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HomeMy WebLinkAbout23 - NB-7 - Approve Resolution for Appointment of Ba - 12/17/2019Attachment 2 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT MEETING DATE: DECEMBER 17, 2019 ITEM NUMBER: NB-7 SUBJECT: APPROVE RESOLUTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF BALTAZAR MEJIA AS INTERIM CITY ENGINEER AND CERTIFICATION OF EXCEPTION TO THE 180- DAY WAIT PERIOD PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTIONS 7522.56 & 21221(h) DATE: DECEMBER 9, 2019 FROM: PUBLIC SERVICES DEPARTMENT OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER / HUMAN RESOURCES DIVISION PRESENTATION BY: RAJA SETHURAMAN, PUBLIC SERVICES DIRECTOR KASAMA LEE, HUMAN RESOURCES ADMINISTRATOR FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: KASAMA LEE, HUMAN RESOURCES ADMINISTRATOR - (714) 754-5169 RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the City Council: 1) Adopt by resolution the appointment of retired City Engineer Baltazar Mejia to the position of Interim City Engineer and certify the exception to the 180-Day Wait Period pursuant to Government Code Sections 7522.56 and 21221(h) BACKGROUND: City Engineer Baltazar Mejia retired from the City of Costa Mesa effective December 6, 2019. His continued services are necessary due to the critical need and continued operation of the Engineering Division of the Public Services Department. The City Engineer plays a critical role in maintaining public safety and is also required to certify documents such as, tract maps, plans and specifications, and project acceptances. Mr. Mejia will continue to work on the following special projects:  Continuing to serve as Project Manager on the implementation of critical multi- million dollar Capital Improvement Projects  Assisting in the design of critical facility upgrade projects  Assisting with the preparation of the Division Budget including the Capital Improvement Program  Signing and approving tract maps and other documents that require City Engineer approval 2  Providing necessary transition training to new staff ANALYSIS: Section 21221(h) of the Government Code allows a governing body of a CalPERS contracting agency to appoint a retired person to an interim position during recruitment for a permanent appointment and deemed by the governing body to require specialized skills or during an emergency to prevent stoppage of public business. Section 7522.56 of the Government Code requires that post-retirement employment commence no earlier than 180 days after the retirement date, but a public agency may hire a retired annuitant prior to the expiration of the 180 days following his/her retirement, if the nature of the employment and the appointment is necessary to fill a critically needed position before 180 days have passed. This appointment is limited to 960 hours per fiscal year and the compensation paid to retirees cannot be less than the minimum nor exceed the maximum monthly base salary paid to other employees performing comparable duties. This appointment includes Medicare, but does not include any other benefit, incentive, or compensation in lieu of benefit or other form of compensation in addition to an hourly rate. The Human Resources Division will be accepting applications for the City Engineer position. This position is of vital importance due to the high profile nature of the work, the level of responsibility and liability associated, and the status of projects underway. While the position is vacant, Mr. Mejia’s services are required to provide continuity on critical projects and the highly specialized aspects of the position. This temporary assignment complies with the CalPERS guidelines regarding retired annuitants. ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED: One alternative is to contract for City Engineer services. Staff does not recommend this alternative due to the amount of training that would be needed to bring the consultant up to speed with the City’s projects and the position’s responsibilities. FISCAL REVIEW: The hourly rate paid will be $72.27 with no other benefits provided except Medicare. This salary falls within the base salary range for the position of City Engineer and complies with the CalPERS guidelines regarding retired annuitants. Mr. Mejia will be limited to working 960 hours per fiscal year. Should he work up to the 960-hour limitation during the fiscal year, his maximum salary earnings would be $69,379. It is important to note that the total cost to the City is a maximum of $70,385 per year from a combined total of earnings and Medicare. Funding is available from salary savings from the vacant City Engineer position. 3 LEGAL REVIEW: The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed this report and the attached resolution and approves them as to form. CITY COUNCIL GOALS & PRIORITIES: This item is administrative in nature. CONCLUSION: Staff recommends that the City Council adopt resolution No. 19-___, appointing Baltazar Mejia as the Interim City Engineer and certifying an exception to the 180-day wait period pursuant to Government Code Sections 7522.56 and 21221(h) _________________________________ _________________________________ RAJA SETHURAMAN KASAMA LEE Public Services Director Human Resources Administrator LANCE NAKAMOTO Human Resources Manager ________________________________ _________________________________ KELLY A. TELFORD, CPA KIMBERLY HALL BARLOW Director of Finance City Attorney ATTACHMENTS: 1 2 Resolution No. 19-XX Employment Agreement Resolution No. 19-xx Page 1 of 3 RESOLUTION NO. 19-XX A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA, APPOINTING AN INTERIM CITY ENGINEER AND CERTIFYING AN EXCEPTION TO THE 180-DAY WAIT PERIOD PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTIONS 7522.56 & 21221(h) THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA, DOES HEREBY FIND, CERTIFY AND DECLARE AS FOLLOWS: WHEREAS, in compliance with Government Code section 7522.56 the City of Costa Mesa (“City”) must provide CalPERS this certification resolution when hiring a retiree before 180 days has passed since his or her retirement date; and WHEREAS, Baltazar Mejia retired from the City in the position of City Engineer, effective December 6, 2019; and WHEREAS, section 7522.56 requires that post-retirement employment commence no earlier than 180 days after the retirement date, which is June 4, 2020, without this certification resolution; and WHEREAS, section 7522.56 provides that this exception to the 180-day wait period shall not apply if the retiree accepts any retirement-related incentive; and WHEREAS, the City and Baltazar Mejia certify that Baltazar Mejia has not and will not receive a Golden Handshake or any other retirement-related incentive; and WHEREAS, the position of interim City Engineer is a critically needed position and will require specialized skills to perform: WHEREAS, Baltazar Mejia possesses those specialized skills; WHEREAS, the City desires to appoint Baltazar Mejia as an interim appointment retired annuitant to the vacant position of City Engineer for the City under Government Code section 21221(h), effective January 5, 2020 on the terms and conditions stated herein and as attached hereto; and WHEREAS, an appointment under Government Code section 21221(h) requires an active, publicly posted recruitment for a permanent replacement; and WHEREAS, the current status of this recruitment is active; and WHEREAS, this section 21221(h) appointment shall only be made once and therefore will end on December 31, 2020; and WHEREAS, the entire employment agreement between Baltazar Mejia and the City has been reviewed by the City Council and is attached hereto; and Attachment 1 Resolution No. 19-xx Page 2 of 3 WHEREAS, no matters, issues, terms or conditions related to this employment and appointment have been or will be placed on a consent calendar; and WHEREAS, the employment shall be limited to 960 hours per fiscal year; and WHEREAS, the compensation paid to retirees cannot be less than the minimum nor exceed the maximum monthly base salary paid to other employees performing comparable duties, divided by 173.333 to equal the hourly rate; and WHEREAS, the maximum base salary for this position is $12,526 per month and the hourly equivalent is $72.27 per hour; the minimum base salary for this position is $9,348 per month and the hourly equivalent is $53.93 per hour; and WHEREAS, the hourly rate paid to Baltazar Mejia will be $72.27 per hour; and WHEREAS, Baltazar Mejia has not and will not receive any other benefit, incentive, compensation in lieu of benefit or other form of compensation in addition to this hourly pay rate. NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COSTA MESA HEREBY RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS: The above stated findings, declarations and certifications are true and correct; The City Council hereby appoints Baltazar Mejia as an interim appointment retired annuitant to the vacant position of City Engineer for the City of Costa Mesa under Government Code section 21221(h), effective January 5, 2020; and The City Council hereby certifies the nature of the employment of Baltazar Mejia is as described herein and detailed in the attached employment agreement and that this appointment is necessary to fill the critically needed position of City Engineer for the City of Costa Mesa by January 5, 2020 because of the nature of work, level of responsibility and liability and the need for continuity associated with ongoing and future critical Capital Improvement and other Engineering projects. PASSED AND ADOPTED this 17th day of December, 2019. _____________________________ Katrina Foley, Mayor ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM: _____________________________ _____________________________ Brenda Green, City Clerk Kimberly Hall Barlow, City Attorney Resolution No. 19-xx Page 3 of 3 THIS PAGE IS RESERVED FOR THE CITY CLERK’S OFFICE. STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF ORANGE ) ss CITY OF COSTA MESA ) I, BRENDA GREEN, City Clerk of the City of Costa Mesa, DO HEREBY CERTIFY that the above and foregoing is the original of Resolution No. 19- xx and was duly passed and adopted by the City Council of the City of Costa Mesa at a regular meeting held on the 17th day of December, 2019, by the following roll call vote, to wit: AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereby set my hand and affixed the seal of the City of Costa Mesa this 18th day of December, 2019. ________________________ Brenda Green, City Clerk