Fines and Tickets Dramatically Increase in Jacksonville - City Council Work Session and Meeting

December 21, 2018
Lee Fuller

Work Session

Call to order.
Roll call. – All present
Acceptance of minutes. – Accepted
Recreational Trails Program FY 2019-2020 – Tyler Ferrell spoke regarding Jacksonville applying for a grant to extend the Chief Ladiga Trail. Total cost is $273,000 and the city share is $54,000. A petition has been started and is located at city hall. The application is due Friday, December 21, 2018.
Bid No. 19-01, Time and Attendance System. – The quote and reports were submitted on December 10, 2018. Administrative training will be conducted onsite and will be available after the system goes live. The annual fees for this program are $3,585, which is less than is currently being paid. The bulk of the setup and equipment fees will be covered by FEMA reimbursements. The vendor deadline is December 24, 2018. The Mayor suggested having a representative of the company come in and discuss with the council and department heads. This would take place after the 24th so this would potentially mean loosing the 20% discount offered, but may make implementation smoother.
Residential Rental Unit Information – Mark Williams spoke about Anniston rental inspection fees. Williams made a correction to what was reported at the last meeting, the standard fee is $50 in surrounding areas, but Anniston no longer charges for the initial inspection. There are now a total of 2,058 rental units in Jacksonville. Williams suggested possibly waiting until the next budget year to launch a residential rental program for the city.
Building Codes from Surrounding Cities – Mark Williams spoke in regards to the surrounding communities and how Jacksonville currently is up-to-date in comparison. “We are currently meeting 2015 code standards”, stated Williams. The suggestion is to not adopt the 2018 codes, as “We will still be a year behind”. The suggestion is to possibly adopt the 2019 code standards.
New Magistrate Position – Judge Jennifer Weems addressed the council regarding the current docket and numbers. Judge Weeks requested a third Magistrate due to increased court activity. In March of 2017 the average collection was $27,900 but in August 2018 the average collection was $67,000. In the fiscal year of 2018 the monthly average was $33,400 however, the total 2018 fiscal year collections were $400,014. In the last four months alone the courts have collected $200,044. Judge Weems stated “In the last four months they have collected over half of all the monies that they collected in fiscal year 2018” . Broken down by month – September $54,723 October $49,000 November $73,000 December $23,000. When asked why the dramatic increase Judge Weems stated “Couple reasons, one -the officers have been writing more tickets, we’ve had a lot more tickets come in”. Weems went on to say they have also made some changes in how things are done at the court office. Previously there as a deferment program where you could agree to driving school and pay a your $253 in court fees and fines, but your ticket would be dismissed. This was done by coming into court, but now you can sign up for that program without coming into court. People are paying off their fines and saving court costs and time which can also be done through a payment plan of $50 a month. Weems then noted again there was a substantial increase in tickets; in fiscal year 2017 there were 735 traffic tickets issued and 457 misdemeanor warrants. In fiscal year 2018 there were 1,948 traffic tickets and 680 misdemeanor warrants issued. For the fiscal year 2019 there have already been 830 traffic tickets issued which is higher than the amount at the same time last year. Judge Weems has spoken to the Chief and does not anticipate this number to decrease. The council requested to review this further in the January work session after a completed report had been submitted.
New Year’s Eve – Employees have requested to have off Monday, December 31, 2018 through January 2, 2019 off.
Any Other Business – No other business.

Council Meeting

Call to order.
Invocation: Reverend Allen Webster Jacksonville Church of Christ
Pledge of Allegiance.
Roll call. – All present
Adoption of minutes. – Unanimously Accepted
Adoption of agenda. – Unanimously Accepted
1. Adding the December 31st date for holiday
2. Adding Consent item for purchases over $5,000 for PARD’s purchase for $11,400 to Talladega Cycle Sales for the purchase of a Kawasaki 2018 mule for use on the Chief Ladiga trail.
3. Adding Personnel – the resignation of Chad Gregory effective immediately.
Proclamation. – No proclamations
Public comments concerning agenda items. – No comments
Consideration of Ordinance Repealing Section 7-179 – Minimum Standards for Residential Rental Unit, of Chapter 7 – Businesses, of Article VII – Residential Rentals, of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Jacksonville, Alabama. (Received 1st Reading on December 3, 2018) – Unanimously Accepted
Consideration of Resolution regarding the Recreational Trails Program FY 2019-2020 Funding Cycle. Comments from Council Member Jimmy Harrell to request better information to help get the word out in the future. – Unanimously Accepted
Addition of adding December 31st as a Holiday for all City of Jacksonville Employees. – Unanimously Accepted
Consent Items – Unanimously Accepted
1. Purchases over $5,000.00.
  1. FIRE $33,571.78 to Physio Control for the purchase of a LIFEPAK 15 monitor/defibrillator.
  2. PARD $11,400 item of Kawasaki Mule
2. Other Personnel Issues. – Unanimously Accepted
  1. Hiring
    1. Austin Ryan Taylor, Firefighter, Range 7, effective upon compliance with Ordinance No. 273, due to the resignation of Cortlin Ingram.
    2. Jeremy Brown, Part-time Substitute Firefighter Paramedic, Range 11A, effective upon compliance with Ordinance No. 273, due to the resignation of recent resignation of Hunter Sides.
  2. Resignations:
    1. Cortlin Ingram, Firefighter/EMT, effective immediately.
    2. Chad Gregory, Firefight, effective immediately
3. AGENDA # BOARDS/COMMITTEES
  1. Resignations:
    1. Gene Rhodes, Library Board, effective immediately.
Public comments for general items. – No comments
Council Member Remarks. – Wish all a Merry Christmas and happy New Years.
Mayor’s report. – On the 24th and 25th the City Hall will be closed, as well as on the 31st through 2nd.
Any Other Business. – No business
Adjournment. – Unanimously Accepted