NOTES – August 2014 BOONE COUNTY COUNCIL MEETING
All members present, Secretaries Crystal Raub and Chelsea
Young
Meeting was called to order at 8:30 a.m.
Council approved the meeting minutes from its July
meeting without amendment.
RE-APPROPRIATIONS:
Assessor (no one present):
Requested moving $111 from supplies to Form 11 to
purchase more forms. Approved.
ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATIONS:
Prosecutor (no one present):
Requested creation of a new line to receive funds for
Victim Restitution monies from check deception cases. No money actually
transferred at this time. Approved.
Highway (Rick Carney):
Requested $40,976 into Mechanics line within the MVH fund. The salary ordinance has two Mechanic
positions, but only one had been filled up to this point. After much
discussion, a motion was made and approved to handle this as a re-appropriation
of funds from the truck driver salary lines.
Clerk (Penny Bogan):
Requested $24,000 into part-time clerical from the Clerk’s
Record Perpetuation fund. The line was not funded in the 2014 budget, but has
been paying out throughout the year. The account currently does not have
sufficient balance to support this request, so a motion was made and approved
for $19,000, with instructions to return later in the year for another
additional appropriation as monies were received.
NEW BUSINESS:
Mike Miller, building maintenance supervisor, asked the
council’s direction on how to handle a proposed request from the CCD fund for
$45,000 in repairs to the jail heating and cooling system. Miller had submitted
the request this month, but was told by the auditor’s office that the CCD did
not have sufficient funds to support the request due to commitments already
allocated for the remainder of the year.
Maj. Mike Nielsen, acting sheriff, introduced Stan Brown,
McCready and Keene, to address council concerns about the rising county contribution
to the fund – about 25% this year – and the county’s reported $1.5M potential unfunded
liability. Mr. Brown noted that the plan currently expends roughly $200,000 per
year, but with projected additional retirements will triple to roughly $600,000
within the next 10 years. Merit deputy retirement age by statute is 52, with
benefits averaging around 30% of pay. Brown explained that the expected
increase in retired officers drawing with the fund combined with a downward
adjustment of the firm’s actuarial assumptions about investment performance
(dropping from 7% to 6.75%). Councilor Thompson noted that the sheriff’s
pension plan – as well as the Public Employee Retirement Fund (PERF), which
covers all other county employees – is a defined benefit plan. In order to
maintain the balance required to fund those promised benefits, more and more of
the county’s revenue must be dedicated to those retirement plans, limiting what
the county can spend on other areas, including salary for current employees.
One option discussed for limiting the cost and making planning easier was the
DROP plan – Deferred Retirement Option Plan – which attempts to incentivize
merit deputies not to stay for their entire possible years of service through a
lump sum payment, but also includes a cap on retirement benefits which would at
least help the council plan for future liabilities. Other suggestions included:
-- Investigate
the Public Safety Income Tax, which could be used to help fund the pension plan
as well.
-- Redefine
“fully vested.” Currently that is defined as 8 years of service OR age 52. Some
counties have changed that to 10 years of service, or age 52 AND 8/10 years of
service. This would have impact only on new hires and only in the long term,
and would require approval of the county’s merit board in addition to the
council.
County Recorder Nikki Baldwin addressed the council about
the possibility of implementing a program called Veterans Honors Rewards. The
program would, through a vendor contracted with the Recorder’s office, provide
discounts from local businesses for veterans who have filed military discharge
papers with the office. Baldwin also noted that the program might help
encourage veterans to file their paperwork, which is required for future
benefits to be received. After an initial set-up fee of $5000, the cost of
annual program maintenance would be $1000. The council discussed the various
merits of the program, as well as whether it would be an appropriate use of
both taxpayer money and the recorder’s office’s time.
Cindy Murphy of the Health Department presented the
annual Boone County Health Assessment, compiled by intern Oyine Ali-George, a
Master’s of Public Health student at IUPUI. The assessment identified five
major areas of concern: Substance Abuse (excessive drinking), Chronic Conditions
(Cancer- & Alzheimer’s-related deaths), Obesity & Nutrition, Mental
Health & Mental Disorders, Tobacco Use. The entire assessment is available
online on the health department’s website. Once the document has been shared
with various stakeholder groups, it will be used as a starting point for a
county health improvement plan.
Bob Clutter, county attorney, on behalf of the
commissioners requested adoption of an ordinance pledging county COIT funds to
back TIF bonds being issued by the Redevelopment Commission for the much-discussed
project at I-74 & State Road 75 in Jamestown. The bonds will be issued by
the RDC and funded by revenues from the TIF district, then backed by first by
Jamestown and then by the county as a final payer should revenue fall short of
projections. Projections from Umbaugh estimate revenue to be more than
sufficient throughout the life of the bond. The council unanimously approved.
The council discussed the need to appoint someone to fill
a vacancy on the Thorntown Public Library Board created by a recent
resignation. The council has tried to establish a policy of publicizing such appointment
openings for at least one month, as well as seeking to fill those openings with
candidates with background in finance and/or accounting. Any interested parties
are asked to contact the council or president Steve Jacob, with the hope of
making the appointment in September or October at the latest.
OLD BUSINESS:
Marcia Wilhoite noted that she, Gene Thompson and Rick
Carney have been working with Umbaugh on a cost projection for upcoming bridge
projects, which should be coming in the near future.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
None.
Meeting adjourned at approximately 10:30.
Next regularly scheduled meeting will be Tuesday, September
9th, at 8:30 a.m.
The county’s annual budget workshops will begin at noon
on Tuesday, September 2nd, continuing Wednesday and Thursday of that
week, 8:30-4.
