08-15-16 Personnel and Finance - Laserfiche WebLink

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When it comes to paving curbs and sidewalks, we are doing a chunk of that work in house. You'll see Public Works tell you more about how the shared time with those folks is broken out. We also got a special LOIT distribution, where we have a million dollar program for improvements that we think are most urgently needed. A reminder that we budget $659,000 to the SRO program, but we plan to get half of that back as part of our cost - sharing program with the schools. We also shoulder the cost of crossing guards, worth $125,000. We also programmed the funds for bus shelters, and we continue to work with Transpo to make sure we're seeing bus shelters where they're most needed, as well as exploring the possibility of the bike sharing program. I mentioned the six (6) community priorities, and we have a corresponding set of internal priorities. What kind of Administration do we want to be? We think about what kind of employer we are, how we are maintaining our fiscal strength, are we efficient and cutting edge in what we do, do we reflect the values, are we taking good care of our assets, are we doing well with risk management and compliance, and are we able to be responsive both internally and with the public. We believe that being a great employer is making sure that we are paying well. Before I went marching off to demand the minimum wage increase, I had to make sure that our City is in order. We are now in the middle of a three (3) year path to make sure that the lowest paid City employee is not making less than $10.10 per hour. That was chosen because it is pretty close to the purchasing power of the minimum wage in 1968 when the Fair Labor Standards Act took effect. This year's target is $9.15, which will affect some of the departments. We are absorbing the eight percent (8 %) increase in healthcare. We are investing in the ability to identify savings. The business analysts are here to help us run more efficiently and identify areas where we can cut costs or provide better services with the dollars we have. We are making sure that we are implementing our diversity and inclusion program and funding that office properly along with our employee recognition program, especially when our employees have been living the values we're talking about. We are also making sure we are investing in our assets and doing what we can do. We are coming up on the I0,000th APRA Request since this Administration has been in office, and we are averaging a forty -eight (48) hour turnaround, which is much faster than required by law. There are costs, so when you're hearing about the Legal Department budget, it takes resources and it takes people's time, but we think it is the right thing to do, so that's why it is reflected in the way we do business. We are making sure we are more hands -on about claims, making sure the City doesn't get taken advantage of, and making sure that the best way to stay ahead of liability is to not run into some 0