Aug 08, 2024 CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION

WE'RE HAVING OUR WORK

[00:00:01]

THERE

[ CITY OF BAYTOWN NOTICE OF MEETING CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2024 4:00 P.M. TEJAS ROOM, COMMUNITY CENTER 2407 MARKET STREET, BAYTOWN, TEXAS 77520 AGENDA CALL TO ORDER AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM ]

SO, UM, I GUESS I'M GONNA START WITH THE CITIZENS' COMMENT SCRIPT, UNLESS ANYONE ELSE HAS SOMETHING THAT I SHOULD BE SAYING.

OKAY.

IS THERE ANYONE HERE TO SPEAK? SO DO I NOT, I DON'T NEED TO READ THIS.

ALL RIGHT.

DON'T HAVE, WE WE HAVE, WE DO HAVE A QUORUM.

I'M IN TRAINING AS WELL, .

UM, IT'S ONLY GONNA TAKE, UM, THREE MEN, A WOMAN AND ME TO GET THIS GOING.

SO, UM, ANYWAYS, WE'RE HERE AND WE'RE READY TO GO.

AND THIS IS YOUR MR. CITY MANAGER.

YOU READY? WHAT'S MY TURN? READ THE ITEM.

I, I ASK OKAY.

THE FIRST LINE FIRST.

ALRIGHT, THE FIRST

[a. Discuss the City of Baytown Fiscal Year 2024-25 Proposed Budget.]

PROPOSED BUDGET.

SO, GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR.

AND I'M JUST KIDDING NOW.

JUST KIDDING.

THAT WASN'T SITTING IN MY TRAIN.

I AIN'T GONNA SIT DOWN IF THAT'S OKAY WITH YOU.

AND I THOUGHT Y'ALL PUT ME HERE FOR .

ALL GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.

YEP.

YEP.

COOL.

VERY FAR AWAY.

IT DOES FEEL VERY FAR.

ALRIGHT, SO GOOD AFTERNOON.

UM, WE ARE HERE TODAY TO TO DISCUSS ONE OF THREE BUDGET WORKSHOPS, UH, THAT ARE SCHEDULED FOR THE FY 25 BUDGET.

THE FIRST ONE WILL BE TODAY, AUGUST 8TH.

THE SECOND ONE WILL BE AUGUST 13TH.

THE PRIMARY FOCUS FOR THE AUGUST 13TH IS GONNA BE WATER AND SEWER RATES, ALONG WITH THE CIP AND THE AUGUST 14TH WILL BE ANY KIND OF FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS THAT WE HAVE.

AND WE WILL ALSO BE SCHEDULING ADDITIONAL WORK SESSIONS IF NECESSARY.

UH, WITH ALL THAT SAID, UH, THE ENTIRE FOCUS OF THESE THREE MEETINGS IS REALLY GEARED TOWARDS FOCUSING ON POLICY DISCUSSIONS AND HOW THEY WORK TOWARDS THE OVERALL BUDGET.

THERE ARE, UH, THE DETAILS OF THE BUDGET DO NOT HAVE AN ALLOCATED TIME OR A SPECIFIC TIME IN THESE FREE WORK SESSIONS, UH, TO GO OVER.

BUT AS I NOTED, WE WILL DISCUSS ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE ON THE 14TH STAFF PLANS TO PRESENT THE FINAL DRAFT BUDGET, UH, AT THE 22ND MEET AT THE AUGUST 22ND MEETING.

AND WE WILL NOT ADOPT IT UNTIL SOME POINT IN APRIL.

WE WANT TO GIVE THE CITIZENS PLENTY OF TIME TO SEE WHAT THE FINAL DRAFT LOOKS LIKE.

UH, BEFORE WE ASK COUNSEL TO, UM, TO VOTE ON IT TODAY, WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT A RECAP OF THE FY 25 FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS.

WE WILL ALSO REVIEW, UH, AND DISCUSS THE POLICY VARIABLES THAT WENT INTO ACTUALLY CREATING THE FY 25 BUDGET.

UH, WE WILL BE ABLE TO LOOK AT THEM, WE WILL BE ABLE TO LOOK AT THE VARIABLES SHOULD COUNSEL WANT TO FURTHER DISCUSS THEM AND ALTER THEIR POLICY DECISIONS BEFORE WE ACTUALLY FINALIZE THE BUDGET.

SO THE FIRST THING THAT WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT TODAY, WELL, BEFORE I SAY THAT, I'M ONLY GONNA SPEAK FOR ABOUT THIS MEETING, IS SCHEDULED FOR A LITTLE AROUND TWO HOURS.

I'M PROBABLY GONNA SPEAK FOR ROUGHLY 20 TO 40 MINUTES, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY UMS I PUT IN THIS WHILE I GO THROUGH MY NOTES.

AND THE REST OF THE TIME WE'LL BE FOR COUNSEL.

SO IF WE GET TO THIS AND WE LOOK AT THE SANITATION FUND, WHEN IT'S ALL SAID AND DONE, IF Y'ALL HAVE A DISCUSSION AMONGST YOURSELVES, Y'ALL MAKE A CHOICE, WE WILL BE FINISHED EARLY.

SO PLEASE KNOW THAT THIS WHOLE TIME IS REALLY MEANT FOR YOU TO DISCUSS ONE SPECIFIC ITEM AS WE START DIVING INTO THIS.

UM, AND JUST, WE'RE NOT GONNA TRY TO RUSH THROUGH ANY, UH, THROUGH ALL OF THE BUDGET TODAY.

JUST I WANNA SET THAT, UH, THAT EXPECTATION.

BUT AS WE GO INTO, UH, TO GET THERE, THE FIRST THING WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT IS, UH, THE DRAFT BUDGET THAT WAS PRESENTED TO THE COUNCIL AT THE JULY 25TH MEETING.

WE'RE GONNA RECAP THE BUDGET FORMULA AND WE ARE GOING TO LOOK AT GROWTH IN OUR REVENUE AND EXPENSES.

INTERTWINED WITH ALL OF THAT WILL BE THE $5 MILLION REDUCTION AND HOW WE WERE ABLE TO, UH, ACHIEVE THAT REDUCTION.

SO TO KICK IT OFF, WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT THE FORMULA.

SO I'M JUST GONNA GO AHEAD AND TURN THIS AROUND NOW.

HOPEFULLY I DON'T MESS UP THE COMPUTER.

MIKE, ARE YOU STILL ABLE TO SEE? YES.

SO Y'ALL MAY BE TIRED OF SEEING THE FORMULA, RIGHT? WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE FORMULA FOR A YEAR.

UM, PLEASE DON'T BE TIRED OF IT.

I THINK IT'S

[00:05:01]

IT'S USEFUL FOR THE CITIZENS AS WELL, SO THEY CAN SEE HOW A LOT OF THIS PLAYS IN, UM, TO WHAT THE DECISIONS Y'ALL MAKE, PLAY INTO A, A WHAT'S HAPPENING WITHIN THE CITY AND WHERE STAFF COMES INTO PLAY AND WHAT WE CAN REALLY ASSIST WITH IN PRESENTING A BETTER BUDGET DOCUMENT, NOT ONLY FOR YOU, BUT FOR THE CITIZENS AS WELL.

BECAUSE WE ALL PLAY A ROLE IN BUILDING THIS BUDGET.

IT'S A CONTINUOUS CYCLE THAT CAN SOMETIMES BE OVERWHELMING, AND IT IS NICE BREAKING IT DOWN INTO PIECES OR, UH, INTO BEAVER NUGGETS, SO TO SPEAK.

NO JOKES TODAY.

I NEED TO BE SERIOUS .

UM, SO WE CAN SEE WHERE WE CAN CONCENTRATE OUR MAJORITY OF TIME IN THE LARGER SENSE.

EVERY POLICY DECISION THAT YOU MAKE IMPACTS THIS EQUATION.

BY AND LARGE THOUGH, UM, YOU SPEND MOST OF YOUR TIME JUST LOOKING AT SECTIONS TWO, THREE, AND FOUR, WHICH ARE THE REVENUE PIECES.

YOU HAVE ANNUAL POLICY PIECES THAT YOU ADOPT THAT REALLY IMPACT THAT PORTION OF THIS ALONG WITH SECTION SEVEN, WHICH IS THE ENDING FUND.

FUND BALANCE STAFF REALLY ONLY HAS THE LARGEST IMPACT ON SECTIONS FIVE AND SIX, WHICH IS THE EXPENSE CATEGORY OF THIS FORMULA.

AND I WILL TELL YOU, THE TEAM ACROSS THE AISLE HERE HAS DONE ONE HECK OF A JOB REALLY LOOKING AT THIS THIS YEAR AND SEEING WHAT, WHAT WE COULD GET TO, UM, THAT STILL PROVIDES THE SERVICE DELIVERY THAT YOU EXPECT.

UM, WHILE REDUCING A GOOD CHUNK OUT OF OUR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS.

UM, THAT EQUATED TO ROUGHLY $5 MILLION.

AND $5 MILLION IS ROUGHLY 10% OF OUR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS.

AND IT'S NO SMALL PEAK TO REALLY GET THERE.

NOW, THAT DOES INCLUDE 12 VACANT POSITIONS.

UM, I WILL SAY IT AGAIN FOR THE BAYTOWN SUN, SO THEY GET IT CORRECT THIS TIME.

THAT'S 12 VACANT POSITIONS.

NO PEOPLE WERE IMPACTED WITH THAT.

AND, UH, ANYTHING THAT WE MOVE, WE ENSURE THAT IT'S NOT, UH, HURTING ANY OF OUR EMPLOYEES AT THIS TIME.

WITH THAT WE ARE NOT ADDING, OR WE ARE NOT, UH, PLANNING TO ADD ANY PERSONNEL TO THE FY 25 BUDGET, NOR ARE WE ADDING ANY ADDITIONAL CASH, UH, UH, TO BE EARMARKED FOR OUR CIP.

SO WHAT, WHEN YOU LOOK AT ALL THOSE PIECES, IT LEAVES THE NUMBERS LOOKING LIKE THIS.

WE HAVE OUR REVENUE GROWING BY ROUGHLY $5 MILLION.

OUR EXPENSES ARE PROBABLY THE SMALLEST INCREASE THAT YOU'VE SEEN IN QUITE SOME TIME, UH, ROUGHLY JUST AROUND $1.2 MILLION, UH, FROM YEAR TO YEAR, UH, WITH EXPENSE GROWTH.

OUR DAYS OF RESERVE ARE CURRENTLY JUST OVER $22 MILLION.

AND THAT'S LEAVING THE, THE DRAFT BUDGET ENDING RESERVE BALANCE THAT YOU RECEIVED ON JULY 25TH WITH 61 DAYS IN THE RESERVE.

UH, THAT WILL BE AT 65 WHEN IT'S ALL SAID AND DONE.

UH, BUT I, I DON'T WANT TO, UM, MIX UP THE NUMBERS AT THIS POINT.

THIS ONE RIGHT HERE IS ROUGHLY 61 DAYS.

ONE THING THAT YOU WILL SEE ON HERE THAT I'VE RECEIVED QUESTIONS ABOUT IS THE DEFICIT PORTION THAT'S ON THE BUDGET.

THAT IS A PRETTY COMMON OCCURRENCE THROUGHOUT, UM, OUR BUDGETS THROUGH OTHER MUNICIPAL BUDGETS.

UH, THE BUDGET IS STRUCTURALLY BALANCED, OKAY? IT IS A STRUCTURALLY BALANCED BUDGET THAT HAS DEFICIT PORTIONS BUILT INTO IT.

SO IF SOMEBODY SAYS THAT THERE'S A DEFICIT BUDGET, UM, WELL, THE DOCUMENT SHOWS DEFICIT AROUND THE PARENTHESES, SO THAT IS A DEFICIT BUILT IN THERE, BUT IT'S NOT A DEFICIT BUDGET.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS OF THE BUDGET, WHAT HAPPENS IS THAT COUNSEL SETS A GOAL OR POLICY AROUND THE ENDING FUND BALANCE BEING AT 60, 65 DAYS.

AND IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING OVER THAT 60 OR 65 DAYS, YOU CAN DECIDE TO USE THAT ADDITIONAL CASH ON ONE-TIME PROJECTS.

SO WHEN WE HAVE ADDITIONAL CASH OVER AND ABOVE OUR ENDING FUND BALANCE, IT IS TYPICALLY PUT TO USE IN, UH, ONE-TIME PROJECTS.

THAT COULD BE CAPITAL PROJECTS.

IT COULD JUST BE, UM, A PLAN.

WHO KNOWS, I, I DON'T HAVE SPECIFICS ON WHAT THIS 2 MILLION IS GOING TO, BUT IT'S, IT IS A STRUCTURALLY BALANCED BUDGET WITH ADDITIONAL MONIES THAT ARE JUST ALLOCATED TOWARDS SOMETHING ELSE TO GET OUR, OUR RESERVE BALANCE TO WHERE WE THINK IT SHOULD BE AT THIS POINT.

WHAT THE NUMBERS DON'T SHOW TO THE COUNCIL AT THIS POINT IS THE DETAILS OF THE DEPARTMENT'S BUDGET.

YOU MAY ASK, WHY AREN'T WE LOOKING

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UM, WHEN WE AS A, AS A BODY OR LOOKING AT THE OVERALL BUDGET, WE'RE LOOKING AT THE HIGH LEVEL PIECE, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT WE NEED TO EXCLUDE LOOKING AT THE DEPARTMENT'S PIECE BECAUSE THAT IS, UH, AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF WHAT, WHAT MAKES UP THE BUDGET.

SO THAT IS IN YOUR BUDGET BOOK.

AND I WOULD ASK YOU, UH, TO LOOK AT YOUR BUDGET BOOK AND GO THROUGH EACH DEPARTMENT AND LOOK AT THE COVER PAGES ON EACH OF THOSE DEPARTMENTS.

WHAT YOU'LL FIND ON THERE ARE THE YEAR OVER YEAR CHANGES.

YOU WILL SEE PERSONNEL REQUESTS AND YOU WILL SEE SUPPLEMENTAL REQUESTS, AS I NOTED, UH, BEFORE NO NEW PERSONNEL WERE ADDED TO THIS BUDGET.

AND SO YOU MAY ASK YOURSELF, WHY ARE WE PUTTING THIS IN HERE? WELL, IT GIVES YOU AN IDEA SO THAT COUNSEL CAN SEE HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY BEING REQUESTED EACH AND EVERY YEAR BY OUR DEPARTMENTS.

UM, IT'S, YOU CAN START SEEING HOW THOSE RELATE TO THEIR GROWTH PLANS, OR YOU CAN START LOOKING AT THINGS THAT AREN'T BEING TAKEN CARE OF.

AND I'M GONNA ASK YOU TO LOOK AT THAT AS A POLICY VARIABLE FOR FUTURE DISCUSSIONS.

WE NEED TO ASK OURSELVES, UM, IF THEY CONTINUE TO ASK FOR ADDITIONAL PEOPLE, ASK OURSELVES WHAT'S NOT BEING DONE? RIGHT? WHAT'S NOT BEING DONE? IF THEY'RE REQUESTING, UH, TO ADD MORE PEOPLE, THEN WE ASK, ARE WE KEEPING UP WITH GROWTH? UM, AND THEN ONE OTHER QUESTION THAT WE SHOULD ASK IS, HOW WELL ARE WE ACTUALLY PROVIDING THE SERVICES THAT WE EXPECT TO HAPPEN IF WE DON'T HAVE THE PEOPLE TO PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES? AND SO WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO JUST LIKE THE POLICY PIECE, UM, YOU'VE PROBABLY, I'M RELATING THIS TO LIKE CONVERSATIONS.

YOU MAY HAVE HEARD ME SAY LIKE, WE NEED TO DO LESS WITH LESS.

AND I'VE HEARD THE, I'VE SAID THAT TO THE DIRECTORS, I'VE SAID THAT PUBLICLY.

UM, AND I'M NOT MISSPEAKING SAYING LESS WITH LESS.

I DON'T, I'M NOT GONNA ASK OUR TEAM TO DO MORE WITH LESS.

UM, WE NEED TO DO LESS AND WE NEED TO DO LESS BETTER, RIGHT? WHEN WE TRY TO WIN AT EVERYTHING, WE'RE WINNING AT NOTHING.

AND SO PART OF THIS EXERCISE AT THIS POINT IS THAT WE ARE TRYING TO FINE TUNE WHERE WE'RE ALREADY VERY GOOD AT THINGS AND START TAILORING DOWN SOME OF THE PIECES THAT WE HAVE, BUT WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT THEY'RE STILL ASKING FOR GROWTH IN CERTAIN AREAS.

SO THERE WILL BE POLICY POINTS THAT WE AS A, AS A GROUP HAVE TO SIT AND DISCUSS ON WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE AND WHERE WE NEED TO CHANGE THE SUPPLEMENTAL REQUEST.

UM, HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED YET.

UM, THE SUPPLEMENTAL REQUESTS WILL MOST LIKELY BE, UH, LOOKED AT AND FINALIZED NEXT WEEK, AND THOSE WILL BE PREPARED FOR THE AUGUST 22ND BUDGET.

NOW, THE SUPPLEMENTAL REQUEST IS AN ADDITIONAL FUND, AND THAT FUND IS, IT DOES GET MONEY FROM THE GENERAL FUND.

WE TYPICALLY TRANSFER MILLIONS INTO THAT EACH YEAR TO ADDRESS OUR ASSETS, NEW VEHICLES, NEW EQUIPMENT, UH, REPAIRING OLD ASSETS OR REPLACING OLD ASSETS OR JUST SOMETIMES REPAIRING THINGS.

UM, WE DID NOT TRANSFER MONEY INTO THAT THIS YEAR.

IT IS HEALTHY ENOUGH THAT IT CAN SUPPORT SOME SUPPLEMENTALS, BUT IT IS ONE PIECE THAT WE DIDN'T TRANSFER MONEY IN, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO REALIZE HOW MUCH IS BEING REQUESTED OUT OF THAT, UH, FUND EACH AND EVERY YEAR AS WELL.

SO PLEASE DIVE INTO WHAT THE DEPARTMENTS HAVE.

YOU CAN SEE WHERE THEY'RE LOOKING AT.

I I PROBABLY OWE YOU MORE DETAILS ON SOME OF THE VARIANCES THAT ARE THERE, AND I WILL GET BACK TO YOU ON WHAT THOSE ARE.

BUT BY AND LARGE, UM, WITH, WITH A $5 MILLION REDUCTION IN EXPENSES, NO NEW PERSONNEL, AND YOU SEE A MODEST INCREASE YEAR OVER YEAR, IF WE TAKE THAT AND BREAK IT DOWN INTO EXPENSE CATEGORIES, IT LOOKS LIKE THIS.

YOU SEE A TOTAL EXPENSE GROWTH RATE OF JUST 1.2%.

WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT? WELL, THAT'S IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE AVERAGE OVER THE PAST DECADE, ROUGHLY SIX TO 10% PER YEAR.

SO IF WE'VE BEEN GROWING SIX TO 10% PER YEAR AND THEN WE ONLY WENT AT 1.2%, I WOULD SAY THAT'S A PRETTY PHENOMENAL FEAT BECAUSE WE'RE EVEN BELOW INFLATION AT THAT POINT.

AND WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO GROW.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT ALL THE CAP OR WHEN YOU LOOK AT ALL THE EXPENSE CATEGORIES UP HERE, THE ONLY ONE THAT'S POSITIVE OUTSIDE OF THE, THE BOTTOM LINE IS THE PERSONNEL SERVICES.

THE PERSONNEL SERVICES IS ROUGHLY 4%.

AND, UM, IT TAKES UP THE BIGGEST PORTION OF THE BUDGET.

UH, WHEN YOU LOOK AT, UH, WHEN YOU LOOK AT ALL OF IT, THE ADDITIONAL PERCENTAGE THAT YOU SEE UP HERE IS WHAT I PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED ON, UH, WE HAD PERSONNEL THAT WERE NOT PROPERLY ACCOUNTED FOR IN OUR FINANCIAL,

[00:15:01]

AND WE WERE ALERTED TO THIS EARLY THIS YEAR.

AND, UH, WE HAD TO MAKE THE CHANGE SO THAT WE ARE BEING COMPLETELY TRANSPARENT BECAUSE THOSE PEOPLE WERE LABELED AS CONTRACTORS AND NOT EMPLOYEES.

AND, UM, I DON'T THINK THAT'S FAIR TO YOU.

IT'S NOT FAIR TO ANYBODY WHEN IT'S NOT, UM, OPEN ON WHAT OUR ACTUAL PERSONNEL COUNT WAS.

SO THOSE PEOPLE WERE MOVED INTO THE GENERAL FUND, AND THAT GROWTH HERE IS, IS IS THERE, AND THAT, THAT'S WHAT CONTRIBUTES TO THE 5.7% AS WELL.

ONE OF THE BIG ONES THAT YOU SEE UP HERE IS CAPITAL OUTLAYS.

SO GOING LEAN HAS REALLY FORCED US TO NOT HAVE A LOT OF CAPITAL PROJECTS, WHICH IS A NEW, UH, WAY OF OPERATION FOR THIS, UH, ORGANIZATION AS WELL.

AND WE ARE RELYING ON THE CIP TO ADDRESS A LOT OF WHAT WE CAN, BUT THIS DOES REMOVE SOME OF THOSE EXTRA PROJECTS THAT THE DEPARTMENTS WERE DOING, UM, ADDRESSING PIECES THAT THEY, THEY SOMETIMES NEED TO, IT'S NOT SUSTAINABLE, WE CAN'T KEEP IT LIKE THIS, BUT THIS IS A, A, A BANDAID, SO TO SPEAK FOR FY 25 TO MEET OUR TARGET OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO WHILE WE REALIGN FOR, UH, A SUSTAINABLE TOMORROW.

AS I DID MENTION, THIS IS PART OF THE 5 MILLION PIECE WITH 12 DIFFERENT POSITIONS, AND IT ALSO DOES DIVE INTO SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES.

UM, THE SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES WERE DISCUSSED AT THE JULY 25TH, UH, MEETING THE COUNCIL WAS PROVIDED WITH A MEMO, UH, DETAILING, UH, WHAT THOSE CHANGES WERE IN PREVIOUS CONVERSATIONS AS WE WERE, AS ALL OF US HAVE BEEN WORKING TOGETHER OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS.

UM, COUNSEL ASKED, UM, AND I THINK I STATED IN THE LAST MEETING, UH, COUNSEL ASKED STAFF TO MAKE APPROPRIATE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT, UH, THAT WERE PALATABLE, UM, WITH OUR SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES AND THAT COULD BE BUILT INTO THIS BUDGET.

AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT'S NOT FAIR FOR COUNSEL TO TRY TO JUST PICK ITEMS WHEN COUNSEL DOESN'T DEAL WITH THESE ITEMS ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS.

AND, UH, THE STAFF HAS DONE A, A ONE HECK OF A JOB REALLY DIVING IN AND LOOKING AT WHERE WE CAN MAKE CHANGES AND, AND WHERE WE COULDN'T WHILE NOT, UH, DOING ANYTHING TOO DRASTIC, UH, FOR THE CITY OR FOR THE CITIZENS ON WHAT THEY EXPECT.

SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE FY 25 BUDGET DOES ALREADY INCORPORATE THESE CHANGES.

OKAY? SO THE NUMBERS THAT YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF US IN FRONT OF YOU INCORPORATE WHAT'S INSIDE ALL THESE CHANGES THROUGHOUT ALL OF THESE DEPARTMENTS.

UM, IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SERVICE DELIVERY PIECES THAT YOU WOULD LIKE ADDRESSED, I WOULD ASK THAT YOU PLEASE EMAIL ME, CAROL, OR GRANT.

AND, UH, IF YOU CAN DO THAT SOON, THAT WOULD BE FANTASTIC.

UM, SO THAT WE CAN, UH, GET ALL THAT PREPARED FOR THE, THE AUGUST 14TH MEETING, UH, AND REALLY ADDRESS THOSE IN DEPTH.

OKAY? I WILL SAY, UH, WELL, EXCUSE ME.

I WILL SAY THAT IF WE ARE GOING TO OPEN THE CONVERSATION ABOUT ALL ALTERING THE SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES, I'M GONNA ASK THAT WE GO BACK TO THE EQUATION AT THIS POINT.

WE ALREADY KNOW WHAT, WHAT THIS FORMULA EQUALS.

WE ALREADY KNOW WHAT SEVEN IS, RIGHT? WE ALREADY KNOW WHAT TWO, THREE, AND FOUR ARE.

THE ONLY THING THAT CAN BE CHANGED AT THIS POINT, NOT THE ONLY THING, BUT BY AND LARGE, THE BIGGEST IMPACT TO MAKE A CHANGE AT THIS POINT IS GONNA BE IN FIVE AND SIX.

SO IF WE ARE GONNA OPEN THIS CONVERSATION BACK UP ON WHAT ALL IS IN HERE, WE NEED TO, WE NEED TO START HAVING OTHER DETAILED CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT ELSE WE NEED TO LOOK AT IN SECTIONS FIVE AND SIX OF THIS FORMULA, UH, TO BETTER ACCOUNT FOR, FOR THE FINANCIAL RESOURCES THAT ARE NECESSARY TO, TO MEET THE OVERALL FUND BALANCE.

SO WITH THAT IN MIND, LET'S LOOK AT HOW THE PAST POLICY DECISIONS HAS SHAPED THE NUMBERS THAT WE HAVE IN OUR BUDGETS RIGHT NOW.

SO UP HERE, THE FIRST ONE YOU HAVE IS OUR TAX RATE.

OUR TAX RATE.

THE POLICY DIRECTION THAT THE STAFF HAS BEEN GIVEN, UM, IS THAT WE ARE WORKING ON A HALF CENT REDUCTION OR THE NO NEW REVENUE RATE.

AND, UH, WHICHEVER ONE IS GONNA BE MORE BENEFICIAL TO THE CITIZENS IS THE POLICY GOAL THAT WE ARE SHOOTING FOR, UM, WHEN WE ARE BUILDING THIS BUDGET.

SO EVERYTHING UP HERE IN THIS BOOK IS BASED ON 71 AND A HALF.

OKAY? THE NEXT ONE IS THE TAX EXEMPTION.

THE TAX EXEMPTION IS A GOAL FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO INCREASE THE TAX EXEMPTION BY $20,000 EVERY SINGLE YEAR UNTIL, UM, IT EQUALS THE AVERAGE HOME VALUE IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN

[00:20:01]

IT'LL, UH, IT'LL BE A NET ZERO FOR THE AVERAGE HOMEOWNER IN BAYTOWN.

THE FUND BALANCE, WHICH IS SECTION SEVEN UP HERE, IS THE DAYS OF RESERVE.

UM, OUR BODY, UH, RECENTLY SPENT DOWN THE RESERVES IN AN EFFORT TO BORROW LESS MONEY.

WE SPENT ROUGHLY $32 MILLION OUT OF THE RESERVES, UH, STRATEGICALLY SO THAT WE COULD GET, UH, LESS DEBT OR ISSUE LESS DEBT IN 22 AND 23.

AND, UM, THAT WAS A GOOD MOVE BASED ON THE FACT THAT WE ALWAYS WERE ENDING A HIGHER RESERVE BALANCE THAN WE TYPICALLY, UM, THAN WE TYPICALLY BUDGETED FOR.

AND SO IT'S STRATEGICALLY DONE TO ADDRESS THAT.

AND WE GOT A RECOMMENDATION BY MOODY'S AND S AND P THAT OUR FUND BALANCE NEEDS TO BE MORE THAN WHAT WE, WHAT OUR BALANCE OR WHAT OUR BUDGETED IMBALANCE WAS FOR FY 24 OR 23.

UM, WHEN WE GO INTO FY 25 AND THE FINANCE COMMITTEE MADE THE RECOMMENDATION TO THE BODY, THE COUNCIL HEARD THIS AT, UH, ONE OF OUR RECENT WORKSHOPS AND WE ALL AGREED THAT WE NEED TO KEEP THIS AT 65.

THAT'S, THAT'S A GOOD NUMBER TO WORK TOWARDS.

THAT GIVES US ROUGHLY TWO MONTHS OF RESERVES SHOULD SOMETHING POP UP THAT HELPS US TRANSITION WITH A NEW BUDGET FROM OCTOBER TO JANUARY WHEN WE ACTUALLY GET OUR NEW REVENUE.

THAT'S HOW ALL THAT PLAYS IN TOGETHER.

AND THEN THE, THE, THE THREE ON THE RIGHT ARE, ARE KIND OF WORKING POLICIES ARE RIGHT HERE ON THIS BOARD.

SORRY, THE SUPPORTING ENTERPRISE FUNDS IS KIND OF A WORKING POLICY, UM, BY AND LARGE THAT WE, UH, USE THE GENERAL FUND TO HELP SUPPORT OUR, OUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS TO HELP LOWER THE COST OR KEEP COSTS DOWN AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

AND MOST NOTABLY THAT THOSE FUNDS ARE, ARE GOING TO THE SANITATION AND THE AQUATICS FUND AT THIS POINT IN TIME.

BUT IT DOES HELP A FEW OTHER ENTERPRISE FUNDS THAT WE HAVE IN THE CITY.

OUR SERVICE RATE INCREASES.

UM, IT'S A WORKING POLICY TO KEEP THEM LOW.

WE DON'T TYPICALLY PASS ON THE TRUE COST, UM, OF WHAT OUR SERVICE IS, BUT THOSE COSTS CONTINUE TO INCREASE.

SO THAT DELTA OF WHAT WE ARE COMFORTABLE WITH CONTINUES TO, TO SPREAD A LITTLE BIT.

AND THEN FINALLY, UH, DEBT, UM, IT HAS BEEN COUNSEL'S WORKING POLICY THAT WE ARE GOING TO USE MORE CASH AND ISSUE LESS DEBT, UM, BECAUSE IT'S, UM, IT'S NOT ALWAYS PALATABLE ISSUING 20 TO 30 MILLION EVERY SINGLE YEAR.

AND WE HAVE TO FIND DIFFERENT WAYS TO ADDRESS OUR DEBT IN THE ORGANIZATION.

AND SO THAT HAS BEEN SOMEWHAT OF A CHANGE.

AND AS WE MOVE INTO GENERAL OBLIGATION DEBT, THAT IS A, UM, THAT IS A ANOTHER POLICY DIRECTION WHERE WE'RE GONNA BE REQUIRED TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE CASH ON HAND, UH, SO THAT WE ARE ADDRESSING THINGS THAT WE KNOW DON'T NEED TO GO GENERAL OBLIGATION AND, AND NOT ISSUE.

COS AT THAT POINT WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT HOW WE CAN USE THAT CASH TO BETTER ADDRESS THAT.

SO I'M GONNA PAUSE RIGHT THERE JUST FOR A SECOND.

AND WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THESE SIX POLICY PIECES, WHICH ONE IS SET IN STONE RIGHT NOW? LIKE FOR FY 25? WHICH 27? I WOULD SAY SEVEN OF, OF, OF THESE.

OH, THESE? YEAH.

NO, I MEAN, I GUESS THAT, I GUESS THAT'S HERE, BUT, UH, OKAY, ANOTHER GUEST, ANOTHER GUEST SERVICE RATE.

WE'VE ALREADY DONE THAT.

ALRIGHT, WE'VE ALREADY DONE THAT FOR FY 25.

SO THAT ONE'S ALREADY SET IN STONE AND THE TAX RATE WHILE WE'RE BUILDING THE TAX RATE AT SEVEN, ONE AND A HALF, IT'S NOT REALLY FINISHED.

OKAY? IT'S SOMETHING THAT, IT'S A WORKING POLICY.

YOURS, THERE'S NOTHING THAT SAYS WE HAVE TO GO TO SEVEN ONE AND A HALF.

WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THE, THE NOTED REVENUE RATE.

I'M NOT TRYING TO LEAD YOU THAT WE NEED TO INCREASE IT, I'M JUST LETTING YOU KNOW THAT IT'S, IT'S A, A WORKING POINT.

WHAT'S THE VALUE OF THE HALF SET? I MEAN, JUST WHAT IS THAT REVENUE? THESE TWO EQUAL A LOSS OF REVENUE OF ROUGHLY $2 MILLION EACH YEAR.

THIS IS ROUGHLY 800,000 ROUGHLY FOR EVERY HALF SET FOR EVERY HALF CENT, ROUGHLY OUR DAYS OF RESERVE.

UM, RIGHT NOW IT'S, LIKE I SAID, IT SHOWS 61 IN YOUR BOOK, OKAY? IT SHOWS 61 IN YOUR BOOK.

WE WILL GET THAT TO 65.

SO THE NUMBERS WE HAVE RIGHT NOW, UH, THERESA AND HER TEAM, WE, WE SEE THAT BEING 65 ON HOW WE CAN REWORKING THAT.

UM,

[00:25:01]

SO YOU HAVE TO GET ROUGHLY $2 MILLION TO, TO, TO, TO BRIDGE THAT GAP.

AND THEN THESE OTHER THREE, I JUST NEEDED TO STAND UP.

SO, UM, THE OTHER THREE, WE CAN CHANGE THOSE AT ANY TIME, RIGHT? WE DON'T NEED THOSE DEFINED FOR THE ACTUAL BUILDING OF THE BUDGET.

UM, THEY ARE PIECES THAT WE CAN WORK ON, BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO BALANCE AS WITH THE POLICY PIECE, LIKE DEBT, RIGHT? WE HAVE TO BALANCE HOW WE WANT TO RESPOND TO OUR CITIZENRY, OUR CITIZENRY, OR, UM, THEY FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE WITH THE GENERAL OBLIGATION.

SO HOW CAN WE BALANCE THE GENERAL OBLIGATION WITH CASH AND WITH COS WHERE APPROPRIATE, RIGHT? SO LIKE WE, WE NEED TO LIKE FIND WAYS TO REALLY, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? HOW CAN WE BE THE MOST EFFECTIVE THAT WE CAN WITH THAT POLICY PIECE? SO HOW DO THEY IMPACT THE POLICY OR HOW, WHAT ARE THE IMPACTS WITH THESE POLICY DECISIONS? AND I KIND OF, UM, YOU KIND OF TALKED AROUND THEM A LITTLE BIT ALREADY.

UM, BUT WE'RE PRETTY LEAN AT THIS POINT.

I MEAN, WE ARE PRETTY DARN LEAN.

AND, UM, MAYOR, YOU, YOU KIND OF JUMPED THE GUN ON ME HERE.

IT'S, UH, $2 MILLION WITH THE TAX RATE AND THE, UH, UM, GOOD JOB GOLD STAR FOR YOU.

JUST KIDDING, MAN.

WE'RE TOO SERIOUS TODAY.

JUMPING JACKS, ANYBODY.

IT'S BEEN A LONG DAY.

OKAY.

UM, SO IF WE CONTINUE TO LOWER THE TAX RATE AND AT THE SAME TIME USE MORE CASH FOR DEBT, THOSE TWO POLICY DIRECTIVES ARE WORKING AGAINST EACH OTHER RIGHT NOW.

AS YOU, AS WE WENT THROUGH THIS WHOLE PIECE UP TO THIS POINT, IF YOU WERE, IF AS WE WENT THROUGH THAT, YOU, YOU SAW THAT WE WEREN'T TRANSFERRING ANY MONEY TO THE CIP, WE WEREN'T REALLY ADDING ANYTHING TO THE RESERVES.

THERE'S NO CASH THAT WE TALKED ABOUT BEING ADDED TO ANY ONE PLACE, THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY GO TO A FUND AND HAVE MORE CASH.

AND SO WE HAVE TO BE VERY CON UH, CONSIDERATE OF THAT.

AND SO THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT, HEY, WE NEED TO GO RAISE THE TAX RATE.

THAT'S NOT WHAT THAT MEANS.

IT MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO START PRIORITIZING WHAT WE WANT TO DO.

IT LOOKS AT OUR OTHER SERVICE DELIVERY OPTIONS THAT WE HAVE.

AND DO WE NEED TO DO EVERYTHING? LIKE RIGHT NOW WE HAVE PRETTY PREMIER SERVICE BY AND LARGE.

UH, THE BAYTON THAT HAVE BEEN HERE A LONG TIME AND HAVE NOT LIVED IN OTHER CITIES MAY NOT KNOW THAT.

UM, BY AND LARGE, BAYTOWN HAS PRETTY EXQUISITE SERVICE.

AND, UM, WE CAN LOOK AT OTHER PIECES AND WE HAVE TO BALANCE THAT.

REMEMBER, WE'VE DROPPED OUR TAX RATE ALMOST 10 CENTS IN FIVE YEARS.

THAT IS TREMENDOUS, RIGHT? LIKE, THAT IS A $8 MILLION A YEAR, RIGHT? OR 8 MILLION BUCKS IN REVENUE DROPPING THAT.

AND SO THAT'S PRETTY CONSIDERABLE.

UM, AND UNFORTUNATELY OUR RATES CONTINUE TO GO UP.

AND SO TRYING TO SUPPORT THE ENTERPRISE FUNDS AND LOWERING SERVICE RATES HAS REALLY IMPACTED US.

UM, ANOTHER IMPACT HERE IS WE HAVEN'T ADDED PERSONNEL.

UM, WE DID NOT PLAN TO ADD ANY PERSONNEL IN THE FY 24 BUDGET THAT WAS CHANGED, UH, UH, FOR POLICE AND FIRE, UH, WHEN THE BUDGET WAS ADOPTED.

WE ARE SUGGESTING NOT TO ADD ANY NEW PERSONNEL NOW FOR FY 25.

WE, AS, AS ONE EXAMPLE, WE KNOW THAT WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO ADDRESS THAT.

WE HAVE TO ADD MORE PEOPLE.

THAT EXAMPLE RIGHT, RIGHT NOW WOULD BE THAT WE HAVE, WE HAVE TO PREPARE TO ADD ANOTHER AMBULANCE INTO OUR ORGANIZATION.

UH, THE LAST TIME WE ADDED AN AMBULANCE WAS BASED OFF DATA ON OTHER CITIES SUPPORTING US.

AND KENNY, IF I'M GETTING THIS WRONG, PLEASE, UH, CORRECT ME, OTHER CITIES HAD TO START SUPPORTING OUR CALLS BECAUSE WE WEREN'T ABLE TO MAKE ALL OF OUR CALLS.

AND THAT WAS, I BELIEVE, THE LAST TIME THAT WE ADDED ANOTHER BOX.

UM, AND, UM, THAT SAME DATA IS REAPPEARING AT THIS POINT.

WE ARE STARTING TO RELY ON, ON OTHERS TO HELP KEEP OUR SERVICE, UH, THE SAME.

AND, UH, WE'VE HAD EXTENSIVE CONVERSATIONS ON WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE AND IT'S TIME TO ADD ANOTHER BOX THAT'S GONNA BE ROUGHLY $800,000 THAT WE HAVE TO ADD TO THE BUDGET JUST FOR THAT AS WE CONTINUE TO GROW.

UM, IF WITH A NEW

[00:30:01]

OUR PUBLIC SAFETY BUILDING BUILT FOR THE GROWTH OF THE COMMUNITY AND, UH, INCREMENTALLY GROWING WITH OUR POLICE OFFICERS TO, UM, FULFILL THE, THE NEEDS OF THE ORGAN OF THE CITY, UH, SO THAT WE CAN HAVE BETTER SERVICE AROUND SUCH A LARGE SWATH OF LAND THAT WE HAVE AS BAYTOWN.

UM, IF WE JUST START ADDING HANDFULS AT A TIME EACH YEAR, WE ARE TALKING AN ADDITIONAL 600 TO 800,000 DEPENDING ON WHAT WE ADD SPECIFICALLY.

SO JUST THOSE FEW EXAMPLES ARE ALREADY IMPACTFUL TO THE BUDGET AND WE HAVEN'T EVEN STARTED TALKING, UH, COST OF LIVING INCREASES FOR EMPLOYEES OR ADDRESSING CAPITAL NEEDS OR ADDRESSING, UM, SUPPLEMENTAL PIECES THAT HAVE TO BE ADDRESSED OR TRANSFERRED INTO OTHER FUNDS.

SO OUR POLICY PIECES THAT WE ARE MAKING UP HERE REALLY HAD DIRECT IMPACTS ON, ON HOW WE ARE BUILDING THIS BUDGET OVERALL.

SO, AND I WILL JUMP OFF OF THAT ONE AT THIS POINT.

THE FINAL PIECE I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS SERVICE RATES.

OUR SERVICE RATES.

I'VE ALREADY MENTIONED THAT, UM, THAT WE HAVE PRETTY EXQUISITE SERVICE.

WE HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE AS A CITY TO, TO ABSORB A LOT OF OUR RATES.

UM, A LOT OF OUR RATE INCREASES.

SO THE GENERAL FUND HAS BEEN HELPING OR ASSISTING, UH, THOSE SERVICE RATES FOR MANY, MANY YEARS AT THIS POINT.

AND I, I TOOK THE LIBERTY JUST TO BRING SOME TO YOU ALL TO SEE HOW MUCH WE ACTUALLY DON'T CHANGE OUR SERVICE RATES.

SO BEFORE WE CHANGED OUR AMBULANCE FEES IN 2023, THE LAST TIME THAT WE TOUCHED THEM WAS 2006.

SO IT WAS A 17 YEAR GAP BEFORE WE ADDRESSED THE AMBULANCE FEES IN THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT.

THE LAST TIME WE TOUCHED FOOD, ESTABLISHED FOOD ESTABLISHMENT PERMITS WAS 2008 AND SWIMMING POOLS IN 2005.

OUR BUILDING PERMIT FEES HAVEN'T BEEN TOUCHED SINCE 2019.

AND THEN WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR PLANNING, OUR ZONING OR OTHER PIECES THAT GO WITH THE PLANNING, THEY HAVEN'T BEEN TOUCHED SINCE 2015.

WE'VE HAD MINOR RATE ADJUSTMENTS IN THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, BUT MOSTLY THAT WAS, UH, GEARED TOWARDS, UM, UH, EVERGREEN AND ROSELAND PARKS.

UM, WE DID SOME, WE DID SOMETHING WITH THE NATURE DIVISION THIS YEAR.

BEFORE THAT, IT WAS SEVEN YEARS BEFORE WE DID ANYTHING IN, IN THE NATURE, UH, CENTER.

BUT THE, THE FACILITIES USE HAS NOT BEEN TOUCHED SINCE 2009 WITH OUR PARKS DEPARTMENT.

SO A DECADE AND A HALF BY AND LARGE.

ANYTHING I CAN KEEP GOING ON, BUT I, I THINK YOU GET THE POINT.

UM, IT'S BEEN A MINUTE SINCE WE'VE REALLY LOOKED AT WHAT OUR SERVICE RATES ARE, UM, AND THE LAST TIME WE TOOK SANITATION WAS 2019.

SO WITH THAT, UM, THE BELL OF THE BALL, UH, TODAY IS TO DISCUSS THE SANITATION RATES.

UM, THIS WAS EMAILED TO YOU BEFORE TO TO CONSIDER, UH, TO REALLY LOOK AT, TO HOPEFULLY COME PREPARED FOR SOME CONVERSATIONS.

UM, WE HAVE OUR TEAM HERE, UH, TO ANSWER ANY AND ALL QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.

WE ARE HOPING, UM, TO GET COUNCIL DIRECTION TODAY AND THE REASON THAT WE NEED COUNCIL DIRECTION TODAY.

AND PLEASE, UH, I KNOW THAT MAY BE SCARY RIGHT OFF THE BAT, UH, TO COME IN FOR YOUR FIRST MEETING AND, AND ASK FOR A DECISION.

UM, ANYTHING THAT'S DECIDED TODAY IS NOT FINAL UNTIL THE BUDGET IS FINAL.

IT CAN ALWAYS BE READJUSTED.

THE THE INTENT HERE IS TO TRY TO GET DIRECTIONS SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO BUILD THE BUDGET, UM, THAT YOU HAVE, UH, BECAUSE WE DO NEED TO JUMP INTO THE WATER SEWER RATES AND WE NEED TO JUMP INTO THE CIP AT OUR NEXT MEETING.

UM, AND SO THE LAST THING THAT I WILL SAY BEFORE I TURN THIS OVER TO YOU IS THAT THE BUDGET THAT'S IN FRONT OF YOU IS BUILT WITH OPTION TWO ALREADY IN THERE.

OKAY? SO THAT YOU KNOW WHAT THE STARTING POINT IS AND YOU HAVE JUST A POINT OF REFERENCE.

SO WITH THAT, MAYOR COUNSEL, I'M GOING TO TURN THIS OVER TO YOU.

UH, WE ARE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE AND HELP FACIL OR HELP WITH ANY DISCUSSION THAT Y'ALL MAY PARTAKE IN.

OKAY.

BUT I, I, I WANTED TO START OFF BY SAYING THAT I, I APPRECIATE BOTH THE THINGS LAST YEAR, THIS YEAR WITH THE FORMULA APPROACH AS A OVERALL, I WANNA SAY STRUCTURAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE, FOR THE THE BUDGET.

UM, I WOULD SAY FROM A CITIZEN STANDPOINT, THEY JUST SEE, THEY JUST KNOW IT'S CITIZENS TAX

[00:35:01]

IT'S ONE BIG BUCKET, BUT IT'S A LOT MORE TO IT THAN THAT.

AND EVEN FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS TO BE ABLE TO BREAK IT DOWN BETWEEN OBVIOUSLY REVENUE, FUND BALANCE, UM, OUTGOING EXPENSES, UH, IT BRINGS US BACK TO, I BELIEVE IT BRINGS US BACK TO THE POLICY LEVEL, UH, THE LARGER, YOU KNOW, PRETTY MUCH, UH, BOTTOM LINE DECISIONS, NOT SO MUCH LINE ITEM, YOU KNOW, UH, EXPENDITURES AND SO ON.

AND SO I DO APPRECIATE THAT, BUT I JUST WANNA OPEN THAT.

I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT TO START OFF WITH, UM, I DO APPRECIATE, LIKE YOU SAY, KIND OF JUST BREAKING IT UP INTO SMALL PITS.

SOME ARE BIG DECISIONS AND SOME ARE SMALL DECISIONS, RIGHT? UM, I'LL MAKE THE ADDITIONAL COMMENT THAT, UM, YOU DID SAY, I THINK IN A, WHEN YOU, WHEN WE HAD A PREVIOUS, I GUESS IT WAS A PLANNING OR STRATEGIC PLANNING, UM, THAT, AND I THINK, I GUESS IT, IT, YOU KIND OF READDRESSED IT WITH, FROM A CITY STANDPOINT, I'M GONNA SAY A COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION, WE PROBABLY FOR MANY, MANY YEARS, WE ALWAYS TRIED TO KEEP SERVICES, UM, AS LOW COST OR WHERE YOU RENT IN A SENSE, AT THE TIME, THE ROLAND PAVILION FOR 50 BUCKS A DAY, IT COSTS US $200 A DAY, MAYBE $500 A DAY JUST TO OPEN THE DOORS AND RUN THE AIR CONDITIONING LIGHTS, RIGHT? SO FOR MANY YEARS, THOSE ARE THE TYPE OF SITUATIONS WHERE YOU, YOU'RE TRYING TO GO AND, UM, MEET THE CITIZENS' NEEDS AND PROVIDE AMENITIES, BUT YOU, YOU, WE WEREN'T, WE WERE PROBABLY MINDFUL, BUT THAT, THAT CATCHES UP WITH US.

AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT THIS BUDGET REALLY IS, CULMINATION OF THOSE TYPE APPROACHES.

I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT.

OKAY.

UM, I THINK THE QUESTION I HAD, YEP.

UM, IF WE CLOSE THE GREEN CENTER, WOULD THEY JUST PUT THEIR ITEMS OUT IN THE YARD AND THAT GETS COLLECTED ALONG WITH BRUSH? SO, UH, THIS, FOR THE MOST PART, UM, OUR TRASH CONTRACTOR BEST TRASH COLLECTS EVERYTHING EXCEPT, UM, CONSTRUCTION.

AND THAT'S WHAT YOU CAN BRING TO THE CENTER.

UM, SO CONSTRUCTION DEBRIS, IF THEY DO, YOU KNOW, WORK ON THEIR OWN AND THE CONTRACTOR DOESN'T, THEY DON'T HAVE A CONTRACTOR TO HAUL OFF DEBRIS.

THERE IS, UH, A LANDFILL, TRI-CITY BEACH LANDFILL THAT THEY CAN GO TO.

UH, OR IF YOU'RE IN CHAMBERS COUNTY, YOU CAN GO TO COUNTY.

HAVE Y'ALL CALLED, UH, BECAUSE I KNOW LAST TIME I ASKED THIS, UM, WELL, WHEN I WAS MEETING WITH JASON, HAVE Y'ALL CALLED THE, THE, UM, OFF TRI-CITY BEACH ROAD, THE DUMP AND ASKED THEM IF WE FOR SURE.

DO YOU KNOW IF IT COSTS WHEN THE CITIZENS GO OVER THERE? YES.

IT COST, IT COST.

DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HOW, HOW MUCH IT COSTS OR IT'S ABOUT WEIGHT? IT TRUCKLOAD $75 A TRUCKLOAD AND RING CENTER IS VERY LOW COST'S, UH, $5 FOR THE PICKUP AND MAYBE 10 OR 15 FOR THE TRAILER, TRUCK AND TRAILER TOGETHER.

15 A SUBSIDIZED COST QUESTION THE CHAMBER.

BUT YOU HAVE THE I'M GOOD.

WHAT WOULD BE, WHAT WOULD BE THE COST? I MEAN, I THINK THAT'S ONE THE QUESTION WHEN IT COMES TO ANYTHING THAT'S SUB CYCLING, IF WE, IF, IF I GUESS YOU WOULD SAY IF A USER PAID COST, WHAT WOULD THAT REALLY BE? I MEAN, LIKE, IT'S ONE THING TO SAY $5 YOU CAN BRING A TRUCK, BUT WHAT'S OUR, WHAT'S OUR ACTUAL COST? I MEAN, WE HAVE LABOR, WE HAVE OTHER THINGS.

WE HAVE ABOUT 138,000 OF LABOR COSTS.

UHHUH, THAT'S TWO PEOPLE TO RIGHT, WE HAVE TO .

UM, SO THE PRIMARY COST IS TO HAUL OFF THE ROLL LOSS GETTING DONE THERE, RIGHT? UH, AND THAT'S BASED ON THE VOLUME, RIGHT? UH, WE HAD, WE HAVE IN THE BUDGET THIS YEAR, 475,000 FOR ROLL OFF DISPOSAL.

UM, AND THEN WE GOT, WE HAVE TO DISPOSE OF TIRES SEPARATELY, SO WE'VE GOTTA PAY ADDITIONAL FOR TIRES AND THAT'S RIGHT ABOUT $10,000.

UM, SO I THINK YOU'RE LOOKING, UH, SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD ABOUT $600,000 IN COST TO RUN THE GREEN CENTER.

THE REVENUE WE GET FROM, YOU KNOW, THE 10 OR $5 CHARGES IS ONLY ABOUT, UH, $60,000.

AND THAT, THAT INCLUDES SOME REVENUE WE GET FROM TAKING SCRAP METAL TO, TO THE, SO WE'RE, WE'RE OPERATING AT, YOU KNOW, UH, OVER A 500,000 LOSS.

WE CAN'T RAISE RATES RIGHT ENOUGH

[00:40:01]

OKAY.

UM, I, I HAVE A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS.

DO YOU HAVE DATA ON HOW, UM, OFTEN THE GREEN USE, LIKE ON A DAILY BASIS OR A WEEKLY BASIS? SO I'VE GOT OR TONNAGE OR ANYTHING ABOUT ON AN ANGLE BASIS? IT IS JUST UNDER 10,000 CUSTOMERS, BUT THAT, THAT INCLUDES SOME NON-REVENUE CUSTOMERS.

SO PEOPLE CAN GO AND DROP OFF RECYCLING THERE, THEY CHARGE, UM, BRUSH IS ALSO GONNA CHARGE ASSIST THE CONSTRUCTION DEBRIS THINGS PUT INTO THE DUMPSTER THAT IS CHARGED.

AND DO THEY HAVE TO HAVE A, UM, A BAYTOWN ADDRESS TO USE IT? YES.

SO UNDER 10,000 OF OUR CITIZENS ON A YEARLY YES BASIS, USE THAT.

UM, AND THEN I DON'T WANNA GO TOO FAR INTO THE TRASH, BUT I, I HAVE SOME CONCERNS ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE KEEP SAYING THAT, UM, BEST TRASH IS PICKING UP EVERYTHING EXCEPT CONSTRUCTION DEBRIS.

THAT'S NOT TRUE RIGHT NOW.

IT'S NOT TRUE.

I'M EXPERIENCING IT AT MY OWN HOME.

THEY ARE NOT PICKING UP, UM, BAGGED LEAVES AND ON THEIR SITE AND I'VE EVEN CALLED AND UM, I MEAN I JUST, SO I I'M CONCERNED ABOUT THINGS LIKE THAT.

LIKE WE'RE SAYING THAT THEY'RE DOING SOMETHING AND I KNOW WE CALL AND AND WE'RE TOLD THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO AND YEAH, I WOULD SAY, I MEAN MY ONLY COMMENT ON THAT WAS THEY CONTRACT THE OBLIGATED TO PICK UP BACK LEASE AND WE CAN, THAT WAS PART OF THE CONTRACT AND I DON'T WANT TO GET TOO FAR OFF INTO THAT, BUT I JUST, WE, I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE TO BE FAMILIAR WITH WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THAT.

WITH, WITH BARREL, THEY DO NOT PICK UP STORM DEBRIS BY CONTRACTOR.

SO ANYTHING AFTER BARREL WAS A CLAIMED STORM FOR YOU? WE WORKED WITH 'EM, TALKED WITH 'EM, THEY STARTED PICKING IT UP.

NOW I KNOW LIKE AT MY HOUSE, BUT I THREW MY HEDGE IN, I BAG IT UP NO MONTHLY WHATEVER THEY TAKE IT AND PICK IT UP EVERY TIME.

YOU'RE ALSO PICK UP 10 BAGS.

WE'VE HAD LOTS OF CLAIMS. GOT CALL IN, I GOT 30 BAGS, ONLY GOT PART OF IT.

I TRACTORS PICK UP BAGS OF ROUND AND THEY JUST KEEP ADDING TO IT AND ADD TO IT AND BEST WILL STOP PICK UP 10 30 GALLON BAGS EVERY ROUND.

THEY'RE NOT GONNA PICK UP 30.

SO DO YOU THINK SOME OF THAT, AND I I WANT TO SAY FOCUS ON THIS, BUT DO YOU THINK SOME OF THAT'S GONNA GO AWAY WHEN WE GET OVER THIS HUMP OF BARREL AND PICK UP? BECAUSE I MEAN, I'M, I CAN TELL YOU AT MY HOME I HAD TWO BAGS, JUST TWO OF MY OWN PERSONAL LAWN AND THEY REFUSED TO PICK IT UP.

SO I JUST GIMME ME AN ADDRESS, WE'LL TAKE CARE OF IT.

YEAH, DANA IS REALLY, REALLY GOOD.

THE CREWS SWAP OUT AND SOME OF THE CREWS, IF THEY COME FROM THE COUNTY OR OTHER COUNTY, THEY DON'T PICK 'EM UP AT ALL.

THEY COME OVER AND THEY COME IN THE CITY.

WELL WE'RE JUST MAKING HARD AREN USED TO PICKING THAT UP.

YEAH.

MAKING, SO WE, REMIND ME THE CONTRACT ONE BACK LINE JUST WITH MAKING HARD DECISIONS LIKE THIS, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THE SERVICES THAT WE ARE PROMISING ARE GONNA TAKE PLACE.

AND I KNOW BERYL, YOU KNOW, THREW A WRENCH IN THE DEAL, BUT, UM, AND THEN MY, MY OTHER QUESTION IS ON DAYS THAT WE, UM, I'M WORRIED ABOUT WHAT THE LOOK OF OUR CITY IS GOING TO BE.

UM, SO ON DAY THINGS LIKE TRASH BASH AND THINGS LIKE THAT, WHERE IF WE STILL HOLD THOSE TYPES OF EVENTS, WHERE WOULD ALL OF THAT, THOSE ITEMS GO IF WE NO LONGER HAVE AN OPERATING GREEN CENTER? I THINK FOR SPECIAL EVENTS THERE ARE ROLL OFFS THAT ARE BROUGHT IN, BROUGHT IN FOR THAT.

SO MOST THINGS LIKE THE HOUSEHOLD, TONY, I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH TRASH.

TONY RED TONY WILL SPEAK TO IT REAL QUICK.

MS. GRANT, I BELIEVE IS THE WATER.

THAT'S TRASH HALL.

TRASH HALL.

WELL, TRASH BATCH IS THE WATERWAY.

TRASH OFF IS THE, I DIDN'T MEAN TO GET INTO THE SPECIFICS.

I, I THINK THE OVERALL THEME HERE IS I DON'T WANT OUR TOWN TO LOOK TRASHY AND EVEN MORE SO THAN WHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH RIGHT NOW.

AND SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT CITIZENS KNOW THEIR OPTIONS OF IF WE HAVE TO MAKE THESE TYPES OF CHANGES.

AND UM, AND WHEN WE DO SPECIAL EVENTS, I WAS EVEN THINKING WE COULD DO MORE SPECIAL EVENTS.

WHERE WOULD WE TAKE THOSE? I I, I WANNA GET EVERYBODY A CHANCE TO JUST CALL TO SPEAK, BUT, BUT I WILL SAY WE HAD, WE'VE HAD THIS CONVERSATION YEARS AGO ABOUT THE GREEN CENTER BECAUSE ONE TIME WE'RE TALKING ABOUT OPENING A SECOND ONE, RIGHT? AND SO, UM, I WOULD, I WOULD AGREE WITH YOUR COMMENT THAT IF YOU CLOSE THE GREEN CENTER, MY CONCERN WOULD BE PEOPLE WHO ARE BRINGING IN THIS AND THEY'RE PAYING US $5 TO TAKE WHATEVER THEY HAVE, THEY'RE GONNA JUST PUT IT ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND WE'RE STILL GONNA PICK IT UP.

IT'S PROBABLY GONNA COST US MORE MONEY AND WE'RE NOT, THERE'S ZERO $0 ASSOCIATED WITH THAT.

SO THAT'S JUST MY CONCERN.

I THINK THERE'S GONNA BE A CON I HOPE THERE'S NOT A CONSEQUENCE, BUT I THINK RE REALITY IS THERE WILL BE A CONSEQUENCE.

YOU CLOSE THE GREEN CENTER, I WILL SAY YOU WILL HAVE MORE LIKE WOULD YOU SAY, UH, DUMPING DUMP, ILLEGAL DUMPING IN, IN AREAS.

SO I WOULD SAY LET'S BE MINDFUL OF THAT.

'CAUSE I BELIEVE THAT'S KIND OF WHAT POINT WAS.

SO, UM, I I THINK ONLY THING I WOULD ADD WOULD BE, UM, PART OF THIS DISCUSSION ON THE GREEN CENTER WOULD BE WHAT ABOUT REALLY

[00:45:01]

SO JUST MAYBE A VERY REDUCED, UM, ACCESS IF IT'S FRIDAY, SATURDAY OR THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY, WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE.

UM, THAT I'M NOT SURE HOW MUCH IMPACT THAT WOULD'VE ON THE COST, RIGHT? IF YOU MAKE IT LESS CONVENIENT, PEOPLE ARE GONNA USE IT LESS.

UM, BUT IF PEOPLE LOOKING AT THE OPTION OF CONTRACT, UH, PROBABLY MOST ARE STILL GONNA POP TO GREENSTONE.

AND SO THE VOLUME PROBABLY WON'T CHANGE THAT MUCH.

AND THE VOLUME IS WHAT DETERMINES KNOW THE ROLL OFF COST IS REALLY THE COST.

AND I, I STILL HAVE YOU THE SAME PERSONALITY, RIGHT? AND I GET THAT.

I GUESS, AND I WANT TO BE REMINDED OF WHEN, WHEN IN YEARS PAST, BEFORE WE WENT TO THE, THE, I GUESS, UH, PAY AS YOU GO, YOU KNOW, BY LOAD WHEN WE USED TO DO THE, I THINK IT WAS $75 PERMIT SOMEWHERE IN THAT RANGE, UM, WHERE YOU COULD BUY A, AN ANNUAL PERMIT AND THAT'S HOW YOU WERE ABLE TO, I'M NOT FAMILIAR, I'M IT WAS BEFORE YOUR TIME.

THAT'S THE WAY CHAMBERS COUNTY WORKS.

YEAH.

BIANNUAL PERMIT AND YOU ALLOWED, I JUST DON'T KNOW IF THAT FINANCIAL MODEL, WOULD IT BE SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE BENEFICIAL TO US FINANCIALLY? NO, MAYOR, THIS JUST GOING ABOUT FRANK'S NUMBERS, ROUGHLY 10,000 PARTICIPANTS, $600,000 A YEAR, $60 A LOAD, $75 A LOAD TO TAKE IT TO THE TRI-CITY BEACH.