Sep 09, 2026 Technology Commission

MY NAME IS KEVIN WELCH.

AS, UH, STEVEN, UH, ALLUDED TO, I AM SOMETHING OF A KNOWN ENTITY AT THE COMMISSION BECAUSE WE DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE COME TALK TO THE TECH COMMISSION.

BUT I DID IT SEVERAL TIMES, GAVE A FEW PRESENTATIONS, UM, AND DECIDED TO, UH, YOU KNOW, TRY TO BUILD ON THAT WORK AND CONTINUE.

UM, I HAD GIVEN THE COMMISSION A PRESENTATION ON AUTOMATED LICENSE PLATE READERS, APRS.

I ALSO, UM, HAVE BEEN IN SOME OF THE WORKING GROUP DISCUSSIONS AROUND, UM, AI AND CITY POLICY RELATED TO THAT.

I GUESS JUST WHY WAS I EVEN SPEAKING TO THE COMMISSION THE FIRST PLACE? UM, I AM, I GUESS, YOU KNOW, I'VE HAD AN INTEREST IN DIGITAL LIBERTIES ISSUES FOR A LONG TIME.

UM, AS MY DAY JOB.

I'M A PROGRAMMER AND, UM, AND I'VE BEEN IN THIS TOWN FOR A LONG TIME.

I AM A LITTLE BIT OF A GAD FLY ON DIGITAL BERTIES ISSUES.

THERE'S A LOCAL NONPROFIT, EFF AUSTIN THAT I'M THE CURRENT PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD ON.

AND, UH, WE HAVE MONTHLY MEETUPS AND, UH, ALSO SPEAK AT THE CITY AND STATE LEVEL ON DIGITAL BERTIES ISSUES.

SO, FRANKLY, OFFERING MY EXPERTISE TO THE COMMISSION, GIVEN THAT WERE A FEW VACANCIES JUST SEEMED LIKE A, A GOOD CONTINUING WAY TO, UH, UM, HELP SERVE THE CITY AND, UH, YOU KNOW, CONTRIBUTE MY, UH, INTERESTS AND SPECIALTIES.

SO, YEAH, HAPPY TO BE HERE.

AND THAT IS APPROVAL FROM OUR LAST MEETING, UH, JULY 8TH.

WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.

AND, UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO COLLABORATING WITH YOU.

SO WITH THAT, I'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE US TO, UH, I'LL GO AHEAD AND TAKE THE AGENDA ITEMS IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY'RE PRESENTED.

UH, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER ONE,

[APPROVAL OF MINUTES ]

UM, I'LL GIVE EVERYONE JUST A MOMENT TO, UH, TAKE A LOOK AT THOSE, UM, THOSE NOTES AND LET ME KNOW IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE, UH, ANY AMENDMENTS.

UM, DAN, I DO SEE JUST A SMALL TYPO ON THE VERY LAST SENTENCE AT THE SECOND PAGE.

UM, AFTER, WITHOUT OBJECTION, THERE'S A STRAY D UM, SO WE'LL JUST MAKE THAT AMENDMENT THERE.

AND THEN, UM, IF ANYONE ELSE HAS ANY OTHER ADDITIONS OR EDITS THEY'D LIKE TO MAKE, WE'LL OPEN IT UP.

[00:05:13]

I MOVE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES AS AMENDED WITH THE REMOVAL OF THE LETTER D .

IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND.

PILLAR TWO, COVER TECHNOLOGY, INFRASTRUCTURE, AND INNOVATION.

UH, MOTION PUT FORWARD BY VICE CHAIR COMBI, SECONDED BY, UH, COMMISSIONER WELCH.

UH, ANY DISCUSSION? NOT SEEING, HEARING ANY, UH, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF, UM, ACCEPTING THE MINUTES AS AMENDED.

PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND, SAY AYE.

AYE.

ANY ABSTENTIONS? ANYONE AGAINST? OKAY.

WE ARE, WE ACCEPTED THE MINUTES FROM JULY.

UM, MOVING ON

[2. Review of submitted 2026 Technology Commission Annual Report ]

TO OUR SECOND ITEM.

UH, I DID WANT TO JUST, UH, DO A QUICK REVIEW OF THE ANNUAL REPORT THAT I SUBMITTED TO, UH, THE, THE CLERK'S OFFICE.

I'VE JOINED THE WEBEX.

I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND SHARE A WINDOW IF AV WOULDN'T MIND ALLOWING ME.

CONTROL.

APOLOGIES.

I JUST CLOSED IT.

AND, UM, AS A AFTER ACTION ITEM, WE WILL ADD THIS ITEM AS BACKUP TO THE, TO THE MEETING.

UH, BUT JUST WANTED TO ORIENT, UH, THE REST OF THE COMMISSION, UH, TO THE FINAL PRODUCT THAT I HAD SUBMITTED.

UH, EVERYONE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE INPUT.

UM, I BELIEVE IT WAS AT OUR JUNE MEETING, UH, MAY, JUNE MEETING, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

UM, TO THE CONTENT OF THIS REPORT, UM, ESSENTIALLY IT GOES THROUGH, UM, THE NUMBER OF RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE SUBMITTED LAST FISCAL YEAR, NAMING OF THE COMMISSIONS, UM, ENSURING THAT WE ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE BYLAWS, UH, OUR VIEW ON HOW ENGAGED COMMISSION MEMBERS ARE, AS WELL AS THE COMMUNITY.

UM, BY, BY OUR STANDPOINT, WE FOUND INDIVIDUAL COMMISSION MEMBERS TO BE PRETTY ENGAGED, BUT ALWAYS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENHANCE OUR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE COMMUNITY.

UH, WE TALKED ABOUT THAT.

AND THEN WE SPENT A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME, UH, LED AND FACILITATED BY, UM, OUR, UH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STAFF, UH, MEMBER COACH ON HARMON, ON OUR GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR THE NEW CALENDAR YEAR.

SO WHAT YOU'LL SEE IS, UH, WHAT YOU'LL SEE IN THIS SECTION WAS A RESULT OF THAT DISCUSSION.

SO, UH, I'M NOT GONNA GO THROUGH EACH, UH, BULLET POINT HERE, BUT I'LL JUST SUMMARIZE IN SAYING WHAT WE, UM, WHERE WE LANDED ON A FEW DIFFERENT PILLARS WITH PILLAR ONE BEING DIGITAL INCLUSION, CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, STRATEGIC POLICY.

SO WE TALKED ABOUT GT OS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, LISTENING SESSIONS, LEGISLATIVE STRATEGY, DIGITAL EQUITY, ARTS, AND OUTREACH.

WE TALKED ABOUT THE NEED TO CONTINUE TO, UM, FOLLOW UP, ADVISE THE CITY ON AI, TELECOM, BROADBAND, AFFORDABILITY, AND OTHER EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES.

AND, UM, ALSO, UH, WITH, WITH A RENEWED FOCUS ON CITY UTILITIES.

AND THEN PILLAR THREE, UH, FOCUSED ON KNOWLEDGE, INFORMATION, AND DATA STEWARDSHIP.

UM, SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT AROUND DIGITAL RESOURCES THAT ARE AVAILABLE, UH, MONITORING OF CITY SERVICES.

AND THEN WE DISCUSSED, UH, WHAT THE FUTURE OF WORKING GROUPS LOOKED LIKE.

UM, SO AGAIN, THIS, UH, DOCUMENT WILL BE AVAILABLE AS BACKUP.

UM, AFTER, UH, WE, WE CONCLUDE THIS MEETING, UH, FOR US TO GO BACK TO AND, UM, REVIEW AND ALSO, UH, GUIDE OUR WORK FOR THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR.

ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, ADDITIONS, ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE ON THAT? NOT HEARING ANYTHING? POSSIBLY A SILLY QUESTION, BUT I MEAN, SO YOU'VE ALREADY, OH, YOU'LL NEED TO TURN ON YOUR MIC.

POSSIBLY A SILLY QUESTION, BUT, UM, YOU'VE ALREADY SUBMITTED THIS, SO I ASSUME WE CAN'T ACTUALLY CHANGE IT.

SO IS THERE A PARTICULAR FORM OF FEEDBACK YOU'RE LOOKING FOR? YEAH, I THINK THE, ANY, UH, YOU KNOW, THIS IS MEANT TO BE A POINT IN TIME, UH, SUBMISSION TO THE CLERK'S OFFICE.

THIS IS SOMETHING EVERY COMMISSION, UH, GOES THROUGH ON A YEARLY BASIS.

UM, SO AGAIN, IT WAS POINT IN TIME.

I IMAGINE THAT OUR, THE FOCUS AREAS, THE, THE HEARINGS THAT WE HAVE, THE CONTENT OF OUR MEETINGS WILL CONTINUE TO EVOLVE ON AN ONGOING INFORMAL BASIS.

SO IF THERE IS, UH,

[00:10:01]

FEEDBACK, INPUT, I MEAN, YOU'RE FREE TO BRING THEM UP DURING COMMISSION MEETINGS, YOU'RE FREE TO BRING THEM UP WITH MYSELF, OTHER COMMISSIONERS, UH, INFORMALLY OR DURING OUR, OUR WORKING GROUP MEETINGS.

I GUESS THE ONLY THING I MIGHT DO IS, AND THE REASON, PART OF WHY I ASK IS I MIGHT TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY 'CAUSE I, YOU KNOW, SEE THINGS TOUCHING IT.

BUT I'M ALSO JUST BRINGING A THEME THAT I'VE HEARD FROM A FEW PEOPLE RECENTLY THAT I THINK MIGHT BE WORTH EXPLORING IN THE COMING YEAR.

DESPITE, UM, ALL THESE RECENT ADVANCES IN TECHNOLOGY, A REPEATED THEME I'VE HEARD FROM A NUMBER OF PEOPLE IS A FEELING OF THAT IT IS STILL VERY HARD FOR AVERAGE CITIZENS TO GET IN TOUCH WITH PEOPLE AT THE CITY WHO COULD HELP THEM.

AND IT SEEMS LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING TECHNOLOGY COULD ASSIST WITH.

AND I'VE HEARD THIS ENOUGH FROM ENOUGH PEOPLE.

I THINK IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD MAYBE CONSIDER EXPLORING IN THE NEXT YEAR AS A COMMISSION IN ADDITION TO LIKE, NOT LIKE WE HAVE ENOUGH OTHER THINGS TO LOOK AT , FOR SURE.

YEAH, I THINK THAT'S, UM, THAT'S NOTABLE.

UH, IF, IF FOLKS ARE HAVING ISSUES OR STRUGGLE OR, UH, WITH ACCESSING CITY SERVICES OR INFORMATION, UM, I THINK A LOT OF TIME THEY JUST DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO DO I CONTACT AND HOW DO I GET IN TOUCH WITH SOMEONE WHO WILL ACTUALLY CONNECT ME WITH THE RIGHT THING OR LISTEN TO ME.

A REPEATED THEME I'VE HEARD IS PEOPLE FEEL LIKE THERE'S NO WAY TO GET IN TOUCH WITH ANYONE WHO WILL HELP .

SURE.

WHAT THAT IS, HOW LONG DATA LASTS, THINGS OF THAT NATURE.

AND IF YOU COULD BRING SOME OF THE SPECIFIC EXAMPLES.

UM, AND THEN I THINK AS A COMMISSION, YOU KNOW, EARLIER IN THE YEAR, MAYBE IT WAS LATE LAST YEAR, UM, WE DID HAVE THE PROJECT TEAM THAT WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR ROLLING OUT THE, UH, CITY OF AUSTIN WEBSITE REDESIGN, GIVE A PRESENTATION, WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THEM BACK, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY IN THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS TO HEAR ABOUT THE ROADMAP.

SO MAYBE THAT'S ONE OPPORTUNITY, ONE ENTRYWAY, UM, FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO ENGAGE WITH THE CITY.

AND MAY MAYBE EVEN WE COULD EXPLORE, UM, SOME, SOME LISTENING SESSIONS WITH THE PEOPLE WHO BUILT THE WEBSITE AND ACTUALLY COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO MAYBE FEEL LIKE IT'S STILL NOT SOLVING THEIR PROBLEMS. HAVE THEM COME AND TELL THEM WHAT THE PROBLEM IS.

ABSOLUTELY.

LOVE IT.

ANY OTHER THOUGHTS? NOT SEEING OR HEARING ANYTHING.

THANK YOU FOR THAT, KEVIN.

SO WITH THAT, I'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE US ONTO AGENDA

[3. Discussion and approval of recommendation to council related to Public Surveillance Technologies]

ITEM NUMBER THREE.

UM, GIVEN THAT COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, WHO'S THE PRIMARY AUTHOR FOR THIS ONE, I'LL GO AHEAD AND TURN IT OVER TO HIM.

UM, AND, UH, TO DO THE INITIAL PRESENTATION, I KNOW COMMISSIONER WELCH ASSISTED AS WELL, BUT COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO, UH, INTRO THIS ONE? ABSOLUTELY.

UH, THIS, THIS WAS AN EASY ONE.

UM, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MAKING A, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS SURROUNDING, UH, AUTOMATED LICENSE PLATE READERS, APRS.

UH, BUT THE, THE BROADER, UH, SORT OF IMPLICATION WAS AROUND, UH, GENERAL SURVEILLANCE WITHOUT, UH, CITIZEN ABILITY TO ENGAGE OR HAVE OVERSIGHT OR HAVE INFLUENCE ON, UH, THE SURVEILLANCE ACTIVITY IN AND OF ITSELF.

UM, AS OF LATE, THE LICENSE PLATE READERS FROM A COMPANY CALLED FLOCK HAVE KIND OF BEEN IN THE MEDIA.

THEY'RE NOT THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN, AND THEY'RE NOT THE ONLY WAY THAT, UH, ALPS ARE USED AND SURVEILLANCE IS DONE.

UH, BUT GIVEN THAT THAT, UH, COMPANY AND THE BEHAVIOR AND SORT OF, UH, I GUESS I'LL SAY CONSEQUENCES OF NOT NECESSARILY BEING ACCOUNTABLE TO THE CITIZENS THAT THEY TEND TO OBSERVE, UM, HAS TURNED INTO A SORT OF POLITICAL MOVEMENT IN A WAY TO, UH, FOR MANY MUNICIPALITIES TO KIND OF TAKE A STEP AWAY FROM ALPS IN GENERAL.

UH, WHAT OUR RECOMMENDATION HERE IS, IS NO DIFFERENT.

IT IS VERY MUCH, UH, IN LINE WITH WHAT CITIZENS WANT, WHICH IS NOT TO BE SURVEILLED WITH NO CONSEQUENCES, NO RETRIBUTION, NO CITY ACCOUNTABILITY.

UH, CITIZENS DON'T WANNA BE SURVEILLED AT ALL, UH, BUT IF THEY ARE GOING TO BE, THERE SHOULD AT LEAST BE CONTROL OR SAY SO FROM THE CITIZENS THEMSELVES.

UH, WHAT THIS RECOMMENDATION SAYS IS EFFECTIVELY THAT WE DON'T WANT, UH, SURVEILLANCE IN AUSTIN.

WE DON'T WANT LICENSE PLATE READERS IN AUSTIN.

AND IF SOMETHING OF THAT NATURE IS GOING TO HAPPEN, IT SHOULD NOT BE IN THE HANDS OF A PRIVATE COMPANY'S DECISION.

IT SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE SOMETHING WHERE, UH, CITIZEN CITY COUNCIL OR SOME ELEMENT OF GOVERNMENT HAS A SAY.

SO, UH, IN ADDITION, IT ALSO EXPANDS BEYOND STATIC, UH, LICENSE PLATE READER CAMERAS, GIVEN THAT SOME OF OUR, UM, SELF-DRIVING CARS HAVE SENSORS AND CAMERAS THAT ALSO TRANSMIT AND COLLECT DATA AT LARGE AROUND OUR CITY WITH NO ACCOUNTABILITY TO, UH, CITY GOVERNMENT AND TO CITIZENS.

SO WE TRIED TO CATCH BOTH OF THOSE IN A VERY SIMPLE RECOMMENDATION THAT WE'D LIKE TO PRESENT TO THIS BODY AND HOPEFULLY SUBSEQUENTLY TO THE CITY, UH, EFFECTIVELY SAYING, AUSTINITES DON'T WANT TO BE SURVEILLED.

AND IF THERE IS GOING TO BE A CAMERA OF SORTS THAT IS LOOKING AT THE PUBLIC, THE PUBLIC SHOULD BE ABLE TO HAVE SOME SAY SO ABOUT

[00:15:01]

UM, YOU'LL FIND THIS IS A VERY SHORT RECOMMENDATION.

IT'S PAGE AND A HALF, VERY EASY READ.

UH, BUT THE, THE UNDERLYING TONE AND PURPOSE IS THAT, UH, WE DON'T WANT SURVEILLANCE.

AND IF THERE'S GOING TO BE ANYTHING THAT EVEN LOOKS LIKE SURVEILLANCE, UH, WE NEED TO BE THE ONES IN CHARGE AS AUSTINITES.

THANK YOU FOR THAT.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, UH, COMMISSIONER, WE, YOU, YOU WERE CO-AUTHOR OF THIS.

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU'D LIKE TO ADD? UM, FIRST I, UH, WANT TORE, UM, RECOGNIZE AND APPRECIATE COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS' EFFORTS TO, UH, GET THE BALL ROLLING ON THIS AND WRITE THE VAST MAJORITY OF IT.

UM, AND, UH, WAS HAPPY TO COLLABORATE ON IT.

UM, I SECOND, UH, ALL THE, UH, SENTIMENTS THAT COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS RAISED ABOUT THE PURPOSE OF THIS.

UM, I, THE ONLY THING I MIGHT ELABORATE IS, IS TO SAY THAT, AND THIS IS A LITTLE BIT SOME OF MY ADDITIONS TRYING TO KIND OF ENUMERATE, AS KHER WILLIAMS SAID, WE'RE TRYING TO KIND OF EXPAND THE SCOPE BEYOND JUST ALPS TO SOME OF THE OTHER SURVEILLANCE CONCERNS WITH LIGHT DRIVERLESS VEHICLES, WHICH ARE GIANT MOBILE SENSOR GATHERING LITTLE THINGS, MUCH LIKE ALPS AND, UM, TRYING TO SORT OF IDENTIFY WHAT THE OVERARCHING THEME IS, WHICH, UM, SOME OF THE, ONE OF THE FINAL CLAUSES I THINK, DIGS INTO IT A BIT, WHICH IS SPECIFICALLY THE CONCERN IS AROUND ANYTHING THAT IS NON CONSENSUALLY COLLECTING DATA FROM CITIZENS IN A WAY THAT COULD ALLOW ONE TO RETROACTIVELY PIECE TOGETHER THE LOCATION HISTORY OR THE DAY-TO-DAY ACTIVITIES OF AN INDIVIDUAL CITIZEN.

AND SO IT'S ANY TECHNOLOGY THAT COULD, IF MISUSED ENABLE SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THAT I THINK IS THE CONCERN AND WHAT WE REALLY NEED TO EITHER BAN OR BARE MINIMUM, AS COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS SAID, HAVE IT SUBJECT TO, UH, DEMOCRATIC ACCOUNTABILITY.

AND I THINK I'LL ALSO JUST ADD THAT, UM, THIS IS LITERALLY A RECENT DEVELOPMENT IN THE LAST LIKE 24 HOURS.

BUT I THINK AUSTIN, BY PROPOSING THIS, WE ARE ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, AS COMMISSIONER WAYNE SAID, THIS IS BECOMING A MOVEMENT.

AND WE ACTUALLY WILL BE CONTINUING TO LEAD IN THIS MOVEMENT BECAUSE AS THE RESOLUTION SAYS, WHILE A NUMBER OF CITIES IN THIS AREA HAVE JOINED AUSTIN AND GETTING RID OF THEIR FLOCK AND A LPR PROGRAMS, UH, MAYER LEANDER, BASTROP FLICKERVILLE, ET CETERA, BASTROP ACTUALLY DID SOMETHING VERY NOTABLE THAT THEY ARE THE FIRST TO DO THIS.

THEY DIDN'T JUST BAN FLOCK, THEY PASSED A RESOLUTION SAYING ALL A LPR VENDORS ARE BANNED IN BASTROP.

SO US RECOMMENDING TO COUNCIL THAT WE SHOULD NOT BE LOOKING FOR ANOTHER VENDOR LIKE AXON OR MOTOROLA OR SOMEBODY LIKE THAT, THAT WE SHOULD JUST RECOMMEND THIS IS A PROBLEMATIC TECHNOLOGY.

THERE'S OTHER WAYS TO DEAL WITH PUBLIC SAFETY THAT DON'T HAVE ALL THESE PRIVACY IMPLICATIONS, AND THAT WE SHOULD LOOK INTO THOSE OTHER SOLUTIONS INSTEAD OF CONTINUING TO LEGISLATE SOMETHING THAT I THINK CITIZENS ON BOTH THE LEFT AND RIGHT HAVE MADE CLEAR THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN.

THANK YOU FOR THAT.

UH, COMMISSIONER WELCH, I DID PROVIDE SOME ADDITIONAL INPUT AS WELL.

UM, IN PARTICULAR, UH, RECOMMENDED REMOVING THE NAMING OF, UM, THE SPECIFIC, UH, COMPANIES, UH, SINCE IN, IN MY VIEW, IT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER.

I, I, I MEAN, I WOULD AGREE IN THE SENSE THAT, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THAT SO MUCH OF THE DEBATE, AND I UNDERSTAND WHY THIS HAPPENED, BUT SINCE SO MUCH OF THE DEBATE IS FOCUSED ON FLOCK, THAT IT ACTUALLY TO NAME COMPANIES IS ALMOST TO IGNORE THAT THIS IS A MORE GENERAL ISSUE YES.

INDEPENDENT OF A VENDOR.

GREAT POINT.

WE'RE NOT SINGLING ANY PARTICULAR VENDOR OUT .

CALCULATE MOVEMENTS OR BACKWARDS CALCULATE LOCATIONS ON PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT A PART OF AN ACTIVE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION, WHICH IS ALMOST EVERYONE, RIGHT? ALMOST NO ONE'S A PART OF AN ACTIVE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION.

WELL SAID.

UM, SO I DID SEND OUT A, UH, COMMUNICATION TO, UH, THE ENTIRE COMMISSION, UH, JUST MAKING EVERYONE AWARE OF THE, NOT ONLY THIS RECOMMENDATION, BUT THE OTHER ONE, UH, ON OUR AGENDA AS WELL.

UH, WANTED TO GET A PULSE CHECK, UM, UH, TO SEE IF THERE, UH, IF ANYONE HAS AN INTEREST IN PROVIDING ANY AMENDMENTS, UH, TO THE RECOMMENDATION AS PRESENTED.

UM, I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THE RECOMMENDATION, JUST READING THE TEXT OF IT.

UH, PREVIOUS RECOMMENDATIONS WE MADE TO COUNCIL HAVE BEEN PRIMARILY ABOUT, UH, AREAS LIKE CITY CONTRACTS AND ALL.

THIS ONE DOESN'T REALLY SPECIFY A SCOPE AROUND THE POLICIES.

SO WE ENCOURAGING COUNCIL TO ADOPT POLICIES THAT MIGHT REGULATE PRIVATE BUSINESSES, INDIVIDUALS ON THEIR OWN GATHERING OF DATA HERE.

I MIGHT, UH, LET COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, SINCE IT'S PRIMARILY HIS COMMENT FIRST.

MM-HMM .

I WOULD CONTEXTUALIZE THIS AS ASKING THE CITY TO SET A STANDARD FOR HOW THEY WILL ENGAGE THESE TYPES OF TECHNOLOGIES IN GENERAL, UM, WITH OUR RECOMMENDATION FOR THE CITY TO TAKE A VERY HARD LINE AGAINST, UM, SUCH THAT IF THERE ARE ANY VENDORS THAT THE CITY WOULD WANT TO DEAL WITH OR ARE CURRENTLY DEALING WITH, THAT THIS WOULD BE THE STANDARD OPERATING, UH, SORT OF RELATIONSHIP THAT WE WOULD HAVE WITH THOSE VENDORS IF WE HAVE THEM AT ALL.

UM, OUR HOPE IS NOT TO HAVE THIS TECHNOLOGY PERIOD, BUT IF WE DO, WE WANT THE DATA TIMING, THE STORAGE, TO BE SEVERELY LIMITED TO JUST THE TIME IT TAKES TO PROCESS AN ACTIVE INVESTIGATION.

UM, WE DON'T WANT, UH, THE ABILITY TO BE ABLE TO BACKWARDS

[00:20:01]

SO THAT'S A VERY, VERY SMALL SUBSET OF PEOPLE.

UM, AND WE WANT THE CITY TO ADOPT THE, THAT STANDARD AS HOW THEY ENGAGE THIS IN GENERAL.

UH, LIKE CHAIRMAN SAID, MAYBE WE DON'T USE ANY TECHNOLOGY OF THIS TYPE.

EXCUSE ME, NOT CHAIRMAN, BUT, UH, COMMISSIONER KEVIN, MAYBE WE DON'T USE THIS TECHNOLOGY AT ALL AS THERE ARE ALTERNATIVES THAT CAN MAKE MORE SENSE WITHOUT SURVEILLING EVERYONE.

SO WE'RE JUST HOPING THAT THE CITY SEES AND, UH, HEARS THIS RECOMMENDATION AND DECIDES THAT THIS TECHNOLOGY IS TOO RESTRICTIVE AND WE CAN GET THE SAME WORK DONE WITHOUT IT.

UM, AND WE CAN ALIGN WITH WHAT AUSTINITES WANT, WHICH THEY DON'T WANT ANY LEVEL OF SURVEILLANCE.

SO HOPEFULLY THAT THAT ANSWERS THE QUESTION.

IF NOT, PLEASE, UH, PLEASE DOUBLE TAP ME AND, UM, I GUESS I CAN WEIGH MY THOUGHTS A LITTLE BIT AS WELL.

BUT, UM, ONE, UM, YEAH, THAT, UM, I THINK, YOU KNOW, ONE, I DIDN'T WANNA SAY GET INTO TOO MANY TECHNICAL RECOMMENDATIONS.

'CAUSE AS COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS SAID, I THINK THE PREFERENCES THAT THE CITY WOULDN'T BE ENGAGING WITH THIS AT ALL, LIKE, I DEFINITELY COULD GET NERDY WITH, UH, PROGRAMMING RULES.

I WOULD IMPOSE UPON A VENDOR WITH THINGS LIKE ENCRYPTION AND ACCESS IF WE WERE GONNA DO IT.

I, I THINK WE DON'T NECESSARILY WANT TO PUT THAT IN HERE.

'CAUSE THAT ALMOST MIGHT SOUND LIKE GIVING PERMISSION WHEN WE'D, UH, RATHER THE COUNCIL NOT BE THINKING ABOUT THIS AT ALL.

AND I THINK THE RESOLUTION AP EXPLICITLY MENTIONS THE TRUST ACT.

I THINK SOME OF THIS IS ABOUT TRYING TO BE IN ALIGNMENT WITH NOT JUST THE LETTER, BUT THE SPIRIT OF THE TRUST ACT.

I SAW AFTER THE PASSES OF THE TRUST ACT, THERE SEEMED TO BE, UM, SEEMED TO BE SOME PEOPLE IN THE CITY WHO SEEM TO THINK THAT NOW THAT WE HAD SUCH A POLICY, THAT IT MEANT THAT, OKAY, NOW THERE'S ACCOUNTABILITY, NOW WE CAN RETURN TO EXPLORING A DIFFERENT A LPR VENDOR.

AND I THINK SOME OF THE PURPOSE OF THIS RESOLUTION IS TO REMIND THEM THAT LIKE, WELL, THE REAL SPIRIT OF THE TRUST ACT IS ASKING WHETHER WE NEED CONTRACTS LIKE THIS AT ALL.

NOT JUST BEING LIKE, OH, NOW THAT WE HAVE A TRUST ACT, WE CAN JUST RETURN TO DOING BUSINESSES BEFORE WITH, YOU KNOW, ADMITTEDLY MAYBE A LESS PROBLEMATIC VENDOR THAN FLOCK.

BUT ONCE AGAIN, I THINK FOCUSING ON PARTICULAR VENDORS IS MISSING THE, THE OVERALL POINT, BASICALLY.

AND I THINK THIS IS NOT A RECOMMENDATION ABOUT IF YOU'RE GOING TO DO THIS, WHAT'S THE TECHNICAL BEST WAY TO DO IT? IT'S MORE ABOUT LEVEL SETTING ON VALUES.

AND I THINK, I THINK IT IS MORE SPECIFIC ABOUT THE CITY'S ROLE BECAUSE YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT TO RAISE THE POINT OF PRIVATE ACTORS.

I DON'T THINK THIS IS SPECIFICALLY A RECOMMENDATION ABOUT WHAT TO DO ABOUT THAT, WHICH IS ITSELF A DIFFERENT PROBLEM BECAUSE THE CITY IS LIMITED IN ITS POWER COMPARED TO THE STATE OF HOW WE CAN EVEN ADDRESS PEOPLE LIKE HOME DEPOT AND LOWE'S USING THIS TECHNOLOGY.

SO I THINK THERE'S A, THERE'S A CONVERSATION TO BE HAD THERE, BUT IT'S MAYBE MORE AT THE STATE LEVEL THAN WHAT WE CAN DO AT THE CITY LEVEL.

SO MY SUGGESTION, I, I'D LIKE TO MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO THE LAST PARAGRAPH, UM, WHERE WE READ THE CITY, AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL ADOPT POLICIES, ELIMINATING THE USE OF MASS SURVEILLANCE TOOLS, AND THEN SUCH AS BETWEEN TOOLS AND SUCH AS, I'D LIKE TO INSERT THE LANGUAGE BY THE CITY CLARIFYING THAT WE'RE ASKING THE CITY TO REGULATE ITS OWN USE OF THESE VENDORS AND TOOLS.

I THINK THAT'S A PRUDENT ADDITION.

UM, I HAVE NO OBJECTION WITH IT.

I MEAN, UM, ARE YOU FORMALLY MOVING FOR AN AMENDMENT? YES.

I FORMALLY MOVE FOR THAT AMENDMENT.

I SECOND IT.

ALL THOSE, UM, OKAY.

WE, UH, WE HAVE AN AMENDMENT, UM, A MOTION PUT FORWARD TO MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO THE RECOMMENDATION AS PRESENTED, PUT FORWARD BY VICE CHAIR COMBI, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER WELCH.

UM, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF, UM, MAKING THAT CHANGE, UH, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND, SAY AYE.

AYE.

CONDITIONS THAT THE CARS COLLECT AROUND THE CITY TO HELP IDENTIFY POTHOLES AND OTHER ISSUES WITH OUR, YOU KNOW, CITY INFRASTRUCTURE.

I BELIEVE WE'RE IN, YOU'RE, WE ARE UNANIMOUS.

UM, UM, ONE OTHER SMALL ADDITION.

I DON'T THINK IT REQUIRES AN AMENDMENT.

MAYBE DAN COULD JUST FIX IT.

THERE'S A STRAIGHT COMMA THERE AFTER SELF-DRIVING CARS.

UM, SO WE'LL JUST FIX THAT ON THE BACK END SPACE.

YEAH, STRAIGHT SPACE.

ANY OTHER AMENDMENTS WE'D LIKE TO MAKE BEFORE WE MOVE TO ADOPTION OF THIS ONE? I THINK I'D LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT THE CITY DOESN'T HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO REGULATE THE SELF-DRIVING CARS DUE TO STATE PREEMPTION.

AND SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE CITY COULD DO REGARDING THE STORAGE AND USE CASES FOR SELF-DRIVING CAR DATA.

UH, I'D RAISED, I MEAN, THERE ARE SOME THINGS I'D READ RECENTLY THAT I THINK WAYMO IS ONE OF THE VENDORS WAS PLANNING ON SHARING WITH THE CITY INFORMATION ABOUT, UH, ROAD

[00:25:01]

SO THERE ARE DEFINITELY SOME INTERACTIONS POSSIBLE THERE.

YEAH, NO, I MEAN, I, BUT I GUESS MY POINT IS, UM, I GUESS I SEE THEM AS LIKE TWO SEPARATE ISSUES, BUT I THINK THIS MIGHT, SINCE THAT CLAUSE WAS ORIGINALLY, UH, COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, UM, THINKING OF INCLUDING IT, I DON'T WANNA SPEAK FOR WHAT HIS THOUGHTS ON IT ARE.

I THINK ONCE AGAIN THOUGH, AND MAYBE WITH, UH, COMMISSIONER COMEY'S AMENDMENT THAT ONCE AGAIN THERE'S A DICHOTOMY BETWEEN, I AGREE.

ONCE AGAIN, IT ALMOST BECOMES MORE A STATE ISSUE REGULATING LIKE PRIVATE SELF-OWNED OR SELF-DRIVING CARS LIKE WAYMO.

BUT I THINK IF THERE ARE ANY SELF-DRIVING VEHICLES THAT THE CITY THEMSELVES PURCHASES FROM WAYMO OR ANOTHER VENDOR, UM, WE DO HAVE ABILITY TO PUT SOME RULES THERE OF WE OWN THEM.

I WOULD THINK.

SO I THINK THAT PUBLIC VERSUS PRIVATE, UH, DICHOTOMY MIGHT APPLY STILL.

YEAH, I HAD THOUGHTS AROUND, UM, THAT SPECIFIC AREA AS WELL FOR AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES.

I FEEL LIKE THE, THE WAY THIS RECOMMENDATION READS, IT'S THAT IT INCLUDES THAT, BUT IT'S NOT SPECIFIC OR BEING SPECIFIC ABOUT WHAT THE ASK IS OR, OR RECOMMENDATION.

SO I DO THINK HAVING THAT BE LIKE A SEPARATE RECOMMENDATION IN ITSELF WOULD BE HELPFUL, UM, TO CREATE AS MAYBE A FOLLOW UP OR SOMETHING SO THAT IT IS SPECIFIC ON WHAT WE WOULD RECOMMEND RELATED TO THAT.

IF, IF SOMEONE COULD EXPLAIN TO ME HOW THIS GOES BEYOND THE TRUST ACT, THAT WOULD BE SUPER HELPFUL.

LIKE WHAT ARE WE ASKING THE CITY TO DO SPECIFICALLY BEYOND THAT? UM, I HAVE SOME CONTEXT OF WHEN I WAS ONE OF THE PEOPLE WHO WAS TALKING SOME ON THE TRUST ACT, WHAT ULTIMATELY BECAME THE TRUST ACT.

UM, ONE THING THAT NEVER ACTUALLY MADE IT INTO THE TRUST ACT, BUT THAT I THOUGHT, THOUGHT WOULD BE GOOD, AND THAT I DO SEE COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS RESOLUTION HERE AS BEING SOMEWHAT ALIGNED WITH, IS SORT OF THE IDEA THAT THE TRUST ACT SETS LIKE A FRAMEWORK.

BUT, UM, ONE THING THAT I WAS CONCERNED ABOUT AFTER THE PASTOR OF THE TRUST ACT WAS THAT WE WOULD STILL BE KIND OF RE-LITIGATING VARIOUS USES OVER AND OVER AGAIN AND ALMOST TURN THEM INTO POLITICAL FOOTBALL WHEN THEY'VE ALMOST ARE KIND OF ESTABLISHED AT THIS POINT THAT THEY'RE NOT THINGS THAT THE CITIZENS REALLY WANT US TO BE CONSIDERING OR ENGAGING WITH.

AND, YOU KNOW, TO THE POINT WHERE, AND MAYBE THIS WASN'T THE BEST IDEA AT THE TIME, I'D EVEN FLOATED LIKE, WELL, WHAT ABOUT LIKE, YOU LITERALLY HAVE A LIST THAT'S LIKE PROHIBITED WHERE YOU ALMOST LIKE SHORT CIRCUIT DEBATE, LIKE WE'VE ALREADY SAID, WE'RE NOT GOING TO SAY BE BUYING ANY ALPR OR INSERT OTHER TECHNOLOGY.

AND I THINK WHAT I SAW WITH THE COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS PROPOSAL HERE IS, IS SIMILAR TO WHAT BASTROP JUST DID, WHERE IT IS JUST THE TRUST ACT DOESN'T SAY YOU CAN'T EVER BRING A L APRS BACK.

IT SORT OF SAYS THERE'S A FRAMEWORK BY WHICH YOU REVIEW ANY TECHNOLOGY, VENDOR CONTRACT, ET CETERA.

I SEE THIS KIND OF POINTING IN A MORE GENERAL DIRECTION THAT, UM, WE'RE ENCOURAGING COUNSEL THAT, UM, I GUESS TO USE A LITTLE BIT OF COLLOQUIAL LANGUAGE, UM, YOU CAN ALWAYS EVEN PUT IT AS READ THE ROOM, YOU KNOW, THAT THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THE CITIZENS ARE INTERESTED IN.

AND RATHER THAN WASTING VALUABLE COUNSEL TIME LITIGATING ANOTHER VENDOR, IT'S MORE LIKE, LET'S ACTUALLY SET THAT THIS IS NOT SOMETHING IN ALIGNMENT WITH AUSTIN'S VALUES AND THAT WE DON'T WANT TO BE DOING THIS.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS, ANYTHING TO ADD MM-HMM .

THE, THE BROAD IDEA AND IMPLICATION WAS IF AUSTINITES ARE GOING TO BE FILMED AGAINST THEIR WISH, THEY SHOULD HAVE RECOURSE.

AND IF THERE'S ANYONE DOING THAT, IF THERE IS COMPANIES LIKE FLOCK READING LICENSE PLATES, OR WAMO AND ZOOX AS AN EXAMPLE, UH, READING LICENSE PLATES, UH, CITIZENS SHOULD HAVE RECOURSE.

SO THIS IS INTENDED TO CREATE A STANDARD THAT WE'RE HOPING THE CITY ADOPTS FOR ANYTHING THAT TAKES THAT BEHAVIOR WITHIN THE CITY.

UM, CURRENTLY THERE IS, AGAIN, THE SORT OF POLITICAL PUSH FOR THE ALPS AND, OR AT LEAST THE A LPR FUNCTION ON SELF-DRIVING VEHICLES THAT DO THAT, RIGHT? ALL SELF-DRIVING VEHICLES DON'T DO THAT.

BUT THERE IS THE SET THAT DO, AND THEY ARE OPERATIONAL IN AUSTIN AT THE MOMENT.

UM, THAT DATA GOES TO PRIVATE COMPANIES SIMILAR TO A FLOCK.

UM, AND NONE OF US CAN REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING THERE.

WE CAN'T USE, UH, REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION.

LIKE WE JUST HAVE TO ASK THE COMPANIES AND HOPE THAT THEY COMPLY.

UM, BUT THOSE VERY SAME COMPANIES ARE GETTING PERMISSION FROM DIFFERENT LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT TO TEST AND OPERATE IN OUR CITY.

UH, WE KNOW THAT SELF-DRIVING CARS DON'T EXIST IN EVERY CITY JUST YET.

'CAUSE CITIES ARE MAKING SOME DEALS IN ORDER TO ALLOW THEM TO BE ON THE STREETS IN THEIR MUNICIPALITY.

SO I THINK THE CITY DOES HAVE SOME TEETH, EVEN

[00:30:01]

THOUGH I WON'T SAY I KNOW THE GREATER DETAILS OF WHAT THOSE TEETH ARE.

UM, AS, UH, COMMISSIONER EASTWOOD MENTIONED, THERE'S A STATE RELATIONSHIP HERE AS WELL THAT MAY SUPERSEDE OUR CONVERSATIONS.

UM, SO THERE MIGHT BE SOME HOMEWORK, UH, FOR MYSELF AND MAYBE OTHER COMMISSIONERS AS WELL TO DO TO KIND OF UNDERSTAND WHERE THE LINES ARE WITH, UH, THINGS LIKE SELF-DRIVING SURVEILLANCE IN A WAY.

BUT THE, THE SPIRIT HERE IS TO GET THE CITY TO SAY, UH, IF YOU'RE GOING TO SURVEIL AUSTINITES, WE NEED TO HAVE SOME FORM OF RECOURSE, BE IT ON HOW LONG THE DATA IS STORED, IF IT'S STORED AT ALL, BE IT ON, UH, CITIZEN'S ABILITY TO SEE THEMSELVES WITHIN THAT DATA TO REMOVE THEMSELVES FROM THAT DATA.

JUST DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WILL ALLOW, UM, A MUNICIPALITY TO BE ABLE TO CREATE RECOURSE FOR, UH, THOSE OF US BEING SURVEILLED WITHOUT ANY POWER.

SO THAT'S THE SPIRIT.

MY HOPE IS THAT WE'RE, WE'RE CAPTURING THAT AND THAT THE CITY TAKES THAT SAME TONE ON TOP OF THE TRUST ACT.

THANK YOU COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. UM, I'LL JUST MAKE A SUGGESTION.

'CAUSE I THOUGHT COMMISSIONER EASTWOOD BROUGHT UP A GOOD POINT THAT THE SELF-DRIVING CARS IS, UM, REGULATED AT THE STATE LEVEL.

WHAT IF WE STRIKE JUST THE WORDS SUCH AS WITHIN SELF-DRIVING CARS SO THAT THEREFORE IT WOULD BE RESOLVED? THE TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT CITY OF AUSTIN COUNCIL ADOPT POLICIES ELIMINATING THE USE OF MASS SURVEILLANCE SURVEILLANCE TOOLS.

BUT I MEAN, IF, IF MM-HMM .

I, I GUESS MY POINT IS IF YOU WANT THE SELF-DRIVING CAR IN THERE, THERE'S A WAY TO WRITE IT WHERE IT MAKES SENSE.

UM, LIKE I THINK IT'S FINE TO STAY IN THERE.

I THINK IT WOULD JUST, YOU WOULD HAVE TO INCLUDE LANGUAGE SURROUNDING CITY DEPARTMENTS ENTERING INTO AGREEMENTS WITH COMPANIES CONCERNING, LIKE, THE USE OF SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY IN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES.

LIKE, I THINK THAT WOULD BE THE WAY TO WORD IT IF YOU WANTED TO INCLUDE IT IN THE RESOLUTION.

I DON'T KNOW THAT I AGREE WITH THAT, BUT IF YOU WANT IT IN THE RESOLUTION, I THINK THAT'S THE, THE WAY TO DO IT.

MM-HMM .

I THINK THAT'S A VALID POINT.

AND I, I WILL SAY THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IF WE'D HAD MORE TIME TO WORKSHOP, THE THING I MIGHT EVEN HAVE THOUGHT OF, INCLUDING, 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, IT DOES, YOU KNOW, THE, IT IT WOULD SEEM MORE LIKE WE'RE TRYING TO ENUMERATE A LIST OF EXAMPLES IF WE HAD LIKE THREE OR FOUR INSTEAD OF JUST, YOU KNOW, ALPS AND THEN THE OTHER THING.

BUT I KNOW THAT, AND ONCE AGAIN, YOU KNOW, WE MAY ALL HAVE DIFFERENT OPINIONS ABOUT A CITY'S ROLE HERE, BUT LIKE, I KNOW THERE'S A EXAMPLE OF OTHER WAYS THIS CAN HAPPEN AT THE CITY LEVEL.

THERE WAS A STORY GOING AROUND ABOUT HOW, UM, IT ISN'T HAPPENING IN AUSTIN, BUT THAT IN DALLAS, UM, THEY HAD ENABLED THEIR GARBAGE TRUCKS WITH AI SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS TO AUTOMATE FLAGGING CODE ENFORCEMENT VIOLATIONS.

I THINK THAT IS ANOTHER POTENTIAL THING.

AND ONCE AGAIN, CONSIDERING USUALLY CODE ENFORCEMENT'S VERY MUCH A CITY FUNCTION, IF AUSTIN WAS EVER THINKING ABOUT EXPLORING SOMETHING LIKE THAT, I THINK THAT WOULD FALL UNDER POTENTIALLY, UM, WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO URGE THE CITY HERE TO DO.

AND I GUESS, I GUESS MY POINT IS I THINK IT BENEFITS US THE MORE SPECIFIC WE ARE IN LISTING RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL.

LIKE, I WOULD LIKE THE RESOLUTION TO SAY THAT AND LIST THAT EXAMPLE, LIKE THE COMMISSION OPPOSES THE USE OF ALPS IN CODE ENFORCEMENT VIOLATIONS, AND I THINK A HUNDRED PERCENT OF FOLKS LIVING IN AUSTIN WOULD AGREE WITH THAT.

AND SO I THINK IF WE CAN TAKE THE TIME TO IRON IT OUT AND SAY THESE ARE SPECIFIC EXAMPLES OF THINGS THAT WE THINK THE CITY SHOULD BE ADVERSE TO AND NOT ENTER INTO CONTRACTS INTO, I THINK THAT IS MORE ADVANTAGEOUS TO SENIOR LEADERSHIP AT A, AT THE CITY LEVEL AND TO COUNCIL MEMBERS WHO MAY NOT BE AS IN THE WEEDS IN THINKING THROUGH THIS AS OTHER COMMISSIONER MEMBERS ARE, OR FLAG LIKE AREAS OF CONCERN.

LIKE MAYBE NO ONE'S THINKING ABOUT, OH YEAH, WE PROBABLY SHOULD PREVENT, YOU KNOW, CODE ENFORCEMENT FROM INTO A CONTRACT.

LIKE, IT'S NOT, THOSE THINGS AREN'T NORMALLY TOP OF MIND.

DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? NO, AND I, I THINK YOUR POINTS ARE WELL TAKEN.

I APPRECIATE YOU RAISING THEM.

MAKES SENSE.

UM, ONE, WELL, UH, I'LL, I'LL LOOK AT COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. UM, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT TABLING THIS ONE AND TAKING IT AND DOING ANOTHER TURN ON IT AND BRINGING IT BACK TO THE COMMISSION NEXT MONTH? UH, I THINK THAT'S FINE.

I THINK THE, THE OVERARCHING GOAL IS TO, TO GET SOMETHING THAT REPRESENTS THE COMMISSION.

UH, SO IF THERE ARE BETTER WAYS TO PRESENT MORE LANGUAGE, LESS LANGUAGE, RIGHT? THE LANGUAGE THAT, THE RIGHT LANGUAGE IS WHAT I WANNA ULTIMATELY, UH, HAVE OUR RECOMMENDATION BE.

I WANT IT TO BE SOMETHING THAT THE ENTIRE COMMISSION CAN BE BROUGHT UP SO WE CAN TAKE THE TIME TO, TO GET IT RIGHT.

YEAH, EITHER WAY.

I THINK THIS WAS A GREAT FIRST STEP, BRINGING IT TO THE COMMISSION, MAKING SURE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE CATCH THESE TYPES OF THINGS AND THEN WE CAN WORKSHOP IT AND BRING IT BACK.

GO AHEAD, COMMISSIONER WELSH.

YEAH, AND I, I THINK, UM, GETTING IT RIGHT'S IMPORTANT AND I THINK, YEAH, I THINK SOME OF THE, UM, THE POINTS RAISED HERE ARE GOOD AND WE, UH, WE SHOULD MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT GIVING COUNCIL RECOMMENDATIONS THAT FEEL GOOD, BUT ARE NOT ACTIONABLE.

[00:35:01]

SO, YEAH.

I THINK THAT SOUNDS RIGHT.

GREAT CALL.

UM, DAN, JESSE, IS THERE ANYTHING I NEED TO DO TO TABLE THIS OR WE JUST DON'T TAKE ACTION ON IT? OKAY, GREAT.

SO, UH, WE'LL ADD THIS TO OUR, UM, COMMISSION.

WE'LL RE ADD THIS TO OUR COMMISSION MEETING NEXT TIME.

UM, AND BY THEN WE'LL HAVE, UM, AN ENHANCED LINE OF TEXT.

THANK YOU COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS AND, UM, COMMISSIONER WELCH, UH, FOR Y'ALL'S WORK ON THIS.

AND COMMISSIONER EASTWOOD FOR YOUR, UH, FOR YOUR INPUT.

UM, LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU DIRECTLY, AND THEN WE CAN BRING AN APPROVED VERSION.

UH, ON THAT, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE FORWARD TO, UH, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FOUR.

WELL, WE WILL,

[4. Discussion and approval of recommendation to council to support recommendations outlined in Measure’s Community in the Loop Report ]

AND THAT IS, UH, THE RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL ON, UH, TO SUPPORT MEASURES COMMUNITY IN THE LOOP REPORT.

LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND ON THIS.

UH, AT OUR LAST COMMISSION MEETING A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO, UH, WE INVITED, UH, MIMI STYLES, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF MEASURE, UH, TO PRESENT OUT ON, UH, THE WORK THAT HAD BEEN DONE, UH, WITHIN THE COMMUNITY TO GATHER PUBLIC SENTIMENT ON ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, BUT ALSO OTHER EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES.

UM, DURING OUR MARCH, UH, COMMUNITY LISTENING SESSION MEASURE ALSO CO-FACILITATED THAT SESSION ALONG WITH US, AND THAT PROVIDED, UH, A GOOD AMOUNT OF INPUT TO THE OVERALL REPORT.

IN ADDITION TO THAT, UH, SEVERAL WEEKS AGO, MAYBE IT WAS ABOUT A MONTH AGO, UH, MYSELF, UH, MIMI STYLES, A FEW OTHER, UM, UH, COMMUNITY PARTNERS AND SEVERAL COUNCIL MEMBERS ALSO PARTICIPATED IN A PRESS CONFERENCE, UH, OFFICIALLY PRESENTING THE COMMUNITY IN THE LOOP REPORT TO, UM, THE CITY MANAGER AND, UH, AND DREW ATTENTION TO IT.

BUT AT A HIGH LEVEL, UH, I'M NOT GOING TO, OBVIOUSLY THERE'S NOT TIME HERE TO GO THROUGH THE ENTIRE REPORT, UH, BUT THERE WERE SIX MAIN, UH, AREAS THAT THE REPORT, UH, CENTERED ON, AND THAT IS RECOMMENDING THAT, UH, THE CITY OF AUSTIN INCLUDE AN AI ADVISORY STRUCTURE.

UM, SO ESSENTIALLY STRENGTHENING SOME OF WHAT IT ALREADY HAS AND SOME OF WHAT THIS COMMISSION HAS ALREADY, UH, PARTICIPATED IN, UM, ALSO HAVE AN AI TRANSPARENCY REGISTRY.

SO MAKING PUBLIC ANY, UH, AI TOOLS, UH, THAT ARE IN USE BY THE CITY.

AND THAT INCLUDES THOSE BY VENDORS ENSURING THAT THERE IS, UH, HUMAN OVERSIGHT INTO ANY DELIVERABLES OR WORK PRODUCT.

UM, ENSURING THAT, UH, THAT THE CITY IS INVESTING IN COMMUNITY AI LITERACY, ENSURING THAT THERE'S PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY, UH, IF, AND, UH, RESIDENT COMPLAINT AND REDRESS PROCESS, IF ANYONE, UH, IF COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UH, BELIEVE THEY'VE BEEN HARMED OR, UH, OR, OR TAKEN ISSUE WITH, UM, UH, AI DELIVERABLES OR, OR WORK PRODUCT.

AND THEN ENVIRONMENTAL, UH, JUSTICE.

UH, SO ENSURING THAT, UH, DATA CENTERS, WATER CONSUMPTION, ENERGY USED AND RELATED INFRASTRUCTURE, UH, ARE PART OF, UM, UH, THE DIALOGUE, UH, AS THESE, UM, AS THESE TECHNOLOGIES, UM, UH, SORT OF TAKE SHAPE.

UM, SO THE, ESSENTIALLY THIS IS A RECOMMEND THIS, UH, THE, THE FULL REPORT HAS ALREADY BEEN PRESENTED TO BOTH COUNCIL AS WELL AS THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE TO TAKE ACTION ON.

SO ESSENTIALLY OUR ROLE HERE WOULD BE TO, UH, TO CONTI TO VOICE SUPPORT, UM, FOR THAT, UM, THAT REPORT AS WELL.

UM, I DID CHECK WITH, UM, WITH OUR, OUR STAFF, UM, AND, UH, WE WERE IN ALIGNMENT THAT SHOWING OUR SUPPORT THIS WAY, UM, IS SORT OF THE CORRECT WAY TO, UM, TO VOICE ADVOCACY FOR, FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS.

BUT WITH THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I, IF, IF THOSE OF YOU WHO, WHO HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE OR LISTEN TO THE REPORT OUT AT THE LAST COMMISSION MEETING, UH, WHERE MIMI DID PRESENT OUT THE, UH, THE REPORT IN ITS ENTIRETY, UM, IF ANYONE ELSE HAS, UM, HAS THOUGHTS OR, OR AMENDMENTS, HAPPY TO, UM, TO LISTEN TO THOSE NOW, NOT HEARING ANYTHING.

SO I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND MAKE A MOTION TO ADOPT THE RECOMMENDATION AS PRESENTED.

I SECOND VICE CHAIR

[00:40:01]

COMBY SECONDS.

ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THIS ONE? I GUESS JUST A QUESTION SINCE, YOU KNOW, I WASN'T PRESENT FOR SOME OF THE DISCUSSION, I TAKE IT THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT THIS IS IN THE SPIRIT, AS IT EVEN EXPLICITLY SAYS, OF STARTING A CONVERSATION.

THIS IS REALLY ABOUT ENCOURAGING THE CITY TO BEGIN THE PROCESS OF ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS.

WE'RE NOT AT YET AT THE PHASE OF, UH, SPECIFICS AS IT WERE .

YEAH, I THINK THAT'S CORRECT.

UM, AND I THINK IN ADDITION TO THAT, YOU KNOW, THE, THE REPORT ITSELF GOES INTO MUCH MORE DETAIL TO PROVIDE LIKE EXAMPLES.

I DO THINK I, I READ AT LEAST SOME OF THE PRODUCED REPORT, I THINK.

I THINK, 'CAUSE I CAN ALREADY SORT OF, YOU KNOW, I LIKE A LOT OF WHAT IT PROPOSES AN OUTLINE.

I GUESS IT'S JUST, I CAN ALREADY IMMEDIATELY START THINKING OF QUESTIONS I WOULD HAVE OF LIKE, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY, IS THAT THE CITY READDRESSING RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN HARMED? IS IT TRYING TO MAKE THE COMPANY'S REDRESS RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN HARMED? LIKE, THOSE ARE THINGS I IMMEDIATELY START THINKING ABOUT, BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE IT'S PROBABLY A LITTLE TOO EARLY THAT THE WHOLE POINT OF THIS IS TO START ANSWERING THOSE THINGS.

YEAH, ABSOLUTELY.

ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE.

WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT, UH, THOSE IN THAT INPUT AND THOSE THOUGHTS.

UM, OKAY, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE TO A FULL VOTE.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF, UH, ADOPTING THE RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL AS PRESENTED.

UH, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND, SAY AYE.

AYE.

ANYONE AGAINST? ANYONE? NOPE.

I THINK WE ARE UNANIMOUS IN THAT.

UM, WELL, THANK YOU ALL.

UM, I'M SURE MIMI WILL BE BE PLEASED, UM, AND WE CAN, UH, CONTINUE TO, UH, TO SUPPORT, UH, MEASURES WORK, UM, TO, UH, TO ENSURE THAT, UM, THE COMMUNITY IS KEPT IN THE LOOP, UM, WITH, UM, AI AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES.

SO WITH THAT, UM, MOVING

[5. Update from the Artificial Intelligence work group on their continued conversations with experts in the field of automated surveillance ]

UM, WE KIND OF ALREADY COVERED IT, BUT I'LL TEE IT BACK TO COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS IF HE JUST WANTS TO TALK THROUGH NEXT STEPS ON, UH, THAT RECOMMENDATION AS WELL AS ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO COVER.

YES.

UM, I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE A BELOW QUORUM AMOUNT OF FELLOW COMMISSIONERS, UM, TO HOPEFULLY, UH, ENGAGE ON THE 24TH, SEPTEMBER, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24TH, UM, TO KIND OF FURTHER THIS CONVERSATION AND TO BRING INPUT ABOUT SOME OF THE SPECIFICS AND THINGS WE MAY WANNA INCLUDE, UH, THINGS WE MAY WANNA EXCLUDE AND, UH, REALLY JUST BRING SOME MORE FLAVOR AND COLOR TO THE DISCUSSION SURROUNDING HOW WE WANNA PUT THIS, UH, RECOMMENDATION TOGETHER.

UM, SO WITH SOME ASSISTANCE FROM, I BELIEVE, DAN, I WOULD LIKE TO EXTEND THAT INVITATION TO THE COMMISSION HERE, AS WELL AS ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO ARE INTERESTED, UH, TO A WORKING GROUP MEETING TO REFINE THIS RECOMMENDATION AND TO RAISE ANY OTHER ISSUES THAT MAY PERTAIN TO OUR, UH, SURVEILLANCE AND AI UH, WORKING GROUP.

SO THAT WILL HOPEFULLY BE DURING THE DAY.

THE TIME IS NOT SOLIDIFIED.

I WOULD LIKE TO REACH OUT TO FOLKS.

I WORK FOR MYSELF, SO I HAVE A LOT OF FLEXIBILITY DURING THE DAY, BUT EVERYONE HAS DIFFERENT SCHEDULES.

SO WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS PROPOSE A TIME FOR THE 24TH EMAIL ALL THIS BODY AND, UH, ASK FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.

AND AS LONG AS WE HAVE BELOW QUORUM, UH, WE CAN, UH, REFINE FURTHER.

DAN JUST GAVE A THUMBS UP IN THE ROOM, SO, UH, IF YOU, UH, I THINK IF YOU, IF YOU DRAFT SOMETHING FOR THE COMMISSION, DAN CAN HELP WITH, UH, WITH SENDING IT OUT AND, UH, ALSO HELP WITH ENSURING THAT WE MAINTAIN A SUB QUORUM GROUP OF COMMISSIONERS.

ABSOLUTELY.

PERFECT.

AND WE'LL START WITH THE DOCUMENT WE ALL HAVE IN OUR INBOX, LES, THE AMENDMENT WE AGREED TO TOGETHER.

UH, AND AGAIN, YEAH, LET'S JUST PUT OUT THE BEST THING THAT WE CAN BE PROUD OF THAT REPRESENTS WHAT AUSTINITES REALLY WANNA SEE FROM US.

TO, UH, FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, COMMISSIONER WELSH, YOU HAD SOME IDEAS IN THE BEGINNING OF ON FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. DO YOU JUST WANNA JUST RESTATE THOSE, UM, FOR THE RECORD AND WE CAN CAPTURE THEM? UH, SURE.

THANK YOU FOR THAT.

MOVING ALONG

[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ]

UM, YEAH, AS I SAID, AND, AND I KNOW YOU ASKED ME TO TRY TO BE MORE SPECIFIC, BUT I ACTUALLY, IT'S MORE JUST AN IMPRESSION THAT'S FORMED.

I SHOULD HAVE PROBABLY THEY WERE HAPPENING CONVERSATIONS IN THE MOMENT, BUT ONE THING I'VE NOTICED SEEMS TO BE A REPEATED THEME, WHICH, YOU KNOW, YOU WOULD THINK, UH, IN THIS AGE OF TECHNOLOGY AND, AND, AND AI AND OTHER THINGS THAT THIS WOULD BE A SOLVABLE PROBLEM.

BUT I'VE NOTICED WHEN PEOPLE HAVE HEARD, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE IN MY LIFE HEARD, OH, YOU'RE GONNA BE ON THE TECH COMMISSION.

UM, AND, YOU KNOW, AND I, OF COURSE I'M LIKE, WELL, HEY, YOU SHOULD COME DOWN AND TALK TO US IF THERE'S ANYTHING YOU HAVE A PROBLEM ABOUT.

I NOTICED A REPEATED THEME FROM PEOPLE SEEMED TO BE THAT A LOT OF CITIZENS STILL FEEL THAT WHEN THEY HAVE SOME PROBLEM THEY COULD USE THE CITY'S HELP WITH, THEY DON'T FEEL LIKE THEY KNOW WHAT TO DO.

THEY DON'T

[00:45:01]

FEEL LIKE THERE'S A SIMPLE, EASY PROCESS TO KNOW WHO TO CONTACT AND WHAT TO DO.

AND I MEAN, I KNOW, I KNOW, YOU KNOW, AT THE SAME TIME, SOME PEOPLE MAY BE GOING LIKE, WELL, LIKE THREE ONE ONE'S A THING.

LIKE, YOU KNOW, SURELY EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT I HAD, I DON'T KNOW.

I'VE JUST NOTICED THERE SEEMS TO BE A GENERAL THEME THAT PEOPLE ARE LIKE, HEY, UM, THIS IS HAPPENING WITH MY SMALL BUSINESS AND, UH, A ZONING THING, OR, OR, OR WHATEVER, YOU KNOW, AND JUST A FEELING OF I DON'T KNOW WHO TO CONTACT AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT.

YEAH, NO, THAT'S A GREAT CALL OUT.

UM, I KNOW, OR, OR EVEN HOW, BECAUSE I THINK, I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, GIVEN SOME RECENT, UH, PRIVATE SECTOR CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPERIENCES I'VE HAD, I DON'T THINK THE CITIZENS WOULD TAKE KINDLY IF THE SOLUTION WAS A CHATBOT WHO DOES NOT UNDERSTAND THEM AND THEY CAN'T ACTUALLY TALK TO A REAL PERSON.

, I HAD TO ACTUALLY PHYSICALLY GO INTO A BUSINESS RECENTLY 'CAUSE THEIR CHAT BOT WAS SO USELESS.

, .

I HAVE NO DOUBT I I WOULD'VE LIKED TO, TO BE THERE FOR THAT.

UM, NO, THAT, THAT'S A, THAT'S A GREAT CALL OUT.

UM, YOU KNOW, OUR, WE'RE, I WOULD SAY IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, WE'RE REALLY FORTUNATE TO HAVE VERY PROACTIVE AND ENGAGED COUNCIL MEMBERS.

EVERY, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM.

UM, MY EXPERIENCE WITH, WITH MOST OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS OF, AND THEIR STAFF IS THAT THEY'RE ALWAYS RESPONSIVE, ALWAYS HAPPY TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE IF, EVEN IF THEIR OFFICE ISN'T THE CORRECT AVENUE.

UM, SO I THINK THAT AS COMMISSIONERS, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS WE HAVE A ROLE IN HELPING TO, TO AMPLIFY, UM, THAT DIRECT CONNECTION WITH, UH, WITH THE COUNCIL OFFICES.

BUT YEAH, LET'S, UH, LET'S THINK IT THROUGH AND, YOU KNOW, GET MORE SPECIFIC AND IF, IF THERE'S MORE GUIDANCE OR, OR ANY FACILITATION, UM, WITH INDIVIDUAL CITY DEPARTMENTS THAT, THAT WE CAN DO, UM, YOU KNOW, LET'S, LET'S HAVE THAT COMMUNITY CONVERSATION.

AND I, I THINK I'D JUST ALSO ADD THAT SPECIFICALLY, IT SHOULD BE DRIVEN BY ACTUALLY SPEAKING TO THE CITIZENS AND FINDING OUT LIKE, WELL, WHY DO THEY FEEL LIKE THEY CAN'T GET HELP OR DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO? 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, I KNOW IN SOFTWARE ENGINEERING, UH, IT'S A PERPETUAL PROBLEM THAT THE ENGINEER'S LIKE, I KNOW WHY THIS SUCKS, AND THEY DON'T ACTUALLY TALK TO THE END USERS.

SO I DON'T WANT US TO ENGAGE IN THAT.

WE SHOULD ACTUALLY FIND OUT WHY THE EXISTING SOLUTIONS ARE NOT WORKING FOR PEOPLE.

YEAH, YEAH.

UM, AND EARLY NEXT YEAR, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD DO A, WE SHOULD PLAN ON DOING ANOTHER COMMUNITY LISTING SESSION THAT WE DID, UM, BACK IN MARCH.

SO MAYBE AS WE MOVE INTO THE FALL AND WINTER, WE CAN MOVE INTO PLANNING MODE FOR THAT.

AND THAT COULD BE ONE TOPIC THAT WE COVER.

WATER USAGE, SO THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY COME WITH CONCRETE PROPOSALS ABOUT, WELL, IF THEY'RE GONNA BE IN AUSTIN, THEY NEED TO USE THIS KIND OF WATER RECLAMATION, THEY NEED TO USE THIS KIND OF ENERGY.

CALL OUT.

ANY OTHER FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, FOLKS? WOULD, OTHER COMMISSIONERS? YES.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. I HAVE A YES QUESTION, AND MAYBE THIS TURNS TO AN AGENDA ITEM, MAYBE NOT.

UM, BUT IN RECENT MONTHS WE WERE, AND I SAY WE AS, UM, SEVERAL MEMBERS OF THIS COMMISSION WERE INTERESTED IN A CONVERSATION SURROUNDING A DATA CENTER TOUR AND GETTING SOME DEEPER INFORMATION ABOUT DATA CENTERS IN THEIR PROPOSED, UH, PRESENCE IN THE SORT OF AUSTIN AREA, TRAVIS COUNTY AREA, KIND OF GENERAL AUSTIN METRO.

UM, AND I KNOW THERE WERE SOME DELAYS THERE, I THINK AS RELATED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS OR SOMETHING OF THE NATURE.

UH, MY QUESTION WAS, IS THAT STILL, UH, SORT OF IN THE TRAJECTORY? BECAUSE I, I THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS ANOTHER SORT OF, UH, TOPIC AREA THAT A LOT OF AUSTIN NIGHTS SEEMED TO BE ON THE SAME SIDE OF THAT ISSUE.

UM, BUT I WANTED US, UH, AS COMMISSIONERS TO KIND OF EDUCATE OURSELVES MORE THOROUGHLY BEFORE REALLY COMING TO ANY THOUGHTS OR OPINIONS SURROUNDING IT.

UM, IS THERE, ARE THERE STILL MURMURS AROUND, UH, DATA CENTER INFORMATION GATHERING OR DATA CENTER TOURING OR ANYTHING OF THAT NATURE THAT WE'RE AWARE OF? YEAH, SO SHORT ANSWER, UH, IS YES.

UH, COMMISSIONER HERITAGE WAS THE, UH, MAIN COMMISSIONER HELPING TO FACILITATE THAT CONVERSATION.

UM, UNFORTUNATELY SHE WASN'T ABLE TO ATTEND TODAY, BUT, UH, I CAN HAVE AN OFFLINE CONVERSATION WITH HER AND WE CAN PICK THOSE BACK UP.

BUT I DO AGREE WITH YOU.

I THINK AS COMMISSIONERS, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF DATA CENTERS, UM, THAT HAVE AN IMPACT ON ELECTRICITY, ENVIRONMENTAL, ALL OF THOSE THINGS.

AND I THINK WE HAVE 10 TO 15 ALREADY OPERATING IN THE CITY LIMITS.

SO IT, I THINK FOR US, IT'S, IT'S GOOD TO JUST BRING IT TO LIFE AND UNDERSTAND IT AT A DEEPER LEVEL.

SO I'M COMPLETELY WITH YOU.

UH, AND WE'LL PICK THOSE CONVERSATIONS BACK UP.

COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS. YEAH, AND I, I GUESS I'LL JUST ADD THAT I WOULD BE STRONGLY IN FAVOR OF A, A TOUR FACILITATED.

'CAUSE I'VE FOUND IS EVEN A, UH, TRIES TO BE A FAIRLY EDUCATED AND TECHNICAL PERSON MYSELF, THAT WHILE CERTAINLY, UM, COMMUNITY SENTIMENT AND I THINK IN MANY CASES RIGHTFULLY IS CONCERNED ABOUT DATA CENTERS, THERE'S A, UH, A LOT OF DISINFORMATION AROUND THEM AND THEIR IMPACTS, UH, BOTH OVER AND UNDER EXAGGERATING IT.

AND I THINK WE AS COMMISSIONERS HAVE A DUTY TO BE FACTUAL IN OUR RECOMMENDATIONS.

SO I WOULD STRONGLY SUPPORT US CHATTING WITH EXPERTS WHO CAN MAYBE GIVE US GUIDANCE ON IF YOU'RE GONNA HAVE 'EM, WHAT SHOULD BE THE RULES AROUND ENERGY USAGE,

[00:50:01]

UM, YEAH.

'CAUSE THEY NEED TO BE REGULATED, BUT WE NEED TO BE GUIDED BY FACTS AND NOT JUST EMOTIONS.

YEAH, ABSOLUTELY.

ANY OTHER FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO BRING UP? ONE AREA THAT I'D BE INTERESTED IN, JUST BASED ON SOME RECENT VISITS I'VE HAD WITH SOME OF THE DIFFERENT LIBRARY BRANCHES, WOULD BE GETTING IN TOUCH WITH, UH, EITHER THE LIBRARY COMMISSION OR THE AUSTIN PUBLIC LIBRARY TO FIND OUT ABOUT WHAT EFFORTS THEY'RE MAKING IN THE DIGITAL EQUITY AREA.

MM-HMM .

THROUGH ALL THE DIFFERENT LOCATIONS AND PROGRAMMING.

I THINK THAT COULD BE A REALLY INTERESTING PRESENTATION.

AND, UM, I THINK, YEAH, I KNOW SOMEONE PERSONALLY ON THE LIBRARY COMMISSION, SO I CAN HELP YOU IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, I CAN, I CAN MAKE THAT INTRODUCTION FOR YOU OVER EMAIL AND YOU CAN JUST TAKE IT.

UM, AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE OTHER, UH, PARTNERS, UM, MANY OF THEM RECIPIENTS OF, OF GTOP PS.

UM, SO, YOU KNOW, HAPPY FOR YOU TO, TO CONNECT DIRECTLY WITH DAN JESSE.

I'M SURE THEY HAVE RECOMMENDATIONS.

UM, AND YOU CAN JUST TAKE IT FROM THERE.

THAT SOUNDS GREAT.

YEAH, I WAS GONNA SECOND THE DIGITAL EQUITY.

UM, AND SO MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING, I DON'T KNOW IF WE WANT A WORKING GROUP SPUN UP RELATED TO THAT.

UM, BUT IN GENERAL, I'M HAVING A LITTLE BIT MORE INSIGHT THERE SO THAT IF THERE ARE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE SHOULD BE MAKING THAT WE'RE INFORMED AND, AND DOING THAT.

UM, AND THEN I WANNA ALSO REITERATE THE ROADMAP FOR, I BELIEVE IT'S THE CITY OF AUSTIN WEBSITE REDESIGN.

I THINK, UH, YOU ALREADY SAID THAT THAT'S IN PROGRESS OR WE'RE WORKING ON THAT, BUT JUST WANNA RESURFACE THAT AS SOMETHING, UM, THAT WOULD BE GREAT TO HAVE ON THE, ON THE AGENDA.

I CAN WORK WITH DAN AND JESSE TO REACH OUT TO THE PROJECT TEAM WHO'S CONTINUING TO, TO WORK ON THAT, SO I'LL TAKE THAT ONE.

I HAVE A COUPLE OF, GO AHEAD, JESSE.

UH, JESSE RODRIGUEZ, AUSTIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UM, WE WOULD LIKE TO BRING OUR ANNUAL, UH, CHANGES TO THE GRANT FOR TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM TO THE COMMISSION NEXT MONTH.

UH, WE SHOULD BE PREPARED TO DELIVER THOSE.

UM, AND, UH, AS A COMPANION TO THAT, UH, Y'ALL SHOULD HAVE AN EMAIL COMING TO YOUR INBOXES TONIGHT, UH, WITH A FEEDBACK FORM.

SO IF YOU HAVE THOUGHTS ON THINGS THAT WE SHOULD BE, UH, CONSIDERING FOR THE GRANT FOR TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM, PLEASE SEND THEM OUR WAY AND WE'LL AT LEAST CONSIDER, UH, YOU KNOW, THOSE AHEAD OF TIME, UH, AND BE PREPARED TO AT LEAST SPEAK TO THOSE OR INCLUDE THOSE IF WE ARE ABLE.

UM, SO THAT WAS ITEM NUMBER ONE.

UH, AND THE SECOND ITEM, UH, AT OUR LAST, UH, DIGITAL EMPOWERMENT COMMUNITY OF AUSTIN MEETING, WE DID, UH, AGREE THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A COMMUNITY TOWN HALL EARLY NEXT YEAR, PERHAPS IN APRIL.

UM, THAT MIGHT ALIGN WITH THE COMMISSION'S TIMELINE FOR A, UH, A TOWN HALL.

SO, UH, WE'RE HAPPY TO SUPPORT, UH, A JOINT EFFORT, UH, IF THAT IS OF INTEREST TO THE COMMISSION.

UM, IT, IT'S LIKELY THAT THERE'S GONNA BE OVERLAPPING, UH, AREAS OF INTEREST.

SO I WANTED TO PUT THAT ON Y'ALL'S RADAR.

I THINK THAT'S, THAT SOUNDS GREAT, JESSE.

LAST YEAR WE DID IT IN MARCH, SO, UM, IF WE CAN SOLIDIFY SOME DATES, WE CAN START SPINNING UP THOSE CONVERSATIONS.

GO AHEAD, DAN.

UH, LAST ITEM, NOT REALLY A BIG ONE, BUT CALENDARS ARE DUE FOR THE INCOMING YEAR, SO AT THE NEXT MEETING, UM, I'M GONNA HAVE A SCHEDULE READY FOR Y'ALL TO LOOK AT AND APPROVE.

SO JUST BE READY IF YOU HAVE ANY, UH, VACATIONS COMING UP, ANY HOLIDAYS, TRIPS, ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

UM, I WOULD JUST SAY, UH, YOU KNOW, TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR CALENDAR FOR THE INCOMING YEAR AND, AND LET US KNOW IF THERE'S GONNA BE ANY PROBLEM DATES.

UM, AND I ALSO JUST WANTED TO PLUG DIGITAL INCLUSION WEEK AT THE START OF OCTOBER.

UM, I'LL SEND OUT LOTS OF INVITES TO ALL THE EVENTS GOING ON AROUND THE CITY OF AUSTIN THAT YOU'LL SEE US OR SOME OF OUR PARTNERS AT.

WOULD LOVE IF YOU GUYS COULD MAKE IT OUT, I JUST ASK THAT YOU LET ME KNOW AHEAD OF TIME IF YOU'LL BE MAKING IT TO ANY OF THESE EVENTS, JUST TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T HAVE A WALK-IN QUORUM.

BUT THAT'S ALL I GOT.