St. Tammany Fire Protection District No. 1
Board of Commissioners
Regular Meeting
Minutes
July 18, 2017
The meeting was called to order at 6:09 p.m.
The prayer and pledge of allegiance were done.
AWARDS & RECOGNITION–
5 Years of Service: C. Knecht, D. Marullo (absent)
J. Boudreaux (July)
Due to not having a quorum yet, the Division reports and Public Campaign/ Outreach were discussed (no vote required).
- Operations Reports – Chief Kaufmann discussed the “Operations” report (June) which covers YTD call totals, Hydrants Inspected, NFIRS Incidents, Dollar Loss/ Dollar Save (by Station location), Average Response Time (by Station) and EMS Call Type and Number of Incidents.
- Maintenance Report- Chief Kaufmann discussed the “Maintenance” report (June) which covered preventative maintenances and major repairs performed.
- Fire Prevention Report- Chief of Fire Prevention Marquette discussed the monthly “Fire Prevention” report (June) which included Inspections, Public Fire Safety & Education Events, Investigations, and Economic Impact.
- Training Report – Chief of Training Bauer discussed the monthly “Training” report (June) which included Classes, Certifications and Revenues.
- Public Campaign/ Outreach – Sidewalk CPR was conducted on June 24, 2017. Due to the extreme heat, there will be no July demo.
There was a quorum at 6:20 p.m. and the roll was called.
ROLL CALL: Chairman Crowley and Commissioners Gay and Hoying were present.
Commissioners Rich and Brackett were absent.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Commissioner Gay made a motion to approve the minutes of the June 20, 2017 meeting. Commissioner Hoying seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
OLD BUSINESS – (none)
NEW BUSINESS
- Chief’s Report
- Significant Monthly Events
Chief Kaufmann stated that we were infected with a virus that devastated the servers and we are in the process of rebuilding them.
- Discussion– Parish Resolution (Functional Consolidation)– Chief Kaufmann stated that two Parish elected officials, Mike Marino and Rykert Toledano, requested to meet with him, as well as another Chief, as representatives of the St. Tammany Fire Chief’s Association, to discuss departmental/ functional consolidation. Chief Kaufmann stated that with the involvement and feedback of the Parish elected officials and Business Council, the Fire Chief’s Association developed a Strategic Plan to provide effective fire protection throughout St. Tammany Parish. This was provided to the elected officials in February.
Chief Kaufmann stated that the Parish officials requested information on some functional items, such as legal counsel, CPA’s, training and healthcare to see if any areas would benefit with functional consolidation, in an effort to cut expenses. However, at no point were any departments asked what their spending was in these areas.
Chief Kaufmann stated that he was contacted a couple weeks prior to the July 13 Parish Council meeting, when the agenda was posted, with the Resolution which referenced all fire departments in St. Tammany Parish and a 2012-2013 consolidation study that Parish Government paid for. Chief Kaufmann stated that the Chief’s Association prepared themselves, and voted unanimously, to take a position of opposition in using the 2012-2013 study at the Council meeting, as the Fire Chief’s Association felt this was a third political platform and/or attack on the fire departments in St. Tammany, without merit. He further stated that after the study came out in 2013, meetings with government officials were held, and there were many letters written in opposition of the study, based on the inaccuracy of the data and the assumptions made in the report.
Chairman Crowley stated that the actual reality is that there was no analysis done; therefore no reality of cost savings. He further stated that at the Parish Council meeting, the focus was changed to purchases (consumables), which is such a small part of the budgets.
Chief Kaufmann stated that a map of St. Tammany Parish was handed out, and the blue areas are District’s 1 and 4, which represents 73% of the population (votes) in the Parish; thus dictating what happens in this Parish. The red areas are unincorporated areas and may not have the tax base to support operations.
As the study referenced maps, stations, etc., Chief Kaufmann stated that if the volunteers and contracted employees were to become full-time, it would cost approx. $5,000,000 (37 mills) to fund the positions, plus the benefit load.
Chief Kaufmann stated that the Councilman that authored the Resolution made a motion to table the Resolution, indefinitely.
- Health Insurance Renewal – Chief Kaufmann stated that we have gone to the market for renewal quotes. He further stated that we were working with Humana for a possible 0% renewal; however, we recently went to an 86% utilization rate and they are projecting a possible 5% increase. Chief Kaufmann stated that he has a phone conference scheduled with Mr. Massad to possibly negotiate the rate and discuss the other options. Additionally, the budget draft has been revised to reflect 5% increase, versus the 12% previously budgeted.
- St. 13/ HQ – Chief Kaufmann stated that there was an excavation issue, based on weather conditions; however, it has been worked out and things are progressing.
- 2018 Budget Draft- Chief Kaufmann stated that internally we have made several cuts and will present the draft in the near future.
- General Comments- Chief Kaufmann stated that PIAL will be here on August 8
Commissioner Hoying made a motion to accept the Chief’s report. Commissioner Gay seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
- SFFA (Slidell Firefighters Association) – The 4th annual Citizen’s Academy will begin on Aug.30 (4 consecutive Wednesdays) and final “graduation” will be Sept. 23.
- PMI Report
- Employee Benefits
- Human Resource
- 2017-028: BOC Resolution (EAP Contract Renewal)
ACTION ITEM: APPROVAL
Commissioner Gay made a motion to adopt Resolution 2017-028, Relating to the Renewal of the Employee Assistance Program for District No.1. Commissioner Hoying seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
- Payroll – (none)
- FRS (Firefighters Retirement System) – ER Contribution 25.25% to 26.50, effective July 1.
- VFIS Special Risk Insurance & LWCC-
Commissioner Hoying made a motion to accept the PMI report. Commissioner Gay seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
- Duplantier Hrapman Hogan & Maher, LLP-
Mr. DiGiovanni discussed the 2018 budget draft and pointed out the break-even millage, at the present moment (currently 36.392); however, we are still working on it.
Mr. DiGiovanni discussed the June financial report.
Commissioner Hoying made a motion to accept the June financial report. Commissioner Gay seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
- Attorney’s Report- Attorney Ingram stated that the La Quinta meth lab explosion lawsuit that was filed in Federal Court is scheduled to be heard on Sept. 18.
Attorney Ingram gave a synopsis of work performed in May:
- 14 public record requests
Commissioner Gay made a motion to approve the Attorney report. Commissioner Hoying seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously
- Board of Commissioner Comments – Commissioner Gay stated that the budget process is the most complete that he has ever witnessed and he enjoys being part of the process. He further stated that he sees the great service that the district provides, as well as the work to get the PIAL insurance rating down, which affects all citizens in the district.
Commissioner Gay made a motion to adjourn. Commissioner Hoying seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 7:02 p.m.