Jun 12, 2024 Community Technology & Telecommunications Commission

[CALL TO ORDER]

[00:00:04]

GOOD EVENING.

MY NAME IS STEVEN APA DUCK.

I'M CALLING TO ORDER THE, UH, COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING.

TODAY IS WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12TH.

IT IS 6:49 PM UH, TODAY WE ARE, UM, MEETING AT THE PER PERMITTING AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER IN AUSTIN, TEXAS.

MOST OF OUR COMMISSIONERS ARE ALSO JOINING REMOTELY.

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC CAN, UH, WATCH OUR LIVE VIDEO FEED@AUSTINTEXAS.GOV WITHIN THE AT X IN WEBSITE.

SO, WITH THAT, UH, WE WILL START WITH A ROLL CALL VOTE.

SO IF EVERYONE CAN JUST HAVE THEIR, UM, CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS READY.

AND THEN I WILL GO FIRST.

MY NAME IS STEVEN ACCA, REPRESENTING DISTRICT TWO, THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

UH, I'M JUST GONNA GO ACROSS MY SCREEN.

I'LL CALL ON YOU.

COMMISSIONER RICE.

IF YOU COULD, UH, INDICATE YOURSELF PLEASE.

UH, COMMISSIONER GRIFFIN RICE DISTRICT FIVE.

THANK YOU.

COMMISSIONER SUPTA.

SUBMIT SUPTA REPRESENTING DISTRICT 10.

THANK YOU.

COMMISSIONER ANGA, EBA ANGA REPRESENTING DISTRICT NINE.

THANK YOU.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. HELLO, BRIAN AM WILLIAMS REPRESENTING DISTRICT ONE.

THANK YOU.

AND COMMISSIONER NOJA.

COMMISSIONER GABRIEL ZAKI REPRESENTING DISTRICT SIX.

OKAY.

I BELIEVE WE HAVE A QUORUM.

UM, SO WITH THAT, I'LL MOVE ON TO OUR MEETING AGENDA.

UH, DO NOT BELIEVE WE HAVE ANY OF THE MEMBERS OF OUR PUBLIC SIGNED UP TO SPEAK, SO WE'LL SKIP OVER THAT ITEM.

UM,

[2. “New Goodwill T.E.C.H. program initiative for community device distribution” Presentation by Goodwill Central Texas (Linsey McQuistion, Manager of Career Services, Goodwill Central Texas”]

UM, IF THERE IS, IF NO ONE IS, UM, UM, IF, IF THERE'S NO DEBATE, I'D LIKE TO CALL THE ITEMS OUT OF ORDER AND GO AHEAD AND GIVE LINDSAY AN OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, JUST GO FIRST.

SOUNDS LIKE NO ONE IS, UH, UPSET ABOUT THAT.

SO, LINDSAY, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO YOU.

ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH.

UM, AS MENTIONED, MY NAME IS LINDSAY IAN.

I AM THE MANAGER OF CAREER SERVICES WITH GOODWELL CENTRAL TEXAS.

AND I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.

AND I'M, I VERY MUCH APPRECIATE, UM, THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR DIGITAL INCLUSION PROGRAMMING AND OUR NEWEST, UM, PROGRAM THAT WE ARE LAUNCHING THIS SUMMER.

UM, SO I'VE BEEN WITH GOODWILL FOR NINE YEARS, UM, NEXT MONTH, AND THROUGHOUT MY TIME, UM, WITH GOODWILL CENTRAL TEXAS, I'VE, I'VE SERVED IN A VARIETY OF, OF ROLES, UM, WORKING DIRECTLY WITH OUR CLIENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UM, AS WELL AS PROVIDING SUPPORT AND, AND LEADERSHIP TO, TO VARIOUS PROGRAMS. AND THROUGHOUT ALL OF MY, UM, DIFFERENT ROLES AND EXPERIENCES WITH THE ORGANIZATION AND SERVING OUR COMMUNITY, UM, I THINK ONE OF THE MOST ENLIGHTENING, UM, OPPORTUNITIES THAT I'VE HAD IS TO REALLY EXPLORE, UM, THE IMPACT THAT DIGITAL SKILL BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES, UM, OPPORTUNITIES TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS DEVICES, TO ACCESS THE INTERNET, UM, HAS ON ON OUR CLIENTS AND THEIR SUCCESS IN JOB SEARCHING, UM, FINDING EMPLOYMENT AND RETAINING THAT EMPLOYMENT.

UM, OVER, OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, WE HAVE HAD A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPAND OUR PROGRAMMING, UM, AND I'M EXCITED TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU TONIGHT.

UM, SO OUR CAREER ADVANCEMENT TEAM AT GOODWILL CENTRAL TEXAS STARTED, UM, OFFERING FORMAL DIGITAL INCLUSION, UM, WORKSHOPS AND LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES IN 2017.

WE REALLY DOVE INTO STANDARDIZING THOSE PROCESSES IN 2018 USING THE NORTH STAR DIGITAL SKILL BUILDING CURRICULUM.

UM, AND THEN THROUGHOUT COVID LEVERAGED, UM, THE ONLINE LEARNING PLATFORM THAT THEY OFFERED.

UM, IN 2023, WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO DIVE INTO, UM, DEVICE ACCESS.

SO THROUGH A PARTNERSHIP WITH GOODWILL INDUSTRIES INTERNATIONAL, AND INDEED, WE WERE ABLE TO START OFFERING NOT ONLY DIGITAL SKILL BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES, BUT ACCESS TO DEVICES.

AND WE FOUND THAT THE ABILITY TO PROVIDE SOMEBODY A COMPUTER, TO PROVIDE SOMEBODY INTERNET ACCESS AND PUTTING THAT ALONGSIDE DIGITAL SKILL BUILDING INCREASED THEIR COMMITMENT TO PARTICIPATING AND MOVING THROUGH

[00:05:01]

BUT WE ALSO SAW THAT THEY WERE GREATER SKILL GAINS, UM, FOR THE, THE INDIVIDUALS THAT PARTICIPATED IN THAT PROGRAM, THE ABILITY TO NOT RELY ON COMING INTO ONE OF OUR CENTERS TO ACCESS A COMPUTER OR THE INTERNET, BUT BEING ABLE TO, TO WORK ON THOSE SKILLS AT HOME, UM, REALLY PROVIDED A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR LAYERING, UM, SKILLS AS WELL AS SEEING OUR CLIENTS UTILIZE THOSE SKILLS TO THEN ONLINE JOB SEARCH AND FIND EMPLOYMENT.

UM, REALLY SEEING THEM ACTIVELY ENGAGE IN THAT PART OF OUR SERVICE MODEL.

UM, AND SO WE'VE REALLY LOOKED FOR ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPAND AND CONTINUE, UM, WITH THAT SERVICE MODEL.

UM, WE DID HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY, UM, TO SUPPORT THE AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM.

WE, WE DID RECEIVE A GRANT THROUGH THE FCC, UM, TO DO OUTREACH AS WELL AS, UM, ENROLLMENT INTO THAT PROGRAM.

UM, UNFORTUNATELY, AND WITH THAT PROGRAM ENDING, WE, WE ENDED UP SHIFTING, UM, OUR MODEL, UM, TO GO BACK TO INCLUDE, UM, MORE TRADITIONAL INTERNET ACCESS SUPPORT.

UM, SO OUR NEWEST PROGRAM IS CALLED GOODWILL TECH.

UM, IT STANDS FOR, UM, TECHNOLOGY, UM, EDUCATION, CONNECTIVITY AND HOPE.

UM, AND WE REALLY WANTED TO, UM, CONTINUE TO PROVIDE, UM, TAILORED APPROACHES TO PROVIDING SKILL BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES.

SO THROUGH THAT PROGRAM, UM, WHICH IS FUNDED THROUGH METHODIST HEALTHCARE MINISTRIES, UM, OVER A THREE YEAR PERIOD, WE WILL WORK WITH 400 HOUSEHOLDS ACROSS OUR GOODWELL, CENTRAL TEXAS TERRITORY.

UM, OUR TWO MAIN LOCATIONS ARE IN AUSTIN.

WE IMAGINE THAT A GOOD NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS THAT WE SERVE WILL COME FROM THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY.

UM, HOWEVER, WE WILL ALSO BE LOOKING TO SUPPORT, UM, INDIVIDUALS FROM OUR WILLIAMSON COUNTY AND HAYES COUNTY COMMUNITIES WHERE WE HAVE PHYSICAL CAREER CENTER LOCATIONS.

UM, AND THEN WE'LL BE LOOKING TO PARTNER WITH ORGANIZATIONS, UM, IN OUR OTHER COUNTIES, UM, WITHIN OUR TERRITORY.

UM, I WANTED TO MAKE SURE I GOT NUMBER, RIGHTS NUMBERS RIGHT.

SO THOSE 400 HOUSEHOLDS OVER A THREE YEAR PERIOD, UM, WILL ALL GO THROUGH DIGITAL SKILL BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES BEFORE THEY RECEIVE THEIR DEVICES.

UM, WE REALLY FOUND THAT THIS, UM, PROVIDES A LEVEL OF COMMITMENT, UM, FOR PARTICIPANTS, UM, TO KNOW THAT THEY, UM, HAVE A, A TANGIBLE, UM, SOMETHING THAT THEY ARE WORKING TOWARDS AS WELL AS THAT ABILITY, ONCE THEY COMPLETE THEIR TRAINING PLAN AND THE TRAININGS THAT THEY'VE IDENTIFIED IS IMPORTANT TO THEM.

WE'VE ALSO SEEN FOLKS THEN CONTINUE TO CIRCLE BACK TO TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES.

UM, SO OUR DIGITAL NAVIGATOR WILL NOT ONLY FOLLOW OUR PARTICIPANTS THROUGH THEIR TRAINING PLANS AND THE TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES THAT THEY'VE IDENTIFIED ON THE PRE-WORK END, BUT THEY'LL ALSO CONTINUE TO STAY IN TOUCH WITH THOSE PARTICIPANTS.

UM, AT THE ONE, UM, ONE MONTH MARK AND THEN THE THREE MONTH MARK TO, UM, IDENTIFY, ARE THERE ADDITIONAL SKILLS THAT YOU'VE IDENTIFIED NOW THAT YOU'VE RECEIVED YOUR DEVICE, YOU'VE BEEN USING YOUR DEVICE, AND HOW CAN WE CONTINUE TO SUPPORT YOU? UM, THE DEVICES THAT INDIVIDUALS WILL BE ABLE TO RECEIVE ARE REFURBISHED LAPTOPS, UM, TABLETS WITH KEYBOARDS, AND THEN HOTSPOTS THAT WILL COME WITH 12 MONTHS OF INTERNET.

UM, WE DO HAVE SOME FUNDING SET ASIDE FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY NEED SOME SORT OF SPECIALIZED DEVICE.

UM, SO IN THE PAST WE'VE HAD, UM, SOME OF OUR CLIENTS COME THROUGH THAT ARE ATTENDING AN OCCUPATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAM, UM, OR PERHAPS THEY ARE, UM, WORKING IN A CERTAIN CAREER FIELD WHERE THEY'RE NEEDING A, A VERY SPECIFIC, UM, SORT OF DEVICE WITH, UM, CERTAIN SPECIFICATIONS.

WE DO HAVE FUNDING SET ASIDE TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THOSE INDIVIDUALS AND THEN PURCHASE A DEVICE TO MEET THEIR NEEDS.

BUT MOST OF OUR PARTICIPANTS WILL RECEIVE, UM, A STANDARD REFURBISHED LAPTOP THAT WE HAVE, UM, RECEIVED FROM, UM, A PARTNER, UM, AGENCY.

UM, ONCE, UH, AN INDIVIDUAL, UM, IS REFERRED INTO TO THE PROGRAM, AS I MENTIONED, UM, THEY'RE GOING TO BE CONTACTED BY OUR DIGITAL NAVIGATOR.

AND THAT DIGITAL NAVIGATOR IS GOING TO WORK WITH THAT, UM, PERSON TO IDENTIFY, UM, THEIR SKILL GAPS, UM, AS WELL AS THEIR DIGITAL ACCESS NEEDS.

SO DO THEY NEED A, A HOTSPOT? DO THEY NEED A LAPTOP? DO THEY WANT A TABLET? DO THEY NEED, DO THEY NEED BOTH? DO THEY NEED, UM, THAT LAPTOP AND THE HOTSPOT? UM, SO WE WANTED TO BE ABLE TO PAIR ITEMS TOGETHER OR PROVIDE THEM INDIVIDUALLY BASED ON NEED AND PREFERENCE, UM, OF, OF THE CLIENTS.

UM, AS I

[00:10:01]

AND THAT WILL LIKELY DEPEND ON, UM, INDIVIDUAL SKILL LEVEL.

UM, DOES THAT PERSON NEED MORE ONE-ON-ONE SUPPORT VERSUS IS IT, UM, A PARTICIPANT WHO HAS A HIGHER LEVEL OF DIGITAL SKILLS ALREADY? AND, UM, WE CAN PAIR THOSE FOLKS WITHIN A GROUP SETTING, UM, AND EVERYONE'S NEEDS WILL BE MET.

UM, AND THEN ONCE THAT INDIVIDUAL HAS THEIR DEVICE, AS I MENTIONED, AT ONE MONTH AND THREE MONTHS WORTH FOLLOWING UP, UM, OUR DIGITAL NAVIGATOR WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE, UM, SPECIAL PROGRAMMING OUTSIDE OF OUR REGULAR TRAINING CALENDAR.

UM, SO WE'LL BE OFFERING SPECIAL WORKSHOP DAYS FOR PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS TO, TO CIRCLE BACK AND CONTINUE TO BUILD, UM, DIFFERENT DIGITAL SKILL OPPORTUNITIES.

UM, SOME OTHER POINTS OF THE PROGRAM THAT ARE ON THE HORIZON, UM, LATER THIS YEAR AND INTO YEAR TWO OF, OF THE GRANT PROGRAM.

UM, IN YEAR TWO, WE'RE REALLY GONNA BE FOCUSING ON EXPANDING OUR PUBLIC COMPUTER LAB ACCESS.

SO WE HAVE, UM, LARGE PUBLIC COMPUTER LABS AT OUR GOODWILL COMMUNITY CENTER IN NORTH AUSTIN.

WE HAVE A COMPUTER LAB SPACE AT OUR GOODWILL RESOURCE CENTER IN SOUTH AUSTIN.

UM, WE'LL BE REPLACING THOSE DESKTOP COMPUTERS, UM, FOR ONES THAT WORK A LITTLE BIT FASTER, WHICH WILL BE EXCITING.

UM, BUT ALSO WE WILL BE ABLE TO PUT MORE COMPUTERS IN SOME OF OUR SPACES.

SO WE'LL BE EXPANDING OUR SPECIFIC TRAINING LAB, UM, AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER LOCATION.

WE WILL BE, UM, EXPANDING OUR COMPUTER LAB ACCESS, UM, IN SOME OF OUR SMALLER CAREER CENTERS OUTSIDE OF AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY.

UM, WE'RE ALSO REALLY EXCITED THAT IN YEAR TWO, THIS GRANT WILL ALLOW US TO, UM, PURCHASE EQUIPMENT FOR OUR DIGITAL EQUITY VAN.

UM, SO THROUGH A, UM, A, A GENEROUS GIFT, UM, FROM INDEED WE WERE ABLE TO PURCHASE, UM, A VAN.

UM, IT'S BIGGER THAN A MINIVAN, UM, BUT NOT QUITE A BUS , UM, IS HOW I KIND OF LIKE TO DESCRIBE IT.

UM, THE, THE BACK IS, UM, FITTED OUT WHERE THERE IS A TRAINING SPACE THAT FITS ABOUT THREE PEOPLE.

UM, WE'LL HAVE ROOM TO, TO SIT WITH OUR CLIENTS, UM, AND, UM, AND HAVE FOLKS ON LAPTOPS PROVIDING, UM, EITHER ONE-ON-ONE OR TWO IN ONE, UM, WITH OUR DIGITAL NAVIGATOR, UM, FOR DIGITAL SKILL BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES.

UM, WE'LL ALSO LIKELY USE THIS SPACE, UM, TO DO ONE-ON-ONE FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT TRAINING.

UM, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS VAN.

UM, OUR GOODWILL, CENTRAL TEXAS TERRITORY IS 13 COUNTIES, AND SO THIS ALLOWS US TO REACH MORE OF THOSE, UM, COUNTIES, BUT IT ALSO ALLOWS US TO WORK WITH OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS WITHIN AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY, UM, IN A, IN A DIFFERENT WAY RIGHT NOW.

I THINK WE, WE REALLY RELY ON EITHER FOLKS COMING INTO OUR PHYSICAL SPACE OR OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS HAVING SPACE FOR US TO COME IN AND PROVIDE SERVICES, AND THAT'S NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE.

UM, SO BEING ABLE TO BRING THESE SERVICES TO DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES, UM, AND, UM, WHERE OUR CLIENTS NEED US IS REALLY, UM, IS REALLY EXCITING.

UM, ALSO ON THE HORIZON, UM, WE'LL BE LOOKING TO PARTNER WITH DIFFERENT COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SPECIFICALLY FOR, UM, DEVICE DISTRIBUTION BASED ON THEIR PROGRAMMATIC NEEDS.

AND THEN WE WILL BE WORKING WITH OUR GOODWILL RETAIL AND POST RETAIL TEAM MEMBERS.

UM, OFTEN THESE TEAM MEMBERS IN OUR STORES OR IN OUR WAREHOUSES ARE ALSO, UM, EXPERIENCING THE SAME BARRIERS TO, UM, DIGITAL ACCESS SKILL BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES AS, AS OUR TRADITIONAL CASE MANAGEMENT CLIENTS.

AND SO WE'LL BE ABLE TO GO VISIT MORE OF OUR RETAIL AND POST RETAIL LOCATIONS AND PROVIDE SERVICES ONSITE TO THEM.

UM, I TOLD MYSELF I WOULDN'T KEEP GOING ON AND ON 'CAUSE I COULD TALK ABOUT , UM, OUR PROGRAMMING FOREVER AND HOW MUCH I LOVE MY JOB AND, AND WHAT I GET TO DO WITH OUR TEAM.

UM, BUT I WANNA MAKE SURE I I LEAVE TIME FOR QUESTIONS.

SO, UM, THANK YOU SO MUCH AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE, LINDSAY.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

THIS SOUNDS LIKE AN AMAZING PROGRAM.

UM, I DO HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO THE, THE REST OF THE COMMISSIONERS WHO MIGHT HAVE QUESTIONS.

UH, I'M CURIOUS, DO YOU HAVE ANY PRESENTATION MATERIALS THAT YOU CAN SHARE WITH THE COMMISSION? UM, ARE WE ABLE TO, TO ACCESS, UM, DETAILS IN THE PROGRAM ON THE GOODWILL CENTRAL TEXAS SITE? UM, WHERE'S ALL THAT HOUSED? YES, I AM MORE THAN HAPPY TO SEND, UM, A PRESENTATION.

I'M TRAVELING, AND SO I DIDN'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO LIKE, SHARE OUT SOMETHING AND, AND SHARE MY SCREEN.

AND SINCE I JUST HAVE MY MY LAPTOP AND Y'ALL,

[00:15:01]

UM, BUT I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO, TO SHARE, UM, THE PRESENTATION MATERIAL THAT WE'VE SHARED, UM, INTERNALLY TO OUR STAFF PREPPING THEM FOR THE PROGRAM.

UM, OUR MARKETING TEAM IS WORKING ON SOME UPDATES TO OUR WORKFORCE ADVANCEMENT, UM, SECTION OF OUR WEBSITE WHERE THEY'LL BE POSTING MORE DISTINCT INFORMATION ABOUT OUR BROADER DIGITAL INCLUSION PROGRAMMING, HOW TO, UM, TAP INTO, UM, THE GOODWILL TECH PROGRAM, UM, AS WELL AS ONCE THE, UM, THE VAN WHO WE'RE CALLING BETTY, BRINGING TECHNOLOGY OR BRINGING EDUCATION AND TECHNOLOGY TO YOU.

UM, BUT TOO ON THE WEBSITE, UM, OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS AND REQUEST A VISIT FROM, FROM BETTY, UM, AND, UM, ANY PROGRAMMING THAT WE'RE ABLE TO OFFER THROUGH, THROUGH THE VAN.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

UH, I'LL OPEN IT UP TO ANY OTHER COMMISSIONERS.

IF YOU WANNA RAISE YOUR HAND.

COMMISSIONER DES GUPTA, PLEASE.

YES.

UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS PRESENTATION.

YOU KNOW, I HAVE GREAT REGARD FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION.

I'VE WORKED WITH THEM BEFORE AND OTHER MATTERS AND HAVE GREAT RESPECT FOR THEM.

THEIR, THEIR OUTREACH IS SO MUCH, YOU KNOW, SO IMPRESSIVE.

SO I HAVE FOUR QUESTIONS.

UH, CAN YOU HEAR ME BY THE WAY? UM, KIND OF, UM, I DON'T KNOW WHY YOU CAN'T HEAR ME.

OKAY.

I'LL TRY TO SPEAK UP AS LOUDLY AS POSSIBLE.

OKAY, PERFECT.

THANK YOU.

YES.

OKAY.

ALL RIGHT.

SO NUMBER ONE QUESTION.

YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE THIS VAN THAT GOES OUT THERE TO THE COMMUNITY, UH, THREE STUDENTS AT A TIME.

HAVE YOU CONSIDERED PARTNERING WITH LOCAL SCHOOLS AND GETTING THEIR CLASSROOMS? WE, WE HAVE IN SOME INSTANCES.

SO WE DO ALSO OPERATE, UM, A YOUTH WIOA PROGRAM, UM, THAT WE, UM, RECEIVE FUNDING THROUGH THE TEXAS WORKFORCE COMMISSION.

AND SO WE DO PARTNER WITH SOME SCHOOLS.

UM, OFTENTIMES THOSE ARE SCHOOLS THAT HAVE, UM, A HIGH RATIO OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH, SO, UM, YOUTH WHO ARE PRESENTING WITH BARRIERS TO EDUCATION AND, AND FUTURE EMPLOYMENT.

UM, SO WE HAVE GONE INTO THOSE LOCATIONS TO USE THEIR SPACES AND THEIR COMPUTER LABS.

YES.

THE SECOND QUESTION IS, UH, YOU KNOW, IT'S VERY KIND OF YOU TO GIVE OUT EQUIPMENT, BUT EQUIPMENT IS JUST LIKE A TOY UNLESS IT'S CONNECTED TO THE WEB.

MM-HMM.

.

SO IS THERE ANY PROGRAM THAT SUBSIDIZES BROADBAND ACCESS? SO WE WILL BE PROVIDING FOLKS WHO NEED INTERNET ACCESS AS WELL, HOTSPOTS, AND THOSE HOTSPOTS WILL COME WITH ONE YEAR OF INTERNET.

UM, THE LAST TIME WE HAD THIS PROGRAM LED RIGHT INTO A CP, OBVIOUSLY THE AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM, UM, IS NO LONGER OPERATING.

UM, SO OUR PLAN IS TO WORK TO PAIR THIS PROGRAM ALONG WITH THOSE CLIENTS PARTICIPATING IN OUR, UM, FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT TRAINING, UM, WORKING WITH FOLKS TO SET A MONTHLY BUDGET, IDENTIFY, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEIR INTERNET NEEDS WOULD BE AFTER THAT USE OF THE HOTSPOT ENDS, AND TRYING TO PREP THEM TO INTEGRATE THAT COST INTO THEIR MONTHLY BUDGET.

UM, OFTENTIMES OUR, OUR CLIENTS ALSO DON'T KNOW THAT WELL, THE AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM HAS ENDED.

THERE MAY BE OTHER LOWER COST INTERNET AVAILABLE.

AND SO OUR HOPE TOO IS THAT THIS CAN KIND OF BE A STOP GAP AS FOLKS ARE ABLE TO PREP AND THEN IDENTIFY WHAT INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER DO THEY WANT TO USE, WHAT IS THAT COST GOING TO BE, AND HOW DO THEY PREPARE FOR THAT? OKAY.

BUT, YOU KNOW, ONE COULD THINK OF, UH, POTENTIALLY GOING OUT TO ALL THE TECH COMPANIES, ALL THE, ALL THE LEADERS IN THE TECH INDUSTRY, YOU KNOW, IMMEDIATELY YOU THINK OF MICHAEL DELL, BUT THERE ARE OTHER PEOPLE WHO ARE, UH, NOT NEARLY AS RICH, BUT CERTAINLY VERY WELL OFF.

AND THERE ARE COMPANIES THAT ARE DOING VERY WELL, LIKE SAMSUNG, LIKE IBM, LIKE DELL, AND, AND, AND YOU NAME IT, YOU KNOW, IT IS IN THEIR ENLIGHTENED SELF-INTEREST TO PROMOTE THIS KIND OF TECHNOLOGY TO BE PERVASIVE THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

THAT MEAN, THAT MEANS THAT'S HOW MANY MORE PEOPLE THEY CAN RECRUIT.

SO IN, HAVE YOU CONSIDERED GETTING THEM TO GET INTO SOME KIND OF A PARTNERSHIP MODEL? SO THEY GIVE YOU FUNDING EVERY YEAR? SO THIS KIND OF PROGRAM CONTINUES, LIKE, SAY THE BROADBAND SUBSIDY IS NOT FOR ONE YEAR, BUT IT'S A CONTINUING THING UNTIL THAT PERSON CAN PAY FOR IT HIMSELF OR HERSELF.

YES.

WE HAVE A DEVELOPMENT TEAM THAT OFTEN LOOKS FOR PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.

UM, IN THE PAST WE'VE WORKED CLOSELY WITH INDEED ON SOME DIFFERENT PROJECTS.

UM, AND, AND CERTAINLY, UM, THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO BEING ABLE TO, TO PURCHASE THE VAN, UM, WAS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT IN KIND OF SEEING THAT THAT DREAM COME TO REALITY.

UM, WE'VE PARTNERED WITH DELL TECHNOLOGIES, UM, FOR A FEW DIFFERENT

[00:20:01]

WE WERE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR, UM, DIFFERENT FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES, WHETHER THAT'S GRANT FUNDING, UM, PRIVATE DONATIONS, FOUNDATION OPPORTUNITIES, UM, TO BE ABLE TO SUSTAIN, UM, PROGRAMS LIKE, LIKE THIS OR REALLY ANY OF OUR, OUR PROGRAMS. AND MY LAST QUESTION IS RELATING TO THE ACQUISITION OF HARDWARE.

YOU KNOW, THERE ARE A LOT OF TECH COMPANIES.

I USED TO WORK FOR TWO OF THEM, AND EVERY THREE TO FIVE YEARS WE RECYCLING THE RECYCLE THE HARDWARE.

THERE'S STILL A LOT OF LIFE LEFT IN THE, IN THOSE BOXES.

YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT THE LATEST, WHICH MEANS WE, YOU KNOW, WE SORT OF PUSH THEM OUT.

DO YOU HAVE A PLAN IF THEY PUSH IT OUT TO HAVE THAT PATHWAYS LEADING STRAIGHT TO YOU? SO WE HAVE IN THE PAST OPERATED A COMPUTER WORKS LOCATION, UM, WHERE WE DID RECEIVE, UM, DEVICES, THOSE DEVICES WERE REFURBISHED AND THEN TURNED AROUND FOR SALE.

UM, I THINK SOMETIMES THE CONUNDRUM WITH OUR ORGANIZATION IS WE, WE HAVE OUR MISSION SERVICE SIDE, AND THEN WE DO HAVE OUR RETAIL SIDE, AND IT'S OFTEN A BALANCE OF HOW DO WE PIPELINE AND SUPPORT EACH ONE OF THOSE ARMS OF OUR ORGANIZATION.

UM, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, I THINK WHY WE'VE REALLY LOOKED FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO PURCHASE THE REFURBISHED DEVICES, WHETHER, UM, IF AT A DISCOUNT OR BEING ABLE TO PARTNER WITH AN ORGANIZATION TO JUST RECEIVE THOSE DEVICES.

MM-HMM.

, UM, DON'T GET ME WRONG, I HAVE THROWN OUT THIS IDEA NUMEROUS TIMES, UM, WITHIN OUR ORGANIZATION, AND I WOULD LOVE TO SEE IT HAPPEN ONE DAY.

UM, BUT, BUT YEAH, I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, JUST THE STRUCTURE OF ORGANIZATIONS SOMETIMES MAKES THAT CHALLENGING AND IT'S, IT'S HARD TO MAKE AN ARGUMENT OF, YOU KNOW, BEING ABLE TO, TO SELL SOMETHING IN OUR STORE, WHICH THEN GENERATES REVENUE FOR MISSION.

OKAY.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

YEAH, THANK YOU SO MUCH, LINDSAY.

UH, COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, PLEASE.

HELLO.

HELLO.

UM, SO I, I ALSO HAVE A, A SPECIAL SPOT FOR GOODWILL.

UM, IN A PAST LIFE, I'VE DONE A NONPROFIT CONSULTING PROJECT FOR GOODWILL OUT OF DC AND LEARNED QUITE A BIT ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION, ITS MISSION, WHO IT HELPS AND HOW, AND HOW IT GOES ABOUT IT.

AND IT'S A VERY HONORABLE MISSION.

BUT AS A, A COMPUTER NERD AND AND TECH PERSON MYSELF, I HEAR A COUPLE OPPORTUNITIES, UH, ONE BEING, UH, THE OPPORTUNITY FOR SELF-DIRECTED TRAINING ONCE AN INDIVIDUAL HAS A DEVICE.

UM, I WAS CURIOUS IF THERE WERE ANY THOUGHTS OR OPINIONS THERE, AND IF THERE'S ANY OPEN, UH, OPENNESS FOR ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS AND OPINION.

UH, REASON BEING IS OF, UH, BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR REMOTE TRAINING WITH A LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO WERE, UM, YOUNG ESSENTIALLY AND JUST NEEDED TO BE UPSKILLED.

AND WE FOUND OURSELVES USING A, WHAT IS IT? UH, I THINK UDEMY.

YEAH, I THINK OUR, WE WERE USING UDEMY, UM, BECAUSE THEY PARTNER WITH NONPROFITS LIKE UDEM Y.COM.

UM, THEY HAVE COURSES THAT ARE MADE BY THE COMMUNITY OF UDEMY, AND THEY CAN BE AS CHEAP AS $20 OR AS EXPENSIVE AS WHATEVER YOU'RE WILLING TO PAY.

USUALLY UPWARDS OF 200, THEY GO ON SALE OFTEN, AND THEY CAN UPSKILL A PERSON FROM LITERALLY NOT EVEN KNOWING WHAT THE TERMS MEAN, ALL THE WAY UP TO BEING, UH, PRETTY NOVEL IN TECHNOLOGY.

AND WITH A YEAR'S TIME OF FREE INTERNET, THAT'S MORE THAN ENOUGH TIME FOR A PERSON TO GET COGENT IN MANY OF THESE TECHNOLOGIES.

SO MY QUESTION, IS THERE A PATHWAY TO GET THESE INDIVIDUALS SOME SORT OF SELF-DIRECTED, UH, HIGH SKILLS TRAINING WITH THE DEVICE WHILE THEY HAVE THAT FREE INTERNET FOR YEAR? YES.

YES.

SO WE'VE TALKED ABOUT A FEW, A FEW DIFFERENT CONCEPTS.

UM, THE FIRST IS, UM, OUR SUBSCRIPTION WITH NORTH STAR, UM, ALLOWS US TO ENROLL FOLKS INTO THEIR ONLINE LEARNING PLATFORM.

SO OUR HOPE IS THAT BY PROVIDING THE ONE-ON-ONE OR SMALL GROUP LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES, WE'RE ABLE TO PAIR THAT WITH AN INDIVIDUAL HAVING AN ACCOUNT, BEING ABLE TO GO IN, CONTINUE TO BUILD THOSE CONCEPTS.

THEIR PLATFORM COVERS A, UM, I THINK A, A GOOD ARRAY OF BASIC DIGITAL CONCEPTS.

UM, SO OUR HOPE IS THAT'S KIND OF THE FOUNDATIONAL ASPECT.

UM, OUR DIGITAL NAVIGATOR HAS BEEN WORKING ON, UM, DOING SOME DIFFERENT RECORDINGS AND, UM, KIND OF LIKE MINI TUTORIALS ON SOME KIND OF MIDDLE LEVEL CONCEPTS.

UM, SO A LOT OF EXPLORATION ON ONLINE SAFETY TIPS, UM, NAVIGATING DIFFERENT PLATFORMS. UM, YOU KNOW, LINKEDIN I THINK WAS A, A REALLY GOOD EXAMPLE THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING THROUGH.

AND, AND HOW DO WE START, UM, PREPPING OUR CLIENTS TO UNDERSTAND THIS IDEA OF ONLINE NETWORKING IN A PROFESSIONAL MANNER? AND HOW DO YOU BUILD A PROFESSIONAL PROFILE AND WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LINKEDIN AND MAYBE, YOU KNOW, A, A MORE TRADITIONAL SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE FOR A, FOR A PERSONAL USE.

UM, WE ARE DEFINITELY INTERESTED IN CONTINUING TO EXPLORE HOW DO WE PIPELINE FOLKS FROM THOSE BASIC OR INTERMEDIATE, UM, TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES TO SOME HIGHER LEVEL CONCEPTS.

[00:25:01]

UM, I THINK WE DO A, I KNOW NOT TO TOOT OUR OWN HORN, I THINK WE DO AN OKAY AND, AND PRETTY DECENT JOB WITH BASIC DIGITAL SKILLS.

UM, I THINK WE'RE, WE HAVE A LOT OF ROOM FOR GROWTH IS CONTINUE TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO WE SUPPORT THAT MIDDLE GAP, UM, THAT OUR CLIENTS HAVE.

SO THEY HAVE FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS, BUT THEY'RE NOT QUITE READY TO PIPELINE INTO HIGHER LEVEL DIGITAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES.

AND HOW DO WE CONTINUE TO EXPAND, UM, THOSE LEARNING, UM, OPPORTUNITIES, WHETHER IT'S IN PERSON OR VIRTUAL.

GREAT.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THOSE QUESTIONS.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? NOPE.

WELL WANT TO THANK LINDSAY FOR, UH, STICKING WITH US AND, UH, UH, PROVIDING YOUR, UH, YOUR BRIEFING TO US WHILE YOU WERE ON THE ROAD.

SO LOOKING FORWARD TO CONTINUING TO WORK WITH YOU WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.

AND, UH, YEAH, CAN'T WAIT FOR ANOTHER BRIEFING.

ALRIGHT.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.

HAVE A GOOD NIGHT.

YOU TOO.

THANKS.

THANK YOU.

HEY, UH, CHAIR ACA? YES.

THIS IS VICE CHAIR AL.

I JUST WANTED TO LET THE RECORD SHOW THAT I WAS PRESENT IN A, IN, IN ATTENDANCE, UM, SORRY, IT WASN'T, NOT ALLOWING ME TO SHARE MY VIDEO OR, UH, UNMUTE, UH, DURING ROLL CALL.

NO WORRIES.

BUT I AM PRESENTING DISTRICT CRUZ.

PERFECT.

THANK YOU.

YEAH.

ON THAT NOTE, I DID WANNA, UH, MAKE SURE, UM, LINDSAY, UH, WAS, WAS ABLE TO LOG OFF AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, ESPECIALLY SINCE SHE'S ON THE ROAD, BUT WE DO HAVE TWO NEW COMMISSIONERS WITH US.

SO JUST WANTED TO GIVE THEM A QUICK 30 SECONDS EACH TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, MAYBE WHERE THEY LIVE IN, IN AUSTIN AND WHAT GOT THEM INTERESTED IN, IN THE COMMISSION.

UH, COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, I'LL LEAVE IT TO YOU FIRST.

ALRIGHT.

HELLO EVERYONE.

MY NAME IS BRIAN ANNE WILLIAMS. UM, I AM IN DISTRICT ONE.

UM, I AM FROM, UH, WOW.

WOW.

I'M ORIGINALLY FROM PENNSYLVANIA.

I LIVE IN NORTH AUSTIN.

CLEARLY DISTRICT ONE DOMAIN AREA.

UM, I RUN A COMPANY CALLED WAYNE AND REED, WHICH IS A TECHNOLOGY CONSULTANCY.

AND YEAH.

YEAH, I'M JUST HAPPY TO BE HERE AND LOOKING FORWARD TO MAKING IMPACT ON AUSTIN.

I GOT MY MBA HERE QUITE A WHILE BACK.

I'M A LONGHORN, LOUD AND PROUD .

UM, AND YEAH, I'VE BEEN OFF AND ON IN AUSTIN SINCE WOW.

2011.

SO I FEEL LIKE I HAVE THE TATTOO AT THIS POINT.

.

SO, PLEASURE AND PROUD TO MEET YOU ALL.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

COMMISSIONER ANGA, PLEASE.

HI EVERYONE.

I AM EBA ANGA, FOUNDER OF ANGA HOUSE.

I AM IN DISTRICT NINE, SIMILAR TO BRIAN.

I'M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS NEW JOURNEY AND ADVENTURE OF JUST GETTING TO IMPACT AUSTIN IN A BRAND NEW WAY.

I'VE WORKED WITH SEVERAL COMPANIES AND NONPROFITS HERE IN AUSTIN THROUGHOUT MY TIME.

I MOVED TO AUSTIN IN 20, WHAT YEAR DID I MOVE HERE? I MOVED HERE FROM NIGERIA.

I'M NIGERIAN, UH, IN 2014, I BELIEVE.

SO IT'S BEEN A WHILE.

UM, BUT I'M, I'M HAPPY TO BE IN THE CITY.

WELL, WE'RE EXCITED TO HAVE YOU BOTH.

THANK YOU.

THANK Y'ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE AND SPENDING YOUR WEDNESDAY EVENING WITH THE REST OF US.

OKAY.

UM, SO WITH THAT, I'M GONNA CONTINUE TO CALL THE ITEMS OUT OF ORDER AS WE ALLUDED TO BEFORE.

SO,

[APPROVAL OF MINUTES]

UM, SO WE WILL GIVE ALL OF THESE ITEMS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ATTACHED TO THE EMAIL THAT YOU RECEIVED FROM, UH, DAN.

SO WE'LL GIVE FOLKS JUST A MOMENT TO QUICKLY REVIEW THE MEETING MINUTES FROM WEDNESDAY MAY 8TH, AND THEN I'LL LOOK FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE.

THIS IS VICE CHAIR , A MOTION TO APPROVE.

THANK YOU.

DO WE HEAR SECOND? I'LL SECOND THE MOTION.

OKAY.

UM, I JUST, UH, WANT TO CHAIR AKA THERE ONE, UH, TYPO VICE.

OTHER THAN THAT, EVERYTHING IS FINE.

I'M TRYING TO LOOK FOR THE TYPO NOW.

I'M SORRY, I CAN'T FIND IT.

THERE WAS A, A SMALL TYPO, BUT OTHER THAN THAT, OH, HERE WE GO.

NUMBER NINE, IT SAYS VICE CHAIR.

[00:30:01]

UH, YES, WE SEE IT.

SO, UH, WE WILL MAKE THAT CORRECTION IS FINE ON AGENDA ITEM NINE AND, AND ENSURE THAT, UH, VICE CHAIR ATA IS TITLE IS SPELLED CORRECTLY.

UM, BUT WITH THAT, I HEARD A MOTION FROM VICE CHAIR, A SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE MINUTES, PLEASE SAY AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

ANY AGAINST? ANY ABSTENTIONS? NOPE.

OKAY.

MOTION CARRIES.

SO WITH THAT, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON TO, UM, OUR NEXT AGENDA ITEM.

AND AGAIN, I'M GONNA CONTINUE TO CALL THE ITEMS OUT OF ORDER, UM, JUST BECAUSE OF THE LOGICAL FLOW.

SO I'M NOW MOVING

[6. Commission review and approval of proposed Community Technology and Telecommunications Commission bylaw revisions and additions]

SO, UM, SO BACKGROUND ON THIS ITEM.

SO I THINK I'VE, I'VE TALKED WITH, WITH EACH OF YOU, UM, AND, AND, UH, A COUPLE OF YOU HAVE HAD OPPORTUNITIES TO ACTUALLY GO INTO THE, UM, THE, UH, BYLAWS AND MAKE REVISIONS.

SO, UH, I INTENTIONALLY KEPT THIS MEETING ENTA LIGHT BECAUSE WE HAVE, UH, SEVERAL PROGRAMMATIC ITEMS THAT WE NEED TO ACCOMPLISH, ONE OF WHICH IS, UM, EDITING THE BYLAWS.

AND THE OTHER IS, UM, COMPLETING OUR WORK ON THE, THE WORK PLAN FOR THE YEAR.

SO, UH, DAN DID SEND OUT A LINK TO ALL TO EVERYONE'S EMAILS, UH, JUST A LITTLE WHILE AGO TO THE REDLINED VERSION OF THE BYLAWS OF THE REVISED BYLAWS.

IT'S IN GOOGLE DOCS FORMAT, AND I'M ALSO PRESENTING IT NOW FOR THE PUBLIC.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO FOLLOW ALONG, YOU CAN PULL IT UP ON YOUR OWN COMPUTER.

UM, SO I'M GONNA WALK THROUGH, UM, THE EDITS THAT BOTH MYSELF AND COMMISSIONER DESTA HAVE MADE.

UM, AGAIN, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK I'VE SPOKEN TO EVERYONE ABOUT THIS VERY OPEN.

UH, YOU KNOW, I WANT EVERYONE TO CONTRIBUTE TO, UM, THE REVISION OF THE BYLAWS.

UH, AT THE SAME TIME, UM, I, THE LAST TIME THESE BYLAWS WERE UPDATED, I BELIEVE IT WAS 26, I'M LOOKING AT JESSE 2016 AT LEAST.

THAT WAS, THAT WAS THE LAST TIME THERE WAS A MAJOR REVISION.

SO THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY HERE TO, TO DO SOME PRETTY, UH, SUBSTANTIAL UPDATES.

UM, I'LL GIVE A COUPLE OF EXAMPLES.

IN NO PLACE IN THE BYLAWS WAS THE INTERNET EVER MENTIONED ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, UM, OR WORK ON, ON THE GTOP S PROGRAM, WHICH I'VE, UH, I KNOW I'VE TALKED TO ABOUT THE, THE NEW COMMISSIONERS TO, UM, THE, THE, THE MORE TENURED COMMISSIONERS ARE, ARE FULLY AWARE OF THAT PROGRAM.

SO THINGS LIKE THAT.

UM, THERE'S NOTHING NEW HERE THAT WE'RE NOT CURRENTLY DOING.

UM, THE UPDATES ON THE, ON THIS VERSION OF THE BYLAWS SIMPLY REFLECT, UM, THE THINGS THAT THE COMMISSION IS ALREADY DOING.

SO, WITH THAT, I'LL START WALKING THROUGH.

UM, AND IF YOU DO HAVE QUESTIONS, YOU KNOW, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.

UM, I'LL TRY TO MAXIMIZE THESE WINDOWS HERE.

CHAIR .

YES.

YEAH.

YOU KNOW, WHILE EVERYBODY REVIEWS IT, UH, I HAVE TO ADMIT I HAVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE BECAUSE YOU AND I WORKING ON THIS DOCUMENT, , WHILE THIS PRESENTATION WAS GOING ON, I WAS DOING EDITING IN REAL TIME, AND I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT.

AND SO, WHEN IT CAME TO ARTICLE EIGHT, ITEM NUMBER A WAS NOT SITTING WELL WITH ME.

SO I WENT AHEAD AND MADE IT THE CHANGE, HIGHLIGHTED IT FOR YOUR ATTENTION.

IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, THEN STRIKE IT.

OKAY.

OKAY.

WE'LL GET TO IT.

YEAH, LET'S, LET'S GO IN ORDER THOUGH.

UM, SO DO APOLOGIES.

, I'M A NITPICKER.

NO WORRIES, NO WORRIES.

OKAY.

UM, SO FIRST, AND, AND PROBABLY THE, THE MOST MAJOR CHANGE, UM, UM, UH, I'M SUGGESTING THAT THE COMMISSION IS ACTUALLY CHANGING THE NAME OF THE COMMISSION.

SO RIGHT NOW THE NAME OF OUR COMMISSION IS CALLED THE COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION.

THAT IS A MOUTHFUL.

UM, .

YEAH.

EVEN, EVEN WHEN I'M GIVING MY SHORT, YOU KNOW, TALK SUMMARY ABOUT THE COMMISSION, THAT'S A WORD SALAD.

AND I SEE, YOU KNOW, I'M JUST THINKING ABOUT THE AVERAGE MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC, IF I HAVE TO SAY ALL THAT, THEIR EYES ALREADY START GLAZING OVER.

[00:35:01]

I THINK THAT THE WORD TELECOMMUNICATIONS IS ALREADY PART OF TECHNOLOGY.

UM, BUT I THINK THAT WOULD HELP, NUMBER ONE, TO, UH, TO SIMPLIFY THE TITLE OF OUR COMMISSION.

AND NUMBER TWO, JUST MAKE US A LITTLE MORE APPROACHABLE BEING THE COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION.

UM, IT'S JUST A LITTLE MORE APPROACHABLE TO PUBLIC, BUT, UM, YEAH.

OPEN TO, I MEAN, THAT'S A PRETTY MAJOR CHANGE.

SO I WANT TO HEAR FROM THE REST OF THE COMMISSION MEMBERS.

YEAH.

YES.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. UM, WHEN I WAS FIRST EXPOSED TO THIS COMMISSION, I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION THAT THE WORD AUSTIN WAS IN THE BEGINNING.

MM.

UM, HAS THAT CHANGED OR AM I MISTAKEN? UM, IT'S NOT IN THE BYLAWS.

UM, OKAY.

YEAH.

I THINK, YOU KNOW, I, I'D HAVE TO GO AND LOOK AT THE BYLAWS FOR ANOTHER COMMISSION, BUT, UM, YEAH, I, I I THINK IT'S JUST COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION.

UM, OKAY.

LEMME SEE WHAT IT IS ON THE WEBSITE CHAIR, AKA, MAY I ADD A COMMENT TO THAT? YEP.

YOU KNOW, WHEN I WAS INTRODUCED TO IT, I THINK THEY USED THE TERM CITY OF AUSTIN FOR ALL COMMISSIONS.

YEAH, I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT.

SO LIKE AN, YOU KNOW, UNMENTIONED, BUT IT'S SORT OF LIKE A PREFIX THAT'S THERE FOR EVERY COMMISSION, CITY OF AUSTIN, COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY AND TELECOM COMMISSION.

BUT THE COA PART OF IT WAS UNDERSTOOD.

YEP.

WELL PUT COMMISSIONER DAS GUPTA.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS? AND AGAIN, WE'RE GONNA VOTE ON THE, ON THE CHANGES IN THEIR ENTIRETY ONCE WE'VE GONE THROUGH EACH ITEM.

UM, THE ONLY THING I WAS GONNA MENTION IS THAT MAYBE, UH, REDACTING COMMUNITY AS WELL.

YEAH, I, I HEAR YOU.

UH, COMMISSIONER DESTA, DID YOU WANNA SPEAK TO THAT? YEAH.

BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF THIS TECHNOLOGY IS NOT THE PURPOSE OF TECHNOLOGY, BUT HOW IT SERVES THE COMMUNITY CITY OF AUSTIN, PARTICULARLY THOSE WHO DENIED ACCESS, WHICH IS WHY I THINK THE WORD COMMUNITY HAS REAL MEANING HERE.

YEAH.

UH, IN FULL DISCLOSURE, I, I WILL ADMIT, UH, MY ORIGINAL SUGGESTION WAS TO ALSO DROP THE WORD COMMUNITY AND SIMPLY HAVE THE COMMISSION TITLE AS TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION.

UM, BUT I DUNNO, HEARING, UH, COMMISSIONER DES GUPTA'S THOUGHT ON THE MATTER.

UM, I COULD BE CONVINCED OTHERWISE, BUT I MEAN, LET'S LET CERTAINLY HASH IT OUT.

INTERESTED TO HEAR FROM OTHER COMMISSIONERS AS WELL.

YEAH.

UH, I CAN SEE IT.

OH, I'M SORRY.

I'M SORRY.

GO AHEAD.

GO AHEAD, COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. I CAN KIND OF SEE IT EITHER WAY.

UM, I MEAN, I, I'M HERE SPECIFICALLY TO MAKE SURE THAT COMMUNITIES ARE USUALLY LEFT OUT OR INCLUDED IN SOME WAY, IF I CAN.

UM, BUT MY UNDERSTANDING IS AS A COMMISSIONER OF RESPONSIBILITY IS, IS TO AUSTIN, RIGHT? AND AUSTIN KNIGHTS AS A WHOLE, AUSTINITES WHO ARE IN NEED, AUSTINITES ARE IN THE CITY, AUSTINITES OUTSIDE, YOU KNOW, LIKE WHEREVER AUSTINITE ARE.

UM, MY GOAL IS TO GET TECHNOLOGY MORE ACCESSIBLE TO THEM.

UM, SO I CAN EASILY SEE IT AS A BROAD, YOU KNOW, AUSTIN TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION OR JUST TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION.

THAT MAKES PLENTY OF SENSE TO ME.

UM, ALSO BY HIGHLIGHTING THE WORD COMMUNITY, THAT THAT DOES FOCUS US A BIT IN THE DIRECTION THAT I THINK IS BEST ALSO.

SO I GUESS I'M, I'M VOTING EITHER WAY.

IF I HAVE TO CHOOSE ONE, I THINK I WOULD GO BROAD AND JUST CALL IT TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION.

UM, BUT AGAIN, I WILL DEFER TO THE CHOICE OF THE OTHER COMMISSIONERS.

COMMISSIONER NKU, DID YOU HAVE ANOTHER THOUGHT? YEAH, NO.

UM, UH, I THINK, UH, COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS ENDED UP BEAUTIFULLY.

'CAUSE, UM, WHAT, UH, COMMISSIONER DAS GROUP IS, IS ENTIRELY RELEVANT AND, AND COMPLETELY TRUE.

I WAS JUST SAYING IT'S MORE INHERENT WITH THE PURPOSE OF THE BOARD, UM, PRIOR SERVING ON THE LIBRARY COMMISSION.

I THINK A LOT OF THE REASON THE OTHER BOARDS, LIKE LACK THE PREFIX COMMUNITY IS BECAUSE IT'S INHERENT WITH LIKE, WHAT THE BOARD'S NATURE IS BY, BY DEFINITION, BECAUSE IT'LL BE A CHALLENGE FOR US TO SERVE A PURPOSE OUTSIDE OF OUR COMMUNITIES INHERENTLY.

YEP.

I THINK THAT THAT MAKES SENSE.

UM, VICE CHAIR ALTA, WANNA SEE IF YOU HAD ANY THOUGHTS ON THIS ITEM? YES, I, I, UM, I ALSO THINK THAT, UH, THE, THE CITY OF AUSTIN IMPLIES COMMUNITY.

UM, AND SO I, I TEND TO AGREE WITH, UH, COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS AND, UM,

[00:40:01]

UH, I, I, I THINK IT IMPLIES THAT, YES, THAT'S, I THINK, UM, I, I UNDERSTAND YOUR POINT, BUT I JUST FOR SIMPLICITY, I THINK, UH, THE SIMPLER THE BETTER, ESPECIALLY AS WE TRY TO GET THIS RESONATING, UH, WITH BROADER AUDIENCES.

YEAH.

GREAT THOUGHTS.

UM, MY, MY GOAL IS TO HAVE, I, I KNOW WE'RE STUCK ON THIS ONE PIECE, AND HOPEFULLY, UM, IT'S, IT'S THE BIGGEST PIECE, BUT MY, MY GOAL IS TO HAVE FULL CONSENSUS ON OUR, UM, THE CHANGES OUR BYLAWS.

HOPEFULLY WE DON'T HAVE ANYONE, UM, VOTE AGAINST IT.

BUT, UM, I DUNNO, BACK, BACK TO YOU, UH, COMMISSIONER DAS GUPTA.

UM, JUST WANNA HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS, REACTIONS TO SOME OF THE OTHER COMMISSION MEMBERS.

MY CONCERN IS IF WE JUST HAVE TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION, WE WILL BE EXPLAINING IT ALL CONSISTENTLY AS TO WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS COMMISSION? MM-HMM.

, YOU KNOW, BY HAVING THE WORD COMMUNITY, IT FOCUSES TECHNOLOGY FOR THE SERVICE OF THE COMMUNITY.

AND THAT'S WHY I THOUGHT THAT THE WORD COMMUNITY BELONGS THERE.

BUT, YOU KNOW, I, YOU KNOW, LOOK, I, I'M NOT HUNG LOVE ABOUT IT.

PLUS, YOU KNOW, ALL THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SPEAKING ARE GOING TO BE CARRYING THIS TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION FORWARD.

, I AM IN MY LAST YEAR.

I'VE GOT SIX MORE MONTHS TO GO.

OKAY.

SO I THINK THE PEOPLE WHO ARE NEW TO THE COMMISSION AND WHO ARE GOING TO BE LIVING WITH IT SHOULD HAVE A BIGGER VOICE THAN I DO.

.

WELL SAID.

WELL SAID.

WELL, WELL, HEY, LET'S, LET'S, LET'S GO THROUGH THE REST OF THE DOCUMENT AND LET'S COME BACK TO IT AND LET'S JUST, LET'S LET THINGS SETTLE A LITTLE BIT.

UM, OKAY.

SO ARTICLE TWO, UH, ITEMS ONE THROUGH FIVE, I DID NOT TOUCH.

THEY HAVE NOT BEEN CHANGED.

UM, YOU CAN EVEN GO LOOK AT THE, THE ORIGINAL, UH, BYLAWS ON OUR COMMISSION WEBSITE.

I ADDED NEW ITEMS, SIX, WHAT'S NOW 6, 7, 8, 9.

UM, YOU KNOW, THESE, THESE ARE ITEMS I, I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO EXPLAIN.

I, I KNOW I DON'T HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO ANY OF THE OTHER COMMISSIONERS, BUT, UM, ADVISE CITY COUNCIL ON DIGITAL EQUITY ISSUES, BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT, DIGITAL LITERACY, INTERNET AFFORDABILITY, AND ACCESSIBILITY.

UM, WANTED TO GET EVERYONE'S THOUGHTS ON THESE BROAD LISTS OF ITEMS. UM, IF ANYONE HAD SUGGESTIONS FOR CHANGES OR EVEN ADDITIONS TO, UM, OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T, I DON'T THINK WE SHOULD HAVE A LIST THAT'S TOO LONG.

UM, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I THINK THAT THE WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING, AT LEAST PAST SEVERAL YEARS, WARRANTED ADDING THESE ITEMS. SO OPEN TO DISCUSSION.

SO, JUST TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND, UH, CLEARLY, UH, ITEMS 12 THROUGH 15, UM, IT'S JUST LIKE A, A DRAFT OF, OF REDACTING ITEMS SIX THROUGH NINE.

YEAH, I'M, I'M SORRY ABOUT THAT.

I ADDED THEM AT THE END, UH, INITIALLY, AND THEN I MOVED THEM UP, UM, EARLIER IN, IN THE LIST.

YEAH.

YEAH.

NO, I'M, I'M IN, I'M IN FAVOR OF, OF REMOVING, YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR THE LAST 10 YEARS, 20 YEARS.

SO AS LONG AS THIS COMMISSION HAS BEEN AROUND, SO WE MIGHT AS WELL CODIFY IT IN THE BYLAWS.

YEAH, LET'S FORMALIZE IT.

YEP.

OKAY.

YEAH, GO AHEAD, JESSE.

I ONLY HAVE ONE COMMENT.

UH, I DIDN'T CATCH IT ON MY, MY INITIAL READ.

I WOULD SUGGEST USING DIGITAL SKILLS, PERHAPS INSTEAD OF DIGITAL LITERACY.

IT'S A, IT'S JUST A BROADER TERM.

YEAH.

GOOD IDEA.

YEP.

THANK YOU, JESSE.

OKAY, WELL, I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD MANAGING MULTIPLE WINDOWS HERE.

UH, POINT OF CLARIFICATION, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE YOU MIGHT HAVE BEAT ME TO IT.

UH, I WANTED TO ASK WHAT NUMBER SEVEN MEANS? BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT? YES.

YEAH.

YEAH.

UM, SO THE WAY I WAS THINKING ABOUT IT, AND, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, I'M OPEN TO, TO EDITS HERE IS, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT, UM, AROUND THE CENTRAL TEXAS REGION AND AREA.

SO I'M THINKING, YOU KNOW, SOME SPECIFIC EXAMPLES, LAYING OF FIBER OPTIC HARDWARE, UH, THINGS LIKE THAT.

GOT IT.

HARDWARE, YEAH.

WIRES, PIPES.

GOT IT.

YEP.

THANK YOU.

SO, SO SINCE YOU'RE ON THE TOPIC, UH, CHAIR , SHOULD WE SAY, RATHER THAN BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT, BECAUSE WE ARE NOT GOING TO DO ANY

[00:45:01]

SOMEBODY ELSE GONNA DO THE DEVELOPMENT.

SO WE SAY ACCESS , I GUESS I WOULD, I WOULD PUSH BACK A LITTLE, A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE WE HAVE INTERACTED WITH THE BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT OFFICE.

MM-HMM.

ON THEIR DEVELOPMENT PLANS FOR THE CENTRAL TEXAS REGION, AS WELL AS THE REST OF THE STATE.

UM, SPECIFICALLY, WE, WE'VE, UH, BEEN INVOLVED WITH THE RESPONSE THROUGH THE DIGITAL EMPOWERMENT COMMUNITY OF AUSTIN.

YEP.

YEAH.

YEAH, YOU'RE RIGHT.

YOU'RE RIGHT.

I TAKE THAT BACK.

SO IN THAT CASE, WOULD WE, WOULD IT BE MORE ACCURATE TO SAY BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT AND ACCESS? SURE.

I'D BE OPEN TO THAT.

HOW DOES EVERYBODY ELSE FEEL? I LIKE THE ADDITIONAL DEFINITION AND CLARITY.

LIKEWISE.

GREAT.

I, OKAY, SO I'M CLOSING THAT PIECE OUT.

ALL RIGHT.

UH, NEXT SUBSECTION HERE.

UH, THE COMMISSION SHALL CONDUCT PUBLIC HEARINGS REGARDING ISSUES THAT INCLUDE THE PERFORMANCE OF ACCESS TO TELEVISION CONTRACTORS OF THEIR COMMUNITY CONTRACTORS.

THAT'S, THAT'S LEFT UNCHANGED.

AGAIN, I DIDN'T DELETE ANY EXISTING CONTENT.

THIS IS NEW, UH, THE IDENTIFICATION OF COMMUNITY CABLE TELECOMMUNICATIONS, INTERNET AND BROADBAND ACCESS DEVICE, AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY NEEDS.

SO I THINK THIS SECOND POINT GOES RIGHT INTO, UM, BLEEDS INTO MUCH OF LINDSAY'S PRESENTATION FROM EARLIER.

UM, BUT WANTED TO GET INPUT FROM THE REST OF THE COMMISSION HERE.

I, I THINK MY NEWNESS IS SERVING ME WELL.

UM, I LIKE NUMBER ONE AND NUMBER TWO, AND I THINK THEY'RE PRUDENT.

UM, MY QUESTION IS REALLY ABOUT, UM, THE INVISIBLE NUMBER THREE.

UM, ARE THERE OTHER THINGS WE SHOULD HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC OTHER THAN THESE TWO? I THINK THESE TWO ARE VERY APPROPRIATE.

I'M JUST KIND OF CURIOUS ABOUT IF THERE'S MORE.

YEAH, I, I'M, I'M OPEN TO IT.

UM, DO YOU HAVE ANY SPECIFIC SUGGESTIONS? NOT SPECIFICALLY.

UM, I JUST DON'T WANNA CAP THE, THE PUBLIC OFF, RIGHT? LIKE, I WANT THE PUBLIC TO BE ABLE TO COME IN AND SPEAK ABOUT ANY OF OUR SORT OF BROAD OBJECTIVES, UM, IF IT PERTAINS TO THEIR NONPROFIT OR TO THEIR, YOU KNOW, PUBLIC NEED.

MM-HMM.

.

YEAH.

I MEAN, WHAT I WILL SAY IS, YOU KNOW, PREVIOUSLY THIS ITEM TOO WASN'T HERE AGAIN, YOU KNOW, I DID A CONTROL.

YOU CAN GO TO WHAT'S SITTING UP ON THE WEBSITE.

NOW, THE INTERNET IS NOT MENTIONED IN OUR PREVIOUS BYLAWS AT ALL.

BUT WE'VE HAD NUMEROUS, UM, FOLKS GIVE TESTIMONY, UM, GIVE, UH, TALK ABOUT THEIR ORGANIZATIONS THAT HELP PROMOTE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET AND PROVIDE DEVICE DONATIONS.

SO I, I WOULD SUGGEST THAT, I MEAN, THESE ARE PRETTY BROAD.

UM, SO UNLESS THERE'S A NEED TO CALL SOMETHING ELSE OUT, UM, I MEAN, I'M, I'M CERTAINLY OPEN TO IF, IF THERE'S A BLIND SPOT, IF WE'RE MISSING SOMETHING.

UM, BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SPECIFICALLY NAME THE INTERNET BROADBAND DEVICES.

WELL, UM, LITERALLY NEXT WEEK, I'M, I'M GOING TO, TO GIVE A CONVERSATION, UH, IN A PANEL SPEAKING ENGAGEMENT ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND WEB3 AND THE IMPACT OF THESE TECHNOLOGIES ON BUSINESS AND GOVERNMENT AND EDUCATION, AND ALL THE PLACES WHERE THE IMPACT WILL BE HELD.