Arkansas Legislative Council Personnel Committee

November 16, 2022 

Rep Hillman: If y’all take your seats, we’ll go ahead and get this meeting called to order.

 

BLR Staff: Alright. Mr. Chairman, item B. Item B is a growth pool request from the Department of Correction, Division of Community Correction. They’re requesting three positions listed– the three positions listed for a new specialty drug court in Perry County that was funded through a rainy-day release. This will increase the total number of authorized positions for the division and have an estimated cost of $143,000. OPM has recommended the requested positions.

 

Rep Hillman: Anybody have any questions? Motion, second to pass. Those in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: No’s, no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, item C is a request for a new classification only or a new title. The Department of Correction division of Correction is requesting a DOC grievance coordinator. I think that’s a DOC grievance inmate coordinator at GSO 7. The position will oversee the inmate grievance process and supervise existing grievance officers. OPM has recommended the requested title. No new positions will be created.

 

Rep Hillman: Any questions from the committee? Hearing none, motion and second. All in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, item D has been pulled at the request of the agency and OPM. So we’re going on to item E. Item E is a four for three swap pool request from the Development Finance Authority. The Division of Commerce is also requesting– or the Department of Commerce is also requesting two new classifications to go with the three new positions. The new attorney position will provide compliance, direction, and underwriting input on federally funded programs. The program officer will oversee three different ARPA programs and will work to establish guidelines and financial operations for each program. The business finance director will manage single-family mortgage programs and serve as the public finance officer for all bond issues. If reviewed, the agency will have a net decrease in authorized positions because they’re giving up four for the three new ones. The cost of the swap will be about $318,000 and OPM has recommended the positions.

 

Rep Hillman: Any questions from the committee? Seeing none, motion and second to approve. All in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, item F is a two for one swap pool request from the Department of Health for one branch manager position. The branch manager will be responsible for managing the activities of the Communications Office and will administer and manage all marketing and advertising efforts for the Department of Health. The agency will have a net decrease in the number of authorized positions and predicts about $18,000 in savings. OPM has recommended the requested swap.

 

Rep Hillman: Questions from the committee? Those in favor aye?

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, item G is a three for two swap pool request with two new classifications from the Arkansas Public Employee Retirement System to help implement a reorganization process. A new classification of deputy director of investment and finance has been requested in order to compete with other public pension plan systems who offer more generous salary and incentive packages. The position will be responsible for the investment portfolio and working with incentive packages. The deputy director of operations will oversee the HR communications and IT divisions of the agency, along with providing outreach to support city and county government members, the agency will have a net decrease in the number of authorized positions with this action and will have an expected cost of about $260,000 for the two new positions. OPM has recommended the requested positions.

 

Rep Hillman: Questions from the committee? Motion and second. All in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, item H is a seven four six swap pool request from the Department of Transformation Shared Services. The swap will provide DTSS with five program coordinators and one info systems manager. The program coordinator positions will be used across various divisions within the department and the information systems manager will be assigned to the Procurement Division to help with processing purchase requests and vendor payments. The request will create a net decrease in the number of positions at the agency and will have an estimated cost of $360,000. OPM has recommended the requested swap.

 

Rep Hillman: Any questions?  Motion, second. All those in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, item I is an MFG request from the Department of Higher education. The appropriation and establishment of the position have already been approved by the Peer Committee. The Personnel Committee is only required to review the classification assigned to the position. The agency is requesting a DHE program specialist position to work in the Career Pathways Initiative Program. OPM has recommended the requested classification.

 

Rep Hillman: Any questions? Motion, second. All in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Item J.

 

Rep Hillman: Okay, wait just a minute. On item J, I want to call the committee’s attention to this one. It’s actually a reduction in force. You won’t see these very often, but now Tony, go ahead.

 

BLR Staff: All right, Mr. Chairman. Item J is reduction in force notification from the Department of Finance Administration, Division of Racing. DFA is eliminating 16 positions, including 6 extra help positions at the Greyhound track in West Memphis, moving these positions to Oaklawn down in Hot Springs. Reduction of force will affect 11 current employees in West Memphis, with all but 2 of them eligible for severance payments. The other 2 people are extra help employees who are not eligible for severance. OPM has approved the use of the Rif Policy.

 

Rep Hillman: Any questions on this item? Motion and second. All in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Excuse me. My thing’s not working up here. Yeah. I got some gray tape. All right. Representative Cavenaugh–Speaks? Okay, Representative Cavenaugh, you’re recognized.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: I’m on now. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Can you just clarify me for the positions, the 16 positions that are leaving the Greyhound Racing Park over in West Memphis, how many of those are being transferred to Oaklawn?

 

Barnhill (OPM): Representative Cavenaugh, all those positions could be transferred to Oaklawn if that’s what the Department decides to do.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Okay, so I just want to make sure I understand. We’re terminating their employment at West Memphis, but they’re going to go to Oaklawn and we’re still giving them severance pay?

 

Barnhill (OPM): It is my understanding that they have been offered to go to Oaklawn. Some of them may or may not be going, in which case severance pay comes into play. These are the amount some employees are eligible for.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Okay. Do we have any idea how many of these are going to be transferred to Oaklawn?

 

Barnhill (OPM): I have to defer to the department. Five.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Five are going to Oaklawn. And the five going to Oaklawn, they don’t get severance. They’re just transferred.

 

Barnhill (OPM): Right.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Okay. Thank you.

 

Rep Hillman: All right. Other questions? Okay. Thank you. We already approved that one. I believe we had. Okay. Those in favor of approving item J, say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: All right, Mr. Chairman, item K is a request from the Department of Energy and Environment, Division of Environmental Quality to create a hazardous duty differential for their energy and environment inspectors and inspector supervisor positions that deal with hazardous waste inspections. The request will provide up to a 10% differential for eight initial positions that have an estimated cost of about $42,000 per year. OPM has recommended the requested differential.

 

Rep Hillman: Any questions? Motion, second. All those in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman. Item L is a request from Black River Technical College for one new project program specialist position through the higher education central growth pool. The position will oversee all marketing advertising, media and promotional materials for the college and its departments. This will increase the number of authorized positions at the institution and have an estimated cost of $45,000. The Department of Higher Ed has recommended the requested position.

 

Rep Hillman: Questions from the committee? We must be doing a pretty good job. Everybody’s getting up and leaving. Motion and second to approve. All those in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed, no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, items M and N both are requests to pay over 2% colas at institutions of higher education. Item M is for Arkansas Tech. Item N is for NWACC. Both of these institutions are wanting to pay $1,000 lump sum payment to employees– to all employees at these institutions. This would be over and above the cost of living they received in July, at each institution.

 

Rep Hillman: Okay. Any questions?  Representative Cavenaugh again.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Yeah, thank you. My question is what’s the justification for needing over the 2% over?

 

BLR Staff: Representative Cavenaugh, I think somebody from Higher Ed will have to come up to speak to that.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Thank you.

 

Fuller (Higher): Good afternoon. Nick Fuller, assistant director for the Division of Higher Education. I would say in July, both of these institutions already awarded a 2% ongoing increase for cost of living. And as we got through more of the year, they determined that revenues were at an acceptable level to be able to request to offer a one-time incentive payment as well, in addition to that 2%. So they’ve already awarded the 2%. Now, there’s language that they can’t award more than 2% without your approval. So they’re coming back to ask for the approval to award this extra $1,000 now that they have revenue to support that. And this will be a one-time payment. It won’t be an ongoing cost.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Okay. So it won’t be put into the regular salary.

 

Fuller (Higher): Right.

 

Rep Cavenaugh: Okay. All right. Thank you.

 

Rep Hillman: Okay. Representative Speaks.

 

Rep Speaks: Thank you, Mr. Chair. So what you’re telling us–

 

Rep Hillman: Wait a minute, we haven’t got– we got you on? Okay.

 

Rep Speaks: Okay. It’s on. Thank you. What you’re telling us is just a bonus? It’s not a–

 

Fuller (Higher): Yes, ma’am. It’s not an ongoing cost of living adjustment. It’s a one-time additional payment.

 

Rep Speaks: Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

 

Rep Hillman: Any other questions?

 

Sen Stubblefield: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Where’s this extra revenue coming from?

 

Fuller (Higher): That, I may have to defer to each of the institutions. They are here to be able to explain where they’re going to have the revenue to support that.

 

Sen Stubblefield: I mean, is it coming from tuition? Is it coming from COVID relief funds? Where’s it coming from?

 

Fuller (Higher): I’ll defer to each institution to explain.

 

Rep Hillman: Yeah. If you would, ma’am, please identify yourself.

 

Fisher (ATU): Jamie Fisher, Arkansas Tech University, associate vice president of admin and finance.  For us, we had conservative budget measures, and so there were realized savings within our budget. We actually had some savings as it related to benefits. So we had some savings recognized that we were able to utilize for this purpose.

 

Sen Stubblefield: So you already have the savings? You already have the savings?

 

Fisher (ATU): Yes.

 

Massri (NWACC): Al Massri, Vice president of finance administration, Northwest Arkansas Community College. We have some savings also. We have shown some increase this semester that helped us in having some extra to help our employees for paying for their higher cost of living in the area of Northwest Arkansas.

 

Sen Stubblefield: Okay. All right. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

 

Rep Hillman: Yes, sir. Any other questions? All right, if there are no other questions, is there a motion that we approve items M and N together. Motion and second. Those in favor say aye.

 

Audience: Aye.

 

Rep Hillman: Opposed, no. Motion carried.

 

BLR Staff: Mr. Chairman, items O through S are just required reports that require no action, but I’ll take any questions if they’re are any by members.

 

Rep Hillman: I don’t see any lights up on my board, and so I’m going to assume from that, that no one has any questions. And with that, Mr. Co-chair, unless you have some words of wisdom for us.

 

Sen Wallace: I have nothing, sir.

 

Rep Hillman: This meeting is adjourned.