April 9, 2019
Investigative Report I2019-2
The Governor of California
President pro Tempore of the Senate
Speaker of the Assembly
State Capitol
Sacramento, California 95814
Dear Governor and Legislative Leaders:
The California State Auditor, as authorized by the California Whistleblower Protection Act, presents this report summarizing some of the investigations of alleged improper governmental activities that my office completed between July 2018 and December 2018.
This report details eight substantiated allegations involving several state agencies and one university campus. Our investigations found inefficient management of state resources, misuse of state time and inaccurate attendance records, and inadequate supervision. In total, we identified about $150,000 in inappropriate expenditures.
For example, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) and the former State Board of Equalization failed to ensure that 25 managers and supervisors, who worked non‑standard schedules and were exempt from certain federal reporting requirements, accurately reported their leave. As a result, these employees were overpaid at least $72,000 during a more than two‑year period. We also estimated that overpayments to other CDTFA employees in similar job classifications may have totaled more than $500,000 during the same period.
In an additional case, we describe the investigation of a California State University (CSU) campus police officer who engaged in a pattern of time and attendance abuse and failed to perform her duties adequately because she regularly took time at work to lie down and at times fell asleep. This misuse resulted in a waste of state funds that totaled as much as $16,400. The CSU also paid the officer more than $3,900 for other work hours for which she could not account or did not work.
State agencies must report to my office any corrective or disciplinary action taken in response to recommendations we have made. Their first reports are due within 60 days after we notify the agency or authority of the improper activity, and they must continue to report monthly thereafter until they have completed corrective actions.
Respectfully submitted,
ELAINE M. HOWLE, CPA
California State Auditor