##VIDEO ID:kvRdYkR0Vac## e s [Music] spe good afternoon go and call the second public second budget public hearing  to order excuse me September 23rd 2024 50:2 p.m. Ernie Lee  M government building please turn your cell phone to the vibrate silence or off setting we'll begin with the we'll begin with the pledge um commissioner BOS you mind doing  the pledge absolutely please join me please stand floor for a moment I pledge allegiance to of the  United States of America the repic for it stands one nation indivisible with liy and justice for all and board um certainly in lie of of of the events on Saturday um I think it would  be appropriate if if we wouldn't mind and uh rather than a prayer a moment of silence for  um uh for a for a fallen employee on Saturday is just a tragic tragic event  uh Mr M Williams is gone and and just to if we might stand and and and observe a moment  of silence in her honor and thoughts about her family and children and grandchildren all right thank you very much um this genuinely one of the most tragic events to have happened  in in all my years on the board uh just a just a terrible terrible event um it's not necessarily on  the agenda but and we do we are together tomorrow morning is there anything for commissioner's Forum  before we begin the business this evening no um commissioner other than uh my heart Grieves  and hurts I mean there's probably very few budget hearings that you and I have been here that t was  not here for the last nine or 10 years and just spoke with some of her family members and close  friends and to for her children and I think her son is in town now and her grandchildren I mean  what a sad day for esamia County and Tama was a personal friend uh and many of the young people  who came through our summer Employment Program now have jobs because of the efforts of of T and  certainly my condolences and prayers go out to our family so thank you Mr chairman yeah  absolutely commissioner I'll Echo those thoughts absolutely prayers for T and her family M just no  I just I want to say the same thing as everyone else what's more what's important when something  like this happens that everyone reflects on their environment you look around make sure co-workers  are all right um dig deep a lot of times you don't know what's going on with someone you're working  around I've seen this a lot and and um it's it's heart-wrenching for everybody so terrible terrible  news um but there's always an opportunity to save someone else so keep your eyes open and let's help  each other out amen thank you Mr administrator in comments before we begin the business no  Mr chairman I just I of the same sentiments all right thank you was the meeting properly  advertised Mr chairman the second public hearing for consideration of the final budget for fiscal  year 2024 2025 was advertised in the Escambia Sun Press On September 19th 2024 in the board's  weekly meeting schedule the notice of proposed tax increase and the budget summary for fiscal  year 2024 2025 we advertised in the Pensacola News Journal on September 19th 2024 all right  thank you entertain a motion to wave the read so move second all right please vote item pass is 4  to Zer to wave the reading of the advertisement um anything to be added to the agenda Madame counsel  no sir commissioner May No Sir Mr chairman foros nothing for me Coler all right I have  none Mr administrator nothing entertain a motion to adopt the agenda as it is please vote agenda  pass is 4 Zer 501 public hearing have any speakers okay thank you uh Mr administrator  501 public hearing to you thank you Mr chairman um Mr chairman Commissioners this is the second  of two required public hearings for the board to adopt the fiscal year 2024 2025 budget at its  first public hearing held September 10th 2024 the board of County Commissioners adopted the tenative  millage rates and budget for fiscal year 2024 2025 the law requires that prior to consideration  of the final budget and explanation of the roll back rate be provided it entered into the records  the roll back rate is a computed millage rate that would generate the same amount of aval tax dollars  as a prior schol year based on the proposed year's tax rooll excluding new construction the millage  rate sely approved by the schamy County Board of County Commissioners on September 10th 2024  are 66165 for the countywide militate 359 for the library Municipal Services taxing  unit and 6850 for the sheriff's law enforcement Municipal service taxing unit the aggregate of  these Mills rates proposed for fiscal year 2024 2025 is 6.23% above the roll back rate of 7.35  certified by the property appr this represents the percentage increase in property taxes tentatively  adopted by the board staff has recommended one Amendment to the fiscal year 2024 2025  tenative budget this amendment for an increase of50 m727 N9 is for recommended adjustments  to the tenative budget the revised budget will result in a balance unified budget of $798,000 11.1% more than the adopted fiscal year 2023 2024 budget of 718 m681 245 all right thank  you Mr administrator uh for entertain this is an actionable it's an actionable item item at this step or no is this an actionable item at this step or no is this just I think just reading into  the record all right super our next our next the next portion is uh we're requesting that the board  make a final determination tonight regarding the funding amount to be allocated to each of  Our Community Partners this funding is determin determination is necessary to prepare the fiscal  year 2024 2025 computer Community partner funding agreements and to issue the associated purchase  orders in a timely fashion these purchase orders will come before the board for formal approval  in October all right thank you Mr administrator first speaker is from sale Pensacola is it Tim  Timothy reikon or Ry Ry I'm sorry oh okay thank you next speaker is Charles bear keep Pinola beautiful thank you Mr chairman thank you Commissioners um it's honor to be here with  you tonight uh we just got done with the council agenda revieww a few minutes ago so I'm just glad  I could be here um I'm here before you uh to talk about keeping skull beautiful I'm the CEO  I've been in the job for about 18 months now when I did the community partner paperwork the  first time I did it last year I'd been on the job for seven days so I really had no idea what  I was doing and uh I also didn't know that when you got to the this part of the uh the process  that really what was recommended to you all was what we were allocated the previous year and  so I really wasn't well prepared last year this year I'm better prepared uh because of my age I  need reading glasses I just wanted to share couple figures with you some of this I've already shared  with you but I just wanted to cover a couple things at this point one of the things we do  as part of our allocation with you is we pick up roadside litter in the previous year we did about  31,000 pounds of roadside litter pickup we're up to 59,000 so far in this fiscal year we'll  probably get close to doubling what we did last year um we also participate in the community uh  the neighborhood cleanups that you all do as well we picked up 271 tires over 1100 cans of paint  and uh and household chemicals during that time as well we've logged about 2490 volunteer hours  for our volunteers and picked up over 1150 555 pounds of of trash in parks and at the beaches  in the county so in addition to what we do in in those aspects we also have some proactive  things trying to get people more engaged and not producing litter we have the adoptive spot program  which you all have funded in the past we also are uh have education programs we work with everything  from K through college really at this point our funding comes from the solid waste fund program  but really what we do kind of spans across tourism it spans across local option sales tax I mean any  of those sources could be used to fund what we do because a lot of what we do is work at the  beaches we do cleanups we do dozens of cleanups each year uh one of your Public Works employees  out there said you just did my job for me today uh so we feel like we're saving the county money and  and um we're we're trying to expand what we do and we're just asking for a little bit more this year  than what we asked for last year so I'd yeld to any questions P Mike sure yeah I um you know Mr  bear Charles I've known for a little bit but he reached out to me recently about this and  I know in my district there's a lot of things on here that's important to the community as large  but a lot of the neighborhoods that I represent their biggest concern is trash and the RightWay  all over the place place I get more calls about garbage in the right away than any other call um  while we're allowing it Miss White don't know Miss White but she if you want to do a public  records request you can get her complaint from mytle Grove from me about trash that  came in yesterday um I've been with Pence one of your functions to keep Pence Cole beautiful I've  been out there when we with u uh ocean hour uh people against litter um I have a question  know Charles and I think your your mission and goal is good cuz this is a reimbursable the way  I understand it what your addition is but do you have the Manpower and the resources to pick  up more trash yes we do and part of the reason we had an issue last year was because we were  short on staff and a lot of that as you know it's very difficult to find staff we're at full staff  right now we have five employees in the services department which is why our numbers for roadside  litter have been so much higher we've been putting a real emphasis on that um so yes I believe so and  if we have additional need uh one of the things I've really worked to do is try and get the board  members engaged and telling us where we need to be picking up litter and if it looks like we need  to hire additional staff we can do that if we have the right amount of funding I know for me I think  this is an important uh Initiative for the county especially because it's reimbursable I would be  more than happy to increase their funding uh even if it was for 6 months for what but you may not  know I did a pilot study with ECUA to pick up garbage um that they did and I'm not going to  say it just hopefully this would help out a little bit I think it would and I'd like to increase the  number if the boards has an interest in that all right commissioner so the motion would be  to take them to the 18 yeah 18243 I'm sorry commissioner May goad my I've known Charles  probably since our SGA days of college when we ran against each other and ran for each other  I'm certainly going to support it um I I don't I did talk to Charles before this I know you know  there was some reluctancy and and when I talked to West about you know a a number that Charles could  accept uh if whatever that number is uh Charles I'll be supportive of it so if it's a little less  or if it's right there if this is what it makes you to be efficient you'll find my support uh  if you can um reduce it uh that would be great but if you can't you'll still have my support  all right is that a second for commissioner May yes okay I I'm inclined to support it I  mean I talk to uh talk to Michael rhods who says they work well with them as well and uh you know  I don't have uh I don't have a beach but I do have uh I do have Parks you know I have  have Comm have ballparks and stuff that need uh that need a lot of help and uh you know anything  that his folks have the ability to do kind of frees up other labor other uh you know other  resources that can be deployed uh can be deployed somewhere else especially when you know we have  uh you know we have some County employees and and even some you know inmate Crews that are that are  picking up trash if you know that's that's a you know certainly a good use of resources however if  uh Charles's folks are able to pick up trash maybe we can deploy maybe we can deploy that work crew  to uh do a little bit more intense work somewhere that we don't have someone else to do that might  they might can do some drainage work they might can do some prep work for uh for other types of  County work that's being done um if uh if they're not you if we're not having to deploy work Crews  to just pick up trash so maybe it's uh may maybe it can be kind of a two-fold win but commissioner  no and and thank you for your comments Mr chairman and I I I don't have a beach but I do have inter  cities uh and unfortunately uh people use a lot of paper products that walk to and fro to get to  the store and there are not a lot of garbage cans in between so there's a lot of trash that happens  in our neighborhood so I'm certainly concerned about our fluent areas uh but I think Charles  really understands the importance for me in our lowincome areas they maintain the same  quality of service that we're gonna give on our beach so Charles if you would keep that in mind  I certainly appreciate it but to give Charles A a kind of in acculate um Charles and I work on RBI  uh baseball for in city kids but more importantly not only is this organization picking up trash but  they're putting in Parks they're putting in drum systems they're putting in in musical things uh  inside our Parks they did did them in Englewood so Charles I appreciate uh the work that you're  doing all right Commissioners I'm if there's no other comments I'm inclin to support it as well  but so would the motion be an adoption of the of the uh of the entire uh allocation for Community  Partners with the one adjustment increasing uh keep this call Beautiful commissioner CER is at  the motion Mr chairman I agree with that because it's a reimbursable I don't have a problem with  that motion is that commissioner May is that a second stand and before we take the vote I read  an exstension sure all right I have to abstain from this vote gentlemen um the nature uh I Jeff  bgos hereby disclose on September 23rd 2024 um an item came before the uh board which had  endured to my special gain or loss of my relative Sally BOS um she works as the executive director  of the health and Hope Clinic um so therefore um I am going to be abstaining from this vote thank  you all right thank you commissioner um others in favor please indicate by saying I I any any  descent any abstention item passes 3 to Z with commissioner BOS abstaining thank you very much  thank you thank you Charles Mr Council Mr council member um all right public forum uh Chris carb please thank you Chris GB with the flood Defenders thank you um I didn't get to make  it to your first budget hearing so uh I don't think you'll change it but uh last time I was  in front of you uh I was telling you about American society civil engineers and how we  need to rethink uh storm water management I told you about all the money that's been  spent on flood damages in aamia County on National flood insurance program and uh  this morning I went to Santa Rosa County and spoke there and we need to be proactive rather  than reactive on storm water management and I know the County's got a lot of uh a lot of  things to deal with EMS is a big need but uh your engineering department and your public  works department I think they need a bigger budget but thank goodness for Budget amendments um thanks to staff for putting all this budget information together I know y'all work hard ining  this time of year so but uh we have a storm out there and I hope it goes to the east of  us so don't hit us directly but but U we're going to need that $25 million in L reserves maybe we  should spend it before the the storms thank you all right thank you Chris board that's our that's  our only speaker for public forum I entertain a motion to adopt the final millage resolution for  fiscal year 2425 so moved Mr chairman I apologize there was some more I need to read read entertain  the motion to adopt the final millage resolution presented in the agenda back at millage rates  presented are countywide millage rate 66165 Ms Library mstu 3590 Ms Sheriff's law enforcement  to 6850 Mills I apologize but was that a motion yeah the motion stands there  a second any further discussion hearing none please vote item passes four to zero  now the board adoption of a supplemental budg budget amendment resolution amending  the tenative fiscal year 2425 budget it is in the increased amount of 50 m727  N9 for the following funds general fund 3,459 451 local provider participant fund  4,439 63 tourist promotion fund 353 350,000 Library fund $67,900 Article 5 fund $127,800 $2,148 community redevelopment fund $171,900 Building Inspections fund $337,450 and  internal service fund $99 i' entertain that that motion so move Mr chairman thank you is there a  second all right any conversation or discussion all right please vote item passes four to zero  next is going to be the board adoption of the final budget resolution of 798 M 672469 for fiscal  year 2425 an entertain a motion so moved thank you second thank you please vote item passes 4 to zero  board entertain a motion for the board adopting the fiscal year 2425 annual budget for the San  Rose Island Authority I'll move the item thank you m thank you Jeff is there a second all right  thank you m Mike Burns is going to be very nervous if we don't pass if we don't pass their budget so  all right please vote item pass is four to zero next is going to be recommendation concerning a  3% employee pay increase that is budgeted for and included in the fiscal year 2425 budget  this increase will be effective with the pay period beginning on September 28 2024 at entertain  a motion for that Mr chairman yes sir I'll move the item up before that I want to take stepen  because I certainly believe that our employees that are out there working uh many of them are  doing jobs that sometimes are thankless uh but I think Steve since we've been here we've given a  pay increase every single year every single year yes sir that we've been on the board and that's  important to me not for the six figure people quite frankly uh but for the people who are  sitting here making 3040 $50,000 and so Stephan thank thank you for working that hopefully next  year we can give them more uh particularly those uh who are you know making low wages so again I  appreciate that uh Wes and Stephan and I'll move the item Mr chair that that may be a record I  you know uh 11 11 or 12 budgets what whatever the number would be of consecutive pay increases for  employees that maybe a record yeah I mean I think we're at 36% increase since we've been here and so  I'm I'm very proud of that Stephen you know I I think that you know particularly those who work  in our custodial who clean our buildings people who pick up paper uh the people that maintain  our buildings uh I hope as we move forward uh that people who are making you know less than you know  $60,000 that we can even do more but I am proud of of what we've been doing absolutely and and  our bargain our bargained employees number would be much bigger I don't I don't know the number but  it would be it would be much bigger but apologize that was a motion was there a second for that Mr  ask a question commission so when you come up with this 3% on 100,000 versus 3% on 45,000 obviously  there's going to continue to be a dispar over 5 to 10 years do we ever do a desk audit to make sure  that we have the right percentage per pay grade so our HR Director may be here but yes so if it's  determined um HR will sit down and look at the job duties uh that each position is performing  recently uh we did implement the HR pay plan where HR had looked at all County positions uh against  the market uh to see what was an appropriate pay level and the board did Implement uh  90 95% of that pay plan last year um this year uh we have some more of those components built into  the current Year's budget such as administrative assistance pay and some some other positions uh  that were built in so uh but but maybe a longer answer than than you asked but yes the answer  to that is yes sir it's probably shorter than I like saon but so that means 4 to 5% was actually  reviewed for potential not being enough for pay okay that's and Mike I'm glad you said something  about a des on it but simply this you know we do a lot of Christmas giveaways we do a lot  of assistance and I I tell you uh when we're standing in line of U Community caring or or  Brownsville toy giveaway and an employee comes in and says they work for you 11 to 12 years  at scam County but they're waiting in line to get toys at some point we can do a desk audit  and do comparables and do analysis but at some point we got to bring people up to livable wages  when we talk about attainable and affordable housing and we have people that work for us  but they need subsidies and ship and HUD funding but that to me is not a good indication and at  some point we have to you know have the political courage to say we're not going to give across the  board 3% but we got to look at the least of them who are performing services and whether  it's a clerical clerk who becomes the face of the county when someone walks in in order to be  a morale we got to make sure that we pay those people accordingly and so um I I do I had the  Des out I don't know how long ago it was but I do Advocate uh Mike uh that that we take a a closer  look at bringing those people to livable wages and quite frankly 12 13 $14 an hour uh in this era is  not liveable wages these people still end up on subsidized housing they still end up when they  have to come and serve this County having to wait in line and I see them I see them County Employees  uh to give their children Christmas toys and to me that's unacceptable for for someone to work in  our County and still uh for us to talk about how proud We Are of our employees and we don't make  sure that they can provide for their children so uh I look forward to having this conversation  more in depth you know as we move forward I just want to tell a story since you brought  that up so after our last budget meeting uh some of our employees that work housekeeping two of  them cornered me in the back here and they said are we going to really get a pay raise I don't  want to mention their names but yall know them I know I can come back and and I said I think you  are and and they were so excited that they were going to get a pay raise because they probably  need that extra 40 bucks you know and and I understand this dealing with Junior Sailors  when they're going payday to Payday just to try to make it so I just want to make sure it's uh  Fair pay for the job and that's that's all I want to make sure that we're doing thank you  Mike and and we don't have opportunity to talk much um but you know I do a lot of Little League  Sports you'll see parents who want to sign their kids up for baseball who are correction officers  who are just not making enough you know I mean to figure out how to pay rent how to  figure out for the child to be a cheerleader and and a baseball player uh and so I mean obviously  you know some jobs demand more pay I mean based on qualifications education uh or whatever but I  think that we can take a harder look to set the standard and if we set the standard as a public  agency of how you pay people whether they're driving a dump truck or a bus uh because they  have their CDLs uh it will make the the private sector will follow if the public sector will set  set the standard so I I'm look forward to having this conversation uh to figure out you know how  do we uh pay our um employees particularly those who are making less than 40 or $50,000 how are  we paying them more I mean a 3% to someone who's making 200,000 is a lot different than as you said  my custodial friends in the back who if they're not keeping this building clean nobody wants to  come I mean try to hire the best engineer the best attorney or the best whatever uh in the building's  dirty I mean so we should value the service that they're giving and the way you value their service  is by paying them I mean that's the way that you reward people for hard work is you give them a  fair pay for a fair day's work so I appreciate it all B if there's no more discussion uh we did  have a motion in a second I'm sorry was there a second commissioner May's motion thank you Mike  all right all right please vote item passes 4 to z Mr chairman yes sir uh and and certainly supported  it but stepan if you would go HR and again for me to look at what can we do particularly those  people who are making less than4 $50,000 yes sir and we do have those conversations annually so  certainly we will have those same conversations again next year absolutely yeah even if we had to  have a mid year and we need to bring it back up I mean i' honestly rather than conversation I'd  rather have action and make it you know something that's yes sir implemented yes sir I I I have the  message all right um commissioner just real quick so just a point of clarification so I know that  we did increase uh the keep Pensacola beautiful budget that does not change the board's fund level  budget tonight uh we will do a budget amendment to place those funds into the proper account next  year so I did just want to make that point of clarification your budget is still uh as have  approved all right super thank you very much board um we're about to adjourn we'll be reconvening  tomorrow morning for an attorney client session uh Stephan Regina James thank you very much