Committee Internal Services Internal Services Committee Carl P.e. Peterson, Jr., Chair Alfred J. Dubiel Thomas Ma

Recommendations 29

• R02-65
  URGE ACTION BY THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE TO GAIN THE ABILITY TO USE THE DESIGN-BUILD METHOD IN ITS CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT OPTIONS.
• R02-66
  COORDINATE WITH THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE A REGULAR SCHEDULE (NO LESS THAN MONTHLY) FOR REPORTING AND ASSESSING THE STATUS OF THE DESIGN-BUILD SUBJECT ACTIVITY WITH LOCAL STATE ELECTED OFFICIALS AND IN SACRAMENTO.
• R02-67
  BRING THE DESIGN-BUILD VERSUS DESIGN-BID-BUILD CONCEPT MATTER TO THE ATTENTION OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AT FREQUENT INTERVALS. FACILITIES MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT BACKGROUND The main County courthouse is located on the corner of Third Street and Arrowhead Avenue in the City of San Bernardino. The Courthouse was constructed in 1926 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Through the years there have been renovations and annexations to the main building. It now contains numerous courtrooms, offices for judges and secretaries, and offices for social and welfare concerns for the County. In anticipation of possible earthquake damage, the preservation of the building through structural retrofitting will commence in 2003-04. The Grand Jury had two walk-through inspections of the Courthouse. One inspection was conducted in the County Government Center, just north of the Courthouse. A review of information concerning the maintenance of the two buildings preceded each of the tours. FINDINGS Concerns of building maintenance were discussed, such as flooring and the lack of non-slip tape adhesive on the stairs and the lack of hand railings at the north and south entrances to the courthouse. There is a lack of cooling airflow in the glass-enclosed entry at the jurors’ entrance on the ground floor of the Courthouse Annex. During clear, cloudless days, the sun shining through the glass produces very high temperatures that create a sweltering, uncomfortable work environment for security guards manning the metal detectors. The Grand Jury placed two thermometers in the room and requested guards record the temperatures for a few days. Depending on the time of day, the temperatures ranged from 75 to 104 degrees (see attachment). During the winter months as well, the temperature becomes too warm on any clear day, while the Jury Room, halls and the rest of the adjacent areas are air-conditioned. On the first floor of the courthouse, adjacent to Third Street, the entrance door- locking device is gouging a quarter inch cut into the marble flooring. The lack of signs, in English and Spanish, designating a restricted area where the Sheriff’s Department buses load and unload prisoners for arraignment creates confusion with pedestrians. This area is also poorly lighted. The parking area on the northeast side of the courthouse, where the Sheriff’s Department vans and buses park, is congested leaving little room for buses to maneuver into and exit without driving onto pedestrian sidewalks. Cleanliness and sanitation in the courthouse is an ongoing problem. In the dining facility located on the first floor of the County Government Center there are cobwebs across the windows and south exit/entrance door. This condition has existed for the past ten months. The outside dining tables, chairs and cement area are often dirty. RECOMMENDATIONS
• R02-68
  INSTALL NON-SLIP TAPE TO EACH STEP ON ALL STAIRWAYS, RAMPS AND ENTRANCES OF THE CENTRAL COURTHOUSE, AND REPLACE THEM WHERE NEEDED.
• R02-69
  INSTALL HAND RAILS ON THE STAIRS LEADING TO THE NORTH AND SOUTH ENTRANCES INTO THE COURTHOUSE.
• R02-70
  INSTALL A COOLING SYSTEM IN THE SECURITY CHECK AREA AT THE JURORS’ ENTRANCE TO THE COURTHOUSE ANNEX BUILDING.
• R02-71
  INSTALL SIGNS IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH TO BETTER INFORM THE PUBLIC THAT THE SECURITY AREA AT THE NORTHEAST CORNER PARKING LOT OF THE COURTHOUSE IS RESTRICTED.
• R02-72
  UPGRADE LIGHTING IN THE NORTHEAST COURTHOUSE PARKING LOT.
• R02-73
  RESTRICT PARKING IN THE NORTHEAST COURTHOUSE PARKING LOT TO PERMIT BUSES TO ALWAYS HAVE EASY ACCESS WITH THEIR RIGHT EXIT DOORS CLOSE TO THE PRISONER ENTRANCE TO THE COURTHOUSE.
• R02-74
  CLEAN AND MAINTAIN, ON A REGULAR BASIS, ALL FLOORS OF THE COURTHOUSE.
• R02-75
  CLEAN THE DINING FACILITY IN THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER, INCLUDING THE WINDOWS AND OUTSIDE EATING AREA, ON A REGULAR BASIS. Attachment TEMPERATURE READINGS FOR THE JURY ASSEMBLY ROOM ENTRANCE AT THE SAN BERNARDINO CENTRAL COURTHOUSE August 16 – 22, 2001 7 a.m. 8 a.m. 9 a.m. 10 a.m. 11 a.m. 12 p.m. 1 p.m. 2 p.m. 3 p.m. 4 p.m. THURS. #1 N/A N/A 85 90 94 104 100 100 100 94 8/16/01 #2 N/A N/A 80 87 90 90 95 92 89 89 FRI. #1 78 82 88 90 94 98 98 98 100 90 8/17/01 #2 78 80 84 89 90 92 92 92 88 90 MON. #1 78 82 86 92 90 95 96 96 96 85 8/20/01 #2 78 80 83 90 90 90 90 96 87 85 TUES. #1 75 75 80 85 90 90 93 93 95 90 8/21/01 #2 75 75 80 85 88 88 90 89 90 85 WED. #1 75 76 80 85 88 90 92 90 95 88 8/22/01 #2 75 75 80 85 85 87 88 88 85 86 #1 - Thermometer located by front entrance #2 - Thermometer located by Jury Assembly Room entrance 49 FLEET MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT BACKGROUND The Fleet Management Department is responsible for maintaining all vehicles and heavy equipment in the County. It is composed of the Fueling Station, Garage, Fabrication Shop, Motor Pool, Tire Shop, Welding Shop and Parts Department. Portions of this report contain information that was detailed in audit reports by the Internal Audits Division of the Auditor/Controller-Recorder’s office, from April 1994 and June 2000. The Fleet Management Department makes recommendations to the Board of Supervisors for setting rate structure as it relates to vehicle depreciation costs, maintenance expense, fuel, replacement costs, and insurance as regulated by the County Risk Management Department. The County is self-insured. User fees are charged on each vehicle. These fees are used for repairs and for replacement costs, when required, through department policies and procedures. FINDINGS REFUELING STATIONS The main refueling station is located in San Bernardino. There are three fuels used for vehicles: gasoline, compressed natural gas (CNG), and diesel. There are 21 other satellite stations that only service County vehicles. Not all fueling stations have all three types of fuels for dispensing. The refueling station in Rancho Cucamonga has been closed for two years. The department director has intentions of reopening this facility for the availability of CNG, gas and diesel fuels. The Motor Pool now maintains 22 vehicles that operate on CNG, and more vehicles in the County fleet will be using CNG in the future. GARAGE The Garage has the responsibility for providing maintenance and repairs for all County vehicles, which are noted by the driver of the vehicle, including heavy equipment such as trucks and other mechanical machines such as snow plows and tractors. Containers of liquid chemicals were observed in and around the maintenance area. The substances in the containers could not be identified. There were containers with oily rags located in the work area, but there were no markings on the cans identifying the contents. The parts cleaning sinks were dirty. FABRICATION SHOP The Fabrication Shop is comprised of several areas whose function is to replace or fabricate vehicle parts and motorized equipment products that are needed by maintenance areas in the County. They also perform maintenance on all heavy equipment. The shop personnel are constructing a new apparatus on a heavy truck frame for use in painting various configurations of lines on roadways. If proven in the field, this machine will outperform any other apparatus of its type available in the country. This equipment will be able to paint lines at the rate of 22 miles per hour. The Fabrication Department has also developed a device that will be used for the decontamination of individuals who come in contact with hazardous materials. The device has been tested and the results are that the system works very well. There are plans to manufacture three more of these devices for the County. MOTOR POOL The Motor Pool currently has 275 vehicles on which maintenance costs have exceeded their purchase price. This is 18 percent of the Motor Pool fleet. The following examples show vehicles whose maintenance costs have exceeded their purchase price, as noted in the Year 2000 audit, and have not been corrected. Vehicle #20064 Purchase Price: $16,287.00 Maintenance Total: $29,117.00 Vehicle #01449 Purchase Price: $11,754.00 Maintenance Total: $33,863.00 Vehicle #15140 Purchase Price: $18,889.00 Maintenance Total: $80,601.00 51 Approximately 60 percent of the fleet should have been replaced with new purchases. The Fleet Management Department policy states, in part, “Vehicles should be replaced every six or seven years depending on type of vehicle.” Management does not follow its own written procedures. There are numerous vehicles where adequate amounts of vehicle user fees have been collected. However, the Motor Pool continues to charge the fee. TIRE SHOP The Tire Shop repairs and replaces tires on all County vehicles. The tires range in size from compact vehicles to trucks and heavy equipment. There is no system currently in use to track individual tires coming into County inventory, where they are used on the fleet, or when they are discarded. WELD SHOP The Weld Shop was clean and appeared to be adequately maintained. There were no screens to prevent other employees around the area from exposure to ARC burns. PARTS DEPARTMENT Records are not kept on costs of spare parts when dispersed to various departments. Since records are not maintained, costs of parts cannot be tracked. Fleet Management has begun an annual review of its operations manual. The review revealed deficiencies that may be present within the operations of the department. The Fleet Management Department does not routinely review and cancel receipts or invoices for petty cash disbursements. This practice allows for the paying of the same receipt two or more times. There is no method of determining the number of times an account has been paid. There is no compliance with the County Standard Practice Manual, “Internal Controls and Cash Manual.” The internal audit of June 2000 revealed that many of the vouchers paid through petty cash did not have an authorizing signature. The department maintains two $500 petty cash boxes; one in the Garage and one in the Parts Department. The cash box maintained by the Garage has been routinely kept in an unsecured condition. There are no keys for the lock. There has been no attempt to replace the keys. The Grand Jury inquired about a petty cash loss of $500 that was revealed by the Auditor/Controller-Recorder’s office. A follow-up by the Auditor’s office of the deficiency six months later revealed the problem had not been corrected. In fact, the Interim Director did not know about the missing money. The money has since been returned. The Business Office is not consulted before transactions occur. The Business Office is responsible for maintaining finances of the department and can provide input on financial decisions. SAFETY CONCERNS The Grand Jury’s inspection of the Fleet Management Department indicated that insufficient emphasis is placed on safety practices in the work area. At the time of the initial tour of all areas, no employee asked could say when the last safety meeting was conducted. Also, there were no posters or signs reminding employees to be cautious, use eye protection, and respect the dangerous areas around machinery. In the area of the grinders, there was an extreme amount of dust. It appears that face shields in these areas have not been cleaned in several months. It was evident that eye protection is not being used. The yellow caution lines around dangerous equipment are partially missing, or non-existent. Fire extinguishers were hanging in several areas that could not be quickly accessed because machinery or other items were blocking the way. There is a fire sprinkler system 40 feet above the floor of the Garage building. When asked, no one knew when the pressure had ever been checked. Just below it is an electrical crane that runs the length of the building. RECOMMENDATIONS
• R02-76
  LOCATE AND LABEL ALL CONTAINERS THAT STORE INFLAMMABLE MATERIALS.
• R02-77
  ADOPT TRUCK PAINTING APPARATUS.
• R02-78
  ADOPT DECONTAMINATION DEVICES.
• R02-79
  REPLACE ALL VEHICLES THAT HAVE HAD EXCESSIVE REPAIRS.
• R02-80
  DEVELOP A TRACKING SYSTEM FOR INVENTORYING TIRES.
• R02-81
  FOLLOW THE DIRECTIVES STATED IN THE COUNTY STANDARD PRACTICE MANUAL REGARDING CONTROLS AND CASH. 53
• R02-82
  REVIEW ALL VOUCHERS PAID THROUGH PETTY CASH. DETERMINE WHICH VOUCHERS HAVE BEEN PAID MORE THAN ONCE AND REGAIN LOST FUNDS.
• R02-83
  ENSURE AN ACTIVE SAFETY PROGRAM IS IMPLEMENTED FOR ALL AREAS OF THE FLEET MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT.
• R02-84
  REQUIRE USE OF SAFETY PROTECTION EQUIPMENT IN ALL SHOPS.
• R02-85
  REQUEST THE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT CONDUCT AN INSPECTION OF ALL SHOPS AND OFFICES, FOR PROPER FIRE PREVENTION EQUIPMENT.
• R02-86
  INSTALL WELD SHOP AREA ARC SCREENS.
• R02-87
  ALL AREAS USED BE CLEANED AFTER EACH JOB. PURCHASING DEPARTMENT BACKGROUND The Purchasing Department is responsible for the acquisition of equipment, services and supplies used by all County departments and Board-governed special districts. There are four divisions that are under Purchasing: Procurement, Printing, Mail Services, and Central Stores. All divisions provide services for the entire County. (cid:1) The Procurement Division’s mission is to obtain the best value for each dollar expended and to uphold the publics trust in an open and honest environment. This includes all functions that pertain to obtaining supplies, services or construction, selection and solicitation of sources, preparation and awarding of contracts, and all phases of contract administration. (cid:1) The Printing Division manages and stocks the four copy centers countywide. It provides printing services for publications printed for County departments. (cid:1) The Mail Services Division provides a centralized mail processing service for all County departments, including processing incoming/outgoing mail, distributing interoffice mail and providing automated mail services. (cid:1) The Central Stores Warehouse acknowledges receipt of, accounts for, then provides storage and/or delivers supplies ordered by County departments. The warehouse maintains a large supply of routine office supplies that are required on a day-to-day basis. In addition to the receiving area, there is a processing area for products ordered through Purchasing’s new “Office Depot” Internet requisition service. FINDINGS PURCHASING DEPARTMENT Purchasing has the authority to purchase on its own for services up to $25,000. This purchasing level has been the standard for many years. However, the Purchasing Director has continually pursued the Board of Supervisors to allow Purchasing to have higher final approval for procurements and contracts from $75,000-$100,000, which is lower than the amount that the 2000-2001 Grand Jury recommended in its findings. According to the latest results of a completed Countywide Procurement Survey requested by the Board and conducted during the summer of 2001, 76 percent of County department respondents agreed that the competitive service contracts level should be from $75,000 to $100,000 required for Board approval, rather than the current $25,000. For non-competitive, 58 percent decided $25,000 to $50,000 as the amount over which Board approval would be required. Under current County regulations, non-competitive procurement of commodities over $25,000 requires Board approval. There is no limit for the procurement of commodities under State law. When asked at what level Board approval should be required, only ten percent (10%) of responding departments chose the $25,000 level. Most departments (47%) thought the level should be $50,000 to $75,000, and the remainder (42%) thought the level should be $75,000 to $100,000 or higher. A chart that compares this County’s purchasing approval levels with four other California counties was researched by the 2000-2001 San Bernardino Grand Jury and is included as Exhibit A. Presently, with the current authorized approval levels, the waiting period that is required for Board approval on procurement requests is four to six weeks. In addition, the Board maintains a typical waiting period for approximately 75-100 procurement requests that require their approval at any given time. Finally, if an “urgent” procurement or contract were required, the delay for Board approval is approximately ten (10) business days. The current approval levels simply create an enormous backlog of requests that require Board approval. Those requests that are not approved at one Board meeting are carried over to the next one, and a subsequent delay of five business days is created, which multiplies per procurement request significantly. The Board has functioned in this same methodology for numerous years, as past Grand Jury reports have indicated. The Grand Jury suggests that now is the time to give the County Purchasing Department, which recently received nationwide acknowledgment in being awarded the “National Purc hasing Institutes 6th Annual ‘Achievement of Excellence Award in Public Procurement”, the authority to approve procurements and services at a level over its current authorization. MAIL SERVICES DIVISION The Mail Services Division currently encompasses 5,000 square feet of space and requires an additional 2,800 square feet for its Mail Courier section. Presently, there is no available place to expand the Mail Services section within the current building, other than constructing a new warehouse or acquiring a portable module that could be erected at the rear of the Rialto Avenue site. Purchasing is currently pursuing a grant as a Capital Improvement Project (CIP) for this acquisition. The grant will only provide a portion of the funding that is needed. The Purchasing Director has also indicated that a request for an additional 2,800 square feet of space will be requested in the 2002-2003 budget and then utilized for a portable module. Research is presently being conducted by Purchasing toward this proposal. CENTRAL STORES WAREHOUSE Purchasing’s Central Stores Division comprises the majority of the space at the Rialto Avenue warehouse. It provides storage space for regularly used office supplies, as well as goods that are ordered through Purchasing’s “Office Depot” Internet requisition system. These goods are delivered to the Central Stores warehouse, accounted for, and then delivered to the appropriate County department. There are numerous tenant departments who also share the warehouse. These include Surplus Property and the Coroner’s Public Administrator. The Surplus Property Division stores and disposes of surplus property that results when County departments replace office property. Surplus Property receives chairs, computers and printers, adding machines and copiers, etc., whenever departments upgrade their similar property. Surplus Property currently conducts two sales of surplus property per year. These sales take about two months each to arrange. Due to the volume of surplus property stored in and behind the Central Stores warehouse, it appears that two sales are not sufficient. They also organize distribution of surplus property to pre-qualified, non-profit charity organizations. Surplus Property rents out storage space to any County department that needs such space. They currently have missile parts from the County Museum stored inside, as well as outside behind the Surplus Property warehouse. This storage space encompasses approximately 10,600 square feet. The spaces where Central Stores and Surplus Property divisions reside now equal approximately 45,000 square feet. Central Stores occupies approximately 25,000 square feet and Surplus Property takes up the remaining 20,000 square feet, as noted in the diagrams of Exhibits B and C. Of the 10,600 square feet that Surplus Property maintains behind its warehouse, only 10,000 square feet is partially covered. The covered area’s sides are open and not protected from the elements. Some of the property stored here, such as old filing cabinets, stand up pretty well to inclement weather, however the fabric dividers/partitions placed outside the covered area do not. With the current configurations of the Central Stores/Surplus Property triple-tiered shelving units and warehouse diagrams, it appears that their configurations take up more space than is really necessary, as noted in the Exhibits. However, for both divisions to reconfigure their current layouts would require an enormous amount of time, which they don’t have since they only work one shift. In addition, the end result would only be an extremely minimal acquisition of extra space and not really worth any effort. Thus, the Grand Jury believes that since no sufficient space would be realized for any other warehouse tenant to expand, the County needs to construct a new warehouse addition where all tenants could expand. There is a gated storage area that Surplus Property also maintains, behind the Coroner’s Public Administrator tenant area. The Grand Jury suggests that once the IMAX theater system (which currently takes up 90 percent of available space) is removed, 57 Surplus Property notify the Auditor that an approximate 8,000 square feet is now available for either Central Stores or the Coroner to expand. Currently, the area authorized to the Coroner by the Auditor is also shared by Welfare Services. The Grand Jury was informed recently that each tenant has the opportunity to requisition additional space from the Auditor, but no tenant has done so to date, to our knowledge. COMMENDATION THE 2001-2002 SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY GRAND JURY COMMENDS THE PURCHASING DEPARTMENT FOR RECEIVING ONE OF THE NATION’S HIGHEST PROFESSIONAL HONORS: THE 6TH ANNUAL “ACHIEVEMENT OF EXCELLENCE IN PUBLIC AWARD FOR 2001 FROM THE NATIONAL PURCHASING INSTITUTE. RECOMMENDATIONS
• R02-88
  AUTHORIZE THE PURCHASING DEPARTMENT TO HAVE APPROVAL AUTHORITY FROM $50,000 TO $75,000 ON COMMODITIES; FROM $75,000 TO $100,000 ON SERVICES; ON COMMODITIES UNDER $500 WITHOUT SECURING COMPETITIVE BIDS; AND ON COMPETITIVE SERVICE CONTRACTS FROM $75,000 TO $100,000.
• R02-89
  INITIATE FOUR SALES OF SURPLUS PROPERTY PER YEAR, INSTEAD OF THE CURRENT TWO SALES AND ACQUIRE TEMPORARY PERSONNEL TO ASSIST IN THE SALES. THIS QUARTERLY ACTION WOULD GREATLY REDUCE THE VOLUME OF SURPLUS EQUIPMENT THAT IS CURRENTLY MANAGED, WITHOUT TAXING THE PRESENT PERSONNEL.
• R02-90
  CREATE AND CONDUCT AN ANNUAL REVIEW OF ALL STORAGE SPACE RENTED OUT TO COUNTY DEPARTMENTS. THIS WOULD REMIND DEPARTMENTS OF PROPERTY CURRENTLY BEING STORED TO DETERMINE IF CONTINUED STORAGE IS REQUIRED, AND TO DISCUSS FUTURE SOLUTIONS.
• R02-91
  THE SURPLUS PROPERTY DIVISION, UPON REMOVAL OF THE IMAX THEATER SYSTEM, ALERT THE AUDITOR THAT THIS EXTRA SPACE IS AVAILABLE.
• R02-92
  ORIGINATE A SURPLUS PROPERTY DISPOSAL PLAN THAT WOULD ULTIMATELY DESIGNATE WHEN THE SURPLUS PROPERTY DIVISION COULD FINALLY DISPOSE OF STORED SURPLUS PROPERTY. 58
• R02-93
  TEAR DOWN THE OUTSIDE COVERED 10,000 SQUARE FOOT STORAGE AREA BEHIND THE CENTRAL STORES WAREHOUSE, AND CONSTRUCT A NEW STRUCTURE OF SIMILAR 45,000 SQUARE FOOT WAREHOUSE. THIS ACTION WOULD NOT ONLY CREATE ADDITIONAL STORAGE SPACE, IT WOULD PREVENT DAMAGE OF OUTSIDE SURPLUS PROPERTY. ADDITIONALLY, IT WOULD ALLOW MAIL SERVICES TO EXPAND WITHOUT THE ADDED EXPENSE OF PROCURING A 2,800 SQUARE FOOT PORTABLE MODULE. 59