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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 05-19-2016 1 Approved 6/21/2016 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BUDGET PUBLIC HEARING May 19, 2016 The Orange County Board of Commissioners held a Budget Public Hearing on Thursday, May 19, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair McKee and Commissioners Mark Dorosin, Barry Jacobs, Bernadette Pelissier, Renee Price and Penny Rich COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Commissioner Burroughs COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Deputy Manager Travis Myren and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff members will be identified appropriately below) Chair McKee called the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. 1. Opening Remarks Chair McKee welcomed all to the second budget public hearing. Chair McKee said the Commissioner Burroughs would not be attending tonight. PUBLIC CHARGE Chair McKee dispensed with the reading of the public charge. 2. Presentation of County Manager's Recommended FY 2016-17 Budget (PowerPoint Presentation) Commissioner Dorosin said he has a family emergency, and he would have to leave at 9:00 p.m. tonight. Bonnie Hammersley presented the following PowerPoint: ORANGE COUNTY FY2016-17 COUNTY MANAGER RECOMMENDED BUDGET • COMPILATION REPORT • ASSUMPTIONS • EXPENDITURES & REVENUES • BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS • SCHOOL FUNDING • OUTSIDE AGENCY FUNDING • CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN (CIP) FY2016-17 recommended budget COMPILATION REPORT FY2016-17 recommended budget ASSUMPTIONS • Maintain Current Tax Rate —$0.878 • Property Tax Base — 1% increase • Motor Vehicle Tax Base —6% increase • Sales Tax Collections—3.75% increase 2 FY2016-17 recommended budget EXPENDITURES &REVENUES FY2016-17 recommended budget BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS • Living Wage • Affordable Housing Funding • Bond Education Campaign • Funding for Family Success Alliance • Create a Transit Department • Sheriff Personnel Capacity and Training • Employee Wage Adjustment • Compression Reduction • Maintain current Solid Waste Fee • Fund Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) • Exceed the Funding Target for Schools • Orange Connect Scholarship Program FY2016-17 recommended budget AVERAGE DAILY MEMBERSHIP(ADM) FY2016-17 recommended budget SCHOOL FUNDING ❑ Health and Safety Services Contract -$3,354,000 • Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools —$1,920,000 • Orange County Schools —$1,434,000 ❑ New Appropriation - $1,408,849* • Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools —$1,153,345 • Orange County Schools —$255,504 *Figures are illustrative, program is 100% reimbursement for services. FY2016-17 recommended budget SCHOOL FUNDING ❑ Charter School Student Funding - $2,739,392 • Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools (217)— $807,674 • Orange County Schools (519)— $1,931,718 ❑ New Appropriation - $763,000 • Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools (50)—$186,100 • Orange County Schools (155)— $576,900 ❑ Health Insurance & Retirement - $485,000 • Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools —$341,000 • Orange County Schools —$144,000 FY2016-17 recommended budget NEW APPROPRIATION FY2016-17 recommended budget OUTSIDE AGENCIES FY2016-17 recommended budget FIRE DISTRICTS 3 FY2016-17 recommended budget CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN (CIP) ❑ CONTINUATION FUNDING ■ Southern Branch Library - $6.38 million ■ Detention Facility - $500,000 ■ Historic Rogers Road Sewer Project- $5.68 million ■ Conservation Easements - $500,000 FY2016-17 recommended budget CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN (CIP) ❑ POLICY PRIORITIES: ■ School Capital Improvements - $47.6 million ■ Affordable Housing - $3.5 million ■ Community Centers - $35,000 ■ Senior Centers - $990,000 Seymour Center ■ Economic Development (Water and Sewer)-$145,000 ■ Accessibility and Security Improvements - $190,000 ■ EMS Substation Co-location - $500,000 FY2016-17 recommended budget CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN (CIP) ❑ PARKS, OPEN SPACE,AND TRAIL DEVELOPMENT: ■ Blackwood Farm Park - $1.26 million ■ Cedar Grove Park— Phase II - $60,000 ■ Mountains to Sea Trail - $521,000 ■ Hollow Rock Nature Park (New Hope Preserve) - $235,000 ■ River Park— Phase II - $50,000 ■ Little River Park— Phase II - $100,000 ■ Fairview Park Access with Parking Improvements - $325,000 ❑ INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATIONS: ■ Information Technology Infrastructure - $500,000 ■ Technology Improvements - $500,000 ■ Fiber Connections for County facilities - $60,000 ■ BOCC Technology Initiatives - $50,000 ■ Communication System Improvements - $166,000 ❑ CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS: ■ Hardened 911 Center - $980,000 ■ Southern Human Services Center —$300,000 ❑ OTHER CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS: ■ Facility Roofing Projects - $206,700 ■ Historic Courthouse Square - $40,000 ■ Generator Projects - $375,000 FY2016-17 recommended budget PUBLIC HEARINGS &WORK SESSIONS FY2016-17 recommended budget BUDGET DOCUMENT AVAILABILITY ■ Clerk to Board of Commissioners ■ County Finance &Administrative Services Office 4 ■ Orange County Library ■ Chapel Hill Public Library ✓ Carrboro/McDougle Branch Library ■ Orange County Website - http://orangecountync.gov FY2016-17 recommended budget ORANGE COUNTY MISSION STATEMENT Orange County exists to provide governmental services requested by our Residents or mandated by the State of North Carolina. To provide these quality services efficiently, we must; • Serve the Residents of Orange County— Our Residents Come First; • Depend on the energy, skills, and dedication of all our employees and volunteers; • Treat all our Residents and Employees with fairness, respect, and understanding. Orange County Residents Come First Commissioner Jacobs said he is happy to see so many people in attendance this evening. He noted one thing that is confusing about this process is that the Board of County Commissioners appropriates a certain amount of money per pupil, and it is up to the School Board to decide how those monies are distributed. He said the efforts of Orange County far surpass any other county in the State. He noted the relationships between the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) and the School Boards are not adversarial. Chair McKee reviewed the amount of per pupil funding over the last 20 years, noting consistent and substantial increase over those decades. He reviewed the variety of per pupil spending levels in various counties across the State. He reiterated the County's commitment to education. 3. Public Comment Irene Dwinnel said she is the Executive Director of the Orange County Rape Crisis Center. She provided a summary of the Center's highlights over the last year, including community education and professional development. She said the Center will be expanding its educational efforts to the northern portion of the County in the coming year. She said the Crisis Center is have seeking an additional $5000 from Orange County this year as an outside agency, and she said she hoped the Center will receive it. Denise Moody said she is here on behalf of Orange Enterprises (OE), and knows there are competing priorities for outside agency funding. She said OE appreciates the Board's consideration of their budget request and reviewed some of the program's highlights. She introduced Sandy who works at OE, who shared some of her jobs there. Brad Hemminger said he is representing the table tennis community in Orange County. He said this group is here tonight to ask for the Board's support of additional staff at the Seymour Center, in order to extend evening hours on two additional nights. He reviewed the positive benefits of table tennis. Lynn Lehman said she is a community member and the current Executive Director of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Public School Foundation. She said she is here, along with many others, to ask the Board of County Commissioners to fully fund the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) Board's budget request. She recognized the difficulty in finding funding, but noted that there is no better fit for local funds than the local teachers and schools. Joyce Kuhn said she is the Director for Behavioral Insights and has been an outside agency director for 28 years. She stressed the importance of services needed for those involved in domestic violence. She said she hoped that the Board will fund Behavioral Insight's outside agency budget request. 5 Lamar Proctor said he is a Senior Assistant District Attorney for Orange County and is here to ask for the Board to allocate $40,000 to Behavioral Insight's Domestic Violence Intervention program. He said having a local program would have a significant impact. Kyesha Clark said she is a junior at Carrboro High School and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)Youth Director. She said she is asking the Board to fully fund the CHCCS budget request. Abigail Stern said she is a senior at Chapel Hill High School, and she is representing the Youth Community Project and the Queer Youth Circus. She said she is here to ask them to fund their outside agency budget request. Yen Nguyen said she is speaking on behalf of the Youth Community Project in Chapel Hill. She is supporting the Queer Youth Circus, which is a safe and inclusive program, and asked Board to fund and support programs for youth. Christine Abernathy said she is the Managing Director of the Youth Community Project, and she asked for the Board's consideration of their outside agency funding request. She said the ultimate goal of the Youth Community Project is to have a teen run community center. Tara Mortimer Peloquin is speaking on behalf of the Orange County Living Wage organization. She reviewed the highlights of the organization and the impact it has had on her personally. Victoria Creamer is the principal of Ephesus Elementary School, and she is here to ask the Board of County Commissioners to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. She reviewed the difficulties she has had in being able to hire qualified teachers and expressed concern at being able to retain the qualified teachers already in her employ. Heather Bittle said she is a 6th grader at Phillips Middle School, and she is here in support of teacher assistants. She asked the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Lilah Kroger said she is a 6th grader at Phillips Middle School and is in support of teachers. She asked the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Pastor Thomas Nixon said he is the Senior Pastor of the St. Paul's AME Church, and he is here tonight to ask the Board to fully fund the schools' budgets, as well as affordable housing, in the 2016-17 budget. He stressed the connection between affordable housing and education, noting that teachers should be able to afford to live in Orange County. Sherri Carmichael said she is here on behalf of the Smith Middle School's School Improvement Team and asked the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Kirin Pomerantz is a kindergarten student at McDougle Elementary, and he is here to support the teachers and fully funding the schools. Brian Pomerantz is his father, and he is here to ask the Board to fully support teachers and to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. He said Orange County has very high taxes, which he is willing to pay for better schools. Joyce Yau/Leah Abrams/Davida Haley are three student body presidents from Chapel Hill High, Carrboro High and East Chapel Hill High, who are tag teaming tonight to ask the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. They highlighted the commitment of their teachers. Tom McQuiston said he is here in support of the Community Youth Project. He spoke of the death of his son and noted the lack of community resources for teens in Orange County. Kevin Noonan said he is the Executive Director of the Human Rights Center (Immigrant Refugee Community Partnership). He asked for the Board's support of their ESL program through their outside agency budget request. Jill Simon said she is speaking on behalf of Frank Porter Graham Bilingue School's School Improvement Team, and asked the Board to fully support the CHCCS Board's funding request. 6 Arasi Adkins, HR Director for CHCCS, and Erika Newkirk, Recruitment, Retention and Staffing Coordinator for CHCCS, said they are here to ask for the Board's support of their teachers, and to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. They highlighted the impact of low salaries that they have seen while recruiting teachers. Coretta Sharpless is the principal at Northside Elementary School. She is here to ask the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Rodney Coleman said he is the pastor at the First Baptist Church of Chapel Hill, and he is here to ask the Board to support teachers and fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Jennifer Michalenok said she is an Exceptional Children (EC) teacher at Chapel Hill High School. She said it is proving more and more difficult to fill EC teaching positions. She asked the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Joyce Powell said she is a single parent of two children in the CHCCS. She asked the Board to fully fund the CHCCS's budget request. Brian Daalman said he is a former CHCCS student. He said he is here to support proper compensation of teachers and to ask the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's request. Miriam Thompson said she is grandmother of students in the CHCCS. She said she clearly recognizes the challenges the Board of County Commissioners is facing, but asked the Board to re-think the Manager's recommended budget for the schools. She said she is here tonight to ask the Commissioners to fully fund the budget request of the CHCCS Board. Commissioner Dorosin left at 9:00pm. Tina Coyne Smith said she serves on two school improvement teams in the CHCCS and is also a parent. She said she understands that Orange County is the best in education across the State, but noted that North Carolina is one of the worst states in the nation regarding education. She said she it is unacceptable to be the best of the worst. She asked the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Marisa Kathord said she has been a pediatrician for the last 20 years. She said she is here to support the safety net provided for the children by the CHCCS. She said schools perform an essential function in the life of a child. She urged them to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Beth Landis said she is currently a teacher at Carrboro High School and previously attended and worked in Orange County Schools. She said she is here to ask for support of teachers and to ask the Board to fully fund the CHCCS Board's budget request. Dr. Rahani said she is a parent at East Chapel Hill High School, and she supports teachers and the budget request of the CHCCS Board. Emily Martine is the PTSA president at Carrboro High School and a parent of school children in the CHCCS. She asked the Board to fully fund the district's budget request. Ashley Madison said she is a local business owner in Orange County, and she supports fully funding both districts' budget requests. She said there is a direct link between strong schools and a thriving economy. 4. Adjournment A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Price to adjourn the meeting at 9:15 p.m. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Earl McKee, Chair Donna Baker Clerk to the Board