• Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek: Exit Interview Questionnaire

• Budget Coordinator Jeff Horne: Citizen Survey and Fiscal Year 2005 Budget Update

• Communications Committee: County Government Week

• Discussion: Local Government Innovation Fund

• Discussion: Spanish in the Workplace

• Reports and Updates from Department Heads

• Scheduling Date and Time of Next Meeting

Chairperson Neuzil called the Johnson County Board of Supervisors to order in the Johnson County Administration Building as a Department Head Meeting at 1:30 p.m. Members present were: Pat Harney, Mike Lehman, Terrence Neuzil, Sally Stutsman, and Carol Thompson.

Department heads present were: Ambulance Director Steve Spenler, City Assessor Dennis Baldridge, County Engineer Mike Gardner, County Recorder Kim Painter, County Sheriff Robert Carpenter, County Treasurer Tom Kriz, Facilities Director David Kempf, Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek, Information Services Director Jean Schultz, Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Director Elaine Sweet, Planning and Zoning Administrator Rick Dvorak, Public Health Director Ralph Wilmoth, SEATS Director Tom Brase, and Veteran Affairs Director Leo Baier. Staff present were: Board of Supervisors Executive Assistant Mike Sullivan, Board of Supervisors Budget Coordinator Jeff Horne, General Assistance Assistant Director Susan Campney, Human Services Accountant Kathy Lynch, and Deputy Auditor Michele Tamerius. Present from the Sixth Judicial District: Chief Juvenile Court Officer Lloyd Smith.

Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek said she wants to review the exit interview questionnaire, which can currently be found online under HR forms. HR also posted several other regularly requested forms online as well. She said that the exit interview questionnaire is based off the model the Public Health Department has been using for quite some time. She said it is awkward to introduce an exit questionnaire at this point in time because the County has had record low turnover in the last year. She said she thought that it was important for employees who leave both voluntarily or involuntarily to receive an exit interview questionnaire so they have the opportunity to voice any concerns and make comments. The employee has the option to make their survey confidential, which is important because it can affect their responses. The questionnaire covers several topics including the primary reason for leaving, what they like best about working for the County, what would make it better, and others. Shramek said that every employee also has the opportunity to meet with her to have a confidential interview in person. She said HR wanted the departments to incorporate this questionnaire because it is important for department heads to provide this information to employees. Lehman asked who receives this information. Shramek replied that if the employee wants the questionnaire to be confidential then the information would stay within the Human Resources Department to be used for overall planning and betterment of the County. If the employee is willing to share the information, then it would be shared with the department head and Supervisors. Lehman asked what percentage of return HR receives. Shramek replied that HR just introduced the form, so they will have to see what 2004 brings, but 2003 as a whole had very low turnover. She asked the department heads to let HR of any suggestions or improvements as they use the form in the future. County Engineer Mike Gardner asked how to give the questionnaire to employees. Shramek replied that HR has self-addressed stamped envelopes that they can give each department or employees can email the form as well.

Budget Coordinator Jeff Horne said that last summer he completed an informal survey of services including citizen satisfaction and received about 130 responses. Results can be viewed on the County website. He said that the Ambulance Service scored very high as far as most important services. He said that the satisfaction ratings were also very good for the most part. Horne said the survey gives some insight into how the public views the County and in a few years they might try a more extensive, scientific approach. He said that if departments have interest in the future the County can do more studies to investigate effectiveness and perceptions.

Horne said that the Board started their budget meetings and has covered 2 service areas. He said that budget discussion will finish around February 20th, at which point they’ll set the budget public hearing for the first week in March. He said that they Board has to have the budget passed and certified by mid-March. He said that according to State Senator Joe Bolkcom, the County can anticipate some shortages in State credit funding, which will have a rather significant effect in the General Fund. Horne said that coupled with the loss of interest revenue the County saw this year, they took a large hit in the revenues. He said that the County has had growth and is collecting fees in departments, which is helping to offset that. Horne said that he will try to keep in contact with the different departments as far as the budget situation.

Stutsman said that County Government Week is going to be April 18th through the 24th and will include a Lunch and Listen with County Attorney J. Patrick White who is the current ISAC president, and the announcement of the new County logo. The Communications Committee is also working on an electronic thank-you card for all commission participants, thank-you poster, a display of photos from boards and commissions, and the County video. Neuzil said that the Lunch and Listen will also include a State of the County address and the presentation of the video. He asked the department heads to take a camera to their boards and commission meetings so the Communications Committee can have some candid shots for their display.

Horne said that he’s making an application to the Local Government Innovation Fund for the Medical Examiner program, which is due on the 23rd. He said that the Innovation Fund is a small grant fund the State Government set up for any shared service between municipalities. Lehman asked if the Fund is for something that is already in place or only something being implemented. Horne said that it can be either as long as it is detailed in the grant. He said that for the Medical Examiner, they are trying to regionalize the service to offset the capital costs and get reimbursed for vehicles the County has had to purchase.

Neuzil said that he took a 5-week course on Spanish in the Workplace through Kirkwood Community College. He said that the County is starting to see residents using County services who are having a difficult time communicating with employees and the County should break down that barrier. He asked what programs the Ambulance and Sheriff’s Department use. He said that some suggestions have been to pay for some department heads to take the class or start a program internally to get basic communication skills down.

Ambulance Director Steve Spenler said that one of his supervisors teaches a course at Kirkwood, so he’s going to put on a series of courses over the year for their staff. Neuzil asked if the courses are something that could be taught Countywide. Spenler said he will ask. Neuzil asked County Sheriff Bob Carpenter what courses the Sheriff’s Department has been using. He replied that they’ve had several officers attend a training program to assist them when stopping a vehicle. On occasion, he said, the department has to bring in an interpreter. Neuzil asked how Public Health is coping. Public Health Department Director Ralph Wilmoth said that they have someone volunteer to interpret when needed, and they also have one employee who is bilingual. He said that last year Public Health received a grant from the State for nursing education, which was used partially for Spanish classes. He said that they’ve also had some basic classes for employees. Wilmoth said that Spanish is not the only language the Heath Department deals with, so sometimes they use family members to interpret, which is not a good practice. County Recorder Kim Painter said that she considered taking a class similar to the one Neuzil took. She said that they’ve relied on family members and have asked Senior Building Inspector Ruben Arsate to interpret as well. She said that she’d like to have something more reliable. County Treasurer Tom Kriz said that his department runs into problems daily. He said that his department has taken some common terms, especially on the Motor Vehicle side, to create a cheat sheet. He said it becomes difficult because the DOT forms are very complicated to begin with. He said that they’ve also been fortunate to utilize County employees at times. He said they’ve also asked the DOT to print forms in Spanish, but due to State cutbacks, they haven’t been willing to do that. He said that they hope to hire someone who will be able to handle it. Kriz said that there are also different forms of Spanish their cheat sheet doesn’t always work.

Neuzil said that the County could make a cheat sheet for all departments with some basic greetings and questions. He asked how HR encourages the hiring of bilingual employees. Shramek said that currently being bilingual is a minimum requirement. She said that they would have to adjust all of the job descriptions to change it. She said that requiring a new employee to be bilingual would also affect pay rates. She said that it’s definitely a plus for applicants. Lehman said that the County could discriminate in hiring if they didn’t have it in the advertisement or job description, although it could be a tiebreaker. Shramek said that as long as the employees both meet the minimum qualifications, then departments can offer it to the applicant who speaks Spanish. Thompson asked if it would be worth hiring the Kirkwood teacher to teach a class for the County. Neuzil said the key is to pursue this without incurring a large cost. SEATS Director Tom Brase said that he lived in Mexico for several years, but he’s forgotten most of his Spanish. He asked if employees would forget what they’d learn in a course. Brase suggested having software with a Spanish dictionary, which might be more advantageous. Wilmoth said that there’s a link on the County web site that will translate language, but employees must remember that it is only an exact translation of the word entered, which may or may not fit the meaning.

Chief Juvenile Court Officer Lloyd Smith said that having Spanish speakers is a problem for them. He said that it can be a problem for a parent interpreting for a child or vice versa. He said they’ve discussed the possibility of developing a pool of volunteers but were concerned about having enough work for the volunteers. Smith suggested that they work together on creating a pool to hold the interests of a number of volunteers. Wilmoth said they have a student project at the Health Department working on that idea. Shramek said that there might be confidentiality issues so they might have to have a confidentiality release signed by the volunteers. Harney said that at one time there was a resource at the University of Iowa that had interpreters. Thompson said that it was removed with budget cuts. Shramek suggested that the Communications Committee explore starting a pool. Neuzil agreed and said that would be a good place to start.

Kriz said the State Treasurer’s Association is working on a grant through the Local Government Innovation Fund to develop a website for the 99 counties to pay their taxes and motor vehicle fees.

General Assistance Assistant Director Susan Campney said that there has been changes in the way General Assistance handles their State papers, which is the program that allows people to get medical care at the University Hospitals. She said the paperwork has been decreased to one form, which now goes directly to the hospital.

Brase said his department has 4 new vehicles, which were purchased with 83% funding from Federal grants. He said that they’ve put a slide show on the web to explain what SEATS does.

City Assessor Dennis Baldridge said that January 1st is the assessment date, so they’ve acquired new property they’re assessing for the first time.

Planning and Zoning Administrator Rick Dvorak said that Planning and Zoning just completed a review of their ordinances and will be meeting with the Board in the next month to discuss it. He said he also has a meeting planned with Thompson in Cedar Rapids to discuss what the area north of Swisher should look like.

Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Director Elaine Sweet said that the County’s Targeted Case Management is a Federally funded program, which brings in $750,000 a year in revenues. She said that when the program comes up for accreditation, the government looks at every aspect of the program. She’s currently working with her board on several updates in anticipation of this review. She said they’re also working on contracts with over 25 agencies.

Veteran Affairs Director Leo Baier said that the Department of Veteran Affairs has a new website, http://veterans.iom.edu, which has separate sections for health care issues affecting the last 5 major conflicts: WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and the Gulf war. Baier said that the Department of Veteran Affairs has authorized a 2.1% COLA increase matching the Social Security Administration and other related agencies effective with the January benefit payments. Baier thanked the Facilities Department for his new mailbox. He also thanked the Board of Supervisors for listening to the Veteran Affairs’ guidelines increase request at the January 15, 2004 informal meeting.

Spenler said the Ambulance Service, EMS Association, and University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics will be jointly sponsoring an EMS Conference at the Sheraton on February 20, 2004. They are receiving a new ambulance on January 27, 2004 to replace the one that was totaled in a September accident.

Information Services Director Jean Schultz said that they’ve printed the first set of paychecks on the new GEMS software through a lot of work from the Auditor’s Office, Information Services, and Human Resources. Schultz said that they’ve had their 2nd set of training for the General Ledger, Accounts Payable, and Cash Receipts modules and are planning to go live at the start of the next fiscal year. Schultz said that if any departments want to use the following modules they should let Information Services Assistant Director Gary Yoder know so that he can schedule training: purchasing, inventory, fixed assets, grant and project accounting, work orders, and fleet inventory. Information Services will be deploying Office 2003 at the end of January and beginning of February. Network Support Technician Tim Knipper has set up a County photo gallery on the website and would like additional pictures. Schultz said that they are working on conversion of the real estate and tax collection system. She said that the goal is for the Auditor and Assessors to start using the software in March and the Treasurer to start using it in July. Schultz said that in GIS they have started receiving the aerial photos for the County.

Painter said that they are continuing putting more images on their website so that there will be a complete full index of real estate recordings from 1983 to present. Painter said that there is an online form on the Recorder’s website for requesting a birth, death, or marriage record on line.

Wilmoth said that flu cases are decreasing and therefore interest in the flu vaccine is decreasing. He said that Public Health doesn’t provide flu vaccines to the general public-only County employees and their spouses.

Neuzil introduced Chief Juvenile Court Officer Lloyd Smith who replaced Brandon Beaudry. Smith said they are down a couple of juvenile court officers and he is carrying a case load of 77. Smith said that he is known for having a lot of ideas and creating new programs.

Baier asked Wilmoth about Mad Cow Disease. Wilmoth said that it is unlikely that any parts of the infected animal that would have the potential of infecting someone got distributed. He said that there is a program to monitor and test which is how the beef was identified. He said that the way that the system works today is that they don’t get the results of the test back until after the meat is distributed.

Shramek said they are in collective bargaining season. They are at fact finding with 3 PPME units. She said that a lot of time and effort has gone into the preparation process. She said there are also a couple of grievances. Shramek said that flexible benefits information and Alliance Select Wellmark booklets will be available soon.

Horne said that the Board has approved the Strategic Plan and it is now on the website.

Lehman reported that the Board of Supervisors will be at ISAC on January 21, and 22, 2004 so the formal and informal meetings will be cancelled.

Harney said that the Board has started the budget process.

The next Department Head Meeting is March 23, 2004 at 1:30 p.m.

Adjourned at 2:33 p.m.

Attest: Tom Slockett, Auditor

By Michele Tamerius, Recording Secretary

Sent to the Board of Supervisors on January 21, 2004 at 6:00 p.m.