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July 8th, 1958.
<br />
<br />opinion the Council should take action on it in the not too far distant future, if it is the wish of the Coun-
<br />cil to participate under this plan."
<br /> "This is in rggard to the City possibly obtaining additional funds for operation of
<br />the Health Department, from the State, and is pursuant to yours and my conversation with Dr. Mack Shanholtz,
<br />State Commissioner of Health, last Friday, June 13.
<br /> You recall our discussion of the fact that,~ while citizens of independent cities
<br />paid state taxes and thus contributed to the support of county health units, that there is a very small per cent
<br />of this money returned to cities in the form of state support of city health work. This means that our citizens
<br />of Portsmouth are supporting county work and again paying city tax to support our City Health Department. This is
<br />double taxation; however, this arrangement has grown up over the years.
<br /> Our City Health Department presently receives about $20,000. from the State in the
<br />form of grants-in-aid. Were we to be brought into the S~ate Health .Departmen~ system (under which all counties,
<br />small cities, and the City of Danville are now operating) our state allocation would come up to about $?0,000.
<br />Note that this will provide us with.an additional $50,000. of badly needed funds to operate our program. I believe
<br />we can use some of this money to provide much better public health services to our citizens. At the same time,
<br />will correct an inequity in our tax structure.
<br /> If the City would elect to come under the State Health Department system, Doctor
<br />Shanholtz has outlined the following steps as necessary:
<br />
<br /> t. The State Health Department must know by July 1, 1959, and preferably long before this'
<br />time, if our city desires to come under the State Health Department system. This Jaetion and reques~ must come
<br />from City Council, and be submitted to the State Health Department.
<br /> 2. If.Qity Council requests this action, then I muse submit a proposed budgez for the fiscal
<br /> year July 1, 1959 to June 30, 1960. These budgets are already submitted yearly ~o the State Health Department
<br /> for approval.
<br /> 3. Based on the budget of July '59 to June t60, the State will calculate our allotment (this
<br /> is done on a formula basis and considers the wealth of a community). After calculation, this allotment will be
<br /> submitted in the State Budge~ to the General Assembly for their approval.
<br /> 4. If this is approved by General Assmebly, we may~use the money in our fiscal year July,
<br /> 1960 to June, 1961.
<br />
<br /> The State Health Department seemed qu~ite w%lling to take us in and the biggest
<br /> question would be whether the General Assembly would approve our budget request.
<br />
<br /> You should note that, if the City Health Department comes under the State Health
<br /> System, we will lose a certain small degree of our independence. I Should point out, however, that we do not
<br /> have much independence anyhow in the health field. V~ iPe required to fellow the State Health rules regarding
<br /> vital statistics, disease control, nu~szng practices, and so on. Most o~ our clinic programs are intimately tied
<br /> up with the State, and must follow State Health procedures.
<br /> Under the State system, personnel will be employed by the State Health Department
<br />~rather than by the local ~o~ernment. They wil$ be subject to the State Merit system rules and procedures. It is
<br />well to point out that the State Merit system rule, etq. is very closely paralleled by our o~n Classification
<br />and Compensation Plan for city employees. Also, while nominally emplgyed by the State, all workers are in effeci
<br />local workers and the State usually goes along with local recommendations regarding employment.
<br /> City employees, ~f taken under the State system~ must also go under the State re-
<br /> tirement system. The City of Danville very readily worked this oul by passage of a simple ordinance which per -
<br /> mitted all of its health employees to keep their present retirement earniyags, ~ith earnings from the time of en-
<br /> actment of .the ordinance being placed in the State system. Upon reaching retirement, an employee draws two re.-
<br /> tirement checks, one for that part of t%m~ earned as an employee of the City, and the other for that part of has
<br /> time earned as an employee of the State system. The two r~tire~ent systems are verysimilar, and I do not believ~
<br /> it would be detrimental.for any employee to change from the City to the State system.
<br /> One other consideration is involved. This.is that it may be necessary to change the
<br /> City Charter to ~rovide for the c~nge over from a City Health Departm~nt~to the State Health system, and this
<br /> matter should be looked into and arrangements made so that the change over in the Charter should occur st the
<br /> same legislative session of the General Assembly. Note that State laws are already on the books permitting a
<br /> City Health Department to go under the State system." (Signedl Samuel A. Graham, Jr., ~.D.Director of Pubic
<br /> Health."
<br />
<br />Motion of Mr. Baker that this be received for information was adopted.
<br />
<br /> 58-212 - "The attached letter from W.F. Smith, Urban Engineer, Department .of
<br />Highways, is self- explanatory and sign~ies that I carried out ~our instructions concerns%rig a 'request to the
<br />Department of Hi~)aways for certain changes in tha Interstate Highway through t~ City of Portsmouth."
<br />
<br /> "I wish to acknowledge the certified copy of an excerpt from the minutes of the
<br />City Council meeting of June 10th, 1958. This was brought by you to the Urban office on JUne I3th. The minutes
<br />provided quotes a letter from the Planning Commission asking for consideration of a connection irom the proposed
<br />Interstate location to High St~., for inclusion in the initial construction as a part of the Interstate design
<br />and to be financed by Interstate Funds.
<br /> In regard to the included motion in the last paragraph of the excerpt, you advised
<br />that the Council 'was Qonceraed with the existin~ industries on and immediately adjacent to the presently planned
<br />location. Examples were the comparatively new[building of the "Rental Uniform Service, Inc." and the "Charles
<br />E. K~ssoll Industries", who nQw 8perate a supermarket north of the ~eaboard tracks on the spur connection toward
<br />Alexander Corner.
<br /> I wish to assure you that full consideration will be given in the design of the
<br />project based upon this resolution. (Signed) W.F. Smith, Urban Engineer."
<br />
<br />On motion filed.
<br />
<br /> 58-213 - "I am submitting the attached letter from Robert F. McMurran, Registrar
<br />for Trinity Episcopal Church, which is self-explanatory and i's for information o~ly."
<br />
<br /> "The vestry of Trinity Episcopal Church, at its regular monthly me~ing held on
<br />June 10, ~a~, unanimously adopted a resolution thanking the City Council and ~the City Manager for their gracious
<br />action and favorable consideration of its request to have the public buses stop a~ the southeast corner of High
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