HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/08/2008 07A Draft Minutes 11-20-2007 Adjourned Meeting0
•
ADJOURNED MEETING
NOVEMBER 20, 2007 — $ 30 A.M — 12 00 NOON
COUNCIL CHAMBERS - CITY HALL
BUDGET REVIEW
Roll Call
Present:
Council Mayor Dave Edler, presiding, Council Members Ron Bonlender, Micah
Cawley, Norm Johnson, Bill Lover, Neil McClure, and Susan Whitman
Staff- City Manager Zais, Finance & Budget Director DeBord, and City Clerk
Moore
Mayor Edler opened the session and referred to the Governor's special session being
held today on the issue of Initiative 747 On the agenda of tonight's business meeting,
is the Ad Valorem tax and Mayor Edler had asked the City Manager to supply what the
figures could be if we were not limited to the 1 % property tax increase, as well as if we
incorporated the $20 license fee option He went on to state that he personally
believes our tax system is broken and it is necessary for citizens to understand that the
initiative process is no longer working but is eroding the services to our country City
Manager Zais advised that a 1 % increase in the property tax would only bring in
approximately $150,000 of revenue The property tax limit, enacted by initiative, is
reflective of public view of taxes, but we continue to feel the cost of other mandates
that contribute to a higher level of expenses When one -third of our revenues are
capped, we feel constraints He suggested that re- enactment of the 1 % lid is probably
as far as the Governor will go today, but they could look at other things that have to do
with inflation The 1 % is not an inflation number; it's an arbitrary number The $20
annual license fee would raise close to $1 2 million for the City, although that has not
been presented as a policy issue in this budget process Discussion ensued among
the Council members regarding the Legislature, their surplus, their broken promise of
backfilling, and the need for debate and compromise Mr Zais clarified that the 1 %
revenue figures are based on current evaluation There will be some additional gain
from the newly annexed areas and new construction We are trying to keep spending
in line with the will of the voters but need to keep them aware of what -the impact of
that is on services
2 City Management Department
• City Council - CM 1 -3
• City Manager - CM 4 -6
There are no policy issues for this area City Manager Zais pointed out that the City
Council budget has an adjustment in compensation based on the pay ordinance approved
two years ago
• Legal - CM 7 -12
• Indigent Defense - CM 13
There were no policy issues The outside legal expenses are down 229/. from last year
They have hired a new land use defense attorney, approved last year Cynthia Martinez,
Senior Assistant Attorney, said their case load is up Although felony crime is down, the
level they prosecute (misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor) continues to rise
BUDGET REVIEW — NOVEMBER 20, 2007
• Records / City Clerk - CM 14 -18 0
Assistant City Manager Zabell presented a 20 -year service award to Debbie Moore, City
Clerk,
• Human Resources - CM19 -40
Assistant City Manager Zabell and Human Resource Director, Sheryl Smith, gave an
overview of union contract bargaining, recruitment activity, the City's self- insured health
plan, and the Wellness Program
• Purchasing - CM 41 -43, PI -CM 1
Joint City /County Purchasing Assessment — Unbudgeted They are proposing hiring the
National Institute of Governmental Purchasing, Inc to do a study on merging with the
County for purchasing This is in line with the strategic goal of regionalization This is an
unbudgeted, one -time expense shared with the County
• Community Relations - CM -44 -52
Randy Beehler, Community Relations Manager, described this as a hold- the -line budget,
with expenditures expected to be approximately 3% lower He explained how the City
receives funding from cable franchise fees and a grant from Charter Communications
They use no general fund revenues
3 Yakima Municipal Court
• Municipal Court - MC 1 -6
• Probation Center - MC 7 -8
Judge Susan Woodard and Linda Hagert, Court Services Manager, noted that they are
celebrating the 10th year of operation as a municipal court. The caseload has tripled in
that time They are currently recruiting for a part-time court commissioner to address the
increased caseload
4 Police Department
• Police Department - P 1 -21, PI -P 1
• Law and Justice Capital -P22-26
Add one Deputy Police Chief Position — Budgeted. Chief Granato explained that, although
they have not received the final LEMAP report from the study conducted by the WASPC,
the verbal assessment had a strong recommendation for a Deputy Chief position to meet
the standards in the state The job description for a Deputy Chief has it beginning in July
2008 They will recruit nationally as well as locally City Manager Zais clarified that the
position is funded from City's general base Discussion continued on the need to increase
the number of officers to have a proactive department, the desire for hybrid technology in
police vehicles, and the study for a west side substation
5 Fire Department
• Fire Department - FD 1 -14
• Emergency Services - FD 15 -19
• Fire /Police Public Safety Comm. - FD 20 -27, PI -F 3
• Fire Capital - FD 28 -32, PI -F 1,2
Chief Hines discussed interlocal agreements with surrounding fire departments that would
allow for the closest fire engine to be dispatched to a location regardless of boundaries
He also spoke about the number of calls, fire versus medical, response times and the
need for staff increases beginning in 2009
2
BUDGET REVIEW — NOVEMBER 20, 2007
Purchase of New Ladder Truck — Budgeted. Chief Hines described the need noting there
are many structures that cannot be reached with a ground ladder and how it is also critical
to our insurance rating The current rig is continually in the shop and the cost of repairs
are predicted to be nearly $50,000 over the next two years
Sale of Race Street Fire Station - Unbudgeted This item would be a potential $150,000
revenue source.
Add 1 FTE Public Safety Dispatch Position (9 months) — Budgeted. The proposed
funding source would be from the 0 3% Criminal Justice Sales Tax allocation
6 Adjournment
McCLURE MOVED AND CAWLEY SECONDED TO ADJOURN TO 5 00 P.M FOR
EXECUTIVE SESSION FOLLOWED BY THE BUSINESS MEETING AT 6 00 P M The
motion carried by unanimous voice vote The meeting adjourned at 10 45 a m.
READ AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE BY
COUNCIL MEMBER DATE
® COUNCIL MEMBER DATE
ATTEST
•
CITY CLERK
DAVID EDLER, MAYOR
Minutes prepared by Linda Watkins A CD and DVD of this meeting are available in the City Clerk's Office
3