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San Jose launches operational review of code enforcement as caseloads outpace staffing
Summary
City staff told the City Council on Jan. 21 that code enforcement in San Jose is handling growing and more complex workloads with fewer general-fund inspectors; staff described pilots, technology upgrades and an operational assessment with consultant Guidehouse aimed at faster escalation and better customer service.
San Jose city planning and code enforcement officials briefed the City Council at a Jan. 21 study session on a program of process changes, pilots and a consultant-led operational assessment intended to speed case resolution as open caseloads and complexity have grown.
The presentation, led by Chris Burton, director of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement (PBCE), and Rachel Roberts, deputy director for code enforcement, said the division currently has about 45 inspectors and 71 authorized positions but has seen a long-term decline in filled general-code staff since the 2008–11 era. Burton said the result has been a steady increase in open cases — roughly 200 additional active cases per year on average since 2011, with a jump of nearly 900 cases during the COVID period — and that building- and zoning-related cases now represent a large share of the active workload.
Burton and Roberts described how PBCE divides work between general code (complaint-driven, general-funded) and a range of fee-funded programs including a multiple housing program that does proactive inspections of buildings with three or more units, special…
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