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| MINUTES - April 18, 2011 |
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MINUTES Board of Directors Meeting Jasper County Emergency Services April 18th, 2011
Chairman Neil called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m., at the Board office, 13870 Dispatch Lane, Carthage, MO as per public notice. Present in addition to Chairman Neil were members Jeff Fries, Carl Francis, Greg Dagnan, and Jeff Merriman. Representing staff was Executive Director April Tarrant, Team Leader Tiffany Chenault, and GIS Manager Mike Runnebaum. There were no public attendees.
Review and Action of Minutes
Minutes of the Board of Director’s Meeting on March 8th, 2011 were reviewed.
Director Fries moved to approve the minutes for March 8th, 2011. Director Merriman seconded the motion. Vote 4-0 with Director Francis abstaining. The motion was adopted. Director Merriman’s second was not valid due to not being present during the March 8th meeting.
Minutes of the Board of Director’s Meeting Closed Session on March 8th, 2011 were reviewed.
Director Fries moved to approve the minutes for March 8th, 2011. Director Francis seconded the motion. Vote 4-0 with Director Merriman abstaining. The motion was adopted. Director Francis’s second was not valid due to not being present during the March 8th meeting.
Public Comment and Correspondence
No Public Comment or Correspondence
Financial Report and Payment of Bills
Treasurer Francis presented the Financial Report for April. The sales tax check for February was received in the amount of $93,139.04. Recent bills paid online 03/25/11 totaled $ 17,908.22.The total amount of bills to approve paying are $34,200.38 and the checkbook balance after payment of approved bills will be $81,207.44. The money market account balance is $67,592.43. Accounts receivable balance is $3,381.27. Receipt of all AR will bring the final checkbook balance to $84,588.71. Director Merriman motioned to Pay Bills and to approve the Financial Report for audit. Director Dagnan seconded the motion. Vote: 5-0. The motion was adopted.
Executive Director Tarrant did mention an unpaid bill received from College Skyline Counseling Center. Board policy indicates that six visits are authorized to be paid for by the Board for the employee assistance program. Director Francis suggested that another possibility of submitting claims into insurance first and then the Board contributing any additional out-of-pocket cost.
Committee Reports
Personnel and Policy Committee Meeting: Executive Director Tarrant reported on the Policy meeting that Director Dagnan and Director Fries had completed the Policy and that it was ready to be certified by Chairman Neil and attested by Secretary Stanley.
All members were provided a copy for their review. Executive Director Tarrant stated that once the adoption date was added to the handbook that they would be provided to all employees and also available in an electronic version.
Topics in the handbook include employee benefits, training, business expense and reimbursement, safety in the workplace, I.D. and accessibility, weapons and hazards, etc. Changes were made on the allowable amounts for meal reimbursement and require that receipts be provided even if the employee is on overnight travel. The Military Leave policy was updated according to USERRA and Missouri Statutes.
Executive Director Tarrant also recommended that a policy for social networking be created.
Member discussed changes made to the sick leave and wellness incentive policies. Executive Director Tarrant explained that employees are now accruing sick leave at 6hrs a month instead of 8 or 10 hours and that it can only be charged in 1 hour increments so if an employee leaves 30 minutes before their shift ends they will not be compensated. The cap on sick leave to be accrued by employees is 480 hours. Any additional leave used by employees after 80 hours in a year will result in the next 4 hours of sick leave used by the employee to be leave without pay. Director Francis suggested that Executive Director Tarrant work on procedure for sick leave donation process and approval.
It was mentioned to Board members that the nine security cameras are not on the network and it is not known if anything is currently being recorded due to not having access to passwords that the previous Executive Director had set up. Executive Director Tarrant is considering applying for some available grants with Federal Protection to improve the current security system. Director Merriman mentioned that Jasper County Jail is getting ready to purchase a new security system and that the Board look into purchasing their used equipment to save money.
All of the personnel policies were reviewed by legal counsel and approved.
Director Merriman moved to approve the Employee Handbook. Director Francis seconded the motion. Vote: 5 – 0. The motion was adopted.
Executive Director Report Executive Director Tarrant advised she is working with Cherokee County, Newton County, and Jasper County regarding the Reverse 9-1-1 Agreements and MOU and she is waiting for EMA and Newton County EMA meeting to discuss how to move forward. A fact sheet was prepared about Reverse 9-1-1 and its capabilities at the request of Keith Stammer and Gary Roark. It has been approved by Chief Roberts at Joplin Police Department and Emergency Manager Keith Stammer and was forwarded to all agencies that might be interested in utilizing the system and be willing to be financially responsible for usage. Plant CML is now using a different company for their Reverse 9-1-1 mass calling option and they have agreed to charge .10 cents per minute per successful call. Board members were in agreement that the majority of the CNP lines for Reverse 9-1-1 should be removed since the mass call option is so affordable. Only one to two phone lines are needed to call back into the Center to record the outgoing message. It was previously agreed that JASCO would keep these lines available for local use, but no one anticipated the long distance costs associated with them and they are not efficient for mass calling. She advised she is still working on additional information from AT&T regarding their equipment housed in our server room. She has been in contact with John Devin, the Outside Plant Engineer with the Carthage office, and was informed the piece of equipment is a multiplexor and serves JASCO, MSHP and the Crime Lab fiber and phone lines. It was found the piece of equipment was installed into the server room 2004 or 2005 under a Gentleman’s Agreement with the past Executive Director. This matter has been sent to the legal department with AT&T and Executive Director Tarrant is expecting contact to discuss a one-time compensation for the easement rights or using the fiber capabilities. Executive Director Tarrant advised she has completed call transfer agreements with the other local 9-1-1 PSAP’s and dispatch centers and that Newton County CDC met with Dispatch Review Committee and was advised to not hold fire calls for other jurisdictions. Executive Director Tarrant advised she will set a time for discussion at the end of summer to go over the parking lot quotes.
Generator scheduled PM3 maintenance had been included in the 2011 budget but another issue involving a blown hose has used up the funding allotted for that line item. Executive Director Tarrant is trying to see how much of the work can be done in-house. She also mentioned that Carthage Fire Department wanted to donate their portable trailer generator to JASCO with the agreement that JASCO would maintain the equipment and allow Carthage Fire Department to use it when it was needed. She will be getting clarification from the Fire Department if JASCO would be incurring the cost of maintenance or if they just needed a place to store the equipment and have JASCO do weekly tests.
Executive Director Tarrant told Board members that she had met with Jasper County Commission Jim Honey who presented a quote on the replacement cost of road signs to be in compliance with federal standards for reflectivity and size. She explained that after speaking with legal counsel that she did not believe the Board was responsible for the cost of the road signs. The Board currently pays a $500 monthly maintenance fee to Jasper County to maintain road signs.
Quotes were received to replace 3 multi Kenwood TK-730 radio’s that are in the communications room with TK-790’s due to narrow banding requirements. These radios will need to be replaced by the end of 2012 to meet the changes to narrowband from the FCC, and she is checking into grants currently for these needs.
She advised the Budget to Actual has some areas that will need to be adjusted. Line 60570 will be moved to 62060 for the recorder maintenance/purchase as they are being paid as one payment until the equipment is paid in full. Line 60760 will need adjustment as we did not receive the 2010 audit invoice until 2011. The reverse 9-1-1 payment will be offset by other agencies agreeing to share costs. Line 62060, 62070 & 62080 were adjusted from the January 2011 Budget to Actual as the numbers were in the wrong lines. Lines 63110A, 63110B, 63120A, 63120F, 63120H, & 63140 were adjusted from the January and will be adjusted from October through December 2010 Budget to Actual. The part time Administrative and Comm Room employees were being placed in the wrong line items. The stipend pay for the part-time ISM was also in the wrong line. They have been corrected to the appropriate line and marked as part time and adjustments have been made. 2010 reports will be re-issued at the next meeting. Lines 65100 and 65105 should be exchanged as the $4590 was budgeted for the CNP lines and $20 for usage.
Executive Director Tarrant advised the second round of law procedures should be completed by summer. She is still working on weather procedures and R911 procedures with area user agencies to be completed with Keith Stammer. She also stated that some of the Fire Departments have expressed that they do not want to be notified of any weather watches. A meeting has been scheduled with the Fire Chiefs to discuss this change.
GIS Manager Mike Runnebaum and Team Leader Tiffany Chenault will be sharing duties as acting Interim Director while Executive Director April Tarrant is out of town. Director Francis and Director Fries have agreed to make themselves available for any questions.
Standardized in-house training will be held at the end of spring. Eight employees were able to attend the Missouri NENA conference March 13-16 for continued education training and Executive Director Tarrant thought it was a beneficial training and networking opportunity. She further advised the ASM will begin Quick books training and that all of the Team Leaders attended Supervisor training. In addition, a training program is being written for Fire Dispatch Training for incident command to be presented in the spring or summer and this may be held in conjunction with Newton County. This will give employees an opportunity for field training to improve the process of communications. There is also the possibility of JASCO looking into hosting continuing education training and the 40 hour required training for telecommunicators for a fee to agencies outside the county. Executive Director Tarrant will be attending the Navigator Conference in Nevada April 19th -22nd 2011. The Board will only be responsible for flight and meal cost.
Executive Director Tarrant explained to Board members that a network systems and software risk assessment needs to be completed with a consulting firm. Information has been gathered on our current equipment however the new CAD project will require changes to be made. It will be necessary to look at this when budgeting for this project. She advised she has started talking with Government Capital and will need a board member to attend a meeting with our current lending institution to discuss interest rates and possible payments. She advised she is still waiting on a quote or response on the Fire West amplifier problem. A backup internet solution still needs to be put in place to provide redundancy to the center and she will be getting quotes on the different options for wireless or backup through other sources for board approval. JMARK is still interested in discussing better ways to serve JASCO and how to cut down costs. She further advised she is checking with other area IT companies for their pricing and Neotech has been contacted and Executive Director Tarrant is setting up a meeting to discuss needs.
Executive Director Tarrant advised we will be working with area schools in the spring to perform education. Team Leader Tiffany Chenault prepared a public education presentation for Carthage High School that was presented by Training Coordinator Kima Montgomery and Team Leader Stephanie Bracken on April 15th. We are providing training and observation to EMT students from Crowder and soon from MSSU. Information was sent to all of our agencies, staff and board members regarding 112 as an emergency telephone number with GSM wireless phones.
Other meetings: Fire Chief’s meeting 04/13/2011 @ 8:00 a.m. Law Enforcement meeting 04/13/11 @ 1:30 p.m. Local 9-1-1 and Communications managers meeting is TBA Team meeting 04/14/2011
Unfinished Business Life Insurance Currently employees are offered employer paid life insurance for themselves at $25,000. They do not have the option with the current policy to insure dependents or themselves at a higher rate. Executive Director Tarrant presented Board members with a comparison sheet from multiple companies on a life insurance or cafeteria plan for employees that could be pre-taxed out of payroll but would be fully funded by the employee. She recommended Liberty National because more options were available. Director Francis moved to accept Liberty National as a partnering company for worksite advantage. Director Dagnan seconded the motion. Vote: 5 – 0. The motion was adopted. Bylaws Board members had been emailed copies of the bylaws. Executive Director Tarrant did explain that the attendance policy in the bylaws had been updated in accordance with Missouri State Statute that stated Board members could be dismissed after missing 5 consecutive meetings. Director Brewer had responded in an email stating that he approved of the bylaws. Director Dagnan motioned to approve the Bylaws. Director Fries seconded the motion. Vote: 5 – 0. The motion was adopted. CAD Evaluation Committee Update The CAD Evaluation Committee recommended moving forward with OSSI as their choice. Executive Director Tarrant asked the Board if they would be willing to allow her to negotiate on having some issues addressed before they accept an offer. She explained that 9-1-1 cell phone calls would not display an uncertainty factor on CAD, there was no option for reoccurring calls for scheduled events, CAD to CAD screen capture to be sent with updates to transfer agencies, and maintenance costs she would like to be negotiated. The Committee stated that they chose OSSI because it appears to be the best product and had outstanding references. New World and Global were the other CAD vendors being considered. Hardware, including switches and servers, will still need to be purchased in addition to the CAD product, but, according to Neotech, JASCO may be able to reorganize the switches instead of purchase new ones. Maintenance cost on OSSI would increase approximately 3-5% every year. Board members did agree that it should be negotiated that maintenance should not be paid until the system goes live at the Center. Chairman Neil agreed to assist Executive Director Tarrant with the CAD negotiation and to make contact with lending institutions for the product purchase. Director Dagnan and Director Fries advised they are willing to assist with negotiations, as well. Director Fries moved to accept the Committee recommendation and allow the Executive Director to start negotiating with vendors. Director Dagnan seconded the motion. Vote: 4 – 0 with Director Merriman abstaining. The current CAD vendor, Intergraph, had representatives meeting with Executive Director Tarrant with an offer to upgrade at an affordable price, however, maintenance costs were still expensive. An upgrade would be required every 36 months that would cost in between $100,000 to $130,000. Board members agreed that due to the maintenance cost and that Intergraph did not officially bid during the RFP process that no action would be taken. At 10:50 a.m., Director Merriman excused himself from the meeting. Board members briefly discussed how many mobiles would need to be purchased, who would be provided mobiles, and how the maintenance costs associated would be distributed. Director Dagnan stated that JASCO needs to be consistent with agencies that are offered the mobile product. OSSI quote includes 50 mobiles with the approximate price ranging from $600-$1000 for the initial computer and then $150-$200 for annual maintenance. Executive Director Tarrant suggested that the Board approve a certain amount and take suggestions from customer agencies on distributing them and then additional mobiles would be paid for by the requesting agency. She will bring a list of the exact number of mobiles that are currently utilizing JASCO’s mobile product and will check with OSSI about obtaining a site or concurrent license for the mobile units. At 10:59 a.m., Director Merriman re-entered the meeting. Radio Emergency Call Dispatching Executive Director Tarrant advised Board members that quotes had been obtained from two vendors to begin the project of dispatching emergency calls out to transfer agencies via their private radio frequencies and then transferring the call to their local dispatcher for more efficient notifications of emergency calls. Southwest Communications has agreed to do some testing with routers for Carl Junction Police Department. If the testing is successful, Police Chief Delmar Haase has agreed to absorb his portion of the cost. Once testing is completed, a third vendor will be contacted for a quote and they will move forward with the project. Chief Haase interviewed with news media in regards to the project. Carl Junction Police Department is also checking to see if they have an extra port on their I.P. 223 to further reduce the price for the overall project. Board members suggested contacting A&W or Washington Electronics out of Pittsburg, KS for the third quote. AT&T Multiplexer Equipment Board members previously agreed that they would prefer to use the fiber capabilities as a compensation for the easement rights of the equipment being stored at JASCO. This matter has been sent to the legal department with AT&T awaiting a response. New Business Verizon GSA Federal Supply Schedule Purchase Order/METS Verizon is asking for a scheduled purchase order authorizing a $12,000 line of credit for any changes that need to be made to the government account. METS ambulance is piggybacking on JASCO’s contract because they could not qualify for a governmental account. Executive Director Tarrant explained that the account code is different and that METS receives and pays the bills for their account, however, authorization was provided to METS Director Jason Smith and METS Supervisor Darrell Donham to make changes on their account which means they could potentially use the line of credit. Board members agreed to table the issue for now until the accountant can be consulted about the purchase order. Law North Repeater Antenna Work
Quotes were obtained to climb the tower to fix the repeater and then move the antenna a little higher on the tower than its current location. It was also reported that the light on top of the JASCO tower is out but it is possible that it may be an issue with the strobe box at the bottom of the tower. If the light does have to be replaced then a new bid will go out to include all of the necessary work. There was also a suggestion by an employee of Southwest Communications to take the antenna that is currently being used for Jasper County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) to Law North and then climb approximately 30 feet and then bring the Law North antenna back to go in place of the sheriff’s office. The antennas could be swapped back out if JASCO were to re-establish dispatch services for JCSO.
Fire East Power Supply
A quote from Southwest Communications was received for the replacement of the Fire East Power Supply. Executive Director Tarrant is waiting on other quotes to be received. A loaner is currently being used.
Schedule
Board members discussed the new schedule that will allow employees to work a 44/34 rotation with the majority of 12 hour shifts and every other weekend off. This would provide employees with 4 hours of overtime on one week that would then compensate the employee on their second week to equal compensation of 80 hours with only 78 hours actually worked. Executive Director Tarrant asked the Board members what their opinions were regarding vacation or sick leave used during the 44 hour week that would then make the time be paid at the regular rate with no overtime. She inquired if they wanted to give the employees the opportunity to make up for the compensation difference of 2 hours.
At 12:30p.m., Director Merriman excused himself from the meeting; returning at 12:35p.m.
Director Dagnan moved to approve the 44/34 schedule in lieu of 8 hour shifts with the stipulation that employees are paid for whatever hours they worked during the scheduled period. Director Francis seconded the motion. Vote: 5 – 0. The motion was adopted.
Missouri State Highway Patrol Management Control Changes for MULES
Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System (MULES) sent out a letter on March 11th indicating that CJIS is changing policy effective July 1st appointing 9-1-1 Centers as being responsible for their own MULES. All previous agreements with law enforcement will be null and void. Currently a MULES committee meets and makes decision on MULES for the Center for situations such as an employee who might have a criminal history. One of the largest changes affected by this policy change is that criminal justice information will not be used for emergency medical or fire dispatching service. 9-1-1 Directors will also be required to be MULES certified. Executive Director Tarrant is already MULES certified.
At 12:43p.m., Director Dagnan excused himself from the meeting; returning at 12:45p.m.
At 12:46 p.m. Director Fries motioned to move into closed session for legal action. Director Francis seconded the motion. Vote: 5-0. The motion was adopted.
Vote: Fries - In Favor Francis - In Favor Merriman - In Favor Dagnan - In Favor Neil - In Favor
At 12:52 p.m. Director Fries motioned to come out of closed session. Director Dagnan seconded the motion. Vote: 5-0. The motion was adopted.
Vote: Fries - In Favor Francis - In Favor Merriman - In Favor Dagnan - In Favor Neil - In Favor
At 12:53p.m. Director Dagnan motioned to adjourn the meeting. Director Fries seconded the motion. Vote: 5-0. The motion was adopted.
The next Board Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday May 10th, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. On the_____________ day of ______________________20______ I, Jerry Neil_______________________________________ Chairman at Large, certify these Jasper County Emergency Services Board Meeting Minutes for___________________________have been reviewed and are accurate.
On the ____________day of________________________20________ I, Jeff Fries__________________________________ Board Member, attest the Jasper County Emergency Services Board Meeting Minutes for ___________________________have been certified.
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