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2016-10-06 Finance Committee Minutes Open SessionFinance Committee Meeting Open Session October 6, 2016 MINUTES - OPEN SESSION FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING OCTOBER 6, 2016 AT 5:00 PM 8t" FLOOR BOARDROOM, CITY HALL Present: Mayor D. Darling Councillor D. Merrithew Councillor D. Reardon Councillor S. Casey Councillor G. Norton Councillor G. Sullivan Also Present: City Manager J. Trail Commissioner of Finance and Treasurer K. Fudge Comptroller C. Graham Senior Manager, Financial Planning H. Nguyen Commissioner of Transportation & Environment Services M. Hugenholtz Deputy City Manager N. Jacobsen Commissioner Saint John Water B. McGovern Commissioner Growth and Community Development J. Hamilton City Solicitor J. Nugent Fire Chief K. Clifford Assistant Comptroller Finance C. Lavigne General Manager Parking and Transit Commissions I. MacKinnon Common Clerk J. Taylor Administrative Assistant K. Tibbits 1. Meeting Called To Order Councillor Merrithew called the Finance Committee open session meeting to order. 1.1 Approval of Minutes — September 15, 2016 Moved by Councillor Sullivan, seconded by Councillor Reardon: RESOLVED that the minutes of the Finance Committee meeting of September 15, 2016 be approved. LTA IQI[Q►[4L1:k]k]1if91 Moved by Councillor Sullivan, seconded by Councillor Reardon: RESOLVED that the agenda for the open session meeting of the Finance Committee be approved. MOTION CARRIED. Finance Committee Meeting Open Session October 6, 2016 1.2 Public Safety Services Referring to the submitted presentation, Chief Clifford commented on the challenges in providing fire service to the City and potential opportunities that exist in terms of revenue generation. Goods and services have been reduced in an effort to control budgets which has caused a deficit in the department's assets as a result of this restricted spending. Moved by Mayor Darling, seconded by Councillor Reardon: RESOLVED that the presentation entitled, "Fire Rescue and Suppression Services 2017 Service Based Budget", be received for information. MOTION CARRIED. 1.3 Transportation and Environment Services Mr. Hugenholtz reviewed the submitted presentation. Transportation and Environment Services includes roadway maintenance, sidewalks, pedestrian traffic, storm water, solid waste, engineering department, and parks and recreation services. The Transportation and Environment Services budget is especially vulnerable to severe weather events and also to contract costs related to asphalt and roadway maintenance, which could be a variable in the 2017 contract costs. To achieve a balanced budget, discretionary spending was reduced, some goods and services cut, annual street sweeping program brought in-house, and savings in salaries through anticipated workforce attrition. Continuous improvement initiatives have reduced some of the service impacts. Continuous improvement is ongoing and additional opportunities have been identified. Mr. Trail commented on the developing theme of departments having a slight increase in salaries and benefits, offset by a corresponding decrease in goods and services. Without growth, there is little flexibility left in terms of reducing the operating budget and the impact to service delivery may need to be considered. Responding to a comment, Mr. Hugenholtz stated that approximately $4M has been allocated in the capital budget for routine capital renewal projects, but ideally it would be better funded through the operating budget. Moved by Councillor Sullivan, seconded by Councillor Norton: RESOLVED that the Finance Committee recommend to staff that if revenue opportunities become available that funds be shifted from the capital budget to the operating budget. MOTION CARRIED. Moved by Mayor Darling, seconded by Councillor Reardon: RESOLVED that the presentation entitled, "2017 Service Based Budget Transportation and Environment Services", be received for information. LTA IQ1[47►[4L1:k]k]11191 1.4 Transit and Parking Administration Mr. MacKinnon reviewed the submitted report. With respect to the 2017 budget, a $ 247,000 increase in revenue is targeted largely due to the new zone in the South end. A Communication Plan is underway and it remains hopeful that the Transportation Plan will provide important input to the overall strategic plan. Finance Committee Meeting Open Session October 6, 2016 Enhanced marketing and communication is planned, both drivers of revenue. It is unlikely that transit will ever be profitable but hopeful that transit will be able to reduce the subsidy received from the City. Moved by Councillor Merrithew, seconded by Councillor Reardon: RESOLVED that the presentation entitled, "2017 Service Based Budget Transit and Parking Administration Services", be received for information. LTA W1[47►[GL1all all11191 1.5 Corporate Services Mr. Jacobsen commented on the submitted presentation as it relates to the City Manager's office. Service areas include Human Resources, Corporate Communications, Strategy and Continuous Improvement Department and Special Projects. There have been annual increases in salaries and benefits, while goods and services have stayed the same or decreased, similar in the trends seen in other departments. Mr. Taylor commented on the submitted presentation related to the Common Clerk service area, including budgets for Common Council, Mayor's Office, Cultural Affairs and arts and culture grants. Consistent with other service areas, the goods and services budget has been decreased to offset the increase in salaries and benefits in order to maintain a 0% budget for 2017. Responding to a question, Mr. Taylor stated that the Council budget does not include a potential increase in Council salaries. Mr. Nugent commented on the submitted presentation as it relates to the Legal Department. He addressed the historical trends and the continued downward trend of goods and services, which for the most part is associated with necessary expenses such as memberships to the law society, continuing education requirements, and subscriptions to legal databases. Little room exists for further reduction to goods and services. Mr. Jacobsen stated that in addition to reducing the overall goods and services budget, the City's overall permanent establishment was reduced by 73 positions, or 8.3% of the workforce, in the past decade. These are challenges the City will continue to face if significant revenue growth is not seen on a go forward basis. Responding to a comment, Mr. Fudge indicated that staff can provide a summary of services the City provides to its agencies, boards and commissions as well as the services that the City is charging for. Moved by Mayor Darling, seconded by Councillor Sullivan: RESOLVED that the presentation entitled, "2017 Service Based Budget Corporate Services", be received for information. MOTION CARRIED. 1.6 2017 Draft General Capital Budget Mr. Fudge commented on the submitted 2017 draft General Capital Budget. Discussion included considerations on contingent projects and the need to prioritize those projects. The committee and Council should carefully consider the contingent budget envelope as it will signal to the other partners what the City considers its priorities. Responding to a comment, Mr. Trail noted that a plan for the future of the City's existing arenas is required which will include a plan for reinvestment and capital replacement. Adjournment Finance Committee Meeting Open Session October 6, 2016 Moved by Councillor Sullivan, seconded by Councillor Norton: RESOLVED that the Finance Committee open session meeting held on Thursday, October 6, 2016 be adjourned. LTA [III[[47►[GL1ilk]ilk] Iif91 The Finance Committee meeting held on October 6, 2016 was adjourned at 7:25 p.m.