BILL NUMBER: SB 878 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 9, 2012
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 6, 2012
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 25, 2012
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 4, 2012
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 9, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Senator DeSaulnier
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Bonnie Lowenthal)
FEBRUARY 18, 2011
An act to add Part 5.1 (commencing with Section 14460) to
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to
transportation.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 878, as amended, DeSaulnier. California Transportation
Commission. Office of the Transportation Inspector
General.
Existing law creates various state transportation agencies,
including the Department of Transportation and the High-Speed Rail
Authority, with specified powers and duties. Existing law provides
for the allocation of state transportation funds, including fuel tax
revenues allocated from the Highway Users Tax Account, to various
transportation purposes. Existing law provides funding for
transportation capital improvement projects undertaken by the
department or regional or local transportation agencies.
This bill would create the Office of the Transportation Inspector
General in state government as an independent office that would not
be a subdivision of any other government entity, to ensure that all
state, regional, and local agencies expending state transportation
funds are operating efficiently, effectively, and in compliance with
federal and state laws. The bill would provide for the Governor to
appoint the Inspector General for a 6-year term, subject to
confirmation by the Senate, and would provide that the Inspector
General may not be removed from office during the term except for
good cause. The bill would specify certain duties and
responsibilities of the Inspector General, would require an annual
report to the Legislature and Governor, and would provide for funding
the office, to the extent possible, from federal transportation
funds, with other necessary funding to be made available in
proportion to the activities of the office from the Highway Users'
Tax Account and an account from which high-speed rail activities may
be funded.
Existing law creates the California Transportation Commission and
imposes various duties on the commission, including, but not limited
to, assisting the Legislature in formulating and evaluating state
policies and plans for transportation programs in the state. Under
existing law, there is also a Department of Transportation and its
duties include, among others, supporting the commission in
coordinating and developing, in cooperation with local and regional
entities, comprehensive balanced transportation planning and policy
for the movement of people and goods within this state. Existing law
requires the state transportation improvement program to include a
listing of all capital improvement projects that are expected to
receive a specified allocation of state transportation funds from the
commission. Under existing law, the commission is required to
biennially adopt and submit a state transportation improvement
program to the Governor and the Legislature.
Existing law creates the High-Speed Rail Authority with specified
powers and duties relating to the development and implementation of
an intercity high-speed rail system. Existing law, pursuant to the
Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st
Century, authorizes $9.95 billion in general obligation bonds for
high-speed rail development and other related purposes.
This bill would require the commission to undertake a study to
assess the appropriateness of establishing an office of inspector
general to ensure that the department, the authority, and
transportation agencies with projects funded completely or in part
from funds in the state transportation improvement program or state
bonds are operating efficiently, effectively, and in compliance with
the state and federal laws governing the performance of
transportation agencies. The bill would require the commission to
consult with specified federal and state agencies in this regard and
would require the commission to prepare a written report regarding
the advisability of creating an office of inspector general and to
submit it to the Governor and the Legislature by January 31, 2014.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Part 5.1 (commencing with Section
14460) is added to Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code , to read:
PART 5.1. OFFICE OF THE TRANSPORTATION INSPECTOR GENERAL
14460. (a) There is hereby created in state government the
independent Office of the Transportation Inspector General, which
shall not be a subdivision of any other governmental entity, to
ensure that the Department of Transportation, the High-Speed Rail
Authority, and all other state, regional, and local agencies
expending state transportation funds are operating efficiently,
effectively, and in compliance with applicable federal and state
laws.
(b) The Governor shall appoint, subject to confirmation by the
Senate, the Transportation Inspector General to a six-year term. The
Transportation Inspector General may not be removed from office
during that term, except for good cause.
(c) The Transportation Inspector General shall review policies,
practices, and procedures, and conduct audits and investigations of
all activities involving state transportation funds in consultation
with all affected agencies. Specifically, the Transportation
Inspector General's duties and responsibilities shall include, but
not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) To identify best practices in the delivery of transportation
projects and develop policies or recommend proposed legislation
enabling the state and local agencies to adopt these practices when
practicable.
(2) To provide objective analysis of, and when possible, offer
solutions to, concerns raised by the public or generated within
agencies involving the state's transportation infrastructure and
project delivery methods.
(3) To conduct, supervise, and coordinate audits and
investigations relating to the programs and operations of all state,
regional, and local transportation agencies with state-funded
transportation projects.
(4) To recommend policies promoting economy and efficiency in the
administration of programs and operations of all state, regional, and
local transportation agencies with state-funded transportation
projects.
(d) The Transportation Inspector General shall report annually to
the Governor and Legislature with a summary of his or her findings,
investigations, and audits. The summary shall be posted on the
Transportation Inspector General's Internet Web site and shall
otherwise be made available to the public upon its release to the
Governor and Legislature. The summary shall include, but need not be
limited to, significant problems discovered by the Transportation
Inspector General and whether recommendations of the Inspector
General relative to investigations and audits have been implemented
by the affected agencies. The report shall be submitted to the
Legislature pursuant to Section 9795.
(e) The Transportation Inspector General shall, in consultation
with the Department of Finance, develop a methodology for producing a
workload budget to be used for annually adjusting the budget of the
Office of the Transportation Inspector General, beginning with the
budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year. To the extent possible, the
office shall be funded with federal transportation funds. Should
federal funding not be available to fully fund this office, funding
shall be made available, in proportion to the activities of the
office, from the Highway Users Tax Account and an account from which
high-speed rail activities may be funded.
SECTION 1. (a) The California Transportation
Commission shall undertake a study to assess the appropriateness of
establishing an office of inspector general within state government
to ensure the Department of Transportation, the High-Speed Rail
Authority, and transportation agencies with projects funded
completely or in part from funds in the state transportation
improvement program or state bonds are operating efficiently,
effectively, and in compliance with federal and state laws governing
the performance of transportation agencies.
(b) In carrying out this study, the commission shall review the
federal Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 3), the
experience of other states that have an office of inspector general,
and the experience of local transportation agencies that have an
office of inspector general, and shall consult with the Bureau of
State Audits, the Inspector General of the United States Department
of Transportation, and other individuals and organizations that may
have relevant information related to an office of inspector general.
(c) The commission shall prepare a written report regarding the
advisability of creating an office of inspector general and shall
submit the written report to the Governor and the Legislature by
January 31, 2014.
(d) A report to the Legislature pursuant to this section shall be
submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.