Sacramento, CA - The California State Auditor today released an audit report requested by Assemblymember Hector De La Torre (D-South Gate) that examines California’s emergency preparedness.  The report titled “Emergency Preparedness: California’s Administration of Federal Grants for Homeland Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness Is Hampered  by Inefficiencies and Ambiguity” found many gross inadequacies plaguing various state agencies in the Schwarzenegger Administration.

“In the case of emergency preparedness, there is no room for red tape.  On the wake of the 5th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, we must be prepared to handle all types of emergencies from potential attacks to public health outbreaks, such as avian flu,” stated De La Torre.  “The Governor has received the necessary federal funding but has failed to transfer these critical funds to our first responders.  Our police, our firefighters and our hospitals cannot be abandoned when they need our help the most.”

Some of the highlights of the audit include:

• The State’s two annual statewide exercises have not sufficiently tested the medical and health response systems.

• The State’s organizational structure for ensuring emergency preparedness is neither streamlined nor well defined.

• The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security have been slow in spending federal grant awards for homeland security.

• The Department of Health Services (DHS) has not finalized its plans to conduct on-site reviews of subrecipients.

In addition, the audit found that as of June 30, 2006, the State had spent only 42 percent of the $954 million in homeland security funds awarded to it form 2001 through 2005.  The audit also highlighted one instance where over 10 months passed between the start of an award period and the awarding of the allocation by the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security.

 “I am alarmed at the level of inefficiencies found by the State Auditor; it confirms my growing concerns which were confirmed during my oversight hearings.  As I’ve said before, protecting Californians from a potential terrorist attack must be a top priority for our state.  We need better coordination between the Office of Homeland Security, the Department of Health Services, and our local first responders.  The Administration has also failed to convene important councils that are charged with the state’s homeland security.  If an event should ever strike California, our residents are now vulnerable and are falling victim to government bureaucracy. The State is at risk of losing $239 million in homeland security grants if we do not immediately tackle these problems,” stated De La Torre.

De La Torre conducted various budget subcommittee hearings across California on the DHS’s use of bioterror related funding.  At the hearing, the committee learned that while significant homeland security funding had been encumbered, a much smaller amount had actually been spent.  DHS was not able to inform the committee about what level or what type of bioterrorist event it was prepared to handle.

The report is now available on the following website at http://www.bsa.ca.gov