BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 486
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          Date of Hearing:   August 21, 2013

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mike Gatto, Chair

                   SB 486 (DeSaulnier) - As Amended:  July 3, 2013 

          Policy Committee:                               
          TransportationVote:15-0
                        Accountability                        11-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:               

           SUMMARY  

          This bill establishes an Office of Strategic Assessment and  
          Accountability (OSAA), within the Transportation Agency, to  
          issue quarterly reports, commencing July 1, 2014, measuring  
          Caltrans performance. 

          OSAA, to be headed by the Deputy Secretary of Strategic  
          Assessment, would report on Caltrans' success in meeting  
          performance benchmarks to be developed by the Secretary of the  
          Transportation Agency and the Director of Caltrans in the  
          following areas:

          1)Enhancement of public safety.
          2)System preservation and rehabilitation.
          3)Efficiency and effectiveness of project delivery.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          The OSAA would likely be staffed by a transfer of a few  
          positions from Caltran's Office of Strategic Management, which  
          currently produces similar reports for the department. The only  
          additional ongoing costs would be for the deputy director  
          position. These costs would range from about $60,000 to $170,000  
          depending on whether an existing staff position is transferred  
          and upgraded or an entirely new and additional position is  
          established. [State Highway Account]

           COMMENTS  

           1)Purpose  . The author contends that recent media investigations  








                                                                  SB 486
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            and state audit reports have created a picture of questionable  
            practices and mismanagement within Caltrans.  The author  
            believes that instituting a program of regular, timely  
            performance measurement and reporting, if done well, could  
            increase public confidence in Caltrans as well as give the  
            department the tools it needs to manage itself more  
            effectively. 

            The OSAA, which is intended to improve the transparency and  
            public confidence of Caltrans through regular performance  
            reporting, is modeled after a similar program in Washington  
            State's Department of Transportation (WSDOT).

           2)Background  . WSDOT's Office of Strategic Assessment is  
            responsible for agency-wide performance reporting via its  
            quarterly, The Gray Notebook, which began publication in 2001  
            at a time when WSDOT was in the throes of a credibility and  
            performance crisis with the public, media, and the  
            legislature. WSDOT reports that, after approximately three  
            years of its "no surprises" performance reporting in The Gray  
            Notebook, polling data showed that the proportion of voters  
            stating they did not trust WSDOT to spend tax dollars wisely  
            was reduced from almost 75% to just 12%. 
           
           Analysis Prepared by  :    Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081