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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 06-13-2000APPROVED 411 712 0 0 1 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING June 13, 2000 The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in a Budget Work Session on Tuesday, June 13, 2000 at 7:30 p.m. in the Southern Human Services Center, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Moses Carey, Jr. and Commissioners Margaret W. Brown, Alice M. Gordon, Stephen H. Halkiotis, and Barry Jacobs COUNTY ATTORNEY PRESENT: Harmony Whalen COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant County Manager Rod Visser, and Clerk to the Board Beverly A. Blythe (all other staff members will be identified appropriately below) NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. ALL RECORDINGS OF THE MEETING WILL BE KEPT FOR 5 YEARS. 1. Emeraency Management Director's Report on May 25"' Wind Storm John Link gave a report on the May 25th windstorm and damages to properties in Orange County. There were 190 homes affected with some level of damage in Orange County. There was no damage to Caunty facilities. Commissioner Halkiotis thanked the Sheriff for helping to get water to the schools. He said that the County should investigate the Public Works facility because the equipment was not adequate for emergencies. The facility especially needs a proper forklift to unload supplies. Nick Waters reported that EMS has received new equipment to be used as "alert tone boxes." These will be placed in public buildings, schools, etc. to warn about these types of storms. Commissioner Jacobs asked how many people were still in need of assistance. Nick Waters said that the Unmet Needs Committee serves as a steering house so that all of the relief agencies come together to meet the different needs. The Red Cross has had 15 cases and the Department of Social Services has had 15-20 cases. Orange Congregations in Mission is also providing food for those in need. Commissioner Jacobs asked about the specific number of homes damaged in the County. Nick Waters said that the quick survey indicated that 15 homes were totally destroyed and another 47 suffered major damage. 2. Pay Plan & Compensation Personnel Director Elaine Holmes summarized the handout entitled, "Employee Pay and Benefits for 2000-2001 ". She summarized that the County Commissioners completed a comprehensive review of pay and benefits in 1998-1999, and came to a consensus an the elements of the pay and benefits plan. The upcoming fiscal year will be the second year of the two-year plan as agreed to by the Board. The approved plan elements include a cost of living increase, in-range salary progression, meritorious service awards, 401 {k}-plan contribution, two personal leave days, and an equity/retention fund. The plan is working as the Board intended and is on track to accomplish the Board's objectives. The voluntary contributions far 401 (k} have increased from 30°~ to 80% since the implementation of the plan. The Commissioners have two decisions to make for 2000-2001: 1) the amount of the cost of living increase {Manager recommends 3% effective July 1, 2000}; and 2} the amount of the in-range salary progression (Manager recommends that it continue at 2.5% ar a half-step in the pay plan}. She summarized same of the factors related to the cost of living increase. The information on Triangle J's pay plan was included as per the request of Commissioner Gordon. Commissioner Halkiotis asked how much was spent on the employee tuition assistance program and Elaine Holmes said that the amount budgeted was $4,000, but only $2,000 was spent. Commissioner Halkiotis asked why so few employees used the employee tuition assistance program. Elaine Holmes said that the County's prior limit of $300 a fiscal year did not capture a lot of interest. She was hoping that the $600 amount would encourage more employees to take advantage of it. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about on-call pay. Elaine Holmes said that this was the time an employee is required to be available to be on call to came in to work if the need arises. This is different from overtime. Atypical on-call amount would be $1 an hour. Commissioner Halkiotis asked for more clarification an who is doing on-call pay in local governments. Elaine Holmes gave examples of on-call positions elsewhere, such as UNC Hospitals, state governments, and a few local governments. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about the $900,000 in lapsed salaries. John Link said that this mostly relates to difficulty in recruiting employees in the area. Commissioner Halkiotis asked if an assessment has been done to look at the lowest salaried people in County government. He is concerned that the lowest salaried are not getting enough attention. Elaine Holmes said that there was a proposed update to the living wage, which is presently $8.20 an hour. The update would increase the living wage to $8.45. The lowest salary for permanent employees in County government is $8.61 an hour. Commissioner Halkiotis thinks that the County needs to look at serving the lower salaried better because it is hard far them to make ends meet. He would like to treat everyone alike, not just the upper and middle salaried. Commissioner Brown asked Jahn Link about lapsed salaries and if they could be used far other purposes. John Link said that lapsed salaries could be used for temporary placements, but for no other purpose. All other lapsed salary money reverts back to the general fund. Commissioner Brown asked about the increase in the an-call pay and if this was in addition to the hourly rate. Elaine Holmes explained that on-call pay was in addition to regular pay. If the employee actually came back in to work, they would receive overtime pay. Commissioner Brown asked how many employees on-call pay would be affected. She said that it seems to her that if an employee was on call, they are pinned down and can not do another job, or much of anything else. Elaine Holmes said that typically seven employees would be on call at all times for the County. There are about 44 employees that rotate on-call duty. The jobs that have on-call duty are telecommunicators, animal control officers, building maintenance mechanics, automotive mechanics, and child protective services social workers. Commissioner Jacobs verified that the proposed amount set aside for on-call pay would be $44,000. Commissioner Jacobs agrees that there needs to be more emphasis put on the lower end of the pay scale to make the pay more than the minimum. He asked if there was a way to give incentives to get the lower salaried to pursue higher advancement. Commissioner Brown suggested having a form that shows the number of employees by salary grade and the jobs that are in that grade. Commissioner Jacobs suggested a survey of lower salaried employees to see what they would like in the way of tools to help them advance. Commissioner Brown would like to have an employee opinion survey. She asked Elaine Holmes to get a copy of the one done by OPC Mental Health. Commissioner Gordan asked about the Triangle J Council of Government's pay plan. She asked for a summary of the differences between Triangle J's and the County's pay plans. Elaine Holmes said that Triangle J has four performance rating levels just as Orange County does. She explained each performance level for Triangle J. Triangle J does not have lump sum awards. Commissioner Gordon asked about the figure for the cost of living increase and where it came from. Elaine Holmes said that there were a number of resources for this figure, but that Orange County got it from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 1999 calendar year was used. Chair Carey asked about the increase of employees contributing to the 401 (k) program. Elaine Holmes said that there was extensive information given to employees when matching 401 (k} was implemented. The Board discussed how to handle the items and whether there should be a vote after each one. Commissioner Jacobs said that he thought the Board would discuss the items tonight, and then make specific recommendations later. Chair Carey said that any changes to the resolution would have to be made by June 15t" at the latest. John Link will bring a draft resolution an June 15t" for the Board to make any final changes. The resolution will be ready for adoption an June 20t" Commissioner Gordon suggested flagging things the Board would like more information or investigation on. She would like to talk more about the pay plan. Chair Carey said that a decision was made last year to pursue a pay plan for two years and he thinks that the Board should follow through with this to be consistent. He thinks that a change would be demoralizing to the staff and would also be dysfunctional. Commissioner Gordon does not want to touch the plan; she only wants to question the cost of living increase of 3°~ and the in-range salary adjustment of 2.5°l°. Chair Carey said that these numbers were necessary to recruit and retain employees. There is a tough market and Orange County needs to be competitive. Commissioner Halkiotis said that there should be same encouragement for people on the low end to take advantage of the tuition reimbursement. He asked if there was training available for employees to advance in the County. Elaine Holmes said that they were working on developing a trainee salary progression for telecammunicators. Commissioner Jacobs thinks that 2.75°~ is sufficient for the cost of living increase because he would like to see some cuts made in the budget. He said that far the last two years, the COLA was higher than the actual cost of living increase and there was still a problem with recruiting. Commissioner Gordon agrees. Commissioner Brown does not want to debate. She has a commitment to the pay plan and she thinks it has direct value to the employees. Chair Carey said that every year the Board has this discussion, and it bothers him that every year the Board seems to want to cut the budget by cutting the pay increase far County employees. He does not feel that it is right. Commissioner Halkiotis requested that the Board come back to this item. Chair Carey said that the Board could go through these items, approving the Manager's recommendation, unless a change is made on June 15t" Commissioner Brown requested information {to bring back in the fall) on why it is so difficult to retain Solid Waste Convenience Center Operators and Custodians. John Link asked for clarification between June 15t" and 20t" Chair Carey said that the intent was to reach as many final conclusions on June 15t" as possible. The goal is still to adopt the Resolution of Intent on June 20t" 3. New Staff Resources (including discussion of alternative resources) Social Worker position (Department on Aging): The Board was in favor of this position. Child Support Enforcement Officer (permanentlfull-time): This position is intended to address, in particular, the people on welfare who must be able to be independent within five years and child support is very critical to accomplishing the welfare reform goal. The board was in favor of this position. Code Enforcement Officer (Planning Department): This position is intended to help accomplish what is required of the state building code in a timely way. It is a caseload issue. The Board was in favor of this position. Planning Clerk: Planning Director Craig Benedict said that the number of inspection requests have gone from about 7,000 per year in 1996 to 11,000 now. This involves telephone calls and people coming to the front desk. The person in this position would help greet the people at the front door and also help with the phone calls. This person would be proactive in catching the incomplete applications that are brought in personally. Commissioner Brawn said that this was a very important position and would require someone who has excellent personal skills. Commissioner Jacobs verified that this person would serve as a receptionist for Planning. The Board was in favor of this position. Outdoor Recreation Specialist {Recreation and Parks Department): Commissioner Brown said that at some point this position would be needed, but she is not sure it is needed this coming fiscal year. She would like to set some money aside for same of the projects that need to be done and then look at this position at a later time. Commissioner Halkiotis said that this position could be put on hold for a while. Commissioner Gordon would also like to set aside some money for specific projects like Little River Park. Commissioner Brown made reference to the land purchased behind the Northern Center. She said that Rick Shaw developed a pathway down to the lake behind the center. She said that it would be nice to develop this. Recreation and Parks Director Bab Jones said that there was trail money available, but it was limited to $5,000 per project. Environment and Resource Conservation Director David Stancil said that there was a Land and Water Conservation Fund that would require a partial match of about 30% that would be an alternative source of funding. There are no cost estimates for development at the Northern Center or at the Little River Park. Commissioner Jacobs agreed with Commissioner Halkiotis and said that he feels that some money should be set aside. He suggested setting aside $10,000 in an effort to get grant money. Chair Carey suggested using the Commissioner's Contingency to address any needs. He asked what would happen if this position was not approved. John Link said that this position was an effort to be proactive for when the trails were opened. Bob Jones said that one concern was the operation and management of the trails when they were opened. Commissioner Brawn said that the maintenance could be approached at each site. Commissioner Gordon asked for some suggestions from Bob Jones and David Stancil on the contingency money. Commissioner Jacobs said that he would like to see some plan from the two departments to continue the nature programs without this position. The Board did not approve this position, but is open to setting aside some contingency money. Community Services Assistant {Department of Social Services): John Link said that this position was intended to address the support needs of children that are in protective custody of DSS, which may include transportation and other support services. The Board was in favor of this position. Existing Positions: Recommended Changes Commissioner Gordon made reference to the two positions in Soil and Water where the state was funding one half and now is only going to fund one quarter. She suggested funding one of the positions completely and half of the other one so that the County could interact more with Soil and Water. Commissianer Jacobs said that it seems that if both positions were funded three quarters as recommended, then bath positions would be mare responsible to the County. The Board was in favor of the recommended changes of existing positions. Alternative Resources Commissioner Brown asked the Sheriff to ga over some of the services of the Sheriff's department related to family violence, rape victims, etc. Sheriff Pendergrass said that there was a proposal with the government's Crime Commission to offset some of the costs of these services. There are three full-time domestic violence workers, and one part-time crisis worker in the high school. The part-time position is funded by the high school. The three full-time positions are funded by the County. The Domestic Violence unit responded to approximately 2,000 cases last year. The average number of cases an a weekly basis is 15-20. The Crisis Unit is averaging around 800-900 cases per year. Commissioner Halkiotis asked if the three people received on-call pay. He said that he would support on-call pay if it would apply to these types of positions. Sheriff Pendergrass answered that the three positions did not receive on-call pay. He said that the three positions did all of the referrals for Carrboro, Mebane, and Hillsborough. Commissianer Brown asked where the money came from for the occasional motel rooms for families when the shelters were full. Sheriff Pendergrass said that the investigators usually would pick up the tab. Chair Carey agrees that the on-call pay should be equitable with all the employees. Commissianer Halkiotis said that the deputies and investigators should be reimbursed for these motel tabs. He would like the Manager to get with the Sheriff and work this out. Chair Carey asked about the vacant positions for Deputy Sheriff I that have been vacant for almost a year. Budget Director Donna Dean said that in last year's budget, the Sheriff received four additional School Resource Officers and four positions were held vacant in order to make up the match. Two of the positions were freed up during the year to provide security for the courthouse. Commissianer Brown asked about the state of crime in Orange County. Sheriff Pendergrass said that major crime figures have not increased much at all. There has been an increase of 31 °lo in service calls, which include neighborhood complaints, house checks, school crossings, etc. Commissioner Jacobs asked if the Sheriff was pursuing grant money from the state for the three positions. Sheriff Pendergrass said that they were pursuing same money for at least one full-time Deputy. He will not know about the grant funds until July. 4. County Department Focus f major budget, policy. operational issues, using "review by exception" approachl Community Maintenance Commissioner Jacobs asked why the Commissioner's Contingency was zero. Donna Dean said that the expenditures were reflected in the accounts that have had money transferred from the Commissioners Contingency account. Commissianer Jacobs asked about the hiring of the Deputy Clerk. Beverly A. Blythe said that they have been working on realignment of the department and the information would be forthcoming this week. Commissioner Jacobs flagged the Commissioner's Contingency as something to discuss later. Commissioner Jacobs asked about Soil and Water Conservation easements and said that it was not much in the way of acreage. Kenny Ray said that it was harder in this area to get people to set aside the repairing areas due to the value of land. Commissioner Jacobs verified that Soil and Water Conservation has not tried coordinating with OWASA in this effort. He said that the Commissioners set aside same money to purchase agricultural easements. Commissioner Jacobs asked if an information specialist in the Commissioners' office could do a press release or story on someone who has sold an easement to inform the public. Kenny Ray said that they would be more than glad to do that. Several other questions were answered satisfactorily. Chair Carey asked haw much was spent out of the Commissioner's Contingency to date. Donna Dean said that there was $1,000 left in this line item. Commissioner Brawn suggested that Sail and Water Conservation get in touch with the Clerk to use the County's web page. General Administration Commissioner Jacobs asked John Link about the $1,000 that was budgeted for 2000 for Report to the People and the $12,000 that was budgeted for 2001. John Link did not have the answer, but he will find out and report back on Thursday night. Chair Carey asked about the changes in the budgeted amounts for Youth Services. John Link said that this was in response to the proposals from different agencies to address the start of a youth bureau. The youth bureau will address the needs of the youth that are not in school and out in the street. The Commissioners can treat this money as a reserve that would have to be matched by other towns and agencies. A plan will be brought back to the Commissioners. Commissioner Jacobs asked about the difference of $98,000 in Personnel Services. Jahn Link said that part of the amount was Greg Wilder's salary and the other part is the Assistant Engineer. He said that it was difficult to recruit for this position. Commissioner Jacobs asked about the discrepancy in Central Services and the continuation of current level of service in operations. Purchasing Director Pam Jones said that the large line items were insurance and worker's compensation. A consistent amount must be budgeted for insurance and worker's compensation so that it does not blow the budget every year. Taxation and Records There were no questions from the Board on this item. Community Planning Commissioner Jacobs asked David Stancil about the 12-month estimate for Environment and Resource Conservation and why it was $40,000 more than was recommended. He also asked if it was realistic to think that Shaping Orange County's Future would cost the County nothing in 2000. David Stancil said that the 12-month estimate for this year includes the money for the USGS contract, which was put in the departmental budget after the budget was adapted. This was $70,000. In terms of Shaping Orange County's Future, all of the funds have been received for this project. Commissioner Jacobs asked about the proposal for the 30-member ongoing group for Shaping Orange County's Future and who would staff it. David Stancil said that at this point there was not anything in the budget that reflects the continuation of it. An implications report is being done on the recommendations of Shaping Orange County's Future. This report will be available far the Quarterly Public Hearing in August. Commissioner Gordon said that Shaping Orange County's Future was funded by all of the jurisdictions, and she would have no expectation that the County would fund all of the continuation. Commissioner Jacobs asked Craig Benedict why minor plats were projected to double and permits were projected to increase by 800. Craig Benedict said that there has been a trend towards mare minor plats in the County. There has also been an increase in major plats. The Planning Department is trying to respond to the increase in activity in the County. Commissioner Jacobs asked about the plan to have a capacity to hang artwork in this building (Southern Human Services Center). Commissioner Brown said that this was given to the Arts Commission as a project. Commissioner Jacobs said that they ran into some difficulties in how to execute the project. John Link said that he would find out about hanging the artwork. Commissioner Halkiotis suggested hanging artwork from students in bath school systems. Commissioner Jacobs asked about the Visitor's Bureau and the increase in spending due to advertising. Joe Blake verified that the increase was due to advertising. Commissioner Jacobs asked if advertising was done in Spanish. Joe Blake said that the publications have not been printed in Spanish. Most of the publications are distributed outside of the general area, within the larger markets of North Carolina. Commissioner Jacobs said that he was struck by the comments by Maricio Castro about the opening of EI Centro, that this was a particularly welcoming community for Hispanic people. He would like to communicate this beyond the borders of Orange County. The Board agreed to have the Solid Waste/Landfill Enterprise Fund presentation and to save any questions for the next meeting, June 15tH 5. Solid WastelLandfill Enterprise Fund Assistant County Manager Rod Visser made remarks on the solid waste budget and referred to the handout and made reference to the additional staff needed. There is a proposed increase in the mixed solid waste tipping fee from $40 per ton to $42 per ton. An important feature for the Board is constructing the main water line on Rogers Road. This is aself-funded enterprise, so there is no direct impact on the County's general fund or tax rate. There was a very smooth transition of solid waste responsibilities from Chapel Hill to Orange County in April. However, there are some discrepancies in the budget that were just discovered. The expenditures and revenues were 5.99 million dollars, but the budget document refers to a 5.34 million-dollar budget. There was $550,000 left out in the numbers for the Rogers Road water line. He noted that the C&D Recycling Task Force report would be out by the end of June. This item will be first on the agenda for Thursday, June 15tH There will be budget issues addressed from the following departments on June 15cn: Social Services Aging Human Rights and Relations Carrboro Library OPC Mental Health Emergency Management Services -Telecommunications ADJOURNMENT With no further items for the Board to consider the meeting was adjourned. The next scheduled meeting will be held on Thursday, June 15, 2000 at 7:30 p.m. in the Southern Human Services Center, Chapel Hill, NC Moses Carey, Jr., Chair Beverly A. Blythe, CMC