Special Meeting Board of Trustees

Village of Lombard Village Hall 255 East Wilson Ave. Lombard, IL 60148 villageoflombard.org Minutes Monday, August 24, 2015 7:00 PM Lorraine G. Gerhardt Community Room Special Meeting Board of Trustees Village President Keith Giagnorio, Village Clerk Sharon Kuderna, Trustee Dan Whittington, Trustee Mike Fugiel, Trustee Reid Foltyniewicz, Trustee Bill Johnston, Trustee Robyn Pike and Trustee Bill Ware Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 I Call to Order The Special Meeting of the President and Board of Trustees of the Village of Lombard held on Monday, August 24, 2015 in the Community Room of the Lombard Village Hall was called to order by Village President Keith Giagnorio at 7:00 pm. II Pledge of Allegiance Village Clerk Sharon Kuderna led the Pledge of Allegiance. III Roll Call Present 8 - Keith Giagnorio, Sharon Kuderna, Dan Whittington, Mike Fugiel, Reid Foltyniewicz, Bill Johnston, Robyn Pike, and Bill Ware Staff Present: Village Manager Scott Niehaus Director of Finance Tim Sexton Director of Community Development Bill Heniff Director of Public Works Carl Goldsmith Chief of Police Ray Byrne Fire Chief Paul DiRienzo Assistant Village Manager Nicole Aranas Assistant Director of Finance Jamie Cunningham Executive Coordinator Carol Bauer Village President asked the Village Board to submit any proposed changes or suggestions relative to the Lombard Pride Committee Community Event Request for Proposal (RFP) by Wednesday. IV Public Participation V Agenda A. 150391 Review FY 2016 Budget Calendar Trustee Reid Foltyniewicz, Chairperson of the Finance & Administration Committee, reviewed the Budget Calendar and upcoming meetings. Village of Lombard Page 1 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 B. 150392 FY 2016 Budget Overview - General Fund Revenue & Expenditure Assumptions/Comments Trustee Reid Foltyniewicz, Chairperson of the Finance & Administration Committee, provided an overview of the General Fund Revenue & Expenditure Assumptions/Comments: The general approach is to be conservative; project budget for revenues low and project budget for expenses high. Village Manager Scott Niehaus noted that the Village is still awaiting word on the State budget and the Village has a lobbyist working in Springfield. There are proposed cuts to the LGDF and if the cut is made to the LGDF, this would affect the Village. Top 10 General Fund Revenue Assumptions: Sales Tax - the first 4 months of FY 15 collections came in 8.2% higher than the same period in 2014, and 7.1% over the budget thru March. Retail sales at the national level have not been nearly as strong. Sales tax is projected to increase 1% over the FY 15 year end estimate. Utility Tax - the Utility Tax is projected to decrease by 9% over FY 15 year end estimate. The Utility Tax is used in the General Fund for operations in order to maintain the 25% General Fund balance. In addition. 5% is allocated for 2015 facility projects. Remaining tax dollars go into the Utility Tax Reserve. The revenue for gas and electric goes up or down based on environmental factors. It is anticipated that natural gas prices will continue to remain low for the year. State Income Tax - the first 4 months of CY15 collections came in 18.3% higher than last year. This revenue remains strong as the economy continues to recover. However, the Governor has proposed a 50% reduction in the allocation of this revenue to municipalities. Police Pension/Fire Pension - tax levy requests per Actuarial Valuation Report for the year ending December 31, 2015. This revenue is requested in the 2015 tax levy. The increases are due to increased average salaries, investment return was less than assumed and there were changes to the assumption based on an actuarial experience study conducted by the IDOI. In addition, the Fire Pension had a new incident of disability. IMRF - the 2016 IMRF contribution rate is 18.3% of wages in the upcoming year. This revenue will be requested in the 2015 tax levy. Increase in the rate is mainly due to a change in actuarial assumptions. EMS - EMS calls in the first 6 months of 2015 decreased by 5.9% compared to the same period in 2014 and write-offs have increased. Places for Eating Tax/Local Use/Cable TV Franchise Fee - projected revenues are based on current year collections. Village of Lombard Page 2 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 Question relative to gas tax and telecommunications tax - Reviewed the top 10 General Fund Revenues: The Top 10 General Fund revenues make up 85% of all General Fund revenue sources combined. The General Corporate budgeted revenue decreased to $102,000 in FY 2016 compared to $1,183,340 in 2015. The majority of the 2015 proposed tax levy funding will go towards funding for special levies due to significant increases in pensions and liabilities expenses. Expenses - Global Assumptions for FY 2016 General Fund Budget: Wages - wages includes salaries and estimated increases for all Village employees, Increases are in accordance with union contracts. The FY 2016 budget assumes all positions are filled. Health Insurance - no plan increase is expected for 2016. Police Pension - the Village's Tax Levy requirement has increased due to the increase in average salaries, the investment return was less than assumed, and changes to the assumptions. The Percent Funded decreased from 68.9% last year to 65.3% this year. Fire Pension - the Village's Tax Levy requirement has increased slightly due to the increase in average salaries, the investment return was less then assumed, changes to the assumptions, and a new incident of disability. The Percent Funded decreased from 77.8% last year to 76.9% this year. Fleet - based upon the analysis by division of the past 2 years, fleet O&M costs are projected to decrease 10% in fuel, increase 5% in labor costs with a 16.73% increase for parts. Emergency Dispatch - this pays for DuComm fees for 67 patrol officers. The Fire Department's DuComm fee is based on the Village's EAV. IMRF - the Village has no direct control over the IMRF amount. It is determined by IMRF formulas. In FY 2015, the contribution was 15.75%. The 2016 IMRF contribution rate is 18.37%. The Percent Funded for active employees decreased from 66.89% last year to 44.02% this year. The Percent Funded reflects the individual employer's funded status for active and inactive employees. Retirees are 100% funded due to the annuity reserve generated during their employment. When retirees are included the Percent Funded is 86.33%. Benefits - the Village pays 6.20% for Social Security and Medicare as mandated by the federal government, Other benefits include life insurance, uniforms and tuition reimbursement. Technology Reserve - new technology is paid for by individual funds. Each fund annually contributes to the Technology reserve account for replacement of the specific equipment at the end of the equipment's useful life. Replacement cost and useful; life for each item is re-evaluated annually. This re-evaluation may change the annual amounts that each fund contributes. The FY 16 proposed budget Village of Lombard Page 3 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 includes reserve for additional Starcom radios and AED's. Legal - decrease due to union contract settlements in 2015. Electric - bid pricing for street lighting reduced compared to previous years. Telephone - AT&T significantly increased the DuComm line fees for the Fire Stations. 2016 General Fund Expenses Non-Discretionary vs. Discretionary The 2016 proposed General Fund budget shows approximately 96% are non-discretionary expenses and 4% are discretionary expenses. General Fund FY 2016 Discretionary Request Per Village Board directive given during the Strategic Planning session, discretionary expenses are under 2% compared to the 2015 budget. Vacant Positions The FY 16 budget assumes all vacant positions will be filled. However, no positions will be filled until the State budget situation is resolved. Trustee Ware asked about gas tax higher last year. Finance Director Sexton indicated that the gas tax was higher than it has ever been, but the polar vortex plays a key in revenues. Communications Tax has declined steadily with residents canceling landlines and the tax on cell phones is limited to telephone and does not include texting. Trustee Whittington asked about a tax on Netflex movies, etc. director Sexton indicated that this tax has been thrown out of court and it would take a change by the federal government to be able to tax Netflex and other such venues. Questions relative to pensions were answered by Director Sexton. Question relative to decrease in ambulance fees due to people not paying and the Village having to write-off some charges. It was noted that approximately 75% of ambulance calls are for residents. The Village has a new billing company and hopes to see some positive changes relative to collections. There was a 2.5% increase budgeted in the second largest cost center which is health insurance, but it appears that there will be no increase in health insurance premiums. Other municipalities looking at joining DuComm including Willowbrook, Burr Ridge, Clarendon Hills. Legal firm keeping fees affordable. Discussion on discretionary versus non-discretionary expenses. Director Sexton explained the IMRF pool and how they look at liabilities versus assets. Spoke of plunge in stock market and how this can affect pensions as assets are invested in the stock market. Staff will be watching the Local Government Distributive Funds (LGDF) before making any recommendations on filling any vacant positions. Village of Lombard Page 4 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 C. 150393 Budget Presentation - Village Manager's Office Village Manager Scott Niehaus reviewed the divisions included in the Legislative Department: President and Board of Trustees, Village Clerk, Board of Fire & Police Commissioners, and the Museum/Peck House/Main Street Cemetery and any changes and adjustments within those divisions. President and Board of Trustees: The Village Board is the legislative and policy-making body of the Village. The Village President is elected at-large and serves for a term of four years. The Village Trustees are elected from each of six districts to serve as representative of that district. Trustees serve staggered terms of four years. The responsibilities of the Village Board include enacting ordinances for the proper governing of the Village; approving changes in the Municipal Code as required; adopting the annual budget and related financial documents; awarding municipal contracts; establishing all other policies necessary to promote the health, safety and welfare of the Village and its residents; appointing the Village Manager; and representing the Village to the public and other governmental bodies. Village Clerk: The Village Clerk performs a variety of administrative functions for the Village Board. The Clerk is elected at large and serves a term of four years. The Clerk serves as local election official for all elections and is responsible for monitoring election laws for Village candidates. The Clerk and Central Records staff members are responsible for the recording of all Village Board meeting minutes; publishing, when necessary, and maintaining all Village ordinances and resolutions; and preparing notices. In addition, they are responsible for maintaining accurate files of all Village administrative records; as well as administering and maintaining the Legistar legislative tracking system. The Village Clerk staff administers the Taxi Subsidy Program and acts as Freedom of Information Officer for the Village. Licensing functions are also included within this cost center. The Licensing program activity within this cost center includes coordinating the business licensing system, the handling of all renewal cycles, and recommending changes to licensing ordinances and procedures. In addition, secretarial and support staff for the necessary preparation of ordinances, maintenance of all of the appropriate legal files and maintenance of the Liquor Commissioner’s files, as outlined in the 1340 Legal Services Cost Center are included in this program. Village of Lombard Page 5 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 Board of Fire and Police Commissioners: The Village of Lombard Board of Fire and Police Commissioners is established and administered pursuant to 65 ILCS 5/10-2.1 for the purpose of examining applicants for entry into and promotion within the Fire and Police services. The Board also has the responsibility for suspension, removal or discharge of employees after proper due process. Museum / Peck House / Main Street Cemetery: This cost center provides for the Hotel/Motel Tax Fund cost of projects associated with the Lombard Historical Museum, the Peck Homestead, and the Main Street Cemetery. The obligations of the Society are outlined in the agreement for both properties. In June 2007, the Village Board of Trustees passed a resolution announcing the intent of the Village to enter and maintain the Lombard Main Street Cemetery as an abandoned cemetery. Costs associated with general maintenance and upkeep activities for the cemetery are included in this cost center. Village Manager’s Office: The Village Manager is the chief administrative officer of the Village and is directly responsible for planning, organizing and directing the activities of all municipal operations. The Village Manager appoints all Department Heads and most other employees. The Manager ensures that all laws and ordinances governing the Village are faithfully enforced, recommends to the Village Board such measures or actions which appear necessary or desirable, recommends municipal ordinances and regulations and implements policies established by the Village Board, prepares and submits the administrative budget and capital improvement program and performs other activities as provided in the Municipal Code. The Assistant Village Manager and Executive Coordinator support the Village Manager in his work. Human Resources : This program is responsible for all matters affecting Village personnel and all records not maintained by individual departments. Specific examples include the establishment of Human Resource policies, updating the Human Resource manual, employee selection, administration of employee benefits and compensation, training and development, employee relations, hiring assistance for all departments, administration of the Pay & Classification Plan and supervision of the payroll process. Legal Services: This program reflects the majority of work performed in the area of Legal Services. The Attorney acts in an advisory capacity to the Corporate Authorities, Municipal Officers, Liquor Commissioner, Village employees, and any other Boards and Commissions (except those specifically prohibited by law). This program incorporates preparation of legal opinions, memos, review of Village of Lombard Page 6 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 legal documents such as contracts, leases and other items associated with giving legal opinions to the above parties. This program also includes all of the work necessary to prepare for prosecution including actual appearances in traffic court. Plaintiff work is normally handled through the chancery or tax courts. Actual court experience plus any preparation time with witness, professional or not, is also covered by this program. Communications: The Communications division coordinates public communications, promotes Village programs and services to the community at large and supports Lombard community activities. This cost center provides for the Hotel/Motel Tax Fund cost of various Village projects. Costs shown in this cost center are in accordance with the Village's Hotel/Motel Tax Financial Policy which restricts expenditures to items which promote tourism and conventions within the municipality or otherwise attract non-resident overnight visitors to the municipality. The Village of Lombard has established a five percent (5%) hotel tax pursuant to state law. Substantive Changes - The overall legislative and executive budgets reflect minimal substantive changes over the 2015 budget. Noteworthy areas of increase and decrease to the budget are discussed and identified below. Areas of Increase - Within the Human Resources budget additional funds were included to continue support of professional counseling and team development services through an outside consultant. Additional funds were added to the cover implementation and incentives related to a fitness and activity tracking program for employees. Additions to the Budget - The Legislative and Executive budgets to do not reflect any substantive additions for new personnel or programs in 2016. Areas of Decrease - The legal services budget reflects a reduction in the overall expense for outside legal counsel over prior year budgeting. Within the Historical Society budget, the part-time education coordinator position was restructured to a part-time archivist position resulting in reduced expenditures. Challenges of the Last Year -In the executive department, challenges of the last year have included the continuing negotiation and settlement of union contracts. Over the last year, both the legislative and executive departments have been engaged in the process of evaluating conditions within the Village and developing strategic plan initiatives and related action plans. Village of Lombard Page 7 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 Challenges of the Coming Year - In the coming year, the legislative and executive departments of the Village will implement and oversee the execution of the strategic initiatives contained in the Lombard Strategic Plan. He spoke of the conservative plan that staff is taking relative to dipping into reserves versus using reserves. Vacancies will be reviewed after the Village receives an update from Springfield relative to the State budget and any cuts to revenues to the Village. The final draft of the Strategic Plan will be forwarded to the Village Board for their review shortly. The Village Board is leading by example. Assistant Village Manager Nicole Aranas reviewed various programs such as the taxi program. The Historical Society is expected to receive $46,000 in grant funds from the State. Less than a 1% increase in the Executive Division. Various line items were questioned and responses/clarification provided by staff. Question relative to the elected officials salaries and a stipend paid to the Liquor Commissioner. Clarification relative to the use of GovTemps during maternity leave for the Human Resources Administrator and professional consulting services for the Fire Department. The Village Manager's vehicle has been turned back into the fleet. Questions relative to part-time wages for the Historical Society were clarified. Lawn maintenance and trimming bushes for the Cemetery were quoted at $6,000. Positions that are currently vacant were reviewed such as the part-time Events Coordinator. . . D. 150394 Budget Presentation - Finance Department Director of Finance Tim Sexton introduced Finance Committee Village of Lombard Page 8 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 Member Jay Tovian. He then proceeded to provide updates on the following: Administration & Treasury Management: This cost center provides for administration of the Village’s financial affairs. The Director of Finance is appointed by the Village Manager and is responsible for overall municipal fiscal planning and management. The Director’s duties include the selection, training and supervision of accounting, data processing, budget, risk management, purchasing, utility billing and customer service staff, financial analysis, forecasting, and administration of Village debt service management and investments. As the Village Treasurer, the Director of Finance is also responsible for analyzing current market conditions in order to select the optimum investments and maturity schedules that will achieve the maximum rate of return while preserving necessary levels of liquidity and safety. Within this cost center designated staff members perform duties related to budgeting, purchasing, risk management and safety coordination, financial analysis, and other administrative functions. Finance Village Events: This cost center provides for the Hotel/Motel Tax cost of enhancing and supporting the Village of Lombard website. Costs shown in this cost center are in accordance with the Village's Hotel/Motel Tax Financial Policy which restricts expenditures to items which promote tourism and conventions within the municipality or otherwise attract non-resident overnight visitors to the municipality. The Village of Lombard has established a five percent (5%) hotel tax pursuant to state law. Customer Service/Licensing: This cost center was established to accurately account for costs associated with the operation of the Village Hall Front Desk and Licensing program. The Licensing program activities include the commuter parking system and other licensing and permit activities for which the Finance Department is primarily responsible. The Village Hall front desk activities include accepting and processing payments for water bills, business licenses, building permits, parking permits, vehicle stickers, postage stamps, yardwaste and refuse stickers, taxi subsidy coupons, special assessments and other miscellaneous receivables. Program responsibilities include routing, directing and responding to customer inquiries concerning all Village services. Accounting & Financial Services: This program is responsible for accurately accounting for the receipt and disbursement of all municipal funds on a timely basis. The division is comprised of accounts payable which is responsible for processing invoices and preparing vendor payments, and accounts receivable which is responsible for processing special assessments, coordinating ambulance billing, false Village of Lombard Page 9 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 alarm fees and all other invoices. The accounting staff maintains accounting records, reconciles bank statements, prepares monthly financial reports, supervises the payroll process, administers the grant programs and oversees the Police and Firefighters’ Pension Funds’ accounting functions. Additionally the Village’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) is the responsibility of the accounting staff in coordination with the Village’s external auditors and in accordance with the standards set forth by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB). Information Technology: This program is responsible for technology infrastructure, computerization, IP telephone system and management of information within the Village. Activities include managing computer systems and local/wide area networks, managing the Village web site, managing the IP telephone system which includes voice mail, adds, moves and changes, managing cell phones, monitoring security, configuring and testing data recovery and back-up procedures, assisting users with operational problems, performing general maintenance of systems, coordinating maintenance with outside vendors, assessing and coordinating computer training needs, monitoring equipment requests to ensure compatibility with other systems, evaluating E-Government and wireless solutions, and coordinating, planning, purchasing and implementing new information systems for all departments. Management of software and equipment valued at $6 million. Technology Reserve: This program accounts for the costs associated with the systematic replacement of the Village’s $6 million investment in technology. The Technology Reserve Fund was established to provide a financially prudent means of funding technology needs thereby eliminating the need to issue new debt for technological improvements. A comprehensive replacement schedule for more than 800 hardware and software items ranging from the mid-range computer, personal computers, computer peripherals, telephones, copiers and infrastructure equipment was created and will be used to set aside funds for future replacement and upgrades of equipment and software. Significant Increases/Decreases: Wages - Salary increase per union contract Accounting - The last active program running on the AS 400 network is the special assessment in-house program; the FY16 budget includes $7,500 to contract the administration of special assessments to an outside service Finance Village Events - Inflationary increases for website maintenance and other website related costs Information Technology - Increase to Prescient contract of 2%; Village of Lombard Page 10 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 additional $6,500 for backup/redundant device maintenance and support Technology Reserve - In FY2015, $27,350 budgeted for Firehouse upgrade; 2016 includes $17,000 for Exchange email upgrade; more routine replacements in 2016 (computers, printers, servers, etc.) customer Service/Licensing and Utility Billing-No significant changes; a slight reduction in costs Strategic Changes: Develop and implement a Revenue Review Policy. Continue to increase productivity and efficiency through the Information Technology Committee and Finance Department Committees (disaster planning, employee morale, and training). Assist departments as they continue to implement E-Suite for licensing, commuter parking, and employee self-service. The Finance Department’s Greatest Challenges: Resolving of the LPFC Debt Issue. Refining the Capital improvement Plan to reflect major projects by 2018 and assess funding issues by working closely with Public Works. Developing a plan from the W&S rate study to align revenue with expenses. Assisting Public Works with a replacement program for residential water meters . Planning for potential local revenue cuts made by the State of Illinois. Replacing the Village Hall generator in order to provide IT services to the entire Village. Substantive Changes - The Finance Department and Village General Services reflect minimal substantive changes over the 2015 budget. Areas of increase and additions to the budget are discussed below. Areas of Increase - Areas of increase pertain primarily to contract wage, benefit, and annual contractual increases. Additions to the Budget - The FY16 request includes a request to contract the administration of special assessment to an outside service since it’s the last program on the old AS 400 network. There are also funds budgeted for the Exchange email upgrade. Challenges The Finance Department’s primary challenge for FY 2016 is to work closely with the Public Works department to use the data from the Water and Sewer Rate Study to determine future rate increases required to meet operating and infrastructure needs. Finance staff will Village of Lombard Page 11 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 also assist the Public Works Department with planning for the replacement program for residential water meters. In addition, we are preparing for potential local revenue cuts that may be made by the State of Illinois. Finally, the Village Hall generator is integral to our IT operations and needs replacement. The AS 400 system's useful life is ending and staff will be reviewing other replacement systems; only one program running on the AS 400; staff recommending out-sourcing the billing and collections of Special Assessments to a firm recommended by the Village Attorney at a cost of $7,500 per year; IT staff is comprised of 4 people - three contracted employees and one Village employee; Tech Reserve includes $10,000 for routine replacement computers, servers; if 30 are budgeted, that does not mean that staff purchases 30 - purchases made as-needed; General Services includes copiers costs, copier paper, telephone costs; Water meters starting to fail and not record accurate usage; spoke of replacement; in the long run will be cost savings to the Village with increased revenue due to accuracy; Generator replacement; Ambulance billing services; 3 months free billing and Village should see increase due to more accurate recording and more aggressive approach to collection; Employee recognition breakfast for those employees being recognized for years of service. E. 150395 Budget Presentation - Community Development Department Director of Community Development Bill Heniff reviewed the following: Community and Economic Development Administration: Includes departmental programs and functions including Planning Services, Building, Code Administration, and Private Engineering Services. Direct department assistance to elected officials and Village Manager's Office is also provided. The division also provides staff assistance to local and regional intergovernmental planning activities. Planning Services: Involves land use planning and economic development activities. Planning Services includes staff support and assistance to the Plan Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, Economic and Community Development Committee and Historical Commission. This cost center also administers activities in the three (3) Tax Increment Finance Districts (TIF) and all economic development activities. This cost center also includes Geographic Information Systems (GIS) management activities. Village of Lombard Page 12 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 Building: The Building Division is responsible for the building permit and inspections program beginning with the intake and processing of all permit applications and completing necessary reviews and field inspections. The division provides informational assistance for those contemplating improvements to their property. The division also provides staff assistance to the Board of Building Appeals and the Electrical Commission. Code Administration: This cost center provides for activities associated with enforcement of applicable sections of the Municipal Code. These enforcement activities include communicating code provisions, investigation, issuance of violations and processing for court action if necessary. Private Engineering Services: This cost center provides for engineering services associated with private development and construction. The administration of applicable engineering regulations are accomplished through the plan review and approval process, site inspections and issuance of fill permits. The division enforces the DuPage County Stormwater and Floodplain Ordinance. The division also administers the Backyard Drainage Grant program and provides technical assistance on stormwater drainage issues. Significant Increase/Decreases: A general straight-line approach was applied to the department from the 2015 budget. Discretionary and training dollars generally decreased to focus primarily upon “need based” training and travel activities. For reference purposes, even with the addition of the Building Division to the Community Development Department, the overall budget request is lower for FY 2016 ($1,599,880) than what was approved for the department in FY 2008 ($1,629,370). Strategic Changes: Even with increases in requested work activity, the focus remains to address service requests without a significant impact upon the budget. The blending of Building and Code Administration functions is intended to provide a greater unified approach to addressing code related issues and communication efforts. Incorporation of field technologies purchased in 2015 will provide for greater efficiencies for field activities. For 2016, additional software, along with New World Systems enhancements, will be sought to provide for greater on-line permit submittal, permit status tracking and follow-up activities. The draft FY2016 Budget for the Community Development Village of Lombard Page 13 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 Department comprises 4.3% of the total proposed General Revenue Fund. The budget comprises the proposed expenditures for the four divisions and administration activities that comprise the department’s operations. Each of the division’s core responsibilities is also noted. With respect to proposed expenditures, the department is proposing an overall budget of $1,599,880 for FY2016, which represents a 1.79% increase from the 2015 amended budget. With respect to the nature of the expenditures, most of the costs are allocated to employee compensation or private contractors performing the department’s services. Even with the incorporation of the entire Building Division, the department’s proposed budget is still lower than the approved FY2007-2008 departmental budget. A significant portion of the activities undertaken by the department are market driven in the form of permits and/or development approvals. In the 2014 calendar year, $1,279,926 was taken in by the department for such services and much of the inspection work associated with the 2014 permits was undertaken in 2015. For 2015, the Village is on pace to equal or slightly pass this figure ($764,963 collected over the first seven months alone). There are few modifications to this budget from the approved 2015 budget as staff took a straight-line approach to expenditures. Discretionary spending for the department is actually decreasing from 2015 levels. Field technology acquired in 2015 is currently being implemented by staff. Enhancements to on-line permit submittals and permit tracking will be advanced in 2016. Additional economic development initiatives as set forth within the pending Village Board Strategic planning efforts will be a significant component of the 2016 work program. However, outside of labor time associated with this effort, actual out-of-pocket costs to implement these initiatives are not anticipated to immediately result in additional expenditures in the 2016 budget. Director Heniff noted the proposed budget is a straight-line approach with the 1.79% increase due to employee salaries and benefits. He spoke about advisory letters, banners, tracking and being more accessible, the economic strategic report and three key properties; competing with other towns; ECDC policy incentives. Village Manager Scott Niehaus spoke about technology and tablets for the staff in the field; the monthly code enforcement reports; the aging of our community infrastructure; volunteers at St. John's helping residents with code violations who are unable to make the repairs themselves and this being a win-win for the Village, the residents and St. John's members. Village of Lombard Page 14 Special Meeting Board of Trustees Minutes August 24, 2015 VI Adjournment A motion was made by Trustee Mike Fugiel, seconded by Trustee Bill Johnston, that the Special Meeting of the President and Board of Trustees of the Village of Lombard held on Monday, August 24, 2015 in the Community Room of the Lombard Village Hall be adjourned at 8:31 p.m. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 6- Dan Whittington, Mike Fugiel, Reid Foltyniewicz, Bill Johnston, Robyn Pike, and Bill Ware Village of Lombard Page 15