Budget Committee of the Whole Meeting

Summary

Meeting Overview

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council met on June 5, 2014, at 3:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, with the Chair presiding. The council addressed five agenda items during the session, including a revenue update presentation, review of the Mayor's late items, council member recommendations, Link recommendations, and budget committee of the whole meetings. The council took five motions and votes during the meeting and heard ten public comments. Of the items considered, the Mayor's late items and Budget COW meetings were approved, while the council member recommendations and Link recommendations were deferred to a later date. A revenue update was presented for informational purposes.

Attendance

Present: - Chair - Commissioner - Commissioner Mills - Council Member Lane - Council Member Stinnett - Council Member Ellinger - Council Member Beard - Council Member Farmer - Council Member Henson - Council Member Clark - Council Member Akers - Council Member Myers - Council Member Scutchfield - Council Member Stenet - Council Member Ford - Council Member Massadi - Council Member Cain - Council Member Lawless - Council Member Missotti - Council Member Marquet - Mr. O'Mara - Craig Benz - Brad Chambers

Absent: - Vice Mayor Gorton - Council Member Myers

Votes and Decisions

Motion to Schedule Special Budget Committee Meeting 1:29:08

Council Member Kaye moved to schedule a special budget committee of the whole meeting on Thursday, June 12, 2014, at 9 a.m., seconded by Council Member Akers. The motion passed by voice vote. Council Members Kaye, Akers, Beard, Clark, Ford, Lawless, Missotti, and Marquet voted in favor.

Motion to Postpone Parks Projects Discussion 1:51:47

Council Member Akers moved to postpone discussion of all parks projects until the October fund balance review, with exceptions for projects already underway, seconded by Council Member Farmer. The motion failed by voice vote. Council Members Kaye, Lane, and Beard voted in favor. Council Members Clark, Ford, Lawless, Missotti, Marquet, and Stenet voted against.

Amendment to Parks Projects Motion 1:51:47

Council Member Akers moved an amendment to the parks projects motion allowing exceptions for projects already underway, seconded by Council Member Ford. The amendment failed by voice vote. Council Members Kaye, Lane, and Beard voted in favor. Council Members Clark, Ford, Lawless, Missotti, Marquet, and Stenet voted against.

Motion to Change June 12 Meeting Format 2:33:35

Council Member Lawless moved to change the June 12 special meeting from a special budget committee of the whole to a special work session, seconded by Council Member Myers. The motion passed by voice vote. Council Members Lawless and Myers voted in favor, with no votes against.

Motion to Adjourn 2:34:09

The Chair moved to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Council Member Lawless. The motion passed by voice vote.

Budget and Financial Actions

The meeting included appropriations for several community projects and organizations:

YMCA Projects Funding of $300,000 was appropriated for the YMC North expansion and Hamburg Y project. An additional $300,000 commitment was approved for the Y for capital improvements and deep discounts for county employees.

Community Services The Children's Advocacy Center received an appropriation of $75,000.

Cultural and Recreation Facilities The Kentucky Theater was allocated $100,000 for concession stand renovation. The Western Little League received $100,000 for a baseball field at Cardinal Run. Martin Luther King Park was appropriated $300,000 for athletic building demolition and rebuild.

Infrastructure East Short Street was allocated $185,000 for concrete repair and resurfacing.

Public Comment

Council members addressed several infrastructure and funding priorities during the meeting:

Infrastructure and Paving

Council Member Beard emphasized the need for a bond to fund road paving, citing severe winter conditions and a backlog of infrastructure needs across the city 1:00:32. Council Member Stenet also advocated for a bond to fund road paving while supporting economic development initiatives 1:04:18.

Stormwater and Sidewalk Improvements

Council Member Massadi requested funding for a stormwater culvert on Arrowhead Drive and a sidewalk extension on Clay's Mill Road, noting long-standing flooding and access issues in those areas 1:12:33.

YMCA Project

Council Member Lane expressed support for $300,000 in funding for the YMCA project at Hamburg, citing the long-term relationship and obligation to the organization 1:19:54. Council Member Stenet also supported the YMCA project, emphasizing its potential for economic development and job creation 1:04:18.

Parks Funding and Prioritization

Council Member Akers raised concerns about the Parks Department's capacity to handle additional projects, suggesting a pause on new park funding until October 1:31:21. Council Member Beard opposed postponing all park projects, citing a small bridge repair project already underway that needed immediate funding 1:48:09.

Council Member Lawless supported implementing a more objective, data-driven ranking system for park needs to ensure equitable distribution of funds 1:39:43. Council Member Lawless further emphasized that professional staff should identify the greatest needs rather than council members, noting the current process lacks objectivity 1:50:00. Council Member Missotti asked Parks staff to provide a comparative assessment of park needs to help prioritize funding decisions 1:40:56.

Social Services Funding

Council Member Ford presented a revised link recommendation for social services funding, emphasizing fairness and equity in the allocation process 1:55:42.

Contested Items

The June 5, 2014 meeting included three significant areas of disagreement among council members.

Social Services Funding Allocation

Council members were divided on a revised recommendation to reallocate funding from high-scoring to lower-scoring agencies. The split vote reflected concerns about fairness and the impact on organizations that had been initially awarded funding. Members expressed worry about the process of changing funding allocations after initial recommendations had already been made, raising questions about consistency and predictability in the funding process.

Parks Project Prioritization

A heated discussion took place regarding whether to postpone all park project requests until October due to capacity constraints. Some council members argued that postponing these projects would hinder progress on urgent initiatives, while others supported the delay to address resource limitations. This disagreement centered on balancing immediate project needs against the council's operational capacity.

Budget Process Transparency

Council members raised procedural concerns about the lack of transparency in the social services funding process. Specifically, they questioned the ability to change funding allocations after initial recommendations had been made public or communicated to applicant organizations. This procedural dispute reflected broader concerns about the clarity and consistency of the budget decision-making process.

Revenue Update

2:34

The Commissioner presented a preliminary revenue update for the fiscal period ending May 31, 2014. The presentation covered year-to-date financial performance and included a recommendation regarding revenue projections for the upcoming fiscal year.

Financial Performance

The update showed mixed results for the year-to-date period:

• Withholding revenues demonstrated a positive variance of $803,000
• Net profits tax revenues reflected a shortfall of $957,000

Recommendation

The Commissioner recommended maintaining the mayor's proposed revenue estimate of $313.2 million for FY15.

Outcome

This agenda item was presented for informational purposes.

Review Mayor's Late Items

22:11

The Council reviewed late items submitted by the mayor regarding the proposed budget. The discussion focused on adjustments to fund balances across various funds.

Key Discussion Points

The MAP fund balance was confirmed at $2,424,530. The Council examined the proposed budgeted amounts for this and other funds as part of the mayor's late submissions.

Participants

The review involved a Commissioner, Council Member Farmer, and Council Member Henson.

Outcome

The Council approved the mayor's late items and agreed to maintain the current budgeted amounts for the funds under review.

Review Council Member Recommendations

36:32

During this agenda item, council members presented individual recommendations covering a range of priorities including parks improvements, infrastructure, and social services.

Key Speakers and Presentations

The following council members participated in the discussion: Council Member Kaye, Council Member Akers, Council Member Clark, Council Member Beard, Council Member Farmer, Council Member Stenet, Council Member Ford, Council Member Massadi, and Council Member Lane.

Focus Areas

The recommendations presented by council members centered primarily on three main areas: - Parks improvements - Infrastructure projects - Social services initiatives

Concerns Raised

A significant concern emerged regarding park capacity, with council members expressing the need to address limitations in existing park facilities. Additionally, the discussion highlighted the absence of a more objective prioritization process for evaluating and ranking the various recommendations being presented.

Outcome

The item was deferred, indicating that further discussion or action on these council member recommendations was postponed to a future meeting.

Review Link Recommendations

The Finance and Social Services Link presented an amended recommendation regarding funding for partner agencies. The proposal increased total funding from $2.58 million to $2.94 million, with funds reallocated based on scoring criteria.

Key Speakers and Participants

Council Members Ford, Lane, Marquet, Clark, Scotchfield, Lawless, and Myers participated in the discussion, along with Commissioner Mills.

Presentation and Debate

The Link presented the amended funding recommendation, which involved a significant increase of $360,000 in total allocations to partner agencies. The reallocation was based on a scoring system that determined how funds would be distributed among the agencies.

Concerns Raised

The discussion revealed concerns about fairness and equity in the funding allocation process. Council members raised questions about how the scoring methodology affected different agencies and whether the reallocation approach adequately addressed equity considerations.

Outcome

The item was deferred, meaning the council did not reach a final decision and postponed further action on the recommendation to a future meeting.

1:53:25

Budget COW Meetings

2:33:35

The Council discussed scheduling a special meeting for June 12, 2014, to finalize the budget. Council Members Kaye, Lawless, and Myers participated in this discussion.

The meeting format was reclassified from a special budget committee of the whole to a special work session. This change in classification was made to allow the Council to conduct voting on budget matters during the meeting.

The outcome of this discussion was approved.