Cecil County Government June 3, 2008 Commissioners' Meeting

MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY

COMMISSIONERS MEETING

June 3, 2008

The Board of County Commissioners for Cecil County met in regular session at the County Administrative Building, 200 Chesapeake Blvd., Elkton, MD. The following members of the Board were present:

William C. Manlove, President

Mark H. Guns, Vice President

Rebecca J. Demmler, Commissioner

Brian Lockhart, Commissioner

Wayne L. Tome, Sr., Commissioner

Constituting a full Board.

The Board adjourned into a closed session at its work session on May 27, 2008 at 9:45 A.M., motion was made by Vice President Guns, seconded by Commissioner Lockhart and unanimously carried pursuant to the State Government, Annotated Code of Maryland 10-508 (a) (1), (4) & (7); Personnel, legal advice, consider a matter that concerns the proposal for a business or industrial organization to locate, expand, or remain in the state.

The Board adjourned into a closed session at its work session on June 3, 2008 at 11:25 A.M., motion was made by Vice President Guns, seconded by Commissioner Demmler, and unanimously carried pursuant to the State Government, Annotated Code of Maryland 10-508 (a) (1), & (7) to discuss personnel matters and obtain legal advice.

The meeting of the Board of County Commissioners for Cecil County, June 3, 2008 was called to order by Commissioner Manlove at 2:00 p.m. and opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.

The minutes from the May 20, 2008 were unanimously approved.

-COMMISSIONERS' COMMENTS-

The Board offered no comment.

- EXELON'S CONOWINGO HYDROELECTRICAL STATION -

Representatives from Exelon made a brief presentation to the Board regarding several new recreational activities available to the public at the Conowingo Dam. Activities include a walking trail, bird watching and a new fishing area that will be open to the public next year.

- PUBLIC HEARING - CECIL COUNTY PERSONNEL POLICIES & PROCEDURES MANUAL -

Donna Nichols, Director of Human Resources, presented proposed revisions to the Cecil County Policies & Procedures Manual. The changes are outlined below and will be voted on at the Board of County Commissioners meeting on June 17, 2008.



Page #	Subject	Topic	Current Policy	Proposed Policy
3	HR-001 Welcome & General Overview	A: Cecil County Overview	No reference to Correctional Officers' Bill of Rights	added new paragraph for Correctional Officers' Bill of Rights
6	HR-001 Welcome & General Overview	F: SilentWhistle Program	None	new policy
14	HR-003 Salary Administration	A: Pay Structure	No definition for public safety	Added Definition of Public Safety and added corrections payscale information
17		B: Changes in Position - Promotion	NOTE: unsure of which step (higher or lower than current) to go too	NOTE: Clarifies that employee would be placed at closest step but not greater than current rate of pay.
20	HR-004 Payroll Policies	D: Shift Differential Pay	Shift differential did not address 12-hour shifts	clarifies the shift differential calculation for 12-hour operations
21		F: Call Out	did not include Information Technology Dept.	Added Information Technology Department;
28	HR-006 Time Off	H: Personal Floating Holidays	? Employee on payroll as of January 2nd is awarded 24 hours; ? Employee on payroll as of May 1st is awarded 16 hours; ? Employee on payroll as of September 1st is awarded 8 hours	Employee on payroll as of January 1st, eligible for 24 hours; January - April eligible for 16 hours; May - August eligible for 8 hours; September - December eligible for 0 hours
30		J: Sick Leave Insurance - Supervisor Notification	No mention of how often employee must contact department/supervisor for update	Employee on long-term sick leave (paid and/or unpaid) must contact their department weekly for the duration of their absence.
30		J: Sick Leave Insurance - Sick Leave Restrictions	No mention of where doctor's notes should be submitted	doctor's notes must be submitted to HR due to HIPAA regulations
30		J: Sick Leave Insurance - Sick Leave Restrictions	None	Outside Employment - Employees on sick leave (paid and/or unpaid) are restricted from secondary employment including volunteer work
30		J: Sick Leave Insurance - Accumulation of Absences	None	Defined occurrences with examples; (Example: 1-hour absences will count as 1/8^th of an occurrence; 2-hour absences will count as a 1/4 occurrence, etc.)
32-33		L: Severe Weather Conditions & Unforeseen Designated Emergencies	None	Delayed Opening - Nonessential employees are not required to report to work during the hours and will be paid for the hours the Government is closed; however, if the employee was previously scheduled for vacation, personal or sick leave for the day, the full day will be charged to the appropriate leave. If employee does not report to work when the building is open, annual leave or personal leave must be charge for the hours not worked.
33		M: Vacation	. . . . Used in 2 hour increments	. . . .used in 1-hour increments
		O: Unauthorized Absences	Unauthorized Absence mentioned in text of manual; however, not defined.	Absence from any part of the work period for which the employee fails to properly notify supervision or fails to provide verification (i.e. no call, no show) will be considered an unauthorized absence and will not be paid. The absence will be considered an occurrence.
37	HR-007 Benefits	F. Deferred Compensation	Enrollment 4 times/year; no mention of match payout	Clarifies how an employee can enroll anytime they want; employee must be on payroll the 2nd pay of August in order to get the match
41		S: Sick Leave Bank	The bank will pool up to 4000 sick leave hours at any one time	no limitation of hours in bank
41			Does not address intermittent absences	Intermittent absences do not qualify for sick leave bank usage
41			5. Employee cannot use time from the bank if they accrue leave for that month.	5. Employee will not accrue leave for any month that they use the sick leave bank.
41			No minimum usage of leave	Minimum of 40 hours can be used from the bank
48	HR-008 Standards of Conduct, Performance & Discipline	D: Group Offenses; Sample Offenses and Infractions Chart		Deleted footer referencing Sheriff's Code of Conduct Manual
52	HR-009 Grievance Procedures	B: Applicability	No mention of Correctional Officers Bill of Rights	Grievance procedures not applicable when actions are taken in accordance with Correctional Officers Bill of Rights
58-60	HR-010 Health & Safety	D: Alcohol, Drugs and Fitness for Duty		Updated current policy in order to be in compliance with FTA/DOT regulations

COMMENTS IN OPPOSITION/SUPPORT: None.

- PUBLIC COMMENT-

Dotty Mazzone, 140 Maryland Drive, Earleville - requested that the Board look into amending the Cecil County Ordinance concerning "barking dogs".

Arthur Fisher, 28 Budds Landing, Warwick - requested information from the Board regarding the status of revisions to Chapter 209, concerning "barking and aggressive dogs" and the role of the S.P.C.A.

Administrator Wein responded and stated that a committee had been formed to review this matter and will be making recommendations to the Board.

George Kaplan, 35 Oak Street, Colora - commented about the Text Amendment, amending Article XI, Part I, relating to critical areas. On behalf of the Cecil Land Use Alliance, he made several suggestions for additional language to strengthen the Commissioner's role in these matters.

Charles Herzog, 56 McCush Lane, Colora - commented in support of code home rule form of government and encouraged the Board to present a unanimous decision. He also requested that the Board look into "tax breaks" for seniors.

Bowen Milburn, 192 Booth Road, Elkton - requested that the bridge replacement scheduled for FY 2010 over Grammies Run be re-evaluated. He stated that there is little traffic on the road; he suggested that the Board abandon the road/bridge in an effort to save funds.

- INTRODUCTORY ITEMS -

- FY 2009 AMENDED CIP -

Craig Whiteford, Budget Manager presented to the Board amendments to the FY 2009 amended Capital Improvement Program which was approved at the Board's meeting on December 4, 2007. The following changes are proposed:

· Calvert Elementary School - reduce scope of work by $5,461,619 - reduces county obligation by $2,488,986, placed final funding for project in FY 2010

· Upper Chesapeake Buildout - project complete

· 911 Center - CIP reflects project that is now grant funded

· Paramedic Station #2 - increased costs due to sprinklers/fire protection

· Renovation of CCSO/Law Enforcement - reduction of county obligation by $1,125,827

· Stormwater Management Pond repairs

· Woodlawn Transfer Station - updated to reflect actual costs

· Pine Hills AC Pipe updated to reflect bids

· Seneca Point nutrient Load Credits updated to include $300,000 in State funding

· Roads & Bridges - five bridge planning projects deferred to reduce funding gap

· Courthouse Renovation - amended project costs to reflect additional $350,000 bond availability from transfer from law Enforcement renovation

· Health Department Systemic Upgrades - deferred project by one year to 2010

· Southern County Community Center - shifted funding from pay-go to bond

The 2009 Amended CIP will be placed on the Board's agenda for consideration at their June 17, 2008 meeting.

- FIRST VEHICLE SERVICES - FLEET MANAGEMENT CONTRACT -

Budget Manager Whiteford presented to the Board the Fleet Management Contract between the Board and First Vehicle Services that in accordance with section five of the contract will commence on August 19, 2008, this being the final year in the initial Three-year contract, with two, two year renewal options, is in the amount of $813,098.

The Fleet Management Contract will be placed on the Board's agenda for June 17, 2008 for consideration.

- RESOLUTION - ESTABLISHMENT OF OPEB TRUST & RESOLUTION - PRE-FUNDING OF OPEB TRUST -

Budget Manager Whiteford presented the Board two resolutions establishing a Postretirement Health Benefits Fund. The purpose of the fund is to assist the county in financing postretirement benefits provided by the County and other participating employers under the Cecil County Retiree Benefit Plan.

The resolutions will be presented to the Board for consideration at the June 17, 2008 meeting.

- ACTION ITEMS -

- APPOINTMENTS -

Motion was made by Vice President Guns, seconded by Commissioner Tome and unanimously to re-appoint the following to the Cecil Mental Health Partnerships Core Advisory Board for a three year term to expire on June 30, 2009:

Carol Mullen Jodi King

Gretchen Gomall Cindy Smith

Howard Isenberg Lee Dante

Motion was made by Commissioner Tome, seconded by Commissioner Demmler and unanimously carried to re-appoint Pat Folk and Mike Dixon to the Historic Designation Committee for a three year term to expire on March 1, 2011.

- CHARLESTOWN GROWTH ALLOCATION REQUEST -

Eric Sennstrom, Director of Planning & Zoning presented the Charlestown Growth Allocation Request that was presented as an introductory item and the Commissioner's Board meeting on May 20, 2008. This request is before the Board tonight for consideration.

Motion to approve the growth allocation request for the Town of Charlestown was made by Vice President Guns, seconded by Commissioner Demmler and unanimously carried to approve.

- TEXT AMENDMENT ZONING ORDINANCE, AMEND ARTICLE XI, PART I, SECTION 205.1a & 205.1.b -

Director Sennstrom presented the Board with the Text Amendment to the Zoning Ordinance that will provide greater clarity and specificity to the process to be followed when municipalities request growth allocation from the county. This amendment was presented in the form of a public hearing at the Board's May 20, 2008 meeting.

Motion to approve the text amendment was made by Vice President Guns, seconded by Commissioner Tome and unanimously carried to approve.

- HISTORIC DISTRICT PROPERTY TAX CREDIT - "BRICK HOUSE" -

Director Sennstrom presented the Board with a request from Cecile T. McCaffery, owner of the "Brick House", for property tax credit in the amount of $2,255 pursuant to Chapter 258, Article III for renovations to the property.

Motion to approve the request was made by Vice President Guns, seconded by Commissioner Lockhart.

Commissioner Demmler stated that she will oppose this request, she further stated that she is in favor of the concept, however has too many unanswered questions relating to the particular request.

Motion carried by a majority vote.

VOTE: Manlove Y, Guns Y, Demmler N, Lockhart Y, Tome Y

Vice President Guns asked that the Historic District Commission look into creating criteria for renovations to historical structures.

- HUD ADMINISTRATIVE PLAN CHANGES -

Dave Mahaney, Director of Housing & Community Development appeared before the Board and requested that the Board approve the administrative changes as mandated by the Federal Housing Administration to remain eligible and compliant for the grant funded position for the Family Self-Sufficiency Coordinator.

Motion to adopt the administrative changes was made by Commissioner Demmler, seconded by Commissioner Tome and unanimously carried to approve.

- FACILITY USE AGREEMENT, SENIOR SERVICES -

Administrator Wein presented the Facility Use Agreement for the Senior Center Dining Area that was presented to the Board at their May 20, 2008 meeting.

Motion to approve the agreement w