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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDocumentation_Regular_Tab 19_04/10/20081~ y 1. VILLAGE COUNCIL MEETING: VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA AGENDA ITEM TRANSMITTAL FORM Meeting Date: 4/10/08 Meeting Type: Regular Ordinance #: 9-08 Consent Agenda: No Resolution #: Click here to enter text. Originating Department: Village Clerk 2. AGENDA ITEM TITLE: (Wording form the SUBJECT line of your staff report) Ordinance 9-08, Second Reading, Amending Exhibit "A" of Section 2-30 of the Code of Ordinances relating to the Employees' Pension Trust Funds; Amending Exhibit "A" to provide for the appointment of Trustees to the Board of Trustees 3. BUDGET /FINANCIAL IMPACT: Account #: ::'ick here to enter text. Amount of this item: Click here to enter text. Current Budgeted Amount Available: Amount Remaining after item: c -, Budget Transfer Required: ~' ,t. ~s~ ;; it~~~n ~ Appropriate Fund Balance: Cf :-:.~~ ~~ <-.n item. 4. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF MAJOR ISSUES: (This is a snap shot description of the agenda item) The Village General Employee Pension Board has had a difficult time recruiting and retaining interested Village employees to serve in the employee member positions. Currently the Board has three members while the two required member positions remain vacant (both employees resigned over the past two meetings). The vacancies were advertised and posted as per the Administrative Rules and no employees filed letters of interest with the Clerk's Office. As a result, the General Employee Pension Board Members agreed during the February 2008 meeting to have the Pension Board Attorney create an ordinance to present to the Village Council. The Ordinance would allow a Village of Tequesta resident to serve in the employee member position(s) for a one year term if the employee member position remained vacant for three months or more 5. APPROVALS: rn Dept. Head: ~- ' ~ LL(,(~,/,~Q,Ca/1-- Finance Director: Attorney: (for legal sufficiency) Village Manager: Ord --_ SUBMIT FOR COUNCIL DISCUSSION: APPROVE ITEM: ^j' Yes ^ No ^ DENY ITEM: ^ MEMORANDUM Village of Tequesta Clerk's Office TO: Mr. Michael R. Couzzo, Jr., Village Manager Honorable Mayor and Village Council Members FROM: Lori McWilliams, Village Clerk DATE: March 31, 2008 SUBJECT: General Employee Pension Board Employee Member Representation Ordinance 9-08 The Village General Employee Pension Board has had a difficult time recruiting and retaining interested Village employees to serve in the employee member positions. Currently the Board has three members while the two required member positions remain vacant (both employees resigned over the past two meetings). The vacancies were advertised and posted as per the Administrative Rules and no employees filed letters of interest with the Clerk's Office. As a result, the General Employee Pension Board Members agreed during the February 2008 meeting to have the Pension Board Attorney create an ordinance to present to the Village Council. The Ordinance would allow a Village of Tequesta resident to serve in the employee member position(s) for a one year term if the employee member position remained vacant for three months or more. Council asked during the March meeting if Council could make the appointments to the two positions that would be temporarily serving in the employee positions rather than the general employee "electing" the resident member(s). Bonni Jensen, the Pension Board Attorney, strongly recommends that the resident be elected by the General Employees for the mere fact that this is an employee position and the person(s) will be representing the employees and their interests until an employee steps to the plate for the position. As Pension Coordinator, I concur with her legal opinion. Just as a quick FYI on some history of the request -Bonni does not believe having residents serve in the employee position is in the best interest of the employees; however the Pension Board approved moving forward in this manner (it is legal according to Bonni) since we are down both employee position with no employees interested (it has been posted twice now). The Pension Board felt it was important to have a full board when possible rather than limping by with three members - as you know can be very difficult. HANS4N~ PERRY S~ JENSEN~ P.A. 4OO EXECUTIVE CENTER DRIVE, SUITE 2O7 -WEST PAI.na BEACH, FLORIDA 33401-2922 JILL HANSON'" mJhanson ~ hpJlaw.com ANN H. PERRY aperry~ hp)law.com BONNI SPATARA JENSEN bsJensen®hpJlaw.com MEMORANDUM 'q~so AoMmt:D IN N.Y. To: Mr. Michael Couzzo, Jr., Village Manager Honorable Mayor and Village Council Members From: Bonni S. Jensen, Legal Counsel Hanson, Perry & Jensen, P.A. Date: April 4, 2008 Subject: Ordinance 9-08 -General Employee Pension Board Employee Elected Trustee TELEPHONE (561)686-6550 FACSIMILE (561) 666-2602 The Village General Employee Pension Board ("Board°) has had a difficult time recruiting and retaining interested Village employees to serve in the employee trustee positions on the Board. Currently, the Board is operating with three trustees; the two employee trustee positions are vacant. Both employees resigned from their trustee positions overthe pasttwo quarterly meetings. The vacancies were advertised and posted as per the Board's Administrative Rules and no employees filed letters of interest with the Clerk's Office. As a result, the General Employee Pension Board of Trustees agreed during the February, 2008 Board meeting to request the Pension Board Attorney create an ordinance to provide that a Village of Tequesta resident could serve in the employee member position(s) for a two year term if the employee trustee position is not filled after remaining vacant forthree months or more. The Board also directed that this Ordinance be presented to the Village Council. It is my understanding, through the Village staff, that the Village Council asked during the March meeting to amend the Ordinance to provide that the Village Council make the appointment of the trustee representing the employee members rather than having the general employees elect the resident who would fill the employee representative trustee position(s). If the position is not to be filled by an employee, I recommend that the resident(s) be elected by the general employees because these trustee positions are the employee representative to the Board. There are two positions on the Board of Trustees which are resident positions appointed by the Village Council. The fifth position is appointed by the other four. Mr. Michael Couzzo, Jr., Village Manager Honorable Mayor and Village Council Members April 4, 2008 Page 2 of 2 The employee representative position fills a vital role on the Board to give the employee/participant perspective on the issues facing the Board. If this position will not solely be filled by a general employee, then, at the very least, the general employees should retain the right to determine who is their representative on the Board. H:\7equesta GE 1012Nillagel~llage Council Ord 09-08.wpd ORDINANCE NO. 9-08 AN ORDINANCE OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA, PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA, AMENDING EXHIBIT "A" TO ORDINANCE NO. 585, AS AMENDED BY ORDINANCE NO. 598, WHICH IS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE IN SECTION 2-61 OF DIVISION 1 OF ARTICLE III OF CHAPTER 2 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES, VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA, PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA, RELATING TO THE EMPLOYEES' PENSION TRUST FUNDS; AMENDING EXHIBIT "A" TO PROVIDE FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF TRUSTEES TO THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES; PROVIDING FOR REPEAL OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT; PROVIDING FOR CODIFICATION; PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA, PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Those portions of Exhibit "A" to Ordinance No. 585, as amended by Ordinance No. 598, which is incorporated by reference in Section 2-61 of Division 1 of Article III of Chapter 2 of the Code of Ordinances, Village of Tequesta, Palm Beach County, Florida, as deleted and shown by strike-outs, and additions shown by bold underlining on Exhibit "A" attached hereto and made a part hereof, are passed and adopted as amendments to such Exhibits and section as follows: Section 4. Board of Trustees. 1. The sole and exclusive administration of and responsibility for the proper operation of the retirement system and for making effective the provisions of this ordinance is hereby vested in a Board of Trustees. The Board shall consist of five (5) Trustees, two (2) of whom, unless otherwise prohibited by law, shall be legal residents of the municipality, who shall be appointed by the Tequesta Village Council, and two (2) of whom shall be full-time General Employee members of the System, however, in the event that either full time General Employee position remains vacant for three months or more then the position can be filled by a legal resident of the Village of Tequesta elected by the General Employee Members of the System in accordance with the election rules established by the Board for one term. At the end of the term the position will be posted to again be filled by a full time General Employee. The fifth (5th) Trustee shall be selected by a majority vote of the other four (4) Trustees. Each person seeking to fill a designated employee representative Board member seat shall be elected by the full-time General Employee Members of the System ^^-~•~~'~~. Upon receipt of the fifth (5th) person's name the Tequesta Village Council shall, as a ministerial duty, appoint such person to the General Employee Board as its fifth (5th) Trustee. The fifth (5th) Trustee shall have the same rights as each of the other Trustees appointed or elected as herein provided and shall serve a two (2) year term unless the office is sooner vacated and may succeed himself or herself in office. Each resident Trustee shall serve as Trustee for a period of two (2) years unless sooner replaced by the Tequesta Village Council at whose pleasure the Trustee shall serve, and may succeed himself or herself as a Trustee. Each General Employee Trustee shall serve as Trustee for a period of two (2) years, unless he/she sooner leaves the employment of the Village or otherwise vacates his/her office as Trustee, whereupon a successor shall be chosen in the manner as the departing Trustee. Each employee representative Trustee may succeed himself or herself in office. The General Employee Board shall meet at least quarterly each year. The Board shall be a legal entity with, in addition to other powers and responsibilities contained herein, the power to bring and defend lawsuits of every kind, nature, and description. Section 2. Severability. if any provision of this Ordinance or the application thereof is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect the other provisions or applications of this Ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or applications, and to this end, the provisions of the Ordinance are hereby declared severable. Section 3. Repeal of Ordinances in Conflict. All other Ordinances of the Village of Tequesta, Florida, or parts thereof which conflict with this or any part of this Ordinance are hereby repealed. Section 4. Codification. This Ordinance shall be codified and made a part of the official Code of Ordinances of the Village of Tequesta. Section 5. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall take effect upon passage.