Figure 1

This figure shows the results of our review of the 25 issued licenses we reviewed at each of our three audit sites—Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Diego. We reviewed whether each site collected sufficient documentation to assess applicants, good moral character, good cause for a license, residency, and training.

The results for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department were as follows: In three of the 25 files we reviewed, Los Angeles did not adhere to its own standards for determining moral character. In 24 of the 25 files we reviewed, Los Angeles did not adhere to its standards for determining good cause. In all 25 of the files we reviewed Los Angeles did not adhere to its standards for determining residency. In five of the 25 files we reviewed Los Angeles did not adhere its standards for training.

The results for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department were as follows: In three of the 25 files we reviewed, Sacramento did not adhere its own standards for determining moral character. In all 25 files we reviewed, Sacramento adhered to its standards for determining good cause. In eight of the files we reviewed Sacramento did not adhere to its standards for determining residency. In three of the 25 files we reviewed Sacramento did not adhere to its standards for training.

The results for the San Diego County Sheriff's Department were as follows: In all 25 files we reviewed, San Diego adhered to its own standards for determining moral character. In one of the 25 files we reviewed, San Diego did not adhere to its standards for determining good cause. In 11 of the files we reviewed San Diego did not adhere to its standards for determining residency. In one of the 25 files we reviewed San Diego did not adhere to its standards for training.

Figure 2

This figure is based on the California State Auditor's review of Los Angeles's CCW license records for the 197 individuals with active licenses as of mid-August 2017 and shows the percentage of these licenses issued by Los Angeles to members of the law enforcement community and to individuals outside of the law enforcement community. This figure defines the law enforcement community as including law enforcement officers, retired federal agents, judicial officers, and deputy district attorneys. Retired federal agents are not required by state law to meet the same criteria as other applicants. For example, they do not need to meet the good cause requirement. The figure shows Los Angeles issued 67 percent of active licenses to judicial officers. Los Angeles issued 18 percent of active licenses to retired federal agents. It also issued 7 percent of active licenses to retired judicial officers, 2 percent of active licenses to deputy district attorneys or federal prosecutors, and 1 percent of active licenses to former law enforcement officers. The remaining 5 percent of active licenses were issued to individuals outside of the law enforcement community.

Figure 3

This figure shows the maximum fee amount a hypothetical sheriff's department could charge for a CCW license at three separate time intervals: 1999, 2007, and 2017. These maximums are based on the California State Auditor's Analysis of Penal Code, section 26190. The maximum fee allowed at any point in time is the lesser of the actual costs of the sheriff's department or the maximum fee allowed by state law $100 in 1999, and increased to $156 in 2017 based on the growth of the California Consumer Price Index (CCPI). The hypothetical sheriff's department's allowable fees would be the following at each interval: In 1999 the sheriff's department's actual cost to process a CCW license application is $75. This is the maximum allowable fee for the department in this year because state law caps the processing fee at the lesser of $100 or a department's actual costs. In 2007 the sheriff's department's actual cost to process a CCW license application has risen to $110. Because this is below the adjusted maximum fee allowed by state law, the department can recover its full cost. In 2017 the sheriff's department's cost to process a CCW license application is $170. This is above the adjusted maximum allowable fee, and therefore the department can only charge a fee of $156.