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Board Meeting Agenda

Board Meeting Minutes

701 Adams Boulevard
Boulder City, NV 89005
Tel: 702-293-1281
Fax: 702-293-0239

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MEMBERS PRESENT: Brad Appleby, Amy Carvalho, Doug Haag, William Littler and Roger Tobler. Also present, Library Director Duncan McCoy.

The regular meeting of the Library Board of Trustees was called to order at 7:00 p.m.

CONSENT AGENDA: Doug Haag moved and Bill Littler seconded approval of the Consent Agenda, the minutes of September 20, and the monthly expenses in the amount of $6,611.51 in presigned vouchers submitted prior to the meeting, monthly expenses in the amount of $11,977.75 in vouchers submitted at the meeting, and $396.43 in checkbook expenses submitted at the meeting. Duncan pointed out two typos in the minutes of 9/20 and suggested that the minutes omitted mention of local author Angela Thompson Smith's presentation of her new book, Shire, in the public comment portion of the meeting. Doug Haag and Bill Littler agreed to amend their motion to reflect these changes to the minutes of 9/20. Motion carried.

STAFF REPORTS: See Director's Monthly Report dated October 18, 2006.

1. Duncan distributed a change page for the bills including invoices received since last week.
2. Duncan invited board members to attend the staff's appreciation dinner for Carolyn Rehder, scheduled for Friday, Oct. 20, at 6:00 pm, in honor of Carolyn's 20th anniversary as a library employee.
3. Amy Carvalho asked Duncan if Robert Morehouse, who Duncan is interested in hiring to do paint and stucco work, has a Boulder City business license and/or a contractor's license. Duncan said he'd check and get back to Amy with that information. Several other board members indicated that they'd had Mr. Morehouse do work for them in the past and Duncan also mentioned that he'd done stucco and paint work for the Library in the past. Amy said she thought it might be a bit soon for stucco cracks to show up in the new building. Some discussion ensued about differences between stucco application over concrete block and application over lath ("chicken-wire"), as is done with house construction.

REPORTS/DISCUSSION/ACTION:

1. BOARD TO DISCUSS DIRECTOR'S REQUEST TO CLOSE THE LIBRARY FROM 9:00 AM TO 1:00 PM FOR STAFF REFRESHER TRAINING IN CPR AND DEFRIBRILLATOR. Bill Littler moved and Amy Carvalho seconded that the Library be closed at that time for the above-mentioned staff training. Motion carried.
2. BOARD TO DISCUSS RISING EQUIPMENT PRICES AND CONSIDER DIRECTOR'S REQUEST TO EXCEED BUDGETED AMOUNT FOR PLANNED SHELVING PURCHASE. Duncan had submitted a brief report indicating that since the last time he'd priced shelving, in connection with budget preparation last spring, the price of a 10-section double-faced unit, which the Library needs for the large-print area, has escalated from an estimated $6,600 delivered and installed to $11,960 because of increased costs of steel and transportation. Duncan also mentioned that he will be talking to the Boulder City Rotary Club for their agreement to reimburse the Library, through future booksale proceeds, for purchase of 9 sections of single-faced shelving which the Senior Center Library needs. He said that the Rotary Board had been scheduled to meet Tuesday this week, but a quorum could not be assembled for that meeting and that the Rotary Board would probably reschedule to next week. Duncan would like to tie the two orders together. Doug Haag asked whether the Library could afford the increased costs for the shelving. Duncan suggested that if the increased costs became a problem, we could forgo one or another planned expenditures of a lower priority. The budgeted amount for perimeter lighting ($10,000) was one such item mentioned, but that the Library really does need the shelving and that the prices would probably not be going down. Roger Tobler moved to exceed budgeted expenditures for the shelving purchase. Bill Littler seconded. Motion carried.
3. BOARD TO CONSIDER DIRECTOR'S RECOMMENDATION TO IMPLEMENT LONGEVITY-BASED EMPLOYEE INCENTIVE PAY AND ADDITIONAL EARNED ANNUAL LEAVE FOR EMPLOYEES WITH 20+ YEARS OF SERVICE. The last time the Board authorized staff incentive pay (bonuses) was in March, 2002, the occasion then being the completion of the move-in to the new building. Subsequently, several board members have expressed interest in discussing staff bonuses and Duncan has indicated some discomfort with incentive pay done for situational reasons, because it is difficult to budget for these. The proposal on the table is to provide all library staff members with a one-time incentive pay of $100 for each year of service as of 12/25/06 and to consider similar longevity-based incentive pay in future years. The cost of this proposal would be $15,900. Duncan indicated that longevity-based incentive pay lends itself to budgeting processes and forestalls difficulties arising from incentive pay based on subjective evaluation of greater or lesser merit on the part of this or that employee. Duncan's idea for longevity-based incentive pay is to use it as a further encouragement for staff to stay and make a career at the Library. Doug Haag wished to know whether incentive pay ought to be a matter of policy. Duncan indicated that he rather thought not, as employee compensation was a fiscal matter to be handled as such in the budgetary cycle and as a matter of normal fiscal management. Duncan said that his intention was to include incentive pay as a line item in future budgets and to present a request for authorization by the Board in the fall of future years, preceding proposed distribution. His main concerns are that the amount be planned in the budgeting process and that authorization be contingent with the Library District's ability to fund the incentive pay, at the time. Amy Carvalho indicated that she felt that this incentive pay proposal was very generous. Some discussion ensued regarding whether differentiation was considered in the proposal between full-time and part-time staff and how some private employers handle this sort of thing. Duncan mentioned that the Library District does make differentiations in staff benefits between full-time and part-time employees at the 20 hour per week break point. Payroll and benefits for Library District employees are handled by the County payroll system and the Library District follows typical County practice with 20+ hour/week employees qualifying for NV PERS retirement and single health coverage and below-20 hour/week employees participating in Social Security and no health insurance, but such distinction was not present in the incentive pay proposal. In the proposal, all employees who had at least a year of service as of 12/25/06 would receive the incentive pay. Bill Littler moved and Doug Haag seconded that the Board award the library staff incentive pay of $100/year of service and that future proposals for incentive pay be brought before the Board for authorization. Motion carried.

   The second half of the Director's proposal for longevity-based incentives recommends that the Board authorize earning of five weeks annual leave for employees with 20+ years of service, of which the Library District currently has one employee who qualifies. Duncan indicated that over the next three or four years, three other employees will cross the 20-year mark. Currently, nonprofessional employees earn three weeks annual leave through year 9 of service and four weeks after 10 years. Professional employees (with Master's degree in Library Science) earn four weeks of annual leave per year throughout their employment. Amy Carvalho moved and Roger Tobler seconded that the Library District's Employee Leave Policy be amended to include the following language: "Following 20 years of employment, each employee shall earn an amount of annual leave equal to 25 working days per year." Motion carried.

PUBLIC COMMENT: During the public comment period, Amy Carvalho mentioned that she had been doing some volunteer work at the Martha P. King Elementary School Library and while there had heard another volunteer complain about our Library's summer reading program vis-à-vis the school's "Reading Counts" program this past summer. Comments were also made regarding our handling of children's story-time programs. Duncan discussed some of the history of our Library's involvement in the "Reading Counts" program and suggested that Amy and Children's Librarian Becky Coleman get together to discuss the particulars of the lady's comments, as it is difficult to address problems without knowing specifically that the concerns are

ADJOURNMENT:The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 pm

Minutes prepared by Duncan R. McCoy, Director.