* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:02] SE SEPTEMBER WATER AND WASTEWATER [CALL TO ORDER ] COMMISSION MEETING. IT IS FIVE THIRTY TWO AND I CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER. UH, WE'LL START WITH A QUICK ROLL CALL FOR THE COMMISSIONERS. WE'LL START WITH THOSE IN ATTENDANCE IN PERSON, AND THEN WE'LL LOOK AT THOSE THAT ARE ONLINE REMOTELY. AND I SEE WE HAVE COMMISSIONER REYES PRESENT. WE HAVE COMMISSIONER WOOLSTENCROFT PRESENT, COMMISSIONER TREE PRESENT. COMMISSIONER ION REMOTE COMMISSIONER. WHERE ARE WE AT? ORTIZ REMOTE. AND THAT'S IT. UM, AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE EXPECTING FOR TONIGHT. UM, FIRST THING TO DO IS TO SEE IF WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATION COMMUNICATION SPEAKER. NO PUBLIC PUBLIC [*Portions of this clip experienced audio distortion* ] SPEAKERS. NO PUBLIC PUBLICS SPEAKERS. ALRIGHT, SPEAKER. SO WE WE'LL MOVE TO, TO ITEM [APPROVAL OF MINUTES ] NUMBER ONE. ONE APPROVAL OF LAST MEETING'S. MINUTES. MINUTES. IS THERE ANY THERE ANY DISCUSSION? DISCUSSION ON THE MINUTES? MINUTES. LOOKING AROUND AROUND? SEEING NONE? NONE. I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION. A MOTION TO APPROVE. I MOVE. TO APPROVE. TO APPROVE. COMMISSIONER WILSON CRAWF MOVES TO APPROVE. APPROVE. I. SECOND. SECOND. COMMISSIONER. COMMISSIONER. ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. SO, SO, NEXT, NEXT. OH, SORRY. WE HAVE TO HAVE, SORRY ABOUT, SORRY ABOUT THAT. SO, SO ALL COMMERS COMMERS VOTING TO APPROVE, TO PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. YOUR HAND. AND THAT IS, AND IS UNANIM UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MOVING ON. THE APPROVAL, APPROVAL OF, I'M SORRY. MOVING, MOVING ON. [2. Recommend approval to authorize a contract for pump parts, components, and repair services for Emerson, Mueller, RF Valves, and Flowserve equipment for Austin Water with Scruggs Distribution LLC d/b/a The Scruggs Company, for an initial term of two years with up to three one-year extension options in an amount not to exceed $2,230,000. Funding: $37,167 is available in the FY 2025-2026 Operating Budget of Austin Water; $446,000 is available in the Fiscal Year 2026-2027 Operating Budget of Austin Water. Funding for the remaining contract term is contingent upon available funding in future budgets.] DISCUSSION ITEMS. FIRST WE'LL GO THROUGH COMMISSIONERS FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR RECUSALS FOR THE TWO ITEMS, ITEMS TWO AND THREE, UH, WE'LL START WITH COMMISSIONER REYES. NO QUESTIONS. NO RECUSALS. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER CROT. QUESTION ON THREE. NO RECUSALS COMMISSIONER. TRULY NO QUESTIONS. NO RECUSALS COMMISSIONER ION, NO QUESTIONS. NO RECUSALS. THANK YOU. AND COMMISSIONER ORTIZ, NO QUESTIONS. NO RECUSALS. THANK YOU. SO THAT LEAVES OUR CONSENT AGENDA TO ITEM ONE OR TWO. I'M SORRY, TWO, BECAUSE WE, ONE IS THE MINUTE. SORRY, I THOUGHT I WAS GONNA GET THROUGH THAT EASILY AND I ALREADY BUTCHERED IT. SORRY ABOUT THAT. ALRIGHT. SO DO I HAVE A MOTION TO PROVE THE, UH, CONSENT AGENDA? I MOVE TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA. COMMISSIONER, CHEER MOTIONS APPROVAL. I'LL SECOND THAT MOTION. COMMISSIONER REYES SECONDS. UH, ALL IN FAVOR, RAISE YOUR HAND. AND WE ARE UNANIMOUS. OKAY. OKAY. SO MOVING ON TO REMAINING [3. Recommend approval of a resolution authorizing Austin Water to continue the GoPurple pilot incentive program and issue incentives on a pilot basis during Fiscal Year 2026 2027 for alternative onsite water reuse systems and reclaimed water connections for new commercial, mixed use and multi-family developments in the total aggregate amount of $4,000,000, not to exceed $1,500,000 per project for affordable housing projects exempt from the GoPurple reuse requirements and not to exceed $500,000 per project for all other projects. Funding in the amount of $4,000,000 is available in the Fiscal Year 2026 2027 Operating Budget of Austin Water. ] DISCUSSION ITEMS. WE HAVE A QUESTION ON ITEM NUMBER THREE, AND REGARDING THE GO PURPLE PILOT INCENTIVE PROGRAM. COMMISSIONER WOLSTONCROFT HAS THE QUESTION. YES. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. UM, SO AS Y'ALL RECALL, LAST MONTH, WE HAD A WONDERFUL STAFF BRIEFING ON AUSTIN WATERS, ONSITE WATER REUSED, DECENTRALIZED AND CENTRALIZED RECLAIMED WATER PROGRAMS, INCLUDING, UM, THE GO PURPLE PROGRAM. AND, UM, SOME OF THE STATISTICS, UH, GATHERED OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS AROUND FOLKS WHO HAVE AVAILED THEMSELVES WITH THE REBATES, UM, AND PARTICIPATED IN VARIOUS ASPECTS OF THAT. AND SO THE ITEM THAT WE'RE CONSIDERING NOW IS, UM, RECOMMENDING APPROVAL TO CONTINUE THE PILOT INCENTIVE PROGRAM. UM, AND APOLOGIES IF THIS WAS COVERED LAST MONTH, AND I'M JUST FORGETTING, BUT, UM, I'D LOVE TO HEAR JUST A, A LITTLE BIT MORE AROUND, UM, IF WE FELT THAT, UM, THE GOALS OF THE INCENTIVE PROGRAM ARE BEING, UM, MET AS CURRENT AND WHAT THEY MIGHT BE. JUST SOME DISCUSSION AROUND, BASED OFF OF WHAT WE'VE SEEN IN THE PILOT SO FAR, DO WE FEEL THAT THE INCENTIVE PROGRAM IS MEETING ITS GOALS, UM, AND HOW WE'RE MEASURING THAT? SURE. UH, JOSEPH GONZALEZ, DEPUTY DIRECTOR AUSTIN WATER, UH, WE DO HAVE, UH, CATHERINE JAIN, UH, JAKI, UH, WHO'S A SUPERVISING ENGINEER IN OUR REUSE PROGRAM, UH, JOINING US REMOTELY. AND SHE, UH, SHE MANAGES THE PROGRAM, SO SHE'S AVAILABLE, UH, TO ANSWER, UH, SPECIFIC QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROGRAM. YEAH, SURE. UH, THANKS FOR THE QUESTION. UH, WE HAD A SIMILAR QUESTION LAST NIGHT FROM THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION, UM, SORT OF RELATED TO, YOU KNOW, HOW LONG WE THINK THIS WILL BE A [00:05:01] PILOT PROGRAM AND HOW LONG WE WILL THINK WE THINK THESE INCENTIVES ARE NEEDED. UM, AND IF YOU RECALL FROM LAST, UH, MONTH, OR, YOU KNOW, SORRY, WHEN, WHEN WE GAVE THAT, THAT BRIEFING A FEW WEEKS AGO, UH, WE'RE JUST TWO YEARS INTO THE PROGRAM. AND SO, UH, WE HAVE HAD LIMITED APPLICANTS AT THIS, AT THIS POINT. UM, BUT WE ARE EXPECTING MORE IN THE FUTURE. UM, AND I DO THINK, UM, SORT OF THE, THE GOALS, UH, OF THE PROGRAM RIGHT NOW ARE TO JUST HELP, UH, WHAT WE WERE, UH, TALKING ABOUT LAST, UH, YESTERDAY EVENING WAS, UM, MARKET TRANSFORMATION WITH THESE NEW TYPES OF, UM, TECHNOLOGIES WITHIN BUILDINGS, DUAL PLUMBING SYSTEMS WITHIN BUILDINGS. UM, WE HAD HEARD ANECDOTALLY THINGS LIKE, UM, CONTRACTORS GIVING BIDS, UH, FOR DUAL PLUMBING THAT SEEMED KIND OF WELL BEYOND WHAT, WHAT WE WERE EXPECTING. UH, AND JUST I THINK, UH, YOU KNOW, JUST A LACK OF FAMILIARITY WITH ONSITE WATER USE SYSTEMS IN, IN PARTICULAR. UM, AND SO REALLY AS WE'RE TRYING TO CHANGE BEHAVIORS AND CHANGE THE WAY THAT BUILDINGS ARE DESIGNED, I THINK THESE INCENTIVES ARE REALLY IMPORTANT IN THE INITIAL STAGES OF THE PROGRAM. UM, FOR NOW. AND I, UH, ONE OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS LAST NIGHT IS WE, MAYBE WE COULD TALK WITH SOME, SOME OF THE FOLKS AT AUSTIN ENERGY WHO HAVE DONE MARKET TRANSFORMATION INCENTIVES TO GET MORE OF A, LIKE AN IDEA ABOUT HOW, UH, SIMILAR PROGRAMS HAVE GONE FOR THEM IN THE PAST. AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING I THINK WE'RE GONNA FOLLOW UP ON, UM, THIS YEAR. THANK YOU, CATHERINE. THAT'S HELPFUL. UM, UH, AS Y'ALL CONNECT WITH AUSTIN ENERGY AND, AND GET MAYBE SOME OF THOSE LESSONS LEARNED AND HOW THEY HAVE APPLIED, UM, THESE INCENTIVES FOR THEIR OWN MARKET TRANSFORMATION INITIATIVES. WOULD LOVE TO, TO JUST HEAR WHAT Y'ALL LEARN. YEAH. GREAT. COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR ITEM THREE? WELL, I'LL JUST ASK WHILE WE'RE ON THE TOPIC AND HAVE A LITTLE TIME TODAY. UM, AND I HAVE NOT GONE BACK ON THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC TO THE COUNCIL MEETING, BUT WHERE IS COUNCIL ON THIS? LIKE, HOW DO THEY, WHAT ARE THEIR QUESTIONS? WHAT FEEDBACK ARE THEY GIVING IF, IF IT GETS THAT GRANULAR? I KNOW THEY HAVE A LOT TO TALK ABOUT, BUT, UM, I DO KNOW KIND OF RENEWABLE IN, UH, INITIATIVES ARE IMPORTANT ACROSS THE BOARD. SO WHAT ARE WE JUST HEARING? YEAH. FROM THAT, FROM THAT LEVEL, I THINK, UH, FOR THIS YEAR, UM, YOU KNOW, WE BRING THIS ITEM TO THEM EVERY YEAR. AT THIS POINT, THE ONLY QUESTION THEY'RE ASKING IS IF ANYTHING HAS CHANGED WITHIN THE PROGRAM, UM, FROM ONE YEAR TO THE NEXT. UM, UH, I I I'M NOT HEARING ANY, JOSEPH, ARE YOU HEARING ANYTHING DIFFERENTLY? NO, UH, I'M NOT REALLY HEARING ANYTHING DIFFERENTLY. I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS AND, AND NOT, NOT EVEN SO MUCH FROM FROM COUNCIL, BUT UH, FROM CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE IS, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT HAS UTILIZATION LOOKED LIKE? UM, AND, AND THIS, AS WE TALKED ABOUT DURING OUR, OUR BUDGET MEETING BACK IN JULY, THIS IS A LINE ITEM THAT WE DID REDUCE THE BUDGET BECAUSE, UM, WE HADN'T BEEN SEEING, UM, QUITE THE DEMAND THAT WE, WE HAD BEEN BUDGETING FOR. BUT IT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO FLEX UP AND DOWN AS DEMAND CHANGES. ONE OTHER THOUGHT THAT OCCURRED TO ME AS WELL, SO THANK YOU JOSEPH, AND THANK YOU CATHERINE, IS UM, IT MIGHT BE INTERESTING 'CAUSE IT'S BEEN AN INTERESTING JOURNEY FOR OUR CITY TO ALSO LOOK AT, UM, LIKE METRO CAPITAL METRO BECAUSE THEY HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING RIGHT TO CHANGE RIDER BEHAVIOR AND MAYBE AS MUCH AS WHAT TO DO, BUT ALSO WHAT NOT TO DO, BECAUSE IT'S REALLY HARD TO CHANGE BEHAVIOR IN A MARKET. AND SO THAT'S JUST ANOTHER RESOURCE ALONG WITH THE UTILITIES TO MAYBE LOOK AT AND JUST SEE IF THERE'S INTERESTING WAYS BECAUSE IT TAKES INTO ACCOUNT INFRASTRUCTURE AS WELL AS HUMAN BEHAVIOR. SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ALREADY, BUT MAYBE THAT WOULD MAYBE BE AN INTERESTING JUST CROSS CROSS CONNECTS. SO, AND THEN I, I WOULD JUST SAY, YOU KNOW, AS, UM, AS WE GET FURTHER AWAY, YOU RECALL, WE, UM, THE GO PURPLE PROGRAM WAS ADOPTED IN IN MARCH OF 24. UM, SO, SO PROJECTS THAT WERE ALREADY KIND OF IN THE PIPELINE, YOU KNOW, WEREN'T, YOU KNOW, DIDN'T FALL UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF, OF, OF THE PROGRAM IN THE, IN THE UPDATED ORDINANCE. SO, SO AS WE START TO SEE PROJECTS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, ARE ARE STARTING DEVELOPMENT, YOU KNOW, POST 2024, YOU KNOW, WE'LL, WE'LL SEE, UM, [00:10:01] YOU KNOW, THE, THE NUMBER OF, OF DEVELOPMENTS THAT, THAT ARE SUBJECT TO, TO THE PROGRAM AND TO THE ORDINANCE, UM, START TO INCREASE. AND, AND, AND SO I THINK THAT IN AND OF ITSELF WILL, WILL INFLUENCE DEMAND AND, UM, AND ON, AND ALSO AS, AS, AS CATHERINE CATHERINE MENTIONED, UM, JUST THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY'S UNDERSTANDING OF, OF WHAT IT IS AND WHAT IT IS AND, AND YOU WHAT'S INVOLVED IN, IN IMPLEMENTING, YOU KNOW, UM, YOU KNOW, ONSITE REUSE OR, OR, YOU KNOW, CONNECTING TO THE, TO THE RECLAIMED SYSTEM. I LOOK FORWARD TO THE DAY WHERE THERE'S SO MUCH DEMAND THAT WE HAVE A BUDGET PROBLEM. SO THANK YOU. OKAY. COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT. BEFORE, DO YOU HAVE, I SORRY, TESSIE, I DO HAVE ONE QUESTION. UM, SO I SEE THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU BRING THIS UP TO COUNCIL EVERY YEAR, AND SO IT'S AN ANNUAL KIND OF THING AND IT'S STILL A PILOT. UM, ARE THERE METRICS OR ARE THERE SPECIFIC THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR SO THAT IT GRADUATES FROM PILOT TO LIKE PROGRAM OR, OR STOPS BEING A PILOT? I'M JUST CURIOUS, LIKE WHAT WOULD DETERMINE THAT? YEAH, AT THIS POINT WE ARE, WE'RE SORT OF JUST REPORTING OUT, UM, WHAT, UH, IN THE QUARTERLY WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY STRATEGIES REPORT, EXCUSE ME, WE'RE REPORTING OUT, UH, FOR ANY INCENTIVES THAT WE DO GIVE, UM, HOW MUCH WE'RE AWARDING, WHAT IS THE STRATEGY, YOU KNOW, IS IT GOING TOWARD, TOWARDS DUAL PLUMBING OR IS IT GOING TOWARDS EXPANDING, UM, RECLAIMED WATER, MAINE, AND HOW MUCH MAINE IS BEING CONSTRUCTED THROUGH THAT INCENTIVE. AND THEN ALSO HOW MUCH WATER IS BEING SAVED. AND SO WE ARE, UM, COLLECTING ALL OF THE DATA THROUGH THE PROGRAM, UM, AND WE JUST, WE JUST DON'T HAVE A TON OF DATA AT THIS POINT TO, UM, UH, REALLY KNOW WHAT, WHAT METRICS OR, OR GOALS WE SHOULD HAVE, UM, AT THIS POINT. AND SO I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE WILL JUST CONTINUE TO, YOU KNOW, COLLECT AND WORK ON, UH, FIGURING OUT, LIKE, YOU KNOW, AND, AND JUST LIKE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROGRAM, UM, OR THAT SHOULD WE, YOU KNOW, TWEAK THE WAY THAT WE ARE KIND OF IMPLEMENTING IT OR, OR, OR THINGS LIKE THAT. UM, SO AGAIN, JUST EAR EARLY ON, UM, AND, UH, THE LAW DEPARTMENT DID ASK, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE WERE, YOU KNOW, DRAFTING THE RESOLUTION THIS YEAR, LIKE, IS IT STILL A PILOT? HOW LONG DOES IT, IS IT A PILOT FOR? UH, SO GOOD QUESTIONS. BUT I THINK STILL WE'RE JUST, AGAIN, EARLY ON AND, UM, EVERY YEAR IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO EVALUATE KIND OF HOW IT'S GOING. YEAH, THAT SOUNDS GREAT. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. YEAH, TI TIME-WISE, I MEAN, I THINK, I THINK YOU COULD ARGUE, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S NO LONGER A, A PILOT, BUT, UM, CERTAINLY DE DEMAND WISE, IT'S, IT'S STILL IN, IN, IN ITS INFANCY. ALL RIGHT. WE GOT A THUMBS UP. UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM COMMISSIONERS BEFORE WE TAKE A VOTE? I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT COMMISSIONER PAN DURRANI HAS JOINED REMOTELY, PLEASE, BUT, UH, IF COMMISSIONER PANORA, IF YOU'RE AVAILABLE, YOU'LL HAVE TO TURN ON YOUR VIDEO TO BE PART OF THE VOTE. ALL RIGHT. CAN YOU SEE AND HEAR ME? YES, WE CAN. AWESOME. OKAY. SO WE HAVE JUST TAKEN UP ITEM THREE WITH QUESTIONS. UM, WE ARE, UNLESS YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OF YOUR OWN, WE'RE READY TO TAKE A VOTE. DO I HAVE A MOTION? I MOVE TO APPROVE RECOMMENDATION. ALRIGHT. COMMISSIONER OLSON, CRT MOTIONS TO APPROVE. I'LL SECOND THAT MOTION. SECOND FROM COMMISSIONER REYES. ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR RIGHT HAND OR HAND, AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. UM, THANK YOU. THAT , THAT DOES IT FOR OUR, OUR DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS. SO MOVING INTO STAFF [4. Staff briefing on Austin’s Small and Minority Business Resources Program – Felecia Shaw, Austin Small and Minority Business Resources Compliance Officer and Charles Celauro, P.E., Austin Water Assistant Director, Engineering Services ] BRIEFINGS, WE HAVE ONE ITEM AND WE'RE JOINED BY AUSTIN SMALL AND MINORITY BUSINESS RESOURCES PROGRAM AND ENGINEERING SERVICES. I'LL TURN IT OVER TO YOU GUYS. ALL RIGHT. GOOD EVENING COMMISSION, UH, MEMBERS. UH, I'M FELICIA SHAW, AND I SERVE AS [00:15:01] THE COMPLIANCE OFFICER FOR AUSTIN SMALL MINORITY BUSINESS RESOURCES. AND BEFORE I GET STARTED, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, MY DIRECTOR, UH, MR. EDWARD CAMPOS, WHO IS ALSO HERE WITH ME TONIGHT. UM, THIS EVENING, I WILL BE PROVIDING YOU ALL WITH AN OVERVIEW OF AUSTIN SMALL MINORITY BUSINESS RESOURCES, OR AUSTIN, SNBR. AS YOU ALL MAY HERE REFERRED TO, I'M GONNA TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW OUR DEPARTMENT IS STRUCTURED, UM, WHAT WE DO ON A DAILY BASIS, AND OUR EFFORTS TO SUPPORT, UM, OUR SMALL BUSINESS COMMUNITY. NEXT SLIDE. SO, AT THE CORE OF WHAT WE DO AT SNBR, UH, WE ADMINISTER SEVERAL PROGRAMS ALL FOCUSED ON SMALL, SMALL BUSINESSES, UM, IN THE AREA OF CERTIFICATION, PROCUREMENT AND CONTRACTING EDUCATION AND RESOURCES, AS WELL AS COMMUNICATION AND OUTREACH. UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, WE ARE ORGANIZATIONALLY STRUCTURED IN FOUR DIVISIONS, AND EACH OF THOSE DIVISIONS SUPPORTS OUR SMALL BUSINESS COMMUNITY, UM, IN REALLY UNIQUE WAYS. AND I'LL SPEND SOME TIME DRILLING DOWN INTO THOSE SPECIFIC DIVISIONS, UM, AS WE PROCEED WITH THE PRESENTATION. NEXT SLIDE. OKAY. UM, HERE'S OUR, UH, SNBR LEADERSHIP TEAM. AS I SAID, UH, WE ARE LED BY OUR EXECUTIVES DIRECTOR EDWARD COMPASS. UM, OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IS DR. TAMELA SALANA. OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM, AS YOU CAN SEE, CONSISTS OF, UH, MR. THOMAS OWENS, OUR RESOURCES DIVISION MANAGER, UH, MS. MICHELLE MEADOWS, WHO IS OUR INTERIM CERTIFICATION DIVISION MANAGER. AND MS. PATRICIA BANE, OUR STRATEGIC STRATEGIC SERVICES DIVISION MANAGER, AS WELL AS MYSELF AS THE COMPLIANCE OFFICER. NEXT SLIDE. SO WE'RE GONNA START WITH OUR CERTIFICATION DIVISION, UH, THIS EVENING. SO OUR, OUR CERTIFICATION DIVISION DOES JUST THAT. THEY ARE TASKED WITH CERTIFYING ELIGIBLE BUSINESSES AS MINORITY OWNED BUSINESSES, WOMEN OWNED BUSINESSES, DISADVANTAGED BUSINESSES, AIRPORT CONCESSION, DISADVANTAGED BUSINESSES, AS WELL AS SMALL, UH, BUSINESSES. UM, AS A POINT OF CLARIFICATION, ALL OF THESE DESIGNATIONS, THEY'RE SMALL BUSINESSES, UM, AND THEY'RE SMALL BUSINESSES BASED ON SIZE STANDARDS AND QUALIFYING PERSONAL NET WORTH LIMITS, UM, WHEN THEY'RE APPLICABLE. SO AS YOU CAN SEE, SOME OF THOSE DESIGNATIONS, UM, HAVE APPLICANT PERSONAL NET WORTH, UM, STANDARDS, UM, IN TERMS OF OUR LOCAL M-B-E-W-B-E PROGRAM, AS WELL AS OUR FEDERAL PROGRAMS, SO THE DBE AND AIRPORT CONCESSION PROGRAMS. AND ADDITIONALLY, UM, THERE MAY BE TIMES WHEN QUALIFYING, UM, APPLICANTS CAN BE DUALLY CERTIFIED. SO, FOR INSTANCE, IF YOU HAVE, UM, A, A, A FEMALE WHO IS AFRICAN AMERICAN OR HISPANIC OR NATIVE ASIAN, THERE'S, THEY COULD BE CERTIFIED AS A MINORITY BUSINESS, A WOMAN OWNED BUSINESS, A DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS, AND A SMALL BUSINESS. SO, UM, THERE ARE FIRMS THAT, UM, HAVE MULTIPLE CERTIFICATIONS. NEXT SLIDE. SO AT A HIGH LEVEL, UH, LOOK AT OUR CERTIFICATION, UM, REQUIREMENTS AND CONSIDERATIONS. FIRST AND FOREMOST, IS AT LEAST 51% OWNERSHIP, UM, BY ECONOMICALLY AND SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED INDIVIDUAL OR INDIVIDUALS, UH, WHO ARE APPLYING. UM, AS WE, AS I SPOKE TO EARLIER, THAT ECONOMIC, UH, DISADVANTAGE IS THE PERSONAL NET WORTH STANDARD. UM, FOR OUR M-B-E-W-B PROGRAM, THERE ARE SOME PRESUMED DISADVANTAGED GROUPS, AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, UH, WHICH INCLUDE WOMEN AS WELL. UM, ONE OF THE, THE REQUIREMENTS IS THAT OWNERS ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE EXPERIENCE DIRECTLY IN THE AREAS WHERE THEY'RE SEEKING CERTIFICATION. SO WHEN OUR STAFF IS CERTIFYING, THEY ARE LOOKING FOR A BUSINESS TO HAVE DEMONSTRABLE SKILL AND EXPERTISE IN THAT AREA. IT'S NOT SIMPLY THE ABILITY TO OPERATE A BUSINESS OR HANDLE THE ADMINISTRATIVE ASPECTS. WE'RE LOOKING TO SEE THAT YOU HAVE EXPERIENCE IN THAT AREA. SO WHETHER IT'S HVAC OR ENGINEERING OR THINGS LIKE THAT, WE'RE LOOKING FOR THAT EXPERIENCE. UM, OWNERS MUST ALSO CONTROL THE DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS, SO HIRING AND FIRING, UM, DETERMINING WHAT TYPE OF PROJECTS YOU'RE GONNA BID OR RESPOND ON FINANCIAL CONTROL, UM, AND NOT HAVING LIMITATIONS ON YOUR, YOUR BUSINESS, THE DECISIONS THAT YOU'RE MAKING, UH, THE, YOUR BUSINESS DECISIONS THAT YOU'RE MAKING. UM, SO NEXT SLIDE. OKAY, I'LL MOVE ON TO THE COMPLIANCE DIVISION, WHICH IS THE DIVISION THAT, THAT I MANAGE. SO, UH, MY [00:20:01] TEAM IS RESPONSIBLE FOR, UM, COMPLIANCE MONITORING AND WHAT WE CALL PRE-AWARD AND POST-AWARD FUNCTIONS. THIS IS BASICALLY LIKE A CRADLE TO GRAVE PROCESS. SO IF YOU THINK ABOUT PRIOR TO A SOLICITATION EVER BEING PUBLICLY ADVERTISED, OUR TEAM IS WORKING, UM, ON COMPLIANCE MONITORING. UM, AND THAT RUNS ALL THE WAY THROUGH CONTRACT CLOSEOUT. UM, SO OUR STAFF PERFORMS COMPLIANCE MONITORING IN A VARIETY OF WAYS. WE LOOK AT SCOPES OF WORK, WE LOOK AT SUBCONTRACTING OPPORTUNITIES, UM, AND WE ALSO ESTABLISH GOALS WHEN APPROPRIATE ON ALL, ALL COMPETITIVELY, UH, PROCURED CITY SOLICITATIONS OVER $50,000. SO WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT AND IN DIFFERENT, UM, CONTRACTING AREAS AND WITH DIFFERENT PROCUREMENT TYPES. SO WHEN WE THINK ABOUT CONSTRUCTION, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT INVITATION FOR BIDS, UH, INDEFINITE DELIVERY, INDEFINITE QUANTITY CONTRACTS, UM, ALTERNATIVE DELIVERY PROJECTS. UM, SOME OF THE MAJOR PROJECTS WE SEE GOING ON AROUND THE CITY, UM, LIKE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER, IF YOU THINK ABOUT THE CONVENTION CENTER, UM, UM, DESIGN BUILD, COMPETITIVE SEAL PROPOSAL. SO ALL OF THOSE ROLL INTO CONSTRUCTION, UM, AS WELL AS CONSTRUCTION RELATED PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. SO THAT'S USUALLY FOR DESIGN. SO ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS, SOMETIMES LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE, UM, AS WELL AS NON-PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. SO WHEN THE CITY MAY NEED A CONSULTANT, RIGHT? BUT IT'S NOT AN ARCHITECT OR ENGINEER, BUT I NEED A CONSULTANT OF SOME SORT AS WELL AS GOODS AND COMMODITIES. SO IF THIS CITY NEEDS TO BUY UNIFORMS OR CARS OR, YOU KNOW, UH, MATERIALS FOR, YOU KNOW, WATER TREATMENT SUPPLY, ALL THOSE THINGS THAT THE CITY IS PROCURING, UM, AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, THIS IS A CRADLE TO GRAVE PROCESS. SO OUR TEAM ROUTINELY ENGAGES WITH, UM, CITY PROCUREMENT STAFF, CITY PROJECT MANAGERS, AND SPONSOR DEPARTMENTS, UH, THROUGHOUT THE, THE PROJECT LIFE CYCLE, UH, OF, OF THESE PROJECTS. SO, NEXT SLIDE. SO I'M GONNA SPEND A LITTLE BIT OF TIME KIND OF BREAKING DOWN WHAT'S HAPPENING DURING PRE-AWARD AND POST-AWARD, UH, COMPLIANCE MONITORING. AND SO DURING PRE-AWARD, AGAIN, THIS IS PRES SOLICITATION PRETTY MUCH ALL, UH, UP TO THE TIME THAT AN AWARD IS BEING CONSIDERED FOR COUNCIL. SO WE ARE REVIEWING SCOPES OF WORK. WE ARE ESTABLISHING GOALS, AGAIN, LOOKING AT SUBCONTRACTOR OPPORTUNITIES, LOOKING AT THE VALUE OF THE PROJECT, LOOKING AT CERTIFIED AVAILABILITY. WE ATTEND PROCUREMENT RELATED MEETINGS TO EXPLAIN WHAT OUR PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS ARE TO PROSPECTIVE BIDDERS AND RESPONDENTS. UM, WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR, UM, ANSWERING, RESPONDING TO ALL QUESTIONS, UM, THAT ARE RELATED TO OUR PROGRAM DURING THIS ACTIVE SOLICITATION PHASE. UH, WHEN RESPONSES COME IN, BIDS OR RESPONSES COME IN, WE REVIEW WHAT WE CALL A COMPLIANCE PLAN, WHICH IS THE RESPONDENT'S, UM, IDENTIFICATION OF THEIR SUBCONTRACTING TEAM. SO IT IS CERTIFIED SUBS AND NON-CERTIFIED SUBS. WE'RE LOOKING AT THE SCOPES OF WORK, UM, THE VALUE OF THE WORK, UM, AND WE MAKE DETERMINATIONS ABOUT COMPLIANCE. SO WHETHER THEY'RE NON-COMPLIANT, COMPLIANT OR NON-COMPLIANT. UH, WHEN WE DO MAKE A NON-COMPLIANT DECISION, THERE IS A PROCESS WHERE WE ARE INVOLVED IN APPEALS AND POTENTIALLY PROTESTS. UM, AND THEN ONCE A AND A RECOMMENDED AWARD, UM, AN AWARD IS GOING FORWARD TO COUNCIL. UM, WE REVIEW ALL NEW CONTRACTS THAT ARE COMING THROUGH, UH, AUSTIN FINANCIAL SERVICES. SO WHETHER THOSE ARE GENERAL PROCUREMENTS OR CAPITAL PROCUREMENTS. SO WE'RE REALLY, WE'RE REALLY BUSY ON THE FRONT END AS WELL AS THE, AS THE, THE BACKEND. SO NEXT SLIDE. OKAY, SO POST-AWARD. UM, SO WE ARE STILL ATTENDING MEETINGS. UH, WE ATTEND A PRE-CONSTRUCTION AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICE KICKOFF MEETINGS, AND NOW WE ARE TALKING SPECIFICALLY TO THE AWARDED PRIME CONTRACTOR OR PRIME CONSULTANT ABOUT THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS POST AWARD, RIGHT? YOU HAVE AN EXECUTED CONTRACT. THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT ARE REQUIRED, UM, FOR OUR PROGRAM. UH, WE CONTINUE TO ATTEND PROGRESS MEETINGS BECAUSE WE ARE PART OF THE CITY'S PROJECT TEAM. UM, THERE ARE THE NEXT TWO AREAS I REALLY KIND OF WANNA SPEND SOME TIME ON BECAUSE THEY'RE CRITICAL. UM, SO IT'S CRITICAL TO ENSURE THAT SUBCONTRACTORS WHO HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED ON THE COMPLIANCE PLANS I TALKED ABOUT EARLIER ARE NUMBER ONE WORKING. AND IF THEY ARE WORKING, THAT THEY'RE [00:25:01] BEING PAID IN A TIMELY MANNER. SO WE TRACK THAT. WE TRACKED, UH, WE TRACK PAYMENTS, UM, ON THOSE PROJECTS WHERE WE HAVE ESTABLISHED GOALS AND THERE ARE SUBCONTRACTORS, UM, PRIME, THE PRIMES ARE TASKED WITH ENTERING PAYMENT INFORMATION, AND WE MONITOR THAT, RIGHT? UM, WE ALSO, UM, HAVE A REQUEST FOR CHANGE PROCESS. SO THAT IS THE OFFICIAL MECHANISM TO CHANGE THAT COMPLIANCE PLAN THAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, RIGHT? THESE ARE DYNAMIC, LARGE, FAST MOVING PROJECTS. UM, AND THERE ARE OFTENTIMES WHERE YOU HAVE TO ADD A SUBCONTRACTOR, RIGHT? NEW SCOPES OF WORK MAY MATERIALIZE. YOU MAY NEED TO SUBSTITUTE OR DELETE A SUBCONTRACTOR FOR VARIOUS REASONS. THAT REQUEST FOR CHANGE PROCESS IS THAT OFFICIAL MECHANISM. IT IS PART OF THE CONTRACT AS THE COMPLIANCE PLAN IS PART OF THE CONTRACT THAT A PRIME CONTRACTOR OR A PRIME CONSULTANT HAS. UM, WE'RE OFTEN ASKED TO, UH, ASSIST WITH PAYMENT ISSUES. UM, IT COULD BE AS SIMPLE AS, HEY, COULD YOU GIMME A STATUS UPDATE OF WHERE THIS IS IN THE CITY? AND WE'RE, WE GLADLY DO THAT. OFTEN WE REACH OUT TO, UH, CITY PROJECT MANAGERS TO JUST GET A STATUS UPDATE. AND SOMETIMES IF WE'RE ASKED, WE FACILITATE MEETINGS BETWEEN THE PRIME AND THE SUB WHEN PAYMENT ISSUES ARISE. UM, WE DO AUDITS. AND ONE OF THE, THE, UM, IMPORTANT THINGS THAT WE DO ARE CLOSEOUTS. THAT CLOSEOUT PROCESS BASICALLY ALLOWS US TO LOOK AT THAT APPROVED COMPLIANCE PLAN AND WHO WAS INDICATED AS A SUBCONTRACTOR, WHETHER THEY WORKED, UH, WERE THEY PAID, WE CONFIRMED THAT PAYMENTS WITH THE SUBS, AND WE LOOK AT WHETHER OR NOT THE PRIME CONTRACTOR OR PRIME CONSULTANT ACHIEVED THEIR GOALS. AND IF THEY DID, GREAT, AND IF THEY DIDN'T, WHY? WHAT'S THE STORY BEHIND IT? SO WE'RE DOING SOME ANALYSIS OF THAT. WHAT HAPPENED, UH, ALONG THE WAY? AND DURING THESE, THESE PROJECTS, THERE ARE SOME TIMES WHERE A VIOLATION CAN OCCUR. AND IF THAT DOES, UM, SMBR NOTIFIES THE PRIME CONTRACTOR OR PRIME CONSULTANT IN WRITING, UH, WE HAVE A PROCESS TO WORK THROUGH THAT WHERE THEY CAN APPEAL, UH, OR PROTEST THAT DECISION. IF WE'VE WORKED THROUGH THAT AND THE VIOLATION ACTUALLY STANDS, MEANING IT IS A VIOLATION OF OUR, UH, ORDINANCE OR RULES, THEN, EXCUSE ME, THEN WE MAKE A RECOMMENDATION OF SANCTIONS TO AUSTIN FINANCIAL SERVICES, UM, CENTRAL PROCUREMENT. AND THOSE SANCTIONS CAN BE, UM, PROBATION UP TO SIX MONTHS. THEY COULD BE SUSPENSION UP TO 24 MONTHS, AND IT COULD BE A RES, UH, A RECOMMENDATION OF, UM, DEPARTMENT UP TO FIVE YEARS. SO WE MAKE THE RECOMMENDATION, BUT FINANCIAL SERVICES ACTUALLY IMPLEMENTS ANY SANCTIONS IF THERE, IF THERE IS ONE. SO, NEXT SLIDE. SO WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR RESOURCES DIVISION. I CALL THIS OUR EDUCATIONAL ARM OF THE DEPARTMENT. THEY DO A LOT OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE IN A PLETHORA OF WAYS. SO OUR, THE FIRST IS OUR MONTHLY SMALL BUSINESS OFFICE HOURS. THAT'S WHERE, UM, VENDORS OR PEOPLE WHO WANNA DO BUSINESS WITH THE CITY CAN COME AND GO TALK TO OUR CERTIFICATION TEAM. UH, WE PARTNER WITH AUSTIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL SERVICES, AND THE AUSTIN PUBLIC LIBRARY HAS GRACIOUSLY ALLOWED US TO HAVE THOSE SESSIONS THERE, AND WE HOLD THEM THROUGHOUT THE CITY. SO WE LOOK AT DIFFERENT BRANCHES THAT WE CAN GO TO. SO THINGS ARE CONVENIENT TO, TO, TO ALL OF OUR CITIZENS. UM, WE HOLD, UM, MEET THE, MEET THE PRIME SESSIONS, AND IT'S, AGAIN, REALLY A NETWORKING OPPORTUNITY BETWEEN PRIME CONTRACTORS AND CONSULTANTS WHO ARE ALREADY WORKING WITH THE CITY. AND, UM, SUBCONTRACTORS ARE FOLKS WHO ARE JUST TRYING TO GET THEIR FOOT IN THE DOOR. IT IS A RELAXED NETWORKING COME AS YOU GO. OPPORTUNITY. THOSE HAVE BEEN REALLY SUCCESSFUL. UH, WE'VE OFTEN HOSTED PANEL DISCUSSIONS WHERE CERTIFIED FIRMS WHO'VE BEEN REALLY SUCCESSFUL, HAVE GROWN THEIR BUSINESS. UM, TALK TO NEW, NEW FOLKS WHO ARE ENTERING AND TALK TO THEM ABOUT THEIR SUCCESSES, HOW TO NAVIGATE THE CITY'S PROCESSES, AND KIND OF GIVE THEM SOME TIPS. UM, AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE PARTNERSHIPS WITH OUR TRADE ASSOCIATIONS CHAMBERS. AND ONE OF OUR LARGER PARTNERSHIPS, UM, IS A UT CONSORTIUM. SO WE PARTNER WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, A CC, TRAVIS COUNTY CAP, METRO AUSTIN TRANSIT, UM, PARTNERSHIP. I KNOW I'M MISSING SOMEONE ELSE. AND TEXT DOT, UM, TO KIND MEET QUARTERLY AND TALK ABOUT UPCOMING [00:30:01] PROCUREMENT OPPORTUNITIES. UH, WE DO PRO PROVIDE TRAINING, UM, AND OUTREACH. SO, UH, WE'RE ALL AT THE TABLE TALKING ABOUT OUR RESPECTIVE INITIATIVES AND PROCUREMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMALL BUSINESSES. UH, AND ONE OF THE THINGS I WANTED TO DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO IS OUR SMALL, UH, S AND BR RESOURCES GUIDE. THAT IS A HANDY TO HANDY GUIDE THAT, IN THAT GUIDE HAS A TON OF INFORMATION. IT HAS INFORMATION ABOUT CERTIFICATION, FINANCIAL FUNDING, BUSINESS SUPPORT. SO WHEN SOMEONE LOOKS AT THAT, I MEAN, IT, IT COVERS A, A VARIETY OF, OF NEEDS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES. SO, NEXT SLIDE. OKAY. I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DID NOT TOOT OUR HORN ABOUT ONE OF OUR LARGER, UM, UH, ENDEAVORS. SO WE'VE, UH, RECENTLY HELD OUR FOURTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE, SMALL SMALL BUSINESS CONNECTIONS CONFERENCE, AND WE HOSTED IT IN CONNECTION OR CONJUNCTION WITH AUSTIN E ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND AUSTIN FINANCIAL SERVICES. THIS TRULY, TRULY IS A ONE STOP KIND OF SHOP FOR SMALL BUSINESSES. WE, WE ENCOURAGE ALL KIND OF BUSINESSES TO ATTEND. SO IN THIS ONE DAY, RIGHT, UH, FOLKS CAN COME IN AND THEY CAN TALK TO FINANCIAL SERVICES ABOUT BECOMING A REGISTERED VENDOR WITH THE CITY. THEY CAN TALK TO S AND BR ABOUT CERTIFICATION. THEY GET TO NETWORK WITH PRIME CONTRACTORS AND PRIME CONSULTANTS. THEY GET TO TALK TO THOSE GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES, FOLKS WHO ARE EXHIBITING. UM, THERE'S PANEL DISCUSSIONS WHERE THEY GET INSIGHT INTO MAJOR CITY PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS. UM, AND THEN WE ALSO, UH, PROVIDE BREAKOUT SESSIONS. SO IT RUNS THE GAMUT. SO IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN PROCUREMENT, IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN IT, IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN CONCESSIONS, WE TRY AND, AND, UM, COVER, COVER COVER OUR BASES. AND SO IT IS, UH, A DAY CHALK FULL OF NETWORKING, UM, ENGAGEMENT EDUCATION. UM, THIS HAS BEEN REALLY SUCCESSFUL. AS YOU ALL CAN SEE. WE'VE, UH, AND CONTINUE TO INCREASE OUR ATTENDEES. UM, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO, TO CONTINUING TO HOST THIS, UM, THIS CONFERENCE. SO WE'RE WORKING, LOOKING AT NEXT YEAR'S CONFERENCE. NEXT SLIDE. OKAY. LAST, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST IS OUR STRATEGIC SERVICES DIVISION. THEY ARE OUR COMMUNICATION GURUS OUTREACH, UM, HANDLE OUR CITYWIDE STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR OUR DEPARTMENT, AS WELL AS OUR PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING. UM, WE HAVE AN AWESOME PIO TEAM. THEY ARE AWESOME. UH, THEY HANDLE OUR MONTHLY AND QUARTERLY NEWSLETTERS. THEY ARE REALLY, REALLY ACTIVE IN CURATING OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE AS A DEPARTMENT. AND TWO OF THE WONDERFUL AND SUCCESSFUL PROJECTS THEY RECENTLY LED WERE, UH, THE, SHE BUILT THIS VIDEO SERIES. SO THEY HAD CERTIFIED, UH, UH, FEMALE OWNED FIRMS TALK ABOUT THEIR SUCCESSES AS THEY WORKED WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN. UH, WE ALSO WRAPPED OUR FIRST EVER SMALL BUSINESS SUCCESS SPOTLIGHT. AND IT WAS A SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN WHERE WE INVITED SMALL BUSINESSES TO COME IN AND TALK ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE THE, THE, BASICALLY THE, THE BACKBONE AND THE SUCCESS BEHIND AUSTIN'S THRIVING SMALL BUSINESS COMMUNITY. SO THEY DO ALL KIND OF THINGS FOR US. THEY'RE ALSO REALLY PIVOTAL IN OUR, UM, SPECIAL INITIATIVES. ONE OF THE MOST RECENT ONE WAS SMALL BUSINESS STRONG. UM, AND THEY, WE, THEY, WE WENT OUT TO LISTEN TO SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS, UM, TRADE ASSOCIATIONS, UM, CHAMBERS TO TALK ABOUT WHAT ARE THE NEEDS OF SMALL BUSINESSES AND HOW CAN WE ENHANCE THE SERVICES THAT WE, UH, PROVIDE TO THEM. SO YEAH, WE'RE REALLY BUSY . SO, NEXT SLIDE. SO IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, UM, THIS IS HOW YOU CAN FOLLOW US, RIGHT? UH, YOU CAN FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA. YOU'LL GET INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EVENTS TRAINING, UM, WHATEVER WE HAVE GOING ON. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO VISIT OUR WEBSITE SO YOU CAN, YOU KNOW, LEARN A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UM, WHAT WE DO IF YOU'RE INTERESTED. AND IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, GET SUBSCRIBED TO OUR NEWSLETTERS. SO TO KEEP YOU ABREAST OF WHAT'S GOING ON. NEXT SLIDE. THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR YOU THIS EVENING, BUT I THINK, UH, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR RO HAS INFORMATION. SO I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU WANNA DO IT. IF Y'ALL WANT [00:35:01] QUESTIONS, IF YOU HAVE IT. OH, OH, IS THERE A SECOND PRESENT TRANSITION? YES. OKAY. WELL, LET'S, LET'S PAUSE HERE AND SEE IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS WHILE WE'RE ON TOPIC. UH, COMMISSIONERS. ANY QUESTIONS? YEAH, COMMISSIONER REYES. , THANK YOU FOR THAT PRESENTATION. IT'S GREAT TO TO HEAR THAT, UH, BEING PART OF A FIRM OUTSIDE OF THIS, WHAT WE TEAM AND MAKE SURE WE MEET GOALS ALL THE TIME. MM-HMM . IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE A PRESENTATION LIKE THIS AND GET A REMINDER OF ALL THIS. UM, WHAT I'VE BEEN HEARING RECENTLY, UM, I ACTUALLY GOT A LETTER ABOUT IT FROM A FIRM NOT LONG AGO, THE OTHER DAY, UM, WAS ABOUT VETERAN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESSES. I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S MORE RECENT THAT'S HAPPENING. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S MAYBE A STATE, FEDERAL LEVEL OR SO ON, BUT I'M STARTING TO SEE THAT MORE. AND I WAS WONDERING IF THERE'S ANY, HAS, HAVE THERE BEEN ANY DISCUSSIONS WITHIN THE CITY ON CONSIDERATIONS FOR VETERAN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESSES? OR ANY DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THAT? W WELL, UH, THERE, THE STATE'S HUB PROGRAM DOES HAVE SERVICE DISABLED VETERAN, UH, PROGRAMS. UM, I THINK THERE HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW, HISTORICALLY QUESTIONS ABOUT, ABOUT, UH, THAT INCLUSION. I THINK THOSE ARE THINGS THAT WE ALWAYS LOOK AT, UM, TALK ABOUT WHETHER, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE CONSIDERATIONS, BUT AT THIS TIME THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE NOT PART OF OUR LOCAL PROGRAM AT THIS POINT. OKAY. NO, THANK YOU. I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THAT. 'CAUSE LITERALLY THIS WEEK I GOT A LETTER FROM SOMEONE THAT WAS TRYING TO TEAM AND IT WAS VETERAN OWNED SMALL BUSINESS, AND I WAS JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THAT. OKAY. THANKS. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONERS. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ALRIGHT, COMMISSIONER. TRULY FOR SURE. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. HEATHER REMINDED ME THAT, UM, I ASKED FOR THIS UPDATE, , UM, AND LIFE IS NUTS. OKAY. NO. UM, AND JUST FROM A, MY PROFESSIONAL LIFE HAS BEEN AN INCLUSION AND EQUITY, UM, ON THE CORPORATE SIDE. SO, UM, I'M REALLY PLEASED TO SEE THIS PRESENTATION AND THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE TODAY. GIVEN ALL THE PRE AND POST-ANALYSIS AND ASSESSMENT AND WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING, I THINK, UM, I, MY MIND NATURALLY GOES TO PERFORMANCE AND I SAW YEAH. IS THAT WHERE YOU'RE GONNA PICK UP? OKAY. UM, SO MAYBE LET ME HOLD IT THEN. OKAY. HONESTLY. YEAH. 'CAUSE I'M ALWAYS, I LOVE HEARING FROM CHARLES, SO, YEAH. OKAY. ALRIGHT. WELL THEN LET'S MOVE INTO, OH, YOU ASK A QUESTION. WE HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION FROM COMMISSIONER WILSON. . THANK YOU. WE'RE JUST GONNA KEEP DRAGGING THIS OUT. UM, FELICIA, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION. I, I APPRECIATE IT. UM, I, AS SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T COME FROM A, A CORPORATE OR BUSINESS BACKGROUND, I'M, I'M ENTERING THIS TOPIC AT MORE OF A 1 0 1 LEVEL AND OKAY. SO I APPRECIATE, UM, ALL THE INFORMATION AROUND MM-HMM . HOW YOUR DIVISION WORKS. UM, BUT I'M HOPING YOU CAN HELP ME A LITTLE UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT SOME OF THE STRUCTURE AND ARCHITECTURE UNDER WHICH YOU, YOU WORK. AND SO, UM, THINKING OF THE PRE-WORK COMPLIANCE MONITORING THAT YOU MENTIONED, UM, YOU KNOW, YOUR TEAM HELPS, UM, ASSESS THE SCOPES OF WORK ESTABLISHED THOSE M-B-E-W-E-W-B-E GOALS MM-HMM . UM, THAT THEN GET INCLUDED AS PART OF THE SOLICITATION. EXACTLY. AND SO JUST TO RECAP, IF WE ARE RECEIVING BIDS AND AN ACT OF SOLICITATION THAT DOES NOT MEET THESE GOALS, THAT MEANS THAT IS NOT ELIGIBLE FOR SELECTION? NOT NECESSARILY. OKAY. SO THERE ARE TWO WAYS THAT YOU CAN BE COMPLIANT. SO ONE OF THOSE IS BY MEETING THE GOALS OF THE SOLICITATION MM-HMM . AND THE OTHER IS BY DEMONSTRATING GOOD FAITH, GOOD FAITH EFFORT. AND SO GOOD FAITH EFFORT IS THE CONSIDERATION OF THINGS LIKE, UM, MAKING SURE, UM, BUSINESSES KNOW ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY FOR EACH SOLICITATION WE PROVIDE. AS I TALKED ABOUT THE COMPLIANCE PLAN, IT'S A, IT'S A, A PACKET. UM, IT, UM, ALSO INCLUDES A LIST, AN AVAILABILITY LIST OF EVERY CERTIFIED M-B-E-W-B-E FIRM, UM, IN THOSE SCOPES THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED FOR THAT PROJECT. AND SO THAT, THAT IS PART OF THE PACKET. AND THEN, UM, IF, IF, IF INDIVIDUALS ARE ENGAGING GOOD FAITH EFFORT, UM, THEN THEY CONTACT THE FOLKS ON THAT LIST FOR, YOU KNOW, UH, FOR THOSE OPPORTUNITIES. SO THEY MAKE THOSE KNOWN. UM, WE, PART OF GOOD FAITH EFFORT IS, UM, NEGOTIATING WITH INTERESTED, INTERESTED FIRMS WHO SAY, HEY, I'M INTERESTED, ARE SUBMITTED A BID, UM, NEGOTIATING WITH THEM IN GOOD FAITH, UM, CONTACTING SNBR FOR ASSISTANCE. IF YOU'RE NOT MEETING YOUR GOALS OR YOU HAVE A QUESTION, UM, CONTACT US. RIGHT? SOMETIMES IT'S AS SIMPLE AS SOMEONE MAY THINK THERE'S A CER UH, A FIRM IS CERTIFIED AND THEY MAY BE CERTIFIED WITH ANOTHER ENTITY, BUT THEY'RE NOT CERTIFIED WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN. SO IT'S A SIMPLE CALL, HEY, IS THIS A CERTIFIED VENDOR WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN? UM, WE ALWAYS SAY, CALL US IF YOU HAVE DOUBTS. RIGHT? SO THINGS LIKE THAT. UM, THERE ARE SOME OTHER CONSIDERATIONS SUCH AS HELPING, UM, BUSINESSES WITH BONDING AND INSURANCE OR ACQUIRING EQUIPMENT. SO WE TAKE, WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE KIND OF TOTALITY OF, OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN TERMS OF GOOD FAITH EFFORT. OKAY. SO [00:40:01] THEN THINKING OF THESE TWO TRACKS, FOLKS CAN, UM, TAKE TO BE COMPLIANT WITH THE GOALS MM-HMM . YOU KNOW, THEY CAN MEET THE GOALS OUTRIGHT WITH PARTICIPATION OR THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, SORT OF DO THEIR HOMEWORK WITH GOOD FAITH EFFORT. MM-HMM . AND OUTREACH. MM-HMM . DO WE HAVE, UM, A SENSE, AND MAYBE THIS IS A CHARLES QUESTION FOR YOUR PART OF THE PRESENTATION, DO WE HAVE A SENSE OF, UM, THE MAGNITUDE OF THE QUANTITY IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, FOLKS THAT FALL INTO OPTION A OR OPTION B? WE DO, WE TRACK THAT. OKAY. UM, I WOULD SAY AS HIGH AS 96, ABOUT 90, 95 TO 96, UH, PERCENT OF OUR BIDDERS MEET THE GOALS OF, OF THE SOLICITATION. UM, WE RARELY, I WOULD SAY RARELY, UM, HAVE FOLKS THAT ARE, UM, COMPLIANT THROUGH GOOD FAITH EFFORT. UM, IT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE PUBLISHED TO MM-HMM. TO THE COMMUNITY ON OUR, UH, COUNCIL AGENDA. SO FOR EACH CONTRACT THAT'S A NEW CONTRACT, YOU'LL SEE THAT, YOU'LL SEE WHAT THE PARTICIPATION WAS FOR THIS, UH, PROSPECTIVE, UM, MM-HMM. UM, PRIME CONTRACTOR OR CONSULTANT, UM, AS WELL AS IF THEY ARE COMPLIANT THROUGH GOOD FAITH EFFORTS. SO YEAH. THANK YOU. YOU ARE WELCOME. GOING BACK TO SOME OF THE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES Y'ALL ARE WORKING WITH MM-HMM . MINORITY OWNED BUSINESSES, WOMEN OWNED BUSINESSES, DISADVANTAGED BUSINESSES. UM, CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DISADVANTAGED CATEGORY AND WHAT MAKES IT DISTINCT FROM THE OTHER PROGRAMS? IS IT SORT OF MORE OF A GENERAL TERM THAT MAY COVER SAY, VETERAN OWNED BUSINESSES? OR IS THERE A DISTINCT DEFINITION WE'RE APPLYING TO DISADVANTAGED WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, DBE AND A-C-D-B-E, AS YOU SEE, AIRPORT CONCESSIONAIRES, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, TYPICALLY, UM, BUSINESSES THAT ARE DOING PROJECTS WHERE THE PROJECT IS FEDERALLY FUNDED, THE DBE PROJECT AND A CDB PROJECT ARE FALL UNDER FEDERAL REGULATIONS, UM, UNDER U-S-D-O-T, US DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION. SO IF THERE ARE PROJECTS, FOR INSTANCE, THIS EXPANSION THAT'S HAPPENING AT THE AIRPORT, FAA, RIGHT USING FEDERAL, FEDERAL FUNDS, UM, IF THERE ARE PROJECTS THAT ARE TRANSPORTATION RELATED, RIGHT? AND SAY FUNDS, THE CITY IS RECEIVING FEDERAL FUNDS, RIGHT? BUT THEY'RE COMING THROUGH TDOT. THOSE ARE THINGS THAT ARE TYPICALLY, UM, DBE, SO FEDERAL, FEDERAL FEDERALLY FUNDED PROJECTS. OKAY. AND THEN VERSUS OUR LOCAL MBE. SO SAY SOMETHING THAT'S CITY FUND FUNDED. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. LAST QUESTION, I PROMISE. OKAY. . SO, UH, GOING BACK TO THE COMPLIANCE DIVISION, SLIDE SLIDE SIX MM-HMM . UM, Y'ALL ARE PERFORMING THESE COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING FUNCTIONS FOR ALL COMPETITIVELY SOLICITED CITY PROCUREMENTS OVER $50,000. YES. AND SO, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE'RE THINKING IN THE CONTEXT OF AUSTIN WATER, A LOT OF THE PROJECTS THAT WE'RE DOING, OBVIOUSLY YOU'RE GOING TO FALL ABOVE THAT MOST OF THE TIME. IS THERE A MEANINGFUL VOLUME OF PROJECT THAT GOES OUT FOR SOLICITATION THAT FALLS UNDER THAT 50,000 THRESHOLD? TYPICALLY, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CONSTRUCTION ACROSS THE BOARD, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT LARGE DOLLARS. UM, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, IT COULD BE, UH, WE, WE SEE THINGS RUN THE GAMUT, BUT TYPICALLY CONSTRUCTION, WE'RE SEEING LIKE SIX, 7 MILLION ALL THE WAY UP TO, I DON'T KNOW, A HUNDRED MILLION, $200 MILLION. IT JUST DEPENDS ON WHAT TYPE OF PROJECT IT IS. UM, I SPOKE EARLIER ABOUT ALTERNATIVE DELIVERY. SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, LIKE THE CONVENTION CENTER, THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING AT THE AIRPORT, I KNOW AUSTIN WATER HAS THE EXPANSION OF WALNUT CREEK. MM-HMM . THOSE ARE LARGE, UM, CONSTRUCTION. SO CONSTRUCTION IS, WE'RE NOT TYPICALLY SEEING SMALL CONSTRUCTION. WE'RE SEEING BIG, BIG DOLLARS IN OUR CONSTRUCTION ARENA. SO THANK YOU. YOU ARE WELCOME. ALRIGHT, COMMISSIONERS, ANY FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS AT THIS TIME? I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION, BUT I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR COMING AND PRESENTING TO OUR, YOU'RE WELCOME. OUR MISSION. YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME. AND A REMINDER, THIS INFORMATION WILL ALSO BE ONLINE. SO THERE'S, I KNOW IT WAS PACKED FULL OF GOOD STUFF, SO, BUT IF YOU WOULD PLEASE HANG OUT, I THINK YOU COULD MAYBE HELP OUT CHARLES WITH SOME QUESTIONS. , UH, HERE A SECOND. SO, BUT I'LL TURN IT OVER TO CHARLES NOW. THANK YOU. FELICIA CHARLES, SOLAR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF AUSTIN WATER. AND AS YOU HEARD ABOUT THIS VERY ROBUST SYSTEM, UH, PROGRAM, EXCUSE ME, NOT SYSTEM PROGRAM. WHAT'S THE FRUITION OF THAT, RIGHT? WHAT'S THE RESULT OF THAT? SO I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A DATA SET, BUT I, I WANTED TO, UH, DISQUALIFY THIS DATA SET REAL QUICK BECAUSE, BECAUSE I, I PULLED IT FROM ON THE BOTTOM OF THE LINE THERE, THE E CAPRI, WHICH IS OUR CAPITAL REPORTING SYSTEM, WHERE WE, WE, WE PLUG IN ALL OF OUR, OUR PAYMENTS, UM, THE PAYMENTS INCLUDED ON THE FIRST LINE WERE, UH, WE CALL DOS, DELIVERY ORDERS, PURCHASE ORDERS, AND [00:45:01] CONTRACTS. UH, SOMETIMES, UH, PAYMENT IS MADE ACTUALLY TO THE SOLICITATION NUMBER, THEN IT GOES TO A MASTER PROGRAM. SO IT DOESN'T KNOW WHAT ACTUAL DO PO SO SOMETIMES THAT, THAT DOES NOT GET IN, IN THIS PARTICULAR DATA SET. SO WHEN I PRESENT THE NUMBERS TO YOU, IT'S, OUR NUMBERS ARE PROBABLY A LITTLE BIT HIGHER THAN THAT, RIGHT? IT'S NOT LARGE DIFFERENTIAL, BUT I JUST WANNA LET YOU KNOW IN CASE SOMEBODY DIGS IN REAL DEEP. UM, AS MENTIONED, UH, NOT ALL CONTRACTS, UH, DO HAVE REQUIRE MBE, DBE E GI, BUT I WENT AHEAD INCLUDE ALL CONTRACTS, SO JUST ALL CONTRACT PAYMENTS, SO I DIDN'T JUST, JUST DIDN'T DO. SO WHEN YOU SEE THE NUMBER, IT'S PROJECTS THAT HAVE MBE REQUIREMENTS AND THAT THEY OWN A, SO IT, IT'S MAYBE EVEN DILUTING IT A LITTLE BIT MORE. DID 10 YEARS WORTH, SO SOME PROJECTS WILL WOULD'VE GONE THROUGH THE WHOLE CRADLE TO GRAVE, SOME THAT STARTED THIS YEAR JUST GETTING STARTED, RIGHT? UH, THERE WERE OVER 3,400 CONTRACTS IN THIS. NOW WHEN I MENTION THAT, UM, IT SOUNDS REALLY A LOT OF CONTRACTS, BUT BE MINDFUL, LIKE ON A ROTATION LIST, IF I WERE TO PULL AN ENGINEER OFF, I WOULD GET A DO ASSIGNMENT FOR THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING, AND I WOULD GO BACK FOR THE, THE DESIGN AND THEN I WOULD GO BACK FOR THE CONSTRUCTION PHASE. AND THEN THAT CONSTRUCTION WOULD HAVE, THE CONTRACTOR WOULD GET IN, IT WOULD HAVE ANOTHER ONE. SO IT'S NOT UNUSUAL FOR A PROJECT TO HAVE MULTIPLE CONTRACTS. SO IT DOESN'T MEAN WE HAVE 3,400 PROJECTS. IT MEANS WE HAVE 34 CONTRACTS IN, IN, IN THAT, IN THAT REALM. SO WITH THAT, THE RESULTS ARE . WE HAD ABOUT $1.5 BILLION WORTH OF CONTRACTS AND ABOUT $400 MILLION WORTH OF M-B-D-W-E FOR ABOUT 25% TOTAL. UM, THE HISPANIC, UH, CATEGORY GOAL IS THE LEADING THE GOAL ABOUT 15%. AND THEN THE WOMEN OWNED BUSINESS CAME IN ABOUT 6.6%. SO THAT'S HOW WE, HOW WE RANK. SO, UM, BUT WHAT, WHAT DOES THAT REALLY MEAN? 25%? ARE YOU, ARE WE DOING GOOD OR BAD? SO THIS, THIS NEXT SLIDE HERE IS SHOWS YOU THESE ARE, UH, PROJECTS THAT ARE ACTUALLY OUT RIGHT NOW. THE GILLIGAN INTERCEPTOR IS A, UH, UH, ENGINEERING PROJECT. THE FIRST COLUMN THERE ON THE LEFT IS FOR ENGINEERING, AND THAT'S THE, THIS ONE IS, IS STILL OUT ON THE STREETS RIGHT NOW. AND YOU CAN SEE THAT THEY HAD ABOUT 11.2%, UH, GOAL PERCENTAGE, UH, THAT'S KIND OF LIKE A, A PIPELINE. I TRY TO, SINCE WE DO PIPELINE AND PLANT WORK. THE NEXT ONE OVER TO THE RIGHT IS A SOLICITATION THAT CLOSED LAST MONTH, AND THAT WAS FOR PLANT EXPANSION. AND IT HAD ABOUT 9.64% AND BE GOAL. THEN CONVERSELY, ON THE RIGHT IS A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT THAT THE, UH, PINOT, UH, UH, LANE WASTEWATER IMPROVEMENTS IS A PIPELINE PROJECT. THAT ONE'S CLOSING. UH, I THINK THIS WEEK OUR BIDS ARE DUE FROM THE CONTRACTOR SPEAK AND IT HAD 8.35%, AND THEN HORNSBY AND HEADWORKS IMPROVEMENT, WHICH IS AT A PLANT, HAD A 5.12. SO I TRY TO GIVE A PIPELINE AND A PLANT TO SHOW YOU HOW THINGS VARY AS, AS FELICIA NOTED, IS WHAT, WHAT COMMODITY IS AVAILABLE FOR BEING DONE AND HOW MANY AVAILABLE, UH, FIRMS ARE ABLE TO DO THAT, THAT THE PERCENTAGES DO CHANGE. SO, UH, AS, AS IF WE JUDGE OURSELVES BY THE CURRENT RATES, UH, ENGINEERING ENGINEERING'S THE HIGHEST 11.2, RIGHT NOW WE'RE SHOWING ABOUT 25%. SO I, I WOULD SAY WE'RE MEETING THE GOALS FAIRLY HEALTHILY RIGHT NOW. SO, AND THAT WAS MY, THAT'S MY QUICK SHORT RESULT, UH, PRESENTATION AND WE CAN ANSWER ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS. THANKS CHARLES. UM, WOULD YOU MIND RESTATING THE VERY LAST THING YOU SAID? I WAS TAKING NOTES AND DIDN'T HEAR. OH, I WAS SAYING AT 11% AND 25. YEAH, THANK YOU. I WAS SAYING IS IF WE ARE COMPARING OUR 25% MARK FOR THE LAST 10 YEARS MM-HMM . WITH SOME, UH, SOLICITATIONS FOR TODAY MM-HMM . WERE, WERE BASICALLY DOUBLE THE, THE, THE RATE, UH, THAT WHAT WE'VE HAD IN THE PAST, THE AMOUNT OF PERCENTAGE OF, OF MVE PAYMENTS. GOTCHA. IT IS BEEN ABOUT TWICE AS WHAT, WHAT IS REQUIRED RIGHT NOW MM-HMM . AND SOMETIMES THAT, BECAUSE THE COMMODITY WOULD COME IN AND THEY ONLY NEED LIKE, WHATEVER, LIKE WHATEVER PERCENTAGES, 2.77%, WELL, MAYBE THAT CONCRETE STRUCTURE THEY'RE DOING AND THAT MBE FIRM THAT'S DOING THE CONCRETE, MAYBE IT'S ACTUALLY 7% OF THE PROJECT, RIGHT? MM-HMM . SO HE'LL GET ALL OF IT. SO THEN IT'LL BE HIGHER. SO MM-HMM . IT'S NOT UNUSUAL FOR US TO BE HIGHER ON OUR COMPLIANCE PLAN FOR MVE ON OUR PROJECTS. 'CAUSE IT'S KIND OF HARD TO GET EXACTLY 2.77%, SO MM-HMM . YEP. UM, JUST A, A TECHNICAL QUESTION. IF SOMEONE COULD REMIND ME WHY WE COMBINE ASIAN WITH NATIVE AMERICAN WHEN WE REPORT, IS THAT A FEDERAL THING OR? IT IS NOT. IT'S A, IT'S A LOCAL PROGRAM REQUIREMENT. OKAY. I'M GONNA, [00:50:01] THERE YOU GO. GONNA AMBER, I'M GONNA CALL OUR DIRECTOR. OUR DIRECTOR. YES. THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. EDWARD GOPEL, DIRECTOR AUSTIN, SMALL MINORITY BUSINESS RESOURCES. HISTORICALLY, WE HAVE FOUND THAT THOSE TWO CATEGORIES, NATIVE AMERICAN FIRMS AND ASIAN AMERICAN FIRMS, TYPICALLY THE AVAILABILITY AND THE CATEGORIES THAT WE PROCURE HISTORICALLY ARE VERY LOW IN TERMS OF THE POPULATION FOR BUSINESSES IN THOSE CATEGORIES. MM-HMM . SO WE HAVE COMBINED THEM HISTORICALLY. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND THIS IS, I, I GUESS FOR ME, THE SPIRIT OF IT IS, I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT WE'RE MEETING THE PROGRAM GOALS. I THINK FOR ME AND MY OWN UNDERSTANDING WOULD BE OF ALL THE 3,400 CONTRACTORS, WHAT PERCENTAGE ARE WOMEN OWNED BUSINESSES AND THEIR, AND THEN FROM THOSE, HOW MANY THEN GET CONTRACTS, LIKE LOOKING AT THE FLOW, WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT TODAY, AND MAYBE IT'S AN OFFLINE THING, LIKE WHAT I DID WITH YOU GUYS BEFORE, BUT REALLY TO UNDERSTAND THE BIGGER PICTURE. SO THERE'S THE GOALS TO GROW AND THEN, BUT THEN THERE'S THAT FULLER CONTEXT OF, UM, WE'RE CLEARLY IMPROVING AND IS IT FAST ENOUGH TO BE, TO BE FRANK, RIGHT? CAN WE DO BETTER? CAN WE DO MORE OR CAN CRUISING, DON'T CHANGE THE THING, WE'RE MOVE, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE IMPROVING AS WE NEED TO. AND FOR ME, THAT'S JUST SEEING THE NUMBERS AS PART OF A BIGGER PIC PICTURE. UM, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WOULD HELP THE COMMISSION. SO AGAIN, I'M HAPPY TO KIND OF GO OFFLINE. UM, I DON'T KNOW IF THE COMMISSIONERS HAVE, BUT FOR ME, LOOKING AT, AT THE BIGGER NUMBERS WOULD BE HELPFUL. SO I, YEAH, KEN, IT'S ACTUALLY IMPORTANT FOR US AS WELL. UM, WE CAN SPEND A LOT OF TIME TALKING ABOUT RESOURCES, BUT IF ONE, THEY'RE NOT BEING TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF MM-HMM . OR THEY'RE NOT PROVING TO BE HELPFUL IN GROWING THE CAPACITY OF OUR SMALL BUSINESSES. SO THAT'S A RECENT KPI, UH, KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR THAT WE'VE HAD FOR OUR DEPARTMENT IS TO SEE IF YOU ARE ATTENDING, LET'S TAKE THE SMALL BUSINESS CONNECTIONS CONFERENCE THAT FELICIA MENTIONED. WHAT IS THE TAKEAWAY FROM THAT IS DID YOU, DID YOU BUILD A RELATIONSHIP WITH A FIRM THAT YOU MET? DID, DID, UH, DID YOU GET TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH SOMEONE AT TRAVIS COUNTY MM-HMM . THAT SAID, HEY, THERE'S A PROJECT THAT YOU WOULD BE IDEAL FOR. MM-HMM . DID YOU MEET A BUYER FROM OUR CITY'S PURCHASING OFFICE? I MEAN, THERE ARE LITTLE THINGS THAT WE CAN MEASURE TO MAKE SURE THAT THE THINGS THAT WE'RE PUTTING OUT THERE AS RESOURCES OR ACTUALLY CAN GROW THE CAPACITY OF THOSE FIRMS THAT WE'RE TARGETING. SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE INTERESTED AS WELL. IT'S A GREAT QUESTION. MM-HMM . YEP. THANK YOU. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU WOULD HAVE THAT YOU THINK WE AS COMMISSIONERS OR, OR EVEN THE STAFF SHOULD THINK ABOUT WITH THIS PROGRAM WITH AUSTIN WATER PARTICULARLY? THERE'S LARGE PROJECTS COMING, BUT WHEN, YOU KNOW, WE LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS IN YOUR ANALYSIS EVERY TIME WE LOOK AT A SOMETHING TO APPROVE AS RECOMMENDED BY AUSTIN WATER. SO WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO US TO HELP US BE KINDA MORE PRECISE AND INCISIVE WHEN READING THAT, THAT PIECE OF OUR CONSIDERATION? YEAH, I THINK, AGAIN, A GREAT QUESTION. I THINK FOR ME, IT REALLY COMES DOWN TO WHEN WE HEARD THE INITIAL REQUEST, WHICH IS HOW IS AUSTIN WATER DOING? AND, AND WE GET, GET THAT A LOT. HOW IS AUSTIN ENERGY DOING? OUR DEPARTMENT REALLY DOESN'T FOCUS ON HOW EACH INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE WE HAVE SOME SITUATIONS WHERE A PROJECT COULD BE FUNDED PARTIALLY BY AUSTIN WATER AND AUSTIN ENERGY. WELL, WHO GETS THE CREDIT FOR THAT PROJECT? RIGHT. OR, OR THE, OR, UH, YOU KNOW, THE STONING, IF YOU WILL, OF AUSTIN WATER DOES. NO, YEAH. NOT THE S NOT THE TON, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, WHO GETS, WHO'S GONNA BE HELD RESPONSIBLE OR ACCOUNTABLE FOR NOT MEETING THAT? SO WHAT WE DO IN THE WORK THAT FELICIA AND HER TEAM, UH, IS RESPONSIBLE FOR IS REALLY FROM A CONTRACT TO CONTRACT BASIS MM-HMM . AND SO THAT'S KIND OF HOW WE LOOK AT IT. I WOULD SAY THAT THE INFORMATION THAT FELICIA ALLUDED TO, THAT'S IN EVERY RECOMMENDATION FOR COUNCIL ACTION, IT'S, IT'S IN THE BACKUP. MM-HMM . YES. I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN TAKE A LOOK AT AND IF NEED BE, WE CAN ADDRESS ANY CONCERNS OR QUESTIONS ABOUT, WELL, HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THIS GOAL? AND ARE THERE ANY CONCERNS WITH THE, MAYBE THE LACK OF PARTICIPATION IN A CERTAIN CATEGORY, WE CAN SPEAK TO THOSE MM-HMM . OR DO YOU EVER BRING RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE TEAM? LIKE, HEY, WE'VE HAD A SERIES OF PROJECTS NOW WHERE WE'RE MISSING GOALS, HERE'S THE TREND. WHAT DO YOU THINK IS GOING ON? OR, WE'VE HAD A SERIES OF PROJECTS, UH, MAYBE BECAUSE OF OUR AWESOME SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN WHERE WE'RE, THERE'S A LOT OF, AGAIN, PICK, PICK YOUR COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, WOMEN OR WHOMEVER APPLYING LIKE, LET'S, LET'S DO THIS. SO IS THERE, IS IT EVER KIND OF PROACTIVE ON Y'ALL'S PART TO COME TO THE DIFFERENT IT IS. AND THAT'S WHERE WE, WITH TRENDING COVER, THAT'S WHERE WE HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS MM-HMM. WITH THE PROJECT MANAGER THAT'S BEEN IDENTIFIED MM-HMM . OKAY. WHERE WE REALLY TAKE A CONSIDERATE EFFORT TO LOOK AT THE SCOPES OF WORK THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED MM-HMM . WHEN WE CAN SAY, HEY, YOU KNOW, YOU ALWAYS PUT THESE, THESE THREE, UH, COMMODITY CODES AS THAT WE CALL THEM, OR THE, THE, THE TRADES OR THE SCOPES OF WORK. THE WORK IS NEVER MATERIALIZED OVER THE COURSE OF THE PREVIOUS PROJECTS. [00:55:01] ARE THESE REALLY THE RIGHT CODES OR THE RIGHT TRADES THAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR? LET'S HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT. MM-HMM . OR IN THE PAST YOU'VE MISSED SEVERAL. THEY'VE, THE PRIME CONTRACTOR OR CONSULTANT HAS COME IN WITH NEW FIRMS THAT WE DIDN'T IDENTIFY INITIALLY. SO WE DO HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS. MM-HMM . QUITE FREQUENTLY. MM-HMM . YEP. EXCELLENT. WELL, YOU'VE GIVEN ME A LOT TO, TO JUMP INTO MY OWN LITTLE RABBIT HOLE, UM, ONLINE. SO AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND IT'S AWESOME TO PUT FACES TO NAMES, TO THE NUMBERS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OR DATA THAT WE READ, SO I APPRECIATE IT. SO WITH THAT, YOU'RE WELCOME. I HAVE NO FURTHER QUESTIONS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. COMMISSION MEMBERS, UM, COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT. WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION AND THE INFORMATION. I, I, OKAY, COMMISSIONERS, [FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ] THAT BRINGS US TO OUR FINAL AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. SO IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT YOU WANNA BRING UP NOW OR WANT TO COMMUNICATE TO THE TEAM. YEAH. UH, COMMISSIONER WILSON CRAW. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. UM, I HAD THE OCCASION TO READ A STORY IN THE AUSTIN AMERICAN STATESMAN YESTERDAY AROUND, UM, A SEWAGE SPILL OVERFLOW, UH, AROUND THE 2,500 BLOCK OF HOWARD LANE. UM, THERE IS A SIMILAR OVERFLOW, UM, ON AUGUST 18TH, I BELIEVE, UP NEAR DECKER LANE AND FM 9 69. UM, THANKFULLY, YOU KNOW, THESE, UH, OVERFLOWS DID NOT CONTAMINATE ANY WATER SUPPLIES, ALTHOUGH I THINK THE ONE ON HOWARD LANE THIS WEEK, UM, MAY HAVE COME IN WITHIN HALF A MILE OF, UM, SOME FOLKS WHO HAVE PRIVATE WELLS. AND SO I THINK JUST A, A, A STAFF BRIEFING OR JUST SOME LEARNING, JUST WOULD LOVE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT, UM, HOW AUSTIN WATER THINKS ABOUT PREVENTING OR MITIGATING, UM, THE HEALTH AND SAFETY EFFECTS OF OVERFLOWS, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY OCCUR. UM, YOU KNOW, POTENTIALLY NEAR OR RELATED TO OUR CONSTRUCTION IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, OUR CUSTOMERS NEIGHBORHOODS AND, UM, WHAT AUSTIN RESIDENTS SHOULD DO AND HOW WE COMMUNICATE THAT, UM, WHEN THOSE, UH, DISRUPTIONS AND, UM, HEALTH HAZARDS OCCUR. ALRIGHT, THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD ITEM FOR A FUTURE MEETING. SO THANK YOU COMMISSIONER STEN CROFT. UM, LET'S SEE. AND WE HAVE ONE REMOTE FROM COMMISSIONER ORTIZ. HEY, EVERYONE. UM, I HAD TWO I I WANTED TO RE-UP, I THINK WHAT I SAID LAST MONTH, WHICH WAS LEGISLATIVE SESSIONS APPROACHING. I'M VERY EAGER TO HEAR FROM AUSTIN WATER IN TERMS OF WHAT, WHAT IS ON Y'ALL'S MIND IN ADVANCE OF THIS SESSION. UM, AND THE OTHER THING WAS, I, I WANTED TO RE-UP SOMETHING I SAID SOME TIME AGO. IT'S BEEN A WHILE, BUT I WOULD REALLY LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT WHAT AUSTIN WATERS ENGAGEMENT IS LIKE IN THE REGIONAL WATER PLANNING PROCESS. UM, I'VE, I, I'VE BEEN READING A LOT MORE IN, IN ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND IN THE PRESS ABOUT REGIONAL WATER PLANNING AS A PROCESS, AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT I'VE, I'VE THOUGHT A LOT ABOUT. I'VE WORKED ON A LITTLE BIT IN MY, MY PROFESSIONAL LIFE. SO I'M CURIOUS, I THINK, TO HEAR, HEAR MORE ABOUT HOW THAT PROCESS IS FROM A UTILITY PER PERSPECTIVE. ALL RIGHT. COMMISSIONER ORTIZ, I'M SEEING SOME NODDING HEADS HERE, SO WE'LL, WE'LL GET THAT DOWN AND INCLUDED. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONERS. ANY OTHER ITEMS THIS EVENING? ALRIGHT, SO WE'VE MADE IT THROUGH THE AGENDA TO THE FINAL ITEM, WHICH IS A ADJOURNMENT. SO I'LL CALL THE MEETING ADJOURNED AT SIX 30. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.