Learn About Inspections, Assessments, and Public Complaints

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:

Explain the data model for visits, regulatory code violations, and enforcement actions.
Describe the data model for assessments.
Describe the data model for public complaints.

Explore Visits, Regulatory Code Violations, and Enforcement Actions

When constituents apply for licenses and permits, government agencies often need to inspect a business or residence to check for code compliance. Agencies also inspect businesses or residences when a member of the public files a complaint, and to check for routine compliance. In Public Sector Solutions, several objects comprise the inspection process.

The Visit object represents a site visit made by the inspector, who inspects and assesses code compliance to determine whether an applicant qualifies for a license or permit. Visit records capture such details as the date and time of the visit, the related account, the purpose, the place, and the inspector.

During the visit, inspectors have access to the applicable regulatory code. They answer a series of questions that represent the assessment indicators they need to evaluate. If an establishment fails an assessment indicator, then the inspector records that as a regulatory code violation. Regulatory code violation records contain a description of the violation that the inspector identifies.

Regulatory code violations have a lookup relationship to the visit, the regulatory code, and the business license application or individual application. They also have a lookup relationship to the Violation Type object, which contains information about the type of violation, such as a health and safety violation or a fire safety violation.

Violations aren’t the end of the story, though. They are followed up with enforcement actions. The Violation Enforcement Action object, which has a master-detail relationship to the Regulatory Code Violation object, contains the actions that a regulatory authority takes to address violations.

Two junction objects also come into play with inspections. Junction objects create many-to-many relationships between objects. As you might imagine, a single code regulation can have many indicators and violations. Failure to display a required sign, for example, can be because it’s placed in the wrong location, it’s not large enough, or it’s not displayed at all.

So the Public Sector Solutions inspections data model includes the Regulatory Code Assessment Indicator junction object. The object creates multiple relationships between assessment indicator definitions and regulatory codes. And the Violation Type Assessment Indicator junction object creates multiple relationships between assessment indicator definitions and violation types.

Here’s a diagram of the regulatory code violation data model.

The regulatory code violation data model

That’s a whole lotta inspections objects and relationships. To paint a clearer picture, let’s see how they’re configured in Cosmsoville to inspect a hair salon for a business license application.

Object	Is Related To	Details
Visit	Regulatory Code Violation Business License Application, and Individual Application	An inspector visits Sunshine Salon to determine whether it meets regulatory code for a business license application.
Regulatory Code	Regulatory Code Violation and Regulatory Code Assessment Indicator	Title Chapter 10, Division 3, Article 10.7397 of the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology Codes and Procedures states that every establishment shall provide adequate and convenient handwashing facilities, including running water, soap, and towels or air hand dryers. The inspector can reference the regulatory code during the site visit.
Regulatory Code Assessment Indicator	Regulatory Code and Assessment Indicator Definition	Three assessment indicators are (1) A sink with running water is present, (2) Soap is available by the sink, and (3) Towels or an air hand dryer are present. On the site visit, the inspector checks for each indicator.
Regulatory Code Violation	Visit, Regulatory Code, Violation Type, Violation Enforcement Action, Business License Application	Failure to provide adequate and convenient handwashing facilities. If a sink, soap, towels or an air hand dryer aren't present at the establishment, the inspector marks it as a regulatory code violation.
Violation Type	Regulatory Code Violation and Violation Type Assessment Indicator	Failure to provide adequate and convenient handwashing facilities is a Health and Safety violation.
Violation Enforcement Action	Regulatory Code Violation	A fine of $500 for not providing adequate and convenient handwashing facilities.

Understand Assessments

During a visit, inspectors perform a set of tasks to assess whether the business or residence is compliant. Inspectors can be more productive if such assessment tasks are planned in advance. Public Sector Solutions has a useful object to help with assessments: Action Plan.

Action plans include action plan items, which are a series of assessment tasks for an inspector to perform on a visit. And since many inspections require the same set of assessment tasks, Public Sector Solutions includes another useful object called Action Plan Template. An action plan template, when published as an Action Plan Template Version, is a series of assessment tasks that can be used to create an individual action plan. The action plan can then be used as is, or customized as needed. Each action plan has one or more action plan items. And each action plan item is directly associated with an assessment task.

In addition to being related to an action plan and a visit, every assessment task is also related to an inspection assessment indicator. Inspection assessment indicators are like regulatory code assessment indicators: They represent what the inspector looks for during the visit.

Public Sector Solutions includes two different types of assessments: inspections and dynamic assessments. To learn more about each type of assessment, see the links in the Resources.

Action plans use these additional objects.

Assessment Indicator Definition: Defines the parameters that act as markers of compliance for inspections.
Assessment Indicator Defined Value: Lists the predefined values of what can be captured as an assessment indicator value.
Assessment Indicator Value: Lists the target or captured values that are defined as part of an assessment indicator definition for a single or multiselect question.
Assessment Task Indicator Definition: Associates an assessment indicator definition with an assessment task definition.
Inspection Assessment Indicator: Associates an Assessment Task with an Assessment Indicator Definition.
Assessment Task Definition: Associates an assessment task with an assessment indicator definition.
Signature Task: Stores a signature acknowledging the completion of an assessment task.

Here's a diagram that shows the relationships between action plan objects.

The action plan data model

Over in Cosville, they're using action plans to inspect salons for business license applications and for routine code compliance inspections. Let's see how the action plan objects are configured for Sunshine Salon's business license application.

Object	Is Related To	Details
Visit	Action Plan, Assessment Task, Account	An inspector goes onsite to conduct the Sunshine Salon Health and Safety Inspection.
Action Plan Template	Action Plan	The Salon Health and Safety Action Plan Template contains the assessment tasks required to perform health and safety inspections at salons in Cosville, and is used to create an individual action plan for a specific salon inspection.
Action Plan	Visit, Action Plan Template Version, and Assessment Task	The Sunshine Salon Health and Safety Inspection Action Plan contains tasks to check for health and safety regulatory code compliance at Sunshine Salon.
Action Plan Item	Action Plan and Assessment Task	The instance of the assessment task to check for the presence of prohibited products (the instance of the Assessment Task on an Action Plan).

Now that you understand the basics of action plans, let’s dig deeper into assessment tasks, assessment indicators, and related objects.

Object	Is Related To	Details
Assessment Task	Visit, Action Plan Item, Inspection Assessment Indicator, and Assessment Task Definition	One of the tasks for a salon Health and Safety inspection is to check for the presence of prohibited products.
Inspection Assessment Indicator	Assessment Task, Assessment Indicator Definition, and Assessment Indicator Value	To check for the presence of prohibited products, the inspection assessment indicator is the multiselect picklist question, "Are any of the following prohibited products found on the premises?"
Assessment Indicator Definition	Inspection Assessment Indicator and Assessment Task Indicator Definition	Prohibited chemicals checklist, which is a multiselect picklist.
Assessment Indicator Value	Inspection Assessment Indicator and Assessment Indicator Defined Value	The values in the prohibited chemicals picklist are Monomeric Methyl Methacrylate (MMA), Formalin (Formaldehyde) Tablets or Liquids, and Alum or Other Astringents.
Assessment Indicator Defined Value	Assessment Indicator Definition and Assessment Indicator Value	The predefined values of the assessment responses. For example, Monomeric Methyl Methacrylate (MMA).
Assessment Task Definition	Assessment Task and Assessment Task Indicator Definition	Prohibited Products and Practices Check
Assessment Task Indicator Definition	Assessment Indicator Definition and Assessment Task Definition	Salon Health and Safety - Prohibited Products and Practices check for the presence of prohibited products.
Signature Task	Assessment Task and Signature Task Line Item	The inspector's signature acknowledges that the prohibited products check assessment task is complete.
Signature Task Line Item	Signature Task and Assessment Task	The junction object between the signature task and the digital signature captured in a visit (Assessment Task).

Understand Public Complaints

So far, we’ve talked about inspections as they’re used for license and permit applications or routine code compliance checks. But what happens when a constituent files a complaint with a government agency?

The Public Complaint object stores complaints submitted by constituents against a business or establishment. Public complaints are related to the account for the business in question.

When a constituent files a public complaint, the business's governing regulatory authority uses objects such as regulatory code, visit, and regulatory code violation to conduct an investigation. Here’s a diagram of the public complaint data model.

The public complaint data model.

Uh oh. In Cosville, one of Sunshine Salon's clients is unhappy. At a recent appointment, they couldn't find the restroom, and they filed a complaint against the salon with the city. Let's see what the complaint and its investigation look like in the Public Sector Solutions public complaint data model.

Object	Is Related To	Details
Public Complaint	Account and Visit	A constituent used the Cosville Experience Cloud portal to file a complaint that Sunshine Salon doesn't have signs pointing the way to the restroom. Based on the public complaint, a compliance officer opens a case to investigate.
Account	Public Complaint, Visit, and Regulatory Transaction Fee	Sunshine Salon is the business account named in the complaint.
Regulatory Authority	Regulatory Code	The complaint is filed with the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology.
Visit	Public Complaint, Regulatory Code Violation, Regulatory Transaction Fee, and Account	A board inspector schedules a visit to Sunshine Salon to see if Sunshine Salon's signage is up to code.
Regulatory Code	Regulatory Authority, Regulatory Code Violation	The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology Codes and Procedures Title Chapter 10, Division 3, Article 10.7398 states that salons must display proper signage, including signs directing clients to the restroom.
Regulatory Code Violation	Regulatory Code, Violation Enforcement Action, Visit, and Regulatory Transaction Fee	Failure to display proper signage as per Title Chapter 10, Division 3, Article 10.7398.
Violation Enforcement Action	Regulatory Code Violation	A fine for failing to display the requisite signage as described in Title Chapter 10, Division 3, Article 10.7398.
Regulatory Transaction Fee	Regulatory Code Violation, Violation Enforcement Action, Account, Visit, and Regulatory Transaction Fee Item	The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology levies a fine on salons that fail to display signs directing clients to the restroom.
Regulatory Transaction Fee Item	Regulatory Transaction Fee	The fine is $100 for failing to display signs directing clients to the restroom.

In this unit, you learned all about the Public Sector Solutions data models for inspections, action plans, and complaints. In earlier units, you learned about the data models for licenses and permits, including accounts, applications, and regulatory authorities and codes.

In the next unit, we see the entire licensing, permitting, and inspections data model in action. We follow a business license application and an individual permit application through the approval process.

Resources

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