Report 2021-107 Recommendation 13 Responses
Report 2021-107: Department of Developmental Services: It Has Not Ensured That Regional Centers Have the Necessary Resources to Effectively Serve Californians With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (Release Date: June 2022)
Recommendation #13 To: Developmental Services, Department of
To ensure that regional centers complete complaint investigations by the statutory deadline, DDS should, by January 2023, develop and issue best practices for the regional centers to follow when conducting a complaint investigation.
1-Year Agency Response
DDS met with several representatives from regional centers on January 11, 2023 to discuss the W&I Code section 4731 complaint response process and best practices when conducting complaint investigations. Subsequent to this meeting, on June 16, 2023, DDS issued guidance to regional centers on best practices to follow when completing complaint investigations.
- Completion Date: June 2023
- Response Date: June 2023
California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented
6-Month Agency Response
DDS will meet with some regional centers to explore best practices. The group will review how regional centers can streamline internal processes and responses, respond in plain language to claimants in a user-friendly format, and remind and strongly assert that the W&I Code section 4731 complaint process is only to be used to respond to consumer rights complaints and not general complaints or service-related decisions. DDS will issue guidance on best practices for regional centers to complete W&I Code section 4731 responses within the statutory 20-day timeline.
- Estimated Completion Date: January 31, 2023
- Response Date: December 2022
California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending
60-Day Agency Response
DDS will meet with some regional centers to explore best practices. The group will review how regional centers can streamline internal processes and responses, respond in plain language to claimants in a user-friendly format, and remind and strongly assert that the W&I Code section 4731 complaint process is only to be used to respond to consumer rights complaints and not general complaints or service-related decisions. DDS will issue guidance on best practices for regional centers to complete W&I Code section 4731 responses within the statutory 20-day timeline.
- Estimated Completion Date: 1/31/23
- Response Date: August 2022
California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending
All Recommendations in 2021-107
Agency responses received are posted verbatim.