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Mission Statement

The mission of the Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) is to enforce consumer protection laws prohibiting unfair and deceptive business acts or practices to ensure a fair marketplace for consumers and businesses. Activities include complaint resolution, business registration, law enforcement, education, legislation, advocacy, and outreach to vulnerable consumers.

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Budget Overview

The total recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Office of Consumer Protection is $2,839,549, an increase of $272,755 or 10.63 percent from the FY24 Approved Budget of $2,566,794. Personnel Costs comprise 95.42 percent of the budget for 19 full-time position(s) and no part-time position(s), and a total of 18.00 FTEs. Total FTEs may include seasonal or temporary positions and may also reflect workforce charged to or from other departments or funds. Operating Expenses account for the remaining 4.58 percent of the FY25 budget.

County Priority Outcomes

While this program area supports all eight of the County Result Areas, the following are emphasized:

  • Thriving Youth and Families
  • A Growing Economy
  • Effective, Sustainable Government

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Program Performance Measures

Performance measures for this department are included below (where applicable). The FY24 estimates reflect funding based on the FY24 approved budget. The FY25 and FY26 figures are performance targets based on the FY25 recommended budget and funding for comparable service levels in FY26.

MeasureActual
FY22
Actual
FY23
Estimated
FY24
Target
FY25
Target
FY26
Number of business registrations received 1707759770770770
Number of complaint cases received1,0471,1691,1751,2001,210
Percent of consumer protection cases closed that are resolved by OCP59.1%62.1%63.0%65.0%65.0%
Average number of calendar days to issue a business license / certificate of registration (excluding new home builder registrations)6.856.085.75
Average number of workdays to investigate and close a written complaint (all complaints)43.638.137.0
Average OCP customer satisfaction rating - Outcome of the customer's case (5-point scale) based on customer satisfaction survey4.604.534.50
1  Actual FY23 amount includes registrations issued for new home builders, new home sellers, motor vehicle repair and towing operators, secondhand personal property dealers, and small electrical repair dealers.
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Innovations and Productivity Improvements

  • In FY25, the Office of Consumer Protection plans to improve its process for submitting consumer complaints by enhancing its customer relationship management (CRM) system. The current system, CALMS, developed in 2017, serves as the cornerstone for customer interactions, facilitating the submission of complaints and the processing of registration or licensing documents. Despite its benefits, users have encountered challenges due to its complex interface and stringent time constraints for form submissions, which detract from the overall user experience. Recognizing these issues, OCP conducted a thorough assessment and plans to refine the CRM and user interface by integrating solutions like SeamlessDocs and SharePoint to streamline and enrich the user experience.

Program Descriptions

  Consumer Protection

The Consumer Protection program is a law enforcement function established in 1971 responsible for enforcing consumer protection laws to prohibit unfair and deceptive business acts to ensure fairness and integrity in the marketplace for consumers and businesses. The program is responsible for receiving, investigating, and resolving complaints, educating consumers...

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Budget Trends
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Program Contacts

Contact K. Samuel Buo of the Office of Consumer Protection at 240.777.3760 or Eva Acevedo of the Office of Management and Budget at 240.777.2763 for more information regarding this department's operating budget.

Related Links
Budget Summary
TitleActual
FY23
Budget
FY24
Estimate
FY24
Recommended
FY25
%Chg
Bud/Rec
COUNTY GENERAL FUND
EXPENDITURES
Salaries and Wages1737817.001924008.00 1969759.00 2148797.0011.7
Employee Benefits433188.00511905.00 488084.00 560743.009.5
County General Fund Personnel Costs2171005.002435913.00 2457843.00 2709540.0011.2
Operating Expenses107579.00130881.00 130881.00 130009.00-0.7
County General Fund Expenditures2278584.002566794.00 2588724.00 2839549.0010.6
PERSONNEL
Full-Time19.0019.00 19.00 19.000.0
Part-Time0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
FTEs18.0018.00 18.00 18.000.0
REVENUES
New Home Builder's License140420.00153000.00 139000.00 140000.00-8.5
Other Licenses/Permits60564.0051000.00 51000.00 51000.000.0
Other Fines/Forfeitures21500.003000.00 3000.00 3000.000.0
Miscellaneous Revenues25.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
County General Fund Revenues222509.00207000.00 193000.00 194000.00-6.3
 
GRANT FUND - MCG
EXPENDITURES
Salaries and Wages0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
Employee Benefits0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
Grant Fund - MCG Personnel Costs0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
Grant Fund - MCG Expenditures0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
PERSONNEL
Full-Time0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
Part-Time0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
FTEs0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
Grant Fund - MCG Revenues0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
 
DEPARTMENT TOTALS
Total Expenditures2278584.002566794.00 2588724.00 2839549.0010.6
Total Full-Time Positions19.0019.00 19.00 19.000.0
Total Part-Time Positions0.000.00 0.00 0.000.0
Total FTEs18.0018.00 18.00 18.000.0
Total Revenues222509.00207000.00 193000.00 194000.00-6.3
FY25 Recommended Changes
TitleExpendituresFTEs
COUNTY GENERAL FUND
FY24 ORIGINAL APPROPRIATION256679418.00
Other Adjustments (with no service impacts)
Increase Cost: FY25 Compensation Adjustment1061010.00
Increase Cost: Annualization of FY24 Compensation Increases1053960.00
Increase Cost: Annualization of FY24 Personnel Costs532470.00
Increase Cost: Retirement Adjustment53580.00
Restore: One-Time Lapse Adjustment [Consumer Protection]35250.00
Increase Cost: Printing and Mail2100.00
Decrease Cost: Motor Pool Adjustment-10820.00
FY25 RECOMMENDED283954918.00
Charges to Other Departments
Charged DepartmentCharged FundFY24
Total$
FY24
FTES
FY25
Total$
FY25
FTES
COUNTY GENERAL FUND
Fire and Rescue ServiceFire893721.001038351.00
Funding Parameter Items ($000s)
TitleFY25FY26FY27FY28FY29FY30
COUNTY GENERAL FUND
EXPENDITURES
FY25 Recommended2840.0000002840.0000002840.0000002840.0000002840.0000002840.000000
No inflation or compensation change is included in outyear projections.
Labor Contracts0.00000044.00000044.00000044.00000044.00000044.000000
These figures represent the estimated annualized cost of general wage adjustments, service increments, and other negotiated items.
Subtotal Expenditures2840.0000002884.0000002884.0000002884.0000002884.0000002884.000000