July 12, 2007 Budget
Jul 12 2007
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF
July 12, 2007
The Board of County Commissioners of
.Present were:Chairperson Jackie Colon, Commissioners Truman Scarborough, Chuck Nelson, Mary Bolin, and Helen Voltz, County Manager Peggy Busacca, and County Attorney Scott Knox.
.Present were:Chairperson Jackie Colon, Commissioners Truman Scarborough, Chuck Nelson, Mary Bolin, and Helen Voltz, County Manager Peggy Busacca, and County Attorney Scott Knox.
REPORT, RE:
WIDENING PROJECT
WIDENING PROJECT
County Manager Peggy Busacca stated the Board executed the Local Funding Agreement with Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) for the construction of Palm Bay Road; the Board provided additional construction funding in the amount of $285,000 as estimated by FDOT; the bid has come in higher than expected; and it is increasing the County’s share to $609,000. She advised the money is available in the Constitutional Gas Tax Reserves; and the FDOT requested the funding be authorized by the Board as quickly as possible.
Florida Department of Transportation Representative Frank Hixson stated the FDOT did the maximum bid specification for $52,000,000 for the whole project, which consists of two smaller, individual projects; one of the projects was funded with XU Funds; and the other project was funded with XA Funds. He advised since the bid came under maximum bid specifications it was accepted; when the breakdown was done on how the contractor bid the project, the job that was funded with XU caused the bid to be higher; and the job that was funded with XA came in substantially lower. He stated because the job with XU came in higher it means more XU funds would have to be added, which means the 12.5% match from
Commissioner Voltz inquired if a motion is needed; with Transportation Engineering Director John Denninghoff responding he wanted to get a motion today so the check for that amount can be written; and it will authorize staff to take care of what it needs to take care of regarding the Palm Bay Road Widening Project.
Chairperson Colon inquired how is it the County will have the safety factor to know that the State of
Chairperson Colon inquired what the maximum amount would be; with County Manager Peggy Busacca responded $609,673 maximum. Chairperson Colon inquired where are the dollars coming from; with Mr. Denninghoff responding the Constitutional Gas Tax Reserve Fund, which will be about half of what is there. Commissioner Voltz inquired if those funds committed anywhere else right now; with Mr. Denninghoff responding those funds are used as a hedge against inflation for the projects the County has committed to, and for unexpected things like cost overruns. Chairperson Colon inquired if the job is on target; with Mr. Hixson responding the job is not being delayed. Mr. Hixson advised the first posting will be done today; and the next one comes in two weeks where the final posting is done. Mr. Denninghoff advised that is why the County needs to write that check; and if it is not prepared to write the check it will delay the project.
Motion by Commissioner Voltz, seconded by Commissioner Bolin, to approve maximum funding of $610,000 from the Constitutional Gas Tax Reserve Fund for the Palm Bay Road Widening Project. Motion carried and ordered unanimously.
REPORT, RE: NASA BUDGET WORKSHOP
Legislative Delegation Coordinator Leigh Holt stated she made the calls the Board requested; neither Space Florida nor the Economic Development Commission are available on the 16th; stated Economic Development Commission President and CEO
Lynda Weatherman and Space Florida Representative Steve Kohler are both available on August 9, 2007, which is a date the Board has an open afternoon workshop; and she did confirm when Space
Ms. Busacca inquired if it is acceptable for the Board to have the workshop on August 9, 2007; with Commissioner Scarborough responding there are people around the country he wants to have plugged in on the telephone; stated the Board can try for August 9; but the 16th would afford the Board greater latitude. Commissioner Scarborough stated to the extent that everyone cannot get plugged in on August 9th, it does not mean other people could come in as a part of some other workshop. Ms. Holt requested further instruction; and inquired if there are other groups or individuals the Board wants her to call to see if they are available for the workshop. Commissioner Scarborough responded maybe he, Ms. Busacca, and Ms. Holt can get together to discuss it. Ms. Holt inquired if there is anyone specifically the Board wants to invite as there is only a short window of time. Commissioner Scarborough responded he is looking at people perhaps from Washington, California, and Colorado who are available by telephone that have done exemplary work in the creative sense. He stated one of the things the Board may need to do is draw upon those areas where excellence has been achieved and get that information from them.
REPORT, RE: BUDGET SUMMARY
County Manager Peggy Busacca stated she wants to inform the Board what it has in front of it for budget materials; the first page is where staff provided the Board a summary of the budget reductions to date; subsequent pages are lists the Board has become accustom to with red ink on it; the red ink shows the budget reductions that were approved previously by the Board; and for those people who have black and white copies of the information, those reductions would be in italics.
Commissioner Voltz inquired if the subtotal still shows the entire amount; with Ms. Busacca responding yes because the summary sheet shows the amount that has been decided; and yesterday there were reductions of $4.5 million. Chairperson Colon inquired if Assistant County Manager Stockton Whitten has copies of the handouts from yesterday; with Ms. Busacca responding she thinks Mr. Whitten has provided the Board with updated information as well. Chairperson Colon stated she wanted to put the paperwork in tiers; she further stated she wants the State Mandates plus the built-ins and so forth, and then the other requests. Ms. Busacca stated what is being distributed is if the Board will look at the last line will show the target that the Board has remaining.
Commissioner Voltz advised she wants to speak about the pre-trial information on the front of the paperwork; there are two things the Board can do; it can do the 569 and the 220; and inquired if the Board would do the 220 instead of the 569 so it does not reflect the difference; with Ms. Busacca responding the Board direction was yesterday that it wants the pre-trial release program to remain as it is, with a total cost of $569,000.
Chairperson Colon requested Mr. Whitten provide the Board with the information he distributed to it yesterday to make sure the Board looks at it again; the reason is because the cuts it is looking at is about $20 million; there is a first tier the Board has to accomplish to be able to comply with the State Mandated cuts being requested; and if that is the case she wants to make sure the Board keeps a number inside. She stated for example, if first tier to accomplish is let’s say $14 million, and the Board started yesterday with a $4 million, that will mean for the first tier there will be $10 million to go; and that is not counting the second tier. Ms. Busacca advised that information is in front of the Board and it is $8.85 million. Chairperson Colon stated she wants the information from yesterday. Mr. Whitten advised Agenda Specialist Sally Lewis is making copies for the Board of that information; she will copy it in color; and inquired if the Board wants him to go back through yesterday and bring it to today’s update; with Chairperson Colon responding not yet because there are public comment cards.
REPORT, RE: PERMISSION TO APPEAL EMERGENCY RULE ADOPTED BY THE
DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE (DOR)
County Attorney Scott Knox stated yesterday he was asked whether or not the County could appeal, and he told the Board there is a penalty for appealing; he spoke with Ms. Busacca and the Budget staff this morning and the source of the problem right now is an Emergency Rule adopted by the Department of Revenue (DOR); if that Rule is applied this year and the County appeals it will probably pan out the way he described it to the Board yesterday; but the same Rule will apply next year as well and it will impact the County again next year. He stated after speaking with Ms. Busacca and the Budget staff, it may be a good idea to try to appeal that Rule; follow the Rule if the Board has to this year if it cannot be thrown out before it gets to the final decision; and he advised to try to get the Rule thrown out at least for next year.
Chairperson Colon inquired if Mr. Knox will work closely with the Florida Association of Counties to achieve that, or is it just
Chairperson Colon inquired how that works; with Mr. Knox responding the Legislature got DOR to adopt Emergency Rules to interpret the Statute; the Legislature exercised that in a way which was very adverse to this particular county; it has a right to challenge that, and actually it is an expedited proceeding so the County may get the hearing officer
to Rule on it within 35 days after being filed; but whoever loses that gets the right to appeal it in the First District Court of Appeals and that is where it gets hung up for a while.
Motion by Commissioner Scarborough, seconded by Commissioner Bolin, to authorize staff to appeal the Emergency Rule adopted by the Department of Revenue (DOR) at this time; and if such Rule cannot be thrown out before the Board has to make its final budget decision this year, then the Board follow the Rule. Motion carried and ordered unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Maureen Rupe thanked the Board for how it is conducting the budget cuts; she is grateful for everyone who is sitting on the Board because it would be easy to cut out and eliminate programs it did not like; and she can tell the Board definitely considers the public’s heath, safety, and welfare when it is making those cuts. She inquired where the Budget Committee is; the Committee was formed to make recommendations on the budget; and further inquired if the Committee is participating. She stated the Board should look at long-term savings and take the opportunity to do things differently; in the proposed cuts there are items, for example, reduced landscaping at public facilities 50%; and inquired why the Board did not opt for xeroscaping with minimal maintenance and a savings on water. She stated even small cuts like the polythene at the libraries when it is pouring rain that the children would not be receiving them to put their library books in; it is pennywise and pound foolish; and she has five grandchildren and they really do not care that it is raining outside. She advised in the cuts program the programs the County does not implement the State will; she is afraid the State will take the dollars generated like in the Gopher Tortoise relocation; and she really thought the Manatee Protection Fund was mandated by the State. She stated the Board should look at things like this because the problem will not go away next year when it has to budget long-term; she does not want cuts that impact health, safety, and law enforcement; oppose cutting speed humps except if paid for by property owners; and only people with enough money can afford to keep his or her children safety on the roads. She noted there are things that can be cut; Lead Brevard, Brevard Tomorrow, MyRegion.com, and East Regional Planning Council are all planning to spend
on cuts are final or are the cuts to be included in the budget package; and further inquired if all of the people will be told in September that the Board has already voted on it and it is a done deal or will the people be considered at the public hearings.
Ed Bradford, speaking on behalf of the Historical Commission, stated the Historical Commission has been frugal with spending the County’s money; their favorite shopping store is
Commissioner
Chairperson Colon inquired what information is being provided for the public; one of the things that were discussed yesterday was any program or anything the Board has to save somewhere else means the Board will have to look at letting go of a County employee; and she wants people to realize what will happen. She stated there is $20 million dollars to be cut; people want the Board to cut something as long as it is not theirs; and it has been quite interesting.
Mr. Bradford stated the Historical Commission is willing to cough up their fair share; right now the Board has it at 39% in cuts; they are not the highest department being cut; but it is up there with the top tier of the departments being cut.
Ida Stagi stated she is glad she lives in
Kathryn Warren stated she is happy the Board is keeping the North Brevard Animal Shelter; and she thanked the Board.
Shellie Williams, representing Brevard Cultural Alliance, stated she has been speaking to the Board about the impact of the Brevard Cultural Alliance; it is proposed BCA have a 50% budget cut; the 50% budget cut would include $100,000 to the Cultural Grants Program; currently that Program funds 24 nonprofit arts and cultural organizations that employ 50 people; and 425,000 people have attended those cultural events. She advised with the Economic Impact Study that Commissioner Voltz distributed to the Board yesterday the Board will see on average each person who attends a cultural event spends an additional $20; that comes to $8.5 million of economic impact that those 24 arts and cultural organizations provide for the County; and in addition the people spend $3.9 million on materials to run their organizations. She noted every little bit being cut is helping to reach the goal. She stated she is willing to have cuts; programs will be eliminated; but the cuts to the cultural organizations represented by BCA are cutting into the economy of
artists that will be affected; and many times that is the artists way of showing and selling the art is to have it hung in public institutions and on the walls in the County. She stated BCA is working efficiently and effectively that every dollar received is leveraged for other dollars; and BCA is in the process of applying for federal funding so as the cuts happen next year and the year after it will become more and more self-sufficient. She advised BCA is teaching the arts and cultural groups to become more and more self-sufficient; holding off a small cut this year will help prepare for the deeper cuts that will come; stated they are grateful BCA moved from 100% cut to a 50% cut; but to move from 50% to something more in line with what is being cut in other departments would be appreciated.
Commissioner Voltz stated last year the Board gave BCA $100,000 on top of what it was already getting; and inquired when Ms. Williams said BCA will cut $100,000 and it will all be used for those small artists, what was it doing before and what was the money used for; with Ms. Williams responding last year BCA received $325,000 for cultural grants, $108,000 for the management of the grants in its General Fund; and that $100,000 has been cut to $39,000. Ms. Williams advised BCA can operate leaner and will be more efficient; it is the additional because there is a proposed cut of $264,000; it is the additional $100,000 on top that is coming from the grants; so there is $100,000 cut from the cultural grants, $100,000 cut from the BCA for the management and general operating, $25,000 for the elimination of the Art in Public Places Program, and $30,000 for the elimination of the Parks Program. She stated it is the other $100,000 cut to the grants to the groups. Commissioner Voltz inquired if the Board had not given BCA $100,000 last year it would be cutting it $100,000 this year; with Ms. Williams responding on top of, which would be $164,000 rather than a $264,000 cut this year. Commissioner Voltz inquired if the Board did not give BCA the $100,000 last year and the budget was less what would the Board be cutting from BCA; with Ms. Williams responding $164,000.
Michael Zocchi, President of Brevard County Professional Firefighters, stated he stood before the Board in May and pledged the support of the firefighters and paramedics when it came to the budget issues; when it was said it was with the hopes that the Board would do the same for the citizens of Brevard County to stand by their side and provide them with a adequate level of protection; local government exists for one reason and that is to protect its citizens; when the State handed down the tax cuts it was its express intent that public safety not be reduced; and it came from the senators, representatives, and from the Governor himself. He advised the frontline firefighters, paramedics, and deputies are the very people who provide for the safety and security of the families and the community; the Board has already directed the Sheriff’s Office to freeze his budget and had the Fire Department cut by nearly $6 million dollars over last year or 7.1%; the Board must remember that providing for the safety of the citizens is the firefighters, paramedics, and deputies jobs; stated the resources are needed to accomplish the task; and that is personnel and equipment. He noted given indications that the step plan will be frozen, raises eliminated, health insurance benefits be reduced or possibly priced out of a persons reach; and people choose government service for two main reasons,
benefits and job security. He stated with those promises disappearing the County is sure to lose the qualified personnel to surrounding municipalities who are not taking such steps towards public safety; an example is the City of Palm Bay; stated Mr. Feldman recently announced that his firefighters are going to receive a 3.2% raise in pay with a merit increase; Mr. Feldman made a point to say in the email that those people would have higher pay than the County employees; and other surrounding counties and municipalities have similar stories. He stated perhaps the Board needs to examine alternate sources to fund its future. He stated he understands the County is being coerced by the municipalities to continue the First Responder Program funding; this is $1.3 million our County fire department gives to local cities to help fund the First Responder Programs; and inquired why is the County voluntarily funding city fire department, such as Palm Bay, when it is obviously in better financial condition than the County is since it can give raises. He stated the County firefighters and paramedics will take it as a direct insult should the funding be continued while cutting the County budget; if a city chooses to have its own fire services, city residents should pay for it; if any of those cities find that it is not solvent enough to operate without those additional funds it should consider consolidation with the County fire department as a way to save the taxpayers thousands of dollars; and it is time to let the public now the facts about how the money is being spent. He advised the County firefighters have sacrificed for many years without pay comparable to surrounding agencies; the County has been a revolving door and training ground for all of the departments for decades, spending hundreds of thousand of dollars training new people; and now just when it was beginning to change the County is beginning to move back into the dark ages. He requested the Board think of the safety and protection of its residents, families, and neighbors when it decides on funding priorities; the County service needs to stay strong, viable, and staffed with quality personnel; and for the Board to fund the public safety agencies.
Richard Vaughan stated there is need to find cost savings in the budget; cutting the Law Library would have widespread, negative repercussions; and he urged the Board not to do so. He advised law seems an easy target for the budget acts; it seems to produce nothing tangible such as a building, road, or park; but it is far more vital than that. He stated the law is in reality the business of freedom; like air it is only conspicuous in its absence; peoples freedoms right down to the local level are won or lost in a courtroom; without knowledge of the law citizens are at the mercy of those wielding wealth, power, and influence; and it is only the force of law that keeps the every day playing field level and ensures the quality across-the-board. He stated the law serves as the framework for good, evil, and for everything else society does; it is the law that sets America apart from other nations and has attracted people from around the globe since the early beginnings; that is why law is absolutely vital to the health, safety, and welfare of the community; all of the laws in the world are useless unless they can be found and put to use by the citizens they are written to protect; and that is why the Law Library is so important. He noted the Law Library is not just a collection of books; any Law Library is only as good as the librarian staff; as a lawyer and law student he has had occasion to use Law Libraries both overseas and numerous courthouses and law schools across the United States; and the current Law Library staff is better by far than any he has seen
both at home and abroad. He stated while books can be bought and sold, a staff as excellent as in Viera is a rare and irreplaceable resource; all law librarians have to have a certain level of skill in order to become qualified for the profession; once that person has graduated and become employed there is little incentive for he or she to go that extra mile and work hard to assist fellow citizens to find the law he or she needs; very often the case is that of a self represented citizen facing a legal deadline with no idea of where to start and what to look for; and for those people the situation is dire and assistance in finding the law is a critical need. He advised the Max Brewer Law Library staff has set themselves apart from the standard library ethic and consistently go above and beyond the call of duty to place the proper law in the hands of those who need it; in this way the law librarians whose service the only reasonably convenient source of legal materials in Brevard County help those who cannot afford an attorney to address the legal problems to find the law and have a fighting chance of self-representation; denying a person this invaluable resource would leave he or she at the mercy of those who can afford to pay for his or her lawyer; but it would deny the every day layman the ability to comport wills, business, and everyday life plans to the law without resort to hiring counsel. He stated cutting the Law Library will absolutely deal a serious blow to legal needs of a broad swath of the local community; not just pro se citizens will be negatively affected; lawyers researching specialized points of law for clients will be harmfully impacted; stated law students who are just beginning law and learning the ropes of finding the law will have no one to assist them; and even the judges sitting in deliberation over cases while the juries await directions or a verdict will often utilize on an emergency basis the technical skill and knowledge of the highly trained and extremely helpful librarian staff to research a fine point of law. He advised the outcome of cases may be directly affected by the absence of the vitally needed ready source of highly specialized information. He stated there may be a modicum of savings to be made by cutting funding for the Law Library but at a serious cost to the freedoms and the citizens of
Margaret Zabinski, Attorney for Public Guardianship Program, stated she wants to encourage the Board to keep the budget funds for the Public Guardianship Program; these are vulnerable people who have no one else to care for them; and those people are the ones who cannot afford to have private guardians. She stated the Aging Solutions Program is new; the State does provide some funding for the Program and also there are some grants; but what the State looks favorably upon when it awards anything is how much involvement there is from the County where the Program exists. She advised it will be good money spent in a good place; those are real people; stated they are very vulnerable citizens from
Susan Canada stated the Board is considering reducing overtime by 50% in the Animal Services Department and response after hours will be reduced to critical situation; overtime currently is for critical situations; currently there is a Veterinarian on staff that is paid approximately $70,000 a year and two Vet Techs combined salaries of
approximately $59,112 a year; stated for the emergency clinic there is $51,000; and some of those are day time emergency calls which the Vet does not want to see. She advised there is no x-ray machine, but there are times when a sick or injured animal may not need x-rays; that cost could be cut down; the County is paying SPCA for animals from the North Animal Care and Adoption Center to be spade; and it seems like animals are not getting adopted from the North Area Care and Adoption Center. She advised if the County cuts back one Vet Tech position, since the Vet is not seeing animals from the north end that would give it approximately $29,556, which would fund the overtime for Animals Services for the emergencies they are already seeing.
Paula Slater stated she is coming before the Board as just a base-level person; most of her action is that she is involved very much in animal services in the community for over five years; and she is president of a new young group called Brevard Animal Coalition. She advised it was due to a couple of the members at a recent meeting that she learned the North Brevard Animal Care and Adoption Center is about to possibly close; she thanked the Board for leaving it there at this point; she is on disability and is not embarrassed; and stated she knows how to cut costs according to what she has to have. She noted her yard only gets to have a few new flowers or she gets new furniture only if she has extra money as a gift. She stated she wants to keep life alive and going as much as possible; it upsets her when she drives and sees areas being cut up and redone; let it be natural in
Mary Hillberg stated she is impressed the Board is energized towards a positive outcome with the budget; life is dynamic and change is the only constant; the environment is the issue she wants to discuss; it is a critical component in Brevard County, including economic development; and Brevard County has a reputation of being a very green environmentally conscious county in Florida. She advised there are already
Dan Rocque stated Emergency Medical Services (EMS) is a critical public safety service; in First Responders first have contact with the patient, first to assess the patient, and first to provide critical care to the patient in concert with the transport provider; and
the role in services of First Responders is a key and worthy component of
Chairperson Colon inquired how does the City of Satellite Beach use its dollars; with Mr. Rocque responding it was primarily identified in concert with the first phase of the program that it in essence supplements the confines of the first agreement; it is two people assigned to a unit with three shifts, so it is based upon six personnel; it was at that moment in time, a differential between the EMT and Paramedic level of service, consumable supplies to an extent; and the City of Satellite Beach will not even run a cardiac arrest call. Mr. Rocque advised the average cost in drugs alone is $270; from the First Responder Program they get $6 of that back; and it is a costly program. Chairperson Colon inquired if it is mostly supplies; with Mr. Rocque responding it is a combination of supplies, differentials between an EMT and a Paramedic; the other aspects of the program is at that time a Defibrillator costs about $14,000 to $16,000 over a seven-year period; today the cost of a full blown Defibrillator is about $24,000 to $26,000; and since the implementation of the program there have been about a 9% increase. Chairperson Colon inquired what standard mandated cuts is the City of Satellite Beach doing; with Mr. Rocque responding it has gone through some preliminary looks at the various budgets; there was the first public hearing the other night to receive more clear direction from the City Council as to which direction it will go; so the City of Satellite Beach has not finalized anything yet. Chairperson Colon inquired if the personnel cuts have began yet in the City of Satellite Beach; with Mr. Rocque responding no. Commissioner Bolin inquired if the personnel cuts will occur within the actual fire department; with Mr. Rocque responding yes staff people are being cut.
Commissioner Nelson inquired how is the City of Satellite Beach dealing with the issue of salary increases for all employees, including fire; with Mr. Rocque responding it has not been decided; it was discussed at the meeting with quite a variety of answers
coming from each councilperson; if money were not the issue the Council would want to give employees his or her COLA and merit raises; but with the finances and tax initiatives being like they are, it will be scrutinized closely.
Paul Forsberg stated his concerns on the Fire Responder Program funding; before the change from the EMS fee, the City of Melbourne was providing about $1.6 million to the County for EMS funding; after it was switched to ad valorem it went to $2.3 million; and out of which the City receives about $300,000 for the First Responder Program. He stated the Mayor of the City of Melbourne spoke in support of keeping the Program, but did offer some alternatives if that was not possible; one was to cut the Program in accordance with the State mandate of 9%; the City understands that everyone has to take a hit; and if that is not enough the suggestion was made to include a surcharge on the County’s transport fees that would go back to the First Responders to pay for the First Responder Program service.
Chairperson Colon stated different jurisdictions use dollars differently; and inquired how is the City of
Mike Cunningham, Chairman of the South Mainland Library Advisory Board, stated he is not going to be blunt enough to say to leave the libraries alone. He stated he agrees 100% with the gentleman who spoke regarding the Law Library; and the County needs that facility. He advised the Library Services reduced the library hours by 29%; as Chairman of the South Mainland Library Advisory Board there was a meeting Tuesday morning; 29% equals seven hours; and believes he could live with that. He stated the Advisory Board made the adjustments and will recommend to Library Services Director Cathy Schweinsberg those hours will be fine; there is not a person in the County that has not been affected directly by a library; and the County needs to keep the libraries in place as much as it can. He stated another area that concerns him is the elimination of four construction projects; he believes in prioritizing; there are only four libraries on that list; if the County prioritizes properly, the first project should have been Scottsmoor/Mims Library; it is an accident waiting to happen; and there are people who refuse to go into that library as it is so dangerous. He stated when he sees how much money the mobile library cost and how much money was expended in just getting it, to have it sit in a
parking lot is beyond his comprehension. He stated Commissioner Scarborough’s idea of using more volunteers sounds a lot more plausible than having a $100,000 plus vehicle sitting in a parking lot; the County must trust its volunteers more; and volunteers are used in the South Mainland Library and there are no problems. He advised he will not ask the Board to leave the libraries alone, reducing is okay, but not to eliminate. He stated he noticed in the Information/Technology section there is a massive eight-position cut; with society being as technologically complex as it is the County may be cutting its nose off to spite its face; and it may be going further towards the dark ages than going forward to the light at the end of the tunnel. Commissioner Voltz stated the Board had a discussion yesterday on those eight positions, because of the technology as it is it can do that according to its statistics. Chairperson Colon advised it has been difficult for the Directors; no one wants to go through the process; and the Directors take great pride in their job.
PUBLIC COMMENT – SHERIFF PARKER
Brevard County Sheriff Jack Parker stated yesterday the Board had questions on the new County Jail Mental Health/Medical Pod and he wanted to try to answer any of those questions it had. Commissioner Scarborough stated a lot of times the Board will discuss a program and it does not cost the full amount in the first year. Sheriff Parker stated Brevard County is so far behind and derelict in its responsibilities to ensure it has enough jail beds that the jail population has exploded; as a result of that there is a lot of work done by the people in this room to come up with a corrective action plan that started to address the needs of the County; it included the pod and four tents; all four tents are completed; three of the four tents have been made operational; and two of the three tents were made operational using in-house positions, converting administrative positions into correctional officers and not coming before the Board asking it to fund those. He stated there are over 1,900 inmates in the jail currently; if
is already proceeding as if it is going to be approved; he does not want any reason that the pod cannot be opened as soon as it is complete from a construction standpoint; applicants are being screened; he plans to have enough applicants to send to a
Correctional Officer Academy; and beginning the first week of October those people will be hired and ready to go so the pod can be opened on time. He stated one of the things the Board brought up at the meeting is if there are positions that can be possibly pushed off until later; he understands the correctional officers have to be hired, put through the academy, and trained; and that is the reason for the October first request for funding. He advised there are 15 correctional officer technicians; although the preference by the Jail Commander and Jail staff was to try to get them in at that same frame so those officers can get experience before the pod opened, but it could be rolled back to where those 15 correctional technicians in on February 15; that would be a savings to the budget request of about $216,000; and it would make the overall request $4.9 million. He stated it sounds like a tremendous amount of money; the Sheriff has come a long way as far as what he wanted to do compared of what was needed to be done; even with the $500,000 for the tent and the $5 million for the new pod, the actual estimates of pricing out the consultants staffing ratios would exceed $10 million annually in operations cost; so he thinks the Sheriff’s Office has a good thing as far as what it has tried to do to save money, but he could not in good faith tell the Board it is okay to partially open the pod or deal with it on the horizon because it is the single most pressing issue Brevard County has. He invited the Board to come for a personal tour inside of the Jail where it can see how it works because he believes once it sees how the Jail operates it will be its number one priority.
Chairperson Colon inquired if the medical service for inmates calculating the growth or is it just the way it is right now; with Sheriff Parker responding it is based upon what he believes will be in that particular facility for the next fiscal year. Sheriff’s Chief Financial Officer Tom Jenkins stated it is based on operation; the increase is not an increase of the rates, as the number of inmates increase the cost goes up; it has gone up this year 300 plus inmates; and since it is charged per inmate the price has gone up. Chairperson Colon inquired if the inmates are sent to the local hospitals or is there a doctor in house; with Mr. Jenkins responding there are doctors and nurses in house; those people do as much as possible in the jail; stated on occasion an inmate must be sent to the hospital; but every time an inmate is sent to the hospital a full-time correctional officer must accompany he or she to keep an eye on them while in the hospital. He advised with the new medical facility the Sheriff’s Office may be able to reduce the number of people going to the hospital by roughly 25%; but some inmates will still have to go to the hospital for the serious type of illnesses.
Chairperson Colon stated food service for inmates is almost $800,000; and inquired if that is part of the calculation per year. Mr. Jenkins responded it is based on increase in inmates; there are no rate increases there is no additional charges per inmate; stated as the number of inmates goes up the costs goes up; and that is running at a deficit this year as there is overspending. Chairperson Colon inquired how much was the bill for food services last year alone; with Sheriff’s Budget Manager Greg Pelham responding
last year’s bill was approximately $3.8 million. Chairperson Colon inquired how many people will be needed to run the fourth tent; with Sheriff Parker responding ten correctional officers to run it seven days a week and 24 hours a day. Chairperson
Colon stated there will be 288 for positions of the correctional officers and ten more for the fourth tent. Mr. Pelham advised there are 96 positions for the medical mental health pod and ten positions for the fourth tent. Sheriff Parker stated it is 86 positions, 71 correctional officers and 15 correctional techs for the mental health unit, which comes with the operations of the facility; if the correctional techs are hired late in the year it will bring the request will be brought down to $4.9 million; and for the tent itself it is an additional ten correctional officers because there is already support staff and additional staffing place for the other three officers so there is no additional supervision is needed. He advised the jail is doubling in size over the past five or six years and there has been no additional supervision or management of the Jail; so he is focusing on primary positions that serve the citizens. Chairperson Colon inquired what is the total number needed for the mental pod and the Jail; with Sheriff Parker responding the number one fiscal priority is the mental health medical pod, which the total cost request right now if $4.938 million and that is with the reduction of $216,000 from what was presented previously to the Board if those correctional technicians are hired later. Sheriff Parker stated the medical mental health facility will bring the Jail to a population of 1,602 beds for the 1,900 plus inmates that are there. He advised the tent will bring the number to 1,702 compared to the 1,900 inmates; and the extra $641,000 for those ten correctional personnel. Chairperson Colon inquired if with all that was discussed including the food services, medical, and all that if it will cost a little over $7 million; with Sheriff Parker responding there are a lot of built-in costs that have to be funded. Sheriff Parker stated it is based upon the number of inmates in the
Chairperson Colon stated if Sheriff Parker has been following the budget process what is happening is the Board is trying to get a good number of exactly what is expected of it because according to that number is the amount of cuts its would have to make in its budget; further stated the easy ones are the once a year; and the difficult items are the reoccurring expenses. She stated if it is $7,000,000 the Sheriff needs for the Jail then that is the amount has to address; the Board is trying to gather what the numbers are so that when it goes back to look at that list it would realize how much it is short; and yesterday it was able to come up with $4,000,000 worth of cuts. Sheriff Parker stated his staff worked very hard to bring his budget down the best it could without interfering
with public safety; and the Sheriff’s Office have been good stewards. He states wages for the firefighters, deputies, correctional officers, and Sheriff’s personnel are paramount; he is beginning to get people who were coming to the Sheriff’s Office that have not committed yet to start looking elsewhere because he or she is not sure of the future with the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office; and that is not good for its citizens. He stated he will do everything he possibly can to help figure out a way to fund wage increases for the critical personnel; the cost of the budget if the Board were to remove as it has voted to do all of the cost of living increases and the wage steps, the budget will be ½ of a percent less this year than what the amended budget was last year; if the wages are added back in it is a 1.86% overall increase in the Sheriff’s Budget; and in light of all that is being dealt with in Brevard County to bring the Board that kind of a budget was pretty good. He advised the original request for staffing was in the line of $10,000,000; and staff went to work to try to get those numbers down. Chairperson Colon stated the partnership has been good between the County and the Sheriff; and it is proud of the job Sheriff Parker is doing to save the taxpayers dollars.
Commissioner Scarborough stated
Commissioner Nelson inquired if the $20.65 million being reduced by new construction; with Mr. Whitten responding yes. Mr. Whitten stated the operating revenues for the current fiscal year are $231.7 million; the $222 million includes the new construction revenues; there is about $9 million spread across the 21 operating districts; and that covers the new construction. He stated the statutory reduction is approximately $9.5 million; built-in increases of approximately 3 other requests of built-ins are approximately $8.3 million; and that is how staff got to the $20.65 million. He advised it is the detail on the built-ins and the increased requests. Ms. Busacca stated those built-ins are within the budgets of all of the departments, and no additional funding were requested for any of the items listed on that page; and anything that was there was part of the status quo of the comments staff was asked to put together. Commissioner
increase; with Ms. Busacca responding there was no increase. Ms. Busacca stated each department found a way to pay for that property insurance within its existing
budget. Chairperson Colon inquired why are those listed there; with Ms. Busacca responding remember the Board kept questioning where the built-ins were and how much they were; this is what they are because it asked for a list of them; but staff
reduced some part of its operation internally to pay for the built-ins. Ms. Busacca stated it is $2.8 million that the Board does not have to find because staff found it, but it is still a reduction to their budget.
Sheriff Parker stated the Jail medical and food budgets were shown as a funded program change really to just make sure the Board fully advised; he did not want to keep that from it; it was a huge impact to his budget; it did not mean it was on top of the status quo budget; but his staff went back to work and with $500,000 or $600,000 in personnel costs and $1.5 million in food and medical the actual Jail budget was $1.04 million more than last years amended budget. He stated it was also built-in; and his staff made a lot of effort and work to get those costs down. Commissioner Voltz inquired if those things were already covered; with Sheriff Parker responding there is $1,000,000 more requested because of all of the things that the expenses just could not be controlled. He advised over the $1.5 million and all the other miscellaneous expense the Sheriff’s Office had, totally probably over $2 million, it cut the operating budget about $1 million to make sure there was only a $1 million increase rather than a $2 million increase. Ms. Busacca stated the advantage the Sheriff has is that he understands the intricacies of his budget; based on the information that County staff provided, it could not necessarily describe that to the Board what was happening to the internal departments of the County; and advised staff provided the information to the Board because it requested the information.
Commissioner Nelson stated the Board was told the budget included built-ins. Ms. Busacca advised the budget does include built-ins. Commissioner Nelson stated the Board should not be discussing it; it is also known as eating it; staff has done that for years and years; and this is the first year he has ever heard of showing a number of built-ins. Ms. Busacca stated staff did this because the Board asked staff to. Commissioner Nelson stated Ms. Busacca brought it up first; the Board asked staff to do it because a term was brought up that it had never heard before. Mr. Whitten stated if departments had not reduced their current year budget by the $2.8 million the Board would have had to have come up with $2.8 million for those built-in increases or the departments would again have to make the reductions; stated in terms of showing the Board how it is reducing its current year budget to get to that $20.65 million it is a part of that equation; it is actual reductions to current fiscal year budgets; and that is why it is on the screen. He advised those occur each year but each year unlike this year there are additional dollars that are allocated by the Board to those agencies for those built-in increases. Commissioner Voltz requested Mr. Whitten run that by her again. Mr. Whitten stated if the Board was not under a statutory reduction scenario agencies would be requesting additional dollars to fund those expenses that are listed there. Commissioner Voltz inquired what agencies; with Mr. Whitten responding County
departments and offices. Commissioner Voltz inquired if the County departments could find within their own budgets to cover those potential increases of $3 million; with Ms.
Busacca responding the departments did find those dollars. Ms. Busacca advised she did not offer the departments the option, she told them they would find that increase within their budgets. Mr. Whitten stated it was part of budget development; it was part of
the process of getting to this point; it happened more than over the course of a couple of weeks; departments have actually reduced some line items in the operating or capital accounts to get to those figures; and those are actual reductions. He stated the Board called it absorption, but there are things that were reduced in the department’s current fiscal year budget to allow them to pay for those expenses.
Commissioner Scarborough inquired if Mr. Whitten is saying that he asked the department heads to absorb any additional costs for gas, insurance, and what have you and then to come back and find cuts; and further inquired does staff come back and add those on, it is done preliminarily, and then does the cuts. He advised he was totally confused; he thought it was an additional item the Board had to fund yesterday; and he is glad the Sheriff is present as he was under false impressions.
Commissioner Voltz inquired if the Sheriff has already built into his budget the food and medical services; with Sheriff Parker responding in his funded budget request of what it was and if wages come out of that it will be reduced; and stated he has funded everything he possibly could. He stated his staff has reduced the operating by 4.75% in the law enforcement budget. Commissioner Voltz stated the Sherriff’s Office has probably absorbed more than any other department. Sheriff Parker stated as far as dollar amount the answer would be yes. Commissioner Voltz inquired what part of that is the 5.2; with Sheriff Parker responding that is a totally different unfunded program. Commissioner Voltz inquired if there is one million and one-half dollar the Sheriff already has in the budget that has been absorbed; with Sheriff Parker responding it is in the funded budget requests. Chairperson Colon stated at this point it would be operational requests; with the mental health and possibly maybe another million; and inquired how much is it that the Sheriff needs. Sheriff Parker responded the two unfunded programs is $4.938 million for the mental health pod, and then add the tent $641,000. Commissioner Scarborough requested Sheriff Parker to turn around and confirm to the people who are watching that he is reading the same information. Sheriff Parker stated the $5.2 was the original request; Commissioner Nelson asked if some of those positions could be pushed forward; by looking at it with the Jail Commander, it was agreed that correctional technicians could be pushed forward to about a February 15, 2008 start date and that would bring it to that new $4.938 million; and the tent operations themselves is for the ten correctional officers. Commissioner Bolin inquired if that is a hard or soft number; with Sheriff Parker responding it is as hard as the Board wants it to be; stated his recommendation is that the County try to get it open; but if the Board is asking which is more important he will say the tougher one. Sheriff Parker stated if the Board says to fund the mental health pod plus the tent it means he has to hire ten more correctional officer trainees on the first week of October, get them through the academy and get them trained, and open the tent probably in March or April. Commissioner Bolin
stated so it is a hard number. Sheriff Parker stated if the Board says it will only fund it halfway then he would hire the correctional officers in March 2008 and open in October 2008; and it is hard but it will end the way the Board thinks it should end.
Chairperson Colon inquired if the Sheriff needs approximately $5 million to fund the mental health pod to get it opened, operations, manpower, and the whole bit; with Sheriff Parker responding that is correct. Commissioner Voltz stated at the same time by looking at the numbers, the Jail is 40% over capacity now; if the Board looks at some of the problems the Jail has had in the past and look at the 40% over capacity, and people with mental health issues still being in there; and inquired if the money is there how soon could the tent be opened; with Sheriff Parker responding it could be around the same timeline as the new pod because he would have to hire the correctional officer trainees; and advised it would be about an April 2008 opening date if it was approved.
Commissioner Voltz stated Deputy County Attorney Shannon Wilson is the expert on the federal lawsuit that was filed; and inquired if the number could go up. She stated the Board needs to look at where the County is with the federal lawsuit; and have they been keeping an eye on
Chairperson Colon thanked Sheriff Parker for attending the meeting as the Board is able to understand his budget a little more. Mr. Whitten inquired if he can ask the Sheriff a few questions before he leaves. He inquired if the food and medical services, the $1.5 million, is a request for new dollars or is that being absorbed within the Sheriff’s existing budget; with Sheriff Parker responding it is a combination; stated if he looks at the funded budget requests and do the math and remove the COLA step increases it will be a new number; and that new number funds that medical and food portion. Mr. Whitten inquired if there is no wage increases those dollars can go to funding the food and
medical services; with Mr. Jenkins responding like the County absorbs certain costs during the preparation of its budget, the Sheriff’s Office did too; stated had the Sheriff not absorbed all of those costs the number would have been much higher; and the bottom
line is without the salary increases the Sheriff needs to make up $1 million. Sheriff Parker advised it is more than food and medical, it is costs of employee health insurance.
Chairperson Colon stated the Sheriff needs $5 million regarding the mental health. Mr. Jenkins stated and then $1 million for built-in cost increases for food and medical. Mr. Jenkins advised the Sheriff has absorbed some of it but cannot absorb it all; and there are other cost increases that have been absorbed also. Commissioner Voltz advised that does not include the fourth tent because it is $600,000; and it would be $5 million, $600,000, and plus the $1 million, which is $6.6 million.
DISCUSSION, RE: BUDGET ISSUES
Commissioner Scarborough inquired if the $7.3 million for Jail expansion is a totally different issue; with Mr. Whitten responding in terms of where the Board needs to get today for staff to go into the weekend with some direction regarding balancing the budget, it needs to go back to the $20.65 million; the Board made $4.5 million in cuts; the Jail Project was a General Fund transfer to the Facilities Department that occurred this year; that will not happen next year because that Project is being completed; and those dollars are balance forward dollars. Mr. Whitten advised the General Fund transfer amount for the Board is reduced by that amount next year; and those go away next year as it was for the Jail Expansion Project. Ms. Busacca noted the money is still there but the need goes away. Commissioner Voltz inquired if the Board has an extra $7.3 million that it did not have last year that it is going to reduce; with Mr. Whitten responding the obligation is gone and the Board no longer has a need for that $7.3 million regarding that particular Project; stated that will bring the target the Board is shooting at today to be $8.85 million; that is what this particular sheet of paper was designed to represent; and it is probably best outlined at the beginning of the meeting so the Board will know that the focus for today is, on top of the $4.5 million reduced by the Board yesterday, is actually $8.85 million.
Commissioner Scarborough stated the information the Board received yesterday included the built-in increases, and that was explained to the Board that it had already been absorbed. Mr. Whitten advised those are already in the system and those cuts have taken place. Commissioner Scarborough inquired why staff needs to include that in the cuts the Board had to make if it was already absorbed; with Mr. Whitten responding staff did not really ask the Board to make those cuts; and stated it was there for full disclosure. Commissioner Scarborough advised he thought he working from a $20.65; he had the feeling yesterday that he had less revenue of $9.5 million; there were built-in increases that needed to be covered; and other requests that needed to be covered. He stated he is back to the number of $20.65 million; and inquired if that
amount should be reduced by $2.7 million because it has already been absorbed. Ms. Busacca responded the number came about because the Board inquired what was the impact of the new Legislation; staff told the Board it would be 9% of $231 million; staff absorbed some of
that before it came to the Board; and the Board had to find the rest because those were external service reductions. Ms. Busacca advised staff thought it was saying that as
early as when Clerk of Courts Scott Ellis came up and the built-ins were being discussed; Mr. Ellis said those were choices staff had already made; and she apologized for not being clear.
Chairperson Colon stated there is $10 million by State mandated cuts; the Sheriff needs $6.6 million; the Supervisor of Elections needs close to $1 million; that leads the Board back to $17 million; and the Board still has $17 million worth of cuts. She stated the Board made $4.5 million in cuts; that is $13.5 million; and inquired if that is a one-time or can the Board use that $7.3 million. Mr. Whitten responded the Board is using it but it helps it get to have less in reductions. Chairperson Colon stated $7.3 million the Board is able to utilize as cuts. Mr. Whitten advised that has already been cut. Chairperson Colon inquired when were the cuts made; with Mr. Whitten responding what the
Chairperson Colon stated she added the $10 million for the State mandates, $6.6 million by the Sheriff, $1 million by the Supervisor of Elections, and that would put the Board at $17 million worth of cuts it has to come up with. She stated if the Board has to make a $17 million cut, yesterday it started with $4.5, and that would put it at $13.5 million. She inquired if the Board can use that $7.3 as part of the cut or is that what is called the built-in; with County Manager Peggy Busacca responding yesterday Finance Director Steve Burdett came before the Board and said it needs to think about how much money it has cash forward; stated staff has come before the Board to let it know that money had previously been allocated for the Jail Expansion; and staff has now done the work and found that it would be moving forward as unallocated money. Chairperson Colon advised she does not understand that. Mr. Whitten stated the short answer is yes; staff has done that for the Board; and the cuts that need to be made today are $8.5 million.
Chairperson Colon stated no. She inquired if the $7.3 million can be used for reduction; with Ms. Busacca responding she is starting from a different place; stated her number
would give the Board a reduction of $6.6 million; and the reduction number needed is $8.8 million. Ms. Busacca stated she does not know why the Board’s numbers and staffs numbers are different. Chairperson Colon advised the second day the Board took $3 million out of the picture, the build-ins have changed the whole discussion.
Commissioner Scarborough stated he agrees with Commissioner Nelson that the built-in increases as being counted twice; that is what he still has a problem with; and does not understand how staff is now saying the Board has to find the built-in increases if staff has already taken care of it at the departmental level.
Chairperson Colon stated after speaking to the Sheriff and after no utilizing the built-ins it has changed the numbers; the numbers are no longer $8 million, it is $6.2 million; and inquired if that is correct. Mr. Whitten responded the Sheriff’s numbers only changed by one-half a million dollars; and the difference between what the Board sees on the chart and what the Sheriff said he could make it work for today is one-half a million dollars.
The meeting recessed at 3:05 p.m. and reconvened at 3:30 p.m.
Commissioner Scarborough stated he knows the Board wants to get into the numbers; today it was given $7 million plus; the $7 million plus was monies that were from reoccurring funds for one time; and with the thought in mind that there may be other matters out there of that nature, before it goes through the process of cutting things he would like staff to make a request of all departments if there are anything that was paid for with reoccurring dollars that were one time. He stated staff needs to put together a balanced budget; there are multiple ways to put a balanced budget together and prolong the dialogue; money can be drawn from reserves, insurance reserves, and there are multiple ways and combinations to balance the budget and preserve the conversation; and he does not think the Board wants to get into difficult cuts. He advised that $6.4 million is after the Board handles the opening of the Sheriff’s pod, which he thought was an impossible dream yesterday.
Commissioner Voltz stated that is where the Board needs to head before it begins cutting because if there are a number of dollars that were used last year for one-time things, reoccurring funds, it needs to find out what those dollars are. Ms. Busacca stated she feels inadequate that staff did not find it earlier; the trust is staff spent so much time looking at budget cuts it forgot to look at budget requests; and that is what staff’s focus as been.
Chairperson Colon stated there is a little more brainstorming that needs to be done; it will be the responsibility of the Board to determine that; and stated she does not want the Directors to be put in that position to try to figure out where more cuts can be made.
Commissioner Scarborough stated it was not his question to cut, it was did staff spend on reoccurring dollars. Commissioner Voltz advised it is regarding the cash carry
forward. She stated whatever it is there will be less in reductions the Board will have to make; it is a tremendous job for staff; and she appreciates the job staff does. She inquired if a Department Head could readily access rather than Mr. Whitten going through each Department; with Ms. Busacca responding she will get everyone working on it that has any budget experience; stated staff has been catching up with the analysis
as it has been entered into the SAP System; this is the only large amount out there like this; but there may be others than could be put together to reach a decent total. Ms. Busacca stated when the Board sees staff on Monday it will get its balanced budget proposal; and by that time hopefully staff will find any money that there is out there.
Commissioner Nelson stated Mike Cunningham brought up a good point regarding working with the South Mainland Library Advisory Board on how it would adapt to cuts; the Advisory Board Members looked at what the cuts were going to be; and then decided to close the seven hours than lose books. He advised there are big County departments that provide a variety of services, such Library Services and Parks and Recreation; if the Board gets to that point he would prefer to give the Department a target number; stated it would be good to have those Departments work with their advisory boards to come up with the services they will provide; each Department it will be different; and if the Board wants to step out of the box it cannot come up with a one size fits all answer. He stated the cuts will be achieved but the service levels will be determined by the people who use it, with the Boards approval.
Chairperson Colon stated she wants to make sure the Board is on the right track with the numbers; and inquired if Ms. Busacca would go over those with the Board. Ms. Busacca responded she will point and Mr. Whitten can speak. Mr. Whitten advised the $9.5 million is actually the reduction when the Board throws back in the new construction revenue; $7.7 million is actually what the Sheriff needs for General Fund, MSTU, and the Jail; stated the Supervisor of Elections increase in terms of additional requests is approximately $1 million; it then gets the Board to the $18.2 million; the Board reduced $4.5 million yesterday; and that will get the Board to $13.7 million. He stated there is a transfer that will not occur next year so that is a reduction of $7.3 million; and that subtraction will get the Board to $6.4 million. Chairperson Colon inquired where is the discrepancy of where it is not matching; with Budget Director Dennis Rogero responding the discrepancy is the approximate $3 million that staff has placed into the system for salary reserves, which will bring the Board to a reduction number approximating what was on the slide of around $9 million. Ms. Busacca advised the State Statute that the
actual contracts of negotiations that by law the County has to comply; with Ms. Busacca responding that is correct. Chairperson Colon stated she does not want to give the
wrong impression that it includes pay increases. Ms. Busacca stated it is strictly a requirement based on the Florida Statutes; it is the Board’s obligation to fund or not to fund that; but it is the
Chairperson Colon stated the $9.5 million also included the expansion of the courthouse; and inquired if that is correct. Commissioner Scarborough responded the $1.2 million was left in yesterday and not excluded because the Board cannot avoid spending some money as it does have continuing issues not only with the court but with the Public Defender J. R. Russo. He noted the Board decided at the end not touching the $1.2 million; but it may be able to reduce the $1.2 million. Chairperson Colon inquired if that $9.5 million of reductions the $1.2 million was never taken out; with Mr. Whitten responding that was never taken out. Chairperson Colon stated it also includes the expansion of the courthouse that will help with the Judges, Public Defender’s Office, and State Attorney’s Office; that is already in that $.5 million; and right now the Board is looking at $6.4 million of cuts. Ms. Busacca stated the Board has given policy direction that it is probably not going to fund the salary increases; the $3 million will be put into the proposed budget because Florida Statutes requires it; and then the Board will have the discretion to remove that. Mr. Rogero advised in order to put that $3 million into the budget there needs to be $3 million more in cuts. Ms. Busacca stated she will generate that as part of the proposed budget and the Board can do as it wishes after it is reviewed. Ms. Busacca advised she will provide that information to give the Board a proposed budget; and should the Board say it will not fund those, then it will be back to the $6.4 million. Commissioner Nelson inquired if it is contractual salary increases for the unions; with Ms. Busacca responding that is correct. Ms. Busacca advised that by law she has to comply as
Chairperson Colon stated there is a certain responsibility that when there is a contract negotiation if the County wants to go against it that could be challenged by the opposition in court. County Attorney Scott Knox stated it could be but there are three different contracts being discussed and all have different provisions. Chairperson Colon inquired if the total of that amount is $3 million; with Ms. Busacca responding staff can go over those provisions with the Board but it would be better not to do that today.
Commissioner Voltz stated under Fire Rescue Department it was the First Responder Program is crossed through; and she inquired if that was actually cut. Ms. Busacca responded it was a continuing to fund based on the June 26 and June 27, 2007 discussions. Commissioner Voltz advised if the Board is not going to give the Fire Rescue personnel salary raises and going to fund other departments with that money it is totally wrong. Commissioner Scarborough advised he prefers to wait on some of those issues; there are still big ticket items to be discussed; there are still Library Services, Parks and Recreation, and Road and Bridge to be discussed; all of those are
multi-million dollar issues; and the Board knows there will be sizable cuts. He stated there will be hard decisions but if staff could find another million or two million it would
make the discussions easier for the Board; he does not want to upset people if it can be avoided; people can come in on the September 18, 2007 budget meeting; and he wants to get a tighter number at the next meeting.
Commissioner Voltz stated the Board is going to have to give all employees raises, either give all or none, and that should not be included if all employees are not getting raises. Chairperson Colon stated $1.8 does not scratch the surface; the only reason the Board would even consider is because by Statute there is a contract with those folks; so by saying that one gets it and the others do not the Board is throwing everyone in the pot. Commissioner Scarborough stated he does not want to hold hope out with the salary issue, but if the Board had some other good news it may be able to talk about things more positively than it had originally; he was moving in one direction the last few weeks and all of a sudden there was an additional $7 million available; that $7 million has made him back off and go back through the budget and start thinking anew; and he was worrying about how to cut more. Commissioner Voltz inquired what about those contracts; with Mr. Knox responding it would be better for the Board to have a separate discussion on those; stated it is a complicated issue; and it is something the Board needs to talk about in depth. Ms. Busacca inquired if that is something that should be discussed in an Executive Session; with Mr. Knox responding Human Resources Director Frank Abbate is present and can discuss that issue with the Board.
Human Resources Director Frank Abbate stated regarding the three collective bargaining agreements, staff was following the Board’s direction relative to seeking to discuss in accordance with what Florida Statutes require to see what the Board can do and under what conditions; and what has happened is staff sent a letter out to the unions. Commissioner Voltz advised she was not talking about those contracts she is talking about the contracts with the cities to provide First Responder money. Mr. Abbate stated staff has the first session scheduled with the IFF to discuss that Rank and File Agreement; and staff has submitted the Agenda Report requesting an Executive Session for the first meeting in August to discuss collective bargaining with the Board. Mr. Knox stated he believes there is a cancellation provision in those First Responder Agreements. Ms. Busacca stated on the 24th the Board is going to see First Responder Contracts, which are payment for this fiscal year; so the County has not entered into contracts for the next fiscal year. Chairperson Colon inquired if those are annual contracts; with Ms. Busacca responding yes.
DISCUSSION, RE: REQUEST FROM DR. SAJID QAISER, MEDICAL EXAMINER
Interim Medical Examiner Dr. Sajid Qaiser stated since last year he is the Chief Medical Examiner for the Brevard County Medical Examiner’s Office; for the past seven years he has been working as an Associate Medical Examiner; and he needs to be a County employee. He advised he outlined everything that he wrote to the
Chairperson Colon inquired what that would take as far as dollar amounts; with Criminal Justice Services Director Shaunna Heffernan responding it would be approximately an additional $37,000; if Dr. Qaiser became a County employee the Criminal Justice Services Department would accept some of his revenues he collects; that would be part
of the cremation fees, which is approximately $20,000 and $30,000 as well as his liability insurance that the County pays for which is an additional $17,000; and that total would be $73,541 to become a County employee. Ms. Heffernan advised if those costs are backed out it would be $37,000 for Dr. Qaiser to become a County employee. She stated Dr. Qaiser contracts with an Associate Medical Examiner; if Dr. Qaiser would become a County employee then his associate should as well; and those costs are up to $60,000 of reoccurring costs.
Chairperson Colon inquired if that would be approximately $130,000; with Ms. Heffernan responding correct. Commissioner Bolin inquired if Dr. Qaiser’s status is private contractor hired by the County; with Dr. Qaiser responding yes. Commissioner Voltz advised he gets no benefits whatsoever. Chairperson Colon inquired if staff has done that kind of research regarding other counties; with Ms. Heffernan responding there are 24 different medical districts, half of those are county ran, and the other half are private. Chairperson Colon inquired how do Indian River, Volusia, and
Chairperson Colon stated the Board is in the middle of the budget process right now; the Board would have to consider it; she appreciates Dr. Qaiser and Ms. Heffernan being present; but it will not be something that can be done right now. Dr. Qaiser stated if the money is the problem the money has been saved last year and can be utilized for at least one more year; whatever is appropriate for the Board to put him in the category of a County employee is greatly appreciated; he has been requesting this for the past four years; and it would be difficult to work in this situation. He stated it is a full-time, high risk job; he has to go to the scenes in all of the different circumstances; and he should be covered by the County. He stated the Associate Medical Examiner was the contractors of the Chief Medical Examiner; he can no longer do that because he has to give him a check from his personal account; if anything happens to the Associate he is liable; so those are all complex issues that should be considered.
DISCUSSION, RE: BUDGET ISSUES (CONTINUED)
Chairperson Colon inquired when the Board meets again on Monday what will be discussed; with Ms. Busacca responding the Board will have the proposed budget; stated it will be able to discuss that; the latest and greatest information will be provided; staff would have gone through to see if there is any more money it can find that is a one-time cost or reoccurring dollars; and at that time the Board can choose whether it wants
to move forward to look at further reductions, with the understanding that on the 24th will be tentative millage. Chairperson
DISCUSSION, RE: SCHOOL CROSSING GUARDS FOR LONGLEAF ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL
Chairperson Colon inquired if Criminal Justice Services Director Shaunna Heffernan was aware that the Board gave direction to send letters to municipalities regarding giving that responsibility back to the cities; but because the School Board getting additional dollars and the Board having to cut it is trying to get feedback from municipalities. Criminal Justice Services Director Shaunna Heffernan advised her Department is in charge of the School Crossing Guard Program at this time; August 20, 2007 is when school will actually begin; there has been a request from Longleaf Elementary School for four additional School Crossing Guards; and that is why it is coming before the Board today. Chairperson Colon inquired how many does Longleaf have now; with Ms. Heffernan responding they do not have any. Ms. Heffernan stated the school was using a busing system and when summer school ended that program went away.
and .Chairperson Colon inquired if the School Board changed the busing; with Ms. Heffernan responding yes.Ms. Heffernan noted before the meeting today she was told the City of Melbourne was going to be asked to provide two School Crossing Guards for those locations; but she does not know if it will go through.Commissioner Nelson inquired if the City of Melbourne provides any Crossing Guards; with Ms. Heffernan responding yes.Commissioner Nelson inquired if this school is in Melbourne ; with Ms. Heffernan responding one of the roads is a County road and the other two intersections are city roads but those are County maintained.Commissioner Nelson inquired if those roads are in the City limits; with Ms. Heffernan responding yes.Commissioner Nelson inquired why would the County provide Crossing Guards within the City limits; with Ms. Heffernan responding if the County maintains the road or intersection it has always been its responsibility to do that.
and .Chairperson Colon inquired if the School Board changed the busing; with Ms. Heffernan responding yes.Ms. Heffernan noted before the meeting today she was told the City of Melbourne was going to be asked to provide two School Crossing Guards for those locations; but she does not know if it will go through.Commissioner Nelson inquired if the City of Melbourne provides any Crossing Guards; with Ms. Heffernan responding yes.Commissioner Nelson inquired if this school is in Melbourne ; with Ms. Heffernan responding one of the roads is a County road and the other two intersections are city roads but those are County maintained.Commissioner Nelson inquired if those roads are in the City limits; with Ms. Heffernan responding yes.Commissioner Nelson inquired why would the County provide Crossing Guards within the City limits; with Ms. Heffernan responding if the County maintains the road or intersection it has always been its responsibility to do that.
Commissioner Bolin inquired if action needs to be taken at this time for the Crossing Guards for
DISCUSSION, RE: LANDSCAPING ROAD PROJECTS
Commissioner Voltz stated she spoke with John Denninghoff earlier and it has been the Board’s policy to spend 3% of all the road projects in landscaping; it is a lot of money; Mr. Denninghoff told her 10% of that amount is for upkeep of the landscaping; and the Pineda Project is huge. Chairperson Colon inquired who should the Board give it to and what is the suggestion; with Commissioner Voltz responding the Board should look at lowering the amount of money it spends on landscaping on the road projects. Commissioner Voltz advised this Board made the decision it was going to be 3% of the total project to be spent on landscaping. Chairperson Colon inquired who would pick that tab up; with Commissioner Voltz responding the County would not landscape.
Transportation Engineering Director John Denninghoff stated the landscaping would be ground cover, trees, irrigation systems, and pumps; typically that design target value is about 3% of the construction cost of the project; when most of those maintenance efforts are contracted out, the typical maintenance costs are about 10% of what it costs to build them initially; and over about a ten-year period of time the Board would have spent that same amount of money again to maintain the landscaping, which is a reoccurring expense.
Commissioner Nelson stated the County maintains buildings and a lot of things; and it would be a direct shot at the beaches. Commissioner Voltz inquired if impact fee money could be used for those projects; with Mr. Denninghoff responding when a new road is being built he would say yes, but not maintenance dollars. Commissioner Nelson stated the Board should keep with the policy; he does not think the County overspends on landscaping; it is important to the community; stated there are just as many people who like landscaping that do not; and it says something about the quality of the community.
Commissioner Bolin stated she wants to explore the issue to see if the 3% is the correct amount; the Pineda Project is a big project. Commissioner Nelson advised it is an up to amount. Mr. Denninghoff stated the way he interprets the Policy is the County must provide landscaping where it can reasonably provide it up to 3%, which is what the State of Florida does; it usually means at intersections and divided highways in the medians; but sometimes staff has room to put it on the sides of the road as opposed to the median. He advised staff tried to develop as low of a maintenance cost intensive sort of design as it could reasonably get but to get a good bang for the buck; and it looks good but it also low cost in the long term. He inquired if the 3% is really where the Board wants to target; and stated 3% is not probably a terribly high number. Commissioner Nelson stated because it is an interchange and interchange has a lot of concrete and steel in them that drive the total cost of the project up; and 3% landscaping could not be put out there. He stated what a reasonable design is for that intersection and it will be less than 3%.
Commissioner Voltz inquired if the upkeep spent out of General Fund or our of Gas Tax; with Mr. Denninghoff responding if its in an unincorporated area it is paid for out of MSTU so it is an ad valorem tax.
Chairperson Colon stated the Board encourages the Directors to do a lot of outside-the-box thinking; stated to bring those kinds of suggestions to the Board; and at that point the Board will decide if that is where it wants to go. She stated in the south end of the County the roads were built with no landscaping; and what a difference it makes to see the roads with the landscaping.
Commissioner Voltz inquired what the average is that the County spends on landscaping; with Mr. Denninghoff responding with many of the County’s projects there is no opportunity to do it; and stated with the larger projects it is very close to 3%. He advised if there is a major bridge to construct the landscaping would not get up to the 3% on that.
Commissioner Voltz inquired if Mr. Denninghoff has a breakdown by MSTU as to what percentage of the MSTU goes towards maintenance/landscaping; with Mr. Denninghoff responding he does not but Road and Bridge Department could probably provide that to the Board. Mr. Denninghoff advised Road and Bridge Department could probably come up with a number for that very easily.
Chairperson Colon stated in years past a lot of citizens were upset with the type of landscaping that had been done; that is not what goes on now; Landscaping Operations Representative Loren Rapport has been a true asset to the County; but in the past the landscaping was not done so well. Mr. Denninghoff stated it is nice to have Mr. Rapport available because he understands the maintenance and the difficulties associated with getting those plants to thrive and get what he wants to have out of it; and when he gives staff input staff listens very carefully.
Chairperson Colon stated the dignitaries come to meet with her and have to travel State Road 520, 524, or 528; there are no trees or landscaping; otherwise it is a beautiful community; that is why landscaping is so important; and there are some things the Board is willing to sacrifice and some things it cannot.
Upon motion and vote, the meeting adjourned at 4:10 p.m.
ATTEST:
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JACKIE
BOARD OF
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SCOTT ELLIS, CLERK
(S E A L)