Lancaster County
Board of Commissioners
Board of Commissioners
lancaster.ne.gov
A G E N D A
Mid-Year Budget Review
Lancaster County Board of Commissioners
Old Federal Building - 129 N. 10th Street
Aging Department, Room #434
Thursday, January 29, 1998
8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
AGENDA ITEM
1 8:00am ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE 1994 LINCOLN-LANCASTER COUNTY
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN - Tim Stewart, Planning Director
2 9:00am BUDGET OVERVIEW - Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer
a. Review of Current Budget
1. Expenditure Budget
2. Revenue Budget
3. Other Issues Including Keno, Lids, Etc.
b. 5-Year Budget Forecast
c. Mid-Year Agency Funding Requests Including Computer
Requests
3 12:00pm LUNCH
a. Discussion of Legislative Issues
Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant
4 1:00pm TOUR OF OLD FEDERAL BUILDING
5 1:45pm REVIEW OF COUNTY JUVENILE JUSTICE PROGRAMS
Dennis Banks, Attention Center Director
Kit Boesch, Human Services Director
6 3:00pm REVIEW OF 1997 GOALS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS & 1998 GOALS
"Draft Copy" MINUTES Lancaster County Board of Commissioners Mid-Year Budget Review Old Federal Building, 129 N 10th Street Aging Department, Room #434 Thursday, January 29,1998 a.m. Session Commissioners Present: Linda Steinman, Chair Kathy Campbell Darlene Tussing Larry Hudkins Steve Svoboda Others Present: Kerry Eagan, Chief Administrative Officer Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer Ann Taylor, County Clerk's Office AGENDA ITEM 1 ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE 1994 LINCOLN-LANCASTER COUNTY COMPREHENSIVE PLAN - Tim Stewart, Planning Director; Mike DeKalb & Nicole Fleck-Tooze, Planning Department Tim Stewart, Planning Director, reported that the Planning Commission has completed review of the 45 amendments to the Lincoln-Lancaster County Comprehensive Plan proposed during the Annual Review. He noted that of these, two amendments were withdrawn, one was placed on Pending and two were adopted that were different than the Planning Staff recommendation. Stewart reported that two major Subarea Plans were adopted by the Planning Commission: * North Subarea Plan - extend the future urban limit along 56th Street, north of Interstate 80, adding approximately 4,000 acres to the future urban area * South Subarea Plan - located east of Wilderness Park, will extend south to Saltillo Road and west to ½ mile west of 56th Street, adding approximately 2,800 acres to the future urban area Stewart noted that the South Subarea Plan does not include any land uses other than urban residential. Stewart also reported the following Planning Commission actions that could impact the County: * Approval of the merged Lincoln Benefit Life and Firethorn Development Company proposals * Seacrest proposal for low density residential development at 98th & Old Cheney Road on placed on Pending Stewart noted that the Seacrest proposal includes lots of three acres or more that would receive all City services, with the exception of sewage. He stated that this would be a major change in City policy. Campbell reported that three rural neighborhoods have requested the County to provide payment of up-front road improvement costs, with reimbursement by the homeowners over a period of time. She requested Stewart and DeKalb to attend a discussion of the Rural Road Improvement Districts issue scheduled for the Thursday, February 19th County Board of Commissioners meeting. Hudkins asked what was planned for the area north of the Highlands subdivision. Stewart reported that development of 53 acres of Commercial zoned property, with Urban Village designation, is proposed for the area North of 34th Street and west of 1st Street. In response to a question from Hudkins, Stewart reported that the applicant has requested the addition of a bridge overpass on NW 12th over Highway 34. He noted, however, that funding may be a problem. The Board requested that the Planning Department coordinate a joint worksession and an evening public hearing for the City Council and County Board on the proposed Amendments to the Comprehensive Plan. Stewart also reported that the Planning Commission recommended the following, which were different than the Planning Department Staff recommendations: * That proposed development at 70th Street & Highway 2 be changed to Commercial designation * A low density development at Crooked Creek, 134th & A Street * A low density development at SW 70th Street & W Van Dorn Street Stewart also reported that the Planning Department has agreed to delay development of a low density residential policy within the 3 Mile Limit, to allow for further study. Stewart displayed a map of Wilderness Park & Environs, noting that three separate proposals for the park were presented at the Comprehensive Plan Annual Review: * Creation of a Wilderness Park Subarea plan * Change land use designation for a portion of the area from industrial to agricultural * Require a moratorium on development within the Wilderness Park environs Stewart reported that the Planning Commission has recommended approval of the amendment to the Comprehensive Plan to develop a subarea plan for Wilderness Park, addressing issues of ecology, transportation, stormwater, land use and park use. Stewart suggested that further discussion by all of the interest groups of their expectations of the scope of the study and final product was needed. He also suggested that the Board reserve the $100,000 in funds it has pledged towards the Wilderness Park Ecological Study until the focus of the study has been further defined. 2 BUDGET OVERVIEW - Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer a. Review of Current Budget 1. Expenditure Budget Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer, briefly reviewed the expenditure budget (Exhibit A) noting that $1,258,000, excluding Lancaster Manor and Property Management, will be needed for additional appropriations. Problem areas cited were $91,000 for Boarding Contracts and $141,000 for Legal Services in the Juvenile Court area, which was attributed to an increase in the number of filings for juvenile abuse/neglect cases. Gary Lacey, County Attorney, voiced concern regarding the impact implementation of LB 1041, which changes children-related provisions and conform State law to the federal Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, will have on case filing numbers. He recommended that the Board discuss the impact of LB 1041 with Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant, State Senators and Dennis Keefe, Lancaster County Public Defender. Kroeker briefly reviewed General Fund operating expenses, payroll costs, juvenile boarding contract costs, indigent legal costs and Lincoln Regional Center billings (Exhibit A). 2. Revenue Budget Kroeker reviewed the revenue budget (Exhibit A), noting that less revenue is anticipated on Motor Vehicle taxes, due to LB 271, which replaces property tax on motor vehicles with a uniform fee schedule. He also reported that a shortage of approximately $1,000,000 is anticipated on real and personal property tax, due to a change in the payment due date. In response to a question from Hudkins, Kroeker stated that the County will lose approximately five to six hundred thousand on motor vehicle tax collections this year, due to LB 271. He noted that collection of this revenue will shift from motor vehicle taxes to the property tax area. Kroeker also briefly reviewed Keno collections, Inheritance Tax collections, Register of Deeds fees, and year-to-date receipts and disbursements (Exhibit A). Additional projects suggested for the Keno Fund (Page 18) were the Wilderness Park Ecological Study, new furniture for the Hall of Justice/Law Enforcement Center and a grant match for a radio system for the Rural Fire Districts (RFD). An Interlocal Agreement, which would exclude the cost as debt service from the property tax lid, and a Nebraska Association of County Officials (NACO) lease were also suggested as funding mechanism options for the RFD radio system. Budget lids were briefly discussed (Page 21), with Kroeker noting that the second item under Section 2 of LB 989 should be amended to read "Restricted revenues cannot increase by more than last year's restricted revenues plus allowable population growth in excess of two and one-half percent." Board consensus to seek removal of Keno receipts as a restricted revenue in LB 989, which changes budget limits for political subdivisions and school districts. In response to a question from Campbell, Kroeker noted that Lincoln Electric System (LES) is required to pay a tax in lieu of property taxes. He noted that there is an on-going controversy with regards to a payment that LES makes to City of Waverly, which is deducted from the in lieu of tax payment that LES makes to the County. He reported that this payment is governed by Lincoln's Home Rule Charter. Brief discussion took place on LB 1291, which changes provisions relating to Inheritance Tax. Consensus that further study of the bill's impact is needed. Kroeker reviewed the Building Fund budget (Exhibit A), noting that further clarification of LB 989 is needed with regards to use of restricted funds from a qualified sinking fund for capitol improvements. Kroeker reviewed requested adjustments to the Building Fund budget (Exhibit C), noting that the County will need to contribute $270,000 this year and next towards the shortfall on the levy ability of the Building Fund to pay the bonded indebtedness of the new County-City Building. He reported that there is a shortage of approximately $300,000 to $500,000 on the total Public Building Commission project of 29 million. Building rent costs were discussed, and Kroeker noted that the additional allocation figure of $93,898 (Exhibit C, Page 1) should be adjusted to $30,000. Kroeker recommended budgeting an additional $800,000 to $1,000,000 for new furnishings for County Departments moving into the Hall of Justice/Law Enforcement Center (Page 4). 3. Other Issues The Board requested that Norm Agena, County Assessor, appear at the Thursday, February 5th Lancaster County Board of Commissioners meeting to discuss the Board of Equalization schedule for 1998. The Board will review their Fiscal Year 1999 Budget Calendar at that time. Kroeker reported briefly on the projected costs of the Lincoln/Lancaster County Tesseract Payroll System for 1998-2000, prior years' costs incurred by the City of Lincoln and projected start-up expenses for the County (Exhibit D). Kroeker also reported that Steve Hubka, City Finance Officer, has requested the County to pick up the full cost of the Release 96 implementation, which is $42,500. He noted that when the Tesseract payroll system was purchased by the City, Jamie Warner, the City Finance Director at that time, had agreed that the County would not be responsible for any of those costs. However, the County did pay the City $40,000, at that time, to reserve the right to use the payroll system in the future. Kroeker recommended that the County deny the City's request and only agree to share costs based on the ratio of employees, excluding election workers. He also suggested that the County investigate other payroll systems if the issues with the City cannot be resolved. Campbell asked Kroeker if the County has ever requested retroactive funds from the City after an agreement on allocation of funds has been reached. Kroeker stated that he was not aware of any instances, although some negotiation with the City may be necessary with regards to improvements made to the Old Federal Building with Public Building Commission funds. Tim Genuchi, Accounting Operations Manager for the County Clerk's Office, noted that the City's request was related to data processing costs for implementing changes the City made to the basic package. He also noted that the INTEARS time entry system is more complex than that required by the County. The Board requested Linda Steinman, Board Chair; Kerry Eagan, Chief Administrative Officer; Dave Kroeker, Budget & Fiscal Officer; and Tim Genuchi, Accounting Operations Manager for the County Clerk's Office; to meet with Doug Thomas, Information Services Director; Larry Bare, City Finance Director; and Steve Hubka, City Finance Officer, on the matter and make recommendation to the Board. Kroeker suggested that issues related to use of one database, confidentiality concerns and license fee increases for more than 5,000 employees need to be also be addressed in the meeting. b. Five Year Budget Forecast Kroeker briefly reviewed the five year budget forecast (Exhibit E) noting projected appropriations, changes in taxable assessed valuation for the last ten years, a history of tax requirements, a history of General Fund budgets, General Fund payroll costs, debt service commitment, Nebraska Association of County Officials (NACO) leases, and Public Building Commission rents. Kroeker noted than an additional $30,000 may be needed for rental costs, due additional square footage allocated to the County in the Hall of Justice/Law Enforcement Center Building (Page 9). Kroeker also reviewed the reductions and valuation needed to comply with LB 1114, which changes limits on property tax levies for governmental subdivisions and LB 989, which changes budget limits for political subdivisions and school districts (Page 2). He noted that a estimated General Fund Cash Balance figure of $5,130,000 was used in the projections. He stated that this figure was decreased from last year, since the County will be collecting less on personal property and motor vehicle taxes and will be paying out the full amount of the transfer of the Bridge and Road Fund. __________________________ Kandra Hahn Lancaster County Clerk
12 p.m. - 4 p.m. Commissioners Present: Linda Steinman, Chair Kathy Campbell Larry Hudkins Steve Svoboda Darlene Tussing Others Present: Kerry Eagan, Chief Administrative Officer Dave Kroeker, Budget and Fiscal Director The meeting was reconvened by the Chair. 3 LUNCH a. DISCUSSION OF LEGISLATIVE ISSUES Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant Gordon Kissel, Legislative Consultant, appeared and gave a brief summary of documentation distributed (Exhibits (E and F)). He indicated that the Legislation began discussion on LB 695 which would reduce the reimbursement rate of the previous level of $40 per day to counties to $35. Also discussed was LB 306 which would now provide various changes in the dates in the property tax timeline in an attempt to create a longer time for counties to carry out their responsibility. Steinman asked if the rural road allocation was a sum of money that the State would give to the Counties for county road construction? Kissell stated yes, but they do not have a sum yet. On another issue, LB 1142, Kissell stated that the valuation increase would be 15% per property. Eagan asked if LB 1244 on cremation passed. Kissell stated yes. Also discussed was LB 989 regarding the Highway Sinking Fund. Kroeker indicated that the Board can make a decision to put 4% of the restricted fund into a sinking fund for capital improvement. He asked if that was the only exclusion for capital improvement. Kissell said he would have to look at the LB. Other bills discussed were LB 1148 (take Lancaster County out of the 16 county area agland valuation district and put the County into area 9, which would be Dodge, Washington, Saunders, Cass and Sarpy counties) and LB 1186 (do away with the agland valuation districts altogether). 5 REVIEW OF COUNTY JUVENILE JUSTICE PROGRAMS - Dennis Banks, Attention Center Director; Kit Boesch, Human Services Director Kit Boesch, Human Services Director, appeared and gave a brief summary of documentation distributed (Exhibit (G)). She indicated that there is one additional grant, the Restorative Justice grant. She stated that it was a one-time grant that was approved last year and will end in October. When the grant ends in October, there will be no grants available. Campbell stated that Boesch should ask for $100,000 and plan on using it on Trabert Hall, but if something better comes along they will request to make an amendment to the grant and use it for something else. Boesch also briefly overviewed the programs accessible in the Juvenile Justice Delivery System for Lincoln-Lancaster County. Steinman brought up the issue about staff secure. She indicated that they need to decide what to do during the 2-year time period before they build the new staff secure facility. Dennis Banks, Attention Center Director, appeared and indicated that he should be receiving the final draft report from Karen Chinn within the next couple of days so that he can go over any changes. Campbell stated that Ms. Chinn's recommendation is that the 106 beds can be reduced by 15% if the Attention Center expanded their programs. Campbell also wanted to know how much the staff secure facility was going to cost the County to put together and where's the county's money best going to be spent over the next three years. Steinman indicated that the County needs to decide what land is available for developing a staff secure facility and go from there with figuring out how much they will need for this temporary staff secure facility. 6 REVIEW OF 1997 GOALS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND 1998 GOALS The County Board did not review the 1997 Goals and Accomplishments, which are attached to the agenda, but instead discussed the Mid-Year Budget Review Current Year and 1-2 Year Anticipated Changes of Agency Requests (Exhibit (B)). Dave Kroeker briefly summarized and referred to Exhibit I (Fiscal Year 98 Microcomputer Requests). The Board went into discussion regarding the agency requests. The following are items that the Board agreed to approve for 1998. County Clerk - 3 personal computers for Accounting Department 4 keyfile licenses Installation costs County Treasurer - 4 computers 2 printers Register of Deeds - Nothing at this time. Steinman and Kroeker agreed to visit with Dan Nolte on his request. Assessor - 3 - 21 inch monitors 1 microcomputer G.I.S. - Upgrade County GIS server Kroeker stated that the requests for additional costs for the other departments will be discussed in May when the Board asks for additional appropriations. Kroeker distributed the Lancaster County Funding Sources for Fiscal Year 1998 (Exhibit (H)) and discussed the amount of revenue generated by the general government agencies compared to the expense with regards to property tax dollars (page 5). He explained that under the lid it's impossible to reduce the percentage that is spent. Steinman indicated that the Board needs to prioritize where the money is going to go, with the most important items first. The Board went into discussion about the new Hall of Justice. Kroeker stated that the County needs to save as many resources as they can until the Board finds out how much it is going to cost to renovate the County-City Building. Campbell asked if the Board could augment Judy Leech's salary to be an interim operational manager for the new Hall of Justice. The Board discussed bringing the issue up at the next Management Team meeting. At the direction of the Chair, the meeting was adjourned. __________________________ Kandra Hahn Lancaster County Clerk