HIV Health Services Planning Council
Infrastructure & Policy Draft MINUTES
Wednesday, April 6, 2005
25 Van Ness Ave., Room 710 (7th Floor)
4:30-6:30 p.m.

Committee Members Present: Charlene Pugh (co-chair); Ayisha Benham (co-chair); Devin Anderson; Bill Blum; George Simmons; Charles Siron
Council Support Present: Jack Newby; Skot Jonz

1. Introductions

2. Review/Approve Agenda
Committee reviewed the agenda. No objections were made and the agenda was approved by consensus.

3. Review/Approve Minutes March 2, 2005, Minutes
The Committee reviewed the minutes from the March 2, 2005 Infrastructure and Policy Committee meeting. No objections were made. CM Benham moved to approve the minutes, CM Siron seconded. The minutes were approved by consensus.

4. Announcements
CM Siron announced the Housing Working Group meeting on April 7 from 4-6pm at 101 Grove Street, Room 200.

5. Public Comment
There were no public comments.

6. Steering Committee Update
CM Pugh reviewed activities and discussions at the Steering Committee meeting, with emphasis on Marin County activities.
CM Siron added other details about Planning Council co-chairs discussion on adhering to time constraints and issues around timing of dinner. Steering also discussed the Community Outreach & Advocacy community meeting scheduled for next week, and the upcoming meeting with San Mateo Planning Committee. The County working group meets on April 20th from 5:30-7:00 pm.

7. Develop Council Policies & Procedures (Cont.)
Jack Newby updated Committee on activities related to the Policy and Procedures document. He and CM Blum worked on the Table of Contents and distributed it to the Committee for review at this meeting. Jack suggested adding an agenda item to other committees to determine if they have additions.
Committee discussed that the Unfunds Policy in Planning needs to move to I&P.
Committee discussed that the Table of Contents looks fine.
Committee discussed providing weblinks to resources on some items, such as the Sunshine Ordinance.
The next step is to give the Table of Contents to all the committees and have them review appropriate sections, make additions and changes as necessary, and provide necessary documents.
CM Siron asked to put this on next month’s agenda and Committee discussed adding this item to other committee agendas for the current month.
Jack suggested that Council Members receive only appropriate sections during the development phase, and a final full copy not provided until complete.
Committee discussed adding a link to the full Policies and Procedures on the Council website.
CM Pugh discussed a software program that works well with linking to specific documents.
CM Siron inquired whether in addition to the date in the Version column if there could be a column for Review date. Committee discussed naming this column “Revision”.
Committee agreed to include that the committees will review the table of contents and be given target dates to get back to I&P.
Jack indicated that current Policies and Procedures will be organized and gaps identified.

8. Discuss Development of the MOU with Grantee
The Committee will discuss the development of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Grantee including the recommendation from Evaluation Committee regarding the Grantee Assessment Action Plan and Timeline.
Jack reviewed with Committee that a meeting has been set with Michelle at the AIDS Office. Jack informed Committee that Evaluation Committee reviewed the Action Plan Ideas for the Grantee Assessment. (Handout provided to Committee members and available on file at Council Support Offices). Jack provided Committee members with sample MOUs (available on file at Council Support Offices). One of the issues with the Grantee Assessment is the area of getting contracts resolved within a reasonable time.
CM Siron asked about a policy that would allow new Council members to vote and be appointed by Council without having to wait for mayoral appointment. Committee discussed that as it stands, appointment must come from the CEO of the grantee, the mayor.
Committee discussed that there can be language added to the contract to make the grantee more accountable for the process.
Committee discussed that the AIDS Office is in the process of providing a clearer definition of their responsibilities to the Evaluation Committee.
Committee reviewed the revisions and recommendations to the Action Plan, and samples. Committee turned their attention to Section III (Communication) of the Sample MOU between the MetroCity Title I Grantee and Planning Council.
CM Siron asked whether the old MOU can be incorporated into the language of the sample.
CM Pugh asked about adding something with regard to documents being reviewed prior to Council Meetings, and why certain information is not being freely shared between the AIDS Office and the Planning Council, especially since this information is available to the public. Documents presented to the Council should be available.
Committee asked to obtain documents from the last Planning Council meeting that were provided by the AIDS Office but insufficient number of copies were made available. Jack agreed to do so.
Committee discussed the issue about difficulty in obtaining electronic copies of the budget when a presentation is being done.
CM Benham asked about a discussion to determine why the AIDS Office is seemingly so defensive and how to resolve this issue. Committee discussed that perhaps the AIDS Office is reluctant to share salary information, but this is collapsed into one lump sum which is acceptable.
Committee discussed that the AIDS Office takes 5% of the budget for their administrative expenses.
CM Siron reiterated that communication, document sharing and reports should be included in the discussion with Michelle of the AIDS Office.
Committee discussed adding specific language that spells out a requirement for the AIDS Office to provide a sufficient number of copies so that Council Members do not have to share, and that an adequate number of copies for the public are available.
Committee discussed clarifying Section IIIA5 of the sample MOU, regarding avoiding inappropriate communication, and information that is considered confidential.
Jack discussed that the Advocacy Project reports should be less specific in identifying agencies in a dispute, complaint, or grievance. CM Siron asked if this could be decided by co-chairs. Jack indicated that it should be in the MOU and also in Policies and Procedures for that particular program (Section 15 – Advocacy Program).
Regarding Section IIIB1, Committee agreed to increase face-to-face meetings with both entities and all parties from once a quarter to monthly.
Regarding Section IIIB2, Committee agreed that the sample MOU should also include the grant, along with the Conditions of Award when making special requests for information or materials. And also change the word “including” instead of “such as”.
CM Pugh added that a budget should be presented to the Council within 30 days of the award, and that this should be spelled out in the MOU.
CM Blum asked for action plans on these issues.
Jack indicated that the primary issue in working with the AIDS Office is the sharing of documents.
Committee reviewed Section IVD3 regarding: The Planning Council will not have access to the grantee’s detailed budget other than the version submitted in the Title I Application, and only grantee staff responsible for financial management will have access to the Planning Council’s detailed budget. Committee discussed that this language was completely eliminated from the MOU.
Committee agreed on reviewing the documents and forwarding them to Michelle from the AIDS Office so she has time to review them before the meeting with CM Genauracos, CM Pugh, Jack Newby. CM Siron asked if he, or others, could attend. CM Blum added that if it is too large of a group it could inhibit building trust.
CM Siron reiterated that the redlined Action Plan Ideas should be incorporated into the MOU. CM Siron asked if a draft revision of the document could be emailed to committee members so that they could have an opportunity to respond.

Committee discussed the issue with regard to having consumers or contractors involved in site monitoring.
Committee reviewed Section IVC1 and IVC2
CM Siron asked if it was necessary to adopt the format of the Sample MOU in order to move on to Steering and the Full Council.
CM Pugh indicated that they would talk about areas in the first meeting and work into drafts later.
Committee discussed that it had been awhile, if ever, that a working MOU was in existence.
Jack indicated that the timeline for the MOU and Action Plan is June and that it seems to be on track.
Committee agreed that with regard to Section VIIC2 that the MOU will be reviewed and revised annually, a change from at least once every two years.

9. Next meeting date & agenda items
Committee reviewed that the next meeting is May 4. Jack reviewed the to-do list for the next meeting is to forward to other committees a copy of the Table of Contents for the Policies and Procedures manual, for them to suggest additions and changes. Committee discussed that Policies and Procedures for the Advocacy Program is already available. Regarding the MOU, Jack reviewed that CM Pugh and he will report back to Committee regarding the meeting with Michelle. As soon as Jack has CM Geanuracos’ comments on the Action Plan he will forward to all parties. The sample MOU and Action Plan will go to Michelle, co-chairs, and I&P Committee.

Next agenda will include reviewing current Policies and Procedures as well as I&P’s section.

Meeting adjourned at 5:57 pm.

Mission Statement: To ensure that Council activities, policies and procedures support Council priorities and responsibilities, and monitor and enhance the relationship between the Council and the grantee.

Home | Community Outreach & Advocacy Committee | Policy & Evaluation Committee | Evaluation Committee
Membership Committee | Planning Committee | Steering Committee