Budget: Some residents may pay more
Fee plan discussed at Yuma County board meeting
Homeowners in some Yuma County improvement districts could pay higher annual administrative fees to the county under a proposed fee structure that would take effect July 1, while the majority of improvement districts would pay a little less.
The changes were presented to the county Board of Supervisors in a work session Monday, where staff was given the goahead to include them in the budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year, which will start July 1.
All 160 districts would be charged an administrative fee of $3.60, which is now at $6, said Rachel Stallworth, improvement district administrator for the county. This would cover the billing costs for all of the districts involved.
The higher costs would affect about 28 improvement districts that require more “special services,” including night meetings for residents and responses to concerns reported by individual residents.
Property owners in the 28 districts with higher needs would pay an additional fee based on the level of service, ranging from $4.47 per year to $22.37 annually. All administrative costs are billed on top of the annual assessments for each district.
Mesa Del Sol General Improvement District is the only one expected to be charged the “category 5,” or highest, annual cost, Stallworth said.
The improvement districts mostly supply water irrigation (these are separate from the irrigation and drainage districts, which provide water chiefly to
farmers) or street lighting, with a few others addressing other needs like sewer service or retention basins.
The $6 per year administrative cost per parcel hasn’t been enough to keep afloat the “revolving fund,” which covers additional services in the higher-maintenance districts, as well as proposed districts which haven’t reached the point of being able to collect money from residents.
That fund has been shrinking over the last several years, county Chief Economic Officer Scott Holt said, and for the current fiscal year is expected to end about $40,000 in the hole, the first time it hasn’t at least broken even.
“I really like what you guys have brought forward, because the philosophy of this board has typically been ‘user pay,’” District 2 Supervisor Russell McCloud said.
The supervisors agreed the changes should be put into the upcoming budget, with the caveat that the costs for each district are reviewed at the end of each year, something which hasn’t been done since the $6 fee was adopted in 2007.
“I prefer that’s what we do, every year, it either goes up or goes down, depends on the load,” District 1 Supervisor Martin Porchas said.
The proposal also includes a one-time transfer of $40,000 out of the county’s General Fund into the revolving fund to take care of its deficit, with the upcoming charges expected to take care of it in the future. In other action Monday: • The board approved several changes to employee health insurance policies to take effect July 1, including an increase in the emergency room co-pay from $125 to $175. Officials said the changes made it possible to hold the premiums to a 2 percent increase, lower than many employers are seeing in the market these days, District 4 Supervisor Tony Reyes said.
“A 2 percent increase is almost miraculous,” he said.
District 2 Supervisor Russell McCloud pointed out the proposal includes an infusion of about $534,000 from the reserve fund of the Yuma County Employee Benefit Trust, and asked whether that was a wise move to be making.
Actuarial consultant Aaron Polkowski said the reserve fund, used to handle unexpected fluctuations in costs, would be in betterthan-expected shape with fewer large claims made this year, and the fund has more than enough in reserves to have the recommended six months of operating expenses available.
“We’re comfortable that even with the $500,000 spend-down, that would keep you well above the claims reserve,” he said.
• There were no bids at an auction held during the meeting for an 11,560 square-foot county-owned parcel at 12107 S. Sandra Ave. in the Foothills, with a minimum bid of $65,700. The property must be auctioned at 90 percent of its appraised value, according to state statute, but failed to sell at a previous auction as well.
The property includes a 1984 manufactured home and a swimming pool, but the fence and home have deteriorated to the point of drawing complaints from the neighborhood. No information was given on how long the county has owned the property or how it obtained it.
The board agreed to continue the auction until May 1, with staff advising local realtors in hopes of finding an interested buyer. If nothing happens at that point, the county will likely demolish the home and clean up the property.
• The board OK’d a public works director salary of $112,330 for job candidate Joshua Scott, currently the city of Yuma’s assistant public works director and city engineer. It requires board approval because it is above the established midpoint of $101,776 for that position in the county’s salary schedule.
Board members lauded the work of former deputy Director of Public Works Jason Phipps, who has held the position on an interim basis for the last 18 months.
• County staff was authorized to negotiate a price for maintenance and lighting with Arizona Public Service for the Six-Street Improvement District in the unincorporated colonia area just northwest of Yuma. The annual cost is expected to total $800 a year, or $12 per household.
Stallworth said this assessment is expected to cover both installation and maintenance of streetlights for the neighborhood generally bounded by the West Main Canal, Ruby Avenue, 3rd Street and Avenue C. When the district was formed in July, residents were seeking grant funds from the county or another source to pay for installation, which was thought to be cost-prohibitive for the 154 mostly low-income households.
“Not bad at all,” Stallworth said.
• The board appointed Chairman Reyes as its representative to a new organization, the Arizona Border Counties Coalition, being formed with Pima, Santa Cruz and Cochise counties to advocate for economic development along the border and address the financial burdens placed on them because of their location. Porchas was named as his alternate.
• The board approved an amendment to county requirements for building permit applications, which would eliminate the requirement to include a site plan with applications for interior improvements as long as the structure is permitted (or grandfathered in) under current zoning, the structure’s use would not change and septic tank capacity isn’t exceeded.
• A lease-purchase agreement with Municipal Asset Management was approved for mail sorting and processing equipment to prepare early ballots for delivery. Lease and interest payments are expected to total $508,849 over eight years.
• Approved a special use permit for Manuel H. and Celia Curiel to operate an existing mobile food vendor unit, El Pino Hot Dogs, located at 780 S. Vaughn Ave. At Celia Curiel’s request, the board extended the permit from 10 to 15 years.