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City and County of San Francisco Minutes Thursday, June 3, 2010, at 5:30 p.m. 1. Call to Order / Roll Call SFMTA CAC members present at Roll Call: Mary Burns, Art Cimento, Joan Downey, Steve Ferrario, Daniel Murphy, Janel Sterbentz, Dorris Vincent and Jamison Wieser SFMTA CAC members absent at Roll Call: Griffith Humphrey arrived at 5:50 p.m., Susan Vaughan arrived at 5:40 p.m, Daniel Weaver arrived at 6:08 p.m. SFMTA CAC members absent: Cesar Perez, Greg Riessen and Ruth Wheeler 2. Adopt Minutes of January 14, April 5 and 19, 2010: On motion to approve the minutes of January 14, April 5 and April 19: unanimously adopted. 3. Public Comment: None. 4. Report of the Chairman: Daniel Murphy Chairman Murphy stated that he attended the June 1 meeting of the SFMTA Board of Directors, at which the Board approved parking restrictions at Coit Tower. He reminded the Board of previous CAC Coit Tower recommendations. In addition, he spoke about CAC recommendations to place revenue measures on the ballot. He stated that Chairman Tom Nolan inquired about the relationship between CAC and SFMTA staff. Chairman Nolan asked about staff responses to CAC recommendations. Chairman Murphy stated that two seats remain unfilled on the Board. Director Jerry Lee replaced James McCray as vice chairman. Joan Downey asked that members of the Board of Directors be invited to CAC meetings. Joan Downey stated that the 39 Coit route should be marketed to boost visits to Coit Tower. Jamison Wieser suggested that buses dedicated to the 39 Coit route could be wrapped with Coit Tower advertisements. Chairman Murphy referred the matter to the OCSC. Public comment: None. 5. Controller’s report on work orders (Discussion/Action) Sonali Bose, CFO/director, Finance and Information Technology, stated that during the FY 2010 budget process, the City Controller was asked to identify $2 million in savings in work orders for the SFMTA. The City Controller reviewed work orders at the June 1 Board meeting. The Controller’s findings revealed that several work orders lacked written agreements and had sparse billing documentation, and that the allocation of funds for the SFMTA had not been increased in compliance with the Charter. In light of the findings, the Controller supports the SFMTA’s need for written agreements. Executive Director/CEO Ford directed Ms. Bose to send letters to city departments regarding the Controller’s recommendations to have written agreements, quarterly billing and supporting documentation in order to receive payment. Ms. Bose stated that the SFMTA Board of Directors asked about enforcement of non-compliant city departments. The Controller stated that he would serve as the arbitrator if there were disagreements. Ms. Bose will provide reports regarding departments’ compliance status. Ms. Bose stated that Proposition E provided an incremental allocation in the General Fund for the SFMTA when new transit service is established. The 2008 funding increase for the T Third Line was inadequate. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ request to reduce work orders by $2 million will be accomplished by increasing the SFMTA allocation from the General Fund. Joan Downey asked about the rainy day reserve fund. Ms. Bose stated that the Board of Directors used the reserve fund in FY 2009 and 2010 to minimize service cuts. Dorris Vincent asked about state funds restored to transit agencies. Ms. Bose stated that for FY 2011 and 2012, the state restored half of the funding. Art Cimento stated that Muni has become a piggy bank that funds other departments. He asked about the comparison of market rates for services to the rates of city work orders. Ms. Bose stated that the SFMTA does not have the ability to contract out for servicesprovided by city departments. Steve Ferrario asked about police officers assigned to the SFMTA. Ms. Bose stated that there are officers assigned for the SFMTA Muni Response Team, the canine detail, the taxi detail and the traffic division. Some of the police services are provided on an overtime basis. Art Cimento stated that he’d like the Controller to provide a quarterly payment statement and an end-of-year report reflecting how much money was transferred that did not comply with the requirements for written agreements and billing documentation. Motion 100603.01 The SFMTA CAC recommends that both the SFMTA and the Controller comply with and adopt as policy the recommendations of the Controller’s Compliance Review of the Agency’s Work Orders for Fiscal Year 2008-09. The SFMTA CAC also recommends that services be reviewed for reasonableness of cost and quality of service, comparing those costs and service levels to similar services available from non-City sources, and that the SFMTA seek to have services provided on an overtime basis only when it is reasonable or cost-effective to do so. The SFMTA CAC also requests to be informed, on an annual basis, of monies transferred from the SFMTA to other city departments in a manner not compliant with the Controller’s recommendations. Public Comment: None. On motion regarding the Controllers Compliance Review: Adopted 6. Budget update for FY10, FY11 and FY12 (Discussion/Action) Sonali Bose, CFO/director, Finance and Information Technology, stated that should the Transportation Workers Union 250A vote to accept the proposed concessions, then the Transportation Authority (TA) will release $7 millionso that some of the service cuts could be restored. The SFMTA would then be able to reinstate a portion of the service cuts upon completion of the St. Francis Circle project. Sue Vaughan asked about owl service. Ms. Bose stated that staff is reviewing owl service and some of the community routes and crowded lines for restoration. Public Comment None. 7. Potential revenue options for the November 2010 ballot (Discussion/Action) Sonali Bose, CFO/director, Finance and Information Technology, stated that the Board of Supervisors talked about various tax measures for the ballot. Sue Vaughan asked about a nexus study. Ms. Bose stated that staff is conducting nexus studies on updating the transit impact development fee as well as new transportation fees and fees related to automobile trip generation. The SFMTA is working with the Planning Department, the Transportation Authority, the Mayor’s Office and the City Attorney. Art Cimento asked if the SFMTA leadership had a plan to get the transit system stabilized financially and to restore service. Mr. Cimento stated that the SFMTA continues to run deficits. It would be nice to actually fix the problem, even if through a ballot measure. Chairman Murphy stated that he would invite Execitive Director/CEO Ford to a CAC meeting. Sue Vaughan stated that businesses, such as Trader Joe’s and Rainbow Grocery, generate traffic challenges, yet no fees are assessed on their parking stalls. She espressed interest in the nexus study on charging for parking in places that generate traffic and impact the flow of Muni. Ms. Bose stated that the implementation of a parking stall fee was a revenue suggestion; however, the Revenue Panel declined the option because it could have a negative impact on commerce in the city. A business economic development study or an impact study would be appropriate options. Chairman Murphy assigned the matter to the FAC. Motion 100603.02 The SFMTA CAC recommends that the SFMTA analyze draft ballot measures pertaining to the SFMTA for their impact on the long-term fiscal health of the SFMTA and the sustainability of existing services provided by the SFMTA, as well as the potential for service expansion envisioned by the Transit Effectiveness Project. The SFMTA CAC recommends that such analysis consider the ballot measures in isolation and, if passed, in combination with one another. Public Comment: Jane Bolig stated that CAC recommendations should be memorialized. Dan Weaver stated that CAC recommendations should be posted online. Chairman Murphy will look into the suggestion. On motion regarding ballot measures: Adopted 8. SFMTA Limited Scope Performance Audit (Discussion/Action) Brenda Walker, manager, office of the Executive Director/CEO, stated that in February 2010, the Board of Supervisors authorized the Budget Analyst’s Office to conduct a limited scope performance audit of the SFMTA to determine if the Board of Directors was efficiently and effectively managing SFMTA resources. The audit included interviews with the SFMTA Board of Directors, the CAC Chairman, the SFMTA Executive Team and various staff members. Budget and finance documents, payroll records, transit operator schedules, operating policies and procedures and other documents were inspected. Chairman Murphy asked about absenteeism. Ms. Walker stated that city employees have a right to use their sick leave when they are ill. Art Cimento stated that absenteeism is at 20 percent, which adds cost. Dan Weaver asked about absenteeism when compared to other transit agencies. Ms. Walker stated that the occurrence of absenteeism is high when compared to other transit agencies, but it is average when compared to other city departments. Dorris Vincent stated that employees are entitled to use the sick leave that they have earned. Dorris Vincent departed at 7:55 p.m. Dan Weaver stated that providing a bi-annual audit to the CAC and the SFMTA would be beneficial. Jamison Wieser stated that audits could be unproductive and take money away from other things. Sue Vaughan stated that audits are part of good government and being transparent. She stated that the Board of Directors neglected to put measures on the ballot. Public Comment: None. 9. Committee Reports: None. 10. Committee Members’ Questions/Information Requests: (Discussion)
11. Agenda Planning for the Next Regular Meeting Tentatively Scheduled: Next regular meeting: July 1, 2010, at 5:30 p.m. 12. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 8:14 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: |
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