Finance, Taxes and Insurance

FINANCE COMMITTEE July 13, 2015 – Official 5:00 p.m. Members Present: Brian, Lauer, Gil Amborn, Jim Schneider, Ron Kluth and Tom Roanhouse Also Present: Lori Peternell, Stephanie Charapata, Rick Mueller Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce Representatives Katy Engels, Don Castine, and Chuck Torosian Lauer called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. Motion made by Amborn, seconded by Schneider to approve the June 8, 2015 Regular Meeting Minutes. Motion carried. Motion made by Roanhouse, seconded by Schneider to approve the June 16, 2105 Joint Finance Committee and Village Board Meeting Minutes. Motion carried. Katy Engels discussed the Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce 2016 funding request for Balloonfest and answered questions from the Committee. Discussion was held regarding marketing of insurance in 2016. The Village has been insured through the League of Wisconsin Municipalities Mutual Insurance (LWMMI) Company for all coverage with the exception of property (physical building structures and contents) since early 2000 when the company began. The Board of Director’s for LWMMI is made up off village and city officials, as the program is designed specifically for municipalities and cities, as our needs are statutorily different than private companies. The Village has insured our property (buildings structures and content) with the Local Government Property Insurance Fund (LGPIF) for decades. LGPIF is run by the State of Wisconsin and has been the lowest cost option for insuring our property for a long time. Governor Walker has proposed elimination of the program in 2016; however, this is only a proposal at this time and will not be decided upon until the State budget passes at the end of June 2015. Should LGPIF be eliminated after the passing of the budget, LGPIF would provide the Village with coverage for one additional renewal cycle (May 1, 2015 – April 30, 2016) and after such time the Village may need to select another insurer. In response to the proposal to eliminate the LGPIF the League of Wisconsin Municipalities Mutual Insurance Company has joined with CVMIC and WMMIC to create a new Municipal Property Insurance Company, which will be offering property insurance for local governments at competitive rates this fall. As of the meeting date, the Senate budget amendment deletes provisions in the budget closing out the local government property insurance fund. The Senate amendment further requires the Insurance Commissioner to adopt policy rate increases and structure changes recommended by the local government property insurance fund advisory committee on April 9, 2015. Discussion was held regarding what services TE Brennan provides the Village and if there are other options available to market insurance. TE Brennan is a firm retained by the Village (approximately $3,000 annually) that provides services such as: review of all policies to make sure they are issued according to the coverage’s, limits and premiums that were quoted, follow up to make sure any changes or endorsements that were requested during the policy review process are processed by the insurance company, provide claims analysis in regards to workers compensation claims, review loss runs and compare this to the information being used to develop the experience modification factor to determine the accuracy of the experience mod. They will review contracts on an as needed basis. They recently reviewed a sign license agreement for the Village and provided input regarding how to proceed. TE Brennan is available to provide advice in situations involving the Village’s insurance coverage’s. They recently provided input regarding a situation where Lakeshore Library Systems was going to store computers at the Village’s library location. They also review our coverage and provide detailed breakouts of the insurance for purposes of billing the utilities and library. They also provide services for preparing and reviewing proposals on insurance. In March 2015 the Finance Committee reviewed a proposal from TE Brennan for marketing both property and liability insurance in 2016. The Committee concurred that the Village should make a decision on whether to market the insurance should be made no later than August 2015 for purposes of including the marketing expense in the 2016 budget. It was discussed that if the Village decides to market insurance in 2016 the process would begin in January of 2016. In March 2015 TE Brennan recommended marketing coverage every 3-5 years and soliciting a minimum of three proposals from vendors and no more than five. Further discussion was held regarding the State budget amendment to keep the LGPIF and what impact there will be on rates in 2016. It was the consensus of the Committee to budget for marketing insurance in 2016 but wanted to look at other options than TE Brennan. Schneider stated that he would review our coverage and will find alternates on how to market insurance in 2016 by December 2015. Motion made by Schneider, seconded by Kluth to include $8000 in the 2016 budget for marketing of insurance. Motion carried. Amborn provided a brief update on Absolutely Waterford’s strategy meeting that was held in June. Amborn stated that the budget was not discussed at the meeting. Peternell provided an update on the League dividend. In May the Finance Committee and Village Board approved allocating the League dividend and TDS franchise fees to pay for the second year of website maintenance fees that was missed for inclusion in the 2015 budget. The 2015 website maintenance fees totaled $9,029.02 and the League dividend the Village received was $9,009.00; the remaining $20.02 will be covered with TDS franchise fees. Discussion was held on the Funding Request policy that was adopted by the Village Board in April 2015. Peternell stated that a copy of the policy and a letter explaining the new policy. The policy states that a representative of the organization must be present at the Finance Committee and Village Board meeting to present their funding request. Funding requests were received from The Tichigan Fireworks Committee, The Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce, and Absolutely Waterford. Of the three funding requests that were received, only the Chamber had representatives present at the Finance Committee meeting. It was the consensus of the Committee that their recommendations would be contingent upon the organizations appearing at the Village Board meeting. Motion made by Schneider, seconded by Amborn to approve Tichigan Fireworks Committee funding request of $500 contingent upon them being present at the Village Board meeting. Motion carried. Motion made by Amborn, seconded by Schneider to approve the Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce funding request of $5000 for Ballonfest in 2016. Motion carried. Motion made by Schneider, seconded by Kluth to approve Absolutely Waterford funding request of $15,000 contingent upon them being present at the Village Board meeting. Amborn abstained. Motion carried. Peternell discussed the Annual Budget Process which identifies that the Board is to provide direction on the following year levy during the second week of July. Peternell stated that last year in July when the Board acted on the levy, it was the consensus that the budget process wasn’t far enough along to make a determination on the levy and that it should be done later in the year. This portion of the policy was overlooked when amendments were made to it last month. The policy states that in late October the Finance Committee and Village Board will meet to review the complete budget and make adjustments if needed. Staff recommends that direction on the levy be made at this time. Motion made by Schneider, seconded by Amborn to recommend Village Board approval of amending the annual budget process to provide direction on the levy in late October. Motion carried. Peternell provided an update on the purchase of a new bucket truck. Peternell stated that at June 16th Joint Finance and Village Board meeting Director Dolezal discussed an opportunity for the Village to purchase a bucket truck utilizing City of Wauwatosa’s specifications and municipal bid results. Dolezal explained that this process is similar to the VALUE Program currently utilized by the Village. Dolezal stated that Wauwatosa requested sealed bids for a bucket truck very similar to what the Village would be looking to purchase and there are only 2 vendors that can supply the truck. Dolezal stated that Utility Sales and Service provided a bid for $95,307 and $108,000 has been allocated in the 2015 budget. The Public Works & Utilities Committee reviewed this request at their June 15th meeting and recommended moving forward with purchasing a bucket truck in conjunction with Village of Wauwatosa’s purchase. Dolezal stated the Village of Wauwatosa is ready to place the order now so Peternell requested the Board approve the purchase and waive the requirement that a purchase requisition be completed so that there isn’t a delay for the Village’s purchase. The Board approved the purchase of a bucket truck utilizing City of Wauwatosa’s specifications and municipal bid results and waiving the purchase requisition requirement. Discussion was held regarding what the Finance Committee’s roles are relative to approval of contracts. Members voiced concerns that the Finance Committee did not have an opportunity to review the police services contract with the Town of Waterford before it being approved. Members would like the Board to develop a policy on how contracts will be approved. Peternell provided an update on distribution on meeting packets. Peternell stated that at the June 22nd Village Board meeting the Board reviewed how packets are distributed to the Board, Commissions and Committees. Discussion was held that not all packets are being distributed the same and the extra work it creates for staff. The Board decided that moving forward there will be one process for staff to follow. The Agenda and Memo will be emailed to the members on Friday when the packets are ready and staff will print hard copies for pick up. The pick-up schedule would be as follows: Friday, Noon – 4:30 p.m. at Village Hall and Saturday through Monday at the Library. Motion made by Schneider, seconded by Amborn, to recommend to the Village Board approval of Village prepaid invoices in the amount of $41,884.47. Motion carried. Motion made by Schneider, seconded by Amborn to recommend to the Village Board approval of Village unpaid invoices in the amount of $216,021.60. Motion carried. Due to lack of time, the 2nd quarter financial review will be done at the August meeting. Upon motion made by Schneider, seconded by Amborn, the meeting adjourned at 6:27 p.m. Motion carried. Submitted by, Lori Peternell, CMTW Village Treasurer 2