[FY 2025 Budget Workshop: Houston Information Technology Services (HITS)]
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I WILL BE BACK FOR, AND I DO WANNA WELCOME COUNCIL MEMBER JOAQUIN MARTINEZ TO THE HORSESHOE AND WE WILL GO AHEAD.I THINK THERE'S NOT GONNA BE A MAD RUSH IN THE NEXT TWO MINUTES, BUT
WELCOME, DIRECTOR LISA KENT, YOU THE FLOOR IS YOURS.
SO AS, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER ALCORN MENTIONED, I'M LISA KENT, I'M THE CITY'S CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER AND ALSO DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON IT SERVICES DEPARTMENT.
UH, WILL IS WEARING MULTIPLE HATS IN ADDITION TO HIS PROMOTION LAST YEAR TO THE FINANCE DIRECTOR'S CHIEF OF STAFF.
UM, HE IS ALSO CONTINUING ON TEMPORARILY AS MY DEPARTMENT'S FISCAL ADMINISTRATOR.
AND SO WILL AND HIS TINY TEAM OF, UM, HERB GARNER AND KARA ASKEW ARE A GREAT EXAMPLE OF SHARED SERVICES.
SO I DO NOT HAVE MY OWN FINANCE PEOPLE.
THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT PROVIDES THOSE FOLKS TO MANAGE THE IT SERVICES, UM, EXPENSE REPORTING, COST ALLOCATION, ET CETERA, WHICH FOR OUR DEPARTMENT TO, UM, REVOLVE THOSE COSTS BACK CITYWIDE IS QUITE COMPLEX.
AND SO HE AND HIS TINY BUT MIGHTY TEAM DO AMAZING WORK FOR MY DEPARTMENT.
AND I JUST WANT TO EMPHASIZE HOW MUCH I APPRECIATE HIS ASSISTANCE, ESPECIALLY WHERE HE'S WEARING MULTIPLE HATS.
SO, UM, THANK YOU WILL FOR YOUR SERVICE.
SO WE CAN GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
SO THIS IS JUST THE AGENDA FOR TODAY'S PRESENTATION.
THIS IS A HIGH LEVEL SUMMARY OF THE HITS DEPARTMENT VISION, MISSION, VALUES, STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND GOALS.
AND YOU CAN SEE IN THE, UM, ANNUAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS REPORT THAT I DISTRIBUTED TO ALL COUNCIL MEMBERS WHEN YOU FIRST CAME INTO OFFICE.
THERE'S A PAGE IN THAT DOCUMENT THAT'S GOT AN EXPANDED VERSION OF THIS THAT HAS MORE DETAIL ABOUT EACH OF THOSE SECTIONS.
THIS SLIDE SHOWS THE ALIGNMENT OF HITS 14 PROGRAMS TO THREE OF MAYOR WHITMEYER STRATEGIC PRIORITIES.
SO YOU'LL NOTE THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF OUR PROGRAMS SUPPORT INFRASTRUCTURE AT 69%, WHEREAS 15% GO TO PUBLIC SAFETY AND 16% ALIGN UNDER GOVERNMENT.
SO, ONE INTERESTING NOTE THAT I WANNA POINT OUT TO YOU.
WHILE 15% OF HITS OPERATING EXPENSES ARE PUBLIC SAFETY RELATED, MORE THAN 50% ARE RELATED TO PUBLIC SAFETY IN THE CIP, WHICH YOU WILL BE HEARING MORE ABOUT IN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO.
AND THE REASON I BRING THAT UP IN THIS PRESENTATION IS, IS IT'S IMPORTANT TO IDENTIFY THAT WE ARE NOT COVERING THE COSTS OF WHAT IT TAKES TO SUPPORT PUBLIC SAFETY TECHNOLOGY.
AND THAT'S EVIDENT IN THE CIP SUBMISSIONS.
AND IN MANY CASES, WE, UM, SCRIMP AND SAVE AND WHERE WE CAN FIND SAVINGS IN OUR OPERATING BUDGET, WE USE IT TO THROW AT NEEDS THAT MAY NOT HAVE BEEN COVERED UNDER THE CIP.
AND SO, UM, THERE ARE A COUPLE OF SLIDES IN THE APPENDIX OF THIS DOCUMENT THAT ARE SUBSETS OF MY CIP PRESENTATION AND THEY SHOW YOU THE BREADTH OF DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE NEED FOR THE TECHNOLOGY, CIP, UM, AS WELL AS WHAT THE AVAILABLE FUNDING IS.
AND IT ALSO SHOWS THE BREAKDOWN OF PUBLIC SAFETY VERSUS NON-PUBLIC SAFETY TECHNOLOGY REQUESTS.
SO PLEASE KEEP THAT IN MIND AS YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT, EVEN THOUGH THIS IS OPERATING BUDGET, WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR WAYS TO COVER THOSE COSTS THROUGH WHATEVER MEANS WE CAN.
THE PROPOSED FY 25 OPERATING BUDGET FOR HITS IS 103000000.3.
THIS IS A 3.8% INCREASE OVER OUR FY 24 ADOPTED BUDGET, AND IT DOES INCLUDE ALL CONTRACTUAL INCREASES AS WE'RE PLANNED FOR FY 25.
AND FOR OUTCOME-BASED BUDGETING PURPOSES, WE HAVE ALLOCATED HITS OPERATING BUDGET TO THE 14 PROGRAMS PLUS AN ADDITIONAL ONE PROGRAM FOR DEBT SERVICES AND INTER FUND TRANSFERS, WHICH I'LL DISCUSS IN THE UPCOMING SLIDES.
AND SO I DO WANNA HIGHLIGHT JUST ON THIS SUMMARY PAGE, UH, A FEW HIGHLIGHTS ABOUT, UM, THE LARGER VARIANCES.
SO IN OUR BUDGETING PROCESS, WE REALIGNED
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OUR ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT EXPENSES TO ALIGN SPECIFICALLY WITH THE OBB PROGRAMS THAT ARE CONSUMING THOSE SERVICES.SO HISTORICALLY, MANY OF THOSE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENTS WERE UNDER OUR INFRASTRUCTURE COST CENTERS.
YOU'LL SEE IN THESE PRESENTATION SLIDES THAT THAT HAS SHIFTED INTO THE CORRESPONDING, UM, PROGRAM UNDER APPLICATION SERVICES.
AND SO JUST AS A HIGHLIGHT, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE BIGGEST THREE VARIANCES 3 1 1 PROGRAM, WHICH YOU SEE AT 31.5% OR $315,000, AND THEN ALSO ENTERPRISE APPLICATIONS, WHICH ALTHOUGH IT'S ONLY 5% VARIANCE, IT'S $1.06 MILLION.
AND THESE VARIANCES ARE LARGELY BECAUSE THE SHIFTING OF THE MICROSOFT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT CHARGES SPECIFICALLY FOR DYNAMICS AND POWER BI, UM, TO THOSE APPLICATION COST CENTERS.
UM, AND THEN ALSO UNDER NETWORK SERVICES.
SO THAT'S A 42.2% CHANGE IN SPENDING OR $1.6 MILLION.
AND THAT IS RELATED TO SOME SERVICE AGREEMENTS WE HAVE IN PLACE THAT ASSIST US WITH ASSESSING THE HEALTH SECURITY AND SCALABILITY OF OUR ENTERPRISE DATA NETWORK, AS WELL AS SOME NEXT GENERATION FOUNDATION DESIGN SERVICES FOR THE NEW NETWORKS AND INCIDENT RESPONSE.
SO COMBINED, THESE ARE IN, THESE ARE INVESTMENTS THAT WE ARE MAKING IN THE CITYWIDE NETWORK, WHICH IS LITERALLY THE FOUNDATION, IF YOU THINK OF IT LIKE A ROADWAY NETWORK.
IT IS LITERALLY THE ROADS AND HIGHWAYS THAT ALLOWS EVERYTHING ELSE IN THE CITY TO COMMUNICATE.
AND THEN FINALLY, IN TERMS OF VARIANCES ON THIS PAGE, YOU'LL NOTICE ON MUNICIPAL COURTS THERE'S AN 18% REDUCTION.
UM, AND THAT IS CORRESPONDING TO MOVING A DEDICATED FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBER BACK TO CENTRAL SERVICES WHERE WE CAN LEVERAGE THEIR SKILLSET FOR MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS.
SO AGAIN, IT'S A GREAT EXAMPLE OF SHARED SERVICES WHERE WE CAN, RATHER THAN, UM, ISOLATING THEM AND DEDICATING THEM ONLY TO A SINGLE DEPARTMENT FUNCTION, WE CAN LEVERAGE THAT SKILLSET AND SPREAD THAT COST OUT ACROSS MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS.
SO THIS SLIDE IS A COMPARISON OF THE DEPARTMENT'S REVENUE.
AS A REVOLVING FUND, OUR EXPENDITURES ARE BUDGETED IN THE RESTRICTED ACCOUNTS OF THE DEPARTMENTS THAT CONSUME OUR SERVICES.
AND SO BASED ON A CHARGEBACK SCHEDULE THAT WE UPDATE ANNUALLY, WE RECEIVE THIS MONEY BACK AS REVENUE, WHICH IS WHY YOU SEE THAT IN OUR DEPARTMENT, EXPENDITURES WILL ALWAYS MATCH REVENUES.
THE DIFFERENCE THAT YOU SEE IN THE VARIANCE AND PERCENT CHANGE IS BECAUSE THE MEASURE OF COMPARISON.
SO FOR THIS YEAR, WE'RE COMPARING FY 25 PROPOSED BUDGET COSTS TO THE FY 24, ESTIMATE 25 IS.
SO LET'S GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA REVIEW THE SPECIFIC PROGRAMS FOR THE HITS DEPARTMENT.
AND THE GOAL OF THE ADMINISTRATION SERVICES PROGRAM IS TO ENSURE THAT WE EFFICIENTLY MANAGE ALL THE RESOURCES AND CONTRACTS AND THINGS THAT NOT ONLY THE HITS DEPARTMENT USES, BUT THE THINGS THAT WE PROVIDE SERVICES TO OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
YOU CAN SEE THE MEASURES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE WHERE WE HAVE THE EXPENDITURES.
THESE ARE FINANCIAL METRICS THAT WILL'S TEAM ACTUALLY HANDLES FOR US.
SO IT'S EXPENDITURES, ADOPTED BUDGET VERSUS ACTUAL UTILIZATION AND REVENUES, ADOPTED BUDGET VERSUS ACTUAL UTILIZATION.
AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS $6.1 MILLION ASSOCIATED WITH THE ADMINISTRATION SERVICES, UM, PROGRAM, THESE ARE THE MAJOR EXPENSES OF THIS PROGRAM.
THE FIRST IS THE RESTRICTED ACCOUNTS.
THESE ARE THE CHARGEBACKS THAT I RECEIVE.
TWO HITS FROM THE OTHER CENTRAL SERVICE REVOLVING DEPARTMENT.
SO THAT'S FINANCE, HR, A-R-A-G-S-D FLEET AND PLANNING.
THE SECOND MAJOR EXPENSE IS A PLANNED CONSOLIDATION WHERE, UM, WE HAVE HAD CONVERSATIONS AND AN ASSESSMENT ABOUT CERTAIN HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.
IT FUNCTIONS, AND THAT'S AT 925,000.
AND THEN THE FINAL MAJOR EXPENSE IN THIS CATEGORY IS MANAGEMENT CONSULTING SERVICES.
ONE IS GARTNER, WHICH IS AN IT RESEARCH FIRM THAT WE USE THAT'S JUST UNDER 300,000.
AND THEN RICHARD TYLER, WHICH IS A LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT TRAINING ORGANIZATION AT $120,000.
SO HERE'S ONE THAT'S NEAR AND DEAR TO YOUR HEART.
UH, THE CITYWIDE CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUEST NON-EMERGENCIES.
AND THE GOAL OF THIS PROGRAM, AS YOU KNOW, IS TO PROVIDE INTUITIVE AND STREAMLINED EXPERIENCES FOR THE PUBLIC NON-EMERGENCY REQUEST PROCESSES.
AND IN TERMS OF THE ROLE THAT HITS PLAYS, WHAT WE ARE MEASURING
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IS ENSURING THAT THE TECHNOLOGY THAT THE 3 1 1 AGENTS AS WELL AS THE HOUSTONIANS WHO LEVERAGE THAT SERVICE, THAT THAT IS DEPENDABLE AND AVAILABLE.AND SO WE MEASURE PERCENT OF SELF-SERVICE REQUESTS ALREADY THROUGH WEB AND MOBILE CHANNELS AS WELL AS OVERALL SYSTEM AVAILABILITY AND UPTIME.
SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THIS $1.3 MILLION FOR THIS PROGRAM, THE MAJOR EXPENSE CATEGORIES, FIRST OF WHICH IS THE MICROSOFT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT.
THIS IS NOT A NEW EXPENSE, BUT THIS IS AN EXAMPLE WHERE WE'VE BEEN ALIGNING COSTS TO WHERE THEY'RE BEING CONSUMED.
SO YOU WOULDN'T HAVE PREVIOUSLY SEEN IT UNDER THIS PROGRAM, IT STILL EXISTED.
IT WAS JUST IN AN INFRASTRUCTURE COST CENTER.
THE NEXT IS, UH, THE THREE ONE ONE CALL CENTER CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGER PLATFORM.
AND THEN THE THIRD IS DYNAMICS CITIZEN PORTAL.
THAT IS THE WEB PORTAL THAT THAT HOUSTONIANS USE TO SUBMIT TICKETS.
THAT'S $150,000 ANNUAL, UM, SUBSCRIPTION FEE.
WE HAVE JUST UNDER A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS AT 92,000 FOR AZURE SERVICES.
AND THEN FINALLY, THE ONE THAT MANY OF YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH, CITIZEN INTERACTION PLATFORM.
THAT'S WHAT YOU KNOW OF AS CCL FIX, THAT'S $79,000.
I'LL ALSO REFER YOU TO THE APPENDIX.
UM, WE HAVE SEVERAL SLIDES IN THE BACK THAT SHOW STATISTICS ABOUT SOME OF THESE CITIZEN FACING PROGRAMS. AND SO SLIDE 33 WILL GIVE YOU SOME REFERENCE NUMBERS REGARDING TOTAL SUBMITTED, UM, TICKETS VERSUS THE BREAKDOWN FOR SELF-SERVICE.
SO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND REGULATION APPLICATIONS PROGRAM IS WHAT YOU THINK OF AS PERMITTING AND INSPECTION SERVICES.
NOW THIS IS SPECIFICALLY FOR THE DEPARTMENTS THAT HITS DIRECTLY SUS SUPPORTS AT THIS TIME, WHICH IS A RA DEPARTMENT OF NEIGHBORHOODS FIRE DEPARTMENT.
UM, AND I BELIEVE THAT'S THE THREE OF THEM FOR PERMITTING AND INSPECTION UNDER THIS PROGRAM WITH HIS.
AND SO OBVIOUSLY, UM, WE MEASURED THE AVAILABILITY AND UPTIME OF THAT PLATFORM.
YOU'LL FIND A STATISTICS PAGE ON PAGE 35, UH, THAT GIVES YOU THE BREAKDOWN.
YOU'LL NOTICE ON THAT PAGE WE ALSO HAVE A COUPLE OF REFERENCES TO THE SAME PLATFORM THAT PUBLIC WORKS UTILIZES.
HOWEVER, THOSE COSTS ARE NOT PART OF THE HITS BUDGET.
THOSE ARE BUDGETED SEPARATELY, UM, WITH HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS AND THEIR OVERSIGHT OF THOSE PROGRAMS. MAJOR EXPENSE IN THIS PROGRAM IS THE N FOUR LICENSES, WHICH IS $785,000 OUT OF THE 1.3 MILLION.
THIS IS ANOTHER ONE THAT'S NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART AND YOURS, I'M SURE CYBERSECURITY.
AND THE GOAL OF THIS PROGRAM IS TO REDUCE THE CYBERSECURITY RELATED RISKS, UM, TO THE CONFIDENTIALITY, INTEGRITY AND AVAILABILITY OF CITY SYSTEMS DATA AND INFORMATION.
YOU'VE ALL SEEN THE HEADLINES, YOU KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THIS FUNCTION IS.
YOU WILL SEE US CONTINUE TO INVEST MORE IN THIS EVERY YEAR, AS IS EVERY OTHER ENTITY IN THE ENTIRE GLOBE.
UM, NO ONE IS SPENDING LESS ON CYBER.
I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY WHILE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE NEW TO CITY COUNCIL.
UM, WE, ALONG WITH OUR CHIEF INFORMATION SECURITY OFFICER, DR.
CHRIS MITCHELL, UH, ROUTINELY DO SPECIAL BRIEFINGS FOR CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS WHERE WE GO OVER WITH YOU, OUR CYBERSECURITY MASTER PLAN.
WE INVITE YOU TO OUR DEPARTMENT AND TO COME INTO OUR SECURITY OPERATIONS CENTER.
AND THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SEE WHAT WE ACTUALLY DO AND THE MAGNITUDE OF THE CHALLENGES WE FACE.
I PROMISE YOU IT WILL HELP YOU UNDERSTAND, UM, WHAT WE REALLY BATTLE ON A DAILY BASIS AND THE TYPES OF THINGS THAT WE CANNOT SPEAK ABOUT PUBLICLY WHILE THEY'RE, UM, SECURITY SENSITIVE.
BUT WE CERTAINLY WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU AS ELECTED OFFICIALS HAVE YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED AND YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE DOING.
SO, UM, PLEASE TAKE US UP ON THAT AND, UM, WE'LL WORK ON GETTING SOME OF THOSE SESSIONS SCHEDULED.
WITH THAT SAID, THIS PROGRAM AT $7.4 MILLION, MAJOR EXPENSE CATEGORIES WITHIN THAT.
THE BIGGEST ONE IS 2.3 MILLION FOR SECURITY ENTERPRISE LICENSE SOFTWARE.
YOU CAN THINK OF THIS, THAT'S PAYMENT CARD, UM, MONITORING AND, AND COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL REGULATIONS.
SO WHENEVER THE CITY ACCEPTS A CREDIT CARD FOR PAYMENT KITS, HAS TO ENSURE THAT THOSE SYSTEMS AND THAT DATA IS
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COMPLIANT WITH PCI REGULATIONS.AND SO THAT FALLS UNDER OUR CYBER GROUP AT 395,000.
THE NEXT CATEGORY IS THREAT INTELLIGENCE PLATFORM, 260,000.
THE FOURTH IS THE ANTI RANSOMWARE CAPABILITY.
AND THEN FINALLY, WHICH I'M SURE YOU HAVE ALL TAKEN THE CYBERSECURITY AWARENESS TRAINING AT 130,000, THAT IS ALSO MISSION CRITICAL.
UM, IT IS MANDATORY AND IT IS, UH, IT WORKS.
THE BIGGEST RISK TO THE CITY'S SYSTEMS AND DATA ARE HUMANS.
AND SO THE MORE YOU CAN EDUCATE YOURSELF, THE MORE YOU UNDERSTAND HOW TO COMPLY WITH OUR SECURITY POLICIES, THE BETTER OFF THE WHOLE CITY WILL BE.
THIS PROGRAM IS DATA CENTER SERVICES PROGRAM.
AND SO THIS IS A CAPABILITY THAT EVERY SINGLE CITY DEPARTMENT LEVERAGES.
UM, THESE ARE NOT ONLY THE PHYSICAL DATA CENTERS AND INFRASTRUCTURE, BUT ALSO CLOUD SERVICES AND THE NECESSARY SECURITY AND MAINTENANCE TASKS THAT GO ALONG WITH MAINTAINING THOSE THINGS.
WE MEASURE THE, UM, PERCENT UPTIME AND AVAILABILITY AS WELL AS THE PERCENT TICKETS RE RESOLVED WITHIN THE DEFINED TIMEFRAME.
MAJOR EXPENSES WITHIN THIS CATEGORY FOR THIS $9.8 MILLION, UM, JUST UNDER A MILLION IS AZURE.
THAT IS MICROSOFT'S CLOUD SERVICES.
WE HAVE A MAJOR ON-PREMISE DATA CENTER LEASE AT 869,000.
MICROSOFT UNIFIED SUPPORT IS THE THIRD CATEGORY AT 848,000.
WE DO HAVE ONE THAT DROPPED TO ZERO, AND THAT IS BECAUSE WE CONSOLIDATED.
WE DID PREVIOUSLY HAVE THREE DATA CENTERS, WHICH WE HAVE REVIEW REDUCED TO TWO.
AND SO WHEN WE ELIMINATED THAT RENT, UH, THAT LEASE AGREEMENT FOR THAT THIRD DATA CENTER, WE MIGRATED THOSE SYSTEMS EITHER TO ONE OF THE OTHER LOCAL DATA CENTERS OR INTO THE CLOUD.
OKAY? BUT THAT'S REDUCING OUR FOOTPRINT AND ENABLING US TO, UM, CONSOLIDATE THOSE SERVICES.
THE NEXT CATEGORY, WE HAVE ABOUT 411,000 FOR STAFF AUGMENTATION.
THIS IS SPECIFICALLY FOR SERVER ARCHITECTURE AND SUPPORT.
UM, THE NEXT IS MICROSOFT SERVER CLOUD ENROLLMENT.
THESE ARE JUST THE LICENSES THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE FOR SERVERS, UH, AND THINGS IN THE DATA CENTER TO WORK.
AND THEN FINALLY WITH AMAZON WEB SERVICES AT 276,000.
NEXT CATEGORY IS END USER COMPUTE SERVICES.
AND SO OBVIOUSLY THE GOAL OF THIS IS TO EQUIP CITY EMPLOYEES WITH, UH, BOTH HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE AND CAPABILITIES TO DO THEIR JOBS.
AND YOU SEE THAT WE MEASURE IN TERMS OF THE COUNT OF DEVICES THAT THE HITS DEPARTMENT SUPPORTS, AS WELL AS THE NUMBER OF TICKETS THAT WE RESOLVE WITHIN THE DEFINED SERVICE LEVEL.
AND THEN FINALLY, A CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SCORE OF THIS $11.4 MILLION FOR THIS PROGRAM.
THE LARGEST SHARE IS FOR THE MICROSOFT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENTS.
THAT'S WHAT YOU RECOGNIZE AS OFFICE 365 FOR ALL CITY EMPLOYEES.
THERE ARE A NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL APPLICATIONS THAT FALL UNDER OFFICE 365.
UM, BUT THAT'S $8.2 MILLION OF THIS 11.4.
THE NEXT CATEGORY, UM, IS FOR OUR RICOH MULTIFUNCTION PRINT CONTRACT.
AND DESPITE THE FACT THAT IT PAINS ME TO DISTRIBUTE PIECES OF PAPER TO EACH OF YOU, WE HAVE ACTUALLY REDUCED THE CITY'S PRINT COUNT.
SO THAT EXPENSE WENT DOWN THIS YEAR FROM 2 MILLION LAST YEAR TO 1.3 MILLION THIS YEAR.
AND I HOPE THAT IT CONTINUES TO DO SO.
IN FACT, IF YOU'LL ALLOW ME TO NOT BRING PRINTED COPIES NEXT YEAR, YOU'LL BE DOING YOUR FAIR SHARE.
SO, UM, LET ME KNOW HOW I CAN HELP YOU.
FOR THE RECORD, I DID NOT ASK FOR PRINTED COPIES, BUT THEY BROUGHT THEM.
BUT I WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO EXPRESSLY SAY THAT NO ONE HAS TO DO IT.
THE NEXT, UH, THIRD BIGGEST CATEGORY IN THIS UM, PROGRAM IS THE EMAIL ARCHIVING.
THAT IS A REQUIREMENT, AS YOU KNOW.
UM, WE LEAN ON THAT FOR PUBLIC INFORMATION REQUESTS.
AND JUST IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW THIS, EVERY SINGLE EMAIL EVER SENT OR RECEIVED TO A CITY ACCOUNT IS ARCHIVED.
SO THAT'S WHAT THIS TOOL DOES REGARDLESS OF WHETHER YOU DELETE IT ON YOUR CLIENT ACCOUNT.
AND IN THE LAST TWO CATEGORIES, UH, VIRTUALIZATION LICENSING, THAT'S 220,000.
AND THEN MAINTENANCE FOR STORAGE AND SUPPORT, THAT'S 200,000.
ENTERPRISE APPLICATIONS PROGRAM.
THIS IS THE, UM, PROGRAM WHERE WE ARE SEEKING TO
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GET ECONOMIES OF SCALE WHEREVER WE HAVE COMMON NEEDS BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS, WE ARE SEEKING TO USE THAT CENTRAL APPLICATION.IT ALSO HELPS US COMPLY WITH STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES AS WELL AS SECURITY, UM, PARAMETERS.
AND SO OUT OF THIS $22.6 MILLION, THERE ARE SEVERAL MAJOR COMPONENTS TO THIS.
I'LL GO THROUGH THEM VERY QUICKLY.
THE FIRST IS OUR SAP, WHICH IS OUR FINANCIAL AND HUMAN CAPITAL AND PURCHASING PLATFORM.
SECOND IS GIS, THAT'S $1.5 MILLION.
THESE ARE ALL ENTERPRISE SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDE TO EVERY SINGLE DEPARTMENT.
TIME AND ATTENDANCE SYSTEM, THAT'S 1.5 MILLION.
WE DO HAVE TWO DIFFERENT, WELL ACTUALLY THREE DIFFERENT CONTRACTS THAT WE USE FOR STAFF AUGMENTATION SERVICES.
UM, ONE IS 1.4 MILLION, THE OTHER IS 1.2, AND THEN THE THIRD IS 490, SORRY, I SAID THE WRONG ONE.
UM, THOSE ARE ALL PROFESSIONAL SERVICE RESOURCES THAT WE USE TO ASSIST US, UM, IN SUPPORTING THAT PLATFORM, WHICH IS ENORMOUS AND ONE OF THE CROWN JEWELS.
THE NEXT IS SOFTWARE SUBSCRIPTION LICENSING FOR OUR HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT PORTION OF OF THE ERP.
AND WE HAVE A 1.2 MILLION DEPARTMENT TRANSFER FOR PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
AND THEN ANOTHER ONE THAT'S NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART, WHICH IS E-SIGNATURE.
A BRAND NEW ONE THAT WE JUST DEPLOYED, WHICH IS CONTRACT AND PROCUREMENT MANAGEMENT.
THIS IS CURRENTLY DEPLOYED FOR THE UPSTREAM PORTION OF SOLICITATION PROCESSES.
SO THIS IS PUTTING IT OUT AND GETTING IT TO THE CONTRACT PHASE.
UH, IT SERVICE MANAGEMENT PORTAL, UH, WHICH AGAIN IS UTILIZED CITYWIDE 497,000 AND PERMITTING AND INSPECTION SERVICES.
THE SOFTWARE LICENSING ASSOCIATED WITH THAT IS 326,000 PUBLIC INFORMATION REQUEST PORTAL.
SO THIS IS WHAT PEOPLE SUBMIT TO GET A TIA REQUEST FROM THE CITY.
AND WE HAVE DATABASE LICENSING AT 2 74, THE CITY'S TALENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AT 218.
AND THE CONTINGENT WORKFORCE TIME APPROVAL SOFTWARE, WHICH IS 180,000.
SO THOSE ARE THE BIG CHUNKS THAT MAKE UP THAT 22.6 MILLION.
THIS IS THE HOUSTON EMERGENCY CENTER SUPPORT AND IT'S $4.7 MILLION.
UM, THIS ENABLES US, IT JUST AS A REMINDER, HARRIS, GREATER HARRIS COUNTY NINE ONE ONE PROVIDES THE ACTUAL TELEPHONE SYSTEM FOR NINE ONE ONE.
WE PROVIDE EVERYTHING ASSOCIATED WITH DATA.
OKAY? SO THESE ARE THE SERVERS, THE APPLICATION SOFTWARE DATABASE SUPPORT THAT HELPS US SUPPORT NOT ONLY THE ACTUAL NINE ONE ONE CALL TAKING, BUT ALSO THOSE FIRST RESPONDER DEPARTMENTS.
THERE ARE SOME COMPONENTS IN THIS CASE, FIRE IS PART OF THIS CHUNK.
SO THE MAJOR EXPENSES WITH THIS CAD, WHICH IS COUNCIL MEMBER CAYMAN'S FAVORITE TOPIC TO ASK ME ABOUT AND THAT RFP IS ROLLING AND CO WE ARE, WE HAVE PROPOSALS BACK AND WE ARE NEARLY MAKING A DECISION ON THAT.
THE CURRENT APPLICATION PLATFORM MAINTENANCE COST IS A MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR.
UH, WE HAVE ABOUT $145,000 A YEAR IN HARDWARE, UM, MAINTENANCE SERVICES FOR THE SERVERS AND COMPUTERS ASSOCIATED WITH IT.
WE HAVE ANOTHER 185,000 FOR THE DATABASE SUPPORT FOR BOTH CAD AND SOME OF THE ANCILLARY HEX SUPPORT SYSTEMS. AND THEN ABOUT A HUNDRED THOUSAND FOR THE TELEPHONE RECORDING OF THOSE NINE ONE ONE CALLS.
HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT IT SUPPORT.
SO HITS IS THE CENTRAL SERVICE IT SERVICE PROVIDER.
NOW FOR FIRE, IT WASN'T ALWAYS LIKE THAT.
THAT WAS FAIRLY RECENT IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS THAT WE CONSOLIDATED THAT, UM, THAT TOTAL BUDGET IS 2.6 MILLION.
AND OBVIOUSLY THE GOAL IS TO ENSURE THAT OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT FIRST RESPONDERS HAVE ACCESS TO THE TOOLS THAT THEY NEED TO DO THEIR JOBS.
THERE ARE TWO MAJOR EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PROGRAM.
THE FIRST IS THE FIRE DEPARTMENT'S RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.
AND THEN THE SECOND IS THEIR ETHAN, WHICH IS THEIR MOBILE TELEHEALTH SOLUTION, UM, WHICH HELPS THE FIRE DEPARTMENT REDIRECT NON-EMERGENCY RELATED SERVICES RATHER THAN GOING TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM.
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US TO SUPPORT EVERYTHING ASSOCIATED WITH CS SMART AND THE PROCESSING WITHIN COURTS.I'LL QUICKLY GO THROUGH THESE MAJOR EXPENSES.
IT'S 200,000 FOR DATABASE SERVICES, 71,000 FOR THEIR PAYMENT PROCESSING.
THEY DO ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS FOR THOSE CITATION PAYMENTS.
HARDWARE MAINTENANCE IS 64,000.
DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT LICENSING IS 52,000 SCANNING SERVICES.
THIS ENABLES THEM TO INGEST DOCUMENTS FROM, UM, EITHER CONSTITUENTS OR FIRST RESPONDERS.
AND THEN SOME BACK OFFICE SYSTEM MAINTENANCE, GET JOBS SCHEDULING AT 34,000.
YOU HEARD ME TALK ABOUT A LITTLE BIT AT THE BEGINNING.
THIS IS 5.6 MILLION TOTAL AND IT IS THE ABILITY FOR US TO CONNECT ALL THE VARIOUS CITY SYSTEMS TOGETHER.
SO IT ENABLES THEM TO TALK TO EACH OTHER TO REACH THE INTERNET, UM, AND OTHERWISE CONNECT WITH THE WORLD.
MAJOR EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PROGRAM, THE NETWORK EQUIPMENT WARRANTY AND REPLACEMENT, UM, SUBSCRIPTION IS 900,000 ANNUALLY.
AND THEN THE NETWORK AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS SOFTWARE LICENSE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT, THAT'S $2.1 MILLION.
AND I MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY AT THE BEGINNING WHERE WE HAVE SOME, UM, SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES FOR AUGMENTATION OF DESIGN.
UH, THE GOAL OF THIS ORGANIZATION IS TO HELP MAKE SURE THAT WE DELIVER PROJECTS BASED ON THE AGREED UPON SCOPE, QUANTITY, BUDGET, AND SCHEDULE.
UH, WE IDENTIFY PROJECT RISKS, ISSUES, ACTIONS.
WE TAKE MITIGATING STEPS, AND THIS IS A TOTAL OF $2.4 MILLION.
SO BESIDES PERSONNEL, THE MAJOR EXPENSES, PERSONNEL TRAINING AT 29,000.
SO PUBLIC SAFETY RADIO COMMUNICATIONS IS ANOTHER ONE.
THIS IS WHERE WE PROVIDE RADIO SERVICES TO MOSTLY FIRST RESPONDERS, BUT ALSO GROUPS LIKE SOLID WASTE AND PUBLIC WORKS.
THIS IS A TOTAL BUDGET OF $7.2 MILLION.
UM, YOU CAN SEE OUR PERFORMANCE METRICS AT THE BOTTOM, AND THIS IS ONE WHERE WE HAVE AMAZING PERFORMANCE TO GET FIVE NINES IS, UM, IS A VERY TALL ORDER IN TERMS OF PERCENT UPTIME AND WE GET VERY CLOSE TO THAT.
UM, IF NOT EXCEEDING THAT ON SOME BASIS.
MAJOR EXPENSES WITHIN THIS PROGRAM.
WE HAVE ROUGHLY 54 TOWER SITES ACROSS THE HOUSTON, UM, REGION.
INSURANCE FEES FOR THAT EQUIPMENT IS 645,000, AND THEN INTERFUND ELECTRICITY AT 142,000.
THIS IS OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH HARRIS COUNTY AT THE GREENS ROAD FACILITY.
SO THIS IS TELECOMMUNICATION SUPPORT SERVICES PROGRAM, $19.1 MILLION.
UM, THIS IS SIMILAR TO NETWORK.
IT'S WHAT ENABLES US TO CONNECT TO THE WORLD.
SO IT'S NOT JUST PHONES, IT'S MOSTLY DATA, BUT IT'S THE CONNECTION OF HOW DO WE DO BOTH VOICE AND DATA CIRCUITS.
MAJOR EXPENSE COSTS, STARTING WITH WIRED TELECOMMUNICATION CIRCUITS.
ONE NOTABLE THING, WE'VE BEEN WORKING HARD TO REDUCE THOSE EXPENSES, SO REDUCE WHAT WE'RE PAYING FOR IT AS WELL AS INCREASING THE BANDWIDTH THAT WE'RE GETTING FOR IT AT THE SAME TIME.
SO IN FY 24, WE REDUCE THAT EXPENSE BY A MILLION DOLLARS AND WE ANTICIPATE THAT TREND TO CONTINUE.
THE NEXT MAJOR EXPENSE IS THE VERIZON WIRELESS CONTRACT.
THE TELEPHONE VOICE MANAGED SERVICE.
THIS IS AN OUTSOURCE SERVICE THAT WE SUBSCRIBE TO.
650,000 COMMUNICATIONS CABLING, 420, UM, AND THEN OUR UNIFIED CONTACT CENTER ENTERPRISE SUPPORT.
THIS SUPPORTS ALL OF OUR 31 CALL CENTERS.
SO CONTRARY TO MANY OF THE GENERAL FUND DEPARTMENTS, YOU WILL SEE THAT OUR BREAKDOWN IS THE OPPOSITE OF MOST DEPARTMENTS, ALTHOUGH NOT, NOT WITH GSDI NOTED THAT THEY'RE PRETTY SIMILAR TO US.
PERSONNEL IS ONLY 30% OF OUR COSTS SERVICES, WHICH WE PROVIDE TO THE MAJORITY, IF NOT ALL DEPARTMENTS, DEPENDING ON WHAT THE CATEGORY IS, IS 64%.
[00:30:02]
SO AGAIN, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE HITS PROGRAM AND THE STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT OF THOSE PROGRAMS. I DO WANT TO DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO THE OVERALL OPERATING BUDGET IS 3.7800000000000002% HIGHER, UH, THAN OUR FY 24 ADOPTED BUDGET.IT DOES INCLUDE ALL THE CONTRACTUAL INCREASES THAT WE ANTICIPATE FOR FY 25.
IT IS NOTEWORTHY THAT THE CENTRAL SERVICE DEPARTMENTS WERE NOT GIVEN THE 5% REDUCTION.
AND THAT IS LARGELY BECAUSE AS YOU HEARD THE MAYOR TALK ABOUT YESTERDAY, ONE OF HIS OBJECTIVES IS TO GO THROUGH AND BEGIN TO DO THESE EFFICIENCY EVALUATIONS.
THEY'RE LOOKING FOR DUPLICATION OF SERVICES.
IN CASES WHERE DUPLICATION IS IDENTIFIED, IT IS LIKELY THAT THOSE DUPLICATIONS WILL BECOME THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE CENTRAL SERVICE DEPARTMENTS.
IT'S ALSO THE CASE THAT MANY OF THE SAVINGS THAT WERE FOUND IN THOSE DEPARTMENTS WERE VACANCIES.
AND SO, UM, THE ADMINISTRATION'S POSITION IS TO LEAVE THOSE CENTRAL SERVICE DEPARTMENTS AS LEVEL AS POSSIBLE WHILE WE EVALUATE, RATHER THAN GOING DOWN AND THEN GOING BACK UP.
OKAY? UH, THE OTHER THING THAT I WANNA POINT OUT IS THAT, UM, ALTHOUGH WE DON'T EXPLICITLY SHOW THE OVERALL FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT POSITIONS IN OUR PROPOSED BUDGET, THE FTE COUNT IS 212.5, WHICH IS 1.9 POSITIONS MORE THAN THE BUDGET.
I WOULD LIKE TO NOTE THAT THERE ISN'T AN INCREASE IN THE OVERALL HEADCOUNT.
UM, IT IS SIMPLY HOW WE ARE BUDGETING THE VACANCY FACTOR.
SO THIS SHOWS YOU THE EXPENDITURES BY FUND.
UM, IT'S SIMPLY SHOWING THE HISTORICAL NUMBERS.
AND THIS IS OUR FOURTH YEAR BEING A FULLY, UH, REVOLVING FUND, WHICH AGAIN MEANS A HUNDRED PERCENT OF WHAT I SPEND GOES OUT AND IT GETS, UH, ZEROED OUT AT THE END OF THE YEAR.
HERE'S SOME HIGHLIGHTS ON THE REVENUE.
SO IN ADDITION TO, TO CHARGING BACK WHAT WE SPEND, WE DO HAVE TWO UNIQUE REVENUE SOURCES.
THE FIRST IS THE WIRELESS CONTRACT REBATE.
AND SO, UM, THIS WAS SHOWING FOR FY 24, THAT REVENUE WAS $1.2 MILLION.
AND THEN FOR FY 24 ALSO WAS 1.9 MILLION.
THESE ARE THE RADIO SERVICES THAT WE SELL TO SMALLER MUNICIPALITIES OR ORGANIZATIONS THROUGHOUT THE HOUSTON METRO REGION.
THERE'S OVER, THERE'S OVER 30 DIFFERENT, UM, CUSTOMERS IN THAT CATEGORY.
SO IT'S SMALL POLICE DEPARTMENTS, UM, UM, OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, SOMETIMES SCHOOL DISTRICTS, ORGANIZATIONS LIKE THAT.
AND THAT IS THE END OF MY PRESENTATION.
AND WILL, THANKS FOR ALL YOUR WORK ON THIS, UH, VERY THOROUGH PRESENTATION.
I HAVE NO IDEA HOW YOU KEEP ALL THESE LICENSES AND EVERYTHING STRAIGHT IN THIS DEPARTMENT.
AMAZING JOB COUNCIL MEMBER CAYMAN.
UH, ALSO CONGRATS TO YOUR FAMILY ON YOUR RECENT CELEBRATIONS, BUT YOU HEAR IT IN MY VOICE.
MY SON GOT MARRIED ON SATURDAY AND SO, SO WE PARTIED ALL WEEKEND LONG AND SHE HAS TO BE HERE FOR US.
SO FIRST OFF, CONGRATULATIONS.
BUT TO THE ENTIRE DEPARTMENT, AS YOU INDICATED, HITS, TOUCHES EVERYTHING.
UM, AND WE SAW THROUGH THE PANDEMIC, UM, HOW QUICKLY Y'ALL HAD TO TURN EVERYTHING AROUND TO GET US VIRTUAL AND TO EVEN GO ABOVE AND BEYOND THAT.
UM, I ALSO, I HAVE TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO PAULO, UH, 'CAUSE OF THE WORK HE DOES FOR ALL OF US AT COUNCIL.
UM, YOU TOUCHED ON A FEW THINGS, DIRECTOR ONE, UM, AS IT RELATES TO THE CONSOLIDATION REVIEW.
UM, CAN YOU GO BACK OVER WHERE ARE WE IN THE STATUS OF THAT? I KNOW WE HAD BEEN WORKING WITH A CONSULTANT, UM, AND THAT THIS IS FOR ALL THE CAMERAS RIGHT WITHIN THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
UH, CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE CONSOLIDATION REVIEW WHERE WE ARE WITH THAT? AND THEN, YOU KNOW WHAT MY FOLLOW UP QUESTION TO THAT IS GONNA BE, WHICH IS, IS THAT STILL INCLUDING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BEST PRACTICES TO GO ALONG WITH THAT? SURE.
SO, UM, JUST FOR EVERYBODY ELSE'S BENEFIT TO KIND OF GET UP TO SPEED ON WHAT SHE'S REFERENCING, WE DID A CAMERA GOVERNANCE PROJECT AND THE GOAL OF THAT PROJECT WAS TO IDENTIFY, UM, DISPARITIES.
[00:35:01]
SO WE ARE LOOKING TO STANDARDIZE THE PRODUCTS THAT THE CITY USES.AND THERE ARE MANY DEPARTMENTS WHO CURRENTLY USE CAMERA TECHNOLOGY IN THEIR FACILITIES.
GSD IS A BIG ONE, OKAY? AND, AND SO IS PUBLIC WORKS, SO IS THE HOUSTON AIRPORT SYSTEM, AND THEN OF COURSE HPD.
SO WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT POLICE SPECIFIC CAMERAS, LIKE BODY CAMS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT FACILITY CAMERAS.
AND SO WE DID IDENTIFY SEVERAL OPPORTUNITIES WHERE THERE IS A DUPLICATION, THERE ARE DIFFERENCES IN THE TYPES OF PRODUCTS THAT WE USE, AND THERE'S CERTAINLY OPPORTUNITY TO DO A BETTER JOB OF INTERFACING THEM TOGETHER.
UM, THERE ARE EXAMPLES IN SAY, SIX 11 WALKER WHERE YOU MIGHT SEE A PUBLIC WORKS CAMERA RIGHT NEXT TO A GSD CAMERA.
AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE PROVIDING CAMERA VISIBILITY TO THE SAME AREA.
SO THOSE ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR US TO ELIMINATE SOME OF THAT DUPLICATION.
AND SO WE DID RECEIVE RECOMMENDATIONS BACK.
UM, THERE'S ALSO THE NEED TO FORM A GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE CORRECT.
SO THAT THOSE DEPARTMENTS ARE, UM, DOING MORE TOGETHER TO ENSURE THAT THE STANDARD MEETS THEIR NEEDS, UM, AND WHERE POSSIBLE TO WORK TOGETHER ON SUPPORTING THEM.
ONE STEP THAT HITS TOOK SINCE THAT STUDY, WE HAVE HIRED, UM, ONE OF OUR CAMERA SPECIALISTS OKAY.
AND THAT INDIVIDUAL WILL BE TASKED WITH HELPING US BEGIN TO PUT TOGETHER SOME OF THAT STRUCTURE.
AND SO IT'S JUST SLOW GOING BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH RESOURCES YET TO DO ALL THE THINGS WE NEED TO DO.
AND I'LL JUST EMPHASIZE THE IMPORTANCE WITHIN THAT GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE, MAKING SURE THAT THERE'S THE, UM, BEST PRACTICES INCLUDED WITHIN THAT, UM, FOR THE, YOU KNOW, SAFETY OF THE PUBLIC YES.
SAFETY OF EMPLOYEES AND, UH, THE LIABILITY OF THE CITY.
UM, ARE THERE ANY, I'M GOING TO ASK THIS ONE QUESTION AND THEN I'LL GO BACK INTO Q UM, AS IT RELATES TO CYBERSECURITY.
AND THE REASON I'M, I'M ASKING THIS QUESTION UP FRONT IS FOR NEWER COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT DON'T KNOW, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT IN A PUBLIC SETTING TO DISCUSS CYBERSECURITY.
IF YOU SAY TOO MUCH, IT ACTUALLY MAY INCREASES VULNERABILITY FOR THE CITY.
SO I'M GONNA ASK A VERY GENERAL QUESTION AS IT RELATES TO THIS.
UM, YOU MENTIONED THAT THE, THE, HAS THERE BEEN AN INCREASE IN FUNDING AND INVESTMENT FOR CYBERSECURITY, SPECIFICALLY GIVEN THE INCREASING DEMAND ON THE CYBERSECURITY DIVISION? SO FROM A, YES.
AND MY HAT'S OFF TO CHRIS MITCHELL.
I DON'T KNOW HOW HE DOES IT ALL.
UM, HE'S EXTRAORDINARY AND THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS LUCKY TO HAVE HIM.
UM, SO REALLY OUR, OUR GREAT, OUR GRATITUDE ARE THERE NEEDS CURRENTLY, UM, AND IF THIS NEEDS TO BE DISCUSSED OFFLINE, BUT ARE THERE NEEDS CURRENTLY THAT ARE NOT BEING MET IN THIS BUDGET RELATED TO CYBERSECURITY? THERE ARE ALWAYS NEEDS THAT ARE NOT GOING TO BE MET BY THE BUDGET.
WE'RE, WE'RE NEVER GOING TO HAVE ALL THE MONEY THAT WE, WE NEED GOING FORWARD.
I THINK FOR SPECIFIC NEEDS, IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD, UM, WOULD BE MORE FRUITFUL TO DISCUSS IN SOME OF THOSE, UH, INDIVIDUAL BRIEFINGS OR IN SOME CASES, AND THIS IS ALSO FOR THE NEW COUNCIL MEMBERS.
WE GENERALLY SCHEDULE THAT IN SMALL GROUPS WHERE WE CAN GET YOU THROUGH OUR, OUR SECURITY OPERATIONS CENTER.
BUT IT'S ABSOLUTELY A TIME FOR YOU TO ASK WHATEVER QUESTION YOU WANT AND IT ENABLES US TO SHOW YOU, NOT JUST TELL YOU WHAT KINDS OF THINGS, UM, WE MAY NEED.
AND I ENCOURAGE ALL COUNCIL MEMBERS TO DO THAT.
AND IF WE CAN TALK OFFLINE JUST ABOUT THE SPECIFIC NEEDS, UM, BUT AGAIN, AN ABSOLUTELY EXTRAORDINARY JOB, UM, WITHIN CYBERSECURITY THUS FAR.
THANK YOU FOR ACKNOWLEDGING THAT.
UM, HE TRULY IS A ROCK STAR AND WE ARE VERY LUCKY.
THE CITY IS LUCKY TO HAVE DR. MITCHELL.
IN FACT, IN CASE, AND YOU WANNA GO BACK IN THE QUEUE? OKAY.
AND WE'LL GO TO COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ.
UM, AND DIRECTOR AGAIN, JUST DEF DEFINITELY THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WORK THAT, UH, THAT HITS IS DOING.
UH, Y'ALL ARE KEEPING, UH, YOU KNOW, THE CITY SAFE IN SO MANY, SO, SO MANY DIFFERENT AREAS.
UH, MY QUESTION IS, UH, GOES BACK TO, UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE UNDERSTAND TECHNOLOGY CHANGES PRETTY QUICKLY.
UM, AND SOMETIMES HISTORICALLY WE'VE LOCKED OURSELF INTO LIKE A SOLE MANUFACTURER.
UM, AND I THINK THE ONE THAT COMES TO MIND LAST YEAR, IT WAS WITH CISCO, RIGHT? AND SO AS, AS WE DO THAT IS DOES THAT PREVENT US SOMETIMES FROM GETTING ANOTHER, YOU KNOW, MORE COST BENEFIT? UH, BECAUSE WE, WE DON'T HAVE OTHER, OTHER VENDORS THAT CAN MAYBE ADAPT TO OR, YOU KNOW, BE SYNCED IN WITH CISCO.
UM, AND IF, IF IT DOES, THEN HOW ELSE CAN WE GO ABOUT MAKING SURE THAT WE CAN HAVE COMPETITIVE, UH, YOU KNOW, BIDDING IN THAT, IN THAT SPACE,
[00:40:01]
UH, TO HELP SAVE DOLLARS? SO THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.UM, SOMETIMES IT SOUNDS COUNTERINTUITIVE, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS AS MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE DOING IS NO SHELFWARE, RIGHT? SO WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE USING EVERY BIT OF CAPABILITY AND WE ALSO HAVE TO BE ABLE TO SUPPORT THESE PLATFORMS. SO WHAT YOU'LL SEE SOMETIMES IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, PARTICULARLY WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT, UM, THE AREA OF CYBER, I'M IN A, A LOCAL HOUSTON CIO GROUP AND I'VE TALKED TO A LOT OF MY PEERS IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND THEY HAVE IN SOME CASES AS MANY AS 80 DIFFERENT TOOLS THAT THEY USE TO CARRY OUT THAT JOB.
AND THEY HAVE VERY LARGE STAFF.
AND SO JUST AS COUNCIL MEMBER CAME AND WAS SAYING, WE HAVE, UM, A SMALLER GROUP, UM, AND LESS HANDS TO OPERATE THAT MANY TOOLS, WE HAVE TO GET THE BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK.
SO WE LOOK FOR THOSE, UM, STRATEGIC PLATFORMS THAT WE CAN PARTNER WITH AND USE THE MOST OF THE CAPABILITY AND THAT THEY SEAMLESSLY TALK TO EACH OTHER.
AND THAT'S CRITICAL, RIGHT? SO, UM, I ABSOLUTELY STAND BY SOME OF THE STANDARDS THAT WE HAVE PUT IN PLACE BECAUSE IT HAS ENABLED US TO DO MORE, TO MONITOR MORE, TO SEE, HAVE, HAVE THE VISIBILITY AND THE ABILITY TO MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE RISKS.
WHEREAS WHEN THEY'RE DISPARATE SYSTEMS AND MAN MANUFACTURERS PRODUCTS, WE SIMPLY DON'T HAVE THOSE CAPABILITIES.
SO I THINK WE ACTUALLY GET BETTER VALUE BECAUSE FEWER PEOPLE CAN OPERATE IT AND WE ALSO GET THOSE ECONOMIES OF SCALED DISCOUNTS.
NEXT WE HAVE COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ.
THANK YOU, UH, VICE CHAIR AND THANK YOU DIRECTOR KENT FOR YOUR EXCELLENT PRESENTATION.
AND THANKS FOR WHAT YOU AND YOUR DEPARTMENT DO.
I CAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING MORE ESSENTIAL IN IT, UH, FOR US FUNCTIONING.
UM, I NOTICED YOU HAVE, UM, HOUSTON EMERGENCY CENTER SUPPORT PROGRAM AND A HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT IT SUPPORT PROGRAM WITH RESPECT TO, UH, POLICE DEPARTMENT, IT SUPPORT.
IS THAT INCLUDED UNDER, UH, HOUSTON EMERGENCY CENTER SUPPORT OR DO THEY HAVE THEIR OWN? UM, IT SUPPORT, THE HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT IS ONE OF THE FIVE DEPARTMENTS WITH WHAT WE CALL A FEDERATED IT ORGANIZATION.
SO THOSE ARE HOUSTON POLICE, HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS, UM, HOUSTON AIRPORT SYSTEM, HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT, AND THE PUBLIC LIBRARIES.
THOSE FIVE DEPARTMENTS HAVE HISTORICALLY HAD A SEPARATE CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER THAT HAS A DOTTED LINE TO ME.
SO THEY'RE OBLIGATED TO PARTICIPATE IN IT GOVERNANCE AND STANDARDS ESTABLISHMENT, BUT THEY REPORT DIRECTLY TO THOSE DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS.
AND SO IN THE CASE OF HPD, UM, THEY DO HAVE A RELATIVELY NEW CTO WHO, UM, MY TEAM AND I PARTICIPATED ON THE INTERVIEW PROCESS.
BUT YES, HPD SUPPORTS, UH, ALL OF THE POLICE SPECIFIC SYSTEMS. THEY SUBSCRIBE TO ENTERPRISE SERVICES FROM MY DEPARTMENT, BUT RMS AS AN EXAMPLE, OR WE MENTIONED BODY CAMS EARLIER, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS ARE MAINTAINED BY HPD, INCLUDING THOSE SERVICES, UM, FOR THEIR SUPPORT OF THE HOUSTON EMERGENCY CENTER.
AND, UH, SIMILAR QUESTION WITH THE PUBLIC SAFETY RADIO COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM, IS THE HPD RADIO COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM INCLUDED WITHIN THIS OR DO THEY HAVE THEIR OWN? THAT IS MINE.
SO, SO NOT ONLY THEIR PORTABLE HANDHELD RADIOS, UM, BUT ALSO THEIR IN VEHICLE MOBILE RADIOS.
AND THAT IS ONE THAT, UM, I'LL TOOT MY TEAM'S HORN JUST A LITTLE BIT.
IN THIS LAST YEAR, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WERE ABLE TO GET DONE WITH SOME ARPA MONEY, UM, AND SOME CIP MONEY IS A COMPLETE REFRESH OF ALL POLICE RADIOS.
UM, AND RIGHT NOW THE NUMBER ESCAPES ME, BUT IT'S, UM, CLOSE TO 5,000 OF THE, UM, PORTABLE RADIOS AND ANOTHER 1900 OF MOBILE.
YEAH, I, I'M, I HOPE I GOT THAT RIGHT.
I'M SURE IT'S QUITE, QUITE EXTENSIVE.
SO KUDOS TO YOU GUYS FOR THAT.
SO, UH, COUPLE OF PERSONAL INTERESTS, BUT I'M SURE, UH, A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE INTERESTED IN THIS AS WELL.
UM, I HAVE FOUND THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE FUNCTION ENTERING THE INFORMATION AND SO FORTH TO BE QUITE CLUNKY, UH, AT TIMES.
IS THERE ANY, UH, EFFORT AFOOT TO MAKE THAT A LITTLE SIMPLER TO USE? YES.
YES, IT'S BUDGETED AND UM, THE MAYOR'S OFFICE HAS BEEN WORKING
[00:45:01]
ON PROVIDING US SOME REQUIREMENTS, BUT WE HAVE THAT PLANNED IN FY 25, UM, NOT ONLY FOR CAMPAIGN FINANCE, BUT I BELIEVE THERE'S ALSO THE LOBBYIST REGISTRATION FUNCTION AS WELL.WE CAN PUT YOU BACK IN THE QUEUE.
WE'LL GO TO COUNCIL MEMBER FLICKINGER.
GOT A COUPLE QUESTIONS ON 3 1 1, NOT SURE IF THIS IS REALLY THE APPROPRIATE FORM.
UH, UNDERSTAND FOR THE 3 1 1 SYSTEM, THE MAPPING THEY USE IS DEGREE DECIMAL, WHEREAS MOST PHONES USE DEGREE MINUTE SECOND.
SO THERE'S A DISCONNECT IF THERE'S NOT A STREET ADDRESS.
IS THERE ANY POSSIBILITY OF, OF GOING TO DMS? WE DEFINITELY HAVE SOME ADDITIONAL ENHANCEMENTS PLANNED AND ADDRESSING IS AN EXAMPLE, UH, THAT IS ON OUR RADAR AND THERE ARE MULTIPLE ISSUES WITH ADDRESSING AS WELL.
SO IT ALSO TIES BACK TO SOME OF THE WAY WE DO PLATS, UM, VERSUS ADDRESSING, UM, WITH OTHER ENTITIES.
SO I'D BE HAPPY FOR US TO GIVE YOU A BRIEFING BECAUSE IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE COMPLICATED THAN, THAN THIS FORM, BUT WE, WE HEAR YOU AND WE HAVE SEEN THE PROBLEM.
IT, IT'S LARGER THAN JUST FIXING IT IN 3 1 1.
UM, ALSO, APPARENTLY THERE'S AN INABILITY FOR A LARGE NUMBER OF PEOPLE TO ATTACH A PICTURE WHEN THEY DO A THREE ONE ONE CALL IS, ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH ISSUES WITH THAT AS WELL OR I'LL HAVE TO HEAR A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL.
WE DID HAVE THAT PROBLEM PREVIOUSLY FOR CCL FIX AND WE FIXED THAT, SO I'D LOVE TO HEAR MORE DETAILS ABOUT THAT.
'CAUSE THAT'S ONE OF THE KEY BENEFITS OF USING THE MOBILE APP IS TO BE ABLE TO ATTACH A PHOTO.
UM, ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS YOU TALKED ABOUT, INSURANCE COST OF 640,000 ON SLIDE.
GOT IT ON THE PO ON THE SLIDE FOR PUBLIC SAFETY RADIO COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM.
WHAT EXACTLY DOES THAT 640,000 INSURANCE PAY FOR? SO AS I MENTIONED, WE HAVE 54 DIFFERENT TOWER SITES AROUND THE CITY AND AT THE BOTTOM OF THOSE TOWERS.
SO NOT ONLY IN SOME CASES THE CITY OWNS THE TOWER, IN OTHER CASES WE LEASE IT, UM, OR LEASE SPACE ON IT.
BUT AT THE BOTTOM OF THOSE TOWERS IS A BUILDING WITH CITY EQUIPMENT THAT HELPS THE RADIO SYSTEM FUNCTION.
AND SO WE DO HAVE INSURANCE ON THOSE DEVICES SO THAT WHEN NATURAL DISASTERS HAPPEN, IN SOME CASES THERE HAVE BEEN THEFT, UM, AND OTHER SORTS OF THINGS.
THOSE INSURANCE POLICIES THAT A RA MANAGES, THEY HELP US RESTORE THOSE SERVICES.
UM, DIRECTOR, AS YOU POINTED OUT, MY FAVORITE THING TO TALK ABOUT IS CAD.
UH, AND I KNOW COUNCIL MEMBER PECK IS ON AND SHE ALSO, UH, IS CHAIR PUBLIC SAFETY VERY MUCH CARES ABOUT THIS.
WHERE ARE WE IN THE PROCESS IN TERMS OF SECURING THE FULL FUNDING? WE HAVE THE FULL FUNDING.
WE GOT IT LAST YEAR, UM, UM, MAYOR TURNER WAS ABLE TO PROVIDE US THE WIN ON THE CIP REQUEST.
NOW IT DID CONSTRAIN SOME OTHER THINGS THAT WE COULDN'T SAY YES TO, BUT WE GOT ALL THE FUNDING THAT WE NEEDED TO FULLY IMPLEMENT, WHICH IS WHY FOR THE RFP THAT'S CURRENTLY, UM, BEEN, UH, WE, WE RECEIVED THE PROPOSALS AND THEY'RE IN THE PROCESS OF EVALUATING THOSE.
WE EXPECT TO HAVE A DECISION BY, I THINK IT'S, DON'T HOLD ME TO THIS, BUT IT'S ROUGHLY SEPTEMBER.
AND THEN FOR THE, UH, I AM GONNA PREFACE THIS 'CAUSE I KNOW OTHER DEPARTMENTS WILL START TO GET A LITTLE SCARED THAT I'M ASKING YOU THESE QUESTIONS.
SO I'M JUST ASKING FOR BUDGETARY PURPOSES.
THIS IS NOT IMPLYING THAT SOMETHING IS HAPPENING HERE.
UM, AS IT RELATES TO HEC, UM, THE COST OF OPERATING HEC, WOULD THOSE DECREASE IF, FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAD SHARED SERVICES SPACES LIKE AT TRANS STAR OR ANOTHER LOCATION? OR WOULD THOSE OPERATIONAL COSTS CONTINUE FROM THE IT SIDE? WELL, THE SHORT ANSWER IS WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO SUPPORT THE FUNCTION REGARDLESS OF PHYSICALLY WHERE IT IS.
UM, I WOULD SAY BECAUSE WE VIEW THE HECK AS A PERMANENT CITY STRUCTURE.
UM, AND IF THAT WERE GOING TO CHANGE, WE WOULD CERTAINLY LIKE TO KNOW THAT SOONER RATHER THAN LATER BECAUSE AGAIN, WE CAN MAKE SOME, SOME, UM, SMART DECISIONS RIGHT.
ABOUT FUTURE INVESTMENTS THAT WE MIGHT NOT MAKE IF, IF WE THOUGHT IT WAS NOT GONNA BE THERE AND THEN GOING TO HARRIS COUNTY, UH, TO THE NINE ONE ONE CALL CENTER.
HOW YOU'VE DESCRIBED IT TO ME IS, UM, GREATER HARRIS COUNTY NINE ONE ONE
[00:50:01]
PAGE FOR THE CALL COMING IN AND WE SHOULDER ALL OF THE OTHER COSTS ON THE BACKEND.HOWEVER, THE CALL COMING IN CAN'T GET TO WHERE IT NEEDS TO GO UNLESS WE HAVE YES.
FINANCIALLY, HIS GREATER HARRIS COUNTY 9 1 1 SHIFTED IN THEIR, UM, FUNDING PROPOSALS AS IT RELATES TO SUPPORTING THE CITY AND THE SERVICES PROVIDED THROUGH 9 1 1.
NO, UM, AND WHAT SHE'S REFERRING TO IS THE 9 1 1 TAX THAT YOU ALL SEE ON YOUR PHONE BILLS BOTH LANDLINE AND WIRELESS BILLS.
UM, THAT TAX OR FEE ONLY GOES TO GREATER HARRIS COUNTY 9 1 1 FOR THE PROVISION OF THE PHONE CALL.
AND IN SOME CASES WITH NEXTGEN TEXT, UM, AS WELL, IT DOES NOT PROVIDE ANY RELIEF FOR THE DATA SYSTEMS THAT WE USE OR THE TRANSFERRING PHONE CALLS THE DISPATCH TO DISPATCH.
AND, UM, TO THAT END CHAIR, JUST ONE OTHER QUESTION.
UM, AND I, I FLAG THAT AS AN ISSUE THAT WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO WORK ON, RIGHT? OTHER REGIONAL NINE ONE ONES RELATE TO IT DIFFERENTLY AND DO PROVIDE OTHER TYPES OF SUPPORT TO THOSE GOVERNMENT ENTITIES BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO GET TO DISPATCH.
UM, I NOTICED ON THERE WITH HPD, WE RM UH, THE RADIO SYSTEMS IS SOMETHING YOU'LL ALL HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN, BUT IS HPD STILL CONTINUING ITS OWN, UM, IT SERVICE SO TO SPEAK? OR IS THERE YES, THEY HAVE A LARGE IT ORGANIZATION.
UM, AND THAT'S WHAT I WAS MENTIONING EARLIER, LIKE RMS IS AN HPD PROJECT.
HITS DOES GET INVOLVED TO THE EXTENT THAT THEIR RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM NEEDS TO INTERFACE TO CAD, UM, AT THE HOUSTON EMERGENCY CENTER.
BUT THAT IS OUR ROLE IN THAT PROGRESS PROJECT AND THIS IS WHERE I'M GONNA GET IN TROUBLE.
UM, BUT ARE THERE OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CONSOLIDATION, UH, FOR SERVICES BETWEEN HITS AND HPD? IT, SO I WON'T USE THE WORD CONSOLIDATION, BUT I WILL SAY THERE IS A PROJECT UNDERWAY RIGHT NOW THAT IS AN EXAMPLE OF AN EFFICIENCY AND ROLLING SOME OF THEIR CURRENTLY SEPARATE APPLICATIONS FOR MANAGING, UM, POLICE TIMEKEEPING TO MIGRATE THEM ONTO THE ENTERPRISE APPLICATION THAT THE REST OF THE CITY HAS BEEN USING FOR SOME TIME.
AND SO THAT IS AN EXAMPLE WHERE HPD HAS BEEN VERY RECEPTIVE TO THE EFFICIENCY THAT THAT'S GONNA PROVIDE AND UNDERSTANDING THERE'S SOME VERY SENSITIVE THINGS THAT HPD DEALS WITH THAT, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY WE SHOULDN'T AS A CITY.
HAVE THAT HPD HAS, BUT ANYWHERE WE CAN BE, UH, LOOKING FOR THOSE EFFICIENCIES YES.
SO DIRECTOR KID, JUST UH, TO TIE THE, THE LOOP ON CAMPAIGN FINANCE, WHAT WE FOUND IS THAT WHEN YOU GO TO SEARCH FOR CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS AS WELL, IT CAN BE A LITTLE UN USER FRIENDLY OR USER UNFRIENDLY.
ARE THERE ANY EFFORTS AFOOT TO, UH, TO MAKE THAT A LITTLE MORE USER-FRIENDLY AS WELL? YES.
I MEAN, IN FAIRNESS, I'M JUST GONNA RIP THE BANDAID OFF AND SAY IT, THAT IS A HORRIBLE LEGACY HOMEGROWN APPLICATION
UM, I'D LOVE TO GET YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE IN IT, BUT I, I'M PRETTY SURE THE WAY, THE DIRECTION WE'RE HEADING, YOU'RE GONNA BE PLEASED WITH I, I'M SURE I WILL AS WELL.
AND HAPPY TO SHARE ANY, ANY MY THOUGHTS WITH YOU.
AND WHEN, WHEN DO YOU THINK WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO EXPECT THAT TO BE ONLINE? THAT I DON'T REMEMBER THE ANSWER, BUT I CAN FOLLOW UP WITH YOU.
AND THEN, UH, LAST QUESTION ON, UH, UH, POLICE RADIO AND SOME OF THE OTHER AGENCIES THAT WE PROVIDE RADIO COMMUNICATIONS FOR, I ASSUME THAT'S COST EFFECTIVE, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF A REVENUE GENERATOR FOR THE CITY OR NOT REALLY? IT IS, TECHNICALLY WE'RE NOT ALLOWED TO MAKE REVENUE, UM, LIKE PROFIT.
WE'RE NOT ALLOWED TO MAKE PROFIT, BUT WE CERTAINLY ARE COVERING THE COST AS WELL AS ADMINISTRATIVE OVERHEAD.
UM, ONE THING THAT IT DOES DO IS IT STRENGTHENS THE CITY METRO REGION AS A WHOLE.
UM, WE HAVE INTEROPERABILITY BETWEEN NOT ONLY OTHER AGENCIES, BUT AS THOSE AGENCIES JOIN OUR RADIO SYSTEM, IT MAKES IT EVEN EASIER.
BUT WE ABSOLUTELY ARE COVERING OUR COST, UM, PLUS AN ADMINISTRATIVE MARKUP.
I APPRECIATE, UM, ALL THE GOOD INFORMATION IN THE APPENDIX.
THERE'S SOME, SOME, SOME GOOD STUFF IN THERE.
I, I WAS LOOKING AT THE 3 1 1 STUFF.
IT'S 13% KIND OF NOR, UM, NORMAL IN OTHER CITIES ABOUT HOW, HOW MANY PEOPLE USE ONLINE AND HOW MANY PEOPLE CALL IS THAT,
[00:55:01]
YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW THE COMPARISON IN TERMS OF WHAT'S NORMAL.I WILL TELL YOU THAT IS OUR GOAL FOR THAT TO CONTINUE TO GO UP.
YEAH, IT WILL NEVER BE A HUNDRED PERCENT.
THAT COULD MAYBE BE A PERFORMANCE MEASURE OF SOME SORT IF YOU CAN.
I DON'T KNOW HOW THAT'S, IF IT'S YOU OR A RA MARKETING IT OR IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S, IT WOULD SAVE MONEY CITYWIDE FOR MORE PEOPLE TO, TO USE THE ONLINE RIGHT SITUATION AND THAT THAT PERCENT OF MOBILE AND WEB SUBMISSIONS VERSUS, UM, THROUGH THE CONTACT CENTER.
THAT IS ONE OF HITS OBB METRICS.
SO, UM, NOW TO YOUR POINT, IT IS A JOINT EFFORT TO, HAS IT ALWAYS BEEN AROUND 13%? I MEAN, I KNOW WE HAVE A KIND OF NEWER SYSTEM NOW, BUT I I THINK LAST YEAR WE ACTUALLY BUMPED IT UP.
YOU GAINED SOME OF THE ACTUALLY WAS MUCH HIGHER.
OH, THAT'S WHERE I ACTUALLY, YEAH.
WELL THANK YOU FOR A WONDERFUL PRESENTATION.
AND WE DO HAVE, UM, UH, ONE PUBLIC SPEAKER.
SABA BLANDING, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO BEHIND THE SCENES AND CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR PROMOTION OVER THERE TO FIND YOU'VE HAD A LONG TWO DAYS.
YEAH,
UM, I HAD A FEW QUESTIONS THAT GOT A LITTLE BIT BROACHED BY SOME COUNCIL MEMBERS.
UH, MY FIRST WAS, THERE WAS MENTION IN THE PRESENTATION TO SHARED SERVICES.
WHERE DO YOU THINK THE BEST OPPORTUNITIES ARE FOR CENTRALIZATION OF CITY FUNCTIONS? I THINK SHE TALKED ABOUT SOME OF THOSE.
I KNOW THAT I'VE TALKED TO THE DIRECTOR BEFORE ABOUT, UM, DATA CENTERS AND SHARING THAT WITH THE KIND OF OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCIES PERHAPS.
UM, BUT WE CAN GET YOU A MORE DETAILED ANSWER.
UM, I SAW, UM, IN THE PRESENTATION, UM, AS THERE'S AN INTENT TO GROW ONLINE, 3 1 1 SUBMISSIONS.
IS THERE ALSO A STRATEGY FOR LANGUAGE ACCESS? UM, I LOGGED IN QUICKLY AND NOTICED IT CURRENTLY IS ONLY IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH.
WE ARE, UH, HERE, EVERYBODY'S FOCUS ON THIS.
UM, AND WE WILL ASK ABOUT IF IT, IF 3 1 1, I I'M SURE WE HAVE 3 1 1 AND OTHER LANGUAGES BESIDES SPANISH.
EXTERNAL, WE JUST, YEAH, MAYBE NOT ONLINE ACCESS.
YEAH, I JUST CLICKED ON MY PHONE.
UM, AND THEN FINALLY, UM, I, THIS ALSO KIND OF BROUGHT, GOT BROACHED A LITTLE BIT.
UM, THERE'S AN ESTABLISHED COLLABORATION BETWEEN HARRIS COUNTY AND THE CITY OF HOUSTON ON 9 1 1 SERVICES.
UH, WHERE DO YOU THINK THE BEST OPPORTUNITIES ARE FOR SIMILAR COLLABORATIONS ACROSS THE CITY AND COUNTY SERVICES? AND I'VE ASKED THAT QUESTION IN THE PAST IN MY BUDGET QUESTIONS AND, AND I DON'T HAVE THEM RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, BUT I LIKE, I KNOW WE TALKED ABOUT DATA CENTERS, LISA, WE, WE'VE GOT, I'M SURE THERE'S, UH, SOME OTHER OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE TALKED ABOUT.
PUBLIC SAFETY RADIO, UM, THAT WE DO TOGETHER.
THERE'S, THERE'S A, UM, WHEREVER WE CAN, WE SHOULD BE LOOKING FOR THOSE OPPORTUNITIES.
UM, SO WE'LL GET YOU A MORE THOROUGH ANSWER, BUT I ASK, I ASK ABOUT SHARED SERVICES EVERY YEAR, SO GREAT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BEING HERE.
WE'RE ALMOST RIGHT AT THREE O'CLOCK AND WE WILL HAVE, UM, HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS UP NEXT.