California Pet Lovers license plate program is in danger of failing, state audit says

A California license plate program that provides funding for free or low-cost spaying and neutering of pets is in danger of failing, according to a new state audit.

The California State Auditor released a report Thursday that found that the Pet Lover’s license plate program, administered by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, is spending more money than it makes.

In a letter accompanying the audit, State Auditor Elaine Howle wrote that in fiscal year 2018-19, expenditures exceeded revenue, “which could jeopardize the program’s ability to fulfill its mission to fund free or low‑cost animal sterilization services.”

The audit found that despite the decline in revenue, the Department of Food and Agriculture has done “minimal” to promote the license plate program.

“Unlike specialized license plate programs that other state agencies administer, Food and Agriculture has not contracted with outside agencies to perform marketing, has not advertised on social media, and has not required grant recipients to use or display promotional items,” according to the audit summary.

The audit also found that the department failed to verify grant applicants’ eligibility before awarding the money, resulting in two ineligible applicants received $35,000 in grant funding.

The audit further found that the grant review process “resulted in questionable scores and award decisions.”

The department relied on the score of a single reviewer for each application when making award decisions, rather than using multiple reviewers. In one case, a reviewer consistently scored applications lower than other reviewers did, resulting in the department disadvantaging certain applicants, according to the audit.

Howle’s office recommended that the department use multiple reviewers to score each application, and that the department “should immediately begin using marketing and promotional strategies, such as using social media, to encourage vehicle owners to purchase Pet Lover’s specialized license plates.”

In a letter responding to the audit, Department Secretary Karen Ross acknowledged that the process for verifying eligibility for Pet Lover’s program grants “was not adequate,” and wrote that “steps have already been taken to remedy these weaknesses.”

Ross wrote that of the two ineligible grant recipients, both city animal control agencies, “It should be noted no payment was made by (the department) to either recipient during the timeframe in question.”

Ross wrote that there was missing context to the fact that expenditures outweighed revenue. Fiscal year 2018-19 “was the very first fiscal year that funds were awarded and distributed to achieve the mission of the Pet Lover’s Program to provide no-cost and low-cost spay and neuter services,” she said.

This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 1:11 PM.