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Board hears budget, enforcement and licensing reports; staff flag 8% potential budget cut
Summary
Executive officer and staff reported staffing changes and budget materials, noting possible 8% reductions under the 2024–25 state budget. Enforcement reported 363 citations totaling $304,550 and $225,350 collected; licensing presented application counts, population and CE audit results that showed rising fail rates.
Board executive staff reported on operations, budget condition and program activity July 20. Executive officer Anthony Lum said the board is managing a modest vacancy rate (roughly 2–3 positions), named recent promotions and the new licensing manager, and described budget materials in the meeting packet. Staff noted preliminary fiscal‑year expenditure and revenue reports through fiscal month 11 and said the board spent roughly $2.4 million of a roughly $2.9–3.0 million budget the prior year and currently holds a reserve of about $3.6 million (reported as about 13.8 months in reserve). Lum said the governor's budget direction could require an approximate 8% reduction and that staff were monitoring guidance from Department of Finance.
Enforcement manager Albert Law presented FY2023–24 enforcement statistics: 86 consumer complaints, 62 arrest/conviction complaints, 333 complaints initiated (mostly citation-and-fine matters), 38 applicant complaints, 413 desk investigations closed with 69 pending (28 pending more than one year), 67 special-investigator closures, 363 citations issued totaling $304,550 in fines with $225,350 collected, 32 probation-monitoring violations, and six positive drug screens.
Licensing manager Tracy Napper reviewed licensing and exam statistics in meeting materials: 804 RDH applications received for the year, 34 RDH licensure-by-credential, 72 RDHAP applications, nearly 15,000 renewal applications (14,990), and licenses issued (806 RDH, 76 RDHAP). Napper also presented CE audit results: 306 CE audits initiated FY23–24, a rising failure rate (8% increase across cycles), common failure reasons (lost or not-retained certificates, insufficient mandatory CE or invalid providers). Staff said CE records must be retained for three renewal cycles (~6 years) per 16 CCR requirements and that staff will provide comparative year-over-year complaint statistics on request.
Board members requested further breakdowns (active vs. inactive licensees by geography), pass rates by college for the law-and-ethics exam, and staff agreed to provide those reports at a subsequent meeting. Lum and staff emphasized collaboration with the Dental Board of California on CE approvals and enforcement tools when appropriate.
Ending: staff will follow up with comparative enforcement data, a licensing demographic breakdown, and publish a newsletter with licensing and CE reminders to the profession.
