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Commission Memorandum
REPORT TO: Honorable Mayor and City Commission
FROM: Bob Risk, Chief Building Official
Jason Shrauger, Fire Chief
Chuck Winn, Assistant City Manager
SUBJECT: Building Inspection 4th Quarter FY09 Update
April 1 – June 30, 2009
MEETING DATE: August 3, 2009
RECOMMENDATION: Accept this report detailing the financial and workload position of
the Building Inspection Division for the quarter ending June 30, 2009.
DISCUSSION: Because of the difficulties estimating Building Inspection revenues and
workloads (plans reviews & inspections), we committed to make quarterly reports regarding
staffing levels and operating costs in the department.
The FY09 Budget was balanced with the following assumptions:
A. REVENUES: Without an increase in current fees, we estimated receiving approximately
$70,000/month. This estimate was based on building permit activity during the last quarter
(April-June) of FY08.
How much revenue we collect is a function of the number of permits sold and the type of
project being constructed. For the first quarter of FY09, actual revenues collected averaged
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$95,000/month, or 35% above our estimated amount. For the second quarter of FY09, actual
revenues collected averaged $52,000/month or 26% below the estimated amount. For the
third quarter of FY09, actual revenues averaged $70,000/month which equals the estimated
amount. The fourth quarter of FY09 actual revenues averaged $73,000/month which exceeds
the estimated amount.
Basis for FY09 Budget Estimates – Actual Revenues 4th QTR FY08
April 2008 $68,000
May 2008 $63,000
June 2008 $88,500
Average Per Month: $73,000
Actual Revenues 1st QTR FY09
July 2008 $108,000
August 2008 $81,000
September 2008 $96,000
Average Per Month: $95,000
Actual Revenues 2nd QTR FY09
October 2008 $96,000
November 2008 $28,000
December 2008 $30,000
Average Per Month $52,000
Actual Revenues 3rd QTR FY09
January 2009 $83,500
February 2009 $24,000
March 2009 $103,000
Average Per Month $70,000
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Actual Revenues 4th QTR FY09
April 2009 $40,000
May 2009 $74,000
June 2009 $103,000
Average Per Month $73,000
The average monthly revenue for FY09 is approximately $73,000 month which exceeds our
estimated amount.
B. CASH RESERVE: The Building Inspection Fund Cash Reserve was $629,232 at the end of
June, which equates to 53% of the FY09 expenditure levels. The cash reserve balance is up
$998 from the cash reserve balance of $628,234 at the end of the third quarter.
· After the spending adjustments made in the 2nd Quarter, the Department’s budget was
reduced to an estimated $91,000/month for the remainder of the fiscal year. Actual
spending for the third quarter was $260,300, or an $86,766 per month. The lower
expenditure levels are attributed to in house reductions of our line item budget
spending.
· During the 3rd quarter, in response to existing workloads, building division staff was
reduced by an additional 2 FTE’s: 1 permit technician, and 1 building inspector.
After payouts for accrued leave time, these staffing changes will reduce department
expenditures by an estimated $19,200 through the end of this fiscal year.
· During the 4th Quarter, we accepted a voluntary layoff from a staff member causing
the building division staff to be reduced by 1 FTE. (1 permit technician)
· The Building Division FY09 staff reduction total is now 5 FTEs which will reduce
department expenditures from the FY09 budget by an estimated $322,706 for the
2010 fiscal year.
C. BUILDING PERMIT NUMBERS: While the total number of new permits for the third
quarter FY09 decreased 22% from second quarter FY2009 levels, the new permit levels for
the fourth quarter FY09 increased 44% over the Third Quarter FY09.
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Permit Type 4Qtr FY08 1Qtr FY09 2Qtr FY09 3Qtr FY09 4 Qtr FY09
Building 192 358 298 184 419
Plan Check 200 205 141 101 183
Electrical 174 181 141 99 125
Plumb/Mech 228 259 148 146 158
Fire Systems 24 19 21 17 17
Moving 1 2 0 0 1
Demolition 6 8 3 7 10
Total Permits 825 1033 752 582 913
WORKLOADS: As of today, the building inspection division staff includes: ¼ Fire Chief, ½
Deputy Chief Inspections, 1 Chief Building Official, 2 Plans Examiners, 3 Building Inspectors, 1
Fire Inspector, 1 Code Compliance Officer, and 1 Permit Coordinator.
D. “Inspections per Inspector Day” has historically been used to measure the workload of
building inspectors. The accepted level of inspections per inspector day is 15. We reviewed
the actual inspections per inspector day averages for FY05 through FY09 and the results are
in the table below.
Fiscal Year
Inspections/Inspector Day
Standard 15
2009 14.59
2008 15.45
2007
2006
2005
5 year average inspections per day-
12.56
13.01
14.27
13.97
During the last half of FY09, inspection numbers have showed a gradual but steady increase
to an average 13.50 inspections per inspector day for the last month of the 4th Quarter FY09.
See table below.
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Fiscal Year 2009
Inspections/Inspector Day
Standard 15
January 10.92
February 11.58
March
April
May
June
FY 09 average inspections per day -
11.11
11.79
13.25
13.50
14.59
In addition to the historical inspector workload, the field inspection staff is performing inspection
related computer entries that were previously completed by the permit technician. Also, to help
compensate for the recent permit technician staff reduction and the increased volume of building
permit applications we are receiving, the building division code enforcement officer has been
trained to accept permit applications, issue building permits, and to provide general office
coverage as needed.
STAFFING PLAN: With our current and projected workload, the Building Division is
currently at the minimum staffing level needed to provide the minimum services mandated by
the Administrative Code of Montana, City of Bozeman Ordinances, the International Building
Code and Current Building Division Policies.
Currently, the building division staffing level includes: ¼ Fire Chief, ½ Deputy Chief
Inspections, 1 Chief Building Official, 2 Plans Examiners, 3 Building Inspectors, 1 Fire
Inspector, 1 Code Compliance Officer, and 1 Permit Coordinator.
FISCAL EFFECTS: During the 2009 Fiscal year, the building division staff worked hard to
streamline our operations and conserve funds. We reviewed our budget line items and were able
to cut $28,000. We revised our CIP vehicle policy and we were able to save $31,200 in vehicle
costs.
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During FY09, while trying to anticipate our FY09 Quarterly workloads and project our staffing
requirements for the upcoming 2010 fiscal year, we reduced the building division staffing levels
by 5 FTEs which results in additional expenditure reductions of $300,000. There will be a 2-3
month delay in any financial savings that might come from the above described staff reductions
due to leave accrual payouts. This means that staff reductions made in April, May, and June
won’t decrease total expenditures until FY10.
Our 4th Quarter estimated monthly expenditures for the department stand at $84,600/month.
Our revenues for the 4th Quarter FY09 averaged $73,000/month and our monthly expenditure
levels were approximately $84,600/month which left us with a reserve fund balance at the end of
the 4th Quarter of $629,232 which represents 53% of the FY09 Approved Budget and represents
63% of the Recommended FY10 budget.
ALTERNATIVES: As suggested by the City Commission.
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