Mr. Joseph called the meeting to order at 9 a.m.
Presentation by Fiscal Advisors, Inc.
Jeanine Roger Carusso of Fiscal Advisors, Inc. said they have been doing a lot of work with counties throughout the State on tobacco securitization. They have been appointed as financial advisor to the Erie and Chautauqua County legislative boards. Although they are working with several other counties, these are the only two that have adopted the required local development corporation laws to make securitization work. Ms. Carrusso distributed a copy of options that are available for use of tobacco settlement monies and described how they might fit into the wants and needs of Tompkins County.
Attached to these minutes is a copy of the presentation given to the Committee by Fiscal Advisors and Marketing, Inc.
Mr. Penniman said since Tompkins is a small county it probably should cooperate with other counties to reduce transaction costs. He asked if this would limit our options in terms of which years or which portions because we would need to have the same scenario as the other counties that we cooperated with. Ms. Carusso said she does not think this would be the case; however, she does not think that has been thoroughly discussed yet. She said she thinks there will be several series of bonds within that pool and different counties could be in different series depending on what periods are securitized. She envisions the official statement for that pool to be huge because different counties are going to each have its own plan for the proceeds. When asked her opinion of the long-term life of the tobacco companies, Ms. Carusso said she was not sure. She feels that if securitization works for a county and if there are capital projects that could be well-met by doing this, a county should do it. There are some counties that are very unsure of how they want to spend the money and for them it probably would not be a good idea to securitize.
Mr. Joseph said the market is making an estimate of the risk and they are apparently estimating it as not being very risky because they are not charging much of a premium. Ms. Carusso agreed; however, said they are building in very strong liquidity reserves. Not only is there a large coverage factor, but also a liquidity reserve which looks like a debt service reserve fund. Mr. Joseph said to the extent that there are coverage factors and reserves built in, the investor is not accepting the risk; the County is left with the risk because it is paying for those coverage factors. Ms. Carusso said the County will receive that money back on an annual basis and then the County's debt service reserve fund is structured in there such that it would pay the last years' debt service. Ms. Carusso agreed with Mr. Joseph that the County would not get the residuals on an annual basis if there is not enough money flowing in from the settlement payments to cover the debt service. Mr. Joseph said the point he is making is that if the residuals mean the risk of the payments being lower than they they're projected then the risk is really the County's even when you securitize. He also said a major portion of the risk of a total failure really lies with the County instead of the investor. Ms. Carusso said the County would be preserving any moral obligation if it securitized. They would go to the reserve funds to use all of that money to pay the bond holders; however, when that money is dried up, the County would have no legal obligation to step in and make those bond holders whole.
Mr. Erb said when he spoke with NYSAC last week they indicated that they were looking for counties to decide on whether they are going to participate in securitization by the end of June. Although there is work to do after that date, they would like to know who is going to be included. He said they didn't say they wanted a firm commitment but they would like counties to submit letters indicating their intent to participate.
Mr. Squires asked how this would impact the County's bond rating. Ms. Carusso said Tompkins County has a very strong AA2 bond rating. She said if the County were to bond at the $40 million level, this would be a large percentage increase for the County and that it could start to erode the County's credit quality and therefore affect the rating. She noted that debt is only one of the many factors that go into rating bonds. Things such as economy, financial position, and management are also looked at. Mr. Joseph said he feels tobacco securitization is an expensive bond to issue. Further discussion continued during the county Administrator's report.
Changes to the Agenda
The following items were added to the agenda:
Appropriation from Contingent Fund - Support for the Danby Agricultural, Horticultural, and Environmental Academy
Apppropriation from Contingent Fund and Authorization for the County Administrator to Negotiate a Multi-Year Lease Agreement for Expansion of Workforce Development Center
Authorization for Program Reconfiguration - 2001 Budget - Sheriff
Approval of Minutes of April 6 and 20, 2000
It was MOVED by Ms. Davis, seconded by Mr. Joseph, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to approve the minutes of April 6 and 20, 2000.
Chair's Report
Mr. Joseph had no report.
County Administrator's Report
Mr. Erb referred to the capital project scenario dated May 4, 2000 and stated that if the County continues along with the capital programs as laid out in this document, there will be an increase in taxation in at least 2001 an perhaps 2002. He said the Board could choose to cut back on the capital program either by canceling or postponing some of the projects or can find another way to pay for them. At this time he sees securitization as the most viable option for paying for a portion of the capital program with up-front money.
The Committee discussed several different options including securitizing different amounts of the settlement; however, no scenario was presented for actual consideration at this meeting. There was discussion on spending the money in a combination of areas including reserving a portion for special services such as health-related areas, capital projects, and placing a portion in the general fund. Mr. Joseph anticipates bringing a resolution forward at the next meeting to join the NYSAC securitization group. There was discussion on the public forum that will be held and it was felt that this forum needs to take place prior to the Board acting on this.
Mr. Todd said he feels this is really a windfall and has nothing to do with normal debt that the County pays annual debt service on. He feels the rest of the County Board needs to be up to the same level of discussion that this Committee has had on this subject.
Finance Director's Report
Mr. Squires distributed a status report on the Contingency Fund.
Deputy County Administrator's Report
Ms. West had no report.
RESOLUTION NO. - APPROPRIATION FROM CONTINGENT FUND - SUPPORT FOR THE DANBY AGRICULTURAL, HORTICULTURAL, AND ENVIRONMENTAL ACADEMY
MOVED by Mr. Proto, seconded by Mr. Todd. Mr. Proto said he has been working with others to get the Danby Elementary School back into operation. During the last year and a half there have meetings of various individuals to discuss what areas could be developed to bring that school back on line. An area that there is nothing going on in for high school students is this area. He said the intention is for this to be a regional school and will go through the BOCES district lines. Mr. Proto said this $2,500 is a token commitment by the County that this falls along the lines of what the County is trying to achieve with its economic development efforts. They will also be asking for matching dollars from Tioga County, Genex, the Kellogg Foundation, the Dairy League, Agway, Cornell, and various agriculture organizations. He said this money will be placed in the Workforce Development budget. A voice vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Ayes - 4, Noes - 1 (Representative Davis). MOTION CARRIED.
WHEREAS, the Ithaca City School District established a committee in 1998 consisting of individuals from diverse backgrounds whose purpose has been to examine options in order to put the currently closed Danby Elementary School back in operation, and
WHEREAS, the need for a facility to provide high school level coursework in agriculture, horticulture, and the environmental sciences has been identified, and
WHEREAS, the study conducted by BOCES and other local and New York State reports indicate many jobs in the food and fiber sectors go unfilled, while the demand remains, and
WHEREAS, job creation, resident retention, and opportunity continue to be a priority in Tompkins County, and
WHEREAS, such a facility would provide both a unique educational experience and fill an economic void, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Economic and Workforce Development and Budget and Fiscal Policy Committees, That this Board recognizes the efforts of the school district and its committee to plan this project, and pursue alternate planning monies through New York State, Agri-business, and the school district itself, and moves that $2,500 be taken from the Contingent Fund to aid in furthering the project's establishment.
SEQR ACTION: TYPE II-20
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The following resolution was moved by Mr. Proto and seconded by Mr.
Penniman. It was noted that this resolution implies an increase in the
budget for next year. It was felt that this first floor space will be much
more convenient for the public. A voice vote resulted as follows: Ayes
- 5, Noes - 0. MOTION CARRIED.
RESOLUTION NO. - APPROPRIATION FROM CONTINGENT FUND AND AUTHORIZATION FOR THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR TO NEGOTIATE A MULTI-YEAR LEASE AGREEMENT FOR EXPANSION OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT CENTER
WHEREAS, the Workforce Development Board has carefully considered the location and space needs of the Workforce Development Department and the Workforce Development Center, and
WHEREAS, the partner agencies are supportive of the expansion of the Workforce Development Center, however, have indicated that they are unable to secure their respective portion of the additional shared rent expense resulting from the new lease for this budget year, and
WHEREAS, Resolution No. 109 authorized the Economic and Workforce Development Committee to authorize and monitor contracts awarded to Workforce Development, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Economic and Workforce Development Committee, That the county Administrator is authorized to negotiate a multi-year contract, not to extend beyond August 2002, and that the County agrees to share in the additional rent expense for the remainder of the 2000 budget year, estimated to be not more than $7,000, with the understanding that partner agencies will negotiate in good faith to share in the proportionate share of subsequent year's rent.
SEQR ACTION: TYPE II-20
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Guidelines for Rural Libraries
Request Method
The Committee agreed that they would like the rural libraries to come to the Board with one unified request from all the libraries. It was noted that if they cannot reach an agreement, this does not mean that their requests would not be considered.
Funding Method
Mr. Joseph said he would like to see libraries funded proportional to their circulation. Ms. Davis said there are other services that these libraries provide aside from circulation. Ms. West suggested that the libraries be directed to develop a mechanism for determining usage by County residents. Ms. Steiner said this is what has been done in the past and the County Board has approved the same amount for eacy library. She asked how the libraries can be convinced that it will be different now. It was suggested that a copy of the guidelines be included in the resolution establishing guidelines and fiscal targets for all County budgeting units.
Over-Target Request Method
It was agreed that the rural libraries may submit one-time requests based on individual library circumstances and that these requests do not need to be proportional to usage or the other libraries.
Establishment of Guidelines and Fiscal Targets in Preparation for 2001 Budget
There was no indication by any member that there should be any change in this resolution from last year. A resolution will be placed on the next agenda setting this in place with a zero percent target increase. It will also contain the guidelines for the rural libraries.
RESOLUTION NO. - AUTHORIZATION FOR PROGRAM RECONFIGURATION –
WHEREAS, the Budgeting Unit areas within the Sheriff’s Department cross boundaries frequently, and
WHEREAS, the personnel within the Civil, Criminal Investigation, and Uniform Budgeting Units serve a multitude of tasks on a daily basis making program accountability impossible to measure with any absolute certainty, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Public Safety, and Budget and Fiscal Policy Committees that the Civil, Criminal Investigation, and Uniform programs be consolidated into one Budgeting Unit known as "Sheriff", and
RESOLVED, further, That the Fiscal Targets for each Budgeting Unit be consolidated into one Budgeting Unit Fiscal Target in the sum of $2,507,339, and
RESOLVED, further, That the programs of Civil, Criminal Investigation, and Uniform will continue to be reflected within the Sheriff Budgeting Unit, and
RESOLVED, further, That these amounts reflect the anticipated Target changes effective on January 1, 2001 and that the Budgeting Units be collapsed effective immediately giving the Sheriff the authority to transfer funds within his 2000 Budget without regard to Fiscal Target boundaries.
SEQR ACTION: TYPE II-20
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It was MOVED by Ms. Davis, seconded by Mr. Penniman, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to approve the following resolution and submit to the full Board:
RESOLUTION NO. - AUTHORIZATION FOR PROGRAM RECONFIGURATION –
2001 BUDGET – CRIMINAL JUSTICE
WHEREAS, the Planning and Coordination function of Criminal Justice Services is a component of the Criminal Justice Budgeting Unit, and
WHEREAS, the salary, fringe, and supplies for the Deputy County Administrator is included in this function, and
WHEREAS, the Deputy County Administrator not only provides oversight for the Criminal Justice Program, but also provides a myriad of services related to the administration of County government, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Public Safety, Governmental Operations, and Budget and Fiscal Policy Committees that the salary, fringe, and supplies of the Deputy County Administrator be combined into County Administration, and
RESOLVED, further, That the Fiscal Target for Criminal Justice be reduced by $76,963 and the Fiscal Target for County Administration be increased by the same amount.
SEQR ACTION: TYPE II-20
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General Revenue Summary
The Committee reviewed a General Revenue Summary distributed by Ms. West dated May 4th. She commented that it is very likely that mandated expenses will increase because the State knows that counties are receiving tobacco settlement monies.
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 11:30 a.m.