* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:02] AFTERNOON, EVERYONE. [CALL TO ORDER] IT IS 1222 IN THE AFTERNOON OF MAY 20TH. I'M, UH, CHIEF VELA, COUNCIL MEMBER FOR DISTRICT FOUR AND CHAIR OF THE AUSTIN ENERGY UTILITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, CALLING THIS MEETING TO OVER, CALLING THIS MEETING TO ORDER AT, UH, 1222. AND, UH, CLERK, EVERYBODY'S GETTING SETTLED IN, BUT LET'S GO AHEAD AND, AND, UH, START, UH, CALLING THE SPEAKERS. I KNOW THE, THE, I SEE THE CLERK'S CHAIR EMPTY THERE, BUT WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL GET GOING HERE IN, IN JUST A SECOND. OH, DANIELLE, YES, PLEASE GO AHEAD. [Public Communication: General] UM, SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE KABI WHITE, ELENE, MCINNIS, AND RAPHAEL SCHWARTZ, IF YOU'RE CALLED, PLEASE COME TO THE FRAME. UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND, AND AS A PRELIMINARY MATTER, GO AHEAD, UH, AND, AND, AND COME TO THE STAND. NORMALLY WE HAVE A FIVE SPEAKER LIMIT. I BELIEVE WE HAVE ABOUT 14 OR SO. UH, AND I WILL MAKE A, A MOTION TO WAIVE THE FIVE, UH, SPEAKER, UH, LIMIT, UH, RULE, UH, AND WITHOUT, UH, ANY, UH, OBJECTIONS SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER VELASQUEZ AND, AND WITH NO OBJECTIONS. WE'LL GO AHEAD AND WAIVE THAT, UH, RULE. AND LET'S GO AHEAD AND LAUNCH INTO THE SPEAKERS. UH, AND, OKAY, KAPA WHITE ON BEHALF OF PUBLIC CITIZENS TEXAS OFFICE, AND, UH, CHAIR VELA. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR WAIVING THAT CAP. UM, I'LL SAY I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF WE HAVE THAT MANY LEFT HERE. THERE'S DEFINITELY BEEN SOME ATTRITION, BUT THANK YOU, UM, DO APPRECIATE THAT. UM, WE ARE COLLECTIVELY HERE TODAY, UH, TO SUPPORT SOME ACTIONS THAT WE KNOW ARE GOING ON BEHIND THE SCENES AND SOME THAT ARE, THAT ARE COMING UP. AND REALLY JUST TO, YOU KNOW, UH, ASK THAT YOU ALL KEEP YOUR EYE ON ADVANCING THE TRANSITION TO CLEAN ENERGY. THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT ACTIONS THAT ARE GONNA BE NEEDED TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN. AND WE KNOW THAT AUSTIN ENERGY IS LOOKING AT, UH, UTILITY SCALE BATTERY STORAGE PROJECTS, AND WE HOPE THAT YOU'LL, UH, DO EVERYTHING THAT YOU NEED TO DO TO MAKE SURE THAT SOME OF THOSE PROJECTS DO COME TO FRUITION, THAT THOSE CONTRACTS GET SIGNED THIS SUMMER. UM, AND ALSO WE'RE VERY SUPPORTIVE OF THE ITEM, UH, 52, THAT COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER, AND SEVERAL OF YOU HAVE CO-SPONSORED, UM, ON THIS WEEK'S AGENDA, VERY SUPPORTIVE OF THE IDEA OF PUTTING SOLAR ON CITY BUILDINGS AS WELL AS OTHER PUBLIC BUILDINGS. AND, UM, I'M GONNA PASS OUT AFTER THIS, UH, CITY STAFF HAVE ALREADY ACTUALLY DONE ANALYSIS LOOKING AT THAT POTENTIAL. SO WHAT I'M HERE TO ASK YOU TO DO IS PASS THE RESOLUTION, BUT ALSO ADD SOME TIMELINES INTO IT AND MAKE SURE THAT THAT, UM, IS ALL READY TO GO FOR THE BUDGET SO THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY GET MONEY ADDED INTO THE BUDGET, UH, FOR PUTTING SOLAR ON CITY BUILDINGS AND CREATING THAT REVOLVING FUND THAT WILL BE ABLE TO PAY FOR OTHER NEEDED, UM, UPGRADES THAT WILL SAVE MONEY AND BENEFIT THE ENVIRONMENT AT OUR CITY BUILDINGS. AND I'M THINKING THAT ALL OF YOU HAVE PROBABLY RECEIVED SOME OF THESE POSTCARDS, UH, IN YOUR MAILBOXES. UH, WE'VE BEEN TALKING WITH PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE CITY ABOUT SOLAR, ON CITY BUILDINGS, AND IT REALLY IS INTERESTING THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE JUST ASSUME THIS IS HAPPENING ANYWAY. SO YOU DEFINITELY HAVE A LOT OF SUPPORT. I DON'T MEET ANYBODY THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, THINKS THAT THAT'S A BAD IDEA. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MS. WHITE. NEXT SPEAKER, ELENE MCINNIS, RAPHAEL SCHWARTZ. SURE. THE OPPORTUNITY TO LET THE COMMUNITY COMMENT TODAY. MY NAME IS RAFAEL SCHWARTZ. I'M HERE WITH THE AUSTIN SIERRA CLUB. I LIVE IN SOUTH AUSTIN. I WANNA VOICE MY STRONG SUPPORT FOR THIS COMMITTEE, PRIORITIZING WITHOUT DELAY, UH, BRINGING UTILITY SCALE BATTERY STORAGE TO AUSTIN. FINALLY, WE HAD AN UNSEASONABLY EARLY 101 102 DEGREE DAY LAST WEEK. IN THE PAST, THIS OFTEN WOULD'VE BEEN AN EMERGENCY EVENT. BATTERY STORAGE MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, IS WHAT KEPT THE TEXAS GRID RELIABLY ONLINE. THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A TIME WHEN AUSTIN WAS A LEADER IN REAL DECARBONIZATION SOLUTIONS, BUT TODAY, OTHER UTILITIES IN TEXAS, INCLUDING CPS IN SAN ANTONIO, AND MANY FOR-PROFIT OPERATORS AROUND THE STATE ARE YEARS AHEAD IN TERMS OF BATTERY STORAGE AND OTHER, UH, PROGRAMS. FOR TRUE DECARBONIZATION, INVESTING IN STORAGE IS ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL FOR DECARBONIZING AUSTIN ENERGY. LOCAL UTILITY SCALE BATTERIES WOULD ADDRESS THE CONGESTION ISSUES THAT AUSTIN ENERGY HAS BEEN FACING IN RECENT YEARS, WHICH WOULD SAVE THE UTILITY MONEY. SO IT'S REALLY A WIN FROM EVERY ANGLE. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE STORAGE PROPOSALS COME TO THE CITY COUNCIL IN JULY. UH, ALSO, I'M EXTREMELY GRATEFUL THAT COUNCIL'S LOOKING AT A DRAFT RESOLUTION OF SOLAR ON CITY BUILDINGS. I WOULD LIKE TO ECHO WHAT OTHERS HAVE SAID TO INCLUDE TIMELINES AND DATES ON THAT. AND FINALLY, UH, JUST TO MENTION, IN THE COMING MONTHS, I KNOW THE CITY IS GONNA BE HIRING THE NEXT LEADER [00:05:01] OF AUSTIN ENERGY AND SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF SOME IN THE ROOM TODAY, HOPE THE COMMITTEE, YOU KNOW, WILL CONSIDER HIRING SOMEONE WITH A DEMONSTRATED COMMITMENT TO RENEWABLE ENERGY. THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING THE COMMUNITY IN ALL THIS, AND THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO LISTEN. THANKS. THANK YOU. NEXT WE'RE GONNA HAVE ALYSSA HAMMOND, ANNIE FIERRO, AND SCOTT JOHNSON. GOOD MORNING. MY NAME'S ELISA HAMMOND, AND I WANNA THANK ALL OF YOU FOR LETTING US SPEAK TODAY. I LIVE IN DISTRICT NINE, AND I'M A RATE PAYER WITH AUSTIN ENERGY. UM, I'M SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF THIRD ACT, WHICH IS A NATIONAL ORGANIZATION. WE'RE NOW A HUNDRED THOUSAND STRONG, AND OUR CHAPTER IN TEXAS IS GROWING. THIRD ACT IS A GROUP OF ELDERS OVER 60 ADVOCATING FOR CLEAN ENERGY, CLIMATE ACTION, AND DEMOCRACY. I'M ALSO A SUSTAINABILITY PROFESSIONAL WITH TWO DECADES OF EXPERIENCE IN THE FOOD SYSTEM AND HAVE BEEN WORKING ON AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY SUSTAINABLE FOOD PLAN. AND WE, AND IN THAT PLAN, WE ALSO STATE THAT WE CAN'T HAVE A SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM IF WE'RE NOT RUNNING ON RENEWABLE ENERGY. SO WITH THAT, AS A SUSTAINABILITY PROFESSIONAL, I WANNA SAY I'M SO PROUD OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN. WE HAVE AN AMAZING SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM, BUT I FEEL THAT THE UTILITY COULD SCALE UP ITS OWN LEADERSHIP AND COMMITMENT TO REALLY BE THE NATIONAL LEADER THAT, THAT OUR CITY'S COMMITMENT HAS DEMONSTRATED OVER MANY YEARS. SO WITH THAT, I HAVE TWO REQUESTS. ONE IS MORE BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS, BOTH AT UTILITY SCALE AND AT RESIDENTIAL SCALE. I KNOW WHEN WE DO THIS ENERGY EFFICIENCY, RENEWABLE ENERGY AT THE LOCAL LEVEL, IT'S SUPPORTING MANY FAMILY OWNED BUSINESSES, ELECTRICIANS AND PLUMBERS, AND, UM, HVAC EXPERTS WHO HAVE BEEN, UH, FAMILY BUSINESSES FOR GENERATIONS. AND I DON'T THINK WE TALK ENOUGH ABOUT THE LOCAL ECONOMIC BENEFITS TO SMALL BUSINESSES WHEN WE MAKE THESE KIND OF COMMITMENTS. SO THIS IS AFTER HEARING THIS MORNING EARLIER ABOUT ALL THE COSTS. THIS TO GO SOLAR WITH BATTERY STORAGE IS A WIN-WIN WIN FOR ECONOMICS, FOR SOCIAL, FOR PEOPLE'S HEALTH. AND WE HAVE AMONG OUR, OUR OWN GROUP AND SAYING, THIS IS A NO-BRAINER. THANK YOU. AND YES, ANNIE FIERRO, SCOTT JOHNSON. GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL MEMBERS. MY NAME IS SCOTT JOHNSTON. I'M AN INDEPENDENT ADVOCATE. I'VE HAD A VERY CLOSE WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH AUSTIN ENERGY FOR MANY YEARS. SO WHAT I'M GONNA SAY LATER IS SOMETHING THAT'S CRITICAL OF ONE OF THE PROGRAMS THAT THEY DO NOW CALLED SPUR, WHICH IS A UTILITY RETAILER PROGRAM. MY ADVOCACY GOES BACK MANY YEARS, A LITTLE MORE THAN 30. NOW, THIS IS A LETTER THAT'S WRITTEN TO ME IN 1997 AFTER I CREATED A PROGRAM, ELECTRIC LAWNMOWER EXCHANGE PROGRAM WHERE PEOPLE TRADED IN THEIR GAS POWERED LAWNMOWERS FOR ELECTRIC LAWNMOWERS. AND WE DID VERY WELL. WE SOLD 500, 520 UNITS, AND WE SCRAPPED ALMOST AN EQUIVALENT AMOUNT. I WAS THE CREATIVE PERSON BEHIND THIS, AND I WORKED SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH AUSTIN ENERGY TO TRY TO BRING THIS TO LIFE. AND WE DID EVEN WORKING THE EVENT ITSELF. NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. SOMETHING THAT'S AT THE NORTHERN ENTRANCE OF CITY HALL THAT HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE ABLE TO QUEUE UP HERE. BUT I PULLED IT OFF WITH THE PERMISSION OF THIS CITY STAFF FOR THIS. BACK IN THAT 1990S ERA, I CREATED THE IDEA FOR A TASK FORCE THAT WOULD WORK ON GREEN BUILDING FOR CITY BUILDINGS. WE GOT THAT PASSED. WE ALSO GOT PASSED FOR MILLER REDEVELOPMENT. ALL THE COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL STRUCTURES ARE BUILT TO HIGH GREEN STANDARDS. THIS IS ANOTHER WAY I WORK WITH AUSTIN ENERGY AND THEN GOT THEM TO GET NOTED FOR THESE THINGS THAT WERE DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH THEM. GOING BACK TO THE SPUR PROGRAM, SOME OF IT'S NEEDED. THEY INCENT MORE EFFICIENT HVAC EQUIPMENT, WHICH IS HELPFUL, WHICH IS NEEDED IN IN THE PAST LIGHT BULBS. RIGHT NOW, THEY HAVE A PROGRAM WHERE YOU GO INTO HOME DEPOT. YOU MAY NOT KNOW THAT YOU'RE GONNA GET A REBATE FOR LAWNMOWER LINE TRIM OR LEAF BLOWER. AND WHEN YOU CHECK OUT, THAT'S TAKEN OFF YOUR BILL. THERE'S NO SCRAPPAGE COMPONENT. THE MAIN ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT FROM THESE ELECTRIC LAWNMOWER EXCHANGE PROGRAMS IS WHEN YOU SCRAP THE GAS POWERED LAWNMOWER, YOU CRUSH IT, YOU CAN REFORM IT INTO REPAR FOR BUILDING MATERIALS. I'VE DONE THIS PROGRAM PROFESSIONALLY, AND I WANT YOU TO THINK ABOUT FUNDING. THANK YOU, MR. JOHNSON. APPRECIATE IT FOR BUYING ONE MORE AWARD. THANK. THANK YOU, MR. JOHNSON. YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED. [00:10:02] NEXT UP WE HAVE CAMILLE COOK, MARY MICHAEL, AND JOHN HOFFNER. GOOD AFTERNOON, UH, CHAIR OF ALA VICE CHAIR SIEGEL AND COUNCIL. MY NAME IS CAMILLE COOK AND I WORK WITH PUBLIC CITIZENS TEXAS OFFICE. UH, I WANNA TALK ABOUT THE INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITIES THAT BATTERIES AND SOLAR ARE PROVIDING TO OUR CITY. ITS PEOPLE AND OUR UTILITY. UM, I, I'LL START WITH SOLAR. UH, I'M VERY MUCH IN SUPPORT OF THE DRAFT RESOLUTION FROM COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER REGA REGARDING PUTTING SOLAR ON CITY BUILDINGS. UH, ACCORDING TO STAFF ANALYSIS FROM THE OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY, THERE IS POTENTIAL FOR $2.3 MILLION IN ANNUAL BILL SAVINGS FOR RATE PAYERS. AND THESE SOLAR PANELS WOULD PAY FOR THEMSELVES IN ABOUT SIX YEARS. AND JUST FOR CONTEXT, THESE, UM, ROOFTOP SOLAR PANELS CAN HAVE LIKE 15 TO 20 YEAR PAYOFF PERIODS. SO SIX YEARS IS REALLY, IS REALLY GOOD. UH, IT'S A GOOD DEAL FOR THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN, AND IT'S A GOOD DEAL FOR THE CITY. UH, THE ONLY THING I WOULD ADD TO THIS RESOLUTION IS THAT A DEADLINE BE SET FOR THE CITY BUILDINGS ANALYSIS THAT THE BILL CALLS FOR TO ALIGN WITH THE START OF THE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS IN MID JULY. AS MENTIONED EARLIER, THERE'S, THERE HAS BEEN A STUDY ALREADY CONDUCTED, AND WE SHOULD GET THIS ROLLING AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. IT WOULD BE GREAT IF WE COULD GET THIS INTO OUR NEXT CITY BUDGET INSTEAD OF IT JUST WAITING AROUND FOR A YEAR. THIS IS A QUICK AND EASY POLITICAL WIN FOR BATTERIES. I'M REALLY EXCITED TO SEE THIS BATTERY PROPOSAL THAT, UM, LISA MARTIN AT AE TALKED, TALKED ABOUT AT THE LAST EUC MEETING. THAT 125 TO 150 MEGAWATTS OF LOCAL UTILITY SCALE BATTERY STORAGE WOULD BE A GREAT START, ESPECIALLY IF WE SEE SOMETHING DEFINITIVE BY THE NEXT UTILITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE MEETING IN JULY. THESE BATTERIES WILL HELP SAVE ALL OF OUR REPAIRS, MONEY AND OUR UTILITY, SINCE THEY WILL HELP ADDRESS PRICE SEPARATION ISSUES THAT HAPPEN HERE IN CENTRAL TEXAS DUE TO CONGESTION ISSUES. BATTERIES ARE ALSO, ARE ALSO CRUCIAL FOR DECARBONIZING AE, WHICH IS A KEY, WHICH IS A KEY COMMITMENT IN THE AUSTIN ENERGY RESOURCE GENERATION AND CLIMATE PROTECTION PLAN. SO OVERALL, I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THESE PROPOSALS. I REALLY SUPPORT 'EM. UM, I REALLY HOPE THAT THEY'RE SEEN THROUGH AND THAT THEY'RE PROPOSED AND WRAPPED UP AND IMPLEMENTED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. THERE HAVE BEEN PREVIOUS BATTERY RFPS THAT HAVE BEEN PROPOSED AND SAT ON, AND I'M REALLY THANKFUL THAT THIS ONE IS, IS BEING PUT FORWARD. UM, I'M HOPEFUL. I'M HOPEFUL THAT THIS CURRENT CONTRACT WILL BE SEEN THROUGH QUICKLY, ALONG WITH THE PROPOSAL FOR ROOFTOP SOLAR ON SOLAR CITY BUILDINGS. THANK YOU, MARY MICHAEL. GOOD AFTERNOON COUNCIL MEMBERS. I'M MARY MICHAEL, DISTRICT SEVEN. I'M SPEAKING TODAY TO EXPRESS MY STRONG SUPPORT FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO IMPROVE INVESTMENTS IN LOCAL SOLAR ENERGY AND BATTERY STORAGE. THE CITY OWNS OVER A HUNDRED FACILITIES THAT COULD HO HOST SOLAR PANELS ON THEIR ROOFTOPS. AND WITH ALL OF THIS ROOF SPACE, OVER 12,000 MEGAWATT HOURS OF ELECTRICITY COULD BE PRODUCED ANNUALLY ACCORDING TO THE CITY REPORT. ADDITIONALLY, I INTERNED WITH PUBLIC CITIZEN IN, IN THE FALL, AND I DID AN ANALYSIS FOR SOLAR POTENTIAL ON CITY BUILDINGS AS WELL. AND I FOUND THAT THERE'S A 14 MEGAWATT SYSTEM CAPACITY FOR SOLAR ON CITY BUILDINGS. PLEASE DO NOT MISS OUT ON THIS OPPORTUNITY TO GENERATE ALL OF THIS CLEAN ENERGY. PUTTING SOLAR ON CITY ON ROOFTOPS WILL NOT ONLY CREATE MORE CLEAN ENERGY AND SAVE THE CITY MONEY, BUT IT'LL ALSO SHOW THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN THAT THEIR CITY SUPPORTS A TRANSITION TO RENEWABLE ENERGY IN ORDER TO STOP CLIMATE CHANGE. FURTHERMORE, AUSTIN SHOULD BE SETTING AN EXAMPLE FOR OTHER CITIES IN TEXAS AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO GET SOLAR ON THEIR BUILDINGS AS WELL. WE CAN BE THE ONES TO DEMONSTRATE OUR SUPPORT FOR CLEAN ENERGY AND THE COST SAVING BENEFITS IT PROVIDES. YOU SHOULD NOT LET THIS PROPOSAL SIT ON THE BACK BURNER. A DEADLINE SHOULD BE SET FOR THE CITY BUILDINGS ANALYSIS TO ALIGN WITH THE START OF THE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS IN MID-JULY. ADDITIONALLY, INVESTING IN LOCAL BATTERY SHORTAGE IS THE NEXT STEP TO A CLEAN ENERGY. FUTURE BATTERY STORAGE IS CRUCIAL FOR KEEPING ENERGY PRICES LOWER, DECREASING CONGESTION, AND LOWERING THE RISK FOR BLACKOUTS. AT THE LAST ELECTRIC, ELECTRIC UTILITY COMMISSION MINI MEETING, AUSTIN ENERGY SAID THEY'RE LOOKING TO OBTAIN BETWEEN 125 TO 150 MEGAWATTS OF BATTERY STORAGE, WHICH WOULD BE A GREAT START TO DEVELOPING THE BATTERY STORAGE TO CITY NEEDS. I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THESE PROPOSALS COME TO THE CITY COUNCIL IN JULY. PLEASE BE A LEADER IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE BY CONSIDERING THE PROPOSALS FOR ADDING SOLAR ENERGY TO CITY OWNED BUILDINGS AND TO EXPAND BATTERY STORAGE. THANK YOU, JOHN HOFFNER, CHAIRMAN, UH, POINT OF ORDER, UM, ARE YOU, UM, PLANNING ON TWO MINUTES SPEAKERS FOR THREE, TWO MINUTES? OKAY. I DIDN'T HEAR THAT ANNOUNCEMENT, SO THANK YOU. I'M NOW JOHN. SO UP NEXT WE HAVE DALE BULLA, RICHARD SMITH, AND DAVID RON. GOOD AFTERNOON COUNCIL. MY NAME IS DALE BULA. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF AUSTIN ENERGY. IT SEEMS TO ME THAT A BOARD OF DIRECTORS SHOULDN'T [00:15:01] HAVE TO BEG FOR A CHANGE OF DIRECTION YET. WE SO OFTEN HEAR THE COUNCIL URGES AUSTIN ENERGY TO DO SUCH AND SUCH. THE EUC CAN ENCOURAGE, BUT THE COUNCIL SHOULD BE ABLE TO INSTRUCT AUSTIN ENERGY TO MEET CERTAIN GOALS. AND ONE OF THOSE SHOULD BE THE PROMOTION OF BATTERIES. AUSTIN NEEDS BATTERY STORAGE. THEY CAN HELP KEEP WHOLESALE PRICES LOWER IN ERCOT AND HAVE SAVE RATE PAYERS STATEWIDE, BILLIONS OF DOLLARS. LOCAL UTILITY SCALE BATTERIES WOULD ADDRESS THE CONGESTION ISSUES IN IN AUSTIN ENERGY, WHICH WILL SAVE OUR UTILITY MONEY. INVESTING IN LOCAL BATTERIES IS CRITICAL FOR DECARBONIZING AUSTIN ENERGY AND IS A KEY COMMITMENT TO THE AUSTIN ENERGY RESOURCE GENERATION AND CLIMATE PROTECTION PLAN. THE EUC ASKED THE UTILITY TO EXPAND ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND DEMAND RESPONSE WHILE BEEFING UP ITS LOCAL SOLAR AND BATTERY STORAGE INFRASTRUCTURE. AUSTIN ENERGY SHOULD ADD AT LEAST 500 MEGAWATTS OF LOCAL SOLAR IN 2000 MEGAWATTS OF BATTERY STORAGE AND 50 MEGAWATTS OF GEOTHERMAL WHILE REDUCING PEAK DEMAND BY AT LEAST 600 MEGAWATTS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, PROMOTING SOLAR ON CITY BUILDINGS. I SUPPORT THE DRAFT RESOLUTION FROM RYAN ALTER THAT DIRECTS THE CITY MANAGER TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS. THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR 2.3 MILLION IN ANNUAL BILL SAVINGS AND ROUGHLY 12,000 MEGAWATTS OF ENERGY PRODUCED EACH YEAR. THIS INVESTMENT WILL PAY OFF IN ABOUT SIX YEARS AND IT SHOULD NOT BE DELAYED. AND WHEN IT COMES TO THE, UH, ENVIRONMENT, WE'VE HEARD A LOT OF PEOPLE TALK ABOUT PEDESTRIAN ACCESS AND BICYCLING EXODUS ACCESS. HOWEVER, BY 2050, THERE ARE ESTIMATES THAT AUSTIN AND CENTRAL TEXAS WILL EXPERIENCE 200 TRIPLE DIGIT DAYS. THERE IS NO THANK YOU RICHARD SMITH. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'D LIKE TO THANK THE AUSTIN ENERGY UTILITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TODAY. MY NAME IS BUD SMITH. I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF TEXAS EV ALLIANCE, A NONPROFIT THAT LOBBIES TEXAS STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS FOR, UH, ELECTRIC VEHICLE POSITIVE POLICIES. MY FAMILY HAS BEEN DRIVING ELECTRICALLY FOR OVER 12 YEARS. WE HAD 38 SOLAR PANELS INSTALLED ON OUR HOME EIGHT YEARS AGO. I ALSO SOLD EVS FOR A LIVING FOR SIX YEARS. THE ADDITION OF SOLAR PANELS TO EVS OWNERS HOMES AND BUSINESSES IS BECOMING MORE AND MORE COMMON. TODAY, TEXAS HAS 375,000 ELECTRIC VEHICLES REGISTERED, AND THAT NUMBER IS GROWING AT A RATE OF ABOUT 45% A YEAR, WHICH MEANS IT DOUBLES EVERY 19 MONTHS. TEXAS ENERGY NEEDS ARE GROWING AT A FRENETIC PACE, AND THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL DISTRIBUTED ENERGY SOURCES IS URGENT. SOLAR PANELS, ESPECIALLY WHEN COUPLED WITH STORAGE, ARE KEY TO MAKING OUR GRID MORE RESILIENT. THE ENERGY STORED IN EVS WILL BE A GREAT ADDITION TO THAT AS EV BATTERIES ARE TYPICALLY FOUR TO FIVE TIMES THE SIZE OF STATIONARY STORAGE BATTERIES AT RESIDENCES, UH, AND VIRTUAL POWER PLANTS ARE ALREADY PAYING PAVING THE WAY TO MAKE THAT A REALITY. I ASK THAT WE DO ALL WE CAN TO SPEED THE PERMITTING PROCESS FOR SOLAR PANELS AND EV CHARGERS, ESPECIALLY BI-DIRECTIONAL CHARGERS THAT PROVIDE VEHICLE TO GRID CAPABILITIES. AS WE BEGIN TO SEE WORKPLACE CHARGING DEVELOP, WE SHOULD REMEMBER TO FIND WAYS TO INSTALL SOLAR CARPORTS AT THESE FACILITIES, TO SHADE THE VEHICLES, REDUCE ELECTRICITY COSTS, AND PROVIDE ENERGY TO THE GRID. OF COURSE, WE MUST ALSO ENSURE THAT THESE PROVIDING ENERGY TO THE GRID ARE FAIRLY COMPENSATED FOR THAT ENERGY THAT THEY PROVIDE. AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE IS AN ECOSYSTEM DEVELOPING AROUND EVS, SOLAR PANELS, STATIONARY STORAGE, EV CHARGING, AND MORE. THINK OF THIS ECOSYSTEM AS THE INTERNET. BACK IN 1995 WHEN AMAZON ONLY SOLD BOOKS. NO ONE COULD HAVE REALIZED BACK THEN WHAT A HUGE GLOBAL INDUSTRY IT WOULD BECOME. NO ONE THOUGHT WE'D BUY CLOTHES, SEE THE DOCTOR, WATCH TV, ATTEND BUSINESSES VIA THE NET. THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UM, DAVID, RON, NEXT UP WE HAVE RICHARD HALAN AND BECKY SMITH. GOOD AFTERNOON, YOU EXTRAORDINARY NEW COUNSEL, UTILITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE AND AUSTIN ENERGY LEADERSHIP. THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNSELFISH SERVICE TO ALL OF OUR COMMUNITY. I ASKED A CHART BE HANDED OUT TO YOU THAT SHOWS THE, UM, BATTERY, UM, STORAGE IN OUR STATE. HAVE YOU GOT THAT IN FRONT OF YOU? LOOKS LIKE THIS. [00:20:01] I'M NOT SURE. HAVE THAT SURE IF WE DO. OKAY. UM, MR. H, BUT MAYBE YOU COULD, UH, LOOK INTO THAT. ANYWAY. UH, THIS IS A CHART THAT SHOWS THE BATTERY STORAGE BY, UH, ENERGY COMPANIES IN TEXAS. AND WE ARE AT THE VERY BOTTOM. WE'RE THE SECOND FROM THE BOTTOM. WE ARE BELOW OTHER. SO WE HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO IN TERMS OF BATTERY STORAGE. I WISH THAT YOU WOULD SEE IF THAT CHART GETS PASSED AROUND. UH, I PLANNED FOR A LITTLE BIT LONGER TIME WITH THREE MINUTES, SO I'M JUST GONNA TRY TO ABBREVIATE THIS. UM, UM, I WAS AN EARLY PARTNER WITH AUSTIN ENERGY. WE STARTED THE GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM TOGETHER WITH BUILDING HOUSES WITH YOUNG PEOPLE. AND THAT, UH, BOTH OF THESE PROGRAMS BECAME NATIONAL MODELS. UM, UH, WE ARE WAY BEHIND WHEN IT COMES TO STORAGE. AND STORAGE PRICES WILL SURELY GO UP. WE CAN SAVE MONEY AND TIME TO GET LARGE SERVICE STORAGE CONTRACTS NOW, OR WE CAN WAIT UNTIL THEY'RE GONNA BE VERY COSTLY. UM, MY HAND OUT LOOKS LIKE THIS. IS THAT WHAT YOU GOT? GREAT. WE HAVE IT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SORRY. UM, 150 MEGAWATTS IS, IS TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE. AS, UH, MR. BUHLER SAID, WE HAVE TO, UH, WRAP THIS UP AND YOU CAN DO THAT. YOUR DIRECTION TO AUSTIN ENERGY. I THINK IT'S GONNA BE VITAL TO THEM UNDERSTANDING THAT WE HAVE TO MOVE WITH LAITY AND WE HAVE TO MOVE QUICKLY TO, UH, PROTECT THE INTEREST OF PEOPLE WHO, UM, WILL, UM, BE IN JEOPARDY, UH, IF WE DON'T HAVE BACKUP FOR OUR UTILITY GIVEN, UM, THE THINGS THAT COULD HAPPEN WITH EXTREME WEATHER. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. AND WE, WE GOT ALL THE DOCUMENTS DIS DISTRIBUTED. THANK YOU AGAIN. AND BECKY SMITH. UH, GOOD AFTERNOON. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS YOU TODAY. I'M HERE REPRESENTING ROUGHLY 8,000 AUSTIN RESIDENTS WHO ARE THE MEMBERS OF CLEAN WATER ACTION. THE GROUP THAT I'M A, A STATE DIRECTOR FOR, UM, I BROUGHT SOME ART. IT SAYS STORMY, I'M FREE. THAT COULD JUST BE IT. RIGHT? UM, OUR MEMBERS ARE PLEASED THAT AT THE LAST MEETING OF THE ELECTRIC UTILITY COMMISSION, AUSTIN ENERGY STATED, THEY'RE LOOKING TO PROCURE 125 TO 150 MEGAWATTS OF BATTERY STORAGE. AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THESE PROPOSALS, UH, HOPEFULLY COME TO CITY COUNCIL IN JULY. HOWEVER, WE WISH TO STRESS THAT THIS QUANTITY SHOULD REPRESENT A FLOOR AND NOT A CEILING FOR THIS CLEAN ENERGY RESOURCE COMPONENT. INCREASED INVESTMENT IN LOCAL BATTERY STORAGE AND PROCURING GROWING SOURCES OF RENEWABLE ENERGY AND BATTERY STORAGE WILL BE OUR CITY'S GREEN JEWEL. UH, BOTH CLEAN, HEALTHY, AND GREEN. ALSO, IN TERMS OF DOLLARS, UH, WE MUST ADDRESS ELECTRIC, ELECTRIC CONGESTION ISSUES TO KEEP UP WITH OUR CURRENT NEEDS FOR WITH PUBLIC SAFETY AND TO CONTINUE TO ATTRACT THAT INVESTMENT AND INNOVATION THAT KEEPS US A GREEN JEWEL AT THE HEART OF TEXAS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMITMENT TO DECARBONIZING AUSTIN ENERGY WITH RENEWABLE ENERGY AND BATTERY STORAGE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR COMMENTS. AGAIN, STORMY. I'M FREE AND THAT'S EVERYBODY. THANK YOU, UH, VERY MUCH. THEN WE WILL GO AHEAD. THREE FOUR. OH, UH OH. WE ARE GOING TO, OKAY. THERE SHE IS. 1, 2, 3, 4. WE'RE GOING TO RECESS FOR JUST A MINUTE TO GET A, A QUORUM BACK ON THE DAIS. UH, GIVE US JUST, WE'LL BE IN RECESS UNTIL I'M BACK. UH, SORRY ABOUT THAT. MY, UH, I DIED BACK. NO, NO. THANK YOU. UH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON, WE'RE ALSO WAITING FOR, THERE WE GO. SO LET ME, UH, WE RECESS AT 1246. I'LL CALL THE, UH, THE MEETING OF THE AUSTIN ENERGY UTILITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE BACK IN, UH, TO ORDER AT 1247. AND THE FIRST [Approval of Minutes] ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM MARCH 25TH, 2025 MEETING. UH, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE OF A, A MOTION MADE BY COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER SECOND BY, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER LANE? UH, WITHOUT OBJECTION, THE MINUTES FOR THE MEETING ARE APPROVED. UM, ITEM TWO, [2. General Manager’s Report - Battery Request For Proposals (RFP) Update, Supply Chain Update, Power Supply Adjustment Rate, and 130th Austin Energy Anniversary [Stuart Reilly, Interim General Manager - Austin Energy].] LET'S RUN RIGHT INTO THE GENERAL MANAGER'S REPORT FROM INTERIM GENERAL MANAGER STEWART RILEY, WHO, AND JUST A QUICK COMMENT BEFORE WE'RE GONNA, IT, IT'S BEEN A LONG DAY, UH, AND WE'RE GONNA GO THROUGH THIS A [00:25:01] LITTLE QUICKER THAN, UH, ANTICIPATED. UH, UH, UH, GENERAL MANAGER. I'LL TURN IT OVER TO YOU. THANK YOU. UH, CHAIR VELA. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M STUART RILEY, INTERIM GENERAL MANAGER OF AUSTIN ENERGY. I HAVE FIVE SLIDES FOR YOU FOR THE GENERAL MANAGER'S REPORT THIS AFTERNOON. SEE IF THIS WORKS. FIRST, I'D LIKE TO PROVIDE A QUICK UPDATE ABOUT OUR BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS, UH, THAT MANY OF THE SPEAKERS WERE REFERRING TO IN THE RESOURCE GENERATION AND CLIMATE PROTECTION PLAN TO 2035 THAT COUNCIL ADOPTED IN DECEMBER OF LAST YEAR. WE HAD SOME PRETTY AGGRESSIVE BATTERY STORAGE GOALS THERE. MOST NOTABLY, WE COMMITTED TO INSTALLING 125 MEGAWATTS OF LOCAL BATTERY STORAGE BY THE END OF 2027, IF ECONOMICALLY FEASIBLE. SO AT THE START OF THIS YEAR, WE ISSUED AN RFP FOR THAT BATTERY STORAGE. WE GOT THE RESULTS, UH, FROM THAT RFP. THE PROPOSALS WERE DUE IN MAR LATE MARCH, OUR ENERGY MARKET OPERATIONS TEAM, THOSE PROPOSALS THROUGH APRIL. AND WE HAVE SHORTLISTED PROJECTS THAT WE ARE NOW UNDERGOING CONTRACT DISCUSSIONS TO HOPEFULLY MOVE FORWARD ON THOSE PROJECTS. UM, WE HAVE A VERY AGGRESSIVE SCHEDULE THAT WE'RE TARGETING AND WE'RE HOPING TO COME BACK TO COUNCIL WITH CONTRACTS AT THE JULY 24TH, UH, MEETING. I HAVE TO PUT KIND OF A, AN ASTERISK NEXT TO THAT THOUGH. UM, AND A AND A BIT OF A, A WARNING BECAUSE IN ADDITION TO JUST KIND OF THE NORMAL CHALLENGES OF GETTING A PROJECT LIKE THIS ACROSS THE FINISH LINE, WE ALSO HAVE SOME REGULATORY AND TARIFF CHALLENGES THAT EXIST THAT CREATE A, A LITTLE BIT OF ADDITIONAL UNCERTAINTY OR, UH, ADDITIONAL RISK FOR THOSE PROJECTS. SO WE ARE HOPING TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THOSE HAPPEN. AND WE'RE HOPEFUL AND EXCITED ABOUT THE, THE POSSIBILITY THAT THOSE COULD COME TO FRUITION. AND AGAIN, WE HOPE TO BE BACK IN THE SHORT TERM WITH SOME GOOD RESULTS THERE. UM, I MENTIONED TARIFFS. UH, I ALSO WANTED TO GIVE THIS COMMITTEE AN UPDATE ABOUT TARIFF IMPACTS ON SUPPLY CHAIN. I WAS HERE IN FRONT OF THIS COMMITTEE TWO YEARS AGO TALKING ABOUT THE CRITICAL SHORTAGES THAT WE HAD IN OUR MATERIALS, LIKE TRANSFORMERS, WIRE POLES, ALL THE THINGS WE NEED FOR OUR ELECTRIC SYSTEM. AND WE WEREN'T ALONE THERE. WE WERE AT, UH, A CRITICAL POINT AS AN ELECTRIC INDUSTRY OVERALL. UM, SINCE THEN, WE'VE REVAMPED OUR SUPPLY CHAIN PRACTICES. WE'VE ADDED CRITICAL SOURCING PERSONNEL. WE'VE ENHANCED OUR, UM, SOPHISTICATION IN TERMS OF FORECASTING OUR NEEDS AND, AND DELIVERY SCHEDULES. UM, WE HAVE CHANGED OUR ENGINEERING STANDARDS, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE'VE GONE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES FOR THE FIRST TIME IN TERMS OF PROCURING THESE TYPES OF MATERIALS. AND THAT'S MADE A HUGE DIFFERENCE. AND SO NOW WHERE WE ONCE HAD, UH, VERY BARE WAREHOUSE YARDS THAT WERE PRACTICALLY EMPTY. NOW YOU CAN SEE IN THAT PICTURE ON THE TOP PAD MOUNT TRANSFORMERS, AND ON THE BOTTOM RIGHT YOU CAN SEE THE POLE MOUNT TRANSFORMERS. SO WE HAVE VERY, VERY HEALTHY SUPPLIES NOW, UH, ON HAND. SO MUCH SO THAT, UH, NOW OUR CHALLENGE IS THIS, HAVING THE SPACE AVAILABLE TO KEEP ALL THESE MATERIALS. SO, UH, IN ORDER TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM, WE HAVE OUR NEW WAREHOUSE COMING ONLINE THIS SUMMER. SO YOU CAN SEE THAT A PICTURE OF THAT EMPTY WAREHOUSE RIGHT NOW. WE WILL BE THIS SUMMER, MOVING ALL THOSE SUPPLIES FROM OUR MANY DISAGGREGATED SITES WHERE WE'RE KEEPING THESE MATERIALS. WE'LL BE MOVING THAT INTO THAT WAREHOUSE THIS SUMMER. AND THAT WILL ALSO ENHANCE OUR ABILITY TO RESPOND, HAVING ALL THOSE MATERIALS IN A CENTRALIZED LOCATION. UM, BUT THAT'S ALSO NECESSARY AS PART OF OUR SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY GOING FORWARD. BECAUSE THE NEW NORMAL IS SORT OF THESE EBBS AND FLOWS OF AVAILABILITY OF SUPPLIES, THIS FEAST OR FAMINE CYCLE. SO AS WE ENCOUNTER ADDITIONAL UNCERTAINTY COMING WITH TARIFFS, HAVING THE SUPPLIES AND HAVING THE SPACE TO KIND OF WEATHER THOSE, UH, DOWNTURNS IS IMPORTANT FOR US AS PART OF OUR STRATEGY. SO FAR, WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR SUPPLIERS THAT, UM, THAT THEY WILL, THEY, WELL, SO FAR, OUR SUPPLIERS ARE HONORING OUR PRE TARIFF PRICING FOR THOSE MATERIALS. BUT WE HAVE HEARD FROM THEM TO EXPECT 25% OR MORE INCREASE TO THOSE MATERIALS. SO WE ARE FACTORING THAT INTO OUR, OUR BUDGET PLANNING PROCESSES. IN ADDITION TO JUST THOSE PRICE INCREASES. THERE'S, THERE'S A GREAT DEAL OF UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THEIR ABILITY WITH THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS OF THE SUPPLY CHAIN, OF HOW ALL THE IMPACTS ARE GOING TO SHAKE OUT FOR THEIR ABILITY TO GET ALL THE, THE MATERIALS THAT THEY NEED FOR US TO GET THE, UH, THE PRODUCTS THAT, THAT WE'RE PURCHASING. SO THERE'S ADDITIONAL UNCERTAINTY THERE. I ALSO, UNFORTUNATELY, THE LAST BULLET POINT I HAVE ON THIS SLIDE, UH, UNFORTUNATELY I HAVE TO MENTION THAT THE TARIFFS AND SUPPLY CHAIN CHALLENGES ARE CURRENTLY IMPACTING THE PILOT GEOTHERMAL POWER PRODUCTION PROJECT. THIS WAS A SMALL FIVE MEGAWATT GEOTHERMAL PROJECT. THE DEVELOPER OF THAT PROJECT IS, UH, IS, HAS ENCOUNTERED CHALLENGES, UH, WITH THE MATERIALS AND COMPONENTS THAT ARE NECESSARY FOR THAT PROJECT TO COME TO FRUITION. AND WE'RE NOW WORKING WITH THEM TO SEE IF THERE ARE WAYS THAT WE CAN, UH, WE CAN RESCUE OR [00:30:01] SALVAGE THAT, THAT PROJECT. 'CAUSE WE'RE REALLY HOPEFUL THAT IT COULD COME TO FRUITION. IT'S AN IMPORTANT THING FOR US TO, TO PROVE OUT THIS NEW GEOTHERMAL TECHNOLOGY AND HOPEFULLY GROW FROM THERE. SO, SO WE WILL KEEP THIS COMMITTEE INFORMED ON OUR PROGRESS THERE AS WE HOPE TO FIND A WAY TO CONTINUE TO BRING THAT PROJECT FORWARD. ONE LAST SLIDE ON SUPPLY CHAIN. UM, YOU KNOW, OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF TALK ABOUT HISTORIC INFLATION. AND THIS CHART GOES BACK TO 2021, WHICH IS OUR TEST YEAR FOR OUR COST OF SERVICE STUDY. AND SINCE THEN, YOU KNOW, AS PEOPLE HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS HISTORIC INFLATION, YOU CAN SEE THOSE BOTTOM TWO LINES. THAT'S THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX AT 16% GROWTH, AND THE PRODUCER PRICE INDEX AT 14% GROWTH FOR US AT AUSTIN ENERGY AND ALL THE COMPONENTS THAT WE'RE BUYING IN TERMS OF TRANSFORMERS, POLES, AND WIRE. YOU CAN SEE ON THIS CHART THAT OUR PRICES HAVE DOUBLED OR EVEN TRIPLED WITH 200 UP TO 200% INCREASES ON THOSE MATERIALS. SO THAT IS MAKING EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE DOING JUST MORE CHALLENGING. IT, IT, THESE, THESE DRASTIC CIP COST INCREASES COUPLED WITH O AND M COST INCREASES ARE A CHALLENGE TO NAVIGATE, PARTICULARLY AS WE LOOK FORWARD AT IMPLEMENTING OUR RESOURCE GENERATION PLAN AND ADDRESSING ALL THE ISSUES THAT WE, UH, IDENTIFIED THERE. AS WELL AS, UH, WE, WE ARE HOPING TO BRING FORWARD A, UM, COMPREHENSIVE DISTRIBUTION RESILIENCE PLAN. AND SO AS WE LOOK FORWARD TO, TO DOING THOSE THINGS, UH, THESE, THESE COST PRESSURES ARE, ARE VERY ACUTE AND, AND WE ARE FEELING THOSE IN TERMS OF OUR PLANNING. BUT IT'S NOT ALL BAD NEWS. SO, UM, WE HAVE, AS, AS YOU MAY HAVE SEEN IN THE MEMOS, WE HAVE, UH, REDUCED THE POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT RATE FIVE TIMES THIS FISCAL YEAR ALONE BY 5% EACH TIME. THE POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT IS A PASS THROUGH CHARGE THAT CUSTOMERS PAY. THAT'S, UM, NEARLY HALF OF THE CUSTOMER BILL, UH, WHICH RECOVERS OUR, UH, POWER SUPPLY COSTS AS WE PARTICIPATE IN THE ERCOT MARKET. SO AS WE'VE REDUCED THAT POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT RATE FIVE TIMES BY 5%, THE CUMULATIVE EFFECT IS A 23% PSA RATE REDUCTION JUST THIS FISCAL YEAR ALONE. AND THAT IS RESULTING IN LOWER CUSTOMER BILLS GOING INTO THE SUMMER. AND THAT'S DUE TO MORE MODERATE PRICES WITHIN ERCOT. IT'S ALSO DUE TO OUR ENERGY MARKET RISK MANAGEMENT, UH, POLICIES THAT WE HAVE AT AUSTIN ENERGY. AND WHILE WE SAW ALL THIS VOLATILITY POST WINTER STORM URI THROUGH 20 23, 20 24 WAS A MUCH MORE MODERATE YEAR IN TERMS OF THE MARKET. UM, AND WE HAD BETTER RESULTS. AND WE ARE POSITIONED WELL DESPITE SOME OF THE LOAD ZONE CHALLENGES THAT WE'VE SPOKEN ABOUT BEFORE, AUSTIN ENERGY LOAD ZONE ISSUES. WE ARE POSITIONED WELL GOING INTO THE SUMMER TO PROVIDE STABLE BILLS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS. UM, AND AS WE PLAN THAT, WE'RE LOOKING TO KEEP A, A SMOOTH PATH TO WHERE WE'RE NOT HAVING TO, TO RAISE THE RATE BACK UP, UM, BUT PROVIDE STABILITY TO OUR CUSTOMERS. AND THEN MY LAST SLIDE, I JUST WANT TO, ON BEHALF OF ALL AUSTIN ENERGY EMPLOYEES, ONCE AGAIN, EXPRESS OUR APPRECIATION FOR THE 130 YEAR ANNIVERSARY PROCLAMATION PRIOR TO THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING, UM, AT THAT PROCLAMATION, UH, WHICH MANY OF YOU ATTENDED, WE, WE RECOGNIZE THE ENORMOUS VALUE THAT PUBLIC POWER CAN HAVE ON A COMMUNITY. WE RECOGNIZED OUR EMPLOYEES AND WE, UH, CELEBRATED MANY OF THE FIRSTS THAT WE'VE EXPERIENCED AT AUSTIN ENERGY, THE BRINGING FORWARD THE FIRST WIND ENERGY PROJECT IN TEXAS, THE FIRST UTILITY SCALE SOLAR PROJECT IN TEXAS, THE FIRST GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM IN THE NATION. AND THEN MANY INDUSTRY LEADING PROGRAMS FOR CUSTOMERS IN TERMS OF SOLAR ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS. AND I JUST MENTIONED THIS ONE LAST TIME BECAUSE I, I WANT THIS COMMITTEE TO KNOW THAT EVEN THOUGH WE'RE RECOGNIZING OUR PAST, SIMILAR TO WHAT SOME OF THE SPEAKERS WERE SAYING, WE, WE ARE REALLY CARE. WE REALLY CARE ABOUT THE CLEAN ENERGY FUTURE. AND SO WE WANT TO CONTINUE ON THAT PATH OF MANY FIRSTS AND, AND WE'LL CHART OUT A, A COURSE THAT LEADS WITH OUR VALUES AND WILL BE WELL POSITIONED FOR OUR NEXT 130 YEARS CHAIR. THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT FOR YOU. HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND, UH, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO AUSTIN ENERGY. DON'T LOOK A DAY OVER 75 . UH, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND, AND, AND, UH, GO RIGHT INTO IT UNLESS THERE'S ANY, UH, QUESTIONS. UH, YES. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON. THANK YOU, CHAIR. I APPRECIATE IT. NOT REALLY EVEN A QUESTION SO MUCH, IT'S JUST KIND OF A HEADS UP. WE'RE GONNA BE TALKING TO Y'ALL ABOUT THIS GEOTHERMAL ITEM REAL QUICK, JUST TO MAKE SURE I'M CONTACTING THE RIGHT FOLKS. CAN YOU TELL ME, IS THIS THE ECOSMART FOLKS, UM, OUT OF WHISPER VALLEY OR IS THIS ANOTHER ORGANIZATION THAT'S THE PROVIDER FOR THE PILOT PROGRAM? THIS IS A, UM, SO A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. SO THE, THIS, THIS IS GEOTHERMAL POWER PRODUCTION, AND WHAT THEY DO AT WHISPER VALLEY IS GEOTHERMAL, HE, UH, HEATING AND COOLING SYSTEMS. SO FOR, TO GENERATE POWER FROM GEOTHERMAL, YOU HAVE TO GO, I'M SORRY, STUART, I'M, I'M GONNA STOP YOU 'CAUSE IT SOUNDED LIKE THE CHAIR REALLY WANTED TO OKAY. BUT WE'LL TOUCH BASE WITH YOU. WELL, THE THING [00:35:01] YOU CAN SAY, I JUST WANNA STOP YOU BECAUSE THAT THAT WASN'T THE QUESTION. THE QUESTION THAT I'M TRYING TO ASK IS WHO IS THE PROVIDER? 'CAUSE THE ECOSMART PEOPLE ARE THE ONLY ONES WITH WHOM I'VE EVER HAD A GEOTHERMAL DISCUSSION. THAT'S WHY I MENTIONED WHISPER VALLEY. BUT WHO IS THE ORGANIZATION? BECAUSE I, I NEED TO KNOW, I'M MAKING, I'M MAKING CONTACT WITH THE RIGHT FOLKS JUST TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS ON MY OWN AS WELL. YEAH, WE'LL GET YOU THE NAME AND, UH, I'M, I'M DRAWING A BLANK RIGHT NOW, BUT, WE'LL, WE'LL, THAT'S OKAY. WE'LL TOUCH BASE. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE IT. ONE LAST QUESTION. UM, AND I THINK THIS MIGHT ACTUALLY EXTEND TO A CARRIE ROGERS QUESTION AND NOT A, YOU QUESTION. THERE'S CURRENTLY A LEGISLATIVE ITEM ON GEOTHERMAL. DOES THIS, UM, POTENTIAL BARRIER HICCUP HAVE ANY IMPLICATIONS ON THE LEGISLATIVE GEOTHERMAL ITEM? OR ARE THERE SEPARATE CONSIDERATIONS? I AM NOT FAMILIAR WITH THAT LEGISLATIVE ITEM, BUT, UH, OKAY. YEAH. I I I DON'T THINK THAT THIS WOULD, UH, BE IMPACTED BY THAT. THAT'S JUST, THAT'S JUST MY GUESS. I THINK REALLY RIGHT NOW WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IN TERMS OF TRYING TO BRING THAT, CONTINUE THAT PROJECT FORWARD IS JUST SOLVING FOR SOME OF THE TARIFF AND SUPPLY CHAIN CHALLENGES THAT, THAT, UH, THAT POWER, UH, PRODUCTION PROJECT IS, IS ENCOUNTERING. WELL. SO FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, I, I INTEND TO REACH OUT TO, UH, CARRIE ROGERS, OUR, OUR, UH, LEGISLATIVE LIAISON PEOPLE AND ASK IF THERE'S ANY IMPLICATIONS. AND IF THEY INDICATE THAT TO ME, THEN I'LL MAKE SURE TO SHARE THAT INFORMATION WITH Y'ALL. SOUNDS GOOD. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU CHAIR. OF COURSE. UH, THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER. AND, UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE, UH, UH, GENERAL MANAGER REPORT. LET'S GO INTO ITEM THREE, [3. Staff briefing on the Second Quarter Financial Highlights Report [Stephanie Koudelka, Austin Energy Director of Finance].] OUR BRIEFING ON AUSTIN ENERGY, SECOND QUARTER FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS, UH, BY DIRECTOR OF, UH, FINANCE, UH, STEPHANIE ALKA. THANK YOU, CHAIR VELA. GOOD AFTERNOON COMMITTEE MEMBERS. MY NAME IS STEPHANIE ALKA, WAITING FOR MY PRESENTATION TO ARRIVE. THANK YOU. UM, AGAIN, I'M STEPHANIE CADEL. I'M A DIRECTOR OF FINANCE FOR AUSTIN ENERGY. I'M PRESENTING TO YOU OUR SECOND QUARTER FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025. WE HAVE A FULL AGENDA IN YOUR PACKET, WHICH INCLUDES A FULL FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE UTILITY AT THE SECOND QUARTER. UM, I'M GONNA RUN THROUGH A QUICK EXECUTIVE SUMMARY WITH YOU, WHICH STARTS ON THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. THANK YOU. I'LL START WITH OUR OPERATING RESULTS. THE, UM, POSITION OF THE UTILITY AS OF THE END OF THE SECOND QUARTER IS THAT WE'RE TRENDING ABOVE BUDGET AND PRIOR YEAR. UM, THE PRIMARY PURPOSE OF THAT AND REASON IS DUE TO A RESERVE TRANSFER THAT, UH, THAT WE MADE TO OUR POWER SUPPLY STABILIZATION RESERVE. SO AUSTIN ENERGY AMENDED OUR TARIFFS, UM, THAT ALLOWED US TO MOVE OR RESTRICT FUNDS FROM POWER SUPPLY OVER RECOVERY INTO OUR POWER SUPPLY STABILIZATION RESERVE. UM, THAT 30 MILLION, UM, RESULTED IN TWO THINGS. THE FIRST IS THAT IT ALLOWED THE UTILITY TO MEET OUR FINANCIAL POLICY, WHICH IS 90 DAYS OF POWER SUPPLY, COST OF CASH ON HAND. SO THAT'S REALLY GOOD NEWS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS, ESPECIALLY AS WE ENTER INTO THE SUMMER SEASON. UM, WE HAVE THAT RESERVE FULLY FUNDED. UM, THE OTHER IMPACT OF THE TRANSFER IS THAT, UM, AS YOU LOOK THROUGH THE DETAILS OF YOUR PACKET, OUR FINANCIAL POSITION APPEARS BETTER THAN IT, IT ACTUALLY IS JUST DUE TO THAT REVENUE THAT WE RECOGNIZED. I WANNA INFORM YOU THAT'S A ONE-TIME NON-RECURRING EVENT FOR THE UTILITY. SO, UM, JUST TO INFORM YOU TO KEEP THAT IN MIND AS YOU REVIEW THE DETAILS OF THE PACKET. UM, SO, UM, REALLY WHAT WE NEED TO DO IS CONTINUE TO LOOK AT OUR BASE, UH, BASE RATES AND COST RECOVERY. UM, YOU'LL SEE IN THE DETAILS OF OUR FINANCIAL STATEMENTS THAT COSTS ARE STILL PUTTING A LOT OF PRESSURE ON THE UTILITY. SO WE NEED TO KEEP THOSE BASE RATES IN MIND WITH MORE WORK TO, TO DO TO KEEP A SUSTAINED FINANCIAL HEALTH FOR THE UTILITY. THAT LEADS ME INTO THE BOND RATING. UM, WE HAVE HEARD FROM OUR RATING AGENCIES THAT THEY'RE ALSO LOOKING FOR, UM, CONTINUED FINANCIAL, UM, RESULTS WITH MARGINS, UM, AND POSITIVE, UH, FINANCIAL METRICS FOR THE UTILITY. UM, WE'RE SITTING AT AA BOND RATING PER STANDARD AND PORES, UM, WITH A STABLE OUTLOOK. UM, THAT BOND RATING WAS AFFIRMED WHEN AUSTIN ENERGY WENT INTO THE BOND MARKET IN NOVEMBER OF LAST YEAR. UM, AS A REMINDER, WE TARGET AA RATING, SO WE'RE STILL SITTING BELOW THAT TARGET AS OF THE END OF THE QUARTER FOR OUR FINANCIAL POLICIES. UM, I'VE REPORTED IN THE PAST QUARTERS THAT WE'VE BEEN SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLIANT, AND I'VE KEPT THAT, UM, FOR THIS QUARTER, JUST GIVEN THAT WE HAVE SOME RESERVES THAT DON'T MEET MINIMUMS ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS. UM, OUR CASH AND RESERVES DO MEET THAT MINIMUM 150 DAYS THAT WE SET PER FINANCIAL POLICY. UM, PART OF THAT [00:40:01] IS DUE TO THIS NEXT PIECE OF THE PRESENTATION, WHICH IS OUR POWER SUPPLY OVER RECOVERY. ONE SLIDE BACK PLEASE. THANKS. UM, WE ARE 103 MILLION OVERCOVERED AS OF THE END OF THE QUARTER. UM, STEWART REPORTED ON THE POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT, BUT I'LL JUST REITERATE THAT WE HAVE REDUCED THAT RATE FIVE TIMES THIS FISCAL YEAR. UM, SO WE FEEL LIKE WE'RE WELL POSITIONED AS WE GO INTO THE MORE VOLATILE SUMMER SEASON. THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY. I'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. COUNCIL, ROGER, YOU TOUCHED ON IT THERE BRIEFLY, BUT I, WHEN I WAS REVIEWING THIS AND IT SHOWED THE TARGET DAYS CASH IS 200, I HAD IN MY MIND THAT THE TARGET WAS ONE 50 AND WENT BACK AND LOOK AT LAST YEAR'S FIVE YEAR FORECAST. 'CAUSE I REMEMBER WE HAD THIS WHOLE DISCUSSION ABOUT WHEN WE WOULD GET ENOUGH DAYS CASH ON HAND, AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS GONNA BE FISCAL YEAR 29 BEFORE WE EVEN GOT, UM, TO OVER 160. AND SO CAN YOU BOTH HELP ME UNDERSTAND 200 VERSUS ONE 50 AS WELL AS WAS IT JUST THE PSA THAT ALL OF A SUDDEN, LIKE WE DID WAY BETTER THAN WE EVER THOUGHT WE WOULD. YOU'RE, YOU'RE RIGHT ON WITH THAT. SO I'LL START WITH THE DIFFERENCE IN THE TARGET. SO THE 150 DAYS AS YOU'RE, UH, WELL AWARE IS THE TARGET, UM, PER OUR FINANCIAL POLICY. SO THAT'S THE, THE MINIMUM THAT WE'D LIKE TO HAVE ON HAND FOR CASH AND RESERVES. 200 DAYS IS AN INTERNAL TARGET WE HAVE SET FOR A DOUBLE A BOND RATING. SO THAT'S SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'VE SEEN OUR PEERS HAVE, UM, FOR PUBLIC POWER WITH AA RATING. GOT IT. SO, UM, THAT'S THE DIFFERENCE IN THE TWO TARGETS. UM, YOU'RE RIGHT, THE CASH ON HAND IS INFLATED BY OVER RECOVERY. AND SO, UM, WE HAVE ABOUT 30 TO 40 DAYS OF POWER SUPPLY OVER RECOVERY IN THAT, UM, DAYS CASH CALCULATION, WHICH AS YOU KNOW, WILL BE RETURNED TO OUR CUSTOMERS OR USED TO PAY FOR POWER COSTS THIS SUMMER. AND IF, IF IT'S, IF IT'S A VERY HOT SUMMER, PROBABLY WE END THERE BACK IN THE ONE SIXTIES. IS THAT KIND OF, THAT'S RIGHT. OKAY. YEAH. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? NO. WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE FINANCIAL REPORT AND LET'S GO AHEAD AND GO [4. Staff briefing on the Second Quarter Operations Highlights Report [Lisa Martin, Deputy General Manager and Chief Operating Officer - Austin Energy].] ON TO THE, UH, BRIEFING ON AUSTIN ENERGY, SECOND QUARTER OPERATIONS, HIGHLIGHT BY, UH, DEPUTY GENERAL MANDER AND CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, LISA MARTIN. MS. MARTIN, GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIR, VICE CHAIR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS. I'M LISA MARTIN. AUSTIN ENERGY'S CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER HERE TODAY WITH THE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE OPERATIONS UPDATE JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH, 2025. NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. SIMILAR TO STEPHANIE, YOU HAVE ALL THE SLIDES IN THE BACK, BUT I'LL JUST HIT ON THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FOR THIS QUARTER. OUR RENEWABLE PRODUCTION WAS 49%, UH, AND OUR CARBON FREE PRODUCTION WAS 77%, BOTH AS A PERCENTAGE OF LOAD FOR Q2. OUR GENERATORS WERE, UH, HIGH AVAILABILITY, UM, BUT FOR A FEW, UH, PLANNED OUTAGES BECAUSE WE WERE STARTING THE MAINTENANCE MONTHS DURING THIS QUARTER. AND OUR RELIABILITY PERFORMANCE TRENDS REMAIN STABLE. WHEN YOU SEE THE LINE, YOU'LL EVEN SEE THAT IT'S DIPPING A LITTLE BIT DOWN. SMALLER NUMBERS ARE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. JUST A COUPLE OF HIGHLIGHTS ON THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. HERE YOU SEE THE, UH, MONTH BY MONTH CARBON FREE, UH, AS A PERCENTAGE OF LOAD. AND THIS IS WHERE YOU SEE, ON AVERAGE WE WERE 77%. YOU CAN SEE THERE'S A DELTA BETWEEN JANUARY THROUGH MARCH, JANUARY. YOU MAY RECALL WE HAD SOME COLD SNAPS, INCLUDING SOME SNOW. UM, OUR LOADS WERE A LITTLE BIT HIGHER THERE, UH, MARCH, A MUCH MILDER MONTH. AND SO OUR CARBON FREE GENERATION GOES A LOT FURTHER. BUT YOU SEE WE'RE IN, WE'RE IN THE TIME PERIOD WHERE, UM, RENEWABLES AND OTHER CARBON FREE GENERATION IS, IS VERY HIGH. NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. I DO WANNA JUST, UH, BRING TO YOUR ATTENTION THE, UH, LINE CHART IN THE BOTTOM LEFT, UM, CORNER HERE. JUST TO POINT OUT TO YOU THAT WE DID HIT A NEW WINTER SYSTEM PEAK, UM, THIS PAST FEBRUARY. UM, THAT IS AT 27 22 MEGAWATTS. THE PREVIOUS PEAK WAS, UH, IN FISCAL YEAR 24, UM, OR LAST FISCAL YEAR AT 27 0 3. SO YOU CAN SEE WE ARE HITTING, UH, CONTINUAL, UH, HIGHER PEAKS BOTH IN SUMMER AND WINTER. IN THIS CASE, THIS SHOWING THE WINTER PEAK. NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. UM, AND FINALLY, I WANNA END ON OUR DISTRIBUTION RELIABILITY METRICS. I SAID THAT THEY'RE REMAINING STABLE. YOU'LL SEE THAT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TREND LINES AT THE BOTTOM, THEY'RE DIPPING DOWN. UM, AND SO WHETHER YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE FREQUENCY IN TERMS OF NUMBER OF OUTAGES OR THE DURATION, ALL IN ALL CASES, LOWER NUMBERS ARE BETTER. AND YOU CAN SEE THAT NOT ONLY BY THE BAR CHARTS AT THE TOP THAT WE'RE COMPARING VERY FAVORABLY COMPARED TO THE TEXAS AVERAGE, BUT THAT AUSTIN ENERGY'S TREND IS MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. UM, PART OF THIS IS BECAUSE WE CONTINUE OUR WORK ON DISTRIBUTION, RESILIENCY AND HARDENING. WE HAVE 25 CIRCUITS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON END-TO-END HARDENING, UM, AND IN VARIOUS PHASES. UM, AND THEN NINE, IN ADDITION TO THOSE 25 HAVE BEEN COMPLETED. UM, LAST YEAR WE INSTALLED 79 SMART GRID DEVICES. THAT INCLUDES THINGS LIKE RECLOSERS, SMART SWITCHES, UM, SECTIONALS, AS [00:45:01] WELL AS TRIP SAVERS, WHICH ARE SMART FUSES. UM, AS YOU KNOW, OUR, UM, STUDIES ARE UNDERWAY, UH, FOR UNDERGROUND FEASIBILITY IS COMPLETED. OVERHEAD HARDENING IS STILL UNDERWAY. AND WE WILL RETURN TO YOU LATER THIS YEAR WITH COMPREHENSIVE DISTRIBUTION RESILIENCY STUDY. UH, NEXT SLIDE. THAT WRAPS UP MY QUARTERLY UPDATE. IF YOU HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, I'LL BE HAPPY TO TAKE THEM. THANK YOU, UH, VERY MUCH. UH, MS. MARTIN, I APPRECIATE THE UPDATE AND, AND GOOD TO SEE THE, THE SOLID METRICS. UH, VICE CHAIR SIEGEL, UH, THANK YOU CHAIR, AND THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. UH, I JUST WANTED TO GO BACK TO YOUR SLIDE ABOUT CARBON FREE GENERATION AS A PERCENTAGE OF LOAD. ALL RIGHT. IT SEEMS LIKE WE HIT AN ALL TIME PEAK, UH, IN MARCH. AND, UM, I GUESS IF YOU COULD JUST PROVIDE ANY MORE CONTEXT, IT JUST SEEMS VERY POSITIVE TREND LINE HERE, BUT IF YOU COULD SHARE MORE ABOUT HOW WE GOT HERE. WE'RE GOING TO SLIDE THREE, PLEASE. YEAH. UM, SO CERTAINLY IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS, THE THIS PA PAST MARCH WAS THE HIGHEST. UM, AND YES, NOT ONLY DID OUR, WAS OUR, UH, UH, RE A NUCLEAR GENERATION AT STP WORKING, YOU KNOW, A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE TIME, BUT ALSO WE HAD A, A VERY HIGH, UH, WIND AND SOLAR PERCENTAGE, UM, WITH OUR LOADS NOT BEING, UM, AS HIGH. HAVE WE EVER BEEN HIGHER THAN, LOOKS LIKE 89%. I'D HAVE TO GO BACK TO LOOK TO BE SURE. OKAY. UM, BUT IT, IT IS, IT'S, IT'S PRETTY HIGH. GREAT. THANK YOU. YEAH, CERTAINLY MOMENTARILY THEY'VE BEEN, WE'VE BEEN HIGHER, BUT FOR THE WHOLE MONTH, I DON'T THINK THAT I, I THINK THAT MIGHT BE THE HIGHEST. GREAT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, UH, VERY MUCH. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? UH, IF NOT, WE [5. Staff briefing on Austin Energy’s Weatherization Program [Richard Génecé, Vice President of Customer Energy Solutions - Austin Energy].] ARE GOING TO POSTPONE ITEM FIVE ON IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, UH, ON THE WEATHERIZATION PROGRAM. AND WE WILL GO AHEAD AND CALL UP ITEM [6. Staff briefing on Austin Energy’s Solar Program Portfolio [Tim Harvey, Director of Customer Renewable Solutions - Austin Energy].] SIX, UH, ON AUSTIN ENERGY'S SOLAR PROGRAM PORTFOLIO FROM, UH, MR. TIM HARVEY. MR. HARVEY FLOOR IS YOURS. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME'S TIM HARVEY. I'M THE DIRECTOR OF CUSTOMER RENEWABLE SOLUTIONS. I'M GONNA BRIEFLY GO OVER, UM, OUR SOLAR PROGRAMS FOR Y'ALL. SO WE HAVE SEVERAL, UM, DIFFERENT TYPES OF OFFERINGS, UM, INCLUDING SUBSCRIPTION PROGRAMS FOR CUSTOMERS WHO MAY NOT HAVE, UM, AVAILABLE ROOF SPACE FOR SOLAR OR THE MONEY FOR THAT OR, AND, UH, PROGRAMS FOR BUSINESSES TO CITE SOLAR ON THEIR ROOFS, AS WELL AS, UM, AND SENDING PROGRAMS FOR RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS. SO I'LL START OFF, UM, WITH ONE OF OUR LONGEST RUNNING PROGRAMS, GREEN CHOICE. THIS IS A, UM, WIND ENERGY PROGRAM CURRENTLY, UH, WE DO PLAN TO ADD SOLAR TO THIS PROGRAM AS WELL. UM, WE HAVE 20,000 CUSTOMERS IN THIS PROGRAM AT ANY POINT IN TIME, PRETTY MUCH. UM, AND THIS ALLOWS CUSTOMERS TO SUBSCRIBE TO 100% RENEWABLE ENERGY. UM, NEXT SLIDE. SO THAT'S FOR BOTH RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL. UM, FOR COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS, THEY CAN GET LEAD POINTS AND, AND, UH, GREEN, UM, BUILDING POINTS FOR THAT. UM, AND FOR A RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER, IT'S, IT'S ABOUT $7 AND 50 CENTS A MONTH PREMIUM. NEXT SLIDE. SO WE ALSO HAVE A SUBSCRIPTION PROGRAM FOR COMMUNITY SOLAR. THIS IS ALL BASED ON LOCAL SOLAR PRODUCTION. UM, AND CUSTOMERS CAN ALSO PARTICIPATE HERE AT 100%. THIS IS FOR RESIDENTIAL ONLY CURRENTLY. AND, UH, THE NEXT PRO, OUR NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. THE STANDARD OFFER PROGRAM, UH, WORKS TO, UM, INCREASE THE, THE PORTFOLIO OF THE COMMUNITY SOLAR PROGRAM. SO AS WE BEGIN TO ADOPT NEW STANDARD OFFER PROJECTS THAT WILL, UM, ALLOW US TO PUT MORE RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS INTO THAT PROGRAM. UH, WE DID LAUNCH THE STANDARD OFFER PROGRAM IN JANUARY, AND IT GOT OFF TO A PRETTY GOOD START. UM, SOMEWHERE AROUND SEVEN MEGAWATTS OF PROJECTS ARE MOVING FORWARD RIGHT NOW, UH, WITH ANOTHER 10 MEGAWATTS OR SO IN THE QUEUE. UM, YOU KNOW, MOVING TOWARDS THAT NEXT SLIDE. SO WE HAVE INCENTIVES FOR OUR BUSINESSES. UH, WE HAVE TWO FLAVORS OF THAT. ONE IS THE PERFORMANCE BASED INCENTIVE THAT'S, UH, GEARED TOWARDS LARGER COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS. THAT GIVES A, THE INCENTIVE OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD BASED ON THE PRODUCTION OF THE SYSTEM DURING THAT TIME. AND THEN WE HAVE THE CAPACITY BASED INCENTIVE, WHICH IS GEARED MORE TOWARDS SMALL, UH, COMMERCIAL AND NONPROFITS. THE, UH, NONPROFITS GET A, A BUMP AND INCENTIVE LEVEL THERE, AND THE CAPACITY BASED INCENTIVE IS PAID UPFRONT, UM, AS SOON AS THE PROJECT IS COMPLETED TO HELP WITH THOSE CAPITAL COST INVESTMENTS. NEXT SLIDE. WE ALSO HAVE A MULTIFAMILY PROGRAM SO THEY CAN PARTICIPATE IN THE CAPACITY BASED [00:50:01] INCENTIVE PROGRAM. WE ALSO HAVE A SHARED SOLAR, WHICH ALLOWS FOR A SINGLE POINT OF INTERCONNECTION FOR A MULTIFAMILY COMPLEX, WHICH STREAMLINES THAT PROCESS AND COSTS AND MAKES THAT MORE AVAILABLE TO, UH, MULTI-FAMILY TENANTS. UH, NEXT SLIDE. WE HAVE HOMEOWNER, UM, INCENTIVES. SO A CUSTOMER CAN EDUCATE THEMSELVES THROUGH OUR, OUR, UH, SOLAR EDUCATION PROGRAM. THIS, UH, HELPS TO ENSURE THAT THEY DON'T GET TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF BY PREDATORY, UM, SOLAR CONTRACTORS THAT EXIST OUT THERE. UM, AND THEY GET A $2,500 INCENTIVE AFTER THEY TAKE THAT EDUCATION PROGRAM TOWARDS THEIR PROJECT. UH, WE ALSO HAVE THE SOLAR FOR ALL GRANT, WHICH, WHICH YOU'VE HEARD OF. UH, THIS IS A, UH, $32 MILLION GRANT THAT AUSTIN RECEIVED, UM, THROUGH THE EPA. UM, WE PLAN TO DO ABOUT 2,500 RESIDENTIAL HOMES WITH SOLAR AND BATTERIES TO INCREASE THEIR RESILIENCY AT THE END OF THE 15 YEAR PERIOD. THOSE, THE OWNERSHIP OF THOSE, UH, SYSTEMS WILL FLIP TO THE HOST. AND DURING THAT TIME, ALL OF THE ENERGY GOES INTO A COMMUNITY SOLAR PROGRAM AND WILL SERVE 3000 LOW INCOME CUSTOMERS TO CREATE 20% BILL SAVINGS FOR 15 YEARS. SO THAT, UH, PROGRAM IS STILL UNDER DEVELOPMENT. WE EXPECT TO LAUNCH THAT NEXT, UH, LATE NEXT SPRING. UM, AND SO SOME OTHER, UH, AND OR OTHER BENEFITS TO SOLAR FOR ALL ARE, UM, YOU KNOW, ADDED RESILIENCY IN THE COMMUNITIES. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. WE'RE GONNA HAVE A STRONG ENGAGEMENT WITH THE COMMUNITY THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS. UM, WE'RE BRINGING LOW INCOME SAVINGS AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS. AND FOR ELIGIBILITY FOR HOSTING. UH, THE AREAS IN YELLOW ON THIS MAP, UH, INDICATE THE AREAS THAT, UM, HAVE BEEN DESIGNATED BY THE EPA AS ELIGIBLE TO HOST THESE SYSTEMS. UM, AND THEN THE LOW INCOME CUSTOMERS WILL BE INCOME QUALIFIED AND COULD BE ANYWHERE IN OUR SERVICE TERRITORY. SO OVERALL, UM, WE'RE MO MOVING TOWARDS OUR RESOURCE GENERATION PLAN GOALS. YOU CAN SEE WE STARTED OFF AT 165 MEGAWATTS. UH, WE'RE NOW AT 192. UM, SO IT LOOKS LIKE WE WILL MEET THE TWO HUNDRED AND FIVE TWENTY TWENTY SEVEN LOCAL SOLAR GOAL, BUT WE DO HAVE A CHALLENGE AHEAD OF US TO MEET THE 405 MEGAWATT GOAL. WE'LL HAVE TO INSTALL JUST ABOUT 22 MEGAWATTS OF SOLAR EVERY YEAR TO GET THERE. AND, UM, LAST YEAR WE HAD OUR BIGGEST YEAR AT 16 MEGAWATTS. PRIOR TO THAT, WE WERE AVERAGING ABOUT 12 TO 13. SO WE DO NEED TO INCREASE. WE, WE HOPE THAT THESE PROGRAMS WILL HELP US DO THAT. AND WE'RE LOOKING FOR OTHER INNOVATIVE WAYS TO INCREASE OUR ADOPTION RATES WITH CUSTOMERS. AND THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, HAPPY TO ANSWER. THANK YOU, UH, VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION. I, I APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS, UH, TO PUT IN PERSPECTIVE HOW AMBITIOUS, UH, THE GOAL IS IN TERMS OF THE LOCAL SOLAR, UH, INSTALLATION. UH, ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS FROM THE DAS? ALL RIGHT, WELL, AGAIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OH, I'M SORRY. COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON. UH, THANK YOU CHAIR. I JUST, I WANTED TO SAY I ALSO REALLY APPRECIATE THIS PRESENTATION. AND THEN I ALSO WANTED TO ASK AS WE ARE HAVING THOSE, THESE FUTURE FACING, UM, CONVERSATIONS ABOUT HOW, YOU KNOW, SO WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, UH, THE POTENTIAL IMPLICATIONS AROUND TARIFFS. AND SO I, AS, AS WE CONTINUE TO HAVE, UM, THESE REPORTS, I REALLY APPRECIATE US TAKING THE OPPORTUNITY TO FORMALIZE A PROCESS THAT KIND OF BUILDS IN THE DOOMSDAY INFORMATION. UM, FOR ANOTHER REASON. I, I THINK IT'S GOOD TO HAVE ACCURATE, FACTUAL, REAL, THE, THE HARD DATA SO WE CAN, UM, TO MY COLLEAGUE'S POINT FROM EARLIER, SO WE CAN MAKE THOSE HARD CHOICES. WE NEED THE GOOD DATA TO MAKE THE HARD CHOICES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? ALL RIGHT. WELL, UH, MA'AM, MR. HARVEY, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION, UH, ITEM. WE'LL GO AHEAD [Future Items] AND MOVE ON TO ITEM SEVEN. UH, IDENTIFY ITEMS TO DISCUSS AT FUTURE MEETINGS. UH, BUT AGAIN, FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO MY, MYSELF, OR, OR, UH, VICE CHAIR SEGAL. WE'LL, WE'LL, UH, UH, HAPPILY CONSIDER ANY, UH, ITEMS AT THE FUTURE MEETINGS. AND I'LL JUST NOTE THAT, UH, WE LIST ALL OF THE MEMOS DISTRIBUTED TO MAYOR AND COUNCIL, UH, THAT AFFECT AUSTIN ENERGY. THEY'RE THERE JUST FOR PUBLIC INFORMATION ON THE AGENDA. AND, UH, WITH NO FURTHER BUSINESS [00:55:01] BEFORE THE AUSTIN ENERGY UTILITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, UH, WE ARE ADJOURNED AT 1:17 PM THANK Y'ALL VERY MUCH. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE, UH, IN WAITING FOR US TO, TO, TO STRUGGLE THROUGH THE, UH, THE WORK SESSION. THANK YOU'ALL VERY MUCH. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.