DAUPHIN COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ORGANIZATION/WORKSHOP MEETING
JANUARY 7, 2008 10:00 A.M.

MEMBERS PRESENT

Jeff Haste, Chairman
Dominic D. DiFrancesco, II, Vice Chairman
George P. Hartwick, III, Secretary

STAFF PRESENT

Chad Saylor, Chief Clerk; Marie E. Rebuck, Controller; Janis Creason, Treasurer; Amy Richards, Commissioners' Office; Faye Fisher, Director of Personnel; Dave Schreiber, Personnel; Randy Baratucci, Director of Purchasing; Gary Serhan, Deputy Controller; Steve Howe, Director of Tax Assessment; Fred Lighty, Esq., Human Services Director's Office; Leila McAdoo, Solicitor's Office; William Tully, Esq., Solicitor; Shari Eagle, IT; Kay Lengle, Personnel; Tom Guenther, Director of IT; Carolyn Thompson, Court Administrator; Scott Burford, Deputy Chief Clerk; Tom Wasco, Director of Veterans Affairs; Honorable Judge Bruce Bratton; Melissa Wion, Personnel; Bruce Foreman, Esq., Solicitor's Office; Edgar Cohen, Director of Facilities Maintenance; Diane McNaughton, Commissioners' Office; Mike Pries, Director of Security; Jena Wolgemuth, Commissioners' Office; Brenda Hoffer, Commissioners' Office and Richie-Ann Martz, Assistant Chief Clerk

MINUTES

CALL TO ORDER

Mr. Tully, County Solicitor, called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m.

MOMENT OF SILENCE

Everyone observed a moment of silence.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Everyone stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

Mr. Tully: We are at the point for public participation. Is there someone in the audience that would like to address the unorganized Board of Commissioners at this time? (There was none.)

ELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

Mr. Tully: We will entertain the Election of Officers for the Board of Commissioners. Before we move into the first motion, the Commissioners were kind enough to share their thoughts and compliments to the employees of Dauphin County during their swearing-in ceremony. On behalf of the employees of Dauphin County, we would like to share our thanks to you for bringing civility and cooperation back to the Board and essentially setting the tone of cooperation and collaboration has made it a pleasure for the employees of the County to do the public work. The manner and the tone that you set are certainly consistent with our forefathers' intentions and would do them proud.

With that, I would take a nomination for Chairman.

It was moved by Mr. DiFrancesco to continue the harmony for another four years and nominate Jeff Haste to be Chairman of the Board and in an equally mannerly fashion it was seconded by Mr. Hartwick; motion carried.

Mr. Tully: Do we have a nomination for Vice Chairman?

It was moved by Mr. Hartwick, in a manner of harmonious fashion, to nominate his colleague Dominic D. DiFrancesco, II to be Vice Chairman, which was seconded by Mr. Haste; motion carried.

Mr. Tully: Do we have a nomination for Secretary?

Continuing in the harmonious fashion, it was moved by Mr. DiFrancesco to nominate his colleague, friend and partner, George P. Hartwick, III for the office of Secretary and since he does such a great job it was seconded by Mr. Haste; motion carried.

Mr. Tully: I will pass the gavel back to our newly elected Chairman.

APPOINTMENT OF CHIEF CLERK

Mr. Haste: We are at the moment in our history where it is time for us to appoint a Chief Clerk for our second term. Is Scott available? (laughter)

It was moved by Mr. DiFrancesco that Chad Saylor be retained as Chief Clerk and seconded by Mr. Hartwick, as long as he doesn't ever hear again in a meeting that this is the first mistake that he's ever made; motion carried.

(Judge Bruce Bratton administered the Oath of Office to Mr. Saylor.)

(Applause was given.)

APPOINTMENT OF COUNTY SOLICITOR

Mr. Haste: Is there a motion for the appointment of County Solicitor?

It was moved by Mr. Hartwick that the Board appoint William Tully, Esq., a man who has bestowed some great words on us today, but also has been responsible in our direction for reducing the total amount of money that we spend in the Solicitor's Office as well as adequately representing us and making sure that the County is out of hot water both financially and legally; and has organized the office quite well in that he hasn't seen too many, if any, budget increases over the past four years, as our County Solicitor, which was seconded by Mr. DiFrancesco; motion carried.

(Judge Bruce Bratton administered the Oath of Office to Mr. Tully, Esq.)

(Applause was given.)

ORGANIZATION OF THE FOLLOWING BOARDS

RETIREMENT BOARD

Mr. Haste: We'll move into Retirement Board and I'm not sure why we have an election of Retirement Board, because I believe the Code states it.

Mr. Tully: It was done by tradition.

Mr. Haste: The Retirement Board is the three Commissioners, the Treasurer and the Controller. I believe, and Marie you are the expert on this, the County Code says that the Chairman of the Board of Commissioners is the Chairman of the Retirement Board.

Ms. Rebuck: Yes.

ELECTION BOARD

Mr. Haste: The Election Board consists of the three Commissioners, since we are not running for office. In the year in which we run for office, the Election Board is appointed by the President Judge. At this time I would entertain a motion for appointment of Chairman of the Election Board.

It was moved by Mr. Hartwick that the Board retain Dominic D. DiFrancesco, II, oversight of the Dauphin County Department of Registration and Elections, as Chairman of the Dauphin County Election Board, which was seconded by Mr. Haste; motion carried.

SALARY BOARD

Mr. Haste: Now, the Salary Board. The Salary Board consists of the three Commissioners, Controller and the elected official when in fact it involves their office and/or the public defender when it involves his office. Is there a motion for Chairman of the Salary Board?

It was moved by Ms. Rebuck that Jeff Haste be nominated for Chairman of the Dauphin County Salary Board, which was seconded by Mr. DiFrancesco; motion carried.

COMMISSIONERS' OVERSIGHTS

Mr. Haste: The next order of business is the adoption of the Commissioner Oversights. They will stay the same and are as follows:

Commissioner Hartwick

• Human Services
• Public Defender
• Housing & Redevelopment
• Affordable Housing
• South Central Employment Corporation (Workforce Investment Group)
• Economic Development
• Weatherization
• Personnel
• Tax Assessment

Mr. Hartwick: Can I make one amendment to that? The Workforce Investment Group should actually read the South Central Employment Corporation as the governing board over the Workforce Investment Group.

Commissioner DiFrancesco

• Domestic Relations
• CAT
• Library
• Planning Commission
• Veterans Affairs
• Juvenile Probation
• CREDC
• Registration & Elections
• Hospital Authority
• EMA
• Courts
• Schaffner Center

Commissioner Haste

• Prison
• Parks & Recreation
• Conservation District
• Cooperative Extension
• Budget
• Work Release Center
• Purchasing
• IT
• Facilities Maintenance
• Industrial Development
• Security
• Solid Waste
• HATS
• General Authority
• Elected Row Officers

It was moved by Mr. Hartwick and seconded by Mr. DiFrancesco that the Board adopt the abovementioned oversight responsibilities; motion carried.

ELECTED AND APPOINTED OFFICIALS BONDS

Mr. Saylor: Garry Esworthy and Donna Miller are in the process of completing the paperwork for the Bonds. We expect to have that done shortly and they will be forwarded to the Department of State. Once the State reviews we will put those on file with the Controller's Office.

Mr. Haste: Will they be done this week?

Mr. Saylor: Yes.

APPOINTMENT OF COUNTY TREASURER AS COLLECTOR OF COUNTY TAXES AND COUNTY TAXES IMPOSED WITHIN THE CITY OF HARRISBURG

Mr. Haste: Is there a motion to appoint our newly elected Treasurer as the Collector of County Taxes and the taxes imposed within the City of Harrisburg?

It was moved by Mr. DiFrancesco, with great honor, and seconded by Mr. Hartwick that Janis Creason, County Treasurer be appointed as Collector of County taxes and County taxes imposed within the City of Harrisburg and any other municipality in which there is a vacancy that may occur in the tax collector's position; motion carried.

ADOPTION OF ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER

Mr. Haste: It has been one of those traditions that this Board has operated under Robert's Rules. There are a number of rules of order that you can follow. We have traditionally, in Dauphin County, followed Robert's Rules and is there a motion for us to continue the use of Robert's Rules of Order for conducting our business?

It was moved by Mr. DiFrancesco and seconded by Mr. Hartwick that the Dauphin County Board of Commissioners continue the use of Robert's Rules of Order for conducting business; motion carried.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Mr. Haste: We also have some clean up from last year. As I mentioned before there was an Election Board last year that consisted of three individuals, other than us, but it is my understanding that we can adopt their minutes.

It was moved by Mr. Hartwick and seconded by Mr. Haste that the Board approve the November 21, 2007 Election Board Minutes and the November 28, 2007 Election Board Minutes; motion carried.

Mr. Hartwick: I would like to thank all three members of the Election Board who stepped up to serve, while I question their ability to follow Robert's Rules of Order, they did an extremely effective job for us in those positions.

PERSONNEL

Ms. Lengle: I have Salary Board requests, the original grouping and then an Addendum. These include positions that were budgeted for 2008. We are creating them. Are there any questions on any that are in here?

Mr. Haste: Again for purposes of Salary Board it would be the three Commissioners, the Controller and Treasurer Creason, which we will take separate under Salary Board Addendum.

Ms. Lengle: I was expecting a vote on these on Wednesday.

Mr. Haste: No action today.

Ms. Lengle: None today.

We also have increases, which we normally present as part of Salary Board.

Ms. Fisher: I'm presenting to the Salary Board, the non-union pay scales, as well as the salary increases spreadsheet for 2008. The pay scales have not been adjusted. Therefore, the rates remain the same as they were in 2007. The spreadsheets consist of County employees on payroll as of December 31, 2007. The directive from the Board is to give employees a 2% cost of living increase and a merit increase based on the result of their performance evaluations. Therefore, employees that received a Meets Expectations Rating will receive a 2% merit increase for a total of 4% with the cost of living increase. Full-Time employees that received an Exceeds Expectations Rating will receive a lump sum payment of $1,000 in addition to the 4% increase. Part-Time employees that received an Exceeds Expectations Rating will receive a lump sum payment of $250 in addition to the 4% increase. Because civil service employees are still rated using the five ratings instead of the three, Full-Time civil service employees that received a Commendable Rating will receive a lump sum payment of $500 in addition to the 4% increase. Increases will be effective January 14, 2008, which is the first full pay period of this year. Final spreadsheets will be provided to the Board prior to Wednesday's meeting to include the steps and grades that we still have to go through. You will have all that information before Wednesday's meeting. Are there any questions on the spreadsheets or pay scales? (There was none.)

Mr. Saylor: I would only note for the record that there are just a handful of requests that are still under review between Faye and me. Once we determine a resolution to recommend we will bring those to you.

Ms. Lengle: I have a listing and Addendums. Are there any questions on any of the items in the Personnel Listings? (There was none.)

Mr. Saylor: Commissioners, I would note for the record that I did send out to Directors an indication of the hiring windows and as last year they continue to fall in the middle month of every quarter. We have a number of full-time hires coming through outside the window and I will be in touch with the pertinent directors on those.

Mr. Haste: All these fall within the budget, particularly 17 and 18.

Ms. Fisher: We can double check.

PURCHASE ORDERS

Mr. Baratucci: You should have received a Packet of our Purchase Order requests for the first meeting. They all can be acted on Wednesday. As usual there are a lot of our yearly renewal agreements and such that are on a calendar year basis. There are a few that are open blanket purchase orders, for instance, Facilities Maintenance has some vendors that they use on a regular basis where we approve a lump sum dollar amount so they can buy as necessary and do not have to wait the two-week cycle. There are some budget issues that will be resolved. They are minor and will be resolved by Wednesday. They are there for your approval on Wednesday. If you have any questions now or between now and then I would be happy to answer them.

Mr. Hartwick: I see we are doing a large gasoline purchase. What is the effect of the high price of gasoline having on our negotiated rates, if any?

Mr. Baratucci: Actually that is the bid that we participate in with the Central Pennsylvania Energy Consortium. In past years we were able to get some fixed rates, which worked out well. In most recent bids, I think the last three years now, for obvious reasons, they did not bid a fixed rate, but they bid a fluctuating rate based on OPIS, which is oil price information service. We have a 15 cent margin that is fixed, but that fluctuates based on the OPIS price. It is a group bid. We get a pretty good deal on it. There are probably a couple hundred entities that are involved.

Mr. Hartwick: The price per gallon that we are getting in the County versus the $3.19 or $3.17 that you see at the pumps, any idea?

Mr. Baratucci: Edgar pays the bills. Do you know what it is now?

Mr. Cohen: I'm not sure.

Mr. Baratucci: We can find that out for you.

Mr. Hartwick: As we continue to move through the budget process, because I don't see gasoline prices moving any lower, we need to make sure we are consistently planning for whatever those costs are. We need to get an idea, year-by-year, how that is affecting our overall budget would be a good thing for me to see.

Mr. Baratucci: This represents the next six months, our best estimate. The contract runs July to June and we did last year's for six months and now this is for six months. We will have a new bid come July. This is an estimate for six months - $111,000.

Mr. Hartwick: Can you get with Edgar to see what the price per gallon is? If we can take a look at the last two years to see how those prices have increased and how they affected the individual budgets, I would appreciate that?

Mr. Baratucci: Yes. Are there any other questions? (There was none.)

TRAINING PACKET

Mr. Haste: Chad, is there anything that has to be dealt with today? (There was none.)

CHIEF CLERK'S REPORT - CHAD SAYLOR

Mr. Saylor: I have just one item and that is to add to the record that on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. we will have the Public Hearing on the Comprehensive Plan here in this room. It has been duly advertised and I think we are ready to go with it. Other than that unless there are any questions that is all I have.

SOLICITOR'S REPORT - WILLIAM TULLY, ESQ.

Mr. Tully: No changes to the report and all items except probably one will be ready for action on Wednesday at the Legislative Meeting.

ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION

Mr. Haste: We have items for Discussion that we will take up at Wednesday's Meeting.

1. Approval of Gregory G. Kline as 9-1-1 Coordinator for Dauphin County Emergency Management Agency effective January 1, 2008.
2. Tax Refunds:
   1. Refund of 2005 (Interim), 2006 (Annual) and 2007 (Annual) Real Estate Taxes - Franklin & Sandra Sipe, Parcel #56-005-146 - $535.72.
   2. Refund of 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 Real Estate Taxes - S & A Custom Built Homes, Inc., Parcel #68-024-241 - $843.59.
   3. Refund of 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 Real Estate Taxes - Brian Enterline, Parcel #13-073-013 - $259.01.

COMMISSIONERS' COMMENTS

Mr. Haste: Are there any comments from the Board?

Mr. Hartwick: Over the next four years, I'm looking forward to continuing the debate in the direction that the County has been going in; continuing to look to cut more fat out of the budget is a New Year's Resolution. In the spirited camaraderie that was shown today, I would expect, as a result of the leadership here, to continue over the next four years. I'm excited. I think we have a lot of challenges ahead of us, but we went through them in the past. We have a new member of the team, Janis and we can take a look at some other tax collection issues. I really look forward to the next four years.

Mr. DiFrancesco: I would agree with that. It has been challenging for sure at times, but it is refreshing to actually see a governmental unit that in fact does work in a constructive manner; always focused on the public good even though we can disagree at times. We have been able to maintain the proper decorum and would expect that over the next four years we will be able to accomplish a lot of good things — high expectations in January 2008.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

Mr. Haste: We are at the point in time for public participation. Is there anyone else in the audience that would like to address the Board at this time? (There was none.)

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, it was moved by Mr. DiFrancesco and seconded by Mr. Hartwick that the Board adjourn.