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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFS 2014-07-08 Item 2D - Resolution - "Tukwila, City of Opportunity Scholarship" ProgramCity of Tukwila Jim Haggerton, Mayor INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM TO: Mayor Haggerton Finance & Safety Committee FROM: David Cline, City Administrator DATE: June 18, 2014 SUBJECT: Tukwila City of Opportunity Scholarship ANNUAL REPORT The City received seven applications for the City of Opportunity Scholarship: one application from Aviation High School in the Highline School District and six applications from Foster High School in the Tukwila School District. All applications were forwarded to the selection committee members for review. There was $4,000 available for scholarship awards and two $2,000 scholarships were awarded. ISSUE After going through the scholarship process in 2014 Administration is recommending revisions to the program to include: • 0-4444g-Demonstration of Substantial Financial Need; ( ommi inity Sorvice Rona irmm�ntc• • Make -up and Size of the Selection Committee; • Award Amounts; and • Eligibility of Immediate Family Members of City Employees and Elected Officials. DISCUSSION DDemonstration of Substantial Financial Need: The resolution that adopted the City of Opportunity Scholarship indicated that financial need would be demonstrated by the information provided on the FAFSA Student Aid Report. Unfortunately, the Student Aid Report only provides the amount of Expected Family Contribution but does not provide annual family income or the financial information provided in completion of the FAFSA form used to determine need. Eligibility for the Washington State Need Grant is determined by the using the State Median Family Income chart and to be eligible a student's family income cannot exceed 70 percent of the State's median income. It ioAdministration recommended that the scholarship application be modified to include a financial section that mss- requests the annual family income for the previous year and that eligibility is based on a family income that does not exceed 70 percent of the State's {or Kinq Geur t median income. After further discussion committee members would like financial need to continue to be based on the FAFSA Student Aid Report and would like the scholarship application to be amended to request that the applicant provide a written statement that describes his or her need for financial assistance. comparison of the median income information utili;_ - Mma.. -- - -- 41 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 2 Tukwila School District seniors to complete a minimum of 30 hours of community service to )ol District does not currently have a •.. _ •_ - -- -••__ )ocific, m asurcable criteria will need to be Members of the Selection Committee: It is recommended that we modify the make -up of the selection committee to include the Mayor and /or his designee, the Council President and /or a City Council Representative, up to two appointed City employees and School District representative(s). The number of members on the selection committee will not exceed seven people in any given year. Award Amounts: It is recommended that the amount of the annual scholarship fund be increased from $4,000 to $10,000 with the minimum award amount being $1,000 and the maximum award amount being $5,000. This will allow the potential for additional recipients and more substantial scholarship awards. Eligibility of Immediate Family Members of City Employees and Elected Officials: It is a common practice for organizations that issue monetary awards to exclude employees and other individuals who are affiliated with the organization, as well as their family members, from eligibility to avoid a potential conflict of interest or The appearance of impropriety. After consulting with the City Attorney's office it is recommended that we adopt this exclusion. In the alternative, the Council can opt to allow immediate family members of City employees and elected officials, which meet all other eligibility requirements, to apply for the scholarship. These of the Whole for consideration. After further discussion committee members have opted to allcw immediate family members of City employees and elected officials, which meet all other eligibility requirements, to apply for the scholarship, with the understanding that if a relative of a member of the Selection Committee submits an application, the committee member will recuse themselves from the rating and evaluation of that application. FINANCIAL IMPACT Increasing the amount of the scholarship fund from $4,000 to $10,000 will mean an additional $6,000 per year from the general fund. RECOMMENDATION The Council is being asked to approve a resolution amending the Tukwila City of Opportunity Scholarship requirements at the July 14, 2014 Committee of the Whole meeting and the subsequent July 21, 2014 Regular Meeting. ATTACHMENTS Draft Resolution Finance & Safety Committee Minutes from June 17, 2014 Finance & Safety Committee Minutes from June 3, 2014 42 RAFT A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, AMENDING THE "TUKWILA, CITY OF OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIP" PROGRAM TO INCREASE THE FUNDING LEVEL AND REFINE PROCEDURES; AND REPEALING RESOLUTION NO. 1817. WHEREAS, the City of Tukwila has a scholarship program for high school students living in Tukwila; and WHEREAS, the purpose of establishing the scholarship program is to provide financial assistance and opportunity to deserving students to continue their education beyond high school; and WHEREAS, the scholarship grant shall be known and cited as the "Tukwila, City of Opportunity Scholarship;" and WHEREAS, following the initial implementation and awarding of scholarship funds, the City wishes to increase the funding level for the program and refine procedures; NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, HEREBY RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Purpose. The purpose of establishing the scholarship program is to provide financial assistance and opportunity to deserving students to continue their education beyond high school. Section 2. Scholarship Eligibility Requirements. Recipients of the scholarship program shall meet the following qualifications: • Must be a resident of the City of Tukwila. Proof of residency is required at the time of application. • Must be equivalent to a senior in high school. • Must demonstrate a substantial financial need as indicated on the FAFSA Student Aid Report. Substantial financial need is defined as a houcchold income of Tess than 70% of the State Median Income. W: \Word Processing \Resolutions \City scholarship program amended strike -thru 7 -1 -14 CT:bjs Page 1 of 3 43 • Must have applied to an undergraduate program at a community college, trade school or university. • Must demonstrate leadership qualities as evidenced by involvement in extra- curricular activities. • Must have a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.75 or higher. • Must have completed a minimum of 15 hours of community service. official of the City of Tukwila. For purposes of the scholarship program, person or the person's spouse, e.g., within three degrees of relationship by blood marriage. Section 3. Funding. A sum of $4,00010,000 per calendar year shall be appropriated and reflected in the City of Tukwila budget. Scholarships will be awarded in increments of not less than $1,000 nor greater than $4005,000. Section 4. Scholarship Selection Committee. A Scholarship Selection Committee shall be created and shall include the Mayor and /or his or her designee, the City Council President and /or a City Council representative, and up to two City staff appointees and a-School District desi0neerepresentative(s) who can fairly evaluate the level of academic and extracurricular activities represented in the scholarship applications. Section 5. Roles and Authority for the Scholarship Fund. A. City staff shall administer the scholarship fund as directed by this resolution, and it shall be known and cited as the "Tukwila, City of Opportunity Scholarship." B. The Scholarship Selection Committee shall review the program annually and submit a report to Council that summarizes by school district: the applications, available funds, the scholarships awarded, the number of applications that did not result in scholarships, and any recommendations for revisions to the program. C. The Council shall receive the report and request revisions to the program as needed. Section 6. Application Review Process. The deadline for applications to be submitted is March 31 of each year. All applications will be reviewed by City staff to determine that the eligibility requirements have been met. All applications that meet the eligibility requirements will be reviewed by the Scholarship Selection Committee, which will present a recommendation to the City Council for approval of up to four scholarship awards. Scholarship recipients will be notified by April 30 each year. W: \Word Processing \Resolutions \City scholarship program amended strike -thru 7 -1 -14 CT:bjs 44 Page 2 of 3 Section 7. Repealer. Resolution No. 1817 is hereby repealed. PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, at a Regular Meeting thereof this day of , 2014. ATTEST /AUTHENTICATED: Christy O'Flaherty, MMC, City Clerk De'Sean Quinn, Council President APPROVED AS TO FORM BY: Filed with the City Clerk: Passed by the City Council: Resolution Number: Shelley M. Kerslake, City Attorney W: \Word Processing \Resolutions \City scholarship program amended strike -thru 7 -1 -14 CT:bjs Page 3 of 3 45 City of Tukwila Finance and Safety Committee FINANCE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE Meeting Minutes June 17, 2014 — 5:30 p.m.; Hazelnut Conference Room PRESENT Councilmembers: Verna Seal, Chair; Joe Duffie, De'Sean Quinn (Absent: Kathy Hougardy) Staff: David Cline, Vicky Carlsen, Eric Dreyer, Laurel Humphrey CALL TO ORDER: Committee Chair Seal called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. I. PRESENTATIONS No presentations. II. BUSINESS AGENDA A. Purchase of Firearms Training and Equipment Trailer Staff is seeking Committee approval to purchase a Police Department firearms equipment trailer not to exceed $9,600.00. The Firearms Unit conducts quarterly training sessions that involve the transport of bulky equipment. Currently, this is handled by loading and unloading into multiple vehicles. Purchasing a trailer to transport and store the equipment instead would be a cost effective solution. The trailer will also be available for use by the SWAT and Civil Disturbance Units during their respective trainings. The estimated cost for the trailer is $9600.00, and funds are available from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program and from Police Department Fleet Services. UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. B. Resolution: City of Opportunity Scholarship Staff is seeking Council approval of a resolution that would amend the "Tukwila, City of Opportunity Scholarship" program by increasing the funding level and refining procedures in response to lessons learned during the inaugural 2014 process. At the June 3, 2014 discussion on this item, the Committee agreed to raise the total fund to $10,000, and to modify the makeup of the selection committee. They requested more information on median income levels as well as further discussion of a community service component. • Financial Need: The Committee packet included a comparison table showing median income information for the county and state. Staff recommends that if the Committee decides to specify income criteria, that eligibility should be based on family income that does not exceed 70 percent of King County's median. The Committee decided to leave in the original language that states an applicant must "demonstrate a substantial financial need as indicated on the FAFSA Student Aid Report." To provide some additional flexibility to this requirement, they requested an item be added to the application that requests the student describe his or her need for financial assistance. • Community Service: The eligibility requirements currently state a minimum of 15 hours of community service. It is increasingly common for community service hours to be required for graduation, as with Tukwila School District's requirement of 30 hours. The Committee decided to leave the original requirement of 15 hours in the eligibility criteria. Finance & Safety Committee Minutes June 17, 2014 - Page 2 • Eligibility of City Employee Relatives: The Committee decided to discuss this again and concluded that they would not like to exclude relatives of City employees or officials. They requested that staff add a procedure to the selection process that would prohibit an employee or official from scoring a candidate with whom they are related. Staff will develop a framework that addresses this request for further Committee consideration. RETURN TO FINANCE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE. C. 2014 1St Quarter Cash and Investment Report Staff reviewed the 1st Quarter Cash and Investment Report for 2014, including information on the City's portfolio components, performance, policy compliance and liquidity analysis, fund cash and investment balances, and investment environment. At March 31, 2014, the portfolio totaled $44.7 million comprised of $37.8 million in cash and cash equivalents and $6.9 in longer term investments. This represents a $1.8 million decrease from the December 31, 2013 balance, attributable to the collection of property taxes in the 2 "d and 4th quarters. INFORMATION ONLY. D. 2014 1st Quarter Sales Tax Miscellaneous Revenue Report Staff presented the 2014 1st Quarter Miscellaneous Revenue Report. Information detailed in the staff report includes Sales tax revenues are down by $87,000 below the same period in 2013, and new construction sales tax was $92,000 lower. The City has collected $238,066 in sales tax mitigation as of March 31, 2014. This is 24% of the annual mitigation budget. INFORMATION ONLY. E. Ordinance: Creating Tukwila Municipal Code Chapter 2.97 - Code of Ethics Several iterations of a process to address allegations of ethics violations by elected officials have been discussed in Committee since 2013. At its June 3 meeting, the Committee decided to move forward with the creation of an Ethics Board made up of the Chairs or Chair's designee of the City's existing five Commissions, but they asked to have further review of the role of that board. They decided to retain the current Ethics Code (Chapter 2.95) to apply to City employees and appointed officials, and asked to create a new Chapter applicable to elected officials. Staff returned with two options relating to the role of the Ethics Board. Option 1 (Board decides violation): The Board will make an initial determination of sufficiency, and if sufficient, an independent investigator will provide findings of fact, conclusions, and a recommendation. Upon receipt of this report the Board will determine that a violation did or did not occur, or that more information is needed. The Board will then draft a recommendation to the Council. Option 2 (Council decides violation): The Board will make an initial determination of sufficiency, and if sufficient, an independent investigator will provide findings of fact only. Upon receipt of this report the Board will forward the findings to the Council who will then determine whether or not the violation has occurred and assign an appropriate penalty. Committee members discussed these options and unanimously agreed upon Option 1, in which the Ethics Board makes a determination of violation rather than the Council. The Committee asked questions relating to training and legal counsel for the Board during this process. City Administrator David Cline confirmed that the City Attorney will provide basic training, but if an allegation is made, independent counsel could be brought in to advise the Board during the process. The Committee agreed that there should be clearly stated, strong criteria for the selection of such counsel, but were not certain if this should be included within the ordinance or in a separate administrative procedure. Committee Chair Seal noted that Section 2.97.050(E) might be an appropriate location if the decision is made to include this language in the ordinance. City of Tukwila Finance and Safety Committee FINANCE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE Meeting Minutes June 3, 2014 — 5 :30 p.m.; Hazelnut Conference Room PRESENT Councilmembers: Verna Seal, Chair; Joe Duffie, Kathy Hougardy Staff: David Cline, Peggy McCarthy, Don Tomaso, Laurel Humphrey CALL TO ORDER: Committee Chair Seal called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. I. PRESENTATIONS No presentations. II. BUSINESS AGENDA A. Fireworks Permit for July 4 Event at Starfire Sports Complex Staff is seeking Council approval of a Fireworks Permit Application submitted by Western Display Fireworks Ltd. for the fireworks display at the City's annual 4th of July Celebration at Starfire Sports Complex. The application has been approved by the Fire Marshal and found to be in compliance with standards and regulations, and this vendor and launch location have been working well. UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. FORWARD TO JUNE 16, 2014 REGULAR CONSENT AGENDA. B. Resolution and Annual Report: City of Opportunity Scholarship Staff is seeking Council approval of a resolution that would amend the requirements of the Tukwila City of Opportunity Scholarship as a result of lessons learned from the inaugural 2014 process. Committee discussions on the four areas of modification recommended by staff are summarized as follows: • Define "substantial financial need" as family income that does not exceed 70 percent of the state's median income. The Committee requested more information regarding median income levels for the city, county and state. While discussing a balance of need versus merit -based award criteria, Committee members expressed an interest in an expanded community service component to the application. • Modify the selection committee makeup to include the option of a representative from the City Council in addition to or instead of the Council President, and the option of additional City Staff and School District representatives, not to exceed seven total Committee members per year. The Committee agreed with this modification. • Increase the total amount of the annual scholarship fund to $10,000, allowing for the potential of additional recipients and /or more substantial awards. The Committee agreed with this modification. • Change eligibility standards to exclude City employees and elected officials in keeping with common practice and on the advice of the City Attorney. The Committee did not agree to this modification but would like to forward both options to the Committee of the Whole for discussion. Committee Chair Seal suggested that if employee relatives are included, their names be blacked out during the selection committee review process. RETURN TO COMMITTEE FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION.