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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-01-2016 BAC MinutesCITIZENS BUDGET REVIEW ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES 6:00 P.M. MONDAY—AUGUST 1, 2016 CITY HALL 1225 MAIN STREET, SEBASTIAN, FL 32958 Ed Herlihy called the Citizens Budget Advisory Committee to order at 6:05 pm. Present: Ed Herlihy -Chair Harry Hall Sergio Mota Excused Absence: Dionna Farmer Michael Frank Tim Slaven Terry Tayler Also Present: Ken Killgore, Administrative Services Director Jennifer Smith, Accounting Manager Cynthia Watson, Assistant Administrative Services Director/HR Manager Frank Watanabe, City Engineer Ed Herlihy made a motion to put off the minutes until the next meeting because there wasn't a quorum. Mr. Watanabe presented a power point regarding Street Paving Capital Projects between 2015 and 2016. A pavement assessment was completed in March 2016. He showed what was completed and where we are headed. He commented the streets that have been completed ---Melrose, Part of Benedictine, Concha, and Part of Bevan. Street paving for 2017 and 2018 would include Day Drive, Damask, and Rolling Hills Drive. Street paving for 2018 and 2019 would include Indian River Drive. Mr. Mota questioned speeding on Concha. Residents concern is speeding since the repaving. Residents are asking about the installation of a stop sign on Concha. Mr. Watanabe stated that he will look into investigating the speeding on Concha. He stated that speeding is expected due to the repaving. He stated MUTCD rules and regulations must be followed before a Stop sign can be installed unless an engineer has a legitimate reason to install a stop sign without meeting warrants. Mr. Mota also questioned Barber Street repaving. He wants to make sure that Barber Street has a long life span and that stormwater and corroding doesn't ruin the new paving. Mr. Watanabe stated that the northern part of Barber Street will begin paving the week of August 8, 2016. He also mentioned that residents and schools have been notified. Mr. Hall questioned the safety of Joy Haven and Barber towards Shumann. It is posted at 25 mph but speeding still takes place. Mr. Watanabe stated there was a sight distance problem at Joy Haven and Barber Street ---at the bridge. Vehicles have to pull out into the intersection to see if any traffic. He indicated there is a MPO Safe Routes to School Grant Program that could help us put a traffic light at the intersection however at this point the intersection doesn't meet a stop sign warrant. Mr. Killgore spoke about the millage and gave an update on general liability and workers compensation insurance. We were fortunate in receiving several competitive bids however we are only looking at two. Those two are submitting with a savings in the premium. The 20% savings is because of the factors in the marketplace. This is equivalent to $100,000. However, the state has changed the Workers Compensation regulations regarding how much attorneys receive when taking a case. The state feels they should be paid more. Mr. Killgore recommends that we only reduce our budget by $50,000 due to the uncertainty of the rate changes coming from the State. The applications were reviewed by a Committee and it was determined, after scoring, that there two companies we are interested in --- FMIT or PGIT. They are both players in the market and are well represented. We will have a decision August 2, 2016. Mr. Killgore presented information regarding the Group Health Insurance. There was a 15% budget increase. It was recommended to keep the same carrier but change to a different structure ---a 20% copay after the deductible. It was recommended that we increase our HRA card to $2,500 from $2,000. Mr. Killgore is recommending grants for sewers and stormwater improvements in the CRA District. He would like to recommend the Stormwater fee of $5.00/month applied to offsetting some of the Stormwater Maintenance Cost. The intent of the fee is to improve the stormwater system or stormwater utilities. The savings from insurance and liability insurance plus the $75,000 from the stormwater fee equals $176,000. The grand total would free up $176,000 funds from the General Fund. The $176,000 is the difference between the 3.8556 mills that we base the budget on and the rollback to 3.887. Staff would like to stick to the 3.8556 millage because we would like that difference to be saved in the event of a rainy day because we have not seen a hurricane plus we are going into a new political regime. This is a minimal increase. We are going to take this to Council. Mr. Killgore stated that we are taking this budget to Council on August 10, 2016. Mr. Herlihy stated a vote can't be taken tonight instead it will be made at the next meeting on August 8, 2016 since Council meets on August 10, 2016. He seemed to think that Council will keep the millage rate at 3.8556. Mr. Hall asked if the savings permitting the rollback rate was coming from the insurance rate and is that increasing the employee portion of the insurance monthly premium. Mr. Killgore stated we are not required to negotiate the actual monthly premium provision. We only negotiate their share of the monthly premium rate and that is established in a percentage. Right now any employee hired after October 1, 2011 pays 75% of the monthly premium cost for the spouse and family. Anyone hired prior to October 2, 2011 pays 50%. Mr. Hall stated that if Council would go back to the rollback rate wouldn't the employees think that it was on their backs? Mr. Killgore stated Council can direct the savings to go anywhere however we are recommending saving the money for a "rainy day". Mr. Herlihy is recommending staying with the same millage of 3.8556. He is also recommending increasing the amount given to sewer along the lagoon.