Called to Order

 Mr. Penniman called the meeting to order at 11:30 a.m.

Changes to the Agenda
 
 There were no changes to the agenda.

Approval of Minutes of August 12, 2003

 It was MOVED by Mr. Koplinka-Loehr, seconded by Mr. Todd, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to approve the minutes of August 12, 2003, with the addition suggested by Ms. Kiefer.  MINUTES APPROVED.

Chair's Report

 Mr. Penniman asked for comments relative to the draft Expanded Budget Committee calendar that was distributed at the last meeting of the Legislature.  He said he will revise the calendar based on the comments received and will distribute a revised calendar.

Off-Track Betting Proposal

 Mr. Wood reported he has researched law relating to counties joining OTB (Off-Track Betting Corporation) and has also spoken with representatives of OTB.  He was advised that in recent years counties have joined by resolution and not by local law.   He said the statute has changed but leaves either option available; however, it is still subject to permissive referendum.  Mr. Wood reported he has been contacted by an attorney who has a client who is interested in countering the County's OTB proposal with a petition.

RESOLUTION NO.        - JOINING THE CATSKILL REGION OFF-TRACK BETTING CORPORATION

 MOVED by Mr. Koplinka-Loehr, seconded by Mr. Booth.  At the request of Ms. Kiefer, whereases that were included in the resolution establishing a public hearing were incorporated into this resolution.   Mr. Booth said he received his first phone call today in opposition to this action.   Mr. Penniman said he has spoke to approximately one dozen people about this and only one was opposed.  Mr. Todd said he this has been under consideration for a lengthy time and would like the Legislature to move forward with action.  Mr. Koplinka-Loehr said he was contacted by two constituents who are opposed to Tompkins County joining OTB on moral and ethical grounds and the other was opposed because they did not feel this is the role of County government.  A voice vote resulted as follows:  Ayes - 4, Noes - 1 (Koplinka-Loehr).  MOTION CARRIED.

 WHEREAS, Chapter 865 of the Laws of 1982, as amended, authorizes the establishment of regional off-track betting corporations to conduct systems of off-track pari-mutuel betting on horse races, and
 WHEREAS, the State Legislature ahs prescribed that off-track pari-mutuel betting on horse races, conducted as regulated by the State of New York shall be lawful, and
 WHEREAS, the County of Tompkins falls within the jurisdiction of the Catskill Region Off-Track Betting Corporation, and
 WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 502 of the Racing, Mari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law, the County of Tompkins may elect to join the Regional Off-Track Betting Corporation by enacting enabling legislation subject to a permissive referendum pursuant to Municipal Home Rule Law, and
WHEREAS, conservative estimates indicate that establishing an OTB site in Tompkins County would provide annual county revenue of approximately $100,000 in the first year, and $200,000 - $300,000 per year thereafter, and
WHEREAS, placing bets on horse races is a fairly specialized form of gambling, and
WHEREAS, at present an unknown but substantial number of Tompkins County residents pursue this form of recreation by traveling to neighboring counties such as Cortland, Cayuga, Tioga, and Broome, all of which have OTB facilities, and all of which thereby benefit from the betting revenues provided by Tompkins County residents that would otherwise come to Tompkins County, and
WHEREAS, the County Legislature does not desire to promote gambling, but rather simply receive its share of revenue from the existing OTB Corporation, and
WHEREAS, there are many other already-existing and easily accessed games of chance and gambling promoted by New York State, such as bingo, charity raffles, Quick Draw, New York State Lotto, Pick 10, Take 5, midday and evening WinFour, midday and evening numbers (pick 3), scratch-off cards with many different "games", and multi-state Mega Millions - all of which are readily available throughout Tompkins County, and
WHEREAS, given this multiplicity of state-promoted legal opportunities to gamble, none of which provide direct revenue to Tompkins County, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Budget and Capital Committee, That the Tompkins County Legislature, on behalf of the County of Tompkins, does hereby elect to join the Catskill Region Off-Track Betting Corporation, pursuant to Chapter 865 of the Law of 1982, as amended,
RESOLVED, further, That a duly certified copy of this resolution be filed with the Board of Directors of the Catskill Region Off-Track Betting Corporation, the Secretary of State, and the County Clerk of Tompkins County.
SEQR ACTION:  TYPE II-20

Report from the Finance Director

 Mr. Whicher reported on behalf of Mr. Squires who was not in attendance.  Mr. Whicher said he was contacted by NYSAC to see if counties were interested in securitizing its remaining share of tobacco settlement proceeds.  He distributed a project from First Albany which suggests that the pledge of the remaining proceeds would net $5.2 million as compared to the former financing which provided $7 million.  He said it appears that the climate of uncertainty about the long-term prospects of the domestic tobacco industry has substantially undermined the market for tobacco bonds.   Mr. Whicher recommended that the Legislature pass on this proposal which extracts a premium of 33% to shift risk away from the County.  He said proceeding with the securitization would also result in revenue loss in the 2004 budget as the income is already in the budget to support operations.

 There was no interest expressed by the Committee in securitizing the County's remaining share of tobacco settlement proceeds at this time.

Report from the County Administrator

 Mr. Whicher reported on the budget process and said he has completed his review of Over Target requests.  He anticipates the document will be sent to the printer by the end of today which is a week ahead of where the process is usually at.  He spoke of the five percent scenario he was asked by the Legislature to develop and said it is almost impossible to accomplish that level of reductions.  There are many factors that need to be considered, such as how much revenue is lost with the cut, the cost of laying an employee off, and what the ripple effect of the cut is.  At the present time he has produced approximately $4.5 million in reductions, but has to get to $5.5 to $6 million.  Mr. Whicher said the Legislature will be extremely challenged to get to a five percent property tax increase and he does not believe even ten percent would be realistic.    He stated in order to accomplish a level of 15% to 20% severe cuts would need to be made.

  The timeframe for release of the budget documents was presented to the Committee.

August 27 - OTR list will be distribute to departments today or early tomorrow.
August 28 - County Administrator's recommendation will be released to the Legislature and press; will be embargoed with permission to release on August 29th.
August 29 - Budget book released
September 2 - 5% scenario released early morning with press conference to be held late afternoon

Report from the Deputy County Administrator

 Mrs. Smithers had no report.

RESOLUTION NO.    AUTHORIZATION TO INCREASE BACKGROUND CHECK FEES -TOMPKINS COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE:

 MOVED by Mrs. Schuler, seconded by Mr. Koplinka-Loehr, and unanimously adopted by voice vote.   There was a feeling that even a $10 fee is too low.  The Sheriff will oversee this fee during the next year to see what the actual cost is to the Department to conduct these checks.  If warranted, the Committee will be presented with a greater fee next year.

WHEREAS, the Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office provides a public service in the form of background criminal and incident records checks for employers, agencies, and individuals, and
WHEREAS, the Records Division on average completes 2,000 requests per year, and
WHEREAS, the $5.00 fee for the service that is charged to other than not-for-profit agencies, has not increased in over TEN years, and
WHEREAS, the current cost of conducting the research exceeds the fee currently charged, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Public Safety and Budget and Capital Committees, That the Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office Records Division fee be increased to $10.00 per individual request, effective immediately.
SEQR ACTION: TYPE II-20

Mandate Classification - Discussion of How to Identify Mandates in the Budget

 Mr. Penniman said over the last couple of years there has been a lot of discussion about the definition of a mandate and it is important to clarify this for public information purposes and tax bill purposes.

 Mr. Joseph said there are two purposes for identifying items as mandates.  One reason is the budget process and the other is to be able to identify for the public what expenses the State is making the County pay.  Mr. Penniman said one set of terms that has been suggested is "mandated services" and "mandated expenses".  He said another possibility would be to discuss items exempt from targets.

 Mr. Booth asked what Class "C" mandates were; Mr. Joseph responded these are mandates where only a portion of the program was mandated.  "B" mandates are ones that are required but the County has a level of discretion in how they are carried out.  Mr. Penniman said it will be important this year to explain to the public how limited the County is in making cuts and he would support identifying a larger group of items as mandates.

 Mrs. Smithers emphasized the most critical thing is to make sure how the County will define what goes on the tax bill versus what is recorded each year as the strictest form of mandates.

 Mr. Booth stressed the importance of being consistent with the use of terms in the budget process.

 Ms. Kiefer reminded the Committee that she found it useful to have mandates that were exempt from across-the-board cuts.  Although the County has not had to invoke across-the-board cuts in a very long time, there was a distinction between A, B, and C mandates.   She also questioned whether it would make sense to address staff associated with "A" mandates instead of leaving that component out completely.
 
 A suggestion was made in regard to language on the tax bill.  Instead of having a dollar figure and percentage of change, to have a much simpler summary statement, for example "89.7% pays for mandated services".

 Mr. Penniman said he will present a specific proposal for terminology of mandates at the next meeting.

Capital Program Discussion

 Mr. Penniman first spoke of process and said he hopes this Committee will be able to review the Capital Program and make a recommendation with respect to the general fiscal soundness of the program and the financing issues that are related to that by the second meeting in September.

 Mr. Whicher distributed copies of the draft County Administrator Recommended Capital Program for 2004-2008.

 He stated there are specific issues that need to be addressed with respect to phasing and financing.  In general he said there needs to be discussion about when the County should begin paying for a project.  In the past, although no written policy exists, it has been the practice of the Legislature to begin paying for a project when it is first agreed upon.   Mr. Whicher said he has made modifications to the 2004-2008 Capital Program and has amended payments so that the County would only be paying what would be expended in that year.   By doing so, the property tax increase for 2004 was lowered from 8.3 percent to 1.6 percent.   He said he is hopeful that next year will not be as grim as this year.  Although this is only an assumption he said there have been unprecedented increases this year as well as increases that will not take place next year.

 Ms. Robertson said she would like the Legislature to have a discussion in addition to redoing financing, about whether the County can afford to do these projects at all.

 Ms. Kiefer questioned Line 103 - Energy Efficiency Improvements being moved back and the different amount that appears on the spreadsheet.   Mr. Whicher said he will look into this.

Adjournment

 The meeting adjourned at 1:17 p.m.