Exposed: What LA’s Animal Shelter Audit Failed to Tell You

THE CITY--City Controller Ron Galperin did not lie in his recent audit of LA Animal Services, but he surely did not tell you the whole truth.

While his audit stated that LAAS’s statistics were “largely accurate,” he only audited safe areas rather than the deeply troubled ones about which he was advised; areas that could cause a great deal of political discomfort if investigated.

For example, the audit didn’t investigate that LAAS lowered its claimed number of pet adoptions between July 1, 2009 and January 31, 2014 by 8,807 fewer than it previously claimed.

In this LAAS spreadsheet, the adoption figure was 97,757.   

But after I filed a public complaint with Galperin in May 2014, the figure was quickly altered as evidenced by its revised spreadsheet, in which the figure is reduced to 92,580, from which the number must be further reduced by the three other highlighted figures (1,146; 1,195 and 1,289) to ensure the same exact time period and a revised, reduced total of 88,950.    

The falsification of 8,807 pet adoptions was anything but accurate.  Galperin didn’t audit it.   But he definitely knew about it.

This altering of this statistic wasn't done just quickly, but quietly.

A few weeks prior to the change, David Zaft, an attorney and LAAS Commission president acknowledged in this email that if the statistic were changed, the public should be advised of it.  But since he refused to put it on the Commission agenda, you (and donors in particular) were never told the truth, and the city continues to solicit millions of dollars in donations based on false statistics that suggest LA does a better job at pet adoption  than it really did.  

Galperin's audit also failed to address false impound numbers that were generated to ensure that city adoption rates were falsely inflated by animals that Best Friends took in from sources other than the city shelters, which is prohibited in its agreement with the city.  The reason that rule is in place is to ensure that city assets are used solely on city-specific humane problems.

In this email from a Best Friends coordinator to an LAAS supervisor, a series of handwritten impound numbers is shown. Note at the top of it, it refers to other lists of impound numbers as well.   

Now take any of these impound numbers – like the sixth one down, A1412379 – and compare it to the corresponding page for that animal in Chameleon, the city’s animal tracking software. 

This kitten, a gray tabby female, could not be in the Best Friends' occupied Mission shelter, which is owned by the city, unless she was first processed through one of the other LA city shelters.  We know she wasn't, because had she been, her Chameleon page would have a photo, intake information, veterinary updates, a microchip, and outgoing information, all of which are blank.

Further specifics were provided to Galperin in exacting detail, but they never ended up in the audit. 

In fact, Galperin was provided 66-pages of such problems at LAAS in a draft I provided to him in a March 15, 2015 draft, after a series of meetings with his deputies.  But his office did not ask one single question about the document, which was also provided to Mayor Garcetti and various members of City Council and other city officials.   The issues run the gamut, from millions of dollars in uncollected revenue each year, to thousands of animals whose whereabouts are unknown.  From taking more than 500 days to investigate the illegal sales of animals, to un-investigated complaints of animal cruelty.  

"Galperin's audit completely missed every major problem at LAAS because he chose a limited scope audit that simply sidestepped what the Controller should be looking for -- waste, fraud and abuse," said Laura Beth Heisen after reviewing the audit.   

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Heisen knows a few things about LAAS and government audits.  She is a former Commissioner, appointed by then-Mayor James Hahn.  She chaired City Council's Spay/Neuter Advisory Committee, appointed by Council president Herb Wesson.  She is an attorney, MBA and has more than 20 years of professional experience specifically making sure government audits are done right.    Galperin refused to meet or even speak with Heisen, and given her qualifications, you have got to wonder why.

Another well-respected leader in the humane community who wishes to remain anonymous puts it this way.  “The real issue is there is no leadership on animal issues.  Where it was Paul (Koretz) for a while, he is not going to take the department on.  The animal commission has no power or will to make changes.  There is no “Kathy” (former LAAS Commissioner Riordan)  who would bring up the right questions and challenge the status quo.  And it’s certainly not the Mayor.  So I agree there is not a leader in the City of LA for the animals"

The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board do not dive deeply on these issues either.  Despite having possession of the same report that Galperin has, it published a head-in-the-sand editorial about the easy stuff which Galperin did not dodge. 

While Barbara Romero, a Garcetti deputy, floated the idea of an external audit in a meeting with organizers of the three recent protests at his home, don't hold your breath.  It would only be as valuable as the parameter limits he sets on it, when it needs to be an audit of his and Galperin's actions, as well.

Who do we turn to when the people we are supposed to turn to for the truth, turn and look the other way?   Perhaps a grand jury.

(Daniel Guss, MBA, is a writer and humane advocate who lives in Los Angeles.)

-cw

 

 

CityWatch

Vol 13 Issue 76

Pub: Sept 18, 2015