Mayor Elect Rick Kriseman Transition Team. Report and Recommendations of the Transparency and Fiscal Oversight Committee. Chairman: James Newman

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1 Mayor Elect Rick Kriseman Transition Team Report and Recommendations of the Transparency and Fiscal Oversight Committee I. Introduction Chairman: James Newman Committee Members: Ben Diamond and Ross Preville December 23, 2013 The purpose of the Transparency and Fiscal Oversight Committee of the Mayor-Elect s Transition Team (the Committee ) is to develop recommendations for the Mayor-Elect and his staff on how to bring more transparency and fiscal oversight to the City of St. Petersburg s budget process and fiscal operations. The Committee held four meetings in December The meetings took place on December 2, 10, 16, and 23. The meetings were noticed to the public in advance on the City s website and open to the public. Copies of the minutes of the meetings and handouts have been previously provided. II. Meeting with the City s Budget Director, the City s Public Works Administrator, and Review of the City s Scorecard and City s Website A. Overview of the Budget Process On December 10, 2013, the Committee received a briefing on the City s budget process from the City s Budget Director, Tom Greene. The City s budget approval process is defined by state statute, City Charter and city codes. The Mayor is required by the City Charter to submit his budget to the City Council by July 1, 2013 each year. Florida law requires that the City appropriations occur each year and that the budget is balanced. Section , Florida Statutes (the Determination of Millage statute ) provides specific deadlines for the property appraiser and the City with regard to the establishment of a tentative millage rate. The City must hold two public hearings on the budget, and the hearings cannot conflict with meetings of the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners of the Pinellas County School Board hearing dates. The Determination of Millage statute provides specific guidelines for the notice and deadlines in the budget process. From a practical perspective, Mr. Greene explained that the City uses these statutory deadlines to provide a framework each year for the City to develop its budget. The City s budget department has a series of meetings with all of the City s operating departments to develop each operating department s proposed budget. These meetings culminate in a line by line item review with the City s budget staff of each department s proposed budget. In the past the Mayor has had a series of Budget Summits at different locations around the City, in addition to the budget staff hosting budget workshops at City Hall. The Mayor submits his proposed budget on July 1, The City then sets the proposed millage rate at a hearing a few weeks later. There are then at least two public hearings in the City Council 1

2 Chamber on the budget before it is approved. The hearings and meetings provide opportunities for comments and feedback from the public on the proposed budget. B. The City Scorecard Mike Connors, the City of St. Petersburg s Public Works Administrator, briefed the Committee on the City Scorecard. Mr. Connors was involved in developing the City Scorecard for Mayor Rick Baker. The City Scorecard includes performance measures from various departments in City government, reporting data on economic development, personal safety, neighborhoods and government operations. The purpose of the City Scorecard is to provide the community and other interested parties with a way to measure City services and actions. It can also be a significant management tool. Mr. Connors explained that in prior administrations the City Scorecard was an integral part of making policy decisions by the Mayor and city officials. However, Mr. Connors says that use of the City Scorecard over time has diminished; it is an important accountability tool that in Mr. Connors view should be used more often by City leaders to measure and improve performance. C. The City s Website Mr. Connors and Mr. Greene reviewed with the Committee the information about the City s budget and City s scorecard that is available on the City s website. The City s website includes extensive information the City s budget, including copies and summaries of the City s budget for each year since Each department in the City is responsible for setting up their own section of the website. According to Mr. Connors, there is no one person responsible for the information on the site, and it can at times be difficult to search the site as there is so much information on it. Mr. Connors stated that in terms of staffing there is currently less than one full time employee devoted to the City s website. III. Recommendations to Mayor-Elect Kriseman and City staff The Transition Team Co-Chairs requested that the Committee outline its recommendations in this report by responding to a series of questions drafted by the Transition Team Co-Chairs: 1. How should the specific purpose of this Functional Areas be defined? The Committee examined how the City develops its budget and the transparency associated with its budget development process, and how citizens might be able to learn and participate in that process. The Committee also examined the City s website and the use of the City Scorecard as tools for citizens to learn about the City s resources and performance in a variety of areas, including economic development, personal safety, neighborhoods and government operations. 2. Where, within the governmental structure, should this Functional Area fit? Why? What activities should it address? The Budget department is a separate department from the City s operational 2

3 departments, and works in conjunction with the city s various operational departments in developing the city s budget. Mr. Connors explained that each department is in charge of developing its own content to include on the City s website. There is currently not one person in charge of the City s website; it is designed by a conglomeration of input and information from various city departments. The Committee believes there is a need for the City s website to be designed and its content managed by someone with expertise in marketing and web design who could work in the City s communications department. While there is a lot of information the website provided by the City s various departments, it is the Committee s view that there is lots of room for improvement in how to make the website more user friendly and easier to search. The City Scorecard is put together by data from all city departments. However, it appears to the Committee there is no one person in City government responsible for overseeing the collection of information on the City Scorecard, for independently verifying the data on the City Scorecard, or for taking the City Scorecard out into the community on a regular basis to have it reviewed and analyzed by community leaders. The Committee believes that having someone directly reporting to the Mayor in charge of continuously designing and refining the City Scorecard and receiving feedback on the City s performance. The Mayor should personally use the City Scorecard on a regular basis to evaluate the City s performance. This could elevate its importance as a tool for management and administration. 3. What are the existing strengths of this Functional Area in St. Petersburg? How can these strengths be reinforced? The Committee was very impressed with the people who work in City government. One obvious strength for the City s administration is its personnel. City Budget Director Tom Greene emphasized the importance of transparency and fairness in the development of the City s budget. Like Mr. Greene, City Public Works Administrator Mike Connors demonstrated a commitment to public service and a desire to see the City s efforts at rewarding innovation, and better performance and accountability improved. There is a commendable spirit of public service and a desire to do right by the citizens who are served by city staff. There is also a culture of transparency in that each operational department puts a great deal of information up on the City s website. The budget process also appears to be well documented and carefully planned so that the City complies with all of the statutory deadlines and legal requirements. 4. What are the current weaknesses of this Functional Area? How can these conditions be improved or eliminated? The Committee has several suggestions as to how these areas can be improved. First, the City Scorecard is potentially an important and powerful tool for accountability. However, the Committee finds that it is not being utilized to its full potential. The Scorecard should be reviewed on a regular basis by the Mayor and top administrators. The Mayor may even consider designating one of his top staffers to be in charge of the City Scorecard so that he has confidence in its information. The City should also have the information on the Scorecard independently verified by the City Auditor so that the Mayor has confidence that its data is accurate. The Committee also considered the idea of an community scorecard review group or committee, 3

4 made up of community leaders outside of City government that would meet regularly to review the Scorecard and its data. The community scorecard review committee could make sure that the City is asking the right questions on the Scorecard, and monitor key areas of performance. It would be another check on holding the City accountable for its performance. In short the Committee believes the Scorecard could be an effective and important tool but right now is not used anywhere near its full potential. Second, the Mayor-elect should consider designating one person to be in charge of its website ideally someone with a strong background in communications, web design, marketing, and public relations. The City could consider creating a position in its communications department just to manage and improve its website a City Webmaster, who would be responsible for refining and updating the site so that it is a real tool for citizens who want to know what is happening in City government. The webmaster could rework the site so that information is easier to find. In addition, the city should engage an IT consulting group to assist in and recommend improvements as well as provide an annual review to insure the city stays current with Best Practices. Third, the Mayor-elect should consider designating one person to serve as the City s Public Information Officer. The Public Information Officer would be a person with strong community relationships, and an eye for spotting issues in city government relating to improving transparency and citizens understanding so they can help the Mayor build support for key city decisions. This position could report to the Communications Director, but in addition to responding to media requests the Public Information Officer would also spend time developing and strengthen community relationships and partnerships between the City and key community leaders and stakeholders. The Committee discussed a number of challenges facing the City that the Committee believes could be improved upon by having a strong Public Information Officer. For example, there was a lot of confusion about the new Pier designs, and the need for a new police headquarters. A Public Information Officer would help the City with these issues by being another resource and leader in the community to provide accurate and reliable information about city issues and decisions. Fourth, there is tremendous room for improvement in the budget process for rewarding innovation and creative ideas in saving taxpayer money. Department heads should be rewarded and recognized for coming up with new ways to deliver city services more efficiently, and should be encouraged to be creative in how to save taxpayer money. The best ideas should be shared amongst departments. In learning about how the city s budget is currently developed, the Committee concludes that there are opportunities to create incentives for a department to be innovative in its approach to saving taxpayer money. Along the same lines, there is a need for more outside input and community input in the development of the City s budget. Organizations like the People s Budget Review bring some independent community input to the City s budget process. However, after reviewing the City s budget process the Committee believes there is a need for greater involvement and input from the community in the creation of the City s budget. Only through increased community involvement and input can there be a greater assurance that the city s priorities are reflected in its budget. The Mayor could consider appointing a community budget committee, similar to the 4

5 proposed community Scorecard committee. The Mayor could also consider holding additional budget workshops around town or at neighborhood association meetings. Providing information and explaining the budget could also be one of the roles of the Public Information Officer. Lastly, the Committee knows there are many other cities in the country that are doing innovative work in bringing transparency and accountability to their budget process and city operations. The Mayor needs to build a culture where making changes based on other cities successes are encouraged. City officials should be rewarded and incentivized for learning about what other cities are doing well, and how those efforts can be replicated here in the City of St. Petersburg. IV. Conclusions The budget is the critical document for our City. It reflects our City s priorities and challenges. The City of St. Petersburg is fortunate to have public servants that care deeply about its citizens and express a commitment to bringing a culture of transparency and openness to the City s budget process. However, the Committee believes that these processes and tools can be improved. The Committee encourages the Mayor elect to consider opportunities to provide for additional community input in the budget development process, to bring more accountability in the management of city operations through the more frequent use of the City s Scorecard, and to bring greater understanding to the City s work by building a more robust City Communications Department with a webmaster and public information officer, who could continue to work to forge community relationships and understanding of city goals through community meetings and an enhanced City website. 5