MINUTES OF THE INFORMAL MEETING OF THE JOHNSON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS:
MARCH 1, 2007
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
County Engineer Greg Parker: Weight Embargo(s) on Secondary Roads for Calendar Year 2007; Secretary I Job Description; and Sign Technician Job Description............................................................... 1
Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Services Director Elaine Sweet: Approval of the Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Services Assistant Director Job Description and Authorization to Hire................. 2
Reports and Inquiries from the Board of Supervisors................................................................. 4
Chairperson Harney called the Johnson County Board of Supervisors to order in the Johnson County Administration Building at 9:26 a.m. Members present were: Pat Harney, Larry Meyers, Terrence Neuzil, Sally Stutsman, and Rod Sullivan.
County Engineer Greg Parker explained that the resolution for weight embargoes on secondary roads is brought to the Board annually. It allows the County to embargo roads to minimize surface damage from heavy vehicles. Parker presented a map showing possible roads that could be embargoed based on the road surface. There are 58 locations throughout the County that have the possibility for embargoes. For the last couple of years the County has not had to invoke any road embargoes, but Parker thinks there will be embargoes this year. Staff monitors the roads and gives input for embargoes.
Stutsman said that a big issue with road embargoes is for trash disposal trucks. If a road is embargoed the trash haulers have to take smaller trucks and make more trips. Parker agreed. Meyers asked if most of the roads that can be embargoed are chip seal roads. Parker replied that they are. Meyers asked if macadam base chip seal roads are embargoed. Parker said that a macadam base gives more of a structural support to the surface, so they anticipate minimized embargo time frames. These roads would still be on the embargo list though. Harney said that the macadam base improves the drainage. Parker agreed. Meyers asked if there is a typical weather condition that would necessitate an embargo. Parker said that when the frost is coming out of the road it can cause a frost boil. A frost boil is a soft location underneath the surface of the road. If a heavy vehicle drives over a frost boil it will crack the road surface and break it down. When they see this starting to happen they will embargo the specific affected section of roadway in order to minimize damage and decrease repair costs. The Board agreed to put the resolution on a future formal meeting agenda.
Parker explained that the next item on the agenda is approval of the Secretary job description. The secretary position became vacant after an administrative staff member resigned. Secondary Roads felt it was appropriate and necessary to upgrade the position's job description to meet current staffing needs. The new bottom of the hourly pay scale could be an increase of about $1.00 an hour. This is equivalent to what a Secretary II in the Administrative Unit makes. There is an increased responsibility of drafting correspondence, maintaining schedules, claims processing, data compilation, inventory and supply maintenance, and proving back-up for the Administrative Assistant. The previous job description was limiting related to work assignments and the union contract. The new differences will be more accommodating to the departmental operational needs. Parker asked that the Board give authorization to Secondary Roads staff and Human Resources staff to proceed with negotiations with PPME to negotiate the revised job description and the hourly pay scale. Once the job description is approved by the union, Parker will bring the description back to the Board for formal approval. The Board agreed to allow Parker to proceed with negotiations with the union on the job description. Parker noted that since this position is vacant they would like to fill this position as soon as possible.
Parker explained that the Sign Technician job description was negotiated in the union contract, which was approved by the Board. Formerly, Secondary Roads had a Sign Person I. That position will no longer exist beginning July 1, 2007. The new position will be a Sign Technician. The Sign Technician job description more appropriately fits the needs of the department. The Sign Person I was limited based on the job description activities to be able to function how the department currently needs the position to function. The Sign Technician position will have to be posted internally. If internal candidates don't apply then they will have to advertise. Parker anticipates that there will be an internal person who will apply and fill the position. Parker said that they will probably bid the position prior to July 1, 2007 so that they have everything ready to go beginning on July 1, 2007. The Board agreed to put the Sign Technician job description on the March 8, 2007 formal agenda.
Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Director Elaine Sweet explained that she would like the Board to approve the Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Assistant Director job description, and allow authorization to hire the position. Sweet explained that the Assistant Director position was requested in a FY 08 budget package. This is a new position. As the Director, Sweet has been responsible for almost all of the items in the proposed job description. Sweet said that the primary impetus for the position at this time is the number and complexity of recent legislative and regulatory changes impacting MH/DD Services. The position will serve as the backup for the MH/DD Director and will relieve the director of routine Central Point of Coordination (CPC), Targeted Case Management (TCM), and Jail Alternatives/Mobile Crisis administrative tasks including personnel management, funding requests and State cases.
Sweet noted that the budget decision package was submitted with the position at an exempt status in pay grade 23. Sweet has been working with HR and the position has now been assessed at an exempt status in pay grade 22. The budget decision package was presented at an anticipated cost of $97,000 for FY 08. This includes continuing education, travel, supplies, computer equipment, and all of the things that go with a position. If the position is hired now, the funding request for FY 08 would be just over $80,000 and most of the initial costs would be brought into FY 07. Sweet said that all of the costs for the position will come out of the MH/DD Fund. A minor portion of the position will be attributed to the TCM Program, which is reimbursable.
Stutsman said that she and R. Sullivan recently had a liaison meeting with Sweet and they think it is critical that Sweet have an assistant director in place at the office. Two clinical supervisors have been out recently which means that Sweet is not only responsible for her administrative tasks but also to supervise clinical staff. Stutsman said that the workload has become overwhelming and the Board should have hired an assistant director several years ago. R. Sullivan noted that the total budget for the department is $14 million. He agreed that this probably should have been done some time ago. Stutsman said that as Johnson County is a magnet county, the County has always had a lot of services for persons with disabilities, but this also draws a lot of people from other counties to get services. Stutsman said that because of this, whereas some counties might only have two contracts with service providers, Johnson County now has over thirty services provider contracts.
Harney asked if the Jail Alternatives Program portion of the job description will fall under the MH/DD Department. Sweet said that substance abuse cannot be funded through MH/DD. Many clients in the Jail Alternatives Program have mental health and substance abuse issues. MH/DD has been able to work closely with MECCA on that. Sweet said that the continuity of funding between mental health and substance abuse services is something that needs to be addressed on a larger level.
Stutsman asked if under the specific duties section of the job description they could change the phrase "recruit, hire, train" to "assist in recruiting, hiring, and training". Stutsman said that hiring should be the role of the administrator, although Sweet can assist with that. Stutsman suggested that the phrase "implement action steps identified in the MH/DD Services Management Plan" be changed. Stutsman said that it should be the director's job to implement goals and strategies. She asked for Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek's opinion on the suggested changes. Shramek replied that there may be times when Sweet would like to fully delegate hiring, such as hiring the Targeted Case Managers. Shramek said that this is a primary example where Sweet would not have to be involved every step of the way. Shramek explained that pay grade 22 has the ability to hire and fire. Sweet would continue to be the department head and would have the final say. Shramek said that this is the same type of language that they have in all positions for anybody that has direct responsibility for individual employees. The Board agreed that they didn't need to add the word "assist" to the recruit, hire, and train phrase. Stutsman thanked Shramek for clarifying that the duties in the assistant director job description don't wholly remove duties from the director's job description. The director still has ultimate authority over the department.
R. Sullivan asked if a bachelor's degree in social work is required. He noted that the job description reads that a master's degree is preferred. He explained that social work is often a field that people go back to school for, so an applicant might have a bachelors degree in an unrelated field, such as mathematics, but a masters degree in social work. Shramek said that they would have to look at their full course work. Sweet said that Chapter 24 of the Administrative Rules describes the educational requirements for TCM. Sweet said that this is a very unique and difficult education and experience requirement because of the way the CPC and TCM functions are combined. In order to fulfill the requirements of the CPC position and the Targeted Case Management they need an individual who is very experienced and has educational qualifications in accounting and finance, and social work. Stutsman thanked Sweet and Shramek for putting the job description together. The Board agreed to put the job description and authorization to hire the position on a future formal agenda.
R. Sullivan reported that he attended liaison meetings with Social Services Coordinator Amy Correia and Sweet, a Parking Committee meeting, a Chatham Oaks Board of Directors meeting, a Consortium on Successful Aging Meeting, the Chamber of Commerce Business P.M., and the League of Women Voters Legislative Forum.
Stutsman attended a liaison meeting with Sweet, the Corridor Business Journal Women of Influence Luncheon, and a Public Leadership Group Subcommittee meeting.
Neuzil attended a Department of Transportation Highway #1 Construction Planning meeting, the Noon Rotary Club meeting, a meeting with Lincolnshire and Pembrokeshire residents, and a meeting with County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek and Sheriff's Major Steve Dolezal regarding an upcoming Chamber of Commerce presentation on the Johnson County Jail. Neuzil said that next week he will be attending the NACo Conference.
Meyers attended a liaison meeting with Parker, the MECCA Board of Directors meeting, a ride-along with the Ambulance Service, a Department of Transportation Highway #1 Construction Planning meeting, and an Iowa Valley Resource and Conservation Development Group meeting.
Harney attended the ECICOG Board of Directors meeting, a Pandemic Influenza Committee meeting, the Chamber of Commerce Business P.M., an Ag Biosciences Committee meeting, the Chamber of Commerce Legislative A.M., a Department of Transportation Highway #1 Construction Planning meeting, a liaison meeting with Correia, a Public Leadership Group Subcommittee meeting, and the Emergency Management Board of Directors meeting.
Adjourned at 10:20 a.m.
Attest: Tom Slockett, Auditor
By Casie Kadlec, Recording Secretary