* 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. SO WE'LL CALL THE [00:00:01] MEETING TO ORDER [CALL TO ORDER] NOW. WE'LL CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER. UM, DO YOU DO THE ROLL CALL? YES. I'D BE HAPPY TO DO THE ROLL CALL. DAVISON. HERE. FISHMAN. HERE. HAMILTON? HERE. HART HERE. STERN. EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. OKAY, THE, [GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT] UH, FIRST ITEM, UH, WAS THE GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT. UM, ARE ALL COMMITTEE MEMBERS, UM, THANK YOU. UH, DID ALL COMMITTEE MEMBERS SEE THE, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT THAT CAME ACROSS, UH, VIA EMAIL? YES. OKAY, GREAT. WE ALSO HAVE, UH, ONE FROM BEN PETERS. ALRIGHT. ALL RIGHT. UM, OKAY. UM, GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. AS THE, UH, FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE MEASURE U COMMITTEE, IT'S GOOD TO BE BACK AND BE, UH, IN PERSON HERE. SO I'D LIKE TO MAKE A COUPLE COMMENTS, UH, ABOUT THE REPORT. UH, THE FIRST, THIS IS A COMMENT THAT I'VE MADE A COUPLE TIMES WHILE ON THE COMMITTEE, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE KEEP BRINGING THIS UP. OTHERWISE, IT MIGHT GET LOST TO THE SANDS OF TIME. AND THIS IS THE STRUCTURE OF THE SUMMARY OF THE PURPOSE OF MEASURE YOU. THAT'S ON PAGES FOUR AND FIVE. AND THEN IT HAS THE TABLE ON PAGE FIVE, WHICH SORT OF LISTS THE SUMMARY OF THE INFORMATION THAT WAS IN THE ACTUAL ORDINANCE. AND WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER IS DURING THE COMMUNITY PROCESS, UH, SOME OF THE PRIORITIES OF THE COMMUNITY THAT WERE ENABLED, THE VOTING OF MAJOR U, THOSE ARE, UH, THE FORMAT OF THE TABLE ON PAGE 14. SO THERE'S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TABLE ON PAGE FIVE AND THEN THE TABLE ON PAGE 14 WITH THE KEY BEING THE PRIORITY INITIATIVES, RIGHT? AND THAT'S WHERE WE HAVE THE PRIORITY INITIATIVE OF HOMELESSNESS AND OF CLIMATE CHANGE. AND SO THOSE ARE TWO PRIORITY INITIATIVES THAT HAVE BEEN REMAINED AND CAN CONTINUE TO BE FUNDED. BUT IF WE DON'T HAVE IN THE BODY OF THIS REPORT THE IDEA THAT THERE ARE PRIORITY INITIATIVES, THERE SHOULD BE A PARAGRAPH ON PRIORITY INITIATIVES, WHY WE HAD THEM, WHY WE PASSED THEM. WE COULD END UP JUST WITH MEASURE U BEING FULLY TABLE FIVE. AND IN THE MOST RECENT SUMMARY, YOU KNOW, THE, THE GENERAL FUND SUPPORT HAS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED, RIGHT? FROM 9 MILLION TO 13 POINT HALF MILLION. NOW WE'RE REPRESENTING 83% OF THE BUDGET. NOW THIS ALL JUST GENERAL FUND MONEY. AND SO IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT IT'S COMING FROM THE MEASURE U MONEY OR FROM THE JESUIT FUND. AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT PRIORITY INITIATIVES BE IDENTIFIED BY THE PUBLIC AND INCLUDED IN THE FUNDING. MM-HMM . AND IF THAT MEANS THAT SOME OF THE GENERAL FUND MONEY FOR GENERAL FUND SUPPORT COMES FROM OTHER SOURCES, THEN WE NEED TO KEEP OUR VIGILANCE ON THAT. ESPECIALLY NOW THAT WE HAVE MEASURE H, RIGHT? I MEAN, A LOT OF MEASURE U MONEY CAN NOW BE SUPPLEMENTED BY MEASURE H FOR FIRE. I REMEMBER WHEN UH, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT DOING A SECOND BOND ISSUANCE, RIGHT? USING MEASURE, WE ARE GONNA DO ANOTHER $20 MILLION BOND FOR THE SECOND ROUND OF, YOU KNOW, POSSIBLY THE FIRE STATION. AND NOW HERE WE HAVE, ARE WE GONNA BOND WHAT'S EVER REMAINING FROM MEASURE U TO SUPPORT THE FIRE STATION? AND I, AGAIN, I TO SUMMARIZE, I THINK THE PRIORITY INITIATIVES NEED TO BE REMAINING AND THEY NEED TO BE CALLED OUT IN THE REPORT SO THAT COMMU THE COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, THEY STILL TALK ABOUT MEASURE U, LIKE IT HAS MONEY IN THE FRONT. YOU KNOW, THAT'S CLEARLY NOT THE CASE, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS, BUT THAT'S WASN'T PEOPLE'S ORIGINAL IDEA BEHIND MEASURE. YOU PEOPLE STILL ADVOCATE FOR MEASURE YOU MONEY BEING SPELLED WILLY-NILLY. AND YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND OF THE MONEY'S GONE. IF WE KEEP ALLOWING JUST OH, A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE MEASURE YOU MONEY IS GOING TO GENERAL FUND SUPPORT, RIGHT? AND I THINK YOU AS MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE APPRECIATE THAT SENTIMENT AND I THINK ONE WAY TO AT LEAST IN THE BODY OF THE REPORT, MAINTAIN THAT SPIRIT IS TO ADVOCATE FOR SOME FORMATTING CHANGES. THANKS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENT. SO WE GO TO, [PRESENTATIONS] UH, PRESENTATIONS. UH, ITEM ONE, FISCAL YEAR 2324 MIDYEAR UPDATE AND FISCAL YEAR 24, 25 PRELIM PRELIMINARY BUDGET. GREAT, THANK YOU. LET ME JUST SHARE MY SCREEN. [00:05:25] UM, COME ON. UGH, SORRY. THERE WE GO. UM, HANG ON, . THERE WE GO. GO UP THERE. I THINK I JUST FIXED IT. NO, YOU FIXED IT. I FIXED IT. THANK YOU . THANK YOU FOR BEARING WITH ME. UM, AGAIN, WELCOME EVERYONE AND UH, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO VOLUNTEER ON THIS COMMITTEE. SO WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR VALUABLE FEEDBACK. UM, AGAIN, I'M JESSE G***H, I'M THE FINANCE DIRECTOR AND THE STAFF LIAISON FOR THIS COMMITTEE. UM, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ALWAYS REACH OUT IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. UH, SORRY, I'M STILL GETTING USED TO HOW THIS WORKS. OKAY. AND THERE'S, THERE I AM AGAIN. ALRIGHT, SO, UH, TONIGHT WE'RE GOING TO BE REVIEWING THE STATUS OF MEASURE U AS OF DECEMBER 31ST, 2023. SO THIS IS OUR MID-YEAR REPORT FOR THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR. AND WE'RE ALSO GOING TO BE REVIEWING THE PRELIMINARY BUDGET FOR FISCAL 25, WHICH BE BEGINS JULY 1ST. ALL RIGHT. AS YOU KNOW, THE PASSAGE OF MEASURE U ESTABLISH THE MEASURE U OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, WHICH IS THE FIVE MEMBER INDEPENDENT CITIZEN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. UH, MEMBERS ARE APPOINTED BY COUNSEL AND SERVES STAGGERED FOUR YEAR TERMS. UH, PER THE BALLOT MEASURE, THE COMMITTEE'S RESPONSIBILITY IS TO REVIEW AND COMMENT ON THE CITY'S REPORT, LOOKING AT HOW THE TAX PROCEEDS ARE USED ON CITY PRIORITIES AND PLANNED USAGE IN FUTURE YEARS. THE ORAL COMMENTARY ENTERED INTO THE RECORD AT THE BIANNUAL MEETINGS MEETS THESE REQUIREMENTS, OR THE COMMITTEE COULD DELEGATE ITS CHAIR TO WRITE A LETTER CONJUNCTION WITH STAFF TO BE SUBMITTED TO CITY COUNCIL. UH, MEASURE U IS A GENERAL PURPOSE TAX MEASURE THAT ESTABLISHED A 1 CENT TRANSACTIONS IN USE TAX EFFECTIVE APRIL 1ST, 2021. CURRENTLY WE'RE ESTIMATING ANNUAL REVENUE OF AROUND 16 MILLION A YEAR FROM THIS TAX. RATHER THAN TRACKING THIS REVENUE IN THE GENERAL FUND, WE CREATE A SEPARATE MEASURE U FUND. THIS FUND THEN RETAINS FUND BALANCE YEAR OVER YEAR FOR FUTURE SPENDING AND APPROPRIATIONS MEASURE U DOES REQUIRE THIS OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE AND THE SPENDING IS BASED ON GENERAL FUND NEEDS AS IDENTIFIED IN THE FISCAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY STUDY AND THE RESULT IN COMMUNITY FEEDBACK. SO THE FISCAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY STUDY WAS CONDUCTED OVER THE COURSE OF TWO YEARS TO DETERMINE SUSTAINABLE FUNDING NEEDS FOR CITY SERVICES AND INFRASTRUCTURE. THE CITY HAD EXPERIENCED HISTORICAL FUNDING SHORTFALLS, WHICH LED TO INSUFFICIENT STAFFING AND LOW INVESTMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE. COMMUNITY FEEDBACK PRIORITIZED MAINTENANCE OF EXISTING SERVICES INCLUDING PUBLIC SAFETY, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, AND THEN ALSO RETAINING TRAINED STAFF ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS AND REPAIRING AND MAINTAINING ROADS. SO FOR THE CURRENT YEAR, WE ARE ANTICIPATING THAT THE REVENUES ARE GOING TO ALIGN WITH WHAT WAS BUDGETED. OUR CURRENT ECONOMIC PROJECTIONS DO SHOW SLOWING GROWTH OVER THE NEXT TWO YEARS. WITH GDP GROWTH SHRINKING AND CPI STILL HOVERING AROUND 2.5 TO 3%. MANY FACTORS ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE EXPECTED SLOWDOWN, INCLUDING THE CONTINUED HIGH INTEREST RATES, HOUSING COSTS, OUR UPCOMING NATIONAL ELECTIONS, OUR NATURAL DISASTERS THAT ARE CAUSED BY CLIMATE CHANGE. AND THEN THE VARIOUS GLOBAL ISSUES GOING ON FOR THE CURRENT YEAR. OUR MEASURE U REVENUES ARE BUDGETED AT 15.8 MILLION, AND EXPENDITURES ARE BUDGET AT 21.1 MILLION. SO WE DID BUDGET $5.3 MILLION OF EXCESS FUND BALANCE FROM PRIOR FISCAL YEARS TO BE SPENT IN FISCAL 24. UM, AND WE ESTIMATE THAT WE'RE GOING TO END FISCAL 24 WITH A VERY SMALL FUND BALANCE OF ABOUT $7,000 IN THE MEASURE YOU FUND. OKAY, SO THIS CHART IS SHOWING OUR REVENUE AND EXPENDITURES FROM INCEPTION TO DATE THROUGH FISCAL 24. SO FOR 24, WE'RE SHOWING BUDGET FOR ALL THE OTHER YEARS WE'RE SHOWING OUR ACTUALS. YOU CAN SEE THAT OUR REVENUE IS KIND OF FLATLINED SINCE 22. SO WE'RE NOT SEEING SUBSTANTIAL GROWTH OF THE REVENUE, BUT WE ARE SEEING GROWTH IN THE EXPENDITURES AS THE DEMANDS ON THE CITY INCREASE. SO WE'VE ADDED THIS CHART TO LOOK AT THE ACCRUAL AND THEN THE USAGE OF THE FUND BALANCE. AND SO IN THE FIRST COLUMN WE'VE GOT OUR FUND BALANCE ACCRUED. SO THAT'S SHOWING FOR EACH YEAR, UM, FOR 21 THROUGH FISCAL 23, UM, THE AMOUNT OF REVENUES OVER EXPENDITURES THAT WE HAD THAT THEN ACCRUED [00:10:01] LIKE A SAVINGS ACCOUNT IN THE FUND BALANCE. AND THEN WE'RE SHOWING HOW THE MONEY IS BEING SPENT. SO IN FISCAL 24, WE'RE SPENDING 5.37 MILLION OF THAT FUND BALANCE. AND THEN THAT LITTLE BIT THAT'S LEFT WILL LIKELY BE SPENT IN FISCAL 25. SO LOOKING AT OUR BUDGET TO ACTUALS AS OF DECEMBER 31ST, UH, OUR REVENUES, WE'VE RECEIVED 53% OF OUR BUDGETED REVENUES AS OF DECEMBER 31ST. SO THAT PUTS US HOPEFULLY ON A GOOD TRACK TO END THE YEAR A LITTLE BIT OVER OUR BUDGET. OUR EXPENDITURES CURRENTLY ARE ONLY AT 30%, BUT BECAUSE EVERYTHING THAT'S BUDGETED IN MEASURE U IS A TRANSFER OUT TO ANOTHER FUND FOR PROJECTS, WE DO EXPECT THAT A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THOSE EXPENDITURES WILL BE MET BY THE END OF THE YEAR. SO BREAKING OUT THOSE EXPENDITURES INTO THE CATEGORIES THAT WE USUALLY DISCUSS, WE'VE GOT 12.9 MILLION GOING TO GENERAL FUND SUPPORT. THAT'S ABOUT 61% OF TOTAL EXPENDITURES. WE HAVE 6.7 MILLION GOING TO INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT, AND THEN WE'VE GOT 1.5 MILLION GOING TO PRIORITY INITIATIVES IN THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR. LOOKING AT THESE NUMBERS MORE CLOSELY, UM, WE'VE GOT SOME ADDITIONAL DETAIL IN THE GENERAL FUND SUPPORT. SO FOR THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, IT IS 12.9 MILLION, WHICH IS 3.1 MILLION HIGHER THAN FISCAL 23. SO THAT WAS A VERY LARGE JUMP. IT WAS THE 32% INCREASE IN THE TRANSFER FROM MEASURE U TO THE GENERAL FUND FROM THE PRIOR YEAR. AND THAT WAS BASICALLY DRIVEN BY THE LARGE INCREASE IN THE GENERAL FUND SALARIES AND BENEFITS THAT HAPPENED IN FISCAL 24. THERE WAS A $5.9 MILLION INCREASE IN OUR SALARIES AND BENEFITS COSTS. NOW THAT WAS DRIVEN BY A FEW THINGS. WE HAD, UM, LABOR NEGOTIATIONS HAPPENING CITYWIDE. SO FOR MANY, UH, OF OUR STAFF, THOSE WERE THEIR FIRST COLAS THAT THEY HAD SEEN IN YEARS. AND THAT WAS PART OF THE MEASURE U UM, PROMISE OF RETAINING AND TRAINING GOOD EMPLOYEES. YOU CAN'T REALLY RETAIN EMPLOYEES WHEN THEY DON'T RECEIVE A RAISE IN FIVE PLUS YEARS. THAT'S USUALLY NOT A WAY TO GET PEOPLE TO STICK AROUND. SO WE DID HAVE THOSE INCREASES IN SALARY COSTS. WE ALSO SAW OUR BENEFIT RATES CONTINUING TO INCREASE. SO THAT'S EVERYTHING FROM PERS TO HEALTH INSURANCE. AND THEN WE ALSO ADDED SIX NEW FTE AND FISCAL 24 FOR THE GENERAL FUND. AND SO THOSE WERE POSITIONS IN PARKS AND RECREATION AS WELL AS POLICE AND FIRE. SO ALL OF THESE THINGS THAT HELP MAINTAIN THE CORE CITY SERVICES AND ALL OF THOSE THINGS THAT WE CAN'T DO, UM, UNLESS WE HAVE STAFF TO DO THEM. UM, WE DID HAVE ADDITIONAL GENERAL FUND REVENUES, UM, IN 20 FOURS COMPARED TO 23, BUT THERE JUST WEREN'T ENOUGH TO COVER THE LARGE INCREASE IN THE SALARIES AND BENEFITS, WHICH IS WHY WE NEEDED MORE MEASURE U TO COVER THAT DIFFERENCE IN THIS YEAR. AND THEN OUR MEASURE U FORECAST IS CURRENTLY ASSUMING, UM, AN AVERAGE ANNUAL INCREASE OF ABOUT 7.5% TO COVER THE RISING NEEDS OF THE GENERAL FUND. SO WE WILL SEE THE SUPPORT NUMBER GOING UP EVERY YEAR UNLESS WE, YOU KNOW, GENERAL FUND REVENUES ARE SUDDENLY SKY HIGH, THEN WE CAN RELY ON IT A LITTLE BIT LESS, BUT I CAN'T REALLY COUNT ON THAT. SO LOOKING AT THIS ANOTHER WAY, THE AMOUNT OF GENERAL FUND SUPPORT THAT, UM, IS BEING SENT FROM MEASURE U IS ABOUT THE EQUIVALENT OF 63 POSITIONS, UM, USING TOTAL SALARIES AND BENEFITS. AND SO IF YOU BREAK THAT OUT, THAT'S 27% OF THE STAFF THAT ARE BEING PAID AT FOR OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND ARE REALLY BEING FUNDED BY MEASURE U. SO 27% BEING FUNDED, IF WE WERE TO DO 27% CUTS CITYWIDE ACROSS THOSE POSITIONS, THAT WOULD BE THE EQUIVALENT OF LOSING 18 FIREFIGHTERS, 27 POLICE OFFICERS, AND THEN 18 NON-PUBLIC SAFETY STAFF. SO IT WOULD BE A PRETTY HIT LARGE HIT TO THE CITY WITH IF WE DIDN'T HAVE THIS FUNDING THAT WE COULD USE FOR THIS PURPOSE. LOOKING AT THE CURRENT YEAR INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT BUDGETS, WE HAVE ABOUT 2.7 MILLION GOING TO ROAD IMPROVEMENTS, AND THAT DOES INCLUDE THE, UM, DEBT SERVICE FOR THE LEASE REVENUE BONDS THAT ARE FUNDING MANY STREET PROJECTS THROUGHOUT THE CITY. WE HAVE ANOTHER 268,000 GOING INTO THE LIBRARY FIRE SUPPRESSION SYSTEM THAT SUPPLEMENTS THE, I BELIEVE 600,000 THAT WENT IN LAST FISCAL YEAR. AND THEN WE'VE GOT, UM, ABOUT 700,000 GOING TOWARDS THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM REPLACEMENT, 1.6 MILLION FOR THE TURNING BASIN DOCKS, 775,000 FOR THE DOWNTOWN PUBLIC RESTROOM AND BEAUTIFICATION PROJECT, UM, THAT WOULD INSTALL A FREESTANDING PUBLIC BATHROOM DOWNTOWN AND THEN 650,000 FOR RIVER DREDGING. AND ALL OF THESE PROJECTS ARE CURRENTLY IN PROCESS. WE ALSO HAVE 1.5 MILLION OF PRIORITY INITIATIVES. SO THAT INCLUDES ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR OUR ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGER PROJECT, UM, SOME DOLLARS FOR THE EMERGENCY POWER BACKUP [00:15:01] THAT'S NEEDED FOR CITY HALL AND POLICE HEADQUARTERS SO THAT WE'VE GOT PROPER GENERATORS IN PLACE AND CAN CONTINUE TO HAVE OPERATIONS AT THE POWER GOES OUT. WE'VE GOT JUST OVER A MILLION DOLLARS FOR EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, WHICH IS A COMBINATION OF FIRE ENGINE UPFIT, UH, POLICE VEHICLE REPLACEMENT FOR MULTIPLE VEHICLES THAT HAVE REACHED THEIR END OF LIFE. AND THEN, UM, SOME DOLLARS FOR WOOD CHIPPER SERVICES TO RESIDENTS. AND THEN FINALLY WE'VE GOT $180,000 GOING TOWARDS A, UM, TRIAL OF FAIR FREE PUBLIC TRANSIT. SO THAT'S A FREE BUS SERVICE FOR RESIDENTS AND VISITORS. SO NOW WE'RE GONNA SWITCH OVER AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE FISCAL 25 PRELIMINARY BUDGET. AND SO WE'VE TAKEN THE SAME INCEPTION TO DATE CHART AND THEN ADDED IN WHERE WE THINK WE'RE GOING TO BE BUDGETING FOR FISCAL 25. SO WE DO HAVE A SLIGHT UPTICK IN REVENUES EXPECTED GOING FROM 15.8 MILLION TO 16.2, SO HOPEFULLY WE, WE GET THAT LITTLE BIT MORE MONEY. AND THEN WE'VE BUDGETED AT, UM, JUST OVER 16.2 TO ASSUME THE USE OF THAT SMALL AMOUNT OF REMAINING FUND BALANCE FROM THIS FISCAL YEAR. SO BREAKING THAT OUT INTO THOSE CATEGORIES, WE'RE EXPECTING 13.6 MILLION OF GENERAL FUND SUPPORT. SO YOU'LL NOTICE A MUCH SLOWER GROWTH. YOU KNOW, WE DIDN'T IN HAVE TO INCREASE IT THAT MUCH BECAUSE WE DID MAKE SUCH A BIG JUMP ALREADY IN TERMS OF GETTING EVERYONE'S SALARIES UP TO SPEED. SO WE WON'T SEE ANOTHER BIG INCREASE FOR A WHILE. WE'VE GOT 2.5 MILLION FOR INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AND THEN A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR PRIORITY INITIATIVES. SO BREAKING THAT OUT FOR A LITTLE MORE DETAIL, THE, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT PORTION IS IN THE LITTLE BAR THERE. SO WE'VE GOT ABOUT 2 MILLION GOING TO ROAD IMPROVEMENT. AND SO THOSE AGAIN, ARE THE LEASE REVENUE BONDS THAT ARE SUPPORTING MULTIPLE STREETS PROJECTS, 242,000 FOR COMMUNITY CENTER REPAIRS. SO THAT'S GOING TO BE MAINLY EXTERIOR REPAIRS, UH, TO FIX THE ROOF AND SOME OTHER PARTS OF THE EXTERIOR OF THE BUILDING. WE'VE HAD SOME WATER LEAKAGE THAT'S BEEN CAUSING PROBLEMS AND THEN ANOTHER $300,000, UH, TOWARDS TECHNOLOGY NEEDS. AND THEN FINALLY THE PRIORITY INITIATIVE IS ANOTHER A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS GOING INTO THE EMERGENCY POWER BACKUP, UM, PROJECT. AND AGAIN, THAT'S FOR CITY HALL AND POLICE HEADQUARTERS. SO LOOKING AT THE GENERAL FUND SUPPORT PIECE FOR FISCAL 25, WE'VE GOT A JUST A 6% INCREASE IN CONTRIBUTION. SO THAT'S A LOT CLOSER TO KIND OF WHAT WE'RE FORECASTING GOING FORWARD IN TERMS OF THE RATE OF GROWTH OF THE GENERAL FUND SUPPORT. UM, OUR GENERAL FUND COSTS DO CONTINUE TO INCREASE. WE ARE ALSO LOOKING AT ADDING SOME ADDITIONAL NEW POSITIONS IN VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS, UM, FOR FISCAL 25. SO THAT DOES CAUSE THE COST TO INCREASE A LITTLE BIT. UM, AND THEN FINALLY WE'RE JUST LOOKING AT OUR ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY. SO WE ARE COMMITTED TO TRANSPARENCY IN TERMS OF RELEASING DETAILS IN THE BUDGET WITH OUR AUDIT AND TO THE MEASURE YOU OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. WE DO HAVE ONGOING MONITORING OF THE FUND ACTIVITY AND WE BRING ADJUSTMENTS TO COUNCIL AS NEEDED. ANY FUNDING THAT WE PROGRAM FOR CIP PROJECTS DOES GET TRANSFERRED TO THE PROJECT 100% AND REMAIN IN THE PROJECT UNTIL COMPLETION. IF THERE'S ANY REMAINING FUNDS, THEY WOULD COME BACK TO THE MEASURE YOU FUND AT THE END OF PROJECT, YOU CAN ACCESS ALL FINANCIAL DATA IN OUR BUDGET OR OUR AFER, THAT'S OUR ANNUAL CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL REPORT. AND WE AT THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT ARE ALWAYS AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS OR CLARIFICATIONS. SO LOOKING FORWARD, WE WILL HAVE THE CITY COUNCIL BUDGET WORKSHOP IN MAY. THAT WILL BE ON MAY 20TH THIS YEAR. UM, THE CITY COUNCIL IS GOING TO ADOPT THE FISCAL 25 BUDGET IN JUNE, AND THEN THE FISCAL YEAR FOR 2025 BEGINS JULY 1ST. AND THEN OFFICIALLY THIS COMMITTEE WON'T MEET AGAIN UNTIL JANUARY OF 2025. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEW AND I WELCOME ANY COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK. DO, UH, ANY MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE HAVE QUESTIONS, ROSEMARY? YES. THANK YOU. UM, UH, IN GOING THROUGH THIS DOCUMENT, MAYBE I'LL START FROM THE BEGINNING. UM, ON PAGE 10, IT TALKS ABOUT A FUND BALANCE THAT IS NOT SPENT OR ENCUMBERED AT THE END OF THE YEAR AND OR REVENUE RECEIVED IN EXCESS GOES INTO THE FUND BALANCE AT THE END OF THE YEAR. AND IN THE 23 END OF YEAR, IT SAID SOMETHING BETTER THAN THAT. IT SAID FUNDS APPROPRIATED TO PROJECTS ARE ENCUMBERED FOR THAT PURPOSE. IS THAT FOR THE PROJECT? YES. SO ANYTHING THAT [00:20:01] GOES INTO A PROJECT STAYS IN THAT PROJECT. SO IN YOUR CHART WE MIGHT HAVE, WE MIGHT HAVE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT LANGUAGE, BUT YES, ONCE, ONCE WE'VE SENT MONEY INTO A PROJECT FOR MEASURE U, THAT MONEY STAYS IN THE PROJECT UNTIL THE PROJECT'S COMPLETED. SO, AND THEN FOR EXAMPLE, YOUR A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS IS, UM, ALWAYS GOING TO BE FOR EMERGENCY POWER BACKUP. CORRECT. AND SO THAT WILL GO IN AND THEN IF, YOU KNOW, DESIGN CO, IF BY THE END OF THE PROJECT THERE ARE REMAINING FUNDS, THEN WE LOOK AT HOW TO ALLOCATE THEM BACK TO THOSE ORIGINAL FUNDING SOURCES. COULD YOU ADD THAT SENTENCE FROM SURE. 23 TO 24? YEAH, I COULD DO THAT. SO THAT IT'S, IT KEEPS GOING FORWARD, I THINK, UM, MM-HMM, . AND THEN, UM, THE BUDGET ON PAGE 15, THE PRELIMINARY BUDGET. MM-HMM. . UM, THERE WAS A, A COUPLE OF GREAT CHARTS THAT YOU HAD AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. UM, ONE SHOWED LAST YEAR WHERE THERE WAS ABOUT 65% GOING TO THE GENERAL FUND AND 30% GOING TO, UM, INITIATIVES. AND THAT HAS GONE ON EACH YEAR, INCLUDING THIS YEAR, BUT THERE WAS 5 MILLION, MAYBE ALMOST $6 MILLION EXTRA IN THE BUDGET. 5.3 MILLION BALANCE THAT WE USE THIS YEAR. SO THE INCREASE, THAT LITTLE TINY INCREASE THAT YOU HAVE IN THE GENERAL FUND IS ACTUALLY HUGE. IT GOES FROM 60% UP TO LIKE 84. I THINK OUR GENTLEMAN, BEN MENTIONED THAT, AND THAT STILL IS A BIG CONCERN OF MINE AND MAYBE ACTUALLY YOU COULD HELP GINA. UM, IS THERE NOT PROJECTS CIP PROJECTS THAT MEET OUR CRITERIA THAT ARE FUNDED, THAT THE MONEY COULD COME, UM, THE MONEY FROM MEASURE U COULD GO THERE AND THE MONEY FROM THE GENERAL FUND ALLOTTED TO THE PROJECT COULD THEN JUST GO BACK INTO THE GENERAL FUND SO THAT IT, IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE ACTUALLY NOT SCOOPING ALL OF THE, UM, MEASURE YOU MONEY INTO THE SALARIES, BASICALLY. WELL, SAYING THAT WE'RE PUTTING INTO SALARIES IS JUST KIND OF ONE WAY OF LOOKING AT IT. SO I, I I PROVIDE, IT'S NOT THAT THE MEASURE YOU MONEY IS GOING 100% TO PEOPLE'S SALARIES. THAT'S JUST A NICE WAY TO LOOK AT IT TO SEE THE EQUIVALENCY AND THE IMPACT THAT THE MEASURE U HAS. AND ALSO SALARIES AND BENEFITS ARE OUR LARGEST EXPENSE BECAUSE WHAT WE DO IS PROVIDE SERVICES AND YOU CAN'T PROVIDE SERVICES WITHOUT PEOPLE. UM, CURRENTLY I DON'T BELIEVE WE HAVE ANY CIP PROJECTS AND THE 25 BUDGET THAT ARE GOING TO BE FUNDED THROUGH THE GENERAL FUND. UM, SO THERE ISN'T A WAY TO JUST DO A, A FLIP FLOP LIKE THAT. AND ALL OF THE PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE CURRENTLY BUDGETED ARE FULLY FUNDED FOR FISCAL 25. SO, UM, I KNOW GINA CAN SPEAK TO THAT A LOT MORE ELOQUENTLY THAN I CAN, BUT I THINK THE THING TO REMEMBER IS THAT IT'S NOT LIKE THE GENERAL FUND IS NOT THE USE FOR MEASURE U WHAT THE MOST OF WHAT THE FEEDBACK THAT CAME BACK IN THAT STUDY WAS SAYING THAT THE PEOPLE THAT THE THINGS THAT THE PEOPLE ARE PRIORITIZING ARE ALL GENERAL FUND ACTIVITIES. THESE ARE ALL THINGS THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE PAID OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND ARE DOING AND CAN DO BECAUSE WE'RE FUNDING THE GENERAL FUND WITH MEASURE U. SO THERE, IT'S, IT'S NOT LIKE IT GOES INTO A BLACK BOX OR A BLACK HOLE AND JUST GETS SPENT ON ANYTHING. WE'RE, WE'RE DOING ALL OF THESE ACTIVITIES THAT HAVE BEEN PRIORITIZED. IT'S JUST THAT IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO CARVE OUT CERTAIN PEOPLE OR CERTAIN ACTIVITIES AND HAVE THEM FUNCTION IN MEASURE U INSTEAD OF IN THE GENERAL FUND. AND, AND BRIAN, DID I EXPLAIN THAT WELL? LET ME KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD. . NO, I, I I THINK THAT'S RIGHT. I MEAN THERE, THERE IS SOMETIMES A PERCEPTION THAT, YOU KNOW, IF MONEY GOES INTO THE GENERAL FUND, IT'S JUST SORT OF GONE. LIKE IT'S SORT, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST THIS BIG AMORPHOUS THING THAT, YOU KNOW, IS A LITTLE HARD TO WRAP YOUR, YOUR ARMS AROUND. BUT I THINK WHAT JESSE SAID IS SPOT ON THAT, YOU KNOW, WHEN THE COMMUNITY PRIORITIES FOR MEASURE U, UM, THAT WERE ORIGINALLY ADOPTED, TALK ABOUT THINGS LIKE 24 7 EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS, UM, MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE CLEAN AND SAFE, UH, PUBLIC AREAS FOR FOLKS TO, TO VISIT AND PLAY. THOSE ARE, THOSE THINGS ALL ARE EXACTLY WHAT THE GENERAL FUND IS DOING. YOU KNOW, WHETHER WE'RE FUNDING, UM, POLICE AND FIREFIGHTERS, UH, FUNDING OUR PARKS AND REC PROGRAMS, UM, DOING SOME REALLY, UM, REALLY [00:25:01] INTERESTING AND NEW THINGS ON HOMELESSNESS THAT I THINK ARE REALLY HELPING TO ADDRESS OUR STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN TO END HOMELESSNESS. SO THERE'S A LOT HAPPENING IN THE GENERAL FUND AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, SO WHEN MEASURE U IS GOING TO THE GENERAL FUND, I THINK THE, THE POINT THAT WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE IS THAT IT IT IS ADDRESSING THOSE PRIORITIES THAT WERE, THAT WERE HIT ON IN THE ORIGINAL NINE OR HOWEVER MANY COMMUNITY PRIORITIES. UM, BUT, BUT I DO SEE THAT IF YOU'RE NOT KIND OF LOOKING AT THEM IN TANDEM, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT HERE'S WHAT MEASURE USE FUNDING AND HERE ARE ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING IN THE GENERAL FUND, IT CAN KIND OF HAVE THAT BLACK BOX SORT OF FEEL. UM, BUT THAT'S WHY I THINK LOOKING AT THE WHOLE BUDGET, UM, ONCE WE BRING THAT FORWARD TO THE PUBLIC AND TO TO COUNCIL IN MAY, UH, OF THIS YEAR IS IMPORTANT TO KIND OF GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF SOME OF THE KEY INITIATIVES THAT ARE HAPPENING WITH THE GENERAL FUND AND WITHIN THE DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE MOSTLY FUNDED BY THE GENERAL FUND, THE PRELIMINARY BUDGET FOR 24 25 SHOWS NOTHING FOR HOMELESSNESS OR, UM, YOU KNOW, DID THE SAFE PROJECT GO AWAY OR IF YOU ARE FUNDING IT THROUGH THE GENERAL FUND, WHY ISN'T IT LISTED HERE WITH THE DOLLARS AND THEN, YOU KNOW, TO REDUCE THAT 85% BACK TO 65%? WHY? WELL, HOMELESSNESS SPECIFICALLY CAN GET A LITTLE BIT COMPLICATED BECAUSE THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THAT ARE ALL KIND OF COMING TOGETHER IN THE STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN. THERE ARE A NUMBER THAT ARE FUNDED FROM THE GENERAL FUND. SOME ARE ACTUALLY FUNDED FROM OUR TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX, OUR, OUR HOTEL TAX. AND THEN WE HAVE BEEN PRETTY SUCCESSFUL IN GETTING STATE AND FEDERAL GRANTS TO FUND SOME HOMELESSNESS PROGRAMS. SO THAT'S KIND OF A MIXTURE OF DIFFERENT FUNDING SOURCES. BUT I THINK THE OVERALL POINT IS THAT THE CITY IS DOING A LOT AND WE ARE REALLY TRYING TO MOVE THOSE PROGRAMS FORWARD SO THAT WE'RE RESPONDING TO THE COMMUNITY NEEDS. UM, YOU, YOU, YOU'RE NOT SEEING SPECIFIC MEASURE U DOLLARS IN THOSE PROGRAMS. UH, BUT ONE THING THAT MEASURE U AND THE GENERAL FUND IS REALLY HELPING US WITH IS GRANT MATCHING. SO WE DO TYPICALLY HAVE TO KICK IN CITY FUNDS EVEN IF IT IS A FEDERALLY FUNDED GRANT. SO THAT'S A KEY PART OF MAKING SURE THAT THOSE PROGRAMS, UH, CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD. SO ANYTHING THAT WE ARE, IF IT'S NOT SPECIFICALLY OUTLINED IN MEASURE U, THEN IT IS IN THAT, THAT LARGER GENERAL FUND SUPPORT LINE, BECAUSE THAT'S FUNDING PIECES OF OUR HOUSING MANAGER AND OUR HOUSING SPECIALIST AS WELL AS SOME OF THE CONTRACT SERVICES LIKE DOWNTOWN STREET'S TEAM, LIKE THE SAFE TEAM THAT ARE ALL KICKING IN TO HELP, UH, HOMELESSNESS. AND PETALUMA. UH, I DID NOTICE IN YOUR BUDGET PREVIEW GOING FORWARD THAT THE MONEY ALL GOES TO THE GENERAL FUND IN THE FUTURE. AND UM, SO DO WE NEED AN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE? , IT'S JUST GOING TO GO THERE, I GUESS. OH, I DID HAVE A QUESTION TOO. UM, WHAT IS THE PS FORMULA FOR FOR NEW HIRE STAFF AND THE, THE POLICE IS USUALLY HIGHER, DO YOU KNOW? SO I BELIEVE BASIC NEW, YOU KNOW, REGULAR NON-SAFETY NEW HIRES COME IN UNDER PEPPER. SO THAT'S TWO AT 62. UM, I'D HAVE TO DOUBLE CHECK FOR, I THINK DOESN'T, ISN'T THERE A PUBLIC SAFETY PEPPER AS WELL? OR WE NOT ON THAT. I HAVEN'T LOOKED INTO IT HERE YET. 2.7 AT 57 THAT, YEAH, THAT SOUNDS RIGHT. THAT'S ABOUT IT NOW. YEAH, PUBLIC SAFETY WENT FROM 3% AT 50 TO TWO POINT SOMETHING AT 57. YEAH. THANK YOU. I, I BRIAN, I AND, AND UH, JESSE, I THINK WHAT THIS COMMITTEE'S CONCERN WITH A LOT OF IT IS, IS APPEARANCES. YEAH. BUT IT'S ALSO, IF YOU GO BACK TO SOME OF THE COMMENTS THAT WE RECEIVED VIA EMAIL, I THINK THIS COMMITTEE HAS ITS RESPONSIBILITY TO BE SURE THAT THE CITY COUNCIL SEES OUR MICRO VIEW OF WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THIS MEASURE YOU MONEY. THE COUNCIL TAKES A GREAT BIG GIANT MACRO VIEW FROM A THOUSAND FEET AND THEY SEE A BUDGET. WE ARE LOOKING AT MEASURE YOU MONEY. AND WHEN WE RESPOND TO THE COUNCIL ABOUT THIS MEETING THAT WE'VE DONE OUR JOB, WE HAVE NOT DONE OUR JOB. IF WE ARE NOT INFORMING THEM AND MAKING THEM LOOK AT WHERE THIS MEASUREMENT MONEY IS GOING AND WHAT THE PROJECTIONS ARE, THAT THIS EXTRA MONEY, SO TO SPEAK IS RUNNING OUT AND IT'S RUNNING OUT ABOUT WHERE SOME OF THE CRITICS THOUGHT IT WOULD RUN OUT, IT, YOU KNOW, IT'S FIVE YEARS [00:30:01] AND, UM, EXPENSES HAVE OUTSTRIPPED MEASURE USABILITY TO, UH, PROVIDE THE CITY WITH THESE EXTRA BENEFITS. SO WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, A STANDARD LETTER FROM A, FROM ONE OF YOUR OFFICES, I DON'T THINK IS SUFFICIENT. I DO THINK WITH YOUR HELP, WE NEED A LETTER SIGNED BY THE CHAIRPERSON. MM-HMM. TO THE MAYOR, TO THE CITY COUNCIL SPECIFICALLY OUTLYING WHAT WE SEE HAPPENING WITH MEASURE U FUNDS BECAUSE, UM, , THEY NEED TO BE AWARE OF WHERE, WHERE WE'RE GONNA BE IN FIVE YEARS FROM NOW, WHICH IS ANOTHER 1% GOING TO BE A VERY UNCOMFORTABLE POSITION WITH MESH PASSING, UNLESS THE, CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT UNLESS THE STATE CHANGES THE SALES TAX CAP, WE DON'T HAVE ANOTHER WAY TO RAISE MONEY UNLESS WE'RE GONNA GO AFTER PROPERTY TAXES. THAT'S CORRECT. AND SO I, OH, FORGET ABOUT THE MIC. SO I WILL SAY THAT WE WILL BE UPDATING OUR FORECASTS WITH THE INCLUSION OF MEASURE H. SO OUR LAST FORECAST WAS COMPLETED RIGHT BEFORE THAT PASSED. SO WE DO NEED TO FACTOR THAT IN, HOWEVER, MEASURE H WILL LIKELY BE SPENT ON THE NEW FIRE STATION THAT'S NEEDED AS WELL AS THE INCREASED STAFFING FOR THAT FIRE STATION THAT WE'LL HAVE TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, ONCE WE ADD A FIRE STATION, THAT'LL BE NINE NEW FIREFIGHTERS. UM, SO YEAH, WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO JUGGLE ALL OF THESE NEEDS, BUT WE DO NEED TO INCLUDE THAT IN THE FORECAST. AND WE DO BRING AN UPDATED FORECAST TO COUNCIL, UM, WHEN WE BRING THE BUDGET. SO AT THAT TIME THEY WILL HAVE AN UPDATED FORECAST THAT WILL SHOW WHERE MEASURE U IS GOING. UM, I COMPLETELY AGREE THAT WE CAN DRAFT A LETTER SO THAT YOU GUYS, YOU CAN STATE YOUR CONCERNS, BUT I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT WE DO, WE ARE LETTING COUNSEL KNOW AS WELL THROUGH OTHER MEANS THAT THE USAGE OF MEASURE U IS SHIFTING AS EXPENSES IN THE GENERAL FUND CONTINUE TO INCREASE. AND AGAIN, WITH ALL DUER RESPECT, I THINK A LETTER FROM THIS COMMITTEE ON NICE BRIGHT PINK CHART TRUTH PAPER SIGNED BY A, YOU KNOW, SIGNED BY A MEMBER OF THIS COMMITTEE. WE'LL STAND OUT AND WE'LL SHOW THAT WE'VE DONE OUR JOB AND THAT WE'RE NOT SPENDING OUR 45 MINUTES HERE JUST, UH, LOOKING GOOD SITTING AT THE DIAZ. I COMPLETELY AGREE. UH, WE COULD DEFINITELY WORK WITH YOU TO DRAFT THE LETTER AND GET IT TO COUNCIL. OKAY. AND I THINK WE MAY JUST TO KIND OF MEMORIALIZE THAT, WE MAY WANT A MOTION, I DON'T KNOW IF I'M BEING OVERLY FORMAL, LOOK AT ME, I DON DON'T, BUT A MOTION FROM THE COMMITTEE, UH, DELEGATING THE AUTHORITY TO WRITE THE LETTER TO THE CHAIR IF, IF YOU ALL ARE COMFORTABLE WITH THAT, UH, IN CONCERT WITH JESSE AND, AND OUR STAFF TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S SAYING WHAT YOU ALL WANT IT TO SAY VERSUS TRYING TO DRAFT A LETTER IN PUBLIC WITH ALL FOUR OF YOU. UM, WE, WE ALSO COULD DO A SUBCOMMITTEE, BUT JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THAT EXPEDITIOUS. YEAH. I'M INTERESTED IN HOW WOULD THAT WORK IF THE LETTER IS DRAFTED BY STAFF, THEN IT WOULD GO TO THE CHAIR. WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF US GETTING TO HAVE SOME REVIEW AND SAY OF IT? RIGHT? AND THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING IS A LITTLE COMPLICATED WITH A BROWN ACT BODY LIKE THIS. UM, SO YEAH, THERE MAYBE THREE OPTIONS. ONE IS THE, THE COMMITTEE DELEGATES THAT RESPONSIBILITY TO THE CHAIR AND THEN THE CHAIR CAN WORK DIRECTLY WITH CITY STAFF TO KIND OF GO BACK AND FORTH. MAKE SURE, ASSUMING THAT YOU ALL HAVE PROVIDED YOUR INPUT HERE IN A PUBLIC SETTING OF WHAT YOU'D LIKE TO, TO, TO KIND OF SEE IN THE LETTER, A DIFFERENT WAY TO DO IT WOULD BE TO, UH, APPOINT A SUBCOMMITTEE TONIGHT AND THEN THE SUBCOMMITTEE CAN KIND OF WORK OFFLINE WITH CITY STAFF. UM, THE THIRD OPTION IS KIND OF DOING IT IN A MEETING SETTING LIKE THIS, WHICH MAYBE IS NOT THE, YOU KNOW, IT'S A LITTLE BIT CLUNKY. SO THOSE ARE THREE DIFFERENT WAYS. CARRIE? YEAH, I JUST HAD A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I WANTED TO ASK. UM, WHEN WE MET IN JANUARY, DIDN'T WE DISCUSS GETTING A, A LITTLE MORE, UH, MORE DETAIL ON THE GENERAL FUND, THE BREAKDOWN? BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW YOU'RE HIRING FIREFIGHTERS, WE KNOW YOU'RE HIRING POLICE OFFICERS. WE, WE HAVE, BUT WE HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? I MEAN, CERTAINLY POLICE OFFICERS LEAVE THE AREA AND RETIRE TOO. I MEAN, WHAT IS OUR NET GAIN? WHAT ARE WE GAINING WITH ALL THIS EXTRA MONEY THAT WE'RE SPENDING? 'CAUSE WE, IT'S, AND WE TALKED ABOUT THAT LAST TIME, WE THOUGHT WE WERE GONNA GET MORE DETAIL ON THAT PIECE OF THE PIE AND WE HAVEN'T. OKAY. AND, AND JUST ONE MORE THING, I, AND BACK TO SUSAN KIRK'S CONCERNS, AND OF COURSE SHE SERVED ON THIS COMMITTEE FOR I DON'T KNOW HOW LONG, SO SHE KNOWS BETTER THAN THAN I DO. UM, I THINK SHE FELT [00:35:01] THAT THE COMMITTEE'S COMMUNICATION WITH THE CITY COUNCIL WAS TO BE OURS, NOT IN CONJUNCTION WITH STAFF. DOES THAT, DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? YEAH, THAT'S WHAT SHE WAS SAYING. YEAH. THAT RATHER THAN WE'RE NOT, NOT, NOT LIKE THE SIX OF US SITTING DOWN AND PUTTING A LETTER TOGETHER, BUT ARE PUTTING SOMETHING TOGETHER AND SHOWING, YOU KNOW, WHAT CONCERNS WE MIGHT HAVE. RIGHT. AND, AND I THINK THAT THAT SORT OF DRAFTING COULD ABSOLUTELY OCCUR BETWEEN THE CHAIR AND CITY STAFF TO TRY TO GET THE LETTER IN A FORMAT THAT THE CHAIR IS COMFORTABLE WITH. I'M JUST, I THINK WE'RE SENSITIVE TO, WE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE AND WE'RE NOT TR TRYING TO ASK THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO, TO DO WORK. UM, BUT THE OTHER VERY, UM, YOU KNOW, WE WANNA BE REALLY COGNIZANT OF BROWN ACT ISSUES. AND SO, UM, AS KIND OF AWKWARD AS IT IS, UH, THE, THE FOUR OF THE, ACTUALLY ALL FIVE OF YOU, INCLUDING TYLER, UM, ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HAVING OFFLINE CONVERSATIONS, KIND OF EXCHANGING IDEAS, WEIGHING IN ON, YOU KNOW, BACK AND FORTH ON A LETTER THAT WOULD CONSTITUTE AN IZED MEETING YEAH. UNDER THE BROWN ACT. SO WHAT ABOUT A AD HOC COMMITTEE? I'M SORRY, WHAT ABOUT AN AD HOC SUBCOMMITTEE? RIGHT, SO THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER OPTION, AN AD HOC COMMITTEE, WHICH WOULD BE NO MORE THAN TWO OF YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO HAVE SOME, UH, MEETINGS WITH STAFF TO BE ABLE TO DRAFT A LETTER. LET'S DO THAT. SO, UM, I, I ACTUALLY THOUGHT THAT MIGHT BE THE BEST IDEA. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S A, THAT'S A GOOD IDEA. UM, ARE THERE ANY COMMITTEE MEMBERS THAT WOULD WANT TO SERVE ON THAT AD HOC COMMITTEE? ROSEMARY, CARRIE, WOULD YOU? SURE. SO, UM, I DON'T KNOW IF WE NEED A MOTION, BUT, UH, OR IF IT'S APPROPRIATE FOR THE CHAIR TO MAKE THAT MOTION, BUT I WOULD MOVE THAT WE FORM AN AD HOC COMMITTEE OF ROSEMARY HART, CARRIE, UH, DAVISON TO, UM, MEET WITH CITY STAFF TO REVIEW AND APPROVE A LETTER TO THE CITY COUNCIL. WHAT ABOUT YOU? WHAT ABOUT INPUT FROM, WELL, I MEAN, IF WE DON'T MEET, DO YOU, CAN YOU GIVE US INPUT? WELL, UH, ONLY IN A, ONLY IN A PUBLIC FORUM LIKE THIS. ONLY RIGHT HERE. NOT, I, I THINK, UM, AND I, I'M THINKING THAT OUR WISHES ARE, MY WISHES ARE FAIRLY CLEAR THAT WE JUST MAKE SURE THAT THIS LETTER THAT WE SEND TO THE CITY COUNCIL SPECIFICALLY HIGHLIGHTS THE INCREASE IN THE USE OF MEASURE U FUNDS FOR NON PROJECTS. AND THAT THE CITY COUNCIL SHOULD BE AWARE OF THIS. I DON'T THINK IT NEEDS TO BE LENGTHY. I DON'T THINK IT NEEDS TO GO INTO ANY THAT MUCH DETAIL. IT NEEDS TO SPECIFICALLY SAY, YOU KNOW, YEAR ONE OF MEASURE U FUNDS ROUGH NUMBERS, WE USE 50% OF MEASURE U FUNDS FOR, UM, UM, TO BALANCE THE BUDGET. AND WE ARE NOW UP TO 84%. AND THE PROJECTION IS THAT MEASURE U FUNDS WILL BE 100% ABSORBED INTO THE GENERAL FUND BY THIS DATE. IT'S AN INFORMATIONAL LETTER. IT'S NOT TELLING THEM TO DO ANYTHING. IT'S NOT SUGGESTING THEY'VE DONE ANYTHING WRONG. IT IS OUR OBSERVATION AS MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE. AND THAT'S WHY HONESTLY, IF WE CAN FORM A COMMITTEE, I WOULD HAVE THE SUGGEST THAT THE TWO OF YOU SIGN IT AS COMMITTEE MEMBERS. THE CHAIR DOESN'T HAVE TO SIGN IT. THE TWO OF YOU CAN SIGN IT AFTER YOU'VE MET WITH CITY STAFF. AM I CLOSE? AND IT'S, IT'S, IT'S REQUIRED THAT WE DO THIS WITH CITY STAFF INSTEAD OF I CAN TALK TO CARRIE AND WRITE SOMETHING AND PRESENT IT. IS THAT CORRECT? WE NEED TO HAVE A CITY STAFF MEMBER. NO, I WAS, I, IT'S NOT NECESSARY. I WAS JUST THINKING IT WOULD BE HELPFUL IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE ANY, YOU KNOW, DOLLAR FIGURES OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT THAT'S PULLED IN, JUST THAT, THAT IT READS, THAT'S FACTUALLY CORRECT. AND IF WE CAN BE OF HELP TO GIVE YOU ANY NUMBERS OR, YOU KNOW, ANY WORDING THAT, THAT YOU'D NEED, THEN THAT'S JUST A, YOU KNOW, HELP THAT WE CAN OFFER. BUT IT DOES NOT HAVE TO INVOLVE CITY STAFF. YEAH. AND, AND THEN I GUESS MAYBE A QUESTION IS THE INTENT THAT THE LETTER WOULD BE KIND OF AN ATTACHMENT TO THE FISCAL 23 REPORT THAT WAS INCLUDED WITH THE PACKET? I, I GUESS I JUST WANNA SEE WHAT THE TRANSMITTAL MECHANISM IS THERE. YEAH. IS THAT OKAY? AND I THINK THAT'S RIGHT. OKAY. AND IT'S MOSTLY 24, 25. I'M CONCERNED WITH THE 23 WENT WAY OVER BUDGET, BUT WE HAD $5.4 MILLION EXTRA TO SPEND AND YOU WERE VERY HAPPY ABOUT YOUR NINE PROJECTS THAT WERE LISTED. AND NOW I SEE BASICALLY TWO, ONE REALLY ONE FOR A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS AND THAT JUST [00:40:01] DOESN'T THE, UH, AS WELL AS THE, UM, THE, THE CIP PROJECTS. SO WE DO HAVE THOSE, UM, WE'VE GOT THE BOND PAYMENTS AS WELL AS THE COMMUNITY CENTER. AND THERE WAS ONE OTHER PROJECT ON THERE. SO I, I BELIEVE THERE'S THREE PROJECTS PLUS THE DEBT SERVICE PAYMENT FOR OUR LEASE REVENUE BONDS. CAN, CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT A LITTLE MORE? I'D LIKE TO KNOW ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY IS REALLY GOING TO ROADS. THAT'S, THAT SEEMS TO BE A MAJOR ISSUE WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO VOTED THIS MEASURE TO PASS WAS BECAUSE OF OUR STREETS, AND NOW IT'S THE, THE PIECE OF THE PIE IS GETTING SMALLER. SO $20 MILLION IS GOING TO ROADS. WE, WE USED MEASURE U, UH, TO SECURE THESE, UH, $20 MILLION BOND ISSUANCE. SO, BUT THAT'S NOT MEASURE U MONEY. THE, THE 20 MILLION, THE 20, WELL THE 20 MILLION BONDS ARE BEING PAID BACK WITH MEASURE U MONEY. SO WE USE THE MEASURE U REVENUE TO SECURE THE BONDS, AND THEN WE'RE PAYING ANNUAL DEBT SERVICE ON THAT IN ORDER TO HAVE THAT $20 MILLION TO SPEND ON ROADS. OKAY. AND THAT WILL BE PAID OFF OVER 30 YEARS. 30 YEARS. THAT'S THE FUN OF IT. YEP. SO APPROXIMATELY HOW MUCH IS BEING SPENT OF THAT 20 MILLION EACH YEAR? SO GINA, DO YOU KNOW, IS THE QUESTION, WHAT IS THE ANNUAL DEBT SERVICE ON THE BONDS? OR IS THE QUESTION HOW MUCH OUT OF THE 20 MILLION HAS ALREADY BEEN SPENT ON ROAD PROJECTS? YEAH. UM, IT'S CONFUSING TO ME. MAYBE, MAYBE I'M JUST NOT GETTING IT. BUT, UM, WHEN YOU SEE HOW MUCH IS SPENT ON, ON ROAD IMPROVEMENTS IS, IS THAT DEBT SERVICE AND WHAT, AND THEN OF THE, SO THAT, ARE WE NOT SPENDING ANY OUT OF MEASURE U BECAUSE IT'S ALL COMING OUT OF THE 20 MILLION. SO YEAH, SO BASICALLY WE USED MEASURE U TO GET $20 MILLION OF FUNDING. YEAH, WE'RE DOING PROJECTS, $20 MILLION OF ROADS PROJECTS OUT OF THAT $20 MILLION OF BOND FUNDING. AND THEN WE'RE BASICALLY PAYING FOR THAT 20 MILLION OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS WITH MEASURE U DOLLARS. SO IT'S, IT'S A LITTLE FUNKY, BUT WE COULDN'T HAVE GOTTEN THIS 20 MILLION WITHOUT MEASURE U, BUT WE'RE NOT USING MEASURE U TO DIRECTLY PAY THAT 20 MILLION AND DO PROJECTS THAT MEASURE U MONEY DOESN'T PAY THE CONTRACTOR. YEAH. THE MEASURE YOU PAYS THE BOND HOLDER AND THE BOND MONEY, WHICH IS SITTING IN A POOL IS DRAWN AS A PROJECT, AS A PROJECT GETS FINISHED OR GETS STARTED. AND I BELIEVE WE'RE USING A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THAT OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. IS THAT RIGHT, GINA? DO YOU KNOW OFFHAND? I CAN ASK THE, THIS THING'S REALLY TALL. THERE WE GO. UM, WE HAVE SPENT QUITE A BIT OF THAT 20 MILLION ALREADY. AND UM, I THINK, UH, I DON'T HAVE THE NUMBERS IN FRONT OF ME, BUT I'M HAPPY TO PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION. UH, IS THAT, THAT PRIMARILY NORTH MCDOWELL? UM, THAT WAS A, THAT WAS A GOOD CHUNK OF IT, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER PROJECTS THAT WE, I JUST NOTICED MARIA DRIVE IS ABOUT TO START. YEAH. YEP. SO THERE, THERE'S SEVERAL ROAD PROJECTS, SOME COMPLETED, SOME, UH, STILL COMING UP AND UM, YEAH, I'D BE HAPPY TO HELP. YEAH, WE CAN PULL THAT INFORMATION TOGETHER AND SEND IT OUT TO Y'ALL. THAT'D BE GOOD. MM-HMM, , THANK YOU. AND, AND NOT TO, NOT TO COMPLICATE THE ISSUE, BUT, UM, SOMEBODY EARLIER MENTIONED MEASURE H AND KIND OF THE FUTURE FIRE STATION FUNDING. AND I DID JUST WANNA MENTION AS WELL THAT YES, WE ARE STILL PLANNING AND, AND I THINK THAT'S DEFINITELY IN THE NEXT, SAY 12 TO 18 MONTHS TO DO A SECOND BOND ISSUANCE WITH MEASURE U MONEY. AND A PORTION OF THAT WOULD FUND THE FIRE OR IT WOULD GO TOWARD THE FIRE STATION AND A PORTION WOULD ALSO FUND ADDITIONAL NEW ROAD PROJECTS, NEW, UH, PAVEMENT PROJECTS. SO THAT IS STILL IN THE PLANS. AND, AND IT, IT, YOU, YOU WILL PROBABLY SEEING IT BE SEEING IT OVER THE NEXT ONE TO TWO YEARS. NOW THAT ASIDE MEASURE H THE FIRE TAX ALSO IS FUNDING NEW FACILITIES AND THE FIRE STATION. SO IT'S KIND OF TWO DIFFERENT TAX MEASURES COMING TOGETHER TO MAKE A HUGE DENT IN OUR, UH, DEFICIT THAT WE HAVE FOR FIRE STATION AND, UH, FIRE FACILITIES. I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU WERE SAYING INITIALLY THAT, UM, A A REISSUANCE OF THE MEASURE U BOND, IT WOULD BE A NEW $20 MILLION BOND ISSUANCE. OH, OKAY. YEP. IT WOULD BE A SECOND ISSUANCE OF, OF BONDS SECURED BY MEASURE U. YEP. THAT WOULD GO TO BOTH FIRE STATION AND ROADS. OKAY. OKAY. SO TO PERHAPS TO SUM UP, UM, UM, CARRIE AND ROSEMARY COULD MEET TOGETHER. [00:45:01] THEY COULD PUT TOGETHER A DRAFT LETTER, EMAIL IT TO YOU FOR WITH THEIR THOUGHTS, YOU COULD COME BACK TO THEM MM-HMM. AND THEN MEET FOR A FINAL, FINAL DRAFT. AND THEN I'M PERFECTLY COMFORTABLE HAVING THEIR SIGNATURES AS MEMBERS OF THE MEASURE U COMMITTEE ON THE SIGNATURE ON THE, UH, AS A SIGNATURE. IT DOESN'T, DOESN'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO BE THE CHAIR. YEAH. AND SO I, I'M PERFECTLY HAPPY HAVING THE COMMITTEE PUT OUR, UM, OUR THOUGHTS THROUGH THE TWO COMMITTEE MEMBERS. UH, IS THAT SUFFICIENT TO EVERYONE? YEAH, THAT WORKS FOR ME. OKAY. SO I THINK THIS DOES, SORRY, JUST COULD I ADD ONE LAST COMMENT BEFORE I SIT DOWN ON CIP DOLLARS AND MEASURE YOU? I WANTED TO POINT OUT, I DON'T KNOW IF ANY OF YOU HAVE HAD THE COURAGE TO DIVE INTO THE ADOPTED BUDGET DOCUMENT, BUT IT, IT IS ONLINE IT, AND THE LATTER THIRD OF THAT DOCUMENT IS THE CIP BUDGET. AND IT'S VERY TRANSPARENT. THERE'S LINE ITEMS THAT SHOW MEASURE YOU GENERAL FUND DOLLARS AND, AND WHERE THEY'RE BEING SPENT, AS WELL AS MEASURE YOU BOND DOLLARS AND WHERE THEY'RE BEING SPENT. AND YOU CAN SEE PROJECT BY PROJECT, YOU COULD SEE EVEN BY CATEGORY AND, AND IT, SO, UH, UH, I'M HAPPY TO WALK ANYONE THROUGH THAT LATER THAT IF, IF YOU WANNA REACH OUT AND I, AND, BUT IT'S THERE. YOU HAVE TO DIG A LITTLE BIT GRANTED, AND, AND WE WILL STILL PROVIDE YOU A SUMMARY THAT I THINK WILL BE VERY HELPFUL, BUT I WANTED TO MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTOOD THAT WE ARE VERY TRANSPARENT ABOUT THAT AND, AND IT IS ALL THERE, SO, OKAY. THANKS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO I THINK WHAT WE'VE DONE IS WE'VE ANSWERED MANY OF OUR OWN CONCERNS, UM, ABOUT WHAT WE SEE AS, UH, A RAPID DECLINE OF DISCRETIONARY SPENDING WITH MEASURE U DOLLARS. WE'VE ANSWERED, UM, PUBLIC COMMENT AS NOT TO JUST TAKE A STAFF REPORT TO THE COUNCIL. WE'VE APPOINTED A A COMMITTEE TO WRITE THAT LETTER. AND SO I THINK WE'VE GOTTEN QUITE A BIT ACCOMPLISHED. UM, ARE THERE ANY OTHER COMMENTS BEFORE WE APPROVE THE MINUTES OF OUR JANUARY 31ST MEETING? MR. CHAIR? DO WE WANT TO, UH, HAVE A MOTION TO FORMALIZE THE APPOINTMENT OF THE SUBCOMMITTEE? I THINK IT MAY JUST BE CLEANER FOR THE RECORD. I'LL MAKE THE MOTION. WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPOINT A SUBCOMMITTEE. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SO I'LL SECOND IT. UH, SECOND IT BY, UM, COMMITTEE MEMBER DAVISON. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. ANY OPPOSED? SO THE MOTION PASSES. THANK YOU. AND WHEN SHOULD, WHEN SHOULD WE HAVE THIS LETTER? WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE IT TO, WHEN SHOULD WE HAVE THIS READY FOR THE COUNCIL OR FOR, FOR YOU TO REVIEW AND TO, FOR THE COUNCIL? I THINK THAT'S TOTALLY UP TO THE AVAILABILITY OF THE SUBCOMMITTEE TO, TO MEET AND, AND DISCUSS. UM, IF, I BELIEVE I HEARD THE PLAN WAS TO ATTACH IT TO THE MOST RECENT ANNUAL REPORT, UH, THAT WE HAVE POSTED ONLINE. THAT'S KIND OF THE WRAP UP OF THE FISCAL 23 YEAR. AND SO WE CAN JUST ADD THAT KIND OF RIGHT ON TOP OF, OF THE REPORT THAT'S ALREADY OUT THERE, UH, AND THEN RE NOTIFY THE COUNCIL THAT THAT LETTER'S BEEN UPLOADED. AND WHAT IS THE DATE THAT THAT'S GOING OUT TO COUNCIL? THAT'S ALREADY BEEN POSTED, HASN'T IT, JESSE? YEAH, IT'S THE PAST. OKAY. AND THEN WE DID, I, I KNOW I INCLUDED IN THE, IN THE GIANT EMAIL THAT I SENT TO THE COMMITTEE A FEW WEEKS AGO, BUT IT, THERE WAS A LINK IN THERE FOR THE, UM, THE NOTIFICATION THAT WENT OUT TO OUR BIG EMAIL BLAST THAT HAS OVER 20,000 RECIPIENTS. SO WE DID PUT SOME GOOD SPOTLIGHT ON, ON THE REPORT. UH, AND THEN WE CAN INCLUDE THE LETTER WITH THAT LINK SO THAT IF ANYBODY OPENS THE REPORT TO READ IT, THEY'LL ALSO HAVE YOUR COMMUNICATIONS ALONGSIDE OF IT. THE COUNCIL WILL BE APPROVING THE BUDGET OR AT LEAST LOOKING AT THE BUDGET, CORRECT. UM, OVER IN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO. CORRECT. YEAH, SO WE'RE, BECAUSE IT'S, I'M SO SORRY. SORRY. IT'S THE 24TH, 25, UM, FISCAL YEAR. I HAVE MOST CONCERN, BUT CORRECT. SO WE'LL BE PRESENTING THAT BUDGET TO COUNCIL ON MAY 6TH. THAT'S JUST A QUICK TRANSMITTAL, AND THEN WE'LL HAVE OUR FULL BUDGET WORKSHOP ON MAY 20TH. SO THAT MEETING WILL ACTUALLY START AT 5:00 PM WE'RE GONNA DO AN EARLY MEETING SO WE HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO TALK ABOUT EVERYTHING. UM, SO YEAH, I WOULD SAY IF YOU WANTED TO GET THE LETTER OUT PRIOR TO THE BUDGET WORKSHOP, UM, SO THAT IS PART OF THOSE DISCUSSIONS AND, AND ON THEIR MINDS, THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE GOOD TIMING. THANK YOU. OKAY. UM, CAN [APPROVAL OF MINUTES] I HAVE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE JANUARY 31ST MEETING? I'LL MOVE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE JANUARY 31ST MEETING AND A SECOND. ROSEMARY, [00:50:01] I THIS SECOND. OKAY. ANY DISCUSSION? NO. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE THAT MOTION PASSES? UH, ANY FURTHER COMMITTEE COMMENT? I, NO, NOTHING STAFF OFF . UM, WE, UH, ARE ADJOURNED THEN. THANK YOU. 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.