St. Petersburg City Council BUDGET, FINANCE & TAXATION COMMITTEE AGENDA Meeting of February 12, 2009 8:00 AM City Hall Room 100 Members: Chair James R. Jim Kennedy, Jr.; Vice-Chair James S. Bennett; Jeff Danner; Karl Nurse (alternate); and Wengay M. Newt Newton, Sr. (alternate). Call to Order and Roll Call Approval of Agenda Approval of Minutes of January 29, 2009 1. New Business a. FY10 Budget Calendar Mike Connors, Internal Services Administrator 2. Continued/ Deferred Business a. None 3. Next Meeting Agenda Tentative Issues February 26, 2009 a. None March 12, 2009 a. None Adjournment
City of St. Petersburg Budget, Finance & Taxation Committee January 29, 2009 at 8:06 a.m. ATTACHMENT A Present: Also: Absent: Chair James S. Bennett, Council members Jeff Danner, James R. Jim Kennedy Jr. and Alternates Karl Nurse and Wengay Newt Newton, Sr. City Attorney John Wolfe, Deputy Mayor/City Administrator Tish Elston, Internal Services Administrator Michael Connors, Managing Director City Development Administration & Finance Joe Zeoli, Acting Budget and Management Director Jim Chism, Kerry Bittner/Recreation Administration Support Coordinator, Mike Jefferies/City Services Administration, Social Services Manager Rhonda Abbott, Deputy Mayor Neighborhood Services David Metz, Director Cultural Affairs Theresa Jones and Deputy City Clerk Cathy E. Davis. None Chairman Bennett called the meeting to order with the above persons present. In connection with the approval of the meeting agenda and the meeting minutes of January 15 th Councilmember Kennedy moved with the second of Councilmember Danner that the agenda and minutes be approved as submitted. All were in favor of the motion. NEW BUSINESS a. Election of Committee Chair and Vice Chair In connection with the selection of committee chair, Councilmember Danner moved with the second of Councilmember Bennett that Councilmember Kennedy be nominated to serve as chair of the committee. All were in favor of the motion. In connection with the selection of committee vice-chair, Councilmember Danner moved with the second of Councilmember Kennedy that Councilmember Bennett be nominated to serve as vice-chair of the committee. All were in favor of the motion. In connection with the appointment of alternate committee members Karl Nurse and Wengay Newton, Chairman Kennedy stated he would investigate expanding the committee or assigning first and second alternate positions. b. Non-Departmental Funding Discussion Mike Connors, Internal Services Administrator, recapped the BFT Committee request for staff to develop an alternative allocation process for non-departmental funding. Mr. Connors gave a brief history of the non-departmental funding process. Mr. Connors then presented a recommendation to eliminate non-departmental funding and to reassign allocations for the FY10 budget as follows: assign MLK Festival of Bands, Festival of States, and First Night to the Marketing Department operating budget; reconsider/revise the lease agreements with the Pier Aquarium and Museum of History; assign the Florida
City of St. Petersburg Page 2 Budget, Finance & Taxation Committee January 29, 2009 at 8:06 a.m. Orchestra to the Downtown Facilities operating budget and advise them of additional funding requests as part of the Arts/Cultural allocation process; quantify operating savings associated with social service agencies and include the savings in the respective department s operating budget and advise agencies of additional funding requests subject to Social Services allocation process. Mr. Bennett stated that funding amounts had changed over time and would the starting point for funding be the current level of funding and then be adjusted to reflect FY10 budget constraints. Mr. Connors stated that he agreed with that statement. Mr. Newton asked if the funding would be subject to reductions in department budgets. Mr. Connors stated that they would, but that historically reductions have been larger in non-departmental funding, co-sponsorship and social services than in the operating budget. Mr. Danner requested that the line items containing the funding be visible in the FY10 budget. Mr. Kennedy asked if the organizations had given input to the recommendations. Mr. Connors stated that if the recommendations were accepted, the organizations would give input as part of the FY10 budget process. Mr. Bennett asked if the changes could be mailed to the organizations and Mr. Connors agreed. Councilmember Danner then moved with the second of Councilmember Bennett to approve the recommendations. All were in favor of the motion. c. St. Petersburg Museum of History HVAC System Discussion Mike Connors, Internal Services Administrator, recapped City Council s request through the BFT Committee to discuss options regarding the St. Petersburg Museum of History HVAC system. Mr. Connors stated that the Engineering and Capital Improvements Department had inspected and reviewed the status of the HVAC system and recommended replacement of the system with an estimated cost of $150,000. Mr. Connors stated that the recommended funding source was Fund 3031 City Facilities Capital Improvement Fund (Penny for Pinellas), Infrastructure to be determined line item currently budgeted at $260,000. Mr. Danner asked if the current system design of six split systems was the best design for the facility. Mr. Connors stated that the recommendation is to replace the current design with a single unit placed on the roof of the facility. Mr. Nurse asked if there was an estimate of the energy savings with this new design. Mr. Connors stated that the energy savings would be 5 10% in addition to significant maintenance savings. Councilmember Bennett then moved with the second of Councilmember Danner that the committee approve the recommendation. All were in favor of the motion. d. Social Action Funding Discussion Dave Metz, Deputy Mayor, Neighborhood Services, and Rhonda Abbott, Social Services Manager, gave a presentation on Social Action Funding. Ms. Abbott recapped a meeting with Pinellas County staff. Ms. Abbott stated that the County would like to ask the City to fund fewer, larger amounts, to use the mini-grant process for smaller agencies and to participate in a joint process for better coordination for funding agencies. Mr. Metz stated that if funding was identified in the FY10 budget he would like to meet with all Council Members, possibly in a Committee of the Whole, to get input from City Council on their
City of St. Petersburg Page 3 Budget, Finance & Taxation Committee January 29, 2009 at 8:06 a.m. priorities. Deputy Mayor Elston also suggested that arts funding be included in the discussion. There was discussion about the current economy and groups needing to consolidate or become more efficient. Mr. Kennedy asked if other cities coordinate with the County like St. Petersburg does. Ms. Abbott said no, that her position was the only one outside Pinellas County government. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9:05 a.m.
AGENDA ITEM 1a M E M O R A N D U M TO: FROM: SUBJECT: Budget, Finance & Taxation Committee Jim Chism, Interim Budget & Management Director Proposed FY10 Budget Calendar DATE: February 6, 2009 The proposed calendar schedule follows the State s and County Tax Appraiser s guidelines with regard to filing deadlines and public hearing requirements. In recent years, the City has held workshops with Council to solicit input prior to submitting a recommended budget. We are also scheduling a public forum prior to the millage being set. This year the two day Council workshop will be on May 12 and May 26. A single public forum is scheduled for Thursday, July 9, and the millage will be set on July 16. Tentative dates for the two required public hearings are September 3 and September 17. Adoption of the attached calendar is recommended at this time. Attachments: Proposed FY 2010 Budget Development Calendar
SCHEDULE FOR THE FY10 BUDGET PROCESS Date Action By January 22 nd GovMax CIP Training CIP Input Begins Budget Staff Departments February 9 th CIP Budgets Due Departments February 12 th February 19 th & 20 th Take Calendar to BFT City Council Priorities Non-Departmental, Arts & Social Services GovMax Training Budget Input Begins City Council Budget Staff Budget Staff Departments March 9 th - 13 th CIP Reviews with Departments Budget Staff & Departments March 16 th Operating Budgets Due Departments April 6 th - 10 th Line Item Reviews Budget Staff & Departments May 4 th Workshop prep completed Budget Staff May 12 th & 26 th City Council Workshop City Council, Mayor Budget Staff, Administrators Department Directors May 20 th Estimate due from Property Appraiser County Property Appraiser May 13 th - June 30 th Recommended Document Preparation Budget Staff June 26 th Receive Certified Taxable Values County Property Appraiser July 1 st Mayor s Recommended Budget due to City Council Mayor, City Council Budget Staff July 9 th Public Forum City Council, Mayor Budget Staff July 16 th Set Proposed Millage Rate; Set Date, Time & Place of Public Hearings City Council Mayor July Complete review of Fiscal Policies by July 30 th Budget Staff September 3 rd September 17 th 1 st Public Hearing (must be held after 5:00 p.m.) Adopt tentative budget & tax rate 2 nd Public Hearing (must be held after 5:00 p.m.) Adopt final budget & tax rate; Approve the Capital Improvement Program City Council, Mayor Budget Staff, Administrators Department Directors City Council, Mayor Budget Staff, Administrators Department Directors
BUDGET, FINANCE & TAXATION COMMITTEE PENDING / CONTINUING REFERRALS February 6, 2009 Page 1 of 2 TOPIC DATE REFERRED REFERRED BY SCHEDULED / HEARD ON RETURN DATE STAFF RESPONSIBLE SPECIAL NOTES Capital Improvement Projects Budget 02.05.09 Nurse Connors Nurse requested a review of the Capital Improvement Projects Budget. Social Services Funding 01.15.09 Metz Metz If FY10 funding, would like to discuss separate from BFT with all Council Members present. RFP Process for Deferred Compensation Plans 01.15.09 Bennett Cornwell Bennett requested Cornwell keep committee informed regarding the RFP status.
BUDGET, FINANCE & TAXATION COMMITTEE PENDING / CONTINUING REFERRALS February 6, 2009 Page 2 of 2 TOPIC DATE REFERRED REFERRED BY SCHEDULED / HEARD ON RETURN DATE STAFF RESPONSIBLE SPECIAL NOTES FY09 Public Utility Revenue Bonds 12.11.08 Bennett 01.15.09 01.15.09 Spies Bennett requested pros & cons of issuing bonds vs. an internal loan. Weeki Wachee Fund 12.11.08 Bennett Spies Requested to be discussed separately from BFT with all Council members present.