* 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.
          [CALL TO ORDER]
          [00:00:06]
          A REGULAR MEETING OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION ON THIS IRREGULAR DAY OF TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER THE EIGHTH, UH, 2026. 
          HOPEFULLY EVERYONE HAD A, A RESTFUL LABOR DAY, AND WE'RE READY TO TACKLE THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR. 
          UH, IF WE COULD CALL ORDER, THAT'D BE GREAT. 
          OR CALL ROLL. 
          SORRY. 
          UH, CHAIR DURRAN PRESENT. 
          COMMISSIONER BERNHARD? HERE. 
          COMMISSIONER GODWIN? HERE. 
          COMMISSIONER HOLMES IS ABSENT. 
          COMMISSIONER RELO IS NOT HERE. 
          UH, VICE CHAIR RAMIREZ. 
          HERE. 
          COMMISSIONER GER? HERE. 
          COMMISSIONER ROGO? HERE. 
          COMMISSIONER RUTAN. 
          PRESENT. 
          AND THEN COMMISSIONER SMITH'S NOT HERE. 
          AND THERE ARE NO SPEAKERS FOR PUBLIC COMMUNICATION SIGNED UP. 
          ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. 
          [APPROVAL OF MINUTES]
SO, WE'LL, UM, MOVE ON TO THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES. 
          I MOVE TO APPROVE MINUTES FOR THE REGULAR MEETING OF AUGUST 3RD, 2026. 
          IF I GET A SECOND. 
          SECOND. 
          ALL IN FAVOR OF APPROVAL? SEEMS UNANIMOUS MINUTES ARE APPROVED. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          ALL 
          [2. Quarterly Report with Austin Travis County Emergency Medical Services. Presented by Wesley Hopkins, Chief of Staff, Austin Travis County Emergency Medical Services.]
RIGHT, MOVING ON TO OUR FIRST, UM, DISCUSSION ITEM, THE QUARTERLY REPORT WITH AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES PRO. 
          UH, PRESENTED BY OUR LOVELY FRIEND, CHIEF WESLEY HOPKINS. 
          AND PLEASE FEEL FREE TO EXPLORE THE ROOM. 
          YOU DON'T HAVE TO STAY SEATED. 
          WELL, I NEED MY HIKING BOOTS. 
          IT'S A BIG SPACE. 
          . 
          GOOD AFTERNOON COMMISSIONERS. 
          CAN YOU HEAR ME OKAY? ALL RIGHT. 
          BEAR WITH ME AS I WORK THROUGH THIS, UH, DEVICE HERE. 
          UH, WEST HOPKINS, CHIEF OF STAFF AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES. 
          I'LL BE GIVEN YOUR FISCAL YEAR 26 Q3 REPORT. 
          LOOKING AT AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY, EM S'S CURRENT EMS DEPARTMENT. 
          STAFFING ARE AUTHORIZED. 
          STRENGTH REMAINS AT 714, PUTS OUR FIELD SWORN AT 596 AND OUR SWORN VACANCIES AT THAT 118. 
          IF YOU'LL LOOK AT THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, THAT MEDIC OPENING FOR BOTH FIELD AND COMMUNICATIONS, UH, WE ARE PROUD OF THE 24 ENTRY LEVEL POSITIONS LEFT AT THAT MEDIC OPENING FOR FIELD AND THREE COMMUNICATIONS. 
          UH, I WILL POINT YOU TO OUR Q3 AVERAGE OF 16.67%. 
          IF YOU LOOK IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TABLE HERE, YOU'LL SEE THAT EEMS CLINICAL SPECIALIST FIELD, THAT NUMBER IS AT 70, WHICH IS, WHICH IS A HIGH NUMBER FOR US. 
          AS WE PREVIOUSLY REPORTED. 
          OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE SEEN THIRD SERVICE EMS GROWING IN CENTRAL TEXAS, AND SO AS ARE PARAMEDICS ARE BEING DRAWN TO OTHER AGENCIES. 
          BUT OUR INTERNAL PARAMEDIC PROGRAM CURRENTLY IN SESSION HAS 23 PARAMEDICS. 
          SO THEY'RE THAT ENTRY LEVEL MEDIC POSITION. 
          THEY'LL BE MOVING TO THIS PARAMEDIC PROGRAM, THEN THEY WILL TAKE THAT CLINICAL SPECIALIST EXAM AND THEY'RE SLATED TO GRADUATE IN APRIL. 
          SO WE DO HAVE A SHOT IN THE ARM, UH, KIND OF, KIND OF COMING, SO TO SPEAK. 
          LOOKING AT SWORN SEPARATIONS. 
          WENT AHEAD AND GAVE YOU THE, UH, YEAR TO DATE. 
          AS WE'VE PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED, THOSE SEPARATIONS IN THE EMS FIELD MEDIC AND CLINICAL SPECIALISTS, YOU KNOW, REMAIN, ARE TWO, UH, DRIVERS OF THOSE, UH, SEPARATIONS. 
          AND WE'VE ALSO SEEN AN UPTICK IN RETIREMENT, ESPECIALLY AS THOSE THIRD SERVICE EMS AGENCIES GROW IN CENTRAL TEXAS, HAYES COUNTY AND BASTROP BEING THE MOST NOTABLE THAT YOU CAN RETIRE FROM THE CITY AND THEN GO WORK IN THOSE AREAS AS WELL. 
          UM, MOVING ON TO SWORN TENURE AT SEPARATION. 
          THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE TENURE AT SEPARATION IS AT ONE TO FIVE YEAR RANGE, FOLLOWED BY FIVE TO 10 YEARS, AND THEN THAT 10 TO 15 YEARS, YOU KNOW, I MUST SAY THAT WE ARE A, A BUSY CITY AND A BUSY 9 1 1 SYSTEM. 
          AND SO ALL OF THE THINGS THAT I'VE GOTTEN IN FRONT OF YOU, THE REPRIORITIZATION OF CALLS TO REDUCE FATIGUING LIGHTS AND SIRENS RESPONSE, OUR COLLABORATIVE CARE LINE THAT DEFERS, UH, LOW ACUITY CALLS OFF THE 9 1 1 SYSTEM. 
          AND THEN OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH PARAMEDIC MENTAL HEALTH RESPONDERS ARE ALL HAVING A POSITIVE EFFECT ON OUR CREWS DOING THAT. 
          AMBULANCE RESPONSE, WHICH IS KIND OF THE, THE, THE MAJORITY OF THE, THE WORK THAT WE DO, A VACANCY RATE, UH, SWORN BROKEN OUT BY MONTH, UH, FOR SWORN AND CIVILIAN. 
          UH, I WILL POINT OUT THAT AT THE END OF SEPTEMBER, WE HAVE AN INCREDIBLY LARGE, UH, CONTINGENT HEADING TO EMS WORLD, WHICH IS A, A NATIONAL CONFERENCE. 
          WE HAVE A VERY ROBUST RECRUITING, UH, BOOTH. 
          AND WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE TARGETING AS WE TALK ABOUT PRIMING THE PUMP IS WHAT THAT, UH, DRAWING OF PARAMEDICS FROM OTHER AGENCIES OVER 
          [00:05:01]
TO AUSTIN IS, IS HOW WE'RE GONNA APPROACH THAT. 
          SO THAT'S COMING UP WITH A LARGE GROUP HEADING TO THAT. 
          AND THEN OUR EMS, UH, TURNOVER RATE, UH, BROKEN OUT BY MONTH. 
          THEN AGAIN FOR SWORN AND CIVILIAN LOOKING AT OUR INVERSES OUT, OUR, OUR TURNOVER RATE, YOU KNOW, DOES REMAIN RELATIVELY LOW. 
          AND THEN LOOKING AT KIND OF UPCOMING ACADEMY CLASSES AND WHAT, UH, THAT PRIMING THE PUMP, LIKE I SAID, LIKE I PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED, LOOKS LIKE ACADEMY CLASS OH 7 2 6, UH, GRADUATES HERE. 
          THEY'RE A LITTLE OVER HALFWAY THROUGH THEIR, THEIR GRADUATION IS APPROACHING. 
          THAT WILL BE 41 TOTAL CADETS, 33 FIELD MEDICS, SEVEN DIRECT HIRE CLINICAL SPECIALISTS, AND ONE COMMUNICATIONS MEDIC. 
          THAT GRADUATION IS MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21ST. 
          IT'S THE AUSTIN CENTRAL LIBRARY. 
          IT'S AT 2:00 PM WE'D LOVE YOU TO COME AND ATTEND THAT. 
          UM, COMMISSIONER RAMIREZ HAS ATTENDED IN THE PAST, SO WE'D, WE'D LIKE TO SEE YOU COME OUT AND MEET SOME OF THOSE MEDICS. 
          AND IT'S EASY PARKING OVER AT CITY HALL WITH A COUPLE BLOCK WALK OVER AND WHAT'S GONNA BE ABOUT A BALMY A HUNDRED DEGREE HEAT, UM, ACADEMY CLASS 10 26. 
          UH, LOOKING AT 19 TOTAL CADETS, SO 15 FIELD MEDICS, FOUR DIRECT TIRE CLINICAL SPECIALISTS. 
          YOU KNOW, WE ALWAYS HAVE TROUBLE FILLING THIS FALL ACADEMY AS PEOPLE TRY TO MOVE THEIR FAMILIES AND KIDS DOWN IN, INTO A NEW CITY. 
          AND SO THAT ACADEMY CLASS ALWAYS KINDA LISTS A LITTLE BIT AND THOSE NUMBERS AREN'T, AREN'T WHAT WE LIKE IT TO BE. 
          UM, AND WE DID, WE WERE TRACKING FOR A LITTLE MORE, BUT WE'VE PROCESSED SOME DEFERRALS THAT WANNA START AFTER THE, THE NEW YEAR FOR THAT ACADEMY CLASS. 
          AS A REMINDER, WE ARE RUNNING FOUR ACADEMY CLASSES A YEAR, LOOKING AT OUR OPIOID USE DATA FOR Q3. 
          UH, 107 PEOPLE WERE ENROLLED IN THE BUPRENORPHINE BRIDGE PROGRAM. 
          UH, 1,332 OPIOID USE DISORDER INTERVENTIONS WERE ADMINISTERED. 
          AND ON Q3, ABOUT 45% OF ALL OF OUR OPIOID ALERTS WERE PERSONS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS. 
          THAT'S DOWN A LITTLE BIT. 
          IF YOU LOOK AT THE UPPER RIGHT HAND SIDE, LOOKING AT PILL OVERDOSES, WE KIND OF HAVE BEEN ANTICIPATING THIS SUMMER SPIKE. 
          OF COURSE, WE'RE NOW INTO, INTO Q4 AND KINDA WRAPPING UP Q4. 
          SO WE KIND OF DON'T KNOW WHAT THOSE NUMBERS LOOK LIKE YET, BUT JUST A PRELIMINARY LOOK, IT LOOKS LIKE FOR PILL OVERDOSES THAT IT DID KINDA LEVEL OFF. 
          AND SO I'M, I'M OPTIMISTIC OF WHAT THOSE Q4 NUMBERS WILL LOOK LIKE WHEN I PRESENT THESE BEFORE YOU IN DECEMBER. 
          AND THEN OF COURSE, THE STANDARD STAT GRAB WE GIVE YOU AT THE BOTTOM, UM, OPIOID ALERTS IN THE 9 1 1 SYSTEM VERSUS NARCAN RESCUE KITS USED BY BYSTANDERS POLICE AND THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. 
          AND THEN THE NUMBER OF NARCAN RESCUE KITS DISTRIBUTED. 
          I WANNA WALK YOU THROUGH IN Q3 WHAT THOSE INTERVENTIONS OF THAT 13, UH, HUNDRED AND 32 LOOK LIKE. 
          SO, UH, OVERDOSE RESCUE KITS DISTRIBUTED WITH 706 BUPRENORPHINE BRIDGE DOSES IS 341 PATIENTS CONNECTED TO A MEDICATION ASSISTED TREATMENT. 
          UH, CENTER IS 99. 
          UH, OPIOID USE EDUCATION IS 177. 
          WE CONNECTED SIX PATIENTS TO SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT. 
          THAT'S NOT A MEDICATION ASSISTED TREATMENT PROGRAM. 
          ENROLLED ONE PERSON IN AN ALCOHOL BRIDGE PROGRAM, AND THEN TWO CONNECTED WITH PEER SUPPORT. 
          YOU KNOW, WHAT THIS SLIDE SHOWS IS ALL THE THINGS WE'RE DOING IN Q3 TO SET OURSELVES UP FOR SUCCESS FOR THAT SUMMER SPIKE THAT WE SEE IN Q4 TO COMBAT, YOU KNOW, UH, OPIOID, OPIOID ALERTS INTO THE 9 1 1 SYSTEM. 
          AND THIS WORK, AGAIN, ALSO HAS A POSITIVE EFFECTS ON THE MEDICS WORKING IN THE AMBULANCE. 
          SO LOOKING AT OUR POP-UP RESOURCE CLINICS, YOU KNOW, EACH MONTH OUR INTEGRATED SERVICES, OUR COMMUNITY HEALTH PARAMEDICS COLLABORATE WITH OVER 40 PARTNER AGENCIES TO PROVIDE THIS LOW BARRIER NAVIGATION IN ONE COORDINATED SPACE. 
          AND LAST QUARTER WE CELEBRATED OUR NINTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE POPUP RESOURCE CLINIC AND WE HELD THAT AT THE MARSHALING YARD THAT CONNECTED 190 PEOPLE TO 804 SERVICE INTERVENTIONS IN FISCAL YEAR 26 Q3. 
          UH, ALSO, IF YOU'LL LOOK AT THE PICTURE ON THE RIGHT OF THE NEW ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, RAMON BATISTA REPUBLIC SAFETY CAME AND TOURED THE MARSHALING YARD AND ATTENDED THAT PERK. 
          WE WERE GRATEFUL FOR HIS INITIATIVE TO KIND OF COME AND WANT TO SEE THAT IN ACTION. 
          AND THEN THAT MIDDLE PICTURE AT THE BOTTOM IS ACTUALLY OUR EXPLORER POST, OUR USE AT THE MARSHALING YARD, YOU KNOW, HANDING OUT FOOD FOR THAT. 
          SO THAT WAS A, THAT WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL EVENT AND HAPPY TO CELEBRATE OUR, OUR NINTH ANNIVERSARY. 
          I'VE GOTTEN THIS SLIDE BEFORE YOU, UH, IN PREVIOUS PRESENTATIONS, BUT JUST AS AN UPDATED TIMELINE FOR EMS AMBULANCE AUTO AID, I'M HAPPY TO REPORT THAT ON THE REVISED TIMELINE THAT ALL THE INTER-LOCAL AGREEMENTS HAVE BEEN SIGNED BETWEEN TRAVIS COUNTY ESD ONE AND TWO, WHICH IS LAGO VISTA AND PFLUGERVILLE FIRE DEPARTMENT, RESPECTIVELY, TRAVIS COUNTY AND THEN WILLIAMSON COUNTY. 
          UH, WHAT WE NEEDED TO DO WAS, WAIT, FIRE HAS BEEN ON AUTO AID FOR A WHILE, BUT THEY WERE ON A HOST SERVER AND THEY NEEDED TO MOVE THAT TO THE CLOUD ENVIRONMENT THAT WAS COMPLETED ON AUGUST 27TH. 
          SO THAT IS DONE. 
          SO 
          [00:10:01]
THAT PAVES THE WAY FOR EMS THEN TO ENACT AMBULANCE AUTO AID, BUT WE WON'T GO TO THE HOST SERVER, WE'LL GO DIRECTLY TO THE CLOUD. 
          THAT'LL SAVE US A, A STEP DOWN THE ROAD. 
          AND, UH, ONE A TS HAS ASSIGNED US A PROJECT MANAGER. 
          AND SO OVER THIS OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, WE WILL BE WORKING THROUGH THE PROCEDURES FOR THAT. 
          BUT THEN ALSO, UH, THE TRAINING FOR STAFF. 
          SO WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT TENTATIVE GO LINE OF JANUARY OR FEBRUARY OF 27, YOU KNOW, BARRING ANY UNFORESEEN TECHNOLOGY ISSUES. 
          SO WE'RE MOVE IN WITH THAT IN Q1 OF FISCAL YEAR 26. 
          I KIND OF GAVE YOU A TEASER SLIDE ABOUT WHAT OUR WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM LOOKS LIKE. 
          AND SO NOW THAT I HAVE SOME, SOME OUTCOME DATA, UH, I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT OUR WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM AND THEN SOME OUTCOME DATA. 
          AND I'VE KIND OF TITLED THIS EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT OUR WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM, BUT WE'RE AFRAID TO ASK. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S INTERESTING ABOUT OUR WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM. 
          WE HAVE HAD THIS FOR, UH, SEVERAL YEARS NOW. 
          AND SO WE GIVE WHOLE BLOOD, WHICH MAKES UP COMPONENTS OF PLASMA, WHITE BLOOD CELLS AND PLATELETS, AND THEN RED BLOOD CELLS, YOU KNOW, IN THE HOSPITAL YOU MIGHT GET A COMPONENT OF THAT. 
          WHEN YOU GET WHOLE BLOOD, YOU DON'T GET WHOLE BLOOD. 
          THEY CALL THAT A ONE-TO-ONE TO-ONE IN THE HOSPITAL. 
          BUT THAT'S, UH, NOT REALISTIC IN THE PRE-HOSPITAL ENVIRONMENT. 
          AND A COUPLE OF THINGS ABOUT OUR WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM IS THAT IT'S INCREDIBLY DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY IN THIS HEAT TODAY. 
          THAT WHOLE BLOOD HAS TO BE MAINTAINED IN A COOLER TWO TO SIX DEGREES CELSIUS OR ABOUT 30 TO 40 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. 
          AND SO WE HAVE TEMPERATURE, UH, TEMPERATURE SENSORS THAT ARE ON THE WIFI BUBBLE ON THOSE UNITS AND IT UPDATES WITH THAT TEMPERATURE MONITORING EVERY COUPLE OF SECONDS. 
          SO WE CAN TRACK THAT. 
          IT TAKES ABOUT FOUR TO SIX WORK HOURS A DAY OF ONE PERSON TO MAINTAIN COMPLIANCE FOR THAT WHOLE BLOOD. 
          SO IT'S PRETTY LABORIOUS FOR US. 
          BUT YOU'RE GONNA SEE IN THE LATE LATER SLIDES WHY IT'S WORTH THAT. 
          UH, THE OTHER THING I TALKED TO YOU ABOUT LAST TIME WAS THAT OF COURSE WHEN WE GET THE BLOOD FROM WE ARE BLOOD, IT'S IN WHAT THEY CALL A 35 DAY BAG, BUT WE DON'T GET IT AT DAY ONE OF THAT DAY 35. 
          IT'S GOTTA SET ON THE SHELF FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. 
          AND SO WE HAVE A, A SMALLER WINDOW TO GIVE THAT WHOLE BLOOD, BUT THERE'S TALK ABOUT THEM GOING AWAY FROM A 35 DAY BAG ON THE MARKET AND GOING TO A 21 DAY BAG. 
          AND SO WHEN WE GET THAT, UH, ASSUMING THAT IT'S AT DAY ONE OF 21, THEN WE'LL HAVE ABOUT 20 DAYS TO GET THAT ADMINISTERED. 
          AND THAT TIMELINE MAY, MAY SHORTEN THERE, BUT IT DOES COST AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY EMS ASIDE FROM ABOUT THE MILLION DOLLAR STARTUP COST. 
          BUT WE AVERAGE ABOUT $300,000 A YEAR IN JUST THE BLOOD ITSELF AND THEN WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE WITH THE COLD CHAIN STORAGE AND THE SHORTENED LIFESPAN. 
          AND THEN JUST SUPPLY CONSTRAINTS. 
          SO WHAT I TELL EVERYONE IS THAT NOW IN THE SUMMER MONTHS AND EVEN WHEN WE GET BUSY IN THE FALL WHILE YOU'RE GETTING YOUR FLU SHOT AND GETTING YOUR COVID SHOT, PLEASE GO DONATE BLOOD AS WELL. 
          UM, UPDATED SLIDE. 
          YOU SAW THIS SLIDE IN Q1, BUT JUST A GERMANE TO AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY, EM, S'S WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM. 
          OUR PRIMARY INDICATION IS HEMORRHAGIC SHOCK. 
          UH, WE ARE BOASTING ABOUT AN 85% PATIENT SURVIVAL RATE AND WE DEPLOYED 12 UNITS OF WHOLE BLOOD IN AUSTIN AND TRAVIS COUNTY 24 7 365. 
          SO WHOLE BLOOD IS ON OUR DISTRICT COMMANDERS. 
          THERE'S SEVEN OF THEM, OUR SWORN PHYSICIAN'S ASSISTANTS, OUR DESIGNATED MEDICAL OFFICERS, OUR SPECIAL EVENTS, AND OUR CAST MED PROGRAM. 
          SO AT THE UT GAME, JUST THIS SATURDAY AND THIS COMING SATURDAY, THERE'S WHOLE BLOOD ON SITE THERE. 
          AND THEN WHEN OUR CAST MED IS OUT IN, IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA, THEY'RE CURING WHOLE BLOOD. 
          UH, WE'RE HAPPY WITH OUR LESS THAN 8% EXPIRATION WITHOUT USE. 
          AND THEN IN Q3 WE HAD ABOUT 850 ADMINS, BUT WE'RE PAST THAT THOUSAND WHOLE BLOOD UNIT ADMINISTRATION TO DATE. 
          SO 1076. 
          AND THEN AT THE END OF 25 INTO 26, WE ENACTED A DISASTER PLAN, WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE TO DEPLOY 10 TO 20 UNITS OF WHOLE BLOOD AT A CRISIS SITE, SHOULD WE GET SOME KIND OF MASS CASUALTY INCIDENT. 
          SO WE HAVE A, A GREAT KIND OF APPROACH TO THAT SHOULD THE NEED ARISE HERE IN AUSTIN AND TRAVIS COUNTY. 
          WE DO AVERAGE ABOUT ONE ADMINISTRATION OF WHOLE BLOOD A DAY. 
          AND SO 46% BEING TRAUMA AND OBSTETRICAL, WHICH I'M GONNA TALK ABOUT HERE IN A SECOND, BUT, UH, 54% BEING MEDICAL AND YOU MIGHT THINK TRAUMA CAR ACCIDENTS, BUT THERE'S A, A SIGNIFICANT POPULATION THAT'S MEDICAL IN NATURE THAT WE GIVE WHOLE BLOOD FOR. 
          COMMISSIONER RUAN AND I NERD OUT OVER OUTCOME DATA. 
          AND SO, UM, WE HAVE SOME AMAZING OUTCOME DATA THAT I WANTED TO SHARE. 
          UH, WE AGREE THAT WE DON'T, UH, OUTCOME DATA CAN BE DIFFICULT TO FIND AND GET IN FRONT OF GROUPS, BUT WE'VE WORKED REALLY HARD. 
          UH, AS IT RELATES TO OUTCOME DATA, WE GO THROUGH A CATARACT, WHICH IS THE CAPITAL AREA OF TEXAS REGIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL. 
          IT'S A NONPROFIT. 
          AND WHAT THAT DOES IS TAKE THE DIFFERENT AGENCIES FROM TRAVIS COUNTY, BLANCO, BUTA, AND WILLIAMSON COUNTY. 
          IT WOULD BE TOO LABORIOUS FOR THE HOSPITAL SYSTEMS TO MINE THIS OUT BY AGENCY. 
          [00:15:01]
SO WE GO THROUGH THE RACK FOR THIS. 
          UH, THE PATIENTS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS IS LOOKING AT YEARS 24 AND 25. 
          AND BASICALLY WHAT WE'RE SAYING IS THAT, UM, WHOLE BLOOD UTILIZATION SPANS MULTIPLE PATIENT POPULATIONS AND JUST BEYOND TRAUMA, BUT THE MEDICAL. 
          BUT I WANNA FOCUS ON THIS OBSTETRICAL EMERGENCY TYPE CALL BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH IT'S A SMALL POPULATION OF PATIENTS, UH, WE DO SEE THOSE IN THE 9 1 1 SYSTEM THAT ARE SIGNIFICANT HEMORRHAGING. 
          AND SO EVEN THOUGH IT'S A SMALL NUMBER, EVERY TIME WE'VE GIVEN WHOLE BLOOD IN THAT GROUP OF OBSTETRICAL PATIENTS, WE'VE HAD ZERO FATALITIES. 
          AND SO THAT'S REALLY TELLING TO US. 
          SO WE'RE GONNA BE BE LOOKING AT THAT, UH, MORE CLOSELY AND THEN DOING SOME TRAINING TO TELL OUR MEDICS TO GIVE THAT KIND OF EARLY AND OFTEN WHEN INDICATED. 
          AND THE HEALTHCARE, UH, PLAYERS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IN CENTRAL TEXAS THAT THIS DATA'S COMING FROM IS ASCENSION, SETON, HCA AND THE BAYLOR SCOTT AND WHITE HEALTHCARE GROUP. 
          LOOKING AT EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT PATIENTS AND WHAT THEIR JOURNEY LOOKS LIKE KIND OF IN THAT EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT. 
          WERE THEY ADMITTED FROM THE HOSPITAL? WERE THEY DISCHARGED FROM THE ED OR DID THEY EXPIRE IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT? UM, PATIENTS RECEIVING WHOLE BLOOD IN THAT, UH, PRE-HOSPITAL SETTING ARE FREQUENTLY STABILIZED BEYOND JUST THE EMERGENCY RESUSCITATION. 
          AND WE'VE SEEN THAT WHERE THEY'RE IN CARDIAC ARREST, WE GIVE BLOOD, WE GO OUR GO THROUGH OUR CARDIAC ARREST, UH, PROTOCOL, AND WE GET RETURN OF SPONTANEOUS CIRCULATION. 
          BUT WHAT I REALLY WANNA FOCUS YOUR ATTENTION ON IS WHAT A PATIENT LOOKS LIKE DISCHARGED FROM THE ED. 
          AND WHAT YOU MIGHT THINK WITH THAT IS, WELL, IT'S 80 PATIENTS, ABOUT 10%. 
          UM, PERHAPS EMS GAVE IT INAPPROPRIATELY IN THE PRE-HOSPITAL ENVIRONMENT. 
          'CAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO BE ADMITTED AND THEY DIDN'T PASS AWAY. 
          THEY WERE DISCHARGED. 
          BUT THAT'S ACTUALLY NOT THE CASE. 
          UM, IF WE CAN IDENTIFY A RELATIVELY ACUTE REASON FOR THE HEMORRHAGE AND STOP IT, THAT MIGHT BE A TOURNIQUET. 
          UH, IT MIGHT BE A SMALL GI BLEED THAT WE CAN RUSH TO THE HOSPITAL, BUT WE GIVE WHOLE BLOOD, THEN SOMETIMES THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE TO BE ADMITTED. 
          SO WE'RE REALLY TURNING THESE, THESE, THESE PATIENTS AROUND IN THE PRE-HOSPITAL ENVIRONMENT, WHICH IS GOOD. 
          YOU KNOW, I WILL SAY THAT OUR WHOLE BLOOD ADMINISTRATION GETS A HUNDRED PERCENT CASE REVIEW, NOT ONLY ON THE EMS SIDE, BUT IN THE HOSPITALS AS WELL. 
          SO WE'RE DOING A HUNDRED PERCENT CASE REVIEW. 
          THAT'S HOW WE'RE ABLE TO KIND OF GET THESE NUMBERS WITH THIS. 
          AND THEN I WANTED TO WALK THROUGH KIND OF WHAT THEIR JOURNEY LOOKS LIKE AFTER HOSPITAL ADMISSION. 
          SO AGAIN, LOOKING AT THE SAME SET THAT 24 TO TO 25 70% OF OUR PATIENTS ARE DISCHARGED HOME. 
          UH, 16 PATIENTS WERE DISCHARGED TO PSYCHIATRIC FACILITIES, AND 16 PATIENTS WERE DISCHARGED TO TO LAW ENFORCEMENT BECAUSE THIS IS OUTCOME DATA FROM A HOSPITAL. 
          UM, IF YOU LOOK AT THE DISCHARGE LOCATION, JUST SOME OF THE ABBREVIATIONS THERE, THE PNEUMONICS OR A MA IS AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE. 
          LTC IS LONG-TERM CARE. 
          UH, IPR IS INPATIENT REHAB AND THAT SNF IS A SKILLED NURSING FACILITY, BUT BY AND LARGE, WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IS, ASIDE FROM THE 2.7% THAT ENDED UP TRANSITIONING TO, TO HOSPICE CARE, PUTS ABOUT 97.3 POST-EVENT THAT HAD A REALLY GREAT FULL OUTCOME. 
          THEY WERE WALKING AND TALKING AND, AND HAD A REALLY GOOD QUALITY OF LIFE. 
          SO THIS WHOLE BLOOD, UH, PROGRAM IS ABSOLUTELY SAVING LIVES. 
          AND THEN LOOKING AT MORTALITY BY AGE GROUP, UM, WHAT WE NOTICE ON THIS IS THAT MORTALITY AMONG PATIENTS RECEIVING PREHOSPITAL WHOLE BLOOD APPEARS RELATIVELY CONSISTENT ACROSS AGE GROUPS. 
          AND THERE'S NOT A REAL CLEAR AGE RELATED INCREASE IN MORTALITY. 
          WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT CARDIAC ARREST. 
          IF YOU GO INTO CARDIAC ARREST AT YEAR 60 AND THEN EVERY SUBSEQUENT YEAR GOING UP FROM THAT, THERE'S A PERCENTAGE OF YOUR MORTALITY THAT CAN INCREASE WITH THAT. 
          BUT THESE PATIENTS, IF WE CAN IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF BLEEDING, STOP IT AND THEN TOP YOUR TANK OFF WITH WHOLE BLOOD, YOU TYPICALLY HAVE A REALLY GOOD OUTCOME WITH THIS PROGRAM. 
          SO, UH, THIS ENHANCEMENT THAT THIS COMMISSION SUPPORTED IS ABSOLUTELY HELPING THE MEDICS ON THE STREET. 
          AND THIS, AGAIN, HAS A, A POSITIVE EFFECT WHEN THEY GET THE OUTCOME DATA ON THE PATIENTS THAT THE MEDICS ARE ARE TREATING. 
          AND THEN JUST, UH, KIND OF BRINGING US HOME HERE IN THIS PRESENTATION, UH, WANTED TO GO THROUGH SOME AWARDS AT A RECOGNITION. 
          UH, I WANNA POINT OUT THAT AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMS, SPECIAL OPERATIONS SWIFT WATER BOAT TEAM, UH, THEY DEPLOYED IN, UH, JULY OF 2025 TO KERR COUNTY. 
          AND THEY WERE JUST IN OKLAHOMA CITY AT THE RESCUE CONFERENCE, AN AWARDS BANQUET WHERE THEY ACTUALLY RECEIVED THE HIGGINS AND LANGLEY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AS PART OF THEIR TEXAS A AND M TASK FORCE ONE DEPLOYMENT. 
          I GOT A CHANCE, IT'S ABOUT A SIX HOUR DRIVE. 
          I GOT TO DRIVE UP THERE AND BE WITH THEM. 
          THEY WERE ACTUALLY ALREADY THERE DOING TRAINING, SO THEY GOT OUT OF THE WATER LONG ENOUGH TO RECEIVE THIS AWARD. 
          UM, IT'S INTERESTING FOR THIS ACTUAL BOAT TEAM, WHAT I WANTED TO SAY, THERE'S ACTUALLY THREE OF 'EM, BUT ONE COULDN'T MAKE IT DUE TO FAMILY OBLIGATIONS. 
          [00:20:02]
UH, WE ACTUALLY DEPLOYED THEM TO NEW BRONXVILLE ABOUT 48 HOURS BEFORE THE FLOODING HIT. 
          SO THEY WERE IN THE FIGHT VERY QUICKLY AND ABLE TO KIND OF TELL US WHAT WAS GOING ON IN KIRK COUNTY. 
          ALL SAID AND DONE FOR AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMS. AND THAT OPERATION, WE DEPLOYED ABOUT 50 SWORN STAFF, AND I DON'T THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT NUMBER BEFORE. 
          AND OUR LAST PERSON FROM KE COUNTY DIDN'T COME HOME UNTIL JANUARY OF 2026. 
          THEY WOULD ROTATE IN AND OUT. 
          SO AN INCREDIBLY ROBUST RESPONSE TO KIND OF CATASTROPHIC LOSS OF LIFE AND INJURY. 
          AT ONE POINT, AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMS HELD THE TOP THREE LEADERSHIP POSITIONS IN THE INCIDENT COMMAND STRUCTURE IN KERR COUNTY AS PART OF THE MTF. 
          AND SO ADDITIONALLY WE SAW HISTORIC FLOODING IN 2026 AS WELL. 
          AND SO, KIND OF TO WRAP THIS UP, WHAT I WILL SAY IS IN Q1, I TALKED ABOUT OUR 50TH ANNIVERSARY AND WHAT ACTS OF SERVICE WOULD LOOK LIKE. 
          AND YOU ACTUALLY DIDN'T MISS THE BOAT ON THAT. 
          I HAVE NOT HAD A CHANCE TO DO THAT BETWEEN FLOODING RESPONSE THIS SUMMER AND BUDGET AND JUST THE HEAT. 
          BUT IN OCTOBER, WE ARE LOOKING AT, UH, WE'VE OBVIOUSLY DONE A PICNIC FOR OUR EMPLOYEES AND WE DID THE GRAND REOPENING OF EMS STATION ONE AT SOUTH FIRST AND BEN WHITE. 
          WE ARE GONNA BE RELEASING A VIDEO ABOUT THE HISTORY OF OUR DEPARTMENT IN OCTOBER. 
          AND I'M GONNA LOOK TO DO THAT ACTS OF SERVICE. 
          AND SO, UH, I WILL MAKE SURE THAT Y'ALL GET THAT INVITATION TO THAT. 
          'CAUSE I KNOW MANY OF YOU HAVE INDICATED THAT YOU WANTED TO ATTEND AND MEET THE MEDICS AND, AND GO HELP WITH THAT. 
          SO WITH THAT, I'LL, I'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. 
          THANK YOU CHIEF HOPKINS. 
          UM, JUST QUICK KUDOS RIGHT OFF THE TOP TO THE, UH, CADET CLASS 0 7 2 6. 
          IT'S GREAT TO SEE THOSE ROBUST NUMBERS AND NOT TO, UH, DISCOUNT THE CLASS OF 10 26 AS WELL. 
          UM, HOPEFULLY I CAN MAKE ONE OF THOSE GRADUATIONS. 
          UM, I HAVE ONE QUESTION OVER OPIOID, OPIOID OVERDOSES MM-HMM . 
          FROM SUMMER 25 TO SUMMER 26. 
          UM, YOU, YOU ALWAYS, YOU SAY THAT THERE'S A SPIKE IN THE SUMMER, COMPARABLE SUMMER TO SUMMER. 
          DID WERE THESE, WOULD THIS SPIKE LOWER, HIGHER, THE SAME? I DON'T HAVE THE COMPLETE DATA SET FROM THAT JULY AUGUST, AND THEN OF COURSE WE'RE STILL IN SEPTEMBER. 
          IT, IT APPEARS THAT WE'RE GONNA SEE A LITTLE BIT OF AN UPTICK IN A SPIKE, BUT MY EARLY INDICATIONS ARE THAT IT WILL NOT BE LIKE THE SPIKE WE SAW IN THAT APRIL TO JULY OF AUGUST OF THAT 24 OR INTO 25. 
          SO HOPEFULLY WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE POP-UP RESOURCE CLINICS AND OUR BUP, UH, BUPRENORPHINE BRIDGE PROGRAM AND THEN JUST THE AMOUNT OF NARCAN ON THE MARKET AND AS MUCH AS THE CAMPAIGNS HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS, THAT WE'RE HOPING THAT SUMMER SPIKE WILL BE LESS. 
          AND SO THAT'S THE, THAT'S THE EARLY INDICATION. 
          YES, SIR. 
          UH, BUT I'LL PRESENT TO Y'ALL IN DECEMBER AND I'LL HAVE THOSE Q4 NUMBERS AND I'LL MAKE SURE TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET IN FRONT OF YOU WHAT THIS SUMMER SPIKE LOOKED LIKE. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SIR. 
          UH, COMMISSIONER BERNHARDT, UM, I WANTED TO BETTER UNDERSTAND, UM, THE STAFFING SLIDE, WHICH IS I GUESS THE FIRST SUBSTANTIVE SLIDE. 
          I JUST, IT POPPED OUT TO ME THAT, UM, THE EMS MEDIC COMMUNICATIONS VACANCY WAS AT 75%, WHICH IS SIX. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? EMS MEDIC. 
          EMS MEDIC IN COMMUNICATION IN COMMUNICATIONS. 
          LEMME LOOK FOR THAT REAL QUICK 'CAUSE IT'S NOT IN THE ORDER THAT EMS MEDIC, LEMME GO TO COLUMN HERE REAL QUICK AND I'M NOT SEEING IT HERE. 
          BEAR WITH ME. 
          TELL ME WHERE YOU'RE LOOKING AT AGAIN. 
          I'M SORRY. 
          SO, UM, IT'S THE, THE FIRST SLIDE THAT YOU SHOWED. 
          IT'S, IT'S GOT AN ARROW THAT SAYS AUTHORIZED STRENGTH 714 AT THE TOP AND FILLED SWORN 5 96 MM-HMM . 
          AND IT'S ONE OF THE LINES, IF YOU LOOK DOWN VACANCY RATE FOR 75%, THEN IT POPS OUT. 
          OH, YEAH. 
          YEAH, YEAH. 
          I SEE. 
          YOU'RE RIGHT. 
          EVERYTHING ELSE IS A LITTLE MUCKED TOGETHER. 
          YES. 
          UM, AND YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE DISCREPANCY BETWEEN THE MEDIC OPENING AND THAT, CORRECT? WELL, YEAH. 
          I'M CONFUSED ABOUT THE THREE OPENINGS IN COMMUNICATIONS AND THE, THE SIX VACANCIES. 
          YES. 
          IT APPEARS TO ME, BECAUSE I FEEL CONFIDENT THAT THAT MEDIC OPENING OF THREE COMMUNICATIONS IS ACCURATE. 
          RIGHT. 
          UH, BECAUSE WE HAVE MOVED SOME FOLKS FROM THE FIELD OVER THERE. 
          OKAY. 
          IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THIS CARRIED OVER. 
          I WILL CONFIRM THAT AND GIVE YOU A RESPONSE. 
          MY HUMAN RESOURCES, WE HAD A, A TRANSITION AND WHO IS DOING THIS, AND SO I JUST THINK THAT WE MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN THAT LINE. 
          YEAH, THAT'S WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE TO ME. 
          NO, THAT'S TOTALLY FINE. 
          I FIGURED THERE WAS AN EXPLANATION, BUT IT CONFUSED ME ENOUGH. 
          MM-HMM . 
          I APOLOGIZE. 
          I DIDN'T CATCH THAT. 
          I DID SCRUTINIZE THIS PRETTY GOOD, BUT I'LL, I'LL RUN THAT DOWN. 
          UM, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION, COMMISSIONER RUAN. 
          [00:25:01]
MR. , UM, FROM WHAT CHAIR DURAN HAD ASKED ABOUT, WHEN YOU DO COME BACK AND PRESENT THE REST OF THE DATA, WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO TRY TO DO SOME NATIONAL COMPARISONS AS WELL? I'M ALWAYS CURIOUS TO SEE WHEN YOU SEE THE DROPS, IS THAT PART OF LIKE A BROADER SECULAR TREND OR IS THERE COMMISSIONER RUAN, THEY CAN'T HEAR YOU ONLINE? UM, WHEN YOU DO COME BACK TO PRESENT THE REST OF THE OPIOID, UM, DATA TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED OVER THE SUMMER, UM, I'D BE CURIOUS IF YOU COULD COMPARE TO ANY BROADER NATIONAL TRENDS, PSYCHO TRENDS, BECAUSE IT'S ALWAYS NICE TO SEE WHAT WE ARE DOING THAT MIGHT BE HELPFUL VERSUS WHAT'S JUST PART OF A BROADER GOOD LUCK. 
          AND THEN FROM THAT, THINK ABOUT WHAT WE NEED TO BUILD ON IF THINGS ARE SUCCESSFUL, UH, IN COMPARISON TO OTHER SETTINGS. 
          CERTAINLY I CAN HAVE A CHIEF CARR, UH, SEE, I KNOW THAT WE'RE PART OF, UH, A REPORTING SOFTWARE FOR, FOR TEXAS, AND SO I FEEL CONFIDENT ABOUT THE TEXAS DATA. 
          I'LL SEE WHAT I CAN GLEAN FROM ANY NATIONAL DATA AS WELL, SO WE'LL MAKE SURE WE INCLUDE THAT IN TEXAS. 
          THAT'S, THAT'S HELPFUL TOO. 
          YES, SIR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COMMISSIONER AGER. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE WHOLE BLOOD PROGRAM. 
          AS A REGULAR BLOOD DONOR MYSELF, I'M CURIOUS ABOUT THE SPOIL YOUR, THE EXPIRED PIECE AND ARE YOU CONCERNED ABOUT GOING TO A 21 DAY VERSUS A 35 DAY GIVEN PARTICULARLY IN OUR HEAT AND EVERYTHING, AND IS THERE SOME NEGOTIATION THAT CAN BE DONE TO, TO HELP EVEN REDUCE THAT NUMBER FURTHER? YEAH, SO I THINK IF YOU'RE AN EMS AGENCY, WE ARE LEANING ON THE PRODUCTION OF 35 DAY VACS JUST BECAUSE, UM, I THINK WE CAN STILL GET THE JOB DONE, BUT I DO THINK IT'S GONNA BE MORE TRIPS FOR OUR COMMANDERS TO, WE ARE BLOOD AND THAT YOU MIGHT SEE THAT RELATIVELY LOW, LESS THAN 8% INCREASE. 
          UM, I WILL SAY THAT I PRESENTED THIS IN DECEMBER AND I TEASED THAT 35 DAY BAG GOING TO 21 DAY BAG. 
          WE STILL HAVE A HEALTHY STOCK OF THE 35 DAY BAG. 
          SO I'M OPTIMISTIC THAT THEY HAVE KIND OF SEEN THE PROBLEMS THAT WILL MAKE NOT ONLY FOR LARGER SERVICES LIKE US, BUT SOME OF THESE SMALLER SERVICES THAT MAY HAVE TO COME INTO AUSTIN OR SAN ANTONIO TO GET BLOOD. 
          UH, BUT YES, IT'S A CONCERN. 
          AND SO WE'RE, WE'RE WATCHING IT. 
          I I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE JUST YET. 
          AS A FOLLOW UP TO THAT, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU FEEL LIKE YOU NEED EXTRA OUTSIDE SUPPORT FROM THIS COMMISSION TO HELP MAKE A CASE FOR, UM, IF THERE'S THE INSTITUTIONAL DECISIONS BEING MADE BEYOND AT THE BLOOD DONATION LEVEL AND AT THE MANUFACTURING LEVEL, THAT'S SOMETHING YOU NEED AND WOULD WANT THAT SUPPORT FROM YOUR MISSION? SURE. 
          I, LET ME DO SOME DUE DILIGENCE AND FIND OUT IF THIS IS SIGNIFICANTLY GONNA BE A, A PROBLEM THAT WE'RE GONNA FACE AND THEN WHAT THE RACK IS HEARING, AND THEN JUST TO SEE IF, IF WE DO HAVE A, A REAL PROBLEM OR WE'VE BEEN HEARING THIS RUMOR FOR A WHILE, WE NEED TO RUN THAT DOWN AND SEE IF THAT'S REALLY GONNA BE A LEGITIMATE ISSUE FOR US. 
          AND THEN IF IT IS SOMETHING THAT I, I FEEL LIKE WE COULD USE A, A CAMPAIGN OR LETTERS OR JUST ASSISTANCE, I WILL CERTAINLY GET THAT IN FRONT OF THIS COMMISSION. 
          YES, MA'AM. 
          ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION? UH, VICE CHAIR RAMIREZ. 
          UM, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR PULLING TOGETHER THIS WHOLE BLOOD, UM, PRESENTATION. 
          I KNOW IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN WANTING TO, TO SEE MORE INFORMATION ON FOR QUITE SOME TIME AND WE JUST HADN'T FOUND TIME FOR IT, SO I APPRECIATE YOU DOING THAT. 
          UM, MY QUESTION IS JUST, JUST GENERALLY MORE ABOUT THE SCALE OF THE PROGRAM AND IF IT'S THE RIGHT SIZE RIGHT NOW, IS IT WORKING? DO YOU FEEL LIKE IT NEEDS TO BE LARGER? IS IT MANAGEABLE AS IS? I THINK THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. 
          I DO FEEL LIKE IT'S MANAGEABLE AS IS. 
          I LIKE THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S JUST NOT ENOUGH BLOODSTOCK TO PUT IT ON EVERY AMBULANCE, BUT GIVEN THAT IT'S SEVEN DISTRICT COMMANDERS, THOSE ARE STRATEGICALLY PLACED. 
          THEY, THEY SUPERVISE A CONGLOMERATE OF AMBULANCES. 
          THEY ARE ALSO IN STRATEGIC LOCATIONS FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN AND TRAVIS COUNTY AS WELL. 
          BUT WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS PROGRAM IS, YOU KNOW, FOR A WHILE WE WEREN'T ABLE TO PUT IT ON IN SPECIAL EVENTS OR ON CA MED. 
          SO THOSE HAVE BEEN STRATEGIC THINGS THAT WE HAVE DONE TO GET THEM TO THOSE EVENTS. 
          SO I FEEL LIKE WHERE WE'RE AT WITH THAT NUMBER BEING ABOUT 12 ON THE ROAD EVERY DAY, ESPECIALLY ON OUR PHYSICIANS' ASSISTANTS AS WELL THAT ARE SWORN THAT GO ON LOW ACUITY CALLS, BUT THEN THEY ALSO JUMP HIGH ACUITY CALLS, UH, JUST BECAUSE OF THE, THE, THE CRITICALITY OF THIS PATIENT. 
          SO I, I FEEL GOOD ABOUT THE SCOPE RIGHT NOW. 
          I ALSO FEEL GOOD ABOUT THE INVESTMENT IN THE TECHNOLOGY. 
          THE DELTA COOLERS THAT WE'RE USING DO REALLY WELL. 
          THEY'RE PORTABLE, THEY'RE NOT HARD MOUNTED IN A COMMAND TRUCK. 
          SO A LOT OF TIMES WHEN OUR COMMANDER IS ON SCENE, YOU'LL SEE THEM TAKE THEM OUTTA THEIR TRUCK AND THEY CAN CARRY THEM TO THE PATIENT SIDE AND THEN GO WITH THE AMBULANCE, AND THEN THE COMMANDER RETRIEVES THAT FROM THE HOSPITAL. 
          [00:30:01]
AND I, I JUST FEEL LIKE THE NUMBER OF UNITS WE'RE CARRYING TOO. 
          UH, LASTLY I'LL SAY THAT BEING ABLE TO MUSTER 20 UNITS AT A CRISIS SITE FOR A MASS CASUALTY IS HUGE. 
          AND THE, THE FOLKS THAT GET CREDIT FOR THAT ARE OUR OPERATION SHIFT CHIEF WHO JUST TOOK THAT ON AS A, AS A PROJECT AND THEN WORKED WITH WE ARE BLOOD AND THE RACK TO KIND OF MUSTER WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. 
          AND SO AS THOSE POTENTIALLY LARGE CALLS HAPPEN IN THE 9 1 1 SYSTEM, WE ARE PRACTICING LIKE WE PLAY. 
          AND SO A LOT OF TIMES THAT DESIGNATED MEDICAL OFFICER WON'T EVEN GO TO THE SCENE THAT WE THINK IS GONNA POTENTIALLY BE A BIG INCIDENT THEY WILL GO TO, WE ARE BLOOD JUST IN CASE THEY NEED IT. 
          UM, AND WE'LL PUT SOME MORE SINGLE UNIT RESPONDERS ON THAT SIDE. 
          SO I, I THINK IT'S IN A GOOD SPOT FOR NOW, BUT WE'RE DEFINITELY WATCHING IT CLOSELY. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU CHIEF HOPKINS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          EXCELLENT PRESENTATION AS ALWAYS. 
          UH, MOVING ON 
          [3. Discussion with Auditor’s Office regarding recent Mental Health Audit. Presented by Kathie Harrison, Assistant City Auditor, Austin City Auditor’s Office and Mariel Dempster, Auditor II, Austin City Auditor’s Office.]
TO THE NEXT ITEM WE HAVE, UM, KATHY HARRISON AND, UH, MARIEL DEMPSTER FROM THE AUDITOR'S OFFICE TO GO OVER THE RECENT MENTAL HEALTH AUDIT. 
          THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. 
          OKAY. 
          GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR HAVING US HERE. 
          MY NAME IS MARIELLE DEMPSTER. 
          I WAS THE LEAD AUDITOR ON THIS PROJECT AND I'VE GOT KATHY HARRISON, WHO WAS THE AUDIT MAN MANAGER OVER THE PROJECT. 
          UM, UH, THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS AUDIT WAS TO DETERMINE IF THE CITY IS SUPPORTING THIS, UH, MENTAL HEALTH OF SWORN PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEES. 
          AS YOU ALL ARE AWARE, THE CITY EMPLOYEES OVER 3000 SWORN STAFF MEMBERS, AND THEY FILL CRITICAL AND CHALLENGING ROLES THAT ARE ESSENTIAL TO KEEPING AUSTIN SAFE. 
          UM, THEY REGULARLY RESPOND TO TRAUMATIC INCIDENTS AND WORK CHALLENGING SCHEDULES, AND WE KNOW THAT RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT PUBLIC SAFETY PROFESSIONALS ARE AT GREATER RISK FOR SERIOUS MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ISSUES. 
          SUFFICIENT, UH, MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT IS IMPORTANT NOT ONLY FOR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR FAMILIES, BUT ALSO FOR THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE. 
          WHEN PUBLIC SAFETY, UH, PROFESSIONALS ARE HEALTHY, THEY CAN BETTER SUPPORT AUSTIN RESIDENTS. 
          I JUST WANNA MAKE A NOTE ON THE SCOPE OF THIS AUDIT RIGHT NOW. 
          UM, WE LOOK SPECIFICALLY AT SWORN MEMBERS OF PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENTS. 
          HOWEVER, WE DO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT PROFESSIONAL STAFF IN THESE DEPARTMENTS ARE ALSO CRITICAL TO THIS WORK, AND THEY ALSO MAY HAVE EXPOSURE TO SOME OF THE SAME IMPACTS AND STRESSORS THAT SWORN EMPLOYEES DO. 
          UM, ALL OF THE RESOURCES WE'LL BE DISCUSSING TODAY ARE ALSO AVAILABLE TO PROFESSIONAL STAFF AS WELL AS SWORN STAFF. 
          UH, THE AUDIT RESULTED IN TWO FINDINGS, ONE ADDITIONAL OBSERVATION AND FIVE RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          OUR FIRST FINDING WAS THAT THE CITY PROVIDES MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORTS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEES. 
          HOWEVER, SOME EMPLOYEES MAY BE HESITANT TO USE THEM OR FEEL THEY DO NOT ADDRESS THE ROOT CAUSES OF STRESS. 
          WHEN WE LOOKED AT RESOURCES, WE SAW THAT THE CITY SUPPORTS PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEES THROUGH SEVERAL AVENUES. 
          UH, WE HAVE THE PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER SEEN HERE ON THE LEFT, AS WELL AS PEER SUPPORT TEAMS AND LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS. 
          HOWEVER, EMPLOYEES DID NOT ALWAYS FEEL SUPPORTED BY THEIR DEPARTMENTS. 
          DESPITE THESE RESOURCES, WE CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF SWORN UH, EMPLOYEES AND RECEIVED OVER 750 RESPONSES ACROSS THE THREE DEPARTMENTS. 
          ROUGHLY HALF OF ALL THESE RESPONDENTS HAD EVER USED THE AVAILABLE RESOURCES, AND BETWEEN 40 AND 50% REPORTED SOME SATISFACTION WITH THE SUPPORT THAT THEY HAD RECEIVED. 
          HOWEVER, WHEN WE ASKED IF RESPONDENTS FELT THAT THEIR DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP CARED ABOUT THEIR MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING, WE SAW THAT ONLY BETWEEN ABOUT 20 AND 25% FELT POSITIVELY ABOUT THAT. 
          THIS IS COMPARED TO, UM, THEIR PEERS, WHO THEY FELT BETWEEN 95 AND 78% FELT THEY CARED ABOUT THEIR WELLBEING. 
          FROM THE SURVEY WE CONDUCTED, WE ALSO SAW THAT A PORTION OF EMPLOYEES WERE CONCERNED ABOUT, UM, SOME CONFIDENTIALITY OF RESOURCES. 
          THEY HAD SOME FEARS ABOUT RETALIATION AND MAY AND DID NOT NECESSARILY WANT THE CITY TO KNOW ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES. 
          THEY MAY BE EXPERIENCING SOME REPORTED DISTRUST OF SERVICES BECAUSE THEY MAY FEEL IT, UH, MAY UNFAIRLY IMPACT THEIR JOB. 
          AND OVERALL, THE LACK OF TRUST THAT WE SAW IN DEPARTMENT RESOURCES AND A FEELING OF BEING UNSUPPORTED 
          [00:35:01]
BY LEADERSHIP COULD PREVENT SOME EMPLOYEES FROM SEEKING HELP EVEN WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE AND NEEDED. 
          PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEES ALSO TOLD US THAT WELLNESS RESOURCES MAY NOT ADDRESS THE MAJOR SOURCES OF THEIR STRESS. 
          SO WE HEARD ABOUT THINGS THAT I'M SURE YOU ALL HAVE HEARD ABOUT, WHICH INCLUDE THINGS LIKE HEAVY WORKLOADS, UM, INSUFFICIENT STAFFING LEVELS, THE EFFECTS OF STRESS OVER TIME, AND ALSO EXPOSURE TO TRAUMATIC EVENTS. 
          UH, SLEEP WAS A MAJOR FACTOR ACROSS, UH, ALL DEPARTMENTS FOR, FOR ALL RESPONDENTS THAT WE, WE SPOKE WITH. 
          UM, AND MANY SAID IMPROVED SCHEDULES WOULD SUPPORT THEIR MENTAL HEALTH BETTER THAN ANYTHING ELSE. 
          MOVING TO OUR SECOND FINDING, WE FOUND THAT PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEES MAY NOT RECEIVE CONSISTENT OR PROACTIVE MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT ACROSS DEPARTMENTS. 
          SO WHEN WE LOOKED AT RESOURCES, WE HAVE THE PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER, WHICH IS SHARED ACROSS ALL THREE DEPARTMENTS. 
          AND THEN EACH DEPARTMENT ALSO MAINTAINS SEPARATE RESOURCES, UM, INCLUDING LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS AND PEER SUPPORT TEAMS. PRIMARILY. 
          THERE ARE TWO PSYCHOLOGISTS LOCATED IN THE PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER. 
          THEY PRIMARILY SERVE EMS EMPLOYEES AS WELL AS, UH, A FD EMPLOYEES. 
          AND THEN THERE ARE TWO PSYCHOLOGISTS LOCATED, UH, AT A PD WHO PRIMARILY SERVE, UH, UH, POLICE OFFICERS. 
          EMS EMPLOYEES HAVE A SEPARATE CONTRACTED LICENSE MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDER THAT PROVIDES THEIR EMPLOYEE SUPPORT. 
          SO WHILE WE SAW THAT SIMILAR RESOURCES MAY EXIST ACROSS DEPARTMENTS, THEIR IMPLEMENTATION CAN VARY. 
          WE OBSERVED THIS MOST CLEARLY WITH PEER SUPPORT SERVICES, UM, WHICH WERE CRITICAL. 
          WE SAW THAT THEY WERE WIDELY USED AND HIGHLY VALUED BY EMPLOYEES, BUT THE LEVEL OF RESOURCES, TRAINING AND USAGE OFTEN VARIED ACROSS DEPARTMENTS. 
          WE ALSO SAW THAT SOME OF THE PROACTIVE INTERVENTIONS COULD BE ENHANCED, UM, PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEES, AS, LIKE I SAID, AND AS YOU ALL KNOW, EXPERIENCED TRAUMATIC EVENTS REGULARLY. 
          BUT WE SAW THAT FOLLOW UP AFTER THESE EVENTS CAN BE INCONSISTENT. 
          UH, MORE THAN HALF OF OUR SURVEY RESPONDENTS ACROSS ALL THE DEPARTMENTS SAID THEY RARELY OR NEVER RECEIVED A CHECK-IN AFTER A MAJOR EVENT. 
          WE ALSO SAW THAT ONLY FIREFIGHTERS RECEIVE ANY KIND OF PROACTIVE MENTAL HEALTH SCREENING THROUGHOUT THEIR CAREERS. 
          AND WHILE CADETS MAY GET SOME MENTAL HEALTH TRAINING AND EDUCATION DURING ACADEMIES, ONGOING EDUCATION AFTER GRADUATION IS NOT NECESSARILY WELL ATTENDED. 
          FINALLY, AS PART OF THIS WORK, WE LOOKED AT THE PLANS FOR THE NEW WELLNESS CENTER, WHICH WILL BE LOCATED AT THE NEW PUBLIC SAFETY HEADQUARTERS THAT'S BEING DEVELOPED OFF OF MOPAC. 
          WE VISITED THE CURRENT WELLNESS CENTER AND SAW THAT IT WAS, THERE WERE SOME, UH, SOME OUTDATED ELEMENTS OF IT. 
          IT MAY BE DIFFICULT TO ACCESS FOR SOME EMPLOYEES, AND WE ALSO HAD SOME PRIVACY CONCERNS WITH THE SPACE. 
          THE NEW CENTER FROM THE PLANS WILL BRING ALL WELLNESS RESOURCES INTO ONE SPACE, UH, WHICH MAY ENHANCE COORDINATION AND WILL LIKELY PROVIDE A MORE COMFORTABLE AND, UH, FUNCTIONAL SPACE FOR WELLNESS. 
          THE AUDIT RESULTED IN FIVE RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          THE FIRST WAS AROUND ENHANCING THE ASSURANCE OF PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY OF SERVICES. 
          THE SECOND IS TO IMPROVE PROCESSES FOR FOLLOWING UP AFTER MAJOR INCIDENTS. 
          THE THIRD IS TO ENSURE PEER SUPPORT TEAMS FOR A FD AND EMS RECEIVE REGULAR TRAINING. 
          THE FOURTH IS TO CONSIDER IMPLEMENTING PERIODIC MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENTS FOR ALL EMPLOYEES, NOT ONLY FIREFIGHTERS. 
          THE FIFTH IS TO ENSURE EMPLOYEES RECEIVED EDUCATION ON MENTAL HEALTH, UH, AND NOT ONLY EARLY ON, BUT ALSO THROUGHOUT THEIR CAREERS. 
          WITH THAT, I WILL WRAP UP AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE. 
          THANK YOU FOR COMING OUT AND PRESENTING THAT, UM, HAVE TO SAY, IT'S A LITTLE SOBERING TO SEE WHAT YOU FOUND, BUT, UM, IT'S GLAD THAT WE HAVE IDENTIFIED THE PROBLEM AND HOPEFULLY YOU CAN MAKE STEPS TO OVERCOME IT. 
          UM, I SAW THAT THE, ONE OF THE MAJOR FACTORS IS HESI HESITANCY AND OVERCOMING STIGMAS. 
          WERE THERE ANY, MY QUESTION, WERE THERE ANY SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO OVERCOME THAT FROM, UH, THE, THE, THE SURVEY PARTICIPANTS? I THINK A A, A LARGE PART OF WHAT WE SAW WAS, UM, SOME, SOME OF WHAT WAS EXPRESSED IN THE SURVEY FROM RESPONDENTS WAS A FEELING OF FEELING OF BEING UNHEARD OR POTENTIALLY, UM, THE, UH, SENSE OF DISCONNECT BETWEEN LEADERSHIP AND THE, THE, YOU KNOW, ON THE LINE WORKERS. 
          UM, SO THEY DIDN'T NECESSARILY OFFER STRICT, YOU KNOW, UH, THIS IS WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN. 
          BUT, 
          [00:40:01]
UM, AND THERE WAS NO, I'D SAY NOT NECESSARILY A CONSENSUS ON WHAT SHOULD IMPROVE, BUT LIKE I SAID, THINGS LIKE, UM, CHANGING SCHEDULES OR, OR IMPROVING SCHEDULES, THEY SAID COULD BE A, A, A HELPFUL CHANGE. 
          I KNOW THAT THE, UH, FIRE DEPARTMENT IS WORKING ON CHANGING SHIFT, GOING TO A NEW SCHEDULE, UM, AND MAKING ACCOMMODATIONS FOR THINGS LIKE WORK SCHEDULES AND, UM, WORKING OUT THINGS LIKE, UM, HOW THEY CAN TAKE TIME OFF IF THEY NEED IT. 
          UM, THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COMMISSIONERS QUESTIONS. 
          COMMISSIONER BERNHARDT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS PRESENTATION. 
          UM, I AM, I AM CURIOUS, AND THIS REALLY JUST COMES FROM TELEVISION AND SO IT MAY NOT BE REALITY. 
          UM, BUT THE TWO PSYCHOLOGISTS WHO SERVE A PD, ARE THEY ALSO FOLKS INVOLVED IN KIND OF MAKING DECISIONS ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT PEOPLE GO BACK ON DUTY AFTER A MAJOR INCIDENT OR OTHER, DO THEY PLAY LIKE A, A ROLE AS AN AUTHORITY FIGURE AT ALL IN, IN THE DEPARTMENT? UH, THEY, FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, THEY, THERE ARE PROCEDURES IN PLACE THAT IF YOU EXPERIENCE SOMETHING LIKE A, UM, UH, LINE OF, UH, SHOOTING OR, OR A LINE OF DUTY, UH, OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING, EXCUSE ME. 
          RIGHT. 
          UH, AND, UH, I BELIEVE THERE'S TWO OTHER CASES IN WHICH YOU WOULD AUTOMATICALLY HAVE TO GO SPEAK WITH, UH, THE A PD PSYCHOLOGIST AND THERE'S SOME PROCESS THAT WOULD HAPPEN BEFORE YOU WERE ABLE TO COME BACK ON DUTY. 
          I THINK THOSE, UH, WE DID HEAR IN THE SURVEY THAT THERE WERE SOME CONCERNS AROUND HOW INTERACTING WITH MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES MAY IMPACT, UM, THEIR JOB DUTIES. 
          RIGHT. 
          I THINK THAT MANY PEOPLE WE SPOKE WITH ON THE STAFF WERE VERY AWARE OF THAT PERCEPTION AND WERE CONCERNED ABOUT COMMUNICATING THAT WOULD NOT HAVE AN IMPACT. 
          AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WE SAW THAT MANY OF THE WELLNESS PROVIDERS, UM, WORKED REALLY HARD TO MITIGATE MM-HMM . 
          SOME OF THOSE CONCERNS. 
          BUT TO A DEGREE, I THINK IT'S, IT'S A LITTLE CHALLENGING WHEN, UM, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE, UH, JOBS THAT DO REQUIRE VERY STRONG, YOU KNOW, VERY HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS TO BE CONDUCTING THEM. 
          AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WE WANNA BE SURE THAT THEY'RE, THERE'S SOME, UH, STRUCTURES IN PLACE TO, TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE WELL ON THE JOB. 
          SO THERE'S, THERE'S A, THERE'S A, THERE'S A CHALLENGING BALANCE THERE, I THINK THAT, THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO WORK WITH. 
          YEAH. 
          I MEAN, I KNOW THAT BUDGETS ARE ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, SORT OF A, A CENTRAL ISSUE, BUT YEAH, I MEAN, IT SEEMS THAT THAT FOR ALL THREE, BUT MAYBE PARTICULARLY FOR A PD HAVING MULTIPLE WAYS TO ACCESS, UM, MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORTS THAT DON'T FEEL, AND, AND IT SOUNDS LIKE EVERYBODY REPORTED, THEY FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE TO GO TO THE SAME PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, IN LEADERSHIP TO GET CARE THAT THEY HAVE ISSUES WITH POTENTIALLY, UM, IF THERE ARE WAYS TO ACCESS CARE IN A, A MULTIPLE WAYS AND A MORE FLEXIBLE STRUCTURE SO THAT PEOPLE REALLY FEEL LIKE THEY CAN GO OUT AND SEE SOMEBODY WHO'S THEIR CARE PROVIDER. 
          UM, YEAH, AND I THINK, UH, THE CITY DOES PROVIDE MULTIPLE AVENUES. 
          I THINK THAT'S REALLY A BIG PART OF WHERE PEER SUPPORT COMES IN. 
          RIGHT. 
          PEER SUPPORT, ESPECIALLY WE SAW AT A PT IS EXTREMELY TRUSTED AND PEOPLE USE PEER SUPPORT. 
          RIGHT. 
          WE HEARD THAT THEY WERE WORKING ALL THE TIME. 
          UM, AND SO THAT IS AN AVENUE THAT PEOPLE FEEL CONFIDENT IN GOING TO, UH, FROM WHAT WE SAW. 
          WE ALSO, WE ALSO KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, THE CITY DOES PROVIDE EVERY, UM, EMPLOYEE WITH INSURANCE THAT PROVIDES COVERAGE FOR PRIVATE PROVIDERS. 
          THERE'S A, THERE'S THAT COVERAGE AS WELL. 
          THERE'S ALSO THE EAP, THE EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, WHICH AGAIN, IS AVAILABLE TO ALL, UM, EMPLOYEES. 
          I THINK THAT SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THERE ARE THAT PUBLIC FIJI EMPLOYEES EXPRESSED THAT THEY WERE, THEY HAD SOME VERY SPECIFIC EXPERIENCES THAT NOT EVERYBODY IS, UM MM-HMM . 
          EDUCATED IN OR EXPERIENCED WITH THAT IT'S SOMETIMES CHALLENGING TO FIND PROVIDERS WHO ARE ABLE TO PROVIDE THE ADEQUATE CARE FOR THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING. 
          YEAH. 
          THAT'S A CHALLENGE, UM, TO BOTH THREAD THAT NEEDLE OF LIKE, IT'S NOT THE IN-HOUSE PEOPLE, BUT WE ALSO WANT PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE RIGHT LIFE EXPERIENCE OR, YEAH. 
          RIGHT. 
          RIGHT. 
          YEAH. 
          THANK YOU. 
          MM-HMM . 
          COMMISSIONER EDGAR, JUST AS A FOLLOW UP TO MY FELLOW COMMISSIONER IN THIS GROUP THAT FEELS THE 30% THAT ARE NOT SURE THAT THEY WANT TO USE THE SERVICES, WAS COMING TO A CITY WELLNESS CENTER A FACTOR IN THAT, UM, 'CAUSE IT 
          [00:45:01]
CAN BE MORE IDENTIFIED AT ALL. 
          DID THAT PLAY A ROLE AND, UH, YES. 
          THAT WAS CERTAINLY, UH, YOU KNOW, I CAN'T SAY WHETHER THOSE EXACT 30% THAT WAS WHERE THEY WERE, YOU KNOW, HESITANT. 
          I WILL SAY THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE FELT LIKE THEY HAD THEIR OWN SUPPORT SERVICES THAT THEY WERE GONNA TURN TO INSTEAD OF CITY PROVIDED SERVICES. 
          SO, UM, BUT YES, THAT WAS A CONCERN FOR SOME. 
          UM, WE HEARD IT WAS A CONCERN FROM WELLNESS STAFF AS WELL. 
          PSYCHOLOGISTS WERE CONCERNED ABOUT, UM, THE COOLING EFFECT, HAVING PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, WALK BY A COMMANDER'S OFFICE TO GET TO THEIR OFFICE, MIGHT HAVE. 
          UM, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE TALKED SPOKEN INTERVIEWS WITH SOME INDIVIDUALS, WE DID ASK ABOUT THAT, UM, DIDN'T HEAR A STRONG RESPONSE SAYING THAT WAS EXACTLY WHAT WAS KEEPING THEM FROM SEEKING SERVICES. 
          BUT, UM, IN THE NEW WELLNESS CENTER THERE WILL, IT WILL STILL BE CO-LOCATED WITH THE REST OF HEADQUARTERS, WHICH I THINK IS A MAJOR CONCERN FOR, FOR SOME WELLNESS STAFF. 
          UM, BUT FROM THE PLANS THAT WE REVIEWED, THERE WILL BE A FULLY SEPARATE ENTRANCE FOR WELLNESS SERVICES, UM, AND IT WILL BE CO-LOCATED WITH ALL OF THE MEDICAL SERVICES. 
          THERE'LL BE A, A SORT OF A GYM FACILITY THERE. 
          SO THERE'S POTENTIALLY A NUMBER OF REASONS WHY YOU MIGHT BE THERE. 
          UM, BUT THAT, THAT WAS CERTAINLY SOMETHING THAT WAS BROUGHT UP AS A CONCERN. 
          COMMISSIONER RUAN, I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION AND, AND THANK YOU FOR THE DETAILED EFFORT ON THIS EDIT. 
          A COUPLE QUESTIONS, UM, ON THE SLIDE, ON PAGE OR SLIDE SIX ABOUT EMPLOYEES THAT DON'T FEEL SUPPORTED. 
          I'M CURIOUS IF YOU IDENTIFIED ANY REASONS WHY EMS PEER FILLING OF SUPPORT WAS MUCH LOWER THAN A PD AND A FT AND IF THERE'S ANY LESSONS FROM WHAT A FD AND A PD WERE DOING SUCCESSFULLY. 
          WERE YOU, YOU, DID YOU GET ANYTHING THERE? I DON'T HAVE SPECIFIC DETAILS ON WHY THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN SLIGHTLY LOWER. 
          I DO KNOW THAT, UM, EMS PEER SUPPORT HAS NOT NECESSARILY, I THINK THEY HAD HAVE HAD THE LEAST ABILITY TO MAINTAIN A ROBUST PEER SUPPORT PROGRAM. 
          UM, I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE SAW THAT THERE HAD, IT HAD BEEN SEVERAL YEARS BEFORE, UH, SINCE THEY HAD HAD ANY TRAINING, TRAINING, SO THAT WAS ONE OF OUR, THE ROOT OF ONE OF OUR, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          SO I DON'T WANNA ATTACH ANY SORT OF CAUSAL INFORMATION TO THAT NECESSARILY, BUT, UM, POTENTIALLY THERE'S JUST A LACK OF AWARENESS OR PEOPLE AREN'T REACHING OUT TO THEM AS MUCH. 
          I KNOW. 
          UM, IT, IT MIGHT, IT MIGHT JUST BE A, A RESOURCE ISSUE THERE. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, AND THEN KINDA A FOLLOW UP ON THAT, THE GENERAL LACK OF BILLING SUPPORTED BY LEADERSHIP ACROSS ALL DEPARTMENTS. 
          DID YOU GET ANY SENSE FROM YOUR INTERVIEWS? IS THAT BECAUSE THE SOURCE OF STRESS IN TERMS OF SCHEDULES IS COMING FROM LEADERSHIP? OR IS IT SOMETHING MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT HOW PEOPLE ARE FILLING BROADER ISSUES AND INDIVIDUAL SUPPORT COMING FROM LEADERSHIP? FROM OUR, FROM THE QUALITATIVE DATA THAT WE COLLECTED IN THE SURVEY AND ALSO FROM OUR CONVERSATIONS WITH EMPLOYEES, I'D, I'D SAY IT'S, IT'S A MYRIAD OF, OF ISSUES AND CONCERNS. 
          I THINK THAT MANY PEOPLE FELT LIKE THERE WAS, YOU KNOW, NOT THEY, THEIR CONCERNS WEREN'T NECESSARILY BEING HEARD OR DECISIONS WERE BEING MADE THAT THEY PERHAPS DIDN'T UNDERSTAND OR DID NOT HAVE CONTEXT FOR. 
          UM, AND THEY FELT LIKE THEY WERE NOT, UM, BEING CONSIDERED IN THOSE THINGS. 
          SO I THINK THAT THAT SORT OF BLEEDS OVER INTO WHY WOULD I SEEK WELLNESS RESOURCES FROM SOMEONE THAT I, I DON'T FEEL CARE, LIKE A ORGANIZATION THAT I'M NOT FEELING LIKE CARES ABOUT ME IN THIS SPECIFIC DOMAIN. 
          UM, BUT YEAH, IT, IT WAS, IT WAS A CONCERN ABOUT GENERALLY I WOULD SAY ABOUT, UM, YEAH, LIKE IT SAID, WORKLOADS IN SOME DIVISIONS, UM, AND FEELING LIKE IT'S UNSUSTAINABLE TO WORK TO THAT DEGREE, UM, AS WELL AS, YEAH, A FEELING OF DISCONNECT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          VICE CHAIR EZ. 
          UM, JUST TO FOLLOW UP, BUT THERE'S NO RECOMMENDATION TO SPECIFICALLY TARGET LEADERSHIP ACROSS THE THREE SERVICES AROUND THIS. 
          CAN YOU SAY MORE ABOUT THAT? SURE. 
          WHY THAT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN? YEAH, SO I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A CONCERN BROUGHT UP ABOUT LEADERSHIP IN SOME OF OUR QUALITATIVE, UH, DISCUSSIONS. 
          WE DID NOT NECESSARILY TARGET THIS SURVEY TO 
          [00:50:01]
UNDERSTAND QUANTITATIVELY WHERE THE, YOU KNOW, WAS THIS A BIG ENOUGH PROBLEM THAT IT WAS IMPACTING THE ABILITY AND ACCESS TO WELLNESS SERVICES. 
          SO, UM, WE WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT. 
          AND, UM, PARTIALLY THE FIRST RECOMMENDATION IS INTENDED TO, UH, MAKE PEOPLE FEEL MORE CONFIDENT IN USING SOME OF THE SERVICES THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO THEM. 
          UM, AND WE CAN'T NECESSARILY, YOU KNOW, THIS WASN'T NECESSARILY AN AUDIT OF A CULTURE AUDIT NECESSARILY OR, OR OF, OF THE SITUATION. 
          SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE NOT TARGETING THAT SPECIFICALLY, BUT WE DID WANNA HIGHLIGHT THAT AS, AS ONE OF A CONCERN THAT WAS BROUGHT TO US VICE CHAIR RAMIREZ. 
          YEAH. 
          I HAVE A FEW SEPARATE QUESTIONS, BUT THE FIRST WAS, DID YOU GUYS HAVE ANY, UM, DATA THAT YOU LOOKED AT ALONGSIDE, UM, YOUR RESPONDENT SURVEYS ON POINTS OF CONTACT TO COMPARE USE OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES BY THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS? YES. 
          UH, WE, SO THE DATA WE HAD ON THE USAGE RATES WAS, UM, WE DID GET SOME DATA ON, UM, PEER SUPPORT SERVICES, WHAT CONTACTS THEY WERE DOING, THE TYPE OF CONTEXT THEY WERE HAVING. 
          UM, AND THEN THERE WAS ALSO SOME DATA ON USE OF, UH, UH, LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS. 
          SO, AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE THERE'S LICENSED PSYCHOLOGISTS AT THE CITY, AND THEN THE PROVIDER FOR EMS IS A, UH, UM, I'M NOT EXACTLY REMEMBERING THEIR CERTIFICATION, BUT, UH, DIFFERENT, SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT. 
          WE DID REVIEW THAT USE THAT DATA IS VERY CHALLENGING TO ASSESS IN A COMPARATIVE WAY BECAUSE THE WAY IT IS COLLECTED IS A ANONYMOUS, OBVIOUSLY FOR OBVIOUS REASONS. 
          YOU KNOW, WE CAN'T, WE CAN'T BE VIOLATING ANY KIND OF, UM, HEALTH INFORMATION. 
          UM, BUT ALSO THE, THE METHODOLOGY IS DIFFERENT ACROSS DEPARTMENTS. 
          SO, UM, WE SAW, WE DID SEE MUCH HIGHER RATES OF USE, AND I THINK IT'S IN THE REPORT, UM, ON PEER SUPPORT, I BELIEVE. 
          I'D HAVE TO GO BACK AND FIND IT, BUT IT DOES REPORT THE NUMBER OF CONTACTS THAT WAS, THAT WERE HAPPENING BY PEER SUPPORT TEAMS. HOWEVER, IT'S VERY HARD TO KNOW WHETHER OR NOT WHAT THEY'RE RECORDING AS A CONTACT. 
          SO IT COULD BE A SINGLE TEXT MESSAGE, COULD BE MAYBE ONE CONTACT, OR IT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, MULTIPLE ENGAGEMENTS ABOUT ONE ISSUE. 
          SO WE DID LOOK AT THAT INFORMATION, BUT UM, THAT WASN'T NECESSARILY SOMETHING WE WANTED TO REPORT AS A COMPARISON BECAUSE LIKE I SAID, IT'S, IT'S JUST HARD TO COMPARE THOSE FIGURES. 
          OKAY. 
          I UNDERSTAND. 
          UM, I THINK IT WOULD BE USEFUL FROM THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION'S PERSPECTIVE, AND MAYBE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE REACH OUT TO THE INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENTS ABOUT, UM, IN THE PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER, BUT JUST UNDERSTANDING USAGE FEELS LIKE A REALLY, LIKE THE LEVEL OF USE, UM, AND WHAT SERVICES ARE BEING USED AND AT WHAT LEVEL JUST FEELS LIKE A REALLY IMPORTANT COMPONENT FOR US TO UNDERSTAND AND TO HELP CONTEXTUALIZE, UM, SOME OF THIS, THIS IS A, YOUR, YOUR AUDIT IS, IS SPECIFIC. 
          IT'S VERY FOCUSED ON THE RESPONDENT SURVEYS THAT YOU GUYS HAD, AND YOU, YOU, YOU, IT WAS ONLY A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF, OF EACH OF THE WORKFORCES. 
          AND SO, UM, SO YEAH, I, I THINK AS A COMMISSION IT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR US TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET THAT, THAT DATA, UM, TO LOOK AT AHEAD OF MAKING ANY RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          UM, MM-HMM . 
          MY SECOND QUESTION WAS FOR CLARITY'S SAKE, BECAUSE I'M, I, CAN YOU EXPLAIN, UM, OR CAN A PD EXPLAIN THE SEPARATION OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES PROVIDED BY VICTIM SERVICES FOR POLICE OFFICERS AND LIKE THE PSYCHOLOGISTS AND PEER SUPPORT, LIKE WHERE, WHERE ONE STOPS AND ONE BEGINS? I, I, I'M HAPPY TO SHARE WHAT I KNOW. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S SOMEONE BETTER EQUIPPED TO HANDLE THAT HERE, BUT, UM, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE, UH, THOSE TWO ARE HOUSED UNDER THE SAME SORT OF MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE. 
          UM, I BELIEVE C KACHINA CLARK IS THE PERSON IN CHARGE OF, OF THAT DIVISION. 
          UM, BUT THEY ARE SEPARATE. 
          UH, YOU KNOW, I, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THE A PD PSYCHOLOGISTS SOMETIMES PROVIDE SUPPORT TO SOME VICTIM SERVICES, 
          [00:55:01]
UM, PROVIDERS, BUT PRIMARILY THEY ARE SERVING POLICE OFFICERS AS WELL AND PEER SUPPORT AS WELL. 
          SO, UM, I THINK THERE, FROM WHAT I, FROM WHAT WE HEARD, THERE'S SOME INTERACTION BETWEEN THOSE TWO GROUPS AND, UM, THEY, YOU KNOW, WE HEARD THAT SOMETIMES VICTIM SERVICES PROVIDERS MAY BE ABLE TO SUPPORT, UH, POLICE OFFICERS ON THE SCENE, UM, IN THAT CONTEXT. 
          BUT I DON'T THINK, FROM WHAT I, FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND, IT'S NOT, UM, A FORMAL, UH, RELATIONSHIP NECESSARILY. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THE, THE REASON I ASK IS OF COURSE, TO UNDERSTAND WHERE THERE IS, WHERE THE SEPARATION IS, BUT ALSO AS WE'RE MOVING TOWARDS A CENTRAL PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER AT THE NEW PUBLIC SAFETY HEADQUARTERS, UNDERSTANDING WHICH PARTS OF VICTIM SERVICES POTENTIALLY WILL BE MAKING THAT MOVE ALONG WITH WOULD BE HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND. 
          UM, AND THEN, UM, YEAH, UM, I THINK IT, I I, THAT IS ONE OF THE COMPLICATIONS WITH APDS MENTAL HEALTH SERVICE, THE, THE SERVICES THAT THEY PROVIDE. 
          THAT HAS NEVER BEEN 100% CLEAR TO ME. 
          LIKE I KNOW THAT VICTIM SERVICES HELPS, UM, BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT I 100% UNDERSTAND LIKE THE SEPARATION. 
          SO, UM, AGAIN, THAT WOULD MORE CLARITY ON THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          YEAH, I, I WOULD SAY THAT THAT WAS NECESSARILY STRICTLY PART OF OUR AUDIT, BUT, UM, I WOULD REFER YOU TO THE DEPARTMENT FOR MORE INFORMATION. 
          COMMISSIONER GODWIN. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THE RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          UM, THE MAJORITY OF 'EM SEEM LIKE THEY'RE KINDA ACTION ORIENTED AND HAVE SOME SORT OF RESULTS, UH, PRESENTED, BUT, BUT NUM, UH, NUMBER FOUR IS JUST CONSIDER, UH, AND I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT, UH, WHAT FACTORS, UM, EXIST THAT YOU WOULDN'T JUST RECOMMEND THAT WE DO PERIODIC HEALTH AS, UH, PERIODIC HEALTH MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENTS FOR ALL EMPLOYEES AS OPPOSED TO JUST CONSIDER IT? SURE. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, THAT WAS A DELIBERATE CHOICE. 
          UM, I WOULD SAY WHEN WE LOOKED AT BEST PRACTICES, UM, AND WHEN I SAY BEST PRACTICES, I MEAN, WE LOOKED AT PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY FOR EACH OF THE THREE PROFESSIONS, AND THEN AS WELL AS SORT OF OVERARCHING, UM, GUIDANCE, THERE WASN'T NECESSARILY A CLEAR STANDARD ON WHETHER OR NOT REGULAR PERIODIC MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENTS WERE AN EFFECTIVE TOOL. 
          UM, I THINK THE REASON THAT THE AUSTIN FIRE DEPARTMENT DOES 'EM IS BECAUSE THE NFPA, THAT'S ONE OF THEIR REQUIREMENTS. 
          UM, AND THEY ARE USED PRIMARILY AS A TOUCHPOINT FOR FIREFIGHTERS AND A MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL. 
          THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY INTENDED TO BE DIAGNOSTIC OR, UM, YOU KNOW, THE ONLY PREVENTATIVE MEASURE. 
          UM, AND WE SAW THAT WHEN WE SPOKE TO THE PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER PSYCHOLOGISTS ABOUT CONDUCTING THOSE, UH, ASSESSMENTS THAT THEY, THEY WERE FAIRLY CHALLENGING TO CONDUCT AND SOME, SOME PEOPLE WEREN'T NECESSARILY RECEPTIVE TO THAT. 
          UM, AND I THINK THAT FRAMING THAT RECOMMENDATION AS CONSIDER ALLOWS FOR SOME OF THAT FLEXIBILITY OF WHAT'S GOING TO BE BEST FOR THAT POPULATION, UM, AS WELL AS WHAT'S FEASIBLE GIVEN THE, YOU KNOW, CAPACITY OF OUR CURRENT PROVIDERS, UM, IN THE CITY. 
          SO, UM, YEAH, THAT, THAT'S A LITTLE CONTEXT ON THAT. 
          I, I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY MORE QUESTIONS ON THAT THOUGH, IF YOU'D LIKE. 
          I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          I JUST, SO JUST, I WANNA FOLLOW UP IN TERMS OF THE BEST PRACTICE COMPARISON. 
          DID THEY HAVE A SIMILAR, UM, FOLLOW UP RATE, YOU KNOW, GAP THAT WE'RE SEEING HERE IN AUSTIN? UH, FOLLOW UP RATE FOR OR MAJOR INCIDENCES? SO YEAH. 
          OH, OH, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY YOU MENTIONED THAT LESS THAN, UH, LESS THAN HALF RECIPIENTS FELT LIKE THERE WAS ANY FOLLOW UP, PROACTIVE FOLLOW UP FROM, FROM WHOEVER I POST MAJOR INCIDENT, I AM NOT AWARE OF A SPECIFIC, UH, BEST PRACTICE THAT SAID WHAT, YOU KNOW, I WASN'T ABLE TO FIND ANY KIND OF NUMBER ON EXACTLY WHAT THE FOLLOW UP RATE WAS. 
          UM, THERE IS, THAT IS ANOTHER ISSUE THAT IS SORT OF SQUISHIER THAN, UM, YOU MIGHT EXPECT. 
          IT'S A LITTLE HARD TO SAY WHAT INCIDENTS WARRANT A FOLLOW OR WHAT SHOULD NEED A FOLLOW UP. 
          UM, BUT IT IS RECOMMENDED, UM, TO HAVE SOME KIND OF FOLLOW UP PROTOCOL AFTER THOSE INCIDENTS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COMMISSIONER RUAN, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION? YES, THANK YOU. 
          UM, I WAS CURIOUS IN THE RECOMMENDATION, SO I THINK ALL THESE MAKE SENSE AND ARE REASONABLE AND WOULD CERTAINLY ENHANCE, 
          [01:00:01]
UM, OUR PUBLIC SAFETY FIRST RESPONDER MENTAL HEALTH, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE YOU IDENTIFIED THE PRIMARY DRIVER OF STRESS AND MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS AS BEING RELATED TO SCHEDULES AND WORKLOAD AND THESE MORE STRUCTURAL ISSUES, BUT THAT WAS NOT ADDRESSED IN THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND WELL, I THINK THESE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE ALL VALUABLE. 
          I WORRY THAT IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING AT ADDRESSING WHAT IS THE TRUE ROOT CAUSE OF THE BURNOUT AND THE STRESS THAT WE'RE NOT REALLY GOING TO FIX THE PROBLEM IN A MEANINGFUL WAY. 
          WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT WAS OUTSIDE THE SCOPE OF THE AUDIT FOR YOU GUYS TO ADDRESS? OR, OR WHY DIDN'T THAT PROMINENT PART MAKE IT INTO THE RECOMMENDATIONS? Y YES, I THINK, I THINK YOU NAILED IT. 
          I WOULD SAY THAT, THAT WE DID DISCUSS THAT. 
          UM, BUT YEAH, ULTIMATELY THAT WAS OUTSIDE THE SCOPE OF THIS AUDIT. 
          OKAY. 
          CAN I, YEAH, OF COURSE. 
          TO THAT. 
          HI KATHY HARRISON. 
          UM, I JUST WANTED TO ADD TO THAT PIECE. 
          AND SO WE'VE DONE WORK IN THAT AREA, UM, ACROSS ALL THREE OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENTS. 
          AND SO THAT'S OUR LOOK AT WORKER SAFETY. 
          UM, AND LIKE WE'VE LOOKED AT THAT, GOSH, IT'S BEEN 2015, I WANNA SAY, SOMEWHERE IN THERE. 
          UM, AND THEN PRIOR TO THAT, UM, AND THEN WE DID MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          UM, SOME OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED. 
          UM, AND THEN AS MARIEL HAS SHARED, FIRE IS FIRE THAT IS ALSO LOOKING AT UPDATING THEIR SCHEDULE. 
          AND SO, AND, AND SO WE ARE AWARE THAT THAT'S BEING WORKED ON. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I HAVE ONE QUICK FOLLOW UP QUESTION IF WE HAVE TIME. 
          SURE. 
          GO AHEAD. 
          UM, AND IT IS, UM, JUST WITH REGARDS TO PARITY BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENTS AND WHETHER OR NOT HAVING A CENTRALIZED PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER WILL ADDRESS THAT IN, IN TOTALITY,  DO, DO I BELIEVE IN IN OUR AS ASSESSMENT? YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          IN YOUR ASSESSMENT, I GUESS THAT, THAT WILL THE CENTRALIZED PUBLIC SAFETY WELLNESS CENTER HELP. 
          I MEAN, I'M, I'M, I'M, I'M SURE IT'LL HELP 'CAUSE IT WILL CREATE ACCESS TO THE GYM FACILITIES AND SOME OF THE SHARED FACILITIES. 
          BUT IN TERMS OF THE DISPARITIES BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENTS, IS IT POLICY DISPARITIES OR IS IT JUST RESOURCE DISPARITIES? I THINK THAT THE, UM, YOU KNOW, FROM WHAT WE'VE SEEN THERE, THERE'S CERTAIN IT'S CHALLENGE. 
          SO THE, THE CITY DOES PROVIDE SORT OF AN UMBRELLA APPROACH IN SOME WAYS TO WELLNESS, BUT IT ALSO IS SOMEWHAT SILOED, LIKE WE TALKED ABOUT. 
          SO, AND I, AND PARTIALLY FROM WHAT WE OBSERVED, THE REASON FOR SOME OF THOSE SILOS ARE DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PROFESSIONS, LIKE I SAID, LIKE THE, UH, NFPA REQUIRING ASSESSMENTS FOR FIVES, BUT THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY REQUIRED IN THE OTHER, IN THE OTHER TWO. 
          UM, AND THEN ADDITIONALLY, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT, YEAH, DIFFERENT RESOURCING, DIFFERENT PROGRAMMING. 
          SO, UM, A PD HAS BEEN ABLE TO, UH, GET SOME GRANTS FOR SOME OF THEIR WORK. 
          UH, THEY'VE, THEY'VE RECEIVED A GRANT TO DO, UH, EXPAND EMDR, UH, THERAPY FOR, FOR THEIR, THEIR TEAMS. SO THERE, I THINK SOME OF THE DISPARITY IS, IS SIMPLY BASED ON, ON WHAT CAN BE DONE WITH WHAT'S AVAILABLE, UM, TO THEM. 
          AND I, I CAN'T SAY ESPECIALLY SINCE IT HAS NOT, YOU KNOW, OPENED YET, WHETHER OR NOT THAT'S GOING TO RESOLVE THE DISPARITY, JUST HAVING A PHYSICAL SPACE, UH, SHARED. 
          BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT THERE IS AN ARGUMENT FOR GREATER COORDINATION. 
          IF YOU'RE HOUSING, UH, PSYCHOLOGISTS ALL NEXT TO EACH OTHER, UM, THE PEER SUPPORT TEAMS ARE GOING TO BE, UH, SHARING SOME OF THE SAME SPACES FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND. 
          UM, BUT YEAH, IT, IT'S HARD TO SAY AT THIS POINT WHETHER OR NOT THAT'S GOING TO RESOLVE SOME OF THAT DISPARITY. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION? UM, ALL I CAN SAY IS I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN REACH OUT TO THE PARTICIPANTS, BUT ACTUALLY GETTING SOME SOLUTIONS FROM THE, YOU KNOW, THE BOOTS ON THE GROUND WHEN TACKLING A PROBLEM AMONG THE MINDSET THAT THERE'S NO BAD IDEA. 
          UM, WE JUST NEED TO, TO, TO SOLVE A PROBLEM THAT IS SO TO, TO GET THAT FROM THEM I THINK WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          COOL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          UM, 
          [4. Discussion regarding the TRUST act and its application to public safety technologies and data sharing between governmental entities. Presented by Mackenzie Rhine, Attorney and Board Member, Electric Frontier Foundation.]
          [01:05:01]
ONTO THE NEXT ITEM. 
          WE'RE, UH, HAVING A DISCUSSION REGARDING THE TRUST ACT AND THE APPLICATION TO PUBLIC SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES, UH, PRESENTED BY MACKENZIE RYAN. 
          HEY, CAN EVERYONE HEAR ME OKAY? YES. 
          OKAY, GREAT. 
          MY NAME IS MCKENZIE RYAN. 
          I'M A DIGITAL RIGHTS ATTORNEY, AND I ALSO SERVE ON THE BOARD OF EFF AUSTIN HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE TRUST ACT TODAY. 
          SO THE TRUST ACT DOES A HANDFUL OF BASIC THINGS BEFORE OUR CITY DEPARTMENT. 
          ANY CITY DEPARTMENT CAN BUY OR START USING SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY. 
          IT HAS TO COME TO CITY COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL. 
          AND THEN BEFORE THAT VOTE, THE DEPARTMENT HAS TO PUBLISH A PRIVACY IMPACT ASSESSMENT AND A USE POLICY EXPLAINING WHAT THE TECHNOLOGY COLLECTS, WHO GETS ACCESS TO THE DATA, HOW LONG IT'S HELD, AND WHAT RISKS, UH, IT HAS TO PEOPLE'S PRIVACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES. 
          FACIAL RECOGNITION IS BANNED, ALTHOUGH THERE IS AN EXCEPTION FOR WHATEVER CITY, STATE, OR FEDERAL POLICY ALLOWS. 
          VENDORS CAN'T TAKE WHAT A COLLECT FROM THE CITY AND USE IT FOR THEIR OWN PRODUCTS OR TO TRAIN THEIR SYSTEMS. AND THOSE TERMS NOW GO IN DIRECTLY INTO THE CONTRACT, WHEREAS THEY DIDN'T BEFORE WITH AN ADDITION DAMAGES AND TERMINATION, IF THEY'RE BROKEN, UH, EVERY YEAR THE CITY HAS TO REPORT ON WHAT IT'S RUNNING AND HOW, AND NOW WE GET TO SEE THE CONTRACT TWO WEEKS BEFORE THE VOTE INSTEAD OF IMMEDIATELY BEFORE, OR NEVER AT ALL. 
          UH, OUR VERSION OF THE TRUST ACT IS STRONGER THAN MOST, BUT, UH, NONE OF THEM, INCLUDING THIS ONE, HAS SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF PRIVACY INVASIVE SURVEILLANCE AT ITS COURT. 
          AND SOME OF THEM HAVE NOW BEEN CIRCUMVENTED ENTIRELY. 
          OAKLAND IS CURRENTLY IN A MULTI-YEAR LAWSUIT OVER A VIOLATION CURRENTLY. 
          UH, I THINK THE TRUST ACT BEING PASSED IS REALLY GOOD, BUT I WANNA BE REALLY CAREFUL ABOUT THE LESSON WE TAKE FROM IT, BECAUSE THERE'S A VERSION OF THE STORY THAT'S REALLY COMFORTING, BUT NOT QUITE TRUE. 
          THE COMFORTING VERSION IS THAT FLOCK WAS A REALLY HORRIBLE COMPANY SELLING A REALLY TERRIBLE PRODUCT, AND WE JUST SAID HE GOT RID OF THEM, AND NOW THERE'S AN ORDINANCE THAT ENDEAVORS TO KEEP THE NEXT BAD COMPANY OUT. 
          BUT THE UN UNCOMING VERSION IS THAT, IN MY ESTIMATION, IT DOESN'T PROTECT US AS MUCH AS WE MIGHT HOPE. 
          UM, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO REITERATE HERE THE RISK THAT COMES WITH SURVEILLANCE. 
          A RECORD OF EVERYTHING OF EVERYWHERE YOU'VE BEEN IS A RECORD OF WHAT DOCTOR YOU GO TO, WHAT CHURCH OR MOSQUE YOU ATTEND, WHAT PROTEST YOU WENT TO, THE LAWYER'S OFFICE YOU VISITED, WHO YOU ASSOCIATED WITH, WHERE YOU LIVE, WHERE YOU GO TO SCHOOL, WHERE YOUR KIDS GO TO SCHOOL, ET CETERA, ASSEMBLED. 
          THEY ARE A PORTRAIT OF YOUR ENTIRE LIFE BUILT WITHOUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE OR ANYONE DECIDING WHETHER YOU WARRANTED IT AT ALL. 
          OFFICERS IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS HAVE USED THESE SYSTEMS TO FOLLOW THEIR EX-PARTNERS, AGENCIES AND OTHER STATES HAVE SEARCHED THESE NETWORKS FOR INVESTIGATIONS THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH TEXAS. 
          THEY'VE BEEN USED TO STIFLE POLITICAL DISSENT BY MONITORING PROTESTS, UH, AND THE DATA ALWAYS GETS BREACHED BECAUSE DATA ALWAYS EVENTUALLY GETS BREACHED. 
          SO I WANNA SPEND THE REMAINDER OF MY TIME TALKING ABOUT WHAT AUSTIN DOESN'T HAVE, BECAUSE THE TRUST ACT IS ONE PIECE OF PRIVACY INFRASTRUCTURE, AND I THINK THE CITY IS MISSING SOME OTHER THINGS. 
          THE FIRST POINT I WANNA ITERATE IS THAT THE ORDINANCE LEAVES A LOT OF THINGS UNDEFINED, UH, AND TECHNOLOGY SKIPS THE COUNCIL ENTIRELY IF THE CITY MANAGER DECIDES THAT IT'S NO OR SUFFICIENTLY LITTLE RISK TO CIVIL LIBERTIES. 
          AND THE ORDINANCE NEVER SAYS HOW LITTLE IS LITTLE ENOUGH, IT LISTS 10 FACTORS TO WEIGH AGAINST THAT FINDING. 
          BUT IT DOESN'T SAY HOW MANY IT TAKES TO STOP ONE EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES. 
          THIS IS PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT TO ME, EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH POLICE DEPARTMENTS CAN BE ALLOWED TO REQUIRE SURVEILLENCE TECH FOR TWO MONTHS WITHOUT THE USUAL PRECAUTIONS IS NOT DEFINED. 
          THE SAME OFFICE THAT WANTS THE TECHNOLOGY CERTIFIES THE EMERGENCY, AND THE ONLY STATED LIMIT THAT EXTENSIONS CAN'T BE INDEFINITE. 
          UH, THERE'S A SECTION THAT BANS TOOLS THAT ARE, QUOTE, INCONSISTENT WITH CITY POLICY, BUT THAT MEANS A PROHIBITION AGAINST WHATEVER POLICY EXISTS THAT MONTH, NOT WHATEVER POLICY EXISTS CURRENTLY. 
          UH, THE ANNUAL REPORT COVERS MATERIAL NON-COMPLIANCE, WHICH IS GRADED BY THE DEPARTMENT THAT SUPPOSEDLY DID THE NON-COMP COMPLYING. 
          AND EVERY ONE OF THESE THINGS KINDA GETS FILLED IN AFTER THE FACT. 
          WE SHOULD DEFINE SOME OF THESE NOW WHILE WE STILL HAVE THE LEVERAGE TO DO SO AND NOT AFTER A VIOLATIONS OCCURRED. 
          UM, RESIDENTS HAVE NO REMEDY. 
          SO THERE'S A REMEDY FOR THE CITY IF THE CONTRACT IS VIOLATED, SANCTIONS, DAMAGES, ET CETERA. 
          BUT IF A CITIZEN, AN INDIVIDUAL HAS THEIR, THEIR CIVIL LIBERTIES VIOLATED, THERE IS NO WAY FOR THEM TO HAVE ANY REMEDY OF THEIR OWN. 
          THE VIOLATION GOES INTO A PERSONNEL FILE, UH, SOMEONE WHOSE DATA WAS MISUSED GETS NO NOTICE, NO STANDING, THERE'S NO CAUSE OF ACTION, NO REMEDY. 
          UM, THE REMEDY IS A CONVERSATION BETWEEN TWO EMPLOYEES IN A ROOM THAT THE PUBLIC 
          [01:10:01]
NEVER GETS TO SEE. 
          UM, THERE'S NO INDEPENDENT REVIEW THAT HAS TECHNICAL CAPACITY. 
          OTHER CITIES HAVE A PRIVACY ADV, UH, ADVISORY COMMISSION, WHICH ARE RESIDENTS OR OTHER PEOPLE WITH TECH BACKGROUNDS WHO EXAMINE EVERY SURVEILLANCE PROPOSAL BEFORE THE COUNCIL SEE IT. 
          BUT IN AUSTIN, EVERY PERSON INVOLVED IN THIS PROCESS WORKS FOR THE CITY, AND IT'S NOT REALLY REQUIRED THAT THEY HAVE ANY TECH BACKGROUND AT ALL. 
          UH, THERE'S, THERE'S NOWHERE IN THIS PROCESS THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ACTUALLY BEING SURVEILLED GET TO PARTICIPATE. 
          UM, AND THE LAST POINT I WANT TO REITERATE IS THAT THIS ORDINANCES LIKE THIS CAN BE UNDONE. 
          IN SAN FRANCISCO, THEY PASSED WHAT AT THE TIME, WAS THE STRONGEST ANTI SURVEILLANCE ORDINANCE IN THE COUNTRY. 
          IN 2019, FACIAL RECOGNITION THEY BANNED. 
          BUT FIVE YEARS LATER, THEY FLY HUNDREDS OF DRONE MISSIONS IN A MONTH NOW. 
          AND, UH, LAWS LIKE THESE, THEY PASS IN THE SEASON OF A LOT OF ATTENTION AND, UM, CONCERNS BY THE COMMUNITY, BUT THEY CAN ERODE IN THE YEARS THAT FOLLOW. 
          SO I THINK THIS LAW IS GREAT, AND I'D RATHER WE HAVE IT THAN NOT HAVE IT. 
          IT'S BETTER THAN WHAT OTHER CITIES HAVE MANAGED TO DO. 
          AND I, I THINK IT WAS WORTH THE EFFORT. 
          BUT I WANNA REITERATE THAT IT'S NOT PROTECTION IN AND OF ITSELF. 
          IT'S A SET OF RULES OF HOW THESE DECISIONS GET MADE, AND WE NEED TO PAY PARTICULAR ATTENTION AS ABOUT HOW THESE DECISIONS ARE MADE ON OUR BEHALF. 
          THANK YOU FOR A VERY SUCCINCT PRESENTATION. 
          UM, OBVIOUSLY IT'S, WE, WE, WE LIVE IN. 
          I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW WHEN WE HAVEN'T LIVED IN UNPRECEDENTED TIMES. 
          I WOULD, YOU KNOW, GIVE UP A LOT TO LIVE IN UNPRECEDENTED TIMES. 
          UM, BUT I ALSO KNOW THERE'S, THERE'S A FINE LINE BETWEEN, UM, THIS TECHNOLOGY AND HOW IT HELPS AND HOW IT HURTS. 
          BUT ALSO, I JUST, AL I REMEMBER THAT THAT QUOTE OF THOSE WHO GIVE UP LIBERTY TO JUST PURCHASE A LITTLE BIT OF SAFETY DESERVE NEITHER. 
          SO IT'S, I COULD SEE ALL ASPECTS OF THIS, OF, OF THIS SCENARIO. 
          AND, UM, I JUST THANK YOU FOR, FOR YOUR TIME THIS AFTERNOON. 
          I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. 
          COMMISSION COMMISSIONER BERNHARDT, UM, AND I MAY GET THIS WRONG, AND THIS MAY BE A QUESTION FOR LIKE THE PUBLIC SAFETY AGENCIES ALSO, BUT, UM, I WAS RECENTLY HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH A PEACE OFFICER. 
          UM, AND THIS WAS IN THE CONTEXT OF FLOCK, BUT I THINK IT MIGHT APPLY TO OTHER INVASIVE TECHNOLOGIES, UM, WHO SAID THAT THEY DON'T, THERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S SORT OF LESS DRAMATIC THAN A WARRANT, WHICH OBVIOUSLY TAKES GETTING A, LIKE A THIRD PARTY, A JUDGE TO PAY ATTENTION TO YOU, UM, THAT LAW ENFORCEMENT CAN USE. 
          UM, IT'S LIKE A, I DON'T KNOW, IT'S AN EXIGENCY DETERMINATION. 
          IT MADE IT SOUND LIKE IT WAS SOMETHING THAT THE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER HAS TO FILL OUT, HAS TO HAVE A CASE NUMBER ON IT. 
          THEY CAN SEND IT TO LIKE AT AND T, UM, AND GET EMERGENCY ACCESS IN A, LIKE A SITUATION WHERE THEY'RE LOOKING FOR A MISSING PERSON OR THERE'S A REAL EMERGENCY. 
          UM, IS THERE, AND I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM A PD ALSO, UM, ARE THERE ANY GOOD REASONS NOT TO REQUIRE THAT, UM, FOR USE, AT LEAST LOCALLY? I KNOW WE CAN'T TIE THE HANDS OF DPS OR NECESSARILY OTHER AGENCIES THAT HAVE THE ABILITY TO OPERATE IN AND AROUND AUSTIN. 
          YEAH. 
          UH, PERSONALLY, I THINK THERE IS ROOM FOR GENUINE EMERGENCY CIRCUMSTANCES. 
          I CAN THINK OF SOME LIKE A, UM, OF, UM, MASS SHOOTING FOR EXAMPLE, OR SOMETHING VERY, VERY SEVERE THAT HAPPENS. 
          BUT THE PROBLEM THAT I'VE SEEN IS THAT EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES IS JUST NOT CLEARLY DEFINED. 
          A LOT OF THINGS CAN FIT EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE MAY NOT AGREE OR EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES. 
          THIS ALLOWS FOR TWO MONTHS OF SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY WITHOUT NEEDING TO GO TO COUNSEL FOR IT. 
          TWO MONTHS, IN MY OPINION, IS NOT EXTREMELY EXIGENT. 
          I WASN'T NECESSARILY REFERRING TO THAT LIKE PART OF THE TRUST ACT. 
          UM, OKAY. 
          AND I, AND I DO THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, FOR THIS PROCESS, IT MADE IT, AND I'M, I KNOW I'M KIND OF MESSING THIS UP BECAUSE I DON'T EXACTLY UNDERSTAND IT, AND AS A LAWYER, I GET WHAT WARRANTS ARE, BUT THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I'D HEARD OF SOMETHING THAT YOU COULD LIKE, YOU KNOW, SEND TO A PRIVATE COMPANY THAT THEY WOULD RECOGNIZE THAT'S LESS THAN A WARRANT THAT WOULD ACCESS YOU TO LIKE, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, PING THEIR CELL PHONE TOWERS OR WHATEVER, RIGHT. 
          WITHOUT LIKE A FULL BLOWN WARRANT. 
          UM, AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF IT'S, YOU KNOW, SORT OF RECOGNIZED IN TEXAS STATE LAW. 
          UM, 
          [01:15:01]
IS THIS RINGING A BELL AT ALL? ? WELL, GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONER JJ SCHMIDT WITH AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT. 
          I THINK WHAT YOU'RE PROBABLY REFERRING TO IS AGENCY FOR PHONE, UH, PHONE COMPANIES. 
          THAT IS A SITUATION, AND THAT'S, THAT THAT GOES TO STATE AND FEDERAL REGULATIONS AS FAR AS THE INFORMATION YOU'RE OBTAINED IN A TRUE EXIGENT SITUATION. 
          BUT THAT HAS TO BE REQUIRED. 
          YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU HAVE TO FOLLOW UP WITH THE JUDGE WITHIN 24 TO 48 HOURS WITH THE LEGAL DOCUMENTATION SUPPORTING WHY THE AGENCY WAS IN PLACE TO BEGIN WITH. 
          SO THERE'S A CHECK AND BALANCE FOR THAT SPECIFIC SITUATION, IF THAT'S THE CONVERSATION. 
          I, I MEAN, I GUESS MY QUESTION IS FOR THE, FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S PERSPECTIVE, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE WORRIED ABOUT A BUNCH OF TEENAGERS WHO ARE SHOOTING UP DIFFERENT NEIGHBORHOODS AND JUST ROVING AROUND THE CITY, OR WE'RE WORRIED ABOUT A MASS SHOOTING SITUATION, OR WE'RE WORRIED ABOUT A KIDNAPPING OR, YOU KNOW, AN URGENT SITUATION WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO FIND SOMEBODY VERY QUICKLY, UM, ARE THERE SCENARIOS WITHIN WHICH THAT EXIGENCY STANDARD THAT'S LIKE USED FOR ACCESSING PRIVATE COMMUNICATIONS WOULD BE INSUFFICIENT, UM, TO DO WHAT Y'ALL NEED TO DO? I, I APOLOGIZE. 
          I'M NOT SURE IF I UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION, UH, DIRECTLY, BUT THAT THOSE ARE SITUATIONS WE WOULD USE THAT CIRCUMSTANCE NOW, RIGHT? TAKE AN AMBER, A, A, A CHILD ABDUCTION, RIGHT? UH, IF WE, IF WE HAVE A PHONE OF AN INDIVIDUAL, THAT MIGHT BE A SCENARIO WHERE, UH, WE USE THAT EXIGENCY IN ORDER TO GET A LOCATION FOR THAT INDIVIDUAL, RIGHT? BY, BY PHONE. 
          BUT THAT'S A, I GUESS WHAT I'M SAYING IS WHY COULDN'T WE USE THE SAME STANDARD FOR USING TECHNOLOGY THAT'S INVASIVE? LIKE, I THINK OUR, OUR DEFINITION OF EX EXIGENCY WOULD BE THAT, LIKE FOR US IT'S THE, THE, THE THREAT OF DEATH OR SERIOUS BODILY INJURY. 
          I MEAN, OUR, OUR EXIGENCY IS A VERY HIGH STANDARD FOR US, RIGHT? IT'S THE SAME THING WHEN WE ENTER PEOPLE'S HOMES. 
          IF WE DON'T HAVE TIME TO GET A WARRANT, BUT SOMEBODY'S INSIDE CLEARLY YELLING FOR HELP, WE'RE GONNA GO INTO THE STRUCTURE TO, TO HELP THEM UNDER EXIGENCY, RIGHT? SAME SCENARIO FOR, FOR TECHNOLOGY. 
          YES, MA'AM. 
          BUT THAT'S NOT HOW, WHEN WE HAD FLOCK, THAT'S NOT HOW IT WAS LIMITED. 
          I MEAN, THE FLOCK WASN'T BUILT UNDER EXIGENCY. 
          THAT WAS A, THAT WAS A DIFFERENT, UH, PLATFORM. 
          AND THAT, THAT'S CONSTANTLY, UH, EVALUATING THE DAY-TO-DAY SCENARIOS, NOT NECESSARILY, UH, IN, IN EXTREME SITUATIONS. 
          RIGHT. 
          I GUESS I DON'T, I DON'T, THAT'S A DIFFERENT PARALLEL FOR THOSE TWO. 
          OKAY. 
          I GUESS I DON'T, I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY WE NEED FLOCK FOR THINGS OTHER THAN EXIGENCY, BECAUSE THAT IS ALWAYS THE EXCUSE FOR WHY WE HAVE FLOCK. 
          UM, BUT THIS MAY BE A NEED FOR US TO HAVE A LONGER PROBABLY PRESENTATION FROM A PD ABOUT YES, MA'AM. 
          THIS, AND I DON'T KNOW IF Y'ALL HAVE ANY IDEA IF YOU'RE PLANNING TO BRING THAT CONVERSATION, LIKE THE FLOCK CONVERSATION OR THE A LPR CONVERSATION BACK TO COUNSEL. 
          THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. 
          RIGHT NOW WE'RE COMPLETELY FOCUSED ON, UM, GOING THROUGH OUR INCOMPLETE INVENTORY OF ALL OF OUR TECHNOLOGY, WHICH WE'VE DONE WORKING WITH A TS TO SEE WHAT FITS WITHIN THE PRIVACY IMPACT AS, AS YOUR SPEAKER, UH, ALLUDED TO. 
          SO WE'RE UNDER THAT STRENGTH, UH, SEVERE REVIEW UNDER THAT RIGHT NOW TO, TO FIGURE OUT WHERE OUR TECHNOLOGIES ARE AND THEN MOVING FORWARD. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YES, MA'AM. 
          THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION, VICE CHAIR RAMIREZ. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, THANK YOU, UM, FOR THIS, I WANTED TO TURN EVERYBODY'S ATTENTION TO THE MEMO THAT LANDED IN OUR INBOX, UM, FROM, UM, OUR LIAISON CHELSEA, ABOUT WITH THE, WITH A LIST OF THE CURRENT INVENTORIES AND, UM, PRIVATE IMPACT AS PRIVACY IMPACT ASSESSMENTS THAT THEY'VE DONE. 
          AND, UM, I, I GUESS I HAD TO CLARIFY, AND I I UNDERSTAND THAT, UM, THE OFFICE, THAT, THAT THAT IS THE A TS ISN'T IN THE ROOM WITH US, IS THAT CORRECT? YEAH, THAT'S CORRECT. 
          THERE'S NO BONE FROM AUSTIN TECHNICAL TECHNOLOGY SERVICES WITH US IN THE ROOM, CORRECT? CORRECT. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I GUESS I'M ASKING THIS QUESTION OUT LOUD, UM, IN HOOKS THAT WE CAN RECORD IT AND SEE IF WE CAN GET SOME MORE INFORMATION FROM THEM. 
          UM, THE LIST OF EXISTING INVENTORIES THAT WAS SUBMITTED BY THE DEPARTMENTS TO A TS IS MASSIVE. 
          UM, THE, THE, THE COUNT ITSELF IS MASSIVE. 
          UM, UH, I COUNT WELL OVER A HUNDRED DIFFERENT, UM, INVENTORIES THAT WERE SUBMITTED, UM, BY ALL THE DEPARTMENTS TOGETHER. 
          UM, IT WOULD BE INCREDIBLY USEFUL TO GET A LIST OF WHAT ALL THOSE, UM, SERVICES ARE, UM, TO THE PUBLIC. 
          THAT WOULD BE INCREDIBLY HELPFUL, UM, BECAUSE IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO GET AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHETHER OR NOT THESE INVENTORIES ARE ALL CONTROLLED BY A CONTRACT OR IF SOME OF THESE INVENTORIES SERVICES, RIGHT, THEY CALL THEM INVENTORIES, BUT THEY'RE SERVICES THAT THE DEPARTMENTS ARE USING AND ENGAGING IN, 
          [01:20:01]
UM, ARE JUST PUBLICLY AVAILABLE SERVICES AS WELL. 
          UM, I BRING THIS UP SPECIFICALLY BECAUSE, UM, UH, THERE WAS AN INSTANCE ON SOCIAL MEDIA, UM, EARLIER THIS MONTH AT SOME POINT LAST MONTH, UM, BY AUSTIN FIRE, WHERE, UM, THEY POSTED IMAGES USING META GLASSES, UM, WHICH IS NOT SOMETHING THAT ANYBODY NEEDS A CONTRACT TO DO. 
          UM, SOCIAL MEDIA IS A PUBLICLY AVAILABLE, UM, PLATFORM. 
          THE GLASSES ARE SOMETHING THAT I'M ASSUMING ONE OF OUR SWORN OFFICERS WERE WEARING WHILE THEY WERE ON DUTY. 
          AGAIN, NOT SOMETHING THAT REQUIRES A CONTRACT. 
          AND THAT I'M INTERESTED IN SEEING WHETHER OR NOT THOSE TYPES OF TECHNOLOGY USES ARE BEING, UM, AUDITED BY THIS, BY THIS, UM, INVENTORY SCRUB, UM, THAT THEY'RE DOING. 
          THIS IS FOLLOWING UP ON THAT. 
          'CAUSE I ALSO WAS, IT WAS UNCLEAR TO ME ON THE, ON THE MEMO WHAT THOSE NUMBERS MEANT SIMILAR TO, I THINK FOR VICE RAMIREZ AND, UM, MY APOLOGIES SIR, IF THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO COMMENT ON. 
          BUT, BUT SINCE YOU MENTIONED THE PIA PROCESS, DO YOU, ARE YOU'RE INVOLVED IN WORKING THOSE THREE WITH A PD? I'M SORRY, WHAT WAS THE LAST PART OF THE QUESTION? THE, THE PIAS YOU HAD MENTIONED THAT YOU'RE INVOLVED WITH THOSE. 
          NO, WE'VE, WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING IS PROVIDING ALL THE INFORMATION TO A TS WHO DOES THE PRIVACY IMPACT ASSESSMENT. 
          OKAY. 
          SO NOT, WE'RE NOT INVOLVED, UM, I DON'T THINK ANY OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENTS ARE INVOLVED IN THE PRIVACY IMPACT ASSESSMENT THAT'S DONE BY, UH, ONE A TS. 
          GOT IT, GOT IT. 
          AND THEN I THINK THEY EVALUATE THOSE AND DETERMINE, UM, WHAT NEEDS FURTHER LEGAL REVIEW. 
          OKAY. 
          SO YOU'RE NOT AWARE, I SUPPOSEDLY THERE'S LIKE 89 INVENTORY SUBMITTED FROM A PD, FOR EXAMPLE, BUT 13 PIS, ARE THOSE LIKE AN UMBRELLA PROCESS OR I'M ASSUMING THAT'S NOT, THAT'S NOT, I APOLOGIZE. 
          I HAVE NO IDEA. 
          OF COURSE. 
          TOTALLY UNDERSTAND. 
          APPRECIATE IT. 
          IT WAS FROM THE MEMO, IT WAS UNCLEAR IF IT WAS SORT OF CONSOLIDATED, LIKE 20 INVENTORIES MIGHT LEAD TO ONE PIA OR IF THERE WAS A GAP ON THERE, IT WAS NOT ENTIRELY CLEAR TO ME. 
          UM, AND I AGREE WITH VICE JEREMY, IT WOULD BE USEFUL TO HAVE A FULL LISTING AND A MORE, MORE DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THAT TO BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT ON THE TRUST ACT. 
          UM, I DO HAVE A QUESTION FOR SPEAKER. 
          UM, I THINK UNDERSTANDING, UM, MANY OF THE CONCERNS THAT YOU'VE RAISED, I KNOW WE HAVE, THE TRUST ACT IS FAIRLY NEW. 
          UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE CONSIDERING AS A COMMISSION IS POTENTIALLY IN THE NEXT SESSION OR TWO, CONSIDERING A RECOMMENDATION ABOUT ANY AMENDMENTS. 
          DO YOU THINK THERE'S ENOUGH INFORMATION YET TO BE ABLE TO CLEARLY IDENTIFY DEFICIENCIES YET IN THE TRUST ACT THAT ARE WORTH TRYING TO GET CHANGED AT THIS POINT? OR DO YOU THINK THERE'S MORE INFORMATION NEEDED OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS AS WE SEE HOW THE IMPLEMENTATION WORKS, UNDERSTANDING THAT OBVIOUSLY WE WANT SOMETHING AS STRONG AS POSSIBLE, BUT WE ALSO DON'T WANT TO CONFUSE THE PROCESS THAT THE CITY IS TRYING TO WORK OUT AND CHANGE THINGS MIDSTREAM. 
          I THINK YOU MIGHT BE ON MUTE. 
          SORRY, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? YES. 
          IS THIS ONE OR THE OTHER, LIKE IF YOU PASS AN AMENDMENT NOW, YOU CAN'T PASS AN AMENDMENT LATER? UH, NO, NOT NECESSARILY. 
          I THINK THERE'S ALWAYS SOME BANDWIDTH THAT CHOOSE IN TERMS OF WHEN WE RETURN TO PARTICULAR ITEMS, BUT, UH, NOT NECESSARILY. 
          NO. 
          YEAH, I, I THINK THERE'S ENOUGH INFORMATION NOW, PARTICULARLY AROUND SPECIFYING EXACTLY WHAT IT IS WE WANT TO SEE IN THE LANGUAGE. 
          UH, WHAT EXACTLY NEXT IN CIRCUMSTANCE MEANS, UH, PRECISE EXAMPLES OF WHAT A, A TECHNOLOGY THAT'S NOT AT RISK OF, UH, VIOLATING CIVIL LIBERTIES VERSUS NOT. 
          I THINK, I THINK THOSE THINGS CAN DEFINITELY BE SHORED UP WITH AMENDMENTS. 
          UM, BUT I ALSO THINK THERE ARE GOING TO BE AUSTIN SPECIFIC THINGS THAT ARISE FROM THE ACTUAL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TRUST ACT THAT COULD ALSO BE SHORED UP THAT WE MIGHT SEE IN THE FUTURE THAT WE'RE NOT NECESSARILY THINKING ABOUT NOW. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND I GUESS JUST ONE QUICK CALL OF THAT. 
          SO IF YOU WERE GONNA HIGHLIGHT PROBABLY THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT I HEAR FROM YOUR PRESENTATION, YOU THINK A CLEAR DEFINITION OF THE, UM, EXIGENT STATUS WITH THAT TWO MONTH TIME PERIOD WOULD BE BENEFICIAL AS WELL AS A CLEAR, CLEAR DELINEATION OF WHAT ALLOWS FOR MINIMAL THREAT TO CIVIL LIBERTIES THAT ALLOWS A CITY MANAGER TO SKIP WOULD PROBABLY BE THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT ASPECTS. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? IF I'M RECALLING, I THINK THAT I THINK IN SOME CAPACITY, RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT IN THE PROCESS, WHETHER THAT BE IN THE ACTUAL, 
          [01:25:01]
UM, ACQUIRING OF THIS TECHNOLOGY OR WHAT HAPPENS AFTER A VIOLATION HAS OCCURRED, UH, I WOULD ALSO SUGGEST SOMETHING THAT COVERS THE DATA THE CITY RECEIVES RATHER THAN IT ACTUALLY OWNS. 
          UH, WE'VE SEEN A LOT OF THESE CITY COUN, IT'S NOT CITY COUNCILS, UM, CITY LAW ENFORCEMENT'S, EVADE, UM, EITHER CANCELED CONTRACTS OR ORDINANCES THAT COME INTO EFFECT THAT LIMIT THEIR ABILITY TO USE THIS DATA BY GOING TO A BUSINESS THAT VOLUNTEERS A CAMERA FEED OR GOING TO A NEIGHBORING AGENCY THAT SHARES ITS OWN SURVEILLANCE DATA WITH THE CITY, EFFECTIVELY BYPASSING. 
          AND I THINK SOMETHING THAT ADDRESSES THAT WOULD ALSO SHORE UP A LOT OF THE SHORTCOMINGS I SEE IN THESE ORDINANCES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION? VICE CHAIR RAMIREZ? I KNOW THAT, UM, WE HAD ASKED A PD TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS PRESENTATION AND THE RESPONSE WE GOT WAS THAT THEY WEREN'T QUITE READY 'CAUSE THEY'RE WORKING ON WITH THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, UM, ON ANY POTENTIAL USE OF OTHER TECHNOLOGIES OR COMING UP WITH A PLAN. 
          IS THERE A TIMELINE FOR THAT PLAN AND THAT QUESTION'S FROM A PD? I THINK AGAIN, RIGHT NOW WE'VE BEEN FOCUSED, UH, SINCE THE PASSAGE OF THE ORDINANCE IN APRIL FOCUSED ON, UM, GETTING ALL THE INVENTORIES, UH, COMPLETED AND PROVIDED TO A TS SO THAT THEY CAN DO THAT REVIEW. 
          I DON'T THINK UNTIL THAT COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW IS DONE AND WHAT THE OUTCOME IS, UM, WE WON'T BE ABLE TO GIVE A TIMELINE UNTIL WE KNOW WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. 
          I KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S SUPPOSED TO GO BACK TO COUNCIL BEFORE, I THINK THE FIRST WEEK IN JANUARY. 
          THAT'S RIGHT. 
          UM, SO BACK THEN, I KNOW IT'S GOTTA GO PUBLICLY BEFORE THEN. 
          SO, UH, WE'RE JUST NOT IN A PLACE RIGHT NOW TO SPEAK ABOUT TIMELINES, NOT KNOWING, UH, WHAT THE REVIEW LOOKS LIKE AND, AND WHAT'S GONNA BE ENTAILED WITH OUR EXISTING TECHNOLOGIES BEFORE WE FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GONNA MOVE FORWARD, UH, IN COMPLIANCE WITH THAT TRUST ACT. 
          OKAY. 
          SO DID, SO DID YOU JUST SAY THAT THE TIMELINE FOR GETTING A NEW PLAN FOR TECHNOLOGIES IS THE FIRST WEEKEND, THE FIRST WEEK IN JANUARY? IS THAT WHAT I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE THAT. 
          I'M NOT SURE WHAT IT IS THAT'S GONNA BE READY AND FOR, BUT WHAT THE DEADLINE FOR THE FIRST WEEK IN JANUARY IS FOR SURE. 
          AND I DON'T HAVE THAT IN FRONT OF ME. 
          I, I REMEMBER WITH THE PASSAGE OF THAT ORDINANCE, SO THERE IS A TIMELINE OF LIKE 270 DAYS FROM THE PASSAGE, UH, THAT INFORMATION HAD TO BE PROVIDED BACK TO COUNSEL. 
          AND SO THAT'S KIND OF THE FIGURE I'M GOING OFF OF. 
          UM, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT EXACT DATE IS, UH, OFF HAND. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL, I'M JUST, UM, I'M JUST GONNA SAY OUT LOUD THAT IF A PD IS, UM, WORKING ON DEVELOPING, UM, POTENTIAL PLANS OR NEW CONTRACTS WITH NEW SERVICES, I KNOW THAT THE TRUST ACT REQUIRES A COUPLE OF WEEKS NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC, BUT WE AS THE COMMISSION WOULD APPRECIATE, UM, GETTING, UM, AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT THAT, UM, IN ADVANCE OF IT GOING TO COUNCIL. 
          YES, MA'AM. 
          YOU ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE COMMISSION? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          THANK YOU MACKENZIE, FOR, UM, COMING OUT TO SPEAK WITH US. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          ON THAT NOTE, I SEE THAT WE HAD A, A TO, UM, WE ARE GONNA APPROVE, APPROVE A RECOMMENDATION REGARDING PUBLIC SAFETY, UH, SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY AND DATA SHARING. 
          BUT I THINK WE'RE GONNA MOVE THAT TO, UH, A FURTHER, UM, UH, SESSION POSSIBLY NEXT MONTH OR, OR, UH, LATER. 
          AND ALSO VICE CHAIR RAMIREZ, I BELIEVE YOU HAD A RECOMMENDATION ON, UH, TO COUNCIL REGARDING THE MENTAL HEALTH AUDIT. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF YOU WANT TO, UH, MOVE THAT AS WELL OR IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO FOUND ON IT'S, YES. 
          MY HOPE WAS TO MOVE THAT SO THAT WE COULD GET SOME OF THAT ADDITIONAL DATA ON, UH, USAGE, UM, AND SOME ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. 
          UM, MAYBE WE CAN HAVE THAT RECOMMENDATION NEXT MONTH OR THE MONTH AFTER. 
          BUT I WOULD LIKE TO PASS ALONG. 
          UH, I WOULD LIKE US TO CONSIDER A RECOMMENDATION ON MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN THE FUTURE. 
          OKAY. 
          EXCELLENT. 
          UM, JUST 
          [FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS]
FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, I KNOW, UH, A PD IS, UH, GOING TO PRESENT NEXT MONTH. 
          UM, HOPEFULLY WE'LL GET AN UPDATE, UM, ON THE PUBLIC SAFETY HQ AS WELL AS OVERTIME FOR ALL PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENTS. 
          SO THAT'S A FEW THINGS THAT ARE ON OUR DOCKET. 
          AND AGAIN, UH, COMMISSIONERS, IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO, UH, SPEAK ON THERE IS THE, UH, FORM YOU CAN FILL OUT AND, UM, I'VE STRUGGLED BACK WITH 
          [01:30:01]
SOME COMMISSIONERS ON ITEMS THAT WERE OPEN FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS, SO JUST HIT ME UP WITH THOSE AS WELL. 
          UH, IF THERE'S ANYTHING FURTHER WE NEED TO DISCUSS, PLEASE SPEAK UP. 
          NOPE. 
          VICE CHAIR. 
          YEAH, I JUST WANTED TO, UM, UH, MAKE A NOTE THAT, UM, THE OFFICE OF VIOLENCE PREVENTION IS, UM, ENGAGED IN SOME, UM, COMMUNITY VIOLENCE PREVENTION TALKS ON THE COMMUNITY LEVEL. 
          UM, THEY'VE GOT SOME WORKING GROUPS ESTABLISHED AND IT WOULD BE GREAT TO, UM, HEAR FROM THEM WHEN THEY'RE READY ON HOW THOSE EFFORTS ARE GOING AND THE WORK THAT THEY'RE ENGAGED IN NOW. 
          THANK YOU. 
          VICE CHAIR. 
          WELL, THERE'S NOTHING FURTHER. 
          I'D LIKE TO, OH, COMMISSIONER RUTAN, ONE, ONE QUESTION THAT WAS ON MY BACK BURNER AND, AND CHIEF  THIS QUESTION FOR YOU. 
          I, I HAD A LIST THAT AT SOME POINT TO HAVE THE AUSTIN FIRST PILOT, ONCE THAT TRIAL IS DONE TO REPORT BACK ON THAT, ARE WE CLOSE TO COMING UP ON THAT TRIAL BEING DONE THAT AUSTIN FIRST PILOT HAS CONCLUDED? UH, WE CAN CERTAINLY PUT THAT AS A FUTURE AGENDA ITEM. 
          SO HOWEVER THAT WORKS FOR Y'ALL'S PLANNING WOULD BE WONDERFUL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          NOTED. 
          AND ONE LAST THING, UM, AD'S, NEW STAFFING MODEL. 
          UM, I STILL VERY MUCH WOULD, I DON'T KNOW HOW SHOW READY IT IS. 
          UM, BUT, UM, IF, UM, DURING OUR NEXT PLANNING SESSION, IF YOU GUYS COULD GIVE US A SENSE OF WHEN WE COULD, UM, TAKE A LOOK AT THAT NEW STAFFING MODEL, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. 
          YES, MA'AM. 
          ANYTHING ELSE? COMMISSIONERS. 
          OKAY. 
          LIKE THE CALLS NEED TO ADJOURNMENT AT 5 34. 
          THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR TIME. 
          HAVE A GREAT REST OF THE WEEK.
* 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.