Consolidation of Services Plan

Transcription

1 Consolidation of Services Plan Allegan County Michigan 2014

2 INTRODUCTION As part of new state government requirements to improve intergovernmental cooperation throughout state and local governments, Allegan County has developed this Consolidation of Services Plan. In order to receive a portion of revenue sharing payments from the state, the County is required to present a plan with one or more proposals to increase its existing level of cooperation, collaboration, and consolidation, either within the jurisdiction or with other jurisdictions. The plan must also include a listing of any previous services consolidated with the cost savings realized from each consolidation and an estimate of the potential savings for any new service consolidations being planned. Allegan County has a long history of collaborating with its local units of government, neighboring communities, the state and other organizations. Many of the collaborative efforts have become routine business for Allegan County. Actual or estimate cost savings are documented where possible although oftentimes the benefits are not simply about saving money, but about improving and enhancing the service to our residents. PLANNED CONSOLIDATIONS FOR 2014 # Consolidation / Collaboration Name Service Area Page Aerial Imagery Partnership with Local Units of Government Land Information Services 2 2 Regional Veterans Treatment Court District Court 2 UPDATE ON PLANNED 2013 CONSOLIDATIONS # Consolidation / Collaboration Name Service Area Page 1 Food Service Inspections for Holland City Food Service Protection 3 2 Secondary Emergency Operations Center Emergency Management 3 CONSOLIDATIONS PRIOR TO 2013 # Consolidation / Collaboration Name Service Area Page Aerial Imagery Acquisition Land Information Services 4 2 Digital Parcel Mapping Land Information Services 4 3 GIS Data, Analysis and Mapping Services for Local Units of Land Information Services 4 Government 4 Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Program Environmental Protection 4 5 County-wide Public Safety Radio Narrowbanding Public Safety 5 6 Inter-agency Sharing of Equipment and Services Transportation Maintenance Facility 5 7 Michigan Works Space Lease in County Human Services Building Human Services 5 8 Allegan County Jail Inmate Work Crew Utilization for Drain Drain Maintenance 6 Maintenance 9 Allegan County Jail Inmate Work Crew Utilization at the County Animal Shelter 6 Animal Shelter 10 Community Correction Advisory Board (CCAB) Corrections 6 11 Allegan County Jail Inmate Transport Corrections 6 12 Community Mental Health (ACCMH) Transportation Transportation Services 7 13 Senior and Veteran Services Department Merge Human Services 7 14 Procurement Collaboration Purchasing 7 1

3 PLANNED CONSOLIDATIONS FOR 2014 #1 - Project Name: 2014 Aerial Imagery Acquisition Service Area: Land Information Services Partners: Allegan County, 24 townships, 7 cities and 2 villages, State of Michigan, surrounding counties Description: Allegan County plans to participate in the 2014 Michigan Statewide Authoritative Imagery and Lidar (MiSAIL) Program to acquire County-wide 6 pixel resolution color orthoimagery. For this program, the State went through a competitive bidding process to secure a multi-year contract with a vendor capable of acquiring high quality orthoimagery for a limited set of counties based on state needs and county partnerships. Counties sharing in the cost of acquisition receive acquisition priority and full access and rights of ownership to the imagery for public distribution and use in the county s geographic information system. As in years past, Allegan County will be extending a partnership opportunity to its local units of government giving them access to the imagery in return for a funding contribution. Cost Savings / Benefits: From historic bids, the acquisition of accurate, high quality digital 6 pixel orthoimagery for Allegan County would cost over $100,000 in addition to the labor costs of selecting a vendor and managing the acquisition. By partnering with the State and local units, the total cost to the County is expected to be less than $35,000 for a savings of over $65,000. Through the MiSAIL program, the State is contributing $12 per square mile (approx. $10,500 total) and by creating a multi-county acquisition that includes Barry County and Ottawa County a 17% contractor discount on base acquisition is being realized. Applying a cost sharing formula that includes a fixed partnership cost coupled with an apportionment of population, state equalized property value and land area factors, funding contributions requested from each local unit will range from $700 to $3,000 to make up the difference. Timeline: This entire project is expected to be complete by the end of Partnerships with local units will be secured starting in January, MiSAIL program participation with the State will be formalized in February, imagery acquisition is anticipated in April, and imagery delivery by October. Integration of the imagery in the county s GIS and distribution to local units should be complete by the end of the year. #2 - Project Name: Regional Veterans Treatment Court Service Area: District Court Partners: Allegan County, Van Buren County, Michigan Department of Corrections, Veterans Administration Description: In October 2013, Allegan County was awarded a grant to establish a Regional Veterans Treatment Court to provide access to justice and assistance needed and deserved by our veterans that become involved in the criminal justice system as a result of issues that developed while serving our nation either during a tour of duty or as a result of trauma (PTSD or PTBI). Since Allegan County alone is not likely to have the case volume necessary to support such a court, the court is being established as a regional court in partnership with Van Buren County. In the initial year, the court will be addressing the needs of up to 20 participants as well as collecting data to determine the further needs. Treatment for participants involves probation supervision through the Michigan Department of Corrections with case management support services provided by the Veterans Administration. Cost Savings / Benefits: The 2014 grant award is for $108,095 and will cover some costs of providing case management, treatment and support services. For program participants, the anticipated benefits include reduced substance abuse, improved mental health and assistance in rebuilding stability and positive support structures (military values, family bonds, meaningful employment, permanent housing, veteran mentors, etc.) as an alternative to regular sentencing and typical incarceration. For participating counties, it is anticipated that the increased costs of active involvement by the courts in veterans cases and associated treatment programs for participants will be offset by reduced crime, alleviated congestion in court dockets, and reduced pressure on long-term inmate housing needs at the county jails and state prisons. The administrative cost of managing a specialty court will also be reduced by having a regional specialty court as opposed to each county establishing its own court for a limited number of anticipated cases. Timeline: The Regional Veterans Treatment Court anticipates having all critical support staff and related processes in place to begin accepting participants during the 1 st quarter of Since treatment for each participant will last 18 to 24 months, a continuation grant will be pursued in 2014 to secure funding for this specialty court into

4 UPDATE ON PLANNED 2013 CONSOLIDATIONS #1 - Project Name: Food Service Inspections for Holland City Service Area: Food Service Protection Partners: Allegan County and Ottawa County Health Departments with the City of Holland. Status: Completed and fully implemented as of 5/1/2013 Description: During the first quarter of 2012, discussions began over transitioning responsibility for food service inspections within the City of Holland from a city employee planning to retire to the Allegan County Health Department. As a result of these discussions, negotiations and budgetary approvals, the Food Services Protection Division of the Allegan County Health Department took over food service inspections for the portion of the City of Holland in Allegan County as of May 2013 and will continue performing them indefinitely as required by statute. This added 41 establishments, 29 vending locations with 85 machines to the county s regular food service inspections. Other sanitarian staff conducted inspections on 10 pools and 15 day care and foster care homes for this geographic area as well. Cost Savings / Benefits: This collaboration saved the City of Holland approximately $80,000 annually as the city did not have to fill a position being vacated by a retiring full-time sanitarian. The county, with its larger staff can better balance workloads between the various required permitting and inspection programs, can be trained (and cross-trained) more efficiently and can administer the program at a lower cost. For the county, providing a broader range of similar services helps keep staff fully employed. As workloads fluctuate in any one program, resources can be more easily re-assigned. Barriers Experienced: None #2 Project Name: Secondary Emergency Operations Center Service Area: Emergency Management Partners: Allegan County and the City of Plainwell Status: Completed and fully implemented as of 1/29/2013 Description: The County s emergency operations plan identifies the need for the county to maintain a geographically separated backup emergency operations center (EOC). As of 2012, the current backup location specified was in a building within 5 miles of the primary location. Unfortunately, this arrangement did not provide for the desirable distance separation to allow for truly redundant operations between the primary and secondary centers. In the 3 rd quarter of 2012, during construction of a new facility for the City of Plainwell, the potential of using a planned conference room as a backup EOC was first discussed and then pursued. By designating space in this new location as dual purpose, both agencies were able to meet their goals and objectives in an efficient and cost effective manner. On January 29 th, 2013, a three year lease for use agreement was signed to finalize the arrangement. Cost Savings / Benefits: Allegan County lacked a facility to house a functional secondary emergency operations center at a desirable distance from the primary EOC. In pursuing this opportunity, Allegan Count realized a significant cost savings in using a local government facility over adding a new county owned facility. The City of Plainwell also received some benefit from the needed technology enhancements to the facility paid for by the county. Finally, continuity of operations was enhanced because the liability of a single event affecting the current primary and secondary EOC locations was significantly reduced. Barriers Experienced: None 3

5 CONSOLIDATIONS PRIOR TO 2013 #1 - Project Name: 2009 Aerial Imagery Acquisition Service Area: Land Information Services Partners: Allegan County, 23 townships, 7 cities and 2 villages, State of Michigan. Barry County Description: County-wide 6 pixel resolution color orthoimagery was acquired by Allegan County in April 2009 and integrated into numerous digital environments that rely on geographic information systems technology (911, assessing, transportation, etc.). It was also made available through various services provided by the county such as hardcopy maps. Imagery was shared among all partners. Cost Savings / Benefits: By sharing the imagery and the acquisition costs with partners and coordinating a multi-county acquisition with Barry County, Allegan County alone saved $88,250. In addition, each township received a copy of the imagery for +/- $3,000 and the State of Michigan received a copy of the imagery to use internally for $11,000. #2 - Project Name: Digital Parcel Mapping Service Area: County Equalization / Land Information Services Partners: Allegan County and its local units of government (24 townships, 7 cities and 2 villages). Description: In 1999, some local units contracted with the county for parcel mapping services, others contracted with their assessor or a third party. However, the county had a need to maintain parcel maps for all local units of government to support its business needs resulting in a duplication of effort. Starting in 1999 the county began digitizing its Mylar tax maps into a geographic information system from which a standardized tax map product could be generated. By 2004 all local units of government recognized the value and benefit of having the county perform tax mapping services and abandoned their local efforts. Cost Savings / Benefits: Local units of government would have to pay at least $1,000 annually to contract for parcel mapping services. Although the county charged local units a parcel maintenance fee for several years ($22,000 split between all local units of government based on parcel count), this parcel mapping fee was dropped in As a result, local units of government are saving money in contractual services, benefiting from professional mapping services provided by the county at no cost, and receiving high quality tax maps and GIS data layers to support their business needs. In addition, they are all benefiting from any improvements made to the data, products or technology. In turn, the county now has a standardized digital county-wide parcel layer that it is using to drive business processes and provide service delivery at a significantly reduced cost. #3 - Project Name: GIS Data, Analysis and Mapping Services for Local Units of Government Service Area: Land Information Services Partners: Allegan County and its local units of government (24 townships, 7 cities and 2 villages). Description: Since inception in 1999, over a million dollars worth of data has been acquired and developed by the County in the county s geographic information system, some of it in partnership with local units of government. Access to these data is provided to local units through a free GIS browser at a nominal cost for set-up. Local units also have access to GIS analysis and mapping services performed by professional GIS trained staff at the county thorough a fee for service program at very reasonable rates. They use this service for zoning and future land use maps, to map custom datasets, analyze whatif scenarios based on geography, and get maps to support grant applications and development projects. Cost Savings / Benefits: Few local units of government in the county have the population, tax base or business need to support developing an independent GIS capacity. Instead, they realize great savings by having access to the county s trained staff and the county s GIS when they need it. Any product or solution developed for one local unit can be easily provided to any other local unit without any additional development cost or profit taking. Exact savings realized by local units are difficult to quantify. #4 - Project Name: Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Program Service Area: Environmental Protection Partners: Allegan County and its local units of government (24 townships, 7 cities and 2 villages). 4

6 Description: Allegan County has an established a county-wide Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance intended to protect the health, safety and welfare of the community by regulating earth change activities, which can harm the environment through erosion and the unnatural accumulation of sediment. From 1974 to 1990 soil erosion permitting and inspections were carried out by drain office staff. In 1990 soil erosion permitting and inspection responsibilities were subcontracted by the county through a local service provider. In 2007, the county transferred authority for this program from the Office of the Drain Commissioner to the Environmental Health Services Division of the County Health Department and re-assigned soil erosion and permitting responsibilities to the county s sanitarians. Cost Savings / Benefits: In creating and administering a county-wide ordinance, the county eliminated the need for each township and city to invest resources to issue soil erosion permits and conduct follow-up inspections. Transitioning the program to the Health Department in 2007 benefited customers by consolidating more permitting functions in one service area (sanitarians also issue well and septic permits), while reducing overall administrative costs. There is also an efficiency aspect to conducting follow-up inspections as the sanitarians are already out in the field on a daily basis inspecting wells and septic systems. #5 - Project Name: County-wide Public Safety Radio Narrowbanding Service Area: Public Safety Partners: Central Dispatch, Local Emergency Service Providers (Fire, Ambulance, Police) Description: In 2004, the FCC set a deadline of January 1, 2013 requiring all wideband radio frequency equipment to begin using narrowband technology. In 2012, Allegan County Central Dispatch completed a county-wide collaborative project for the coordinated replacement of non-compliant equipment in use among 20 local fire departments as well as the re-programming of all radio towers and communication equipment to operate in the required narrowband frequencies. Cost Savings / Benefits: Central Dispatch coordinated the inventory of existing radio equipment in use by local fire departments and used that information to issue a single request for proposals for narrowbanding conversion services including the replacement of 230 radios and 125 pagers as well as the re-programming of 90 existing radios and 400 existing pagers. Competitive bidding on this quantity of equipment saved on individual unit cost although exact cost savings are difficult to quantify. Centralized project management, coordination and troubleshooting also created efficiencies. Collaboration also minimized the number of equipment types in the field and ensured a general level of standardization. #6 - Project Name: Inter-agency Sharing of Equipment and Services Service Area: County Transportation Maintenance Facility Partners: Allegan County Transportation and the City of Allegan Description: The City of Allegan and the Allegan County Transportation services area developed a partnership to share certain equipment and services as needed. Equipment and services that have been shared include vehicle diagnostic equipment; a tire changer and wheel balancer; vehicle air conditioner repair equipment; street weeping of indoor vehicle storage and parking lot areas; and sewer cleanout equipment to pump out and flush interior floor drains in vehicle storage area. Cost Savings / Benefits: Through this partnership, both agencies have reduced the need for purchasing duplicate sets of infrequently used equipment and save costs through the exchange of in-kind services. #7 - Project Name: Michigan Works Space Lease in County Human Services Building Service Area: Human Services Partners: Allegan County and Michigan Works Description: In 2011, the county negotiated a lease agreement with the Michigan Works program for space in the County s Human Services Building. The County s Human Services Building houses several other agencies that provide complementary services to those provided by Michigan Works. These include County Development, Health Department, Senior and Veteran Services and the local office of the State Department of Human Services. Cost Savings / Benefits: Leasing underutilized space in the Human Services Building to Michigan Works is contributing state funds in the amount of $55,000 annually to help maintain and cover the operational costs of the county owned facility. Housing Michigan Works in the Human Services Building has also centralized the location of agencies providing human services to county residents and thereby improved accessibility to the public at a single location. 5

7 #8 - Project Name: Allegan County Jail Inmate Work Crew Utilization for Drain Maintenance Service Area: County Drain Maintenance Partners: Allegan County Corrections and the Allegan County Drain Commission Description: Allegan County jail inmate work crews (Weekend Alternative Sentencing Program and Inmate DEBT S Work Crew Program) perform manual labor functions to help maintain county drains free of debris at a reduced cost for the Allegan County Drain Commission. Cost Savings / Benefits: Allegan County inmate work crews are able to earn time off their sentence by participating with the Allegan County Sheriff s Office inmate programs division. Weekend Crew participants earn 1 day off for every 2 days that they participate. Inmate DEBT S Crew participants earn 1 day off for every 3 days that they participate. Between the two programs, 1,335 bed days were saved at the Allegan County Jail between 10/1/2011 and 9/20/2012 at a savings of $35.00 per day for a total of $46,725. Savings for the Allegan County Drain Commission are achieved through the discounted labor cost as the Allegan County Drain Commission pays $3.50 per inmate per hour. The costs associated with this program charged to the Drain Commission help pay wages for the work crew supervisors and equipment maintenance costs. #9 - Project Name: Allegan County Jail Inmate Work Crew Utilization at the County Animal Shelter Service Area: Allegan County Animal Shelter Partners: Allegan County Corrections, Allegan County Animal Shelter and the Wishbone Non-profit Agency Description: Allegan County jail inmate work crews (Weekend Alternative Sentencing Program and Inmate DEBT S Work Crew Program) perform manual labor functions to help maintain the Allegan County Animal Shelter and the animals housed there free of charge on a daily basis. Cost Savings / Benefits: Allegan County inmate work crews are able to earn time off their sentence by participating with the Allegan County Sheriff s Office inmate programs division. Weekend Crew participants earn 1 day off for every 2 days that they participate. Inmate DEBT S Crew participants earn 1 day off for every 3 days that they participate. On a daily basis, 3 inmates from the DEBT s Crew are sent to the Allegan County Animal Shelter to perform up to 8 hours of manual labor functions per day, Mondays through Fridays. Saturdays and Sundays they are there with the weekend crew (totaling up to 8 to 9 inmates) for up to 4 hours each day. Savings to the daily operation of the Allegan County Animal Shelter are achieved through the free labor cost. #10 - Project Name: Community Correction Advisory Board (CCAB) Service Area: Allegan County Corrections Partners: Allegan County, Sheriff s Office, State Of Michigan, MDOC Probation Parole Dept., Allegan County Prosecutor s Office, 48 th Circuit Court, 57 th District court, 48 th Circuit Family Court Division, 57 th District Court Probation Dept., Allegan County Board of Commissioners, Dan Pepper (Allegan New & Gazette), Mr. Bart Shaw (SCRAB), Mr. Tom Schaap (Business Owner) Description: Allegan County Community Correction Advisory Board (CCAB), comprised of the above listed partners and stakeholders have collaborated to address jail crowding issues and appropriate jail utilization through programming in the Allegan County Jail. Cost Savings / Benefits: With the combined effort of the Allegan County CCAB Board, 8,569 bed days were saved last year at the Allegan County Jail. With the Average Cost of $35.00 per day to house an inmate, almost $300, was saved due to this collaboration. #11 - Project Name: Allegan County Jail Inmate Transport Service Area: Allegan County Corrections Partners: The Allegan County and Ottawa County Jail inmate Transport Divisions Description: The Allegan County and Ottawa County Jail inmate Transport Divisions frequently collaborate in the transportation of inmates between the two counties. Cost Savings / Benefits: Transporting inmates between the two facilities requires a round trip of approximately 1 ¾ hours costing approximately $43.75 in officer wages. When transporting high risk / maximum security inmates, this cost can 6

8 double because a secondary officer is needed. In addition, fuel costs about $20.00 per round trip. Allegan County frequently contacts Ottawa County to consolidate necessary trips between the two neighboring agencies. Depending on the circumstances and daily schedules, if Allegan County has inmates in Ottawa awaiting pick up, Ottawa Deputies may bring these inmates to Allegan instead of requiring Allegan Deputies to pick them up and vice-versa. Inmate transport between counties is coordinated almost daily between the two Transportation Division supervisors and their staff. #12 - Project Name: Allegan County Community Mental Health (ACCMH) Transportation Service Area: Allegan County Transportation Services Partners: Allegan County Transportation and Allegan County Community Mental Health Description: All regular Transportation service provided by ACCMH were gradually consolidated under Allegan County Transportation between 2005 to All clients are now able to use public transportation eliminating duplication of services and making expenditures for the purchase and maintenance of transportation vehicles more efficient. Clients also get non-agency transit services. Cost Savings / Benefits: The consolidation reduced the average hourly cost to ACCMH for transportation services and eliminated the need for an annual capital investment. Annual operational costs savings vary, but initially there was a reduction in cost to ACCMH of over $400,000. Additional services to the citizens were also created. #13 - Project Name: Senior Services and Veteran Services Department Merge Service Area: Human Services Partners: Allegan County's Department of Senior Services and Department of Veteran Services. Description: In 2011, the Department of Senior Services was combined with the Department of Veteran Services to form a single department with the Director of Senior Services providing leadership and support to the entire staff. Cost Savings / Benefits: Senior services staff received accreditation for providing veteran services in October of 2011 increasing the number of full-time Veteran Services Officers from one to three. Through consolidation discussions, it was discovered that a large percentage of clients were eligible for both seniors and veterans benefits. Through cross-training, the team is now able to serve shared clients in one appointment instead of two and there are now two Medicare and Medicaid Assistance Program counselors on staff instead of just one. Without any significant changes to the county budget, clients needs are now met quickly and efficiently through a comprehensive plan of care that leverages all available programs and resources. As a final benefit, consolidation has enabled staff to identify clients that have been receiving benefits through the seniors millage that are eligible to receive similar benefits through VA programs that provide Aid and Attendance to older Veterans and their spouses. Transferring these clients to benefits under the VA program is preserving senior millage funds for clients who are not eligible for VA benefits. #14 - Project Name: Procurement Collaboration Service Area: County Purchasing Partners: Allegan, Kent and Ottawa Counties Description: In 2009, Kent County set-up and began using an online reverse auction system for the purchase of various items needed by the county. In 2011, Kent County invited Ottawa and Allegan counties to use the system they had created. Since then, the system has grown to a three-county procurement collaboration where each county benefits from the growth of using the system collectively. Cost Savings / Benefits: Using a reverse auction system for the procurement of bulk generic products and equipment has proven very effective for Allegan County. Over the past two years, Allegan County has saved over $15,000 using the reverse auction system for our annual PC replacement plan. In addition to this, Allegan County continues to experience a 15% savings over our traditional purchasing methods. 7