SUBJECT
Title
Contracting Background Investigation for Department of Public Safety Recruitment and Hiring (Information Only)
Report
BACKGROUND
The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety (DPS) is the largest fully integrated public safety department in the country. The department’s fully integrated service delivery model of police, fire, and emergency medical services provide safety and services to our community all within one department. DPS provides quality service to the community by recruiting, hiring, and training highly qualified sworn officers, professional staff, volunteers and part-time staff.
To ensure that all employees are qualified, all members working at DPS must undergo a background investigation. A background investigation ensures that members meet the standards established by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST). A background investigation also meets legislative requirements that have been established for people who work within the public safety profession and may have access to firearms, confidential records, personnel files, criminal justice databases and police reports.
The scope of a background investigation varies depending upon the job classification a person pursues within DPS. For example, a sworn officer will undergo the most detailed background process while a volunteer will undergo a less detailed background process. In addition to a detailed interview, the background investigation includes a review of an applicant’s criminal history, arrest records, contacts with law enforcement, military history, employment history, credit history, driving records, training records and education. Background investigators interview the applicant, the applicant’s family, friends, previous employers, neighbors, partners and references.
For more than 25 years, all background investigations have been conducted by DPS officers. DPS has maintained, as a collateral assignment, a list of Public Safety Officers (PSO) and Public Safety Lieutenants (LT) trained as background investigators (BI). Those selected as BI must attend a POST mandated 40-hour Background Investigator Course.
Because it is a collateral assignment, investigators are required to conduct backgrounds mainly on overtime unless the background investigations do not interfere with the officer’s primary assignment. Those assigned as background investigators are not exempt from call-backs for major case investigations, mandatory overtime to fulfill minimum staffing needs and/or any ordered overtime that may arise in the normal course of duty.
Background investigations are assigned to officers and lieutenants based upon their respective availability and the expectation is each investigation will be completed within
3 months. On average, each background investigation takes up to 15 hours of overtime to complete.
EXISTING POLICY
Council Policy 7.3.6 establishes guidelines for considering alternative methods of service delivery, including the contracting of services currently provided by in-house staff. The overall goal of the City of Sunnyvale is to provide high quality, effective and efficient municipal services. In part, Sunnyvale achieves this goal by:
• Maximizing responsiveness to customers through flexible service delivery;
• Supporting continuous improvement, quality, cost reduction, cost avoidance, and efficiency;
• Exploring partnerships with other agencies or organizations to leverage resources; and
• Ensuring the City’s mission and scope of services evolve with changing environments.
The premise of this policy is that competitive service delivery produces value for City residents and that either in-house or alternative service delivery methods may produce superior service value.
Per Council Policy 7.3.6, the city manager shall have authority to pursue the most effective and efficient delivery of service to the public - including the option to deliver service via City staff, by contract, or in partnership with other agencies, in accordance with all other requirements of this policy.
DISCUSSION
Law enforcement and fire departments throughout California and the US are currently facing staffing shortages due to many factors beyond the control of the individual agencies. Agencies are aggressively recruiting qualified candidates and competing against each other. It is not uncommon for a highly qualified applicant to be in the hiring process with multiple agencies at the same time. As part of the application process, an individual that passes the initial Human Resource testing process is moved into the next phase, the background investigation.
Once the applicant successfully passes the background investigation, a command interview is usually conducted by a panel consisting of the department’s chief and the chief’s designee (usually the deputy chiefs). If the applicant is selected, they move into the final stages of the hiring process. The complete length of time between the moment the background investigation is assigned to an investigator and the final command interview is crucial in securing a qualified applicant before they are offered another opportunity at a competing department.
The assignment of a background investigation depends upon the availability of the background investigator who may be primarily assigned as a detective, patrol officer, fire fighter or another assignment. This can create a situation where background investigators are overburdened with too many duties and have difficulty completing the background in a timely manner. Because many officers and lieutenants are already spread thin with a variety of assignments and duties, there are a small number of background investigators available at any given time to undertake a new background investigation assignment.
It is important to know that information obtained during a background investigation process is confidential. During the background investigation process, there can be negative, embarrassing, personal and sensitive information discovered about a candidate. If the candidate is ultimately hired, it is highly probable the candidate will at some point work with the person who conducted their background investigation. There are strict guidelines and controls in place to prevent sharing confidential information; however, some candidates feel uncomfortable knowing a coworker has confidential information discovered during an investigation.
It is for the reasons mentioned above DPS would like to modernize the background investigation process and begin contracting out background investigations to companies (vendors) who provide law enforcement background investigation services.
Contracting background investigations is a more modern and contemporary practice that can ensure quality background investigations are completed in an effective and timely manner. This will help accelerate the process of getting quality applicants to the command interview in the quickest manner possible. Contracted background investigations are cost effective, ensure confidentiality of applicant information and reduce the burden placed upon our officers who are already expected to satisfy their duties in their primary assignment. Contracting background services is something that is already being done by several law enforcement agencies throughout Santa Clara County including:
• Santa Clara County Sheriff
• Santa Clara PD (only for reserve and Levi Stadium detail [Double Badge])
• Milpitas PD
• Mountain View PD
• Los Altos PD
• Morgan Hill PD
• Gilroy PD (Retired Sergeant)
Due to proposed changes in the DPS background process, DPS and Human Resources met with the various labor unions (PSOA and SEA) to discuss the impacts of this change to current employees. The labor groups agreed to a one-year pilot program and to evaluate the program at the completion of the one year.
FISCAL IMPACT
The cost of a background investigation depends on many factors to include but not limited to an applicant’s history of where they worked and lived, military service history, schools the applicant attended and wherever the applicant’s additional references may reside. The ultimate cost and number of hours of overtime also depends upon whether the applicant is disqualified during the process, withdraws from the process or successfully passes the process.
The cost of $139/hr. (current FY 2019/20 rates) is based upon the background investigator’s pay rate at the time of the background. The amount listed below is the average cost of a background based upon the amount of time the background was completed (see below).
8 to 20 hours Background at $139/hr. = $1,016 - $2,540
The following is an analysis of the cost associated with contracting services. It is based upon the cost averages of the previously mentioned agencies who have already contracted their background investigations.
Based upon the various steps of the background investigation, vendors charge as follows:
• Initial Interview: $300- $450
• To Completion: $1100 - $1550
• Total Range: $1400-$2000
Factors Affecting Cost
• Mileage (currently $0.58/mile)
• Disqualification/Complexity of Applicant/Time (All pro-rated)
• Special Circumstances (Outside travel/Outside company/Records request)
• DPS Pre-Package Background
• 4-8 Week Background (Affected by factors that also affect cost)
DPS is planning to start the program at the beginning of Fiscal Year 2020/21. This will allow time to properly identify vendors that can provide the background investigations and set up appropriate contracts.
Funding for the one-year pilot is estimated to cost $99,000 and will come from a combination of the department’s operating budget for professional staff backgrounds, and from Project 834120 (FY 2020/21 Recruitment and Training for Sworn Officers) for sworn staff. There will be no net impact to the Department budget from the pilot.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Senior Center, Community Center and Department of Public Safety; and by making the agenda and report available at the Sunnyvale Public Library, the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website.
Staff
Prepared by: Hyun (Jim) Choi, Deputy Chief - Special Operations
Reviewed by: Phan S. Ngo, Director of Public Safety
Reviewed by: Tim Kirby, Director of Finance
Approved by: Kent Steffens, City Manager