HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-10-13 Commissioner Minutes
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2021
The Franklin County Commissioners met Wednesday, October 13, 2021, with the
following members present: David S. Keller, John T. Flannery and Robert G.
Ziobrowski. Chairman Keller presided and after calling the meeting to order, a Moment
of Silence, and the Pledge of Allegiance, proceeded with the business of the day.
The meeting was live streamed.
On a motion by Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery;
unanimously approved to adopt the agenda.
There was no public comment.
On a motion by Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery;
unanimously approved all bills presented and ordered paid.
The minutes of the October 6, 2021 meeting were reviewed. These will be
decided upon in the afternoon approval session.
The Board reviewed Agreements, Contracts and Reports. Commissioner
Flannery asked for more information on board action item #9 quote from Morefield. Kurt
Hoffeditz, Chief Information Officer explained that these switches were needed as the
new buildings developed and that we did need to replace the old gear for the
Courthouse. He said moving forward it will be cheaper to maintain. The items will be
decided upon in the afternoon approval session.
Tom Reardon, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity, was present to request
a Housing Trust Fund allocation for a project at 136 Ritchey Road in Fayetteville which is
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their 50 home in Franklin County. This request is also to help purchase a property at
240 W. Queen Street in Chambersburg. Mr. Reardon provided pictures of some of the
families that have been served by Habitat. Some are first time homeowners in their
families and the first to rise above poverty in their family. He hopes the Board sees that
-reliance and stability. Commissioner
Ziobrowski asked for the status of the 49 homeowners. Mr. Reardon explained that five
families have paid off their mortgages; they have had a few families that have outgrown
their homes and moved onto something bigger; there are 29 families still living in their
homes; they had five that said homeownership was not for them and only had one family
leave their home due to a serious health issue. He explained that the first mortgage is
360 to come up with their
mortgage. The second mortgage is the difference between the first mortgage and the
appraised value but every time the family makes a payment on the first mortgage Habitat
forgives the second mortgage payment. Mr. Reardon explained that they engage
hey serve the
of tax base and financial aspect. Mr. Reardon responded that last year their
homeowners paid more than $61,000 in taxes but even more than that is that the
families are more stable. These homeowners are invested in their home. We all benefit
from homeowners that are invested in their home and the community. Chairman Keller
mentioned that when he sees a Habitat home you can see that adjacent homes start
getting fixed up and some say they will improve their home or rental property.
Chairman Keller said he is supportive of the request and explained the Housing Trust
extraordinary what Habitat has accomplished. He is pleased they are continuing the
trend to build homes throughout Franklin County not just in Chambersburg.
Continued on page 2
Teresa Beckner, Fiscal Director, presented the 2022 preliminary budget to the
Board. Ms. Beckner informed the Board this budget is a preliminary budget and includes
all requests submitted from every operation in the County. She explained the report is
separated into two distinct areas due to how the various areas are operated and
managed. She continued that the Trust or Fiduciary Funds include activities of the
-funded dental and health
insurance f
and the assets are subject to market volatility. County Operations includes Elected
Officials, Human Services, Courts, Jail, Emergency Services and the 911 Center,
Property Management, Adult Probation, Juvenile Probation, Domestic Relations, Debt
Service, Internal County Services, etc. It also includes some capital activities such as
continuing progress of the judicial complex and other county buildings in the current
project, bridge construction and maintenance with Liquid Fuels funds, Community
Development Block Grant projects, and grant programs administered by the county.
Ms. Beckner explained the revenues under county operations. Taxes include all
taxes levied and collected, such as property taxes for debt service and for operations
and hotel taxes collected by the County. Intergovernmental Revenues are funds
expected from both state and federal governments. These amounts are for grants and
funds passed to the county for operating Human Service programs, providing for CDBG
projects, completing maintenance and construction on county-owned bridges, funding
Domestic Relations services, and partial reimbursements for certain other operations.
Ms. Beckner explained that fees and charges are assessed by elected officials for
various services, as well as across internal operations for occupancy and services
provided to county operations. She explained that miscellaneous Revenues could be
contributions, rents, municipal contributions toward Drug Task Force services, school
district reimbursements for Juvenile Probation officers and any other revenues not
included under one of the other classifications.
Ms. Beckner explained the Transfers IN is internal transactions, from one fund
from another. She gave an example where funds received from the General Fund for its
share of services provided to consumers in the various human service programs. On
the expense side, personnel costs include wages and benefits. Salaries, health and
ret
total. Operating costs encompass a wide range of what it takes to operate County
departments. This would include supplies, training and travel, maintenance and repairs,
vehicle operations, minor equipment, outside contracted services, human service
providers, interest and principal payments on debt, occupancy costs such as rent and
utilities, funds spent on maintenance and construction of bridges, and CDBG funds paid
to others for projects. Ms. Beckner explained that transfers OUT is paid by one fund to
another. This is the opposite side of what she just explained. It includes payments made
by the General Fund to others, including support for human services, Domestic
Relations Services, and 911 operations. Capital is the amount budgeted for completion
of projects currently in process and reflects the amount expected to be incurred in the
next year. Expansion is made up of capital and personnel requests by departments
outsid
technology enhancements for software, hardware and infrastructure; public safety
equipment; building repairs, upgrades and renovations; computers; furniture; vehicles;
and other new or replacement equipment. This line also includes requests related to
personnel, such as additional full or part-time staff and changes in classifications of
employees.
Continued on page 3
Ms. Beckner explained that for the funds listed on the slide, earnings on
investments are shown under the heading Investment Income. Fees and Charges
etirees portion of
the benefit. And realized and unrealized gains and losses on investments are shown as
Miscellaneous Revenue. Expenses in fiduciary funds are much the same as operating
funds. Personnel costs are related to administration of retirement
Compensation funds. Operating costs, in addition to supplies and professional fees, also
include required payouts for benefits. Expansion is primarily for health, safety, and
security equipment and systems as well as personnel support that is
Comp funds.
Ms. Beckner explained the total budget for All Services and Operations based on
all requests is just over $170 million, of which $16.7 million relates to the fiduciary-type
funds. Total revenues for all requests and all funds amount to $154.8 million. A net use
of reserves is indicated for operations. Of the $26 million in reserves requested, $11.2
million relates to the continuing progress of the Court Facility Improvement project. The
slide also shows a summary of new positions requested. Total county requests number
17; (all are full-time). With some consideration given to possible hire dates, the total cost
of these positions, including current benefit rates is just under $1 million. General Fund
operations make up 9 of the 17 requested.
Moving on, she said we can see what the General Fund (GF) looks like.
Presented here is a projection for 2021 shown beside the requests for 2022. Revenues
are classified the same as presented for all departments and activities of the County.
The taxes for the General Fund are property taxes used for operating purposes only and
growth here is $330 thousand dollars, just under 1%. They will fine tune this number
when they are ready to present a proposed budget in a few weeks. Ms. Beckner
reported that the assumptions discussed for all county operations are the same ones
used in looking at just the General Fund. The GF portion of the retirement contribution is
included in the personnel costs, and totals $1.3 million. Operating costs are the total of
capital expansion, which are shown separately. Operating costs from department
requests total $17.1 million. Operating transfers are the amounts the county General
Fund spends to support other county operations. Overall the decrease from the amount
projected for 2021 is almost $1.5 million, or 25%. There is more detail on the next slide.
Human Services are $3.6 million of the $5.4 million total and are on par with our 2021
revised budget. Compared to projections though, there is a 26% decrease over 2021,
almost a million dollars. This is mostly related to Children & Youth Services, which
part of our annual budget. Capital and Personnel Expansion requests for the General
Fund amount to over $3.4 million. This is a combination of personnel reclassifications
and 9 additional full-time positions and capital of $3 million. The capital requests are the
same types as discussed when looking at all county operations - computers, minor
equipment, software, vehicles, building repairs and improvements, safety equipment,
security equipment and technology, and funding for new projects. $1.4 million of the
requests relate to jail operations, primarily for facility repairs and security upgrades. The
the expense growth of almost $9 million at 18.5%. Overall results for the General Fund
show $49.5 million in revenue and $57.6 million in expenses, leaving a gap of $8 million
needed from reserves to balance the budget.
Continued on page 4
Ms. Beckner stated that we started 2021 with almost $14.5 million in unrestricted
reserves. Unrestricted reserves are those that are not assigned for specific purposes,
set aside for commitments, or restricted by regulations. It is county policy, as well as
best practice, to maintain healthy reserve balances, which are defined as 60-90 days of
General Fund expenses. The recommended reserve balances (based on 2021 projected
spending) are: 45 days = $6.0 million; 60 days = $8.0 million; 90 days = $12.0 million. If
the Board were to approve the budget as requested by departments and presented here,
the use of the reserves would take
expenses). Carrie Gray, County Administrator, explained that the Board is scheduled to
priorities and parameters the commissioners provide to refine the numbers and have
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the proposed budget placed on the counter November 24. Chairman Keller asked Ms.
Beckner to forward the specific personnel and capital requests to the Board for them to
review. Commissioner Ziobrowski stated that if they approve this all request budget the
county would need a 5 mill increase. Ms. Gray explained that this request is slightly less
been able to meet the needs with the operating budget in the past.
The Board recessed and will reconvene at 2:00 p.m. for final approval of the
items that were reviewed.
The Board reconvened at 2:00 p.m.
There was no public comment.
On a motion by John T. Flannery, seconded by Robert G. Ziobrowski;
unanimously approved the minutes of the October 6, 2021 meeting.
The Board reviewed Commissioners Office matters. On a motion by Robert G.
Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the Chairman of
the Board to execute the Security Microfilm Program Release Form to Pennsylvania
State Archives. Linda Miller, Register & Recorder, would like to move microfilm currently
stored at Iron Mountain to a new facility at PA State Archives in Harrisburg, PA. The
County needs to authorize the moving of these records.
The Board reviewed additional Commissioners Office matters. On a motion by
Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the
Chairman of the Board to execute the Change Order #EC-CO-002 for Frank B. Lesher,
Inc. to provide power and data outlets on the freestanding column in Multipurpose Room
201 at the Archives Phase II project for an additional cost of $1,055.00.
The Board reviewed additional Commissioners Office matters. On a motion by
Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the
Chairman of the Board to execute the Change Order #EC-CO-003 for Frank B. Lesher,
Inc. to provide a wireless doorbell at the main entry door at the Archives Phase II for an
additional cost of $155.00.
The Board reviewed additional Commissioners Office matters. On a motion by
Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the
Chairman of the Board to execute the Change Order #EC-CO-004 for Frank B. Lesher,
Inc. to provide power and alarm wiring from the Phase 2 preaction sprinkler valve
cabinet back to the main panel at the Archives Phase II for an additional cost of
$2,751.00.
Continued on page 5
The Board reviewed additional Commissioners Office matters. On a motion by
Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the
Chairman of the Board to execute the Change Order #GC-CO-018 for eciConstruction,
LLC to provide additional roller shades to fill the entire WP1 and W2/W-2 window
openings in Multipurpose Room 201 at the Archives Phase II for an additional cost of
$792.00.
The Board reviewed additional Commissioners Office matters. On a motion by
Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the
Chairman of the Board to execute the Change Order #GC-CO-019 for eciConstruction,
LLC to tie Phase I rear canopy downspout into the underground storm drain system at
the Archives Phase II for an additional cost of $666.00.
The Board reviewed Department of Emergency Services matters. On a motion
by Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved the
Supplemental Appropriation in the amount of $4,000.00 to restock incident supplies used
during three recent HazMat responses. Such expenses are not grant covered; however,
the party responsible for the incident is billed for reimbursement.
The Board reviewed Grants/CJAB matters. On a motion by Robert G.
Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved amendment No. 1 to
the contract dated May 2, 2021 between the County of Franklin and Malvern Treatment
Centers for substance abuse treatment services to Good Wolf Treatment Court (GWTC)
participants. This amendment is to increase the contract encumbrance by $10,000 for a
total contract amount of $20,000.00. All other terms and conditions of the original
agreement will remain in full force and effect.
The Board reviewed Information Technology Services matters. On a motion by
Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved for the
Chairman of the Board to execute the proposal from Morefield Communications for
purchase of a new Cisco network switching gear for both the new Archives building and
the Historic Courthouse at a cost of $46,241.54.
The Board reviewed additional Information Technology Services matters. On a
motion by Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved
for the Chairman of the Board to execute the proposal from Morefield Communications
to provide software support for the Cisco Network switches and routers at a cost of
$4,398.28 for the period of August 20, 2021 through August 19, 2022. It gives the
County the ability to engage Cisco in the event of issues and receive replacements
quickly in the event of hardware failures.
The Board reviewed Juvenile Probation matters. On a motion by Robert G.
Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved the Grant in Aid to
Juvenile Court Judges Commission to receive Grant In Aid Funds in the amount of
$134,221.00 for the period of July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021. This funding is
utilized to meet state mandated initiatives to further Juvenile Justice Systems
Enhancement Strategies (JJSES).
The Board reviewed Planning matters. On a motion by Robert G. Ziobrowski;
seconded by John T. Flannery; unanimously approved the Housing Trust Fund Grant
Agreement between the County of Franklin and Habitat for Humanity requesting an
amount of $50,000 from the Franklin County Housing Trust Fund to support the
construction of a home at 136 Ritchey Road and the acquisition of a lot located at 428
W. Queen Street to construct a duplex.
Continued on page 6
In accordance with PA Act notifications, Larson Design Group notified the County
of a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Water Obstruction Permit
being applied by PennDOT die culvert replacement project over an unnamed tributary to
Conococheague Creek located in Greene Township.
On a motion by Robert G. Ziobrowski; seconded by John T. Flannery;
unanimously approved to enter an executive session at 2:06 p.m. this date for the
purpose to review litigation matters. No action will be required after the executive
session. The Board reconvened into regular session at 2:44 p.m.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:45 p.m. with a motion by Robert G. Ziobrowski;
seconded by John T. Flannery.
Carrie E. Gray
County Administrator/Chief Clerk
FRANKLIN COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
____________________________________
David S. Keller, Chairman
____________________________________
John T. Flannery
___________________________________
Robert G. Ziobrowski