MINUTES OF THE BUCKSKIN FIRE DEPARTMENT DISTRICT FIRE BOARD

Transcription

1 MINUTES OF THE BUCKSKIN FIRE DEPARTMENT DISTRICT FIRE BOARD February 11, 2015 Regular Session Minutes to be approved at open public meeting on March 18, A public Open Meeting of the Buckskin Fire Department was convened on February 11, 2015 at 6:00 p.m. in the training room of the Buckskin Fire Department located at 8500 Riverside Drive, Parker, AZ., The following matters were discussed: 1. Call to Order: Chairman Jeff Daniel called the Open Meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. 2. Roll Call: Members present: Chairman Jeff Daniel, Robert Monty Rust, Glenda Gerson, Greg Bachmann, Robert Gory Absent: Staff present: Chief Chris Chambers, Pattie Lonnee, Administrative Assistant, Captain Mike Byrd, FF Brandon Quinn. Guest Speaker: Bill Whittington, Esq., Bridget Bugbee (via conference call.) Public Present: Barry Gerson, Pat Jones, John Mihelich, Gary Svider, Valerie Hinson, Wayne Posey, James Kouthoofd, Sandra Kouthoofd, John Gutenkunst. 3. (Action Item) Approval of Minutes submitted for Regular Session on January 14, Motion made by Robert Monty Rust; seconded by Glenda Gerson to approve the minutes as submitted. Vote: 3 ayes. Motion to approve minutes passed. AYES: Chairman Jeff Daniel, Robert "Monty" Rust, and Glenda Gerson. ABSTAIN: 2; Robert Gory, Greg Bachmann. 4. (Discussion and possible action): To discuss possible legal counsel change tabled from last meeting; requested by Gary Svider and Fire Board Member Robert Gory. Chairman Daniel turned the meeting over to Robert Gory. Robert Gory stated that his reason to place this item on the agenda is because we have had Bill Whittington as our legal counsel for many years, and he thinks that we should check other options available, and to check rates to see if they are in line. He has requested that Mr. Whittington prepare a rate sheet that he can compare to other attorneys. Fire Board Member Glenda Gerson stated that after attending the AFDA Conference in January where Mr. Whittington presented all the statutory Open Meeting Law training; stated Mr. Whittington is very qualified and knowledgeable; and in her opinion, we should maintain him as our legal counsel. Motion made by Robert Gory; seconded by Robert "Monty" Rust to do a comparative study with other attorneys; asked Mr. Whittington to send us his charges on various subjects/hourly rates; to be presented at the next Board Meeting. Vote: 3 ayes. Motion to approve comparative study passed 3/2. AYES: Chairman Jeff Daniel, Robert "Monty" Rust, Robert Gory NAYES: Glenda Gerson, Greg Bachmann. Mr. Whittington stated his understanding of the information requested; and will report on the past history of expenses and fees over the past years as legal counsel. 5. (Action Item) Discussion & possible action: Acceptance of monthly expense report 1/01/15-1/31/15. All transactions approved by Administrative Fire Chief; documentation for these expenses were reviewed and authorized by a minimum of two Fire Board Members whose signatures are on the warrants issued to vendor(s), as per Buckskin Fire District policy and procedures. Motion made by Robert "Monty" Rust; seconded by Glenda Gerson to approve expense reports as submitted.

2 Vote: 4 ayes. Motion to approve expense reports passed. AYES: Chairman Jeff Daniel, Robert "Monty" Rust, Glenda Gerson, Greg Bachmann. ABSTAIN: Robert Gory 6. (Discussion and possible action): To review and update fee schedule from discussion during the Board Meeting on January 14, 2015, for non-resident/billable calls, as proposed by Fire Recovery USA. Conference call with Bridget Bugbee from Fire Recovery USA. Bridget informed the Fire Board that Fire Recovery USA charges 20% of fees recovered with no up-front costs to the department. Fire Recovery will bill to insurance companies whatever perimeters are set by the department; and currently recoveries are from 75% to 100% recovery which is one of the highest recovery rates in the industry today. Chief Chambers asked Bridget to discuss our current rate schedule. Bridget informed the Board that Fire Recovery calculates national rates based on various studies and based on reasonable and customary fees. In comparison to Buckskin Fire Department's current rates which are very low and recommended adopting the national rate schedule. In addition Fire Recovery has developed a relationship with Fire Programs and is able to process information directly from Fire Programs based on certain filters, then pull the information into their system to process. We would have the opportunity to review and approve prior to submitting the billing. It was asked if there is a contract and/or cancellation policy; Bridget replied that they request a courtesy cancellation notice 30 days prior to cancellation. Board Member Greg Bachmann asked how much we can expect to recover in fees and Bridget replied that she can provide us with a forecast. Motion made by Robert "Monty" Rust; seconded by Glenda Gerson to update our fees and accept Fire Recovery USA as our billing company for non-resident/billable calls. Vote: 5 ayes. Motion to approve Fire Recovery USA passed unanimously. AYES: Chairman Jeff Daniel, Robert "Monty" Rust, Glenda Gerson, Greg Bachmann, Robert Gory. ABSTAIN: 7. (Discussion/Report): Report from Fire Board Member Glenda Gerson from the AFDA Conference in January. Board Member Glenda Gerson reported information from attending the AFDA Conference: Budget planning to be approved by August 1, 2015; not necessary to have a budget committee however if decided to have a committee, Chief Chambers would select the committee members. It is important to have long term planning in mind due to the rising costs of pensions, workers compensation, and medical care due to Obama Care. Cutting services and/or closing stations to make your budget is a danger to the public. Other discussions included collecting taxes is the job of the county assessor's office; there is no requirement to have Call to the Public; it is recommended to provide unanimous support to our Chief from the Fire Board, the Board should come to each meeting prepared to discuss everything that is on the agenda. It is a Board members responsibility to make policy and it is the responsibility of the Chief to implement the policy. The Board's roll is not the day to day operations of the department. Buying meals for the Board is illegal. Lastly, the department did not pay per diem for Board Member Glenda Gerson to attend the AFDA Conference. 8. (Discussion and possible action): To review/discuss Audit bid requests and possible decision to select a CPA firm. Pattie Lonnee informed the Board Members that out of the six bid requests sent out, two declined, one is deceased, and three replied. Due to the request to bids being sealed, and for those received electronically were not viewed prior to the Fire Board Meeting today. Copies have been provided to each Board member for review. Chairman Daniel asked for consensus from the Board to schedule a work shop at our next Board Meeting scheduled for March 18th, 2015 to discuss the bids, giving Board members time to review the bids, call with any questions or concerns that will be reported at the next workshop. Chief Chambers also brought to Board's attention that in past years, some bids may seem to be less until you realize all the add-on costs and to please take this into consideration when reviewing the bids. Motion made by Greg Bachmann; seconded by Robert Gory to schedule a work session to review and select a CPA firm for our audit at the Work Session scheduled for March 18, Vote: 5 ayes. Motion to schedule review and selection for new CPA at next Work Session scheduled for March 18th.

3 AYES: Chairman Jeff Daniel, Robert "Monty" Rust, Glenda Gerson, Greg Bachmann, Robert Gory. ABSTAIN: 9. (Discussion and possible action): notification from Bill Whittington regarding Certificate of Compliance which requires each newly elected board member's signature. Signatures obtained on Certificate of Compliance for newly elected Board Members Glenda Gerson and Robert Gory. 10. (Discussion and possible action): Discuss, review and approve/sign documents required to request Line of Credit from Wells Fargo Bank. Pattie Lonnee obtained signatures required on documents to submit to Wells Fargo Bank to renew line of credit for next fiscal year. 11. (Discussion and possible action): Reschedule due to calendar conflict the March 11, 2015 Fire Board Meeting due Wildland Academy Training March 9-13, Chief Chambers took the opportunity to inform the Fire Board members that both he and Pattie Lonnee will be unavailable due to taking classes at the Wildland Academy. Pattie Lonnee also brought to the Board's attention that the agenda can be completed by March 6th, but the Board package will not likely be ready due to bank reconciliations will not have been received/completed in that timeframe. More than likely the Board package will be completed and to the Board on March 16th. If agreed upon by Board members, the next meeting can be scheduled on March 18, Chairman Daniel asked the Board for consensus to move the March meeting to March 18th. It was agreed upon by all members. 12. (Report) Chairman's Report: Jeff Daniel Nothing to report at this time. 13. (Report) Fire Chief's Report: a. Summary of Incident Report/Activity Log: 41 Calls, details available on our website. b. Monthly Activities: i. Paramedic Maxwell ongoing monthly CPR class. ii. Monthly medic meeting with La Paz Hospital; Dr. Brooks, Co-Medical Director from Banner Good Sam conducted a poison control class. iii. Captain Cramer completed AED checks in our district. We have AED's at Emerald Canyon, Verde West, Castle Rock Shores and Havasu Springs. We also provide CPR and AED training at each of these entities. iv. Ongoing training from International Medical Direction; testing online patient first care form which is accessed through smart phones, tablets or ipads. Upon implementation, Buckskin will purchase ipads or tablets from our Donation/Education Fund. This procedure will allow EMS in the field to track patients at real time. if needed able to take pictures and add data to send to the hospital or IMD for patching or information. v. Type 6 Wildland Engine is back from Phoenix and Captain Byrd will be ordering the parts to repair the CAFS system. GSA approved $4100 for the parts. We will repair in-house. vi. Brush 11 was called out to Yuma for three days for a fire along the AZ/Mexico border. Captain Byrd, FF Weatherford, and POC Kowalski were on assignment. FF Weatherford will be starting his engine boss training soon; his paperwork is being sent into the state for review. vii. Captain Byrd and Pattie Lonnee are working on the VFA Grant. We are requesting assistance for classes, training and equipment. Total grant reward is up to $10,000 with matching funds. viii. Engine 1101 went to Phoenix for the annual ADOT check; brakes needed to be replaced and the front end will also be realigned. ix. La Paz Fire Chief's bi-monthly meeting was held at Buckskin Fire Department on January 27th. Some of the items discussed were: La Paz Hospital new CEO, Robert Libberton will be working with Vicky Clark until she leaves in April. Dr. Kidd is leaving and Dr. Runyon will take over as ER Director. The hospital is still looking for a replacement for Megan who was the outreach for education.

4 Steve Biro (La Paz County Emergency Manager) informed us of free ERMA classes this year. There will be offering S classes this year before fire season. Tony Shacka from Prescott Fire will be the training coordinator for upcoming classes for the Wildland season. He is the person who puts together the Prescott Wildland Academy. x. Chief Chambers attended the Homeland Security Grant rollout in Phoenix on January 20th. We will be submitting for dive equipment, communication masks and lights and possibly a USAR trailer and equipment for a regional approach. xi. Station Maintenance: Two roof drains were fixed at Station 11 after the first heavy rain this year. One in the dorm room and app bay. Drywall was removed and old rubber sleeve was taken off and plumbed with 4" PVC, dry walled, textured and painted. All done in-house. xii. The roof at Station 11 is going to need to be replaced in the near future. We have been patching it for years and has been a subject since becoming Chief. We should look at it in the budget process this year. c. Upcoming activities and events. i. February 20th: Blake School Helpers Fair. Buckskin will send Brush 11 and Firefighters this year to help with the demonstrations from 8:00am - 10:00am. Chief Chambers working with Blake School, Fire/Medical and Law Enforcement agencies to facilitate. ii. March 24th - 26th: Arizona Fire Chiefs Leadership Conference and Expo in Glendale. Chief Chambers will be attending. iii. VFA Grant due February 12th, iv. Homeland Security Grant is due March 2, v. AZ Wildland Academy in Prescott March 7-13th. Buckskin will be sending six people and we should be reimbursed from the VFA Grant. Chief Chambers and Pattie Lonnee will be attending. vi. La Paz County Health Department Health Fair will be held on March 28th. 14. Call to the Public. Consideration and discussion of comments from the public. Those wishing to address the Buckskin Fire District Board need not request permission in advance Pursuant to A.R.S (G), the Fire District Board is not permitted to discuss or take action on any item raised in the call to the public that is not specifically identified on the Agenda. However, individual Board members may be permitted to respond to criticism directed to them. Otherwise, the Board may direct that staff review the matter or ask that the matter be placed on a future agenda. Public input is limited to two (2) minutes per session unless a greater amount of time is approved by the Board. The Fire District Board cannot discuss or take legal action on any issue raised during the Call to the Public that is not on the current Agenda; due to restrictions of the Open Meeting Law. Public: i. Wayne Posey: Mr. Posey brought up his concerns with regard to the Pension, concerned with the unfunded liability issues and where the district is going. He continues by discussing the audit report provided each year by the CPA, the actuarial, current accrued liabilities and brought up the point that this District is responsible to fund for future retirees. Mr. Posey continues his comments by informing the Board that although funded 1.7 million, we currently have eight retirees drawing $340,000 a year and continues to inform the Board that this department currently has a $3.9 million unfunded liability. The Board needs to address this liability for current retirees and future retirees. He also stated that it is up to the Board members to do due diligence, this information has been in the audit report every year and the Board members have not paid attention to understand the impact this will have on current and future retirees. This needs to be a priority number one in the budget, they have people who will come here to explain the actuarial, and the Board is going to have a difficult time trying to balance the budget for next year. Mr. Posey has requested a workshop to include the representatives from the Pension; as if this is not addressed, this will bankrupt Buckskin Fire District. ii. Pat Jones: You know I don't believe anything until I get it myself, so I make phone calls to make sure its factual. So I called PSRS to obtain information for myself. He (referring to Mr. Posey) is not exaggerating and I'm not going to sugar coat it. What fries me about this is when I was on Charlie's Board, this was discussed and was supposed to be dealt with. The people who is going to suffer is the firefighters who come to my house, the guys who take care of us, not to mention the tax payers. I want to make it very, very clear that if this Board, or this District thinks they are going to come to me for $3.9 million dollars, you guys have something else coming. I am not going to subsidies inadequacies in this department. This has been going on for years and years and you need to deal with it. iii. John Mihelich: Thanked Glenda Gerson for her report on the AFDA Conference. Would also like to see the Board reflect on dealing with big issues that haven't been dealt with, and for the Board Chairman to dismiss minuscule issues that have driven this Board to nonsense. In addition, thank you to Wayne for his discussion.

5 Something has happened, either gross negligence or willful misconduct for the record. Somebody wasn't doing their job or somebody knowingly did something wrong. This is a big deal. The Board members have received the audit reports for years and it is clear that no one has read it or understood it. iii. Valerie Hinson: Asked to have the agenda on the website sooner than 24 hours at 5:00 prior to the meeting. Also asked why the Board members are not using the tablets and noticed only one Board member using a tablet. Chief Chambers replied that the agenda was posted prior to 24 hours of the meeting and was posted the Friday before the meeting. Valerie stated that "Pam" at the Sewer Board posts her agenda on Thursday for Tuesday meeting. Chief Chamber's response was our agenda is posted on Friday for Wednesday's meeting. Mr. Posey stated he was able to access the agenda on Friday as well. iv. Barry Gerson: Would like to remind everyone that on February 21st, River Flames will having their 6th annual rummage sale at Station 11. v. Gary Svider: Thanked Wayne Posey for his presentation. Inquired as to whether or not there had been a selection or choice to make an extra water tender payment. Also asked if we had submitted to a CDBG Grant. Chief Chambers was unaware of the grant that Gary was referring to and never heard of it. 15. Poll Board Members for items to be considered for inclusion on next agenda. Work Session - CPA review and approval Possible Work Session - Pension Pending future decision on date - Budget Pending future decision on date - Chief Contract 16. Schedule next Work Session and/or Regular Session; set date and time. March 18, 2015; 6:00pm 17. Adjourn: 7:25pm Jeff Daniel; Chairman Date Pattie Lonnee 2/24/15 Administrative Assistant Date Minutes approved by: Date: Minutes approved by: Date: