Consent Item 4b
STAFF REPORT
City Council Consent Item
DATE: March 20, 2023
TO: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
FROM: Siana L. Emmons, City Clerk
THROUGH: Merritt Perry, City Manager
SUBJECT: Administrative Department Monthly Report
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Receive report as an informational item.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Administration Department monthly report encompasses the following divisions: City Attorney, City Clerk, Risk Management/Human Resources and Information Technology.
CITY ATTORNEY
The City Attorney billing was 6.70 hours for the month of February 2023 for the Mitchell Law Firm, LLC. Project support for this month included agenda and staff report review, bid proposal review, contract review, and various email and telephone calls.
CITY CLERK DIVISION
For the month of February, the Clerk’s Office prepared and published two agendas for Regular City Council meetings, one agenda for the Rohner Community Recreation & Park District meeting, and published one agenda for the Parks & Recreation Commission.
City Council Meetings
Council Meeting Date Agenda Items
February 6, 2023 Regular Meeting 11
February 21, 2023 Regular Meeting 15
Totals 26
City Clerk’s Office Key Duties February
Public Records Act Requests 4
General Information Requests 25 – 30 per day, average
Ordinances 0
Resolutions 3
Minutes Prepared 3
Notary Services Provided 1
Consent Item 4b
Claims for Damages Filed 2
FPPC Filings: 0
Legal Publications 0
Notices Posted (Public Hearing, Agenda, Ordinance, etc.) 6 Participation of Clerk staff in the City Clerk Association of California’s (CCAC’s) Educational Committee to aid in restructuring the CCAC’s educational offerings is nearing an end. A Request for Proposal (RFP) to develop a new Clerk Educational Institute is done, and following ranking and due consideration by the Committee and Executive Committee, California State University San Marcos was selected. On March 21, 2023, the Committee will present findings to the CCAC Board of Directors for approval. The Educational Committee will work with UC San Marcos in developing curriculum in hopes of launching the new institute in 2024. As a Municipal Clerk working to obtain these prestigious designations, I am pleased to have participated in this process and I look forward to the implementation of this new learning institute! As part of this process, I became better acquainted with some of the members of the CCAC Board of Directors, including President, Marc Donoho, MMC, 1st Vice President, Jessica Blair, MMC, 2 nd Vice President, Ashton Arrocho, MMC, CPMC, Director of Professional Development, Holley Charlety, MMC, MPA, Director of Networking, Roxanne Breceda, CMC, and Director of Legislative Affairs, Randi Johl-Olson, JD, MMC. I was asked to serve as the CCAC Region 1 Representative. CCAC Region 1 consists of the following entities: Ukiah Valley Fire Authority, Town of Fort Jones, City of Angels Camp, McKinleyville Community Services District, City of Lakeport, City of Arcata, City of Rio Dell, City of Clear Lake, City of Redding, City of Ukiah, City of Fort Bragg, City of Eureka, and the Redwood Coast Energy Authority, and of course, Fortuna! Part of being a Regional Representative includes:
• Providing Networking Events within your region
• Official Word Articles, which includes Regional event updates, association members, spotlights, etc.
• Regional Support
• Professional Development within your region to include educational workshops • Assistance with update the Clerk Handbook
• Mentor Development Assistance
While I am unable to attend this year’s CCAC Annual Conference, as part of their program I hope to work with representatives from these agencies to send a gift basket that represents our region for one of the conference fundraisers. Representation for Region 1 is imperative due to our demographics alone. Finding and sharing educational opportunities, training and networking for Clerks in agencies more remote areas like ours, comes with its own unique set of challenges. I hope that by taking on this role, and can help bring opportunities closer to agencies that otherwise may be too far or not have the funding to send their Clerks!
RISK MANAGEMENT / HUMAN RESOURCES DIVISION
Risk Management
There were no new Worker’s Compensation claims and no new liability/tort claims filed as of March 1, 2023. The City is working closely with our risk pool, California Intergovernmental Risk Authority (CIRA), legal counsel and our Worker’s Compensation Third Party Administrator LWP, to move claims toward closure of all claims.
Consent Item 4b
Date of Claim Type of Claim Status
03/10/2022 Civil Claim In progress
09/29/2022 Civil Claim In progress
CIRA provided two training sessions in Eureka and Fortuna on March 7 and 8. The sessions included Lockout/Tagout and Confined Space practices and procedures. Lockout/Tagout training is taught to safeguard workers from hazardous energy releases and attendees learned necessary procedures to disable machinery or equipment to prevent hazardous energy release. Confined Spaces training taught attendees to recognize and evaluate hazards and possible solutions related to confined spaces. The trainings were well attended and we hope to see more CIRA safety training come to our region.
On March 9, city staff throughout various departments met with CIRA’s Risk team, Thor Benzig and Erike Young. They spent two days reviewing City policies and procedures as well as practices and facilities. They spent time with HR/Risk, Public Works including Water/Wastewater, Parks and Recreation, Police and Animal Control, Code Enforcement and Transit. Because of their assessment, many helpful risk resources are now available to each department. The City will start the process of updating all Personnel Rules and Regulations, as well as policies, update the current Injury, Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) as well as launch new safety training software, and online liability waiver platform for Parks and Recreation, Contract insurance and indemnification language review, as well as a number of other helpful and necessary risk process improvements.
Human Resources
Human Resource staff continue to meet weekly with trainers from NEOGOV, to learn the “Insight” platform. Staff’s goal is to work in the training module throughout the month of March and part of April with hopes of launching the new recruitment and hiring software in late April.
On February 23, HR and Finance Staff attended a Leibert, Cassidy and Whitmore (LCW) training, “Human Resources Academy I”. The workshop provided an introduction and overview of basic human resource program areas for public agencies including:
Public Sector Governance
Personnel File Management
Public Record Keeping
Classification & Compensation
Recruitment & Selection
Labor Relations
Overview of Leaves of Absence
Key state and federal laws pertaining to compliance programs The class was a good refresher for staff currently providing HR services and support to City employees.
The City continues to search for and recruit qualified staff for open positions. For more information about employment with the City of Fortuna, visit the City’s website www.friendlyfortuna.com, send e-mail to the Deputy City Clerk at [email protected], or call 707-725-7600.
Consent Item 4b
Current Recruitments:
Parks & Recreation:
Park Maintenance Worker I: Candidate is currently in background.
Conference Center Coordinator: Candidate is currently in background.
Police Department:
Police Dispatcher Full-time: Candidate is currently in background.
Police Officer (Lateral): Candidate is currently in background.
Kennel Attendant Part-time: Karlee Humphrey started her new position on February 27th.
Public Works:
Treatment Plant Operator I/II Full-time: Ross Williams starts his new position on March 13th.
Assistant City Engineer II: Interviews are set for March 14th.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DIVISION
City Website Statistics (www.friendlyfortuna.com)
We encourage all citizens who are interested in receiving updates from the City to go on to the Fortuna’s website and sign up for e-notifications! 2022 Election information will be coming to the City’s website soon!
Anyone who would like to receive public notices from Public Works, Community Development/Planning, the Police Department or Citywide Press Releases, please visit the website at https://www.friendlyfortuna.com/enotify/index.php and sign up for e-notifications.
Computer/Network
IT staff met with Ubeo (used to be Ray Morgan) representative, David Thorwaldson, on February 22 for an account review. The large Ricoh Copier in the common area of City Hall has reached the end of its lease life. Staff was able to work with Ubeo for a new Cannon Copier, which will save the City approximately $40/month moving forward. The machine should be installed the end of March or first week of April.
IT staff also worked with Infinite Consulting, who assists in maintaining our City phone system.
The week of March 6, we launched and automated phone service for members of the public to reach their desired department more expeditiously. This will also allow for those employees accepting utility payments at the front counter, more time for public assistance and less time routing calls. So far, the phone triage has proved successful and we look forward to meeting public service expectations in a more efficient manner.
On March 1, IT staff met with TecHOME and Juan Carillo, with Access Humboldt. The purpose of the meeting was to participate in a demonstration of Tricasters, which is the device we currently use to provide a feed to Access Humboldt to stream our live public meetings. Our current Tricaster will soon reach the end of its expected life, and to avoid reacting to a loss, which would be Consent Item 4b
detrimental to our broadcast, we are taking measures to be proactive about sourcing and budgeting the device for our next fiscal year.
IT staff is working closely with Nylex and the Police Department to migrate the City’s wireless provide from Verizon to FirstNET. FirstNet is a public safety network contracted with the federal government with commitment to public safety to deliver deployable assets in support of emergencies. They are the only provider that has access to High Power User Equipment that can expand the range of coverage. By transitioning to FirstNet, the City will have priority and preemption instantly, which will allow for uninterrupted service at all times, specifically during emergencies.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
Receive Administration Division Monthly Report. Consent agenda vote.