California

State lacks control over grant spending, audit finds

Local officials in California failed to properly account for millions of dollars spent on homeland security efforts in the state, made dubious purchases that may not make communities safer, and could have overpaid millions by not seeking competitive bidding for equipment, according to an audit by the inspector general of the US Department of Homeland Security.

In one example cited, a California county bought a $96,600 generator to provide its public works department with emergency power during a catastrophe but didn’t factor in a $130,000 overhaul of its electrical system needed to accommodate the generator. So nearly two years after the purchase, the new equipment wasn’t ready for a disaster and might never be, county leaders admitted.