HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 1701City of Palo Alto (ID# 1701)
Policy and Services Committee Staff Report
Report Type: Meeting Date: 5/10/2011
Summary Title: Proposed Staffing and Funding Flexibility Changes
Title: Recommendation to Approve Increase in the Number of "Flex"
Positions in the Fiscal Year 2012 Proposed Budget and Adopt Ordinance
Amending Chapter 2.28 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code to Give the City
Manager the Authority to Transfer Funds Between Departments in the
General Fund.
From: City Manager
Lead Department: Human Re-sources
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Council:
1) Increase the number of flex positions (over-strength positions) in the Table of
Organization in the Fiscal Year 2012 Proposed Budget, from seven to twenty
positions.
2) Adopt an ordinance amending section 2.28.080 (Amendments After Adoption)
of Chapter 2.28 (Fiscal Procedures) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code to give the
City Manager the authority to transfer funds between departments in the
General Fund.
BACKGROUND
Due to the increase in retirements and other operational impacts occurring over
the last two years, there is an increased need to have flexibility in assigning
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staffing resources to accomplish key projects and priorities. Under the Charter
and the Code, the City Manager already has the authority to assign or reassign
employees to departments as he deems appropriate. However, additional
budgetary requirements significantly restrict the Manager's ability to actually
make such changes because the code requires that (1) staffing comply with the
budgeted positions listed in the table of organization in the budget and (2) that
the Council must approve in advance any transfers of funds between departments
The City currently has had two methods to add temporary staffing at the
management level: first, it can hire an hourly Management Specialist under the
provisions in the Hourly Compensation Plan limited to 1000 hours.
The second method was approved on April 4, 2011, when the City Council
approved the management compensation plan which included a revision to add
terms for "provisional employment." A provisional employee hired under this
section would be any management position filled on an "at will" basis for up to
two years. This change gives staff the flexibility to hire positions to assist with
special projects, and/or cover responsibilities while a department considers
organizational structure changes and develops plans to more effectively meet the
City's needs.
The changes discussed in this report are needed to address the process and
funding necessary to hire a provisional employee when the need arises.
DISCUSSION
Open Flex Positions
At the present time, the City has seven budgeted "flex" positions, that may be
filled on a temporary basis to facilitate organizational transitions and succession
planning. They are commonly used in cases of long-term disabilities or
temporarily filling critical vacancies created by retirements or other employee
departures. The existing seven flex positions are regularly fully utilized limiting
the City's ability to hire provisional employees when needed, and therefore staff
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recommends increasing the number of flex positions by thirteen, for a total of
twenty flex positions. These thirteen additional flex positions would be used to
accommodate the newly approved provisional employment program and would
comply with the City's procedural rules because the positions would be identified
in the Table of Organization. The salary will be determined in accordance with
an appropriate classification as provided in the Council-approved management
compensation plan which will comply with Article III, section 12 of the Charter
which requires that the Council set all salary scales. Staff plans to utilize existing
position titles in the Table of Organization or another "working title" when
needed, that closely matches the job description when filling these provisional
employment positions. This will allow the City to more effectively recruit talent
that matches the City's needs.
If it is determined that there is a need to fill a flex position on a permanent basis
beyond the term of the temporary contract appointment, City Council approval
would be necessary for the permanent addition of a full time equivalent position
(FTE).
Available Funding
To address funding resources as needed, staff recommends amending the budget
provisions of Chapter 2.28 to give the City Manager the authority to transfer
funds (salary and non-salary) between departments in the General Fund. This
authority would require a change to section 2.28.080 of the Municipal Code,
which currently requires Council approval for any transfers of funds between City
departments and offices, even when there is no net change to the overall City
budget. Although it is possible under the current rules to make changes, the
process to bring the change to Council for approval can prevent staff from being
able to act swiftly to initiate a new program, address shifting priorities, enhance
service delivery, or address a pressing community need that was not anticipated
at the time the annual budget was prepared. The proposed change would allow
the movement of funds associated with a position in one department to be
transferred to a different department if the need arises, giving staff the flexibility
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to pay for provisional employees when funding is not available in the department
the provisional employee is assigned to.
At the present time, when staff transfers a position between departments, the
expenditures are not properly booked (the costs continue to accumulate in the
department in which the position was originally budgeted). As an example,
suppose a position is transferred from the Administrative Services Department
(ASD) to the City Manager's Office to work on environmental sustainability
initiatives. The expenditures for this effort will continue to accrue in ASD, even
though the employee is working on a City Manager aSSignment, and will not be
accurately recorded in the City Manager's Office towards this Council Priority.
This can be corrected at mid-year but our current policy requires work and
tracking and accountability to be out of sync for some period of time.
In all of these scenarios, the total General Fund budget authority and the total
number of authorized positions approved with the adoption of the budget would
remain the same. The change would allow the City manager to approve transfer
available funds to departments where work is critical and necessary. Staff will
also be accountable for tracking and reporting all fund transfers between
departments, and the City Manager will report at midyear and year-end on all
funds transfers that occurred during the year.
The benefits associated with the recommended changes include:
• Ability to effectively match staff positions to needs of the organization
• Ability to expeditiously line-up needed resources to effectively manage
workload
• Ability to enable those with the most expert knowledge of the City's current
needs and requirements to get ordinary and extraordinary work done
• Ability to allocate funding to those departments that need the funding and
associated staffing to do the work
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• Ability to align resources (both staff and funding) with the services to be
provided; better alignment of resources with the City's dynamic workload
requirements
• Ability to match funding and staffing levels in departments to comply with
generally accepted accounting standards and reimbursements from partners
or other governmental agencies.
• Ability to leverage existing financial resources; ability to use savings generated
in one department for another department where there is a need
In this demanding economic environment, the ability to efficiently respond to
shifting priorities and workloads is critical. The proposed changes give staff the
flexibility to improve its responsiveness to the community.
Next steps would include amending the budget provisions of Chapter 2.28 of the
Municipal Code to give the City Manager the authority to approve transfer of
funds (salary and non-salary) between departments in the General Fund when
there is no net change to the overall City budget. Attachment A is the draft
amendment. In addition, the Management Compensation Plan will need to be
revised to clarify the process management will follow to hire a flex position.
Attachments:
• Attachment A ORO 2.28.080 CDOC)
Prepared By:
Department Head:
Department
City Manager Approval:
May 10, 2011
(ID # 1701)
Elizabeth Egli, Administrative Assistant
Sandra Blanch, Interim Director, Human Resources
James Keene, City Manager
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ATTACHMENT -A
* NOT YET APPROVED *
Ordinance No. --::-:: Ordinance of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Amending
Section 2.28.080 (Amendments After Budget Adoption) of
the Palo Alto Municipal Code
The Council of the City of Palo Alto does ORDAIN as follows:
SECTION l.
amended to read as follows:
Section 2.28.080 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code is hereby
2.28.080 Amendments after adoption.
During the fiscal year, the city manager shall anlend the budgetary accounts of the city to reflect
the follovliing:
(a) Additional Appropriations. By a two-thirds vote, the council may make by ordinance
additional appropriations of receipts that are in excess of the total estimated receipts and
appropriations contained in the adopted budget.
(b) Additional Positions. By a m'ljority vote, the couneil may add by ordinance positions to
the table of organization.
(c) Transfer of Appropriations.
(I) By a majority vote, the council may transfer by ordinance part or all of the unencumbered
balance of any appropriation from one fund, or capital project to another;
(2) By written authorization, the city manager may direct the redistribution, within any
department or office or between any department or office, of the unencumbered balance of
appropriations within the departments or offices, provided that he or she shall not make transfers
from the classification of utilities purchased for resale to any other object or make transfers
between funds without the affirmative vote of a majority of the council;
(3) By written authorization, the city manager may authorize a transfer of appropriation from
the unallocated balance of the contingent account to any department, office or capital project.
Funds shall not be transferred between the general fund and the enterprise funds, nor betwcen
operating and capital funds.
(d) Transfer of Positions. By written authorization, the city manager may transfer positions
or assign personnel from any department or office under the control of the city manager to
another in accordance with Article IV, Section 6(n) of the Charter.
(e) Inter-fund Transactions. In the event that appropriations and equivalent offsetting eredits
for allocated inter-fund services or tranafers are affected by amendments to appropriations for
direct expenditures or estimated revenue, the city manager may make corresponding adjustments
to the inter-fund accounts so affected.
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* NOT YET APPROVED *
(f) Salaries and Benefits. Amendments to the Employee Classification and Compensation
Plan adopted by the council pursuant to Article III, Sections 12,18 and 21 of the Charter.
(g) Prior year Encumbrances. Appropriations that were encumbered by properly executed,
but uncompleted, purchase orders or contracts at the close of the previous fiscal year may be
carried forward and incorporated with appropriations of the current year.
(h) Municipal Fee Schedule. By a majority vote, the council may, by ordinance, add or
change fees in the municipal fee schedule.
SECTION 2.
date of its adoption.
lbis ordinance shall be effective on the thirty-first day after the
SECTION 3. This amendment is not a project subject to review under the
California Environmental Quality Act.
INTRODUCED:
PASSED:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTENTIONS:
ATTEST:
City Clerk Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED:
Sr. Deputy City Attorney City Manager
Director of Human Resources
Director of Administrative Services
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