HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001 08-06Meridian City Council Meeting August 6, 2001
The Special Meeting of the Meridian City Council was called to order at 5:35 P.M. on Monday, August 6, 2001, by Mayor Robert D. Corrie.
Members Present: Mayor Robert Corrie, Ron Anderson, Cherie McCandless, Tammy de Weerd, and Keith Bird.
Others Present: Bill Gordon, Bill Musser, Janice Smith, Reta Cunningham, Stacy Kilchenmann, Will Berg, and David Swartley.
Item 1. Roll-call Attendance:
X Tammy de Weerd X Ron Anderson
X Cherie McCandless X Keith Bird
X Mayor Robert Corrie
Corrie: It’s 6:35. I will open the City Council Special Meeting for Monday, August 6, 2001, at 5:35. Mr. Clerk, if you’ll give us roll call attendance please.
Item 2. Tentative Amended Budget for 2000 / 2001 Fiscal Year:
Corrie: All right, the second item on the agenda is the tentative amended budget for 2000/2001 fiscal year. Stacy, I’ll let you start or, whoever, City Clerk, Janice?
Smith: Thank you Mayor and Council. We’ve been working on the –
Corrie: The City Treasurer.
Smith: -- still working on the amended budget here. I have some printouts here. I’ll have Reta hand them out. In this top sheet, the notice of the Public Hearing. We just met with
Captain Musser and we could reduce it another 5,000 to make that amended budget 90,000 on the police. The detail is on the following pages. It says one through six but there are only
four pages there. When we were working on it last week, we had approximate figure of about 65,000 to amend but when you get down to -- we lost a couple of officers, about three new
officers will be coming on so we’ll have their expense of the uniform allowance and the wages will be back up a little bit for another. So, we put a little cushion in there. After
we added up that cushion its up to 90,000. With the excess expenses in the Police Department of 90,000 we do have some offsetting accounts in the general administration fund of 65,000.
The Fire Department which is also included on your sheet there which is probably sheet Number 4. They have some excess in their department. We could change theirs to 25,000. That
would balance it back to zero. Did you have any questions on this?
De Weerd: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mrs. de Weerd.
De Weerd: No, I did.
Corrie: Okay, go ahead.
De Weerd: Now, these were all a result of the STEP increases, is that correct?
Smith: Yes, the STEP increases –
De Weerd: And the canine?
Smith: -- and the canine clear back in April. That was about 20,000 extra.
De Weerd: Okay.
Bird: Mr. Mayor.
Smith: Also you’ll see on that top page, the retirement of our Police Officer. We incurred the cost of the vacation that we have to pay him, unless he wants to gift it to the City.
So, we added those back in.
Bird: He donated that didn’t he?
Corrie: Somebody must have.
Bird: When we, actually, the expenditures are just 90,000 and the revenues are the 90,002 when we make this motion. That shouldn’t be shown under –
Smith: No it’s not a revenue. It’s an offset of the other departments.
Bird: It has to still to be shown as the additional revenues and funding sources down here, doesn’t it?
Smith: No.
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
Smith: We didn’t get to hire the Financial Director as we planned on time so with the savings of her money we just decided to use that.
Bird: Okay. I see.
Smith: Then we had savings in the Clerk’s Department also in the wage department but we did take and consider the contract labor too. If you do notice
on the fire which is really good and you can see with the new firefighters they have on, it has reduced the volunteer fire and it keeps going down.
De Weerd: And the overtime?
Smith: Well, you see the overtime going up a little bit –
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
Smith: We also had the fire marshals opening -- it is still open so we saved that money there too.
Corrie: So, under your proposed additional expenditures, general would be 65,000, parenthesis and Fire Department 25 and the police at 90 which brings you the total of the 90, right?
Smith: Zero balance.
Bird: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mr. Bird.
Bird: Now, we make a motion to put this on the Public Hearing agenda for the 29th. Is that how we do it?
Corrie: Yes you have to also, Will we have to put it in the paper don’t we?
Berg: Yes, Mr. Mayor, members of the Council. What you’re doing is approving a tentative amended budget and then when we have our Public Hearing, we will actually approve the amended
budget after that hearing.
Bird: Thank you. With that Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mr. Bird.
Bird: I would move that we approve this proposed amendment to the budget for fiscal year 2000/2001, general administration remove 65,000, Fire Department remove 25,000, and the Police
Department add 90,000 all in personnel expenses for the total of zero expenses.
De Weerd: Second.
Corrie: Okay. Motions been made and seconded. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of the motion say aye.
MOTION CARRIED: ALL AYES
Item 3. Tentative Budget for 2001 / 2002 Fiscal Year:
Corrie: Okay. Item No. 3 tentative budget for 2001/2002 fiscal year.
Kilchenmann: Mayor and Council. On the orange sheet you will find the three funds, or the, that you need to I guess set forth a resolution. The only change that you will find from
our discussions that we had during the budget hearings were that we moved the lease payment for the bonds for the Police Station in from other government. We moved it into the Police
Department so, it’s probably a philosophical discussion that you’ll need to decide which spot you want it in. The second item, we just got the property tax about two hours ago, our
final. So, we increased the addition to the capitol improvement fund and the general fund by the excess of the property tax over the projection which was about 180,000 dollars. I suggest
that we just put that into our fund balance. I guess the only issue is where to put the payment for the police station.
Bird: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mr. Bird.
Bird: The reason that should be in the administration is that is not just a Police Department building. It is a City. We two or three years ago had said that we would put all that
stuff under administrations deal not in each department. The only reason we do with the Fire Department is because of the joint venture that we have with the rural district to pay so
much. That’s why we don’t do it with the fire but as I recall we said all City buildings we would put under the administration unless it was a Public Works or an enterprise fund building
or deal. I just feel that we can leave it under there because actually the general fund is administered by the administration. That’s where the payments are coming out.
De Weerd: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mrs. de Weerd.
De Weerd: I kind of take a little bit opposite look at it. I like a budget to reflect where your actual spending priorities are in that is kind of the action that Council took to build
the building and it’s a cost associated with that department. Yes it’s a City expenditure but it needs to be reflected as to where the dollars are going. That was my observation and
kind of my preference to have it under the department that it belongs to. As we save for the 56-acre Park, to pay off that. It was always reallocated into the parks funds and that’s
where it should have been so that it’s known that that money is for the operation of that department.
Bird: The only problem -- Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mr. Bird.
Bird: With the parks, you’re using impact fees that pay specifically for the development and purchase of parks where this one is coming strictly off of savings from fund balance which
is administered by the administration. This was just something that we had talked about two or three years ago in the budgetary thing. I think Ron remembers that. We had said that
we would put that stuff under the administration and not charge it tot the department even though it is a department expense. It really isn’t because it is a citywide building that’s
being put up. The Police Department is just going to be using it. I wouldn’t sit here and argue all night over where to put it.
Corrie: I remember that. It was – other Council members, any idea where you want to go with it?
Bird: I’m not going to argue with --.
Anderson: I’m kind of like Keith. I think it sits as far as where it shows up in the budget, it doesn’t really matter to me. I know we’ve had that discussion but I don’t know if we
had ever got to the point where we decided to do that about putting all the buildings that we build for the City in the capitol and I guess from what I’ve seen and what Tammy’s talking
about with the Fire Department and with the parks we have been keeping everything separate. I guess to the layperson or to the public, who looks at our budget, its easier to understand
if they actually see the money in each of those departments budgets because then they understand that much money was actually spent toward that department, similar to what Tammy was
saying. Otherwise when it just says that its in administration they seem to think that the administration spent three million dollars on something. Most of them don’t take the time
to delve into a budget and actually learn where it went. I guess that would be my only thought is just for clearer explanation for the public. I could go either way on this. It doesn’t
matter to me.
Corrie: It’s a little cleaner and clearer for the public --
Bird: I can’t figure out why you’d have it in operating expenses. It isn’t an operating expense to make them work day by day.
Anderson: I’d list it under capitol under those, not operating.
Kilchenmann: Mayor and Council. That’s kind of an accounting thing because it actually is a lease payment. It’s a principle payment and an interest payment at this point. The current
part of the payment has to be in the operating budget. The balance of it is in a fund we call the long-term general account group for debt service. When the asset is complete and we
actually have the asset it’ll go in the
long term, or the fixed asset group of asset group of accounts. They’re called the (inaudible) actually in technical terms.
De Weerd: Thank you.
Kilchenmann: That’s why we have to do it that way.
Bird: Lets go on with it.
Corrie: It sounds like (inaudible).
Bird: It’s expense one way or another.
De Weerd: I love acronyms.
Corrie: Okay. Any other questions?
De Weerd: Mayor Corrie.
Corrie: Yes, Mrs. de Weerd.
De Weerd: I had also brought up the issue of the 1.8 million dollars under operating for administration. Stacy checked with the auditors about that. You know, I’m a black and white
person when it comes to numbers. Again, I like to show that our budget adequately represents our spending priorities. Lumping 1.8 million dollars into administration operations is
quite frightening to me. That’s again, kind of like Ron, eloquently put it, to the layperson looking at this budget, I would have a heart failure thinking that the administration is
spending 2.7 million dollars in one swoop here.
Corrie: Don’t we have it documented where it’s all going?
De Weerd: Yes.
Corrie: I mean, they can come in –
Kilchenmann: Mayor and Council we do -- actually what we’re doing in this case is we’re reserving part of the fund balance for the 1.8 million because it’s a known obligation. So,
we do that by essentially increasing the revenue and increasing the expenditures. Again, it’s an accounting technicality that we have to go through so that you can formally approve
the reserve of fund balance. So, what we need to do in the next year to make it, we just have to make sure that when we do public presentation that we make it very clear that the 1.8
million is for the overpass.
De Weerd: And, this will only show up one time?
Kilchenmann: Yes.
De Weerd: Okay. I’m sure ACHD would like to see it show up again.
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
Bird: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mr. Bird.
Bird: If we are, don’t have anymore questions have on this, I would move that we accept this proposed budget for fiscal year 2002 with expenditures of 16,813,587 dollars in the general
fund and special services at 1,474,500 dollars and the general fund total of 18,288,087 dollars.
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
Bird: And for the enterprise fund total 18,336,198 dollars for a total budget of 36,624,285 dollars and to match the revenues of 36,624,285 dollars and to have it published and to
have the hearing on August 29, 2001.
Corrie: Do I hear a second?
De Weerd: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mrs. de Weerd.
De Weerd: I can’t second that because I still have an issue. It doesn’t change the numbers that Keith just read but staff did go back to the parks budget to the replacements and took
the half-ton out as we had directed. I can’t remember and Janice maybe you found the mower. Did we agree to keep the mower in? Side 10 poor Janice went and listened to all the tapes
to see because they had kept them in -- I knew that we took the truck out but I couldn’t remember on the mower.
Corrie: 7,000 (inaudible).
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
De Weerd: The truck was taken out.
Anderson: The truck was taken out but not the mower.
De Weerd: I don’t know.
Corrie: The mower here is 729 (inaudible).
De Weerd: I thought we took the mower out as well since we gave him the 58,000 dollars (inaudible).
Bird: My notes show we did but I don’t mean it was on the tapes. Maybe it’s just my (inaudible).
Smith: I don’t recall that in that tape. It was definitely the truck being mentioned as being removed.
Bird: I thought that by getting that larger mower, that the existing mowers that we had would be sufficient because we haven’t taken on any more ground and probably wont. If the time
is set by the landscape architects, we wont be mowing lawns next year in the 56 acres.
Anderson: I thought it was that we gave them a larger mower and then (inaudible) I thought we took the mower out of the wastewater that wanted it.
De Weerd: No, we reduced the amount for wastewater.
Bird: We refused them to.
De Weerd: No.
Bird: We kept that little one on for Wastewater but not a big one.
De Weerd: That’s why we took this one out too.
Anderson: But we reduced it considerably right?
De Weerd: We reduced the Wastewater yes.
Smith: We can reduce that mower to take it out of the parks and it will just go to the fund balance, addition to capitol fund balance.
De Weerd: Well, I just wanted to bring it up for discussion for anyone else’s memory. I didn’t write it down because it was all happening up on the screen.
Corrie: You’re talking about the 58,000 dollars?
De Weerd: No.
Bird: No, we left that in.
De Weerd: Keep in the 58,000. It was more the replacement of the mower, the 72 90.
Corrie: Okay.
Bird: We took it out and the pick up.
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
Bird: No, we didn’t take that out but when we said we had that, we said we can take out the other one.
Anderson: So, it was a replacement?
De Weerd: Yes.
Bird: It’s not actually a replacement.
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
De Weerd: So, I –
Corrie: That can come down to the fund balance (inaudible).
De Weerd: Stacy, I think its very important that its stressed the additional taxes that we’ve found that are going to be collected that are going into the fund balance. That is there
because we’re not really sure if our revenue projections are accurate with the slowing of things. That is why we’re playing it cautious to not budget to the very penny.
Kilchenmann: That’s correct and we don’t know that we’ll collect that entire amount of the tax. That’s just the maximum allowable amount.
De Weerd: Thank you.
Bird: (Inaudible)
De Weerd: Are we taking it out?
Corrie: They’re just going to put I tin the fund balance down here (inaudible).
Bird: We still can’t change the totals.
De Weerd: Okay but it does change the parks total.
(Inaudible discussion amongst Council members)
Bird: I didn’t read off the individuals. We’ll read them off at the Public Hearing. Do we need to read them off tonight in the motion?
Corrie: I don’t think so.
Bird: Will, do we?
Berg: Mr. Mayor, members of the Council you refer to this document so I think we can take it off the individual departments from this document and you read the totals.
Bird: Just run the totals just like I did?
Berg: Yes, you referred to this document so we can use this document to do the notice.
Bird: Okay.
De Weerd: Second.
Corrie: Motion been made and seconded. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor say aye.
MOTION CARRIED: ALL AYES
De Weerd: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mrs. de Weerd.
De Weerd: I would just like to again thank staff. They have been very helpful in sticking with my list. They didn’t hide when they saw me coming and for Janice, I appreciate you listening
to all the tapes to see what we actually did. This has just been a very different process than we had last year and I really appreciate that.
Bird: Last year was 10 times better than the year before.
Corrie: I want to thank the staff for not hiding. I was in there a few times myself.
Anderson: I want to scold the staff. You need to learn to run when Tammy comes.
Bird: Yes lock your doors.
Anderson: I thought you guys were smarter than that.
Corrie: Okay. That takes care of the Special Meeting Agenda. Hearing that, we’ve got all that done, I’ll entertain a motion for adjournment of the Special Meeting.
Bird: Mr. Mayor.
Corrie: Mr. Bird.
Bird: I move we adjourn the Special Meeting.
De Weerd: Second.
Corrie: Motion made and second to adjourn the Special Meeting. All those in favor say aye.
MOTION CARRIED: ALL AYES
MEETING ADJOURNED AT 6:00 P.M.
(TAPE ON FILE OF THESE PROCEEDINGS)
APPROVED:
ROBERT D. CORRIE, MAYOR
WILLIAM G. BERG, JR., CITY CLERK