MVM City Council Budget Discussion Items-Council Summary #1THE CITY OF
DUB E
MEMORANDUM
July 8, 2003
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: City Council Budget Discussion Items
Attached is a summary for the July 9 City Council meeting that presents only those
items that received four votes at the City Council work session. I have excluded those
items that are now recommended for funding due to the Homestead Tax Credit and
Non -General fund wage adjustments. I have also excluded those items that were listed
for follow-up information only.
,s,
Michael C. Van Milligen
MCVM/jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, Corporation Counsel
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
COUNCIL SUMMARY #1
June 24, 2003
Attachment 1
CITYWIDE
Package
Citywide
Recommendation
Non -Union wage
adjustment
Reduction/impact to Current Operations
FY04 ($349,876)
FY05 ($355,187)
CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE
5
*
Attachment
3
Pg. 11
Elimination of the Wellness
Program. Savings of
$9,700.
The Wellness Program provides among other activities,
diagnostic tests for employees. Eliminating this program
could mean that a disease or serious condition may go
undetected for some time and cost more to treat at a later
date.
6
*
Attachment
6
Pa. 17
Eliminates the Graphic Artist
position at the end of
August. Savings of $50,708
versus $60,858. Cable TV
funds.
Forms preparation will need to be done by department clerical
staff. Promotional materials will be prepared in-house, with
existing software tools. The quality will not be the same level
produced by the Graphic Artist.
ENGINEERING/PUBLIC WORKS
1
*
Elimination of
This currently vacant position would have provided for
Attachment 5
Engineering Assistant II
additional inspection of subdivisions to ensure that
Pg. 14
developers construct infrastructure that meet City of
Dubuque standards. Currently, Engineering inspectors are
spread thinly over multiple project sites resulting in
extended periods of time when infrastructure, that will
become City's maintenance responsibility in the future, is
installed without a proper level of inspection.
The Ell position would have inspected private
developments to ensure that improvements are
constructed as approved through the Major and Minor Site
review process (planned and manage growth).
In addition, the EII position would have inspected
construction sites to ensure that adequate erosion control
measures are in place in the initial stages of the work and
that they are maintained property throughout the project.
The position would have provided drafting and preliminary
design, under the supervision of staff engineers, of streets,
sewers, and other miscellaneous Capital Improvement
Projects that are currently budgeted. Over the past few
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years, a backlog of storm and sanitary sewer projects has
formed due to the time demands on current staff. The Toss
of this position will result in longer response time to citizen
requests for information and to respond to complaints.
Input of GIS information and project information updates
would be delayed. Assistance to other departments for
engineering assistance for projects would become a lower
priority. Savings of $19,050 General Fund and $40,577
Service Fund.
2
*
Attachment 3
Pg. 11
Reduce Overtime
Elimination of General Fund overtime pay. Certain tasks
will be delayed and potentially left undone, particularly in
regard to administrative matters. Savings of $8,000.
FINANCE
3
*
Attachment 5
Pg. 14
Eliminate summer Intern
Work to assist in preparation of workpapers for the annual audit
would be reassigned to other personnel, increasing their work
load $2,000 in General Fund.
HUMAN RIGHTS
2
Eliminate Human Rights
This decision package eliminates the seasonal legal
*
Intern Position. Savings
intern position beginning in May 2004, and allocates HUD
Attachment 5
$13,872 General Fund.
funding from the FY04 budget to cover the intern's
Pg. 14
services from July 1 - August 15, 2003. Elimination of the
intern position will increase the case investigation duties
of the Director, effectively cutting in half the time that the
Director is available for activities beyond case
processing. As a result, the following services will need
to be reduced or eliminated as indicated:
1) Faces & Voices - restructured to a one -day event
handled by volunteers
2) Dubuque Dispute Resolution Center - eliminated
3) Training for employers - eliminated
4) The Director will no longer hold leadership positions in
professional organizations, and other outreach and
education will be performed based on community needs,
commission priorities, and staff and commissioner
availability as caseload fluctuates.
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LEGAL
1
*
Attachment 5
Pg. 14
Eliminate Seasonal Intern.
Savings of $7,008 in
General Fund.
This decision package eliminates the seasonal intern
position as of August 1, 2003, decreasing budgeted
amount from $10,011 ($9,300 in wages and .0765 for
FICA) to $3,003 (July 1 through July 31, 2003). During
the timeframe of August 1 through August 15, 2003,
intern will perform fair housing work for Human Rights
and be paid with HUD funds.
Impact would be as follows:
1. Adds approximately 8-10 hours to work week in
which City Solicitor will have to perform on
weekends or at home, regarding traffic,
administrative search warrants, etc.
2. City Solicitor will no longer be able to efficiently
work on updating ordinances, relating to the Police
and Human Rights Departments.
3. Response time for opinions will be significantly
longer.
2
*
Attachment 3
Pg. 11
Eliminate Budgeted
Amount For "Education &
Training"
This decision package eliminates budgeted amount for
the "Education & Training" line item (74% of $1,300 or
$962.00 in General Fund).
Impact would be as follows:
1. It is essential for attorneys to keep abreast of the
constant changes relating to legal matters and
therefore will require Corporation Counsel and
Assistant City Attorneys to fund as a personal
expense.
CARNEGIE-STOUT PUBLIC LIBRARY
1
*
Attachment 5
Page 14
Reduce hours and
eliminate $12,778 in
overtime. General Fund.
Library hours will be cut to 65 from 69 hours per week.
4
*
Attachment 3
Page 11
Reduce programming
expense by 47%. Savings
$4,285 General Fund.
This reduction in programming will result in the "pot"
being shared 25% for adults, 25% by Young Adults, and
50% for children's programs. Cost breakdown provided
in earlier correspondence.
3
Parking System
7
Attachment 7
Page 21
Reduce courtesy ticket
program area---$20,000
Currently approximately 30% of meter violations are
issued as courtesy tickets causing a reduction in
projected revenue in this area. This package would
adjust the policy that courtesy tickets would only be
issued in an area from Bluff Street to Iowa Street and
from First Street to Fifth Street with an increase of
$20,000 in revenue.
POLICE
10
*
Attachment 5
Page 14
Eliminate Computer
Support Help Desk
Position. Savings $46,343
General Fund.
Elimination of this position poses a hardship on the
development of our computer users located within the
department. The police department in cooperation with
communications and the Dubuque County Sheriffs Office
implemented a new and innovative criminal collection
database — Emergitech. This $500,000+ system
integrates all computer systems located in the law
enforcement center eliminating double entry and allows
comprehensive searches throughout the system. The
system remains new to many and has great depth and a
wealth of information.
This system and the many other software packages can
be a tremendous tool if persons are trained and equipped
in their use. Unfortunately, many users of the system are
self-taught or minimally trained, making use of these
systems limited at best. This position was created to
provide monthly training and initial trouble shooting to
develop individual computer abilities. Without the
position, we continue to rely on those self-taught and
Information Services to provide technical and training
support.
11
*
Attachment 5
Page 14
Eliminates the civilian
position of Computer
Intern. Savings $11,587
General Fund.
Elimination of this position creates additional pressure on
Information Services in providing consistent attention to
the police department mobile computer terminals (MCT)
located in each of our patrol vehicles. The Intern acts as
the primary contact regarding malfunctions and repairs
related to the MCT. Due to the age of these computers,
daily interaction has become necessary to maintain their
function ability. Additionally, the communications center
will be called upon to relay and research the Iowa
System for driver's license verifications, motor vehicle
registrations, wants and warrants, and other criminal
history checks normally accomplished through the
individual officer and his/her use of the MCT.
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TRANSIT
2
*
Attachment 5
Page 14
Increase Fixed Route and
Paratransit fares option B.
Savings $84,602 Transit
Fund. Additional $3,000
savings from charge for
tours and reduced
software maintenance
expense.
By increasing fixed route and ADA paratransit
passengers to $1.50 general public fixed route, $0.75
half fare fixed route for students, seniors and persons
with disabilities and $2.00 ADA paratransit and factoring
in 15% attrition in overall ridership due to fare increases,
this decision package could generate an additional
$84,602 in farebox revenue.
3
*
Attachment 5
Page 14
Eliminate Fixed route
Saturday service. Net
Savings $32,393 Transit
Fund.
Current Saturday schedules require a total of 60 hours of
service and are delivered using part time drivers. At an
average of $12.44 per hour for driver wage plus IPERS
and SSI, the driver expense alone total $44,015 per
year. Farebox collections for Saturdays total $11,648 per
year. By eliminating Saturday fixed route service, this
decision package could generate a savings of $32,367 in
driver expenses.
*Included in the City Manager's revised recommendation to City Council.
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