State Auditor to review options for California tax agency headquarters | The Sacramento Bee

A legislative audit committee on Wednesday commissioned an audit of the Board of Equalization headquarters that will consider a range of options for the troubled building and the 2,000 or so employee who work there.

State Auditor Elaine Howle said her office can start on it “right away” and finish the work in about five months.

During testimony before the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, Howle described a top-to-bottom review that will consider everything from the cost to stay in the 24-story tower in Sacramento to moving its employees to a new facility. Another option Howle will consider: temporarily moving employees out of the building while it is repaired. The board is one of California’s two tax-collecting agencies.

The building at 450 N St. has a long history of trouble, from toxic mold and leaking windows to falling exterior panels and unreliable elevators. Most recently, a waste water pipe leak affected three floors of the building. Investigators determined the problem is widespread because the drain system wasn’t constructed to code.

Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, D-Sacramento, requested the audit.