Board of Supervisors March 2, 2021 Sheet 1  March 2, 2021  County of Greene, Virginia  THE GREENE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MET FOR A BUDGET WORK SESSION ON TUESDAY, MARCH 2, 2021, BEGINNING AT 4:30 P.M. BY ZOOM VIDEO COMMUNICATION IN ACCORDANCE WITHT THE ORDINANCE ADOPTED ON MARCH 24, 2020 TO PERMIT PUBLIC BODIES OF GREENE COUNTY TO ASSEMBLE ELECTRONICALLY, TO MODIFY PUBLIC MEETING AND PUBLIC PRACTICES AND PROCEDURES, TO EFFECTUATE TEMPORARY CHANGES IN CERTAIN DEADLINES, ANDTO. ADDRESS CONTINUITY OF OPERATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE COVID-19  PANDEMIC DISASTER Present were:  Bill Martin, Chair Marie Durrer, Vice Chair Steve Bowman, Member Dale Herring, Member Davis Lamb, Member Mark B. Taylor, County Administrator Patti Vogt, Deputy Clerk Tracy Morris, Director ofl Finance  Staff present:  RE: BUDGET PRESENTATION  Mr. Taylor said he is not ready to make a formal recommendation as staffis still gathering information. As indicated by the recent reassessment, a penny on the real estate rate will equal $228,488. Our biggest challenge in forming al budget recommendation for FY 2022 has been the million-dollar hole created by the action of Rapidan Service. Authority in eliminating the Greene County facility fee. That money is, and has been, used in accordance with agreements in place to There is also a significant budget surprise from JAUNT that is inconsistent with expectations and is challenging the ability to plan. JAUNT has gone through some changes in the The School Division is requesting approximately $746,000 ini new money. The School has asked that School Resource Officers be removed from their budget. Mr. Taylor said the simplest way to account for SRO's would be in the Sheriff's budget as resources that are dedicated to the The request from the Sheriffincludes four additional road deputies, a detective. Two 911 dispatchers, an increase of ACO position to part-time to full-time, and some additional part-time  fund debt service. That hole must be filled and is a significant challenge.  last months.  school operations when the schools are open.  hours for Victim Witness.    Board of Supervisors March 2, 2021 Sheet 2  The EMS Department has a significant request thati includes an additional ambulance, three EMTs and three Medics. After taking with Ms. Meador and Mr. Anderegg the decision was made to request the addition of one Medic in an advance vehicle. While this is not an optimal solution, Health insurance premiums for county employees decreased by 4%. This will be divided The National Association ofCounties project direct federal aid to counties with an estimate of$3.81 million for Greene County. Parameters are not known at this time and counties may have Preliminary information has been received from the State Compensation Board about raises Mrs. Morris said the first budget request received from JAUNT was for $595,597 but that figurel has been revised to $380,399: after accounting for State: funding. This amounti includes funds for the JAUNT management and support staff, a 4% salary increase, and salary adjustments for Greene County drivers tol be comparable to existingJAUNT salaries. Regular scheduled bus routes are not currently in place and JAUNT is providing "on demand" service similar to the service provided by Greene Transit. Staff is recommending funding in the amount of $190,199. Mr. Taylor said it was the County's desire to transition to a scheduled route to provide commuter service to and from Charlottesville. JAUNT will provideadditional information at thei next budget Mrs. Morris asked the Compensation Board for clarification on the 5% salaryincrease and ifany additional positions would be allowed due to census data. Their response was no additional Mr. Herring askedi ifthe Countyi ist requesting any additional positions this year. Mr. Taylor said requested positions include a grant writer and administrative assistant for fire companies. Mr. Herring asked if a salary increase will be requested for employees in addition to Compensation Board supported local employees. Mr. Taylor said not at this time. Staff will form  iti is achievable in terms ofdollars.  with 1% going to the employee and 3% allocated to the county.  toj pre-qualify for aid prior to receiving funds. and staffi is waiting on additional information.  work session.  positions for any constitutional office at this time.  arecommendation to the Board.  RE: SCHOOL BOARD BUDGET PRESENTATION  Mr. Todd Sansom, Vice Chair ofthe Greene County School Board, made opening remarks on the School Division'sl budget request for FY 2022. First, he thanked the Board of Supervisors for their service and noted the difficult task before the Board every year withl hard decisions to be made. He considers himself to be a proud constitutional fiscal conservative. When elected, he fully expected to dig down into the school budget and find waste but did not find any. In fact, he found the opposite. He said School Administration does a masterful job at stretching resources The request this year is modest. The School Division received zero dollars in new local funding last year. The first priority this year is employee compensation. The State has put a 5% salary increase in their budget for SOQ funded positions. Greene is one of four school divisions that has been open for in-person learning since. August. The same 5% salary increase is requested forj janitors, teacher assistants, cafeteria workers, and bus drivers. These positions are: not covered by the State increase. Hiring and retaining teachers is tough and getting tougher. The pool of talent is getting smaller. Greene remains very competitive in employee pay in the region and iti is  and properly matching them to the real priorities, putting needs over wants.    Board of Supervisors March 2, 2021 Sheet 3  essential to remain SO. The second priority is to assist employees with health care costs which are Everyone knows COVID has upended education and we will be recovering for years to come. The School Board is on top ofi it. Funding for many of those needs are coming from the State and national level and funds will be repurposed as needed to fill gaps. The budget addresses Dr. Whitmarsh said the School systems vision is empowering our community's children for life-long success with the mission to engage all students through learning that is innovative,  increasing by 3% this coming year.  pressing new needs, new staff, and resources brought about by this pandemic.  personalized, and relevant.  Ongoing priorities include:  Support the implementation of Innovate 2021 Provide competitive compensation and benefits for all staff  Focus on the support, recruitment, and retention of the most highly qualified educators, Fall enrollment was 2,928 and enrollment has remained study even in the midst of a pandemic. COVID has had a profound impact on the schools and the school system is forever  leaders, and support staff  changed. There are many more challenges.  School Board budget priorities for 2021-2022 include:  Educating the whole child Addressing learning loss  Recruiting and retaining high quality staff  The School Division has offered, since September gth, in person 5 days per week for pre-k -5and 2 to 3 days per week for Grades 6 - 12. Seven hours of daily instruction. Virtual learning Changes include the reconfiguration of staffing from pre-pandemic to 2021 and beyond based on growing student needs. Positions needed tol keep each student on theiri individual path to academic success include school psychologists, board certified behavior analysts, school counselors, instruction technology support, and enrollment-based support. Learning loss must be addressed. It is believed that it will take 3 to 5 years to close learning gaps. Positions such as intervention specialists, reading specialists, online learning, and student success coaches are Dr. Whitmarsh said the "iceberg problem" is identified learning loss and unidentified or not yet manifested factors that will continue to surface. The School has to be prepared for what surfaces over the next few years. It's not just the students who were struggling previously but those who did really well academically and socially and are struggling at this time. Staffmust be prepared to adapt to student needs and be informed on things such as trauma, social/emotional skills, maximizing engagement, modifying curriculum, and rebuilding classroom communities. The School Division received federal CRF funds. (Corona Virus ReliefFunds) which have been fully utilized and reported. Other funds, such as ESSER, GEER, and Cares Act funds require Dr. Whitmarsh said recruiting and retaining high quality staffi is absolutely a priority. We arei in the midst ofa critical shortage in teaching. Teachers are leaving and fewer are entering the  was available to grades K-5a and 6-12.  needed.  an application be made and is a reimbursement model.    Board of Supervisors March 2, 2021 Sheet 4  profession to replace them. There is a limited pool and jobs become increasingly difficult. The turnover rate last year was about 3% for teachers and al high turnover is not expected this year. Revenues expected for FY2022 from the State: is $20,427,176. State. ADM projection was 2,833.05. The School Division projection includes a revised count based on changes in returning students and potentially larger kindergarten enrollment. There is the potential for an additional $350,000 in state funding ift the 5% raise is approved as opposed to the 2% bonus the Governor Local funding was last increased in 2018-2019 to cover the first payment of the recent facilities project. The local composite index (LCI) stays flat at 3446 for the second year of the biennium. The VRS rate will stay flat. Health insurance renewal was an increase of 3% or $115,000. Greene is not competitive in relation to our employer contribution on family insurance plans. Funds in the amount of $54,000 were added to slightly increase the contribution for family plans. A 4% salary increase for employees is included in the proposed budget. This budget includes the shift all costs for School Resource Officers to the Sheriff's Office but the School wants to retain the amount ofbudget for SROs to address thel health insurance increase. Dr. Whitmarsh reviewed the projected revenue spreadsheet. The total requested from the County is $746,114 but that number will decrease significantly within the next few days. Mr. Herring asked if the budget includes additional hours for summer school. Dr. Whitmarsh said a lot oft those costs can utilize CARE Act Funds. Funds for a traditional summer Dr. Whitmarsh said they would like to keep funds for SRO costs in their budget. Don't want their budget decreased in order to meet increase inl health insurance costs and any additional would be used for employee raises. Nothing has been shared regarding additional CARES Act Funds. Mr. Herring encouraged Dr. Whitmarsh and Mr. Taylor to discuss County CARES Act Mr. Martin asked when the transition to full-time in person learning may occur. Dr. Whitmarsh said that will happen as soon as possible. The School needs tol keep the virtual option because many families, for a variety of reasons, do not feel comfortable sending their children to  proposed in his budget. Federal revenue is anticipated to be flat.  Anticipated new request could be reduced to $335,000.  school are included in the budget. Fuel costs are anticipated to remain flat.  funds ifany are received.  school.  RE: SHERIFF'S OFFICE Sheriff Smith said current staffing includes: 13.5 patrol deputies 3S School Resource Officers  3full-time and 3 part-time court/civil process deputies 4.5 full-time and 2 part-time investigators 2command staff (Sheriff and Major) Sheriff Smith is requesting the following new positions: 5full-time patrol deputies 2full-time dispatchers  Transfer of part-time ACO to full-time Animal Control Officer 10 additional hours for part-time Victim Witness    Board of Supervisors March 2, 2021 Sheet 5  Greene's population in 2020 was 20,323 which is an increase of9.5% since 2010. Sheriff Smith reviewed tourism increases, housing increases, and projected growth which could result in an: increased population of approximately 8,100 residents. This number accounts for 4 persons per household and does not include the increased traffic flow expected on primary and secondary roadways. Growth results in increased calls to the Sheriff's Office for service. Sheriff Smith said hours away from work for deputies caused short staffing ofapproximately 303 days. Major Swingler reviewed the fire, rescue, and animal control calls for service from 2016 Sheriff Smith reviewed information for courts which were closed a lot and required a COVID modified response. Circuit Court is considering adding a 4th day to the weekly docket. Two new witness/suspect waiting areas installed behind Courthouse will require additional security. There was an increase in civil papers served. Resources are tied up for emergency custody orders (ECO) and temporary detention orders (TDO). An investigator is assigned to Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC); white collar/property crime, evidence, and street Sheriff Smith is requesting an increase ini funding for the Victim Witness program. There was an increase of5 55 victims served from FY 19to FY20. Need court and office coverage to Mr. Herring said the change to School Resource Officers will not increase staffing in the Sheriff'sI Department. The change in UVA ECO/TDO policy occurred this year. Mr. Herring also asked about COVID related calls and the addition ofa 4th day for court. Sheriff Smith thought the Mr. Lamb asked if anyone is in training and Sheriff Smith said he has one in training and is in the process of filling two positions. Field training can take twelve weeks and the Academy Mr. Bowman asked the Sheriffi if he could work deputies during the busy shifts if one or Mrs. Durrer asked ifat least two deputies are required for court. Sheriff Smith said two or Mr. Lamb asked if the dispatch position is important. Sheriff said dispatchers are their lifeline and are very important. Dispatch positions are hard to fill and it can take a year to  thru 2020.  crimes. Critical incidents require the attention of all available investigators.  maintain caseload and grant program requirements.  additional court day was due to caseload.  lasts twenty weeks.  two are approved. Sheriff Smith said he would put them where they are: needed. more are required for court and the new: mobile units will require security also. determine if aj person will work out. ECC is an ever-evolving department.  RE: COMMONWEALTH ATTORNEY  Mrs. Morris said Mr. Consolvo would not be present.  RE: TREASURER  Mrs. Stephanie Deal, Treasurer, spoke briefly onl herb budget request which she said is pretty consistent with prior years. Her office is open for business. Funds that she was not able to use last year willl be used this year. Collection numbers for real estate are above the prior yearj just slightly. Personal property is down not quite a percentage point. She has decided to wait until next week  before starting collection action to give people more time.  RE: CLERK OF CIRCUIT COURT Mrs. Birckhead was not present.    Board of Supervisors March 2, 2021 Sheet 6  RE: COMMISSIONER OF REVENUE Mr. Snow was not present. RE: GENERAL BUDGET DISCUSSION Virginia Regional Jail is $59,036.  Mr. Martin said it looks like another tough budget year. Detail has not been received from some departments and the school division. The proposed increase in the budget for the Central Mrs. Durrer questioned why funds for unemployment compensation were removed from the Sheriff'sb budget. Mr. Taylorsaid one unemployment linei item willl be used for all departments. The next budget work session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at 4:30 pm. An  additional meeting, ifneeded, will be on Thursday, March 11 at 4:30 pm.  RE: ADJOURN Board meeting was adjourned.  Upon motion by Davis Lamb, second by Marie Durrer and unanimous roll call vote, the  bkhy hat- William Bryan Martin, Chair Greene County/Board of Supervisors  MarkB. Taylor, Clerke' Greene County Board of Supervisors