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Extracted from Consolidated Report
This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.
Imperial County Grand Jury
• 2018-2019
Imperial County Department of Social Services
⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings 4 findings
F1
Page 21
There is a lack of oversight/review into new and ongoing cases of public assistance benefits by the managers and supervisors of the Department of Social Services.
F2
Page 21
Department of Social Services fraud investigators are not meeting the timeline for eligibility determination set by the state of California.
F3
Page 21
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that the Department of Social Services has with the Imperial County District Attorney’s office does not appear to serve the needs of the community. Requests for more staff have been denied. -20- 2018-2019 IMPERIAL COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT
F4
Page 22
There is insufficient interaction between the District Attorney’s office and the Department of Social Services, which strains the positive working relationship needed to properly investigate fraudulent claims.
Recommendations 3
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R1Page 22The Department of Social Services should create a review and tracking system of all cases of public assistance at the supervisory and management level, with a dedicated system to ensure proper timelines and mandates set by the state are being met.
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R2Page 22The Department of Social Services Fraud unit should conduct an internal review of how it intakes, reviews, and assigns investigations to the District Attorney’s office. Procedures should be set in place to accurately reflect the actual dates of work being processed and the completion of each portion of the investigation.
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R3Page 22The current Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Department of Social Services and the District Attorney’s Office should be reviewed and updated to reflect the current needs of these departments. Additional investigative staff, perhaps those dedicated to only public assistance issues, would alleviate the workload and help ensure state- mandated timelines are met. REQUIRED RESPONSES: Pursuant to Penal Code sections 933 and 933.05, the Grand Jury requests responses as from the following governing bodies : • Imperial County Department of Social Services: F1, F2, F4, R1, R2, R3 Please submit an official response to the Civil Grand Jury Foreperson, P.O. Box 2011, El Centro, CA, 92244 INVITED RESPONSES: The following governing bodies are invited to respond to the Grand Jury report: • Imperial County District Attorney’s Office: F3, F4, R3 • Imperial County Board of Supervisors: F3, R3 DISCLAIMER: Reports issued by the Grand Jury do not identify individuals interviewed. Penal Code section 929 requires that reports of the Grand Jury not contain the name of any person or facts leading to the identity of any person who provides information to the Grand Jury. -21-