Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Rocio Kiryczun, Human Resources Director
Subject: Recommended Revision to the Master Salary Resolution
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution authorizing an amendment to the Master Salary Resolution 078309 to delete eighteen (18) positions due to budget cuts.
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BACKGROUND:
On July 21, 2020, your Board adopted Master Salary Resolution 078309 which specifies the number of and providing compensation and benefits for persons employed by the County of San Mateo, sets appropriate rules and regulations and repeals all inconsistent ordinances and resolutions. Throughout the year, the salary resolution is amended from time to time to meet the needs of the County.
DISCUSSION:
The salary resolution changes herein represent the:
• deletion of 18 positions due to budget cuts effective September 18, 2021.
This amendment to the resolution has been reviewed and approved by the County Counsel’s Office as to form. The specific actions are discussed in detail below.
12700 REVENUE SERVICES
Action A: Delete: Six positions of E458S, Revenue Collector series
Biweekly Salary: $2,044.80 - $3,160.80
Action B: Delete: Two positions of E350, Fiscal Office Specialist
Biweekly Salary: $2,242.40 - $2,802.40
Action C: Delete: One position of E456, Lead Revenue Collector
Biweekly Salary: $2,744.80 - $3,430.40
Action D: Delete: One position of D151, Financial Services Manager II
Biweekly Salary: $4,896.00 - $6,120.80
Explanation: These actions delete a total of ten positions which will be vacant at the time of deletion.
Revenue Services is a division of the County Manager’s Office and provides debt collection services to County departments, the San Mateo County Superior Court (“Court”), and other local public agencies and functions as an enterprise fund. Revenue Services provides services for a fee which provides the operating revenue for the division. Since FY 2015-16, Revenue Services has experienced a structural deficit, which has grown over time as a result of legislative changes that eliminated the assessment and/or collection of many court-imposed criminal fines and fees that Revenue Services previously collected on behalf of both the Court and the County’s Probation Department thereby reducing the number of accounts referred to Revenue Services for debt collection services. In FY2020-21, Revenue Services accounts decreased by an estimated 64 percent as compared to FY2014-15, and revenues (commission) correspondingly decreased by an estimated 57 percent. While the pandemic and associated Court closures have accelerated the rate of the deficit, accounts referred to Revenue Services for collection, and revenues collected from those accounts, have steadily decreased year-over-year since FY2015-16, primarily due to legislative changes. The deletion of these vacant positions will further reduce expenditure and lessen the gap between ongoing revenues and expenditures.
These actions represent a monthly salary and benefits savings of $113,110 and a decrease in the total number of authorized positions by ten.
26000 DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES
Action A: Delete: One position of E436S, Child Support Analyst Series
Biweekly Salary: $2,512.00 - $3,307.20
Action B: Delete: One position of E437, Child Support Analyst III
Biweekly Salary: $2,837.60.00 - $3,548.00
Action C: Delete: One position of B146S, Child Support Attorney Series
Biweekly Salary: $3,552.00 - $8,608.80
Action D: Delete: One position of E434, Child Support Supervisor-Exempt
Biweekly Salary: $3,300.00 - $4,123.20
Action E: Delete: One position of E438, Lead Child Support Customer Service Specialist
Biweekly Salary: $2,646.40 - $3,307.20
Action F: Delete: One position of E377S, Legal Secretary Series
Biweekly Salary: $2,280.80 - $3,176.00
Action G: Delete: One position of E334S, Office Assistant Series
Biweekly Salary: $1,638.40 - $2,355.20
Action H: Delete: One position of E368, Public Services Specialist
Biweekly Salary: $1,976.80 - $2,469.60
Explanation: These actions delete a total of eight positions. One position is filled, and seven positions will be vacant at the time of deletion.
In FY 2019-20, Senate Bill 80 enacted a new funding methodology for the California Department of Child Support Services, which established standard caseload to staffing ratios for funding all local child support agencies in California. In that same year, the Governor’s budget provided for $56,039,054 in new funding to the local child support program. Based on the new funding methodology, twenty-one (21) of the most underfunded local child support agencies were scheduled to receive additional funding. San Mateo County Department of Child Support Services (SMCDCSS) fell far below the funding methodology ratios and did not receive any additional funding, resulting in another year of flat funding with an allocation of $11.4 million dollars. The California Department of Child Support Services (CADCSS) established a glidepath to move all counties to the new funding methodology over a five-year period. In FY 2020-21, the Governor’s additional $56,039,054 in funding was removed and all counties were rolled back to their FY 2018-2019 budget allocations. This resulted in the immediate execution of the new funding methodology and a subsequent $1,486,215 reduction for FY2020-2021.
In anticipation of the new funding methodology, SMCDCSS reduced budgeted costs in service and supplies by fifty-eight percent (58%) from FY 2019-20 to FY 2020-21, eliminated expenditures related to contracts, investigation tools and general office supplies. Additionally, SMCDCSS reduced office space by approximately twenty-two percent (22%). The Governor’s proposed budget reduces local budget by 15% this coming fiscal. The reduction necessitates the elimination of the eight filled positions for FY2021-22. Upon this change the Department moves closer to the state caseload ratio of 187:1.
These actions represent a monthly salary and benefits savings of $102,418 and a decrease in the total number of authorized positions by eight.
Impact of the Deletion of Positions
A total of 18 positions are being deleted, seven of which are vacant. The Human Resources Department worked with the employees who were impacted by the deletion of the 11 filled positions to identify alternate placement options in other County departments in lieu of layoffs.
• Seven of the displaced employees accepted reassignments to vacancies in other County departments;
• One elected retirement;
• One resigned from County employment to pursue other opportunities;
• One has elected layoff;
• One exercised their right to “bump” into a position in the County Manager’s Office held by the least senior employee in the classification in accordance with Civil Service Rules and their Memoranda of Understanding (MOU); the displaced, least senior employee has elected layoff.
Employees who elected to be laid off will receive severance pay as defined in the MOU.
FISCAL IMPACT:
These actions represent an estimated monthly salary and benefits savings of $215,528 or an annual savings estimate of $2,586,336.