Nov 08, 2023 Community Technology & Telecommunications Commission

[00:00:03]

WE'LL CHECK WITH EVERYONE.

UH, DO ME A FAVOR, LET'S GO ONE BY ONE.

UH, COMMISSIONER GARZA, CAN YOU HEAR ME? LET ME HEAR YOU.

I CAN HEAR YOU.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU.

WELCOME.

AND HELLO? UH, I SEE WE HAVE A NEW COMMISSIONER ONLINE THERE.

UH, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES.

YES, I CAN HEAR YOU.

THIS IS, UH, KEITH.

UM, HAPPY TO BE HERE.

UH, YOU KNOW, FINALLY I WAS ABLE TO MEET THE MOST OF YOU, SO, YEAH.

YEAH.

I THINK, UH, I, I CAN GIVE YOU AN INTRODUCTION OF MYSELF, UH, OR IF, UH, WELL, NOT JUST YET.

COMMISSIONER, UH, PENA.

I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE YOU COULD HEAR ME.

WELCOME TO THE, UH, THE MEETINGS.

I'M GLAD YOU'RE HERE.

UH, WE'RE ABOUT TO GET STARTED.

UH, I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU COULD HEAR ME FIRST.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

ATXN READY TO GO?

[CALL TO ORDER ]

WE'D LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND, UH, GET STARTED.

HELLO, EVERYBODY.

MY NAME IS NEHEMIAH PITTS.

CALLING TO ORDER OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED, UH, SCHEDULED MEETING TODAY OF THE COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION.

WE'RE MEETING HERE AT THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MEETING ROOM, UH, AT CITY HALL, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER THE EIGHTH, 2023 IN OUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, ROOM NUMBER 1101.

SOME MEMBERS OF THE BOARD AND COMMISSION HERE ARE PARTICIPATING VIA VIDEO CONFERENCE, AND THE MEETING MAY BE VIEWED ONLINE AT H TTT HTTP SLASH SLASH WWW.AUSTINTEXAS.GOV/PAGE/WATCH AT XN LIVE.

AND WITH THAT, WE'LL BEGIN WITH A ROLL CALL.

UH, I'LL BEGIN AND THEN PROCEED IN THE ROOM BEFORE I GO TO THE COMMISSIONERS ONLINE.

UH, AS I MENTIONED, MY NAME IS NEHEMIAH III.

I REPRESENT DISTRICT ONE, AND I'M THE CHAIR STEVEN APODACA.

REPRESENTING DISTRICT TWO IS PRESENT.

KARINA ALTE, REPRESENTING DISTRICT THREE IS PRESENT.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU.

AND WITH THAT, WE'LL START ONLINE AND I'LL BEGIN, UH, WITH COMMISSIONER GARZA.

CHRISTINA GARZA, DISTRICT FOUR.

UH, THANK YOU.

AND COMMISSIONER SUPTA SUPTA, REPRESENTING DISTRICT 10.

THANK YOU.

AND COMMISSIONER PENA VIA COMMISSIONER ILLA, REPRESENTATIVE MAYOR OF AUSTIN.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU.

UH, WELL WITH THAT, UH, WE ARE CALLED TO ORDER, UH, AND WE HAVE OUR QUORUM REPRESENTED.

WE'LL BEGIN TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATION, AND THERE'S BEEN NO ONE THAT SIGNED UP AND NO ONE IN THE ROOM, SO WE'RE GOOD TO GO THERE.

UH, WE CAN PROCEED THEN WITH OTHER THINGS, BUT BEFORE WE DO THAT, UH, SINCE WE'VE GOT SOME NEW FACES, UH, I'D LIKE TO GIVE OUR NEW COMMISSIONERS A CHANCE TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES AND, UH, FEEL FREE TO TELL ANYONE, UH, WHATEVER THEY'D LIKE TO THEM TO KNOW, UH, AS THIS IS GONNA BE PART OF THE PUBLIC RECORD AND PERMANENT RECORD.

UH, OF COURSE.

SO IF I COULD, I'LL GO AHEAD AND BEGIN IN THE ROOM, UH, WITH COMMISSIONER ALRE.

SURE.

UM, HELLO EVERYBODY.

KARINA ALDRETE HERE.

UM, 20 YEARS IN THE CREATIVE ADVERTISING SPACE, UM, IN TECHNOLOGY SPACE, AND THEN, UH, WORKING ON BIG TELCO BRANDS.

UH, SOME OF THE TOP THREE BRANDS, UM, THAT WE ALL KNOW AND USED.

UM, AND THEN MOST RECENTLY HAVE BEEN WITH A CONSULTING FIRM, AGAIN, ONE OF THE TOP THREE, UM, IN THEIR MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION SPACE.

OUTSTANDING.

WELL, WELCOME.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE.

AND, UH, WITH THAT, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND PIVOT ONLINE.

UH, COMMISSIONER PEN VIA WELCOME TO THE COMMISSION.

WELL, UH, HELLO EVERYONE.

UH, MY NAME IS KEITH PENA HERE AGAIN.

UM, I HAVE EXPERIENCE AS A MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT.

I WORK WITH, UH, ONE OF THE BIG FOURS, UH, DETROIT CONSULTING, WHERE I HAD, LIKE, UH, CLIENTS IN THE TECH SPACE.

AND I CURRENTLY WORK IS IN THE SOFTWARE SPACE FOR A MAJOR SUSTAINABILITY, UH, TECH COMPANY.

UM, YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S VERY MUCH MY, MY BACKGROUND.

WONDERFUL.

WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT AND FOR, FOR COMING.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.

UH, I'D LIKE TO CONFIRM, JUST SO I MAKE SURE I ADDRESS YOU PROPERLY, UH, SHOULD I ADDRESS YOU AS, UH, COMMISSIONER PENA OR PENA VIA, OH, NOT LAST NAME.

YES.

OKAY.

I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE.

UH, OKAY.

THANK YOU.

I APPRECIATE THAT.

OF, OF COURSE, WITH THE NAME LIKE NEHEMIAH, I TRY TO GET NAMES RIGHT IF I CAN.

UH, SO,

[00:05:01]

WELL, WITH THAT THEN, UH, WE ARE DELIGHTED TO HAVE A BODY OF 10 COMMISSIONERS NOW REPRESENTED HERE, UH, WITH JUST ONE VACANCY.

UH, AND TO BE IN FULL SWING HERE FOR THIS MEETING.

UH,

[APPROVAL OF MINUTES ]

UH, YOU SHOULD ALL HAVE A SOFT COPY IN THE CALENDAR INVITATION, CALENDAR HOLD TO BE ABLE TO REVIEW.

HOPEFULLY YOU'VE HAD A CHANCE TO LOOK AT THAT ALREADY.

UH, AND FOR THOSE IN THE ROOM, WE'VE GOT A HARD COPY AS WELL.

CHAIR PITTS, I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE MINUTES AS PRESENTED.

UH, THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR POCA.

UH, I HAVE A MOTION.

THAT MOTION, WONDERFUL.

GOT A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES AS PRESENTED BY VICE CHAIR POCA AND A SECOND BY COMMISSIONER GARZA.

WITH THAT, WE CAN HOLD A VOTE.

ALL IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE MINUTES AS PRESENTED.

PLEASE SAY, AYE.

AND SHOW YOUR HAND.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

THANK YOU.

IS THERE ANYONE OPPOSED? OKAY, WE'RE UNANIMOUS IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THESE MINUTES.

THAT WOULD BE SIX IN THE AFFIRMATIVE.

ZERO OPPOSED? THESE MINUTES ARE NOW APPROVED.

NOW TRANSITIONING

[2. “You’re Being Watched – AI & Surveillance in Public Places” Presentation (Sharon Strover – Director, Technology & Information Policy Institute, Phillip G. Warner Regents Professor of Communication, Moody College of Communications, University of Texas at Austin) ]

UH, AND JUST TO NOTE FOR THE COMMUNITY, UH, THIS WILL BE A BRIEF STATEMENT, UH, BECAUSE THE, YOU'RE BEING WATCHED PRESENTATION, AI, AND SURVEILLANCE AND PUBLIC PLACE, UH, PLACES, UH, IS NOT GONNA TAKE PLACE TODAY.

WE'RE GOING TO BE POSTPONING THAT FOR A LATER DATE TO ALLOW OUR SPEAKER, UH, TO ATTEND.

SO, WITH THAT, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND TABLE THAT ITEM AND MOVE FORWARD IN THE AGENDA

[3. Call for commission input on Grant for Technology Opportunities Program Updates Action Plan for FY24 ]

ACTION PLAN FY 24.

THANK YOU, CHAIR PITTS.

UH, AND THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS FOR HAVING ME TODAY.

UM, MY NAME IS JESSE RODRIGUEZ.

I'M THE PROGRAM MANAGER FOR THE COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY DIVISION OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

UM, I WORK IN THE FINANCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT, AND, UM, UH, SINCE WE HAVE A LOT OF NEW FACES HERE TODAY, UH, WHAT THE COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY DIVISION DOES IS WE MANAGE THE, UH, UH, THE DIGITAL EQUITY PROGRAMMING THAT THE, THE, THE CITY HAS SOME OF THE DIGITAL EQUITY PROGRAMMING.

UM, ONE OF THE BIGGEST, UH, PROGRAMS THAT WE MANAGE IS THE GRANT FOR TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM.

AND THE MEMORANDUM THAT I'M, UH, PRESENTING HERE TODAY IS OUR ANNUAL ACTION PLAN.

AND SO EVERY YEAR, UH, WE DISTRIBUTE $400,000 IN COMMUNITY GRANTS TO NON-PROFITS THAT ARE DOING DIGITAL EQUITY WORK.

UM, AND, UH, WHILE WE'RE DOING THAT, WE COLLECT FEEDBACK FROM ANY OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT PARTICIPATE, ANY OF THE, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO HAVE INPUT, THE REVIEWERS WHO PARTICIPATED, UM, AND ANY OTHER SOURCES THAT WE CAN, INCLUDING THIS BODY.

UM, AND, UH, WE BASICALLY TRY AND FIGURE OUT WHAT, UH, WE NEED TO DO IN THE NEXT YEAR TO IMPROVE THE PROGRAM.

THIS ACTION PLAN IS A RESULT OF THAT RESEARCH.

AND SO, UH, WHAT I'M HERE TO PRESENT TODAY IS THE CHANGES THAT WILL BE, UH, UH, UH, MOVING AHEAD WITH, FOR THE GRANT FOR TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM.

UM, THE, THIS COMMISSION DOES HAVE A, A SIGNIFICANT CONNECTION TO THE GTOP S PROGRAM, UH, THE GT OSS CORE PATHWAY, WHICH IS ONE OF THE, UH, WHICH IS THE LARGEST OF THE, THE OSS, UH, GRANT PATHWAYS.

UH, THIS BODY, UH, UH, APPROVES THE AWARDS ANNUALLY.

AND, UH, SO, UH, THIS, THIS BODY ALSO APPOINTS REVIEWERS TO REVIEW THE GRANTS, UM, FOR, UH, THE GT OSS CORE PATHWAY.

SO, WITH THAT BEING SAID, AS, UH, INTRODUCTION, I'M GONNA HOP INTO THE ITEMS HERE.

I'M GONNA MOVE VERY QUICKLY, UM, SINCE WE HAVE A TOTAL OF 19 RECOMMENDATIONS THIS YEAR, UH, FEEL FREE TO STOP ME AT ANY TIME IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, UM, UH, ABOUT ANY OF THE ITEMS. UM, SOME OF THESE ARE A LITTLE BIT MORE DRY THAN OTHERS, BUT, UM, UH, HOPEFULLY THESE ARE ALL, UM, UH, GOOD ITEMS FOR, FOR GENERAL KNOWLEDGE.

SO, UM, I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED HERE.

OUR FIRST ACTION ITEM REVOLVES AROUND ENHANCEMENTS TO THE APPLICANT AND REVIEWER EXPERIENCE.

AND WE HAVE FOUR RECOMMENDATIONS UNDER THIS TOPIC.

UM, THE FIRST IS, UH, TIMELY RECOGNITION FOR REVIEWERS.

WE, WE DO PROCESS, UH, UH, CERTIFICATES OF APPRECIATION, UH, FROM FORMALLY FROM THE CITY FOR OUR GRANT REVIEW PANEL.

[00:10:01]

UM, WE'VE, NO, WE NOTICED DURING THIS PAST CYCLE THAT, UM, IT'S REALLY HARD TO GET THE REVIEWERS TO COME BACK IF WE DON'T DELIVER, UH, THOSE PIECES OF RECOGNITION AT OUR LAST TOUCHPOINT.

UM, AND SO WE JUST REORG WANNA, WANNA REORGANIZE OUR PLAN AND OUR SCHEDULE THIS YEAR, AND, UH, MAKE, UH, YOU KNOW, MOVE THE RECOGNITION EARLIER IN THE PROCESS WHILE WE STILL HAVE, UH, FOLKS IN, YOU KNOW, UH, EASY ACCESS TO THE PROGRAM.

UH, OUR SECOND RECOMMENDATION IS TO BUILD SOME SELF-SERVICE AND AUTOMATION ENHANCEMENTS TO THE APPLICATION PROCESS.

UH, THE FIRST ITEM UNDER THAT CATEGORY IS, UH, CONTACT MANAGEMENT.

UH, WE HAVE CREATED AND POSTED ON OUR WEBSITE, UH, FORM, UH, THROUGH WHICH ANY ORGANIZATION CAN ADD CONTACTS, UH, SEND, SEND US CONTACTS TO GET UPDATES ABOUT GTOP S UM, IF THEY'RE INTERESTED IN, UH, PARTICIPATING IN THE GRANT.

UM, AND SO THAT ACTION ITEM IS ALREADY COMPLETED.

UH, WE RECEIVE FEEDBACK ABOUT, UH, ORGANIZATIONS THAT PARTICIPATE IN THE GT OS ECOSYSTEM, UH, DOING VOLUNTEER SHARING.

SO ORGANIZATIONS, UH, THE, ALL OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT WORK WITH US HAVE SOME SORT OF DIGITAL EQUITY FOCUS, UM, AND THEY HAVE VOLUNTEER NETWORKS.

AND SO THERE WAS SOME, SOME CONVERSATION ABOUT, UH, SHARING THOSE VOLUNTEER NETWORKS.

UM, WE ARE CURRENTLY INVESTIGATING WAYS THAT WE CAN DO THAT AND SUPPORT THAT, UM, IN, IN MANAGING THE GRANT, UM, WE ARE ALSO, UH, LOOKING AT, WE, WE RECEIVED A COUPLE COMMENTS ABOUT AUTOMATING, UH, THE PROCESS TO PROVIDE RECORDS TO BACK TO APPLICANTS.

UH, SO ONE OF OUR GRANT PATHWAYS, UH, THE FORM, THEY SUBMIT A FORM ONLINE, AND UP UNTIL NOW, THEY HAVEN'T AUTOMATICALLY GOTTEN A CONFIRMATION, UH, OR A COPY OF THEIR, UH, THEIR RECORD, THEIR APPLICATION RECORD.

SO WE'RE BUILDING THAT AUTOMATION SO THAT THEY WILL AUTOMATICALLY GET A COPY OF THEIR APPLICATION.

UH, WE'RE MOVING, UH, OUR GTOP S CORE, OUR LARGEST GRANT PATHWAY.

UH, MOST OF THE NARRATIVE IN THE SYSTEM THAT WE HAVE, WHICH IS CALLED PARTNER GRANTS, UH, NOW ALLOWS FOR RICH TEXT FORMATTING.

UM, THERE'S, THERE'S TECHNICAL REASONS WHY WE HAVEN'T HAD IT UP UNTIL THIS, THIS TIME, BUT WE RECEIVED A TON OF FEEDBACK THIS YEAR THAT IT WAS A CHALLENGE FOR FOLKS TRYING TO CONVEY THEIR MESSAGE TO NOT HAVE RICH TEXT FORMATTING OPTIONS WHEN IT COMES TO THE NARRATIVE.

UH, SO WE, WE'VE ADDED BRIDGE TEXT TO THE MAJORITY, THOUGH, NOT 100% OF THE APPLICATION.

UH, AND THE LAST ITEM IN THIS CATEGORY IS RESOURCE SHARING.

IN THE AWARD DISPOSITION EMAIL, UM, EVERYBODY THAT PARTICIPATES IN GTOP S THEY GET AN EMAIL AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE PROCESS, THANKING FOR THEM FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION AND, AND NOTING, UH, IF THEY'VE RECEIVED FUNDING OR NOT.

UH, WE'RE JUST GONNA ADD SOME RESOURCES TO THAT EMAIL THAT POINTS THEM TO OTHER GRANT OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE HAVE, UH, DEVICE GRANTS, UH, AND, UH, COMMUNITY RESOURCES THAT WE WANT THEM TO BE AWARE OF.

UH, WE'RE ALSO GONNA BE POINTING THEM TO OUR COMMUNITY, UH, DI THE DIGITAL EMPOWERMENT COMMUNITY OF AUSTIN, WHICH IS A, A, A NONPROFIT NETWORK, UH, OR AN, OR A NETWORK OF ORGANIZATIONS INTERESTED IN THE DIGITAL EQUITY SPACE.

AND SO THAT'S A, A PLACE FOR THEM TO PLUG IN IF, UH, THEY WANNA STAY ENGAGED.

OUR SECOND I, UH, ACTION ITEM IS, UH, TARGETED UPDATES TO OUR PROGRAM GUIDANCE MATERIALS.

THERE WERE A NUMBER OF, UH, CIRCUMSTANCES THAT WE, UH, THAT, THAT AROSE THIS YEAR THAT REALLY HASN'T, THE PROGRAM HASN'T ENCOUNTERED UP, YOU KNOW, AS, AS LONG AS I'VE BEEN HERE.

SO, UH, WE JUST WANTED TO BUILD OUT OUR PROGRAM GUIDANCE SO THAT, UH, WE, YOU KNOW, HAVE SOME GUIDANCE TO POINT TO IN, IN THESE PARTICULAR AREAS.

UM, THE FIRST ONE IS, UH, THE GUIDANCE ON REVIEWER SCORE REMOVAL.

WE HAD A CIRCUMSTANCE WHERE, UM, WE HAD A QUESTIONABLE SET OF SCORES, UH, SUBMITTED FOR ONE OF THE GRANT PATHWAYS.

UM, AND SO THAT LED US TO THIS ITEM OF WE WANTED TO BUILD OUT SOME GUIDANCE THAT WE CAN POINT TO AND STICK TO ON WHEN CAN WE, AND CAN'T WE REMOVE A SET OF, UH, REVIEWER SCORES.

UM, AND ESSENTIALLY, UH, IT COMES DOWN TO, UM, WHEN THERE ARE IDENTIFIABLE PATTERNS IN THE SCORING THAT DON'T TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FULL SCORING SPECTRUM.

UH, SO IF, IF ALL OF THE SCORES ARE ZERO OR 50 OR 100, OR A MIX OF ZERO, 50 AND 100, UM, THEN THAT WOULD BE A, A RED FLAG FOR US THAT WE COULD, UH, USE TO, UH, TO, TO NOT MOVE AHEAD WITH A SET OF REVIEWER SCORES.

UM, IF WE, IF WE IDENTIFY THAT A REVIEWER HAS SCORED ON AN APPLICATION WHERE THERE WAS A CONFLICT OF INTEREST THAT WASN'T IDENTIFIED AHEAD OF TIME, BUT, BUT DID COME TO LIGHT LATER ON IN THE PROCESS, THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER CIRCUMSTANCE THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE, UH, THAT WE WOULD, UH, ELIMINATE A SET OF SCORES.

UM, AND ANY OTHER CIRCUMSTANCE WHERE INCLUSION

[00:15:01]

UM, SO WE'RE, WE, WE BUILT THAT OUT, UH, IN OUR FORMAL ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDE.

UM, AND, AND HOPEFULLY, UH, HOPEFULLY THAT'S A RARE CIRCUMSTANCE.

WE, WE HONESTLY HAVEN'T, UH, EVER HAD TO DO THE, UH, THAT BEFORE, BUT WE DID HAVE A CIRCUMSTANCE THIS YEAR WHERE WE HAD TO CONSIDER THAT.

UM, THE SECOND ITEM UNDER THIS CATEGORY IS NOTIFICATION OF AWARD ROUNDING.

UM, JUST AS A MATTER OF, UH, CONVENIENCE AND, AND PROCESS.

WE'VE ROUNDED SCORES FOR A FEW YEARS NOW, UM, BECAUSE IT'S OFTEN, UH, DIFFICULT FOR, JUST AS DIFFICULT FOR ORGANIZATIONS TO RECEIVE, UH, AN AWARD THAT HAS SOME, SOME SENSE ATTACHED TO IT, , UM, AS IT IS FOR US TO, TO MANAGE THAT AND MAKE SURE, UH, THAT EVERYTHING, UH, YOU KNOW, LINES UP.

SO, AS A MATTER, OF COURSE, WE'VE JUST BEEN ROUNDING TO THE NEAREST DOLLAR.

UM, WE, GOING FORWARD, WE'LL JUST HAVE THAT POSTED SO THAT FOLKS ARE AWARE THAT WE ROUND TO THE NEAREST DOLLAR.

UM, THE THIRD ITEM IS THAT WE'RE GONNA CREATE, WE HAVE CREATED DETAILED PROGRAM GUIDANCE ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF REVIEW PANELS AND PANELIST, REMOVAL AFTER APPOINTMENT, UM, THAT WE HAD ANOTHER ODD CIRCUMSTANCE THAT HASN'T COME UP BEFORE THIS YEAR.

AND, AND THE, THE BASIC SUMMARY IS THAT, UM, UH, WE'VE, WE'VE, GIVEN, WE'VE WRITTEN OUT THE PROCESS FOR HOW THE, HOW EACH OF THE PANELS ARE CONSTRUCTED, AT WHAT POINTS, UH, ARE THE PANELISTS CONSIDERED VESTED, UH, YOU KNOW, HAVING SOME RIGHT TO THE POSITION AND HOW WE WOULD GO ABOUT REMOVAL.

AND IN ONE CIR WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES WE WOULD DO.

SO OUR THIRD ACTION ITEM IS CHANGES TO THE GTOP S TIMELINE.

UH, THE BIG ITEMS ARE THAT WE WANTED TO ADD IN MORE TIME FOR THE PRINTING OF THE REVIEWER BINDER.

UH, WE HAVE TO GO TO AN OUTSIDE CONTRACTOR FOR, FOR THESE PRINT JOBS.

THERE TO, IT'S, IT'S A VERY THICK BINDER, OF GRANTS, UH, APPLICATION MATERIALS THAT WE HAVE TO PRINT OUT.

UM, AND, AND IT, IT'S BEEN A CHALLENGE TO FIT THAT CONTRACT JOB IN THE TIMEFRAME THAT WE HAD.

SO WE JUST ADDED A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME FOR THAT IN OUR OVERARCHING TIMELINE.

UM, AND ANOTHER PIECE OF FEEDBACK IS THAT, UH, ALL OF OUR, OUR APPLICATION DEADLINES TENDED TO BE UP UNTIL NOW ON SUNDAY.

THE REASON WHY WE MADE IT SUNDAY IS BECAUSE IT WAS PREVIOUSLY FRIDAY, AND WE WERE GETTING A LOT OF COMMENTS BACK IN THE DAY, UH, THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, IT WAS THE END OF THE DAY ON FRIDAY, AND THEY NEEDED JUST A LITTLE BIT OF EXTRA TIME, UH, TO SUBMIT THEIR APPLICATIONS.

AND SO WE'RE LIKE, ALL RIGHT, WELL, WE'LL GIVE YOU THE WEEKEND, BUT ON MONDAY WE HAVE TO MOVE AHEAD.

AND SO WE JUST MADE THE, THE DEADLINES ON SUNDAY.

WELL, POSTING THE DEADLINES AS SUNDAY HAS CAUSED A LOT OF FOLKS, UH, TO FEEL LIKE THEY'RE REQUIRED TO WORK ON A WEEKEND .

UM, AND SO WE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE RECEIVED MULTIPLE POINTS OF FEEDBACK THAT IT WAS AN ODD DEADLINE FOR US TO SET.

SO, UH, WE'VE GONE IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT DIRECTION NOW, AND WE'VE MADE THE DEADLINES GO TO THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK.

SO ALL OF THE DEADLINES ARE ON WEDNESDAY, .

UH, SO WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA TRY THAT OUT AND SEE HOW THAT WORKS THIS YEAR.

UM, THE FOURTH BUCKET OF ITEMS IS CHANGES TO THE GTOP S APPLICATIONS.

UM, SO WE HAVE, UH, FOR FOLKS THAT DON'T KNOW, WE HAVE THREE DIFFERENT, UH, THIS YEAR WE HAVE THREE DIFFERENT PATHWAYS.

LAST YEAR WE HAD FOUR, UM, AND I'LL GET TO THAT IN A MINUTE.

UM, AND EACH OF THOSE HAS ITS OWN APPLICATION PROCESS AND TIMELINE, UM, FOR ONE OF THOSE GTOP S CAPACITY, THE, UM, WE JUST ADDED A QUESTION ON THE APPLICATION CONCERNING OR DIRECTLY CONNECTING HOW THE FUNDING, UH, WILL BE BENEFITING DIGITAL EQUITY PROGRAMMING.

SO WE ASKED, UH, AS A PART OF THE, THE APPLICATION ALREADY, UH, WHAT DO THEY DO AS AN ORGANIZATION AND WHAT DOES THE PROJECT DO? UM, BUT FOR SOME OF THE APPLICATIONS THAT WE RECEIVED, THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE TWO OF THE TWO OF THOSE THINGS WASN'T SUPER CLEAR.

AND SO WE JUST ADDED THAT QUESTION AS A BRIDGE, UM, SO THAT IT'S CLEAR WHAT THE DIGITAL EQUITY IMPACT IS FOR THE AWARDS.

UM, FOR OUR GTOP S MINI, UH, PATHWAY, WE'RE GONNA MAKE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE PERFORMANCE MEASURE FORM.

UH, IT WAS ACROSS THE BOARD A CHALLENGE FOR ORGANIZATIONS PARTICIPATING, UH, THIS YEAR.

UM, IT'S NOT A VERY OLD FORM.

IT'S MAYBE A COUPLE OF YEARS OLD.

AND, AND SO IT'S, UH, UH, WE'RE, UH, WE'RE JUST NEEDING TO UPDATE IT, MAKE IT MORE USER FRIENDLY.

UM, AND THE LAST ITEM UNDER THIS ONE IS ENHANCEMENTS TO THE Q AND A PROCESS FOR, FOR GTOP S CORE.

UM, WE RECEIVED FEEDBACK FROM, UH, FROM BOTH REVIEWERS AND APPLICANTS THAT THE, THE QUESTION AND ANSWER PROCESS, UH, RESULTED IN SOME CHALLENGES.

UH, SOME OF THOSE BEING, UH, THE FOLKS FELT LIKE THE, THERE WERE QUESTIONS ASKED THAT WERE DUPLICATIVE, UM, THAT THERE WERE QUESTIONS THAT WEREN'T WELL FORMATTED, UM, AND THAT THERE WAS QUESTIONS ASKED THAT WERE ALREADY

[00:20:01]

AND SO, UH, TO TRY AND ADDRESS THAT THO THOSE THINGS AS BEST AS WE CAN, UM, WE'RE, UH, WE'RE CHANGING THE Q AND A PROCESS TO BE INDIVIDUAL, UH, WHICH IS WHAT IT WAS BEFORE EACH, EACH REVIEWER GENERATES THEIR OWN QUESTIONS AND WOULD SUBMIT IT TO US.

UH, WE'RE MAKING IT A GROUP ACTIVITY.

UH, SO EACH, UH, GROUP OF REVIEWERS WILL GET TOGETHER, UH, AND TOGETHER DECIDE ON A SET OF QUESTIONS TO ASK.

AND HOPEFULLY THAT REDUCES DUPLICATION AND HELPS WITH, UH, THE FOLKS WILL HAVE TO AGREE ON FORMATTING AND, AND HOW TO ASK THE QUESTION.

UM, SO I'M HOPING THAT, THAT THAT'LL HELP WITH SOME OF THE CONCERNS THAT WE HAD FROM THE APPLICANTS.

UM, AND, AND THE REVIEWERS WILL BE ABLE TO SHARE INFORMATION IF THERE, IF THERE'S A QUESTION RAISED.

UM, AND ONE OF THE OTHER REVIEWERS, UH, KNOWS THAT THAT WAS ALREADY ANSWERED, THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO JUST NOTE THAT AND HOPEFULLY ELIMINATE THE NEED FOR THAT QUESTION.

ALL RIGHT.

ACTION ITEM NUMBER FIVE.

WE'RE RECOMMENDING, OR WE'RE, WE'RE MOVING AHEAD WITH THE, UM, UH, PANEL SIZES TO BE INCREASED ACROSS THE BOARD.

UM, THIS YEAR AND LAST YEAR, WE'VE, WE'VE HAD MORE CHALLENGES THAN WE HAVE HISTORICALLY IN GETTING ALL OF THE REVIEWERS TO PARTICIPATE FOR THE FULL DURATION OF THE, THE, THE GRANT.

UM, AND SO WE'RE JUST GONNA ADD ONE MORE SLOT FOR, FOR BUFFERS IN CASE FOLKS HAVE TO DROP OUT.

UM, AND SO FOR THAT, WHAT THAT WOULD MEAN IS THAT FOR GT OSS CORE, WE WOULD HAVE EIGHT MEMBERS.

FOR MANY, WE WOULD HAVE SIX.

AND FOR GTOP S CAPACITY, WE'D HAVE FOUR.

UM, THE SIX ACTION ACTION ITEM IS, UH, EXPLORING WAYS TO ENCOURAGE AND FACILITATE EXPOSURE TO NETWORK EXPOSURE AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES FOR GRANTEES.

WE HAVEN'T, UH, MADE HEADWAY ON THIS ITEM YET.

UM, THIS ACTION PLAN ACTUALLY WAS IMPLEMENTED, UH, OR, UH, SIGNED A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO.

UM, AND WE'RE ACTIVELY WORKING THROUGH THESE ITEMS. UM, THIS ONE WE'RE NOT QUITE SURE, UH, ABOUT YET, BUT WE DID RECEIVE A LOT OF FEEDBACK ABOUT GRANTEES WANTING WAYS THAT THEY CAN CONNECT AND ENGAGE WITH EACH OTHER.

UM, AND SO WE'RE LOOKING AT WAYS THAT WE CAN, UM, UH, DO MORE, UH, SHARING OUT OF WHAT THE COOL WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING.

UM, POSTING NEWSLETTERS, HIGHLIGHTS, THINGS LIKE THAT, SHARING TO, UH, TO THE DECA COMMUNITY, UH, ABOUT THE, UH, THE GRANTS THAT ARE HAPPENING, BUT THEN ALSO CREATING SOME SPACES WHERE, WHERE THEY CAN COME AND NETWORK, UH, WITH EACH OTHER.

UM, SO THAT COVERS ITEM, UH, THAT ITEM AND ACTION ITEM SEVEN.

THERE'S A NUMBER OF CHANGES THAT ARE A LITTLE BIT MORE DIFFICULT FOR US TO MAKE THAT ARE RELATED TO CHANGES TO OUR BOILERPLATE CONTRACT.

UM, AND SO ALL OF THE ITEMS HERE, UH, IN ACTION ITEM SEVEN, HAVE TO DO WITH CHANGES TO THE CONTRACT.

UM, WE CAN'T, AT THIS TIME PROMISE THAT THESE CHANGES ARE GONNA MAKE IT INTO THIS ROUND OF G TOPS, BUT THEY ARE ACTIVELY BEING CONSIDERED BY ALAR, OUR LAW DEPARTMENT.

UM, THE FIRST IS, UH, WE'RE TRYING TO FIND OUT IF WE CAN, UM, USE GTOP IF WE CAN ALLOW ORGANIZATIONS TO USE GTOP S FUNDS FOR INSURANCE COVERAGES THAT ARE REQUIRED BY GTOP S.

UP UNTIL NOW, WE HAVE GIVEN GUIDANCE TO OUR, OUR, UH, APPLICANTS THAT, UM, ANY, ANY INSURANCE COVERAGES REQUIRED BY THE GRANT, THEY, THEY ACTUALLY HAVE TO PAY FOR WITH LEVERAGE FUNDS, UM, UH, THAT FOR THE SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS THAT COMPETE FOR FUNDS, THAT THAT IS A CHALLENGE.

UM, AND SO WE'RE, WE'RE CONSULTING WITH OUR LAW DEPARTMENT TO SEE IF THAT'S A REQUIREMENT THAT WE CAN WAIVE.

UM, I THINK THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO GET THERE FOR, FOR THIS ITEM.

I'M PRETTY POSITIVE ON THAT ONE.

UM, THE SECOND ITEM IS, UH, THE SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS THAT, THAT WE, WE CONTRACT WITH HAVE ALSO EXPRESSED THAT OUR INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS ARE HARD FOR THEM TO MEET IN MANY CIRCUMSTANCES.

UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S, UH, FOUR OR FIVE REQUIRED INSURANCE COVERAGES, AND THEY, YOU KNOW, THE COST CAN ADD UP FOR SMALL ORGANIZATIONS.

UM, AND SO, UH, NOBODY ELSE IN THE CITY THAT I'M AWARE OF HAS EXPLORED THIS, BUT I'M, I'M TRYING TO SEE IF WE CAN OFFER THE OPTION OF A BLANKET LIABILITY WAIVER IN FAVOR OF THE CITY AND JUST NOT REQUIRE INSURANCE FOR THE ORGANIZATION, UM, WHICH WOULD SAVE, SAVE THEM MONEY, BUT IT WOULD, YOU KNOW, RAISE THE RISK FOR THEM.

UM, SO I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT ONE.

THAT MAY BE, THAT MAY BE A BRIDGE TOO FAR FOR OUR, OUR LEGAL AND RISK DEPARTMENTS .

UH, BUT I'M, I'M ASKING, I, WE HAVE POSED THAT AS A QUESTION TO SEE IF WE CAN, UH, MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT EASIER, UH, TO CONTRACT WITH US.

UM, WE RECEIVE FEEDBACK FOR, UH, WE HAVE A CLAUSE IN THE CONTRACT THAT, UH, IS AN AUDIT CLAUSE.

AND, UH, RIGHT NOW IT RE WOULD REQUIRE, UM, ANY TYPE OF, UH, UH, CLIENT LEVEL DATA TO BE SUPPLIED TO US AT OUR REQUEST.

UH, WE, WE RECEIVED A, A, UH, FEEDBACK ITEM FROM SOMEBODY THAT THEY WANTED TO BE ABLE TO PROTECT

[00:25:01]

UM, WE'RE FINE WITH THAT, AS, YOU KNOW, AS AN ORGANIZATION AS TARA.

UH, BUT WE, WE NEED TO VET THAT WITH THE LAW DEPARTMENT.

UM, SO WE'RE POSING THAT AS A QUESTION.

CAN WE PAUSE THERE FOR A SECOND? SURE.

SURE.

UH, CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHY WE'RE CURRENTLY CAPTURING THAT INFORMATION? IF IT'S A CHALLENGE? UH, WE AREN'T, AS A MATTER OF COURSE, BUT IT IS A PART OF THE CONTRACT, THE FACT THAT WE COULD BUT REQUEST IT.

CORRECT.

UH, AND DO WE KNOW WHY? UH, AS FAR AS I KNOW THIS, THIS CLAUSE HAS BEEN THERE FOR, UH, IT, IT'S A STANDARD CITY CONTRACT CLAUSE TO ALLOW FOR, UH, AUDIT, UH, OF CLIENT LEVEL DATA.

UM, SO IT, IT'S JUST PART OF BOILERPLATE LANGUAGE THAT THE CITY UTILIZES.

UM, WE'VE ONLY HAD TO, UH, DO, UH, TO EXECUTE THE AUDIT CLAUSE MAYBE TWO TIMES IN THE, THE SEVEN YEARS THAT I'VE BEEN WITH THE GTOP S PROGRAM.

UM, AND, UH, YEAH, THIS, THIS HASN'T BEEN A, AN ISSUE IN, IN THE PAST.

UM, BUT BECAUSE WE DID RECEIVE THE, YOU KNOW, THE QUESTION FROM THE ORGANIZATION, UM, WE ARE FINE WITH, UH, THE INFORMATION BEING REQUESTED TO BE, UM, UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DON'T NEED PII, BUT IF IT'S AGGREGATED DATA THAT WOULD S SUFFICE FOR US.

UM, SO DOES, DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? IT, IT DOES, IT DOES.

I ASSUME LEGAL'S GOING TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE, UH, FROM A STANDPOINT OF, UH, RISK AVERSION AND EXPOSURE FOR THE CITY.

UM, AND I ASSUME THAT WOULD ALSO INCLUDE WHATEVER VALUE PROPOSITION IS INCLUDED WITH THE REQUEST FOR THE DATA TO BEGIN WITH.

UH, IF THERE'S, I MEAN, AN AUDIT IS SUPPOSED TO VALIDATE THAT CERTAIN THINGS ACTUALLY HAPPENED.

YES.

SO I COULD SEE HOW THERE MAY BE SOME CHALLENGES IF THERE'S NO WAY TO CONFIRM THE PEOPLE THAT IT HAPPENED FOR.

UH, BUT I WILL LET LEGAL PROVIDE THEIR GUIDANCE, AND THEN WE CAN REACT TO THAT.

ABSOLUTELY.

YEAH.

AND, UM, YEAH, SO THERE'S, THERE'S NORMAL DATA REQUIREMENTS.

UH, THERE'S NORMAL REPORTING, UH, REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL OF OUR GTOP S CONTRACTS.

THEY HAVE TO SUBMIT TWO PERFORMANCE REPORTS DURING THE YEAR AND THE CLOSEOUT REPORT.

WHAT WOULD E WHAT WOULD CAUSE, UH, UH, THE TRIGGERING OF THE AUDIT CLAUSE IS IF THEY HAD, UH, BEEN UNRESPONSIVE AND NOT SUBMITTING ANY OF THE REQUIRED REPORTING, UM, OR IF ANY OF THE REPORTING INDICATED SUCH A SEVERE UNDERPERFORMANCE THAT IT CAUSED, UH, REASON FOR CONCERN FOR, FOR THE CONTRACT.

UM, AND AGAIN, THAT'S ONLY HAPPENED A COUPLE TIMES IN, IN THE EIGHT YEARS, UH, GOING ON EIGHT YEARS THAT I'VE, I'VE BEEN AROUND.

UM, AND, AND WE WOULD BE FINE IF WE WERE TO VALIDATE THE PERFORMANCE OR AND FINANCE DATA IN AGGREGATE RATHER THAN CLIENT LEVEL.

BUT WE ARE CONSULTING WITH THE RISK DEPARTMENT AND THE LAW DEPARTMENT TO SEE IF, UM, IF THEY CONCUR OR IF, UH, WE'RE, WE SHOULD STICK WITH THE EXISTING LANGUAGE.

THANKS.

SURE THING.

UH, THE LAST ITEM IS WE HAVE A TERMINATION WITHOUT CAUSE CLAUSE, UH, IN THE CONTRACT.

UM, AND THAT WAS ALSO, UH, BROUGHT UP BY ONE OF THE ORGANIZATIONS AS, UM, YOU KNOW, FOR, FOR A ONE YEAR CONTRACT, HAVING A TERMINATION WITHOUT CAUSE FOR SMALL ORGANIZATION, UH, ADDS A LEVEL OF UNCERTAINTY THAT THEY WEREN'T, UH, COMFORTABLE WITH.

UM, WE'VE NEVER HAD TO EXECUTE DETERMINATION WITHOUT CAUSE CLAUSE, UH, SINCE I'VE, UH, BEEN AROUND.

AND, UH, IT WOULD, IT WOULD BE, I I, IT WOULD BE VERY DIFFICULT FOR ME TO IMAGINE A SCENARIO WHERE IT WOULD BE REQUIRED.

WE DO HAVE TERMINATION FOR CAUSE DEFINED WELL IN THE CONTRACT, UH, THAT WOULD COVER ANY ISSUES OF PERFORMANCE OR, UH, YOU KNOW, FINANCIAL OR REPORTING DEFICIENCIES.

UM, AND SO I, UH, YOU KNOW, I WOULD, I WOULD BE FINE IF WE GOT RID OF THAT CAUSE, UH, WITHOUT CAUSE CLAUSE.

UM, BUT AGAIN, WE USE, UH, STANDARD CITY BOILERPLATE LANGUAGE FOR A LOT OF OUR CONTRACTS.

SO THAT'S JUST A CHANGE THAT NEEDS TO BE VETTED BY OUR LAW DEPARTMENT.

LAW DEPARTMENT.

ALRIGHT.

AND, AND THE LAST ITEM IS, UH, ACTION ITEM EIGHT TO REINCORPORATE THE GT OS CONNECT FUNDING TO OTHER GT OS PATHWAYS.

UH, WE GT OS CONNECT IS A PATHWAY THAT WE HAD LAST YEAR, AND THAT WAS OUR SECOND YEAR RUNNING THE CONTRACT.

UM, THAT GRANT WAS CONNECTED TO THE AFFORDABLE, THE FEDERAL AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM, UH, WHICH IS A FEDERAL PROGRAM, A A FEDERAL INTERNET SUBSIDY.

UM, AND WHAT WE WANTED TO DO AT GTOP S CONNECT IS TO HAVE A LOCAL CONTRACT, UH, WHERE WE COULD HAVE A LOCAL ORGANIZATION DOING RECRUITMENT INTO THE FEDERAL ACP PROGRAM, UM, DEVELOPING MATERIALS TO CIRCULATE IN THE COMMUNITY, UM, AND THING, THINGS OF THAT NATURE.

SUPPORTING THE FEDERAL ACP PROGRAM.

THE FUNDING OF THE FEDERAL PROGRAM

[00:30:01]

UH, AND SO WE COULDN'T, UH, WE, WE DIDN'T KNOW IF THE PROGRAM WAS GONNA BE FUNDED THROUGH THE PERIOD THAT THIS ACTION PLAN COVERS.

SO, UH, BECAUSE OF THAT UNCERTAINTY, WE'VE, UH, PUT A PAUSE ON THE GT OSS CONNECT PROGRAM.

WE WOULD LOVE TO BRING IT BACK, UM, IN FUTURE CYCLES IF THE PROGRAM IS REFUNDED.

UM, BUT UNTIL NOW, UH, OR UNTIL THEN, UH, WE'RE GONNA REALLOCATE THE GTOP OS CONNECT CONNECT FUNDS ACROSS THE OTHER THREE GRANT PATHWAYS, UM, UNTIL, UNTIL THE, UH, UH, CERTAIN THE, THE FUTURE OF THE AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM BECOMES CLEAR.

UM, WITH THAT BEING SAID, THOSE ARE ALL OF MY UPDATES, AND I'M OPEN IF Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS.

OKAY.

UH, YES, I'VE GOT A FEW OTHER QUESTIONS, AND THEN I'LL PASS IT AROUND THE ROOM.

UH, SO LET'S GO BACK TO ACTION ITEM NUMBER FOUR, CHANGES TO THE DETOX APPLICATIONS.

ONE, UH, THE CAPACITY APPLICATION QUESTION, CONNECTING FUNDINGS, DIGITAL EQUITY PROGRAMMING.

UH, I WANNA MAKE SURE I CLARIFY SOMETHING, UH, BECAUSE I RECALL SOME OF THESE DYNAMICS IN THIS PROCESS AS WELL.

AND, AND FOR THE BENEFIT OF EVERYONE HERE, UH, ESPECIALLY THE NEW COMMISSIONERS, UH, THIS IS IMPORTANT.

UH, AS JESSE MENTIONED, UH, G OS IS A CRITICAL PROGRAM, UH, AND IT'S ONE THAT THIS COMMISSION PLAYS A, A CRUCIAL ROLE IN, UH, AND THE, THE 400,000 THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH NOW.

UH, I LOVE THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, JESSE SAYS IT'S JUST SO MATTER OF FACTLY, UH, BUT WHEN, WHEN I STARTED, IT WAS A HUNDRED THOUSAND AND OUR COMMISSION GOT IT INCREASED TO 400,000.

SO THAT'S NOT TO BE UNDERSTATED BECAUSE, UH, FRANKLY, I'D LIKE TO SEE US GET AN INCREASED TO FIVE.

UM, BUT THAT OBVIOUSLY WOULD TAKE A FULL VOTE IN SUPPORT OF THE REST OF THE COMMISSION.

SO JUST CONTEXT FOR EVERYBODY HERE FOR THAT.

UM, BUT IN TERMS OF THIS QUESTION, IT IT, UNLESS I'M MISTAKEN, THIS QUESTION IS DESIGNED BASICALLY TO GIVE US A WAY TO FURTHER VALIDATE THAT THIS 5 0 1 C THREE THAT'S APPLYING FOR CAPACITY FUNDING TO HELP WITH DIGITAL INCLUSION IS ACTUALLY DOING SOMETHING DIGITAL INCLUSION RELATED.

IS, IS THAT FUNDAMENTALLY WHAT THIS QUESTION'S ABOUT? UH, YES.

AND, UH, TO CONNECT THE, UH, THE FUNDING THAT WILL BE RECEIVED TO THAT DIGITAL EQUITY IMPACT, UH, SPECIFICALLY.

SO, UM, FOR THE, FOR THE COMMISSIONERS WHO AREN'T FAMILIAR, GT OS CAPACITY IS A BRANCH OF THE, THE PROGRAM, UH, THAT IS PURELY, IT'S A, IT'S A MICRO GRANT.

IT'S ONE, IT'S A UP TO $2,500 FOR ORGANIZATIONS MAKING LESS THAN A MILLION DOLLARS IN REVENUES.

UM, AND, UH, ITS GOAL IS TO JUST BUILD THE CAPACITY OF THOSE SMALL ORGANIZATIONS.

AND, AND WE DEFINE CAPACITY AS THE PURCHASE OF, UH, UH, OF EQUIPMENT, UH, TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE STAFF.

SO ATTENDANCE AT CONFERENCE OR MEMBERSHIP IN, UH, UH, PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE DIGITAL EQUITY FOCUSED.

SO THOSE ARE JUST THE THREE FOCUS AREAS FOR THE CAPACITY FUNDING.

UM, AND SO WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IS THE ORGANIZATIONS WOULD TELL US, WE'RE GONNA, UH, USE THIS FUNDING TO BUY FOUR IPADS.

AND AS AN ORGANIZATION, THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE DO LIKE.

SO THOSE ARE TWO QUESTIONS THAT ALREADY EXISTED, BUT IT WASN'T ALWAYS CLEAR HOW THOSE DEVICES WERE GONNA BE USED IN THE DIGITAL EQUITY PROGRAMMING.

AND SO THAT'S THE, THE BRIDGE THAT WE WERE TRYING TO, TO MAKE WITH THIS QUESTION.

RIGHT.

RIGHT.

SO, AS YOU MENTIONED, YOU TY IT TO A PROGRAM.

UH, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE, WE'RE LEVEL SETTING WITH THE, AGAIN, THE ORIGINAL GOAL OF CAPACITY, BECAUSE CAPACITY IS A PATHWAY THAT WAS CREATED.

UH, AGAIN, LIKE FOR, FOR BACKGROUND.

UH, SO FOR COMMISSIONERS, UH, THAT ARE NEW, UH, WHEN I JOINED AND WHEN JESSE JOINED, UH, THIS WAS A HUNDRED THOUSAND, A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS GRANT WITH A SINGULAR PATHWAY.

MM-HMM.

, UH, SINCE THAT TIME, WE'VE, UH, ADDED MULTIPLE PATHWAYS UP TO FOUR.

NOW WE'RE GONNA SCALE BACK TO THREE.

CAPACITY IS ONE OF THOSE NEW PATHWAYS DESIGNED, UH, TO ENABLE SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS THAT DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE CAPACITY, UH, IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO GET, YOU KNOW, INFRASTRUCTURE, SO TO SPEAK, FOR THEIR PROGRAMS. UH, I RECALL THE SPIRIT OF THAT BEING, UH, DESIGNED, UH, TO NOT NECESSARILY HAVE TO BE TIED TO A PROGRAM IF THERE ARE, THERE ARE A LEGITIMATE AND, UH, ESTABLISHED 5 0 1 C THREE THAT'S FOCUSED ON DIGITAL INCLUSION.

UH, SO I, I, I GUESS I WANT TO LEVEL SET THAT FROM, FROM, UH, YOUR RECOLLECTION OF IT TOO, JESSE, AND THEN ALSO SEE IF,

[00:35:01]

RIGHT.

UM, SO THE, THAT'S WHY WHEN WE TALK ABOUT WHAT THE FUNDS CAN BE USED FOR, IT'S NOT TO BE USED TO PAY FOR PEOPLE LIKE, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, PEOPLE'S TIME ON A PROJECT, FOR INSTANCE.

LIKE WE WANT, WE WANT IT TO BE USED FOR, UH, PURCHASING ITEMS THAT ARE NEEDED TO DELIVER DIGITAL EQUITY PROGRAMMING, UH, STAFF TRAINING AND MEMBERSHIP IN, IN ORGANIZATIONS.

UM, SO, SO YES, UH, IT, IT, IT IS SPECIFICALLY NOT FOR, UH, A SPECIFIC PROGRAM, BUT IT, IT IS FOR, UH, BUILDING THE ORGANIZATION'S CAPACITY TO DO DIGITAL EQUITY THINGS.

RIGHT, RIGHT.

SO FROM WHAT I RECALL THOUGH, UH, YOU KNOW, CAPACITY IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS WITHIN A SMALL ORGANIZATION WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE WEARING MULTIPLE HATS.

SO ANY RESOURCE THAT ADDS EFFICIENCY TO A SMALL ORGANIZATION THAT IS FOCUSED ON DIGITAL EQUITY WORK IS GOING TO INCREASE THEIR OUTPUT FOR DIGITAL EQUITY WORK.

BUT TO TIE IT, TO SAY THAT IT HAS TO BE USED SPECIFICALLY FOR THAT, TO ME, THAT SEEMS TO BE AGAINST THE SPIRIT OF WHAT CAPACITY WAS MEANT FOR, TO BEGIN WITH.

SO THAT'S WHERE I'M SEEING A RUB THERE.

DO YOU, DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT I'M SAYING? I, I, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW THAT I, I FOLLOW, BUT I'LL, UH, YEAH.

WELL, LET, LET, LET, LEMME BREAK IT DOWN A LITTLE FURTHER.

UH, RIGHT.

SO, UH, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, SMALL ORGANIZATION, UH, LET'S SAY, YOU KNOW, WE'RE USING OUTDATED EQUIPMENT, UH, AND WE'VE GOT A PROGRAM THAT, UH, MAY OR MAY NOT, UH, I MEAN IT, LET'S SAY, LET, LET'S SAY THAT SPECIFIC COMPUTER THAT'S OUTDATED IS BEING USED FOR, UH, FOR ADMIN AND HR FOR THE ORG, RIGHT? MM-HMM.

.

BUT THEY ARE, UH, UH, UH, A LEGITIMATE AUTOPSY APPLICANT THAT MEETS THE CRITERIA.

SO THEN IF THEY GET A NEW COMPUTER TO HELP THEM HANDLE ADMIN AND HR BETTER, UH, THE AD WON'T HAVE TO SPEND AS MUCH TIME DOING THAT.

THEY COULD SPEND MORE CYCLES FOCUSED ON, UH, DEVELOPMENT OR OUTREACH AS AN EXAMPLE, RIGHT? YES.

BUT THAT COMPUTER IS NOT BEING USED FOR A PROGRAM.

CORRECT.

RIGHT.

YEAH.

SO, AND WHICH WOULD, WOULD BE FINE OF THOSE RULES.

YEAH.

OKAY.

'CAUSE THE, WHAT I THOUGHT WAS, UH, THE QUESTION, THE WAY IT'S PHRASED, DESCRIBE DIGITAL EQUITY RELATED PROGRAMMING THAT THIS FUNDING WOULD HELP TO BUILD CAPACITY FOR, DESCRIBE HOW THIS FUND WILL IMPACT THAT PROGRAMMING.

SO THEY WOULD THEN HAVE TO SAY, YOU'RE GONNA FREE UP TIME FROM I AD BASICALLY, YEAH.

IF THAT, IF THAT'S THE, THE CONNECTION THAT THEY THINK IS THE MOST SALIENT, THEN YES.

UH, AND THAT WOULD BE FINE.

UH, BUT WHAT WE SAW IS WE HAD, WE HAD A COUPLE OF APPLICATIONS THIS YEAR THAT THERE WERE LIKE ONE LINE, COUPLE WORD RESPONSES FOR ALL OF THE, THE CATEGORIES.

AND SO IT, IT REALLY JUST WASN'T CLEAR, YOU KNOW, IT, IT WAS CLEAR THAT, THAT SOMETHING WAS BEING PURCHASED, BUT THE BRIDGE BETWEEN THAT AND HOW, YOU KNOW, THE, THE IMPACT WASN'T VERY CLEAR.

SO, SO THIS IS JUST TO HELP THAT.

BUT, BUT YES, THE DEVICES CAN BE USED FOR THE ADMINISTRATIVE PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION.

WE JUST WANT IT, UH, WE JUST WANT ORGANIZATIONS TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT CASE.

OKAY.

THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S FINE WITH ME THEN THAT, FOR THAT ONE.

UH, IN TERMS OF ACTION ITEM NUMBER SIX, EXPLORE WAYS TO ENCOURAGE AND FACILITATE EXPOSURE AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES FOR GRANTEES.

UH, I, I LOVE THIS IDEA, BUT I DON'T THINK IT SHOULD BE LIMITED TO AWARDEES.

UH, I, I THINK THAT ESPECIALLY IF IT'S EXPOSURE AND NETWORKING, IT SHOULD BE FOR APPLICANTS, UH, CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT SOME OF THE APPLICANTS NEED THAT NETWORKING THE MOST, THE ONES THAT DON'T GET AWARDED, THEY NEED THAT, THAT KIND OF NETWORKING AND COLLABORATION THE MOST.

UM, AND AGAIN, THE SPIRIT OF EQUITY, NOT CREATING A SCENARIO WHERE THOSE WHO ARE GETTING SOMETHING CAN, CAN FIND A WAY TO GET BETTER AT IT, BUT LET OTHERS INTO THAT CIRCLE SO THEY CAN JOIN IT.

YEAH.

WE'RE, WE'RE HAPPY TO MAKE THAT EDIT.

UH, AND THEN ONE LAST THING, AND I'LL PASS THE MIC, UH, WITH ACTION ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, REINCORPORATE Q TOPS CONNECT FUNDING TO OTHER Q TOPS PATHWAYS.

UH, YEAH, I MEAN, I, I, I ENTIRELY UNDERSTAND THIS AND APPRECIATE IT.

UH, WOULD IT BE APPROPRIATE, PERHAPS, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT WE

[00:40:01]

SO FOR EXAMPLE, UH, WE NOW HAVE A BROADBAND INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDS, RIGHT? UH, AS OF TODAY, UH, IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO SEE IF, UH, THERE WAS A WAY TO LEVERAGE SUBSIDIES FROM A PROGRAM LIKE THAT OR, UH, FROM PREVIOUS, UH, SUBSIDIES, ARPA, OTHER THINGS, UH, OR WOULD IT BE BETTER TO JUST KIND OF ADDRESS THAT ON AN ONGOING BASIS? BUT THE QUESTION IS, SHOULD WE BASICALLY CREATE A SUBSIDY PATHWAY? WE'RE DEFINITELY OPEN TO SUGGESTION ON, UH, NEW PATHWAYS OR DIFFERENT PATHWAYS OR, OR WAYS FOR US TO ORIENT THE, THE GRANT.

UM, I, LIKE I SAID, I, I WOULD LOVE TO BRING BACK GTOP S CONNECT.

I THINK THAT THE, THE ACP IS AN A, A AN IMPORTANT FEDERAL PROGRAM, UH, THAT WE DEFINITELY WANT TO CONTINUE SUPPORTING AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.

UM, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S JUST A MATTER OF UNCERTAINTY AND INABILITY TO PLAN, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, UH, THE ANNUAL PATHWAY AROUND THAT.

UM, SO YEAH, I MEAN, WE'RE OPEN TO SUBJECT SUGGESTION IF, IF ANYBODY REALLY HAS IDEAS ON DIFFERENT WAYS THAT WE CAN, UH, ORGANIZE THAT FUNDING.

I WILL SAY THAT, UH, IT IS A, UH, ONE OF THE HEAVIEST LIFTS, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO MAKING CHANGES TO GTOP S IS BUILDING OUT A NEW PATHWAY.

UM, 'CAUSE WE HAVE TO CREATE A WHOLE SET OF RULES AND GUIDELINES, UH, TO, FOR, FOR EACH NEW PATHWAY.

UH, SO WE TRY, UH, WE'VE DONE THAT MANY TIMES.

AND SO I'M NOT SAYING THAT IT, IT, IT CAN'T BE DONE, BUT IT IS ONE OF THE, THE HEAVIER LIFTS FOR US.

SO, OKAY.

UM, BUT, BUT WE'RE, WE LOVE FEEDBACK.

SO, UH, IF YOU HAVE IDEAS, PLEASE SEND 'EM OUR WAY.

ALRIGHT, WELL, WE'LL TAKE THAT INTO A WORKING GROUP AND, UH, AND TALK ABOUT IT.

BUT WITH THAT, UH, LET'S SEE WHO ELSE HAS QUESTIONS.

UH, VICE THANK YOU AND THANKS, JESSE, FOR ALL OF YOUR, YOU AND, UH, TARA'S LEADERSHIP ON THIS.

UH, FIRST QUESTION I HAD WAS UNDER ACTION ITEM ONE.

YOU HAD MENTIONED SOME CHANGES TO, UH, UH, PROGRAMMATICALLY AROUND USING, UH, SOME AUTOMATED TOOLS.

UH, JUST CURIOUS, UH, YOU KNOW, I WAS, UH, BOTH CHAIR PITTS AND I HAVE SERVED AS REVIEWERS IN THE PAST.

IS THIS JUST ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONALITY IN THE GRANT PROGRAM THAT HADN'T BEEN UTILIZED YET? OR, OR IS TERRA SWITCHING TO A NEW, UH, SOFTWARE SOLUTION? JUST CURIOUS.

WE'RE, WE'RE NOT SHIFTING OUR, OUR SOFTWARE.

UM, SO TWO OF OUR GRANT PATHWAYS, GTOP S MINI AND GT OS CONNECT ARE, ARE RUN THROUGH AIRTABLE, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY AN ONLINE SPREADSHEET TOOL WITH SOME, UH, SOME FORM, UH, SOME FORMS THAT YOU CAN BUILD A AROUND IT.

MM-HMM.

.

UM, THEY, OVER THE LAST COUPLE YEARS ADDED SOME AUTOMATION FUNCTIONALITY TO WHERE IF LIKE A RECORD IS ADDED, THEN YOU CAN HAVE CERTAIN, UH, ACTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT OR DATA'S CHANGED.

UM, WE HAVEN'T BEEN SUPER FAMILIAR WITH IT, UH, BUT IT HAS BEEN ON OUR RADAR IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE TRYING TO LEARN ABOUT.

UM, SO FOR THAT ITEM SPECIFICALLY, IT'S JUST NEW, NEW ABILITY WITHIN THE SAME PROGRAM THAT HAS BEEN ADDED THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO TAP INTO AND, AND USE FOR THIS PURPOSE.

UM, FOR THE OTHER TWO, UH, VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY SHARING AND GTOP S CON CONTACT MANAGEMENT, THAT THOSE, I WOULDN'T EVEN, I WOULDN'T NECESSARILY QUALIFY AS AUTOMATION, BUT I WOULD PUT THOSE IN THE SELF-SERVICE CATEGORY.

UH, SO WE WANT TO BE CREATING THOSE PORTALS THAT PEOPLE CAN INTERACT WITH, UM, TO GIVE US INFORMATION, UH, UH, THAT WE CAN THEN HELP TO BUILD THE, UH, VALUE FROM.

UH, SO THOSE ARE MORE SELF-SERVICE ENHANCEMENTS USING, AGAIN, EXISTING TECHNOLOGY.

OKAY.

THANK YOU FOR THAT.

AND THEN, UH, I SEE THE, THE UPDATES AROUND THE RICH TEXT FORMATTING ONE, UM, POINT OF FEEDBACK THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT PROVIDED AS A REVIEWER IN THE PAST WAS, UH, THE LENGTH OF, UH, ABILITY FOR THE LENGTH OF CONTENT FOR THE REVIEWER TO, UH, TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE IT WOULD, I FOUND IT TO BE QUITE SHORT, JUST SPEAKING FOR MYSELF.