HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Committees - Operations - 02/18/2014 KENT
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OPERATIONS COMMITTEE MINUTES
February 18, 2014
Committee Members Present: Bill Boyce, Chair, Jim Berrios and Dana Ralph.
The meeting was called to order by B. Boyce at 4:06 p.m.
1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES DATED FEBRUARY 4, 2014.
D. Ralph moved to approve the Operations Committee minutes dated February 4, 2014.
B. Boyce seconded the motion with concurrence from J. Berrios, which passed 3-0.
2. APPROVAL OF CHECK SUMMARY REPORTS DATED 1/16/2014 THROUGH
1/31/2014.
D. Ralph moved to approve the check summary reports dated 1/16/2014 through
1/31/2014. B. Boyce seconded the motion with concurrence from J. Berrios and it passed
3-0.
3. POSITION CHANGE FROM SUPERVISOR TO SPECIAL PROJECTS MANAGER -
AUTHORIZE.
J. Berrios joined the meeting at 4:09 p.m.
T. LaPorte presented the change in the position from Supervisor to Special Projects Manager. This
will help improve the workflow in City projects and programs. The individual in this position will
focus on special projects in environmental, transportation and solid waste and the staff will be able
to focus on Levee accreditation, roadway rehabilitation, utility improvements, and other state and
federally mandated regulatory functions.
D. Ralph moved to recommend Council authorize the Mayor to approve a position
change in the Public Works Department from Supervisor to Special Projects
Manager subject to final terms and conditions acceptable to the Human Resources
Director and Public Works Director. J. Berrios seconded the motion which passed
3-0.
4. NEW WATER SUPERINTENDENT I CLASSIFICATION - AUTHORIZE.
T. LaPorte recommended the committee members authorize the change in the classification of the
vacant Water Superintendent position. The position has been vacant since 2012 and we have not
able to find an appropriate candidate.
Recognizing the talent of our existing employees, and the skill sets they possess, Public Works is
proposing to create a Water Superintendent I classification. An existing employee would be selected
to fill the position. This is not an additional FfE, but a revision of existing position.
Operations Committee Minutes
February 18, 2014
Page: 2
D. Ralph moved to recommend Council authorize the Mayor of add the Water
Superintendent I classification as a recognized classification within budget
documents subject to final terms and conditions acceptable to the Human
Resources and Public Works Directors. J. Berrios seconded the motion and it
passed 3-0.
S. B&O TAX- ORDINANCE AMENDMENTS.
P. Barry proposed the changes to the B&O Tax Ordinance as the City has a year's worth of
experience with the B&O Tax. The Association of Washington Cities drafted the model ordinance
and guidelines containing exemptions and deductions that are optional for the cities. Most cities
imposing B&O Tax have all adopted several of the same optional deductions and exemptions, but
the City of Kent has not. This leads to confusion for some taxpayers who pay B&O tax in Kent and
other jurisdictions.
The proposed changes include providing activity based exemptions for some 501c businesses. This
will put us in line with the neighboring cities.
J. Berrios moved to recommend adoption of an ordinance to add additional
exemptions and deductions to the City's B&O Tax and to clarify a portion of the
square footage tax component of the City's B&O Tax. D. Ralph seconded the
motion, which passed 3-0.
6. B&O TAX- FILING STATUS AND FILING FREQUENCY (INFORMATION ONLY).
R. Goehring informed the committee members that based on the numbers from last year; some filers
owe very little tax. So having them to file every quarter does not make sense. He suggested that we
should add an administrative business rule amendment to improve the process. Businesses that owe
less than $250 per quarter should be able to file annually.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:45 p.m. by B. Boyce.
lit
Satwinder Kaur
Operations Committee Secretary