​​​​Good Gov​ernm​ent - ​ Ensuri​ng ethical and accountable government, balancing the budget, and staffing up departments to improve service delivery.​

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The Municipality has faced a series of operational challenges that impact service delivery. These challenges include high levels of vacancy, along with a series of financial challenges that impact the ability to close the books and budget strategically.

Mayor LaFrance is committed to an ethical, accountable, and effective local government focused on serving the people of Anchorage.

To begin the work towards improving the city's obligation of Good Government, the LaFrance administration has partnered with the Assembly on a two-phase workplace study. Input from current and past Municipal employees will help inform recruitment and retention efforts at the Municipality. The two-phase process includes:

• August 2024 – Survey current and past employees as well as Individuals who declined a job offer from the Municipality of Anchorage.
• September 2024 – Focus groups, interviews, and benchmarking results against other municipalities and employers.
• October 2024 – Preliminary findings and observations.
• ​November 2024 – Final report with recommendations, followed by implementation.​

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Department Goals that Contribute to Achieving​​ the Mayor's Mission:

​Chief Administrative Officer – Federal Compliance Office 

• Ensure compliance with federal grant requirements 

Chief Administrative Officer – i-Team 

• ​Achieve quantifiable cost savings and efficiencies in municipal processes 

Chief Administrative Officer – Risk Management Division 

• 24-hour claimant contact and zero Workers’ Compensation late payment penalties. 
• Recover $1,000,000 annually in damage to MOA property. 
• Assure a 24 hour turn around on all permits, contracts & Request for Proposal (RFP). 
• Hold insurance renewals to expiring premiums or less annually for both the MOA and ASD. Inventory is added as acquired. 

Development Services 

• Continue to improve customer service by adding and retaining permit counter staff, improving employee morale, improving employee knowledge base with new training opportunities and instituting easy online permitting and payment systems. 
• Increasing property values and providing development opportunities by removing blighted properties and readying lots for redevelopment. 
• Increasing department transparency and informing the public by tailoring weekly and monthly permitting and construction valuation reporting to provide both detailed and “big picture” information. 
• Increasing revenue by revamping antiquated accounting practices to ensure all department revenue is correctly captured. 

Equal Rights Commission 

• Continue to respond to inquiries in a timely manner. 
• Complete all cases no later than our current deadline of 240 days. 

Finance Department – Controller Division 

• Report fairly, without material misstatement, the financial results of the Municipality of Anchorage on an annual basis. 
• Maintain a system of internal controls such that transactions are accurately recorded on a timely basis to reduce the risk of fraud and error. 
• Record transactions accurately and timely. 
• Pay vendors accurately and timely. 

Finance Department – Property Appraisal Division 

• Timely annual assessment of all taxable property.​
• Completion of annual assessment appeals. 
• Improve Property Appraisal assessment functions to ensure accurate data collection for property records and market assessments. 
• Advance public education about assessment issues.

​Finance Department – Treasury Division 

• Enforce and increase collections of all valid taxes and delinquent fines and fees owed to the Municipality. 
• Promote and improve timely posting and analysis of municipal revenues. 

Fire 

• Recruit and deploy an Advanced Practice Provider (Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant) to respond to low acuity calls that could be appropriately treated in the field. 
• Supplemental Emergency Medical Transport (SEMT) reimbursement funds could be used to create a capital fund for programing future AFD needs (facilities, apparatus, and vehicles) without the need for bonding. 
• Move AFD servers to the MOA OIT managed South Anchorage Data Center to improve safety and security of the system. 
• Repurpose the old SWS shop facility for AFD use, as the AFD shop is no longer adequate for today’s fleet. 
• Assume management of Anchorage Safety Patrol to better align the continuum of care. In conjunction with creating single-role emergency medical technician positions in the AFD, this could improve opportunity, service, recruiting, and diversity within the workforce. 

Health 

• Enhance readiness to respond to public health emergencies by training Anchorage Health Department staff as members of the Crisis Health Action Team (CHAT). Human Resources 
• Enhance municipal human resources to include innovative workforce standards; focus on hiring, recruitment, wages and benefits, and retention. 
• Improve the administration, consistency, and accuracy of the position classification system. 
• Expand the pool of qualified candidates available to fill Municipal positions. 
• Develop meaningful and cost-effective employee benefit options. 
• Negotiate fiscally responsible collective bargaining. 
• Negotiate and administer collective bargaining agreements that maximize management flexibility. 
• Fill critical department vacancies that impact service delivery. 
• Enhance leadership development and management training. 
• Implement recruiting strategies to increase staff diversity. 

Information Technology 

• Upgrade and maintain the city's digital infrastructure to ensure high-speed and reliable internet connectivity. 
• Create intuitive and user-friendly mobile apps and web portals that enable citizens to access services conveniently and efficiently.
• Implement robust security measures to protect sensitive information and gain citizens ‘trust in using technology for municipal services. 
• Embrace open data initiatives, providing transparent access to relevant city data. 
• Collaborate with local educational institutions and training programs to promote the development of a skilled tech workforce. 
• Evaluate and upgrade the remote work access system to ensure stability and security for MOA employees. 
• Conduct a comprehensive assessment of the current IT service delivery process and identify areas for improvement, such as response time, issue resolution, and user satisfaction. 
• Develop and implement processes, standards, and policies based on industry best practices, such as ITIL, to enhance efficiency of the Information Technology department. 
• Identify and implement appropriate IT tools and solutions that can optimize resource efficiency within the MOA organization. 
• Plan and execute a phased approach to refresh the aging IT infrastructure, prioritizing critical components first, while also implementing scalable solutions to accommodate future growth needs. 

Internal Audit 

• Provide the Assembly and Mayor with objective information by completing the requested audits and special projects in the approved annual audit plan. 

Library 

• Timely and responsive access to a diverse collection of materials in order to promote literacy and life-long learning resources. 
• Provide expert information and reference services to the public through excellent customer service and trained staff. ​

Maintenance & Operations 

• Complete declared plow-outs within 84 hours of a snowfall four inches or more within Anchorage Roads and Drainage Service Area (ARDSA) 
• Repair reported potholes within 24 hours within ARDSA 
• Annually inspect and clean “as required” all storm drain structures per Alaska Pollution Discharge Elimination System (APDES) Phase II permit within ARDSA 
• Improve response times to prioritized work order requests. 

Management & Budget 

• Improve the quality of the budget-related information provided to residents and decisionmakers by continuing to receive the “Distinguished Budget Presentation Award” from Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). 
• Improve accuracy of Assembly documents prepared by departments. 
• Maintain the Mayor’s “Performance. Value. Results” performance-based management initiative. 
• Improve departments’ understanding of Intra-governmental charge (IGC) system. 
• Ensure departments are satisfactorily served. 

Municipal Attorney 

• Develop and maintain institutional knowledge through effective recruitment and retention of attorneys and legal staff.
• Provide timely, effective, ethical advice to all municipal departments to help them better serve municipal employees and the public. 
• Maintain high quality, efficient production of legal services through low turnover rate of professional staff, and successful completion by attorneys of subject matter training/continuing legal education. 
• Effectively defend or pursue municipal interests through negotiation, communication, and litigation where necessary. 
• Avoid or mitigate undue municipal liability. 
• Litigate efficiently by building-inhouse expertise, with the goal of improving timeframe between hearing and decision and achieving a low incidence of remand or reversal on appeal in litigation. 
• Oversee indigent defense contracts to ensure that defendants’ constitutional rights are protected. 
• Provide speedy and just resolution in administrative hearings. 
• Build and maintain public trust in the Municipality by ensuring lawful, ethical municipal operations.

Planning 

• Incorporate the necessary tools and training for staff to serve the public effectively. 
• Examine and track the level of tax subsidy for the processing of zoning and platting cases. 
• Develop staff resources to serve as projects managers to assist major housing and economic development projects from concept phase to issuance of certificate of occupancy. 
• Provide timely and accurate services for applicants requesting: o Land use reviews/determinations o Administrative land use permits o Zoning and platting services 
• Provide timely, clear, and accurate information about zoning and platting cases to the general public and to the citizens serving on Anchorage’s four land use regulatory boards: Planning and Zoning Commission, Platting Board, Zoning Board of Examiners and Appeals, and Urban Design Commission. 
  

Project Management & Engineering 

• Delivering cost-effective capital project contracts that are procured through a competitive bidding process and are administered effectively to minimize change order costs. 
• Ensure that all information published by the municipal GIS is up-to-date and accurate. 
  

Public Transportation 

• Provide a cost-effective service by maximizing local tax dollars which support transit efforts in coordination with eligible state and federal grants. 
• Maximize administrative resources to reduce redundancy, promote concise processes, and clear communication. 
• Maintain hardware and software applications for providing automated operating systems to meet the needs of transit customers most efficiently and effectively. 
• Ensure effective and efficient bus route planning and scheduling. 
• Explore best practices in three key areas: engagement and support, engineering and maintenance, and enforcement and monitoring. 

Purchasing 

• Provide departments with the knowledge needed to successfully procure items/services at the best value for the city with minimal difficulty (standardize and streamline processes). 
• Provide training to departments on the purchasing processes and contract administration to increase efficiency and accuracy. 
• Ensure that procurements are made in compliance with all laws and policies, while measuring the accuracy and fairness of the Purchasing bidding process. ​​​
  
  

Real Estate 

• Generate revenue through disposals and use permits of HLB inventory provided to municipal and other agencies, and to the private sector. 
• Annual tax foreclosure process: Collection of delinquent property taxes and assessments. 
• Annual process for taking Clerk’s Deed and subsequent sale of deeded properties via sealed bid auction. 
  
• Review all contract files annually to maintain current and accurate information and contractor compliance.