DBI outlines reforms after controller's assessment, tightens inspection oversight

The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection has started implementing a package of reforms recommended in a controller's assessment released Sept. 16, department officials told the Building Inspection Commission on Oct. 2021.

"We've woven the assessment's recommendation into our existing reforms initiative," Assistant Director Christine Gasparic said, listing actions that include a compliance program, modernization of the permit-tracking system (PTS), and more rigorous quality assurance for senior plan reviewers and inspectors.

The nut of the changes, department deputies said, is an additional layer of oversight. "The senior inspectors are reviewing the daily inspections records of their subordinate staff the following day," Deputy Director Joe Duffy said. He said the chief building inspector will now spot-check senior inspectors' work and that supervisors must document any out-of-district assignments.

The department also said it will require plan reviewers and inspectors to regularly attest they understand the code of conduct and conflict-of-interest rules, and it has begun recruitment for a compliance officer who will report directly to the director and oversee the compliance program.

Technical changes are planned for the permit-tracking system to make data and audit trails more robust. Deputy Director Taris Madison said MIS staff are working with business users to define new reports and add permission blocks so inspection entries cannot be silently overwritten; the department will also add logging and alerts to surface irregularities.

Commissioners pressed staff on operational detail. Duffy said photographs now "need[ ] to be included" with every notice of violation and that senior inspectors are checking that final completion certificates are accompanied by a complete inspection history before a project can be closed out. He said district inspectors typically do up to 12 inspections per day as a maximum and that the department will monitor workloads as part of quality control.

The department said it will provide quarterly updates on implementation and that some reforms already are complete, including appointing a senior building inspector to code enforcement, expanding employee training, launching a records-management upgrade and beginning recruitment for the compliance officer.

The commission did not take any formal action on the reforms at the meeting; staff said they will return with more detailed reports, including performance measures and PTS report specifications.