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DOPL budget hearing: auditors flag excess board cash balances; agency seeks inspector pay increases and vehicles
Summary
The Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) told JFAC auditors are tracking persistent excess cash balances across boards, the licensing system rollout is complete and DOPL is requesting targeted pay increases for inspectors plus vehicle and hardware replacements to address turnover and operational needs.
Legislative auditors and DOPL officials briefed the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Feb. 6 about an open audit finding concerning excess cash balances across licensing boards and DOPL’s plans to address the balances, while DOPL requested targeted pay and one‑time equipment funding to address high turnover among inspectors.
Kellen McGurkin, budget and policy analyst with Legislative Services, told the committee DOPL was formed by House Bill 318 (2020) and now houses multiple professional bureaus and about 45 boards and commissions that oversee roughly 200,000–300,000 licensees. McGurkin described ongoing work to rebalance individual board cash reserves, noting a prior multi‑year reappropriation to pay for a new licensing system and that DOPL is implementing fee reductions and proposing fee holidays to bring down excessive balances.
April Renfro of the Legislative Auditors’ Office summarized the open audit finding from November 2024: the outstanding issue centers on unusually large cash balances for some boards. The auditors use a reasonableness range tied to a rolling five‑year average of expenditures — roughly a lower bound of 30% and an upper bound of 125% of annual expenditures — and have required DOPL to report plans for correcting balances. Renfro said DOPL has submitted reports and the auditors will continue follow‑up.
Administrator Russ Baron and his bureau chiefs described operational pressures: the division reported inspector turnover and vacancies ranging widely by program and year, with some positions vacant for months. DOPL said that inspectors (trades inspectors who inspect plumbing, HVAC, electrical, elevators, logging safety and similar work) face strong private‑sector competition; DOPL proposed a targeted compensation action to raise starting pay from $27.50 to $28.60 and an additional 2.5% (compression) adjustment, and separately requested an ongoing appropriation of $222,000 to increase pay for inspector positions (average $0.95 per hour across 92 FTP). DOPL also requested $900,500 in one‑time dedicated funds for vehicle replacements (detailed breakdown in the packet) and $146,401 one‑time for hardware recommended by the Office of Information and Technology Services.
Auditors and multiple legislators pressed for more granular analysis of which boards have high cash balances and how fee reductions or fee holidays will reduce balances over time; auditors and DOPL said fee changes can take time to affect balances because licensing cycles vary. DOPL’s administrator described the licensing system implementation (phased releases in July and November) and told the committee the new system improves processing, allows same‑day determinations when documents are complete, and supports cross‑training to deliver licenses across boards.
No committee vote was taken on DOPL’s requests during the hearing; staff asked the committee to consider the requests in the upcoming budget process. Auditors said they will continue follow‑up on cash‑balance reports and recommended continued legislative oversight while DOPL implements fee and reporting changes.
