04/20/1999 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Minutes of 4/20/99 • Ordinance 99-49 was considered in a joint meeting of the Finance and Recreation Committees and Mrs. Kasler reported on that. • Ordinance 99-44, which creates the position of Assistant Finance Director. With the consent of the Council members present, the committee unanimously recommended approval and suspension of the rules requiring three readings. This evening in caucus, Council discussed some changes that had been suggested by former Finance Director Jim Burns. Based on those suggestions, the ordinance will be held in committee for further review. • Ordinance 99-45, which establishes the rates of compensation within the Finance Department and includes the new position of Assistant Finance Director. During extensive discussions, concerns were raised primarily with regard to the range of $35,000 to $45,000 for this position and the idea that this could possibly lead to the opportunity to increase the pay of the Assistant Finance Director without the consent of Council. It was pointed out within committee that this ordinance merely sets a range and that actual pay is controlled through the appropriations. It was further stated that it was unusual to raise this concern only with this department and this position. Clearly if the concern or a violation of the intent of Council is a real one, the potential for similar deception would exist in virtually every position within the city that has a pay range. Suggestions were made not to set a range, rather the amount already listed in the appropriations, an annual rate of $35,000, should be listed. Others stated the need for a pay range and suggested ranges; for example, a range from $32,500 to $37,500 and another range from $35,000 to $40,000. These ranges were unusual in that, as mentioned during the committee meeting, no position within the City of North Olmsted has a range as restrictive as this $5,000 range. With the understanding that the range as proposed by Councilman Gareau's ordinance is consistent with the ranges for other positions within the city, the committee voted to recommend approval with O'Grady and Limpert approving and Kasler dissenting. Mrs. Kasler, member of the Finance Committee, gave a minority report with regarding to Ordinance No. 99-45: She voted no to that ordinance for several reasons. The first and foremost being that a cap was set on the annual salary for this new position of Assistant Finance Director, and everyone must keep in mind that very unique circumstances surround this ordinance. Those circumstances warrant a range within very close proximity to the cap of the annual salary that was set for the position. Specifically, she believes the range should be $30,000 to $40,000 as opposed to $35,000 to $45,000. Second, this watchful approach becomes necessary in this case due to the manner in which the creation of this position was vigorously debated by Council and the subsequent second guessing of the majority's position that took place. Mrs. Copfer is correct when she stated that Council did not appear to object in theory to this position. She wants to make it clear that her objection was not in theory, it was in reality. Her perception of reality is as follows: 1. An assistant to the extent with the credentials proposed and at the salary originally requested, she believes is an affront to the residents of this city who voted, as she did, for a Finance Director at a salary exceeding $60,000 to manage the city's finances. She did not believe the position was going to cost the city in excess of $120,000 by the addition of an additional CPA. 2. From the beginning of Council's review of the capital improvement borrowing and the operational budget, the bottom line 5