Committee Report - Finance - 7-1-20 — File 210389

Finance Committee Page 1 of 5 Printed 7/4/2020 July 1, 2020 REPORT OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE Attendee Name Title Status Arrived Jefferson Thomas ("J.T.") Scott Chair Present Katjana Ballantyne Vice Chair Present William A. White Jr. City Councilor At Large Present Mary Jo Rossetti City Councilor at Large Present Wilfred N. Mbah City Councilor at Large Present Others present: Michael Mastrobuoni - SomerStat, Kristen Stelljes - CPA, Dave Goodridge - IT, Frank Wright - Law, Doug Kress - HHS, Chris Hosman - SomerPromise, Ted Louis-Jacques - Veterans Services, Cindy Hickey - Council on Aging, Cathy Piantigini - Libraries, Suzanne Rinfret - Traffic, Annie Connor - Legislative Affairs, Peter Forcellese - Legislative Clerk. The meeting took place virtually via GoToWebinar and was called to order at 6:01 PM by Chairman Scott and adjourned at 10:20 PM on a Roll Call votes of 5 in favor (Councilors White, Rossetti, Mbah, Ballantyne and Scott) to none against. Approval of the June 16, 2020 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED Approval of the June 18, 2020 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED Approval of the June 22, 2020 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED Approval of the June 23, 2020 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED

Finance Committee Page 2 of 5 Printed 7/4/2020 Approval of the June 24, 2020 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED Review of the FY-21 Budget CPA Ms. Stelljes stated that the budget request is for level funding. She explained the manager's position is paid at the rate of 80% from CPA funds and 20% from the general fund. Information Technology Mr. Goodridge reported that there is 1 vacancy in the department that is being funded for 9 months, starting in October. Councilor Ballantyne commented that the difficulty in filling vacancies in the city may be due to the low unemployment levels or perhaps by salaries offered being too low. Mr. Goodridge believes that the delay was due to the actions of the department, as staff were doing extensive work on the MUNIS system. Maintenance software costs have increased largely due to cyber security upgrades and hardware costs increased due to upgrades and the purchase of laptops. For FY-21, the Open Gov platform, Smart Sheets, and the Fire Department's software costs have come from the IT Department. Mr. Goodridge stated that the roughly $200,000 increase in line 542007 (computer equipment - not capital) is for 100 desktops, 10-15 laptops and for the 1st year of a 5-year payout (of $160,000 per year) for network infrastructure upgrades. Councilor Ballantyne asked which departments are scheduled for equipment or software refresh. Mr. Goodridge said that the Police Depart is next and that DPW would be the last department. Additional departments will be added as the pandemic situation allows. Councilor Mbah asked if the work usually performed by the vacant position is being covered and Mr. Goodridge said that the employee who vacated that position, due to a promotion, is covering both positions. Mr. Goodridge was asked about changes to the chamber "horseshoe" with respect to COVID-19 and he stated that those questions should be addressed to Inspectional Services. Chair Scott asked what the backup strategy would be and Mr. Goodridge said that it will transition to a 2-2-1 system and then eventually to the cloud. Chair Scott asked about the possibility of providing laptops to the councilors and Mr. Goodridge said that he would have to ask the administration about that option, but he did say that he has visited some councilors at their homes to assist with computer problems, and remains willing to do so. Chair Scott asked Mr. Goodridge to prepare a rough cost estimate for upgrading the councilors' computers around the "horseshoe" and for the committee clerks, as well. The PSTN line is now fully funded by the IT Department. Councilor Rossetti asked if the School Department has included funds for the PSTN line and Mr. Mastrobuoni replied that they were not and are included in the IT's line for that item. Law Mr. Wright reported that the FY-21 budget is 4.6% less than last year's request. The legal services line has surpassed the FY-20 budgeted amount. He has not requested funds to provide for outside legal services for the City Council since it's not in line with how municipalities operate. Councilors Mbah and Rossetti spoke about the need for such counsel and asked that it be included in future budget requests. Chair Scott asked Mr. Wright to provide the total cost of

Finance Committee Page 3 of 5 Printed 7/4/2020 legal services rendered at the direction of the City Council. Councilor Ballantyne asked if the department's interns were receiving course credit for their work with the city and Mr. Wright replied that some were, depending on the arrangement with their schools, and he noted that half of the interns are volunteers. He will provide an estimate of the amount needed to reinstate paid intern positions in the Law Department. Health and Human Services Mr. Kress reported that the department's total budget request has increased by 16.7% over the FY-20 budget. He spoke about 2 vacant positions and 1 new position in the department. Positions have been advertised and 4 applications have been received, to date. Councilor Rossetti expressed her displeasure with the new position (a 2nd nurse float) being funded for only 3 months. Mr. Kress stated that the position is a fill-in position and also that it's unclear when the schools will re-open. Councilor Rossetti asked that the funding level be reconsidered for this position to ensure that the schools have enough medical staff available. Chair Scott asked Councilor Rossetti to prepare a cost estimate for funding the position for a full year. Mr. Kress stated that HHS is working with the School Department on a plan for when schools opens. Councilor Rossetti questioned line item 524034 and Mr. Kress said the expenditure was for a copier contract, however, Councilor Rossetti replied that she thought that the IT Department was bearing those costs. Mr. Mastrobuoni will compile a list of copiers and which departments are paying for them. Councilor Rossetti asked about the increase in line number 550000 and Mr. Kress replied that the increase is to cover medical supply expenses, mainly for the schools, since they don't know what may be needed as a result of the pandemic. Councilor Rossetti spoke about the need for attention to the rodent problrm to come under the control of HHS and Mr. Kress replied that he favors having the policy aspects covered by HHS and enforcement covered by ISD. Councilor Rossetti noted that there is a communication gap with that plan and said that something has to change, adding that she is not alone in her thinking on this issue. Complaints are falling on deaf ears on the city side. Mr. Kress replied that the city is trying to look at best practices and continues to put new policies in place and need a community response to rectify the situation. He thinks that HHS needs to work more closely with ISD and said that the community also has to do its part. Councilor White also spoke on this matter and noted that funds allocated for rodent extermination had not been completely expended. He is concerned that there is a disconnect somewhere and thinks that it would be better to consolidate efforts under one department's control. Mr. Kress stated that health inspectors cannot go onto private property since rodents are not considered a public health issue. Councilor Mbah asked if the entire operation should be moved under ISD and Mr. Kress replied that it was split to leave policy with HHS and enforcement to ISD. Councilor Mbah asked, again, if it should be moved entirely to ISD and, again, Mr. Kress said it was split intentionally, as it is in the Planning Department. Chair Scott said he keeps hearing that more needs to be done and he thinks this might be an opportunity for some reorganization and he asked Mr. Kress to consider adding an additional position to help in combating rodents. Chair Scott also questioned the accessibility of city buildings and sidewalks according to ADA guidelines and spoke about the city's Disabilities Commission and asked Mr. Kress to consider how he could use that commission to make it something meaningful, possibly by including an Executive Director for that commission. MOTION

Finance Committee Page 4 of 5 Printed 7/4/2020 Councilor Rossetti made a motion to cut line 572000 (Out of State Travel) by $1,350. The motion was tabled. Councilor Rossetti's motion That the Administration fund the additional Float Nurse Position in HHS for 11 months rather than the 3 months proposed in the FY-21 budget was approved on a ROLL CALL vote of 5 in favor (Councilors White, Rossetti, Mbah, Ballantyne and Scott) to none against. Council on Aging Ms. Hickey reviewed her department's budget. Councilor Rossetti pointed out that Ms. Hickey will be retiring in two weeks and she praised her leadership and accomplishments over these many years. There will be an interim director taking Ms. Hickey's place. SomerPromise Mr. Hosman reported that the FY-21 budget request is 9% less than last year's request. He said that the $209,000 grant approved by the City Council is designed to be a 3-year grant. A majority of the programming was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in an under-spending of the budgeted amount for line number 530000. Mr. Hosman said that there will be a single point of entry for anyone with a child to avail themselves of the services offered. At this point, the department is working with other agencies to access funds. Outreach efforts have been increased and the department works closely with other agencies and initiatives to get information about their programming out to the public. Mr. Hosman said the program is designed to run from cradle to career. At the high school level, groups are run with new ESL students by the Wrap-Around Coordinator. Councilor Ballantyne asked about programming by gender and Mr. Hosman said a small pilot program was run and the data collected will be used to help to build gender parity in programming. Councilor Ballantyne asked for information on who will take ownership of ensuring gender parity across the various programs offered. Veterans Services Mr. Louis-Jacques reported that his FY-21 budget request is 3.8% lower than last year's. Councilor Rossetti asked why the veterans’ benefits expenditure was lower than previous years and Mr. Louis-Jacques explained that some veterans have passed away and some have found employment and/or permanent living conditions. Councilor Rossetti asked that staff continue to perform outreach to the city's veterans. Mr. Louis-Jacques doesn't know how many veterans are in the city and he is working on ways to get them all identified. Libraries Ms. Piantigini reported that the Library FY-21 budget is 1.7% lower than last year's budget. She provided a timeline for filling (4) vacant positions. Chair Scott's motion that the Administration increase line number 511000 in the Library's FY- 21 budget by $43500, to fully staff the position of Deputy Director was approved on a ROLL CALL vote of 5 in favor (Councilors White, Rossetti, Mbah, Ballantyne and Scott) to none

Finance Committee Page 5 of 5 Printed 7/4/2020 against. Traffic Ms. Rinfret reported that the department's FY-21 budget request was 12.9% less than last year's budget. She spoke about how the department has been servicing the public with the restrictions imposed by the current pandemic. Councilor Rossetti asked about the vacant hearing officer position and Ms. Rinfret explained that filling the position was put on hold due to the pandemic and Mr. Mastrobuoni said that it was inadvertently omitted from the vacancy list but will be added to the report. General Councilor Ballantyne requested that the Administration provide the budget for athletics at Somerville High School. Mr. Mastrobuoni will make the request and provide the information. Unfinished Business Motion by Councilor Rossetti to reduce line number 571001 (In State Conferences) in the City Council Budget by $1,199.00 The motion was tabled by the Finance Committee on June 22, 2020. This item remained on the table.