October, 2015 and its been more than a year and thank you and thank you to the fellow i havent met and name with of i would screw up and would just say thank you. I would assume the website continues to evolve as things change that they are highlighted interest persons meetings, draft, all kind of fun stuff. It will be great. I also assume particularly with the translated materials and disabled user enhancements there is coordination with ocea and Mayors Office on disability, so whatever the city standards for translation and for accessibility are used here and that were not sort of doing our own thing . And just finally to the extent that the staff learns both through feedback and experience what works for outreach, if that is useful to be shared with other city departments. So its not like you are doing it well and the puc and port arent. If you are doing it well, share it with others and hopefully everyone can be up to the high Steven Massey standard and im encouraged to hear about the larry Bush Development corporation. That is a positive development. [laughter ]. Any other Public Comment . I have been requested to take a 10minute break and well come back and complete the agenda. Recommendations for fiscal 18 and 19. Good evening commissioners, yes item no. 9 is presented to you for your consideration and possible action this evening related to the development of our budget submission, which all departments are required to submit this year, february 21st to the Mayors Office. I would note that the commissions next regular meeting is february 27th and so wanting to make sure you had an opportunity to weighin on policy direction for when our budget submission should look like. I put together a report that reflects the staffs recommendation where we are at this point in our development and our progress toward as achieving the blueprint that is approved by the mayor and board of supervisors and adopting the fy17 budget. So i wanted to walk through briefly the key areas as we see them and our hope this would be a frame work with recommendations that the commission would be supportive of that would give direction to me and staff to prepare the document to submit next month in accordance unlike last years blueprint for accountability we have estimates in this budget and we would want to take advantage of time and i will get into that in a few minutes to make sure the numbers were looking at are as accurate as possible, based on policy direction you give us this evening. With that, i will walk through a recap. First of all, last year, which the commission submitted its budget, i had understood that it was a request for a twoyear budget cycle. As it turns out, were not on what is called a fixed 2year budget as a department, unlike some departments are and the city apparently. So our office like many are required to submit a budget for the coming fiscal year and fy18 and 19 together, which in a mind is not a bad thing with a year of experience at stafflevel to reflect on what our continuing resource needs are, and where we best need to apply Additional Resources in the coming year to continue to try and meet the goals that the commission established last year. The areas that were intended to guide our work. We have talked about organizational efficiencies and more Effective Enforcement Program and supporting compliance with stronger information for those who are required to comply with our laws. And a strengthened policy direction. When he look back at the year we establish a number of key pieces for that blueprint to be furthered development. As this document reflects where we still have work to do and those are the recommendations that i would like to highlight for you. The first is that when we look at our recommendations overall, one the key recommendations that we have its important to align our staff positions and resources with the nature of the work that we actually have to do. What that translates to in specific terms is a request for two new positions. That i believe are necessary to provide the level of oversight daytoday in management of our programs. In our Core Education and outreach work, and in our Audit Programs. Im proposing that we recommend two Senior Administrative analysts, each of whom would be tasked with oversee and working with the daytoday Program Delivery of our education and Campaign Finance lobbying and ethics arena and also to strengthen our Audit Program. But we realize when we do that were looking at delays that we need to correct and part of this, i think, needs to have Additional Resources to support the daytoday management of the program. What we find as we have in many Program Areas when we have to have staff multitasking too much, were not able to focus on the work that they need to do because they have got split responsibilities. So one of the key areas is recommending that we have that appropriate level of staffing that can actually manage programs. The classification of the positions need to match supervisory and programmatic responsibilities that we have and that is not currently what we have and we have challenges delivering the services that are core to our function. Secondly, i think its probably clear to you and many in the room that the commission had a significant underfunding of the tools and training and Staff Development resources that again the work were doing really does require. This budget framework proposing to change that historic underfunding by recognizing through specific line items that have not existed todate, things like improved outreach and Training Resources for our staff, ongoing investments that are required in our technology to make sure we achieve the policy goals that new legislation proposed is proposing to accomplish. So this is an area where technology, we are looking at things like Case Management software. So we can better track our enforcement cases. That we can better use that information to monitor our own work and to understand where were coming into pinch points . As were increasing our staff and have more robust investigations and enforcement and more serious cases we really need to be able to track that information, and spreadsheets are probably not the best way to go about doing that. So looking at jurisdictions like the fppc to see where we might be able to find programs that will help us . That is again getting our work up to the level that it needs to be to do the work that were required to do. That for example is initially estimated to be perhaps 20,000 onetime cost. In addition the report notes the variety of policy initiatives that have been either adopted or are being recommended by the board of supervisors so far where there has not been funding in the ordinance, in the legislation, to enable the Disclosure Requirements to happen in an online setting. We know that technology that disclosures are really only as good as the filers ability to complete the requirement easily, and as ensuring its easy for the public to access that information. Transparency through Online Filing tools is critical in our view and need to make sure that any ordinance that may be proposing or enacting changes actually comes with the resources to enable our system to be modified to accommodate the expectation that we create by having new laws and new Disclosure Requirements on the books. When we look at some of the recent policy initiatives initiated with my the board were estimating a ballpark of 150,000 for fy18 to accomplish implement those. We had a conversation about translations. One of the things that we have not done a good job at historically is identifying line items and cost its will help us translate our information to communities that may not have english as first language we have identified ballpark of 5,000 a year that would enable us to [skpapb ] expand on a regular basis that on line is updated as they need to be, working with the appropriate offices in the city to do that. We have sort of had to play catchup over the past years with where is that money going to come from . Its a pressing need and to continue to reach out to a Broader Community its important to have the resources in the budget and funded to reflect that work and to support that work. In our Staff Development and training again having the right staff positions is critical and having the right staff with the right skills and training and refreshers is really christ. Critical. Jessica and i know at the council on governmental ethics law a tremendous resource for our staff to understand and build up skills and auburn new ideas and making sure that we have some staff each year attend the conference something in my judgment is very important for our agency. And also providing the kinds of skills training, onboarding for new investigators, deposition training is one of the things that jessica identified for new investigators who come onboard some of these may be onetime costs and other areas where we have identified 1,000 a year, for example, per staff person to go and really strengthen their skill areas is something that we would like to identify. We have identified some specific areas, but we also need to take a hard look at supporting staff in recruiting exceptioning and keeping exceptional staff. In the third area is something that is a bit broader question that were trying to get a handle on over the next month. Im not interested in coming to you with a blank check request. But i think its important to recognize that as we have expanded our staffing, to 22, we have now saturated our existing office with one Conference Room. If we were appropriated and authorized for two additional people were asking the bottomline for that space to make sure that we have the space with the work were required to do. So were thinking big and we know that may be a longer term effort, but in my view its important once you have the right people and right skills to doing right work to have the kind of support to deliver the kind of work in the way that we expect it. So that going that were going to talk to the department of real estate and other departments in the city to understand what that involves and what those costs are. Its something that needs to be recognized as a cost and cannot be an afterthought. It will mean were hampered in perhaps expanding our staff to the right level simply because we dont have chairs to put people in. So i want to think big and pressing for the idea to have appropriate staff for staff and training and for the work that were required to do. Lastly i want to come back to a fourth point and that is making sure that we continue to extend the use that we have been planning to be Key Performance indicators. One thing were happy about to track in baseline ways for example, our enforcement caseload. How old those cases are and what nature they are . That has been critical for us to ask questions for whether were going about the work in best way . It enables the public to ask questions and enables you to have proper oversight and ask questions. We need to expand that kind of process to all of our areas, when we start restaffing in some new area. So those are the kind of indicators that we need to develop and put in place, so we can tell the public and you all, how we are using these very important dollars to accomplish the goals that voters have set for us and we believe that is going to be an important piece of it, too. We dont want that to get lost. Its something that we have started to do but not seen through because of competing priorities, but were committed to in the coming year. Because we know that the city has very important choices where its spending its money and well hopefully be able to make the pitch in the next months budget with your approval. That this is the sort of budget that we need to continue to build on. So that we can see our work through in the way that we have identified and the vision that you set forth last year. So that a bit of an overview. I would say in sum, the request that were looking for at this point is approximately 513,000 for fy18 and approximately 338,000 in fy19. Again, ballpark subject to some refinement, but to give you a sense that is about 15 increase and about 10 increase based on current operating budget figures. So i just wanted to give that you overview and happy to answer any questions that you and get your direction for next months policy submission. What surplus is present in the budget that supposedly we were going to have four investigators onboard. We dont have any of them, and maybe it will be march . So that for a period of from july to march we didnt pay any salaris for those. Does that result in our having a pot that we can shift over to 18 . No. In 18 . No, unfortunately it didnt work that way. If departments are saving money one year, its the useitorlose it. To use it for other appropriate functions well do that. But its clear that when we have salary savings, that is not a question of whether were going to fill the positions, but a question of when . They are all ontrack and i dont want to get ahead of myself, because i was hoping to talk about that during the executive directors report, but its something that affects our enforcement work, as well as our work generally. The delay and time it takes to hire staff. Im just curious in terms of what we budgeted for 1617, we arent going to be paying the salary amounts that we budgeted. And you say that just goes by the board. So well have spent less money than we were authorized . Can we use that as any kind of carry to the city and saying look, we didnt spend all the money we had, so we ought to get some more . Unfortunately i dont think they see its a carrot and i will make available to you and the public what is our salary savings. We went through the exercise of our salary savings and encumbrances and some costs we have been deferring. To the extent that some of the costs are deferred are appropriate to be used through salary savings we with do that. I want to make sure i have that information, but i dont have it and dont want to state it inaccurate. For example, there is 20,000 worth of Case Management software that would be a potential expense in fy18 would that be pulled forward . I think its possible if we identify it and i want to make sure that the salary savings can be used for that function . I dont have that information sitting here, because i know there are some restrictions what that money can be used for. I think last month when the commission heard from the mayors budget analyst, there was recognition that the fact that we have not been yet able to fill positions does not sound like that is going to be held against us in terms of obviously you didnt need those positions . I think there is wide recognition that the process of city has to go through nonexempt positions which is more than half of what we have been hiring and there is a process and time it does take. So weve been able for example, to use salary savings this year to bring onboard through a work order a senior personnel analyst from the department of Human Resources who is dedicated solely to our departments hiring processes for the next six months. So we have been able to use again, i dont want to misstate the dollar amount, but using significant amount of salary savings to pay for someone who primes the pumps to get that staff in the door. I had a question about the guidance that the Mayors Office has provided about the possible 3 reduction. What is concerning to me is that were just Getting Started with this new fy17 budget and trying to hire the four additional ftes, and that if the 3 reduction is going to be required, that would effectively eliminate half of those; right . And i would suggest in the budget submission that we put forward, i think it would be unwise for the city to require us to eliminate those positions. The biggest savings that we would have is from staff positions. Because i think it would send a terrible message to the people of San Francisco that well give you money in fy17 and take it away one year later and that means they are not serious about ethics and i dont think that is the message that the city wants to send and i dont think that is what the mayor certainly believes. But by virtue of requiring across the board 3 reduction, in that passion, that fashion that is in effect what will happen. And second two ftes you mention on page 3, that would be two new positions. So that would bring the total staff count from 22 to 24, is that correct . Correct. Okay. That would be the cost of 500 and change in fy18 and 338, so all of these initiatives. So the net effect would be an additional to the budget. At this point what we have identified. Commissioner keane, i just want to associate myself with commissioner chius observations and i agree with her very strongly in records to that regards to not allowing any of those cuts to take place and im sure you are up on it, but you are still somewhat new to the city in terms of the games played in the budget process in the Mayors Office and board of supervisors and commissioner kopp longterm member of the board of supervisors. You have some confidence that the mayor is not going to look at the salary savings because we havent used the positions. You have some confidence that the mayor is not going to do that. That is great. Probably your confidence is correct. But you have to watch out for the board. Because the board, they cant add to anything, but they can cut. And so when particularly they see harvey roses office and they havent used that and you are likely going to have a recommendation from the Budget Analysts Office that they havent used it and they will cut it and maybe i dont presume, if i am, to be lecturing you on something that you already covered you may want to start lobbying the budget analyst, and getting in the ear of the budget analyst for the board in aspect of not snatching away that part of your budget, our budget that has not been spent because oh, well you didnt spend it,