COUNCIL COMMITTEES

The Council Committees Meeting was held on September 8, 2003, at 6:10 p.m., with Council President McGlumphy presiding. Members of Council present were Mr. Carey, Mr. Pitts, Mrs. Williams, Mr. Truitt, Mr. Ritter, Mr. Speed, Mr. Salters, Mr. Ruane, and Mayor Hutchison.

AGENDA ADDITIONS/DELETIONS

Mr. Carey moved for approval of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Speed and unanimously carried.

SAFETY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

The Safety Advisory Committee met with Chairman Truitt presiding. Members present were Mr. Salters, Mrs. Williams, Mr. Tolbert, and Mr. Wolfe.

Assignment of DEMA Funds - Robbins Hose Company

As a result of the President’s Day storm (February 14, 2003), the City received a check in the amount of $67,622.35 for DEMA reimbursable costs for Fire Department volunteers, which was 90% of the requested amount. Based on the review of the application and supporting documentation, it was found that all the reimbursable costs were for volunteer man hours (Robbins Hose Company) and for the Fire Department’s equipment.

Responding to Mr. Salters, Mrs. Mitchell stated that the City of Dover received a separate check, prior to this one, for additional expenses incurred by the snow storm. (City Clerk’s Office Note: The amount of the check was $66,262.56 and was dated June 11, 2003).

Mr. Salters requested that Fire Chief Bashista meet with the Finance Director to determine if a portion of the funds received from DEMA, if any, should be reimbursed to the City for resources used during the storm. (City Clerk’s Office Note: A total of $299.94 was used in fuel from Central Services during the time of the storm).

Mr. Truitt moved to recommend that the DEMA funds, in the amount of $67,622.35, be processed as a pass through to Robbins Hose Company, as recommended by staff. The motion was seconded by Mr. Salters and unanimously carried.

Mr. Salters moved for adjournment, seconded by Mrs. Williams and unanimously carried.

Meeting Adjourned at 6:25 P.M.

LEGISLATIVE AND FINANCE COMMITTEE

The Legislative and Finance Committee met with Chairman Speed presiding. Members present were Mr. Ritter, Mr. Truitt, and Mr. Shelton. Mr. Gorman was absent.

Amendment to Financial Policy - Excess Carry-Forward Balance

Mr. Speed indicated that at the end of each fiscal year, the General Fund, Water/Wastewater Fund, and Electric Revenue Fund may have audited carry-forward balances in excess of the budgeted carry-forward amounts. The proposed amendment to the Financial Policy would allow the City to decide the disposition of any and all excess carry-forward balances, as determined by the annual audit. The excess carry-forward amount is defined as any funds that are over and above the minimum eight (8) percent carry-forward balance. The specific Excess Carry-Forward Policy will become a temporary addendum to the Financial Policies.

The Excess Carry-Forward Policy Addendum reads as follows:

For fiscal years 2002-2003 and 2003-2004, unless otherwise directed by Council, any and all excess carry-forward amounts, as determined by the annual audit, shall be used to fund the previously unfunded pension liabilities, except in those where the individual Major Fund has fully funded its total allocated portion of the liability. For fiscal years 2002-2003 and 2003-2004, unless otherwise directed by Council, excess carry-forward amounts in any Major Fund which has fully funded its total allocated portion of the liability shall be placed in an appropriate Reserve Fund.

Responding to Mr. Shelton, Mr. Speed stated that carry-forward amounts vary from year to year, and would be placed into the Operating Fund, unless Council directed other uses for it.

Mrs. Williams questioned what effects the policy would have on the City if the operational cash flow exceeded the minimum eight (8) percent. Mr. Speed indicated that staff would not be permitted to make the changes, and action would have to be taken by Council.

Responding to Mr. Ruane, Mr. Speed indicated that because there was more than one unfunded pension liability, it was his intention to have the Finance Director make allocation decisions. Mr. Ruane suggested that, prior to being presented to Council, staff provide a specific scenario for review.

Responding to concerns of Mr. Ruane, Mr. Speed indicated that the language used in the proposed policy would permit Council to direct the use of the funds for other specific purposes.

Mr. Ritter moved to recommend the proposed amendment to the Financial Policy, as presented, seconded by Mr. Shelton and unanimously carried.

Hospitality and Civic Function Policy

During their Regular Meeting of August 25, 2002, Council adopted a memo dated October 30, 2000, outlining the current practice/guidelines related to expenditures that are permitted from City funds for Council members based on the benefit derived by the taxpayer, as an interim guideline for both Mayor and Council.

Mr. Speed indicated that the proposed Hospitality and Civic Function Policy, which was obtained from San Francisco, was provided by the Finance Director/Treasurer. He advised members that suggested changes were made by the City Manager; however, the changes were not yet incorporated.

Mr. Truitt requested that action be postponed to afford Council time to carefully review the proposed policy and have their concerns addressed.

Mr. Ritter complimented the efforts made by Council in adopting the Hospitality and Civic Function Policy. Mr. Ritter stated that it was a shame that this type of policy had to be drafted instead of having prudent individuals throughout the City.

Mr. Truitt indicated that some of the statements made by Mr. Ritter were inappropriate.

Referring to Section VIII - Review and Revision, Mr. Ruane suggested keeping the policy consistent by having it reviewed annually, and not the recommended three (3) years. He also suggested eliminating the definition for Official Business; he stated that it would be difficult to determine if a minimum time of 60% percent is related to the City of Dover.

Responding to Mrs. Williams, Mr. Speed stated that percentages were not a part of the original policy received from San Francisco and was unsure where the percentages were derived from.

Mr. Salters and Mrs. Williams requested more time to review the document, and requested that similar policies be obtained from other cities for comparison. Mr. Salters stated that he does not spend the entire weekend reviewing Committee/Council Packets, and requested that all members of Council be involved when developing new policies.

Mr. Ritter indicated that he disagreed with Mr. Salters, and stated that Committee/Council Packets are received on the Thursday prior to Council Meeting nights for members of Council to review. He stated that Council gets paid to review their packets and, if a member is unable to carry-out his elected duties, perhaps they should consider resigning.

Responding to Mr. Truitt, Mr. Speed informed members that in addition to Mrs. Mitchell, three (3)

others contributed to developing the policy, including himself. Mr. Truitt suggested that the proposed Hospitality and Civic Function Policy be tabled. Mrs. Williams informed members that there are members of Council that do review their Committee/Council Packets and reiterated that more time was needed to review the proposed policy. Mr. Pitts stated that he too would like to take more time to review the policy and also suggested that the Hospitality and Civic Function Policy be tabled.

Mr. Speed informed members that the Committee Meeting would be the appropriate forum under the Freedom of Information Act for feedback on such policies. He continued by stating there was no rush for this policy if members needed more time.

Mr. Ritter moved to recommend deferring the Hospitality and Civic Function Policy until the September 22, 2003 Legislative and Finance Committee Meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Shelton and unanimously carried.

For clarification purposes, Mr. DePrima requested that his suggestions be incorporated prior to the September 22^nd meeting.

Revised Travel Policy

Due to insufficient time, the above mentioned item was deferred and will be placed on the September 22, 2003 Legislative and Finance Committee Agenda.

Proposed Ordinance Amendment - Section 1-6 - Sponsoring, Consideration, Passage and Effective Date of Ordinances and Charter Amendments (SPONSORS: COUNCILMEN RITTER, RUANE, AND SPEED)

Due to insufficient time, the above mentioned item was deferred and will be placed on the September 22, 2003 Legislative and Finance Committee Agenda.

Mr. Truitt moved for adjournment of the Legislative and Finance Committee, seconded by Mr. Ritter and unanimously carried.

Meeting Adjourned at 7:05 P.M.

Mr. Speed moved for adjournment, seconded by Mr. Carey and unanimously carried.

Meeting Adjourned at 7:06 P.M.

                                                                                    Respectfully submitted,

                                                                                    William P. McGlumphy

                                                                                    Council President

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