Report 2019-121 Recommendation 2 Responses

Report 2019-121: California Department of Food and Agriculture: Poor Management Threatens the Success of the Pet Lover's Specialized License Plate Program (Release Date: March 2020)

Recommendation #2 To: Food and Agriculture, Department of

In order to ensure a fair and defensible grant award process for the Pet Lover's program, Food and Agriculture should immediately adopt and begin following policies and procedures that direct its staff to have multiple reviewers score each application that progresses to a technical review.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2022

In the six-month, one-year, and 2021 annual agency responses submitted to the California State Auditor, CDFA indicated that this recommendation had been fully implemented. CDFA has previously offered to provide documentation in support of this response to the California State Auditor. Copies of the reviewer score sheet for each year of the grant since 2020 that evidence each proposal was reviewed and scored by more than one reviewer have been provided via email to the California State Auditor.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Fully Implemented

Food and Agriculture provided evidence that it adopted and began following policies and procedures that direct its staff to have multiple reviewers score each application that progresses to a technical review.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2021

In the one-year agency response submitted to the California State Auditor on March 19, 2021, CDFA indicated that this recommendation had been fully implemented. CDFA has developed and adopted policies and procedures that ensure multiple reviewers score each application that progressed to a technical review. This process was implemented for both the 2020 and 2021 Pet Lover's programs. As with Recommendation 1, it appears that the California State Auditor has not assessed CDFA's six-month response nor published and assessed the one-year agency response. We look forward to timely acceptance of this response or any feedback from the California State Auditor so that we may formally resolve this recommendation.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Pending

Although Food and Agriculture developed procedures that direct its staff to have multiple reviewers score each application that progresses to a technical review, it did not provide evidence that it has begun following those procedures as we recommended. Until it does so, we will continue to assess this recommendation implementation status as pending.

1-Year Agency Response

The Pet Lover's procedures manual requires that all proposals are reviewed by more than one technical reviewer. For both 2020 and 2021 Pet Lover's each proposal was reviewed by multiple volunteer technical reviewers.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Pending

Although Food and Agriculture developed procedures that direct its staff to have multiple reviewers score each application that progresses to a technical review, it did not provide evidence that it has begun following those procedures as we recommended.

6-Month Agency Response

As above, CDFA is developing a formal procedure manual for Pet Lover's. However, for the 2020 Pet Lover's solicitation each proposal was reviewed by multiple volunteer technical reviewers. Understanding that compliance with this recommendation relies on volunteers committing time to participate, a process which involves multiple reviewers for each proposal is anticipated to continue in future years.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The department indicated it will respond at the six month mark.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

All Recommendations in 2019-121

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.