More than 1 million Californians are cared for in day-care
centers, foster homes and board-and-care homes licensed by the
state. Families rely on state inspectors to certify that these
places meet basic safety standards.
But under new rules passed by the Legislature this summer to cut
costs, inspectors will only darken the doors of such facilities
once in five years unless they receive complaints. The voiceless
and vulnerable will be expected to speak up for themselves. People
shopping for care for their loved ones will have no reliable,
up-to-date inspection informatio
More than 1 million Californians are cared for in day-care centers, foster homes and board-and-care homes licensed by the state. Families rely on state inspectors to certify that these places meet basic safety standards.
But under new rules passed by the Legislature this summer to cut costs, inspectors will only darken the doors of such facilities once in five years unless they receive complaints. The voiceless and vulnerable will be expected to speak up for themselves. People shopping for care for their loved ones will have no reliable, up-to-date inspection information.
Gov. Schwarzenegger has an opportunity to remedy this disgraceful situation and prevent the inevitable tragedy that will result from such poor oversight, but so far he’s not seizing it.
As part of his plan to balance the budget, the governor wants the state licensing operation to be self-supporting. The feds already pick up most of the cost of the $115 million program, but about $35 million comes out of the state general fund. To fill that gap, the governor has proposed hiking licensing fees dramatically – nearly tripling some of them over three years. For example, annual fees for small group homes would jump from $375 to $986. Fees for larger homes would jump from $938 to $2,465.
But this plan doesn’t call for beefing up the inspection process; it merely would charge providers more for the same inadequate oversight the state now provides.
We can, and must, do better. California has among the lowest inspection standards in the country. Many states require unannounced inspections twice a year or more.
The state must find new sources of revenue to balance the budget. But if the governor is going to raise fees, he should call for a meaningful inspection program and offer a plan to finance it. Otherwise, he’s merely forcing the state’s most vulnerable residents, and those who serve them, to assume an unfair share of the state’s budget burden.
