[00:00:07]
>> MAYOR NIRENBERG: ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYBODY. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY. THE TIME IS 2:05 P.M. ON THE 14TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2024. WE'LL CALL OUR B SESSION TO ORDER. MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU READ THE ROLL?
[ ITEMS ]
RIGHT. WELCOME, EVERYBODY, TO OUR B SESSION.WE HAVE A COUPLE OF ITEMS ON THE AGENDA TODAY, SO I'LL TURN IT RIGHT OVER
TO CITY MANAGER, ERIK WALSH. >> WALSH: THANK YOU, MAYOR. GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
SO A COUPLE F ITEMS ON B SESSION TODAY. TODAY WE'LL BE PRESENTING OUR FIRST QUARTER BUDGET UPDATE FOR FISCAL YEAR '24, AS WELL AS LAYING OUT THE PROPOSED BUDGET CALENDAR FOR THE UPCOMING 2025 BUDGET PROCESS.
WE'LL ALSO BE PROVIDING YOU A FINANCIAL UPDATE AS WE'VE DONE PERIODICALLY ON THE USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS THAT WE'VE RECEIVED FOR THE RESPONSE AND RECOVERY OF COVID-19. WE'VE DONE THESE UPDATES PERIODICALLY SINCE THE BEGINNING OF 2020, AND WE'LL CONTINUE UNTIL ALL OF THE ARPA FUNDS ARE EXPENDED IN DECEMBER 2026. SO THAT'S PART TWO TODAY. YOU'LL ALSO HEAR TODAY FROM JUSTINA A RECOMMENDATION THAT HAS GONE THROUGH THE COMMUNITY HEALTH COMMITTEE ON THE USE OF FUNDS THAT WE WILL BE RECEIVING FROM THE OPIOID LAWSUIT. THIS CAME AS A RESULT OF AN ORIGINAL FIVE-SIGNIFICANT MEMO FROM COUNCILWOMAN CASTILLO, IT'S GONE THROUGH COMMITTEE AND WE'LL SHARE WITH YOU THE RECOMMENDATIONS ON THAT.
AND THEN FINALLY T FOURTH ITEM ON TODAY'S AGENDA IS TO BRIEF YOU -- COME BACK -- WE'VE COME BACK WITH CPS TODAY TO BRIEF YOU, THE COUNCIL, ON A CHANGE TO THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS THAT CPS IS CONSIDERING FOR THEIR RESIDENTIAL PROGRAM AND THEIR AFFORDABILITY DISCOUNT RIDERS.
SO THOSE ARE THE FOUR PIECES OF TODAY'S PRESENTATION.
BEFORE I HAND IT OVER TO JUSTINA, LET ME JUST PROVIDE A LITTLE MORE CONTEXT. SO OUR FIRST -- OUR FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL REPORT IS WHAT WE CALL THE THREE PLUS NINE. AND THAT REFLECTS THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF THE FISCAL YEAR AND PROVIDES PRELIMINARY PROJECTIONS OF THINGS WE KNOW FOR THE REMAINING NINE MONTHS. THESE QUARTERLY REPORTS ARE PART OF OUR OVERALL FINANCIAL STRATEGY TO UPDATE THE COUNCIL AND THE PUBLIC, BUT ALSO MAINTAIN AN EYE TOWARDS OUR FINANCIAL POSITION AS WE GO THROUGHOUT THE FISCAL YEAR. I REVIEW THE FINANCIALS OF THE CITY ON A MONTHLY BASIS WITH OUR BUDGET STAFF AND OUR FINANCE DEPARTMENT, AND THEN WE PROVIDE YOU -- THIS INFORMATION WILL BE AVAILABLE ONLINE AS WELL. THE QUARTERLY REPORTS ON OUR FINANCIAL POSITION.
SO IT GIVES US THE ABILITY TO ADJUST WHERE NECESSARY AND BE ABLE TO ADDRESS ISSUES THAT WE SEE. THE NEXT TIME THAT YOU'LL HAVE, THE SIX PLUS SIX, WILL BE PART OF OUR FINANCIAL FORECAST PRESENTATION, AND YOU'LL SEE ON THE PROPOSED CALENDAR THAT JUSTINA WILL COVER, WE'VE PICKED SOME PROPOSED DATES FOR THAT.
SO THAT WILL BE -- THAT WILL BE A REALLY KEY PART, THAT PLUS THE COUNCIL GOALS AND OBJECTIVE WORK SESSION, TO REALLY LAUNCH OFF INTO THE WORK THAT WE NEED TO START FOR THE SUMMER -- AND THE PREPARING FOR FY TWIECH. '25. JUSTINA WILL ROLL THROUGH, AND THEN WE'LL TRANSITION TO GWEN ESTRADA FOR THE ARPA UPDATE AND THEN WE'LL WRAP UP WITH KJ. KJ'S GOING TO COVER FOR
CPS. JUSTINA? >> TATE: THANK YOU, ERIK. GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL.
MY NAME IS JUSTINA TATE, I'M THE BUDGET DIRECTOR FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, AND TODAY WE WILL COVER THE FISCAL YEAR 2,241ST QUARTER FINANCIAL STATUS REPORT AS WELL AS PROJECTIONS FOR REVENUES AND EXPENSES FOR THE FISCAL YEAR. ADDITIONALLY I'LL PROVIDE RECOMMENDED OVERVIEW OF THE RECOMMENDED FISCAL YEAR 2025 BUDGET CALENDAR.
BUT BEFORE I BEGIN, I WANTED TO BRING YOUR ATTENTION TO THE BINDER IN FRONT OF YOU. SO THE BINDER IN FRONT OF YOU -- AUDIO] -- FINANCIAL REPORT. IT INCLUDES THE STATUS REPORT OF THE BUDGET INITIATIVES. THE FIRST QUARTER RESULTS
[00:05:02]
OF OUR 24/7 PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND THE RECOMMENDED CALENDAR.SO THE FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL REPORT IS A PRELIMINARY FINANCIAL UPDATE TO CITY COUNCIL. IT REPRESENTS A NOD AT ACTUALS FROM OCTOBER THROUGH DECEMBER OF 2023 AND HOW THOSE COMPARE TO WHAT WE HAD PLANNED IN 2024. IN THIS PRESENTATION, WE WILL HIGHLIGHT THE GENERAL FUND AND SELECTED RESTRICTED FUNDS AND THE REPORT IN FRONT OF YOU INCLUDES ADDITIONAL RESTRICTED FUNDS. AND THIS REPORT WILL BE AVAILABLE ONLINE. SO THIS NEXT SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS SOME OF OUR FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL STATUS FOR THE GENERAL FUND.
THE ECONOMY IS STRONG. UNEMPLOYMENT FOR DECEMBER IS STILL LOW, AND WE STILL SEE EMPLOYMENT GROWTH. HOWEVER, OUR SALES TAX IS RELATIVELY FLAT AS WE COMPARE THOSE -- AS WE COMPARE OUR COLLECTIONS TO FISCAL YEAR 2023. A RECENT WALL STREET JOURNAL ARTICLE TITLED WHY AMERICANS ARE SO DOWN ON A STRONG ECONOMY CONCLUDED THAT AMERICANS ARE, QUOTE, SOUR ABOUT THE ECONOMY BECAUSE LONG-TERM FINANCIAL SECURITY FEELS FRAGILE AND VULNERABLE TO WIDE-RANGING SOCIAL AND POLITICAL THREATS. THIS PROVIDES US SOME CONTEXT AS TO WHY OUR ECONOMY'S STRONG; HOWEVER, OUR SALES TAX REMAINS RELATIVELY FLAT.
FOR OUR INTEREST EARNINGS, WE CONTINUE TO OUTPERFORM THE BUDGET; HOWEVER, BASED ON INDICATIONS FROM THE FEDERAL RESERVE, IT IS EXPECTED THAT THEY WILL LOWER INTEREST RATES IN THE UPCOMING MEETINGS.
SO I WANTED TO PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF OUR FISCAL YEAR 2024 TOTAL BUDGET.
THE TOTAL BUDGET IS $3.7 BILLION AND IT'S COMPRISED OF THREE MAIN COMPONENTS, THE FIRST BEING OUR RESTRICTED FUNDS AT $1.3 BILLION.
RESTRICTED FUNDS ARE GOVERNED BY FEDERAL, STATE OR LOCAL LAWS, AND THE REVENUES COLLECTED BY THOSE FUNDS MUST BE USED FOR A SPECIFIC PURPOSE.
SO, FOR EXAMPLE, OUR AIRPORT FUND, THIS IS REGULATED BY FEDERAL LAWS. AND ALL THE REVENUES RECEIVED AT THE AIRPORT MUST BE USED FOR AVIATION SERVICES AT SAN ANTONIO INTERNATIONAL OR STINSON. THE NEXT COMPONENT IS OUR CAPITAL BUDGET AT $798 MILLION, AND THIS PROVIDES FUNDING FOR OUR 2022 BOND PROJECT, AS WELL AS AIRNT AIRPORT PROJECTS AND OTHER LARGE CAPITAL PROJECTS. FINALLY THE GENERAL FUND AT $1.6 BILLION, THIS IS OUR LARGEST OPERATING FUND, AND THIS PROVIDES FOR THE CITY'S CORE SERVICES TO INCLUDE PUBLIC SAFETY, STREET MAINTENANCE, PARK MAINTENANCE AND ANIMAL CARE SERVICES. SO THE GENERAL FUND IS FUNDED BY FOUR MAIN COMPONENTS. THE LARGEST BEING PROPERTY TAX, BUDGETED AT $466 MILLION. AND OUR SECOND LARGEST IS OUR CPS PAYMENT, WHICH IS ESTIMATED TO GENERATE ABOUT $421 MILLION IN FISCAL YEAR 2024. AS A REMINDER, THE CITY RECEIVES UP TO 14% OF ALL CPS GAS AND ELECTRIC GROSS SALES AS A RETURN ON INVESTMENT AND A PAYMENT IN LIEU OF TAXES. WE ARE PROJECTING -- OR HAVE BUDGETED OUR THIRD LARGEST REVENUE SOURCE IS SALES TAX, ABOUT $412 MILLION. AND THE FINAL COMPONENT IS OUR REVENUES -- OF REVENUES IS OUR OTHER RESOURCES. THIS INCLUDES REVENUES SUCH AS OUR EMS TRANSPORT FEES, OUR RIVER BARGE TICKET SALES, TELECOMMUNICATION AND USER FEES. SO THESE REVENUES COMBINED FROM THE -- FUND THE BASIC CITY SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE CITY.
THIS INCLUDES PUBLIC SAFETY AT JUST OVER 60%, PUBLIC WORKS AND PARKS.
THE REMAINING FUNDS ARE OTHER DEPARTMENTS TO INCLUDE LIBRARIES, ANIMAL CARE SERVICES AND CODE ENFORCEMENT. SO OF THE $1.6 BILLION THAT I MENTIONED ON THE PREVIOUS SLIDE, WE HAD PLANNED TO RECEIVE 479 MILLION IN THE FIRST QUARTER. BASED ON OUR FIRST QUARTER ACTUALS, WE RECEIVED ALMOST 486 MILLION WHICH IS $6.4 MILLION ABOVE WHAT WE HAD ANTICIPATED TO RECEIVE.
THIS IS DRIVEN BY CPS REVENUE, AS WELL AS INTEREST EARNINGS, WHICH I'LL PROVIDE MORE DETAILS ON UPCOMING SLIDES. IN OUR FIRST QUARTER, WE ARE SPENDING FASTER THAN WE HAD PLANNED BY ABOUT $200,000, BUT OVERALL FOR OUR FIRST QUARTER, WE ARE AHEAD OF WHERE WE ANTICIPATED TO BE WITH THE BUDGET BY ABOUT $6.2 MILLION. SO LET ME GO INTO A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ABOUT OUR REVENUES. AS MENTIONED FOR OUR
[00:10:03]
FIRST QUARTER, WE ARE AHEAD OF BUDGET BY $6.4 MILLION.AND THIS IS A COMBINATION OF BETTER THAN ANTICIPATED COLLECTIONS FROM CPS REVENUE, AS WELL AS INTEREST EARNINGS, WHICH IS OFFSET BY LESS COLLECTIONS THAN ANTICIPATED FOR OUR SALES TAX.
WITH REGARDS TO SALES TAX, OUR COLLECTIONS FOR THE FIRST QUARTER ARE IN LINE WITH WHAT WE RECEIVED IN FIRST QUARTER OF 2023; HOWEVER, WE HAVE MISSED THE BUDGET FOR OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER FOR WHAT WE HAD PLANNED IN 2024. WITH CPS, WE'RE AHEAD OF BUDGET BY $7.3 MILLION.
AND THIS IS DUE TO THE AMOUNT THAT WE COLLECTED IN THE MONTH OF OCTOBER.
IN TERMS OF OUR OTHER REVENUES, THIS IS DRIVEN, AS I MENTIONED, BY OUR INTEREST EARNINGS WHICH ARE $2.6 MILLION HIGHER THAN BUDGETMENT WE HAD PROJECTED AN INTEREST RATE FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 3.25%, HOWEVER WE REALIZED AN INTEREST RATE OF JUST OVER 4%. SO THIS NEXT SLIDE PROVIDES SOME DETAILS ABOUT OUR SALES TAX. AND FIRST, LET ME ORIENT YOU TO THE SLIDE. THE TABLE ON THE LEFT PROVIDES ACTUAL COLLECTIONS FOR OCTOBER, NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER FOR FISCAL YEAR 2023.
WHAT WE HAD ANTICIPATED TO RECEIVE AS PART OF THE BUDGET FOR 2024, AND WHAT WE ACTUALLY COLLECTED IN 2024 FOR THOSE MONTHS. THE CHART ON YOUR RIGHT GRAPHICALLY ILLUSTRATES WHAT WE -- THE BUDGET FOR 2024 AND COMPARES THAT TO THE ACTUALS. AS YOU CAN SEE, WE ARE $3.4 MILLION BELOW WHAT WE HAD ANTICIPATED TO COLLECT; HOWEVER, AS COMPARED TO 2023, WE ARE RELATIVELY FLAT. WE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS REVENUE SOURCE, AND WE'LL PROVIDE AN UPDATE WITH THE SIX PLUS SIX AS WE RECEIVE ADDITIONAL ACTUAL COLLECTIONS. THIS NEXT SLIDE SHOWS THE GROWTH IN OUR SALES TAX OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
SO IN 2019, YOU CAN SEE THAT PREPANDEMIC OUR GROWTH WAS -- AUDIO] -- IN 2020, WE COLLECTED LESS THAN WHAT WE HAD COLLECTED IN 2019 AS A RESULT OF THE PANDEMIC. BUT WE QUICKLY RECOVERED, AND WE SAW GROWTH BETWEEN 12% AND 14% IN '21 AND '22.
AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE GRAPH, THAT GROWTH SIGNIFICANTLY SLOWED IN 2023, AND THEN IS RELATIVELY FLAT FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2024.
THE NEXT SLIDE PROVIDES SOME MORE DETAILS ABOUT CPS ENERGY.
AGAIN, THE TABLE ON YOUR RIGHT INCLUDES THE ACTUAL COLLECTIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2023 FOR OCTOBER, NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER. THE 2024 BUDGET AND 2024 ACTUAL COLLECTIONS. AND THE GRAPH -- OR THE CHART ON THE RIGHT GRAPHICALLY ILLUSTRATES THE BUDGET AS COMPARED TO WHAT WE COLLECTED.
SO AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THIS SLIDE, THE REVENUES THAT WE COLLECTED IN OCTOBER WAS SIX-POINT -- I'M SORRY, $7.6 MILLION AHEAD OF WHAT WE HAD ANTICIPATED. AND THIS IS A RESULT OF WARMER WEATHER, AS WELL AS OFFSYSTEMS SALES. YOU CAN SEE IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER, WHAT WE COLLECTED NETS TO ABOUT THE BUDGET. WE ARE CONTINUING TO MONITOR THIS REVENUE SOURCE AND WILL PROVIDE AN UPDATE WITH THE SIX PLUS SIX. THIS NEXT SLIDE INDICATES OUR PRELIMINARY PROJECTIONS BASED ON THREE MONTHS OF ACTUAL REVENUE COLLECTIONS.
OVERALL, WE'RE PROJECTING TO BE AHEAD OF BUDGET BY $23.9 MILLION DRIVEN BY CPS AND INTEREST EARNINGS. OF THE $15.3 MILLION THAT WE ARE PRELIMINARY PROJECTING FOR CPS ENERGY, 7.3 MILLION WAS COLLECTED IN THE FIRST QUARTER, AND THE REMAINING 8 MILLION IS PROJECTED BASED UPON THE CPS ENERGY RATE INCREASE THAT WENT INTO EFFECT IN FEBRUARY. SO OVERALL FOR THE GENERAL FUND, BASED ON THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF ACTUALS, PRELIMINARILY WE ARE PROJECTING TO BE ABOUT 23.9 MILLION AHEAD IN REVENUES. AND SPENDING ABOUT $700,000 MORE THAN WE HAD PLANNED IN 2024. HOWEVER, OVERALL WHEN YOU COMBINE REVENUE AND EXPENSES, WE ARE 23.2 MILLION AHEAD OF THE ADOPTED BUDGET. SO AS I MENTIONED FOR THE GENERAL FUND, THIS IS A PRELIMINARY FINANCIAL UPDATE. OUR ECONOMY IS STILL GROWING. INFLATION HAS TEMPERED. UNEMPLOYMENT IS LOW.
AND THE ECONOMY GREW 3.1% IN 2023. HOWEVER, WE ARE CLOSELY
[00:15:03]
MONITORING SALES TAX REVENUE AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO ANALYZE THESE RESOURCES. ANY RESOURCES THAT WE ANTICIPATE TO RECEIVE ABOVE THE ADOPTED BUDGET WILL BE RESERVED FOR FIRE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT WITH TALKS TO BEGIN THIS MONTH. SO WANTED TO MOVE ON TO SOME OF OUR RESTRICTED FUNDS. I'LL START WITH OUR HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX. AS A REMINDER, THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX RATE IS 16.75%, AND THIS IS LEVIED ON ALL ELIGIBLE HOTEL ROOM NIGHTS.THE CITY RECEIVES 9%, AND OF THAT, 7% SUPPORTS THE CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, VISIT SAN ANTONIO, ARTS AND HISTORY AND PRESERVATION. THE REMAINING 2% IS A RESTRICTED SOURCE OF REVENUE FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER EXPANSION DEBT, AS WELL AS FUTURE CONVENTION CENTER PROJECTS. THIS SLIDE ILLUSTRATES THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX PERFORMANCE AND RELATED REVENUES AS WELL AS THE PERFORMANCE OF THE DEPARTMENTS FUNDED BY THE HOT TAX.
OVERALL THE HOT TAX IS BUDGETED FOR THE FIRST QUARTER AT 23.8 MILLION AND FOR THE FULL FISCAL YEAR, THE BUDGET IS $107 MILLION.
FOR FIRST QUARTER, WE ARE SLIGHTLY BELOW BUDGET, MAINLY DUE TO OCCUPANCY RATES BEING LOWER THAN ANTICIPATED, BUT WE ARE PROJECTING TO BE AT BUDGET BY THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR. AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE TABLE, CONVENTION CENTER AND THE ALAMODOME ARE PROJECTED TO BE AHEAD OF BUDGET BY THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR. OVERALL, OUR DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE FUNDED BY THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX ARE PRELIMINARILY PROJECTED TO BE WITHIN BUDGET FOR THE YEAR. NOW, MOVING ON TO OUR AIRPORT, THIS NEXT SLIDE ILLUSTRATES THE RECOVERY AT THE AIRPORT AS A RESULT OF THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON AIR TRAVEL. THE GRAPH ON YOUR LEFT ILLUSTRATES THE NUMBER OF PASSENGERS FOR THE FIRST QUARTER, AND THE GRAPH ON YOUR RIGHT ILLUSTRATES THE NUMBER OF TOTAL PASSENGERS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR. AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE GRAPH, IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2024, WE HAVE OUTPERFORMED OUR PREPANDEMIC LEVELS OF 2019, AND WE ARE PROJECTING 10.9 MILLION PASSENGERS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR. SO THIS ACTIVITY IS REPORTED IN OUR AIRPORT FUND. AND AS I MENTIONED, THIS PROVIDES FUNDING FOR AVIATION SERVICES AT STINSON AND SAN ANTONIO INTERNATIONAL.
AIRPORT REVENUES FOR THE FIRST QUARTER ARE ABOVE BUDGET BY 2.2 MILLION AND WE'RE PROJECTING TO BE $8.4 MILLION AHEAD BY THE END OF THE YEAR.
OUR EXPENSES, WE ARE SPENDING FASTER THAN WHAT WE HAD ANTICIPATED BY ABOUT $600,000 FOR THE FIRST QUARTER, AND ABOUT 1.8 MILLION BY THE END OF THE YEAR; HOWEVER, OVERALL, WE ARE PROJECTING THAT THE AIRPORT ENDS THE FISCAL YEAR 6.6 MILLION AHEAD OF BUDGET.
THIS NEXT SLIDE ILLUSTRATES THE NUMBER OF BUILDING PERMITS FOR BOTH RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL -- FIRST QUARTER AND THE FISCAL YEAR BETWEEN 2019 AND 2024.
THE GRAPH ON YOUR LEFT IS THE NUMBER OF BUILDING PERMITS, BOTH COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL, THAT WE ISSUED IN THE FIRST QUARTER.
THE GRAPH ON YOUR RIGHT IS THE TOTAL NUMBER OF BUILDING PERMITS ISSUED FOR THE FISCAL YEAR. IN FISCAL YEAR 2023 FOR THE FIRST QUARTER, WE DID SEE A DECLINE IN RESIDENTIAL FROM QUICKLY RISING INTEREST RATES.
HOWEVER, TOWARD THE END OF 2023, HOME BUILDER PERMITS STARTED TO PICK UP AGAIN AS A RESULT OF EXISTING INVENTORY OF HOMES FOR SALE THAT REMAIN CONSTRAINED, MORTGAGE RATES STABILIZING AND BUILDERS PROVIDING INCENTIVES, LIKE INTEREST RATE BUY DOWNS TO SELL HOME.
SO THIS ACTIVITY IS INCLUDED IN THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FUND. THIS IS ROUGHLY A $52 MILLION FUND THAT IS SUPPORTED BY FEES PAID FOR BY DEVELOPERS FOR PLAN REVIEWS AND INSPECTIONS. REVENUE FOR THE FIRST QUARTER WERE SLIGHTLY BELOW BUDGET AS A RESULT OF LESS COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY AND COMMERCIAL VALUATION, HOWEVER, WE ARE PROJECTING TO BE CLOSE TO BUDGET BY THE END OF THE YEAR. AND FINALLY THE SOLID WASTE FUND.
THIS IS ROUGHLY $149 MILLION FUND THAT IS SUPPORTED BY SOLID WASTE AND BY THE END OF THE YEAR WE'RE PROJECTED TO BE CLOSE TO BUDGET FOR FFISCAL YEAR 2024. FOR THE FIRST QUARTER, WE HAVE SPENT FASTER THAN PLANNED AND WE'RE PROJECTING TO SPEND ABOUT A MILLION DOLLARS MORE THAN PLANNED FOR THE FISCAL YEAR. THIS IS DRIVEN BY ADDITIONAL COST TO MAINTAIN OUR AUTOMATED SIDE LOADERS AS WE HAVE
[00:20:04]
EXPERIENCED A DELAY IN DELIVERY OF THESE VEHICLES.WE'LL BE MONITORING THESE EXPENSES CLOSELY AND WILL MANAGE THESE EXPENSES THROUGHOUT THE FISCAL YEAR. SO THE NEXT PART OF THE PRESENTATION, I WANTED TO REVIEW THE RECOMMENDED FISCAL YEAR 2025 BUDGET CALENDAR. THIS CALENDAR CONTINUES THE CHANGES THAT WERE IMPLEMENTED LAST YEAR AND MAKES SOME ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS.
THE CITY COUNCIL INPUT FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 2024 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT WILL BE HELD IN APRIL AND MAY WITH OUR FIVE-YEAR FORECAST -- OUR GOAL-SETTING SESSION AND OUR TRIAL BUDGET. WE WANT TO PROVIDE THE CITY COUNCIL WITH THE FINANCIAL PICTURE PRIOR TO THE QUOAL-SETTING SESSION. THIS WILL PROVIDE CITY COUNCIL WITH ADDITIONAL -- DEVELOPMENT. AS SUCH, WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT WE HOLD THE FIVE-YEAR FORECAST PRESENTATION ON APRIL 17TH, AND THE DAY AFTER, WE WOULD HOLD OUR GOAL-SETTING SESSION ON APRIL 18TH.
THIS WILL ALLOW STAFF TO OBTAIN YOUR PRIORITIES FOR THE 25 -- 2025 BUDGET PRIOR TO OUR TRIAL BUDGET BEING PRESENTED. WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT THE TRIAL BUDGET BE PRESENTED ON MAYING EIGHTH.
AND THIS WOULD ALLOW US THE TIME TO REFINE PRIORITIES WITH THE CITY COUNCIL IN PREPARATION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE 2025 PROPOSED BUDGET. ONCE THE TRIAL BUDGET IS PRESENTED TO CITY COUNCIL, WE WOULD GATHER INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY ON THE -- AUDIO] -- AND OTHER PRIORITIES THE COMMUNITY HAS.
THIS YEAR, AGAIN, WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT WE CONDUCT A STATISTICALLY VALID SURVEY, AND THE RESULTS OF THAT SURVEY WOULD BE PRESENTED TO CITY COUNCIL IN LATE JUNE ON JUNE 20TH. WITH THE COMMUNITY AND CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES, THESE WOULD BE INCORPORATED INTO THE CITY MANAGER'S PROPOSED BUDGET, WHICH IS RECOMMENDED TO BE PRESENTED TO CITY COUNCIL ON AUGUST 15TH. AND FINALLY, THE BUDGET ADOPTION IS RECOMMENDED TO BE COMPLETED ON SEPTEMBER 19TH.
NOW, AS PART OF THE BUDGET CALENDAR, WE ARE RECOMMENDING A NEW APPROACH TO OUR BUDGET WORK SESSIONS. AS YOU CAN SEE FROM OUR TABLE, WE CURRENTLY HAVE ABOUT 10 WORK SESSIONS THAT FOCUS ON THE BUDGET. THESE SESSIONS ARE HELD TUESDAYS, WEDNESDAYS AND THURSDAYS, AND THEY EQUATE TO ABOUT THREE HOURS OF BUDGET DISCUSSION. WE THEN HOST TWO WORK SESSIONS FOR OUR BUDGET AMENDMENTS. TODAY WE'RE RECOMMENDING THAT WE FOCUS THE BUDGET WORK SESSIONS TO THREE DAY-LONG SESSIONS, AND THIS WILL ALLOW US TO FOCUS THAT DISCUSSION ON THE BUDGET ISSUES. WE BELIEVE WE CAN PRESENT THE SAME INFORMATION TO YOU OVER THE SPAN OF THREE FOCUSED DAYS RATHER THAN OVER THE COURSE OF SEVERAL DAYS WITHIN A WEEKVE.
WE ARE PRESENTING THIS BUDGET CALENDAR TO YOU TODAY FOR YOUR FEEDBACK.
WE ASK THAT YOU PROVIDE FEEDBACK BY NEXT WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21ST, SO THAT WE MAY FINALIZE THE BUDGET CALENDAR AND PRESENT THAT -- AND MAKE IT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC. SO IN CONCLUSION, AGAIN, THIS IS AN EARLY FINANCIAL UPDATE FOR OUR FISCAL YEAR 2024.
FOR THE FIRST THREE MONTHS, WE'RE IN A POSITIVE FINANCIAL POSITION, AND WE'LL PROVIDE OUR NEXT UPDATE WITH THE FISCAL 2024 SIX PLUS SIX FINANCIAL REPORT IN APRIL. WITH THAT, I'LL HAND THE PRESENTATION OVER TO GWEN ESTRADA, WHO WILL PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON OUR AMERICAN
RESCUE PLAN ACT. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
IT'S A PLEASURE TO BE HERE BEFORE YOU TODAY. MY NAME IS GWEN ESTRADA AND I'M THE ARPA EXECUTIVE OFFICER FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
IN TODAY'S PRESENTATION, I'M GOING TO PROVIDE A FINANCIAL UPDATE ON THE RECOVERY AND RESILIENCY PLAN AND AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT PROGRAMS. SINCE MARCH 2020, THE CITY HAS INVESTED A TOTAL OF 1.29 BILLION IN RESPONDING TO COVID-19 WITH 80% OF THOSE FUNDS COMING FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND 13% OF THOSE FUNDS COMING FROM LOCAL FUNDS.
INCLUDED IN THE FEDERAL INVESTMENT IS THE CITY'S AWARD OF 326.9 MILLION FROM ARPA, STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL RECOVERY FUNDS.
AS YOU MAY RECALL, THE CITY BEGAN ITS RESPONSE TO COVID-19 IN JANUARY OF 2020 AND TOOK MEASURES TO MITIGATE THE SPREAD OF THE VIRUS IN THE COMMUNITY AND ALSO AMONG CITY EMPLOYEES. IN JUNE 2020, CITY
[00:25:01]
COUNCIL APPROVED THE RECOVERY AND RESILIENCY PLAN TO HELP THE COMMUNITY RECOVER FROM THE PANDEMIC. THE TABLE YOU SEE HERE PROVIDES A SUMMARY OF THE BUDGET SPENT, COMMITTED AND BALANCE PER PROGRAM AREA. OVERALL THROUGH DECEMBER, THERE'S A TOTAL BUDGET OF 730.2 MILLION AND WHICH ARE NEARLY SPENT WITH MOST PROGRAMS COMPLETED.OF THE 25.2 MILLION REMAINING TO BE SPENT, THIS IS COMING FROM THE HEALTH IMPLEMENTATION PLAN, OTHER CARES PR PROGRAMS AND THE FEMA REIMBURSEMENT RESERVE WHICH I'LL TALK MORE ABOUT IN THE NEXT SLIDE.
AS YOU MAY CALL, THE CITY INITIALLY RECEIVED CARES AND CH CRRSAA FUNDING, THE ALAMODOME MASS VACCINATION SITE, MOBILE VACCINATION EFFORTS AND PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES. ADDITIONALLY AS YOU MAY RECALL, THE RECOVERY AND RESILIENCY PLAN INCLUDES THE FOUR PILLARS OF HOUSING SECURITY, SMALL BUSINESS, DIGITAL INCLUSION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. FOR THE OTHER CARES PROGRAMS, THE REMAINING INCLUDES AIRPORT AND SOME HEALTH GRANTS. THIS SLIDE PROVIDES YOU WITH AN UPDATE ON THE CITY'S FEMA REUM BUSKERMENTS.
OVERALL, WE'VE SPENT 48 MILLION TO AID IN OUR RESPONSE TO COVID WITH A HOMELESS HOTEL AND ISOLATION FACILITY, TESTING VACCINATIONS AND AN INFUSION CENTER. ADDITIONALLY THIS INCLUDES OUR RESPONSE TO STORM URI FOR CITYWIDE REPAIRS AND EMERGENCY WORK AND ASSISTING FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS TRAVELING THROUGH SAN ANTONIO EN ROUTE TO THEIR FINAL DESTINATION. WE'VE REIMBURSED FOR 26.6 MILLION AND HAVE REVIEWED IN A DETAILED MANNER AT THE FEDERAL AND STATE LEVEL, BUT WE'RE CONFIDENT ON BEING FULLY REIMBURSED.
NOW, I'M GOING TO PROVIDE YOU WITH A FINANCIAL UPDATE ON THE CITY'S ARPA FUNDS. THE SLIDE YOU SEE HERE IS A BACKGROUND AND A REMINDER OF THE WORK WE'VE DONE SINCE MAY 2021.
WE HAVE FOLLOWED A TWO-PHASE STRATEGY WHICH IS ILLUSTRATED ON THE TABLE ON THE RIGHT. THESE FUNDS WERE DESIGNED TO HELP LOCAL GOVERNMENTS COVER LARGE LOSSES IN THE REVENUES DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND ALLOW FOR RECIPIENTS TO REPLACE PUBLIC SECTOR REVENUE LOSS.
THIS MEANS THAT THE AWARD COULD BE USED ON GOVERNMENT SERVICES PROVIDED THAT REVENUE LOSSES EXCEEDED THE AMOUNT AWARDED.
AS YOU ARE AWARE, THIS IS THE CASE FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, SO WE CONTINUE TO UTILIZE OUR AWARD TO PROVIDE GOVERNMENT SERVICES TO AID IN THE RECOVERY OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. SINCE THE LAST UPDATE PRESENTED TO YOU IN MAY OF 2023, CITY STAFF MET WITH YOU, CITY COUNCIL, ON A POLICY DISCUSSION TO ALLOCATE FUNDING TO THE CITY'S EMERGENCY RESPONSE NEEDS AND ALSO APPROVAL ON AGENCY CONTRACTS FOR THE SECOND COMPETITIVE SOLICITATION AND THE AREAS OF MENTAL HEALTH, NONPROFIT SOCIAL SERVICES, YOUTH AND SENIORS. HERE I'LL PROVIDE YOU WITH THE FINANCIAL UPDATE OF ALL ARPA GRANT AWARDS.
THIS TABLE PROVIDES A SUMMARY OF PROGRAM AREAS AND COLLECTIVELY INCLUDES THE WORK THAT WE'VE DONE -- APPROVED THE SPENDING FRAMEWORK. OVERALL, THROUGH DECEMBER 2023, WE HAVE A BUDGET OF 561.7 MILLION AND ARE 74% SPENT.
SOME OF THE LARGEST BUDGETS ARE HOUSING SECURITY AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE. THIS ALSO INCLUDES OTHER PROGRAMS SUCH AS AIRPORT AND HEALTH GRANTS. OVERALL, PROGRAMS ARE UNDER WAY.
AND THE PREVIOUS SLIDE I MENTIONED THAT WE GOT A TOTAL OF 326.9 MILLION TO AID IN COVID-19 RESPONSE AND WE UTILIZED A TWO-PHASE APPROACH.
AS A REMINDER, THE FUNDS ARE INTENDED TO PROVIDE SERVICES THROUGH DECEMBER 2026. THROUGH THE SPENDING FRAMEWORK, THE CITY FOCUSED TO ADDRESS THE AREAS OF MENTAL HEALTH, YOUTH, SENIORS AND NONPROFITS BY PROVIDING SERVICES THROUGH AGENCY CONTRACTS OVER A TWO-YEAR PERIOD, WHICH ENDS JULY 2025. MOVING TO THE BALANCE, WE HAVE A TOTAL OF 3.2 MILLION IN INTEREST EARNINGS, WHICH WE ARE RECOMMENDING TO BE ADDED TO THE EXISTING FEMA REIMBURSEMENTS RESERVE THAT YOU SAW ON THE RECOVERY AND RESILIENCY LIED.
THIS WOULD BUMP THE RESERVE UP TO 14.6 MILLION.
AS A REMINDER, THE CITY CURRENTLY HAS A TOTAL OF 21.4 MILLION IN OUTSTANDING FEMA REIMBURSEMENTS. WE WILL USE THIS TO COVER WHAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE COVERED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
AND WHILE WE CONTINUE TO PURSUE FULL REIMBURSEMENT FOR RISK MITIGATION PURPOSES, WE WANT TO ENSURE THAT THE CITY IS PREPARED IN THE EVENT THAT WE DO NOT. THANK YOU, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
THIS CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION. I'LL GO AHEAD AND TURN IT
BACK OVER TO JUSTINA. >> TATE: SO THIS NEXT PART, WE WANTED TO PROVIDE A QUICK OVERVIEW AND UPDATE ON OUR OPIOID SETTLEMENT FUNDS AND A SPENDING PLAN AND FRAMEWORK THAT HAS BEEN RECOMMENDED.
SO ON JANUARY 24TH, STAFF PRESENTED A PLAN TO UTILIZE THE OPIOID
[00:30:06]
SETTLEMENT FUNDS AND A FRAMEWORK OF PREVENTION, HARM REDUCTION TREATMENT AND RECOVERY TO ADDRESS THE ISSUES OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE TO THE COMMUNITY HEALTH COUNCIL COMMITTEE. THE COUNCIL COMMITTEE APPROVED THIS FOR -- TO BE DISCUSSED WITH THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH FISCAL YEAR 2 2024 THREE PLUS NINE FINANCIAL UPDATE.BEFORE WE GET INTO THE PLAN, I WANTED TO PROVIDE A REVIEW OF OUR OPIOID SETTLEMENT FUNDS. THE CITY, COUNTY AND STATE OF TEXAS ALL JOINED LAWSUITS AGAINST OPIOID MANUFACTURERS AND DISTRIBUTORS.
THESE SETTLEMENTS TO DATE INCLUDE PHARMACY CHAINS, OPIOID MANUFACTURERS, DISTRIBUTORS AND MORE. THE STATE OF TEXAS HAS SECURED A $1.6 BILLION IN THE SETTLEMENT FUNDS UP TO WHICH 15% WILL BE PASSED THROUGH TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AT A FUTURE DATE. HOWEVER, WE HAVE NOT RECEIVED THESE FUNDS. ON THE NEXT SLIDE, THIS SHOWS HOW MUCH WE ANTICIPATE RECEIVING IN OUR OPIOID SETTLEMENT FUNDS, SO WE ANTICIPATE RECEIVING $6.1 MILLION OVER 18 YEARS. AND OF THAT $6.1 MILLION, WE HAVE ACTUALLY RECEIVED $1.4 MILLION TO DATE. TODAY, I'D LIKE TO PRESENT THE RECOMMENDED POLICY FRAMEWORK THAT WILL BE USED TO GUIDE THESE FUNDS AND HOW THEY'RE SPENT OVER THE NEXT 18 YEARS.
THERE ARE STILL CLAIMS THAT ARE PENDING AGAINST ADDITIONAL DEFENDANTS THAT COULD BRING IN ADDITIONAL FUNDS, BUT THOSE AMOUNTS ARE NOT KNOWN AT THIS TIME. SO THIS NEXT SLIDE PROVIDES THE SPENDING RECOMMENDATION FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024 AND 2025. SO OVERALL, WE RECOMMEND [INDISCERNIBLE] OR THESE TWO YEARS OVER 900,000 FOCUSING ON THE FOLLOWING AREAS TO INCLUDE SUBSTANCE USE OUTREACH AND COMMUNITY CAPACITY BUILDING INITIATIVES, HARM REDUCTION SUPPLIES, NARCAN KIT SUPPLIES, SUBSTANCE USE RESOURCE PORTAL AND TARGETED EDUCATION, AS WELL AS MEDICALLY ASSISTED TREATMENT FOR STREET OUTREACH CLIENTS.
SO THIS CONCLUDES OUR PART OF THE PRESENTATION.
I WOULD LIKE TO HAND IT OVER TO KJ FEDERER WITH CPS FOR AN UPDATE.
>> WHILE WE WAIT FOR THAT, HI, GOOD AFTERNOON.
I'M KJ FEDERER AND I HAVE THE IMMENSE PLEASURE OF BEING ABLE TO LEAD THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY TEAMS AT CPS ENERGY.
I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BE HERE TODAY AND TO PROVIDE YOU WITH THIS UPDATE.
SO THE FIRST THING I WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL IS WHAT MY TEAM AND I HAVE BEEN UP TO FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS. WHAT YOU SEE ON THIS SLIDE IS A DIRECT RESULT OF OUR PARTNERSHIPS IN THE COMMUNITY AND OUR DELIBERATE EFFORTS TO CONNECT OUR CUSTOMERS WITH SUPPORT.
MY TEAM ENGAGED WITH OVER 149,000 DIFFERENT PEOPLE IN THAT TIME FRAME AND WE -- THAT ON AVERAGE, WE WERE SOMEWHERE IN THE COMMUNITY SEVEN DIFFERENT LOCATIONS EVERY SINGLE DAY MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY.
TO ME, THAT MEANS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE OUT THERE AND WE'RE ENGAGED.
AND THROUGH THOSE EFFORTS, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO CONNECT OUR CUSTOMERS WITH OVER $70 MILLION IN ASSISTANCE. SO THAT'S KIND OF BIG.
IT'S A SMALL TEAM. WE'RE SMALL BUT MIGHTY. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE CONTINUING TO PARTNER WITH YOUR OFFICES AND WITH YOUR STAFF SO THAT WE CAN HOLD OUR SCHEDULED OFFICE HOURS. WE'RE INVITING YOU TO BLOCK WALK WITH US. WE'RE ATTENDING YOUR TOWN HALLS, WE'RE SETTING UP BOOTHS AT SENIOR CENTERS AND WE'RE HOLDING DRIVE-THRU ENROLLMENTS IN EVERY SINGLE DISTRICT. WE'RE ALSO USING OUR MOUS AND OUR DATA SHARING AGREEMENTS WITH SAWS, WITH DHS, WITH BEXAR COUNTY AND THE CITY THROUGH OUR ENROLLMENTS, WITH UNIVERSITY HEALTH SYSTEM, CARELINK AND ALSO WITH OPPORTUNITY HOME TO AN AUTOENROLL WHEREVER WE CAN AND CASE MANAGE WHENEVER IT'S APPROPRIATE. ADDITIONALLY, WE'VE HELD EVENTS AT PRE-K FOUR SA AND THEN ALSO HEAD START IS A FREQUENT PLACE WHERE WE HOLD OUR COMMUNITY EVENTS. CURRENTLY WE HAVE OVER 75,000 SENIORS ENROLLED IN ONE OF OUR PROGRAMS, AND WE HAVE ABOUT 65,000 CUSTOMERS ENROLLED IN OUR AFFORDABILITY DISCOUNT PROGRAM.
WE CONNECT OUR CUSTOMERS IN A VARIETY OF WAYS, RIGHT? WE CONNECT WITH THEM ONLINE, ON THE PHONE, AT OUR EVENTS.
WE GO TO THEIR HOMES AND WE DO THIS BECAUSE IN ORDER TO REACH EVERY SINGLE CUSTOMER WE HAVE TO CONNECT WITH THEM IN A WAY THAT'S CONVENIENT AND MOST COMFORTABLE TO THEM. SO SINCE RECEIVING THE APPROVAL TO INCREASE OUR ENROLLMENT IN OUR AFFORDABILITY DISCOUNT
[00:35:03]
PROGRAM, WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON EXPANDING OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS.WE'VE TAKEN YOUR FEEDBACK AND THE FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMUNITY AND WE'RE PARTNERING WITH LM IMPRISONMENT AND OTHER HOUSING -- LMI AND OTHER HOUSING PROGRAMS. WE DO CROSS-PROMOTION WITH EACH ORGANIZATION'S PROGRAM ENROLLMENTS, WE'RE ALSO TALKING WITH THE FOOD BANK TO SEE HOW WE CAN INCREASE OUR COLLABORATION AND OUTREACH THERE AND WE'VE BEEN MEETING WITH SAWS TO DISCUSS HOW WE CAN EXPAND THAT RELATIONSHIP.
AND SOON WE'LL ALSO BE RECEIVING LISTS FROM READY TO WORK AND FROM PRE-K FOUR SA WITH PREQUALIFIED REFERRALS SO WE CAN GET THEM ENROLLED IN OUR PROGRAMS AS WELL. SO SPEAKING OF ADP AND RATE, THIS SLIDE OUTLINES THE PROCESS WE'RE GOING THROUGH TO WORK ON IMPLEMENTING ENHANCEMENTS THAT YOU GUYS RECENTLY ASKED US TO DO. AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, THIS IS GOING TO TAKE SOME TIME AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE DOING IT CORRECTLY AND WE'RE WORKING THROUGH OUR GOVERNANCE PROCESS.
BY WHILE WE WORK THROUGH THESE STEPS, I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT MY TEAM AND I ARE 100% COMMITTED TO HELPING OUR CUSTOMERS WITH SUPPORT.
WE 65,000 OF THOSE CUSTOMERS ARE CURRENTLY ENROLLED IN ADP, SO THAT'S WHERE WE'RE FOCUSING OUR EFFORTS. WE'RE REACHING OUT TO THOSE 20,000 PEOPLE, BUT ALSO WE'RE REACHING OUT TO ANY CUSTOMERS THAT CAN QUALIFY FOR ANY OF THE PROGRAMS THAT WE HAVE. SO THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR YOU TODAY. I KNOW THE THREE OF US ARE GOING TO ENTERTAIN QUESTIONS TOGETHER, SO I DON'T KNOW IF WE WANT TO STAND UP OR SIT DOWN, BUT
THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE FOR YOU. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: ALL RIGHT. THAT WAS QUICK. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, KJ.
AND TO OUR BUDGET OFFICE FOR THE PRESENTATION. THIS IS THE THREE PLUS NINE DISCUSSION, SO WE'LL GET RIGHT INTO IT. REALLY JUST ONE COMMENT, ERIK, AS WE'RE GOING INTO THREE PLUS NINE, IT'S REALLY HARD TO LOOK AT ANY VARIATION AS AN ANNUAL TREND, BUT IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT YOU ARE TOP LINES FROM THIS PRESENTATION THAT YOU ARE WATCHING, ERIK, WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS THAT YOU'RE WANTING US TO FOCUS ON? I KNOW THAT ONE OF THEM IS WITH REGARD TO REVENUES TO HOLD IN RESERVE AS WE THINK ABOUT GOING INTO THE FIRE NEGOTIATIONS, I THINK THAT'S A PRUDENT THING TO DO, CONSIDERING THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THAT DONE HOPEFULLY BEFORE WE GET INTO THE MEAT OF OUR BUDGETED OPTION FOR FY '25.
SO WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT FOR PREPARATION FOR THE
FY '25 BUDGET. >> WALSH: SO A COUPLE OF THINGS, MAYOR.
AND JUSTINA MENTIONED IT ON ONE OF THE CHARTS, WE ARE SEEING SALES TAX GROW SLIGHTLY MORE THAN SAME TIME LAST YEAR, BUT NOT AS HIGH AS WE PROJECTED.
WE'RE THREE MONTHS INTO THE FISCAL YEAR AND SO IS THAT A TREND OR NOT? SO WE'RE GOING TO BE PAYING VERY CLOSE ATTENTION TO SALES TAX.
PART OF THAT IS WE THINK DRIVEN A LITTLE BIT BY THE ECONOMY, YOU KNOW, INFLATION, INFLATION'S DOWN, UNEMPLOYMENT'S DOWN, MAJOR ECONOMIC INDICATORS ARE SHOWING POSITIVE SIGNS, BUT THERE IS STILL A HESITANCY IN THE ECONOMY. AND SO IS THAT TRANSLATING IN ADJUSTMENTS THAT WE SHOULD BE TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION AS WE PREPARE FOR THAT LARGER CONVERSATION WITH THE COUNCIL LATER ON IN THE YEAR? SO, AGAIN, IT'S GROWING FASTER THAN IT WAS THIS TIME LAST YEAR, BUT NOWHERE NEAR WHAT WE EXPECTED SO FAR.
SO THAT'S ONE THING. THE SECOND THING, I THINK WE'RE GOING TO BE MINDFUL, AND YOU MENTIONED IT, AS WE BEGIN NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE FIRE ASSOCIATION, THAT WILL BE -- THAT'S OUR SECOND LARGEST MAJOR EXPENSE IN THE OPERATING BUDGET, SO MAKING SURE THAT WE'VE GOT FUNDS TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT IMMEDIATELY. THAT'S A MULTIYEAR AGREEMENT, AND AS THAT BEGINS -- NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN, WHETHER WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A THREE, FOUR -- MORE LIKE A -- HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH THE FIRE UNION AND KEEP YOU GUYS ABREAST OF THAT. THIRD, IT IS -- AND SOME OF YOU WILL REMEMBER, ALTHOUGH IT FEELS LIKE AGES AGO, LAST YEAR'S FINANCIAL FORECAST SHOWED STRUCTURAL ISSUES ON THE BACK END OF OUR FIVE-YEAR FORECAST.
AND SO MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE BALANCING REVENUES WITH EXPENSES AND -- AND I THINK AS WE PREPARE FOR THE GOAL-SETTING CONVERSATION WITH THE COUNCIL IN APRIL, WE'LL NEED TO START TALKING ABOUT HOW WE ADJUST FOR THAT. PART OF THAT IS MAKING SURE THAT WE LOOK INTERNALLY TO THE ORGANIZATION ABOUT REDUCING OR REALLOCATING
[00:40:03]
FUNDS, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE -- WE'VE GOT A GOOD SET OF PRIORITIES THAT ARE SET BY THE COUNCIL AND BOLSTERED BY THE PUBLIC WITH THE BUDGET SURVEY, AND MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE KIND OF FINANCIALLY PLANNING THATTO THE -- TO THE BEST WE CAN. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: GREAT.
THAT'S HELPFUL. AND THEN I WAS LOOKING IN THE BACK OF THE BINDERS THAT YOU GAVE US, YOU'VE GOT OUR FIRST QUARTER PERFORMANCE INDICATORS.
AND WHAT STRIKES ME, IN JUST KIND OF GLANCING AT THIS, IS WE FINALLY HIT A PERIOD WHERE WE'RE AT A NEW EQUILIBRIUM AFTER THE PANDEMIC PERIOD THAT WE'VE BEEN IN, SO, YOU KNOW, THE PERFORMANCE INDICATORS SEEM TO BE FINDING A NEW NORMAL. I'LL BE LOOKING AT THAT AND WANT TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT THOSE NUMBERS, WHERE WE NEED TO SEE IMPROVEMENTS, WHERE WE'VE DONE REALLY WELL AS WE GO INTO THE GOAL-SETTING SESSION IN APRIL. LAST NOTE, YOU DID WANT TO HAVE FEEDBACK ON THE BUDGET CALENDAR, I'M INTERESTED TO HEAR THE CONVERSATION ABOUT THIS.
THIS IS A BIG DEPARTURE, BUT I THINK IT GOES IN THE DIRECTION OF WHAT I'VE HEARD AROUND THE DAIS FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, WHICH IS THAT WE WANT TO HAVE MORE TIME TO TALK AND REALLY DISCUSS SOME OF THESE THINGS, AND I THINK A LONGER SESSION WHERE WE GO A LITTLE MORE IN DEPTH IN SOME OF THESE AREAS WILL ALLOW US TO DO THAT. SO AS YOU SEE THE SHORTER BURST WORK SESSIONS ARE REMOVED IN FAVOR OF THESE THREE LONG DAY MEETINGS WHERE I THINK WE WOULD BE ABLE TO GET INTO MORE DISCUSSION, BUT, OF COURSE, THAT'S -- I WANT TO HEAR FEEDBACK ABOUT THAT AS WELL.
BUT AT FIRST GLANCE, I LIKE THE CHANGES. SO WITH THAT, LET'S GO TO
COUNCILMEMBER CABELLO HAVRDA? >> HAVRDA: THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION, ALL THREE OF YOU. IT'S, I THINK, A GOOD OVERALL REPORT.
GOOD TO HEAR THAT OUR ECONOMY IS STRONG. AND WE SEEM TO HAVE MOMENTUM, SO THAT'S EXCITING FOR THE CITY. I DO HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT THE GAP IN SOLID WASTE, AT LEAST THE AMOUNT ALLOCATED AND THEN PROJECTION. I THINK -- IS IT 1.2 MILLION.
BUT I'LL LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING SOLUTIONS ON HOW TO CLOSE THAT GAP, MAYBE COME BACK TO THAT TOWARDS THE END, UNLESS YOU HAVE -- YOU WANT TO SAY
SOMETHING? >> WALSH: I'LL ADD THAT WE HAVE 83 TRUCKS THAT WE'RE WAITING DELIVERY ON. MOST OF OUR EXPENSES -- WE'RE HAVING -- WE'RE SEEING HIGHER THAN EXPECTED EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH MAINTAINING 83 OLDER TRUCKS.
NOW, THOSE TRUCKS WE ANTICIPATE TO START RECEIVE DELIVERY IN THE SPRINGTIME. SOME OF THEM WERE ORDERED BACK IN 2022, SO THERE'S BEEN DELAYS, BUT WE'RE PROBABLY -- BY THE TIME YOU SEE THIS AGAIN AT SIX PLUS SIX, WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO MAKE SOME STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENTS FROM OUR SPENDING STANDPOINT BECAUSE WE HAD A RATE INCREASE THIS YEAR. WE HAD LAST SUMMER PROJECTED A SLIGHT INCREASE IN 2025 IN THE RATE, AND THEN HERE IN ABOUT A MONTH AND A HALF, WE'RE GOING TO BE BRINGING TO COUNCIL WHERE WE'RE AT WITH OUR LANDFILL AGREEMENTS, WHICH ARE KEY DRIVERS. BUT WE NEED TO GET THOSE -- WE NEED TO GET THOSE TRUCKS IN WHERE WE'RE NOT SPENDING MONEY -- AS MUCH MONEY AS WE SHOULD ON THOSE OLDER
TRUCKS. >> HAVRDA: OKAY. THANK YOU.
THAT MAKES SENSE. AND THANKS TO CPS FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
I ALSO WANT TO THANK YOU FOR SETTING UP OUTSIDE THE FOOD BANK.
I KNOW YOU GUYS -- THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT KIND OF PUBLIC ASSISTANCE THAT OUR COMMUNITY CAN GET AT THE FOOD BANK AND CPS HAS OFFERED UP THEIR TIME AND ENERGY TO BE OUT THERE, SO I APPRECIATE THAT AS WELL. I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS, I THINK IT WAS SLIDE 30, YOU MENTIONED THE MIGRANT RESPONSE. WE'VE SPENT 24.2 AND REIMBURSED 24.2. AND I THINK -- WAS IT THREE AND A HALF MILLION IS PENDING? SO IS -- IS THAT EVERY DOLLAR THAT WE'VE SPENT
AS A CITY ON THE MRC? >> VILLAGOMEZ: GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. YES, THOSE ARE EXPENSES THROUGH THE END OF --
>> VILLAGOMEZ: JULY 2022, HOWEVER WE HAD STARTED A RESPONSE TO THE MIGRANTS AT THE AIRPORT AND ALSO DOWNTOWN. SO -- BUT THE MRC WAS
OPENED IN JULY OF '22. >> HAVRDA: SO THIS AMOUNT HAS BEEN SINCE JULY OF '22, SINCE WE HAVE ACTUALLY HAD THE MIGRANT RESOURCE CENTER, NOT
THE -- >> VILLAGOMEZ: SO THAT INCLUDES COSTS GOING BACK
TO JANUARY OF 2021. >> HAVRDA: OKAY. >> WALSH: THE MAJORITY OF
IT IS THE MRC. >> HAVRDA: YEAH, THAT'S WHEN WE REALLY GOT A GOOD
PLAN WORKING, RIGHT? >> VILLAGOMEZ: YES. >> HAVRDA: SO GOING BACK TO MY OTHER QUESTION, IS -- HAVE WE SPENT ANY CITY DOLLARS THAT HAVE EITHER NOT BEEN REIMBURSED -- WELL, LET ME SAY THAT AGAIN.
HAVE WE SPENT ANY CITY DOLLARS THAT ARE NOT REIMBURSABLE BY THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT? >> VILLAGOMEZ: NO. >> HAVRDA: LIKE WE HAVEN'T USED ANY BUDGET MONEY AT ALL? AND WE'RE NOT PLANNING ON
[00:45:01]
USING ANY BUDGET MONEY? >> VILLAGOMEZ: NO. >> HAVRDA: OKAY.
SO I MEAN, I THINK THE MRC IS A SOURCE OF INSPIRATION FOR MANY OF US. WHEN -- I THINK IT WAS MY -- MAYBE MY SECOND TERM THAT WE STARTED THE MRC, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE ABOUT, COMPASSIONATE CITY. MY CONCERN IS HOW IT'S SUSTAINABLE GOING FORWARD AND REALLY THE BIG QUESTION IS, HOW LONG ARE WE EXPECTING FEMA TO REIMBURSE US AND HOW -- AND DO WE HAVE A PLAN FOR
IF WE NEED TO USE BUDGET DOLLARS ON THE MRC? >> VILLAGOMEZ: SO IN TERMS OF THE DOLLARS THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, YOU MAY RECALL THAT WE RECEIVED AN ADVANCE ALLOCATION OF $13 MILLION. WE HAVE NOT USED THAT AMOUNT, NOT ALL OF IT.
SO DEPENDING ON THE FLOW OF MIGRANTS, BECAUSE IT FLUCTUATES DAILY.
WE HAVE SEEN LESS -- LESSER NUMBERS IN THE PAST PROBABLY SIX WEEKS THAN WE SAW IN THE PREVIOUS MONTHS, SO IN MY CONVERSATION WITH CATHOLIC CHARITIES, BECAUSE THEY ALSO RECEIVE ADVANCED FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, IF THE NUMBERS DO NOT CHANGE, WE PROBABLY ANTICIPATE TO BE ABLE TO BE RECOVER MOST OF 2024 WITH THE CURRENT
ALLOCATIONS. >> HAVRDA: OKAY. AND ARE WE EXPECTING FEMA
TO KEEP THIS UP INDEFINITELY. >> WALSH: THAT'S A GOOD
QUESTION, COUNCILWOMAN. I THINK -- >>
>> WALSH: I DON'T KNOW. I MEAN, THE NUMBERS FOR THE LAST THREE WEEKS, THREE AND A HALF WEEKS HAVE BEEN RELATIVELY LOW, BORDERING BETWEEN 10150 100 AND 150 PEOPLE A DAY. THIS IS IN ADDITION TO THE $13 MILLION THAT MARIA TALKED ABOUT THAT WE RECEIVED THIS YEAR.
WE ALSO HAVE, IF YOU RECALL, WE MADE A REQUEST OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF A LITTLE OVER $58 MILLION ON BEHALF OF THE CITY AND CATHOLIC CHARITIES FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR, WHICH WE'VE NOT HEARD BACK FROM THEM.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY AN ISSUE THAT WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO PRESS
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ON. >> HAVRDA: AGREED.
MY CONCERN IS, YOU KNOW, SUSTAINABILITY OF THIS WHOLE OPERATION.
AND, AGAIN, I MEAN, I KNOW WE STEPPED UP AS A CITY TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR MIGRANTS WERE KEPT SAFE AND HEALTHY. IN THE BEGINNING I UNDERSTOOD THAT THIS WAS GOING TO BE A TEMPORARY ISSUE.
IT'S TURNING OUT TO BE MUCH MORE PERMANENT THAN I THINK ANY OF US ANTICIPATED. BUT, AGAIN, MY CONCERN ABOUT THIS IS SUSTAINABILITY. AND I THINK THIS IS -- WE NEED TO START TALKING ABOUT IT AT BUDGET. I MEAN, WE -- I -- AT WHAT POINT IS MRC GOING TO BECOME POTENTIALLY A BUDGET ITEM? BECAUSE WE'RE NOT GETTING REIMBURSEMENT? I DON'T SEE THE ISSUE GOING AWAY.
AND I'M NOT GOING TO DEBATE WHETHER -- YOU KNOW, WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE BORDER. I THINK ALL WE CAN DO IS HANDLE WHAT WE HAVE HERE. AND BY THE WAY, I THANK CITY STAFF AND CATHOLIC CHARITIES FOR THE GOOD WORK THAT THEY'VE DONE, BUT I'M GETTING CONCERNED AS WE MOVE FORWARD ABOUT THE SUSTAINABILITY OF OUR PLAN.
WELL, MAYBE -- KIND OF A LACK OF A PLAN RIGHT NOW FOR IF FEMA PULLS OUT, YOU KNOW, IN A YEAR, RIGHT? SO -- WELL, GO AHEAD.
DO YOU HAVE -- >> WALSH: YOU KNOW, IF WE GET TO THAT POINT, AND WE'VE GOT TO UTILIZE LOCAL DOLLARS, THAT IS GOING TO BE I CAN GUARANTEE YOU, A PRETTY ROBUST CONVERSATION HERE WITH YOU ALL TO THINK
THROUGH WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE. >> HAVRDA: YEAH.
>> WALSH: AND HOPEFULLY WE DON'T GET TO THAT POSITION, BUT THAT IS ALWAYS A FALLBACK. IF WE EVER GET IN THAT POSITION, THERE'S GOING TO HAVE TO BE A LARGER CONVERSATION WITH THE COUNCIL ABOUT WHAT WE
PRIORITIZE. >> HAVRDA: I DON'T THINK WE SHOULD WAIT FOR IT.
I THINK WE SHOULD BE READY. I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO SHIFT THAT CONVERSATION AND START TALKING ABOUT SMARTER SUSTAINABILITY WITH OUR COMPASSION SURROUNDING OUR COMPASSION AND OUR SUPPORT FOR CATHOLIC CHARITIES IN OUR OWN CITY BUDGET.
I THINK WE NEED TO START BEING -- REALLY TALKING ABOUT BEING INNOVATIVE AND EFFICIENT IN CASE FEMA PULLS OUT. AND AT ANY POINT IF, YOU KNOW, NATIONAL POLITIS CHANGE, THAT WE -- WE COULD BE DEALING WITH THAT SOONER RATHER THAN LATER. WHEN WE STARTED THIS AND TALKED ABOUT SUPPORTING MIGRANTS IN OUR CITY AS THE NEED GREW, SO DID OUR RESPONSE, AND THEN THE NEED FOR COMPASSION CONTINUES TO GROW, I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT HOW THE MIGRANTS WHO PASS THROUGH OUR CITY ARE GOING TO BE TAKEN CARE OF LONG TERM.
AND JUST TAKE A QUICK MOMENT TO CLEAR UP SOME MISTRUTH, TOO, BECAUSE I HEAR THIS A LOT THAT PEOPLE HAVE MANY ASKED ME AND THEY'VE BEEN MISINFORMED, THAT MIGRANTS COMING THROUGH OUR CITY THEY ARE HERE LEGALLY, THEY HAVE DOCUMENTATION, THEY'RE IN OUR COUNTRY WITH PROPER LEGAL DOCUMENTATION, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT THE MRC CAN BE THAT MUCH
[00:50:03]
LONGER A SOLUTION IF WE'RE NOT RECEIVING THIS MONEY.SO I'M JUST VOICING MY CONCERN. I THINK WE NEED TO START TALKING ABOUT IT SOONER RATHER THAN LATER. SO I GUESS I'LL LEAVE IT THERE. I KNOW WE DID THE RIGHT THING WHEN WE OPENED THE RESOURCE CENTER DOWNTOWN, BUT WE'RE ALSO DOING THE RIGHT THING BY ASKING IF WE'RE BEING EFFICIENT IN THAT COMPASSION. THE ARPA MONEY, REAL QUICK, ARE THERE PLANS FOR ANY FUNDS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN SPENT? OR DO WE -- DO WE KNOW WHAT WE'LL DO WITH THOSE?
>> WALSH: BASED -- BASED ON WHAT GWEN SHARED WITH YOU, WE HAVE -- WAS IT $3.2 MILLION IN INTEREST EARNINGS, BUT WE'RE RECOMMENDING THAT WE ADD TATHAT TO THE $11.4 MILLION FOR OUR FEMA RESERVE.
SO WE'VE GOT -- ON THAT SLIDE RIGHT THERE, WE'VE GOT $21.4 MILLION IN OUTSTANDING FEMA REIMBURSEMENTS. AND AS GWEN MENTIONED, WE'RE GOING THROUGH PRETTY DETAILED REVIEWS BY BOTH THE STATED AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. WE HAVE MONEY SET ASIDE IN CASE WE DON'T GET REIMBURSED, SO THAT 3.2 WOULD BE ADDED TO THAT 11.4 AND WE WOULD HOLD ON TO $14.6 MILLION IN CASE WE DON'T GET REIMBURSED THAT 21.
SO WE DON'T HAVE A COMPLETE COVERAGE FOR OUR FEMA RESERVE, AND THAT'S -- BASED ON THIS QUARTERLY UPDATE, THOSE ARE THE ONLY AVAILABLE
DOLLARS THAT WE HAVE. >> HAVRDA: SO THE ARPA MONEY WILL GO -- WILL
MOVE INTO WHERE? >> WALSH: SO WE'VE GOT -- GO BACK TWO SLIDES, GWEN. MAYBE ONE MORE. SO WE'VE GOT
$11.4 MILLION AT FEMA REIMBURSEMENT RESERVE. >> HAVRDA: OKAY.
>> WALSH: WE WOULD ADD -- GO FORWARD -- THAT $3.2 MILLION.
SEE THE NOTE OVER THERE TO THE FAR LEFT, ADDED TO THAT 11.4 SO WE HAVE A TOTAL OF 14.6 MILLION IN A FEMA RESERVE, IN CASE WE DON'T GET REIMBURSED.
>> HAVRDA: FOR THE MRC? >> WALSH: NO, FOR COVID AND URI.
>> HAVRDA: OH, FOR ALL OF IT, NOT THE MRC. >> WALSH: WE'RE
REIMBURSED FOR MRC. >> HAVRDA: I GOT IT. FOR THE OTHER TWO THEN.
>> WALSH: YES, MA'AM. THAT $16.4 MILLION REPRESENTS THE HOMELESS HOTEL AT THE CORNER OF CESAR CHAVEZ AND SANTA ROSA AND A WHOLE BUNCH OF FIRE FIREFIGHTER PAYROLL RELATED TO THE VACCINES THAT WERE DONE AT THE
ALAMODOME PARKING LOT. >> HAVRDA: THANK YOU, ERIK.
THANK YOU, MAYOR. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER CABELLO HAVRDA. COUNCILMEMBER ROCHA GARCIA?
>> GARZA: THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND -- I I'LL STAWRT OFF ON THE QUESTIONS ON THE BUDGET SESSIONS, I DON'T KNOW THAT LONGER SESSIONS MIGHT -- I GUESS MIGHT GIVE US LONGER OPPORTUNITY FOR DISCUSSION BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE WE'RE GOING TO BE CROWDING MORE DEPARTMENTS INTO ONE-DAY PERIOD. AND I'LL BE HONEST WITH YOU, LIKE I LOVE TO HAVE THE BREAK BETWEEN WEEKS SO THAT I CAN DO RESEARCH AND MY STAFF CAN DO RESEARCH. THAT'S MY OWN OPINION, BUT I'LL GO WITH WHATEVER THE MAJORITY DECIDES. THAT'S MY TWO CENTS ON THAT.
AND ON THE THREE PLUS NINE FINANCIER SHALL REPORT, I SEE THAT THERE'S A LITTLE SLUMP IN OUR ACTUAL REVENUES FROM THE SALES TAX.
AND I KNOW THAT WE'RE WORKING ON SOME GREAT INVESTMENTS, AND SO I APPRECIATE THAT IT'S MOVING STEADILY ALONG. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL NAMED DR. ROMAN FROM ST. MARY'S UNIVERSITY THE MOST ACCURATE FORECASTER OF THE U.S. ECONOMY, SO VERY PROUD TO HAVE THAT IN SAN ANTONIO.
I KNOW THAT SHE HAD BEEN WORKING WITH US BEFORE, LIKE PARTICULARLY IN REGARD TO THE COVID TIME FRAME, ET CETERA. DO WE STILL WORK WITH HER? THIS IS JUST OUT OF CURIOSITY BECAUSE THIS
CAME UP TODAY. ON ANYTHING? >> WE DID HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH DR. NEVIN, WHO WE HAVE TYPICALLY, YOU KNOW,
DISCUSSED OUR SALES TAX WITH. >> GARCIA: SURE.
>> SO WE HAD A CONVERSATION WITH HIM AS PART OF THE THREE PLUS
NINE. >> GARCIA: GOT IT. SO I KNOW THEY WORK TOGETHER ALL THE TIME. AND ALSO I KNOW WE PASSED AN ORDINANCE IN MAY TO AMEND THE BUDGET BASED ON MIDYEAR ACTUALS AND AVAILABLE FUNDING.
DO YOU ALL ANTICIPATE THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE INPUT MEETINGS FOR THAT -- FOR THAT ADJUSTMENT IN MAY, TO REVIEW THAT.
>> VILLAGOMEZ: SO COUNCILWOMAN, WHAT WE'LL DO SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'VE DONE IN THE PAST, WE'LL HAVE A B SESSION WHERE WE TALK ABOUT THE SIX PLUS SIX AND THE FIVE-YEAR FINANCIAL FORECAST, ASK WHATEVER QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE, GET YOUR FEEDBACK, AND THEN THERE WILL BE A SUBSEQUENT A SESSION, TYPICALLY IS TWO WEEKS AFTER THAT B SESSION, TO ADOPT THE
MIDYEAR ADJUSTMENT. >> GARCIA: OKAY. GOT IT.
SO THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. ON THE ARPA, I NOTICED THAT THERE'S -- I MEAN, THERE'S OUTSTANDING AMOUNTS SPECIFICALLY IN
[00:55:02]
THE COVID-19 RESPOND SECTION. THERE'S ALSO SOME OBLIGATIONS THAT I KNOW THAT WE WERE SUPPOSED TO STILL REPORTING BACK TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. HOW MUCH LONGER DO WE STILL HAVE THAT, IS ITALL THE WAY THROUGH LIKE THE FIVE-YEARS? >> CORRECT.
>> GARCIA: JUST MAKING SURE. I KNOW THAT WE DON'T -- I KNOW YOU ALL ARE HANDLING IT, SO I APPRECIATE THAT, BUT I WAS JUST WON WONDERING. SO I CRIMPED SOME NUMBERS, I'M NOT THE MATH PERSON HERE, BUT IN EMERGENCY RESPONSE, IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S 97% THAT WE HAVEN'T SPENT. IN MENTAL HEALTH, IT'S 70% WE HAVEN'T SPENT, IN YOUTH AND SENIORS IT'S 80%, IN DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY, IT'S 82 PERCENT AND IN NONPROFIT SOCIAL SERVICES, IT'S 84 PERCENT. THOSE AREAS SEEM TO BE THE ONES THAT WE WERE MOST CONCERNED ABOUT AND I'M REALLY CONCERNED THAT WE HAVEN'T SPENT THE MONEY. AND I KNOW THAT IT'S TECHNICALLY OUT OF OUR HANDS BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN ALLOTTED TO OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, BUT HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT THOSE ORGANIZATIONS ARE SPENDING THE MONEY AS
SOON AS THEY CAN? >> SO FOR THE AGENCY CONTRACTS, THE DEPARTMENTS HEALTH AND DHS, THEY'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE AGENCIES TO ENSURE THAT THEY ARE SPENDING TIMELY. IF THEY FEEL LIKE THEY NEED TO BE ON A PERFORMANCE PLAN TO ENSURE THAT THEY'RE SPENDING DOWN THE MONEY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONTRACT THAT THEY SIGNED, THEY'RE DOING THAT AS WELL. AND ALSO FOR -- REGARDING EMERGENCY RESPONSE, WE'RE IN THE PLANNING AND PROCURING PHASE OF EVERYTHING, SO WE SHOULD BE SEEING EXPENSES HIT SOON, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE WORKING ON AS WELL TO SPEND DOWN.
COUNCILWOMAN, TO ADD TO WHAT GWEN SAID, THIS IS BY DESIGN.
SO WHEN WE INTRODUCED THE SPENDING FRAMEWORK TO THE COUNCIL, WE WANTED TO SPREAD THE FUNDING OVER SEVERAL YEARS. YOU MAY RECALL THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT GAVE US UP TO DECEMBER OF 2026 TO SPEND ALL THE MONEY, SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE CONTRACTS THAT WE HAVE WITH AGENCIES AND OTHER PROGRAMS, THEY WERE GOING TO SPREAD OVER THE LIFE OF THE ARPA FUNDS.
SO IT'S BY DESIGN. WOEWE'RE NOT BEHIND IN SPENDING.
WE SPREAD IT OVER THAT PERIOD OF TIME. SEVERAL YEARS.
>> WALSH: AND I'LL JUST ADD, THAT'S THE REASON WHY WE DO THESE PERIODIC REPORTS TO THE COUNCIL, BECAUSE IF AN AGENCY -- IF WE FIND OURSELVES IN A POSITION WHERE AN AGENCY SIX MONTHS FROM NOW OR NINE MONTHS FROM NOW SAYS, I KNOW I SOLICITED -- I RESPONDED AND I SAID I WOULD DO X, BUT I THINK WE'RE ONLY GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET Y, THEN WE'RE GOING TO COME BACK HERE AND WE'RE GOING TO PROBABLY RECOMMEND REALLOCATING THAT MONEY. BA US WE'VE GOT TO KEEP THAT MONEY IN THE SPENT CATEGORY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THOSE GUIDELINES, AND INVARIABLY, THERE MAY BE SOME CHALLENGES THAT EXIST AND THAT'S WHEN WE NEED TO PIVOT AND MAKE SURE WE'RE USING THAT MONEY. THE GOAL IS TO NOT HAVE
ANY OF THAT ARPA MONEY LEFT OVER AT THE END. >> GARCIA: OKAY.
AND I APPRECIATE THAT, BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE WE'RE PROBABLY -- LIKE TO ME, WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN PIVOT MODE ALREADY, FOR INSTANCE, IN MENTAL HEALTH, OR IN NONPROFIT SOCIAL SERVICES, RIGHT, BECAUSE WE ALLOTTED THAT MONEY TO THOSE ORGANIZATIONS BECAUSE THEY WERE THE EXPERTS AND THEY WOULD MOVE FASTER THAN THE CITY WOULD. AND IF THEY'RE NOT MOVING FAST ENOUGH, IT JUST KIND OF -- IT'S JUST -- I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT SOMEBODY'S ON TOP OF IT. IT SOUNDS LIKE WE ARE, BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN THAT, SO I JUST -- YOU'RE REASSURING ME, I GUESS, SAYING YOU'LL COME BACK
AND LET US KNOW IF WE'RE -- >> WALSH: ABSOLUTELY.
BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO SPEND IT. WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET
TOO UP MANY TIME GO BY. >> GARCIA: THANK YOU, ERIK.
I'M EXCITED ABOUT THE FRAMEWORK FOR THE OPIOID SETTLEMENT FUNDS AND THE COMMITTEE THAT COUNCILMAN CASTILLO LEADS I FEEL HAS OFFERED A GOOD PLAN AND OFFERING MORE MAN JUST ENFORCEMENT AND -- THAN JUST ENFORCEMENT.
I'M HOPEFUL THAT WE CAN SEE SOME POSITIVE RESULTS.
AND THEN I WILL GO ON TO THE CPS CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, AND THEN I'LL HAVE THE REST OF THE QUESTIONS, BUT REALLY, JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU ALL. SPECIFICALLY, OSCAR, OUR CRU LIAISON IS INCREDIBLE, AND SO THE TEAM JUST IS ALWAYS IN REGULAR CONTACT WITH HIM. HE HAS MADE A HUGE DIFFERENCE, SO SHOUTOUT TO OSCAR. I APPRECIATE THAT YOU ALL ARE GOING TO THOSE MULTIFAMILY PROPERTIES AND WORKING WITH HOUSING PROVIDERS TO ENROLL PEOPLE. AND I LOVE THAT. THAT'S PREVENTATIVE.
ESPECIALLY WITH THE STEP PROGRAM. AND THEN I ALSO LOVE THAT YOU ALL ARE WORKING WITH AN HSD AND CASA VERDE. THERE'S SOME FOLKS IN MY DISTRICT THAT ARE WORKING WITH THE [INDISCERNIBLE] NEIGHBORHOOD IN D4 AND 5, WE SHARE THAT AREA IN GENERAL, AND SO I APPRECIATE THAT WE'RE WORKING ON THE WEATHERIZATION, BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF OLDER HOMES IN THAT AREA. AND I THINK THAT WE CAN REALLY PRESERVE OUR EXISTING HOUSING STOCK IF WE CONTINUE TO INVEST THERE.
AND THEN I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN THE CONVERSATION AROUND THE
[01:00:01]
INCREASING THE MAXIMUM INCOME ELIGIBILITY. THE -- WHAT IS THE MINIMUM -- WHAT IS THE INCOME AMOUNT WE'RE LOOKING AT FOR A FAMILY OF FOUR? SO TWO ADULTS, TWO CHILDREN AT 120% AND150%, DO YOU KNOW? >> I DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE THE TABLE IN FRONT OF ME,
BUT I CAN SEND IT TO YOU. >> GARCIA: PERFECT.
THANK YOU, KJ. I SUBMITTED IN 2020 A CCR AND HAD RECOMMENDED THAT WE CHANGE THE AMI UP TO 200%, AT THE TIME, THAT WAS A LITTLE DIFFERENT BECAUSE OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES, BUT THEN IN 2022, I ALSO SUBMITTED A DECLARATION OF HOUSING CRISIS CCR, I ALSO MENTIONED THAT MAYBE WE SHOULD USE VARIOUS ECONOMIC FACTORS, RIGHT, TO MIC SURE THAT WE -- MAKE SURE THAT WE IDENTIFIED A SMALL CRISIS RESPONSE, IF YOU WILL, RIGHT, FOR OUR RESIDENTS AND INCREASE THE FUNDING IF THE TIME CALLED FOR IT. I WOULD LOVE TO TALK TO YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE OFFLINE SO WE WON'T TAKE UP OUR TIME. AND THEN O ON PAGE SEVEN OR YOUR THREE PLUS NINE REPORT, WE HAVE PARKS POLICE, A FAVORABLE VARIANCE BECAUSE OF 43 INCREASED POSITIONS. HAVE WE SEEN AN INCREASE IN CRIME AT ALL IN PARKS RESULTING FROM THE UNFILLED POSITIONS?
>> VILLAGOMEZ: NOT THAT I'M AWARE OF, COUNCILWOMAN.
WE CAN DIG MORE INTO THAT. THE LAST -- AUDIO] -- COMMITTEE OUR VIOLENT CRIME IS DOWN CITYWIDE, BUT WE CAN DEFINITELY TAKE A LOOK INTO THOSE SPECIFIC AREAS.
>> GARCIA: OKAY. SOUNDS GOOD. LIQUOR BY THE DRINKS, IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S AN UNFAVORABLE VARIANCE IN THE FIRST THREE MONTHS.
I'M WONDERING, IS THAT STANDARD? DOES FIESTA INCREASE
THAT? LIKE IS THAT WHERE -- >> SO WE ARE DOWN, BUT THE ACTUAL LIQUOR SALES THAT HAVE BEEN RECORDED THROUGH THE STATE WHICH IS WHO COLLECTS IT, THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOWN 1.5% IN TERMS OF HOW MUCH
THEY ACTUALLY SUBMIT TO THE STATE. >> GARCIA: GOT IT.
ON PUBLIC SAFETY ALSO THE CLARITY CARE REIMBURSEMENT, WHAT
HAPPENED TO THAT? >> SO THE CHARITY CARE REIMBURSEMENT, THAT IS A REIMBURSEMENT THAT WE GIVE -- THAT WE RECEIVE FOR EMS TRANSPORTS FOR INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE BELOW THE POVERTY LINE AND DO NOT HAVE EITHER MEDICARE OR MEDICAID. BASED ON HISTORICALS, WE HAD BUDGETED ABOUT $10.3 MILLION; HOWEVER, WHEN WE RECEIVED LAST YEAR'S CHECK, WE RECEIVE IT AT THE VERY END, IN SEPTEMBER. WE HAD RECEIVED 8.7 MILLION. SO THERE ARE MORE ENTITIES THAT ARE APPLYING FOR THIS CHARITY CARE PROGRAM, SO WE REDUCED -- BASE ON WHAT WE COLLECTED FOR 2023, WE'RE REDUCING OUR PROJECTION FOR 2024 TO BE
MORE IN LINE WITH WHAT WE COLLECTED LAST YEAR. >> GARCIA: I'M JUST CONCERNED ABOUT THAT CHARITY CARE REIMBURSEMENT, AND MAYBE WE CAN CRUNCH NUMBERS BECAUSE OF THE SOUTH SIDE SITUATION WITH THE HOSPITAL CLOSING, RIGHT, AND MAYBE WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT OFFLINE AS WELL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR.
>> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER ROCHA GARCIA.
COUNCILMEMBER MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ? >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND THANK YOU ALL FOR ALL OF THE PRESENTATIONS.
I'LL START OFF WITH GENERALLY I THINK -- AN IDEA OF A SURPLUS AND WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING WITH THAT. OH, MY GOSH.
SO IN ADDITION TO COMMUNITY AND COUNCIL PRIORITIES, I THINK THAT ALL THE CCRS THAT HAVE MADE THEIR WAY THROUGH THE PROCESS, WE SHOULD BE AT -- AND ARE WAITING TO BE IMPLEMENTED, I THINK WE SHOULD CONSIDER THOSE FOR PRIORITY FOR ANY SURPLUS FUNDS DURING THE BUDGET ADJUSTMENT PERIOD. LARGELY BECAUSE I THINK EVERY YEAR WE SEE COUNCILMEMBERS SUBMIT CCRS AND THEY COULD BE THINGS RANGING FROM DASHBOARD AND PLATFORM CREATION TO RENAMING OF THINGS TO MUCH LARGER -- MUCH LARGER ITEMS THAT HAVE GREATER BUDGETED IMPACTS.
BUT WE HAVE TO FIGHT FOR IT AT THE END AFTER IT'S ALREADY MADE IT'S WAY THROUGH A PROCESS, SO I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT PRIORITIZED.
SWITCHING OVER TO CPS, IT'S GREAT TO SEE THE WORK THAT CPS IS DOING.
AND I WOULD SUGGEST -- I WOULD ASK THAT MAYBE WE SHOW SOME OF THE COMPARISON DATA. SO WONDERING -- AND THIS ISN'T RIGHT NOW, I'M NOT EXPECTING YOU TO HAVE ALL THESE ANSWERS TO SHOW, BUT MAYBE IN A FOLLOW-UP MEMO, I'D LIKE TO SEE HOW MANY MORE FOLKS HAVE ENROLLED COMPARED TO LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME OR LAST MONTH. HOW MANY ACCOUNTS HAVE BECOME CURRENT DO TO AFFORDABILITY ASSISTANCE, HOW MANY ACCOUNTS ARE ABLE TO STAY IN GOOD STANCING FOR SIX MONTHS OR A YEAR AFTER THEY RECEIVE ASSISTANCE, I THINK SOME OF THOSE THINGS WILL HELP GUIDE US AS WE'RE HAVING FURTHER CONVERSATIONS ABOUT CPS. ARPA, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE A TIMELINE FOR WHEN FUNDS WILL BE SPENT BY EACH ORGANIZATION.
I KNOW EACH ONE HAS THEIR OWN PLAN AND THEY PRESENTED AND IT WAS A PART OF THE CONTRACT OR WHEN THAT, BUT I THINK MUCH IN LINE WITH WHAT COUNCILWOMAN ROCHA GARCIA WAS SAYING, I THINK WE DO WANT A LITTLE BIT MORE CONCERNTY, BECAUSE I THINK MANY OF THE CONVERSATIONS WE HAD WHEN
[01:05:01]
WE WERE DISCUSSING THE FRAMEWORK WERE THAT PEOPLE NEEDED THE FUNDING IMMEDIATELY AND WE WANTED TO ALLOCATE THEM IMMEDIATELY.SO I'M NOT ENTIRELY CONVINCED THAT WE'RE DOING WHAT WE EXPECTED.
LASTLY, I THINK AS IT RELATES TO THE SCHEDULING OF THE BUDGET WORK SESSIONS, WHAT I FEEL THE ONLY ISSUE ARE SOMETIMES ATTENDANCE FEELS TO DROP AT OUR BUDGET WORK SESSIONS, AND I THINK THAT'S LARGELY EITHER BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, COUNCILMEMBERS EXPECTATIONS ARE MET WITH WHATEVER DEPARTMENTS ARE PRESENTING OR THE DEPARTMENTS AREN'T OF INTEREST TO THAT PARTICULAR COUNCILMEMBER OR THEY REALLY HAVE NO FEEDBACK ON THAT PORTION OF THE BUDGET, AND SO THEY FEEL THEIR ATTENDANCE IS INCONSEQUENTIAL SO I DON'T KNOW THAT WE'LL BE MORE EFFECTIVE IN AN EIGHT-HOUR LONG DAY LISTENING TO TEN PRESENTATIONS AND HAVING A COHERENT, WELL-FACILITATED CONVERSATION, I DON'T SEE THAT HAPPENING.
I THINK I WOULD MUCH PREFER A CHANGE TO THE FLOW OF THE CONVERSATION IF THEY WERE TO STAY IN A SIMILAR FORMAT TO WHAT WE HAVE NOW. SO THAT MAYBE WE HAVE MORE BACK AND FORTH AND IT'S NOT NECESSARILY ONE COUNCILMEMBER TALKING FOR TEN MINUTES AND ANOTHER FOR FIVE MINUTES AND THEN WE START AGAIN WITH ANOTHER PRESENTATION.
MAYBE WE HAVE THREE THREE-MINUTE BACK AND FORTHS AND WE CAN RESPOND MORE TO WHAT EACH OTHER IS SAYING. I LOOK FORWARD TO THAT MUCH MORE DURING THE BUDGET AND I APPRECIATED WHAT THAT FELT LIKE THIS PAST GO-AROUND BUT I WORRY ABOUT US TRYING TO CRAM IN AN EIGHT-HOUR DAY. I ALSO WONDER IF MAYBE WE COULD -- AND THIS IS A LITTLE BIT MORE TOUCHY, I THINK, DEPENDING ON HOW COUNCIL MEMBERS VIEW EACH DEPARTMENT.
BUT MAYBE WE COULD CREATE A CONSENT LIST OF DEPARTMENTS THAT MAYBE WE DON'T NEED A THOROUGH FULL-GROUND CONVERSATION OF AND MAYBE THAT'S BY YOU, ERIK, COMING AND ASKING WHICH OF THE DEPARTMENTS YOU REALLY DON'T FEEL YOU NEED A PRESENTATION FROM AND MAYBE IF THERE'S THREE COUNCIL MEMBERS OR SO WHO DO FEEL LIKE THEY WANT A CONVERSATION ON A CERTAIN DEPARTMENT AND IT'S A VERY NICHE DISCUSSION, MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT HAPPENS THROUGH COMMITTEE OR ONE-ON-ONE BRIEFINGS AND IF THERE'S BIGGER ISSUES, MAYBE WE WORK THAT OUT DURING THE BUDGET AMENDMENT WORK SESSIONS. BUT I THINK IF WE COULD JUST NARROW DOWN THE PRESENTATIONS WE HAVE TO THE ONES THAT ARE OF MOST INTEREST TO MANY OF US, I THINK THAT WAY WE HAVE A MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE CONVERSATION. BUT THAT'S MY FEEDBACK.
THANK YOU ALL AND HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY AGAIN. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU,
COUNCILMEMBER MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ. COUNCILMEMBER COURAGE. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU, MAYOR.
I WANT TO START OFF LOOKING AT SLIDE 6 WHERE IT TALKS ABOUT THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET.
I HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. AND SO, JUSTINA, MAYBE YOU COULD HELP ME.
WHEN WE LOOK AT -- I'M GOING TO KIND OF GO AROUND MY NOTES I PUT HERE.
WHEN WE LOOK AT OTHER RESOURCES, WE SAID THAT'S 18.7% OF THE BUDGET.
IT INCLUDES FUND BALANCE. WHAT IS THAT NUMBER PROJECTED IN THIS PARTICULAR BUDGET?
>> THE FUND BALANCE, BOTH OUR 10% RESERVE AS WELL AS THE FIVE-YEAR -- I'M SORRY.
OH, I'M SORRY. OF THAT AMOUNT, THE $267 MILLION.
>> COURAGE: OKAY. SO IT'S ALMOST THE WHOLE THING THEN, PRETTY MUCH.
>> NO, I'M SORRY. LET ME PULL THAT DATA. >> COURAGE: ALL RIGHT.
YOU CAN CHECK THAT OUT. I WAS WONDERING DOES THAT ALSO INCLUDE WHAT WE CONSIDER TO BE
POSSIBLE FEDERAL GRANTS? NO. >> NO.
>> COURAGE: WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE POLICE AND FIRE, I SEE IT INCLUDES PARK POLICE.
AND WE HAD A DISCUSSION JUST ABOUT VACANCIES. I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHY THERE ARE SO MANY VACANCIES IN THE WANT TO TAKE THAT JOB FOR WHAT WE'RE PAYING THEM. BUT I'D LIKE TO HAVE AN EVALUATION OF THAT. I THINK PARK POLICE ARE IMPORTANT.
I HEAR A LOT OF CONCERNS FROM PEOPLE ABOUT THINGS THAT GO ON AROUND PARKS AND THEY SAY WE DON'T SEE ENOUGH PARK POLICE AROUND THERE. MAYBE THAT'S A SEPARATE DISCUSSION BUT SINCE IT WAS IN THE BUDGET I WANTED TO BRING THAT UP.
ALSO, WHAT ABOUT THE AIRPORT POLICE? ARE THEY FUNDED THROUGH POLICE
AND FIRE OR THROUGH THE AIRPORT? >> NO, THEY ARE FUNDED THROUGH THE AIRPORT.
>> COURAGE: WHEN WE LOOK AT THE LIST OF ORGANIZATIONS ON THE RIGHT, I KNOW A LOT OF THEM, LIKE MAYBE THE LIBRARY BUT HEALTH, HUMAN SERVICES, NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING SERVICES,
THEY DO GET A LOT OF FEDERAL FUNDING EVERY YEAR, DON'T THEY? >> CORRECT.
>> COURAGE: NONE OF THAT'S INCLUDED IN THE NUMBERS NEXT TO THEIR COLUMN RIGHT NOW.
[01:10:04]
>> NO. THAT IS STRICTLY GENERAL FUND. >> COURAGE: HOW DO WE FORECAST THAT MONEY TO DECIDE ABOUT CONTINUING PROJECTS? IS IT JUST DUE TO THE LENGTH OF
THE GRANT AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE? >> SO EACH GRANT IS PRESENTED TO CITY COUNCIL AND TYPICALLY WITHIN THOSE GRANTS THERE IS A TIME PERIOD FOR THAT GRANT.
IT COULD BE ONE YEAR. IT COULD BE A MULTI-YEAR GRANT. >> COURAGE: OKAY.
BUT HOW MUCH DO WE GET IN FEDERAL GRANTS WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THAT OVER A YEAR?
>> IT'S IN THE BUDGET DOCUMENT. I JUST DON'T REMEMBER OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD.
>> COURAGE: I DIDN'T MEAN TO PUT YOU ON THE SPOT. I'M JUST TRYING TO FIND A LITTLE OF THIS OUT. MARIA, WERE YOU GOING TO SAY SOMETHING?
>> VILLAGOMEZ: YES, COUNCILMAN, ON THE FUND BALANCE, IF WE CAN GO TO SLIDE 13, IT WILL HELP US ILLUSTRATE IT. GO TO SLIDE 13. OKAY, COUNCILMAN.
SO YOU SEE THE BUDGETED REVENUES OF $1.54 BILLION AND THEN THE EXPENSES ARE 1.6.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO, ROUGHLY ABOUT $60 MILLION. THAT IS HOW MUCH FUND BALANCE
WE'RE USING FOR THE FISCAL YEAR '24 BUDGET. >> COURAGE: OKAY.
AND WHAT ABOUT THE '25? WHAT ARE WE CARRYING FORWARD FOR THAT? AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE BUDGET, WE DO A TWO-YEAR BUDGET NOWADAYS. PART OF MY QUESTION ABOUT THAT IS IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BEING PREPARED FOR NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE FIRE UNION ABOUT A FUTURE CONTRACT, I THOUGHT I RECALL IN OUR LAST DISCUSSION ON SETTING THIS TWO-YEAR BUDGET THAT WE TRIED TO CARRY FORWARD SOME MONEY INTO THAT NEXT BUDGET SO THAT WE'D HAVE MONEY WHEN WE NEGOTIATE IT.
ISN'T THAT CORRECT? DIDN'T WE SAY WE WERE GOING TO DO THAT?
>> VILLAGOMEZ: THAT IS CORRECT, COUNCILMAN. I WOULD MENTION, AS THE CITY MANAGER INDICATED, YOU MAY RECALL WHEN WE DID THE FIVE-YEAR FORECAST LAST YEAR WE HAD CHALLENGES IN THE LAST THREE YEARS OF THE FORECAST, MEANING WE WERE NOT BALANCED.
SO AS WE ADD MORE EXPENSES TO THE BUDGET, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE CAN BALANCE THE OUTER YEARS
AS WE COMMIT TO A NEW CONTRACT. >> COURAGE: RIGHT. SO I THINK WE ALREADY HAVE SOME MONEY SET ASIDE FOR WHAT WE THINK IS GOING TO BE AN INCREASED COST IN THE NEXT CONTRACT. BUT ALSO I SEE WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT NOW IS IF WE HAVE EXTRA MONEY LEFT OVER, WE'RE GOING TO PASS THAT ON TO THE CONTRACT.
HOW MUCH MONEY ARE WE SETTING ASIDE? IF WE'VE GOT A PROJECTION OF ALMOST $30 MILLION OR $25 MILLION AT THE END OF THIS FISCAL YEAR, BY YOUR ESTIMATE TODAY. BUT WE'VE ALSO SET ASIDE MONEY IN ADVANCE FOR THE FIREFIGHTER CONTRACTS. I THINK WHAT WE'RE DOING IS KIND OF LIMITING WHAT WE CAN DO WITH THE ADDITIONAL REVENUE THAT WE GET. SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE BEING FLEXIBLE ENOUGH WITH WHAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AT THE END OF THIS YEAR IF WE HAVE A SURPLUS AND NOT SAY, OH, THAT ALL HAS TO BE CARRIED OVER TO MAKE SURE WE PAY THE FIREFIGHTERS' SALARY WHEN WE'RE ALREADY CARRYING MONEY OVER TO DO THAT.
>> VILLAGOMEZ: I THINK, COUNCILMAN, WE ARE GOING TO BEGIN DISCUSSIONS WITH THE FIRE ASSOCIATION AT THE END OF THIS MONTH. SO WHEN WE COME BACK TO YOU IN APRIL WITH THE FIVE-YEAR FINANCIAL FORECAST, WE WILL HAVE A BETTER SENSE OF WHERE WE ARE IN NEGOTIATIONS, DEPENDING ON OUR EXCHANGE OF PROPOSALS. SO WE WILL BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU AT LEAST AN ESTIMATED COST OF THE CONTRACT AT THAT POINT BASED ON THOSE NEGOTIATIONS.
>> COURAGE: OKAY. THANK YOU. I'VE GOT A QUESTION ABOUT CPS ENERGY. AND I BELIEVE THAT WE DECIDED, AS A COUNCIL, TO NOT ACCEPT OUR 14% ON ONE OF THE CPS PROGRAMS THAT WAS INITIATED IN THE LAST YEAR OR SO.
DIDN'T WE SAY WE WERE GOING TO FOREGO THE 14% WE GET? I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS IN STEP
OR ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE THINGS. >>
>> COURAGE: THAT'S WHAT IT WAS. I WAS JUST TRYING TO REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS AND IT'S NOT PART OF THIS BUDGET, THOUGH. OKAY.
THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. ON SLIDE 12 WE TALK ABOUT THE OTHER REVENUE AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE 246 AND THE $255 MILLION.
AND I THINK YOU SAID PART OF THAT WAS PROBABLY INTEREST THAT WE'RE RECEIVING ON INVESTMENTS.
WHAT IS SOME OF THE OTHER ADDITIONAL REVENUE THAT MAKES UP THAT $9 MILLION, ALMOST
[01:15:01]
$9 MILLION DIFFERENCE? >> WHAT WE ARE PROJECTING IN ADDITIONAL INTEREST EARNINGS IS
$8.6 MILLION. >> COURAGE: MOST OF IT IS IN INTEREST.
>> YES. SO THE REST OF THE REVENUES ARE PRETTY IN LINE.
>> COURAGE: I HOPE THE RATES STAY UP. OKAY.
>> COUNCILMAN? >> COURAGE: PARDON ME? >> I WANTED TO FOLLOW UP ON YOUR QUESTION ABOUT FEDERAL GRANTS. OUR FEDERAL GRANTS WE HAVE BUDGETED IN 2024 IS JUST OVER
$230 MILLION. >> COURAGE: OKAY. WELL, THAT'S GOOD TO KNOW.
THANK YOU. ON SLIDE 14 -- NO, I COVERED THAT.
THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT WITH THE FIREFIGHTERS. ON SLIDE 16, YOU HAVE AN ITEM CALLED COMMUNITY AND VISITOR FACILITIES. WHAT IS THAT? THAT'S A $13 MILLION BUDGET. I KNOW WE HAVE MONEY SET ASIDE FOR CONVENTION AND REVENUE FROM THE CONVENTION AND ALAMODOME. IS THAT EXPENSES FOR THOSE KINDS OF FACILITIES?
>> CORRECT. THAT'S THE OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE FOR BOTH THE CONVENTION CENTER AND THE ALAMODOME. AND THAT $13.4 MILLION IS JUST THE FIRST QUARTER. SO THEIR TOTAL BUDGET FOR COMMUNITY AND VISITORS FACILITY, THE ALAMODOME AND THE CONVENTION IS ABOUT $59 MILLION FOR THE FULL YEAR.
>> COURAGE: DOES THAT INCLUDE THE EXPENSES FOR UPGRADING BECAUSE OF THE NCAA TOURNAMENT?
>> NO. THAT'S INCLUDED IN OUR CAPITAL BUDGET.
>> COURAGE: ALL RIGHT. WHO CAN TELL ME WHAT'S THE FORECAST FOR CONVENTION BUSINESS? IS IT ACTUALLY UP OR DOWN? WE LOOK AT OUR HOT FUNDS COMING IN . IF THE CONVENTION BUSINESS IS UP OR IF IT'S DOWN, HOW DOES THAT FIGURE INTO OUR HOTEL TAX ESTIMATE FOR THIS YEAR VERSUS LAST YEAR?
>> COUNCILMAN, DIRECTOR OF CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES DEPARTMENT.
RIGHT NOW WE'RE EXPECTING IT TO BE HIGHER THAN LAST YEAR. WE'RE EXPECTING ABOUT 94 CITYWIDES THIS YEAR. OR, AS YOU CAN SEE, OUR CONVENTION CENTER REVENUE BEING
ABOUT $1.5 MILLION ABOVE BUDGET. >> COURAGE: OKAY. I JUST SEE THE HOT TAX FOR THE FIRST QUARTER WAS A LITTLE LOW AND OVERALL WE'RE SAYING IT'S GOING TO BE ON BUDGET.
WE PROJECTED A STRONGER BUDGET THIS YEAR COMPARED TO LAST YEAR? >> YEAH.
THE HOT TAX INCLUDES THE LEISURE BUSINESS AS WELL. BUT AS FAR AS CONVENTION CENTER BUSINESS, OUR BUSINESS IS UP COMPARED. AND UP HIGHER THAN 2019 BUSINESS
AND REVENUE. >> WALSH: IN ORDER TO ACCENTUATE THAT POINT, WE'RE SEEING HOTEL OCCUPANCIES LOWER THAN LAST YEAR BUT THE AVERAGE RATE HIGHER.
WE HAD A GOOD FIRST QUARTER AT THE CONVENTION CENTER AND THE DOME SO GROUP AND BUSINESS TRAVEL IS UP. IT'S THE LEISURE TRAVEL THAT HAS SOFTENED UP WHICH HAS IMPACTED
US ON THE HOT SIDE. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER COURAGE.
>> COURAGE: THANK YOU, MAYOR. COUNCILMEMBER WHYTE. >> WHYTE: THANKS, MAYOR.
SO THANK Y'ALL SO MUCH FOR THE REPORTS. I WILL SAY JUST ONE THING.
WE GOT SOME OF THE BACK UP FOR THESE REPORTS, I THINK JUST A DAY OR SO AGO.
AND I DON'T KNOW, IT WAS A LITTLE TOUGH FOR OUR GROUP TO GET THROUGH.
I THINK IT WAS 100-PLUS PAGES IN THE LAST DAY. IF THERE'S ANY WAY AT ALL WE CAN
GET THIS STUFF A LITTLE BIT SOONER, IT WOULD BE AWESOME. >> WALSH: YEAH, SO COUNCILMAN, WE SENT OUT THE PRESENTATION ON MONDAY. WE DIDN'T GET THE BOOK OUT UNTIL YESTERDAY. BUT CERTAINLY IF THERE'S ANY FOLLOW-UP CONVERSATIONS, THIS STUFF IS ONLINE AS WELL AND WE'LL MAKE OURSELVES AVAILABLE BUT IT'S A LOT OF INFORMATION.
I UNDERSTAND YOU GUYS NEED TIME TO GO THROUGH IT. >> WHYTE: YEP.
THANKS. AND, ERIK, I'VE MENTIONED THIS TO YOU PREVIOUSLY.
I WOULD LIKE TO REALLY REDO THE WAY WE LOOK AT THE BUDGET. AND I WOULD LOVE TO DO IT THIS YEAR. WHAT WE DO -- AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BECAUSE I'VE ONLY BEEN THROUGH ONE NOW. BUT WE USE THE INCREMENTAL BUDGETING PROCESS, RIGHT, WHERE WE TAKE LAST YEAR'S BUDGET AS A STARTING POINT AND THEN WE BUILD OFF OF THAT.
WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS WHAT'S BEEN DONE IN VARIOUS OTHER CITIES AS WELL AS BY THE STATE OF TEXAS. AND THAT'S USE SOMETHING CALLED ZERO-BASED BUDGETING.
AND JUST FOR THOSE THAT MAY NOT BE FAMILIAR WITH THE TERM, WHAT WE WOULD DO THERE IS EACH DEPARTMENT -- AND I'M ONLY TALKING ABOUT DOING THIS FOR THE GENERAL FUND.
WE'VE GOT, IT LOOKS LIKE 25 DEPARTMENTS THAT MAKE UP GENERAL FUND DOLLARS.
[01:20:07]
AND WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS HAVE EACH DEPARTMENT START AT ZERO.AND BASICALLY FROM THERE BUILD THEIR OWN BUDGET AND THEY WOULD HAVE TO JUSTIFY EVERY EXPENSE.
YOU KNOW, EVERY LINE ITEM, BASED UPON WHAT THEIR EXPECTED RESULTS THAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR ARE.
AND THIS IS NOT ABOUT CUTTING SPENDING. IT'S MORE ABOUT SEEING HOW WE ARE SPENDING OUR MONEY. AND IF WE CAN BETTER SPEND IT IN WAYS THAT WOULD BENEFIT OUR CITIZENS MORE. THAT WOULD GIVE OUR CITIZENS MORE OF A RETURN ON INVESTMENT ON THEIR DOLLARS. AND IT'S ALSO JUST A MORE TRANSPARENT WAY TO DO THE BUDGETING PROCESS. AND I THINK THAT NOW IS A REALLY GOOD TIME TO DO IT.
AND HERE'S WHY. FIRST OF ALL, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD, I BELIEVE, FOR ANY ORGANIZATION AFTER THREE, FOUR, FIVE YEARS TO LOOK WITHIN ITSELF AND ASK THEMSELVES IF WHAT THEY'RE DOING IS THE BEST WAY. SO RATHER THAN JUST CONTINUING TO BUILD UPON THE BUDGET YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR, LET'S GO BACK TO SCRATCH AND SEE HOW WE'RE SPENDING OUR MONEY AND SEE IF WE CAN SPEND IT BETTER. NUMBER TWO, WE'RE COMING OUT OF COVID. THE WORLD IS A DIFFERENT PLACE TODAY THAN IT WAS FOUR, FIVE YEARS AGO. DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGIES ARE BEING USED.
WE'RE INTERACTING WITH OTHERS IN DIFFERENT WAYS. YOU KNOW, ALL SORTS OF THINGS.
SO NOW WOULD BE A REALLY GOOD TIME, AGAIN, TO GO BACK TO SQUARE ONE WITH RESPECT TO THE BUDGET. AND THEN, NUMBER THREE, WE TALKED AT THE END OF LAST YEAR ABOUT HOW WE FUND CPS, RIGHT? AND WE HAD A PRETTY ROBUST DEBATE ON THE DAIS WHEN THE CPS RATE HIKE WENT THROUGH. AND WE TALKED ABOUT HOW MOVING FORWARD I DON'T THINK ANYBODY WANTS TO CONTINUE TO RAISE RATES ON OUR CITIZENS. AND SO MAYBE THERE'S A WAY TO FUND CPS RATHER THAN ANOTHER RATE HIKE, BUT GET A LINE ITEM IN THE BUDGET FOR CPS.
WITH ALL OF THAT IN MIND, NOW'S THE TIME TO GO TO A ZERO-BASED BUDGET.
I'M NOT SAYING THAT WE NEED TO DO IT EVERY SINGLE YEAR BUT I WOULDN'T MIND SEEING US DO THIS EVERY THREE OR FOUR YEARS. AND IS IT GOING TO BE A TIME-CONSUMING PROCESS? YES. BUT, AGAIN, I THINK THAT THE PAYOFF COULD BE SIGNIFICANT.
YOU KNOW, I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T MENTION AGAIN THAT MILLIKEN INSTITUTE STUDY WHERE THEY LOOKED AT THE 200 BIG CITIES IN AMERICA AND HOW THEY USED THEIR RESOURCES TO PROMOTE GROWTH AND OPPORTUNITY FOR THEIR CITIZENS. AND TO ME THIS TIES DIRECTLY INTO THAT. OUR RESOURCES ARE ENCAPSULATED IN THIS BUDGET AND SO I WOULD LIKE TO SEE US TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT THAT. SO, IN TERMS OF THE SCHEDULING, WHICH YOU ALL ASKED ABOUT, IF I HAD MY WAY, AGAIN, EACH CITY DEPARTMENT WOULD COME BEFORE US AND JUSTIFY WHAT THEY'RE ASKING FOR IN THEIR OWN BUDGET. SO IF I COUNTED CORRECTLY, THERE'S 25 DEPARTMENTS. I'D LIKE TO SEE SOMETHING LIKE -- HUH? WELL, IN ONE OF THESE SHEETS -- HOWEVER MANY DEPARTMENTS THERE ARE, LET'S DIVIDE IT AMONGST FIVE, TEN DAYS. HAVE TWO OR THREE PER DAY, WHATEVER IT IS.
COME BEFORE US AND ACTUALLY REALLY GET TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT IS IN THESE BUDGETS. IF WE'RE SPENDING THE MONEY APPROPRIATELY.
OR IF MONEY COULD BETTER BE SPENT IN ANOTHER DEPARTMENT. ZERO-BASED BUDGETING, IT'S BEEN -- THE CITY OF HOUSTON WAS SET TO DO IT IN 2021, RIGHT ABOUT THE TIME THAT EVERYBODY WAS GOING THROUGH COVID. THERE'S A PRETTY GOOD PAPER OUT THERE ON IT THAT I'D LOVE TO SHARE WITH FOLKS. I GUESS MY QUESTION TO YOU, ERIK, IS COULD WE DO IT?
AND WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO DO IT? >> WALSH: YOU KNOW, ANY ORGANIZATION THIS SIZE THERE'S A HEALTHY AMOUNT OF REVIEW AND INTERNAL PERSPECTIVE
[01:25:07]
TO ACCOMMODATE FOR CHANGES IN BUSINESS OR THINGS THAT WE USED TO DO THAT WE DON'T NEED TO DO ANYMORE. THAT NEEDS TO BE PART OF OUR REGULAR TEMPO.AND I'VE SHARED WITH YOU -- AND YOU MENTIONED IT HERE A SECOND AGO -- 2020, 2021, 2022, AND A LITTLE BIT OF 2023 HAS ALL BEEN ABOUT REALLY KIND OF RESPONDING TO THE NEW NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY. AND SO WE NEED TO GET BACK TO THAT.
AND I THINK YOU'LL SEE THAT AS PART OF OUR GOAL-SETTING CONVERSATION THIS YEAR.
NOT JUST WHAT IS A PRIORITY BUT GIVING THE COUNCIL SOME OPTIONS ON MAYBE LESS OF A PRIORITY.
BECAUSE WE CAN'T KEEP DOING EVERYTHING. MARIA AND JUSTINA MENTIONED WE'VE GOT A STRUCTURAL BALANCE ISSUE THAT WE HAVE TO BE MINDFUL OF.
AND SO I THINK WE'LL HAVE THAT CONVERSATION AS WE GO THROUGH THE WORK SESSION.
I THINK YOU NEED TO GIVE US A LITTLE BIT OF TIME TO THINK THROUGH THE ZERO-BASED BUDGETING. WE HAVE GONE THROUGH EXERCISES LIKE THAT BEFORE.
WE DO NOT DO INCREMENTAL BUDGETING HERE. WE STRIP OUT FOR THE PRIOR YEAR AND BUILD BACK UP BUT WE DON'T GO ALL THE WAY TO ZERO. AND SO MAYBE THERE'S SOME VARIATION OF THAT THAT WE CAN LOOK AT. I THINK SOME OF THE THAT IS HELPFUL. I THINK THE GUIDANCE FROM THE COUNCIL AT THE WORK SESSION ABOUT WHAT'S NOT A PRIORITY WOULD BE HELPFUL AS WELL, REALLY DIG INTO THE JUNE AND JULY FOR THE PROPOSED BUDGET. LET US PUT OUR HEADS TOGETHER
AND BE BETTER PREPARED TO DO THAT. >> WHYTE: YEAH, I'D APPRECIATE THAT AND I KNOW IN INDIVIDUAL CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS, SOME FEEL LIKE WE NEED TO DOUBLE OUR INFRASTRUCTURE BUDGET AND OTHERS SAY WE NEED MORE MONEY FOR ACS OR HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, WHATEVER IT IS. I THINK BY TAKING A ZERO-BASED BUDGET APPROACH, IT WILL ALLOW US TO SEE WHERE THERE ARE FUNDS THAT CAN PERHAPS BE MOVED TO ONE OF THESE DIFFERENT AREAS WHERE WE MAY NEED IT. SO I APPRECIATE Y'ALL TAKING A LOOK AT THAT.
I WANT TO, I GUESS WITH MY LAST 50 SECONDS HERE, I WANT TO MAKE SPECIAL MENTION OF CRIT, WHO DURING THE LAST BUDGET PERIOD EVERYBODY WAS NICE ENOUGH TO AGREE THAT CRIT NEEDED SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDING. IN THE BACK-UP DOCUMENTS HERE I SAW THAT THEY ARE WELL AHEAD OF SCHEDULE IN USING THE MONEY THAT WE GOT THEM. THIS MONEY WAS SET FOR THEM TO OFFER SUPPORT TO 122 NEW CHILDREN AND THEY'VE ALREADY DONE 113.
SO THAT I WAS VERY PLEASED TO SEE. AS WELL AS MORGAN'S WONDERLAND.
I WAS WITH THE MORGAN'S WONDERLAND FOLKS A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO AND EVERYTHING IS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE THERE AS WELL IN TERMS OF THAT FULLY ACCESSIBLE ADA-ACCESSIBLE HOTEL THAT IS SOON TO BE COMING TO DISTRICT 10. HAPPY ABOUT THAT AS WELL.
THANKS, MAYOR. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: GO AHEAD, ERIK.
>> WALSH: JUST TO RECAP ON SOMETHING THAT COUNCILMAN WHYTE JUST SAID.
IT IS MATH. IF WE ADD, WE SUBTRACT SOMEWHERE BUT WE RAISE REVENUE.
AND SO THE COUNCIL -- I'LL REITERATE THE COUNCIL CONVERSATION DURING WORK SESSION, DURING THE GOAL SETTING IS GOING TO BE IMPORTANT BECAUSE NOBODY WANTS TO GO THROUGH THAT.
I THINK AS A $3 BILLION A YEAR OPERATION, THERE'S A FAIR AMOUNT OF STUFF THAT WE SHOULD BE ADJUSTING ON AN ANNUAL BASIS BECAUSE WE'RE TOO BIG. ANY GOOD CORPORATION OR BUSINESS OR ENTITY SHOULD GO THROUGH THAT. AND WE'LL BE PREPARED TO HAVE A MORE ROBUST CONVERSATION. BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, GETTING FEEDBACK FROM THE GROUP IS WHAT'S HELPFUL FOR ME AND THE STAFF. BECAUSE EVERYBODY'S GOT AN INDIVIDUALIZED NOTION OF WHAT NEEDS TO BE ADDED AND WHAT SHOULD BE SUBTRACTED.
AND THE GROUP CONVERSATION IS WHERE IT'S HELPFUL FOR ME TO GET SOME SORT OF IDEA.
AND THEN FRANKLY THAT SETS US UP IN A POSITION WHERE WE CAN GET SOME GOOD SOLID FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMUNITY THE FOLLOWING MONTH BEFORE WE GO LAUNCHING OFF INTO A LOT OF THE DETAILED WORK.
>> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER WHYTE. COUNCILMEMBER ALDERETE GAVITO.
>> GAVITO: THANK YOU, MAYOR. FIRST OFF, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THESE PRESENTATIONS.
IT'S REALLY GREAT INFORMATION. I REALLY LIKE THE SAN ANTONIO 24/7 REPORT.
IT'S A GOOD WAY FOR US TO BE TRANSPARENT WITH OUR RESIDENTS AND WHAT THE CITY IS DOING FOR THEM. I DO WANT TO ECHO COUNCILMAN WHYTE'S -- AND EXPRESS MY
[01:30:01]
SUPPORT FOR GETTING US TO ZERO-BASED BUDGETING. I HEAR YOU, ERIK, THAT MAYBE WE GET TO A VERSION OF IT. I BELIEVE THAT COUNCIL MEMBERS ARE VERY IN TUNE WITH WHAT RESIDENTS WANT AND WHAT THEIR PRIORITIES ARE AND SO GETTING US TO A VERSION OF ZERO-BASED BUDGETING ALLOWS US TO BUILD THE BUDGET AROUND WHAT THOSE PRIORITIES ARE.I ALSO APPRECIATE THE INCREASE IN TRANSPARENCY SO WE CAN ALL KNOW WHERE THE MONEY IS GOING.
IT'S AN IDEA WORTH EXPLORING. I HAD A FEW QUESTIONS FOR YOU, JUSTINA, ON THE PRESENTATION.
ON SLIDE 11, REALLY QUICK, IN REGARDS TO THE CPS REVENUE, THESE PROJECTIONS ARE INCLUSIVE
OF THE RATE INCREASE, RIGHT, THE CPS RATE INCREASE? >> SO ON THIS SLIDE, SLIDE 11, THIS IS JUST THE FIRST QUARTER PERFORMANCE. SO THE RATE INCREASE WENT INTO
EFFECT FEBRUARY 1ST. >> GAVITO: GOT IT. OKAY.
THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. I DID WANT TO DIG INTO SOME OF THE ADOPTED BUDGET INITIATIVES REPORT. WITH ACS, WE JUST HAD A GREAT MEETING WITH SHANNON AND I'M GLAD TO SEE ALL OF THE GREAT PROGRESS ON THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
I DID HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT THAT WE'RE BEHIND SCHEDULE IN HIRING ACS OFFICERS TO ADDRESS DANGEROUS DOGS SO WE CAN INVESTIGATE CRITICAL BITE CASES. I'M CURIOUS WHAT OUR PLANS ARE TO ENSURE WE'RE MEETING TO GOALS TO INVESTIGATE 3500 CASES ANNUALLY.
>> YES, MA'AM. SO ACS GRADUATED A CLASS OF 15 IN NOVEMBER.
THAT WAS KIND OF US LEANING FORWARD. ABOUT HALF OF THOSE WERE ACTUALLY PART OF THE ANTICIPATED NEW OFFICERS. THE SECOND CLASS THIS FISCAL YEAR OF 13 OFFICERS IS KICKING OFF IN ABOUT A WEEK AND A HALF. WE HAVE BEEN VERY AGGRESSIVE ON IT, JUST TRYING TO GET THOSE FOLKS ONBOARDED. WE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF A DELAY WITH HAVING QUALIFIED CANDIDATES, WHICH DELAYED US A LITTLE BIT.
WE WERE PUSHING THAT OUT. THEY WILL BE STARTING THE NEW ACADEMY THE WEEK AFTER NEXT.
AND WE ANTICIPATE ABOUT A THREE-MONTH TIME HACK ON THAT TO BE ABLE TO GRADUATE THEM.
BUT THOSE FIRST SEVEN NEW THAT CAME OUT OF THE LAST GROUP, ARE ALREADY BACKFILLING FOLKS THAT
ARE BEING TRAINED IN DANGEROUS BITES. >> GAVITO: DO YOU ANTICIPATE US STILL MEETING OUR GOAL OF INVESTIGATING 3500 CASES ANNUALLY?
>> YES, MA'AM. >> GAVITO: PERFECT. I DID SEE THAT THE SPAY AND NEUTER CLINIC LOCATED NEAR DISTRICTS 7, 5, AND 1 WOULD BE READY IN SEPTEMBER.
THAT'S CORRECT, RIGHT? >> SO WE HAVE FINISHED THE INITIAL EVALUATION OF IDENTIFYING THE VETERINARIAN DESERTS AS WELL AS USING THE EQUITY ATLAS TO IDENTIFY AREAS OF LOW INCOME AS WELL AS FOLKS WHO HAVE ONE VEHICLE IN THEIR HOUSEHOLD.
WE USED THAT TO NARROW DOWN THE AREAS. WE DID A SITE SURVEY LAST WEEK.
WE HAVE IDENTIFIED A COUPLE OF POTENTIAL LOCATIONS OVER ON THE WEST SIDE.
AND I ACTUALLY HAD A QUICK CONVERSATION WITH THE COUNCILMAN BEFORE WE ENTERED HERE IN TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THE ONES ON THE EAST SIDE THAT WE FOUND. YEAH, WE'RE STILL LOOKING TO BE READY TO START BRINGING THOSE INDIVIDUALS IN LATE 2024 TO OPEN THOSE FACILITIES.
AND WE ANTICIPATE THE RFP FOR THE VENDORS PROBABLY GOING OUT IN LATE SPRING.
>> GAVITO: OKAY. THE REASON I'M ASKING IS, YOU KNOW, WE WERE REALLY EXCITED TO PUSH FOR THIS AND SO IT IS SOMETHING I'VE BEEN TALKING TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS ABOUT. AND SO IF I CAN PROVIDE THEM A TIMELINE OF SEPTEMBER 2024 WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A SPAY AND NEUTER CLINIC NEAR US, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL.
>> YES, MA'AM. WE'RE LOOKING FOR LATE 2024 IT BEING FINISHED BECAUSE THERE'S GOING TO HAVE TO BE SIGNIFICANT CONSTRUCTION. SAY AGAIN, SIR?
IS SET UP BEFORE THE END OF 2024, HAVING VENDORS IN THERE. >> GAVITO: SOUNDS GOOD.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. REALLY QUICK ON OUR HOUSING -- WELL, SORRY. LET ME BACK UP. FOR CODE, I WAS HAPPY TO SEE THAT WE'RE ON TARGET REGARDING THE SENIOR ASSISTANCE PILOT PROGRAM.
DEFINITELY WANT TO THANK MIKE SHANNON FOR HIS PARTNERSHIP THERE.
I SEE WE HAVE HELPED 20 INDIVIDUALS ADDRESS THEIR CODE COMPLIANCE ISSUES.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PARTNERSHIP IN GETTING THAT ACROSS THE FINISH LINE.
FOR HOUSING ISSUES, ON OPPORTUNITY HOME, I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT WE'RE ON SCHEDULE WITH THE GOAL OF PROVIDING ADDITIONAL MAINTENANCE TO PUBLIC HOUSING RESIDENTS.
WE ARE HEARING A LOT OF CONCERNS FROM RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT 7 ABOUT FIXING -- AND GENERAL MAINTENANCE IN PUBLIC HOUSING. YOU KNOW, STAIRS THAT ARE RUSTY, RUSTY,YOU KNOW, OR STAIRWELL HAS
[01:35:03]
THAT ARE BROKEN. THAT IS A HUGE CONCERN FOR RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT 7 REGARDING OPPORTUNITY HOME'S FACILITIES. I DID WANT TO PIGGYBACK OFF OF WHAT COUNCILWOMAN CABELLO HAVRDA SAID ABOUT THE MIGRANT RESOURCE CENTER.YOU KNOW, I'M CONCERNED THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF MATTERS OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL AND WE DON'T WANT SAN ANTONIO TO BE LEFT HIGH AND DRY. AND I THINK WHAT WOULD MAKE ME FEEL BETTER IS THAT IF WE HAVE A PLAN A, B, AND C OUTLINED TO ENSURE WE'RE NOT HAVING TO USE LOCAL DOLLARS FOR THE MIGRANT RESOURCE CENTER. AND I KNOW THAT WE'LL HAVE THOSE DISCUSSIONS OFFLINE. REGARDING SAPD, I WANT TO CELEBRATE THE FACT THAT WE'RE AHEAD OF SCHEDULE ON FUNDING FOR THE BALLISTIC GLASS AND THE SELL BRITE TECHNOLOGY.
I KNOW THOSE ARE IMPORTANT FOR IMPROVING PUBLIC SAFETY. THAT WAS IT FOR THAT BUDGET.
I HAD ONE QUICK QUESTION ON THE ARPA UPDATES. REFERRING TO SLIDE 30, WHEN DO
WE ANTICIPATE SEEING THOSE REIMBURSEMENTS? >> I THINK THE BEST WAY TO RESPOND IS WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING WITH THEM. CITY STAFF IS HAVING WEEKLY MEETINGS, SOMETIMES BIWEEKLY TO KEEP IN CONTACT WITH BOTH FEMA AND THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. SO THEY'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THEM TO WORK THROUGH ANY INFORMATION THAT WE NEED TO PROVIDE TO PUSH ON FOR THOSE REIMBURSEMENTS.
WE ARE ANTICIPATING ABOUT $12.9 MILLION FOR HOUSING SECURITY AND THE COVID RESPONSE, WHICH WAS FOR THE SHELTERING. IT'S AT THE STATE LEVEL RIGHT NOW SO WE'RE JUST PUSHING THROUGH TO GET THAT CLOSED UP. SO WE'RE OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THAT ONE.
SO THAT'S GOING TO BE A REALLY BIG CHUNK OF THAT. BUT THE REST OF THEM WE'RE STILL WORKING WITH FEMA AND WE'RE HAVING CONSTANT CONVERSATIONS. I DON'T KNOW IF ERIK HAS
SOMETHING TO ADD. >> GAVITO: SO NO TIMELINES BUT WE'RE PUSHING.
>> RIGHT. WE'RE NOT BEING GIVEN A TIMELINE.
>> GAVITO: I UNDERSTAND. THAT WORKS. >> WE ARE PUSHING.
>> GAVITO: THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. AND, LASTLY, REGARDING THE CPS UPDATES, I'M PROUD TO HAVE FOUGHT FOR THE EXPANSION OF THE ADP PROGRAM.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTNERSHIP AND EXPLORING IT. I KNOW THIS IS GOING TO BE A HUGE HELP TO OLDER ADULTS AND PEOPLE ON FIXED INCOMES. I DID HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE TIMELINE, BECAUSE IT WENT INTO EFFECT FEBRUARY 1ST AND WE HAVEN'T EXPANDED OUR ELIGIBILITY FOR OUR MOST VULNERABLE RESIDENTS. THIS MORNING I WAS AT SOME OF OUR SENIOR CENTERS HANDING OUT CARNATIONS FOR VALENTINE'S DAY AND WE HEARD ABOUT IT AND THEY'RE VERY CONCERNED ON THE RATE INCREASE AND BEING NERVOUS ABOUT THE ABILITY TO AFFORD IT.
SO WHAT IS OUR TIMELINE TO GET THAT INTO EFFECT AND WHATEVER OUR TIMELINE IS, HOW CAN WE
SPEED IT UP SO THAT IT HAPPENED YESTERDAY? >> COUNCILWOMAN, WE JUST GOT OUR BUDGET APPROVED ON OUR SIDE. OUR FISCAL YEAR STARTS FEBRUARY 1 AND FEBRUARY 4 OR 5 WE WERE ABLE TO GET OUR BUDGET APPROVED THROUGH COUNCIL. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF GETTING IT TO THE BOARD. BOARD APPROVED, EXCUSE ME. THE BOARD APPROVED OUR BUDGET.
SO WE'RE HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH OUR BOARD, YOU KNOW, IT SHOULD BE THIS MEETING OR THE MARCH MEETING. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF GETTING IT IMPLEMENTED FROM THERE.
WE'RE GOING THROUGH OUR PROCESS. GOVERNANCE-WISE OUR BOARD HAS TO PUT THEIR FINGERS ON IT AND WORK THROUGH THE FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS FOR US. ERIK AND I HAVE HAD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO TAKE CARE OF THAT EXPANSION.
BUT FOR US IT'S JUST A TIMING MECHANISM. >> WALSH: AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG BUT THERE WILL BE AN ITEM THAT HAS TO COME TO COUNCIL ON A TARIFF.
AFTER THE BOARD TAKES THEIR ACTION THEN WE'LL WORK TO GET THAT SCHEDULED FOR THE COUNCIL
IMMEDIATELY. >> REMEMBER, AS PART OF OUR RATE CASE, WE'VE ALREADY EXPANDED THE CAPACITY OF THE EXISTING PROGRAM. SO WE'VE GOT PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITY TO GET FOLKS THAT ARE NOT IN THE PROGRAM WHO, YOU KNOW, WHO GO THROUGH THE PROCESS INTO THE PROGRAM. SO THERE'S NO -- IT'S NOT GOING TO BE MONTHS BEFORE WE'RE
STARTING TO GET FOLKS ADDED. WE'RE DOING THAT RIGHT NOW. >> GAVITO: WE'LL WANT TO JUST -- HOWEVER WE CAN EXPEDITE THE TIMELINE I THINK THE BETTER. BUT ALSO TOO WE WANT TO WORK CLOSELY WITH YOU ALL ON OUTREACH. I HEARD ABOUT IT THIS MORNING AND THEY'RE LIKE THE RATE INCREASE ALREADY WENT INTO EFFECT BUT WE'RE STILL NOT
GETTING THE HELP WE NEED. >> I WOULD TELL ANYBODY WHO IS SAYING THEY'RE NOT GETTING THE
[01:40:03]
HELP THEY NEED TO GET CONNECTED WITH KJ'S FOLKS AND IF THEY QUALIFY TODAY, WE'LL GET THEMIN. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER ALDERETE GAVITO.
COUNCILMEMBER CASTILLO. >> CASTILLO: THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU, JUSTINA AND KJ FOR THE PRESENTATIONS. IN REGARDS TO THE STRUCTURE OF THE PROPOSED THREE-DAY SESSIONS.
WHAT MY REQUEST WOULD BE IS ESSENTIALLY A SYLLABUS OF WHAT TO EXPECT SO MY TEAM CAN PREPARE, DO THEIR RESEARCH AND THAT WAY WE'RE AS PREPARED AS POSSIBLE.
I UNDERSTAND CAPACITY AND SOMETIMES WE GET PRESENTATIONS THE DAY BEFORE BUT I THINK SOMETHING LIKE THIS, HAVING A PROJECTION OF WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE WOULD BE VERY BENEFICIAL.
I WANTED TO THANK THE METRO HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND CITY STAFF FOR THEIR INITIATIVE AND WORK ON THE OPIOID CCR THAT OUR OFFICE INITIATED. LAST WEEK DISTRICT 5 LOST ONE OF OUR CONSTITUENTS BUT THIS IS SOMETHING WE CONTINUE TO HEAR FROM THE COMMUNITY AS A CONCERN AND A NEED AND I'M GRATEFUL THAT WHAT YOU ALL ARE PROPOSING MEETS THE SPIRIT OF THE CCR.
THERE'S PLENTY OF WORK TO DO BUT GRATEFUL THAT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IS LEADING WITH A PLAN.
I DID WANT TO FOCUS ON ONE THING THAT I AM A LITTLE DISAPPOINTED WITH REGARDING A DIFFERENT ITEM.
I WAS LOOKING ON PAGE 20 OF THE ADOPTED BUDGET JANUARY STATUS REPORT AND I SEE THAT THE REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE FUND IS EXPECTED TO BE REVIEWED DURING THE THIRD QUARTER OF THE FISCAL YEAR. WHAT I FIND CONCERNING IS THAT HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL AS WELL AS THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AND UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO HAVE PUT OUT A REPORT LAST MONTH FINDING THAT OVER 26,000 WOMEN IN THE STATE OF TEXAS ARE CARRYING CHILDREN FROM RAPE.
AND I THINK PUSHING IT TOWARDS THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2024 IS A DISSERVICE TO TEXAS WOMEN AND I BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION SOONER THAN LATER TO ENSURE THAT FOLKS HAVE ACCESS TO MUCH-NEEDED CARE. OFFLINE, I WOULD LIKE TO BE BRIEFED ON ONE OF THE -- ON THE UNFAVORABLE VARIANCE FOR POLICE. I WOULD JUST LIKE TO HAVE A GENERAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE NEED FOR VEHICLE REPAIRS, TOWING, AND AMMUNITION, AS WELL AS WHAT OVERTIME LOOKS LIKE FOR TAKING ON EVENTS THAT REQUIRE TRAFFIC CONTROL.
SO OFFLINE IF WE CAN GET THAT SET UP, I WOULD BE GRATEFUL. THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS.
THANK YOU. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER CASTILLO.
COUNCILMEMBER KAUR. >> KAUR: THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATIONS TODAY. I ENJOYED DIGGING INTO SOME OF THESE NUMBERS AND SEEING HOW WE WERE TRACKING. I WANT TO START OFF -- ACTUALLY IT'S A QUESTION FOR YOU, LORI.
ON PAGE 21 WHERE IT SAID THE ARPA NUMBERS FOR THE LOW-BARRIER SHELTER.
THE NUMBER LISTED THERE WAS ACTUALLY 24 BUT THAT'S DIFFERENT THAN THE ONE WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT RECENTLY. I WAS WONDERING IF YOU COULD HELP ME PUT THAT INTO -- TO MESH
THE TWO OF THOSE. >> SO THAT NUMBER APPLIES TO OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, DECEMBER.
THE ONE THAT'S IN THE MEASURE. SO WE HAVE 24 THAT HAVE MOVED INTO THE SHELTER.
WE DIDN'T OPEN THE SHELTER UNTIL DECEMBER AND SO THE NUMBER IS A LITTLE LOW.
BUT THERE ARE 76 INDIVIDUALS CURRENTLY IN THE SHELTER. WE HAD 26 MOVE IN JUST IN JANUARY. AND SO IT WAS A LITTLE SLOW TO START IN THE BEGINNING BECAUSE WE OPENED IN DECEMBER. BUT NOW WE'RE MOVING PEOPLE IN ABOUT TEN A WEEK.
>> KAUR: I DON'T KNOW WHY I THOUGHT WE WERE IN THE 90S ALREADY BUT WE'RE AT 76 RIGHT
NOW? >> WE WERE AT 76 LAST WEEK. I DON'T HAVE THE REPORT BUT IT'S MOVING UP. WE SHOULD BE AT CAPACITY IN MID TO LATE MARCH IN THAT FACILITY.
>> KAUR: I NOTICED THE ANTICIPATED RESULT HERE IS ACTUALLY TRACKING NEW INDIVIDUALS ENROLLED. AND SO I WAS WONDERING IF THAT WAS A BIT OF THE CHANGE FROM
THAT TRANSITION. >> KAUR: OKAY. AND ARE Y'ALL GOING TO BE
REPORTING ON THE ACTUAL TARGET THAT WE SET TOWARDS THE 400? >> YES.
WE'RE WORKING ON THAT DASHBOARD. AND WE HOPE TO HAVE SOMETHING OUT IN THE NEXT WEEK OR TWO.
>> WALSH: AND WE HAVE A BROADER HOMELESS B SESSION, I THINK THE BEGINNING OF APRIL.
WE'LL RECAP THAT STUFF SPECIFICALLY. >> KAUR: PERFECT.
SO WE CAN GO THROUGH ALL OF THE TARGETS WE SET. THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT THE HOMELESS TEAM BUT JUST HIRING IN GENERAL. ONE OF THE THINGS GOING THROUGH -- AND I KNOW HIRING TAKES A LONG TIME. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I NOTICE FOR ALL OF KIND OF THE DEPARTMENTS WERE WE HAD EXPECTED TO BE HIRED ALREADY AND SOME OF THEM -- I FEEL LIKE HALF OF THE POSITIONS -- I'M ESTIMATING HALF, HAVE NOT BEEN HIRED WHEN
[01:45:05]
THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE. I'M THINKING OF THE DATA ANALYTICS MANAGER, THE DATA FOLKS FOR GOOD NEIGHBOR . THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE WE'RE LOOKING FOR TO SEE IF THEY'RE ON BOARD. I'M WONDERING POSITION AND THE JOB WE'RE HIRING FOR. SHANNON HAD TROUBLE WITH THE DANGEROUS DOG. WE'VE -- IT DEPENDS ON THE JOB. I WOULDN'T SAY IT'S A ONE CATCH ALL TYPE OF ANSWER FOR EVERY JOB. THERE ARE NO POSITIONS THAT WE ADDED IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET THAT ASSUME 12 MONTHS OF FUNDING. SO ALL OF THEM, AT A MINIMUM, WERE EXPECTED TO BE HIRED BY JANUARY 1. BUT THERE ARE ISSUES THAT COME UP OR WE NEED TO GO BACK OUT FOR HIRING. IT'S A CONSTANT CHURN AND IF YOU HAVE -- IF YOU HAVE A COUPLE YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT, WE CAN DO SOME DETAILED FOLLOW UP.>> KAUR: IT WAS MY PASSION. I WAS MOSTLY LOOKING AT THE DATA FOLKS TO SEE WHERE THEY WERE AT AND I SAW MANY OF THOSE HADN'T BEEN. AND THEN I WAS ALSO LOOKING AT THE ACS FOR THE NUMBER OF CALLS. THANKS, LORI. FROM THE ACS PERSPECTIVE, THE QUESTION AROUND RESPONDING TO THE INCREASED NUMBER OF CALLS, WE NEED STAFF THERE TOO.
I WASN'T SURE IF YOU COULD PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF CONTEXT ON WHY WE'RE A LITTLE BIT BEHIND
SCHEDULE FOR THAT ONE. >> YES, MA'AM. THAT ACTUALLY IS IN RESPONSE TO WHAT I SPOKE ABOUT EARLIER ABOUT THE NEW OFFICER CLASS. AGAIN, HAVING TO POST IT TWICE.
WHAT WE DIDN'T WANT TO DO IS HAVE A THREE-MONTH ACADEMY WHERE WE COULD ONLY RUN ONE ACADEMY AT A TIME AND HAVE IT ONLY PARTIALLY FILLED. WE CHOSE TO REPOST, GET THOSE ADDITIONAL CANDIDATES IN AND NOW WE'RE AT STAFFING AND READY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THEIR
TRAINING. >> KAUR: SO ONE OF THE REQUESTS THAT OUR OFFICE HAS BEEN MAKING IS WE'RE GETTING A LOT OF CALLS. AND WE KNOW WE HAVE A DIRECT E-MAIL THAT WE KIND OF REACH OUT TO WHERE IT'S LIKE CITY COUNCIL AND ALL OF OUR CASES GO TO YOU ALL. WE WOULD LOVE A MORE DIRECT LINE TO OFFICERS TO GET INFORMATION.
SOME OF MY STAFF FEELS LIKE THEY DON'T GET ANYWHERE WITH THAT INBOX AND JUST MAKING A FORMAL PUBLIC REQUEST TO BE ABLE TO GET ACCESS. I KNOW ALSO WITH 311 CASES WE DON'T ALWAYS HAVE OFFICER NOTES. JUST FOR US TO BE BETTER ABLE TO HELP YOU ALL LIAISON BETWEEN COMMUNITY MEMBERS. WE KNOW YOU ARE OVERWHELMED WITH THE NUMBER OF CASES YOU'RE GETTING. WE WANT TO BE BETTER SUPPORTIVE FOR THAT.
>> YES, MA'AM. >> KAUR: THANK YOU. AND THEN TALKING ABOUT JUST OVERALL THE BUDGET PROCESS. SO I ALSO AGREE. I HAVE ADHD AND I'M ALWAYS DISTRACTED AND EIGHT HOURS IN A CONVERSATION IS A REALLY LONG TIME.
SO I FEEL LIKE THAT MIGHT BE REALLY HARD TO DIGEST. YOU WOULD HAVE TO DO A REALLY GOOD JOB OF FACILITATING THAT, MAYOR. SO ALL OF THAT TO SAY I DO APPRECIATE THE EFFICIENCY COMPONENT OF IT. I THINK THAT IT WAS OVERWHELMING TO HAVE ALL OF THOSE INDIVIDUAL SESSIONS. BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT THE THREE DAYS OF EIGHT HOURS A DAY PLUS WE'RE GOING TO LOSE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME.
RIGHT NOW WE'RE GETTING 30 HOURS AND THERE WERE REALLY NO BREAKS BUT THREE EIGHT-DAY HOURS PLUS LUNCH, WE'LL LOSE A GOOD CHUNK OF TIME AND ALL OF US ARE PRETTY VERBOSE.
[LAUGHTER] WE ARE. ABOUT THE INPUT CONVERSATION.
SO I WASN'T AROUND THIS LAST CYCLE FOR THE ACTUAL COMMUNITY INPUT PART.
WE WERE ONLY AROUND FOR THE TOWN HALL PORTION. I FEEL LIKE THERE NEEDS TO BE RESTRUCTURED -- I DON'T KNOW HOW THE COMMUNITY INPUT SESSIONS WENT, PREFACING THAT.
BUT I'VE BEEN TALKING WITH ANN AT COMPASSION SA AND SHE HAS AN IDEA HOW TO GET INPUT FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS . AT LEAST FROM THE TOWN HALL PERSPECTIVE, BY THAT POINT THE BUDGET WAS PRETTY MUCH SET TO GO. WE COULD ONLY PROVIDE INPUT AROUND AMENDMENTS. SO I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF THERE'S A WAY WHERE WE COULD HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS ON THE FRONT END THAT ARE NOT JUST THE SA SPEAKUP SURVEY AND THE PRESENTATION BUT A LITTLE BIT MORE ENGAGING AND WHEN WE GO BACK TO THEM IN AUGUST/SEPTEMBER WHEN THE BUDGET IS DONE, IT'S MORE OF A THIS IS WHAT WE HEARD AND THIS IS HOW WE INCORPORATED IT VERSUS THIS IS WHAT WAS DECIDED. LIKE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO CLOSE THE FEEDBACK LOOP. THAT WOULD BE MY COMMENT THERE. A MORE ENGAGING WAY IN MAY AND JUNE AND CLOSING THE FEEDBACK LOOP FOR THAT. OKAY.
AND THEN THE LAST THING I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT WAS THE CPS WORK. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU, KJ FOR THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING.
[01:50:03]
I LOVED HEARING 12,000 DOORS KNOCKED. I STILL FEEL LIKE THAT'S THE BEST WAY. ALTHOUGH I KNOW COUNCILMAN PELAEZ IS ONLINE.WE HAD A SENIOR FRAUD PREVENTION TOWN HALL THIS WEEK AND PEOPLE WERE WORRIED ABOUT -- TO KNOW WHEN THEY COULD TRUST IF SOMEONE IS AT THE DOOR. JUST SAYING THAT OUT LOUD SO YOU CAN MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE VERIFYING WITH FOLKS THAT YOU ARE FROM CPS AND THAT'S WHY YOU'RE THERE TO HELP. THAT BEING SAID, I HAVE CONSTANTLY SAID WE LOVE YOU GUYS ARE A VERY AFFORDABLE PUBLIC UTILITY AND YET WE STILL HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT ARE SEVERELY ENERGY BURDENED. SO I DON'T WANT LIKE THE INDICATOR OF WHETHER WE'RE DOING A GOOD JOB IS OVERALL WHETHER WE ARE AFFORDABLE BUT IT'S WHETHER OR NOT THE PEOPLE THAT ARE AFFECTED THE HARDEST ARE GETTING THE SUPPORTS THAT THEY NEED.
I UNDERSTAND WE'RE INCREASING THE FPL FOR THE PEOPLE THAT CAN ACCEPT AID BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HOW THAT IMPACTS THE NUMBER OF PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE THAT ARE ENERGY BURDENED OR SEVERELY ENERGY BURDENED IN OUR COMMUNITY. I LIKE TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT CONNECTION BECAUSE RIGHT NOW HOUSTON AND DALLAS, THEIR MARKETS -- THEY DON'T HAVE A UTILITY LIKE OURS BUT THEY HAVE A DECREASED AMOUNT OF ENERGY-BURDENED PEOPLE THAN WE DO SO THAT IS A METRIC THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE MOVE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER FORWARD AND HAVE YOU ALL COMPARE THE FPL PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE TO RECEIVING SUPPORT IF THEY'RE ENERGY BURDENED OR NOT. IF THAT MAKES SENSE. LIKE THAT CONNECTION TO BE CLEAR. OKAY. I THINK THAT'S IT.
THANKS, MAYOR. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER KAUR.
COUNCILMEMBER PELAEZ. >> PELAEZ: THANK YOU. ERIK, THANKS.
I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION. I KNOW A LOT OF WORK GOES INTO PUTTING ALL THESE NUMBERS TOGETHER, KEEPING TRACK OF THEM AND THEN REPORTING THEM OUT. I ALSO KNOW THAT MARIA VILLAGOMEZ AND EVERYBODY ELSE POURS ALL OF THEMSELVES INTO THIS WORK AND THAT'S NOT LOST ON ME. ANY EFFORT YOU GUYS MAKE TO MAKE IT EASIER ON US IS APPRECIATED.
LIKE WHAT YOU'VE HEARD FROM MY OTHER COLLEAGUES, I ALSO WISH THAT THERE WERE MORE DAYS ON THE CALENDAR FOR US TO BE ABLE TO REVIEW THIS. IT JUST SEEMS LIKE YESTERDAY THAT WE WERE FINALIZING THE LAST BUDGET. BUT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE YEOMAN'S WORK AS FAR AS KEEPING US UP TO SPEED. I WILL JUMP IN AND ASK ABOUT A SMALL DOLLAR AMOUNT COMPARED TO SOME OF THE OTHER DOLLAR AMOUNTS THAT WERE DISCUSSED TODAY.
I NOTICED IN THE OPIOID PRESENTATION THERE WAS $50,000 PROPOSED FOR A SUBSTANCE USE PORTAL. IS THAT -- WOULD THAT BE A NEW WEBSITE?
WHAT IS THAT? >> JESSIE HIGGINS, CHIEF MENTAL HEALTH OFFICER.
THAT WOULD LIKELY HAVE TO GO OUT TO RFP BUT WE ARE HOPING IT COULD BE BUILT ON EXISTING
INFRASTRUCTURE AND RESOURCE PORTALS WE ALREADY HAVE. >> PELAEZ: SO BUT ARE WE
TALKING ABOUT A NEW WEBSITE? OR BEEFING UP EXISTING WEBSITE? >> I'M NOT SURE ABOUT WHO WOULD RESPOND TO THE RFP AND WHAT VENDORS WE COULD USE. THERE ARE EXISTING WEBSITES,
EXISTING RESOURCE PORTALS THAT THIS COULD BE BUILT OFF OF. >> PELAEZ: OKAY.
YEAH, AND I'M -- I THINK YOU'RE USING PORTAL -- I'M USING THE WORD "WEBSITE" AND YOU'RE USING THE WORD PORTAL AND I THINK WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE SAME THING.
IF NOT, PLEASE CORRECT ME. IF YOU GOOGLE SAN ANTONIO AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE RESOURCES, THERE'S NO SHORTAGE OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE RESOURCE PORTALS OUT THERE.
TWO OF THEM THAT ARE PARTICULARLY INTERESTING ARE THE SAN ANTONIO COUNCIL ON ALCOHOL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE AWARENESS, A 501(C)(3). ANOTHER ONE WE HELP OUT AND I KNOW U.T. HEALTH AND UNIVERSITY, WHICH IS THE CENTER FOR HEALTHCARE SERVICES .
I JUST WANT TO BE CAREFUL AND MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT CREATING SOMETHING OUT THERE THAT ALREADY EXISTS. YOU KNOW, MY PREFERENCE WOULD BE JUST USE THAT $50,000 TO HELP THEM AMPLIFY THEIR MESSAGE AS OPPOSED TO JUST STANDING UP ONE MORE WEBSITE.
BUT IF SOMEBODY COULD, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT YOU GUYS FLESH THIS OUT, COME BACK TO ME JUST SO I CAN UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT BETTER. THE SECOND THING IS WITH REGARDS TO THIS OPIOID MONEY, THIS WAS THE PRODUCT OF LITIGATION. ANDY, I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST JOINED CITY COUNCIL SEVEN YEARS AGO THIS IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT AND WE WENT OUT AND RFP'D FOR, YOU KNOW, LAW FIRMS -- NO, WE DIDN'T, ANDY.
ACTUALLY YOU WENT OUT AND SELECTED A LAW FIRM, A VERY CAPABLE ONE.
IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, WE HAD A LOCAL LAWYER THAT HELPED US OUT WITH THAT AND I THINK THAT'S
[01:55:01]
IMPORTANT TO POINT OUT IS THAT WE'VE GOT LOCAL TALENT IN OUR LEGAL COMMUNITY THAT CAN DO THESE HEAVY LIFTS AND BRING HOME THE MONEY THAT WE'RE OWED. AND SO I CONGRATULATE YOU, ANDY AND YOUR TEAM. ALONG THOSE LINES, HOWEVER, I DO WANT US TO EXPLORE AT SOME POINT JOINING THE FOLLOWING CITIES: NEW YORK, BALTIMORE, SAN DIEGO, MILWAUKEE, COLUMBUS, AND ST. LOUIS IN SUING HYUNDAI AND KIA FOR NOT INSTALLING THE IMMOBILIZERS THAT ALMOST EVERY OTHER CAR HAS INSTALLED. WE KEEP GETTING PRESENTATIONS FROM CHIEF MCMANUS ABOUT OUR PROPERTY CRIMES INCREASING BECAUSE OF THE KIA, HYUNDAI PHENOMENON.AND ANDY, IS THAT SOMETHING YOUR TEAM HAS LOOKED AT? IF SO, CAN WE GET A COMMITMENT TO HAVE A CONVERSATION BEHIND CLOSED DOORS WITH YOU ABOUT WHAT OUR OPTIONS ARE?
>> SEGOVIA: COUNCILMAN, COUNCILWOMAN CASTILLO RAISED THAT WITH US OVER A MONTH AGO.
YES, WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF LOOKING AT THAT LITIGATION, WHAT FIRMS ARE AVAILABLE, WHERE THE LITIGATION IS AT IN TERMS OF A MULTIDISTRICT AND WHAT HURDLES WE MAY HAVE IN GETTING PERMISSION FROM THE AG, WHICH WE WOULD NEED TO DO, IF WE WERE TO ENTER INTO AN ARRANGEMENT LIKE THAT. WE'RE ALMOST CLOSE TO GETTING SOMETHING THAT WE CAN PRESENT TO THE COUNCILWOMAN AND YOURSELF AND THE REST OF THE COUNCIL AND WE'LL LET YOU KNOW WHEN WE'RE
READY TO DO THAT. IT SHOULD BE PRETTY SHORTLY. >> PELAEZ: OKAY.
AND THEN ASIDE FROM THAT, I WILL TELL YOU I'M PLEASED WITH THE FORECAST AND I AM WONDERING IF ANYBODY CAN ANSWER WHY IT IS WE THINK THAT SALES TAX REVENUE IS FLAT.
AS YOU MENTIONED, AND DURING THE PRESENTATION, OUR SALES TAX IS RELATIVELY FLAT.
THIS IS SOMETHING WE ARE STILL LOOKING AT AND WORKING ON. BECAUSE OUR ECONOMY IS SO STRONG. OUR SALES TAX IS FLAT. SO WE'VE DONE SOME RESEARCH.
I MENTIONED THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. BUT WE'LL LOOK INTO THAT AND
PROVIDE A MORE ROBUST SUGGESTION AS PART OF THE SIX PLUS SIX. >> PELAEZ: THOSE ARE MY
COMMENTS , MAYOR. THANK YOU. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMAN PELAEZ. THAT REMINDS ME MY FAVORITE JOKE ABOUT ECONOMISTS WHO HAVE SUCCESSFULLY PREDICTED SEVEN OUT OF THE LAST TWO RECESSIONS . WE'LL KEEP ON TO THE SECOND
ROUND. COUNCILMEMBER MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU, MAYOR. I'LL BE BRIEF. JUST ON THE TOPIC OF ZERO-BASED BUDGETING, I'M INTERESTED IN IT AS A CONCEPT AND I THINK AT THE ROOT OF THE REQUEST IS -- AT LEAST WHAT I'M HEARING FROM MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES WHO ARE IN SUPPORT -- IS A DESIRE FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE CONTROL IN COMMUNICATING THE NEEDS AND DESIRES OF OUR CONSTITUENTS AS IT RELATES TO THE PROGRAMS AND STAFFING LEVELS THAT WE HAVE.
AND SO WHAT I WONDER IS: IS IT POSSIBLE TO GET A LIST, PRIOR TO THE BUDGET CONVERSATIONS BEGINNING, I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN SEEING WHAT WOULD THE BUDGET LOOK LIKE IF WE JUST HAVE BARE BONES, THE OBLIGATIONS THAT WE HAVE, EXISTING STAFFING, EXISTING PROGRAMS. NO SUGGESTIONS FROM STAFF ON ADDITIONS. JUST WHAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW AND THEN THE OBLIGATIONS THAT WE HAVE FOR OUR CBAS AND FOR THE PERCENTAGE INCREASES.
>> VILLAGOMEZ: YES. THAT IS THE FINANCIAL FORECAST. WHEN WE COME TO YOU AND SHOW THE
FINANCIAL FORECAST AS A BASE BUDGET WITH NO ENHANCEMENTS. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: SO WHAT I FEEL LIKE WE GET THOUGH IS WE GET RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THAT UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR.
AND WE DON'T SEE, OH, THIS IS GOING TO BE THE EXTRA MONEY THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WORK WITH. IT'S ALMOST ALWAYS ALL TAKEN UP BY WHAT WE ASSUME TO BE THE GROWTH OF ALL OF THE PROGRAMS AND WHATNOT THAT WE DO. IS THAT NOT ACCURATE?
>> WALSH: NO, IT'S NOT ACCURATE. WHEN WE DO THE FINANCIAL FORECAST, WE'RE GOING TO LAY OUT THE BASE BUDGET WITH MINUS OUT ANY ONE-TIME STUFF FROM THIS YEAR. IT'S GOING TO LAYER IN ANY CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS THAT WE KNOW. IT'S GOT NO ADDITIONAL -- NOW, WE PRESENT A TRIAL BUDGET BASED ON -- THIS YEAR'S CALENDAR WE HAVE BROUGHT THEM CLOSER TOGETHER SO THE COUNCIL CAN HAVE THE WORK SESSION -- I'M SORRY. THE FORECAST. THE NEXT DAY THE WORK SESSION.
AND IT WAS TWO OR THREE WEEKS LATER THE TRIAL BUDGET. INCORPORATE IN WHAT THE COUNCIL
[02:00:03]
IS TELLING US AT THE WORK SESSION. SO THAT'S THE ORDER OF WHICH THOSE THINGS HAPPEN. BUT THAT FORECAST DOESN'T HAVE ANY ADDITIONS IN THERE.NOW, THE COUNCIL WILL INVARIABLY SAY HOW MUCH DOES IT COST IF WE WANT TO ADD 100 POLICE OFFICERS.
WE SHOW YOU IN THAT PRESENTATION WHAT 100 OFFICERS ARE. WE'LL HAVE IN THERE, FOR THE FORECAST, YEAR TWO AND POTENTIALLY YEAR THREE OF THE ACS STRATEGIC PLAN.
BUT WE DON'T LAYER THEM INTO THE FORECAST, SO THAT THE COUNCIL SEES A CLEAR -- JUST MAKING NO CHANGES, HERE'S OUR REVENUES AND EXPENSES FOR THE THINGS WE KNOW WE HAVE TO SPEND MONEY ON FOR
THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: WHAT IT SEEMS LIKE THE CONFLICT THEN IS THOSE FORECASTS AREN'T TYPICALLY ACCURATE WITH WHAT WE END UP DISCUSSING AS A BUDGET.
AND SO IT SEEMS AS THOUGH STAFF ALWAYS HAS A RECOMMENDATION ON WHAT TO DO WITH ALL OF THE FUNDING. I KNOW IT'S IN LARGE PART GUIDED BY WHAT COUNCIL DISCUSSION IS.
BUT IF THAT WAS ALWAYS THE CASE WE WOULDN'T HAVE SO MANY CHANGES AND AMENDMENTS AND THE DISCUSSION WOULDN'T BE SO ROBUST. I'LL BE INTERESTED THIS YEAR IN LOOKING AT THAT MORE CLOSELY. I WONDER DO YOU KNOW HOW -- JUST AS A PERCENTAGE -- HOW OFF THE PAST FEW PROJECTIONS HAVE BEEN AS -- NOT PROJECTIONS, THE FORECASTS HAVE BEEN FROM OUR ACTUAL BUT RELATIVELY SPEAKING, IF WE HAVE -- IF YOU'RE JUST TALKING ABOUT THE GENERAL FUND, WE HAVE $1.5 BILLION, $1.6 BILLION, SMALL PERCENTAGES RESULT IN LARGE SWINGS.
I THINK IN THE DECEMBER REPORT THAT WE GAVE TO COUNCIL ON HOW WE CLOSED THE FISCAL YEAR, WE WERE LESS HALF A PERCENT OFF. WE HAVE $1.5 BILLION. THAT'S WHY THE COUNCIL GROUP CONVERSATION IS IMPORTANT. I MEAN, WE'LL LAY OUT OPTIONS BUT THE WORK SESSION AND WHERE THE COUNCIL AS A GROUP FEELS, NOT AS INDIVIDUALS, IS GOOD INSTRUCTION AND DIRECTION FOR THE STAFF. INVARIABLY THINGS WILL COME UP AND WE WILL MAKE, YOU KNOW, I'LL ADD IN A PROFESSIONAL RECOMMENDATION ON SOMETHING. BUT GENERALLY THAT'S ON THE BACK END OF THAT PROCESS. REALLY, THE FRONT END OF THE CONVERSATION FOR THE COUNCIL, AS A GROUP, IS WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES. AND AT THE END OF THE DAY NOT EVERYTHING COULD BE A PRIORITY. WE LISTEN VERY CLOSELY IN THOSE WORK SESSIONS TO SEE WHAT IS IT WE SEE THE MAJORITY OF COUNCIL MEMBERS SAYING IS A PRIORITY TO THEM.
>> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU. AND I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN THE WAY MY NEWEST COLLEAGUES HAVE RESPONDED TO THIS PAST BUDGET. BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS VERY EFFECTIVE.
BUT I'VE LEARNED TO PLAY THE GAME A LITTLE BIT. WHAT I WONDER IS -- [TIMER] FOR THE FORECAST PRESENTATION, IF YOU CAN TELL US, BECAUSE I DON'T THINK THIS HAS BEEN THE CASE. THE FORECAST, WHAT IS THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE EXPECT? THE AMOUNT OF REVENUE WE EXPECT WE CAN SPEND, LIKE LOOKING AT THAT. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT NUMBER, SPECIFICALLY, THAT IS NOT
ALLOCATED. >> WALSH: YOU'LL SEE THAT IN THE FORECAST.
BUT YOU ALSO WILL SEE IT ATTACHED TO THINGS THAT THE COUNCIL HAS SAID THEY WANT TO ADD IN THE SECOND YEAR. SO IT ENDS UP TAKING THAT AMOUNT.
WE CAN LOOK AT -- >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THAT WAS WHAT I WAS -- THAT'S THE PART
I'M TALKING ABOUT. IT'S ALMOST ALWAYS -- >> WALSH: BUT, COUNCILMAN, IF YOU AND THE COUNCIL SAID THE FIVE-YEAR ACS STRATEGIC PLAN IS A PRIORITY, WE HAVE TO FUND THE SECOND AND THE THIRD YEAR. NOW, IF IT'S NOT A PRIORITY OR IF IT'S JUST A ONE-YEAR PRIORITY THEN WE CAN STRIP OUT THE FUTURE. WE CAN LOOK AT MAYBE LAYING THAT OUT DIFFERENTLY IN THE FORECAST. BUT NOTHING WE DO AROUND HERE IS KIND OF A 12-MONTH CYCLE.
IT'S USUALLY GOT AN ARM AND A LEG AND AND, YOU KNOW, AND SUBSEQUENT YEARS.
WE CAN LAY THAT OUT A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENTLY BUT YOU SHOULD SEE WHAT IS AVAILABLE.
AND, FRANKLY, I WOULD TAKE THE POSITION THAT EVEN THOUGH THE COUNCIL MAY HAVE SAID PROGRAM A IS A PRIORITY. YOU SAID IT LAST SUMMER. THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THE COUNCIL CAN'T CHANGE THEIR MINDS THE FOLLOWING YEAR BECAUSE SOMETHING ELSE IS A HIGHER PRIORITY. THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE'RE WEDDED TO IT, PER SE.
YOU ALWAYS HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY, I WOULD ARGUE, TO MAKE ADJUSTMENTS GOING FORWARD, GIVEN
WHAT'S GOING ON. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: I HEAR YOU.
THANK YOU, MAYOR. I THINK THAT FEEDS THE QUESTION OF HOW DO WE GET TO ZERO-BASED
BUDGETING AND I'M NOT SURE HOW. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ.
COUNCILMEMBER COURAGE. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU. I THINK THE DISCUSSION ABOUT ZERO-BASED BUDGETING IS WORTHY WORTHWHILE. I THINK IT WOULD PROBABLY TAKE
[02:05:04]
THE CITY STAFF A YEAR IN ADVANCE TO PLAN OUT HOW TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT AND I HOPE THEY GIVE IT SOME CONSIDERATION. WE WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT THE TRIAL BUDGET AND I WAS THINKING, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO WE PUT IN THE TRIAL BUDGET, PARTICULARLY WHEN THE BUDGET SURVEY OR THE COMMUNITY INPUT PRESENTATIONS HAVEN'T BEEN MADE. HOW DO WE SUGGEST A TRIAL BUDGET ON WHAT WE'RE GOING TO SPEND WITHOUT GETTING THAT INPUT IN ADVANCE.SO I GUESS, THOUGH, WHAT I'M THINKING IS I NEED TO GET OUT AHEAD OF TIME AND MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND WHAT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO ASK OF ME AND MY DISTRICT BEFORE WE SIT DOWN AND DO THAT GOAL SETTING, RATHER THAN, YOU KNOW, US COMING UP WHILE WE'RE SITTING THERE AND SAYING, WELL, HOW ABOUT THIS AND HOW ABOUT THAT. I REALIZE IT'S A CHALLENGE PUTTING TOGETHER A TRIAL BUDGET NOW. I ASKED YOU ABOUT THE FIRE CONTRACT, SO THAT'S GOING TO HAVE TO BE IN THE NEXT TRIAL BUDGET.
AND OF COURSE WE'VE GOT MORE POLICE OFFICERS WE'VE SCHEDULED TO HIRE.
SO THAT IS GOING TO BE IN THE TRIAL BUDGET. YOU KNOW, CONTINUING TO GROW ACS. THAT'S GOING TO BE IN THE TRIAL BUDGET.
SO THE DISCUSSION HAS HELPED ME THINK ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT MORE AND IT'S NOT MAYBE AS EASY AS I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE. BUT I DO WANT TO ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THE WORK SESSIONS.
YOU KNOW, I DON'T QUITE UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT WE CURRENTLY DO AND WHAT WE DON'T DO, OTHER THAN THE B SESSION. BECAUSE YOU SAID DEPARTMENT WORK SESSIONS TEN, DEPARTMENT WORK SESSIONS THREE. WE'RE HAVING THREE ON ONE DAY, THREE IN ANOTHER. WE'RE SAYING WE SHOULD DO THREE WORK SESSIONS BUT AREN'T YOU GOING TO HAVE ALL THE SAME DEPARTMENTS EACH TIME AND IS IT GOING TO BE FOUR HOURS INSTEAD OF EIGHT HOURS? I DON'T SEE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THAT.
SO WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE YOU'RE SUGGESTING? >> WALSH: I SAY SCRATCH THAT IDEA. WE'RE JUST GOING TO DO IT THE WAY WE DID IT LAST YEAR.
HOW ABOUT THAT? PART OF THE FEEDBACK WE GOT LAST SUMMER WAS THAT, YOU KNOW -- IN THE LAST TWO YEARS WE HAVE RUN ON SCHEDULE WITH OUR PRESENTATIONS.
AND THAT HASN'T ALWAYS BEEN THE CASE. WE HAVE ALWAYS RUN BEHIND BUT THE LAST TWO YEARS WE HAVE RUN ON SCHEDULE. TO RUN ON SCHEDULE MEANS WE ARE MEETING ON BUDGET ON TUESDAY, ON WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON, AND SOMETIMES THURSDAY AFTERNOON AFTER COUNCIL. SOME OF THE FEEDBACK WE GOT FROM SOME COUNCIL MEMBERS AT THE END OF THE BUDGET LAST YEAR WAS CAN WE JUST MAKE THESE LONGER AND SPEND LESS DAYS.
BUT I HEAR THE COUNCIL LOUD AND CLEAR. I THINK WE NEED TO STICK WITH THE WAY WE'VE DONE IT BEFORE AND MAKE SOME ADJUSTMENTS BASED ON THE FEEDBACK AND NOT TRY TO HAVE
THREE LONG DAYS. >> COURAGE: WELL, I AGREE WITH THE IDEA THAT THE B SESSION MAY STILL BE RELEVANT FOR US TO HOLD ON NON-BUDGET ISSUES. AND I ALSO AGREE WITH SOME OF THE DISCUSSION ABOUT DO WE HAVE TO GO AHEAD AND LISTEN TO A REPORT ON EVERY DEPARTMENT OR SHOULD WE TARGET IN ON ONES THAT WE KNOW WE HEAR MORE ABOUT FROM OUR CONSTITUENTS.
AND THEN INDIVIDUALLY SAY, HEY, GIVE ME A PRESENTATION ON THIS OTHER DEPARTMENT, SOMETHING LIKE
THAT. >> WALSH: I LOVE THE IDEA THAT COUNCILMEMBER MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ
THREW OUT. THAT'S ONE OF THE BIG TAKEAWAYS. >> COURAGE: I THINK WE OUGHT TO SURVEY THAT AMONG US AND TARGET THAT. THAT'S IT, MAYOR, THANK YOU.
>> MAYOR NIRENBERG: DON'T WORRY, RAZI, YOUR DEPARTMENT WILL DEFINITELY BE UP HERE.
[LAUGHTER] WE'LL MAKE SURE WE SEE RAZI FOR SURE.
>> WALSH: WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT BEN HAS TIME FOR THE DEBT MANAGEMENT PLAN PRESENTATION.
>> MAYOR NIRENBERG: I WANT THAT ONE. THANK YOU, COUNCILMAN COURAGE.
COUNCILMEMBER KAUR. >> KAUR: I WANTED TO JUMP IN ON THIS ZERO-BASED BUDGETING CONVERSATION TOO AND ECHO COUNCILMAN MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ'S CCR.
I THINK THAT'S A GOOD IDEA . ON THE ZERO-BASED BUDGETING CONVERSATION, I DO THINK IT'S REALLY CHALLENGING BECAUSE THE MAJORITY OF OUR CITY BUDGET GOES TO PEOPLE.
AND WHEN YOU ARE ASKING -- WHEN WE ARE ASKING YOU ALL TO DO THAT, THAT MEANS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT HOW WE ARE STAFFING DEPARTMENTS AND THE PRIORITIES IN WHICH DEPARTMENTS WE ARE PLACING WHERE OUR DOLLARS ARE GOING. WE MIGHT HAVE DIFFERENT REASONS FOR WANTING THIS BUT I THINK THE IDEA BEHIND IT IS TO HELP US UNDERSTAND, FROM A GROUND UP, WHAT ARE OUR PRIORITIES AND HOW CAN WE MAKE SURE THAT OUR RESOURCES ARE ALIGNED TO THE PRIORITIES THAT OUR COMMUNITY IS TELLING US THAT WE WANT. AND NOT JUST ON A GROWTH BY GROWTH BASIS, LIKE ANNUALLY, RIGHT? BECAUSE WE ALREADY HAVE A STATE OF CURRENT -- WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW. AND SO WHEN WE ARE DOING THE BUDGET ON AN ANNUAL BASIS BASED ON WHAT WE ARE HISTORICALLY DOING, WE'RE MAKING THE ASSUMPTION THAT EVERYTHING WE HAD CURRENTLY IS JUST AS IS. JUST ECHOING THAT I KNOW THAT WOULD BE REALLY DIFFICULT TO TAKE ON BUT I DO THINK IT'S A WORTHY CONVERSATION, HOWEVER WE
[02:10:05]
SCAFFOLD IT, WHETHER IT'S ONE DEPARTMENT AT A TIME. WE DON'T HAVE TO COMPLETELY UPEND THE WHOLE SYSTEM AND THAT'S NOT POSSIBLE, TO COUNCILMAN COURAGE'S COMMENT.BUT I DO THINK WHAT YOU'RE HEARING FROM AT LEAST A FEW OF US IS WE WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE WHAT THIS CONVERSATION LOOKS LIKE. THE OTHER RECOMMENDATION THAT I HAD WAS I REALLY DO LIKE SEEING ASSUMPTIONS AND IT'S HARD FOR ME WHEN I'M LOOKING AT -- I'M JOKED ABOUT THIS -- BUT IT'S HARD FOR ME WHEN I'M LOOKING AT THE BUDGET TO REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING BEHIND THE ASSUMPTIONS OF THOSE. SO IF THERE'S A WAY -- AND I KNOW IF COUNCILWOMAN ROCHA GARCIA WAS HERE, SHE LIKES DIGGING INTO IT TOO BUT ALL OF US HAVE DIFFERENT PASSION AREAS SO IF THERE'S A WAY TO BREAK UP NOT JUST THE ONES THAT ALL OF US ARE INTERESTED IN BUT MAYBE SUBCOMMITTEES WHERE THREE OF US GET TOGETHER AND DO A DEEP DIVE INTO X DEPARTMENT AND WE'RE LIKE RESPONSIBLE FOR HAVING ALL THE UNDERSTANDING, THE CONTEXT, THE ASSUMPTIONS. THAT ALSO MIGHT BE A WAY TO SPLIT UP SOME OF IT AND MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT MORE EFFICIENT. SO THAT DEBT SERVICE DOESN'T GET FORGOTTEN.
>> WALSH: WELL, AND I'LL SAY THERE'S PROBABLY MORE VALUE IN LOOKING AT THE PROGRAMMATIC BUDGET. SO WE'VE GOT DEPARTMENTAL BUDGETS BUT WHAT ARE THE PROGRAMS. AND LOOKING AT BREAKING UP FUNDING FROM THAT STANDPOINT SO THAT YOU SEE RELATIVELY ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION WHAT IS IT WE'RE SPENDING -- THERE MAY BE ITEMS THAT WE DON'T SPEND A LOT OF MONEY ON THAT ARE LIKE AT THE TOP OF YOUR LIST.
AND THEN AREAS WHERE WE SPEND THE MAJORITY OF OUR MONEY THAT NOBODY REALLY PAYS ANY ATTENTION TO BECAUSE THEY'RE JUST EXPECTED. I THINK WE'LL TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION BASED ON TODAY'S CONVERSATION, WHETHER IT'S PROGRAMMATIC OR ZERO-BASED BUDGETING AND COME BACK TO THE COUNCIL ABOUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, POTENTIALLY.
THE FIRST SWIPE AT THAT IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY AT THE BUDGET WORK SESSION TO KIND OF SEE THAT. I'M SORRY, THE GOAL-SETTING SESSION TO KIND OF SEE THAT.
>> KAUR: SO JUST JUMPING INTO IT ONE MORE LAYER. IT'S PROGRAMMATIC BUT IT'S ALSO STAFF. I'M SEEING IT, WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SEE WHAT DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS ARE STAFFED AND WHAT GETS RESPONDED TO X AMOUNT OF TIMES.
WE MIGHT HAVE IDEAS ABOUT STAFFING TOO. OKAY, PUBLIC WORKS HAS A BIG
NEED FOR X AND LET'S TRY TO STAFF UP IN THAT AREA. >> WALSH: THOSE ARE ABSOLUTELY THE THINGS WE NEED TO HEAR AS A GROUP. HOW THAT RELATES TO THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO OR WE SHOULD BE DOING AS AN ORGANIZATION.
>> KAUR: COOL. THANKS. THANKS, MAYOR.
>> MAYOR NIRENBERG: THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER KAUR. ALL RIGHT.
NO FURTHER DISCUSSION? I'LL JUST CLOSE WITH A COUPLE OF COMMENTS.
ZERO-BASED BUDGETING OR WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW, I'M NEUTRAL. I HAVE WORKED IN ORGANIZATIONS THAT DO ZERO-BASED BUDGETING AND THE CONVERSATIONS ARE THE SAME. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO TALK ABOUT OUR PRIORITIES, WHAT OUR GOALS ARE AND FIND WAYS TO FIND THE REVENUE, IF WE DON'T HAVE A PROGRAM FUNDED. AND IN MY VIEW, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE STAFF IS DOING DEPARTMENTAL ZERO-BASED BUDGETING OR NOT, OUR ROLE AS A COUNCIL IS NOT GOING TO CHANGE.
WE'RE GOING TO STILL HAVE TO TALK TO OUR COMMUNITIES, HEAR INPUT, AND REALLY SET THE POLICY-LEVEL DISCUSSION BECAUSE THE ZERO-BASED BUDGETING PROCESS IS GOING TO BE A STAFF DEPARTMENTAL OPERATION. AND SO FOR ME WHAT'S DRIVING ME DURING THESE CONVERSATIONS, ERIK, REALLY THREE THINGS: OUR FINANCIAL POLICIES, OUR ACTUAL GOAL-SETTING CONVERSATION AS A COUNCIL, WHERE WE TALK ABOUT THE POLICY PRIORITIES AS A CITY. AND THEN WHAT WE HAVE DONE VERY WELL ON, WHICH IS OUR RESIDENT SURVEYS. IN FACT, THE LAST COUPLE BIANNUAL SURVEYS HAVE SHOWED THAT WE ARE, AMONG OUR PEERS, A TOP-PERFORMING CITY AT LEAST IN TERMS OF RESIDENT IMPACT. I'M NEUTRAL IN HOW YOU WANT TO HANDLE THAT.
IN MY PERSPECTIVE IT TURNS OUT TO BE A LITTLE BIT MORE OF AN ACADEMIC EXERCISE THAN ANYTHING ELSE. I EXPECT YOU, ERIK AND BEN AND THE BUDGET OFFICE, WHENEVER THERE IS MORE NEED THAN RESOURCES, WHICH IS BASICALLY EVERY YEAR, YOU'RE LOOKING UNDER EVERY CORNER TO FIND OUT WHERE INEFFICIENCIES ARE, WHERE THERE ARE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING THAT WE NO LONGER NEED TO BE DOING. I WOULD CHALLENGE US WITHIN OUR OWN OFFICE BUDGETS MAYBE START DOING SOME ZERO-BASED BUDGETING WITH OUR OWN OFFICES. SO, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S WAYS THAT WE CAN IMPROVE PROCESS, I'M ALL FOR IT BUT ULTIMATELY I THINK WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT THE SAME THINGS. LAST THING, I'M ALSO OPEN TO WHATEVER SCHEDULE OF CONVERSATION YOU GUYS WANT TO HAVE. I WAS A LITTLE SURPRISED, ERIK, YOU THREW IN THE TOWEL ON THE THREE-DAY EIGHT-HOUR WEEK SO QUICKLY.
>> WALSH: I SAW THE HANDWRITING ON THE WALL, MAYOR. >> MAYOR NIRENBERG: I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO SEE WHO WOULD BE ABLE TO PERSIST ALL THE WAY TO THE END OF THE DAY.
[02:15:04]
BUT IF WE'RE NOT EVEN GOING TO TRY, I GUESS WE WON'T GET THAT OPPORTUNITY.BUT OPEN TO WHATEVER RECOMMENDATION YOU GUYS HAVE. ALL RIGHT.
COUNCILMEMBER ROCHA GARCIA IS NOT HERE. SHE WAS IN THE QUEUE SO I'LL ASK HER TO VISIT WITH YOU ON HER LAST POINT. AT 4:20 P.M.
THERE'S NO EXECUTIVE SESSION ON THE 14TH DAY OF FEBRUARY 2024. WE ARE ADJOURNED.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.