* 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. [Community Budget Workshop on May 29, 2025.] [00:00:03] GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY. THANK YOU FOR COMING OUT TONIGHT. AND I'M GONNA START WITH JUST A REAL BRIEF INTRODUCTION. FIRST OF ALL, MY NAME IS MYAN RACKAGE. I AM THE, UM, ACTING CITY MANAGER, AND I'VE STEPPED IN TO HELP FACILITATE AND MOVE THINGS ALONG IN THE CITY. UM, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE, UH, MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL THAT ARE HERE. FIRST OF ALL, ROSARIO DIAZ IS HERE, AND OLE CONTOS IS HERE. I'LL START OUT BY A A, A BRIEF APOLOGY FROM THE CITY. UM, OBVIOUSLY THESE COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE COMMUNITY, AND THEY WEREN'T SCHEDULED OR FACILITATED IN A TIMELY MATTER, AND I APOLOGIZE ON BEHALF OF THE SAFER FOR THAT. MOVING FORWARD. WE HAVE SCHEDULED THREE, UH, COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS TO DISCUSS SPECIFICALLY THE BUDGET. AND I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT THE CONCERNS AND THINGS BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE CITY AT THESE MEETINGS ARE BEING CAPTURED, UM, WRITTEN DOWN. AND I WILL BE WORKING WITH THE COUNCIL TO MOVE FORWARD WITH ANY RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCERNS OF THE CITY. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT YOUR CONCERNS ARE NOT FALLING ON DEAF EARS. UH, IN FACT, ANYTHING THAT'S BEEN BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION FROM STEPPING IN AND BEING WITH THE CITY FOR SIX YEARS, UM, I'M HAVE NOW THE ABILITY TO IMPLEMENT. AND I HAVE BEEN HEARING THE COMMUNITY FOR OVER, UM, SIX YEARS. SO WITH THIS WILL BE OUR FIRST, UH, COMMUNITY MEETING FOR THE BUDGET. WE'VE HAD OTHER MEETINGS FOR OTHER TOPICS, UM, BUT WE HAVE OUR FINANCE DIRECTOR, ACTING FINANCE DIRECTOR, MARIE LOUISA WITH US TONIGHT. AND WHAT SHE'S GONNA DO IS SHE'S GONNA RUN THROUGH A BRIEF PRESENTATION ABOUT THE BUDGET, AND THEN AS THEIR QUESTIONS, DO YOU WANT QUESTIONS AS YOU GO ALONG, IS THAT EASIEST FOR YOU OR WOULD YOU LIKE THEM AT THE END OF YOUR PRESENTATION? SO AT THE END OF THE PRESENTATION, WE'LL BE MORE HAPPY TO ANSWER ALL THE, THE QUESTIONS YOU HAVE. SO WITH THAT, I'LL LET MARIA, MARIA LUISA, UH, TAKE OVER AND START WITH YOUR PRESENTATION STATION. THANK YOU. UM, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU GUYS FOR BEING HERE. I'D ALSO LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UM, CITY STAFF THAT'S HERE, UH, TO SHOW SUPPORT AND TO ALSO, UM, VIEW THE BUDGET. THAT'S OUR CITY CLERK, LISA SHERICK AND TOM STAPLETON, MIKE CREP, UM, AND ALSO FIRESTONE FOR RIT. SO WE HAVE, UM, I'LL PRESENT TO YOU THE PROPOSED BUDGET. I THOUGHT MYLAN WOULD WANT TO HAVE THE THUNDER, BUT AFTER, UM, GOING THROUGH FINANCIAL FORECAST, WE WENT, UM, HAD SEVERAL DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THE PROPOSED BUDGET. AND SO WE DO HAVE, WE'RE PRESENTING A BALANCED BUDGET FOR JUST THIS NEXT FISCAL YEAR. UM, SO, BUT ALSO THIS YEAR'S PRESENTATION WILL BE A LITTLE DIFFERENT FOR THE BUDGET WORKSHOP. THIS ONE'S A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAILED, UM, DIFFERENT FROM WHAT WILL GO TO COUNCIL. AND I DON'T KNOW, I, I'M A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT NUMBERS AND GOING INTO THE NUMBERS, SO HOPEFULLY I, I'M ASSUMING IF YOU'RE HERE, YOU ALSO LIKE THE NUMBERS, SO THIS IS WHY IT'LL BE A LITTLE DIFFERENT FROM PRIOR YEARS AS WELL. I HATE TO INTERRUPT, BUT YEAH. YOU SAID THIS IS ONLY 25, 25, 26. IT'S FISCAL YEAR 25, 26. SO YOU'RE ALREADY TALKING ABOUT AT, AT CITY COUNCIL, LAST CITY COUNCIL MEETING WHERE WE WERE TO HAVE A DEFICIT AND NOW WE'RE BALANCED FROM, RIGHT. I'LL, I'LL GO THROUGH THE DETAILS OF THAT. YEAH. OKAY. SO THIS YEAR'S BUDGET PROCESS BEGAN LAST DECEMBER WITH A BUDGET SURVEY OPENING UP DECEMBER THROUGH MAY. RESULTS OF THE SURVEY REVEAL RESIDENTS PRIORITY ON, UM, POLICE DEPARTMENT INFRASTRUCTURE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. BUT WE'LL GO INTO LIKE THE BUDGET, BUDGET SURVEY RESULTS LATER ON IN THIS, UM, PRESENTATION. THE LONG RANGE FINANCIAL FORECAST, UM, WAS THEN UPDATED AND PRESENTED TO COUNCIL IN MAY. HOWEVER, THE LONG RANGE WILL NEED TO BE REVIEWED AT A LATER DATE. AND IN ORDER TO GO FOR THE GFOA AWARD, WE NEED TO GET THIS FILED WITH COUNSEL. SO THIS WILL BE COMING FORWARD, UM, IN JUNE, LATER JUNE OR JULY. WE ALSO HAVE JUNE 3RD WHERE WE'LL PRESENT THE PROPOSED BUDGET TO COUNSEL. JUNE 17TH WILL BE, UM, THE ADOPTED BUDGET AND THE APPROPRIATIONS LIMIT. AND THEN WE NEED THAT FOR JULY 1ST TO START BUSINESS AS USUAL. AND THE NEW FISCAL YEAR STARTS CITYWIDE SUMMARY. SO REVENUES FOR ALL FUNDS COMBINED IS OVER 144. UM, PROPERTY TAX REMAINS THE CITY LARGEST REVENUE SOURCE FOLLOWED BY SALES TAX. UM, THE TOTAL EXPENDITURES, EXCLUDING TRANSFERS FOR ALL BUDGETED FUNDS ARE ESTIMATED TO BE A HUNDRED, A LITTLE OVER 156 MILLION. OVERALL, THE CITYWIDE BUDGET IS STRUCTURALLY BALANCED, AND WE'RE THE CITY IS INVESTING APPLICABLE FUND BALANCES THAT HAVE BEEN ACCUMULATED IN SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS BACK INTO ASSETS. MANY FUNDS, UM, MAKE UP THE TOTAL BUDGETED AMOUNT FOR CITYWIDE. HOWEVER, GENERAL FUND IS THE LARGEST, IT'S 82 MILLION IN EXPENDITURES [00:05:01] OR REALLY 67% OF THE CITY'S BUDGET. SO THIS IS THE PROPOSED GENERAL FUND SUMMARY, AND THIS IS HOW IT'S BEEN IN THE PAST TWO YEARS. SO THERE WAS A DEFICIT IN, UM, 22, 23, THEN THERE WAS A SURPLUS IN 23, 24 OF 830,000. AND THE BUDGET THAT WAS ADOPTED IN THE PRIOR YEAR HAD A SLIGHT SURPLUS, I GUESS YOU CAN SAY OF, OF $1,300. BASED ON THE LAST, UM, SECOND QUARTER RE BUDGET REPORT THAT WAS PRESENTED IN FEBRUARY, THERE WAS A DEFICIT PROJECTED OF 1.1 MILLION. AND SO THIS PROPOSED BUDGET HAS, UM, A BALANCE BUDGET OF ABOUT A SURPLUS OF 768. THE FUND BALANCE AT THE YEAR END FOR JUNE 30TH IS IT'S PROJECT, OR AT THE END OF JUNE 30TH, IS PROJECTED TO BE 20.7 MILLION, WHICH IS ALMOST 22% OF THE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES. OF THIS 3 MILLION IS A SIGN WHICH LEAVES A LITTLE OVER 17 MILLION. UM, AND AS YOU KNOW, WITH THE STATE AUDIT, THE COUNCIL ALSO REVISED THEIR FUND BALANCE POLICY TO ADHERE TO AN 18% RESERVE VERSUS THE 17% THAT WE HAD BEFORE. SO WITH THAT, WE WOULD STILL BE WITHIN, UM, OUR RESERVE REQUIREMENT, OUR NEW RESERVE REQUIREMENT. UM, THIS IS THE GENERAL FUND REVENUE SOURCES. THIS CHART ILLUSTRATES GENERAL FUND REVENUE SOURCES. UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, PROPERTY TAX AND SALES TAX ARE THE LARGEST COMPONENTS. AND HERE, UM, IT'S GOOD TO SEE A PIE CHART. YOU CAN SEE PROPERTY TAX IS HUGE. IT'S LIKE 76% SALES TAX. OTHER TAXES, UM, WHICH INCLUDE LIKE TOT TAX. AND THEN I'LL GO A LITTLE BIT INTO THE NUMBERS, UM, AND ALSO HIGHLIGHT SOME THINGS THAT WERE BROUGHT UP. SO HERE ARE, UM, THE REVIEW OF WHAT IS PROPOSED FOR THE 25 26 BUDGET. WE'RE PROJECTING 96, ABOUT 96.3 MILLION, AND THAT'S AN INCREASE OF 5.5% FROM THE 24 25 BUDGET. THE LARGEST INCREASE THAT YOU CAN SEE ON THERE IS A SECOND LINE. IT'S 2.6 MILLION. THEN I HAVE AN INCREASE IN SALES TAX. I'LL GO A LITTLE BIT INTO THAT ONE. SO IN 23, 24, WE, WE REALIZED THAT 26.2 MILLION, UM, IN REVENUE, THIS IS JUST GENERAL FUND AND OUR BUDGET, THIS WAS MORE ALIGNED WITH WHAT WE HAD BUDGETED BEFORE THAT, RIGHT? SO IT WAS LOWER. HOWEVER, SALES TAX PROVED TO BE HIGHER. AND SO WE'RE STILL ESTIMATING EVEN RIGHT NOW THAT WE'RE LEVELING OFF AND WE'RE PROJECTING ABOUT 25, UM, 0.9, AND WE ARE TRENDING TOWARDS THAT. AND SO WE'RE PROPOSING TO REALLY LEVEL OFF FOR 25, 26. BUT THIS IS A HUGE INCREASE FROM WHAT WE HAD ORIGINALLY BUDGETED CONSERVATIVELY IN 24 25. IT'S AN 11.2% INCREASE FROM THE PRIOR YEAR'S BUDGET. HOWEVER, IF YOU LOOK AT IT BASED ON OUR ESTIMATED FOR WHAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO GET THIS YEAR, IT'S ABOUT 2% PROPERTY TAX. IT'S PRETTY CONSTANT, UH, 3%. UM, AND BY THE WAY, THE PROPERTY TAX AND THE, THE PERCENTAGES RIGHT NEXT TO IT IS WHAT, WHAT PERCENTAGE IT IS OF THE GENERAL FUND REVENUE. AND THEN THERE'S OTHER TAXES, UH, CHARGES FOR SERVICES PRETTY MUCH LEVELED AS WELL. UM, PROP A EXCHANGE, I KNOW THAT WAS A DISCUSSION, UM, PRIOR. AND SO I DO HAVE IN THE BUDGET A 2.2 0.6 MILLION EXCHANGE, UH, TO GET AND RETURN FOR EXCHANGING 3.5 MILLION OF OUR PROP A. SO THIS IS ALREADY INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET IN ORDER TO BALANCE THIS CHART HERE. UM, YEAH, THIS CHART DISPLAYS THE FUND BALANCE OVER THE PAST SEVEN YEARS. IT SPIKED TO ABOUT 25 MILLION IN FISCAL YEAR 20, 20, 21, AND 24 MILLION AFTER THAT. AND IT'S ESTIMATED TO LEVEL BACK ABOUT 21 MILLION WHERE WE'VE BEEN AT. UM, AND LIKE I MENTIONED BEFORE, THE BUDGET HAS BEEN DESIGNED TO CONTINUE TO ADEQUATELY MAINTAIN THE CITY'S RESERVES. UH, WE RECENTLY WENT TO COUNCIL IN FEBRUARY, AND THAT FUND BALANCE POLICY WAS, UM, WAS INCREASED FROM 17% TO 18%. THIS IS THE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES. WELL, REVENUE HAS INCREASED. EXPENDITURES HAVE INCREASED AT A HIGHER RATE. UM, GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES FOR THE YEAR 25 26 ARE PROJECTED TO BE OVER 82 MILLION. AND THIS IS JUST FOR GENERAL FUND EXCLUDING TRANSFERS. SO, UM, THIS IS 8.4 MILLION INCREASE FROM THE CURRENT YEAR'S ORIGINAL BUDGET. MOST OF THIS OF THE INCREASE IS DUE TO SALARIES AND BENEFITS, THE UNFUNDED [00:10:01] ACCRUED LIABILITY AND, UM, WELL WORKERS' COMP. UM, MOST OF THE INCREASE HERE THOUGH, UH, MOST OF THE EXPENDITURES I SHOULD SAY, IS REALLY WITH SALARIES AND BENEFITS AND OVERTIME, AND THE CHART ON THE RIGHT, UM, IT REALLY DISTRIBUTES BASED ON OUR DEPARTMENTS. UM, 45% FOR POLICE, UM, 32% FIRE, AND UM, GENERAL GOVERNMENT 9%. AND THAT INCLUDES, UM, FINANCE, CITY CLERK, UM, CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE IT. SO HERE IS THE NUMBERS GOING FOR, UM, THE PROPOSED BUDGET FOR 25 26. SO THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT, LIKE I WAS SAYING, IS CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, THE CITY CLERK, UH, FINANCE IT, HUMAN RESOURCES. AND THERE YOU CAN SEE THERE'S AN INCREASE OF 251. NOW, I KNOW THERE'S A SAVINGS REALIZED THIS YEAR AND THINGS DO FLUCTUATE FROM WHAT IT WAS ACTUALLY RIGHT IN 23, 24. BUT THE BUDGET WAS, UM, WE SEE SOME SAVINGS IF YOU REALLY LOOK AT IT BECAUSE THIS NEXT FISCAL YEAR THERE ISN'T AN ELECTION, RIGHT? BUT THERE'S PLUS AND MINUSES BECAUSE THEN WE ALSO ARE DIVIDING AND GETTING, WELL, WE'RE BUDGETING FOR, UH, HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR, UM, WHERE BEFORE IT WAS COMBINED. SO THERE'S PLUSES AND MINUSES. OF COURSE, THE UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY ALSO INCREASED. AND SO EVEN THOUGH THERE'S SAVINGS IN SOME WAY, THERE'S ALSO, UM, WORKERS' COMP DISTRIBUTIONS THAT ARE ALSO FOR THIS ADMINISTRATION. UM, PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ARE COME TOGETHER. THIS INCLUDES A 3%, AND THAT'S MOSTLY DUE TO THE UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY. AND WORKERS' COMP COMMUNITY SERVICES INCLUDES A REALISTIC INCREASE TO MATERIALS AND SERVICES. AND THIS IS DUE, UM, MOSTLY JUST FOR CITY EVENTS. FIRE AND PD INCREASED BY ABOUT 9%. AND UM, THIS IS MOSTLY DUE TO THE UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY. WE HAVE AN UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY, OBVIOUSLY AS A WHOLE THAT WENT UP, BUT MOST OF IT IS FOR SAFETY, AND THAT'S THE MORE EXPENSIVE ONE. SO, UM, THE MAJORITY OF THE INCREASE IT WAS FOR SWORN, THERE WAS A 1.3 INCREASE ALONE FOR SWORN, AND WORKERS' COMP WENT, ALSO WENT UP BY 1.2 MILLION OR JUST SWORN. UM, SO THAT'S THE MAJORITY OF THAT INCREASE THERE. AND THEN OF COURSE THERE WAS AN MOU IN EFFECT FOR POLICE THAT AFFECTS THE INCREASE. PUBLIC WORKS IN, IN GENERAL FUND WENT UP SLIGHTLY, AND THAT'S DUE TO THE UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY AND WORKERS' COMP AS WELL. THIS IS THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES BY DEPARTMENT WITHIN THE GENERAL FUND. I KNOW TWO SLIDES AGO YOU SAW THE DISTRIBUTION IN THE CHART WHERE THEY TAKE PLACE, PD BEING ABOUT 45% OF THE BUDGET. UM, THIS IS THE FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES EMPLOYED BY EACH DEPARTMENT. AND THEN WE HAVE FIRE AT 76 FINANCE 14, WHICH INCLUDES IT PUBLIC WORKS, I MEAN, AT NINE, ALTHOUGH A LOT OF THE EMPLOYEES ARE ACTUALLY DISTRIBUTED TO THE SPECIAL REVENUE FUND. SO THEY WOULD BE FROM, UM, SEWER FUNDS, UM, IMPACT FEES AND SO, OR NOT, SORRY, NOT IMPACT FEES, UM, SEWER FUNDS, GAS TAX, AND OTHER DISTRIBUTIONS WHERE THEY ACTUALLY CAN BE CHARGED. UH, PENSION COSTS YOU SEE HERE, I MEAN, WE DIDN'T HAVE A, IT'S KIND OF SMALL, I KNOW, BUT, UM, THE UAL, YOU SEE THAT INCREASING AND THAT'S REALLY WHAT'S DRIVING THE INCREASE. 'CAUSE EVERYTHING ELSE, IT'S REALLY, THAT'S BASED ON THE NORMAL RATE. SO THAT'S BASED ON THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES WE DO HAVE. OF COURSE, THERE'S A SLIGHT INCREASE DUE TO RATE INCREASES, BUT THAT'S HOW IT'S GOING UP. AND THEN WE HAVE A SUPPLEMENTAL PLAN FOR PARS. UM, BUT THE UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY IS REALLY WHAT'S DRIVING THE HUGE INCREASE THAT WE'RE PROJECTING AND THAT YOU CAN FIND ON THE CALPERS WEBSITE. UM, THE GENERAL FUND'S WORKERS' COMP FUNDING, UM, HERE, THIS IS, WE HAVE AN INTERNAL SERVICE FUND THAT THE CITY HAS, AND SO THAT FUNDS THE LIABILITY, AND THAT'S WHERE WE REPORT THE LIABILITY BASED ON OUR ACTUARIAL. THE FUNDING IS GENERATED THROUGH EMPLOYER BENEFIT THROUGH PAYROLL, AND ALSO BY WAY OF TRANSFERS, UH, PER THE CITY'S FUND BALANCE POLICY. SO THE PROPOSED BUDGET HAS INCORPORATED A 3.61 INCREASE AND, UH, OR 3.3 0.61, UM, MILLION TO BE INTO THE WORKERS' COMP. THE FUND CURRENTLY HAS A LIABILITY OF 24.5 MILLION AS OF OUR FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, JUNE 30TH, 2024, AND THAT WAS OUR AUDITED. NOW IT WAS 20.5 THE YEAR BEFORE THAT, AND THEN 12.7 MILLION IN FISCAL YEAR 2022. AND THAT'S BASED ON OUR A CFR. UM, SO YOU CAN SEE IT LIKE DOUBLED IN A COUPLE OF YEARS. [00:15:02] THAT'S THE LIABILITY. THIS RIGHT HERE THOUGH, I'M TALKING ABOUT WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING INTO THE, UH, WORKERS' COMP, SO COMING OUT OF OUR GENERAL FUND IN ORDER TO FUND THOSE. UM, BUT THIS IS THE WORKERS' COMP IN LIKE THE FISCAL YEAR AND WHAT WE'RE EXPECTING TO FUND THROUGHOUT, UM, AND THE PROJECTED LOSSES THAT WE WE'RE GETTING FROM THE ACTUARIAL. SO THAT'S WHAT THE LOSSES WOULD ACTUALLY WERE PROJECTING TO BE IN THAT FUND. UM, THIS IS FOR REVIEW. THIS IS THE DISTRIBUTION OF CLAIM LIABILITY FOR THE CITY OF WEST COVINA, THE LARGEST BEING VEHICLE ACCIDENTS, SLIPS AND TRIPS FALLING TREE. AND THIS IS BASED ON THE NUMBER OF OPEN CLAIMS, NOT THE DOLLAR AMOUNT. I JUST WANNA PUT THAT THERE. UM, IN 2019, THE CITY'S EXCESS INSUR INSURANCE CARRIER, UM, CAL JPIA PERFORMED AN INITIAL RISK MANAGEMENT EVALUATION TO ASSIST THE CITY IN ADDRESSING AREAS IN WHICH THE RISK EXPOSURE OR LAST LOSS DATA SUPPORT THE NEED FOR CHANGE IN OPERATIONS OR ACTIVITY. UM, AFTER THAT, THERE WERE QUITE A FEW ACTIONS TO BE MADE. UM, AND WE HAVE COMPLETED ABOUT WELL OVER 50. SO, AND THERE'S STILL A FEW IN PROGRESS. THEY HAD IDENTIFIED 63 ACTION ITEMS. UM, THEY'RE BEING REVIEWED MONTHLY AND, UH, WITH OUR RISK MANAGER. AND SO, UM, FOR NOW, AND WE'RE ALSO IN THE PROCESS OF, UM, RECRUITMENT HERE, UM, IS THE 25 26 PROPOSED BUDGET HAS BEEN BASED ON PRIOR ACTUALS FOR OVERTIME. THIS IS WHERE WE'RE AT, KIND OF LEVELING OFF OVERTIME. UM, MOST OF THE OVERTIME HERE IS PD AND FIRE. AND THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE, JUST, I WANTED TO INCLUDE LIKE APPLES TO APPLES. THIS IS JUST OVERTIME, NOT REIMBURSABLE, OVERTIME, NOT, UM, EMBEDDED FLSA OVERTIME THAT'S PRESENT FOR FIRE. SO AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, THESE ARE, UM, WE HAD THE BUDGET SURVEY AND WE RECEIVED 28 RESPONSES, 86% COMING FROM RESIDENTS. AND, UM, THE RESPONDENTS WERE ASKED THEIR OPINION ACROSS 10 DIFFERENT SERVICE CATEGORIES. THE RESPONDENTS RANKED INFRASTRUCTURE, UM, THE MOST IMPORTANT, WHICH IS DIFFERENT FROM PRIOR YEAR. PRIOR YEAR WAS POLICE FIRST, BUT STILL THEY'RE THE TOP TWO. SO INFRASTRUCTURE FOLLOWED BY POLICE AND THEN FIRE AND EMS. ADDITIONALLY, MOST RESPONDENTS ASSIGN THEIR DOLLARS TO POLICE, UH, FOLLOWED BY INFRASTRUCTURE. IT'S JUST A DIFFERENT QUESTION. RESPONSES ALSO REVEALED THAT, UM, THERE WAS A NEED FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING WERE ALSO IMPORTANT, SORRY, IN COMPARISON WITH THE CITY'S PROPOSED BUDGET EXPENDITURES CITYWIDE HAVE BEEN SIMILARLY ALLOCATED TO POLICE PUBLIC SERVICES, WHICH INCLUDES THE MAINTENANCE OF THE CITY INFRASTRUCTURE FOLLOWED BY FIRE. AND, UM, THE BUDGET SURVEY ALSO CONVEYED THAT RESPONDENTS FELT THE FOLLOWING THREE ITEMS NEED IMPROVEMENT. UM, SO THIS WAS LIKE THE IMPORTANCE, BUT THEN THE, THE FEEL THAT, UM, STREETS, SIDEWALKS, AND TRAFFIC SIGNALS NEED IMPROVEMENT, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING. SO, UM, THE BUDGET WAS PROPO OR IS PROPOSED IN THE SERVICE LEVELS ARE PROPOSED TO REMAIN LEVEL ACROSS OPERATIONS. THERE'S NO NEW POSITIONS THAT ARE PROPOSED, LIKE NO INCREASE IN POSITIONS TO BE ADDED. HOWEVER, UM, THERE HAVE BEEN SOME THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN PROPOSED AND WE PROPOSE TO MAINTAIN. SO THE RECREATION AND COMMUNITY SERVICE PROGRAMS, INCLUDING THE SPORTSPLEX OPERATIONS ARE INCLUDED. SPECIAL EVENTS ARE ALSO INCLUDED, SUCH AS SPRING FESTIVAL, 4TH OF JULY, EGG HUNT, SUMMER CONCERTS, CHRISTMAS PARADE, AND HALLOWEEN TREE TRIMMING AND LANDSCAPING MAINTENANCE TO PREVENT LIABILITY PROBLEMS, REDUCE TREE MORTALITY, AND IMPROVE URBAN FOREST HEALTH OVER THE LONG TERM. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS, UM, AND THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT, UH, WE DO HAVE THE SPORTS FLEX INCLUDED IN THERE, UM, AND STAFF IS EVALUATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE COMPLEX TO BE SELF-SUSTAINING AND INCREASE THE LOCAL SALES TAX BASE. THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, WE WENT TO COUNCIL A COUPLE MONTHS AGO, AND UNLESS WE, UM, EXPLICITLY GET DIRECTION OR SOMETHING WITH, UH, A HEALTH DEPARTMENT, WE HAVE NOT INCLUDED ANY REVENUES OR EXPENDITURES FOR THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT UNTIL THAT IS, UM, CLARIFIED WITH COUNCIL AND WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT. AND THEN, OH, I SHOULDN'T, WELL, THE CHAMBER HAS BEEN UPDATED, BUT I ALSO DID NOT INCLUDE ANY GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES FOR THE CREATION [00:20:01] AND ONGOING FOR THE CHAMBER. THIS, I, I KNOW IT COULD BE A LOT HERE, BUT I INCLUDED THE 25, 26, UH, FUNDED CAPITAL PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE. MOST OF THESE ARE FROM DIFFERENT SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS AND OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND. UM, THEY'RE FUNDED MOSTLY FROM OUR LOCAL RETURN MAINTENANCE DISTRICTS MEASURE W SB ONE OR RMRA AND DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEES. UM, IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT WE DO NOT HAVE PARK PROJECTS. THEY'VE BEEN INCORPORATED, THEY HAVEN'T BEEN INCORPORATED INTO THE BUDGET AS THIS IS UNDERGOING A PARKS MASTER PLAN ASSESSMENT. UM, OVER 77% OF THE CIP BUDGET IS FUNDED WITH LOCAL RETURN, 9% IS FROM OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN. LIKE OUR GENERAL FUND, I GUESS GENERALLY FUNDED. AND SO THIS IS THE LIST THERE. I WON'T GO ONE BY ONE, BUT THAT'S THERE. THE, THERE'S 12.6 MILLION. UM, THIS IS THE DISTRIBUTION. I MEAN, THERE'S 120 FUNDED PROJECTS IN TOTAL, LIKE WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE CITY NOW. 12 MILLION IS PROPOSED FOR NEW PROJECTS FOR THIS NEXT FISCAL YEAR. AND THIS IS THE DISTRIBUTION OF WHERE, I GUESS THE CATEGORIES OF WHAT THEY ARE. UM, IN THE ENTRANCE WE HAD THE BUDGET AND BRIEF. UM, AND THAT'S REALLY IT. I AM OPEN TO ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. I HAVE A QUESTION. YES. OH, THAT'S OKAY. I TALK, I THINK EVERYBODY CAN HEAR. I THINK IT'S FOR, UM, THE BROADCAST. OH, WE'RE, OKAY. QUESTION. UM, YOU WENT RECENTLY TO THE MOST RECENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING AND YOU REPORTED A DEFICIT FOR 25, 26. ON HERE. YOU'RE REPORTING REVENUE AND EXPENDITURES EVEN NOW. WHAT CHANGED FROM THAT DAY, OTHER THAN YOU BEING BERATED AND DEMEANED? UM, WHAT CHANGED? THAT MADE US ALL OF A SUDDEN BALANCED, UM, IN DETAIL. THERE, THERE WAS AN INCREASE THAT I HAD, UM, FOR SALES TAX FOR A HUNDRED THOUSAND. UM, WE ALSO HAVE A FUND BALANCE IN OUR DEBT SERVICE. AND SO AS LONG AS I'M WITHIN THE RESERVES, I AM FUNDING THE PROJECTS, LIKE I'M, I'M SORRY, THE DEBT SERVICE PAYMENTS. AND SO THERE WAS SOME SAVINGS THAT NOT BECAUSE WE WERE USING THE RESERVES AND THE INTEREST THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY GAINING IN THAT FUND, THAT WAS ALSO THERE. AND THEN THERE WERE SOME CUTS ALSO IN, UM, IN A COUPLE DEPARTMENTS, I THINK. YEAH. YES. UM, IF YOU'D LIKE TO STATE YOUR NAME, I DON'T KNOW IF FOR THE BROADCASTER, MY NAME'S ERNESTO GARCIA, WHAT WOULD'VE KEPT YOU FROM INCLUDING THOSE TO BEGIN WITH? WHAT WOULD'VE KEPT ME FROM INCLUDING THOSE EXPENDITURES IN THE BUDGET? CORRECT. YES. UM, WELL, SALES TAX, IT'S VOLATILE, SO I MEAN, THAT'S NOT SOMETHING, I MEAN, AS YOU SAW, I ALREADY HAD AN 11.2 INCREASE AND YOU KNOW, I, IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT WE WANTED TO DO, BUT, UM, THOSE OTHER ITEMS ACTUALLY, THEY HAD TO GET PERMISSION FROM A DEPARTMENT, UH, A FEDERAL DEPARTMENT IN ORDER TO ALLOCATE SOME OF THOSE EXPENSES TO A DIFFERENT OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND. BUT I THINK IT'S JUST A, WELL, IT IS, IT'S NOT, I THINK IT'S A, IT'S A ONE TIME DEAL TOO. I'D ALSO LIKE TO KNOW, I MEAN, SPORTSPLEX IS THERE NEXT YEAR WOULD BE FACING A DIFFERENT THING TOO, BECAUSE WE ALSO HAVE ELECTIONS, SO THAT'S AN EXTRA $300,000. BUT AT LEAST FOR THIS YEAR, SOME THINGS WE'RE ABLE TO BE MOVED OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND. UH, SORRY, BACK UP QUESTION. DO YOU THINK, IS IT, IS FISCALLY PRUDENT TO DO THAT TO, TO, TO, TO ADD THESE ON? DO YOU THINK IT'S GOOD, GOOD, UH, THE, A GOOD WAY TO PROJECT? DO YOU THINK THAT THAT'S A SMART WAY TO, TO, TO ADD, UH, TO CREATE A SURPLUS? I I HOPE I'M BEING CLEAR ENOUGH. WELL, THERE'S BEEN PRACTICES, UM, I GET IT THERE. I MEAN, THERE'S A LOT OF ASSUMPTIONS IN, IN HERE, AND I DO HAVE, I KNOW COUNCIL, LIKE, PERHAPS LIKE THE PROP A EXCHANGE FOR EXAMPLE, WAS INCLUDED IN THERE. UM, THESE ARE THE MEASURES TO GET A BALANCED BUDGET. AND WE DON'T WANT TO, WE NEED TO HAVE, I MEAN, THAT IS THE GOAL, [00:25:01] UM, OF THE CITY TO HAVE A BALANCED BUDGET AND WE NEED TO ADOPT A BUDGET, UM, TO MAKE PAYROLL, I MEAN, TO DO ANY TYPE OF EXPENDITURES FOR THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR. UM, SO I MEAN, I THINK IT'S GENERAL, BUT, UH, I'M HAVING AN ISSUE WITH THE GENERAL CONCEPT OF, WELL, WE, WE JUST CHANGED THE NUMBERS, SO WE GOT A BALANCED BUDGET NOW, UH, LAST YEAR, UH, WE WERE TOLD IT WAS A BALANCED BUDGET. AND AS YOU JUST SAID ON AN EARLIER SLIDE, I THINK THE DEFICIT WAS 1.2 MILLION. AND THAT'S PROBABLY MORE REALISTIC IN TERMS OF WHAT WILL HAPPEN THIS YEAR, UNLESS THERE'S AN ACTUAL, ACTUAL CHANGE IN, UH, CITY'S OPERATION. AND I GUESS WHAT I'M TRYING TO CONVEY IS THE CITY IS, AS THE AUDITOR HAS SAID, HAS BEEN RUNNING DEFICITS AS A GENERAL PRACTICE FOR MANY YEARS. I, AND THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE AN ATTEMPT BEING MADE TO CHANGE ACTUAL OPERATIONS TO DEAL WITH IT. AND THE OVERALL CONTEXT YOU EXPLAINED, WHICH IS THAT WE'RE HAVING HUGE INCREASES IN PENSION COSTS DUE TO THE UNFUNDED LIABILITY WE'RE HAVING IN HUGE INCREASES IN WORKERS' COMP. AND WE'RE NOT HAVING COMMENSURATE INCREASES IN REVENUE TO DEAL WITH THOSE ISSUES. SO SOMETHING ELSE HAS TO GIVE, AND I'M TALKING ABOUT PART OF THE ACTUAL CITY OPERATION, AND I DON'T SEE ANYTHING IN YOUR, YOUR PRESENTATION TODAY THAT SAID THAT THERE'S GONNA BE ANY, ANY ACTUAL CHANGES IN CITY'S OPERATION. AND I, I'M REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE OVERALL APPROACH, FISCAL APPROACH IN THE CITY. I KNOW AT THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING, THE, SOME OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS EXPRESSED A LOT OF UNHAPPINESS THAT THERE WAS A PROJECTION OF DEFICITS IN THE FUTURE, AND THEY DIRECTED ESSENTIALLY YOU TO CHANGE IT SO THAT IT DIDN'T SHOW THAT. AND, BUT THAT ISN'T REAL. THAT'S THE ISSUE HERE, THERE, IF THERE HAS TO BE SOME KIND OF CHANGE IN OPERATIONS THAT WOULD BRING THE BUDGET IN, I MEAN, THE ACTUAL EXPENDITURES AND THE ACTUAL REVENUE INTO BALANCE. AND I DON'T SEE ANY PLAN TO DO THAT. AND I'M, THAT'S PRETTY MUCH IT. I, I'M NOT PROJECTING, UM, THIS PRESENTATION IS JUST FOR 25, 26. UM, NOT FUTURE YEARS, BUT, OKAY. HI. YES. UM, UH, BRIAN GABA E UH, SO I FIRST, UM, ARE WE IN NEGOTIATION WITH, UH, ANY OF OUR, OUR LABOR GROUPS? 'CAUSE I KNOW, UH, I BELIEVE YOU SAID 67% OF THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET IS SALARY AND BENEFITS. YES. SO, UM, I GUESS MY QUESTION IS, UM, ARE THE NUMBERS THAT YOU'RE PROJECTING HERE BASED ON WHAT THE SALARY AND BENEFITS WILL BE IN 25 OR 26, OR IF YOU'RE IN NEGOTIATION, I KNOW YOU'RE NOT GONNA PUT A PROJECTED NUMBER BECAUSE YOU'RE IN NEGOTIATIONS, BUT SHOULD WE EXPECT THAT NUMBER TO CHANGE? UH, THAT'S MY FIRST QUESTION. AND THEN THE OTHER ONE, I DIDN'T SEE A NUMBER ON THE SPORTSPLEX. UH, I KNOW WE, PREVIOUS YEARS, I THINK WE WERE, UM, THREE QUARTERS OF A MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR WAS GOING INTO THE SPORTSPLEX THAT WE WERE SUBSIDIZING. UH, IS THAT CLOSE TO THE NUMBER WE'RE ALSO EXPECTING THIS YEAR? UH, I KNOW NEITHER OF THE RESTAURANTS ARE OPEN, UH, AND WE HAVEN'T HAD A FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS. SO, UM, I GUESS THOSE WILL BE MY TWO QUESTIONS. I GUESS FIRST LABOR, ARE WE CURRENTLY NEGOTIATING AND SHOULD WE SEE, SHOULD WE EXPECT TO SEE AN INCREASE IN SALARY AND BENEFITS? AND THEN THE OTHER SPORTSPLEX? THANK YOU. OKAY. I'LL HAVE MYLAN DISCUSS THE FIRST, I'LL ANSWER THE FIRST PART OF THAT. SO OBVIOUSLY I INHERITED A, A BUNCH OF BARGAINING GROUPS THAT ARE NOT UNDER CONTRACT. SO WITHIN THE FIRST COUPLE DAYS, I STARTED MEETING WITH THE GROUPS AND WE DID A COUPLE INITIAL ROUNDS. AND INSTEAD OF DEFERRING A MONTH OR TWO DOWN THE ROAD TO DO THE SECOND AND THIRD MEETING, WE'RE REALLY SCHEDULING THEM COME BACK AT A WEEK. AND THE EMPHASIS IS FOR ME TO BRING ALL THESE PEOPLE UNDER CONTRACT, UM, [00:30:01] RAPIDLY, UH, WE'RE VERY CLOSE ON A COUPLE MORE, JUST WITHIN THE LAST WEEK, I'LL BE MEETING WITH THE OTHER GROUPS IN THE NEXT WEEK OR TWO. AND I BELIEVE WE'LL BE ABLE TO BRING ALL THE GROUPS UNDER CONTRACT WITHIN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. UH, AGAIN, I, AS YOU'RE, YOU'RE AWARE, UH, THAT I HAVE CERTAIN AUTHORITY AND I'VE BEEN GRANTED CERTAIN LEVELS THAT I COULD NEGOTIATE TO AT A MAXIMUM. SO I'LL LET MARIA TALK ABOUT THE NUMBERS, BUT I CAN TELL YOU WE'RE ACTIVELY NEGOTIATING WITH EACH GROUP, AND WE'RE LOOKING TO BRING EVERYBODY IN OUR CONTRACT, AND WE'RE LOOKING FOR A, AT LEAST A, IT'S A THREE YEAR CONTRACT AT MINIMUM FOR ALL OF THEM. SO WE'LL HAVE SET NUMBERS MOVING FORWARD, SO WE KNOW WHAT THE INCREASES IN 25, 26, 26, 27. SO THERE'S NO, UM, QUESTION ABOUT HOW MUCH COST OF, UH, CITY STAFF IS GONNA GO UP IN THROUGH THE BARGAINING GROUPS. OKAY. SO, SO THEN JUST SO I'M, I'M UNDERSTANDING THE, THE BUDGET YOU PRESENTED HERE IS BALANCED. SO ONCE WE COME TO AGREEMENT WITH THE BARGAINING GROUPS, THEN WE SH WE WOULD BE, UM, DEFICIT SPENDING, RIGHT? BECAUSE THEY, WELL, I MEAN, UNLESS YOU'RE A WONDERFUL NEGOTIATOR AND THEY JUST MAINTAIN THE SAME PAY , BUT I, I DON'T KNOW THAT THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN. UH, BUT, SO THEN I AM ASSUMING THAT WE ARE, WE, WE UNDERSTAND WHERE THE FUNDS, UH, I GUESS WE'RE GONNA BE DIPPING INTO RESERVES. UH, IN ORDER TO MAKE UP THE BALANCE, PROBABLY, I'M GONNA ANSWER THE FIRST PART OF THAT. SO ONE OF THE EXERCISES I WANTED TO DO RIGHT AWAY IS TO MEET WITH THE MARIA AND THE FINANCE TEAM AND THE EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT TEAM THAT IF THERE'S AN EXPENSE CURRENTLY IN GENERAL FUND, AND IT COULD BE ACTUALLY CAPTURED BY A SPECIAL REVENUE FUND, REMOVE, REPLACE, AND THAT FREES UP THAT MONEY. UH, ONE OF MY DIRECTIONS, OBVIOUSLY, I, I ATTEND ALL THE COUNCIL MEETINGS I HAVE FOR SIX YEARS, AND I DON'T GET INTO THE WEEDS OF THE NUMBERS, BUT WHAT I DIRECTED FINANCE TO DO ON THE FIRST DAY WAS WHATEVER WE PRESENT, MAKE SURE IT'S REAL AND ACCURATE NUMBERS. AND MY ANALOGY WAS, I DON'T WANT TO COME TO IT WITH A BUDGET SAYING, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA GO TO VEGAS, PUT IT ON RED, AND WE KNOW IT'S GONNA HIT. SO I WANTED HER TO COME BACK, THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT AND THE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS WITH A REALISTIC, SUSTAINABLE, BALANCED BUDGET AND TAKE OUT ANYTHING, ANY EXCESS THAT WE DIDN'T NEED TO SPEND MONEY ON THAT WAS CUT. WE REMOVE THAT. AND THERE WERE SOME IDEAS THAT ARE ON HOLD NOW. THERE'S A WHOLE LIST OF WISHLIST THINGS, WHICH ARE JUST THAT RIGHT NOW THEY'RE A WISHLIST. UH, THE BALANCES BUDGET, IT'S SUSTAINABLE. UM, THE BARGAINING GROUPS, I'LL LET MARINA TALK TO IF THE NUMBERS ARE FULLY INCORPORATED OR NOT. UM, BUT LOOK, THE, THE BARGAINING GROUPS, IT'S A MINIMAL THING AT BEST. UH, IT'S NOT GONNA HAVE A HUGE IMPACT. I BELIEVE THOSE ARE INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET. MOST OF THE COSTS THAT WE'RE INCURRING, WE'RE SEEING A BIG CREASE IS STUFF THAT WE'RE, IS NOT IN OUR CONTROL, BUT THE STUFF WE CAN CONTROL, THE DIRECTION IS TO MAKE SURE IT'S TIGHT, IT'S CORRECT, AND WHATEVER WE RESENT IS ACCURATE. OKAY. UM, THE SPORTSPLEX, WE DO HAVE, ACTUALLY, IN OUR BUDGET, WE DO HAVE THAT WE WILL BE SUPPLEMENTING AND HAVING A TRANSFER ABOUT 900,000 TO THE SPORTSPLEX. SO THAT'S INCLUDED IN THERE. YES. UH, ONCE AGAIN, YOU ALSO SPOKE ABOUT THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. NO EXPENDITURES, I JUST WANT CLARIFICATION ON THAT. WHEN YOU MEAN NO EXPENDITURES, ARE WE TALKING ABOUT NO MONEY GOING TO COVERING THE DOCTOR THAT'S ON STAFF, OR COULD YOU CLARIFY WHAT YOU MEAN? EXPENDITURES? THERE ARE NO NEW PROPOSED EXPENDITURES FOR 25, 26 FUNDS TO BE USED, UM, TOWARDS THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THERE IS A CONTRACT, SO IF THAT'S ALREADY IN PLACE, BUT THAT'S, THAT'S BEEN APPROVED PREVIOUSLY, THERE'S NOTHING NEW FOR HEALTH DEPARTMENT. SO YOU'RE REFERRING TO NEW CORRECT. NEW. I WILL MAKE SURE TO CLARIFY THAT IN THE NEXT ONE. OKAY. SO I, I HAVE MY NAME'S LISA AUER. MR. MILAN, HI. I'VE BEEN EMAILING YOU BACK AND FORTH OVER THIS PAST WEEKEND. I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PICTURES. WELL NOT ENJOY THEM, BUT, YOU KNOW, YOU SAW WHAT WAS THERE. UM, I THINK WHAT I WOULD LIKE IS JUST A REGULAR RESIDENT AND I, I HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF BUDGETS BECAUSE I'VE WORKED FOR EDISON FOR 36 YEARS. I WAS A FINANCIAL ANALYST. AND THE WAY WE DO BUDGETS IS, I'M TRYING TO WRAP MY HEAD AS TO HOW A REGULATORY BUDGET IS AND HOW YOU DO YOUR BUDGETS HERE. AND I, I HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS THAT I'M NOT GONNA ASK ABOUT THAT RIGHT NOW, BUT I THINK I WANNA SPEAK ON BEHALF MORE OF [00:35:01] THE RESIDENTS. FIRST OF ALL, WHAT WAS THE MAIN OBJECTIVE OF HAVING THESE BUDGETARY MEETINGS, OTHER THAN BRINGING UP TRANSPARENCY THAT, YOU KNOW, YES, YOU EXPLAINED IT TO US, BECAUSE TO ME, THIS IS SUCH A HIGH LEVEL AND YOU DID A GREAT JOB. 'CAUSE I KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO BRING NUMBERS TOGETHER AND SUCH, BUT FOR JUST REGULAR RESIDENTS, THEY'RE GONNA LOOK AT THIS AND, YOU KNOW, AND I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF YOU HAVE HANDOUTS OF YOUR PRESENTATION, IF, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN HAVE? YES. I MEAN, YOU COULD HAVE HANDOUTS. I DID NOT PRINT THOSE OUT. NO, THAT, THAT'S FINE. THAT'S, I UNDERSTAND. NOT, I'M NOT ASKING THIS MOMENT, UM, ONE PAGE BUDGET AND BRIEF THAT I PRINTED OUT. YEAH, BUT I, I MEAN, WE COULD, IF THEY REQUEST IT, WE COULD ALSO EMAIL THEM, OR I CAN PUT IT ON THE WEBSITE. ACTUALLY, WE WILL HAVE IT ON THE WEBSITE. I'LL PUT IT UNDER FINANCE DEPARTMENT. THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO, BECAUSE I THINK THAT WAS MUCH MORE DETAILED THAN WHAT WE SEE AT THE HIGH LEVEL HERE. AND SO A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL ASK MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT. SO I'M JUST GONNA KIND OF ASK THE GENERALIZED QUESTIONS THAT EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT MOSTLY, AND WHAT WE HEAR FROM RESIDENTS SUCH AS MR. GRITCH BACK HERE, WHO COMES OUT AND SAYS EVERY SINGLE TIME THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU GUYS ARE GOING OVER, YOU GUYS ARE GOING OVER. BUT, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING JUST KEEPS GOING ON. AND THEN WHAT WE, AS RESIDENTS SEE, WE SEE, UM, ACTIVITY GOING ON AT THE SPORTSPLEX, AND THEN AGAIN, WE STOP AND WE SAY, MY GOD, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE NO BUSINESS RUNNING A SPORTSPLEX. GIVE IT TO THE PEOPLE WHO DO RUN IT AND HAVE THEM RUN IT. RIGHT? SAME THING ABOUT THE EVENTS THAT YOU HAVE. UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE WONDERING, WELL, HOW MUCH, OH, HOW MUCH DID YOU SPEND? THAT'S ONE QUESTION THAT EVERYBODY'S ALWAYS ASKING, HOW MUCH DID YOU BUDGET FOR THE EVENT? HOW MUCH DID YOU SPEND? ARE WE MAKING MONEY? ARE WE LOSING MONEY? AND IF WE'RE LOSING MONEY ON THESE EVENTS EVERY SINGLE YEAR, WHY DO WE CONTINUE TO HAVE THEM? I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S ONE QUESTION THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE, ARE ALWAYS WONDERING ABOUT. SO, BA BASICALLY, I KNOW I ASKED A LOT, BUT WHAT WAS THE MAIN PURPOSES FOR HAVING THIS, HAVING BUDGET MEETINGS? AND I KNOW YOU SAID WE'RE GONNA HAVE THREE, AND WHAT IS GOING TO BE DISCUSSED AT THE NEXT TWO MEETINGS? I DUNNO IF YOU WERE RIGHT AT THE BE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING, UH, BEFORE IT ACTUALLY STARTED. I, I APOLOGIZE ON BEHALF OF THE CITY, UM, I'VE BEEN SITTING IN THIS CHAIR FOR A WEEK. UM, THESE MEETINGS SHOULD HAVE BEEN HELD LONG AGO BECAUSE IF YOU'RE ACTUALLY GONNA GET INPUT FROM THE, THE RESIDENTS, IT SHOULD BE, BEFORE WE GET INTO THE WEEDS AND START BUILDING THE BUDGET, THERE SHOULD BE INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY. THERE SHOULD BE DIRECTION FROM THE COMMUNITY, AND THEY SHOULD BE BROUGHT BACK TO THE TABLE. AND CITY STAFF SHOULD ACTUALLY ANALYZE AND GO THROUGH EACH OF THOSE AND GET BACK TO THE COMMUNITY, LET 'EM KNOW ONE WE'VE HEARD, AND ALSO BE ABLE TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS. UM, I'VE BEEN ATTENDING THE MEETINGS FOR SIX YEARS, ALL THE MEETINGS, AND I, I'VE HEARD THE, THE REGULAR SPEAKERS AND THE, THE SENTIMENTS ECHOED AND OVER. UM, I, WE CAN DO BETTER. WE CAN GET INFORMATION OUT THERE BETTER. UM, THE QUESTIONS ARE, IN MY OPINION, ALWAYS VALID. I DON'T THINK WE ALWAYS HAVE RESPONDED, UM, IN DETAIL LIKE WE SHOULD. UH, I, I'VE TOLD STAFF AND I MET WITH MOST OF THE STAFF THIS WEEK, AND WE MEET AT EXECUTIVE LEVEL ALL THE TIME, THAT I DON'T THINK IT, IT HURTS US TO PUT OUT MORE INFORMATION THAN LESS. UM, BECAUSE WHILE WE MAY THINK WE'RE PUTTING OUT TOO MUCH, IT MAY BE ACTUALLY SOMETHING WHAT THE COMMUNITY WANTS TO SEE. YOU WANT TO KNOW THAT WE'RE DETAILED AND WE'RE NOT JUST, UH, PUTTING NUMBERS OUT THERE IN BIG BLOCKS. WE'RE DRILLING DOWN A LITTLE BIT. I CAN TELL YOU PART OF THE EXERCISE, WHEN I MET WITH FINANCE AND AFTER HEARING SIX YEARS OF CONCERNS, ONE OF THE THINGS I DIDN'T WANT TO INHERIT AND CONTINUE TO HEAR IS THAT THE COMMUNITY WASN'T HEARD. SO I HAD HEARD RIGHT AWAY THAT, LOOK, WE HAVE NO COMMUNITY MEETING SET UP. THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE SET UP. YOU'RE NOT LISTENING TO US, YOU'RE JUST PUTTING SOMETHING TOGETHER WITHOUT INPUT. OBVIOUSLY I CAN'T GO BACK IN TIME AND SCHEDULE MEETINGS FROM FOR THREE MONTHS AGO. BUT MOVING FORWARD WITH THE RIGHT AWAY, DAY ONE WAS TO GET THESE THREE MEETINGS SCHEDULED. SO AT LEAST I CAN CONVEY TO THE COMMUNITY THAT IT'S A NEW DAY. UH, I WANNA MAKE SURE EVERY, EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THAT THE COMMUNITY'S GONNA BE HEARD AND THAT WE GET THE INFORMATION BACK TO THE RESIDENTS AND OUR COMMUNITY THAT WITH YOUR QUESTIONS, WE HAVE SOME ACCURATE ANSWERS. UM, I, AGAIN, I'VE HEARD THE QUESTIONS FOR SIX YEARS. UH, I DON'T THINK WE'VE ADEQUATELY, ADEQUATELY ADDRESSED THEM AT ALL TIMES. AND I THINK WE NEED TO BE MORE TRANSPARENT AND PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION AND LET THE COMMUNITY COME BACK WITH EDUCATED QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS. AND AS WE MOVE FORWARD, TRUST ME, A COUPLE DAYS IN STUFF'S PRESENTED TO ME, AND, AND TRUST ME, I HAVE QUESTIONS AT TIMES TOO. UM, BUT RIGHT NOW, THE GOING THROUGH WAS TO NOT ADD ANYTHING NEW, UM, THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED. BUT TO MOVING FORWARD, WE NEED TO ANALYZE AND THINK A LITTLE BETTER AND THINK THINGS OUT AND AT LEAST CONVEY TO THE COMMUNITY WHY WE'RE DOING CERTAIN THINGS. AND AGAIN, [00:40:01] I I'VE HEARD THE COMMUNITY'S CONCERNS AND I WANT YOU TO, THE COMMUNITY DOESN'T UNDERSTAND AS I STEP IN AS LONG AS I'M HERE, THERE WILL BE MORE TRANSPARENCY IN PUTTING OUT MORE INFORMATION TO EVERYBODY AND HAVING THESE MEETINGS, UH, STARTING THE BUDGET IN DECEMBER, JANUARY, AND HAVING MEETINGS LONG BEFORE WE COME DO ANYTHING IN A FORMAL PRESENTATION THAT ALREADY CAPTURES. AND WE'VE ALREADY HEARD THE COMMUNITY, IT'S ONE THING TO DO BUDGET SURVEYS, I GET THAT. BUT THE COMMUNITY WANTS TO BE ABLE TO SHOW UP IN PERSON AND, AND TALK AND ASK QUESTIONS. AND YOU'RE NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO DO THAT FROM A COMPUTER SCREEN. I RECOGNIZE THAT ON BEHALF OF THE CITY I INHERITED. UM, A LOT OF QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS MOVING FORWARD. THESE WILL BE ADDRESSED IN MORE DETAIL. TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION ALSO ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES. THERE WILL NOT BE ANY DIFFERENCES IN THE PRESENTATION OF THE COMMUNITY BUDGET WORKSHOPS. UM, JUST THE PROPOSED BUDGET GOING TO COUNCIL IS GONNA BE, THAT'S THE ONE I SAID IT WILL BE DIFFERENT JUST 'CAUSE IT'S, I FELT LIKE I PUT A LITTLE BIT MORE NUMBERS IN HERE. AND SO IT'S A, IT'S GONNA BE JUST MORE GENERAL, UM, FOR COUNCIL, YOUR STAFF. I KNOW YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE. YES. UM, WELL, RIGHT NOW WE'RE EIGHT IN FINANCE. IN FINANCE. UM, IN BUDGET. IT'S THREE. YEAH. YEAH. UH, SO, UH, THE FORMER CITY MANAGER, UH, HAD, UM, AT A MEETING EARLY LAST YEAR SAID THAT SHE HAD EXPECTED APPROVAL FROM THE STATE AT THE END OF, UH, 2024. AND SO, UH, I GUESS, DO WE HAVE ANY MORE INFORMATION ON WHERE WE ARE IN THE PROCESS IN TERMS OF GETTING, UH, INITIAL APPROVAL BY THE STATE? UH, AND THEN I GUESS BECAUSE YOU'RE, YOU'RE NOW IN THE, THE CHAIR, UM, GIVEN THAT THE, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, UH, AND WE CAN EXPECT IN THE NEXT FOUR YEARS IS GONNA CUT MOST, UH, FUNDING FOR PUBLIC HEALTH, UM, ARE YOU, UH, CONSIDERING, UM, I GUESS ADVOCATING THAT THE, THE CITY MOVE OFF OF THE PURSUIT OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT GIVEN, UH, THE LACK OF RESOURCES FROM, UH, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND THEN ALSO THE STATE HAVING, UH, A BUDGET DEFICIT, WHICH WILL ALSO IMPACT, UH, LOCAL COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS? I THAT IN A COUPLE PARTS. ONE, UM, AGAIN, I UNDERSTAND THE CONCERN ABOUT THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. I'VE ATTENDED THE MEETINGS, I UNDERSTAND THE COMMUNITY'S CONCERNS, AND EVEN MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL AT THE TIME WITH THEIR CONCERNS. UH, WE ARE LOOKING PROBABLY AT THE, UH, JUNE 17TH MEETING TO HAVE A DETAILED PRESENTATION, UM, FROM THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT TEAM TO COME IN AND PRESENT TO THE COUNCIL AND THE COMMUNITY. UH, I'VE HEARD THE QUESTIONS OVER A SERIES OF MEETINGS. WE'RE GONNA COME IN WITH A DETAILED PRESENTATION OF WHERE WE'RE AT THE NEXT STEP AND A REALISTIC TIMELINE, UM, FOR, UH, MOVING FORWARD AND THE UPDATES FROM THE STATE AND FROM OUR OWN, UH, PEOPLE IN-HOUSE THAT HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THIS PROJECT FOR PROBABLY, UM, THREE YEARS, FOUR YEARS. I RECOGNIZE THERE'S ALSO A LOT OF VARIABLES WITH THE, THE FEDERAL, THE STATE. AND BEFORE I COMMENT ON THAT, I AM YIELDING TO MY SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS TO ADVISE ON THAT. THERE'S, THERE'S IS A LOT OF VARIABLES. UM, BUT ONE THING I KNOW THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT IS A BIG CONCERN FOR THE COMMUNITY, AND WE WILL BE COMING BACK WITH SOMETHING THAT IS CONCRETE. AND I KNOW THE, THE QUESTION'S ONLY WHAT IS THE TIMELINE? WHEN'S IT GONNA BE APPROVED? AND I KNOW IT'S BEEN A MOVING TARGET ALONG, BUT I THINK, UH, FROM THE MEETINGS JUST THIS WEEK, I BELIEVE THAT ON JUNE 17TH YOU'LL BE ABLE TO GET A CLEAR ANSWER. AND I BELIEVE THAT YOU, THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE NOW WILL BE ANSWERED AT THAT MEETING. I, IS IT ON MARSHA AUDIT COMMITTEE? I JUST WANTED TO SAY WELCOME TO OUR CITY MANAGER. I MISSED THE BEGINNING. LOTS OF TRAFFIC. UM, YOU DO HAVE TWO AUDIT COMMITTEE MEMBERS HERE TODAY. AND SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'VE CAUGHT YOU UP. THE FINANCE DEPARTMENTS CAUGHT YOU UP OF OUR ACTIONS WE'VE HAD AT OUR RECENT MEETINGS, BECAUSE ULTIMATELY THEY DO AFFECT THE BUDGET, AS MANY PEOPLE HAVE SAID, JIM BRINGS UP CONCERNS EVERY SINGLE MEETING, NOT JUST AT OUR, UM, COUNCIL MEETINGS, BUT OUR AUDIT COMMITTEE MEETINGS AS [00:45:01] WELL. SO I'M HOPING THAT'S BEING ADDRESSED HOPEFULLY BEFORE THE NEXT WORKSHOP. AND I ALSO HAD A SPECIFIC QUESTION ABOUT THE WORKERS' COMP SLIDE. SO MAYBE, OR THIS ONE, THE ONE BEFORE. SO IT SAYS LIABILITY AND WORKERS' COMP. SO THAT'S LIABILITY, THAT'S LIKE LAWSUITS. SO WE'RE PUTTING THAT TOGETHER. MM-HMM . DO WE KNOW WORKERS' COMP ALONE? IS THAT GOING DOWN? BECAUSE THAT WAS PART OF OUR CORRECTIVE ACTION PLAN. WORKERS' COMP, LIKE, SO OUR, BASED ON OUR LAST ACTUARIAL, IT WENT UP SLIGHTLY. IT DID GO UP LIKE A MILLION. UM, WE'RE GONNA GET ANOTHER ACTUARIAL. THIS, WELL, OBVIOUSLY A FEW MONTHS, BUT THAT WOULD BE BASED ON THE LAST THREE, RIGHT? YEAH. THE LAST YEAR. UM, YEAH. SO JUST FOR OUR RESIDENTS, PART OF OUR CORRECTIVE ACTION FOR ONE OF THE ITEMS THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO WORK ON THOSE RISK AREAS THEY IDENTIFIED, ONE WAS WORKING WITH THE DEPARTMENTS TO LOWER OUR WORKERS' COMP RISKS. AND SO, LIKE SHE SAID, IT'S BASED ON THE LAST THREE YEARS. SO WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS FOR AT LEAST TWO YEARS. RIGHT? SO WE'RE HOPING THAT THIS WOULD BE GOING DOWN BECAUSE IT DOES AFFECT OUR RATE THAT WE PAY. SO YEAH. BUT THEN WE ALSO ALWAYS HEAR ABOUT FIRE DEPARTMENT. OH, A BUNCH OF PEOPLE ARE OUT 'CAUSE THEY HURT THEMSELVES AND STUFF, SO RIGHT. MAYBE WE NEED TO DO A LITTLE BIT. WELL, WE'RE, UM, AS YOU KNOW, THE DISTRIBUTION TOO. AND, AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE DISCUSSED ALSO AND BROUGHT, UM, OUR NEW CITY MANAGER UP TO SPEED. AND HE'S WORKING ACTIVELY ON THE RECRUITMENTS AS WELL. IT'S, IT, IT'S WITH HR AND, UM, LOWERING THAT RISK, THE DIRECTOR AND PUBLIC WORKS. THANK YOU. OKAY. I, I WOULD LIKE TO RESPOND TO WHAT THIS, UH, OUR NEW CITY MANAGER JUST SAID. UM, FIRST YOU HAVE MY SYMPATHY, SIR , UH, UH, COMMUNITY HAS BEEN SOMEWHAT FRUSTRATED. UH, I'VE BEEN AT THESE WORKSHOPS FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS, AND THE COMMUNITY HAS ESSENTIALLY SAID THE SAME THING VIRTUALLY EVERY SINGLE TIME, WHICH IS THAT, UH, POLICE AND INFRASTRUCTURE ARE THE HIGHEST PRIORITIES, UH, IN TERMS OF FINANCE. AND THE LOWEST PRIORITIES ARE THINGS LIKE, UH, THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THE SPORTS PLEX SUBSIDY, UH, THE FESTIVALS AND SUCH. AND THE RESPONSE FROM THE CITY COUNCIL OVER THOSE YEARS, AND IT'S BEEN A LOT OF YEARS, HAS BEEN TO INCREASE WHAT THE RESIDENTS THINK ARE THE LOWEST PRIORITIES AND KIND OF IGNORE WHAT THEY THINK ARE THE HIGHEST PRIORITIES. THEY NO CHANGES IN TERMS OF POLICE AND INFRASTRUCTURE. AND, UH, SO I I'M JUST SAYING IT'S ESSENTIALLY FRUSTRATING TO SIT IN ONE OF THESE CHAIRS OUT HERE BECAUSE WE FEEL THAT NOBODY'S LISTENING TO US. UM, THE, UH, OTHER COMMENT THAT I WANTED TO MAKE WAS THAT RECENTLY IN THE, UH, BUDGET HAS BEEN CUSTOMARY, UH, SINCE THE ADVENT OF THE LAST FINANCE DIRECTOR TO PRODUCE WHAT'S CALLED A ROLLOVER BUDGET, WHICH IS NOT A BUDGET AT ALL. IT JUST SAYS WE'RE GONNA COPY WHAT WE DID WE HAVE LAST YEAR. AND, UH, THAT'S A BUDGET IS SUPPOSED TO BE A PLAN ON HOW, HOW YOU WANT TO ALLOCATE YOUR RESOURCES. IT'S NOT PLANNING TO JUST SAY, WE'RE GONNA KEEP DOING WHAT WE'VE ALWAYS DONE. AND, UH, I'M SPEAKING ONLY CONCEPTUALLY NOW, BUT I SINCERELY HOPE THAT YOU, AS THE NEW KID ON THE BLOCK HERE, CAN COME UP WITH SOMETHING THAT'S, THAT'S A PLAN THAT SAYS, YES, WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA ADDRESS OUR ISSUES AND WE'RE GONNA RESPOND TO THE RESIDENTS. I KNOW YOU JUST SAID YOU WERE GONNA TRY TO DO THAT, AND I, I JUST HOPE YOU DO THAT. THAT'S BASICALLY IT. SO THIS PARTICULAR SPEECH IS FOR YOU, THE NEW CITY MANAGER, BECAUSE I, I KNOW THAT YOU'RE BEING EXPOSED TO ALL OF THIS AT A DIFFERENT PLACE. WHEN YOU'RE OLD JOB, YOU WEREN'T HAVING TO DEAL WITH ALL OF THIS. AND SO, UH, IT'S, UM, I I KNOW IT'S, IT'S A DIFFICULT TASK, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE OVERALL FINANCIAL SITUATION. THANK YOU. AND, AND YES, I DO. I HAVE HEARD THE COMMENTS SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE AND THE CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY, AND THEY DON'T GO, THEY DON'T FALL ON DEAF EARS. YOU KNOW, AS I'VE MOVED UP, I HAVE THE [00:50:01] POWER AND THE RESPECT NOW TO MAKE SOME DECISIONS RATHER THAN JUST BE THE PERSON LISTENING ALL THE TIME. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WHETHER, UM, MS. SAWYER, RYAN, ANYBODY ELSE, JD, IF PEOPLE CONTACT ME THROUGH EMAIL OR PHONE, WHETHER THEY GET A ANSWER THEY LIKE OR THEY DON'T, THEY GET A REPLY. AND, AND THAT'S ME. UM, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT WORK HOURS, AND IN THE LAST WEEK, I CAN TELL YOU THE EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT TEAM HAS BEEN GETTING IN THE OFFICE AND ON THE COMPUTERS, WE'RE ON THE LINE ABOUT 6:00 AM AND WE'RE PROBABLY FINISHING ABOUT MIDNIGHT. 'CAUSE THERE IS A DRIVE TO GET CAUGHT UP IN A LOT OF THINGS. AND I RECOGNIZE THAT THE, THE CITY HALL STAFF IN SOME AREAS WASN'T RESPONSIVE TO COMMUNITY CONCERNS AND NOT GETTING BACK TO PEOPLE. AND WHETHER THE ANSWER'S YES, NO, MAYBE WHATEVER IT IS, IT SEEMED LIKE WE HAD A LOT OF STUFF COME OUR WAY AND WE JUST DIDN'T RESPOND. SO MOVING FORWARD, THE DRIVE, THE DIRECTIVE TO MY, MY TEAM AND EVERY CITY HALL STAFF MEMBER IS WE'RE GONNA BE RESPONSIVE TO THE COMMUNITY AND WE'RE NOT GONNA LET STUFF JUST FALL. 'CAUSE I'VE HEARD THOSE CONCERNS THAT, LOOK, WE TALK ABOUT THIS EVERY YEAR, AND REALLY NOBODY GETS BACK WITH A, AN ACTION PLAN. I UNDERSTAND THAT. UM, SO I CAN TELL YOU RIGHT NOW THAT ANY MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY, UH, WHETHER YOU'RE A LONG-TERM RESIDENT, YOU'RE A NEW RESIDENT, AND WHENEVER YOU HAVE A CONCERN, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN EMAIL ME AND I WILL REPLY. AND IF I'M NOT THE PERSON TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, I WILL DIRECT IT TO THE CORRECT PERSON AND I'LL HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE TO RESPOND AND ANSWER YOUR CONCERNS. UM, SO MOVING FORWARD, I THINK YOU'LL SEE A, A MUCH GREATER LEVEL OF COMMUNICATION. AGAIN, MAY, MAY, MAY, MAY NOT BE THE ANSWER YOU WANT TO HEAR, BUT YOU WILL BE HEARD AND YOU WILL RECEIVE A PLOT, A REPLY, UM, FROM THE CITY. AND I HOLD ME TO THAT, UH, HOLD ME TO THAT AS LONG AS I'M SITTING UP HERE. UM, BUT, AND AS FAR AS ADVOCATING FOR DIFFERENT THINGS, UM, I'M ACTIVELY MEETING WITH THE COUNCIL ON A REGULAR BASIS, ONE-ON-ONES GOING OVER THEIR GOALS, OBJECTIVES AND WHERE THEY SEE THE CITY. AND THEN FROM THERE, I AM ALSO EXPRESSING NOT ONLY FROM AN EMPLOYEE STANDPOINT, BUT LISTENING TO RESIDENT CONCERNS AND ADDRESSING THOSE. 'CAUSE I, I DO FEEL THERE ARE SOME CONCERNS THAT MAYBE WE'RE NOT RESPONDED TO BY THE CITY, UM, IN A MATTER THAT I FIND APPROPRIATE. I THINK WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE DETAILED, UH, MORE TRANSPARENT, MORE OPEN, AND PUT MORE INFORMATION OUT THERE THAN LESS, UM, AND LET PEOPLE MAKE AN EDUCATED DECISION. AND FROM THERE, THE COMMUNITY CAN ADVOCATE FOR WHATEVER CONCERNS THEY ARE. UM, I'M AN EMPLOYEE HERE. UH, MY JOB IS TO FACILITATE WHAT THE COMMUNITY WANTS AND THE GOALS AND THE, UH, DRIVE OF THE CITY COUNCIL. UM, SO AS FAR AS THE WEEDS AND THE NUMBERS, THAT'S GONNA BE MARIA. BUT AS FAR AS RESPONSIVENESS OF THE CITY TO RESIDENT CONCERNS, UM, I WILL BE HELD A HUNDRED PERCENT ACCOUNTABLE TO THAT. GOOD EVENING. UH, MY NAME'S JEFFERSON DERU. I APOLOGIZE. I CAME IN LATE. UM, ONE OF THE LAST SLIDES IN THE PRESENTATION I NOTICED ALLUDED TO A SURVEY, UH, THIS ISN'T HIGH END QUESTION ON FINANCE, BUT I'M INTERESTED IN KNOWING FROM WHEN TO WHEN THE SURVEY WAS TAKEN AND THE NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS TO THE SURVEY. IN ADDITION TO THAT. I MAY HAVE HEARD WRONG, BUT I THOUGHT DURING THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING, UM, MS. ELISA, WHAT? ELISA MARIA. MARIA LUISA. MARIA LUISA, EXCUSE ME. I THOUGHT I HEARD YOU SAY THAT THE LIABILITY AND COMPENSATION HAD DOUBLED AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY WE WERE IN DEFICIT SPENDING. DID I MISUNDERSTAND? THANK YOU. NO. UM, SO I'LL RESPOND. UH, THE BUDGET SURVEY HAS BEEN OPEN ACTUALLY SINCE DECEMBER THROUGH, UM, MAY. AND SO I TOOK, THERE WERE 28 RESPONSES, 86% BEING FROM RESIDENTS. UM, YEAH, 28 MM-HMM . 28. YES. YES. UM, I'M SORRY, THE SECOND QUESTION. THE OH, YES, YES, ACTUALLY, YEP. UM, LET ME GET, I PUT THE THING IN MY NOTE, SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE. YES. SO HERE, WELL, THIS IS ACTUALLY DIFFERENT. THIS IS WHAT THE FUNDING HAS BEEN THROUGH OUR PAYROLL. WHAT WE, SO THIS CHART IS THE 1.75, 2.41. SO NOW WE WE'RE FUNDING MORE THE 3.61, BUT IN 2022, IT, THE LIABILITY WAS 12.7 MILLION 2023. [00:55:02] THIS IS WHERE I SAY IT ALMOST DOUBLED, OR LIKE IT'S 20.5, THE LATEST FINANCIAL THAT WE WENT FOR THE GFOA, LIKE THAT ONE'S 24.5 MILLION. SO THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE MY, I ASSERTION WHAT I SAID, OR MY STATEMENT FROM THE LONG RANGE WAS, THAT'S WHERE IT ALMOST DOUBLED. MM-HMM . . OKAY. UM, MARIA LUISA, FIRST OF ALL, UH, THANK YOU FOR, UH, PUTTING THESE NUMBERS TOGETHER. I JUST HAVE A SERIES OF JUST QUESTIONS IN ORDER TO HELP ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY ON A, UH, ON SEVERAL THINGS. UH, FIRST OF ALL, UH, CAN YOU, CAN YOU GO IN DEEPER INTO THE NUMBERS IN, WITH REGARD TO THE COST OF, OF OUR EVENTS, NOT JUST THE NUMBER OF TOP LINE NUMBER, BUT ALSO HOW DO THOSE BREAK DOWN? HOW MUCH DO THE EVENTS COST? UH, AND THEN THE OTHER, UH, THING, UH, LIKE TO ASK IS PROCESS WISE, UH, AS THIS IS BROUGHT BEFORE COUNCIL, TO WHAT EXTENT, UH, UH, IS IT POSSIBLE FOR, FOR, UH, COUNCIL TO MAKE A MOVE TO STRIKE OR MODIFY DIFFERENT SPECIFIC EXPENDITURES ON THE DAY OF COUNSEL, UH, IN ORDER TO, TO MAKE MODIFICATIONS TO THE SUGGESTED, UH, BUDGET? UH, OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. IT IS GREAT. I DO HAVE THE DETAIL OF, UM, CITY EVENTS AND I CAN'T CONNECT TO MY LAPTOP. I'M, I'M GONNA TRY AND DO IT THROUGH PERSONAL HOTSPOT. I DID BRING MY LAPTOP HERE, IT'S JUST A MATTER OF CONNECTING. UM, BUT I DO HAVE THAT READILY AVAILABLE, UM, AND BREAKDOWN OF IT SO I CAN GET BACK TO YOU OR WE CAN GET BACK TO AT ANOTHER TIME IF YOU'D LIKE. I CAN PUT THAT INFORMATION OUT. I DON'T KNOW HOW, LET ME JUST KIND OF GO THROUGH THAT. BUT, UM, THERE'S A NUMBER OF EVENTS THAT WE HAVE AND, AND THAT'S CODED FOR EACH, LIKE FOR THE FISCAL YEAR. AND SO WE WENT INTO THE NEW SYSTEM FROM EUNICE. UM, I GUESS NOW THIS IS OUR SECOND YEAR. UM, AND SO THINGS HAVE BEEN A LITTLE DIFFERENT, BUT YES, I CAN GIVE YOU LIKE WHAT IT WAS FOR 24, 25. IT'S JUST HONESTLY TAKING A WHILE TO CONNECT. UM, I THINK IT'S TO THE NETWORK. UM, I APOLOGIZE, I JUST SHOULD HAVE DONE THIS SOONER. IT, IT'S NOT CONNECTING. UM, BUT I DO HAVE THAT BREAKDOWN AND I CAN PROVIDE THAT TO YOU, UM, AT A LATER DATE, OR I'LL PUT IT ON MY FI UNDER THE FINANCE. AND TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION ABOUT, UM, THE PROPOSED BUDGET IN ANY ADJUSTMENTS THAT YOU MADE, LIKE, ALTHOUGH, YOU KNOW, IT, IT IS A BIG, IT'S OVER 200 PAGES, UM, ALMOST LIKE 300 FOR THE BUDGET BOOK. I MEAN, IF THERE ARE CHANGES, OF COURSE WE TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION. YOU WOULD ADOPT, UM, THE RESOLUTION AND THEN MAYBE JUST LIKE HAVE SOME ADDITIONS OR SUBTRACTIONS, HOWEVER IT MAY BE. UM, I, I BELIEVE THAT'S WHAT THE PROCESS WOULD BE. AND THEN WE'D INCORPORATE THAT. NOW WE, THE CITY HAS NOW, LIKE THIS WOULD BE OUR THIRD YEAR HOPEFULLY GOING FOR THE GFOA AWARD, WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT WE DID NOT HAVE IN PLACE BEFORE. NOW I DO THAT, I STILL HAVE TO PUBLISH THE ADOPTED BUDGET WITHIN, UM, THE 60 DAYS AFTER YEAR END. SO WE WOULD STILL LIKE TO DO THAT, BUT SO WE WOULD UNDERTAKE THAT AND EITHER WAY WE WOULD DO THE HUGE BOOK AFTER, IN A SENSE, LIKE THE ADOPTED BUDGET. BUT, UM, YEAH, I MEAN, IF THERE ARE CHANGES TO THE PROPOSED, AND I MEAN, I BELIEVE WE'LL, WE'LL TAKE THEM INTO CONSIDERATION AND, UM, IF THAT'S THE DIRECTION, THEN WE WILL INCORPORATE THAT AND ADOPT WHATEVER IS, UM, ADOPTED BY CITY COUNCIL. SO WHEN YOU BUILD YOUR BUDGET, DO YOU PRESENT IT TO THE COUNCIL AND DOES THE COUNCIL GET TO LOOK AT IT AND DECIPHER MAYBE THERE SHOULD BE CHANGES OR IS IT ONLY LIKE WHEN YOU CAME UP TO THE MEETING LAST TIME AND YOU PRESENTED IT TO THEM AND THEN THAT'S WHERE ALL THE COMMOTION CAME UP UP? SO, UM, NO, THEY WERE BRIEFED ON THE LONG RANGE AND, UM, THE BUDGET. THERE HAVE BEEN DISCUSSIONS, UH, ONE-ON-ONE DISCUSSIONS, HOWEVER IT, YOU KNOW, UH, I WOULD SAY, UH, MORE OF A INFORMATIONAL AND THE BUDGET [01:00:01] ACTUALLY STARTS BACK IN FEBRUARY, MARCH. AND THAT'S A LOT OF DISCUSSIONS INTERNALLY, A LOT. I MEAN, MOST, AS YOU SEE, MOST OF THE BUDGET, LIKE 60, OVER 60%, ALMOST 70% IT'S SALARIES. SO THAT'S SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, FOR US, PAYROLL, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING, RIGHT? LIKE WE'RE, WE'RE GOING INTO THE WEEDS OF THAT, PROJECTING THAT, PUTTING THOSE ASSUMPTIONS TOGETHER. BUT THAT'S TANGIBLE. WE, WE KNOW WHERE PEOPLE ARE AT WHAT STEPS THERE MAY BE INCREASES. SO THAT'S A LOT OF THE BUDGET. BUT THE OTHER PARTS LIKE, YES, WE'RE MEETING WITH EVERY DEPARTMENT GETTING WHAT THEIR OPERATIONS ARE, LIKE WHAT IS NEEDED. I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S REALLY, IT'S REALLY BARE BONES AS YOU CAN SEE. LIKE IT'S A LIKE 30% OF THEIR BUDGET. BUT THEN WE'RE CONSTANTLY TRYING TO FIND OTHER SPECIAL FUNDING. AND FOR, SO YOU SAY YOU GET TOGETHER WITH EVERY DEPARTMENT, BUT WHAT I'M STATING IS WHEN YOU COME UP AND YOU PRESENT IT, AND THEN THE COUNCIL STARTS ASKING ALL KINDS OF QUESTIONS, AND SOMETIMES IT COMES ACROSS AS IF THEY JUST BARELY HEARD ABOUT IT. SPEAKING OF, WHAT WAS THE SITUATION ABOUT, YOU HAD MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT A CONTRACTOR IN THE FINANCE AREA AND THEY DIDN'T SEEM TO HAVE A, A CLUE AS TO WHAT YOU WERE REFERRING TO AND WHY WOULD YOU HAVE A CONTRACTOR WITH FINANCE? WE HAVE, UM, A CONTRACT. WE'VE HAD THEM FOR 20 YEARS. YEAH. CONSULTANT. EXCUSE ME, CONSULTANT. WE'VE HAD THEM, AND ACTUALLY WE, UM, WE USED TO HAVE THEM ACTUALLY FOR OTHER LOOK, WE HAD THEM FOR TOT, WE HAD THEM FOR, UM, PROPERTY TAX AS WELL. BUT NOW, LIKE WE HAVE THEM FOR SALES TAX BUSINESS LICENSES. SO THAT CONTRACT HAS BEEN IN PLACE. PERHAPS IT'S JUST, I, I DON'T KNOW. UH, SO THE CONSULTANT HAS ALWAYS BEEN EXISTING. SO WHY DID THE COUNCIL COME ACROSS TO US AS IF THEY HAD NO IDEA WHAT YOU WERE REFERRING TO? WELL, I MEAN, THERE'S, THERE'S ALWAYS CHANGES THAT HAPPEN AND SO, I MEAN, I KNOW IN HAVING LIKE EVEN CONVERSATIONS WITH COUNCIL THAT I'VE BROUGHT UP SOME THINGS, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES LIKE REVENUE ISN'T PRESENT LIKE THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON, AND SO WE WILL JUST BRIEF THEM ON THAT. UM, SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S ALL ALWAYS CONVEYED TO EVERYONE. RIGHT? I WAS JUST CURIOUS AS TO HOW REALLY IN DEPTH THE COUNCIL FULLY UNDERSTANDS ALL THE PROJECTS AND STUFF THAT IT COMES TO BUILD UP A BUDGET AND THEN JUST, YOU KNOW, LIKE OUT OF THE BLUE YOU HAVE AN INDIVIDUAL WHO'S ASKING 25 QUESTIONS TO YOU ONLY, AND IT, IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW, IT WAS A LITTLE UNNERVING, I THINK. YEAH. BUT I, I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION ON NEGOTIATIONS WITH OUR UNION CONTRACT PERSONNEL WHO NEGOTIATES IN THOSE AND DO YOU NEGOTIATE THEIR BENEFITS? BECAUSE IF I'M UNDERSTANDING THEIR, THEIR BENEFITS ARE PAID AT A HUNDRED PERCENT, IS THAT CORRECT? IT DEPENDS ON THE MOU AND THE BARGAINING GROUP. AND MOU IS THE MAINTENANCE OP, OH, UH, MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING. OKAY. AND IT DEPENDS, UM, AS FAR AS THE BENEFITS, UM, LIKE SINCE YOU ASKED THAT QUESTION AND BENEFITS, WHAT I'M REFERRING TO WOULD BE LIKE DENTAL, MEDICAL, IS THAT RIGHT? YEAH, RIGHT. UM, IT DEPENDS. AND SO EACH MOU IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT. WE HAVE NINE DIFFERENT BARGAINING GROUPS. MM-HMM . I WAS CURIOUS BECAUSE I, I THOUGHT I OVERHEARD SOME OR I READ THAT WE IN WEST COVENA, THAT THERE, WELL NOT IN WEST COVINA, BUT THAT THEIR BENEFITS ARE, THEIR OVERHEADS ARE LIKE AT A HUNDRED PERCENT. WHEREAS, UM, IN OTHER BUSINESSES, AND I'M ONLY GONNA SPEAK OF, OF A REGULATORY WITH EDISON THAT I WORKED WITH, I MEAN, THEY WERE GRACIOUS WAY BACK THEN. THEY PAID 100% OF EVERYTHING, OF ALL OF OUR HEALTH BENEFITS AND STUFF. BUT AS TIME COMES ALONG, AS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE NATION, WE'RE NOT PAYING THAT ANYMORE. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO PAY A CERTAIN AMOUNT, BUT WHAT ABOUT OUR UNION PEOPLE THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE CITY? ARE THEY AT, AT A HUNDRED PERCENT? AND CAN YOU NEGOTIATE, YOU KNOW, GETTING THEM TO COME DOWN ON THAT? SO WITH THE MOU, UH, THE MOU CAN BE NEGOTIATED, BOTH SALARY, BENEFITS, INCENTIVES, THOSE TYPE ITEMS. UH, I CAN TELL YOU AS A CITY EMPLOYEE THAT I PAY OUTTA MY PAYCHECK EVERY TWO WEEKS. A PORTION OF MY BENEFITS, I'M NOT AT A HUNDRED PERCENT. AND WHEN I RETIRE, I DON'T TAKE THOSE WITH ME. WELL, WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE, THE, THE BARGAINING GROUPS, THE MOU, UM, THEY'RE ALL, SAY SEVEN, CALL 'EM SEVEN SMALL UNIONS IN THE CITY. UM, THEY ALL NEGOTIATE, UM, DIFFERENT PACKAGES. THEY'RE ALL A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. UM, BUT I CAN TELL YOU THAT MOST IF NOT ALL THE CITY EMPLOYEES ARE ACTUALLY PAYING OUT OF THEIR PAYCHECK EVERY PAY PERIOD FOR THEIR BENEFITS. AND SOME OF THE, THE BARGAINING GROUPS HAVE DIFFERENT, UM, PACKAGES, AND SOME OF 'EM ARE TIERED BY, [01:05:01] IF YOU WERE HIRED BEFORE 2015, BEFORE 2010, THOSE TYPE THINGS. SO THAT'S WHY WITHIN ONE BARGAINING GROUP, THERE MAY BE THREE, THREE PEOPLE OF ONE FOUR OF ANOTHER, SIX OF ANOTHER THAT ARE A DIFFERENT LEVEL OF BENEFITS. UM, THE BENEFITS OF THE CITY ARE GOOD. UH, THEY'RE NOT AS HIGH AS OTHER CITIES AND THEY'RE NOT AS LOW AS OTHER CITIES. UM, BUT THOSE ARE ALL TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION. AND AS FAR AS WHO SITS AT THE TABLE, UH, FOR THE NEGOTIATIONS, IT'S THE CITY MANAGER. SO I'M SITTING THERE NOW, IT'S REPRESENTATIVE OF THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT AND SOMEBODY, UH, AN ATTORNEY REPRESENTING US ON AS DEALING WITH THE OPPOSING TABLES, UH, ATTORNEY FOR LEGAL QUESTIONS THE COUNCIL WILL BE DISCUSSING AS FAR AS HEALTH DEPARTMENT, I WILL ANY OF THEIR DISCUSSION BE MADE WITH THE STATE'S FINDINGS OR THE STATE INTERACTING WITH THEM? OR IS THIS ONLY A DISCUSSION MADE WITHIN THESE FOUR WALLS AND THE FIVE OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS? SO I, I'VE HEARD THE COMMUNITY AT MANY OF THE MEETINGS. I'VE HEARD THE COUNCIL, I'VE HEARD EVERYBODY. UH, MY DIRECTIVE IS TO HAVE A PRESENTATION MADE WHERE WE'RE ACTUALLY AT WITH ANY FEEDBACK, UH, FROM THE STATE WHERE WE'RE ACTUALLY AT ANY DIRECTION FROM THE STATE AND A REALISTIC TIMEFRAME, UM, OF WHERE WE'RE AT AND LOOKING FORWARD AND TIMELINE, NOT JUST PROJECTIONS, BUT SOME HARD DATES WHEN WE'RE GONNA HAVE AN ANSWER FOR THIS, AN ANSWER FOR THAT ON SPECIFIC THINGS, BECAUSE I, I KNOW THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF QUESTIONS ON THAT. AND WHAT I WANTED IS SOMEBODY TO COME IN AND GIVE A DETAILED PRESENTATION OF ACTUALLY WHERE WE'RE AT, WHAT WE'VE DONE, UH, TO DATE, AND WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FOR THE NEXT SIX MONTHS THROUGH A YEAR. , THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S A FAIR STATEMENT. UM, AGAIN, SOMETIMES YOU'RE, YOU'RE TOLD IT IS GONNA BE DONE BY THE STATE OR THE FEDS BY FEBRUARY 1ST, AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, FOR WHATEVER REASON, THEY GET DELAYED. WELL, THAT DELAYS US. SHOULD WE BE SET THAT WE'RE GONNA PROVIDE THE COMMUNITY BY X DATE? THIS ANSWER? NO. BUT WE CAN COME BACK TO A COUNCIL MEETING AND GIVE THEM AN UPDATE WHERE THEY'RE AT. WE SHOULDN'T BE COMING BACK EVERY SIX MONTHS OR A YEAR. WE SHOULD BE MORE OFTEN COMING BACK AND LET 'EM KNOW STEP BY STEP, LOOK, IF WE HAD THREE POSITIVE THINGS HAPPEN OR THREE NEGATIVE THINGS, AT LEAST PUT IT OUT THERE AND KEEP EVERYBODY UP TO DATE. THANK YOU. UM, MAYOR WU WAS VERY INSISTENT ON CERTAIN ASSUMPTIONS BEING MADE IN YOUR PROJECTED BUDGETS. DID YOU FACTOR THOSE ASSUMPTIONS OF REVENUE SUCH AS REVENUE, PROJECTED REVENUE FROM NEW RENTALS AND EXISTING, UH, OR DEVELOPMENTS? AND IF SO, WHY WERE THEY LEFT OUT INITIALLY FROM THE BUDGET? DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? UM, I DID NOT, UM, INCLUDE, LIKE, BASED ON WHAT WE HAVE FOR THE REVENUE FOR DEVELOPMENT, WE STILL HAVE AN INCREASE. UM, AND IT'S STILL A CONSISTENT INCREASE. HOWEVER, DEPENDING ON THE TIMING OF DEVELOPMENT, I DID NOT INCORPORATE, UM, ANY OTHER NEW ONES OUTSIDE OF OUR SCOPE. SO TONIGHT'S PROJECTED BUDGET IS OBVIOUSLY DIFFERENT THAN THAT YOU PRESENTED CORRECT. COUNCIL, IF THOSE ASSUMPTIONS WEREN'T BUILT INTO IT, WHAT CHANGED? MAYBE I MISSED IT FROM THE EARLIER QUESTION, BUT YES. WHAT'S CHANGED SO DRASTICALLY? BECAUSE IT SOUNDED TO ME LIKE YOU WERE INSINUATING THAT WHAT WE HAVE IS MORE EXPENDITURE THAN REVENUE. MR. WOO'S ARGUMENT, MAYOR WU'S ARGUMENT WAS THAT YOU DIDN'T FACTOR IN THE ASSUMPTIONS OF FUTURE REVENUE, WHETHER IT'S ON A ONE YEAR, TWO YEAR, OR FIVE YEAR BUDGET PLAN. UM, SO MY REVENUE REMAINED THE SAME. SO WHAT CHANGE WERE EXPENDITURES THAT WERE, UM, ADJUSTED AND FOUND DIFFERENT FUNDING FOR THAT WERE APPROPRIATE AND WERE ALLOWED TO WHAT WE HAD TO GET, UM, [01:10:01] APPROVAL. AND THIS WILL BE MY LAST, UH, LET ME CLOSE IT. THIS, WERE THOSE EXPENDITURES, THE EXPENDITURES THAT MR. GUTIERREZ, BRIAN GUTTER GUTIERREZ EXPRESSED BEING GRANTED TO THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS? WERE THOSE THE EXPENSES THAT WERE BACKED OUT THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE? OH, SORRY, I DON'T, WHICH ONES I DIDN'T. BRIAN GUTIERREZ, UH, SAID THAT THERE WERE A CERTAIN PERCENTAGES ALLOCATED TO DEPARTMENTS AS INCREASES, AND CONSEQUENTLY THAT'S WHY WE ENDED. NO, NO. YOU MEAN LIKE SALARY INCREASES? I'M NOT SURE IF THEY WERE SALARY OR WHAT EXACTLY IT ENTAILED IN TERMS OF WHAT IT, WHAT IT MEANT IN TERMS OF THE INCREASE. BUT THERE WERE FINANCIAL INCREASES THAT WERE ISSUED TO EACH OF THE DEPARTMENTS. AT LEAST THAT'S WHAT I RECALL. MAYBE I'M MISTAKEN. NO. UM, SO THERE WAS, UH, A REALLOCATION OF SOME EXPENDITURES FROM PD, SOME DEBT SERVICE, UM, BECAUSE WE HAVE A FUND BALANCE IN THOSE, UM, FUNDS. AND THOSE WERE THE THINGS THAT WERE ADJUSTED, BUT THEY'RE, THEY ARE ONE TIME. AND SO PD HAS ASSERTED, YOU KNOW, THE, THE NEXT YEAR IT, IT'S CERTAIN EXPENDITURES THAT HAVE BEEN MOVED TO A DIFFERENT FUNDING SOURCE. OKAY. UM, THIS, THIS IS MY FIRST, UH, BUDGET MEETING. WELCOME. UM, SO FORGIVE ME IF I SOUND A LITTLE SOMO OR WHATEVER, BUT IT, IT SOUNDS OBVIOUS TO ME JUST SITTING HERE THAT WE'VE TAKEN SOME NUMBERS FROM OVER HERE AND PUT 'EM OVER THERE TO MAKE CERTAIN PEOPLE HAPPY. I, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S HOW EVERYBODY'S ESTIMATION IS WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. AND, AND I, AND I CAN HEAR SOME TREPIDATION IN YOUR VOICE AS YOU EXPLAIN PERHAPS, BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T WANNA PUT WORDS IN YOUR MOUTH, BUT, BUT WHAT I INTERPRET IS THAT WE'VE MOVED NUMBERS AROUND SO THAT, UH, EVEN IN, IN AN ALLOWABLE WAY, NOT NECESSARILY AN INTELLIGENT WAY, BUT IN AN ALLOWABLE WAY, IS THAT, IS THAT SOMETHING I'M, I'M HEARING CORRECTLY. SO MY DIRECTION, I'M SORRY, MY QUESTION WAS TO MARIA. OKAY. OH, UM, I, I, IT WAS ALLOWABLE AND THERE'S FUND BALANCES THERE, AND SO IT'S USED TOWARDS THE PURPOSE OF WHAT IT NEEDS TO BE AND TO ALLEVIATE, UM, GENERAL FUND. IT. YEAH, IT WAS MOVED. I MEAN, THERE, THERE WOULD BE OTHER INCREASES THAT COULD ALWAYS HAPPEN, AND IT, IT'S A BUDGET, BUT IT, I DO BELIEVE IT'S REALISTIC. AND I HAVE ALSO, LIKE MY REVENUE, I FELT LIKE IT WAS AMPLE ENOUGH AND I, THIS YEAR, I COULD NOT BE CONSERVATIVE, RIGHT. WITH MY REVENUE. AND, AND I, I COULDN'T BE LIKE IN PRIOR YEARS BECAUSE EXPENDITURES HAVE INCREASED AND THAT, THAT'S KIND OF WHAT I THINK YOU WERE ALLUDING TO. LIKE YEAH, EXPENDITURES HAVE INCREASED AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S NEW MOUS IN THERE AS WELL THAT HAVE BEEN ASSUMED. SO I DIDN'T WANT TO ALTER THE EXPENDITURES. IT'S JUST, UM, RELIEVING IT FOR THIS NEXT FISCAL YEAR. FAIR ENOUGH. THANK YOU. I, I THOUGHT I WAS DONE, BUT I, I HAD ONE MORE THING TO SAY AND, UH, IT'S PROCESS ISSUE. I'D LIKE TO, THIS IS ACTUALLY IN RESPONSE TO COUNCILMAN CANTOS THING ABOUT, UH, PROCESS THIS. UH, IT'S BEEN THE PRACTICE RECENTLY IN THE CITY TO PRESENT A BUDGET TO THE CITY COUNCIL WITH, WITH NO CHANGES FROM THE PREVIOUS CYCLE, UH, EXCEPT THINGS THAT HAPPENED DURING THE PREVIOUS YEAR. AND, UH, THAT WAS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE. UH, PRIOR TO THE CURRENT SITUATION. IT USED TO BE THAT THE CITY MANAGER WOULD PRESENT ALTERNATIVES TO THE COUNCIL, MAYBE YOU WANNA DO THIS, MAYBE YOU WANNA DO THAT, TO ALTER THE BUDGET. THAT WAS, THAT WAS THE OLD PRACTICE. I DON'T KNOW WHY IT CHANGED. THERE WAS NOTHING WAS EVER SAID PUBLICLY ABOUT THAT. UH, AND, UH, UH, AND I WOULD STRONGLY RECOMMEND TO THE NEW CITY MANAGER THAT HE CONSIDER PRESENTING SOME OPTIONS TO THE CITY COUNCIL ABOUT WHAT THEY COULD POSSIBLY DO WITH THE BUDGET, UH, IN TERMS OF, UH, RESPONDING TO THE, NOT JUST THE RESIDENTS, BUT TO THE FINANCIAL SITUATION. AND I, UH, BRIAN , HE'S LEAVING, I THINK. OH, YEAH, YEAH. UH, YOU SAID SOMETHING THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT THIS BUDGET GOING IN IS IN DEFICIT. WHY? BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GONNA [01:15:01] BE GRANTING A SALARY INCREASE THAT ISN'T BUDGETED. THAT'S, THAT'S, YOU'RE IN BED, YOU'RE IN DEFICIT. EVEN IF YOU PRESENT A DOCUMENT THAT HAS THE NUMBERS BALANCED, THE FACT THAT YOU KNOW, THERE'S GONNA BE AN INCREASED EXPENDITURE DURING THE YEAR DUE TO A SALARY INCREASE. AND BY THE WAY, THAT MEANS BENEFITS WILL GO UP TOO. UH, THAT MEANS YOU'RE IN DEFICIT, AND THAT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS PART OF THE OVERALL ENVIRONMENT. UH, AND I KNOW CITY MANAGER, YOU SAID YOU DIDN'T WANT TO GET IN THE WEEDS, BUT THIS IS AN IMPORTANT WEED. IT'S MILLIONS OF DOLLARS, AND, UH, UH, AND IT REALLY, THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME ATTENTION GIVEN TO THE ENVIRONMENT AND POSSIBLY SOME CHANGES THAT MIGHT BE MADE TO DEAL WITH THE ENVIRONMENT. THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY ALL I'M TRYING TO SAY. AND COUNCILMAN CANTOS? UH, YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. THE CITY COUNCIL SHOULD BE ABLE TO CHANGE THE BUDGET. THEY HAVEN'T BEEN RECENTLY IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. UH, THEY CHANGED IT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR SOMETIME BY JUST SAYING, WE WANNA SPEND MONEY ON X OR Y. BUT THAT'S NOT A REAL CHANGE TO THE BUDGET. THAT'S, THAT'S JUST DRAWING DOWN RESERVES. SO, UH, UH, ANYWAY, THAT, THAT'S IT. I'M, I'M DONE FOR TONIGHT. , VALID QUESTION, VALID POINTS. UH, CLARIFY WHEN I SAY I DON'T WANNA GET IN THE WEEDS AT THIS POINT, ACTUALLY, CITY MANAGER SHOULD BE INVOLVED BEFORE THE WEEDS EVEN GROW. UM, WHEN THE LAWNS MOW, IT'S LOOKING GOOD. THAT'S WHEN THE CITY MANAGERS GET TOGETHER, UH, WITH THE COUNCIL DEPARTMENT HEADS. AND THERE SHOULD BE SOME LENGTHY DISCUSSION OF, WE HAVE X AMOUNT HERE, HERE ARE SOME OPTIONS, HOW WE CAN USE IT, GET THE FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMUNITY AND SAY, THE COMMUNITY WANTS THIS. WE HAVE X DOLLARS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE NINE THINGS. THIS IS THE PRIORITY OF THE COMMUNITY, AND THAT'S HOW IT SHOULD BE DRIVEN. UM, MY IDEA IS, AGAIN, TO WORK WITH THE COUNCIL IN A DIFFERENT MANNER THAN SAY THE LAST SIX YEARS, THE LAST 10 YEARS, HOWEVER IT BE IN MY CAREER. I'VE BEEN IN THE CITY GOVERNMENT FOR 39 YEARS, AND I'VE WORKED WITH SOME OF THE, THE TOP CITY MANAGERS IN THE BUSINESS AND THE TOP FINANCIAL PEOPLE IN THE BUSINESS, AND I DEFINITELY HAVE IDEAS TO IMPROVE THE OPERATION OF THIS CITY AND THE BENEFITS OF THE COMMUNITY. UM, ALSO, I WANT TO ADDRESS THAT THE, THE QUESTION'S VALID ABOUT THE COST OF OUR SPECIAL EVENTS. I KNOW THAT'S A CONCERN. IT'S ALWAYS A QUESTION. ANYBODY THAT KNOWS ME FROM DAY ONE WHEN I LANDED HERE, UM, I'VE WORKED EVERY SINGLE SPECIAL EVENT. AND IT'S NOT ONLY A QUESTION OF THE COMMUNITY, BUT AT TIMES IS THE QUESTION OF STAFF. SO I WANT, UH, CAN WE FACILITATE, MAKE SURE THAT'S ON THE WEBSITE, AND IT'S ALSO INCLUDED IN THE FUTURE PRESENTATIONS. SO THE ANSWER'S THE ANSWER, UH, WHATEVER THE NUMBERS ARE, LET'S PRESENT IT TO THE COMMUNITY, UM, SO THEY KNOW AND THEN WE CAN MOVE FORWARD AND PEOPLE CAN, UH, VOICE THEIR OPINION. UM, BUT AGAIN, MOVING FORWARD, UM, YOU KNOW, HOPPING INTO US IN THE, IN THE ABSOLUTE FINAL HOURS, UH, IT'S HARD TO GET IN THE WEEDS WHEN IT'S ALREADY GROWN. UM, I WANT TO BE THERE FROM DAY ONE, UH, FROM THE FRAMEWORK TO GETTING INTO THE DEPARTMENTS, TO GETTING INTO THE STAFF AND THE ACTUAL EXPENDITURES AND CAPTURING AND RECOGNIZES REAL REVENUE AND REAL EXPENSES. AND MARIA, I KNOW ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT'S BEEN ASKED IS, AND I'LL LET YOU ANSWER, IS IF WE ARE IN NEGOTIATIONS RIGHT NOW WITH THE BARGAINING GROUPS, ARE THE KNOWING THAT WE, WHATEVER THE PROJECTED PERCENTAGES AND COSTS THAT WE'RE GONNA INCUR WITH THE BARGAINING GROUPS AS WE FINISH NEGOTIATIONS, ARE THOSE ALREADY FACTORED INTO THE BUDGETS? UM, WE HAVE TWO THAT HAVE GONE. UM, AND SO WE'RE IN CONTRACT WITH, AND THEN ONE IS BASICALLY T EIGHT. SO THOSE THREE HAVE BEEN INCLUDED. AND, UM, BASED ON DIRECTION AS WELL, I HAVE INCLUDED AN INCREASE FOR THE BARGAINING GROUPS. SO UNDERSTAND THAT. I JUST WANT YOU, MR. GRS, I WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND THAT I AGREE WITH YOU THAT IF WE ARE GONNA GIVE ANY TYPE OF MERIT OR SALARY INCREASES, STEP INCREASES ANY TIME OF THE YEAR, THOSE SHOULD BE CAPTURED IN THE BUDGET. SO IT'S NOT, WE ADOPT SOMETHING THAT'S BUDGETED NOW, AND ALL OF A SUDDEN WE SAY, WELL, WE ADDED STAFF GOT A 3% RAISE, OR THEY GOT A 5% OR WHATEVER. IT'S, AND ALL OF A SUDDEN THOSE ARE, UH, UH, COSTS THAT WE DIDN'T CAPTURE IN THE BUDGET. SO THE DIRECTION WAS TO MAKE SURE THOSE WERE CAPTURED. UM, SO I WILL HAVE THE EVENTS DETAIL IN THE NEXT THING IN. THAT'LL BE THE ONLY CHANGE IN LIKE MY BUDGET WORKSHOP. UM, AND ALSO, I LIKE WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT THE OPTIONS FOR CHANGES TO A BUDGET, AND THAT'S WHAT INTERNALLY WE ACTUALLY DO HAVE. AND SO WE KIND OF PRESENT THAT. UM, YES, HE CAME IN AT THE 11TH HOUR AND I KNOW, BUT WE DO HAVE OUR LIST OF WHERE, YOU KNOW, THERE THESE ARE OPTIONS AND [01:20:01] EVERY DEPARTMENT, OF COURSE, HAS THEIR SUPPLEMENTAL LIST OF WHAT THEY WOULD LIKE. UM, BUT APART, LIKE WE, YES, WE ALSO IN FINANCE WORK TOWARDS, UM, WHAT BUDGET SAVINGS THERE COULD BE, WHAT, WHAT ARE THE NUMBERS BEHIND THAT? SO WE DO HAVE THAT. MM-HMM . ALL RIGHT. WELL, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. THANKS. * 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.