- Email: [email protected]
Privatization of forensic science laboratories—six years experience in South Australia
MANAGEMENT AND COMPUTING
Privatization of forensic science laboratoriessix years experience in South Australia WJ TILSTONE State Forensic Science, 21 Divett Place, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia
In 1982 the South Australian Government decided to establish ". . . an integrated forensic service . . . of the highest quality, administered independently of any law enforcement agency". It then embarked on a program which placed pathology, toxicology, questioned documents, drugs, chemistry, hairs and fibres, and serology as a single Division of the Department of Services and Supply. At the same time, but as a quite distinct and separate policy, the Department of Services and Supply was required to cost the services its Divisions provided to Government and cross-charge these against notional agency budgets. By the fiscal year 1988189 the Department had been re-named State Services, the Forensic Science Division was State Forensic Science, and the Department was operating as a Government Business Enterprise, charging for its goods and services. The Department depends on the revenue generated to pay all its costs; salaries and people overheads such as superannuation; accommodation and associated overheads such as fuel and security; capital equipment purchases, loan repayments, and provision for depreciation; and consumables costs. A small amount of business (5.08% of turnover) is recognized as in the public interest, or community services work and is funded directly from Treasury. The Department is not restricted to the South Australian Government sector, and 5.35% of all revenue is from other sources. State Forensic Science is organized into four cost centres: Administration; General Forensic Science; Organic Chemistry and Toxicology; and Pathology. Of these, the last three are also profit centres. Jobs are usually costed and billed on the basis of hours of reporting officer (scientist or pathologist) time spent on them. The charge rates reflect the overheads of the cost centre, including support staff, capital equipment and accommodation. Administration costs are averaged according to profit. Some jobs, such as blood alcohol analysis and autopsies, are charged at a flat rate. Total turnover is approximately &4 million per annum. Of this, almost 60% is work for the Police Department, about 20% is for the State Coroner, about 10% is for the Department of Transport (blood alcohol program), and about 10% is for off-budget agencies such as civil (mainly paternity JFSS 1991; 31(2): 187-189
187
testing), defence (usually out-of-State), and specialist analytical services to private sector industry. The Police work is funded through the Community Services program. That is, the jobs are costed, but are charged direct to Treasury, rather than to the agency budget. There are two main reasons for this: it reinforces the Government policy of freedom of control of forensic services by any legal service agency; and it is much more flexible. In regard to the latter issue, problems encountered in the early days when costs were cross-charged to a notional Police budget included the following. Most forensic science investigations are expensive. There is generally limited delegation of authority for expenditure. Thus a very senior Police Officer would need to authorize the expenditure on the examination of a rape kit where anything beyond simple screening was involved. A related problem was that tests were not requested at the time because of the bureaucratic red tape. Regularly, we would be faced with judge or prosecutor at trial demanding that tests were performed in the laboratory. By this time, biological material would have degraded, and all instances were disruptive to work planning. Finally, the need for scientific investigations does not follow fiscal planning rules-any system of payment for services must be able to cope with homicides taking place at the end of the fiscal year when the budget ceiling has been reached. The two reasons for following the community services path came together in one very important area, namely our policy that the depth and breadth of our investigations must be governed by scientific reasons-very case we do must be sustainable on the grounds of its scientific quality. If that quality is found to be lacking, the recipient of the judicial and community wrath is the forensic science service, not the hard pressed police sergeant who made a wrong budgetary decision. There have been many direct and indirect advantages of the Government Business Enterprise approach. First and foremost is motivation. The Department has financial targets which incorporate payment of dividends to Treasury. Surpluses are retained and used in the business, for example to support research and development, or to purchase capital equipment. The motivation to our people in knowing that their identifying how to do things more efficiently or effectively results in a direct benefit to them, is quite remarkable. The method of operation also imposes a degree of fairness. The services of State Forensic Science are available to all participants in the justice system on an equal footing. It is also value for money to the tax payer-the 10% of off-budget revenue obtained from business which we seek out is, in effect, a subsidy to our main services. 188
JFSS 1991; 31(2): 187-189
Indirect benefits relate to our people management. As a business enterprise, the focus of our people management shifts markedly from public sector bureaucracy to the simple issue of recognizing that our prime asset is our people, and good people management is therefore in turn a prime objective of the way that we do things. Some examples are the installation of a real customer service focus, the maximum devolution of authority to the providers of service, and the true involvement of staff in decision-making and policy setting processes. For example, there are three Customer First Teams in State Forensic Science. These teams consist of volunteers from non-management level staff. They have been trained in systematic problem-solving processes, and are given time off each week to systematically identify customer service problems and devise solutions to them. The Customer First Team concept is used by the Management Group to create Problem Solving Teams to address issues such as restructuring of the General Forensic Science group to deal with the enormous impact of DNA technology. Some data (hard and soft) to close with: in the two full years of operation as a Government Business Enterprise, productivity in State Forensic Science, as measured by case output, has increased by over 30% despite the considerable pressure of secondment of staff from operational duties to the introduction of DNA. At the same time, the trading result, prepared on an accrued basis, improved by 27%. Most importantly, staff morale improved quite dramatically. There can't be too many public sector organizations that have increased their output by 30%, or improved their financial position by nearly 30% or improved their staff morale in difficult economic times. To have done all three speaks volumes for the potential in the Government Business Enterprise way of working.
JFSS 1991; 31 (2): 187-189
Privatization of forensic science laboratoriessix years experience in South Australia WJ TILSTONE State Forensic Science, 21 Divett Place, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia
In 1982 the South Australian Government decided to establish ". . . an integrated forensic service . . . of the highest quality, administered independently of any law enforcement agency". It then embarked on a program which placed pathology, toxicology, questioned documents, drugs, chemistry, hairs and fibres, and serology as a single Division of the Department of Services and Supply. At the same time, but as a quite distinct and separate policy, the Department of Services and Supply was required to cost the services its Divisions provided to Government and cross-charge these against notional agency budgets. By the fiscal year 1988189 the Department had been re-named State Services, the Forensic Science Division was State Forensic Science, and the Department was operating as a Government Business Enterprise, charging for its goods and services. The Department depends on the revenue generated to pay all its costs; salaries and people overheads such as superannuation; accommodation and associated overheads such as fuel and security; capital equipment purchases, loan repayments, and provision for depreciation; and consumables costs. A small amount of business (5.08% of turnover) is recognized as in the public interest, or community services work and is funded directly from Treasury. The Department is not restricted to the South Australian Government sector, and 5.35% of all revenue is from other sources. State Forensic Science is organized into four cost centres: Administration; General Forensic Science; Organic Chemistry and Toxicology; and Pathology. Of these, the last three are also profit centres. Jobs are usually costed and billed on the basis of hours of reporting officer (scientist or pathologist) time spent on them. The charge rates reflect the overheads of the cost centre, including support staff, capital equipment and accommodation. Administration costs are averaged according to profit. Some jobs, such as blood alcohol analysis and autopsies, are charged at a flat rate. Total turnover is approximately &4 million per annum. Of this, almost 60% is work for the Police Department, about 20% is for the State Coroner, about 10% is for the Department of Transport (blood alcohol program), and about 10% is for off-budget agencies such as civil (mainly paternity JFSS 1991; 31(2): 187-189
187
testing), defence (usually out-of-State), and specialist analytical services to private sector industry. The Police work is funded through the Community Services program. That is, the jobs are costed, but are charged direct to Treasury, rather than to the agency budget. There are two main reasons for this: it reinforces the Government policy of freedom of control of forensic services by any legal service agency; and it is much more flexible. In regard to the latter issue, problems encountered in the early days when costs were cross-charged to a notional Police budget included the following. Most forensic science investigations are expensive. There is generally limited delegation of authority for expenditure. Thus a very senior Police Officer would need to authorize the expenditure on the examination of a rape kit where anything beyond simple screening was involved. A related problem was that tests were not requested at the time because of the bureaucratic red tape. Regularly, we would be faced with judge or prosecutor at trial demanding that tests were performed in the laboratory. By this time, biological material would have degraded, and all instances were disruptive to work planning. Finally, the need for scientific investigations does not follow fiscal planning rules-any system of payment for services must be able to cope with homicides taking place at the end of the fiscal year when the budget ceiling has been reached. The two reasons for following the community services path came together in one very important area, namely our policy that the depth and breadth of our investigations must be governed by scientific reasons-very case we do must be sustainable on the grounds of its scientific quality. If that quality is found to be lacking, the recipient of the judicial and community wrath is the forensic science service, not the hard pressed police sergeant who made a wrong budgetary decision. There have been many direct and indirect advantages of the Government Business Enterprise approach. First and foremost is motivation. The Department has financial targets which incorporate payment of dividends to Treasury. Surpluses are retained and used in the business, for example to support research and development, or to purchase capital equipment. The motivation to our people in knowing that their identifying how to do things more efficiently or effectively results in a direct benefit to them, is quite remarkable. The method of operation also imposes a degree of fairness. The services of State Forensic Science are available to all participants in the justice system on an equal footing. It is also value for money to the tax payer-the 10% of off-budget revenue obtained from business which we seek out is, in effect, a subsidy to our main services. 188
JFSS 1991; 31(2): 187-189
Indirect benefits relate to our people management. As a business enterprise, the focus of our people management shifts markedly from public sector bureaucracy to the simple issue of recognizing that our prime asset is our people, and good people management is therefore in turn a prime objective of the way that we do things. Some examples are the installation of a real customer service focus, the maximum devolution of authority to the providers of service, and the true involvement of staff in decision-making and policy setting processes. For example, there are three Customer First Teams in State Forensic Science. These teams consist of volunteers from non-management level staff. They have been trained in systematic problem-solving processes, and are given time off each week to systematically identify customer service problems and devise solutions to them. The Customer First Team concept is used by the Management Group to create Problem Solving Teams to address issues such as restructuring of the General Forensic Science group to deal with the enormous impact of DNA technology. Some data (hard and soft) to close with: in the two full years of operation as a Government Business Enterprise, productivity in State Forensic Science, as measured by case output, has increased by over 30% despite the considerable pressure of secondment of staff from operational duties to the introduction of DNA. At the same time, the trading result, prepared on an accrued basis, improved by 27%. Most importantly, staff morale improved quite dramatically. There can't be too many public sector organizations that have increased their output by 30%, or improved their financial position by nearly 30% or improved their staff morale in difficult economic times. To have done all three speaks volumes for the potential in the Government Business Enterprise way of working.
JFSS 1991; 31 (2): 187-189