[City Controller's Office Budget Town Hall: Ripley House]
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HOW TO Y'ALL? UH, THANK YOU, RAVEN, FOR THE INTRODUCTION.UH, IF YOU DIDN'T CATCH IT, MY NAME IS CHRIS PINO.
UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL OF Y'ALL FOR BEING HERE TODAY, AND WELCOME TO OUR BEAUTIFUL AND HISTORIC RIPLEY HOUSE.
UM, FIRST I WANT TO THANK THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE FOR, UH, INVITING ME TO MODERATE THIS FORM, UH, ON BEHALF OF BAKER RIPLEY.
UH, AND JUST BY SHOW OF HANDS, HOW MANY OF Y'ALL HERE IN THE AUDIENCE TODAY, WERE FAMILIAR WITH BAKER RIPLEY BEFORE ARRIVING? UH, DON'T WORRY, BE HONEST, SAFE SPACE.
SO I SEE LIKE 75% OF THE HANDS GOING UP, WHICH IS FANTASTIC, BUT IF YOU'RE ONE OF THE 25% THAT, UH, HAS NO IDEA WHO WE ARE, UH, BAKER RIPLEY IS A 5 0 1 C3 NONPROFIT DEDICATED TO SERVING AND UPLIFTING GREATER HOUSTON'S COMMUNITIES.
WE HAVE OVER 70 CENTERS SPREAD ACROSS TEXAS, SERVING OVER HALF A MILLION RESIDENTS ANNUALLY.
OUR MANTRA IS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS MAKING HOUSTON A MORE EMPOWERED AND RESILIENT PLACE FOR EVERYONE, NO MATTER ONE'S BACKGROUND OR ORIGINS.
WE HAVE A VARIETY OF PROGRAMS RANGING FROM COMMUNITY CENTERS TO SENIOR CENTERS, HEAD START TO WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS, TAX PREPARATION TO IMMIGRATION ASSISTANCE, BASICALLY, YOU NAME IT, WE DO IT.
UH, AND SINCE I HAVE THE MIC, I DO BRIEFLY WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE WORK THAT MY TEAM DOES, UH, AS MANAGER OF VOTER ENGAGEMENT.
UH, I'M RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR NONPARTISAN VOTER OUTREACH AND GET OUT THE VOTE EFFORTS.
UH, BASICALLY ANYTIME THERE'S AN ELECTION, WE RUN NON-PARTISAN PROGRAMS TO RAISE AWARENESS OF THE ELECTION, UH, AND PROVIDE VOTERS WITH RESOURCES ABOUT WHAT IS ON THEIR BALLOT, UH, AND WHAT THEY'RE VOTING FOR.
RIGHT NOW, UH, WE'RE FOCUSING ON, UH, CIVIC EVENTS LIKE THESE, UH, CANDIDATE FORMS ARE DIGITAL AND PHYSICAL VOTER GUIDES AND COLLABORATION WITH THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS.
UH, MAILERS SENT TO, UH, A COUPLE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF RESIDENTS THROUGHOUT, UH, THE EAST SIDE OF TOWN, UH, RELATIONAL ORGANIZING, PHONE AND TEXT BANKING AND DIGITAL ADS.
AGAIN, YOU NAME IT, WE DO IT
IN THE LAST YEAR ALONE, WE REACHED VOTERS WITH OVER 300,000 UNIQUE TOUCHPOINTS, ADVER, UH, AVERAGING ABOUT TWO AND A HALF TIMES PER VOTER.
UH, AND WE FOUND STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT EFFECTS BY DOING THESE TOUCH POINTS.
UM, FOR EXAMPLE, IN 2024, WE, WE MAILED A COUPLE THOUSAND HANDWRITTEN POSTCARDS WRITTEN BY STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS, UH, TO LOW PROPENSITY VOTERS SPREAD ACROSS GREATER HOUSTON, AND WE FOUND THAT THIS RESULTED IN ABOUT A 4% INCREASE IN TURNOUT.
THAT MEANS THAT FOR EVERY 30 POSTCARDS THAT WE MAILED OUT, THERE WAS ONE PERSON WHO VOTED, WHO WOULD NOT HAVE OTHER, WHO NOT, WHO WOULD NOT HAVE DONE SO OTHERWISE.
THAT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE MUCH AT FACE VALUE, BUT WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A SCALE IN THE THOUSANDS OR TENS OF THOUSANDS, THAT IS HUNDREDS OR THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE VOTING, WHO OTHERWISE WOULD NOT HAVE SHOWN UP TO VOTE.
UH, TO THAT END, UH, I DO WANT TO REMIND PEOPLE WHILE I HAVE THE MIC THAT THERE IS A RUNOFF ELECTION COMING UP ON JUNE 7TH.
UH, NOT EVERYBODY HAS AN ELECTION ON THEIR BALLOT, SO I ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY HERE, UH, EITHER RIGHT NOW OR WHEN YOU GET HOME, TO CHECK OUT HARRIS VOTES.COM, UH, TO SEE IF YOU HAVE A RACE THAT YOU CAN VOTE ON.
UH, I'M GONNA HOP OFF MY SOAPBOX IN JUST A SECOND, BUT BEFORE I DO THAT, I'M GOING TO DO TWO THINGS.
I, UH, FIRST I'M GOING TO DESCRIBE, UH, WHAT THE, WHAT THIS EVENT, THE PROCESS IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE, HOW OUR PROGRAM WILL RUN, UH, AND THEN I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND INTRODUCE THE CONTROLLER.
UM, SO WE'RE GONNA BEGIN WITH A PRESENTATION FROM THE CONTROLLER, TALKING ABOUT THE CITY BUDGET, UH, AND THE PROCESS THEREIN.
UH, AFTER THAT, WE ARE GOING TO ANSWER QUESTIONS FOR THE AUDIENCE.
SO, AS YOU WERE COMING IN, YOU SHOULD HAVE RECEIVED A POSTCARD LIKE THIS.
UM, YOU ARE ABLE TO WRITE YOUR QUESTIONS ON THIS POSTCARD, UH, AND THEN GET IT BACK TO GABBY IN THE BACK.
GABBY, DO YOU WANNA RAISE YOUR HAND? AND THEN GABBY WILL BRING THOSE TO ME AND I WILL ENSURE THAT, UH, EVERY QUESTION THAT WE HAVE TIME FOR WILL BE ANSWERED.
ALRIGHT, SO LET'S GO AHEAD AND INTRODUCE THE CONTROLLER.
UH, CHRIS HOLLINS IS A NATIVE HOUSTONIAN WHO HAS SERVED AS HOUSTON CITY CONTROLLER SINCE JANUARY, 2024.
AS THE INDEPENDENTLY ELECTED CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER OF THE NATION'S FOURTH LARGEST CITY CONTROLLER, HOLLINS PROVIDES OVERSIGHT OF A BUDGET, EXCEEDING $6 BILLION, AND MANAGES THE CITY'S 6 BILLION INVESTMENT AND A 14 BILLION DEBT PORTFOLIO.
HOLLINS IS DEEPLY COMMITTED TO TRANSPARENCY, FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY, AND RESULTS DRIVEN OPERATIONS USING HIS OFFICE, UH, HIS OFFICE'S AUDITING AUTHORITY TO BRING NEW IDEAS AND BEST PRACTICES TO CITY DEPARTMENTS THAT RESULT IN COST SAVINGS AND A HIGHER STANDARD OF SERVICE TO HOUSTON RESIDENTS PRIOR TO A SERVICE.
AS CITY CONTROLLER, COLLINS LED THE 2020 ELECTIONS EFFORT HERE IN HARRIS COUNTY AS COUNTY CLERK, UH, GAINING NATIONAL ACCLAIM FOR PROTECTING AND EXPANDING VOTING RIGHTS FOR 2.5 MILLION HOUSTON AREA VOTERS.
HOLLAND'S INNOVATIONS, WHICH INCLUDED DRIVE-THROUGH VOTING, 24 HOUR VOTING ONLINE MAIL, BALLOT TRACKING, AND TRIPLING THE NUMBER OF EARLY VOTE CENTERS LED TO A RECORD BREAKING INCREASE IN VOTER TURNOUT.
DESPITE THE ONGOING VOTER PANDEMIC, HOLLANDS HOLDS A
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BACHELOR OF ARTS WITH FIVE BETA KAPPA HONORS FOR MOREHOUSE COLLEGE, AND COMPLETED A JOINT PROGRAM WITH YALE LAW SCHOOL AND HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL, EARNING BOTH HIS JURIS DOCTOR AND MASTER'S OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION DEGREES.HE IS A PROUD MEMBER OF THE OMEGA SCI PHI FRATERNITY INCORPORATED.
HOLLINS IS ALSO ADMITTED TO THE STATE BAR OF TEXAS AND FEDERAL COURTS FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS.
BEFORE BEING ELECTED CITY CONTROLLER, HE WAS THE PRINCIPAL ATTORNEY AT HOLLANDS LAW GROUP.
HOLLAND SPENT THE BULK OF HIS CAREER AS A MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT AT MCKINSEY AND COMPANY WHERE HE WAS DEDICATED TO HELPING, UH, LARGE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES TRANSFORM THEIR OPERATIONS TO BETTER ACHIEVE THEIR MISSIONS AND MEET THE NEEDS OF THOSE THEY WERE ENTRUSTED TO SERVE.
HOLLANDS AND HIS WIFE MORGAN LIVE IN HOUSTON'S THIRD WARD WITH THEIR DAUGHTER VIVIAN, AND THEIR SON GEORGE.
THE HOLLINS FAMILY ATTENDS WHEELER AVENUE BAPTIST CHURCH.
UH, ON BEHALF OF BAKER RIPLEY, I WOULD NOW LIKE TO WELCOME, UH, CONTROLLER HOLLINS ONTO THE STAGE.
CHRIS, CAN WE TURN THIS DOWN A LITTLE BIT? UH, CHRIS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR, FOR THE WARM INTRODUCTION INTO YOU AND THE REST OF THE TEAM HERE AT BAKER RIPLEY.
NUMBER ONE, THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO.
UH, THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO YEAR IN, YEAR OUT, UH, TO SUPPORT THIS COMMUNITY.
UH, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T KNOW A TON ABOUT WHAT BAKER RIPLEY DOES, UH, CHRIS LEADS VOTER ENGAGEMENT.
UH, OBVIOUSLY THAT'S NONPARTISAN.
THE POINT IS FOR FOLKS TO MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD.
BUT BAKER RIPLEY OFFERS SO MANY OTHER, UH, SERVICES TO COMMUNITIES LIKE THE ONE THAT WE FIND OURSELVES IN TODAY.
AND SO IF YOU WANT LEARN A LITTLE BIT MORE, THERE'S A TABLE SET UP RIGHT HERE TO MY RIGHT, UH, YOUR LEFT.
AND, AND ONCE AGAIN, CAN WE JUST GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE TO THE BAKER RIPLEY TEAM FOR HOSTING US TODAY? UH, I'D ALSO LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, OUR HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY IS HERE, UH, AND WE HAVE REPRESENTATION FROM THE TEJANO CENTER.
SO, AGAIN, PLEASE, BEFORE YOU LEAVE HERE, CHECK IN WITH THESE GOOD FOLKS AND ASK 'EM WHAT THEY DO.
UH, ASK THEM HOW THEY SERVE THIS COMMUNITY, AND, UH, AND YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED THAT THEY COULD, THEY COULD HELP, HELP YOU, UH, IN YOUR WALK.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE SOME OTHER PUBLIC SERVANTS HERE TODAY.
SO I FIRST WANNA RECOGNIZE, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER JOAQUIN MARTINEZ, WHOSE DISTRICT WE FIND OURSELVES IN.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR, FOR YOUR PRESENCE.
AND WE ALSO HAVE FROM HARRIS COUNTY, UH, OUR COUNTY TREASURER, DR.
CARLA WYATT, WHO KNOWS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT NUMBERS.
AND SO IF YOU WANNA JUST COME UP HERE AND TAKE THE MIC AND, YOU KNOW, GIVE THIS PRESENTATION FOR ME.
I, I DEEPLY APPRECIATE IT, CARLA
UH, AND THEN FINALLY, YOU KNOW, THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR, FOR YOUR PRESENCE.
THANK YOU FOR CARING ENOUGH ABOUT THIS CITY AND OUR COLLECTIVE FUTURE FOR, FOR WANTING TO COME HERE TODAY.
UH, LEARN A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE BUDGET PROCESS, UH, AND THEN MAYBE, UH, FIRE A QUESTION OR TWO AT ME.
UH, JUST A QUICK SPOILER ALERT, IF YOU CAME HERE FOR INTRIGUE AND DRAMA AND COMMENTARY, UM, ABOUT WHAT'S IN THE BUDGET, WHAT'S NOT IN THE BUDGET, YOU'RE, YOU'RE AT THE WRONG MEETING TODAY.
UH, THIS MEETING IS TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT THE BUDGET PROCESS AND HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED.
UH, THE BUDGET WAS JUST, UH, RELEASED TWO DAYS AGO, OR WAS IT YESTERDAY? YESTERDAY.
MY DAYS ARE, I GOT KIDS JOB THESE DAYS ARE RUNNING TOGETHER.
UM, THE BUDGET WAS RELEASED YESTERDAY AND, UH, OUR CITY FINANCE DIRECTOR GAVE A LITTLE BIT OF DETAIL TO CITY COUNCIL TODAY, BUT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL WEEKS, UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS WILL BE DIGGING INTO IT, OFFERING AMENDMENTS.
THERE'LL BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD SPECIFICALLY, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT TODAY.
UM, AND SO THAT'S WHAT THE FOCUS OF, UH, TODAY IS.
WE WILL SHARE A LITTLE BIT OF, OF SORT OF HIGH LEVEL NOTES ABOUT THE BUDGET.
UM, AND YOU CAN ASK ME ANY QUESTION THAT YOU WANT.
IF I DON'T, IF I HAVE THE ANSWER, I'LL GIVE IT TO YOU.
IF I DON'T, I I'LL LET YOU KNOW THAT WE'LL FOLLOW UP WITH YOU.
ALL RIGHT, WE GOOD THERE? AND THERE'S A, THERE'S A, THERE'S A PORTION FOR QUESTIONS AT THE END, BUT I'M GONNA SAY A WHOLE LOT.
AND SO I MAY PAUSE IN THE MIDDLE AND JUST SEE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS THAT ARE, THAT ARE REALLY JUST ON THE TOP OF YOUR MIND.
AND, UH, AND I PROMISED COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ, THAT HE COULD ASK ME SOME TOUGH QUESTIONS TOO.
SO, UH, SO HOLD ON TIGHT BEFORE WE DIVE IN.
UH, MOST HOUSTONIANS, AND I'M NOT GONNA MAKE YOU RAISE YOUR HANDS, UH, HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE DOES.
AND SO I'M GONNA START BY SHARING JUST A, A, A TIDBIT THERE.
UH, AS YOUR CITY CONTROLLER, I AM YOUR INDEPENDENTLY ELECTED CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.
UH, FOLKS REFER TO US AND TO OUR OFFICE AS THE TAXPAYER WATCHDOG.
THAT MEANS THAT WE'RE LOOKING OUT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR TAX DOLLARS ARE BEING SPENT, UH, IN A WAY THAT NUMBER ONE IS ON THE UP AND UP, BUT NUMBER TWO, THAT YOU'RE GETTING THE BANG FOR THE BUCK WITH THE INVESTMENT THAT YOU'RE MAKING IN OUR CITY, UH, THROUGH YOUR TAX DOLLARS.
UH, WE LEAD ON THE CITY'S FINANCIAL ISSUES.
UH, WE OFFER COMMENTS ON THE DIRECTION THAT THE
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CITY IS HEADED FINANCIALLY.UM, AND, AND IT'S OUR JOB TO HOLD THE REST OF CITY GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE, AND WE TAKE THAT JOB VERY SERIOUSLY.
UH, SPECIFICALLY, WE ARE THE CITY'S TREASURER.
THAT MEANS WE MANAGE THE CITY'S FINANCIAL ASSETS.
PEOPLE IN MY OFFICE, UM, INVEST DIRECTLY, UH, AN UPWARDS OF $6 BILLION AND GET A FINANCIAL RETURN ON YOUR BEHALF ON THE CITY'S BEHALF.
THAT ULTIMATELY FLOWS IN, UH, TO CITY SERVICES.
WE ALSO MANAGE A DEBT PORTFOLIO OF UPWARDS OF $15 BILLION.
AND SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT MAJOR PROJECTS THAT ARE HAPPENING AROUND THE CITY, OFTENTIMES WE DON'T HAVE THE CASH IN OUR POCKETS, UH, TO PAY FOR THOSE MAJOR INVESTMENTS.
AND SO WE BORROW, UH, FROM THE FINANCIAL MARKETS AND JUST THE WAY THAT YOU WOULD PAY YOUR MORTGAGE OFF ON YOUR HOME.
WE PAY, UH, THAT DEBT DOWN OVER THE COURSE OF SEVERAL YEARS OFF IN 25 OR 30 YEARS.
AND RIGHT NOW THE CITY'S DEBT LOAD IS ABOUT $15 BILLION.
UH, WE SELL THOSE BONDS, SO, YOU KNOW, WE PRICE 'EM UP IN NEW YORK, SOMETIMES CHICAGO.
BUT IT'S, IT'S A REALLY A WALL STREET EFFORT, UH, WHERE INVESTORS ARE, ARE BUYING THE CITY'S DEBT.
AND THEN WE HAVE TO PAY INTEREST OVER TIME AND ULTIMATELY PAY BACK THAT PRINCIPLE.
UH, WE RUN THE CITY'S FINANCIAL OPERATIONS.
SO EVERY CITY EMPLOYEE, INCLUDING COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ, UH, GETS A PAY PAYCHECK, AND THEY WANNA GET PAID ON TIME.
I THINK THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE STAFF WOULD AGREE THAT THEY WANNA GET PAID ON TIME, AND MY OFFICE IS RESPONSIBLE, UH, FOR THAT.
IN ADDITION, WHEN VENDORS AND CONTRACTORS DO GOOD WORK FOR THE CITY, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THEY GET PAID IN A TIMELY FASHION.
THESE ARE OFTEN SMALL BUSINESSES.
THEY HAVE TO MAKE PAYROLL THEMSELVES.
THE OWNERS, UH, YOU KNOW, GOTTA PAY THEIR MORTGAGES.
AND SO WHEN THEY DO WORK, THEY WANT TO GET PAID.
AND MY OFFICE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING THAT THAT HAPPENS, UH, ONCE THEY'VE DONE THAT WORK AND THAT WE PROCESS THAT THROUGH.
UM, ON THIS SIDE, ON THE, ON THE YELLOW HERE, UH, WE ARE THE CITY'S FINANCIAL REPORTER AT THE MOST BASIC LEVEL.
THAT MEANS THAT ANNUAL REPORTS THAT THOSE BOND INVESTORS LOOK AT, UH, QUARTERLY INVESTMENT REPORTS, AS WELL AS MONTHLY FINANCIAL REPORTS THAT KEEP US UP TO DATE ON THE, THE STATE OF THE CITY.
WE AUTHOR AND RELEASE THOSE REPORTS.
UH, BUT WE TAKE THAT REPORTING JOB A LITTLE BIT FURTHER.
UH, WE THINK ABOUT THE CONCEPT OF TRANSPARENCY, AND THAT'S NOT JUST MAKING SURE THAT THE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE, BUT IT'S TRANSLATING THIS COMPLEX INFORMATION INTO PLAIN ENGLISH, RIGHT? YOU SHOULDN'T NEED AN ACCOUNTING DEGREE, YOU SHOULDN'T NEED A DOCTORATE IN, IN, YOU KNOW, SOME ADVANCED FINANCIAL, UH, YOU KNOW, FIELD TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON AT YOUR CITY.
AND SO WE DO OUR BEST TO BREAK THAT INFORMATION DOWN INTO BITE SIZE, UNDERSTANDABLE CHUNKS, AND THEN NOT ONLY MAKE IT AVAILABLE ON WEBSITES AND SO ON, BUT DO THINGS LIKE WE'RE DOING TONIGHT.
COME OUT AND PUT THIS INFORMATION RIGHT IN YOUR HANDS, RIGHT IN YOUR FINGERTIPS.
UH, WE ARE THE AUDITOR OF THE CITY, SO THAT WATCHDOG ROLE, WE AUDIT THE CITY, THE NUMBER ONE THING THAT WE'RE FOCUSED ON IS CRACKING DOWN ON WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE.
BUT LIKE I SAID, THE OTHER THING THAT WE WANT TO DO, IN ADDITION TO COMING IN AND BEING, YOU KNOW, SORT OF THE FINANCIAL COP, IF YOU WILL, IS TO OFFER CITY DEPARTMENTS, UH, NEW IDEAS AND BEST PRACTICES SO THAT THEY CAN DO THINGS A LITTLE BIT BETTER, RIGHT? WE WANT HOUSTON TO BE A WORLD CLASS CITY.
OFTENTIMES THAT MEANS LOOKING AT OTHER WORLD CLASS CITIES, SEEING HOW THEY CAN DO THINGS, AND TRYING TO DO THAT, TRYING TO ULTIMATELY DELIVER SERVICES TO YOU, WHETHER THAT IS PUBLIC SAFETY, WHETHER THAT'S TRASH PICKUP, UH, WHETHER THAT'S THE QUALITY OF OUR PARKS AND GREEN SPACE, WHETHER THAT'S OUR LIBRARIES.
WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE OFFERING THOSE SERVICES TO YOU AT A STANDARD THAT YOU DESERVE.
AND SO, OFTENTIMES OUR PERFORMANCE AUDIENCE WILL SHARE THOSE IDEAS WITH THE DEPARTMENTS THAT WERE AUDITING.
SO THAT DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP, AS WELL AS THE MAYOR, WHO'S THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE CITY, HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO THINGS BETTER, UH, GOING FORWARD.
AND THEN FINALLY, UH, UP IN THE TOP RIGHT, WE CERTIFY THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.
UM, THAT'S A, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE OF KIND OF BIG WORDS, BUT WHAT THAT MEANS IS WHEN IT'S TIME TO PAY THOSE BILLS, RIGHT? WHEN IT'S TIME TO PAY OUR EMPLOYEES, WHEN IT'S TIME TO PAY THOSE VENDORS, UH, FOR THE CONTRACTS THAT WE TAKE ON, IT'S OUR JOB TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT MONEY IS IN THE BANK.
AND SO, UH, WHEN THERE'S SOMETHING ON THE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA, UH, TO, AGAIN, THE NEXT BIG PROJECT, THE NEXT SERVICE THAT WE'RE GONNA PROVIDE THROUGH A CONTRACTOR, WE HAVE TO PROJECT THAT INTO THE FUTURE AND SAY, ACCORDING TO OUR ANALYSIS, THERE IS MONEY IN THE BANK TO PAY THIS BILL WHEN IT COMES DUE.
AND SO THAT'S JUST ABOUT KEEPING THE CITY AFLOAT.
UH, AND WE TAKE THAT RESPONSIBILITY INCREDIBLY, UH, SERIOUSLY.
UH, I'VE COVERED A LITTLE BIT OF THIS ALREADY, BUT OUR PRIORITIES, UH, NUMBER ONE, PREVENTING WASTE, FRAUD AND ABUSE, UH, INCREASING TRANSPARENCY, WE COVERED THAT.
IMPROVING CITY OPERATIONS, UH, WE'VE COVERED THAT.
AND THEN CHARTING A PATH TO FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY.
UM, WHAT THAT MEANS, AND WE'LL GO OVER THAT IN A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL, IS THAT ON A REGULAR BASIS,
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UH, THE CITY IS SPENDING MORE MONEY, UH, THAN IT HAS COMING IN, UH, IN A RECURRING FASHION.WHAT IT RECURRING JUST MEANS DAY IN AND DAY OUT, YEAR IN AND YEAR OUT.
SO THOSE EMPLOYEE SALARIES, RIGHT? WE PAY 'EM THIS MONTH, WE EXPECT TO PAY 'EM NEXT MONTH, WE EXPECT TO PAY 'EM THE FOLLOWING MONTH AND THE FOLLOWING YEAR.
AND SO WE NEED MONEY COMING IN THE DOOR THAT'S GONNA COVER THOSE EXPENSES, NOT ONLY NEXT MONTH, BUT NEXT YEAR AND FOR YEARS TO COME, RIGHT? SO FOR YEARS, UM, AND THIS GOES BACK SEVERAL ADMINISTRATIONS, UH, WE'VE BEEN SPENDING MORE ON A RECURRING BASIS THAN IS COMING IN THE DOOR.
AND, UH, AND YOU MIGHT ASK, WELL, HOW DO YOU DO THAT WITHOUT RUNNING OUTTA MONEY? WELL, THE CITY, OVER DECADES HAS BUILT UP, YOU KNOW, A NUMBER OF ASSETS INCLUDING PROPERTY, RIGHT? ONE OF THE BIGGEST ASSETS OF THE CITY IS JUST OWNING PROPERTY.
UM, AND SO OFTENTIMES THERE WILL BE A ONE TIME FIX, LIKE, OKAY, WE'LL SELL THIS PLOT OF LAND AND WE'LL USE THAT TO PAY OUR EMPLOYEES.
NOW THAT CAN WORK, YOU KNOW, ONE TIME, TWO TIMES, BUT IT CAN'T WORK FOREVER, RIGHT? UH, WE'VE ALSO HAD SITUATIONS WHERE, IF YOU'VE BEEN IN HOUSTON, IN HOUSTON FOR A WHILE, YOU SEE IT RAINS SOMETIMES.
WE HAD THESE DISASTERS JUST LAST YEAR.
WE HAD, UH, THE DIRE SHOW, WE HAD HURRICANE BARRELL, AND SOMETIMES ONE TIME DISASTER FUNDING WILL COME IN, AND THEN OF COURSE, WE WILL SPEND THAT MONEY.
UM, OUR VIEW, UH, IS, AND, AND NOT JUST RV OUR VIEW, AND REALLY ANY FINANCIAL EXPERT WILL TELL YOU THAT ONE-TIME MONEY SHOULD HAVE A ONE-TIME USE.
BUT IF WE HAVE RECURRING EXPENSES, THEN WE SHOULD HAVE RECURRING INCOME THAT COVERS THOSE EXPENSES.
AND SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY, THAT MEANS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE PUSHING FORWARD TODAY, BUT REALLY OVER THE, THE MEDIUM AND LONG TERM, WE NEED TO GET TO A PLACE WHERE THE MONEY THAT'S COMING IN THE DOOR COVERS THE MONEY THAT'S EXPECTED TO GO OUT OF THE DOOR.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE TO Y'ALL? ALRIGHT, SO WE'RE GONNA JUMP RIGHT INTO, TO THE BUDGET PROCESS.
I THINK WE HAVE A COUPLE OF GLOSSARY WORDS, UH, BEFORE WE JUMP IN.
MY, MY 8-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER JUST GAVE A PRESENTATION AT HER SCHOOL LAST WEEK, AND WE HAD TO READ THE GLOSSARY TO UNDERSTAND ALL THE KEY WORDS, UH, TO UNDERSTAND OUR PRESENTATION.
UH, WHAT'S THE BUDGET? THAT'S JUST A PLAN TO SPEND MONEY ON SERVICES, RIGHT? BUT ON THE OTHER SIDE, IT'S ALSO THE PLAN TO BRING MONEY IN THE DOOR TO COVER THE COST OF THOSE SERVICES.
I THINK Y'ALL, Y'ALL GET THAT WE JUST TALKED ABOUT STRUCTURAL BALANCE, MAKING SURE THAT RECOVERING, UH, RECURRING EXPENSES, UH, ARE COVERED BY, UH, RECURRING REVENUE.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE IN A SITUATION WHERE THE COSTS ARE HIGHER THAN THE REVENUE, YOU GOT TWO CHOICES.
LOWER THE COST, RAISE THE REVENUE, NOT A LOT OF MAGIC THERE.
OBVIOUSLY, YOU CAN DO A COMBINATION OF BOTH IF YOU, IF YOU'RE, IF YOU'RE REALLY EXCITED.
BUT THOSE ARE YOUR, THOSE ARE YOUR TWO OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, PLAIN AND, AND SIMPLE.
UH, A BUDGET DEFICIT IS, IS WHEN THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN, RIGHT? WHEN YOU'RE RECURRING COST OR ABOVE YOUR RECURRING REVENUE, THEN YOU'RE, YOU'RE OPERATING WITH A DEFICIT.
SO THE CITY DOESN'T OPERATE JANUARY TO DECEMBER.
UM, THE CITY OPERATES JULY ONE TO JUNE 30TH.
SO OUR FISCAL YEAR, UM, COVERS THOSE MONTHS.
WE'RE WRAPPING UP FISCAL YEAR 2025 RIGHT NOW, AND WE'RE ROLLING IN TO FISCAL YEAR 2026, STARTING ON JULY ONE.
UH, AND THEN WE HAVE YOUR GENERAL FUND AND YOUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS.
WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL SHOW A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL HERE.
UM, BUT YOUR GENERAL FUND IS, IS LESS THAN HALF OF THE OVERALL BUDGET.
UM, BUT IT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT HALF.
THAT'S WHERE ALL YOUR SERVICES ARE BEING COVERED FOR THE MOST PART.
POLICE, FIRE, PARKS, LIBRARIES, TRASH PICKUP, PUBLIC HEALTH, THOSE ARE ALL GENERAL FUND, UH, EXPENSES.
AND THOSE ARE PAID FOR MOSTLY WITH YOUR PROPERTY TAXES AND WITH YOUR SALES TAXES.
SO IF YOU OWN A HOME, IF YOU OWN A PROPERTY, UH, THEN YOU'RE PAYING PROPERTY TAX EVERY YEAR, YOU'RE PROBABLY SAYING, MAN, THIS BILL'S GOING UP AND UP AND UP.
WELL, A FRACTION OF THAT TAX PAYMENT THAT YOU SEND OVER TO, TO CAR LEAVE ALREADY THAT YOU SEND OVER TO HARRIS COUNTY, UM, WE'RE HOUSTON, CITY OF HOUSTON'S NOT GETTING ALL THAT MONEY.
WE'RE GETTING A PIECE OF THAT.
AND THAT'S FLOWING THROUGH AND FUNDING CITY SERVICES.
UM, AND THEN WHEN YOU GO TO THE GALLERIA TO BUY YOUR SWEETHEART SOMETHING NICE AT A FANCY STORE WHEN YOU GO OUT TO EAT, WHEN YOU ENJOY YOURSELF, UH, MEET SOME FRIENDS FOR A DRINK, THEN YOU'RE PAYING SALES TAX AND, AND A SMALL PORTION OF THAT SALES TAX FLOWS TO THE CITY.
UM, AND THEN ENTERPRISE FUNDS.
ENTERPRISE FUNDS ARE, UH, OTHER SERVICES.
THE MOST, I WOULD SAY MOST CRITICAL IS PROBABLY YOUR, YOUR WATER SERVICES.
UM, BOTH CLEAN WATER COMING THROUGH YOUR TAP AND WASTEWATER, TAKING ALL THE BAD STUFF OUTTA YOUR HOUSE.
BUT IT'S ALSO, UH, OUR AIRPORT.
THERE ARE OUR CONVENTION CENTER.
THERE, THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER THINGS THAT ARE COVERED BY ENTERPRISE FUNDS.
NOW, WHY IS ENTERPRISE FUND DIFFERENT FROM GENERAL FUND? WELL,
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IT'S NOT YOUR TAXES THAT ARE DIRECTLY GOING TO FUND THAT.IT'S FEES THAT ARE, THAT TEND TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE THINGS.
SO WHEN YOU FLY OUTTA A HOBBY OR YOU FLY OUT OF BUSH, UH, YOU BUY THAT TICKET, YOU, IF YOU DIG A LITTLE DEEP, YOU'LL SEE THERE'S A LITTLE SURCHARGE ON THAT TICKET.
UM, AND THAT SURCHARGE GOES INTO THE AIRPORT SYSTEM AND FUNDS AIRPORT OPERATIONS.
UM, OUR CONVENTION CENTER IS LARGELY FUNDED, UH, THROUGH HOTEL TAXES.
SO WHEN YOU STAY IN A HOTEL IN HOUSTON, UM, THERE'S A LITTLE SURCHARGE ON THERE THAT FLOWS IN AND IT PAYS FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER.
UH, AND OF COURSE, YOUR WATER BILL PAYS FOR YOUR WATER SERVICE.
SO THIS IS NOT JUMPING INTO THE PROPOSED BUDGET.
THIS IS WHERE WE ARE TODAY IN THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR.
UH, THAT'LL BE WRAPPING UP SOON.
UM, OUR GENERAL FUND REVENUE, REMEMBER THAT'S, UH, THAT'S MONEY COMING IN THE DOOR, UH, WAS 2.9, UH, BILLION DOLLARS.
OUR GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES WERE $3.2 BILLION.
NOW, 3.2 AND 2.9 SEEM LIKE NOT THAT FAR APART FROM ONE ANOTHER.
BUT WHEN IT'S A BILLION DOLLARS AND IT'S 0.3 OF THOSE, THAT'S $300 MILLION.
UH, THE STRUCTURAL SHORTFALL THAT WE'RE OPERATING UNDER, UH, THIS FISCAL YEAR IS, IS JUST NORTH OF $300 MILLION.
UH, WHAT ARE THE, THE BIG PIECES OF THAT? UH, WELL, COMING FROM THE PREVIOUS FISCAL YEAR, FISCAL YEAR 2024, WE HAD COSTS GO UP AND WE HAD REVENUE GO DOWN.
THAT'S THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT WE WANNA SEE FOR, FOR STRUCTURAL BALANCE.
UH, WHAT ARE THE BIG PIECES OF THAT? UH, LOOK, NUMBER ONE IS, IS, IS CITY EMPLOYEES.
UH, WE NEED TALENTED AND PEOPLE TO WORK AT THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
TO DO THAT, WE NOT ONLY HAVE TO COMPETE WITH THE PRIVATE SECTOR, BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO COMPETE WITH OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR, UH, ORGANIZATIONS, RIGHT? HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS TO COMPETE WITH PASADENA POLICE DEPARTMENT OR DALLAS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND SO, NOT ONLY BECAUSE THESE FOLKS SIMPLY DESERVE, UH, YOU KNOW, A, A A MORE MEANINGFUL INCOME FOR THE IMPORTANT WORK THAT THEY DO, WHETHER IT'S KEEPING US SAFE OR WHETHER IT'S RUNNING ALL THESE OTHER IMPORTANT SERVICES LIKE THE LIBRARY.
UH, BUT IT'S ALSO TO BE COMPETITIVE SO THAT WE CAN ATTRACT AND RETAIN, UH, CITY EMPLOYEES.
SO THE MAJOR DRIVERS OF, OF THE INCREASE IN COSTS THIS FISCAL THAT WE'RE IN, UH, WAS, WAS PERSONNEL COSTS FOR FIREFIGHTERS, POLICE, AND THEN CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES, WHICH IS EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
UH, OUR POLICE GOT A FOUR AND A HALF PERCENT RAISE THIS FISCAL YEAR.
UH, OUR CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES GOT A RAISE OF ABOUT $3,000 ANNUALIZED, UH, BEGINNING ON NOVEMBER 1ST, 2024.
AND OUR FIREFIGHTERS GOT A 10% RAISE, UH, AND ALSO GOT $650 MILLION, UH, IN BACK PAY.
UH, THOSE RAISES ARE ALL BEING PAID FOR, UM, FROM THE GENERAL FUND DIRECTLY.
AND SO THEY, THEY'RE, THEY'RE PART OF THAT DEFICIT.
UH, THE $650 MILLION, THAT WAS ONE OF THOSE THINGS WHERE THE CASH WASN'T LYING AROUND IN OUR POCKETS.
AND SO WE ISSUED A $650 MILLION BOND, UH, THAT WE WILL PAY FOR OVER THE COURSE OF 27 YEARS.
UM, ON AVERAGE, OVER THE COURSE OF THOSE 27 YEARS, THAT'S GONNA COST US ABOUT 45 ISH MILLION DOLLARS PER YEAR, I BELIEVE IN THIS FIRST YEAR THAT WE'RE IN IS CLOSER TO ABOUT $30 MILLION.
UH, THE OTHER, UH, ONE OF THE OTHER BIG ONES, UH, IS A COURT RULING, UH, THAT WE ENDURED AS IT RELATED TO INFRASTRUCTURE.
UH, BACK IN 2018, UH, YOU VOTED, HOUSTONIANS VOTED TO DESIGNATE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF THAT PROPERTY TAX THAT YOU PAID TO THE CITY, AND TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S ONLY SPENT ON ROADS AND DRAINAGE PROJECTS, OR DEBT SERVICE FOR ROADS AND DRAINAGE PROJECTS.
UH, THE CITY TOOK A VIEW THAT BECAUSE WE WERE OPERATING UNDER A REVENUE CAP, THAT WHEN WE REDUCED THE CITY'S TAX RATE, WHICH THE CITY DID NINE OUTTA THE LAST 11 YEARS, I BELIEVE THAT WE COULD ALSO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF MONEY WE SPENT ON ROADS AND DRAINAGE.
UH, WELL, SOME, SOME VOTERS FROM HOUSTON RESIDENTS TOOK THE OPPOSITE VIEW AND SUED THE CITY.
THAT LAWSUIT LASTED FOR SEVERAL YEARS, AND IT ULTIMATELY CONCLUDED EARLIER THIS YEAR, UM, AT THE SUPREME COURT OF TEXAS.
AND, AND THE APPEALS COURT SAID, LOOK, NO IFS AND OR BUTS ABOUT IT, YOU GOTTA PUT THIS MONEY IN.
AND THE IMPACT OF THAT WAS, UH, THAT WE HAVE TO SPEND AN ADDITIONAL A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS, UH, ANNUALLY ON ROADS AND DRAINAGE, UH, AND THAT NUMBER WILL, WILL KIND OF CREEP UP IN, IN YEARS TO COME.
SO THOSE ARE, ARE THE TWO BIGGEST CHUNKS OF
[00:25:01]
THIS $336 MILLION, UH, SHORTFALL.WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR YOU? UH, JUST ONE QUICK THING IS, AGAIN, WE GOTTA FIGURE IT OUT, RIGHT? WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO GET THINGS IN BALANCE.
AND OUR HOPE AND OUR ASPIRATION IS THAT WE CAN FIND OUR WAY TO FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT CUTS TO SERVICES THAT, THAT WE PROVIDE TO YOU.
NOW, YOU MIGHT, IN YOUR DAILY LIFE, RIGHT NOW, SAY, MY TRASH ALREADY DOESN'T GET PICKED UP ON TIME, OR WHEN I CALL POLICE OR FIRE, THEY'RE ALREADY NOT COMING AS FAST AS I WOULD LIKE THEM TO COME.
UM, YOU'RE ENTITLED TO HAVE THAT VIEW.
UM, AND I THINK OTHERS WOULD SAY THAT THEY SHARE SOME OF THOSE EXPERIENCES.
AND SO WE DON'T WANNA MAKE, WE, OF COURSE, WE WANNA MAKE CITY SERVICES BETTER, AND WE ABSOLUTELY DON'T WANNA MAKE 'EM WORSE.
AND THAT'S THE TOUGH JOB, UH, THAT WE HAVE DOWNTOWN OF, OF FIGURING THAT OUT WHILE UNDER SOME PRETTY SERIOUS FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS.
ALRIGHT, SO WHAT ARE SOME IMPORTANT DATES, UH, FOR BUDGET SEASON? YESTERDAY, UH, THE MAYOR RELEASED THE PROPOSED BUDGET.
UM, IF YOU GOOGLE HOUSTON FY 26 BUDGET, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO FIND IT.
IT, UM, IS A BIG HEFTY DETAILED DOCUMENT, A WHOLE LOT OF BEDTIME READING.
UH, WE WILL BE HAVING A TOWN HALL IN THE FUTURE THAT GOES A LITTLE BIT MORE IN DEPTH ON THOSE NUMBERS.
AGAIN, THAT'S NOT TODAY, BUT THAT BUDGET IS OUT.
AND TODAY, UH, FINANCE DIRECTOR MELISSA DEBOWSKI SPENT A COUPLE OF HOURS TALKING TO CITY COUNCIL ABOUT THE DETAILS.
AND SO THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO YOU.
UM, YOU CAN GO, UH, AND LOOK AT WHAT'S CALLED HTV.
THAT'S THE CITY'S, UH, TELEVISION NETWORK.
YOU CAN EITHER DO THAT ON THE CITY OF HOUSTON WEBSITE OR YOU CAN GO ON FACEBOOK AND LOOK UP HTV.
AND IT'S ONE OF THE TOP THINGS 'CAUSE IT'S JUST HAPPENED THIS AFTERNOON.
UM, AND SO THAT'S THE BEST RESOURCE TO, TO HEAR.
UM, YOU KNOW, FROM THE MAYOR'S PERSPECTIVE, KIND OF WHAT'S IN THAT BUDGET, MAY 21ST.
SO TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY, THAT'S THE EXPECTED TIME THAT WE WILL HAVE THE PUBLIC HEARING.
THAT MEANS ANY HOUSTONIAN CAN COME AND, UH, AND TALK DIRECTLY TO THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL, UH, ABOUT YOUR VIEWS ON, ON THE BUDGET.
AND WE'LL HAVE A COUPLE OF TIPS FOR YOU, UH, LATER ON, UH, IN THE PRESENTATION.
AND THEN A WEEK AFTER THAT, UH, MAY 28TH IS WHEN WE EXPECT THE BUDGET TO BE PLACED ON THE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA.
NOW, MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, IT'S NOT GONNA BE VOTED ON THAT DAY.
UH, MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL, UH, WILL THEN OFFER ANY AMENDMENTS THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE.
NORMALLY, IT, IT GETS KICKED OVER SORT OF TO THE NEXT WEEK, AND THEN YOU START TO HAVE THESE VOTES ON AMENDMENTS.
UH, AND THEN OFTENTIMES IN THAT SECOND MEETING IS WHEN THE BUDGET IS ULTIMATELY PASSED.
SO WE HAVE AN, AN IMPORTANT, UH, FEW WEEKS COMING UP.
UM, YOU KNOW, MAY 28TH IS A TIME WHEN YOU CAN SORT OF WATCH, BUT MAY 21ST IS A TIME WHEN YOU CAN COME AND, AND BE A PART OF IT AND, AND SHARE YOUR VIEWS ON THE BUDGET.
SO, JUST TO GO QUICKLY THROUGH, YOU KNOW, WHAT ROLE DO THE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL AND THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE PLAY, UH, IN THE BUDGET? AND I'VE COVERED A LITTLE BIT OF THIS, BUT THE MAYOR, UH, IS WHO PUTS THE BUDGET OUT THERE.
AND HE JUST DID THAT, UH, YESTERDAY.
HE PROPOSED THE ANNUAL BUDGET, UM, THAT INCLUDES PRIORITIES AND, AND REALLY, YOU KNOW, POLICY IS, IS SORT OF IN THERE.
UM, YOU HEAR SOMETIMES IN, IN GOVERNMENT THAT YOUR BUDGET REFLECTS YOUR VALUES.
AND SO IT'S WHAT ARE WE SPENDING MONEY ON? WHAT ARE WE NOT SPENDING MONEY ON? RIGHT? WHAT CHOICES ARE WE MAKING? AND AGAIN, WE HAVE AT THE CITY OF HOUSTON RIGHT NOW, SOME, SOME TOUGH CHOICES TO MAKE.
AND THEN ULTIMATELY, THE MAYOR, UH, USHERS THE PROPOSED BUDGET THROUGH THAT PROCESS, AND HOPES TO GET A VOTE AT THE END OF THE DAY, UH, OR THE END OF SEVERAL WEEKS, UH, FROM CITY COUNCIL.
WHAT DOES COUNCIL DO? UH, WHAT COUNCIL IS YOUR LEGISLATIVE BODY? UH, YOU THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU WATCH WHATEVER YOUR NEWS SOURCE IS, AND YOU SEE HOW, UH, INEFFECTIVE THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS IS.
BUT WE HAVE A HARDWORKING CITY COUNCIL, UH, THAT IS THE LEGISLATIVE BODY FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
AND ULTIMATELY, CITY COUNCIL'S JOB IN THE BUDGET PROCESS IS TO OFFER AMENDMENTS TO THE MAYOR'S PROPOSED BUDGET, AND THEN ULTIMATELY VOTE ON A FINAL, UM, BUDGET.
SO, UM, WHAT DID I MISS, UH, IMPORTANT, UH, FOLKS TO KNOW BESIDES COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ IS THE CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR OF YOUR BUDGET AND FISCAL AFFAIRS, UH, COMMITTEE THAT PLAY A REALLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE BUDGET PROCESS.
YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, WHO CHAIRS THAT COMMITTEE IS SALLY ALCORN.
SHE'S AN AT LARGE MEMBER OF CITY COUNCIL.
[00:30:01]
AND THEN MARIO CASTILLO, UH, IS THE VICE CHAIR.AND MARIO REPRESENTS, UH, DISTRICT H, WHICH BORDERS THE DISTRICT THAT WE'RE IN RIGHT NOW, UH, TO THE WEST.
AND THEN, SO WHAT DO WE DO? I TALKED ABOUT IT EARLIER ALREADY.
UH, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT WE DO, AND REALLY THE, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE ONLY THINGS THAT WE DO IS WE CERTIFY THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.
WE SAY THERE IS ENOUGH MONEY, OR WE BELIEVE PROJECT, THERE WILL BE ENOUGH MONEY TO PAY FOR THIS BUDGET TO PAY, UH, FOR THIS SPENDING.
UM, AND, AND THEN, THEN WE'RE HANDS OFF, UH, FROM THERE.
SO YOUR CONTROLLER'S OFFICE SADLY, DOES NOT PROPOSE A BUDGET, DOES NOT PROPOSE AMENDMENTS TO THE BUDGET, DOES NOT VOTE ON THE BUDGET.
THAT'S YOUR MAYOR AND YOUR CITY COUNCIL.
UH, WE PLAY THIS LIMITED ROLE, BUT IT'S AN IMPORTANT ONE, AND IT'S ONE THAT WE TAKE SERIOUSLY.
AND THEN WE ALSO, UH, ANALYZE TRENDS GOING OUT OVER SEVERAL YEARS, AGAIN, TO OFFER THAT, THAT VIEW TO CITY COUNCIL OF WHAT THE FUTURE'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE, UH, INCLUDING LOOKING AT THE, YOU KNOW, THE LOCAL ECONOMY, UH, IN HOUSTON RIGHT NOW, WE'RE PAYING ATTENTION TO THE PRICE OF OIL.
UH, WE'RE PAYING ATTENTION TO TARIFFS AND OTHER THINGS LIKE THAT TO THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S GONNA BE THE IMPACT ON HOUSTON, AND THEN HOW MIGHT THAT AFFECT SALES TAXES, RIGHT? BECAUSE IF, IF, IF BUDGETS ARE TIGHT, PEOPLE ARE GONNA BE SPENDING LESS MONEY AT THE GALLERIA FOR THEIR SWEETHEARTS, UH, AND GOING OUT LESS TO THESE RESTAURANTS, AND THEN ALSO PROPERTY TAXES AS WELL.
UM, AND THEN WE, WE WILL ALSO PERFORM SORT OF A SENSE CHECK ON THE BUDGET TO SAY, IS THERE, IS, IS THERE SOMETHING GLARING THAT'S MISSING HERE? UH, AS PART OF OUR, YOU KNOW, TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ROLE, UH, WE VIEW IT AS OUR JOB TO BE VOCAL ABOUT THOSE THINGS, TO MAKE SURE THAT CITY COUNCIL IS AWARE OF THEM AND THAT THEY'RE INFORMED AS THEY TAKE THEIR VOTES.
AND, UH, BUT ULTIMATELY IT'S, IT'S THEIR VOTE IN NINE HOURS.
UM, I KNOW I SAID A WHOLE LOT IN THE PAST, YOU KNOW, 10, 15 MINUTES.
DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, ANY BURNING QUESTIONS ABOUT SOMETHING I'VE ALREADY COVERED? YES, SIR.
UM, WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE, EXPLAIN PLEASE, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE AUDITING THAT YOUR DEPARTMENT DOES VERSUS THE AUDIT THAT THE MAYOR INSTITUTED? SO THE QUESTION WAS, UH, WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE AUDITING THAT THE CITY CONTROLLER'S OFFICE DOES AND THE AUDITING, UH, THAT THE MAYOR DID THROUGH ERNST AND YOUNG? UM, MANY OF YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN, UH, UH, A LOT OF HEADLINES ABOUT THE WORK THAT SST AND YOUNG HAVE DONE AROUND, UH, EFFICIENCY OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE CITY.
UM, WHAT THEY DID WAS NOT AN AUDIT.
UM, THEY DID, YOU KNOW, THEY DID A SCAN, THEY DID ANALYSIS.
THEY, YOU KNOW, THEY PICKED UP ROCKS AND LOOKED UNDERNEATH THEM.
THEY INTERVIEWED FOLKS, THEY ASKED QUESTIONS.
UM, AND I, AND BY NO MEANS AM I QUESTIONING THE PROFESSIONALISM OF THEIR WORK, BUT BY DEFINITION IS NOT, IT WAS NOT AN AUDIT.
UM, AUDITS FOLLOW VERY PARTICULAR STANDARDS AROUND VERIFYING WHAT IS HAPPENING, WHAT IS NOT HAPPENING, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT FACTS ARE.
UH, AUDITS ULTIMATELY COME OUT, UM, WITH VERIFIABLE FINDINGS, UH, WHERE THEY'RE VERY DISCREET RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, FOR THE, UH, THE AUDITEE, WHICH IN THIS CASE WOULD BE CITY DEPARTMENTS, UH, AND AUDITS FOLLOW, UM, AGAIN, VERY, VERY STRICT GUIDELINES.
UH, THERE'S A BOOK CALLED THE YELLOW BOOK, AND A RED BOOK.
I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT THOSE ARE BECAUSE I'M NOT AN AUDITOR, BUT WE HAVE A VERY STRONG AUDIT TEAM THAT FOLLOWS THESE GUIDELINES TO A T.
UH, AND, UM, AND OUR AUDIT TEAM, UH, PERFORMS AUDITS, THE ERNST AND YOUNG ORG WAS WHAT I WOULD CALL IT, YOU KNOW, A CONSULTING ENGAGEMENT.
SO I, I'VE GOT A QUESTION ABOUT ENTERPRISE FUNDS.
ARE THOSE DISCRE FROM THE BUDGET? SO FOR EXAMPLE, IF THERE'S OVER OR A SALE, FOR EXAMPLE MM-HMM
AND THOSE, UM, THAT AN ENTERPRISE FUND WOULD BUY THAT THOSE DOLLARS GAVE IN THE ENTERPRISE FUND? OR IS IT? SO THE GENERAL FUND, SO ENTERPRISE FUNDS ARE CORDONED OFF FROM THE GENERAL FUND.
I THINK PROBABLY ON THE NEXT SLIDE, WE'LL
[00:35:01]
KINDA SHOW YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE THERE.UH, THE GENERAL FUND IS ROUGHLY $3 BILLION OF STUFF, AND THAT STUFF IS POLICE, FIRE, AND DEBT SERVICE.
THOSE ARE LIKE THE BIGGEST CHUNKS OF IT.
UM, AND THEN IT GOES INTO SMALLER CATEGORIES LIKE PARKS AND, UM, AND TRASH PICKUP.
YOUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS, AS I MENTIONED, IT'S WATER, IT'S AIRPORTS, IT'S CONVENTION CENTER.
THEY HAVE DISCREET SPECIFIC REVENUE SOURCES, AND THEY HAVE SPECIFIC THINGS THAT THEY CAN SPEND THAT MONEY ON.
UM, ALL OF THEM ISSUE DEBT, AND WHEN THEY ISSUE DEBT, WE GUARANTEE TO THE, TO THOSE INVESTORS, THE PEOPLE WHO BUY THE DEBT, THAT WE'RE GONNA FOLLOW THE SET OF RULES, RIGHT? THAT OFFICE.
UM, YES, BOND ISSUANCE RUNS THROUGH OUR OFFICE, AND, AND ULTIMATELY WE MONITOR THE ENTERPRISE FUNDS AS WELL, BUT THEY ARE SEPARATE FROM THE GENERAL FUND.
AND SO WHAT YOU, WHAT YOU WON'T SEE, UH, IS MONEY THAT'S SUPPOSED TO BE SPENT ON THE AIRPORT THAT'S SPENT ON, YOU KNOW, POLICE ON THE SOUTHWEST SIDE OF HOUSTON BECAUSE THERE'S NO TIE TO THE AIRPORT.
AND, UM, WE WOULD GET SUED PRETTY QUICKLY BY THOSE BOND HOLDERS THAT THEY SAID, HEY, THEY'RE TAKING AIRPORT MONEY THAT THEY OWE US, AND THEY'RE SPENDING IT ON SOMETHING ELSE.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? YEAH, YEAH.
YOU, SO THE CITY TAKES IN TAX MONEY FROM DIFFERENT OPERATIONS, UH, PROPERTY TAX FEES, ET CETERA.
CAN YOU TELL ME HOW MUCH OF THAT IS, ARE WE AS CITY GETTING FROM GRANTS THAT ARE GIVEN AWAY FOR, YOU KNOW, SPECIFIC PROJECTS OR FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT? UH, AND I KNOW IT'S GONNA CHANGE EVERY YEAR, SO, SURE.
SO, UM, WHEN DONALD TRUMP TOOK OFFICE, I DON'T REMEMBER IF IT WAS THE FIRST WEEK OR THE SECOND WEEK, BUT THEY ANNOUNCED, YOU KNOW, A FREEZE OF ALL GRANT FUNDING, RIGHT? AND THAT WAS THE FIRST OF MANY THINGS THAT HAVE INTRODUCED TURMOIL INTO GLOBAL MARKETS.
UM, BUT NONPROFITS, UH, FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES, AND CERTAINLY LOCAL GOVERNMENT, UH, AGENCIES LIKE THE CITY OF HOUSTON, WERE, WERE SHOCKED AND WENT INTO A SCRAMBLE.
THE CITY OF HOUSTON WAS NO DIFFERENT.
UH, WE STARTED TO DIG INTO, HEY, WHAT'S OUR EXPOSURE TO, UH, TO THESE GRANTS COMING FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT? AND WHAT WE DISCOVERED WAS THAT IN TOTAL, AND THIS IS NOT AN ANNUAL FIGURE, THIS IS A TOTAL FIGURE THAT STRETCHES OUT OVER SEVERAL YEARS, UH, THAT WE HAVE ROUGHLY $2.6 BILLION WITH A B, UH, IN FEDERAL GRANTS.
UM, THE TWO BIGGEST AREAS THAT THAT MONEY IS FOCUSED ON IS HOUSING, ROUGHLY 99% OF OUR HOUSING DEPARTMENT, UH, WHICH IS BASICALLY ALL AFFORDABLE HOUSING EFFORTS FOR THE CITY, UH, IS FEDERAL GRANT FUNDED.
AND SO THAT WOULD BE WIPED OUT IF THOSE GRANTS WENT AWAY.
UH, ALSO A SIGNIFICANT CHUNK OF OUR HEALTH DEPARTMENT, OUR PUBLIC HEALTH EFFORTS FLOAT THROUGH, UM, UH, PUBLIC FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
UH, WE'RE STILL SEEING A LOT OF WEIRD STUFF WITH, UH, SECRETARY RFK JR.
AND WHAT'S GOING ON, UM, YOU KNOW, AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL AS WELL AS, YOU KNOW, MEDICAID AND SO ON AND SO FORTH.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO WAIT AND SEE.
UH, BUT WHAT WE NEED TO PUSH FOR AGAIN, AND THIS IS SOMETHING MORE OF AN ASPIRATION OVER TIME, IS SELF-RELIANCE.
UH, BECAUSE THINGS THAT WE USED TO BE ABLE TO DEPEND ON, LIKE NIGHT AND DAY, UM, ARE THINGS THAT WE CAN NO LONGER DEPEND ON.
AND OUR FOREIGN ALLIES ARE FIGURING THAT OUT, AND OUR STATES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ARE FIGURING THAT OUT AS WELL.
AND WE, SO WE HAVE TO START THINKING ABOUT WAYS THAT WE CAN COVER THESE THINGS OURSELVES AND, AND NOT RELY, UH, ON THE FEDS, BUT IT'S A, IT'S A PRETTY BIG DEAL.
ALRIGHT, LAST ONE RIGHT HERE, AND THEN WE'LL START TO MOVE FORWARD A LITTLE BIT MORE.
UM, COULD YOU HELP US UNDERSTAND WHY THE YEAR, UH, BEGINNING IN JULY,
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, SO FOR SOME CERTAIN RETAIL BUSINESSES WHERE LIKE, CHRISTMAS IS REALLY BIG FOR THEM AND IT MAKES THEIR WHOLE YEAR, THEY TIME, THEIR FISCAL YEAR, SO THAT, UH, SORT OF CHRISTMAS MIGHT BE LIKE IN THE MIDDLE INSTEAD OF RIGHT AT THE END TO GIVE THEM THE EXPECTATION OF HOW THINGS ARE GOING.
YOU KNOW, FOR US, UH, WITH PROPERTY TAX MONEY, YOU KNOW, YOU GET THAT BILL, YOU KNOW, AROUND THE HOLIDAY SEASON AND YOU, YOU KNOW, WE TRY TO GET THAT MONEY FROM YOU JANUARY, FEBRUARY AND SO ON.
AND SO I IMAGINE THAT THAT, UH, IS PART OF IT, UH, JUST THAT TIMING OF WHEN PROPERTY TAX MONEY COMES IN.
BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT FOR SURE.
I HAVEN'T INTERVIEWED, UH, CONTROLLERS FROM 1950 OR WHENEVER THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN, UH, YOU KNOW, DECIDED.
UH, BUT THAT, THAT'S MY, MY BEST GUESS, OF COURSE.
UM, SO JUMPING IN, AGAIN, THIS
[00:40:01]
IS VERY HIGH LEVEL, Y'ALL.I JUST WANNA SET YOUR EXPECTATIONS.
UM, JUMPING INTO THE PROPOSED BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2026, UH, IT'S, IT'S ROUGHLY $7 BILLION.
I'M GONNA STEP BACK OVER HERE BECAUSE I'M GETTING SOME FEEDBACK.
UM, 3 BILLION OF THAT IS YOUR GENERAL FUND.
4 BILLION OF THAT IS YOUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS.
UH, WE TOUCHED ON THIS QUITE A BIT ALREADY.
POLICE, FIREFIGHTERS, PARKS, TRASH PICKUP AND OTHERS, UH, ARE PAID FOR WITH MOSTLY PROPERTY TAX, SALES TAX.
THERE ARE SOME OTHER FEES IN THERE AS WELL, BUT THOSE ARE THE TWO BIG CHUNKS OF IT.
AND AN ENTERPRISE IS DRINKING WATER, PUBLIC WORKS, PROJECTS, DRAINAGE, UH, WASTEWATER, UH, AND SO ON.
AND THOSE ARE PAID FOR, UH, WITH FEES.
CAN WE PASS THE QUIZ ON THAT? ALL RIGHT, NOW WE HAVE THE NEXT PART OF YOUR QUIZ COMING RIGHT UP.
ALRIGHT, SO, UM, SHOW OF HANDS, WHO REMEMBERS WHAT A STRUCTURALLY BALANCED BUDGET IS?
WHENEVER YOU GET THE SAME MONEY GOING OUT, SAME MONEY COMING IN IS GOING OUT.
SAME RECURRING REVENUE COMING IN THAT MATCH UP WITH YOUR RECURRING COST.
THAT'S, IT'S, IT'S AN IMPORTANT KEY WORD.
UM, BUT, BUT WE'LL GIVE YOU AN NAME, UH,
SO, UM, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THESE GENERAL FUND REVENUES FOR PROJECTED FOR 2020 FISCAL YEAR 2026, IT ADDED TO 2.9 BILLION.
JUMP BACK TO THE PREVIOUS SLIDE.
UM, YOU SAW THAT PROJECTED EXPENSES FOR THE GENERAL FUND ARE 3 BILLION, THREE AND 2.9, VERY, VERY CLOSE TO ONE ANOTHER.
BUT WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT BILLIONS, BIG NUMBER, THERE IS, UH, ABOUT $107 MILLION OF DEFICIT SPENDING, UM, IN THIS BUDGET.
NOW, 107 DEFICIT IS BETTER THAN 336 DEFICIT.
IT'S ONE, IT IS A THING THAT WE CANNOT DO IT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN, OR WE WILL RUN OUT, UH, OF MONEY.
AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE PAYING ATTENTION TO.
UH, AND THIS IS, THIS IS GONNA BE THE, THE NEXT PART OF THE QUIZ.
YOU KNOW, PROPERTY TAX, NO, NO, NO, STAY THERE.
PROPERTY TAX MAKES UP HALF OF ALL THE GENERAL FUND, UH, REVENUE, SALES TAX TAKES UP ANOTHER THIRD.
AND THEN THERE ARE SOME FEES LIKE FRANCHISE FEES, LICENSES, PERMITS, FINES, UH, THAT COVER, UH, ANOTHER PART OF THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET.
NEXT PAGE, UM, HERE ARE SORT OF, SORT OF A DEPARTMENT LEVEL BREAKDOWN OF, UH, OF THOSE FUNDS.
UH, I TOLD YOU BEFORE THAT POLICE AND FIRE MAKE UP TOGETHER ABOUT 60% OF THE GENERAL FUNDS.
SO YOU ADD UP THAT 1, 1 1, 1, 1 NUMBER, AND THE 6 59 NUMBER, THAT'S ABOUT 1.8 BILLION OUT OF 3 BILLION.
AND SO THOSE ARE, THOSE ARE BIG.
AND, AND AGAIN, THAT REFLECTS THE CITY'S PRIORITY.
THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY THAT I WOULD SAY, AND I'M SURE THE MAYOR WOULD SAY THE SAME THING, IS TO KEEP YOU SAFE.
AND IF YOU FIND YOURSELF, UH, IN TROUBLE THAT SOMEBODY'S THERE TO COME FAST, UH, TO HELP YOU.
UH, THE NEXT BIG THING, AND I'M NOT SURE THIS WILL BE PART OF OUR VALUES, BUT ONE IN EVERY SIX OF YOUR GENERAL FUND DOLLARS IS SPENT ON DEBT SERVICE.
NOW, WHEN YOU DRIVE DOWN THE ROAD, THAT'S STUFF THAT WE'VE ALREADY DONE FOR YOU, AND IT'S THERE.
SO, AGAIN, I KNOW YOU HAVE POTHOLES AND ALL THAT, BUT THAT'S THERE FOR YOU.
OFTENTIMES THAT WAS PAID FOR WITH THE DEBT INVESTMENT, AND WE HAVE TO PAY THAT DOWN, UH, OVER TIME.
AND, AND WHEN YOU BORROW THAT MONEY, AND YOU MIGHT UNDERSTAND THIS FROM, AGAIN, FROM YOUR MORTGAGE OR CREDIT CARDS OR WHATEVER, IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU PAY THAT BILL ON TIME, NO QUESTIONS.
OTHERWISE, FOLKS AREN'T GONNA LOAN THAT MONEY TO YOU AGAIN, OR THE BARRING COST GOES WAY UP.
AND SO WE TAKE DEBT SERVICE VERY, VERY SERIOUSLY, BUT IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT WE HAVE $15 BILLION IN DEBT, AND THE ANNUAL PAYMENT, UH, FROM THE GENERAL FUND ALONE ON DEBT SERVICE IS ABOUT HALF A BILLION DOLLARS.
UM, THE NEXT TWO BIGGEST ONES ARE, ARE, UH, TRASH PICKUP, OUR SOLID WASTE DEPARTMENT AND PARKS.
UH, THOSE ARE BOTH, BOTH IN THE BALLPARK OF ABOUT 3% OF THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET.
SO AGAIN, IT FALLS OFF DRASTICALLY FROM POLICE, FIRE, AND DEBT SERVICE.
AND THEN EVERY OTHER DEPARTMENT, NO OTHER ONE IS, IS LARGER THAN 2% OF THE BUDGET.
AND SO, UM, THERE'S A LOT OF IMPORTANT STUFF IN THERE, UM, BUT IT GETS, YOU KNOW, FEWER AND FEWER DOLLARS ARE BEING SPENT FROM THE GENERAL FUND ON THAT.
UH, AND THEN HERE'S ENTERPRISE FUND.
AGAIN, ABOUT $4 BILLION IN TOTAL.
UM, THEY'RE NOT ALL RELATED TO ONE ANOTHER, THEY'RE EACH SORT OF INDIVIDUAL.
AND SO WE JUST KINDA SHOW THAT $4 BILLION TO MAKE IT SIMPLE FOR YOU.
BUT 2 BILLION PLUS IS GONNA BE ON WATER AND SEWER, 700 MILLION ON AIRPORT, UH, FOUR 60 ON,
[00:45:01]
ON STREETS AND DRAINAGE, 130 ON CONVICTION AND ENTERTAINMENT.AND, AND I, WE GET QUESTIONS A LOT, UH, SAYING STUFF LIKE, WELL, WE DON'T NEED GEORGE R. BROWN, LET'S TAKE THAT MONEY AND SPEND IT ON, YOU KNOW, POLICE, RIGHT? OR SPEND IT ON PARKS.
AGAIN, DIFFERENT SOURCES OF REVENUE.
SO, UH, SO THE TAXES AND FEES THAT FUND THE CONVENTION CENTER, UM, WE'RE SET UP THAT WAY, YOU KNOW, BY LAW.
AND THAT MONEY CAN ONLY GO THERE.
WE CANNOT DRAIN THE CONVENTION BUDGET OUT TO PAY FOR OTHER STUFF IN THE GENERAL FUND.
AND SO FOR THE MOMENT, UNLESS LAWS CHANGE IN AUSTIN, THEN, UM, THEN WE'RE STUCK WITH THE FUNDING SOURCES, UM, THAT WE HAVE.
AND OF COURSE, THE AIRPORT, WE HAVE, UH, WE HAVE, UH, TWO MAJOR AIRPORTS, BUSH AND HOBBY THAT I IMAGINE YOU FLY ON OR YOUR, YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY FLY ON AND THEY COME TO VISIT YOU.
AND THEN THERE'S ALSO, UH, ELLINGTON FIELD AND, UH, AND THE GROWING, UM, SORT OF SPACE SITUATION, UH, THAT WE HAVE, WHICH IS ALL PART, UH, OF AIRPORTS.
UM, THIS SLIDE SHOULDN'T BE THERE.
SO HERE'S, UH, KIND OF CIRCLING BACK TO, UH, THE PROCESS OF GETTING INVOLVED IN, UH, THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.
SO, UH, I'M GONNA REMIND YOU THOSE DATES.
WE GOT THE BUDGET ROLLED OUT ALREADY.
MAY 21ST IS THAT PUBLIC HEARING DATE.
SO REMEMBER THAT AND CERTAINLY TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, TO COME AND SHARE, UH, YOUR VIEWS ON THE BUDGET.
UH, MAY 28TH IS, UH, IS WHEN THAT'S GONNA BE PLACED ON THE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA, AND COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ AND OTHERS WILL START TO DISCUSS IT, OFFER AMENDMENTS, UM, AND SO FORTH.
UH, BUT WHAT CAN YOU DO IN ADDITION TO THAT PUBLIC HEARING? UH, NUMBER ONE, CONTACT YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBER.
UH, YOU HAVE 10 OTHER DISTRICT LEVEL CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS, AND YOU HAVE FIVE AT LARGE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS.
THOSE FIVE FOLKS REPRESENT YOU REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU LIVE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
UM, THOSE 11 DISTRICT COUNCIL MEMBERS REPRESENT YOU DIRECTLY IF THEY, IF YOU LIVE IN THEIR DISTRICT, BUT I IMAGINE ANY ONE OF 'EM WOULD TAKE YOUR CALL, UH, IF YOU REACHED OUT AND SO AND SO, PLEASE DO.
THERE'S A BARCODE RIGHT HERE, UH, ON THE BOTTOM RIGHT HAND SIDE, IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHO YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER IS, YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT JUST BY SCANNING THAT BARCODE.
AND, UM, AND THEN YOU CAN ALSO, AGAIN, REACH OUT TO THEM BY, BY EMAIL, UH, BY PHONE.
AND I KNOW THAT THEIR STAFFS ARE SET UP, UH, TO ANSWER THOSE CALLS AND DO WHAT THEY CAN TO, TO MEET YOUR NEEDS AND ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS, UM, IF YOU ARE GONNA SHOW UP.
OH, AND THEN ALSO BUDGET WORKSHOPS.
SO I MENTIONED A PUBLIC HEARING, BUT EVERY SINGLE, UH, CITY DEPARTMENT, INCLUDING THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE, WHICH WHILE INDEPENDENT IS A CITY DEPARTMENT, UH, WE'RE GONNA COME IN WITH OUR LITTLE CHUNK OF THE BUDGET.
I'M GONNA TELL Y'ALL THAT ALREADY.
AND WE'RE GONNA SIT WITH CITY COUNCIL AND TALK TO THEM ABOUT THE DETAILS OF OUR BUDGET.
UM, THE, THE FINANCE DIRECTOR GAVE A BIG HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW TODAY, BUT I KNOW SHE GOT INTO SOME, SOME DETAILS, BUT THAT'S SORT OF THE BIG UMBRELLA.
AND THEN EACH OF THE ROUGHLY TWO DOZEN DEPARTMENTS WILL COME ONE BY ONE AND SHARE THE DETAILS OF THEIR BUDGETS WITH YOU AND WITH CITY COUNCIL AND ANSWER QUESTIONS.
SO YOU CAN ATTEND ALL THOSE BUDGET WORKSHOPS, AND I BELIEVE THEY START EARLY NEXT WEEK.
UM, AND THEN JUST SOME TIPS, Y'ALL.
THIS IS, THIS IS ME BEING A FRIEND, TRYING TO TELL Y'ALL HOW TO GET YOUR POINT ACROSS.
NUMBER ONE, BE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR CONCERNS.
SO IF YOU COME TO THE PUBLIC HEARING, YOU SAY, THIS BUDGET SUCKS AND I HATE IT, AND WE GOTTA START OVER, THAT'S IT.
IT MIGHT MAKE THE NEWS, BUT IT'S NOT GONNA GET VERY FAR IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, CHANGING THE BUDGET FOR THE BETTER.
SO TRY TO BE SPECIFIC ABOUT WHAT YOU'D LIKE TO SEE OR WHAT'S IN THERE THAT YOU'RE NOT A BIG FAN OF.
UM, AND ALSO NEXT BULLET, SUGGEST A SOLUTION.
DON'T JUST CALL OUT THE PROBLEM, BUT SAY, HEY, WHAT I WOULD DO INSTEAD IS BLANK.
AND, UH, AND I THINK YOU'RE LIKELY TO HAVE A MORE, A BETTER RECEPTION, UH, IF YOU BRING THAT SOLUTION ORIENTED APPROACH.
UH, ALSO CONNECT YOUR COMMENTS TO BROADER COMMUNITY NEEDS.
UH, OF COURSE, TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT, THAT YOU CARE ABOUT, LIKE THAT POTHOLE, LIKE THAT'S DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF YOUR DRIVEWAY.
FOLKS WILL HEAR YOU OUT, AND I KNOW THAT YOU REMEMBER CITY COUNCIL'S GONNA WANT TO GET THAT FIXED, BUT IF YOU CAN CONNECT IT TO YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, TO YOUR DISTRICT, TO YOUR PART OF TOWN, TO THE CITY AS A WHOLE, I THINK THAT GOES A LONG WAY.
AND THEN FINALLY, STAY FOCUSED ON BUDGET RELATED ISSUES.
UM, YOU KNOW, IF YOU COME UP THERE AND YOU TALK ABOUT THAT TIME THAT COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ CURSED YOU OUT LIKE THREE MONTHS AGO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, PEOPLE WILL HEAR IT, IT MIGHT MAKE THE NEWS, BUT IT MAY NOT IMPACT THE BUDGET PROCESS IN THE WAY THAT YOU WOULD HOPE.
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AND SO JUST KEEP IT FOCUSED ON THE BUDGET.I MEAN, THAT'S LIKE, I KNOW IT'S ROCKET SCIENCE LEVEL ADVICE, BUT, UM, BUT THESE ARE THINGS THAT I THINK WOULD BE HELPFUL TO YOU, UH, TO ENGAGE IN THE PROCESS IN A MEANINGFUL WAY.
UH, WE CERTAINLY CAN HAVE MORE QUESTIONS, BUT GO AHEAD AND JUST FLIP US TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
UM, WHILE YOU, WHILE QUESTIONS ARE COMING IN, UH, HERE'S JUST CONTACT INFORMATION IF YOU WANNA REACH OUT TO US.
UH, OUR EMAIL ADDRESS IS CONTROLLER@HOUSTONTX.GOV.
UM, MY PERSONAL, IF YOU WANNA REACH OUT TO ME ON ANY SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM IS CG HOLLINS.
THAT'S ON TWITTER, IT'S ON FACEBOOK, IT'S ON INSTAGRAM, IT'S ON LINKEDIN, ALL THAT STUFF.
UM, AND THEN WE HAVE, SADLY, WE HAVE A COUPLE DIFFERENT HANDLES FOR THE VARIOUS PLATFORMS, BUT IF YOU WANNA REACH OUT TO THE OFFICE ON INSTAGRAM, IT'S HOUSTON CONTROLLER, SO THE OFFICE ON FACEBOOK, IT'S COH CONTROLLER.
UH, BUT YOU CAN ALWAYS, AGAIN, EMAIL US DIRECTLY.
UM, YOU CAN DM ME PERSONALLY OR DM UH, THE OFFICE AND, UH, AND WE WILL MAKE OURSELVES AVAILABLE TO YOU AND TRY TO ANSWER ANY ADDITIONAL, AGAIN, QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS YOU MIGHT HAVE.
BUT WHILE I'M STANDING RIGHT HERE, ARE THERE ANY, I'M SURE I'VE TIRED YOU ALL OUT, BUT IF THERE'S ANY, OH, HEY CHRIS.
ARE YOU GONNA TAKE OVER? ARE YOU GONNA MC THE QUESTIONS? YES.
UM, ARE Y'ALL ABLE TO HEAR ME ALL RIGHT? YES.
WE'LL WORKSHOP THAT, BUT, UM, I'M GONNA GO AHEAD AND JUST VERY BRIEFLY EXPLAIN WHAT THIS, UH, PROCESS WILL BE.
SO, UH, AGAIN, UH, IF YOU HAVE A POSTCARD, YOU'RE ABLE TO WRITE YOUR QUESTIONS ON THOSE, YOU'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND GET THOSE TO GABBY, UH, RIGHT THERE.
AND THEN GABBY WILL HAND OFF THOSE QUESTIONS TO ME AND WE WILL GET THROUGH AS MANY OF THOSE AS WE CAN.
UH, IN THE INSTANCE THAT WE RUN OUT OF TIME, UH, WE WILL, UH, THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE WILL FOLLOW UP, UH, AND HAVE A SOCIAL MEDIA, UH, Q AND A WHERE THOSE QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED.
SO, UH, WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED NOW.
UM, OUR FIRST QUESTION READS, WOULD RECEIVING MONIES FROM H-C-T-R-A HELP WITH THE CITY'S BUDGET ISSUES? AND WHAT IS THE PROCESS OF OBTAINING THOSE FUNDING SOURCES? UM, SURE.
SO H-C-T-R-A, UH, HETRA, IT'S THE, IT'S THE HARRIS COUNTY TOLL ROAD AUTHORITY.
UH, AND THE REASON THAT THAT QUESTION HAS COME UP, I PRESUME, IS THAT THERE'S, UM, LEGISLATION FLOWING THROUGH THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE AS WE SPEAK.
UM, THAT WOULD TAKE SOME FUNDING THAT CURRENTLY GOES FROM YOUR, YOU KNOW, THE TOLLS THAT YOU PAY ON BELTWAY AND SO ON, AND THEY GO TO HARRIS COUNTY.
UH, THIS BILL WOULD REDIRECT SOME OF THOSE FUNDS OVER TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
SO THE QUESTION IS LIKE, WOULD THAT HELP? UM, AS I MENTIONED, WE'RE OPERATING WITH A $107 MILLION STRUCTURAL DEFICIT, SO ANY ADDITIONAL DOLLARS THAT CAME IN WOULD EITHER FUND MORE SERVICES OR, OR CLOSE THAT BUDGET GAP.
UM, AND SO YES, MORE MONEY FROM ANY SOURCE WOULD HELP US WITH THE CHALLENGE THAT WE HAVE.
AGAIN, WHAT WE WANT IS MORE REVENUE AND OR LOWER COST AND MORE REVENUE IS ONE OF THOSE, UH, POTENTIALLY HELPFUL THINGS.
HOW DO WE GET IT, UH, THE LEGISLATIVE PRO THAT THAT SPECIFIC POT OF MONEY WOULD BE THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS? UM, THE BILL, FROM WHAT I KNOW, AND I'D BE FRANK WITH YOU, I HAVEN'T BEEN TRACKING THIS 'CAUSE I'VE BEEN FOCUSED RIGHT HERE IN HOUSTON, BUT THE BILL PASSED THE SENATE, UH, AND IT IS CURRENTLY IN THE HOUSE.
UH, SO FOR IT TO PASS, IT WOULD HAVE TO, UH, GO THROUGH THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, UH, AND THEN THE GOVERNOR WOULD HAVE TO SIGN IT.
I HAVE NO IDEA WHO'S SUPPORTING IT, WHO'S AGAINST IT, ANY OF THAT STUFF.
UM, YOU KNOW, MY JOB IS TO LOOK AT THE NUMBERS RIGHT HERE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
AND SO, UH, I GUESS WE'LL WAIT AND SEE.
THE LAST DAY OF THE LEGISLATIVE, UH, CALENDAR IS ALWAYS, UH, MEMORIAL DAY.
AND SO IF A BILL DOESN'T PASS BEFORE MEMORIAL DAY, THEN IT'S GONE AND THE LEGISLATURE DOESN'T MEET AGAIN FOR TWO YEARS.
SO THAT'S SORT OF YOUR, THAT'S, THAT'S ALL I GOT ON THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE, UM, AND ON THE, THE HETRA BILL, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
UM, OUR NEXT QUESTION READS, WHAT IS IN THE BUDGET FOR CITY OF HOUSTON'S COMMUNITY CENTER? ARE THERE FUNDS FOR PROGRAMS FOR RESIDENTS? UM, SO THAT'S A DETAILED BUDGET QUESTION.
HOWEVER, BECAUSE WE'RE COMING OUT HERE TO MEET IN A COMMUNITY CENTER, I THOUGHT THAT THIS QUESTION MIGHT COME UP.
SO I LOOKED FOR THIS SPECIFIC ANSWER.
DON'T EXPECT MORE DETAILS BE AT THIS LEVEL TONIGHT.
UM, FROM WHAT I CAN TELL, THERE'S $11 MILLION IN THE BUDGET FOR COMMUNITY CENTERS, UM, THAT IS IN THE HOUSTON PARKS DEPARTMENT BUDGET, AND THERE ARE ROUGHLY 60 COMMUNITY CENTERS, UM, ACROSS THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
UM, THE BUDGET LAST YEAR, AGAIN, FROM WHAT I CAN
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TELL, HAD $12 MILLION, UM, FOR COMMUNITY CENTERS.SO YOU CAN SEE THAT'S A, A CUT IN COST, UM, WHICH, WHICH MAY ALSO, YOU KNOW, IMPACT QUALITY OF SERVICE.
I, I DON'T KNOW WHERE THOSE CUTS ARE SPECIFICALLY.
UM, BUT YOU, WHAT, WHAT WE SAW IS ABOUT AN 8% DECREASE FROM LAST YEAR'S PROPOSED BUDGET TO THIS YEAR'S PROPOSED BUDGET ON, UH, ON COMMUNITY CENTERS.
AND THAT'S WITHIN THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
ALL RIGHTY, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
OUR NEXT QUESTION READS, WHAT KIND OF ACCOUNTABILITY DOES HOUSTON FIRST HAVE IN THE BUDGET PROCESS? UH, SO HOUSTON FIRST, UM, OH WATER.
HOUSTON FIRST IS, UH, AN ORGANIZATION THAT HAS ITS OWN BOARD.
SO, UM, HOUSTON FIRST BUDGET WILL ULTIMATELY AT SOME POINT COME BEFORE CITY COUNCIL.
IT'S NOT NORMALLY DURING THIS BUDGET PROCESS.
I THINK HOUSTON FIRST BUDGET CAME IN FRONT OF Y'ALL LIKE FOUR MONTHS AGO OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UH, BUT HOUSTON, HOUSTON FIRST HAD ITS OWN BOARD.
NOW THE MAYOR APPOINTS EVERY SINGLE MEMBER OF THAT BOARD, BUT IT'S STILL ITS OWN BOARD.
ULTIMATELY, THEY APPROVE A BUDGET AND, UM, AND THEN THAT BUDGET COMES TO CITY COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL.
UH, SO FROM AN ACCOUNTABILITY STANDPOINT, I WOULD IMAGINE THAT THEY'RE NOT SHOWING THEMSELVES TO BE GREAT STEWARDS OF FUNDS.
UH, CITY COUNCIL WOULD END UP HEARING ABOUT IT AND HAVE SOME ISSUES THERE ARE TWO MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL THAT'S SIT ON THE BOARD.
UH, SO COUNCILMAN MARTINEZ IS SITTING RIGHT THERE LIKE A HAWK.
UH, ALSO THE CONVICTION CENTER ISSUES DEBT.
AND SO THOSE DEBT HOLDERS ARE PAYING ATTENTION TO HOW THEY'RE USING THOSE FUNDS.
AND THEN SIMILARLY TO THE CITY.
SO I TALKED ABOUT US, THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE BEING THE AUDITOR OF THE CITY.
EVERY YEAR THE CITY GOES THROUGH AN EXTERNAL AUDIT FROM A TOTALLY, YOU KNOW, INDEPENDENT, UH, UM, AUDIT FIRM.
AND, UH, THE CONVENTION CENTER IN HOUSTON FIRST GOES THROUGH A SIMILAR INDEPENDENT OUTSIDE AUDIT.
UH, OUR NEXT QUESTION READS, WHAT CAN RESIDENTS DO IF THEY STRONGLY OPPOSE THE PROPOSED BUDGET CUTS AND THE POLICE RAISE? I'M GONNA OPEN THIS WATER AT SOME POINT.
UH, AGAIN, WHATEVER YOUR VIEWS ARE ON THE BUDGET, POSITIVE, NEGATIVE, UH, CONSTRUCTIVE, CALL YOUR MEMBER CITY COUNCIL, SHARE THAT INFORMATION WITH THEM.
UH, THE MORE SPECIFIC, THE MORE DETAILED AND INFORMATIVE, UH, THE MORE, UM, SOLUTION ORIENTED YOU CAN BE IN THAT OUTREACH, THE BETTER.
AND SIMILARLY, UH, THE PUBLIC HEARING AS WELL AS THE BUDGET WORKSHOPS ARE WAYS THAT YOU CAN SHOW UP, UM, AND HAVE, UH, YOUR VOICE HEARD DIRECTLY AS WELL AS TO LEARN, UH, MORE ABOUT THE DETAILS OF, OF WHAT YOU'RE READING ABOUT LOOKING AT, HEARING ABOUT.
SO, UH, THIS IS GOING TO BE OUR FINAL QUESTION.
UH, UNFORTUNATELY WE DO NOT HAVE TIME TO GET THROUGH ALL OF THEM, SO IF YOU DO NOT HEAR YOUR QUESTION ANSWERED, PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT, UH, THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE HAS YOUR EMAIL AT CHECK-IN AND THEY WILL FOLLOW UP WITH YOU DIRECTLY TO PROVIDE YOU A RESPONSE.
UM, SO OUR FINAL QUESTION READS, HOW IS THE CITY OF HOUSTON GOING TO AFFORD TO PAY POLICE SALARY HIKES? UM, SO, SO WE'VE SEEN THE PROPOSED, UH, BUDGET.
UM, WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, POLICE ARE, UH, 1.1 BILLION WITHIN A $3 BILLION PIE FOR THE GENERAL FUND.
ON THE COST SIDE, THERE ARE $2.9 BILLION IN, IN REVENUES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT HERE.
UM, IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET, AGAIN, THERE, THERE IS, UH, STILL, UH, $107 MILLION GAP.
AND SO I GUESS THE ANSWER WOULD BE, IN PART, IT'S BEING PAID FOR WITH THAT 2.9 BILLION IN REVENUE AND PART IT'S BEING PAID FOR, UH, WITH DEFICIT SPENDING.
BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN, I JUST WANNA GO BACK TO THE, THE IDEA OF RAISES.
I MENTIONED THIS MUCH EARLIER IN THE, IN THE EVENING.
UM, YOU KNOW, ALL OF US HAVE JOBS.
UH, WE ALL EXPERIENCE, UM, INFLATION THING.
YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S HARDER TO LIVE FROM AN AFFORDABILITY STANDPOINT IN HOUSTON THAN IT'S BEEN REALLY EVER.
FOLKS HAVE RENT MORTGAGES, THEY GOTTA FEED THEIR FAMILIES.
AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR EMPLOYEES ARE WELL WITHIN THEIR RIGHT TO SEEK OUT A RAISE.
THEY'RE ALSO WELL WITHIN THEIR RIGHT TO LOOK FOR OTHER JOBS IF THE JOB AT THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS NOT ATTRACTIVE AND SALARY IS NOT THE ONLY WAY TO, TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF AN EMPLOYEE, BUT IT'S CERTAINLY ONE OF 'EM.
AND, UM, AND AGAIN, I'M SURE THAT YOU'VE THOUGHT ABOUT IT, WHEN I, WHEN I SEE MY LOW PAYCHECK, I THINK ABOUT IT, BUT I CAN'T GET A RAISE.
UM, AND SO AND SO WHEN YOU SEE A 3% RAISE, YOU KNOW, WHEN INFLATION JUST LAST YEAR WAS 9%, IT'S LIKE, YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF, OF OUR WORKERS AND KEEPING US COMPETITIVE AS AN EMPLOYER.
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ALL THAT TO SAY, YOU SEE A BIG NUMBER, AND I THINK THE CHRONICLE REPORTED, UH, THAT THE POLICE, UM, CONTRACT IS GONNA COST LIKE $865 MILLION OVER FIVE YEARS, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.YOU SEE A BIG NUMBER AND YOU HAVE A QUESTION, HOW ARE WE GONNA, HOW ARE WE GONNA PAY FOR IT? BUT I WOULDN'T LAY THAT AT THE FEET OF OUR POLICE OFFICERS.
THEY'RE ONLY ONE PART OF THE BUDGET.
UM, THE REASON THAT WE, I'M, I'M A BIG SUPPORTER OF, OF LABOR UNIONS AND THE LABOR MOVEMENT, UH, WHERE WE SHOULD BE FIGHTING FOR FAIR WAGES, LIVING WAGES FOR, FOR ALL WORKERS.
POLICES ARE ONE CLASS OF THOSE.
AND SO WHEN THEY NEGOTIATE FOR A RAISE, YOU KNOW, GOOD ON THEM, LIKE, WOULD, WOULD ANY OF US DO THAT SAME THING IN THAT NEGOTIATING ROOM? MAYBE NOT, BUT NONE OF US IS THE MAYOR EXCEPT ONE GUY.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT WAS NEGOTIATED.
UM, AND THAT MAKES UP ONE PART OF THE BUDGET, BUT WE JUST GOTTA PAY FOR THE WHOLE BUDGET, RIGHT? UH, SO I, I JUST WANT TO KIND OF PUT THAT OUT.
LOOK, AND WE DIDN'T HAVE THIS SLIDE, BUT WITHIN THE GENERAL FUND, A, A MASSIVE CHUNK, YOU KNOW, 60 70% OF THAT BUDGET IS PEOPLE, IT'S JUST EMPLOYEES, RIGHT? IT'S NOT FRILLS, IT'S NOT WHATEVER.
IT'S JUST PAYING FOLKS TO SHOW UP TO WORK.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, SALARY IS AN IMPORTANT COST ASPECT OF WHAT IT TAKES, UH, TO RUN THE CITY.
BUT EVEN, AND, AND WE HAVEN'T DONE THIS ANALYSIS YET ON POLICE, WE DID IT ON FIRE LAST YEAR AND BEFORE THAT RAISE, THEY WERE GETTING PAID ROUGHLY 10% LESS THAN FIREFIGHTERS IN AUSTIN, DALLAS-FORT WORTH, SAN ANTONIO, RIGHT? AND, UM, AND SO AGAIN, SOMETIMES THOSE RAISES HELP US TO BE COMPETITIVE AS A CITY.
AND, UM, I PERSONALLY WOULDN'T BE WAVING THE FLAG OF LIKE, WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THESE CRAZY RAISES.
UH, BECAUSE OFTENTIMES THAT'S JUST PUTTING US AT PAR WITH OTHER, UH, DEPARTMENTS.
SO, UM, THAT'S JUST MY LITTLE STUMP SPEECH RIGHT HERE AT THE END.
LOOK, UM, I KNOW THAT THAT WAS THE LAST SORT OF OFFICIAL QUESTION.
UH, THANK YOU FOR COMING ONCE MORE.
UH, WE HAVE OUR CONTACT INFORMATION UP HERE.
REACH OUT WITH ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS.
I IMAGINE THAT THESE FOLKS WITH CAMERAS IN THE BACK MIGHT WANNA ASK ME A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS RIGHT NOW, BUT IF YOU STICK AROUND THEN, UM, I'LL TRY TO MAKE MYSELF AVAILABLE.
I DID HAVE TWO KIDS AT HOME THAT I'M GONNA TRY TO GET TO BEFORE THEY GO TO SLEEP, BUT I'LL STICK AROUND AS LONG AS I CAN TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT Y'ALL MIGHT HAVE.
CAN Y'ALL GIVE YOURSELVES A ROUND OF APPLAUSE? REALLY APPRECIATE Y'ALL, UH, BEING HERE.
AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR, FOR YOUR ENGAGEMENT.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONCERN AND I HOPE THAT I SEE A LOT OF Y'ALL AT CITY HALL IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.