THE BOARD OF
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
DURHAM, NORTH
CAROLINA
Monday, February 6, 2006
9:00 A.M. Worksession
AGENDA
1. Citizen
Comments—Victoria Peterson
5 min.
2. Presentation
on Change in Health Care Services by the North Carolina
Association of County Commissioners
15
min.
Every three years, the North
Carolina Association of County Commissioners Risk Management Pools bid out their
major contracts. This year, the Group
Benefits Pool was up for bid in anticipation that the contract for Blue Cross
Blue Shield of North Carolina would be expiring in December of 2006. The Group Benefits Pools, working with its
broker (Mercer)asked all vendors to submit bids that both bundled and unbundled
the service components. The Risk
Management Pool wanted to review the financial and service impact of the
components in the event that the pool decided to re-define the service delivery
model. In general, unbundling creates
the opportunity to identify potential service partners with the best outcomes
and programs.
Based on feedback from the selection
team, eight elements were identified as critical. These elements included plan type, claims
adjudication and payment, network access and discounts, health management
resources, financial, pharmacy, sales and service support, communications, and
the NCACC branding ability. Subsequent
to this extensive evaluation, the Group Benefits Pool made a decision to build
a plan for counties that offered more flexibility in terms of products and
services, and furthermore, allows counties to tailor programs better suited for
their specific needs. The Group Benefits
Pool chose CIGNA and Caremark. A representative
from the NCACC Risk Management Pool will explain the changes and its
implications for counties.
3. Advertising
of Tax Liens
10
min.
4. FY
2006-2007 Nonprofit Application Process Revisions and Scheduling of the Public
Hearing for Nonprofit Funding
15
min.
At the December 5, 2005 Worksession, staff suggested that the FY 2006-2007 Nonprofit
Applications be presented to the Board of Commissioners
in summary format to reduce the amount of materials reviewed by the Commissioners.
Staff also proposed holding the public hearing for nonprofits after the County Manager’s FY 2006-2007 Recommended Budget is
presented to the Board, rather than in April as has been the practice (in
advance of the recommended budget).
Staff has prepared a two-page nonprofit application summary for review
by the Board to determine if this amount of information meets the Board’s
expectations. Staff will also discuss
opportunities for nonprofits to provide comment on the recommended budget.
5. Request
from City Council for Durham County to Process City Assessment Foreclosures
20
min.
At the January Joint City/County Committee meeting, a discussion was held as
to the feasibility of the Durham County
Tax Administration Office processing foreclosures of City Assessments. This issue was addressed in the past; a
determination between Tax Administration and the County Attorney’s
Office was that, due to legal issues in the process of foreclosure, it would be
best for the City of Durham
to directly contract with legal counsel for these items. Tax foreclosures of properties in the City of
Durham involve
both City and County taxes. Once foreclosure occurs and the County takes possession, the properties are held on
behalf of both entities. The County’s foreclosure attorneys are required to
include City assessments that are past due when a foreclosure action is
filed.
With City assessments, Tax
Administration would be processing through its office foreclosures for
properties in which nothing is due to Durham County. This would increase staff time and energy and
would mean additional staff to continue its work at the same level.
City Administration is not making this
request; it has secured an attorney to process foreclosures and is waiting for
the County’s response to move
forward with the contract.
6. Receive
the Report and Direct Staff to Prepare Amendments to the Comprehensive Plan as
Recommended in the Report
10
min.
The Board is requested to receive
the report and direct staff to prepare amendments to the Comprehensive Plan as
recommended in the report.
County Manager’s Recommendation: The Manager recommends that the
Board receive the report and direct staff to prepare amendments to the
Comprehensive Plan as recommended in the report.
7. Salary
of Sheriff for Election Filing Period
5 min.
8. Library Board—Removal of Mary Tenuta as a
Board Member due to Poor Attendance
5 min.
On October 24, 2004, the Board of County Commissioners
appointed Mary S. Tenuta to serve a full term on the
Durham County Library Board of
Trustees. Based on information from
Library Board President Lionell Parker, Ms. Tenuta has failed to comply with the Policy and Procedures
for Appointments to the County
Boards, Commissions, Committees, or
Authorities set forth by the County Commissioners. Section 1.(F) of the Policy states, “If an appointee has absences (excused or
unexcused) which constitute more than 50% of the meetings in any calendar year which he or she is required to attend
pursuant to his or her appointment, he or she is obligated to resign.”
The Clerk to the Board’s office has
attempted to contact Ms. Tenuta via telephone (six
times), courier mail (two letters), and email (three emails; last email on
December 30, 2005), requesting her resignation; no response has been received.
County Manager’s Recommendation: The Manager recommends that the
Board suspend the rules and remove Ms. Tenuta from the Library Board
of Trustees.
9. Repeal
of Section 10.59F of Session Law 2005-276
15
min.
10. Preliminary
Resolution for Two-Thirds Bonds
35
min.
The Board of
Commissioners is requested to review
the list of bond projects in the Project Description. The projects have been combined in the
Preliminary Bond Resolution as required by State law, and the issuance costs
are divided among the projects.
As shown by
the Calendar, the Board will be requested at the February 13, 2006 meeting to
set a public hearing on the issuance of the bonds.
County Manager’s Recommendation: The Manager recommends that the
Board suspend the rulesand approve the Preliminary
Resolution so the Finance Director may make application to the Local Government
Commission for approval of the bond issue.
11. Regulation
of Solicitation on the Streets and Highways of Durham County
45
min.
Commissioner
Cheek previously requested that an
ordinance regulating solicitation on the streets and highways of Durham County be
developed. An ordinance has been drafted
which would make begging, solicitation campaigns, and sales within the
right-of-way unlawful. In addition to
solicitation on the streets of Durham
posing a safety hazard for both pedestrians and motorists, additional materials
specifically related to panhandling is being presented.
A law
review article from the Louisiana Law Review discusses the history of the
regulation of begging and states that begging is part of the “Broken Windows”
effect. In this case, “just as broken
windows in buildings may signal that nobody cares and lead to additional
vandalism and damage, so untended disorderly behavior may also communicate that
nobody cares (or that nobody can or will do anything about disorder) and thus
lead to increasingly aggressive criminal and dangerous predatory behavior”.
The
“Panhandling” document is part of the “Problem-Specific Guides Series” prepared
and distributed by the U.S. Department of Justice. The series describes the problem of
panhandling and some of the responses from states and cities. The publication notes that panhandlers
develop a “sales pitch” to solicit money.
Many times these sales pitches are fraudulent. Three pitches that are often used are that
the panhandler pretends to be disabled, is a veteran, or uses a pet to evoke
sympathy. The paper also indicates that
much of the money given to panhandlers goes for the purchase of alcohol, drugs,
and tobacco.
In
addition to the ordinance, the Board may want to consider the preparation and
distribution of public education materials.
Page 25 of the paper illustrates one such flier produced by the City of
Madison, Wisconsin. These educational
materials typically offer three points of information to the public:
1) panhandlers usually use the money to
buy alcohol and drugs, rather than goods and services that will improve their
condition;
2)
giving
panhandlers small amounts of money is insufficient to address the underlying
circumstances that cause them to panhandle; and
3) social services are
available to meet panhandlers’ food, clothing, shelter, health care, and
employment needs.
County Manager’s Recommendation: The Manager recommends that the
Board give input to staff regarding the ordinance, and if appropriate, set the
ordinance on the agenda for February 13, along with the direction to develop
public education materials.
12. Closed Session
60
min.
The Board of Commissioners
is requested to adjourn to closed session to instruct staff concerning the
position to be taken in negotiating the material terms for the acquisition of
two real properties pursuant to G.S. §
143-318.11(a)(5). The two
properties are: 247 S. Mangum owned
by AREC 3, LLC (U-Haul Real Estate Company) and 306 S. Roxboro Street
owned by Scarborough and Hargett
Funeral Home.
