FEDRAC MIN 04-28-2009
A Federal Way
MEETING SUMMARY
Committee Members in Attendance: Committee Chair Park and Committee Members Duclos and
Faison
Councilmembers in Attendance: Mayor Dovey and Councilmembers Burbidge, Ferrell and
Kochmar.
staff Members in Attendance: City Manager Neal Beets, Assistant City Manager Cary Roe, Police
Chief Brian Wilson, Deputy Police Chief Andy Hwang, City Attorney Pat Richardson, Deputy City
Attorney Aaron Walls, IT Director Mehdi Sadri, Finance Director Tho Kraus, Human Resources
Director Mary McDougal, Community Development Director Greg Fewins, Communications &
Governmental Affairs Manager Linda Farmer, Court Administrator Rae Iwamoto, ICMA Fellow Scott
Pingel and Deputy City Clerk Krystal Roe.
1. CALL TO ORDER: 5:31 P.M.
Committee Member Duclos moved to amend the agenda to move items "i" and "1" to
immediately follow item "g". Committee Member Faison second. Motion carried 3 - O.
2. PUBLIC COMMENT:
H. David Kaplan spoke about the importance of filling the Parks Director position. He
expressed concern that a lack of strong leadership in this position may cause the Parks system
to fall behind, causing increased future costs to bring the department back up to speed. He
asked that the hiring freeze for this position be lifted.
3. COMMITTEE BUSINESS
MOTION:
Topic Title/Description
A. Approval of Minutes: February 24, 2009 Meeting
Motion second and carried to approve the minutes as presented (carried 3-0).
B. Approval of Minutes: March 24, 2009 Meeting
Motion second and carried to approve the minutes as presented (carried 3-0).
C. Legislative Briefing
J. Local Update by Doug Levy via Conference Call
Ms. Farmer distributed a handout from Mr. Levy which provided a brief
status update on legislation and issues important to the City. Mr. Levy
joined the meeting via a conference call and highlighted some of those
topics.
Mr. Levy highly commended Chief Wilson and Ms. Farmer for their efforts
this season, particularly in regards to the look-a-like gun bill signed into law.
Forward
to Council
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April 28, 2009 - Page 2 of 5
2. Federal Update for March & April
Ms. Farmer distributed the April activity report from Strategies 360 pertaining
to key federal lobbying activities and events. Ms. Farmer highlighted
several items in the report and noted the helpfulness of Strategies 360 staff
in working to build relationships with our federal leaders.
Councilmember Kochmar inquired about the possibility of introducing
Strategies 360 to the Council. Ms. Farmer answered plans are underway to
introduce them to Council in the summer of this year and perhaps again in
December.
Chair Park asked Ms. Farmer to speak to Strategies 360 about the Chamber
of Commerce's planned trip to Washington, D.C. on May 12 and their
ability to help coordinate appointments with the legislators. Ms. Farmer will
be sure to raise the issue with them.
D. RESOLUTION: Adopting an Identity Theft Prevention Program for the Surface
Water Utility Mr. Walls presented his staff report.
Motion second and carried to approve option 1 and forward to the consent
agenda (carried 3 - 0).
Vouchers
E.
F.
Motion and second to approve the vouchers as presented.
Discussion: Committee Member Faison inquired about two expenditures
from March 25 (page 59) totaling $1,398.0lfor casino trips. Staff clarified
the expenditure was part of the Parks & Recreation activities class
purchased by senior citizens as an outing/field trip. City funds were not
used for gambling.
Motion carried 3-0.
Monthly Financial Report
Ms. Kraus presented her financial report to the Committee for consideration. She
highlighted revenues, expenditures, and cash & investment performance. Ms.
Kraus focused a portion of her report on the performance of the Federal Way
Community Center.
The Committee discussed that the chart on the bottom of page 67 regarding
utility tax seems duplicative. Consensus was reached to eliminate this chart in
future reports.
The Committee inquired about the decline in Solid Waste & Recycling utility Tax
revenue. Ms. Kraus will report back at the next meeting with an analysis.
Chair Park called a brief recess due to a medical emergency in the audience.
The meeting was reconvened after 10 minutes.
Committee Member Duclos raised concems about the deficit a the Community
Center which she said seems to be mounting.
Mary Faber, PRCS Superintendent, addressed the Committee and explained
recent changes aimed at reducing the deficit. Changes include staff working
hours and schedules to be most efficient with demand. In response to direct
questions, Ms. Faber clarified the changes made will bring staffing expenditures
back on track by year end.
She further reported they are closely monitoring the cost and purchase of supplies
and working with vendors to renegotiate costs. Supplies have also been
purchased in bulk at the beginning of the year to take advantage of savings
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April 28, 2009 - Page 3 of 5
benefits. She hopes these amounts will flush out by years end. In regards to
revenue, the greatest challenge remains the discrepancy between the business
plan's targeted daily pass sales versus actual sales. The business plan assumed
300 passes per day (on average) would be sold; reality is approximately 210 on an
annual average (with summer months having a higher daily pass rate lower in
winter months).
Some of the fitness programs have been extremely popular and profitable. To
continue with the success, other similar programs will be offered in the near future
including a fitness program for couples and two which will target teens.
The Committee asked for a review of current pass holder rates. Daily rates,
including taxes, for adults is $8, Seniors/T eens $5, and kids are $4. Membership
passes are $35/month for single members and $61/month for families (2 - 6
people) .
Ms. Faber emphasized staff has done well in converting daily-use pass purchases
into membership passes which then shows a negative impact on the daily pass
numbers. The Center has also pushed to add more aquatic programs including
additional swimming lessons, fitness programs and activities to take advantage of
higher interest in this area.
The Committee inquired about efforts to implement the marketing plan. Ms.
Faber stated the contract with the vendor has just now been fully-executed; work
will begin shortly. Also, the new logo will be loaded into a new banner on the
Federal Way Mirror'swebsite beginning May 1,2009.
Council member Kochmar inquired about vertfication of the gambling tax
reported revenue. Ms. Kraus answered the City has the authortty to conduct an
audit for the reporting business.
Councilmember Kochmar inquired about the status of the Utility Tax Rebate
Program. Ms. Roe replied the number of applicants has increased this year to just
under 100 which is up from last year's total of nearly 75 persons. Ms. Roe further
stated the deadline to apply is Thursday, Aprtl 30. To date, nearly 50 applications
have been processed with refunds ranging from $18 up to nearly $300.
Councilmember Kochmar encouraged anyone with friends or family to apply by
the deadline.
Motion second and carried to approve Monthly Financial Report as
presented (carried 3 - 0).
G. Carry-Forward Requests
Ms. Kraus presented her staff report and highlighted the recommended
carry-forwards and the cost savings from expenditures removed from the
Internal Service budgets.
Ms. Kraus noted these recommended carry-forwards have been heavily
scrutinized by the City Manager and the Management Team and are as
pared down as possible; likely the most conservative request, ever.
She further noted that approving these requests would increase the
budget deficit to $4.4 million.
Motion second and carried to approve the staff recommendation (carried
3-0).
Approval to Pursue Available Grant Funding for Traffic Safety Improvements
Ms. Iwamoto presented her staff report and requested approval to seek
grant funds for a new DUI court. She noted there would be no initial
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financial cost to the City. She reviewed the purpose of the program and
how the grant funds would be utilized. In response to a Committee inquiry,
Ms. Iwamoto answered their preliminary plan is to request approximately
$62,000 to start the court. The program would require the entire staff to
attend training out of state (judges, court administrator, probation officers,
public defenders and prosecutors) at cost of $10,000 - 12,000.
She also answered that additional grant funding opportunities would be
available, but would require an annual competitive application process.
The Committee discussed concerns as to whether or not participation in a
DUI court would remove convictions from the criminal record of an
offender. Ms. Iwamoto answered it would not be removed for persons who
were assigned DUI court post-sentencing, but may for those who agreed to
participate pre-trial.
Other counties with DUI courts include Thurston, Grant & Spokane. Ms.
Iwamoto will be working with those jurisdictions to learn more about their
practices and costs. She is unaware of any other courts, including King
County, but will investigate further.
The Committee asked Ms. Iwamoto to bring specific funding and budget
figures with her to the Council meeting.
Motion second and carried to approve option 1 (carried 3 - 0).
Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant
Mr. Gary Nomenson, an representative from PSE addressed the Committee
and audience regarding potential partnerships between the City and PSE
to best utilize these grant funds.
Mr. Pingel presented his staff report and clarified he seeks Council approval
to apply for grant funds available through the Department of Energy.
Under this program, the City would be able to apply for a implementation
of energy conservation programs in a broad spectrum (hybrid cars, natural
gas conversions, building improvements, etc.) After the grant is awarded,
the City would have 120 days to submit its energy conservation proposal.
Motion second and carried to approve option 1 (carried 3 - 0).
H. Long-Range Plan Update
Mr. Beets gave a PowerPoint presentation outlining the current budget
status, the history of the budget in recent years, and proposals for
eliminating the deficit.
J.
In summary, his recommended proposal includes cuts to the following:
· 7 employee lay-offs
· closing Dumas Bay Center
· furloughs for 15 employees; 10 days each
· eliminating the previously allocated COLA for 2010 (but not 2009)
· reduce CM Contingency fund by $1 million
Additional cost savings measures include hiring freezes (8 significant
positions) :
· Parks Planner
· Development Services Manager & Engineering Plans Reviewer
· Vacant Police Lieutenant, 3 Police Civilian Positions, and CM Admin
(.5 FTE) Position
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Eliminating Reserve/Depreciation Account Contributions:
· Vehicle Replacement
· IT Equipment Replacement
· Unemployment Insurance Account
Mr. Beets strongly recommend Council institute a policy of re-allocating
utility tax (not including Prop 1 taxes) to be used for operating rather than
capital expenditures. When REET is again strong Council could revisit how
utility taxes are allocated.
David Bauch, Arts Commissioner, inquired about the proposed cuts to
Dumas Bay and how it would impact the Knutzen Family
Theater /Centerstage.
Mr. Beets answered his current proposal would keep Knutzen Family
Theater open and accessible (such as entrances, restrooms, etc.), but
would close all other aspects of Dumas Bay Centre.
The Committee and Council asked Mr. Beets to provide the following at the
May 5, 2009 Study Session:
· Financial impacts for each slide from his presentation (line-item
details for all proposed cuts/reductions/proposals).
· How other cities with utility taxes allocate their revenue (% of capital
and operating funds).
· Other options for restructuring the budget other than reallocating
the utility tax.
· Details on services levels and how they would be impacted by an
across-the-board cut to all departments, including Police.
· If possible, the Council would like to receive these figures in
advance of the meeting; Mr. Beets stated he would attempt to get
them by Monday, May 4.
The Committee complimented Mr. Beets and everyone who worked on the
proposal for their work; they expressed the proposal was good and
obviously was the result of a lot of effort, thoughtfulness, and hard work.
The Committee also inquired if Mr. Beets has, or plans to, sit down with staff
to discuss his proposals and to ask for staff ideas/input. Mr. Beets has met
with some staff, including Management Team members and feels that
department directors have a good understanding of their employee's
ideas and concerns.
The Committee encouraged employees to attend the May 5 study session
and to provide input at the meeting.
4. OTHER: None
5. NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, May 26, 2009 @ 5:30 p.m.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 p.m.
Attest:
COM:<;;~
~ Mi rk -
Committee Chair
t2.:~ rystal R:::; City Clerk
Dinl uclos Eric Faison
Committee Member Committee Member