Council to consider approving new Meet & Confer agreement with local firefighters
In what is likely to be one of the longer meetings this summer, the San Marcos City Council has a full agenda that includes possibly approving the recommended new Meet and Confer agreement with the San Marcos Professional Firefighters’ Association Local #3963.
According to its published agenda, the city of San Marcos will meet at 6 p.m., Tuesday, in the city council chambers at 630 E. Hopkins St. This will be an in-person and online meeting.
The city council will also meet at 3 p.m. for a work session Tuesday in addition to the regular meeting.
The council will consider approval of the revised Meet and Confer agreement between the San Marcos Professional Firefighters’ Association Local #3963 and the city of San Marcos; authorizing City Manager Stephanie Reyes, or her designee, to execute the agreement on behalf of the city.
The city is estimating that the impact of the new agreement is $612,883 for FY 2024 and $1,437,492 over the term of the agreement.
According to city documents, Meet and Confer is a process “designed to allow police and fire associations and management an opportunity to understand each other’s interests and reach agreement on important employment issues. The enabling statute outlines specific areas of discussion for this process which include wages, rates of pay, hours of work and working conditions.'
Meet and Confer also provides 'an opportunity to make modifications to better meet operational needs which includes Civil Service.”
The negotiations with firefighters began at about the same time that the city was dealing with a long set of negotiations with the San Marcos Police Department and the San Marcos Police Officers’ Association. That renegotiated Meet and Confer agreement was approved on May 16.
With regard to renegotiations with Firefighters #3963, it was in early 2006, that the city adopted the provisions of the Texas Local Government Code, Chapter 142, Sub Chapter C, Meet and Confer and at that time, approved Local 3963 “as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for the city of San Marcos Firefighters.” City documents state that the initial agreement with the SMPFFA was approved Dec. 1, 2009, and was effective Oct. 1, 2009 -Sept.30, 2012. The second agreement was approved Sept. 18, 2012 and was effective Oct. 1, 2012-Sept. 30, 2015.
The third agreement was approved on Sept. 1, 2015 and was effective Oct.1, 2015-Sept. 30, 2018. On Feb. 6, 2018, the city council approved an extension of that agreement extending the agreement for an additional year to expire on Sept. 30, 2019.
On Aug. 6, 2019 the City Council approved a fourth agreement to be effective Oct. 1, 2019Sept. 30, 2022.
On March 2, 2022 the council approved extending the current agreement for one additional year, and that is set to expire on Sept. 30.
Members of the negotiating teams for this Meet and Confer agreement were for the city, Stephanie Reyes, city manager, Chase Stapp, assistant city manager, Linda Spacek, director of HR/Civil Service, and Jon Locke, director of finance; and for the firefighters local, David Tomas, engineer, president, Louis Gonzales, captain, vice-president, Aaron Crawford, battalion chief, Bobby Dallimore, engineer, and Justin Nauert, engineer.
City documents stated that in discussing issues important to both parties, “key issues included the ability to attract and retain firefighters,” as well as enhancements to the promotional process, the refining of provisions relating to the fire marshal’s office, and defining financial parameters, which include provisions for firefighter accountability for misconduct and wages.
The council on its agenda has consideration of the approval of an ordinance on its first and final reading that will order the General Election to be held on Nov. 7, for the purpose of electing a City Council Member for Place 3 and a City Council Member for Place 4; as well as make provisions for conducting the election.
Approval of this ordinance on only one reading is provided as an emergency measure, based on information from city documents.
According to Texas Election Code Section 3.005 (c)(2), the last day to call the General Election of the city of San Marcos is Aug. 21.
Due to the time sensitive nature of the ordinance, it is being “proposed as an Emergency and will have only one reading. The countywide Early Voting and Election Day polling places will be set by the Hays County Commissioners Court at a later date,” according to the city.
A separate ordinance setting out the polling places for the election will be presented for council approval either on Sept. 5 or Sept. 19.
If approved, a general and special election will be held by the city of San Marcos at the various polling places and election precincts within the corporate limits of the city, yet to be designated, on Nov. 7 from the hours of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. This General City Election will be conducted jointly with Hays County and will be administered for the city by the Hays County Elections administrator. The official canvass of the election will be Nov. 16.
In the event it becomes necessary to conduct a runoff election, it will be Dec. 9. Canvass of the returns of the runoff election, if necessary, will be Dec. 14.
In addition, the council will hear a staff presentation, and consider by motion, whether or not it will authorize text amendments to the San Marcos Development Code to, among other things, “address changes made in the 2023 Legislative Session, create a new business park zoning district, improve development processes, incorporate City Council direction for Code amendments, add clarity, and correct discrepancies within the Code,” city documents stated.
The council will also consider the approval of Ordinance 2023-54, on the first of two readings, which would repealing the city‘s juvenile curfew ordinance, found in Article 3, Chapter 54 of the San Marcos City Code, including procedural provisions.
The Texas 88th Legislature passed legislation “making the establishment of local juvenile curfew ordinances unlawful,” and the legislation was signed by Gov. Abbott and is effective on Sept. 1. For the city to be in compliance with this legislation, the city is compelled to repeal its existing juvenile curfew ordinance.
The council will hear a staff presentation and hold a public hearing to receive comments for or against adopting the Community Development Block Grant Action Plan that provides for the allocation of $712,899.00 in CDBG entitlement funds for program year 20232024. With regard to this resolution, for the 20232024 fiscal year, the city is expected to receive $712,899 in CDBG entitlement funds. In order to receive this funding, the city must submit an action plan to HUD by Aug. 16 that includes allocation of the funding to specific programs.
City documents stated that annually, the city holds an application process for agencies and city departments to submit funding requests. Applications were due May 8 and were evaluated by a staff committee.
A public hearing was held June 6. Comments were received from one citizen against the Homebuyer Assistance Program, additional funding for city staff, and the parks projects, city documents stated.
The council had included a request for a Habitat for Humanity representative to be available at the Tuesday meeting and a representative will be in attendance.
The council will hear a staff briefing and hold a public hearing to receive comments for or against Resolution 2023-120R, which will authorize the installation of wastewater infrastructure across the city of San Marcos’ dedicated parkland known as Blanco Shoals Natural Area, 1201 East River Ridge Parkway.
This authorization will allow for the installation to tie into existing city wastewater infrastructure to serve the Whisper South Development. This requires City Council authorization since this involves city parkland.
The meeting at which the public hearing will be conducted will be a hybrid (in-person/virtual) meeting.
Persons may attend the public hearing in person, view the public hearing online by going to http:// sanmarcostx.gov/421/ City-Council-VideosArchives, or watch the public hearing on Grande channel 16 or Spectrum channel 10. Persons wishing to participate and/or speak during the public hearing may participate in person or virtually.
Persons wishing to participate virtually must email citizencomment@sanmarcostx.gov the day prior to the meeting and before 12 p.m. the day of the hearing.
For those persons participating virtually, a call-in number to join by phone or link will be provided for participation on a mobile device, laptop or desktop computer.
If attending in person, no advance sign-up is required. At the conclusion of the hearing, the council will consider adoption of a resolution approving the extension of the wastewater line across Blanco Shoals Natural Area.
The council will also consider three salary increases during this meeting.
On the agenda is a proposed $10,000 increase the base salary for City Manager Stephanie Reyes, which if approved would be effective as of May 1.
Next the council will consider increasing the base salary of Municipal Court Judge Dallari Landry, by $7,645.26, and if approved, this increase would also be effective as of May 1.
City documents stated that a performance evaluation was completed at the July 3 city council meeting.
The last salary increase up for consideration would adjust the base salary of City Clerk Elizabeth Trevino, by $4,410.00, and if approved would become effective as of May 1.
