Nov 01, 2021 Public Safety Commission

[00:00:02]

AFTERNOON

[CALL TO ORDER 4:00-4:05pm]

I AM CHAIR REBECCA GONZALEZ.

TODAY IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 2021.

WE ARE COMING TO YOU FROM A COUNCIL CHAMBERS TODAY INSTEAD OF THE BOARDS AND COMMISSION ROOM.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENDANCE, BOTH HERE AND ONLINE.

UM, FIRST OF ALL, I'D LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT TO WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY THE OTHER LOS MUERTOS TODAY AND TOMORROW TO ALL OF YOU.

THAT CELEBRATE ALSO AS A REMINDER THAT THIS MONTH, NOVEMBER 20TH MARKS THE TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE, WHERE WE MEMORIALIZE OUR TRANS SISTERS AND BROTHERS WHO WERE MURDERED IN THE LAST YEAR.

THIS DAY ALSO SERVES AS A REMINDER OF THE VIOLENCE THAT CHAN GENDER PEOPLE ENDURE DAILY.

AND WE KEEP ALL OF YOU IN OUR THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS.

AND FINALLY, TOMORROW IS ELECTION DAY HERE IN AUSTIN.

PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO VOTE.

AND, UH, POLLS WILL BE OPEN UNTIL 7:00 PM TOMORROW.

ONE MORE BIT OF, UH, ADMINISTRATIVE.

WE HAVE A NEW COMMISSIONER JOINING US TODAY FROM DISTRICT TWO.

WE HAVE COMMISSIONER COREY HALL, MARTIN AND MS. HALL MARTIN, IF YOU DON'T MIND, WOULD YOU PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF? SURE.

HI, GOOD AFTERNOON.

UM, SO YEAH, SHE SAID MY NAME IS COREY HALL MARTIN, AND I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BE JOINING THIS COMMISSION.

I HAVE MY MASTER'S OF SOCIAL WORK DEGREE AND I WAS PREVIOUSLY WORKING AT LIFEWORKS, A NONPROFIT HERE.

WE ARE ALSO HELPING SUPPORT HOMELESS YOUTH.

AND CURRENTLY I WORK AT CHIVE CHARITIES WHERE I SUPPORT FIRST RESPONDERS, VETERANS, AND FOLKS WITH RARE MEDICAL DIAGNOSIS AND GETTING THEM LIFE-CHANGING MEDICAL GRANTS.

SO HOPING TO BRING SOME PERSPECTIVE AND I'M JUST REALLY HAPPY TO BE HERE.

SO THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER HALL, MARTIN.

AND WITH THAT, WE ARE CALLED OFFICIALLY TO ORDER.

SO, UM, ON CITIZEN COMMUNICATION, DO WE HAVE ANYONE SIGNED UP TO COMMUNICATE WITH US TODAY? NOPE, WE'RE GOOD.

OKAY.

MOVING ON TO OUR

[1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – Sept. 7, 2021 4:20pm-4:25pm]

ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS ON THE MINUTES.

ALL RIGHT.

I THINK WE ARE ALL GOOD BECAUSE THERE WAS NO COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS WE WILL, UH, COUNT THOSE MINUTES AS APPROVED.

ALL RIGHT.

MOVING ON

[2.a. Public Safety Organizations Quarterly Report – Austin Police Department (sponsors: Commissioner Hausenfluck and Gonzales) 4:25pm-4:45pm]

I'D LIKE TO WELCOME CHIEF CHACAN.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR JOINING US.

YEAH.

OKAY.

VERY GOOD.

UH, COMMISSIONERS.

UH, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME JOSEPH CHACO AND CHIEF OF POLICE.

I THINK THIS QUARTERLY REPORT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DELIVERED LAST MONTH, PERHAPS.

I'M NOT SURE, BUT REGARDLESS, WE'RE GOING TO PRESENT IT THIS MONTH AND THEN I CAN ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE.

ADDITIONALLY, THERE WERE A FEW THINGS IN HERE THAT WERE ADDED ON AS, UM, COMMISSIONER REQUESTS.

SO YOU'LL SEE THOSE IN HERE AND HOPEFULLY IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE THAT WE'RE MISSING, THEN WE CAN GET YOU THE INFORMATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

SO, UH, WHAT WE'LL BE GOING OVER IS OUR CITYWIDE, UM, NEIGHBORS, NUMBERS, CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS, PROPERTY AND SOCIETY.

UM, AGAIN, TALKING ABOUT THE ITEMS THAT WERE REQUESTED BY COMMISSION, UH, THE CITY-WIDE CLEARANCES WILL BE ON HERE AS WELL, UH, AS WELL FOR ALL THREE OF THOSE AREAS.

UM, OUR RESPONSE TIMES AND CALL VOLUMES, UH, FOR FYI 21.

SO, UM, AND THEN OUR, UM, THOSE WILL BE BROKEN DOWN BY COUNCIL DISTRICT.

JUST, I WON'T GO OVER THOSE, UH, TOO MUCH AS FAR AS THAT, BUT IT'LL CERTAINLY BE PART OF THE BACKUP FOR ANYBODY THAT MIGHT WANT TO REVIEW.

IT ARE URGENT AND P ZERO, UH, CALL VOLUMES, UH, JUST GIVING A BREAKDOWN FROM 2018 TO 2021, SO THAT YOU HAVE AN IDEA OF HOW THAT HAS EVOLVED OVER TIME.

UM, AND THEN, UH, TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR BUDGET, UH, BUDGETED OVERTIME VERSUS OUR ACTUAL OVERTIME FOR .

UM, AND THEN OUR STAFFING, I BELIEVE THAT COMMISSION ASKED FOR INFORMATION ABOUT, UH, THE CADETS AND COULD IN OUR CADET CLASS THAT WE HAVE GOING ON.

SO I'LL BE PRESENTING A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION ABOUT THAT.

UH, AND THEN FINALLY OUR AUTHORIZATION, UH, STAFFING LEVELS, UH, AND HOW MANY PEOPLE WE'VE HAD SEPARATE, UH, OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.

SO I'VE HAD TO GET THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

SO WHAT WE'RE SEEING AS FAR AS OUR CITY-WIDE CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS, UM, OVERALL OUR VIOLENT CRIME OR, OR THE, UH, THE, THE CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS, WHICH, UH,

[00:05:01]

UH, WE HAD ANOTHER MURDER THAT JUST OCCURRED.

SO WE'RE UP TO 77 NOW FOR THE YEAR, UH, WHICH IS CERTAINLY VERY TROUBLING.

WE'RE NOT SEEING ANY, ANY TRENDS OR PATTERNS IN THAT NECESSARILY THAT WE, YOU KNOW, HAVE HAD GREAT SUCCESS IN EFFECTING OTHER THAN WHAT I'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT PRETTY CONSISTENTLY BEING THE GUN VIOLENCE AND GUN CRIME, UM, THAT'S OCCURRING IN THE CITY, WHICH IS ALSO AFFECTING OUR AGGRAVATED ASSAULTS.

UH, SO WE CONTINUE, UH, THE VIOLENCE INTERVENTION PROGRAM THAT I STARTED, UM, BACK IN APRIL.

UH, WE WILL BE LOOKING TO PROBABLY WIND THAT DOWN AND, UH, DETERMINE WHAT OUR NEXT UH, INTERVENTION PROGRAM IS GOING TO BE.

AND I'LL, I'LL CERTAINLY BRIEF THAT OUT TO THE PUBLIC AND TO A COMMISSION IN THE FUTURE.

UH, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

SO TALKING ABOUT OUR CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY, AGAIN, WE'RE DOWN 9% FOR THE YEAR, UH, AND 17% FROM THIS TIME LAST YEAR, UH, ROBBERY IS, UM, ONE OF THE CRIMES THAT IS CONSIDERED A CRIME AGAINST PROPERTY NOW, WHICH, UM, THERE ACTUALLY IS A ELEMENT OF VIOLENCE RELATED TO ROBBERY AND, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT, UM, WE'RE UP 12, 12%, UH, FROM, FROM THIS MOMENT LAST YEAR.

UM, SO OUR, UH, VIOLENT CRIME UNITS CONTINUE TO, UH, WORK COLLABORATIVELY TO, UH, TRY TO AFFECT OUR, OUR VIOLENT CRIME.

UH, SO WORKING ACROSS THE DIFFERENT DIVISIONS, INCLUDING ROBBERY, HOMICIDE, AGGRAVATED ASSAULT, UH, IN THE DIFFERENT UNITS THAT WE HAVE, UH, WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS PUT A, A COLLECTIVE EFFORT TOWARDS LOWERING, UH, THIS AND OTHER TYPES OF VIOLENT CRIME, BUT OVERALL OUR CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY, UH, REMAIN DOWN FOR THE YEAR.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

AND THEN FINALLY OUR CRIMES AGAINST, UH, SOCIETY.

UH, WE, UH, AS I MENTIONED, WE'VE SEEN A DECREASE, UH, IN THIS AREA, UH, AS WELL AS THE OTHER AREAS.

UM, AND SO THAT YOU CAN SEE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THOSE NUMBERS GENERALLY ARE PRETTY SMALL WHERE YOU SEE WHERE YOU DO SEE SOME PERCENTAGE INCREASES.

UH, THOSE, THOSE NUMBERS GENERALLY ARE, ARE, ARE PRETTY SMALL TO BEGIN WITH, WHICH WOULD INCREASE, INDICATE THE BIGGER, THE BIGGER PERCENTAGE JUMPS.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

OKAY, SORRY.

UH, TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR, OUR CITYWIDE CLEARANCES FOR EACH ONE OF THESE AREAS.

UM, THESE WILL ALWAYS BE SNAPSHOTS IN TIME, UH, BASED UPON, UH, WHEN WE PULL THE NUMBERS, UM, WE'RE ACTUALLY TO, FOR CONSISTENCY ARE PULLING THESE NUMBERS FROM THE DPS DATABASES.

WE REPORT THEM INTO NEIGHBORS.

SO YOU CAN SEE FROM JANUARY 1ST OF THIS YEAR THROUGH SEPTEMBER THE 30TH OF THIS YEAR, UH, THE NUMBER OF CASES IN EACH ONE OF THESE AREAS THAT WE HAVE, UM, THAT WE'VE CLEARED EITHER BY ARREST, UH, BY THE DEATH OF THE OFFENDER, UM, IF IT WAS A JUVENILE AND THEIR, NO, THEY'RE NOT IN CUSTODY, WHICH WE DON'T HAVE ANY OF THOSE CASES FOR THIS SECTION RIGHT HERE, UM, THAT PROSECUTION WAS DECLINED FOR WHATEVER REASON.

UM, AND THEN FINALLY, UM, SMALL NUMBERS, BUT THE NUMBER OF TIMES THAT A VICTIM REFUSED TO COOPERATE FURTHER IN THE PROSECUTION.

UH, SO, UH, THE GREATEST NUMBERS HERE ARE THE ONES THAT ARE CLEARED BY ARREST, UM, FOR A TOTAL OF 3,924 OF, UM, OF THE CASES THAT WE'VE ACTUALLY BEEN ABLE TO CLEAR A BUYER, YOU KNOW, AND 3,959, OVERALL THAT WE HAVE CLEARED IN SOME FASHION.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

THIS IS OUR CITYWIDE CLEARANCES FOR CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY.

UH, AGAIN, UM, ROBBERY BEING INCLUDED IN THERE AS WELL AS CRIME, SUCH AS ARSON AND BURGLARY.

UM, YOU CAN SEE, UH, THIS IS THE NUMBER OF TIMES THAT, UM, 2,278, UH, FOR THE YEAR THAT WE HAVE CLEARED BY ARREST.

UM, AND THEN, UH, THE OTHER SMALLER NUMBERS, INCLUDING, UH, DEATH OF THE OFFENDER, PROSECUTION DECLINED, VICTIM REFUSED TO COOPERATE FOR TOTAL OF 2,314 TO DATE.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE ARE OUR CLEARANCE RATES FOR CRIMES AGAINST SOCIETY.

UH, AGAIN, THIS IS GOING TO BE OUR DRUG AND PORNOGRAPHY TYPE OF, UM, PROSTITUTION, THOSE TYPES OF CRIMES, UH, 2,208 ARRESTS THIS YEAR, UH, AND THEN 2,254 TOTAL CASE CLEARANCES, UH, FOR THE, FOR THE YEAR TO DATE.

ALL RIGHT.

[00:10:01]

OKAY.

SO LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR, OUR, UH, CITYWIDE RESPONSE TIMES AND OUR CALL VOLUMES FOR, UM, FOR THIS YEAR.

SO, UH, AGAIN, THIS WHERE I ALWAYS WANT TO GO BACK TO THE SOURCE ON THIS, UH, WE'RE PULLING THIS OUT OF OUR COMPUTER-AIDED DISPATCH SYSTEM THAT RUNS OUT OF CTECH.

UH, AND THIS IS GOING TO BE FOR THE FULL FISCAL YEAR OF 2021, WHICH STARTED IN OCTOBER OF 2020 AND RAN THROUGH THE END OF SEPTEMBER IN 2021.

UM, OUR TARGET, YOU KNOW, YOU'LL SEE THE FIRST COLUMN THERE BEING OUR CITYWIDE TARGET.

UH, WE DETERMINED THAT AT THE OUTSET OF THE YEAR AS WHAT WE, UH, OUR, OUR GOAL THAT WE'RE TRYING TO, TO REACH, AND THEN, UH, GOING MONTH BY MONTH, YOU CAN SEE W WHAT OUR ACTUAL, UH, P ZERO IN THE, AND THIS PARTICULAR SLIDE HAS OUR CALLS COMBINED, UH, INTO ONE CATEGORY.

AND YOU CAN SEE WHERE WE WERE WITH REGARD TO OUR TARGET.

UM, OF COURSE WE NEVER DID, UH, HIT OUR TARGET.

UM, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, WITH, UH, I'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT STAFFING ISSUES AND, UM, YOU KNOW, FEWER OFFICERS THAT ARE OUT THERE ON PATROL.

SO THIS IS NOT, UH, TO ME IS NOT TERRIBLY SURPRISING.

UH, BUT, UM, BUT THIS GIVES YOU A SNAPSHOT FOR FY 20 20, 1 OF WHERE WE WERE, UM, FOR THE, UH, AND THEN RIGHT BELOW IT, OBVIOUSLY THE NUMBER OF CALLS THAT WERE RECEIVED IN THOSE CATEGORIES EACH ONE OF THOSE MONTHS, UH, JUST FOR PERSPECTIVE, UM, CTECH RECEIVES ABOUT A MILLION CALLS FOR SERVICE PER YEAR.

SO THAT GIVES YOU AN IDEA WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF CALLS PER MONTH, THAT WE HAVE THAT THOSE, THERE ARE THESE, THIS HIGHEST NATURE.

UH, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

UM, THIS IS OUR RESPONSE TIMES AND INCIDENT VOLUME, UH, BROKEN DOWN BY COUNCIL DISTRICT.

UM, I WON'T GO INTO ANY OF THESE IN TOO MUCH DETAIL ENLISTED OR QUESTIONS.

UH, AND I'LL PAUSE FOR A SECOND TO SEE IF, UH, COMMISSIONERS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS.

ALL RIGHT, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

UM, THE NEXT, I BELIEVE COUPLE OF SLIDES ARE GOING TO GIVE YOU SOME VISUAL, JUST A VISUAL IDEA OF, UH, THE EMERGENCY, UH, CALL VOLUME.

UH, THE P THE P ONE CALLS ARE THE ONES THAT ARE IN BLUE, AND THEN THE P ZERO CALLS ARE THE ONES THAT ARE THE .

UM, AND, UH, TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA, IT'S, I APOLOGIZE ON THE BIG SCREEN AND I DON'T HAVE IT ON THE SCREEN, SO I DON'T KNOW HOW WELL YOU CAN SEE THIS, BUT IT IS IN THE BACKUP.

AND I WOULD CERTAINLY, UH, YOU KNOW, TELL YOU TO GO BACK AND YOU CAN, YOU CAN REVIEW IT, UM, LATER ON, BUT THIS GIVES YOU THE CALL VOLUME FROM, UH, 2018 THROUGH 2021.

UM, AND WE DID SEE OBVIOUSLY SOME, SOME, UM, YOU KNOW, SOME SLIGHT DIPS IN THERE BECAUSE OF COVID FROM TIME TO TIME, UH, WHERE OUR CALL VOLUME JUST OVERALL FALLS, BUT, UH, BUT HAS REMAINED PRETTY CONSISTENT AND CONTINUES TO GROW AS A CITY CONTINUES TO GROW.

UH, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

UM, THE NEXT THREE SLIDES WE'LL BREAK DOWN THE AVERAGE RESPONSE TIME BY MONTH FOR EACH ONE OF THOSE YEARS.

SO THIS FIRST SLIDE IS, UM, 2018.

YOU SEE THE ORANGE LINE THAT GOES STRAIGHT ACROSS THAT IS OUR TARGET TIME THAT WE'RE TRYING TO HIT AND WHERE YOU CAN SEE MONTH BY MONTH, WHERE WE ACTUALLY FELL.

UM, WE ALWAYS, UH, YOU KNOW, WILL, UM, DEPENDING ON WHAT'S GOING ON AND THE NUMBER OF EVENTS THAT WE HAVE, YOU'LL SEE SPIKES, UH, IN RESPONSE TIMES, UH, YOU KNOW, MARCHES, UH, YOU KNOW, SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST IS GOING ON.

UH, AND THEN IN OCTOBER WE HAVE ACL THAT'S GOING ON.

THOSE ARE BOTH RESOURCE INTENSIVE EVENTS THAT TAKE A LOT OF OUR OFFICERS OFF THE STREETS TO GO AND WORK THEM.

AND SO WE'LL ALWAYS SEE A LITTLE BIT SLIGHTLY HIGHER DURING THOSE TIMES.

UH, BUT OVERALL YOU CAN, THIS GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF 2018.

IF I GET THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, UH, HERE WE ARE FOR 2019, UH, AGAIN, LOOKING AT OUR TARGET TIME, UH, WE ACTUALLY IMPROVED.

UM, AND AGAIN, UH, YOU SEE SOME SLIGHT, SOME SLIGHT, UM, IMPROVEMENTS IN, UH, IN THE TIME, BUT ALSO YOU'LL SEE WHERE THEY DO.

UH, THEY DO SPIKE A LITTLE BIT DURING THE, THE TIMES THAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT AS WELL.

AND NEXT SLIDE.

OKAY.

SORRY, CHIEF, UH, THE MICROPHONES ARE MUCH MORE COMPLICATED.

JUST KIDDING.

ON THE SLIDE THAT WE WERE JUST LOOKING AT FOR 29TH TEEN.

UM, IT LOOKED LIKE THE, THE TIME GOAL WAS NOT EIGHT MINUTES AND FOUR SECONDS ANYMORE.

IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS DIFFERENT.

UM, SO I'M NOT ACTUALLY SURE WE WERE DOING ANY BETTER.

IT JUST, SO W W LET ME CLARIFY,

[00:15:01]

SO THAT'S WHY YOU SEE A DIFFERENT GOAL.

GOT IT.

CAN YOU REMIND US WHERE THAT NUMBER COMES FROM? UM, SO ALL OF THIS IS, AND PARTICULARLY NOW THAT WE HAVE, UH, A REALLY STRONG LEAD IN OUR RESEARCH AND PLANNING UNIT WITH DR.

JONATHAN KRINGLE, WHO IS OUR DATA, OUR CHIEF DATA OFFICER, WE'RE DEVELOPING, UH, NOW THE MODELS TO BE ABLE TO DETERMINE HOW MANY OFFICERS WE NEED IN A PARTICULAR PATROL SECTOR.

UH, WHAT IS OUR TARGET TIME THAT WE'RE TRYING TO HIT, UH, BASED ON PARTICULARLY HOW MANY OFFICERS I HAVE AVAILABLE TO ME ON PATROL? SO ALL OF THAT IS DONE IN OUR RESEARCH AND PLANNING UNIT.

OKAY.

UH, I THINK WE'RE JUST MOVING ONTO THE NEXT SLIDE 2020.

UM, AND THEN YOU CAN SEE RIGHT THERE WHERE THE PANDEMIC LOCKDOWN HAPPENED.

UM, OUR, OUR CALL VOLUME DROPPED SIGNIFICANTLY FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS AND OUR RESPONSE TIMES ACTUALLY IMPROVED.

AND SO, UM, BUT YOU COULD SEE, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY THE REST OF THE TIME, WE, AGAIN, WE'RE NOT QUITE HITTING THE MARK, UH, AND CONTINUE TO TRY TO DO THE BEST THAT, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY THAT WE CAN WITH THE NUMBER OF OFFICERS THAT WE HAVE.

ALL RIGHT.

NEXT SLIDE.

UH, FINALLY HERE WE ARE FOR 2021.

UM, AND THIS IS JUST AGAIN, A CONTINUATION OF, UM, KIND OF WHAT I'VE BEEN EXPLAINING TO, TO, TO, UH, TO DATE.

SO, UM, YOU CAN SEE WHERE THE CALL VOLUME ACTUALLY SPIKES THERE IN FEBRUARY WAS DURING THE ICE STORM OFFICERS WERE CERTAINLY HAVING A DIFFICULT TIME GETTING AROUND BECAUSE OF THE ROADS.

UM, SO THAT'S WHERE THAT THAT'S WHERE THAT, UM, OVERALL AVERAGE FOR THAT MONTH SPIKE SIGNIFICANTLY BECAUSE THOSE 10 DAYS, ALL RIGHT, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

CAN WE GO TO THE, I'M SORRY, THERE WE GO.

ALL RIGHT.

SO, UH, TALKING ABOUT OUR BUDGETED OVERTIME VERSUS OUR ACTUAL OVERTIME FOR FYI 21, UM, OUR, OUR BUDGETED OVER TIME WAS, UH, PRETTY CLOSE TO 3.5 MILLION, UH, WHILE OUR ACTUAL OVERTIME EXPENSES, UH, WERE CLOSE TO $11 MILLION.

UM, WE, UH, THAT IS NOT ENTIRELY IN SURPRISING FOR US, UH, JUST BASED ON, UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DID HAVE A MUCH SMALLER OVERTIME BUDGET AND OUR REGULAR OVERTIME BUDGET WAS CLOSER TO THAT $11 MILLION.

UM, BUT, UH, BUT WE DID, UM, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY WE'RE ABLE TO COVER, UH, OUR OVERTIME EXPENDITURES WITH, UH, SALARY SAVINGS.

WE DO HAVE A NUMBER OF VACANCIES ON THE DEPARTMENT RIGHT NOW.

NEXT SLIDE.

UM, HERE, THIS GIVES YOU AN IDEA, UH, AGAIN, WHILE WHY I SAY THAT IT WAS NOT UNSURPRISING TO US, UH, WHAT OUR OVERTIME BUDGETS WERE VERSUS WHAT OUR ACTUAL OVERTIME EXPENDITURES WERE, UH, FISCAL YEAR 18 TO FISCAL YEAR 21, UM, OUR OR OVERTIME EXPENSES AND EXPENDITURES ACTUALLY, UH, IN 21 WERE LOWER THAN THEY HAD BEEN IN THE PREVIOUS THREE YEARS.

UM, BUT SO WAS OUR BUDGET.

SO WE WERE DOING OUR BEST TO MANAGE, UH, THE BUDGET THAT WE DID HAVE, UH, GIVEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT WE HAVE, UH, TRYING TO COVER SHIFTS AND CALLS AND SO FORTH.

SO, UM, AGAIN, THAT JUST GIVES YOU, GIVES YOU SOME PERSPECTIVE IF I GET THE NEXT SLIDE, THIS SLIDE JUST, UH, VERY QUICKLY GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF OUR SWORN STAFFING LEVELS AS OF THE BEGINNING OF OCTOBER.

SO ABOUT A MONTH AGO, UM, OUR AUTHORIZED STRENGTH IS 1,809 SWORN OFFICERS AT THE TIME IN OCTOBER, ON OCTOBER 1ST, 1000 618 OF THOSE WERE FILLED GIVING US 191, TRUE VACANCIES.

I SAY TRUE VACANCIES BECAUSE WE DO CARRY SOFT VACANCIES, WHICH ARE, UM, OFFICERS WHO MIGHT BE GONE TO MILITARY LEAVE THEY'RE ON FMLA.

THEY MIGHT BE ON AN INJURY LEAVE, AND THOSE KINDS OF THINGS TO WHERE I DON'T HAVE SOMEONE, UH, ACTUALLY THERE.

AND THAT IS A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER AS WELL, BUT THE 191 ARE THE TRUE VACANCIES THAT WE HAVE AS OF OCTOBER.

FIRST, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

OKAY.

IN REGARDS TO THE STAFFING, UH, THE AUTHORIZED 1,809, IS THAT WHAT, WHEN WERE FULL STAFFED, IS THAT BASED ON YOU BEING FULL STAFFED? 1809, IF WE WERE FULLY STAFFED, CORRECT.

THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE ALLOWED TO HAVE.

THAT'S CORRECT.

OKAY.

AND IN THE FIELD, DOES THAT ALSO INCLUDE THE CADETS THAT YOU CURRENTLY HAVE? IT DOES NOT.

OKAY.

SO, ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU.

YES.

[00:20:01]

LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE CADETS.

NOW WE STARTED THE CHIEF, EXCUSE ME.

I'M SORRY.

I CHAIR ROCKY LANE IS SUCH A, I DON'T THINK I'M IN THE RIGHT ROOM AND I DON'T THINK ROCKY IS IN THE RIGHT ROOM EITHER.

SORRY TO INTERRUPT.

IT'S OKAY.

WE CAN HEAR YOU.

UM, REBECCA, SO I'M NOT A COMMISSIONER WEBER, SO I'M NOT SURE HOW YOU'RE IN THE WRONG ROOM.

WELL, I CAN'T SEE THE CHIEF SLIDES.

I THINK I'M IN A ROOM WITH AD AND I THINK IT'S AN IT ISSUE.

I THINK THEY'RE JUST NOT SERVING YOU THE SLIDES ONLINE.

NO PROBLEM.

AND THEN ROCKY SAYS, UH, THAT HE CAN'T GET IN.

OKAY.

I THINK THIS IS AN IT ISSUE.

SO, I MEAN, LET'S SEE WHAT WE CAN DO HERE.

SO IT IS ABOUT TO START SHARING THE SLIDES WITH YOU, SO THAT SHOULD BE FIXED.

AND SHE'S ALSO WORKING ON GETTING, UH, COMMISSIONER LANE INTO THE ROOM AS WELL.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

SORRY FOR THE INTERRUPTION, IF YOU WANT TO GO AHEAD AND JUST GET, OKAY.

ALL RIGHT.

VERY GOOD.

THANK YOU.

UM, OKAY.

SO THE NEXT SLIDE IN THE PRESENTATION IS OUR CADET CLASS FOR 2021.

UM, IT STARTED ON JUNE 7TH WITH A HUNDRED CADETS.

THIS WAS OUR NEW, UH, RE-INVIGORATED ACADEMY THAT, UM, INCLUDED, UH, THE, OUR PROJECT COMMUNITY CONNECT AT THE OUTSET.

AND, UM, AND HOW'S BEEN GOING WE'RE ABOUT AT THE MID POINT, JUST A LITTLE BIT PAST THE MIDPOINT OF THIS ACADEMY AT WILL GRADUATE ON, UM, JANUARY THE 28TH OF 2022.

SO AS OF OCTOBER 27TH, UH, WE HAD 75 CADETS THAT WERE STILL IN THE ACADEMY, UM, FOR A CHURCH, UH, ATTRITION RATE OF 25%.

UH, WE'RE STILL WITHIN OUR NORMAL MARGIN OF ATTRITION WITH THAT TYPE OF ATTRITION.

UM, CERTAINLY NOT.

I DON'T LIKE LOSING ANY OF OUR CADETS, BUT WE HAVE MANY THAT, UH, AND UNFORTUNATELY WE LOST SEVERAL, UH, TO COVID.

UH, WHAT WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO FOR THOSE CADETS IS BE ABLE TO RETAIN THEM AS EMPLOYEES, UH, FIND OTHER WORK FOR THEM.

AND THEN THEY WILL RECYCLE INTO THE ONE 45TH CADET CLASS.

UH, AND UNFORTUNATELY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GO THROUGH IT AGAIN.

UM, BUT IT'S, IT'S, YOU KNOW, AT LEAST WE'RE ABLE TO KEEP THEM EMPLOYED, KEEP THEM ON A CITY EMPLOYEES.

AND, UH, AND, AND WE'RE THAT MUCH FURTHER AHEAD FOR THE NEXT CLASS.

SO, YOU KNOW, OTHER OTHER REASONS THAT CADETS, UH, DON'T GO THROUGH THE FULL CLASS ACADEMIC REASONS.

UH, SOMETIMES THEY GET INJURED.

UH, THERE ARE TIMES WHERE THEY CAN'T DO ALL OF THE PHYSICAL FITNESS, UH, PERFORM TO THE LEVEL THAT THEY NEED TO.

AND, UH, AND, AND THEN SOMETIMES THEY JUST, UH, THEIR, THEIR FAMILY MATTERS OR SOMETHING ELSE THAT, TO WHERE THEY RESIGN.

SO, UM, SO ANYWAY, THAT IS, LIKE I SAID, WITHIN OUR NORMAL RATE OF ATTRITION AT THIS POINT WHERE IT'S 75, ALL RIGHT.

IF I CAN GET THE NEXT SLIDE, I'M JUST PROJECTING FOR 2000 AND, UH, 22, UH, DIFFERENT SCENARIOS THAT WE MIGHT SEE, UM, FOR, UH, YOU KNOW, THE, HOW MANY CLASSES IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE, THAT WE GET THE CADET CLASSES GOING AS EFFICIENTLY, UH, AND REALLY AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN SO THAT WE ARE REFILLING THOSE 190 PLUS, UH, VACANCIES.

AND REALLY IT'S GREATER THAN THAT.

NOW THAT WAS A MONTH AGO.

UM, UM, MY, MY ATTRITION RATE RIGHT NOW IS ABOUT TRIPLE ITS NORMAL RATE.

AND SO I HAVE OFFICERS LEAVING AND NOBODY THAT'S COMING BACK IN.

SO IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO ME TO NUMBER ONE, GET THE CADET CLASS, RIGHT.

UH, WE JUST PRESENTED, I GUESS, ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO ON THE, UH, THE STATE OF, OF THE ACADEMY CROWELL CAME AND PRESENTED TO COUNCIL.

UM, AND, AND SO THERE'LL BE ANOTHER REPORT THAT WILL COME OUT IN FEBRUARY AND, UH, PRESUMING THAT THAT IS FAVORABLE.

THEN WE WILL REALLY KIND OF KICK IT INTO HIGH GEAR FOR, UH, FOR PUTTING CADET CLASSES THROUGH, UH, UM, PRESENT TWO DIFFERENT SCENARIOS OF WHAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO.

AND THIS IS GOING TO HAVE TO BE JUDGED BASED ON OUR RESOURCES, UH, FROM WHAT IT, WHAT IT TAKES FOR US TO BE ABLE TO PUT ON A CLASS, UH, FROM INSTRUCTORS CLASS SPACE.

UH, WE ARE ON A PUBLIC SAFETY TRAINING CAMPUS WITH OUR PARTNERS AT FIRE AND EMS AND HAVE TO SHARE THE SPACE.

SO, UH, WE ARE CONSTRAINED AND MAY HAVE TO GET VERY CREATIVE ABOUT EITHER TAKING CLASSES ONLINE, RUNNING THEM ON NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS, AND POTENTIALLY TAKING THEM OFF CAMPUS SO THAT WE CAN GET AS MANY CADETS THROUGH AS WE NEED TO.

UM, THE ONE 45TH AND ONE 46TH, UM, RIGHT NOW ARE, ARE SLATED TO BE REGULAR WHAT WE CALL A REGULAR CLASS.

AND THAT MEANS IT'S A FULL EIGHT AND A HALF MONTH CADET CLASS, UM, FOR, UH, FOR ANYONE THAT QUALIFIES AND APPLIES TO BE A, AN AUSTIN POLICE OFFICER.

AND YOU CAN SEE THE STARTING DATES IN FEBRUARY AND, UH,

[00:25:01]

WE'RE GOING TO SEE HOW THAT GOES, BUT, BUT CERTAINLY THE SOONER, THE BETTER WE ARE CONSIDERING, UH, MOVING FORWARD OR PROPOSING THE COUNCIL, I POSSIBLE MODIFIED CLASS NEXT YEAR.

UH, THAT WOULD BE, UM, AND BY MODIFIED, I'LL JUST TELL YOU I'M A PRODUCT OF A MODIFIED CLASS AT THE VERY FIRST ONE THAT APD EVER HAD.

THOSE ARE PEACE OFFICERS FROM OTHER AGENCIES THAT WE ACTIVELY RECRUIT TO COME AND JOIN APD.

WE CUT THE TRAINING TIME AND ABOUT HALF, AND, UH, WE ALSO CUT THEIR, UM, WRITING TIME WITH AN FTO ABOUT IN HALF.

SO THEY BECOME, UH, OFFICERS THAT CAN GO OUT AND START TAKING CALLS.

WE CAN ADD THEM INTO THE, TO THE NUMBERS THAT YOU WERE ASKING ABOUT SOONER, UH, AND REALLY GET THOSE, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT STARTS DRIVING MY, MY CALL, UH, RESPONSE TIMES DOWN BY HAVING MORE OFFICERS OUT THERE.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

THIS IS SCENARIO B, UM, WHERE WE WOULD, UH, LOOK TO SEE ABOUT DOING, UH, THREE REGULAR CLASSES, UM, NEXT YEAR, UH, AND, AND THEN POSSIBLY A FOURTH, UH, BEING A MODIFIED, UM, I'LL JUST TELL YOU FROM A RESOURCE STANDPOINT, THIS IS, THIS IS VERY, VERY DIFFICULT TO DO.

UM, I WOULD HAVE TO MOVE SIGNIFICANT RESOURCES AROUND TO BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH IT.

AND WHAT I, WHAT CONCERNS ME DOING THAT IS WHERE AM I MOVING THEM FROM AND WHAT IS GOING TO SUFFER BECAUSE OF IT.

IF I HAVE OFFICERS THAT ARE ASSIGNED IN SPECIALIZED UNITS, AND THEY'RE DOING THINGS LIKE, UM, OUR, YOU KNOW, THE GUN INTERVENTION PROGRAMS, THEY'RE WORKING ON, UH, GANGS AND NARCOTICS AND THOSE KINDS OF THINGS, AND I HAVE TO MOVE THEM TO SO THAT WE CAN DO THIS, UH, HOW LONG AM I GOING TO HAVE TO MOVE THEM FOR? AND IS IT, IS, IS THAT GOING TO BE A, UM, SOLUTION FOR US RIGHT NOW? SO I THINK THAT THIS SCENARIO QUITE HONESTLY, IS, IS A LITTLE BIT, UH, LESS LIKELY THAN SCENARIO A, I THINK A SCENARIO A MAYBE A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, REALISTIC, EXCUSE ME, IN REGARDS TO, UH, THE CADETS THAT YOU'RE GETTING NOW, DO YOU HAVE ANY COMING IN FROM OTHER POLICE DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE ALREADY CERTIFIED AS PIECE OFF? I THINK WE HAD A FEW THAT CAME INTO, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING THAT PREVENTS A CURRENT PEACE OFFICER FROM JOINING A REGULAR QUOTE UNQUOTE, REGULAR CADET CLASS.

AND WE ALWAYS HAVE A FEW THAT COME ON BECAUSE THEY'RE, THEY'RE READY TO MAKE THE MOVE.

AND THEY DON'T KNOW IF, AND WHEN WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A MODIFIED CLASS AND THEY REALLY WANT TO COME OVER.

UM, THOSE BE FAST TRACKED.

THEY CANNOT BE FAST TRACK.

THEY HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE SAME PROGRAM AS THE REST OF THE, JUST A THOUGHT.

YEAH.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

IF I CAN GET THE, UH, THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, THIS JUST GIVES YOU, UH, FOR HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE, WHAT APDS AUTHORIZED STAFFING.

I BELIEVE THIS WAS ASKED FOR, UH, APD STAFFING OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.

UH, IN 2018, WE WERE AUTHORIZED AT 1,908 JUMPED TO 1,929 AND 19, AND THEN 1,959 IN 20.

AND THEN, UM, AND THEN IN FYI, TWENTY ONE, A HUNDRED AND FIFTY VACANT POSITIONS WERE REMOVED FROM OUR BUDGET, DROPPING US DOWN TO 1809.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

UM, THIS IS THE LAST SLIDE OTHER THAN TAKING QUESTIONS.

AND THIS IS JUST TALKING ABOUT OUR SWORN SEPARATIONS.

I TOLD YOU THAT OUR ATTRITION RATE IS ABOUT TRIPLE ITS NORMAL RATE.

NORMALLY WE ATTRIT, UM, ANYWHERE FROM FIVE TO SEVEN OFFICERS PER MONTH, UH, THAT IS DUE TO MOSTLY RETIREMENTS.

UH, BUT SOMETIMES WE HAVE OFFICERS THAT, YOU KNOW, FOR ALL THE REASONS THAT PEOPLE LEAVE JOBS, THEY, THEY HAVE TO LEAVE OUT OF STATE TO TAKE CARE OF A, OF A RELATIVE, OR THEY HAVE A SPOUSE WHO GETS A JOB OUT, YOU KNOW, IN A DIFFERENT COMMUNITY.

AND THEY'RE, THEY, THEY GO AHEAD AND RESIGN AND SO FORTH.

SO USUALLY ABOUT FIVE TO SEVEN A MONTH.

AND WHEN WE LOOK BACK TO 2018 AND 19, YOU CAN SEE THAT WAS, THAT WAS CARRYING AT THAT TIME.

UH, 2020 IS WHEN WE BEGAN TO SEE, UH, MAJOR, UH, RESIGNATIONS AND RETIREMENTS, UH, FROM THE DEPARTMENT, A COUPLE OF THINGS, UM, IN 2000, UH, WELL, THIS YEAR IN 2021, I, I MENTIONED THAT I WAS A PART OF THE FIRST EVER MODIFIED CLASS THAT APD EVER HAD.

THAT WAS THE SAME YEAR THAT APD SIGNED THERE.

UH, BACK IN 1998 WAS THE SAME YEAR THAT APD SIGNED THEIR FIRST EVER MEET AND CONFER CONTRACT, WHICH SIGNIFICANTLY RAISED PAY FOR THE AUSTIN POLICE OFFICERS COMPARED TO WHAT THEY'D BEEN MAKING BEFORE.

AND, UM, AND IT WAS JUST THIS HUGE HIRING PUSH.

SO, UH, WE ALSO SEE NOW THAT THERE'S AN, THERE'S A HUGE NUMBER OF OFFICERS THAT ARE ELIGIBLE FOR RETIREMENT, AND MANY OF THEM ARE MAKING THE DECISION TO GO AHEAD AND RETIRE.

BUT WHAT I CAN TELL YOU GOING FROM 2020, THE 133, THE MAJORITY OF THOSE RETIREMENTS, THE 177 THAT YOU SEE IN 2021, THE MAJORITY OF RESIGNATIONS, UM, AND THEY ARE OFFICERS THAT ARE OPTING

[00:30:01]

BUT, UH, THAT THIS JUST GIVES YOU A PERSPECTIVE AND WHY I HAVE OFTEN SAID, AND CONTINUE TO SAY THAT WE HAVE A STAFFING ISSUE, UH, ON THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT.

IT'S BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE PEOPLE.

WE DIDN'T HAVE PEOPLE WE DO NOW, UH, COMING TO FILL IN THESE, THESE FOLKS THAT HAVE LEFT, UM, AND WHY IT'S SO CRITICAL AND SUCH A HIGH PRIORITY FOR ME TO GET OUR CLASSES GOING THE RIGHT WAY AND THEN GET THEM GOING, UM, AS AGGRESSIVELY AND KIND OF, UH, EFFICIENTLY AS WE CAN IN THE FUTURE.

ALL RIGHT.

LAST SLIDE, PLEASE.

AND I'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.

ANY QUESTION HAS, GO AHEAD.

COMMISSIONER RAMIREZ, THANK YOU FOR BRINGING UP THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE RETIREMENT AND THE RESIGNATION.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT I'VE BEEN REALLY CURIOUS ABOUT WITH THAT SAID, DO YOU HAVE A HANDLE ON THE PERCENTAGE OR RATIOS OF POLICE OFFICERS THAT ARE COMING UP ON RETIREMENT IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS? BECAUSE IT JUST SEEMS LIKE AN AGING POLICE FORCE IS A BIT OF AN ISSUE, AND I'M JUST WONDERING IF IT WILL HELP MAKE SENSE OF SOME STAFFING PRIORITIES, LOOKING AHEAD.

SO, UM, WE DO HAVE THE PERCENTAGES, CERTAINLY WE KNOW WHEN PEOPLE ARE ELIGIBLE TO RETIRE, AS YOU TALK TO EACH INDIVIDUAL OFFICER, THEY HAVE A LIFE PLAN.

AND CERTAINLY FOR ME, I'M ELIGIBLE, BUT I HAVE MORE YEARS THAT I WANT TO DO HERE.

THERE'S MANY THAT ARE LIKE ME THAT WANT TO CONTINUE TO SERVE ON THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT, SERVE THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY.

AND THEN YOU HAVE SOME THAT MANY YEARS AGO HAD DECIDED AS SOON AS I HIT 23, I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND RETIRE.

AND IT, AND IT HAS LESS TO DO ABOUT IT BEING ANYTHING THAT'S GOING ON, UM, IN POLITICS OR ANY, ANYTHING ELSE THAN IT DOES WITH, UH, THE FACT THAT THEY'RE ELIGIBLE AND THEY HAD PLANS TO DO THAT ALREADY.

UM, AND THEN WE HAVE SOME THAT FALL SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE WITH, UM, VARIOUS REASONS THAT THAT FOLKS ARE LEAVING RIGHT NOW.

WE, UH, I WOULD'VE SAID THAT WE HAD, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT A LOT OF THE FOLKS THAT WERE ELIGIBLE TO RETIRE HAVE RETIRED AND, UM, AND THEN WE HAVE SOME THAT, UM, ARE GETTING CLOSE AND WE ARE AGING A LITTLE BIT, BUT WHEN YOU, WHEN I GO OUT ON MY PATROL SHIFTS, THESE ARE ONE TO THREE YEAR OFFICERS.

THEY ARE NOWHERE NEAR RETIREMENT.

SO, UM, THOSE OFFICERS ARE GOING TO BE HERE.

AND WHAT I'VE GOT TO DO IS CREATE A REALLY GOOD POLICE DEPARTMENT ENVIRONMENT FOR THEM TO WORK IN.

SO THEY WANT TO STAY IN, AREN'T GOING TO WANT TO LEAVE.

THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER SHEAR OUT OF ALL OF THESE, ACTUALLY, THANKS FOR BEING HERE.

A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT QUESTIONS.

ONE IS RELATIVELY QUICK WHEN YOU REPORT THE, UH, THE INCREASE IN WEAPONS, LAW VIOLATIONS, UM, IS THAT AN INCREASE IN STOPS THAT WE'RE JUST SEEING WITH A CONSTANT RATE OF RECOVERY, OR ARE WE SEEING A CONSTANT RATE OF STOPS WITH MORE GUNS BEING SEIZED OR MORE WEAPONS VIOLATIONS FOR A CONSTANT NUMBER OF STOPS? I APOLOGIZE.

I MISSED THE FIRST PART OF YOUR QUESTION IS CITYWIDE CRIMES AGAINST SOCIETY WEAPONS, LAW VIOLATIONS FIVE 20.

SO THERE'S A REPORTED INCREASE THERE 30% FROM 2020.

UM, MY QUESTION IS, SO THERE'S SOME DATA IN CHICAGO, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT WE HAVE A HIGHER RATE OF SEIZURE OF WEAPONS.

MY QUESTION IS, ARE STOPS PROACTIVE ACTIVITY AMONG THE PD.

IS THAT GOING UP? AND SO WE'RE JUST SEEING A HIGHER NUMBER BEING SEIZED WITH A CONSTANT RATE OF RECOVERY, OR ARE WE SEEING JUST MORE WEAPONS WITH A STATIC NUMBER OF STOPS ACTUALLY? UM, IT HAS LESS TO DO WITH THE STOPS AND THE GUNS BEING USED IN THE COMMISSION OF THE CRIME.

SO, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE'RE DOING IS BREAKING OUT THERE THAT, UM, THEY'VE COMMITTED SOME TYPE OF A WEAPON LAW VIOLATION, WHETHER WE'VE SEIZED THE GUN OR NOT, WE'RE JUST SEEING MORE WEAPON LAW VIOLATIONS THAT ARE BEING COMMITTED OVERALL.

GOTCHA.

THANK YOU.

UM, AND THEN, UH, I THINK A FOLLOW-UP QUESTION ON THE, UM, EXCUSE ME, I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT SOME OF THE EXPENDITURE FOR OVERTIME.

UM, AND SO IT'S ALWAYS, IT'S ALWAYS ABOVE THE, THE ALLOTTED NUMBER, BUT IT'S CONSISTENT FROM 2020 TO 2021.

IT'S ABOUT 2.5 TO THREE X.

UM, I'M CURIOUS AS TO HOW THAT'S SHIFTING CONSTANTLY BETWEEN YEARS, BUT CHANGING IN THE OVERALL NUMBER.

WHAT IS ACTUALLY DRIVING THAT INCREASE? I WANT TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND YOUR QUESTION.

I'M GETTING, I'M WORKING MY WAY TO THAT SLIDE RIGHT NOW.

SO YOU CAN SEE IN 2020, IT'S APPROXIMATELY A $9 MILLION BUDGETED AND IT'S UP TO 21 MILLION IN EXPENDITURE.

AND THEN THE FOLLOWING YEAR, IT'S 3.5 BUDGET.

IT ONLY GOES UP TO 10, RIGHT? BUT THE, THE FACTOR OF INCREASE IS ABOUT THE SAME YEAR TO YEAR.

I'M CURIOUS TO HOW YOU CAN CUT THE OVERALL EXPENDITURE BY 50%, BUT THE RELATIVE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE EXPENDITURE AND WHAT YOU'RE ALLOTTED IS, IS THE SAME.

SO WHAT'S, WHAT'S DRIVING THAT YEAR TO YEAR, RIGHT? SO, YOU KNOW, PART OF IT IS GOING TO BE THE ACTUAL, UM, NUMBER OF OFFICERS THAT I

[00:35:01]

SO REGARDLESS OF WHEREVER IN AN ORGANIZATION IN OUR ORGANIZATION, THAT SOMEBODY RETIRES, I COULD HAVE A COMMANDER, A LIEUTENANT, YOU KNOW, A SERGEANT WHO RESIGNS IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT VACANCY IS GOING TO BE CARRIED AT THE OFFICER RANK ALWAYS.

AND THE REASON BEING IS THAT I ALWAYS HAVE PROMOTIONAL LISTS.

SO SOMEBODY I'M GOING TO PROMOTE A COMMANDER, WHICH WILL PROMOTE A LIEUTENANT, WHICH WILL PROMOTE A SERGEANT ALL THE WAY DOWN TO WHERE I CARRY THE VACANCY AT THE OFFICER RANK.

NOW, THOSE OFFICERS, UM, ARE GENERALLY, UH, THE MAJORITY OF MY OFFICERS ARE WORKING ON PATROL.

SO THE SHORTAGES THAT I SEE GENERALLY ARE PATROL SHORTAGES.

UM, WHAT WE'RE DOING IS I'M ASKING MY OFFICERS TO COME AND WORK OVER TIME AND BACKFILL MY, MY PATROL SHIFTS THAT ARE SHORT, I HAVE A LIMITED AS THE NUMBER OF OFFICERS ACTUALLY DWINDLES.

I HAVE FEWER AND FEWER OFFICERS THAT ARE VOLUNTEERING FOR THIS OVERTIME.

SO I'M SEEING MY ACTUAL OVERTIME EXPENDITURES ARE SHRINKING, I THINK.

AND, AND CERTAINLY I CAN, I CAN LET MY, I HAVE MY BUDGET MANAGER HERE WHO, WHO, WHO MIGHT BE ABLE TO ANSWER THE QUESTION ABOUT WHY WE SEE, I DON'T SEE A DIRECTLY CORRELATED.

WHAT I SEE IS THAT, YOU KNOW, NUMBER ONE, WE'RE TRYING TO MANAGE OUR OVERTIME.

WE'RE DOING THE BEST THAT WE CAN WITH MANAGING THAT PIECE.

THEN THE NUMBERS THAT YOU SEE FOR DO NOT INCLUDE OUR, WHAT I WOULD TURN THE COVID OVER TIME.

YOU KNOW, THE, THE ONES THAT CAME OUT OF THE SPECIFIC LEGISLATION AND THE, AND THE FUNDING THAT THE CITY GOT SPECIFICALLY FOR COVID RELATED MATTERS.

BUT, YOU KNOW, I HAVE FEWER OFFICERS EACH GO ROUND THAT ARE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE HONESTLY OFFICERS ARE PRETTY OVERTIME WEARY AT THIS POINT.

AND, UM, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE ASKING THEM, THEY'RE WORKING 40 HOURS NORMALLY, AND THEN WE'RE ASKING THEM TO WORK AN EXTRA ONE OR TWO SHIFTS A WEEK, 50, 60 HOURS, YOU DO THAT FOR SEVERAL WEEKS IN A ROW, AND THAT WILL WEAR YOU OUT PRETTY QUICKLY.

AND SO WE HAVE, WE HAVE OVERTIME THAT IS BEING ADVERTISED THAT IS NOT BEING FILLED.

AND, UM, AND THAT GENERALLY, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE HAVING TO MOVE FOLKS AROUND FOR OVERTIME, THAT I, THAT I'VE PREVIOUSLY BEEN ABLE TO FILL ON OVER TIME AND I'M HAVING TO MOVE FOLKS TO WORK IT ON STRAIGHT TIME, BECAUSE NOBODY FILLED THE OVER TIME THAT IS ALSO GOING TO DRIVE THAT NUMBER DOWN.

OKAY.

AND ONE LAST QUESTION.

THE, UM, I'M CURIOUS AS TO HOW THE APD DEALS WITH, UH, DECIDING ON THE PENSIONS FOR OFFICERS.

SO IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS, THERE WAS THE RECENT REPORTS OF OFFICERS BASICALLY CLOCKING OUT, UM, BECAUSE THEY MAXIMIZE THEIR PENSION WITH LOTS AND LOTS OF PROTESTS TIME OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS.

UH, I'M JUST, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT SET UP IS FOR DECIDING ON PENSION PAYOUT.

CAN YOU SHED SOME LIGHT ON WHAT THAT SURE.

SO I'M NOT SURE YOU'RE SAYING THAT YOU SAW OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT DID THAT THE NYP D FOR EXAMPLE, MAXIMIZES, UH, ASSUMPTION BASED OFF MAX HOURS WORKED, RIGHT.

SO EVERY DEPARTMENT WORKS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENTLY.

I MENTIONED I CAME FROM ANOTHER DEPARTMENT, A PASO POLICE DEPARTMENT.

ACTUALLY, YOU CAN, UH, YOU HAVE A PENSIONABLE BENEFIT WITH THE NUMBER OF OVERTIME HOURS THAT YOU WORK AND YOU'LL SEE ARE LIKE OFFICERS IN THE LAST THREE YEARS, WE'LL JUST WORK A TON OF OVERTIME TO MAX THEIR BENEFIT.

THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT DOES NOT DO THAT.

UM, OVERTIME DOLLARS DO NOT INCREASE YOUR PENSION BENEFIT AT ALL.

SO IT IS BASED UPON YOUR YEARS OF SERVICE, YOUR RANK.

UM, AND, AND THAT GIVES YOU THE, YOU KNOW, BASED ON THE PAY SCALE, WHEN YOU ACTUALLY LEAVE, WE'LL TELL YOU, THIS IS YOUR PENSION BENEFIT.

UM, SO, SO THERE IS NO, THERE IS NO BENEFIT TO WORKING MORE, UH, TO TRY AND INCREASE THE PENSION BENEFIT.

GREAT.

THANK YOU TO YOU BET.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

UM, I APOLOGIZE.

WE HAVE TO, WE ARE OUT OF TIME ON THIS.

UM, WE ONLY HAVE TWO MORE MINUTES LEFT AND WE HAVE DONE A LOT OF TIME ON THIS.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH, CHIEF CHICKEN.

WE APPRECIATE YOU COMING TO SEE US TODAY AND GIVING US THE REPORT AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU.

I LOOK FORWARD TO IT AS WELL.

THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER.

FANTASTIC.

WE'RE MOVING TO

[2.b. Update on Reimagining Public Safety and Budget Recommendations for FY 2021-2022 (sponsors: Commissioner Gonzales and Webber) 4:45pm -5:10pm]

I BELIEVE WE HAVE ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, OUR YANO.

THANK YOU.

AND MR. WILLIAM MIXON FROM THE BUDGET OFFICE.

THANK YOU.

CHAIR GONZALES AND COMMISSIONERS RAY ARIANO ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.

AND WHAT I LIKE TO DO IS TEE UP, UH, THIS CONVERSATION ABOUT THE UPDATE WITH REGARD TO REIMAGINING PUBLIC SAFETY, KIND OF WHERE WE'RE AT CURRENTLY, AS WELL AS THEN HAND IT OVER TO WILLIAM MIXON FROM THE FINANCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT, TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW WE INVESTED, UH, DOLLARS COMING OUT OF RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CITY COMMUNITY TASKFORCE.

SO WHAT I'D LIKE TO DO IS TAKE US BACK TO A POINT IN TIME WHERE THE CITY COMMUNITY,

[00:40:01]

SO IN THAT TIME, WHAT WE WANTED TO TRY TO DO WITH THIS TASK FORCE, AND, AND BY THE WAY, LET ME BACK UP AND SAY HOW MUCH WE REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK OF THE TASK FORCE.

IT WAS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF EFFORT.

CERTAINLY.

I DON'T THINK EVER, CERTAINLY IN MY HISTORY HERE RELATIVELY SHORT, EIGHT YEARS WITH THE CITY THAT WE'VE EVER SEEN, SUCH A COMMITMENT AND A FOCUS OF A COMMUNITY TASK FORCE DEDICATED TO SEEING HOW WE MIGHT REIMAGINE HOW WE MIGHT DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY.

WE HEARD SIGNIFICANT INPUT FROM THE, FROM THE TASK FORCE THAT REALLY TAUGHT US, UM, TO LOOK AT THINGS DIFFERENTLY AND DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY.

AND SO, AGAIN, I JUST WANTED TO PUT THAT PLUG IN, CERTAINLY ON BEHALF OF THE CITY MANAGER AND THE CITY COUNCIL, UH, FOR THAT EFFORT.

SO IN APRIL, 2020, THEY DELIVERED THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND RIGHT AWAY THE CITY MANAGER CREATED WITHIN THE CITY, UH, ORGANIZATION WORK GROUPS TO TAKE A LOOK AT THESE RECOMMENDATIONS AND SEE HOW THEY MIGHT BE INCORPORATED IN THE FYI 21, NOT 22 BUDGET.

I GET A LITTLE BIT MIXED UP OF WHERE WE'RE AT IN THE, IN THE FISCAL YEARS, UH, WITH THE CERTAINLY TRYING TO KEEP OUR COMMITMENT, TO SEE WHAT OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS CAN, COULD BE INCLUDED IN THE, IN THE BUDGET, UH, UPCOMING.

AND SO THOSE GROUPS WORKED THROUGH EACH OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS.

UH, WE, WE MADE AN EFFORT TO REACH OUT TO THE CHAIRS OF EACH OF THE DIFFERENT TASKFORCE, UM, MEMBERS WHO LED THE DIFFERENT, I THINK THERE WERE SEVEN OR EIGHT OF THESE, UM, AREAS FOR CONSIDERATION TO MAKE SURE THAT WE UNDERSTOOD WHAT THE RECOMMENDATIONS WERE AND FOR ANY CLARIFICATIONS THAT THE WORK GROUP MIGHT NEED IN ORDER TO PARSE THROUGH EACH OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND COME UP WITH SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS THEN TO THE CITY MANAGER FOR WHAT MIGHT BE INCORPORATED IN THE BUDGET, UH, IN A MOMENT I'LL PASS IT OVER TO WILL, WHO WILL THEN TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT WE WERE ABLE TO, UM, UH, PROVIDE IN THE FISCAL YEAR 22 BUDGET.

BUT I'D LIKE TO SAY THAT NOW THAT THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE MADE YOU'LL KNOW THAT, UM, THERE'S A DASHBOARD THAT PROVIDES, UH, UH, STATUS OF EACH OF THOSE DIFFERENT RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE REIMAGINING PUBLIC SAFETY TASK FORCE.

UH, AS WELL AS, UM, THERE WAS A PAUSE ESSENTIALLY AFTER THE BUDGET PROCESS WAS COMPLETED FOR TWO REASONS, ONE TO SEE WHAT MIGHT GO FORWARD, UM, IN THAT BUDGET PROCESS.

AND TWO, WE REALLY NEEDED TO HAVE, UM, THE PERMANENT POLICE CHIEF IN PLACE SO THAT WE COULD, THAT PERSON COULD MOVE FORWARD WITH ITS SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, THAT WERE APPLICABLE TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, OBVIOUSLY THAT, UH, THAT CONFIRMATION HAS BEEN MADE.

AND, UH, CERTAINLY VERY PLEASED AND HONORED TO HAVE, UH, CHIEF JOSEPH, JACK COHEN AS OUR PERMANENT POLICE CHIEF TO TAKE US FORWARD IN THAT REGARD.

NOW WITH THAT IN PLACE, UH, WE HAVE RESTARTED OUR REIMAGINING PUBLIC SAFETY, CORE LEADERSHIP TEAM MEETINGS TO INCLUDE, UM, POLICE DEPARTMENT, AS WELL AS OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT MIGHT HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY IN HOW WE MIGHT DELIVER PUBLIC SAFETY, UM, SERVICES DIFFERENTLY TO INCLUDE OSTIA CODE DEPARTMENT, PUBLIC HEALTH, EMS, UH, PARKS, AND SO FORTH.

AGAIN, THOSE ARE THE CORE TEAM MEMBERS THAT ALSO INCLUDING POLICE OVERSIGHT AS WELL AS THE EQUITY OFFICE.

AND SO WE'VE RESTARTED THOSE MEETINGS FROM A LEADERSHIP PERSPECTIVE AND ARE NOW, UH, PRIORITIZING PARTICULARLY SPECIFICALLY FOCUSED ON THE POLICE SIDE AND THE LEADERSHIP OF CHIEF JEFF COHEN, THOSE ITEMS, AS WELL AS, UH, MYSELF AND, UM, THE DIRECTOR OF FARRAH MUSCADET ON THE NON-POLICE RELATED ITEMS TO SEE HOW WE MIGHT PRIORITIZE AND DRIVE, UH, PROGRESS IN .

SO THAT'S THE UPDATE, UH, IN TERMS OF WHERE WE'RE AT FROM A RE-IMAGINING PUBLIC SAFETY PERSPECTIVE.

AND PERHAPS WHAT I COULD DO IS I'LL TURN IT OVER TO WIL NIXON FOR AN UPDATE ON THE BUDGET, AND THEN WE CAN COME BACK FOR QUESTIONS AND LIKE, UNLESS YOU'D LIKE TO HAVE QUESTIONS NOW, CHAIR, SO WELL, IF YOU'D LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND, UH, TAKE IT AWAY.

THANK YOU, AC MARIANO.

AND, UH, THANK YOU, CHAIRING COMMISSION FOR HAVING ME I'M WILL.

AND I, UH, WORK IN THE FINANCIAL SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND THE OFFICE OF THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, AND I'VE BEEN THE, UH, THE FINANCE AND BUDGET LEAD ON REIMAGINING PUBLIC SAFETY FOR THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF.