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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/27/2015 Chair's Budget Comments 3/27/2015 DEPARTMENTAL BUDGET REVIEWS 2015-16 CHAIR'S BUDGET COMMENTS BUDGET & FINANCE COMMITTEE FY 2015-2016 Departmental Budget Reviews MINUTES The FY 2015-2016 Departmental Budget Reviews of the Budget&Finance Committee of the Council of the County of Kaua`i, was called to order by Arryl Kaneshiro, Chair, at the Council Chambers 4396 Rice Street, Suite 201, Lihu`e, Kauai, on Friday, March 27, 2015 at 9:02 a.m., after which the following members answered the call of the roll: Honorable Mason K. Chock Honorable Gary L. Hooser Honorable KipuKai Kuali`i Honorable Mel Rapozo Honorable JoAnn A. Yukimura Honorable Arryl Kaneshiro Excused: Honorable Ross Kagawa Committee Chair's Budgetary Comments Committee Chair Kaneshiro: On the schedule today, I will be going through some ground rules for the budget proceedings. Shortly thereafter, the Mayor and Administration will be given time to present their Fiscal Year 2015-2016 budget submittal, followed by the Departmental Budget Review for the Office of the Mayor which also includes Life's Choices Kaua`i, Youth Work Program, the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) Coordinator, and the Office of Boards & Commissions. Each day during the budget proceedings, we will take public testimony at the beginning. You can find the budget online at the County's website under "What's New," and it is on the Council's website in our webcast meetings for anybody that wants to look at the budget ahead of time. With that, is there anyone in the public wishing to testify this morning? Seeing none, I will go over my PowerPoint. This is my first budget, so please bear with me. I will try to make it as painless as possible, I hope. The Council's Budget Procedures. For the entire budget session, the Council Rules, with emphasis on Council Rule No. 6(f) will continue to be enforced. A memorandum dated January 16, 2015 was distributed to all members regarding the Fiscal Year 2015-2016 Budget Expectations. Departmental Budget Reviews. Please review all budget material prepare any questions pertaining to the budget prior to each scheduled review. If additional time will be needed to compile a response, please transmit your requests in advance to limit the number of follow-up questions at the end of each session. The Departmental Budget Reviews will follow the pre-established schedule. Should any Department/Agency's review finish before their allotted time, the next scheduled review will follow immediately. This is to minimize the need to schedule Budget Call-Backs. Questions & Answers (Q&A) between the Council and the Administration will commence after the respective Department/Agency Head has finished Department/Division highlights/presentation. Questions should be focused on the Fiscal Year 2015-2016 budget proposal. March 27, 2015 Committee Chair's Budgetary Overview (dmc) Page 2 The Administration has been asked to come prepared with key personnel to answer any questions relating to the budget in an effort to minimize the amount of written follow-up questions transmitted, which may take a considerable amount of time to prepare, and to avoid interfering with regular County operations. If you have questions that are going to require a lot of time, try to get it to the Administration ahead of time. Please provide follow-up questions to Council Services Staff as soon as possible because the questions will go out to the Administration the very next morning. Decision Making will be May 14— 15, and 18, 2015. Staff will be scheduling meetings with each member between April 17, 2015 and May 13, 2015 to prepare any budget amendments prior to the Decision-Making session. Any proposal to add to the budget should identify the appropriate source of revenue that will be used to account for the budget increase. Four (4) votes are required to reduce or remove an item. Five (5) votes are required to increase or add an item. Decisions will be made Department by Department. The Committee will then consider any revenue proposals thereafter, if necessary. The Committee will not revisit items after it has been addressed, unless the Committee deems it absolutely necessary. Those are the basic ground rules. Do you have a question, Councilmember Hooser? Councilmember Hooser: Yes, Chair, you referred to Council Rule...the very first sentence, can you explain what that Council Rule is for everybody? Committee Chair Kaneshiro: Council Rule No. 6(f), and this does not go for the question and answer period, it will go for the later discussion. Council Rule states, "No member may speak longer than five (5) minutes and may not speak more than two (2) times." That is during the discussion. Right now when the Mayor comes up, we will have the question and answer portion. Further questions? With that, I would like to thank all the Councilmembers and Administration in advance for their cooperation and look forward to a very efficient and productive budget this year. I would like to suspend the rules and call up the Administration to present their Fiscal Year 2015-2016 budget overview. Members, I ask that you please hold all questions until the end of their presentation. There being no objections, the rules were suspended.