Chair Joseph called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and Roll Call of Members

 Members and guests participated in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.

 Present:  15 Representatives.

Privilege of the Floor by the Public

Stephen DeWitt, new Democratic Commissioner of Elections, introduced himself and said he looks forward to working with the Board.

Privilege of the Floor by Board Members

Mr. Proto, District No. 7 Representatives, announced the Immaculate Conception Church will celebrate "Catholic Schools Week" during the last week of January.  He said all Board members should have received an invitation to visit the school anytime throughout that week.

Ms. Robertson, District No. 13 Representative, reminded everyone that January 22 will mark the 30th Anniversary of the Supreme Court Roe vs. Wade decision to decriminalize abortion.   She said this is an important day for people to remember and announced an event will take place at Cornell on January 22 at 7 p.m. where guest speakers will discuss past, present, and future abortion rights.  Ms. Robertson reported a website (www.saveroe.com) now exists where the public can express their opinion to Congress.  She briefly reported on statistics, stating that each year, 48 percent (3 million) of all pregnancies are unintended and of those, 47 percent end in abortion.    Ms. Robertson said she would like to honor a woman's right to choose.

Mrs. Schuler, District No. 4 Representative, announced she attended a meeting today and received a copy of the County's Emergency Management Plan.  This will be placed on file in the Board Office.   She reported there is a schedule of training that will be conducted by the Emergency Management Institute and will leave this information in the Board Office also.  Mrs. Schuler reported Charles Nocera, of the Tompkins County Chapter of the American Red Cross, presented an analysis that was done on shelter use, comparing fiscal years 2001 and 2002.  She said the analysis shows there continues to be a problem providing shelter to the homeless in Tompkins County.  This analysis will also be placed on file in the Board Office.

Ms. McBean, District No. 2 Representative, said this evening she placed a beautiful, over-sized bookmark on Board members' desks that highlight the events taking place during Black History Month.  She encouraged everyone to participate in these activities.

Ms. Kiefer, District No. 11 Representative, said she was listening to a local radio station this morning and heard two references to the USA Patriot Act.  The first reference was a news item that addressed a nationwide survey performed by Cornell and its finding that as time has passed since September 11, 2001 a majority of Americans are now opposed to the curtailment of civil liberties that are part of the USA Patriot Act.   She also heard Paulette Manos, Common Council Member, refer to circulation among City Council of a draft resolution dealing with that.  Ms. Kiefer said she has been upset that this was passed so quickly and without much discussion or thought.   Ms. Kiefer said Section 213 changes the ground rules for searching an individual's home.  In the past if a search warrant was needed it had to be served upon the individual and it was explained why someone was there and what they were looking for.  Ms. Kiefer said Section 213 called "Sneak and Peak" now allows a search warrant to be issued at federal request but it doesn't have to be served upon the individual, and can be carried out when the occupant is not present or without that person's knowledge.  She said anything can be looked at and anything can be taken, without informing the occupant of what has been taken for a period of time afterwards.  Another change affects the library in which a library clerk, if requested by a federal official, is obliged to provide information about what particular books a person has taken out and it becomes a crime for the library clerk to tell anyone this is happening.  Ms. Kiefer said the City of Eugene, Oregon, has become one of the first places to take formal action requesting repeal or amendment to that act.  She noted that County officials are expected to uphold the State and Federal Constitution, and that some sections of the USA Patriot Act are at odds with the First and Fourth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.  She requested the County Attorney look at which sections of the law would most impact County employees and to present a plan that would begin a process of Tompkins County requesting that the law be repealed or amended.  Jonathan Wood, County Attorney, said he would do so.

Mr. Proto, District No. 7 Representative, announced the process for the "Distinguished Youth Award" will begin tomorrow.  He said he distributed material last month to all Board members on this new award.  He said sponsors of the award include Bangs Ambulance, Eagle Broadcasting, the Bookery, as well as several others who have offered to add to the package that will be presented.   A presentation will be made at the second Board meeting of each month and Mr. Lane will be the first representative to present the award, after which members will take turns by district number.  He urged members of the public to submit nominations to Cathy Covert, Clerk of the Board.

 Katharyn Machan, the newly-appointed Poet Laureate, said she was asked to write a poem about the budget.  She recited the poem which makes tongue-in-cheek parallels between Orpheus’ venture into the underworld and the depths of despair of a difficult budget.

Paul Bonaparte-Krogh, Executive Director of Cooperative Extension, spoke about the marketing of Cooperative Extension.  He said the agency received some general donations a couple of years ago to use towards looking at the Agency's image.   They hired Comm Stat at Cornell to convene a couple of focus groups from Tompkins County and discovered many people do not understand Cooperative Extension's relationship with Cornell or Tompkins County, although people are very familiar and positive about Cooperative Extension's programs.  He noted that within New York State as a whole, Cooperative Extension's relationship with Cornell is a plus, but in Tompkins County it makes it difficult to fund raise, since people assume Cornell funds Cooperative Extension.  Mr. Bonaparte-Krogh said after analyzing the information one of the recommendations was to create a consistent image or consistent look.  Taking very seriously the evolution of the Agency's logo over the last several years, they were able to produce a new logo that he feels accurately represents the Agency.   Mr. Bonaparte-Krogh displayed to the Board the new logo as well as previous ones.

Mr. Bonaparte-Krogh announced he has resigned as Executive Director of Cooperative Extension effective February 21, 2002, to take a new job as the Assistant Director of Cooperative Extension in New Hampshire.  He thanked everyone for their work and support over the last several years.

Ms. Robertson said it has been a pleasure to work with Mr. Bonaparte-Krogh during her time on the Board.  She said Mr. Bonaparte-Krogh has really shaped Cooperative Extension and will be greatly missed by Tompkins County.

Chair’s Report

Mr. Joseph thanked members for re-electing him Chair of the Board at the last meeting.  He said it has been a pleasure to work with all Board members last year although it wasn’t always a pleasure to deal with some of the items that had to be dealt with.  He stated the Board did a good job and will continue to do so.

Mr. Joseph said there has been some reorganization of committees and addressed those changes.

There is a new Tax Policy Committee that will deal with what may be the most important issue the Board faces this year -- the unsustainable burden on property tax.    That Committee will be very different from any other Board Committee because it will not deal with internal matters or make proposals to bring before the Board.  It is a grassroots committee that is about reaching out to other taxing districts, to the towns who have been very supportive in calling on the State to provide tax relief to counties from unfunded mandates.   Several of the towns in Tompkins County have adopted resolutions to send to the State; these resolutions object to the mandates that have been loaded on counties.   The County also needs to work together with school districts because they account for the largest property tax burden of all and any real property tax relief will need to involve them as well.   Mr. Joseph has been attending meetings of S.T.O.R.M. (Southern Tier Organization for the Reform of Medicaid) which is an organization that intends to provide a more unified and more powerful voice at the State level in asking for some kind of change.  At a meeting held the second week in January the group agreed to endorse a plan that calls for a phased takeover of Medicaid over a course of ten years and each of the counties represented at that meeting will bring a proposal to their legislature for consideration.

The "Planning" and the "Economic and Workforce Development" committees have been combined into a new "Planning, Development, and Environmental Quality Committee".  This brings together the various things that the Planning Department has been working on all into one place.

A new Consumer and Community Affairs Committee has been created for the purpose of relieving the workload on the Planning, Development, and Environmental Quality Committee and the Government Operations Committee.

The Information Technology Services Committee has been eliminated.  That function will now be the responsibility of the Facilities and Infrastructure Committee.

The Public Safety Building Space Committee has also been eliminated and that function will lie with the Public Safety Committee.  Several years ago when the County was with faced an overcrowded jail the Board made a commitment to try to reduce the jail population through a program of restorative justice that focussed on rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders into the community.  In terms of money this was a trade-off where the Board understood it was going to be a very expensive proposition to expand the jail and it would also be a very expensive proposition to undertake these new programs of rehabilitation and reintegration.    However, these programs would be a great deal less expensive than a jail expansion.   In spite of the fiscal problems the County is now facing, the County needs to recognize that money needs to be spent to deal with the jail population.  It can be spent to reduce the population or be used to house the population, but it must be spent.   Over the last year the County has experienced a significant drop in the jail population, to the point where it is marginal about whether a jail expansion is still needed.  The challenge to the Public Safety Committee in 2003 will be to make that drop definitive and to get that population to a point where it is clear the County can function without an expansion of the jail.  Barbara Blanchard will Chair that committee and he expects to see positive results by the end of the year.   The Public Safety Building Space Planning Committee has been combined with Public Safety Committee because it is important that the same people are looking at the various programs that have been started to review their costs and effectiveness.

In 2002 the Board primarily focused on the budget and that was necessary because the County was involved in a crisis situation.  The budget situation will not be different than last year; however, the approach and how the Board deals with the difficulties does not need to be the same.  We have already grappled with the details.  This year there will be a greater focus on programs, what is effective, how well the County is doing its job, and overall service delivery.
The County Administrator has ideas to encourage program committees to focus on setting goals and measurable objectives to guide departments.  To encourage this focus a meeting will be held with committee chairs to talk about the role for committees to play and how best to encourage and facilitate them in filling that role.

A draft committee meeting schedule has been prepared and distributed to all members.  He stressed the Board Chair does not set committee meetings and that the purpose of the draft is to help facilitate the setting of meetings.   Mr. Joseph requested committee chairs pull committees together this evening at the end of the meeting and report their schedule to the Clerk following this meeting.

Chair’s Appointments

 Tompkins County Area Development Board of Directors
 Barbara Blanchard

 Chamber of Commerce
 Tim Joseph
 Frank Proto, Alternate

 Cornell Vet School Incinerator Project
 Dooley Kiefer, Delegate
 Beverly Livesay, Alternate

 Ethics Advisory Board - Chair
 Dooley Kiefer

 Extension Service
 (A different Board member will be invited to attend each month.)
 Martha Robertson
 Tom Todd (second seat is optional)

 Local Advisory Board on Assessment Review
 Caroline/Danby - Frank P. Proto
 Newfield/Enfield - Daniel Winch
 Groton - George Totman
 Dryden - Michael Lane/Martha Robertson
 Ithaca - Dooley Kiefer/Michael Koplinka-Loehr
 Lansing - Thomas Todd/Dooley Kiefer
 Ulysses - Peter Penniman
 City of Ithaca - Barbara Blanchard/Kathy Luz Herrera

 Ithaca Metropolitan Planning Organization (Policy Committee)
 Barbara Blanchard - Chair of the Board or designee

 Recreation Partnership
 Martha Robertson
 Michael Koplina-Loehr

Ms. Kiefer questioned the appointments to the Extension Service, noting that neither of those appointees serve on the Consumer and Community Affairs Committee which holds the responsibility for Cooperative Extension this year.  Mr. Joseph said he feels continuity in the case of Ms. Robertson, and Mr. Todd's involvement and interest in agriculture are greater reasons to maintain those appointments.

Report from the County Administrator

Mr. Whicher announced his appointment of Donald Ellis to the position of Weights and Measures Director and requested the Board's confirmation.

It was MOVED by Mr. Proto, seconded by Ms. Herrera, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to confirm the appointment of Donald Ellis as the Director of Weights and Measures.  MOTION CARRIED.

Mr. Whicher distributed a document entitled "Review of 2003 Budget Process dated January 14, 2003".   He said Administration surveyed all department heads and Board members about their feelings on the overall 2003 budget process and this document represents a summary of that information.   Mr. Whicher said he has identified four areas where he would like to focus in 2003, particularly moving the emphasis off of the budget and back onto the programs.  He said he has set up meetings with all committee chairs to discuss his plans in greater detail.

Report from the County Attorney

Mr. Wood provided the Board with statistics on family court.  He said the good news is there has not been an increase in PINS (Persons in Need of Supervision) petitions that was feared when new legislation when into effect.  Mr. Wood said those cases are currently down by approximately ten cases.  He said the bad news is that the juvenile delinquent cases are up significantly this year and are at the level of 83 compared to 58 last year.  He noted the cases this year involve more violence, drugs, and alcohol, this is usually not a good predictor for future jail statistics.  This is the highest level the County has seen of these cases since 1997.  Mr. Wood also reported on other year-end information, and stated expenses in the 2002 Self-Insurance Fund were lower than average.  However, the costs for assessment attorneys and appraisers were higher.

Report from the Finance Director

Mr. Squires referred to Mr. Wood's comments in regard to the Self-Insurance Fund and said while the claim experience has been stable recently, the County has not been adequately funding that reserve fund over the last couple of years due to budget constraints.  Mr. Squires reported 2002 was a record year for sales tax receipts in Tompkins County.  The County ended the year with a net amount of $2.5 million above the budget estimate; this is a 7.8 percent increase over last year.   Mr. Squires said the 2003 budget contained an aggressive estimate of $22.3 million for sales tax.  In 2002 the County received $23 million, which exceeds the estimate for 2003. He attributes this increase to the new retail outlets, extraordinary car sales, and higher energy prices.

Additions to the Agenda

 On motion and duly seconded and unanimously adopted by voice vote, the following resolution(s) were added to the agenda:

 Acceptance of Grant from Environmental Protection Agency to Create an Interactive Website for
                   the Tompkins County Natural Resources Inventory
 Approval of Contract for Beautification Plan and Budget Adjustment

Withdrawal of Resolution(s) from the Agenda

 No resolutions were withdrawn from the agenda.

Approval of Resolution(s) and Appointment(s) Under the Consent Agenda

 No resolutions were approved under the Consent Agenda.

 Appointment(s)

 On motion and duly seconded and unanimously adopted by voice vote by members present, the following appointment(s) were made under the Consent Agenda:

 Office for the Aging Advisory Committee
 Ione G. Worth - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Lucy Brown - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Marybelle Gutenmann - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Stephen Griffin - Term expires December 31, 2004

 Library Board of Trustees
 Lee N. Miller - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Irene Stein - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Tonya Engst - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Ronald G. Ehrenberg - Term expires December 31, 2005
 Pamela Moss - Term expires December 31, 2005

Hillview Road Landfill Citizens Advisory Committee
 Joel Gagnon - Neighborhood Representative; Term expires December 31, 2005

Report and Appointment from the Health and Human Services Committee

 Mr. Winch, Chairman, reported the Committee has not met since the last Board meeting.  He wished Representative Robertson well chairing the Committee in 2003.

 Appointment

 It was MOVED by Mr. Winch, seconded by Mr. Booth, to appoint Mr. Proto to the Board of Health as an At-Large representative for a term expiring December 31, 2008.

 Ms. Robertson said she requested that this appointment be pulled from the Consent Agenda.  She said she understands this is an appointment that has been recommended by the Board of Health; however, this appointment is  to an At-large seat and not a Board liaison.  Ms. Robertson noted that she does not question any of Mr. Proto's qualifications to serve on this Board, she is simply uncomfortable having a Board member take a position that would otherwise be for a member of the public.   Although she will support this appointment, she hopes in the future Board members will serve in the capacity as liaison to Boards, and not in positions intended for citizens at-large.

 Ms. Kiefer said she was unaware there was a vacancy on the Board of Health and hopes that in the future more effort will be made to advertise when terms come to an end so that interested members of the public might have an opportunity to step forward.

 Mr. Proto requested and was granted permission to abstain from this appointment. Mr. Proto said individuals should be appointed for qualifications and not because of their association with any particular group or body.

 A voice vote on the appointment resulted as follows:  Ayes - 14, Noes - 0 , Abstentions - 1 (Representative Proto).  MOTION CARRIED.

Report from the Information Technology Services Committee

 Mr. Winch, Chairman, thanked Representatives Joseph and Kiefer for serving on the Committee during 2002.    He said during the year the Committee spent considerable time on capital projects, reviewing staffing in the Information Technology Services Department, and he hopes they have raised the exposure of the Department as well as provided recognition for the work it does.  Mr. Winch said he greatly respects all of the staff members in that Department.  He thanked Greg Potter, Director of Information Technology Services and the County Administrator for helping them throughout the year.  He said he thinks it is appropriate for ITS to be in the Facilities and Infrastructure Committee, since it deals with important County infrastructure.

Report and Presentation of Resolution(s) from the Public Works Committee

 Ms. Blanchard, Chair, reported the Committee met on January 16 and conducted year-end business.  She said the Committee reviewed the status of projects, and approved a proposed Project Approval Request (PAR) form that Mr. Whicher presented.  She thanked members of the Committee for serving on the Committee and Public Works staff for all of their hard work during 2002.

RESOLUTION NO. 7 - APPROPRIATION FROM CONTINGENT FUND FOR REPLACEMENT PAY - FACILITIES DIVISION

 MOVED by Ms. Blanchard, seconded by Mr. Todd.  A short roll call vote resulted as follows:  Ayes - 15, Noes - 0.  RESOLUTION ADOPTED.

 WHEREAS, a Cleaner in the Facilities Division has been absent from work for longer than two months, and
 WHEREAS, County Fiscal Policy allows the appropriation of contingency funds for the cost of replacing this employee, and
 WHEREAS, the cost of unbudgeted replacement pay in the amount of $7,917 has been incurred by the Facilities Division for the period of July 21, 2002 - November 11, 2002, now therefore be it
 RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Public Works and Budget and Capital Committees, That the following budget appropriation be made:
 FROM:  A1990.54400  Contingency Fund $7,917
 TO:  A1620.51000  Regular Pay  $6,283
   A1620.58800  Fringes   $1,634
SEQR ACTION:  TYPE II-20

Report and Presentation of Resolution(s) from the Planning Committee

 Ms. Kiefer, Chair, reported the Committee met on January 16.

RESOLUTION NO. 8 - ACCEPTANCE OF GRANT FROM ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY TO CREATE AN INTERACTIVE WEBSITE FOR THE   TOMPKINS COUNTY  NATURAL RESOURCES INVENTORY

 MOVED by Ms. Kiefer, seconded by Mr. Penniman, and unanimously adopted by voice vote.

 WHEREAS, the County has been awarded grant funds from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the purpose of creating an interactive website to provide the local municipal officials and the public access to the Tompkins County Natural Resources Inventory, and
 WHEREAS, the Department of Planning is prepared to manage this program, now therefore be it
 RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Planning Committee, That the County hereby accepts United States Environmental Protection Agency funds in the amount of $9,500,
 RESOLVED, further, That the following adjustments be made to the 2003 Budget,

 REVENUE:  8027.44959 Federal Aid - CDBG  $9,500
 APPROPRIATION: 8027.54400 Program Expense  $9,500
 RESOLVED, further, That the County Administrator or his designee be authorized to execute any contracts related to this project.
SEQR ACTION:  TYPE II-17

Report from the Government Operations Committee

 Mr. Koplinka-Loehr, Chairman, reported the Committee has not met since the last Board meeting.  He said he will be establishing a special meeting to take up necessary business.

Report and Presentation of Resolution(s) from the Economic and Workforce Development Committee

 Mr. Lane, Chairman, reported the Committee met briefly prior to the Board meeting.

RESOLUTION NO.  9 - APPOINTMENTS TO INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY

 MOVED by Mr. Lane, seconded by Ms. McBean, and unanimously adopted by voice vote.  Mr. Proto noted that a Board member, Mr. Penniman, was given an at-large appointment; Mr. Joseph said the IDA requires a minimum of four Board members.

 WHEREAS, Section 856 of the General Municipal Law authorized that the Board of Representatives designate the members of Industrial Development Agency by resolution, now therefore be it
 RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Economic and Workforce Development Committee, That the following members be appointed to the Industrial Development Agency to serve at the pleasure of the Board, effective immediately:
 Kathy Luz Herrera - Member, Board of Representatives (City representative)
 Tim Joseph - Member, Board of Representatives (Rural representative)
 George Totman - Member, Board of Representatives (Rural representative)
 Michael Lane - Member, Board of Representatives (Rural representative)
 Peter Penniman - At-large member
 Dan Cogan - At-large member
 Jean McPheeters - Tompkins County Area Development Board of Directors representative

 RESOLVED, further, That Michael Lane serve as the Chair of the Industrial Development Agency,
 RESOLVED, further, That the Clerk of the Board is authorized and directed to file with the Secretary of State a Certificate of Appointment.
SEQR ACTION:  TYPE II-20

RESOLUTION NO.  10 - APPROVAL OF CONTRACT FOR BEAUTIFICATION PLAN AND BUDGET ADJUSTMENT

 MOVED by Mr. Lane, seconded by Ms. Herrera.  At the request of Mr. Proto, Mr. Lane said he will place a copy of the Beautification Plan on file in the Board Office.   A voice vote resulted as follows:  Ayes - 15, Noes - 0.  RESOLUTION ADOPTED.   Mrs. Schuler asked if any money will go toward litter removal and removal of garage graffiti.  Mr. Lane said yes for litter but none for graffiti.  Mr. Penniman said he assumed this will not replace traditional City Public Works responsibilities.

 WHEREAS, the Board of Representatives has contracted with the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce (the “Chamber”) to carry out services as part of the County’s tourism program, and
 WHEREAS, the County has provided funding for this contract entirely from the Room Occupancy Tax account, and
 WHEREAS, the Chamber recognizes that signs and flowers strategically placed at the County’s gateways would enhance tourism, and a need exists to improve signage locally to direct tourists to key destinations and coordinate the City of Ithaca plans, the towns, and entranceways to our County, and reflect pride in our community’s appearance through well-planned and well-maintained plantings, and
WHEREAS, the result would be improved visual quality of the landscape, improved appearance  of business and residential districts, increased pride resulting from volunteer involvement and beautiful plantings, and reduced vandalism of public areas, and
WHEREAS, these improvements are intended to further the County’s tourism program, and
 WHEREAS, a beautification plan for $53,000 has been reviewed and recommended by the Strategic Tourism Planning Board, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Economic and Workforce Development Committee, That the County Administrator or his designee is authorized to execute an amendment to the Chamber of Commerce contract for $53,000 to carry out of the tasks outlined in the County Beautification Proposal.
SEQR ACTION:  TYPE II-20

Report from the Budget and Capital Committee

 Mr. Penniman, Chairman, reported the Committee met briefly prior to the Board meeting to take action on a resolution on the agenda.  The next regular meeting will be Tuesday, January 28th.

Report from the Public Safety Committee

 Mrs. Schuler, Chair, had no report.

Report from the Charter Review Committee

 Mr. Lane, Chairman, reported Committee members have the first compiled version of the Charter to review.

Report from the Communications Capital Project Committee

 Ms. Blanchard, Chair, reported the Committee will meet on January 29th at 2:30 p.m.

Report from the Public Safety Building Space Planning Committee

 Mr. Joseph, Chairman, reported the Committee has not met.

Report from the Space Needs and Location Committee

 Mr. Joseph, Chairman, reported the Committee has not met.

Approval of Minutes of December 17, 2002 and January 7, 2003

 It was MOVED by Ms. Robertson, seconded by Mr. Todd, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to approve the minutes of December 17, 2002 and January 7, 2003 as corrected.  MINUTES APPROVED.

Adjournment

 On motion the meeting adjourned at 7:03 p.m.