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An Ordinance amending the Administrative Code of Allegheny County, §5-801.06, entitled "Adoption of budgets," in order to prohibit the enactment of any annual operating budget resolution containing one or more line items authorizing salary increases totaling over 3% for any County office, bureau, division, or department.
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WHEREAS, pursuant to the Home Rule Charter of Allegheny County, Article IV, §2(c), Allegheny County Council is specifically vested with the power and duty to "[a]dopt balanced annual operating and capital budgets as provided in Article VII"; and
WHEREAS, in 2019, salaries and pay for County personnel were planned to amount to $329,979,190, or just over 41% of the County's total planned expenditures of $802,896,368 (2019 Allegheny County Comprehensive Fiscal Plan, p. 6); and
WHEREAS, in 2020, salaries and pay for County personnel were planned to amount to $343,237,280, or just over 41.3% of the County's total planned expenditures of $830,421,505 (2020 Allegheny County Comprehensive Fiscal Plan, p.6); and
WHEREAS, in 2021, salaries and pay for County personnel were budgeted to amount to $344,245,645, or just over 41% of the County's total planned expenditures of $838,248,568 (2021 Allegheny County Comprehensive Fiscal Plan, p.6); and
WHEREAS, in 2022, salaries and pay for County personnel were budgeted to amount to $360,479,445, or just over 41.7% of the County's total planned expenditures of $863,068,525 (2022 Allegheny County Comprehensive Fiscal Plan, p.6); and
WHEREAS, from 2019 to 2022 alone, the County's expected salary and pay expenditures increased by over $30.5 million, although some of this increase was mandated pursuant to the terms of collective bargaining or other similar contractual agreements; and
WHEREAS, according to the 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 Comprehensive Fiscal Plans, salaries were expected to be the largest category of County expenditures in each year; and
WHEREAS, it is the judgment of Council that the County's workforce is a valued and foundationally important element of the services that the County provides, and the establishment of a uniform system for calculating annual salaries would both foster equity in the County's salary structure while simultaneously aiding in controlling County expenditures, by eliminating the possibility of widely disparate salary increases; and
WHEREAS, it is further the judgment of Council that the significant amount spent by the County on employee salaries inherently requires a uniform and transparent mechanism for establishing the amounts of those expenditures; and
WHEREAS, it is accordingly the desire of Council to establish such a mechanism.
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby enacts as follows:
SECTION 1.
The preamble to this Ordinance are hereby incorporated in their entirety herein.
SECTION 2. Amendment of the Administrative Code
The Administrative Code of Allegheny County, §5-801.06, entitled "Adoption of budgets," is hereby amended as follows:
§ 5-801.06. Adoption of budgets.
A. Upon completion of the public hearings required in § 801.05 of this Administrative Code, but no later than 25 days before the end of the current fiscal year, County Council shall adopt, by resolution, balanced annual operating, capital, grants and special revenues, and agency fund budgets for the next fiscal year. Before adoption of the budgets, County Council may add, delete, increase or decrease any appropriation item contained therein. Adoption of the annual operating budget shall constitute the appropriation of the amounts specified as expenditures from the funds indicated.
B. Prior to the adoption of the annual operating and capital budgets, County Council shall fix such rates of taxation upon the valuation of the real property taxable for County purposes that, together with all other estimated revenue, shall raise a sufficient sum to meet the expenditures contained in the annual operating budget. The County Council shall fix the rate of property taxation in such amounts and in such a manner as provided in Article 809 of this Article.
C. County Council shall not adopt any annual operating budget which contains a line item, appropriation, or other provision relating to aggregate staff salaries in any County office, bureau, division, or department that increases by more than three percent (3%) from the budgeted amount for such entity's aggregate staff salaries in the previous fiscal year, unless such increase is both proposed with the intent of preserving pay equity among employees and expressly related to increases required pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements in force within the office, bureau, division or department. The limitation contained herein shall not apply to the extent that a given entity's increase may be required under the terms of a collective bargaining or other similar contractual agreement in force at any time during the year for which a budget is approved.
SECTION 3. Severability. If any provision of this Ordinance shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid, void or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Ordinance which shall be in full force and effect.
SECTION 4. Repealer. Any Resolution or Ordinance or part thereof conflicting with the provisions of this Ordinance is hereby repealed so far as the same affects this Ordinance.