OFFICE OF
THE CITY COUNCIL
CHERYL
L. BROWN 117 WEST
DUVAL STREET,
SUITE 425
DIRECTOR 4TH FLOOR, CITY
HALL
OFFICE (904) 630-1452 JACKSONVILLE,
FLORIDA 32202
FAX (904) 630-2906
E-MAIL: CLBROWN@coj.net
Finance Committee Agenda Meeting Minutes
March 14, 2016
9:00 a.m.
Topic:
Finance Committee agenda meeting
Location:
Conference Room A, City Hall –
In attendance:
Council Members Bill
Gulliford, Danny
Becton, Lori Boyer, Anna Lopez Brosche, Reginald Gaffney
Also: Kirk Sherman and Kyle Billy – Council Auditor’s
Office; Peggy Sidman, Paige Johnston and Stephen Durden – Office of General
Counsel; Jeff Clements – Council Research Division; Phillip Zamarron – Legislative Services Division; Sam Mousa and
Ali Korman Shelton – Mayor’s Office; Mike Weinstein, Joey Greive and Beth
Mangold – Finance Department
See attached sign-in sheet for additional attendees
Meeting Convened:
9:00 a.m.
Chairman Gulliford called the meeting to order and asked the
attendees to introduce themselves. He reviewed the Auditor’s marked agenda
which included 14 items marked for deferral, 26 items ready for action (1 as a substitute,
3 as emergencies) and 10 items for second reading and re-referral.
Mr. Gulliford announced that Council Member Lopez Brosche
will make a report at the beginning of the meeting on the findings of the
Subcommittee on Police and Fire Pension Fund Subpoenas at the beginning of the
meeting, followed by a report on the proposed administrative reorganization
(Ordinance 2016-14) by CAO Sam Mousa, followed by economic development
incentive Ordinance 2016-197.
2016-113 (creating a new Code section regarding site leases
for communications facilities on City property): Council Member Boyer requested
that the bill be deferred and requested that the proponents of such bills meet
with council members in advance and craft amendments prior to council meetings
rather than expecting council members to make those amendments on the floor.
2016-157 (lease agreement with Jacksonville Symphony at
Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts): Sam Mouse requested deferral of
the bill.
2016-168 (approving Property Appraiser contract with private
vendor to identify improper homestead exemptions): an amendment will be
proposed to add a 5-year sunset provision to the contract. Council Member
Gulliford suggested the need to do a complete review of contracts and fee
ordinances to consider the need for sunsets. Mr. Mousa said that a review is
underway and he believes some fees need to be repealed and others need to be
increased after many years without change.
2016-176 (appropriating $1.88 million from Jacksonville
Journey to neighborhood stabilization programs): Council Member Boyer requested
that a schedule of specific uses be attached.
2016-144 (appropriating $255,000 for installation of playscape in Boone Park): in response to a question about
why the bill was marked by the Council Auditor’s Office for deferral, Assistant
Council Auditor Kyle Billy explained that the private funds have not yet been
deposited with the City. Council Member Boyer noted the difficulty the City has
in accepting private funds because of a “chicken and egg” dilemma – in a
previous project the City wouldn’t accept private funding until an ordinance
had been approved to accept it, but the ordinance couldn’t be passed if the
funding hadn’t been received. Mr. Mousa and CFO Mike Weinstein said the City
can accept the funds without a prior authorizing ordinance, but refunding the
contribution if the project falls through would then require a reimbursement
ordinance.
Chairman Gulliford said that he would be distributing a
report on the City’s pension plans prepared by a company called Arabesque and
will ask the committee members to review it and discuss it in 2 weeks.
Mr. Gulliford also said that he would be asking for an
opinion from the Office of General Counsel regarding members of the previous
administration who converted from the defined benefit to the defined
contribution retirement plan and took a cash payout when they left office that
they would not have qualified for under the 5-year vesting rules of the defined
benefit pension. He wants to know what, if any, ability the City may have to
recoup those payouts.
Meeting Adjourned:
9:17 a.m.
Minutes: Jeff Clements, Council Research
3.14.16 Posted 11:00 a.m.
Tapes: Finance agenda
meeting– LSD
3.14.16
Materials: Auditor’s marked Finance agenda
3.14.16