HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/15/2011 04A Draft Minutes 10-11-2011 Adjourned Meeting - Study SessionYAKIMA CITY COUNCIL
ADJOURNED MEETING — STUDY SESSION
OCTOBER 11, 2011 —1:00 P.M. — 3.00 P.M.
COUNCIL CHAMBERS — YAKIMA CITY HALL
1. Roll Call
Present:
Council: Mayor Micah Cawley, presiding, Assistant Mayor Kathy Coffey, Council
Members Maureen Adkison, Rick Ensey, Dave Ettl and Bill Lover
Staff: City Manager Cooper, City Attorney Cutter and City Clerk Kloster
Absent: Council Member Dave Edler (Excused)
2. Proposed 2012 Budget Constructed in accordance with the Priorities of
Government Model
City Manager Cooper reviewed his Power Point presentation with the City Council. and
reported there are 13 vacant positions, which have been eliminated from the budget
and the levels of service have not changed. He does not recommend eliminating
police officer positions as he believes the City needs to increase officers on the street,
although currently there is no ability to pay for them. He questioned whether the City
should continue providing certain services if they are not being performed well due to
limited resources. He suggested the City could charge citizens the direct price for
planning costs and building /fire inspections since it is a specialized service; however,
Council will need to be prepared for complaints from the community. The Council
could change the percentage level of funds in a reserve account and use that money
for other uses, such as one -time capital equipment costs or street maintenance;
however, he believes reserve funds should not be used for ongoing expenses.
City Manager Cooper asked what service levels are needed and can they be sustained
in a climate of low revenue growth for an extended period of time. Working within the
Priority of Government (POG) model, the Council needs to establish those service
levels that can be sustained for the foreseeable future. Council Member Adkison asked
what the impact will be on the budget with general property taxes declining. Mr.
Cooper estimated it could be 1 -2% and may have an impact for several years.
City Manager Cooper indicated Chief Willson believes he can maintain the current
level of service for the Fire Department, but we will begin to see direct impacts,
specifically in insurance ratings. Council Member Adkison questioned how many
firefighters there are compared to last year. Chief Willson indicated each year they
have reduced one full -time employee; therefore, they are down three positions from
two years ago. Mr. Cooper summarized it by saying the Department will not be able to
fight two fires at the same time. Council Member Ensey mentioned he does not
understand the overtime issue. If the City is paying overtime and we need more
people, why not hire more people using the overtime funds. Mr. Cooper responded
that this is typically done when the overtime budget exceeds 20% of personnel costs.
Chief Willson stated in 1993 Yakima's insurance rating was a "class three" and for
each point it averages a 10% cost increase in insurance ratings. In 1995 we went to
"class four' and with more deductions we will drop to a "class five" rating. The ratings
are generally made every ten years, and we are due for a review.
October 11, 2011
Assistant Mayor Coffey asked at what point the City becomes legally liable without
adequate fire and police protection. City Attorney Cutter responded he was not aware
of a specific liability level, but there are consequences of not meeting standards in
higher insurance costs; the ramifications to the City are based on risk. He believes the
City has an obligation to provide services at the best level possible. He will conduct
further research on standards that might apply and report -back to the Council.
Council Member Lover asked how much was paid in Fire Department overtime last
year. Chief Willson indicated to stay within their overtime budget they reduced one
company from a 3 person crew to a 2 person crew, and thinks they may have spent
$120,000 in overtime last year. Mayor Cawley added that labor costs could be the
largest unknown in the 2012 budget. City Manager Cooper reported the City will be
faced with further reductions or adding a revenue.stream given the current low
revenue growth environment.
City Manager Cooper stated the first step is to set an appropriate service level, fund it
and make sure labor understands the consequences associated with it. It would be
helpful if the unions would not ask for more money until the revenue environment
improves. Either settle for the status quo or less, as medical costs are going to
increase, and accept that reduction until revenue growth returns as determined by
Council.
In response to Council Member Ettl's question about code enforcement officers,
Assistant City Manager Morales reported there are currently 3 officers, and in the 2012
budget the full cost of those positions will be utilized from the federal Community
Development Block Grant (CDBG) program in order to sustain minimum levels of
service. Council Member Ettl questioned what would happen if the City did not handle
code complaints and would the Police Department deal with the outgrowth. Mr.
Morales stated that Police would not respond to code complaints. City Manager
Cooper noted that depending on federal issues, if CDBG funds were reduced, the City
would not have a code compliance system.
Council Member Lover understands there is a code person in the Refuse Division, and
questioned if a code compliance officer could be funded from enterprise funds. Mr.
Morales noted the person in Refuse works on refuse - related code issues. City
Manager Cooper indicated it could be done until challenged and then refuse fees may
need to be increased to cover those costs. Mayor Cawley advised he would not want
to support a revenue stream that would increase employee pay through arbitration.
City Manager Cooper stated his initial position is to treat all employees the same,
regardless of which funds support different positions. He added that our transit system
is supported by mostly federal funds, which may be in jeopardy. Mayor Cawley
stressed why a zero percent increase for labor needs to be more than .a one -year
agreement. Council Member Lover asked about the impact of comparables. He is
under the impression we use size and population to determine the comparable cities
and asked about the ability to pay. Mr. Morales stated some recent comparables were
Chelan, Wenatchee, Walla-Walla, Bremerton, and that we lag behind. Council
Member Ettl asked if a community decides to tax themselves, what are the ballot
options. Mr. Cooper understands the City had a sales tax ballot proposition a few
years ago and that is permissible. Mayor Cawley noted the County increased the
October 11, 2011
® sales tax by 3/10 percent to increase the number of deputies; they have actually
decreased the number of deputies even with the tax increase.
Assistant Mayor Coffey stated the solution is to either cut the budget or raise more
money. The question is whether the Council is prepared to increase any revenue
through a councilmanic action. She thinks we have to take that action at this point, but
only if we are increasing positions to maintain or increase our level of service. Council
Member Lover noted another alternative is to reduce percentages in the Priority of
Government (POG) budget model and transfer money to public safety. Mayor Cawley
believes that would be wholesaling parks. City Manager Cooper stated he can cut
some areas in administration, which would make it difficult to stay open for a 40 -hour
week for some offices. Assistant Mayor Coffey suggested if we are going to close
down parks, then the City should be prepared to hire more police officers because
those people who use parks would be on the streets. Council Member Adkison stated
a Parks & Recreation survey was recently completed with a statistically significant
return, and the community is overwhelmingly in favor of what we are doing in the city
with parks, kids and seniors. She thinks if everyone understands the situation, in
terms of police and fire safety, they would agree to a tax.
Mayor Cawley agrees with Assistant Mayor Coffey and is prepared to take action if
there is a guarantee from the unions. Council Member Lover believes if there is an
increase in taxes, it would have the same effect as closing parks, which lowers the
quality of life. He suggested charging more for services. Council Member Ensey
stressed he is against councilmanic taxes.
• Council discussion ensued on whether the community would be willing to vote for a tax
based on recent public safety issues.
Mayor Cawley asked if Council would come up with a new revenue stream, would the
unions agree to a multi -year agreement. He feels he can't approve a tax to the
citizens without that agreement in place, but either way, he needs to know if they are
on board. City Manager Cooper stated he is going to present a budget per Council's
direction, which is pursuant to the POG model. Several Council Members discussed
the impact on the parks and recreation budget if services were eliminated or privatized.
Mayor Cawley referred to the City Manager's list of issues needing direction.
Question #1 -- Service levels: need to set service level for public safety especially
police and fire services.
CAWLEY MOVED TO DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER NOT TO ELIMINATE ANY
POLICE OFFICER POSITIONS IN THIS BUDGET. The motion died due to lack of a
second.
Mayor Cawley observed the reason for the POG model was so every year they
wouldn't take money from other departments. He understands they are all coming
from different directions regarding taxing. The community says no to new taxes, would
they come back and raise it councilmanically? Council Member Ettl stated it is always
an option. Mayor Cawley doesn't believe it is an option.
® Question #2 -- The desired level of service for streets. Council Member Ensey asked
how much do they sacrifice on the fair to excellent scale to take care of the 1 % of
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October 11, 2011
streets that are failing with no additional money to spend on street repairs, and what
can they do so there are no failing streets with the funds available. Public Works
Director Chris Waarvick reported the City is on the downward side of that curve, as
nothing is being done now. What they proposed was a 10 year $30 million dollar
package.
Question #3 --
Code Enforcement
Question #4 --
Are service levels adequate at present levels?
Question #5 --
Can present or desired levels be maintained through the remainder of
the decade?
Question #6 --
Are there services that can be eliminated, reduced, or privatized?
Question # 7
-- What levels of reserves should be maintained?
Question #8 --
What should be done with revenues in excess of designated reserves
(street maintenance, equipment replacement, others)?
Council discussed'possible solutions and alternatives to each of the City Manager's
questions. Mr. Cooper believes he will have a response to Council by the end of the
month.
Audience Comments
Lynne Kittleson, 305 N 9`" Street, stated she disagrees with everything said about code
compliance since she lives in an area of town that is in dire need of code compliance.
She would also like the Council to raise the EMS levy from .25 per thousand to .50 per
thousand as it would help pay for more firefighters.
Adjournment 0
ENSEY MOVED AND COFFEY SECONDED TO ADJOURN TO OCTOBER 18, 2011
AT 6:00 P.M. FOR THE SCHEDULED CITY COUNCIL BUSINESS MEETING. The
motion carried by unanimous voice vote. The meeting adjourned at 3:14 p.m.
READ AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE BY
ATTEST:
CITY CLERK
COUNCIL MEMBER DATE
COUNCIL MEMBER DATE
MICAH CAWLEY, MAYOR
Minutes prepared by Sonya Claar Tee. A CD and DVD of this meeting are available
in the City Clerk's Office.
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