MINUTES OF THE INFORMAL MEETING OF THE JOHNSON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS:
MARCH 27, 2007
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Facilities Director David Kempf: Bulk Paper Purchases............................................................ 1
Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek: Revised Johnson County Employee Handbook.. 2
Smoking Ordinance................................................................................................................. 3
Biodiesel Committee............................................................................................................... 4
Parking Committee Update..................................................................................................... 4
Go Green at Work.................................................................................................................. 4
Buy Here............................................................................................................................... 4
Reports/Updates From Department Heads............................................................................... 5
Scheduling Date and Time of Next Meeting............................................................................. 8
Chairperson Harney 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, Larry Meyers, Terrence Neuzil, Sally Stutsman, and Rod Sullivan.
Department heads present were: Ambulance Director Steve Spenler, City Assessor Dennis Baldridge, Conservation Department Director Harry Graves, County Auditor Tom Slockett, County Engineer Greg Parker, 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, Social Services Director Amy Correia, and Veterans Affairs Commission Director Leo Baier. Staff present were: Board of Supervisors Budget Coordinator Rich Claiborne, Sheriff’s Major Steve Dolezal, and Juvenile Court Administrator Lloyd Smith, and Auditor’s Office Administrative Secretary Casie Kadlec.
Facilities Director David Kempf asked if the previous year’s bulk paper purchase worked well for everyone. Veteran Affairs Commission Director Leo Baier said that he liked it. Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek said it was easy. Kempf said that Iowa Book and Supply thought it worked well. Information Services Director Jean Schultz asked if anybody prints a lot of paper on a printer that doesn't have a duplexing feature. Schultz asked if duplex printers would work well. SEATS Director Tom Brase said that a duplex printer would work well for them. Kempf said that he found it to be very convenient and thought it worked well. R. Sullivan said that in terms of specs one of the advantages was that a lot of paper didn’t have to be stored on site. Kempf said that he will be asking for this caveat in this year’s quote as well.
Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek reviewed the revised Johnson County Employee Handbook. A significant amount of time and effort has gone into the draft of the new employee handbook. This project was started over three years ago and the committee met over 80 times. Shramek said that she would like to recognize the following Employee Handbook Committee members and thank them for their many hours of commitment: Secondary Roads Administrative Assistant Diane Kaster, County Attorney Janet Lyness, Terrence Neuzil, Information Services Director Jean Schultz, Human Resources Assistant Susan Vileta, and Public Health Director Ralph Wilmoth as well as alternates: Information Services Operations Supervisor and Public Health Administrative Assistant Becky Mills.
Shramek explained that every policy was reviewed in detail and all were revised at least slightly. The employee handbook has doubled in size as many new policies were added. Unfortunately that still means they could have overlooked some information or were not clear in their recommendations to the Board for policy change. They are, however, ready for department heads/elected officials to read through the draft and invite them to attend the work session with the Board of Supervisors to review the revised Employee Handbook on Wednesday, April 11th at 9:00 a.m. If department heads or elected officials are unable to attend the work session, comments and suggestions for change should be forwarded to Shramek so that they may address them at the Board meeting.
Shramek said that as department heads might imagine it can be difficult to write uniform policies with the varied nature of county government. Shramek noted that specific collective bargaining agreements are still the first frame of reference for covered employees. The Committee tried to draw a line of consistency throughout the County yet leave room for department head discretion when needed. They tried to be thorough, yet concise with policies. They also tried to make the employee handbook easier to use in information, formatting, and organization.
Shramek said that regarding ease of use, the handbook has an organization chart which is helpful in understanding the relationships of County government structure. Following is a department directory with hours and phone numbers in the front for customer service. Budget Coordinator Rich Claiborne has already noticed an error under the Board of Supervisors, demonstrating how important it that everyone review this information. There is an introduction in which policies are organized alphabetically under five main sections: Employment, Compensation, Benefits, Policies, and Safety. These main tabs along with the three ring binder format should help in future updates. She noted that the updated employee handbook will still be accessible on-line under Public Folders, All Public Folders, Employee Handbook. There is a table of contents that is more detailed and that includes subheadings. They have built-in blank pages for future policy additions. They also have an index in the back that cross references policies under as many different headings as they could think of.
Shramek explained that the newly added policies include Personal Appearance, Attendance, Communication at Work, Conflict of Interest, Emergency Action Procedures, Employee Orientation, Employee Recognition, Employment Records, Flexible Spending, Gift Law, Human Rights, Job Posting, Longevity Pay, Notice of Resignation and Termination of Employment, Open Communication, Parking, Rehire to County Employment, Responsibility During Work, Safety Committee, Safety Training, Secondary Employment and Volunteer Activities, Wellness Program, and Witness Leave. Policies with significant rewrites include: Funeral Leave, Grievance Procedure, Jury Duty, Overtime, Compensatory Time, Flexible Time, Paternity and/or Adoptive Parent Leave, Sick Leave, Technology, Use of County Property, and Worker’s Compensation. Shramek said some of the new lengthy and more complicated policies such as Vehicle Usage and Wireless Telecommunication were presented and approved separately by the Board of Supervisors. The Committee also revised the Travel Reimbursement policy in this manner. Shramek noted that even policies that have been to the Board for approval have been modified.
Shramek said that more than one work session will likely be needed to cover the entire handbook and address all concerns. Once the Board of Supervisors formally approves the revised Employee Handbook, they will be printed and assembled. Many Employee Handbook orientation sessions outlining the new and changed policies will be held throughout the County to accommodate department schedules. Employees will receive their new handbooks at the meetings and sign off on the Handbook Acknowledgement. New employees will receive their handbooks during employee orientation.
Neuzil said that the Board of Supervisors had an opportunity to review the County smoking ordinance at the last Key Issues work session. Late last year the Board made changes to the County smoking policy. Smoking must be 50 feet away from public entrances, and the entire grounds of new facilities must be smoke free. Neuzil said that there was concern about the designated smoking areas being too close to windows. The County Attorney's Office is reworking the policy to state that smoking must also be at least ten feet away from any operable windows. Neuzil said that Kempf will be identifying acceptable locations and putting up signage. One of the reasons that they did not want to have a complete ban is the judges had some issues at the Courthouse. Also, the public sidewalk is only eight or nine feet from the back entrance of the Administration Building. He said the goal is to decrease smoking. Kempf said that they will be getting another picnic table to go in the area where the old picnic table used to be at the Administration Building.
Harney said that the Board had a presentation from Steve Fugate who was encouraging the County to start using biodiesel. Stutsman said that there are some communities that have gone biodiesel with their public vehicles. Stutsman said that they should look at this for Johnson County but there are many issues that need to be studied before they go ahead with an initiative. She suggested that they form a committee to look into this. Brase and Conservation Director Harry Graves said that they would be interested in looking at this. Ambulance Director Steve Spenler said that the committee should also look at buying fuel at one source. Stutsman said that County Engineer Greg Parker has done a little bit of work on this. Stutsman said that if there is interest they will pursue it. Stutsman said that Portland and Cedar Rapids have started on this. Meyers said that Steve Fugate would a good source. Harney said that both Fugate and Parker said that there are cold weather issues. Spenler said that biodiesel is all the City is using now.
R. Sullivan said that the Parking Committee minutes are online. He said that parking continues to be an issue in the area of the Administration Building. There are places like Secondary Roads and Conservation where it isn't an issue at all. R. Sullivan said that one issue is whether they have a one size fits all policy or not given these differences. The Committee met with University of Iowa’s Parking and Transportation Director Dave Ricketts to talk about their issues. R. Sullivan said that they are waiting to get an architect hired for the Health and Human Services (HHS) building and Kempf will work with them on available spots. R. Sullivan said that it is fair to say that for people who work in the area of the Administration Building parking will be a problem. Kempf said that parking is one component of the programming of the HHS building. Without the National Guard Armory they will barely have enough space to get by, which means that they won't have enough space. R. Sullivan said that the Committee is open to having others join. Kempf said that they really need to wait until they have expertise on hand to evaluate what their needs are. Kempf said that it is safe to say that there will be changes in the parking policy; they just aren’t sure exactly what those changes will be. Harney noted that concerns should be directed to Kempf or R. Sullivan.
R. Sullivan said that the idea for go green at work is something he got out of a magazine. There are 10 suggestions for going green in the workplace which saves resources and money. He passed the article out to department heads for ideas.
R. Sullivan said that members of the Buy Here campaign with the Chamber of Commerce will be coming to speak to the Board at some point. R. Sullivan said that it doesn't do the Board much good to buy in if department heads and elected officials don't do it. R. Sullivan said that before they come, it would be good to have feedback. R. Sullivan encouraged everyone to read the handout and let the Board know of questions and concerns. Harney said that people should support the local economy when they can.
Social Services Coordinator Amy Correia said that United Way is hosting a Celebrate Your Community event on March 28, 2007 at the Levitt Center. Correia also reported on a recent Decategorization meeting.
Conservation Director Harry Graves noted the camp grounds at Kent Park will open on April 27, 2007. He said that controlled burn season is underway and they have burned 198 acres in four days. They are getting ready for spring. The completion of the burn season will coincide with the opening of the parks. The grand opening for the Knight Pavilion will hopefully be in July.
County Auditor Tom Slockett said that there are some bills going through the legislature effecting elections. One requires that electronic voting equipment have a paper trail. Johnson County's system has a paper trail. The electronic voting equipment is on display in the lobby. Slockett noted that another bill is proposing same day registration. The estimates are that 10% to 15% of people who vote will register on election day. Some of those people have problems, and this will increase traffic in the building on election day. Slockett said that the Parking Committee should keep in mind how busy the Auditor's Office is before an election, especially the last month or last few weeks before a general election.
Sheriff’s Major Steve Dolezal said that Johnson County and the City of Iowa City Police Department are co-winners of the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) award and were nominated because of the response to the tornado.
Wilmoth said that the legislature this session has done more for public health than they've done in all the previous years combined. Wilmoth said that he's very excited by this. He said that they tried to be very cautious about what they would be able to accomplish, but a lot of public health activity has happened. Harney added that the Public Health department has been very busy putting together the epidemic flu policy.
Kempf said that they are coming up on the anniversary of the tornado. He congratulated the Sheriff's Office on the PSAP award. Tornado Awareness Week is coming up and he encouraged staff to review the policies so that they know where to go in the event of a tornado or other emergency. Kempf said that they are heading into the busy season. He said there will be no air conditioning in March. He said that they had a terrific response to architecture and engineering RFP requests for the HHS building. The rates are more competitive than he had anticipated. The first round of interviews are scheduled on April 16, 2007. They are also planning for the new SEATS and Secondary Roads facilities. Cost projections are on track for that facility as well. They are also cleaning up and getting ready for summer. Kempf thanked DHS and MH/DD who came together and were able to find more space for the MH/DD Department. Kempf said that people don't realize how tight space is at DHS. Slockett said that his office has windows on the east and the south. He asked if the ventilation system is running. Kempf said the ventilation is running but the temperature is the same as outside as it uses outside air.
Brase said that SEATS went live with scheduling software today. Next week they go live with a pilot project on mobile data communicators for the drivers.
Schultz said that they've added aerial photos to the GIS system for the 1930s and 1990s. They have also sent a copy to a printer for a sample draft of road atlases. The phones are converted to the new system. She said that they do have remote call forwarding.
Mental Health/Developmental Disabilities Director Elaine Sweet thanked everyone involved in finding them extra space. Sweet said the State Payment Program has expanded. They acquired 160 cases. The Jail Crisis Program and Mobile Crisis Program have also expanded. MH/DD also reacquired administration of the medication fund. Sweet said that they are watching for legislative activity. She said that they are in the test phases for a Targeted Case Management module of their management information system software that they jointly own with Polk County.
Spenler said that they've been working on a committee for a joint communications center. Senate file 90 passed which allows for funding of a the center. May 5, 2007 is the annual EMS fair at Coral Ridge Mall.
Planning and Zoning Administrator Rick Dvorak said that they will probably be having more applications for plattings and rezonings. They will be presenting the first County Sensitive Areas Ordinance Policy. The Trails Advisory Committee had their first meeting. Janelle Rettig has been elected chair. Dvorak said that building permits are also increasing.
Juvenile Court Administrator Lloyd Smith said that their detention plans are on schedule. This Friday they will be sitting down with Linn County to work over differences in the contract. Johnson County is now the fifth largest county in the state and is likely to edge out Black Hawk County in the next three to five years. They anticipate the need for more staff soon. Their staff will increase by one in July of the next fiscal year. There is a proposed bill in Des Moines regarding mandatory school attendance. It will make the mandatory school age 18 or 12th grade. That will put another segment of the population under the juvenile delinquency purview. He said that space and financial considerations are impacting them.
City Assessor Dennis Baldridge said that this is a reassessment year, so they are trying to get their assessments out. They will be sending out residential values this week. They will be getting commercial values out by the April 15th deadline. The Board of Review dates for appeals are being expanded to June 5th. Baldridge said that the assessments are going up but not as much as two years ago.
Baier said that there will be a review of all VA facilities in the US. The Department of Veteran Affairs has a maintenance balance of $519 million. $573 million is proposed for next year. Baier said that the FEMA 25 program has been approved. The first half of that money was received. Baier said that he worked with County Treasurer Tom Kriz on this policy. Baier said that the County Grant Veterans Program will get a match from the legislature if the County can come up with $20,000. He said that the Spring School will begin on the week of April 16, 2007. Baier noted that on June 2, 2007, he and his wife will be observing their 50th wedding anniversary at the Country Inn Suites in Coralville from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. He appreciated the FY 08 budget that the Board approved. He said that Scott County had to cut back eleven programs and some counties had to cut back services that they offer. He commended the Board for coming up with a fair and reasonable budget for FY 08.
Shramek said that collective bargaining season has come to a close. Two voluntary agreements with PPME were approved, and they accepted the fact finding resolution with the AFSCME unit of the Ambulance department. They also completed the paper work for health care coverage. Shramek said that they have started working on the FY 07 merit budget amendment. Shramek noted that this is Vileta's last week.
County Engineer Greg Parker said that they have removed their plows off the trucks in anticipation of summer. Parker joked that because they've removed their plows there will probably be one more snowstorm. All engineering staff are getting ready for the upcoming construction season as well as dust control activities.
R. Sullivan said that the Board has a quarterly meeting with Iowa City, Coralville, the School District, and North Liberty. They always get asked if there are agenda items for that meeting. He said that if there are things that should be discussed with that group department heads should let the Board know.
Stutsman noted there have been a lot of issues with County roads this spring and the Board has been getting a lot of phone calls. Stutsman explained that the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC) is having a golf tournament on June 9, 2007. The proceeds go to the ISAC scholarship. There are different sponsorships available for the tournament. Stutsman said that the ISAC scholarship is a very worthwhile program.
Neuzil thanked all department heads for the job they do. Neuzil said that there is a space needs work session with the Board at 9:00 a.m. on March 28, 2007.
Claiborne said that April 16, 2007 is the last day to get budget amendments to him. Claiborne noted that he will be adopting a 13 year old girl on April 5, 2007.
Harney said that they have copies of the HHS Architectural and Engineering RFPs if people want to look at them. All are close on cost, but there are some variables.
R. Sullivan said that with Vileta leaving and with the fair around the corner, people should talk to Kempf, Meyers, or himself about what people need in terms of space. Shramek said that Vileta ordered fair prizes on Monday.
The Board and department heads scheduled their next meeting on May 15, 2007 at 1:30 p.m.
Adjourned at 2:35 p.m.
Attest: Tom Slockett, Auditor
By Casie Kadlec, Recording Secretary