Bonds and Construction - Measure F - Minutes


SJUSD Measure F
Citizens' Bond Oversight Committee

MINUTES
(Approved)

November 10, 2003
San Jose High Academy
275 North 24th Street, San Jose

The Committee gathered at 5:30 and was given a guided tour of the San Jose High Academy campus by Betsy Doss, focusing on work to be done under Measure F.

 1. Call to Order

Vice Chair West, in the absence of Chairman Fadness, called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.

2. Roll Call: The requirements for a quorum were met.

Committee Members Present: Stephen Bantillo, Jill Escher, Dave Ferguson, Allen Rice, Al Roosma, Sally Souders, C.C. Su, Greg West, Alan Williams 

Committee Members Absent: Dave Fadness, Dennis Reid, Fred Schorr, Charles Tate.

Board of Education Representatives to the Committee Present: Veronica Lewis and Carol Myers.

SJUSD Staff Representatives Present: Joe Aversano, Florence Eng, Jerry Matranga, Linda Murray, Paul Rische, and Ty Williams. 

Others Present:  Philip Henderson, District Counsel

 3. Adopt Agenda

It was moved (Ferguson) and seconded (Rice) to adopt the agenda. Motion passed unanimously.

 4. Approval of Minutes

It was moved (Ferguson) and seconded (Bantillo) to approve the minutes of the October 13th meeting. Motion passed unanimously.

 5. Public Comment

Public agreed to comment at the time pertinent items occurred in the agenda.

6. Consent Calendar - Items marked (*) [Items 9.1, 9.2, 9.3, and 10.2]

It was moved (Rice) and seconded (Su) to approve items on the consent calendar. Motion passed unanimously.

 7. Old Business

 (There was no item 7.1)

 7.2 Assignment of CBOC Liasons to District Schools (to replace resigned members).

Vice Chair West asked members if they wished to make changes in the liason assignments made by memo from Chairman Fadness.  None being expressed, the assignments made in that memo stand. (Exhibit A).

 8. New Business

8.1 Measure F Project Labor Agreement (PLA)

 Mr Matranga confirmed that Committee members had received and had a chance before the meeting to review Staff's report, "Summary and Analysis of Santa Clara & San Benito Counties Building and Construction Trades Council Proposed Project Labor Agreement to San Jose Unified School District and Related Issues" (Exhibit B).

 Following this he gave the floor to Neil Struthers of the Trades Council to allow presentation of additional information.  Mr. Struthers stated that, as a result of the dotcom bust, the focus on union organizing efforts had moved from the private sector to the public sector.  He emphasized that the PLA would ensure that the District would have "labor peace", and that it would provide a pre-apprenticeship program.

 At the invitation of the Acting Chair, Kevin Dayton, representing Associated Builders and Contractors, spoke against the PLA, emphasizing what he considered to be the dual injustice of requiring workers, even those who did not choose to be affiliated with a union, to be dispatched from Union hiring halls and to pay into Union benefits funds. He believed that this would decrease the willingness of non-union contractors to bid on District work.

 Community members Robert Sztuk and Dave Sztuk, contractors, expressed concerns about the payment of benefits for employees into the Union funds, from which they could not be recovered.

 Community members Jay James, Patrick Pico, and Gary Rushford, Union managers and trainers, spoke in favor of the PLA, expressing the belief that the PLA gave better financial chances to the working man, and would ensure training of high quality apprentices.

 Community member Dennis Umphress, a member of the CBOC for the East Side Unified High School District, indicated that for one of its most recent contracts there had been only one bidder.

 Following this discussion, it was moved (Escher) and seconded (Rice) that "At its meeting of November 13, the Citizens Bond Oversight Committee was not convinced that adoption of a PLA would make expenditure of Measure F funds more efficient.  The CBOC requests the Board of Education to refrain from adopting a PLA."

 Acting Chairman West pointed out that as part of his presentation, Mr. Struthers provided a packet of documents that were meant to contradict the District's report.  It was moved (Roosma) and seconded (West) to table the motion, to allow Committee members time to review Mr. Struthers' packet, which had not been provided to them before the meeting.  The motion to table was defeated, 5 to 3 against, 1 abstaining.

 Secretary Rice indicated that, since the packet had not been provided before the meeting, it was not acceptable for posting as part of these minutes.  If the Trades Council wished, they were welcome to post them to a location of their choice, and the Committee would, as a courtesy, provide a link from these minutes. (Trades Council Link to be provided). Mr. Struthers accepted this offer.

 A vote was taken on the motion to recommend that the Board not adopt a PLA.  Motion passed, 8 to 1.

 It was moved (Rice) and seconded (Souders) to accept the report.  Passed unanimously.

 8.2 Appoint a Committee to Draft CBOC's 2003 Annual Report

 Acting Chair West appointed Mr. Rice Chair of this ad hoc Committee, of which Souders, West, and Williams agreed to be members.  Mr. Fadness, absent from this meeting, had expressed interest in serving on it as well and was accepted if that is his wish. 

9. District Reports

9.1. Administration. The report from Mr. Matranga (Exhibit C) was accepted as part of the Consent Calendar.

 9.2 Program. The report from Ty Williams (Exhibit D) was accepted as part of the Consent Calendar.

9.3 Finance. Ms. Eng’s report (Exhibits E, F1 through Fx) was accepted as part of the Consent Calendar. 

10. CBOC Reports

10.1 Vice Chair's Report. There was no report

 10.2 CBOC Web Liaison. Mr. Rice’s report was accepted as part of the Consent Calendar. Committee's website hit count for the month of October was 245.

 10.3 Deferred Maintenance Sub-Committee. There was no report. 

10.4 District’s Measure F Performance Audit Steering Committee. There was no written report. Mr. Ferguson, a member of this Committee, indicted that both the Performance Audit and Financial Audits are expected to be available for the Committee's December meeting.

 10.5 Measure F/Education Code Overview for new CBOC members.  Ms. Escher provided this information to new members Bantillo and Williams.

 11. Items for Future Agendas. 

11.1 Review of Deferred Maintenance Plan

11.2 Change Order Process – Best Practices

11.3 Disposition of Furniture and Equipment – 1/12/04

11.4 Performance Audit – 12/8/03

11.5 Financial Audit – 12/8/03

11.6 Report from Annual Report Drafting Committee - 12/8/03

11.7 Discussion of CBOC Project Review Process

11.8 Status of Procedure Document 

12. Adjournment.

Meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m.  Next meeting is December 8, 2003