Report 2016-130 Recommendation 35 Responses

Report 2016-130: The University of California Office of the President: It Failed to Disclose Tens of Millions in Surplus Funds, and Its Budget Practices Are Misleading (Release Date: April 2017)

Recommendation #35 To: University of California

To ensure that its staffing costs align with the needs of campuses and other stakeholders, by April 2020 the Office of the President should adjust its employee benefits to meet its established targets.

1-Year Agency Response

See recommendation 12 update for actions taken to implement the changes in employee benefits.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented

The Office of the President adjusted its employee benefits, as we noted in our assessment of recommendation 12.

6-Month Agency Response

Systemwide policy changes were implemented in October 2017 based on benchmarking data from federal and state sources as well as CSU and other public universities .

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

The status of this recommendation is pending the Office of the President's implementation of our employee benefit recommendations due in April 2018 and April 2019. As we discuss in recommendation 12, the Office of the President and the regents still need to take additional actions related to its policies for car allowances, business meetings and entertainment, employer contributions toward a retirement savings plan for SMGs, and stipends.

60-Day Agency Response

Implementation of this recommendation is dependent on actions taken in response to the April 2018 recommendations.

Policies will be revised based on benchmarking with federal, state, and other university policies.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

The status of this recommendation is pending the Office of the President's implementation of our employee benefit recommendations due in April 2018 and April 2019.

All Recommendations in 2016-130

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.