Minutes: Evansville Finance Committe: February 2006

Finance and Labor Relations Committee
Regular Meeting
Tuesday, February 13, 2006, 5:30 PM
City Hall, 31 S. Madison Street, Evansville, WI

MINUTES

Chairperson Aikman called the meeting to order at 5:30 PM. Present were Chairperson Aikman, Ald. Cothard, and Ald. Roberts. Staff present: Bill Connors, City Administrator, and Jim Beilke, Clerk/Treasurer. Ald. Sornson was present in the audience.

Approval of Agenda.
The agenda was approved as printed.

Approval of Minutes.
Motion by Cothard, seconded by Roberts, to waive the reading and approve the minutes for the regular meeting on January 9, 2006. Motion passed.

Citizen appearances other than agenda items listed. None

Water & Light Department Bills.
Motion by Aikman, seconded by Roberts, to approve the Water & Light bills in the amount of $588,424.36 and authorize their payment. Motion passed.

City Bills.
Motion by Aikman, seconded by Roberts, to approve the City bills in the amount of $1,869,470.77 and authorize their payment. Motion passed.

Unfinished Business.
The committee reviewed the status of insurance/collateral covering city’s deposits.

Mr. Connors reported that he still has had very little time to work on the revised Employee Handbook.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Cothard, to approve the new position description for the City Finance Director, subject to the Water and Light Superintendent Scott George’s review. Motion passed.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Roberts, to approve the updated position descriptions for the City Administrator. Motion passed.

New Business.
Mr. Connors reported that one of the issues the YMCA of Dane County wanted addressed in the contract for operating the youth program was the responsibility of paying the utilities at the Dean Community Center building and the building at 209 S. 1st St.. A small part of each building will be occupied by the AWARE Agency, which has people present in the building longer hours than the youth program operates. The YMCA did not think it was fair that the youth program was required to pay 100% of the utilities for the building, and the AWARE Agency suggested that it would need an increase in its $5,000 annual payment from the city if the agency were required to pay part of the utilities. Under the modified agreement, the city would pay all of the building utilities. Dave Rossmiller, President of Dean Advisory Committee, advised the committee that both YMCA and AWARE could pay for their own heating cost if a second furnace was added to the building at 209 S. 1st St.. Tracy Schroeder from the YMCA of Dane County concurred with Mr. Rossmiller.

Motion by Cothard, seconded by Roberts, to recommend to Council approval of modified agreement with YMCA of Dane County for operation of the youth program amending page 2 item 6. The YMCA and AWARE would be responsible for their own heating costs at 209 S. 1st St., and the YMCA would be responsible for all other utilities costs. Motion passed.

Mr. Beilke reported that Hammer Builders LLC requested a rescission or refund of taxes for Parcel #222-041015 (Lot 15 in the Southgate Subdivision) because the improvements were built on Parcel #222-041014 (Lot 14 in the Southgate Subdivision). The building permit application indicated that improvements would be made on Lot 15, but in reality, they were made on Lot 14. It is the City Assessor’s opinion that the tax for the improvement value for Lot 15 is an error and the correct assessment for improvements on this lot should be 0. The amount of tax attributed to the improvement value should be rescinded or refunded. The refund would be $1,176.04. Finance Committee requested that city attorney determine how the city can collect the 2005/2006 property taxes on the building that was constructed on Lot 14, since the 2005/2006 property tax bill for Lot 14 did not include any tax attributable to improvements.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Cothard, to recommend to Council approval of the refund of property tax for Tax Parcel #222-041015 due to palpable errors. Motion passed.

Mr. Beilke reported that All About You (parcel # 006222) was a doomage assessment made by the City Assessor for the account name of P. J. Spears, because they did not know that P.J. Spears was the same business as All About You and thought the assessment reporting form had not been returned for All About You. The City Assessor then sent out a doomage assessment notice to P.J. Spears. With that notice were instructions to the property owner to return their form before the Board of Review, and the City Assessor would adjust the assessment based on the form. The form was not returned. If it had been returned, the City Assessor could have struck the second assessment from the roll at that time. The refund would be $31.78.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Cothard, to recommend to Council approval of the refund of property tax for Tax Parcel #222-006222 due to palpable errors. Motion passed.

Mr. Connors reported Resolution #2006-2 would increase the appropriation for emergency medical service (EMS) retirement. The city’s full-time employees qualify for a city-paid contribution to the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) based on their annual wages. Some full-time city employees have served as emergency medical technicians (EMTs) over the years, being paid an on-call fee for hours they were on-call outside of their usual work schedule for the city. The city failed to include the on-call fees paid to these full-time city employees in their wages for purposes of computing the city’s payment to the WRS on behalf of these employees. As a result, the city owes the WRS $10,023. Resolution #2006-2 would increase the appropriation for EMS retirement by this amount.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Roberts, to recommend to Council approval of Resolution #2006-2, amending the Adopted 2006 City Budget to Increase the Appropriation for EMS Retirement. Motion passed.

Mr. Connors reported Resolution #2006-3 would increase the amount to be transferred from the General Fund to the Capital Project Fund by $15,000 and increase the appropriation in the Capital Project Fund for Department of Public Works equipment purchases by $15,000. The increase in the transfer out of the General Fund would decrease the General Fund fund balance by $15,000. However, it appears that in 2005, total actual expenditures for the Department of Public Works will be less than budgeted, which would increase the General Fund fund balance. The $15,000 increase in the appropriation for equipment would be used to purchase a small skid-steer loader for sidewalk snow removal.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Cothard, to recommend to Council approval of Resolution #2006-3, amending the adopted 2006 city budget to increase the transfer from the General Fund to the Capital Project Fund and to increase the appropriation for Dept. of Public Works equipment purchase. Motion passed.

Motion by Aikman, seconded by Roberts, to approve the Pitney Bowes contract for March 2006 through March 2011. Motion passed.

Mr. Beilke reported that Ms. Keri Radke’s employment with the city will end at 600 hours, as it has been the city’s policy not to pay benefits required by Wisconsin Employee Trust Fund’s rule that a contribution is required if the employee works 600 hours or more in any one-year rolling period. Our agreement with the Teamsters Union compels employees to join the union or be terminated after 120 days of employment. Mr. Connors reported that the city will review its staff needs in all departments later this year and make staff recommendations with the 2007 budget. The consensus of the Finance Committee was that they do not object to continuing Ms. Radke’s employment over 600 hours but limited to 120 days.

Motion by Cothard, seconded by Roberts, to convene into closed session pursuant to Sec. 19.85(1)(c), Wis. Stats., considering employment, promotion, compensation or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the city has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility, and upon the proper motion and approval vote, will reconvene into open session. The committee will review the City Administrator’s evaluations of the department heads’ performance during 2005 and discuss the contents of the 2006 employment contracts between the city and its department heads and the City Administrator. Motion passed unanimously on a roll call vote at 6:45 PM.

Motion by Roberts, seconded by Cothard, to reconvene into open session. Motion passed unanimously on a roll call vote at 7:45 PM.

Motion by Robert, seconded by Cothard motion to recommend to Council approval of 2006 employment contracts for city administrator, department heads, and other professional employees, with the following modifications: (1) wherever it appears in any of the contracts, delete the sentence that says “Employee’s salary may be adjusted from time to time in the future according to the discretion of the City,” (2) wherever discussion of required attendance at meetings is discussed in any contract, it should say the employee is required to attend regular and special meetings of the Common Council, but if the Common Council begins to meet as a Committee of the Whole, the employee is required to attend the meeting of the Committee of the Whole but not the regular Common Council meeting, and (3) the termination date for the City Administrator’s contract is September 30, 2007. Motion passed.

Adjournment.
Motion by Aikman, seconded by Roberts, to adjourn at 7:50 PM. Motion passed.

Prepared by:
James Beilke