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Building Inspection officials report consultant RFP failures, NOV backlog and $58M operating surplus; Board defers grand jury recommendations
Summary
DBI said six informal RFPs for a business process reengineering consultant drew no responses; civil grand jury highlighted a $58 million operating surplus and long delays closing notices of violation. The committee adopted language deferring implementation to DBI to issue a formal RFP and pursue reforms.
Tom Hue, director of the Department of Building Inspection, told the committee DBI issued six informal RFPs for qualified consultants to update the 2007 business process reengineering (BPR) recommendations and received no responses. He described BPR as complex (about 200 recommendations), said DBI is exploring either a formal bid or assistance from the General Services Agency to scope the work, and reported borrowing a GSA staff member (Gary Love) to help scope a future RFP.
Jerry Dratler of the civil grand jury said DBI had an operating surplus of approximately $58,000,000 through the end of the last year and argued that this is an appropriate time to bring in an outside consultant; he said many BPR recommendations depend on implementing the new Accela permit system (a $4.5 million contract signed in October 2011) and said the grand jury wants timetables for Accela implementation and a root‑cause analysis of long‑open notices of violation (NOVs). Dratler reported that 72% of NOVs were closed within 12 months during the review period, while about 27.5% took longer than 12 months and 11% remained open three to four years.
Gail Revels, acting DBI CFO, confirmed higher revenues and a growing surplus and said DBI has added staff to address the NOV backlog; DBI said it now reports NOV metrics monthly to the commission and is working on process definitions and performance standards. The committee adopted language reporting the Board will not implement Recommendations 1.1, 1.2 and 5.1 and will defer to DBI to complete an RFP for consultant services and to implement BPR recommendations; the motion was adopted without objection.
