The calls for accountability from the California Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) are mounting, with Republicans in the state legislature now demanding an audit of the agency’s oversight of the state’s stalled “Next Generation 911” upgrade, which has already come with a price tag of more than $450 million and is years behind schedule.
The audit request comes on the heels of a bill proposed earlier this month by State Senator Tony Strickland (R – Huntington Beach), which takes aim at increasing transparency and reporting requirements around the project.
“We fundamentally believe that state bureaucracies need to be held accountable when they misuse taxpayer dollars, and this is one of the worst cases that we’ve seen in the last couple years,” said Assemblymember Josh Hoover, who made the audit request. “The goal of the audit is to ensure accountability, to figure out what went wrong, and make sure it never happens again.”
It’s one of four recent audit requests from Assembly Republicans, who are also seeking similar probes into the High-Speed Rail Authority’s project oversight, the Homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention Program, and the fiscal management of Medi-Cal.
In a letter signed by more than 20 state Republican lawmakers, the group says, “an audit is needed to identify lessons learned and ensure that OES has a sound plan to complete the project as quickly and as efficiently as possible.”
The lawmakers added that the scope of the audit should address why Cal OES took an approach to build the system that it’s now abandoning and why it took “over five years to recognize these problems and change course.”
In an emailed statement, a Cal OES spokesperson wrote, “We recognize the public’s interest in the modernization of California’s 9-1-1 system and welcome transparency and accountability, and we will fully comply with any approved audit.”
NBC Bay Area has been reporting on cost overruns and alleged performance failures with the new emergency call system for more than a year.
In November, officials with Cal OES outlined a plan to get the beleaguered project back on track, anticipating statewide deployment of the Next Gen 911 system by 2030.
Industry leaders are speaking out after major delays and issues with the state’s new 911 system. Brian Fontes, the CEO of the National Emergency Numbers Association, said he’s concerned about California’s broken promises and that the Next Gent 911 upgrade is something all Californians need. NBC Bay Area’s Raj Mathai spoke with Investigative Reporter Candice Nguyen to understand the details.