Metro East Sun

City of Belleville Ordinance & Legal Review Committee met March 12

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

Chairperson Stiehl called the meeting to order. 

Members present on roll call: Alderperson Duco, Alderperson Randle, Alderperson Anthony, Alderperson Schaefer, Alderperson Elmore, Alderperson Osthoff, Chairperson Stiehl. 

Alderperson Excused: Alderperson Whitaker 

Department Heads Present: City Clerk Gain Meyer, City Treasurer Biermann, Fire Chief Mills. 

Department Heads Excused: City Attorney Hoerner 

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION 

Michael Hagberg: I am here to talk about the proposed increase to the sewer past due amounts. When I heard the proposal to raise the past due from 1.5% to 10%, I thought to myself that is a huge increase. I wanted to find out how this would affect previous bills, so I did a FOIA for the years' worth of penalties that were issued. Not only did I not receive the information I requested from the City, but they took extra steps to make it hard for me to even get through the information they provided. They printed a 122-day report and then scanned it into the computer so that it was non-searchable and presented me with that report. Makes me wonder when they go through that many extra steps to try and hide something, what are you hiding? All I wanted to do was a simple calculation on how much it would have affected a prior years' worth of penalties that were issued. The little information that I did get from the report was during the year, the City issued just under $360,000 in late and overdue penalties. The current rate of 1.5% of (inaudible) gives an annual rate of 19%. If you take the proposed rate of 10% monthly, that is an annual rate of 214% interest. I hope you will agree with me that this is most unfair to the low-income citizens who struggle to pay their bills on time. I ask you not to increase the late penalty. 

MINUTES 

Alderperson Schaefer made a motion second by Alderperson Randle to approve minutes of January 9, 2024. 

All members voted aye. 

Motion carries. 

UNFINISHED BUSINESS 

Alderperson Randle made a motion second by Alderperson Elmore to amend Title III (Administration); Chapter 30 (City Council), Section 30.19 (Standing Committees) related to Public Health & Housing. 

Alderperson Anthony: The proposed amendment has to do with adding an Alderperson to the Committee and therefore one Alderperson from each Ward will be on that committee. 

Chairperson Stiehl: Yes, I think it used to be that way and then somehow, we got away. 

City Clerk Gain Meyer: It was always five Alderpersons and then we had somebody from the realtors sit on there, but this way, making sure we have a quorum and this way every Ward has a say at the table with Public Health and Housing. It is an important committee. 

Alderperson Randle: It will still include a member from the Board of Realtors. 

Members voting aye on roll call: Duco, Randle, Anthony, Schaefer, Elmore, Osthoff, Stiehl 

Motion carries. 

MISCELLANEOUS & NEW BUSINESS 

Possible motion to amend Title V (Public Works), Chapter 50 (Sewers) Section 50.021 (Lien Rights, Collection and Occupancy Permit) and Section 92.23 (Fee Collection, Lien Rights, Collection and Occupancy). 

Chairperson Stiehl: Before there is a motion, I would like City Treasurer Sarah Biermann to address us. 

City Treasurer Biermann: The reason, well first off, I want to address the Public Participation, it is not actually 1.5% it is 1%, just to make sure you have that. Another reason as far as why you received the FOIA the way you did is because we have no way of putting it into the document you requested. S I apologize for that. Basically, one of my main reasons as far as bringing this in front of you, main goal is for more consistency, reducing the chance of human error. Right now, your penalty is 10% of your current charges plus 1% on your past due charges, so you have to basically calculate one, add it well calculate the other and add them together to get your penalty. It gets to be more complicated when people don't pay and then you give adjustments so you have to go back and recalculate all of that so it is not only more time consuming, but we have a chance of human error, so moving the decimal point one way or the other causes that chance of not having it as accurate as possible. I am looking for more consistency, if you take that balance, you can very easily take 10% move the decimal point and you know exactly what your penalty is going to be. It will be a little easier for our customers as well, we have a lot of residents when you, if I say your bill is a certain amount and I say 10%, you can very easily quickly calculate that, right? What we find with our current Ordinance because it is the 10% plus the 1% it gets complicated and too difficult to explain. That is why I am trying to change it as well. Other municipalities, as I did some research, comparing us to theirs, Millstadt does 10% of the balance, O'Fallon actually does 1⁄2% of the monthly fee, so they will just say so this is what your monthly fee is half of that is what your penalty is, Swansea does 10% of the balance and Waterloo does 10% of the current balance and to get any of the penalties removed, you have to write a letter requesting that, they will not take any verbal requests, everything has to be written. We have also found that with the database system that we have, there have been errors with the penalties, going back through for adjustments we found the penalty wasn't actually calculated correctly through the computer system. Like I said, I am just trying to get more consistency. 

Chairperson Stiehl: If one of the families that is struggling calls you about this, do you refer them to another department to help them?

City Treasurer Biermann: One of two things, we do try to work out agreements with individuals and residents that are having difficulty, we get a lot of people processed for disconnection on a monthly basis, if they are only able to pay a certain amount, we will try to work out an agreement where they will pay half of it now and maybe half of it in another two weeks whatever the case might be. If they are unable to make any payments and they are in financial difficulty, then yes, we will refer them to General Community Assistance or Catholic Urban Programs or churches, there are a lot of churches that will do pledges, Salvation Army, and places like that. 

Chairperson Stiehl: Do you have to use those? 

City Treasurer Biermann: Yeah, more than I would probably like to see, I think we only, and I am speaking on a phone call basis, because those are the ones that are calling in to us, for the most part, we have had an increase in residents signing up for Direct Debit. As you are aware, there have been issues with the Post Office for probably more than 2 to 3 years now. Residents are not receiving their bills, nor are we receiving their payments, so we have encouraged the Direct Debit option. That way they don't have to worry about penalties, don't have to worry about (inaudible) that is a whole other side of it. For the most part, I want to say that is the majority of our residents. 

Alderperson Randle: If I understand this correctly, we are just getting rid of the 1% payment charge that is calculated on top of it, and further that the delayed payment charge of 10% of the bill. So, what we are doing here, again, if I understand this correctly, if my bill was $50 okay and I am late for one month okay, then it would be 10%, but then my second bill comes along, and it is another $50 so now I owe $100 but is it now $120? 

City Treasurer Biermann: It is still 10% of what your balance is - 

Alderperson Randle: Okay so it actually works out in favor of the constituent that might be behind in their payment as opposed to a monthly 10% plus 1%. 

City Treasurer Biermann: You would still have your 10% of your current charges, which would be the $5 on the $50 and then it would be 1% of your past due so you would those two together to get your penalty. 

Alderperson Randle: No, according to what we were given in the packet, we are eliminating the 1% - - 

City Treasurer Biermann: Right, we are taking away that 1% and making it a flat 10%, so instead of 10% of current charges plus 1% of your past due, it will now be just a flat 10%, but accumulative so if you are two months behind, then yes, you are looking at 10% of $100. 

Multiple people talking. 

Alderperson Randle: So, the 10% on $50 would be $5 and you get $50 more it is not $10. 

Alderperson Anthony made a motion second by Alderperson Elmore to amend Title V (Public Works), Chapter 50 (Sewers) Section 50.021 (Lien Rights, Collection and Occupancy Permit) and Section 92.23 (Fee Collection, Lien Rights, Collection and Occupancy). 

Members voting aye on roll call: Duco, Randle, Anthony, Schaefer, Elmore, Osthoff, Stiehl 

Motion carries. 

Possible motion to draft an Ordinance allowing the Fire Department to charge fees to Assisted Care Facilities (Life Assist Fee). 

Fire Chief Mills: Most of you are aware, because most of you are Police & Fire Committee and we have been talking about this for a while, but when I was first promoted to Fire Chief, Lift Assist was a topic of conversation and how we could limit our exposure to possible injury and wear and tear that we might not otherwise be subject to not only on manpower but on our trucks and equipment. We did a little research on Lift Assists and we respond, I was watching over the months and we are responding seven to nine Lift Assists every month and most of those are residential but some of them are nursing home facilities that are fully equipped with a staff that should be helping these patients when they do need a Lift Assist. The Illinois Municipal League does state that it is legal for us to charge nursing homes for our assistance. What I am proposing is that we begin to charge them, we came up with a fee of $338 per hour with a one hour minimum and that is just based on the average salary of two trucks and staff and a Battalion Chief responding and we said for a one hour minimum. The idea is that we would send a letter out, let them know that this fee will be coming and whether or not the nursing home is requesting us, or EMS is requesting us either way the nursing home will be charged for our assistance in doing the Lift Assist. This is only for non-medical calls, this is only for Lift Assists, we are more that happy to respond to emergency cardiac arrest for example, but a Lift Assist can be handled by their staff. 

Alderperson Elmore: So, the Assisted Care Facilities are really what you are saying about having staff on hand, we send two trucks to an Assisted Facility? 

Fire Chief Mills: We send, yes, we do, because they go non-emergency unless we are toned out as an Urgent Lift Assist. 

Alderperson Elmore: Is that four firefighters, six? 

Fire Chief Mills: It is three on our pumpers at ones and threes and then three to four depending upon staffing that day on the trucks in the middle of the City. 

Alderperson Elmore: We are sending seven firefighters to Lift Assists to places that have nurses on hand. 

Fire Chief Mills: Yes, that is our standard response whether we are going to residential or to a nursing home. 

Alderperson Elmore: Residential, I am not questioning. It is the Assisted Living Care facilities, as you say, as we all know, there are staff on hand. 

Fire Chief Mills: Absolutely. 

Alderperson Schaefer: But here is the thing, so say their staff doesn't help, then we are putting three of our firefighters, if we don't send them all and they choose not to help, then our three firefighters are going to try to do it themselves. 

Chairperson Stiehl: That is your protocol, anyway, correct? 

Fire Chief Mills: Yes. 

Alderperson Elmore: If that is your protocol, fine. 

Fire Chief Mills: Yes, it is just how we do it across the board instead of picking and choosing because we don't know the situation until we get there. If it comes across as an Urgent Lift Assist, one truck will run code for the emergency, the second truck will go no lights or sirens. First line truck will get there and then advise whether or not they need them. 

Chairperson Stiehl: Do you have a certain price they will pay? 

Fire Chief Mills: $338 and that is the average salaries of all of those people and then an anticipated 3% increase just so that we wouldn't have to revisit this so soon. 

Alderperson Schaefer made a motion second by Alderperson Duco to draft an Ordinance allowing the Fire Department to charge fees to Assisted Care Facilities (Life Assist Fee). 

Members voting aye on roll call: Duco, Randle, Anthony, Schaefer, Elmore, Osthoff, Stiehl 

Motion carries. 

Alderperson Elmore made a motion second by Alderperson Schaefer to adjourn the meeting at 5:47 p.m. 

https://www.belleville.net/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_03122024-3198