Personnel department pushes hiring reforms as healthcare and pharmacy costs rise

The city’s Department of Personnel presented its FY27 priorities on May 14, urging the committee to back investments that would shorten hiring timelines, modernize aging HR data systems and stabilize employee benefits.

Director Brian Light said the department has reduced the average time from application to start to 46 days from more than 100 days when he arrived and set a target of 30 days from application to offer. The department said it processes requisitions quickly (three days in recent reporting) and provides departments a vetted list of top candidates, and it plans further process work to reduce bottlenecks.

Health and pharmacy costs are shaping the FY27 request. Benefits manager Brenda Havly told the committee that pharmacy utilization is so high the city is “utilizing 98% of the money coming into the system” and the pharmacy program alone was running above expected fund levels. To mitigate costs the city’s benefit committee increased some deductibles and removed GLP‑1 drugs for weight‑loss coverage (while keeping coverage for diabetes indications), a change the department estimates will save approximately $2 million.

Why it matters: Faster hiring and modern HR systems affect the city’s ability to fill police, corrections, public works and frontline positions. Rising benefit costs squeeze departmental budgets and can affect recruitment, retention and compensation strategies.

Key details from presentation and Q&A:
- Personnel department headcount: 48 employees. FY27 personnel budget ~ $5.4 million (salaries are primary driver).
- HR modernization request: $100,000 to begin migration away from legacy Microsoft Access databases and to shore up data integrity; leadership described this as an initial investment necessary to avoid system failures.
- Recruitment/branding: $75,000 proposed for a rebranding recruitment campaign and $80,000 for a membership (McLean & Company) to access enterprise HR diagnostics and engagement tools.
- Time-to-hire: department reports an average 46 days from application to start and aims for 30 days from application to offer; requisition processing target is three days and the department reported meeting that target in recent weeks.
- Benefits: premium increases are necessary because of a 97.7% loss ratio and high pharmacy utilization; the city restructured some plan design elements to limit a steeper increase and removed GLP‑1 coverage for weight loss as a targeted savings measure.
- Special-fund oversight: staff said an oversight omitted a $688,000 benefits-related special-fund allocation and an amendment will be requested to restore it.

Committee members pressed about bottlenecks between personnel and departments, the accuracy of job qualifications, and marijuana-related drug-test failures in seasonal hiring: Light said a recent summer recruitment for temporary utility staff had 150 applicants and a 65% failure rate on drug tests (primarily cannabis), materially impacting fill rates. The department said it is exploring policy and operational responses for safety-sensitive and non–safety-sensitive roles.

Ending: The committee acknowledged progress on time-to-hire metrics and directed further follow-up on modernization requests and special-fund corrections. Personnel will return for additional budget and policy items, including a planned pay-study discussion at the next meeting.