[00:00:01]
6 0 6.[CALL MEETING TO ORDER]
GOOD EVENING COMMISSION.I AM VICE CHAIR OF THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION, UH, COMMISSION, UH, THE CHAIR LEWIS STONE IS, UH, OUT, UM, WITH A FAMILY EMERGENCY.
WE SHOULD KEEP HIM IN OUR THOUGHTS.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO, UM, MOVE TO THE CALL, THE MEETING TO ORDER AT ABOUT 6 0 7.
UH, AND THE FIRST ITEM IS PUBLIC COMMUNICATION.
I HAVE ONE PERSON OFFICIALLY SIGNED UP, AND THAT WOULD BE CYRUS REED.
UH, HE, UH, CYRUS WAS ON THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION FOR MANY YEARS.
UM, I DON'T INTEND TO SING TONIGHT, BUT JUST SAY A FEW WORDS.
I WORK WITH THE LONE STAR CHAPTER OF THE SIERRA CLUB, BUT I'M ALSO A MEMBER OF THE ELECTRIC UTILITY COMMISSION.
UH, AND JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU A BRIEF UPDATE OF SOMETHING HAPPENING AT THE E U C THAT YOU'RE, YOU GUYS ARE GONNA BE ADDRESSING TONIGHT.
IF YOU REMEMBER, UH, OR YOU MIGHT REMEMBER, OR YOU MIGHT NOT.
BACK IN MARCH OF 2020, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL PASSED THE NEWEST UPDATED RESOURCE PLAN FOR AUSTIN ENERGY.
AND THAT PLAN CALLED FOR THE PLAN TO BE REVIEWED EVERY FIVE YEARS, UNLESS THERE WERE MAJOR CHANGES IN DECEMBER OF LAST YEAR.
THE CITY COUNCIL SAID YES, THERE HAVE BEEN A LOT OF CHANGES.
WE HAVE THE NEW FEDERAL FUNDING FROM THE I I J AND THE I R A.
WE HAVE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE ERCOT MARKET, AND WE HAVE THE FACT THAT WE WERE UNABLE TO REACH AN AGREEMENT WITH L C R A TO ABLE TO CLOSE, UH, THE, A PORTION OF THE FAYETTE COAL PLANT.
SO THEY ORDERED US THE E U C AND AUSTIN ENERGY TO DO AN UPDATE TO THAT PLAN.
UH, AND AUSTIN ENERGY HAS A PROCESS THEY'RE GOING THROUGH IN TERMS OF COMING UP WITH AMENDMENTS TO THAT RESOURCE PLAN.
UH, BUT BECAUSE THE CITY COUNCIL TOLD US WE SHOULD FORM A WORKING GROUP AND BRING OTHER STAKEHOLDERS, THAT UC DID PASS A RESOLUTION LAST MONTH, UH, SAYING WE WOULD LIKE MEMBERS OF THE R M C TO JOIN US IN A WORKING GROUP.
AND SO I'M HERE TO DELIVER THE MESSAGE THAT WE WANT YOU TO PARTICIPATE WITH US AND SOME OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS ON A RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, UH, WORKING GROUP.
UM, IN OUR INITIAL, UH, RESOLUTION, WE CALLED FOR THREE MEMBERS.
BUT I'M HERE TO TELL YOU TONIGHT, UH, IF YOU'VE GOT MORE THAN THREE PEOPLE, OBVIOUSLY NOT MORE THAN FIVE, BECAUSE THAT WOULD CONSTITUTE A QUORUM, BUT IF YOU HAVE UP TO FIVE PEOPLE THAT WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE WITH US, UH, WE WOULD HONOR THAT AND LIKE TO HAVE YOU.
UM, WE PROBABLY WOULD NOT START THOSE MEETINGS UNTIL SEPTEMBER BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA NEED SOME TIME TO GET THE FOLKS TOGETHER AND FIND A, A TIME TO MEET.
WE'D, WE WOULD MOST LIKELY WORK WITH AUSTIN ENERGY TO FIND A ROOM, ONE OF THESE ROOMS HERE, TO HAVE THOSE MEETINGS WHEN THEY WOULD BE, I DON'T KNOW, WOULD WE MEET ONCE A MONTH OR TWICE A MONTH? I DON'T KNOW.
UH, BUT I'M JUST HERE TO ASK FOR YOU GUYS TO FIND FIVE WILLING UP TO FIVE WILLING MEMBERS TO JOIN US ON THE WORKING GROUP TO LOOK AT UPDATES TO THE RESOURCE PLAN.
AND HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS IF YOU HAVE ANY.
AND IF I LEAVE, IT'S NOT BECAUSE I DON'T LIKE YOU, IT'S 'CAUSE I HAVE TO PICK A DAUGHTER UP AT THE MCCALLUM HIGH SCHOOL BAND PRACTICE.
UH, BEFORE WE GO TO OUR SECOND ITEM, I WOULD LIKE
[Additional Item]
TO, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, OUR ALMOST NEW COMMISSIONER, UH, ALLISON, WOULD YOU LIKE TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND SAY A FEW WORDS? UH, YOU'LL BE AT OUR NEXT MEETING.YOU'LL BE SWORN IN OUR NEXT MEETING.
I'M AN INDEPENDENT CONSULTANT HERE IN AUSTIN, AND I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON, IN THE ELECTRIC INDUSTRY AND AS AN ELECTRIC REGULATOR FOR OH, A LOT OF DECADES NOW.
AND, UM, I JUST RECENTLY MOVED TO AUSTIN A COUPLE YEARS AGO AND I'M HONORED TO BE INVITED TO JOIN THIS COMMISSION.
SO I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH ALL OF YOU.
ANYTHING ELSE? YOU ARE MUCH TOO MODEST IN YOUR RESUME, BUT I SAID NOTHING ABOUT RESUME, BUT
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THAT'S WHAT, BUT WOULD YOU LIKE SOMETHING? WELL, I RECALL THAT YOU USED TO WORK FOR THE FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION.AND, AND I, I SPENT, UM, FIVE YEARS AS A CONSULTANT IN DC ON ENERGY AND AIR QUALITY ISSUES IN THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR, 10 YEARS AT PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC.
AND THEN ANOTHER ONE IN 2020 AS, UM, OH GOSH, WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS IN P S P WILDFIRE AND P SS P S PREPAREDNESS COORDINATOR, WHICH WAS A PRETTY GOOD TIME.
IN 2020, I WORKED AT THE PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION OF TEXAS FOR SIX YEARS AS AN ADVISOR TO CHAIRMAN PAT WOOD.
WHEN WE DID THE RESTRUCTURING OF THE ELECTRIC AND TELECOM INDUSTRIES.
I WORKED THREE YEARS AT THE FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION AS ADVISOR TO CHAIRMAN PAT WOOD WHEN WE DID, UM, A WHOLE BUNCH OF STUFF, INCLUDING I LED THE INVESTIGATION OF THE 2000 APRIL, AUGUST 14TH, 2003 BLACKOUT INVESTIGATION.
SO HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO THOSE OF YOU WHO WERE BLACKED OUT 20 YEARS AGO.
TODAY ON THE EAST COAST, I HAVE BEEN AN INDEPENDENT CONSULTANT BACK HERE IN TEXAS SINCE 2004.
I HAVE BEEN SERVED FOR 10 PLUS YEARS ON THE BOARD OF THE AMERICAN COUNCIL FOR ENERGY EFFICIENT ECONOMY, WORK ON A TON OF ELECTRIC RELIABILITY ISSUES, UM, CLEAN ENERGY, ENERGY EFFICIENCY, DEMAND SIDE.
AND SINCE WINTER STORM URI, I HAVE BEEN, UM, ALL TEXAS ISSUES ALL THE TIME AND PUTTING IN WAY MORE TIME THAN I'M COMFORTABLE WITH AS, AS ONE OF THE PUNDITS WHO TRIES TO EXPLAIN STUFF IN THE PRESS TO REPORTERS AND OTHERS.
SO, UM, SO I'M HOPING THIS IS A LOT MORE CALM THAN A LOT OF THE OTHER WORK THAT I DO.
AND I LOOK FORWARD TO, TO, TO, TO BEING PART OF THIS TEAM.
[1. Approve the minutes of the Resource Management Commission Regular Meeting on July 18, 2023.]
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE JULY 18TH, 2023 MEETING.UM, DO I HEAR A MOTION TO APPROVE? MOVE TO APPROVE? DO I HEAR A SECOND? SECOND.
UM, THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ATTENDING REMOTELY, YOU'LL, UH, HAVE TO TURN ON YOUR CAMERA, UH, TO SHOW THAT YOU'RE RAISING YOUR HAND.
SAY, UH, RAISE YOUR HAND AND SAY AYE.
UH, IS THERE A SIXTH PERSON? YEAH, JANELLE SAID I, BUT SHE DIDN'T COME OFF, SO I DUNNO IF SHE'S HAVING TECHNICAL ISSUES.
CAN YOU, UH, PLEASE CONTACT HER? I MEAN, I MEAN, WE HAVE TO COMMISSIONER GARY, CAN YOU COME OFF OF, UM, CAN YOU COME ON VIDEO PLEASE? SO, I CANNOT, BECAUSE I'M TRAVELING, BUT I DID VOTE, VOTE.
UM, ONCE I GET IN PLACE, I WILL COME OFF VIDEO.
WE HAD, WE DEALT THIS LAST NIGHT TOO.
CAN, CAN YOU HEAR US? UH, YEAH, I CAN.
WE JUST MOVED FOR APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.
UH, IF YOU ARE FOR THIS, COULD YOU PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND? OKAY.
UM, I'M GONNA SHIFT THE, UH, AGENDA AROUND TO TRY AND GET A COUPLE ITEMS OUT OF THE WAY, HOPEFULLY QUICKLY.
[5. Recommend approving the acceptance of a Clean Energy Innovation Fellowship position hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy and administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Technology to support equity research and development of key equity performance measures for energy efficiency programs at Austin Energy.]
BE ITEM FIVE, THE TWO FOR THE COMMISSION TO RECOMMEND APPROVING THE ACCEPTANCE OF A CLEAN ENERGY INNOVATION FELLOWSHIP POSITION HOSTED BY THE US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, ADMINISTERED BY OAK RIDGE, THE OAK RIDGE INSTITUTE FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TO SUPPORT EQUITY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF KEY EQUITY PERFORMANCE MEASURES FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAMS AT AUSTIN ENERGY.UM, DOES STAFF HAVE ANY KIND OF PRESENTATION? WOULD
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STAFF LIKE TO SPEAK TO THIS VERY BRIEFLY OR AS LONG AS YOU WOULD LIKE? UH, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS.RICHARD GENESEE, VICE PRESIDENT OF CUSTOMER ENERGY SOLUTIONS.
THIS IS A, UH, FELLOWSHIP POSITION THAT IS PAID FOR ENTIRELY BY THE GRANT.
IT'S A YEAR, IT CAN BE RENEWED FOR UP TO A YEAR AFTERWARDS.
AND AS YOU READ IN THE DESCRIPTION, IT IS TO HELP US WORK ON EQUITY ACROSS THE PORTFOLIO, INCLUDING WRITING PORTIONS OF OTHER GRANT PROPOSALS THAT WE WILL SUBMIT FOR.
HAVE YOU ALREADY HIRED THIS PERSON? NO.
UH, THE FINALISTS GET PRESENTED TO US AFTER THEY'VE ALREADY CLEARED OAK RIDGE, AND THEN WE WOULD SELECT FROM THE FINALISTS.
WILL THEY BE LOCAL OR NATIONAL? I MEAN, DO THEY, WILL THEY LIVE HERE OR? YEAH, THEY'LL, THEY'LL BE HERE, UM, WORKING FOR AT LEAST THE YEAR.
AND THEN WE SHALL SEE WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THAT.
WILL THEY COME TO LIVE HERE FROM ANOTHER PLACE? I GUESS THAT DEPENDS ON THE APPLICANTS, BUT YES, I WOULD IMAGINE THAT THEY WOULD COME TO LIVE AND WORK HERE, AT LEAST DURING THE PERIOD OF THE FELLOWSHIP.
UM, DO ANY OF THE COMMISSIONERS HAVE COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? I HAVE A QUICK QUESTION.
DO I NEED TO BE GO AHEAD, RECOGNIZED.
UM, CAN, CAN YOU JUST REMIND ME ON LIKE WHY WE ARE GETTING TO OPINE ON THIS? 'CAUSE 'CAUSE IT'S SOUND, IT SOUNDS LIKE IT'S PAID FOR BY SOMEONE ELSE AND IT'S, SO HOW, WHAT, WHAT IS OUR, LIKE, HOW, HOW IS THE, THE, THE COMMISSION, I'M, I'M FAIRLY NEW, BUT HOW DOES THE COMMISSION INTERACT WITH THIS POSITION? AND LIKE, WHAT, WHY, WHY ARE WE KIND OF A, A, A, A PROVING BODY? UH, I WOULD, I WOULD ANSWER THAT AS BECAUSE OF THE IMPORTANCE OF EQUITY IN THE PORTFOLIO AND WHAT'S CALLED FOR IN THE RESOURCE AND GENERATION PLAN IN TERMS OF EQUITABLE ACCESS TO C E S, UH, AND AUSTIN ENERGY PROGRAMS IN THE PORTFOLIO.
SO BECAUSE WE ARE, UH, HIRING A FELLOW THAT IS GOING TO WORK ON THESE ISSUES WITH US, UM, AND BECAUSE THE ENTIRE C E S PORTFOLIO IS, UM, UNDER, YOU KNOW, IS WORKED ON BY THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION, UM, THAT'S WHY I THINK THIS IS BOUGHT BEFORE THE COMMISSION FOR APPROVAL.
UM, ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR, UH, COMMISSIONER DAVIS.
CAN, CAN YOU GIVE US A SENSE OF WHAT SORT OF KPIS THIS POSITION WOULD HAVE, AS WELL AS WHAT IS, I GUESS, UM, YOU KNOW, KNOWING THAT EQUITY IS VERY IMPORTANT IN THE PORTFOLIO, UM, I'M CURIOUS WHY THIS IS A ONE YEAR FELLOWSHIP AND AS OPPOSED TO A, AN ONGOING F T E.
WELL, JUST THE SECOND PART, FIRST, I MEAN, I THINK IT WOULD BE OUR HOPE THAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO CONVERT IT TO AN ONGOING F T E AFTER ITS SUCCESS.
AND AS FAR AS THE FIRST PART OF YOUR QUESTION, IN TERMS OF THE KPIS, I THINK INITIALLY THIS WILL BE PROJECT WORK.
I MEAN, ONE OF THE PROJECTS THAT, UH, COMES TO MIND IS, UH, HOW WE ARE MEASURING EQUITY, UH, THROUGHOUT THE PORTFOLIO.
SO, YOU KNOW, USING, UH, LEADING WITH RACE, WHICH IS HOW THE CITY DEFINES, UH, YOU KNOW, UM, EQUITY.
ARE WE DOING THAT IN OUR PROGRAMS? ARE WE TRACKING THAT DATA? AND IF NOT, HOW ARE WE GOING TO START TO MEASURE THAT DATA ACROSS OUR PROGRAMS? UM, SO THERE, IT'S NOT REALLY THOSE SET KPIS, IT'S MORE PROJECTS ASSOCIATED WITH SUPPORTING THE OBJECTIVES OF EQUITABLE, UH, ACCESS TO OUR PROGRAMS. MM-HMM.
CAN YOU HEAR ME? OH, PLEASE, PLEASE.
UH, THANKS FOR, UH, FOR THIS AND, UM, UH, DEFINITELY EXCITED FOR, UH, THIS POSITION BEING CREATED.
UH, DEFINITELY WANT TO ECHO, UM, WHAT COMMISSIONER DAVIS WAS SAYING OF, OF, UM, IN ORDER TO BE PRACTICING OR CENTERING EQUITY STRUCTURALLY AND HOW THIS POSITION OR THIS WORK IS CARRIED OUT, DEFINITELY LONG TERM, THE THE GOAL OR INTENT NEEDS TO BE TO CONVERT THIS TO AN F T E AND THAT, UH, INTENT SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
I KNOW THIS IS, WE'RE TALKING POTENTIALLY TWO YEARS FROM NOW, BUT JUST WANT TO GET THAT, UH, ON THE RECORD NOW.
[00:15:01]
AND I SAY THAT TOO, UH, BECAUSE I SPEAK FROM EXPERIENCE, UH, IN SEEING SOME OTHER DEPARTMENTS WHERE THEY, UH, HIRED FOR A POSITION LIKE THIS IN EQUITY, UH, AND OR COMMUNITY, UM, POSITION, A COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT POSITION TRYING TO RECTIFY BARRIERS TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.ALSO IN THE EQUITY, IN THE PURSUIT OF EQUITY.
UM, AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS, EITHER THEIR LEADERSHIP FAILED TO UNDERSTAND OR ACKNOWLEDGE THE, THE BENEFIT OF, OF TURNING THAT WORK INTO, OR, OR CREATING A FULL-TIME EMPLOYEE POSITION FOR THAT WORK.
AND THEY JUST KEPT IT AS A CONTRACTOR.
AND THAT REALLY, UM, HARMS THE EQUITY WORK.
I'VE SEEN THAT FIRSTHAND IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS IN THE CITY.
UM, AND OTHER TIMES IT'S JUST BEEN KIND OF A, UH, STRUCTURAL ISSUES ADDING UP WHERE MAYBE A DEPARTMENT OFFICE WANTED TO BUT THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE FUNDING OR THEY DIDN'T GET IN A BUDGET REQUEST EARLY ENOUGH OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
SO I JUST WANTED TO FLAG THAT WE, I'VE DEFINITELY SEEN THIS IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND IT'S, IT'S BEEN A BIG PROBLEM THAT EQUITY STAFF HAVE ROUTINELY BEEN SORT OF RELEGATED TO BEING CONTRACTORS.
UH, SO HOPEFULLY THAT'S, UH, NOT THE CASE OVER THE NEXT, UH, YEAR OR TWO WITH THIS POSITION.
UH, AND THEN SECONDARILY, I WANTED TO ADD THAT, UH, IN ORDER TO REALLY CENTER EQUITY IN THIS KIND OF WORK, UH, FOR PARTICULARLY A PUBLIC BODY, THE, I, YOU KNOW, I CANNOT, UH, EMPHASIZE ENOUGH THAT ONE GOAL SHOULD BE, IF POSSIBLE, TO HIRE LOCALLY.
SO HIRING SOMEBODY WHO ALREADY LIVES IN AUSTIN OR THE CENTRAL TEXAS AREA, UH, AND HE ALREADY, WHO HAS CONNECTIONS TO THIS COMMUNITY, I THINK IT'S OFTENTIMES, UH, EVEN A, A STELLAR CANDIDATE BRING BEING BROUGHT IN FROM OUT OF TOWN, OR ESPECIALLY OUT OF STATE, ACTUALLY CAUSES MORE HARM THAN GOOD.
UH, SO I JUST WANTED TO, TO, TO EXPLICITLY STATE THAT AS WELL.
BUT I'M EXCITED FOR THIS POSITION.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM COMMISSIONERS? UM, I HAVE A COUPLE, BUT I'LL TRY TO BE BRIEF.
UH, ONE I WOULD ECHO, UH, COMMISSIONER JOHNSON'S CONCERN THAT MAYBE THIS SHOULD BE HIRED MORE LOCAL THAN OUT OF STATE.
UH, THEY WOULD BE MORE LIKELY TO BE ABLE TO HIT THE GROUND RUNNING.
THAT'S MY OWN INFORMED OPINION.
THE OTHER THING THAT, UM, I GUESS BOTHERS ME A LITTLE, UM, AND I, I INTEND TO VOTE FOR THIS, BUT I, I AM, I'M JUST PUZZLED THAT IF THIS IS HOUSED IN AUSTIN ENERGY, THERE WOULD BE A SUBTLE PRESSURE FOR THE, UM, THE PERSON HERE, UH, TO NOT CRITICIZE AUSTIN ENERGY.
UH, AND NO, RICHARD, YOU MAY NOT DO IT AND YOUR GOOD STAFF HERE MAY NOT DO IT.
THAT MAY NOT STOP PEOPLE THAT ARE INFLUENTIAL IN OTHER PARTS OF THE DEPARTMENT FROM DOING IT.
ANYBODY WHO IS AWARE OF AUSTIN ENERGY'S POLITICS FOR THE LAST, UH, 10 YEARS KNOWS THAT I HAVE BEEN OBST EXTRA CRITICAL OF THE CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, THE CITY'S ONE OF THE CITY'S FLAGSHIP EQUITY PROGRAMS BECAUSE IT'S GIVING SOME OF ITS MONEY TO THE WRONG PEOPLE.
AND I DON'T KNOW THAT SOME PEOPLE, UH, AT AUSTIN ENERGY WOULD LIKE TO HEAR THAT CRITICISM.
AND WITH THAT, I WILL MOVE APPROVAL.
UH, THANK YOU, UH, COMMISSIONER ROBBINS AND THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS.
SECOND, UH, I WOULD LIKE EVERYBODY TO THAT, THAT IS SUPPORTIVE OF THIS TO RAISE THEIR HAND AND SAY, AYE.
IS IT OKAY WITH COMMISSIONER GARY? AYE.
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IT'S SIX TO ZERO ON.[7. Update and Discussion from the Electric Utility Commission’s Resource Planning Working Group. (Sponsors: Davis, Robbins, and Johnson)]
LET'S SEE IF WE CAN DO THIS IN ONE MINUTE.CYRUS REED WAS JUST HERE SAYING THAT WE CAN PUT ON AS MANY AS FIVE PEOPLE, AND THERE WERE FOUR PEOPLE.
AMY EVERHART OF AUSTIN ENERGY INFORMS ME THAT WE REALLY DON'T NEED A RESOLUTION.
SO THE PEOPLE THAT WILL BE ON THIS WORKING GROUP FROM THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION WILL BE THE CHARMING KATE BRIN TO THE RIGHT OF ME.
UH, COMMISSIONER KARA GOTTI, UH, COMMISSIONER GARY AND MYSELF.
UH, GIVEN THAT THE INVITATION WAS FOR UP TO FIVE, YES.
ARE THERE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMISSION MEMBERS, COMMISSIONERS WHO WOULD LIKE TO JOIN THE WORKING GROUP? JUST WANTED TO BE THOROUGH AND ASK, THESE WERE THE PEOPLE THAT HAD EXPRESSED INTEREST AT THE LAST MEETING, AND THAT'S WHY I WENT WITH THOSE.
UH, I DON'T HEAR ANYBODY ELSE.
SO WITH THAT, WE WILL MOVE ON TO OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAM.
[2. Staff briefing regarding the Austin Energy Green Building Residential Rating Updates by Heidi Kasper, Interim Green Building & Sustainability Manager with Austin Energy.]
STAFF BRIEFING TONIGHT ON THE AUSTIN ENERGY GREEN BUILDING RESIDENTIAL RATING UPDATES WITH HEIDI CASPER, UH, WHO IS, UH, YOU ARE, COULD YOU TELL US A, WHAT YOUR OFFICIAL TITLE IS? I KNOW YOU'RE THE MANAGER OF THE GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM, BUT YOU MAY HAVE SOME OTHER TITLE.UH, INTERIM GREEN BUILDING AND SUSTAINABILITY MANAGER.
UM, SO COMMISSIONERS, AS PAUL SAID, I AM THE INTERIM GREEN BUILDING SUSTAINABILITY MANAGER, AND I'M HERE TONIGHT TO GIVE YOU A BRIEFING ON THE RECENT UPDATES TO THE AUSTIN ENERGY GREEN BUILDING RESIDENTIAL RATINGS.
SINCE SOME OF YOU ARE NEW, I THOUGHT I'D START WITH A VERY BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE RATINGS THEMSELVES AND THEN GET INTO THE SPECIFIC UPDATES FROM THERE.
THE RATINGS ARE A TOOL THAT SUPPORT A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT CITY SUSTAINABILITY GOALS, SUCH AS THOSE IN THE RESOURCE GENERATION PLAN, WATER FORWARD, THE ZERO WASTE PLAN, AND THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN TO NAME JUST A FEW.
WE ALSO USE THE RATINGS IN COMBINATION WITH OUR EDUCATIONAL OFFERINGS TO SUPPORT OTHER CITY GOALS, UM, AROUND THINGS LIKE QUALITY OF LIFE, SUCH AS PROMOTING HEALTHIER INDOOR AND OUTDOOR ENVIRONMENTS.
THE RATINGS HAVE A BROAD IMPACT.
UH, 20 TO 30% OF NEW CONSTRUCTION IN AUSTIN EARNS AN AUSTIN ENERGY GREEN BUILDING RATING.
THIS INCLUDES ALL PROJECTS PARTICIPATING IN THE CITY'S SMART HOUSING PROGRAM, WHICH IS AN AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROGRAM.
AND A NUMBER OF ZONING AGREEMENTS INCLUDE GREEN BUILDING PARTICIPATION.
THERE ARE NO DIRECT FINANCIAL INCENTIVES FOR EARNING A RATING.
WE HAVE RATINGS FOR THREE MARKETS, SINGLE FAMILY, MULTIFAMILY, AND COMMERCIAL.
WE APPLY THE MULTIFAMILY RATING TO LOW AND MID-RISE MULTIFAMILY, HIGH-RISE MULTIFAMILY USES THE COMMERCIAL RATING AND THE RATING UPDATES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT HERE TONIGHT ARE SPECIFICALLY FOR SINGLE FAMILY AND MULTIFAMILY COMMERCIAL UPDATED THEIR RATING ABOUT A YEAR AGO.
SO WHY AN UPDATE? NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
THE LAST TIME WE DID A FULL UPDATE TO THE SINGLE FAMILY MULTIFAMILY RATINGS WAS BACK IN 2020.
WE FEEL AN UPDATE WAS NEEDED AT THIS TIME TO BETTER ALIGN THE RATING TO GOALS IN THE CITY'S CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN THAT WAS ADOPTED IN 2021.
2021 CODE CHANGES AND SOME FEDERAL CHANGES AT THE, UM, AT THAT LEVEL, UH, PARTICULARLY AROUND THINGS LIKE HVAC STANDARDS.
WE'RE ALSO INCORPORATING THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE R M C WORKING GROUP ON HEALTHY MATERIALS IN THIS VERSION.
WE ISSUED FIRST DRAFTS THE UPDATED GUIDEBOOKS TO SPEAK UP AUSTIN, AND SENT NOTICE TO APPROXIMATELY 170 INTERESTED STAKEHOLDERS ON FEBRUARY 20TH.
UM, STAKEHOLDERS INCLUDE ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS, CITY DEPARTMENTS, AS WELL AS BUILDING PROFESSIONALS THAT USED THE RATING.
WE CLOSED THE STAKEHOLDER PERIOD IN LATE MARCH, AND WE HELD A HYBRID STAKEHOLDER MEETING IN EARLY MAY ISSUED A SECOND DRAFT AT THAT TIME WITH ANOTHER PUBLIC STAKEHOLDER COMMENT PERIOD.
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AUGUST 1ST, WE ISSUED A FINAL DRAFT TO SPEAK UP AUSTIN.WE'VE ALSO INCLUDED THE COMMENTS RECEIVED AND THE WAY THAT WE RESPONDED TO THEM ON THE SPEAK UP AUSTIN SITE.
WE ARE NOW IN THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE ONLINE RATING TOOL AND ALL THE ASSOCIATED, UM, FORMS AND THINGS AROUND THAT WITH A GOAL TO ADOPT THE RATINGS BY OCTOBER 1ST AND HAVE IT GO INTO EFFECT.
THEN I'LL NOW GET INTO THE ACTUAL RATING UPDATES.
SO, IN THE SINGLE FAMILY RATING, WE UM, HAVE THE SINGLE FAMILY RATINGS COMPRISED OF A SERIES OF BASIC REQUIREMENTS THAT ALL PROJECTS HAVE TO ACHIEVE.
IF YOU ACHIEVE ALL OF THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS YOU EARN, A ONE STAR PROJECTS CAN EARN UP TO FIVE STARS BY SELECTING POINTS FROM A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT MEASURE CATEGORIES THAT YOU SEE HERE ON THE SLIDE.
YOU'LL ALSO HEAR ME REFER TO SOMETHING CALLED A STAR LEVEL REQUIREMENT.
THERE ARE CERTAIN POINTS WITHIN THE RATING STRUCTURE THAT WE'VE DESIGNATED AS REQUIRED FOR EARNING A PARTICULAR STAR LEVEL.
UM, SO TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE, IN ORDER TO EARN A THREE STAR RATING, YOU WOULD NEED TO MEET ALL OF THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS, ALL OF THE TWO AND THREE STAR LEVEL REQUIRED MEASURES, AS WELL AS THE SUFFICIENT NUMBER OF POINTS.
ONE OF THE CHANGES IS AFTER LOOKING AT THE NEW POINTS ADDED, WE ARE RAISING THE NUMBER OF POINTS REQUIRED FOR EACH STAR LEVEL BY FIVE POINTS.
UM, SOME CHANGES TO THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS.
THE PERCENT BETTER THAN CODE THAT MUST BE DEMONSTRATED, IT'S BEEN INCREASED TO 8%.
THIS IS DONE THROUGH A CODE COMPLIANCE CALCULATOR DEVELOPED BY TEXAS A AND M AND TAILORED TO OUR LOCAL AUSTIN CODE.
RESIDENTIAL HVAC EFFICIENCY STANDARDS INCREASED AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL, SO WE'VE UPDATED THEM IN OUR RATING.
TO MAINTAIN AN ABOVE CODE PERFORMANCE, WE INCREASED THE GAS FURNACE MINIMUM FROM 80 A F U E TO 90.
THIS ALIGNS WITH THE ENERGY STAR REQUIREMENT FOR GAS FURNACES IN THE SOUTH.
UM, A TESTING PORT REQUIREMENT WAS ADDED BASED ON FEEDBACK FROM TESTING CONTRACTORS.
THE INDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY REQUIREMENT FOR PAINT HAS CHANGED FROM A STANDARD BASED ON V O C CONTENT TO AN EMISSION STANDARD THAT LOOKS AT THE CHEMICALS OFFGASSING FROM THE PAINT.
A PRODUCT DISCLOSURE REPORT IS GONNA BE REQUIRED TO HELP US BASELINE EMBODIED CARBON IN CURRENT CONSTRUCTION.
THIS IS TO ALLOW US TO WORK TOWARD THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN GOAL OF REDUCING EMBODIED CARBON AND NEW CONSTRUCTION BY 40%.
OTHER MINOR CHANGES INCLUDE AN IRRIGATION CONTROLLER, CHANGE BASED ON FEEDBACK FROM AUSTIN WATER, A HOME UNDER HOME OWNER EDUCATION CHECKLIST TEMPLATE THAT WE'VE INTRODUCED AND SOME CHANGES TO THE LANGUAGE AROUND ELECTRIC VEHICLE READINESS, WHICH WAS ALREADY A BASIC REQUIREMENT, BUT WE ARE ALIGNING LANGUAGE TO CODE CHANGES THAT WE THINK WILL COME IN THE 2024 I E C C.
NEXT IN THE EDUCATION AND SITE CATEGORIES, WE'VE ADDED A NEW POINT TO STRENGTHEN GREEN BUILDING PROJECT PLANNING TO BETTER COMMUNICATE GREEN BUILDING GOALS.
UH, A POINT FOR TAKING ONLINE ON-DEMAND COURSES THAT WE RECENTLY DEVELOPED, SUCH AS GREEN BUILDING FOR SITE SUPERINTENDENTS AND A LOCAL FOOD PRODUCTION AND HEALTHY FOOD ACCESS POINT INTENDED TO ALIGN WITH THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN GOAL AROUND INCREASING ONSITE FOOD PRODUCTION AND ACCESS TO HEALTHY FOOD.
IN ENERGY AND WATER, WE HAVE REVISED OUR HIGH PERFORMANCE SYSTEMS MEASURE TO REFLECT THE SPEC SPECTRUM OF TECHNOLOGY FROM TWO SPEED COMPRESSORS, V F'S, GROUND AND WATER SOURCE HEAT PUMPS.
THE WATER HEATING EFFICIENCY POINT HAS BEEN MADE A THREE STAR REQUIREMENT AND HAS BEEN ALIGNED TO ENERGY STAR VERSION FIVE.
ANY ELECTRIC RESISTANT STORAGE WATER HEATERS WILL NEED TO BE EQUIPPED WITH DEMAND RESPONSE TECHNOLOGY.
WE'VE ADDED LEAK DETECTION POINTS AND MADE INDOOR WATER CONSERVATION THINK FLUSH AND FLOW, UH, FIXTURE, UH, TO STAR REQUIREMENT.
IN THE 2023 RATING, THERE'S A GREATER EMPHASIS ON HEALTHY BUILDING MATERIALS BASED ON THE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE R M C WORKING GROUP, THE LOW EMITTING PRODUCTS HAS BEEN MADE A TWO-STAR REQUIREMENT.
THESE POINTS REWARD PROJECT TEAMS FOR CHOOSING HEALTHIER PRODUCTS, AVOIDING PRODUCTS WITH KNOWN HEALTH IMPACT CONCERNS, AND FOR CHOOSING PRODUCTS THAT HAVE HEALTH PRODUCT DECLARATIONS, WHICH HELP INCREASE THE TRANSPARENCY AROUND MATERIAL INGREDIENTS IN THE MARKET.
A RELATED MEASURE OFFERS POINT FOR RED LIST FREE PRODUCTS.
THE RED LIST IS A LIST OF PROBLEMATIC CHEMICALS FOUND IN PRODUCTS DEVELOPED BY THE LIVING BUILDING CHALLENGE.
THEY HAVE A PROGRAM THAT PRODUCT MANUFACTURERS CAN GO THROUGH TO DEMONSTRATE THAT NONE OF THOSE CHEMICALS ARE IN THEIR PRODUCT AND EARN A RED LIST FREE DESIGNATION.
[00:30:02]
UM, ACCESS TO THAT RED LIST FREE PRODUCT LIST IS AVAILABLE IN LINKEDIN, OUR RATING, AND WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT THIS WILL HELP CUSTOMERS CHOOSE HEALTHIER PRODUCTS WHILE MINIMIZING THE TIME TO DO THE RESEARCH.UM, ANOTHER NEW MEASURE WE'VE INTRODUCED IS EXTREME TEMPERATURE RESILIENCE.
THESE MEASURES EDUCATE PROJECT TEAMS ON STRATEGIES FOR KEEPING OCCUPANTS, UM, COMFORTABLE AND SAFE DURING EXTREME WEATHER ENVIRONMENTS.
SO THIS CAN BE EVERYTHING FROM A SHADING OR NATURAL VENTILATION STRATEGY TO BACKUP POWER, UM, SOLAR AND BATTERY STORAGE.
IN MATERIALS AND RESOURCES, WE HAVE NEW POINTS, UM, AROUND STRATEGIES FOR EMBODIED CARBON.
SO GOING BEYOND THE PRODUCT DISCLOSURE AND THE BASIC REQUIREMENT.
UM, THE POINTS THERE WERE PREVIOUSLY AWARDED AS INNOVATION MEASURES, BUT WERE HIGHLIGHTING THEIR IMPORTANCE IN EQUITY, WHICH IS A NEW CATEGORY FOR SINGLE FAMILY.
WE HAVE POINTS FOR DEVELOPING AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UNIVERSAL DESIGN POINTS THAT EXISTED IN OUR PREVIOUS RATING, BUT HAVE BEEN RE-HOMED IN THIS CATEGORY.
AND, UH, NEW CONSTRUCTION WORKER EQUITY POINTS THAT ARE INTENDED TO PROMOTE JOB SITE SAFETY AND FOR COMPENSATION.
OKAY, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE MULTIFAMILY RATING.
WE'VE ADDED, UM, CATEGORIES ARE THE SAME.
THE STRUCTURE IS ESSENTIALLY THE SAME, UM, BUT THE POINTS ARE TAILORED TO THE MULTIFAMILY MARKET.
WE HAVE NOT MADE ANY CHANGES TO THE POINT STRUCTURE FOR MULTIFAMILY.
WE'VE ADDED TWO NEW BASIC REQUIREMENTS.
THE FIRST IS A REQUIREMENT THAT 40% OF PARKING PROVIDED BE EV CAPABLE.
UM, EV CAPABLE MEANS PROVIDING THE RACEWAY OR CABLE PLUS SPACE IN THE PANEL THAT'S LABELED.
THIS IS ALIGNING WITH CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN GOALS AND WHAT WE BELIEVE WILL BE IN THE 2024 I E C C.
UM, WE'VE ALSO ADDED A REQUIREMENT TO TRACK AND REPORT CONCRETE QUANTITIES ON THE PROJECT, SIMILAR TO THE EMBODIED CARBON BASIC REQUIREMENT IN THE SINGLE FAMILY RATING.
AND AGAIN, DESIGNED A TO HELP US, UH, BASELINE TO THAT GOAL.
TWO OF THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS, RESIDENT RECYCLING AND CONSTRUCTION WASTE MANAGEMENT ARE NOW PART OF CITY CODES.
SO WE ARE REMOVING THEM FROM OUR BASIC REQUIREMENTS.
SO THEY WON'T BE SHOWN, BUT THEY'RE STILL REQUIRED 'CAUSE THEY'RE CODE.
IN THE ENERGY SECTION, WE'VE ADDED TWO NEW MEASURES.
ONE FOR EQUIPMENT THAT USES REFRIGERANTS WITH LOWER GLOBAL WARMING POTENTIAL, AND ONE FOR INCORPORATING STRATEGIES THAT SUPPORT DEMAND RESPONSE PROGRAMS AND IMPROVE ELECTRIC GRID SYSTEM RELIABILITY.
IN THE WATER SECTION, WE'VE ADDED A LEAK DETECTION POINT, WHICH WAS IDENTIFIED AS A PRIORITY FOR AUSTIN WATER.
NEXT, WE ALSO HAVE, UH, THAT GREATER EMPHASIS ON HEALTHY BUILDING MATERIALS, UM, FOR MULTIFAMILY AS WELL.
WE'VE ADDED NEW POINTS FOR HEALTHIER MATERIAL SELECTION.
THESE START WITH PREFERRING PRODUCTS THAT PARTICIPATE IN MATERIAL INGREDIENT TRANSPARENCY LABELING PROGRAMS, AND THEN ADDITIONAL POINTS FOR PRODUCTS THAT EARN IMPROVED HEALTH DESIGNATIONS, SUCH AS THE DECLARE, UM, LIVING BUILDING CHALLENGE.
REDLESS FREE PRODUCTS I PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED, WE HAVE A NEW POINT FOR ANTIMICROBIAL AVOIDANCE.
HERE IT IS LOOKING SIMPLY AT PRODUCTS THAT ARE MARKETED WITH CLAIMS THAT ADDED ADDED ANTIMICROBIALS ARE BENEFICIAL TO HUMAN HEALTH.
UM, AND WE ARE LINKING RESEARCH, UM, ON THIS TOPIC TO PROVIDE MORE EDUCATION AROUND THAT.
THE P V C REDUCTION POINTS WERE PREVIOUSLY IN THE MATERIALS SECTION.
WE'VE REMOVED THEM HERE TO THE HEALTH SECTION WHERE THEY ALIGN BETTER AND ADDED POINTS FOR USING H D P E PIPE FOR WASTEWATER AND IRRIGATION PIPING AS CLEANER ALTERNATIVES TO P V C.
UH, IN THE MATERIALS CATEGORY, WE'VE ADDED NEW POINTS AROUND EMBODIED CARBON REDUCTION SIMILAR TO SINGLE FAMILY.
THESE BUILD ON THAT BASIC REQUIREMENT TO LOOK AT ADDITIONAL MATERIALS BEYOND CONCRETE AND HAVE PRODUCT PROJECT TEAMS BEGIN TO LOOK FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PRODUCT DECLARATIONS AND USE THAT IN THEIR, UM, ASSESSMENT OF WHAT PRODUCTS TO USE.
WE HAVE, UM, A NEW POINT FOR PROVIDING COMPOST COLLECTION FOR RESIDENTS, AND WE'VE REMOVED THE SUSTAINABLY SOURCED MATERIALS POINT, UM, THAT REWARDED ASPECTS SUCH AS RECYCLED CONTENT IN FAVOR OF MORE HOLISTIC APPROACH.
UM, RECYCLED CONTENT CAN SOMETIMES INADVERTENTLY INTRODUCE HEALTH PROBLEMS WITH MATERIALS, SO TRYING TO LOOK AT THINGS MORE HOLISTICALLY.
IN THE SITE CATEGORY, WE'VE REMOVED POINTS AROUND ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY AND DESIRED DEVELOPMENT.
THESE HAD SOME PROBLEMATIC ASPECTS AROUND WHICH OPEN SPACES AND WHICH PARTS OF TOWN WERE BEING PRIORITIZED.
AND SO, UM, THAT FEEDBACK WAS BROUGHT UP IN THE CONTEXT OF THE COMMERCIAL RATING,
[00:35:01]
AND WE'VE, UH, ALIGNED HERE AS WELL.A NEW RESILIENCE MEASURE REWARDS MULTIFAMILY DEVELOPMENT FOR DEVELOPING STRATEGIES TO INCREASE COMMUNITY RESILIENCE BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER A DISASTER.
WE WORKED ON THE, WITH THE RESILIENCE OFFICE IN DEVELOPING THAT A NEW TREE CANOPY COVER MEASURE ALIGNS WITH THE RELATED TREE CANOPY GOAL IN THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN.
UM, I FINALLY WANNA MENTION THAT BOTH RATINGS HAVE A COMPANION INNOVATION GUIDE THAT'S UPDATED MORE FREQUENTLY THAN THE RATINGS ARE THEMSELVES.
THE INNOVATION GUIDE ALLOWS US TO REWARD SUSTAINABILITY MEASURES THAT MIGHT BE VERY PROJECT SPECIFIC, MIGHT REFLECT A TECHNOLOGY THAT IS EVOLVING, UM, OR JUST AN IDEA THAT WE HADN'T THOUGHT OF ALONG THE WAY.
SO THOSE, UM, ARE UPDATED MORE FREQUENTLY.
AND OFTENTIMES WHAT STARTED AS AN INNOVATION MEASURE LATER GETS ROLLED INTO, UM, THE MAIN BODY OF THE WRITING IN FUTURE UPDATES.
UH, FINALLY, THESE ARE REALLY LENGTHY TECHNICAL DOCUMENTS.
I HAVE NOT COVERED EVERY SINGLE CHANGE AND BOTH WRITINGS HERE TONIGHT.
I TRIED TO COVER THE MOST SIGNIFICANT, UM, AND GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THE, BOTH THE BREADTH OF THE RATINGS AND THE POLICIES THEY'RE DESIGNED TO SUPPORT.
SO AT THAT TIME, YOU CAN TAKE QUESTIONS.
COMMISSIONERS, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR, UH, MS. CASPER? I HAVE A QUICK ONE.
AM I RECOGNIZED? OH, I'M SORRY.
I NO, I, I I I'M STILL LEARNING THE PROTOCOL, SO I, I JUST DIDN'T WANNA, UM, OVER A STEP.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I, I AM ONE OF THE NEWER COMMISSIONERS AND, UM, IT'S JUST HELPFUL TO HEAR THE BACKGROUND.
ONE PROBABLY VERY OBVIOUS QUESTION, AND, UM, MAYBE EVERYONE ALREADY KNOWS THIS, BUT IF YOU COULD JUST SAY A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, I KNOW YOU MENTIONED THERE'S NO FINANCIAL INCENTIVES FOR GETTING THE RATINGS.
SO, AND, AND 20% OF HOMES DO GET THEM.
SO WHAT, WHAT IS THE RATIONALE FOR, UM, YOU KNOW, WORKING HARD TO, TO GET EXTRA POINTS AND TO, TO GET THESE ADDITIONAL RATINGS? WHY DO MOST PEOPLE DO IT? UM, THE VAST MAJORITY OF THAT PARTICIPATION COMES THROUGH THE PUD AGREEMENTS.
SO WHEN A DEVELOPER, UM, WANTS PUD ZONING AND GOES THROUGH THAT PROCESS TO GET PUD ZONING, WHICH IS, UM, SHOWING THAT THE DEVELOPMENT THAT THEY'RE PROPOSING IS BETTER THAN WHAT WOULD BE, UH, BUILT UNDER CURRENT ZONING, ONE OF THE CITY STIPULATIONS FOR ALL OF THOSE IS THAT THEY EARN GREEN BUILDING RATINGS.
THE TIER ONE PUD REQUIREMENT IS A TWO STAR GREEN BUILDING RATING, AND THEN TIER TWO RAISES THAT TO A THREE STAR GREEN BUILDING RATING.
ALSO, PROBABLY A SILLY QUESTION, BUT WHAT DOES PUD STAND FOR? I'M GONNA GET IT.
I ALWAYS GET THE, THE U WRONG PLAN.
PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT? YES.
OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM COMMISSIONERS? UH, UH, COMMISSIONER DAVIS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, JUST REALLY QUICKLY, THE, THE ENERGY PERFORMANCE ON THE SINGLE FAMILY, UM, THE MINIMUM PERCENTAGE ABOVE CODE WAS RAISED TO EIGHT FROM WHAT? SO IT ACTUALLY WAS AT 0%.
UM, NOT BECAUSE THE PROJECTS WERE ACTUALLY 0% ABOVE CODE.
THE PRESCRIPTIVE REQUIREMENTS, UM, WOULD HAVE MADE THEM GET THERE.
BUT BECAUSE WE WERE, THAT REQUIREMENT IS AROUND USING THAT TOOL THAT TEXAS A AND M DEVELOPED.
AND WHEN WE INITIALLY LAUNCHED IT, THE TOOL WASN'T ALWAYS SUPER CONSISTENT.
UM, SO UNTIL WE WERE FEELING COMFORTABLE WITH WHERE THE SCORES WERE LANDING FOR ALL HOMES AND THAT OUR CUSTOMERS WERE KNOWING HOW TO USE IT, UM, WE HAD THAT ZERO IN THERE JUST TO GET THEM TO FILL OUT THE CALCULATOR.
AT THIS POINT, IT'S BEEN IN THERE FOR A WHILE AND IT WAS TIME TO SAY YOU'VE GOTTA DEMONSTRATE IMPROVEMENT.
AND JUST, UH, WHAT IS, WHAT IS INCLUDED UNDER THAT ENERGY PERFORMANCE? IS THAT HVAC APPLIANCES? MM-HMM.
PRIMARILY THE BUILDING ENVELOPE.
AND THEN THE MAJOR SYSTEMS APPLIANCES WOULD NOT BE INCLUDED IN IT.
[00:40:01]
USUALLY IN SINGLE FAMILY, THOSE ARE, UH, NOT PROVIDED BY THE BUILDER.ARE THERE ANY OTHER, UH, COMMISSIONER BREN? HI.
I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT, UM, I KNOW THE THERESA PASSIVE HOUSE GOT A PASSIVE HOUSE RATING.
I'M CURIOUS IF THERE'S ANY RECIPROCITY WITH AUSTIN ENERGY GREEN BUILDING.
UM, LIKE FOR CERTIFICATIONS LIKE PASSIVE HOUSE AND LEAD, THERE'S CURRENTLY NOT RECIPROCITY.
UM, THAT HOME DID ALSO GET AN AUSTIN ENERGY FIVE STAR RATING.
UM, PASSIVE HOUSE ON ITS OWN DOESN'T INCLUDE ALL OF THE OTHER CATEGORIES, SO IT DOESN'T TOUCH WATER, UM, FOR INSTANCE, AND IT DOESN'T TOUCH THE SITE, UM, AND THOSE KIND OF THINGS.
SO PASSIVE HOUSE, WE'RE NOT ACTIVELY WORKING ON RECIPROCITY THERE.
UH, WE ARE HAVING CONVERSATIONS OR HAVE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH U S G B C ABOUT WHAT THE POTENTIAL MIGHT BE FOR, UM, SOME REP RECIPROCITY THERE, BUT WE'RE NOT ARRIVED AT ANYTHING AT THIS POINT.
AND ONE MORE QUESTION I WAS CURIOUS.
UM, YOU MENTIONED ADDING, UH, MORE REQUIREMENTS AROUND, OR NOT REQUIREMENTS, BUT POTENTIAL POINTS AROUND EMBODIED CARBON MM-HMM.
SO ARE YOU ENCOURAGING TEAMS TO PERFORM LIFECYCLE ASSESSMENTS, OR IS IT JUST THE E P D COLLECTION? AT THIS POINT? WE ARE ENCOURAGING AND WOULD REWARD POINTS FOR PERFORMING LIFECYCLE ASSESSMENT.
IT'S SO SPECIALIZED AND THERE'S SO FEW PEOPLE THAT ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO DO THAT AND DO THAT WELL.
UM, THAT IT'S NOT OUR PRIORITY AT THIS POINT UNTIL WE CAN BUILD UP MORE CAPACITY FOR DOING THAT WORK.
COMMISSIONERS, ARE THERE A, IS THERE A SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS? OKAY.
UM, AS I'VE WAITED TILL THE END AS CHAIR, UH, AND I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS.
FIRST, UM, IF IT WERE APPROPRIATE, I WOULD GET ON MY KNEES AND THANK YOU FOR THE, UH, ALL THE WORK THAT YOU AND STAFF.
AND, UM, I, I SHOULD, UH, ADD RICHARD GENESSEE WHO HELPED ENABLE THIS AS WELL, UH, ON THE, UH, NEW HEALTH REQUIREMENTS.
THIS IS SOMETHING I HAVE BEEN, UH, PROTESTING ABOUT FOR FOUR PLUS YEARS.
UH, I AM VERY GRATEFUL TO SEE THAT SO MUCH OF WHAT, UH, I WAS HOPING FOR HAS MADE IT INTO THIS NEW REVISED, UH, ITERATION.
UM, I, UH, DON'T WANT TO GO TOO FAR, BUT I'M GONNA GUESS THAT THIS MIGHT BE ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS OF ITS KIND IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE US.
UH, EVEN IF IT WEREN'T, I'M VERY GRATEFUL TO YOU ALL FOR, UH, DOING THIS.
UM, I MEAN, I'VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME, BUT SO HAVE YOU.
UM, NEXT I WANT TO, UM, FIRST ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM POINT SYSTEM IS, UH, VERY INVOLVED.
I WOULD SAY COMPLICATED, BUT THAT WOULD, I MEAN, IF PEOPLE WORK, THEY CAN FIGURE IT OUT, BUT THEY CAN'T NECESSARILY FIGURE IT OUT QUICKLY.
THEY HAVE TO LOOK AT THE TRADE-OFFS.
AND SO IT'S KIND OF, IT'S KIND OF FLIPPANT FOR ME OR ANYBODY TO CRITICIZE, UH, UH, YOU, YOU AND SAY, WELL, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, BY A CURSORY VIEW, YOU, YOU SHOULD DO THIS OR THAT WHEN IT REALLY TAKES A LOT OF CONSIDERATION.
HOWEVER, THE PURPOSE OF OUR COMMISSION AND ALL BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS IS TO GIVE ON RECORD INPUT.
AND THIS IS A BRIEFING AFTER THE FACT.
YES, COMMISSIONERS WERE INDEED ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE AS INDIVIDUALS IN THE, UH, IN EVERYTHING THAT LED UP TO THIS PRESENTATION IN, UH, THE VARIOUS ROUNDS OF COMMENTS AND SECOND ROUNDS AND SO FORTH.
BUT WE AS A COMMISSION HAVE NOT BEEN ALLOWED TO
[00:45:01]
COMMENT.AND AS A GRASSROOTS ACTIVIST, THIS BOTHERS ME.
NOW, THERE'S NOTHING AT THIS LATE DATE THAT'S GONNA CHANGE, BUT I AM GOING ON RECORD SAYING THAT FOR THE NEXT ROUND OF COMMERCIAL UPDATES THAT THIS COMMISSION BE GIVEN A BITE AT THE APPLE RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING, SO THAT WE CAN SAY, WELL, YOU SHOULD PUSH MORE ON THIS PART OF ENERGY, OR MORE ON THIS PART OF PASSIVE HOUSING OR CARBON REDUCTIONS, ET CETERA.
UM, I DON'T THINK I'M ASKING A LOT HERE, AND THIS IS WHAT I'M ASKING.
THE, UM, THIRD THING IS I'VE, I'VE ONLY GOT TWO MORE POINTS.
THE THIRD THING IS ABOUT WATER HEATERS.
IF I UNDERSTAND THIS BRIEFING, YOU ARE STILL ALLOWING STRIP WATER HEATING.
I DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW YOU CAN SAY GREEN BUILDING AND STRIP WATER HEATING IN THE SAME BREATH.
THIS IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL AND CONSUMER NIGHTMARE, AND YOU ALL ARE IN, WE'RE IN A POSITION TO DEMAND HEAT PUMP WATER HEATERS.
UM, HAD WE BEEN GIVEN A BITE AT THIS APPLE AT THE BEGINNING, I WOULD'VE INSISTED ON IT, AND I DID IN, IN MY OWN COMMENTS DURING THE, THE VARIOUS, UM, ROUNDS OF, UH, SOLICITATION FOR INPUT.
I DID IN FACT SAY THAT I BELIEVE AT LEAST TWICE.
FINALLY, UH, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK, UH, DO I SEE, UH, MR. KERRY OVERTON IN THE AUDIENCE? YOU DO.
UH, COULD I ASK YOU A, AN ON-RECORD QUESTION? I MEAN, IF YOU WANNA SIT THERE, THAT'S FINE.
UH, MR. OVERTON, I AM EXPRESSING MY CONCERN THAT WE KEEP ASKING MORE AND MORE OF THESE GOOD PEOPLE EVERY TIME THEY COME IN WITH A NEW ROUND OF UPDATES.
AND WE DO NOT GIVE THEM NEW STAFF.
I AM BESEECHING YOU IN THE NEXT BUDGET YEAR TO ADD NEW, UH, FIRST, LET ME, THEY DID NOT PUT ME UP TO THIS.
UH, SECOND, UH, THESE PEOPLE WORK VERY HARD AND THEY CAN'T CLONE THEMSELVES ANYMORE.
THEY, WE, WE NEED, THEY NEED MORE.
UH, MY NAME'S KERRY OVERTON, DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER, CUSTOMER CARE.
I APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT FOR THAT.
UM, I THINK, PAUL, THE ONLY THING I, A COMMISSIONER I COULD SAY THAT, UH, FOR EACH OF THE COMMISSIONERS TO THINK ABOUT IS THIS IS THE DISCUSSION THAT WE HAVE EVERY DAY.
RESOURCING IS PART OF OUR PRIMARY FOCUS AND OUR PRIORITIES AND WHAT WE DO.
UM, IT IS GREAT THAT IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, WE HAVE SO MUCH GROWTH AND SO MUCH DEMAND ON ALL OF THE PROGRAMS. THERE'S NOT ONE AREA, INCLUDING WHAT WE DO IN, UH, CUSTOMER ENERGY SOLUTIONS.
NOT ONE AREA IN OUR OPERATIONS THAT ARE NOT VYING FOR MORE FTES TO DO THE WORK THAT WE DO.
AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE, THE LEVEL OF COMMUNICATIONS, UM, THE REGULATIONS, THE REGULATORY PIECE, WHAT WE DO IN E S D, WHAT WE DO IN THE COMMUNITIES, UM, AROUND VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, WHAT WE DO IN CALL CENTERS, UM, EVERY AREA HAVE THIS THE SAME CONVERSATION.
AND SO I, I SUPPORT AND APPRECIATE WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
WE'RE GONNA ALWAYS TRY TO RIGHTSIZE OUR TEAM ON WHAT ALL THINGS CONSIDER, WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO GROW OUR PROGRAMS. AND EVERYTHING YOU'VE HEARD TONIGHT IN THESE PRESENTATIONS EVERY WEEK, YOU'RE HEARING NOTHING ABOUT GROWTH AND CHANGES INTO THE PROGRAMS. UH, BUT THAT ALSO MEANS THAT WE NOT ONLY HAVE TO ADD FTES, WE'VE GOTTA THINK ABOUT SOME OF THE PROGRAMS THAT WE WERE DOING 25, 30 YEARS AGO.
DO WE STILL HAVE TO KEEP THOSE MOVING FORWARD WITH THE SAME LEVEL OF ENERGY? SO THIS IS A BALANCING ACT THAT WE DO EVERY DAY.
SO WE, WE, WE DON'T DISAGREE WITH YOU.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR COMMENTS.
AND, UH, WITH THAT, I WILL, UH, UNLESS THERE ARE OTHER, UH, COMMENTS FROM, UH, STAFF OR THE COMMISSIONERS, I WILL MOVE FROM THIS ITEM.
[00:50:01]
THANK YOU SO MUCH.[3. Staff briefing regarding the overview of the GreenChoice Subscription Program by Tim Harvey, Customer Renewable Solutions Manager with Austin Energy.]
BRIEFING REGARDING THE GREEN CHOICE SUBSCRIPTION PROGRAM BY TIM HARVEY, CUSTOMER RENEWABLE SOLUTIONS MANAGER WITH AUSTIN ENERGY.AND, UH, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS, AGAIN, TIM HARVEY, CUSTOMER RENEWABLE SOLUTIONS MANAGER.
SO I'M GONNA TALK ABOUT THE GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM.
THIS IS JUST, UM, INFORMATIVE, UM, A LITTLE RECAP.
SO, UM, FIRST I'M GONNA TALK ABOUT THE MILESTONES AND THE DATA, THE CURRENT PROGRAM DESIGN, AND THEN WE'LL HAVE A DISCUSSION AND Q AND A AT THE END.
UM, WE, WE STARTED THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM IN 2001.
UM, AND, AND THAT WAS WITH, UM, A WIN PROJECT IN WEST TEXAS.
AND, UM, QUICKLY WON THEREAFTER.
UM, SO AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PROGRAM, WE BATCHED, UM, THE GREEN CHOICE OFFERINGS AND TO EACH PROJECT, AND SO WE WOULD GET DIFFERENT PRICING IN THOSE PROJECTS.
AND SO THE, THE COST TO THAT WE PUT FORWARD TO THE CUSTOMERS WAS DIFFERENT, UM, WITH EACH PROJECT THAT WE BATCHED TO.
UM, AND THEN IN, IN 2008, AND I HAVE OTHER SLIDES THAT'LL KIND OF DEMONSTRATE THIS, BUT IN, IN 2008 AND 2012, SO BATCH FIVE AND SIX, UM, THE PRODUCTION TAX CREDIT HAD CHANGED SOME AT THAT POINT, AND THE MARKET HAD CHANGED SOME.
AND THOSE, UM, PROJECTS CAME IN AT HIGHER PRICES.
AND SO WE, UM, INCREASED THE PRICES ACCORDINGLY, UM, TO PASS THROUGH TO CUSTOMERS.
AND WE SAW A PRETTY DRAMATIC, UM, SLIP IN SUBSCRIPTIONS FOR THOSE PROJECTS.
AT THAT POINT, WE, UM, TOOK A STEP BACK, REEVALUATED OUR APPROACH, AND, UM, WE WENT FROM A BATCHED PRICE, WHICH IS A FIXED PRICE, UM, TO A FLOATING PREMIUM, WHICH IS A, UM, INCREMENTAL ADDITION TO THE, UM, POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT FEE, SO THAT IF THE POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT GOES UP, THAT PREMIUM SITS ON TOP AND IT GOES UP AS WELL, OR, OR WITH IT.
BUT THE, THE PREMIUM AMOUNT STAYS THE SAME.
SO IT KIND OF, IT TOOK AWAY THE OPTION FOR THE CUSTOMER TO HEDGE, BUT IT ALSO, UM, ALLOWED US TO REDUCE THE COST OF THE, UM, PROGRAM PARTICIPATION SO THAT WE COULD GET MORE CUSTOMERS INTO THE PROGRAM AND SCALE IT FURTHER.
UM, AND THEN THERE, BUT WHILE WE DID THAT FOR, UM, THE COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS THAT WERE WILLING TO LOCK IN FOR FIVE YEARS, WE STILL HAD A LOCKED, A LOCKED IN PRICE THAT DIDN'T ADJUST.
AND SO IT ACTUALLY REPLACES THE P S A, UM, AND DOES ALLOW FOR AN OPPORTUNITY TO HEDGE, AND WE'LL EXPLORE THAT A BIT AS WE MOVE FORWARD IN THE PRESENTATION AS WELL.
SO HERE YOU CAN SEE A DEMONSTRATION OF THAT, UM, THOSE, THAT BATCH.
UM, AND FROM 2007 TO 2012, YOU SEE THOSE PRICES ARE PRETTY HIGH THERE.
UM, AND SO THAT'S WHERE WE SAW THAT PARTICIPATION, WAYNE.
THEN WE WENT TO THE FLOATING PREMIUM, AND YOU'LL SEE THAT, UM, THE THREE, OR ACTUALLY THE SMART SENSE, WHICH IS RESIDENTIAL AND THEN BUSINESS SENSE, UM, WHICH HAS NO COMMITMENT.
IT'S, IT'S, UM, YOU CAN GET IN AND OUT OF THAT AS A, AS A SMALL COMMERCIAL OR COMMERCIAL CUSTOMER.
UM, AND THEN YOU HAVE ENERGIZER WITH A ONE YEAR COMMITMENT.
SO ALL OF THOSE HAVE A THREEQUARTER OF A PENNY PREMIUM ON TOP OF THE P S A, WHICH IS THE GREEN LINE THERE.
UM, AND THEN THE, ON THE FAR RIGHT, YOU'LL SEE THE PATRON OFFERING, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT SOMETIMES IT WAS, YOU KNOW, HIGHER THAN OTHER TIMES OVER THE, OVER THE, UM, P S A, BUT IT WAS ALWAYS HIGHER UNTIL WE GOT TO 2023 THIS YEAR WHEN THE P S A JUMPED PRETTY DRAMATICALLY DUE TO ERCOT MARKET CHANGES.
AND, UM, AND THAT, UM, AND THE COST THAT, AND DRIVE THE P SSS A.
AND SO THEN THE P SS A JUMPED UP OVER WHAT, UM, THE PATRON OFFERING WAS.
AND AT THAT TIME, WE TOOK THE PATRON OFFERING DOWN BECAUSE THERE WOULD'VE BEEN A RUN ON THAT OFFERING.
UM, AND IT WOULD'VE COST, UM, OUR, OUR CUSTOMERS A LOT OF MONEY.
SO, UM, WE'RE CURRENTLY RESTRUCTURING THAT.
I'LL HAVE MORE, UM, UPDATES ON
[00:55:01]
THE PATRON OFFERING, UM, IN NEAR, NEAR TERM.UM, BUT FOR RIGHT NOW, THE PATRON OFFERING IS, IS TAKEN DOWN.
SO THIS IS A REPRESENTATION OF OUR CUSTOMERS.
UM, SO IF YOU LOOK ON THE LEFT, THE RESIDENTIAL IS THE DARK, UM, ORANGE, AND THE YELLOW IS COMMERCIAL.
SO, YOU KNOW, VERY FEW COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS AS, AS COMPARED TO RESIDENTIAL IS SOMEWHERE, UM, AROUND 28,000 RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS AS OPPOSED TO, UH, 338, UM, COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS.
UM, BUT THEN IF YOU LOOK OVER ON THE RIGHT SIDE, YOU'LL SEE THAT IT FLIPS WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE ENERGY CONSUMPTION.
SO THE YELLOW THERE IS SHOWING THE COMMERCIAL, AND THAT IS THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY OFF TAKING THAT THEY DO WITHIN THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM AS OPPOSED TO THE RED AND RESIDENTIAL.
SO YOU CAN SEE, UM, THE COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THEM ARE VERY, VERY LARGE, AND SO THEY MAKE UP A ABOUT 75% OF THE CONSUMPTION OF THE PROGRAM.
SO I'M NOT GONNA GO THROUGH EACH ONE OF THESE, BUT YOU, YOU GUYS CAN GO BACK AND REVIEW THESE SLIDES IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN, UM, THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS.
BUT THIS IS JUST BASED ON THE AMOUNT OF KILOWATT HOURS THAT WE HAVE, UM, ALLOCATED TO THE GREEN CHOICE SUBSCRIPTION CUSTOMERS.
AND I, AND I, I'M BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T GO INTO A LITTLE BIT OF THE STRUCTURE OF HOW GREEN CHOICE IS WORKING TO GREEN UP THAT ENERGY.
UM, SO WHEN WE, UH, PRODUCE GREEN ENERGY FROM LIKE A, A WIND FARM, UM, THERE, BECAUSE IT'S RENEWABLE ENERGY, THERE ARE RENEWABLE ENERGY CREDITS THAT ARE ASSIGNED TO THAT, AND A RENEWABLE ENERGY CREDIT IS ESSENTIALLY A GREEN ENERGY ATTRIBUTE THAT IS ASSIGNED TO THE ENERGY.
AND SO, UM, THROUGH ACCOUNTING MEASURES, YOU CAN TAKE THAT GREEN ENERGY ATTRIBUTE, BASICALLY STRIP IT FROM THE GREEN POWER AND ASSIGN IT TO OTHER BROWN POWER, WE'LL SAY TO GREEN IT UP.
UM, SO WE'RE, WE'RE TRACKING THOSE WRECKS.
UM, THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM IS PART OF THE, UM, UM, GREEN E CERTIFICATION, UM, PROGRAM.
AND SO THAT'S A THIRD PARTY THAT COMES IN.
AND D DOES PERIODIC AUDITS AND REQUIRES ANNUAL INTERNAL AUDITS FROM US TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE NOT DOUBLE COUNTING RECS AND, UM, AND THAT CUSTOMERS ARE MAKING ACCURATE CLAIMS AND THAT WE'RE GIVING CUSTOMERS ACCURATE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROGRAM AND THE RECS.
SO THERE IS A, UM, VERIFICATION THAT GOES ON IN THE BACKGROUND HERE.
SO THIS IS A LIST OF ALL OF THE BLEND ASSETS THAT WE HAVE TO DATE.
UM, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT, UH, WE ARE CURRENTLY UNDER CONTRACT FOR ALL OF THESE WITH, UM, HACKBERRY BEING THE, THE NEXT OR THE FIRST ONE TO EXPIRE.
UM, AND I THINK THAT THERE'S POTENTIAL THAT WE COULD RENEGOTIATE THAT CONTRACT.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, WE, WE CONTINUE TO ADD TO OUR PORTFOLIO OF RENEWABLE ENERGY, UM, AND GREEN CHOICE IS SPECIFICALLY TIED TO WIND CURRENTLY.
SO, UM, THE, THE ELIGIBLE CUSTOMERS, RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL, UH, FOR MOST CUSTOMERS, THE, IF YOU'RE SUBSCRIBING TO GREEN CHOICE, WE'RE COVERING 100% OF YOUR CONSUMPTION.
SO WE'RE GONNA GREEN UP EVERY KILOWATT HOUR AND TRACK THAT.
UM, THERE ARE, UM, THE HISTORICAL PATRON PROGRAM ALLOWED FOR BLOCKS OF 100,000 KILOWATTS, UM, SO THAT A COMPANY, IF THE, IF A COMPANY WAS LARGE, THEY COULD GREEN UP A PORTION OF THEIR PORTFOLIO AND MAYBE NOT, UM, ALL OF IT.
UM, SO JUST TO GIVE THEM MORE OPTIONS, UM, AND, AND MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT MORE FLEXIBLE.
SO YOU CAN SEE HERE THAT, UM, AUSTIN ENERGY'S MANAGE MANAGES THE PROGRAMS. WE PROCURE THE ENERGY THROUGH RFPS AND PPAS, UM, AND THEN THE P P A PROVIDER MAINTAINS THESE SYSTEMS. SO WE DON'T DO THE MAINTENANCE ON THESE.
SO THIS IS A REPRESENTATION OF OUR OFFERING, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT WAS WHAT THE PATRON OFFERING WAS, UM, PRIOR TO US TAKING IT DOWN AGAIN, WE'RE WORKING ON,
[01:00:01]
UH, REFORMULATING THAT OFFERING, AND WE'RE VERY CLOSE TO RELEASING WHAT THAT WILL BE.SO ANOTHER, UM, ANOTHER BENEFIT OF GREEN CHOICE IS THAT IT ALIGNS WITH LEAD RATINGS.
UM, SO IN ORDER FOR A BUILDING TO GET A CERTAIN LEAD RATING, THEY HAVE TO, UM, EITHER COMMIT TO, UM, RENEWABLE ENERGY OR HOUSE RENEWABLE ENERGY ON SITE.
UM, AND SO THIS, THIS FITS THAT CATEGORY FOR A LOT OF OUR CUSTOMERS.
UM, AND SO IT'S, IT'S, IT'S A, UM, VALUABLE PRODUCT TO THEM AND THEY CAN POTENTIALLY GO ELSEWHERE FOR THAT PRODUCT, UM, ON THE MARKET.
AND SO WE, OUR INTENT TO, UM, KEEP THEM AND WITH US, UM, FOR ALL OF THEIR ENERGY NEEDS AND PROVIDE THAT KIND OF STICKINESS WITH OUR CUSTOMERS, UM, AND TO GIVE THEM EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE AND OPTIONS AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
RECENTLY, WE, UM, HAVE PULLED OUR GREEN CHOICE CUSTOMERS, AND AS YOU CAN SEE, UM, 83% ARE, ARE VERY, UM, SATISFIED WITH, UH, THE PROGRAM ITSELF.
UM, AND, AND WE ALSO KIND OF BROKE THIS DOWN INTO, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW EASY IS IT TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS PROGRAM AND HOW LIKELY ARE YOU TO, UM, TO RECOMMEND THIS TO OTHERS? AND IT'S EXTREMELY EASY AND, AND THEY'RE VERY LIKELY, AND THAT'S WHY WE HAVE SUCH, UM, GREAT PARTICIPATION.
AND IT, IT'S WORTH NOTING THAT THIS PROGRAM HAS WON SEVERAL AWARDS OVER THE YEARS.
UM, AND 29,000 CUSTOMERS ON A PROGRAM IS, UM, PRETTY COMMENDABLE.
SO THIS KIND OF SPEAKS TO THAT THIRD PARTY, UH, CERTIFICATION, WHICH IS GREENY, AND WE DO THE GREENY RENEWABLE ENERGY CREDIT CERTIFICATION.
SO THAT ENTAILS AN ANNUAL AUDIT.
UM, AND YOU CAN SEE OVER HERE ON THE RIGHT, I'M NOT GONNA READ 'EM ALL, BUT, UM, THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT THEY LOOK AT IN THAT AUDIT TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE BEING TRUTHFUL AND, UM, UPRIGHT WITH OUR PROGRAM.
SO, RECENTLY WE'VE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO IMPROVE OUR PROGRAMS. UM, SO RECENT, MOST RECENTLY, WE'VE UPDATED THE GREEN CHOICE WEBSITE.
UM, WE'VE, UH, AUTOMATED THE WELCOME LETTERS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS TO ENSURE THEY KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE GETTING WHEN THEY, UM, ARE IN THE PROGRAM.
UM, WE'VE REVISED THE BILL TO, UM, BE MORE CLEAR.
IN THE PAST IT HAD GREEN CHOICE, UH, BY THE P S A AND ALSO GREEN CHOICE AS A LINE ITEM.
SO IT LOOKED LIKE THEY WERE BEING DOUBLE CHARGED.
UM, SO WE'VE JUST MADE THAT MORE CLEAR BY REMOVING THE GREEN CHOICE FROM THE P S A PART OF THE LINE ITEM.
'CAUSE THERE WASN'T ANY TRUE GREEN, UH, GREEN CHOICE CHARGE IN THERE.
UM, AND, UM, WE HAVE, UM, EN ENABLED SELF RETRIEVE, OR WE'RE WORKING ON ENABLING SELF RETRIEVAL OF GREEN CHOICE DOCUMENTATION.
AND I ALSO, I SHOULD SAY THAT THAT BILL REVISION WILL GO INTO EFFECT IN THE FUTURE.
UM, BUT IT IS, UM, AS I UNDERSTAND IT THROUGH THE PROCESS, AND WE CONTINUE TO DO, TO PROMOTE GREEN CHOICE THROUGH OUTREACH EVENTS AND, UM, WORK WITH THE PARTICIPANTS TO HELP INFORM THEM OF OTHER PROGRAMS, UM, AND, UM, TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO STAY WITHIN THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM.
SO THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION ON GREEN CHOICE.
ANY QUESTIONS? COMMISSIONERS? ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR MR. HARM? UH, COMMISSIONER BURIN.
HEY, THIS WAS A REALLY GREAT PRESENTATION.
UM, I HONESTLY HAD NO IDEA THAT THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM WAS REX, SO THAT'S REALLY COOL TO UNDERSTAND.
IT SOUNDS LIKE WHAT IS HAPPENING IS THAT THE CUSTOMERS ARE ABLE TO ESSENTIALLY RETIRE THE RENEWABLE NESS OF THEIR ENERGY, LIKE WITH THE CUSTOMERS THAT AN ACCURATE UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IT IS.
YEAH, WE'RE ACCOUNTING FOR ALL OF THEIR CONSUMPTION AND WE'RE RETIRING THOSE WRECKS ON THEIR BEHALF, ESSENTIALLY.
UM, SECOND QUESTION IS, I AM, I GUESS I'M NOT ABLE TO CONNECT THE DOTS BETWEEN THE INSTALLED MEGAWATT CAPACITY AND THE ANNUAL
[01:05:01]
MEGAWATT, UM, USAGE ANNUALLY.SO CAN YOU CLARIFY FOR ME IF, UM, IF SOMEBODY WANTED TO BE INVOLVED IN THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM OR IF, UM, AUSTIN WANTED TO PURCHASE MORE, UM, RENEWABLE ENERGY CAPACITY, HOW WOULD WOULD THAT WORK IN RELATION TO, SORRY, I THINK I'M GETTING LOST.
UM, HOW DOES AUSTIN DECIDE TO BUY MORE RENEWABLE ENERGY, AND IS IT, HOW IS IT RELATED TO THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM? I THINK IS MY QUESTION.
UM, TO BEGIN WITH, UM, THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM STARTED TO DRIVE OUR ADOPTION.
UM, BUT LA LATER ON, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, THE, THE, WE SAW MORE VALUE IN IT ON THE MARKET.
AND SO WE DO IT BECAUSE, UM, BECAUSE OF THE GENERATION PLAN FOR ONE, AND WE HAVE CERTAIN GOALS FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY, UM, AND ALSO AT SOMETIMES JUST BECAUSE IT'S A GREAT VALUE, UM, FOR THE UTILITY, WE WE'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO MANAGE OUR COSTS TO OUR CUSTOMERS AND DRIVE DOWN THAT B SS A, UM, SO, UM, I THINK IT'S, IT'S KIND OF A TWO THI TWOFOLD THING AT THE MOMENT.
YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAVE SO MUCH WIND GENERATION, IT, WE'RE NOT DOING THE NEXT PROJECT BECAUSE OF DEMAND IN THE COM, IN THE GREEN CHOICE PROGRAM.
UM, BUT THAT'S NOT TO SAY THAT WE COULDN'T, OR WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO DO THAT IN THE FUTURE BECAUSE, UM, FOR THE PATRON OFFERING, FOR EXAMPLE, IN ORDER TO MEET THOSE LEAD POINTS, THE, UM, THE PROJECT THAT YOU'RE PULLING FROM CAN ONLY BE SO OLD.
SO AS THESE START TO RETIRE, WE MAY NEED TO, YOU KNOW, GET ADDITIONAL PROJECTS, UM, SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUALLY, UM, MEET THAT AND SATISFY THAT NEED.
AND ONE MORE FOLLOW UP QUESTION FOR THE ENERGY THAT, UM, AUSTIN OWNS THAT IS CONSIDERED RENEWABLE BUT IS NOT, UM, PURCHASED BY CUSTOMERS SO THAT THE WRECKS AREN'T RETIRED THROUGH CUSTOMERS.
HOW DOES, HOW DO Y'ALL DEAL WITH THOSE WRECKS? THEY BASICALLY, WE DON'T DEAL WITH THEM.
UM, THEY, THEY SIT THERE AND THEN THEY RETIRE.
WE, WE, BUT WE NEVER SELL THEM.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S ONE OF OUR POLICIES.
OTHER COMMISSIONERS, QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS?
UM, NO OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? OKAY.
[4. Staff briefing regarding a quarterly update of the Water Conservation Program by Kevin Kluge, Environmental Conservation Division Manager of Austin Water.]
WE HAVE A STAFF BRIEFING REGARDING THE QUARTERLY UPDATE OF WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAMS BY KEVIN KLUGE, THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION DIVISION MANAGER OF AUSTIN WATER.WELCOME TO THE FIRST DAY OF STAGE TWO DROUGHT, UM, THAT HOPEFULLY IT'LL BE A SHORT ONE.
UH, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS.
AS, UH, VICE CHAIR POINTED OUT, MY NAME IS KEVIN KLUGE, WATER CONSERVATION MANAGER AT AUSTIN WATER, AND I'M HAPPY TO BE WITH HUGH HERE TONIGHT ON THE FIRST, I GUESS, OFFICIAL DAY OF OUR DROUGHT STAGE TWO REGULATIONS.
TONIGHT, I'M GONNA TOUCH ON, UH, THREE TOPICS.
ONE TO GIVE YOU A WATER SUPPLY UPDATE THAT I, I'VE DONE IN THE PAST, UH, SECOND TO TALK ABOUT THE DROUGHT ACTIVITIES, AND THIRD, TO TALK ABOUT CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE OF DROUGHT.
THIS FIRST SLIDE TAKES A STATEWIDE VIEW.
UH, IT'S FROM THE TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD'S WEBSITE, AND IT SHOWS THE AMOUNT OF THE STATE THAT IS IN VARYING LEVELS OF DROUGHT.
YOU CAN SEE RIGHT DOWN, YOU CAN SEE THE BLUE STARS.
TRAVIS COUNTY, WHERE WE'RE AT TO THE SOUTHWEST OF US IS A VERY ANGRY RED, UH, PART OF THE STATE, UH, PARTICULARLY CENTERED ON KINDLE COUNTY, BUT ALSO INCLUDING THE SAN ANTONIO METRO AREA, UH, WHICH HAS THE EXTREME DROUGHT DOWN THERE.
NOW, TRAVIS COUNTY, THE WESTERN HALF IS IN EXTREME DROUGHT.
THE EASTERN IS SIMPLY IN SEVERE DROUGHT.
UM, THIS MAP WAS UPDATED YESTERDAY, MONDAY, RATHER.
UM, IT'S PRETTY MUCH THE SAME.
[01:10:01]
THAT THAT RED SWATH HAS EXPANDED UP IN TOWARDS THE METROPLEX.IT HADN'T REACHED THERE YET, BUT MORE OF THE STATE IS ENTERING INTO EXTREME DROUGHT OR, UH, SEVERE DROUGHT.
THESE ARE THE THREE MONTH PROJECTIONS FROM THE NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ASSOCIATION.
THEY DO, UH, PROBABILITIES, UH, FOR TEMPERATURE AS WELL AS RAINFALL FOR THE NATION.
ON THE LEFT THERE YOU CAN SEE A MAP INDICATING, UH, TEMPERATURE.
AND TEXAS IS PRIMARILY WITHIN THAT RED THERE, AS INDICATING THAT ODDS ARE THAT IT'S GONNA BE HOTTER THAN NORMAL, AS YOU MIGHT IMAGINE.
AND ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE THERE, YOU SEE THE PRECIPITATION OUTLOOK FOR THE NEXT THREE MONTHS, WHICH I GUESS IF THERE'S ANY GOOD NEWS, THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT IT'S KIND OF RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE, THAT IT'S NOT, UH, PROJECTED TO BE ABOVE OR BELOW, UH, RAINFALL.
SO I GUESS THAT'S A GOOD THING.
IT'S NOT PROJECTED TO BE BELOW RAINFALL.
THE BAD PART IS THAT AUGUST IS ALWAYS REALLY DRY, SO IT'S UNLIKELY WE'LL GET A LOT OF RAINFALL IN AUGUST AT LEAST.
THIS IS A SLIDE THAT SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE SEEN BEFORE WHEN I, WHEN I'VE BEEN HERE BEFORE, AND IT DISPLAYS THE INTAKE INTO THE HIGHLAND LAKES.
UH, WE HAVE TWO WATER SUPPLY RESERVOIRS, LAKE BUCHANAN, LAKE TRAVIS, AND IF THOSE ARE CONSIDERED OUR BANK ACCOUNT, THIS IS OUR INCOME.
THIS IS HOW MUCH WE ARE GETTING IN THERE.
THE LIGHT BLUE BAR ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE THAT INDICATES HISTORICAL INFLOW INTO THE RESERVOIRS SINCE 1942 TO PRESENT, THAT'S OUR HISTORICAL AVERAGE INFLOW PER MONTH.
THE DARK BLUE BAR JUST TO THE RIGHT THERE IS THE HISTORICAL INFLOW.
DURING THE LAST DROUGHT, SEVERE DROUGHT BETWEEN 2008 AND 2015.
YOU SEE THAT'S SIGNIFICANTLY BELOW THE LIGHT BLUE LINE.
BUT EVEN FURTHER OVER THE, YOU SEE THE GREEN BAR, THAT'S 2022.
I'M SURE YOU REMEMBER THIS FROM WHEN I'VE COME BACK HERE BEFORE 2022 INFLOWS WERE RECORD LOW FOR THE YEAR.
UM, AND THEY'RE, THEY, THEY QUITE A BIT BELOW, UH, THE AVERAGE AND THE AVERAGE DURING THE LAST DROUGHT.
AND THE PURPLE BARS ARE THE INFLOWS THIS YEAR.
NOW WE'RE, IT'S NOT AS LOW AS IN 2022, BUT YOU CAN SEE THAT THE INFLOWS INTO THE HIGHLAND LAKES ARE QUITE LOW.
UM, WE GOT A GOOD BUMP IN MAY AND JUNE DUE TO SOME RAIN, BUT OF COURSE, JULY IS VERY LOW AND IT'S EXPECTED THAT AUGUST WILL ALSO BE VERY LOW.
SO WHAT WE'RE GETTING INTO THE LAKES HAS DEFINITELY DECREASED OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS.
THIS GRAPH, UH, SHOWS THE AMOUNT OF STORAGE VOLUME WE HAVE IN THE HIGHLAND LAKES.
BETWEEN THOSE TWO LAKES, WE HAVE ABOUT 2 MILLION ACRE FEET OF WATER, UM, WHEN, WHEN IT'S FULL.
AND YOU CAN SEE STARTING BACK IN 2005 ALL THE WAY TO THE LEFT HAND SIDE HERE, YOU SEE HOW THE LAKES HAVE GONE UP AND DOWN.
YOU CAN SEE THAT BIG DIP IN THE MIDDLE.
THAT WAS THE 20 13, 20 15 TIME PERIOD WHEN THINGS GOT REALLY BAD.
UH, AT THE LOWEST POINT IT GOT DOWN TO 633,000 ACRE FEET OF WATER AT THE, THE LOWEST POINT.
WE HAD A NUMBER OF GOOD YEARS, AND NOW WE'RE OVER ON THE RIGHT THERE.
YOU SEE, IT'S STARTING TO GO BACK DOWN.
THE AMOUNT OF STORAGE WE HAVE IN THE RESERVOIR TODAY IS ABOUT 200, OR I'M SORRY, 894,000 ACRE FEET.
AND THIS IS A PROJECTION SLIDE FROM THE LOWER COLORADO RIVER AUTHORITY.
THE VERTICAL GOLD BAR YOU SEE IN THE MIDDLE.
THAT'S ESSENTIALLY AUGUST 1ST TO THE LEFT OF THAT IS THE PAST.
THAT BLUE LINE IS THE STORAGE LEVELS OVER THE LAST YEAR OR SO TO THE RIGHT ARE CRA'S PROJECTIONS FOR STORAGE IN THOSE TWO RESERVOIRS, IT COULD BE, IF WE GET A LOT OF RAIN, WE WILL HIT THE GREEN LINES OR THE BLUE LINES AND BUMP RIGHT BACK UP.
BUT IF THE WEATHER IS EX DRY OR EXTREMELY DRY, YOU'LL SEE THAT THAT GOES ABOUT DOWN TO 800,000 ACRE FEET.
AND UNDER THOSE CONDITIONS, L C R A PROJECTS THAT WE'LL CONTINUE AT THAT 800,000 ACRE FEET OF WATER, UH, THROUGH FEBRUARY OF NEXT SPRING.
SO A LOT OF THIS DEPENDS ON WHAT WE GET IN OCTOBER.
UH, SO IF WE GET A LOT OF RAINS IN
[01:15:01]
OCTOBER, THAT WILL BUMP THINGS UP.BUT TO NOTE, WE ARE IN STAGE TWO NOW.
UH, LAST TIME WE WERE IN STAGE TWO WAS BETWEEN SEPTEMBER, 2012 AND MAY, 2016.
SO WE ARE IN STAGE TWO FOR QUITE A WHILE, UH, DURING THAT LAST DROUGHT.
SO HOPEFULLY WE WON'T BE IN IT THAT LONG THIS TIME.
AND THIS IS A IIT, A SPAGHETTI BOWL WHEN YOU LOOK IT UP ON THE SCREEN, BUT HOPEFULLY IT CAN, UH, BE A LITTLE EASIER TO VIEW ON YOUR COMPUTER SCREEN WHEN YOU HAVE A CHANCE.
BUT THIS DISPLAYS HOW MUCH WATER CITY OF AUSTIN ACTUALLY USES.
UH, IT GOES UP IN THE SUMMERTIME AND THEN PEAKS DOWN THE, THE MAGENTA COLOR.
UH, YOU COULD SEE IT REALLY PEAKED UP THERE IN THE SUMMERTIME AND THEN WENT BACK DOWN.
2015 WAS A WET YEAR, AND THAT WAS BLUE.
AND I PUT THAT IN THERE JUST TO DISPLAY WHAT DOES A DR.
AND YOU CAN SEE THAT THAT STAYED DOWN PRETTY LOW THROUGHOUT MUCH OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR AND THEN PEAKED UP, BUT THEN WENT BACK DOWN 2022 IS THE, THE DARK BLUE LINE IN 2023 IS THIS YEAR.
AND IN BOTH CASES, WHILE IT MAY HAVE STARTED OUT, UH, WATER USE, RELATIVELY MODEST IN THE SPRING, IT'S REALLY PEAKED UP IN THE SUMMERTIME.
UH, AND WE'VE HIT A NUMBER OF DAILY USE POINTS THAT HAVE EVEN EXCEEDED WHAT WE HAD IN 2011 OR 2022, JUST BY A LITTLE BIT.
SO WE ARE DEFINITELY USING A LOT OF WATER, UH, THIS YEAR AS WE GO ALONG DUE TO THE HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS.
SO THAT IS THE WATER SUPPLY UPDATE.
WE'LL MOVE ON TO DROUGHT ACTIVITIES.
BACK WHEN I PUT THIS SLIDE DECK TOGETHER, WE WERE STILL IN STAGE ONE DROUGHT.
UM, SO I, I INCLUDED THIS STAGE ONE, UH, SLIDE ABOUT THE HIGHLIGHTS OF DROUGHT RESTRICTIONS IN STAGE ONE, BUT I THINK WE CAN JUST MOVE RIGHT ON TO NUMBER TWO.
THESE ARE THE HIGHLIGHTS FOR DROUGHT RESTRICTIONS THAT REALLY TOOK EFFECT TODAY.
THE MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YESTERDAY AND TODAY, UM, IS THAT, UH, HOSE IRRIGATION, WHILE IT COULD PREVIOUSLY BEEN BE DONE ON WEDNESDAYS OR THURSDAYS FOR RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS, DEPENDING ON YOUR OTTER EVEN ADDRESS IT, HOSED SPRINKLING CAN NOW ONLY BE DONE ON THE WEEKEND, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY.
AND IRRIGATION SPRINKLING CAN ONLY BE DONE ONE DAY A WEEK ON, UH, WEDNESDAYS OR THURSDAYS.
SO IT'S REDUCED THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT RESIDENTS CAN IRRIGATE.
THEY CAN IRRIGATE ONLY UNTIL 5:00 AM IN THE MORNING INSTEAD OF 8:00 AM.
UH, ORNAMENTAL FOUNTAINS LIKE THE UT FOUNTAIN OR OTHER LARGE FOUNTAINS HERE AROUND TOWN CAN NO LONGER OPERATE IN THIS STAGE TWO, UH, GOLF COURSE.
FAIRWAYS CAN ONLY BE WATERED ONCE A WEEK IF THEY'RE USING AUSTIN WATER DRINKING WATER.
UM, AND THEN THERE'S ONE THING TO NOTE THAT VERY LAST SLIDE THERE.
UH, LANDSCAPE ESTABLISHMENT IS NO LONGER EXEMPTED FROM THE WATERING SCHEDULE.
SO IF YOU HAVE A NEW HOME OR A NEW BUSINESS, AND THEY'RE PUTTING IN A NEW LANDSCAPE YESTERDAY, UM, AND ALL IN STAGE ONE, THEY WERE EXEMPTED TO WATER THAT NEW LANDSCAPE AS MUCH AS THEY NEEDED TO TO GET IT ESTABLISHED TODAY.
AND GOING FORWARD, UH, THAT EXEMPTION IS NO LONGER THERE.
THEY HAVE TO STICK TO THAT ONE DAY A WEEK WATERING SCHEDULE OR APPLY FOR A ZEROSCAPE VARIANCE WITH AUSTIN WATER.
THAT ZEROSCAPE VARIANCE, UH, EMPHASIZES THEY NEED TO PLANT LOW WATER USING PLANTS.
SO LANDSCAPE ESTABLISHMENT GOING FORWARD, WE'LL REALLY NEED TO ADAPT TO, UH, LOW WATER USING PLANTS.
BUT IN ADDITION TO THESE NEW REGULATIONS THAT COME ONLINE, AUSTIN WATERS ALSO TAKING NEW STEPS GOING FORWARD WITH OUR STAFF AND OUR ACTIVITIES.
UH, WE'VE EXPANDED OUR PATROLS DOING MORE PATROLS.
UM, WE'RE BRINGING ON TEMPORARY STAFF TO HELP WITH THAT.
WE'LL BE GOING MORE INTO THE WEEKEND.
UH, FOR PATROLS, WE'RE REDISTRIBUTING YARD SIGNS AROUND THE CITY.
WE, WE DO THAT ONCE WHEN WE WE'RE IN STAGE ONE.
AND NOW THAT WE'RE IN STAGE TWO, WE'RE PUTTING THOSE OUT AGAIN TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE REALIZE THE WATERING RESTRICTIONS.
AND WE ARE STARTING TO HAVE AN OUTREACH TO RESTAURANTS AROUND THE CITY ACCORDING TO CODE.
RESTAURANTS CANNOT SERVE WATER GLASSES UNLESS THEY'RE ASKED FOR, AND THEY CAN
[01:20:01]
ONLY HAVE MISTERS IN THE OUTDOOR PATIOS BETWEEN FOUR AND MIDNIGHT.SO WE'LL BE TAKING ADDITIONAL OUTREACH EFFORTS TO REACH OUT TO THEM AND LET THEM KNOW OF THOSE RESTRICTIONS.
UH, MOVING ON TO CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES BEYOND DROUGHT.
UM, THIS ONE ADMITTEDLY IS KIND OF RELATED TO THE DROUGHT, BUT I TALKED TO ABOUT BEFORE, BUT DISPLAYS THE AMOUNT OF WARNINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN GIVING OUT FOR WATERING RESTRICT WATERING VIOLATIONS.
UM, OF COURSE YOU CAN SEE IN THE MIDDLE, THAT'S FEBRUARY, MARCH THROUGH WINTERTIME, AND NOW IT REALLY PEAKS UP IN JUNE AND JULY, AND IT WILL CONTINUE TO REALLY PEAK IN AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER, MAYBE EVEN INTO OCTOBER.
THE ORANGE BAR OUT OF THE NUMBER OF 3 1 1 COMPLAINTS, LET'S SAY 3 1 1 REPORTS, LET ME PUT IT THAT WAY.
UH, NOT NECESSARILY COMPLAINTS, UH, BUT OUR STAFF, YOU KNOW, WHETHER WE HAVE FOUR OR EIGHT STAFF MEMBERS, WE CAN ONLY GET OUT SO FAR IN THE COMMUNITY AND DRIVE AROUND THE WHOLE CITY.
UH, WE DO REALLY RELY ON CUSTOMERS REPORTING, EITHER WATER LEAKS OR WATER WATERING BEING DONE ON THE WRONG DAY THROUGH THE 3 1 3 1 1 APP.
AND THEN WE'LL SEND OUT, WE'LL INITIALLY SEND OUT POSTCARDS TO, UM, CUSTOMERS FOR WHICH A 3 1 1 REPORT HAS BEEN SUBMITTED.
JUST LETTING THEM KNOW, REMINDING THEM OF THE WATER RESTRICTIONS.
UH, AND THEN AFTER TWO POSTCARDS, THEN WE SEND SOMEONE OUT ACTUALLY TO INVESTIGATE.
BUT, UH, NO VIOLATIONS OR CITATIONS WITH FINES ARE ACTUALLY EVER ISSUED UNTIL WE WITNESS THE ACTUAL VIOLATION.
SO NO ONE'S GONNA GET A, A PENALTY OR A FINE JUST ON A 3 0 1 REPORT.
THIS SLIDE TALKS ABOUT WATER SAVINGS.
LAST TIME I WAS HERE, THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSIONS OF HOW MUCH IS REALLY BEING SAVED.
UM, I THINK IT WAS PART OF OUR DISCUSSION OF GOING INTO THE SUMMER AND VARIOUS ACTIVITIES.
AND UNFORTUNATELY, I CAN'T REALLY TELL YOU IT, IT'S DIFFICULT TO QUANTIFY THE SAVINGS OVER THE LAST TWO MONTHS OR SO.
BUT I WANTED TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF HOW MUCH IS BEING SAVED BY DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES IN AUSTIN WATER AS WE GO ALONG.
FIRST OF ALL, THAT ONE DAY A WEEK WATERING CAN'T REALLY CALCULATE THAT UNTIL THE END.
'CAUSE IT'S REALLY BASED ON A PERCENTAGE FROM A STUDY.
UM, BUT ONE DAY, GOING TO ONE DAY A WEEK, WATERING FROM NO NO RESTRICTIONS OR TWO DAY A WEEK SAVES 12 TO 24% AT THE VARIOUS TIMES OF THE YEAR.
SO ONE DAY A WEEK, WATERING SAVES A LOT GOING DOWN THE LIST THERE.
WE HAVE COMMERCIAL FACILITY EFFICIENCY PROGRAMS FOR FACILITIES WITH COOLING TOWERS, VEHICLE WASHES, AND, UH, LANDSCAPE IRRIGATION.
AND THAT SAVES A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF WATER SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE FISCAL YEAR.
IT SAVED 256 MILLION GALLONS OF WATER ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES BEGINNING OF THE FISCAL YEAR.
BUT ADMITTEDLY, A LOT OF THAT HAS BEEN IN THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS, HAS BEEN ESTIMATED TO SAVE 23 MILLION GALLONS.
INCENTIVE PROGRAMS SAY SAVE ABOUT 264,000 GALLONS.
OVER ON THE RIGHT, I HAVE A NUMBER OF FIGURES FOR THE MY E T X WATER PROGRAM.
THIS IS THE NEW SMART METER PROGRAM FOR AUSTIN WATER.
WE HAVE ABOUT, I THINK ABOUT 180,000 METERS OUT OF 240,000 METERS INSTALLED.
SO WE'RE GETTING THERE IN TERMS OF EVERYONE HAVING A NEW SMART METER.
BUT THESE NEW MAR NEW SMART METERS ALLOW CUSTOMERS TO SEE HOW MUCH WATER THEY'RE USING AND TO RECEIVE ALERTS.
UH, LEAK ALERTS HAS BEEN THE, THE REALLY BIG THING FROM MY TX WATER AND ONE THAT'S VERY POPULAR AMONGST CUSTOMERS AND OUR APPLICATION, THE MY TX WATER APPLICATION HAS ESTIMATED THAT SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE CALENDAR YEAR, JANUARY, IT'S SAVED 212 MILLION GALLONS BY NOTIFYING PEOPLE OF LEAKS.
AND WE ALSO HAVE A, A, AN ALERT THAT LETS PEOPLE KNOW IF THEIR BILL IN THE FIRST WEEK OF THE BILLING PERIOD, IF IT'S REJECTED TO GO UP INTO THE HIGH COST TIERS, UH, TIER FOUR, UM, IT ALERTS THEM AND LETS THEM KNOW, HEY, YOU'RE, YOU CAN USE THE WATER YOU NEED, BUT YOU'RE GETTING UP, YOU'RE GONNA BE GETTING IN SOME EXPENSIVE WATER TOWARDS THE END.
UH, THAT'S ESTIMATED TO HAVE SAVED 36 MILLION GALLONS.
UH, SO A LOT OF SAVINGS CAN BECOME FROM THAT, MY TX WATER PROGRAM.
[01:25:01]
ONE IS AN UPDATE ON THE LANDSCAPE TRANSFORMATION ACTIVITIES.I'VE MENTIONED THAT BEFORE A COUPLE TIMES, AND WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS OVER THE LAST YEAR.
LANDSCAPE TRANSFORMATION WAS A STRATEGY IN THE, IS A STRATEGY IN THE WATER FORWARD PLAN AND ENVISIONS THAT NEW HOMES BUILT IN THE AUSTIN AREA WILL HAVE A TRANSFORMED LANDSCAPE THAT USES MUCH LESS OR SIGNIFICANTLY LESS WATER, DRINKING WATER TO WATER THE LANDSCAPE.
WE SPENT ALL LAST YEAR TALKING TO, UH, STAKEHOLDERS IN THE PUBLIC.
AND WE'VE BEEN COMING UP, WE'VE BEEN LANDING ON EIGHT ACTIVITIES YOU SEE THERE OVER ON THE RIGHT THERE THAT WILL IMPLEMENT THIS TRANSFORMATION OF LANDSCAPE FOR NEW SINGLE FAMILY HOMES.
FOUR OF THEM, THE TOP FOUR ARE ONES THAT WE AS A UTILITY CAN IMPLEMENT WITHOUT CODE CHANGES.
UM, WE HAVE ONE A, A LARGE ONE IN THAT SECTION INCLUDES THE IRRIGATION OF NEW INSPECTION, OF NEW IRRIGATION SYSTEMS. UM, THIS ONE WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT 'CAUSE IT'S, WE SEE A LOT OF SAVINGS IN BEING ABLE TO CATCH BAD SYSTEMS RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING.
UH, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF STAFF MEMBERS COMING ON AT THE BEGINNING OF THE FISCAL YEAR, SO WE'RE HOPING TO START IMPLEMENTING THAT IN JANUARY OF 2024.
AND THIS WILL BE, UH, FOR ALL NEW IRRIGATION SYSTEMS. UM, HOWEVER THAT, WE'LL, WE'LL WAIT AND SEE ABOUT THAT JANUARY OF 2024.
'CAUSE IT'S VERY IMPORTANT, UH, FOR DEVELOPERS AND HOME BUILDERS THAT WE ARE ABLE TO STEP RIGHT INTO THAT, UH, THAT INSPECTION, UH, UH, TIMEFRAME AND NOT SLOW ANYTHING DOWN THE BOTTOM HALF OF THAT LIST.
THE FOUR ON THE BOTTOM THERE REQUIRED CHANGES TO EITHER THE ENVIRONMENTAL CRITERIA MANUAL, UH, FOR THE REQUIRED PLANT LIST IN NEW HOMES, OR THE BOTTOM THREE WILL REQUIRE CHANGES TO THE UNIFORM PLUMBING CODE.
UM, THAT WON'T BE APPROVED UNTIL BY COUNCIL UNTIL JULY OF 2024.
AND WE'LL GO INTO EFFECT JANUARY OF 2025.
SO THAT'S MOVING FORWARD, THIS LANDSCAPE TRANSFORMATION FOR NEW HOMES.
AND THEN JUST THIS LAST SLIDE.
UH, I, I'VE TALKED A LOT ABOUT WHAT WE ARE DOING AND FOR DROUGHT OR WHAT WE ARE DOING FOR WATER CONSERVATION, BUT WATER UTILITIES ARE REQUIRED BY THE STATE TO HAVE A WATER CONSERVATION PLAN AND A DROUGHT CONTINGENCY PLAN THAT'S UPDATED EVERY FIVE YEARS.
AND, UM, IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT OUR NEXT VERSION OF THESE PLANS ARE DUE MAY OF 2024.
UM, AND SO THEY HAVE TO GO TO COUNCIL.
SO WE'RE REALLY GIN THESE UP IN THE SECOND HALF OF THIS YEAR.
UH, THE CONSERVATION PLAN ESSENTIALLY DESCRIBES WHAT WE DO IN TERMS OF WATER CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES AND WHAT WE HOPE TO DO GOING FORWARD.
AND THAT THE DROUGHT CONTINUOUSLY PLAN REALLY FOCUSES KIND OF ON WHAT WE ARE IN NOW, THE RESTRICTIONS ON FUTURE DROUGHTS.
SO THAT'LL BE, I'M SURE A BIG TOPIC OF DISCUSSION AS WE ARE IN A DROUGHT.
WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT WHAT WE WANT TO DO IN THE NEXT DROUGHT TO SAVE WATER, AND WE EXPECT THAT THE PUBLIC INPUT AND STAKEHOLDER INPUT WILL TAKE PLACE THIS FALL, OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, UH, TIMEFRAME.
AND BOTH OF 'EM ARE DUE TO THE STATE BACK IN MAY OF 2024.
AND WITH THAT, THAT'S THE UPDATE, UH, FROM AUSTIN WATER REGARDING DROUGHT ACTIVITIES AS WELL AS WATER CONSERVATION ACTIVITIES.
AND WITH THAT, I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
COMMISSIONERS, UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? UH, COMMISSIONER BRENT, I HAVE QUICK, DID YOU CALL ON, ON ME OR, OR SOMEONE ELSE IN THE ROOM? I'M SORRY.
UH, IS THIS COMMISSIONER SDI? YEAH.
UM, THINKING ABOUT THE PRESENTATION, THAT WAS REALLY INFORMATIVE AND HELPFUL AND IT'S, IT'S UNFORTUNATE THAT WE'RE IN THIS SITUATION, BUT I THINK IT'S, IT'S GREAT, GREAT TO SEE THE STEPS THAT ARE BEING TAKEN.
UM, I JUST HAD A SMALL QUESTION, WHICH WAS, UM, FOR THE PART OF THE, THE STAGE TWO WHICH LIMITS MISTERS AT, AT RESTAURANTS IS, AND I THINK NOW IT, IT'S, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T MISS UNTIL AFTER FOUR.
WHAT DID THAT CHANGE FROM, WHAT WAS IT IN STAGE ONE? AND, AND I GUESS THE OTHER PART QUESTION IS
[01:30:01]
THIS IS LIKE, THIS APPLIES TO ALL OF AUSTIN, RIGHT? THERE'S NOT LIKE CERTAIN NEIGHBORHOODS OR AREAS THAT HAVE DIFFERENT RULES.IT'S LIKE, THIS IS ONE RULE GIVEN THAT WE ARE IN STAGE TWO, CORRECT? UH, ONE RULE FOR THE ENTIRE CITY.
UM, FOUR STARTING AT 4:00 PM AND ACTUALLY IN STAGE ONE, THE REQUIREMENT WAS FOR THE NEW FOR TO MIDNIGHT ALSO.
SO IT HASN'T REALLY CHANGED, BUT WE ARE, AS A UTILITY AND AS OUR, OUR DIVISION DEDICATING MORE RESOURCES TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THIS.
UM, WE WOULD HAVE, IN STAGE ONE, WE WOULD'VE INVESTIGATED ANY THREE ON ONE CALLS OR IF WE HAD SEEN IT, WE WERE OUT DRIVING AROUND.
BUT WE'RE TAKING A CONCERTED EFFORT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL WEEKS TO GO AND TALK TO ALL THE RESTAURANTS, WELL, NOT ALL THE RESTAURANTS, I ADMIT.
UM, BUT AS MANY AS WE CAN TALK TO.
THAT, THAT'S WHY I WAS GETTING CONFUSED.
'CAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS, I THOUGHT IT WAS 4:00 PM IN STAGE ONE, BUT I, I SEE WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
IT'S MORE THE, UM, ADDITIONAL EDUCATIONAL COMPONENT AND ENFORCEMENT.
HEY, I, I'M LOOKING AT YOUR, SORRY.
UM, I'M LOOKING AT YOUR, THE SLIDE ABOUT UPCOMING ACTIVITIES BEYOND DROUGHT.
SO YOU MENTIONED THOSE FOUR, THOSE LAST FOUR BULLET POINTS ARE ONES THAT IT WILL BE UPCOMING WITH THE UPDATES TO U P C AND 2024.
UM, WILL THOSE BE LIKE CITY OF AUSTIN AMENDMENTS? IS THAT HOW THAT WORKS? THEY'RE, THEY'RE LOCAL AMENDMENTS TO THE 2024 U P C.
UM, AND I'M CURIOUS, I SEE REQUIRED PLANTS FOR NEW HOMES AND THEN LIMIT IRRIGATION AREA FOR NEW HOMES.
UM, WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO CONSIDER MAKING THOSE REQUIREMENTS FEASIBLE FOR LIKE COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES AND LIKE MULTI-FAMILY PROPERTIES AS WELL? OR, OR IS THE FOCUS MAINLY ON HOMES FOR A SPECIFIC REASON? IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, UH, THE WATER FOREST STRATEGY WAS ONLY SINGLE FAMILY HOMES.
UM, BUT IT, IT, IT IS POSSIBLE COMMERCIAL ALREADY HAS A REQUIRED PLANT LIST.
UM, UH, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING TO LOOK AT GOING FORWARD IN, IN COMMERCIAL.
UH, IN ADDITION TO, YOU KNOW, HAVING A DROUGHT AND DOING A, A CONSERVATION PLAN AND DOING A DROUGHT PLAN, WE'RE ALSO UPDATING OUR WATER FORWARD PLAN, UM, WHICH KIND OF LEADS US IN KIND OF THE DIRECTION THAT THE WATER FORWARD TASK FORCE AND COUNCIL WANTS TO GO IN TERMS OF ACTIVITIES.
SO THAT VERY WELL COULD BE BROUGHT UP.
THEY'RE LOOKING AT, I THINK THEY'LL BE LOOKING AT THEIR STRATEGIES THIS FALL.
UM, SO THAT COULD BE DISCUSSED AND, UH, LAID OUT.
IF THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMISSIONERS, UH, COMMISSIONER JOHNSON, DO YOU HAVE SOME QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? YEAH, UH, A QUICK ONE.
UM, AND MAYBE MORE OF AN IDEA THAN A, BUT ALSO A QUESTION.
IT, IT'S PRETTY WILD TO ME THAT IN STAGE TWO DROUGHT, UH, GOLF COURSES ARE ALLOWED TO WATER AT ALL.
WHAT, UH, ARE, ARE THERE LEGAL LIMITATIONS THAT PREVENT SORT OF STOPPING THAT FROM BEING SO FREQUENT OR SCALE OR SCALING BACK WATERING TO SUCH A LARGE AND WATER INEFFICIENT, UH, AND INEQUITABLE USE OF WATER SUCH AS WATERING GOLF COURSES? OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WOULD JUST HAVE TO BE TAKEN UP IN A FUTURE WATER PLAN AND COUNCIL WOULD'VE TO VOTE ON THERE? THERE IS, IN STAGE TWO, I HAD MENTIONED THAT, UM, UH, IT'S RESTRICTED FAIRWAYS ONCE A WEEK AND, UH, TEES AND GREENS CAN BE WATERED EVERY OTHER DAY WITH A, A VARIANCE FROM AUSTIN WATER.
BUT, BUT BEYOND THAT, UM, THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT MANY, UH, I'D SAY MOST, UH, I DON'T HAVE AN EXACT NUMBER OFF HAND OF OUR GOLF COURSES, UH, IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN ARE WATERED WITH RECLAIMED WATER OR RAW WATER.
UM, IN BOTH CASES THEY DON'T HAVE RESTRICTIONS 'CAUSE THEY'RE NOT USING OUR DRINKING WATER TO WATER THE GOLF COURSES.
UM, BUT FORTUNATELY, UH, MOST OF THE GOLF COURSES IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN UTILIZE THE RECLAIMED WATER, UM, THE RE THE RETREATED WASTEWATER
[01:35:01]
IN THEIR IRRIGATION.THAT IS DEFINITELY HELPFUL TO KNOW.
UM, IT, IT'D BE INTERESTING TO ME TO KNOW IF, IF, UM, IF THE, THERE'S COMPETITION FOR THAT OR, OR A LIMITED SUPPLY OF EVEN THE RECLAIMED WATER IN, IN A STAGE TWO DROUGHT AND IF GOLF COURSES GET ANY SORT OF PREFERENCE FOR THAT VERSUS OTHER USES.
BUT THAT, THAT COULD BE A, MAYBE A DISCUSSION FOR FU FOR FUTURE TIME.
I, UH, HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS.
UM, IT SAYS ON ONE OF YOUR SLIDES, BUILDER SCALE RAINWATER HARVESTING REBATE FOR NEW HOMES.
I WISH I HAD THE MONEY FOR RAINWATER.
UH, IT'S PRETTY EXPENSIVE AND EVEN IF YOU GET RAINWATER, YOU'RE PROBABLY GONNA WANNA HAVE A METAL ROOF, WHICH IS ALSO EXPENSIVE.
OTHERWISE, THE GRANULES FROM THE ASPHALT SHINGLES WILL FALL INTO THE WATER.
UH, IT'S NOT SOMETHING YOU WOULD FREQUENTLY WANT TO BE EXPOSED TO.
SO I'M WONDERING, AND THEN RAINWATER, AS PURE AS IT IS, AND AS, UH, GOOD AS IT IS, DOESN'T WORK IN PEAK, WHO HAS RAINWATER RIGHT NOW? IT'S, IT'S, IT'S ALL BEEN USED.
IT HASN'T RAINED QUITE A WHILE, SO I, I'M KIND OF, I, I DON'T WANNA BE CRITICAL OF RAINWATER, BUT I GUESS I'M KIND OF QUESTIONING THE WISDOM OF THIS PARTICULAR STRATEGY.
WELL, THE, THE RAINWATER HARVESTING, UM, AS WELL AS THE REQUIRED LAUNDRY TO LANDSCAPE, UM, RECYCLING THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT ARE TWO KIND OF AS PART OF THE WHOLE BASKET OF ACTIVITIES THAT WILL TRY TO, UH, SHIFT NEW HOMES TO A MORE WATER EFFICIENT LANDSCAPE.
ON ONE HAND, WE ARE DEALING WITH THE IRRIGATION SYSTEMS AND WE'RE SAYING WE WANT TO, IF YOU'RE GONNA GET AN IRRIGATION SYSTEM, YOU UM, WE WANT IT TO BE A BETTER IRRIGATION SYSTEM, UH, THROUGH BETTER COMPONENTS AND INSPECTION.
BUT WE'RE ALSO ASKING, WE ARE ALSO REQUIRING THAT NEW HOMES ONLY HAVE HALF OF THEIR LOT IRRIGATED.
AND THAT'S, YOU CAN HAVE THE FRONT HALF OR THE BACK HALF IRRIGATED WITH DRINKING WATER.
AND THEN ALL QUESTION ALWAYS COMES IN, WELL, WHAT DO I DO WITH THE OTHER HALF? WELL, ONE PUT IN PLANTS THAT ARE ADAPTIVE OR NATIVE TO THIS AREA.
UH, TWO, WE ARE OFFERING OR INCENTIVIZING, UH, SEVERAL STRATEGIES THAT WILL HELP IRRIGATE THAT OTHER HALF, WHETHER IT'S YOUR LAUNDRY LANDSCAPE OR RAINWATER.
AND I ADMIT, YES, NOW YOUR RAINWATER TANKS ARE PROBABLY, PROBABLY LOW, PROBABLY.
UM, WHAT CAN WE AS A COMMISSION DO TO ASSIST IN YOUR OPINION, UH, GOING FORWARD? UH, SIM WELL, SIMPLY SHOWING INTEREST IS, IS ALWAYS WELCOME.
UM, AND IF BEING INVOLVED AS WE GO FORWARD IN THE WATER FORWARD PROGRAM PLAN OR BEING INVOLVED IN THE DROUGHT CONTINGENCY PLAN, OR EVEN IN THE UNIFORM PLUMBING PROCESS, UH, IF, IF ANY OF YOU ARE ARE PLUGGED INTO THAT OR INTERESTED IN BEING PART OF THAT, UH, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL ALSO.
UM, BUT I THINK WE'RE KIND OF, WE'RE KIND OF ROLLING ALONG NOW.
UM, AND HOPEFULLY IT'LL, THE MOMENTUM WILL STAY UP, UM, AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT MANY OF THESE, HALF OF THESE THINGS AT LEAST WITHOUT RUNNING THROUGH THE THE U P C PROCESS.
I'M GONNA CLOSE MY COMMENTS WITH A STATEMENT.
UM, UM, IN 2014 OR, UM, 2013 OR SO, I WAS
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ASKED TO BE ON A COMMISSION TO FIGURE OUT EXTREME MEASURES DURING THE DROUGHT OF THAT PERIOD.AND I PUBLICLY ASKED THE QUESTION, IS AUSTIN TOO BIG TO FAIL? UH, AND IT'S LIKE, HOW CAN ALL OF OUR PROPERTIES, AND BASICALLY CIVILIZATION EXISTS WITHOUT THE LAKES AND WE KEEP GROWING AND CLIMATE CHANGE KEEPS GETTING WORSE, AND AT WHAT POINT DOES, DOES IT COLLIDE? I MEAN, WE FACE A MILDER VERSION OF THE, OF THE CRISIS THAT THEY'RE FACING IN AT THE OTHER COLORADO RIVER, UH, IN THE WESTERN PART OF THE UNITED STATES WHERE SO MANY PEOPLE ARE DEPENDENT ON AN INCREASINGLY FRAGILE WATER DELIVERY, UH, SYSTEM, UH, WITH, UH, SO MANY PEOPLE THERE.
I'VE FANTASIZED THAT IF THINGS GOT REALLY STRANGE, IF THE LAKES GOT ALMOST DRY, MAYBE THEY WOULD BUILD GIANT POLYETHYLENE PIPES FROM THE EAST TEXAS LAKES OVERLAND TO THE HIGHLAND LAKES.
UM, I, AS A LEGAL MATTER, IT'S A NIGHTMARE.
I, I, UM, I DON'T KNOW HOW SOCIALLY FEASIBLE IT IS, BUT I JUST PUTTING IT OUT THERE THAT, UM, WE'RE GONNA FACE THIS, UH, EXISTENTIAL CRISIS AT SOME POINT THE WAY IT'S GOING.
ON THAT HAPPY NOTE, UH, I'M, UNLESS, UH, THERE ARE OTHER COMMISSIONERS WITH QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, UH, I WILL MOVE TO THE LAST ITEM.
JASMINE KING BUSH HAS WAITED PATIENTLY.
[6. Presentation by Texas Gas Service regarding a quarterly update of the Central Texas Energy Efficiency Program by Jasmine King-Bush, Energy Efficiency Program Manager.]
FOR US, UH, UH, BY TEXAS GAS SERVICE REGARDING A QUARTERLY UPDATE OF THE CENTRAL TEXAS ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM, UH, FOR, UH, AND SHE'S THE ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM MANAGER.I BROUGHT REINFORCEMENTS WITH ME.
UM,
SO I TOLD HIM HE HAD TO SHOW UP
OKAY, LET'S, LET'S START WITH, UM, SOME OF THE PROGRAM UPDATES AND EFFORTS THAT WE'VE BEEN ENGAGED IN FOR Q TWO.
UM, WE HAVE, WE HOST A SEMI-ANNUAL DRYER PROMO, UH, IN MAY AND, UH, SEPTEMBER.
UH, SO WE HAD THAT GO ON, UH, WITH PRETTY GOOD SUCCESS, JUST CREATING, UM, AWARENESS OF THE NATURAL GAS DRY REBATE AND OFFERING AN ADDITIONAL A HUNDRED DOLLARS, UM, REBATE TO THOSE WHO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROGRAM, UH, DURING THE, THE, UH, DURATION OF THE, THE CAMPAIGN.
WE KNOW THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE DURING MEMORIAL DAY HAVE SALES AND WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE ARE OUT THERE, UH, ENGAGED, UM, WITH MAKING, UM, SMART DECISIONS WHEN PURCHASING APPLIANCES.
SO WE HAVE A LOT OF EDUCATION THAT GOES OUT, UH, SURROUNDING THAT.
AND THEN WE ALSO PARTICIPATED IN THE LOVE OF PARKS FESTIVAL, UM, AND THE JUNETEENTH FESTIVAL.
SO, UH, WE HAD, UM, BRAND SPONSORSHIP THERE.
WE ALSO HAD, UH, PERSONNEL, UH, PARTICIPATION AS WELL.
AND WHENEVER WE ARE THERE ON SCENE, WE ARE HAVING CONVERSATIONS WITH EXISTING CUSTOMERS, POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS PROVIDING EDUCATION EVEN TO THE EXTENT OF, UM, YOU DON'T, YOU'RE NOT TEXAS GAS, BUT HOW EFFICIENT ARE YOU LIVING? SO WE REALLY TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THE ONE-ON-ONE CONTACT WHEN WE'RE ON SITE.
UH, MOVING ON TO THE COMMERCIAL PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS, WE HAVE TWO PART TWO WAYS FOR OUR COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS TO PARTICIPATE.
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IS A DIRECT INSTALL PROGRAM THAT IS, UH, ADMINISTERED BY CLEAR RESULT, WHICH IS THE THIRD PARTY CUSTOMER, A THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATOR, AND THEY GO INTO, UM, MULTIFAMILY PROPERTIES.UM, THEY GO INTO COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS LIKE LAUNDROMATS, ET CETERA, AND, UM, PERFORM, UH, UPGRADES, WEATHER STRIPPING, SHOWER HEADS, HANDHELD AND FIXED, UM, FOSTER AERATORS.
SO THIS REPORTING HERE JUST SHOWS THAT, UH, DURING THAT Q TWO PERIOD, UH, THEY DID ABOUT $57,000, UH, IN UPGRADE TO, UH, THESE ARE, UH, MULTI-FAMILY PROPERTIES, SO FOREST CREEK VILLAGE AND HILLSIDE, L L C.
AND I PUT A LITTLE MAP JUST IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING WHERE WE ARE WORKING, UM, IN THE CITY.
THE OTHER WAY FOR COMMERCIAL, UH, CUSTOMERS TO PARTICIPATE IS, UM, THEY CAN PURCHASE A QUALIFYING APPLIANCE.
THEY HAVE IT INSTALLED BY A LICENSED, UM, CONTRACTOR AND SUBMIT THEIR RECEIPTS AND APPLICATION THAT WAY.
SO THAT'S NOT DONE BY CLEAR RESULT, BUT THERE IS ANOTHER WAY FOR THEM TO PARTICIPATE.
UH, SOME RESIDENTIAL PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS BEHAVIORAL EDUCATION.
UH, THE ORGANIZATION, UH, TEXAS GAS SERVICE HAS A NEWSLETTER THAT THEY SEND OUT.
AND TO THE, TO THE POINT THAT, TO THE OPPORTUNITY THAT'S AVAILABLE TO US, WE TRY TO MAKE SURE WE GET SOME TIPS IN THE NEWSLETTERS.
WE ALSO HIGHLIGHT ANY CURRENT CAMPAIGNS, WE HIGHLIGHT, ANY DRIVES.
UM, WE ALSO USE IT AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO COMMUNICATE WHEN WE DON'T SEE PARTICIPATION WHERE WE WOULD LIKE IT FOR OUR GOALS.
WE, WE USE THAT, THAT REAL ESTATE AND THAT NEWSLETTER TO CREATE AWARENESS AND TO DRIVE, UM, PARTICIPATION.
UH, WITH REGARDS TO PROGRAMMATIC GROWTH PLANNING, THIS HAS BEEN A PRETTY BIG YEAR FOR US WORKING ON GROWTH PROGRAMMATICALLY.
SO, UM, LIHEAP, UH, IS A LOW INCOME HEATING, UM, AND ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM THAT IS FUNDED AT THE GOVERNMENT LEVEL, AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL.
AND I HAVE BEEN REALLY WORKING WITH INTERNAL PARTNERS AND EXTERNAL PARTNERS TO FIND OUT HOW WE CAN PARTNER, UM, WITH THOSE FUNDS.
UM, AS YOU MAY ASSUME, IF YOU'RE NOT AWARE, WHEN WE ARE OUT IN THE COMMUNITY, ONE OF THE THINGS WE HEAR SO OFTEN IS, CAN YOU GIVE ME A DISCOUNT ON MY BILL? AND HONESTLY, A LOT OF THOSE PEOPLE ASKING PROBABLY WOULD QUALIFY.
SO THIS EFFORT IS TRYING TO REALLY EDUCATE MYSELF AND THE TEAM TO SEE HOW WE CAN PARTNER WITH THAT TO HAVE A GREATER UTILIZATION OF FUNDS.
UM, A COUPLE YEARS BACK, FUNDS WERE ACTUALLY RETURNED TO THE STATE, UM, UNUSED.
SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE NOT A PART OF UNDER USE FOR THOSE LIHEAP FUNDS.
ALSO, UM, WE'VE ALL PROBABLY HEARD ABOUT THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT FUNDS THAT ARE COMING OUT.
UH, WE HAVE BEEN REACHING OUT TO STATE ENERGY OFFICES IN ADDITION TO TEXAS.
I ALSO HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF OVERSEEING THE OKLAHOMA NATURAL GAS ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM.
AND IN KANSAS, WE DON'T HAVE AN ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM YET, BUT WE DO HAVE EE INTERESTS AND THAT MEANS WE'RE TRYING TO FIND OUT HOW WE CAN BE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION TO SUPPORT STATE AND LOCAL, UH, GOALS REGARDING CONSERVATION, EFFICIENCY, SUSTAINABILITY.
AND SO TO THAT END, WE HAVE BEEN DIGGING INTO WHAT THESE FUNDS LOOK LIKE, HOW WILL THEY BE USED, HOW CAN WE PARTNER WITH PROVIDING EDUCATION AWARENESS, PARTNER WITH TRADE ALLIES, DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THE FUNDS THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR CONTRACTORS? SO THAT'S BEEN A LOT OF WORK THAT'S BEEN GOING ON.
AND THEN ALSO THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW, SAME EFFORTS, JUST TRYING TO WRAP OUR MINDS AROUND THOSE FUNDS, HOW THEY CAN BE USED AND WHAT WE CAN DO TO PARTNER WITH TO, UM, SUPPORT FULL UTILIZATION OR FULL SUBSCRIPTION.
UH, THE NEXT SLIDE IS, UM, A REP, A VIS A VISUAL REPRESENTATION OF RESIDENTIAL PROGRAM PARTICIPATION.
AND IT'S ARRANGED 2023, SO CURRENT YEAR TO DATE ACROSS RESIDENTIAL RETROFIT AND THEN THE NEW RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM.
AND THEN THAT IS COMPARING AGAINST FULL YEAR 2022 AND FULL YEAR 2021.
AND FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT WE'RE NOT AROUND ON THE COMMISSION FOR 2021, YOU SEE HIGH UTILIZATION THAT WAS DRIVEN BY STORM URI AS FAR AS THE WATER HEATING.
WE HAD A LOT OF WATER HEATERS THAT FAILED.
UM, AND SO THAT IS WHAT WAS DRIVING THOSE NUMBERS ACROSS RESIDENTIAL RETROFIT AND NEW RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION.
UM, AND THEN YOU'LL SEE, UH, 2022 WASN'T THE STRONGEST YEAR ACROSS THE PROGRAM.
UM, WE HAD SOME, UM, STAFFING VACANCIES THAT WE NEEDED TO ADDRESS TO REALLY MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD THE RIGHT PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AND DOING THE RIGHT JOBS.
THAT WAS RECTIFIED, UM, WITH THE, THE ADDITION OF AN EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH SPECIALIST LAST YEAR, AS WELL AS BRINGING ON A SUPERVISOR TO MAKE SURE THAT THE DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS, UM, WERE COVERED.
AND SO NOW WE'RE SEEING, UH, ON THE RESIDENTIAL RETROFIT, UH, STRONGER PARTICIPATION AND WE HOPE TO FINISH OUT THE YEAR FAIRLY STRONGLY.
UM, AND THEN NEW RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION, UH, WHAT WE'RE SEEING THAT'S DRIVING, UH, THESE NUMBERS IS THAT AUSTIN IS FULL
THERE'S NOT A LOT OF LAND, UM, WHERE BUILDERS ARE BUILDING.
GONE ARE THE HEYDAYS OF THE MUELLER,
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WHERE WE CAN GET IN FRONT OF THE BUILDINGS AND SAY, WHILE YOU ARE BUILDING, ARE YOU BUILDING EFFICIENTLY? UH, SO NOW THE FOCUS HAS BEEN TO REACH OUT TO THESE SMALL BOUTIQUE BUILDERS AND PROVIDE THEM WITH EDUCATION.WE KNOW THAT YOU CAN PUT IN THE BASE LEVEL EFFICIENCY APPLIANCES.
HERE ARE SOME PROGRAMS THAT MAY INCENTIVIZE YOU TO INCLUDE APPLIANCES THAT ARE A LITTLE MORE HIGH, UH, HIGHER EFFICIENCY.
AND THEN MICHAEL IS GONNA COME AND TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, THE LOW INCOME AND CLOSE OUT THE PRESENTATION.
UM, MICHAEL PARAMO, UH, LIKE JASMINE MENTIONED, I'M THE SUPERVISOR FOR YES, SIR.
UH, YOUR NAME AGAIN? MICHAEL PARAMO.
UH, THANK YOU COMMISSIONER AND THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS FOR HAVING ME.
UH, MICHAEL DERMO, NEW TEXAS GAS SERVICE ENERGY EFFICIENCY SUPERVISOR.
LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ALL, UH, ACROSS THE COMING MEETINGS.
QUARTERLIES, UH, THIS IS MY PRACTICE, SO HOPEFULLY I DO AS GOOD OF A JOB AS JASMINE HAS BEEN DOING.
UH, IN Q TWO, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO THE LOW INCOME FREE EQUIPMENT PROGRAM, WE WERE ABLE TO REPLACE 54 APPLIANCES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
UH, THERE'S A TARGETED MAP THAT SHOWCASES THE AREAS WHERE WE INSTALLED APPLIANCES FOR INDIVIDUALS THAT WERE FACING SOME FORM OF HARDSHIP.
UH, THAT 54 APPLIANCES EQUATED TO JUST ABOUT 135 K IN FUNDS.
UH, IN ADDITION TO THAT, THE PROGRAM, UH, JUST LATE LAST MONTH, WE HAD TO PUT A PAUSE ON IT AND WHEN I SAY PUT A PAUSE ON IT, WORK IS STILL BEING COMPLETED WITHIN THE PROGRAM.
HOWEVER, NEW APPLICANTS CAN NO LONGER, UM, GET IN FOR THE 2023 CALENDAR YEAR.
THEY'LL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL 2024 JUST DUE.
OUR BUDGET IS, UH, APPROACHING ITS LIMIT FOR THE YEAR.
SO, UH, WE HAVE TOLD OUR, UH, REFERRING AGENCIES THAT WE WILL NO LONGER BE ABLE TO ACCEPT NEW APPLICATIONS AND, UM, THEY ALL SIGNED OFF ON ASSURING THAT THEY KNEW AND THEY'LL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH INDIVIDUALS AS THEY SEE FIT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE VARIOUS PROGRAMS THAT THEY WORK WITH.
TEXAS GAS SERVICE IS ONE OF MANY PROGRAMS THAT THE REFERRING AGENCIES WORK WITH, SO HOPEFULLY THE CUSTOMERS THAT AREN'T GETTING THE ASSISTANCE ARE GETTING THE ASSISTANCE THROUGH OTHER AVENUES.
I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME COMMISSIONERS.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMISSIONERS? ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR THE PEOPLE FROM TEXAS GAS SERVICE COMMISSIONER BRYNN HAS QUESTION.
HEY, I'M CURIOUS ABOUT THE COMMERCIAL PROGRAM.
UM, WHAT ARE THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR A PROPERTY TO BE ABLE TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THAT? OR IS IT JUST THAT THEY HAVE SOME SORT OF GAS LINE OR AN APPLIANCE? CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT MORE? SURE.
SO THEY WOULD NEED TO BE A TEXAS GAS CUSTOMER.
UM, AND THE WAY THAT THE, UH, TEXAS GAS SERVICE ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM IS CONSTRUCTED, UH, WE ARE, UH, RESTRICTED TO OPERATIONS WITHIN CITY LIMITS.
SO WE HAVE ABOUT 17 CITIES NOW WHERE WE OFFER THEIR PROGRAM, BUT COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS HAVE TO BE INSIDE THE CITY LIMITS TO BE ABLE TO, UM, PARTICIPATE.
AND THEN WE OFFER JUST A, UM, FOR THE DIRECT INSTALL PROGRAM, IT'S THE FIXED SHOWER HEADS, THE HANDHELD SHOWER HEADS, STEAM, STEAM TRAPS, UH, DRYER SMART, UM, WEATHER STRIPPING.
I FEEL LIKE I'M AND FAUCET AERATORS.
UM, AND THAT IS, THAT'S THE, THE PARTICIPATION RESTRICTED TO THOSE APPLIANCES OR, OR MEASURES? UH, WITH THE OTHER COMMERCIAL PROGRAM, UM, THERE WOULD BE A DRYER.
THERE'S, UM, BOILERS, UH, GRIDDLES, UH, THAT ARE NOT INSTALLED THROUGH CLEAR RESULT.
UM, THOSE WOULD BE, UM, PURCHASED BY THE COMMERCIAL CUSTOMER AND INSTALLED BY A LICENSED CONTRACTOR, AND THEN THE COMMERCIAL CUSTOMER WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION FOR REVIEW.
UM, ONE MORE QUESTION FOR YOU.
YOU MENTIONED TALKING TO BUILDERS OF, OF NEW HOMES AND OF NEW PROPERTIES ABOUT, UM, UPGRADING TO MORE LIKE ENERGY EFFICIENT EQUIPMENT.
IS, AND I, I GUESS I'M TRYING, TRYING TO BE RESPECTFUL, IS YOUR PREROGATIVE TO GET THEM TO USE MORE EFFICIENT GAS EQUIPMENT OR IS IT TO GET THEM TO USE MORE EFFICIENT EQUIPMENT? IN GENERAL? WE, IF THEY ARE BUILDING WITH NATURAL GAS, UM, SO THERE'S A, A BIT OF A PIPELINE, UH, FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM.
SO IF THEY ARE WORKING WITH OUR MARKET DEVELOPMENT, UM, TEAM, THE MARKET DEVELOPMENT TEAM WILL LET US KNOW THAT WE HAVE A BUILDER THAT'S CONTACTED US.
THEY HAVE PLANS TO BUILD AT THE CORNER OF FIRST AND FIFTH OR WHATEVER, FIRST AND A, AND THEY ARE HAVING NATURAL GAS PIPED INTO THEIR PROJECT.
WE WILL THEN CONTACT THEM AND SAY, ARE YOU PLANNING TO INSTALL APPLIANCES? IF YOU ARE, HERE'S A PROGRAM THAT WILL INCENTIVIZE YOU TO USE MORE EFFICIENT APPLIANCES.
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THAT ARE CHOOSING TO BUILD WITH JUST THE BASIC EFFICIENCY THAT DON'T QUALIFY FOR PARTICIPATION IN OUR PROGRAM, BUT WE DO PROVIDE THEM WITH THAT INFORMATION.ARE THERE OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM COMMISSIONERS? OKAY, I HAVE A COUPLE, UH, GIVEN THAT I'M TEMPORARY CHAIR TONIGHT, I'M GONNA GO EASY ON YOU, JASMINE.
I WANTED TO ASK YOU, UH, ON THIS CHART, UH, Q THREE RESIDENTIAL PARTICIPATION.
WHY ARE THE, I MEAN, MAYBE YOU SAID THIS AND I MISSED IT, UH, DURING THE PRESENTATION, BUT HOME IMPROVEMENTS SEEM WAY, WAY DOWN IN THE RETROFIT CATEGORY.
WHY IS THIS? WELL, THAT'S FOR Q THREE.
SO WE'VE HAD HIGHER PARTICIPATION, UM, THAT'S Q I'M SORRY, THAT'S YEAR TO DATE NUMBERS.
SO THE HOME PERFORMANCE WITH ENERGY STAR PROGRAM, UM, HAS, UH, A PROMOTION OCTOBER 1ST, HISTORICALLY OCTOBER 1ST THROUGH APRIL 15TH, WHERE WE SEE A LARGE NUMBER OF PARTICIPATION.
UM, ON TOP OF THAT, THIS IS MORE ATTIC, ATTIC, CEILING DUCT INSTALLATION AND FURNACE AND SMART THERMOSTATS WHERE WE SEE GO UP WHEN THE WEATHER IS NOT AS WARM.
UM, SO WE'RE EXPECTING TO SEE NUMBERS JUMP AS WE GET INTO HOPEFULLY COOLER MONTHS.
DO YOU GIVE REBATES FOR SMART THERMOSTATS? I WAS NOT.
WE DO, WE WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH AUSTIN ENERGY.
I DID NOT SEE IT ON YOUR WEBSITE.
YES, IT IS ON THE, UM, IF YOU GO UNDER CENTRAL TEXAS AND YOU LOOK UNDER HOME PERFORMANCE WITH ENERGY STAR, YOU CLICK, CLICK A LINK THAT ACTUALLY TAKES YOU TO THE AUSTIN ENERGY PAGE AND IT SHOWS WHERE WE PARTNER ON THAT PROGRAM.
AND ACTUALLY COMMISSIONER STONE, UM, HAD DONE THE RESEARCH ON THAT AND SUGGESTED THAT WE INCREASED THE REBATE OFFERING BECAUSE THE AMAZON, UM, SMART THERMOSTAT WAS A BIT OF A MARKET DISRUPTOR AND IT WAS A AVAIL, I THINK IT WAS AVAILABLE FOR 59 POINT 99.
SO WE INCREASE THE REBATE OFFERING, WE, UH, REBATE $30 AND AUSTIN ENERGY PROVIDES A REBATE FOR $30 TO MAKE SURE THAT WE COVER THE COST.
THIS IS ON AUSTIN ENERGY'S WEBSITE OR ON YOUR WEBSITE? IT'S, IT'S SPOKEN.
THERE'S A LINK TO IT ON OUR WEBSITE.
IT TAKES YOU TO A PAGE THAT LIVES ON THEIR WEBSITE, BUT IT IS, IT IS HIGHLIGHTED ON OUR WEBSITE UNDERWRITING.
I APPRECIATE, I APPRECIATE, UH, THE UPDATE.
I DID NOT, UM, I'M SORRY I MISSED IT.
UM, I AM JUST, WE'RE ABOUT TO ADJOURN AND I'M JUST GONNA STATE FOR THE RECORD AGAIN THAT THE METRICS THAT YOU ARE GIVING US ARE NOT SUFFICIENT FOR US TO DO OUR JOB.
I APPRECIATE THE THIRD QUARTER UPDATE FOR PARTICIPATION, BUT I WANT TO SEE FIGURES ON THE AMOUNTS OF MONEY, UH, ON ENERGY SAVINGS.
UM, AND THEY'RE JUST NOT THERE.
AUSTIN ENERGY DOES THIS ON A MONTHLY BASIS.
IF TEXAS GAS SERVICE WERE TO ESTABLISH THIS ONCE IT WAS ESTABLISHED, I DON'T THINK IT WOULD BE ANY BIG PROBLEM, UH, FOR YOU TO MAINTAIN.
I BELIEVE THAT WE SPOKE ABOUT THIS, BUT FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE COMMISSIONERS THAT WERE NOT, UM, PRESENT FOR THAT DISCUSSION, UM, WHAT COMMISSIONER ROBBINS IS REFERRING TO IS AN E M V.
SO IT'S AN EVALUATION, UM, REVIEW THAT IS CURRENTLY HANDLED, UH, ANNUALLY.
SO IT IS DONE ANNUALLY WITH THE PROGRAM.
UM, AND, AND, UM, THE BUDGET AFFORDED TO THE NATURAL GAS PROGRAM IS A BIT DIFFERENT THAN WHAT ONE MAY BE USED TO WORKING WITH OTHER UTILITIES.
AND SO WITH IT BEING COST PROHIBITIVE, THE PROGRAM STAFF MADE THE DECISION TO MAKE SURE THAT WE RETURN THOSE FUNDS TO THE CUSTOMERS AND REBATES AND INCENTIVES RATHER THAN HAVE THAT COST ABSORBED BY, UM, MORE FREQUENT E M M V RE REVIEWS.
I DON'T THINK THAT'S QUITE WHAT I'M SAYING.
UH, I'M AWARE OF, UH, YOUR ANNUAL REPORTS AND RECEIVED A FEW OF THEM, UH, IN THE LAST FEW DAYS.
NO, THIS IS THE CHARTS THAT YOU HAVE.
UH, THEY, IT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL TO THIS COMMISSION AND OTHERS STUDYING THIS IF WE HAD METRICS NOT ONLY ON PARTICIPATION BUT ON
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THE BUDGET, UH, THAT RELATES TO THAT PARTICIPATION AND ON, UM, THE AMOUNT OF ESTIMATED ENERGY SAVED FROM THAT PARTICIPATION.UH, AGAIN, AUSTIN ENERGY DOES THIS, UH, ROUTINELY.
AND THIS IS DIFFERENT FROM THEIR ANNUAL REPORT.
CORRECT? I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
WHAT I, WHAT I WAS, AND I WAS, I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT BEING CLEAR.
THE EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS OR THE ESTIMATED SAVINGS IS THE PORTION THAT IS PART OF THE COST PROHIBITIVE PIECE OR EVALUATION.
SO THAT IS DONE BY, YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH, UM, MR. PAUL ROB, SO THAT IS DONE BY HIM.
UM, WHAT WE CAN DO IS MAKE, TAKE THE SUGGESTIONS ABOUT THE FUNDS DISTRIBUTED AGAINST THE BUDGET, WHICH WE FILE ANNUALLY AND INCLUDE THAT AS PART OF THE, THE PRESENTATION.
THAT IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING WE CAN DO.
WELL, IT WOULD BE A MOVE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
UM, I HAVE NO FURTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS, UH, LAST ROUND FOR COMMISSIONERS.
[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS]
NOW ON THE LAST ITEM BEFORE ADJOURNMENT, WHICH IS FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. UH, NOW, UH, WE'VE PUT OTHER THINGS ON FUTURE AGENDAS, WHICH, UH, COMMISSIONER STONE, THE CHAIR WILL SEE, UH, HE'LL SEE THAT THEY ARE POSTED PROBABLY FOR SEPTEMBER OR OCTOBER.UH, BUT IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE THAT HAS NOT BEEN DISCUSSED TO DATE AND COMMISSIONERS ARE INTERESTED IN HAVING THEM AT A MEETING IN THE FUTURE, PLEASE SPEAK UP.
UM, UH, MS. GOODWIN, TIME EIGHT.
IT IS 8 0 8 AND I THINK WE CAN ADJOURN WITHOUT A MOTION.