[ CITY OF BAYTOWN NOTICE OF MEETING COLLECTIVE BARGAINING SESSION BETWEEN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN AND THE BAYTOWN PROFESSIONAL FIREFIGHTERS' ASSOCIATION WEDNESDAY, JULY 24, 2024 3:30 P.M. BAYTOWN CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL 2401 MARKET STREET, BAYTOWN, TEXAS 77520 AGENDA CALL TO ORDER ]
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I WILL CALL THIS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING SESSION BETWEEN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN AND THE BAYTOWN PROFESSIONAL FIREFIGHTER ASSOCIATION TO ORDER.
IT IS WEDNESDAY, JULY 24TH, 2024 AT 3:30 PM AND WE ARE IN THE BAYTOWN CONFERENCE ROOM AT CITY HALL.
THE FIRST ITEM IS CITIZEN COMMENTS.
ALL RIGHT, MOVING ON TO BUSINESS ITEM NUMBER TWO A.
THAT IS TO DISCUSS AND CONSIDER THE CITY OF BAY TOWN'S COUNTER PROPOSAL FOR BASE COMPENSATION FOR YEAR THREE OF BARGAIN AGREEMENTS.
UM, SO WHEN WE LAST MET, UH, I MENTIONED THAT WE WERE STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF TIME TO FIGURE OUT BUDGET AND WANTED GET A LITTLE FURTHER WITH THAT AND BRING BACK SOME INFORMATION, UM, TO Y'ALL'S BOARD OUR COUNTERPROPOSAL.
SO, UM, SO WANT TO KIND OF RUN THROUGH SOME OF THE BUDGET INFORMATION WHERE WE'RE AT SO Y'ALL CAN, UM, PROBABLY, HOPEFULLY BETTER UNDERSTAND WHEN WE GET TO OUR COUNTER OFFER AND WHERE WE'RE AT.
UM, SO WE HAVE BEEN WORKING OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS WITH THE DIRECTORS TO COME UP WITH OUR BUDGET.
UM, SO JUST A LITTLE BACKGROUND ON THIS.
SO LEADING UP TO THIS POINT, NUMBER OF YEARS AND, AND KIND OF PRIOR CULTURE OF SOME OF THE SPENDING, AND THEN ALSO SOME IMPACTS TO OUR, UM, TAX BASE AND THEN ALSO SOME EFFECTS OF PRIOR, UH, BUDGETING PRACTICES WITHIN THE CITY.
SO IN TERMS OF SOME OF THE PRIOR, UH, SOME OF THE TAX IMPACTS THAT WE'VE SEEN AS BACK IN 2019 AT THE STATE LEVEL, THEY ADOPTED SB TWO.
SO THAT TOOK THE CAP ON, UH, THE INCREASE THAT YOU COULD HAVE FROM YOUR PROPERTY TAXES FROM 8.5% DOWN TO THREE POINT A HALF PERCENT AS A CAP.
SO, UM, THAT NOT JUST FOR BAYTOWN FOR ALL TEXAS CITIES, UM, WHO ESPECIALLY WHO RELY VERY MUCH ON PROPERTY TAXES, OBVIOUSLY THAT HAS AN IMPACT ON HOW MUCH REVENUE WE CAN INCREASE JUST FROM PROPERTY TAXES.
SO, SO THAT HAS HAPPENED ALSO OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS.
OUR COUNCIL HAD, UH, MADE A DECISION TO LOWER THE TAX RATE AS WELL.
AND SO OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS, WE HAVE LOWERED THE TAX RATE 10 CENTS.
SO IT WAS 82 CENTS AND NOW IT'S DOWN TO 72 CENTS.
UM, WE DO HAVE A POLICY IN PLACE RIGHT NOW FROM COUNCIL THAT WE CONTINUE TO LOWER THAT ABOUT HALF A CENT PER YEAR, UM, UNTIL WE GET DOWN TO 68 CENTS.
SO THAT HAS HAD A VERY LARGE IMPACT OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS ON THE REVENUE THAT WE'RE BRINGING IN.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, COUNCIL ALSO HAS A POLICY TO INCREASE THE OVER 65 EXEMPTION, UM, AND TO CONTINUE TO INCREMENTALLY INCREASE THAT BY 20,000 UNTIL WE GET TO KIND OF THE AVERAGE PRICE OF A HOUSE IN BAYTOWN EVERY TIME WE DO THAT, THAT'S ABOUT $1.2 MILLION.
SO, AND EVERY HALF CENT DECREASES SOMEWHERE PROBABLY AROUND 500 TO A MILLION DOLLARS EACH YEAR.
SO, SO YOU CAN SEE THAT THOSE THINGS COLLECTIVELY HAVE HAD A, A FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT HIT TO KIND OF OUR REVENUE GROWTH OVER THE PAST COUPLE YEARS.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, COUNCIL ALSO, UM, MADE A DECISION TO SPEND DOWN OUR RESERVES BY $30 MILLION.
UM, SO WE USED TO HAVE RESERVES SOMEWHERE IN THE 90 TO A HUNDRED DAY RANGE.
UM, ACTUALLY CURRENTLY WE'RE, WE'RE SITTING
UM, OUR KIND OF BARE MINIMUM REALLY IS THE 60 DAY MARK.
OUR COUNCIL HAS, HAS SET KIND OF 65 AS OUR NEAR TERM GOAL, BUT GETTING BACK TO 75 DAYS IS OUR LONGER TERM GOAL.
SO, UM, AND A REAL EMPHASIS ON BRINGING THAT RESERVE BACK UP.
UM, SO, UH, MENTIONED ALSO THEN SOME KIND OF BUDGETARY FINANCE ACCOUNTING ISSUES.
UM, AND ALL OF THIS IS PRIOR TO THERESA AND HER CURRENT TEAM.
'CAUSE WE HAVE A WHOLE, WHOLE NEW TEAM.
UM, SO WHEN IT CAME TO BUDGETING OUR PERSONNEL, UM, WE HAD TO CORRECT, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS LAST YEAR OR THE YEAR BEFORE.
IT WENT FROM ABOUT 84 MILLION FOR PERSONNEL TO 94 MILLION, A $10 DELTA BECAUSE IT WAS NOT PROPERLY BUDGETED PREVIOUSLY.
SO THERE WAS, UH, A LOT OF ASSUMPTIONS MADE ON VACANCY SAVINGS AND, AND ALL KINDS OF OTHER THINGS THAT IT WASN'T REALISTIC NUMBERS.
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SHOULDN'T Y'ALL PROBABLY KNOW, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS ONE OF THOSE THAT KEPT ON RUNNING OVER BUDGET AND THAT WAS HAPPENING BECAUSE IT WASN'T BEING BUDGETED ON THE FRONT END APPROPRIATELY.AND THEN ALSO THIS PAST YEAR, UM, AS WE WENT THROUGH THE AND SET THE 24 BUDGET, UM, IN OUR CIP FUND, THERE WAS ABOUT 2.5 MILLION SET ASIDE FOR CONTRACTING AND DETERMINED DIDN'T NEED THAT, CUT IT OUT OF THE BUDGET.
LO AND BEHOLD, OCTOBER ONE ROLLS AROUND, WE DECIDE TO CUT PAYCHECKS TO OUR CIP EMPLOYEES, UM, AND THERE WAS NO FUND.
TURNS OUT THAT'S WHERE THEY WERE BEING FUNDED FROM, UM, RATHER THAN BEING FUNDED WITHIN THE GENERAL FUND.
SO WE HAD TO VERY QUICKLY FIGURE THAT OUT FOR THIS YEAR.
BUT THEN FOR NEXT YEAR FOR OUR FOE 25 BUDGET, THAT TWO AND A HALF MILLION, UM, HAS TO BE ACCOUNTED FOR.
SO, UM, SO THAT'S JUST KIND OF HISTORICAL KIND OF, BECAUSE ONE OF THE THINGS Y'ALL PROBABLY HEARD, UH, A PERSON MANAGER SAID QUITE OFTEN, BAYTOWN IS RECESSION PROOF.
AND WE KIND OF LIVED IN A NORMAL WORLD OF WE HAD PLENTY OF MONEY, WE DID STUFF BECAUSE WE SHOULD, NOT BECAUSE WE SHOULD.
UM, AND, AND SO NOW WE'VE KIND OF REACHED THAT POINT WHERE OUR REVENUE IS NOT GROWING AS FAST, UM, AS OUR EXPENSES AND, UH, OUR EXPENSES WERE GROWING AT SIX TO 10% OVER PRIOR YEARS.
WE CAN NO LONGER SUSTAIN THAT.
OUR REVENUE IS NOT GROWING ANYWHERE CLOSE TO THAT RATE.
UM, SO THIS IS THE YEAR THAT WE'RE HAVING TO REALLY MAKE SOME SERIOUS, UH, ADJUSTMENTS IN OUR BUDGET.
UM, OVERALL RIGHT NOW WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED IN OUR BUDGET, IT, IT IS ACCOUNTING FOR ABOUT A 1% GROWTH FROM LAST YEAR.
IN ORDER TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN, UM, DEPARTMENTS WERE ASKED TO CUT THEIR, WE CALL IT O AND M, WHICH IS EVERYTHING OUTSIDE OF PERSONNEL.
SO PERSONNEL WASN'T INCLUDED THE REST OF THE BUDGET.
UM, BASICALLY THEY WERE ASKED TO COME UP WITH A 10% CUT.
IT'S ABOUT $5 MILLION ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION.
THAT $5 MILLION SAVINGS, IF YOU WILL, IS WHAT ALLOWED US TO PUT IN, UM, SOME MONEY TO ALLOW EMPLOYEE RAISES.
UM, AND JUST SO YOU KIND OF HAVE A, A BASIS OF WHERE THAT'S AT, UH, A 4% ACROSS THE BOARD FOR ALL OF OUR, OUR TEAMS COST ALMOST $4 MILLION.
SO THAT $5 MILLION SAVINGS IS WHAT ALLOWED US REALLY TO, TO DO, UM, ANY SORT OF EMPLOYEE RAISES AND THEN COVER JUST A LITTLE BIT OF SOME OF THAT INCREASE THAT WE NEEDED FOR, FOR SOME OF THE OTHER ITEMS LIKE THE CIP TEAM THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY LIKE PAYCHECKS, I DUNNO,
UM, WITH THAT $5 MILLION, THAT MEANS, UM, TWO THINGS.
WE HAVE SEVEN DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE CUTTING POSITIONS.
UM, WE HAVE TARGETED, UH, POSITIONS THAT ARE LARGELY VACANT AT THIS POINT.
SO WE'RE NOT HAVING TO, UM, YOU KNOW, LAY OFF OR TERMINATE ANY EMPLOYEES.
WE DO HAVE, UH, ONE TEAM THAT IN PUBLIC WORKS THAT IS BEING AFFECTED, BUT THEY ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO, UH, MOVE THOSE PEOPLE INTO SOME OTHER VACANT POSITIONS SO WE CAN ELIMINATE THE CREW THAT THEY WORK ON.
UM, SO THEY WON'T BE LOSING JOBS.
SO WE, THAT WAS THE MAIN FOCUS MIXTURE.
WE DON'T TAKE POSITIONS IF WE DON'T HAVE TO THAT UM, CAUSE PEOPLE TO LOSE JOBS.
SO, UM, BUT WE DO HAVE ABOUT 12 POSITIONS ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION FROM SEVEN DEPARTMENTS.
UM, THERE WERE NO POSITIONS FROM, UM, POLICE, I WAS GONNA SAY THERE WAS NO, THERE WAS ONE FROM FIRE ACTUALLY.
UM, THAT IS BEING CONSIDERED, BUT IT'S A, A VACANCY.
SO, UM, AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS WE HAVE, UH, I THINK JAMIE TOLD ME A WHILE AGO, SHE'S ACTUALLY NOW UP TO ABOUT 14 SERVICE LEVEL CUTS.
UM, SO THESE THINGS RANGE FROM OUR PARKS DEPARTMENT GOING IN AND COMPLETELY RESTRUCTURING ALL OF THEIR EVENTS.
SO LARGE EVENTS LIKE GREENO, JULY 4TH, JUNETEENTH, AS WELL AS SOME OF THEIR SMALLER EVENTS LIKE POPUP PARKS, WHICH WERE ELIMINATED, UM, DATE NIGHT, WHICH WAS ELIMINATED.
UM, BUT REDOING THEIR EN ENTIRE LIST, THEY'VE CUT PROBABLY 50 TO 60% OF THE EVENTS THAT THEY'VE DONE IN THE PAST.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, PLANNING IS, UH, IN DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, THEY CUT ABOUT 60% OF THEIR DEMOLITION BUDGET.
SO THOSE, YOU KNOW, BUILDINGS THAT ARE SUBSTANDARD THAT NEED TO COME DOWN, UM, A LOT OF THAT HAS BEEN REDUCED.
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NUMBER THAT WE CAN ACHIEVE PER YEAR.UM, OUR HEALTH DEPARTMENT IS, UH, LOOKING AT CUTTING, UH, ONE OF THE CLEAN TEAMS. IT'S A GROUP THAT GOES AROUND, PICKS UP ALL THE CRAP THAT PEOPLE DUMP OUT OF THEIR VEHICLES, RIGHT.
UM, LIKE I SAID, UH, PUBLIC WORKS IS THE ONE THEY'RE CUTTING A SIDEWALK CREW.
UM, SO WE WON'T HAVE A DEDICATED TEAM TO PUT IN SIDEWALKS, GO OUT AND HOTSHOT AND FIX SIDEWALKS WHEN THERE'S PROBLEMS, THAT SORT OF THING.
THE LIBRARY IS LOOKING AT, UH, REDUCING FROM SEVEN DAYS A WEEK OF OPERATION DOWN TO SIX DAYS OF OPERATION.
UM, I THINK THAT'S SOME OF THE MORE MAJOR CUTS.
UM, BUT AGAIN, THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER ONES AND OBVIOUSLY THERE'S A LOT OF CUTS WITHIN DEPARTMENTS, UM, THAT THESE ARE THOSE THINGS THAT ARE VISIBLE EITHER TO OUR CITIZENS AND OR TO COUNCIL.
UM, THAT'S WHY WE'VE KIND OF BEEN HIGHLIGHTING THAT, BUT THERE'S A WHOLE HOST OF CUTS FROM EVERY DEPARTMENT, UM, MAKING UP THAT $5 MILLION.
SO, UM, SO AGAIN, WANTED TO KIND OF GIVE Y'ALL WHERE WE'RE AT BECAUSE IT'S A VERY DIFFERENT PLACE THAN WHERE WE'VE BEEN IN THE PAST.
UM, SO ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? OKAY.
UM, SO WITH THAT, I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING
WOULD Y'ALL LIKE MY LETTUCE BUDGET SHEET? UM, YEAH.
WHAT SAY? I THINK CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT.
I HAD THE PEE AND THE EYE FLIPPED IN THE HEAD AND SO I WAS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THE EYE WAS AT THE END.
AND I WAS, AND I WAS LIKE, I, I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT IS.
UM, SO WITH THAT, UM, WE ARE OKAY.
UM, SO WITH THAT WE ARE UH, OFFERING A 4% ACROSS YOUR STRUCTURE INCREASE.
UM, THAT IS OUR PROPOSAL AND, AND THEN THE LANGUAGE TO GO WITH THAT TO ADD HERE.
YOU MIND IF WE TALK JUST A MINUTE? NO, THAT'S FINE.
WE'LL JUST NEED THE HALLWAY RIGHT HERE FOR JUST A SECOND.
WE DON'T, WE DON'T NEED THE ROOM.
WE ARE IN AGREEMENT AND WE ARE OKAY WITH THE 4%.
UM, OUR NEXT ITEM WAS TO SET ANOTHER BARGAINING SESSION.
I DON'T BELIEVE THAT IS NECESSARY AT THIS POINT.
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ALRIGHTY.SO WITH THAT WE WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING.
THANK YOU GUYS VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.