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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 06-05-2014 APPROVED 3/3/2015 MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BUDGET WORK SESSION June 5, 2014 7:00 p.m. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a Budget Work Session on Thursday, June 5, 2014 at 7:00 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Jacobs and Commissioners Mark Dorosin, Alice M. Gordon, Earl McKee, Bernadette Pelissier, Renee Price and Penny Rich COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: Interim County Manager Michael Talbert, Assistant County Managers Cheryl Young and Clarence Grier and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff inembers will be identified appropriately below) Chair Jacobs called the meeting to order at 7:07 p.m. Additions to the Aqenda Funding for Orange County's Curbside Recycling Program A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner McKee to approve adding this item to the agenda. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Closed Session Addition A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to approved adding the following to the agenda: Closed Session: "To consider the qualifications, competence, performance, character, fitness, conditions of appointment, or conditions of initial employment of an individual public officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee" NCGS § 143-318.11(a) (6). VOTE: UNANIMOUS Chair Jacobs said the Board has talked about having time at one of their meetings to discuss County Commissioners' initiatives and interests prior to upcoming fund balance discussions. He said this will be scheduled for the beginning of their next budget work session on June 10tn 1. Fundinq for Oranqe County's Curbside Recyclinq Proqram The Board discussed reconsideration of the June 3, 2014 decision regarding funding of Rural Curbside, Urban Curbside and Multi-family Recycling programs. BACKGROUND: On June 3, 2014 the Board approved a Manager recommendation that funding ($728,260) for the Rural Curbside Program be provided from Solid Waste Unrestricted Reserves for Fiscal 2014/15. The Board let stand the Manager Recommendation to fund the Urban Curbside and Multi-family ($1,362,266) from an annual 3-R Fee of$59/unit and $19/unit respectively. Subsequently, the Mayors of Carrboro and Chapel Hill requested that the BOCC decision be reconsidered at tonight's budget work session. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The budget to fund the Urban Curbside and Multi-family Recycling programs from solid waste reserves would be an additional $1,362,266. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board reaffirm the June 3, 2014 decision to fund only the Rural Curbside Recycling program from solid waste reserves in the amount of$728,260. Michael Talbert said there has been a lot of discussion about this item, and the towns have requested that the Board re-consider its position and look at the options again. He said the items in front of the Commissioners include tonight's abstract, as well as the abstract from June 3. He reviewed the following 4 options, which were previously discussed: 1. Fund Rural Curbside Recycling Program for Fiscal 2014/2015 with Landfill Reserves. To fund$728,260 from Solid Waste Unrestricted Reserves which were $3,082,630 as of June 30, 2013. 2. Fund Rural and Urban Curbside Recycling Programs for Fiscal 2014/2015 with Landfill Reserves. To fund$2,090,526 from Solid Waste Unrestricted Reserves which were $3,082,630 as of June 30, 2013. 3. Eliminate all Recycling and Convenience Center fees and raise the County's property tax rate. To replace all revenues from fees would equal$6,049,228 and require a property tax increase of 3.77 cents. 4. Increase the Solid Waste Convenience Center fees to cover all or part of the $1,856,543 transfer from the General Fund to Solid Waste to fund Convenience Center Operations Michael Talbert said the towns are asking the Board to consider option number 2, which funds urban and rural curbside together. Chair Jacobs noted that the Board discussed all of these items at some time in the past but voted for option 1. He said the mayors of the town were disappointed that the Board did not choose option 2, as a matter of fairness to those in the municipalities who had contributed to the solid waste enterprise fund. Commissioner Rich made a motion, seconded by Chair Jacobs to vote for option 2: Fund Rural and Urban Curbside Recycling programs for Fiscal Year 2014/15 with Landfill Reserves. Commissioner McKee asked the manager to explain the technical aspects and problems that may be encountered by imposing a fee on the current rural recycling customers. Michael Talbert said the whole district covers about 13,000 households, and the participation is about 57 to 60 percent. He asked if Commissioner McKee was talking about billing only that 60 percent. Commissioner McKee said yes, he is asking about imposing a fee only on the people who are currently receiving the service. Michael Talbert said it would be more than the fee was two years ago, but it is hard to specify. He said those people would have the option of not paying the fee or having the service. He said a broad guess would be $75. Commissioner McKee said this would take them back to a subscription fee. He asked if it would be possible to impose this fee and have it billed out in July before the tax bills go out. Michael Talbert said no. He said that window has passed, and a supplemental bill would have to be mailed out in September or October. Commissioner McKee asked, if it was not on a volunteer basis so people could withdraw, whether it would then have the same problems as the previous 3-R fee. Michael Talbert said yes. Commissioner Pelissier said she is not comfortable putting a decision item on a work session. She asked about putting this item on the consent agenda on June 17tn Chair Jacobs said that could be done, but there would still be a decision tonight that shows intent by putting it as a consent agenda item. Commissioner Pelissier said the Board would only be showing intent. Commissioner McKee said he agreed with Commissioner Pelissier. He does not have a problem with expressing intent tonight, but he would prefer to put this on the June 17tn agenda. Commissioner Price arrived at 7:18 p.m. Commissioner porosin said he does not see a problem with voting for it now, although he appreciates the concern. He does not think that a consent item provides any more transparency. Commissioner Gordon said she wishes the Board had adopted a formula for providing rural curbside recycling in April. She said considering the fairness of the situation, they should o fund both rural and urban services. She said the message that needs to be sent to the towns is that the County wants to be their partners. Commissioner Rich said she is in favor of voting for this tonight. She understands the transparency issue, and the intent is nice. She said this discussion should have happened last time, and she feels it is time to correct the Board's earlier decision. She said it is important to be in better communication with the towns and to make an equitable decision. Commissioner Price said she assumed at the last decision point that the Chair and Vice Chair had already considered this. She said the Board needs to move forward, and she would be ready tonight to vote. Commissioner McKee said he believes the Chair had mentioned this issue previously, and this is why that option was brought in. Chair Jacobs said there is a gap in communication between the entities that is no one's fault. Commissioner Rich said it is important to understand that if the Board goes with option 2, the towns need to be included in the discussion about how to replenish the solid waste reserves. Commissioner Pelissier said it is clear that the Board will act tonight, and she will probably vote in favor of this as a way to show her support for the towns; however she does want to express her discomfort of doing this action at a work session as a precedent. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Chair Jacobs said he would like to note that this is an extraordinary action to further their work with the towns. 2. Durham Technical Community Colleqe, Pq. 124 Oranqe County Schools, Pq. 124 & 204 Chapel Hill- Carrboro City Schools, Pq. 124 &133 • Durham Technical Community College - Pg. 124 The recommended budget provides $1,008,123 to Durham Technical Community College for FY2014-15, which includes appropriations of current expense of$557,280, recurring capital of$155,000, and $295,843 for debt service. This includes $80,000 to update their master plan for a proposed second building. Dr. Bill Ingram thanked the Board for the opportunity to speak tonight. He said their request is fairly straightforward and includes an increase of 3 percent in operating funds, mostly as a result of increased utility costs. He said there is also a request for a modest salary increase for those employees on the Orange County campus. He said this is the time to anticipate future growth on the Orange County campus to prepare for a second building and renovate existing buildings to create lab space. He said there will be a new nursing assistant program offered this fall, as well as a practical nursing program and an associate degree program in emergency medical sciences. He said enrollment has increased by over 75 percent in the past two years. Chair Jacobs asked what thought has been given to accommodating the Middle College students at the campus in Hillsborough. Dr. Bill Ingram said the campus is not there yet, but as it grows the possibility of a second Middle College makes a lot of sense. He said the strength of the Middle College program is that the students blend into the college population. He said if 100 high school students are added to the Orange County campus current population, these students would stand out. He said the prospect of a Middle College program in Orange County will make sense once more programs and facilities are added. He said this is part of the next phase. He said this program would require a negotiation with Orange County Schools (OCS) and Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) in order for this program to work. Commissioner McKee asked if there are on-going discussions to try and figure out a solution to the transportation problem. Dr. Bill Ingram said there have been discussions with Triangle Transit about transportation in general. He said the college will be extending an offer to all students on both campuses for free bus passes. He said DTCC is the landlord for the Middle College high school, and he does not know if the Durham County Schools have been in conversation with the other partners about transportation for their students. He said that would be their responsibility. Commissioner McKee said he would like more information and follow up on this. Commissioner Price said this was one of the topics at the Durham Tech committee meeting today. Dr. Bill Ingram said his sense is that the issue for Triangle Transit is the logistical challenge of getting from Chapel Hill to Durham. Commissioner McKee said if this bottleneck is not solved, there is not much hope for Middle College in Orange County. Dr. Bill Ingram said when the program was first started, the topic of bus transportation was discussed, but people found it was easier for parents to drive the children. Commissioner Pelissier asked about the anticipated timeframe for additional buildings. Dr. Bill Ingram said a new building is not needed now, but it will be needed within the next 4 to 6 years. He said Orange County is not likely to take this as a bond issue separate from the one proposed in 2016. Commissioner Pelissier asked if a recent survey has been done with students to find out hard facts on the transit needs. Dr. Bill Ingram said this has not been done. He said this might be easier for Triangle Transit to track this once the free transit passes are given to students. Chair Jacobs said part of the bond process will be for Durham Tech to come up with a figure. He said this can be incorporated into a bond committee. Dr. Ingram said this past year the college has decided to update their strategic plan and will be asking the Orange County community to help them think through this plan. • Orange County Schools - Pg. 124 & 204 Chair ponna Coffey expressed appreciation for the opportunity to share information on the budget request. She said the task of balancing needs with available money is not an easy one. She encouraged the Board to step outside of the 48.1 percent funding target to look at the schools' true needs. She said the days of relying on the state legislature are gone. Chair ponna Coffey said the most recent state senate budget cuts 7,400 teacher assistants. She outlined some of the additional cuts in the senate budget. She said there are also facility needs that go far beyond the current money available. She said the number of students is projected to rise, and these students must be served. She asked the Board to invest in these children. Interim Superintendent Del Burns reviewed several PowerPoint slides outlining the impact of state legislation on the Orange County Schools' budget. He said their budget request was for an increase to $2.8 million. He said, as of last June 30th, the operating fund balance was $5.8 million, and $3.3 million of this is assigned. He said this leaves only $2.5 million unassigned fund balance, and if nothing changes this will be reduced by $950,000. He reviewed additional information on the impact of the state senate budget. He said the highest impact would be felt in the teaching assistant positions in Kindergarten through 3�a grade. He noted that driver education is unfunded, and cuts to transportation will impact bus maintenance. Interim Superintendent Del Burns said the total impact is $2.1 million, and in order to deal with these changes and account for student growth and other needs, $30 million would be required for Orange County Schools for next year. Commissioner porosin asked about the cuts to teacher assistants. He said he thought the senate budget proposed only eliminating assistants in 2nd and 3�d grade. Interim Superintendent Del Burns said Orange County uses teacher assistants in Kindergarten through 3rd, and the allotment formula addresses what Commissioner porosin shared. Commissioner Price asked for an explanation of the $950,000 mentioned earlier. Del Burns said when the budget was developed there were needs that were established from DPI projections, and then there were expansion requests. He said this was put together, and there was a number. He said staff looked at this and decided that based on the amount of unassigned fund balance it would be prudent to use $950,000 in fund balance in order to reduce their request to the Board of County Commissioners. Commissioner McKee questioned whether there are any anticipated surprises, since the student growth has not been anticipated by SAPFO, Del Burns said he thinks the growth is projected to be 197 students. Commissioner McKee said he does not think that SAPFO is picking up all of the projected students. Chair Coffey said she does not think that a lot of the numbers have been captured. Commissioner Gordon asked how far the $95 per pupil in manager's budget would go. Del Burns said this would basically cover growth. Michael Talbert said the increase that was put in for both school systems covered their projected student growth and the three percent teacher raise that was proposed at that time for the County share. He said that is where the numbers come from. Chair Jacobs said their legislators have said the legislature is expected to adjourn before the schools are out. He said the Board of County Commissioners will not have adopted a budget by then, so adjustments can still be made at the last minute. Chair Jacobs asked Del Burns to go back one slide. He asked how the projections are made for the number of teachers who would take the pay increase. Del Burns said he does not believe this can be done. He said there are on-going lawsuits, and there is no way to predict how many people will be eligible. Chair Jacobs asked how the Board can anticipate what to budget. Del Burns said this should be based on the original Department of Public Instruction (DPI) projection of 3 percent and the proposed changes from the senate. Commissioner porosin asked why the Orange County Schools (OCS) did not share in these lawsuits. Steve Halkiotis said OCS attempted to follow the leadership of the NC School Board Association. He said the district did not want to take on more legal issues and costs, and the board did not feel the same commitment that Guilford and Durham County felt. Chair Jacobs asked if any of their state funded nurses are jeopardized. Steve Halkiotis said probably one and a half positions are affected, and this is not reflected in their budget. Steve Halkiotis read a brief written commentary to the Board. He noted that OCS has 525 driver's education students Commissioner McKee said he wanted to follow up on the comments regarding driver's education. He said this will not only affect private schools and families who cannot afford it, but it will also severely reduce new drivers' ability to drive competently and negotiate the roads effectively. Commissioner Price asked if the transportation cuts have been included in the budget. Del Burns said yes. Commissioner Pelissier asked for a clean sheet to be provided at the next work session, to include the original budget with the updated changes that have been made due to state actions. Michael Talbert said they will plan to do that next week, but staff has been waiting to see the house budget. • Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, Pg. 124 & 133 Mike Kelly and Michelle Brownstein Michelle Brownstein said the Orange County staff did a good job of summarizing the state budget cuts. She said Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) are facing over $6 million in cuts in the context of the proposed budget of$91 per pupil. She asked the Board to continue to support the schools and to be creative and think out of the box for funding them. She said the impact of the cuts to staff is going to be very great. She said CHCCS is grateful for all that the Board does, and she understands that school funding affects all other aspects of County government. Michelle Brownstein said the decision not to participate in the lawsuit mentioned earlier was purely a financial one. She said CHCCS agreed with the lawsuit, but did not have the financial resources to invest in it. Mike Kelly said the sky is not falling, but this is a major problem in the state. He said the Board still has the power to make things happen. He said all teachers in the County who were at career status were given the option of being considered for a four year contract. He said many of the teachers were offended by the actions of the general assembly, and this is something to be cognizant of. He encouraged the Board to consider a tax increase to support the schools. Chair Jacobs said the Board of County Commissioners can fill holes but not craters. He said he will be surprised if the Board can address all of the cuts. He said there needs to be a comprehensive discussion about tax policy in Orange County. He said he would be willing to have another Board of County Commissioners session after the legislature takes its recess. Michael Talbert said the County budget was presented before the proposed senate budget, and the 48.1 percent goal was what was used in preparing the budget. He said the state balanced its budgets by eliminating positions and by moving that money from positions to teacher raises. He said if the Board is going to make up that difference it would be a substantial tax increase. He said Orange County cannot pick up everything that the state cuts. He said out of the $2.1 million from the County schools, $1.7 million was from salaries. Michelle Brownstein said the senate proposal impacts the budget as much as $3.6 million, in addition to the $2.7 million shortfall from the County budget. She said that is where the earlier mention of$6 million came from. She said the ripple effect will be catastrophic. Mike Kelly said the total impact of the senate proposal is estimated to be $4.2 million, and $1.7 million of that is from local supplements to offset the teacher salary increases. Commissioner Gordon said it would help for CHCCS to re-send their budget presentations electronically with a summary of the original budget request and the impacts of the proposed senate cuts. Commissioner Gordon said this year is different from other years. She said positions are being cut, and jobs are being lost, and it is hard when experienced teachers are leaving for other states with higher salaries. She said raising teacher salaries at the expense of tenure and teacher assistants is not good. She hopes the Board will do as much as possible in funding both school systems. Commissioner porosin said the difference in the requested amount and the recommended budget is $2.7 million. He asked what the priorities will be if full funding is not possible. Michelle Brownstein said the board has tried to prioritize positions based on cuts, but they have not figured out the details yet. Mike Kelly said some of the positions that were discussed in terms of cuts were: gifted education specialists, teaching assistants, stage managers, and foreign language teachers in elementary schools. Commissioner porosin said he would like to see that list. He asked if there are priorities within that total list. Mike Kelly said it is not ranked in order, but it is ranked into first and second tiers. Michelle Brownstein said this came from the superintendent's recommendations, but the final decision will be a consensus from the board. She said this level of cuts is unprecedented. Commissioner porosin said the reality is that it may not be all or nothing, and it is important to prioritize and to be transparent about this. Michelle Brownstein said the schools try to give the Board of County Commissioners what they need as far as requests and then work things out once the Board has made a decision. Commissioner porosin said it would be easier for the Board if there was some designation of the level of urgency and priority assigned to the requests. Michelle Brownstein said CHCCS has submitted a list regarding potential cuts. Mike Kelly said he can communicate what the board has discussed, but there has been no prioritization of needs, because these discussions can be demoralizing to their teachers. He said CHCCS does not have the fine detailed information that Commissioner porosin is requesting. Michelle Brownstein said she wants to make sure the Board understands that the schools were not asking for an expansion budget, and there were already significant staffing cuts. Mike Kelly said these cuts will mean an expansion in class sizes, and cuts to athletic programs. Commissioner porosin said he finds it unacceptable that neither school system joined the lawsuits against the state. He said the only way this legislature has been beaten back is in the courts. He is not going to support an increase in the district tax; however, he will support a property tax increase. Michael Talbert said the CHCCS superintendent recommended a budget that was $900,000 less than what the school board requested, but the board did not go along with this. He said this can be provided to the Commissioners. Michelle Brownstein said the prioritization is also reflected in the school board documents from the meeting that was held a week later. Mike Kelly said the school board did not agree with the cuts recommended by the superintendent. Commissioner McKee asked if this information is related to the memo that was sent out on May 2gtn Michelle Brownstein said yes. Commissioner McKee asked if the full time employee (FTE) reductions in that memo factored in the legislation. Michelle Brownstein said that was before the senate's budget was announced. Commissioner McKee said he had asked for this information a couple of ineetings ago from CHCCS. He said this information was not that helpful. He said he needs to know the prioritizations, and he would like to know why the school board did not follow the superintendent's budget but asked for more. He said the County is not flush with money, and the request seemed overaggressive. He said the reductions from the state are serious. He asked what accommodations would be made due to teacher reductions. Michelle Brownstein said teacher reductions mean more children will be in the classrooms and teacher/student ratio would increase. Mike Kelly said there is an acceptable threshold in order to teach a class. He said there has been some flexibility in some courses that are taught in a series. He said this is being enforced more now, where 20 students are being required for first courses, rather than 15 students. Michelle Brownstein said the administrative estimate for that ratio was that it would result in a loss of three full time employees. Commissioner McKee said he is still not sure how this relates to a reduction in full time employees if this was already a policy, and there was just an increase in the beginning size of the beginning class. Mike Kelly said the higher beginning number resulted in a higher ending number and saved about one position at each of the high schools. Commissioner McKee said that would make sense at any rate and that would be the goal even if you were not in this situation. Mike Kelly said that would mean fewer courses for students to take. Commissioner McKee asked about the reference to counselors. Mike Kelly said one of their goals for this year was to review their counseling program. He said this was to be launched through a contracted study that would have cost $30,000. Michelle Brownstein said that study was a priority because it impacted their most fragile students, and there was some disparity among the counseling across the district. She said this has been postponed at this point. Mike Kelly said social capital is a huge factor in the differences in student success. Commissioner McKee said he is uncomfortable with this dance, and he hopes that at some point the Board and the schools can figure out a way to meet in the middle. He said he needs to see priorities. Michelle Brownstein this year is different, and what the school board presented was not an expansion budget, but it expressed the needs in order to keep the status quo. She said the schools are at their bare bones, and this will impact the classrooms on multiple levels. Mike Kelly said there was discussion about how much money was needed to just maintain the current services, and this number was $3.2 million. He said, unlike every other year, the initial decision was to ask for less, and this resulted in the superintendent's recommendation. He said once the school board saw the impact to the school programs, the decision was made to ask for what was needed. Commissioner Rich said this year is different, but she thinks this is the beginning of what the "new normal" is going to be down the road. She said it may be necessary to re-think how this budget process is done. Chair Jacobs said a plan is needed, and it may be an unpleasant plan, because the County does not have the resources available to the state. He said information needs to be carefully presented to the public about budget funding. He said it is time to get past how things have been done and accept the new normal. He said it is important to band together to see what can be done and how to plan differently for school funding in the future. 3. Sportsplex, Pq. 430 Paul Laughton referred to highlights of the 2013-2014 outcomes on page 430. He noted the projected revenue increase of 5.1 percent and the expenditures increase of 3.5, as outlined on page 431. John Stock said their revenues year-to-date are up 8 percent, $200,000, and operating expenses are up only 1 percent, so profit is up about 50 percent. He gave a breakdown of individual program increases. He said the Little Learners program has been incredibly rewarding and successful. John Stock said the budget for next year includes lower revenue, because the goal is to budget conservatively. Commissioner Rich asked if fees have been raised in the past year and how scholarships are given to disadvantaged members of the community. John Stock said there were minimal increases to the access fees for swimming and fitness passes. He said staff is looking to make changes in pool usage costs, because that is one of the most expensive assets. He said the goal is just to get back to market pricing. He said scholarships are a little tough. He said Kidsplex works with Department of Social Services (DSS) and there are national scholarships offered at times for families in need. 3. County Departments • Asset Management Services, Pg. 64 Darrell Butts said the asset management budget had a net change of$140,000 due to expenditure decrease and revenue increase. He said the motor pool surcharge phase-in was a large driver of this, as well as utility costs. Chair Jacobs asked if asset management services worked with Enterprise Fund Entities on energy efficiency. Jeff Thompson said yes. Chair Jacobs asked if water rates are in-town rates. Jeff Thompson said yes. Commissioner Price said the manager recommended amount for custodial services is lower than the current year. She asked about the potential effect of this. Jeff Thompson said they are moving up against a productivity threshold. He said the custodians are cleaning more space than the industry average, but their productivity is catching up on that. He said this will be addressed in the next budget cycle as more space is added, but things are okay now. Paul Laughton referred to the pink sheet regarding vehicle replacements. He noted that the total for 2014-15 is $775,119, and this year it was $899,000. He said there are set standards and criteria that are considered for vehicle age, mileage, maintenance and other factors. Jeff Thompson said this is the first year that the internal services fund is being used. He said evaluations will be done for fleets, and the needs will be evaluated. He said the platforms are being standardized for efficiencies. Commissioner McKee asked about the change from Crown Victorias to Expeditions. Jeff Thompson said the Crown Victorias are being phased out, and the Expenditions are a substitute for the Tahoe platform. Chair Jacobs asked if there is a spread sheet of all updated vehicles and deputy cars to give to the new sheriff. Clarence Grier said yes. Commissioner porosin asked if there is any off set of revenue from the sale of the older vehicles. Jeff Thompson said internal services captures all of the surplus revenues from sales, as well as the 8 cent per mile. • Board of Elections, Pg. 76 Darrell Butts said the net change for 2014-15 is an increase of just over $36,000. He said this is due to corresponding expenditure and revenue decreases. He said this department's budget is driven by scheduled elections and the impact on temporary employees and operating budget. He noted that there is a recommended staff addition for this department for an elections assistant, with a total County cost just under $44,000, but this will be offset by the seasonal decrease of$66,000. Tracy Reams said this position would help provide outreach for voter education. She said during elections there is not enough staff to do that, and it is needed with the changes in election laws. She said this person would be available to do outreach and to go to the assisted living homes during the early voting period to fill out absentee voting. Chair Jacobs asked if this anticipates difficulties with voter identification. Tracy Reams said there have only been 21 cases related to this issue so far. Commissioner Gordon asked where to look for a list of new positions for each department. Paul Laughton said this can be found in the budget summary on the list of positions on page 40. Chair Jacobs asked if the department had budgeted for run-offs for the sheriff's position. Tracy Reams said yes. She said that was budgeted for this current fiscal year, and the funding will be rolled over to cover the run-off. Chair Jacobs asked if there was a post election summary of ballots cast, changes in laws, and the number of residents without valid identification. Tracy Reams said yes, and she will provide this. Commissioner Price asked about the capital outlay. Darryl Butts said the large portion is replacing 35 laptops that were grant funded, as well as 10 printers and a call system for one stop voting. Tracy Reams said the replacement laptops were to replace older laptops purchased with state funded money in 2008. Tracy Reams referred to the staff addition. She said she would like the Board to be aware that she has three people on her staff who could retire today based on age and years of service. She said the additional staff person would be a benefit to not only her office but to the County as a whole. Commissioner Rich asked if any of the potential retirees are in positions that would be hard to replace. Tracy Reams said yes. • Child Support Enforcement, Pg. 91 Tonya Walton said Child Support Services has a cost increase of approximately $1,700. She said the key budget expense drivers are Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) and operational increases. Janet Sparks said the cost allocation has just come in, and because of the roll forward, there will be a substantial increase of 1.469 percent, which will be a $400,000 increase. She said there will be a 66 percent reimbursement from the state. Cooperative Extension, Pg. 94 Darrell Butts said the 2014-15 budget has a net change, which is a County decrease of just under $45,000. He said this is due to an expenditure decrease of approximately $30,000 and a revenue increase of$15,000. He said the driver was the transfer of a position to economic development and the elimination of a County operations support staff position. Commissioner Gordon asked about the new cooperative extension position and why it was not on the list. Paul Laughton said that was done this fiscal year. • County Attorney's Office, Pg. 99-John Roberts Tonya Walton said this 2014-15 budget has seen a net County increase of$14,600. She said this is mostly due to cost of living adjustment, as well as a slight operations increase. John Roberts said the operations increase is for digitizing contracts. He said he had originally asked for $20,000 for staff salary adjustments, but Human Resources has analyzed the positions and says only one position was in need of a salary adjustment. Tonya Walton said there are monies in non-departmental for this and not in his budget. • Health Department, Pg. 305 Darrell Butts noted that there are some fee schedule change requests on page 502, and there are some non-departmental items on page 357. Darrell Butts said the 2014-15 net change in the general fund was an increase of just under $178,000. He said there has been an increase in grant funds of almost $66,000. He said the main budget driver is the cost of living adjustment and the requested new position for a half time dental office assistant. He said this position will be a swap for a dental hygienist, so there is actually a savings of$43,000 with this. He said there is a request for an increase in one of the remaining dental hygienists hours, which will be an increase of$15,000. He said there will also be a senior full time public health educator who will focus on poverty, and this will be a total County cost of$70,000. He said some of this is start up cost for the work station, so $4,000 of that amount will not all be recurring. Chair Jacobs asked about the legislative impacts on the health department. Colleen Bridger said this is not known yet. She said Orange County has the lowest per capita funding for health departments in North Carolina. She said this is normally not a good thing unless you are considering the cuts. Chair Jacobs asked how the department is doing at serving dental patients in southern Orange County. Colleen Bridger said there is an increase in the whole County, and she would recommend exploring other avenues for providing dental services in the southern part of the County. Commissioner McKee asked if there has been any partnership with private providers in the southern part of the County. Colleen Bridger said Piedmont Health Services has been a partner in southern Carrboro. Commissioner McKee asked if they are capable of providing the additional services needed in the next couple of years. Colleen Bridger said Piedmont Health Services would love to provide the staff to do that if the County could supply the space. Commissioner Price asked if they provide the same services as the County. Colleen Bridger said the services are largely the same, except for dentures. Commissioner Gordon asked how many dental patients are coming from the southern part of the County. Colleen Bridger said she would need to get back to the Board with the actual numbers. She said there have been discussions about putting more square footage at the Southern Human Services Center and adding dental space in the southern part of the County. She said Piedmont Health Services would provide the staff, and the citizens would benefit. Chair Jacobs asked if her department works with nursing homes on dental care by going to the facilities. Colleen Bridger said no, but there has been discussion about busing senior citizens to the Hillsborough facility to provide services that cannot be provided in the nursing homes. Chair Jacobs asked for follow up on this. He said this is one of the gaps in care for seniors in assisted living and nursing homes. • Human Resources, Pg. 325 (including Non-Departmental Items, Pg. 340) Brenda Bartholomew said the 2014-15 increase of$55,000 for the department is primarily due to cost of living adjustment, new hires, and equity retentions. She noted the non department items on page 340, which will be discussed more at a future meeting. Commissioner Gordon asked if any positions have been cut this year. Brenda Bartholomew said no. Commissioner Gordon asked about the delays for open positions. Cheryl Young said there are 6 month delays for open positions, but staff can ask for a waiver for critical positions. Commissioner Gordon said there were efforts not to cut positions during the recession, but to save money with the delays. She asked if this is still the case. Cheryl Young said yes. She said the six month hiring delay resulted in a savings of approximately $2 million this year. She said the furlough is a voluntary program, and it is estimated at $30,000. Chair Jacobs referred to page 326 and asked if turnover data is normally tracked or if this is a special effort. Cheryl Young said staff does keep up with turnover data and patterns are noted. She said there are some positions that have a higher turnover. She said the economy is improving and thus some positions are leaving for higher pay. Chair Jacobs said he would like to see that data. Cheryl Young said she can provide that information. Michael Talbert said the recruitment and hiring process has been improved, and the staff is within one or two positions of being full. Chair Jacobs said it would be helpful to see areas of greatest turnover. Commissioner Pelissier asked if exit interviews are done with employees. Cheryl Young answered yes. • Solid Waste Department, Pg. 420 (Including fee schedule change requests, Pg. 508 and Non-Departmental Items, Pg.344) Darrell Butts said some information is out of date due to changes made earlier tonight. Darrell Butts said the net change is a total decrease of$333,000. He said this is largely within operations and capital outlay. He said there is one non-departmental item for this department, and this is the County general fund contribution to sanitation, which is a decrease of$12,593 in this budget. He said the largest drivers are the landfill closure, recycling, and vehicles. He said the sanitation department has a large $2.4 million project for the construction of the improved Eubanks solid waste convenience center. He noted that tipping fees have gone up by $2. He said the fee schedule is no longer valid. Commissioner McKee asked how the capital outlay of$2.42 million for the Eubanks Solid Waste improvements is being paid for. Gayle Wilson said this will be paid for through debt service. Commissioner McKee said he is starting to question whether to move forward with Eubanks renovations before there is a solid waste and transfer station plan in place with the town partners. He questioned whether it might make sense to site a transfer station adjacent or on the same site as a convenience center. He wonders if there might be a savings in the current year. Gayle Wilson said it would depend on which transportation site he is talking about. He said the site most recently discussed by Chapel Hill would not have enough space to co-locate a convenience center. Commissioner McKee asked if there would be a savings and money in the general fund to re-allocate if the County did not go forward with the convenience center renovation. Gayle Wilson said the money has already been borrowed, and the debt service is obligated. He said no operating costs for the new Eubanks center were included in next year's budget. He said there really are not any expenditures factored in related to convenience center operations. Commissioner Rich asked about the increase in tipping fees. Darryl Butts said this increase is $2 per time from the 2013-14 year to the 2014-15 year. Commissioner Rich asked about the original contract with Durham. Gayle Wilson said this is a 5 year contract, and Orange County pays the prevailing tipping fee, which will go up in July. Commissioner Rich asked how often the tipping fee increases. Gayle Wilson said this typically happened once a year, and $2 is not an unusual amount. Commissioner Gordon asked for the current schedule for the convenience center construction. Gayle Wilson said staff hopes to award the bid in January, and start construction as soon as weather allows, with a goal of opening the site by August of next year. Chair Jacobs asked if there is a relationship between the distance of a transfer station and the convenience center. Gayle Wilson said all of the convenience centers generate waste that must be hauled to the transfer station. He said a station on or around Eubanks road would save hauling costs. He said there would be different mileage from each of the convenience centers. Chair Jacobs asked if having a transfer station would alleviate the need for the convenience center. Gayle Wilson said no, unless you consider a full service transfer station, but this would mean increased cost, a larger area, and more complicated operation and design. Commissioner McKee asked if there is room to locate a transfer station on that site or around that community center on County owned property. Gayle Wilson said yes. Commissioner Price asked if there are any figures available on profit from the recycling program. Gayle Wilson said money is made on this, and next year's proposed budget estimates about $454,000 from the sale of recyclable materials. He said he will be happy to provide this information to the Board. Chair Jacobs said it would be good to see a 5 year trend for this information. Commissioner Gordon asked where this revenue goes. Gayle Wilson said this offsets expenses within the recycling division, which is in solid waste. Commissioner Gordon referred to the fee schedule. She suggested raising fees to recoup general fund contributions. She would prefer going to 50 percent, and she asked what the Board is willing to do. Commissioner Pelissier suggested that this would be done at their last budget work session. Commissioner Gordon said this is open to discussion tonight. Commissioner Price said she thought this would be discussed with the town and not at tonight's meeting. Commissioner Gordon said the Board has not ruled out the discussion tonight. She said only 25 percent of their money is being recouped. Chair Jacobs said that this is part of a bigger picture, because the Board may not want to add a fee if taxation is increased. He said this should be considered as part of broader conversation, and the towns should have an opportunity to discuss it. Commissioner Gordon asked when this discussion will happen. Chair Jacobs said this might be discussed at the last work session. He noted that the Town of Chapel Hill has a meeting on June 10th and he could communicate with the towns about this. He suggested a discussion of this on June 12tn Commissioner Rich said to make sure the towns receive the yellow sheet. Chair Jacobs said the mayors should also receive this, along with an explanation that it will be discussed on June 12tn Commissioner Gordon said she brought this up so that a clear decision can be made. Commissioner porosin left at 10:16 p.m. • Tax Administration, Pg. 432 Dwane Brinson said the net change is an expenditure increase of$198,000. He said this is mainly due to changes in taxation changes for registered motor vehicles. He said there are an extra 3 months in the current fiscal year, and this is why it makes next year look bad. He said there have been some operational and contract cost increases. He said the biggest change in tax administration budget is the revaluation fund that went into the general fund as opposed to being a separate fund. Commissioner Pelissier asked if the revenue stream from hotel motel occupancy is expected to generate additional revenues. Dwane Brinson said this is expected to maintain at the current level. • Public Affairs, Pg. 395 Tonya Walton said the department had a $4000 increase. She said the personnel cost includes $9,600 for student interns, who will assist with various projects, reports and newspaper advertisements. Carla Banks reviewed some of the listed outcomes. She said billboards, Facebook, Twitter, newspaper ads, and a full page in the Newcomer Guide were used to generate more visibility for the County. She referred to the expo, which was a big success. Commissioner Rich asked about changing the Triangle J plaque to reflect the new logo. Michael Talbert said he would follow up on this. Commissioner Price asked if the interns come under operations or personnel. Tonya Walton said this is part of personnel. • Board of Commissioners, Pg. 72 Darrell Butts said this department has a net increase of$53,300 in 2014-15, and the main drivers were the request for temporary personnel, and increase in laser fiche licenses. Donna Baker noted that an increase for additional web streaming is not shown. She said the overall cost has been reduced, but it will be total of$29,000, which is an increase of $9,000 to web stream all of the meetings. Commissioner Rich said she believes this is a good idea. Commissioner McKee said he is hesitant to pay that extra amount for web streaming when they are struggling to fund schools. Commissioner Price said she believes that transparency is important. Chair Jacobs said this medium allows the Board to speak more directly to people. He is supportive of this. Michael Talbert said this will be included in the mark up/ mark down. Commissioner Gordon said she also believes transparency is also important for the agendas, and she has never gotten an answer on this automated agenda issue. Michael Talbert said this was considered about 2 years ago and the Board elected not to move forward with any changes. He said this is being considered again between now and year end. Commissioner Gordon suggested numbering the pages and making it possible to look at specific sections. • County Manager's Office, Pg. 102 (Including Non-Departmental Items, Pg.341)Greg Wilder Tonya Walton said there is a net change of a $3,000 increase. She noted that there is a related non-departmental item on page 341. Chair Jacobs asked for a 5 year tracking on contingency for the manager and the Board of County Commissioners' office. Tonya Walton said this could be done. • Finance and Administrative Services, Pg. 294 Tonya Walton said there was a net change of a $60,300 increase. She said the budget drivers were cost of living adjustments and risk management projects A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner McKee to go into closed session at 10:42 p.m. for the purpose below: "To consider the qualifications, competence, performance, character, fitness, conditions of appointment, or conditions of initial employment of an individual public officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee" NCGS § 143-318.11(a) (6). VOTE: UNANIMOUS RECONVENE INTO REGULAR SESSION A motion was made by Commissioner Pelissier seconded by Commissioner McKee to reconvene to regular session at 11:20 PM. VOTE: UNANIMOUS ADJOURNMENT A motion was made by Commissioner Pelissier seconded by Commissioner McKee to reconvene to regular session at 11:20 PM. Barry Jacobs, Chair Donna Baker, Clerk to the Board