Sep 20, 2023 Austin Transit Partnership Board Meeting

I'D LIKE TO OPEN IT UP TO MY COLLEAGUES IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS TO THIS PRESENTATION BOARD MEMBER GARZA? NO, I, I JUST, I LOVE THE PRESENTATION.

I, I, TO ME, A A BUNCH OF DOCUMENT, UH, SHOULD BE ABOUT WHAT YOU EXPECT TO DO, AND THIS GETS PRETTY MUCH INTO IT.

THAT'S WHAT I LOVE SO MUCH ABOUT WHAT WE WE'RE SEEING, THE, THE MILESTONES WE HAVE TO ACCOMPLISH TO GET THINGS DONE.

UM, SO THIS IS WHAT WE'RE GETTING FOR OUR MONEY RIGHT NOW.

UM, I, UH, I THOUGHT THAT THE, UM, THE PRESENTATION WAS EFFECTIVE AS WELL.

I'M INTERESTED AS WE, AS WE LOOK AT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, UH, ONE THING THAT WE DID AS WE WENT THROUGH THE PROJECT CONNECT PROCESS WAS, UH, WE CONNECTED AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL.

AND I MEAN, GOING TO P T A MEETINGS, GOING TO NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION MEETINGS.

AND IN TEXAS, WE KNOW THAT FOOTBALL IS RELIGION.

AS YOU, AS WE TALKED A LITTLE EARLIER.

UM, HOW DO WE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FACT THAT IT IS FOOTBALL SEASON? AND WE'VE GOT STADIUMS THAT ARE FULL ON FRIDAY NIGHT, THURSDAY NIGHTS, AND FRIDAY NIGHTS TO TALK ABOUT WHAT'S NEEDED.

HOW DID YOU GET TO THE GAME? UH, DOES THE, CAN THE BUS GET YOU HOME? UH, IF, IF YOU, IF YOU LIVE IN LBJS UH, AREA, BUT YOU GO TO SCHOOL AT MCCALLUM, HOW DO YOU GET BACK AND FORTH? SO, SO, UM, HOW ARE WE GOING TO INCORPORATE, UH, THE, UH, THE THINGS THAT WE DID WHEN, WHEN WE WENT TO THE VOTERS ABOUT PROJECT MEETING? SO WHAT I'LL SAY IS I THINK THAT YOU'RE SITTING IN OUR MEETINGS AND YOU DIDN'T REALIZE IT.

'CAUSE THAT IS EXACTLY A TOPIC THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.

NOT ONLY FOR THE FOOTBALL GAMES AT NIGHT, WHICH WE ALL KNOW ARE BIG DRAWS, BUT ALSO, UM, MORNING PT MEETINGS OR MORNING COFFEES WITH PARENTS WHO ARE DROPPING OFF KIDS AT SCHOOL SO THAT WE CAN START TO LEVERAGE SOME OF THOSE TIMEFRAMES OF WE KNOW THAT YOUR TIME IS VALUABLE AND WE NEED TO BE WHERE YOU ARE.

DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION? BOARD MEMBER LANDMARK? DO THANK YOU.

UM, THANK YOU.

UM, SO YOU KNOW, JEN ON THIS AND I, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE DARREN AND BRUCE AS WELL.

YOU KNOW, IN THE NEPA THING, THE PURPOSE IT SAYS INCLUDES DEVELOPMENT OF MITIGATION THAT THE PROJECT SPONSOR COMMITS TO IN ORDER TO OFFSET IDENTIFIED IMPACTS.

I MEAN, IN SOME RESPECTS, THIS PROJECT IS MEANT TO CATALYZE HUGE CHANGE.

UM, YOU KNOW, WE WENT ON RIVERSIDE AND, YOU KNOW, I I I JUST WANT TO LIKE, PUTTING RAIL DOWN RIVERSIDE IS A HUGE OPPORTUNITY TO DO SOMETHING INCREDIBLY POWERFUL FOR THAT CORRIDOR, YOU KNOW, AND OBVIOUSLY YOU NEED TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE THERE AND THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE DISPLACED, WHICH, YOU KNOW, THE 300 MILLION HOPEFULLY WILL HELP MITIGATE THAT NEGATIVE ASPECT.

BUT THERE ARE A HUGE AMOUNT OF POSITIVE ASPECTS THAT GO ALONG WITH THIS THAT ARE THE, YOU KNOW, IMPACTS OF THE PROJECT.

SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE LIKE WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, YOU KNOW, FULLY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LARGELY THE LAND USE ASPECT OF RAIL, YOU KNOW, AND NOT RUN A FOUL OF NEPA THAT WE DON'T HAVE TWO POLICIES WORKING AGAINST EACH OTHER.

UM, SO I JUST, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE RESPONSE IS TO THAT PIECE OF IT.

'CAUSE I'M NOT, YOU KNOW, PRIVY TO LIKE WHAT THE, YOU KNOW, WHEN IT TALKS ABOUT MITIGATING IMPACTS, IS IT TALKING ABOUT POSITIVE THINGS LIKE LAND USE? UM, SURE.

BOARD CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.

I'LL START, YOU KNOW, ONE THING YOU MENTIONED IS MITIGATION.

AS PART OF THE NEPA DOCUMENT, WE'LL ACTUALLY CREATE WHAT'S CALLED A MITIGATION, UH, MONITORING PLAN.

AND THINK OF THAT AS A A, A CONTRACT.

THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE ACTUALLY SUBMIT AS PART OF THE NEPA DOCUMENT THAT F T A WILL SEE.

AND IT'LL LIST ALL THOSE THINGS WE HAVE TO ACTUALLY, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE IN TERMS OF, UH, MITIGATION TO MINIMIZE IMPACTS.

NOW YOUR QUESTION ABOUT, UM, I THINK IT'S LAND USE AND, AND HOW THE PRODUCT IMPACTS KIND OF, UM, WHAT'S THERE TODAY.

AND THAT'S EXACTLY ONE OF THOSE CHAPTERS, UH, THAT WE INCORPORATE INTO THE E I S WE DIDN'T SHARE IT HERE, BUT ANYTHING YOU CAN THINK OF UNDER THE SUN, UH, IN TERMS OF ANIMALS, PARKS, TRAILS, BIKES, TRAFFIC, I GO ON AND ON.

THAT'S ALL INCLUDED UNDER THIS DOCUMENT.

AND INCLUDING, AS YOU MENTIONED, UH, UM, LAND USE AND, AND, AND SO FORTH.

BUT I WANNA MAKE SURE WE CAN CATALYZE THE GREATEST CHANGE IN POSITIVE AREAS, UM, YOU KNOW, AND NOT TRY AND MITIGATE THEM.

IT'S, WE'RE TRYING TO DO EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE OF THAT.

MITIGATION AS IT RELATES TO HELPING THE CITY GROW AND DEVELOP VERSUS A MITIGATION TO MAYBE LIKE A DISPLACEMENT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

SO I, I THINK IT'S A BALANCE RIGHT? BETWEEN, YOU KNOW,

[00:30:02]

I THINK THOSE ARE, ARE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS.

THEY ARE, AND I I I WILL SAY THIS ON BEHALF OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, SOMETIMES THEIR POLICIES DO, UM, NOT JIVE WITH EACH OTHER, BUT I THINK THE ANSWER TO A LOT OF THE MITIGATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PROGRAM IS GONNA BE THE BUILDING OF THE AUSTIN LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM.

SO MOBILITY CHALLENGES IN THAT CORRIDOR.

ONE OF THE ANSWERS TO THAT IS TO BUILD A LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM TO MOVE PEOPLE THROUGH THAT TO HELP MITIGATE MOBILITY, AFFORDABILITY AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

AND ALL THAT WILL TALK ON THE, UH, TALK ON THE LEVEL OF THE NEPA DOCUMENT.

I THINK SOME OF THE THINGS YOU'RE, YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT AND TALKING ABOUT ARE ACTUALLY OUTSIDE THE NEPA DOCUMENT.

THEY'RE POLICY TYPE THINGS AND THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, THE CITY WANTS TO DO IN ORDER TO GROW AND CATALYZE THE LIGHT RAIL INVESTMENT.

AND I THINK THOSE, THOSE THINGS SHOULD NOT BE PRECLUDED BY, BY A NEPA DOCUMENT.

THOSE ARE ADDITIVES TO A, A NEPA DOCUMENT.

I DON'T KNOW IF THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION, BUT, YOU KNOW, SOMEWHAT, I MEAN, LIKE, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE A SHRED ALONG RIVERSIDE AND FIGURE OUT HOW YOU, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY FROM IMAGINE AUSTIN FORWARD, WE'VE BEEN ADVOCATING INTENSE TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT AROUND THE RAIL SYSTEM.

THAT IS ONE OF THE REASONS THIS CITY VOTED TO ADVANCE THIS PROJECT.

I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, IN NO WAY DOES NEPA YOU KNOW, PREVENT US FROM ACHIEVING THE IMAGINE AUSTIN VISION FOR CENTRAL TEXAS.

YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THAT'S WHY I, ONE OF THE MAJOR REASONS I VOTED FOR IT.

IN ADDITION TO THE MOBILITY ASPECTS, I JUST WANNA RESPOND, YOU KNOW, I HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING AND, AND APPRECIATE THE POINT.

UM, AND I, I DO THINK IT'LL BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO DOCUMENT SOME OF THE POSITIVE IMPACTS AS WELL AS ADVERSE.

UH, AND AN EXAMPLE THAT, THAT YOU'RE MAKING ME THINK OF IS, FOR EXAMPLE, CHANGES IN VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED, UM, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE HAVE ADDITIONAL, UM, YOU KNOW, ROBUST TRANSIT OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, WE CAN MODEL LIKE SOME OF THE CHOICES PEOPLE MIGHT MAKE TO TAKE TRANSIT INSTEAD OF TAKING THEIR PERSONAL CAR AND ALL THE IMPACTS, YOU KNOW, UM, THAT ARE POSITIVE THAT EVOLVE FROM THAT.

AND SO, LIKE, THAT'S PART OF OUR ANALYSIS AS WELL.

AND ONE THING I'LL ADD THAT I MISSED TOO, IS THERE, CERTAINLY WE DO ACKNOWLEDGE A CONSISTENCY WITH PLANS AND POLICIES.

SO ALL THOSE ARE ACTUALLY CAPTURED IN THE DOCUMENT AS WELL.

I'LL ADD ONE LAST THING, WHICH IS A SHOUT OUT TO THE COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

UM, A LOT OF WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT ARE CONCEPTS THAT THEY ARE VERY FOCUSED ON, LIKE AN EQUITY FOCUSED LENS OF HOW WE'RE, HOW WE'RE GONNA MOVE THIS FORWARD.

AND SO, UM, WORKING THROUGH THEM AND WITH THEM, WE'LL BE ANSWERING A LOT OF THESE QUESTIONS AS WE, AS WE CONTINUE.

I THINK IT, IT GOES BACK TO THE EARLIER CONVERSATION WE HAD ABOUT THE PARTNERSHIP, RIGHT? UM, WE KNOW THAT THE CITY IS ENGAGED IN A WHOLE SERIES OF TRANSIT SUPPORTIVE POLICY WORK RIGHT NOW, UM, WHICH IS GREAT, RIGHT? BECAUSE THAT WORK AND THEN THE WORK ON THE, ON THE DESIGN OF, OF THE LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE THOSE THINGS WORK TOGETHER AND LEVERAGE ONE ANOTHER, RIGHT? AND SO I KNOW THAT THAT'S ONGOING AND WE'RE GONNA BE WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS AT THE CITY AND CAP METRO TO LEVERAGE THOSE PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE.

AGREE TO THAT.

AND HAVE THIS CROSS POLLINATION, I THINK REALLY WILL HELP US ADDRESS THE, THE GOALS OF THE LARGER CITY.

I'D LIKE TO ADD A COUPLE THINGS AND, AND ONE, ONE OF YOUR SLIDES IN THE PYRAMID OF WHERE YOU TALKED ABOUT THE FOUNDATIONAL PIECES OF WHAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS.

I LOVE THAT YOU'RE TACKLING THE, YOU KNOW, THE MASS LOW HIERARCHY OF NEEDS IN A WAY THAT IF WE DON'T, IF WE MISS THAT PIECE OF SAFETY AND SECURITY AS WE WRITE THIS SYSTEM, WE MISS THE BOAT, RIGHT? IT TALK, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MOBILITY, WE'RE THINKING NOT JUST CONNECTING POINT A TO POINT B, BUT THAT ENTIRE JOURNEY.

WAS IT ENJOYABLE? WAS IT SAFE, WAS IT ON TIME? AND ALL THOSE PIECES.

WHEN I LIKE TO EMPHASIZE THAT WITH THE POLICY MAKERS AT, AT THE CITY WITH COUNCIL MEMBER POOLE, WHO ALSO SITS ON THE CAP METRO BOARD, AND UNDERSTANDING HOW THIS ECOSYSTEM OF RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PARTNERS IS HELPING ADVANCE SOME OF THOSE POLICIES.

I'M VERY ENCOURAGED TO SEE, I THINK WHAT IS BE GONNA BE COMING UP IN OCTOBER, THE TREE, UH, THE TREE ORDINANCE, OR TO HAVE STREET TREES.

AND AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE HEAT OF THE SUMMER, AND AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MITIGATING THE EFFECTS OF NOISE, WHETHER IT'S CONSTRUCTION OR VIBRATION OF THE TRAINS, AS WE'RE GOING DOWN THOSE CORRIDORS, ONE POLICY CHANGE CAN IMPACT ALL THESE LAYERS.

AND WHAT I'M HEARING YOU SAY, NOT TO TRY TO TRANSLATE OR PUT WORDS IN YOUR MOUTH, BUT IF NEPA IS THE MINIMUM REQUIRED, WE DON'T WANT IT TO BE THE MAXIMUM ACHIEVED, RIGHT? AND SO I HOPE THAT WE LOOK THROUGH THAT LENS OF IMAGINE AUSTIN AND GO ABOVE AND BEYOND AND COLLABORATE IN ONE, HOW ONE POLICY HELPS US MITIGATE AN IMPACT THAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS WITH NEPA.

AND I THINK THAT IF WE PUT ALL THOSE LENSES TOGETHER AND REALLY REACH OUT

[00:35:01]

AND I LOVE WHAT EVERY TIME YOU SAY HOW, HOW ARE WE GONNA MEASURE SUCCESS? IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THE MOMENT WE OPEN, PEOPLE WANT MORE OF IT BECAUSE IT'S GONNA BE WORKING.

IT'S, IT'S PROMISING.

SO, UM, THANK YOU FOR THE HARD WORK AND WE HAVE A LOT OF HEAVY LIFT AHEAD OF US.

SO THANK YOU.

NO FURTHER COMMENTS FROM THE COURT.

ITEMS. THE FIRST ACTION ITEM TODAY IS THE APPROVAL OF THE MEETING MINUTES FROM THE AUGUST 23RD, 2020 THIRD, A T P BOARD MEETING.

SO NOW WE'RE MOVING ON TO OUR ACTION

[4.1 Approval of minutes from the August 23, 2023 Board Meeting ]

I'D LIKE TO THANK MAYOR FOR COVERING THAT MEETING FOR ME.

I APPRECIATE IT.

I WAS REMOTE AND I KNOW IT WAS BRIEF.

I DUNNO IF YOU WERE TRYING TO BREAK A RECORD, BUT I KNOW EVERY I WAS, I WAS, BUT YOUR BOARD DIDN'T COOPERATE.

, HE HE'S LOOKING AT ME.

THIS, YEAH.

NEW MEMBERS .

SO IF EVERYONE HAS HAD TIME TO REVIEW THOSE MEETING MINUTES, I'D LIKE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ACTION ITEM NUMBER ONE.

SO MOVED, MOVED BY, UH, COMMISSIONER TRIVIAN SECOND BY MAYOR WAT EVERYONE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

I LIKE TO NOW GO TO ACTION ITEM NUMBER TWO, THE APPROVAL OF THE FISCAL YEAR 2024 BUDGET.

THE MEETING MINUTES HAVE BEEN APPROVED.

UH, NOW, UM, IF I,

[4.2 Approval of Fiscal Year 2024 Budget]

WELCOME.

SO WE'RE ALL GONNA HAVE OUR STAFF WELCOME MR. ROBERTA.

HELLO JAMIE.

HOW ARE YOU? UM, GIVE US THE, UM, AN UPDATE ON THIS IMPORTANT ACTION ITEM.

HELLO, BOARD CHAIR, BOARD MEMBERS.

UM, SO YEAH, WE'RE JUST GONNA PROVIDE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE FISCAL YEAR 2024 BUDGET.

I KNOW WE COVERED IT AT THE AUGUST 20 AT THE AUGUST MEETING, UM, BUT WE JUST WANT TO PROVIDE A LITTLE MORE CONTEXT AS WE KIND OF MOVE FORWARD WITH THE ACTION ITEM.

I HAVE JAMIE AXON HERE, FINANCIAL SERVICES MANAGER, WHO REALLY HELPED PUT TOGETHER AND KIND OF HERD ALL THE CATS IN GETTING THE INFORMATION.

UM, THAT WAS ALL INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET.

BUT, SO THE ACTION ITEM TODAY IS REQUESTING APPROVAL OF THE F Y 24 BUDGET.

AT A HIGH LEVEL, IT'S $53 MILLION IN NEW CAPITAL APPROPRIATIONS, 20 MILLION OF WHICH IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ANTI DISPLACEMENT FUNDS, AND 33 OF WHICH IS DEDICATED TO THE LIGHT RAIL CAPITAL FUND.

UM, WITHIN THE LIGHT RAIL CAPITAL FUND, THERE'S A PROPOSED BENT PLAN FOR $115 MILLION.

UM, AND THE DELTA BETWEEN THE 33 AND THE 115 IS MADE UP REALLY OF REMAINING APPROPRIATIONS THAT HAVE BEEN PREVIOUSLY APPROVED, UM, IN PRIOR YEAR BUDGETS.

AND ALSO INCLUSIVE, UM, IN THE BOARD ACTION IS THE APPROVAL OF THE STAFFING PLAN, UM, WHICH IS SAME OVER FISCAL YEAR 2023 AT 87, UM, FTES FOR THE YEAR.

SO I KNOW WE JUST LITERALLY COVERED THIS IN THE LAST PRESENTATION, A LITTLE FUNNY.

SO WE WERE PUTTING THIS SLIDE TOGETHER AND WE KIND OF CAME TOGETHER AT THE END OF IT ALL.

AND WE ACTUALLY HAD THE SAME SORT OF PRIORITY OUTCOMES, UM, IN TWO SEPARATE PRESENTATIONS THAT WERE PUT TOGETHER IN, IF YOU WANNA CALL IT SILOS.

BUT, UM, OUT OUTSIDE OF HERE, AS GREG MENTIONED, THE F Y 2024 BUDGET REALLY ENCOMPASSES THE WORK TO GET US THROUGH REALLY THESE MAIN THREE PIECES, UM, THROUGH THESE MAIN THREE PRIORITY OUTCOMES THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY OUTLINED.

UM, GETTING US THROUGH THE FEDERAL PROCESS, REALLY ENHANCING, UM, OUR COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY AND BRINGING THEM ALONG AS WELL.

AND THEN ADVANCING DESIGN AND ENGINEERING TO BOTH INFORM AND HELP ON THE NEPA SIDE AND ALSO HELP WITH, UH, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT GRANT SIDE AND ADVANCING INTO PROJECT DEVELOPMENT.

SO THIS IS A OVERVIEW OF THE INFORMATION THAT WE COVERED BACK IN AUGUST.

UM, WON'T SPEND TOO MUCH TIME HERE.

ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE REALLY IS JUST A FUN SUMMARY OF THE OPERATING BUDGET.

YOU'LL SEE THAT THE, THE TRANSFERS OUT ARE THE SAME AMOUNTS AS APPROPRIATIONS, THE NEW APPROPRIATIONS THAT ARE ENCOMPASSED WITHIN THE BUDGET.

AND THE FOLLOWING SLIDES, WE'LL DIVE INTO A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ON THE, UM, SPEND PLAN AND THE DIFFERENT ITEMS HIGHLIGHTED IN THE BUDGET.

SO AT A HIGH LEVEL, THE F Y 2024, UM, REVENUE SIDE OF THE EQUATION IS, IS MAINLY PROPERTY TAX.

SO WE HAVE, WE'RE ESTIMATING $166 MILLION AND, UM, PROP A REVENUES BEING TRANSFERRED OVER FROM THE CITY, UM, THROUGHOUT THE YEAR OF F Y 24 AND ENCOMPASS IN THAT WE'RE ALSO PROJECTING A SLIGHTLY INCREASE IN INTEREST INCOME.

UM, AS WE ALL KNOW, RATES HAVE

[00:40:01]

BEEN RELATIVELY HIGHER IN THIS ENVIRONMENT AND WE'RE ABLE TO CAPITALIZE ON THAT AND BRING IN SOME ADDITIONAL REVENUE FOR THE, FOR THE PROGRAM.

UM, AS HIGHLIGHTED HERE, AS WE'VE MENTIONED IN THE PAST WHEN LOOKING AT THE ORIGINAL FUNDING MODEL, THERE WERE TWO, UM, REVENUE COMPONENTS REALLY THAT KIND OF HELPED FUND THE PROJECT CONNECT PROGRAM AS A WHOLE FOR THE PROP A REVENUE, WHICH IS DELINEATED HERE, AND THEN THE CAP CAP METRO CONTRIBUTIONS, WHICH ENCOMPASS SALES TAX DOLLARS AND OTHER REVENUES GENERATED OVER THE COURSE OF, I BELIEVE THE COMMITMENT WENT THROUGH MID 2040S, COMPASS UPWARDS OF $500 MILLION IN CONTRIBUTIONS OVER THAT TIME PERIOD.

UM, THOSE ARE NOT SHOWN HERE, BUT THEY ARE STILL BEING CAPTURED ON THE CAP METRO SIDE.

SO WE ARE WORKING WITH STAFF ON THE CAP METRO WITH CAP METRO, UM, TO REALLY FINALIZE A FUNDING FRAMEWORK FOR THE CAP METRO COMPONENTS.

SO AS MENTIONED, IT WAS A, A PROGRAM OF PROJECTS, COMPASS, METRO RAPID LINES, AND DIFFERENT PARK AND RIDE ELEMENTS AS WELL.

SO, UM, WE'RE JUST TRYING TO SOLIDIFY THE FUNDING FRAMEWORK SO WE CAN PUT TOGETHER THE, THE REVENUE SIDE OF THE EQUATION REALLY FOR THOSE COMPONENTS OF THE PROJECTS AND REALLY HAVE A LONGER TERM AGREEMENT IN PLACE TO PROVIDE THAT, UM, STABILITY, I GUESS IF YOU WANT TO CALL IT THAT WHEN LOOKING FORWARD PROJECTIONS FROM A CASHFLOW PERSPECTIVE.

SO, AND NOW I'LL TURN IT OVER TO JAMIE AND SHE'LL WALK THROUGH THE NEW APPROPRIATIONS AND THE SPEND PLAN FOR F Y 24.

GOOD AFTERNOON.

SO AS BRIAN TOUCHED ON, THIS BUDGET IS PREDOMINANTLY NEW APPROPRIATIONS.

33 MILLION OF THAT WILL CONTINUE LIGHT RAIL DEVELOPMENT.

WE ALSO HAVE 82 MILLION AVAILABLE FROM PREVIOUS YEAR BOARD APPROVED APPROPRIATIONS.

SO THAT MAKES UP THE TOTAL $115 MILLION SPEND PLAN FOR THAT LIGHT RAIL.

UM, WE ALSO HAVE THE ADDITIONAL 20 MILLION FOR THE ANTI DISPLACEMENT INVESTMENTS, BRINGING OUR TOTAL COMMITMENT TO THOSE PROGRAMS TO 120 MILLION, UM, THROUGH FISCAL YEAR 24.

UM, AS BRIAN MENTIONED, UH, WE ARE NOT, UM, INCLUDING ANY NEW APPROPRIATIONS FOR CAP METRO PROJECTS.

THE, UM, NEW METRO RAPID ROUTES BOTH EXPO CENTER AND PLEASANT VALLEY HAVE BEEN FULLY APPROPRIATED, AS HAS MCCALL STATION.

UM, ADDITIONAL FUTURE APPROPRIATIONS WILL BE ALLOCATED VIA BUDGET AMENDMENT, UM, ONCE A FUNDING FRAMEWORK I L A IS IN PLACE AND AGREED TO BY BOTH THE CAP METRO AND A T P BOARDS.

SO NOW WE'RE GONNA DIVE INTO SOME OF THAT SPENDING.

THIS IS THE $115 MILLION TOTAL LIGHT RAIL SPENDING.

UM, THE FIRST COMPONENT I'D LIKE TO DIVE INTO IS THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES, UM, THAT ENCOMPASSES OUR PERSONNEL ABOUT 16 MILLION, UM, WHICH INCLUDES OUR THREE AND A HALF PERCENT WAGE ADJUSTMENT FOR ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES.

UM, THAT ALSO INCLUDES FUNDING FOR OUR HEALTH BENEFITS AND WELFARE PROGRAM THAT IS GOING TO BE ADMINISTERED BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

THAT WILL BE A SEPARATE BOARD ACTION COMING TO YOU LATER IN THIS MEETING.

UM, AND THEN AS BRIAN MENTIONED, THIS BUDGET MAINTAINS AUTHORIZED STAFFING LEVEL OF 87 POSITIONS.

I WILL NOTE THAT AS PART OF THIS FISCAL YEAR 24 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT, WE TOOK A HOLISTIC VIEW OF, UM, THIS STAFFING PLAN.

WE WANTED TO REALLY REEVALUATE IN, REEVALUATE THAT IN THE CONTEXT OF OUR NEW LIGHT RAIL ALIGNMENT AND PRIORITIZE THOSE POSITIONS THAT WE WERE GOING TO NEED MOST IN THIS NEXT YEAR.

SO THAT'S WHY WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE DEPARTMENT PAGES IN THE BUDGET SUPPLEMENT, YOU'LL SEE SOME SHIFTING BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENTS.

UM, THAT'S NOT TO SAY ANY DEPARTMENT IS MORE OR LESS IMPORTANT THAN ANY OTHERS, IT'S JUST WE ARE PRIORITIZING WHERE WE NEED, UH, THOSE FUNCTIONS TO BE IN THE NEXT YEAR.

AND SO THERE'S SOME MOVEMENT OF POSITIONS AND FUNCTIONS, UM, BUT WE DID MAINTAIN THAT 87 POSITIONS.

UM, YOU'LL ALSO NOTE THE INCREASE IN OUR, UM, OVERALL PERSONNEL BUDGET, EVEN THOUGH THE PERSONNEL COUNT IS STAYING THE SAME, THAT IS BECAUSE WE ANTICIPATE HIRING MORE.

NOW THAT WE HAVE THIS NEW IMPLEMENT OR THE NEW ALIGNMENT, UM, WE EXPECT TO REALLY HIT THE GROUND RUNNING AND START HIRING SOME OF THOSE PRIORITY POSITIONS THAT WE NEED IN ORDER TO DO ALL THE WORK THAT YOU HEARD ABOUT IN THE PREVIOUS PRESENTATION.

UM, THIS BUDGET ALSO INCLUDES, UM, ALMOST 28 MILLION FOR BUSINESS SUPPORT CONTRACTS THAT FUNDING SUPPORTS, UM, OUR DIRECT PROVIDER OF IT SERVICES AS WELL AS NEW CONTRACTED RESOURCES FOR COMMUNICATIONS.

UM, AND IT CONTINUES OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS GROUP.

AND SO, AGAIN, GOING BACK TO THE LAST PRESENTATION, UH, THE, THE BIGGEST CHUNK OF THIS FUNDING THAT 69 MILLION IS FOR THOSE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACTS.

UM, THIS IS UTILIZING AND FUNDING

[00:45:01]

THE EXISTING CONTRACTS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN APPROVED BY THE BOARD.

UM, THAT WOULD BE EITHER H D R H N T B, AECOM HUG AND OTHERS, UM, THAT THAT FUNDING WILL SUPPORT ADVANCING THE ENGINEERING AND DESIGN TO SUPPORT NEPA AND C I G RELATED ACTIVITIES, AS WELL AS INFORMING DESIGN REQUIREMENTS AND THAT PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SUPPORT THAT'S BEEN SO CRITICAL.

NOPE, JUMPED AHEAD.

SO WE'RE NOW AVAILABLE IF YOU HAVE ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS THAT YOU'D LIKE TO ADDRESS TO US.

THANK YOU BOTH.

I OPEN IT UP TO MY COLLEAGUES QUESTIONS.

I'D LIKE TO SAY SOMETHING, NOT REALLY A QUESTION, BUT, UM, ALONG THE LINES OF WHAT, UH, LANDLORD WAS SAYING A MINUTE AGO IN SOME OF THE DISCUSSION WE HAD ABOUT HOW WE TRY TO CONSOLIDATE POLICY THAT THE CITY MIGHT BE DOING ALONG WITH WHAT WE'RE DOING, AND THE, THE ANTI DISPLACEMENT DOLLARS, THE ADDITIONAL 20 MILLION THAT GETS US UP TO 120 MILLION, OF COURSE THAT'S CITY MONEY THAT WAS PART OF THAT, BUT IS BEING, UH, MONITORED AND PUT FORWARD BY A T P.

AND I THINK THAT'S PART OF THE WAY WE CONTINUE TO, TO TRY TO MERGE THE, THE POLICY ASPECTS OF THAT.

AND ALONG THOSE LINES, UH, I WOULD ASK THAT AS WE GO FORWARD AND WE START AS WE'RE SPENDING THAT KIND OF MONEY, WE'LL BE DOING THIS AT THE CITY, BUT, BUT WE ALSO DO IT HERE WHERE WE SEE WHERE THAT MONEY IS ACTUALLY GOING AND HOW IT'S BEING USED, ALLAH MITIGATION, UM, AND, AND, AND HOW WE APPROACH THAT.

I DON'T KNOW WHETHER THAT'S ON A, YOU KNOW, EACH BOARD MEETING OR HOW I'LL LEAVE THAT TO THE FOLKS THAT ARE ACTUALLY SPENDING THE MONEY, UH, TO, TO KIND OF GIVE US AN IDEA ABOUT THAT.

BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE IMPORTANT NOT ONLY FOR THE BOARD, BUT ALSO FOR THE PUBLIC TO SEE HOW WE'RE DOING THAT AS, AS WE GO ALONG.

THE, THE OTHER THING I WOULD SAY, SINCE I'VE NOW STARTED TALKING ABOUT THE MITIGATION ABOUT THE, THE CONCEPT OF MITIGATION, IS I REALLY DO THINK THAT WE MIGHT WANT TO THINK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW, HOW WE USE THAT WORD AND IF THERE'S A, IF THERE ARE OTHER WORDS TO BE USED, BECAUSE I, I MUST ADMIT THAT I HAVE A, I'D LIKE TO CALL IT AN INSTINCTIVE REACTION, BUT IT'S PROBABLY JUST A GOOD OLD FASHIONED INS UH, A KNEE JERK REACTION.

AND THAT IS THAT WHEN YOU SAY MITIGATION, IT IS THAT SOMETHING IS CREATING A PROBLEM AND THEREFORE WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO MITIGATE, WELL, CLEARLY ANTI-DISPLACEMENT DOLLARS ARE MITIGATION DOLLARS WHEN, BUT AS YOU POINT OUT VERY WELL, A LOT OF WHAT THIS IS ABOUT IS MITIGATING OTHER POLICY PROBLEMS AND ISSUES WE HAVE TO FACE.

AND AS I WAS LISTENING TO THE DISCUSSION, I DIDN'T HAVE ANY WORD THAT POPPED IN MY HEAD THAT WOULD SOLVE THAT, UH, THAT ISSUE.

AND I KNOW WE HAVE TO CHECK THE NEPA BOXES AND USE THE, THE TERMINOLOGY THAT'S USED THERE, BUT IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL THAT WE'RE NOT ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT HOW WE'RE MITIGATING SOMETHING WHEN IN FACT WE'RE ENHANCING SOMETHING.

SO, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR.

THANK YOU, MAYOR.

UM, I THINK IN THAT, ON THAT VEIN, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT DISPLACEMENT, ANTI DISPLACEMENT, I LIKE WHAT THE CITY'S DOING AND CALLING IT DISPLACEMENT PREVENTION, IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE POSITIVE.

ANTI DISPLACEMENT SOUNDS JUST MORE NEGATIVE.

I MEAN, IT, I KNOW IT'S THE, THE SELECTION OF WORDS, BUT WORDS MATTER, RIGHT? OH, ABSOLUTELY.

THEY, THEY REALLY DO.

AND, UM, ONE THING I LIKE TO SEE THAT, AND, AND TO YOUR POINT, MAYOR, I DO LIKE THAT, UM, THE ANTI DISPLACEMENT INVESTMENTS, THEY DID GIVE US A BREAKDOWN OF HOW THIS MONEY'S ALREADY BEEN IMPLEMENTED, RIGHT? SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE 986 INCOME RESTRICTED UNITS, 50 UNITS WITH THE LIBERT AUSTIN AT GARDNER PROGRAM.

SO IT'S REALLY NICE TO SEE THAT THESE, WHAT WAS FUNDED IN TWO PREVIOUS, UH, FUNDING CYCLES HAVE NOW STARTED TO SHOW FRUIT OF THIS LABOR.

SO I'M GLAD THAT THIS MONEY'S NOT GETTING STUCK AND IT'S ACTUALLY BEING USED NOW.

SO IT'S KUDOS TO YOUR TEAM AT THE CITY FOR ADVANCING THIS.

WELL, AND I THINK IT'D BE GREAT FOR US TO HEAR ON A TIME, YOU KNOW, TIMELINES, LOCATIONS, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS, SO THAT, THAT WE'RE AWARE, WE'RE JUST AWARE.

AND, AND THE PUBLIC IS AWARE.

SO I'M, I'M GLAD THAT YOU POINT THAT OUT.

YEAH, NO, IT'S, IT'S GOOD BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IT, IT TOOK US A WHILE TO GET STARTED WITH THIS FUNDING AND THEN ALLOCATION TO THE DEPARTMENT OF, UH, HOUSING THAT'S WORKING WITH THESE ENTITIES AND, UM, BUT THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING THIS DETAIL ON THIS.

BUT YEAH, THANK YOU.

UM, ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? I'LL SAY ONE OF THE THINGS, IF YOU DON'T MIND, AND THAT IS THE, I'M GLAD THAT THE'RE POINTING OUT ALSO THE CONTINUED PARTNERSHIP WITH WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS.

A T P IS ON THE, UH, IN CAPITAL METRO OR ON THE FOUNDATION OF WHAT I THINK WILL BE ONE OF THE, UH, BIGGEST THINGS THAT WE SEE HAPPEN IN THIS COMMUNITY OVER THE NEXT YEAR, THREE YEARS, FIVE YEARS.

, UH, IN MY VIEW,

[00:50:04]

THE AMOUNT OF WORK THAT'S GOING TO GO ON WITH REGARD TO INFRASTRUCTURE IN ESSENCE CREATES A WHOLE NEW ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IN OUR COMMUNITY.

IT'S NOT WELL RECOGNIZED AS AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IN OUR COMMUNITY, BUT THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY WHAT IT IS.

WHEN YOU'RE, YOU'RE PUTTING THIS KIND OF MONEY IN THERE AND THE EFFORT THAT GOES INTO MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE CREATING CAREER PATHS IN THAT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IS, IS GONNA BE EXTRAORDINARY IF WE AS A COMMUNITY DO IT RIGHT.

IT GETS BACK TO LANG MOORE'S COMMENT.

AGAIN, THIS IS A POLICY ISSUE, NOT LAND USE POLICY, BUT IT'S, IT'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT POLICY.

IT IS TAKING CARE OF THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE HERE POLICY THAT, THAT THE WORK THAT'S GOING ON HERE IS GOING TO ENHANCE ONCE AGAIN.

SO I'M, I I, I THINK WE OUGHT TO, I'M GLAD IT'S IN THERE.

I'M GLAD WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT, BUT, UH, I, I'M, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT IT AND UNDERSCORE, SO THANK YOU FOR THAT AS WELL.

BOARD MEMBER.

GAR, IF I COULD ADD, I'M NOT SURE I COULD ANYTHING TO WHAT THE MARRIAGE HAS SAID, BUT IF I COULD ADD, UM, AND AS, AS WE MOVE ALONG WITH, WITH THESE CONCEPTS, I'D LIKE TO SEE US, UM, REPORT ANYTIME WE HAVE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS, BRICK AND MORTAR THAT WE'VE ACTUALLY DONE.

UM, SO, UM, I DON'T SEE THAT, TO ME, THE BUDGET HAS NEVER BEEN A FINANCIAL DOCUMENT.

IT IS A, IT IS A WORK PLAN.

AND SO YES, I WANNA MAKE SURE WE SPEND OUR MONEY WISELY, BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE REPORT ON WHAT WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED WITH THE EXPENDITURE OF THOSE FUNDS.

SO AS THE STEP COMES BACK TO US, UH, TO REPORT ON FINANCIAL PROGRESS, I WANT HEAR WHAT WE'VE ACCOMPLISHED FOR THE MONEY WE SPENT, ESPECIALLY WITH RESPECT TO I EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN HOUSING.

IF I COULD.

MADAM CHAIR PERMISSION, MAYOR ILLA.

UM, I THINK, I THINK THAT ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE, ARE REALLY IMPORTANT MESSAGES.

UH, BUT I THINK WHEN WE TALK ABOUT DISPLACEMENT, UH, WE'VE GOTTA UNDERSTAND THAT A LOT OF THE DISPLACEMENT HAS HAPPENED BECAUSE OUR CITY HAS BECOME UNAFFORDABLE AND, AND THERE'S AN OUTMIGRATION OF PEOPLE TO AREAS THAT THEY CAN AFFORD.

I MEAN, IF YOU'RE INSIDE THE CITY OF AUSTIN, IF YOU CAN'T GET A $500,000 LOAN FOR A HOUSE, YOU CAN'T GET A HOUSE.

UH, THERE, EVEN AS WE, AS WE'VE TRIED TO GET AFFORDABILITY THROUGH OUR PI PROCESS, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO GET A HOUSE UNDER $300,000.

SO THE QUESTION BECOMES, AS WE ARE TRYING TO CONNECT OUR COMMUNITIES, ARE, ARE WE LOOKING IN OUR TITLE ONE ENVIRONMENTS? AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR TITLE ONE SCHOOLS, A VAST MAJORITY OF THEM ARE IN OUR, ARE IN OUR EASTERN CRESCENT.

SO AS WE TRY TO CONNECT THROUGH WORKSOURCE AND TRAIN PEOPLE TO MOVE INTO THESE TYPES OF JOBS, UH, WHAT ARE WE DOING NOT ONLY WITH A I S D, BUT WITH MAINOR I S D AS WELL WITH DELL VALLEY, I S D AS WELL, UH, WITH PFLUGERVILLE, I S D.

ALL OF THESE ARE PLACES, UH, THAT, THAT WE HAVE SOME CONNECTIVITY TO, BUT WE SHOULD PROBABLY HAVE MORE.

HOW ARE WE COORDINATING WITH OUR CAPITAL AREA RURAL TRANSIT SYSTEM, UH, AS, AS WE THINK ABOUT WHERE WE HAVE ALLOCATED DOLLARS, UH, HAVE WE ALLOCATED DOLLARS IN THOSE AREAS.

UH, FOR EXAMPLE, THE EXPO CENTER IS RIGHT THERE ON DECKER, WHICH TECHNICALLY IS THE MAINER INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT.

UH, WHEN YOU LOOK AT PLEASANT VALLEY, THAT'S ANOTHER, MOST OF THE SCHOOLS ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF 35 ARE YOUR TITLE ONE SCHOOLS.

SO HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE, UH, THAT WE UNDERSTAND THE TRENDS THAT HAVE HAPPENED IN THIS COMMUNITY OVER THE LAST 25 YEARS AND INCORPORATE, UH, AND INCORPORATE, UH, THE, THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE LEARNED WITH THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE ACCESS TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE INCLUDING EVERYBODY.

I, I THINK THAT WE HAVE THE CAPACITY TO DO SO.

UH, WE, WE JUST HAVE TO, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT THE, THE, UH, DEMOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS, THE SOCIOECONOMIC ANALYSIS, UH, THAT, THAT WILL MAKE SURE, UH, THAT WE INCLUDE PEOPLE AND HOPEFULLY, UM, ALLOW THEM TO STAY WHERE THEY ARE OR EVEN MOVE CLOSER INTO THE CITY, UH, TO PARTICIPATE IN, IN A SYSTEM THAT'S GOING TO BE OUTSTANDING.

BOARD MEMBER .

UM, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR.

UM, SO I, HOPEFULLY Y'ALL WILL INDULGE ME IN SOME OF THESE

[00:55:01]

QUESTIONS.

UM, LET, LET ME START OFF BY SAYING HOW MUCH I APPRECIATE THE CHANGES THAT YOU MADE TO THIS DOCUMENT, UM, THAT HAS BEEN POSTED FOR THE PUBLIC AND FOR OUR SAKE AND ALL THE TIME THAT Y'ALL HAVE SPENT WORKING WITH ME AS I TRY AND GET MY HEAD AROUND THE FIRST BUDGET.

AND, YOU KNOW, I FEEL SOMEWHAT OBLIGED HAVING BEEN PUT ON THE BOARD WITH, YOU KNOW, THE REQUIREMENTS OF A FINANCIAL BACKGROUND TO WEIGH IN ON THIS.

BUT IT'S ALSO JUST SORT OF WHAT I WOULD HOPE WE WOULD DO IN LARGE PART, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, OUR DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF THE BUDGET IS, YOU KNOW, ON BEHALF OF THE PUBLIC, WE OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, AS BOARD MEMBERS REPRESENT THE PUBLIC.

SO OUR QUESTIONING IS, YOU KNOW, CONVEYING THAT BACK.

AND THEN ALSO THE F T A, I WANNA MAKE SURE THE F T A KNOWS THAT WE'RE, WE UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE PASSING, YOU KNOW, WE'VE INQUIRED APPROPRIATELY, WE UNDERSTAND IT AND WE AGREE WITH IT.

AND I WOULD SAY THAT OUR ANNUAL BUDGET IS, IT IS US PICKING OUR PRIORITIES FOR THIS AGENCY WHERE WE DIRECT RESOURCES IS PLACES WHERE WE ARE PUTTING AN EMPHASIS.

IF WE GROW PETER'S DEPARTMENT, THEN WE'RE PUTTING AN EMPHASIS ON DESIGN.

IF WE SHRINK GENS, THEN WE'RE, YOU KNOW, EITHER OUTSOURCING THAT OR REDUCING THAT AS A, A PRIORITY.

SO, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, AND WE ONLY DO THIS ONCE A YEAR, I CONSIDER IT ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT WE DO.

SO, WITH THAT BEING SAID, I, I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS THAT ARE KIND OF A LOT MORE SPECIFIC THAN WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING.

LIKE, IF YOU COULD GO TO PAGE 18 OF THIS BROCHURE, THE ONE THAT HAS, UM, THE BUSINESS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS, HEADCOUNT AND BUDGET.

IT'S, YOU KNOW, SOMEHOW YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO PULL UP THIS.

OH, THERE YOU GO.

SO, UH, WELL, REMEMBER, I THINK WE HAVE THAT IN THE SLIDE DECK AS WELL.

OH, OKAY.

THANKS.

THERE'S PERFECT.

OH, THEY'RE AT THE END.

BUT, UM, GOT IT.

YOU WEREN'T GONNA COME TO THEM LATER.

NO.

GOT IT.

SO ON, UM, BUSINESS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS, FOR INSTANCE, HELP ME HERE THAT THE HEADCOUNT IS GROWING BY 37% AND THE MONEY ALLOCATED TO PERSONNEL IS GROWING BY 131%.

COULD YOU JUST TELL ME HOW THAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR THAT BIG DISCREPANCY BETWEEN HEADCOUNT AND, UM, FUNDS? YES, SO, OH, GOOD, THANKS.

UM, SO YEAH, SO IN 20 FISCAL YEAR 23, WE KNEW WE WERE GOING TO HAVE THE NEW ALIGNMENT COMING DOWN THE PIPE.

WE KNEW WE HAD A LOT OF VACANT POSITIONS, AND SO WE PLANNED TO HAVE THOSE AVAILABLE, WHICH IS WHY WE REQUESTED THE FULL 87 IN THIS BUDGET.

BUT WE KNEW WE WERE NOT GONNA HIRE ALL OF THOSE POSITIONS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, LAST YEAR'S BUDGET, CORRECT? NOT, NOT THIS YEAR.

THE 87, THE 23, RIGHT? YEAH.

THAT'S THIS CURRENT YEAR BUDGET.

YEAH, EXACTLY.

SO, UM, SO THE WAY WE BUDGETED FOR THAT WAS JUST TO REDUCE THE OVERALL PERSONNEL COSTS BECAUSE WE KNEW WE WERE NOT GOING TO BE FILLING THOSE POSITIONS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR.

YOU'VE HEARD ABOUT THE, YOU KNOW, THE HIRING THAT'S GOING ON NOW.

SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING.

WE'RE RAMPING THAT UP.

UM, AND SO SOME OF THAT IS THAT THOSE COSTS HAVE TO NOW BE TRUED UP IN THE NEW BUDGET.

UM, AND AS WE EXPECT TO HIRE THESE POSITIONS THROUGHOUT THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR, THOSE COME WITH COSTS.

AND SO WHAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY SEEING IS THAT FISCAL YEAR 23 INCLUDED A LOT OF SAVINGS THAT WE KNEW WERE, YOU KNOW, NOT GOING TO BE ACTUALIZED.

ACTUALIZED.

UM, AND SO WE, WE BUDGETED FOR THAT, UM, WAS IT THE HEAD COUNT 30 IN, UM, FISCAL YEAR 23 FOR THIS GROUP, OR WAS IT LESS? NO, IT WAS, IT WAS 30.

IT'S 30.

YEAH, IT WAS 30.

IT WAS 30 WAS, YEAH.

SO AGAIN, IT'S, I THINK WHAT, BUT THAT WAS THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES.

NO, THAT'S THE NUMBER OF SIX.

THAT'S MY EXACTLY, THAT'S MY QUESTION.

IT WASN'T A NUMBER OF PEOPLE WORKING HERE.

SO IT WAS A SMALLER NUMBER AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE REALLY GROWING IT MORE THAN 11.

THAT'S, THAT'S CORRECT.

SO THOSE 30 POSITIONS OR FTES THAT WERE INCLUDED IN THE FY 23 BUDGET WERE MAYBE FUNDED AT HALF AT 50%.

SO THINK ABOUT MAYBE 15 POSITIONS.

REALLY GOT IT.

UM, AND THEN AS, AS JAMIE MENTIONED, THERE WERE SOME REORGS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR TO POSITION US FROM A ORGANIZATIONAL READINESS PER PERSPECTIVE AS THE DELIVERY DELIVERY FRAMEWORK GETS SOLIDIFIED.

SO WE KNOW THAT THERE'S CERTAIN PRIORITY POSITIONS, ESPECIALLY IN BUSINESS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS THAT WE NEED TO FUND, WHETHER IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT IT FROM A F T A LENS OR EVEN FROM A CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION PERSPECTIVE.

SO AGAIN, A MAJORITY OF THOSE POSITIONS THAT WE'RE CARRYING IN THE F Y 24 PROPOSED BUDGET ARE FUNDED FOR IF, IF NOT A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE YEAR, AT LEAST 80% OF THE YEAR.

FUNCTION IS BEING RAMPED UP BECAUSE WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE OVERSIGHT FOR THESE CONTRACTS THAT WE HAVE COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE.

GOT IT.

SO WE'RE REALLY KIND OF LIKE SHORING UP THE ORGANIZATION THIS YEAR FOR THE FIRST TIME.

FOR EXAMPLE, OUR PROCUREMENT

[01:00:01]

AND SO THAT MIGHT BE THE ANSWER TO, ON THE BUSINESS SUPPORT CONTRACTS AT 11 AND A HALF MILLION MM-HMM.

, YOU KNOW, THAT'S DRAMATICALLY MORE THAN MOST OF THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS OTHER THAN FINANCIAL SERVICES.

WHY IS THAT? YOU KNOW, LIKE FOR INSTANCE, YOU'VE GOT NOTHING UNDER ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN.

UM, SO WHAT IS THAT, 11 AND A HALF MILLION? WELL, I'LL, I'LL REFER TO ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN IS SUPPORTED BY THAT HUG CONTRACT.

SO THEY DO HAVE ADDITIONAL CONTRACTED SUPPORT.

IT'S JUST THE BUSINESS SUPPORT CONTRACTS ARE TRACKED SEPARATELY FROM OUR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACT.

SO I APOLOGIZE FOR SOME, UM, THAT MAY BE CONFUSING, AND WE MAY NEED TO LOOK AT HOW WE PRE PRESENT THOSE IN FUTURE BUDGETS.

UM, WE USED TO REFER TO THE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AS OUR CAPITAL CONTRACTS, BUT NOW THAT WE'RE CHARGING EVERYTHING TO CAPITAL, EVERYTHING'S CAPITAL CONTRACTS EFFECTIVELY.

UM, BUT IN TERMS OF THE BUSINESS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS, BUSINESS SUPPORT CONTRACTS, UM, A GOOD CHUNK OF THAT INCREASE IS DUE TO A, THE NEW, UH, COMMUNICATIONS CONTRACT THAT, UH, WE PLAN TO BE GOING OUT FOR SOLICITATION SHORTLY.

SO SOME OF THOSE SERVICES WERE PREVIOUSLY PROVIDED BY CAP METRO, AND SO WE ARE GETTING OUR OWN COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNICATIONS CONTRACT.

WHAT ELSE WILL BE COMING, WHAT IS CAPTURED IN THERE? I'M SURE THAT'S NOT 11 AVENUE.

YEAH, SO WE HAVE, THAT'S WHERE THE LEGAL, SO, UM, THE, THE POOL OF LEGAL FRIENDS OUTSIDE THAT WE HAVE OUTSIDE COUNSEL, OUTSIDE COUNCIL YEAH.

ACROSS ALL THE DIFFERENT ENTITIES MM-HMM.

, UM, YEAH.

SO IT WOULD BE HELPFUL, UM, TO LIKE ENSURE THERE'S SOME CONSISTENCY BETWEEN MM-HMM.

DEPARTMENTS SO THAT IF, YOU KNOW, PETER'S GROUP HAS A BIG OUTSIDE SUPPORT CONTRACT, WE CAN SEE IT BECAUSE IT HELPS ME ASSESS WHERE WE'RE PRIORITIZING, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY WHERE WE'RE SPENDING THE PUBLIC MONEY, BUT ALSO WHAT WE'RE PRIORITIZING.

UM, SO I'M ASSUMING THAT WOULD BE THE SAME FOR INSTANCE, ON, UH, THE ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION, RIGHT? THAT, YOU KNOW, THE BUDGETS GOING UP AND THE FTES ARE GOING DOWN THAT WE'RE JUST SHORING UP THE FTES FROM LAST YEAR DON'T REALLY REPRESENT.

AND SO THEY, THAT IS ANOTHER DEPARTMENT THAT WAS CARRYING A LOT OF VACANT POSITIONS.

UM, AND AGAIN, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THESE MORE PROJECT CENTERED DEPARTMENTS, THEY ARE SUPPORTED BY THE, THE, UM, CAPITAL CONTRACTS, SO THAT H D R H AND T V AECOM.

SO YEAH, I DON'T WANT TO, I REALIZE THAT IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT, YOU KNOW, GIVING THESE THE DUE DILIGENCE THAT NO, NO, I UNDERSTAND THAT.

IT'S NOT REALLY GOING FROM 12 TO 10 IN REALITY.

NO.

IN REALITY, THAT DEPARTMENT IS ACQUIRING MORE EMPLOYEES, CORRECT.

THAN LAST YEAR.

YEAH, EXACTLY.

SO I GOT IT.

UM, ON THE, UH, FINANCIAL SERVICES BUDGET MM-HMM.

, THEIR BUSINESS SUPPORT CONTRACTS INCREASED BY 6 MILLION.

WHAT'S THAT? YEAH, YEAH.

WHAT'S THAT? SO WE HAVE INCLUDED IN BUSINESS SUPPORT CONTRACTS, FINANCIAL ADVISORY SERVICES.

WE HAVE OUR RISK ADVISOR, SO THE, UM, ERNST AND YOUNG WHO PROVIDES DELIVERY ADVISORY, UM, SERVICES FOR A T P, THAT, THAT CONTRACT REALLY WAS RAMPING UP IN F Y 23.

AS WE KIND OF MOVE INTO ACTUALLY SOLIDIFYING OUR DELIVERY FRAMEWORK, WE'RE GONNA BE UTILIZING, UM, THEIR EXPERTISE AS WE MOVE THROUGH THAT PIECE OF THE PROJECT.

UM, THERE'S ALSO DIFFERENT SUPPORT SERVICES CONTRACTS RELATED TO STANDING UP, AGAIN, THE SUPPORT FUNCTION WITHIN FINANCIAL SERVICES.

SO THINK E R P SYSTEM, SO OUR ACCOUNTING SYSTEM, HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.

SO, UM, AND THOSE COSTS REALLY WERE INCLUDED IN FY 20 THREE'S BUDGET.

BUT AGAIN, SINCE WE ARE STILL WORKING TOWARDS FINALIZING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF OUR E R P SYSTEM, AGAIN, WE KIND OF HAD TO CARRY THOSE COSTS OVER INTO F Y 24 AS WELL.

UM, SO WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THAT DOES ERNST AND YOUNG REPRESENT? BALLPARK? BALLPARK.

LET'S SEE.

SO WE HAVE, I WOULD IMAGINE JUST HIGH LEVEL, I THINK 30%.

UM, THEN COULD YOU GO TO THE, UH, OPERATING FUND SUMMARY? YEP.

YOU GO BACK, THAT'S ALL THE WAY BACK.

OH, THIS ONE WE DON'T HAVE THAT.

OH, WE DON'T HAVE THAT ONE.

WE DON'T HAVE TO SLIDE WITH THAT ONE.

OH, REALLY? SORRY.

BUT IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, WE CAN SPEAK TO IT.

WE TO SPEAK TO.

SO, UM, THE BEGINNING FUND BALANCE, WE BUDGETED FOR 23, BASICALLY 20 MILLION MM-HMM.

, AND THEN THE ESTIMATED WOUND UP BEING OVER 65 MILLION.

THE ESTIMATED FIGURE IS BASED ON THE 2022 AUDIT.

SO WHEN THE 2022 AUDIT WAS FINALIZED, WE HAD AN ENDING BALANCE.

SO THAT'S WHAT WE INCLUDED AS THE

[01:05:01]

ESTIMATE.

AT THAT POINT, WE HAD ALREADY PUBLISHED A BUDGET, SO WE HAD ALREADY PUT A BEGINNING BALANCE IN SO THAT THAT BUDGETED BEGINNING BALANCE WAS REALLY JUST AN ESTIMATE AS OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S BUDGET.

SO ESTIMATE IS THE NUMBER.

SO FOR INSTANCE, NEXT YEAR WHEN WE BRING THE BUDGET FORWARD, WHAT YOU'RE GONNA SEE IS THE ENDING BALANCE OF THE F Y 24 BUDGET IS THE BEGINNING BALANCE HERE IS GONNA BE RIGHT.

CLEARLY.

AND I SEE THAT THAT'S WHAT YOU'VE ALREADY DONE THIS YEAR MM-HMM.

THAT IT MOVES UP TO 65 MILLION.

BUT WE WERE OFF BY 45 MILLION.

WELL, SPENDING JUST DIDN'T OCCUR.

SO WE HAD, UM, I BELIEVE WE HAD IN THE ESTIMATE $65 MILLION.

UM, WHEREAS IN THE BUDGET, WE WERE ANTICIPATING ONLY STARTING OFF WITH 20 MILLION.

SO JUST AGAIN, AS YOU THINK ABOUT F Y 23 AND WHAT OCCURRED AND THE PIVOT AND WORKING THROUGH ADOPTING THE UPDATED IMPLEMENTATION PLAN, COSTS JUST WEREN'T INCURRED.

SO WE, THERE WASN'T AS MUCH SPEND AS WE ANTICIPATED.

BECAUSE I LOVE COMING IN UNDER BUDGET AS LONG AS IT DOESN'T REPRESENT US NOT DOING THE WORK THAT WE'VE AGREED WE WERE GONNA ACCOMPLISH OVER THE COURSE OF A YEAR.

UM, OKAY.

UH, SO I, I GUESS A BIT OF THE SAME QUESTION ON THE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.

UM, WE BUDGETED 35 MILLION AND SPENT 24.

IS IT REALLY KIND OF THE SAME? THAT'S MOSTLY, UH, WELL, YEAH.

MOSTLY STAFF.

SOME OF IT IS, YEAH.

SOME OF IT IS STAFF AND CONTRACT COST.

SO WE ARE ANTICIPATING, FOR INSTANCE, UM, I'M TRYING TO THINK OF WHAT WAS INCLUDED FROM CONTRACT PERSPECTIVE, BUT WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT STAFF, FOR INSTANCE, WE HAD 50%, UM, VACANCY SAVINGS, IF YOU WANNA CALL IT THAT.

BUT IT ACTUALLY CAME, CAME, RIGHT? IT CAME, IT WAS ACTUALLY MORE THAN THAT BECAUSE WE DIDN'T FILL AS MANY OF THOSE POSITIONS.

SO WHAT'S YOUR DEGREE OF CONFIDENCE THAT WE'RE GOING TO FILL THE VACANCIES IN A TIMELY MANNER THIS YEAR? SO THAT WE DON'T, THAT WE DON'T END NEXT YEAR HAVING UNDERSPENT BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T FILLED IMPORTANT SPOTS, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE C FFO? YEAH.

UM, YEAH.

I MEAN, I, I WOULD SAY DEFINITELY A, A LARGER DEGREE OF CONFIDENCE THIS YEAR, RIGHT.

UM, KNOWING THAT WE HAVE THE, THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN ADOPTED OR WORKING TOWARDS THE DELIVERY FRAMEWORK AND POSITIONING THE ORGANIZATION TO ACT UPON THAT FRAMEWORK, RIGHT? UM, AND THERE'S A, A BETTER DEGREE OF CERTAINTY REALLY, OF THE WORK THAT'S GONNA BE ENCAPSULATED OVER THE NEXT YEAR OR SO.

AND SO ALONG WITH THAT, WE'VE DEVELOPED A MORE TARGETED STAFFING PLAN INSTEAD OF BUDGETING JUST HALF OF THE YEAR WE'RE, WE'VE ACTUALLY LOOKED AT SPECIFIC POSITIONS WHEN WE ANTICIPATE TO HIRE THEM AND BUDGET IT ACCORDINGLY.

90% CONFIDENT BOARD MEMBER.

I THINK IT'S GOOD.

I THINK THIS IS GREAT QUESTIONING ABOUT THIS AND, AND I, I WOULD VIEW LAST YEAR'S BUDGET TO THIS YEAR'S BUDGET AS A TRANSITION, JUST LIKE WE'VE TRANSITIONED THE PROJECT, RIGHT? SO GOING INTO THE, FROM A CONTEXT PERSPECTIVE, UH, WE SAT HERE LAST YEAR, UM, LAYING OUT A STRATEGY TO, TO END UP WITH AN AUSTIN LIGHT ROAD IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.

UH, WE HAD SOME REALLY GOOD MARKERS IN TIME AT THAT TIME.

WE HAD A BUDGET, A BUDGET THAT WE HAD SOMEWHAT INHERITED AND THAT WE WANTED TO PROGRESS.

WE NOW, BECAUSE WE HAVE THE PLAN, WE'VE BEEN WORKING ALL SUMMER IN THE SPRING READINESS FOR THIS WELL AWARE.

SO OUR GOAL IS OBVIOUSLY ON A REVENUE SIDE, WE FEEL VERY CONFIDENT ABOUT OUR REVENUE ALL THE TIME.

IT'S A, THAT'S EASY.

IT'S A PRETTY EASY ONE TO, TO BALANCE.

WE LIKE SEEING A FEW OF THOSE EXTRA IN INTERESTING INCOMES COMING IN.

INTEREST IS NICE.

AND THE EXPENDER TIME, THE WORK THAT I THINK CASEY AND HER GROUP HAVE DONE FROM A OPERATIONAL READINESS PERSPECTIVE, WE FEEL REALLY GOOD ABOUT THIS FISCAL PLAN IN TERMS OF, IT, IT, THE FISCAL PLAN MIRRORING OUR OPERATIONAL PLAN.

BUT AS WE BUILD, WE ARE BUILDING TO THE DELIVERING OF A CAPITAL PROJECT.

WE ARE ITERATING TO THAT BUILD ON A SINGLE THING AND MAKING SURE WE'RE ALIGNED.

WE FEEL GOOD ABOUT THIS BUDGET THAT'S IN FRONT OF YOU FROM A, FROM A PERSPECTIVE OF OUR ALIGNMENT WITH INSIDE THE ORGANIZATION AND THE FISCAL PLAN ASSOCIATED WITH THAT.

ON THE 20 MILLION, UM, THE TRANSFER TO THE OPERATING RESERVE ARE SIX MONTHS.

IS, AND WHEN WE TRANS THAT 20 MILLION, IS THAT THE FULL AMOUNT OF IT NOW? YES.

SO THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE.

OH, THAT IS OUR OPERATING RESERVE.

IT IS AN UNAPPROPRIATED ENDING BALANCE.

SO EFFECTIVELY IT'S AVAILABLE SHOULD WE NEED IT, BUT WE WOULD HAVE TO COME BACK TO THE BOARD FOR APPROVAL TO SPEND ANY OF THAT.

I JUST WANT TO UNDERSTAND, SO ARE YOU CONSIDERING THAT, I MEAN, WHAT DO WE HAVE 46 MILLION IN ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES? YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S A SEPARATE FUND.

OUR OPERATING RESERVE IS NO, I, I UNDERSTAND, BUT IS IT IS MEANT TO BE HALF OF THAT AMOUNT, CORRECT.

HALF NET OF TRANSFERS THAT, UM, THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES ALSO INCLUDES, UM, OUR REIMBURSEMENTS TO OUR PARTNER AGENCIES, THE CITY AND CAP METRO, UM, FOR THEIR SUPPORT YEAH.

E EFFORTS.

SO SINCE THOSE ARE INDEPENDENT ENTITIES, WE DID NOT FACTOR THOSE INTO THAT CALCULATION.

[01:10:01]

UM, THOUGH WE DO CONSIDER THEM PART OF OUR ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.

I THINK IT'S VERY WISE TO HAVE SIX MONTHS OF EXPENSES ON HAND.

YOU KNOW, I APPLAUD YOU FOR THAT, UM, EFFORT.

SO CAN YOU GO TO THE CAPITAL FUNDS CHART? UM, THE CON OH, Y'ALL DON'T HAVE THAT? WE DON'T HAVE THAT ONE THERE.

SORRY ABOUT THAT.

SO HERE, HERE'S MY READ OF THIS.

UM, AND, AND THIS IS, YOU KNOW, FOR BOARD MEMBERS, IT'S PAGE 22.

AND FOR PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, I KNOW IT'S AVAILABLE PUBLICLY.

SO WHAT WE DID WAS COME UP WITH HOW MUCH WE'RE GONNA SPEND THIS YEAR, WHICH IS 115 MILLION MM-HMM.

AND, UH, 46 MILLION OF THAT IS THE EXPENSES WE'VE JUST BEEN THROUGH, YOU KNOW MM-HMM.

THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS.

AND THEN, UM, IS THE $33 MILLION THAT WE'RE MOVING OVER A PLUG, LIKE IS THAT JUST FILLING THAT HOLD BETWEEN, AND I TALK ABOUT THE OTHER EXPENSES YEAH.

BUT THE 33 MILLION IS REALLY JUST A PLUG, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CORRECT.

UM, AND, AND SO IS OUR PLAN NOW, PLEASE EXPLAIN THAT MORE.

JUST THE WORD OF PLUG.

OH, OKAY.

SORRY, .

UM, BUT, BUT HOW MANY PEOPLE WATCHING THIS? YEAH, YEAH, YEAH.

UM, MAYBE BRIAN, BRIAN, JIMMY, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THE MULTI-YEAR APPROACH TO BUDGETING FOR CAPITAL VERSUS OPERATING, AND SO THAT LANGUAGE ABOUT GOOD DISCUSSION, EXISTING APPROPRIATION, RIGHT? RIGHT, RIGHT.

CAPITAL BUDGETS ARE, YOU HAVE AN EXISTING APPROPRIATION, AND THEN YOU ADD APPROPRIATION REALLY AROUND CASH FLOW.

AND AGAIN, WE ARE POSITIONING OURSELVES FOR ACTUALLY DELIVERING THE CAPITAL PROJECT, BUT TRYING TO PUT THOSE PRACTICES IN PLACE RIGHT NOW.

SO CAPITAL BUDGETS ARE, YOU HAVE THEM IN PLACE, YOU COME BACK AND YOU'RE, THIS IS, A LOT OF THIS DETAIL YOU'RE GOING THROUGH IS OUR SPENDING PLAN, NOT OUR BUDGET.

OUR BUDGET IS THE NEW APPROPRIATIONS, BUT YES, THEY HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER, APPROPRIATIONS PLUS SPENDING, AND YOU WANNA MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE PRIOR APPROPRIATIONS TO MAKE SURE YOU DO THAT, BUT RIGHT.

OR IF I GOT THAT ALL RIGHT.

YEAH, I THINK YOU, YOU, I REMEMBER A LITTLE YEAH.

YOU COVERED IT ALL.

UM, BUT YEAH, ESSENTIALLY THE 33 MILLION IS, UM, THE ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATION THAT WAS NEEDED TO FULFILL THE SPEND PLAN REQUIREMENT.

AND THE 82 MILLION IS AVAILABLE FROM THE PRIOR YEAR BUDGET, SO RIGHT.

I WAS ALREADY BOARD APPROVED.

IT JUST HAS IT'S UNSPENT FROM PRIOR YEARS.

I WAS JUST TO LOOK, YOU KNOW, LOOK DOWN THE LINE, THERE'LL BE A MOMENT IN TIME WHERE WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA APPROPRIATE MORE THAN WE ACTUALLY SPEND.

AND THAT'S FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS ABOUT HOW WE ISSUE BONDS, HOW WE ISSUE CONTRACTS.

SO WE'LL BE IN A DIFFERENT POSITION.

THAT IS WHY THE MULTI-YEAR CAPITAL BUDGET IS A, IS A REALLY THE RIGHT TOOL FOR US TO DELIVER THIS PROJECT.

YEAH, TOTALLY AGREE THAT IT IS.

UM, SO LOOK, SO ARE IS OUR INTENTION, I MEAN, NEXT YEAR WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IS JUST APPROPRIATE SHIFT OVER, WHICH MEANS SHIFT OVER TO THE CAPITAL ACCOUNT JUST AS MUCH AS WE INTEND TO SPEND, LIKE, SO THAT'S CORRECT.

WE SHOULD SPEND 115 MILLION NEXT YEAR.

SO WE RAN THROUGH $46 MILLION OF, UM, EXPENDITURES, WHICH ARE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES, BASICALLY ALL OF THE EFFORT HERE, ALL OF THE PEOPLE HERE, WHICH IS GREAT.

I GET IT.

THERE'S LOGIC TO IT ALL.

AND I UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THOSE DISCREPANCIES.

WHAT WE HAVEN'T TALKED ABOUT THOUGH, IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE 115 MILLION THAT WE'RE SPENDING AND THE $46 MILLION OF ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES, WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY THE LION'S SHARE OF WHAT WE'RE SPENDING NEXT YEAR.

LIKE, THAT TO ME WOULD BE THE TYPE OF THING THAT, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE JEN AND PETER AND CASEY WOULD SAY, HERE'S WHAT THAT'S GOING TO RIGHT.

YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE SPENDING IT ON THIS CONTRACT, YOU KNOW, AND SOME OF THEM CONTRACTS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN LET, AND I UNDERSTAND THERE'S A SENSITIVITY TO PUTTING OUT A NUMBER, UM, FOR CONTRACTS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN BID YET.

AND YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU GOTTA BE CAREFUL ABOUT WHAT YOU SIGNAL TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU'RE MAKING AVAILABLE FOR A GIVEN CONTRACT, BUT I'M SURE COMPETITION MM-HMM.

WILL HELP KEEP THOSE COSTS DOWN.

AND I'M SURE WE'LL HAVE, UM, COMPETITION ON ALL OF IT, BUT HAVEN'T HAD ANY EXPLANATION ON THE BALANCE OF, YOU KNOW, THE LION'S SHARE OF THE SPENDING FOR NEXT YEAR.

SO, UM, IF WE'RE ALL LOOKING AT THE PAGE 22, SO A MAJORITY OF OF THOSE COSTS ARE COVERED UNDER, UM, THE ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS AND PROGRAM MANAGEMENT.

SO AGAIN, THOSE SERVICES ARE BEING PROVIDED BY H D R, WHICH AGAIN WAS A PREVIOUSLY BOARD APPROVED CONTRACT.

LIGHT RAIL DESIGN, AGAIN, BOTH PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BY THE BOARD AND THIS, THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR.

THIS IS JUST A ESSENTIALLY STATING, UM, ESSENTIALLY FUNDING THE WORK PLAN THAT WAS IDENTIFIED WITH STAFF AS WE WERE DEVELOPING THE F Y 24 BUDGET.

AND THE OTHER TWO BIG COMPONENTS OF THAT ARE THE ENGINEERING SERVICES THAT ARE BEING PROVIDED BY H N T B AND AECOM, UM, FOR ADVANCING THE, THE

[01:15:01]

UM, AND AGAIN, THESE, THESE NUMBERS WERE DEVELOPED WITH STAFF AND THINKING ABOUT THE WORK PLAN COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE FOR F Y 2024, SO AS WAS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED, AND THE LIGHT RAIL UPDATE, UM, ADVANCING, ADVANCING DESIGN, ADVANCING ENGINEERING, REALLY GOES HAND IN HAND WITH THE NEPA ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS THAT'S GONNA BE EFFECTUATED BY.

SO EVERYTHING THAT JEN AND EXACTLY MM-HMM.

EXACTLY PRESENTED, EVERYTHING YOU HEARD IN THE LAST PRESENTATION IS FUNDED BY THIS.

SO IS MOST OF THAT FOR OUTSIDE VENDORS IS, I'M ASSUMING THAT IT'S ESSENTIALLY ALL OUTSIDE, THAT'S ALL STAFF AUGMENTATION RIGHT.

THROUGH, THROUGH THE SERVICES THAT HAVE BEEN PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BY THE BOARD.

SO WHAT WE'RE REALLY DOING IS RAMPING UP SOME OF THOSE CONTRACTS THAT'S IN A PRETTY DRAMATIC WAY AS WE REALLY GET INTO THIS PROJECT.

THAT'S CORRECT.

SO THEY'RE GONNA START TO, I MEAN, WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WE'RE WORKING HARD TOWARDS GETTING TO, YOU KNOW, A POINT WHERE WE CAN BREAK GROUND AND ULTIMATELY CUT A RIBBON AND THIS MONEY IS ALL GOING TOWARDS THAT EFFORT.

100%.

ONE LAST, UM, SPECIFIC QUESTION.

THE $11 MILLION ON RIGHT OF WAY AND REAL ESTATE ACQUISITIONS YES.

TELL ME WHAT THAT ARE.

IS THAT, UM, ACTUAL ACQUISITION? I MEAN, I KNOW WE AREN'T BUYING EVERYTHING NEXT YEAR THAT WE NEED FOR THIS PROJECT.

NO, THAT'S ALL PRE PRE-ACQUISITION ACTIVITY.

REALLY.

SO THE STATE SIDE RIGHT OF WAY, L L C AND L G A ENGINEERING OUGHT BE WORKING WITH OUR REAL ESTATE GROUP AS, AGAIN, DESIGN IS ADVANCED AND MAYBE SOME EARLY ACQUISITION SITES ARE IDENTIFIED.

BUT AGAIN, IF WE ARE EVER, I, I DON'T ENVISION F Y 24 BEING THE YEAR, BUT IF THERE IS, IS, UH, EARLY ACQUISITION SITE IDENTIFIED, AGAIN, THERE WOULD BE A BUDGET AMENDMENT APPROVED WITH THAT, THAT WOULD BE IN FRONT OF THE BOARD FOR APPROVAL.

AND OKAY.

AGAIN, BUT A, A LOT OF THIS IS, IS PREACT PRE-ACQUISITION ACTIVITY REALLY TO KIND OF RAMP UP THAT EFFORT SO THAT ONCE WE DO HAVE THOSE SITES IDENTIFIED, WE CAN KIND OF MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT.

AND JUST DESCRIBE LIKE, BRIEFLY WHAT A PRE-ACQUISITION ACTIVITY WOULD ENTAIL TO SEE IF IT'S ALEX.

I WOULD, I WOULD SAY WHAT IT'S, SO WE HAVE, WE, THE BOARD HAS APPROVED, UH, UH, SOME RIGHT OF WAY ACQUISITION GROUPS TO HELP US.

THERE'S A LOT OF PLANNING WORK, THINKING ABOUT, UM, LOOKING AT, UH, LOOKING AT THE NECESSARY REAL ESTATE, DOING THE RESEARCH ON THE REAL ESTATE, UM, HAVING UNDERSTANDING ABOUT UTILITIES, HOW THEY IMPACT THAT.

SO IT'S A LOT OF THINK ABOUT IT AS NOT QUITE ENGINEERING, BUT MAPPING ALONG THAT DESIGN AND ENGINEERING PROCESS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE REAL ESTATE FOLKS, SO THAT WE ARE PREPOSITIONED FOR THAT WORK.

SO IT'S A LOT OF THE STAFF TIMES OF THOSE CONSULTANTS MAKING SURE THEY'RE EMBEDDED IN THE PROCESS AS WE'RE ADVANCING DESIGN.

GREAT.

BUT NOT ACQUISITION ITSELF.

SO THAT'S NOT, YOU NEED VERY LOW LEVEL OF ACQUISITION.

ACTUAL ACQUISITION WOULD REQUIRE US TO COME BACK TO THE BOARD, A BUDGET AMENDMENT AT THAT POINT.

THANK Y'ALL FOR YOUR EFFORT ON THIS.

YOU KNOW, AND I KNOW THAT WE'RE A STARTUP ORGANIZATION AND WE'RE DOING SOMETHING DIFFERENT THAN ANY OF US HAVE DONE IN OUR VARIOUS OTHER ROLES, WHETHER IT'S AT CAP METRO OR AT THE CITY OF AUSTIN, OR AT THE C T R M A, THAT THIS IS, YOU KNOW, AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT THING, BUILDING OUT A $6 BILLION, YOU KNOW, LIGHT RAIL PROGRAM.

UM, SO APPRECIATED.

I KNOW, YOU KNOW, THAT Y'ALL ARE LIKE ACTIVELY WORKING ON THIS WHOLE PROCESS AND IN, YOU KNOW, THE, THE PROGRESS THAT YOU'RE MAKING IS VERY APPARENT IN THE NUMBERS AND IN, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THE DIALOGUE THAT TOOK PLACE.

SO I'M HAPPY TO BE PART OF IT.

BOARD MEMBER LANDMARK FOR ALSO, BECAUSE YOU HIT THE GROUND RUNNING, I KNOW THAT WE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS YOUR SECOND BOARD MEETING AND YOU'RE ALREADY DEEP IN THE BUDGET SEASON.

SO, I MEAN, NOT BY DESIGN AND NOT, YOU KNOW, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, UM, WELL, FIRST OFF, I PERSONALLY APPRECIATE THE LEVEL OF THOROUGHNESS IN WHICH YOU LOOKED AT THESE NUMBERS, ASKED THE QUESTIONS, MET WITH STAFF.

I ALSO MET WITH GREG TO HAVE OTHER FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS.

BUT, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE, IF PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT TO YOUR POINT ABOUT THE REAL ESTATE ACQUISITIONS, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT WE CANNOT PURCHASE LAND UNTIL WE HAVE A RECORD OF DECISION.

IS THAT CORRECT? AM I, YES.

IN IN GENERAL, YEAH.

THAT'S TYPICALLY AS A RULE, YES.

AS A RULE.

UM, AND I KNOW THERE'S BEEN SOME CONCERNS, AND WE DID GET A LETTER FROM, UM, ONE OF THE CITIZENS THAT WAS DISTRIBUTED TO THE BOARD REGARDING HOW COME, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE MISSING THE BOAT, IF THE REAL ESTATE COST IS INCREASING, ARE WE MISSING AN OPPORTUNITY TO OBTAIN AN UNDERSTAND BEFORE COSTS GET EXPONENTIALLY HIGHER? I MEAN, AS THIS MARKET IS

[01:20:01]

CONTINUES TO BE HOT.

SO CAN YOU SHED SOME OF THAT STRATEGY ON, ON THE REAL ESTATE ASPECT? CERTAINLY.

I THINK, UH, I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO, IS OUR OBJECTIVE IS TO MINIMIZE, UH, RIGHT OF WAY AND PROPERTY IMPACTS.

, THAT'S OUR OBJECTIVE.

UH, THE WAY WE ACHIEVE THAT OBJECTIVE IS TO GO DILIGENTLY, GO THROUGH OUR DESIGN AND ARCHITECTURAL PROCESS, AND THAT'S THE WORK WE'RE DOING.

WE WANNA BE READY.

AND THAT'S WHY WE HAVE SOME, SOME OF OUR SERVICES, OUR CONSULTANTS THAT DO THIS FOR A LIVING ARE GONNA HELP US THINK ABOUT ALL OF THIS.

BUT ULTIMATELY THAT'S OUR OBJECTIVE.

WE ARE, UM, FROM A FEDERAL PERSPECTIVE, YOU SAW IN THAT D N A SLIDE, WE COULD HAVE ADDED A LOT OF CHROMOSOMES OR STRANDS TO THAT D N A, UM, REAL ESTATE'S CERTAINLY A PART OF THAT, REALLY.

AND WE TALK ABOUT REAL ESTATE, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT RIGHT OF WAY.

I THINK WE REALLY WANNA SEPARATE THAT FROM, FROM PARCEL BUYING TO REALLY LOOKING AT THE RIGHT OF WAY, UH, WORKING WITH THE CITY ON THAT EFFORT.

UM, THAT ALSO IS A, IS A LONG LEAD ITEM, AND WE'RE GONNA WORK THROUGH THAT.

UM, BUT ULTIMATELY OUR GOAL IS TO, TO, WE WANNA, WE WANNA PUT OUR FUNDS INTO DELIVERING, UM, THE PROJECT, DELIVERING LIGHT RAIL, UM, AND WORKING WITH OUR COMMUNITY ALONG THAT EFFORT.

THANK YOU, GREG.

I DO HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION ON PAGE 10 OF, OF THE BUDGET REPORT WE HAVE, LAST YEAR WAS THE FIRST TIME WE HAD AN F T E APPROVED NUMBER BY THIS BOARD.

THAT'S CORRECT.

SO I REALLY APPRECIATE HAVING THAT ACCOUNTABILITY TO HAVE A ROADMAP OF WHAT'S OUR STAFFING LEVELS GOING TO BE.

SO THANK YOU FOR, FOR CONTINUING TO BALANCE THE, THE FTES.

BUT WHAT IS OUR, HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE WE HAVE HIRED RIGHT NOW? YOU DON'T HAVE TO TELL ME BY DEPARTMENT, BUT 55.

I BELIEVE 55 SOUNDS ABOUT RIGHT.

ROUGHLY.

SO WE HAVE 55.

I I'M BEING TOLD THAT THAT'S A, A GOOD NUMBER.

WE'LL GO WITH THAT.

, WE HAVE A NEW DIRECTOR OF HR TOO, SO THAT'S RIGHT.

WELCOME.

UM, SO WE HAVE TO YOUR POINT BOARD MEMBER , THAT THOSE, THOSE BUDGETS, YOU KNOW, THOSE FTES WERE THERE IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF APPROVED FDS AUTHOR AUTHORIZED, BUT NOT FUNDED COMPLETELY.

NOT FILLED.

AND UM, AND THEN LASTLY, I DO HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION, UM, WITH REGARDS TO HOW MUCH TIME, BECAUSE OUR BUDGETS ARE GONNA BE MORE INTRICATE AS WE ADVANCE AND WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO SELL BONDS.

AND I DO LIKE THE SUGGESTION THAT ALSO CAME FROM ONE OF OUR, UH, CITIZENS WHO SENT A LETTER THAT, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF OUR FINANCIAL POLICY, THE RECOMMENDATION IS 21 DAYS.

AND, AND WE TALK ABOUT IT ON PAGE 26 FOR THE BUDGET POLICIES.

ITEM NUMBER TWO, THE BOARD SHALL ADOPT AN ANNUAL BUDGET NO LATER THAN ITS SEPTEMBER BOARD MEETING, WHICH IS WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW, IMMEDIATELY PROCEEDING THE START OF THE FISCAL YEAR.

THE PROPOSED, PROPOSED BUDGET WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC REVIEW AT LEAST 21 DAYS PRIOR TO THE BOARD MEETING BECAUSE WE HAD A PRESENTATION IN, IN AUGUST, SO THAT WE COULD HAVE THIS MONTH TO DELIBERATE AND ASK FURTHER QUESTIONS AND UNDERSTAND WHERE THE MONIES ARE.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO INCREASE THAT FIRST PRESENTATION TO BE JULY INSTEAD OF AUGUST? AND ALSO TO GIVE AGAIN, MORE TIME FOR OUR FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS TO DIVE IN.

UH, UH, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S A GOOD, I THINK THAT'S A GOOD DIALOGUE.

AS WE LOOK OUT TO NEXT YEAR, WE CALENDAR OUT THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR AND THE BOARD ACTION AS WE THINK ABOUT ALL THE THINGS THAT NOT COME BACK FROM THE BOARD.

I THINK THAT'S REALLY GOOD INPUT AS WE PUT THAT CALENDAR TO BETTER.

AND I THINK TO YOUR POINT, RIGHT, WE HAVE A, UM, UH, ON SOME LEVEL, RIGHT, WE HAVE A VERY SIMPLE MISSION TO DELIVER LIGHT RAIL.

BUT YOU CAN SEE TODAY FROM TALKING ABOUT OUR D N A, THERE'S A COMPLEXITY TO IT.

AND THAT WILL GROW, ESPECIALLY AS WE GET INTO FINANCING.

SO I THINK THERE'S A, UH, A RATIONALE FOR LOOKING AT OUR, OUR, OUR TIMING WITH THE BOARD AND WITH THE COMMUNITY ON THAT.

AND I THINK WE CAN TAKE THAT AS WE BUILD OUR CALENDAR FOR, FOR NEXT YEAR.

GREAT.

UM, I DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER FURTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT BOARD MEMBER GARZA.

JUST A QUICK QUESTION.

UH, YES OR NO, UM, YOU MENTIONED A, UH, AN I L A WITH CAP METRO PENDING.

WHEN THAT'S RESOLVED, CAN WE EXPECT AN AMENDMENT TO BUDGET TO COME FORWARD? IS THAT WHAT YOU MEANT? THAT'S CORRECT.

SO YEAH, WE WILL BE BRINGING FORWARD THE FUNDING FRAMEWORK I L A AND THEN THE ASSOCIATED APPROPRIATION, AGAIN, FOR THE PROJECTS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED WITHIN THAT FUNDING FRAMEWORK.

THAT'S HOW WE DID IT FOR MC, THE MCCULLOUGH STATION, AS WELL AS THE EXPO AND PV PLEASANT VALLEY.

PLEASANT VALLEY, SORRY, UM, AND TO THAT POINT, JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, AND BRIAN MENTIONED IT EARLIER, THE PUBLISHED CAPITAL METRO BUDGET, WE BUDGET DIFFERENTLY.

THAT'S ALL IT REALLY, THE PUBLISHED CAPITAL METRO BUDGET ASSUMES ANY ANTICIPATED EXPENSES WE WILL INCORPORATE

[01:25:01]

THIS YEAR.

ATP'S APPROACH IS TO WAIT UNTIL THE AGREEMENTS ARE SIGNED TO MAKE THOSE BUDGET DOCUMENTS.

SO IF YOU REALLY GOT INTO THE WEEDS, WHICH I'M NOT SURE ANYONE OTHER THAN BRIAN AND I WOULD DO, UM, BETWEEN OUR AND MAYBE JOHN LANG MOORE, UM, BETWEEN THE CAT METRO BUDGET BOOK AND THE A T V BUDGET BOOK, YOU WILL SEE THOSE TWO THINGS SEPARATE JUST BECAUSE WE HAVE DIFFERENT PRACTICES WHEN IT COMES TO REPRESENTING THOSE BUDGETS.

SO WE HAVE ROUGHLY A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF CAPITAL EXPENSES THAT WE ANTICIPATE IN THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR FOR PROPERTY ACQUISITIONS FOR FACILITIES, AS WELL AS THE PARK AND RIDES FOR OUR METRO RAPID STATIONS, UM, THAT WE DON'T YET HAVE AGREEMENTS ON EXACTLY HOW THOSE FUNDS WILL BE EXCHANGED.

SO THEY'RE NOT YET REPRESENTED IN THE A T P BUDGET.

AND THOSE ARE ACTIVE CONVERSATIONS HAPPENING BETWEEN OUR FINANCE TEAM AND THE A T P TEAM.

ALRIGHT, AND ONE MORE THING.

WHEN WILL IT BE APPROPRIATE, APPROPRIATE TO MAKE A MOTION TO ADOPT ? NOT YET.

I DO WANNA SAY ONE MORE THING THAT I KNOW THAT THIS BUDGET ALSO INCLUDES A 3.5% RAISE FOR STAFF, AND I JUST WANNA SHARE MY GRATITUDE TO THE TEAM BECAUSE YOU GUYS HAVE DONE A REALLY HEAVY LIFT.

SO KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK AND KEEP UP THE, THE MOMENTUM BECAUSE THIS COMMUNITY'S EAGER AND EXPECTING FOR US TO DELIVER SOMETHING.

SO I HOPE THAT THIS, UH, SHOWS THAT THIS BOARD APPRECIATES AND SUPPORTS THE TEAM AND THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING.

SO, UM, WITH THAT, WE'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION IF THERE'S NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, THERE'S YOUR TIME, MAN.

, MOVE TO APPROVE BY BOARD MEMBER GARZA.

SECOND BY BOARD MEMBER LANDMARK.

EVERYONE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

ACTION ITEM NUMBER TWO, AND OUR BUDGET IS NOW APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.

APPRECIATE IT.

ON TO OUR ACTION ITEM NUMBER THREE, THE APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OR THEIR DESIGNEE TO FILE APPLICATIONS WITH A FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION AND OPERATING ADMINISTRATION OF THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION FOR FEDERAL TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED BY 49 U SS C CHAPTER 53, TITLE 23, UNITED STATES CODE, OR OTHER FEDERAL STATUTES ADMINISTERED BY THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION.

UM, SO NOW WE'RE MOVING

[4.3 Approval of a resolution authorizing the Executive Director, or their designee, to file applications with the Federal Transit Administration, an operating administration of the United States Department of Transportation, for federal transportation assistance authorized by 49 U.S.C. Chapter 53; Title 23, United States Code, or other federal statutes administered by the Federal Transit Administration]

SO WITH THAT, UM, IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD, I'D LIKE TO REQUEST A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THIS ACTION ITEM, MOVE.

SECOND.

MOVED BY MAYOR WATSON.

SECOND BY BOARD MEMBER GARZA.

EVERYONE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

FOUR IS THE APPROVAL OF AMENDMENTS TO THE PROJECT CONNECT COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE'S, BYLAWS RELATED TO MEMBERSHIP COMPOSITION, TERMS OF MEMBERSHIP, APPOINTMENT PROCESS, STAFF LIAISON ROLES AND MEETINGS, AND AUTHORIZED NEGOTIATION AND EXECUTION OF RELATED AMENDMENTS TO THE JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY, THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP AND CAPITAL METRO.

ACTION.

ITEM NUMBER THREE IS APPROVE UNANIMOUSLY.

MOVING ON TO ACTION.

ITEM NUMBER

[4.4 Approval of amendments to the Project Connect Community Advisory Committee’s bylaws related to membership composition, terms of membership, appointment process, staff liaison roles, and meetings, and authorize negotiation and execution of related amendments to the Joint Powers Agreement between the City, the Austin Transit Partnership, and CapMetro]

THE INFORMATION IS IN OUR PACKET OF WHAT WAS UM, PRESENTED AND WE'VE ALL BEEN BRIEFED ON THIS ITEM.

DO I HAVE, UH, A MOTION TO APPROVE MOVE BY BOARD MEMBER GARZA SECOND, BUT BOARD MEMBER LAMAR, ANY DISCUSSION? NO DISCUSSION QUESTIONS? UH OH.

ONLY THING I MIGHT SAY IS I SET THROUGH A COUPLE OF THOSE MEETINGS AND THEY HAVE PUT A GREAT DEAL OF THOUGHT INTO HOW THEY'RE GOING TO OPERATE GOING FORWARD AND SELECT BOARD MEMBERS.

AND, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, IT IS THE LEVEL OF ATTENTION THAT THEY HAVE PUT IN TO THAT RECOMMENDATION THAT WE'RE MOVING PAST QUICKLY AS IS APPROPRIATE BECAUSE THEY'VE DONE DONE ALL THE WORK.

IT'S, YOU KNOW, I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE HOW MUCH WENT INTO THAT AND HOW THOUGHTFUL THAT APPROACH IS.

AND I'D ALSO LIKE TO THANK OUR CHAIR AVE AZAR, BECAUSE HIS LETTER ALSO DESCRIBED THE UNANIMOUS APPROVAL AND THOUGHTFULNESS IN WHICH THEY WENT THROUGH FOR THIS, UM, BYLAW AMENDMENTS.

AND WHAT I, I'M ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT IS THAT WE WANNA KEEP THE CONTINUITY OF MEMBERSHIP, NOT HAVE ANY VACUUMS WITHIN THEIR, THEIR SUPPORT BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN HELPING US ADVANCES PROGRAM.

AND UM, AND ALSO WHAT I LIKE IS THAT THEY'RE NOW HAVING, UH, OVERLAP TERMS, UH, WHAT DO YOU CALL IT, UH, STAGGERED TERMS. SO I THINK WE COULD ALL TAKE A NOTE ON OUR OWN GOVERNANCE AND IN THIS, AS WE GO THROUGH OUR OWN GOVERNANCE ANALYSIS, LET'S TAKE A PAGE FROM THEIR, THEIR LEADERSHIP AND HOW THEY, THEY WENT ABOUT IT.

SO, UH, WITH THAT, IF THERE'S NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, UM, EVERYONE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

FIVE IS THE APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE NEGOTIATION AND EXECUTION OF AN INTER-LOCAL AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN FOR A T P EMPLOYEE HEALTH AND WELFARE BENEFITS SERVICES FOR AN INITIAL TERM OF ONE YEAR WITH THREE 12 MONTH EXTENSION OPTIONS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $1,200,000 FOR THE INITIAL TERM WITH ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURES, INCLUDING OPTIONS TO BE APPROVED THROUGH THE ANNUAL BUDGET PROCESS.

THE ACTION NUMBER FOUR

[01:30:01]

IS APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.

AND, UM, ITEM NUMBER

[4.5 Approval of a resolution authorizing the negotiation and execution of an interlocal agreement with the City of Austin for ATP employee health and welfare benefits services for an initial term of 1 year, with three 12-month extension options, in an amount not to exceed $1,200,000 for the initial term, with additional expenditures, including options, to be approved through the annual budget process]

AND AS I STATED EARLIER, THE FUNDING IS APPROVED IN THE FISCAL YEAR 2024 BUDGET.

I WILL REQUEST A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ACTION ITEM NUMBER FIVE.

SO MOVED BY, UH, MAYOR WATSON, SECOND BY BOARD MEMBER GARZA .

THIS IS NOT ADDITION TO THE BUDGET, THIS IS BASICALLY JUST CHANGING BENEFIT PLAN.

YES, THAT IS CORRECT.

AND, UH, SO I HAVE ONE ON ONE COMMENT AS WELL.

I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE, UH, THAT AS WE HAVE PEOPLE, PARTICULARLY THE ONES THAT WERE SECONDED, UH, THAT THAT, THAT, UH, WE'VE DONE AN ANALYSIS TO MAKE SURE, UH, THAT UM, NO EMPLOYEES ARE LOSING BENEFITS THAT THEY HAD IN THE PREVIOUS INSURANCE PROGRAM THAT THEY WERE IN.

WHEN IF, IF A, IF A FAMILY HAS DEVELOPED A RELIANCE ON A CERTAIN TYPE OF RESOURCE, I WANT TO MAKE SURE, UH, THAT THEY HAVE NOT LOST ACCESS TO THAT BENEFIT BECAUSE OF A CHANGE THAT HAS HAPPENED IN IN FLORIDA.

GOOD POINT.

APPRECIATE THAT.

REBECCA ELLO, CHIEF OF STAFF FOR THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP, AND I DO APPRECIATE THAT WE HAVE, UM, THROUGH AN ANALYSIS PRELIMINARY OF COURSE, LOOKED AT ENSURING THAT THE COMPONENTS OF THE BENEFITS PROGRAM DOES KEEP, UH, COMPONENTS WHOLE.

SO THERE IS NOT, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY ALL OF THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP EMPLOYEES ELIGIBLE FOR BENEFITS WOULD HAVE THE VERY SIMILAR HEALTHCARE COVERAGE.

ALRIGHT, JUST ONE TO MENTION.

APPRECIATE THAT VERY MUCH.

YES, THANK YOU.

REBECCA LANGER.

UH, SUCH AS THE EMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

UM, SO I, YOU KNOW, JUST READING THIS PARAGRAPH, I DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE DOING.

I ASKED ABOUT IT.

UM, SO I HAVE I THINK A BETTER UNDERSTANDING, BUT, YOU KNOW, FOR THE SAKE OF THE PUBLIC, UM, W WE AREN'T THE, THESE ARE, THIS ISN'T THE ENTIRETY OF BENEFITS THAT A T P EMPLOYEES, UM, HAVE ACCESS TO.

THIS IS MERELY THE HEALTH, UM, BASICALLY THE HEALTH INSURANCE BENEFITS THAT WE ARE NOW, CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, REBECCA, THAT WHAT WE'RE NOW DOING IS LETTING THE CITY OF AUSTIN, WHICH HAS A HUGE POOL OF EMPLOYEES, WE ARE NOW ROLLING UP UNDER THEIR UMBRELLA AND WE'RE ESSENTIALLY GETTING THE BENEFIT OF THE BARGAINING POWER OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN WITH ALL OF ITS EMPLOYEES.

WE'LL HAVE A VERY SIMILAR PACKAGE.

OUR EMPLOYEES WILL HAVE A VERY SIMILAR PACKAGE TO WHAT THEY DO TODAY, BUT THIS SHOULD LOWER OUR COST AND TAXPAYER MONEY THAT WE'RE SPENDING, UM, TO ACHIEVE A SAME LEVEL OF, UH, HEALTH BENEFIT.

IS THAT CORRECT? SO THAT IS ACCURATE.

SO WE WANNA DEFINITELY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF, UH, THE LARGER AGENCY'S ABILITY TO NEGOTIATE.

AS YOU OBVIOUSLY WELL KNOW, THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS A NUMBER, VERY HIGH NUMBER OF INSURED LIVES THAT OFFERS US AN ABILITY TO JUST THROUGH THE ADMINISTRATION, THAT THE CITY WILL, UM, HAVE TO ADMINISTER OUR BENEFITS.

IT OFFERS US THAT ADVANTAGE TO COME UNDER A PROGRAM THAT HAS THAT NEGOTIATION POWER.

THE ONE THING TO KNOW HOWEVER, IS, UM, TO ENSURE OUR EMPLOYEES HAVE THE ONSITE CARE AND ONE-ON-ONE ATTENTION, UM, WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO NEGOTIATE A REALLY WONDERFUL PROCEDURE WHERE EVEN THOUGH THEY'RE ADMINISTERING THINGS LIKE OUR OPEN ENROLLMENT FROM THEIR PLATFORM, WE HAVE AN ONSITE TEAM AND A BENEFIT SPECIALIST THAT WILL ACTUALLY BE MOVING THE DAY-TO-DAY COMMUNICATIONS WITH OUR TEAM.

UM, SO THE COMPONENTS OF OUR HEALTHCARE BENEFITS AND OUR WELFARE PROGRAM WILL REMAIN CONSISTENT.

OUR RETIREMENT WILL REMAIN THE SAME CURRENTLY THAT WILL NOT MOVE TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

AND YOU ARE ACCURATE.

IT IS ALLOWING FOR THOSE, UM, ELEMENTS TO BE IN PLACE.

SO TELL ME EXACTLY WHAT BENEFITS THE CITY OF AUSTIN IS GOING TO NEGOTIATE ON.

UM, IS THAT IT UP THERE? SURE, IT IS.

IT'S THE MEDICAL INSURANCE, DISABILITY INSURANCE, LIFE INSURANCE, HEALTH AND MENTAL WELLNESS TO AN EXTENT,

[01:35:01]

THERE'S ALSO A PREPAID LEGAL, UM, OPPORTUNITY AND THEY DO HAVE A NUMBER OF OTHER ELEMENTS THAT IS AN ENHANCED PROGRAM.

UM, WHAT STAYS WITH US, OF COURSE, IS ANYTHING UNDER OUR BROAD A T P POLICY, SUCH AS JUST AS YOU WOULD UNDERSTAND A BENEFITS PACKAGE BEING.

IT ALSO INCLUDES LEAVE.

SO THOSE WOULD BE THE A T P LEAVE PROGRAMS AND CERTAINLY THE RETIREMENT PROGRAM STAYS WITH A T P, OUR CURRENT SYSTEM.

OKAY, GOOD.

UM, DO WE, UM, INPUT TO WHAT'S COVERED UNDER THOSE? DO WE HAVE A CHANCE TO SAY, AS YOU GO OUT AND NEGOTIATE, WE WANT DENTAL TO BE THIS? UM, SO THE INTERESTING THING THAT THIS ALLOWS US, AND WE'RE STRUCTURING THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT TO ALLOW FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF REALLY CULLING THAT DATA.

SO WE WILL BE ABLE TO GO OUT TO THE MARKET WITH THOSE DETAILS, BUT WE WILL BE COMING UNDER THEIR PROGRAM, NEGOTIATED WITH THEIR PROGRAM, UM, AND MANY.

SO WE TAKE IT AS IT IS THAT IS ACCURATE IN TERMS OF THE BENEFITS THAT IS ACCURATE.

WELL, HOW MUCH DO YOU ANTICIPATE WE WILL SAY BY THIS INITIATIVE? I WILL NEED TO GET BACK WITH YOU WITH THAT LEVEL OF DATA.

UM, BUT WE ARE SEEING JUST THE COST TO THE EMPLOYEE.

UM, THERE WILL BE A SAVINGS IN MOST CASES.

AND THEN OVERALL IT IS NOT INCREASING OUR ANNUAL BUDGET.

SO MOST OF THE SAVINGS MIGHT FLOW THROUGH TO THE EMPLOYEES AS OPPOSED TO THE AGENCY, WHICH IS A GREAT THING.

I MEAN THAT WE ARE SEEING THAT WORTH IT.

YES, SIR.

YES, WE APPRECIATE BOTH THE, UH, ADMINISTRATIVE PARTNERSHIP OF OUR, UM, SPONSORING ENTITIES.

IT'S BEEN A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE.

GOOD.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY OTHER FURTHER QUESTIONS, REMARKS? NO.

WITH THAT, COULD I PLEASE, UH, EVERYONE IN FAVOR OF THIS ACTION ITEM NUMBER FIVE, PLEASE SAY AYE.

CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK YOU.

AND ITEM FIVE IS THE PREVIEW UNANIMOUSLY.

SO NOW MOVING

[5.1 Briefing on Task Order Review Audit ]

ON TO, UH, WE'LL HAVE, UH, ATP'S DIRECTOR OF INTERNAL AUDIT, KATIE HOUSTON, TO PRESENT ON THE NEXT ITEM.

WELCOME MS. HOUSTON AND WELCOME OUR, UH, CASEY RACK.

HI THERE.

WOULD'VE BEEN TO, YOU KNOW, BRING THOSE CONTRACTS IN HOUSE AND ALIGN THAT LEGAL CONTRACTING AUTHORITY WITH THESE TASK ORDER MONITORING RESPONSIBILITIES.

GOOD AFTERNOON.

UH, SO I'M HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT TWO ITEMS. THE FIRST ONE IS, UH, THE RESULTS OF THE TASK ORDER REVIEW AUDIT.

AS A REMINDER, THIS WAS A PROJECT THAT WAS INCLUDED ON THE FISCAL YEAR 2023 AUDIT PLAN, AND IT WAS CONDUCTED BY OUR CONTRACTED AUDIT STAFF AT B D O.

THEIR TESTING OCCURRED BETWEEN, THEY STARTED THEIR WORK IN MARCH AND THEY WRAPPED UP THEIR WORK, UM, AROUND JUNE.

THE OBJECTIVE OF THEIR PROJECT WAS TO EVALUATE THE TASK ORDER APPROVAL AND MONITORING PROCESSES.

AND THESE TASK ORDERS THAT THEY LOOKED AT WERE ISSUED TO H D R ACOM AND H N T B UNDER THE AGREEMENTS EXECUTED BY CAP METRO H D R IN LATE 2018, AND THEN THE OTHER TWO IN EARLY 2019.

AND THEIR WORK PRIMARILY FOCUSED ON THE TASK ORDERS ISSUED AFTER A T P, UH, CAME INTO EXISTENCE IN JANUARY, 2021 TO OCTOBER, 2022.

I'M USED TO BEING ORIENTED THAT WAY AND READING MY SLIDES.

SO I'M, THAT'S, I'M PIVOTING HERE.

SO ON THE NEXT SLIDE HERE, WE HAVE THE RESULTS.

UH, REALLY AT A HIGH LEVEL, THIS TEAM IDENTIFIED THAT THE INITIAL CONTRACT SET UP UNDER CAP METRO WAS NOT OPTIMAL.

AND WITH MORE SPECIFICITY, I THINK THAT WHAT THEY'RE SAYING IS THAT THAT CONTRACT SET UP DID NOT ALIGN THE LEGAL CONTRACTING AUTHORITY WITH THE TASK ORDER MONITORING RESPONSIBILITIES ALL UNDER A T P AS, AS THE VOTERS INTENDED.

UM, I THINK THERE'S SOME GOOD JUSTIFICATIONS FOR THAT.

LIKE I SAID, YOU KNOW, THESE WERE INITIALLY EXECUTED IN 2018 AND 2019 BEFORE A T P EVEN EXISTED.

THOSE CONTRACTS CAME ABOUT TO KIND OF GET THE PROGRAM UP AND RUNNING.

UH, IN LOOKING AT SOME OF THE CONDITIONS THAT THIS TEAM NOTED, UH, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO CONSIDER KIND OF SOME OF THE, THE ROOT CAUSE ELEMENTS HERE.

I THINK IT'S FAIR TO POINT OUT THAT, UM, THE TASK ORDERS REVIEWED HERE OCCURRED PRIMARILY DURING THAT PERIOD OF TIME WHEN A T P WAS OPERATING UNDER THE SHARED LEADERSHIP MODEL.

I KNOW Y'ALL KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS, BUT FOR ANYBODY ELSE, SHARED LEADERSHIP WAS, WAS WHEN WE HAD THE ONE PERSON IN CHARGE OF BOTH A T P AND CAP METRO.

SO I THINK THAT'S, YOU KNOW, A CONSIDERATION HERE.

AND THEN AFTER THE BOARD, UH, APPROVED, UM, A CHANGE IN THAT LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE, THE PROGRAM REALLY UNDERWENT A SIGNIFICANT, UH, RESET.

SO I THINK THAT THAT, OH, THANK YOU.

THAT, THAT PROBABLY WOULD HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW, FINDING AND RECOMMENDATION ONE FROM THIS TEAM

[01:40:01]

BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THAT WORK IS DONE.

UH, DURING THE COURSE OF THIS AUDIT, THE, THERE WERE SOME NEW CONTRACTS EXECUTED DIRECTLY WITH H D R AND ACOM AND H N T B.

THAT WORK OCCURRED IN MAY, 2023.

SO KIND OF THAT THE BIG ENCHILADA, UH, WAS, WAS ADDRESSED ALREADY.

UM, AND I'LL SAY THERE THAT THAT REALLY IS A NOTABLE ENHANCEMENT, NOT JUST TO ATP'S RISK ENVIRONMENT, BUT TO THE PROGRAM AT LARGE.

I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DID NOT SAY BIG TIME, KUDOS TO GREG, YOU AND YOUR TEAM AND.YOU AND YOUR TEAM.

IT'S ONE BULLET HERE, BUT, BUT IT WAS A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK.

I I SAW SO MANY EMAILS AND RECORDS AND DOCUMENTS, UH, DEPICTING ALL THE REALLY HARD WORK THAT, THAT FOLKS PUT INTO ADDRESSING THAT RISK.

SO, SO BIG CONGRATULATIONS THERE.

SEPARATE FROM THAT, UM, THIS TEAM IDENTIFIED SOME OTHER CONDITIONS THAT PRESENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT.

AND I'VE HAD A LOT OF REALLY GOOD DISCUSSIONS WITH CASEY AND GREG THE LAST, UH, FEW MONTHS ON THESE TRYING TO TEASE OUT WHICH OF THOSE CONDITIONS ARE, ARE STILL RELEVANT NOW THAT WE'VE BROUGHT THESE CONTRACTS IN-HOUSE AND, AND MAYBE WHAT, WHAT WORK IS AHEAD OF US.

AND WE MADE THREE RECOMMENDATIONS RELATING TO THE QUALITY CONTROL REVIEW OF THE TASK ORDERS, UH, KIND OF MAINLY ENSURING THAT THAT WORK DOESN'T START UNTIL WE SAY TO THE CONTRACTORS, YOU GOT THE GO AHEAD TO, TO START YOUR WORK.

UM, AND ENSURING THAT WE DON'T, UH, MAKE PAYMENTS BEYOND WHAT WE INITIALLY AUTHORIZE.

AND THEN SEPARATELY, WE HAD A RECOMMENDATION RELATING TO ENSURING THERE'S MORE SCRUTINY APPLIED TO THE MORE CRITICAL TASK ORDERS.

AND THAT, UH, SOME OF THAT WORK AND SUMMARY LEVEL INFORMATION COMES BEFORE THE BOARD.

AND THEN THE THIRD ONE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO IMPROVE OUR CONTRACT MONITORING GUIDANCE.

UH, REALLY THE GUIDANCE FOR FOR A T P STAFF AND OUR TASK ORDER CLOSEOUT PROCEDURES.

SO ON THE NEXT SLIDE, CHLOE, IF YOU COULD, THIS IS THE NEXT STEPS MANAGEMENT HAS AGREED WITH THESE RECOMMENDATIONS.

LIKE I SAID, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF REALLY GOOD DISCUSSIONS ON, ON HOW, UM, THE ACTIONS MANAGEMENT INTENDS TO TAKE TO CONTINUE TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS IN THIS ARENA.

AND GOING FORWARD, UH, CAMERON AND I WILL DO FOLLOW UP ON, ON THESE RECOMMENDATIONS IN LINE WITH MANAGEMENT'S ACTION PLAN.

THAT'LL BE ABOUT THIS TIME NEXT YEAR, UH, TO HOPEFULLY COME BACK AND BRING SOME ASSURANCE THAT THESE RISKS HAVE BEEN REMEDIED.

SO, UM, LIKE I SAID, I HAVE A SECOND ITEM, BUT I THINK I'LL PAUSE HERE AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS Y'ALL HAVE.

AND THEN CASEY'S ALSO HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE MANAGEMENT RESPONSE.

CASEY EK, E D P OF BUSINESS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS.

AND I'M JUST HERE 'CAUSE I HELPED, UM, PROVIDE THE MANAGEMENT RESPONSE.

SO IN CASE THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT.

THIS IS KIND OF OUR FIRST OFFICIAL AUDIT.

SO I THINK THE PROCESS HAS BEEN GOOD.

IT, IT WAS A LITTLE BIT WONKY BECAUSE THE AUDIT PERIOD WAS BEFORE A T P WAS DIRECTLY CONTRACTING FOR THIS WORK.

SO, UM, BUT WE FELT LIKE DESPITE THAT IT WAS IMPORTANT THAT WE DEMONSTRATE ONCE THOSE CONTRACTS WERE UNDER, UM, WITH A T P AS OF MAY OF THIS YEAR, THAT WE HAVE A ROBUST PROCUREMENT POLICY THAT Y'ALL ADOPTED BACK IN MARCH.

WE'VE BEEN FOLLOWING THAT POLICY.

WE HAVE A LOT OF FORMS AND DOCUMENTS WE USE TO MANAGE THESE CONTRACTS.

AND, UM, WE'VE REALLY STOOD UP A ROBUST PROCUREMENT FUNCTION.

AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE TIPS WERE HELPFUL.

WE CAN ALWAYS BE IMPROVING AND WE CONTINUE TO WANNA BE THE, WE WILL BE THE BEST IN CLASS PROCUREMENT DEPARTMENT.

UM, AND THIS ORGANIZATION INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, THE HIRES THAT WE'VE JUST RECENTLY MADE, WHICH ARE VERY EXCITED TO HAVE BRAD ON BOARD AND, AND ALL THE POSITIONS THAT YOU SAW IN THE BUDGET.

AND WE'RE GONNA, UM, CONTINUE TO, UM, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE ALL THE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES IN PLACE TO REFLECT WHO WE WANNA BE.

SO I, I FEEL PRETTY GOOD ABOUT THE RESULTS AND THE, AND OUR WORKING RELATIONSHIP, BUT HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU FOR THE HEAVY LIFT.

UM, I LIKE TO OPEN IT UP FOR MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS.

I HAVE A QUESTION.

ORDERS HAVE BEEN ISSUED? LIKE A SUMMARY? I'M I'M REFERRING TO THE BEFORE YOU, BEFORE WE, BEFORE THE C E O OR SOMEBODY APPROVES A MAJOR TASK QUARTER, THERE OUGHT TO BE SOME VERY HIGH LEVEL REVIEW.

MEMBER GARZA, TO ME, THESE CONTRACTS ARE ESSENTIALLY STAFF AUGMENTATION CONTRACTS.

IT MEANS THAT SOMEBODY ON STAFF HAS THE AUTHORITY TO AUTHORIZE AN A TEST ORDER OF ANY LEVEL OF MAGNITUDE FROM A FEW DOLLARS TO MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.

SO IF, IF I UNDERSTAND IT, THIS SOLVES THE PROBLEM OF APPROPRIATE OVERSIGHT OF OF THE APPROVAL LIMITS, UH, THE, IN MY MIND, I, I CANNOT IMAGINE US GETTING INTO A CONTRACT OF SAY, $12 MILLION WITHOUT REALLY HIGH LEVEL, UH, REVIEW AND THEN SOME FEEDBACK TO THE BOARD.

I THINK IT'D BE APPROPRIATE.

ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT FEEDBACK TO THE BOARD ON A MONTHLY BASIS? ON WHAT TASK

[01:45:01]

I WOULDN'T WANT A VERY LOW LEVEL EMPLOYEE APPROVING A CONTRACT FOR SAY, $12 MILLION, WHICH I THINK WAS POSSIBLE UNDER THE OLD, UH, SYSTEM OR THE, THE PREVIOUS TAB I THINK IT HAD BEEN DEALT WITH.

AND, UH, I THINK IT'S AN APPROPRIATE MOVE.

I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, SINCE WE BROUGHT THE CONTRACTS OVER TO A T P, WE HAVE AN AGREEMENT POLICY THAT TALKS ABOUT THE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF APPROVAL THAT WE FOLLOW CLOSELY.

AND AS WE EVOLVE THE PROGRAM AND ESPECIALLY GOING INTO CONSTRUCTION, WE'RE GONNA LAY OUT A PLAN FOR YOU THAT WAS PART OF OUR RESPONSE OVER THE NEXT YEAR THAT SHOWS HOW CERTAIN SIZE TASK ORDERS, CHANGE ORDERS, THAT CERTAIN THING WHERE, WHERE THOSE SHOULD BE INSIDE THE ORGANIZATION OR IF THEY SHOULD COME BACK TO THE BOARD FOR APPROVAL.

SO WE'LL LAY ALL OF THAT OUT FOR YOU GUYS IF WE CHANGE, UM, THAT PROCEDURE, WHICH, WHICH WE WILL AS WE EVOLVE INTO LARGER SCALE CONTRACTS WITHOUT DOUBT.

ONE MORE THING.

I LIKE THE WAY THAT THE AUDITOR AND THE STAFF, THE MANAGEMENT WORK ON THIS PROBLEM.

YEAH, THANK YOU.

ANY QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBER LAMAR.

UM, KATIE, I WAS WONDERING WHY THIS WAS MARKED DRAFT, HAS DRAFT BEEN REMOVED FROM THIS OR IS IT STILL IN DRAFT FORM? IT'S ALWAYS IN DRAFT UNTIL Y'ALL RECEIVE IT.

OH, OKAY.

SO, BUT THE, THERE'S NOTHING LEFT TO CHANGE IN THIS.

NO, I, WE'LL TAKE THE WATER MARK OFF AND PUT IT ON THE WEBSITE.

UM, SO YOU KNOW, TO ME LIKE HAVING THE RESULTS OF THIS, ALTHOUGH IT POINTS OUT SOME, YOU KNOW, FLAWS IN THE WAY WE OPERATED, WHAT'S SO MUCH MORE IMPORTANT THAN WHAT IT POINTS OUT IS THE FACT THAT WE ARE EVALUATING OURSELF THAT WE BROUGHT AN AUDITOR ON BOARD THAT REPORTS DIRECTLY TO THE BOARD THAT GOES THROUGH THIS ORGANIZATION AND LOOKS AT THE WAY WE ARE CONDUCTING OUR BUSINESS.

LIKE THAT IS THE POINT OF THIS TO ME, WHICH IS EXTREMELY POSITIVE.

UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE A ALMOST A BRAND NEW ORGANIZATION.

PERFECTION IS NOT REQUIRED OF US.

WE'RE EXPECTED, YOU KNOW, BY ANYONE, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S EXPECTED IS THAT WE PAY ATTENTION IF WE FIND SOMETHING THAT'S NOT WORKING RIGHT.

YOU KNOW, WE HIGHLIGHT IT AND WE FIX IT, WHICH OBVIOUSLY THIS IS DOING.

SO I JUST HAD A COUPLE OF SPECIFIC QUESTIONS BASED ON SOME OF THE LANGUAGE THAT WAS IN HERE.

UM, CASEY, IT SAYS THE ATP'S DRAFTING PROCUREMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES AND IT TALKS ABOUT A MANUAL AND THEN IT SOMEWHERE DOWN IT SAYS THAT HADN'T QUITE BEEN DONE YET, LIKE HAS THAT OR, AND I THINK SEPTEMBER THIS MONTH IS LIKE THE DUE DATE OF THAT.

OH RIGHT.

AND ACTUALLY 2024, I THINK THERE WAS A TYPO IN ONE OF THE ORIGINAL DRAFT.

OH, 24, SORRY.

HOWEVER WE ARE ACTIVELY WORKING AND UM, AND WE'RE GLAD THAT BRAD'S HERE 'CAUSE HE'S GONNA KIND OF LEAVE THIS EFFORT.

WE, WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE NEW PROCUREMENT POLICY EARLIER THIS YEAR, WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON DEVELOPING AN ADMINISTRATION MANUAL FOR THAT TEAM.

THAT REFLECTS THE UPDATED POLICY AND KIND OF GIVES US AS MUCH FLEXIBILITY AS WE POSSIBLY CAN WHILE ALSO MAKING IT VERY CLEAR ABOUT THE ROLE OF PROCUREMENT AND THE PROCESSES AND THE TASK ORDERS OR WHATEVER, YOU KNOW, CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION ACTIVITY.

SO WE, WE EXPECT NEXT YEAR TO HAVE THAT IN PLACE.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR WORK ON THIS, UM, DAY THREE .

AND THEN YOU TALKED ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, UPDATING THE BOARD ON SOME KIND OF, YOU KNOW, MORE REGULAR BASIS.

I'M ASSUMING THAT'S JUST SOMETHING Y'ALL HAVE DECIDED THAT IS GONNA TAKE PLACE.

UM, YES.

'CAUSE IT SEEMS VERY APPROPRIATE.

IT'S LIKE ALL THE RECOMMENDATIONS WERE EXCELLENT RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE WAY.

SO HATS ON TO THE OUTSIDE AUDITOR THAT SUPPORTED YOU, KATIE? YES, ABSOLUTELY.

WE WANNA CONTINUE TO UPDATE THIS BOARD AND MAKE SURE THAT AT LEAST ON A QUARTERLY BASIS, YOU ALL KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH PROCUREMENT.

UM, AND I KNOW WE'VE HAVE FOR A LONG TIME SUBMITTED REPORTS THAT SHOW WHAT WE HAVE UNDER CONTRACT AND WE ALWAYS GIVE YOU GUYS A PREVIEW OF WHAT'S COMING DOWN THE PIKE AND OF COURSE APPROVALS.

BUT YOU KNOW, TO THE EXTENT THERE'S A DIFFERENT LEVEL OF GRANULARITY, WE COULD SURELY INCLUDE THAT.

AND, AND OBVIOUSLY AS WE'RE, YOU KNOW, AS OUR BUDGET THAT WE JUST APPROVED INDICATES WE'RE, YOU KNOW, DRAMATICALLY RAMPING UP OUR CONTRACTS AND THUS, YOU KNOW, WE'VE SUPPORTED YOUR GROUP WITH, YOU KNOW, A FAIR BIT OF ADDITIONAL RESOURCES, YOU KNOW, SOME OF WHICH ARE HERE NOW, UM, WHICH IS GOOD.

AND THEN I SEE, SO YOU'RE, WHAT YOU'RE ABOUT READY TO PROPOSE FOR THE AUDIT PROJECTS FOR NEXT YEAR, KATIE, IS THAT CONTRACT MONITORING IS ONE OF THOSE, UM, THINGS.

SO I'M ASSUMING THIS IS ONGOING REVIEW OF THESE PROCESSES JUST TO MAKE SURE, YOU KNOW, TO SUPPORT CASEY AND HER GROUP AND THEIR EFFORTS TO ENSURE THAT ALL OF THAT IS, YOU KNOW, THE BEST IN CLASS THAT I'M SURE WE'LL ACHIEVE.

IS THAT RIGHT? YEP.

MATERIALS OR A LOT OF THE PROGRESS I'LL SAY THAT, THAT THIS MANAGEMENT TEAM HAS MADE, UH, RELATES TO THAT PROCUREMENT MANUAL THAT CASEY'S TALKING ABOUT AND, AND KIND OF SHORING UP THOSE KIND OF FRONT END UM, PROCESSES AS THEY RELATE TO PROCUREMENT.

A LOT OF THE

[01:50:01]

I THINK THERE IS OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE A LOOK AT, UM, HOW WE'RE IMPLEMENTING THOSE, THOSE, UH, MANUAL REQUIREMENTS, YOU KNOW, AT THE STAFF LEVEL AND KIND OF CARRYING OUT, UM, THE EXPECTATIONS OF KIND OF WHAT WE HAVE WRITTEN DOWN.

THAT'S THE CLASSIC CONTROL DESIGN CONTROL IMPLEMENTATION.

THE DESIGN MIGHT BE THERE.

I THINK THERE IS SOME GOOD WORK TO TEST HOW EFFECTIVELY WE'VE IMPLEMENTED THOSE CONTROLS.

SO THAT'S PRIMARILY WHAT THAT AUDIT IS INTENDED TO REVIEW.

THE OTHER THING I'LL MENTION THERE IS THIS PROJECT REALLY WAS FOCUSED JUST ON THESE THREE AGREEMENTS.

A T P HAS A WHOLE LOT MORE IN THE WAY OF AGREEMENTS.

SO IT'S POSSIBLE THAT THAT PROJECT COULD MAYBE FOCUS LESS ON THESE THREE AND TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE OTHER CONTRACTS THAT, THAT WE HAVEN'T CONSIDERED.

AND, AND I SHOULD ALSO JUST ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I DIDN'T, AND I MEANT TO UPFRONT WAS THAT THERE WAS A SYSTEMATIC ISSUE.

ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS THEY POINTED OUT WAS, YOU KNOW, CAPITAL METRO WAS, HAD THESE CONTRACTS AND WAS ISSUING THE WORK ORDERS AND WE WERE SORT OF RESPONSIBLE FOR THEM AND THAT WAS JUST, WE REALLY FIXED THAT IN JULY WHEN WE BROUGHT ALL OF THAT OVER, WHICH OBVIOUSLY MAKES SENSE.

I'M SURE CAPITAL METRO DIDN'T WANT TO DO THAT.

UM, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S THE STUFF THAT WE'RE OVERSEEING, YOU KNOW, AS A BOARD AND Y'ALL AS EMPLOYEES.

SO SYSTEMATICALLY WE FIXED ONE OF 'EM IN JULY WITH THE UPDATED YEAH.

IN MAY WHEN WE EXECUTED AND THAT WAS, UM, BECAUSE THEY WERE LIGHT RAIL SPECIFIC.

AND I THINK THIS REALLY, AND TO THE VERY SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WERE GIVEN, AND I DID READ THE MANAGEMENT ACTION PLAN.

UM, SO THANK YOU FOR METHODICALLY GOING THROUGH HOW WE'RE GONNA ADDRESS.

I KNOW A LOT OF THESE THINGS HAVE BEEN ADDRESSED ALREADY AND I DO RECALL THAT WHEN WE MADE THE DECISION AS A BOARD TO BRING THOSE CONTRACTS IN-HOUSE FOR THE LIGHT RAIL IMPLEMENTATION, THAT THAT WAS ALSO BASED ON YOUR ADVISORY REPORT.

IS THAT CORRECT, KATIE? I MEAN YOU, YOU WALKED US THROUGH A, BECAUSE THIS WAS NOT DONE YET, BUT YOU HAD CREATED ANOTHER ADVISORY OF SOUNDING, YOU KNOW, SOME ISSUES THAT WE NEEDED TO RESOLVE RIGHT AWAY.

I WOULD DEFER REALLY TO GREG AND CASEY ON HOW USEFUL THAT PRODUCT WAS, UH, IN TERMS OF KIND OF THE ACTIONS.

VERY USEFUL THEY'VE TAKEN.

BUT YES, THERE WAS A PRIOR PROJECT THAT, UH, KIND OF MORE OF A FLYOVER OF THIS TOPIC FROM LAST FALL.

I THINK Y'ALL GOT A BRIEFING ON THAT OR THOSE OF YOU MM-HMM.

WHO ARE HERE, GOT A BRIEFING ON THAT IN DECEMBER.

UM, AND IT, IT HIGHLIGHTED A LOT OF THE HIGH LEVEL ISSUES AND, AND HOPEFULLY THAT WAS USEFUL.

IT WAS DEFINITELY PART OF, UM, THIS STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION TO BRING THESE CONTRACTS OVER WAS IT WAS PART OF THAT ANALYSIS AND WE WERE GRATEFUL FOR IT.

YOU GONNA TALK ABOUT THE AUDIT PLAN NEXT? YES.

I THINK THAT CLARITY IS GONNA KEEP EVERYONE ON BOARD AND I THINK THAT AS WE TALK ABOUT PREVIOUSLY WITH THE RESOURCES THAT WE'RE GIVING STAFF AND THE BENEFITS PACKAGE, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I, I'M ENCOURAGED TO SEE HERE AS WELL WITH THE NEW AUDIT PLAN IS THAT HOW WE TRACKING OUR SUCCESS AND HOW WE'RE TRACKING THE CONSISTENCY AND MINIMIZED CONFUSION.

AND I THINK A KEY ELEMENT OF WHAT EACH STAFF MEMBER PLAYS IN THIS ORGANIZATION IS TO MAKE US, UH, VERY PRODUCTIVE TEAM.

I WANT TO REALLY MINIMIZE TURNOVER.

SO WE, IT RELATES TO CLARITY, IT RELATES TO LET'S MINIMIZE CONFLICT, LET'S REMOVE THE RISK.

EVERYBODY CAN GET ALONG REALLY NICELY.

WE HAVE CLEAR CONTRACTS, CLEAR PROCEDURES, AND I THINK THAT, I THINK IT REALLY HELPS, IT'S A, IT'S A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT TO WORK IN AND I COMMEND YOU ALL FOR THE COURAGE TO DO THIS WORK AND TO HAVE ADULT CONVERSATIONS ON HOW WE CAN RESOLVE IT TOGETHER.

SO THANK YOU.

UH, I DON'T HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS.

UM, NOW GUIDE ME THROUGH, ARE

[5.2 Approval of Fiscal Year 2024 Audit Plan]

OTHER ENTITIES THAT HAVE EYES ON THAT TOPIC.

UM, UH, THIS ONE I THINK, UH, SHOULD BE THANK YOU.

THANKS CASEY.

REALLY STRAIGHTFORWARD.

SO, UM, APOLOGIES FOR MISSING, UH, THE MEETING LAST MONTH, BUT, UH, Y'ALL RECEIVED THIS AUDIT PLAN, UH MM-HMM.

, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT IT.

UH, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUGGESTIONS AND INPUT ON KIND OF DRIVING THE, THAT PLAN ITSELF.

UM, AND THE ONLY CHANGE BETWEEN, UH, THE DOCUMENT YOU RECEIVED AND THE ONE THAT IS IN THE BACKUP HERE TODAY IS I HAD INITIALLY PROPOSED SIX AUDIT PROJECTS.

UM, ONE OF THOSE I'M NOW PROPOSING FIVE.

ONE OF THOSE I'VE MOVED TO THE ALTERNATE LIST.

THAT PROJECT IS THE F T A REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO PROJECT PLANNING THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT LOWER OF A RISK GIVEN KIND OF THE COMBINED ASSURANCE FROM ALL THE

[01:55:01]

UH, AND IT MAY JUST BE A, A HAIR PREMATURE WITH WHERE WE ARE IN THE PROJECT AT THIS POINT.

SO IT'S DOWN TO FIVE, BUT IT'S STILL ON THE ALTERNATE LIST.

IF WE, WE MAKE GREAT STRIDES, WE CAN ADD THAT IN THIS YEAR.

OTHER THAN THAT, IT'S THE SAME DOCUMENT Y'ALL ALREADY GOT.

AND THAT ONE IS AN ACTION ITEM IF Y'ALL YES.

COULD APPROVE THAT.

SECOND.

MOVED BY MAYOR WATSON, SECOND BY LANDMARK.

UM, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THE AUDIT PLAN FOR THE YEAR 2024? NO FURTHER DISCUSSION.

GREAT.

EVERYONE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

THE AUDIT PLAN IS APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.