[Call to Order]
[00:00:06]
GOOD EVENING, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR THE FEBRUARY 4TH, 2025 BOARD SUPERVISORS MEETING.
AND NOW I'LL CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL PLEASE.
[2* Presentation from Commonwealth's Attorney and Clerk of Circuit Court: Receive presentation from Krystyn Reid, Commonwealth's Attorney, and Kristen Nelson, Clerk of Circuit Court.]
YOU VERY MUCH.UH, I'M CHANGING THE ORDER OF THE MEETING TONIGHT, A A LITTLE BIT, IF YOU DON'T MIND, AND I'M GONNA CALL ON, UH, THE COMMONWEALTH ATTORNEY IN THE CLERK OF COURT FOR THEIR PRESENTATIONS.
SO, KRISTEN REED AND KRISTEN NELSON.
GOOD EVENING, MADAM CHAIR AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.
I'M THE COMMONWEALTH'S ATTORNEY, AND I'M HERE WITH KRISTEN NELSON, THE CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT.
WE WANTED TO COME BY TONIGHT TO SPEND A FEW MINUTES WITH YOU JUST TO TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR OFFICES AND WHAT WE DO, UH, IN THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT, THE COMMONWEALTH'S ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND THE CLERK'S OFFICE ARE BOTH LOCATED IN THE COURTHOUSE RIGHT DOWN THE ROAD.
UH, MY OFFICE, THE COMMONWEALTH'S ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, IS LOCATED IN THE BASEMENT OF THE COURTHOUSE, AND THE CIRCUIT COURT CLERK'S OFFICE IS LOCATED IN THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE COURTHOUSE.
WE HAVE IDENTICAL HOURS FROM 8:00 AM TO FOUR 30, AND BOTH OF OUR OFFICES ARE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
THIS IS THE ORGANIZATION OF MY OFFICE.
UH, I HAVE A CHIEF DEPUTY, A DEPUTY, SOME GENERAL PRACTICE ATTORNEYS, UH, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ATTORNEY.
THEN WE HAVE SUPPORT STAFF AND THE VICTIM WITNESS DEPARTMENT.
AND I HAVE A SLIDE TO DEPICT THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE IN DETAIL.
MY OFFICE HAS NINE ATTORNEYS, MYSELF, THE CHIEF DEPUTY, THE DEPUTY, AND THE, UH, LINE ATTORNEYS.
WHAT'S REMARKABLE ABOUT MY OFFICE IS THAT FIVE OUT OF THE NINE ATTORNEYS ALL HAVE MORE THAN 20 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN PROSECUTING CRIMES.
THAT'S VERY UNCOMMON IN A OFFICE.
OUR SIZE AND OUR SUPPORT STAFF, WE HAVE A RECEPTIONIST.
THEN WE HAVE AN ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL ASSIGNED TO EACH COURT, INCLUDING MS. NELSON'S COURT, A PARALEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR.
ADDITIONALLY, WE HAVE THREE VICTIM WITNESS ADVOCATES WHO WORK IN OUR OFFICE, AND THEY ACT AS A LIAISON BETWEEN MY OFFICE AND THE COMMUNITY.
UH, THEY MEET VICTIMS AND WITNESSES AT THE COURTHOUSE DOOR.
WHEN THEY ARRIVE, THEY SIT WITH 'EM DURING COURT PROCEEDINGS.
THEY HELP VICTIMS, UH, FILE PAPERWORK FOR RESTITUTION, AND THEY HELP EXCUSE WITNESSES WHEN THEY WERE NO LONGER NEEDED FOR COURT.
ALL FELONIES AND FELONIES ARE, UH, OFFENSES THAT HAVE INCARCERATION OF ONE YEAR OR MORE.
WE PROSECUTE ALL JAILABLE OFFENSES IN JUVENILE AND DOMESTIC RELATIONS COURT, AND IN THE GENERAL DISTRICT COURT.
WE PROSECUTE MANY MISDEMEANORS, ALL DUIS, ALL WEAPONS CHARGES.
WE PROSECUTE STALKINGS AND VIOLATIONS OF PROTECTIVE ORDER.
ADDITIONALLY, WE WILL HANDLE CASES AT THE REQUEST OF THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE THAT WE ORDINARILY WOULD NOT BE INVOLVED IN.
THAT MAY BE MORE COMPLICATED THAN YOUR NORMAL CASE OR AT THE REQUEST OF A VICTIM.
OUR OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES, MY OFFICE ACTS AS A LEGAL ADVISOR TO LAW ENFORCEMENT.
WE OFFER LEGAL TRAINING TO THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE FIVE TIMES A YEAR.
WE WILL SHUT DOWN FOR A FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND PROVIDE ALL OF THE LEGAL HOURS THAT THE SHERIFF'S DEPUTIES NEED TO REMAIN THEIR LICENSURE.
WE'RE ALSO IN CHARGE OF VOTER FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS.
WE TAKE PART IN CONCEALED WEAPON PERMIT APPLICATIONS, AND WE HANDLE UNRETURNED MARRIAGE LICENSES IN CONJUNCTION WITH MS. NELSON'S OFFICE.
AS I SAID, WE'RE LOCATED IN THE BASEMENT OF THE COURTHOUSE, AND THERE IS OUR PHONE NUMBER, (757) 890-3401.
WE'RE ALWAYS AVAILABLE TO HELP OUT THE PUBLIC IN ANY WAY THAT WE CAN.
HI, AND AS KRISTEN, UH, REED JUST MENTIONED, MY NAME IS KRISTEN NELSON.
I'M THE CLERK OF THE YORK COAST AND CIRCUIT COURT.
UM, THE CLERK'S OFFICE IS, IS LOCATED ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING, AND AS THE ELECTED CIRCUIT COURT CLERK, I HAVE A CHIEF DEPUTY CLERK, ASSISTANT CHIEF, DEPUTY CLERK, 15, UH, FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES, UH, THAT ARE DEPUTY CLERKS, AND THEN THREE PART-TIME DEPUTY CLERKS THAT WORK AS REQUIRED, UH, PROJECT POSITIONS.
OUR ROLE AS THE CIRCUIT COURT CLERK'S OFFICE IS WE ARE THE PERMANENT REPOSITORY FOR RECORDS PERTAINING TO YORK COUNTY AND THE CITY OF POCOS.
OUR RECORDS DO GO BACK TO 1633, AND, UM, SO THEY ARE HELD IN HIGH REGARD, AND WE TAKE GREAT EFFORTS IN GETTING THOSE RESTORED EACH YEAR.
SOME OF THE OTHER, UH, MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES THAT OUR OFFICE
[00:05:01]
HANDLES IS THE CASE MANAGEMENT, THE RECORDS MANAGEMENT AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT.AS YOU CAN SEE, THEY'VE, THEY'RE KIND OF BROKEN DOWN AS TO WHAT EACH, UH, DIVISION DOES, BUT CASE MANAGEMENT WOULD HANDLE COURT SERVICES, THE CRIMINAL AND CIVIL CASE WORK, THE JURY MANAGEMENT AND PUBLIC SAFETY REPORTING.
UH, RECORDS MANAGEMENT WOULD BE YOUR DEEDS AND LAND RECORDS, YOUR FIDUCIARY RECORDS, ELECTION RECORDS AND RECORD PRESS PRESERVATION, AS I MENTIONED BEFORE.
OUR FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT DIVISION HANDLES AND REVIEWS ALL INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTS, A BALANCE AND RECONCILIATION OF VARIOUS, UH, ACCOUNTS AND PROCESSING PAYMENTS, AND THEN STATUTORY REPORTING.
SO OUR OFFICES COLLABORATE WITH EACH OTHER ON THESE FOUR PRIMARY AREAS, WHICH DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A LOT WHEN YOU LOOK AT IT ON SCREEN.
BUT, UM, I WOULD SAY THAT THE CRIMINAL AND CIVIL CASE WORK, AND PROBABLY THE CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMIT PROBABLY ARE THE HEAVIEST, UM, OF OUR CASELOAD THAT WE, UH, WORK TOGETHER WITH.
UM, BUT THE CRIMINAL AND CIVIL CASES, WE DO DOCKET COORDINATION RELATIVE TO OUR CRIMINAL CASES.
UM, ANY KIND OF JURY TRIALS THAT ARE SET AND SO FORTH.
UH, WE PROVIDE JURY LISTS TO, UH, THE COMMONWEALTH ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND ALONG WITH THE DEFENSE ATTORNEY THAT IS REPRESENTING THE INDIVIDUAL IN THE CASE.
UH, FINANCIAL REPORTING WOULD BE ANY UNPAID COURT COSTS AND UNPAID RE UNPAID RESTITUTION.
UH, WE ALSO PAY RESTITUTION TO THE VICTIMS, AND WE WORK, UH, VERY CLOSELY WITH, UH, HER STAFF OR VICTIM WITNESS STAFF AND, AND EFFORTS TO GET THEM PAID.
UH, UM, EACH MONTH WHEN WE GET A PAYMENT FROM THE DEFENDANT, UM, OUR MARRIAGE LICENSES, UH, WE DO REPORT ALL, UM, RETURNED MARRIAGE LICENSES TO, UH, KRISTEN'S OFFICE, AND SHE WILL, UH, THEN FOLLOW UP WITH A LETTER TO THE INDIVIDUAL.
WE SEND LETTERS TO EACH OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE NOT RETURNED THE MARRIAGE LICENSES ASKING WHY IT HAS NOT BEEN RETURNED.
AND IF WE DON'T HEAR BACK FROM THEM, WE SET THE COURT DATE FOR THEM TO COME AND TELL THE JUDGE WHY THE MARRIAGE LICENSE WAS NOT RETURNED.
UM, OUR CONCEALED WEAPON PERMIT APPLICATIONS ARE SET UP AS A THREE, UM, STEP PROCESS, OR ACTUALLY A FOUR STEP PROCESS, BUT, UH, THEY'RE FILED IN MY OFFICE AND THEN THEY GET SENT TO THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE OFFICE FOR REVIEW.
UM, THEY DO THE BACKGROUND CHECK, AND THEN IT GETS FORWARDED TO, UH, KRISTEN'S OFFICE AND, UH, SHE'LL DO HER BACKGROUND CHECK THERE AS WELL.
AND THEN WE WILL GET IT BACK IN OUR OFFICE WITH THEIR, UM, NOTATIONS AS TO WHETHER THEY APPROVE IT AND SO FORTH.
AND THEN THE PERMIT WOULD BE ISSUED ACCORDINGLY OR DENIED.
AND THAT PROCESS IS ALL DONE ELECTRONICALLY AND A NEW SYSTEM THAT MS. NELSON SET UP JUST A COUPLE YEARS AGO IN HER OFFICE.
ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? THAT'S A GREAT PRESENTATION.
SO, UM, CAN YOU, I KNOW YOU CAN
UM, WELL, WE HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THOSE CLERKS RELATIVE TO THE, THE CASES THAT ARE APPEALED TO OUR COURT.
UM, THOSE COURTS TYPICALLY ARE ONLY DEALING WITH CIVIL AND CRIMINAL CASES WHERE THE CIRCUIT COURT CLERK'S OFFICE HAS THE CIVIL AND CRIMINAL CASES, BUT THEY ALSO HAVE THE JUDICIARY RECORDS, THE LAND RECORDS DIVISION, AND THE, UM, CONDEMNATION ACCOUNTS AND, AND, AND TRUST ACCOUNTS THAT THOSE COURTS WOULD NOT HAVE.
THE DISTRICT COURT DOESN'T DEAL WITH FELONIES OTHER THAN TO REVIEW A CASE TO DETERMINE TO PUSH IT TO THE CIRCUIT COURT.
IS THAT CORRECT? THEY WOULD DEAL WITH FELONIES RELATIVE TO, UH, PRELIMINARY HEARINGS.
THAT MEAN THEY'RE NOT THE TRIAL, THEY'RE NOT A TRIAL COURT, IS THAT CORRECT? THAT'S CORRECT.
AND THE JUVENILE DOMESTIC COURT, IT DEFINITELY DOESN'T DO ANY OF THAT.
THEY JUST DEAL WITH THE, PRINCIPALLY DEALING WITH FAMILIES.
WELL, JUVENILE DOMESTIC RELATIONS COURT CAN HANDLE MISDEMEANORS AND FELONIES COMMITTED BY JUVENILES.
AND YOU'RE SAYING BY JUVENILES 18 OR UNDER, OR UNDER 18? UNDER 18.
AND THE REASON I, THE REASON I BRING THAT UP IS, IS THAT MOST OF THE TIME THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, WE SIT HERE AND WE THINK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT, A LOT OF TIMES WE GET CALLED TO SERVE.
YOU KNOW, PAM, YOU DON'T GET CALLED ANYMORE.
BUT I MEAN, THAT WAS, THAT'S WHAT YOU HEAR GENERALLY.
BUT OUR COURTHOUSE HAS THOSE OTHER COURTS IN 'EM, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN COURTS.
AND, AND, UM, AND, UH, I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT, VERY IMPORTANT IN THE TOTAL STAGE OF EVERYTHING WE DO IN, IN OUR SOCIETY AND IN THE COUNTY.
UM, AND ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, AT SOME TIME OR ANOTHER, YOU GOTTA GET, YOU GUYS GET TIED UP PRETTY INVOLVED, I SAY TIED UP INVOLVED IN THE CASES.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF STUFF GOING ON DOWN THERE.
[00:10:01]
I HAVE, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR EACH.SO FIRST OF ALL, KRISTEN, UM,
YOU WANT TO EXPAND UPON THAT SOME.
AND FOR KRISTEN, UM, I KNOW YOUR OFFICE HAS BEEN VERY BUSY IN EFFORTS TO HELP, UM, WITH, UM, HOME TITLE FRAUD ABUSE.
NOW WE GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO TALK ABOUT THAT AND SHARE THAT WITH EVERYBODY.
I WOULD SAY THAT 85% OF THE CASES THAT WE DEAL WITH IN ALL OF THE COURTS EITHER DEAL WITH SUBSTANCE ABUSE, A MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE, OR BOTH.
AND SO WE, WE ARE PART OF AN EFFORT, BOTH OF US, TO GO UNDER UNDERLYING CAUSE OF WHY PEOPLE MAY BE CAUSING CRIMES MENTAL HEALTH OR A DRUG ADDICTION.
AND SO WE'VE DEVELOPED BOTH A MENTAL HEALTH BEHAVIORAL COURT IN JAMES CITY COUNTY AND A DRUG COURT IN YORK COUNTY.
THE BEHAVIORAL COURT WILL BE BASED OUT OF THE GENERAL DISTRICT COURT IN JAMES CITY COUNTY.
AND OUR COURT WILL BE A DRUG COURT IN YORK COUNTY.
WE HAVE NOT GOTTEN A START DATE FOR THAT YET, BUT IT WILL DEAL WITH ALTERNATIVES TO INCARCERATION FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE THOSE UNDERLYING PROBLEMS. IT WILL BE A WEEKLY DOCKET WHERE, UH, THE, THE, UH, PARTICIPANTS COME IN, THEY ARE DRUG TESTED, THEY'RE TALKED TO ABOUT COUNSELING, HELPING THEM GET JOBS, STABLE HOUSING, AND HOPEFULLY THOSE STEPS WILL HELP THEM GET OUT OF THE PROBLEM THAT THEY'RE DEALING WITH AND PREVENT FUTURE CRIMES.
IT'S ALSO AN EFFORT FOR THEM TO KEEP THAT CRIME OFF THEIR RECORD IN THE FUTURE.
I'M GLAD TO SEE GOING TO THE ROOT CAUSE INSTEAD OF JUST DEALING WITH THE SYMPTOMS AFTERWARDS.
OH, KRISTEN, IS IT YOUR STAFF? THEY'LL BE TAKING CARE OF THAT PART OF IT, OR YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO HIRE SOMEONE TO TAKE THAT JOB? I WILL HANDLE THAT DOCKET MYSELF.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS? THE OTHER PERSON? KRISTEN? YEAH, CHRISTIAN.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR THIS KRISTEN
UM, THERE ACTUALLY WAS A, A BILL THAT WENT THROUGH THE, UM, GENERAL ASSEMBLY THIS YEAR THAT I DON'T THINK HAS MADE IT THROUGH, UM, RELATIVE TO ACTUALLY WOULD HAVE LOCALITIES ESTABLISH A, UH, REPORTING SYSTEM, A NOTIFICATION SYSTEM FOR, UM, ANYBODY THAT WANTED TO SIGN UP THAT WE GET NOTIFIED IF SOMETHING WAS RECORDED IN THEIR NAME.
UM, PART OF THE PROBLEM WITH THAT IS IT'S STILL AFTER THE FACT.
UM, AND SO THE CLERK'S ASSOCIATION, WHO I'M VERY HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH, UM, HAVE, HAVE ASKED FOR, WE ALREADY HAVE A SUBCOMMITTEE THAT WE'VE CREATED FOR DEFRAUD THAT WE HAVE BEEN STARTED BACK IN NOVEMBER.
AND SO WE'VE ASKED TO PARTNER WITH THE VIRGINIA BAR ASSOCIATION, VIRGINIA LAND AND TITLE ASSOCIATION TO TRY TO COME UP WITH A, UM, GET ALL THE STAKEHOLDERS AT THE TABLE AND COME UP WITH A, A A, A ROUTE TO TRY TO COMBAT THIS.
UM, PART OF THE PROBLEM WITH CREATING THESE NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS IS MANY OF THEIR LOCALITIES DON'T HAVE INTEGRATIONS WITH THE COMPUTERS THAT WOULD ALLOW FOR THAT.
UH, FOR EXAMPLE, MY, UH, TECHNOLOGY IS WITH THE SUPREME COURT, NOT WITH THE COUNTY.
SO IF THE COUNTY ESTABLISHES A NOTIFICATION SYSTEM, THERE'S NO WAY TO PUSH THAT DATA TO THE COUNTY SYSTEM TO SEND OUT THE ALERTS.
SO IT, IT IS A WORK IN PROGRESS.
IT HAS BECOME VERY, UM, VERY MUCH IN THE, IN THE, IN THE PUBLIC EYE, VERY MUCH IN ON EVERYBODY'S RADAR.
UM, IT'S JUST NOW GETTING THE PEOPLE AT THE TABLE.
AND I THINK THAT WE ARE AT A POINT WHERE WE CAN BE REALLY SUCCESSFUL WITH THAT.
I'M GLAD Y'ALL PROGRESSED TO THAT POINT.
IS THERE ANYTHING IN INDIVIDUAL HOMEOWNERS CAN DO ON THEIR OWN TO HELP ABOUT THIS? THEY CAN.
THEY, FIRST OF ALL, WE PUT OUR INDEXES ONLINE SO THAT ANYBODY THAT WANTS TO GO ONLINE AND LOOK TO SEE WHETHER THERE'S BEEN ANYTHING RECORDED IN THEIR NAME, THEY CAN DO THAT.
IT'S GOING THROUGH MY WEBSITE.
UM, THE OTHER THING IS THEY ARE MORE THAN WELCOME TO CALL MY OFFICE AND JUST ASK WHAT THE LAST RECORDING IS THAT, YOU KNOW, WAS PUT ON RECORD FOR THEIR, FOR THEIR NAME, AND WE'LL BE GLAD TO HELP 'EM WITH THAT.
BUT THEY HAVE TO BE AWARE, THERE MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO COME INTO YOU TO, TO LOOK AT THE REGISTER.
THEY, I MEAN, THEY COULD BE MADE AWARE OF SOMETHING, BUT IF, IF THEY JUST WANNA JUST CALL AND CHECK, WE'RE HAPPY TO LOOK IT UP.
IN OTHER WORDS, THEY'RE WORRIED ABOUT THEIR OWN HOME.
IN OTHER WORDS, IF YOU CALL TOMORROW AND JUST WANTED TO CHECK ON, UM, THE LAST THING THAT WAS RECORDED, WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO TELL YOU, YOU KNOW, FOR YOUR NAME.
THE LAST THING THAT WE HAVE WAS THIS TYPE OF DOCUMENT THAT WAS RECORDED ON THIS DATE.
DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION? UH, I DO.
I WANTED TO POINT AHEAD ANY I DO.
UH, SO IT'S PROBABLY, UH, TO THIS, KRISTEN.
[00:15:01]
YOU KNOW, WE MET AT THE COURTHOUSE AND, AND WE WENT OVER ALL THIS STUFF.AND SO I'M FOLLOWING UP ON OUR CONVERSATION MM-HMM
ABOUT ELECTRONIC FILING AND GETTING RID OF SOME OF THE PAPERS AND ALSO THE KIOSK SYSTEMS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT.
CAN YOU GIMME AN UPDATE ON THAT? SO WE HAVE, WE HAVE HAD DIGITAL FILES SINCE 2014, UM, AS CASES PRIOR TO 2014 COME UP.
LIKE IF THEY COME BACK ON OUR, UH, REINSTATEMENT OR, UH, RULE TO SHOW, CAUSE WE'LL GO AHEAD AND SCAN THOSE TWO.
SO FROM 2014 AND FORWARD WE'RE DIGITAL.
UM, THE, UM, THE ONCE BEFORE THAT WERE NOT, WE'RE JUST TRYING TO GET IT WHEN WE CAN BACK SCAN IT.
UM, I HAVE CONTACTED, UM, AND HAVE A, HAVE A QUOTE FOR A BACK SCANNING COMPANY THAT, UM, HAS BEEN USED BY MANY OF, UH, MY COLLEAGUES IN THE CLERK'S ASSOCIATION.
UH, THE NICE THING ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR COMPANY IS THAT THEY, UM, DO HAVE A DATA INTEGRATION WITH THE SUPREME COURT.
SO THEN ALL OF THOSE CASES WILL BE ABLE TO BE UPLOADED INTO OUR DATA, YOU KNOW, OUR CASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.
UM, THE, WITH REGARD TO THE KIOSKS, I DO HAVE QUOTES ON THEM.
UH, THEM, THEY'RE VERY EXPENSIVE.
UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WANTED TO MAKE SURE WITH REGARD TO THE KIOSKS IS I'M A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT LIABILITY AND HOW THEY ARE, UM, HOW THEY'RE UPKEPT WITH CURRENT INFORMATION.
UM, A LOT OF IT IS RELY IS RELYING ON, ON AI.
UM, BUT I DON'T WANT THERE TO BE THE ASSUMPTION THAT BECAUSE THIS IS IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE OR COURTHOUSE OR WHATEVER, THAT THIS IS, YOU KNOW, THE OFFICIAL THAT THAT'S OFFICIAL AND IT'S OUR RECOMMENDATION AS TO HOW THEY PROCEED COMPLETELY.
SO HOW ARE THESE OTHER JURISDICTIONS DOING THEM? I DON'T KNOW THAT THEY'RE IN, UM, THE, THE JURORS.
SO NOBODY AROUND HAS DO IS DOING THE KIOSK.
UM, THERE MAY BE ONE IN, IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA.
UM, THERE ARE KIOSKS THAT I'VE HEARD.
THEY'RE IN OTHER STATE, UM, OFFICES LIKE OUTSIDE OF VIRGINIA.
I'D BE CURIOUS TO SEE HOW THEY'RE HANDLING THE LIABILITY ON THAT.
THEY MAY HAVE AN ANSWER FOR YEAH.
THE KIOSK IS TO HELP PEOPLE COME TO THEIR OFFICE.
BE MORE EFFICIENT FOR WHAT PEOPLE IN WHAT WAY? INFORMATION.
TRYING TO GET INFORMATION FROM HER OFFICE.
ALSO THOUGHT IT WAS ABOUT A TELEPHONE.
I THOUGHT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO ALSO PROVIDE, YOU COULD DO A KIND OF A CURSORY LOOK AT YOUR, YOUR RECORDS OR SOMETHING.
WE ALREADY HAVE THAT IN PLACE.
YOU CAN COME DOWN, OKAY, THIS IS SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
YOU CAN COME DOWN AND LOOK AT THAT.
BUT THE, THE KIOSK WOULD BE KIND OF LIKE A SELF-HELP, UM, WHERE THEY ASK A QUESTION THAT WOULD DIRECT THEM TO WHAT, UM, LIKE MAYBE WHAT COURT THAT WOULD BE FILED IN OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, THERE, IT, THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT, UH, CONTENT THAT YOU CAN PUT INTO IT.
AND SO IT JUST WOULD DEPEND ON HOW MUCH YOU WANNA PUT OUT THERE FOR IT.
WHEN WE HAD OUR, OUR CONVERSATION, SHE SAID HER CLERKS WERE OVERLOADED.
AND A LOT OF TIMES IT GETS BACKED UP BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE COMING UP AND THEY'VE GOT A QUESTION.
AND THEN OF COURSE THAT LEADS TO ANOTHER QUESTION AT LEADS TO ANOTHER QUESTION.
AND IT COULD TIE UP 15, 20, 30 MINUTES OF THEIR CLERK'S TIME WHERE IF WE HAD A KIOSK, THE AI WOULD SEND THEM RIGHT TO IT.
OR THEY COULD WRITE, ASK A QUESTION ONLINE, OR THEY COULD DO IT A LOT OF OTHER WAYS WITHOUT EVEN HAVING TO STAND THERE IN LINE.
NOT EVERYBODY HAS A COMPUTER TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT, SO.
DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION? I DO.
WAYNE ASKED ONE OF MY QUESTIONS.
THE SECOND ONE WAS MORE OF A COMPLIMENT.
I SAW IN THE NEWS TWO DAYS AGO, THE, UH, UH, PROSECUTION OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAD MURDERED THE YOUNG LADY FROM RICHMOND ON OLD WILLIAMSBURG ROAD.
THAT WAS ACTUALLY THE, THE FEDERAL AUTHORITIES DID THAT, BUT WE ASKED FOR THEIR HELP AND THEY GOT A GREAT RESULT.
SO WE'RE VERY PLEASED WITH THAT.
WELL, THANK YOU VERY, VERY MUCH FOR, I THINK IT WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE I THINK NOW PEOPLE WATCH YOU ON TV WILL KNOW A LITTLE MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU ALL DO AND THEY'LL APPRECIATE MORE WHAT YOU DO.
[1* Berkley Group Staffing Study Presentation.]
SO THE NEXT ON THE AGENDA, WELL THE ONE THAT I MOVED AWAY, I'M GONNA CALL ON THE BERKELEY GROUP STAFFING STUDY FOR THE PRESENTATION.AND I UNDERSTAND WE HAVE AN UPDATE IN OUR BOOK.
YOU HAVE A COPY OF THE PRESENTATION, WHAT'S OVER
[00:20:01]
THE PRESENTATION.IN CASE IT'S EASIER FOR YOU TO LOOK IT BACK MOMENT.
IF YOU CAN HANG TIGHT FOR ME, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
I APPRECIATE Y'ALL HAVING ME THIS WAY.
MADAM CHAIR, MR. VICE CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, GOOD EVENING.
UM, THANK YOU YOU FOR YOUR TIME ON ALLOWING US TO PRESENT TO YOU THIS INFORMATION.
UM, DUE TO BEING A LITTLE UNDER THE WEATHER AND FOR HIS OWN WELLBEING.
AND EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM
UH, HE'S ONE OF THE PRINCIPALS FROM THE BERKELEY GROUP, PART OF THE ASSESSMENT TEAM.
I ALSO HAVE WITH US MR. JACK TUTTLE, MR. ERIC CAMPBELL, WHO YOU ALL KNOW HAVE BEEN THE POINT PERSONS FOR THIS PROJECT WITH YOUR COUNTY AND THE BOARD.
SO I HAVE THEM HERE READY TO DO THE PRESENTATION AS WELL.
UM, WE WANTED TO GIVE YOU A COPY OF THE PRESENTATION IN CASE THAT'S BETTER FOR YOU TO REFER TO.
AND YOU ALSO HAVE THE REPORT, WHICH HAS, UM, BEEN UPDATED AND WE PUT IT IN YOUR BINDER SO YOU HAVE THE UPDATED VERSIONS.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, FOR THE PAST, UH, FEW MONTHS, THE BERKELEY GROUP HAS BEEN FINALIZING THIS ORGANIZATIONAL ASSESSMENT THAT THEY'VE CONDUCTED HERE AT YORK COUNTY.
AND THEY'RE READY TO PRESENT THEIR FINDINGS TO THE BOARD AND CERTAINLY ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE.
SO AT THIS TIME, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO MR. TO MR. CAMPBELL.
UH, GOOD EVENING, MADAM CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.
GREAT TO BE BACK HERE TO SEE YOU AGAIN AND TALK WITH YOU FOR THE FINAL REPORT.
I KNOW WE'VE COME BACK A COUPLE TIMES WITH UPDATES FOR YOU ALL, SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO GO OVER THE, UM, UH, REPORT AT A KIND OF HIGH LEVEL FOR YOU TONIGHT.
SO JUST TO QUICKLY REVIEW, THE, THE PURPOSE OF THE ASSESSMENT WAS TO REVIEW AND ANALYZE YOUR COUNTY'S OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE, STAFFING LEVELS, POLICIES, PROCEDURES, WORKFLOW AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVING EFFICIENCY.
UH, THE BERKELEY LOCAL GROUP OF PROFESSIONALS CONDUCTED REVIEWS OF EXISTING DOCUMENTATIONS, UH, CHARTS, BUDGETS AND EVERYTHING.
UH, WE IN TOTAL DID ABOUT 52 IN-PERSON INTERVIEWS JUST TO RECAP, UM, UH, STAFF, UH, COUNTY STAFF TO GAIN COMPREHENSIVE UNDERSTANDING OF THE BASELINE OPERATIONS AND EMPLOYEES PERSPECTIVES OF THEIR JOBS AND OVERVIEW.
THE BERKELEY GROUP ALSO MET WITH FOUR OF THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS TO REVIEW ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY ASSESSMENT PROCESSES, AS WELL AS THE BOARD MEMBERS INDIVIDUAL PERSPECTIVES OF COUNTY OPERATION OVERALL.
AND WE WE'RE PROUD TO SAY THAT THE FINDINGS OF THE ASSESSMENT REVEALED THAT THE YORK COUNTY PROVIDES A HIGH LEVEL OF SERVICE DESPITE THE CURRENT STAFFING VACANCIES THAT MAY EXIST.
AND THE COUNTY'S DEDICATED EMPLOYEES ARE COMMITTED TO DELIVERING PROFESSIONAL AND RESPONSIVE SERVICE TO ITS RESIDENTS HERE IN YORK COUNTY.
SO TONIGHT WHAT WE WILL DO IS GO THROUGH, UM, THE 30,000 FOOT KIND OF HIGH LEVEL.
THE ACTUAL REPORT IS OVER A HUNDRED PAGES.
UM, SO I HAVE, I HAVE A, A HARD COPY HERE AS WELL, BUT WE'LL GO THROUGH THE KEY THEMES OF EACH DEPARTMENT AND OVERVIEW AND WHY WE FELT THEY WERE KEY THEMES.
AND THEN HOPEFULLY WE CAN RESPOND, UM, TO ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE BECAUSE OF THE, THE LARGE DOCUMENT, WE MAY HAVE TO MAKE SOME REFERENCES BACK DEPENDING ON WHAT QUESTIONS WE GET.
BUT WE WANTED TO GIVE YOU A QUICK OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE ARE, UH, WITH THE FINAL REPORT.
SO WE'RE GONNA START WITH, UM, CONSTITUTIONAL PARTNERS HERE IN YORK COUNTY, THE COMMISSIONER OF THE REVENUE.
UM, SOME OF THE KEY HIGHLIGHTED THINGS FOR THE COMMISSIONER REVENUE WERE TECHNOLOGY, CUSTOMER SERVICE ENHANCEMENT, NEW POSITIONS AND OPERATIONAL ADJUSTMENTS UNDER TECHNOLOGY.
ONE OF THE KEY THINGS THAT CAME UP WAS UPGRADES TO TAX SOFTWARE TO ENHANCE AUDIT CAPABILITIES AND DATA ACCURACY IN THE OFFICE.
AND ALSO TO PROVIDE SECURE REMOTE ACCESS FOR AUDITORS TO STREAMLINE FIELD OPERATIONS WITHIN THEIR OFFICE.
LOOKING AT CUSTOMER SERVICE ENHANCEMENTS, WE LOOKED AT INCREASING PUBLIC AWARENESS OF ONLINE TAX SERVICES THROUGH TARGETED OUTREACH OF THE COMMISSIONER REVENUES OFFICE, AS WELL AS TO FOSTER COLLABORATION WITH THE COUNTY ASSESSOR TO IMPROVE DATA CONSISTENCY BETWEEN THE TWO NEW POSITIONS.
WE LOOK TO INTRODUCE A NEW TAX AUDITOR TO FOCUS ON COMPLIANT AUDITS AND TAXPAYER EDUCATION, AS WELL AS CONVERT TO ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT POSITIONS TO FULL-TIME ROLES TO ENHANCE PRODUCTIVITY WITHIN THE COMMISSIONER RESIDENTS OFFICE OPERATIONAL ADJUSTMENTS WE LOOK TO PROVIDE, UH,
[00:25:01]
FIELD AUDITORS WITH SECURE REMOTE ACCESS TO IMPROVE EFFICIENCY AND TO STREAMLINE WORKFLOWS TO HANDLE AND INCREASE TAXPAYER AND THEIR ACTIONS WITHIN THE COMMISSIONER OF REVENUES OFFICE.MOVING ON TO ANOTHER CONSTITUTIONAL PARTNER IS THE TREASURER'S OFFICE.
AND WE, THE OVERARCHING THEMES WERE OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS, REVENUE COLLECTION, OF COURSE, UH, STAFF EXPANSION TRAINING AND CROSS TRAINING, LOOKING AT OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS.
WE LOOKED AT STREAMLINING ONLINE PAYMENT PROCESSES TO ENHANCE THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE OF PAYING THEIR TAXES TO THE TREASURER, TO AUTOMATE BANK RECONCILIATION, TO REDUCE MANUAL WORKLOADS WITHIN THE OFFICE AND MAKE SURE THINGS WERE UPGRADED TO AUTOMATION TO REVIEW, UH, AND REVIEW AND COLLECTIONS.
WE WANTED TO EXPAND DELINQUENT TAX RECOVERY CAMPAIGNS, UM, JUST TO KEEP THE COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGEABLE OF THOSE, UH, DELINQUENT TAX DATES AND HOW TO GO ABOUT, UM, UM, RECOVERING 'EM AND TAKING CARE OF 'EM.
ALSO TO IMPLEMENT PROACTIVE COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES WITH TAXPAYERS TO JUST STAY INVOLVED AND, AND LET PEOPLE STAY AWARE OF WHAT THE REQUIREMENTS DEADLINES ARE FOR THEIR TAXES UNDER STAFF EXPANSION, TO HIRE ADDITIONAL STAFF TO MANAGE DELINQUENT COLLECTIONS MORE EFFECTIVELY AND TO ADD PERSONNEL TO HANDLE INCREASED CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUESTS.
AND UNDER TRAINING AND CROSS TRAINING TO PROVIDE FIELD AUDITORS WITH SECURE REMOTE ACCESS TO IMPROVE EFFICIENCY WITHIN THE OFFICE AND TO STREAMLINE WORKFLOWS TO HANDLE INCREASING TAXPAYER INTERACTIONS, BUT NOT CROSS TRAINING WITHIN THE OFFICE ITSELF.
CROSS TRAINING WITHIN THE OFFICE, THAT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS YEAH.
WITHIN THE OFFICE, CORRECT? YES, MA'AM.
LOOKING AT COUNTY FINANCE, THE OVERARCHING THEMES WERE FINANCIAL SYSTEMS ENHANCEMENT, BUDGET TRANSPARENCY, PAYROLL STAFFING AND SUCCESSION PLANNING, LOOKING AT THE FINANCIAL SYSTEMS ENHANCEMENT, UPGRADE FINANCIAL REPORTING TOOLS FOR CLARITY AND CONSISTENCY WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT.
STREAMLINE THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS WITH MORE AUTOMATED TOOLS, LOOKING AT BUDGET TRANSPARENCY, DEVELOP CLEAR BUDGET PRESENTATIONS WITH KEY PERFORMANCE EDUCATORS, AVAILABLE TO CONSOLIDATE FUNDING NARRATIVES FOR EASIER STAKEHOLDER UNDERSTANDING, LOOKING AT PAYROLL AND GRANT STAFFING.
HIRE ADDITIONAL PAYROLL COORDINATORS TO ADDRESS STAFFING GAPS AND EXPAND GRANT MANAGEMENT CAPACITY WITH A DEDICATED GRANTS COORDINATOR.
LOOKING AT SUCCESSION PLANNING TO DEVELOP INTERNAL CANDIDATES FOR LEADERSHIP ROLES TO ENSURE CONTINUITY WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT AND TO CROSS TRAIN STAFF ACROSS FINANCIAL REPORTING, PAYROLL AND BUDGET FUNCTIONS TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE SUSTAINABILITY AND BACKUP STAFF WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT.
MOVING ON TO ECONOMIC AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT, THE KEY OVERARCHING THEMES WERE TO PROMOTE BUSINESS AND TOURISM, OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS, VACANCIES AND TRAINING AND SEASONAL SUPPORT, LOOKING AT PROMOTE BUSINESS AND TOURISM TO DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE MARKETING STRATEGY FOR YORK COUNTY TOURISM OVERALL.
AND TO CREATE A DEDICATED MISSION STATEMENT FOCUSING ON QUALITY OF LIFE IMPROVEMENTS WITHIN THE COUNTY UNDER OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS TO EXPAND STORAGE AND WORKSPACE FOR WATERFRONT OPERATIONS, WHICH HAS BEEN A CHALLENGE TO UPDATE THE DEPARTMENTAL BUDGET PRESENTATION FOR BETTER TRANSPARENCY.
LOOKING AT VACANCIES AND TRAINING TO FEEL VACANT.
THE VACANT ECONOMIC DIRECT DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST POSITION TO ENHANCE CAPACITY WITHIN THE OFFICE AND TO PROVIDE CROSS TRAINING FOR STAFF AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM FUNCTIONS UNDER SEASONAL SUPPORT TO HIRE ADDITIONAL SEASONAL STAFF TO SUPPORT WATERFRONT OPERATIONS DURING THE PEAK PERIODS.
IT'S ALWAYS A CHALLENGE WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SEASONAL EMPLOYEES.
OUR KEY THEMES WERE RETENTION STRATEGIES, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT, RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION, AND IMPROVING ONBOARDING OF EMPLOYEES UNDER RETENTION STRATEGIES.
IMPLEMENT STATE INTERVIEWS, SO TO SPEAK, TO ADDRESS EMPLOYEES CONCERNS PROACTIVELY.
SO TO TRY TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE AN OPEN, THOROUGH COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE EXISTING STAFF BEFORE THE DECISIONS ARE MADE FOR THEM TO MOVE ON TO SEE WHAT WE CAN DO TO, TO RETAIN THEM HERE IN THE COUNTY.
DEVELOP CAREER LADDERS TO SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL GROWTH AND REDUCE
[00:30:01]
TURNOVER WITHIN THE OVERALL EMPLOYEE POPULATION UNDER PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT.TO ROLL OUT A COUNTYWIDE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION SYSTEM EFFECTIVELY.
AND ALSO TO LINK THE EVALUATION SYSTEM TO A PERFORMANCE BASE PAY ADJUSTMENT UNDER RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION TO HIRE TWO HR ANALYSTS TO ADDRESS RECRUITMENT AND CLASSIFICATION NEEDS.
ALSO TO REESTABLISH THE EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT ADVISOR POSITION FOR TRAINING PROGRAMS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE STAFF HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO GET THE MOST UP-TO-DATE TRAINING.
ALSO IMPROVE ONBOARDING THE ONBOARDING PROCESS TO STREAMLINE ONBOARDING PROCESSES, TO REDUCE DELAYS AND FILL IN CRITICAL POSITIONS.
THOSE DELAYS, OFTENTIMES YOU HAVE AN OFFER, BUT IF YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE CHECKS AND, AND ALL THE THINGS TO PROCESS, THE PERSON TAKES ANOTHER POSITION AND YOU LOSE THE PERSON.
THAT'S AN INTERESTING POINT BECAUSE YOU HAVE TWO BACKGROUND CHECKS OF PEOPLE THAT YOU HIRE, RIGHT? SO THAT'S WHAT'S TAKING, TAKES THE TIME TO HIRE A PERSON.
SOME, SOME ASPECT IS THE BACKGROUND CHECKS, RIGHT? SO HOW ARE YOU GOING TO MINIMIZE THAT OR HOW ARE YOU GOING TO NARROW THE TIME LINE THAT YOU HAVE TO REDO BEFORE YOU CAN HIRE A PERSON? WHAT IS YOUR SUGGESTION FOR THAT? WELL, ONE IS TO STREAMLINE SOME OF THE PROCESSING.
UM, AND, AND THAT IS MORE OF AN INTERNAL PROCESSING, AND I'LL KIND OF LOOK THROUGH ROADS TO KIND OF GO INTO MORE DETAIL.
BUT THE, THE KEY WOULD BE TO STREAMLINE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE RATHER THAN TO HAVE EACH PROCESS IN EACH DOCUMENT, YOU HAVE TO DO YOUR I NINE, YOU HAVE TO DO CERTAIN THINGS TO PUT 'EM IN A, A PACKAGE, SO TO SPEAK, SO THAT IT CAN BE DONE MORE QUICKLY.
AM I'M ON TRACK WITH THAT? YES, MA'AM.
SO CURRENTLY MRS. DOLE, WE HAVE IT TO WHERE NEW HIRES CAN COME ON BOARD AT THE BEGINNING OF A PAY PERIOD FOR OBVIOUS REASONS FOR OUR PAYROLL SYSTEM.
UM, SO ONE OF THE OPTIONS THAT WE CAN LOOK AT IS DOING SOMETHING DIFFERENT WITH THAT OR HAVING NEW EMPLOYEE ORIENTATIONS WEEKLY, WHICH WOULD REQUIRE STAFF A LOT MORE STAFF AND MORE, YES, A LOT MORE STAFF.
WE COULD STREAMLINE PAPERWORK TO, WE ALREADY SEND IT TO THEM IN ADVANCE.
UM, WE COULD STREAMLINE WHAT'S ASKED FOR AND MAYBE DO SOME OF IT ONCE THEY GET HERE.
SO, BUT THE BACKGROUND CHECKS TO YOUR QUESTION, WE, WE CAN'T MITIGATE THAT.
WE HAVE TO DO THOSE AND SOMETIMES DEPEND.
SO IT'S THE OTHER, THAT'S WHAT I'M GETTING AT, IS THE OTHER PART OF IT THAT YOU HAVE TO STREAMLINE.
BUT MIKE, WELL, SOMETHING FALL THROUGH THE CRACK IS MY POINT.
I DON'T BELIEVE IT WILL DO THAT.
IT'S JUST THAT I DON'T BELIEVE IT WILL, CAN YOU ELIMINATE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU'RE ALREADY DOING? WE WILL LOOK AT DOING THAT.
WE WILL LOOK AT OPTIONS OF HOW WE, WE CAN DO THAT.
SOME THINGS LIKE THE BACKGROUND CHECKS, CREDIT CHECKS, DRIVING RECORD CHECKS.
SO THOSE ARE CONTINGENT AND CONDITIONAL JOB OFFERS ARE CONTINGENT ON THAT.
AND DO YOU HAVE A TIMEFRAME FOR THAT? HOW LONG IS IT ON AVERAGE DOES IT TAKE TO DO THAT? ON AVERAGE? TWO TO THREE DAYS DEPENDING ON WHAT COMES UP.
SO, SO TWO OR THREE DAYS, IT'S, THAT'S NOT TOO BAD.
WHEN YOU HAVE FOLKS THAT HAVE THINGS THAT COULD COME UP, IT TAKES LONGER.
AND, AND, AND ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS, UH, WITH IMPROVING ONBOARDING IS THE USE OF SOFTWARE TOOLS TO AUTOMATE AND EXPEDITE SOME OF THOSE THINGS.
SO WHERE WE CAN USE TECHNOLOGY AND INTEGRATE TECHNOLOGY AND TO SPEED SOME OF THAT UP OKAY.
TO ASSIST WITH STREAMLINING, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE RECOMMENDING HAPPENS.
AND THEN LOOKING AT INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY, UM, OF COURSE THE BROADER THEMES FOR CYBERSECURITY ENHANCEMENTS, TECHNOLOGY UTILIZATION, STAFFING GAPS, AS WELL AS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, LOOKING AT CYBERSECURITY ENHANCEMENT, EXPANDING CYBERSECURITY RESOURCES TO ADDRESS EMERGING THREATS.
WE ALL HEAR ABOUT IT EVERY DAY NOW, HOW, UM, SYSTEMS ARE BEING CYBER ATTACK CONSTANTLY AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COUNTY HAS THE UPDATED, UM, TECHNOLOGY DEFENSES AVAILABLE TO MITIGATE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.
ALSO PROVIDE MANDATORY TRAINING FOR ALL COUNTY STAFF ON CYBERSECURITY PROTOCOLS SO THAT EVERYBODY IS AWARE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING AND WHAT THOSE THREATS ARE.
AND TO BE AWARE OF THEM UNDER TECHNOLOGY UTILIZATION TO IMPROVE ADOPTION OF EXISTING TOOLS LIKE N FOUR AND TYLER MUNIS TO STREAMLINE OFFICE 365 IMPLEMENTATION WITH DEDICATED SUPPORT TO SET MEASURABLE GOALS FOR TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION.
FOR EXAMPLE, 25% FASTER PROCESSING FOR INFO UPGRADES.
UM, MONITOR USER ADOPTION RATES FOR TOOLS LIKE OFFICE 365 AND SETTING GOALS LIKE 90% COMPLIANCE BY THE FOURTH QUARTER OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THOSE KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS.
THEY TO IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF THE OVERALL OPERATION.
LOOKING AT THE STAFFING GAPS TO HIRE ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM SPECIALISTS TO IMPROVE SOFTWARE MANAGEMENT, TO ADD A SYSTEMS ADMINISTRATOR TO MANAGE EVOLVING INFRASTRUCTURE
[00:35:01]
NEEDS WITHIN THE IT INFRASTRUCTURE ITSELF.AND TO INTRODUCE A SUPPORT SPECIALIST FOR OFFICE 365, EXCUSE ME, TRANSITION AND USER TRAINING UNDER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOP TO ENCOURAGE ONGOING TRAINING FOR IT.
IT CHANGES SO QUICKLY AND CONSTANTLY JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT THE EMPLOYEES HAVE ACCESS TO THE, THE UP TO DATE AND, UM, AND, AND CURRENT TRAINING TO REMAIN CURRENT WITH THAT NEW TECHNOLOGY AND TO INCREASE RESOURCES FOR CERTIFICATIONS AND WORKSHOPS FOR THE IT, UM, PROFESSIONALS THAT ARE MANNING THE INFRASTRUCTURE.
SO WITH THAT, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO MR. TUTTLE TO CONTINUE.
DO YOU WANT ME TO DRAW OUT OR YOU WANT? THAT'S ALRIGHT.
NEXT WE'LL MOVE TO THE LIBRARY.
WITH YOUR 34 EMPLOYEES AND TWO BRANCHES, UH, AND A LOT OF, UH, SERVICE BEING PROVIDED.
UH, THIS IS A VERY ACTIVE SMALL DEPARTMENT.
AND IN TERMS OF SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS IN THE REPORT UNDER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, IT'S TIME TO CONDUCT A COMMUNITY SURVEY FOR THE LIBRARY, WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR THEM TO ALIGN THEIR SERVICES TO THE NEEDS OF THE PATRONS.
'CAUSE THEY CANNOT DO ALL THAT CAN POSSIBLY BE DONE.
AND TO UPDATE THE STRATEGIC PLAN LAST DONE IN 2019, IT'S TIME TO DO THAT.
TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS, UH, LIBRARY'S PRETTY GOOD WITH WHAT THEY DO, BUT THEY NEED TO CONTINUE TO EXPAND USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS AND SERVICE THE PATRONS.
SO IT DOESN'T PUT AS MUCH DEMAND ON STAFF THAT THEY, THAT THEY CAN MEET BECAUSE OF THEIR LIMITATIONS IN STAFFING.
IN TERMS OF STAFFING ENHANCEMENTS, UH, WE SEE A PATTERN OF INCREASING DEMAND.
UH, IN TIMES THEY'VE HAD TO DENY SERVICE SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE THE, THE SPACE AND THE STAFF TO, UH, PROVIDE IT.
UM, WE SEE AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONVERT SOME OF THE WORK IS REQUIRED, POSITIONS TO PERMANENT STATUS, AND ALSO OUT OF THAT, UH, CREATING A MARKETING, UM, POSITION, UH, TO TAKE ON THAT, THAT ROLE.
UM, AND IN THE FUTURE, PROBABLY A COUPLE YEARS IN THE FUTURE, A DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR WOULD BE A GREAT IDEA TO COORDINATE BOTH, UH, DOLLARS COMING INTO THE LIBRARY FROM THE OUTSIDE AS WELL AS VOLUNTEER SUPPORT IN ORDER TO, UH, INCREASE THE, UH, UH, REVENUE AND, UH, COMING INTO, SO BE THEY'LL BE ABLE TO DO MORE AND CROSS TRAINING, MORE CROSS TRAINING BETWEEN THE STAFF CIRCULATION, REFERENCE YOUTH SERVICES STAFF, UH, TO ENABLE THEM TO HANDLE PEAK PERIODS AND COVER FOR ABSENCES, WHICH WILL ALWAYS HAPPEN AGAIN WITH, UM, THE AMOUNT OF FOLKS THEY'VE GOT.
UH, NEXT WE'LL MOVE ON TO PARKS OF RECREATION.
AGAIN, ANOTHER SMALL DEPARTMENT WITH A BIG JOB, WELL FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT EMPLOYEES SUPERVISING SOMEWHERE UP TO 150 WORK IS REQUIRED STAFF TO RUN ALL OF THE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES THAT THE COUNTY PROVIDES.
UH, THEY'RE SERVING IN MULTIPLE FACILITIES AROUND THE COUNTY.
AND SO WE DO SEE AN OPPORTUNITY, WE KNOW IT'S EXPENSIVE, BUT TO LOOK AT THE FEASIBILITY OF AN INDOOR MULTI-USE FACILITY FOR A YEAR TIME DO HOW MANY YEARS? THAT'S BEEN ONE OF THE THINGS WE'VE THOUGHT ABOUT.
I'M SURE IT'LL PROBABLY BE ON THE WISHLIST FOR A WHILE, BUT WE'RE JUST TELLING YOU IT'S, WE THINK IT'S A LEGITIMATE NEED.
HOW, HOW MANY WORK IS REQUIRED EMPLOYEES? DID YOU SAY 12 IS WHAT YOU HAVE RIGHT NOW? 12.
BUT WORKERS REQUIRED 12 UP TO 150, RIGHT? YEAH.
HOW MANY FTES IS THAT? I CAN'T TELL YOU THAT.
WE WANNA HIRE SOME RATHER THAN, I'M JUST TRYING TO GET A FEEL FOR SURE.
GET A FEEL FOR, BECAUSE COULD IT'S, I MEAN, THERE'S WORK IS REQUIRED, BUT THEY COULD WORK 35 HOURS A WEEK WHEN, OR THEY'RE WORKING FIVE HOURS A WEEK.
SO I'M TRYING TO GET A FEEL FOR WHAT DOES THAT EQUATE TO FULL-TIME EQUIPMENT? THAT'S A GOOD POINT, BUT, AND PARK AND REC IS, IT'S ALL OVER THE PLACE.
I, AND THEY'RE BUSY, SO THAT'S ONE OF, YEAH.
WE, WE PLAY ALL SEASON RIGHT HERE,
AND THEN UNDER OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS, WE DO SEE AN OPPORTUNITY TO RETURN, UH, THIS WORK GROUP TO A DEPARTMENTAL LEVEL STATUS AND, UM, TO ENHANCE COMMUNICATIONS TOO WITH THE DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE THEY ARE SO SPREAD OUT, THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE REGULAR DEPARTMENTAL MEETINGS.
THEY SIMPLY CAN'T ALL GET TOGETHER TO DO THAT, AND THEIR WORKLOAD WON'T ALLOW AS WELL AS THE, UH, THE GEOGRAPHY, UM, SUCCESSION PLANNING.
UM, A RECREATION SUPERVISOR POSITION, UH, NEEDS TO BE ADDED BACK TO MANAGE INCREASING PROGRAMMING DEMANDS.
[00:40:01]
PEOPLE TO, UH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AT ONE POINT WHEN THOSE RESPONSIBILITIES WENT OVER, WHICH THEN REDUCES THEIR FLEXIBILITY TO COVER THEIR, UM, THEIR REQUIREMENTS.AND FINALLY, UNDER SEASONAL SUPPORT, UM, YES, UH, YOU, YOU WILL REQUIRE MORE TO MEET THE DEMANDS FOR SUMMER CAMPS AND EVENTS MM-HMM
AND, AND YOU KNOW, THE DEMAND YOU HAVE TO SET, THIS IS HOW MUCH WE CAN DO, AND YOU DO THE BEST WITH WHAT YOU DECIDE TO SPEND.
BUT THE DEMAND IS CERTAINLY, UH, THERE.
MOVING NEXT TO, UH, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, WE DO THINK THERE'S OPPORTUNITY, UH, FOR, UM, A NUMBER OF IMPROVEMENTS IN THIS DEPARTMENT.
ONE IS DIGITIZING PAPER RECORDS FOR FASTER ACCESS AND IMPROVED EFFICIENCY.
THAT'S GENERALLY TRUE ACROSS, ACROSS OTHER DEPARTMENTS, PARTICULARLY HERE.
UM, AND, AND THERE ARE SOME GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS ON RECORDS, MA RECORDS MANAGEMENT, YOU'LL SEE THOSE ON PAGE 10.
UH, IMPLEMENT EXPEDITED REVIEW TIMES FOR SMALL SCALE PROJECTS.
NOT EVERYTHING WHEN IT COMES IN THE DOOR SHOULD DICTATE THE TIME THAT WHEN YOU GET TO IT, IF IT'S SMALL SCALE AND A MORE AND A SHORTER REVIEW TO GET IT OUT THAT DOOR QUICKER, UH, THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES THERE.
THE WHOLE CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPERIENCE, CREATING A SINGLE POINT OF ENTRY FOR PERMIT APPLICATIONS, THE ONE STOP SHOP IDEA, AND IMPROVING THE SIGNAGE, THE LAYOUT OF THEIR FACILITIES TO MAKE IT MORE CUSTOMER FRIENDLY.
UM, WE BELIEVE THAT THERE'S OPPORTUNITY THROUGH REASSIGNMENT OF DUTIES WITH THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT, UH, AND NOT, UM, AND NOT ADDING NEW POSITIONS TO COVER MOST ALL OF THIS, BUT CREATING A DEPUTY DIRECTOR POSITION TO REASSIGNMENT TO HANDLE, UH, OPERATIONAL OVERSIGHT ISSUES AND ADDING A PART-TIME ZONING IN INSPECTOR TO MANAGE INCREASED WORKLOADS.
UM, AND UNDER REASSIGNMENT OF DUTIES THAT A MOVE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW THAT'S CURRENTLY IN PUBLIC WORKS TO THE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT.
THAT WOULD BE AN A NET OF, UH, SIX POSITIONS AND THE CROSS-TRAIN STAFF ON PERMITTING AND, AND ZONING TASKS TO IMPROVE RESPONSIVENESS.
WHY WOULD YOU MOVE ENVIRONMENTAL TEAM? WELL, IT WOULD, IT WOULD, IT WOULD BRING YOUR PERMITTING FUNCTIONS UNDER ONE ROOF AND, AND MANY PROJECT PLANS HAVE BOTH ENVIRONMENTAL PERMITTING AND ALL OF THE OTHER ZONING AND, AND DEVELOPMENT PERMITTING.
SO BY CONSOLIDATING THOSE, WE THINK YOU CAN DO A BETTER JOB WITH, UH, CUSTOMER SERVICE.
YEAH, I THINK THAT SOUNDS GOOD.
UM, THIS IS YOUR LARGEST DEPARTMENT RIGHT NOW.
UH, AND, UM, WE SEE SOME OPPORTUNITY HERE.
ONE, ON TERMS OF OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY.
WHAT ARE YOUR CHALLENGES? YOU, WELL KNOW YOUR GEOGRAPHY, UH, MEANS THERE'S ALWAYS A DISTANCE BETWEEN WHERE PEOPLE ARE AND WHERE THEY NEED TO BE TO DO THE JOB.
SO HOW DO YOU BEST PRE-POSITION YOUR GROUND STAFF TO, TO, TO BE CLOSER TO WHERE THEY NEED TO DO THE JOB? UTILITY STAFF.
AND SO YOU HAVE A SATELLITE OFFICE IN THE NORTH, SO WHO SHOULD MOVE UP THERE? WE SEE SOME MOVEMENT UP THERE OF GROUNDS STAFF AND JUST THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION WITH, UM, UH, UTILITY STAFF.
UH, YOU MADE A RECOMMENDATION THAT WE MOVE THE GROUNDS PEOPLE UP, SOME GROUNDS, PEOPLE THERE, SOME GROUNDS PEOPLE UP THERE TO SAVE AND SOME UTILITY THE OTHER WAY FORTH TIME IN TERMS OF RESOURCE ALLOCATION.
UH, CONDUCT ANNUAL FEE ASSESSMENTS FOR YOUR INTER ENTERPRISE FUNDS AND, UH, CAN LARGELY BE DONE IN HOUSE, BUT LOOK AT WHAT YOU'RE COLLECTING AND HOW MUCH OF YOUR ENTERPRISE FUND YOU'RE ABLE TO COVER WITH YOUR FEES AS OPPOSED TO RELYING ON GENERAL FUNDS, RECLASSIFY, UNDERUTILIZED ROLES TO ADDRESS HIGH DEMAND FUNCTIONS.
THAT'S BACK TO THOSE SIX POSITIONS.
THERE ARE SOME NINE ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS TO THIS DEPARTMENT.
WE THINK THAT NUMBER CAN COME DOWN AND, UH, SUBSTANTIALLY AS YOU REALLOCATE THOSE DUTIES.
ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT MOVING STAFF AROUND, NOT GETTING RID OF STAFF, NOT GETTING RID OF, THANK YOU.
REALLOCATING, UH, SOME OF THOSE ADMINISTRATIVE ROLES.
UM, AND, UM, UH, FILLING VACANCIES PROP PROMPTLY IS AN ISSUE FOR PUBLIC WORKS AS IT IS WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
UH, WE DO SEE A PARTICULAR NEED FOR ANOTHER FLEET MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN, AND IN TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN CREATE THOSE CAREER LADDERS, UH, FOR MAINTENANCE AND ENGINEERING STAFF.
SO THEY, THEY, THEY'VE GOT A PLACE TO GO IN THEIR PROFESSION AND, UM, PROVIDING
[00:45:01]
TRAINING, PARTICULARLY IN STORMWATER AND MANAGEMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT.UH, YES, BECAUSE OF THE DEMANDS OF THE, IN THAT AREA ARE, ARE SO SIGNIFICANT.
UH, A FEW GENERAL PERSONNEL RECOMMENDATIONS.
THESE ARE THEMES WE SAW THROUGHOUT THE ORGANIZATION AND, UH, NONE OF THEM I THINK WILL SURPRISE YOU.
ONE IS EXPANDING, UH, EMPLOYEE TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT ACROSS ALL DEPARTMENTS.
LOOKING AT THOSE PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATIONS THAT, UM, MANY EMPLOYEES NEED.
LOOKING PARTICULARLY AT SUPERVISORY TRAINING, UH, PRIORITIZING CROSS TRAINING OF STAFF WITHIN DEPARTMENTS, INCREASING STAFF FLEXIBILITY AND INCREASING COVERAGE BY CROSS TRAINING.
PROVIDING THE CAREER LADDERS WE'VE MENTIONED IN, IN THE CASE OF SOME OF THE INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENTS.
AND THEN ALSO MOVING MORE AND MORE TO MAKING PAY ADJUSTMENTS BASED ON PERFORMANCE, UM, AS OPPOSED TO LONGEVITY.
AND IN PLANNING FOR SUCCESSION.
SO MUCH OF IT IS ABOUT GROWING YOUR FUTURE LEADERS IN-HOUSE, UH, THROUGH THE, ALL THE STRATEGIES WE'VE JUST TALKED ABOUT AS WELL AS INDIVIDUAL MENTORING.
NEXT, UNDER CUSTOMER SERVICE ENHANCEMENTS, UH, RE-LOOKING AT YOUR PROCESSES, AND WE PARTICULARLY FOCUS ON SO MUCH CUSTOMER SERVICE.
UH, WORK IS DONE WITH, UM, PLANNING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
UH, BUT LOOK, RE-LOOKING AT THOSE PROCESSES FROM A CONSUMER AND FROM A CUSTOMER POINT OF VIEW, MAKING THEM AS, AS DESIGNING THEM TO BE AS CLEAR AND EASY TO FOLLOW FROM THE CUSTOMER'S PERSPECTIVE.
UM, TALKED ABOUT FRONTLINE TRAINING AND CUSTOMER SERVICE AND RETRAINING THAT IS, UH, UM, CONSISTENT REQUIREMENT AND ALSO, UM, SETTING SPECIFIC GOALS AND, AND THEN, UH, MEASURING THOSE GOALS FOR PROCESS IMPROVEMENT SO THAT YOU'RE TRACKING THE TIMELINESS AND YOU'RE ABLE TO LOOK OVER TIME HOW WELL YOU HAVE, UH, DONE IN IMPROVING THOSE PROCESSES.
AND ON THAT NOTE, UH, WE ALSO SEE AN, AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONDUCT A COMMUNITY-WIDE, UH, CITIZEN SURVEY TO BE DONE PERIODICALLY, WHETHER EVERY TWO YEARS, EVERY THREE YEARS, UH, TO MEASURE IT.
IT IS A PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE OF HOW THE COUNTY IS DOING.
IS HOW YOUR CITIZENS PERCEIVE THE COUNTY IS DOING.
AND YOU CAN GET THAT WITH, WITH A GOOD SURVEY TECHNIQUES.
AND WE HAVE SOME SPECIFIC, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS ON PAGE 12 ABOUT THAT.
DID THEY NOT SHOW YOU THE ONES THAT WE'VE DONE IN THE PAST? YEAH, WE HAVE DONE THAT.
IF PERIODICALLY, IF YOU CAN CONTINUE TO ASK THE SAME QUESTIONS SO THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO LOOK AT TRENDS OVER TIME.
AND THEN ALSO IF YOU USE SOME OF THE NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS, YOU'RE ABLE TO BENCHMARK YOURSELVES AGAINST OTHER COMMUNITIES RATHER THAN SIMPLY LOOKING AT YOURSELF, AGAINST YOURSELF.
SO, UH, THAT'S THE OPPORTUNITY WE'VE SEEN.
AND I'M NOT SURE WE HAVE SEEN EVERY SURVEY YOU'VE DONE IN THE PAST, SO, WELL, WE'LL DO FOR ONE ANYWAY, WE'RE PLANNING ON IT.
ANOTHER THEME IS IN THE GENERAL AREA OF COMMUNICATION, WE'VE ALREADY TALKED BEFORE ABOUT BOARD TO STAFF COMMUNICATION.
UH, WE ALSO SEE IN THAT REGARD, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS POLICY AND PROCEDURES MANUAL.
YOU ALREADY HAVE THE PIECES OF THAT, BUT TO BRING THEM TOGETHER IN A SINGLE DOCUMENT AND, AND ADD A FEW MORE THINGS AS, AS SUGGESTED ON PAGE SEVEN IN ORDER TO, UH, BE READOPTED BY EVERY NEW BOARD AS IT IS ELECTED.
AND COMES IN THAT FOR TRAINING OF NEW BOARD MEMBERS AND VERY IMPORTANTLY FOR THE TRAINING AS A STAFF AS WELL, HOW THESE PROCESSES SHOULD WORK AND WHAT THE BOARD'S POLICY IS.
UM, I ALREADY MENTIONED SETTING PERFORMANCE TARGET TARGETS AND RESPONSE TO, UH, UH, AND THEN TRACKING THEM AND THEN REPORTING THEM.
SO ESPECIALLY IN, UM, AGAIN, IN DEVELOPMENT SERVICES WHERE PROCESS IMPROVEMENT IS A PRIORITY AND IMPROVING COMMUNICATIONS UP AND DOWN THE ORGANIZATION, BUT ALSO SIDEWAYS, UH, ALSO BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS.
YOU'VE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE DOING A GOOD NUMBER OF MEETINGS, BUT ARE THOSE MEETINGS BEING, UM, DISCIPLINED ENOUGH AND EFFICIENT ENOUGH? AND ARE THE MESSAGES THAT THINGS HAVE DECIDED IN THOSE MEETINGS, ARE THEY CASCADING OUT OTHER EMPLOYEES THAT NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THEM? WE DISCUSSED THAT ON PAGE EIGHT ALMOST AT THE END.
[00:50:01]
OF THE KEY TAKEAWAYS, UM, I'M NOT GONNA READ EACH ONE OF THESE, BUT JUST TO SAY IN GENERAL THAT, UH, WE DO FIND THAT YOU'VE GOT A VERY STRONG ORGANIZATION IN YORK COUNTY.YOUR FOLKS ARE, UM, UH, DEDICATED AND, AND THEY ARE HARDWORKING OVERALL.
AND, UH, WE THINK, UM, BY CONTINUING TO, UH, INVEST IN THEM, GIVE THEM HIGH EXPECTATIONS, UH, YOU'LL RE A REWARD FOR THAT.
AND THAT IS THE END OF OUR PRESENTATION.
HAPPY TO, UH, ADDRESS ANY QUESTIONS.
ANY, UH, QUESTIONS? NOW WHO WANTS TO GO FIRST? SURE.
I MEAN, WE HAVE DARREN ON THE PHONE IF YOU ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS.
UM, AND BEFORE YOU DIVE IN, MAY I JUST THROW ONE LITTLE TIDBIT IN THERE AS THEY ALLUDED TO IT WAS, I, I MEAN, IT'S A PLEASURE TO SHARE WITH YOU THAT MANY OF THE THINGS THAT THEY RECOMMENDED THE COUNTY HAS ALREADY BEEN DOING AND HAS BEEN WORKING TOWARDS DOING.
SO THAT WAS REALLY NICE TO SEE THAT WE WERE IN TANDEM.
WHETHER IT BE FULFILLING STAFFING LEVELS OR WHETHER IT BE INVESTING IN OUR CURRENT STAFF OR LEADERSHIP POSITIONS AND PREPARING THEM, OR WHETHER IT BE THE CITIZEN SURVEYS, YOU ALL KNOW ABOUT FLASH VOTE AND ALL THE THINGS THAT THE COUNTY IS DOING.
SO A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT ARE IN THIS REPORT WE HAVE ALREADY BEEN DOING AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO.
SO THAT'S GREAT NEWS THAT WE'RE ALREADY MAKING PROGRESS AND WHAT THIS REPORT ENTAILS.
SO MR. COFFEE'S ON THE THE SPEAKER IF YOU NEED HIM FOR QUESTIONS.
THEN OF COURSE YOU HAVE JACK AND ERIC, TOM.
WELL, I, I MEAN, AFTER READING THE, THE REPORT, AND I DIDN'T STUDY IT DETAIL, BUT THERE'S A, THERE'S KIND OF A, THERE'S TWO LAYERS HERE.
UM, ONE IS THAT THERE'S A PART, THERE'S A PART WHERE YOU REPORT TO THE SUPERVISORS AND THERE'S A PART THAT THAT BELONGS TO THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR.
IN FACT, MOST OF WHAT YOU TALKED ABOUT BELONGS TO THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR.
VERY LITTLE BIT BELONGS TO US, UH, SUPERVISORS.
BUT THE, UM, THE, THE, I ESTIMATE I JUST, THIS A ROUGH ORDER OF MAGNITUDE THAT TO IMPLEMENT THE THINGS THAT YOU SUGGESTING HERE WOULD COST US ANYWHERE, WOULD COST US ANYWHERE BETWEEN FOUR AND $6 MILLION, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT MORE.
UM, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, MOVING, MOVING PEOPLE AND, AND BUYING LAND AND BUILDINGS AND, AND EFFICIENCY.
I MEAN, IT'S THERE AND I APPRECIATE IT, BUT THERE'S A, I THINK OVER THE HISTORY, I LOOK BACK AT THAT IN TOUGH TIMES, WHAT DO YOU DO? YOU DON'T FILL POSITIONS.
YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T, YOU DON'T, UH, YOU KNOW, EXPAND AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
SO AFTER WE GO THROUGH MANY DECADES OF DOING THINGS LIKE THIS, WE END UP WITH WHAT YOU SEE IS THAT FEW PEOPLE DOING TOO MANY THINGS.
AND TO BE, TO BE REALLY, REALLY EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT, UH, YOU KNOW, TO BE AT THESE NUMBERS.
I WOULD I TO ADD ALL THESE PEOPLE.
I SAY ONE OF THE BIGGEST COMPLAINT WE'VE ALWAYS SEEN IS HOW DO PEOPLE, NEW BUSINESSES COME IN? HOW DO THEY, HOW DO THEY GO THROUGH THE PROCESS OF, OF GETTING, UH, PERMITS AND STUFF LIKE THAT? AND WE HEAR COMPLAINTS, YOU KNOW, NOT MANY, BUT WE DO HEAR COMPLAINTS.
AND THAT KIND IS A REFLECTION OF WHAT YOU, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT TOO MANY PEOPLE, NOT ONLY FEW PEOPLE DOING TOO MANY THINGS.
THE OVERALL THEME THOUGH, IN WHAT YOU GAVE US THAT MY TAKEAWAY IS THE WORD EFFICIENCY.
UM, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING, TRYING TO DO.
SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT DOING, DOING A LOT OF STUFF WITH TOO FEW PEOPLE IS VERY EFFICIENT.
I'S NOT NECESSARILY NO, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY.
AND YOU, AND YOU END UP WITH, UH, STRESSED WORKERS, YOU END UP THINGS FALLING THROUGH THE CRACK.
UH, UH, UN UH, VERY UNHAPPY ON UH, CUSTOMERS IN SOME CASES, BUT NOT AT ALL.
AND SO JUST, YOU KNOW, THAT EFFICIENCY PART, BUT REALLY, REALLY WHAT GOT ME IS THAT WAS THE, THE PART WHERE YOU TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, VARIOUS, VARIOUS STAFFS USING DIFFERENT SYSTEMS TO GET THINGS DONE.
SOME CASES THEY'RE DOING PAPERWORK SOMETIMES, I MEAN, THERE'S STUFF IN WITH PAPER, SOMETIMES THEY'RE USING THE COMPUTER SYSTEM.
UH, AND THAT WAS TOO MUCH OF THAT.
I MEAN, IN YOUR, IN YOUR REPORT YOU TALKED ABOUT IT AND I'M KIND OF LIKE, YOU KNOW, I'M GONNA LOOK AT THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR OVER AND SAY, OKAY, WE NEED TO, YOU KNOW, YOU COME TO US AND TELL US YOU NEED MORE STUFF OR, BECAUSE THAT IS GROSSLY INEFFICIENT.
UM, WE, WE'VE SEEN THAT AT ALL LEVELS.
ALL LEVELS, UH, IN ALL DIVISIONS.
EVEN THE, EVEN THE UH, UM, CONSTITUTIONAL OFFICERS, THEY'RE FACED WITH THAT.
IN FACT, UH, CHRIS NELSON TALKED ABOUT THAT RECORDING.
YOU SEE THE STACKS OF PAPER AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
WE'RE RUNNING AS FAST AS WE CAN.
BUT AGAIN, YOU GO BACK TO TOO FEW PEOPLE DOING TOO MUCH.
AND THE PARKS AND REC IS, IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT TO YOUR COUNTY.
AND, UH, WHEN THEY CAN'T MEET, YOU WONDER HOW THEY'RE, HOW EFFICIENT THEY'RE REALLY BEING THERE.
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT PROCESS THEY'RE USING TO GET, TO GET STUFF DONE.
WE'VE MADE A TREMENDOUS INVESTMENT IN OUR, OUR, UH, PARKS AND
[00:55:01]
RECS AND WE'RE UP AT 27 MILE COUNTY SO THIN IT'S, YOU KNOW, YOU GOTTA HAVE, YOU GOTTA BE ABLE TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE NORTH END AND THE SOUTH END.SO, UH, I THOUGHT YOUR REPORT WAS, UH, WAS GREAT.
AND WHAT IT DOES FOR ME, IT IT, YOU KNOW, THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN SAYING THIS IS WHAT YOU'VE GOTTA, THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO MAKE EFFICIENT, TO MAKE YOUR GOVERNMENT MORE EFFICIENT, IS RIGHT ON MY CONCERN IS DO WE CONTINUE DOWN THE ROAD OF NOT PROVIDING THE RESOURCES FOR OUR COUNTY TO DO THIS STUFF THEY'RE DOING? OR DO WE CUT OUT SOME OF THE SERVICES? YOU KNOW, THAT'S A DEBATE.
AND THE OTHER THING I TO MARK, I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, YOU NOW HAVE AMMUNITION HERE TO COME BACK TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND SAY, LOOK, THESE ARE YOUR GOALS.
THESE ARE THE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO.
THIS IS THE AMOUNT OF PEOPLE I NEED TO GET IT DONE.
SO YEAH, SO COMPREHENSIVE REPORT, GOOD JOB.
UM, YOU, YOU LOOKED AT A LARGE BREADTH OF THE COUNTY SERVICES AND YOU HAD TO GO DEEP TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING, BUT YOU DIDN'T GET BOGGED DOWN TO ANY ONE THING.
SO I, I KNOW THAT WAS A CHALLENGE.
UM, THERE'S A LOT TO WRAP YOUR HEAD AROUND IN THE REPORT AND WE'LL HAVE, YOU KNOW, ONGOING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THE RESULTS OF IT.
I GUESS MY BIG TAKEAWAY IS, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S NOT REALISTIC TO THINK THAT WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO HIRE ALL THE PEOPLE TO DO THE, FILL ALL THE ROLES THAT NEED TO BE FILLED.
SO I, I WOULD LOOK REALLY HARD AT OPPORTUNITIES WHERE AUTOMATION, UH, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, UM, CONTRACTING WORK OUT TO OTHER ORGANIZATIONS RATHER THAN HIRING IN TO FILL SOME OF THESE ROLES.
UM, AND YOU KNOW, MARK, THIS IS AGAIN, PART OF THE ONGOING DISCUSSIONS WE'RE GONNA HAVE.
HOW DO WE MEET OUR GOALS AND OBJECTIVES WITHOUT INCURRING A LOT OF LABOR COSTS? 'CAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, LABOR IS WHAT DRIVES MOST OF THE EXPENSES.
AND I'M THINKING ABOUT BACK FROM MY WORK WE DO IN, IN THE CORPORATE WORLD, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DON'T HIRE, WE FIGURE OUT HOW TO AUTOMATE AND EX EXPEDITE THINGS WITH SOFTWARE.
UM, NOW YOU CAN'T SEND A PARKS RECREATION PERSON THAT TO COACH BY SENDING THESE SOFTWARE.
MAY MAY MAYBE THAT MAYBE IN FIVE YEARS WE'LL HAVE YES ROBOT, WE'LL MORE CAN DO THAT.
UM, BUT THINGS LIKE SOFTWARE, YOU KNOW, IF, IF WE'RE ALL COMMUNICATING ON A DIFFERENT SOFTWARE PLATFORM, WHY THAT SHOULD BE, THAT SHOULD BE A PRETTY EASY QUICK FIX.
UH, IF WE CAN'T GET EVERYBODY TOGETHER 'CAUSE THEY'RE TOO GEOGRAPHICALLY DISPERSED, WE STILL HAVE MEETINGS.
YOU GOT, UM, MICROSOFT TEAM POP EVERYBODY ON FACE TO FACE CAMERA, IT'S, IT'S ALMOST AS GOOD.
SO, YOU KNOW, I'M GONNA LEAN HARD INTO SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS, AUTOMATION SOLUTIONS, THINGS LIKE THAT TO HELP BUILD THESE GAPS AS OPPOSED TO JUST TRYING TO THROW PEOPLE AT THE PROBLEM.
I'M GONNA PUT IN FOR A MINUTE 'CAUSE I NEED TO ASK A QUESTION BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING AT THE SOFTWARE PROBLEMS ALSO, BUT EACH DEPARTMENT THAT HAS DIFFERENT SOFTWARE, IT, IT'S MEANT FOR THEIR PEOPLE.
I MEAN IT, YOU CAN'T JUST HAVE ONE PROGRAM THAT SERVES EVERYBODY CAN, WELL THERE SOME, THERE ARE SOME THAT ARE CROSS DEPARTMENTAL, LIKE, BUT, BUT IT REALLY DEPENDS ON THE APPLICATION.
IT'S A GENERAL TYPE OF A THING.
IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT CAN REALLY APPLY, BE APPLIED BY A PARTICULAR DEPARTMENT ON A PARTICULAR ISSUE UNLESS HE'S GOT THIS A PROGRAM THAT SERVES THAT.
AND, AND WHERE YOU MAY FIND SOME INTEGRATION IS ON THE FINANCIAL SIDE WHERE YOU MAY HAVE, SO THAT'S WHERE THAT YOU MAYBE MAY SHARE SOME SOFTWARE WITH THE ATION VERSUS VERSUS FINANCE.
THAT'S THE PART OF IT AS FAR AS THE, THE GENERAL USE OF IT, IT BY THE COUNTY EMPLOYEES, BUT NOT PARTICULARS FOR LIKE NEEDED LIKE IN PLANNING OR YEAH.
YOU KNOW, IN PUBLIC WORKS OR THE TREASURER'S OFFICE OR THINGS LIKE THAT.
I'M SORRY, I BUTTED IN YOUR TURN.
UM, SO I'VE GOT SOME QUESTIONS DOWN.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU GUYS FOR PUTTING THE TIME AND EFFORT IN.
I KNOW IT'S, UH, IT'S BEEN A LONG ROAD.
IT'S BEEN SOME MONTHS NOW WORKING WITH THE STAFF AND TRYING TO GET THIS INFORMATION TO US.
UM, I, I, UM, I'D REALLY LIKE TO KNOW, WHICH IS NOT IN THIS REPORT, HOW WE STACK UP AGAINST OTHER COUNTIES.
LIKE WHERE ARE WE AT, YOU KNOW, WE ALWAYS TALK ABOUT THAT IN SALARIES AND PAYROLL AND STUFF LIKE THAT, BUT WE DON'T EVER LOOK AT HOW DO WE STACK UP ACROSS COUNTIES OUR SIZE THAT KIND OF DO THE SAME THING THAT WE DO.
SO THAT WOULD BE OF INTEREST TO ME, MR. BELLON, ME.
AND SO WHILE THAT'S COME UP A COUPLE TIMES, UM, WE'LL, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND ADDRESS IT RIGHT HERE.
SO YOU ASKED AS OF THE LAST RETREAT FOR US TO DO ANOTHER COMMUNITY
[01:00:01]
SURVEY.AND WE HAVE WORKED, UM, WITH THE STAFF.
UH, UNFORTUNATELY TIM COULD NOT BE HERE TONIGHT, OUR IT DIRECTOR, BUT TIM AND SUSAN AND UH, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES HAVE IDENTIFIED A COMPANY TO COME TO OUR NEXT COMMUNITY SURVEY TO ASK THOSE KINDS OF QUESTIONS.
HOW ARE WE DOING? AND WE'VE IDENTIFIED A COMPANY THAT DOES THAT.
THEY HAVE NATIONAL BENCHMARKING THAT'S TIED INTO IT.
SO WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO TELL YOU, WE STACK UP, WELL, WE NEED HELP IN THESE AREAS, ET CETERA.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HOPING TO GET FROM IT.
AND, AND WE'RE VERY QUICKLY TO LAUNCH THIS.
WE, ONE THING, WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY AT THE STEP RIGHT NOW WHERE WE WANTED TO NOTIFY YOU ALL, GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO LOOK AT THE QUESTIONS NOW.
'CAUSE YOU'RE GETTING THAT BENCHMARKING SURVEY.
YOU DON'T HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE ALL THE QUESTIONS, RIGHT? 'CAUSE THERE ARE STANDARD QUESTIONS THAT WILL GIVE YOU ANSWERS.
AND IF YOU WANNA SEE HOW YOU STACK UP, EVERYBODY HAS TO ASK THE SAME QUESTION.
UH, THERE ARE A HANDFUL OF QUESTIONS AT THE END THAT CAN BE UNIQUE TO US.
WE HAVE WRITTEN SOME OF THOSE.
WE'RE GONNA SUGGEST THOSE TO YOU.
SO I THINK THIS COMING FRIDAY, THAT'LL BE IN YOUR BOARD PACKAGE.
A LITTLE MEMO IN THERE TALKING ABOUT THIS SURVEY, UH, GIVING YOU A, A LOOK AT IT AND LETTING YOU GO THROUGH IT AND TELL US WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THE QUESTIONS THAT WE PUT TOGETHER.
AND IF WE'RE ON TARGET OR YOU OR YOU THINK WE NEED TO, TO MOVE ON THOSE FEW QUESTIONS.
SO IT'S THERE, WE'RE READY TO DO IT BECAUSE YOU ASKED FOR IT.
AND, AND YOUR SPECIFIC REQUEST FROM LAST YEAR WAS NOT TO DO IT UNTIL 25.
RIGHT? SO WE'RE THERE, WE'RE ON THE CUSP OF IT.
UM, I WISH WE'D HAVE GOTTEN THIS PACKET A WEEK OR TWO AGO.
I WAS UP UNTIL TWO O'CLOCK THIS MORNING GOING THROUGH IT.
AND, UH, SO IT WOULD'VE BEEN NICE TO HAVE HAD IT, YOU KNOW, MORE THAN THREE DAYS OUT
SO, UM, UH, ANYWAY, UM, I, I'M A LITTLE SHOCKED THAT YOU GUYS ARE SUGGESTING ADDING 17 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES.
UM, I'M ALSO A BIT SHOCKED, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR PROTOCOL IS WITH WHAT YOU GUYS DO, BUT I'M A LITTLE SHOCKED THAT THERE WASN'T SOME TYPE, TYPE OF COST ANALYSIS THAT WOULD LET US KNOW IF WE ADD, LIKE, TOM OVER HERE IS GUESSING FOUR TO $6 MILLION.
IT WOULD BE NICE IF WE HAD A, A BETTER NUMBER TO GO, WELL, IF WE DO ADD THESE 17, THAT'S WHAT IT'S GONNA TAKE.
OR IF WE'RE TAKING AWAY SOME AND ADDING SOME, WHERE'S THE DELTA? WHERE'S THE BALANCE? THAT'S NOT IN HERE.
SO THAT'S PROBABLY NOT SOMETHING YOU GUYS WERE HIRED TO DO.
THAT'S SOMETHING OUR STAFF WILL DO TO SPEAK TO THAT.
AND, UH, SO I, I THINK IT'S A FAIR QUESTION AND I DARREN, DO, WOULD YOU LIKE TO, TO ADDRESS THAT? UH, YEAH, IF THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS, THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS TO COUNT.
UH, HOW MANY STAFF HAVE BEEN ADDED? UM, I COUNTED 17 OR 18.
UM, OTHERS HAVE COUNTED 14 OR 15.
IF YOU ADD 18, IT'S FOUR, 4.5% OVER THE 10 DEPARTMENTS.
IT'S AN INCREASE IN STAFFING POSITIONS FOR FOUR POINT A HALF PERCENT OR LESS OVER THOSE 10 DEPARTMENTS.
SO YOU'RE DEALING WITH OVER 400 PEOPLE AND YOU'RE RECOMMENDING IN THE NEXT ONE TO FIVE PLUS YEARS ADDING AS MANY AS 14, 15 POSITIONS, SAY 17 POSITIONS, WHATEVER.
I THINK THAT'S FAIRLY CONSERVATIVE AND NOMINAL.
AND, AND YOU KNOW, I STATED THIS I THINK BACK IN AUGUST.
WE DON'T TRY TO MAKE A BUSINESS CASE FOR WHY STAFF SHOULD BE HIRED OR NOT HIRED.
IT'S ABOUT LEVEL OF SERVICE, SERVICE PROVISION, EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS.
AND YOU CAN COMPARE LOCAL GOVERNMENT TO BUSINESSES TO AN EXTENT, BUT LOCAL GOVERNMENT IS NOT BUSINESS.
AND WE, LOCAL GOVERNMENT IS NOT THERE TO MAKE A PROFIT.
AND THEY'RE NOT THERE TO SAY FOR EVERY POSITION, HOW IS THIS GONNA MAKE ME MONEY OR SAVE ME MONEY.
IT IS, WILL THIS BENEFIT THE TAXPAYER? IS THIS JUSTIFIED BY THE LEVEL OF SERVICE WE'RE PROVIDING? AND THAT'S THE METRIC.
UM, AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOU KNOW, WE TOOK WHAT WE HEARD FROM STAFF, WE RAN IT THROUGH OUR FILTER OF EIGHT OR NINE PROFESSIONALS WITH 30 PLUS YEARS EXPERIENCE.
THAT'S, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE, SEVERAL HUNDRED YEARS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE.
THESE FOLKS ARE RETIRED AND STILL DOING THIS STUFF, SO THEY MUST LOVE IT.
THEY HAVE A PUBLIC SERVANT'S HEART, AND THESE ARE THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE GAVE.
OUR DEFAULT BUTTON WAS NOT HIRE MORE STAFF OR IT WOULD'VE BEEN 30 OR 40 POSITIONS.
UM, WE, WE REALLY, REALLY DID NOT, UH, MAKE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS UNLESS WE FELT LIKE IF YORK WANTS TO
[01:05:01]
STAY CUTTING EDGE AND KEEP UP, THEN THIS IS THE ROADMAP IN OUR ESTIMATION.ORGANIZATIONALLY, IF YOU'RE NOT MOVING FORWARD, YOU'RE MOVING BACKWARD AND A 4% INCREASE IN STAFFING OVER THREE TO FIVE YEARS.
THAT'S, THAT'S KEEPING UP IN MY OPINION.
UM, ALSO, I APPRECIATE THE UPDATES.
UM, THAT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST QUESTIONS I WAS GONNA HAVE IS WHAT, HOW MANY NEW POSITIONS? AND BECAUSE I'M, I'M SITTING HERE TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT WITH WHAT YOU GUYS GAVE ME.
I'M WRITING NUMBERS IN TRYING TO GO, OKAY, WHO'S THAT AND WHAT'S THAT? AND THEY DON'T MATCH UP.
SO SOME OF THE TITLES DON'T MATCH UP.
AND I'M LIKE, I, THIS IS BLOWING MY MIND HERE.
SO I DO APPRECIATE THE UPDATES THAT YOU GUYS GAVE.
UM, THE OTHER QUESTIONS I THINK PROBABLY ARE JUST
I WOULD LOVE TO SEE A BULLET LIST OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS SHORT AND SWEET AND THEN WHERE WE'RE AT AS FAR AS WHERE THE COUNTY'S MOVING FORWARD.
WE'VE STARTED THIS, WE'RE HALFWAY THROUGH IT.
GIVE US SOME INDICATION OF, YOU KNOW, HOW WE'RE DOING LIKE A, A GRADING CHART OF HOW WE'RE DOING AND SOME OF THESE PLACES.
AND IF WE'RE NOT, THEN AGAIN, WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE MOVE FORWARD ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS IF WE THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO.
UH, BRIAN AND I HAVE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THIS.
THIS WAS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WANTED TO DO INTERNALLY WAS TO PUT THAT BULLETED LIST TOGETHER THAT HAD ALL THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
UH, AND I THINK FOR THE MOST PART, BERKELEY HAS, HAS SUPPLIED US THAT MM-HMM
UM, SO WE CAN GO DOWN THERE AND, AND LOOK THROUGH THESE AND TELL YOU THIS ONE WE'VE DONE ALREADY MM-HMM
UH, THIS ONE WE PLAN TO DO IN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS.
UH, THIS ONE COSTS SOME MONEY.
WE'LL HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THAT, ET CETERA.
WE, WE CAN GIVE YOU A SYNOPSIS LIKE THAT.
THAT'S, THAT SHOULD BE, I WON'T SAY EASY, BUT
WELL, MARK, I I WOULD JUST ALSO ADD MARK IN THE TIMEFRAME COLUMN, AND LORD KNOWS, YOU KNOW, WE MIGHT HAVE MISSED SOME STUFF, BUT YOU KNOW, YOU'LL SEE WHEN TO DO IT, WHAT FISCAL YEAR, WHETHER IT'S COMPLETED, WHETHER IT'S ONGOING OR IT SHOULD BE DONE.
UM, SO YOU COULD VERY EASILY COME UP WITH A, YOU KNOW, YOU COULD FILTER BY THAT COLUMN AND, AND COME UP WITH, UH, WHAT MR. DREW REQUESTED.
UM, I'LL TRY TO MAKE IT QUICK AND EASY BACK TO YOU.
UM, WHEN WE DO, UH, THESE BULLET POINTS AND SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS IS CAN WE KIND OF FIGURE OUT A COST ANALYSIS BETWEEN WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW, WHAT WE'RE MOVING INTO, OR WE CAN GIVE YOU AN ESTIMATE ON WHAT WE THINK, JUST AN ESTIMATE PUT TOGETHER WOULD GIVE US SOME INDICATION THAT WE'RE SAVING X AMOUNT OF DOLLARS OVER HERE AND WE'RE HAVING TO ADD OVER HERE.
THAT WOULD GIVE US A BALANCE IN SOME INSTANCES.
WHATEVER, WHATEVER YOU CAN GIVE US AS FAR AS FINANCIALLY ON THAT WOULD BE SURE.
IT'LL HELP US MAKE DECISIONS MOVING FORWARD, I THINK.
AND FROM A FINANCIAL STANDPOINT WITH A TIGHT BUDGET ISSUE THAT WE'RE ALREADY TALKING ABOUT, THESE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS I THINK WE'LL NEED TO KNOW TO MAKE THOSE DECISIONS.
UM, UH, SAME WITH THE COST UPGRADES FOR SYSTEMS. LIKE THEY'RE SAYING, HEY, IF YOU DID THIS SYSTEM, WHAT WOULD IT BE? WHAT WOULD COST BE AND WHAT WE'RE PAYING FOR THE, THE CURRENT SYSTEMS. BY THE SYSTEM YOU MEAN SOFTWARE, SOFTWARE AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
YOU KNOW, GIVE US AN INDICATION AGAIN, MAYBE WE CAN'T DO IT THIS YEAR, BUT IS THAT SOMETHING WE, WE NEED TO GET 'EM ON THE LIST FOR NEXT YEAR OR WHATEVER THAT MAY BE.
UM, AND THEN THE OTHER ONE I SCRATCHED MY HEAD WHEN I LOOK ON THIS IN THE IT DEPARTMENT THAT SAYS, ADDING AI AND RPA, AND THEN WE'RE ADDING FOUR MORE PEOPLE.
AND I'M GOING, ISN'T THAT LIKE COUNTERINTUITIVE? LIKE IF YOU'RE GOING AI, YOU'RE ADDING PEOPLE TO START GETTING THINGS AUTOMATED, SO IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.
BUT I'M NOT THE AI EXPERT, BUT I WILL TELL YOU, AI HAS TO BE TAUGHT.
YOU NEED TRAINING AND THE EXPERTS WILL TELL YOU THAT AI IS WRONG A CERTAIN PERCENTAGE OF THE TIME AND SOMETIMES ACTUALLY INVENTS ITS OWN ANSWER.
SO SOMEONE DOES HAVE TO PAY ATTENTION TO IT.
AND THEN THE LAST THING I HAVE IS JUST THE COMMON THEMES.
YOU KNOW, AS I WAS GOING THROUGH HERE, I WAS WRITING DOWN COMMON THEME THEMES, LIKE SUCCESSION PLANNING.
IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE WE'RE LACKING IN A LOT OF DEPARTMENTS ON SUCCESSION PLANNING.
CROSS TRAINING CAME UP OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
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WE CAN CROSS TRAIN PEOPLE AND WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, WORK IS NEEDED OR REQUIRED, WE MAY BE ABLE TO MOVE SOME OF THOSE OUT, PUT 'EM IN PERMANENT AND CROSS TRAIN 'EM.AND THEN OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS, TRAINING, OBVIOUSLY STAFF ADJUSTMENTS, CAREER LADDERS.
THAT'S A HUGE ONE TO ME THAT IF I'M GONNA WORK FOR A COMPANY OR A A A ORGANIZATION, I GOTTA KNOW WHERE I CAN GO.
AND IF WE DON'T HAVE THAT, IT, IT DE INCENTIVIZES PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY JUST COME TO WORK AND THEY JUST DO THEIR JOB AND THEY GO HOME.
YOU KNOW? AND I, I LOVE THE FACT THAT WE'RE MOVING TO PERFORMANCE BASED, UM, RAISES, UM, AGAIN, I READ IN HERE IT DESCENT DI INCENTIVIZES, UH, THOSE EMPLOYEES THAT WORK REALLY HARD AND THEY'RE GETTING THE SAME RAISE AS THE PEOPLE THAT AREN'T WORKING AS HARD.
SO A LOT OF THE STUFF I SEE IN HERE, I'M REALLY HAPPY TO SEE.
AND IT KIND OF GOES WITH THE THEME OF US AS BOARD OF SUPERVISORS IS LOOKING OUT FOR OUR EMPLOYEES AND GIVE 'EM THE BEST WE CAN GIVE THEM TO KEEP THEM AND RETAIN THEM.
UH, AND THE OTHER THING THAT'S SHOCKING TO ME IS WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE RETIRING PEOPLE AND WE'RE NOT TRAINING PEOPLE BEHIND THEM.
SO WE'RE HAVING A LOT OF OLD TIMERS, IF YOU WILL.
WE ARE DOING SOME TRAINING, UM, ANYWAY, THAT IT WAS IN, IT WAS IN THE REPORT THAT, THAT I READ.
SO ANYWAY, THAT'S, AS PEOPLE ARE RETIRING QUICKLY, WE'RE NOT GETTING ENOUGH OF THE SEASONED PEOPLE TO MENTOR THEM AND TRAIN THEM UP BEFORE THEY LEAVE.
SO I KNOW THAT WAS PART OF YOUR REPORT AS WELL, SO GOOD JOB.
ANOTHER WAY TO LOOK AT THE, THE PEOPLE EQUATION SAYING NUMBER 17 IS FIGURE OUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN AN HOUR? SO IT'S DOING SOME SIMPLE MATH.
YOU'RE LOOKING OVER 35,000 PEOPLE HOURS ANNUALLY IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT 17 PEOPLE.
SO YOU ASK A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
ONE, ARE WE REALLY LEAVING 35,000 HOURS WORTH OF SERVICES AND WORK ON THE FLOOR? RIGHT? I, I WOULD THINK WE WOULD FEEL THAT IF WE, IF, IF WE DID SO.
AND THEN THE OTHER QUESTION IS, WELL, WHAT PERCENT IS THAT? 35,000 HOURS CAN BE AUTOMATED, SCRIPTED, MM-HMM
AND THEN WHAT'S LEFT OVER THEN TO ME, THAT'S THE PEOPLE WE HIRE.
SO 17, IT'S HARD TO WRAP MY HEAD AROUND THAT 35,000 HOURS.
ALSO HARD TO WRAP YOUR HEAD AROUND, BUT IT, IT DRIVES MORE, I THINK, TO WHERE WE CAN FOCUS ON RIGHT.
AS OPPOSED TO EFFICIENCY AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, AND, AND IT'S OVER THREE TO FIVE YEARS TOO, RIGHT? SO YOU BREAK IT DOWN.
SO IT'S NOT NECESSARILY WE'RE GONNA HIRE ALL THESE PEOPLE ALL AT ONCE, BUT GRADUALLY, AS THE COUNTY GROWS, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO ADD PEOPLE.
AT LEAST I LOOK AT IT THAT WAY.
I, I DON'T COUNT IT THE WAY YOU DO, BUT I THINK IT'S YOUR TURN.
SO FIRST OF ALL, DARREN, YOU'RE SOUNDING A LOT BETTER TODAY,
UM, I HAD A CHANCE YESTERDAY TO, UH, TO TALK TO DARREN.
UH, THERE WERE SOME CONCERNS THAT I HAD INITIALLY WITH THE, UH, WITH THE OVERALL REPORT.
UM, I THINK IT'S VERY WELL DONE FROM A QUALITATIVE STANDPOINT.
I THINK YOU HAVE BROUGHT THE, THE RESOURCES AND THE TALENT TO BEAR TO GIVE US VERY GOOD RECOMMENDATIONS ON, ON HOW TO IMPROVE OVERALL AS A COUNTY OF THE, THE CONCERN I HAD, AND OF COURSE IT'S THE BUSINESS HAT THAT I'M WEARING, WHAT'S IT COST ME? HOW DO YOU MEASURE EFFICIENCY? YOU, YOU SPOKE ABOUT THE TREASURER NEEDING AN ADDITIONAL POSITION FOR DELINQUENCY.
WELL, WE'RE AT 99.6% COLLECTIONS.
SO DO I REALLY NEED THAT EXTRA POSITION? AS I WENT THROUGH THE REPORT, I HAD THAT RECURRING THEME IN MY MIND.
WELL, EVERY IT DEPARTMENT I HAVE RUN OVER MANY, MANY YEARS IN THE CORPORATE WORLD, IF YOU BRING NEW PROJECTS IN, PROJECTS ARE EXPECTED TO BE ABLE TO DELIVER A RESULT.
AND THAT RESULT IS GENERALLY IN EFFICIENCY.
SO GPT AS, AS WE BRING THAT IN, THAT'S GOING TO HELP ALL OF OUR STAFF WRITE THEIR REPORTS BETTER.
THAT'S AN EFFICIENCY SAVINGS THAT WE, THAT WE GENERATE AS A RESULT OF BRINGING IN THESE IT PROGRAMS THAT ARE DESIGNED TO IMPROVE THE WAY WE DO OUR WORK.
THAT ALSO DESIGNED TO BE MORE CUSTOMER ORIENTED FOR ME, IT'S NOT A GIVEN THAT YOU NEED PLUS MANPOWER TO EXECUTE.
YOU MIGHT NEED PLUS MANPOWER IN IT, BUT MAYBE THEY COME OUT OF ANOTHER GROUP BECAUSE YOU'VE MADE THEIR WORK SO MUCH MORE EFFICIENT.
THAT'S THE REACTION I WAS HAVING.
SO WHEN I, WHEN I TALKED TO DARREN YESTERDAY, I RECOMMENDED THAT HE TELL US WHAT HIS TOP THREE WOULD BE IN EACH OF THESE CATEGORIES AT THE END.
'CAUSE IT'S NOT OBVIOUS WHEN I GO THROUGH HERE THAT I CAN CATEGORIZE THEM OR TELL YOU WHAT'S IMPORTANT.
HE'S THE CONSULTANT, HE'S GOT ALL THIS KNOWLEDGE.
WHAT WOULD HIS TOP THREE OR FOUR ITEMS BE IN EACH OF THESE CATEGORIES? AND I THINK, DARREN, THAT WAS A TAKEAWAY THAT YOU AGREED TO DO, BUT OBVIOUSLY WE DIDN'T GET IT DONE, UH, IN, IN ONE DAY.
[01:15:01]
ON THAT? WELL, I'M GLAD THAT I FOUND BETTER THAN I DID YESTERDAY.I'M NOT FEELING BETTER THAN I DID YESTERDAY.
SO
UM, YEAH, WE APPRECIATED ALL OF YOUR COMMENTS YESTERDAY.
IT HELPED TIGHTEN THE REPORT IN SOME AREAS, PUBLIC WORKS, UH, THAT IT WAS DEFICIENT AND WE WERE NOT CLEAR ON OUR INTENDED RECOMMENDATIONS.
UH, I DID TELL YOU THAT I WOULD DISCUSS YOUR REQUEST WITH OUR TEAM, AND WE DID, AND WE DECIDED THAT WE WANTED TO, UH, DISCUSS IT TONIGHT WITH THIS TEAM
UM, I DID GO THROUGH, UM, PER YOUR REQUEST AND DO A TOP THREE.
UM, IT, THAT IS NOT HOW MY BRAIN THINKS, AND I THINK IT DOES A DISSERVICE TO THE OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT I CAN, UH, IF THE, IF IT'S THE BOARD'S DESIRE, UM, I CAN TALK US THROUGH WHAT WE DISCUSSED IF YOU WOULD LIKE.
IT WAS CERTAINLY, I THOUGHT, EASIER FOR US TO FOCUS ON WHAT ARE THE KEY DELIVERABLES THAT WE NEED TO DO AND DO QUICKLY BE, ARE WE TALKING ABOUT IT AS A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY OR IF THIS IS YES, GOVERNMENTAL.
HOW DO I IMPROVE THE OVERALL, WE JUST MAKE SURE THAT IT, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY AND NOT A BUSINESS ENTITY.
ANY QUESTIONS YOU'RE ASKING? YES, MA'AM.
I DON'T KNOW HOW TO THINK ANY OTHER WAY.
MY BUSINESS IS GOVERNMENT AND MY PUBLIC SERVICE YEARS SET INTO MY BUSINESS.
SO
THAT'S, THAT'S
SO I APPRECIATE IT COMING FROM YOU.
I'M ALWAYS GONNA HAVE THE BUSINESS ASPECT IN THE BACK OF MY MIND, AND THAT'S WHAT 40 YEARS IN BUSINESS DOES.
WELL, IT, IT DOES RAISE VALID QUESTIONS AND, AND GOOD COMPARISONS.
THAT'S ALL I'M TRYING TO DO IS UTILIZE THAT BACKGROUND TO APPROVE AS, AS A GOVERNOR, I'M JUST CLARIFYING THE ISSUE.
GOVERNMENT IS A BUSINESS, BUT IT'S NOT, BUT IT IS.
WELL, BEFORE I, BEFORE I GO DOWN THIS RABBIT HOLE, UM, I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT THIS IS SUCH AN INTELLIGENT CONVERSATION AND THAT IS ONE OF THE RESULTS THAT WE SEE CONSISTENTLY AS A RESULT OF THIS PROCESS.
AND TO ME IT'S HEARTWARMING AND WE APPRECIATE IT.
UM, NOBODY'S EVER GONNA DO EVERY SINGLE THING WE RECOMMEND BE DONE, BUT THE FACT THAT IT PROMOTES SUCH THOUGHT, SUCH DISCUSSION, UM, WILL HELP INFLUENCE THE BUDGET PROCESS HOPEFULLY.
AND THAT TO ME IS REALLY WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT.
AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S THE BOARD AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATION'S BABY.
UH, BUT JUST LISTENING TO THIS CONVERSATION, MAN, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT.
AND I APPRECIATE THE TIME Y'ALL TAKING TO GO THROUGH THIS.
I KNOW IT WAS A SHORT TURNAROUND.
AND WITH THAT BEING SAID, I'LL DIVE DOWN THIS RABBIT HOLE THAT I'M NOT ENTIRELY COMFORTABLE DIVING DOWN, BUT, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER.
UM, SO THE TWO, THERE ARE TWO ITEMS THAT HAVE A POSITIVE FISCAL IMPACT IN OUR, UH, ESTIMATION, WHICH MEANS IT'LL SAVE THE COUNTY MONEY, UH, NOT COST THEM ANY.
AND WE JUST THINK IT'S A NO BRAINER TO DO BOTH OF THOSE.
UM, THERE IS A USE OF THE FORTE SYSTEM, UH, FOR CUSTOMERS WHO DON'T WANT TO DO IT THE PREFERRED WAY.
AND IT IS, UH, KIND OF A, NOT A, UH, POPULAR SYSTEM AMONGST, UH, COUNTY FOLKS AND CITIZENS.
SO WE'RE JUST PAYING, INCREASE THE FEE, UH, FOR THAT SYSTEM, LET IT STAY BECAUSE PEOPLE USE IT, BUT GET, RECOVER SOME COSTS IN DOING THAT.
UM, AND THEN DEVELOP A COST SHARING AGREEMENT WITH YORK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, UM, THAT TEAM UP QUITE A BIT.
UM, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S DESPERATELY NEEDED, UH, AND THAT SHOULD BE A SIGNIFICANT POSITIVE IMPACT TO THE BUDGET.
WITH REGARD TO THE FISCAL IMPACT CATEGORY WHERE IT'S NONE, UM, I JUST WANT TO SAY TO CLARIFY THAT, THAT THESE THINGS MIGHT COST SOME MONEY, THAT IT SHOULD BE WITHIN AN EXISTING APPROVED BUDGET THAT SHOULDN'T REQUIRE ADDITIONAL ALLOCATIONS.
THEY SHOULD BE THINGS OF JUST OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS, ET CETERA, ET CETERA.
AND THERE'S FIVE AND A HALF PAGES OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND I DID NOT TRY TO PULL A TOP THREE.
UH, WHEN THERE'S NO FISCAL IMPACT, WE WOULD RECOMMEND THAT YOU LOOK CLOSELY AT ALL OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS, DISCUSS THEM WITH YOUR DEPARTMENT HEADS AND HOPEFULLY IN TANDEM WITH THEM, OR MAYBE IN SPITE OF THEM,
UM, FOR THE $1 SIGN FISCAL IMPACT, WHICH IS A, A LOW FISCAL
[01:20:01]
IMPACT.SO, I MEAN, I THINK ABOUT MAYBE SOMETHING THAT'S, YOU KNOW, LESS THAN 40 OR $50,000.
UM, I HAD, UM, RECLASSIFY UP TO FOUR ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS TO OTHER PUBLIC WORKS POSITIONS SUCH AS GROUNDS MAINTENANCE OR FACILITIES, WHEREVER THE NEEDS ARE GREATEST.
SO IN OTHER WORDS, YOU'RE HEAVY ON ADMIN AND GROUNDS AND FACILITIES ARE DOING THE BEST THEY CAN WITH WHAT THEY GOT.
AND THIS IS, UH, THIS DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN EVERYBODY STAYS WHERE THEY'RE AT OR STAYS WITH THE COUNTY.
THIS IS SAYING YOU'RE HEAVY IN THOSE ADMIN POSITIONS AND YOU'RE LIGHT IN THE OTHER POSITIONS.
NUMBER TWO, REGARDING PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES WITH THE RENOVATED BUILDING, ENSURE THE PERMITTING PROCESS IS CUSTOMER FRIENDLY.
IT NEEDS TO BE A ONE STOP SHOP, ONE LOBBY, ONE WINDOW, EASY PEASY, LEMON SQUEEZY, GET A KIOSK, WHATEVER YOU GOTTA DO.
USE AI, USE RPA, BUT USE THAT RENOVATION AS YOUR ONE STOP SHOP SO THAT PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO GO TO TWO OR THREE DIFFERENT LOCATIONS ANYMORE, OR FOUR.
AND THEN THE OTHER ONE WAS GATHER COMMUNITY INPUT ON THE INDOOR MULTI-USE FACILITY.
UM, YORK COUNTY IS A VERY WELL-EDUCATED, VERY SOPHISTICATED, VERY ACTIVE COMMUNITY.
A MULTI-USE FACILITY WOULD BE THE LARGEST TICKET ITEM PROBABLY ON THIS LIST, ONLY RIVALED BY A NEW FLEET MAINTENANCE OPERATION.
UM, AND, UH, AN IT INNOVATION CENTER, WHICH, YOU KNOW, IS DEFINITELY A DREAM THAT WILL BECOME POSSIBLE UNLESS YOU GUYS, YOU KNOW, ARE DOING A WHOLE NEW COUNTY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, IN MY OPINION.
BUT THESE ARE GOOD THINGS THAT FIRST CLASS COMMUNITIES HAVE.
AND THIS RECOMMENDATION IS SIMPLY SAYING, PUT THE QUESTION OUT THERE.
SEE IF THE COMMUNITY HAS INTEREST IN ONE, PUT IT OUT FOR A REFERENDUM.
UM, THAT COST A LITTLE BIT OF MONEY, NOT A LOT OF MONEY, BUT IF THERE'S THE, IF, IF THEY HAVE A REFERENDUM AND THEY SAY THEY WANT IT, THEN THERE YOU GO.
SO THOSE ARE THE TOP THREE FOR THE $1 SIGNS FOR THE $2 SIGNS, MODERATE FISCAL IMPACT.
UM,
UM, WE HAVE RELOCATE, AND IT MIGHT NOT COST THAT MUCH, IT MIGHT COST A LITTLE BIT MORE, WHO KNOWS.
BUT, UH, WE HAVE RELOCATE THE UTILITY DIVISION CONSTRUCTION CREW FROM THE NORTHERN SATELLITE OFFICE TO THE MAIN PUBLIC WORKS FACILITY, UM, THAT IS COMMENSURATE WITH A DESIRE THAT WAS EXPRESSED BY SEVERAL PEOPLE IN PUBLIC WORKS FOR THEM TO BE MORE EFFICIENT.
AND CONVERSELY, ASSIGN A GROUND MAINTENANCE CREW TO THAT SATELLITE OFFICE FOR NORTHERN OPERATIONS.
THAT BUILDING FOR THEIR, THAT WAS ALSO A REQUEST ON MULTIPLE PEOPLE AT PUBLIC WORKS.
SO YOU'VE GOT GROUNDS MAINTENANCE PEOPLE THAT ARE SPENDING A GOOD PORTION OF THEIR DAY ON THE ROAD JUST GETTING TO AND FROM THEIR JOB SITE.
I THINK THAT'S A GOOD, AND THEN OTHER PEOPLE WHO FEEL DIVIDED FROM THE BODY OR THE HEAD, AND THEY, THEY NEED TO BE A MORE COHESIVE, CENTRALIZED CREW.
AND SO THIS, THIS RECOMMENDATION FIXES TWO PROBLEMS WITH ONE, ONE SWOOP AND DARREN THAT KIND OF SPEAKS TO THOSE 35,000 MISSING HOURS.
HOW MANY HOURS DO WE LOSE ANNUALLY? PEOPLE JUST DRIVING TO WHERE THEY NEED TO BE RATHER THAN ALREADY BEING THERE.
SO, I MEAN, THERE'S A CHUNK OF OURS THERE.
AND THEN MR. ROH, UH, YOU'LL APPRECIATE THIS.
USE TECHNOLOGY TO IMPROVE CASH MANAGEMENT, CASH INVESTMENT, AND MONTHLY BANK RECONCILIATIONS.
THAT'S A TREASURER RECOMMENDATION RIGHT HERE.
UH, FISCAL IMPACT WITH $3 SIGNS.
SO THIS IS, YOU KNOW, GETTING MORE, MORE EXPENSIVE.
UH, WE HAVE NUMBER ONE, HIRE A FINANCIAL SYSTEMS ANALYST.
UM, SO THAT'S AN IT POSITION, BUT I DO BELIEVE IT WOULD WORK DIRECTLY WITH THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT AND FINANCE POSITIONS.
UH, APPARENTLY IT IS A MAJOR CHOKE POINT AND IMPEDIMENT.
I THINK IT ALSO HAS POSITIVE IMPLICATIONS FOR TREASURER AND COMMISSIONER REVENUE.
SO, BUT THEY NEED, UH, THAT FINANCIAL SYSTEMS
[01:25:01]
SPECIALIST PRETTY BADLY AS, AS WE UNDERSTAND IT.UM, THIS IS A TWO FOR ONE, UH, SO IT'S KIND OF CHEATING, BUT NOT REALLY.
WE HAD, UH, IMPROVED OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY AND SECURITY OF THE COMMISSIONER REVENUES OFFICE, IMPROVE THE PHYSICAL SPACE AND SECURITY IN THE TREASURER'S BUILDING.
BASICALLY WHAT WE'RE SAYING IS, IS THEY WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THEIR WORKSPACE IMPROVED.
AND WHILE THEY MAY TELL YOU THAT THEY'RE FINE, IT, IT NEEDS TO BE RENOVATED, IT NEEDS TO BE SAFER, IT NEEDS TO BE MORE MODERN, THERE NEEDS TO BE MORE SPACE FOR THEM TO BE ABLE TO WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY.
UM, SO WE'RE RECOMMENDING THAT YOU SHOW THEM SOME LOVE.
UH, AND THEN THIRD, UH, CONDUCT A, OH, Y'ALL, Y'ALL ARE GONNA LOVE THIS.
UH,
SO THAT NEEDS TO BE GIVEN SOME THOUGHT.
AND THEN FINALLY, THERE'S ONLY TWO IN THE $4 SIGN CATEGORY.
AND WE REALLY FEEL STRONGLY THAT FLEET SERVICES, UH, REALLY NEEDS TO EXPAND THEIR OPERATING SPACE, UM, DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A PLAN TO DO IT.
I KNOW AT THE TIME OF INTERVIEWS, THERE WAS A COUPLE OF PROPERTIES THAT WERE BEING SANDIED ABOUT.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED WITH THOSE, BUT IF THE COUNTY COULD GET THEM TO DO SOMETHING WITH, IN THE FUTURE, UH, FLEET SERVICES MOVING, THERE WAS ONE OF THE SUGGESTIONS THAT WE THOUGHT WAS GOOD.
SO, UH, TECHNOLOGY CENTER WAS THE OTHER ONE.
AND AGAIN, TO ME THAT'S WONDERFUL AND LOVELY.
THAT HELPS KEEP YORK ON THE CUTTING EDGE.
I THOUGHT MR. ROME MIGHT LIKE THAT IDEA TO SOME EXTENT, BUT IT HAS TO BE DONE WITHIN THE CONCEPT AND CONTEXT OF A, OF AN OVERALL NEW ADMINISTRATIVE FACILITY, IN MY OPINION.
I, I, I, AGAIN, I'M SO SORRY I CAN'T BE THERE IN PERSON.
I DO APPRECIATE THIS ACCOMMODATION AND THIS CONVERSATION.
SO IT'S BEEN QUITE AN EVENING, HASN'T IT? THANK YOU VERY, VERY MUCH FOR WHAT YOU DID.
I, IT, IT, IT'S REALLY INCLUSIVE AND WELL THOUGHT OUT.
AND I KNOW IT'S NOT FOR TODAY, IT'S FOR TOMORROW.
IT'S A PLANNING DOCUMENT FOR US, NOT JUST A STUDY OF THE HERE AND NOW.
THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT WE CAN LOOK FORWARD TO IMPLEMENTING AND SOME THINGS WE'LL HAVE TO THINK ABOUT RIGHT.
BUT YOU'VE REALLY, YOU'VE REALLY DONE Y'S WORK ON THIS AND I CAN'T THANK YOU ALL ENOUGH.
AND SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF ALL THOSE MEMBERS OF THE TEAM THAT AREN'T HERE, UH, WE REALLY DO LIKE YOUR COUNTY
YOU JUST BRING YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY.
NEED YOU NEED A SATELLITE STATION HERE, RIGHT? DARREN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME, SIR.
I LIKE THAT SATELLITE STATION IDEA.
HAVE A BLESSED EVENING, DARREN.
[3* Towing Advisory Board Presentation.]
NOW WE'VE GOT THE, UH, TO ADVISORY BOARD PRESENTATION.IS THAT WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT, I THINK? MM-HMM
HOW'S EVERYBODY TONIGHT TEACHING? I WAS GONNA SAY, HOW DO YOU THINK
I THINK IT WAS TIME WELL SPENT.
YES, IT WAS, UH, IT IS ALWAYS TIME WELL SPENT WHEN YOU DO THAT.
SO NOW WE'RE GONNA HEAR FROM YOU.
WELL, GOOD EVENING TO THE BOARD.
UM, SO I JUST WANT TO GIVE A, UH, BRIEF MS. CONSTANTINO, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'RE GONNA WEIGH IN AT ALL SINCE YOU'RE OUR, WHY DON'T YOU START OUR ADVISOR.
[01:30:01]
BOARD ISN'T MY BOARD, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.SO
SEE, UH, THE, THE PRESENTATION.
SO JUST TO GIVE Y'ALL A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHERE THE TOWING ADVISORY BOARD HAS GONE, UM, I APPEARED BEFORE Y'ALL MARCH 19TH, 2024, UH, WITH THE PRESENTATION TO IMPLEMENT THE TOWING ADVISORY BOARD, UM, WHICH Y'ALL ALL KNOW WAS AUTHORIZED BY STATE LAW.
UM, AND Y'ALL AGREED TO DO THAT.
UM, OUR FIRST MEETING WAS JUNE 24TH OF 24, UM, WHICH WE THEN NOMINATED, UM, OUR CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRMAN.
AND I WAS NOMINATED AS THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD.
UH, MY NEXT COUPLE MEETINGS WERE BASICALLY, UH, LEARNING WHAT WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING WITH, UH, MS. CONSTANTINO EXPLAINING, UH, THE RULES AND PROCEDURES AND THOSE TYPES OF THINGS.
OUR FIRST RULE PRODUCTIVE MEETING THAT WE WERE ABLE TO, UH, START REALLY DOING STUFF WAS AUGUST 26TH.
UM, AND WE STARTED REALLY OUTLINING WHAT OUR RESPONSIBILITIES AND DIRECTIONS WE WERE GONNA GO, UH, WITH THE BOARD AND WHAT THINGS WE WERE GOING TO BE TACKLING.
UM, OVER THE NEXT FEW MEETINGS, WE'VE HAD A TOTAL OF SEVEN MEETINGS.
AND OUR LAST MEETING, WHICH WAS JANUARY 13TH, UH, WAS VERY, VERY PRODUCTIVE.
UH, WE HAVE ALMOST COMPLETED ALL OF OUR DEFINITIONS, UM, OUR RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR LIGHT DUTY TOWING AND FOR THE FEE SCHEDULE FOR LIGHT DUTY TOWING.
UM, WE ALSO, UH, VOTED TO DOUBLE UP OUR MEETINGS FOR FEBRUARY AND FOR MARCH.
UM, ORIGINALLY WE WERE ONLY SUPPOSED TO BE MEETING EVERY QUARTER, BUT IN THE BEGINNING WE DECIDED WE WERE GONNA MEET EVERY MONTH.
AND, UH, FOR THE NEXT TWO MONTHS IN FEBRUARY AND MARCH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE DOUBLE MEETINGS SO THAT WE CAN REALLY TRY TO IRON OUT THE FRAMEWORK, UH, FOR THESE NEW COUNTY, UM, ORDINANCES.
UM, SO WE WILL BE HAVING TWO MEETINGS THE NEXT TWO MONTHS TO TRY TO GET THESE THINGS DONE.
UM, AT OUR NEXT MEETING, THE REAL THING THAT WE'RE GONNA TRY TO DO IS FINALIZE ALL THE LIGHT DUTY TOWING PROCEDURES.
THE FEES, UH, ADDRESS THE REQUIREMENTS FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE STORAGE.
UH, AND THAT WOULD BE AT THE, UH, TOWING COMPANIES AND WHAT'S REQUIRED FOR THEM TO STORE ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO BEGIN ADDRESSING THE HEAVY DUTY TOWING, UM, FOR FEBRUARY AND MARCH IS GONNA BE KIND OF WHERE WE ARE GOING.
SO, UH, OUR GAME PLAN AND OUR ROLE WAS TO TRY TO GET ALL THE LIGHT DUTY, UH, DONE FIRST BEFORE WE GOT TO THE HEAVY DUTY BECAUSE A LOT OF THE POLICIES, RULES, AND GUIDELINES WOULD BE THE SAME.
UM, IT TOOK US A LITTLE WHILE TO GET ALL OF THE DEFINITIONS IN PLACE.
WE PULLED THOSE FROM OTHER JURISDICTIONS.
UH, MS. CONSTANTINO BROUGHT US POLICIES AND ORDINANCES AND CODES FROM OTHER JURISDICTIONS, UM, AS WELL AS WHAT THE STATE CODE GAVE US FOR DEFINITIONS THAT WE WANTED TO KEEP SYNONYMOUS AND TRY TO KEEP IT AS STREAMLINED AND EASY AS POSSIBLE.
SO, UM, THAT'S THE DIRECTION WE HAVE BEEN HEADING SO FAR.
UM, EACH MEETING, OF COURSE, OPENED WITH A, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.
UH, WE HAVE HAD A FEW, UH, PUBLIC COMMENTS DURING THIS TIME, UH, AND I WANTED TO BRING THOSE TO THE BOARD'S ATTENTION JUST SO THAT YOU'LL KNOW THAT THESE WILL PROBABLY BE COMING FROM THE CITIZENS BECAUSE THERE ARE SOME THAT THEY WANTED, UH, US TO BRING UP, WHICH SPEAKING WITH MS. CONSTANTINO, WE DON'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO ADDRESS THESE.
UH, BUT I JUST WANTED TO LET Y'ALL KNOW, UM, SOME OF THE, UH, THINGS THAT WERE BROUGHT UP WAS A REDUCTION IN BUSINESS PROPERTY TAXES PAID BY THE COMPANIES THAT WERE ON THE APPROVED TOWING LIST.
UH, TOWING COMPANIES SHOULD BE EXEMPT FROM THE CODE CONCERNING FOR HIGHER VEHICLES BEING PARKED IN THEIR DRIVEWAY.
UH, HEAVY DUTY TOWING SHOULD NOT BE CAPPED OR REGULATED BY THE TOWING ADVISORY BOARD.
UH, TOWING COMPANIES SHOULD BE PAID BY THE COUNTY WHEN THE CAR OWNER HAS NO CAR INSURANCE TO PAY FOR THE BILL SO THAT THE TOW COMPANY IS NOT LEFT WITH THE BILL.
AND, UM, THERE WAS ALSO A CONCERN OF THE APPEARANCE OF HAVING, UH, THIS IS SET BY LAW, OF COURSE, THAT THERE WILL BE TWO LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS TO, UH, TOWING COMPANY PERSONNEL AND A CITIZEN.
BUT THERE WAS DISPLEASURE IN THE FACT THAT OF THE OFFICIALS ON THE BOARD, TWO ARE CURRENT LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND ONE IS A RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER.
SO THEY FELT LIKE THE THE DECK WAS STACKED IN THE LAW ENFORCEMENT FAVOR,
SO THESE ARE THINGS THAT HAVE COME OUTTA THE PUBLIC COMMENT.
UM, SOME PEOPLE HAVE SAID THEY WERE GONNA BRING THIS TO THE, THE COMMENT OF THE BOARD WHEN THEY COME TO SPEAK TO Y'ALL.
SO I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF GIVE YOU A HEADS UP ALREADY THAT THESE ARE SOME OF THE CONCERNS THAT WE HAVE HEARD, UH, DURING OUR PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD,
SO THIS IS KIND OF AN OVERALL VIEW, UH, OF WHERE WE'RE AT.
UM, WE'RE TRYING TO HUSTLE AND GET THIS DONE BEFORE THE END OF MARCH TO GET AS FAR ALONG AS WE CAN.
UM, I KNOW MY FIRST, UM, ONE YEAR APPOINTMENT COMES UP AT THE END OF MAY
[01:35:01]
AND I WILL NOT BE AT THE MEETING IN APRIL.UH, OR MAY AS I WILL BE AWAY FOR 10 WEEKS FOR TRAINING AS THE CHAIRMAN.
SO I'M TRYING TO MOVE THIS ALONG AND GET THESE IN PLACE SO THAT WE CAN BRING THEM TO YOU, UH, BEFORE THAT TIME COMES.
SO, UH, AGAIN, THIS IS KIND OF AN OVERALL VIEW AND I WELCOME ANY QUESTIONS THAT Y'ALL MAY HAVE.
I, MY QUESTION HAS TO DO WITH WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE BEING STORED AND, AND, AND, AND ANOTHER VEHICLE? THERE'S A LOT OF REGULATIONS, UH, CONCERNING THEM HAVING TO KEEP THE VEHICLE IN A SECURE, SECURE SECURED ENVIRONMENT BECAUSE OF THE BATTERIES AND THOSE TYPES OF THINGS.
THERE HAS TO BE SAFEGUARDS IN PLACE.
WE HAVEN'T ACTUALLY STARTED TALKING ABOUT THOSE REGULATIONS YET, BUT MEMBERS OF THE TOWING BOARD THAT ARE IN THE TOWING COMMUNITY HAVE BROUGHT THOSE UP THAT THERE HAS TO BE RULES AND REGULATIONS ABOUT THE SAFE STORAGE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES ON THEIR PROPERTY.
AND ARE YOU ALL SETTING THE FEE FOR THE TOWING? YES, MA'AM.
MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS, MAKE, MAKE, MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS.
YOU SETS THE FEE IF YOU MAKE THE RECOMMENDATION.
WHO SETS THE FEE? YOU ALL, YOU ALL WE'RE MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS TO WE BECOME THE BAD GUYS.
WELL, WE'RE BRINGING THE RECOMMENDATIONS
IF I MAY, UM, ADD IN MADAM AND CAPTAIN, THE, THE FEED SCHEDULE WOULD BE SET AS PART OF THE ORDINANCE.
AND THE ORDINANCE IS TO BE COMPREHENSIVE FROM EVERYTHING FROM DEFINITIONS, WHAT'S REQUIRED OF A VENDOR TO BE ADMITTED TO THE LIST.
BECAUSE THE LIST IS A LIST OF PROVIDERS WHO ARE ESSENTIALLY GUARANTEED WORK.
IF THERE IS A SITUATION WHERE A DRIVER CANNOT SELECT THEIR OWN TOW COMPANY FOR ANY REASON, MAYBE THEY'RE UNCONSCIOUS FROM AN ACCIDENT, MAYBE THEY HAVE COMMITTED A CRIME AND THEY'RE SUBJECT TO ARREST, MAYBE THEY'RE NOT THERE AND IT'S, THEY'RE NOT THE PERSON WHO'S DRIVING THE CAR.
BUT IF FOR ANY REASON THE OWNER OF THE VEHICLE DOESN'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO CONTROL THAT TRANSACTION, OUR SHERIFF'S DEPUTIES OR STATE POLICE, IF THEY HAPPEN TO BE WORKING COOPERATIVELY WITH OUR DEPUTIES OR ANY OTHER AGENCY THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH COOPERATIVELY UNDER ONE OF OUR COOPERATION MUTUAL, UH, AID AGREEMENTS, THEY WILL SIMPLY GO DOWN THIS DESIGNATED LIST.
AND DEPENDING ON THE TYPE OF EMERGENCY OR SITUATION, THEY WILL SELECT LIGHT DUTY, HEAVY DUTY.
UM, CAPTAIN HOUSTON HAS REALLY, AND HIS FOLKS HAVE REALLY HELPED US TO DELINEATE THE COUNTY ACCORDING TO GEOGRAPHY.
AND STORAGE OF THE, OF THE VEHICLES ONCE THEY'RE TOWED.
SO DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU ARE AND WHERE YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO PUT THE VEHICLE, UM, WE'RE TRYING TO INCONVENIENCE THE CITIZENS AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE IN TERMS OF WHERE THE CAR ENDS UP AND WHO GETS ADMITTED TO THE LIST.
IT'S NOT AS EASY WHEN WE GET TO HEAVY DUTY BECAUSE THERE AREN'T AS MANY PROVIDERS, I THINK, AS THERE ARE IN THE, IN THE LIGHT DUTY.
UM, BUT WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A FRAMEWORK.
AND OF COURSE THAT'S WHERE THE NATURAL TENSION IS BECAUSE YOU HAVE THE TOWING COMMUNITY WHO HAVE BEEN ACCUSTOMED TO ESSENTIALLY SETTING WHATEVER PRICE THEY WANT.
THAT'S, AND NO ONE'S MAKING THEM BE ON THE LIST.
THAT'S, THAT'S THE POINT I WANT EVERYBODY TO REMEMBER.
THIS IS A VOLUNTARY LIST WHERE PEOPLE ASK TO BE IN THE ROTATION SO THEY REGULARLY GET WORK.
THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MS. NOLL.
YOU NEED A TOAD AND I, HEAVEN FORBID, AND YOU OPEN YOUR PHONE AND DECIDE WHO YOU WANNA CALL.
NOTHING HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT.
THIS IS WHERE THE POLICE HAVE TO MAKE THE DECISION ON THEIR OWN, WHERE LAW ENFORCEMENT HAS TO MAKE THAT DECISION.
SO TO KEEP IT FAIR, THEY'LL HAVE A LIST THAT THEY WILL ROLL THROUGH.
IT'LL COME TO YOU ALL IN TURN IN, IN THE FORM OF A FULLY DRAFTED ORDINANCE.
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION, YOU WILL BE FREE TO ASK US TO DELETE, MODIFY, LOWER RAISE AS YOU WOULD WITH ANY PIECE OF, UM, RECOMMENDED.
HOW IS THE FEE SET? I MEAN, IS IT ACCORDING TO HOW FAR IT HAS TO GO? OR IS IT EVERY INCIDENT DEPENDING ON THE TIME OF THE DAY? WELL, THE, THE STATE CODE AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN USING AS A FRAMEWORK IS THERE ARE CLEARER FEES FOR DAYTIME, AND THEN THERE'S A DIFFERENT FEE FOR NIGHTS, WEEKENDS, AND HOLIDAYS.
SO THERE'S AN ADDED FEE IF THEY HAVE TO COME OUT AT 2:00 AM VERSUS 2:00 PM THERE'S AN ADDED FEE.
IF IT'S A HOLIDAY, THERE'S AN ADDED FEE IF IT'S A WEEKEND.
SO THERE'S CLEAR CUT HOURS FOR NORMAL BUSINESS MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.
UH, AND THAT'S SYNONYMOUS THROUGHOUT THE RECOMMENDATION.
ANY QUESTIONS? IS THE, UH, I'M, I'M SORRY.
YEAH, I'M JUST KIND OF CURIOUS ABOUT, UH, AND YOU, I THINK YOU CLARIFIED IT AT THE END HERE, THAT PEOPLE UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT ALL THE TOWING COMPANIES IN, IN THE STATE.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ACCIDENTS AND THINGS THAT INVOLVE THE POLICE, RIGHT? YES.
THIS IS POLICE AUTHORIZED TOWING ONLY.
SO, AND SO THE QUESTION THEN, UM, I, THE ONE QUESTION THAT CAME UP THAT YOU SAID THERE WAS A RECOMMENDATION OR A QUESTION AS TO THE COUNTY PAYING FOR SERVICES FOR FOLKS THAT CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY.
[01:40:01]
MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE STATE HAS LIKE THIS UNINSURED MOTORIST DEAL WHERE IF YOU GET AN ACCIDENT WITH AN UNINSURED MOTORIST, THEY'RE STATE'S COVERING THAT COST.I'M NOT SURE HOW FAR PAID A DEDUCT DEDUCTIBLE.
I'M NOT SURE HOW FAR THAT GOES SIR, BUT WHERE THE COMPANIES ARE SAYING THEY'RE NOT BEING REIMBURSED IS SOMEBODY IS DRIVING A VEHICLE MAYBE WITH LIABILITY ONLY, AND THE WRECKER COMPANY GETS STUCK WITH A VEHICLE THAT'S DAMAGED BEYOND REPAIR AND THE OWNER JUST SAYS, I DON'T WANT THE CAR ANYMORE.
AND NOW THEY'RE STUCK WITH A CAR THEY HAVE TO GET RID OF.
PLUS THEY DIDN'T MAKE ANY MONEY ON THE TOW BECAUSE THEY TOWED IN A PIECE OF JUNK, BASICALLY, IS WHAT THEY'RE SAYING.
WELL, IT'S A VALID CONCERN, I THINK, AND THAT NEEDS TO, THAT THAT REALLY KIND OF NEEDS TO BE ANSWERED.
UM, WOULD IT BE ANSWERED THOUGH, REALLY IN OUR ORDINANCE? I MEAN, THE ORDINANCE, THE LAW IS ISN'T THE, THE, OUR LAWS AND STUFF IN OUR ORDINANCES ARE BASED ON WHAT THE STATE ALLOWS US TO DO.
THE STATE ALLOW US TO PAY FOR THAT KIND OF THING.
I MEAN, I DON'T THINK THAT'S ANYTHING WE HAVE SEEN IN ANY OTHER ORDINANCES WE HAVE LOOKED AT FROM ACROSS THE COMMONWEALTH.
I, BUT IF THE ANSWER IS GONNA COME UP, I THINK IT'S A VALID QUESTION THAT WE WANT PEOPLE TO COME IN AND, AND DO A SERVICE FOR OUR, AND, AND ONE FOR OUR, FOR OUR CITIZENS AND FOR THE, AND OUR SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT.
UM, IT'S GOTTA BE DRESSED 'CAUSE THESE GUYS ARE NOT WORKING FOR FREE TWO O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING, I, YOU KNOW, I HAD TO GET OUT OF BED TWO O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING TO GO PULL A CAR.
THEN THERE BETTER BE SOME ENUMERATION IN THERE.
WELL THERE ARE CERTAIN REMEDIES THAT THEY HAVE IN TERMS OF THEY HAVE THE EQUIVALENT OF A MECHANICS LIEN ON THE VEHICLE AND YEAH.
WELL, I MEAN THEN YOU'RE TALKING NOW MORE WORK THAN YOU KNOW, THE IDEA IS TO GET PAID FOR THE SERVICE.
I MEAN, THEY CAN END UP OWNING A, A PIECE OF JUNK AND SELL IT FOR SCRAP, BUT THAT PROBABLY, THAT MAY NOT EVEN COME CLOSE TO COVERING THE COST OF THE TOW.
SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT TOW FEES ARE, BUT I MEAN, THIS, TO ME, IT'S A VALID CONCERN THAT WE NEED TO, WE NEED TO, YOU GUYS NEED TO KIND OF WORK OUT BEFORE IT SHOWS UP ON OUR DOORSTEP.
THIS, SIR, ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? YES, PLEASE.
HOW DOES AAA WORK IF SOMEBODY HAS AAA COVERAGE? DO THEY HAVE THAT OPPORTUNITY TO ELECT FOR THAT OR? WELL, IN THIS CASE, FOR THE POLICE AUTHORIZED TOW, WE'RE GOING UNDER THE AUSPICE THAT THE VEHICLE IS EITHER BROKE DOWN IN THE ROADWAY, IT'S BEING IMPOUNDED BECAUSE MAYBE THE PERSON'S GOING TO JAIL.
TYPICALLY WHAT I'VE SEEN FROM AAA IS THEY HAVE ANYWHERE BETWEEN AN HOUR TWO, A TWO HOUR RESPONSE TIME, AND ANYBODY THAT'S ON OUR LIST IS REQUIRED TO BE THERE IN 30 MINUTES OR LESS SO THAT WE CAN CLEAR THE ROADWAY AND MOVE ON.
OR IF WE HAVE TO GO TO THE JAIL WITH THE PERSON OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
SO WE'RE NOT WAITING TWO HOURS FOR AAA.
TOW WAS AAA OPERATOR BACK IN MY HIGH SCHOOL DAYS.
OH, YOU WERE, I WAS, I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THEY HAD AAA BACK THEN.
IT WAS JUST A, IT WAS JUST A BACK THEN.
OH, IT WAS JUST A SINGLE A NOT SINGLE A LITTLE A DROVE A CAPITAL, A LITTLE A, UM, THE, THE, THE ORDINANCE THAT WE'RE WORKING ON, THAT YOU GUYS ARE WORKING ON, IS IT GONNA INCLUDE PERFORMANCE AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTIONS STANDARDS IN IT? I MEAN, IF WE'RE GOING TO, IF WE'RE GOING TO SET UP, IF THE COUNTY IS GOING TO CREATE AN ORDINANCE AND, AND GET, ENDORSE THIS, THIS, UH, THIS EFFORT, UM, THEN I THINK WE SHOULD HAVE SOME STANDARDS ESTABLISHED AS WELL SO THAT THE PEOPLE THAT ARE GONNA BE HAVE WELL FORCED TO HAVE TO USE IT CAN, CAN KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT.
AND THERE'S SOME, UM, AVENUES FOR COMPLAINTS IF THEY, IF THEY HAVE THEM.
IS THAT BOARD SETTING STANDARDS? YES, I WOULD THINK SO.
THAT BOARD IS SETTING STANDARD, AND THAT'S WHAT I'M ASKING IS THE BOARD IS GONNA INCLUDE YES, THE VERY LAST SECTION IS GONNA INCLUDE A FORUM FOR DISPUTE RESOLUTION.
UM, AND WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH WHAT THAT'S GONNA LOOK LIKE, BUT THERE WILL, THEY WILL BE EQUIPPED TO HEAR COMPLAINTS.
THE IDEA THOUGH IS THAT THE ORDINANCE IS SO PARTICULARLY DETAILED THAT THERE SHOULDN'T BE A WHOLE LOT TO ARGUE ABOUT.
REGULATORY, UH, RULES ARE BEING OBSERVED, NATIONAL SAFETY STANDARDS MUST BE FOLLOWED.
DRIVERS AND EQUIPMENT MUST BE TO THE PROPER STANDARDS SUCH THAT THEY WOULD BE APPROVED.
UM, AND EQUIPMENT IS TO BE REGULARLY INSPECTED ANNUALLY BY THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT.
JUST TO BE CLEAR FOR EVERYONE.
POLICE INITIATING TOW IS GOING ON EVERY DAY.
THE, THE POINT HERE IS THAT THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANY STANDARDIZATION AND PEOPLE JUST GET WHAT THEY GET AND THE IDEA IS TO TRY TO BALANCE RIGHT.
UM, A, A CHARGE AND THEN THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO CHARGE, THEY CAN'T BE CHARGED AND WHATEVER THEY FEEL LIKE IT'S, IT'S A REGULAR RIGHT NOW IT'S UNLIMITED.
THEY CAN CHARGE WHATEVER THEY WANT AND YOU'RE STUCK.
AND THE ISSUE HERE IS IF IT'S A POLICE DIRECTED TOWING, PEOPLE DON'T HAVE AN OPTION OF SAYING, WELL, I DON'T WANNA BE TOW, THEY'RE GONNA GET TOWED.
SO WE BETTER STANDARDIZE THE PRICING, STORAGE PRICING.
[01:45:01]
JUST TOW PRICE STORAGE.IT'S ALL ASSOCIATED AS WELL AS ARE THEY GETTING GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE? WE'RE FORCING THEM TO USE, USE THE SERVICE.
SO, WELL, WE WILL, IF THEY FOLLOW THE STANDARDS UNDER THE ORDINANCE, THEY WILL GET GOOD SERVICE BECAUSE THE, UH, THERE'S A 30 MINUTE RESPONSE TIME FOR LIGHT DUTY.
UH, ONE HOUR RESPONSE TIME I BELIEVE IS GONNA BE IN PLACE FOR HEAVY DUTY.
THE STORAGE FEES ARE STANDARDIZED.
WE HAVE A, A GUESSTIMATE, OUR BOARD HAS GONE BACK AND FORTH BECAUSE JUST LIKE YOU ALL, THEY HAVE TO ACT AS A GROUP AND COME TO AN AGREEMENT.
AND SOME FEEL THAT THEY SHOULD BE AT THIS NUMBER AND SOME FEEL THAT THEY SHOULD BE AT THAT NUMBER.
YOU'VE GOT TWO MEMBERS OF THE TOWING COMMITTEE, TWO MEMBERS OF LA UH, LAW ENFORCEMENT, AND ONE PERSON WHO IS I'VE HEARD, UH, THAT OTHER MEMBER REFERRED TO AS FORMER LAW ENFORCEMENT.
WELL, THAT'S TRUE, BUT HE'S ALSO A FORMER TOW DRIVER.
SO HE ACTUALLY, ALTHOUGH HE'S A CITIZEN AT LARGE, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO HAVE A TOW DRIVER, UH, HAS ACTUALLY WAS DR DRIVING TOW TRUCKS BEFORE BEING IN LAW ENFORCEMENT.
SO IT HAS EXPERIENCE ON BOTH SIDES OF, OF THE FENCE.
WELL, WILL THIS GROUP OF TOWS JUST BE YORK COUNTY OPERATORS OR AROUND THE AREA? SO THE LIGHT DUTY TOWING PART OF THE ORDINANCES, OR PART OF THE CURRENT RULES ARE FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS THAT THE STORAGE LOT HAS TO BE LOCATED IN YORK COUNTY, SO THAT WAY THE CITIZENS ARE NOT DRIVING TO FEBU TO GET THEIR CAR BACK OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
SO THE COMPANIES HAVE TO BE LOCATED, OR THEIR STORAGE LOT HAS TO BE IN YORK COUNTY OR THE CITY OF POSAN FOR THE LOWER END OF THE COUNTY.
FOR THE UPPER END OF THE COUNTY, SINCE THE LINES ARE SO INTEGRATED, UH, IT'S JAMES CITY, YORK COUNTY AND WILLIAMSBURG BECAUSE LIKE PENMAN ROAD, WE HAVE A COMPANY THAT TOWS FOR US.
ONE SIDE OF THE ROAD IS YORK COUNTY, THE OTHER SIDE IS JAMES CITY.
HE PULLS OUT OF HIS LOT AND HE'S IN YORK COUNTY.
SO WE WOULDN'T SAY HE COULDN'T BE A PART OF IT BECAUSE HE IS TECHNICALLY RIGHT ON THE LINE.
SO DEPENDING ON WHERE THE LOT IS, DEPENDS ON WHICH LIST THEY'RE ON AND IF THEY'RE ALLOWED OR NOT.
GEOGRAPHICALLY, IF YOU DON'T WANT SOMEBODY GET TOWED NEAR THE NEWPORT NEWS LINE THAT HAPPEN, THEN HAVE TO GO TO MIDDLESEX OR GET THEIR CAR AT AN IMPOUND.
UM, TELL, WALK ME THROUGH THIS SCENARIO.
IF, IF, IF YOU'RE, IF YOU'RE THE, A OWNER OF A VEHICLE AND YOU'RE A VICTIM, YOU'RE, YOU, YOU'RE, YOU ARE A VICTIM OF A CAR WRECK AND YOU'RE INCAPACITATED.
YOU HAD TO GET TRANSPORT TO HOSPITAL OR YOU CAN'T TAKE YOUR VEHICLE THEN, SO YOU GO TO INITIATE A, A POLICE, POLICE INITIATE A TOWING AT THAT POINT.
UM, HOW DO YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT PERSON DOESN'T COME INTO THE HOSPITAL MAYBE TWO DAYS LATER AND FIND OUT THEY'RE SITTING ON TWO DAYS OF STORAGE AND A TOWING FEE AND AND HE THEY'RE THEY'RE THE VICTIM.
HOW DO WE HELP HELP THOSE FOLKS? RIGHT.
WELL, THE, THE FIRST CASE OF COURSE IS UH, IF THEY HAVE INSURANCE, THEN THE AGENT'S GONNA COME LOOK AT THE CAR PRETTY PROMPTLY.
THEY DON'T USUALLY LET THEM SIT IN THE STORAGE LOT VERY LONG BECAUSE THEY KNOW THEY'RE PAYING ON THE STORAGE.
UH, BUT IN THIS CASE, IF THE PERSON WAS IN THE BACK OF THE MEDIC OR THEY WERE INCAPACITATED, IF THE OFFICER CAN'T ASK THEM DID THEY HAVE A PREFERENCE FOR A TOW TRUCK, THEN, THEN WE REQUEST THE NEXT WRECKER ON THE LIST, THE WRECKER RESPONDS, PICKS UP THE VEHICLE, UH, WE DO A TOW SHEET THAT HAS ALL THE INFORMATION ON IT, WE INVENTORY THE VEHICLE AND THEN WE USUALLY GET A BUSINESS CARD FROM THE WRECKER COMPANY TO GIVE TO THE OWNER OF THE CAR SO THEY KNOW WHERE THEIR CAR IS.
UH, THEY CAN ALSO CALL EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS, WHICH THE DISPATCHER WOULD BE ABLE TO PROVIDE A LOCATION OF WHERE THE CAR IS IF FOR SOME REASON THEY DON'T GET THE BUSINESS CARD, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, BUT TYPICALLY WE DON'T HAVE ANY ISSUE WITH PEOPLE WORRYING ABOUT THE DAY OR TWO OF STORAGE.
USUALLY THEY'RE NOT, YOU KNOW, REALLY WORRIED ABOUT THAT AND USUALLY THE INSURANCE COMPANY'S INVOLVED.
UM, SO WE DON'T NORMALLY HAVE A LOT OF ISSUE WITH THAT.
MOST OF THE TIME THE CARS ARE PICKED UP WITHIN A FEW DAYS BY THE INSURANCE COMPANY BECAUSE THEY WANT TO GET IT TURNED AROUND FAST BECAUSE NOT ONLY ARE THEY PAYING FOR A RENTAL CAR A LOT OF TIMES FOR SOMEBODY, BUT THEY DON'T WANNA SEE $50 A DAY, $75 A DAY AND KEEP RACKING UP ON A CAR.
THEY WANT TO GET IT TOWED QUICKLY TO A BODY SHOP AND GET THE WORK STARTED.
ANY MORE QUESTIONS? JUST ONE POINT.
UM, ONE QUESTION, JUST YEAH, JUST ONE AND, AND IT'S NOT REALLY A QUESTION.
IT'S, IT'S MORE OF, UH, THE ROTATION OF THE TOW TRUCK DRIVERS.
I GUESS ARE WE SETTING THAT IN THE ORDINANCE, THE, HOW THAT'S BEING DONE? BECAUSE THE LAST THING I WANT IS SOME TOW TRUCK COMPANY COMING BACK TO THE BOARD AND GOING, YOU'RE WE'RE BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST BECAUSE SO AND SO GOT FOUR AND I ONLY HAD TWO, YOU KNOW? YES.
SO CURRENTLY RIGHT NOW, ANYTIME A NEW COMPANY IS ADDED TO THE LIST BY OUR POLICY, THEY'RE ALWAYS ADDED TO THE BOTTOM OF THE LIST BECAUSE THERE'S ALREADY COMPANIES AHEAD.
UM, AND I'LL JUST USE SAY CLIFFS TOWING.
THEY'RE NOT, THEY DON'T HAVE A TOW TRUCK ANYMORE, BUT FOR MANY YEARS, CLIFFS WAS A, A MAINSTAY IN, YOU KNOW, YOUR COUNTY, UH, CLIFFS IS THE NEXT ON THE LIST.
THEY GET THE CALL AND THEN IT ROTATES THROUGH THE NEXT SEVEN, EIGHT COMPANIES IN OR DOWN THE LINE.
SO IF THEY CALL THE NEXT COMPANY AND THEY SAY, WE'RE NOT AVAILABLE, WE DON'T HAVE A TRUCK, THIRD IT TO THE THIRD AND THE FOURTH, AND THEN ON DOWN ON DOWN THE LINE.
I FIGURED, I FIGURED THAT'S THE WAY IT WAS.
I JUST WAS WANTING SOME CLARITY WHEN THEY STOP IN THE MIDDLE SOMEWHERE AND THEN, THEN START AGAIN.
OR, I MEAN, HOW DO YOU YES, SIR.
IT JUST KEEPS ROTATING THROUGH THE
[01:50:01]
SAME COMPANIES IN THE SAME LIST.I THINK WE'VE EXHAUSTED THE TOPIC.
[CONSENT CALENDAR]
ON THE AGENDA IS A CONSENT CALENDAR.AND BRIEFLY, YOU'VE GOT APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR JANUARY 7TH, 2025, AND YOU ALSO HAVE A TAX REFUND FOR VETERANS EXEMPTION.
IS THERE ANY ITEM THAT ANYBODY WANTS TO PULL? IF NOT, I, I'LL TAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE.
[OPEN DISCUSSION]
UH, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF DISCUSSION TONIGHT.DO WE NEED ANY MORE DISCUSSION OR DOES SOMEONE HAVE A TOPIC THAT YOU'D LIKE TO BRING TO THE BOARD? I, I HAVE ONE, UH, ITEM I JUST WANTED TO RAISE.
UM, ACTUALLY TWO ITEMS. A NUMBER OF US HAVE ATTENDED THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY BEFORE, UH, BOTH THROUGH EML AND THROUGH, UH, VACO.
AND THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF BUDGET OR A LOT OF ITEMS IN THE HOUSE THIS YEAR THAT HAVE HAD PARTICULAR IMPACT ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
AND, UM, I, I JUST PLEASED WITH THE WORK THAT THOSE COMMITTEES HAVE DONE TO STREAMLINE THAT EFFORT AND FOR US TO BE ABLE TO THEN GO IN AND MEET WITH OUR DELEGATES.
THERE WAS, UH, TEACHING POSITIONS THAT ARE UNFUNDED.
THERE'S SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION ASSISTANCE THAT'S UNFUNDED, THE SUPPORT FOR MUNICIPALITIES, FOR DISABLED VETERANS PROPERTY TAX.
ALL OF THOSE EXAMPLES RIGHT NOW ARE IN FRONT OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
ANYTHING YOU CAN DO TO SUPPORT THAT EFFORT AND CONTACT YOUR DELEGATE, UH, I'D RECOMMEND IT, BUT I'M VERY PLEASED WITH THAT PROCESS.
YOU CAN DO IT ONLINE TO GO TO THE COMMITTEES AND SEND MESSAGES TO ALL THE MEMBERS OF THAT COMMITTEE? YES.
UM, I I'M GLAD YOU BROUGHT UP THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
UM, JUST TO MAKE SURE NOBODY COMES BACK AT ME OVER THIS, ON, UH, ON TPO STUFF.
UM, THE HR T UH, THAT, THAT WAS A PRIMARY, UH, YOU KNOW, WE TALKED ABOUT THE, THE THREE TENTHS OF A PERCENT KIND OF THING.
THAT WAS PULLED FROM THE BILL.
SO WHAT THE BILL IS UP THERE IS STILL TO ESTABLISH A SECONDARY ROAD FUND.
SO THE PRIMARY AND SECONDARY ROAD FUND.
THE ISSUE OF THE MONEY, UH, FOR FUND GOING IN THERE, IF IT COMES BACK TO WHERE IT'S A LOCAL DECISION, YOU'LL OBVIOUSLY KNOW WELL IN ADVANCE.
SO, UH, BUT JUST GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON THAT.
UM, IT PASSED, UH, HOUSE 58 TO 40, UM, HAD A LEFTWICH AND GREEN ALL VOTED YES FOR IT.
UM, AND IT'S NOW GOING THROUGH THE SENATE.
AND THEN SO WHEN IT COMES, IF IT COMES BACK, THEN THEY'LL, THEY'LL, THE STATE HAS ESTABLISHED THE FUND.
I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE RESTRICTIONS ARE ON THE FUND UNTIL WE SEE IT OR IF THERE'S MONEY IN THE, WELL, I DON'T, I DON'T, I THAT'S THE QUESTION.
YOU KNOW,
BUT THE BILL ITSELF ESTABLISHES FUNDS.
ESTABLISH A HAMPTON ROADS FUND.
THE STATE CAN PUT MONEY IN IT.
WE PUT ANY MONEY WE CAN GET FROM ANYWHERE WE PUT IN THERE.
SO THEY WENT TO THE BANK AND OPENED UP ACCOUNT, BUT THEY DIDN'T PUT ANY MONEY IN IT, RIGHT? YES.
WELL, THEY, NO, THEY HAVE VOTED TO, HALF OF 'EM VOTED TO WAS CROSSOVER TODAY.
SO THE BILLS HAVE MOVED FROM THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO THE SENATE AND VICE VERSA? TUESDAY? I THOUGHT YESTERDAY.
ANYWAY, IF THERE'S, I THINK IT WAS SUNDAY.
WE DON'T HAVE A CLOSED MEETING.
SO I, I'M GOING TO ADJOURN THIS AND ANNOUNCE THAT THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD 6:00 PM TUESDAY, FEBRUARY THE 18TH.
THE PEOPLE WHO LISTENED IN TONIGHT AND STAYED WITH US, TAKE CARE, MR.