BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, PASCO COUNTY, FLORIDA WORKSHOP MINUTES PREPARED IN THE OFFICE OF PAULA S. O NEIL, CLERK & COMPTROLLER.

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1 NI BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, PASCO COUNTY, FLORIDA WORKSHOP MINUTES PREPARED IN THE OFFICE OF PAULA S. O NEIL, CLERK & COMPTROLLER February 2, :00 a.m. - Historic Pasco County Courthouse, Board Room, 2nd Floor Meridian Avenue, Dade City, Florida COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Chariman Pat Mulieri, Ed.D., District 2 Vice-Chairman Michael Cox, CFP, District 4 John Gallagher, County Administrator Jeffrey N. Steinsnyder, County Attorney Ted J. Schrader, District 1 Paula S. O Neil, Clerk & Comptroller - Absent. Jack Mariano, District 5 Sandra Bader, Deputy Clerk, present CALL TO ORDER, 9:00 A.M. Chairman Mulieri called the meeting to order at 8:57 a.m. INVOCATION Ms. Sandra Bader, Deputy Clerk, gave the Invocation. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Ms. Bader led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. ROLL CALL Ms. Bader called the roll. All Board members were present. Page 1 of 5

2 PRESENTATION (9:00 a.m.) - The Evolving Doctrine of Honest Services (Jeffrey Steinsnyder, County Attorney) Mr. Steinsnyder explained the topic was regarding a new Statewide concern and that the review was for preventative reasons. He said the concept of honest services was derived from an old Statute regarding mail fraud and he read a portion of it. The language was amended in 1988 to include mail, wire, bank fraud, and referred to the following, the term scheme or artifice to deprive another of an intangible right of honest services. It was a generic term that was thrown into the Statute. He explained further and noted that the Justice Department had established a field office in South Florida to focus on the State of Florida and its governmental officials. This was the result of the conduct of three Commissioners from Palm Beach County who had resigned over the last three years based on honest services fraud. He reviewed Florida cases of honest services from the following counties where public officials were found guilty: Escambia County in 2006; Palm Beach County in 2007; Palm Beach County in 2008; Palm Beach County in 2009; Levy County in 2008; Dixie County in August and October of 2009; St. Johns County in 2009; Broward County in 2009; and Miami in He spoke regarding the appearance of impropriety and conflict of interest. Commissioner Schrader asked if there were cases of violation where fines only were imposed. Mr. Steinsnyder stated his research led to the District Court level and unless the case got to a recorded stage there would not be any case law. He stated that all but one of the noted cases were not related to Sunshine Law issues. Brief discussion followed regarding avoiding citizens with possible conflicts of interest at public events. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROJECT UPDATE (9:45 a.m.) Mr. Jim Cerny, Information Technology, noted the projects that would be discussed. Emergency Services - Phase II Compliance - Call Mapping Ms. Gail Parnell, Information Technology, explained the definitions of the phases as follows: phase zero was no information at all when a call came in, phase one gave reception of the location of a tower when a call came in, and phase two would give the reception of the location of the caller. She reviewed features, facts and figures of the 911 call mapping service. Mr. Elmer Holt, Emergency Services, continued the presentation with a review of the benefits. He spoke about the difference in cell phones and how the mapping worked. Page 2 of 5

3 Discussion and questions included FCC requirements; funding; the value of the phase two compliance; improved accuracy and efficiency for databases; and the length of time it took to reach phase two. Customer Service - Gov QA Ms. Heather Grimes, Customer Service/Information Technology, noted this service began in October of She gave a presentation which reviewed the following: self service modules for citizens; back office features for customer service; the departments that utilized the system; the benefits of the system; facts and figures; types of calls; keeping up with demands; and a breakdown of calls. She gave a brief demonstration of the system. Discussion and questions included how to track specific types of calls; if separations could be made by Districts; tracking of calls to the Commissioner s offices; and where the system/software came from. Permit & Development Information Services Public Access to Permits (PAPA) Mr. Jim Dilorio, Information Technology, said this service was activated in December of He reviewed the features and benefits for the citizens and staff. Questions and discussion included the following: did the service eliminate the limited time frame to call to find out when an inspector was scheduled; the service was primarily result oriented and did not eliminate the need to call regarding inspector times; the information from an inspection would be entered into the system immediately after the inspection; options were being looked at to post or provide an inspection schedule; roadway information would be available; contractors and homeowners could look up the status of a permit; various reports that could be obtained; the possibility of obtaining certain permits and paying for them online; County versus State regulations; and how citizens were finding out about the availability of the new system. Mr. Dilorio gave a brief demonstration of the system. Animal Services - Electronic Animal Licensing (PEARL) Mr. Dilorio said this service was activated in March of He gave a presentation which included features, benefits, and facts and figures of the system. He noted that eighty percent of the pet licenses were being purchased online. A demonstration was given and brief discussion followed regarding smaller veterinary offices that did not have computer systems. Page 3 of 5

4 Elderly Nutrition - Meal Tracking System (PENUT) Ms. Parnell noted this service was activated in June of She reviewed the features, facts and figures, and benefits. She noted there were currently 1,478 active clients. A brief demonstration was given. The cost savings for this area would be shown in Utilities Department o On-Line Bill Payment (CCPAY) Mr. Dilorio said this service was activated in June of He reviewed the features of paying online with a debit or credit card, the facts and figures, and the benefits. Based on customer feedback the level of customer satisfaction was ninety to ninety-five percent. A brief demonstration was given. o CCBS Enhancements Mr. Dilorio noted this service was in the planning stages and included the following: vacation turn-off and turn-on entry; collections module to improve collections on past due accounts; over the counter and telephone payments; electronic statement option for the customer; and a round up feature. Brief discussion followed on timelines for the services. Mr. Cerny explained that the round up feature had a lot of aspects to review and the timeline for it may be longer. Credit Card Payments Mr. Cerny provided information regarding compliance, standards, and revenue impacts. The Board and Staff discussed the benefits to other facilities; fees and cost recovery strategies of credit card processing; the types of credit cards to be accepted; the benefits of automatic withdrawal from a checking account; and bill pay services. Further general discussion followed regarding how Pasco County compared to other counties related to technology; 911 transfer calls from the operator to the Sheriff s dispatchers; and redesign of the County web page. The Board applauded the presentation and thanked the Information Technology Department for their efforts. Page 4 of 5

5 ADJOURN The Board adjourned at 11:43 a.m. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 2, 2010 (SEAL) Office of Paula S. O Neil, Clerk and Comptroller Prepared By: Sandra Bader, Deputy Clerk Page 5 of 5