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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-24-2022 Personnel & Finance.._ 1865 OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK D AWN M.JONES, C tTY CLERK PERSONNEL AND FINANCE Committee Members Present: Committee Members Absent: Others Present: Presenters: Agenda: -------======--------===---- AUGUST 24, 2022, 5:00 P.M. Sheila Niezgodski, Eli Wax, Rachel Tomas Morgan Troy Warner, Henry Davis Jr. Aaron Steiner Dawn Jones*, Victoria Trujillo*, Justin LePla, Bob Palmer*, Nick Hamann*, Ken Glowacki*, Shayla Kimbrough* Carl Buchanon, Scott Ruszkowski, Tim Lancaster, Ken Goecki 2023 Fire Department Budget Presentation Council Questions and Feedback on Proposed 2023 Fire Department Budget Public Input on Proposed 2023 Fire Department Budget 2023 Police Department Budget Presentation Council Questions and Feedback on Proposed 2023 Police Department Budget Public Input on Proposed 2023 Police Department Budget Members marked with an asterisk (*) are present digitally Please note the attached link for the meeting recording: http://docs.southbendin.gov/WebLink/browse.aspx?dbid=O&mediaid=381543 Committee Chair Sheila Niezgodski called to order the Budget meeting at 5:00 p.m. 2023 Fire Department Budget Presentation Carl Buchanon, South Bend Fire Department Chief, 1222 S. Michigan Street, stated the 2023 department goals and strategic initiatives focus on recruitment, retention, and community. The application process has been streamlined. The department is maintaining a strong presence at recruiting events and job fairs. It is implementing a lateral hiring process for quicker onboarding of qualified firefighters. The internship program is leveraging the CTE program and retaining talented youth. Competitive wages and a pension base are being offered to employees. The department is undergoing rank restructuring to clear the path to develop and encourage firefighters EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION EMPOWERMENT 455 County-City Building 227W. Jefferson Bvld South Bend. lndiana46601 p 574.235.9221 f574.235.9173 TTD574.2355567 www.southbendin.gov CIT Y O F SOUTH BEi\'D OFF ICE OF THE CLERK to be company officers. The community paramedic program and community risk reduction activities have been a success. Carl Buchanon reviewed the revenue and financial statements from 2019 to 2022 and the projections for 2023. Sources of revenue include the 2020 COVID-19 grants, EMS Services-City runs, County payments for service, Medicaid reimbursement and event coverage, and all other- interest earnings, licenses, and pennits. Carl Buchanon reviewed the 2023 budget overview. The fire pension costs four point six ($4,600,000) million dollars. Maintenance and debt service will cost four point five ($4,500,000) million dollars to acquire and maintain buildings and major equipment. Fire/EMS and all other costs to run the department are expected to total thirty-one million three hundred thousand dollars ($31 ,300,000) million. Salary and wages will cover expenses for two hundred and fifty-six (256) firefighters. There are seven (7) non-bargaining staff. Firefighters in the second (2nd) year of their three-year (3) contract will receive a two-point five percent (2.5%) raise. Carl Buchanon reviewed capital and maintenance costs, which will total one million and seven hundred and thirty thousand ($1,730,000) dollars. Carl Buchanon presented the equipment replacement schedule. Engines in service of twenty (20) plus years, ambulances in service of fourteen ( I 4) years, and aerials in service of sixteen ( 16) years need to be replaced. Council Questions and Feedback on Proposed 2023 Fire Department Budget Committee Vice Chair Wax asked if there are incentives for lateral transfers. Carl Buchanon confinned there are incentives in place, including incentives for individuals with military experience and prior certifications. Committee Member Rachel Tomas Morgan asked how many staff would qualify as a fully staffed department. Carl Buchanon reported that a minimum of sixty-six ( 66) staff per day would allow the department to fulfill all services and challenges. A minimum of two hundred and fifty-six (256) staff in the department would qualify as fully staffed. Committee Member Davis Jr. suggested that there are overlaps and redundancies between departments should be removed to free up more funding, and asked if flashing lights could be installed on the streets to indicate that emergency vehicles are on their way. Carl Buchanon reported that he would investigate the possibility. Councilmember Hamman asked what the age of each fire engine 1s, and the standard life expectancy is for that type of equipment. Carl Buchanon confinned that the information can be provided. Councilmember Hamman asked for confirmation of whether a decrease in maintenance costs is projected. Dan Parker reported that the 2022 budget included an aerial truck which is being replaced and has led to the projection of a decrease in maintenance costs. Councilmember Lee asked what is being done to ensure that the fire department is diverse and suggested that the department should explore recruiting from Black colleges. EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION EMPOWERMENT 455 County-City Building 227 W. Jefferson Bvlcl South Bend. Indiana 46601 p 574.235.9221 f574.235.9173 TTD574.235.5567 www.southbendin.gov 2 CITY OF SOUTH BEND OFFICE OF THE CLERK Carl Buchanon reported that the department is collaborating with multiple entities including African American and Hispanic organizations to increase diversity. He reported that there is a lack of interest from certain communities as they do not feel like the job pays enough for what is required. Committee Chair Sheila Niezgodski asked how many lieutenants the department is looking to hire and whether there needs to be an amendment to the agreement between the administration and fire department that was just ratified. Carl Buchanon that the department has been in talks with the union. Only existing staff will be awarded the new rank. The exact number is unclear now. Pay will remain the same for captains that transition to lieutenants. Public Input on Proposed 2023 Fire Department Budget There were no questions from the public. 2023 Police Department Budget Presentation Tim Lancaster reported that the 2023 department goals and strategic objectives are as follows: • Increased personnel strength/recruiting • RTCC (including analysts and associated technologies) • Expand (via non-sworn) capacity and expertise areas within the crime lab • Mobile crisis team • Community resource officers Ken Goecke reviewed the 2023 budget-baseline spending for the police department. The proposed 2023 budget-baseline spending totals forty-five million sixty-four thousand seven hundred and fourteen dollars ($45 ,064,714). Police operations total thirty-four million one hundred thousand ($34,100,000) dollars. The PSAP is not charged to the police department. Maintenance and debt service-purchasing, repair, and preventative maintenance total four point five ($4,500,000) million dollars. The pension-cost of the old plan is six million ($6,000,000) dollars. Ken Goecke reviewed the police operations breakdown which includes the costs of the crime lab. Salary and benefits total thirty-one million ($31 ,000,000) dollars (ninety-one percent (91 %) of the total budget). There are two hundred and forty (240) officers to be employed in 2023, with an increase of eight (8) from 2022. Contract negotiations with the police union are underway for two percent (2%) increase placeholder in the budget. Forty-two ( 42) non-bargaining staff are employed, representing a three percent (3 %) increase. The department is adding three (3) full-time employees to replace one position which was transferred to the IT division. The three (3) positions include a senior analyst, an analyst-ii, and an analyst-iii. The department purchases thirty-four (34) vehicles a year which are used for seven (7) to eight (8) years ( approximately one hundred thousand (100,000) miles) for a cost of one million eight hundred and twenty-seven thousand five hundred ($1 ,827,500) dollars. Two (2) undercover cars will cost fifty thousand ($50,000) dollars. A bomb bunker will cost seventy-five thousand ($75,000) dollars. Bomb suits total forty thousand ($40,000) dollars. The halogen system costs EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION EMPOWERMENT 455 County-City Building 227 W. Jefferson Bvld South Bend. Indiana 46601 p 574.235.9221 f 574.235.9173 TTD574.235.5567 www.southbendin.gov 3 CITY OF SOUTH BEND OFFICE OF THE CL ERK sixty thousand ($60,000) dollars. The total capital cost of 2023 is two million fifty-two thousand five hundred ($2,052,500) dollars. The 2023 projected revenue totals eight million four hundred and ninety-one thousand twenty ($8,491,020) dollars. The SBPD Summer Prospect Days will be held on June 24 or July 16, 2023. The program helps provide youth mentorship. The sports programs have made a positive impact on the community. Three hundred thousand ($300,000) dollars are allocated towards mental health response. Council Questions and Feedback on Proposed 2023 Police Department Budget Committee Member Davis Jr. asked why substations are not being installed in high crime areas to diffuse situations and build relationships with the community. Tim Lancaster agreed that substations are a valuable resource and should be reexamined. Committee Member Davis Jr. asked why there is no traffic division. Tim Lancaster reported that a traffic division has been discussed, but due to funding and staff numbers, the department is restricted to essentials. Councilmember Hamann asked for clarification regarding the mental health crisis response center not running at full speed. Tim Lancaster reported that the physical center is not open yet, but there are two (2) staff who currently respond to calls. Hours of operations are limited, and the phone line is only open from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. He confirmed that he will research the number of times the police department has utilized the crisis response unit and provide that information to the Committee. Committee Member Wax asked if there is a standard operating procedure or policy available to the public which explains when and how systems are used in a manner that protects citizens civil liberties. Tim Lancaster reported that it is a delicate balance to maintain citizen safety and privacy. A draft policy has been written. Systems and cameras would only be activated when a report of a crime has been made. Committee Member Tomas Morgan asked if the personnel numbers included in the budget is considered adequate staffing for the full-time crime center. Tim Lancaster reported that there are not enough staff for twenty-four/seven (24/7) hours. During the night, the department will need to rely on the software. Full-time operations would require four ( 4) more Level one ( l) positions. The system will be cloud-based. Public Input on Proposed 2023 Police Department Budget Jordan Giger, 424-South Michigan Street, suggested that research shows that Project Greenlight does not result in a reduction of crime and that the violence simply shifts to other areas, and asked how the department can know that there is a correlation between the reduction of crime and the project. He asked if there a reduction in crime is noticeable in areas where police vehicles have been positioned. EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION EMPOWERMENT 455 County City Building 227 W. Jefferson Bvlcl South Bend. Indiana 46601 .p 574.235.9221 f 574.235.9173 TTD574.235.5567 www.southbendin.gov 4 CITY OF SOUTH BEN D OFFICE OF THE CLERK Tim Lancaster reported that the infonnation regarding Project Greenlight came from the Detroit assistant chiefs and that the biggest metric they saw was that car jackings were reduced, city-wide, by sixty percent (60%). He confinned that whether the crime is being displaced is an important item to look at and that the department will track this metric. The deterrence vehicles have received mixed results, and the department is exploring alternative technologies. Katherine Redding, 1134 Lemarc Terrace, expressed concerns with the vetting and hiring processes for new police officers only taking a day and asked if there is a training structure for new officers. She suggested that community input should be collected for the crisis response team. Tim Lancaster reported that the physical agility tests and written tests have been condensed into one ( 1) day. The psychological exams and lie detector tests are scheduled later. Officers are put through robust de-escalation training through POLIS. The department is looking into secondary (2 nd) de-escalation training as well. All officers are mandated to take the de-escalation training. The mayor is scheduling a community access group to discuss the crisis response unit. With no further business, Committee Chair Sheila Niezgodski adjourned the Budget meeting at 7:28 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Committee Chair Sheila Niezgodski NOTICE FOR IIEAIUNG ANO SIGHT li\lPAIRED Pf.RSONS Auxiliary Ai1I or Other Services may he Availahk upon Request at No Chari.:c. Please l!,ivc flcasonablc ,\rlvancc Rcqul'sl when Possible EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION EMPOWERMENT 455 County-City Building 227 W. Jefferson Bvld South Bend. Indiana 46601 p 574.235.9221 f574.235.9173 TTD574.2355567 www.southbendin.gov 5