BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: SB 878
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: DeSaulnier
VERSION:
8/22/2012
Analysis by: Eric Thronson FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: August 29, 2012
SUBJECT:
Office of the Transportation Inspector General
DESCRIPTION:
This bill establishes the independent Office of Transportation
Inspector General (OTIG) to ensure that state and local agencies
expend state transportation funds efficiently, effectively, and
in compliance with applicable federal and state laws.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law creates an independent Office of Inspector General
(OIG) responsible for oversight and investigations of the
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).
Among other things, this OIG oversees internal affairs
investigations, reviews policies, practices, and procedures of
CDCR, and conducts objective medical inspection programs.
Existing law also creates an OIG for the Los Angeles County
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) to report
quarterly at a public hearing on LACMTA's expenditures.
This bill establishes OTIG as an independent office within state
government outside of any other state entity. The Inspector
General, appointed by the governor to a six-year term and
subject to Senate confirmation, is responsible to ensure that
state and local agencies expend state transportation funds
efficiently, effectively, and in compliance with applicable
federal and state laws. Specific duties and responsibilities of
OTIG include, but are not limited to:
Identifying and promoting best practices in the delivery
of transportation projects;
Providing objective analysis of concerns involving the
state's transportation infrastructure and project delivery
SB 878 (DESAULNIER) Page 2
methods;
Recommending policies promoting economy and efficiency
in the administration of transportation programs and
operations of all state, regional, and local agencies with
state-funded transportation projects;
Conducting non-redundant audits and investigations of
agencies with state-funded transportation projects;
Reporting annually to the governor and Legislature a
summary of findings, investigations, and audits.
This bill also directs the Inspector General, in consultation
with the Department of Finance, to develop a workload budget for
the OTIG to be funded with federal dollars, to the extent
possible, and otherwise to use other state transportation funds.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . According to the author, many factors are
contributing to a reduction of state transportation resources,
including vehicles with improved fuel efficiencies,
alternatively-fueled vehicles that escape paying traditional
road taxes, and the inability to increase state taxes
dedicated to transportation. As these resources diminish,
efficient and effective use of every state transportation
dollar becomes increasingly critical. The author asserts that
the OTIG will ensure that the state's dwindling transportation
resources are used in the best possible way through objective
analysis, as well as identification and promotion of best
practices among other things.
2.Federal OIGs . In 1978 Congress established OIGs for many
federal departments, including the Department of
Transportation (DOT). The DOT OIG provides the transportation
Secretary and Congress with independent and objective reviews
of the efficiency and effectiveness of federal DOT operations
and programs and detects and prevents fraud, waste, and abuse.
According to the DOT OIG's most recent semi-annual report to
Congress, over the previous 6 months the OIG issued 83 reports
with a total of 234 recommendations, including financial
recommendations totaling over $1.4 billion. The DOT OIG's
investigative work over that same time period resulted in 86
indictments, 33 convictions, and a total of more than $19
million in fines, restitutions, and recoveries.
SB 878 (DESAULNIER) Page 3
3.Transportation Inspector General vs. Bureau of State Audits .
While similar, there are distinct and important differences
between the Bureau of State Audits and the proposed OTIG. The
State Auditor is an independent external auditor of California
government's financial and operational activities directed by
statute or the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. The State
Auditor also administers the California Whistleblower
Protection Act, which grants broad authority to perform
independent investigations into complaints that state
employees have engaged in improper conduct. The OTIG will do
investigations and audits of the state and local agencies'
transportation-related activities, and will be self-directed
so will not require statutory or legislative direction. This
will give OTIG the ability to investigate and recommend
solutions to problems of which the Legislature may not be
aware or which may be sensitive or controversial. Further,
being focused solely on expenditures of state transportation
resources, OTIG should be able to delve deeper than the State
Auditor into problems and propose more comprehensive solutions
involving the complicated transportation project delivery
paradigm.
4.Transportation Inspector General vs. other state OIGs . The
OTIG will be unlike the CDCR OIG because of the latter's
significantly expanded responsibilities compared to standard
OIGs and those proposed for OTIG. The duties of CDCR OIG
extend far beyond conducting reviews of policies, practices,
and procedures of CDCR. The CDCR OIG is also responsible for
contemporaneous oversight of internal affairs investigations
and the disciplinary process of CDCR, conducting reviews of
the delivery of medical care at each state correctional
institution, as well as determining the qualifications of
candidates submitted by the governor for the position of
warden. The OTIG will require substantially fewer resources
than the CDCR OIG, as its duties are not nearly as
comprehensive.
In 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger signed an executive order
creating an OIG to oversee the state's expenditure of federal
economic stimulus funds provided through the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This OIG, recently eliminated
due to the stimulus funds being primarily spent, had a budget
of $2.8 million and 18 positions. The OTIG will likely be
similarly structured and no larger than the OIG overseeing the
ARRA funds.
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5.Concurrence hearing . This bill is back in the Senate on
concurrence and has been referred to committee pursuant to
rule 29.10 because Assembly amendments deleted the version of
the bill that passed the Senate earlier this year and replaced
it with the current language. At today's 29.10 hearing, the
committee may not amend the bill further and may only hold the
bill or return the bill as approved by the committee to the
Senate floor.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 51 - 28
Appr: 15 - 5
Trans: 9 - 3
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday,
August 29, 2012 )
SUPPORT: None received.
OPPOSED: None received.