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City of Pullman Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities Contents • • • • • • Finance/Administration Planning Public Works Police/Fire Public Services/Library Transit January 4, 2000 At the City Council meeting on November 9th the City Council agreed to replace the normal goal-setting process with a review of levels of services and priorities for all departments and divisions within the city. On November 23rd the City Council decided it would like to continue the goal-setting process in order to maintain the forward vision of the city. It was agreed that the early portion of the year would focus on the levels of services and priorities discussion and that the regular goal-setting sessions would be held in March or April. Accordingly, we are soliciting goal suggestions from citizens following the normal format. The Mayor has issued a news release requesting citizen input into the goal setting process. Department Heads have been requested to submit their annual goal suggestions. The annual citywide staff meeting will also be held so that employees can suggest goals regarding any aspect of the city’s operation. BACKGROUND ON SETTING LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES The purpose of this discussion is to overview the proposed process of establishing levels of services and priorities. It is not an easy process to establish levels of services and priorities. What may be an essential service or a priority service to one citizen may be considered to be of little value to another citizen. Certainly, there is some common ground upon which nearly every citizen can agree. For example, few would argue the statement that safe drinking water is a priority service. However, discussions can get clouded rapidly when one moves into more complex issues. For example, if you have a youth crime problem is it a higher priority to hire a Police Officer to enforce crimes committed by youths or to provide facilities and programs for youth, such as a skate board park or youth recreational programs, in order to provide youths with an alternative to a life of crime? This is the type of difficult policy decision you will need to make in the process of discussing levels of services and priorities. The city of Pullman already has adopted criterions in place for helping to work through these difficult policy decisions of establishing levels of services and priorities. On page 18 of the year 2000 Preliminary Budget document there is a checklist entitled "General Guidelines for Considering Service Requests". This checklist was created for the 1991 Preliminary Budget document and has been in every Preliminary Budget document since. The checklist reads as follows: GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR CONSIDERING SERVICE REQUESTS 1. Should the service being considered be provided at all? 2. If the service is justified, is it most appropriate to let the private sector meet the demand without any public sector involvement or encouragement? 3. If public sector involvement is determined to be appropriate, should the public sector contract with the private sector to provide the service or provide the service as a public function? 4. If the service is determined to be best provided as a public function, what unit of government is most appropriate to provide the service? 5. If it is determined that municipal government would more appropriately deliver the service than would the federal government, state government, or a special purpose district, how will the funding for the new municipal service be provided? 6. The proposer(s) of a new service will be required to identify a specific funding source. Items one through five on this checklist ask very relevant questions when one is reviewing existing city services during the process of establishing levels of services and priorities. Another useful existing checklist is the following list of criteria which the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Committee uses to evaluated proposed projects. This list can be found in each year’s edition of the Capital Improvement Program for the city of Pullman. CRITERIA The list of criteria which the CIP Committee uses to evaluate proposed projects is as follows: A. Comprehensive Plan. Consistency between the Pullman Comprehensive Plan and programs. Some projects may directly implement or facilitate the development of the Comprehensive Plan. What is the relationship of the project to the progress of the entire city? B. Need. Alleviates identified problems or deficiencies. C. Extent of Service. Service to a major segment of the population of the city. How many citizens would be harmed or inconvenienced if the project were not constructed? D. Public Support. Technical and political backing of the project. Some projects are suggested by, or even demanded by, local citizens. Such public support should be considered in terms of its strength, depth of understanding, and degree of activity. Is the project well identified by the citizenry? Does it have established voter appeal? E. Public Health or Safety. Benefit to the environment, safety, and public health. This consideration might be used only where public health or safety is a critical factor - a matter of necessity rather than a matter of choice. For example, all street projects concern public safety, but this consideration would be used only when urgent. Continual safety hazards, however, make a specific street project virtually mandatory. Is the project needed to protect public health or safety? F. Efficiency of Service. Cost/benefit relationship. This consideration includes those projects that result in significant savings to the city by eliminating obsolete or inefficient facilities, or projects which improve substantially the quality of service to the public. Will it increase the efficiency of the performance of a service? Will it reduce the ongoing costs of a service or facility? G. Related Projects. Many projects in one category are essential to the success of projects in other categories. In some instances, significant federal or state grants will be involved, and the city may be required to provide its matching share or forfeit the grant. Related projects by other agencies may effect a savings which must be pursued. Any regional projects or city projects of regional significance would be referenced here. Is this project part of a larger program? How does the project relate to the goals of the program? H. Legal Requirement. Many federal and state grants are contingent upon local participation and such intergovernmental agreements are legal requirements that must be honored. Court orders and judgements concerning annexation, property owner rights, environmental protection, etc., are also legal requirements that may affect a project. I. Economic Impact. Effect of the project on the local economy. Will it add to the value to the surrounding area? Will it increase the valuations of local property? Is there potential for external funding? Will rapid growth in the area of the proposed project increase the cost of land acquisitions if the project is deferred? Will it provide a service required for economic development of the community? What improvements would be of the most value in attracting commercial and industrial firms? J. Energy Conservation. What is the impact of this project on the city’s long-range goal of reduced energy consumption? I have compressed this criteria into the following rating format. Within the rating system you might want to score on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 would be low or no and 10 would be high or yes. With respect to criteria dealing with service delivery options, a higher score would be given if it is determined that the city is the appropriate service provider. You may also choose to use a multiplier for those criteria which you consider to be more important than others. CRITERIA 1. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? 2. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should the service be contracted out? 4. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenues? 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is service listed in Comp Plan? 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? 8. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? 10. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: Does this service address life safety issues? 11. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? 12. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if this service was ended? 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? Another tool which I find useful is to ask how we arrived at our current service mix. Each year on the annual City Tour I ask participants to consider this issue. Why is it that solid waste collection is a municipal operation in Spokane and Lewiston but not in Pullman? Why is it that the city of Pullman has a municipal cemetery whereas cemeteries in many other jurisdictions are owned and operated either privately or by a cemetery district? Why does Pullman have a fixed-route transit system while neither Moscow or Lewiston do? Why does Pullman have a municipal library when the vast majority of libraries in Washington are run by library districts? Why do some Washington cities have Park & Recreation Districts and Fire Districts providing services within the city rather than having these services provided by the city itself? Why is the Pullman animal control facility the only animal control facility in Whitman County? Why is the animal control facility in Pullman a municipal operation instead of being run by interlocal agreement with other governments within Whitman County? Why isn’t the animal control facility run by a Humane Society like it is in many other jurisdictions? Why does the Pullman ambulance provide services outside of Pullman? Why isn’t the airport operated by the Port like it is in most other counties in Washington? How did the city of Pullman come to arrive at the service mix which it currently provides? The intent of my presentation on the annual city tour is to impress upon the tour participants that cities do vary greatly in the services which they provide and to get them to understand the huge variations in decision making processes among cities that led to their differences in service mixes. The process of establishing levels of services and priorities is a very painful one. For this reason many organizations shy away from undertaking this exercise. The following is a quotation regarding this issue from an article written several years ago by Charles H. Lavine, who at the time was Director of Graduate Studies of the Institute for Urban Services at the University of Maryland: Sharing the pain of cuts by allocating them across-the-board to all units may minimize pain, help to maintain morale, and build a good team spirit in the organization, but it is not responsible management. Not every unit in an organization or every agency in a government contributes equally to the goals, purposes, and basic function of that organization or government. In the initial stages of austerity, however, the preference of public officials will be to avoid conflict by asking for across-the-board cuts from every unit-usually to be absorbed by vacancies and voluntary attrition. Eventually, however, if an austerity situation gets bad enough, some leadership will emerge to identify and rank priorities and allocate cuts to units based on them. These hard choices will be accompanied by intense debates over such matters as the importance of different services, the method of ranking priorities, and the difficulty of maintaining excellence in an organization when it is declining. Targeting the cuts is a difficult job that tends to be avoided by all but the most brave or foolhardy public officials. But. if things get bad enough, and the across-the-board strategy is no longer feasible, somewhere along the path of decline, top management will have to switch from across-the-board to targeted cuts. YEAR 2000 BUDGET ACTIONS TAKEN TO DATE What have we done so far within the city of Pullman with respect to dealing with the impacts of I-695? First, we started in June the process of holding open positions vacant due to the potential impacts of I695. My memorandum to you for the City Council meeting on June 8 stated: At his point the only issue preventing us from recommending that we move forward with the filling of the fire department positions is the possibility of the passage of Initiative 695. We would recommend that we commence the hiring of the three new fire department positions during the month of July if Initiative 695 fails to secure enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot. However, if Initiative 695 does qualify for the November ballot, we would recommend holding off on the addition of the three fire department positions until the results of the November election are known. If Initiative 695 passes in November, we will have to make substantial cuts in city operations. As we all know, I-695 secured far more than the required number of signatures and was placed on the ballot. In view of this development the City Council took additional actions at the City Council meeting on July 20. The minutes of the July 20 City Council meeting state: Mayor Chandler announced that the Council would now discuss courses of action in response to the potential passage of Initiative 695. City Supervisor Sherman presented the staff report. He recommended that the Council approve the proposed CIP with the proviso that selected projects will not continue if I-695 passes. Also, the City Supervisor would review all requests for expenditures in the areas of minor capital, travel, and the filling of employment vacancies. Finally, the year 2000 budget call would request two budget submittals; one budget proposal would be the normal process and the second would be the cuts necessary should I-695 pass. After discussion among Councilmembers, Mayor Chandler announced the consensus of the Council was to authorize the three recommendations and that a resolution in opposition to Initiative 695 be presented to the City Council in early September. On September 14th the City Council passed a resolution opposing I-695 and also conducted a prebudget workshop in which two methods of addressing the revenue shortfalls created by I-695 were presented. Relevant excerpts from the minutes of the September 14 City Council meeting state: Mayor Chandler announced that a pre-budget workshop is scheduled at this time which would focus primarily on suggested budget cuts required if Initiative 695 (I-695) were to be passed by the voters. City Supervisor Sherman provided the staff report. In his staff report he stated that he would review the suggested 10.1 percent cuts across the board in all departments funded through the General Fund which would lose a total of $900,569 in the year 2000 if I-695 were to pass. Finance Director Tonkovich also provided information concerning reserves with the General Fund. Mr. Sherman then presented the Council with a summary of budget totals from all departments and divisions with the General Fund. He asked if the Council wished to make alternate proposals concerning the reduction or elimination of departments or divisions to reach the I-695 cut of $900,569. Following comments from Councilmember Dougherty, the Council did not propose any alternative departmental cuts or eliminations. Mr. Sherman then reviewed the effects of I-695 on Transit and presented reduction elements totaling $523,000 to offset the revenue loss estimate provided by the Office of Financial Management for the year 2000 if I-695 passes. Transit Manager Thornton responded to questions and comments from Councilmembers. Mr. Sherman then briefly discussed the impact of I-695 on other funds such as the Equipment Rental Division, Government Buildings, Street Fund, and the Utilities Fund in regards to rate setting. There were no comments at the conclusion of this section. Mr. Sherman then stated that the Council did still have the option to levy an additional 1% utility tax on electricity, natural gas, telephone, water, sewer, and solid waste which could generate slightly over $290,000 in additional revenue to offset I-695 losses. The Council consensus was not to levy the extra 1% tax at this time as it might put some undecided voters over the line to vote in favor of I-695. Mr. Sherman then read his summary and conclusions on the I-695 budgetcut situation and asked for direction from the City Council. Following discussion among Councilmembers, Mayor Chandler announced that it was the consensus of the Council to obtain more public input from contacts and telephone calls before it made any directions concerning proposed expenditure cuts and revenue increases. Mayor Chandler thanked the Council for its consensus opinion on this issue. On November 9th the City Council held another pre-budget workshop to discuss how to proceed in drafting a budget in the wake of the passage of I-695. The City Council authorized (1) vacant positions to be removed from the proposed year 2000 budget; (2) the elimination of seven approved year 2000 Capital Improvement Program projects; and (3) the reduction or elimination of reserves in order to balance the proposed budget. The City Council also authorized cuts within the Transit Fund to off-set the revenue loss from I-695. Within his "Mayor’s 2000 Budget Message" which he presented on November 23rd, Mayor Mitch Chandler made the following excerpted comments relating to the year 2000 budget: The budget presented here represents the policy direction which the City Council approved at the pre-budget workshop on November 9th. The budget direction accepted by the City Council was to develop a "Transition Year" budget with respect to the General Fund operational budget. Regular full-time positions currently vacant within the General Fund will remain vacant until replacement revenues are received or specific operational priorities are adopted in the year 2000. Currently there are ten positions which will remain vacant. This number will undoubtedly grow within the coming months. The City Council can provide more specific policy direction on filling vacant positions during the process of establishing levels of services and priorities. This "Transition Year" budgeting approach avoids laying off valued employees who might be laid off needlessly if relief is forthcoming from the courts, the legislature, or through increased local revenues. Many decisions regarding the year 2000 budget will have to made after the balanced budget is adopted. On November 9th the City Council agreed to replace the normal goalsetting process with a review of levels of services and priorities for all departments and divisions within the city. Discussions regarding potential state relief from the impacts of I695 will be a major topic of discussion when we meet with our 9th District state legislators during the town hall meeting on December 14th. Discussions regarding potential voterapproved increases in local taxes and fees will also take place as part of the budget discussions next year. In summary, we recognize that difficult decisions will need to be made in the near future with respect to both the General Fund and Transit. We also recognize that other funds, such as the Street Fund, will be impacted both directly and indirectly by the passage of I-695. Through our prudent fiscal management approach, we have bought enough time to ensure these difficult decisions can be made with adequate opportunities for public input and reasoned consideration. On November 29th, the Whitman County Commissioners voted to increase the local sales tax by 1/10th of 1% for criminal justice purposes. The increase will go into effect February 1, 2000 and we will receive our first payments from this revenue source in April. We anticipate receiving over $200,000 annually from this revenue source. Currently, we are paying $228,000 to Whitman County in criminal justice costs. At the town hall meeting on December 14th, several issues were raised with our 9th District State Legislators. In response to their statement that they needed to wait to find out how the courts would rule on I-695 before taking actions, we noted that since the case will not be heard in King County Superior Court until March 6th and since the Supreme Court would not be able to hear an appeal until at least June, we simply did not have the luxury of time to wait on a court ruling. We expressed our preference for on-going financial relief as opposed to a one-time payment from the state. For example, a portion of the state share of the property tax or the sales tax might be redirected to cities. We requested more local control over tax issues. We also requested a moratorium on state agency rules or legislative mandates unless funding can be 100% guaranteed. Finally, it was suggested that the state might consider a hiring freeze since much of the voter angst seemed to be directed at the state level. On December 16th Governor Gary Locke unveiled his proposed supplemental budget for the remainder of the 2000-2001 biennium. According to figures provided by the Association of Washington Cities (AWC), the city of Pullman General Fund would receive $58,800 in fiscal year 2000 which ends on June 30, 2000 and $124,000 for fiscal year 2001 which ends on June 30, 2001. Within our General Fund we are projected to lose $900,560 in calendar year 2000 and $1,273,936 in calendar year 2001 due to the passage of I-695. The Governor is proposing to provide Pullman Transit with $237,400 in FY 2000 and $0 in FY 2001. Pullman Transit is projected to lose $523,000 in 2000 and $597,189 in 2001 due to the passage of I-695. The following are excerpted comments by the Association of Washington Cities regarding the Governor’s proposal: Each city that lost more than 10% of its general purpose budget would receive enough state funding to limit its loss to 10%. The 125 eligible cities would receive $10.3 million in FY 2000 and $21.8 million in FY 2001, or a total of $32.1 million for the remainder of the current biennium. The money could be used for general purposes. All counties would receive appropriations earmarked for local public health and criminal justice programs. Columbia and Garfield Counties, the two most heavily impacted, would receive additional appropriations for general purposes. Transit systems would receive assistance in the form of appropriations and a sales tax credit. Please bear in mind, however, that this is just the beginning of the supplemental budget process. The Governor’s proposal is only a recommendation. The Legislature will ultimately determine what will be in the supplemental budget. We are hopeful that the Legislature will follow the Governor’s leadership and help local governments deal with the impacts of I-695. We are encouraged that the Governor’s proposal would provide cities with direct financial assistance from the state. We are also encouraged that his proposal assists counties and transit districts, because many of our citizens would be adversely affected by reductions in public health services and public transportation. At the same time, the Governor’s proposal, even if adopted by the Legislature, is far from a complete solution. It could prevent a financial catastrophe for many of our cities, but we can’t forget that a 10% reduction is still a substantial loss. Furthermore, cities losing less than 10% of their general purpose budget will receive nothing, even though some of these cities are significantly affected. Finally, the $21.8 million some cities would receive in FY 2001 is but a fraction of the estimated $108 million in motor vehicle revenues that all cities would have shared in CY 2001 if I-695 had not passed. RECOMMENDED NEXT STEPS We still have a situation in which we do not have all the necessary information upon which to base a long-term decision. We still need to know what relief, if any, we will receive from the legislature and the courts. Unfortunately, we do not have the luxury within the Transit budget for delaying the decision much longer. The price of delaying from January to February in implementing cuts is the loss of summer fixed route service unless financial assistance is forth coming from the legislature. The City Council also requested at the December 7th City Council meeting that we review all the proposed cuts in transit service that were adopted in the year 2000 budget. For this reason we will be discussing Transit levels of service along with this memorandum at the January 11 City Council meeting. Within the General Fund we do have more time for rational decision making because we adopted a "Transition Year" budget which will work for the year 2000 even if no relief is forthcoming from the legislature or the courts. However, there are still good reasons to move forward soon with the levels of services and priorities exercise within the General Fund. First, some of the currently vacant positions which were left unfunded in the year 2000 budget are not the positions which certain departments would have targeted for cuts if we were doing layoffs instead of not filling vacancies. Second, we are facing much deeper cuts in the year 2001. The General Fund loss will jump from $900,560 in 2000 to $1,273,936 in 2001. This $373,376 increase is due primarily to the fact that the last quarter of Motor Vehicle Excise Tax (MVET) from 1999 will be distributed in the year 2000. Third, the process of receiving public input takes time so it is necessary to commence the process sooner rather than later. Finally, we don’t want to be caught in a crisis decision making mode. Remember, we started preparing for the possibility of the passage of I-695 at the June 8, 1999 City Council meeting. It took months of time and effort to come up with a budget proposal for 2000 that reflected the passage of I-695. By starting early in the year you can receive information and take input with plenty of time to digest it before making difficult decisions once the results of legislative and/or court action is known. We would recommend that you commence the process of establishing levels of services and priorities at your City Council meeting on January 25. Over the period of weeks which follow we can continue the process of reviewing levels of services and priorities for all the departments and divisions within the General Fund. We can adapt the format of meetings to allow you to brainstorm in more of a goal setting format. For example, we can meet in the City Council chambers for the regular portions of the City Council agendas and then adjourn to the Senior’s Lounge where you can conduct your level of services and priorities discussion in a less formal roundtable atmosphere. This type of atmosphere has proven very beneficial in your past goal setting retreats. Any final decisions would of course have to be made at a regular City Council meeting in the same way that your annual goals are formally adopted at a regular City Council meeting. If you agree with this proposed format, we would ask you to select from the following list the departments or divisions you would like us to discuss on January 25th. GENERAL FUND DEPARTMENT 2000 BUDGET 1. ADMINISTRATION/FINANCE $ 967,857 Legislative $ 115,053 Mayor $ 19,704 City Supervisor $ 107,382 Finance $ 585,796 City Attorney $ 71,415 Human Resources $ 68,507 2. POLICE $3,216,565 Law Enforcement & Detention $2,940,012 Communications $ 206,326 Animal Control $ 70,227 3. FIRE SERVICES $1,694,001 Fire Control $ 917,691 Ambulance & Emergency Aid $ 776,310 4. PUBLIC WORKS $ 662,505 Protective Inspections $ 212,483 Engineering $ 450,022 5. PLANNING $ 177,794 6. PUBLIC SERVICES $1,797,718 Public Services Administration $ 158,592 Recreation Services $ 506,273 Parks $ 687,643 Street Trees/Water Towers $ 19,728 Community Improvement $ 83,948 Cemetery $ 85,811 Government Access Channel $ 56,973 Aquatic Center $ 198,750 7. NEILL PUBLIC LIBRARY $ 696,801 8. GENERAL GOVERNMENT SERVICES $ 150,186 Insurance $ 121,566 Central Stores $ 4,000 Crisis Line $ 4,000 Alcoholism $ 4,870 Airport $ 15,750 In addition to these department and divisions, monies from the General Fund are used to fund other activities. Within the Capital Improvement Program there is a General Fund component. Individual departments within the General Fund may contribute to the Government Buildings fund or the Equipment Rental fund. In past years the General Fund at times has also contributed to the Street fund. In consideration of these contributions we need to discuss General Fund contributions to Other Funds: 9. GENERAL FUND SUPPORT TO OTHER FUNDS Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Government Buildings Equipment Rental Division Street Fund (optional contribution) If you would like to consolidate departments that you consider at a given City Council meeting, we would suggest that you consider combining the areas to be discussed into the following four groupings: I. (1) Administration/Finance, (8) General Government Services, and (9) Support to Other Funds (general discussion of issue with specific transfers to other funds covered below) II. (2) Police and (3) Fire Services III. (4) Public Works, Equipment Rental Division, Street Fund, (5) Planning and CIP IV. (6) Public Services, Government Buildings, and (7) Neill Public Library. If you would like to select one of these four groupings for the City Council meeting on January 25th, we will compile background information on the selected grouping in a format which follows the criteria which has been presented within this memorandum. Once again we would recommend that the initial sessions be structured more in a brainstorming format and that final decisions regarding levels of services and priorities be delayed until we know with more certainty the extent of legislative and/or court relief which might be forthcoming. For example, you could review the four groupings over the period from January 25th through the end of April and make your final decisions after your April goal setting sessions. It is also recommended that you try to schedule the sessions when as many City Councilmembers as possible can be present for the presentations. I have also been asked by City Councilmember Helen Stiller to consider including consensus building consultant Jeff Goebel within the public process of establishing levels of services and priorities. I have since met with Jeff to help tailor a proposal for your consideration. His proposal is attached. We would request that you provide us direction with respect to his proposal. Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities FINANCE/ADMINISTRATION BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE PROCESS At the City Council meeting on January 11 the City Council authorized staff to proceed with a process of establishing levels of services and priorities using the following 15 criteria which are contained within the annual budget document and the Capital Improvement Program. Information regarding departments and divisions which are impacted by the passage of Initiative 695 would be reviewed over the course of the next several weeks. In March the City Council could conduct its normal goal-setting process. Once the legislative session is over and all the departmental information has all been presented, the City Council could begin the process of actually setting levels of services and priorities in April. As was the case for both the annual budget process and the review of levels and priorities for Transit, it would be appropriate to hold public hearings on your proposed final listing of levels of services and priorities. The intent would be to complete the process before the end of the WSU school year in May. At the January 11 meeting we suggested that the City Council utilize a rating system from one to 10 for each criteria. One would be the lowest rating and 10 would be the highest rating. For example, under the criteria for "need for service", a high score would be given if the service was needed while a low score would be given if the service was of marginal value. With respect to criteria dealing with service delivery options, a higher score would be given if it is determined that the city is the appropriate service provider. The City Council may also choose to use a multiplier for those criteria which City Councilmembers consider to be more important than others. CRITERIA 1. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? 2. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should the service be contracted out? 4. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenues? 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is service listed in Comp Plan? 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? 8. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? 10. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: Does this service address life safety issues? 11. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? 12. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if this service was ended? 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? The City Council was presented with our information on the Transit Fund at the City Council meeting on January 11. Due to our present financial situation, the City Council voted to proceed with service cuts in transit effective at the end of service on Friday, February 4. Should additional funding become available from the legislature, grants, courts, etc. we will go back to the City Council with recommendations for transit service improvements. As requested by the City Council, city employees have been encouraged to participate in the levels of services and priorities discussions which affect their departments. Attendance at the sessions will be on a voluntary non-compensated basis. The meetings will be held in the Seniors’ Lounge following the regular business meetings of the City Council on the following dates: DEPARTMENTS AND DIVISIONS TO BE REVIEWED 1. Administration/Finance, General Government Services and Support to Other Funds January 25 2. Police and Fire Services February 15 3. Public Works, Equipment Rental Division, Street Fund, Planning, and Capital Improvement Program February 22 4. Public Services, Government Buildings, and Neill Public Library February 29 ADMINISTRATION/FINANCE LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES Administration/Finance covers the following departments within the Preliminary Budget document: Legislative, Mayor, City Supervisor, Finance, City Attorney, and Human Resources. The following is being provided in the same format which we used for the January 11 presentation on transit levels of services and priorities. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: A Board of Trustees governed the city of Pullman in 1888-1889. The first Mayor and City Councilmembers took office in 1890. The position of City Supervisor was created in 1949. The first City Clerk, the first City Treasurer, and the first City Attorney were elected in 1889. These positions evolved from elected into appointed positions. In 1970 the appointed position of Finance Director was created. The position of Personnel Specialist was created in 1978. This position evolved into the present position of Human Resources Manager. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? The first question within the budget "Service Guidelines" asks, "Should the service being considered be provided at all"? With respect to elected officials, state law requires cities to adopt a form of government. The city of Pullman has chosen to adopt the Mayor-Council form of government. Approximately 83% of the cities within the state of Washington operate under the Mayor-Council form of government. It is the prevailing practice in cities of 10,000 or more population within the state of Washington to either appoint a professional administrator or else operate under the Council-Manager form of government. Many smaller cities, such as Colfax, have also opted to create a professional administrator position. Like unto the practice of appointing a professional administrator, virtually all cities of over 10,000 population have appointed Human Resources professionals. With respect to the positions of City Attorney and Finance Director, the state law provisions contained in RCW 35A.12.020 state: The appointive officers shall be those provided for by charter or ordinance and shall include a city clerk and a chief law enforcement officer. The office of city clerk may be merged with that of a city treasurer, if any, with an appropriate title designated therefor. Provision shall be made for obtaining legal counsel for the city, either by appointment of a city attorney on a full-time or part-time basis, or by any reasonable contractual arrangement for such professional services. Aside from legal requirements and what might be termed "industry practices", the fact is that any organization whether public or private must find some way to satisfy its needs for decision making authority, management, legal assistance, financial services, and human resources services. In the case of the smallest public and private organizations, many of these needs may be handled by one person. A single-proprietor business or a small town with a Mayor, City Council, and Clerk are examples of such multiple roles. However, as public and private organizations grow in size and complexity, it is unusual to find an organization which does not have a person designated to be in charge of these core services. Thus, we might refer to these functions as being internal service requirements. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? The second question with the "Service Guidelines" asks, "If the service is justified, is it most appropriate to let the private sector meet the demand without any public sector involvement or encouragement"? With respect to the internal service requirements provided by Administration/Finance, I think it is reasonable to say that it would be impossible to let the private sector meet these demands without any public sector involvement or encouragement. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should this service be contracted out? Although Administration/Finance functions cannot be provided by the private sector without any public sector involvement, it is certainly possible to contract with the private sector for certain functions. Currently, for example, we are contracting with the private sector for both legal services as well as labor negotiation services. The city participates with the Pullman Chamber of Commerce, the Pullman School District, WSU, and the Pullman Hospital District in a private services contract with the Phrase Factory for the publication of the Pullman Community UPDATE. We also contract for cable tv consulting services. It is possible that other services within Administration/Finance could be contracted out to the private sector. For example, some companies contract for payroll services. Specific services currently being provided would have to be analyzed with respect to their potential for being contracted out. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc.? The fourth question within the budget "Service Guidelines" states: "If the service is determined to best be provided as a public function, what unit of government is most appropriate to provide the service"? There is little opportunity, if any, to assign these critical internal service functions to another level of government. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenue? The final issue within the budget "Service Guidelines" addresses alternative or new sources of funding which might be available to support the service. For Administration/Finance there are not a lot of alternative sources of funding. Charges are assessed to other city funds and to the Pullman/Moscow Regional Airport for Administration/Finance services. However, with our limited staffing capabilities it would not really be feasible to seek additional clients. Whitman County does provide some services for the Port of Whitman County. We are simply not in a position to be seeking additional clients for our Administration/Finance services. It would also be difficult to promote a new taxing source to support Administration/Finance services. There is simply not a publicly popular designated funding source for these types of services such as is available for certain other services. For example, local voters have been willing to support an Emergency Medical Services levy to support ambulance services. The EMS levy is a specifically authorized funding source under state law. No such specific funding source exists for Administration/Finance provided services. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan? Under the adopted criteria for the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) the first issue deals with a project’s consistency with the Comprehensive Plan and its relationship to the progress of the entire city. For this exercise we are simply asking if the service being reviewed is in conformance with the Comprehensive Plan and if the service benefits the entire community. Certainly, Administration/Finance is not a highly touted service within the Comp Plan such as are other services like Transit and Parks & Recreation. However, many of the services within Administration/Finance are certainly provided on a citywide basis. For example, the Mayor and City Council serve the entire community. Finance bills and processes the payment of water/sewer bills for the entire community. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? Among other opportunities, the annual City Council goal-setting process provides opportunities for citizens, staff, and the City Council to identify and address deficiencies within the entire community. The nature of the problems which are identified and addressed will vary from year to year. Of course every City Council meeting provides similar opportunities for citizen input and City Council action. Specific examples could also be cited as to how various deficiencies are identified and addressed within various Administration/Finance departments. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? Services provided by Administration/Finance are provided to the entire community but perspectives vary regarding whether many would be hurt if some of the services were eliminated. For example, some residents would be ecstatic if they weren’t sent water/sewer billings anymore. However, it is necessary to collect funds in order to keep these systems operating and to make system improvements. Especially in the discussions of Initiative 695, there is a longing by many to fund only what they consider to be popular services, such as Police, Fire, and street improvements. The public perceives far less pain from the cutting of internal services. However, hiring, payroll services, paying vendors, legal services, etc. are very critical to the successful functioning of these more popular line departments. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? Typically you are not going to see as strong a base of political support for Administration/Finance services as you will for some other city services. The Civil Service Commission, for example, is of far less interest to the public than is the Police Advisory Board or the Friends of Neill Public Library. If you were to conduct a poll of service popularity it is a given that Administration/Finance is not going to rank as high as Parks & Recreation, Police, Fire, Library, etc. Given the internal support nature of many of the departments within Administration/Finance, many of the services provided are viewed by the public as being more or less necessary evils rather than popular services. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: Does the service address life safety issues? Administration/Finance does not directly provide life safety services. It would be more appropriate to say that Administration/Finance provides needed support services to those departments that directly provide services that address life safety issues. Among these services are risk management services through the Finance Director and the Washington Cities Insurance Authority (WCIA). EFFICIENCY OF THE SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? Administration/Finance provides economies of scale with respect to internal service functions. If every department, for example, had to provide for its own payroll services this would be enormously more expensive than having the service provided through the Finance Department. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended? Within the Capital Improvement Program, related services include services which would be needed for matches for federal or state grants, regional projects, larger programs, etc.? Certain specific services provided within Administration/Finance would address this criteria. For example, federal and state grants have reporting and processing requirements which are provided by Finance. With respect to regional projects, selected individuals within the Administration/Finance area are involved in regional projects. The Mayor and/or City Councilmembers serve on various regional boards including the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport Board, the Palouse Basin Aquifer Committee, the Palouse Economic Development Council (PEDC), the Whitman County Transportation Policy Board, the Spokane Regional Transportation Council, and the Whitman County Selection Committee which deals with Federal Transportation fund allocations. Staff is involved in a variety of regional activities including the Palouse Economic Forum. Elected officials and staff also participate in the quarterly regional meetings. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? The Mayor, City Council, and Administration/Finance staff are involved in various aspects of a wide variety of services which are state and federal mandates. Attachment "A" is a memorandum from Human Resources Manager Paul Eichenberg which outlines a broad array of federal and state mandates that must be addressed through the Human Resources Department. Attachment "B" is a memorandum from Finance Director Jack Tonkovich which details the numerous federal and state mandates which must be addressed through the Finance Department. The City Attorney must spend a considerable amount of time advising the City Council and departments on what actions are necessary in order to comply with federal and state laws as well as court decisions. In short, compliance with state and federal mandates is one of the primary responsibilities of Administration/Finance. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to Economic Growth? The Mayor and/or City Supervisor are involved in several committees of the Pullman Chamber of Commerce, including the Economic Development Committee. The Mayor and Finance Director also serve on the 2% Hotel-Motel Tax Committee which promotes tourism. As was previously noted, representatives from Administration/Finance are also involved in the Palouse Economic Development Council and the Palouse Economic Forum. Thus, although Administration/Finance is more often viewed as an internal services function, selected individuals within Administration/Finance are involved in a broad range of economic development activities. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? Except as it might relate to certain policy decisions, such as the establishment of a transit system or the creation of a curbside recycling program, Administration/Finance is not directly involved in energy conservation. OVERALL ASSESSMENT: Unlike transit, which was generally characterized as an optional rather than a necessary service, the core organizational functions provided by Administration/Finance are found within all local governments. Not all communities have transit systems, but all organizations must provide for their basic needs relating to decision making, administration, legal services, human resource services, and financial services. Although Administration/Finance might well rank low in a opinion survey of the most popular city services, the services provided by Administration/Finance are critical to the successful operation of all line departments within the city. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: The Legislative Department consists of the seven elected City Councilmembers. Mayor, City Supervisor, Legal, and Human Resources are all single employee departments. Finance contains staffing for the 10 positions shown in Attachment "C". The position of Information Services Manager was created in 1998. In 1999 the Finance Department proposed a departmental reorganization which resulted in the creation of the Accounting Manager position. However, an Accounting System Administrator position was left vacant as a result of the passage of Initiative 695. The current workload within the Finance Department is such that it is creating considerable stress and overtime. GENERAL GOVERNMENT SERVICES AND SUPPORT TO OTHER FUNDS General Government Services and Support to Other Funds covers a diverse set of General Fund expenditures. General Fund contributions to the Capital Improvement Program and the Street Fund will be covered in discussions in later weeks. The expenditures included within this funding category which we will review within the criteria analysis are: 1. Insurance (property, liability, and flood insurance coverage) 2. Central Stores (common office supplies such as letterhead paper and time sheets) 3. Crisis Line (private non-profit social service referral agency) 4. Alcoholism (required payment of 2% of state-shared liquor taxes to Alcohol Treatment) 5. Airport (payment required under interlocal agreement for annual operating expenses) The following general comments are being provided as discussion issues in lieu of providing a detailed analysis of each of the five expenditure areas. The comments will normally be limited to those expenditure areas to which the criteria are particularly relevant. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? Insurance and office supplies are standard expenditures in any organization. Most would agree that the Crisis Line provides a beneficial service to clients and social service agencies. The payment to the Whitman County Alcoholism Center is required by law. Like unto Pullman having a transit system, some would argue that the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport is critically needed while others would argue that air service could be provided through the airports in Spokane or Lewiston without major detrimental local impacts. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? We used to insure for property insurance through the private sector but now pool our liability insurance through the Washington Cities Insurance Authority. Crisis Line is a private non-profit service. Some cities provide funding to private non-profit agencies (such as the Crisis Line) while others do not. Unlike the alcoholism payment, we are not mandated to contribute to private non-profit agencies. Almost all commercial passenger service airports are publically operated. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should the service be contracted out? Some would argue that we should go through an insurance broker for our liability insurance rather than using staff time to participate in the Washington Cities Insurance Authority. Others would argue that we save on premiums and receive better risk management services through being members of WCIA. Niagra Falls, New York is currently working to privatize its airport. Atlanta contracts for maintenance and operations services with a private corporation. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc. The Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport is operated under an interlocal agreement. The entities involved within the interlocal agreement are the city of Pullman, the city of Moscow, the Port of Whitman County, Latah County, WSU, and the U of I. Many airports within the state of Washington are operated exclusively by port authorities. There have been many discussions over the years that the airport should be operated by the Port of Whitman County because (1) it lies within the state of Washington; (2) the Port has the legal authority to engage in certain economic development activities (such as the creation of an airdustrial park); and (3) it would simplify the governance of the airport. Others feel that the broad base of membership in the board strengthens the financial and political capabilities of the airport. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenue? The Crisis Line derives funding from a variety of other sources including private donations and United Way. The airport already charges landing fees, fuel flowage fees, lease fees, passenger facility charges, parking fees, concession commissions, etc. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan? The airport is listed several times within the Comprehensive Plan. The following are Comprehensive Plan goals relating to the airport: Policy T3.1: Support expansion of commercial air service to the Pullman region. Avoid development of incompatible uses, roadways, or other facilities adjacent to the airport. Policy T3.2: Cooperate with the Pullman-Moscow Airport Board to take action as necessary to maintain the viability of the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport. Policy T3.3: Comply with the findings and recommendations of the adopted Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport Master Plan in relation to activities at or near the airport. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? It could be argued that all five General Government Services (insurance, central stores, Crisis Line, alcoholism, and airport) address identified deficiencies. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? The Crisis Line and alcoholism expenditures directly impact a very small percentage of the population. Central Stores also serves a very limited base. The airport serves a much broader segment of the population. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? The airport is the only one of the five General Government Services which would rank highly under this criteria. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: Does this service address life safety issues? The Crisis Line provides a public health and safety function for clients in need. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? Having insurance coverage is certainly safer than having no insurance as it pertains to potential major losses. Finance Director Jack Tonkovich states that we could consider increasing our deductible in order to save in premium dollars on our property coverage. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if this service was ended? If the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport was eliminated it would have a very negative impact upon the area. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? The alcoholism contribution is a state mandate. If the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport were to be shut down there would be federal grant repayment requirements which would have to be met. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? According to Airport Manager David Crowner, it has been estimated that every dollar spent on an airport returns seven dollars to the local economy. The airport is a tremendous economic development recruitment tool for businesses, WSU, etc. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? Like unto a fully loaded bus, a full airplane flight to Seattle can save fuel over individual vehicular trips. OVERALL ASSESSMENT It is difficult to rate the General Government Services and Support to Other Funds category of expenditures because the five components are so diverse. Although it would be tempting from a philosophic perspective to spend time discussing the Crisis Line or who should run the airport, from a budgeting perspective the impacts are not great. We only pay $4,000 annually to the Crisis Line. We only pay $15,750 for the operational expenses of the airport. Although we do contribute $66,000 per year to the retirement of the debt service for the Airport Terminal project this is a required payment from the bond issue which expires in 2008. MISCELLANEOUS DISCUSSION ISSUES The levels of services and priorities exercise is one which I think is profitable for any organization to go through periodically. It allows you to step back and ask the big picture questions about why we are engaged in providing various services. On the other hand, it is not a substitute for the detailed budget process. Once we know how much relief from the impacts of Initiative 695 we are going to receive from the legislature and/or other sources, we can begin to discuss more specific budget issues regarding those departments and divisions which you choose to retain. Attachment "D" contains the budget information relating to the Administration/Finance discussion. As we do proceed with the levels of services and priorities discussion, however, there are certain issues which we would like to consider as they pertain to later budget discussions. One of the most major issues pertains to what organizational structure or staffing is most appropriate for those departments and divisions which you opt to retain. For example, the Finance Department reorganization was predicated on the vacant Accounting System Administrator position being filled. The monthly billing system for utilities has created a significant increase in the workload for staff. Both the staff reorganization and the billing system are desirable, but how do we reposition ourselves for the long term if we don’t have adequate staffing to implement the reorganization or the monthly billing system? Aside from budget issues relating specifically to Administration/Finance, there are more general issues which we would like to discuss as well. For example, should we dispense with the normal Capital Improvement Process for the General Fund portion for the year 2001 due to budget realities? Should we consider additional revenue enhancements to place on the September ballot along with the EMS levy? There are also current cost reduction issues which we need to discuss. As you have authorized us to do, we are continuing to place restrictions on travel, minor capital, and the filling of employment vacancies even though funding for these activities have been approved within the adopted year 2000 budget. The reason for these budget controls is that the Office of Financial Management has estimated a much higher impact in the year 2001 from the passage of I-695. Since the year 2000 budget has been implemented we have already received an employee resignation in transit and in the General Fund portion of Public Works. Shall we continue to have a hiring freeze for regular employees (20+ hours per week) or shall we fill selected vacancies? What other cost reduction measures should we continue taking? For example, should we renew our $1,413 membership for the year 2000 to the National League of Cities (NLC)? In summary, the levels of services and priorities exercise is a good one for reexamining the organization at the big picture or macro level. However, we still need more policy guidance on the more detailed or micro level pertaining to the issues of filling employment vacancies and incurring specific expenses. Levels of Service and Priorities -- FINANCE Overall Mission: To provide financial and administrative services to the public, elected officials, management, and other city departments and activities. These services include: o o o o o o o o o o o accounting budgeting payroll auditing financial reporting official city records cemetery plot sales and burial records information assistance to the public administrative support to elected officials, management and staff risk management information systems equipment, services and support to all city departments RESPONSIBILITIES: To provide accounting, budgeting, payroll, auditing, and financial reporting services for all City activities; maintain official city records and provide administrative support to elected officials, management and staff; assist with voter registration; provide risk management services to all City activities; provide information systems equipment, services and support to all city departments STAFF: 1 - Finance Director (ex officio City Clerk, City Treasurer) 1 - Accounting Manager 2 - Accounting System Administrators (1 vacant) 2 - Accounting Specialists 1 - Deputy City Clerk 1 – Information Services Manager 1 - Administrative/Legal Assistant 1 - Telephone Receptionist (Note: 1980 Accounting Staff totaled 5; current staff: 4, + 1 frozen vacant) ACTIVITIES: 2000 Total Budget: $24,406,683 (Finance: $585,796) Finance Computer Equipment: PC Local Area Network with 1 Server, 9 networked PCs; Eden Systems Software (Budgetary, Utility Management (Billing), Payroll, Accounts Payable, Fixed Assets, Capital Projects, Equipment Rental, Accounts Receivable, Cashiering); Keyfile optical records storage system for official city records; telephone computer system includes voice mail, long-distance costing and local extension control and management Number of Water/Sewer Accounts: 4,122 (+10% since 1994) Last Monthly Water/Sewer Total Billed: $260,702.53 (+86% since 1994) Number of Accounts Payable Warrants Issued in 1999: 3,704 (no change) Amount of Accounts Payable Warrants Issued in 1999: $8,368,929.56 (+12%) Last Monthly Payroll: $703,098. (+41%) Last Monthly Number of Payroll Warrants: 370 (+14%) Number of Receipts Issued in 1999: 3,193 (+6%) Number of Purchase Orders in 1999: 6,240 (+4%) Total Number of Accounts Receivable in 1999: 1,360 (+302%) Total Amount of Accounts Receivable Billed in 1999: $1,414,035.66 (no 1994 data) Average Dollars Invested (All Funds): $11,383,200 (+52%) Legal Requirements Services provided by the finance department are mandated by: ton (RCW) Title 35A Optional Municipal Code: • • • • • Chapter 35A.33 establishes budget procedures and requirements Chapter 35A.37 establishes requirements for separate fund types Chapter 35A.39 establishes public document and record requirements Chapter 35A.40 establishes fiscal provisions for accounting, borrowing, depositaries, investments Chapter 35A.42 establishes and defines duties of city treasurer and city clerk (both ex-officio titles of the finance director) Chapter 41.26 prescribes the establishment and operation of the city’s Law Enforcement and Firefighters’ (LEOFF) Disability Board. Chapter 43.09 State Auditor: • • Section 43.09.200 directs the state auditor to "formulate, prescribe, and install a system of accounting and reporting for all local governments ….." . This directive authorizes the creation of the BARS (Budgeting, Accounting and Reporting System) Manual of required procedures. Sections 43.09.200 through .2855 mandate additional local government accounting and auditing procedures.lRequirements Whenever federal grants are received either directly or indirectly, the following Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directives must be followed: • • • • OMB Circular A-102 sets out administrative and accounting requirements and mandatory standards for local grantee governments. OMB Circular A-87 establishes costing methods and principles which must be followed when applying for federal reimbursements OMB Circular A-133 sets out audit requirements for federal financial assistance that must be followed by the State Auditors Office (SAO) as they conduct their local audit. It must be noted that the city pays the SAO for its local audit, including the A-133 added requirements. Each federal grantor agency also supplements these overall federal rules with supplemental requirements that vary from agency to agency.d (GASB) GASB establishes nationwide financial reporting requirements for local governments that have been subsequently adopted by the State Auditors Office. These standards do change regularly, requiring the city to change its accounting systems accordingly. The most recent major change (nicknamed "the big bang") announced by GASB is Statement 34, Basic Financial Statements – and Management’s Discussion and Analysis - for State and Local Government. It effectively changes the city from a cash and modified accrual basis of budgeting, accounting and reporting to a full accrual method. This pronouncement mandates massive changes to the city’s accounting and financial reporting system, and must be implemented by this city no later than January 1, 2003. Of course, all preparatory work should be completed prior to that date, and planning for implementation should start very soon.l Code (P.C.C.) • • • • • • • • • • • Chapter 1.96 establishes the Finance Department and the position of finance director. It sets out the general duties of the director and department and refers to appropriate RCW chapters. Chapter 1.44 prescribes the duties of the Volunteer Fireman Relief and Pension Fund Board of Trustees of which the finance director is the secretary-treasurer. Chapter 1.68 prescribes the method by which the city will issue bonds. Chapter 1.80 prescribes how fees are to be established and collected. Chapter 1.84 establishes rules for the operation of city cemeteries and the sale of cemetery plots. Chapter 1.98 prescribes the method by which demands (claims) against the city are to be processed. Chapter 1.105 prescribes the city’s public records requirements. Title 4 establishes the funds required by RCW 35A. Chapter 6 establishes local taxes to be collected by the finance director Titles 10 and 10A establish the processes for billing and collection of water/sewer user fees. Title 20 establishes procedures on the collection of cable communications franchise fees. Comparison of Mandated vs. Optional Services Specific services provided by the finance department are compared below: Service Payroll Accounts Payable Accounts Receivable Utility Billing Process Purchase Orders Cashiering Issue Pay, Claims Warrants Asset Control Establish Budget Monitor Budget RCW X X X BARS X X X Federal X X X P.C.C. None (Comments) Also in labor contracts X X X Changed to monthly billing 10/99 X X X X X X X X X X X Safeguard city assets X Biennial budgeting option X X X X X X X X X finance director is internal auditor Also GASB Auditing X X X X Financial Reporting r X X X Service Maintain Official RCW X BARS X Federal P.C.C. X None (Comments) Indexing is mandatory. Records Optical record: indexing is automatic and efficient. Maintain Optical Records File Prepare, Maintain Agendas, Minute Books Respond to Information and Public Records Requests Maintain Cemetery Records Sell Cemetery Plots Operate, Maintain Telephone System Operate, Maintain Mail Services sk Management, Information Systems X X X X X X X X X X Public expects this service Necessary business expense Service Maintain Liability Coverage Maintain Property Damage Coverage Provide risk management RCW BARS Federal P.C.C. None (Comments) Protection of city assets X X X X Protection of city assets Minimize loss exposures X services Established via budget; $400,000+ invested in citywide network to date. Provides efficient electronic communications within city, city web page, citizens can email city. Information Systems Staffing Comparisons Staffing changes within the finance department: cunting, Budgeting, Auditing, Reporting • • • 1980 Accounting Staff: 5 2000 Accounting Staff: 4, plus 1 vacant position Overtime hours to perform mandated tasks have increased 72% since 1995 Year Overtime Hours Overtime Paid 1995 711 $ 17,826 1996 695 $ 18,219 1997 870 $ 23,195 1998 759 $ 20,602 *1999 1220 $ 32,464 Note: Conversion to monthly utility billing and monthly receipting of utility payments from a bimonthly process has doubled this workload commencing in October, 1999., Cemetery, Administrative Support • • Telephone Receptionist added with centralized PBX (approximately 1983) Information Services Manager added 1998 with addition of new information systems fund. Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities PLANNING This memorandum addresses service priorities relative to planning department functions and the Capital Improvement Program (CIP). The CIP is addressed in this report because the program is administered by planning staff. Since the justification for planning operations and the CIP are quite different, they are addressed separately within this memo. PLANNING SERVICES HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: An ordinance creating the Pullman Planning Commission was passed in 1939. The first Pullman zoning code was adopted in 1940, and the first city Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 1961. Pullman’s first city planner was hired in 1970. In 1984, the assistant city planner position was created. In 1998, the City Council elevated planning operations to department level status. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? Planning is optional in a jurisdiction such as Pullman that is not required to operate under the full provisions of the Washington State Growth Management Act (GMA). Revised Code of Washington 35A.63.020 states that "by ordinance a code city may create a planning agency and provide for its membership, organization, and expenses." (A planning agency is defined in state law basically as a planning commission and its attendant staff.) If a municipality chooses to form a planning commission, then state law dictates that it must prepare and administer a comprehensive plan for the community. Once a comprehensive plan is approved, the jurisdiction may implement the plan through a variety of means, including adoption of a zoning code, operation of specific programs (e.g., programs for economic diversification, housing rehabilitation, or community beautification) and establishment of a capital improvement program. Another method typically used by the planning agency to implement a comprehensive plan is a subdivision ordinance; however, unlike some other implementation tools, subdivision regulations are required by state law. Various other provisions administered completely or primarily by planning staff are also mandatory. Local implementation of the State Environmental Policy Act, the Shoreline Management Act, the critical areas and resource lands provisions of the GMA, and state annexation regulations is required under Washington law. Also, the assistance provided by planning staff to the Washington Office of Financial Management in formulating an annual population estimate is mandated by state law. Interestingly enough, one of the few optional planning operations for non-GMA jurisdictions—creation and administration of a zoning code—is considered by many to be one of its most important functions. Even though zoning as it is practiced today in the United States has only been in place since the early 1900’s, it is now widely recognized as an almost essential means to facilitate orderly and coordinated development, particularly within urban areas. Zoning assists in maintaining and/or enhancing property values, protecting the public health and safety, promoting economic development, and improving the quality of life for community residents. Another optional, but significant, service furnished by the planning department is the guidance it provides to the city’s Environmental Quality Commission (EQC). Through its coordination, research, and advice, planning staff assists the EQC in advancing the city’s goals regarding conservation of the environment. Over the years, the EQC has helped to effect such things as the citywide curbside recycling program, Pullman’s designation as a Tree City U.S.A., and the city’s protection of wetlands and habitat areas. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? Given the nature of the planning department’s responsibilities, its services must be provided by a public entity looking out for the general welfare of the citizenry. City staff knows of no communities in the United States where land use planning services are provided exclusively by the private sector. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should this service be contracted out? Except for some sort of oversight function, all of the planning department’s services could be contracted out to another organization. A recent example of this is the city’s decision to contract with a planning consultant firm to obtain assistance in preparing the Comprehensive Plan revision. From a financial perspective, it would probably make little difference whether planning operations are performed by internal staff or by an outside firm. Even if certain savings could be realized by transferring responsibilities to a consultant, the city would still need to expend resources in overseeing the work of this outside organization. Some Council members may recall that the consultant’s final draft of the recently approved Comprehensive Plan was roundly criticized by the Planning Commission, creating the need for planning staff to thoroughly rewrite much of the document. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc.? With the exception of its role as staff advisor to the EQC, the services of the planning department cannot be assigned to other public sector service providers, by law. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenue? Late in 1999, the City Council increased fees for planning department permits to match what comparable cities charge. The city could further increase fees for many of the land use and environmental applications it processes, but a municipality that does this can quickly create a fee structure that is counterproductive to its interests. There is a market limit to how high application fees can be set before applicants reduce the number of proposals they submit, thereby not only decreasing direct revenues to the general fund, but also limiting economic development and its corresponding enhancements to the city’s tax base. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan? All of planning’s services are embodied in the Comprehensive Plan. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? By its proactive nature, planning typically prevents most deficiencies before they arise. For unanticipated deficiencies (e.g., off-street parking problems, signage issues), planning resolves these matters as they surface through code amendments or new or revised programs. Some refer to planning as "community problem solving" because it comprehensively addresses a wide variety of health, safety, and quality of life issues. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? Every community resident would be affected by changes to planning department functions since planning services apply to the entire city. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? Opinions about planning department functions are mixed. In planning staff’s estimation, some residents and businesspeople would argue that planning operations should be reduced or eliminated, but most community members understand the need for planning services. In order to properly enforce the zoning code and other regulations, planning staff is often put in a position of having to say "no" to proposals presented by the public. Of course, for those who are prevented from pursuing their planned course of action, this creates a certain amount of frustration over the regulations enforced by planning staff. However, even for most of those people whose proposals are denied, there is support for planning functions because citizens recognize that these services promote orderly, coordinated development in the community. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: Does the service address life safety issues? Zoning regulations began as a means to protect public health and safety. In the 1800’s, the construction of tenement houses created a multitude of problems. Many rooms in these houses lacked direct sunlight or air, and fire spread easily from one large adjacent building to another. Such conditions led to the adoption of early tenement house laws, which required that most rooms have direct access to light and air and imposed height and setback standards designed to reduce fire hazard. Also, many communities in the burgeoning industrial age faced conflicts between residents and neighboring industries over largely unregulated pollution. Some of these cities addressed this health issue by separating industry from residential areas. Of course, all of the standards mentioned here are well-established parts of modern zoning codes. Today’s zoning ordinances also address traffic safety and structural integrity. Through its administration of the Comprehensive Plan and subdivision regulations, the planning department protects the public health and safety by proactively providing for the establishment of streets, the delivery of potable water, and the orderly disposal of wastes. Also, the provisions of the Comprehensive Plan and zoning code minimize damage to lives and property due to flooding. EFFICIENCY OF THE SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? Almost by definition, planning promotes efficiency. With sound planning, a community has firm goals and well-researched information at its disposal to expend its resources in a coordinated, efficient fashion. For example, the establishment of a planned transportation network based on agreed-upon objectives in the Comprehensive Plan ensures that all funds expended in the creation of this network will be spent wisely. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended? If planning services were discontinued, all other city departments and regional agencies involved in land use, transportation, population, and community needs would be affected. From the city, the public works, public services, library, police, and fire departments all rely on the plans and forecasts supplied by the planning department to program new facilities and services. County, state, and federal agencies also depend on the city planning department for assistance with questions related to land use, housing, transportation, population, and the environment. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? As previously mentioned, many of the planning department’s services are mandated by state law. These required services are: subdivision regulations; annexation rules; local implementation of the State Environmental Policy Act, the Shoreline Management Act, and the critical areas and resources lands provisions of the GMA; and population estimate assistance furnished to the Office of Financial Management. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? Planning services contribute substantially to economic growth through two different means. First, the Comprehensive Plan and zoning code reserve distinct areas for various land uses and ensure that necessary infrastructure can be provided to these areas. For developers of residential, commercial, or industrial land uses, this proactive planning brings a high level of certainty to the development process, which is nearly essential for any real estate investment. When prospective new businesses inquire about locating in Pullman, planning staff provides careful guidance in completing the necessary land use permitting procedures. Second, planning staff participates with local business development organizations and other groups to devise and implement strategies for sound economic growth. Staff routinely participates in meetings and workshops with the Pullman Chamber of Commerce, Inland Northwest Partners, Palouse Economic Development Council, Whitman County Business Development Association, and the Washington State University Facilities Development Committee. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? Part of the planning department’s objectives is to promote energy conservation. For example, the recently approved Comprehensive Plan revision encourages the maintenance of a compact community partly to reduce energy consumption through pedestrian/bicycle travel, use of the city’s transit system, and shorter vehicular trips. OVERALL ASSESSMENT: As noted above, a substantial amount of planning operations are required by law. Environmental regulations, annexation rules, subdivision standards, and annual population estimate assistance are all mandated by the Revised Code of Washington. Optional services, such as the Comprehensive Plan and zoning code, are no longer really optional in any modern municipality. All of these services supplied by the planning department are indispensable tools in preserving the health, safety, and general welfare of the community. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: The planning department consists of one full-time planning director, one full-time assistant city planner, 20 percent of an administrative support level D position, 19 percent of an administrative support level C position, and 10 percent of the engineering/planning aide position. The planning department therefore consists of 2.49 full time equivalent employees. With this limited staffing level, workload in the department is quite heavy. Recent development permit activity has been substantial ($183 million in building permit valuation in the 1990’s, as compared to $60 million in the 1980’s), and the number and complexity of development regulations has escalated. As a result, most of planning staff’s time is spent on current planning (permit processing, day-to-day administration of land use and environmental regulations, and preparation and follow-up work associated with public hearings/meetings). This necessarily limits the amount of time that can be expended on longrange planning (updating the Comprehensive Plan and implementing the plan by creating or revising development regulations and devising new community programs). CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM The Capital Improvement Program establishes a six-year schedule of public improvements that is updated annually. Eligible projects include land acquisitions, public works improvements, recreation facilities, vehicles, energy conservation projects, and structures or equipment costing more than $5,000. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: The first six-year Capital Improvement Program was adopted in 1978. Federal revenue sharing funds were used extensively for the CIP in those early years. In 1986, as the revenue sharing program was being phased out, the City Council decided to levy an additional half-cent sales tax within Pullman and allocate a minimum of $350,000 annually within the General Fund for the CIP. In 1996, the city code was amended to read that an average of $350,000 be expended annually on the CIP within the General Fund, starting with the year 1987. General fund capital investments from 1987 to 1999 are displayed in Attachment "A." NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? A viable community needs carefully planned capital improvements to serve the public and promote economic growth. A capital improvement program ensures that plans for community facilities are fulfilled efficiently; allows for the scheduling of public improvements that require more than one year to provide; offers an opportunity, assuming funds are available, to purchase land or fund improvements before costs increase; and helps to stabilize tax rates through cautious debt management. Absent a CIP, a community can be put in a reactionary position, constantly responding to capital needs as a series of crises. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? It is the public sector’s role to provide public facilities through a capital improvement programming process. It would be inappropriate for this service to be provided by a private entity. Also, the CIP process offers the public an important opportunity to participate in the provision of community improvements. Members of the public are involved in the process both as members of the city’s CIP Committee and in annual public meetings held to review the proposed CIP. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should this service be contracted out? Capital improvement programming could be contracted out. However, since the process revolves around the funding of public improvements, it demands a great deal of public sector involvement. Therefore, it would likely not be cost-effective or citizen-responsive to contract this service. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan? Interestingly enough, this and all subsequent questions asked through the remainder of this memo are the adopted criteria for the Capital Improvement Program. While these questions are now being directed to the overall CIP process, please note that each project proposed under the CIP undergoes the scrutiny set forth here. It is important to keep in mind that CIP proposals must rate high with respect to these criteria just to be considered for approval. The CIP is consistent with Comprehensive Plan Goal CF1, which states: "Supply facilities, utilities, and services for all land uses to provide for the public health and safety and economic well being." The Comprehensive Plan also notes that "the city of Pullman prepares a Capital Improvement Program (CIP) that appropriates funding for specific projects over a six-year period." PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? One of the main objectives of the CIP is to alleviate identified deficiencies or prevent potential deficiencies from occurring. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? Although individual CIP projects affect certain segments of the population more than others, taken as a whole, the CIP affects all citizens, business owners, and visitors in Pullman. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? Strong public and political support exists for the CIP because it is a time-tested means of scheduling needed capital improvements for the community. PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY: Does the service address life safety issues? Many CIP proposals address life safety issues. For example, projects involving water and sewer lines, streets, floodplain improvements, and police and fire equipment all aid in protecting the public health and safety. EFFICIENCY OF THE SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? Capital improvement programming certainly helps promote efficiency within a jurisdiction. For example, the CIP helps to prevent mismanagement such as paving a street one year and tearing it up the next to install a sewer pipe. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended? All city departments would be adversely affected if the CIP process was terminated. Under this scenario, capital improvements would be authorized without coordination, offering little certainty in the provision of public facilities. All departments would encounter difficulty planning ahead in this sort of environment. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? In non-GMA jurisdictions such as Pullman, there is no legal mandate to conduct a CIP. However, Pullman would be rated down in its applications for grants and loans, such as the Public Works Trust Fund, if it did not have an adopted multi-year plan. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? Capital improvements are part of the engine that drives economic growth. A well-organized planning process for providing these capital improvements, such as the CIP, contributes mightily to economic development in a community. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? Many CIP projects advance the city’s energy conservation efforts. In fact, energy conservation projects are specifically listed under the city’s definition of "capital improvement." Past projects in this regard include new buses and other transit improvements, building insulation, and new or renovated heating/cooling systems in public buildings to effect more efficient operation. OVERALL ASSESSMENT: The Capital Improvement Program is a very important mechanism for scheduling public improvements to protect health and safety in the community and to promote economic development. The CIP process has served the city well for many years. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: The CIP is currently administered by the planning department. Proposed CIP projects are evaluated by the CIP Committee, which is composed of two City Council members, two Planning Commission members, the city supervisor, the finance director, and one member of the public. Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities PUBLIC WORKS Included in this package is level of service and priority information for the Engineering and Protective Inspections Divisions of Pubic Works. Because the general fund has an impact on the Street and Equipment Rental Divisions, similar information is included for these city operations also. ENGINEERING LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE The position of City Engineer was created in the late 1800s. In 1912 an Assistant Engineer was appointed as well. In 1951 the offices of City Engineer and Superintendent of Public Works were separated. The office of Director of Public Works was created in 1971. The current organizational structure contains the positions of Public Works Director and City Engineer. 1. NEED FOR SERVICE (Should the service be provided at all?) The need for engineering services in many aspects is directly related to the desire for quality development within the city and the desire for well-planned and maintained water, sewer and street systems. Uncoordinated construction and development would result in a hodgepodge of quality, lead to conflicts between subsequent activities, and also lead to increased maintenance requirements in the future. Other engineering services such as the development of plats, utility comprehensive plans, the six-year Transportation Improvement Plan, and coordination with state agencies on regulatory requirements are required activities. Record keeping and map creation and maintenance is necessary in order to archive the history of the city as it pertains to the infrastructure systems. 2. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS (Should this be a private service?) Some activities such as project design, surveying, some grant applications, and traffic studies can be performed by consultants without a loss of quality. Other activities such as plan review and construction inspection could be performed by consultants, but not without a loss of consistency between consultants and less conformity to the standards and utility comprehensive plans. Still other activities such as administration of capital projects, maintenance of city standards, preparation of legal documents such as plats and easements, issuance of street and right of way use agreements, record keeping, map updating, traffic signing and channelization, and coordination with franchise utilities is best done by in-house staff in order to provide consistency and, in some cases, limit liability exposure. Consultants are currently used on a regular basis for project design, surveying, and some traffic studies when the workload of the division exceeds the capability of the engineering staff and this works fairly well. This past year, we also used outside consultants for project inspection due to the division’s extensive workload and there were a few resulting problems related to coordination with city staff. Invariably it costs more to use consultants as opposed to city staff (easily as much as double), so we are judicious in our use of consultants, tying the need to staff workload. We try not to use consultants for construction inspection for the sake of maintaining consistency with design standards, policies, etc. 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS (Should this service be contracted out?) Theoretically, it is possible to hire a private firm to perform the functions of the Engineering Division. Often small towns will hire an engineering consultant to be their City Engineer, providing engineering services on an as-needed basis. However, the size of the city of Pullman would require at least a small firm as opposed to a single person working part time. All of the engineering firms in the Pullman area perform work for the private sector, which would be a conflict of interest. With an engineering firm, availability would probably suffer and, as previously noted, the cost would be more for providing the same service level. 4. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS (Federal, state, county, etc.?) Again, it is theoretically possible for the city’s engineering services to be provided by Whitman County. However, they could not simply absorb the city’s responsibilities with existing staff and would need to staff up themselves. Many of the functions performed in the city are not performed in the county so people with new skills would have to be hired or existing personnel retrained. Also lost through such a transition would be the institutional memory of the city staff, consistency from past to future, and availability unless the county staffed an office in Pullman. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES (Are there other potential sources of revenue?) Many of the activities of the Engineering Division are project related. When these projects have a source of funding other than the general fund, such as water, sewer, streets, transit, and arterial streets projects, staff engineering costs including salary costs are charged against those project funds. In 1999, the budget for the engineering division was $435,206 of which $361,436 was salary related. For 1999, it is estimated that approximately $190,000 in engineering salaries will be charged to other funds. This is fairly typical, although the percentage that is able to be charged out will vary from year to year depending on the type of projects being worked on during the year. 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY (Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan?) A general statement in the Comprehensive Plan concerning transportation states "Transportation has long been identified as an element critical to Pullman’s future quality of life. Pullman’s future transportation system must meet the varied needs of all of its citizens." A similar statement in the plan concerning capital facilities and utilities states "Capital facilities and utilities are the basic services that the public sector provides to support land use and development – both as it currently exists and as it is anticipated to occur over the next twenty years." The services performed by the Engineering Division provide for and support transportation, capital facilities, and utilities as noted at the beginning of this report. 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED (Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies?) The problems addressed by the services provided by the Engineering Division include poor water quality, inadequate fire flows, unsanitary sewer collection systems, inadequate sewer treatment, poor traffic flow, dangerous and inadequate streets systems, excessive infrastructure maintenance due to poor construction quality, uncoordinated work in the city’s rights of way, and inadequate records and maps of city facilities. 8. POPULATION SERVED (Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated?) The utility and transportation systems in the city serve the entire population in many direct and indirect ways. These systems are the primary focus of the engineering division. 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT (Is there strong public and political support for the service?) While the water and sewer systems in the city, and to a lesser degree the street system, are often taken for granted, citizens certainly expect that these systems will function adequately. There is also an expectation that the future needs of the systems are being considered by someone at the city and that the systems are in compliance with regulations. These are not fluff, nice-to-have systems that lend themselves to programs like Adopt-A-Sewer Line, but they are none-the-less important, basic services provided by the city, and the Engineering Division spends much of its time addressing these systems. 10. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY (Does the service address life safety issues?) The water, sewer, and street systems in the city directly relate to public health and safety and many of the Engineering Division functions relate to the construction, operation, and preservation of these systems. 11. EFFICIENCY OF THE SERVICE (What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service?) Capital improvements tend to get most of the attention of the Engineering Division. These include all developer projects, Council approved projects funded through the CIP, street projects, and utility projects. The other functions of the division such as record keeping, map updating, and maintenance of engineering systems such as the water system model, benchmark data, and street condition inventory tend to take a back seat to capital projects. We try to attend to these functions as we can fit them in. In the mid-eighties and early-nineties, this was almost manageable, with some time during the winter months dedicated to "catching up". However, in recent years it seems as though there is not sufficient time to take care of these support functions due to the number of projects and contractors more often working through the winter. Staffing for the division has remained the same since about 1985 with a City Engineer, four engineering technicians, and a halftime engineering aide. In 1998, another engineering technician was hired on a temporary basis to help with the extreme workload and in 1999 the engineering aide was increased to full time. However, in 1999, one engineering technician resigned and that position was not filled. The engineering aide being full time has helped tackle some of the record and map updating, but we are still far from caught up. The number of personnel in the division is not sufficient at this time to accomplish the required tasks, even with working significant overtime. 12. RELATED SERVICES (Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended?) The Engineering Division provides support for all other divisions within Public Works and all other departments in the city, primarily by its involvement in capital improvement projects and by providing drafting services. Primary support is given to streets and utilities. 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT (Is this a federal or state mandated service?) It is not a legal requirement that the city have an Engineering Division, however, many of the functions performed by the division are legally required such as: A. The city is required to comply with state and federal laws in the administration of public works contracts. B. The design, construction, and administration of roadway projects using Federal Highway Administration funds must comply with federal rules and regulations passed down through the state. C. Water-related projects are required to comply with federal and state rules and regulations administered by the Washington State Department of Health. D. Sewer-related projects are required to comply with federal and state rules and regulations administered by the Washington State Department of Ecology. E. The city is required by state law to have a current, approved Water Plan. F. The city is required to have a current, approved Transportation Improvement Plan. G. Traffic signs and markings are required by state law to comply with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT (Does the service contribute to Economic Growth?) A sound, reliable infrastructure system is an absolute necessity for economic health. A city cannot exist without a water system, a sewer system, and a street system. Any growth in the city must first have an infrastructure system to support it. Many of the functions of the Engineering Division directly relate to the construction, operation, and maintenance of these infrastructure systems. 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION (Does the service help save energy?) The design of infrastructure systems, particularly the water system, takes into account energy efficiency issues. This is particularly true in Pullman where we have six different pressure zones to which adequate water must be supplied through the use of wells, booster pumps, and pressure reducing valves. To a lesser extent, the application of street signing, signals, and channelization relates to energy conservation by attempting to move vehicles as efficiently as possible while maintaining an adequate level of safety. OVERALL ASSESSMENT The Engineering Division implements much of the Capital Improvement Program, ensures private development complies with standards that have been adopted by the City Council, addresses traffic issues, coordinates use of the public right of way, maintains support systems (water system model, floodplain management, street numbering, street condition inventory, and survey data), and maintains the record of the city’s infrastructure system. While it is possible to contract out for many of these services, the cost would be higher and the quality would be less due to the lack of continuity compared to providing these services with trained city employees. Much of the work performed by the Engineering Division is for other divisions or other departments that have separate funding sources, such as water, sewer, streets, arterial streets, and transit. In those cases, costs incurred by the division are reimbursed by the benefiting fund. Presently, the division is down one engineering technician and a ¾-time administrative support position. The ¾-time position is presently being filled with a temporary employee. The division can probably get by for awhile without filling the engineering technician position, except with maybe a temporary employee as needed. The ¾-time administrative support position is needed not only to handle the workload but also to provide office coverage when the full-time administrative support person is ill, on vacation, or at training. TASKS PERFORMED BY THE ENGINEERING DIVISION In House Design of Capital Improvement Projects This work includes all aspects of the design process for Capital Improvement Projects including developing the project scope, survey, cost estimates, preliminary design, final design, coordination with franchise utilities and adjacent property owners, development of plans and specifications, environmental issues, permitting issues, and public involvement. It is possible to have most of this work performed by outside consultants. In house coordination of the consultant work would still be necessary. Loss of continuity in the design methodologies can occur with this option. Typically, the cost of the designs for the projects is higher using outside consultants. Complete deletion of this task would result in a stoppage of the Capital Improvement Program. Inspection of Capital Improvement Projects Review and oversight of the construction methods utilized by contractors on city projects including conformance with city standards and project design documents, traffic control, erosion control, tracking of quantities, and general coordination with the city on the project administration. This task can be performed by outside consultants, but is typically found to be more expensive. In addition, the consultants may utilize different personnel or different consultants may be used over a period of time, thus resulting in a loss of continuity in the methods of the inspections and the maintenance of the inspection standards. Typically, the cost of inspections for the projects is higher using outside consultants. Complete deletion of this item would result in unregulated construction of city projects, which in turn would result in a lack of quality w orkmanship. Quite possibly, funding sources such as grants would no longer be available due to requirements from the grant agencies that inspection of the construction occur. Administration of Capital Improvement Projects General administration of construction projects from initial funding acquisition to project closeout. Includes grant applications, right of way and easement acquisition, review of design documents, coordination of environmental concerns, permit acquisition, bid and award process, construction operations management, billing and payment procedures, project acceptance and closeout. This portion of the Capital Improvement Program is difficult to delegate although it can be done with some success if handled properly. Typically, the cost of administration for the projects is higher using outside consultants. Regardless of the level of delegation of the work to outside consultants, a certain amount of the administration will need to occur within the city to maintain contact between the project and the intent of the city in completing the project. Complete deletion of this item would likely result in a stoppage of the Capital Improvement Program. Inspection of Developer Projects Review and oversight of the construction methods utilized by contractors on developer projects including conformance with city standards and project design documents, traffic control, erosion control, and general coordination with the city on the project. This is a task that has historically been one that consulting engineering firms can perform, although we have not done so in Pullman due to concerns about proper and consistent application of standards and policies. As with the capital improvements inspection, the costs can be prohibitive. Due to the logistical problems of having a consultant staff member available whenever an inspection is needed on one of the multitude of ongoing projects, the rates charged by consultants for this work can be quite high. Complete deletion of this item would result in unmonitored construction activities for development projects and could result in a general loss of conformance with city standards. In some areas (flood plain management, erosion control requirements, etc.) the loss of inspection could result in unfavorable recognition by agencies such as Department of Ecology or FEMA regarding conformance with their standards. Review of Plans and Specifications for Developer Projects Review of development project designs and submittals for general conformance with city standards and design guidelines. Includes coordination with developer representatives, plan review, calculations review, coordination on acquisition of easements for city utilities, coordination with the Planning Department on environmental issues, and coordination with the Building Division on erosion control issues. This item is one that can successfully be routed to outside consultants: however, due to the lack of consultants in the area that do not already perform work for developers within the city, there may be some difficulty in obtaining services without a potential conflict of interest. Most often consultants are best used for this type of work to offset large workloads encountered in heavy development periods. Cost for consultant work is probably higher than in-house. Complete deletion of this item essentially stops all developer work entirely or allows developer activities without any check for conformance with city standards. Traffic Studies Performance of traffic analysis for existing and future conditions. This work is utilized in the design of new street projects, applications for grant funding, and review of traffic problem areas. Traffic studies are often performed by outside agencies or consultants depending on the scope and size of the project. Large-scale studies that involve street system traffic flow modeling are generally best left to consultants due to the infrequency of their occurrence. Complete deletion of this task would result in a loss of data necessary for the design of some capital improvement projects. Traffic Counts Field data collection on the volumes of traffic utilizing the existing street system including mainlines and intersections. This information is used in traffic studies, project design and funding applications and develops data required for state reports. This work can be performed by outside consultants and possibly outside agencies depending on workloads and availability of equipment. Over the years the City has obtained the equipment and trained the personnel needed to perform this work due to the frequency in which the data needs to be obtained. Complete deletion of this task would result in a loss of current traffic flow data that is necessary for the performance of traffic studies and street system designs and also would delete a key source of information that is required in grant and loan applications for street system improvements. Street Striping Coordination This work includes the installation of street striping on new city street construction projects and the reapplication of striping on existing city streets. Work is coordinated with the Maintenance and Operations Division. Water System Modeling and Analysis Maintenance and application of the city’s hydraulic model is included in this task. Purpose of the work is to provide data to developer consultants in the design of sprinkler systems and on-site fire prevention improvements, to provide information for long-range planning of city water facilities, and to assist in the design of new water system facilities in a complex multi-pressure zone water system. Compaction Testing Equipment Operation and Maintenance This item involves the continued maintenance and operation of the city’s portable nuclear moisture/density gauge. Includes ongoing training for the staff that use the device and a radiation safety officer to meet state/federal regulations. Street Usage Agreements and Coordination Review of requests to utilize the city street system for short-term events such as parades, fun runs, and carnivals. Also includes the development of traffic control plans to accommodate the events. Right of Way Use Permits Review and permitting of requests to occupy the city street system for short-term operations such as utility construction, street improvements, and other developer-related activities. Record Keeping and Preservation of City Street and Utility Information Includes the gathering and maintenance of infrastructure improvement data, including record drawings, for use in city and developer improvement projects. Creation and Maintenance of Street, Utility, Property Ownership, Address, Topography, and Section Maps Utilization of gathered infrastructure improvement data to consolidate information into map form. Maintenance includes updating the base and utility maps on a regular basis to incorporate additions or changes to the system. Floodplain Management Developing floodplain elevation data, flood boundary determinations, conditions for construction of new facilities within the city’s floodplains, and maintenance of the floodplain/floodway permit system. Traffic Signage and Channelization Coordination Includes the review of the city street system to determine the need for signage modifications for problem areas as suggested by city staff or the general public. Coordination with the Maintenance and Operations Division of Public Works and the Pullman Police Department are integral to this task. Review of Retaining Wall Designs and Construction Review of the design information for structural retaining walls over five feet in height. Includes coordination with the Building Department on permitting issues. Maintenance of City Design Standards for Development Projects This task includes making revisions to the current standards to address issues in the design of developer projects that have been encountered since the last update. Also addressed are changes in regulations established by outside agencies such as the Department of Ecology or the Department of Health. These standards are utilized by all projects within the City. Oversight of Erosion Control Operations Review of proposed development plans and on-site inspection of development projects for proper erosion control procedures are included in this item. Includes coordination with the Building Department. Grant Applications for Capital Improvement Projects This work involves the tracking of the various grant programs including rule changes, application processes, and application deadlines; submitting grant and loan applications for the funding of various public works projects; and the administration of grants and loans awarded. Development of Utility Comprehensive Plans Includes the creation and upkeep of the city’s comprehensive plans for utilities. Comprehensive plans are required by the state for most utilities. Comprehensive plans also serve as long-range planning tools for Capital Improvement Program budgeting. Support to Building Department on Structural Issues The Engineering Division provides support, as needed, to the Building Department for complex design projects and developer design submittals. Review and Preparation of Legal Descriptions for Easements and Other Documents With most developer projects some sort of easement is involved. Work by staff in this area includes the review of the legal descriptions prepared and submitted by consultants for the developers, inclusion of the reviewed legal descriptions into the appropriate easement document, coordination with the property developer in obtaining the appropriate signatures for the document, and having the easement recorded. The staff also performs these tasks, including the development of the legal descriptions, for the city’s easements and other documents. Plat Review and Processing This work includes the review of preliminary plat maps to ensure that they are accurate, complete, and comply with city standards and state law and that the final plat map is properly prepared and executed for archive filing with the county and the city. Maintenance of Street Numbering System For each new structure, Engineering Division staff assigns an address to the resulting residential, commercial or industrial facility. Included is maintenance of the master block numbering map and updating the street number master list. Preparation of Six-Year Transportation Plan This work includes the development of recommendations for the City Council for the upcoming Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program. AutoCAD Drafting Operations The CAD drafting staff performs the drafting necessary for the in-house design services provided by the Engineering Division. Drafting work also includes base maps, exhibits, standard details, and various documents for Planning and other city departments. Maintenance of City Benchmark Data The engineering staff maintains location records and elevation data on the survey benchmarks located within the city and utilized by the city and consulting surveyors. Design, Construction, and Miscellaneous Surveying This work includes the surveying of sites for design work to be performed by staff, traffic analysis related to intersection improvements, preservation of the extent of damage due to floods or other natural disasters, and accident scene surveys for the Police Department. Construction staking for smaller capital improvement projects is also performed along with layout surveys for street striping. Coordination with State Agencies on Regulatory Requirements This task involves monitoring revisions in the regulations set by the state and it’s agencies that involve public works operations and then modifying the city standards to conform as required. Coordination with Franchise Utilities With the existence of franchise utilities in the city street system, continuous interaction is required to avoid conflicts between the utility companies, city utilities, and traffic flow as well as timing issues such as trying to ensure that all utility work is performed prior to the paving of a street. Maintenance of Street System Inventory This work includes maintaining the city’s database on the condition of the street system. This database is utilized to set priorities for the Extraordinary Street Maintenance Program as well as for establishing budget requests for maintenance and improvements. PROTECTIVE INSPECTIONS LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE In 1915 the city of Pullman passed an ordinance providing for issuing building permits for all buildings built within the city limits. Several changes in staffing and responsibilities have taken place over the years. In 1931 the same employee acted as City Engineer and Building Inspector. In 1936 the responsibilities of City Engineer included that of being the Electrical Inspector. The position of Building Inspector is now totally separate from that of City Engineer and the electrical inspection function is handled by the state. Staffing of the Building Inspection positions has also varied over time. For example, in 1980 the positions of Building Official and Building Inspector were used. In more recent years, the two employees within protective inspections have both been Building Inspectors and the role of Building Official, as the ultimate interpreter of the building codes, has been performed by the Public Works Director 1. NEED FOR SERVICE (Should the service be provide at all?) Washington State law (RCW 19.27.050) mandates that "the state building code required by this chapter shall be enforced by the counties and cities". The purpose of the Protective Inspections Division is to provide inspection and plan review services to assure that buildings and structures built within the city of Pullman are constructed and maintained to minimum standards in order to safeguard life or limb, health, property, and the public welfare. This is accomplished by regulating and controlling building and structure design, construction, quality of materials, use, and location to the minimum requirements of the Washington State Building Code. The primary benefits to the community resulting from the enforcement of the Washington State Building Code are: A. Preventing the loss of life and property in buildings due to fire or panic by verifying through inspections that passive fire-resistive systems, exiting systems, smoke control systems, appliance vents, and structural components are present and maintained in buildings and structures. B. Protecting the life and health of building occupants by verifying through inspections that mechanical and plumbing systems are properly installed and maintained in a safe and sanitary manner. 2. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS (Should this be a private service?) RCW 39.34 allows building inspection and plan review services to be contracted to a private company, another city, or another county. However, enforcement of the building code may only be contracted to another city or county, not to a private company. If a private company were to provide the plan review services and inspections, then that company is required to provide inspection and review reports to the city. The private company would simply function as any other consultant and would not have enforcement powers. 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS (Should this service be contracted out?) A ballpark estimate received from a private review and inspection agency to provide building department services was $160,000 to $300,000. The actual cost to the city to provide plan review and inspection services for the last five years (1994 to 1998) has averaged $155,813 per year. In 1999, the division budget was $202,264 and a total of $198,267.96 was collected in fees. The city currently contracts for structural plan review services for complex projects, but maintains control of the decision-making process during the processing of plans. In general, the functions of the Protective Inspections Division should probably not be contracted out except as noted above for the following reasons: A. The estimate to provide building inspection and plan review services would not include the cost to provide inspections to existing housing and commercial buildings for code compliance, a service currently performed by the city. B. There is not a company in our area with the trained staff to provide these services. C. Presently, the division is basically self-supporting. D. Protective Inspections strives to provide personal service to the public. A consulting company would probably not be as responsive to the public’s needs. 4. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS (Federal, state, county, etc.?) Whitman County provides protective inspections services in the county, outside Pullman. WSU provides protective inspections on the WSU campus through an interagency agreement. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES (Are there other potential sources of revenue?) The Protective Inspections Division is basically self-supporting. Additional revenue is not required at this time. 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY (Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan?) Protective Inspections is referenced in the Housing Goals and Policies section of the comprehensive plan as follows: Policy H1.4: Work to eliminate safety hazards in the existing housing stock. Thoroughly publicize the city’s voluntary housing inspection program. Policy H1.5: Reduce the supply of substandard housing units through code enforcement, rehabilitation, and new construction. Policy H1.6: Encourage rehabilitation and preservation of historic housing. Policy H1.7: Ensure that health and safety standards, as well as off-street parking requirements, are met when single-family homes are converted to multi-family rental use. 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED (Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies?) The average person in the United States spends approximately 80% of their lives in buildings. Building code enforcement fosters the construction of safe and healthy environments in which to live, work and play. Enforcement of the building code provides passive and active systems to protect occupants, property in the building, adjacent buildings, firefighters, and other rescue personnel in the event of fire, earthquake, tornado, and other building disasters. 8. POPULATION SERVED (Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated?) The entire population of the city of Pullman is served by the enforcement of the building codes. Homes that people live in and buildings adjacent to these homes have been inspected to foster compliance with codes in effect at the time of construction. Commercial and industrial buildings have similarly been inspected for code compliance. This provides a level of confidence that the public has developed that they are relatively safe from risky, dangerous construction practices. Code compliance activities also promote the long-term value of buildings and structures. 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT (Is there strong public and political support for the service?) The functions of the Protective Inspections Division are often controversial when applied in the field. We often have to tell people (contractors, architects, engineers, owners) things they really do not want to hear. The goal of the division is to do a good job in fostering code compliance and to do it in a non-adversarial manner. The support for the division is evidenced by the tremendous number of opportunities for conflict and the relatively few conflicts that actually occur. 10. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY (Does the service address life safety issues?) The stated purpose of the building codes is the protection of the health and safety of building occupants. (See #1) 11. EFFICIENCY OF THE SERVICE (What is the cos t/benefit relationship of the service?) To try to address this issue, twelve other Washington cities similar in size to Pullman were surveyed to determine the number of full-time employees (fte) in these jurisdictions. The range was from 2 to 12, with the average, excluding Bothel which has 12, being 3.58 fte. Pullman is staffed at 2.1 fte, including 10% of the Public Works Director’s time. The comparable efficiency of Pullman’s Protective Inspections Division is high based on this analysis. 12. RELATED SERVICES (Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended?) Other services provided by the city that are related to Protective Inspections include various aspects of Planning as related to setbacks between buildings and from property lines and the fire inspection activities of the Fire Department. Some federally funded loans available to citizens are dependent on the existence of a building department. Lending institutions rely heavily on Pullman’s building department and the Certificate of Occupancy process to approve loans. 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT (Is this a federal or state mandated service?) RCW 19.27.050 states the following: "The state building code required by this chapter shall be enforced by the counties and cities." 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT (Does the service contribute to Economic Growth?) The protective inspection service contributes to economic growth by fostering the quality construction of durable buildings in the city of Pullman. The building code has basic building maintenance requirements which, when enforced, extend the life of buildings, delaying the cost of demolishing and replacing buildings. Buildings otherwise allowed to become dilapidated or which are poorly constructed will not hold their value and decrease the tax base of the city. 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION (Does the service help save energy?) The city of Pullman was an early adopter of the 1986 Model Conservation Standards. Protective Inspections staff was thoroughly trained in plan review and inspection for energy conservation. Protective Inspections plan review and inspection methods were audited several times in the 1980s and 1990s by the Washington State Energy Office and received recognition for a job well done. Protective Inspections has continued to use the training received in the 1980s and 1990s to train architects, engineers and contractors in methods that meet the present energy code. This has resulted in highly energy efficient building envelopes, mechanical systems, and lighting systems in new construction and, as applicable, in remodeled buildings in the city. OVERALL ASSESSMENT State law requires that the city of Pullman adopt and enforce the state building codes. It is less expensive to provide this service with city employees as opposed to contracting for this service. The building community demands that they get their field inspections in a timely manner. Currently inspections are scheduled for that day if they are requested by 9:00 a.m. Inspections are otherwise scheduled for a morning or afternoon time slot on a following day. Similarly, the building community demands that their plans be reviewed within a reasonable time frame. Typically, we are two to three weeks out on plan reviews. Compared to even the 1970s, building inspection has become a highly specialized field. Pullman has two very qualified building inspectors which allows us to usually meet the demands for service. Having two inspectors also accounts for those times when one is ill, on vacation, or away to training. With only one inspector, service simply could not be provided during these occurrences. It is not feasible to provide adequate cross training to other city personnel who would only be performing the job functions on a periodic, as-needed basis. The present structure of the Protective Inspections Division also is well balanced with the income received as a result of the services provided; i.e., it is selfsupporting. STREETS LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE The earliest known reference to a Street Division in Pullman is 1888 when the first Street Commissioner was appointed. In 1909, the Street and Water Divisions were combined. In 1911, the Water and Street Divisions were again separated. At various times since then, the Street Division has been combined with Plumbing Inspection, Deputy Marshall, and Water Division. Presently the Street Division is a division within Public Works under the direct supervision of the Maintenance and Operations Superintendent. 1. NEED FOR SERVICE (Should the service be provided at all?) City streets serve the basic social and economic needs of the community. They provide for movement of people to places of employment, schools, churches, and to shopping, social, and recreational facilities. They provide access for fire fighting, medical and rescue equipment, and other emergency and safety services. They provide for the transportation of equipment, materials and products. Street maintenance includes an array of activities that are highly visible to the public: pavement and aggregate street maintenance, stormwater collection, traffic control (including traffic signals, signage, pavement markings, and traffic control for special events), snow and ice control, street cleaning (including weekly sweeping of the central business district, less frequent sweeping of all other streets, and the annual leaf pick-up program), vegetation control, and luminaire power and maintenance. In addition to these maintenance activities, we have also had an extraordinary street maintenance program through which distressed streets are reconstructed, usually by grinding the existing asphalt and repaving or by overlaying the existing asphalt with a new asphalt mat.The Street Division maintains 51.2 lane miles of arterial streets and 70.7 lane miles of residential streets. 2. ALTERNATIVE PRIVATE SERVICE PROVIDERS (Should this be a private service?) While it is theoretically possible for a private firm to provide the services of the Street Division, such a firm does not now exist in the Pullman area due primarily to the need for specialized equipment. It would probably be more expensive to provide these services through a private firm. Another issue would be the liability exposure related to traffic control issues. It is probably safe to say that it would be extremely difficult for the private sector to perform all the street maintenance functions without involvement from the public sector. 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS (Should this service be contracted out?) Some street maintenance activities, such as permanent asphalt patching, crack sealing, and the extraordinary street maintenance program, are contracted out to local firms but remain under the supervision of the Public Works Department. Other functions, such as street sweeping, storm drain cleaning, leaf pick-up, and traffic control, could also be contracted out, but would be much more expensive. Most contractors are not fully equipped to perform all the necessary functions of the Street Department - they do not have the specialty equipment (street sweepers, jet vacs, paint stripers), the expertise to monitor, troubleshoot, or program electronic traffic controllers, or knowledge of street signage legal requirements. 4. ALTERNATE PUBLIC SECTOR PROVIDERS (Federal, state, county, etc.) It may be possible for Whitman County or WSU to assume the City’s street maintenance activities. However, neither agency currently has the necessary equipment or staff for such an undertaking. Whitman County uses large equipment suitable for county roads and lacks the experience and specialty equipment for storm drain maintenance. WSU has barely enough equipment and personnel to accomplish their own street maintenance program as it is. City streets would also invariably take a backseat to county or campus streets on the priority schedule under these maintenance scenarios. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES (Are there other potential sources of revenue?) In recent years, funding for the Street Division has been provided by utility taxes, real estate excise taxes, and motor vehicle fuel taxes. Additionally, for the last several years the transit fund has contributed $100,000 to the street fund. The total revenue to the street fund has been in the $1,000,000 range. The projected revenue to the street fund for 2000 is $862,839. For the last several years, we have attempted to fund the extraordinary street maintenance program at approximately $150,000 per year. However, our observation is that at this funding level we are still steadily losing ground. Streets are deteriorating faster than they are being rehabilitated. To address this, the 2000-2005 CIP included a request to supplement the extraordinary street maintenance program with $61,000 from the general fund. The 2000 CIP also included a request to purchase a new 10-wheel dump truck to help alleviate the increased maintenance demands of newly added lane miles. Due to I-695, the 2000 transit contribution to the street fund was reduced to $55,000. This, along with the loss of approximately $145,091 in Referendum 49 funds that would have started this year, has severely impacted the 2000 Street Division budget. The extraordinary street maintenance program did not receive the $61,000 requested from the general fund, and was further reduced from $150,000 to $75,000. Even with these cuts, however, the street fund is still not self-sustaining in 2000, requiring that reserve funds be used to balance the budget. The 2000 street budget is $930,797, including $67,958 from the reserve fund (drawing the reserves down from $254,871 to $186,913). To further ease budget restrictions, $20,000 in snow and ice control supplies for 2000 were bought out of the 1999 budget (money that will have to be considered in the 2001 budget), the 10-wheel dump truck was not funded, and several projects were deleted, such as the guardrail at Latah Street and Wawawai Road ($30,000), a parking lot on Maple Street Extension ($33,000), and a traffic study for College Hill ($30,000). To make the Street Department whole, at least in the short term, would require the infusion of at least $250,000 per year. This would allow for the purchase of the much needed 10-wheel dump truck, and funding for the extraordinary street maintenance program at near the $200,000 per year level without further depleting the reserves. Special projects, however, would still require supplemental funding. An additional source of revenue to be considered in the future is the creation of a stormwater utility. We must bear in mind, however, that these funds will be easily expended by the new regulations that will be included in Phase II of the Stormwater NPDES process. 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY (Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan?) An entire chapter in the Comprehensive Plan is dedicated to transportation. The Comprehensive Plan states that transportation has long been identified as an element critical to Pullman’s future quality of life and that Pullman’s future transportation system must meet the varied needs of all its citizens. The following are Comprehensive Plan Transportation Policies specific to street maintenance: Policy T1.5: Maintain city streets in good condition to facilitate safe and efficient travel in all seasons of the year. Policy T1.6: Improve the appearance of city streets by repairing them regularly and maintaining landscaping and signs. 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED (Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies?) The problems addressed by the Street Division include pot holes not being filled in a timely manner, traffic controllers not operating properly for the varying traffic flows throughout the day, improper and dangerous signage, snow and ice on city streets hampering the flow of traffic and creating hazardous driving conditions, dirty streets, burned out traffic signals and city-owned luminaires, plugged storm drains, and unaddressed deterioration of street surfacing. 8. POPULATION SERVED (Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated?) As stated in "Need for Service", the street system serves the entire population of Pullman. 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT (Is there strong public and political support for the service?) The services provided by the Street Division are the basic kind of service that the public expects the city to provide. Although the Street Division only occasionally receives positive feedback from the public, the public is generally very quick to let us know when a service is needed. The entire population of Pullman is served by the Street Division. Popular services provided by the Street Division include the extraordinary street maintenance program, snow and ice control, the annual leaf collection programs, and the Street Division’s efforts in flood control and protection of property during flood events. 10. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY (Does the service address life safety issues?) The primary goals and objectives of the Street Division are to provide a safe roadway system for both the motoring and pedestrian public. The Street Division functions (traffic control, signage, pavement marking, asphalt repair, guardrail repair, sweeping, and snow and ice control) are all designed to provide safe avenues of transportation. 11. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE (What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service?) All Maintenance and Operations personnel are cross-trained for all the tasks in the Street, Water Distribution and Sanitary Sewer Collection Divisions. However, in the interest of efficiency and quality control, select employees dedicate more time to signage and pavement markings, storm drain maintenance, pavement repairs, sweeping, snow and ice control, and leaf collection. The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees, 4.62, including management, has remained nearly the same for the past fifteen years, despite the huge increase in lane miles to maintain. 12. RELATED SERVICES (Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended?) The Street Department also installs and maintains transit bus stop signs and passenger shelters, provides the Parks Department with equipment and materials, and assists in the Wastewater Treatment Plant’s annual biosolids hauling and spreading operation. 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT (Is this a federal or state mandated service?) The Washington Cities Insurance Association requires the Street Division to meet certain street maintenance criteria for liability insurance. These criteria cover all aspects of signage, pavement markings, traffic signal operation, lighting, patching, and cleaning. In addition, traffic signs, signals and pavement markings are required to conform to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT (Does the service contribute to Economic Growth?) A sound, reliable infrastructure is an absolute necessity for economic health. A city cannot exist or grow without a reliable and efficient street system. The primary purpose of the Street Division is to provide and maintain these systems. 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION (Does the service help save energy?) Street signing, traffic signals, and traffic channelization methods address energy conservation issues by moving vehicles as efficiently and safely as possible. OVERALL ASSESSMENT The equipment and staffing level of the Street Division has not changed much in recent years and it is becoming increasingly difficult to meet responsibilities, particularly snow removal, due to the lane miles that have been added to the city. These additions to the city include several subdivisions (Industrial Park, Village Green, Paradise Hills, Golden Hills, Emerald Pointe, Sunnyside Heights, Paradise Ridge, and the Harvest Drive area) and now the annexation of Airport Road. Approximately $250,000 per year is required from outside sources (general fund?) to address the current needs of the Street Division. This would allow the extraordinary street maintenance program to be funded at $200,000 per year (+$125,000), allow the purchase of a 10-wheel dump truck over time (+$20,000), eliminate the depletion of the reserves (+$68,000), provide for the yearly purchase of snow and ice control supplies (+$20,000), and provide a minimal amount of funding for needed maintenance projects such as guardrail replacement (+$17,000). EQUIPMENT RENTAL LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: The Equipment Rental Division (ERD) was created for the city of Pullman in 1963 as part of the Maintenance and Operations Division (M&O) and was staffed with one mechanic who worked on Maintenance and Operation and Parks equipment and on police equipment as time allowed. When the Transit Division was created in 1979, two new mechanics were added and ERD was combined with Transit to form a Transportation Division. In 1983 an ERD Supervisor was added and ERD was separated from Transit as its own division of M&O. Presently ERD remains its own division reporting directly to the Public Works Maintenance and Operations Superintendent with one supervisor and three mechanics. A temporary Lubrication/Vehicle Washer position was eliminated in 1999 in response to I695. 1. NEED FOR SERVICE (Should the service be provided at all?) The Equipment Rental Division (ERD) is responsible for equipment purchasing, routine and preventive maintenance, component repairs/replacements, equipment fabrication, and preparation of new equipment for service. The ERD fleet currently contains 14 cars, 27 pick-up trucks (1 ton or less), 11 vans (including the Dial-a-Ride vans), 14 Transit buses, 5 dump trucks, 3 fire trucks, 3 ambulances, 2 street sweepers, 21 various pieces of industrial/commercial equipment (ranging from park mowers to road graders) and 22 attachments (plows, sanders, etc.). This is the equipment required for the city to perform many of its varied services including those of public works maintenance and operations, parks and recreation, police, fire, engineering, and protective inspections. 2. ALTERNATIVE PRIVATE SERVICE PROVIDERS (Should this be a private service?) Although private auto dealerships and auto repair shops exist, it would be tremendously difficult for the private sector to perform the many functions of the Equipment Rental Division without any public sector involvement. The Equipment Rental Division is in constant communication with the various user departments concerning vehicle specifications, equipment installation, and maintenance and repair needs. For example, consider the details of preparing a police vehicle for service: all radios, phones and control switches for lights and sirens must be in the same location in each vehicle and each vehicle must be set up to accommodate all the different drivers in the user department. This is not always an easy task considering turnover in personnel and changes in vehicle styles. Also, having an in-house shop dedicated solely to city equipment eliminates the need to schedule appointments, frustrating delays in service, and any chance of conflicting interests. 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS (Should this service be contracted out?) The contracting option available for this service would be to use individual dealers for the various types of vehicles in the fleet. The wide range of equipment contained in the city fleet requires the Equipment Rental Division to be more versatile than the local automotive repair shops. ERD personnel are able to perform the majority of the repairs and maintenance needed. However, work is contracted out to local firms if the shop is backlogged or specialized equipment is required. Repairs on industrial and commercial equipment are done in-house as much as possible to avoid the high cost of obtaining service from qualified shops, which are usually found in Spokane, Seattle, Portland, or California. The main exceptions are Transit bus engines and transmissions which are sent only to authorized dealers in Spokane or Portland for rebuilds. We have neither the necessary time nor equipment for these tasks. 4. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS (Federal, state, county, etc.?) It is very unlikely that the motor pool at WSU or Whitman County would commit to maintaining the city fleet. Neither presently has the building space, personnel, equipment, or expertise to accommodate the city’s needs, especially where the Transit fleet is concerned. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES (Are there other potential sources of revenue?) The Equipment Rental Division is funded by equipment rental rates paid by the various user departments. The rental rate consists of a Maintenance & Operations (M&O) charge, which covers all equipment-related maintenance, fuel, insurance and shop overhead; and an amortization charge, which goes toward the cost of future replacements. There is little opportunity for other sources of revenue for this program, although grant funding is used to purchase Transit buses and vans. The M&O charge for each vehicle or group of vehicles is adjusted annually according to actual maintenance costs and expected inflation on fuel and replacement parts. Likewise, the amortization charge is also adjusted annually to account for expected inflation. The 2000 budget reflected a $140,105 decrease in subsidies received from the Transit fund due to cutbacks in the Transit service and the consequent reduction of Transit vehicles in the active fleet. The Equipment Rental Division is and will continue to be impacted by these cutbacks and reductions in service to user departments. Further significant reductions in financial support and mothballing of vehicles will force a decrease in the staffing level of the division. ERD is currently staffed with one supervisor and three mechanics. The Equipment Rental Division reserve fund (comprised of amortization fees) totaled approximately $997,000 at the start of this year. The six-year rolling stock replacement program is currently estimated to be $2,028,400, with an estimated amortization income of $1,746,000 over the six years. This would leave an estimated fund balance of $713,600 in 2005. The original cost of the existing ERD fleet (excluding the Transit fleet and utility department equipment) was $2,268,433. The present estimated replacement cost is approximately $4,300,000. 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY (Is the service listed in the Comprehensive Plan?) The Equipment Rental Department service is not listed in the Comprehensive Plan; however, all user departments (Police, Fire, Parks, Planning, Engineering, Recreation, Transit and M&O) are indirectly impacted and benefited by the services that ERD provides. 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED (Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies?) Actual and potential problems include purchasing equipment that is not suitable for its intended function, lack of proper maintenance resulting in higher repair costs and shortened equipment life, and extended periods of downtime while waiting for repairs. Each of these situations would undermine the user department’s ability to provide service. 8. POPULATION SERVED (Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated?) Indirectly, the Equipment Rental Division serves the entire city population. ERD ensures that each city department has the right equipment in good working order to perform their prescribed functions, including Fire, Police, Public Works (street maintenance, sewer maintenance, water operations and maintenance), Parks, and Transit. 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT (Is there strong public and political support for the service?) The citizens of Pullman expect a high level of service from the city departments. Without the right equipment in good condition, the performance of every department would be impaired. There have been some comments that the city should run older equipment like some of the local contractors, but our analysis has shown that we need to be careful with this approach because the increased maintenance costs for older vehicles can more than offset the cost for purchasing and maintaining newer equipment. This being said, however, because we have a rather aggressive maintenance program we are often able to keep many of the industrial/commercial equipment in the fleet well past the time its book value (depreciation) is completed. Examples of this include a mobile street sweeper – 14 years old; plow and sander trucks – 17, 13, 12, and 11 years old; road grader – 13 years old; street roller – 15 years old; ladder and bucket truck – 9 years old; traffic paint striper – 13 years old; air compressor – 17 years old; fire ladder truck – 27 years old; fire pumper truck – 15 years old; brush chipper – 12 years old; and tractors that are 10 years old. One front-end loader that is 21 years old will be traded in this year. The majority of the cars and pickups in the fleet are maintained 8-10 years or longer, depending on the service they perform. Another point is that our fleet is lean in number with few if any backups, so we really can’t afford to have equipment down for extended periods of time. There is also sometimes a problem with getting replacement parts for older, obsolete equipment. 10. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY (Does the service address life safety issues?) The citizens of Pullman expect City Police, Fire and Public Works to respond quickly and adequately in any emergency. They expect the streets to be cleaned and properly marked, ice and snow to be controlled, parks maintained, and the drinking water and sanitary sewer systems to operate safely and properly. None of these would be possible without suitable, well-maintained equipment. 11. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE (What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service?) The Equipment Rental Division consists of one supervisor and three mechanics. This staffing level has not changed since 1983, despite an increase in the fleet size. ERD personnel are very versatile and are able to perform almost all of the necessary work for the wide variety of city equipment. Emergency repairs, routine repairs, and regular and preventive maintenance are scheduled on a priority basis, depending on the degree of emergency, requirements of the user department, and time of year. Services are judged by quality of service, performance, and user department satisfaction. 12. RELATED SERVICES (Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended?) The Equipment Rental Division maintains the city fuel island and pumps, the Wastewater Treatment Plant stand-by generator, and has assisted with maintenance on the Police Department’s generator. ERD also maintains the radio base stations and portable radios for M&O and Parks and assists the Police Department in programming their portable radios. 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT (Is this a federal or state mandated service?) RCW 35.21.088, paragraph 8, states, "Every city having a population of more than eight thousand, according to the last official census, shall establish such an equipment rental fund in its street department or any other department of city government. Such fund shall acquire the equipment necessary to serve the needs of the city street department. Such fund may, in addition, be created to service any other departments of city government or other governmental agencies as authorized hereinabove.". 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT (Does the service contribute to Economic Growth?) Only indirectly. 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION (Does the service help save energy?) The Equipment Rental Division is directly involved in energy conservation by maintaining all equipment at top performance levels for optimum fuel economy. OVERALL ASSESSMENT The Equipment Rental Division is an established, programmed method of providing for the replacement of city equipment at the optimum length of service in order to minimize the combined capital/operational expenditures while ensuring a high degree of reliability that needed equipment will be available for service. The capability of ERD needs to be adequate to serve the user departments of the city. Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities POLICE/FIRE POLICE HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Law enforcement in Pullman began in 1888 wherein a marshall was the chief law enforcement officer. In 1917 the office of marshall was abolished and a chief of police and police officer positions were created. The department grew in size with the City. By 1970 the department had a police chief, 3 sergeants, 10 patrol officers and a detective. The support services of the department consisted of a chief clerk, 4 clerk/dispatchers and 2 part time dispatchers. There was 1 parking meter enforcement person and 1 animal control officer. In the mid 1970s police and fire departments combined under the umbrella of a Department of Public Safety. The public safety director was both police chief and fire chief. There was an assistant director of public safety for police and an assistant director of public safety for fire (mid management positions). In the early 1980s the public safety concept was abandoned and traditional police and fire departments once again existed. At the time the public safety concept was abandoned the middle management position in the police department was eliminated. The department had a captain or assistant director of public safety for police from 1971 to mid 1982. An authorized staffing history of commissioned police officers from 1970 to present is illustrated in Chart 1 at the end of this document. I have also attached charts of the authorized staffing of support services, animal control and parking. An illustration of case reports, population and geographical growth of Pullman in the 1990s are contained in charts also attached to provide a visual perspective of overall growth. I will point out that the numbers of police officers authorized today is 2 officers higher than the highest number authorized in the 1970s. At the meeting pertaining to priorities and levels of service for administration and finance the Council expressed interest in overtime. Chart 8 shows overtime hours (not including compensatory time earned). Simply stated, because of our compressed staffing, turnover of police officers results in overtime. Attachment "A" contains a detailed historical perspective that allows for a more thorough understanding of the police department. Over time needs and community expectations change as civilization progresses. But some issues such as parking, animal control, traffic and drug/narcotics and alcoholrelated disorderly conduct have been consistent historical concerns in Pullman. Candidly, in reviewing Attachment "A" an obvious conclusion drawn from this detailed history is a pattern of moving staff around as problems surface, then resurface, rather than a consistent effort, and staff available, to address these reoccurring problems. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? Law Enforcement and Detention: RCW 35A.12.020 states in part "The appointive officers shall be those provided for by charter or ordinance and shall include a city clerk and a chief law enforcement officer." Maintenance of order is essential to the security and safety of the public. Enforcement of Washington State criminal laws, Washington State laws that are infractions and Pullman City Code require legal enforcement capability. In order to provide the maintenance of order on duty police officers are needed 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. A visible presence in the community assists in crime deterrence. Successful apprehension and prosecution of criminals provides for safety and security. Specialized knowledge including but not limited to drug/narcotic investigations, rape investigations, homicide investigations, crime prevention techniques and serious traffic accident investigations is important to assuring successful resolution to community problems. Communications: Radio and telephone communication, particularly during emergency situations is needed to assure a rapid response. During times of emergency a stressed citizen may not know steps to follow to assure safety and security. The communications element assures that communication to the caller and to the responder occurs. WHITCOM provides radio and telephone communications on most police incidents, medical emergency incidents and fire emergency incidents. Animal Control: Animal control is a safety service. Dangerous and diseased animals provide risks to the public. In addition uncontrolled animals are often a nuisance. The history of the City of Pullman indicates that this is an important service to the community. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? Law Enforcement and Detention: The City is required to have a chief law enforcement officer. Law enforcement is not a potential profit making service. When I was working on my Master of Public Administration degree the theme of government providing services versus private sector providing services came down to one item . . . profit. Government undertakes services that the public desires and which are not profitable for the private sector. In addressing levels of services and priorities for administration/finance John Sherman said in part "I think it is reasonable to say that it would be impossible to let the private sector meet these demands without any public sector involvement or encouragement." His statement echoes my assessment. Communications: Having a private service perform the work of WHITCOM is possible. Again, the profit potential to attract private service is questionable. Indeed, telephone companies have services very remote to the service area. So regionalization is possible and may be profitable. I am not aware of private ventures into this area so I suspect the profit margin is not high enough. More than likely this is a service that government will be left to manage because of liability exposure and public expectation. Animal Control: RCW Chapter 16.52 authorizes the City to contract with an incorporated humane society or a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals to enforce the provisions of the RCW relating to animals. I would thus believe that the enforcement of Pullman City Code would also be authorized. Animal control enforcement is not a moneymaker. Neither are shelter operations. Non profit organizations such as the Humane Society of the Palouse undertake shelter functions. These organizations use donations and contracts for service to survive. A few organizations in large cities have private shelter and animal control operations, similar to SpokAnimal. There is some interest in a regional approach to shelter. I have not received a warm reception to regional animal control enforcement. As noted in the historical perspective an attempt in the 1980s to provide an alternative to our shelter and enforcement operations proved futile either from a cost perspective or an availability perspective. PRIVATE CONTRAC TING OPTIONS: Should this service be contracted out? Law Enforcement and Detention: The City is required to have a chief law enforcement officer. This means that the City would be required to contract services to a private sector vendor and not merely turn the responsibility over to them. Private security firms in urban areas provide some service to private individuals and businesses. Rarely do you find such security firms in rural areas because the potential for profit is either low or non existent. Past reviews on private ambulance service is an indicator of that potential. Normally the liability exposure to a governmental agency for law enforcement functions is so high that the private security firms would have difficulty providing assurances that the employees they hire conform to standards that reduce the liability exposure. The costs associated in quality assurance would probably exceed the capability of private security firms. Some private prisons have been used with varying success, including liability exposure. Communications: This is a feasible area for private contracting. The details in the section on "Alternative Service Providers" mentioned above applies here. Animal Control: The shelter operation is probably more feasible for contracting out than the enforcement side, although, details in the section on "Alternative Service Providers" mentioned above applies here. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc. Law Enforcement and Detention: Federal agencies and state agencies contracting for law enforcement is very remote if it is possible at all. Contracting for law enforcement services by a county or another police agency is possible. In Pierce and King County some cities contract for services with the Sheriff Departments. If a city incorporates, the county is no longer responsible for law enforcement services, although they may enforce laws in that city because sheriff departments have law enforcement authority throughout the county. I am aware of cases where one city contracts with another city for police services (usually cities adjoining one another). Based on my observations and discussions with participants in contract situations, it appears that contracting law enforcement reduces levels of service because of costs. More often than not contracts are entered when a city first incorporates and after a period of time the city undertakes it’s own policing. Pullman contracts for misdemeanor services with the County. That includes district court, prosecuting attorney and jail. Some cities find that service cost too high, or the level of satisfaction is low and undertake some or all misdemeanor services at their own expense. Communications: WHITCOM is somewhat of an example of other public sector service providers. The City of Pullman entered into an interlocal agreement with Whitman County and Washington State University for consolidated emergency dispatch services. The City no longer provides dispatch services. Regional dispatching (beyond the boundaries of Whitman County) is possible. The feasibility of this type of venture based on a cost/benefit requires further study. Animal Control: Locally I am not aware of any federal, state or county animal control service. However, regional animal control operations are in existence throughout the State. John Sherman is familiar with one in Thurston County in which Lacey was the lead agency and other entities participated through an interlocal agreement. A regional animal control operation in Whitman County, through an interlocal agreement with shared revenues may be worth exploring. The County, Pullman, Albion, Palouse and Colfax are potential agencies for such regionalization. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenues? Law Enforcement and Detention: If Whitman County enacted the Growth Management Act there are funding resources available. On the Washington Coast cities have "impact fees" under that act that provide funding for police. We have already initiated the 0.1% sales tax for criminal justice purposes which will provide the city with an estimated $200,000 per year revenue. If this revenue goes directly to the Police Department then it would pay for some of the vacant positions and benefits. The civil service adoption of policies to allow participation in the police corps program can add a revenue stream of $10,000 per year for four years to off set salaries and benefits of new police officers. If we are able to use this to hire new officers to fill the vacant COPS grant positions, $80,000 over four years and $150,000 over three years for each candidate would be received to offset salaries and benefits. Over four years this is a total of $230,000. One other possibility is a complete analysis of the cost/benefit of providing our own municipal court, prosecutor and indigent defense. The cost benefit analysis has some cost and the results may show no financial advantage to the City. I suspect jail costs would be more if we provided our own jail and do not believe expenditure on a cost/benefit analysis would be wise for the jail area. Officer Scott Patrick called to my attention a concept he learned about attending Western Regional Institute for Community Oriented Policing training session. Apparently Spokane has explored a special court for persons who have committed the crime of driving while license suspended (DWLS). The offenders are provided the opportunity to work off fines, etc. without further criminal penalties or jail time. Officer Patrick suggests that this might be applicable to first time offenders of minors in possession of alcohol (MIP). Mayor Chandler, former City Attorney Jon Harlan and I had discussed a similar concept. Grants may be available for an experiment of this type of system. In addition a worker pool might be available for many needed maintenance functions within the City. In contrast to this approach is recent proposed legislation with less tolerance which, if passed, would provide for the revocation of the drivers license of a person convicted of a MIP violation. The Council may well want to weigh the impact of such an approach to MIP issues. Communications: Regionalization cost/benefit analysis is needed. Proposed legislation exists in both houses of the legislature for a 0.1% local option sales tax for emergency communications. The chance of the legislation passing this year is dim. Voter approval would be required. Animal Control: Fee increases would help. Again, this would require voter approval under I-695. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is service listed in Comp Plan? Law Enforcement and Detention: Chapter 4 (Pullman Future Vision); Chapter 7 (Transportation Element) Policy T1.2, Policy T1.10; Chapter 8 (Capital Facilities and Utilities Element), Goal CF3 and policies CF3.1 through CF3.5; and, Chapter 10 (Implementation). Communications: While not specifically stated, this is an important element of the above. Animal Control: While not specifically stated, this is an important element of the above. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? Law Enforcement and Detention: Crime and disorderly conduct occur. One merely has to look at the issue of noise. Approximately 1,000 noise complaints are received each year in Pullman. While Pullman is a relatively safe community in regards to Part I crimes, criminal activity and nuisances exist. The clearance rate for part I crimes in Pullman exceeds the national average. In fact, we have had the highest clearance rate in the State of Washington. The survey by the Washington State University Institute of Community Policing in 1994 showed an above average satisfaction from crime victims. Communications: WHITCOM is a result of an effort to centralize call taking and dispatch. E-911 expedites response. Animal Control: The emphasis on animal control set by the City Council is patrolling and enforcement. The result should be fewer dogs running at large, fewer animal noise problems and better rabies control. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? Law Enforcement and Detention: Lack of law enforcement and detention would result in chaos. A majority of the population would be significantly affected by the acts of a few. Communications: Lack of contact with police and fire and lack of adequate dispatching would result in loss of property and life. Animal Control: Animals running at large and lack of rabies control would result in bodily injury, property damage and in some cases loss of life. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? Law Enforcement and Detention: The survey conducted in 1994 by Washington State University Institute of Community Policing indicated strong community support. Pullman voters supported the institution of 0.1% optional sales tax for criminal justice funding on an advisory ballot (though it was not supported countywide). Criminal justice funding is high on the priorities of the local state legislators. Whitman County Commissioners implemented the 0.1% optional sales tax after the passage of I-695. These examples show strong public and political support for the service. Communications: Statewide passage of a telephone tax to support E-911 and the development of WHITCOM demonstrates strong support here. Animal Control: In 1999 the Pullman City Council had public input on proposed ordinance changes in animal control. While approaches to enforcement differed among citizens, the message was clear that animal control is a concern to the public. Animal welfare is a social concern demonstrated nationally. The fact that there exists a "Humane Society" speaks for itself. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: Does this service address life safety issues? Law Enforcement and Detention: From traffic to domestic violence. From DUI enforcement to rape prevention. One has merely to look at the laws of the State to determine the answer to this question. Unequivocally the answer is yes. Communications: Rapid and effective response to injuries, domestic violence, fires and other life safety matters require good communications. Animal Control: Vicious animals, rabies and animal waste are life safety issues. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? Law Enforcement and Detention: One major component of modern policing is prevention. How do you measure prevention? Problem oriented policing is a concept to involve solutions to community problems before they become property and life threatening. How many persons will not become victims when a perpetrator is incarcerated? These are difficult issues to measure. Never-the-less one life saved, one child removed from peril, one person referred to alcohol/drug treatment . . . these social actions, as difficult to measure a cost and benefit as they are, are a true measure of the meaning of "civilized society." Communications: Quick available reporting by citizens, regional coordinated dispatching from a single source, and rapid retrieval of information saves property and lives. Time lost may mean a life lost. Animal Control: Prevention of rabies is a major concern. Reduction in attacks by animals against pets and persons and the reduction of damage to property by uncontrolled animals are of high benefit to society. Responsible pet ownership information campaigns are an avenue to reducing problems before they start. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if this service ended? Law Enforcement and Detention: Other than the general public, potential problems with all services including telephone, public works, fire, parks, transit, and areas such as public schools would be significantly impacted. Communications: Other than the impact on the general public all emergency services would be impacted (countywide). Animal Control: Other than the impact on the general public our city parks have significant problems with animals. From time to time public schools also request assistance. Washington State University relies on this service. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this federal or state mandated service? Law Enforcement and Detention: RCW 35A.12.020 states in part "The appointive officers shall be those provided for by charter or ordinance and shall include a city clerk and a chief law enforcement officer." Pullman City Code, Chapter 1.36 establishes a police chief, defines the responsibilities and provides for staffing for the department as authorized by the annual budget. Communications: R.C.W. Chapter 38.52 provides for enhanced 911 statewide. An interlocal agreement for WHITCOM was authorized by the City Council under Resolution R-15-96. Communications is a function described for the police chief in Pullman City Code Chapter 1.36. Animal Control: Animal control is a function described for the police chief in Pullman City Code Chapter 1.36. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? Law Enforcement and Detention: This service is often overlooked as a major factor in economic growth. I was in law enforcement in California from the mid 1960s through the 1970s. I saw a number of once prosperous cities decline because of inadequate policing, generally blamed on inadequate city revenues. These communities became melting pots for crime and poverty. Business and industry left and the residential housing market plummeted. The "quality of life" concerns include to a great degree the feeling of safety. The image of a community’s safety is very important. One event can have a major impact. Chico, California had a riot a few years before one occurred in Pullman. Having visited Chico I knew it to be a nice college community. After the riot in Chico I remember an advertisement for a police chief. I remember thinking that I wouldn’t want to be a chief there because of the problems of the riot. Then Pullman had a riot. Since then I have talked with persons whose image of Pullman is tainted because of that one event. On top of that is the image of WSU as a party school. Whether you agree or disagree with the degree of problem that creates the image, the image is still there. If the party school image continues or if another riot were to occur I believe that a decade of bad image will result. In that event I will project that WSU student enrollment will decline and economic development will wane. The potential of the devastation caused by the uncontrolled actions of a few is dramatic. The impact of adequate policing to curb this potential is a major element in the image of Pullman and WSU. Pullman is a safe community as illustrated by some recent statistics compiled regarding the crime in PAC 10 communities. That data is listed below: 1998 PART I CRIME STATISTICS FOR PAC 10 UNIVERSITY COMMUNITIES Number of Crimes Washington State University Oregon State University Stanford University University of California at Berkley University of Oregon Arizona State University University of Arizona Pullman Corvallis Palo Alto Berkley Eugene Tempe Tucson 530 2271 2516 9310 11567 15324 45534 University of Washington Seattle 53052 1998 PART I CRIME STATISTICS FOR PAC 10 UNIVERSITY COMMUNITIES University of Southern California University of California at Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles 186281 186281 The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics latest data on crime loss is listed below. The data is from 1992 but does point out the loss anticipated in specific crimes. Average loss per crime, 1992 Mean loss, all crimes* $524 Personal crimes $218 Crimes of violence $206 Rape $234 Robbery $555 Assault $124 Household crimes $914 Personal and household theft $221 Burglary $834 Motor vehicle theft $3,990 Note: Data include all forms of economic loss, medical expenses, and time lost from work because of the crime. *Includes crimes involving no loss. Communications: Economic growth is impacted to the degree that people believe that they are able to report and receive quick response to problems that affect them. Animal Control: I best illustrate this by a personal experience. I was a police representative to a city community development block grant committee in California. These funds were for economically depressed areas of the city. In public meetings one of the major concerns of residents (many who were poverty stricken) was animal control. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? Law Enforcement and Detention: The function is not related to energy conservation. Communications: The function is not related to energy conservation. Animal Control: The function is not related to energy conservation. OVERALL ASSESSMENT All the services addressed above are essential for Pullman. Some of the animal control functions may have viable alternatives, particularly the shelter. However, in reviewing the charts, particularly staffing charts into the 1970s one can quickly conclude that service reductions in these areas are not what the citizens of Pullman have wanted or demanded. Therefore, I am hard pressed to suggest reducing or eliminating any facet of the police department. I am, however, concerned about the ability of the police department, from merely a staffing point of view, to meet the demands that makes Pullman such a great quality of life community. Using the authorized staffing for 2000 the number of police officers in Pullman has increased 9% since 1972 when the department achieved a staffing level of 23 police officers and 19% since 1990. Support services staffing has dropped 31% since 1990. But looking at some of the factors below, those that certainly impact police service, substantial growth has occurred in Pullman in the 1990s alone. For 1990 through 1999 the following change has occurred: FACTOR Square Miles Population Single Family Dwellings Duplexes Multiple Dwelling Units Group Houses Mobile Home Units FACTOR CHANGE 45% 9% 13% 1% 42% 0% 23% CHANGE 20% New Commercial Permits From 1990 through 1997 (latest data I could obtain) the following change has occurred: FACTOR Persons Residing in WSU Residence Halls Persons Residing in WSU Single Student Housing Persons Residing in WSU Family Housing CHANGE -20% -25% 7% The data above suggests that not only is the City of Pullman growing, but also the numbers of persons living on campus has declined and the logical conclusion is that those numbers of persons have moved and are living in the City jurisdiction. Two studies, one directed at support service performed by a police organization and the other directed at the organization of the city performed by a private firm recommended increased staffing which has yet to be achieved. The Council through the years has addressed the needs of the public and adjustments have been made internally in the police department to meet these Council directives. Often technology and innovation have helped. But growth in of the City and citizen expectations of police service have stretched the resources of the police department so thin that consistent efforts to provide many of these services does not exist. Attachment "A" contains the information that clearly shows this to be true. Attachment "C" is year 2000 budget background information. Police service is essential to quality of life. That police service must be capable of providing the resources necessary to assure quality of life. DETAILED HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Information based on some research done by Property Officer Jim Hatley and others indicates law enforcement for the City of Pullman began in 1888. R. Lanning was the first "marshall". In 1904 a marshall and a deputy marshall provided law enforcement. This research reflects that in 1916 George Wagner became the first "police chief." In 1917 Ordinance 336 section 4 abolished the office of city marshall and provided for a chief of police and police officers. In 1925 a "policeman", W.J. Macguire and a police chief, Horace Bashaw performed law enforcement duties. Details of the growth of the department prior to 1970 are not readily available. Two officers died in the line of duty in Pullman. Officer William J. Macguire (the first officer mentioned in our research) was shot to death in 1931 while checking some storage units. In 1949 Officer Elbert R. Claar was shot and killed in the locally famous "Easter Day Massacre." Commissioned Officer Staffing History The department had a police chief, three sergeants (one per each of the three patrol shifts), 10 patrol officers and a detective in 1970. In 1971 a police captain and four police officers were added. In 1972 a detective sergeant, a training officer and another patrol officer were added to the department. In 1975 a director of public safety was created to administer both fire and police departments. The captain became the assistant director of public safety. The highest number of commissioned police officers in the decade of the 1970s was (23) (today we have 25). At the end of 1979 the Department had a public safety director, assistant public safety director, (3) patrol sergeants, (1) detective sergeant, (13) patrol officers, (1) training officer and (1) detective. There was no reserve police officer program. In 1980 through mid 1982 the department had a public safety director (in lieu of a police chief and fire chief) and assistant public safety director. In mid 1982 the public safety concept was disbanded and the police chief position was reestablished by Ordinance 82-31. The assistant director of public safety left on disability retirement and the public safety director became police chief. Thus the administrative structure of the department flattened with a police chief, (3) patrol sergeants and (1) detective sergeant throughout the decade of the 1980s. (1) officer was assigned as detective throughout the decade. The training officer was assigned to training full time in 1980 and 1981. There were (11) patrol officers in 1980 and 1981 and (12) the remainder of the decade. The highest number of commissioned police officers in the decade of the 1980s was (20), a total of (3) fewer than the highest number in the previous decade. In 1981 turnover and a freeze on replacements reduced the actual staffing to a total of 15 police officers including the director of public safety. In 1982 the City Council authorized a reserve police officer program. In 1982 staffing shortages required the training officer perform patrol duties. From 1983 through 1987 the training officer spent a third of his time in training, a third as a check investigator and a third performing crime prevention functions. In 1988 this officer was assigned full time as a check investigator and the other duties distributed to others in the organization. By 1984 reserve police officers were performing over 800 hours of service and peaked in 1986 with 1847 hours. In mid 1986 the workload for detectives had increased and a third detective position was created. One detective was working with emphasis on drug/narcotic investigations (primarily full time). At the end of the decade there were (3) full time detectives. In 1989 the City Council authorized the creation of the "youth services officer" position. This was the first D.A.R.E. officer. The police department command structure remained flat in the 1990s with a police chief and sergeants. In 1990 the detective sergeant was renamed "administrative sergeant" and this position continued through the 1990s. The (3) patrol sergeant positions remained throughout the 1990s. In the spring of 1990 the City Council decided to eliminate NSF check investigations and convert one detective position to that of crimes against children/sex crimes investigations. Thus (2) detectives now had areas of emphasis (one had crimes against children/sex crimes investigations and the other one had drug/narcotic investigations). The third investigator was working all other major investigative cases. The youth services officer was conducting D.A.R.E. and performing duties as a resource to the schools on police matters. The number of patrol officers in 1990 remained at (12). In 1991 the City Council authorized a new patrol officer position. The officer in this position would coordinate the reserve police officer program and perform as needed as a specially trained motor vehicle accident investigator. In 1991 a "Law Enforcement Management Assistance Program" (LEMAP) review of support services was conducted by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. The review was conducted with anticipation of the retirement of Support Services Supervisor Faye Raspone (a non-commissioned position). The report recommended that communications, records, evidence/property, fleet and supply functions be placed under the supervision of the administrative sergeant. The report also recommended that a lieutenant’s position be created and that the lieutenant manage all functions of actual law enforcement (detectives, patrol, parking, animal control reserve officers and the D.A.R.E officer). The report also recommended alternatives to police officers relieving support services staff. The results of the LEMAP review were presented to the City Council in August 1991. In September 1991 the support services supervisor retired and the City Council created a new sergeant position pending consolidation of communications, the appointment of both a new non-commissioned support services supervisor and a new lieutenant’s position. This sergeant position remained until early 1998 when a sergeant retired and a new support services manager position (non-commissioned) was created. In 1992 Ralph Andersen and Associates completed an organizational study of the City of Pullman. This study recommended that a civilian support services supervisor be appointed, that an additional sergeant be added to patrol as a "relief sergeant", that a lieutenant’s position be created and that the minimum staffing on each patrol shift be (3) officers. The department operated with a (2) officer minimum per shift for patrol at that time and that is the operational minimum today. In a report to the City Council in June 1992 John Sherman addressed the recommendations of the LEMAP review and the results of the Ralph Andersen and Associates Study. John pointed out that the Police Chief’s recommendations were to add four officers immediately, consider adding a fifth police officer for college hill (a beat officer), at the time of consolidated communications (WHITCOM) add a support services supervisor and promote a sergeant to lieutenant, add a records position Tuesday through Saturday (7:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m.) and not add an additional patrol sergeant. In 1993 a new emphasis was placed on the detectives. The third detective was assigned off campus liaison duties (primarily working the college hill area and coordinating with Washington State University staff). This emphasis was recognition of growing problems of behavior related incidents on College Hill (early recognition of things to come that eventually resulted in a riot in 1998). In 1994, based on recommendations of the Spokane Police Department’s review of a drive-by shooting incident a change was made in emphasis of the detectives. One detective’s emphasis became juvenile crime. The full time emphasis of drug/narcotic investigations was reduced and the detective assigned to that emphasis was assigned the college hill liaison responsibilities. The crimes against children/sex crime emphasis remained with the third detective. I will point out the obvious trend of reacting to and emphasizing one problem by moving emphasis rather than adding staff. In 1994 the City Council authorized Washington State University Institute of Community Policing to determine public perceptions of Pullman Police. The results were presented to the City Council in October of that year. The survey results indicated that 88 percent of the persons surveyed support Community Oriented Policing (which is often associated with officers on a beat). 68 percent of respondents said Pullman Police did a good job. Washington State University Students and Pullman High School students expressed unfavorable responses to Pullman Police although their responses matched those of surveys conducted in other communities of persons in those age groups. Pullman Police received an above average favorable response from crime victims with 54 percent. 91 percent of the business community believed that the police have the best interest of business in mind but wanted to see officers on foot patrol, particularly in the downtown area. In 1995 one patrol officer was assigned to teach at the basic police academy leaving one vacancy in patrol. This officer’s salary and benefits were reimbursed to the City by the State. The council authorized the addition of one police officer to fill the patrol vacancy keeping the patrol staffing at the level maintained since 1991. In February 1995 the City Council adopted a goal which stated "Address identified Police Department staffing needs for a Police Lieutenant and additional line officers through: a. exploring funding options; b. reexamining the need to continue special assignment (speciality) positions: and, c. promoting cooperation with entities. As a result in January 1996 a report on police department specialty positions was provided to the City Council. A survey of cities in Washington with populations from 15,000 to 30,000 resulted in the following results: Title Police Chief Assistant Police Chief Captain Lieutenant Watch Commander Sergeant Detective .8 .06 5.36 4.47 .43 1 0 0 5 3 Average 1 0 0 Number 1 Specialists (Other than detective but includes D.A.R.E.) 4.3 2 Patrol Officers 21.4 14 (Including officer at academy) At the end of 1997 the officer assigned to the criminal justice academy resigned. The City Council authorized the filling of this position with an officer whose duty time was devoted to traffic enforcement. This position was filled in January 1998. In 1997 patrol staffing was significantly reduced because of retirements and resignations. As a result (2) detectives were temporarily placed on patrol duties. One of those positions now assigned to patrol had been the "College Hill Liaison." Ironically the 1997 police annual report said "The impact of this move resulted in reducing the effectiveness of the liaison duties on College Hill and with Washington State University staff." The results of this move became apparent on May 2 and 3, 1998. After the riot on College Hill in May 1998 a recommendation was made to the City Council to add (3) police officers through a COPS grant for beats on College Hill. The City Council approved the grant applications and the applications were approved by the United States Department of Justice. Because of staffing vacancies the grant positions went unfilled in 1998. However, in the interim (2) officers were temporarily appointed to fill two College Hill beat positions until vacant positions were filled and the officers given basic training. From 1998 until the fall of 1999 the youth services officer was temporarily assigned to patrol duties and the traffic accident investigator/reserve coordinator was assigned full time to a patrol shift. In the 1999 budget, the City Council authorized a police lieutenant’s position and the funding of the (3) additional COPS grant positions. Existing patrol officer vacancies were filled and one COPS officer position was filled by mid year. Because of the number of new officers and available staff to allow the new officers to complete in-service field officer training, the other two COPS officer positions could not be filled in 1999. The selection process for a lieutenant and subsequent background investigation took until July 1999 to complete. At that point, with I-695 looming, the lieutenant’s position was frozen and the candidate was not hired. Between 1990 and 1996 the hours performed by reserve police officers remained between 1600 and 1800 hours per year except in 1995 when it dropped to 600 hours. In 1997 the hours dedicated by reserves dropped below 600 hours and have remained there through 1999. A reduction in the number of reserve officers is a primary reason for reduction in hours. Reserve academies have not been recently utilized due to staffing problems. At the present time, all police officer vacancies, other than the (2) remaining COPS positions and the lieutenant’s position, are filled. Since October the traffic officer and youth services officer have been reassigned to a major criminal investigation. This investigation has required resources beyond the capability of the normal detective staffing. In addition one detective that had been assigned to patrol was returned to the detectives position in October. The traffic enforcement officer, the youth services officer and (2) of the (3) detectives are also assigned to this major criminal investigation. The result is that the D.A.R.E. program did not happen this fall and desired coordination with the public schools has resulted in some problems. In addition, the traffic officer has not done traffic enforcement. During 1999 the City Council heard from the Pullman School District and citizens regarding concerns of the lack of drug/narcotic enforcement. One detective that had been assigned to a footbeat position was returned to the detective position because of the increased need for drug/narcotic investigations. A further justification for the return to drug/narcotic investigations is the results of a study on rural teen drug use. Refer to a copy of an article from the January 27, 2000 issue Lewiston Morning Tribune (Attachment "B"). There remains one police officer to perform beat duties on College Hill. The effectiveness of only one officer performing beat duties is highly questionable. Three officers are needed to perform the beat duties. The filling of the COPS grant positions, if approved by the City Council, will fulfill that staffing need. Support Services Staffing History The history of support staffing of the Pullman Police Department is not as easy to trace as that of police officers. Therefore 1970 will be the base. From 1970 through 1974 a records and communications section for police existed. A chief clerk supervised the (2) part time clerks and (4) full time clerk/dispatchers. In 1975 the title "chief clerk" was changed to support services supervisor. Support services supported both police and fire under the public safety department concept. The staff changed titles in 1975 resulting in (1) clerk, (3) full time dispatcher, and (1) 4/5 time dispatcher and (3) part time dispatchers. In 1979 an additional "receptionist/clerk" was added. In 1980 support services comprised of (1) support services supervisor, (3) full time dispatchers and (1) 4/5 time dispatcher, (1) part time dispatcher, (1) casual fill-in dispatcher, (1) receptionist, (2) clerks and (1) part time receptionist. One clerk performed secretarial functions including tape transcriptions on investigations, administrative filing and official correspondence. In mid 1982 the department of public safety concept was abandoned and traditional police and fire departments were established. Support services was part of the police department but served both police and fire departments. In 1986 the 4/5time dispatcher position was converted to full time and there were (4) full time dispatchers in 1986 and 1987. In 1988 one full time dispatcher reverted back to 4/5-time dispatcher and there were then again (3) full time dispatchers and (1) 4/5 time dispatcher. In the mid 1980’s a new property and evidence control system was established. We later discovered that this move met the state audit requirements. The receptionist was given added duties of property and evidence control. Dispatchers performed radio duties for the Pullman Police Department, Pullman Fire Department, Pullman Ambulance for the south half of Whitman County, and Rural Fire District 12. By 1989 the dispatching responsibilities for Rural Fire District14, Palouse Fire Department and EMTs, Albion Fire Department and EMTs and the Johnson Fire Department had fallen upon the support services dispatchers. Basic 911 was installed in Pullman in the early 1980’s. In 1986 the Police Department moved into a new police facility. The Pullman Police Department began operating a computerized records system. The software was purchased from Syntax Corporation and was called Law Enforcement Management System. The support services supervisor was delegated the responsibility for hardware and software in the Police Department. By 1989 the records management tasks and workload were such that the records clerks could no longer provide relief for dispatchers. In the mid 1980s support services began coordinating officer subpoenas and requests for officers to appear in court. In addition, court readers were allowed, thus saving overtime for off duty officers. A records clerk or the receptionist would appear in district court two days per week and "read" cases for the record. New legislation provided for officer statements to be accepted in court on infractions so after a few years court readers were no longer needed and that duty was eliminated. In 1990 an additional casual fill in dispatcher was added. A part time receptionist position was authorized in 1990 because evidence and property control was becoming a task requiring more of the time of the receptionist assigned to the duties. In 1991 the support services supervisor retired and a police sergeant position was created and replaced the support services supervisor (see section on police for details). In 1992 one records clerk was reclassified to support level "C". This position is the position of secretary. Based on the Ralph Andersen and Associates recommendation (discussed earlier) a nighttime records position Tuesday through Saturday from 7:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. was authorized. In 1992 supervision of the animal control and parking functions was assigned to the support services sergeant. In 1993 the title "records clerks" was changed to "records specialists". From 1993 through 1995 there were no changes in support services. In June of 1996 support services underwent a major restructuring. WHITCOM became operational and support services no longer had dispatchers. Three positions were classified as records specialist II. Those positions were the evidence/property function, dayshift records position and the night records position. Records specialist I positions took the place of dispatchers regarding telephones, reception and monitoring the jail. In addition the records specialist I personnel began performing transcription duties. Digital dictation equipment was purchased so officers could dictate reports by telephone. The previously discussed records management software had been sold by the originating company to another company. In 1996 the new company declared bankruptcy and announced the records management software would not be supported beyond 1996. A new records software (Spillman) system used by Whitman County Sheriff, Washington State University and Pullman Police Department was part of the package in the consolidation. At the end of 1996 support services consisted of: Support Services Supervisor (Police Sergeant) 1 Records Specialist I 3 4/5 Records Specialist I 1 Half Time Records Specialist I 1 Casual Records Specialist I (16 hours per week) 1 Records Specialist II 3 Animal control and parking were also part of support services. In 1998 animal control was transferred to the administrative sergeant. Parking enforcers were placed in patrol. In 1998 the sergeant in charge of support services retired on a disability. The City Council authorized the hiring of a support services manager and a support services manager was appointed. The support services manager is responsible for all department supplies, uniforms, facility needs, computer software and computer hardware. In 1999 the City Council authorized an information services specialist position, supervised by the support services manager. As of this date support services has frozen a vacant records specialist I full time position and records specialist casual position. The night records specialist II position has been moved to fill in the vacant records specialist I position to assure 24-hour coverage. The swing shift parking enforcer provides breaks for the swing shift records specialist I shift Monday through Friday. On graveyard shift and Saturday and Sunday swing shift patrol officers, if available provide for breaks. Otherwise records specialist I personnel take breaks and eat at their workstations. The same is true on weekends on day shift for records specialist I personnel. Parking Staffing History The history of parking enforcement of the Pullman Police Department is not as easy to trace as that of police officers. According to Jim Hatley, who was hired by the Pullman Police Department in 1965, there were parking officers whose primary duties were parking meter enforcement from the mid 1960s to the early 1970’s. A three-wheel scooter was purchased for that purpose. In the late 1960’s or early 1970’s some parking enforcement occurred on College Hill. Although I have been unable to find data to support the position in most of the 1970’s I did contact Jim Hatley, Sheriff Tomson and Faye Raspone. Sheriff Tomson was a Pullman police officer and sergeant in the 1970s and Faye Raspone was both chief clerk and support services supervisor in the 1970s. The three of them confirmed that a parking enforcer position existed, primarily for parking meter violation enforcement until at least 1977. In 1978 a "meter maid" position was budgeted but the position was eliminated in the 1979 budget. Prior to 1979 parking meters in the downtown area were removed. In 1982 the City Council authorized the establishment of a "parking violations bureau." This bureau was created upon the creation of a downtown free parking zone. In 1983 a parking enforcer was hired. While the major emphasis for the parking enforcer was downtown, the number of complaints from College Hill required enforcement time there as well. The City Council subsequently passed a 168-hour ordinance in 1988 that included a "junk vehicle" element. This expanded the duties of parking enforcers. Turnover in this position was high from 1983 through 1992. In 1993 the City Council authorized an additional parking enforcer based on the concerns of inadequate enforcement from downtown business owners and the rising number of complaints from residential areas (primarily College Hill). One parking enforcer left each year from 1993 through 1996. In 1993 a computerized portable ticket writer was purchased for the parking violations bureau. This purchase reduced the amount of "administrative" time required for the parking enforcers and allowed more time for enforcement. As of this date there are two parking enforcers. One enforcer works 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and one works 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Both enforcers are normally scheduled to work Monday through Friday. On football game days one enforcer works approximately four hours to take care of pre-game parking problems on College Hill. The swing shift parking enforcer is also responsible for inventorying burned out streetlights and taking care of administrative paperwork. The administrative paperwork includes sending documents on parking violations to the court on a daily basis; the running of all outstanding tickets daily; the sending of first and second notices of failure to pay infractions on a daily basis; delinquent payments sent for collection on a regular basis; the list of burned out street lights forwarded to the appropriate agency; and, the wheel lock list updated. The computerized ticket writer is not Y2K compliant. A replacement was approved in the Capital Improvement Program but expenditure for a replacement is frozen. After January 1, 2000 a review was made of the capability of the ticket writer and the result is that the device has the potential of damaging the network and there is no support for the software. An analysis of the cost savings of new parking software indicates probable savings of $6,000 annually with a straight pay off at 4 to 5 years. The estimated life of new software is 10 years. Animal Control Staffing History The history of animal control staffing of the Pullman Police Department is not as easy to trace as that of police officers. Jim Hatley recalls that the police department had part time animal control officers from the mid 1960’s to 1970. Police officers did a significant amount of animal pick up and enforcement. In 1970 and 1971 the City had (1) full time animal control officer. The position was eliminated in 1972. The position was resurrected in 1973 and continued through 1974. In 1975 animal control became a separate service with (1) full time animal control officer and (1) part time animal control officer. In 1976 an additional part time animal control officer was hired. From 1976 through 1979 animal control consisted of (1) full time and (2) part time animal officers. The animal shelter in the 1960’s was a building north of the current site of the sewage treatment plant. The facility was a building that contained some cages. In the mid 1970’s the current animal shelter was constructed. In 1980 the animal control function returned as part of the police service. In 1980 (1) half time animal control officer and (2) part time animal control officers provided animal control and animal shelter duties. In 1981 (1) part time position was eliminated. In the 1982 preliminary budget the following statement was made pertaining to animal control: The animal control program has two part time animal control officers. There will be no increase in activity in this area. An emphasis will be made on alternatives to the existing animal control program. During 1982, it is anticipated that efforts for increased volunteer participation, or perhaps a humane organization will be made to provide for a portion or all of the animal control function in the City of Pullman. The budget limits the availability of animal control officers to ordinary nuisance calls, and also limits the needed repair of the animal control facility. In 1982 the City Council expressed desire for emphasis on patrolling for stray dogs. In addition, research into alternatives to providing animal control resulted in no cost-effective solution, including another group providing animal control and/or animal shelter functions. In the 1983 budget the City Council authorized a full time animal control officer and a part time animal control officer. The preliminary budget for that year had the following statement: The direction of the council in 1982 has resulted in an emphasis on patrolling. This resulted in a 25 hours per week employee and a part time employee of 6 hours per week versus two part time employees. This reorganization was a "stop gap" in 1982 using previously budgeted funds. In order to accomplish the goals set by the council, the budget request reflects one full time animal control officer and one 15 hour per week part time employee. The volunteer program is limited at present due to lack of coordination. Coordination will occur under the 1983 budget. Since 1983 there has been (1) full time animal control officer and (1) part time (15 hours per week) assistant animal control officer. The need for an assistant animal control officer is expressed in the following statement from pages 7 and 8 of the Pullman Police Department Report of the ‘80s: Due to the animals confined at the shelter, the animal control operation must have persons working 7 days a week. The animal control officer normally works Monday through Friday and the assistant animal control officer (15 hours per week) provides necessary cleaning and feeding and shelter operations on Saturday and feeding and cleaning on Sundays and holidays. The assistant animal control officer also is subject to call out after normal working hours. Turnover of animal control staff has been fairly high. Since 1983 there have been four animal control officers. From 1980 through 1989 there were 9 part time animal control employees that left. From 1990 to this date 5 left and one was promoted to animal control officer. At present (1) animal control officer and (1) assistant animal control officer perform animal control duties. A police advisory committee review of animal control occurred in 1999 and the results of that review were presented to the City Council. FIRE The information contained within this document is presented for your review during your discussions on service levels and priorities for all departments. HISTORY August 7, 1889, Ordinance No. 32. An ordinance to authorize the formation of a Fire Department for the Town of Pullman, Whitman County, Washington Territory was passed and approved. The department remained an all-volunteer department until 1954 when a full-time Fire Chief was appointed. On January 1, 1968, four career firefighter positions were authorized, creating what is referred to as a combination or part-paid department. Additional staff was added through The Comprehensive Employment Training Act in the early 1970s, Departmental reorganization in the 1980s and the passage of an Emergency Me dical Services Levy in the 1990s. The department today remains a combination or part-paid department comprised of 18 career personnel (three additional authorized but frozen), one civilian support employee, and 25 reserve personnel. The 25 reserve firefighters support and compliment career firefighters in the provision of both fire protection and emergency medical services. Recruitment and retention of reserve firefighters has become challenging because of availability (daytime response, employer and family commitments); attrition (largest resource pool consists of college students who have been involved in other departments or are seeking a career in the fire profession, the normal longevity is four years); and difficulty in training and certifying at required levels mandated by state and federal regulations (hours required beyond the individual’s normal professional and family requirements). The department recruits for and conducts an annual recruit academy for new reserve firefighter candidates. During the 1960s the Pullman Junior Chamber of Commerce gave the ambulance service they were operating to the Pullman Volunteer Fire Department. The Pullman Volunteer Department provided ambulance service until 1968 when staffing was augmented with career personnel. In the 1970s the Pullman Volunteer Fire Department gave the ambulance and ambulance operation to the City of Pullman. In the 1980s The Fair Labor Standards Act was amended dramatically and expanded the scope of coverage to include the definition of "employer" a "public agency", as well as expanding the definition of "commerce" to specifically include "an activity of a public agency." These amendments changed the volunteer firefighters to reserve firefighters as they were being compensated more than a nominal fee and also established work hour thresholds for career firefighters. NEED FOR SERVICE (Should the service be provided at all?) The original need for a Fire Department in Pullman was established in the 1880s after three major fires. Changing roles and responsibilities of the Pullman Fire Department have created new requirements for both personnel and equipment. Todays fire department responsibilities include fire suppression, expanded advanced life support and medical transportation, increased responses for hazardous materials and environmental monitoring, technical rescue operations, disaster preparedness, public education, CPR and first aid classes, first aid for public events, fire prevention and fire/arson investigation. Fire personnel training has been changed significantly to meet current and future needs. The continual increase in public demand for these services has been documented and provided to the City Council and general public in annual reports showing the following: Fire Calls Emergency Medical Service Calls 1990: 215 1990: 600 1999: 459 1999: 806 Protection responsibilities will show the following: 1990: 5.9 square miles 1999: 8.29 square miles Population: 1990: 22,270 1999: 25,630 Property Valuation: 1992: $316,321,305 1999: $692,568,491 Through goal setting and budget processes the City Council has established at what level the Fire Department has been able to provide services to the community. The Insurance Services Office establishes the Grading Schedule for Municipal Fire Protection. The Grading Schedule is a means of classifying municipalities with reference to their fire defenses and physical conditions. The Washington State Survey and Rating Bureau then utilizes the schedule to rate the cities level of fire protection. In 1990 the Washington State Rating Bureau rated the City of Pullman at a Class Five (Attachment A), one being high and ten being low. The State of Idaho does not apply the same elements in rating as the State of Washington. The City of Moscow receives credit for their staffing utilizing a formula that three volunteer firefighters equal one career firefighter and with seventy-four members they receive credit for having twenty-five career firefighters. They also have a separate ambulance squad of thirty EMTs that provide emergency medical services. Insurance companies then utilize this rating as they establish fire insurance premium rates for property owners within the city. The Pullman Fire Department and the services it provides within the City Of Pullman fulfill a very important expectation of the citizens within the community relating to their quality of life and safety. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS (Should this be a private service?) There are no local alternative service providers that are staffed or equipped to provide services. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS (Should the service be contracted out?) Privatization of emergency medical services has been researched before and it was not receptive because they are volume driven. It was also determined at that time that it was not cost effective or efficient nor do private providers provide the level or range of services being provided by the Pullman Fire Department. Within the last year the response times and reliability as to longevity has become a problem with private providers. There are three different alternatives to providing service: volunteer, combination, and career. A volunteer department does not function in Pullman as shown through progression to a combination department. An all career department is not economically feasible. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS (Federal, state, county, etc.) 1. Washington State University provides fire services within the City of Pullman to State of Washington owned and occupied properties within their defined area of responsibility. Cooperative services between the City of Pullman and WSU are being explored and developed at this time. 2. Whitman County Rural Fire Protection District #12 provides Fire Suppression and First Responder EMS to the rural area surrounding the City of Pullman. 3. Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport provides the required initial FAA fire response to aircraft incidents occurring at the airport. The Pullman Fire Department provides all Emergency Medical Services and structural fire control to the Airport. Also, the department provides additional assistance to aircraft incidents. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES (Are there other potential sources of revenues?) We presently have user fees for ambulance service, fire inspection services and CPR and first aid classes. Emergency Medical Services are supported by a citizen-approved levy assessing 50 cents per thousand-property valuation. Additional revenue for Emergency Medical Services is generated through contracts with the City of Albion, the City of Palouse and Whitman County Fire Protection District #4, Whitman County Fire Protection District #12, and Pullman Memorial Hospital. Estimated revenue for 1999 from the emergency medical services levy, user fees, and contracts is $543,708.00 and $6,500.00 from CPR and first aid classes. ADDITIONAL FUNDING OPTIONS 1. Cooperative services with WSU and contract. 2. Expanding services to the Pullman-Moscow Airport and contract with the Pullman –Moscow Airport Board and FAA. 3. Cooperative services with Whitman County Fire Protection District #12 and contract. 4. Provide all ambulance transports for Pullman Memorial, Gritman, and Whitman County Hospitals. Provide transports to or from Pullman, Moscow, Colfax, Albion, Palouse, Colton, and Uniontown. 5. Present an operational levy for Fire Department Services to the general public. 6. County-wide Emergency Medical Services Levy. 7. Pullman Memorial Hospital District Emergency Medical Service Levy and contract. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY (Is service listed in Comp Plan?) The Pullman Fire Department is contained within the plan and it states that "the City of Pullman Fire Department will provide services at the appropriate levels." PROBLEMS ADDRESSED (Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies?) The Pullman Fire Department, at current operating and staffing levels, does not alleviate deficiencies identified by the Washington State Survey and Rating Bureau, National Fire Protection Standards, and the Ralph Anderson Study. On January 11, 2000, the Pullman City Council approved the Pullman Fire Department Modified Master Plan establishing direction through year 2005. POPULATION SERVED (Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated?) Fire: 25,630 Emergency Medical Services: 29,765 PUBLIC SUPPORT (Is there strong public and political support for the service?) Yes – Through the Emergency Medical Services Levy and feedback from meetings and correspondence. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY (Does this service address life safety issues?) Both public health and safety. The department mission statement is: To provide quality and cost-effective emergency services for the preservation of life and property. This service shall be compatible with the needs of the community and at the levels reasonably permitted by approved funding. EFFECIENCY OF SERVICES (What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service?) Efficiency can best be illustrated by the following: in the provision of Fire Suppression and Emergency Medical Services there is a "six-minute window" for aggressive intervention. In a fire from incipient stage to flashover is six minutes. In an Emergency Medical Incident such as a cardiac arrest from onset to nonreversible damage is four to six minutes. Another window is referred to as the "golden hour". In emergency medical services that is the time in a trauma situation from a patient’s injury to a patient being treated in the operating room. The Pullman Fire Department has been able to respond from receipt of the alarm to most incident scenes within the city limits within five minutes. Current shift levels of five personnel assigned to one of three shifts being reduced to three compromises our delivery efficiency when minimum staffing on an engine is three and an ambulance is two and service demands require multiple engine and ambulance responses. This deficiency is illustrated in the attachments. As the city continues to expand, response distances and times will be affected. Cost/Benefit The cost and the benefit for the provision of the services provided by the Pullman Fire Department can best be illustrated by stating that the fire loss to properties within the city is low and the survival rate for patients receiving emergency medical services is high. Placing value to life and property is extremely difficult. RELATED SERVICES (Would other areas be impacted if this service were ended?) Yes 1. 2. 3. 4. Building Inspection Department Police Department WHITCOM Communications Center All entities that have contracts for services. LEGAL (Is this a federal or state mandated service?) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. The State of Washington through the adoption of the Uniform Fire Codes. Optional Municipal Code City Code National Fire Protection Association Standard 1500 (Attachment B). Grading Schedule for Municipal Fire Protection (Attachment C). Safety Standards for Firefighters Washington Administrative Code 296-305 (Attachment D). City of Pullman Fire Department Standard Operating Procedure (Attachment E). ECONOMIC GROWTH (Does the service contribute to economic growth?) YES The services provided by the City of Pullman Fire Department have a direct affect on construction and expansion of business and industry. ENERGY CONSERVATION (Does the service help save energy?) Not Applicable OVERALL ASSESSMENT Based on public demand and expectations, the services provided by the Fire Department should be a high priority. The current level of services provided by the Fire Department has been shown within this document. Appropriate levels for the provision of fire services are shown within the attachments. Future levels of service determined by the City Council will identify the risk and exposure experienced by the City and the Fire Department and citizens we serve. Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities PUBLIC SERVICES Historical Perspective The roots of the Public Services Department can be traced back to the development of the first parks in Pullman. The parks system was formed in 1903 when the first city park was established on Pioneer Hill on property donated from William Daw. The park was later named Kruegel Park. In 1904, Pullman’s second park was purchased from Albert Reaney. The first Parks Commission was established in 1906. The Parks Commission developed a policy to "have a playground on each hill in Pullman." That goal was realized through the acquisition of Sunnyside Park in 1953 which complemented the existing Harrison Park on Military Hill and McGee Park on College Hill. Military Hill Park and Sunnyside Park were fully developed in 1974 with the aid of federal grant funding. Other significant park developments include the additions of the City Playfields in 1941, the Recreational Vehicle Park in 1983, and Lawson Gardens in 1987. The City has received two land dedications with Terre View Park scheduled for completion in 2000, and 7 undeveloped acres at Itani Park. The current park system includes 13 parks totaling 97 acres. The City’s role in public swimming began in 1917 with the construction of the original pool at Reaney Park. It was replaced in 1960 on the current site. A complete renovation occurred in 1979 resulting in the Reaney pool design as you see it today. In 1997 a group of parents raised over $1,000 toward the construction of a wading pool at Reaney Park. Swimming in Pullman will reach a new level with the completion of the new Pullman Aquatic Center later this year. Prior to mid 1960s, the parks and cemetery maintenance functions were assigned to the Maintenance and Operations Division. The "Old Park Shop" was constructed in 1968 to serve as an operations base for parks crews. Subsequently, the Parks and Recreation Department was formed with the administrative functions located at a converted house near Reaney Park. In 1972 the Parks and Recreation Department moved into the new City Hall. At that time the library and building maintenance functions were included as divisions of the department. The Public Services Department was formed in 1980 when the library was separated into its own department. The Public Services Department consists of three primary divisions including Parks Maintenance, Recreation, and Government Buildings. The Recreation Division appointed its first Superintendent in 1964 at the recommendation of the Parks and Recreation Commission. The current full-time staff includes the Senior Coordinator and the Recreation Supervisor positions. The Parks Division currently consists of one Superintendent, six Groundskeepers, one Horticulturist, and one Community Improvement Representative. The parks staff also employs several seasonal positions to meet the high park demands for spring and summer. The Government Buildings staff consists of one supervisor, one assistant, and two custodians. In 1998, a full-time Communications Specialist was added to Public Services to provide programming for the Government Access Channel and other media productions for the City. Since 1997, the Public Services Department has experienced many new challenges, including the development of two new parks; ground breaking of the Pullman Aquatic Center; the remodeling of the Pioneer Center; and the Proposition One developments which include the trail extensions and the downtown beautification. Still pending are the wading pool and the RV shower projects. The current organizational structure for the Public Services Department includes the Parks Division, Recreation Division, Government Buildings, and the Government Access Channel. The department has a central administration function that supports all the divisions, thus making Public Services a very flat and efficient organization. NEED FOR THE SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? The diversity of services provided by the Public Services Department makes this a difficult question to answer. The popularity and support of Pullman’s parks system is evident in a number of ways. The passage of Proposition One in 1998 to enhance the downtown and create a trail system linking to the Bill Chipman Trail signaled strong interest in the aesthetic and recreational enhancement of Pullman. The Volunteer-In-Parks program was launched in 1999 with most parks having been adopted by local families and groups. The RV Park is often at capacity and athletic tournaments are scheduled throughout the summer in Pullman. The Recreation Division recorded over 53,000 participants in 1999 in a variety of programs, events, and classes for all ages. The majority of these programs are fee-based and generated revenue of over $228,000 for that same year. Clearly, the need for these services is demonstrated through the popularity and willingness of participants to pay for programs. The Government Buildings Division is responsible for the presentation and maintenance of the City’s public buildings. The police and fire buildings are 24-hour facilities and require additional care and maintenance Monday through Friday. The Library is open seven days a week and also requires extra attention. Janitorial functions are performed by two custodial staff, while building service and repair functions are performed by two maintenance staff. The value of this service is realized by maximizing the life and usefulness of government operated buildings and by providing safe and professional centers for government business. Communication services are supported through the cable franchise tax collected from Pullman’s television cable provider. The tax revenue in 1998 was $145,000 and the estimated annual expenditure for the year was $52,800. The televising of local council, school board, and other public meetings is a very popular service. The access channel promotes community-related announcements and marketing of city programs. The Community Update and employee newsletter are also coordinated through this division. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? Generally, unless there is a clear opportunity for profit, the private sector is unwilling to risk capital. While the services provided by government may be popular, most are supported in part by taxes. For example, swimming pools are the number one requested recreational amenity to be provided by government. However, swimming pools typically recover less than half of their operating costs. Conversely, most bowling alleys and skating rinks are privately operated since they have the potential to be profitable. There are services provided by the Public Services Department that have the potential to be provided by the private sector. For example cemeteries and RV parks are often managed privately. In 1999, the budgeted operating expenditure for the cemetery was $59,000 and the revenue was less than $20,000. If privately managed, a more profitable rate structure would need to be employed. The RV Park collected $22,000 for 1999 and costs about half that amount to maintain and operate. The revenue produced from the RV Park makes this operation attractive for the city to manage. The Recreation Division coordinates with many private instructors. For example adventure trips, Skyhawks Summer Camps, Palouse Empire Gymnastics, aerobic s trengthening, and others are contractual arrangements that expand the city’s program offering to the community. By coordinating these programs and screening for quality, participants benefit from the variety and convenience provided in the recreation catalog. PRIVATE CONRACTOR OPTIONS: Should the service be contracted out? Contracting services is becoming more popular among local government. Many park maintenance activities including pesticide applications, tree services, and custodial functions are commonly contracted. The greatest benefit of contracting these services is the ability to quickly alter levels of service with no long-term commitments to a vendor. As the needs of the organization change, a contract can easily be adjusted to accommodate the change. Sometimes there is a cost benefit to contracted services versus providing the service in-house. However, this is not always the case depending on the profit margin required by the vendor and the level of competition to provide the service. We recently received two competitive bids for full custodial services for the Neill Public Library. One proposal was for $1,140 a month and another for $1,280 a month. Our in-house costs for the same service are estimated to be $1,182 per month. The in-house estimate includes the ability to respond to additional requests. The disadvantages of contracting are the loss of flexibility and the control over quality and staff selection. For example, a contracted custodial company is compensated by the job not the hour. Therefore, the company is not obligated to perform additional duties outside of the agreed scope of work. Staff selection and security are also significant issues when considering contracted services. The custodial staff requires access to sensitive records areas, thus making security and criminal history essential issues to consider. The Public Services Department needs a consistent core of full-time staff for the ongoing, routine functions and for those functions where quality, safety, security and customer service are essential. Services that are very specialized, occur infrequently, or require a great deal of capital have the most potential for contracting. The management of the Aquatic Center fitness room is an example of a service that fits the contract criteria. The operation of the fitness room requires capital for equipment, trained staff, and has the potential for profit. The solid waste ordinance enforcement represents about half of the work assigned to the Community Improvement Representative for Public Services. Pullman Disposal is the only current solid waste collector for the City of Pullman. Pullman Disposal is governed by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, which sets the rates and operational policies. Under this arrangement, the City of Pullman has limited influence with respect to how Pullman Disposal conducts its business. It is possible for the City of Pullman to contract directly with Pullman Disposal as the solid waste collector. A contract could transfer many of the related ordinance functions onto the collector. Most Puget Sound cities use a direct contract for their solid waste collection and often include an exemption of solid waste fees for the local municipality. The disposal fees for the City of Pullman exceeded $30,000 for 1999. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, State, County, etc. The City of Pullman is the only agency to manage parks in the city itself. The Pullman School District and WSU manage open spaces and playgrounds that offer additional spaces for outdoor recreation. The Recreation Division coordinates with many agencies for making the most use of recreation facilities in Pullman. Our recreation programs use the public schools, Whitman County parks, Moscow parks, the Armory, the Gladish Community Center, WSU, and other facilities. Many programs are coordinated to complement others offered by the school district, YMCA, WSU, Whitman County, the City of Spokane, and the City of Moscow. There are many local groups that rely on Pullman Parks and Recreation to assist in coordination and access to facilities. Some of these groups include the Pullman Swim Club, AAU Basketball, YMCA, Pullman Youth Baseball, Pullman Soccer, and the US Volleyball Association. The University of Idaho does offer community enrichment programs that are similar to Pullman’s. However, their participants predominantly reside in Idaho. As for swimming pools, there will be an abundance of opportunities in the near future. The new Pullman Aquatic Center and Reaney Pools, will be joined by two new pools at the WSU Student Recreation Center. WSU’s Gibb and Smith Pools will be reopened later this year after extensive remodeling, and Moscow’s new leisure pools will open this June. When including University of Idaho’s indoor pool, that makes the Palouse one of the most "swimmable" regions in the Pacific Northwest. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenue? Special funding districts for recreation or cemetery management are a possible source of new revenue. The formation of a district would broaden the tax base for additional revenue. For example, the Fidalgo Recreation District in Island County was formed to construct and operate an indoor aquatic center in Anacortes, Washington. There are currently 39 recreation districts in Washington. Cemetery districts are much more common forms of operation than municipal cemeteries in Washington. The formation of a district would require voter approval within the proposed boundaries. Maintenance and operations bonds are a possible source of funding for the Pioneer Center, the Pullman Aquatic Center, and even the parks system. This would require voter approval of Pullman residents and would be similar to the Pullman School District’s levy under current consideration. User fees are already a significant source of revenue for the Recreation Division. It has been the philosophy of the Parks and Recreation Commission to recover a reasonable amount of the costs to access recreation programs and facilities without denying access by overcharging for services. Presently, a typical recreation program recovers the direct costs plus 30% to recover administrative costs. Concessions are another possible source of new revenue. For most indoor aquatic centers, concessions represent a significant portion of their revenue. Sales of swim wear, sports clothing, and snacks will be promoted at the Pullman Aquatic Center. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is the service listed in the Comp Plan? Pullman’s recently revised Comp Plan includes many references to parks and recreation. This plan recognizes the importance of parks and recreation opportunities as being critical elements when considering Pullman’s quality of life. Chapter nine of the plan is dedicated to Parks and Open Spaces in Pullman. Chapter Nine includes the following statement that illustrates the importance of parks and recreation: "Existing park and recreation facilities in the community have a strong, positive impact upon residents’ quality of life. Maintaining these facilities for the continued enjoyment of citizens should continue to be a priority." Also included in the Parks and Open Space Element are four goals for parks and recreation: GOAL P1: Maximize the quality of life in Pullman by providing open space, trails, parks, and recreational opportunities and facilities throughout the community. GOAL P2: Assure the preservation and conservation of unique, fragile, scenic, and non-renewable natural resources. GOAL P3: Maintain city parks and recreational facilities in good condition. GOAL P4: Complete and protect a system of green belts, centered on streams and wildlife corridors, to protect natural resources and provide passive recreation. The Comp Plan addresses the city’s recreation programs by stating "Recreational programs operated by the Public Services Department have proven to be popular among city residents. These programs should continue, but the department should evaluate them on an ongoing basis, in order to assure that they continue to reflect the interests of the community. The city’s teen center, located in the Gladish Building, reaches a special segment of the population in need of positive activities. These and other programs for youth should continue to be a priority." PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? Pullman’s parks system includes 13 parks with a total of 97 acres. The national standard for park acres per capita is 10 acres per every 1,000 residents. When this standard is applied to Pullman’s population of 25,000 the recommended acreage is 250. This deficit is reduced when considering the open space areas owned by the Pullman School District and WSU that are available to the public. However, the number of parks and open space in Pullman is minimal for its population. The Pullman Comprehensive Plan addresses this issue by stating "Although there are parks in each of the residential neighborhoods (College, Pioneer, Sunnyside, and Military Hills) and downtown, they vary in size and development. Some neighborhoods have access to fewer recreation facilities than others. In order to accommodate expected growth without reducing the level of service to existing residents, it will be important to identify new park sites and develop them in a timely fashion." The maintenance of Pullman’s park system is critical to protecting the public and the parks infrastructure. The City of Pullman has a duty to the public to ensure that public parks are free of hazards. Without sufficient maintenance and reinvestment, facilities degenerate and eventually become hazards. For example the Sunnyside picnic shelter was originally constructed by the Lions Club in 1980. It was built in such a way that water would accumulate in the laminated beams and eventually dry rot caused its removal after only 20 years of service. The Parks and Recreation Commission is responsible for identifying program and facility deficiencies and making recommendations. Examples of this process include activities at the Teen Center, the development of the skateboard park, senior programs, and the wading pool. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the services was eliminated? A large number of citizens would be impacted if Parks and Recreation services were to be reduced. Many thousands enjoy Pullman’s parks, paths, trails, swimming pools and other attractions. Thousands more participate in the City’s recreation programs. The elimination of Government Buildings functions would be noticed in the presentation of public buildings. Without ongoing maintenance, public buildings become unsafe and unusable for government services. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? The passing of Proposition One, signaled clear support for park development, trails, and beautification. Pullman is a very active community that has voted to financially support its public facilities with new schools, parks, and recreational facilities. Where residents see value, positive impact to their quality of life, and responsible management, their vote will follow. Pullman’s park system has a rich heritage of support and popularity. This is evident by the large amount of land, labor, and financial support that has been given to parks over the years. Public support ranges from small tree plantings to acres of land donations and development such as Lawson Gardens, Terre View Park, and Itani Park. The Volunteer-In-Parks program was launched in 1999 with many of Pullman’s parks having been adopted by groups of volunteers. As was previously noted, the Recreation Division recorded over 53,000 participants in 1999. The diversity and popularity of these programs demonstrates their value to the community. The revenue growth for recreation programs has grown from $199,113 in 1995 to $228,028 in 1999. The Recreation Division is viewed as the community leader in providing leisure and educational activities for all ages. It is through these programs that many residents see their local government providing opportunities that touch their lives in many positive ways. PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY: Does this service address life safety issues? The Pullman Parks and Government Buildings Divisions do have a duty to provide safe facilities for users. An active risk management program includes routine safety inspections and documentation of playgrounds, athletic facilities, elevators, fire alarms, air quality and more. The exposure to harm and litigation increases as maintenance and inspection programs are reduced. The Recreation Division is responsible for the safety of participants in all city-sponsored programs. The duty for proper supervision, staff training, and intervention is increased when participants pay for services. Nowhere is this more critical than in the aquatics program offered by the city. Lack of trained, well-managed staff and facilities can produce catastrophic results. EFFICIENCY OF THE SERVICE: What is the cost /benefit relationship of the service? The cost benefit of the parks system is very high when compared to other municipalities. In 1998, the cost to maintain each acre of park was $5,993. This average does not include undeveloped park acreage. The national average is closer to $10,000 per acre according to the National Parks and Recreation Association. Lawson Gardens is operated at a cost of $70,000 but is mostly funded through the Lawson Gardens Endowment Trust Fund. Due to the popularity of city-sponsored recreation programs, the Recreation Division produced over $193,923 in revenue for 1998. The division expenditure for the same year was $429,070. The direct recovery of expenditure was 45%, which is higher than the national average of 30-40%. The Reaney pool operation for the same year recorded revenue of $30,993 at a cost of $112,427 or 27.5% recovery. Recovery of 30-40% is considered to be the standard for outdoor aquatic programs. RELATED SERVICES: Would other service be impacted if this services was ended? If Public Services did not exist, there are many related services that would be impacted. Services provided include: snow removal of city-controlled property and walkways, weed control, and landscaping at pump stations. The Government Buildings functions would need to be attended to by other means. All custodial, building repairs and improvements would shift back to occupying departments. There has been a great deal of research over the years suggesting that positive recreation outlets for young people help guide them away from mischief. The teen center attracts hundreds of users each year and provides a welcome place for supervised activities. The benefit to early intervention for youth at risk is to prevent them from turning to drug use or crime. Police services could be adversely affected if positive outlets were unavailable to youths. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is there federal of state mandate for the service? The City of Pullman is obligated to maintain the parks that have been developed with federal grant funding such as Military Hill Park and Sunnyside Park. More recently, the "Greenway Trail" was funded in part with $230,000 of federal funding. There are many regulations imposed by the Washington Safety and Health Administration that affect Public Services functions. These directives include air quality standards for buildings, elevator operation, protective clothing, and fire codes. The Department of Agriculture governs pesticide use by parks maintenance employees. The Public Services Department operates all aquatic facilities in accordance with the requirements of the Washington State Department of Health. Without well trained and supervised aquatic staff, catastrophic results could occur. Where participants pay for entrance to recreational facilities and programs, the City of Pullman is obligated to a high standard of care. Well trained program supervisors help minimize the exposure to participant harm and litigation. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? Because the Palouse region is largely agricultural and there are few open spaces available for recreational purposes, Pullman’s parks have a kind of "oasis" effect that attracts diverse user groups. Many parks and recreation uses come from outside the city limits of Pullman. There is certainly a positive economic impact to Pullman’s retail sales when consumers are attracted to parks and recreation programs. While most of the 53,000 recreation participants in 1999 came from inside Pullman, as much as 25% may reside outside. The combined softball league with Moscow alternates between the two cities and offers a shared retail benefit to both communities. A single softball tournament can attract hundreds of players. Most players stay in hotels and eat in restaurants, thus providing hundreds of dollars to the local economy. The ability for Pullman to attract commercial and industrial growth is linked to the quality of life in Pullman. Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) recognizes the importance of quality of life when recruiting new employees. Ed and Mary Schweitzer have contributed to the expansion of the Pullman’s parks and recreation with land dedication and the donation of the new Pullman Aquatic Center. The realty market recognizes the importance of parks and open spaces when price setting homes. A house on or near a park can easily add 25% to the price. Proximity to schools, trails and shopping are also important factors for housing sales. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? There are opportunities to become more energy efficient with Pullman’s government buildings. A recent evaluation from Avista suggests that a retrofit of electrical lighting at the Library, City Hall, Police, and Fire Stations would save thousands of dollars. The average payback is estimated at 2.5 years from investment. There are also incentive programs that can assist with the capital cost of each conversion. An example to retrofit the Main Fire Station would cost $15,000. Avista would pay $4,080 toward the project and the Investment would be recovered in less than 2 years based on the current energy use of $6,400 a year. Additional energy savings could be realized by reducing the heating and cooling on weekends and nonopen hours of operating. The current practice is to not reduce the heating and cooling loads due to the use of the building during off hours. However, as the cost of energy increases, conservation of heating and cooling may be required. Government Buildings has participated in many energy conservation efforts in the past, including the installation of the walls within City Hall. OVERALL ASSESSMENT : Parks and recreation activities add to the quality of life of a community. Recruitment films and brochures seem to always be filled with pictures of a city’s parks and recreation activities because such amenities make cities attractive places in which to live. Positive alternatives must be provided for a community’s young people and to retain its retirees. In short, parks and recreation serves the full range of the community’s age groups and recreational interests. Government Buildings ensures city facilities are properly maintained and repaired. This extends the useful life of these facilities and makes them more presentable to the public. The Government Access Channel and community newsletter keep the City of Pullman connected to its citizens. An informed public is usually a supportive public. LIBRARY Historical Perspective Pullman has enjoyed community-supported, vital, expanding library service for over 75 years: • • • • • • started in 1922 as a "Children’s Library" by the American Association of University Women; moved to rooms donated by the Chamber of Commerce; City of Pullman began allotting funds in 1927 and took over direction of the library three years later; having outgrown its quarters in City Hall, the library moved to a store front on Grand Avenue in the 1950’s; generous gifts from Anna E. and Robert Neill in 1963 helped purchase and remodel building on present site of the library; fundraising campaign begun in 1987 culminated in construction of new building; use increased by more than 25% in its first year (1993). Need for Service Should this service be provided at all? A healthy community depends on strong public libraries serving a well-informed citizenry. Public libraries are basic to the American democracy. James Madison stated, "…a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives." Benjamin Franklin founded one of the first lending libraries based in his vision of sharing information, and the correspondent power, with the average citizen. In 1821 legislation was passed permitting a proportion of taxes to be used for educational purposes, establishing the basis for publicly supported libraries in this country. Virtually every community in the U.S. now has free public library service available. Public libraries have existed in Washington state since before its formation as a U.S. territory. Libraries collect, make available, and promote resources people need in their daily lives. Public libraries provide services free in their communities to insure that all have equal access to information. Libraries seek to provide impartial, confidential access to current, reliable information covering all sides of important issues. The ideal public library would have everything ever printed, taped, filmed, scanned, or otherwise recorded freely available to all people. Neill Public Library is approaching this ideal through its collections and use of technology, which makes it increasingly possible for libraries to connect with each other and share resources. The world of information is literally at our fingertips. The foundation of public library service to our community is incorporated in the mission statement of Neill Public Library: • • The Board of Trustees of Neill Public Library affirms the right of all citizens to have free and complete access to this free public library because the Board believes it is essential to the intellectual, emotional and economic health and well-being of this area. The Board therefore feels that the mission of this library is to provide an open and nonjudgmental environment in which individuals may freely avail themselves of the widest possible variety of ideas, information and opinions. To achieve this, the library collection and services must be freely available to all members of the community. The Library Board has determined our service roles: 1. Popular Materials Library The library features current, high-interest materials in a variety of formats for people of all ages. We actively promote these recreational and life-long learning collections. The library subscribes to a wide variety of magazines and newspapers. The staff is familiar with popular interests and publishing trends. Top priority is given to patron requests for materials, which account for nearly 20% of items purchased in the adult collections. The extremely popular Audio and Video collections are being developed at a moderate rate. 2. Preschoolers Door to Learning The library encourages literacy and learning in young children through services for them and their families. The picture book collection receives primary resource and use. Preschool story times are a core service, at the library and at several daycare/preschool centers. Staff is knowledgeable about materials for youth, and these collections account for half of all materials circulated. The Parent Center is a vibrant collection of materials on parenting, child development, child care, preschool learning and home schooling. 3. Support for Formal Education K-12 Public libraries do not duplicate services for which school library-media centers are designed, but we provide supplemental support to elementary and secondary school students. The library offers class tours, instruction in using research tools and assistance in locating information for assignments. The collection contains materials in a variety of formats to support K-12 education. 4. Reference and Community Resource Center The library provides accurate, timely, useful information for community members to pursue personal and professional interests. We promote on-site, telephone and web reference service, staffing the information desk all hours the library is open. The library is a source of consumer information and community programs and services. Neill Public Library maintains a current calendar of events and a community resources database of agencies and services for families. A statement of the American Library Association on the value of libraries is contained in Appendix A. Alternative Service Providers Should this be a private service? No, public libraries cannot be private. There is no other public "Information Services Center" in Pullman with professional staff to assist people with every day information needs. There is no other preschoolers door to learning. Private is not possible for unbiased, free access. None of the private vendors who sell products or services similar to those of the library can offer the variety, depth or quality the public library provides, i.e. booksellers, video stores, computer stores, copy shops. Certainly none provide it on a shared basis at no direct cost. Private Contracting Options Should the service be contracted out? Some aspects of our service are currently contracted out, a standard cost-effective practice in the library. These include: • • • Library cataloging records (Bibliofile); Computerized library catalog and circulation system (Dynix); Internet access (Vario) – some is being converted to City IS for cost savings. A few libraries in severe financial difficulty have had services totally contracted out. Money is saved primarily by hiring non-union employees at reduced wages/benefits and by using standardized community and reading interest profiles for collection development. Other Public Service Providers One option for another unit of government to provide library service in Pullman is to have the library annexed as part of the Whitman County Library District. There is a misperception that most libraries in the state belong to regional or county districts. In the most recent (1998) Washington Library Statistics, libraries comparable to, or larger than Pullman’s, 23 were municipal libraries and 17 were part of a library district. City libraries include some of the strongest in the state: Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, Everett, Bellingham, Richland, Walla Walla, and Ellensburg (see Appendix B for a complete list of libraries in Washington). The benefit of a library district is to provide adequate library service where there has been little or inconsistent library service, not to supplant already strong municipal libraries. The most damaging effect of annexation would be the library budget being set by the maximum tax rate of $.50 per thousand dollars of assessed property values. Currently that rate in Pullman would have yielded less than half of the current annual library budget ($346,000). Such a cut would be a mortal blow to library service in our community. Annexation requires a majority vote of Pullman’s voters; this seems highly unlikely given their history of support and use of the library. Annexation also requires approval of the County Library Board of Trustees. It is equally unlikely the County Library would want to take on the burden of providing severely reduced services to Pullman. Contracting with Whitman County Library, in which Pullman would agree to support the library at a rate agreeable to their Board of Trustees, might be a more feasible option. The history of contracting between libraries in the state shows these arrangements work best when the weaker county library systems contract with stronger city libraries for services. Such is the case with the Walla Walla and Whatcom County Library systems contracting with Walla Walla and Bellingham city libraries respectively for various services. We have had discussions with Whitman County Library wherein they wanted to contract with Neill Public Library to provide assistance with an automated library system, technical processing, and even in managing their library. One type of contracting is to form a regional library with Whitman County. Section 27.12.080 of the Revised Code of Washington states that "Two or more counties, or other governmental units, by action of their legislative bodies, may join in establishing and maintaining a regional library under the terms of a contract to which all will agree." Further details are available in the pertinent parts of the RCW in Appendix D. The only such regional library in Washington currently is the Yakima Valley Regional Library, which operates under a contract between the city of Yakima and Yakima County. There are several other libraries which contain the words Regional Library as part of their names, but those libraries are actually intercounty library districts (see RCW 27.12.090). Library collections at Washington State University and the University of Idaho are intended primarily for scholars and researchers, not for the general needs of the community. They do provide some services to Pullman community members. Reciprocally, over 2,000 WSU students have cards at Neill Public Library. The public library youth collections are relied on for some classes in the College of Education at WSU. Libraries in the Pullman schools serve the curriculum needs of elementary and secondary school students, but are ill-equipped to provide service to the rest of the community. Many Pullman school teachers rely on the collections, information resources and expertise of the staff of Neill Public Library to support class assignments. The recreational reading interests of K-12 students and staff are primarily served by the public library. Funding Alternatives Are there other potential sources of revenue? The possibility of funding via a junior taxing district has been treated in the previous section. City libraries cannot form their own taxing district. They must annex into a neighboring library district, in Pullman’s case, the Whitman County Library district. As mentioned previously, the possibility exists for Whitman County Library to contract with Neill Public Library for various services. This would not provide additional or replacement resource to serve Pullman, but would simply be an effort to optimize local resource sharing. Grants for library funding are limited, usually to special projects. We have been successful in the past in being awarded grants supplementing automation, construction and reading promotion projects, and in cooperation with other local libraries we are presently pursuing the possibility of grant funding for a new library automation system. The Pullman community has been generous in the past and continues to support the library via charitable donations. However, the intent of such donations has been to supplement, not replace, city funding for the library. All of these gifts are designated for purchasing library materials, funding library programs, or enhancing the library's environment. Donations for basic library operations are nonexistent. People expect their tax support to cover the key library resource of staff. Comprehensive Plan Consistency The Comprehensive Plan, under Cultural and Historic Resources, states: "The city’s Neill Public Library functions as a community center for learning and educational pursuits, such as book readings and informational seminars" (3-17). Under Pullman’s Future Vision, the plan offers: "The public library is a focal point for learning and education in the city. It balances traditional print collections with the latest technology to provide access to information of all type from around the world." (4-4). The Comprehensive Plan emphasizes the uses and development of the downtown area "Many elements must come together to create a downtown atmosphere that attracts people." The plan comments on the attractiveness of buildings, displays, and public seating areas, all integral services of the spacious public library facility. "Life on downtown streets is enhanced when uses promote more than merely a "9-5" environment. The library is a key element which draws people to the downtown area, both during regular business hours as well as evenings and weekends. In 1999 an average of 2,857 people visited the library every week. Positive responses to our welcoming environment and great location were equal to appreciation for services on our most recent patron survey Neill Public Library actively supports many City goals. GOAL LU3: Facilitate strong public participation in all community land use and development matters. The library provides public information on many current local issues including land use and development. We provide access to government documents, city and county codes, and environmental impact statements. We maintain notebooks with agendas, minutes and documents for the City Council, as well as most other city and county boards and commissions. GOAL LU4: Preserve opportunities for high quality, diversified life styles within the community’s residential neighborhoods. While this goal addresses neighborhoods, the library recognizes, and is committed to, supporting quality and diversity of lifestyle in the community at large. This is reflected in staff, collections and programming: • • • • • Ethnic and age diversity on staff; regular student volunteers from PSD special education program; cooperation with, and funding from, various local groups, for purchasing materials, i.e. Palouse Alliance for the Mentally Ill, Palouse Asian American Association, Whitman County Alcohol Center, Child Care Resource and Referral, WSU African-American Student Association; cultural programming, e.g. "Learning about our Heritages Through the Folk Arts" , a family program series funded by the Washington Commission for the Humanities; English as A Second Language program and collection serving a diverse clientele of foreign student families and recent immigrants. GOAL LU5: Strengthen and enlarge the economic base of the community by providing commercial areas that offer a variety of goods and services in settings that are readily accessible and attractive. Neill Public Library is not a commercial venture but significantly adds to the beauty and usefulness of the downtown area. The library is also key in attracting newcomers and businesses to the community. Our facility and resources reflect a commitment to accessibility, including books-on-tape and large print books for the visually impaired, and an extensive disability resource collection. GOAL LU14: Protect and preserve resources that contribute to the history of Pullman and the surrounding area. Neill Public Library has a Northwest History collection, which emphasizes the history of Pullman and Whitman County. With the possibility of a large private donation from Ivan Shirrod for the addition of a historical wing, this function will become even more central to the mission of the library. The library has cooperative relationships with the Whitman County Historical Society and the Whitman County Genealogical Society in working to preserve our community’s history. GOAL P1: Maximize the quality of life in Pullman by providing open space, trails, parks, and recreational opportunities and facilities throughout the community. The library is a primary recreational facility for the thousands of devoted readers in our community. The magazine, video, audio and music CD collections emphasize this recreational role of the library. Its Edith Hecht Meeting Room allows and invites yet different recreational opportunities for many community groups. We directly support the recreational pursuits of Pullman residents with collections on travel, sports and hobbies. Problems Addressed Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? Problems and deficiencies that the services of the library address include: • the importance of giving children early exposure to books and reading; The library’s Youth Services staff, juvenile collections and programs are dedicated to providing preschool children the opportunity to get an essential start in literacy. • life-long learning as a necessity in the contemporary economy and job market; The library maintains a current nonfiction collection on subjects to support both formal and informal educational requirements. Staff proctor exams for distance education students and locate practice exams for entrance to educational programs or job eligibility requirements. • facility with constantly evolving computer technology; The library offers the opportunity to learn and use recent advances in computer technology with public access to the Internet; a word processing/office software station; and children’s stations with educational software and games. • public meeting space ; Local groups use the library meeting room for meetings, forums and programs. Tutors find the library conducive to teaching their pupils. Students gather to study together. Small, short business and social appointments are conducted in the library’s convenient environs. • community gathering place; The library offers a safe, welcoming environment for people of all ages and backgrounds. Parents trust the library as a positive place for their older children and teens to come after school. People of diverse heritages find the library a comfortable and caring setting where they are respected. • information center. Residents have access to local ordinances and state laws and other legal resources. The library is the tax form center for Pullman. Consumer information, job descriptions, how-to manuals, gardening resources, local sightseeing options, travel planning, investment data, and legal and practical information to start and support small or home-based businesses are all available. Population Served Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? Virtually every segment of the community would be adversely affected by the loss of public library service. • • • • • • • • The youngest children and their parents would lose the excellent preschool picture book collection and irreplaceable early exposure to books and reading. School children would lose a primary place to develop intellectually and emotionally through access to collections tailored for their reading, viewing, and listening interests, and through use of the computers in the library. Teenagers would lose a primary place for developing socially through interaction with peers and others of different ages, interests and heritages. Students, parents, and teachers would lose access to materials and professional assistance to help with school projects and assignments, and with developing areas of interest. Families would lose access to the many free recreational resources of the library. People of all ages would lose access to, and professional assistance with, rich book collections, videos, recorded books, music CD’s, magazines and newspapers, the Internet and databases with access to thousands of publications. Seniors would lose a comfortable place to keep up with current events and community activities. The homebound would be denied book deliveries that bring pleasure into their lives. People of all heritages would lose a place where they have equal access with others and can feel a welcome part of the community. Public Support Is there strong public and political support for the service? Neill Public Library is well used, strongly supported and politically popular. • • • • Half of the non-university student population in Pullman currently have library cards at Neill Public Library. The library has been called "the jewel in the crown" of city government (John Sherman, December 1992). The Friends of the Library, a non-profit organization which supports the library, numbers over 400 contributing members and provided thousands of dollars of special funding each year. The library is a strong participating member of, and draws support from, several networks including: the Washington Library Association, the Inland Northwest Council of Libraries (INCOL), Palouse Area Libraries (PALIS), the Parent Resource Center (PRC) of Whitman County, and Child Care Resource & Referral. Public Health or Safety Does the service address life safety issues? Information on many personal and community health safety issues is provided by the library. • • • • The consumer health collection is used extensively for self-help and patient information. Also well-used are collections for spiritual well-being and mental health. The Community Resources database and directory connects people to local health and safety organizations. Organizational library cards for child care centers and other agencies enhance their services to clientele. The Parent Center collection provides materials on the prevention of child abuse and neglect. Efficiency of the Service What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? Neill Public Library provides a good value in library service to Pullman. • • • • • • Local support per capita to the public library in 1998 was $24.49, well below the state average of $33.53. Personnel expenditures per capita of $15.99 were also well below the state average of $22.56. The turnover rate for each library item is 4.41 times per year, almost double the average rate of 2.76, and exceeded by only three other libraries in the state. At an average price of $13.50 per item, the sharing of library materials through a public library is a great cost/benefit for the community. The circulation of library materials totalling 249,000 items last year is a 5% increase over the previous year. At $13.50 per item, that circulation had a value of $3,361,500 for Pullman. These and other statistics are detailed for the state in Appendix E. Related Services Would other areas be impacted if the service was ended? Other city departments, downtown Pullman and area libraries would be directly impacted by the loss of Neill Public Library services. • • • • • Citizen access to city documents and information would need to be available elsewhere, increasing public demand on most departments, especially administration and finance, the city attorney, police, planning, and public works, including transit. One less positive gathering place for youth’s lives would lead to a higher incidence of youth loitering and vandalism, increasing demand on police services. The loss of library recreational services would put a greater demand on Parks and Recreation. The downtown area would suffer from the loss of a major attraction to its environs. Libraries in the university and public schools would face increased demand on their collections and services. Legal Requirement Is this a federal or state mandated service? RCW 27.12.020 Policy of state. It is hereby declared to be the policy of the state, as a part of its provision for public education, to promote the establishment and development of public library service throughout its various subdivisions. RCW 27.12.025 Authorization. Any governmental unit has power to establish and maintain a library, either by itself or in cooperation with one or more other governmental units. RCW 27.12.030 Libraries, how established. A library may be established in any county, city, or town either (1) by its legislative body of its own initiative; or (2) upon the petition of one hundred taxpayers of such a governmental unit, the legislative body shall submit to a vote of the qualified electors thereof, at the next municipal or special election held therein (in the case of a city or town) or the next general election or special election held therein (in the case of a county), the question whether a library shall be established; and if a majority of he electors voting on the question vote in favor of the establishment of a library, the legislative body shall forthwith establish one. Economic Impact Does this service contribute to economic growth? Neill Public Library has a direct and positive impact on the economic health of the community. • • • There are over 145,000 visits to the library each year, with a correspondent number of people attracted to the downtown business area. A vibrant, service-oriented library affects quality-of-life, having an important role in attracting newcomers and retaining inhabitants. Pullman was named in the recently published, Choose a College Town for Retirement, which specifically notes the library aspect of our community. There would be a negative economic impact on the lives of those who use the free services of the library due to their lack of resource for buying or renting materials to read, listen to or view if library services were unavailable. Energy Conservation Except for offering visitors a comfortable environment during the extremes of Pullman’s climactic year, the library has no impact on energy conservation. Overall Assessment • • • • • The library is a core city government service. The library offers essential and popular services, as demonstrated in the level of use and support given by the community. The library directly contributes to the vitality, beauty and livability of our community. Neill Public Library is a vital component for the long-term health of the city of Pullman. The library is a great value for its cost. Appendix A Libraries: An American Value Libraries in America are cornerstones of the communities they serve. Free access to the books, ideas, resources, and information in America's libraries is imperative for education, employment, enjoyment, and self-government. Libraries are a legacy to each generation, offering the heritage of the past and the promise of the future. To ensure that libraries flourish and have the freedom to promote and protect the public good in the 21st century, we believe certain principles must be guaranteed. To that end, we affirm this contract with the people we serve: We defend the constitutional rights of all individuals, including children and teenagers, to use the library's resources and services; We value our nation's diversity and strive to reflect that diversity by providing a full spectrum of resources and services to the communities we serve; We affirm the responsibility and the right of all parents and guardians to guide their own children's use of the library and its resources and services; We connect people and ideas by helping each person select from and effectively use the library's resources; We protect each individual's privacy and confidentiality in the use of library resources and services; We protect the rights of individuals to express their opinions about library resources and services; We celebrate and preserve our democratic society by making available the widest possible range of viewpoints, opinions and ideas, so that all individuals have the opportunity to become lifelong learners informed, literate, educated, and culturally enriched. Change is constant, but these principles transcend change and endure in a dynamic technological, social, and political environment. By embracing these principles, libraries in the United States can contribute to a future that values and protects freedom of speech in a world that celebrates both our similarities and our differences, respects individuals and their beliefs, and holds all persons truly equal and free. Adopted by the Council of the American Library Association February 3, 1999 Appendix B Public Libraries by Type in Washington State Below is a listing of public libraries by type, compiled by Karen Goettling of the Washington State Library, PO Box 42460, Olympia, WA 98504; 1-800-562-6090, as of January 2000. Independent Municipal Libraries (RCW 27.12.030) • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Anacortes Public Library Bellingham Public Library Burlington Public Library Camas Public Library Castle Rock Public Library Cathlamet City Library Chewelah Public Library Cle Elum (Carpenter Memorial) Library Colville Public Library Concrete Public Library Davenport Public Library Dayton Memorial Library Ellensburg Public Library Enumclaw Public Library Everett Public Library Grandview (Bleyhl) Community Library Harrington Public Library Kalama Public Library Kelso Public Library Kettle Falls Public Library Kittitas Public Library Longview Public Library Mount Vernon City Library Ocean Shores Public Library Odessa Public Library Pomeroy (Denny Ashby) Memorial Library Port Townsend Public Library Prosser Public Library Pullman (Neill) Public Library Puyallup Public Library Reardan Memorial Library Renton Public Library Richland Public Library Ritzville Public Library Roslyn Public Library Roy City Library Seattle Public Library Sedro-Woolley Public Library Spokane Public Library Sprague Public Library Tacoma Public Library Waitsburg (Weller) Public Library Walla Walla Public Library Wilbur (Hesseltine) Public Library Rural County Library Districts (RCW 27.12.040) • • • • • • • • • • • • Asotin County Library Jefferson County Library King County Library System Kitsap Regional Library North Olympic Library System (Clallam County) Pend Oreille County Library Pierce County Library Spokane County Library Stevens County Library Walla Walla County Library Whatcom County Library Whitman County Library Intercounty Rural Library Districts (RCW 27.12.090) • • • • • Mid-Columbia Library (Benton, Franklin Counties) North Central Regional Library (Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, Okanogan Counties) Fort Vancouver Regional Library (Clark, Klickitat, Skamania Counties) Timberland Regional Library (Grays Harbor, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, Thurston Counties) Sno-Isle Regional Library (Snohomish, Island Counties) Regional Library (RCW 27.12.080) • Yakima Valley Regional Library Island Library Districts (RCW 27.12.400) • • • Orcas Island Library (San Juan County) Lopez Island Library (San Juan County) San Juan Island Library (San Juan County) Partial County Library Districts (RCW 27.12.470) • • • • LaConner Regional Library (area around and including LaConner; has its own building) Skagit (very small area of Darrington contracting with Sno-Isle Regional Library) Cowlitz Partial County Library District (area surrounding and west of Longview, contracting with Longview Public Library) Partially Funded Areas • • Adams (Othello contracts with Mid-Columbia) Kittitas (some funding from county) Appendix C Chapter 27.12 RCW PUBLIC LIBRARIES RCW 27.12.040 Rural library districts -- Establishment. The procedure for the establishment of a rural county library district shall be as follows: (1) Petitions signed by at least ten percent of the registered voters of the county who voted in the last general election, outside of the area of incorporated cities and towns, asking that the question, "Shall a rural county library district be established?" be submitted to a vote of the people, shall be filed with the county legislative authority. (2) The county legislative authority, after having determined that the petitions were signed by the requisite number of registered voters, shall place the proposition for the establishment of a rural county library district on the ballot for the vote of the people of the county, outside incorporated cities and towns, at the next succeeding general or special election. (3) If a majority of those voting on the proposition vote in favor of the establishment of the rural county library district, the county legislative authority shall forthwith declare it established. RCW 27.12.050 Rural library districts -- Board of library trustees -- Tax levies. After the board of county commissioners has declared a rural county library district established, it shall appoint a board of library trustees and provide funds for the establishment and maintenance of library service for the district by making a tax levy on the property in the district of not more than fifty cents per thousand dollars of assessed value per year sufficient for the library service as shown to be required by the budget submitted to the board of county commissioners by the board of library trustees, and by making a tax levy in such further amount as shall be authorized pursuant to RCW 27.12.222 or 84.52.052 or 84.52.056. Such levies shall be a part of the general tax roll and shall be collected as a part of the general taxes against the property in the district. RCW 27.12.080 Regional libraries. Two or more counties, or other governmental units, by action of their legislative bodies, may join in establishing and maintaining a regional library under the terms of a contract to which all will agree. The expenses of the regional library shall be apportioned between or among the contracting parties concerned on such basis as shall be agreed upon in the contract. The treasurer of one of the governmental units, as shall be provided in the contract, shall have the custody of the funds of the regional library; and the treasurers of the other governmental units concerned shall transfer quarterly to him all moneys collected for free public library purposes in their respective governmental units. If the legislative body of any governmental unit decides to withdraw from a regional library contract, the governmental unit withdrawing shall be entitled to a division of the property on the basis of its contributions. RCW 27.12.090 Intercounty rural library districts -- Establishment. Intercounty rural library districts may be established to provide throughout several counties free public library service similar to that provided within a single county by a rural county library district. RCW 27.12.180 Contracts for library service. Instead of establishing or maintaining an independent library, the legislative body of any governmental unit authorized to maintain a library shall have power to contract to receive library service from an existing library, the board of trustees of which shall have reciprocal power to contract to render the service with the consent of the legislative body of its governmental unit. Such a contract shall require that the existing library perform all the functions of a library within the governmental unit wanting service. In like manner a legislative body may contract for library service from a library not owned by a public corporation but maintained for free public use: PROVIDED, That such a library be subject to inspection by the state librarian and be certified by him as maintaining a proper standard. Any school district may contract for school library service from any existing library, such service to be paid for from funds available to the school district for library purposes. RCW 27.12.320 Dissolution -- Disposition of property. A library established or maintained under this chapter (except a regional or a rural county library district library, an intercounty rural library district library, or an island library district library) may be abolished only in pursuance of a vote of the electors of the governmental unit in which the library is located, taken in the manner prescribed in RCW 27.12.030 for a vote upon the establishment of a library. If a library of a city or town be abolished, the books and other printed or written matter belonging to it shall go to the library of the county whereof the municipality is a part, if there be a county library, but if not, then to the state library. If a library of a county or region be abolished, the books and other printed matter belonging to it shall go to the state library. All other library property shall be disposed of as the legislative body of the governmental unit shall direct. After a rural county library district, an island library district, or an intercounty rural library district has been in operation for three or more years, it may be dissolved pursuant to a majority vote of all of the qualified electors residing outside of incorporated cities and towns voting upon a proposition for its dissolution, at a general election, which proposition may be placed upon the ballot at any such election whenever a petition by ten percent or more qualified voters residing outside of incorporated cities or towns within a rural county library district, an island library district, or an intercounty rural library district requesting such dissolution shall be filed with the board of trustees of such district not less than ninety days prior to the holding of any such election. An island library district may also be dissolved pursuant to RCW 27.12.450. If a rural county library district is dissolved, the books and other printed matter belonging to it shall go to the state library. All other library property shall be disposed of as the legislative body of the governmental unit shall direct. When an intercounty rural library district is dissolved, the books, funds and other property thereof shall be divided among the participating counties in the most equitable manner possible as determined by the state librarian, who shall give consideration to such items as the original source of property, the amount of funds raised from each county by the district, and the ability of the counties to make further use of such property or equipment for library purposes. Printed material which the state librarian finds will not be used by any of the participating counties for further library purposes shall be turned over to the state library. When an island library district is dissolved pursuant to this section, the books and other printed matter belonging to it shall go to the state library. All other library property shall be disposed of as the legislative body of the governmental unit shall direct. When an island library district is dissolved due to the establishment of a county library district, pursuant to RCW 27.12.450, all property, assets, and liabilities of the preexisting island library district within the area included in the county rural library district shall pass to and be assumed by the county rural library district: PROVIDED, That where within any county rural library district heretofore or hereafter organized under the provisions of this chapter a preexisting island library district has incurred a bonded indebtedness which was outstanding at the time of the formation of the county rural library district, the preexisting island library district shall retain its corporate existence insofar as is necessary for the purpose until the bonded indebtedness outstanding against it on and after the effective date of the formation has been paid in full: PROVIDED FURTHER, That a special election may be called by the board of trustees of the county rural library district, to be held at the next general or special election held in the respective counties, for the purpose of affording the voters residing within the area outside of the preexisting island library district an opportunity to assume the obligation of the bonded indebtedness of the preexisting island library district or the question may be submitted to the voters as a separate proposition at the election on the proposal for the formation of the county rural library district. RCW 27.12.360 Annexation of city or town into rural county library district, island library district, or intercounty rural library district -- Initiation procedure. Any city or town with a population of one hundred thousand or less at the time of annexation may become a part of any rural county library district, island library district, or intercounty rural library district lying contiguous thereto by annexation in the following manner: The inclusion of such a city or town may be initiated by the adoption of an ordinance by the legislative authority thereof stating its intent to join the library district and finding that the public interest will be served thereby. Before adoption, the ordinance shall be submitted to the library board of the city or town for its review and recommendations. If no library board exists in the city or town, the state librarian shall be notified of the proposed ordinance. If the board of trustees of the library district concurs in the annexation, notification thereof shall be transmitted to the legislative authority or authorities of the counties in which the city or town is situated. RCW 27.12.370 Annexation of city or town into library district -- Special election procedure. The county legislative authority or authorities shall by resolution call a special election to be held in such city or town at the next date provided in RCW 29.13.010 but not less than forty-five days from the date of the declaration of such finding, and shall cause notice of such election to be given as provided for in RCW 29.27.080. The election on the annexation of the city or town into the library district shall be conducted by the auditor of the county or counties in which the city or town is located in accordance with the general election laws of the state and the results thereof shall be canvassed by the canvassing board of the county or counties. No person shall be entitled to vote at such election unless he or she is registered to vote in said city or town for at least thirty days preceding the date of the election. The ballot proposition shall be in substantially the following form: RCW 27.12.380 Annexation of city or town into library district -- Withdrawal of annexed city or town. The legislative body of such a city or town which has annexed to such a library district, may, by resolution, present to the voters of such city or town a proposition to withdraw from said library district at any general election held at least three years following the annexation to the library district. RCW 27.12.390 Annexation of city or town into library district -- Tax levies. The annual tax levy authorized by RCW 27.12.050, 27.12.150, and 27.12.420 shall be imposed throughout the library district, including any city or town annexed thereto. Any city or town annexed to a rural library district, island library district, or intercounty rural library district shall be entitled to levy up to three dollars and sixty cents per thousand dollars of assessed valuation less any regular levy made by such library district in the incorporated area, notwithstanding any other provision of law: PROVIDED, That the limitations upon regular property taxes imposed by chapter 84.55 RCW shall apply. RCW 27.12.395 Annexation of city or town into library district -- Assumption of liabilities. (1) All liabilities of a city or town that is annexed to a rural county library district or intercounty rural library district, which liabilities were incurred for the purpose of or in the course of acquiring, operating, or maintaining a library or libraries, may, if provided for in the ordinance providing for annexation and in the resolution of the district consenting to annexation, pass to and be assumed by the rural county library district or intercounty rural library district. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the city or town has incurred any voted bonded indebtedness for the purpose of acquiring, operating, or maintaining a library or libraries, and if the indebtedness is outstanding at the time of the annexation, the voted bonded indebtedness shall not be assumed by the annexing district. (2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, if the annexed city or town has outstanding at the time of the annexation any voted bonded indebtedness incurred for the purpose of acquiring, operating, or maintaining a library or libraries, a special election may be called by the board of trustees of the rural county library district or intercounty rural library district, to be held at the next general or special election held in the applicable county or counties, for the purpose of affording the voters residing within the area of the district outside the annexed city or town an opportunity to assume the voted bonded indebtedness of the annexed city or town upon the assent of three-fifths of the voters. Discussion of Levels of Services and Priorities TRANSIT The purpose of this public hearing is to continue the discussion of Pullman Transit service levels which took place at the City Council meeting on December 7, 1999. At the December meeting, resolutions were presented for adopting reductions in service for both fixed-route transit service and Dial-A-Ride service. At the conclusion of the public hearing on fixed-route service, the City Council voted to amend the proposed resolution by removing all Transit service reductions from the resolution other than the cancellation of Saturday service after December 11, 1999. At the conclusion of the public hearing on Dial-A-Ride service the City Council voted to table the matter. By Federal requirements we must hold public hearings and pass resolutions before reducing transit services. At this point in time there are possibilities in terms of legislative, court, or federal operational grant relief, but there are no guarantees of financial relief from any of these sources. Absent outside relief, we need to make significant service cuts such as were adopted within the year 2000 budget. If we are going to make cuts by the February 4, 2000 target date, we must pass resolutions outlining the service cuts. For this reason we have prepared two resolutions for your consideration to implement the proposed service reductions which were adopted within the year 2000 budget. The resolution for fixed-route transit service: 1. Eliminates E, J, I, and G routes after February 4, 2000; 2. Reduces A route service to 11 hours per day during the WSU school year and to 6 hours per day during breaks and reduced service when WSU is out but the school district is still in session; 3. Reduces D route to 6 hours per day; and, 4. Eliminates all summer fixed-route service from June 9, 2000 to August 25, 2000. The resolution for Dial-A-Ride service for the year 2000 does not eliminate Saturday service in line with the directive which the City Council gave at the meeting on December 7 that Saturday Dial-A-Ride service be continued. The resolution for Dial-A-Ride service: 1. Reduces service by 4.5 hours during the WSU school year and by 3.5 hours during breaks; and, 2. Reduces service by 3.5 hours when WSU is out but the school district is still in session and during the summer (June 9, 2000 to August 25, 2000). BACKGROUND ON TRANSIT SERVICE REDUCTIONS By law we are required to adopt a balanced budget. On November 30, 1999 the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 99-44 which was an ordinance adopting a budget for the city of Pullman for the year 2000. The public hearing on the Transit portion of the budget was held on November 16. The Final 2000 Budget Hearing was held on November 23. The Transit budget was adopted for the year 2000 at an expenditure level of $1,130,441. The "Major Budget Changes" section of the narrative for Transit within the Preliminary Budget document stated: With the loss of the Motor Vehicle Excise Tax (MVET) funding for the Transit System due to the passage of Initiative 695, and to limit the further depletion of reserves in the Transit Fund, the 2000 budget is based on approximately a 33% decrease in the operating budget and service level. E, I, J, and G Routes and the Night Express are being eliminated. No change is proposed for the Day Express. A.M. Tripper #5 and A.M. Tripper #4 are also being eliminated. Saturday service for both fixed routes and Dial-A-Ride is being eliminated. To provide service to the south side of the City, D Route will be operated during the morning and afternoon peak periods. The operating time for the system will be reduced in the evening to end at 6:00 p.m. Dial-A-Ride service will be offered from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. with two full-time, overlapping shifts all year long. Fixed route service will be suspended during the summer. The subsidy of taxi service has also been eliminated. A total of 10 positions are being eliminated from the currently authorized staffing level of 29. The proposed budget and service level continues to draw on the reserves to some degree and is contingent on the system receiving the same amount of financial support from WSU as received under the current contract agreement. The current agreement will be terminated by the City and will need to be renegotiated. The loss of the MVET funding prohibits us from providing service beyond that proposed without additional funding or further drawing down the already depleted reserve. Should we be unable to negotiate an acceptable new agreement with WSU, we may be forced to eliminate the pre-pay system we now have with WSU and to return to the fare/token/pass system we used prior to the pre-pay system. This would necessitate further reduction in service and, in all likelihood, staffing levels. On the other hand, WSU may offer to pay additional money in order to restore portions of the lost service. Similarly, Pullman School District is contemplating providing additional funds to restore the two lost Tripper Routes. Should these or other scenarios become realities, we will come back to Council for further discussion and/or budget amendments as appropriate. Minor Capital is being eliminated with the exception of one new computer to run the Fairbox Program. We have an 80% grant for the upgrading of the Fairbox Program, the reporting mechanism by which we track ridership for the system and base our decisions on route service levels, schedules, etc. The local cost for this upgrade is approximately $9,000 and this upgrade is included in this budget. Other Minor Capital that was deferred in 1999 is continuing to be deferred. No Major Capital is proposed for this budget. The Express Route restroom approved in the 2000 CIP is not included in the 2000 budget because the associated grant funding was not approved. An 80% grant for a new bus, which was approved, will be refused to avoid having to pay the $51,000 match. We have, however, requested that this capital grant for the bus be converted to an operating grant that would provide some short-term relief for the Transit System. All other CIP approved projects (passenger shelters $12,000, security cameras - $15,000, new staff vehicle - $21,000, and expansion of the bus storage facility - $120,000) are also being deferred due to budget constraints. We need direction from the City Council on how to redistribute the needed reductions in service in order to proceed with a balanced budget. Various suggestions for cost reductions and revenue enhancements were proposed by the public at the City Council meeting on December 7. For example, it was suggested that we check all boarding passengers to ensure that they do have either WSU or School District paid passes or have purchased passes on their own. We have since posted notices within the buses that it is now required to show such identification cards when boarding. Transit Drivers have been instructed to require the passes be shown or payment be made. We are also continuing to explore enhanced revenue options. On December 14 the City Council, by ordinance, accepted a generous donation of $1,000 from John C. and Barbara Taylor which was contributed to the Transit Fund. The Taylors hope that others will follow their lead in contributing more private funding to the Transit Fund. The Washington State Office of Financial Management (OFM) estimates that the passage of Initiative 695 will result in a loss of revenue for Pullman Transit of $523,000 in 2000 and $597,189 in 2001. In spite of the Taylors generous donation, it is probably unrealistic to think that private funding will be able to replace such a funding loss on an annual basis. At the Town Hall meeting on December 14 we stressed to our 9th District State legislators the importance of Transit service. Thankfully, our 9th District State legislators were also able to hear the concerns of many citizens in the audience regarding proposed transit service reductions resulting from the passage of I-695. On December 14 Governor Gary Locke unveiled his proposed supplemental budget proposal. His proposal contains $237,400 in funding for Pullman Transit in Fiscal Year (FY) 2000 and $0 in FY 2001. It is unknown how soon the legislature will adopt a supplemental budget. However, based upon the comments of our 9th District State legislators it is highly unlikely a budget will be adopted before the proposed transit service reductions on February 4. In addition to seeking legislative relief, we have also applied for a federal operational grant. At the City Council meeting on November 30 the City Council authorized the application and acceptance of a transit operating grant. Transit Manager Rod Thornton has been working with state officials regarding the federal operational grant. Based upon subsequent conversations with these state officials, it is possible that we could receive over $300,000 in an operational grant. However, it is a competitive grant so it is likely we will receive something less than the requested amount. We will not know by February 4, (the date of the proposed transit reductions) what relief, if any, we will receive from this grant funding source. Our staff recommendation is that you proceed with the proposed service reductions on February 4 and then restore certain selected services after February 4 based upon service priorities and the availability of funding. The proposed fixed-route service reductions were outlined by Rod Thornton in a memorandum to the Mayor and City Council dated November 19, 1999. This memorandum was used as the basis of discussion for the public hearing on proposed transit service reductions at the City Council meeting on December 7. The memorandum states: The proposed reduction in service after December 11, 1999 is as follows: All Saturday Service will be canceled. The proposed reduction in service after February 4, 2000 is as follows: A-Route is reduced to 11 hours per day, a reduction of 1 hour per day during the school year. Service during breaks and from May 8th to June 9th will be 6 hours per day, 3 in the am and 3 in the pm. No A-Route service will be offered from June 12th to August 25th, 2000. I-Route is canceled, a reduction of 12 hours per day. J-Route is replaced by D-Route during the school year, and service on DRoute will be reduced to 6 hours per day, 3 hours in the am and 3 hours in the pm. No D-Route service will be offered from June 12th to August 25th, 2000. E-Route is canceled, a reduction of 5.5 hours per day. G-Route is canceled, a reduction of 2 hours per day. Day Express service will remain the same. It is operated with 4 buses from 7:00 am to 5:45 pm. Supplemental Express service will remain the same. There will be no Late Night Express. School District Tripper service may remain the same. These reductions will amount to a daily reduction in service of 32 hours. This is about 32% of the current school year fixed route service. This percentage does not take into account the loss of Saturday service or the suspension of summer fixed route service. The proposed reductions in Dial-A-Ride services which were discussed at the December 7 City Council meeting were outlined in Transit Manager Rod Thornton’s "Request For Council Action" as follows: The proposed reductions are as follows: Cancel Saturday Service after December 11, 1999. Reduce service hours by 4.5 hours during the school year and by 3.5 hours during breaks, reduced service when the school district is in session and during the summer (June 9, 2000 to August 25, 2000). This will allow us to maintain Dial-A-Ride service at 15 hours per day with two overlapping shifts from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm year round. As was previously noted, the City Council only took action on deleting Saturday service for fixed-route transit service at the City Council meeting on December 7. The recommendations made by staff were based upon input we received from both citizens and Pullman Transit employees as well as our own personal perspectives. Those involved in framing the final budget proposal were the Mayor, City Supervisor, Finance Director, Public Works Director, and Transit Manager. The citizen input we received boiled down to two major issues. First, don’t continue to run empty buses around town. Second, don’t significantly decrease Dial-A-Ride service. The employee input centered on the fear of cutting service on the routes were are already significantly overcrowded. To this input we added our own concern that some form of service should be maintained on all four hills because all the taxpayers within Pullman help to fund the transit system. We need to seek your direction as to how to make service reduction cuts in a manner other than that which has been previously recommended. In order to provide you assistance in providing this direction, we are also providing the following information regarding Transit levels of services and priorities. TRANSIT LEVELS OF SERVICES AND PRIORITIES The following is being provided in keeping with the pattern we propose to follow as we discuss levels of services and priorities for all departments and divisions within the city. Staff will also be available to answer any additional questions you might have. Attachment "A" is background information relating to fixed route ridership and WSU transit provided services. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: From a historical perspective, it should be noted that Pullman Transit was created in 1978 following a public vote in which approximately 51% of the voters approved the creation of the system. Pullman Transit commenced operation in 1979. NEED FOR SERVICE: The first question within the adopted city of Pullman "General Guidelines for Considering Service Requests" (hereinafter referred to as "Service Guidelines" asks, "Should the service being considered be provided at all"? During the twenty years of its operation, Pullman Transit has grown from a fledgling operation to major ingredient in the community’s successful functioning. Over the years agreements have been made with both the Pullman School District as well as WSU/ASWSU. If the system were to be eliminated, there would be numerous negative impacts upon the community. The Pullman School District would have to purchase additional buses and hire additional drivers to replace the contracted services provided by Pullman Transit. WSU would need to construct large park-and-ride lots and provide its own shuttle service or else construct numerous large parking facilities in order to deal with the increased vehicular traffic which would result. Policy T1.3 within the adopted 1999 Comprehensive Plan also makes a strong case for the need for Transit. The policy states: Provide transit service to connect residential areas to employment and activity centers and encourage transit use through publicity and special programs. The text of the Comprehensive Plan also states on page 7-2: The operation of a safe, convenient transit system is important to the community, and such a system has been in place in Pullman since 1979. Public transit reduces traffic congestion by providing an attractive alternative to automobile use. The transit system provides easy access to work, schools, or shopping and also provides mobility to those form whom automobile ownership is not an option. Since the voters of Pullman approved the transit system and since the transit system has become an important component of the growth and development of the community, I think we must answer the first question in the affirmative. Transit service should be provided in Pullman even though critics might be quick to point out that neither Moscow or Lewiston have anything approaching the fixed route transit system which Pullman has. We have used our transit system as a recruitment and development tool. Our fixed route system is an absolute necessity for the over 1,000 new apartment units which have been constructed during the 1990s. Without such a system in place, these off-campus units would be very difficult to use. We have also used Dial-A-Ride as a selling factor for making Pullman a more attractive community in which to retire. In summary, although it is not a federal or state mandate that we provide transit service, this service was approved in a community-wide official vote. Furthermore, the service has been an essential part of the community’s growth and development. ALTERNATE PRIVATE SERVICE PROVIDERS: The second question within the "Service Guidelines" asks, "If the service is justified, is it most appropriate to let the private sector meet the demand without any public sector involvement or encouragement"? It is basically unheard of to have an unsubsidized private transit service which provides the fixed-route service provided by Pullman Transit. Fare box revenues provide only for a very small portion of fixed route and Dial-A-Ride operational costs. The service is heavily subsidized through federal, state, and local tax dollars. For example, most of the buses have been purchased by federal grants under an 80% federal 20% local funding formula. At the local level, much of the funding is provided by a 2% utility tax. Contracts with WSU and the Pullman School District also help to fund the system. Finally, prior to the passage of I-695, utility tax dollars were matched by state Motor Vehicle Excise Tax (MVET) dollars. To put this revenue picture in perspective, for the 1999 budget fares accounted for $388,546; Other Local accounted for $61,128; State MVET accounted for $505,379; the 2% local utility tax accounted for $505,379; and a federal grant accounted for $49,356. In sum, the system would not exist without heavy public assistance. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: We have in the past contracted with private taxi companies to replace some of our previously provided Dial-A-Ride service. When we entered our first private taxi agreement, we eliminated Dial-A-Ride service to the general public and restricted it to the elderly and disabled. When WSU and the U of I sought to provide service between the two college campuses, we encouraged them to provide the service through private contract. We did this for two reasons. First, we are a municipal system and operate only within the city limits of Pullman. Second, we felt it would be much cheaper to provide the service privately. Wheatland Express, a private operator, has provided the service successfully for many years. However, without the public sector involvement of WSU and the U of I, it is doubtful that the WSU/U of I service would exist at current service levels. The communities of Pullman and Moscow benefit greatly from this service between the two communities. Pullman Transit has cooperated with Wheatland Express on bus stops, connections, etc. in order to make this private service more successful. Although the City Council did approve the staff recommendation to eliminate the private contract for taxi service last year, there are still private sector taxi providers operating within the area. There may be some additional opportunities for contracting out services, such as were raised by Karl Johanson, Executive Director of the Council on Aging, at the City Council meeting on December 7. However, these opportunities are for the most part very limited. ALTERNATIVE PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: The fourth question in the "Service Guidelines" states, "If the service is determined to be best provided as a public function, what unit of government is most appropriate to provide the service"? According to the annual summary of "Public Transportation Systems in Washington State" which is published by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), the state legislature has authorized four forms of public sector transit operations. First, the state allows cities like Pullman to operate their own transit systems. The state legislature passed authorizing legislation in 1965 allowing cities to levy a household tax. Up until then there were few municipal transit systems. Later, the legislature began allowing cities to create special purpose districts to provide public transportation. This resulted in three other forms of public transportation systems. As is stated in the WSDOT summary, "The state legislature authorized metropolitan municipal corporations in 1969, county transportation authorities in 1974, and public transportation benefit areas in 1975". Most of the systems within the state are public transportation benefit areas (PTBA). According to Paul Gamble in the WSDOT office in Olympia there are currently 26 local governmental public transportation systems in Washington--19 of which are public transportation benefit areas. If we were to expand from a municipal system into a PTBA, it would take the consent of the additional parties within the system. For example, if Albion, Colfax, and certain unincorporated portions of Whitman County were to be included within the PTBA, it would require approval authority within these areas to be served. This could be done by the voters approving an increase in their sales tax or the levying of a utility tax for transit. Washington law allows a utility tax to be levied within unincorporated areas for transit purposes even though counties are not authorized to levy utility taxes for their General Fund purposes. Approval for the creation of a PTBA could also come in the form of an interlocal agreement for transit purposes. Garfield County funds a transit system from its General Fund without levying any additional taxes. Colfax or Albion could enter into an interlocal agreement with Pullman to create a PTBA. According to Paul Gamble at WSDOT, it is very difficult to provide for a contractual agreement across state lines. They have done work in the past exploring possibilities between Lewiston and Clarkston. However, he agrees that it is possible to enter into an interlocal agreement such as we have on the Pullman-Moscow Airport. Although such arrangements are legally possible, one must question the fiscal viability of such arrangements. In summary, Pullman Transit is definitely in the minority among transit systems within Washington because it is not a PTBA. Paul Gamble has offered to come over and address the City Council should the city seriously want to pursue the PTBA option. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: The fifth question under "Service Guidelines" asks, "If it is determined that municipal government would more appropriately deliver the service than would the federal government, state government, or a special purpose district, how will the funding for the new municipal service be provided?" For purposes of our levels of services and priorities exercise, we are going to alter this question slightly to state, "What alternative or new sources of funding are there available to support the desired service"?. Paul Gamble of WSDOT noted that the state has authorized Transit systems to levy up to 6/10ths of 1% (.006) for transit purposes. Pullman and Garfield County are the only two systems within the state which do not use the sales tax as a funding source for transit. As was the case when Whitman County recently raised the sales tax by 1/10th of 1% (.001) for criminal justice purposes, some will argue that the sales tax should not be considered as an alternative funding source due to the proximity of Idaho. In any event, whether one wants to increase the utility tax or switch to the sales tax it will now have to be voter approved in view of the passage of I-695. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Under the adopted criteria for the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) the first issue deals with a project’s consistency with the comprehensive plan and its relationship to the progress of the entire city. For this exercise we are simply asking if the service being reviewed is in conformance with the comprehensive plan and if the service benefits the entire community. As has previously been noted, the existence of the transit system is a key component of the "smart growth" model we are following in our Comprehensive Plan. With respect to serving the entire community, it is true that Pullman Transit does not operate on every street in Pullman. However, our goal is to try to have every home within one-quarter mile of a transit route. With the exception of the Golden Hills area, we will continue to meet this standard even with the implementation of the proposed February 4, 2000 reductions in service. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: The second criteria taken from the CIP is that the service alleviates identified problems or deficiencies. The major problems that transit addresses deal with traffic congestion, parking congestion, and air quality. Transit reduces private motor vehicle traffic thereby reducing traffic congestion, parking demands, and air pollution. POPULATION SERVED: The third CIP criteria addresses the extent of the service provided. In this case Pullman Transit is available to all members of the community either on a pre-paid basis or a fare basis. Most of the ridership comes from university students and K-12 students. The figures for student ridership have consistently run at about 95%. It is estimated that approximately 15,000 WSU students actually live within the incorporated city limits of Pullman. Since our official population for 1999 was 25,630 it is easy to understand why the ridership numbers are so student dominated. PUBLIC SUPPORT: The fourth CIP criteria addresses public support. By a narrow margin, voters did approve of the creation of the transit system in 1978. There have been no public votes since. During the early years of the system’s existence there was certainly much more public discussion about the system’s continued existence than there has been in recent years. This is to be expected when a system develops from a fledgling system with few riders into an established system with many riders. Also, the Pullman Comprehensive Plan and the WSU Master Plan have grown in their dependence on mass transit for their successful implementation. PUBLIC HEALTH OR SAFETY: The fifth CIP criteria addresses public health or safety. Transit does not meet the stringent criteria of being a matter of necessity rather than a matter of choice. As was previously noted, many communities of our size do not even have transit systems. However, it is true that certain users, primarily Dial-A-Ride users, might persuasively argue that transit is a necessity for their continued maintenance of a preferred lifestyle. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE: The sixth CIP criteria addresses efficiency of service. Transit is a very heavily subsidized service. Transit does, however, save the expenditure of funds in other areas such as parking lot and parking structure construction. In more densely populated areas, transit may also save costs in street widening and street construction expenditures. Within the "smart growth" planning model it is also argued that transit will allow for the development of a more compact community. Thus there are some efficiencies both in fact and theory that accrue from the existence of a transit system. RELATED SERVICES: The seventh CIP criteria addresses related projects. Examples of related services include services which would be needed for matches for federal or state grants, regional projects, larger programs, etc. Pullman Transit is not a Public Transit Benefit Area which serves a large geographic area. Rather it is confined to the incorporated city limits of Pullman. However, the system does tie in with services offered by others within the region, such as the Pullman-Moscow transit link which is provided by Wheatland Express. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: The eighth CIP criteria addresses legal requirements. It is not a mandate of either state or federal law that Pullman have a transit system. However, if the system were to be dissolved it would be necessary to conform to federal grant requirements for the disposition of property and equipment that have been partially acquired through federal funds. ECONOMIC IMPACT: The ninth CIP criteria addresses economic impacts. Pullman Transit is used as a tool in economic development recruitment. It is definitely an asset when one is attempting to market Pullman as an attractive location for business development or the retention of retirees. ENERGY CONSERVATION: The final CIP criteria addresses energy conservation. One of the major justifications for establishing transit systems is that they reduce energy demands by reducing the number of private individual vehicular trips. Thus transit would rate high in the energy conservation criteria. OVERALL ASSESSMENT I have attempted to provide some basic information relating to each of the 15 criteria which have been adopted in past years within the budget document and the Capital Improvement Program. You may want to rate each of the 15 criteria based upon a scoring scale of one to 10 with one being low or "no" and 10 being high or "yes". With respect to criteria dealing with service delivery options, a higher score would be given if it is determined that the city is the appropriate service provider. It is recognized that scoring individually may vary greatly. For example, one person might score Transit on the low end of the scale for the criteria of "need for service" because Transit is an optional rather than a mandated service and Transit is not a major public health or safety required service. Another person might score Transit much higher because Transit is important to the functioning of our community from a planning perspective. I would suggest that in the process of establishing levels of services and priorities that you might find it beneficial to rate each of the 15 criteria on the one to 10 scale as a group scoring process. Once again the 15 criteria are: CRITERIA 1. NEED FOR SERVICE: Should the service be provided at all? 2. ALTERNATIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS: Should this be a private service? 3. PRIVATE CONTRACTING OPTIONS: Should the service be contracted out? 4. OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: Federal, state, county, etc. 5. FUNDING ALTERNATIVES: Are there other potential sources of revenues? 6. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN CONSISTENCY: Is service listed in Camp Plan? 7. PROBLEMS ADDRESSED: Does the service alleviate identified deficiencies? 8. POPULATION SERVED: Would many be hurt if the service was eliminated? 9. PUBLIC SUPPORT: Is there strong public and political support for the service? 10. PUBLIC HE ALTH OR SAFETY: Does this service address life safety issues? 11. EFFICIENCY OF SERVICE: What is the cost/benefit relationship of the service? 12. RELATED SERVICES: Would other areas be impacted if this service was ended? 13. LEGAL REQUIREMENT: Is this a federal or state mandated service? 14. ECONOMIC IMPACT: Does the service contribute to economic growth? 15. ENERGY CONSERVATION: Does the service help save energy? You may decide that some of the criteria are more important than others. For example, you may value criteria 10 Public Health and Safety at a higher level than you value criteria 15 Energy Conservation. In this case you may want to use a multiplier factor for those criteria which you consider to be the most important. The whole point is not to complicate your decision making process but rather to use a rational defensible process for determining that one service should be retained while another service is being reduced or eliminated. I have chosen the 15 criteria because they are adopted criteria which have been used for a number of years. You may want to consider adding or deleting criteria because you are not bound by past decisions. However, if you feel the 15 criteria are still valid, it lends credibility to the decision making process to use them. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: In assessing a service it is important to look at how costs can be cut without eliminating services. In the case of Transit, Capital Improvement Program (CIP) project cuts and minor capital cuts have already been made within the year 2000 budget. Another area to review is the organizational structure. When the Transit system was created, the staffing consisted of a Transit Manager, a Transit Operations Supervisor, Transit Drivers, and Transit Dispatchers. During the lean years when the Transit system was barely financially viable in the early 1980s, the Transit Manager position was eliminated. The Public Works Director took over the responsibilities of being the Transit Manager. On October 29, 1996, the City Council in a pre-budget workshop agreed that the transit system had grown in size and complexity enough that it was no longer appropriate to have the Public Works Director act as the Transit Manager. Effective January 1, 1997, the Transit system returned to its original organizational structure of having a Transit Manager and a Transit Operations Supervisor. By 1999 the system had the following positions: Transit Manager, Transit Operations Supervisor, Transit Lead Driver/Dispatcher, Transit Driver, Transit Operations Administrative Assistant, and Bus Washer. In the proposed 2000 budget, the positions of Transit Lead Driver/Dispatcher would be eliminated as of February 4 except for Saturday Dial-A-Ride service. MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES: There are many other issues relating to Pullman Transit which you may want to consider as you proceed through your levels of services and priorities review. The memorandum which follows by Transit Manager Rod Thornton contains a great deal of useful information which you might want to consider in your decision-making process.