* 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. [00:00:04] ALRIGHTY. HELLO. HELLO EVERYONE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PATIENCE AND UNDERSTANDING OF MY DELAY. [CALL TO ORDER] I WILL OFFICIALLY CALL THE AUSTIN TRAPS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION MEETING TO ORDER AT 2:47 PM UH, [PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL ] DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS TODAY? PLEASE COME JOIN US. UM, AND JUST SO YOU'RE AWARE, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES TO SPEAK. UM, MAKE SURE YOU CLICK THE MIC AND THAT IT'S GREEN, AND THEN YOU'LL HEAR SOME LOVELY TONES WAVING YOU OFF AT THE END THERE. YOU'LL HEAR ME. OKAY. AWESOME. UM, GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR AND COMMISSIONERS. MY NAME IS SHARON BEHILL, AND I AM THE CEO OF COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS OF CENTRAL TEXAS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY, AND FOR THE IMPORTANT ROLE YOU PLAY IN ADVISING THE CITY OF AUSTIN. YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS HELP SHAPE DECISIONS THAT DIRECTLY IMPACT THE HEALTH AND SUSTAINABILITY OF OUR CITY. YOU MIGHT HAVE HEARD THAT THE CITY RECENTLY CUT 10% OF SOCIAL SERVICE CONTRACTS AND IS PLANNING AN EVEN LARGER CUT NEXT FISCAL YEAR, THE LARGEST OF ALL DEPARTMENTS AND SERVICES. SO WE RECOGNIZE THE CITY IS NAVIGATING A CHALLENGING FINANCIAL ENVIRONMENT, AND WE APPROACH THIS CONVERSATION WITH RESPECT FOR THE COMPLEXITY OF THE DECISIONS AHEAD. WE, I AM HERE AS A PARTNER COMMITTED TO HELPING AUSTIN REMAIN A COMMUNITY WHERE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES CAN THRIVE. AT CIS, WE WORK TO ENSURE THAT STUDENTS ARRIVE AT SCHOOL READY TO LEARN AND READY TO SUCCEED. EVERY DAY ACROSS AUSTIN, WE SUPPORT YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE CARRYING MUCH MORE THAN A BACKPACK INTO A CLASSROOM. MANY ARE NAVIGATING TRAUMA, HOUSING INSTABILITY, FOOD INSECURITY, UNTREATED MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS, AND IN SOME CASES, INVOLVEMENT WITH THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM. WHEN THESE CHALLENGES GO UNADDRESSED, THEY DO NOT DISAPPEAR. THEY SURFACE IN CRISIS SYSTEMS, EMERGENCY CARE, IN PUBLIC SAFETY INFRASTRUCTURE, USUALLY THAT LEADS TO A, A, A LIFETIME OF INCARCERATION. THIS IS WHY PRE PREVENTATIVE SOCIAL SERVICES ARE NOT SIMPLY AN EXPENSE. THEY ARE ONE OF THE SMARTEST INVESTMENTS THE CITY CAN MAKE. OUR WORK DIRECTLY ADVANCES THE PRIORITIES OUTLINED IN THE CITY'S COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT IN THE COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PLAN, FIRST, YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH AND BEHAVIORAL WELLBEING. UM, THROUGH SCHOOL-BASED SUPPORTS, WE IDENTIFY NEEDS EARLY AND WE INTER, INTER INTERVENE BEFORE THEY BECOME CHALLENGES OR BEFORE THEY ESCALATE, HELPING REDUCE PRESSURES ON EMERGENCY AND CRISIS SYSTEMS. WE ALSO BRING RESOURCES DIRECTLY INTO SCHOOLS BECAUSE SOMETIMES EVEN WHEN FAMILIES HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE, THEY DON'T HAVE THE TIME TO SEEK THE SUPPORTS THAT THEY NEED. UM, THEN THIRD, WE FOCUS ON HEALTH EQUITY. OUR TEAMS SERVE HIGH NEEDS CAMPUSES AND COMMUNITIES FACING THE GREATEST BARRIERS TO CARE. UM, BECAUSE WE ARE EMBEDDED IN SCHOOLS, FAMILIES EXPERIENCE AS A TRUSTED PRESENCE ALLOWING US TO INTERVENE EARLY AND MORE EFFECTIVELY, THE RETURN ON THIS INVESTMENT IS MEASURABLE. AND I HOPE THAT YOU WILL INVITE ME TO COME BACK TO YOUR MARCH MEETING AND SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT CIS DOES AND THE TRUE STORIES OF THE FINANCIAL IMPACT, UM, THAT, UH, OF THE IMPACT THAT FIN THAT THE SUPPORTS THAT WE GET FROM THE CITY HAVE. SO, UM, WHAT I WANT, WHAT I'M ASKING IS THAT YOU CONTINUE TO, TO CHAMPION PREVENTION FOCUSED INVESTMENTS THAT YOU PROTECT UP U UPSTREAM SERVICES THAT YOU HELP PREVENT, UH, FOR FAR MORE COSTLY DOWNSTREAM INTERVENTIONS. I ASK THAT YOU REINFORCE THE CONNECTION BETWEEN EDUCATION AND PUBLIC HEALTH, STABILIZING A CHILD'S EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE, UM, BECAUSE IT'S ONE OF THE CLEAREST PATHWAYS TO IMPROVING LIFELONG AND HEALTH OUTCOMES. THAT'S IT. THANK YOU ALL. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. WE'RE ALL DONE. THANK YOU SO MUCH. PERFECT TIMING. UH, WONDERFUL. DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER FOLKS HERE TO SPEAK WITH US TODAY? OKAY, BEAUTIFUL. LET'S MOVE [APPROVAL OF MINUTES ] ON TO THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING ON JANUARY 7TH. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO MOVE? I'LL MOVE IT. ANYONE TO SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, DANNY. YOU GOT THOSE? OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS TO THE MOTION? ALL OF THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND AND IF YOU ARE ONLINE, UH, MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE ON CAMERA TO VOTE. UH, I THINK MEGAN IS JUST, UM, CENTRAL HEALTH. YEAH, THAT'S FINE. OH, SORRY. I CHECK. THAT'S OKAY. IT'S OKAY. . THANK YOU SO MUCH. SO MOVED. ALRIGHTY. [2. Presentation by One Voice regarding work on food insecurity. Presentation by Sam Woollard, Peter Arellano and Lynne Skinner. ] MOVING ON TO OUR NEXT, UH, AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS OUR DISCUSSION ITEMS. WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A PRESENTATION BY ONE VOICE REGARDING THE WORK ON THE IMPACT OF FEDERAL FUNDING CUTS PRESENTED BY SAM WALLER, WOOLARD WOOLARD, AND PETER ORO. AND LYNN SKINNER. [00:05:02] WELCOME. THANK YOU. AND APOLOGIES IF I BUTCHERED YOUR NAME. PLEASE CORRECT ME IN THE THE INTRODUCTION. HELLO. THANK YOU FOR THE INVITATION TO BE HERE TODAY. UH, MY NAME IS LYNN SKINNER. I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR SOCIAL VENTURE PARTNERS IN AUSTIN. MOST OF YOU DON'T KNOW WHO WE ARE, BUT WE ARE BEHIND THE SCENES. WE ARE A, A, A NON-PROFIT GROUP OF PROFESSIONALS WHO PROVIDE FREE ADVISORY SERVICES TO NONPROFITS IN CENTRAL TEXAS. UH, WE WORK TO STRENGTHEN STABILIZE SCALE NONPROFITS INCREASE THEIR CAPACITY, AND WE HAVE BEEN DROWNING IN REQUEST FOR SUPPORT. UH, BEFORE I INTRODUCE THE SURVEY TEAM, UM, I WANNA CLARIFY, THIS IS A VERY PRELIMINARY, UH, REPORT. WE WEREN'T QUITE READY, UH, FOR PRIME TIME, BUT WE ALSO DIDN'T WANT TO, UM, NOT MEET YOUR REQUEST. SO WE PUT IT TOGETHER. NOTHING LIKE A DEADLINE, RIGHT. TO, TO MAKE THINGS HAPPEN. SO OUR TEAM TODAY, UM, HERE WITH ME, UM, IS REPRESENTING THE COALITION TO ASSESS FEDERAL FUNDING IMPACT, BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO HAVE A NAME OF YOUR COALITION. THIS IS A GROUP OF CROSS SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS THAT CAME TOGETHER AT A MUTUAL CONCERN. OH, I NEED THE CLICKER. I GOT IT. BUT, OH, THANK YOU. HERE I AM TUCKING AWAY. AND THERE YOU GO. HOLD IT. THIS ISN'T RIGHT. PRESENTATION. THIS ISN'T THE RIGHT PRESENTATION. THIS IS ON TWO COMMITTEE. MM-HMM . YEAH. THERE WE GO AGAIN. , AGAIN. PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE. COMMISSION. COMMISSION. COMMISSION. OH, COMMISSION THE TOP ONE. THERE WE GO. I'M SORRY ABOUT THAT. IS THIS I THINK SO. THERE, IT'S LOOKS FAMILIAR THERE. THANK YOU. UM, I HOPE I GET THE CLICKER RIGHT. UM, AGAIN, VERY PRELIMINARY. THIS IS A COALITION TO ASSESS FEDERAL FUNDING IMPACT. THERE'S ABOUT A DOZEN OR SO, UM, ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN THIS. THIS IS A GROUP OF CULT, CROSS-CULTURAL, CROSS SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS THAT CAME TOGETHER OUT OF MUTUAL CONCERN FOR OUR COMMUNITY-BASED NONPROFITS, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN AFFECTED, WHO WERE RELYING ON FEDERAL FUNDING EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY. UM, US HERE TODAY, WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THE ANALYTICS PIECE. PETER ARIANO IS SENIOR PLANNER WITH THE TRAVIS COUNTY HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT, OFFICE OF THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE. PETER'S OUR DATA TRANSLATOR OR WONK, IF YOU WILL. AND HERE TO KEEP US HONEST AND ANSWER QUESTIONS, SAM WOOLARD IS PRINCIPAL OF WOOLARD AND NICHOLS, AND HERE REPRESENTING ONE BOY CENTRAL TEXAS, WHICH IS THE GROUP THAT HAS THE, UM, PULSE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICE, OR NONPROFITS IN OUR COMMUNITY. ALLISON BENTLEY, WHO COULD NOT BE HERE TODAY, IS VICE PRESIDENT OF IMPACT DATA AND EVALUATION FOR THE UNITED WAY OF GREATER AUSTIN. SO THAT IS THE TEAM THAT PUT TOGETHER OR IS WORKING ON THESE ANALYTICS. TO PUT THIS IN CONTEXT, SAM WOOLER IS GONNA PROVIDE A SNAPSHOT OF THE FAN FUNDING LANDSCAPES PAST YEAR. UM, SO WE ARE IN, UM, SOME UNSTABLE TIMES FOR OUR HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICE NONPROFITS RIGHT NOW. UM, WE'RE SEEING INSTABILITY AT ALL LEVELS OF FUNDING. UM, YOU'RE GONNA HEAR TODAY ABOUT THE, THE, WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE, UM, THE, THE FEDERAL FUNDS. HOWEVER, UH, THIS JUST VERY THIS MORNING AT THE AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE MEETING, THERE WAS, UM, DISCUSSION ABOUT THE $5.2 MILLION CUTS THE CITY JUST MADE RETROACTIVE ACTIVELY TO CON TO, UH, CONTRA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICE CONTRACTS. AND, UM, THE ANTICIPATED 16.8 MILLION FOR THE NEXT BUDGET CYCLE. SO WE ARE LOOKING, UM, AT SOME REAL CHALLENGES. IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE'VE GOT OUR INDIVIDUAL F UH, FUNDERS ARE, UM, PULLING BACK BECAUSE THEY'VE, THEY FEEL UNCERTAIN ABOUT THE CURRENT ECONOMY. UM, BUSINESSES ARE, ARE, UM, PULLING BACK AND REVISING THEIR COMMUNITY GIVING PLANS, UM, AND LOOKING AT WHAT FEDERAL MANDATES [00:10:01] ARE, UM, BRINGING, UH, TO THE TABLE AND HOW THEY, HOW THEY NAVIGATE ALL OF THOSE. UH, AS I JUST SAID, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ARE, ARE TIGHTENING THEIR BUDGETS AND THEN GROUPS LIKE SVP AND, UH, OUR LOCAL FOUNDATIONS ARE FEELING PRETTY OVERWHELMED WITH ALL THE DIFFERENT REQUESTS THAT ARE COMING IN. AND WHAT'S HAPPENING IS AS FUNDING CHANGES, UM, AND ESPECIALLY LIKE AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL, THAT MEANS THAT ORGANIZATIONS WHO TRADITIONALLY HAVE RECEIVED FEDERAL FUNDING ARE NOW LOOKING AT LOCAL FUNDING. THEY'RE NOW LOOKING AT FOUNDATION FUNDING. AND THAT PUTS A PRESSURE ALL THE WAY DOWN. WHICH ALSO MEANS THAT SOME OF OUR, UM, NEWER ORGANIZATIONS AND OUR, UM, MORE GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS ARE NOW COMPETING WITH THE BIG BOYS, UM, IN, IN TOWN. AND SO WE ARE, WE ARE SEEING THAT. AND THEN AT THE SAME TIME, VOLUNTEERISM IS JUST NOT KEEPING UP WITH, UH, WITH THE DEMAND. AND AS OUR COMMUNITY HAS GROWN AND THE DEMAND HAS GROWN. THANKS, SAM. UM, SO A QUICK SNAPSHOT ABOUT THIS SURVEY. UM, GIVE, GIVE THIS SOME CONTEXT. IN JANUARY, OF COURSE, THE NEW ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCED FEDERAL GRANT FREEZES ONE VOICE, CENTRAL TEXAS GOT A QUICK SURVEY OUT TO THEIR, IS IT 150 MEMBERS? WE GOT MORE THAN 80 AT THE MOMENT. OKAY. UM, OUT TO MEMBERS TO ASSESS THE IMMEDIATE IMPACT, UM, WHICH SHOWED A LOT OF UNCERTAINTY, UM, AND POSSIBLE CUTS. SO IN FEBRUARY, WE ALL GOT TOGETHER, UM, A GROUP OF ORGANIZATIONAL AND GOVERNMENTAL LEADERS. THAT'S WHERE PILAR AND, UM, ADRIAN WERE ALSO IN THAT MEETING. WE GATHERED ALL THE INTEREST PARTIES IN JULY. UM, YOU SAW THE COALITION SLIDE, AND WE ALL AGREED THAT THE COMMUNITY NEEDED ONE SOURCE OF INFORMATION THAT COULD HELP INFORM COLLABORATION, ADVOCACY, FUNDING, SUPPORT, AND WRAPAROUND SERVICE EFFORTS IN CENTRAL TEXAS. SO WE WORKED TOGETHER IN TEAMS, ALL OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS, UM, TO FIRST DESIGN THE SURVEY. UM, AND THEN THERE WAS A COMMUNICATIONS AND PLANNING TEAM THAT WORKED TOGETHER TO PUT A TOOLKIT WHERE WE ALL PUSHED THE SURVEY OUT. UM, WE WANTED TO GET A BROAD AS COVERAGE AS WE COULD. WE OPENED THE SURVEY OCTOBER 1ST, UM, AND CLOSED THE SURVEY ON NOVEMBER 21ST. INITIALLY, WE HAD ABOUT A HUNDRED RESPONSES, HOWEVER, AFTER DE-DUPING AND CLEANING MM-HMM. , WE NETTED ABOUT 82 SOLID SUBMISSIONS. THANK YOU, PETER. SO I'LL GET DOWN INTO THE, THE DATA. UM, THIS IS JUST ALL HIGH LEVEL. THE FIRST SLIDE REFLECTS THE SERVICE AREAS OF OUR NONPROFIT RESPONDENTS. BOTTOM LINE IS 70% OF THE, THE RESPONDENTS SERVE THE COMBINED REGION. THAT IS FIVE COUNTY, MSA AND NEIGHBORING COUNTIES, WHICH OF COURSE INCLUDES TRAVIS COUNTY. AS A SIDE NOTE, 17% OF THOSE ONLY SERVE TRAVIS COUNTY. THIS IS A QUICK SNAPSHOT OF RESPONDENTS. THERE ARE ROUGHLY 6,400 EMPLOYEES IN THESE 82 ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE AFFECTED. 21% OF THOSE ARE SUPPORTED BY FEDERAL FUNDS, 21%. UM, MOST OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS ARE LARGER. THE ONES THAT, UM, GET FEDERAL FUNDING MORE, THAT IS MORE THAN A A MILLION DOLLARS IN ANNUAL REVENUE. 37% OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS RESPONDING FOCUS THEIR WORK IN HUMAN SERVICES WITH THE SECOND LARGEST. YOU CAN SEE, UM, AREAS, EDUCATION, AND FOLLOWED BY HEALTHCARE. BUT WHILE THAT DATA KIND OF REFLECTED A LARGER SWATH OF FOCUS AREAS, THE SECONDARY FOCUS AREAS, I THINK TELL A BETTER STORY ABOUT HOW THESE CUTS ARE REALLY GOING TO AFFECT PEOPLE AND FAMILIES. 31% OR OR 31 OF THE 82 ORGANIZATIONS OFFER MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ALMOST THE SAME AMOUNT. 29 OFFER FAMILY SUPPORT. YOU'LL SEE THAT FURTHERMORE, OUR CHILDREN THROUGH EDUCATION, YOUTH SERVICES, AND ALL OF THE ABOVE ARE HIGH UP ON THIS LIST. HEALTH, WELLNESS, AND NUTRITION. AND THEN HOUSING AND HOMELESS SERVICES ARE ALSO MOST LIKELY TO BE HAD A FULL 68% OF RESPONDENTS WERE RECEIVING FEDERAL FUNDING, EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY. YOU CAN SEE MOST OF THOSE ARE INDIRECT. UM, THEY RECEIVE PASS THROUGH FUNDING THROUGH GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES AND LARGER NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. WE ALSO ASKED THE QUESTION, UH, BEFORE THEY LEFT THE SURVEY TOOL. SO IF YOU DON'T RECEIVE FEDERAL FUNDING, EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, ARE THESE FEDERAL CUTS EVEN GONNA AFFECT YOUR ORGANIZATION? 74% SAID YES. [00:15:01] WE ASKED THAT OPEN-ENDED QUESTION. WELL, HOW, UM, THE MAIN TAKEAWAY BY THESE ORGANIZATIONS REFLECTED THAT TRICKLE DOWN OF FUNDING LOSSES. AS LARGER NONPROFITS WHO RECEIVE THE FEDERAL FUNDS LOSE THEM, THEY START, FINISH, THEY START FISHING FROM THE SAME SMALL POND AS ALL THE OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT DON'T RELY ON FEDERAL FUNDS. SO COMPETITION FOR FUNDING GETS TOUGHER WHILE THE DEMAND FOR SERVICES IS INCREASING. THAT'S THE NET TAKEAWAY OF, OF THOSE. UM, SO WHERE WERE THOSE FUNDS ORIGINATING? JUST A SNAPSHOT. 20% OF THE FUNDS WERE FROM THE US DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, THE BIG CHUNK. AND THEN, UM, ANOTHER 25% CAME FROM DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND THE VICTIMS OF CRIME ACT. UM, YOU CAN SEE, AND I THINK YOU'LL HAVE THIS DECK SO THAT YOU CAN KIND OF DRILL DOWN, SEE THE REST. NOW, WE'LL GET DOWN TO THE HARD PART. AND JUST A REMINDER, UM, THAT THIS IS ONLY 82 NONPROFITS AND ONLY BETWEEN JANUARY 27TH AND OCTOBER 1ST OF LAST YEAR, 27% OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS HAVE ALREADY FELT THE EFFECTS THEY'VE HAD TO REDUCE SERVICES, REDUCE STAFF, REDUCE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THEY'RE SERVING, CUT INFRASTRUCTURE, INVESTMENT, AND HIRING. 33% EXPECT TO FEEL THE EFFECTS IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS, ESPECIALLY IN THE REDUCTION OF SERVICES IN PEOPLE. THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE SERVED. THOSE WERE THE IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF THE MORE THAN $18 MILLION. WE HAD $127,400, UM, THAT WAS BEING BROUGHT IN BY THESE NONPROFITS THROUGH FEDERAL FUNDING. THEY IMMEDIATELY LOST 18 OVER $18 MILLION. UM, IN ADDITION, 23 MILLION. OF COURSE, IT'S NOT OVER, RIGHT? UH, , AS OF OCTOBER 1ST, AN ADDITIONAL 23 MILLION HAS EITHER BEEN FROZEN OR IS IN A STATE OF COMPLETE UNCERTAINTY. THAT'S ALMOST $42 MILLION EITHER GONE OR ON THE BRINK OF BEING GONE. THAT'S A BIG NUMBER. UM, REAL QUICK SNAPSHOT, 70 PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY BEEN LAID OFF IN THESE 82 NONPROFITS WITH ANOTHER 40 EXPECTED IN THE COMING MONTHS. UM, AND NONPROFIT CAPACITY IS ALREADY STRETCHED. SO YOU CAN IMAGINE WHEN YOU'RE LOSING YOUR COLLEAGUES LEFT AND RIGHT, WHAT PRESSURE THAT PUTS ON YOU AS A NONPROFIT STAFF MEMBER. THE ANXIETY IS REAL. WHEN ASKED IF THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN OPERATIONS AFTER THEIR FEDERAL FUNDING IS LOST, MOST OF THEM SAID YES. BUT, UM, 32 OF THEM SAID THEY, THEY WOULD HAVE TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF CLIENTS THAT THEY SERVE. 31 SAID THEY WOULD NEED TO SUSPEND PROGRAMS AND SERVICES. 27 SAID THEY WOULD NEED TO LAY OFF STAFF IN ORDER TO CONTINUE OPERATIONS. WELL, IF YOU WERE JUST UNSURE, THERE ARE THREE THAT ARE, ARE LIKELY IF THEY HAVEN'T ALREADY CLOSED THEIR DOORS. I'M GONNA TURN THIS OVER TO SAM AGAIN. SO WE ASKED FOLKS LIKE, WHAT, WHAT MITIGATING ACTIONS ARE YOU ALREADY TAKING OR YOU'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT? AND WHAT, WHAT ARE YOUR BOARDS TALKING ABOUT? AND SO YOU'LL SEE ON THIS SLIDE, THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT PEOPLE ARE ALREADY DOING OR TRYING TO DO. SO THEY DON'T END UP IN THAT CLOSED CATEGORY, RIGHT? SO THEY'RE LOOKING AT COST SHARING. THEY'RE LOOKING AT SCENARIO PLANNING AND FINANCIAL MODELING. THEY'RE LOOKING AT AT HOW THEY CAN REDUCE BENEFITS. THEY'RE LOOKING AT LIMITING THE NUMBERS OF FOLKS SERVE. THEY'RE LOOKING AT ALL OF THOSE THINGS THAT YOU CAN SEE ON THEIR SUN SETTING, PROGRAMS, BUDGET CUTTING. SOME ARE EVEN LOOKING AT MERGING, UM, WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS. SO OUR NONPROFITS ARE, AND, AND THEIR BOARDS ARE TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY, AND THEY ARE REALLY LOOKING AT ALL OF THE DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVES THAT THEY CAN DO IN ORDER NOT TO STOP SERVING THE FOLKS THAT THEY, THEY SERVE. YOU CAN SEE FROM KIND OF THE INSIGHTS. THIS, THIS RIPPLE EFFECT JUST KEEPS, IT JUST KEPT COMING THROUGH. ALL OF THE DIFFERENT, UM, ALL OF THE DIFFERENT, UH, THINGS THAT WE HEARD BACK FROM FOLKS OF, OF THIS, THIS RIPPLE DOWN EFFECT. THE OTHER PART AS WELL AS THE FUNDING IS THE CULTURE. UM, THAT IS THAT, UM, THERE, THE, THE NONPROFITS ARE IN, THEY'RE FEELING EVEN AT THE VERY TOP LEVELS, THERE ARE LOTS OF DISCUSSIONS ABOUT HOW NONPROFITS REALLY AREN'T WORTH IT, AND THEY'RE JUST SUCKING OUT MONEY. AND THERE, THERE, THERE'S A LOT OF REALLY, UM, DISPARAGING COMMENTS THAT ARE BEING MADE BY FOLKS AT THE VERY HIGHEST AND TOP ENDS OF OUR POLITICAL SYSTEM AT [00:20:01] THE MOMENT. AND THAT, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, CHALLENGING FOR FOLKS, RIGHT? IF YOU HEAR THAT ABOUT THE SECTOR THAT YOU WORK IN. UM, AND THERE'S ALSO THE EROSION OF TRUST. WE HEARD THAT EARLIER TODAY IN, IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE FROM THE NONPROFITS WHO WERE TALKING ABOUT THE 10% CUT, WHAT WAS MADE RETROACTIVE TO SEPTEMBER ONE, WHERE THEY HAD STAFFED UP FOR PROGRAMS. THEY HAD TAKEN ON, UH, CLIENTS UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY WERE GONNA HAVE FUNDS, AND THEN THEY GET HIT WITH A 10% CUT. BUT THAT 10% CUT DIDN'T COME UNTIL A THIRD OF THE WAY UNTIL THREE MONTHS INTO THEIR CONTRACT. SO NOW THEY'VE GOTTA CUT, TAKE THAT CUT ACROSS THE LAST NINE MONTHS, RIGHT? SO, UM, AND THAT ERODES THE TRUST OF, OF WORKING WITH THE CITY. UM, OBVIOUSLY THERE'S IMPACTS ON CLIENTS FOR LONGER WAIT TIMES. UM, WE'RE SEEING THAT IT'S IMPACTING ALL LEVELS OF, UH, THE CLIENTS THAT THEY SERVE. AND THERE'S, UM, YOU KNOW, SERVICES ARE SHRINKING AND STIGMAS INCREASING. THERE'S MORE INSTABILITY, MORE PRESSURE. UM, YOU JUST HEAR THAT ALL THROUGH THE COMMENTS THAT WE RECEIVED. AND THEN THE OTHER PART OF, OF THE CULTURE THAT, UH, NONPROFITS ARE FACING ARE THE IMPACTS ON DEI AND HOW THAT IS IMPACTING, ESPECIALLY MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES. AND, UM, THE FOLKS ARE HAVING TO DO THINGS LIKE REWRITE THEIR MISSION STATEMENTS IN THEIR, WITH THEIR WEBSITES SO THAT THEY CAN CONFORM IF THEY ARE, UH, RECEIVING FEDERAL FUNDS. BUT THEY ARE, UM, FEELING ALL OF THE DIFFERENT IMPACTS OF ALL OF THE, THE, UM, CHALLENGES THAT, THAT, UH, DEI IS HAVING THE, THE CHALLENGES TO DEI. AND THEN SINCE THE SURVEY, WE'RE BRINGING EVEN MORE GOOD NEWS, RIGHT? UM, WE DO HAVE SOME SOLUTIONS, UH, OR SOME OPPORTUNITIES I THINK AT, AT THE END. BUT, UM, THE INSTABILITY CONTINUES. UM, THREE WEEKS AGO, THE, UH, DHS ANNOUNCED IT WAS PULLING $2 BILLION IN MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE FUNDING. AND THEN THERE WAS AN OUTCRY AND THEY REINSTATED IT THE NEXT DAY. HOWEVER, JUST THAT ANNOUNCEMENT CREATED A HUGE RIPPLE EFFECT IN THE COMMUNITY OF, YOU KNOW, AND ADVOCACY AND ALL. AND SO THAT TAKES PEOPLE AWAY FROM THEIR FOCUS ON THEIR MISSION, RIGHT? LIKE, IT'S, IT'S THIS CONSTANT, LIKE, ARE WE GONNA BE ABLE TO DO SOME THINGS? THERE WERE FUNDS THAT WERE BUDGETED AND INTENDED TO COME TO THE COMMUNITY. THERE'S AN EMERGENCY FOOD AND SHELTER PROGRAM. THERE WAS ABOUT $770,000 THAT WAS INTENDED TO COME TO, UM, EXCUSE ME, UM, TO OUR COMMUNITY FOR EMERGENCY FOOD, EMERGENCY SHELTER, RENTAL ASSISTANCE. UM, THOSE BUDGET, THOSE FUNDS WERE ALLOCATED. THE COMMUNITY WAS TOLD THEY WERE COMING. UH, NOBODY HAS EVER SIGNED OFF ON THEM ACTUALLY GETTING TO THE LOCAL COMMUNITY THAT'S HAPPENING IN OTHER WAYS. THE HOUSING PROGRAM FOR PEOPLE WITH AIDS, THEY, UM, THEIR CONTRACTS ENDED ON SEPTEMBER 30TH. THEY GOT NEW CONTRACTS ON DECEMBER 22ND. THEY'VE PREVIOUSLY, THEY'VE ALWAYS BEEN ABLE TO CHARGE BACK ANY, ANY COSTS THAT WERE HAPPENED BETWEEN OCTOBER ONE AND DECEMBER 22ND. THEY WERE TOLD THIS TIME THAT THAT DOESN'T, THAT'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN. SO THEY NOW HAVE TWO AND A HALF MONTHS OF, OF FUNDING THAT IS NOT THERE. AND FOR PROJECT TRANSITIONS AS AN EXAMPLE, THAT'S $400,000. SO THESE ARE NOT INSUBSTANTIAL AMOUNTS OF MONEY THAT ARE, UM, HAPPENING. AND, AND IT'S LIKE A DAILY, LIKE WHAT'S THE LATEST, YOU KNOW, UM, THAT THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN. SO, SO JUST TO WRAP THIS, BECAUSE WE WANNA HAVE TIME FOR QUESTIONS. UM, AS A COALITION, WE'RE STRONGLY ENCOURAGING THE PUBLIC NOT JUST TO LOOK AT NUMBERS, BUT THE REAL EFFECTS ON PEOPLE'S LIVES. UM, WE NEED TO TALK TO POTENTIAL FUNDERS, PHILANTHROPISTS TELL STORIES, UM, LET, HELP THEM UNDERSTAND. SOMETIMES YOU JUST SEE NUMBERS AND IT GOES IN ONE EAR AND OUT THE OTHER, BUT YOU TELL A STORY AND IT, AND IT RESONATES. UM, THE, UM, EFFECTS ARE HAVING ON NON-PROFIT STAFF IS INCREDIBLE. IT IS BEEN DEMEANING. IT'S BEEN CAUSED SO MUCH ANXIETY AND FEAR. UM, AND THEY'RE THE ONES OUT ON THE FRONT LINES SERVING OUR NEIGHBORS. UM, BUT THERE ARE STORIES BEHIND EVERY NUMBER. AND OUR, OUR GOAL IS TO HELP TELL THOSE. SO I'M GONNA, UM, AS WE OPEN IT FOR QUESTIONS, WHICH WE WILL NOW DO. PETER HAS A DISCLAIMER. . WELL, UH, MY NAME IS PETER. I WORK FOR TRAVIS COUNTY HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND I WAS BROUGHT IN, IN THE BACK END OF THIS PROJECT TO DO ALL THE DATA ANALYSIS OF THE DATA CLEANING. AND I JUST WANTED TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT, JUST TO PROVIDE SOME CONTEXT FOR SOME OF THE NUMBERS THAT WE, [00:25:01] UH, PRESENTED TODAY. UH, I THINK THE BIGGEST TAKEAWAY THAT I WANTED TO CONVEY IS, UM, LIKE I, I THINK ALL OF OUR NUMBERS ARE, ARE, ARE, ARE UNDER REPORTED. UM, SO, UH, SO THE SURVEY CONSISTED OF QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE ITEMS. AND SO I WAS BROUGHT IN TO, UH, MY METHOD, UH, WAS TO CLEAN ALL THE QUANTITATIVE ITEMS AND DO THE BEST I COULD WITH THE QUALITATIVE ITEMS. AND SO, UH, SO I WENT THROUGH ALL THE SURVEY, UH, DATA. I CLEANED ALL THE QUANTITATIVE ITEMS, AND WE REPORTED EACH INDIVID EACH ITEM INDIVIDUALLY, UH, WITH DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS. UM, AND THEN AS FAR AS THE LIMITATIONS GO, I THINK, UH, SORT OF THE, LIKE ANY SURVEY, UM, THE SURVEY RESPONSE WANED AS WE WENT. UH, AS WE GOT TO THE END OF THE SURVEY, WE HAD 82 RESPONSES, UM, THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY DIDN'T COMPLETE THE WHOLE SURVEY, UH, BUT THE ANSWERS VARIED AS FAR AS HOW MANY RESPONSES WE GOT IN EACH, EACH ITEM. UM, I THINK SORT OF THE, THE BIGGEST, UH, SORT OF DRAWBACK THERE WAS, AND THE, AND THE NUMBERS THAT LYNN, UH, PROVIDED WITH THE MONEY THAT HAD BEEN CUT, UH, THE DEEPER DIVE INTO NUMBERS WAS THE SURVEY SECTION, AND THAT WAS OUR LOWEST RESPONSE RATE. AND I THINK THAT'S WHERE THE MEAT OF THE SURVEY LIED. AS FAR AS THE ACTUAL NUMBERS. WE'VE ALL HEARD THE STORIES IN THE NEWS, YOU KNOW, BUT I THINK WE STARTED TO PUT TOGETHER SOME DATA AND SOME ACTUAL, AND, YOU KNOW, FINANCIAL NUMBERS OF WHAT'S ACTUALLY HAPPENING OUT THERE AND SORT OF, UH, CORRELATING THOSE TWO. UH, SO YEAH, LIKE I SAID, I JUST WANTED TO GIVE SOME KIND OF CONTEXT ON THE LI LIMITATIONS AND THAT I THINK THAT A LOT OF THE ITEMS, UM, WERE UNDER REPORTED. AND SO THE, THE ACTUAL SCOPE OF THE PROBLEM, WE KIND OF VIEWED THIS SURVEY AS MORE EXPLORATORY IN NATURE TO KIND OF GIVE US A BASELINE OF WHAT WE MIGHT BE DEALING WITH. AND SO I THINK WHEN WE, WHEN YOU ACTUALLY, UH, GET INTO THE THICK OF IT, AND, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE START LOOKING AT THE DATA SET IN DIFFERENT WAYS, WHICH WE, WE CAN DO, UM, WE'LL SEE A LOT MORE, UM, IMPACT OUT THERE. AND THEN LASTLY, I THINK, UH, THERE'S A LOT OF RICH DATA IN THE QUALITATIVE ITEMS THAT WERE PROVIDED TO US. UH, FURTHER ANALYSIS OF THOSE IS GONNA PROVIDE SOME OF THAT REAL TIME ANECDOTAL DATA TO SUPPORT ALL THE QUANTITATIVE FINDINGS. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME, YOUR PRESENTATION, UH, THE WORK YOU'RE DOING. UM, IT'S HEAVY. MM-HMM . IT'S HEAVY TO EXPERIENCE. UM, I, I AM, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THE COMMISSION IS REALLY FOCUSED ON IS THE HEALTH SIDE OF THOSE HUMAN SERVICES AND UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCE OF OUR, OUR CAPACITY AND CAPABILITIES WITHIN OUR OWN COMMISSION. UM, AND LOOKING AT UNDERSTANDING MAYBE EVEN WHERE THE POPULATIONS THAT WERE SERVED WITH THOSE ORGANIZATIONS, UM, GETTING SOME ZIP CODE DATA, AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT HOW TO, UM, HOPEFULLY MAKE SOME MAYBE RECOMMENDATIONS BEHIND THAT. UM, LOOKING AT THE PROGRAMMING THAT'S BEEN DECREASED, UM, I KNOW FOR INSTANCE, UH, WE HAD A, A WONDERFUL PRESENTATION FROM A FEW OF DIFFERENT PARTNERS WHO'VE WORKED ON THE CHA CHIP. UH, AND THEY ARE ACTIVELY WORKING ON MENTAL HEALTH AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES AND SUPPORTIVE SERVICES. THAT IS SOMETHING THEY ARE OWNING. UM, AND SO IS THERE A WAY THAT WE CAN COLLABORATIVELY ADDRESS, OKAY, YOU ALL, ALL OF YOUR INSTITUTIONS WHO HAD PROGRAMMINGS CUT, UH, WHO NEED MENTAL HEALTH AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES, MAYBE THAT'S A CONVERSATION THAT GOES AND HAPPENS WITH BAYLOR SCOTT AND WHITE CENTRAL HEALTH. ALL OF THOSE FOLKS THAT, WHO ARE FOCUSED ON THAT, THEY'VE ALLOCATED DOLLARS TO BE ABLE TO DO THOSE THINGS. UM, BUT I DO, THOSE ARE JUST MY TOP OF THE MIND THINGS. I KNOW WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO SEE THE DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS OF WHAT'S HAPPENING TO OUR COMMUNITY. UM, BUT I, I ALSO THINK WE DO NEED TO HAVE MORE OF THOSE STORIES OF WHAT THE REAL IMPACT IS. UM, AS SOMEONE WHO IS ON THE, THE FUNDING SIDE OF THINGS, I, IT'S A MESS. FUNDERS ARE OVERWHELMED AND MM-HMM . AND SHUTTING DOWN OPPORTUNITIES EARLY BECAUSE THEY CAN'T HANDLE IT. UH, AND SO EVEN UNDERSTANDING, JUST, I KNOW THAT'S NOT WHERE OUR COMMISSION CAN SUPPORT AND HELP, UM, BUT AGAIN, HAVING SOME RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE COULD PUT TOGETHER OF WAYS THAT WE CAN HELP CONVERSATIONS MOVE. UM, I KNOW WITH THE, WITH THE MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF BUDGET CUTS WITH THE CITY, UM, MAKING A BUDGET RECOMMENDATION MIGHT BE A WISH, HOPE AND A PRAYER, BUT SOMETHING THAT CAN STILL BE DONE. MM-HMM . UM, AND I'LL, I'LL LEAVE THE FLOOR OPEN TO OUR COMMISSIONERS, UH, ESPECIALLY THOSE THAT ARE JOINING US ONLINE. UM, IF YOU HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS OR IF THERE WAS INFORMATION THAT YOU [00:30:01] ALL STILL WANTED TO GET FROM ONE VOICE, PLEASE. COMMISSIONER RICE, I, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATION VERY MUCH. AND I'M SORRY I'M NOT THERE IN PERSON TODAY. I WONDERED IF THERE'S A SENSE OF THE OVERALL GAP AND THERE'S ALWAYS A GAP. SO THAT'S NOT REALLY WHAT I'M TRYING TO ASK, BUT I WOULD SAY LIKE IN THE LAST YEAR, YOU HAVE THIS SORT OF, YOU KNOW, GIGANTIC, UM, GAP THAT'S EMERGED OR SOME SIZE GAP THAT HAS EMERGED. I'M NOT SURE IT'S AN IMPORTANT QUESTION BECAUSE I'M JUST TRYING TO GET A SENSE OF, OF HOW BIG THAT IS. BUT IS IT, IS IT $10 MILLION? IS IT $5 MILLION? WHAT, WHAT DO YOU SENSE IS THE, THE ACTUAL GAP THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT? UM, JUST HELPS ME THINK ABOUT THE SIZE OF THE PROBLEM. IT, IT, I WOULD SAY IT'S GROWING. YEAH. I MEAN, I MEAN, AT THE BOTTOM, THE, THE BOTTOM LEVEL OF THAT IS ABOUT 25 MILLION MM-HMM . AND, UM, THE TOP IS PROBABLY 80 MM-HMM . SOMETHING LIKE THAT TOP IS, HOW MUCH DID YOU SAY? 80 AROUND, YEAH. SO 50 TO $80 MILLION OF THE GAP IS WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. JUST, JUST TALKING ABOUT THE DATA THAT WE PRESENTED WITH, UH, THE FUNDING QUESTIONS. I THINK, UH, WE, YOU PRESENTED A NUMBER OF 18 MILLION MM-HMM . AND THAT PROBABLY REPRESENTED ABOUT A QUARTER OF THE DATA SET, UH, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT RESPONSE RATES. SO USING THAT INFORMATION, UH, WE CAN TALK ABOUT, I THINK 18 MILLION AS SORT OF LIKE A BOTTOM, BUT, RIGHT. LIKE I SAID, THE NUMBERS WERE UNDER REPORTED IN THE SURVEY, SO I THINK IT'S A LOT MORE THAN THAT PLUS, SO 4 MILLION THAT'S ALREADY, YEAH. THAT, SO, YEAH. THANK YOU. YEAH. IT'S A BIG NUT. YOU MENTIONED SOME POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES. CAN YOU SHARE MORE ABOUT THOSE? I THINK, I THINK THE, THE BIGGEST OPPORTUNITY THAT WE'RE, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IS THE CRISIS PRESENTS OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO COME TOGETHER AND TALK IN WAYS AND PROBLEM SOLVE IN WAYS THAT MAYBE WE HAVEN'T DONE BEFORE, BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA BE FORCED TO BE CREATIVE. AND SO, UM, I, I THINK THAT THAT IS KIND OF WHAT WE, WHAT YOU ALL HAVE, I THINK, HAVE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IS, IS LIKE, CAN WE GET THE SECTORS TOGETHER? CAN WE GET THE FUNDERS AND AND THE NONPROFITS IN THE SAME ROOM? CAN WE ENCOURAGE THE CITY TO, TO PARTICIPATE IN THOSE DISCUSSIONS SO THAT WE CAN FIGURE OUT WHEN WE'RE A CREATIVE COMMUNITY, WE, WE KNOW HOW TO WORK TOGETHER, WE, WE, THERE ARE THINGS THAT WE CAN DO THAT ARE BETTER INTEGRATION, BETTER, YOU KNOW, OTHER SYSTEMS THAT WE CAN PUT IN PLACE, OR I THINK THERE'S WAYS THAT WE CAN TALK ABOUT THOSE THINGS AND WE CAN USE THIS, THIS REALLY CHALLENGING TIME AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO START THOSE CONVERSATIONS. AND THOSE CONVERSATIONS WOULD ALSO INCLUDE, UM, FUNDERS, UH, NEW AND OLD, UM, WHO COULD MAYBE LEVERAGE SOMETHING WITH, UH, A NEW DONOR COMMUNITY. UM, WE'VE BEEN, UH, WE'RE TALKING WITH, UH, OR WORKING WITH INGRID TAYLOR AT, UH, UNITED WAY. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT, UM, A PROJECT THAT WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT, UH, SOME KIND OF A CONVENING WHERE WE HAVE THOSE, UM, SERVICE ECOSYSTEMS TOGETHER IN A ROOM SIMILAR TO THIS. JUST, IT, IT'S NOT GONNA BE, UM, FUN, BUT IT, THESE CONVERSATIONS NEED TO BE HAD. AND, UM, . SO THAT'S KIND OF TAGGING ON TO WHAT, YEAH. YOU SAID A KEY THING THERE, I THINK, WHICH IS THAT, UM, I, I WAS GONNA ASK LIKE, WHO DO YOU SEE AS THE, UH, THE RIGHT CONVENER, UM, TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS THAT ADDRESS THIS KIND OF MAYBE FOUNDATIONALLY DIFFERENT TIME THAT WE'RE IN AT THIS MOMENT? WELL, WE HAVE THIS COALITION, I MEAN, THIS, IF, IF YOU GO BACK TO THE SIZE, IT'S INCLUDES, UH, UNITED WAY, AUSTIN COMMUNITY FOUNDATION, ST. DAVID'S FOUNDATION, UM, CENTRAL HEALTH, UH, GEORGETOWN HEALTH. WHAT'S HEALTH FOUNDATION? HEALTH HEALTH FOUNDATION. UM, I LIVE HERE. I GIVE HERE, UM, ONE VOICE, CENTRAL TEXAS MM-HMM . SOCIAL VENTURE PARTNERS. UM, SO THERE'S, THERE'S 12 OF US, THE CITY OF AUSTIN PILAR AND, UM, AND ADRIAN, ADRIAN ARE BOTH ON THAT, IN THAT COALITION. UM, AND I BELIEVE, I, I CAN'T TELL YOU SPECIFICALLY WHO'S GONNA ISSUE AN EMAIL AND SET UP A DOODLE POLL TO PULL PEOPLE TOGETHER, BUT THIS IS A, WE HAVE BEEN WORKING TOGETHER FOR NOW, SINCE JULY, AND IT'S BEEN VERY FLUID. IT'S BEEN, UM, EVERYONE IS STEPS [00:35:01] TO THE TABLE. WE BROKE UP INTO COMMITTEES, THE PEOPLE WHO KNOW HOW TO DESIGN SURVEYS, PEOPLE WHO KNOW HOW TO COMMUNICATE. SOMEONE FROM AUSTIN COMMUNITY FOUNDATION, SOMEONE FROM ST. DAVID'S, MYSELF, SAM, I MEAN, WE HAVE BEEN CROSS POLLINATING THESE, UM, COMMITTEES TO WORK TOWARD THIS AND ARE COMMITTED TO CONTINUE WORK TOGETHER. I JUST WANNA THANK YOU ALL AGAIN FOR THIS WORK. I MEAN, UH, I'VE WORKED WITH A FEW NONPROFITS AND IT'S NOT EASY, LIKE YOU SAID, AND ESPECIALLY WHEN, YOU KNOW, THE FUNDING, UM, GOES AWAY. UM, JUST ONE THOUGHT AS FAR AS THE COALITION, I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT GROUPS SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A BIG STRENGTH, BUT ALSO IT CAN BE HARD TO HAVE, UH, A DIRECTION. MM-HMM . YOU KNOW, JUST THOUGHTS ON, UM, JUST IDENTIFYING, UH, SOMEONE TO TAKE, LEAD ON IT AND MAYBE COORDINATE THESE EFFORTS MIGHT BE HELPFUL. AND I'M NEW TO THE COMMISSION, BUT NOT SURE HOW THE COMMISSION CAN SPECIFICALLY HELP WITH THAT. BUT WE'D BE HAPPY TO, YOU KNOW, UM, OBVIOUSLY SUPPORT THIS WORK AS MUCH AS WE CAN. THANK YOU FOR THAT. NOTED. I DUNNO IF THAT WAS SUPER HELPFUL, BUT HOPEFULLY NO, IT IS. THANK YOU. WE DIDN'T REALLY KNOW FROM THE BEGINNING WHERE THIS WAS GONNA LEAD US. WE JUST KNEW THAT WE HAD THIS MUTUAL CONCERN, AND SO THAT'S KIND OF WHERE WE STARTED. AND SO THANK YOU FOR THAT RECOMMENDATION. I NOTED THAT VOLUNTEERISM IS DOWN, WAS ONE OF THE THINGS Y'ALL HAD LISTED. DO YOU HAVE ANY MORE INFORMATION AROUND THAT? I FEEL LIKE THAT MIGHT BE, IT'S, IT'S A NATIONAL TREND THAT WE'RE SEEING. UM, AND PART OF THAT IS JUST PEOPLE ARE BUSY AND, UM, THERE'S SOME GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES IN HOW PEOPLE VIEW VOLUNTEERISM. AND THERE'S DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH, UM, YOUNGER FOLKS WANNA BE ENGAGED GENERATIONAL. SO DIFFERENT YOUNGER FOLKS WANNA BE ENGAGED IN DIFFERENT WAYS AND SORT OF MORE TRADITIONAL VOLUNTEER PROGRAMS ARE SET UP. SO THERE'S A, IT'S, THERE'S NOT AN A, A ONE ANSWER TO THAT. AND THERE'S LOTS OF FOLKS WHO ARE REALLY TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THAT THAT WORK. YEAH. THERE, THERE ARE, UM, YOU KNOW, THOSE TRANSACTIONAL GO DIG POST HOLES AT HABITAT FOR HUMANITY ONE WEEKEND. AND THERE ARE GROUPS THAT REALLY LIKE TO DO THAT, UM MM-HMM . AND THEN WE, WHAT WE DO IS SKILLS BASED VOLUNTEERING. SO EVERYONE'S EITHER A MARKETER, A COMMUNICATOR, AN ACCOUNTANT, A, YOU KNOW, CRM MASTER, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE SKILLS-BASED VOLUNTEERS THAT WE'RE BRINGING TO THE TABLE. AND WE CAN USE MORE IF YOU HAPPEN TO BE ONE . UM, BUT IT, IT, IT REALLY IS AFFECTING, UM, YOU WOULD THINK AT THIS POINT IN TIME WITH THE, UM, THE UPHEAVAL AND THE UNCERTAINTY THAT PEOPLE WOULD WANNA STEP UP. AND IT, THAT'S, IT'S NOT HAPPENING LIKE IT SHOULD BE OR WE, WHAT WE WOULD HOPE IT WOULD BE. INTERESTING. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, REMARKS FROM THOSE ONLINE? I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU AS WELL. UH, I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO TALK TO YOU, UH, AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS MM-HMM . AND IT'S, I'M PRETTY IMPRESSED ABOUT HOW THINGS CAME TOGETHER AND THE DATA THAT YOU'VE SHOWN US TODAY. I MEAN, IT'S, UM, YEAH, I'D LOVE TO THINK ABOUT. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU FOR INVITING US. YEAH, THANK YOU. WE APPRECIATE IT. ABSOLUTELY. AND IF THERE ARE OTHER COMMENT, UH, UPDATES, THINGS LIKE THAT, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SHARE THOSE WITH DANNY. UM, THIS DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A ONE TIME CONVERSATION. YEP. UM, AND, AND IF THERE'S WAYS THAT WE COME UP WITH THINGS, WE'LL ABSOLUTELY REACH OUT AND SAY, WE'D LOVE TO HAVE YOU BACK TO HAVE A CONVERSATION AND SHE'S GOT OUR CONTACT INFORMATION. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. THANK FOR SERVING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. ALRIGHT, UH, MOVING ON TO [3. Receive updates from commissioners on assigned action items. ] DISCUSSION ITEM NUMBER THREE, UH, WHICH IS TO RECEIVE UPDATES FROM COMMISSIONERS ON ASSIGNED ACTION ITEMS. UM, IF YOU ALL REMEMBER, THIS WAS AN ACTION ITEM FROM LAST MONTH DURING OUR, UH, LATE RETREAT OF PLANNING OUT WHAT 2026 IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE. UM, I KNOW THAT WE ARE ALL IN A STATE OF UNCERTAINTY IN OUR, IN OUR THOUGHTS, UM, ESPECIALLY AFTER RECEIVING SOME OF THAT INFORMATION. I'M NOT SURE IF FOLKS HAD, UM, UPDATES ON ACTION ITEMS THAT WE CAN PUT DOWN AS GOALS FOR 2026, BUT I WILL OPEN IT UP AND I KNOW THAT THERE IS ONE THAT I WILL BE, UH, INTRODUCING, UM, AROUND THE FOOD PLAN AS WELL. SO I WILL OH, PLEASE, DANNY, GO AHEAD. UM, THAT'S ACT, I MEAN, THAT'S, UM, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE. THE NEXT ONE IS JUST, UM, FOR THE ASSIGNED ONES ALREADY. THANK YOU FOR THE CLARITY. ARE THERE ANY UPDATES FROM THE THINGS FOLKS HAVE ALREADY BEEN WORKING ON ? UH, I THINK THIS WOULD'VE BEEN, UM, [00:40:01] I KNOW COMMISSIONER LUHAN IS NOT WITH US TODAY, BUT SHE, I KNOW SHE HAS BEEN WORKING, UM, TO GET A CONVERSATION WITH ONE OF OUR PEERS IN ANOTHER COMMISSION WITH THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION, UM, BEFORE WE GO AND RUN TOO FAR. UM, AND THEN I KNOW SHE'S ALSO WORKING WITH GETTING CAT METRO TO EVENTUALLY COME AND TALK TO US AND HAVE A CONVERSATION. UM, SO ANY UPDATES FROM THE WORK THAT WE WERE PREVIOUSLY DOING IN 2025 THAT MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE, UH, GOTTEN TO THE NEXT ROUND OF, OF UNDERSTANDING OR RESEARCH. YEAH. FOR, FOR MY, UM, TOPIC OF SEXUAL HEALTH FUNDING, IT'S STILL THE SAME STATUS. I'VE REQUESTED INFORMATION FROM A PH, BUT WAITING TO HEAR BACK STILL, BUT I'VE, I FOLLOWED UP. I'LL REACH OUT TO, UH, MEG KIN AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE REFUGEE COLLECTIVE, AND I BELIEVE SHE CONNECTED WITH DANNY AND, UH, I THINK SHE WAS WANTING TO PRESENT AT NEXT MONTH'S MEETING IF WE HAVE TIME FOR THAT. UH, ANYTHING FROM FOLKS ALL IN, I KNOW, UM, COMMISSIONER DOLHA, WE'RE GONNA BE LOOKING AT ONE OF HER RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, NEXT. AND THEN WE'RE ALSO GONNA BE GETTING AN UPDATE FROM COMMISSIONER CROOKHAM NEXT. SO, UH, IF THERE AREN'T ANY UPDATES FROM THOSE ONLINE, WE CAN KEEP MOVING. OKAY. AWESOME. UM, AND THEN AGAIN, AS THINGS HAPPEN, PLEASE SEND THOSE TO DANNY. UH, WE, SHE AND I WILL MEET AND ALWAYS LOOK FOR WAYS THAT WE CAN BUILD OUT RESOURCES, MAKE BETTER CONNECTIONS, SUPPORT, UM, STRATEGIZE, UH, IMPROVE HOW WE'RE DOING THINGS WITHIN THE COMMISSION, UM, BUT THEN ALSO UNDERSTANDING THINGS LIKE OUR SEXUAL HEALTH FUNDING. IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING WE, WHICH I HATE THE TERM PUT IN THE PUT ON THE BIKE RACK, UH, UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE, UNTIL WE GET SOME BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH FUNDING. UM, AND MAYBE TRANSITION INTO SUPPORTIVE SERVICE, NOT, NOT NECESSARILY SUPPORTIVE SERVICES, BUT WHAT CAN WE AS A COMMISSION LOOK AT BEYOND THE FUNDING CUTS ON MORE OF THE QUALITATIVE SIDE OF THINGS. UM, MAYBE THERE'S A, A WAY WE CAN CONNECT THAT RECOMMEND TO THAT, THAT, TO A RECOMMENDATION OR, UM, ADVOCACY MOMENT. UM, SO JUST SOMETHING TO PROCESS AND THINK OF. UM, AWESOME. OKAY. SO WE'LL [4. Discussion of draft recommendation “Bridging Public Health Funding” created by Commissioner Chris Crookham.] MOVE ON TO DISCUSSION ITEM NUMBER FOUR, WHICH IS DISCUSSION OF THE DRAFT RECOMMENDATION FOR BUILDING PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING CREATED BY COMMISSIONER CHRIS KIRKLAND. THAT WOULD BE, THANK YOU. MM-HMM . UM, UM, SO I'VE TALKED ABOUT IT MULTIPLE TIMES ABOUT, UM, TRYING TO LEVERAGE THE CAP STITCH ELEMENTS OF I 35 TO PROVIDE SOME KIND OF SUSTAINABLE FUNDING FOR PUBLIC HEALTH. UM, AND SO THIS RECOMMENDATION I'VE DRAFTED ADDRESSES THAT, UH, BUT I'M OPEN UP, I'M OPEN TO ANY AND ALL FEEDBACK ON WAYS TO IMPROVE THIS. UM, WOULD IT BE OKAY FOR ME TO READ IT INTO THE RECORD OR DANNY? UM, IT CAN BE DISCUSSED. UM, IT'S JUST A DRAFT RIGHT NOW. THERE'S NO VOTING ON IT, SO IT CAN BE REALLY DISMISSED. OKAY. SO I'LL READ IT. UM, NOT THAT Y'ALL DIDN'T READ IT, I'M SURE Y'ALL DID. . UH, SO THE WORKING TITLE OF THIS IS BRIDGING PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING. UH, THIS RECOMMENDATION SEEKS TO ADDRESS THE PUBLIC HEALTH INEQUITIES EXACERBATED BY THE CONSTRUCTION OF INTERSTATE 35, WHICH DIVIDED COMMUNITIES AND REINFORCE SEGREGATION WITH PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING AT RISK ACROSS THE COUNTRY. WE RECOMMEND THAT A PORTION OF TAX REVENUES GENERATED FROM BUSINESSES AND ACTIVITIES ON CAP STITCH ELEMENTS BE DEDICATED TO AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH TO ADDRESS THE DIRECT AND INDIRECT HEALTH INEQUITIES CAUSED BY INTERSTATE 35, WHEREAS THE CITY OF AUSTIN, 1928 MASTER PLAN DESIGNATED THEN EAST AVENUE AS THE DIVIDING RACIAL LINE BETWEEN EAST AND WEST AUSTIN, WHEREAS INTERSTATE 35 LATER REPLACED EAST AVENUE SERVING AS A REINFORCED PHYSICAL BARRIER BETWEEN EAST AND WEST AUSTIN. WHEREAS INTERSTATE 35 TRAFFIC AND CONGESTION HAVE EXACERBATED HEALTH DISPARITIES OF THOSE LIVING IN EAST AUSTIN, LEADING TO LESS ACCESS TO QUALITY CARE AND HEALTHY FOODS, INCREASED RATES OF CHRONIC DISEASES SUCH AS DIABETES AND INFECTIOUS DISEASE, POOR MATERNAL HEALTH OUTCOMES, AND INCREASED SOCIOECONOMIC INEQUITIES. WHEREAS INTERSTATE 30 35 CREATES CHRONIC STRESSORS SUCH AS TRAFFIC, NOISE, HEAT AND POLLUTION, LEADING TO POOR MENTAL HEALTH AND STRESS OF THOSE LIVING NEARBY. WHEREAS CITY COUNCIL HAS TOUTED CAP AND STITCH AS A ONCE IN A GENERATION OPPORTUNITY TO REPAIR THE PHYSICAL DIVIDE CREATED BY INTERSTATE 35 AND INSISTENT AND ASSISTANT REPAIRING OVER 100 YEARS OF SEGREGATION. WHEREAS CITY COUNCIL HAS WELCOMED THE CREATION OF NEW PUBLIC SPACES FOR CIVIC PARTICIPATION IN UNLOCKING LONG-TERM ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY BENEFITS. NOW THEREFORE BE RESOLVED THAT THE AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION [00:45:01] RECOMMENDS THAT CITY COUNCIL RESERVE AND DEDICATE A PERCENTAGE OF TAX REVENUES GENERATED FROM BUSINESSES AND ACTIVITIES THAT TAKE PLACE ON THE CAP ANDIT ELEMENTS OF I 35 TO A PUBLIC HEALTH FUND TO BE USED BY AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH TO INTENTIONALLY ADDRESS THE VARIOUS HEALTH INEQUITIES THAT INTERSTATE 35 HAS DIRECTLY AND SUBSEQUENTLY INFLICTED UPON THE RESIDENTS OF AUSTIN, SPECIFICALLY IN EAST AUSTIN AND OTHER AREAS WHERE, WHERE EAST AUSTIN RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN PUSHED TO THESE DEDICATED FUNDS GENERATED FROM A ONCE IN A GENERATION OPPORTUNITY THAT AIMS TO REPAIR THE HARM CREATED BY THE INTERSTATE ARE A CONCRETE ACTION THAT CITY COUNCIL CAN TAKE TO ENSURE STEPS ARE MADE TO TRULY ADDRESS THESE HEALTH INEQUITIES, WHILE ALSO PROVIDING A SUSTAINABLE FUNDING SOURCE FOR AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH. UH, SO THAT IS THE DRAFT. THANK YOU, . UM, I HOPE THE INTENT IS CLEAR AND THAT THE WHEREAS ASS ARE CONVINCING. HOWEVER, UH, I WOULD LOVE A DISCUSSION ON THIS RECOMMENDATION AND THE TOPIC AND WHETHER THERE ARE ANY SUGGESTIONS. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER CROOKHAM. UM, I'D JUST LIKE TO ADD MAYBE IN ONE OF THOSE, WHEREAS PA UM, PARAGRAPHS THAT DECREASED LIFE EXPECTANCY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THE REC RECOMMENDATION. I WANTED TO, TO ALSO ADD TO THAT, YOU KNOW, IT, THE DATA IS CLEAR, RIGHT? IT'S ABOUT LEAD CONTAMINATION, INCREASED ASTHMA, ALL THESE, UH, THINGS THAT HAPPENED WITH, UM, MAKING IT A LESS WALKABLE COMMUNITY. AND, UM, AND ALSO THEN THE HAZARDS, UH, PRODUCED BY THE EXHAUST FROM FROM THE CARS. MM-HMM . THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UM, JUST WANTED TO SAY, YOU KNOW, I THINK EVERYONE WHO'S LIVED IN AUSTIN KNOWS THAT, UH, MOVING AROUND EAST AUSTIN AND WEST AUSTIN IS LIKE TWO DIFFERENT WORLDS, YOU KNOW? AND, UH, EVEN PERSONALLY, YOU DRIVE IN ONE AREA AND YOU GO IN THE OTHER AREA, IT FEELS LIKE, YOU KNOW, AREA IS CLEANER, THERE'S MORE TREES, YOU FEEL CALMER. UM, BUT I THINK, UM, TO THE POINTS MADE, IT CAN BE COMPELLING TO JUST, UH, HAVE SOME FACTS ON, YOU KNOW, STATISTICS AROUND THE HEALTH DISPARITIES. UM, AND ALSO REALLY LIKED, UH, THE FACT THAT YOU INCLUDED, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WHO HAD LIVED IN EAST AUSTIN FOR A LONG TIME AND THEN GOT DISPLACED, RIGHT? BECAUSE RELATIVE GENTRIFICATION. UM, MY LAST THOUGHT WAS PERHAPS, YOU KNOW, IT'D BE HELPFUL TO HAVE A, A SPECIFIC PERCENTAGE OF TAX REVENUE THAT YOU RECOMMEND AND MAYBE HAVE SOME KIND OF, UM, LIKE A COMPARISON OR A, UH, YOU KNOW, MAYBE SOMEWHERE ELSE HAS DONE SOMETHING SIMILAR THAT WE CAN REFERENCE PERHAPS. BUT YEAH, REALLY, REALLY, UH, BELIEVE IN THE IMPORTANCE OF SOMETHING LIKE THIS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR ALL THOSE POINTS. ANY COMMENTS FROM FOLKS ONLINE? I WAS GONNA ECHO WHAT WE JUST SAID IN THAT IT'D BE INTERESTING TO SEE IF THERE'S OTHER EXAMPLES AROUND THE COUNTRY OF, UM, SOME KIND OF A SIMILAR, UM, UM, POLICY ADOPTION THAT WOULD BE, UM, AN EXAMPLE FOR US. OKAY. OTHERWISE, IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO ESTABLISH LOCAL BEST PRACTICES. SO YOU CAN BE FIRST. THERE YOU GO, . AND THE ONLY OTHER THING THAT WE MIGHT ADD TO IT AS WELL IS, UM, THERE, THERE'S BEEN DISCUSSION ABOUT PUTTING SOME AIR MONITORING ALONG THAT CORRIDOR AS WELL. UM, AND MAYBE TYING BACK TO, UM, ADJUSTMENTS AND WHATEVER THE RECOMMENDATION IS TODAY BASED UPON IMPACTS IN THE FUTURE FROM TRAFFIC. THAT'S A GOOD POINT, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE IN THE RESEARCH AND, YOU KNOW, IN THE NEWS, UH, CAPTAIN STITCHES GETTING PUSHED BACK FURTHER AND FURTHER, IT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE, UH, THE BRIDGES WOULD EVEN BE, OR THE CAPTAIN STITCHES WOULD EVEN BE CONSTRUCTED UNTIL PERHAPS 2031. UM, WHEREAS WHEN I FIRST THOUGHT OF THIS, IT WAS MUCH SOONER. UM, SO YEAH, CERTAINLY A LOT COULD HAPPEN BETWEEN THEN AND NOW. UM, BUT IT ALSO GIVES US A LOT OF LEAD TIME TO, TO PUSH THIS AND TO HOPEFULLY GET IN COUNCIL'S EAR AND TO, UM, YOU KNOW, CONVINCE PEOPLE BEFORE OTHERS TRY TO TAKE SOME OF THE, THE TAX REVENUE. UM, SO THAT'S A VERY GOOD POINT, THANK YOU. JUST FOR AN EXPLANATION, IS THIS, IS THE, THE CAP AND STITCH, IS THAT A T DOT STATE, UM, YOU KNOW, FUNDED KIND OF THING? AND HOW DOES THAT RELATE TO A CITY COUNCIL OR A CITY TAX, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, UM, POLICY? YEAH, [00:50:01] SO TXDOT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR I 35 AND THEY ARE BUILDING, UH, I 35. HOWEVER, THE CAPTAIN STITCH ELEMENTS BELONG TO THE CITY, AND I THINK THE UT IS ACTUALLY WORKING ON ONE AS WELL. UM, SO THE CITY HAS PROMISED FUNDING FOR THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS THAT THEN THE CAPTAIN STITCH WOULD BE BUILT UPON, AND SO THAT WOULD BELONG TO THE CITY, UH, AND THE REVENUE GENERATED FROM THAT WOULD BELONG TO THE CITY, NOT TO S WOULD YOU DO THAT JUST IN CASE ANY, I I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS EXACTLY. WE'D BE, THE CITY WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE, THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS. AND HOW DOES THAT GENERATE REVENUE? I JUST MISSED THAT WHOLE THING OF WHAT THAT MEANS. THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS WOULDN'T GENERATE, UH, THE REVENUE, THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS, WHILE THEY'RE RECONSTRUCTING I 35, THEY NEED TO PUT IN THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS TO HOLD CAP AND STITCH. AND SO THE CITY HAS PROVIDED MONEY FOR THAT. IF WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY MONEY FOR THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS, THEN THERE WOULD BE NO CAP AND STITCH. AND SO WE'RE PUTTING, THE CITY IS PUTTING FORTH THE MONEY FOR THE ELEMENTS THAT TEXTILE WOULD CONSTRUCT, AND THEN THE BRIDGES THAT CAPTAIN STITCH IS, WOULD BE BUILT ON TOP OF THAT. SO IF YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THE CLYDE WARREN PARK IN DALLAS, UH, THAT'S THE SAME CONCEPT WHERE, YOU KNOW, THEY, YOU NEED THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS TO HOLD THE BRIDGE, BUT THE BRIDGE IN THE PARK LAND ON TOP OF THAT BELONGS TO THE CITY OF DALLAS. I SEE. YOU MEAN LITERALLY THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS, LIKE THE SUPPORT ELEMENTS, LIKE THE PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, INFRASTRUCTURE? YES. YEAH. THANK YOU. YEAH. AND SO THE REVENUE WOULD BE GENERATED FROM ANY BUSINESSES THAT THEN, YOU KNOW, TAKE PLACE ON TOP OF THOSE BRIDGES. I GOTCHA. THANK YOU. UM, YOU, YOU KNOW, IS THERE OPPORTUNITY TO USE SOME OF THOSE FUNDS FOR ACTIVITIES EVEN BEFORE THE CAP AND STITCH PROJECT IS STARTED OR, UM, COMPLETED? YOU KNOW, BECAUSE YOU MENTIONED THAT, UH, THERE'S GONNA BE FUNDING DEDICATED TO THE CAP AND STITCH ONCE THE FUNDING IS DEDICATED. CAN WE START USING A SMALL PORTION OF THAT OR A PORTION OF THAT FOR, UM, THE PUBLIC HEALTH AIMS EVEN BEFORE THE ACTUAL, YOU KNOW, CONSTRUCTION IS HAPPENING? YEAH, I, I MEAN, I'M NOT REALLY SURE HOW THE FUNDING MECHANISMS, MECHANISMS WORK. I IMAGINE, I, I ASSUME THAT IF THE CITY'S CONTRIBUTING MONEY NOW, THAT'S TO GO TOWARDS THE BUILDING OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE CAPS AND STITCHES, UM, AND NOT NECESSARILY TO GO TOWARDS, YOU KNOW, OTHER AREAS. SO THERE WOULD, THERE WOULD PROBABLY BE SOME FINE LANGUAGE IN THERE ABOUT NOT, UH, DEFERRING THE MONEY ELSEWHERE, YOU KNOW, UH, BUT THAT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING TO LOOK INTO BECAUSE IT'S 2026, THEY WON'T BE BUILT TILL 2031 AS OF TODAY. UH, SO THAT'S STILL FIVE YEARS OF NO SUSTAINABLE FUNDING. SO ABSOLUTELY. THIS, THIS IS NOT UNFORTUNATELY BRIDGE THE GAP THAT WE'RE FACING TODAY, BUT IT WOULD SET US UP, YOU KNOW, IN THE FUTURE. , I'M SORRY, MONEY THAT'S GOING TO BE EARNING INTEREST. OH, WELL THERE YOU GO TOO. NOT NECESSARILY, BUT THAT'S A GOOD POINT. UM, BUT TO YOUR, TO YOUR QUESTION ABOUT, UM, WELL DEDICATING IT TO AWESOME PUBLIC HEALTH, ARE THERE ANY CONCERNS ABOUT IT BEING DEDICATED TO A PARTICULAR DEPARTMENT? UM, SHOULD IT BE MORE BROAD IN TERMS OF PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES THAT COULD BE ADDRESSED BY OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND NOT NECESSARILY JUST AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH? ANY THOUGHTS ON THAT? I MEAN, EDUCATION COMES TO MIND, YOU KNOW, PARKS, PARKS, MM-HMM . I THINK MY, MY FIRST REACTION IS THE, THE DEPARTMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN UN UNABLE TO SUSTAIN THEMSELVES BECAUSE OF FEDERAL FUNDING CUTS. UM, ESPECIALLY THINKING ABOUT IF, IF HIV AND AIDS FUNDING IS, IS NEVER COMING BACK, THAT'S A WHOLE DEPARTMENT AT A PH THAT'S GONE. UH, UNLESS POWERS THE BE WILL IT, RIGHT? UM, VERSUS IF IT'S, UM, MAYBE THE, THE, UM, VACCINE SIDE OF THINGS, RIGHT? IMMUNIZATION SIDE OF THINGS THAT THAT'S GONNA CONTINUE TO COME THROUGH. MAYBE THAT FUNDING ISN'T AS UNSURE, UNCERTAIN, BUT IF THERE'S A WAY THAT IT COULD, INSTEAD OF SAYING A PH AS A WHOLE, IT'S LIKE HITTING THE PROGRAMS THAT HAVE BEEN DEPLETED, REMOVED, UNDERFUNDED, AND THEN GO INTO THE OTHER SPACES AND PLACES. MM-HMM . UM, I JUST WANT JUST TALKING ABOUT LIKE THE TIMELINE OF ALL OF THIS. I DON'T KNOW IF GOING SPECIFIC BY DEPARTMENT OR AREA OF NEED IS LIKE TOTALLY NECESSARY BECAUSE WHAT YOU SAID, LIKE 2031, LIKE DIFFERENT [00:55:01] THINGS CAN EMERGE AND THINGS CAN CHANGE DRASTICALLY BETWEEN NOW AND THEN, SO IT MIGHT JUST BE BENEFICIAL TO KEEP IT AS IS AND RELATIVELY OPEN-ENDED. THAT THAT'S KIND OF WHERE I'M LEADING. JUST BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'VE DISCUSSED HERE BEFORE IN, UH, POLICY AND DIRECTION IS, YOU KNOW, THIS ALLOCATES THE FUNDING TO A PH, BUT THEN A PH CAN DO WHAT IT NEEDS TO DO, RIGHT? IN TERMS OF DOES IT KEEP IT FOR ITSELF? DOES IT CREATE CONTRACTS AND AGREEMENTS WITH OTHERS? DOES IT, YOU KNOW, COST SHARE OR WHATEVER. UM, SO THAT'S KIND OF WHY I'VE PUT AWESOME PUBLIC HEALTH IN THERE INITIALLY. UM, AND OF COURSE COUNCIL CAN ALWAYS CHANGE IT. , I WOULD JUST LIKE TO ADD IN VERY BIASED WAY THAT, UM, WE'VE ALL POINTED OUT THE NEED FOR SHORING UP PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING AND AS THE COMMITTEE THAT IS LOOKING AT THAT ISSUE, UM, IT SEEMS APPROPRIATE FOR US TO SUPPORT WHAT YOU'VE WRITTEN AS IT IS WRITTEN. OKAY, THANK YOU. IN YOUR RESEARCH AND PLANNING THIS, DO YOU HAVE LIKE AN ESTIMATE OF THE ANNUAL REVENUE THIS MIGHT CAUSE LATER DOWN THE LINE? I HAVEN'T SEEN ANY ESTIMATES ON WHAT THEY EXPECT, UH, POTENTIAL REVENUE TO BE. YOU KNOW, THEY'VE JUST TALKED ABOUT WHAT COULD BE IN TERMS OF THE BUSINESSES AND THE ACTIVITIES, UM, BUT RIGHT NOW THERE'S SO MUCH UNCERTAINTY BEYOND ABOUT HOW MUCH THEY'RE GONNA DO, DO, WHETHER IT'S GONNA BE SEVERAL STITCHES OR JUST ONE OR, YOU KNOW, HOWEVER MANY CAPS. UM, SO NO, THAT, THAT'S DEFINITELY VARIABLE FOR SURE. I MEAN, THAT'S A GOOD POINT THAT IF IT'S ONLY A STITCH THEN IT'S NOT GONNA BE THAT MUCH, BUT IT'S STILL, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING AND IT'S STILL SUSTAINABLE. UM, SO I, I'LL DO MORE RESEARCH INTO THAT. SEE IF MAYBE I CAN FIND SOMETHING. PERHAPS MAYBE WARREN, UH, PARK IN DALLAS HAS SOME INFORMATION AND THAT'S A GOOD IDEA. OKAY. AWESOME. ANY OTHER OTHER FEEDBACK FOR COMMISSIONER COMB BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD? THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR YOUR INPUT. THANK YOU FOR CREATING THIS. UM, PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU NEED ANY SUPPORT. OKAY. MOVING ON [5. Discuss and approve goals for the 2026 fiscal year. ] TO OUR DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS. NUMBER FIVE, WHICH IS TO DISCUSS AND APPROVE GOALS FOR THE 2026 FISCAL YEAR. UH, THIS IS FROM EARLIER WHEN I WAS GETTING A LITTLE AHEAD OF MYSELF. UM, I KNOW WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE FOOD PLAN, UM, AND BRINGING THAT CONVERSATION BACK TO THE FOREIGN FRONT OF WHAT WE ARE WORKING ON AS A COMMISSION. UM, SO I WILL SAY THAT, THAT I DON'T THINK ANYONE REACHED OUT TO DANNY TO SAY OFFICIALLY. YES. OKAY. UM, SO WHAT WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT IS, UM, HAVING SOMEONE FROM OUR COMMISSION, UM, COLLABORATIVELY WORK WITH THE AUSTIN FOOD PLAN, UH, ADVISORY BOARD, UM, TO BE ABLE TO BRIDGE THAT GAP SO THAT WE AREN'T DOING DOUBLE DUTIES. UH, WE AREN'T TRYING TO TALK ABOUT FOOD INSECURITY WHEN THERE'S AN ENTIRE COMMISSION THAT IS DOING THAT. AND IF THERE'S A MORE, UM, HEALTH, UH, SERVICES SIDE OF THINGS THAT WE CAN BRING TO THE CONVERSATION THAT MAYBE THE FOOD PLAN IS THE FOOD ADVISORY BOARD IS NOT DOING, UM, THAT, THAT WOULD BE WHERE WE COULD TAG TEAM IN ON THAT. UM, I'M PRESENTING THAT AS ONE OF OUR GOALS BECAUSE IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT, UM, EXTENSIVELY TO BE ABLE TO, TO ADDRESS AS A PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION, WHICH IS FOOD INSECURITY, FOOD ACCESS, UM, FOOD RESOURCES. UM, SO I'LL PUT THAT OUT FIRST AND THEN, UM, OPEN IT UP TO EVERYONE TO HEAR YOUR, UM, RECOMMENDED GOALS THAT WE, WE LOOK AT FOR 2026. THANKS. ANYONE ONLINE, . BLESS IT. SORRY, I JUST WANNA CLARIFY, YOU'RE JUST ASKING LIKE TOPIC AREAS THAT WE WANT TO DISCUSS AND FOCUS ON. IS THAT BASICALLY WHAT THE QUESTION IS? YES. SO, UH, LAST MEETING WAS OUR, UH, RETREAT AND WE KIND OF ENDED IT WITH A CALL TO ACTION FOR THE COMMISSIONERS TO SAY, UM, WE HAVE A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS IN DIFFERENT AVENUES THAT WE CAN FOCUS ON. UM, HOW CAN WE, UH, PUT TOGETHER BETTER STRATEGY? UM, SO FOR, SO I'LL KEEP GOING ON THE FOOD PLAN AND, AND MAYBE THIS WILL HELP CLARIFY. UM, WE'VE HAD A DIFFERENT, A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT PRESENTATIONS [01:00:01] BROUGHT TO US. UH, WE'VE GOTTEN SO MUCH DIFFERENT DATA. WE HAVE ACCESS TO THE FOOD FOOD PLAN DASHBOARD. UM, BUT AS A COMMISSION, WE HAVEN'T MADE ANY REAL HEADWAY IN WHAT WE AS A COMMISSION WANT TO DO TO ADDRESS FOOD INSECURITY, FOOD ACCESS, UM, INDIVIDUALS WITH FOOD VULNERABILITIES. HOWEVER, WE ALSO HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS AN ENTIRE BOARD THAT WORKS ON THIS AS WELL. AND SO IS THIS SOMETHING GENUINELY, UM, KNOWING WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT FOOD INSECURITIES, FOOD ACCESS, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT OUR COMMISSION WANTS TO PUT AS A 2026 GOAL OF ACHIEVEMENT, DOT, DOT, DOT FILL IN THE BLANK OF WHAT ACHIEVEMENT IS? OR IS THIS SOMETHING WHERE WE HAVE, UH, A LIAISON OF SORTS SPEAK TO THE FOOD PLAN ADVISORY BOARD EVERY MONTH, GET UPDATES, GET INFORMATION, AND THEN BRING THAT BACK TO OUR COMMISSION AND SAY, HERE'S WHAT THEY'RE WORKING ON, HERE'S HOW, HERE'S HOW IT'S GOING. UM, HERE'S WHERE THE GAPS EXIST AND THE GAPS EXIST IN, FILL IN THAT BLANK. THESE GAPS SPECIFICALLY ARE PUBLIC HEALTH RELATED, AND THESE GAPS, SPECIFICALLY THAT ARE PUBLIC HEALTH RELATED ARE THINGS WE AS A COMMISSION CAN PUT TOGETHER A RECOMMENDATION FOR, PUT AN ORDINANCE OUT, UH, A RECOMMENDATION FOR AN ORDINANCE, PUT A BUDGET RECOMMENDATION OUT. UM, AND SO THAT WOULD BE THE TOTALITY OF HOW WE LOOK AT OUR GOALS. SO THAT ONE, IF WE DO INVITE FARM SHARE AUSTIN BACK, WE ARE TELLING THEM, HEY, WE KNOW YOU HAVE THIS AMAZING FARM. YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT YOU'RE DOING, UM, SNAP BENEFITS, HAS THAT BEEN AFFECTED? RIGHT. OKAY. NOW WE'RE GOING TO PUT A RECOMMENDATION OUT THAT SAYS PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION. YOU KNOW, AUSTIN TRAFFIC COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT WE DO THIS FOR INDIVIDUALS RECEIVING SNAP BENEFITS BECAUSE THE FOOD PLAN ADVISORY BOARD IS NOT DOING THAT. I MADE THAT UP. PLEASE DON'T FOR THE RECORD, I JUST MADE ALL OF THAT UP. SO , I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING. UM, BUT IF THAT IS WHAT THEY'RE DOING, FANTASTIC. AND IF THAT IS NOT WHAT THEY'RE DOING AND WE CAN STEP IN AND SUPPORT IN THAT WAY, THEN YES, LET'S DO THAT. UH, DOES THAT HELP CLEAR UP? AND THIS IS ALSO TO JUST BRING THE THINGS THAT WE'RE ALREADY WORKING ON AND GIVING THEM THAT CLEAR PROCESS, THAT CLEAR STRATEGY, UM, SO THAT WE, ONE CAN SUPPORT EACH OTHER. BUT TWO, UM, I'M ACTIVELY WORKING ON HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION. UM, THERE WAS A CONVERSATION THAT WAS BROUGHT UP AND THEY WERE PUT INTO THE CONVERSATION, AND NOW WE RECOGNIZE THAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOING SOME OF THE WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT ON THIS COMMISSION. AND THAT'S WHAT THEY DO. IT'S, IT'S LITERALLY, LITERALLY WHY THEY EXIST. SO I, AND I THINK, AGAIN, I THINK WE ALL KNOW THIS, PUBLIC HEALTH IS EVERYTHING, RIGHT? LIKE THERE'S NO WAY THAT IT'S NOT. UM, BUT I THINK WE AS THIS COMMISSION CAN BE ALMOST LIKE THE FILL IN THE BLANKS. THERE ARE SO MANY OTHER COMMISSIONS THAT ARE, ARE LEADING, UM, DIFFERENT STRATEGIES, DIFFERENT PROCESSES, DIFFERENT PLANS. UM, I, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANYONE TALKING ABOUT THE, THE CAP AND STITCH AS FAR AS PUBLIC HEALTH RESOURCES GOES. THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT OUR BREAD AND BUTTER IS. ANNA, PLEASE. SO I REALLY LIKE YOUR IDEA ABOUT THE FOOD PLAN AND I WONDER IF, YOU KNOW, PUBLIC HEALTH IS ABOUT TARGETED INTERVENTIONS AS WELL, RIGHT? SO WE KNOW FOR EXAMPLE, THAT SUMMER FOOD, UH, FOR YOUTH OR OR KIDS IN SCHOOL IS GOING TO BE ABSENT. THAT PROGRAM IS GOING TO BE ABSENT. SO IS IT POSSIBLE TO CONNECT WITH, UH, THE FOOD BOARD AND SAY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING ABOUT THIS? OR CAN WE HELP CHAMPION THIS AND THINK ABOUT FOLLOWING THROUGH ON THAT? AND THAT'S AN IMMINENT ISSUE THAT'S GOING TO IMPACT SO MANY KIDS IN OUR COMMUNITY. 1050%. UM, I KNOW WE'RE ALL PASSIONATE ABOUT THE BABIES, UM, AND WE HAVE VERY LITTLE TIME UNTIL SUMMER HITS. 'CAUSE I THOUGHT IT'S GONNA BE 80 SOMETHING NEXT WEEK. SO BLESS US. UM, ANY QUESTIONS AS FAR AS THE STRUCTURE OR IS ANYONE FEELING, I AM HAPPY TO TAKE ON THE FOOD SIDE OF THINGS. UM, I THINK I WAS THE ONE THAT STARTED THE FOOD CONVERSATION. ? YES, DANNY. UM, NOT TO LIKE ASSIGN WORK TO SOMEONE THAT'S NOT HERE, BUT DURING OUR LAST MEETING, UM, COMMISSIONER MARTHA, SHE DID BRING UP, I BELIEVE [01:05:01] THE GROUP'S NAME WAS GAVA. MM-HMM . UM, IT WAS ALSO DEALING WITH FOOD, FOOD INSECURITY. SO MAYBE THAT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU AND HER CAN WORK IN TOGETHER. I LIKE THE WAY YOUR BRAIN THINKS. UM, WE WILL PUT THAT IN AN EMAIL AND NOBODY MINDS BEING VOLUNTOLD 'CAUSE THAT'S HOW WE LEARN. UM, COME TO THE NEXT MEETING. , WELCOME. UH, IT'S LATE IN THE DAY. WE'RE GONNA MAKE IT. UM, ANY OTHER IDEAS? UH, UM, I KNOW COMMISSIONER ALI, YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE FRESH TO OUR, OUR, OUR COMMISSION. UM, I KNOW YOU'RE ACTIVELY ENGAGING WITH THE REFUGEE COMMUNITY. UM, JUST AS FAR AS LIKE, I'LL, I'LL JUST GIVE US AN AWKWARD SILENCE FOR A MOMENT TO COLLECT THOUGHTS, BUT THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE DONE, AND, UH, VICE CHAIR I WILL, I WILL CALL ON YOU WITHOUT THE AWKWARD PAUSE. UM, BUT JUST RAPID, RAPID IDEAS, UM, BECAUSE I THINK WE HAVE SOME BRILLIANT MINDS HERE AND WE CAN COME UP WITH SOME REAL STRATEGY AND GOALS TO IMPLEMENT THIS YEAR. VICE CHAIR, I THINK ONE OF THE GOALS THAT I DO WANT TO COMPLETE THIS YEAR IS WE TALK A LOT ABOUT HOW WE BETTER UTILIZE, UH, SOME OF THE RESOURCES LIKE UT UH, AND THEN WE HEAR, I THINK AS WE KIND OF CREATE OUR RECOMMENDATIONS OFTEN, LIKE, CAN WE PUT SOME DATA TO THIS? CAN WE BOLSTER THIS? SO I'M HOPING THAT, UH, OR I'M HAPPY TO LEAD, UH, TRYING TO KIND OF REALLY BOLSTER THAT RELATIONSHIP AND IDENTIFY THE PEOPLE WHO ARE WILLING TO WORK WITH US. AND THEN INTERNALLY, UH, PRIORITIZE SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE THINK ARE IMPORTANT, WHERE IF WE GET SOME ANSWERS AND SOME DATA, THEN WE CAN PUT THAT INTO OUR RECOMMENDATIONS AND REALLY KIND OF STRENGTHEN SOME OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS AS WELL. RECOGNIZING THAT IT'S A LOT OF WORK AND IT'S HARD FOR, UH, THE COMMISSION TO REALLY KIND OF, UM, DO BOTH. PREPARE A REALLY COMPELLING RECOMMENDATION AND ALSO DO ALL THE RESEARCH THAT IT REQUIRES, UH, IN THE BACKGROUND TOO. SO, WOULD LOVE IF ANYONE ELSE IS INTERESTED IN HELPING ME IN THAT PROCESS, UM, AS WELL. VICE CHAIR, DO YOU THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE, THAT YOU'RE, UM, ONE OF THOSE PROJECTS THAT YOU MIGHT ENLIST UT TO HELP WITH IS RESEARCHING WHAT THE IMPACTS OF FINANCIALLY MIGHT BE FOR THE CAP AND STITCH RESOLUTION? ABSOLUTELY. AND THEN THERE IS A PROFESSOR THAT I HAD TALKED TO THAT I THINK IT'S MORE IN THE ECONOMICS, UH, DEPARTMENT WHO REALLY THINKS ABOUT HOW, UM, INVESTMENTS, UH, IN PUBLIC POLICIES CAN LEAD TO HEALTH OUTCOMES. SO I THINK THAT COULD BE A GOOD PROJECT FOR US TO DISCUSS WITH THAT SPECIFIC PERSON. UH, I THINK ONE THING THAT KIND OF SURFACES OFTEN IN OUR MEETINGS AND JUST IN GENERAL IS THAT THERE'S, WHILE PUBLIC HEALTH ISN'T EVERYTHING, THERE'S KIND OF A LACK OF AWARENESS OF WHAT PUBLIC HEALTH IS EXACTLY. UM, SO PERHAPS WE COULD SET A GOAL OF COMING UP WITH WAYS TO BETTER PROMOTE OR ADVERTISE WHAT PUBLIC HEALTH IS EXACTLY. SOME OFF THE CUFF IDEAS, PERHAPS HAVING PUBLIC HEALTH PRESENT AT OUR MEETINGS EVERY MONTH. YOU KNOW, JUST HAVE A STANDING ITEM WHERE THEY TALK ABOUT PUBLIC HEALTH AND WHAT IT IS AND WHAT THEY'RE DOING. UM, AND THEN TIE IT TO HOW IT RELATES TO WHATEVER SUBJECT OR TO THE COMMUNITY. ANOTHER ONE MIGHT BE KIND OF TYING ON WHAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT EARLIER, IS PERHAPS WE EACH, OR, YOU KNOW, NOT ASSIGNING HOMEWORK, BUT WE PRESENT TO OTHER COMMISSIONS OR GROUPS, UM, ON THE PUBLIC HEALTH ASPECT OF WHAT THEIR SUBJECT MATTER IS. YOU KNOW, SO IF IT'S THE FOOD, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS WE PRESENT TO THE FOOD BOARD, UM, ON THE PUBLIC HEALTH ASPECT OF THINGS, OR IF WE'RE GOING TO THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION, THE PUBLIC HEALTH ASPECT OF THINGS THERE, JUST TO TIE IT IN, YOU KNOW, TO REINFORCE THAT PUBLIC HEALTH ISN'T EVERYTHING AND THIS IS HOW IT RELATES TO THAT PARTICULAR ITEM. THAT MAKES MY HEART HAPPY. YEAH. UM, , I, I WROTE THESE DOWN. I JUST WANT TO, I JUST WANT TO SAY THESE OUT LOUD, JUST ONE FOR ACCOUNTABILITY, BUT TWO SO THAT WE ALL HEAR THEM, UM, AND SAY EITHER YES, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SAYING, OR NO, IT WENT A LITTLE TO THE LEFT. UH, SO WE HAVE, ONE OF OUR GOALS IS LOOKING AT, UH, THE FOOD PLAN AND HOW WE CAN BE A, UM, COLLABORATIVE VOICE WITH THE FOOD ADVISORY BOARD AND THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING. WE HAVE ANOTHER GOAL, WHICH IS, UM, LOOKING AT IMPROVING AND EXPANDING THE PARTNERSHIPS SUCH AS WITH UT, UM, TO SUP TO SUPPORT IN OUR DATA COLLECTION, DATA NAVIGATION, SO [01:10:01] THAT WE AREN'T NECESSARILY BEING THE ADVOCATES RESEARCHERS AND, UH, UH, EFFICIENT OF, OF CONVERSATIONS. UM, WE HAVE, UH, A GOAL OF LOOKING AT THE REFUGEE, UH, COMMUNITIES, UM, HEALTH EQUITY AND, UH, ACCESS. AND THEN WE HAVE A FOURTH GOAL OF TRUE PUBLIC HEALTH EDUCATION AND AWARENESS, WHICH I THINK, UM, FALLS RIGHT IN LINE WITH A LOT OF THE WORK THAT DR. WA IS DOING WITH, WITH WHAT A PH IS DOING WITH WHAT TRAVIS COUNTY IS DOING. UM, AND IT'S JUST BETTER, UH, SHARING THAT OUT. UM, AND THEN WE HAVE A FINAL ONE THAT'S LOOKING AT THE ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR COUNTRY AS FAR AS FUNDING CUTS, LACK OF ACCESS, MISINFORMATION, ET CETERA, ET CETERA, ET CETERA. SPECIFICALLY THE IMPACTS ON PUBLIC HEALTH OF THAT. I MIGHT HAVE GONE OFF ON A LITTLE TANGENT 'CAUSE I'M FEELING REAL, REAL RANDY TODAY, BUT RIGHT ALONG THAT WAY, , UM, DID I, DID I HEAR YOU ALL? AND DID I MISS ANYTHING? PLEASE, UH, NO, THANK YOU. NOT THAT YOU MISSED ANYTHING. UM, JUST A COUPLE OF THOUGHTS, ESPECIALLY AS I'M, YOU KNOW, NEW TO THIS COMMISSION. UM, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE THINK ABOUT, UM, LOOKING AT, BLESS YOU, UH, LOOKING AT SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS AND THINKING ANALYTICALLY ABOUT THE CHANCE OF THEM RESULTING IN, UH, ACTUAL IMPACT, YOU KNOW, AND LIKE, JUST BEING VERY GRANULAR ABOUT IT AND LOOKING AT THE ENVIRONMENT AND LOOKING AT SPECIFIC, YOU KNOW, INITIATIVES AND, AND BILLS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND KIND OF, YOU KNOW, STRATEGICALLY CREATING, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ALIGN WITH THOSE. AND EVEN THROUGH THE FOOD TO FOOD AS MEDICINE. UM, THERE'S ACTUALLY A FOOD AND FOOD AS MEDICINE, UM, GROUP AT DEL MED I CAN CONNECT WITH, YOU KNOW, UM, TO THE POINT MADE PREVIOUSLY THAT MIGHT KIND OF HELP BRIDGE THE, UH, THE FOOD PLAN WITH SOME OF LIKE MORE HEALTH RELATED THINGS AND EVEN ALSO BE AS A, A BRIDGE TO, UM, YOU KNOW, THE UT DELL MEDICAL SCHOOL. UM, SO THOSE ARE THE TWO MAIN THINGS. ONE IS, YOU KNOW, THE FOOD AS MEDICINE GROUP MIGHT BE A GOOD GROUP FOR US TO COLLABORATE WITH, UH, AT UT DELL MEDICAL SCHOOL. AND ALSO JUST, UM, AND THIS WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR ME JUST TO LEARN MORE AS WELL ABOUT THE PROCESSES. LIKE HOW, HOW WE THINK ABOUT OUR RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, AS THE INTERFACE WITH JUST THE ENVIRONMENT AND HOW THAT AFFECTS THE CHANCE OF THEM, YOU KNOW, RESULTING IN, IN AN ACTUAL CHANGE. YOU KNOW, JUST FOR CLARITY OF YOUR QUESTION, WHEN YOU SAY ENVIRONMENT, YOU'RE SAYING OUR PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT OR THE CITY COUNTY? UH, CITY COUNTY. OKAY. YEAH. WE LEARNED A LOT FROM RECOMMENDATIONS. I WILL SAY THAT, UM, I THINK WE'VE LEARNED THAT THE WAY WE MAKE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS IS, UH, SIMILAR TO HOW, UH, COMMISSIONER CROOKHAM AND AS WELL AS AS COMMISSIONER DOLHA HAVE WORKED. UM, THEY ARE A LITTLE BIT MORE BROAD, UH, AND NOT AS GRANULAR, BECAUSE WHEN WE GET TOO GRANULAR, IT'S TOO EASY TO SAY NO. UH, WHEN WE HAVE A MORE GENERAL STATEMENT, WE MIGHT HAVE MORE SUCCESS. UM, USUALLY I LOOK TO, UH, UH, DIRECTOR STIRRUP FOR, FOR GUIDELINES ON THAT. BUT, UM, THAT WAS SOME OF THE ADVICE SHE GAVE US WAS, UH, DON'T GO SO NICHE WHEN YOU MAKE YOUR RECOMMENDATION BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S EITHER MAYBE GONNA FLY OVER SOME HEADS OR NOT BE RECEIVED AS WELL. UM, DID THAT HELP ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? AND I ALSO WILL SAY FOR THOSE THAT ARE, ARE EX OFFICIOS , YEAH. I SAW SOME SMILES AND NODS. OKAY. OKAY. UH, AND ALSO, YES, I THINK, UM, I THINK WE ALL HAVE AS COMMISSIONERS OUR OWN RELATIONSHIPS THAT WE COULD BRING INTO THESE CONVERSATIONS. UM, AND I THINK IT'S JUST ACTIVATING THOSE MM-HMM . YEAH. UM, AND, AND GIVING THEM SOME CLEAR GUIDANCE ON WHAT WE NEED FROM 'EM TOO. ANYBODY ELSE COMMENTS ON THE GOALS? YES. COMMISSIONER RICE? I'LL JUMP YEAH, JUMP IN A SECOND. FIRST OF ALL, I WAS THINKING I'D LOVE TO JOIN DR. UH, COMMISSIONER CIAO AS, UM, AS HE THINKS ABOUT DATA AND THE UNIVERSITY. SO, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER AS YOUR TEAMMATE THERE. AND, UM, I LIKED WHAT I THINK COMMISSIONER CROOKHAM WAS SAYING ABOUT MAYBE I OVER INTERPRETED, BUT I WAS THINKING THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'D BE NICE TO HAVE SOMETHING COMING TO US EACH MEETING FROM OUR AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH, YOU KNOW, INFRASTRUCTURE THAT MAYBE INFORMS US ABOUT THE, THE, THEIR, YOU KNOW, TOP, YOU KNOW, CONCERN OF THE MONTH OR SOMETHING SORT OF. SO, SO THAT WE WOULD HEAR SOMETHING ABOUT, [01:15:01] UM, UM, YOU KNOW, THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING ON THE GROUND THAT MIGHT BE, UH, UH, IMPORTANT THAT WE WOULD, WE WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT. SO, I, I JUST HAD THAT THOUGHT IN THE CONTEXT. UH, COMMISSIONER KIRK KIRK, AS YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THAT EDUCATION THAT, UM, IT'S A TWO-WAY STREET AND IT'D BE INTERESTING TO KNOW WHAT'S, WHAT KEEPS, YOU KNOW, DIRECTOR STIR UP AT NIGHT, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. COMMISSIONER RICE, IT'S LIKE YOU'RE READING MY MIND SOMETIMES. UH, I ACTUALLY HAVE A NOTE HERE TO TALK TO DANNY. UM, I'LL JUST GO AHEAD AND SAY IT. IT WAS GONNA BE FOR OUR FUTURE AGENDA ITEM, BUT WE'LL JUST THROW IT OUT AS A PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH OUR GOALS THIS YEAR. I WAS THINKING ABOUT BUILDING A PUBLIC HEALTH NEWSLETTER THAT IS SPECIFICALLY TALKING TO THE COMMISSIONERS SO THAT WE CAN HAVE SOME LITTLE SOMETHING THAT TELLS US WHAT'S HAPPENING, UM, SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO RELY ON DR. WALKS OR ANNA OR PERLA TO TELL US, HEY, WE'VE HAD SEVEN MEETINGS SINCE YOU'VE MET. UM, THIS IS WHAT'S HAPPENING. WE'RE WORKING ON IT. UH, SO THAT WE'RE, WE'RE WELL INFORMED, UM, AND WE'RE NOT NECESSARILY LEFT TO OUR, OUR OWN VICES TO TRACK AND FIGURE IT OUT ON OUR, ON OUR OWN TIME. UM, SO THAT IS SOMETHING I AM COMMITTED TO WORKING ON WITH DANNY TO, TO HELP GET THAT INFORMATION OUT TO US. UM, AND THEN I ALSO HAD , I'D PUT YOU DOWN TO WORK WITH VICE CHAIR ON THAT AS WELL. , YOU FEEL FREE TO ALWAYS DO WHATEVER. I'M GETTING READY TO DO ANYTIME. ANYTIME. I'M GLAD WHEN OUR SYNERGIES CONNECT. UM, AND I WILL JUST SAY OF OUR GOALS THAT ARE HERE, WE HAVE FIVE OF THEM. I THINK THAT THEY ARE COMPREHENSIVE. I THINK THAT THEY ARE LARGE. I THINK THAT, UM, THEY ARE ENOUGH FOR NOW FOR US TO, I WILL GET WORK WITH DANNY, GET THESE TYPED UP. UM, YOU KNOW, I LOVE MY LOGIC MODELS, SO, UM, IF YOU ALL NEED HELP MAKING A GOOD OLD LOGIC MODEL TO PROCESS ALL OF THIS, YOU JUST LET ME KNOW AND I WILL JUMP ON IN THERE. UM, BUT GETTING THIS, YOU KNOW, AS OUR, AS OUR BIG GOAL, UM, PUTTING SOME OBJECTIVES TO IT, PUTTING SOME ACTION ITEMS TO IT, AND THEN SHARING THAT BACK TO EACH OTHER TO SAY, OKAY, I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS WITH UT, I GOTTA HUNT DOWN FOUR PROFESSORS. UH, THAT'S GONNA BE TWO AND A HALF MONTHS AT MINIMUM. 'CAUSE I'M HUNTING DOWN PROFESSORS, UH, NO OFFENSE TO PROFESSORS. UM, AND, AND SO THAT, THAT MIGHT NOT BE SOMETHING WE BRING BACK UP UNTIL JULY-ISH, UM, BUT WE AT LEAST KNOW AND SO DO THOSE THAT ARE WORKING ON THEM. ALRIGHT. I HAVE UNTIL JULY TO MAKE THIS WORK. AND IT'S NOT DANNY, UH, SENDING STRONGLY WORDED EMAILS TO FOLKS TO ASK THEM TO COME AND TALK TO US, . SO WE WILL, I WILL GET THESE TYPED UP. AND AGAIN, UH, PUT A TIMELINE TO THESE, PUT SOME OBJECTIVES TO THESE. UM, I HAVE SOME NAMES TO GO ALONGSIDE OF THESE IF, IF YOU FEEL, UH, SO CALLED AND, UM, UH, EXCITED. UM, PLEASE RESPOND WITH A, I AGREE TO DANNY. UM, AND THEN PLEASE AGAIN, UH, TAG ME IN WHERE WE CAN GET SOME STRUCTURE GOING ON THESE. I'M RUSHING THROUGH THIS BECAUSE I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE TIME TO APPROVE. UH, COMMISSIONER DOHAS RECOMMENDATION. UM, ANY FINAL THOUGHTS ON OUR TOP FIVE GOALS, UM, THAT WE WILL BE ACTIVATING AS EARLY AS FRIDAY? GIVE MYSELF A COUPLE DAYS TO GET THOSE TO DANNY. OKAY. DO WE NEED TO VOTE ON THESE? YOU CAN VOTE ON THEM JUST SO WE CAN SOLIDIFY THEM. UM, HOWEVER IT CAN BE KEPT KIND OF AS LIKE A ROLLING. OKAY. ITEMS THAT FEELS BETTER. UM, WHENEVER I SEE APPROVED, I JUST THINK WE NEED TO DO SOME VOTING AND I JUST WANNA BE SURE. COOL. OKAY. WELL, UH, THANK YOU ALL FOR THAT. I'M, I FEEL REALLY GREAT ABOUT THESE. UM, I WILL GET THESE TYPED UP SENT TO DANNY. SHE WILL GET THESE OUT TO THE REST OF THE COMMISSION. WE CAN THEN KEEP RUNNING AND ROCKING AND ROLLING. UM, LET'S MOVE ON TO OUR [6. Approve a recommendation to Travis County Council titled “Harm Reduction Outreach Expansion”.] FINAL ACT, OUR FINAL ACTION ITEM TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDATION, A RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY COUNCIL TITLED HARM REDUCTION OUTREACH EXPANSION. COMMISSIONER DOLHA, THE FLOOR IS YOURS. SURE. JUST A PREFERENCE. THIS IS THE EXACT SAME ONE THAT WE TALKED ABOUT LAST TIME. NO CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE. UM, DANNY JUST INFORMED ME THAT WE HAVE TO VOTE ON IT AND SHE MADE IT VERY PRETTY INFORMAL. SO THAT IS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE. IT'S THE SAME THING WE REVIEWED LAST MONTH. I THINK WE JUST HAVE TO VOTE ON IT, I THINK. RIGHT. DANNY? YOU CAN CONFIRM THAT. OKAY. WONDERFUL. [01:20:01] WELL, IN THAT CASE, UM, I AM MAKING THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY TITLED HARM REDUCTION OUTREACH EXPANSION. DO I HAVE SOMEONE TO MOVE THE MOTION? I'LL MOVE THE MOTION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER RICE FOR THE SECOND. ANY QUESTIONS TO THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDATION? ALL OF THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPRO OF APPROVING THE RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY COUNSEL TITLED, TITLED, HARM REDUCTION OUTREACH EXPANSION. PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU FOR THAT. UH, COMMISSIONER ALTHOUSE, AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR ENERGY, YOUR WORK ON GETTING THIS CREATED AND CRAFTED. UM, WE WILL, WE, BEING YOU AND DANNY, UH, WE'LL GET TO THE NEXT STEPS OF WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN WITH THAT. GET YOUR SIGNATURE ON THIS OR MY SIGNATURE ON THIS? NO, NO SIGNATURE ON THIS. GREAT. UM, , WE ARE A LEARNING COMMISSION. OKAY. WE FLY ON THE PLANE WHILE WE BUILD IT. UM, AND AWESOME. YES. OKAY. SO FEATURE AGENDA [FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ] ITEMS, UM, LOVE TO HAVE CIS COME BACK TO PRESENT. YES, MA'AM, PLEASE. UM, SO I WAS GONNA SAY, UM, I, I'M ALREADY SPEAKING TO CIS SO I CAN GET THAT COORDINATED TO COME BACK. UM, I ALSO GOT CONNECTED TO THE REFUGEE COLLECTIVE, SO I WILL ALSO BE HAVING THEM RETURN. UM, I THINK THAT IS PRETTY MUCH IT, UM, THAT I HAVE ALREADY PLANNED OUT ON MY END. I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ELSE YOU GUYS WANNA ADD? UM, I, I DO THINK THAT JUST HAVING, HOPEFULLY YOU AND I CAN GET TOGETHER AND, AND WORK ON AT LEAST A ROUGH DRAFT OF WHAT OUR NEWSLETTER CONTENT. I'M CALLING IT A NEWSLETTER. IT'S REALLY GONNA BE LIKE A ONE PAGER, UM, CAN CONSIST OF. SO THAT WILL BE READY FOR EVERYONE. UH, IF WE CAN GET IT PULLED TOGETHER WELL ENOUGH, MAYBE WE CAN GET IT OUT TO EVERYBODY JUST TO GET SOME QUICK EYEBALLS ON IT AND SAY, DO YOU FEEL INFORMED? AND YOU CAN SEND A THUMBS UP OR A THUMBS DOWN. UM, AND THEN I, I THINK JUST DOING A, A GOOD DEEP DIVE ON OUR DISCUSSION FOR A DISCUSSION ITEM WITH OUR GOALS, UM, ONCE THEY'VE BEEN WRITTEN OUT OUR TIMELINES ON THOSE, SO HAVING SOME TIMELINES READY FOR THEM. UH, AND THEN ANYTHING THAT, UM, COMMISSIONER CROOKHAM NEEDS FOR HIS RECOMMENDATION AS WELL. ANY OTHER, UM, FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS THAT ARE PRESSING FOR ANYONE OR SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN MISSED THAT WE DID NOT SAY? PLEASE, CAN I COME BACK WITH AN UPDATED DRAFT NEXT MONTH AND FOR DISCUSSION? YEAH. OKAY. OKAY. UH, AS ALWAYS, IF ANYTHING COMES UP AND THERE IS, UH, AN ADDITIONAL AGENDA ITEM THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SUBMIT, PLEASE REMEMBER THAT YOU DO HAVE TO HAVE TWO OTHER, UH, COMMISSIONER SUPPORT THAT ITEM ONCE WE HAVE LEFT FROM THIS SPACE. AND I THINK THE FINAL THING I'LL SAY IS, UM, WE ARE LOOKING FOR ANOTHER COMMISSIONER, SO IF YOU HAVE SOME FRIENDS FAM, UH, MAYBE NOT FAMILY, BUT IF YOU HAVE SOME, SOME FOLKS WHO YOU WOULD RECOMMEND, UH, GET IN TOUCH WITH DANNY, GET THAT OVER TO HER. UH, WE, UM, FEEL LIKE IT'S APPROPRIATE. UM, WE'RE SENDING THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS TO, UH, COMMISSIONER WALLACE WHO HAD TO LEAVE THE COMMISSION FOR FAMILY MATTERS. UM, SO IF YOU DO CONNECT WITH HIM IN THE FUTURE OR ANYTIME, UM, PLEASE, PLEASE SEND YOUR, YOUR CON YOUR YOUR CONCERNS AND YOUR SUPPORT. UM, AND SO, UH, COMMISSIONER WALLACE HAS LEFT OUR COMMISSION AND WE HAVE ANOTHER SEAT OPEN. ALL RIGHT. OUTSIDE OF THAT, I WANNA THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR TIME, YOUR ENERGY, UM, YOUR EFFORTS IN, IN BEING HERE. UM, I KNOW WE ARE IN A TUMULTUOUS EXPERIENCE RIGHT NOW, AND SOMETIMES HEARING THE WORD PUBLIC HEALTH CAN BE VERY HEAVY. UM, SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING. AND I WILL GO AHEAD AND OFFICIALLY CALL THIS MEETING ADJOURNED AT 4:12 PM THANK YOU. * 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.