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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-01-27 Government Operations Committee Minutes Government Operations Committee January 27, 2009 Minutes Councilors: Wheeler, Gratwick, D’Errico, Palmer, Blanchette, Stone, Nealley, Hawes Staff: Barrett, Farrar, Cammack, Nicklas, Willette, Courtney Others: Charles Birkel, Melinda Poore, Eric Russell Wheeler thanked the Council Chair for agreeing to enlarge the number of the Government Operations Committee. It is now 5 members, adding Blanchette and Nealley. 1. Public Hearing: Issues or Concerns Related to Cable Television Service Provided by Time Warner This item was taken out of sequence while waiting for the arrival of a Time- Warner representative. Wheeler indicated that he had requested this item for the purpose of a Public Hearing to provide an opportunity for residents to provide comments relative to any cable television related concerns or issues. Several e-mails were received by the City in response to an ad in the local newspaper. Wheeler noted that over the years a number of concerns have been expressed to the local Time Warner office and to members of the City Council. From the Council point of view, one of the concerns is the instability in certain areas/ homes of the City of the signal and quality for the government access channel and the local access channel. Wheeler read excerpts from e-mails received by the City concerning Time Warner. Poore said she would take the e-mail concerns back to her office for further investigation. TW is reengaging its negotiations with WABI. Regarding DTV transition, TW will still carry WABI’s signal even after the DVT date. Responding to Wheeler about a senior citizen concern regarding pricing, Poore said there is a family tier, $39.04/month. Blanchette said that the family tier programming is nothing that would interest a senior citizen. Poore said the family tier does have children and adult programming. Because of the way TW’s contracts are set up with programmers, A&E and TV Land cannot be carried on an ala carte basis. Poore said that direct tv and satellite are available options. Blanchette spoke about the poor quality of the City’s government access channel. Responding to Poore, Barrett said that TW has sent out personnel. It seems to be an intermittent problem out in the world. It doesn’t originate with the equipment at City Hall. He thinks the problem relates to the fact that the government and public access channels are shared on over-the-air channels. Poore said she would check into the quality issue for resolution. Stone asked if the City has options for cable tv. Poore said that every franchise under federal law is non-exclusive. Barrett noted the capital expense associated with a cable system would not be practical. Barrett noted the fact that the local office has an automated call system only and is not user friendly. Poore said those messages are reviewed. She asked that City staff contact her or Shelley Winchenbach directly with customer concerns and complaints. In response to Stone, Poore said that he would receive a credit for non- operational cable tv days. He needs to contact her office. The notice is cited on each TW bill. Barrett mentioned a citizen’s call about the difference in cable services between his Bangor and his Florida home. Poore said she would check into it. Nealley spoke about the reception/quality of the City’s government channel indicating that it is a big concern. Certain areas have ongoing problems. He would like TW to thoroughly investigate the problem. Poore said she will follow up with Winchenbach. Wheeler noted that the government channel is a major connection between the City and the average citizen. Charlie Birkel addressed the Committee. He complimented TW on their merger to date. He noted that whenever receiving correspondence from TW it is never dated. It would help customers keep tracks of changes, increases, etc. Poore thanked him for the suggestion. He spoke of issues with TW’s toll free number and suggested that one option needs to be to speak with a live operator. Birkel spoke about the need for TW to educate its customers. He referred to a customer service brochure he picked up at TW. Poore agreed. She spoke about mailing them or making them available to the public. Birkel reviewed the increased costs of cable tv over the past few years. Poore said she would talk later with Birkel about the increases in his bill. Poore said that the cost increases are nationwide. Birkel talked about the franchise fee involved with cable tv. 10% is added to his bill for taxes/fees. The franchise fee goes to the City. The interstate commerce division gives municipalities the right charge an individual up to 5% of their total bill. Birkel asked why the City opts to charge the maximum amount, and what does the City for cable subscribers on this particular item. Barrett said that the franchise fee is a charge against the cable company for their use of the public right of way for their installations. The charge from the city is against the company. The city receives an approximate $200,000/year, and it goes into the City’s General Fund. The city does provide the government channel and its operation. The funds also support the City Solicitor’s Office for cable related business. The franchise renewal will be in 2012 and it will be a very long and costly process. Wheeler said he cannot believe and accept that TW is incapable of resolving the problem with the transmission and/or reception of the government and local access channels in Bangor. He urged Poore to urge TW to do whatever it takes to assure that people who want to watch the local government programming will be assured of a consistent quality picture. He thinks TW needs to educate its service technicians that upon entering an individual’s home to check out a connection or a box in the winter and mud season that they remove their wet and muddy boots. It happened to Wheeler and he was not happy. TW has problems and he thinks they can be fixed and that TW wants to fix them. Poore agreed with Wheeler’s comments and pledged that she will return to get the issues resolved. The technicians have booties to put their feet when entering a home for service. Poore again stated that the City should contact her or Shelly directly. Wheeler asked that Poore leave her contact information with the City Manager. Blanchette asked Poore to see if TW’s phone system and its automated system could be updated. One option needs to be a ‘real person.’ More than 60% of Bangor homes are wired for cable, Wheeler said. Poore said she would get him an up to date number. CONSENT AGENDA A motion was made and seconded to approve the Consent Agenda. 2. Council Ordinance 09-062 Amending the Code of the City of Bangor, Chapter 231, Public Parks, Section 231-5, Vehicles and Traffic, Snowmobile Operation in the City Parks This amendment will authorize snowmobiles on certain trails in City Parks where they serve to interconnect with trails not within the Parks when determined compatible by the Director of Parks and Recreation. This will formally allow for the use of a trail in Essex Woods that has been used for this purpose for a number of years. The Committee has previously discussed this Ordinance amendment and recommended approval, thus its placement under the Consent Agenda. REGULAR AGENDA 3. Amendment to Professional Services Contract – Robert Bowie, MD, Emergency Medical Services Division-Bangor Fire Department The Fire Department currently contracts with Dr. Robert Bowie to provide medical director services for the Emergency Medical Services division at the Fire Department. Dr. Bowie provides oversight and guidance regarding the overall operation of the EMS division. Cammack explained that the proposed amendment increases Bowie’s fee from $1,750 to $2,500 annually and changes the dates of the two payment installments. Responding to Stone, Cammack said that Bowie works about 200 hours annually and the nurses 80-100 hours. A motion was made and seconded to recommend approval. 4. Professional Services Contracts for Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement Coordinators, Emergency Medical Services Division-Bangor Fire The Emergency Medical Services Division is required to have Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement (QA and QI) measures in place. The proposed contracts with Jamie L. Perry and Beth Moser, are Registered Nurses and will fill the role of QA and QI coordinators. They will be responsible for reviewing EMS run sheets, coordinating and conducting training, and ensuring that EMS operations are current and in compliance with all applicable laws and established protocols. A motion was made and seconded to recommend approval. 5. Proposed State Legislation: An Act to Authorize Municipalities to Protect the Habitability of Rental Housing During Heating Fuel Emergencies Barrett said that this is an item that the Service Center Collation has been working on and it is an emergency bill authorizing municipalities to provide for the delivery of heating oil to rental housing units that are facing an imminent threat of becoming uninhabitable because of a lack of heating oil. Before providing for the delivery of heating oil, the bill establishes a set of procedures the municipality must follow that are designed to allow the landlord to avert the municipal delivery of heating oil by providing the necessary heating oil himself/herself. The bill also establishes municipal authority to place a lien on the rental property in order to recover the direct and administrative costs associated with providing for heating oil. The municipality would be required to make a good faith effort to notify the landlord in advance giving them the chance to provide the fuel oil. Bangor has not encountered problems with this but the City of Augusta has. Responding to Gratwick, Barrett said there are many other examples of City involvement; i.e. any situation where a citizen’s health, safety or welfare is at risk. Code Enforcement deals with no heat complaints from tenants. Stone asked about electric heat and problematic furnace issues. Barrett said that if a building runs out of oil the response involves both providing fuel and technician support. With a heating unit malfunction, the City would need to make a judgment of what was involved. Palmer spoke about apartment building foreclosures, and the landlord walks. He said the lien idea is a way for the City to capture some of its expenses. Blanchette felt it to be wise and prudent to support the bill. A motion was made and seconded to authorize staff to support his Legislation on behalf of the City of Bangor. A Resolve will be prepared for the upcoming Council agenda. 6. Review of the Governor’s Proposed Biennial Budget and its Potential Impact on the City of Bangor The Governor has released his proposed budget for the two year period st beginning July 1. Barrett presented an overview of the budget and the potential impacts it may have on the City of Bangor as it gets ready to start its budget preparation process. The major concern is revenue sharing. The proposal is to reduce the percentage of state income and sales tax that goes to revenue sharing from 5.2% to 5.1%. Revenue Sharing II is at 5.2% and is a program aimed to assist high mil rate communities, which is basically a continuation of a status quo. There is, however, a proposed 10% cut in revenue sharing which would completely come out of Revenue Sharing I. The proposed reduction would cost the City approximately $365,000 next year. Revenue sharing is tied to State revenues (income and sales). Barrett is also concerned that the budget as proposed reduces the percentage that goes into revenue sharing from 5.1% to 4.6% for the next two years and then it would return to 5.1%. He would prefer that the state not lower the percentage. By lowering, it would become a permanent new percentage. Barrett recommended that the City air its opposition to revenue sharing cuts, oppose the reduction of percentages from 5.1 to 4.6%, and not oppose the cuts coming from Revenue Sharing I but if it becomes an issue that the City attempt to work toward a compromise if 10% cut in both Revenue Sharing I and II. Another concern is in the area of Local Road Assistance which is proposed as a $5M reduction. $5M would come from the Highway Fund and move it into the General Fund. In the Highway Fund, it specifically would come from the Local Road Assistance Program. The City uses these funds for street paving annually. The cut would probably cost the City $100,000. He suggested that the $5M be taken from the Highway Fund and not all from municipalities. The State will be eliminating its funding for Code Enforcement Officer training. All code enforcement employees need to be trained and certified. In the past, the State has paid for it and it is a State mandate. The effect on the City would be $1,000. Tree Growth reimbursement is proposed to be reduced by 10%, less than $5,000 for Bangor. Overall, Barrett said it would be an approximate $1M loss in revenue to the City for the next budget year. Barrett spoke about the stimulus package proposed by the federal government. Significant portions of it appear to be aimed at State government and some targeted at education. Nealley spoke in favor of the Maine Municipal Association’s efforts. He asked for specific details of the approximate $1M loss and asked that the school and City be separated in the information. Barrett clarified that the $430,000 for the Bangor School Department cut this year may be different next year. He will provide the information to Nealley and the entire Council. Blanchette spoke about school consolidation issues. She asked if Bangor still has a lobbyist in Augusta. Barrett said yes, through the Service Center Coalition. Stone talked about savings in this year’s budget due to locking in on fuel costs. He asked about possible savings and cuts for this year to push into next fiscal year. Barrett said there is some savings on the energy side, and employee vacancies are looked at carefully to determine if they can be held vacant. Barrett said there is very little excess. A lot depends on the weather and Public Works’ budget. The budget has been tightened over the years and the City is very heavily personnel dependent. A motion was made and seconded to recommend passage of a Resolve at an upcoming Council agenda. Barrett will draft a Resolve for Council review. Committee adjourned at 6:40 pm.