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3.10. SR 06-20-2005 *Item 3.10.* MEMORANDUM TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: Lori johnson, Finance and Administrative Services Director DATE: june 20, 2005 SUBJECT: Resolution Adopting Pubic Purpose Expenditure Policy Attached please find the final draft of the public purpose expenditure policy that was discussed at last Monday's worksession. As requested by Council the parade candy section has been changed; however, the sympathy gift section remains the same as in the draft policy. Also attached is the Bereavement Policy that was adopted in 1996 and revised in 1998. Action Requested The City Council is asked to adopt the attached resolution adopting a public purpose expenditure policy and to rescind the Bereavement Policy. RESOLUTION 05- A RESOLUTION FOR THE CITY OF ELK RIVER RESOLUTION ADOPTING A PUBLIC PURPOSE EXPENDITURE POLICY WHEREAS, expenditures by a public entity must be authorized by statute or charter, and also must have a public purpose; and WHEREAS, the City of Elk River has only such powers as are expressly conferred on it by statute, or which may be necessarily and reasonably implied there from, and may make expenditures only in the reasonable exercise of those powers; and WHEREAS, the City of Elk River wishes to define certain practices and procedures as they relate to public purpose expenditure regulations. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Elk River City Council hereby adopts the following regulations relating to the expenditure of public funds. POLICY Pursuant to the statutes and laws of the State of Minnesota which regulate the expenditure of public funds for public purposes, the Elk River City Council believes it is necessary and appropriate to provide assistance and guidance to the officials, employees, and representatives of Elk River to aid in the determination of when public funds may be spent for a public purpose. To provide that assistance and guidance, the Elk River City Council adopted these public purpose guidelines for the establishment of operating policies and procedures and the appropriate expenditures of public funds. Based on these guidelines, the City Council authorizes the City Administrator, elected officials and appointed department heads to establish administrative policies and procedures that are consistent with these guidelines and the adopted City policies which implement these guidelines. D~finition: A public purpose expenditure is one which relates to the purpose for which the Ciry of Elk River exists and the duties and responsibilities of Elk River, its elected and appointed officials, emplqyees, and other representatives. PUBLIC PURPOSE GUIDELINES 1. Training and development programs for Elk River employees serve a public purpose when those training and development programs are directly related to the performance of the employees' job-related duties and are directly related to the programs/services for which the City is responsible. 2. Payment of employee work-related expenses, including travel, lodging and meal expenses, serves a public purpose when those expenses are necessarily incurred by Elk River employees in connection with their actual work assignments or official duties and those expenses are directly related to the performance of the governmental functions for which Elk River has responsibility. 3. Appropriate safety and health programs for Elk River employees serve a public purpose because they result in healthier and more productive employees and reduce certain costs to the City and the taxpayers of Elk River, including various costs associated with workers compensation and disability benefit claims, insurance premiums, and lost time from employee absences. 4. Public expenditures for appropriate Elk River employee and volunteer recognition programs serve a public purpose because formally recognizing employees and volunteers who make significant contributions and demonstrate their commitment during the performance of their duties results in higher morale and productivity among all Elk River employees and volunteers, and therefore helps the City to fulfill its responsibilities efficiently and more cost effectively. 5. Public expenditures for food and refreshments associated with official Elk River functions serve a public purpose when the provision of food or refreshments is an integral part of an official Elk River function and the provision of food or refreshment is necessary to ensure meaningful participation by the participants. 6. Public expenditures for appropriate community and customer outreach and similar activities serve a public purpose when those expenditures are necessary for Elk River to ensure the efficient operation of its programs/ services, promote the availability and use of City resources, and promote coordinated, cooperative planning activities among and between the public and the private sectors. SPECIFIC PROGRAMS AND EXPENDITURES Every City of Elk River expenditure must be valid based upon the public purpose for which it is expended. These line-items are approved annually by the City Council as a part of the overall budget approval process which includes a public hearing on the proposed budget. The following items are deemed to meet the Council definition of public purpose expenditures. Meetings: Food/Meals/Refreshments The City Council recognizes that situations in which City business needs to be discussed can and do occur during meal hours (i.e. luncheon meetings). In addition, there are public and employee meetings and events in which reasonable refreshments may add to the success of the meeting and/or event and create a more productive workforce. Meals are allowed at training or meetings only when they are part of a meeting or training involving official city business and when it is the only practical time to meet. 2 The following items are deemed to meet the Council's definition of public purpose expenditures in regards to food/meals/refreshments. a. Allowed at City meetings and events that have the purpose of discussing City issues. These meetings would normally have a pre-planned agenda and would involve predominately non-city employees. b. Allowed when they are part of the structured agenda for an offsite conference, workshop, seminar, training session, or meeting in which the City Administrator or a department head has authorized the employee to attend for training and development purposes. This does not include routine staff meetings. c. Allowed when they are part of a breakfast/lunch/dinner meeting for official city business when it is the only practical time to meet and when it involves non-city employee participants (i.e. business developers or business representatives). Payment for fees relating to a special event, such as a Chamber of Commerce event, may also be allowed when approved by the City Administrator and when attendance is deemed to meet the public purpose guidelines for community or customer outreach and marketing of the City. d. Allowed during non-routine, official meetings of the City Council, council committees, advisory boards/commissions, and taskforces. e. Allowed where employees or volunteers are participating in a City Council sponsored or authorized special event or in an outside event as an official representative of the City. f. Allowed for department sponsored meetings, conferences or workshops where the majority of invited participants are not city employees. g. Cookies and coffee allowed for City employees' monthly safety meetings sponsored by the Safety Committee. h. Annual safety training lunch where lunch is provided at a minimal cost while safety training is being held. 1. A dinner meal to be allowed for staff during performance of election related duties on Election Day. J. Coffee is provided by the city for employees and guests at city buildings. Alcoholic Beverages The City of Elk River will not purchase or reimburse any employee, Councilmember, volunteer, or agent for the purchase of alcoholic beverages. Employee Recognition Program The City of Elk River City Council recognizes the hard work and service performed by the employees of the City of Elk River through a formal Employee Recognition Program. The City Council believes the benefits of attracting, retaining and motivating employees through an Employee Recognition Program support employee job satisfaction, which in turn impacts cooperation and productivity. The result is to provide excellent public and customer service to better serve the interests of the citizens of the community. 3 No provisions of this policy, or its administration, shall be subject to review under the grievance or arbitration provisions of any collective bargaining agreement. The Program will include: a. Annual Employee Recognition Celebration. Annually the City will sponsor an Employee Recognition Celebration for City employees. Refreshments will be provided at a modest expense with prior City Administrator approval. b. Recognition Plaques. The City supports recognition plaques in recognition of retirement. The employee shall receive a plaque thanking them for their dedicated years of service to the community. Volunteer Recognition Program/Events The City of Elk River City Council recognizes the hard work and service performed by the volunteers of the City of Elk River through a formal Volunteer Recognition Program. This Program promotes teamwork and coordination amongst the City Council, staff, Board/Commission members, Police Reserves, CERT and Parks and Recreation volunteers. The Program will include: a. Volunteer Recognition Program for Board/Commission Members. Annually, the City will sponsor a dinner (which may also include minimal entertainment) for invited participants and their guests. This dinner and a token gift for the volunteers will serve as de minimus compensation for the service provided by the volunteers. Employees working direcdy or indirecdy with the volunteer groups being recognized shall be invited along with their guest to the event and have the cost of their meals paid for by the City. No token gift will be given to employees. b. Police Reserves/CERT /Parks and Recreation Volunteers. Annually, the City will sponsor an event or picnic for invited participants and their guests. Other Events The City supports other events that are planned and paid for by employees. Examples of such events include holiday gatherings and monthly birthday recognition. Refreshments and Food for Emergency Response Staff Because emergency personnel are often called to perform for extended periods of time where refreshments are important to duty performance, firefighters, police officers, and other emergency response personnel may be provided refreshments or food when it is deemed appropriate by the City .1\dministrator or Department Head to assure the delivery of quality emergency response serv1ce. Employee Training The City Council supports employee training and allows for reasonable reimbursement of registration, tuition and travel expense for conferences, seminars, workshops, and approved city employment-related course work in accordance with the City of Elk River Personnel Policy. The Personnel Policy also contains guidelines for an education reimbursement program. Job related advanced education meets the public purpose guidelines of this policy. 4 Employee Wellness and Safety Programs The City Council recognizes the importance of employee fitness and health as it relates to the overall work and life satisfaction of the employee and the impact on the City's health insurance program. As such, the City Council supports the Employee Wellness Program, which has been designed to educate employees on fitness/health issues. Also, in an effort to promote wellness, the city maintains a fitness room equipped with exercise equipment that is available to all staff 24/7. The City also supports programs that provide discounts to employees when participating in Parks and Recreation wellness related activities. The Employee Safety Program and programs created by the Safety Committee to promote and retain a safe work environment are supported by the City of Elk River. Rifer to Meetings: Food/ Meals/Rifreshments Membership and Dues The City Council has determined that the City will fund memberships and dues for the City, Councilmembers and its employees in professional organizations and City social and community organizations when the primary purpose is to promote, advertise, improve or develop the City's resources and advantages and not personal interest or gain. Said memberships shall be approved by the Department Head and City Administrator. Membership in the Local Chamber of Commerce The City Council has determined that it serves a public purpose for the Economic Development Authority (EDA) to maintain membership in the Elk River Chamber of Commerce as a means of promoting, advertising, improving, and developing the economic resources and advantages of the City. Donations to Organizations The City Council has determined that it serves a public purpose for the City of Elk River to donate to the Elk River Area Chambers of Commerce for the Annual 4th of July Celebration wherein the Chamber of Commerce advertises and promotes the resources and advantages of the City. The City Council has determined that it serves a public purpose for the City of Elk River to purchase candy for distribution during the local high school homecoming and county fair parades. Clothing and Other Sundry Items Employees may receive T-shirts, and other sundry items of nominal value ($5.00) when these items are made available to the general public or if these items are determined by the City Administrator to be important to the successful involvement of employees in special City sponsored or City supported events (i.e. National Night Out, etc.). Employees may be supplied with uniforms, clothing, boots and other gear necessary for the performance of their job. Trinkets or Marketing Items The City Council has determined that it serves a public purpose for the City of Elk River to distribute items of a nominal nature for the purpose of educating or promoting City provided programs such as recycling, our local Cable Channel ERtV, and educating children to call 9-1-1. 5 Sympathy Gifts The cost of flowers or other similar items as a sign of sympathy shall not be paid for by public funds. Gifts for Employees, Consultants and Others The City shall not pay for gifts to employees, consultants, or similar persons working with or for the City. CONCLUSION The City Council reserves the right to not fund any item of expenditure described in this policy. No provision of this policy, or its administration, shall be construed as being a benefit or condition of employment by or for any employee of the City, nor is any provision of this resolution to be considered a provision of the City's Personnel Policy. ' The Elk River City Council has determined that the above expenditures are valid expenditures and serve a public purpose. Passed and adopted the 20th day of June, 2005. Stephanie Klinzing, Mayor ATTEST: Joan Schmidt, City Clerk 6 ,BEREAVEMENT POLICY F!.......!O/", R':. Ai' IC"....J[{.,.i "N'..'O' '"WL...). /"( .....jl2'..D.... ]; .Gi' ..... .IN/.....,/Gi ',..' .D.... ,iD A.T...............H. ;: '- -- -" --,,' .:, ~- d'-./ ,; ". '-".::: -~ ',_ ,_ ~ ,.' .1:4;. ---,." j""" __'" .; ___., ~l"1.-.,. ./ --:j OFCITYEMPLiOYJEJEFAMILYMJEMBJERS 1. In the case of a death of a city employee or an immediate family member of employee, the City of Elk River shall contribute a monetary token of $50.00 to the family of the deceased. The $50.00 can be used for flowers, cash, or memorial. 2. City employee shall include an employee of any department of the city and whose wage is paid by the City of Elk River. ,3. Immediate family shall include spouse, children, parents and brothers and sisters. 4. Upon the death of an employee or an employee's immediate family member, the employee should notify the City Clerk. The City Clerk will pass the information on to staff and council if this is the desire of the employee. Adopted by the City Council on 6/3/96 - Revised 1/5/98 s:\clerk\bereav.doc