Yesterday my office released an audit of Berkeley’s mandated fire inspections program. In 2018, the incoming Fire Chief identified concerns about property inspections and asked my office as an impartial independent entity to help identify the scope of the problem and develop achievable solutions moving forward.
We found that the Fire Department has nearly 2,500 unresolved violations remaining from its 2018 inspections and did not inspect over 500 properties that year. The fire inspection program staffing has not kept up with demand, which has greatly increased due to population growth and increased development - coupled with Berkeley’s regulations which exceed state standards. The City has a choice: we can either cut back on inspections and prioritize high-risk properties or increase funding to the department in order to fulfill current requirements.
We determined that Fire staff need more support to be able to complete mandated inspections. Fire does not perform risk assessments to balance competing priorities and target high-risk properties. They also do not sufficiently communicate with staff and the community, provide enough hands-on training, or have a process for performing enforcement activities that would bring in revenue to support the program.
