DBI outlines progress, tracking and next steps for expanded compliance-control program

The Department of Building Inspection reported early progress Nov. 8 in implementing an ordinance intended to curb serial permit abuse while DBI builds a case file for enforcement.

"We began adding NOVs to the tracking file as the ordinance became effective on April 26," Joe Duffy, DBI deputy director for inspection services, told the Land Use and Transportation Committee. DBI has logged 34 notices of violation and 75 names on its tracking file and has identified one individual, Rodrigo Santos, as meeting the three‑NOV threshold that triggers consideration for placement on the expanded compliance-control list, Duffy said.

Sponsor Supervisor Hillary Ronan said the ordinance was prompted by a string of problematic projects and allegations of fraud and forgery tied to a small number of repeat offenders. "Every member of the board signed on as a cosponsor," Ronan said, noting the measure directs DBI to track significant violations, report licensed professionals to state boards and subject permits linked to flagged parties to extra review and pre‑issuance inspections.

DBI described how the list and associated procedures work: when a listed party appears on a permit application, the permit will receive expanded plan review, a pre‑issuance inspection by DBI and planning, and the application must show a designated licensed contractor before issuance. DBI also refers flagged professionals to the relevant state licensing boards and, per the ordinance, will publish its expanded compliance‑control list online and provide quarterly reports to the Building Inspection Commission once the first individual is placed on the list.

Committee members pressed DBI on implementation details. Duffy said the department started tracking activity on April 26 and prioritized adding forward‑looking controls—blocking names in the permit system and adding pre‑issuance inspections—rather than immediately placing older cases on the list because a backward audit would be resource‑intensive. He said an internal audit team is reviewing projects going back to 2017, working in tiers to identify cases that meet the ordinance's criteria.

Supervisors asked how DBI accounts for corporate changes designed to evade enforcement, such as name changes or reincorporations. Duffy said the current tracking file is a spreadsheet but staff are building an automated database and working with data analysts and the City Attorney to identify connections between entities and individuals. "Our data analyst has amazing ways of finding things," he said.

Committee members also asked whether DBI would charge additional fees to recoup the cost of expanded plan review and pre‑issuance inspections. Duffy said that is under consideration and that enforcement fees in code already apply for violations.

Members of the public urged multilingual outreach, improved permit‑tracking integration with Planning's Accela system and stronger oversight of the Building Inspection Commission. John Murray, DBI legislative affairs manager, said the ordinance requires DBI to notify other parties listed on a permit when a flagged professional is associated with that application so owners and co‑contractors will be aware that extra review applies.

The committee did not take a final policy vote on the implementation update; members asked DBI to return with a follow‑up report. The hearing was continued to the call of the chair for further review in six months.