REPORT AND MINUTES
NoRTEC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
APRIL 22, 2009

The NoRTEC Executive Committee met from 1:00-3:00 p.m. on April 22, 2009, in Redding to address heath insurance coverage for NoRTEC retirees, the Executive Director's succession plan, the review and recommendation of service providers for NoRTEC, to plan for stimulus projects, and to respond to Butte County Board of Supervisor's request to change the NoRTEC meeting day from the fourth Thursday of January, April, July, and October.

WIB Present: Judy Sisson, Tom Cochran, Connie Barton, Bill Hamby, Judi Madden, Ginne Mistal, Sally Martin, Jesse Cox, Michele Piller, Bill Maffett, Dwight Beeson, Ron Sandler

Governing Board Present: Peter Huebner, Leslie McNamer, Jeff Bullock, Jim Cook

Others Present: Charles Brown, Stewart Knox, Michael Cross, Betti Austin, Terrianne Brown

 

HEALTH INSURANCE FOR NORTEC RETIREES

Michael Cross, NoRTEC Financial Officer, reviewed the staff recommendation for retiree benefits as presented in the meeting agenda. Cross stated staff had reviewed the potential costs associated with such a proposal, and at current rates found the "worst case scenario" for liability to be less than $10,000 annually. Cross also stated the benefit could only be offered if NoRTEC agreed to pay half (or more) of the monthly premium, as this was the policy of the insurance company currently covering NoRTEC.

Sally Martin asked if other LWIA's offered such a benefit. Bill Hamby stated he liked the requirements of a minimum age of 55 and at least 15 years of service, as he believed this would limit NoRTEC's financial liability.

Stewart Knox stated that several city and county governments functioning as WIA governing boards offered such benefits as part of their compensation package, but they were subject to collective bargaining agreements. Knox, the former LWIA Director of North Central Counties Consortium (NCCC) before coming to NoRTEC, said NCCC also had such a policy, and the cost was minimal.

A motion was made by B. Hamby, and seconded by J. Madden, to recommend to the full WIB and Governing Board:

1. NoRTEC pay 50% of the cost of health insurance coverage for employees who have provided 15 years of continuous service, and are at least 55 years old at the time of retirement.
2. This coverage shall begin on the date of retirement and continue until the employee is eligible for Medicare coverage.
3. This agreement may be revoked or altered by a majority vote of the WIB and Governing Board at any regularly scheduled meeting.

This motion was unanimously passed by the members present at the meeting.

 

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SUCCESSION PLAN

The committee members reviewed Charles Brown's succession plan as presented in the agenda.

Stewart Knox addressed the group and stated he was happy to be back at NoRTEC. He said he had experience with two other LWIAs (NCCC and a southern California LWIA), and he was happy to be back in northern California with the organization where he got his start in workforce preparation programs.

A motion was made by J. Madden, and seconded by M. Piller, to recommend to the full WIB and Govenring Board that they hire Stewart Knox as the NoRTEC Executive Director, at the same pay and benefits as the current Executive Director, effective when the current Executive Director steps down. This motion was unanimously passed by the members present at the meeting.

T. Cochran asked who would take Stewart's place when he assumed the role of Executive Director. Knox said his work on the WIRED program was slowly being assumed by competent local program staff, and once the WIRED project was officially over, there would be no need to hire someone in his place.

REVIEWING AND RECOMMENDING SERVICE PROVIDER PROPOSALS FOR THE NORTEC WORKFORCE INVESTMENT AREA

T. Brown shared staff recommendations for service provider selection. Brown said only one proposal had been received for each of the eleven counties in the consortium, and each of those proposals met the minimum threshold for selection. She said staff was recommending the following service providers:

Butte and Nevada Counties - Butte Private Industry Council
Del Norte County - Rural Human Services
Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, and Sierra Counties - Alliance for Workforce Development
Shasta and Trinity Counties - Shasta Private Industry Council
Siskiyou County - Siskiyou Training & Employment Program
Tehama County - Job Training Center of Tehama County

M. Piller remarked there was quite a range in the scoring for each of the providers, and asked if there was a plan to address deficiencies in the proposals who scored on the cusp. Brown said the deficiencies would be handled during the contract negotiation process.

A motion was made by M. Piller, and seconded by B. Hamby, to recommend to the full WIB and Governing Board that they approve the slate of service providers outlined in the list above. This motion was unanimously passed by the members present at the meeting.

 

PLANNING FOR STIMULUS PROJECT

The members discussed this item as presented in the agenda.

A motion was made by J. Sisson, and seconded by B. Hamby, to recommend to the full WIB and Governing Board that they approve of NoRTEC staff pursuing stimulus funding that is expected to enhance NoRTEC's ability to provide job training, business assistance, job creation and employment opportunities. This motion was unanimously passed by the members present at the meeting.

 

BUTTE COUNTY REQUEST TO CHANGE THE NORTEC MEETING DAY

The members discussed this item as presented in the agenda. S. Martin said she was reluctant to change the date of the meetings, as they had been arrived at after extensive research. M. Piller said she agreed, and was afraid changing the date would cause problems for other members of the WIB and Governing Board.

A motion was made by B. Hamby, and seconded by M. Piller, to recommend to the full WIB and Governing Board to turn down Butte County's request to change the meeting dates, and leave them the way they are. This motion was unanimously passed by the members present at the meeting.

 

OLD BUSINESS

No Old Business was discussed.

 

NEW BUSINESS

No New Business was discussed.

 

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further old or new business, the meeting was adjourned at 3:05 p.m.