BOARD MEETING MINUTES
February 18, 2009
1. Call to order.
The Board meeting was called to order at 6:02 pm.
2. Pledge of Allegiance
3. Roll Call of the Board Members.
Board Members Present:
Dan Atkinson Gary Selig Rick Parker
William Dunlap Sr Randy James
Board Members Absent:
None
4. Approval of the Minutes:
a. Approval of the minutes of January 21st
There was a motion by Randy James to approve the minutes of the regular Board Meeting of January 21, 2009. There was a second by Rick Parker and the vote was unanimous.
b. Approval of the Public Hearing of February 7, 2009
There was a motion by Gary Selig to approve the minutes of the Public Hearing of February 7, 2009. There was a second by Rick Parker and the vote was unanimous.
5. REPORTS
a. Financial Report
The Financial Reports were presented by Tina Dillahunty. Tina went over the financial report. Tina stated that we have received all the funds from State Land. The remaining amount is from Highlands. They are waiting to be paid
by Grand Canyon. Their payment was delayed due to a Grand Canyon employee that had extended leave.
b. Administration Report
The Administration Report was given by Tina Dillahunty. Tina stated that we are getting ready to convert QuickBooks to the 2009 version. This is required by QuickBooks to continue doing Payroll. Tina stated that she will
probably need to either come in on a Saturday or stay late one evening to be able to load it on Joann’s and Peggy’s computers and convert the file when it is not in use. Tina is updating the program coordinators on the status of
their program and their budgets and they are working on getting their new budgets submitted. We have received the mailing list from Doney Park Water and Peggy is starting a comparison to our mailing list for our newsletters. It
is not in any kind of order so it is a slow process. Doney Park Water will put our Board Meetings times in their newsletters. This was an idea that came out of the Public Hearing.
c. Auxiliary Report
The Auxiliary Report was given by Tina Dillahunty. The Auxiliary is going to help with the Easter Egg Hunt and Ice Cream Social to be held on Saturday, April 11th from 11 to 2 for the Summit Fire staff, firefighters, volunteers
and their families. The Easter Egg Hunt will start at 11, followed by hot dogs and ice cream. The Auxiliary will fill the plastic eggs on Wednesday, March 25th and help hide the eggs on Saturday morning plus provide some fun
games for the children. We are still in the planning process with the Pub Ed group and more information will follow.
d. Local 1505 Report
The Local 1505 Report was given by Preston Slayton. They are doing charity work and are working on the Car Show to take place in May to put money in their charity fund. Their donations went up. They helped the family in
Greer of the Firefighter that died while on duty. Preston stated that they are working with administration on identifying their priorities. They will be working to participate in the Budget Committee and are glad to be asked to help
out.
e. Firefighter’s Association Report
There was no Firefighter Association report.
6. CALL TO THE PUBLIC
There was no answer to the call to the public.
7. PURCHASE REQUESTS
a. None
8. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS
a. Run Report
The run report was given by Deputy Chief Sam Whitted. There were 86 calls to service for the month of January. Sam stated that it has been a busy month. There are no calls that stand out. Sam stated that we did respond to a
structural call last night on Buckboard Trail. There was a discussion of the call. Sam stated that there was about $50,000 in damage and the guys did a great job. Much of the content was saved.
b. FVFD Update
Deputy Chief Whitted gave an update on Fort Valley Fire District. Sam stated that Fort Valley had 8 calls to service for January. They are much slower than Summit. Randy James stated that the run reports used to fit on one
sheet. Sam stated that most of the calls are EMS calls. We are impacted on the highway by accidents due to a series of storms. Eric Lobstein stated that we are missing data on out of district calls. That is on a separate report.
Eric stated that he will make sure that report is included in the Run Report for the next meeting. Eric discussed a significant call they ran on Crackpot Rd that was a full code. Eric discussed the equipment that was used to get the
IV started.
c. Other
There were no other informational items.
9. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
a. Public Hearing of February 7, 2009
Sam Whitted stated that he was not in attendance at the Public Hearing. Randy James stated that legislative issues are on the front burners that will give us direction and we will wait until that process goes through. Sam stated that
the Chief feels the first hundred days we will have some idea where that will be headed. There was a discussion of the State Legislature. Rick Parker stated that holding the Fire District Assistance Tax (FDAT) to a maximum of
$300,000 doesn’t make sense. It would force departments not to merge. Sam stated that he has not had a recent conversation with Chief Howard about the FDAT issue. The other tax issue he has heard they are looking at
possibly a limit of 8% plus construction. One of the things that came out of the meeting was to update the newsletter mailing list using the water department list. Rick Parker stated that some people haul their own water. We
should post our meeting at the standpipe by Mountain View Market and one on Commerce. There was a discussion of these posting areas. Rick stated that he would talk to the City and Doney Park about posting on these
standpipes. Randy James stated that it is clear our list is outdated and we should cross check it with the list from the Arizona Department of Revenue. Tina Dillahunty pointed out that the list from the AZ Dept of Revenue had
addresses from all over the country and some from out of the country. Randy stated that Don did an excellent presentation. He had a good overview of the legislature.
b. Maintenance Facility
Bill Dunlap stated that at this point he thinks we are postponing anything that is an expenditure. We had several alternatives. Sam Whitted stated that we have many things pending in the Legislature. Everything is up in the air.
Sam stated he feels it is wise to push this to the back and discuss it at a later date. Randy James stated that he has spoken to the mechanic and he is convinced that the mechanic is paying for his salary. We are saving a lot of
money by not outsourcing. Randy stated that he has talked with the mechanic, the Chief and the Battalion Chief. Randy stated that he is concerned with the facility that Mike Apodaca is operating out of. We have talked about
building a maintenance facility. There was talk about this facility being big enough to do some major repair and maintenance. Our mechanic is very skilled. We are looking at possibly building a proper maintenance facility that
could bring some business from other departments. Randy discussed how qualified Mike Apodaca is and how he used to work for the City of Mesa. Randy stated that Mike is top notch. Randy stated that he would information
presented to the Board so we can think about it in the next six months. Rick Parker stated that the City of Flagstaff is going to Compressed Air Foam Systems (CAFS). Their personnel don’t have much knowledge of the
systems. Rick stated that if we have a decent facility we might work out a trade with their training facility. Sam Whitted stated that what understands the Board wants is for us to gather more information to present to the Board.
Rick Parker stated that we should talk to some of the other departments to see if there is an interest in having some of their work done at Summit. Sam stated that we can continue to investigate. Gary Selig stated that we need to
look into it for the concept. We will need to see if we will need a test it. We should gather up all the needs an look at the possibility of using an existing government facility. Sam stated that another point raised is coordinating
anything we do with a training facility like the test pit.
c. Higher Education Policy
Bill Dunlap stated that he feels this falls under the same category as the maintenance facility. We need to live with what we have. Sam Whitted stated that we are trying to clean up what we are currently doing and make it more
cost efficient for Summit. Sam stated that Preston Slayton is one of the people who helped write the policy. Preston Slayton stated that the current policy is paying for tuition and books. The personnel do not get a degree. When
the policy was written they spoke to nine departments across the state. Sedona pays for education, time off and gives a percent of increase for a degree. The City of Flagstaff will reimburse for a class if you have a B or above
and it revolves around promotions. Preston stated that Phoenix Fire is the same way. Preston stated that the advantages to having personnel with degrees are that more educated personnel speak and write better. The
Department supporting education is a great thing. We want to have an educated department. Gary Selig stated that he agrees with the concept of education but it come down to the fiscal side. Rick Parker stated that he does not
have a problem reimbursing people who pass courses. Rick stated that he does not think the Department should pay for classes that are not for the good of the Department. Rick stated that if a person takes a class and finishes he
comes out ahead and the Department got him learning. Rick stated that both the Department and the employee benefits if he stays and gets his AA degree. Rick stated that it makes no sense to him to pay for an AA degree across
the board. A person with an AA degree may not produce any more than a good employee without an AA degree. Rick stated that he would rather see increases based on merit and not on a piece of paper. Preston Slayton
stated that we are not asking Summit to pay getting the degree. There was further discussion of the Higher Education Policy. Rick Parker stated that having a degree may or may not give an employee an advantage. Rick stated
that he thinks the policy should support education as it pertains to fire service. Preston stated that our main goal was to work on how the guys go to school and work on the percent of the raises. Rick stated that he would support
a policy as long as it is for the betterment of the District and the taxpayers. Sam Whitted stated that in reference to what we have been doing it is expensive and inconsistent as to who goes to what class. We want to support
education and want to be fair across the board. This cleans up the policy and gives incentive for employees to get their degree. People will have commitment. Sam stated that we have in place a fairly good assessment tool in our
annual evaluations. Annual raises are tied to the annual evaluations. Sam stated that the evaluation document changes from year to year and we have added program work to the evaluations. It is a good tool. The raises are based
completely on merit. Rick stated that he understands. Rick stated that he does not understand why two people working side by side and one gets paid more just because he has a degree. There was further discussion of this
issue. There was a discussion of the cost of getting a degree. Gary Selig stated that it seems the issue now is that without a policy we have backfill overtime. There was further discussion. Sam stated that this cleans up the policy
and makes it more consistent. Eric Lobstein stated that he deals with the approvals and backfills. Eric stated that it rewards higher learning and give initiative. They are doing it on their own time. Eric discussed how he went from
EMT to IEMT. Eric stated that it allows us to plan. We can forecast when they get the degree and forecast for the budget. Rick stated that he understands that Eric sacrificed time to IEMT but what about the guy with a
Bachelors Degree in Animal Husbandry who gets paid more. Rick discussed how if two people get hired at the same time and one has an AA degree and one has a BS degree, the one with the BS degree will be paid more. Eric
Lobstein discussed how he feels he is now being rewarded for his work because he is now a Battalion Chief. Eric stated that their commitment is rewarded. Eric stated that we have all different kinds of people here and if we don’
t promote education we will never raise the bar. Eric stated that we are trying to build a good system. We are trying to have more professional and more educated personnel. We can’t look at this short term. Rick Parker stated
that he is not saying that we don’t need to rework what we are doing. He doesn’t agree with across the board percentage for a degree. Eric Lobstein stated that is how he thinks we will need to do this. Rick stated that he has
worked with hundreds of firefighters and dozen of them with degrees that were worthless. Rick stated that we need to know figures for paying for a degree rather than a percentage up until they retire. Bill Dunlap stated that we
need to give some direction on what we want to see. Bill stated that he feels we an approved curriculum. Bill stated that he would like to see the procedures from other departments. There was further discussion of the higher
education issue. Bruce Johnson stated that he went to school a long time ago and received a Bachelor Degree in Mathematics. Mr. Johnson stated that he is a big supporter of education and he agrees with Mr. Parker that
education by itself does not mean anything. Mr. Johnson stated that pay should be based on value to the system. He stated that if education means something it will show up in the performance on the job. Rick Parker stated that
he has no problem helping with classes that help out the Department. It can help them get promotions and better evaluations. Preston Slayton stated that of the departments that do require a degree to promote they do not care
what the degree is in. Bill Dunlap stated that in college they get an education in many different things such as reports, analysis, expenses, etc. There was further discussion of education. Bill stated that we need to refine this and
need to have a written policy on approved curriculum. Dan Atkinson stated that he would also like to see the policies of other departments for comparison. Dan asked if the Union is supporting this policy. Preston Slayton stated
that the Union does support this policy. Preston stated that they wrote a larger version of the policy and this is what Chief Howard has come up with after some editing. Dan stated that this policy seems to be an employee driven
policy. Dan stated that he feels the employees are behind this. It is a complicated issue and he sees more problems with the department paying for the classes. There was further discussion of education. Dan stated that he sees it
as a benefit to the department. A better educated person makes a better employee. It is a benefit to the employee. He is paid for education and he uses his vacation time. Sam Whitted stated that we will get more information
and bring it back. There was further discussion of the issue. Randy James stated that we need further discussion on this. Randy stated that he is not in favor of chasing Flag Fire and other departments. We need to make the
choice. Randy stated that he is not in favor of the $26,000. We need to run the cost out. Randy stated that once a policy is adopted we will need to work it for a period of time and review it and possibly adjust it. Randy stated
that it has to be in the best interest of all parties involved and it needs more work. Gary Selig stated that some departments put a time frame on policy. Sam stated that we will continue to work on it. There was further discussion
of the policy.
Randy James stated that he had asked about looking into the finances regarding the three trucks that have outstanding lease purchase agreements on them. Randy stated that he meet with a financial person in Phoenix and was told
that we have pretty good rates and probably won’t see rates that low. Randy stated that it does not make sense to refinance these trucks. Randy James pronounced the lease purchase agreement good.
10. NEW BUSINESS
None
11. ACTION ITEMS
a. Server
Bill Dunlap stated that we have obligated to this program. There was a motion by Randy James to purchase the server for $36,338.32. There was a second by Gary Selig. Sam Whitted stated that the bid for the equipment was
a year old and would like for the Board to approve no more than $38,338.00 in case it came in higher. There was a vote on the motion and there was no for the motion and all were opposed. There was a motion by Randy
James to approve up to $38,338.00 for the server and a second by Gary Selig. The vote was unanimous in favor.
b. Budget Committee
Deputy Chief Sam Whitted stated that he spoke to Chief Howard and he stated that because of issues both nationally and locally and the feedback that we have received the Chief thought it might be a sound idea for the Board to
consider forming a Budget Committee. There could be a couple of members of the Board, a couple of Union Members, and a couple of Admin members. Bill Dunlap asked how it would work and how would it be structured.
Sam stated that the assumption is the Committed would make a recommendation to the Board. Randy James stated that in the past we had a budget workshop. Randy stated that as time has progressed we have not needed the
workshop but with everything going on in the horizon it is time to get back to it and look at thing harder. We need more projections than we did in the past. Randy stated that we don’t want to fall hard in two or three years.
Randy discussed the uncertain future. Bill Dunlap stated that we need public input. The community needs to put into this program. We need a couple of representatives from the community and some means for them to
communicate with the rest of the community rather than having 15 or 20 people there. There was discussion of having a committee.
Bruce Johnson requested to speak. Mr. Johnson stated that he spoke to Chief Whitted today and he supports the idea. He stated that he did serve on a committee a couple of years ago. The problems facing the district will only
get worse not only because of legislation but because of lagging time with assessed valuations. Mr. Johnson stated that he heard at earlier meeting that some neighbors were for budget increases and he thinks we should have more
public input. Mr. Johnson stated that he would like to volunteer his services. Mr. Johnson stated that there was one person at the Tax Meeting who works for the County who was very bright and might want to be on the
committee. There was further discussion of getting in touch with this person. Bill Dunlap asked how we could facilitate this so we have someone gather information and present it to the Committee. Mr. Johnson stated that the
School District had a portion of their website set up for information gathering. There was a discussion of the timeline and the website. Sam Whitted stated that if the Board agrees and gives direction we can put together a
committee. Mr. Johnson stated that if we establish a committee it is subject to the open meeting laws. Mr. Johnson stated that there are many things on the internet that can be used for information gathering. With user groups
people can sign in and it can be set up and have a input flow into the process. There was further discussion of how to get more input. Bill Dunlap stated that he pictures the representatives from the community would go through
the community input and consolidate it to present to the committee. There was further discussion. Randy James stated that he is concerned with more than this year. He is concerned with two years down the road. Randy stated
that this will take more than one meeting. We will need two or three a month. Randy stated that it is important that whoever is in charge can direct it and get back to the Board. Mr. Johnson stated that he is willing. Mr. Johnson
discussed the committee. There was discussion of support staff. Sam Whitted suggested that we have a preliminary organizational meeting the first of the wee. Bruce Johnson stated that he is out of town but would be available by
phone. The date was set for Tuesday at 10:00. Sam stated that Chief Howard will be back for the meeting. Randy James suggested that Tina Dillahunty should be staff support and not a voting member of the committee. . Gary
Volunteered to be on the committee. There was a discussion of people in the public who might be interested in the committee.
c. Date of next Board Meeting
Tina Dillahunty stated that the next Board meeting is scheduled during the Arizona Wildfire Academy. Chief Howard would like to reschedule it for Tuesday, March 24th. The Fort Valley Board Meeting is on March 25th. The
Board agreed to reschedule the March Board Meeting to March 24th.
12. CALL TO THE PUBLIC
There was no answer to the call to the public.
13. ADJOURNMENT
There was a motion to adjourn by Rick Parker and a second by Gary Selig. The vote was unanimous and the meeting adjourned at 7:56 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Tina Dillahunty
