AUDIT COMMITTEE SUMMARY
April 19, 2016
Audit of San Antonio Fire Department Hazardous Material Inspections
Report Issued December 9, 2015
Background
The San Antonio Fire Department (SAFD) Fire Prevention Division, which includes the Office of the Fire Marshal, is ultimately responsible for providing a fire-safe environment for the citizens of San Antonio which includes performing inspections of facilities that house hazardous materials.
Prior to March 2015, there were just two uniformed personnel partially dedicated to hazardous material inspections. In 2013, City Council approved an initiative for the addition of three full-time hazardous material inspectors and related vehicles and equipment to build an inspection program for all hazardous material facilities. In March 2015, the three new hazardous material inspectors satisfied their training requirements and were able to begin performing inspections. Consequently, the Hazardous Material Inspections program, at the new staffing level of five uniformed personnel, is just now ramping up operations to focus on public safety and inspections in addition to permit revenue collection.
Audit Objective
Determine if controls over SAFD's hazardous material inspection program are adequate to ensure appropriate and timely inspections.
Audit Scope & Methodology
The audit scope was from October 2013 to June 2015. We reviewed SAFD policies and procedures, Hansen system reports and queries, and Information Bulletins published by the SAFD Fire Marshal's Office. Furthermore, we interviewed Fire Department management and staff of other municipalities for comparative purposes.
We also compared the SAFD hazardous material permits from SAP (the City's financial system of record) to two databases, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Tier II1 Chemical Reporting database and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's (TCEQ) Active Petroleum Storage Facilities database to identify facilities ...
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