detailed explanations to the board for any variances. 8. To ensure that Montebello hires the most 4 †   qualified executive and management staff, Montebello should immediately adhere to its policies for hiring classified employees, including screening candidates to ensure that they meet the minimum qualifications. Montebello should also hold provisional employees to the same standards for minimum qualifications as its policy requires. 9. To ensure that Montebello hires qualified 4 †   classified employees, the personnel commission should, within 90 days, revise its policies to require the classified director to provide it with the education and work experience of any candidates on eligibility lists for high‑ranking positions. It should also require the director of the personnel commission—the classified director—to provide it with a list of all provisional appointments, including information on how those employees meet the minimum qualifications. 10. To ensure that it does not violate state law, 4 †   Montebello should immediately adhere to its policies and ensure that provisional employees do not work more than the legal maximum number of days of service. 12. In order to rebuild trust with its community, 4 †   Montebello should adhere to its policies for hiring certificated personnel and fill any vacant positions for executives through a competitive hiring process, including advertising the positions, screening to ensure that minimum qualifications are met, and interviewing to ensure that it hires and retains the most qualified and talented leaders. 13. To ensure that Montebello creates employee 4 †   positions only when necessary, it should establish a policy within 30 days that requires a justification for why the district is creating a position. Additionally, in order to maintain transparency when creating new positions, Montebello should immediately begin to document its justifications. continued on next page . . . 80 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 14. To ensure that Montebello hires qualified 4 †   certificated and classified employees, within 90 days the board should revise its policies to require the superintendent or his or her designee to provide information to the board about recruitments for high‑ranking employees. The board should consider, at a minimum, the following information when approving appointments: • The number of initial applicants. • The number of candidates who passed the screening and interviewing steps. • The education and work experience of the final candidate recommended by the superintendent or designee. 15. To ensure that Montebello is making hiring 4 †   decisions free of bias or favoritism, within 90 days it should strengthen its hiring policies related to nepotism and conflicts of interest for classified and certificated personnel to include the following: establishing restrictions on immediate family members being involved in the screening and interviewing processes and definitions of what types of personal relationships fall under the nepotism policy, which work relationships the nepotism policy applies to, and what factors to consider when evaluating the potential impact of a personal relationship. 24. To ensure that Montebello spends its funds for 4 †   allowable and reasonable purposes, it should implement an inventory tracking system that allows it to know where its equipment is located. Montebello should also periodically review its inventory listing to ensure that equipment is being properly used. New Jerusalem Elementary School District Charter Schools: 44. To better ensure effective oversight of its 4 December Some School Districts charter schools’ finances, New Jerusalem 2021 M Improperly Authorized should place a district representative as a and Inadequately nonvoting member on each charter school’s Monitored Out‑of‑District governing board. Charter Schools 2016‑141 (October 2017) Peralta Community College District Clery Act Requirements 32. To ensure that its campuses provide the 3 Will Not and Crime Reporting: necessary resources and information to Implement N Compliance Continues students about campus safety, Peralta to Challenge California’s should by December 2018, develop all Colleges and Universities required policies related to campus safety in compliance with the Education Code. 2017‑032 (May 2018) California State Auditor Report 2021-041 81 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Sacramento City Unified School District Sacramento City 6. To address its current financial problems, 1 July Unified School District: Sacramento Unified should do the following: 2022 Q Because It Has • By March 2020, adopt a detailed plan to Failed to Proactively resolve its fiscal crisis. The plan should Address Its Financial estimate savings under multiple scenarios Challenges, It May Soon and include an analysis that quantifies the Face Insolvency impact of reductions the district can make to ongoing expenditures. Specifically, 2019‑108 Sacramento Unified should consider the (December 2019) impact of possible salary adjustments for employees in different bargaining units and include the impact those salary adjustments would have on postemployment benefits, such as pensions. It should also use the most recently available data to estimate net savings from modifying the health care benefits it provides to employees, as well as the impact those modifications would have on the total compensation of the employees. Finally, it should calculate the impact of possible changes to district and employee contributions to fund future retiree health benefits. The district should use the plan it develops as the basis for its discussions of potential solutions with its teachers union. 7. To address its current financial problems, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following: 2022 • Revise its multiyear projections and update them at least quarterly until it has taken action that would cause it to no longer project insolvency. It should disclose these projections to the board. 8. To address its current financial problems, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following: 2022 • The district should adopt and disclose publicly a multiyear projection methodology. This methodology should disclose the assumptions and rationale used to estimate changes in salaries, benefits, contributions, and LCFF revenue—including changes in enrollment and the source and reliability of the data used to make these projections. 9. To address its current financial problems, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following: 2022 • Before it imposes an agreement on its teachers union or accepts state assistance, the district should publicly disclose the likely effects that such actions will have on the district’s students, faculty, and the community, and its plans to address these effects. continued on next page . . . 82 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 10. To prevent a similar fiscal crisis in the future, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following 2022 by July 2020: • Have the board adopt a budget methodology, including guidance on the use of one‑time funds, the use and maintenance of district reserves, and the maintenance of a balanced budget. The methodology should use the Government Finance Officers Association’s best practices as a guide and should address at least the following areas: • Including administrators from different divisions of Sacramento Unified into the budget development process to help ensure the accuracy of projections. • Establishing criteria and measures for success in the budget process, such as whether budget decisions were made with adequate input and deliberation and whether the budget was balanced without using reserves or one‑time revenues for ongoing expenditures. • Developing and adhering to a multiyear funding budget plan, with the goal of realigning resources where necessary to fund ongoing expenses with ongoing revenue. • Conducting an analysis of variances in budgeted and actual revenues and expenditures at each interim reporting period. Sacramento Unified should then use this information to inform its estimates for the upcoming fiscal year’s budget. 11. To prevent a similar fiscal crisis in the future, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following 2022 by July 2020: • Develop a long‑term funding plan to address its retiree health benefits liability. The plan should include appropriate action necessary to ensure the district will be able to meet its obligations to its employees and retirees. 12. To prevent a similar fiscal crisis in the future, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following 2022 by July 2020: • Adopt a policy that guides staff on steps they should take to ensure that special education expenditures are cost‑effective. The policy should include consideration of options for offering services, including those provided by district staff or by contracted providers. 14. To prevent a similar fiscal crisis in the future, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following 2022 by July 2020: • Develop and adopt a succession plan that ensures that it has staff who have the training and knowledge necessary to assume critical roles in the case of turnover. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 83 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 15. To prevent a similar fiscal crisis in the future, 1 July Sacramento Unified should do the following 2022 by July 2020: • Develop effective employee orientation programs, including mentorship, to allow incoming leaders to better adapt to the organization’s structure and culture. Sacramento County Office of Education Sacramento City 3. To ensure that Sacramento Unified takes the 1 December Unified School District: steps necessary to address its fiscal crisis, 2021 Q Because It Has the county office superintendent should Failed to Proactively do the following: Address Its Financial • Direct Sacramento Unified to submit a Challenges, It May Soon corrective action plan by March 2020 that Face Insolvency consolidates the district’s plans to resolve 2019‑108 its fiscal crisis. (December 2019) 4. To ensure that Sacramento Unified takes the 1 June steps necessary to address its fiscal crisis, 2022 the county office superintendent should do the following: • Ensure that Sacramento Unified addresses the issues identified in this report, including its executive management turnover and lack of policies guiding its budget process. 5. To ensure that Sacramento Unified takes the 1 June steps necessary to address its fiscal crisis, 2022 the county office superintendent should do the following: • Ensure that Sacramento Unified implements all of the recommendations detailed below. Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department Automated License 43. To protect ALPR data to the appropriate 1 †  Plate Readers: standard, by August 2020, Sacramento should R To Better Protect perform an assessment of its ALPR system Individuals’ Privacy, data‑security features, and make adjustments Law Enforcement Must to its system configuration where necessary to Increase Its Safeguards comply with CJIS policy best practices based for the Data It Collects on that assessment. 2019‑118 44. To ensure that the agreement with its cloud 1 †  (February 2020) vendor offers the strongest possible data protections, by August 2020, Sacramento should enter into a new contract with Vigilant that contains the contract provisions recommended in CJIS policy. 45. To ensure that ALPR images are being shared 1 †  appropriately, by April 2020, Sacramento should review the entities with which it currently shares images, determine the appropriateness of this sharing, and take all necessary steps to suspend those sharing relationships deemed inappropriate or unnecessary. continued on next page . . . 84 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 51. To ensure that ALPR system access is limited 1 †  to agency staff who have a need and a right to use ALPR data, by August 2020, Sacramento should develop and implement procedures for granting and managing user accounts that include, but are not limited to, requiring that supervisors must approve accounts for users, providing training to users before granting accounts, suspending users after defined periods of inactivity, and requiring regular refresher training for active users and training for users before reactivating previously inactive accounts. Sacramento should also ensure that it has procedures in place to deactivate an account immediately for an account holder who separates from the agency or who no longer needs a user account. 52. To enable auditing of user access to and 1 †  user queries of ALPR images, by April 2020, Sacramento should assess the information its ALPR system captures when users access it to ensure that the system’s logs are complete and accurate and that the logs form a reasonable basis for conducting necessary, periodic audits. 54. To enable auditing of user access to and 1 †  user queries of ALPR images, by June 2021, Sacramento should implement its audit plan and complete its first audit. Concealed Carry 3. To ensure that staff are gathering consistent 3 Unknown Weapon Licenses: evidence from applicants to demonstrate O Sheriffs Have residency, good moral character, and firearms Implemented Their Local training and are including which requirement Programs Inconsistently applicants did not meet in its denial letters, by and Sometimes March 2018 Sacramento should create formal Inadequately CCW processing procedures and train its staff to follow these procedures. These procedures 2017‑101 should require staff to gather and evaluate (December 2017) the information the department believes is required to demonstrate that each of the criteria for a CCW license has been met, and they should also require staff to include which requirement applicants did not meet in its denial letters. 4. To ensure that staff are following its newly 3 Unknown established procedures and to identify any need for additional guidance, by March 2018 Sacramento should establish a review process wherein it regularly reviews a selection of license files and denied applications to determine whether its staff are collecting sufficient and consistent documentation in accordance with its policies and are appropriately including which requirement applicants did not meet in its denial letters. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 85 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 7. To ensure that it provides all required 3 Unknown information to Justice, Sacramento should immediately inform Justice when it revokes a CCW license, including when it receives a prohibition notice from Justice. 11. To ensure that it is maximizing allowable 3 Unknown revenue from the CCW program and reducing its program deficits, Sacramento should perform a cost study of its initial application processing and, on completion of the study, immediately increase its CCW license fees and begin charging the maximum amounts allowable under state law. San Bernardino City Unified School District Youth Experiencing 10. To comply with federal law and best 1 June Homelessness: practices, San Bernardino should, before 2021# Y California’s Education academic year 2020‑21, ensure that System for K–12 school staff who provide services to Inadequately Identifies youth experiencing homelessness receive and Supports training as federal law requires. Further, as These Youth set forth in best practices, the LEA should provide this training at least annually, and 2019‑104 the training should include the definition (November 2019) of homelessness, signs of homelessness, the impact of homelessness on youth, and the steps an LEA should take once school staff has identified a youth as possibly experiencing homelessness. 16. To comply with federal law and best 1 June practices, San Bernardino should, before 2021# academic year 2020‑21, distribute information about the educational rights of youth experiencing homelessness in public places, including schools, shelters, public libraries, and food pantries frequented by families of such youth, as federal law requires. Further, to mitigate families’ and youth’s hesitance to disclosing their living situation the LEA should include the protections set forth in federal and state laws in the information it distributes. continued on next page . . . 86 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION San Diego County Air Pollution Control District San Diego County 5. To ensure that the permit fees it charges are 1 December Air Pollution sufficient to pay for its permitting program, 2021 Control District: the San Diego Air District should, by It Has Used Vehicle December 2020, monitor the impact of the Registration Fees to COVID‑19 pandemic on San Diego County’s Subsidize Its Permitting economy and, when economic conditions Process, Reducing allow, propose to the district board that the Amount of Funds it increase fees annually by the maximum Available to Address percentage allowed until the district’s Air Pollution revenue from permit fees is equal to the full cost of the permitting program. 2019‑127 (July 2020) 6. To ensure that it is responsive to its stakeholders 1 April and encourages public participation in the 2022 creation of its regulatory and permitting policies, the San Diego Air District should create and implement a public participation plan by January 2021 that includes both public outreach and public engagement activities. 8. Because the new district board will include 1 November additional stakeholders who represent some of 2021# the interests that the advisory committee was intended to represent, the district board should determine whether the advisory committee is still necessary. If the district board determines that the advisory committee is still necessary, it should immediately publicize the vacancies on the advisory committee on its website and in the monthly and annual county reports of vacancies on boards, commissions, and committees, and actively seek nominations to fill these positions. 9. Because the new district board will include 1 November additional stakeholders who represent 2021# some of the interests that the advisory committee was intended to represent, the district board should determine whether the advisory committee is still necessary. If the district board determines that the advisory committee is still necessary, it should ensure that the district's legal counsel monitors the advisory committee meetings beginning immediately, and advises the committee when it does not comply with state public meeting requirements. 12. To ensure that it effectively manages its 1 November complaint investigation process and provides 2021# accurate information to the public regarding the complaints it receives, the San Diego Air District should, by June 2021, establish a process for validating the accuracy of the data it previously entered into its database. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 87 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Concealed Carry 5. To ensure that its staff appropriately renew 3 Unknown Weapon Licenses: CCW licenses, by March 2018 San Diego O Sheriffs Have should establish a routine supervisory review Implemented Their of a selection of renewed licenses. Local Programs 6. To ensure that it consistently obtains sufficient 3 Unknown Inconsistently evidence to demonstrate that an applicant and Sometimes satisfies its requirements for a license, by Inadequately March 2018 San Diego should develop 2017‑101 guidance and train its staff on what good (December 2017) cause documentation staff should request from applicants. Further, it should train its staff regarding the expected documents for residency and training. 8. To ensure that it follows state law’s 3 Unknown requirements for revoking licenses, San Diego should immediately revoke CCW licenses and should then inform Justice that it has revoked licenses whenever license holders become prohibited persons. Additionally, San Diego should notify Justice when it suspends a license or a license is surrendered. 12. To ensure that it maximizes allowable 3 Unknown revenue from its CCW program, San Diego should immediately pursue increasing its initial, renewal, and amendment fees to the maximum amounts allowable under state law. San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission San Francisco Bay 10. To ensure that it maximizes the efficiency 2 †   Conservation and and effectiveness of its enforcement and Development permitting programs, the commission Commission: should by January 2020 develop guidance Its Failure to Perform that enumerates the violation types that Key Responsibilities Has the commissioners deem worthy of swift Allowed Ongoing Harm enforcement action, those that staff can to the San Francisco Bay defer for a specified amount of time, and those that do not warrant enforcement 2018‑120 action or that can be resolved through fines. (May 2019) 12. To ensure that it maximizes the efficiency 2 December and effectiveness of its enforcement and 2021 permitting programs, the commission should by January 2020 create a penalty calculation worksheet. The commission should require the worksheet’s use for all enforcement actions that will result in fines or penalties, and it should create formal policies, procedures, and criteria to provide staff with guidance on applying the worksheet. 16. To ensure that it maximizes the efficiency 2 Will Not and effectiveness of its enforcement and Implement permitting programs, the commission should by January 2020 appoint a new citizens’ advisory committee as required by law and determine a schedule for the committee to conduct regular meetings. continued on next page . . . 88 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION 17. To ensure that it uses the abatement fund 2 October for the physical cleanup of the Bay, the 2021# commission should create a policy by January 2020 identifying the minimum amounts it will disburse and prioritizing the projects that it will support through disbursements to the appropriate entities. 18. To build on prior recommendations and 2 January ensure that it maximizes the effectiveness of 2022 its enforcement program, the commission should by January 2021 conduct a workforce study of all its permit and regulatory activities and determine whether it requires additional staff, including supervisors, to support its mission. 19. To build on prior recommendations and 2 July ensure that it maximizes the effectiveness of 2022 its enforcement program, the commission should by January 2021 implement a permit compliance position to support the efforts of enforcement staff and the implementation of process changes. If necessary, it should seek additional funding for such a position. 20. To build on prior recommendations and 2 July ensure that it maximizes the effectiveness of 2022 its enforcement program, the commission should by January 2021 update its existing database or create a new database to ensure that it can identify and track individual violations within each case, including the date staff initiate the standardized fines process for each violation. As part of this process, the commission should review its database and update it as necessary to ensure that it includes all necessary and accurate information, specifically whether staff initiated the standardized fines process for open case files and for those case files closed within the past five years. 22. To ensure consistency in its enforcement 2 December program, the commission should by 2021 January 2021 create and implement regulations that define substantial harm, provide explicit criteria for calculating the number of violations present in individual enforcement cases, and specify a process to handle any necessary exceptions to the criteria. 23. To ensure consistency in its enforcement 2 †   program, the commission should by January 2021 create and implement regulations to allow it to use limited monetary fines to resolve selected minor violations that do not involve substantial harm to the Bay. 24. To ensure consistency in its enforcement 2 December program, the commission should by 2021 January 2021 update its regulations on permit issuance to offer greater clarity on the types of projects for which staff may issue permits without commissioners’ hearings. California State Auditor Report 2021-041 89 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION San Francisco Department of Public Health Lanterman‑Petris‑Short 7. To ensure that it connects patients who have 1 June Act: been placed on multiple short‑term holds to 2022 S California Has appropriate ongoing treatment, San Francisco Not Ensured That should, by no later than August 2021, adopt Individuals With Serious a systematic approach to identifying such Mental Illnesses Receive individuals, obtaining available mental health Adequate Ongoing Care history information about these individuals, and connecting these individuals to services 2019‑119 that support their ongoing mental health. (July 2020) San Francisco Unified School District Youth Suicide 17. To ensure that their teachers and staff 1 November Prevention: have the knowledge necessary to identify 2022 AA Local Educational and assist students at risk of self‑harm and Agencies Lack the suicide, the six LEAs we reviewed should do Resources and Policies the following: Necessary to Effectively • Revise their suicide prevention training Address Rising Rates materials by June 2021 to align with state of Youth Suicide and law and incorporate the best practices in Self‑Harm Education’s model policy. 2019‑125 • LEAs that provide suicide prevention (September 2020) training should conduct it at the beginning of the school year. Tulare Local Healthcare District Tulare Local 1. To ensure that the district can demonstrate 3 June Healthcare District: that its decisions for selecting contractors 2022 Past Poor Decisions are justified and are in the best interest of Contributed to the the district’s residents, by April 2019 the Closure of the Medical district should establish formal procedures Center, and Licensing designed to ensure that it follows a rigorous Issues May Delay and appropriate evaluation and contract Its Reopening awarding process. 2018‑102 2. To ensure that the district pays only 3 June (October 2018) reasonable and appropriate contract 2022 administrative costs, before the district signs any future management contract, it should prepare estimates of the costs for all proposed contract terms related to compensation. 8. To ensure that it uses bond proceeds 3 June for allowable purposes and improves its 2022 consistency and accountability in processing payments from bond proceeds, by April 2019 the district should formalize and document policies and procedures for verifying that it uses bond proceeds for allowable purposes and for approving expenditures paid from general obligation bond proceeds. 90 California State Auditor Report 2021-041 January 2022 STATE AUDITOR’S ASSESSMENT NUMBER OF YEARS AUDITEE DID NOT AUDITEE DID NOT REPORT TITLE, NUMBER, RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATED DATE SUBSTANTIATE ADDRESS ALL RECOMMENDATION AND ISSUE DATE HAS APPEARED IN OF COMPLETION ITS CLAIM OF FULL ASPECTS OF THE THIS REPORT IMPLEMENTATION RECOMMENDATION Ukiah Unified School District Youth Suicide 23. To improve their students’ access to mental 1 †  Prevention: health professionals, Kern High School AA Local Educational District, Ukiah Unified, Gateway Charter, Agencies Lack the Redwoods Charter, and Heartland Charter Resources and Policies should coordinate with their respective Necessary to Effectively counties to request MHSA funding to Address Rising Rates employ additional school counselors, of Youth Suicide and school nurses, school social workers, Self‑Harm and school psychologists. 2019‑125 (September 2020) † Contrary to the State Auditor’s determination, the audited agency believes it has fully implemented the recommendation. # In its latest response, the audited agency did not update its estimated date of completion.