To: Board of Supervisors/Directors/Commissioners/Directors of the Sonoma Valley County Sanitation District of the County of Sonoma
Department or Agency Name(s): County Administrator’s Office
Staff Name and Phone Number: Christina Rivera: 565-2431
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): All Districts
Title:
Title
Public Hearing to Consider Adoption of the Fiscal Year 2020-21 Recommended (Unless hearing is continued to the following day.)
End
Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Conduct FY 2020-21 Public Budget Hearings
B) Adopt the FY 2020-21 Recommended Budget and June Supplemental Adjustments
C) Adopt a Concurrent Resolution, including Exhibits A through D
D) Adopt the Capital Projects List
E) Authorize Departments, in coordination with and oversight by the Human Resources Department, to administer layoff proceedings in accordance with Civil Service Rule 11: Layoffs, as necessary
F) Authorize Human Resources to implement strategies to mitigate layoffs to the extent possible
G) Provide Direction to Staff Regarding Board Sponsorships and Fee Waivers as Presented in Tab 08
end
Executive Summary:
As a result of the Coronavirus Emergency, staff determined it was best to utilize provisions within the State of California Budget Act (Budget Act) that allow for a two-step process to adopt the Budget. In accordance with the Budget Act, the Board of Supervisors approved the Recommended Budget on June 10, 2020, which enabled the authorized spending as of July 1. This item seeks adoption of the FY 2020-21 Recommended Budget and supporting material necessary to meet the provisions of the Budget Act that require the County adopt the Budget no later than October 2, 2020.
Due to departmental budget shortfalls, staff is seeking authority to administer layoff proceedings and implement strategies to mitigate layoffs to the extent possible. Staff is also seeking direction on policy options related to Board-Sponsorships and Fee Waivers.
The Budget Hearing was noticed on August 29, 2020 and the Recommended Budget and Budget Hearing material are available on the County’s website <https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CAO/Public-Reports/Budget-Reports/PDFs/FY-2020-2021-Recommended-Budget/>. Please refer to Tab 01 for an overview of the deliberation materials.
Discussion:
Background and Budget Hearing Material
As a result of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Emergency, the County’s typical budget adoption process which is normally completed in June was extended through the summer until these Budget Hearings. Due to the economic uncertainty that COVID-19 presented, staff made the determination that it would be in the County’s best interest to make use of provisions within the Budget Act that allow for a two-step process to adopt the budget. By March, when the County issued a local emergency and began issuing shelter-in-place orders, departmental budgets had largely been prepared and several departments needed to include proposed cuts and service reductions in order to address budgetary shortfalls pre-COVID-19. Additionally, since the fiscal impact of the COVID-19 Emergency were still being developed, the use of these provisions provided staff more time to assess the fiscal impacts and to formulate budget balancing actions and strategies for the Board’s consideration.
To meet the requirements of the Budget Act, the Board approved a baseline Recommended Budget on June 10, 2020, so that services would continue to be delivered as the new fiscal year began on July 1, 2020. However, baseline budget challenges and revenue impacts of COVID-19 had not yet been addressed in the approved Recommended Budget, therefore departments were instructed to prepare FY 2020-21 budget reduction plans for the Board’s consideration. Following the approval of the Recommended Budget in June, the County then held budget workshops at the end of July, which provided the Board and the public an overview of county services impacts associated with the budget reduction plans submitted by departments.
To assist the Board with its Budget Hearing deliberations, staff has prepared supplementary budget material. The available material and schedule for the Budget Hearings is described in the Budget Hearing Overview memo, included in Tab 01. The subsequent tabs, through Tab 09 provide information on available resources, board inquiry requests, and other balancing options available to the Board. Tab 10 contains the Concurrent Resolution and related exhibits. All of the supplementary material is available with the Recommended Budget at:
<https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CAO/Public-Reports/Budget-Reports/PDFs/FY-2020-2021-Recommended-Budget/>.
Layoff Administration and Mitigation Strategies
The reduction plans of several departments include the elimination of both filled and unfilled positions as a budget-balancing strategy. If the adoption of the FY 2020-21 County budget results in the reduction of any allocated positions that are currently encumbered, Human Resources seeks authorization from the Board to work with departments to administer layoff proceedings, effective November 3, 2020, in accordance with the Sonoma County Civil Service Rules, specifically Rule 11: Layoffs.
Further, Human Resources seeks approval to implement strategies, effective between now and November 2020, to mitigate employee impacts and minimize the number of potential job losses to the extent reasonably possible. Layoff mitigation efforts will include the following:
1) Departments and Human Resources will work closely to find options for employees within the employee’s existing department.
2) If there are no options within the impacted employee’s department, Human Resources will do the following to mitigate employee layoffs:
a. Human Resources will maintain a master list of position reductions and impacted employees based on information provided by the departments.
b. When Human Resources receives a position requisition to fill a vacancy, Human Resources will review the master list prior to opening a recruitment or providing a list of eligible names to the requesting department.
c. If there is a possibility (pursuant to our Civil Service Rules) to mitigate a layoff, prior to opening a recruitment or certifying an employment list, Human Resources will facilitate a process for the impacted employee and hiring department with the objective of the department interviewing the impacted employee. Departments will interview the impacted employee if the employee expresses the interest.
Human Resources will meet with impacted employees to discuss career path opportunities, as requested. Human Resources recommends the Board approve the strategies listed above.
Prior Board Actions:
July 27 and 28, 2020 - Budget Workshops
June 10, 2020 - Recommended Budget Action
April 28, 2020 - FY 2020-21 Fiscal Update
Fiscal Summary
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Expenditures |
FY 20-21 Adopted |
FY21-22 Projected |
FY 22-23 Projected |
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Budgeted Expenses |
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Additional Appropriation Requested |
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Total Expenditures |
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Funding Sources |
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General Fund/WA GF |
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State/Federal |
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Fees/Other |
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Use of Fund Balance |
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Contingencies |
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Total Sources |
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Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
Please see the supplementary budget hearing material for impacts associated with the Recommended Budget.
<https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CAO/Public-Reports/Budget-Reports/PDFs/FY-2020-2021-Recommended-Budget/>.
STAFFING IMPACTS
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Position Title (Payroll Classification) |
Monthly Salary Range (A-I Step) |
Additions (Number) |
Deletions (Number) |
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
Please see the supplementary budget hearing material for impacts associated with the Recommended Budget.
<https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CAO/Public-Reports/Budget-Reports/PDFs/FY-2020-2021-Recommended-Budget/>.
Attachments:
1. Budget Hearings Overview
2. Available Sources
3. Budget Balancing Tool
4. Fund Balances Review
5. General Fund Reserve
6. Community and Board Member Funding Requests
7. Board Inquiry Requests and Responses
8. Fee Waiver / Sponsorship
9. Capital Projects
10. Board Resolutions
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board: