* 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.
          ALRIGHT, 
          [00:00:02]
UH, I'LL CALL TO ORDER. 
          THIS MEETING OF 
          [ CITY OF BAYTOWN 			 			NOTICE OF MEETING 			 		 		 		 		 		 		 		 		 			 			  			       BAYTOWN FINANCE COMMITTEE 			       THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2024 			4:00 P.M. 			       BAYTOWN CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL 			       2401 MARKET STREET, BAYTOWN, TEXAS 77520 			   			 AGENDA 			   			       CALL TO ORDER AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM 			 		 	  ]
THE BAYTOWN FINANCE COMMITTEE IS THURSDAY, MAY 23RD AT 4 0 3. 
          WE'RE IN THE BAYTOWN CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL, AND WE DO HAVE A QUORUM. 
          SO, ITEM ONE IS CITIZEN COMMENTS. 
          DO WE HAVE SIGNED ANY? MIKE YOU WANNA SAY ANYTHING AT ALL? DELIGHT TO BE HERE AND I'M APPRECIATIVE. 
          . 
          THANKS. 
          POSITIVE ATTITUDE, MIKE. 
          APPRECIATE THAT. 
          GET IT WITHIN YOUR MINUTES. 
          THAT WAS GOOD. 
          ALRIGHT, ITEM TWO A 
          [a.  Consider the approval of minutes for the Finance Committee meeting held March 7, 2024.]
IS, UH, CONSIDER THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR THE FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING HELD MARCH 7TH, 2024. 
          DO I HAVE A MOTION? MOTION TO APPROVE. 
          SECOND. 
          I HAVE A MOTION A SECOND. 
          ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          DOESN'T LEAVE ANYONE TO A VOTE. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM THREE. 
          [a.  Receive the City of Baytown's Quarterly Financial and Investment Reports for the Quarter Ending March 31, 2024.]
A COURSE THAT'S RECEIVED. 
          THE CITY OF BAY TOWN'S QUARTERLY FINANCIAL INVESTMENT REPORTS FOR THE QUARTER ENDING MARCH 31ST OF 24TH. 
          OKAY. 
          I'LL TRY TO KEEP IT, UH, BRIEF 'CAUSE WE HAVE A LOT TO TALK ABOUT TODAY. 
          UM, THE GENERAL FUND HAS A HEALTHY FUND BALANCE OF 72 MILLION. 
          WE'VE RECEIVED 83% OF OUR REVENUE. 
          UM, AND WE'VE SPENT 47% OF OUR EXPENDITURES SO FAR, LEAVING SECOND, SORRY. 
          AND THEN NOW OUR HOTEL ADVOCACY TAX, UM, FUND BALANCE IS $2.9 MILLION. 
          UM, WE'RE NOT ON TARGET WITH OUR HOTEL TAX. 
          UM, THE AUDIT WILL BE COMPLETE NEXT WEEK. 
          UM, THE PRELIMINARY NUMBERS ARE SHOWING WE'RE ONLY SHORT THOUGH, 122,000 ON THE ITEM. 
          UM, SO WE'LL BE PURSUING THOSE FUNDS. 
          UM, THE WATER AND SEWER FUND IS ON TARGET WITH 28.5 MILLION IN REVENUE. 
          52% OF OUR BUDGET AND OUR EXPENDITURES AT 48%, UM, ARE WITH A STRONG FUND BALANCE OF 12.8. 
          SANITATION HAS A NEGATIVE WORKING CAPITAL OF 540,000. 
          UM, OUR REVENUES ARE 3.5, WHICH IS 46% EXPENDITURES, 3.6 MILLION. 
          SO IT'S A SLIGHTLY OVER BY A HUNDRED THOUSAND SO FAR STORMWATER. 
          UM, WE ARE STILL, UM, IN A NEGATIVE WORKING CAPITAL BALANCE OF $2 MILLION. 
          HOWEVER, WE DISCOVERED THAT THAT PROBABLY WILL BE CORRECTED WITH THE DEBT ISSUANCE BECAUSE THAT 4 MILLION THAT WE PAID OUT TO HARRIS COUNTY IS IN THE DEBT INSURANCE THAT WE ARE, WE'RE DOING. 
          UM, WHEN WE'RE SELLING THE BONDS NEXT WEEK. 
          UM, THE AQUATICS, UM, IS STILL A NEGATIVE WORKING CAPITAL. 
          OF COURSE, WE KNOW BECAUSE, UM, THE SUMMER HOUR, UH, THE SUMMERTIME IS NOT HERE, WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT THE REVENUE, WE'LL FIX THAT. 
          UH, NEGATIVE BALANCE OF 786,000. 
          UM, THE STREETS HAS A FAVORABLE FUND BALANCE OF 7.6 MILLION WITH 43% OF THE BUDGET IN REVENUE AND 24%, UM, IN EXPENDITURE SPENT EXCEEDING THE, UH, BY 300,000 IN REVENUE. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE 53 MILLION IN UNSPENT UNSPENT BOND POLICY, WHICH IS AT THE END OF THE PA. 
          UM, THE FINANCIALS YOU HAVE THERE. 
          UM, AND OUR INVESTMENTS BOOK VALUE IS 28 21, 20 8 MILLION, TWO 81 MILLION. 
          AND OUR INVESTMENT EARNINGS IS 3.2. 
          I JUST WANNA MAKE A COMMENT THAT AT HGAC THIS WEEK, THE GO GAVE MILLION AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN DRAINAGE AND WATER IMPROVEMENT. 
          SO I KNOW THAT WE KEEP A CLOSE EYE ON THAT, YOU KNOW, ON ANY TYPE OF, UM, GRANT FUNDING AND STUFF. 
          SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE CONTINUING TO KEEP IT, KEEP AN EYE WHERE NO, HE'S LOOKING OUR EXPENSES. 
          THE UN IS RIGHT HERE. 
          BUT YOU WANT TO SEE THE DETAIL IS YEAH, DETAIL. 
          DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THIS IS. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          YOU DIDN'T STAB IT. 
          OH NO, I, I DID. 
          I I DIDN'T, I SAID THE WRONG THING. 
          I THOUGHT I WAS, PAUSE TO MAKE SURE Y'ALL KNEW. 
          SO, STATE 1 0 4, Y'ALL HAD ASKED TO SEE SPECIFICALLY WHICH BOND FUNDS HAVE BEEN SPENT OR NOT BEEN SPENT, UM, IN, IN PREPARATION TO TALK ABOUT DEBT INSURANCE, WHICH, WE'LL, IT'S AT THE VERY END. 
          SO IT'S JUST THE LONG INVESTMENT REPORT, RIGHT. 
          PAST THE INVESTMENT REPORT. 
          HOW DO WE, SO ON LIKE 2017, WE HAVE 2017 COS UM, UH, IT LOOKS LIKE THREE OF BLUEGILL BAY 
          [00:05:01]
ANGELFISH FAIRWAY DRIVE AND BE DRIVE, HAVE A BALANCE IN THE PROJECT. 
          BUT I MEAN, THOSE ARE DONE, THEY'RE ABOUT BE CLOSED OUT AND WE HAVE UMS AGAINST THEM. 
          SO ONCE WE MAKE A RELEASE, THE RETAINAGE, SOME OF THIS AND SPENT CALL, OKAY. 
          UM, WE, WHAT'S ENCUMBRANCE? WHAT PUT DOWN? OH, IS THAT WHAT THE REMAINING, THAT'S THE REMAINING CASH? NO. 
          OKAY. 
          THAT'S IT. 
          SO THE, WE COUNT IT AS ENCUMBRANCE, BUT THE BOND COUNCIL DOES NOT SEE IT THE SAME WAY THAT WE, THEY'RE LIKE, HEY, YOU MAY HAVE IT ENCUMBERED, BUT IT HASN'T BEEN PAID. 
          OKAY. 
          SO THE REMAINING CASH IS TRUE WHAT WE HAVE LEFT TO SPEND OUT OF THE BOND FUND, BUT HE WAS ASKING ABOUT FAIRWAY AND VALE. 
          THOSE WILL BE CLOSED. 
          AND THE RETAIN, ONCE THE RETAIN JURY'S RELEASED, THAT'LL USE UP MOST OF THIS. 
          AND I THINK THAT'LL PRETTY MUCH SPEND THOSE ONE OUT. 
          SO THE 53.4 IS WHAT WE HAVE LEFT OVER, WHAT WE HAVE LEFT TO SPEND THE REMAINING RIGHT. 
          THAT'S TOTAL. 
          SO YEAH. 
          ON ALL EACH OF THE FUNDS, THE DIFFERENCE AND YOU KNOW, THERE'S KIND OF A STORY WITH EACH PROJECT. 
          OKAY. 
          RIGHT. 
          SO THAT'S WHY WE, SO THE FIRST PAGE, PAGE ONE IS 2017, PAGE TWO IS 2019, PAGE THREE IS 2020, PAGE 4 1 22. 
          AND THE LAST ONE IS, UH, YEAH, 2022. 
          I THINK TWO THIRDS OF THE WAY THROUGH. 
          YEAH. 
          BLUE. 
          OKAY. 
          SO IN BLUE BE ON THE, IT'S IN CONSTRUCTION. 
          OH, OKAY. 
          UM, THAT'S IN BAY OAKS HARBOR LUTHER STREET. 
          SO MIKE, THAT IS TWO THIRDS. 
          SO WE COMPLETE, OKAY. 
          SO JUST FOR MY, UH, EDUCATION HERE, I MEAN IF WE, IF WE NEED TO FINISH THAT THIRD AND RUN OUTTA MONEY, WE WOULD JUST HAVE TO RUN THAT FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE IN GENERAL FUND. 
          BUT IF WE WERE TO GET TO THE END OF THE PROJECT TO HAVE ENOUGH TO FINISH THE TRUCK, I BELIEVE FAIRWAY AND SEVILLE'S GONNA LEAVE SOME MONEY. 
          OKAY. 
          THEY CAN BE MOVED OVER THAT, YOU KNOW, EVEN AFTER WE PAY THE RETAINAGE, IT WILL HAVE MONEY TO FINISH OUT BLUE BILL AND ANGEL FISH. 
          OKAY. 
          SO I, I DON'T FORESEE ANY ISSUES WITH, AND IF WE GET TO THE END OF THIS, ALL OF THESE PROJECTS ARE DONE AND THERE'S MONEY LEFT OVER, WHAT HAPPENS WITH THAT? WE JUST GET TO KEEP IT, SIR. 
          OKAY. 
          WE USE IT FOR ANOTHER PROJECT. 
          BE PUSHED FORWARD TO A PROJECT THAT'S WITHIN SCOPE. 
          YOU CAN USE IT. 
          SCOPE ANOTHER PROJECT. 
          THAT'S WHAT THAT'S WHAT I WAS ASKING. 
          'CAUSE I MEAN IT HAS TO BE THE SCOPE OF THE OFFERING STATEMENT, THE PRELIMINARY, OFFICIAL STATEMENT THAT WENT OUT WITH IT. 
          SO HAS TO BE ANOTHER ROAD OR STRUCTURE, SIMILAR FACILITIES OR PRODUCTS. 
          OKAY. 
          BUT THE, THE OTHER QUESTION THAT Y'ALL ASKED WITH THIS IS WHY DO WE STILL HAVE CASH FROM SEVEN YEARS AGO? THAT WAS ONE OF Y'ALL'S QUESTIONS TO US IS WHY WE SELL CASH FOR SEVEN YEARS AGO. 
          HOW COME WE'RE NOT SPENDING IT WITHIN THE THREE YEARS THAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE SPENDING IT? THAT'S THE CONVERSATION I GUESS AT THIS POINT. 
          YEAH. 
          SO I BROUGHT THAT UP AT CAP. 
          RIGHT. 
          SO THAT, I WOULD SAY IN GENERAL IT'S BECAUSE WE HAVE, UH, ISSUED THE DEBT FOR ALL THE COSTS OF THE PROJECT BEFORE WE START THE PROJECT. 
          SO DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION COSTS OF EVERYTHING WAS PRETTY MUCH ISSUED AT THE BEGINNING. 
          AND THEN WE START DESIGN AND THEN, UH, FINISH DESIGN, START CONSTRUCTION. 
          THE DESIGN PROCESS USUALLY TAKES A YEAR OR SO. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, THEN, THEN THE CONSTRUCTION PROCESS CAN TAKE A UM, IF THERE'S ANY DELAY. 
          WELL, AND IF YOU THROW IN RIGHT AWAY ACQUISITION THAT CAN ADD A YEAR TO 18 MONTHS INTO IT. 
          SO, UM, I THINK, AND, AND WE HAVE THE REQUIREMENT TO, YOU KNOW, HAVE THE MONEY IN THE BANK BEFORE WE BRING A COUNCIL ITEM FOR APPROPRIATION. 
          SO LIKE WE HAVE TO GET THE DEBT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN'T DO A PROJECT AND SAY, OH WE'LL ISSUE THE DEBT LATER. 
          NO. 
          WHEN WE BRING UH, UH, AN ITEM FOR COUNCIL TO APPROVAL, WE HAVE TO HAVE THE MONEY. 
          YOU CAN'T APPROPRIATE, WE DON'T HAVE THE MONEY. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? YES. 
          AND WE DID TALK TO THE BOND COUNCIL ABOUT PHASING IN UM, US PROJECT SO THAT WE'RE NOT REQUESTING A FULL AMOUNT UPFRONT. 
          RIGHT. 
          WE NEED, WE NEED TO JUST AS WE DID WITH LIKE FIRE STATION TWO THAT WE'RE DOING, WE JUST GOT YEAH. 
          24 FOR THE DESIGN PORTION AND THEN NEXT YEAR WE GO TO CONSTRUCTION. 
          WE HAVE THE DEBT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION NEXT YEAR. 
          OKAY. 
          SO IT BETTER MATCHES WITH THE, WE CAN SPEND IT IN A MORE TIMELY 
          [00:10:01]
BASIS. 
          IS THAT A, I MEAN IS THAT SOMETHING WE'RE ALWAYS GONNA DO GOING FORWARD? DO WE NEED TO CHANGE ANY POLICIES OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT, I MEAN IT'S HAPPENING NOW. 
          WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THAT IN THIS. 
          OKAY. 
          WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT LIKE POLICY DISCUSSIONS THAT START TODAY BECAUSE HOW Y'ALL GET DIRECTION ON SOME OF THE POLICY IS GONNA HELP DEFINE SOME OF THIS. 
          LIKE IF YOU'RE WILLING FOR US TO, TO HAVE MONEY SITTING OUT FOR SEVEN YEARS, THEN PLEASE KNOW WE CAN DO THAT UP FRONT. 
          IT MAKES IT QUICKER FOR PUBLIC WORKS 'CAUSE THE MONEY'S ALREADY THERE. 
          OTHER SIDE OF THE, THERE IS, IF WE START DESIGNING A PROJECT, WE HAVE TO KNOW THAT'S GONNA SUPPORT ISSUING DEBT FOR CONSTRUCTION. 
          'CAUSE WE DON'T, WE DON'T WANT TO, YOU KNOW, GET TO THE END OF DESIGN. 
          SAY WE DON'T HAVE, THERE'S NO MONEY. 
          YEAH. 
          ACTUALLY WHEN WE GO INTO PARTNERSHIP WITH, UH, OTHER ENTITIES ON PROJECTS SUCH AS LIKE MARKET STREET, WE HAVE, WE HAVE A CONTRIBUTION THAT WE HAVE TO, WE'VE COMMITTED TO UM, YOU KNOW, HARRIS COUNTY IS DESIGNING THIS ROAD AND THEY'RE GONNA ASK FOR THEIR MONEY WHEN IT'S BID. 
          AND IF WE HAVE AN ISSUE, THE DEBT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT GONNA HAVE THE MONEY. 
          SO, UM, WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT OUR COMMITMENTS WITH OTHER ENTITIES AS WELL. 
          BUT THAT ALSO TRANSFERS INTO THE LARGER DISCUSSION ON DO Y'ALL WANT ONLY GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS OR DO YOU WANT CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATIONS? 'CAUSE THAT'S A BIGGER PIECE, RIGHT? LIKE IF WE DO COS FOR THE DESIGN SO WE CAN GET THE, THE DESIGN GOING UNDERWAY, BUT THEN A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND FAILS, THEN I MEAN THEN WHAT ARE WE DOING AT THAT POINT? AND SO WE HAVE TO LIKE REALLY COME UP WITH A, A PLAN, JUST A WORKING POLICY. 
          YES, YOU CAN VARY FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT OVERALL A POLICY THAT CAN, THAT THINGS CAN BE BUILT ON, WHICH WE'LL TALK ABOUT SHORTLY. 
          YEAH. 
          I ALSO BROUGHT THE UM, THE DEBT POLICY BECAUSE I AM WORKING WITH UM, HILLTOP AND BOND COUNSEL ON REVISING SOME OF IT. 
          SO WE NEED TO HAVE THOSE DISCUSSIONS TO TALK ABOUT WHAT NEEDS TO BE ADDED OR WHAT BASED ON THE RESPONSE YOU GIVE TO JASON AND WHAT WE CAN PUT IN THERE THAT YOU MAY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THE REPORT ITSELF. 
          I THINK WE'RE GONNA CIRCLE BACK TO OTHER POLICY BUT I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THE REPORT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, THEY DID COME TO MIND AND UM, I FEEL LIKE I TRUST THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING EVERYTHING THAT YOU NEED TO DO TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE EITHER A FUNDING IN PLACE, FUNDING MECHANISM MECHANISM OR A ROUTE TO GET FUNDING FOR SOME OF THESE PROJECTS. 
          AND I GUESS I WANNA UNDERSTAND YOUR POSITION, UM, AS WELL. 
          UM, JACOB WHERE UM, HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT COS AND YOU SAID, YOU KNOW, UM, I FEEL THAT THERE'S OTHER FUNDING THAT WE CAN SOURCE INSTEAD OF A CO, BUT IF WE HAVEN'T FOUND THAT FUNDING AND IF THEY HAVE DONE THEIR DUE DILIGENCE IN SECURING THE BEST ROUTE TO DO THESE PROJECTS, THEN WHAT ARE WE MISSING LIKE AT, AT, IF THERE'S A GAP OR IF THERE'S SOME OTHER PROCESS WE NEED TO TAKE. 
          BECAUSE JUST LIKE I DID A GIVE AND TAKE WITH MIKE, I WANNA DO A GIVE AND TAKE WITH YOU AS WELL IN, IN TERMS OF UNDERSTANDING YOUR POSITION REGARDING, YOU KNOW, YOUR COS THE STANCE THAT YOU HAVE ON COS. 
          BUT IF THEY'VE DONE THEIR DUE DILIGENCE THEN I FEEL LIKE IF WE'RE CONTINUING TO JUST BLOCK COS IS THAT COUNTERPRODUCTIVE? UM, YEAH, I MEAN MY POSITION ON IS I WOULD JUST LIKE TO MOVE TO GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS. 
          RIGHT? UM, I MEAN YOU CAN, YOU CAN, YOU CAN, WE CAN HAVE AN ELECTION ON THOSE AND SHOW A FIVE YEAR PLAN MM-HMM . 
          AND YOU CAN, WE CAN TAKE THAT DEBT OUT OVER FIVE, I THINK UP TO SEVEN YEARS. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? ON A GENERAL OBLIGATION AND IT CAN BE ISSUED UP TO SEVEN YEARS AUTHORIZED. 
          YOU MEAN YOU COULD AUTHORIZE A CERTAIN AMOUNT AND THEN ONLY ISSUE WHAT YOU NEED GOING FORWARD. 
          SO WE COULD, IT'S DIFFERENT THOUGH BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S SPECIFIC LIKE THESE, YOU CAN KIND OF MOVE IT WITHIN BACK AND FORTH, BUT WITH THE GENERAL OBLIGATION, IT'S SPECIFICALLY FOR THAT ONE THING AND THAT'S IT ONLY, THERE'S NO MOVING 'EM BACK AND FORTH TOO. 
          SO LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF NUANCES TO TALK WITH THEM. 
          YEAH. 
          AND SO THAT'S WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE MORE DISCUSSION ON. 
          IT'S LIKE WHAT GETS CHOSEN TO GO OVER TO, TO, UH, GCS VERSUS THE UM, COS OKAY, WE CAN BRING THAT BACK. 
          WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT TODAY AND LIKE DIVE IN OKAY. 
          INTO IT. 
          YEAH. 
          I BELIEVE LAURA BROUGHT UP A GOOD POINT THERE. 
          [00:15:01]
UM, SO I THINK WE'RE UNDER UNDERSTANDING IN THE BEGINNING OF LAST YEAR THAT UH, WE WAS GONNA USE GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE. 
          LIKE, UH, WELL THE SEAL BONDS IS WHAT WE COS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS AND THEN ANY OTHER PROJECTS THAT ARE OUTSIDE THAT REALM WILL BE GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS AND UM, I DON'T KNOW, I THINK THAT WAS THE CONSENSUS. 
          IT WAS A LITTLE DIFFERENT AT AT THE END. 
          SO I WOULD LIKE TO, I WOULD LIKE TO, YOU KNOW, KIND OF KNOW WHAT THAT'S LIKE FOR EVERYBODY IN HERE PERSONALLY. 
          I, I, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SOME INFRASTRUCTURE INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES THAT REALLY NEED TO BE ADDRESSED. 
          THEY'RE, IN MY PART OPINION, THEY'RE OVERDUE AND UM, BUT UH, AGAIN, UH, TO LAURA'S POINT, TRYING TO COME GET TO A COMMON GROUND OF WHAT, WHAT BOND NEEDS TO BE ISSUED. 
          AND I ALSO FEEL THERE SHOULD BE A LOT MORE ROBUST, UM, LIKE EDUCATION WITH OUR PUBLIC, YOU KNOW, BETWEEN THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS AND UM, COS I AGREE. 
          'CAUSE YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT REGARDLESS THEY'RE JUST ANTI CITY AND WHATEVER WE PROPOSE, IF IT'S SPENDING MONEY, THEY'RE GONNA CUT IT DOWN AND THERE WILL BE A HUGE CAMPAIGN AGAINST THAT. 
          BUT THERE ARE NECESSARY PROJECTS THAT WE NEED TO DO. 
          AND SO THE MORE WE EDUCATE, NOT, AND I FEEL THAT WE NEED TO START WITH OUR COMMITTEES, UM, PLANNING AND ZONING AND TOURS AND ANYTHING THAT'S INVOLVED IN THE FINANCE, UM, AND LEVERAGE THEM AS WELL TO HELP US SPREAD THE MESSAGE AS TO WHY WE'RE GOING WITH ONE VERSUS THE OTHER. 
          UM, AND WHY SOME ARE PUT INTO GENERAL OBLIGATIONS, SOME ON COS BECAUSE WE CAN'T DO IT OURSELVES IF WE ALREADY ARE, ARE SEEN AS THE BAD GUYS ANYWAY. 
          LIKE THE MORE THAT WE CAN EDUCATE THE PUBLIC AND, AND GET MORE OF THEM GENERAL POPULATION TO UNDERSTAND AND BE OUR CHAMPIONS, UH, TO KIND OF THOMAS'S POINT BE OUR AMBASSADORS, UM, I THINK IT MAKES OUR JOB A LOT EASIER. 
          JUST MY VIEW POINT . 
          WELL, THERE THERE'S DEFINITELY, THERE NEEDS TO BE A COMING ALONGSIDE WITH, WITH, WITH EVERYONE ON THAT. 
          AND, AND, UM, YEAH. 
          I AGREE. 
          SO, SO JUST TO CLARIFY, UM, WHEN YOU GUYS SAY YOU WANNA KNOW, UM, WHAT GOES FOR SEALS AND GEOS, UM, ARE YOU SAYING YOU WANT US TO PRESENT SOMETHING OR YOU GUYS ARE GONNA DISCUSS IT SO THAT THAT CAN BE A PART OF THE DEBT POLICY? I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I'M UNDERSTANDING. 
          I THINK IT COULD BE BOTH. 
          UM, I MEAN WE HAVE THE MATRIX ALREADY THAT SHOWS WHAT WE CAN USE, RIGHT? I THINK COUNSEL NEEDS TO DECIDE WHAT WE WANT TO USE, UM, AND THAT'S A COUNCIL DECISION. 
          THAT'S NOT SOMETHING THEY'RE GONNA PRESENT TO US. 
          RIGHT? THAT'S TRUE. 
          WHAT THEY'VE, I MEAN BASICALLY THE MATRIX IS WHAT THEY WOULD GIVE US EVERYTHING THAT'S AVAILABLE LEGALLY AVAILABLE. 
          I THINK IT'S SHOWN ON THAT MATRIX SPOKE JUST THE OTHER YEAH. 
          WE'RE COMFORTABLE USING, THAT'S A COUNCIL DECISION. 
          AND SO WHEN WE PRESENTED THIS AT THE RETREAT LAST YEAR, THERE WAS A CONSENSUS JUST TO STAY WITH THE CO AT THE SAME TIME, I FEEL THERE ARE THREE MEMBERS ON COUNCIL CURRENTLY THAT ARE PUSHING MORE TOWARDS THE GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND. 
          AND IF, IF, YOU KNOW, THE MAYORAL RACE COULD DETERMINE THAT TOO, DEPENDING ON WHAT HAPPENS LATER THIS YEAR. 
          SO WE HAVE TO CHANGE ANNUALLY, RIGHT? MM-HMM . 
          UM, AND SO WHERE DOES THAT GO? BUT IF WE CAN GET GENERAL GUIDELINES AS WE WORK THROUGH THIS PROCESS AND NOTHING HAS TO BE DECIDED TODAY. 
          YEAH. 
          RIGHT. 
          AS WE, IF WE CAN GET GENERAL GUIDELINES AND ONE, IT'LL HELP BUILD A BETTER BUDGET OVERALL, IT'LL GET FRANK AND HIS TEAM AND THERESA AND HER TEAM A LOT MORE CLARITY ON HOW TO START STRUCTURING A LOT OF THE BUDGETS. 
          YEAH. 
          SO YEAH, I MEAN FOR ME, UH, LIKE I SAID, I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE COMPLETELY TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATION, BUT ONE BENEFIT OF THAT, YES, WE HAVE TO GO FOR A VOTE, BUT I THINK WE CAN BUILD A FIVE YEAR PLAN MM-HMM . 
          AND IF THAT'S APPROVED, IT'S SET. 
          DIFFERENT COUNCIL MEMBERS GET ELECTED TWO YEARS FROM NOW CEOS. 
          IT'S LIKE EVERY YEAR'S A CRAPSHOOT, RIGHT? UM, LIKE YOU, I MEAN WE'RE ONE ELECTION AWAY FROM EVERYTHING CHANGING. 
          CORRECT. 
          IF WE HAVE A FIVE YEAR PLAN THAT'S BEEN VOTED ON AND FUNDED BY THE PUBLIC, IT'S DONE. 
          AND I MEAN, WE CAN STILL, YOU DON'T HAVE TO ISSUE ALL THAT DEBT IN YEAR ONE GO. 
          YOU CAN ISSUE THAT OVER THE FIVE YEARS. 
          UM, BUT I THINK, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE FRANK WOULD'VE HELPED TO HAVE A FIVE YEAR PLAN AND KNOW ALL OF THAT FUNDING . 
          I THINK, I MEAN, I 
          [00:20:01]
WISH YOU COULD HEAR ME IN SOME MEETINGS. 
          YOU KNOW, I, I AM THE PROPONENT, I STARTED THE FIVE YEAR CIP HERE, RIGHT? SO I, I AM THE PROPONENT OF PLANNING AND HAVING A PLAN. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, THE CIP IS IS THAT DOCUMENT. 
          AND SO YEAH, WE NEED TO GET BETTER AT PLANNING, UH, THE PROJECTS THAT GO INTO THAT DOCUMENT AND, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT THE FUNDING IN A LONG TERM PERSPECTIVE. 
          SO. 
          RIGHT. 
          THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I WOULD SAY. 
          AND I MEAN, I, I THINK AS A FINANCE COMMITTEE WE COULD SAY, HEY, IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS OR ON A, ON A BOND ELECTION, HERE'S, HERE'S WHAT DEBT WILL FIT IN THE BUDGET. 
          AND THEN WE TURN THAT OVER TO THE OTHER COMMITTEE AND THEY PUT TOGETHER A, A LIST OF PROJECTS THAT WOULD FIT IN THAT FIVE YEAR PLAN. 
          BUT INSTEAD IN THE FIVE YEAR THOUGH, YOU HAVE TO BE, UM, COGNIZANT OF THE FACT THAT YOU'RE LOWERING THE TAX RATE. 
          WHAT IF YOU NEED TO RAISE RATES OR FEES TO COVER THE DEBT SERVICE DURING THOSE YEARS? RIGHT? SO YOU STILL GOTTA BRING IN THE REVENUE TO COVER, RIGHT? YEAH. 
          TAKE SOME ISSU, TAKE SOME PROJECTING KIND OF WHERE WE SEE HOW MUCH ROOM WE SEE EACH YEAR. 
          AND FOR DEBT, FOR ADDITIONAL DEBT, ONE THING THAT MAKES IT HARD TO PLAN IS SOME OF THESE GRANT OPPORTUNITIES THAT COME UP WITH, UH, MATCHING FUNDS. 
          SO IF THERE'S, YOU KNOW, AN 80% GRANT, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT WE CAN GET A GOOD PROJECT DONE, BUT YOU KNOW, THE 20% STILL REQUIRES, YOU KNOW, $2 MILLION PLUS THEN YOU KNOW, THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE JUST DON'T NORMALLY HAVE AVAILABLE IN CASH. 
          SO IT'S HARD TO PLAN THOSE THINGS OUT LONG TERM. 
          YOU'RE SAYING SOME, SOME THINGS COME UP THAT YOU CAN'T PUT INTO THE LONG TERM PLAN. 
          COULD WE GET A LIST OF, UM, THOSE TYPE OF ITEMS OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS OR SO AND SO WE CAN SEE LIKE, SO IT'S BEEN LIKE WHAT AMOUNT, WHAT'S DISTRICT WASTE WATER TREATMENT PLANT? WE'VE GOT TWO GRANTS. 
          UM, I THINK A TOTAL OF ABOUT $40 MILLION. 
          AND HOW MUCH WAS OUR, THE CADA PROJECT AND THE CADA? WELL, THE CADA WAS AN AR FUNDING, WHICH HAD NO MATCH, BUT THE, THE, YEAH, THE, THE, THE EAST DISTRICT WAS, YOU KNOW, A 20% MATCH. 
          UM, WE'VE GOT WEST TEXAS AVENUE DRAINAGE, WE CAN FOLLOW UP WITH A FULL LIST RIGHT THAT WAY SOME TIME TO YEAH. 
          I'M JUST CURIOUS SOME EXAMPLE BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S A GREAT POINT. 
          I MEAN, WE WOULD NEED TO HAVE, WHEN AN OPPORTUNITY LIKE THAT COMES UP, THEY'RE GOOD PROJECTS. 
          IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE A FIVE YEAR PLAN AND AN OPPORTUNITY LIKE THAT COMES UP, WE'D WANT TO HAVE SOME CASH READY FOR THOSE TYPES OF PROJECTS. 
          SO I'M JUST CURIOUS, LOOKING BACK HOW MUCH, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH OF OUR MATCH HAS BEEN IF WE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, MAYBE WE HAVE SOME AND GARTH ROAD IS, YOU KNOW, A 20% MATCH, RIGHT? PLUS DESIGN COSTS. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, THAT'S NOT A SMALL, SMALL AMOUNT. 
          RIGHT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          CAN WE COVER ALL FOUR 
          [4. DISCUSSIONS]
A, B, C, AND D TOGETHER? YES. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          AND Y'ALL C YEAH. 
          WHY'S DO ONE HERE? IT TAKES A WHILE TO WARM UP BIT. 
          DO THE MIDDLE ONE AND JUST PUSH IT UP LIKE THE TOP. 
          JUST PUNCH IT. 
          THERE YOU GO. 
          LEAVE IT, GO BACK. 
          JUST LEAVE IT. 
          OKAY. 
          COME ON. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          SO WE'LL, WE'LL KIND OF GO THROUGH A LIST OF THINGS. 
          AGAIN, NOT EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE DECIDED TODAY. 
          THERE ARE TWO THINGS THAT WE WOULD LIKE, UH, DIRECTION ON. 
          UM, SO, UH, THESE ARE ALL POLICY DISCUSSION ITEMS THAT, UM, WE WOULD JUST LIKE TO OPEN A CONVERSATION FOR THE COMMITTEE TO GIVE US MORE INSIGHT INTO WHAT'S HAPPENING, UM, AND WHAT WE CAN DO. 
          UM, AND THE FIRST ONE THAT WE WANT TO DISCUSS IS EXAMINE THE REALLOCATION OF THE 24 BUDGET AMENDMENT, UH, RESERVES. 
          SO COUNSEL GAVE STAFF THE DIRECTION TO, UH, TO FIND IDEAS IN THE CURRENT ADOPTED BUDGET, UM, TO REALLOCATE THE 3.1 MILLION SO THAT IT'S NOT BEING TAKEN OUT OF THE RESERVES. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, STAFF, UM, HAD THEIR INITIAL ROUND OF IDEAS, UH, WE WENT OVER THOSE. 
          UH, TODAY. 
          I, I'M NOT GONNA GO THROUGH ALL OF 
          [00:25:01]
THOSE IDEAS, UM, BUT I, I DO WANNA BRING IT TO YOU TO SEE IF WE ARE, UM, ON THE APPROPRIATE PATH THAT YOU ARE THINKING OF OR IF WE NEED TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT, AT DIFFERENT AVENUE, UM, BRING TO THE CITY COUNCIL. 
          WE WOULD LIKE TO BRING THIS NEXT TOMORROW. 
          AND, UM, THAT WAY WE CAN SETTLE THIS AND THIS WILL DETERMINE HOW FY 25 IS SET UP AS WELL. 
          SO IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE START REALLY GOING DO THIS. 
          SO CURRENTLY WE HAVE APPROXIMATELY $1.5 MILLION, UM, THAT I'M GONNA CATEGORIZE AS EASY. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, EASY MEANS THAT THERE'S, THERE'S NOT VERY MUCH OF AN IMPACT TO THE RESIDENTS. 
          THERE'S NOT AN IMPACT, UM, TO JUST ANYBODY REALLY OUTSIDE OF THE CONFINES OF THE CITY. 
          THERE MAY BE INTERNAL DISRUPTIONS, UM, THAT ARE IMPACTED, UH, IN BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS AND STUFF LIKE THAT. 
          BUT OVERALL IT'S NOT MUCH OF A, AN IMPACT, UH, TO THE, THE, THE CITY OUTSIDE OF THESE, OUTSIDE OF THIS BUILDING. 
          SOME THINGS THOUGH, DO INCLUDE LIKE MINIMIZING, UM, UH, DISTRIBUTION OF THE VOICE, RIGHT? LIKE IT, IT COULD BE JUST AN ONLINE PIECE OR NOT AT ALL, WHICH IS NOMINAL SAVINGS WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO IT. 
          BUT THAT'S ONE THING THAT WE'VE TO ADDRESS ANYTHING OVER 1.5 IN THE, CURRENTLY IN THE CURRENT ALLOCATED BUDGET OUTSIDE OF POSSIBLE 1 MILLION TO 2 MILLION IN SAVINGS. 
          OKAY. 
          WE POSSIBLY HAVE ONE OR 2 MILLION THAT JUST HAPPENS OVER THE YEAR. 
          'CAUSE WE'RE JUST, WE DIDN'T DO THIS PROJECT OR THIS PROJECT, UNFORTUNATELY THAT WON'T BE RECOGNIZED UNTIL ALMOST SEPTEMBER. 
          AND SO I CAN'T GIVE YOU ANY ANSWERS ON THAT. 
          AND SO IF THE, IF THE IDEA IS TO GO AHEAD AND CURRENTLY FIND IT, UM, I, I CAN'T. 
          RIGHT? UM, SO I HAVE 1.5, HOWEVER, TO START ADDRESSING THE REST OF THAT DELTA, UM, WE CAN JUMP INTO THE CASH FUNDED CIP PORTION, RIGHT? WE HAD TWO PROJECTS ONLY THAT WERE CASH FUNDED ON THE CIP PORTION OF THE, OF THE, UH, UH, THE BUDGET THIS YEAR. 
          THAT WAS THE LIQUID DOG PARK AND LA FEVER DISC GOLF COURSE. 
          THOSE ARE ROUGHLY A MILLION BUCKS. 
          OKAY. 
          RIGHT. 
          IT'S ACTUALLY 800 SOMETHING THOUSAND. 
          SO WE'RE, WE'RE AT TWO 2.3 MILLION AT THIS POINT. 
          SO WE STILL HAVE QUITE A BIT TO GO, UH, TO GET TO THAT 3.1 MILLION DELTA. 
          WE HAVE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES THAT WE'RE GOING TO BRING TO COUNCIL, UM, BUT THOSE DO IMPACT THE RESIDENCE. 
          ANYTHING ELSE OVER THIS 2.3 AT THIS POINT IMPACTS THE RESIDENCE AND WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO HAVE DISCUSSIONS WITH THE CITY COUNCIL ON WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. 
          WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CLOSING THE GREEN CENTER, STOPPING BRUSH PICKUP, UM, UH, RE REDUCING, UM, HOURS AT PIRATES BAY OR CLOSING, I MEAN DOWN TO THE, DOWN TO THE, THE SMALLER LEVEL OF STOPPING PROGRAMMING IN THE SUMMER AT THE LIBRARY. 
          RIGHT. 
          UM, AND SO, AND THEN THEY WOULD BE CLOSED ON THE WEEKENDS AS WELL, SO THERE WOULDN'T BE WHAT'S AFTER HOURS READING, NO AFTER HOURS READING OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT AT THE LIBRARY. 
          AND SO WE'RE GETTING TO THAT LEVEL OF ACTIVITY IN, IN THE BUDGET THAT WE WILL HAVE TO IMPACT TO ACCOUNT FOR THAT 3.1 MILLION. 
          AND I JUST WANT TO ASK, IS THIS WHAT THE COUNCIL WAS ASKING FOR AND FOR US TO BRING BACK TO THE, THE DIOCESE TO GO OVER? THAT'S WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE. 
          OKAY. 
          I MEAN, I THINK, I THINK THERE'S AN IMPACT WHEN WE CHOOSE TO SPEND IT ON SOMETHING ELSE. 
          AND SO I THINK THAT NEEDS TO BE DISCUSSED. 
          YES. 
          OKAY. 
          AND WE DID BRING THAT UP BEFORE OR IN TERMS OF GETTING TO SEE WHAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO CUT, WE BROUGHT THAT UP IN EXECUTIVE SESSION, SO, OKAY. 
          SO LIKE SOME OF THESE THINGS WE'LL HAVE TO IMMEDIATELY ACT ON AND COUNSEL WILL HAVE TO MAKE A PRETTY QUICK DECISION BECAUSE WE'LL HAVE TO GET THE BALL ROLLING FROM THE STATUS POINT OF VIEW TO, UH, TO HALT THESE ACTIONS. 
          SO IF THIS IS DIRECTION THAT, THAT Y'ALL ARE ASKING, WE WILL TRY TO BRING THIS BACK IN JUNE PROBABLY WITH AN EARLIER WORK SESSION JUST TO, TO, TO, TO GO OVER THAT AT SOME POINT OR POSSIBLY A SPECIAL MEETING JUST TO HAVE THE TIME TO APPROPRIATELY GO OVER IT AS WELL. 
          THE IDEA THAT YOU HAD ABOUT, UM, CLOSING CITY HALL ON FRIDAYS MM-HMM . 
          WOULDN'T THAT HAVE AN IMPACT IN TERMS OF, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, FACILITY USAGE, LIGHT, ALL OF THAT. 
          BUT HAVE WE MEASURED WHAT IMPACT THAT WOULD HAVE? I WILL LOOK AT THAT. 
          HAVE PEOPLE MAYBE WORK FROM HOME OR WERE YOU DOING IT COMPLETELY OFF? IT DEPENDS COMPLETELY OFF. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH, SO I MEAN WE'RE, YOU KNOW, THE LARGER IMPACTS THAT FRANK HAS SOME 
          [00:30:01]
REALLY GOOD IDEAS. 
          ONE IS TO STOP THE SIDEWALK CREW. 
          UM, UH, I'M SORRY FOR, I'M SORRY FOR EMPLOYEES THAT ARE HERE THAT HAVEN'T HAD THIS DISCUSSION YET. 
          IT'S NOT THE INTENTION FOR YOU THE FIRST TIME FOR Y'ALL TO HEAR THIS STUFF THAT'S GOING ON, BUT WE HAVE TO DISCUSS IT AND SO IT WOULD BE A REDUCTION IN FTES. 
          WE CURRENTLY HAVE, UH, THREE CREWS WITHIN STREETS AND OR CONCRETE CREWS AND THEY CAN DO EITHER STREETS OR SIDEWALKS OR CURB AND GUTTER. 
          UM, A COUPLE YEARS AGO, TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO, COUNCIL WANTED A, UH, CREW JUST DEDICATED TO SIDEWALKS. 
          SO TO BE QUICKER RESPONSE, WELL JUST TO FOCUS MORE ON SIDEWALKS. 
          UH, AND SO THAT WAS, YOU KNOW, UH, PUBLIC WORKS WAS GIVEN I THINK FOUR, UH, FTES TO, AND THEY ARE WITHIN THE GENERAL FUND. 
          UH, SO I, I ALSO HAVE SOME STREET CREWS OUT OF THE STREET MAINTENANCE SALES TAX, BUT THE ONES JUST FOR THE SIDEWALK IS, UH, WITHIN THE GENERAL FUND. 
          SO IT'S FOUR FTES THAT, AND I HAVE ENOUGH VACANCIES, I DON'T HAVE TO LAY OFF PEOPLE. 
          I CAN TAKE, YOU KNOW, THOSE FTES, REDUCE THEM AND PUT THOSE PERSONNEL, YOU KNOW, SOMEWHERE ELSE WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION DOING SIMILAR JOBS. 
          UH, SO YOU WOULD REDUCE, YOU KNOW, THE LONG TERM, YOU KNOW, RECURRING COSTS OF THOSE FOUR FTES PLUS YOU KNOW, THE THINGS ASSOCIATED WITH THEM, LIKE TOOLS AND, UH, EQUIPMENT, UH, MATERIALS AND MATERIALS. 
          SO, UH, SO IT WOULD, I THINK I ESTIMATE ABOUT 300,000 CORRECT. 
          L BE AN ANNUAL SAVINGS ON THAT. 
          THAT'S ADDITIONAL TO, IT'S ALREADY IN HERE. 
          IT'S NOT ON, IT'S NOT, IT WOULD BE AN ADDITION ON THE 1.5. 
          OKAY. 
          HOW MUCH WORK HAVE THEY DONE ON THEIR SIDEWALK SINCE THEY'VE BEEN IN PLAY? I, I COULD JUST, I DUNNO, WE BEEN QUITE A BIT, ESPECIALLY WITH THE BEBO, BAYTOWN SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL, YOU KNOW, WE HAD THEM GO INTO A NEIGHBORHOOD AND FOCUS ON A NEIGHBORHOOD. 
          SO I KNOW WE STARTED LIKE IN DEVON WOOD AND JUST LOOKED AT EVERYTHING WITHIN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND FIXED SIDEWALKS THAT WERE, YOU KNOW, UM, BROKEN OFF CENTER, UM, MISSING, YOU KNOW, SECTIONS OF SIDEWALK. 
          AND UM, SO IT'S HAD A POSITIVE IMPACT THAT WE'VE GOTTEN A LOT OF GOOD FEEDBACK, BUT IT'S, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT NICE TO HAVE IF YOU HAVE THE MONEY AND YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT WHETHER, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A PRIORITY IF WE HAVE TO MAKE, MAKE CUTS. 
          RIGHT. 
          IS THERE A PIECE PCI EQUIVALENT FOR SIDEWALKS? UM, THERE, THERE IS. 
          I THINK WE HAVE SOME INFORMATION ON THAT. 
          UM, AS PART OF THE A DA CONSULTANT, THEY, THEY RAN ALL THE SIDEWALKS AND GAVE US A LIST OF, YOU KNOW, EFFICIENCIES. 
          WHAT TODAY WE JUST GOT THEIR REPORT, UH, MAYBE A COUPLE MONTHS AGO. 
          AND YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS A DA GOES IT, WE HAVE TO HAVE A PLAN AND YOU HAVE TO BE WORKING TOWARDS YOUR PLAN. 
          YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO A CERTAIN AMOUNT PER YEAR. 
          SO, UM, I WOULD SAY IF WE CUT THIS CREW, WE'RE STILL GOING TO REPAIR SIDEWALKS. 
          IT'S JUST NOT GONNA BE AS MUCH AND NOT, WE'RE NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO RESPOND AS FAST IS RIGHT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          BUT WE ARE ON THE RIGHT PATH. 
          THAT'S THE, THE CLEAR. 
          OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, SO THE NEXT ONE IS REALLY TO GO OVER THE, UH, I'LL, I'LL GET TO THOSE TO GO OVER THE FY 25 BUDGET BECAUSE ALL OF THE OTHER PIECES THAT GO WITH THE FY 20 BUDGET, JUST NEED TO KIND OF LIKE LOOK AT WHERE WE WERE AT AND THEN START HAVING THE CONVERSATIONS THAT DRIVE INTO, UM, BUILDING THE FY 25 BUDGET. 
          AND SO IF Y'ALL REMEMBER THIS LAST YEAR, WE TALKED ABOUT, THIS IS ONE SLIDE THAT I'LL SHOW YOU ON A GRAPH OF WHERE, WHERE THINGS HAVE BEEN IN THE PAST WITH OUR REVENUE AND THEN OUR, UM, EXPENSES ONLY FOR OPERATIONS. 
          OKAY? THIS IS ONLY FOR OPERATIONS. 
          IT'S NOT THE, THE OTHER PIECE THAT COMES IN FOR THE TRANSFER OUTS. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, YOU CAN SEE WE KIND OF, WE KIND OF TOPPED OUT THERE IN 23 AND, UH, WE STARTED HAVING THE DELTA IN BETWEEN THE REVENUE AND EXPENSE OPS STARTED TO, TO PINCH A LITTLE BIT. 
          UM, ONE, WE HAD SENATE BILL TWO START COMING INTO PLAY. 
          WE ALSO STARTED REDUCING THE TAX RATE FROM 78. 
          WE'RE DOWN TO 72 OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS. 
          UM, AND THEN WE ARE LOOKING 
          [00:35:01]
TO CONTINUE THAT AND SO THAT, THAT IS MINIMIZING THE DELTA BETWEEN THE ADDITIONAL REVENUE AND EXPENSE OPERATIONS. 
          ONE THING WE SHOWED LAST YEAR WAS AN ADDITIONAL CHART OF WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IF WE DON'T DO ANYTHING TO ALTER THE TRAJE TRAJECTORY. 
          OKAY. 
          THIS ONE'S A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN WHAT Y'ALL SAW LAST YEAR. 
          IT WAS MORE DEFINED ON THE ACTUAL CROSS. 
          UM, WE'VE ALREADY STARTED MAKING CHANGES AND SO THIS IS THE MOST CURRENT DATA THAT WE HAVE. 
          IT'S STILL RIGHT AROUND THE FY 26, FY 27, WHICH IS WHAT IT SHOWED LAST YEAR ON WHERE THINGS ARE GONNA CROSS. 
          UM, AND SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT IF WE DON'T START ADDRESSING, UM, UH, CHANGES IN OUR OPERATIONS AND THE AMENITIES THAT WE OFFER, WE WILL NOT BE BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE BUDGET. 
          RIGHT? WE WILL HAVE SOMETHING THAT HAS TO BE ADDRESSED AND UNFORTUNATELY IT'LL BE HAVE TO BE ADDRESSED AFTER IT'S ALREADY TOO LATE. 
          AND THAT'S WHAT WE DON'T WANT. 
          WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS IT NOW. 
          AND, AND WITH THIS WE'RE TRYING TO BALANCE, UM, ALL THE PRIORITIES WHICH YOU KNOW, ARE, UM, PUBLIC SAFETY, UH, ADDRESSING OUR CORE SERVICES, UH, OFFERING AMENITIES WHERE POSSIBLE, AND THEN PAYING OUR EMPLOYEES WELL PER THE MARKET STANDARDS THAT HAVE BEEN REALLY, UH, THE BENCHMARK FOR THE CITY COUNCIL OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS. 
          AND I'M, I'M NOT TRYING TO DIVE INTO PAYROLL AT THIS POINT, UM, BUT WHEN WE LOOK AT THE ACTUAL BUDGET, THIS IS CURRENTLY WHAT WE ARE LOOKING AT. 
          AND SO IN THE SECOND COLUMN, UH, BUDGET 2324, THAT WAS THE ADOPTED BUDGET. 
          AND WITH THE ESTIMATED, UM, COLUMN TO THE RIGHT, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE'RE, WE'RE COMING IN A LITTLE BIT ABOVE WHAT THE PROJECTED TARGET IS, UM, OR TOTAL EXPENSES. 
          AND SO IF YOU LOOK DOWN AT THE VERY BOTTOM UNDER ESTIMATED, YOU CAN SEE THAT OUR DAYS OF RESERVE ARE ESTIMATED TO BE 63. 
          UM, THIS IS, THIS BOTTOM LINE IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE BECAUSE THIS IS A TALKING POINT THAT WE'LL JUMP TO IN A MINUTE, UM, THAT THE S AND P RATING AGENCIES HIT US WITH THAT WE NEED TO START PAYING ATTENTION TO. 
          IN ADDITION TO THAT, THE CURRENT PROPOSED BUDGET ON THE RIGHT FOR FY 25, UM, SHOWS OUR REVENUES REVENUE TOTAL AT 137 MILLION. 
          OUR OPERATING EXPENSES ARE 1 37 4, SO THEY'RE BASICALLY CROSSING, OKAY? UM, AND THEN THE NON-RECURRING EXPENSES FOR A TOTAL BUDGET EXPENSE OF 1 41 6. 
          AND THEN THAT TAKES OUR RESERVES DOWN TO 49 DAYS. 
          AND TO GET UP TO 60 AT THAT POINT WE'D HAVE TO ADD 4 MILLION BACK INTO THE BUDGET AT THIS POINT. 
          NOW I WANNA CAVEAT ALL THAT BY SAYING WILL IT LOOK LIKE THIS WHEN COUNSEL SEES IT AT THE FIRST BUDGET MEETING? NO, IT WILL NOT LOOK LIKE THIS WHEN COUNSEL SEES THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME. 
          OKAY? THIS IS, THIS IS NOT A CHICKEN LITTLE SCENARIO, THIS IS JUST WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE RIGHT NOW AS WE KNOW THE NUMBERS. 
          IT WILL CHANGE BECAUSE WE ARE WORKING TO CHANGE THE SUPPLIES MAINTENANCE SERVICES, RIGHT THERE UNDER THE 98 MILLION IN THE ESTIMATED COLUMN, WHICH WILL GIVE US A BETTER RESERVE ON AT THE 63. 
          OKAY? WE ARE WORKING TO CHANGE THAT RIGHT NOW, WHICH WILL HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE FY 25 BUDGET. 
          IT STILL DOES NOT NEGATE THE FACT THAT WE HAVE STUFF TO ADDRESS, RIGHT? BECAUSE RIGHT NOW WE'RE CURRENTLY PROPOSING NO NEW ADDITIONAL EMPLOYEES, NO ADDITIONS TO ANYTHING IN, IN SERVICES. 
          IT'S FLAT. 
          WE CAN'T REMAIN FLAT FOREVER BECAUSE WE'RE NOT ADDRESSING THE GROWTH THAT WE HAVE IN THE CITY. 
          SO SOMETHING HAS TO GIVE AT THIS POINT AND WE HAVE TO FIND WAYS TO, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE SO THAT WE CAN ADDRESS WHAT THE FUTURE LOOKS LIKE. 
          LEMME SEE. 
          UM, SO WITH THAT, I KIND OF WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE TAX RATE FIRST. 
          AND THE TAX RATE IS, WE ARE WORKING UNDER THE ASSUMPTION BASED ON THE LAST BUDGET MEETING, UH, UH, THE, UH, BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING THAT WE ARE WORKING ON A HALF CENT REDUCTION IN THE TAX RATE OR THE NO NEW REVENUE RATE, WHICHEVER ONE IS GREATER OR BENEFITS THE CITIZEN BETTER. 
          THAT'S THE ASSUMPTION THAT WE ARE WORKING ON. 
          WHEN YOU SAY WHICHEVER IS GREATER, YOU MEAN WHICHEVER REDUCTION, WHICHEVER REDUCTION IS GREATER, WHICHEVER TAX RATE IS LOWER, WHICHEVER TAX RATE IS LOWER. 
          YES SIR. 
          JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT 
          [00:40:01]
WAS THE GUIDANCE THAT STAFF GOT. 
          I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, THAT FROM THE COMMITTEE'S PERSPECTIVE IS STILL THE GUIDANCE THAT WE SHOULD BE OPERATING UNDER. 
          I DON'T THINK THAT HAS CHANGED FROM COUNSEL. 
          I, I, I'M STILL VERY CAUTIOUS ABOUT US CONTINUING TO LOWER THE TAX RATE. 
          I AM, I MEAN THAT'S NOT GONNA GO AWAY FROM ME. 
          UM, WELL I MAKE CONCESSIONS. 
          YES, BUT AT SOME POINT I'M JUST GONNA HAVE TO TAKE THE BULLET AND SAY NO. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, JUST BECAUSE OF THE OVERALL IMPACT IT HAS FOR THE BUDGET. 
          OKAY. 
          NOTED. 
          UM, ANOTHER PIECE ON THE TAX RATE IS, AND MAYBE NOT TODAY BECAUSE WE JUST KIND OF HAVE TO LIKE, IT'S PROBABLY GONNA BE AN EXTENSIVE CONVERSATION ON WHAT THE TAX RATE IS. 
          AND SO WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TAX RATE, YOU HAVE THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION AND THEN A DEBT PORTION, THOSE TWO TOGETHER MAKE UP OUR CURRENT 72. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND WHAT I'M ASKING TIES INTO EVERYTHING ELSE, , UM, DO WE WANT TO CONTINUE THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION PORTION OF THE TAX RATE TO BE A PERCENTAGE, A CERTAIN LEVEL OF THE OVERALL TAX RATE. 
          SO THE INTENT IS TO LOWER THE TAX RATE AS MUCH AS WE POSSIBLY CAN, RIGHT? FEASIBLY LOWER TO WHAT WE CAN RIGHT NOW IT'S AT 72, THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION BUDGET IS BUILT OFF. 
          UM, I THINK IT'S 45 CENTS. 
          IT DOESN'T MATTER. 
          IT'S 45 CENTS ROUGHLY. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THEN THE OTHER PORTION IS DEBT, WHICH IS ROUGHLY 20 OR IT'S 46 AND 26. 
          SO 70, 72. 
          OKAY. 
          46 CENTS OF THE 72 IS ROUGHLY 64 CENTS OR 64%. 
          OKAY. 
          64% IS WHAT OPERATES THE CITY AS IT IS CURRENTLY. 
          IF THAT MAIN REMAINS A BASELINE, RIGHT, THAT IS THE PERCENTAGE THAT YOU'RE WORKING WITH, AT THAT POINT, THE STAFF THEN KNOWS THAT WE CAN ONLY GROW SO, SO MUCH UP OR DOWN BASED ON WHAT THE TAX RATE IS. 
          SO IF THE TAX RATE WERE TO LOWER TO TO 71 CENTS, THAT YOU WOULD THEN SAY, WHAT'S 64% OF 71 AND THEN THAT WOULD BE WHATEVER YOU, YOU WOULD THEN HAVE LIKE 42 CENTS TO RUN YOUR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION ON. 
          IS THAT A WORTHWHILE CONVERSATION TO BRING TO THE COMMUNITY SO THAT WE CAN LOOK AT ALL THE NUMBERS AND GO THROUGH IT? 'CAUSE IT'S VERY, PROBABLY HARD TO CONCEPTUALIZE WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT RIGHT NOW, BUT, UM, IS IT A WORTHWHILE CONVERSATION TO BRING BACK TO Y'ALL? WAS IT TOO, IS IT TOO PHILOSOPHICAL AT THIS POINT? I FEEL WE DO NEED TO BRING IT UP. 
          I DID NOT KNOW THAT IT WAS 64, 60 4% OF M AND O. 
          SO, UM, I THINK IT WOULD BE A GOOD REFRESHER FOR EVERYONE TO JUST KIND OF SEE THAT, UM, 'CAUSE AS WE'RE THINKING OF ALL OF THESE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS AND YOU KNOW, WE HAVE NO WIGGLE ROOM. 
          I MEAN JACOB'S RIGHT? I MEAN IF WE'RE GONNA GIVE SOMETHING HERE, THEN WHAT ARE WE TAKING AWAY? AND SO, UM, AS WE START TO LOWER THE TAX RATE AND THAT 64% IS GOING TO MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE. 
          YEAH. 
          FOR ME, I MEAN YOU'RE ASKING MORE OF LIKE, DO WE WANNA SEE THE M AND O SAY AT A CERTAIN PERCENTAGE? AND I'VE ASKED, I THINK I ASKED THE SAME QUESTION JUST THE OPPOSITE WAY. 
          I WAS ASKING, WHAT'S THE PERCENTAGE THIS DEBT AND IS THERE, UM, LIKE A HEALTHY NUMBER ON DEBT AS FAR AS WHEN WE'RE GETTING LIKE OUR BOND RATINGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          UM, IS THERE, YOU KNOW, A PERCENTAGE THAT'S PERCEIVED TO BE BAD IF SOME, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER MAY BE, IF SOME PERCENTAGE IS OF, IF YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE CARRYING A MUCH LARGER DEBT LOAD, IS THAT, DOES THAT HURT US IN SOME WAY? THE ONLY WAY THAT TYPICALLY HURTS YOU IS IF YOU DON'T HAVE A HEALTHY FUND BALANCE TO SUPPORT IT. 
          SO LIKE WHEN WE WERE DOING OUR, UM, DUE DILIGENCE CALLS AND THE CALLS WITH THE RATING AGENCIES, ONE OF THE THINGS AT, AT BOTH CALLS, THEY WERE ABOUT TO UH, LOWER OUR TAX, OUR, UH, RATING SIMPLY BECAUSE 
          [00:45:01]
THEY NOTICED THAT THE FUND BALANCE, 'CAUSE THEY LOOK AT THE TRENDS OVER THE YEARS AND THEY NOTICED THAT OUR FUND BALANCE HAD DROPPED DRASTICALLY. 
          AND SO IN ORDER TO GET THEM NOT TO DROP IT, I HAD TO SAY, HEY, OKAY, WE ARE LOOKING AT THIS. 
          WE ARE, YOU KNOW, DOING OUR DUE DILIGENCE TO MAKE SURE THAT NEXT YEAR, UM, IT SHOULD NOT DROP, IT SHOULD AT LEAST REMAIN FLAT AND NOT OR INCREASE. 
          RIGHT? BECAUSE THEY'RE MONITORING THAT. 
          AND SO IF WE GO OUT FOR DEBT AGAIN AND IT DROPS, THEN WE ARE PROBABLY GONNA HAVE A, UM, OUR RATING PROBABLY WILL DROP. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, IN ORDER TO HAVE THE CAPACITY FOR DEBT, YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE FUND BALANCE TO SUPPORT IT TO, TO YOUR QUESTION, FINE. 
          THIS MAY SHOCK SOME OF Y'ALL. 
          OUR TAX RATE, THE 26 CENTS IS 37% OF OUR, OF OUR TAX RATE IS DEBT. 
          SO 37% OF OUR TAX RATE GOES TO DEBT. 
          UM, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION DIRECTLY, I WILL TELL YOU SHE'S NOT SAYING THAT. 
          I'LL JUST TELL YOU WHAT OUR FINANCIAL ADVISOR SAID. 
          I'M NOT GONNA ANSWER THAT QUESTION BECAUSE THEY, THE COUNCILS ALWAYS WANT STAFF TO GIVE A PERS GIVE A PERSPECTIVE AND LET THE COUNCIL KNOW THAT THEY CAN GO UP TO 1.5 AT A TAX RATE AND THAT'S THEIR LI LEGAL LIMIT THAT THEY CAN GO UP TO . 
          THAT'S WHAT THAT, THAT WAS HIS OFFICIAL ANSWER. 
          RIGHT. 
          UM, AND SO IT'S UP TO THE COUNCIL ON WHAT Y'ALL FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH. 
          DO YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE THAT WE'RE AT 37% OF OUR TAX RATE GOES TO DEBT? DO ARE YOU, DO YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE THAT 20% DO YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE IT'S 10% THAT IS GONNA BE THE DRIVING FACTOR IN IN YOUR, UM, IN THE POLICY DECISION? SO IT'S, I THINK WE NEED MORE CONVERSATION ON IT, BUT HAPPILY TALK ABOUT WHAT WE CAN RIGHT NOW. 
          I LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THAT 35 7% LOOKS LIKE. 
          WHAT IS IT? WELL IT LOOKS LIKE THIS, IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE PAYING UH, 16.8 MILLION A YEAR DEBT PAYMENT. 
          YEAH. 
          THE ISSUE IS YOU CAN EASILY JUST SAY, NO, IT'S TOO HIGH. 
          I'D RATHER IT BE M AND O 'CAUSE YOU RUN INTO YOUR VOTER APPROVAL TAX RATE AND YOU CAN'T JUST IN THEORY USE NO, I'D RATHER IT, YOU KNOW, CORRECT. 
          HAVE MORE OF IT GO TO M AND O BUT WE CAN'T, YOU CAN'T GET THERE WITHOUT, SO THAT IS ACTUALLY PART OF THE CONVERSATION THAT IS ACTUALLY PART OF THE CONVERSATION IS LIKE IF YOU, SO LIKE RIGHT NOW IT'S 63%, RIGHT? IF WE WERE, IF TO YOUR POINT RIGHT NOW, IF WE KEPT IT ROUGHLY THE SAME AND WE ISSUED $30 MILLION NEXT YEAR FOR THE DEBT AND KEPT IT THE SAME, ROUGHLY THE M AND O AT 45 AND THE DEBT AT 26, IT WOULD INCREASE OUR REVENUE TO THE GENERAL FUND BY 1.98 OR 1.94 IN MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION. 
          IF WE LOWERED THAT TO JUST ISSUING 10 MILLION, IT WOULD, IT WOULD ELEVATE THAT TO $4 MILLION EXTRA IN THE GENERAL FUND. 
          THEN THE FINANCE COMMITTEE NEEDS TO SAY, OKAY, THAT $4 MILLION IS NOT JUST EXTRA FOR STAFF TO GO USE ON NEW PROJECTS. 
          THAT 4 MILLION IS SPECIFICALLY GOING TO THE DAYS OF RESERVE OR THAT'S THAT THAT EXTRA 4 MILLION IS GOING TO, UM, CASH FUNDING, UH, CIP PROJECT. 
          SO WE ISSUE LESS DEBT. 
          RIGHT. 
          IT'S A SUPER IN-DEPTH CONVERSATION THAT, YOU KNOW, A, B AND C HAVE DIFFERENT VARIABLES THAT YOU UH, DIFFERENT DOORS OPEN. 
          AND I DO REMEMBER YOU SHOWING ALL OF THIS DURING ONE OF OUR RETREATS AND WHAT IT MEANS TO CONTINUE TO LOWER THE TAX RATE AND THE DEBT AS WELL. 
          I'M GONNA ASK A STUPID QUESTION. 
          WHAT DOES M AND O STAND FOR? MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION? IT'S, IT'S WHAT RUNS, IT'S THE RUNNING OF THE CITY EVERY SINGLE YEAR. 
          MAKE SURE, OKAY, THANK YOU. 
          SO IF I, SO I, IF I WERE TO, 'CAUSE YOU ASKED ABOUT THE 64% M AND O AND LET'S JUST SAY WE KEPT IT AT 64 OR LOWERED IT TO 60, WHATEVER MM-HMM . 
          THE OTHER THAT DOESN'T, THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN WE'RE GONNA HOLD DEBT AT 40 EITHER. 
          CORRECT. 
          IT JUST MEANS THE REMAINDER COULD CASH FUND PROJECTS OR THAT'S CORRECT. 
          BUT M AND O OKAY. 
          YES. 
          THEN YES. 
          I THINK THAT'S A GOOD DISCUSSION TO HAVE. 
          I MEAN NOW YEAH, I THAT MAKE SENSE WHAT YOU'RE ASKING? YES. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          AND THAT'LL BE A POLICY PIECE AND THAT HELPS EVERYBODY UNDERSTAND ANY ADDITIONAL CASH IS NOT ADDITIONAL CASH, IT'S TO LOWER DEBT ISSUANCES AND IT'S TO KEEP THE DEBT, THE RESERVE AS 75 DAYS. 
          RIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          UH, I'M GONNA PAUSE REAL QUICK ON THE BUDGET AND THEN ASK THE HOMEOWNER EXEMPTION PIECE. 
          DO YOU WANNA GO OVER THAT REAL QUICK? OH, THAT'S THE LAST PAGE IN OUR PACKET. 
          I THINK SHE STATED IT ON THERE. 
          SO WHAT I DID WAS, 
          [00:50:01]
BECAUSE WE BROUGHT UP THE TAX EXEMPTION BEFORE, I JUST KIND OF DID A, A QUICK CALCULATION ON WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE. 
          SO AT THE TOP, SO A LITTLE CONTEXT REAL QUICK. 
          OKAY. 
          REAL LITTLE CONTEXT IS THAT THE, THERE WAS A, THERE WAS GUIDANCE TO STAFF TO LOOK TO ELEVATE THE HOMEOWNER EXEMPTION BY 20 THOU. 
          SO THE VERY LAST PAGE OF THIS, OF THE PACKET, THERE WAS, UH, GUIDANCE TO STAFF THAT WE, UM, INCREASE THE HOMEOWNER EXEMPTION FOR OVER 65 BY 20,000 AT A MINIMUM OF $20,000 EACH YEAR. 
          AND SO WE ARE COMING UP ON THAT TIME TO DO THE HOMEOWNER EXEMPTION AND WE WOULD LIKE YOUR GUIDANCE IF WE, IF WE NEED TO TAKE THIS TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION OR NOT. 
          UM, BUT EITHER WAY WE DO HAVE TO LET CITY COUNCIL KNOW THAT THE FINANCE COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS IT OR DON'T, IT DOESN'T RECOMMEND IT. 
          AND SO WITH THAT, OH, OKAY. 
          SO AT THE TOP, UM, BASED ON OUR CURRENT STANDING, WE HAVE 8,747 UNITS OR HOMES THAT ARE UNDER THE, OVER 65 AND, UH, DISABLED. 
          UM, AND WITH OUR CURRENT PROPERTY TAX AND OUR CURRENT EXEMPTION, YES, IT'S A LOT. 
          UM, WE ARE, THE CURRENT FINANCIAL IMPACT IS $3.4 MILLION. 
          RIGHT. 
          CURRENTLY. 
          CURRENTLY. 
          AND SO WE HAVE A MEDIUM HOUSEHOLD INCOME 'CAUSE I BELIEVE A HOUSEHOLD VALUE OF ONE EIGHTY FOUR, A HUNDRED EIGHTY 4,000 TO 244 DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU LOOK FOR THAT DATA. 
          UM, I KNOW AT SOME POINT IT WAS MENTIONED TOO THAT WE COULD GET UP TO A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THAT, THAT VALUE. 
          BUT, SO THIS IS WHY I DID THE SCENARIO THE WAY I DID. 
          I STARTED WITH 20 PER 20,000 JUST SO YOU CAN SEE THE IMPACT, WHICH WOULD BE ONE POINT AROUND $1.3 MILLION THAT WE WOULD LOSE IN REVENUE, UM, BY RAISING IT BY 20,000. 
          AND THEN IF YOU WANTED TO EVENTUALLY GO UP BASED ON CURRENT NUMBERS TO 200, LET'S SAY 240,000, IT'S A $8 MILLION HIT TO THE REVENUE. 
          JUST SO YOU CAN HAVE PERSPECTIVE WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, PROVIDING EXEMPTIONS OR INCREASING EXEMPTIONS THAT THERE IS A REVENUE LOSS THAT COMES WITH THAT. 
          SO WITH THAT, IS THERE A RECOMMENDATION ? YES. 
          UM, I MEAN I THINK I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THIS CONTINUE THE 20,000 PER YEAR. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I KNOW THIS ISN'T WHAT YOU'RE ASKING, BUT I'M GONNA, I THINK, RELATED TO THIS ON WATER RATES. 
          'CAUSE I, I THINK THAT THAT'S THE DISCUSSION WE'VE ALWAYS HAD, RIGHT? IS YOUR SENIORS USE LESS WATER AND SO WE HOLD DOWN THE, WE KEEP THAT BOTTOM, UM, TIER LOWER. 
          I WOULD LIKE, IF WE CONTINUE TO INCREASE THIS, WHICH I AM OKAY WITH, I WANNA SEE THAT BOTTOM TIER BE A MORE REALISTIC NUMBER. 
          UM, BECAUSE I THINK YOU HAVE, UH, I MEAN YOU HAVE SINGLE FOLKS OR WHATEVER THAT MIGHT BE INSIDE THAT TIER THAT AREN'T SENIORS. 
          I THINK WE'RE TRYING TO HELP 'EM BOTH WAYS. 
          UM, AND ALSO I KNOW, I MEAN WE HAVE SENIORS WHO LIVE IN VERY NICE HOMES THAT FILL THEIR POOLS. 
          UM, I THINK WE CAN HELP 'EM HERE AND THEY CAN PAY WHAT THEIR WATER ACTUALLY COSTS. 
          IN MY OPINION. 
          I'M JUST ONE PERSON, BUT I WOULD, IF WE CONTINUE DOWN THIS PATH, THAT'S WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IS THE WATER, YOU KNOW, BE IN LINE WITH WHAT IT'S ACTUALLY COSTING US. 
          YEP.
* 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.