Contra Costa County Grand Jury • 2013-2014

Governing Board Kathleen R. Coppersmith August 18, 2014 President Susie Epstein Clerk Stephen D. Conlin, Foreperson*

Published: August 18, 2014 142 pages Consolidated Report

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⚠️ Aviso de traducción: Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings 7 findings

The State of California's policy of transparency in government is embodied in the California Public Records Act (CPRA). Response We agree with this finding.

Contra Costa County's policy of transparency in government has been strengthened by its adoption of the Better Government Ordinance. Response We partially disagree with this finding. It is stated as fact that the adoption of the ordinance has strengthened transparency. The District is not aware of any evidence, nor is any provided, of this statement of fact. As such, the District can neither agree nor disagree with this finding.

Contra Costa County conducts periodic training of its employees regarding how to respond to requests for records under the CPRA and the Better Government Ordinance. Contra Costa Community College District 500 Court Street, Martinez, California 94553 925.229.1000 www.4cd.edu CCCCD Response to Grand Jury Report No. 1405 09-24-2014 Page: 2 Response We partially disagree with this finding. It is stated as fact that Contra Costa County provides training to its employees on request responses. The District is not aware of any evidence, nor is any provided, of this statement of fact. As such, the District can neither agree nor disagree with this finding.

The response to CPRA requests by departments reporting to the Board of Supervisors is generally timely and appropriate. Response We partially disagree with this finding. It is stated as fact that responses to CPRA requests by departments reporting to the Board of Supervisors are generally timely and appropriate. The District is not aware of any evidence, nor is any provided, of this statement of fact. As such, the District can neither agree nor disagree with this finding.

The response to CPRA by cities and special districts within Contra Costa County is uneven. Some entities are responsive, while others have a delayed respond or fail to respond entirely. Response We partially disagree with this finding. It is stated as fact that responses to CPRA requests by cities and special districts are uneven. The District is not aware of any evidence, nor is any provided, of this statement of fact. As such, the District can neither agree nor disagree with this finding. In the case of the District, we believe our responses are always timely and appropriate.

Employees of cities and some special districts who deal with CPRA requests are unfamiliar with the Act and the responsibilities of their agency when records are requested. Response We partially disagree with this finding. It is stated as fact that some employees of cities and special districts are unfamiliar with the Act and their related responsibilities. The District is not aware of any evidence, nor is any provided, of this statement of fact. As such, the District can neither agree nor disagree with this finding. In the case of the District, we believe our employees responsible for CPRA responses are generally familiar with the Act and their related responsibilities.

Among the most valuable documents that could be included in websites are: Statements of Economic Interests, Employment Contracts, Annual Audits, Travel and Entertainment reimbursements, and agendas and supporting documents for public meetings. Response We agree with this finding. In addition, as required by §933.05(b) of the California Government Code, the District is providing its reply to the report's recommendation. For each recommendation, the District is required to respond by stating one of the following actions: (1) The recommendation has been implemented, with a summary describing the implemented action. (2) The recommendation has not yet been implemented, but will be implemented in the future, with a time frame for implementation. (3) The recommendation requires further analysis. This response should explain the scope and parameters of the analysis or study, and a time frame for the matter to be prepared for discussion. This time frame shall not exceed six months from the date of the publication of the Grand Jury report. Contra Costa Community College District 500 Court Street, Martinez, California 94553 925.229.1000 www.4cd.edu CCCCD Response to Grand Jury Report No. 1405 09-24-2014 Page: 3 (4) The recommendation will not be implemented because it is not warranted or is not reasonable, with an explanation thereof.

Recommendations 3

R1

Cities and special districts in Contra Costa County should consider adopting a policy similar to the Better Government Ordinance, expanding the right of the public to access to public records. Response This recommendation requires further analysis. The District will review the Ordinance and consider its applicability and relevance in concert with existing policy and procedure during the fall of 2014.
R2

Cities and special districts in Contra Costa County should arrange for periodic training of employees who are responsible for responding to Public Records Act requests. Response This recommendation has been implemented within the District. The District's key responders have attending training provided at professional conferences, generally delivered by attorneys. Attending such training will continue to be encouraged.
R3

Cities and special districts should consider making certain public records that are clearly disclosable under CPRA available on their websites: a. Statements of Economic Interests b. Employment Contracts c. Annual Audits d. Travel and Entertainment reimbursements Agendas and supporting documents for public meetings.

* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.