San Diego County Grand Jury
2010-2011
Findings & Recommendations
3 findings
F01:
The Grand Jury determined the use of GPS monitoring for high-risk offenders could be an effective tool, as it is with high-risk sex offenders on parole or probation, to improve victims’ safety.
F02:
Many victims lack the resolve and/or have little confidence in themselves to reject the abuser.
F03:
Under current law it is difficult to hold abusers accountable for completing domestic violence intervention programs.
Additional Recommendations
6
Not linked to specific findings.
11-66:
Protects from prosecution and/or civil action the manufacturers and users of
11-67:
Requires abusers to pay for and wear GPS devices when sentenced to do so.
11-68:
Requires offenders to pay for and attend intervention programs.
11-69:
Provides appropriate consequences for offenders who fail to complete
11-70:
Streamlines the process to obtain a temporary restraining order.
11-71:
Direct the Health and Human Services Agency to assess the adequacy of the
Findings & Recommendations
7 findings
F01:
The cost of processing the alarm permit application is to be borne by the applicant. An audit would clarify whether this is being accomplished.
F02:
A number of activated alarms do not have a valid permit.
F03:
A number of fees for new alarms or renewal permits are not being collected.
F04:
Without the requested audit, the Grand Jury is unable to verify the number of licenses revoked due to false alarms.
F05:
Without the requested audit, the Grand Jury is unable to verify the amount of money collected for revocation of permits and fines due to failure to have a valid permit.
F06:
The permit applicant must go to different locations for different types of permits, such as building, cigarette, entertainment, and burglar or fire alarm permits.
F07:
The time required to track down expired alarm permits, six to nine months, is inefficient and deprives the City of significant revenue.
Additional Recommendations
7
Not linked to specific findings.
11-44:
Enforce the law requiring alarm companies installing such alarms to obtain
11-45:
Establish a program to ensure that the Permits and Licensing Division
11-46:
Modernize the alarm permit tracking system to monitor permits and
11-47:
Comply with existing departmental policies and procedures and municipal
11-48:
Revise Municipal Code Sec. 33.3700 through 33.3713 to levy a substantial
11-49:
Audit the San Diego Police Department's Permits and Licensing Division
11-50:
Direct the City's Chief Operating Officer to acquire a location/office where
Findings & Recommendations
3 findings
F01:
CWA is under represented on MET’s board of directors.
F02:
CWA member agencies have not communicated clearly to their customers about the reasons for water rate increases.
F03:
Water rates will undoubtedly continue to increase because of a combination of expanding needs in the region, debt from CIP and conservation measures.
Additional Recommendations
5
Not linked to specific findings.
11-61:
Evaluate and improve public outreach efforts to educate the
11-62:
Aggressively explore and advocate for fair representation on the
11-63:
Establish a digital outreach and communication program that
11-64:
Consider an economic reward for conservation measures taken by
11-65:
Increase the investment in diverse technologies such as desalination
Findings and recommendations not yet extracted.
Findings & Recommendations
4 findings
F01:
San Diego County Public Health Services provides valuable information on pertussis and other preventable diseases on its web site.
F02:
Many local primary healthcare providers are not current with information on who should receive the Tdap immunization.
F03:
The cost of the Tdap vaccine varies depending on insurance coverage and who provides it. Random calls to local pharmacies revealed costs ranging from $35-$120 per injection.
F04:
The San Diego Unified School District and San Diego County Public Health Services appear to have well-coordinated plans to educate parents about pertussis and strongly encourage immunizing children.
Additional Recommendations
3
Not linked to specific findings.
11-51:
Direct the Public Health Officer to develop and implement a comprehensive
11-52:
Initiate efforts to draft legislation, in collaboration with the San Diego
11-53:
Initiate efforts to draft legislation, in collaboration with the San Diego
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Findings & Recommendations
5 findings
F01:
The existing city hall is in disrepair.
F02:
The City has granted itself exemptions from established safety and habitability standards. 2
F03:
The published estimated city hall rehabilitation costs appear to be more than required to ensure public and employee safety.
F04:
Third-party building owners/leasing agents confirm a continued downturn in lease rates.
F05:
The $500/square foot estimated construction cost for the new building is inconsistent with the $200/square foot rate currently available for the purchase of existing buildings of sufficient size to accommodate the City’s needs.
Additional Recommendations
6
Not linked to specific findings.
11-38:
Obtain cost information from current lessors for extending lease
11-39:
Determine if departmental downsizing will allow for a long-term
11-40:
Re-evaluate and report the costs associated with retrofitting the
11-41:
Re-examine purchase options for temporary and permanent solutions.
11-42:
Re-examine and report current construction costs and cost savings vs.
11-43:
Inform voters and other interested parties about the future of San
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Findings & Recommendations
3 findings
F01:
Some for-profit baseball leagues (and other organizations) received preferential use of San Diego Unified School District facilities in exchange for cash payments that were collected and spent without district oversight. And, the Grand Jury sees the potential for misconduct in other County school districts because the same leagues hold games outside San Diego.
F02:
Properly protecting the district’s interest in rental transactions requires more oversight, time and expertise than has been demonstrated by some schools.
F03:
Principals, athletic directors and coaches at some district high schools have ignored policies regarding fees collected for and the use of athletic fields.
Additional Recommendations
2
Not linked to specific findings.
11-36:
Ensure all district principals, athletic directors and coaches are well versed
11-37:
Enhance the authority of the district's "rental agent" department to provide
Findings & Recommendations
3 findings
F01:
From the outside, the NRP and CEP programs are perceived by some as Supervisor ‘slush funds.’ However, the Grand Jury believes recent changes made to the programs should have a positive impact on these outside perceptions.
F02:
Policy B-072 is a significant balance for the negative perceptions of the NRP program, but supervisorial common sense, self-policing and careful vetting of grant applicants by Board staff are still needed as oversight of the NRP program.
F03:
While there is overhead associated with the programs, the administrative costs are reasonable.
Additional Recommendations
6
Not linked to specific findings.
11-30:
Amend the NRP and CEP application to include questions on donations
11-31:
Publish the Tax ID number of each organization which receives funding,
11-32:
Create an outcome measurement to apply to CEP that will modify the
11-33:
Create an audit trail for CEP and NRP so donations for tangible items can be
11-34:
Create a self-certification process to ensure recipient organizations are in full
11-35:
Follow Policy B-072 meticulously, and ensure all Board staff review it
Findings & Recommendations
6 findings
F01:
State and federal laws regarding the administration of the IHSS program are complex, overlap and contain many loopholes that could lead to fraud and/or abuse and prevent the County from validating that services are delivered to consumers.
F02:
Eligibility criteria for IHSS services are imprecise and may not be interpreted uniformly by all counties.
F03:
The IHSS program regulations and the enormous caseloads carried by IHSS caseworkers do not allow close monitoring of consumers and caregivers to assure services are 9 delivered appropriately, especially to those consumers receiving the maximum care hours and funding. Such large caseloads may result in the caseworker failing to detect a consumer is being physically or financially abused and/or neglected.
F04:
Sheriff’s investigators do not have access to IHSS consumer records to conduct criminal investigations.
F05:
The County is required to seek a federal “Medicaid waiver” and state approval to implement a comprehensive, coordinated long-term care program that provides a system of care rather than uncoordinated, stand-alone programs delivering only one mode of care, such as in- home care.
F06:
County officials recognize the shortcomings of the IHSS model and have taken steps to improve it within the limitations permitted by state and federal law. This includes instituting the new state-mandated Public Integrity unit to prevent, detect and prosecute fraud, and ensure all caregivers completed a background check by December 31, 2010. However, the state’s failure to provide working protocols for the investigators inhibits the unit’s ability to discover or prevent fraud.
Additional Recommendations
9
Not linked to specific findings.
11-21:
Write legislation, in collaboration with local state legislators, which revises
11-22:
Write legislation, in collaboration with local state legislators, which revises
11-23:
Direct the Health and Human Services Agency to develop a plan to
11-24:
Direct the Health and Human Services Agency to form a County task
11-25:
Provide evidence that the County has requested a "Medicaid waiver" that
11-26:
Develop a paid or unpaid internship with local universities that educate
11-27:
Develop an interagency agreement with the San Diego County Sheriff to
11-28:
Collaborate with the Health and Human Services Agency to form a County
11-29:
Develop an interagency agreement with the Health and Human Services
Findings & Recommendations
2 findings
F01:
The current complaint log combines calls for animal services as well as complaints against the department.
F02:
Volunteers play a vital role in the care and comfort of the animals in the shelters.
Additional Recommendations
6
Not linked to specific findings.
11-16:
Develop a plan to increase public awareness of the benefits of
R11-16:
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11-17:
Develop a plan to increase public awareness of the coupons available
11-18:
Develop a plan to increase public awareness of micro-chipping
11-19:
Divide the complaint logs into two parts, one for problems requesting
11-20:
Provide all Animal Control Officers in the field with laptop computers
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Findings & Recommendations
3 findings
F01:
School administrators are not familiar with the procedures for awarding school photography contracts.
F02:
The principal is responsible for everything that occurs at his/her school; however, it is necessary and prudent to delegate responsibility for certain activities to staff members as provided in the AP.
F03:
School administrators must follow established procedures for any activity involving financial matters, regardless of the amount or who pays.
Additional Recommendations
4
Not linked to specific findings.
11-12:
Ensures Administrative Procedures addressing any financial issue are
11-13:
Requires senior high school principals to review all financial
11-14:
Discusses the importance of following written procedures with all
11-15:
Randomly and routinely audits senior high school principals'
Findings & Recommendations
2 findings
F01:
The library charter school presents unique operational and safety challenges because of its location and mixed uses. __________________________________________________________________________3
F02:
In the rush to fund the construction of the new San Diego library, the City failed to give proper weight and consideration to the challenges caused by the joint use of the facility.
Additional Recommendations
4
Not linked to specific findings.
11-08:
Conduct a new needs assessment to ensure that the library charter school
11-09:
Select a charter group before additional planning for the library charter
11-10:
Require the approved charter group to provide a written plan for
11-11:
Plan, budget, and take action to address the Grand Jury's concerns
Findings & Recommendations
3 findings
F01:
Tri-City Medical Center now delivers healthcare services that are more complex, uses state-of-the-art technology and serves more people than when the Medical Center opened as a small community hospital in 1961.
F02:
A fiscally sound model of accounting and reporting is now in place.
F03:
The disruptive behavior of a Board member impedes the Board’s ability to carry out its responsibilities in a timely and constructive manner.
Additional Recommendations
3
Not linked to specific findings.
11-05:
Develop a plan of action to inform and educate voters of Tri-City
11-06:
Hire a consultant after each election to provide training for all
11-07:
Advise the public of strategic plans for the District and the
Findings & Recommendations
4 findings
F01:
The Coaster provides an important commuter service for the cities between Oceanside and San Diego.
F02:
Coaster passengers do not have the information or readily available means to contact a conductor.
F03:
The lack of an accessible, onboard passenger emergency notification system potentially jeopardizes the health and safety of passengers.
F04:
The NCTD website contains inaccurate information to deal with onboard emergencies. 3
Additional Recommendations
4
Not linked to specific findings.
11-01:
Accelerate the installation of an emergency notification system
11-02:
Post instructions on board the Coaster for passengers to contact the
11-03:
Correct website information to reflect the applicable communication
11-04:
Design and provide posters and brochures informing commuters of
Findings and recommendations not yet extracted.
* 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.
Additional documents
Documents found alongside this year's reports — not grand jury reports or responses.