Budget and Finance Committee

January 13, 2004 at 7:30 am

Room 304, County Office Building

DRAFT MINUTES

Committee Present: Dr. Paul DiGiovanni, Vice Chair; Kay Breed, Marilyn Brown, Danny Ross, Carol Tytler, Newell Willcox – Absent: Kurt Behrenfeld, Chairman

Others Present: Scott Steve, Legislative Chairman; Scott Schrader, County Administrator; Angie Wyatt, Secretary to Scott Schrader; Don Ferris, County Treasurer; Carolyn Kennedy, Deputy County Treasurer; Jim Dempsey, Convention and Visitors Bureau Director; Eric Mulvilhill, WXHT 101.5; Brian Liberatore, Cortland Standard

Vice Chairman, Paul DiGiovanni called the meeting to order at 7:35a.m.

MOTION BY CAROL TYTLER – 2^ND BY MARILYN BROWN TO ACCEPT THE MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 6, 2004 MEETING WITH THE FOLLOWING CORRECTIONS:

 

1. Paul DiGiovanni was present (recorded as being present and absent)
2. Danny Ross was present (was recorded twice as being absent)

ALL VOTED IN FAVOR WITH CORRECTIONS – PASSED

1. Authorize Agreement, Cortland County Convention and Visitors Bureau / Innkeepers MOTION BY DANNY ROSS – 2^ND BY MARILYN BROWN – ALL VOTED IN FAVOR – PASSED. 

Justification: Jim Dempsey provided a memo outlining the allocations for the various agencies. The County will receive an administrative fee of $29,250.00. Jim informed the Committee that there would be accountability from each of the agencies on how the money is spent.

2. Authorize Agreement, Finger Lakes Library Association MOTION BY CAROL TYTLER – 2^ND BY MARILYN BROWN – ALL VOTED IN FAVOR – PASSED

Justification: This provides library services to people who live outside the City of Cortland.

3. Authorize Payment, Tompkins Cortland Community College (Operating Budget 2004-0005) – MOTION BY MARILYN BROWN – 2^ND BY KAY BREED – ALL VOTED IN FAVOR – PASSED

Justification: There was no discussion.

4. Amend Resolution 410-04, Authorize Agreement, Real Property Tax Services (OCE Scanner/ Printer) – MOTION BY MARILYN BROWN – DANNY ROSS – ALL VOTED IN FAVOR – PASSED

Justification: There was no discussion

MOTION BY MARILYN BROWN – 2^ND BY KAY BREED TO APPROVE AGENDA ITEM NUMBERS, 5-6-7-8-9-11-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-20 – ALL VOTED IN FAVOR – PASSED

AGENDA ITEM NUMBERS 10-12-21 REMOVED FROM CONSENT AGENDA FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION

5. Create GIS Specialist Trainee (part-time, temporary)/ Amend Budget Planning Department

6. Accept Grant/ Authorize Agreement, Health Department/Jacobus Center for Reproductive Health (ZAP)

7. Accept Funds/ Authorize Agreement, Health Department/Administration-Special Programs (Cancer Services Program)

8. Authorize Agreement, Mental Health Department (Intensive Case Management)

9. Amend 2005 Budget, Mental Health Department (Horizon House)

11. Authorize Agreement/ Environmental Monitoring, Highway Department/ Landfill

(# 10 & # 11 Resolutions were reversed on the Agenda)

13. Authorize Agreement, Cortland County Department of Social Services (Concurrent Planning Services)

14. Authorize Agreement, Area Agency on Aging (Home Care for Cortland County, Inc.)

15. Authorize Agreement, Area Agency on Aging

(State Long Term Care Ombudsman Program)

16. Authorize Application, Area Agency on Aging (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program)

18. Authorize One-Stop Operator Agreement Between the Cayuga-Cortland Workforce Investment Board and the Cayuga-Cortland Workforce Development One-Stop Operator Consortium comprised of The Cayuga-Cortland County Departments of Employment and Training and The New York State Department of Labor at Cortland and Experience Works of Central NY

19. Authorize Litigation, Medicaid Pharmaceutical Fraud, County Attorney

10. Modify Refuse Disposal Fee (Highway Department/Landfill) – MOTION BY

MARILYN BROWN – 2^ND BY NEWELL WILLCOX – VOTING YES: KAY BREED, CAROL TYTLER, DANNY ROSS, PAUL DIGIOVANNI – VOTING NO: MARILYN BROWN, NEWELL WILLCOX – PASSED

Justification: Marilyn Brown asked why the tipping fee was being reduced so much. Scott Schrader explained that lowering the tipping fee from $60/Ton to $47/Ton is being done to increase the flow to our landfill in competition with other landfills. Committee members were concerned that the landfill would fill up quicker and we would then have to build another cell and a new cell would be expensive. Scott Schrader indicated that if haulers go elsewhere, it would be impacting our tax rate. This would be evaluated on a monthly basis. Scott Schrader stressed that this is an economic move and that if we had to close the landfill we would still have a lot of expenses such as leachate transport, soil/water monitoring and manpower. The members of the Committee who voted affirmatively prefer that this issue go to the full Legislature.

11. Original Resolution: Accept Bid, Authorize Agreement – (_______________________-

Justification: Marilyn Brown and other Committee members do not want to see anymore Resolutions with "blanks". Scott Schrader informed the Committee that the current Tenant had a right for 1^st refusal and the deadline date was today (1/13/05). Scott Schrader further informed the Committee that after a conversation with the current Tenant the other day – he does not believe that the current Tenant is going to enter into the lease agreement for MH-1 and that David Jones will most likely rent the MH-1 Hangar. The Committee then amended the Resolution adding the name and the term of the lease which would be March 1, 2005 to February 28, 2006.

Justification: Lexis Nexis is a computer program used by county legal departments/divisions for legal research.

 

1. Occupancy Tax Report – Jim Dempsey (This discussion item was covered by the discussion of Resolution Number 1).
2. 2006 Budget Schedule – Paul DiGiovanni asked what the 2006 budget timeline would be and when the proposed budget would be released. He would like to see it released before the November, 2005 General Election. Scott Schrader indicated that NYS Charter Provisions does not allow delivery of a County Budget prior to October 1^st. Scott Schrader would do his best to submit the proposed budget by October 15, 2005. Marilyn Brown does not want to see the budget process rushed for the purpose of the election.
3. Balance Sheets Memo From Don Ferris – The balance sheets distributed were for October, 2004 and November 2003 & 2004. Carol Tytler asked why there was no balance sheet for December, 2004. Carolyn Kennedy said that they had not received all the bank statements yet. After a discussion on accounting procedures and purchase order problems with the Munis system, members of the Committee asked why it was not detected during any audits. Scott Steve requested that Rick McNeilly come in and present a report to the Committee relative to closing the books and not detecting the Munis purchase order problems. The books will be closed by March 1, 2005; the AUD will be completed by March 31, 2005; and the audit will be able to begin in mid-April, 2005.

MOTION TO ADJOURN BY NEWELL WILLCOX – 2^ND BY MARILYN BROWN – ALL VOTED IN FAVOR – MEETING ADJOURNED AT 9:10A.M.

Minutes prepared by Angie Wyatt, Secretary to Scott Schrader.

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