Human Affairs Committee

HUMAN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE JUNE 4, 2013 A meeting of the Human Affairs Committee was held Tuesday, June 4, 2013, 2013 at 6:35 p.m. in the Aldermanic Chamber. Alderman-at-Large Lori Wilshire, Chairman, presided. Members of the Committee present: Alderman June M. Caron Alderman Daniel T. Moriarty Members Not in Attendance: Alderman Diane Sheehan, Vice Chair Alderman Mary Ann Melizzi-Golja Also in Attendance: Alderman-at-Large Barbara Pressly PUBLIC COMMENT COMMUNICATIONS – None UNFINISHED BUSINESS – None NEW BUSINESS – RESOLUTIONS R-13-120 Endorsers: Mayor Donnalee Lozeau Alderman-at-Large Lori Wilshire Alderman Diane Sheehan Alderman Richard A. Dowd Alderman June M. Caron Alderman Kathy Vitale Alderman Arthur T. Craffey, Jr. Alderman-at-Large Barbara Pressly RELATIVE TO THE ACCEPTANCE AND APPROPRIATION OF $614,960 FROM THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AND THE BUREAU OF DRUG AND ALCOHOL SERVICES INTO PUBLIC HEALTH AND COMMUNITY SERVICES GRANT ACTIVITY-“FY2014 AND FY2015 EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS GRANT” MOTION BY ALDERMAN CARON TO RECOMMEND FINAL PASSAGE ON THE QUESTION Alderman Moriarty Why are we doing drug and alcohol services into emergency preparedness? Chairman Wilshire It’s part of the grant. The purpose of the funds is to provide public health emergency preparedness, substance misuse prevention, includes the implementation, evidence based efforts to prevent alcohol, tobacco and other drug use in children under the age of 18. The coordinator of the Greater Nashua SMP program beyond influence formerly a program of the United Way will work with four regional prevention coalitions and Beyond Influence Leadership Team to implement the regional SMP Human Affairs – 06/04/13 Page 2 strategic plan developed in 2001. It also funds the regional public health advisory. There are no city matching funds for this grant. Alderman Moriarty I don’t have my budget book with me but if there was another fund that you had to pick instead of emergency preparedness to put it into, what would that fund be? Welfare fund? Chairman Wilshire Are you talking about that particular portion of the grant? Alderman Moriarty Or just the whole grant. Are you saying the grant is meant for emergency preparedness or is it meant for helping people to not get addicted to drugs? Chairman Wilshire It says here that the grant is for the purpose of continuing implementation of regional public health, emergency response activities, regional public health activates and substance misuse prevention efforts. That’s all rolled into this grant. Alderman Moriarty Are we allowed to appropriate it how we want? Chairman Wilshire However we want? Well I’m certain that it goes to those particular services. We’ve had this grant. I’m not sure quite how long we’ve had this but I know we currently have this grant and are doing some of these things already. VHHS has the option to renew the grant for two additional years pending availability of the funds. I guess I’m not sure really what your question is. Alderman Moriarty Eventually I’ll defer to your recommendation, but there was a discussion. We voted down putting money in an emergency preparedness fund. Chairman Wilshire The special revenue fund? Alderman Moriarty There was a pretty substantial discussion at the full Board that we decided that we don’t want to put the money into that special revenue fund. Maybe it was budget review. Chairman Wilshire Yes. Human Affairs – 06/04/13 Page 3 Alderman Moriarty It was during Budget Review. That’s right I saw it on TV. It seemed to be the consensus that emergency preparedness that we didn’t want to continue to fund it. Maybe I’m mistaking, anyway, it seemed like there might be another more appropriate, more human services named account as opposed to emergency preparedness account. It sounds like this fund should be more like a welfare account, helping people as opposed to just socking it away in case you get hit by a tornado. Chairman Wilshire It does a lot more than just emergency preparedness. It’s all about regional public health and response to different situations. I know what you’re talking about. You’re talking about the $50,000 that they wanted to put into a special revenue account. I think the Board felt there was already enough money being funneled into those activities. This is part of that money that we’ve been getting for this grant. I think this is money well spent, and it’s a grant. There are not matching funds for it. Alderman Moriarty I agree; its money well spent. I’m just trying to identify is there a better account in the city to put it in because it seems from the intent of the letter that it’s an implication it’s more of a human services fund as opposed to an emergency services in case the trees get blown over. That’s what I’m getting at. Chairman Wilshire But it’s the city that does this. It’s not a non-profit that does this. Alderman Caron You said we got this before. Do you know what account this was in last year? Chairman Wilshire It goes to public health. Alderman Caron I think the other thing is it says emergency preparedness grant. It doesn’t say account. It’s a grant for public health and community service. It goes into the community service account. It doesn’t go into the emergency preparedness department. Chairman Wilshire My understanding is it goes into public health. Alderman Moriarty Oh, because that’s what I was looking at. It goes into, thank you, we take the money and put it into. I thought the name of the account was emergency preparedness. Human Affairs – 06/04/13 Page 4 Chairman Wilshire It goes to the public health. Alderman Moriarty It goes to public health and community services grant activities. Okay. Never mind. It actually is going into an account that is appropriately named. Chairman Wilshire Yes. Alderman Moriarty Public Health and community services. Chairman Wilshire Yes. Alderman Pressly I endorsed this also. I’m always supportive of any time we can get public money to provide local services. Just by the questions, I’m wondering what happens after it’s received. Who sort of monitors to make sure that it goes to the appropriate place. Chairman Wilshire I believe it goes to the public health department which would be Kerran Vigroux. Alderman Pressly How do we know for sure that this grant or any of these grants go to provide the services that they are earmarked to provide? Is there anybody that sort of checks up on that throughout the year? Chairman Wilshire I’m sure there are reporting mechanism that have to go back to grantee delineating all of the services that are provided to the city. That’s how most of these grants work. You have to apply for the grant. Of course you put in all the things you’re going to do with it like the public health, the emergency preparedness, substance misuse. It’s a competitive grant. Once we get that money I’m sure, and I know from getting grants from my employment, that Alderman Pressly So the same people who applied for it have to then respond and let the agency know how they spent it. Human Affairs – 06/04/13 Page 5 Chairman Wilshire Yes, there is accountability for how the grant is spent. Alderman Caron is shaking her head like she knows. Alderman Caron You have to dot your I’s and cross your T’s. It’s very specific when you grant money for anything. It’s very specific. You have to have all your ducks in a row when you give an accounting. Whoever is in charge which would be the director of community health, she would have to report back to them. Chairman Wilshire The thing too is it’s renewable if the funding is available and if we want to get it renewed we sure ought to make sure that we’re spending it appropriately, and I think we are. I’m very confident that we are doing a good job with this grant. Alderman Pressly I have assumed that, but it’s always good to ask. Assumptions can be dangerous. MOTION CARRIED R-13-121 Endorsers: Mayor Donnalee Lozeau Alderman-at-Large Lori Wilshire Alderman Diane Sheehan Alderman Arthur T. Craffey, Jr. Alderman Kathy Vitale Alderman June M. Caron RELATIVE TO THE ACCEPTANCE AND APPROPRIATION OF UP TO $230,000 FROM THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES FOR MATCHING FUNDS FOR THE FEDERAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY JOB ACCESS AND REVERSE COMMUTE (“JARC”) GRANT PROGRAM MOTION BY ALDERMAN CARON TO RECOMMEND FINAL PASSAGE OF R-13-121 ON THE QUESTION Chairman Wilshire This is the grant that allowed us to increase every half hour the bus trips on Route 2 and 6 which are way out on Amherst Street so people can get to work and back. This is really a good grant. I think we’ve been very fortunate with our transit system here in the city. These are the matching funds that we’re getting to match the federal funds. These are state funds to match the federal funds. It’s good money. I don’t know if anyone has noticed but our buses have been pretty full. The ridership is up and I think it’s a really great service we provide. Alderman Pressly Could one of you speak a little bit more to this reverse commute, this JARC grant program? Human Affairs – 06/04/13 Page 6 Chairman Wilshire It’s Job Access and Reverse Commute. It’s like getting you there and getting you back. I think we’ve been getting it. I don’t know how long exactly. Alderman Pressly It’s a grant from health and human services. That’s what’s interesting. Chairman Wilshire They use Tanf funds as the match. We’ve been successful in securing the grant for the last six years especially for the Tanf Funds as temporary aid to needy families, certainly people who use this system and benefit from it. MOTION CARRIED R-13-124 Endorsers: Mayor Donnalee Lozeau Alderman-at-Large Lori Wilshire Alderman Arthur T. Craffey, Jr. Alderman Diane Sheehan Alderman Michael J. Tabacsko Alderman Mary Ann Melizzi-Golja AMENDING THE PROPOSED FY2014 ANNUAL ACTION PLAN RELATIVE TO THE USE OF CDBG FUNDS BY THE ADULT LEARNING CENTER MOTION BY ALDERMAN MORIARTY TO RECOMMEND FINAL PASSAGE ON THE QUESTION Chairman Wilshire I’m sure you’ve read it and understand what happened. The city has not been given it’s entitlement amount by HUD just yet. We already did approve funding for this project. All we’re doing is shifting some funds so that they can get this wall done sooner than later because there has been some shifting in the wall, itself. It’s a little risky. Have you seen that Alderman Pressly? The wall that this is funding is at the Adult Learning Center. Alderman Pressly I have not seen it. Can you tell me about it? Chairman Wilshire It’s a big huge retaining wall that abuts Rotary Park. It’s failing. The wall is failing. They had funding from the block grant before to do this and they ran into more problems and needed more funding which we approved when we did the Annual Action Plan for July 1 of this year. However, they said there has been some significant shifting during the spring months in this wall and cars park on it, pretty much on it. People that attend the Adult Learning Center and it’s hazardous which is why we’re moving some funds to get this done. It’s not more money; it’s the money we’ve already okay and voted on. We’re just shifting a little bit so they can get this project going. Human Affairs – 06/04/13 Page 7 Alderman Pressly I just noticed that they have not applied for any funds for next year. Is that true? Chairman Wilshire This is a different fund. This is Review & Comment that you’re looking at. Alderman Pressly It’s a different set of CDBG? Chairman Wilshire It is. It’s a different pot of money. MOTION CARRIED NEW BUSINESS – ORDINANCES – None TABLED IN COMMITTEE O-12-21 Endorsers: Alderman Mary Ann Melizzi-Golja Alderman June Caron Alderman Michael Tabacsko Alderman Diane Sheehan Alderman Richard A. Dowd AMENDING THE COMPOSITION OF THE REVIEW AND COMMENT COMMISSION  Also assigned to Personnel; Final Passage Recommended – 8/20/12  Tabled 9/6/12 GENERAL DISCUSSION PUBLIC COMMENT REMARKS BY THE ALDERMEN POSSIBLE NON-PUBLIC SESSION ADJOURNMENT MOTION BY ALDERMAN MORIARTY TO ADJOURN MOTION CARRIED The meeting was declared adjourned at 6:50 p.m. Alderman Mary Ann Melizzi-Golja Committee Clerk