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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 08-17-1993 - VIII-D 1 O R A N G E C O U N T Y BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: August 17, 1993 Action Agenda Item # virr-D SUBJECT: 1993-94 Budget Follow-up DEPARTMENT: County Manager PUBLIC HEARING: Yes X No INFORMATION CONTACT: 1 - 1993-94 Budget Follow-up County Manager, Extension 2300 List TELEPHONE NUMBERS: 2 - Merit Pay Follow-up Hillsborough - 732-8181 Issues for Discussion Durham - 688-7331 List Mebane - 227-2031 Chapel Hill - 967-9251/968-4501 PURPOSE: To review items from 1993-94 budget deliberations that may require staff or Board follow-up. BACKGROUND: During budget worksessions in June, the Board raised a number of questions related to policy and funding aspects of the 1993-94 operating budget. Some of these questions were resolved during the budget discussions, while others may require additional research and discussion. County staff has prepared a list of the most significant questions which may need additional follow-up. This list is provided as Attachment 1. Among the items listed for follow-up is merit pay. Commissioners expressed the desire for follow up review and discussion of the County' s merit plan. The purpose of the discussion would be to reach agreement on merit policy issues for the fiscal year 1994-95 budget. In support of this, the Manager is recommending that the Board schedule a worksession on merit pay in November 1993 to discuss merit policy issues and provide direction to the staff on these. With this direction, the staff then would proceed with development of the supporting policy and systems to implement the Board' s directional decisions. Attachment 2 lists merit pay issues raised by the Board' s questions during the budget deliberations for possible worksession consideration. 2 Prior to the proposed November worksession, the plan is to discuss the merit pay issues as confirmed by the Board with department heads and representative employee groups in order to have this feedback for the worksession discussion. RECOMMENDATION: The Manager recommends the Board: -Review the draft Attachment 1 budget follow-up list, amend it as deemed necessary, and provide any needed direction to staff on specific elements of the follow-up list. -Endorse the plan for the worksession on merit pay and provide any further guidance the Board has as to the issues to be discussed. 3 1993-94 Budget Follow-up List Attachment 1 August 1993 1. School Funding Strategy for budgeting funds for the schools and information on the final budget: Tie money with outcome - How effective is each new program? What are the potential merger implications of new programs and other funding issues such as pay supplements? (Board) Disposition: The Board may want to consider a special worksession to deal with the many issues surrounding school funding. Staff will request that each school system submit a copy of their adopted budget highlighting additional continuation and expansion items which were funded. School construction standards and classroom size standards (Commissioner Gordon) Disposition: The School Issues Discussion Group to discuss and report back to each of the three boards. Definition of equity and of recurring capital (Commissioner Gordon) Disposition: Staff recommends that this topic be included in the special worksession dealing with school issues. Fund balance for the schools (Board) Disposition: Manager to work with the two Superintendents to review the present policy for fund balance and report back to the Board any recommended changes. Impact Fees for Elementary School Space- Fee Collections, Appropriations, Reserve for Affordable Housing (Board) Disposition: Staff has identified funds from the Chestnut Oaks Project to be considered as a funding source to reimburse the impact fee for affordable housing projects. Planning Director will shortly be presenting alternatives on addressing impact fees and affordable housing. Staff is working with the towns to work out the collection of the fee. Staff will develop a 10 year capital improvements plan for the schools for the 1994-99 CIP to address the Board's concern regarding the time necessary to accumulate funds and disburse. 4 Additional School Capital Funding Needs (Board) Disposition: Staff recommends that this topic, including possible new elementary school space, be discussed in the special work session. 2. Emergency Medical Services Feasibility of ringing down non-emergency calls to the appropriate responding jurisdiction (Commissioner Halkiotis) Disposition: Staff will implement a pilot effort to incrementally down load certain non-emergency calls to the Sheriff's Department, examining the work load and staffing impact. Staff and 911 Communications Group will monitor the program and report back to the Board prior to the 1994-95 budget worksessions. Educating the Public on the use of the 911 system (Commissioner Halkiotis) Disposition: Staff and the 911 Communications Group will continue work on this issue and report back to the Board periodically on progress in this ongoing public information effort. 3. Animal Protection Society Agreement Include in the written contract the licensing of animals and collection of licensing fees as part of the adoption process (Commissioner Willhoit) Disposition: Manager's Office and Health Director to incorporate a provision in the contract between the County and APS for shelter services, that animal licensing fees will be collected as an animal is adopted from the shelter. 4. Tennis Courts at Orange High School Include full funding for this project in the Capital Improvements Plan (Commissioner Gordon) Disposition: In order to accelerate funding for energy retrofitting projects, $26,000 was borrowed from the tennis court resurfacing project. Staff is to include the restoration of these funds as part of the 1994-99 Capital Improvements Plan. 5 5. Update Board travel policy (Commissioner Carey) Disposition: Board travel policy was on the August 4, 1993 Commissioner's meeting agenda. 6. Library Friends of the Carrboro Library - Request for Funding for a library in Carrboro (Board) Disposition: A task force appointed by the Regional Library is studying this issue and the possibility of reallocating other library resources. 7. Merit Pay Plan Review effectiveness of existing plan and explore alternative plans (Board) Disposition: The Manager recommends the Board schedule a worksession for November, 1993 to discuss merit policy issues and provide direction to the staff on these. Attachment 2 outlines issues raised by the Board's questions for possible work session consideration. S. Restoration of Fairview Park (Board) Disposition: Recreation and Parks, with assistance from Public Works, will oversee repair to the park from existing CIP funds. 9. Funding Equity for the Town Library and Recreation (Commissioner Gordon) Disposition: Staff needs further direction from the Board. 10. Energy Report showing energy consumption use for School and County facilities; Priority order of energy retrofitting projects and the associated payback period for projects; energy consumption initiatives (Commissioners Halkiotis and Willhoit) Disposition: The County Engineer, with assistance from the Public Works Director, and help from Roger Hayes from UNC-Chapel Hill, will report to the Board on these issues by October. 6 Attachment 2 Merit Pay Follow-up Issues For Board Worksession Consideration 1. The objectives and merits of a performance evaluation system and whether the County should continue to have such a system. 2. The type of performance evaluation system that best meets the County's objectives and whether it is the current one or another type. 3. The relationship between perfonnance evaluation and pay. 4. The objectives of the pay plan. 5. If there is a merit or performance based component to the pay plan, -What are the objectives? -What and whom should it reward? -What should be the participation level in receiving awards? 6. The level of funding support the Board is willing to allocate for a merit plan and whether the Board wishes to fix a percentage of permanent salaries as a benchmark for use in considering compensation in the budget process.