Happy Ideas of March (is that a happy occasion?). Sorry once again for not blogging last week. No excuses...I just forgot. But don't fret! I will report today on the actions of the last two weeks.
Road Commission came up once again. I am sure readers would be surprised if it didn't. Not much new this time. We considered a resolution setting public hearings on the transfer of powers, duties and functions of the Road Commission to the Board of Commissioners. Although we have had much testimony already, state law requires two public hearings before we can take any action. In committee, Jim Dravenstatt-Moceri (the Chair of the Road Commission Board) presented a resolution passed by the Road Commission Board (4-0-1) that would have the county take over the HR, Finance, and IT functions from the Road Commission. I thought this was a well written resolution and showed a call for cooperation from the Road Commission. After hearing that information, we considered and passed the resolution setting hearings for the public to comment on the idea of transferring powers. The hearings will be March 27th and April 10th before the Board of Commissioners at 6:30 p.m. in the Board of Commissioners’ Room at the Ingham County Courthouse in Mason. This passed County Services unanimously. It passed the full Board of Commissioners 14-2. Commissioner Todd Tennis said he was being consistent in opposing the takeover and voted no. Commissioner Dale Copedge joined him in opposing the resolution.
The really controversial resolution was a request from St. Vincent Catholic Charities for a permanent waiver of the requirements of the Ingham County Living Wage Policy. In Ingham County, living wage is defined as an hourly wage rate which is equivalent to 125% of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services poverty threshold for a family of four, based on 2,000 hours worked annually. For 2012, the living wage rate is $14.42/hour. Twenty percent (20%) of the hourly rate paid by the employer may be reduced if a comprehensive health care benefits package is provided. Vendors contracting with the County primarily to perform services are required to pay their employees a living wage if (1) the total expenditure of the contract or the total value of all contracts the vendor has with the County exceeds $50,000 in a twelve-month calendar, and (2) The vendor employs five or more employees. Non-profit human services agencies may request a waiver of the provisions of the policy if it
believes that the application of the policy would cause economic harm to the agency in a fashion that would result in the harm created by application of the policy outweighing the benefits of applying the policy.
In 2003, 2004, and again in 2008, the county agreed to requests from St. Vincent for a waiver from the policy provided that adequate yearly progress was being made toward paying its employees a living wage. The 2008 waiver expired on December 31, 2011. St. Vincent again came before the committee requesting an exemption. I asked them several questions. I reminded them that they were supportive of the Living Wage policy and asked us to pass it several years ago. They then came in for an exemption and said that they would work towards paying their employees a living wage. It has been almost ten years and they have not gotten any closer. They said that they cannot get from the $9 per hour to the $14 per hour without shutting down the Refugee program that they run. While I am still very disappointed that they are a charitable organization yet cannot pay their employees enough to stay off of public assistance, I don't want to see the Refugee Program shuttered (which would affect 400-500 clients). As such, I proposed an amendment that would change the permanent exemption to a three-year exemption so they have to again come to the County Commission and tell us what progress has been made. That amendment passed on a 3-2 vote in committee, then the resolution was passed on to the Board floor.
Before the Board meeting, I had an opportunity to talk to the employees. They said that St. Vincent is not making much progress. They asked us to reduce the exemption time to one year so that they can work with St Vincent to get closer to the living wage. If they can work together, then the employees will join St Vincent in coming to the County Commission next year to discuss progress. I indicated support for this idea and, on the Board floor, proposed and passed an amendment to reduce the exemption to one year. On the Board floor, several Commissioners indicated disappointment in St Vincent for not meeting the goal that was committed to several times. It was stated that taxpayer dollars are being used to pay employees wages so low that they need to use other governmental services such as the Ingham Health Plan. The final resolution which granted a one-year waiver passed. I think the vote was 11-5 or so. Commissioners Vickers, Dougan, and Grebner opposed this because they thought that there should be a permanent exemption. Commissioner Tennis and one or two others (my apologies...I can't remember and don't have my notes) opposed it because they don't think there should be an exemption at all.
In other community news, Lansing Community College is holding community strategic forums. They want to hear from involved community members about how the college can better serve our community. They want to know what our community needs and what role should the college play. Here is the schedule of the upcoming forums:
I attended the first one on Monday, March 12 and was very impressed. They are really trying to hear what the community wants, needs, and expects from the college. I have also heard good things from the Tuesday, March 13th event. The third event happened this evening.
Here is information about future forums:
Friday, March 16 8-9:30 am LCC West Campus Auditorium
5708 Cornerstone Drive, Lansing
Tuesday, March 20 6:30-8 pm Eaton Rapids Public Schools, 912 S Greyhound,
Eaton Rapids
Thursday, March 22 8-9:30 am LCC University Center, rooms 203-204
210 W Shiawassee, Lansing
Thursday, March 22 7-8:30 pm LCC West Campus, rooms M119-M120
5708 Cornerstone Drive, Lansing
Monday, March 26 4:30-6 pm LCC Livingston County Center at Parker Campus, Room 201, 402 Wright Rd, Howell
Tuesday, March 27 4:30-6 pm LCC Clinton County Center, Room 172, 1013 S US 27, St. Johns
Thursday, March 29 4:30-6 pm LCC East, Room 112, 2827 Eyde Parkway, East Lansing
Please RSVP to Adrienne Jenkins at (517) 483-1415 or jenkina6@email.lcc.edu
Campaign Update: I had a GREAT fundraiser on Wednesday. Thanks to Jim McGurkin for hosting and opening up his wonderful house. We raised a lot of money, and the checks are still coming in from those who couldn't make it. I continue to attend meetings and talk to constituents at events, and am enjoying getting out in the great weather. Anyone who is looking to help out will have opportunities, apparently earlier than expected due to the awesome weather. Please sign up to volunteer or contribute at www.andyschor.com. Thanks again to everyone who is helping or supportive!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Meijer and Free Publications, 911 Service Plan Update
Welcome to the Schor Report. Sorry for skipping a week last week. I had a death in the family and didn't have time to find a guest blogger. This week, I will try to cover the action for the last two weeks.
The County Services committee then the full Board of Commissioner took up a resolution calling on Meijer stores to continue to have City Pulse and other free magazines available in their store lobbies. Meijer's corporate offices recently decided to discontinue this service, and the City Pulse is calling on them to reverse this decision. The discussion on the Board floor was two-fold: (1) is this county business, and (2) is it a good business decision for Meijer. Commissioner Randy Schafer argued that is up to Meijer to decide what to do with their own business, and what makes business sense and what doesn't. He argued that it isn't county business. Commissioner Dianne Holman agreed, saying that she likes getting the paper there, but up to Meijer to decide. Commissioner Vickers argued that the County in the past has told people to go online (apparently he was referring to the Fair Board) and this should be no different.
Commissioner Deb Nolan pointed out that the Ingham County Commission weighs in on community issues all the time. She pointed out that others have weighed in favorable to the opinions of the Pulse, including the Lansing City Council. She said that there are 3,000 City Pulse publications picked up at Meijer locations weekly and Meijer is an important avenue to get this information out to citizens. She also pointed out that this is county business because public notices and Land Bank notices and other governmental information is in the Pulse and needs to get to residents. Commissioner Rebecca Baher-Cook also pointed out that this resolution is county business because the county shares tax foreclosures and RFP's and other county business. This must be available in places where people get public information. The elderly and others may not be in places where the City Pulse and other free publications are located, but they do go to the grocery store. She argued that this is an important resolution because the County is letting Meijer know that this is a disservice to residents. Commissioner Todd Tennis pointed out that we are not mandating anything, but encouraging Meijer to continue to allow free periodicals at their places of business.
Commissioner Schafer said that the main distribution is in Lansing and East Lansing, and the Pulse doesn't reach large portion of the rest of the county so this is just an urban issue. I responded to that saying that Meijer is in Lansing and East Lansing where the population centers are, but is also in Mason. And, I added that the Leslie paper and Stockbridge paper and other papers are free to residents and could also be carried at Meijer for the out-county residents that shop there. I pointed out that this is county business because we are acting on behalf of our constituents. I re-iterated that this is not an ordinance or mandate, but that this this is county business because the information is important to our constituents and Meijer needs to know the views of the community. The final resolution passed on a 10 - 5 vote, with the 4 Republicans and Commissioner Holman voting no and one Commissioner absent.
We also passed a resolution updating the Ingham County 911 Service Plan. The resolution updated the service plan from 1987. In includes areas services, how they all work, technical considerations, public and private agencies services by the network, etc. We had to pull this and vote on it separately from the items on the consent agenda because of state law requirements.
The final action on the Board floor involved appointments. A motion was made to make appointments to the Fair Board. We had interviewed people in the County Services Committee, but had not made a decision. The Democratic Caucus Chair moved to appoint two individuals, but apparently this information did not make it to the Republican Caucus in time. Some objected to being left out of the deliberations and decisions. Others wanted different members recommended. A motion was made to refer this back to committee for a recommendation and that motion passed 11-4. I supported the motion to send the resolution back to committee. After working in the Legislature for Democrats in the minority, I know what it is like to be kept out of the deliberations. The minority party cannot pass legislation or set the agenda, but they should at least be able to be part of the deliberation. When working in the State Senate and State House, there were plenty of times that the Republicans shut us out completely and that was frustrating when the Democrats represent Michigan residents also. As such, I agreed that the Republicans should be part of the deliberation even if the final decision may or may not be changed.
In County Services, we also heard that the Hawk Island snow park is now open. It was opened for 20 hours of service two weeks ago (Saturday for 8 hours and Sunday for 8 hours) and last weekend it was open all weekend. They are making snow at night when it is cold. With the unseasonable warm weather, it is hard to keep the snow made and not melting, but our staff is working on it. We also had a brief discussion about the Road Commission, and Chair Holman said that there will be an item on the next agenda. She said that she expected the mandatory public hearings to happen in late March or early April and expected discussions to commence soon when the Controller starts to bring recommendations.
In the Human Services Committee, we had an excellent presentation from the Greater Lansing Food Bank. I can't list everything they said, but they are definitely doing greater work for our community. They estimate 71,540 people in Ingham, Eaton, and Clinton counties don't know where their next meal is coming from. 1.3 million pounds of food was distributed to the Ingham County Food Bank network pantries from 2010 to 2011. Beginning July 1, 2012, the Greater Lansing Food Bank and the Mid-Michigan Food Bank will become one food bank. This will create efficiencies in the system. We had a great discussion about how we can get the word out. The Food Bank people mentioned the Lansing State Journal editorial and said that many people responded to that. I also mentioned that we need to keep pushing out the 2-1-1 phone number. People can call this if they have extra food they want to donate, or for any other social safety net needs. This prevents every different agency from havinghttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif to market their own contact information. If you need to know if there are community services to fit your needs, call 2-1-1!
On the campaign front, things continue to be very busy. I have gained a few more endorsements in the last few weeks that I will roll out soon. Some big ones! And the first fundraiser of 2012 is set and ready to go. We have new Host Committee members being added every day. If you haven't already heard about it, block off March 14th from 5:30 to 7:30 and come join us at the home of Jim McClurken and Sergei Kvitko. All the details can be found on my website at .
Thanks for all the sympathy notes, and for all the well wishes for the commission stuff and the campaign!
The County Services committee then the full Board of Commissioner took up a resolution calling on Meijer stores to continue to have City Pulse and other free magazines available in their store lobbies. Meijer's corporate offices recently decided to discontinue this service, and the City Pulse is calling on them to reverse this decision. The discussion on the Board floor was two-fold: (1) is this county business, and (2) is it a good business decision for Meijer. Commissioner Randy Schafer argued that is up to Meijer to decide what to do with their own business, and what makes business sense and what doesn't. He argued that it isn't county business. Commissioner Dianne Holman agreed, saying that she likes getting the paper there, but up to Meijer to decide. Commissioner Vickers argued that the County in the past has told people to go online (apparently he was referring to the Fair Board) and this should be no different.
Commissioner Deb Nolan pointed out that the Ingham County Commission weighs in on community issues all the time. She pointed out that others have weighed in favorable to the opinions of the Pulse, including the Lansing City Council. She said that there are 3,000 City Pulse publications picked up at Meijer locations weekly and Meijer is an important avenue to get this information out to citizens. She also pointed out that this is county business because public notices and Land Bank notices and other governmental information is in the Pulse and needs to get to residents. Commissioner Rebecca Baher-Cook also pointed out that this resolution is county business because the county shares tax foreclosures and RFP's and other county business. This must be available in places where people get public information. The elderly and others may not be in places where the City Pulse and other free publications are located, but they do go to the grocery store. She argued that this is an important resolution because the County is letting Meijer know that this is a disservice to residents. Commissioner Todd Tennis pointed out that we are not mandating anything, but encouraging Meijer to continue to allow free periodicals at their places of business.
Commissioner Schafer said that the main distribution is in Lansing and East Lansing, and the Pulse doesn't reach large portion of the rest of the county so this is just an urban issue. I responded to that saying that Meijer is in Lansing and East Lansing where the population centers are, but is also in Mason. And, I added that the Leslie paper and Stockbridge paper and other papers are free to residents and could also be carried at Meijer for the out-county residents that shop there. I pointed out that this is county business because we are acting on behalf of our constituents. I re-iterated that this is not an ordinance or mandate, but that this this is county business because the information is important to our constituents and Meijer needs to know the views of the community. The final resolution passed on a 10 - 5 vote, with the 4 Republicans and Commissioner Holman voting no and one Commissioner absent.
We also passed a resolution updating the Ingham County 911 Service Plan. The resolution updated the service plan from 1987. In includes areas services, how they all work, technical considerations, public and private agencies services by the network, etc. We had to pull this and vote on it separately from the items on the consent agenda because of state law requirements.
The final action on the Board floor involved appointments. A motion was made to make appointments to the Fair Board. We had interviewed people in the County Services Committee, but had not made a decision. The Democratic Caucus Chair moved to appoint two individuals, but apparently this information did not make it to the Republican Caucus in time. Some objected to being left out of the deliberations and decisions. Others wanted different members recommended. A motion was made to refer this back to committee for a recommendation and that motion passed 11-4. I supported the motion to send the resolution back to committee. After working in the Legislature for Democrats in the minority, I know what it is like to be kept out of the deliberations. The minority party cannot pass legislation or set the agenda, but they should at least be able to be part of the deliberation. When working in the State Senate and State House, there were plenty of times that the Republicans shut us out completely and that was frustrating when the Democrats represent Michigan residents also. As such, I agreed that the Republicans should be part of the deliberation even if the final decision may or may not be changed.
In County Services, we also heard that the Hawk Island snow park is now open. It was opened for 20 hours of service two weeks ago (Saturday for 8 hours and Sunday for 8 hours) and last weekend it was open all weekend. They are making snow at night when it is cold. With the unseasonable warm weather, it is hard to keep the snow made and not melting, but our staff is working on it. We also had a brief discussion about the Road Commission, and Chair Holman said that there will be an item on the next agenda. She said that she expected the mandatory public hearings to happen in late March or early April and expected discussions to commence soon when the Controller starts to bring recommendations.
In the Human Services Committee, we had an excellent presentation from the Greater Lansing Food Bank. I can't list everything they said, but they are definitely doing greater work for our community. They estimate 71,540 people in Ingham, Eaton, and Clinton counties don't know where their next meal is coming from. 1.3 million pounds of food was distributed to the Ingham County Food Bank network pantries from 2010 to 2011. Beginning July 1, 2012, the Greater Lansing Food Bank and the Mid-Michigan Food Bank will become one food bank. This will create efficiencies in the system. We had a great discussion about how we can get the word out. The Food Bank people mentioned the Lansing State Journal editorial and said that many people responded to that. I also mentioned that we need to keep pushing out the 2-1-1 phone number. People can call this if they have extra food they want to donate, or for any other social safety net needs. This prevents every different agency from havinghttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif to market their own contact information. If you need to know if there are community services to fit your needs, call 2-1-1!
On the campaign front, things continue to be very busy. I have gained a few more endorsements in the last few weeks that I will roll out soon. Some big ones! And the first fundraiser of 2012 is set and ready to go. We have new Host Committee members being added every day. If you haven't already heard about it, block off March 14th from 5:30 to 7:30 and come join us at the home of Jim McClurken and Sergei Kvitko. All the details can be found on my website at .
Thanks for all the sympathy notes, and for all the well wishes for the commission stuff and the campaign!
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Adult Refreshment Tent at Fair, Sun Country Landing Rights, Ingham Health Plan, Campaign Update
Sorry this blog is so late. Due to personal family reasons, last week was very crazy for me and next week may be the same. As such, this will be a short blog.
The Ingham County Commission met this week. The only resolution that we passed which was controversial was permanently allowing the Fair Board to offer an Adult Refreshment Tent (with beer and wine) at the Ingham County Fair. As was raised in committee, none of the predicted problems have happened over the last two years. No drunken people causing mischief, no public safety problems, no drunk driving, etc. In fact, there have been no problems at all with this. Commissioner Vickers said that the fair has the 4-H and it is not a proper venue for a beer tent. Commissioner Koenig responded that there hasn't been a problem. Commissioner Bahar-Cook added that she patronized the refreshment tent, and the staff did a great job of IDing those that entered the tent and of watching the drinking. I also added that this is an option that can be used to attract to people to the fair, which was mentioned to me by constituents. Commissioner Dougan then weighed in and said that this is not an option to raise money that he supports. The resolution passed on a bi-partisan vote with 11 Commissioners voting yes (10 Democrats and 1 Republican) and Commissioners Dougan, Vickers, Schafer, Celentino, and Copedge voting no (3 GOP and 2 Dems).http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
In non-controversial votes, the Board took a position calling on the federal government not to shut down the landing rights for Sun Country Airlines, which flies from Lansing to DC. We also authorized over $3 million to go to the Ingham Health Plan Corporation for health care benefits to those without health insurance through the Ingham Health Plan.
On the campaign trail, everything continues to go very well. I have been meeting with neighborhood groups and other groups in Lansing and Lansing Township. More and more people (electeds, neighborhood leaders, unions, business leaders,http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif etc) are signing on to my campaign every week. Fundraising is going very well, and we have our next fundraiser on March 14th in Lansing (check it out here on facebook!). If you want to contribute, sign up to volunteer to knock doors or help out otherwise, have a lawn sign outside your house or business, or just keep up with the campaign...you can go to and click on the appropriate link.
Thanks everyone for all your support! I will keep fighting for Ingham County residents on the County Commission, and look forward to the opportunity to fight for Lansing are residents in the Michigan House of Representatives!
Andy
The Ingham County Commission met this week. The only resolution that we passed which was controversial was permanently allowing the Fair Board to offer an Adult Refreshment Tent (with beer and wine) at the Ingham County Fair. As was raised in committee, none of the predicted problems have happened over the last two years. No drunken people causing mischief, no public safety problems, no drunk driving, etc. In fact, there have been no problems at all with this. Commissioner Vickers said that the fair has the 4-H and it is not a proper venue for a beer tent. Commissioner Koenig responded that there hasn't been a problem. Commissioner Bahar-Cook added that she patronized the refreshment tent, and the staff did a great job of IDing those that entered the tent and of watching the drinking. I also added that this is an option that can be used to attract to people to the fair, which was mentioned to me by constituents. Commissioner Dougan then weighed in and said that this is not an option to raise money that he supports. The resolution passed on a bi-partisan vote with 11 Commissioners voting yes (10 Democrats and 1 Republican) and Commissioners Dougan, Vickers, Schafer, Celentino, and Copedge voting no (3 GOP and 2 Dems).http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
In non-controversial votes, the Board took a position calling on the federal government not to shut down the landing rights for Sun Country Airlines, which flies from Lansing to DC. We also authorized over $3 million to go to the Ingham Health Plan Corporation for health care benefits to those without health insurance through the Ingham Health Plan.
On the campaign trail, everything continues to go very well. I have been meeting with neighborhood groups and other groups in Lansing and Lansing Township. More and more people (electeds, neighborhood leaders, unions, business leaders,http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif etc) are signing on to my campaign every week. Fundraising is going very well, and we have our next fundraiser on March 14th in Lansing (check it out here on facebook!). If you want to contribute, sign up to volunteer to knock doors or help out otherwise, have a lawn sign outside your house or business, or just keep up with the campaign...you can go to and click on the appropriate link.
Thanks everyone for all your support! I will keep fighting for Ingham County residents on the County Commission, and look forward to the opportunity to fight for Lansing are residents in the Michigan House of Representatives!
Andy
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Dental Director, Future Health Services Issues, Employee Negotiations, Alcohol Tent at Fair, Road Commission, Sun Country Landing Rights in DC
What started out as an easy week was not as easy as I thought! The Human Services Committee met on Monday. We revisited the re-creation of a Dental Director position. After reviewing the scoring of the position by our HR, and re-reviewing the benefit in terms of dollars and service, we all agreed that this was a wise move. Commissioner Vickers asked for language in the resolution specifying this is a 20% administrative position and 80% dental position. The amendment and resolution both passed unanimously. It also passed the County Services committee unanimously on Tuesday. The other major item on the agenda was a presentation on the Transformation of Health Care Delivery by the Health Department. It was interesting. Lots of new regulations and codes and things as a result of the national health care law. We also learned of the increased need, which has led to increased hours and weekend hours for health department staff. We also heard that we will need to look at capacity issue that are coming as soon as 2014, and we heard that federal funds for the Ingham Health Plan will be ending by 2016 with medicaid picking up the slack, and we will need to figure out how to pay for this program. The Ingham County Commission will have lots of outstanding health care issues to solve for our residents!
The County Services meeting was much more controversial. We lead off with a quick review of the language that we passed last week dealing with employee negotiations. The language said, "TO GIVE THE CONTROLLER THE AUTHORITY TO CONTINUE TO PROPOSE TO THE BARGAINING UNITS A HYBRID RETIREMENT PLAN FOR EMPLOYEES HIRED ON OR AFTER JANUARY 12, 2012 AND UNDERSTANDING THAT THE CONTRIBUTION RATES AND MULTIPLIER ARE SUBJECT TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING." Commissioner Holman (the Chair) clarified that this language is intended to allow for all options to be discussed [previous blog language deleted because of differing interpretations]. Several of the unions expressed appreciation of this clarification, including the UAW, the Michigan Association of Police, the Ingham County Employees Association, and the Michigan Nurses Association.
We then passed a resolution to make the beer/alcohol tent permanent at the County Fair (as long as the Fair Board wants it). The Adult Refreshment Tent was open from 5:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on weekdays and 3:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on Saturdays during Fair Week in 2010 and 2011. The 4-H council liaison raised opposition to this because the Fair is integral part of 4-H, and 4-H is a youth development program. He also questioned the income that they county has realized and said that it has only been a few thousand dollars when it was projected to be $50,000. He argued that it is not worth the risk for the low revenue, and that the Fair will lose money because people are not coming due to the alcohol. Commissioner Grebner pointed out that when we first passed this, we were told that there would be drunks and animals let out of cages and accidents and many other disasters. None of these happened. I pointed out that many people have told me that they attend the fair because they can see the show and have a beer or glass of wine. I also pointed out that there is alcohol in other fairs and art festivals and a variety of child-friendly settings. I said that this attracts people to our fair. The Fair Manager agreed that it is not making enough money, but that he will be changing that. He also said that he will put it in a more confined place away from the 4-H and children. Commissioner Vickers said that he does not think that a youth event should have alcohol. The resolution passed 4-2, with Commissioners Vickers and Celentino voting against it.
We had a scheduled presentation from the Road Commission Board. In an interesting coincidence, that afternoon the Michigan House passed the bill allowing County Commissions to eliminate Road Commission Boards and bring the operations in-house. The new Road Commission Chair - Jim Dravenstatt-Moceri - talked about the potential hiring of an HR person in coordination with the county HR staff, and how an HR person will help to prevent the internal problems that exist by meeting with staff confidentially and identifying the problems. He also said that the Road Commission is doing good job with roads. His foal is for the Road Commission to be a good place for employees. He also said that the HR director would meet with union leadership to build a relationship for creditability and trust, which is not existent now. And, he said that the HR director will result in savings by certain things in-house that they now pay lawyers to do. He finally said that they are looking to revamp employee policies and procedures, that they Board has unanimously approved the managing director (Bill Conklin) for another year, and are looking to fill the finance director position in conjunction with the county HR director. Road Commissioner Norm Gear sad that they don't want to undermine the system, want a safe environment, and want efficient work for the constituents of Ingham County. Commissioner Milton Scales said that he supports the Chair and what he wants to accomplish. Road Commissioner Marc Thomas was also in attendance.
Commissioner Mark Grebner forcefully stated that the plan presented by the road commission was unnecessary and irrelevant because the County Commission passed a resolution to disband the Road Commission Board on a 15-1 vote, and that the Road Commission Board should simply talk about how they will assist the transition. Committee Chair Holman said that the Road Commission could present ideas and options, but Grebner pushed back that the County Commission didn't want ideas because we are on record eliminating the Board. Road Commission Chair asked for a year until the County Commission implemented that takeover resolution, but Grebner said that dissolving the Road Commission was the way the County Commission is going until a resolution is passed otherwise. He also told the Road Commission members to stop the hiring process, and that any new staff would be decided by the County Commissioners and County Controller once the Board is dissolved. The County Controller indicated that she is pulling together recommendations to move the operations to the County, including recommendations on benefits and retirement plans and al other factors that need to be figured out. No timeline was given, but indicated that with the imminent signing of the bills, the recommendations will need to be considered soon. With that, the discussion was ended.
Finally, I would point out that we unanimously passed a resolution in support of sun country airlines having landing rights at Reagan National Airport. Sun Country has two inside perimeter slot exemptions at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Sun Country has used these slots for daily roundtrip service between Reagan and Lansing since April of 2011. This service has proven to be popular, with the Sun Country airlines experiencing a 156% increase in daily passengers in the third quarter of 2011 from the year earlier. If Lansing loses this service, it would be one of the few state capitals without non-stop service to Washington, DC. The resolution supports Sun Country Airlines' appeal to retain landing rights and slot exemptions at Reagan airport, and was forwarded to the US Department of Transportation, the Capital Region Airport Authority, Congressman Mike Rogers, Senator Debbie Stabenow, and Senator Carl Levin.
Whew...lots done for the residents of Ingham County this week!
The County Services meeting was much more controversial. We lead off with a quick review of the language that we passed last week dealing with employee negotiations. The language said, "TO GIVE THE CONTROLLER THE AUTHORITY TO CONTINUE TO PROPOSE TO THE BARGAINING UNITS A HYBRID RETIREMENT PLAN FOR EMPLOYEES HIRED ON OR AFTER JANUARY 12, 2012 AND UNDERSTANDING THAT THE CONTRIBUTION RATES AND MULTIPLIER ARE SUBJECT TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING." Commissioner Holman (the Chair) clarified that this language is intended to allow for all options to be discussed [previous blog language deleted because of differing interpretations]. Several of the unions expressed appreciation of this clarification, including the UAW, the Michigan Association of Police, the Ingham County Employees Association, and the Michigan Nurses Association.
We then passed a resolution to make the beer/alcohol tent permanent at the County Fair (as long as the Fair Board wants it). The Adult Refreshment Tent was open from 5:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on weekdays and 3:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on Saturdays during Fair Week in 2010 and 2011. The 4-H council liaison raised opposition to this because the Fair is integral part of 4-H, and 4-H is a youth development program. He also questioned the income that they county has realized and said that it has only been a few thousand dollars when it was projected to be $50,000. He argued that it is not worth the risk for the low revenue, and that the Fair will lose money because people are not coming due to the alcohol. Commissioner Grebner pointed out that when we first passed this, we were told that there would be drunks and animals let out of cages and accidents and many other disasters. None of these happened. I pointed out that many people have told me that they attend the fair because they can see the show and have a beer or glass of wine. I also pointed out that there is alcohol in other fairs and art festivals and a variety of child-friendly settings. I said that this attracts people to our fair. The Fair Manager agreed that it is not making enough money, but that he will be changing that. He also said that he will put it in a more confined place away from the 4-H and children. Commissioner Vickers said that he does not think that a youth event should have alcohol. The resolution passed 4-2, with Commissioners Vickers and Celentino voting against it.
We had a scheduled presentation from the Road Commission Board. In an interesting coincidence, that afternoon the Michigan House passed the bill allowing County Commissions to eliminate Road Commission Boards and bring the operations in-house. The new Road Commission Chair - Jim Dravenstatt-Moceri - talked about the potential hiring of an HR person in coordination with the county HR staff, and how an HR person will help to prevent the internal problems that exist by meeting with staff confidentially and identifying the problems. He also said that the Road Commission is doing good job with roads. His foal is for the Road Commission to be a good place for employees. He also said that the HR director would meet with union leadership to build a relationship for creditability and trust, which is not existent now. And, he said that the HR director will result in savings by certain things in-house that they now pay lawyers to do. He finally said that they are looking to revamp employee policies and procedures, that they Board has unanimously approved the managing director (Bill Conklin) for another year, and are looking to fill the finance director position in conjunction with the county HR director. Road Commissioner Norm Gear sad that they don't want to undermine the system, want a safe environment, and want efficient work for the constituents of Ingham County. Commissioner Milton Scales said that he supports the Chair and what he wants to accomplish. Road Commissioner Marc Thomas was also in attendance.
Commissioner Mark Grebner forcefully stated that the plan presented by the road commission was unnecessary and irrelevant because the County Commission passed a resolution to disband the Road Commission Board on a 15-1 vote, and that the Road Commission Board should simply talk about how they will assist the transition. Committee Chair Holman said that the Road Commission could present ideas and options, but Grebner pushed back that the County Commission didn't want ideas because we are on record eliminating the Board. Road Commission Chair asked for a year until the County Commission implemented that takeover resolution, but Grebner said that dissolving the Road Commission was the way the County Commission is going until a resolution is passed otherwise. He also told the Road Commission members to stop the hiring process, and that any new staff would be decided by the County Commissioners and County Controller once the Board is dissolved. The County Controller indicated that she is pulling together recommendations to move the operations to the County, including recommendations on benefits and retirement plans and al other factors that need to be figured out. No timeline was given, but indicated that with the imminent signing of the bills, the recommendations will need to be considered soon. With that, the discussion was ended.
Finally, I would point out that we unanimously passed a resolution in support of sun country airlines having landing rights at Reagan National Airport. Sun Country has two inside perimeter slot exemptions at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Sun Country has used these slots for daily roundtrip service between Reagan and Lansing since April of 2011. This service has proven to be popular, with the Sun Country airlines experiencing a 156% increase in daily passengers in the third quarter of 2011 from the year earlier. If Lansing loses this service, it would be one of the few state capitals without non-stop service to Washington, DC. The resolution supports Sun Country Airlines' appeal to retain landing rights and slot exemptions at Reagan airport, and was forwarded to the US Department of Transportation, the Capital Region Airport Authority, Congressman Mike Rogers, Senator Debbie Stabenow, and Senator Carl Levin.
Whew...lots done for the residents of Ingham County this week!
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Dental Director Position, Zoo Interim Director Compensation, Lansing Neighborhood Assistance, Upcoming Employee Negotiations
Sorry this blog is a little late this week. I had a very busy week. With the campaign now going full steam, I have been busy many nights. I am committed to fulfilling my responsibility as a Commissioner, as I always have, so that means going to county meetings and going to community meetings throughout Lansing and Lansing Township. It's busy! But...I want to keep this blog going to inform constituents, future constituents, media, and others about what is going on at the County!
Last week I had two meetings. I had Human Services and a full county commission meeting. Human Services reviewed the same controversial resolution that County Services had the week before - the creation of a Dental Director. This time, Health Director Renee Canady attended and had some good answers. Again, I asked about the need for a position shift so early in the budget process. I was told that this is part of an ongoing review of the positions and that, with a new Director, it was just missed at the end of last year. In addition, Commissioners Tennis and McGrain argued that the budget process began in May last year, so there has really been several months between the budget and this new position creation. While I believe the Health Department could have adjusted their budget request at any time until November, I concede that it is a little longer than I had originally thought. And, I understand that a new Director needs to evaluate positions and this may not have been as easy to do in a transition year. So I am comfortable with that answer. I also again asked why it was moving from a 14 to a 15 level position. Again, fellow commissioners on the committee argued that this is a leadership role and needs to be compensated as such. Dr. Canady actually told us that they created the new position, with 32 hours for dentistry and 8 hours for administration, and submitted that to the county human resources. Our HR department scored the position and moved it to a 15 from a 14. So, I look forward to seeing the scoring next week. After reviewing that, I believe I will be comfortable with this position. My hope, though, is that it is filled and we can start helping people and seeing revenue. If we simply move someone up internally and cannot fill the open dentistry position, then we really will not have created any more service or revenue and will be paying more. I will make that clear, but expect to support this in committee a week from Monday (human services) and a week from Tuesday (county services). Other interesting information that we found out which was not presented in County Services is that in 2005, there were 14 dental staff and in 2010 there were 22 dental staff. Five years ago, we had 3500 users in the community that had 12,000 visits. Currently, we are at 7500 users and 16,000 visits. Se we are clearly providing more service to those in need in Ingham County.
The Board of Commissioners meeting was fairly non-controversial. All items were passed on the consent agenda except for an honorary resolution and the Resolution Authorizing Reimbursement Terms and Conditions to the Potter Park Zoological Society for the Interim Zoo Director Services. Last year, the Board approved a resolution authorizing a contract amendment with the Potter Park Zoological Society to appoint Sherrie Graham as the Interim Zoo Director. Our staff negotiated mutually agreeable terms and conditions of compensation including County reimbursement to the Society for the portion of the personnel costs for the period after January 18, 2012. The negotiated rate is $4,000 per month throughout the agreement duration. This resolution passed 13-1 with no discussion. Commissioner Dougan was the only opposition vote and did not explain his objection. Commissioners Vickers and Schafer were absent.
While we consented many resolutions, I wanted to specifically mention on eof them which will greatly assist neighborhoods in Lansing. Ingham County has a strong and successful history of implementing community summits and cultivating citizen ownership of efforts that expand and enhance opportunities for urban redevelopment. The Ingham County Health Department (ICHD), in partnership with the Power of We Consortium (PWC), has been responsible for carrying out efforts in support of the County’s priority to “Promote Environmental Protection and Smart Growth.” Specifically, ICHD and PWC have established a mechanism to allocate the Urban Redevelopment Funds in the amount of $35,000 which was established as part of the Health Department budget. This amount has remained unchanged since 2010. This important investment of $35,000 has been used to leverage millions of dollars in federal grants (Compassion Capital Fund) and thousands of volunteer service hours (AmeriCorps) towards making our neighborhoods more attractive, vital, and responsive to our residents. Utilization of these funds has included activities such as completion of the walking trail on the south side of Lansing; match for the PWC’s Capacity Building Program for community and faith-based organizations and for the AmeriCorps program; support for the Ingham Change Initiative’s Summer Youth Program for young men of color; and support for neighborhood community organizing. For 2012, the ICHD, in partnership with the PWC, has chosen to continue its support for the 2011 grant recipients in an effort to provide greater impact for these critical initiatives:
• Allen Neighborhood Center ($15,000) to expand its Restoration Works project to include, in addition to a focus on residential restoration, the conversion of a functionally obsolete urban warehouse to a Food Resource Center (FRC). Urban Redevelopment funds will support engaging partners and community members in helping to co-create these structures—whether houses or the FRC.
• South Lansing Community Development Association ($15,000) to utilize community forums, visioning sessions, surveys, market studies etc. in the revitalization of key neighborhoods in south Lansing, particularly Colonial Village and Jolly/Waverly area. The County Board of Commissioners supported these efforts and I was proud to vote in favor of this resolution!
Next week we do not have any regularly scheduled meetings (because this month is a unique month with a fifth week). We do have a Special County Services meeting, though, to discuss employee contract negotiations and compensation. I expect that part of the meeting will be public and part will be in closed session, but I am not wholly sure how the meeting will go. I expect our Committee Chair and Board Chair have an idea of what we will be talking about in committee, and I look forward to moving this forward and finally finalizing negotiations with our employees so we can avoid mediation and so our wonderful employees can have a contract in place.
Last week I had two meetings. I had Human Services and a full county commission meeting. Human Services reviewed the same controversial resolution that County Services had the week before - the creation of a Dental Director. This time, Health Director Renee Canady attended and had some good answers. Again, I asked about the need for a position shift so early in the budget process. I was told that this is part of an ongoing review of the positions and that, with a new Director, it was just missed at the end of last year. In addition, Commissioners Tennis and McGrain argued that the budget process began in May last year, so there has really been several months between the budget and this new position creation. While I believe the Health Department could have adjusted their budget request at any time until November, I concede that it is a little longer than I had originally thought. And, I understand that a new Director needs to evaluate positions and this may not have been as easy to do in a transition year. So I am comfortable with that answer. I also again asked why it was moving from a 14 to a 15 level position. Again, fellow commissioners on the committee argued that this is a leadership role and needs to be compensated as such. Dr. Canady actually told us that they created the new position, with 32 hours for dentistry and 8 hours for administration, and submitted that to the county human resources. Our HR department scored the position and moved it to a 15 from a 14. So, I look forward to seeing the scoring next week. After reviewing that, I believe I will be comfortable with this position. My hope, though, is that it is filled and we can start helping people and seeing revenue. If we simply move someone up internally and cannot fill the open dentistry position, then we really will not have created any more service or revenue and will be paying more. I will make that clear, but expect to support this in committee a week from Monday (human services) and a week from Tuesday (county services). Other interesting information that we found out which was not presented in County Services is that in 2005, there were 14 dental staff and in 2010 there were 22 dental staff. Five years ago, we had 3500 users in the community that had 12,000 visits. Currently, we are at 7500 users and 16,000 visits. Se we are clearly providing more service to those in need in Ingham County.
The Board of Commissioners meeting was fairly non-controversial. All items were passed on the consent agenda except for an honorary resolution and the Resolution Authorizing Reimbursement Terms and Conditions to the Potter Park Zoological Society for the Interim Zoo Director Services. Last year, the Board approved a resolution authorizing a contract amendment with the Potter Park Zoological Society to appoint Sherrie Graham as the Interim Zoo Director. Our staff negotiated mutually agreeable terms and conditions of compensation including County reimbursement to the Society for the portion of the personnel costs for the period after January 18, 2012. The negotiated rate is $4,000 per month throughout the agreement duration. This resolution passed 13-1 with no discussion. Commissioner Dougan was the only opposition vote and did not explain his objection. Commissioners Vickers and Schafer were absent.
While we consented many resolutions, I wanted to specifically mention on eof them which will greatly assist neighborhoods in Lansing. Ingham County has a strong and successful history of implementing community summits and cultivating citizen ownership of efforts that expand and enhance opportunities for urban redevelopment. The Ingham County Health Department (ICHD), in partnership with the Power of We Consortium (PWC), has been responsible for carrying out efforts in support of the County’s priority to “Promote Environmental Protection and Smart Growth.” Specifically, ICHD and PWC have established a mechanism to allocate the Urban Redevelopment Funds in the amount of $35,000 which was established as part of the Health Department budget. This amount has remained unchanged since 2010. This important investment of $35,000 has been used to leverage millions of dollars in federal grants (Compassion Capital Fund) and thousands of volunteer service hours (AmeriCorps) towards making our neighborhoods more attractive, vital, and responsive to our residents. Utilization of these funds has included activities such as completion of the walking trail on the south side of Lansing; match for the PWC’s Capacity Building Program for community and faith-based organizations and for the AmeriCorps program; support for the Ingham Change Initiative’s Summer Youth Program for young men of color; and support for neighborhood community organizing. For 2012, the ICHD, in partnership with the PWC, has chosen to continue its support for the 2011 grant recipients in an effort to provide greater impact for these critical initiatives:
• Allen Neighborhood Center ($15,000) to expand its Restoration Works project to include, in addition to a focus on residential restoration, the conversion of a functionally obsolete urban warehouse to a Food Resource Center (FRC). Urban Redevelopment funds will support engaging partners and community members in helping to co-create these structures—whether houses or the FRC.
• South Lansing Community Development Association ($15,000) to utilize community forums, visioning sessions, surveys, market studies etc. in the revitalization of key neighborhoods in south Lansing, particularly Colonial Village and Jolly/Waverly area. The County Board of Commissioners supported these efforts and I was proud to vote in favor of this resolution!
Next week we do not have any regularly scheduled meetings (because this month is a unique month with a fifth week). We do have a Special County Services meeting, though, to discuss employee contract negotiations and compensation. I expect that part of the meeting will be public and part will be in closed session, but I am not wholly sure how the meeting will go. I expect our Committee Chair and Board Chair have an idea of what we will be talking about in committee, and I look forward to moving this forward and finally finalizing negotiations with our employees so we can avoid mediation and so our wonderful employees can have a contract in place.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Dental Director Position, Physician Assistant and Pay Level, Road Commission, MLK Jr Day
While I will normally have two committees in the first and third weeks of the month, this week we only had County Services. Human Services was rescheduled to next Monday because of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
The first big item up in County Services dealt with restoration of the Dental Director position, which was eliminated in 2005 as a cost saving measure. According to the Health Department, since 2005 the number of dental patients has grown by more than 3,000 patients as the dental health centers have expanded their service areas to include both local elementary schools and community events. The Community Health Center supervisor and Dental Health Center staff have requested the supervision of a Dental Director to direct the dental health center staff. A dental professional is needed to respond to clinical oral health concerns such as the appropriate course of treatment or proper infection control measures. The restoration of this position will result in an increase in productivity and a consistent standard of care across the health center network. The Health Director identified funding for this by converting a vacant dentist position (which has been vacant since May 28) to a Dental Director/Dentist position, and increasing it one level on the pay scale. The additional salary on the pay scale would come from the Healthy Smiles Dental Center budget, which was formerly dedicated to the University of Michigan School of Dentistry (UMSD) program. The Health Department terminated this agreement with UMSD effective August 31, 2011 due to lack of physical space for the interns to work within the dental centers. We had some good debate about this position. We had many questions about how this would work, and we were assured it would be both a dentist and administrator position. We asked if this would reduce the backlog, and why not just add a new dentist with the money. We were told that it will not greatly reduce the backlog, which is large, because we would need many new dentists to do that. We were also told that there are administrative needs so the staff is asking for the position. I was uncomfortable moving the position to the higher level, and asked for the scoring that was used by our human resources department. They didn’t have that, and other agreed with me that they would like to see that information. I also pointed out that we are only 17 days into the budget and are already being asked to add a new position and have money moved around. There was no good answer as to why this was not done during the budget process last year. As such, I moved to table this item until can have the answers to the scoring and budget questions.
The second controversial Health Department resolution was to hire a new Physicians Assistant, but to have her come in at the Step 5 (highest) pay level. In public comment, we heard from the UAW representative who said that they are being asked for pay cuts and step freezes and other concessions in negotiations, and it is not right to bring someone new in at the highest pay level. Our Health Department representative said that they are not at full capacity and that they constantly struggle to bring in P/A’s, nurse practitioners, and physicians. Our salary level is greatly below what they can make in the private sector, so positions stay open. And when people do agree to come, they want to come in at the highest level. The person being considered for this position has 11 years of experience and likes the population that we are working with, but is taking a large pay cut to come here. We were told that this person would not come for anything but the highest level available, and if we did not approve that then she would walk away and we would continue to have an open medical position. Many of us complained that we have to bring people in at Step 5 and asked, once again, for a study to be done to see if we can re-adjust the pay scales for the jobs that we have people doing. Our new Human Resources director said that this study is being done, and they would have the information for us in a few months. I offered an amendment to reduce the offer from the top of the scale to the second highest because I believe that we should at least try to offer somewhat less than the top amount. I have great concerns that we are asking our current employees to freeze step increases. As was pointed out last week, this means that those hired in at the lower end of the scale and work their way up will take a salary hit, but those that are at the top (usually administrators) will continue to get the top. A step freeze really does seem to be discriminatory against those who make less. This amendment was defeated on a 2-3 vote. With the defeat of the amendment, our choice was to approve or not approve the highest salary. As was pointed out by the Health Department, not approving this salary will leave the position vacant. Doing that would hurt the residents of the community that need the medical services. In addition, doing this would cost the county $400,000 in revenue (reimbursement from the federal government) because of a few thousand dollars in a step increase. Our medical providers are reimbursed by the federal government at a high level because they are federally qualified health department providers. Most of us were not willing to cost the county up to $400,000 in revenue or lose the potential aide to our residents, so we approved the resolution on a 4-1 vote (Vickers opposing). I am looking forward to seeing the study, and to the opportunity to re-evaluate these and other positions to make sure that they are appropriately compensated in relation to the private sector and other public sector jobs (as the budget will allow, of course!).
We took up a few other resolutions, but nothing really too controversial. We reviewed the recent road commission legislation, where there has been no change. We also talked about the road commission hiring new employees in human resources and finance, and there was discontent about this hiring with the status of the road commission in question. I pointed out that the new Chair of the Road Commission has expressed interest in coming to County Services to talk about his views on the potential future of the road commission, and said that I hope that he can be invited to the committee at the next regular meeting. I believe the Chair of the committee, Dianne Holman, is planning to have them in to discuss their plans and how they would like to move forward. So, with the Legislature not taking any action, we will continue to talk to the Road Commission members and assess our options as a County Commission to decide what further actions we intend to take.
I hope everyone had a great MLK, Jr Day and remembered the great man and his message of equality for all. My family watched the “I Have a Dream” speech and my children really enjoyed hearing it and learning more. We are proud that they are learning about his message of equality and diversity in the Lansing Public Schools.
I hope everyone has a great weekend, and I will report on the Human Services committee and the Board of Commissioners meeting next week!
The first big item up in County Services dealt with restoration of the Dental Director position, which was eliminated in 2005 as a cost saving measure. According to the Health Department, since 2005 the number of dental patients has grown by more than 3,000 patients as the dental health centers have expanded their service areas to include both local elementary schools and community events. The Community Health Center supervisor and Dental Health Center staff have requested the supervision of a Dental Director to direct the dental health center staff. A dental professional is needed to respond to clinical oral health concerns such as the appropriate course of treatment or proper infection control measures. The restoration of this position will result in an increase in productivity and a consistent standard of care across the health center network. The Health Director identified funding for this by converting a vacant dentist position (which has been vacant since May 28) to a Dental Director/Dentist position, and increasing it one level on the pay scale. The additional salary on the pay scale would come from the Healthy Smiles Dental Center budget, which was formerly dedicated to the University of Michigan School of Dentistry (UMSD) program. The Health Department terminated this agreement with UMSD effective August 31, 2011 due to lack of physical space for the interns to work within the dental centers. We had some good debate about this position. We had many questions about how this would work, and we were assured it would be both a dentist and administrator position. We asked if this would reduce the backlog, and why not just add a new dentist with the money. We were told that it will not greatly reduce the backlog, which is large, because we would need many new dentists to do that. We were also told that there are administrative needs so the staff is asking for the position. I was uncomfortable moving the position to the higher level, and asked for the scoring that was used by our human resources department. They didn’t have that, and other agreed with me that they would like to see that information. I also pointed out that we are only 17 days into the budget and are already being asked to add a new position and have money moved around. There was no good answer as to why this was not done during the budget process last year. As such, I moved to table this item until can have the answers to the scoring and budget questions.
The second controversial Health Department resolution was to hire a new Physicians Assistant, but to have her come in at the Step 5 (highest) pay level. In public comment, we heard from the UAW representative who said that they are being asked for pay cuts and step freezes and other concessions in negotiations, and it is not right to bring someone new in at the highest pay level. Our Health Department representative said that they are not at full capacity and that they constantly struggle to bring in P/A’s, nurse practitioners, and physicians. Our salary level is greatly below what they can make in the private sector, so positions stay open. And when people do agree to come, they want to come in at the highest level. The person being considered for this position has 11 years of experience and likes the population that we are working with, but is taking a large pay cut to come here. We were told that this person would not come for anything but the highest level available, and if we did not approve that then she would walk away and we would continue to have an open medical position. Many of us complained that we have to bring people in at Step 5 and asked, once again, for a study to be done to see if we can re-adjust the pay scales for the jobs that we have people doing. Our new Human Resources director said that this study is being done, and they would have the information for us in a few months. I offered an amendment to reduce the offer from the top of the scale to the second highest because I believe that we should at least try to offer somewhat less than the top amount. I have great concerns that we are asking our current employees to freeze step increases. As was pointed out last week, this means that those hired in at the lower end of the scale and work their way up will take a salary hit, but those that are at the top (usually administrators) will continue to get the top. A step freeze really does seem to be discriminatory against those who make less. This amendment was defeated on a 2-3 vote. With the defeat of the amendment, our choice was to approve or not approve the highest salary. As was pointed out by the Health Department, not approving this salary will leave the position vacant. Doing that would hurt the residents of the community that need the medical services. In addition, doing this would cost the county $400,000 in revenue (reimbursement from the federal government) because of a few thousand dollars in a step increase. Our medical providers are reimbursed by the federal government at a high level because they are federally qualified health department providers. Most of us were not willing to cost the county up to $400,000 in revenue or lose the potential aide to our residents, so we approved the resolution on a 4-1 vote (Vickers opposing). I am looking forward to seeing the study, and to the opportunity to re-evaluate these and other positions to make sure that they are appropriately compensated in relation to the private sector and other public sector jobs (as the budget will allow, of course!).
We took up a few other resolutions, but nothing really too controversial. We reviewed the recent road commission legislation, where there has been no change. We also talked about the road commission hiring new employees in human resources and finance, and there was discontent about this hiring with the status of the road commission in question. I pointed out that the new Chair of the Road Commission has expressed interest in coming to County Services to talk about his views on the potential future of the road commission, and said that I hope that he can be invited to the committee at the next regular meeting. I believe the Chair of the committee, Dianne Holman, is planning to have them in to discuss their plans and how they would like to move forward. So, with the Legislature not taking any action, we will continue to talk to the Road Commission members and assess our options as a County Commission to decide what further actions we intend to take.
I hope everyone had a great MLK, Jr Day and remembered the great man and his message of equality for all. My family watched the “I Have a Dream” speech and my children really enjoyed hearing it and learning more. We are proud that they are learning about his message of equality and diversity in the Lansing Public Schools.
I hope everyone has a great weekend, and I will report on the Human Services committee and the Board of Commissioners meeting next week!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Contracts and Negotiations with County Employees, Campaign Update
This week, we only had one meeting. It was a special meeting of the Board of Commissioners, called a leadership meeting, where we meet for a special purpose. The purpose of this meeting was to hear from our employees regarding contract negotiations.
Until this year, each of our unions had different end dates for their contracts. We would have a few end each year and be negotiated. This year, though, we arranged it so all contracts would end at the same time so we could negotiate similar conditions with each union. As has happened in the recent past, we have several conditions leading to reduced revenues: lower tax collections, reduced revenue sharing from the state, lower-than-expected interest earnings on investments, foreclosures, etc. All of these have lead to the need to work with the employees for concessions in contracts. In addition, the Board and management staff are looking at long-term solutions to prevent budget deficits. The exact terms of the contract negotiations are done at the bargaining table and I won’t list the conditions here. Similarly, the Commissioners have heard from the county management staff regarding what they want to ask for in negotiations but this is confidential and done in closed session.
The unions had requested an opportunity to meet with the Commissioners to express concerns and questions about the requests from management and about the process of negotiations. We heard from the United Auto Workers (UAW), Ingham County Employees Association, Nurses Association, Michigan Association of Police, and Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU). They raised very good questions and brought up issues that we as Commissioners had not known were problems. They are concerned with the combination of the short-term and long-term objectives in the same negotiations because both involved some concessions from the unions and both have value to them. They are also concerned about the process, especially with contracts having expired already. Several unions have gone beyond negotiation and to mediation, which is unusual in Ingham County. There were also concerns about the move from defined benefit to a hybrid defined contribution plan, about health benefit changes, and step freezes, and others. Ingham County has a health benefits coalition that usually recommends changes and has saved the county millions in the past, and this process is somewhat outside of that coalition process. Step freezes are seen as inequitable because those at the top step are not losing anything when those under the top step are. And so many other good issues that were raised. They said that the hybrid defined contribution plan is unfair because it locks in the rate without the ability to negotiate.
We heard the concerns, and our staff responded to some of them. Our staff pointed out the reductions in revenues and the need to spend less. They also talked about the need to solve the problem going forward.
We had MERS speak to us as well about the hybrid defined contribution plan. They agreed that the rate cannot change in negotiation and said that it is based on actuarial estimates. I can’t speak for others, but I was uncomfortable locking something in that cannot be changed in the future or bargained, especially if times get better and we can afford to provide more for our employees. I am open to the hybrid defined contribution plan, but the details that MERS laid out made me very uncomfortable. I was also uncomfortable with several other things that the unions raised.
The County Services committee, on which I serve, has scheduled a special committee meeting on January 31st to further discuss these issues. I hope we can have more detailed information about the cuts that our management is asking for and the details regarding the concerns that the unions raised. We as Commissioners cannot spend more than we take in and we need to provide structural stability, but we also need to be fair to our employees. We have some of the best employees in the world, and we need to treat them right. People want to be public servants, and we need to reward them…especially when they can make more in the private sector but want to help others. This will be a big issue that we need to resolve quickly in 2012.
Otherwise, our normal committee schedule will resume this week. I have County Services Committee, and the Law Enforcement and Judiciary Committees will meet as well. You can see the agendas online at www.ingham.org.
The campaign continues to go very well. I will have my campaign finance report filed by the end of the month with a strong showing. This week I increased my list of endorsements, which includes several neighborhood presidents and activists, current and former State Representatives, countywide elected officials, most of the county commissioners, City Councilmembers, Township Board members, labor, and many others. The information is all on my website and we will be announcing the specifics as the campaign continues. Seven more months until Primary Election day! If you are interested in volunteering on the campaign or want to contribute, please go to www.andyschor.com.
Until this year, each of our unions had different end dates for their contracts. We would have a few end each year and be negotiated. This year, though, we arranged it so all contracts would end at the same time so we could negotiate similar conditions with each union. As has happened in the recent past, we have several conditions leading to reduced revenues: lower tax collections, reduced revenue sharing from the state, lower-than-expected interest earnings on investments, foreclosures, etc. All of these have lead to the need to work with the employees for concessions in contracts. In addition, the Board and management staff are looking at long-term solutions to prevent budget deficits. The exact terms of the contract negotiations are done at the bargaining table and I won’t list the conditions here. Similarly, the Commissioners have heard from the county management staff regarding what they want to ask for in negotiations but this is confidential and done in closed session.
The unions had requested an opportunity to meet with the Commissioners to express concerns and questions about the requests from management and about the process of negotiations. We heard from the United Auto Workers (UAW), Ingham County Employees Association, Nurses Association, Michigan Association of Police, and Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU). They raised very good questions and brought up issues that we as Commissioners had not known were problems. They are concerned with the combination of the short-term and long-term objectives in the same negotiations because both involved some concessions from the unions and both have value to them. They are also concerned about the process, especially with contracts having expired already. Several unions have gone beyond negotiation and to mediation, which is unusual in Ingham County. There were also concerns about the move from defined benefit to a hybrid defined contribution plan, about health benefit changes, and step freezes, and others. Ingham County has a health benefits coalition that usually recommends changes and has saved the county millions in the past, and this process is somewhat outside of that coalition process. Step freezes are seen as inequitable because those at the top step are not losing anything when those under the top step are. And so many other good issues that were raised. They said that the hybrid defined contribution plan is unfair because it locks in the rate without the ability to negotiate.
We heard the concerns, and our staff responded to some of them. Our staff pointed out the reductions in revenues and the need to spend less. They also talked about the need to solve the problem going forward.
We had MERS speak to us as well about the hybrid defined contribution plan. They agreed that the rate cannot change in negotiation and said that it is based on actuarial estimates. I can’t speak for others, but I was uncomfortable locking something in that cannot be changed in the future or bargained, especially if times get better and we can afford to provide more for our employees. I am open to the hybrid defined contribution plan, but the details that MERS laid out made me very uncomfortable. I was also uncomfortable with several other things that the unions raised.
The County Services committee, on which I serve, has scheduled a special committee meeting on January 31st to further discuss these issues. I hope we can have more detailed information about the cuts that our management is asking for and the details regarding the concerns that the unions raised. We as Commissioners cannot spend more than we take in and we need to provide structural stability, but we also need to be fair to our employees. We have some of the best employees in the world, and we need to treat them right. People want to be public servants, and we need to reward them…especially when they can make more in the private sector but want to help others. This will be a big issue that we need to resolve quickly in 2012.
Otherwise, our normal committee schedule will resume this week. I have County Services Committee, and the Law Enforcement and Judiciary Committees will meet as well. You can see the agendas online at www.ingham.org.
The campaign continues to go very well. I will have my campaign finance report filed by the end of the month with a strong showing. This week I increased my list of endorsements, which includes several neighborhood presidents and activists, current and former State Representatives, countywide elected officials, most of the county commissioners, City Councilmembers, Township Board members, labor, and many others. The information is all on my website and we will be announcing the specifics as the campaign continues. Seven more months until Primary Election day! If you are interested in volunteering on the campaign or want to contribute, please go to www.andyschor.com.
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