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MINUTES
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISISONERS
BUDGET PRESENTATION AND WORK SESSION
MAY 26, 2005
7:30 p.m.
The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a Budget Presentation and Work Session
on Thursday, May 26, 2005 p.m. at 7:30 p.m. at the F. Gordon Battle Courtroom in Hillsborough,
North Carolina.
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Mases Carey, Jr., and Cammissianers
Valerie P. Foushee, Alice M. Gordon, Stephen Halkiotis and Barry Jacobs
COMMISSIONERS ABSENT:
COUNTY ATTORNEY PRESENT: Geoffrey Gledhill, Sean Borhanian
COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Jahn M. Link, Jr., Assistant County
Managers Rod Visser and Gwen Harvey and Clerk to the Board Donna S. Baker (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.
The Meeting began at 7:30 pm.
Chair Carey said that the first part of the meeting would be the presentation of the
Manager's proposed budget for the next year. After this, there will be a break to prepare for the
next part of the meeting, which will be a work session.
Presentation of Manager's Recommended FY 2005-2006 Budget
John Link recognized staff: Budget Director Donna Dean, Budget and Management
Analysts Paul Laughton and Rooney Mestas, MPA Interns Rebecca Crawford and Martina
Williams, Finance Director Ken Chavious, Assistant Managers Rod Visser and Gwen Harvey,
Purchasing and Central Services Director Pam Jones, Personnel Director Elaine Holmes, and
Assistant to the County Manager Greg Wilder. He also thanked the school superintendents far
their support in providing the information as the County Cammissianers asked.
County Manager's Recommended 2005-06 Annual Operatin_g Budget
Presentation to the Orange County Commissioners
Orange County, NC
May 26, 2005
Toniaht's Presentation
^ Major Milestones
^ Sustaining Our Resources
^ Recommended Budget Highlights
. Revenues
. Expenditures
. County Operations
. Education
. Capital Funding
Employee Pay and Benefits
What Lies Ahead?
Major Milestones
^ Joint initiatives between County and Schools
. Collaboration discussions
. Educational Excellence Report
. Revenue enhancement and expense reduction efforts
^ Tremendous strides in Park Development
. Opening of Little River Regional Park and Natural Area
. Master site plans completed for Phase 2 at Efland-Cheeks Park, Twin Creeks District
Park and Educatianal Campus, and Northern Park
^ Continued progress in Lands Legacy program
. More than 1500 acres of land throughout the County being protected and conserved since
inception of program
Leveraged more than $3.7 million in Federal and State grants to assist with conservation
and preservation initiatives
New County Facilities
. Opening of Cedar Grove Branch Library and Carrbaro Cybrary
. Planning for Southern Orange Senior Center, Orange County Satellite Campus of Durham
Technical Community College
. Completion of Space Study Update and County Facilities Needs Report
Sustaining Our Resources
^ Sustainability Principles
^ Financially sustain existing critical services to citizens as new initiatives are
considered
^ Retain stable, qualified, competent, flexible wark force
^ Carefully correlate operating and capital expenditures for all initiatives or projects
^ Put infrastructure in place to meet citizens expectations for service delivery
^ Balance resources for all major functions such as education, public safety, and
human services
^ All in context of County's organizational mission, legal responsibilities, and
available resources
Across the Nation
Due to state and federal funding cuts and implementation of unfunded mandates, a
number of local governments have had to become "creative" in funding services
. They have became dependent an one-time budget "fixes" such as borrowing from
unspent capital projects, freezing and delaying hiring, and using fund balance to try to
keep tax increases low
. Most have tapped all of their non-recurring funding sources
. True far Orange County as well
To that end, analysts predict that the majority of State and local governments will face
a budget gap as they begin planning for fiscal year 2005-06
County's Revenue Highlights
Revaluation -Appreciation of Property Values
^ Factors affecting real property appreciation include location, size and nature of
property use
. If property owner experienced valuation change that fell below the countywide average
percentage and if the tax rate remained at the effective tax rate, would probably
experience a decrease in property taxes
. If, on other hand, the change increased the value above the average, owner would
probably experience an increase in property taxes
Property Tax Base
^ Overall property tax base approaching $12 billion
^ Compared to $10 billion base used to plan 2004-05 budget
^ Reflects estimated growth rate of about 19°!°
^ Average increase in non-Revaluation years between 3.5 to 4%
Proposed General Fund Tax Rate
Recommended tax rate of 86.8 cents per $100 of assessed valuation
. Represents an increase of nine cents over the equivalent "revenue neutral" post-
revaluation tax rate of 77.8 cents
One cent on property tax estimated to generate $1,187,580
Property Tax Revenues Continue to Be Strong -chart
Other Revenue Highlights
Revenues such as sales tax reimbursements and investment earnings have slowed or
decreased over last few years
Intergovernmental revenues for next year increase by about $1.4 million
. 11 °I° increase tied mainly to Department of Social Services
. Offsets expenditure increases such as
. Daycare services
. Social Worker positions added during the current fiscal year
Fund Balance
^ Fund balance serves as "cash safety net" and enables entities to:
^ "Pay the bills" during slaver revenue collection periods
. Meet unforeseen needs should they arise
^ Recommended budget provides far na fund balance appropriation
. Barring external impingements during the remainder of current fiscal year, expect year
end fund balance to fall between 8 and 8.5°~
County's Expenditure Highlights
General Fund Budget
Maiar Elements Driving Budget
$1.9 million to increase the current per pupil appropriation by $95
$1.9 million to cover increased debt service resulting from Summer 2004 bond sales
and additional programmed debt planned for the upcoming year
$4.9 million to reinstate full funding far school recurring capital and County recurring
and long-range capital
$1.5 million for employee pay and benefits
$1 million to establish reserve fund to address priority funding needs such as
education and human and court related services
$1 million to address the County's share of Medicaid, fuel and utilities costs
Public Assistance and Foster Care
^ Number of families receiving Faad Stamps increased by about 50% in the past two
years
^ Medicaid caseload has risen about 20°!°
^ Costs for foster care has increased due to increased casts per child as well as a rise in
the number of families requiring intervention
Education
^ Schaal equity issues discussed during April 2005 work session
^ Equity in process of being defined
. Programmatic
. Equal per pupil funding
^ 2005-06 education budget possible framework
. Tier I -mandates/obligations
. Tier II -possible restoration of State cuts or address continuation of 2004-05 school
board initiatives covered with fund balance
. Tier III -Educational Excellence, equity considerations
Education Observations
^ Since 1997, Orange County continues to be #1 in per pupil funding in annual rankings
by Public Schaal Forum
^ $95 per pupil funding increase falls short of school board requests, but it and capital
funding should keep Orange near top of rankings
^ Smallest net student increase in at least last 15 years
Annual Student Growth -graph
Education Observations
^ $95 recommendation aimed at addressing Tier I expenses such as salary and benefit
increases
^ Actual salarylbenefit funds needed are subject to change during State budget political
process
^ Recommendation does not significantly address:
. $1.4 million to continue 2004-05 OCS program enhancements paid through fund balance
. 2004-05 mid-year CHCCS fund balance adjustments
. DPI projected loss of 123 CHCCS students
Per Pupil Allocations to Each District
State Mandated Funding Formula -table
Education Observations
^ Based on higher per pupil increase request by OCS of $399, full funding of both
school system requests equates to another 4 to 4.5 cents on tax rate
^ Recommending CHCCS district tax at post-revaluation revenue neutral rate of 17.5
cents -down from 20 cents in 2004-05
^ BOCC may consider additional school funding, such as "Tier III" appropriations
outside of per pupil allocation
. Middle college high school initiative
. School resource officers
Critical Needs Reserve
^ New approach this year involves creation of $ 1 million reserve for critical and
emerging needs
^ BOCC may allocate during June budget process, or later in fiscal year
^ Could address Tier II or III education needs -social workers, subject area specialists,
other school board priorities - on per pupil basis
^ Potential non-education uses of reserve include:
. Public assistance
. Day care
. Justice and court services
. Fund balance enhancement
Capital Funding
^ Changes to capital funding policy a 2004-05 priority for BOCC
^ Since 1988 bond referenda, over 75 percent of capital funds spent far school needs
^ Capital constraints exacerbated by need in recent years to use earmarked capital
funds to help balance County operational budget
^ BOCC adopted policy in November 2004 of 60% for schools, 40% for County far next
ten years
Capital Funding
^ Spring 2005 work sessions on 60,40 capital policy led to BOCC selection of Option 2
^ Includes recurring capital for schools and County at 3 cents and 1 cent of tax rate
proceeds, respectively
^ Recommended budget fully implements Option 2
^ $5 million increase from 2004-05 far school and County recurring and long-range
capital
^ Progress towards $17 million+ backlog of County facility
maintenancelrepairs!improvements
Other Capital Considerations
^ Uncertainty in Raleigh about impacts of potential "education lottery"
^ Possible State sequestering of Public School Building Funds - a key component of
Orange County debt service funding
^ $100,000 construction manager initiative
. 60°~ from school capital, 40% from County capital
. Three year pilot effort
. Provide independent, critical review of County and school construction projects for
savings/efficiencies
Employee Pay and Benefits
^ Manager's Recommended Budget emphasis on funding pay plan an an ongoing basis
and some "catch up" in increased cast of living and salary compression issues
Elements include:
. 2.5 percent cost of living effective July 1, 2005
. Reinstatement of 2.5 percent in-range salary increases for proficient or higher work
performance
. Reinstatement of Meritorious Service awards to recognize top performing employees
. $5 increase in County 401 (k} contribution for non-sworn law enforcement employees from
$20 to $25 per pay period
^ Employee health insurance increase of up to 15.9 percent
Increase in the Living Wage from $9.11 to $9.34 per hour
On the Horizon
^ Start up costs for OCS Middle School #3 -opening August 2006
^ Start up costs for CHCCS High School #3 -opening August 2007
^ Capital impacts from phased implementation of BOCC-endorsed Space Needs Report
^ Assuming successful property acquisition negotiations, future
operationsimaintenance costs of SportsPlex and ca-located senior center
^ Review of various County fees to ensure they are at appropriate levels
Conclusion
^ One of the most challenging Orange County budgets of past 20 years, and my tenure
as Manager
^ Progress an capital repair and improvement goals
^ Address school priorities in some creative ways
^ Recognize our talented and committed employees
^ Manager and staff ready to assist BOCC in making this their budget
Public Hearings and Work Sessions (All Meetings Begin at 7.30 p.m.)
Public Hearings - May 31St at Southern Human Services Center
June 2"d at F. Gordon Battle Courtroom
Work Sessions - June 9t" at Southern Human Services Center
June 14t" at Government Services Center
June 16t" at Southern Human Services Center
Work Session/Adoption -June 20t" at Southern Human Services Center
Final Adoption - June 23rd -Southern Human Services Center
Document Availability
^ Clerk to Board of Commissioners
^ County Budget Office
^ Orange County Library
^ Chapel Hill Public Library
^ Carrboro Library
^ Cedar Grove Library
^ Orange County Website (portions of document):
^ www.co.orange.nc.us
Commissioner Gordon made reference to page six and the list of the major elements
driving the budget. She asked about the $4.9 million to reinstate full funding for school recurring
capital and County recurring and long-range capital. This is approximately four cents on the tax
rate. She thought the County already dedicated three cents for the school recurring capital and
one cent for County recurring and long-range capital. She asked why it costs four cents on the
tax rate to "reinstate".
John Link said that only two cents was appropriated far schools and nothing was
appropriated for the County. Budget Director Donna Dean said that in the last couple of years
the County has only appropriated two cents towards school recurring capital. The one-cent
proposed to be dedicated to County recurring capital has not been done in the last several
years. This past year, $2.4 million was used to cover County operations instead of it going to
County capital.
Commissioner Gordon asked for further clarification on the four cents. She thinks there
should only be $2.4 million since two cents was already dedicated far the schools recurring
capital. Rod Visser said that during fiscal year 2004-2005, there was two cents earmarked for
schools recurring capital. This next budget would take it back to three cents. In the current
budget, there was nothing allocated for County recurring capital. The proposed budget would
give one cent to the County. The other part of it is County long-range capital.
Commissioner Gordon asked what one-cent would equal for the CHCCS district tax and
it was answered $761,000.
Commissioner Jacobs asked about a breakdown in the appendices of what would be
included in the budget if there was a zero tax increase, one cent, etc. Jahn Link said that he
has not done this at this point because he needs guidance from the Board of County
Commissioners on what could be eliminated. Commissioner Jacobs said that the point was to
get some insight from the Manager on what items might be cut if the County Commissioners
were given a choice. John Link said that he would try and provide this.
Commissioner Halkiotis made reference to the $4.9 million and thanked Commissioner
Gordan for bringing this up. He would like more information on the long-range capital items and
the priority order.
Commissioner Halkiatis agreed with Commissioner Jacobs in seeing the Manager's
scenarios. He made reference to a story on the news tonight where the Wake County Schools
asked for $29 million more than last year and are only getting $16 million. The school system is
now going to have to cut positions. He is troubled this year with the budget. He remembers
getting budget proposals with everything broken down and over the years everything has gotten
refined. He wants to know why there are recommendations to fund six items in non-
departmental human services and why it is more money than last year. He would like to know
what some of these agencies are doing. He said that this year the State would be passing the
buck down to counties in many ways. He would like to see the two sheets that show the non-
departmental summaries. If he has those, then he can make an educated guess about how
many of those actually provide services to both school systems. He would also like to see the
commitment to conservatism with respect to utility costs. The departments had asked for an
increase of $509,000 for fuel and utilities and the recommended budget of $300,000 reflects a
reduction of $100,000 from the original $400,000. He said that you have to change the entire
culture to change the mentality of saving energy. This is not achievable by using someone
inside the system; someone must be brought in from the outside. He is concerned that there is
not a strategic plan for lowering energy costs. He would like to see the County's utility costs for
one year for all County buildings, along with the square footage of each building.
Commissioner Halkiotis asked if the staff has looked at a differentiated salary
enhancement plan to build up the salaries for those paid the least. He made reference to page
two of the PowerPoint, and the statement, "To that end, analysts predict that the majority of
State and local governments will face a budget gap as they begin planning for fiscal year 2005-
06." He is afraid that the County will be facing budget gaps for the next 10-20 years.
Chair Carey asked Personnel Director Elaine Holmes about the minimum livable wage
that is increasing, and asked if this is reflected in the budget somewhere. Elaine Holmes said
that in calculating the living wage, she used the formula that was used in the past that would
result in an increase from $9.11lhour to $9.34/hour. This impacts about 60 temporary
employees and the estimated cost of this is about $15,000. This is included in existing budgets.
There is no additional appropriation for this because it would be covered through existing
temporary wage budgets. Her recommendation is that the change be made effective July 1St
Cammissioner Gordon said that Commissioner Halkiatis asked for information and she
would also be interested in this information. She asked the staff to provide the line item detail
and Donna Dean said that they had planned to provide the line item detail at the first budget
work session.
Commissioner Gordon made reference to the major elements driving the budget
regarding capital. She asked if the $4.9 million was included in option 2 and John Link said yes.
At this time, there was a break before the work session,
1. Board of Elections Space Needs
Chair Carey said that this item resulted from a request of the Board of Elections to share
with the County Commissioners their space needs.
Mr. Melvin Beasley, Chair of the Board of Elections, said that they have four full-time
emplayees, a Director and three Deputy Directors. They are running out of space. On a normal
day, the office space is pretty good, but during elections, it is very congested. The ballots are
stored there and one-stop voting goes on at the office and there is not enough space to take
care of all of it. He said that if there were nothing stored in the office, it would be acceptable.
Billie Cox, a member of the Board of Elections, said that most of the things she will be
referring to are things that occurred in the 2004 election. She listed the requirements of the
storage of specific documents. She said that on Election Day and night, BOE staff and board
members are responsible to oversee operations and vote count, and there is also supposed to
be room for observers. None of these activities could take place at the official BOE site
because of inadequate space. They had to use some space at the Purchasing office across the
street, but this facility had other ongoing activities and could not be secure for storage. They
understand that there is a long-range plan to address this problem in four to five years.
However, the BOE facilities will be inspected by the State this summer and they will have one
year to correct any violations.
Mr. William Manrae Knight, a member of the Board of Elections, said that if all the voters
came to these budget meetings, they would have a totally different attitude about the budget.
He appreciated the questions of the County Commissioners. He said that most of the problems
they are having are related to mandates for storage. He said that 75-80% of all of the storage
for the Board of Elections is not on premise and is not convenient to access. He said that they
could not use many volunteers to help with the counting because there was no place to put
them. He described the dimensions of the building. The back of the building is used to stare
computers. They are suggesting that this same space be used to store voting machines and
ballots that have to be kept for 22 months. The Board of Elections is suggesting reassigning the
space that is always available. There is also a conference room in this building that is seldom
used.
Chair Carey commended the Board of Elections and staff and the many volunteers that
worked in the last election. He said that the issues raised by the Board of Elections tonight
were pointed out to the Board of County Commissioners in the space needs study by the staff.
He is certain that the staff and the Board of County Commissioners will work with the Board of
Elections to address the immediate needs. He asked about the penalty for not addressing the
items that the State mandates. Mr. Knight said that they could probably only badger them to
death.
Billie Cax said that voting is a sacred right and they urge everyone to take advantage of
it. She thinks they owe it to everyone to see that the right to vote is protected, accurately
counted, and not last.
Commissioner Halkiotis said that the space needs at the Board of Elections have been a
long-standing concern for all of the County Commissioners. He said that they have been
looking at other properties.
Commissioner Foushee said that a couple of months ago she met with the BOE Director
and took a tour and she was disappointed to see that the space needs plan was not short-term.
She had concerns about the safety issues in that building. There are places in the rear where
there is exposed wiring that was in close proximity to combustibles. She pledged her support
for any short-term relief for this building, for safety as well as space issues.
Commissioner Jacobs said that the County is working on a short-term solution. He said
that he had an opportunity to work on the State committee that was looking at voting systems.
He came away from that very pleased that the voters in Orange County could be assured that
their votes are counted.
Chair Carey said that Representative Verla Insko and Senator Ellie Kinnaird have
introduced a bill, but he cannot remember the details about it. He thinks the County is already
in compliance.
Geof Gledhill said that he sent the Board these bills recently about the pilot program.
Commissioner Gordon said that the Board has been aware of how the Board of
Elections has labored under bad circumstances. She is in support of both short- and long-term
solutions. She asked about the square footage and Ms. Cox said that they have 1,000 square
feet now.
Mr. Knight said that they do not know how much space is needed to store everything
because it is scattered all over the County. He said that during the one-stop voting, the line
went all the way down to the post office and people had to wait for hours to vote because they
did not have the space to set it up in their building. He asked if the solution would be
accomplished prior to the next election and Chair Carey said that this is the plan.
Commissioner Halkiotis asked if one-stop voting had to be in a specific place. Carolyn
Thomas said that one has to be at the Board of Elections office.
2. Southern Orange Senior Center Plans Review
Purchasing and Central Services Director Pam Jones said that the seniors along with
Commissioners Halkiotis and Gordon have been planning the senior center for several months.
The program is now under review by the Town of Chapel Hill. The Town Council should have a
public hearing on the program on June 20t" and consideration for approval on June 27tH
Richard Gurlitz, the architect, was in attendance and made a presentation.
Richard Gurlitz said that there have been several meetings with a 16-20 person
committee in southern Orange made up of staff, Commissioners Gordon and Halkiotis, and
many seniors. The site is at the Southern Human Services campus area off of Homestead
Road. He described the site plan map. The building has as courtyard that extends in the
direction of Homestead Road. There is a bus turnaround far city buses and excursion buses,
with a covered entryway. It is a two-story building, and because of the slope, both floors are
accessible at ground level.
There is a health area with an aerobic room and weight training, and they are working
with UNC an developing an assessment clinic that would be staffed by UNC to do health
assessments for seniors on a routine basis. There is also a massage room with bathrooms that
have showers. There are also classrooms, a computer training facility, and offices for visiting
agencies (i.e., helping with taxes, senior volunteers).
On the lower level is an open area far ping pong tables; affixed-seat meeting area where
the acoustics, sound, and lighting can be more controlled; another conference room; afull-
service kitchen; cafe and amulti-purpose room.
He then showed some sketches of the building.
Commissioner Halkiotis added that Edith Wiggins was representing the Chapel Hill Town
Council on this planning group.
Commissioner Jacobs verified that this is the only time the Board of County
Commissioners will get to look at this before Chapel Hill's development process and Richard
Gurlitz said yes. Commissioner Jacobs said that he objects to a process where the Board of
County Commissioners is supposed to approve the plans fora $2 million building they have
never seen before. Regarding the building itself, he asked why the courtyard area would be
paved, since the pavement is almost unusable in the heat. Richard Gurlitz said that the need
far paving is that the seniors wanted to keep it wheelchair accessible far activities. It is usable
outdoor space. Commissioner Jacobs asked how much would be shaded and Richard Gurlitz
said that a balcony shades half of it and there is also an eight-foot overhang. There is also a
tree line going through the middle of it.
Commissioner Jacobs asked if there would be any vegetative buffer between
Homestead Road and the building and Richard Gurlitz said that there is a required 30-foot
buffer. Chapel Hill has allowed it to be thinned in places so that the building is visible, since it is
a public building.
Chair Carey said that this process is inconsistent with the normal process the Board
pursues when it is planning to approve a project of this magnitude. He is not sure about the
time constraints, but he knows there are some. He expected to get some hard copies of the
presentation and any information. He asked for an explanation of the timeline.
Richard Gurlitz said that currently the seniors are in a facility at the Galleria and their
lease runs out June 30, 2006. The planning group has been working on this planning stage
until a month ago, and images went to Chapel Hill for expedited review. There is a 12-month
construction process and the bids need to be taken no later than the BOCC August 16t" meeting
in order to get the seniors into a building when their lease runs out.
Commissioner Halkiotis said that everyone has been working very hard on this process.
The driving issue is that the lease runs out in June 2006.
Commissioner Gordon said that that she did not think that this would be the only time for
the Commissioners to review the plans because they are not having the last design committee
meeting until June 7t". She thought that this meeting would be to show the Board of County
Commissioners the plans and that it would come back. She did not realize that the Board had
to approve this tonight.
Pam Jones said that the staff could bring this back to the Board on June 23~d. They will
solicit bids in July. The time is compressed, but it is doable.
Chair Carey asked about the access road off of Homestead Road. Pam Jones said that
this was turned down. There will be a service road to the back of the building far bringing things
into the kitchen area and for the dumpsters, but there will not be a connector to Homestead
Road.
Chair Carey said that, although he is concerned about the process, he is not concerned
about the plan.
Commissioner Halkiotis made reference to the basketball piece and the theater piece
and said that there is a real diversity of seniors working together on this center.
Commissioner Jacobs asked that this be brought back on June 7tH because he cannot
comment on something that he has only seen far five minutes.
Pam Jones said that the architect would not be available on June 7t". John Link said
that it could be brought back at the second meeting in June, and any County Commissioners
could have individual meetings if needed with staff and the architects.
This item will be brought back as soon as possible.
3. Mental Health Reform Update
Assistant County Manager Gwen Harvey said that this is just an opportunity for the
Board to talk about the meeting recently that included Representative Insko and Lisa
Wainwright from the State office. She made reference to the abstract, which highlights some of
the actions that have been taken since the beginning of the calendar year. These
accomplishments are as follows:
• Adapted LME By-Laws and Officers {Jimmy Clayton, Chatham County
Commissioner, currently serves as LME Chair; Sue Schwartz serves as
OPC Area Board Chair)
• Received Preliminary Findings from FY03-04 Financial Audit (Final
Report to be presented by Dixon Hughes on May 24tH)
• Engaged a Personnel Consultant, Steve Straus, to assist Orange County
Personnel in the conduct of an Assessment Center to fill the Director
position (Assessment Center to be conducted on June 29tH)
• Named a Director Search/Selection Committee to review candidates for
the Assessment Center Process (Moses Carey and John Link represent
Orange County)
• Reviewed OPC management recommendations on the general utilization
of County funds to support internal OPC programs, and the proposed
development of a "Professional Employer Organization" to help facilitate
the transition of long-term employees nearing retirement from the state
system
• Continuing to receive, at each monthly meeting, an OPC management
update on program divestiture issues and RFP timelines (The BOCC has
expressed a particular interest and concern for involvement in matters
pertaining to the future of Club Nova and those programs under the
umbrella of ChildScope (KidScope, Early Family Intervention & Family
Services, Children's Learning Center, and PACT}
• Continuing to be kept apprised of legislation introduced by Representative
Insko affecting the funding and delivery of community-based mental
health programs and their supportive services
• Continuing to be kept informed on the proposed rollout of the new State
service definitions, projected to go into effect on July 1, 2005 (date
recently pushed back to October 7, 2005)
Chair Carey said that he, John Link, and Representative Insko had a meeting with Mr.
Moseley, Director of QMHIDDlSAS. He feels that Mr. Moseley understands their needs but he
does not have control over some situations. The service definitions currently are not planned to
go into effect until October 1, 2005, and Mr. Moseley said that he wants to have 90 days
notification before the service definitions are implemented. He said that this transition has
generated a lot of stress, but he feels confident that the three county areas are dealing with this
the best that they can. The State has not put enough money into this transition and he does not
think they are going to. Representative Insko is working to try and get OPC some transition
money. Same County funds may have to be used.
Commissioner Halkiotis said that this Board of County Commissioners has always been
a very hands-on Board. He thinks the Board should stay hands-on and always stay involved.
He said that the representatives here tonight from the mental health organizations are here
because they are concerned and worried about what is going to happen. He said that he would
like to have an on-going report coming back to the Board about mental health reform and this
transition. He agreed with Chair Carey that the $1 million would not be enough. He said that
the citizens need their help.
Commissioner Jacobs asked what happens if Representative Insko's bill does not get
passed in the legislature. He asked about any contingency plans for funding. John Link said
that, based on service definitions, the State will fund those that have the highest priority and the
Board of County Commissioners can appropriate the entire amount set aside for mental health.
He said that at the OPC-LME meetings, he has asked them to let the County know ahead of
time if there will not be sufficient funding to bridge the process before the State figures out the
service definitions and the cash flow. If the Board is not satisfied during the budget process,
then it can set aside a reserve. He said that Judy Truitt and her staff are trying very hard to
keep things together and try to address the service provisions in place now and try to take care
of the mental health organizations.
Gwen Harvey said that Judy Truitt would have been here tonight but she had a long-
standing commitment with her family. She agreed with John Link that they have asked at the
OPC-LME meetings about the availability of funds, and the response has been that the amount
of the County contribution that was already submitted as a part of the Manager's recommended
budget would keep every program intact through 2005-06.
Commissioner Jacobs said that having the undesignated fund to hold past June 30t" is a
good idea, but he would think that the organizations represented here tonight think about this
process the way the Board feels about the legislature -that people of good heart assure that
they will try to do their best. However, he thinks there should be a fallback position.
Chair Carey said that there are no guarantees and the OPC-LME Board needs $1.2
million just to deal with the personnel transition issues. This is because of the correction in the
audit that deals with unpaid annual leave. He does not know where this money will come from.
He said that the schools would be saying the same thing, because they will want a guarantee
that the County will cover any State cuts.
Commissioner Jacobs asked that the vulnerabilities be fleshed out, including the money
that is needed to make this transition and where the money is coming from.
Chair Carey asked if any of the representatives from the mental health organizations
wanted to make comments, since they were there.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
A staff person from Club Nova asked if OPC said that the amount that the County has
been allocating would be enough for the next year to sustain all of the programs. Gwen Harvey
said that her understanding is that the appropriation that was requested of the County for 05-06
was deemed by the management team at OPC to be sufficient to carry forward every program.
This is similar to what the County has been allocating in the past. It was painted out that the
contribution of all three counties was limited exclusively far internal programs and not for
external programs.
The staff person from Club Nava said that she would look at this more carefully. She
said that, regarding Club Nova, there has been one agency bidding on most of the RFPs. She
said that they are grateful for the subsidy from Orange County. If there are no additional funds,
however, they will be in a situation where they are transitioning with no additional funds. She
knows of a clubhouse in Gastonia, Piedmont Pioneer House, that has gone private, non-profit
and they are never sure if they will make it from payroll to payroll. She does not want to see
Club Nova in this situation. She said that just sustaining the programs is one piece, but there is
another piece to transition the programs into the private sector.
Commissioner Jacobs said that he was at Club Nova's employee appreciation event,
and the Program Director for the International Center for Clubhouse Development said that Club
Nova was one of the most successful clubhouses in the world.
Miriam Lieberman is a therapist with KidScope and they are very grateful for the support
from the Board of County Commissioners. She said that they have asked the OPC-LME Board
for retirement benefits for a long time and she finally got today the PEO plan so that they could
see the damage it will do to the staff situation. She said that there are key personnel that will be
cut out of their retirement plan. There are many long-term employees that would not be
included in the retirement plan.
Commissioner Halkiotis said that he thinks the State is on the verge of having created
one of the biggest messes in recorded history.
4. County Attorney Transition Plans and Contract Approval
Geof Gledhill said that he has nothing planned to say, but he would answer any
questions.
Commissioner Halkiotis said that he does not think the County can transition to its own
attorney this budget year.
Commissioner Jacobs suggested acting on the attorney's contract and to have a sub-
committee to look at this issue and work with the Manager and the Attorney.
Chair Carey agreed with approving the contract, but he pointed out that there was no
intent to implement anything until 2006-07.
Commissioner Gordon asked haw this would increase the budget and how it was in the
Central Services budget. Pam Jones said that it was in the Central Services budget under
Contract Services. She said that the $100,000 is an annual increase and is not over three
years. Over the last several years, the County has budgeted around $140,000 a year, and this
has not been sufficient to meet the actual bills.
A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to
approve the contract for legal services with the firm of Coleman, Gledhill, Hargrave, & Peek and
authorize the Chair to sign the contract on behalf of Orange County.
VOTE: UNANIMOUS
A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to
adjourn the meeting at 1 Q:2Q p.m.
Moses Carey, Jr., Chair
Donna 5. Baker
Clerk to the Board