Inter Governmental Committee

Summary

Meeting Overview

The Inter-Governmental Committee met on April 13, 2010, at 1:00 p.m., with Madam Chair presiding. The committee addressed four agenda items during the meeting, all of which received approval. The body took three motions to a vote and heard five public comments from members of the public. The approved agenda items included a review of Legal Bills Review Services, a discussion of Exit Interviews, consideration of Purchasing, Procurement & Professional Services matters, and an Update on Committee Items.

Attendance

The following individuals were present at the meeting on April 13, 2010:

• James
• Crosbie
• Myers
• Gray
• Blues
• Beard
• Henson
• Feigel
• Lawless
• Martin

No absences or late arrivals were recorded.

Votes and Decisions

Motion to Create Work Group on Purchases, Procurement, and Professional Services Contracts 5:17

A motion by Crosbie to create a work group to examine purchases, procurement, and professional services contracts passed by voice vote. The motion was supported by Crosbie, Myers, Gray, Blues, Beard, Henson, Feigel, Lawless, and Martin, with no votes against and no abstentions.

Motion to Restore Item N to Full Council as New Business Item 51:29

A motion by Blues to restore item N to the full council as a new business item passed by voice vote. Nine members voted in favor: Blues, Crosbie, Myers, Gray, Beard, Henson, Feigel, Lawless, and Martin. One member, Revered, voted against the motion. There were no abstentions.

Motion to Create Work Group on Exit Interview Policy and Related Surveys 1:33:28

A motion by Myers to create a work group to advance exit interview policy and related surveys passed by voice vote. The motion was supported by Myers, Crosbie, Gray, Blues, Beard, Henson, Feigel, Lawless, and Martin, with no votes against and no abstentions.

Budget and Financial Actions

The meeting addressed one contract matter related to legal services.

Legal Bill Review Services

The body considered legal bill review services under RFP 36-2009. Wayne Basconi, Attorney at Law, was identified as the vendor for this contract. No specific dollar amount was provided in the meeting materials for this service agreement.

Public Comment

Several speakers addressed concerns about legal services and employee retention during the public comment period.

Legal Bill Review Services

Beard raised concerns about layers of bureaucracy and the lack of in-house expertise, questioning the need for an external reviewer when internal staff could handle the task 23:20. Crosbie expressed concern about the three-year contract with a specialized attorney, questioning the need for long-term commitment and suggesting a line-item budget approach instead 30:31.

Exit Interviews and Employee Turnover

Lawless supported the implementation of exit interviews and suggested using free online tools like SurveyMonkey to collect anonymous feedback from employees 1:14:47.

Henson highlighted the high turnover in community corrections and E911, emphasizing the need to understand root causes to reduce costs and improve retention 1:18:14.

Blues asked about participation rates and whether exit interviews could be made a condition of employment, suggesting tying them to final payouts 1:20:25.

Contested Items

Three-Year Contract for Legal Bill Review

Council members debated a proposed three-year contract for specialized legal bill review services. The disagreement centered on multiple concerns: the cost of the long-term commitment, whether the specialized attorney's expertise matched the council's actual needs, and the lack of in-house capacity to perform this function internally. Despite the opposition raised during discussion, the motion passed by voice vote.

Exit Interview Policy Implementation

A heated discussion arose regarding the implementation of an exit interview policy. Council members disagreed on several key aspects of the proposal. The primary points of contention included whether exit interviews should be mandatory for departing employees, how collected data should be managed and protected, and whether the Human Resources department should conduct the interviews independently to maintain neutrality and ensure unbiased responses from departing staff members.

Legal Bills Review Services

The committee discussed a proposed contract with Wayne Basconi for legal bill review services under Mayor's Executive Order 2008-3. 7:25

Key Discussion Points

The committee examined the three-year term of the proposed contract and raised concerns about this duration. Questions were also raised regarding the lack of in-house expertise for legal bill review services, which formed part of the rationale for engaging an external contractor.

Committee members discussed the potential for cost savings through the contract, weighing this benefit against the concerns about outsourcing the function rather than developing internal capacity.

Speakers

The discussion involved committee members Crosbie, Sweeney, Beard, and Martin.

Outcome

The committee approved the contract with Wayne Basconi for legal bill review services and recommended that it be sent to the full council for consideration.

Exit Interviews

Council Member Myers introduced a proposal to implement formal exit interviews across departments as a strategy to reduce turnover and improve employee retention. 55:48

The committee discussed several key elements of the proposed exit interview program, including best practices for conducting interviews, methods for collecting and managing data, and the role of the Human Resources department in overseeing the initiative. Key participants in the discussion included Scheuniger, Jarvis, Lawless, and Henson, alongside Myers.

To advance the proposal, the committee established a work group tasked with developing the necessary infrastructure for the program. The work group's responsibilities include drafting a formal exit interview policy, creating survey templates to standardize data collection across departments, and establishing procedures for managing and analyzing the resulting data.

The proposal was approved by the committee.

Purchasing, Procurement & Professional Services

Council Member Crosbie proposed tabling this agenda item, citing the complexity and volume of information involved 2:03. Rather than postpone the matter, the committee took an alternative approach.

The committee approved the creation of a work group to examine procurement processes. This work group was given a broad charge to review the entire procurement system, rather than focusing on a single component of the process.

Key participants in this discussion included Council Member Crosbie and Sweeney.

The outcome was approved.

Update on Committee Items

1:35:06

The committee discussed the status of previously tabled items during this agenda segment. Key speakers Blues and Myers addressed several matters requiring committee attention.

A primary focus of the discussion was the need to restore item N to the full council agenda. The committee determined that this item, which had been previously tabled, should be returned for consideration by the full council.

The committee also confirmed scheduling decisions regarding the Inter-Governmental Committee. It was established that the Inter-Governmental Committee would not convene in May and would instead reconvene on June 15.

The committee approved these updates and decisions.