FAIRFIELD — The 2015-16 Solano County grand jury offered some critical observations of the Environmental Health Services citizen complaint process and made wholesale recommendations to update manuals and procedures.
“During our investigation, the grand jury found Environmental Health Services provides essential and important services to the residents of Solano County. We also found the management of staff of the division are professional and efficient in their respective positions,” the report released Thursday states.
“The grand jury believes with routine updates of its Policies and Procedures Manual, the division will become a more efficient governmental agency.”
The comment followed six recommendations that focus on the department’s need to update a manual that still refers to the Department of Resource Management under its former title of Department of Environmental Management. The name was changed in 2004.
The current effective date of the Complaint Investigation Records section of the manual is April 29, 1993, the report states.
“The grand jury found no procedures for processing complaints received in person, via electronic mail, postal service or by the division’s online complaint form,” the grand jury reported.
The division also fails to “address computer technology” or the program that is used to record complaints, and there was some confusion about personnel involved, the report states.
“. . . There is no clear understanding of procedures and persons responsible for entering complaints into (the computer program),” the grand jury said.
The grand jury also asserts that Environmental Health did not have a requirement to review and update the manual to “reflect changes in environmental laws, regulations and advancements in information technology which affect how the division performs its required services.”
Finally, the grand jury said the department needs to develop a field inspector recusal policy, which would “require field specialists to recuse themselves from investigating complaints.”
Officials at Environmental Health Services referred calls to Resource Management Director Bill Emlen. A message left for him seeking comment was not returned.
May 28, 2016
Fairfield Daily Republic
By Todd R. Hansen
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