MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA

 

 

May 13, 2008

 

 

 

The Board of County Commissioners of Brevard County, Florida, met in special session on May 13, 2008 at 9:03 a.m. in the Florida Room, Building C, 2725 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Viera, Florida.  Present were:  Chairman Truman Scarborough, Commissioners Mary Bolin, Chuck Nelson, Helen Voltz, and Jackie Colon, County Manager Peggy Busacca, and County Attorney Scott Knox.

 

Invocation was given by District 4 Commission Aide Dave Dingley.

 

 

 

Commissioner Colon stated the devastation in South Brevard is huge; she will be asking the Board to allow Space Coast Government Television to broadcast the locations where citizens can donate to the American Red Cross; and the money donated will stay in the community and in the Space Coast Chapter of the American Red Cross.  She stated even if it is $10.00 or $20.00, it goes a long way; she does not want citizens to think they have to be wealthy to contribute; citizens can send donations to the American Red Cross Space Coast Chapter, 1700 Cedar Street, Rockledge, Florida  32955; and the telephone number is 890-1002.  She stated South Brevard looks like a war zone; many people have lost their homes; people know they are blessed to be alive; but she is asking people to not minimize the pain others are going through.  She stated the worst feeling in the world is realizing a person’s house is about to go up in flames; and that is what people in the community are facing.  She stated some generators were finally placed in homes at 1:00 a.m.; at times like this, victims do not like to ask for help; but citizens and friends of people in Palm Bay can call victims to see if there is anything they can do.  She stated the men and women of the Brevard County Fire Department and the City of Palm Bay have been wonderful; firefighters were present from all over the State; Chief Farmer will give an update on the current situation; and she is very proud of the firefighters in Brevard County.  She advised shelters need diapers, formula, toothbrushes, and towels; County Manager Peggy Busacca has contacted mental health counselors to help families who have lost their homes; and Space Coast Area Transit has provided buses to transport people. 

 

Chief Farmer stated this year is the 10^th anniversary of the 1998 wildfires; and this season’s conditions are the same as in 1998.  He stated in his opinion the drought index is not accurate; he believes Brevard County is far drier than KBDI (Keetch-Byram Drought Index) is relating; the fire fuels and fire behavior is explosive; and the fires are moving so fast that the creatures that are native to Florida and know how to get out of the way are not able to do so.  He stated the Board can be very proud of its firefighters; the County is fighting fires all over Brevard County; most of the fires being fought in the last two days have been in the city limits; and by fighting fires in city limits, the fire department can keep it from spreading to unincorporated areas.  He stated what is happening is an urban interface in which there is wild land next to houses; and it is impossible for fire personnel to save every single home; but the firefighters have gone into harm’s  way  to  save   many   homes.   He   advised   so   far,  3,000    acres   have   been   lost  Countywide;  four  homes have been lost in the area Brevard County Fire Department is directly fighting in; 51 or more homes have been destroyed in Palm Bay; and there is no end sight and no rain forecast for the near future.  He stated the other problem is the fires are concentrated in the south area; there is also a north area and a central area that both have fires; all of the winds have been pushing the fires north and northeast; today, there will be a wind shift that will push everything south; men and women are on the lines trying to strengthen the south lines for the fire that is going to hit is this afternoon; and then the winds will change and come out of the east to blow the fires back towards the west.  He noted firefighters are not protecting outbuildings, cars, boats, or cargo trailers; and the firefighters are concentrating 100 percent on occupied residences.  He stated the Division of Forestry has been asked to bring in one of the State’s overhead teams; the State overhead team is in Brevard County and will be transitioning; and that means relief for Brevard County’s firefighters.  He stated citizens need to be very careful; this morning he watched someone flick a cigarette out the window on Murrell Road; and the dry conditions are everywhere.  He stated there have been no significant injuries in the Brevard County Fire Department; there has been some vehicle damage; the Fire Department has lost two stations; Station 89 is going to have to be replaced; and Station 87 has been damaged.  He noted Station 89 is in Palm Bay beside Bayside High School; and Station 87 is on Mosquito Control property at the Valkaria Airport.  He stated during evacuations, the Fire Department evacuates in front of the fire only; the Fire Department does not like to evacuate behind the fire because when a community is evacuated, the eyes and ears of those citizens are lost; and he does not want that to happen.  He stated a good tip would be for all citizens to be ready for an evacuation; everyone in the County is under a fire threat; all important pictures, documents, and medical prescriptions should be together in a kit and ready to move out; and for additional information, residents can go to www.brevardfire.com, or call 637-5550 and both of those will give the current fire conditions and evacuation conditions.  He stated he would like to thank units that have helped out from Jacksonville, Alachua County, Lake County, and McClenny.

 

Chairman Scarborough stated he would like to be able to write the elected officials from the cities and counties that additional help has come from and express appreciation for their assistance; and directed Chief Farmer to provide the information after the event.

 

 

 

Craig Bock, Accounts Manager of Government Accounts, Florida Power and Light (FPL), stated he is a certified energy manager; and he works at trying to reduce electric bills.  He stated it would seem FPL would want more profit; but in actuality FPL has implemented conservation methods; FPL is the number one utility in the nation and has saved from building 13 power plants with its conservation methods; and he is proud to say Brevard County has partnered with FPL in some of the methods.  He stated FPL does a Business Energy Evaluation; any of FPL’s certified energy managers will be glad to come to a government facility and look over the facility and show officials where they can go with a more efficient lighting, insulation, window tinting, and roof covers.  He stated FPL will assist in the installation and operation of energy efficient equipment; FPL provides incentives for lighting improvements, such as the best incandescent light bulb; and not only is FPL assisting in the cost of installation, governments are having lower electric bills.  He stated many government buildings have gone with a white roof coating; there has been a ten percent to 15 percent electric savings by the reflection of the heat off of the building; and that includes window treatment, insulation, and reflective roof measures.  He stated  a  time-of-use  rate  utilizes  those  times  when  most  people  are  in  bed and not using electric; in the evenings there may be thermal energy storage that makes ice at a cheaper rate; and during the day, it is able to blow air over the ice and air condition the facility.  He noted a time-of-use rate does not work on all buildings, but at times it can be a phenomenal savings when portions of businesses can be done in those non-peak hours; and the more consumptions that can be shifted equals a greater savings.  Mr. Bock stated curtailable service rates are interesting; if a facility has a generator on a building with 500kwd usage or a 500kda transformer, it can get on a rate with FPL so that during times of need, such as a hurricane, FPL can take down a facility for 15 minutes and then bring it back up; that cycle of on and off would allow FPL to keep others in service; and that rate saves money.  He advised curtailable time-of-use rate combines both by using that peak power that can be shifted to non-use time and low-use time.  He stated Brevard County’s electric savings for 2007 for low control and time-of-use rate at the Wickham Waste Water Treatment Plant was $56,525.00 by shifting from the normal rate; and that was a wise decision by the Facilities Department.  He advised the South Beach Waste Water Treatment Plant saved $38,150.00; the Merritt Island Waste Water Treatment Plant saved $20,290.00; and those four plants saved $115,000 all together.  He stated with the County’s HVAC thermal energy storage, FPL will actually provide the money for the County to have its people do the preliminary analysis to see if that feasibility study will help or not; and it also offers financial incentives for the installation of thermal energy storage systems.  He advised using thermal energy storage at the Merritt Island Service Complex has saved $10,600; at the Historic Titusville Courthouse there has been a savings of $10,200; at the Suntree Library there has been a savings of $5,040; and that is a total of $25,840 savings at those locations.  He stated FPL provides HVAC incentives for installing and qualifying direct expansions of air conditioning or heat pump systems; the unit sits on the roof and does not use a central chiller that runs through all the buildings; they are getting more efficient all the time; and FPL has rebates for change out and installation.  He stated energy recovery ventilation systems are a type of film membrane that spins against the return air from the air taken out of the building and utilizes some of the cooling of the air that is being extracted to cool and dehumidify the fresh air being brought in, which lowers the cost to air condition; and he knows of some areas in which Brevard County government is utilizing that technology.  He stated FPL provides project specific incentives for unique energy savings applications; FPL evaluates savings potential at the customer’s proposal and it approves projects received on an incentive basis; and everything FPL can do to reduce the need for its customer reduces its need to build a new power plant. 

 

Mr. Bock stated the rules of performance contracting are defined by Florida Statute 49.145; the County is allowed to upgrade facilities and save energy without any out-of-pocket expenses; and the County can select FPL’s sister company, which is FPLES, without a formal RFP process based on a Florida State term contract; and it is guaranteed to be a savings by FPLES.  He stated a lot of companies look for two and three-year paybacks; it is a partnership and it may take a few more years to see the full savings; but month by month the County is saving money; and that efficiency is wonderful.  He noted FPL has completed successful projects with Martin, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, St. Lucie, Volusia, and Dade Counties, and the Florida Department of Corrections, City of Melbourne, and Brevard Community College; sometimes the savings are things as simple as fire and exit signs being LED rather than a light bulb; but more and more technology is becoming available. 

 

Steve Quickel, Facilities Director, stated Brevard County has had a good relationship with FPL; it has become obvious that something that can be done is to change peoples’ habits; and if people start turning off lights and stop adjusting thermostats too low or too high, the County could save a lot of money.  He stated one thing FPL made him aware of is the free inspection program; and the Facilities Department will start working with FPL on that.  He advised the Facilities Department is being proactive; some of the thermostats are being changed out to more tamper resistant thermostats in order to keep people from changing the temperature up and down; it is something that needs to be adopted more as a continuous focus because technology changes; and as technology changes more ways come along to save energy.  Mr. Quickel stated when there is an opportunity to design new facilities, there is a lot of ways to save energy through proper selection of materials; simple things such as increasing the thickness of insulation in a roof can save energy; and the Facilities Department is committed to doing that and is welcoming the input of FPL.

 

Chairman Scarborough stated a week ago FPL announced it will rebuild its Port St. John plant; it is going to be a cost-savings in operation; the capital investment of $400 billion is going to generate to Brevard County in tax revenues approximately $5 million per year; and that is recurring revenue the County will have with a savings of operation.  Mr. Bock stated anytime something is made to be more efficient it will be a savings; the new plant in Port St. John is going to be state-of-the-art; and he is pleased it is going to be built there because it is going to be a win/win situation all around. 

 

Commissioner Voltz stated she has seen a lot of faucets in the Government Center that do not shut off; the dripping water costs a lot of money, which will cause a water shortage; it takes a long time for the hot water tap to run before hot water comes out; and inquired if something could be done to fix those problems in order to save money in the long run.  Mr. Quickel replied the necessity for hot water varies depending on the use or location; all areas do not require hot water; but those that do, there are options for Facilities to shorten the run from the water to the instant hot water heaters, which are a little more expensive; and there are some locations that are having instant hot water heaters installed.  He stated the Utility Department recently looked at the size of the meter at the jail; it was determined that the size of the meter that had been installed was not large enough to meet the preferential rate that would be available to the County by going with the larger meter; and Utility Services Director Dick Martens brought the subject up with the City of Cocoa, which changed the size of the meters, and dropped the rates the County was paying.  He advised he has received some information from several vendors about the sensor-type water faucets; the intent is that they turn off and on when a hand is placed under them; and that is being looked at as another opportunity to save money.  He noted the Facilities Department is also looking at irrigation systems and other energy-type areas for savings.  He stated if anyone notices water dripping from any faucets at the Government Center, to please make the Facilities Department aware of the situation.   

 

 

 

Commissioner Bolin advised Governor Charlie Crist, General Douglas Burnett, and Craig Fugate, State Emergency Management Director, will be at the Malabar Fire Station at 1:00 p.m. for a press conference; and the Commissioners are invited to attend.

 

 

George Mikitarian, CEO, Parrish Medical Center, stated he and Bill Cunningham represent a large contingency of volunteers who have spent some time with County staff learning the ways of County Government.  He stated there are people in the business community who want to step up and work side-by-side with County Government and the Commissioners to make Brevard County a safe, wonderful place to work; and he has gained a lot of respect and appreciation for the talent in the community.  He stated as Mr. Cunningham goes through the PowerPoint presentation of some of the findings of the Brevard County Industry Budget Review Report, he encourages the Board to think about a few things; and those are things that are not usually discussed openly in County government.  He stated what helps people understand their role and inspires them to work productively and efficiently is to understand things like mission, vision, and values; most organizations involved in this exercise have very clear mission statements; and their leadership expresses their mission statements.  He stated equally important are the set of values the organizations encourages and demands from those who represent the organization on a day to day basis; he found that not everyone understands clearly what the mission of County government is; and if the mission is the safety and welfare of the citizens, then that needs to be made very visible.  He explained when the volunteers started the Industry Budget Review Report the three things it wanted to look at were the competency of the individuals performing the tasks; the group was impressed with the talents, abilities and attributes of the people that work within County government; and everyone comes from a different background, education, and experience level.  He stated the other thing he would encourage the Board to look at is the category of processes and systems; that is where the basis of the recommendations fall; it is not right or wrong; and it has nothing to do with past performance.  He noted every organization has its own culture and way of doing things; Brevard County is quite efficient compared to other counties in the State of Florida; but it can continue to get better as any organization can.

 

Commissioner Voltz inquired how Mr. Mikitarian determined Brevard County was more efficient than other counties; with Mr. Mikitarian responding things such as how many people reside in the community, the size of the government budget, the amount of projects that are conducted; and stated those were compared with data from other counties.  Mr. Mikitarian noted the third issue is when sometimes people wonder why certain things are not being accomplished; that has to do with intentional non-compliance of people relative to processes, systems, policies, and procedures; but he did not find any of that in the study. 

 

Bill Cunningham, Business Advisors International, stated the Report is not typical; the group looked for other examples, but were unable to find any; under the circumstances, the level of cooperation the Board had was excellent; and it was clear from early on that there was a common goal, which was to find a way for the County to improve services and save money.  He expressed appreciation to Assistant County Manager Stockton Whitten, who had to educate the volunteers on how to navigate through the County budget.  He stated last fall a group of Brevard County business leaders assembled to look at what was going on in the County economically and some of the struggles with the budget process; at that point in time Amendment 1 was pending, which presents challenges now that it has passed; and as expected there has been declining property assessments.  He stated with the passing of Amendment 1 it is obvious the voters are asking for lower taxes; and combined with the pending gap in the Shuttle Program, it created a scenario where there were a number of things that could lead to reduced revenues and a need to look at a cost structure to see if improvements could be made.  He stated the group  decided  to see  if it could  help  by  looking  at  the  budget  from an industry perspective; stated he approached Commissioner Bolin, who took him up on the idea; and Commissioner Bolin introduced the group to County Manager Peggy Busacca and helped it move forward.  Mr. Cunningham read the names of the business leaders who participated in the group; and stated there were six senior level business students from FIT who participated as well.  He advised the group wanted to find immediate reductions that would affect the budget going into the next fiscal year; the group also wanted to look at activities or processes that would lower costs next year and beyond; and it wanted to look at the total budget process and the management process.  He stated the group has looked at everything from a business perspective and not a government perspective; the group has been informal; there is no central leadership; and everyone in the group worked individually relying on each one’s business experience.  He stated the group went out and looked at a lot of counties in Florida for their costs and number of citizens; Seminole, Volusia, and Sarasota Counties were some of the few counties that are typical benchmarks for Brevard County; and Brevard County was typically not worse than those counties, nor was it any better.  Mr. Cunningham noted the group found a lot of cases where the measurements made Brevard County look extraordinarily good; he did not find any in which Brevard stuck out as having a problem; and that is a testament to the hard work being done by the County management.  He stated as the group started the process of the review, it noted in a few departments that the actual expenditures were not running at the budget level; that led the group to look at the total County budget to see if it was a consistent theme; there are some good reasons to have that situation take place when workforce is managed with attrition; if a position is held open, the County can continue to provide the service and not be paying for that position for a period of time; and that is a demonstration of a good way to manage a budget and keep costs down. 

 

Mr. Cunningham displayed a PowerPoint slide of the estimate of what could be for the fiscal year 2007/2008; the group looked at the last five years for compensation and benefits and operating expenses and what were the actuals in the given year as a function of the budgeted numbers; for compensation and benefits the group was typically in the five-year period at 5.5 percent below; and this year there should be a $9.3 million under-run.  He stated if the same thing is done with operating expenses the actuals over the five-year period were 12.1 percent less than the budgeted number, which would indicate at $32 million under-run; and the same thing was done with capital expenditures, but capital is not necessarily a one-year event, and those are being assessed.  He noted the County Budget Office is working hard to figure out the departments that are getting the job done by spending less capital; and it is believed to be a big number.  He stated the opportunity for the County is several fold; if there is an under-run this year, that is some available money for whatever the Board decides to use it for; when looking forward to next year, the Board can start the year recognizing it can get it done for less than the 2007/2008 budget; and the group recommends the Board re-baseline next year’s budget based on its best expectation of what the actual costs will be in 2007/2008.  He stated if the numbers in the presentation are accurate, the Board should be able to bring its budget down going into next year by $40 million plus whatever the Budget Office arrives at for the capital under-run; and he believes that it is going to be a significant number. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated County government is comprised of many different funds; the average citizen may look at a number and think the County can cut $31 million; the Board understands the reality is that it is in gas tax, and a variety of other restrictive sources; that makes it difficult to deal with; but he likes  the  concept of looking at it.  He stated the question is how does the Board get to those details and how does it impact the overall budget.  He noted he noticed one department used its savings to buy capital because there is no capital replacement program; and he would love to see the County get into more of a structured capital replacement program. 

 

Mr. Cunningham stated the compensation and benefits and the operating expenses are very much period expenses; if the Board just looks at the pure under-run in capital, it is a staggering number, but so much of it is in all of the issues the Board arrived at; but the group is confident there is something there to substitute that. 

 

Chairman Scarborough stated the Board is going to have a Workshop on the problem with Baker Act beds; Wuesthoff Hospital is losing $2 million, and there are no more beds coming to Circles of Care; the Board has to respond to the problem because it is State funded; and the mission of the County is to keep it a viable County.  He advised if an emergency room is negatively impacted by Baker Act patients, it is not for the benefit of the citizens; in a bad budgetary year the Board may be putting money into things it historically has not because of State shortfalls; the Board’s mission is complex; the Board has to be dynamic, which may make the job more perplexing because rather than taking a reduction, the Board may be funding new things; and what the volunteers are giving the Board is a tool to get started.

 

Mr. Cunningham stated the group would also like to see better use of cost performance measurements as an aggressive tool to not only drive costs today, but to do it over the long haul; the group recommends every department has cost measurement metrics in place; and those metrics should be maintained using actual costs.  He stated the recommendation is that the measurement metrics be used as a management tool by the County Manager, and the department directors as a measure of performance of departments and of the people in the departments; and the Board should also review them and look at them as it does the budget development.  He noted as the County has favorable performance, it can put the savings into subsequent budgets; and that would be in all years going forward.  He stated once the Board does that, the recommendation of the group would be to make them visible; everyone in the department should know what the cost-value performance metric is; and everyone should also know what his or her role is.  He stated within the County’s budgeting process currently, most of the departments have some measurements in metrics; the group observed they are not aggressively used to actually drive costs; and over the last number years, some have been going in the wrong direction, and that is a trend that needs to be reversed.  He stated the other thing the group recommends is as the Board goes into next year, every department be challenged between five percent and ten percent productivity performance improvement; the opportunity to find between five percent and ten percent is going to be there; and every subsequent year the Board should be continuing to drive down that curve and look for an additional five percent or more productivity improvement. 

 

George Mikitarian stated the continued effort of becoming five percent more effective each year is what gives the Board reserves for new programs and services and to remain dynamic; every year the Board is creating almost another five percent opportunity to do new things for the citizens in order to stay dynamic and be flexible; and that is where that research and development money might come from. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated this year the dynamic for the Board is Amendment 1; but last year the Board had tax reform; there were departments that cut significant dollars last year; the Board may have already passed the five percent reduction stage because some of those departments took 15 percent and 20 percent hits last year; and now to ask them to cut five more percent, he is not sure if the departments even know what their services are supposed to be because of those kinds of reductions.

 

County Manager Peggy Busacca stated she does not think all of the County’s processes are ones that can be looked at with that efficiency; an example would be a zoning item; she knows how long it will take staff to produce the zoning report, but it may be tabled four or five times; a zoning item may require three or four additional public hearings, which is additional staff time, and additional advertising; and that is not because of anything County government has done, but because the public has concerns that have become known to staff and it has to completely vet that.  She stated County government struggles to find those efficiencies because it does not know how to measure that; when there is a zoning item, staff reviews it 100 percent; but staff cannot predict what the public comments are, how long the public comment will take, or what the Board will choose to do; and inquired if the volunteers have thought about those kind of efficiencies in those areas in which there is a public process.  Mr. Cunningham replied the group has met with individuals in the County; the group firmly believes everything is measurable; it is a matter of breaking it down to its component parts; if staff went back and analyzed the data on the last 30 or so zoning issues, staff would find that patterns that exist; and it may lead staff to understand that certain kinds of zoning issues prolong public discussion, and others do not.  He noted there may be other ways to preempt by other actions that prolong discussion; perhaps by the time the fourth and fifth zoning hearing occurs, it ends up resolving the same exact way it did before; and inquired if staff can eliminate steps in that by communicating differently. 

 

Chairman Scarborough stated the Board has actually already done what Mr. Cunningham is suggesting; when the Board gets a zoning item that is confrontational, it recommends the zoning applicant meet with the community to resolve issues before it comes before the Board for a public hearing; and that was not done for matter of efficiency, it was just to do things differently.  He stated a business can have different departments and products that compete and have different philosophies; but in the County there is a total different philosophy; the idea is to think from other perspectives rather than have competing bands, there can be something that is orchestrated that makes sense for a quality community; and that efficiency not only leads to lesser costs, but to a greater return on the investment.  He stated Ms. Busacca has had department directors go into other departments so there is the ability to appreciate the dynamics of a whole system as opposed to viewing it as fragmented.  Mr. Cunningham stated he agrees with Chairman Scarborough. 

 

Mr. Cunningham stated if the Board looks at the reserves it has when looking from adopted budget to adopted budget over the years, the reserves in absolute terms are better today than they were five years ago; contributing to that are special items in which there needs to be certain money because of how it was funded by taxes or referendums maintained in the reserves; but there may be an opportunity to be more aggressive in the Board’s reserve position and extract some money from  those reserves to cover  other issue such as revenue declines or competing priorities for dollars.   He stated  when  money is not spent and it gets carried forward in whatever category it would be, it typically stays in the department, and it becomes invisible; the recommendation is that as there are the under-runs the Board can extract those from the County budget so it can see how they are actually performing and how they are actually doing against their cost performance measurement; and the benefit rolls forward allowing the Board to make decisions on what to do with it, whether it be to give it back to the department or hold it for some other reason. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated library revenue, for instance, cannot be transferred to General Fund; it has to stay in libraries; it can be managed within that fund, but it cannot be moved around; and that adds to the complexity of the nature of it.  He stated the Board has created a subset of service, which is if it is an efficiency it can be kept in the budget, which allows a department to do some things the Board would want it to do, but have not been able to fund; the Parks and Recreation Department would go through the capital improvements process every year; and millions of dollars were put into the Capital Improvement Program, which never was funded. 

 

Chairman Scarborough stated there is an incentive for people to be cost effective because they believe they can hold it in their department; as that incentive is taken away, people may decide to spend it rather than lose it; and department directors are department directors because they defend their departments well.  Mr. Cunningham stated as a counter to that, if the director were held accountable to a cost-based performance improvement, they are going to have other motivations to save money and bring it forth; and then it is a question of whether the directors can win the debate to spend that on something next year; but that is a decision the Board will want to make.

 

Commissioner Nelson stated it is a culture issue with government because departments understand what the Board wants to do in terms of projects; the Board is part of that problem because there are needs in the community; the directors are trying to help the Board with those needs; but it is a culture change that is needed in order to make it work.  Commissioner Voltz stated the Board needs to make sure the departments run efficiently, but at the same time, if there are extra monies directors are not to spend them and say money has not been spent on another employee because they have not been hired yet, so the money can be spent on something else; and she does not know whether those exchanges in different line items should be managed through the County Budget Office; but she agrees if a director does not measure what they are supposed to do, how do they know they are doing it efficiently.   

 

Commissioner Nelson stated the spend-it-or-lose-it mentality is negated by capital projects; if departments have saved dollars they indicate how they are going to expend those in the following year; it is a one-time capital, not a reoccurring dollar; and the Board will review it along with the County Manager. 

 

Commissioner Voltz stated if a department comes in under budget, the director assumes they have done a great job in keeping the budget down; but that is not necessarily true; if the directors have not spent the capital dollars, but they plan on spending them, then those need to be identified; and she thinks they are identified.  

 

Chairman Scarborough stated he finds the information he obtains from Assistant County Manager Stockton Whitten  is not  the same  information  he has been given from a department; but if the Board says a department can keep the money but it must clearly identify what and why, then it does not negate the benefit of savings; but it does bring it back in the discussion; and he thinks a lot of that has been floating without a complete definition of where it is going to be spent except in the mind of certain people in a department.  Commissioner Voltz stated the Board has allowed that to happen. 

 

Mr. Cunningham stated the volunteers believe the County Budget Office should re-focus; everything discussed so far has been performance measurement improvements, getting down to actuals, and keeping track of things; but that is going to require the Budget Office also take on more of a financial analysis; and the Budget Office should be constantly critiquing and asking questions on a detailed level, such as the Board is asking today. 

 

Commissioner Voltz stated County Finance has always been an issue with the Board; and inquired if County Finance has always been separate; with Mr. Whitten responding affirmatively; and County Finance has always been under the Clerks Office.  Commissioner Voltz inquired if Mr. Whitten sees a benefit to that; there seems to always be an issue with County Finance telling the Board to do something one way and then County Budget tells the Board something else; and there is always a perception in the community that something is wrong.  Mr. Whitten replied he has seen places like Broward, which has its County Finance under its Board; it really depends on the County and the organizational culture; a County is a different science than budgeting; but there certainly needs to be more integration and communications.  Chairman Scarborough stated Clerk’s Finance will never define the mission of the County government; County Finance exists to make sure money is available and that the County is doing things legally; the Board is asking the Budget Office to get all the multiplicity of program and goals and come together with something coherent that makes sense; and it is the blending of multiple departments into a whole. 

 

Mr. Cunningham stated there are a number of opportunities where better cooperation with the municipalities would serve to save money; he would think municipalities are suffering with the same kind of dilemma of declining revenues and priority changes; and this may be a very opportune time to attack some of those things.  He stated he spent some time with Chief Farmer of Fire Rescue; EMS does a great job of cooperating; the fire stations themselves are still a little parochial; and Chief Farmer’s belief is there can be more of a shared resource in which whomever is closest responds to the fire, money can be saved.  He commented on the capital planning process; stated the County should upgrade the current capital planning and management program; and the plan should include timing for approval and expenditures, which should be monitored during the fiscal period.  He stated the County should extend the horizon of the budget process and begin to look at what are going to be the cost implications of fiscal year 2009/2010; there are some counties in Florida that currently do that; and it will give the County the opportunity to understand what the implications will mean later.

 

Commissioner Voltz stated she has talked to staff in the past about doing a three-year budget; and inquired if the Board did a three-year budget, would it still have to go through all of the processes on a minimal basis, rather than everything that has to be done now.  Mr. Whitten responded  there are a  number  of counties that do a multi-year budget; the second year of that budget is more of a planning document; and it is a projection of future costs and where the Board  wants  to  be  in  the  second  or third fiscal year.   He stated  the multi-year budget is still adopted as an annual budget; the second through the fourth year are there for planning purposes; those are tweaked through the subsequent years; and then the Board will go back through the TRIM process and the budget approval process.  Commissioner Voltz inquired if the Board does a three-year budget, the second year would be set with the revenues and the expenditures being the same, what would the process be; and inquired if it would not be an easier process for everybody.  Mr. Whitten replied it is easier in terms of the need for less workshops; the Board would know the plan; and there would be less deliberation on the budget.  He noted that is assuming all the external factors are the same; but it makes for a simplified budget process.  Mr. Cunningham advised a multi-year budget gives the Board the ability to look forward from a new program and services perspective; having that information allows the Board more flexibility in terms of when to start and perhaps when other programs may stop; and it may be nice to know now about things that may change in three or four years, and there may be more dollars available.  He stated a multi-year budget gives the Board better information. 

 

Mr. Cunningham stated the group teams all commented on the County’s benefit structure being high; there is someone looking into it, but it is not completed; and more information will follow.  Chairman Scarborough stated he had a number of meetings about the SAP system; someone in the private industry told him the SAP system can be used to do questioning of everything; and he is very interested in how to better utilize SAP as a part of the discussion. 

 

Bill Ellis, Health First, stated the group has talked to the County Information Systems Department; there are some areas in which there can be some efficiencies; there seems to be a great deal of redundancy in the information systems scattered throughout County Government; the other issue is infrastructure; and right now there are over five Internet connections, and there should only be one connection, which could save dollars.  He stated in hospitals, the information systems and computerization are absolutely critical, and has become a large part of the total operation of the hospitals; the County is not looking at it as a business strategy, but more of a strategy as to how to keep the computers on.  Chairman Scarborough stated he is interested in the SAP system to become more of an on-going tool for the Board to appreciate the dynamics of the things Mr. Cunningham is asking it to look at; and he understands that in private industry it is used to a greater extent than in the County.

 

Commissioner Nelson inquired when Mr. Ellis spoke of redundancy, is he referring to Constitutional Officers and the County; with Mr. Ellis responding affirmatively.  Chairman Scarborough stated the Constitutional Officers are not on the same system as the County.  Ms. Busacca stated the issue of decentralization is an issue staff has identified in several areas; in the Information Systems area, staff has been making progress along the line of bringing it back to centralized service; and the Information Systems staff appreciates the help in working through it.  Commissioner Nelson stated some of that occurred out of necessity because the system was being dragged down to the lowest common denominator; and in some instances the County would go outside because there may have been cheaper servers.  He stated the County has not caught up in terms of  technology; and the County cannot track expenditures to the extent that would be great for understanding what it costs to operate parks, for instance; and it is an element of SAP the Board has not purchased. 

 

Mr. Cunningham stated the group recommends the County look at implementing a comprehensive  business  system;  it is  a  rigorous  element  to go through; most all businesses have done it; and it is the process that will get the County to the point where it can achieve certifications.  Ms. Busacca stated the Board may remember the County did that with five departments previously.

 

The Board recessed at 11:06 a.m. and reconvened at 11:15 a.m.

 

Mike Thomas, Harris Corporation, stated in looking at the procurement area, the group made a few recommendations; one idea was consolidating the procurement under one roof; it has become increasingly more sophisticated; if a party on either side does not keep up with that, they become disadvantaged in the supply chain; and there are several best practices that industry has been employing over the last several years, and consolidation is most obvious.  He stated in consolidating, a business will have a smaller centralized group doing all procurement for all organizations; that is unlike in the County where it is fragmented and there are different organizations running their own procurement; and through centralization, savings could be getting a smaller vendor list.  He noted if there are three, $5 million organizations going to market, they do not have the leverage of one $15 million organization.  He stated another recommendation is to convene a supplier conference, compile a list, and negotiate a lower price; he is not recommending to break a contract; but the County can renegotiate with a smaller list of vendors and use competitive bidding and negotiation to lower the price the County is paying for goods and services.  Commissioner Nelson stated in County Government negotiating is difficult because of the competitive selection process the Board has to go through; and he does not know how the Board can sit down with current suppliers and negotiate.  County Attorney Scott Knox advised it is not as easy as it should be for the County to save money; there are certain statutory restrictions it has to follow; certain projects have to go out for bid; and the County cannot expect to select suppliers to go back to, because sometimes bids come in lower for other suppliers. 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated other counties negotiate on capital projects; it is not true negotiations because there is still a competitive process; but it gives the ability to get to a point where the County can deal with one vendor or all vendors; and he would like to see the County consider that as a potential ordinance.  Mr. Ellis stated everything should start with a competitive bid process; but negotiation can be done individually with three different bidders; and with big dollar items, the process makes sense.  Attorney Knox stated that works fine if the County has the option to do that; the problem is that the County has to chose a vendor because of certain circumstances; and the County may or may not meet the requirements of the other vendors, and if it does not it may end up in a lawsuit.  Mr. Ellis stated the County can negotiate with the winning vendor. 

 

Barry Forbes, BB&T, stated in a lot of cases, governmental contractors have put out individual holistic bids; he has a client that finds physicians for the Air Force; they are one of six vendors in a pool; every time someone requisitions a physician, they are constantly going back to the pool; and they are required to submit a bid every time.  Attorney Knox stated that can be done in some cases, but in other cases it cannot be done; there are statutory minimums that direct the County to go out for competitive bid on any project over $200,000; and it is not easy to get six constant bidders on a project,  especially in today’s  environment.  Commissioner  Nelson stated he thinks there are ways for the County to negotiate; it is going to take changes in ordinances and policies and procedures; nobody likes negotiation because it is a cumbersome process; but it can be done.  Mr. Forbes stated the most important thing would be to leverage buying power across with one organization going to market.  Commissioner Bolin inquired if Mr. Forbes is suggesting all of the Constitutional Officers and School Board join with the County.  Mr. Forbes stated there is a lot of power that can be mustered by doing that; the more entities the Board brings together, the more power it has in the marketplace and the ability to influence the price it pays.  Commissioner Voltz inquired if the County does that with EMS services and supplies; and one contract is shared with the cities; with Ms. Busacca responding yes, that is done for EMS.  Chairman Scarborough stated it may be good for Commissioner Nelson to have some additional conversation.  Commissioner Nelson stated he will do that; and he realizes there are places where the Board can negotiate, and it needs to do that.

 

Dan Evans, Evans Butler Realty, stated the Facilities Department is one that has quite a bit of efficiency already because it has privatized several things in order to attain its budget requirements; and that trend has helped the department to be at a lower cost than most other government.  He stated when benchmarked against other costs per square foot, the County’s Facilities Department is more efficient by 50 cents per square foot; Facilities is not only responsible for maintaining the buildings, but also for constructing the buildings; and Facilities has a good grasp on its operations.  He stated he noticed there may be some storage needs that can be consolidated; and all records could be consolidated to one central location that could be more efficient from a transportation and personnel perspective.  He stated the Facilities Department has a lot of responsibility, but not enough authority to get involved with the disposal of assets, even though it has the best information on the cost of the maintenance; but Asset Management is the department that disposes of the assets.

 

Commissioner Bolin stated she noticed the recommendation of creating revenue sources by offering advertising or building naming opportunities.  Mr. Evans stated that was also addressed in Parks and Recreation; and if there are new revenue sources, then it makes sense.  Commissioner Voltz inquired how much money is collected from the buses that advertise.  Ms. Busacca answered staff has identified there are firms that actually assist in the marketing; and Assistant County Manager Heidi Denis has been putting that information together to bring to the Board.  Jim Liesenfelt, Transit Services Department Director, stated the advertising on buses generate approximately $60,000 per year, which is 25 percent of the total gross sales.

 

Mike Harris stated recommendations for Parks and Recreation include developing a long range plan; the department can coordinate between County and municipalities to leverage benefit; and Parks and Recreation can constitute an independent Countywide Advisory Board to coordinate three separate districts and 18 unique advisory groups.  He stated Parks and Recreation should seriously review legal and political options for stopping referendum projects that will bring potential unaffordable on-going maintenance costs; and the department should also review the closure of low-use facilities, and those in poor repair.  He stated in regards to revenue, the Parks and Recreation Department should increase user fees for facilities that consider the cost of facility operation and use demand, and potentially create need-based waivers for those who may not be able to afford such fees; and fees should increase to what the market bears for groups from outside the County.  He noted Parks and Recreation has been privatizing activities, but  should  look  further  in  areas  such  as  athletic  field  maintenance,  landscaping, janitorial, vehicle/equipment maintenance, trade services, and the equestrian center.  He stated there is advertising at Little League fields; money is being made for Little League; but the County can be making money off of it also.  Commissioner Nelson stated he does not have a problem with advertising at Little League fields; the money is a revenue source for the Little League teams to buy uniforms, insurance, and other expenses; if that is taken away from the teams, no one will be using the fields; and it is a cooperative relationship between the County and the Little League teams. 

 

Commissioner Bolin stated there was one suggestion she thought was very good; the County should consider a leisure services foundation for fund raising and the development of Friends of the Park Group; and she thinks that is an excellent idea.  Mr. Harris stated other counties are doing that as a fund raising activity. 

 

Mr. Mikitarian stated the Road and Bridge Department performs work for other departments with funds from its budget when funds may exist in a requesting department’s budget; and the charge back process is with old rates producing an allocation that may misrepresent costs and subsequently adversely affect cost and priority.  He stated Valkaria Airport has a jet fuel tank controlled by Mosquito Control, which if permitted to sell, could generate profits; and land assigned to the airport that is not used or airport services could also be designated for other potentially profitable use, as long as it does not interfere with the Airport Master Plan.  He stated the airport has the potential to generate new sources of revenue; it can construct and lease out plane hangars; and it is worthy of additional discussion by the Board and the residents who live near the airport.  He advised the more the airport develops itself, the more State and federal funds become available; there are many State funds that are available for the construction of hangars; and there are more federal dollars available for operational costs or the construction and maintenance of runways. 

 

Commissioner Bolin stated the report indicates there is only one jet fuel tank operated by Mosquito Control; and inquired how the other people get gas.  Assistant County Manager Mel Scott stated two kinds of fuel are sold at the airport; low-lead high-octane is sold through the airport, and it also sells Jet ‘A’, which is not sold to the public; and the Jet ‘A’ fuel is used by helicopters and used for turbine engines. 

 

Barry Forbes stated his review included the Planning and Zoning Department and the Permitting and Enforcement Department; and they are two different departments, but are very much connected by similar tasks.  He stated both departments have a good view of what their missions are; Planning and Zoning sees its mission as being service oriented to the public, adhering to State requirements, and concurrency issues; and Permitting and Enforcement is mostly concerned with the safety of citizens.  He stated with both groups the primary expense is with personnel; there are very few capital costs; and both departments have done a good job of managing the level of staffing.  He stated Permitting and Enforcement has done a good job of paring down its personnel levels to adjust to different levels of construction activity that is anticipated in the County; and he applauds both department directors for their management. 

 

He stated it is suggested the Permitting and Enforcement Department review the types of projects for which inspections are required in the County to determine their necessity and the level   of  protection  they   really   provide  citizens;  a  reduction  in   the  number  of  inspection requirements could allow for a  reduction in staffing and cost levels within the department; and it could also allow for more attention to enforcement regarding work that is not permitted, but should have been. 

 

He noted it should also be possible to qualify contractors who have performed particular types of jobs well in the past for permits that do not require as many or even any inspections.  He stated a suggestion for the Planning and Zoning Department would be when private citizens bring something to the Board to consider, the Board should approve Planning and Zoning staff to look at the item again and also approve what the estimated costs are going to be to do that.

 

Commissioner Bolin inquired if Mr. Forbes is saying the Permitting and Enforcement Department can do spot inspections on a company that has always passed inspections.  Mr. Forbes replied the Board should look at that possibility; it may not make sense to do that on a foundation survey on a multi-story building; but it may make sense to do that with a framing contractor. 

 

Commissioner Voltz commented on replacing a triple sliding door and a triple French door at her home; stated she had to have the door permitted and inspected; and she could not understand the permitting and inspection for a hurricane proof door.  Commissioner Nelson stated a door is only hurricane proof when it is installed that way.  Commissioner Voltz stated she knew the installers were qualified to put in the door.  Commissioner Nelson noted a contractor is only as good as his sub contractors; one thing found after Hurricane Andrew was there were a lot of drive-by inspections; there were a lot of failures of structures related to the fact that there were not full inspections; and the State has tightened up because of those very issues.  He stated the real question is if something needs a permit in the first place; and if fences do not need inspections, then the permit requirement should be dropped.  Mr. Forbes stated when looking at the possibility of qualifying a contractor it is not a simple process; if someone is qualified that is a great responsibility on the part of the contractor; and if the contractor’s work is not up to Code there should be punitive repercussions to the contractor, including removal from the list.  He stated there are different ways to motivate contractors who know how to do things the right way, and those who actually do things the right way. 

 

Commissioner Voltz stated it has been suggested the Board approve handyman licenses; it may not be a bad idea for the Board to do that; there area already a lot of handymen in the County who are working, but are unlicensed; and it would be better if the handymen were licensed.  She inquired if the issue had gone before the Contractor’s Licensing Board; with Ms. Busacca responding the Contractor’s Licensing Board voted against the idea of licensing handymen.  Commissioner Nelson stated he is not sure the issue was ever heard by the Contractor’s Licensing Board because the person making the presentation did not attend the hearing.  Ms. Busacca advised she will get a report on the issue.

 

 

David Kearns stated he is concerned over the recommendation of stopping referendum projects that will bring potential unaffordable on-going maintenance costs; and inquired if that will mean more  parks  and  EEL  Programs.  Chairman  Scarborough  responded  those are two separate programs;  and the  EEL Program  is a totally  different  department.  Mr. Kearns  inquired  if the recommendation is to have no new parks.  Mr. Thomas replied the suggestion was not that there be no new parks; stated the recommendation was a long-term planning project that looks at both projected revenue and projected expenses; and the County needs to make sure it is not building things that in a declining revenue environment it may not be able to maintain, or not at the level that was intended.  Mr. Kearns inquired about the suggestion of reviewing closure of low-use facilities and those in poor repair, and who decides what gets closed; with Mr. Thomas responding it would be the Board’s decision.  Mr. Kearns inquired if the parks that are closed are going to be sold; with Commissioner Bolin responding the Board is just gathering comments; and the Board is not taking any action as to whether or not it is going to take the suggestions.  Mr. Kearns inquired what happened to the County’s duly appointed Budget Review Committee, which operates under the Sunshine Law.  Commissioner Voltz replied the Board had the Budget Review Committee for a long time, but she has never heard a recommendation come form the Committee at all; she does not know what the Committee does; and basically, the Budget Review Committee has done nothing. 

 

Ms. Busacca advised the Budget Review Committee does not have enough appointees to meet; and the Committee has not met in over a year.  Mr. Kearns inquired if it is true there are two positions on the Committee that have not been appointed by Commissioners; with Commissioner Nelson responding he has a position available.  Commissioner Voltz stated she has never heard good recommendations from the Budget Review Committee; and she is not sure exactly what the Committee does.  She stated regarding closing parks and not having money to fund them, Clerk of Courts Scott Ellis has brought that to the Board’s attention many times inquiring if the Board is going to have enough money to run the parks if they continue to be built; and sooner or later the revenues are going to go down because the valuations of the homes are going to go down and the millage rates are going to go down.  She stated the Board needs to look at where the money is going to come from in order to continue to fund the parks.  Mr. Kearns stated the interest of citizens and the interest of corporate insiders are two different things; and he would caution the Commissioners to remember that as it looks at the recommendations.

 

Shannon Roberts, Cape Canaveral City Council, stated she is a retired federal executive with a number of years of experience in Washington as part of the President’s private sector survey and cost control; and business experts were brought in to help public sector employees look at things differently from a business perspective.  She stated one thing happening in Brevard County at the municipal level is the change in demographics of the County; in Cape Canaveral she is experiencing the changing expectations for quality service and accountability for what residents are receiving from the County and the local governments for the dollars they are giving the governments. 

 

Chairman Scarborough stated the dynamics of the demographics are important; this workshop is one of many; and later in the summer, Commissioner Voltz is going to hold a workshop concerning senior citizens.  He stated after the Apollo Program, Brevard County had a school enrollment of 75,000; it dropped to 45,000; and only today it is back up to 75,000.  He stated what needs to be understood is that if one is in private business, he or she is always looking at where the market is going; the community is going in different directions; inflation is going to affect the seniors profoundly; and there is going to be more of a need to assist the seniors. 

 

 

 

Commissioner Nelson stated he hopes the Board can figure out a way to continue the process strategically; there are two parts of the presentation he particularly likes; and those are identifying activities that would tangibly lower cost, and identifying the processes. 

 

Commissioner Bolin stated when the consultants came to the Board last year and suggested the Budget Industry Review Report, she was encouraged because she saw what the potential would be in having some of the great minds in Brevard County conduct a report; and the group has brought forth a lot of stimulating ideas.  She expressed appreciation to the Board and to the consultants.

 

 

 

Assistant County Manager Stockton Whitten advised the Board directed staff to look for some dates for a Fire Rescue Audit Workshop; the only date the Board’s calendars would accommodate is May 22, 2008, which is the date of the Health Insurance Workshop beginning at 1:00 p.m.  He stated if the Board is agreeable, it would have the Health Insurance Workshop at 1:00 p.m. with the Fire Rescue Audit; and the 800 MHz item is also on that agenda.  Commissioner Nelson inquired if the Health Insurance Workshop can be accomplished as an agenda item; and inquired if there needs to be a Workshop on that issue versus taking up time on the fire issue.  County Manager Peggy Busacca replied the discussion of the health insurance will be whether or not the Board wants to reduce the health insurance benefits; and if so, does it want to do that by restructuring co-pays.  Chairman Scarborough stated it should be a Workshop. 

 

Motion by Chairman Scarborough, seconded by Commissioner Nelson, to approve a Fire Audit Workshop for May 22, 2008 immediately following the 1:00 p.m. Health Insurance Workshop.  Motion carried and ordered unanimously.

 

 

 

County Manager Peggy Busacca advised a second shelter is being opened in Palm Bay; the shelter will be in the City of Melbourne; and it will be at the Central Baptist Church.  Commissioner Voltz inquired if there is anything the firemen need such as water or food; with Ms. Busacca responding she was at Malabar yesterday and they are accepting donations; and there are also people at F. Burton Smith Park in Cocoa accepting donations.  

 

 

 

Chairman Scarborough stated the Board has been challenged to think about its mission; he wants the Commissioners to write down what they think the mission is; the Board will discuss it at one of the workshops later in the summer; and another part of that would be challenges and opportunities.  He stated it is critical as the Board attends the important announcement at the Rialto that the Board needs to look at other options and incentives; he has been told but for the Commissioners’ leap of faith into a totally new arrangement, the subject of the announcement by   Governor  Crist  would  not   have  come  to  Brevard  County;   the  Board  needs  to  move expeditiously and ask that staff work with the EDC to find if there are land parcels that can be made available and if the new methodology can be used in the future.  He stated unless the Board is aggressive, those persons using the typical examples will be taking things from Brevard County; and inquired when the Board can get a report from the County Manager.  Ms. Busacca replied she can let the Board know next week.  Chairman Scarborough stated he would like to have a report before the Board goes on break in June.  Ms. Busacca stated staff can present a report to the Board on May 29, 2008.

 

 

Upon motion and vote, the meeting adjourned at 12:34 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                        _________________________________

                                                                        TRUMAN SCARBOROUGH, CHAIRMAN

                                                                        BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

ATTEST:                                                         BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA

 

 

 

__________________

SCOTT ELLIS, CLERK 

        (S E A L)

                                                                  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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