* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. BUT AT THIS TIME, WE WANT [00:00:01] TO OPEN UP WITH A PRAYER. SO I'M GONNA ASK PASTOR DAVID SMITH OF NEW BETHLEHEM MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH TO COME AT THIS TIME. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THE WORD OF GOD SAYS IN PROVERBS 27 AND 17 SAYS, AS IRON SHARPEN IRON SOW, ONE PERSON SHARPENS ANOTHER. YOU HAVE SOMEONE SITTING NEXT TO YOU THAT CAN RUB OFF ON YOU, AND YOU CAN LEARN SOMETHING FROM THEM. IF YOU JUST TALK TO 'EM AND ASK THEM QUESTIONS. THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING WE CAN LEARN FROM ONE ANOTHER. WITH THAT BEING SAID, LET US BOW OUR HEADS FOR A MOMENT OF PRAYER. GRACIOUS FATHER, WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THAT YOU HAVE DONE FOR US. WE THANK YOU EVEN AS WE SLEPT IN OUR BEDS LAST NIGHT, AND WE WOKE UP THIS MORNING. WE WERE IN THE VERY IMAGE OF DEATH. BUT GOD, YOU TOUCHED US THIS MORNING WITH YOUR FINGER OF LOVE AND WOKE US UP TO SEE A BRAND NEW DAY, A DAY THAT WE NEVER SEEN BEFORE, AND A DAY THAT WE'LL NEVER SEE AGAIN. AND THEN, GOD, WE WANNA SAY THANK YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE SO GOOD. YOUR MERCY IS NEW EVERY MORNING. SO WHEN WE WAKE UP AND OPEN OUR EYES, GOD, YOU GIVE US NEW MERCY, WHICH MEANS WE HAVE PURPOSE, AND WE JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR PURPOSE. WE THANK YOU MOST OF ALL FOR JESUS CHRIST, OUR LORD AND OUR SAVIOR WHO HUNG BLOOD AND DIED ROSE AGAIN, THAT WE MAY HAVE A RIGHT TO ETERNAL LIFE. WE PRAY THAT YOU'LL FORGIVE US OF ALL OF OUR SINS, BECAUSE WE ALL HAVE COME SHORT OF YOUR GLORY, BECAUSE WE ALL HAVE SINNED, AND WE'RE NOT SINLESS, BUT WE OUGHT TO BE SINNING LESS. SO GOD, WE JUST SAY THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THIS GATHERING, DECEDENT, THANK YOU FOR THIS COMMUNITY. THANK YOU FOR THESE YOUR PEOPLE WHO HAVE COME OUT. THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE VENDORS. WE EVEN THANK YOU FOR THE FOOD WHICH HAS BEEN PREPARED. LET IT BE NOURISHING FOR OUR BODIES AS YOUR WORD NURTURES OUR SOUL. FATHER GOD, CONTINUE TO BLESS DISTRICT, UM, B UNITED, CONTINUE TO BLESS NACK, CONTINUE TO BLESS OUR CITY CONTROLLER BROTHER CHRIS HOLS, AND BLESS ALL OF OUR OFFICIALS BECAUSE GOD, THEY'RE THERE TO LEAD AND YOU PUT THEM IN OFFICE. AND GOD, WE JUST WANT TO SAY THAT THEY LEAD US AND GUIDE US, AND THEY ADVOCATE FOR US. AND WE JUST COME TO SAY THANK YOU. AND LORD, WHEREVER I COME UP SHORT IN THIS PRAYER, I KNOW THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCE. THIS WE ASK IN YOUR SON JESUS NAME, AND LET ALL OF GOD'S PEOPLE SAY AMEN. AMEN. THANK YOU SO MUCH, PASTOR SMITH. UH, NOW I'D LIKE TO ASK FOR COURTNEY TO COME UP WITH THE NORTHEAST ACTION COLLECTIVE. GIVE A ROUND. HEY Y'ALL. UM, MY NAME IS COURTNEY REBELS. I'M WITH THE NORTHEAST ASH COLLECTIVE. I AM A HOUSTON NATIVE. I WAS BORN IN THIS AREA. UM, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE NORTHEAST ASH COLLECTIVE AND WEST STREET RECOVERY, WE WERE FOUNDED AFTER HARVEY. AND WE PRIMARILY ADVOCATE FOR, UM, FLOOD JUSTICE INFRASTRUCTURE JUSTICE, AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CITY AND COUNTY ARE FULLY FUNDING THE STRUCTURES THAT WILL KEEP OUR NEIGHBORHOODS FROM FLOODING OUT DURING THE NEXT DISASTER. UM, FOR LIKE THE LAST FOUR YEARS, WE HAVE BEEN STERN STRICT ADVOCATES, UM, ADVOCATING AROUND THE CITY BUDGET. SO FOUR YEARS, TWO MAYORS. WE HAVE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR THE CITY TO, UM, FULLY FUND PROGRAMS THAT WILL INCREASE THE SAFETY OF OUR COMMUNITY. SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS INCLUDE THE CIP PROGRAM, THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, UM, THE LOCAL DRAINAGE PROGRAM, THE SWAT PROGRAM, WHICH WAS A PROGRAM THAT WAS FAVORED BY MAYOR TURNER. UM, AS WELL AS, UM, WE WERE ABLE TO GET THE CITY TO DO A DITCH REESTABLISHMENT PROGRAM WHERE THEY RECLAIMED THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF CLEANING RED DREDGING AND JUST MAKING SURE THAT OUR DITCHES WERE FULLY FUNCTIONING. IF YOU ARE FROM THE NORTHEAST SIDE AND YOU LIVE IN THIS AREA, OR YOU'RE JUST AROUND THIS AREA, YOU'LL KNOW THAT IT IS AN OPEN DITCH COMMUNITY, AND IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT THAT THESE PROGRAMS ARE FUNDED, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR. WOO. YEAH. UM, SO BRIEFLY, WHAT WE HAVE ASKED THIS YEAR OF THE MAYOR IS THAT THE DRE ESTABLISHMENT PROGRAM IS FULLY FUNDED. WE KNOW THAT THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT DOESN'T JUST SERVICE THE NORTHEAST SIDE, BUT IT STRETCHES ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE SOUTH SIDE, SUNNY SIDE, THOSE COMMUNITIES THAT WE HISTORICALLY SEE FLOODING. WE ALSO WANNA SEE THE MAYOR HIRE PEOPLE, RIGHT? SO WE'RE ASKING FOR THE TREE ESTABLISHMENT PROGRAM TO BE FUNDED, BUT WE ALSO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE, THE, THE DEPARTMENT THAT WOULD IMPLEMENT THE DETRI TREE ESTABLISHMENT PROGRAM [00:05:01] HAS ENOUGH EMPLOYEES TO ACTUALLY DO THE JOB. BECAUSE WE DO NOT WANT TO SEE OUR CITY SERVICES PRIVATIZED. WE DON'T WANNA SEE HOMIE HOOKUPS. WE DON'T WANNA SEE FRIENDS, RIGHT? WE DON'T WANNA SEE PEOPLE HIRING THEIR FRIENDS TO DO THE JOB THAT OUR CITY WORKERS CAN BE DOING. UM, SO I, HOW MANY OF YOU SAW THE, THE MAYOR'S PRESS CONFERENCE? AND WE'VE HEARD ABOUT THE, THE MAYOR'S PROPOSED BUDGET, THE $5 FEE. Y'ALL HAVEN'T HEARD ABOUT THAT? OKAY. THIS TRASH FEE WILL DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACT COMMUNITIES LIKE OURS. WE'LL SEE IT IMPACT PEOPLE ON A FIXED INCOME. WE'LL SEE IT IMPACT PEOPLE, UM, THAT REALLY JUST, JUST DON'T GOT IT. RIGHT? AND THE REASON THAT THIS IS A BIG DEAL IS BECAUSE IT WILL NOT INCREASE THE SOLID WASTE BUDGET. WE WANNA SEE A TRASH FEE IMPACT THE COM THE, THE DEPARTMENT THAT IS SUPPOSED TO SERVICE THESE FEES, RIGHT? UM, THAT I WAS ASKED EARLIER, DO I FEEL LIKE THIS $5 FEE WILL IMPROVE THE SERVICES? NO, IT WILL NOT IMPROVE THE SERVICES BECAUSE WE CAN'T EVEN GUARANTEE THAT THERE WILL BE ENOUGH STAFF TO STAFF THIS PROGRAM. ALSO, ANOTHER THING WE, WE ARE SEEING IS THAT THERE WILL BE A $2 MILLION DIVERSION FROM WATER AND SEWAGE FEES. THIS IS A REALLY, REALLY BIG DEAL. WE ALREADY KNOW THAT OUR WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, OUR STORM WATER, OUR WASTEWATER, THOSE INFRASTRUCTURES ARE ALREADY YEARS AND YEARS BEHIND. THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS ALREADY UNDER A CONSENT DECREE. WE ARE ALREADY SEEING INCREASED WATER BILLS, NOT JUST BECAUSE OF THIS $5 FEE THAT WILL BE IMPLEMENTED, BUT ALSO BECAUSE OF THIS, THIS WASTEWATER CONSENT DECREE. SO THE DIVERSION OF THIS MONEY, IT FEELS A LOT LIKE THE DIVERSION WE WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT THESE PAST FEW YEARS, RIGHT? THE AVALOR TAX DIVERSION. WE ARE GIVING MONEY TO THE CITY THAT THEY ARE NOT USING IN THE WAY THAT THEY SAY THAT THEY'RE GOING TO USE. IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE FOCUS ON THESE TYPES OF DIVERSIONS, BECAUSE THIS IS WHERE WE'RE GETTING PENNY PINCHED. LAST YEAR, WE ASKED FOR THE CITY TO RETHINK THE POLICE, THE POLICE BUDGET, RIGHT? BECAUSE WE KNEW THAT IT WOULD PUSH US INTO A DEFICIT. BUT NOW WE'RE SEEING THAT WE WILL BE DIVERTING FUNDS FROM A REALLY, REALLY VITAL, A REALLY VITAL PROGRAM LIKE WATER AND SEWAGE TO COVER THESE TYPES OF DEFICITS. AND THAT'S JUST, IT'S NOT GOOD FOR THE COMRADERY OF THE CITY. IT'S NOT GOOD FOR TAXPAYERS. IT JADES TAXPAYERS, IT, IT JADES VOTERS. AND WE REALLY NEED TO BE FOCUSED ON HOW THE CITY IS MOVING MONEY. IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT JUST A MAYOR ISSUE. WE ALSO WANNA PUT SOME PRESSURE ON OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS, YOU KNOW, TO, UM, YEAH, TO JUST MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT TAKING MONEY FROM VITAL SERVICES TO COVER A GAP THAT THEY CREATED. THANK YOU. OKAY? AND SO THERE ARE A FEW BUDGET AMENDMENTS THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO PROPOSE, OR THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE PROPOSED. WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE A 45 MILLION D TREE ESTABLISHMENT AMENDMENT PROPOSED. WE KNOW THAT $45 MILLION IS THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT IT WOULD TAKE TO FULLY FUND THE DRE ESTABLISHMENT PROGRAM. AND WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE OUR COUNCIL MEMBER, HINT, HINT, AND YOU KNOW, HER PEOPLE IN THE ROOM. UM, WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE THEM PROPOSE THIS AMENDMENT, AND WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE PEOPLE SUPPORT THE PROPOSAL OF THAT AMENDMENT. WRITE YOUR COUNCIL PERSON EMAIL HER. UM, THAT'S VERY VITAL. UM, ALSO, THE HIRING FOR PUBLIC WORKS. WE CAN HAVE ALL OF THE MONEY IN THE DETRI ESTABLISHMENT PROGRAM THAT WE WANT. IF WE DO NOT HAVE EMPLOYEES THAT CAN ACTUALLY SERVICE THAT POSITION, WE WILL SEE THAT THERE IS MONEY LEFT IN THE BUCKET, LEFT ON THE TABLE THAT IS NOT BEING SPENT, NOT BEING USED, AND THERE'S NO WAY TO USE IT BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE ANYONE TO ACTUALLY WORK THAT JOB, RIGHT? SO WE WANT TO SEE A PROPOSAL FOR HIRING. LAST YEAR WE SAW A HIRING FREEZE IN THESE DEPARTMENTS. NOT ONLY A HIRING FREEZE, BUT WE SAW POSITIONS BE DRASTICALLY CUT. WE SAW THESE PEOPLE FORCED INTO RETIREMENT. WE SAW PEOPLE, WE, WE, WE'VE SEEN OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE [00:10:01] LOST FROM THESE VITAL DEPARTMENTS. UM, AND WE WANT TO SEE EXEMPTIONS FOR THE LOW INCOME HOUSEHOLDS FOR THIS SOLID WASTE FEE, RIGHT? WE WANNA SEE EXEMPTIONS THAT CREATE AN EQUITABLE FRAMEWORK FOR US TO IMPLEMENT THIS SOLID WASTE FEE, UM, ADMINISTRATION FEE, RIGHT? BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT IT'S NOT, UM, RIGHT NOW, IT'S NOT EQUITABLE. WE DON'T WANNA SEE THE, THE, THE BEST OF US HURT BY IMPLEMENTING THIS FEE. AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S ONLY SUPPOSED TO INCREASE OVER TIME. SO WE DEFINITELY WANT TO, UM, SEE AN AMENDMENT TO DO THAT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COURTNEY. YES. GIVE NORTHEAST ACTION COLLECTIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR ALL THE ADVOCACY THEY DO FOR NORTHEAST AND THROUGHOUT DISTRICT B. THANK YOU, COURTNEY. UH, NOW I WANT TO INVITE MR. BRIAN SMART FROM THE LELAND WOODS TOURS NUMBER 22. THANK YOU, SIR. GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. HOW Y'ALL ARE DOING? ALRIGHT. MY NAME IS BRIAN SMART. I AM THE CHAIR OF THE LELAND WOOD TOURS, WHICH IS THE BOUNDARIES WHICH YOU GUYS ARE IN. I KNOW THAT, UH, MR. HOLLANDS HAS A, A JOB TO WATCH DOG THE ENTIRE BUDGET OF THE ENTIRE CITY. MY JOB'S A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. THE TOURS, WE HAVE A FEW RESPONSIBILITIES. ONE CIP PROJECTS LOCALLY IN THIS AREA. TWO, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE AREA, AND THREE, UH, MAKE SURE WE'RE DELIVERING, UM, UH, DIFFERENT TYPES OF SERVICES IN THE AREA. NOT ALL TYPES. AND SO, I'M HERE TO TELL YOU GUYS WE'RE GOING THROUGH OUR BUDGET PROCESS. WE HAVE ABOUT A $5 MILLION BUDGET, UH, ANNUALLY TO DO CIP PROJECTS. UH, WE'RE ALSO LOOKING TO BRING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO THE AREA. WE WOULD LOVE FOR YOU GUYS TO ATTEND OUR MEETINGS THAT EVERY OTHER THURSDAY AT THE EAST ALDE MANAGEMENT DISTRICT, NOT TOO FAR FROM HERE. AND SO I WANTED TO INVITE YOU ALL. UM, WE BROUGHT THE PIZZA. WE'RE, WE'RE EXCITED TO BE A PARTNER OF THIS EVENT. AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT MOVE A LOT SLOWER WITH THE CITY. OUR RESPONSIBILITY IS TO BE A LOT LESS LABORIOUS AND A LOT QUICKER TO THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY. THE BOARD MEMBERS ARE FOLKS THAT HAVE BEEN APPOINTED BY THE COUNCIL MEMBER IN THE AREA, AND SO THEY'RE COMMUNITY LEADERS IN THE AREA, AND WE DECIDE ON WHAT TO SPEND THE MONEY ON. LIKE I SAID, WE HAVE A PROJECT HERE THAT STARTED, WE RIBBON CUT IT ON A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, AND THEN YOU GUYS WILL SEE ABOUT 15 TO 20 MORE PROJECTS FROM US OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS. AND THEN WE'RE GONNA GO INTO CIP PLANNING PROCESS TO SEE HOW WE CAN SPEND LOCAL DOLLARS, YOUR LOCAL TAX DOLLARS IN YOUR AREA. BUT WE NEED YOUR INPUT AND SUPPORT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU, FRED. I APPRECIATE IT. GOOD EVENING AGAIN, NEIGHBORS ON BEHALF OF DISTRICT B UNITED, WELCOME AGAIN. AND THANK YOU ALL FOR SHOWING UP FOR OUR COMMUNITIES. DISTRICT B UNITED IS A COMMUNITY DRIVEN, COMMUNITY FOCUSED COALITION, COMMITTED TO EMPOWERING RESIDENTS, STRENGTHENING NEIGHBORHOODS, AND CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE P PEOPLE OF DISTRICT B AND SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES. OUR MISSION IS ROOTED IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, ADVOCACY, EDUCATION, AND BRINGING RESIDENTS TOGETHER AROUND THE ISSUES THAT MATTER MOST FROM PUBLIC SAFETY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO INFRASTRUCTURE AND QUALITY OF LIFE CONCERNS THAT IMPACT EVERYDAY FAMILIES. WE BELIEVE STRONG COMMUNITIES ARE BUILT WHEN NEIGHBORS STAY INFORMED, INVOLVED, AND ARE UNITED IN ONGOING ADVOCACY. AND TONIGHT'S GATHERING IS A REFLECTION OF THAT MISSION. BUT BEFORE WE GO ANY FURTHER, I'D LIKE TO PAUSE AND ACKNOWLEDGE THE PASSING OF A COMMUNITY ACTIVIST, MR. BENJAMIN BROADWAY, WHOSE DEDICATION AND ADVOCACY LEFT A LASTING IMPACT ON MANY PEOPLE THROUGHOUT OUR COMMUNITY. INDIVIDUALS LIKE BIG BEN REMIND US THAT REAL CHANGE OFTEN BEGINS WITH ORDINARY PEOPLE WILLING TO SPEAK UP, SHOW UP, AND FIGHT FOR THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS. AT THIS TIME, I WOULD ASK EVERYONE TO PLEASE JOIN US IN A BRIEF MOMENT OF SILENCE AND MEMORY OF MR. BENJAMIN BROADWAY. THANK YOU. NOW, LET US TAKE A MOMENT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE MANY COMMUNITY LEADERS, FAITH LEADERS, EDUCATORS, CIVIC CLUB, AND SUPER NEIGHBORHOOD REPRESENTATIVES, BUSINESS OWNERS, ACTIVISTS, WHO ARE IN THE ROOM TONIGHT. YOUR DEDICATION AND SERVICE HELP KEEP OUR COMMUNITY STRONG, AND WE THANK YOU FOR THE COUNTLESS HOURS YOU SPEND ADVOCATING FOR OUR PEOPLE. [00:15:01] LET'S GIVE THEM A WELL-DESERVED ROUND OF APPLAUSE, FOLKS. NOW IT'S TRULY AN HONOR TO INTRODUCE A COMMUNITY ALLY AND PUBLIC SERVANT WHOSE WORK IMPACTS EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD, EVERY TAXPAYER, AND EVERY FAMILY ACROSS THE CITY OF HOUSTON. OUR CITY CONTROLLER, CHRIS HOLS, THE OFFICE OF CONTROLLER, IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT POSITIONS IN THE CITY GOVERNMENT. THE CONTROLLER SERVES AS HOUSTON'S CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING ACCOUNTABILITY, TRANSPARENCY, AND RESPONSIBLE STEWARDSHIP OF BILLIONS OF YOUR TAXPAYER DOLLARS, FROM OVERSEEING CITY FINANCING AND AUDITING DEPARTMENTS TO HELPING SHAPE LONG-TERM ECONOMIC STABILITY. THIS OFFICE PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE IN BUILDING TRUST BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND THE PEOPLE IT IS TO SERVE. CONTROLLER HOLLANDS HAS BROUGHT NEW ENERGY, INTEGRITY, AND VISION TO THIS POSITION, MANY ACROSS. HOUSTON FIRST CAME TO KNOW HIM DURING ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING MOMENTS IN RECENT HISTORY, WHEN HE STEPPED FORWARD TO HELP LEAD SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE ELECTIONS IN HARRIS COUNTY DURING THE PANDEMIC. AT A TIME WHEN UNCERTAINTY FILLED THE AIR, HE WORKED TO PROTECT BOTH DEMOCRACY AND PUBLIC CONFIDENCE. THAT COMMITMENT TO SERVICE, INNOVATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY HAS CONTINUED IN HIS CURRENT ROLE AS CONTROLLER. HE HAS EMPHASIZED TRANSPARENCY, MODERNIZATION, AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY, WHILE ALSO UNDERSTANDING THE BUDGETS ARE NOT JUST NUMBERS ON PAPER. THEY ARE REFLECTIONS OF OUR VALUES. EVERY INVESTMENT THE CITY MAKES SPEAKS TO WHAT WE PRIORITIZE. SAFER NEIGHBORHOODS, STRONGER INFRASTRUCTURE, ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY, FLOOD MITIGATION, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND QUALITY SERVICES FOR WORKING FAMILIES. TONIGHT IS ABOUT CONNECTING FINANCIAL PO POLICY WITH REAL PEOPLE. HE UNDERSTANDS THAT WE WANT TO KNOW NOT ONLY WHERE OUR TAX DOLLARS ARE GOING, BUT WHERE THE GOVERNMENT IS DELIVERING RESULTS. CHRIS, WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR WILLINGNESS TO ENGAGE WITH OUR COMMUNITY, TO LISTEN, AND TO SHARE YOUR INSIGHTS ABOUT THE FUTURE OF OUR CITY AND THE IMPORTANCE OF CIVIC INVOLVEMENT IN SHAPING THAT FUTURE. SO EVERYONE, PLEASE JOIN ME NOW, GIVING HIM A WARM WELCOME FOR OUR CITY CONTROLLER, MR. CHRIS HOLLY. UH, FRED, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT WARM INTRODUCTION. GOOD EVENING, EVERYBODY. MAN, THAT WAS THE BEST $5 I EVER SPENT, MAN. THANK YOU, . THAT WAS A GREAT INTRODUCTION, UH, TO TO, TO FRED AND OUR FRIEND AT DISTRICT B UNITED, UH, TO NORTHEAST ACTION COLLECTIVE. I DON'T KNOW WHERE BRIAN WENT, BUT TO BRIAN AND THE TURS, UM, TO ALL OF YOU. AND YOU, YOU TOOK A LITTLE BIT OF MY THUNDER HERE BECAUSE I JUST, CAN WE DO THIS? IF YOU'RE, YOU KNOW, A MEMBER OF A CIVIC CLUB BOARD, UH, A SUPER NEIGHBORHOOD BOARD, AN HOA, CAN YOU JUST STAND UP SO WE CAN RECOGNIZE YOU? WE HAD A LOT OF LEADERS IN THIS ROOM. THANK Y'ALL SO MUCH. THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY WHO'S HERE. YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE YOU CARE ENOUGH ABOUT THE FUTURE OF OUR CITY TO COME AND LEARN ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON WITH OUR FINANCES. UH, BUT TO ALL THOSE FOLKS WHO JUST STOOD UP, Y'ALL ARE PUTTING IN THAT SWEAT EQUITY. AND I KNOW THAT IT IS UNDERAPPRECIATED. UH, ONE OF MY FIRST, YOU KNOW, ELECTED JOBS WAS I WAS THE TREASURER OF MY CIVIC CLUB, UH, DOWN IN UNIVERSITY OF YOS IN THIRD WARD. AIN'T NO THANK YOU NOTES COMING IN THE MAIL, . SO I'M GONNA JUST SAY THANK YOU FOR, FOR WHAT Y'ALL ARE DOING. WE, WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT, UH, AS A CITY. IT IS AN HONOR TO BE HERE WITH YOU TONIGHT. I ALSO WANT TO THANK HCC FOR OPENING UP THEIR NORTH FOREST CAMPUS. UH, FOR THIS CONVERSATION, I WANNA CALL OUT MY FRIEND INDIVIDUALLY, MS. JACKIE ALTMAN, WHO ALSO PLAYED A ROLE IN GETTING SOME FOLKS HERE, UH, IN SEATS THIS EVENING. UH, BUT REALLY, REALLY GRATEFUL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. LISTEN, WE GOT A LOT TO TALK ABOUT TONIGHT. AND SO BEFORE WE DIVE IN, I JUST WANNA LAY, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE GROUND RULES WITH YOU. UH, NUMBER ONE, MY FAMILY'S BEAUTIFUL, BUT WE WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO GET TO THIS SLIDE YET. UM, NUMBER TWO, THERE'S A LOT IN HERE. I'M GONNA BE MOVING THROUGH THIS SOMEWHAT QUICKLY, BUT I'M NOT TRYING TO TALK FAST, IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. AND SO IF YOU, IF YOU'RE NOT UNDERSTANDING SOMETHING, AND JUST, JUST RAISE YOUR HAND AND WE'LL PAUSE, WE'LL SLOW IT DOWN. WE'LL MAKE SURE, 'CAUSE THE WHOLE POINT OF BEING HERE TONIGHT IS TO EXPLAIN THINGS IN PLAIN ENGLISH. UH, ON THE 23RD, WE'RE GONNA HAVE ONE THAT'S IN PLAIN SPANISH, RIGHT? BUT TONIGHT, UH, WE'LL BE TALKING THROUGH THIS. AND THE WHOLE POINT IS FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING. AND SO DON'T JUST SIT THERE AND, AND LET SOMETHING GLOSS BY YOU, YOU KNOW, RAISE YOUR HAND. THE SECOND THING IS, TONIGHT'S GONNA BE INTERACTIVE. [00:20:01] AND SO I HOPE MOST OF YOU GOT YOUR CELL PHONES WITH YOU. I'M GONNA ASK YOU TO USE IT AT SOME POINT. AND SO, UH, JUST HOLD THAT, UH, AND BE READY FOR, FOR THE TIME WHEN WE SAY, ALL RIGHT, PULL 'EM OUT, SCAN THIS BARCODE, BECAUSE IT'S GONNA BE REALLY INTERESTING. PASTOR SMITH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS WORD, FOR OPENING THIS UP AND, AND PRAYER AND WITH THAT MESSAGE, REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR PRESENCE, UH, AS WELL. WHAT ELSE WE GOT? I THINK THAT'S IT. A LOT OF YOU SUBMITTED QUESTIONS IN ADVANCE. MY HOPE IS THAT THROUGHOUT THIS PRESENTATION, WE WILL ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS BEFORE WE EVEN GET TO THE END. BUT WE WILL HAVE Q AND A AT THE END AS WELL. AND SO, UM, JUST BE AWARE THAT YOU'RE GONNA HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ASK A REAL QUESTION AND GET A REAL ANSWER. AND IF I DON'T HAVE THE ANSWER, I'M GONNA TELL YOU THAT TOO. I'M GONNA SAY, HEY, LET ME THINK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT. LET ME GO DO SOME RESEARCH BACK DOWN TO CITY HALL AND WE'LL GET BACK WITH YOU TO GIVE YOU THE FACTS. 'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT TONIGHT IS ABOUT, THIS REALITY CHECK. IT'S ABOUT REALITY. WHAT WE'RE GONNA SAY IS GONNA BE, IT'S GONNA BE TRUE, RIGHT? IT'S NOT GONNA BE MYTH. UM, IT'S NOT GONNA BE CONJECTURE. AND SO I'M GONNA TELL YOU WHAT I KNOW, AND IF WE DON'T KNOW IT, BECAUSE AGAIN, WE JUST GOT THIS BUDGET SEVEN DAYS AGO. IT'S ABOUT A 350 PAGE DOCUMENT, AND MY TEAM HAS BEEN UP. I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN SEE THE BAGS UNDERNEATH MY EYES RIGHT NOW, BUT WE'VE BEEN POURING THROUGH THIS TO GET THIS INFORMATION TO YOU. BUT THERE ARE SOME STILL, STILL SOME THINGS THAT WE'RE WORKING THROUGH, AND WE'RE GONNA BE TRANSPARENT ABOUT THAT AS WELL. ALL RIGHT, WE GOOD? ALL RIGHT. ALRIGHT, NOW, LET'S DIVE IN. FRED ALREADY GAVE THIS INTRODUCTION, BUT IN SHORT, I'M FROM THE HI LOVE THE HI WENT TO A COUPLE FANCY SCHOOLS. I'M VERY PROUD TO BE A MOREHOUSE MAN. UM, AND, AND NOW I'M BACK DOING THIS ONE MOST MY CAREER, CONSULTED, ALSO HAD MURPHY TO SERVE IN THE OBAMA WHITE HOUSE, UH, SHORTLY AFTER HE WAS ELECTED, UH, BUT ALSO TO SERVE AS YOUR HARRIS COUNTY CLERK. AND AS FRED NOTED, UH, FIGHTING TO PROTECT VOTING RIGHTS AT ONE OF THOSE MOST CRITICAL JUNCTURES IN OUR NATION'S HISTORY, CERTAINLY IN MY LIFETIME. AND NOW I HAVE THAT SAME PRIVILEGE OF BEING YOUR TAXPAYER WATCHDOG, YOUR CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER. AND SO I'M HERE TONIGHT IN THAT STEAD, UH, TALKING TO YOU ABOUT YOUR MONEY. SO LET'S MOVE FORWARD. I TOLD YOU, ICEBREAKER, PULL OUT YOUR PHONES. WE GONNA GET A LITTLE PRACTICE. PULL OUT YOUR PHONES. YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO SCAN THIS BARCODE. WHEN YOU PUT YOUR CAMERA ON IT, YOU'LL GET A LITTLE LINK THAT POPS UP, AND THEN YOU CLICK THAT LINK. IT'S GONNA TAKE YOU TO A WEBPAGE. RAISE YOUR HAND ONCE YOU HAVE IT. THIS IS, THIS IS A LITTLE TEST RUN. ALL RIGHT? WE SEE, SEE THE YOUNG FOLKS GETTING THEY HANDS UP. LET'S, LET'S GIVE SOME OF OUR SEASONED FOLKS A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME. ALL RIGHT. SO THIS IS JUST TO GET US SITUATED. THE, THE FIRST COUPLE QUESTIONS HERE ARE JUST A LITTLE BIT OF A QUIZ, AND THERE'S NO RIGHT ANSWER. IT'S JUST ASKING YOU WHAT YOU THINK. SO THE FIRST QUESTION IS, HOW CONFIDENT ARE YOU THAT CITY HALL IS USING YOUR TAX DOLLARS WISELY? AND THE ANSWERS RANGE FROM, I'M NOT CONFIDENT AT ALL TO, I'M NOT VERY CONFIDENT, OR I'M SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT, OR I'M VERY CONFIDENT. SO WE HAVE MORE THAN 50 PEOPLE TUNED IN. 37 OF YOU HAVE ALREADY GOTTEN YOUR ANSWERS IN. UM, AND WE'RE GONNA SEE WHAT THE FINAL, UH, RESULT IS. I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA GIVE ABOUT A TEN SECOND COUNTDOWN. THIS IS OUR TEST RUN, UH, TO SEE IF WE CAN GET OUR ANSWERS IN. WE ALMOST THERE. WE ALMOST THERE. ALL RIGHT, LET'S SEE WHAT, WHAT MOST OF US SAID. ALL RIGHT, SO THE HUGE MAJORITY OF US ARE NOT CONFIDENT AT ALL, OR NOT VERY CONFIDENT. UM, LOOK, THAT'S JUST THE TRUTH. AGAIN, TODAY, WE'RE DEALING WITH REALITY. THE FIRST STEP IN BUILDING CONFIDENCE AND WHERE YOUR TAX DOLLARS ARE GOING IS KNOWING WHAT'S HAPPENING. SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE, UH, TONIGHT. UH, THE NEXT STEP IS YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS DOING WHAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO DO, RIGHT? AND, UH, AND WE'RE GONNA TALK TONIGHT ABOUT HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED AND PLAY A MEANINGFUL ROLE IN MAKING SURE WHAT'S UP, LISA? UH, AND MAKING SURE THAT OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS ARE, ARE, YOU KNOW, LIVING THEIR CLAIM VALUES, RIGHT? AND DOING WHAT WE PUT THEM IN OFFICE TO DO. UH, AS I SAY THAT, I DO WANNA RECOGNIZE THE TEAM FROM TARSHA JACKSON'S OFFICE, UH, YOUR DISTRICT B COUNCIL MEMBER. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. AND I ALSO WANNA RECOGNIZE THE TEAM FROM, UH, CONGRESSMAN CHRISTIAN MENEFEE OFFICE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENCE HERE THIS EVENING. ALL RIGHT, NEXT QUESTION. ALL RIGHT, SO SELF-ASSESSMENT TIME. LOOK, LOOK INWARD. HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE CITY OF HOUSTON'S BUDGET? IS IT NOTHING? NOT MUCH. I KNOW A LITTLE BIT. OR IS IT, I KNOW EVERYTHING. [00:25:03] TAKE A MOMENT AND, UH, AND CLICK THROUGH. WE ALSO HAVE REPRESENTATION FROM RAMIREZ, THE CHIEF OF STAFF. OH, HEY, COUNCIL AT LARGE. COUNCIL MEMBER JULIAN RAMIREZ. UH, HIS OFFICE IS REPRESENTATIVE HERE AS WELL. LEAH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENCE. ALL RIGHT, WE ONLY GOT 39. WE GOT 40. I'M GONNA COUNT IT DOWN. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. ALL RIGHT, LET'S CHECK OUT THE RESULTS. OKAY, SAME THING. WE GOT A BIT OF A BETTER SPREAD HERE, RIGHT? MOST, MOST PEOPLE SAY NOT MUCH, BUT THEN YOU HAVE SOME FOLKS WHO SAY NOTHING AT ALL. SOME PEOPLE SAY, HEY, I KNOW SOME, BUT I'M HERE TO LEARN MORE. AND THEN WE GOT A FEW EGGHEAD WHO KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT THE BUDGET ALREADY. I KNOW ALL THESE THINGS. THIS IS, THIS IS CONFIDENTIAL, Y'ALL ALL, WE ARE HERE TO LEARN MORE. WE ARE HERE TO LEARN MORE. ALL RIGHT, LAST QUESTION FOR NOW. THIS IS JUST TO GET, GET US SITUATED. THIS QUESTION'S A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. SO NOW, INSTEAD OF JUST VOTING FOR ONE, YOU'RE GONNA MOVE THESE AROUND AND PUT THEM IN ORDER OF, YOU KNOW, WHICH ONES DO YOU THINK ARE MOST IMPORTANT, UH, TO YOU. THIS TAKES A LITTLE BIT OF TIME. AND SO YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO GRAB THOSE ITEMS ONE BY ONE AND KIND OF PULL 'EM UP TO THE TOP OF THE SCREEN, AND THEN IT'LL GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO PUT 'EM IN RANK ORDER OF WHAT'S MOST IMPORTANT TO LEAST IMPORTANT, UH, TO YOU. AS WE'RE WAITING, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE OPTIONS THAT ARE AVAILABLE ARE FLOODING AND EXTREME WEATHER, CRIME AND PUBLIC SAFETY, COST OF LIVING AND HOUSING, AFFORDABILITY, ECONOMIC AND JOB OPPORTUNITIES, WATER AND SEWER, RELIABILITY, GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT, AND CORRUPTION, UH, OR TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE. SO WE'RE SEEING THOSE ANSWERS TRICKLE IN. UM, IF YOU'RE NOT FIGURING OUT HOW TO DO THIS AT ALL, RAISE YOUR HAND. ONE OF MY TEAM MEMBERS WILL COME OVER TO HELP YOU. ALL RIGHT, LOOKS LIKE YOU GOT IT. SO JUST TAKE A MOMENT, UH, TRY AND PUT THOSE IN ORDER. ABOUT A QUARTER OF Y'ALL HAVE RESPONDED, UH, SO FAR. AND AS ONCE THAT NUMBER TICKS UP TO A GOOD NUMBER, HIT SUBMIT WHEN YOU'RE DONE IS A REMINDER. ALL RIGHT, WE'RE, WE'RE UP AT ABOUT HALF OF Y'ALL GOT YOUR ANSWERS IN. DON'T GIVE IT ABOUT 15 MORE SECONDS. ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO AHEAD AND SHOW, UH, THE RESULTS YOU CAN KEEP SUBMITTING, UH, EVEN BEYOND THIS. ALL RIGHT? SO, UH, IN PRETTY TIGHT, YOU KNOW, SPREAD HERE. IT SEEMS LIKE FOLKS, YOU KNOW, HAVE, HAVE SOME DIFFERING VIEWS, UH, BUT THE NUMBER ONE THAT SHINES THROUGH HERE IN, IN TERMS OF THE RESPONSES SO FAR. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S STILL TICKING. SO YOU GOT YOUR, HAVEN'T GOT YOUR VOTE IN, GO AHEAD AND DO IT. BUT COST OF LIVING AND AFFORDABILITY IS, IS THE NUMBER ONE. UM, IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE ALMOST IN A TIE BETWEEN FLOODING, ECONOMIC AND JOB OPPORTUNITIES, AND WATER AND SEWER RELIABILITY. AND THEN COMING IN AT NUMBER FIVE IS CRIME AND PUBLIC SAFETY, SIX, TRANSPORTATION AND SEVEN, UH, GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT AND CORRUPTION. AGAIN, THIS IS JUST A REPRESENTATION OF WHO'S HERE, UH, IN THE ROOM. AND IT'S GOOD THAT, YOU KNOW, FOR, FOR ME AND FOR OTHER ELECTED OFFICIALS AND THEIR TEAMS TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOUR PRIORITIES ARE. AND CLEARLY, LIKE MANY ACROSS THE COUNTRY, UH, AFFORDABILITY MATTERS RIGHT NOW. WE'RE ALL FEELING IT. WE, WE SEEING THESE GAS PRICES, WE'RE SEEING THE COST OF OUR GROCERIES, UH, AND WE NEED SOME, SOME RELIEF. SO, WONDERFUL. ALL RIGHT, SO THAT, THAT WAS THE ICEBREAKER. HOW'D Y'ALL FEEL ABOUT THAT? ALRIGHT, NOW I'M GONNA GET TO TALKING. NOW, UH, I KNOW A LOT OF YOU IN HERE, SO SOME OF YOU HAVE PROBABLY HEARD ME TALK ABOUT THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CONTROLLER BEFORE. BUT MY NUMBER ONE JOB AS YOUR TAXPAYER WATCHDOG IS TO CRACK DOWN ON WASTE, FRAUD AND ABUSE TO MAKE SURE NOBODY IS STEALING THE MONEY THAT YOU'RE PUTTING IN, UH, TO THIS SYSTEM. AND I KEEP SAYING YOU'RE PUTTING IT IN BECAUSE YOU ARE. YOUR PROPERTY TAXES FUND, HALF OF THE GENERAL FUND, YOUR SALES TAXES, WHEN YOU GO TO A GAS STATION, A RESTAURANT, UH, THE SHOPPING MALL, WHATEVER IT IS, FUND ANOTHER 30% OF THE GENERAL FUND. EVEN IF YOU'RE RENTING, I GUARANTEE YOU THAT THE PROPERTY TAX FOR YOUR HOUSE OR YOUR APARTMENT IS BEING PASSED DOWN TO YOU IN YOUR RENT THROUGH YOUR LANDLORD. AND SO Y'ALL ARE PAYING [00:30:01] THE BILL FOR THIS STUFF. IT IS YOUR MONEY. AND I TAKE THE JOB VERY SERIOUSLY OF PROTECTING THOSE DOLLARS. WE ALSO WANNA INCREASE TRANSPARENCY. THAT'S WHAT TONIGHT IS ABOUT. IT'S NOT ONLY ABOUT MAKING INFORMATION AVAILABLE, BUT IT'S BREAKING IT DOWN INTO LANGUAGE AND CONCEPTS THAT PEOPLE CAN UNDERSTAND, AND IT'S PUTTING IT AT THEIR FINGERTIPS. THAT'S WHY WE'RE COMING UP HERE TO NORTH FOREST. THAT'S WHY WE'RE GOING TO ACRES HOMES IN A COUPLE DAYS, GOING BACK TO THE SOUTHWEST SIDE, ET CETERA, ET CETERA, ET CETERA, OVER THE NEXT FEW WEEKS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING IN FRONT OF THE COMMUNITY AND MAKING THIS INFORMATION AS EASY TO ACCESS AS POSSIBLE. IMPROVING CITY OPERATIONS. WE DO THAT THROUGH OUR AUDITS, RIGHT? WE LOOK AT EVERY CITY DEPARTMENT ONE BY ONE ON CRITICAL ISSUES. AND IT'S NOT ABOUT JUST SLAPPING THEIR HANDS AND TELLING THEM THEY MESSED UP, BUT IT'S ABOUT GIVING THEM NEW IDEAS AND GIVING THEM BEST PRACTICES THAT THEY CAN PUT INTO PLACE THAT SAVE US MONEY AND ULTIMATELY DELIVER BETTER SERVICES, UH, FOR YOU. AND THEN FINALLY, IT'S CHARTING A PATH TO FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY. WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THAT A LOT TONIGHT. YOU'RE GONNA HEAR THE WORD DEFICIT A WHOLE LOT BECAUSE THE CITY HAS BEEN DOING THAT QUITE A BIT LATELY. UM, BUT IT'S, IT'S MAKING SURE THAT THIS INVESTMENT THAT WE'RE ALL MAKING, THAT IT CAN CONTINUE TO GO YEAR AFTER YEAR. AND THAT, UH, IT IS SELF-SUSTAINING AND THAT WE'RE NOT SIMPLY, YOU KNOW, PUTTING BAND-AIDS OR PLAYING A GAME OF WHACK-A-MOLE WITH THE CITY'S FINANCES. UH, AND WE'RE DOING THAT ALL TOO OFTEN RIGHT NOW, BUT WE'RE GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT IT. UH, WHAT DO WE DO SPECIFICALLY? I'M GONNA KEEP FLYING HERE. I'VE SAID TAXPAYER WATCHDOG. I AM THE CFO OF THE CITY. WE ALSO MAKE SURE THE TRAINS MOVE ON TIME SO EVERY CITY EMPLOYEE GETS THEIR PAYCHECK BECAUSE MY OFFICE PROCESSES THAT ON TIME. UH, OUR, OUR VENDORS AND CONTRACTORS THAT DO GOOD WORK FOR THE CITY, WE MAKE SURE THAT THEY GET PAID ON TIME. 'CAUSE MANY OF THEM ARE RUNNING SMALL BUSINESSES. THEY'RE TRYING TO KEEP THE LIGHTS ON, THEY'RE TRYING TO PAY THEIR PEOPLE. AND SO THAT WORK IS JUST AS IMPORTANT. WE'RE ALSO THE CITY'S TREASURER. WE WE'RE MANAGING UPWARDS NOW OF OVER $7 BILLION, I GUESS IT SAYS EIGHT THERE, $8 BILLION. THAT'S REAL CASH THAT WE INVEST IN THE MARKETS AND RECEIVE A FINANCIAL RETURN FOR THE CITY. SO WE'RE PUTTING YOUR MONEY TO WORK. AND THEN RIGHT NOW, WE'RE ALSO BORROWING QUITE A BIT. WE HAVE UPWARDS OF $18 BILLION IN DEBT. UM, THAT IS MONEY THAT IS BORROWED FOR MAJOR PROJECTS. UH, AND IT'S PAID OFF OVER A COURSE OF YEARS IN THE SAME WAY THAT YOU MIGHT PAY OFF YOUR MORTGAGE OVER A COURSE OF YEARS. UM, BUT WE'RE ON WALL STREET TRADING THAT DEBT BACK AND FORTH, GETTING BETTER RATES OVER TIME FOR, UH, FOR OUR PEOPLE AND SAVING YOU MONEY, UH, IN THE BORROWING PROCESS AS WELL. UH, WHAT ELSE WE GOT? WE TALKED ABOUT AUDITS, CERTIFYING THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT. THAT'S US SAYING THE CITY HAS THE MONEY IN THE BANK TO PAY THE BILL. AND SO FOR MAJOR EXPENSES, CITY COUNCIL, THE MAYOR CAN'T MOVE FORWARD WITH ANYTHING UNLESS WE CERTIFY THAT THE MONEY'S THERE TO PAY THE BILL. AND SO IT'S MY JOB TO MAKE SURE THE CITY DOESN'T GO BROKE. AND THAT IS OUR, KIND OF OUR FINAL, YOU KNOW, UH, KIND OF TRUMP CARD, IF YOU WILL, THAT ALLOWS US TO STOP RECKLESS SPENDING AND KEEP THE CITY AFLOAT. AND THEN WE PRODUCE FINANCIAL REPORTS. UH, AGAIN, WE TRY TO KEEP THOSE INTERESTING, BUT WE GO BEYOND JUST LIKE, AGAIN, A 300 PAGE DOCUMENT AND WE'RE PUTTING STUFF ON SOCIAL MEDIA. WE'RE PUTTING TOGETHER WHAT WE CALL INSIGHT REPORTS THAT BREAK DOWN SOME OF THESE CONCEPTS AND MAKE IT SIMPLE FOR YOU. AND IT ALSO MAKES IT SIMPLE FOR MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL, BECAUSE GUESS WHAT? A LOT OF THEM AREN'T ACCOUNTANTS. A LOT OF THEM AREN'T, YOU KNOW, PHDS IN FINANCE, A LOT OF THEM AREN'T EXCEL WIZARDS OR, OR BOOKKEEPERS IN THEIR PERSONAL LIVES. AND SO WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY UNDERSTAND THIS INFORMATION AS WELL, AND AT LEAST HAVE THE TOOLS TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS. WHETHER THEY MADE THE RIGHT DECISIONS, IT'S UP TO THEM. I HAVE NO CONTROL OVER THAT. BUT WE, WE PUT THE FACTS IN FRONT OF THEM AND GIVE THEM EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S TRULY GOING ON BEFORE, UH, THEY MAKE THOSE, THOSE CRITICAL DECISIONS. UH, WE'RE A TEAM OF ABOUT 60 FOLKS, THAT MAY SOUND LIKE A LOT, BUT WHEN YOU BREAK IT DOWN ACROSS AUDIT, FINANCIAL REPORTING, TREASURY OPERATIONS, UH, WE'RE A PRETTY, UH, SMALL TEAM FOR A, A CITY WITH A $7 BILLION BUDGET, ALL THESE INVESTMENTS, UH, AND, AND, AND THAT BIG DEBT PORTFOLIO AS WELL AS 20 PLUS THOUSAND EMPLOYEES AND THOUSANDS OF VENDORS. AND SO I'M VERY PROUD OF THE WORK THAT THIS TEAM DOES. UH, WE HAVE A LOT OF CONTROLLERS OFFICE FOLKS IN HERE. CAN Y'ALL JUST WAVE YOUR HANDS REAL QUICK? CAN WE THANK THEM FOR WHAT THEY DO EVERY DAY FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON? NONE OF THEM GETS PAID ENOUGH. AND SO WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR TRUE SERVICE, UH, TO OUR CITY. THIS IS REAL SIMPLE. THESE DIVISIONS I JUST MENTIONED, THEY REPORT TO ME. I REPORT TO YOU. THAT IS, THAT IS IT. I DON'T REPORT TO THE MAYOR. I DON'T REPORT TO ANYBODY ELSE DOWN AT CITY HALL. I REPORT TO YOU. AND SO THAT'S THE WAY THAT I OPERATE. UM, YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THE THINGS I'M SAYING DOWN AT CITY HALL MAY NOT MAKE ME THAT POPULAR WITH MY COLLEAGUES. IT'S ALRIGHT. IT DON'T MATTER [00:35:01] US . UH, ULTIMATELY I OWE YOU A RESPONSIBILITY AND, AND WE'RE GOING TO DELIVER ON THAT RESPONSIBILITY. ALRIGHT? NOW WE'RE GONNA DIG INTO THE PROCESS. I THINK WE'RE GONNA START OFF WITH JUST SOME KEY TERMS TO MAKE SURE FOLKS UNDERSTAND. SO THE BUDGET IS A SPENDING PLAN, THAT'S ALL IT IS. MANY OF US DO THIS IN OUR OWN LIVES, WHETHER WE'RE DOING IT KIND OF OFFICIALLY ON PAPER OR NOT. BUT IT'S HAVING AN IDEA OF WHERE OUR MONEY IS GOING AND HAVING AN IDEA OF WHERE THAT MONEY IS COMING FROM. MOST OF US KNOW, ON THE SECOND FRIDAY OF THE MONTH, WE KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH MONEY'S GONNA HIT OUR CHECKING ACCOUNT, AND WE KNOW EXACTLY WHERE THOSE BILLS ARE GONNA GO OUT THE DOOR THAT EVENING, RIGHT? THAT'S WHAT THE CITY IS DOING WHEN IT HAS A BUDGET. IT'S PLANNING OUT FOR A YEAR HOW MUCH MONEY WE'RE GOING TO SPEND ON WHAT. AND WE'RE ALSO, UH, WORKING TO UNDERSTAND WHERE THAT MONEY IS GOING TO COME FROM. A STRUCTURALLY BALANCED BUDGET IS ONE WHERE THE RECURRING COST, WHICH THE COST THAT YOU'RE GONNA INCUR OVER AND OVER AND OVER, RIGHT? YOUR MONTHLY MORTGAGE PAYMENT, THE FOOD COST THAT YOU'RE GONNA HAVE EVERY SINGLE YEAR, THE GAS THAT YOU'RE GONNA PAY, UH, EVERY SINGLE MONTH, RIGHT? THAT'S RECURRING COST. A STRUCTURALLY BALANCED BUDGET HAS ENOUGH RECURRING REVENUE, RIGHT? MONEY COMING IN THAT YOU CAN EXPECT THAT THAT BIWEEKLY PAYCHECK TO OFFSET THOSE COSTS. UH, WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE BALANCE AND YOUR RECURRING REVENUE AND YOUR RECURRING COST, THAT'S CALLED A DEFICIT. ALL RIGHT? YOU MIGHT SEE THE TERM FY THAT JUST MEANS FISCAL YEAR. THE CITY DOESN'T OPERATE ON A JANUARY THROUGH DECEMBER YEAR. IT OPERATES ON A JULY ONE THROUGH JUNE 30TH YEAR. SO WE'RE COMING UP ON THE END OF FISCAL YEAR 2026. AND THIS PROPOSED BUDGET THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TONIGHT IS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2027. THAT BEGINS ON JULY 1ST. WE'RE GONNA TALK MORE ABOUT THESE TWO. BUT YOUR GENERAL FUND, AS I MENTIONED, UH, IT'S PAID FOR BY YOUR PROPERTY TAXES AND YOUR SALES TAXES. AND WHAT IT FUNDS IS ALL THOSE THINGS THAT YOU THINK ABOUT AS CORE CITY SERVICES. UH, POLICE FIREFIGHTERS, UH, UNTIL VERY RECENTLY, TRASH PICKUP PARKS, PUBLIC HEALTH LIBRARIES, THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT ARE PAID FOR IN THE GENERAL FUND. YOUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS, THEY'RE NOT FUNDED DIRECTLY BY TAXES, BUT THEY'RE CHARGED. THEY ARE FUNDED BY FEES THAT THEY CHARGE. SO AT AIR, AT THE AIRPORT, WHEN YOU FLY OUT A BUSH OR, OR OR HOBBY, THERE'S GONNA BE A $5 SURCHARGE ON YOUR TICKET EVERY SINGLE TIME. AND FOR ALL THOSE PEOPLE, EVEN IF THEY'RE JUST COMMUTING THROUGH AND GOING RIGHT BACK OUT FROM NEW YORK TO HOUSTON TO DENVER, RIGHT? THEY'RE CHARGED THAT SAME FEE. THAT'S HOW THE AIRPORT PAYS FOR ITSELF. THE CONVENTION CENTER IS FUNDED THROUGH HOTEL TAXES WHEN PEOPLE SPEND THE NIGHT DOWNTOWN. AND ALSO WHEN CONVENTIONS COME TO TOWN, YOU KNOW, THEY PAY TO RENT OUT THAT SPACE. SO THESE ENTERPRISE FUNDS RUN LIKE A BUSINESS, RIGHT? THAT ALSO INCLUDES YOUR WATER BILL, WHICH WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT A LOT TONIGHT. THE COMBINED UTILITY SYSTEM, YOU PAY YOUR WATER BILL THAT FUNDS THE OPERATION OF THE WATER SYSTEM. SO THOSE ARE ENTERPRISE FUNDS. ALL RIGHT? NOW WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, THE MAYOR, THE CITY COUNCIL, THE CONTROLLER. WHAT WE ALL DO IN THIS BUDGET PROCESS, THE MAYOR PROPOSES THE BUDGET. HE JUST DID THAT A WEEK AGO. IN THAT BUDGET, YOU'RE SETTING PRIORITIES, RIGHT? WHAT YOU SPEND THE MOST ON IS WHAT YOU CARE ABOUT MOST AND WHAT YOU WANNA DELIVER ON. UH, AND THEN HE WORKS THROUGH WITH CITY COUNCIL TO ADOPT THAT BUDGET, UM, AFTER ABOUT A MONTH'S TIME. AND SO IN EARLY JUNE TO MID-JUNE, YOU'LL ULTIMATELY SEE, UH, COUNCIL PASS A BUDGET. LET'S JUMP TO COUNCIL. SO WHAT DOES COUNCIL DO? ONCE THE MAYOR PROPOSES THE BUDGET COUNCIL LOOKS AT IT AND THEY SAY, HEY, HERE'S WHAT I WANT TO BE DIFFERENT ABOUT THIS. UH, SO HERE ARE THE AMENDMENTS THAT I MIGHT PROPOSE, RIGHT? UM, YOU HEARD OUR SISTER FROM THE NORTHEAST ACTION COLLECTIVE TALK ABOUT SOME PROPOSED AMENDMENTS THAT THEY WANNA SEE IN THE BUDGET. SO COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO OFFER THOSE AMENDMENTS. UH, AND THEN THEY VOTE, RIGHT? THEY LISTEN TO YOU HOPEFULLY, AND THEY MAKE THOSE AMENDMENTS, THEY VOTE ON THEIR COLLEAGUES' AMENDMENTS, AND THEN THEY PASS A FINAL BUDGET THAT HAS THOSE AMENDMENTS IN IT. UM, WE HAVE A BUDGET AND FISCAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE THAT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW. A LOT OF THIS FLOWS THROUGH THAT. THE CHAIR IS AT LARGE COUNCIL MEMBER SALLY ALCORN. AND, UH, THE VICE CHAIR IS, UH, DISTRICT EIGHT COUNCIL MEMBER MARIO CASTILLO. SO WHAT DOES THE CONTROLLER DO? THE CONTROLLER DOESN'T PROPOSE THE BUDGET. THE CONTROLLER DOESN'T MAKE AMENDMENTS TO THE BUDGET. THE CONTROLLER DOES NOT VOTE ON THE BUDGET. UH, WE CERTIFY THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS, WHICH WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER. WE SAY, HEY, THERE'S ENOUGH MONEY IN THE BANK TO PAY FOR THIS BUDGET OVER THE COURSE OF THE YEAR. IF ALL THE MONEY COMES IN THAT Y'ALL SAY IS COMING IN, [00:40:01] WE ANALYZE TRENDS AND KEY ASSUMPTIONS, UH, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT TONIGHT. UH, AND THEN WE TELL THE TRUTH TO HOUSTONIANS, TO CITY COUNCIL AND DIRECTLY TO THE MAYOR TELLING THEM, HEY, HERE'S WHAT'S GOING ON HERE THAT WE NEED TO BE CONCERNED WITH OR PAY ADDITIONAL ATTENTION TO. BUT, BUT THAT'S IT. I DON'T HAVE THE POWER, UH, OUTSIDE OF THE POWER OF A REGULAR HOUSTONIAN TO CHANGE WHAT'S IN IT. UH, I CAN ONLY POINT OUT THESE ISSUES AND THEN EMPOWER YOU, UH, WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OF HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED. AND THEN WE AS A COLLECTIVE CAN DRIVE THAT KIND OF CHANGE, UH, THROUGH OUR INFLUENCE OF THE POLITICAL SYSTEM. ALL RIGHT. I'LL PAUSE THERE REAL QUICK. ANY QUESTIONS SO FAR? SO WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE PROCESS. NOW WE'RE GONNA GET INTO THE NUMBERS THEMSELVES. YES, MA'AM. SO WHO, UH, AUTHORIZED HIM TO, TO CHARGE 60 FOR, FOR A PODCAST? SO, UH, SO ANY CITY DEPARTMENT AND THE MAYOR'S OFFICE IS, HAS, IS ITS OWN DEPARTMENT AND THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE IS ITS OWN DEPARTMENT. UM, ANY EXPENSE UP TO A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS, YOU CAN DRIVE THAT EXPENSE THROUGH WITHOUT ANY COUNCIL APPROVAL. AND SO, UM, AND SO THAT'S IT. THE MAYOR'S OFFICE DECIDED THEY WANTED TO SPEND $60,000 ON THAT, UH, AND THEY DID IT. AND SO IT DIDN'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH COUNSEL TO GET APPROVAL. QUESTION, YES. IS THERE, UH, FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL BARREL? I'M SURE A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THIS AREA HAD SOME DAMAGE. WE HAVE A TON OF IT. DON'T MAKE IT. YOU'LL SEE IT. UH, BUT IS THAT INCLUDED? AND IF SO, IS THERE ANY WAY TO FIND OUT WHAT'S GONNA, THIS AREA OF THOSE TYPES OF REPAIRS OR IMPROVEMENTS TO PREVENT THINGS LIKE THAT FROM HAPPENING? SO GRANT MONEY THAT WE KNOW OR REASONABLY EXPECT TO COME IN DURING THE FISCAL YEAR IS PUT IN AS REVENUE IN THE BUDGET IN TERMS OF WHERE IT'S DIRECTED. THE BUDGET ITSELF DOES NOT NECESSARILY LIST OUT, UH, WHERE ALL THAT MONEY IS GOING AFTER THE BUDGET PASSES. UH, THERE'S SOMETHING CALLED, UH, THE CAPITAL PLAN OR THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN. THE CIP, UM, THAT IS WHERE YOU WOULD SEE SPECIFIC PROJECTS LINED UP AS PRIORITIES FOR THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR. BUT THAT'S THE NEXT STEP IN THE PROCESS AFTER APPROVING THE BUDGET. RIGHT NOW, WHAT YOU WOULD SEE, YOU KNOW, IN PUBLIC WORKS IN PARTICULAR, IS JUST A HUGE, YOU KNOW, BUCKET CALLED, YOU KNOW, CAPITAL INVESTMENT. UM, BUT YOU WOULDN'T SEE THE SPECIFIC LINE ITEMS THERE. ALL RIGHT? YES, MA'AM. UM, WHAT IF IN JUNE 30TH, IF CITY COUNCIL DOESN'T AGREE ON THE BUDGET, IS THERE A METHOD WHERE THEY MESS AROUND AFTER THAT? SO, UM, SO IF WE, WE'VE NEVER GOTTEN TO A POINT WHERE BY JUNE 30TH THEY HADN'T, UH, APPROVED THE BUDGET. UH, I SUSPECT THAT AT THAT TIME, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD HAVE TO APPROVE KIND OF PIECEMEAL SPENDING. UM, BUT IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S, THAT HASN'T HAPPENED, UH, IN RECENT HISTORY. AND SO LET'S, LET'S KNOCK ON SOMETHING AND HOPE THAT THEY CAN COME TO A RESOLUTION IN A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME. YES, SIR. YEAH. YOU MENTIONED THE TRASH PREVIOUSLY UNDER HOW UNDER YEP. WE'RE GONNA GET TO THAT, UH, HERE IN A MOMENT. OKAY. OKAY. AND, UM, THERE POSSIBILITY THAT, UH, ENTERPRISE, IT'S A GOOD QUESTION. UH, THE REASON THAT I DON'T FORESEE POLICE BEING MOVED TO AN ENTERPRISE FUND IS THAT AN ENTERPRISE FUND OPERATES LIKE A BUSINESS AND IT HAS TO PAY FOR ITSELF. AND SO IT HAS TO HAVE A REVENUE STREAM. UH, THE ONLY THING THAT I COULD THINK ABOUT OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD IS FOLKS GETTING MORE TICKETS. I DON'T THINK WE WANT TO SET UP THAT SYSTEM AND SO . AND SO I THINK WE'RE GONNA STICK WITH THE GENERAL FUND. I THINK I HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION, THEN WE'RE GONNA MOVE FORWARD. YES. HOW OFTEN DOES, THE QUESTION WAS HOW OFTEN DOES AN INTERNAL AUDIT TAKE PLACE? UH, SO THE AUDIT DIVISION SITS WITHIN THE CONTROLLER'S OFFICE. UH, WE HAVE 16 AUDITORS THAT IS THE SMALLEST AUDIT DIVISION OF ANY MAJOR CITY IN THE STATE OF TEXAS. [00:45:01] AUDITS, UM, ARE VERY SPECIFIC PROCESSES THAT ARE FOLLOWED TO DIG INTO, YOU KNOW, SUBJECT MATTER AREAS. THEY TEND TO TAKE ABOUT NINE TO 12 MONTHS FOR EACH AUDIT. AND SO YOU'RE LOOKING AT, ON AVERAGE, AN INDIVIDUAL AUDIT AUDITOR CAN COMPLETE LIKE ONE AUDIT, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN THAT, UH, IN A YEAR. AND SO OUR, OUR, OUR AUDIT LEAD FOR OUR OFFICE GOES BEFORE CITY COUNCIL AND REPORTS ON ROUGHLY ONE AUDIT PER MONTH, MAYBE TWO AUDITS PER MONTH, DEPENDING ON, YOU KNOW, HOW THINGS GO. UM, BUT WE ARE SEVERELY RESOURCE CONSTRAINED. AND SO THAT LIMITS THE NUMBER OF AUDITS THAT WE'RE ABLE TO DO. BUT IT'S A DOZEN TO, YOU KNOW, TO A COUPLE DOZEN A YEAR. ALRIGHT, SO JUMPING FORWARD, WHAT'S, WHAT'S IN HERE? LET'S START THERE. SO WE TALKED ABOUT THE GENERAL FUND. WE TALKED ABOUT OUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS. WE'VE COVERED WHAT'S IN THE GENERAL FUND. WE'VE COVERED WHAT'S IN OUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS. UH, OUR BUDGET FOR THE YEAR IN TOTAL, SEVEN AND A HALF BILLION DOLLARS, 3.2 BILLION OF THAT IS IN YOUR GENERAL FUND. THAT'S WHERE YOUR PROPERTY TAXES AND YOUR SALES TAXES GO. AND ANOTHER $4.3 BILLION IS IN, UH, OUR ENTERPRISE FUND. UH, OUR ENTERPRISE FUNDS HAVE GROWN, UH, SINCE LAST YEAR. OUR GENERAL FUND IS ROUGHLY FLAT WITH LAST YEAR, BUT A CAVEAT IS THAT AN ENTIRE DEPARTMENT, WHICH HAS A BUDGET OF OVER A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS WAS TAKEN OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND. UH, AND SO, YOU KNOW, IF IT WERE AN APPLES TO APPLES COMPARISON, OUR GENERAL FUND WOULD'VE GONE UP, UH, AS WELL. LET'S START WITH ENTERPRISE FUNDS. SO AGAIN, WHERE DOES ALL THIS MONEY BEING SPENT ON THIS $4.2 BILLION? UM, YOU SEE MOST OF IT, IF YOU LOOK AT WATER AND SEWER, AND YET THAT THIRD LINE STREETS AND DRAINAGE, ALL THAT TOGETHER IS ALMOST $3 BILLION, UH, A YEAR ANNUALLY. UH, THAT NOW ALSO INCLUDES TRASH PICKUP AND A RIGHT OF WAY FEE. AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THOSE, UH, MORE IN A BIT. OUR AIRPORT HAS A BUDGET OF OVER 800, UH, OF, OF ABOUT $800 MILLION. OUR CONVENTION AND ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM, WHICH RUNS THE GEORGE R. BROWN, UH, AND ALSO THE THEATER DISTRICT AND SO ON, HAS A MUCH SMALLER BUDGET. UH, AND THEN THERE'S ABOUT A HALF A BILLION DOLLARS, UH, GOING TO OTHER SMALLER ENTERPRISE FUNDS. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS ALREADY. HOW, HOW IS THIS GENERAL FUND FUNDED? WELL, WE HAVE $3.1 BILLION IN ANTICIPATED REVENUE. HALF OF IT FROM PROPERTY, PROPERTY TAX, ANOTHER 30% FROM SALES TAX, UH, 20% FROM OTHER REVENUE. AND THEN WE HAD THIS SMALL LITTLE GREEN SLIVER HERE THAT IS A BRAND NEW RIGHT OF WAY FEE, THAT'S $104 THAT'S COMING OUT OF THE WATER FUND AND DUMPED INTO THE GENERAL FUND. SO MONEY THAT USED TO BE SPENT ON WATER AND SEWER AND SO ON WILL NOW BE SPENT ON POLICE AND FIREFIGHTERS AND PARKS AND LIBRARIES. WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT IT MORE. WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT IT MORE, I PROMISE YOU. OH, OKAY. TALK ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW. . I I, I I'M GONNA GET TO IT. I'M GONNA GET TO IT. I, ALRIGHT, SO WHAT'S IN OUR GENERAL FUND, $3.2 BILLION, UH, IN EXPENSES. 1.2 BILLION GOES TO POLICE, SEVEN, 700 MILLION, UH, TO FIRE BETWEEN POLICE AND FIRE. THAT'S SIX OUT OF EVERY $10 IN THE GENERAL FUND. UH, IS GOING TO THOSE TWO THINGS. SO A, A HIGH PRIORITY PLACED ON PUBLIC SAFETY. THE BIGGEST SURPRISE FOR SOME IS THAT THE NEXT LINE IS DEBT SERVICE. ONE OUT OF EVERY $6 THAT FLOWS INTO THE GENERAL FUND GOES TO PAYING THE BILL FOR SOMETHING WE ALREADY BUILT. SOMETHING WE ALREADY DID. UH, AND SO THAT'S, THAT'S A HEFTY SUM WHAT USED TO BE THE THIRD LARGEST DEPARTMENT TRASH PICKUP. UH, THE BUDGET FOR TRASH PICKUP THIS YEAR IS ABOUT $117 MILLION FOR SERVICES. ANOTHER 17 $16 MILLION, UH, FOR DEBT. BUT ON OUR GENERAL FUND, IT'S NOW ZERO BECAUSE THAT MONEY IS NOW BEING SPENT OUT OF OUR WATER FUND. UH, AND OUR, OUR COMBINED UTILITY SYSTEM ENTERPRISE FUND, NO OTHER DEPARTMENT IN THE ENTIRE CITY OUTSIDE OF POLICE AND FIRE, UH, TAKES UP MORE THAN 3% OF THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET. PARKS IS NOW THE THIRD LARGEST AT 89 MILLION, UH, LIBRARIES NEXT AT 51, OUR HEALTH DEPARTMENT NEXT AT 42, UH, OF GENERAL FUND DOLLARS. SO WHERE'S THAT MONEY GOING? WELL, THREE OUT OF EVERY FIVE OF THOSE DOLLARS GOES TO PEOPLE, PERSONNEL. THE OTHER, [00:50:01] THE OTHER 40% OR SO GOES TO DEBT SERVICE, GOES TO CONTRACTS, SUPPLIES, UH, AND EQUIPMENT. BUT PEOPLE IS WHAT DRIVES THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET. WELL, WHAT KIND OF PEOPLE WE TALKING ABOUT? LET'S GO TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THOSE PEOPLE. COSTS THOSE PERSONNEL COSTS. FIVE OUT OF EVERY $6 GOES TO CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES. THAT'S UNIFORM POLICE AND UNIFORM FIREFIGHTERS. EVERYBODY ELSE IS IN THAT LITTLE LIGHT BLUE SLIVER AT THE TOP. UM, SO ONLY ONE OUT OF SIX PERSONNEL DOLLARS GOES TO CIVILIAN STAFF ACROSS THE COUPLE OF DOZEN, UH, CITY DEPARTMENTS. ONE IMPORTANT POINT, WE'VE COVERED THE $3.2 BILLION IN COST AND THE $3.1 BILLION IN REVENUE. UH, IF YOU HEARD THOSE NUMBERS, YOU MIGHT SAY, HMM, REVENUE IS SMALLER THAN COST. WELL, THAT'S CALLED DEFICIT SPENDING. COME ON Y'ALL. SO SOMEBODY'S SUPPOSED TO JUMP OUT AND SAY THAT DEFICIT SPENDING, I, I GAVE Y'ALL A PREP , THAT'S CALLED DEFICIT SPENDING. UM, WE'RE GONNA GO INTO IT IN MORE DEPTH, BUT IN THIS BUDGET, YOU SEE THAT RED BAR AT THE TOP RIGHT? UH, THERE'S $25 MILLION IN THIS BUDGET, UH, FOR DEFICIT SPENDING. THAT MEANS WE'RE GOING IN OUR SAVINGS ACCOUNT AND SPENDING IT DOWN. AND SO AFTER ALL THIS, AND WE'RE GONNA TALK MORE ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE MONEY MOVING AROUND. BUT EVEN AFTER THOSE BIG MOVES, WE'RE STILL SPENDING MONEY FROM OUR SAVINGS ACCOUNT BECAUSE WE'RE STILL NOT PAYING FOR OUR COSTS. UM, SO WHEN YOU SAY DEFICIT SPENDING, WHAT DO WE MEAN? ALL RIGHT. THIS IS THE CITY'S FUND BALANCE. THIS IS OUR SAVINGS ACCOUNT. GOING ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE BEGINNING OF THE TURNER ADMINISTRATION. WE WERE AT ABOUT 270 MILLION BY THE END OF THE TURNER ADMINISTRATION. WE GOT TO THE HIGHEST FUND BALANCE THE CITY HAD EVER HAD, CLOSE TO $600 MILLION. WE THEN STARTED GOING BACK IN TO A WORLD OF DEFICIT SPENDING. SO IN FISCAL YEAR 2025, UH, WHICH WAS THE FIRST BUDGET PASSED UNDER MAYOR WHITMEYER. UH, AND WHEN I WAS SERVING AS CONTROLLER, UH, WE SPENT DOWN ABOUT 85 80 $6 MILLION OF OUR SAVINGS. AND THEN THIS YEAR WE'RE PROJECTED TO SPEND DOWN AT LEAST ANOTHER $180 MILLION OF OUR SAVINGS. AND THEN FINALLY, IN THIS PROPOSED BUDGET, THE OTHER $25 MILLION OF SPENDING DOWN OUR SAVINGS I JUST TALKED ABOUT. AND THAT'S WHAT YOU SEE. THIS NEXT SLIDE MAKES IT A LITTLE BIT MORE PLAIN. SO THIS JUST SHOWS HOW MUCH DID OUR SAVINGS ACCOUNT GO UP OR DOWN? GOING BACK TO THOSE EIGHT YEARS UNDER TURNER, WHAT YOU SEE IS FIVE YEARS OF IT GOING UP, TWO YEARS OF IT KIND OF BEING FLAT. IT'S A NEGATIVE. AND THEN ONE YEAR WITH, UH, WITH THE REAL DEFICIT HERE, WE GET OVER, UH, TO THE MOST RECENT ADMINISTRATION AND THE CURRENT YEAR THAT WE'RE IN FISCAL, WHICH IS FISCAL YEAR 2026, WE HAVE THE LARGEST DEFICIT IN HOUSTON HISTORY. THE SECOND LARGEST DEFICIT IN HOUSTON HISTORY WAS LAST YEAR. SO THAT'S WHAT WE ARE TODAY. UH, FOR THE PROPOSED BUDGET, AGAIN, WE HAVE 25 20 $6 MILLION IN ADDITIONAL DEFICIT SPENDING. THAT'S, THAT'S IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET RIGHT NOW. ALL RIGHT, TIME FOR SOME QUESTIONS. SO THE QUESTION WAS, WHAT HAPPENED IN 23 AND 24 TO GET THE FUND BALANCE TO GO UP OUR SAVINGS ACCOUNT TO INCREASE THE WAY THAT IT DID? THAT WAS ACTUALLY JOE BIDEN IN OFFICE, UH, THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN. SO COMING OUT OF COVID, REALLY IN THE MIDST OF COVID, THERE WAS A FEAR AND A VERY REASONABLE FEAR THAT STATES AND CITIES AND COUNTIES WERE GONNA ALL GO BELLY UP. UH, 'CAUSE WE DIDN'T KNOW IF FOLKS WERE GONNA BE GETTING PAYCHECKS. IF THEY'RE NOT GETTING PAYCHECKS, THEY'RE NOT PAYING THEIR TAXES, AND SO ON AND SO FORTH. AND SO THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN, UH, FRANKLY, WAS PUT IN PLACE TO BAIL OUT CITIES AND COUNTIES. UM, WHAT WE ULTIMATELY SAW WAS THE ECONOMY BEING MUCH MORE RESILIENT THAN WE THOUGHT. YOU REMEMBER, UH, WHERE RESTAURANTS WERE NOW, YOU KNOW, DOING WAY MORE DELIVERY. YOU COULD PICK UP, YOU COULD EVEN GO BUY A MARGARITA TO GO FROM A RESTAURANT. WE WERE ALL PUTTING OUR MASKS ON GOING TO HEB, THAT WAS TOO MUCH OF A CHEER FOR THAT MARGARITA . UM, BUT THE ECONOMY WAS VERY RESILIENT. PEOPLE DOING ESSENTIAL JOBS, PUTTING THEMSELVES, YOU KNOW, AT, AT RISK, BUT GOING TO WORK. AND SO, UH, AND SO WE ENDED UP FLUSH WITH, UH, WITH CASH [00:55:01] BECAUSE THOSE RECOVERY DOLLARS KEPT COMING IN. UH, AND SO WE ADDED TO OUR SAVINGS, WHICH WAS, UH, WHICH WAS A WISE THING TO DO. NOW WE'RE SPENDING THAT MONEY BACK DOWN. UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD? YES, SIR. HOW MUCH IS THE DEBT SERVICING GROWN OVER TIME? SO IT'S FIVE 38 MILLION THIS YEAR. 26. MM-HMM . CORRECT. SO, UM, IT IS THAT WHEN I SAID ONE OUT OF $6 OF, OF EVERY GENERAL FUND DOLLAR GOES TO, TO, UH, DEBT SERVICE, IT'S, IT'S BEEN LIKE THAT FOR A WHILE. AND SO IT'S KIND OF TICKED UP SLOWLY IN THE SAME WAY THAT THE GENERAL FUND ITSELF HAS TICKED UP SLOWLY. UH, AND SO LAST YEAR IT WAS STILL AROUND 500 MILLION, I BELIEVE THE YEAR BEFORE IT WAS JUST UNDER 500 MILLION. SO IT'S BEEN SLOWLY, UH, INCREASING. LIKE IF, IF THE CITY SELL BONDS, THAT'S STILL UNDER DEBT. EXACTLY. SO WHEN THE CITY ISSUES BONDS FOR A MAJOR PROJECT, WE GET A BUNCH OF CASH. THAT'S WHY OUR TREASURY DIVISION, YOU KNOW, INCREASES IN TERMS OF THE MONEY THAT WE'RE ABLE TO INVEST. 'CAUSE WE'RE SITTING ON CASH, BUT WE ALSO NOW HAVE A NEW MORTGAGE TO PAY. AND SO WE'RE PAYING INTEREST PAYMENTS EVERY MONTH, AND AT CERTAIN POINTS WE'RE PAYING DOWN THE PRINCIPAL TO RETIRE THAT DEBT. SO LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE HOSPITAL, THE BUILDING IN THIS ISSUE WAS OVER 2 BILLION ON, PARDON? YOU'RE SITTING NEXT TO OUR CITY TREASURER. THAT'S WHY HE'S SO OPINIONATED. . BUT THE HOSPITAL IS A COUNTY THING, AND SO THAT DOESN'T THING YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S HARRIS COUNTY OR HARRIS HEALTH. YEAH. AND SO THAT DOESN'T FLOW THROUGH THE CITY'S YEAH, I WAS WONDERING. MAKE SURE IT WAS, THAT WAS PRETTY EXPENSIVE. BUT YEAH, THERE WILL BE BARRING FOR THAT. BUT IT'LL SHOW UP ON THE COUNTY'S, UH, FINANCES, NOT THE CITIES. UH, YES MA'AM. ARE YOU GONNA MENTION THE PAY PARITY VOTE IN 2017? THAT I THINK JUST GOT SETTLED RECENTLY. I THOUGHT THAT WAS A BIG PROBLEM. SURE. SO, UH, THE QUESTION WAS ABOUT PAY PARITY. THIS WAS OUR FIREFIGHTERS WHO WERE, UH, WHO WERE, THEY WENT TO THE VOTERS AND SAID, WE WANNA GET PAID THE SAME AS POLICE GET PAID. AND THE VOTER SAID YES. AND IT WAS, IT, IT PASSED BY, I WANNA SAY 70% OR SO. UM, ULTIMATELY THOSE, THOSE SPECIFIC RAISES WERE THE SUBJECT OF A LOT OF LITIGATION. THAT LAWSUIT WAS SETTLED AT THE BEGINNING OF 2024 OF CALENDAR YEAR 2024. UH, THE FIREFIGHTERS RECEIVED $650 MILLION IN BACK PAY AT THAT TIME. AND THE FIREFIGHTERS, AL AL ALSO RECEIVED FORWARD LOOKING RAISES THAT OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD, THEY WOULD GET RAISES OF UP TO 34%. AND SO, AND SO THAT IS BEHIND US. UM, YOU KNOW, AT THAT TIME WHAT WE SAID WAS, LOOK, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S FAIR IS FAIR AND YOU KNOW, WHAT'S NEGOTIATED? GETS NEGOTIATED. WE DIDN'T EXPRESS AN OPINION ABOUT IS $650 MILLION TOO MUCH OR TOO LITTLE? IS 34% RAISED TOO MUCH OR TOO LITTLE? WHAT WE SAID IS WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GONNA PAY FOR IT. RIGHT? RIGHT. THOSE CHOICES THAT RAISE AND THAT $650 MILLION BACK PAY SETTLEMENT, UH, ULTIMATELY GONNA COST THE CITY ABOUT $1.5 BILLION. AND NO NEW ADDITIONAL REVENUE WAS IDENTIFIED AT THE TIME TO COVER THAT COST. AND SO THAT'S WHEN WE RAISED OUR FLAG. NOT TO SAY FIREFIGHTERS SHOULDN'T GET PAID. UM, I'M GONNA TELL Y'ALL, BOTH OF MY SI SISTERS ARE MARRIED TO HFD FIREFIGHTERS. AND SO WE TALK ABOUT THIS A LOT AND CERTAINLY I WANT THEIR FAMILIES TO DO WELL, AND THEY DESERVE THAT TO BE PAID AS MUCH AS THEIR PEERS IN OTHER CITIES. AND THEY DESERVE, YOU KNOW, THE DIGNITY OF THEIR, YOU KNOW, THE DIGNITY OF THEIR WORK. BUT WE GOTTA, IF WE'RE GONNA MAKE THAT DECISION, WE HAVE TO KNOW HOW WE'RE GONNA PAY FOR IT. AND THAT'S WHAT WAS MISSING, UM, AT THAT TIME. YES, MA'AM. SORT CLASSIFIEDS, UH, ON PERSONNEL VERSUS CIVILIAN. MM-HMM . IS THAT DYNAMIC IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. IT'S RELATIVELY STEADY. UM, HOWEVER, THE SIZE OF OUR POLICE FORCE AND THE SIZE OF OUR FIREFIGHTING FORCE HAS GONE UP AND OUR POLICE OFFICERS AND OUR FIREFIGHTERS HAVE GOTTEN MORE SIGNIFICANT RAISES THAN OTHER CITY EMPLOYEES. AND SO THAT PIECE OF THE PIE HAS EXPANDED PROPORTIONALLY BECAUSE THERE'S MORE PEOPLE AND THEY'RE GETTING PAID MORE. YES. I WANNA PIGGYBACK OFF WHAT SHE SAID. BEING, WITH THAT BEING THE WAY, IT'S, IT LOOKS VERY LOPSIDED TO ME. YOU DID IN THE BEGINNING. MM-HMM . THE PRIORITY TO BE COMPLETELY OPPOSITE OF WHAT THE BUDGET THAT CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEES, LIKE YOU SAY, ARE FIRST CIVILIAN WORK. SURE. IS THERE, HAVE THERE BEEN ANY [01:00:01] EFFORT BY CITY COUNCIL TO TRY TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE THAT MORE BALANCED BECAUSE IT'S OUR CITY, BECAUSE IT'S OUR TAX, MORE OF OUR YEAH. THERE HAVE BEEN EFFORTS. I WOULD, I WOULD SAY THAT MOST OF THEM ARE MARGINAL AND NOT, NOT TO MEAN THAT THEY'RE UNIMPORTANT, BUT ON A $7 BILLION BUDGET, YOU SEE SOME TINKERING WITH, YOU KNOW, A MILLION HERE OR 10 MILLION THERE. I KNOW COUNCIL MEMBER TARSHA JACKSON, JUST A YEAR AGO PUSHED VERY HARD FOR ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT IN THE DITCH MAINTENANCE PROGRAM BECAUSE DISTRICT B IS SO IMPACTED, UH, BY PROBLEMS AROUND FLOODING AND OTHER ISSUES IN THOSE DISHES. AND SO THERE ARE, THERE ARE OFTENTIMES PROPOSED AMENDMENTS LIKE THAT. BUT I HEAR YOUR POINT, AND WHEN WE DID A SIMILAR EXERCISE LAST YEAR, THIS TIME WE HEARD SOME OF THE SAME FEEDBACK OF, MAN, WE GOT SO MUCH GOING THERE, BUT ALL, EVERYTHING THAT WE CARE ABOUT THE MOST IS, IS DOWN HERE. RIGHT. UM, THAT IS WHY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS, RIGHT? WE WANT YOU TO BE AWARE OF HOW MUCH IS GOING WHERE. UM, I WILL SAY, I TALKED ABOUT MY FIREFIGHTER BROTHER-IN-LAWS. MY DAD WAS HPD, HIS BROTHER, HIS BABY BROTHER WAS HPD. UM, WE ALSO KNOW THAT WHEN WE PICK UP THE PHONE AND CALL NINE ONE ONE, WE WANT SOMEBODY TO SHOW UP. RIGHT? AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, SAFETY IS BEING PRIORITIZED IN THESE BUDGETS. AND, AND THAT'S JUST THE FACT OF THE MATTER. IF YOU THINK MORE MONEY SHOULD GO TO OTHER THINGS, THAT'S HOW YOU, THAT'S WHY YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS. YES. SO WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE DOING, THAT'S QUITE A BIT OF TALKING, GOING, SO WHERE'S THE TRUTH? WHAT, WHAT, WHAT ARE WE GONNA SEE? YOU KNOW, THAT'S YOU, SO YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT WELL, I DON'T SEE, I MEAN, YOU NOT, THINGS ARE STILL LIKE THEY WERE BEFORE YOU GOT IN. YEAH. WELL, LISTEN, GO AHEAD. I'M SORRY. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE. MICROPHONE. I CAN HEAR YOU. I'LL REPEAT WHAT YOU SAY. SO YOU SEE WHAT I'M SAYING? SO WHY WE CAN AGREE TO DISAGREE THAT ALL THE TALKING, BUT NOTHING IS GETTING DONE, THERE'S NO RESULTS. YEAH. SO THE COMMENT JUST EVERYBODY CAN HEAR WAS BASICALLY, HEY, WE HEAR A LOT OF TALK, BUT WE DON'T SEE VERY MANY RESULTS. UM, I HEAR YOU. I'M NOT HERE TO DEFEND THIS BUDGET AT ALL. I'M HERE TO DESCRIBE TO YOU WHAT'S IN THE BUDGET. UM, I DON'T HAVE A VOTE ON ANYTHING ABOUT HPD. I DON'T HAVE A VOTE ON ANYTHING ABOUT FIRE. I DON'T HAVE A VOTE ON ANYTHING ABOUT NEIGHBORHOODS. THAT'S YOUR MAYOR AND YOUR CITY COUNCIL. AND SO WE'RE INFORMING YOU ABOUT WHAT'S IN HERE RIGHT NOW IN THIS PROPOSAL. AND AT THE END, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THE DIRECT IMPACT THAT YOU CAN HAVE ON IMPACTING WHAT'S, WHAT'S IN HERE. AND SO I'M GONNA BE VERY FRANK AND TRANSPARENT WITH YOU ABOUT THAT. UH, I PERSONALLY DON'T DRIVE ANY OF THESE NUMBERS, NOR AM I DEFENDING THESE NUMBERS. 'CAUSE I DIDN'T MAKE THIS BUDGET, NOR DO I GET TO VOTE OR AMEND THIS BUDGET. SO YOU JUST, THE MESSAGE. I AM THE TRUTH TELLER. WE'RE, UH, I'M GONNA TAKE TWO MORE QUESTIONS. WE STILL GOT MORE STUFF TO GO THROUGH IN HERE. I'M GONNA TAKE TWO MORE QUESTIONS. WE'RE GONNA MOVE FORWARD. OH, HEY, LET ME, WE GONNA TAKE THREE MORE QUESTIONS JUST 'CAUSE MY SISTER YES. Y'ALL TWO, AND THEN WE'LL COME THIS WAY AND THEN WE'LL MOVE FORWARD. WE'RE, I'M NOT CUTTING YOU OFF. WE'RE GONNA HAVE MORE QUESTIONS LATER, BUT THERE'S, THERE'S MORE STILL TO SAY. I'M NOT SURE AND BUDDHIST PERTAIN TO, BUT YOU, THIS STUFF WE ARE TALKING ABOUT, UM, THE QUESTION THAT YOU COULDN'T ANSWER, HE TO HAVE HIS NEEDS BE HERE BECAUSE QUESTIONS THAT WE ARE REFERRING TO HIM HEIGHT, THE MAYOR, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, FIRE DEPARTMENT, KEEP GETTING MONEY, AND THEN YOU KEEP ON TAKING FROM THE COMMUNITY. NOW YOU WANT US SOME WATER BILL, AND THEN YOU WANNA TURN AROUND FROM REPAIR, FALLING. THEY PUSH, PULL AND TELL US THAT WE IN AN AREA THEY CAN'T REPAIR. IT'S TOO MANY OBSTACLES TO JUMP THROUGH GASOLINE ZONE AND WE NOT GETTING NO RESULTS. SEE, I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. YOU TRYING TO MAKE, MAKE SENSE, BUT IT AIN'T MAKING SENSE TO, BECAUSE IT AIN'T, I MEAN, ALL THESE THE WRONG PEOPLE, BUT YOU TAKE IT FROM THE PEOPLE THAT NEED IT. YOU TAKE IT FROM THE AREAS THAT NEED IT, YOU TAKE IT FROM THE SERVICES THAT WE NEED. SO MAKE IT TO, I'M SORRY, I, I'M GETTING FRUSTRATED AND I, I'M UNDERSTANDING THE PERSON THAT HERE EXPLAIN THIS IS NOT HERE TO TELL US WHY ALL THE MONEY IS BEING AROUND AND THEY BETTER BE. I DON'T DISAGREE WITH YOU. WHAT I'LL SAY, WHAT I'LL SAY IS IF THE MAYOR DON'T COME TO YOU, YOU GOTTA [01:05:01] GO TO HIM. I DON'T TALK TO, ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT. YES, MA'AM. NO, I, I THANK YOU FOR SHARING. SERIOUSLY. AGAIN, I DON'T REPORT TO THE MAYOR. I AGREE WITH YOU THAT, THAT HE SHOULD BE LISTENING AND TALKING TO YOU. I'LL PASS THE MESSAGE. FAIR ENOUGH. YES. LET'S LISTEN UP FOLKS, IF WE CAN. I APPRECIATE Y'ALL. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF INTERESTING STUFF IN HERE. I, I UNDERSTAND. BUT SEE, WE GOTTA UNDERSTAND, YOU CAN'T ON MAYOR, WE NEED A THIRD PARTY. IT GOES BACK FORWARD THAN WHAT WE KNOW. MM-HMM. BUT WHY HAVEN'T YOU ALL TRIED TO REQUEST THIRD PARTY? AND MAYBE, YOU KNOW, THE QUESTION WAS ABOUT, UH, ABOUT A THIRD PARTY AUDIT. THE CITY GOES THROUGH AN INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY AUDIT EVERY SINGLE YEAR. UH, THE, THE OUTSIDE AUDITOR CHANGES ONCE EVERY FIVE YEARS OR SO. UH, WILL, WHAT'S THE NAME OF THE CURRENT AUDITOR? WEAVER IS THE NAME OF THE CURRENT FIRM. UH, THE PREVIOUS ONE WAS CALLED, I'M PUTTING 'EM ON THE SPOT. UH, BUT WEAVER IS THE NAME OF THE, OF THE OUTSIDE AUDITOR. THEY JUST COMPLETED THEIR FIRST AUDIT THIS PAST FISCAL YEAR. UM, AND IF THEY KEEP GETTING A CONTRACT RENEWED, THEY WILL AUDIT THE CITY FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS OR SO. BUT THERE IS AN INDEPENDENT AUDIT, UH, EVERY SINGLE YEAR OF THE CITY'S FINANCES . SO WHAT ERT AND YOUNG DID WAS NOT AN AUDIT. WHAT ER AND YOUNG DID WAS A CONSULTING, UM, STUDY. AN AUDIT IS DIFFERENT THAT I MENTIONED. WHY THE AUDITS TAKE SO LONG, WHY THEY'RE SO THOROUGH AND SO SERIOUS. THAT'S WHAT WEAVER IS DOING, IS AN AUDIT. ERNST AND YOUNG PROVIDED SOME, UH, THE RESULT OF THAT SHOULD BE ONLINE. IF YOU GO TO CITY OF HOUSTON, JUST TYPE IN ANNUAL AUDIT, UH, ON GOOGLE, CITY OF HOUSTON ANNUAL AUDIT, THROWING WEAVER'S NAME ON THE GOOGLE JUST TO, UH, BE SURE. BUT YOU CAN HAVE ACCESS TO THOSE RESULTS. YEAH, THEY SHOULD. ALRIGHT, LAST QUESTION FOR THE MOMENT, AND THEN WE'LL KEEP GOING. YES, MA'AM. YOU SAID THE TRUTH. YEP. SO I WANT THE TRUTH FIGHT. YEAH. SO FIREFIGHTERS WORK EVERY FOURTH DAY. SO THERE'S AN A, B, C, D SHIFT, AND THEY WORK 24, PARDON ME? THEY WORK 24 HOUR SHIFTS. AND SO YES. YOU KNOW, IN A 28 DAY PERIOD, A FIREFIGHTER WOULD WORK SEVEN DAYS, OBVIOUSLY IN A 30, 31 DAY PERIOD. THEY MIGHT WORK LIKE SEVEN AND A HALF DAYS. AND THEY USE THE DATA FROM 9 1 1 CALL. IF YOU DO A1 ONE CALL, YOU KNOW, THEY, THEY'RE ASK POLICE, AMBULANCE, THEY, OR SOME REASON THE FIREFIGHTERS, THAT'S HOW MANY CALLS THEY GETTING, BUT WHEN IT REALLY WASN'T CALLED OUT TO THAT PARTICULAR, IT'S NOT, WE DON'T EVEN HAVE THAT MANY FIRE IN. YEAH. SO ALL THE REALLY, I'M, I DON'T CARE. FIVE, I'M SORRY. I JUST DON'T THINK THEY DESERVES THAT MUCH OF THE BUDGET, AS YOU KNOW, AS IT'S THAT POLICE FIREFIGHTER. SURE. UM, I, YEAH, I BELIEVE THAT IF YOU TALK TO THE FIRE CHIEF HIMSELF OR TO AN INDIVIDUAL FIREFIGHTER, THEY WOULD TELL YOU THE SAME THING THAT YOU'RE SAYING, RIGHT? WHAT WE DO ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS, OFTENTIMES IS NOT FIGHTING FIRES. UH, THOSE ARE MUCH MORE RARE. BUT WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WE'RE AN EMS SERVICE, RIGHT? WE'RE RESPONDING TO MEDICAL EMERGENCIES, AND OFTENTIMES WE'RE SENDING, YOU KNOW, LARGE APPARATUSES APP, I DON'T KNOW IF APPARATUSES IS THE WORD, UH, BUT LARGE TRUCKS OUT WITH FOUR GUYS IN 'EM TO GO, UH, FOR THIS, YOU KNOW, A MEDICAL STYLE. UH, THERE ARE MORE [01:10:01] EFFICIENT MODELS. UH, CURRENTLY WE'RE FOLLOWING THE STAFFING MODEL AND OPERATIONAL MODEL THAT WE HAVE. UH, A LOT OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH UNION NEGOTIATIONS AND WHAT'S IN THE UNION CONTRACT. UM, BUT I AGREE THAT THERE IS THE POTENTIAL TO ATTACK THAT PROBLEM IN A MORE EFFICIENT MANNER. ALL RIGHT. WHEW. ALL RIGHT. THIS IS THE FUN PART, Y'ALL. , I PROMISE YOU, FOR THOSE WHO ARE STARTING TO THOSE A LITTLE BIT, THIS IS THE FUN PART. SO WHAT'S REALLY IN THIS BUDGET FROM THE TRUTH TELLER, REALITY NUMBER ONE, WE'RE GONNA GET TO FOUR REALITIES HERE, AND THEN I'LL, THEN I'LL ASK SOME MORE, ANSWER SOME MORE QUESTIONS, AND THEN WE'LL, THEY'LL, WE'LL GET ON OVER TO SOME PIZZA OR SOMETHING. REALITY NUMBER ONE, THIS BUDGET REPEATS SEVERAL, SEVERAL OF THE CRITICAL MISTAKES THAT WERE IN LAST YEAR'S BUDGET. IF YOU WERE AT MY TOWN HALLS LAST YEAR, WE CAME UP WITH SOMETHING THAT WE CALL 10 HARD TRUTHS ABOUT THE BUDGET, LAYING OUT SOME, SOME REALITIES, HIGHLIGHTING SOME GIMMICKS, SOME TRICKS THAT WERE IN THERE. AND WE WENT TO CITY COUNCIL AND WE SAID, HEY, Y'ALL, Y'ALL GOTTA PAY ATTENTION TO THIS STUFF. WE'RE BAKING IN A DEFICIT. WE HAVE FAKE SAVINGS NUMBERS IN HERE THAT WE'RE NOT GONNA REALIZE THESE OVERTIME NUMBERS ARE COMPLETELY UNREALISTIC, AND SO ON AND SO FORTH. WE WERE EFFECTIVELY IGNORED, UH, THAT THAT BUDGET GOT 13 OUTTA 17 VOTES, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN. AND, UH, AND NONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ADDRESSED, UH, WERE WERE MOVED ON. THERE WERE NO AMENDMENTS THAT PUT FORTH, UH, THAT WERE PUT FORTH THAT CHANGED THAT BUDGET MEANINGFULLY. WHAT WE GOT AS A RESULT WAS A $200 MILLION DEFICIT. IT TURNED OUT THAT WE HAD UNDERSHOT, UM, PARDON ME, THAT WE HAD OVERSTATED THE PROPERTY TAX REVENUE THAT WE WERE GONNA RECEIVE. SO THEN WHEN IT WAS TIME TO ACTUALLY BRING IN THAT PROPERTY TAX REVENUE, WE WERE MISSING $53 MILLION. WE WARNED CITY COUNCIL IN THE MAYOR THIS IN ADVANCE AT THE TIME, WE SAID, HEY, THIS OVERTIME SPENDING IS GETTING OUT OF CONTROL, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, YOU'RE NOT BUDGETING FOR IT. WE KNOW THAT OVERTIME IS GONNA BE WAY UP HERE, BUT THE BUDGET'S ONLY HERE, EVEN AFTER WE SAID THAT, THEY BUDGETED OVERTIME IN AN AMOUNT LESS THAN HALF OF WHAT THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S OVERTIME WAS. SO WHAT HAPPENED? THEY WENT WAY OVER THE BUDGET, ANOTHER $50 MILLION IN, IN DEFICIT SPENDING JUST FROM THAT ALONE. AND IN THIS BUDGET, THEY REPEAT EIGHT OF THOSE 10 MISTAKES. AGAIN, THERE'S BAKED IN DEFICIT SPENDING. WE'VE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THAT. IF YOU LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS, THERE'S $25 MILLION IN ADDITIONAL SPENDING, UNREALISTIC OVERTIME ASSUMPTION. SO THE, THE BUDGET FOR NEXT YEAR'S OVERTIME IS $45 MILLION BELOW THE TWO YEAR AVERAGE. AND WE HAVEN'T MADE ANY REAL CHANGES THAT WOULD LEAD US TO BELIEVE THAT WE'RE GONNA SAVE THAT MUCH MONEY IN OVERTIME SPENDING. UH, THERE'S QUIET REDUCTIONS IN SERVICES ACROSS SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS. THERE'S A WATER RATE INCREASE THAT'S COMING YOUR WAY. THE CREDIT AGENCIES, THE ONES WHO, YOU KNOW, TELL INVESTORS HOW GOOD OF AN INVESTMENT THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS, ARE WARNING US THAT WE HAVE A PROBLEM ON OUR HANDS. SO THIS IS NOT LEARNING FROM OUR MISTAKES TO PUT IT SIMPLY. UM, SO WE'RE GONNA SHARE THIS INFORMATION. AGAIN, WE NEED YOUR HELP TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF THESE THINGS. UM, BUT THESE SAME THINGS THAT WERE PROBLEMS LAST YEAR THAT WE CAUGHT THEN AND TALKED TO THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL ABOUT, THEN WERE IGNORED. WE PAID THE PRICE FOR 'EM, NOW WE'RE BACK AND WE'RE DOING IT AGAIN. UM, AND WE'VE HEARD ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE DEFINITION OF DOING THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN AND EXPECTING DIFFERENT RESULTS. SOME OF Y'ALL FINISHED MY QUOTE. ALL RIGHT. REALITY NUMBER TWO, THIS IS WHAT A COUPLE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT. THIS BUDGET DRAINS THE WATER FUND BELOW WHAT IT CAN ABSORB. SO RIGHT NOW, THE WATER FUND, ALL OF THE, THE COMBINED UTILITY SYSTEM HAS A FUND BALANCE OF $1.5 BILLION. NOW, THAT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF MONEY, RIGHT? IT'S A LOT OF MONEY TO ME. I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S A LOT OF MONEY TO YOU. HOWEVER, THE MINIMUM RESERVES THAT WE NEED TO KEEP IN PLACE TO MAKE OUR, UH, INVESTORS HAPPY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE SOLVING, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN PAY BILLS WHEN THEY COME DUE IS 1.36 BILLION. SO YOU SEE THAT BLUE LINE UP THERE, THAT'S 1.5, THAT RED LINE UP THERE, 1.36 BILLION. WELL, GUESS WHAT? THAT GIVES US ABOUT $140 MILLION OF ROOM TO PLAY WITH. AND, AND IT'S SERIOUS. SO I DON'T MEAN PLAY IN THAT WAY, [01:15:01] BUT IF YOU TAKE OUT A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS FOR A RIGHT OF WAY FEE, AND YOU TAKE OUT ANOTHER A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS TO SUBSIDIZE TRASH PICKUP, WE'RE ALREADY BELOW IN YEAR ONE. THE MINIMUM THRESHOLD, IF YOU DO THAT AGAIN AND AGAIN, AND AGAIN AND AGAIN, WE'VE NOW SPENT A BILLION DOLLARS OUT OF OUR WATER FUND. AND WE'RE WAY, WAY, WAY BELOW WHERE THE CITY SAYS IT NEEDS TO BE ACCORDING TO ITS OWN RULES TO KEEP THE WATER FUND SOLVENT. NOW, I KNOW, 'CAUSE I'VE BEEN UP IN DISTRICT BA WHOLE LOT IN THE PAST FEW YEARS THAT WE DEAL WITH FLOODING. WE GOT INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES, RIGHT? AND SO MONEY THAT'S OUT OF THIS WATER FUND SHOULD BE GOING TOWARDS REPAIRING THE WATER SYSTEM SHOULD BE GOING TOWARDS DRAINAGE AND SEWER. UM, IT SHOULD NOT BE, IN MY OPINION, PAYING FOR TRASH. IT SHOULD NOT BE NECESSARILY, IN MY OPINION, PAYING FOR POLICE AND FIREFIGHTERS IF NOW MY NUMBER ONE POLICY IS HONESTY, RIGHT? IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE THIS RIGHT OF WAY FEE THAT SUBSIDIZES THE GENERAL FUND, AND I'M GONNA BE CLEAR, OTHER CITIES HAVE THIS RIGHT OF WAY FEE, SAN ANTONIO, DALLAS-FORT WORTH, AUSTIN, THEY HAVE A RIGHT OF WAY FEE. HOWEVER, LEMME TELL YOU WHAT A RIGHT OF WAY FEE IS, IS TAKING MONEY OUT OF ONE POCKET AND JUST PUTTING IT IN THE OTHER POCKET, THAT'S NOT A NEW REVENUE SOURCE. IF I JUST DID THAT, IF MY WIFE SAID, HEY, CHRIS, WE GOT A SPENDING PROBLEM. WE GOTTA LOOK AT OUR FINANCES. I SAID, HEY BABY, LOOK, THIS, I WOULD BE ON THE COUCH THAT NIGHT, Y'ALL. RIGHT? AND MOREOVER, WE WOULD NOT HAVE SOLVED THE PROBLEMS THAT WE HAVE AS A FAMILY. WE WOULD HAVE TO REALLY LIKE, IT'S LIKE, NO, LET'S GET REAL WITH THIS PROBLEM. AND SO IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THIS MOVEMENT OF A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS FROM ONE FUND, FROM OUR WATER FUND TO THE GENERAL FUND, WELL THEN WE HAVE TO REPLENISH THE WATER FUND. AND GUESS HOW WE DO THAT? BY RAISING YOUR WATER BILL. AND IF WE'RE GONNA DO THAT, THEN WE SHOULD BE HONEST WITH YOU ABOUT THAT. IF WE THINK THAT'S REALLY THE BEST DECISION TO MAKE FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON, THEN WE SHOULD TELL YOU, HEY, Y'ALL, YOUR WATER BILL'S GONNA GO UP. HERE'S WHY. HERE'S WHY IT'S IMPORTANT. HERE'S WHY IT'S THE BEST OPTION. HERE ARE THE OTHER OPTIONS THAT WE CONSIDER, BUT WE'RE NOT HEARING ANY OF THAT. AND MOREOVER, WHAT WE'RE BEING TOLD IS THAT THE, THE WATER FEE WILL NOT CHANGE AS A RESULT OF THIS ACTION, WHICH IS COMPLETE NONSENSE. YEP. NOW HERE'S FUN. YOU GOTTA PULL YOUR PHONE BACK OUT, Y'ALL, THIS IS IT. THIS IS IT. WE GONNA PLAY A GAME. HAS ANYBODY HEARD THE GAME? UH, TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE. SO IT'S, IT IS WHEN SOMEBODY TELLS YOU THREE DIFFERENT THINGS, RIGHT? ONE, ONE SECOND. SO TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE IS, IS WHERE SOMEBODY TELLS YOU TWO THINGS ABOUT THEMSELVES. THAT'S TRUE. I WAS BORN IN HOUSTON, RIGHT? I LOVE BASKETBALL. AND THEY TELL YOU ONE THING THAT'S NOT TRUE, RIGHT? LIKE, MY FAVORITE PRESIDENT IS DONALD TRUMP. AND THEN YOU HAVE TO GUESS WHICH ONE'S THE LIE. WELL, THIS IS THE OPPOSITE. THIS IS TWO LIES IN A TRUTH, TRUTH. AND SO HAS EVERYBODY SCANNED THE THING? ARE Y'ALL READY? YEAH. ALL RIGHT. WELL, HERE ARE THE TWO LIES AND THE TRUTH. FIRST, WE HAVE THE MAYOR SAYING THIS $5 ADMINISTRATION FEE. IT'S CONCEIVABLE THAT IF WE'RE SMART, WE MAY NEVER HAVE TO RAISE IT. SO THE MAYOR SAYING IT MIGHT STAY $5 FOREVER. LET'S LOOK AT THE SECOND ONE. THIS IS THE MAYOR'S STAFF. HE SAID, WE BELIEVE THAT THE COST OF SOLID WASTE IS GONNA DECREASE OVER TIME BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA BE DRIVING MORE EFFICIENCIES INTO IT. IN FACT, I'M A LITTLE HESITANT TO SAY THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE A $25 FEE BECAUSE THAT'S THE MAX. WE THINK IT'S GONNA BE CHEAPER. ALL RIGHT? SO WE HAVE THE MAYOR SAYING $5. IT MAY NEVER GO UP. YOU HAVE THE MAYOR STAFF SAYING THE MAX IT'LL EVER BE IS $25. WHAT'S NUMBER C? NUMBER C IS THE CITY'S OFFICIAL SOLID WASTE STUDY THAT WAS JUST PUBLISHED LAST WEEK. WHAT IT SAYS IS THAT THE COST OF PROVIDING QUALITY SERVICE, UH, FOR TRASH PICKUP TO HOUSTONIANS RIGHT NOW, FISCAL YEAR 2027 IS $32 PER HOUSEHOLD. IT SAYS THAT IN FIVE YEARS IN FISCAL YEAR 2031, IT'S GONNA BE $46 PER HOUSEHOLD. SO LET'S TAKE A VOTE, Y'ALL. WHICH ONE DO Y'ALL THINK IS THE TRUTH? COME ON, MAN. I WANNA USE MY LITTLE THING. IT'S ALL NIFTY. DID Y'ALL VOTE? LET'S SEE, LET'S SEE WHAT THE RESULT IS. Y'ALL AIN'T EVEN VOTE. COME ON, MAN. WHERE THE LEGAL WOMEN VOTE IS AT. Y'ALL GOTTA VOTE. YOU CAN'T JUST HAVE IT IN OPINION. YOU GOTTA VOTE. [01:20:01] ALL RIGHT, 28, LET'S SEE WHAT THE ANSWER SHOWS. ALL RIGHT, SO EVERYBODY WHO VOTED THINKS THAT THE STUDY THAT THE CITY PAID $200,000 FOR THAT WAS JUST PUBLICIZED LAST WEEK, IS PROBABLY THE ONE THAT'S TELLING THE TRUTH. UM, I BELIEVE THAT TOO. AND AGAIN, LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS GARBAGE FEE. , EVERY OTHER MAJOR CITY, EL PASO, DALLAS, AUSTIN, FORT WORTH, THEY ALL HAVE GARBAGE FEES. SO I'M NOT UP HERE TO SAY A GARBAGE FEE IS EVIL. I'M NOT UP HERE TO SAY A GARBAGE FEE, SOMETHING THAT THE CITY SHOULD NEVER PURSUE. WHAT I'M UP HERE SAYING IS IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE A GARBAGE FEE, AND THAT MONEY'S GONNA COME OUT OF OUR POCKETS IN ADDITION TO THE MONEY WE'RE ALREADY PAYING TO THE CITY, WE GOTTA KNOW WHAT WE'RE GETTING IN RETURN FOR IT. AND WE GOTTA KNOW WHAT THE FEE IS GONNA BE. DON'T LIE TO ME AND SAY IT'S NEVER GONNA GO BEHIND BEYOND $5. IF OUR OWN OFFICIAL STUDY SAYS IT'S GONNA BE $46, THAT'S GETTING CLOSE TO ABOUT $600 A YEAR, RIGHT? THAT IS REAL MONEY FROM HOUSTON FAMILIES. AND IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO BEAR THAT COST AT SOME POINT, LET'S TALK ABOUT IT, RIGHT? LET'S HAVE THE COMMUNITY INVOLVED IN THE CONVERSATION, SHOW ME THAT THAT'S THE BEST CHOICE FOR US, BUT ULTIMATELY AT LEAST LET ME KNOW WHAT I CAN EXPECT SO I CAN START GETTING MY PAINS TOGETHER. I CAN WORK MY EXTRA SHIFT OR WHATEVER IT IS. BUT INSTEAD WE'RE SAYING IT AIN'T NEVER GONNA GO BEYOND $5. UM, AND TO ME THAT'S ABSURD. ALL RIGHT, LAST TIME TO USE YOUR PHONE FOR NOW. THIS IS REAL. I REALLY NEED Y'ALL TO DO THIS. SO WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU SCAN THIS, THIS IS GONNA TAKE YOU TO A WEBPAGE THAT'S GONNA SHOW YOU WHAT THE GARBAGE FEE MEANS FOR YOU AND FOR YOUR HOUSEHOLD. I'M GONNA DO IT WITH YOU SO I CAN FOLLOW ALONG. ALL RIGHT? RAISE YOUR HAND REAL QUICK IF YOU SCAN IT JUST SO I CAN SEE YOU BEFORE WE MOVED ON. ALRIGHT, SO THIS WEBSITE THAT YOU JUST GOT TAKEN TO, IT'S GONNA ALLOW YOU TO COMPARE THIS $5 GARBAGE FEE TO WHAT YOU WOULD OTHERWISE PAY IF WE HAD ANOTHER REVENUE SOURCE. SO THE FIRST QUESTION THAT ASKS YOU IS WHAT'S THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME? NOW YOU CAN TYPE THAT IN OR YOU CAN SLIDE THAT, THAT LITTLE SLIDER OVER TILL YOU GET TO THE APPROXIMATE VALUE OF YOUR HOME. THEN IT'S GONNA ASK YOU IF YOU HAVE THE HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION, IT'S AUTOMATICALLY TURNED ON. BUT IF YOU OWN YOUR HOME, I ASSUME YOU PROBABLY HAVE THE HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION, AND IT'S GONNA ASK YOU IF YOU HAVE THE SENIOR DISABLED EXEMPTION. AND SO TURN THAT ON UNTIL IT'S GREEN. IF YOU'RE, IF YOU'RE A SENIOR OR IF YOU HAVE A DISABILITY AND YOU HAVE THAT EXEMPTION. ALRIGHT? THEN ONCE YOU SCROLL DOWN, IT'S GONNA SHOW YOU FOR THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME AND THOSE OTHER CHOICES THAT YOU MADE. NOW, YOUR GARBAGE FEE, WE ALREADY KNOW THAT IT'S $5 A MONTH, BUT WHAT WILL YOUR PROPERTY TAX BE? UH, IF WE WERE TO RAISE THE SAME AMOUNT OF MONEY, THAT $24 MILLION THAT, THAT, UH, THAT THE GARBAGE FEE IS RAISING, WELL, I'M USING THE AVERAGE FOR THE CITY. SO THE AVERAGE HOME IN THE CITY IS ABOUT $300,000. AND FOR THE AVERAGE HOME ACROSS THE CITY, IF WE HAD A PROPERTY TAX THAT WAS GONNA RAISE THAT AMOUNT OF MONEY, INSTEAD OF A GARBAGE FEE, IT WOULD ONLY BE A DOLLAR AND 71 CENTS A MONTH. SO THE GARBAGE FEE IS THREE TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE. IF MY HOME IS $300,000. IF YOU SCROLL DOWN A LITTLE FURTHER, IT'LL TELL YOU THAT THE BREAK EVEN ON THIS IS $875,000. SO ONCE YOUR HOME VALUE GOES OF ABOVE 8 75, THEN THE PROPERTY TAX BECOMES MORE EXPENSIVE FOR YOU, AND THE GARBAGE FEE IS CHEAPER. IF YOUR HOME IS BELOW $875,000, THEN THE PROPERTY TAX IS ACTUALLY CHEAPER, AND THE GARBAGE FEE IS MORE. THIS IS WHAT'S CALLED A REGRESSIVE, UH, TAX. IT MEANS THE POOR PAY A HIGHER PROPORTION AND THE RICH PAY A LOWER PROPORTION. SO TO PUT THIS IN PERSPECTIVE, IF YOU SCROLL DOWN, THIS TRIES TO CONVERT YOUR GARBAGE FEE OR YOUR, OR YOUR, UH, OR YOUR PROPERTY TAX TO SOMETHING ELSE YOU HAVE IN YOUR LIFE. SO AT $5, THE GARBAGE FEES EQUIVALENT TO THREE BOTTLES OF WATER OR THE PROPERTY TAX WOULD BE EQUIVALENT TO ABOUT ONE BOTTLE OF WATER. BUT AGAIN, WHAT YOU SEE IS FOR THIS $300,000 HOME, YOUR GARBAGE FEE IS THREE TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THE PROPERTY TAX WOULD BE TO RAISE THE SAME AMOUNT OF MONEY. NOW, WE'RE ALMOST DONE HERE. UH, THIS ALLOWS YOU TO, TO BE THE MAYOR FOR A MOMENT. WHAT IF YOU WANNA RAISE EVEN MORE MONEY, RIGHT? YOU CAN MOVE THIS UP TO SAY, A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS OR 150. THE [01:25:01] REASON WE HAVE 150 IN HERE IS BECAUSE OUR GARBAGE STUDY TOLD US THAT TO PROVIDE REAL WORLD CLASS SERVICE TO HOUSTONIANS IN THE WAY THEY DESERVE IT WOULD COST $150 MILLION A YEAR. SO LET'S SAY WE'RE GONNA RAISE THAT MONEY $150 MILLION A YEAR, WE SCROLL BACK UP TO THE TOP. WELL, THAT GARBAGE FEE, ACCORDING TO THIS, WOULD'VE TO BE $31 AND 25 CENTS FOR MY $300,000 HOME, MY PROPERTY TAX TO RAISE THAT $150 MILLION, UH, $150 MILLION WOULD BE $10 AND 71 CENTS. SO IT'S STILL THAT THREE TO ONE RATIO FOR THIS HOME. UH, AS YOUR HOUSE GETS MORE EXPENSIVE, THE PROPERTY TAX BECOMES A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, UNFAVORABLE. 'CAUSE YOU'RE, YOU'RE PAYING MORE, RIGHT? UM, BEFORE FOLKS WHO ARE AT THE AVERAGE FOR HOUSTON, THEN THIS GARBAGE FEE IS ACTUALLY CHARGING YOU THREE TIMES MORE THAN A PROPERTY TAX WOULD CHARGE YOU. I HAVE A QUESTION BACK HERE. SO, SO FIVE A MONTH, IF THEY'RE DOING IT A PROPERTY TAX, ARE YOU SAYING THE AVERAGE MEDIA, SO ARE WE USING, WHAT NUMBERS ARE WE USING PROPERTY TAX? 12. SURE. BOTH THE AVERAGE AND THE MEDIAN WOULD BE LOWER. THE REASON WHY THE AVERAGE WOULD BE LOWER IS BECAUSE YOU'RE RAISING MONEY FROM A MUCH LARGER SUBSET OF PEOPLE, RIGHT? THERE'S, THERE'S 400,000 GARBAGE, UH, GARBAGE, UH, USERS IN THE CITY, BUT FAR MORE, UH, PROPERTY TAX PAYERS. SO YOU'RE SPREADING THAT COST AMONGST ALL HOUSTONIANS AND YOU'RE SPREADING IT TO BUSINESSES WHERE THE GARBAGE FEE IS ONLY RESIDENTS AND ONLY THE RESIDENTS THAT ACTUALLY USE, UH, THE CITY OF HOUSTON FOR THEIR TRASH PICKUP. THIS, THE GARBAGE FEE WOULD EXCLUDE RIVER OAKS THAT GETS PRIVATE TRASH PICKUP. AND IN FACT, WHILE YOU YOU'RE GONNA PAY $5 ON THIS PROPOSAL FOR GARBAGE, WE'RE ACTUALLY PAYING THE PEOPLE IN RIVER OAKS $6 PER HOUSEHOLD TO NOT USE THE SYSTEM. SO THAT SUBSIDY MAKE, MAKE, MAKE SENSE? I'M NOT TRYING TO MAKE IT MAKE SENSE, I'M JUST TRYING TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH. DON'T MAKE SENSE. OKAY. SO RIGHT NOW, AND FOR FOR SEVERAL YEARS GOING BACK, IF AN, IF AN HOA OPS OUT OF, OF CITY TRASH PICKUP, THEN THE CITY WILL SUBSIDIZE THEIR PRIVATE TRASH PICKUP. I'M NOT A BIG FAN OF IT, BUT I SORT OF UNDERSTAND IT BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT PROVIDING THIS SERVICE TO THE HOUSTONIANS IS LIKE 30 BUCKS A HOUSEHOLD. SO IF WE CAN JUST PAY THEM SIX AND THEY'LL HANDLE IT THEMSELVES, I SEE WHY YOU COULD GET THERE. HOWEVER, NOW THAT WE'RE CHARGING PEOPLE FOR TRASH PICKUP, RIGHT? I IT IS A LITTLE QUESTIONABLE WHY WE SHOULD BE PAYING PEOPLE TO GET PRIVATE TRASH PICKUP. AND SO THAT'S BAKED IN HERE AS WELL, WHICH IS THAT THAT GARBAGE FEE THAT, THAT YOU'RE PAYING IN THIS PROPOSAL, UH, WE'RE ACTUALLY PAYING OTHER PEOPLE, UH, TO NOT USE THE SYSTEM. YES, MA'AM. I APOL I APOLOGIZE IN ADVANCE FOR THE QUESTION. UM, ACCORDING TO THE TEXAS, UH, STATE TAX CODE 3 1 3, UH, ONCE AGAIN I SAID, I'M SORRY, I SAID I'M SORRY. UM, THERE IS A, UM, A MECHANISM WHERE THE CITY CAN ACTUALLY GIVE TAX ABATEMENTS TO CORPORATIONS AT WHATEVER SCALE THEY WANT. YES. AND THIS YEAR THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR SEVERAL CONTRACTS, UH, TAX ABATEMENT CONTRACTS TO BE UP, WHICH COULD TOTAL ABOUT $93 MILLION WORTH OF REVENUE MM-HMM . FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON. IS THERE A MECHANISM TO WHERE THOSE TAX ABATEMENT THAT REVENUE FROM THOSE TAX ABATEMENTS CAN BE UTILIZED ON TOP OF DOING THIS, UH, PROPERTY TAX INCREASE? AND, AND PART TWO OF THAT QUESTION IS, ISN'T A 1 CENT INCREASE IN THAT PROPERTY TAX LOW ENOUGH TO WHERE THE CITY COULD JUST IMPLEMENT THAT WITHOUT HAVING TO MAKE IT A BALLOT MEASURE FOR PEOPLE TO VOTE ON? SO, UM, SO THAT, I WOULD SAY THAT'S A QUESTION FOR THE MAYOR, RIGHT? I, I BELIEVE GENERALLY ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE. SO COULD YOU GET SOME MORE MONEY FROM OVER HERE AND DO THIS WITH IT? MM-HMM . SURE. IF YOU SET UP THE, SET UP THE RULES THAT WAY, RIGHT? I DON'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO SET UP THE RULES THAT WAY, UH, THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL DO. AND SO I WOULD, I WOULD SEND THAT QUESTION OVER THERE. YES, SIR. UM, A PENNY PROPERTY TAX IS GONNA GET YOU ABOUT $28 MILLION IN REVENUE, RIGHT? AND SO THIS $24 MILLION THAT WE WERE USING SORT OF IN THE FIRST INSTANCE OF, OF THIS TOOL THAT WE JUST PLAYED WITH, THAT'S ABOUT A 0.86 PENNIES WORTH OF RAISES YEAH. OR WORTH OF AN INCREASE MM-HMM . BUT A PENNY WILL GET YOU ABOUT 28 MILLION, RIGHT? WHICH KIND OF MAKES UP A LITTLE BIT MORE SENSE THAN THAT $5 24, THE 24 MILLION THAT WOULD BE GENERATED FROM THE $5 FEE. SOME MIGHT BELIEVE THAT, RIGHT? THESE ARE POLICY CHOICES, RIGHT? AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S ABOUT HOW DO YOU RAISE THIS REVENUE [01:30:01] AND THEN WHO BEARS THE BRUNT OF THAT? AND THOSE ARE DECISIONS, RIGHT? WHETHER YOU CHOOSE A FEE, WHETHER WHAT TYPE OF FEE YOU CHOOSE, WHO PAYS THE FEE, RIGHT? WHETHER IT'S GRADUATED, WHETHER THERE'S RELIEF FOR THOSE WHO HAVE LESS ABILITY TO PAY, RIGHT? THOSE ARE ALL POLICY CHOICES. UH, HERE, THIS $5 FEE, UM, IN YEAR ONE AT LEAST, WILL NOT HAVE ANY, UH, YOU KNOW, BREAKS FOR THOSE WHO STRUGGLE TO PAY. YEP. AND THERE WILL CONTINUE IN YEAR ONE AT LEAST TO BE THE $6 SUBSIDY THAT GOES TO THOSE HOAS AND HOUSEHOLDS THAT DON'T USE THE SERVICE I GOT HERE, THERE AND HERE AND IN HERE. YES, SIR. THE QUESTION I HAVE IS YOU GONNA CERTIFY THAT. SO THE QUESTION WAS, AM I GONNA CERTIFY THAT I, I DO HAVE A, A ROLE TO PLAY IN CERTIFYING IT. I WANNA BE CLEAR ABOUT WHAT CERTIFYING MEANS. CERTIFYING DOES NOT MEAN I'M IN FAVOR OF THIS BUDGET CERTIFYING MEANS IF THE REVENUE COMES IN ACCORDING TO THIS PLAN AND THE COSTS GO OUT ACCORDING TO THAT PLAN, WE'RE GONNA HAVE ENOUGH MONEY IN THE BANK TO PAY THE BILLS. THAT'S WHAT CERTIFYING MEANS. WE'RE STILL DIGGING THROUGH THE DETAILS OF THAT, JUST TO BE CRYSTAL CLEAR. UM, BUT AT A HIGH LEVEL, IF WE JUST SEE THE DEFICIT SPENDING, YOU KNOW, WE, WE SEE $25 MILLION OUT OF THE BANK, BUT WE'RE SITTING ON ABOUT 300. SO THAT MONEY DOES EXIST TO PAY THAT BILL, RIGHT? AT A HIGH LEVEL, WE'RE STILL GOING THROUGH FUND BY FUND LINE, ITEM BY LINE ITEM. AND WE HAVE ANOTHER FEW WEEKS TO GET THROUGH THAT. UM, BUT RIGHT NOW IT LOOKS LIKE THE CITY WILL ULTIMATELY BE ABLE TO PAY THE BILL FOR THIS YEAR'S. THE REASON I ASKED THAT, BECAUSE YOU CAN BE CHARGED OF THE MONEY , I DON'T DECIDE WHERE THE MONEY GOES. I DO CUT THE CHECKS AND IT IS MY JOB TO MAKE SURE THAT THE MONEY'S IN THE BANK TO BE ABLE TO CUT THAT CHECK SO IT DOESN'T BOUNCE. BUT THAT IS WHERE THINGS STOP IN TERMS OF MY POWER. I CAN'T NOT PAY A CHECK. YOU KNOW, IF THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL SAY, HEY, WE'RE DOING THIS PROJECT, WE'RE GONNA GIVE A HUN 1.5 MILLION TO THIS VENDOR. IF THEY DO THE WORK, I CUT THE CHECK. THAT'S IT. NOW, IF THERE'S NOT 1.5 MILLION IN THE BANK ACCOUNT, THAT'S WHEN I SAY, HEY, I CAN'T CERTIFY THIS. WE CAN'T DO IT. WE GOTTA PUMP THE BRAKES UNTIL THAT IT'S MY JOB TO PAY THE BILL. YES, MA'AM. UH, ARE THE FINANCIAL POLICIES SURROUNDING THE TAX AGREEMENTS, ARE THOSE VOTED ON THE PART, THE BUDGET? IS IT THE INSTRUCTION OF THE MAYOR'S OFFICE? THOSE FINANCIAL POLICIES, UH, COME THROUGH STATE LAW AND THEN IT'S ULTIMATELY THERE'S AN APPLICATION PROCESS THAT FOLKS GO THROUGH. BUT THE FINAL APPROVAL IS AT THE CITY COUNCIL LEVEL, WHICH CERTAINLY INVOLVES THE MAYOR. UH, YES. AND THEN YOU, SIR, IN BETWEEN MM-HMM . AND SO MANY OF THEM HARD IDENTIFY AND HOW DIFFERE THIS HOUSE HERE, OR THEY HAVE GREEN TRASH CAN TO GET THE RIGHT, I MEAN, BE ALLOWED TO PAY FIVE WHEN THEY REALLY KNOW A AND SURE. SO THE QUESTION WAS ABOUT THIS $5 FEE. AND WHAT ABOUT PEOPLE WHO USE THE SYSTEM MORE THAN OTHERS? WHAT IF YOU GOT TWO TRASH CANS AND SO ON AT THE OUTSET? THERE'S GONNA BE NO DIFFERENTIATION BETWEEN THOSE. UM, MY GUESS I CAN'T GUARANTEE THIS. 'CAUSE AGAIN, THE MAYOR RUNS THE DEPARTMENT, NOT ME. I WOULD GUESS THAT OVER TIME THEY WOULD START TO HAVE SOME WAY OF HANDLING THAT OTHER CITIES DO WHEN IT'S SAY, HEY, WELL YOU HAVE TWO CANS AND SO YOUR FEE IS GONNA BE, YOU KNOW, THIS MUCH. UH, SAME THING WITH HEAVY TRASH THERE. OTHER CITIES HAVE, HEY, YOU'RE ENTITLED TO FOUR PICKUPS A YEAR, OR WHATEVER IT IS. AND AT THAT POINT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO KIND OF FIGURE SOMETHING ELSE OUT. AT THIS POINT. THERE'S NO RULES THAT EXIST AS IT RELATES TO THAT. WE STILL HAVE A MONTHLY HEAVY TRASH DAY, YOU KNOW, EVERY OTHER MONTH IT'S TREE WASTE AND YARD WASTE. AND IN THE SECOND MONTH IT'S, YOU KNOW, OTHER, UH, HEAVY TRASH. AND, UM, THAT'S STILL THE POLICY RIGHT NOW UNTIL, UH, FURTHER NOTICE. BUT YOU'D HAVE TO GET WITH THE DIRECTOR OF SOLID WASTE. NOW THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, UM, OR THE MAYOR TO GET MORE DETAIL THERE. YES, I'M GREAT. HOW ARE YOU? OKAY, NOW, YOU KNOW, I WAS BARELY BORN, RIGHT? [01:35:07] MM-HMM . SO, UH, THE QUESTION WAS, BACK IN THE LANIER DAYS IN THE EARLY TWO THOUSANDS, THERE WAS A 3% ADD-ON TO THE WATER BILL FOR TRASH. UM, AND THE QUESTION IS, WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THAT TODAY? UH, I DO NOT KNOW THE ANSWER, BUT I WILL LOOK INTO IT. WE'LL GET YOUR CONTACT INFO AND I'LL MAKE SURE THAT WE SEND YOU AN ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION. THANK YOU FOR ASKING. ONE DAY A WEEK. AT ONE DAY A WEEK OR TODAY, , WE, WE STILL TRYING TO GET ONE. Y'ALL. UH, FOR NOW, FOR NOW, IT'S ONE DAY A WEEK. UH, ALL RIGHT. SO NOW WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT THIS, RIGHT? WE JUST SHARED WITH YOU WHAT'S IN THE BUDGET, WHAT'S NOT IN THE BUDGET, SOME OF THE INS AND OUTS, SOME OF THESE GIMMICKS, SOME OF THESE REPEATED MISTAKES. UM, NOW THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. UH, THE FIRST THING THAT YOU CAN AND SHOULD DO IS CONTACT YOUR MEMBER OF CITY COUNCIL. WE GOT DISTRICT B IN THE HOUSE. YES, MA'AM. UM, YES, WE WELCOME YOUR FEEDBACK ON THIS. UM, IF YOU HAVEN'T SUBSCRIBE TO A NEWSLETTER, PLEASE DO. IT COMES OUT EVERY FRIDAY AT 5:00 PM EVERY FRIDAY AT 5:00 PM WE GET OUT A NEWSLETTER WHERE THE COUNCIL MEMBER IS SHARING HER THOUGHTS AND SOLICITING YOUR FEEDBACK. SO PLEASE EMAIL DISTRICT B@HOUSTONTX.GOV DISTRICT B@HOUSTONTX.GOV TO SEND US YOUR FEEDBACK AND TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER. YOU CAN ALSO CALL OR TEXT OUR MAINLINE. WE'RE THE ONLY OFFICE THAT YOU CAN TEXT THE MAIN LINE, WHICH IS 8 3 2 3 9 3 3 0 0 9 8 3 2 3 9 3 3 0 0 9. AND AGAIN, THIS IS FOR ANYTHING YOU MIGHT NEED. IF YOUR STREET EVER FLOODS, WE WANNA HEAR ABOUT IT. IF YOUR TRASH ISN'T PICKED UP, WE WANNA HEAR ABOUT IT. WE, WE ARE HERE FOR YOU. AND, UH, PLEASE USE THIS, UH, 'CAUSE WE HAVE 18 MONTHS LEFT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UM, I DID NOT MEMORIZE THAT PHONE NUMBER ALSO, ALTHOUGH I DO WANNA LEARN HOW Y'ALL GET THAT TEXT THING GOING. BUT THE EMAIL ADDRESS FOR DISTRICT B IS DISTRICT B@HOUSTONTX.GOV. UM, ALL THE OTHER DISTRICTS, A THROUGH K HAVE THE SAME EXACT EMAIL. DISTRICT A, DISTRICT B, DISTRICT C, AND THEN, UH, WE HAD AN AT LARGE MEMBER, UH, UH, JULIAN RAMIREZ WHO WAS REPRESENTED, UH, TO, NOW YOU HAVE YOUR DISTRICT MEMBER, COUNCIL MEMBER TARSHA JACKSON. YOU ALSO HAVE FIVE AT LARGE MEMBERS WHO REPRESENT YOU. THEIR EMAIL ADDRESSES ARE A ONE, A TWO, AL THREE, AL FOUR, AL5@HOUSTONTX.GOV. SO REACH OUT TO YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER TO SHARE YOUR CONCERNS. UM, YES, SIR. LEMME ASK YOU A QUESTION BEFORE YOU GO. WHEN YOU PRESENTED THIS TO CITY COUNCIL MAYOR, UH, WHAT WAS THE REACTION AND THE COMMENTS FROM THE COUNCIL AT THE TIME? SO, UM, THIS PARTICULAR PRESENTATION THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, THE ONE A YEAR AGO? NO, NO, YOUR PRESENTATION ON THE BUDGET AND WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH THE BUDGET. SURE. UM, SO THE TIME FOR ME TO PRESENT ON THIS BUDGET HASN'T COME YET. I GO IN ABOUT TWO WEEKS, BUT LAST YEAR, YOU KNOW, WE WENT UP THERE, SHARED THIS INFORMATION, TALKED ABOUT THE 10 HARD TRUTHS. UM, AND, AND JUST TO BE VERY FRANK WITH YOU, WHAT WE GOT WAS A REBUTTAL FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE AND THEM GOING DOWN ONE BY ONE TRYING TO TELL 'EM WHY THE TRUTH THAT WE SHARED WAS POLITICS OR THE TRUTH THAT WE SHARED HAD AN AGENDA OR SOMETHING OF THAT NATURE. AND AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, UH, EVERYTHING THAT WE LAID OUT WAS ESSENTIALLY IGNORED. UM, AND THEN NOW WE HAVE THE $200 MILLION DEFICIT TO SHOW FOR IT. AND HERE WE ARE. SO I GO IN TWO WEEKS AGAIN, BUT LET ME, LET ME SAY JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE HERE AND THEN I'LL TAKE MORE QUESTIONS SO YOU CAN CONTACT YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER. NUMBER ONE. NUMBER TWO, ATTEND BUDGET WORKSHOPS, EITHER IN PERSON OR VIRTUALLY. BUDGET WORKSHOPS ARE ALREADY HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, AND THEY'RE ESSENTIALLY EVERY SINGLE WEEKDAY FOR THE NEXT FEW WEEKS. ALRIGHT? AND SO YOU CAN FIGURE OUT ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE, WHEN DOES POLICE GO, WHEN DOES PUBLIC WORKS GO, WHEN DOES FIRE GO? RIGHT? AND YOU CAN, YOU CAN ATTEND THOSE WORKSHOPS. IF YOU DO IT IN PERSON, YOU'RE ABLE TO ASK QUESTIONS, RIGHT? IF YOU ATTEND VIRTUALLY, OBVIOUSLY YOU CAN JUST LEARN FROM THE CONVERSATION THAT TAKES PLACE AT THOSE WORKSHOPS. SO TUNE IN FOR THOSE AND TRY TO ATTEND, UH, THE ONES THAT YOU THINK ARE MOST IMPORTANT. AND THEN SPEAK AT THE PUBLIC HEARING. SO, ONE DAY, MAY THE 20TH, MAY [01:40:01] THE 20TH, THAT IS THE DATE OF THE PUBLIC HEARING. THAT'S WHEN YOU CAN COME UP TO THE MIC, LOOK THE MAYOR IN HIS EYE, LOOK THE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS IN THEIR EYE AND TALK TO THEM DIRECTLY ABOUT THESE ISSUES. NOW, WHETHER IT'S AT THE WORKSHOP, WHETHER IT'S AT THE PUBLIC HEARING, WHETHER IT'S IN YOUR CONTACT WITH YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER, WE GOT A COUPLE OF PIECES OF ADVICE. FIRST OF ALL, BE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR CONCERNS, RIGHT? IF YOU COME UP AND YOU SAY, I HATE THIS BUDGET, AND THEN YOU STORM 'EM OUT, THEY'RE GONNA FEEL THAT, BUT THEY'RE NOT GONNA KNOW WHAT THEY CAN DO TO ADDRESS YOUR CONCERNS. SO TRY TO BE SPECIFIC ABOUT THE ISSUE THAT YOU HAVE. NUMBER TWO, SUGGEST A SOLUTION AS WELL, RIGHT? SO, UM, SO YOU MAY HAVE A SPECIFIC CONCERN. MY NEIGHBORHOOD'S FLOODING TOO MUCH. THAT'S A SPECIFIC CONCERN. WELL, WHAT IS YOUR SOLUTION, RIGHT? IS IT, HEY, WE NEED TO ADD SOMETHING TO THE CIP. IS IT WHAT TARSHA JACKSON DID LAST YEAR SAYING, HEY, WE NEED TO ADD MORE MONEY TO THE DITCH MAINTENANCE PROGRAM, RIGHT? WHAT IS THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM THAT THEY CAN ENACT AND TRY TO MEET YOUR NEEDS? UH, CONNECT THAT COMMENT TO THE BROADER COMMUNITY, RIGHT? AND SO IF YOU'RE SAYING, LOOK, THERE'S A POTHOLE RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY DRIVEWAY IN MY HOUSE, AND I GOT A BIG PROBLEM WITH THAT AND I WANT IT FIXED, THEY WILL HEAR YOU. BUT I PROMISE YOU THAT YOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS WILL PERK UP A LITTLE BIT MORE IF YOU SAY, HEY, MY DISTRICT HAS THE HIGHEST, YOU KNOW, POTHOLES PER CAPITA, AND WE NEED MORE INVESTMENT IN THIS ENTIRE SWATH OF NEIGHBORHOODS. THAT HELPS THEM TO UNDERSTAND LIKE, OH, IT'S NOT JUST YOU THAT GOT AN ISSUE. IT'S ALL MY CONSTITUENTS THAT HAVE AN ISSUE, RIGHT? AND SO THAT'S ALSO HELPFUL AND GETTING THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL, YOU KNOW, TO PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. AND THEN FINALLY, YOU KNOW, STAY FOCUSED ON BUDGET RELATED ISSUES. IF YOU GO UP THERE AND TALK ABOUT SOMEBODY, MAMA, RIGHT? THAT AIN'T, THAT AIN'T GONNA GET YOU VERY FAR. NOR CAN THEY MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO HELP YOU IF YOU TALK ABOUT THEY MAMA, RIGHT? AND SO, TALK ABOUT AN ISSUE THAT'S FOCUSED ON THE BUDGET. MAKE IT SPECIFIC, OFFER A SOLUTION, AND CONNECT IT TO A BROADER COMMUNITY CONCERN. AND THAT'LL GIVE YOU THE BEST ODDS OF SUCCESS IN IMPACTING THIS BUDGET. WE ALREADY TOLD YOU THE EMAIL ADDRESSES, DISTRICT A, DISTRICT B, DISTRICT C, WE ALREADY, WE HAVE ONE FINAL LITTLE SCAN THING IF YOU WANT TO DO THAT. THAT'LL TAKE YOU TO THE CITY'S WEBPAGE FOR THOSE EMAIL ADDRESSES. BUT IT'S AS EASY AS DISTRICT LETTER@HOUSTONTX.GOV. UH, MY PERSONAL CONTACT INFO IS JUST THE SAME CONTROLLER@HOUSTONTX.GOV. UH, WE ALSO WANT YOU TO FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA TO KEEP TABS ON WHAT'S GOING ON. UH, MY PERSONAL E MY PERSONAL, UH, MY PERSONAL HANDLE ON SOCIAL MEDIA IS, IS MY INITIAL CG HOLLINS. MY MIDDLE NAME IS GEORGE CG HOLLINS. THAT'S TWITTER, THAT'S FACEBOOK, THAT'S INSTAGRAM, CG HOLLINS. AND THEN OUR CONTROLLER'S ACCOUNT IS DIFFERENT ACROSS PLATFORMS, BUT ON INSTAGRAM, I KNOW IT'S HOU CONTROLLER AND IN OTHER ONES IT'S SOME VERSION OF THAT. IT MIGHT BE HOUSTON CONTROLLER OR WHAT HAVE YOU. BUT OUR OFFICE, UH, HAS AN ACCOUNT THAT SHARES OFFICIAL INFORMATION, I PERSONALLY AND THAT CG HOLLINS, AND YOU CAN DM ME AND ASK ME QUESTIONS, UM, AND GIVE ME SPECIFIC COMMUNITY BASED SUGGESTIONS ABOUT THINGS WE NEED TO BE TALKING ABOUT. UH, AND WE'LL DO THAT. AND SO, I KNOW WE'VE BEEN TALKING A WHOLE LOT TONIGHT, BUT IF THERE ARE ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS, OH, WE GOT AN UPDATE. I TOLD YOU THAT MAY 20TH WAS THE DATE OF THE PUBLIC HEARING. IT HAS NOW BEEN RESCHEDULED FOR JUNE 3RD. JUNE 3RD IS THE NEW DATE OF THE PUBLIC HEARING. SO NOW I GOT A WHOLE NEW WAVE OF SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS I GOTTA MAKE TO REMIND PEOPLE. THAT IS NOW JUNE 3RD. UH, THANK YOU FOR THAT UPDATE. ALRIGHT, UH, ANY MORE QUESTIONS? I SEE ONE MORE BACK THERE. UH, AND THEN I SEE, UH, ONE MORE HERE. DOES THAT MEAN THE DATE OF THE BUDGET ALSO SHIFTED? LET'S SEE IF YOU CAN UNLOCK THIS PHONE. UH, LET ME ANSWER THIS OTHER QUESTION AND WE'LL COME BACK. YES. MONDAY IS WHEN THE PUBLIC JUST INTERESTED. THE COMING MONDAY AFTERNOON IS WHEN SOLID WASTE AND PUBLIC WORKS WILL HAVE THEIR BUDGET WORKSHOPS. SO THAT IS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO TUNE IN ON THOSE SPECIFIC ISSUES BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF PASSION, UH, AROUND, UH, THAT CHANGE THE COMING MONDAY. SO THAT'LL BE MAY 18TH AT CITY HALL IN THE AFTERNOON IS USUALLY ABOUT ONE OR TWO O'CLOCK. SO I DON'T BELIEVE THAT THE BUDGET DATES HAVE CHANGED. [01:45:02] AND SO THE PUBLIC HEARING, UM, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION IN THE BACK, THE PUBLIC HEARING ON JUNE 3RD WILL REMAIN THE FIRST DAY THAT THE BUDGET WILL BE CONSIDERED. IT WILL THEN MOST LIKELY BE TAGGED AND COME UP AGAIN ON JUNE THE 10TH. YOU GOT THAT? YEAH. OKAY, COOL. UH, HERE AND THEN IN THE BACK, UH, THIS ISSUE OF CHANGING WASTE, UH, GARBAGE FROM GENERAL FUND TO UTILITY, YOU'RE, YOU'RE ACTING LIKE IT'S ALREADY A DONE DEAL. I THOUGHT IT WAS, IT IS NOT A DONE DEAL. OH. UM, THIS IS ALL A, EVERYTHING WE JUST MENTIONED HERE IS A PROPOSAL. OH, UH, THERE WAS THE OPPORTUNITY, UH, FOR A CHANGE. IT'S IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET. UH, IT'S NOW YOUR JOB. IF YOU HAVE AN ISSUE WITH IT AND YOU WANNA SEE IT CHANGED TO CONTACT YOUR MAYOR, CONTACT YOUR MEMBERS OF COUNCIL, UM, AND PUSH FOR, UH, PUSH FOR A CHANGE. YES, SIR. THANKS. CONTROL CREW. IT'S A GREAT PRESENTATION. UM, MY NAME IS FELIX. I'M AT THE NORTHEAST ACTION COLLECTIVE. AND SO ONE, IF ANYONE NEEDS A RIDE TO CITY COUNCIL FOR ANY OF THE BUDGET HEARINGS, UM, PLEASE COME FIND ME. WE CAN COORDINATE TRANSPORTATION FOR YOU. THAT SHOULDN'T BE A REASON WHY YOU CAN'T ATTEND. UM, SO PLEASE COME FIND ME. AND THEN SECONDLY, JUST TO, JUST TO CONFIRM ON THE 5% RIGHT OF WAY, UH, THAT THE MAYOR IS GOING TO BE CHARGING OUR UTILITY SYSTEM, THAT'S ALSO GONNA COME FROM THE SAME FUND THAT'S PAYING FOR THE TRAFFIC, RIGHT? YES. THE SAME WATER FUND THAT'S GOING TO SUBSIDIZE SOLID WASTE WILL ALSO BE SUBSIDIZING THE GENERAL FUND WITH THIS RIGHT OF VOICE FEE. THAT IS CORRECT. THERE IS NO NEW STREAM OF REVENUE LIKE THE MAYOR IS SAYING. THAT IS CORRECT ASIDE THE $5. WE'RE MOVING MONEY OUT OF, OUT OF THE WATER FUND IN THIS PROPOSAL, PUSHING SOME TOWARDS SOLID WASTE, PUSHING SOME MORE TOWARDS THE GENERAL FUND, THERE WILL BE A NEW $5 FEE. OF COURSE, THAT $5 DOES NOT BEGIN TO COVER THE COST OF ACTUALLY PROVIDING SOLID WASTE. UH, BUT IT IS, YOU KNOW, TO BE FACTUAL. IT IS A NEW REVENUE STREAM. ALL RIGHT, I THINK I TIRED Y'ALL OUT. . LISTEN, UM, IT IS A PRIVILEGE TO REPRESENT YOU AS YOUR CITY CONTROLLER, YOUR TAXPAYER WATCHDOG. UH, I THANK Y'ALL AGAIN. UH, THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THIS ROOM, BUT IN A CITY OF MILLIONS, YOU KNOW, Y'ALL ARE THE CHANGE MAKERS. THE FOLKS WHO CARE ENOUGH TO GET IN A ROOM, UNDERSTAND WHAT'S REALLY GOING ON, AND THEN COMMIT TO MAKING A CHANGE. AND SO I JUST WANNA THANK Y'ALL FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION. I WANNA THANK Y'ALL FOR LISTENING. I WANNA THANK YOU FOR YOUR QUESTIONS. I DID MY BEST TO ANSWER EVERY ONE OF 'EM. AND THEN THE ONES THAT WE DIDN'T ANSWER, WE'RE GONNA GET BACK TO YOU. UM, WE WILL HAVE FIVE MORE OF THESE. THE NEXT ONE IS ON THURSDAY, UH, AT ACRES HOME, A MULTI-SERVICE CENTER. THE NEXT ONE AFTER THAT IS SUNDAY AFTERNOON DOWN AT AXELRAD. I DON'T WANNA GET YOUR HOPES UP. THE, THE INFORMATION WILL BE VERY SIMILAR, BUT AS I ALSO, UH, STATED BEFORE, WE'RE LEARNING SOMETHING NEW EVERY DAY. AND SO THIS WILL ALSO EVOLVE. AND AS NEW REALITIES COME ABOUT THAT WE BELIEVE HOUSTONIANS NEED TO BE AWARE OF, WE'RE GONNA ADD THAT TO THIS. UM, ACTUAL RAZ IS GONNA BE A LOT OF FUN ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON. IF YOU DON'T KNOW, ACTUAL RAD IS LIKE A BEER GARDEN. THEY GOT FOOD, WE'RE GONNA HAVE A DJ. UH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOME SPECIAL GUESTS. AND SO IF YOU WANNA COME AND JUST KIND OF HANG OUT AND BE AGAIN INVOLVED IN OUR COMMUNITY, UH, SUNDAY AT RAD WILL BE A GOOD TIME. THE FOLLOWING SATURDAY, MAY 23RD. UH, THIS IS ESPECIALLY FOR FOLKS WHO HAVE SPANISH SPEAKING FAMILY MEMBERS AND NEIGHBORS. UH, WE'RE GONNA BE AT LA ESCONDIDA SOCCER CLUB. UH, IT'S, IT'S KIND OF UP, YOU KNOW, NORTH AROUND KIND OF HARDY TOLL ROAD AREA JUST NORTH OF, UH, OF SIX 10. BUT WE'RE GONNA HAVE LIVE SPANISH TRANSLATION AT THAT ONE. WE'RE ALSO GONNA HAVE A FREE SOCCER CAMP FOR THE KIDS SO THEY CAN RUN AROUND AND PLAY WHILE THE ADULTS GET INVOLVED IN WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE CITY. AND SO SHARE THAT ONE WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS. WHAT, WHAT ARE THEY? IT'S GONNA BE IN ENGLISH TOO, SO THEY CAN SPEAK ENGLISH AND COME ON. BUT SPANISH AS WELL. UH, AT LA IT'S GONNA NEED A SOCCER CLUB ON SATURDAY, MAY 23RD. THAT'S ENOUGH FOR ME. AGAIN. UM, CONTROLLER@HOUSTONTX.GOV. CG HOLLINS, UH, AND HOUSTON CONTROLLER AS OUR SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLES. UH, VERY, VERY LAST THING. THERE'S ONE LAST SURVEY. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DO IT IN THIS ROOM, BUT WE WANNA TELL YOU ABOUT IT ALSO ON YOUR FLYER. THAT IS A SURVEY THAT OUR AUDIT DIVISION IS GOING TO USE TO PRIORITIZE WHAT THEY AUDIT NEXT. AND SO IF YOU TAKE THAT SURVEY, YOU CAN DO IT WHEN YOU GET HOME. YOU CAN CAN DO IT WHILE YOU'RE SITTING OUT IN THE CAR. UH, IT'S, IT'S ABOUT FIVE TO 10 MINUTES TO GET IT DONE, BUT IT SHARES WITH US MORE INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR PRIORITIES AND THE RISKS YOU SEE IN THE FUTURE FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON. AND OUR AUDIT DIVISION IS GONNA USE THAT TO MARKET ITS OWN PRIORITIES [01:50:01] FOR THE FUTURE. SO THAT'S OUR, THAT'S MY LAST PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT. I LOVE Y'ALL. THANK Y'ALL SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. I APPRECIATE YOU. GOD BLESS YOU. FRED. YOU WANNA US, ANYTHING? FRED, DON'T WANNA SAY AS MUCH AS YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.