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2023-122 California Public Schools — Custodial Staffing and Cleanliness Standards

Audit Scope and Objectives

The audit by the California State Auditor will provide independently developed and verified information related to the custodial staffing and cleanliness standards of California public schools. The audit’s scope will include, but not be limited to, the following activities, to the extent information is available:

  1. Review and evaluate the laws, rules, and regulations significant to the audit objectives.
  2. For a selection of schools within a judgmental selection of local school districts, perform all of the following:
    • Determine how custodial staffing levels have changed during the past 20 years and assess changes in the square footage cleaned, number of students in each school, and the number of high-use areas to clean.
    • Assess the adequacy and availability of cleaning supplies and equipment and evaluate how funding for these materials has changed during the past 20 years.
    • Evaluate available cleanliness data to determine whether there are trends based on certain factors, such as geographic location, student enrollment, rural/suburban/urban environment, area income level, student demographics, students experiencing homelessness, special needs populations, or the number of students per square foot of physical space.
    • Identify whether the selected school districts comply with basic cleanliness standards established by the FIT and those recommended by the APPA.
  3. Assess standards for cleanliness, inspections, data collection, and custodial staffing levels for public schools in comparable states to identify possible best practices or potentially beneficial changes to state law or regulation.
  4. Identify school cleanliness best practices and assess whether the FIT data collection processes are adequate to determine a true assessment of school cleanliness.
  5. Identify potential adverse educational or health outcomes that may be associated with declining or poor cleanliness in school facilities.
  6. Review and assess any other issues that are significant to the audit.
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