Regular Finance Committee Meeting - Last Monday Mon, Sep 22, 2025 · Finance Committee https://santafeminutes.space/meeting/296 == Executive Summary == The Finance Committee held a meeting where they approved the agenda and a modified consent agenda. A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to discussing and approving a collective bargaining agreement with AFSCME Local 3999, which includes multiple salary increases, retention incentives, and enhanced benefits for employees. The committee also recognized Destiny Duran, Fiscal Administrator, for her outstanding work. Another key discussion revolved around an intergovernmental agreement for over $1.6 million with the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions. This funding is earmarked for homelessness response initiatives, specifically the relocation and repurposing of the 2801 CROS facility, which currently serves as a homeless shelter. The committee approved this grant, which will support shelter operations, street outreach, and site improvements, with plans to issue a competitive bid for future shelter services. == Key Decisions == - Approved the collective bargaining agreement with AFSCME Local 3999, which includes salary increases, a retention incentive, and enhanced benefits. - Approved an intergovernmental agreement for $1,642,023 with the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions to fund shelter operations, street outreach, site improvements, and neighborhood cleanliness activities related to homelessness response, including the relocation and repurposing of the 2801 CROS facility. == Motions & Votes == - Motion to approve the agenda — Passed unanimously. - Motion to approve the consent agenda (as amended) — Passed unanimously. - Motion to approve the collective bargaining agreement with AFSCME Local 3999 — Passed unanimously (Councilor Casset, Lindell, Faulkner, Lee Garcia, and Chair Marworth voted "Yes"). - Motion to approve the item related to the $1.6 million grant from the Department of Workforce Solutions — Passed unanimously (4-0). == Public Comment == Chair Marworth congratulated and expressed appreciation for the extensive work involved in reaching the collective bargaining agreement with AFSCME Local 3999. Director Oster and committee members praised Destiny Duran, Fiscal Administrator, for her dedication, problem-solving skills, and critical role in the Finance Department. == Topics == - Homelessness Response Funding - AFSCME Collective Bargaining Agreement - Relocation of Homeless Shelter - Employee Recognition - Human Resources Operations - Agenda Approval - Meeting Logistics == Full Transcript == Madame Chair, Councilor Romero, we are live. Thank you. We are waiting for one councilor to arrive. He will be excused until he returns. But in the meantime, it is 5:03, so I am going to call this meeting to order. If we could get a roll call, please. Absolutely. Councilor Casset, here. Councilor Linda. Councilor Faulkner is excused. She is, but keep an eye out for her on Zoom. She's excused until she arrives. Got it. And same with Councilor Lee Garcia. Councilor Lee Garcia will be in the chambers and he's excused until he gets here. Okay. And Chair Marworth. I am here. Okay. Madam Chair, you do have a quorum. Okay. And since I have a quorum and I have no one on Zoom, I am going to see if we have any changes to the agenda. If not, can I get a motion to approve? We have a motion and a second to approve tonight's agenda. All those in favor? Aye. Anybody opposed? That motion passes. The consent agenda, I did pull two items. Do we have any other changes besides the items that were pulled? No changes from staff, Madam Chair. Okay. And I pulled, help me out, Director Oster, I pulled... Madam Chair, items, you pulled item 6J and item 6R. Okay, so J and R. Is there anything else the committee is interested in talking about tonight? If not, is there a motion to approve as amended? We have a second. We have a motion and a second to approve the consent agenda as amended. All those in favor? Aye. Anybody opposed? That motion passes. From there, we'll go to presentations. Director Oster, I believe you have a staff member you'd like to recognize, and I'll turn it over to you. Yes, I do, Madam Chair. I just received a text from Councilor Faulkner asking me to send her the Zoom link for the meeting. So, I'm going to do that real quick. Okay. Thank you. All right, Madam Chair. Sorry for the delay. I am ready. All right. Well, tonight it is my pleasure to recognize Destiny Duran. Destiny works with me in the finance administration part of the finance department. It is not an understatement to say that Destiny keeps things going. Destiny and Armenia are frequently together, but over the last week and a half or so, Destiny's been flying solo, and I have leaned on her very heavily. I always do under normal circumstances, but the last week and a half and the remainder of this week, I've been definitely asking even more than usual of Destiny. In addition to helping, for example, put together events, we had a staff retreat on September 12th that Destiny was really key to helping plan, and it was a great success. So, in addition to doing that kind of work, Destiny ensures that we have POs in place and that all of our bills get paid for the finance department for our vendors. She processes travel. One of the things that I'm really proud of for finance is that over the last couple of years, we've been able to send a lot of staff members to a variety of different trainings out of state. There's a heavy administrative workload involved with travel before, during, and after. So Destiny is a key person who's part of that process. One specific accomplishment there, back in May, the Munis training, we had an issue with hotels. The hotel that we had booked for some of our employees that were traveling to the Mun conference in San Antonio called us at the last minute and said, "Oh, sorry. We're doing some renovations. We can't accommodate your team." We said, "What? We booked this months ago." So Destiny was able to work with management of that hotel, and not only did they find us rooms at a different hotel, the hotel that canceled on us paid for them. So that was what, $15,000 that we saved because of that. It was certainly a very stressful situation. It happened just maybe what, 48 hours or less before they were supposed to leave. The travelers were leaving on their trip. So Destiny's great in a tight spot, in terms of not getting too overwhelmed and just making sure things are continuing to get done, coming up with solutions. In terms of Destiny's bio, she's a dedicated finance fiscal administrator with a strong background in finance and administrative management. She has expertise in overseeing contracts, travel policies, and day-to-day administrative operations. Destiny ensures compliance, efficiency, and financial accountability across all areas of responsibility. Known for strong organizational skills and attention to detail, she plays a key role in supporting operational goals and maintaining fiscal integrity within the City of Santa Fe. So that is all very true. As I said in the examples that I gave, Destiny does so many things all the time. Many balls in the air, always juggling and dealing with crises as they come up and generally just staying calm in difficult situations and getting stuff done, coming up with solutions. So, I particularly wanted to recognize Destiny right now, where she's really stepping in to help me with preparing for this meeting, for example. Committee liaison work is something else that I didn't mention, but the effort that goes in in the week preceding a finance committee meeting to prepare the agenda, to ensure that the packets are complete, that everything is ready so that we can have the meeting and that all the documents are ready, it takes a lot of time and effort, and Destiny did like 99.9% of that for this meeting. So, I could go on. Destiny is a key member of the FIN finance team, and I'm really glad to have you as part of the team, and it's my pleasure to recognize you this evening. I am very honored to present this certificate of appreciation to Destiny C. Duran, which is given in appreciation for performance, service, and dedication to the City of Santa Fe Finance Department. And I made this one myself. Normally Armenia and Destiny make these, but this one I made because it's for Destiny. So, yes, that's right. That's right. So, thank you so much, Destiny. I don't know if there's anything that you want to say. Yeah. And don't feel like you need to. That's a very nice tribute. Congratulations and thank you for all you do. I really appreciate all your work, and I think these moments that the director takes to recognize staff members for the work that they're doing that's really critical is a wonderful piece. So nice to meet you and congratulations. I don't think we would be here in such an organized way tonight if it weren't for Destiny's work last week. So that's, thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Destiny. Madam Chair, that's all I have for tonight for a presentation. Can you see if Councilor Faulkner has joined us in the waiting room? Yes, Madam Chair. Let me look here. And Michael, if you're hearing us in the back, can you look as well and see if you see Councilor Folk? I don't yet. Okay, let's just keep an eye out for her if she joins. Just let's get her in the meeting as fast as possible. All right, we're going to go on to our consent agenda. Item J, request for approval of a collective bargaining agreement with Local 3999, City of Santa Fe Employees of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 18, AFL CIO. We do not have Director Salazar here tonight, but I think she'll be at the governing body meeting on Wednesday night. I'm going to let you all introduce yourselves. I pulled this item because I think it's an important opportunity for you all to tell us about what this contract represents. I want to say congratulations to all who have been involved and negotiators on both sides. This has been something that we have been wanting to do, I think, since I was first elected. So to have a new contract, a new agreement ready to be approved is a really big deal, and I'm just thrilled to see this coming forward. It's really important for the workers that make the city run, and I'm just delighted to see this coming forward. So I pulled it not because I have questions, but because I wanted to give you all an opportunity to speak to it, and I wanted to thank you for all the work that's gone into this because it has been a long journey, and it's an important piece of work. So, with that, I don't know you. I'll let you introduce yourself, and of course, I do know your colleague, and I'll just turn it over to you, and if you could tell us a little bit about what this item is and, sorry, you got to, yeah. And then really talk right into it, otherwise people watching on Zoom can't hear you. Thank you. I think that's better. Okay. Good evening. My name is Sarah Boler Gonzalez. I am the Assistant Director of Human Resources. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to present information regarding the request for approval of the collective bargaining agreement between AFSCME Local 3999. In your packet, you will find the details that led to the agreement. Both parties worked diligently to reach an agreement that is beneficial to AFSCME employees and the city. Some of the highlights are AFSCME employees will receive the second hybrid parity increase, the 3% salary increase, the third hybrid parity increase, and a $1,000 retention incentive for employees who agree to remain employed with the city for at least six months, effective September 27th, 2025, if approved by governing body. AFSCME employees will also receive the fourth and final hybrid parity increase in December 2025. The agreement also includes increases to shift differential, increasing swing shift from $1 to $1.45 an hour and graveyard shift from $1.75 to $1.95 per hour. Tool allowances have been increased from $400 to $700 for employees who are required to own and maintain tools to perform their work. Uniform allowance has been increased from up to $500 to up to $700. Safety footwear has been increased from $200 to $400 per year for those employees required to wear safety footwear. Finally, upgrades have been made to the bilingual incentive pay program, which includes increasing the incentive from $40 to $100 per month for employees who demonstrate Spanish speaking proficiency, as well as adding a new level of bilingual incentive of $140 per month for employees who demonstrate Spanish speaking, reading, and writing proficiency. We are excited about these changes as they will help with the recruitment and retention of great AFSCME employees. With that, I stand for questions. Thank you, and thank you for that. Just want to understand where we are in the process. The union has ratified this. So, all that's left to make a contract is for the governing body to approve this, and we'll be doing that Wednesday night. It's on the agenda, I believe. Correct. Madam Chair, that is correct. So they have agreed. Now we need to agree on behalf of the city to make this contract official. Madam Chair, that is correct. Okay. Well, again, I just wanted to hear a little bit about it. I don't know if there are other questions from the committee. If not, is there a motion? We have a motion and a second to approve this item. Again, congratulations. Do we have Councilor Faulkner yet? Yes, I'm here, Chairwoman. Okay, great. I wasn't seeing you on the list here. So, we'll do a roll call then, which we would have done anyway, I guess. Thank you, Madam Chair. Councilor Casset. Yes. Councilor Lindell. Councilor Faulkner: Yes. Councilor Lee Garcia: Yes. Chair: Yes. Motion passes. Okay. Thank you for being here tonight. Really appreciate it. Okay. The second item that was pulled, item R, I believe we have Director Ammon Paul on Zoom. This is a request for approval of intergovernmental agreement number 26-631-111-00008 with the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions in the amount of $1,642,023 to support shelter operations, street outreach, site improvements, and neighborhood cleanliness activities related to the city's homelessness response. As I said, we do have our Community Health and Safety Director on Zoom, Mr. Director Hammond Paul. Thank you for joining us tonight. Again, I pulled this item mostly for information. This is, I think, an important grant that we are signing, and there's some important work going on to continue our efforts in this area. So, Director, I just wanted to give you an opportunity to speak to this tonight. Director: Madam Chair, counselors, can you all hear me okay? Chair: We can. Thank you. Director: Excellent. Thank you so much for accommodating me being on Zoom tonight. It was unanticipated parental duties, so thanks for your flexibility there. So, I guess to start, this is really exciting, right? Usually, the city is in the place of finding ourselves reaching into our own coffers to support some really key initiatives that we want to see, especially in the realm of homelessness. And this finds the shoe on the other foot, so to speak, where we are now going to be getting $1.6 million from the Department of Workforce Solutions to support a handful of initiatives, all of which are actually directly related to the special governing body session we had on, I want to say, June 3rd, 2025. So, just as a little bit of background, in the lead-up to the governing body decision and vote to transition operators for 2801 CROS, my department and I contacted the state asking if they would be interested and able to support us in these critical initiatives focusing on health and safety in our community. With enormous thanks to the Department of Workforce Solutions, they agreed and really bought into the vision and an idea that we had of using this up as an opportunity for the city to make good on a promise and an idea that we had been talking about for quite some time, at least as long as my tenure with the city, which is about a year at this point. So, what that is, is that we've all kind of, or there's been a lot of discussion that we need these services in our city. That's in some ways a non-negotiable. We have an immense amount of need. But the question of where is always paramount, and that location is what I would call no longer fit for purpose. It's too small. It's in a not an ideal location. The surrounding neighborhood has felt a lot of the burden of the kind of spillover effects that we are at this moment actually seeing a reduction in. We've seen reductions in calls for service since the new operator took possession of the building on July 31st. So, basically, what this funding does is it allows the city to replenish some of our own funding that we've already committed to this effort. And it also helps us with making good on a commitment that we are interested in seeing, which is putting the services out for an RFP. We entered into an emergency contract with Urban Alchemy, and that really is a one-year emergency contract. We're going to be putting that out for competitive bid. And we want to move the location and see this building used for something that's going to be another critical piece of our community, but one that maybe has a little bit of a different flavor, such as, for instance, maybe a daycare center or some other institution that will serve our community, or maybe it's a private business. So, a key clause in this funding is that the city works, and this is again something that we're already working to do, which is that we work to have a plan to vacate the premise and then also make good on that plan. So, you'll see those two clauses as part of the agreement. We need to relocate the shelter to a more suitable facility, and we want to repurpose that space for something that really benefits the community, whether again it be a business or some other kind of pro-social community-serving function. I can pause there and ask for questions or take any questions that you all have, and I can also dive in a little deeper to parts of the agreement if that's of value. Chair: Okay. Thank you. I appreciate that background. I think it's important. I want to make sure that the community is aware of this grant. I think it is, as you say, exciting and important because it does validate the direction the city has been moving in and also brings to us the ability to look at how we might repurpose this site and where it might be better suited to put it in the community where, hopefully, it can continue to provide the service. I think you're right, the service is still something we need, and it's obviously been clear that the location has been problematic for some time. So, I think this is an exciting development in continuing to address homelessness in our community, and I just really wanted to highlight it. I don't have any particular questions. I don't know, counselors, if somebody has a question, certainly would entertain that. And if not, would go to a motion. We have a motion and a second to approve this item. If there's no further discussion, thank you, Director, for joining us tonight. And if we could get a roll call, please. Clerk: Absolutely. Councilor Cassid? Councilor Cassid: Yes. Clerk: Councilor Lindell. Councilor Faulkner? Councilor Faulkner: Yes. Clerk: Councilor Lee Garcia? Councilor Lee Garcia: Yes. Clerk: Chair Romero? Chair: Yes. Clerk: Motion passes. Chair: Thank you. All right, those were the only two items that were pulled from consent. We do not have anything on our discussion agenda. So, I'll go to matters from staff. Director Oster. Director Oster: No matters from me. Chair: Okay. Matters from the committee. Councilor Faulkner, are you good? Councilor Faulkner: I'm good. Thank you, Chair. Chair: Okay. Matters from the Chair. Our next meeting is, I don't have it on my cheat sheet. Clerk: Madam Chair, it's October 6th at 5:00 PM. Chair: There we go. October 6th at 5:00 PM. And until then, we are adjourned. Thanks, everyone.