Aug 16, 2025 Budget Workshop

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GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO OUR SPECIAL BUDGET SESSION. TODAY IS SATURDAY, AUGUST 16TH AND WE'RE HAVING A SPECIAL BUDGET SESSION WORKSHOP FOR THE GARLAND CITY COUNCIL. OUR FIRST ITEM ON OUR

[ PUBLIC COMMENTS]

THIS PROGRAMAN'T BE ANALYZED IN THIS BUDGET. YET YOU SAY THAT'S THE PROCESS HERE. SO I WOULD I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU, COUNCIL, TO GET SOME INFORMATION, INFORMATION ON THAT. LOOK AT I HAVE I LOVE OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT. I LOVE OUR POLICE OFFICER. I LOVE EVERYTHING THEY DO. THIS IS A MATTER OF DOLLARS AND CENTS. AND I WANT YOU AS OUR COUNCIL TO MAKE SURE IT'S BEING PRUDENTLY HANDLED AS AS A PROGRAM. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. MADAM SECRETARY, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER SPEAKERS SIGNED UP? ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. MR. DUCKWORTH, WE HAVE ONE QUESTION FOR YOU. COUNCILMEMBER WILLIAMS. YES, SIR. GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU.

HAVE YOU LOOKED AT THE BUDGET? YOU HAVEN'T. THEY DON'T PROVIDE AS MUCH INFORMATION AS THE CITY DOES. HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVEN'T LOOKED AT IT? I DON'T KNOW WHAT. HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVEN'T LOOKED AT IT? HOW DO I KNOW WHAT? WHAT THE ISSUES. WHAT? WHAT DID I SAY THAT YOU WANT ME TO ANSWER? YOU SAID LOOK AT THE BUDGET. LOOK AT YOUR BUDGET, NOT THE SCHOOL BUDGET. I

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[1. Overview of FY26 Proposed Budget and navigating the budget document presentation]

YOU'LL NOTICE THAT THE LINEUP IS A LITTLE BIT LIGHTER THIS YEAR FOR A LOT OF REASONS, MOST OF WHICH IS THAT NOT A LOT OF CHANGE TO THE BUDGET THIS YEAR. YOU'LL SEE THAT ESPECIALLY IN THE GENERAL FUND, THINGS ARE TIGHT. AND AS FAR AS NEW PROPOSALS, NEW SERVICES, NEW PEOPLE, THEY'RE VERY FEW AND LIMITED AND FAR BETWEEN. SO WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO JUMP IN SOME OF THIS UPFRONT STUFF YOU'RE GOING TO RECOGNIZE FROM MY PRESENTATION A WEEK OR SO AGO WHEN WE INTRODUCED THE BUDGET AND PROVIDED IT FIRST TO COUNCIL. AND SO I'LL PROBABLY NOT SPEAK IN GREAT DETAIL ON THOSE THINGS, BUT I'LL BE TAGGING BACK IN OVER, OVER TIME FOR SOME OF THE SLIDES. AND LIKE I SAID, WE'RE ALL GOING TO SHARE IN THIS THIS MORNING. SO I DID WANT TO START OUT WITH KIND OF OUR BUDGET PRIORITIES AND CONSIDERATIONS. AND I'VE MENTIONED BEFORE COUNCIL THAT THIS IS A BRIDGE YEAR, PARTICULARLY FOR THE GENERAL FUND WHERE WE STARTED OUT IN A IN A IN THE RED AND WORKED OUR WAY OUT IN ORDER TO MEET SOME OF THE NEEDS THAT ARE THAT WERE RECOGNIZED WITHIN THE BUDGET. WE'RE ALSO FOCUSING ON PREPARING FOR A TAX RATE SWAP ELECTION IN NOVEMBER 2026. I KNOW WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THAT FOR QUITE A WHILE NOW, INCLUDING LAST YEAR'S DURING LAST YEAR'S BUDGET PROCESS. AND SO IN ORDER TO BRIDGE TO THAT FISCAL 2027 BUDGET IN NOVEMBER 26TH ELECTION, WE'RE REALLY LIMITING SPENDING IN THE GENERAL FUND, AND WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH IN DETAIL SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE PROPOSING TO USE ONE TIME DOLLARS FOR IN THE GENERAL FUND THIS YEAR IN ORDER TO BRIDGE TO THAT NOVEMBER 2026 ELECTION. LONG TERM, WE'RE REALLY LOOKING TO BUILD SOME ADDITIONAL SUSTAINABILITY INTO OUR EXISTING FUNDS. AND I'M GOING TO TALK SPECIFICALLY AGAIN ABOUT GROUP HEALTH AND SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE'RE FACING THERE. WITH THE HEALTH BENEFITS THAT WE PROVIDE OUR EMPLOYEES. THAT'S ONE IN PARTICULAR THAT'S HIGH ON MY RADAR IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE A SUSTAINABLE PROGRAM THAT CAN BE FUNDED OVER TIME AND THAT WE REALLY LIMIT THE GROWTH OF EXPENSES IN. NEXT SLIDE. AND OF COURSE, AS WE GO THROUGH THE BUDGET, ALWAYS LOOKING TO ALIGN ANYTHING THAT ANY BUDGET DECISIONS AND PROPOSALS WITH OUR STRATEGIC INITIATIVES IN THE GPS, THAT'S ALWAYS IN MIND AS WELL. I DID WANT TO SPEND JUST A

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LOOKING CLOSER AT SOME OF OUR OUR SORT OF FIVE BIGGEST FUNDS SHARED THIS BEFORE AS WE INTRODUCED THE BUDGET. YOU CAN SEE WHAT THE TOTAL BUDGET AMOUNTS ARE FOR EACH OF THESE DIFFERENT FUNDS AND WHAT THE FUND BALANCE REQUIREMENTS ARE, AND OUR OUR FUND BALANCE GOALS AND WHAT THE PROPOSED RESERVES WOULD BE AT THE END OF FISCAL 26. SO THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT WE ARE IN GOOD SHAPE WHEN IT COMES TO OUR FUND BALANCE REQUIREMENTS AND GOALS. I DID WANT TO NOTE, YOU'LL NOTICE ON ELECTRIC WATER WASTEWATER THAT THOSE PROPOSED RESERVES ARE HIGHER, SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER, I SHOULD SAY, THAN OUR FUND BALANCE GOALS. AND THE REASON FOR THAT IS THE VOLATILITY IN THOSE FUNDS IS MORE CONSIDERABLE. AND BUT PARTICULARLY ON THE WATER AND WASTEWATER SIDE, WHY WE HAVE EXTRA DAYS OF RESERVES THERE IS THAT AND I THINK THIS HAS BEEN COUNCIL'S PREFERENCE OVER TIME IS RATHER THAN RATHER THAN COME IN WITH A, YOU KNOW, SAY A 2% INCREASE TO OUR RATES IN ONE YEAR AND THEN NEXT THE FOLLOWING YEAR WHEN WE HAVE A LOT OF DEBT THAT WE'RE GOING TO ISSUE, COME IN WITH A 15 OR 20% INCREASE. WE TRY TO SMOOTH THAT OUT OVER TIME, WHICH MEANS THAT AT TIMES WE ARE GOING TO ACCUMULATE FUND BALANCE SO THAT WE CAN LATER

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SO AT THE END OF JULY, WE RECEIVED OUR CERTIFIED PROPERTY TAX BASE. OUR CERTIFIED VALUATION IS 28.3 BILLION. THIS IS A INCREASE OF 5.6% FROM OUR 2024. JUST TO SUMMARIZE THOSE INCREASES BY AREA, WE HAD A VERY MODEST BUT HEALTHY INCREASE TO OUR PROPERTY TAX BASE AT 5.6%.

WHAT IS NOTABLE IS OUR RECORD NEW CONSTRUCTION. THIS IS THE HIGHEST NEW CONSTRUCTION. THE CITY OF PORTLAND'S HAD 2.1% INCREASE, 552 MILLION OF NEW CONSTRUCTION, OF WHICH 308 MILLION OF THAT IS DIRECTLY TO THE GENERAL FUND. WITH A LOT OF THAT PROPERTY TAX BASE GROWTH AND NEW CONSTRUCTION GROWTH COMING FROM OUR COMMERCIAL PROPERTY TAX BASE. WE ARE PROPOSING TO HOLD THE PROPERTY TAX RATE FLAT TO THE 2024 2025 FISCAL YEAR. AS YOU RECALL, SB TWO AND THE TRUTH AND TAXATION PROCESS DOES DETERMINE THE CALCULATION OF OUR PROPERTY TAX RATE SO THAT WE CANNOT INCREASE GENERAL FUND REVENUES MORE THAN 3.5% FROM THE PRIOR YEAR. SO OUR PROPOSED RATE FOR 2526 IS 0.2886, WITH A PROPOSED DEBT SERVICE TAX RATE OF 0.4011, FOR A TOTAL COMBINED PROPOSED RATE OF 0.6897. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT SINCE SB TWO WENT INTO EFFECT BACK IN 2020, THE CITY HAS FOREGONE 29.3 MILLION IN ONGOING REVENUE TO THE GENERAL FUND AND AN OVERALL TAX RATE INCREASE. AS YOU CAN SEE ON THIS GRAPH OF 10.5 $0.04 PER $100 OF VALUATION, ALL TAKEN FROM THE O&M SIDE OF THE TAX RATE, WHICH GOES DIRECTLY TO GENERAL FUND REVENUE. EARLIER THIS YEAR, THE CITY COUNCIL AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES COMMITTEE DELIBERATED AND APPROVED SOME CHANGES TO THE CITY'S HOMESTEAD AND SENIOR EXEMPTIONS. THESE ARE REVIEWED ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, AND ANY CHANGE MUST BE ADOPTED BEFORE JULY 1ST, SO THAT OUR ESSENTIAL APPRAISAL DISTRICTS CAN BE NOTIFIED. THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVED A 1% INCREASE IN THE HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION AND A $4,000 INCREASE TO OUR SENIOR EXEMPTION. THIS NOW MEANS THAT THE CITY OF GARLAND PROVIDES AN 11% HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION AND A $60,000 SENIOR EXEMPTION. SO MOVING INTO OUR IMPACT ON OUR RESIDENT OF THE 2025 PROPERTY TAX, YOU CAN SEE THAT OUR AVERAGE MARKET VALUE OF A GARLAND HOME ONLY INCREASED 1.1% ON, YOU KNOW, JUST FOR YOUR AVERAGE SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENT WITHIN THE CITY OF GARLAND, DUE

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AFTER APPLYING THAT HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION OF 11%, WE GET TO THEIR AVERAGE TAXABLE VALUE OF 266,439 AND THE AVERAGE ANNUAL CITY TAX OF $1,838, WHICH IS A 5.5% INCREASE, OR $96 INCREASE FROM 2024. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT OUR MARKET VALUE DID ONLY INCREASE 1.1%. HOWEVER, WHEN WE COMPARED TO DALLAS COUNTY CITY COUNTYWIDE, THE AVERAGE MARKET VALUE INCREASED 4.76%. SO THIS IS A CONCERNING FIGURE THAT OUR HOUSING STOCK AND PROPERTY TAX BASE IS NOT GROWING AT THE SAME RATE AS OTHER PEER CITIES WITHIN THE COUNTY. MOVING TO OUR ESTIMATED IMPACT ON A RESIDENT WITH A HOMESTEAD AND SENIOR EXEMPTION. LOOKING AT THAT SAME INCREASE ON THE MARKET VALUE OF 1.1%. INCREASE ON YOUR AVERAGE APPRAISED VALUE OF 6.7%. AFTER APPLYING OUR 11% HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION AND $60,000 SENIOR EXEMPTION, YOU'LL SEE THAT THEIR AVERAGE ANNUAL TAXABLE VALUE FOR 2025 IS 206,439, A 5% INCREASE FROM 2024. AND THAT AVERAGE ANNUAL CITY TAX IS $1,424, AN INCREASE OF $68, OR 5%, FROM 2024 TAXES. OUR GENERAL FUND FY 26 PROPOSED RESOURCES ARE SHOWN HERE. ON THIS GRAPHIC. YOU'LL SEE THAT OUR PROPERTY TAX BASE MAKES UP 78.2 MILLION OR 30%. SALES TAX IS 45.9 MILLION, 18% OUR LANDFILL AND RETURN ON INVESTMENT MAKE UP ANOTHER THIRD OF OVERALL GENERAL, ALMOST A THIRD OF OVERALL GENERAL FUND REVENUE, WITH OUR ALL OTHER REVENUE TOTALING 77.2 MILLION. ALL OTHER REVENUE FOR THE GENERAL FUND INCLUDES REVENUE FROM SOME OF THE DEPARTMENTS IN THE GENERAL FUND, SUCH AS EMS FEES, DEVELOPMENT PERMITS AND FEES, MUNICIPAL COURT FINES AND FEES, RECREATIONAL FEES, ALL THE ALL THE REVENUE FROM THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS IN THE GENERAL FUND. OUR FOUR LARGEST REVENUE SOURCES FOR THE GENERAL FUND ACCOUNT FOR 69% OF TOTAL GENERAL FUND RESOURCES. LOOKING AT THE EXPENDITURE SIDE FOR PROPOSED FOR FY 26, YOU'LL SEE THAT PUBLIC SAFETY TOTALS 171.4 MILLION, OR 67% OF TOTAL GENERAL FUND SPEND, WITH OUR CULTURE AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT BEING OUR SECOND LARGEST AT 31 MILLION OR 12%, FOLLOWED BY OUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND DEVELOPMENT, GENERAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS. IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT PUBLIC SAFETY COMPRISES 67% OF TOTAL GENERAL FUND SPEND. OUR TWO LARGEST REVENUE SOURCES, PROPERTY TAX AND SALES TAX, ONLY MAKE UP ABOUT 48%. SO QUITE THE DICHOTOMY AND THE COST OF OUR CORE CITY SERVICES AND HOW MUCH OUR CORE REVENUES CAN BRING IN ON AN ANNUAL BASIS. LOOKING AT THE FUND SUMMARY FOR OUR CHANGE IN RESOURCES FROM FY 25 ADOPTED, WE'RE PROPOSING A $2.4 MILLION INCREASE IN OUR PROPERTY TAX BASE. THIS IS APPROXIMATELY 3.2%, SLIGHTLY LOWER THAN THE 3.5% IN SB TWO. AFTER YOU BACK OUT NEW CONSTRUCTION ASSOCIATED WITH OUR TIFS, ALL THE GROWTH IN OUR TIF VALUES, IT DOESN'T ALWAYS QUITE WORK OUT TO BE EXACTLY THAT. 3.5%. WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THE CHANGE FROM OUR REVISED BUDGET, WHICH WE DID UPDATE OUR ESTIMATES BASED ON THE PROPERTY TAXES WE ARE SEEING COME IN, IT'S ABOUT A 4% INCREASE OVER OUR CURRENT YEAR REVISED BUDGET FOR OUR SALES TAX. AS YOU MAY RECALL, WE CAME TO THE COUNCIL BUDGET WORKSHOP BACK IN JUNE TALKING ABOUT SOME

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MOVING INTO THOSE PROPOSED REVENUE CHANGES, SEVERAL OF THESE WILL BE TOUCHED ON BY THE DEPARTMENTS YOU'LL HEAR FROM TODAY, BUT THE DISPOSAL FEE IS PAID BY THE SANITATION FUND. WE ARE WE WILL NOT NECESSARILY BE PRESENTING ON THIS TODAY, BUT WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. WE ARE PROPOSING TO ADJUST THE METHODOLOGY TO CHARGE THE COMMERCIAL TONNAGE COLLECTED BY SANITATION. THE COMMERCIAL RATE, INSTEAD OF JUST A COST OF SERVICE RATE. SO THIS IS JUST CHARGING OURSELVES THE RATE WE EXPECT OUR OTHER COMMERCIAL ENTITIES TO PAY. SO THIS IS PROPOSING AN INCREASE TO GENERAL FUND REVENUE OF ABOUT 1.1 MILLION. ALONG WITH THAT, CHRIS HOOFNAGLE WILL BE HERE LATER TODAY TO PRESENT ON SOME PROPOSED FEE CHANGES FOR THE LANDFILL, WHICH APPROXIMATELY BRING IN ABOUT ADDITIONAL 400,000, CHIEFLY WILL BE HERE TO PRESENT ON A PROPOSED CHANGE TO OUR EMS REVENUE, WITH THE PROPOSED INCREASE OF ABOUT 700,000 ASSOCIATED WITH THAT PROPOSED FEE CHANGE. OUR STAFF IS WORKING WITH THE CONSULTANT TO PRESENT OPTIONS TO THE CITY COUNCIL ABOUT EXTENDING THE LIFE OF SHIFT TWO THAT WILL GO INTO THIS LATER TODAY. BUT AS PART OF THAT CONSIDERATION, WE WOULD LIKE TO PROPOSE A TRANSFER FROM TIF TWO TO THE GENERAL FUND FOR SOME COST RECOVERY OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ASSIGNMENT TO THAT TIF ZONE. PROJECTED REIMBURSEMENT FOR FY 26 OF ABOUT 1.1 MILLION. AND THEN FINALLY, OUR PARKS AND RECREATION STAFF WILL BE HERE TODAY TO PRESENT ON A PROPOSED FEE SCHEDULE ASSOCIATED WITH OUR ENHANCED SURF AND SWIM AQUATIC FACILITY. WITH THE PROJECTED REVENUE INCREASE OF ABOUT 150,000. LOOKING AT THE EXPENDITURE SIDE OF OUR FY 26 PROPOSED GENERAL FUND, WE HAVE ABOUT 3.5 MILLION BUDGETED FOR A 2.5% ONE TIME LUMP SUM PAYMENT. WE HAVE 1,000,001.1 MILLION BUDGETED FOR A 6% INCREASE IN THE GENERAL FUND TRANSFER TO THE GROUP HEALTH INSURANCE FUND FOR OUR EMPLOYEE CONTRIBUTIONS, AND $92,000 INCREASE TO OUR CONTRIBUTION TO THE GROUP HEALTH FUND FOR OUR RETIREE PLAN, AN INCREASE FOR OUR CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT STABILITY BENEFIT GOING FROM THE CITY CONTRIBUTION AT 2.5% TO 2.75%. ABOUT 354,000 FOR THE FY 26 BUDGET. WE HAVE

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THESE ITEMS ARE INCLUDED ON THERE IN PARALLEL TO THIS FY 26 OPERATING BUDGET PROCESS. I'LL TURN IT BACK OVER TO JED TO TALK ABOUT OUR GROUP HEALTH FUND COUNCIL. THE GROUP HEALTH FUND IS SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN PAYING ATTENTION TO CLOSER. AND WHAT WHAT THE FUND IS, IS ESSENTIALLY ALL THE MONEY THAT COMES IN AND GOES OUT FOR THE PACKAGE OF BENEFITS THAT WE PROVIDE EMPLOYEES. SO MEDICAL INSURANCE, DENTAL VISION, BOTH FOR ACTIVE EMPLOYEES AND FOR RETIREES. AND SO, AS I'VE MENTIONED BEFORE, WHAT WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO DO WITHIN THIS, WITHIN THIS FUND IS TO PROVIDE A SUSTAINABLE PATH WHERE THE GROWTH OF THE FUND REALLY CORRESPONDS TO THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE. AND YOU'LL SEE, HISTORICALLY, THE

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SO I YOU KNOW, YOU MENTIONED A SURVEY. THOSE GET TRICKY BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IF YOU SURVEY SOMEBODY, DO YOU WANT US TO CUT YOUR YOUR HEALTH INSURANCE ARE GOING TO SAY, NO I'M NOT. SO IT'S MORE MORE COMMUNICATION. I JUST THREW THAT OUT. I WAS NOT SUGGESTING THAT. YEAH I JUST THREW IT OUT AS ONE POSSIBILITY. BUT WE DO I I'M COMMITTED TO COMMUNICATING WHATEVER CHANGES WE MAKE EARLY AND OFTEN BECAUSE I. AND PART OF WHAT WE'VE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT INTERNALLY IS THAT ANY CHANGES WE MAKE LONG TERM, WE'VE GOT TO BE ABLE TO PHASE IN AS MUCH AS WE CAN SO THAT IF I'M IF I'M POST 65 AND I KIND OF HAVE MY BUDGET SET AND I KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT IF WE TELL THEM, YOU KNOW, THREE, FOUR YEARS, WE'RE GOING TO PHASE THIS IN, IT GIVES THEM TIME TO CONSIDER THEIR OPTIONS AND REALLY LOOK AT THINGS. SO I THINK THE I THINK THE KEY IS COMMUNICATION AND PHASING IN ANY CHANGES OVER TIME OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. COUNCILMEMBER BASS THANK YOU. ON THE RETIREE SIDE. IT'S OF COURSE, I THINK IT'S A GREAT BENEFIT THAT WE OFFER RETIREES AND CURIOUS A COUPLE THINGS IS ARE THERE ANY STATISTICS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, BUSINESSES OR, OR GOVERNMENT THAT HOW RETIREE BENEFITS LIKE OFFERING A RETIREE BENEFIT, HOW DOES THAT AFFECT EMPLOYEE RETENTION? AND ALSO HOW COMMON IS IT TO PROVIDE MEDICAL INSURANCE TO RETIREES? WE HAVE THAT INFORMATION NOT IN FRONT OF US, BUT WE CAN PROVIDE THAT IN A WRITTEN RESPONSE OR AT A FUTURE WORK SESSION. OKAY, I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THAT BECAUSE I'M ASSUMING THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT OUR RETIREE BENEFIT IS PRETTY, PRETTY STRONG COMPARED TO OTHERS. BUT I'M JUST MAKING THAT ASSUMPTION. SO IT IS IF WE WHEN WE WERE GOING THROUGH THE COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT FOR THE TWO-YEAR PROCESS LAST, LAST FISCAL YEAR, YOU MAY HAVE RECALLED, WE PROVIDED A PRESENTATION SHOWING METROPLEX CITIES LOOKING AT THE TRYING TO LOOK AT THE COMPLETE RETIREE BENEFITS OR LOOKING AT YOUR PENSION, PLUS YOUR HEALTH INSURANCE. AND WHAT THAT SHOWED WAS, YES, WE DID NOT HAVE A COLA AND WE WERE THE ONLY CITY THAT DID NOT HAVE IT. BUT WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO DO OVER TIME IS PROVIDE A RETIREE HEALTH INSURANCE BENEFIT THAT WAS STRONGER, SO THAT IT COULD HELP SUPPLEMENT THE FACT THAT WE DON'T HAVE A COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT. SO WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING ACROSS MOST METROPLEX CITIES, THERE ARE THERE ARE METROPLEX CITIES THAT JUST FLAT OUT DO NOT PROVIDE RETIREE HEALTH INSURANCE. THERE'S AND THERE'S ALSO SOME THAT, AS JUDD MENTIONED, THE NORM IS ROUGHLY ABOUT A 25% CITY CONTRIBUTION. WE'RE AT 53. SO THAT'S OUR THAT'S ON THE ONES THAT ARE ACTUALLY PROVIDING A HEALTH INSURANCE BENEFIT. AND SO OUR FIRST STRATEGY WAS TO CAP OUR OUR CONTRIBUTION AT 3% PER YEAR. AND YOU SEE THAT THE THIS YEAR RETIREES ARE AT TEN. SO AND WE'RE AT 5347 OVER TIME, IF THAT TREND CONTINUES, WHICH WE ALL ANTICIPATE IT WILL, THAT 53% WILL DWINDLE DOWN LOWER. AND THEN THE RETIREES WILL GROW HIGHER. HOWEVER, THAT WILL TAKE MULTIPLE YEARS TO DO. OKAY. THANK YOU. MAYOR. I DID WANT TO MENTION TO BECAUSE I'M SURE THE QUESTION WILL BE ASKED AT SOME POINT. DO WE HAVE TO PROVIDE RETIREE HEALTH INSURANCE? AND STATUTORILY, THERE IS A REQUIREMENT THAT CITIES ABOVE 30,000, 50,000, I FORGET WHAT THE THRESHOLD IS, HAVE TO AT LEAST PROVIDE AN OPTION FOR RETIREE HEALTH INSURANCE,

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THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM LUCK. I HAD KIND OF TOUCHED ON THIS EARLIER. THE LAST TIME WE WERE JUST GIVEN LIKE A BROAD VIEW OF OUR BUDGET. I REALLY THINK THAT THOSE PERCENTAGES NEED TO BE ADJUSTED, AND I'M I'M SURE THAT RIGHT NOW ISN'T A GOOD TIME TO DO IT, SINCE WE'RE JUMPING INTO THINGS AND CODIFYING EVERYTHING SOON. BUT NEXT YEAR, I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE THOSE PERCENTAGES ADJUSTED AND. I JUST LIKE AN 8020 AND THEN 6040 TYPE SITUATION, IF NOT EVEN MORE SO.

I WOULD REALLY LIKE THOSE NUMBERS PRESENTED TO US AS FAR AS LIKE WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE ON AN EMPLOYEE'S PAYCHECK, JUST LIKE EARLIER, $4, YOU SEE 6%. IT'S REALLY $4. THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THE BIG TO SEE THE NUMBER VALUE REALLY MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE. AND I MEAN HEALTH CARE IS EXPENSIVE. IT JUST IS. ONE OF THE PERKS OF WORKING FOR A MUNICIPALITY IS THAT YOU GET GREAT BENEFITS. BUT YOU ALSO, YOU KNOW, ARE STILL GETTING GREAT BENEFITS. EVEN IF THOSE PERCENTAGES CHANGE SLIGHTLY. SO THANK YOU. WE CAN PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION FOR YOU. THANK YOU, THANK YOU COUNCILMEMBER MORE. SORRY FOR JUMPING BACK IN ONE MORE TIME, BUT I, I BROUGHT THAT SUBJECT UP BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT VERY IMPORTANT FOR COUNCIL AND ESPECIALLY OUR EMPLOYEES AND FOR THE COMMUNITY TO RECOGNIZE THAT THIS THIS PLAN IS ONE OF THE BEST THAT YOU CAN HAVE, ESPECIALLY BY WAY OF THE SUPPLEMENT BEING PART OF IT. WHEN IT COMES TO RETAINING EMPLOYEES. THIS IS A PLAN THAT WILL DO THAT WHEN IT COMES TO NOT HAVING, AS YOU STATED, THE COLA. THIS IS A PLAN THAT WILL DO IT. WHY? BECAUSE TO HAVE A SUPPLEMENT MEANS THE 8020 THAT YOU'RE SPEAKING OF. FORGET IT. THERE IS NO 8020. IT'S 100% PRETTY MUCH BECAUSE THE SUPPLEMENT TAKES CARE OF THE CO-PAYS, THE INSURANCES, AS WELL AS ANY DEDUCTIBLES. SO THIS IS A VERY GOOD BENEFIT FOR OUR EMPLOYEES. THAT WAS THE REASON THAT I WANTED TO BRING THAT UP.

THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. COUNCILMEMBER DUNCAN. I THINK WE CAN ARGUE ABOUT BENEFITS ALL DAY LONG, BUT WHAT'S GOING TO COST US OUR EMPLOYEES IS A LUMP SUM PAYMENT, BECAUSE THAT DOESN'T GET THEM INTO THE MARKET RATE WITH OTHER CITIES. THAT'S WHAT'S GOING TO LOSE OUR, OUR, OUR EMPLOYEES. SO I THINK THAT THE HEALTH CARE ASPECT OF IT IS SO TRIVIAL.

THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY WHAT OUR EMPLOYEES ARE CONCERNED ABOUT RIGHT NOW, BUT THEY'RE CONCERNED ABOUT IS THAT THEY'RE NOT GOING TO GET THAT INCREASE ON THEIR REGULAR WAGE. SO WHAT HAPPENS NEXT YEAR WHEN WE GO TO GIVE PAY RAISES? THEY'RE GOING TO GET THE PAY RAISE THAT THEY SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN THIS YEAR. SO IF SOMEONE IS MAKING $15 AN HOUR, THEY'RE GETTING A 2.5% LUMP SUM. BUT THEN NEXT YEAR WE GIVE THEM A 3% RAISE. IT'S NOT GOING TO IT'S NOT GOING TO EQUATE WE ALREADY LOSE PEOPLE BECAUSE OF THEIR CITIES, PAY HIGHER HOURLY WAGES. SO I THINK THAT ARGUING OVER THE HEALTH CARE ASPECT OF IT, $4, $10, WHATEVER IS THE LEAST OF OUR WORRIES IF WE'RE WORRIED ABOUT EMPLOYEE RETENTION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MA'AM. COUNCIL. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALONGSIDE THE FY 26 PROPOSED BUDGET, WE PRESENT OUR UTILITY RATES TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR THEIR CONSIDERATION. OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, WE'VE PRESENTED A STORMWATER UTILITY RATE STRATEGY. IF YOU RECALL, BACK IN FY 24 BUDGET PREPARATION, WE COMMITTED TO INCREASING OUR RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL STORMWATER RATES TO PROVIDE SEED FUNDING OVER TIME FOR ADDITIONAL DRAINAGE AND OR EROSION CONTROL IMPROVEMENTS. F 26 PROPOSED IS THE FINAL YEAR OF THAT THREE YEAR PHASE IN TO THE METROPLEX AVERAGE, WHICH HAD A PROPOSED RESIDENTIAL RATE OF $6.44. WHILE WE ARE NOT SEEKING DIRECTION OR, YOU KNOW FROM COUNCIL AT THIS TIME, THERE WILL NEED TO BE DISCUSSION AS PART OF NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET IF WE WANT TO CONTINUE THAT PHASE IN STRATEGY TO GET TO THE. WHAT IS THE CURRENT METROPLEX AVERAGE OF $7.53 FOR AN AVERAGE RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY? THIS SLIDE OUTLINES OUR OVERALL PROPOSED RATE CHANGES INCLUDED IN THE FY 26

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VERY GOOD. WITH THE FY 26 PROPOSED BUDGET, WE ARE ALSO PROPOSING THE UTILIZATION OF SOME OF OUR RESTRICTED USE TREE MITIGATION FUND. WE ARE PROPOSING SOME PLANT AND LANDSCAPE REPLACEMENT MAINTENANCE OUT OF OUR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, AND SOME TREE CANOPY AND BRUSH MAINTENANCE THROUGH OUR ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE DEPARTMENT FOR A TOTAL PROPOSED USE. PROPOSED USE OF $175,000 IN FY 26. WITH THAT, I WILL MOVE OVER TO OUR LONG TERM OUTLOOK. IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS ON THE FY 26 OVERVIEW ONE SECOND.

COUNCILMEMBER WILLIAMS YEAH, I JUST THOUGHT OF QUESTIONS. SORRY. JUDD. OR YOU DOES THE

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AND COUNCIL CAN ALLOCATE THAT FOR RELEVANT USES. I, I THOUGHT THAT WAS THE CASE WITH THE PRESERVE IS A SEPARATE ENTITY RIGHT. YES. OKAY. AND WE'RE DEALING WITH THAT SEPARATELY RIGHT. YES. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. JUST I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE. OKAY. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU SIR. MAYOR. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COUNCIL, BEFORE WE MOVE ON, PLEASE CONTINUE. SO I'M GOING TO KICK OFF AND JUST TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE LONG TERM OUTLOOK AND WHAT WE'RE ANTICIPATING SEEING OVER THE NEXT FIVE PLUS YEARS. AND THEN WE'LL AND THE REASON WHY THIS TAX RATE SHIFT THAT WE'RE PREPARING FOR NEXT YEAR IS SO IMPORTANT AS WE KEEP MOVING FORWARD. BUT OF COURSE, BEFORE YOU DO THAT, I WANTED TO TAKE A STEP BACK AND TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW WE GOT TO WHERE WE ARE NOW AND SOME OF THE HISTORICALLY WHAT SOME OF THE CHALLENGES HAVE BEEN FROM A FINANCIAL STANDPOINT. SO I'M SHOWING YOU IN THIS CHART REALLY THREE DIFFERENT THINGS AND THE THREE DIFFERENT WAYS. SO THE FIRST THING IS IF YOU LOOK AT THIS CHART, IT'S THE PROPERTY TAX VALUES AND ITS GROWTH SINCE 2009 AND WHY SINCE 2009. THAT WAS THE START OF THE GREAT RECESSION. AND IN THE BLUE IS THE INCREASE OR DECREASE TO THE PROPERTY TAX VALUES OVER THAT TIME. AND WHY IT TURNS GREEN IS TH'S WHEN SB TWO WENT INTO EFFECT. YOU'LL SEE A RED DOTTED LINE THAT IS GOING FROM 2009 TO 2026. THAT REPRESENTS JUST A 3.5% INCREASE EACH YEAR. SO YOU CAN SEE FROM THE TAX BASE GROWTH, WE HAD AN $11.2 BILLION TAX BASE IN 2009.

IT DWINDLED DOWN AND WE DID NOT RECOVER BACK TO $11.22 BILLION TAX BASE UNTIL 2016. HOWEVER, WE TYPICALLY NEED ABOUT 3.5% INCREASE IN OUR REVENUES TO SUPPORT ONGOING EXPENDITURES AND KEEP SERVICE LEVELS WHERE THEY NEED TO BE. YOU CAN SEE IT TOOK ALL THE WAY TO 2021 BEFORE THE TAX BASE GOT TO THAT INFLATIONARY NUMBER. SO THAT'S A 12 YEAR PERIOD WHERE WE WERE HAVING TO REALLY MAKE DO WITH MUCH LOWER REVENUE THAN WE NEEDED TO KEEP CURRENT SERVICE LEVELS. HOWEVER, THERE WAS A HUGE SPIKE AFTER THAT. EVERYONE KNOWS POST-COVID THAT THE TAX BASE GREW BECAUSE THE HOUSING BOOM. BUT YOU'LL NOTICE THAT THE GREEN REPRESENTS SB TWO. SO THAT'S WHEN WE STARTED BEING CAPPED ANYWAY AT 3.5%. SO HOW DID THAT IMPACT TOTAL GENERAL FUND REVENUES. SO THIS IS A LOOK SAME KIND OF LOOK. BUT LOOKING AT TOTAL GENERAL FUND REVENUE.

AND 2008 WE HAD $130 MILLION OF GENERAL FUND REVENUE. THE IMPACTS OF THE RECESSION AND THE LONG TERM IMPACTS OF THAT. WE DID NOT BREAK EVEN WITH THE 3.5% UNTIL 2024. AND HERE'S THE SAME LOOK LOOKING AT EXPENDITURES. SO OBVIOUSLY WE WERE NOT ABLE TO ADD THE ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURES THAT WE NEEDED TO OVER THIS LONG PERIOD OF TIME. SO REALLY ON ALL THREE OF THESE SLIDES, WHAT WHAT THE POINT OF THEM IS, IS TO SAY THAT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, WE'VE HAD SOME REALLY LARGE GROWTH IN OUR REVENUES, AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO INCREASE OUR BUDGET, ADD NEW STAFF. BUT A LOT OF IT WAS TO TAKE CARE OF PAST PROBLEMS BECAUSE OF THIS. 12. EXCUSE ME, SIR, CAN YOU PLEASE KEEP THE DISTRACTIONS DOWN? YES, SIR. THANK YOU. PLEASE CONTINUE. SO BACK TO WHAT? WHAT THESE CHARTS ARE TRYING TO SHOW IS THAT THE GREAT RECESSION, WHILE IT TOOK PLACE IN 2008, IT TOOK 12 YEARS FOR US TO FULLY RECOVER FROM THAT EXPERIENCE. AND THEN AFTER THAT, THE POST-COVID BOOM, WE WERE ABLE TO HAVE ADDITIONAL REVENUES. BUT A LOT OF THAT WAS GEARED TOWARDS MAKING UP FOR LOST GROUND DURING THAT GREAT RECESSION. AND HERE'S ONE MORE LOOK AT THAT. ON THE AMOUNT OF EMPLOYEES THAT WE HAD IN THE GENERAL FUND. SO AGAIN, THE RED BAR REPRESENTS THE GREAT RECESSION. YOU CAN SEE THAT WE HAD 2116 EMPLOYEES IN 2008, AND WE DID NOT REACH THAT SAME LEVEL UNTIL 2018. SO ROUGHLY TEN YEARS OF REDUCED STAFF LEVELS TO PERFORM THE SAME TYPE OF WORK.

[01:05:06]

AND EARLIER, ALLISON, WHEN SHE WAS TALKING ABOUT OUR TAX BASE GROWTH, WE REALLY WHAT WE WERE REALLY WHAT YOU SAW WHEN THE TAX BASE GROWTH IS NEW CONSTRUCTION AND COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES WERE REALLY THE ONLY THING THAT WAS GROWING. YOU SAW THAT ON THE RESIDENTIAL BASE THAT IT WAS ONLY A 1.9% INCREASE. AND THIS CHART SHOWS FROM THE BOOM OF POST COVID, THE INCREASES WE WERE SEEING FROM MLS DATA ON THE PRICE PER SQUARE FOOT AS COMPARED TO WHERE WE ARE NOW, THE PEAK PRICE OF GARLAND HOME WAS AT $184.92, AND THAT WAS IN APRIL OF 2024. YOU CAN SEE BY APRIL OF 2025, IT IS STARTING TO RETREAT BACK AT 183.35. SO SEVERAL THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS HERE IS, IS THIS JUST STAGNATION OR IS THIS GOING TO CONTINUE TO DROP? ANOTHER CONCERNING NUMBER ALLISON POINTED OUT, IS THAT THE METROPLEX COMPARED TO US, AGAIN, WE WERE AT ABOUT A 1% THE METROPLEX. THEIR MARKET VALUES WENT UP STILL AROUND 5%. SO THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DIG INTO AND REALLY WATCH THESE NUMBERS CLOSELY. BUT YOU CAN DEFINITELY SEE THAT THE TREND RIGHT NOW FROM THESE 12 MONTH MOVING AVERAGE IS THAT HOME VALUES SHOULD ARE APPEARING TO BE STAGNATING OUT AND DIPPING JUST SLIGHTLY. SAME STORY IS REALLY TRUE FOR OUR SALES TAX. SALES TAX AFTER THE GREAT RECESSION REALLY REALLY WAS THE ONE KEY THING THAT SAVED US AND ALLOWED US TO START BEING ABLE TO TAKE CARE OF A LOT OF THE ISSUES THAT WERE THAT THAT WERE CAUSED FROM THE GREAT RECESSION.

MANY THINGS HAPPENED IN THE FIRST YEAR THERE IN 2021. ONE WAS THAT THE SOMETHING CALLED THE WAYFAIR ACT WAS SIGNED INTO LAW, WHICH ALLOWED US TO COLLECT SALES TAX ON ONLINE PURCHASES FROM THINGS LIKE AMAZON TO ANYTHING THAT YOU'RE BUYING ONLINE FROM A DESTINATION BASE.

ALSO, INFLATION WAS AT EIGHT 9% AT THAT TIME. SO OBVIOUSLY THAT WOULD FLOW THROUGH TO THE COST OF GOODS, INCREASING SALES TAX. AND THEN THE THIRD THING WAS IS JUST THE POST-COVID BOOM. PEOPLE WERE OUT WANTING TO SPEND THEIR MONEY AGAIN. SO YOU CAN SEE IN THAT FIRST YEAR OF THE POST COVID, WE HAD ABOUT A 24% INCREASE IN OUR SALES TAX. THE NEXT YEAR, WE HAD ABOUT A 14% INCREASE IN OUR SALES TAX, AND THEN DOWN TO 10% IN 2024. I WILL SAY THAT WHAT WAS GOING ON IN 2024 WAS THERE WAS A LOT OF ONE TIME SALES TAX THAT WE COLLECTED FROM THE DATA CENTERS THAT ARE OFF OF GEORGE BUSH FOR THE SERVERS AND EVERYTHING THAT THEY HAD TO PURCHASE TO RUN THOSE FACILITIES. SO THIS PROBLEM UNDER THE UNDERLYING THERE WAS ALREADY A STAGNATION OUT IN 2024 THAT WE WERE EXPERIENCING, BUT WE HAD THOSE ONE TIME REVENUES TO HELP INCREASE THE SALES TAX.

HOWEVER, FOR 2025, YOU CAN SEE THAT IT'S ALREADY A 3% DROP FROM 2024. IT DOES APPEAR THAT THE SALES TAX NUMBERS ARE STARTING TO STAGNATE OUT, NOT NECESSARILY CONTINUING TO DIP DOWN OR DROP, WHICH IS A GOOD SIGN. BUT THE BAD NEWS IS, IS EVEN STAGNATION IS GOING TO MAKE IT HARD FOR US TO CONTINUE YEAR TO YEAR TO ADD SERVICES OR CONTINUE TO PROVIDE THIS SERVICES WE ALREADY HAVE.

SO LONG TERM IN OUR GARLAND PLUS FIVE, WE'VE THIS MODEL LOOKS TO TAKE NOT JUST THE INFORMATION I SHOWED YOU, BUT EVERY REVENUE SOURCE THAT WE HAVE AND WE TREND IT OUT BASED OFF OF HISTORICAL NORMS AND HISTORICAL PERCENTAGES. AND YOU CAN SEE THAT WE ARE PROJECTING TO HAVE ABOUT $6 MILLION MORE EACH YEAR IN REVENUE IN THE GENERAL FUND. BUT WE'RE ANTICIPATING JUST TO COVER THE SERVICES. WE ALREADY HAVE ABOUT $10.7 MILLION OF ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURES, WHICH IS ABOUT A $4.8 MILLION DEFICIT EACH YEAR. NOW, WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT THERE ARE YEARS WHERE WE

[01:10:04]

AND THIS, THESE THESE DOLLARS WILL NOT IMPACT WHAT I'M ABOUT TO GET INTO. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE TAX RATE SHIFT. AND JUST TO ADD, AS WE GO THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS PROGRAM, WE ARE GOING TO BE TRACKING AND PRESENTING TO COUNCIL ANY OPERATIONAL IMPACTS THAT RESULT OUT OF PROP C AND D SPECIFICALLY. BUT AT THIS TIME, A STAFF IS STILL IN THE KIND OF THE RESEARCH AND PROJECT DEVELOPMENT PHASE. WE DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION YET AVAILABLE.

SO WE'LL MOVE INTO THE TAX RATE SHIFT THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR NOVEMBER 2026. THIS CHART JUST SHOWS SINCE 2008 WHAT OUR TAX RATE HAS BEEN. YOU CAN SEE IN 2008 WE'RE AT 68.86. AND THEN FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME ALL THE WAY TO 2019, WE HELD OUR TAX RATE FLAT AT 70.46. AND AT THAT TIME, THE COUNCIL I TALKED EARLIER ABOUT THE GREAT RECESSION AND HOW IT TOOK 12 YEARS TO GET OUT OF THAT, OUT OF THAT GREAT RECESSION. AND AT THAT TIME RESIDENTS WERE STRUGGLING AS WELL. AND SO THE COUNCIL AT THAT TIME DID NOT WANT TO INCREASE THE TAX RATE AND WANTED TO HAVE A LEVEL TAX RATE IN ORDER TO PROTECT RESIDENTS AS WELL. SO WE DID NOT HAVE A TAX RATE INCREASE UNTIL 20 1920. AT THAT TIME. THAT WAS THE 2019 BOND PROGRAM. WHEN WE WENT TO THE VOTERS FOR THE 2019 BOND PROGRAM, WE ALSO ASKED FOR A SIX AND A HALF CENT TAX RATE INCREASE TO FUND THE DEBT SERVICE PORTION OF THE TAX RATE AND TO CONSTRUCT THESE FACILITIES. AND THEN YOU SEE THE RED LINE IS SB TWO. THAT IS WHEN THE LEGISLATURE CAPPED OUR SIZE.

SO OUR OPERATIONS SIDE, WHICH FUNDS THE GENERAL FUND AT 3.5%. AND HOW THEY DID THAT WAS AS TAX BASE THE BASE GROWS, THEY CAP YOUR THEY LOWER YOUR TAX RATE TO GET THE DELTA TO COME OUT TO 3.5%, WHICH IS THE REVENUE. SO IF YOUR TAX BASE GOES UP 20%, YOUR RATE'S GOING TO HAVE TO COME DOWN TO FORCE A 3.5% REVENUE. AND WITH THE HOUSING BOOM, WE OBVIOUSLY SAW SOME MASSIVE TAX BASE GROWTH. AND YOU CAN SEE THAT OUR TAX RATE ON ALL ON THE NO SIDE HAS DWINDLED ALL THE WAY BACK DOWN TO 68.97, WHICH IS THE LOWEST LEVEL WE'VE SEEN SINCE 2007 EIGHT AND REPRESENTS ALMOST OVER $30 MILLION OF ONGOING REVENUE THAT'S BEEN FOREGONE TO THE GENERAL FUND, AND IS ABOUT 11.1 CENTS PER $100 OF VALUE THAT'S BEEN LOST DUE TO SB TWO. SO NOW LET'S GET INTO THE TAX RATE SHIFT THAT WE ARE PROPOSING TO DO IN FY 26 AND FY 27. SO OUR CURRENT TAX RATE IS MADE UP OF THE TAX RATE, WHICH IS 0.290 FOR THIS YEAR. AND THIS FUNDS THE GENERAL FUND. THIS IS WHAT FUNDS OPERATIONS AND PUBLIC SAFETY PARKS, THINGS OF THAT NATURE.

THE DEBT SERVICE TAX RATE IS 0.3993. AND THAT FUNDS THE BOND PROGRAMS AND OUR CIP FOR A TOTAL TAX RATE OF 0.689 $0.07 PER $100 OF VALUATION. SO FIRST, I WANT TO GO THROUGH STATUS QUO. WHAT WE MEAN BY STATUS QUO IS WE DO NOT LOOK TO MAKE ANY TAX RATE SHIFTS, AND WE ALLOW SB TWO TO CONTINUE TO ERODE AWAY THE TAX RATE ON THE NO SIDE. SO IN FY 26, THAT 0.2904 CURRENT TAX RATE WITH CERTIFIED VALUES WILL BE 0.2886. WHAT WE ARE. AND THEN ON THE DEBT SERVICE TAX RATE ON A

[01:15:08]

HOWEVER WE ARE PROPOSING TO KEEP IT LEVEL AT 0.6897. SO COUNCIL, AS WE LOOK TO NOVEMBER OF NEXT YEAR TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'M TRYING TO BUILD A STORYBOOK FOR AND FIND A WAY TO TALK WITH RESIDENTS ABOUT GARLAND'S CHALLENGE, AND I WANTED TO SHARE A FEW SLIDES. WE SHARED THIS AT COUNCILMAN MOORE'S TOWN HALL THE OTHER NIGHT. THAT WAS KIND OF OUR OUR TRIAL RUN, OUR TEST ON ON THIS BECAUSE I, I REALLY WANT TO FIND WHAT RESONATES WITH RESIDENTS FROM A FROM AN EXPLANATION STANDPOINT ON ON GARLAND'S CHALLENGE. AND SO WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS, IF YOU LOOK AT A TYPICAL SINGLE FAMILY HOME, NOT WHAT IT ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE, BECAUSE THIS IS JUST A CARTOON. BUT WHAT IF YOU, AS WE MENTIONED EARLIER, OUR AVERAGE HOME TAXABLE VALUE IS ABOUT $266,000. THAT'S AFTER OUR EXEMPTIONS. THE HOMESTEAD AND SENIOR EXEMPTIONS.

AND SO IF YOU LOOK AT OKAY, OVER A 20 YEAR PERIOD BASED ON OUR OUR CURRENT TAX RATE OF 0.6897, HOW MUCH REVENUE DOES THAT GENERATE OVER A 20 YEAR PERIOD? YOU GET TO ALMOST $52,000. AND SO EVERYBODY LOVES STREETS, RIGHT. AND PEOPLE ARE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE STREET IN FRONT OF THEIR HOUSE. IF YOU IF YOU LOOK AT THE AVERAGE COST TO MAINTAIN JUST THAT SEGMENT OF ROADWAY IN FRONT OF YOUR HOUSE, AND I SAY MAINTAIN IT, ESSENTIALLY BUILD A BRAND NEW CONCRETE STREET IN FRONT OF YOUR HOUSE AND THEN MAINTAIN IT FOR A 20 YEAR PERIOD, THAT SAME 20 YEARS THAT WE'RE COLLECTING TAX REVENUE, THE TAXES WE RECEIVE FROM THAT AVERAGE SINGLE FAMILY HOUSE DO NOT DOES NOT COVER THE COST TO MAINTAIN THAT STREET. AND SO THAT GIVES PEOPLE A SENSE

[01:20:02]

SO AS YOU GUYS HAVE TOWN HALLS THIS FALL AND INTO NEXT YEAR, I'M HAPPY TO COME AND PRESENT THIS AND CONTINUE TO MAKE TWEAKS TO IT. BECAUSE ULTIMATELY WHEN WE GET INTO, YOU KNOW, REALLY SPRING SUMMER OF NEXT YEAR LEADING INTO NOVEMBER, WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO HAVE A REALLY GOO, A REALLY GOOD OUTREACH OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLAIN WHAT WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW, MUCH LIKE GISD IS DOING WITH THEIR WITH THEIR UPCOMING ELECTION IN NOVEMBER. SO I THINK THAT I THINK THERE'S ONE MORE GRAPHIC ON THERE SHOWING THE TAX RATE ELECTION THERE. AS MATT MENTIONED, AT LEAST OUR ESTIMATES RIGHT NOW, RIGHT NOW ARE THAT THIS IS GOING TO MOVE ABOUT $8 MILLION OF REVENUE FROM DEBT SERVICE TO OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE AND, AND ALLOW THAT TO SPIN OFF AND, AND DO THE THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO TO KEEP PROVIDING SERVICES. SO THAT NUMBER IS GOING TO CHANGE. WE DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH NEXT YEAR WHEN WE GET OUR CERTIFIED VALUES, BUT ULTIMATELY IT'S GOING TO CHANGE TO SOME EXTENT AND WE'LL KNOW THAT NEXT YEAR.

COUNCIL MEMBER MOORE, DID I HEAR YOU SAY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A TAX INCREASE? NO. THIS FEELS LIKE IT FEELS LIKE A TRICK QUESTION. NO. NOAX RATE INCREASE. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR.

I WAS A LITTLE BIT OF AN INSIDE JOKE. YES. I WANTED TO MAKE SURE. NO TAX INCREASE. JUST TO BE CLEAR. NO TAX INCREASE. IT'S REAL QUICK. I WANTED TO GIVE THE COUNCIL A QUICK OVERVIEW OF THE BUDGET DOCUMENT THAT WE PRESENTED TO YOU AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS MONTH, AND WE'VE CONTINUED TO DISCUSS LEADING UP TO THE OVERVIEW. YOU WILL FIND SECTIONS DEDICATED TO THE CITY'S MISSION, VISION AND STRATEGIC FOCUS AREAS. OUR CITY ORGANIZATIONAL CHART, AND THE CITY MANAGER'S PROPOSED BUDGET MESSAGE. THEN YOU'LL GET INTO OUR FIRST MAJOR SECTION, WHICH

[01:25:01]

AND THEN WE WILL HAVE MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENGAGEMENT ON THE PROPOSED BUDGET AND THE PROPOSED TAX RATE. OVER THE REMAINDER OF THIS MONTH, WE'LL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR DISCUSSION ON AUGUST 18TH, THIS UPCOMING MONDAY, AS WELL AS A PUBLIC HEARING ON BOTH THE PROPED BUDGET AND TAX RATE. ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 19TH. THE CITY COUNCIL HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO REQUEST AN ADDITIONAL SPECIAL SESSION ON AUGUST 6TH 26TH IF REQUIRED. OTHERWISE, WE WILL PLAN TO COME BACK ON SEPTEMBER 2ND FOR ANY HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW OF ANY CHANGES DISCUSSED TO DATE, AND THEN ALSO SEEK ADOPTION THAT SAME NIGHT. SO WITH THAT, I'LL OPEN UP TO ANY QUESTIONS BEFORE WE BEGIN OUR PRESENTATION. MAYOR PRO TEM LUCHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION. I WE'VE GOT A SHORT SUMMARY PACKET AND I HAVE SEVERAL QUESTIONS WITHIN THIS PACKET. DO YOU WANT TO YOU WANT ME TO WAIT UNTIL THE PRESENTATIONS ARE DONE OR DO YOU WANT TO DO THOSE BEFORE WE START PRESENTATIONS? UNLESS YOU DISAGREE, THE DEPARTMENTS WILL BE TOUCHING ON SEVERAL CIP PSPS OVER THE COURSE OF THE DAY, AND WE HAVE AN OPEN TIME AT THE END FOR ANY GENERAL COUNCIL DISCUSSION AND QUESTIONS. IF YOU'RE ALL RIGHT WITH THAT, THAT'S FINE. I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF LET YOU KNOW. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU MAYOR.

THANK YOU MA'AM. COUNCIL MEMBER MOORE. I'D LIKE FOR OUR CITY MANAGER TO JUST ONCE AGAIN. GIVE US A RATIONALE AS IT RELATES TO THE ONE TIME BONUS TO EMPLOYEES. VERSUS. INCREASES IN SALARY. I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DISCUSSED TODAY. CAN YOU GIVE US A RATIONALE AGAIN FOR.

THANK YOU, SIR. SO PRIMARILY, YOU KNOW, I TALKED ABOUT THIS BEING A BRIDGE YEAR TO GET TO NOVEMBER 2026. AND SO PRIMARILY IT IS BECAUSE IF WE'RE IF WE'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE THAT MONEY ONGOING, I DON'T WANT TO SPEND IT NOW AND COMMIT THE DOLLARS JUST TO NOT HAVE IT NEXT YEAR AND, AND ESSENTIALLY RUN INTO AN EVEN MORE DIFFICULT BUDGET SITUATION NEXT YEAR. AND SO I'D RATHER I WANT WE WANTED TO RECOGNIZE THE TEAM SOMEHOW AND STILL PROVIDE SOME, SOME PAY RECOGNITION IN THAT WAY, BUT NOT COMMIT THE DOLLARS LONG TERM UNTIL WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT NOVEMBER. I T THINK THAS THE PRIMARY, THE PRIMARY ISSUE. AND SO AS WE OUTLINED, IT'S A IT'S A WE'RE PAYING FOR IT WITH ONE TIME DOLLARS BECAUSE THE ONGOING DOLLARS ARE IN QUESTION. AND WHETHER WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THOSE NEXT YEAR. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR.

[01:30:04]

I SENT IT OUT ABOUT 730 THIS MORNING. OKAY, OKAY. ALL RIGHT. IF YOU'RE AN EARLY BIRD, I WASN'T READING, I WAS TRYING TO GET HERE, SO. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR. CITY MANAGER. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COUNCIL, BEFORE WE CONTINUE, WE'RE AT A NATURAL STOPPING POINT HERE, SO LET'S TAKE A RECESS. LET'S BE BACK AT 1015.

WE'RE IN RECESS.

GOOD MORNING, AND WELCOME BACK TO OUR AUGUST 16TH BUDGET WORKSHOP MEETING OF THE CITY

[2. Department presentations on FY26 Proposed Budget:]

THIS NEXT REQUEST IS FOR PART MAINTENANCE. THIS IS FOR MAINTENANCE OF PARK PROJECTS THAT HAVE BEEN RECENTLY COMPLETED OR WILL BE UPCOMING IN THIS NEW FISCAL YEAR, AND THIS IS ONE TIME FUNDING FOR THIS YEAR IN THE AMOUNT OF $200,000. SO OVERALL, PARKS AND RECREATION. THE REQUEST FOR THE PROPOSED BUDGET IS $1.6 MILLION, WITH 759 OF THAT BEING FUNDED THROUGH ONE TIME. I'M SORRY, ONGOING FUNDING, AND THEN 849,000 THROUGH ONE TIME AGAIN

[01:35:01]

THAT IS BEING FUNDED AS ONE TIME. OOPS, SKIPPED TOO MANY. SO THE FEES. SO WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT FEES LAST YEAR WHEN WE OPENED HOLFORD RECREATION AND AQUATIC CENTER, AND WE WERE VERY METHODICAL WITH OUR PRICING OVER THERE AND KNOWING THAT SURF AND SWIM WOULD BE COMING ONLINE. SO THIS SHOWS YOU THE ADMISSION FEES FOR SURF AND SWIM. WHAT USED TO COST $6 AND $8 FOR THE WAVE POOL. AND THAT WAS AGAIN BASED ON AGE. SO AGES 2 TO 12, $6.13 AND UP IS $8. THE PROPOSED FEE IS NOW $10 AND $13, AND WE HAVE A RESIDENT AND A NONRESIDENT RATE. SAME STRUCTURE THAT WE DID FOR HOLFORD AQUATIC CENTER. AND THEN THE NONRESIDENT RATES ARE $14 AND $17. AND THEN WE ARE ALSO PROPOSING A COOLER FEE, WHICH AGAIN, THAT WAS SOMETHING NEW THAT WE IMPLEMENTED OVER AT HOLFORD AQUATIC CENTER THIS PAST SEASON. ALSO COUNT SOME OF YOU ALL MAY REMEMBER IN OUR DISCUSSIONS LAST YEAR, WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT THE AFTER HOUR RENTALS. AND SO AT THE WAVE POOL FORMERLY, YOU COULD RENT THE ENTIRE FACILITY FOR $600 ON A WEEKDAY AND $700 ON THE WEEKEND. AND WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING THIS YEAR IS $1,400 AFTER OUR RENTAL FEE FOR RESIDENTS, AND THEN AGAIN, ALIGNING WITH OUR DISCUSSION LAST YEAR ABOUT HOLFORD AQUATIC CENTER. WE HAVE A COMMERCIAL SLASH NONRESIDENT FEE OF $1,600, AND THAT WOULD BE AN AFTER HOURS RENTAL, AND IT WOULD BE FOR TWO HOURS. AND THEN WE HAVE OUR PAVILION. SO WE HAVE THREE SHADED STRUCTURES AT THE FACILITY. AND ONE OF THOSE CAN BE RENTED OUT. AND THAT'S $250 FOR RESIDENTS. THAT'S FOR ALL DAY RENTAL AND $330 FOR NONRESIDENTS. WE HAVE CABANAS THAT WILL BE A NEW FEATURE OVER AT THE FACILITY. IT'S FOR THREE HOURS, $45 FOR THE RESIDENT, AND THAT'S FOR THE THREE HOURS, NOT HOURLY AND $60 FOR NONRESIDENTS. AND THEN WE HAVE A PARTY ROOM SIMILAR AGAIN TO WHAT WE HAVE OVER AT HOLFORD HOLFORD AQUATIC CENTER, WITH A FEE OF $120 FOR RESIDENTS AND $160 FOR NONRESIDENTS. WE DIDN'T JUST COME UP WITH THESE FEES AND PULL THEM OUT OF THE AIR. WE DO BENCHMARKING AS PART OF OUR ANNUAL BUDGET EXERCISE, AND SO WE HAD TO LOOK AT COMPARABLE FACILITIES WITHIN THE METROPLEX. AND SO WHAT WE'VE OUTLINED FOR YOU ARE THE RESIDENT NONRESIDENT FOR YOUTH AND ADULTS. WE'VE GIVEN YOU WHAT THAT AVERAGE IS AND THEN WHAT OUR SURF AND SWIM PROPOSED FEES ARE, ARE THAT LAST LINE. SO YOU CAN SEE WHERE WE STAND WITH OUR PROPOSED FEES BASED ON THE BENCHMARK. SO FOR YOUTH RESIDENTS, THE AVERAGE IS $11.13 FOR THE FEE FOR WITHIN THE METROPLEX. AND WE ARE PROPOSING $10. AND THEN FOR ADULT RESIDENTS, THE AVERAGE IS $13.88. AND WE ARE PROPOSING A FEE OF $13 AS DISCUSSED EARLIER, THERE ARE, IF YOU'RE THINKING FUTURE, THERE ARE SOME OPERATIONAL COSTS FROM THE 2019 BOND PROGRAM, WITH THE REMAINDER OF THE CIP PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE. AND SO OF COURSE, WE'VE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT SURF AND SWIM AND SOME OF THE PARK OPERATIONS DOLLARS. AND THEN IN FISCAL YEAR 27, WE WILL HAVE THE GARLANDD SIOR ACTIVITY CENTER WILL BE COMING ONLINE. AND THERE IS GOING TO BE AN ASK OF ONE AND A HALF FTES FOR THAT FACILITY AND OPERATIONAL DOLLARS FOR THAT FACILITY, AND THEN MORE PARK MAINTENANCE DOLLARS WILL COME ONLINE JUST WITH NEW PROJECTS.

AND THEN THIS WAS ALSO DISCUSSED EARLIER, BUT JUST TO GIVE YOU SOME HISTORY. SO CIP AMENDMENT IS GOING TO BE COMING BEFORE COUNCIL AT THE UPCOMING WORK SESSION. AND PART OF THAT CIP AMENDMENT IS EQUIPMENT REPLACEMENT OF $500,000. AND SO I KNOW SOME OF YOU WHO HAVE EITHER SERVED ON PARK BOARD OR JUST THROUGH CONVERSATIONS, KNOW THAT WE ARE ALWAYS DEALING WITH AGING EQUIPMENT. SO JUST TO PUT IT INTO PERSPECTIVE, THIS $500,000 WILL GO TOWARDS 19 PIECES OF NEW EQUIPMENT. THAT'S SIX PIECES, SIX RIDING MOWERS, WHICH AGAIN, THOSE RANGE IN AGE FROM 8 TO 12 YEARS OLD. UTILITY TRACTORS, TEN NEW TRACTORS AGAIN 13 TO 26 YEARS OLD. SOME OF THOSE PIECES OF EQUIPMENT THAT OUR STAFF ARE HAVING TO UTILIZE, A FLATBED TRAILER THAT'S 37 YEARS OLD. I WISH I COULD HAVE SAID THAT IT WAS OLDER THAN ME, BUT I CAN'T. A FORKLIFT FOR 20

[01:40:04]

OKAY. SO MY QUESTION IS LIKE, YOU KNOW, LIKE SURF IS GOING TO BE OPEN THE ENTIRE SEASON, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE THE ONGOING IS GOING TO BE PRETTY MUCH THE SAME THE FOLLOWING YEAR PLUS INFLATION. BUT ON SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT YOU KNOW, MAYBE HAVE, THEY MIGHT HAVE MORE MAINTENANCE COST IN THE FUTURE BECAUSE THIS IS AN NOT AN ENTIRE YEAR PRESENT ON HERE. SO I'M JUST CURIOUS WHAT IT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE IN THE FUTURE FOR SOME OF THESE. SO FOR SOME OF THESE, WE WOULD HAVE TO ACCOUNT A LOT OF THIS IS CONTRACT DOLLARS. SO WE WOULD JUST HAVE TO ACCOUNT FOR ANY INCREASES COST TO CONTRACTS EACH. USUALLY WE TRY AND KEEP THEM TO WHATEVER THE NATIONAL INFLATION AVERAGE IS TO TRY AND HOLD THEM TO THAT SO WE CAN PLAN FOR THAT PROPERLY THROUGH OUR BUDGET PROCESS. OKAY. I WANT TO SAY THIS YEAR WE ADDED ABOUT 5%, I THINK, TO OUR CONTRACT MOWING.

OKAY. YEAH. I'M JUST I'M OKAY. I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU KNOW, THESE ARE GOING TO BE INCREASED AGAIN ONCE THEY BECOME YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? ONCE YOU HAVE A FULL YEAR OF MAINTENANCE ON THEM AS OPPOSED TO JUST HAVING SO SOME. SO THIS LIST, SOME OF THIS LIST PROJECTS ARE ALREADY COMPLETED AND SOME OF THEM WILL BE COMING ONLINE. SO IF WE NEED TO GO BACK THROUGH AND SHOW YOU WHAT A FULL YEAR WOULD LOOK LIKE. SO FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN JOYCE COMMUNITY PARK MAINTENANCE, OF COURSE IT WON'T BE FINISHED AT THE START OF THE YEAR, FISCAL YEAR, SO WE CAN BRING THAT INFORMATION BACK OR PROVIDE THAT BACK TO COUNCIL IF NEED TO. WELL, YEAH, I DON'T KNOW. I GUESS I'M JUST LOOKING FORWARD HOW MUCH THAT'S GOING TO CHANGE IN THE FUTURE TOO. OKAY.

BUT THE SURF AND SWIM, THAT'S THE BIG ONE RIGHT. THAT'S THE BIG ONE. THESE AREN'T QUITE AS BIG. I WAS JUST CURIOUS ON THE SURF AND SWIM IF THAT'S A THAT'S A FULL. SO THAT IS A FULL SEASON ALREADY IN HERE. YES. I WAS WONDERING WHAT KIND OF, YOU KNOW, ARE WE GOING TO TAKE A BIG HIT THE FOLLOWING YEAR WHEN IT'S A FULL SEASON? BUT WE DON'T ANTICIPATE THAT. YEAH, THAT WAS MY BIG QUESTION ON THAT. OKAY. COOL. THANK YOU. AND THEN ON THE. ON THE SLIDE SEVEN ON THE PAVILION RENTAL AND CABANA AND PARTY ROOM AND ALL THAT. SO THIS IS NEW. WE HAVEN'T DONE THAT BEFORE. RIGHT. SO I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THE PLAN TO, YOU KNOW, TO MONITOR THAT, YOU KNOW, MONITOR THE LIKE THE USAGE OF THE PAVILION, THE USAGE OF THE CABANA RENTALS, JUST, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE WE HAVE A PLAN JUST TO KEEP PEOPLE FROM JUST GOING IN THERE AND SITTING DOWN AND BASICALLY SQUATTING. YES, WE'LL HAVE STAFFING AVAILABLE TO BE ABLE TO HANDLE THAT. ALL OF THAT AND THE RESERVATIONS. OKAY. OKAY. THAT SEEMS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BE A INTERESTING THING TO TRY TO CONTROL. SOMEONE SEES SOMETHING THAT I WANT TO SIT THERE AND THEY GO, YOU KNOW, WELL, AND THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, SIGNAGE, FOR EXAMPLE, WHERE MAYBE IF IT'S NOT RENTED OUT, BUT IT WILL HAVE A SIGN, AN A FRAME, A FRAME SIGN, MAYBE, OR SOMETHING ON THE TABLE THAT SAYS, HEY, IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THIS SPACE, YOU CAN RENT IT OUT. HERE'S HOW YOU DO THAT. AND WE CAN BLOCK OFF AREAS IF THEY ARE INTENENDED NOT TO BE UTILIZD BY EVERYBODY. OKAY. COOL.

AWESOME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. MAYOR PRO TEM, HELLO. WELCOME TO THE TEAM.

WE'RE REALLY HAPPY TO HAVE YOU. THANK YOU. SO ON THE PARK MAINTENANCE SLIDE FOR KINGSLEY PARK MAINTENANCE. WHAT'S GOING ON THERE? SO WHEN YOU SEE MAINTENANCE DOLLARS, IT'S LITERALLY THE MOWING. IT'S THE UPKEEP. YOU KNOW, WEED EATING. IT'S THOSE TYPES OF THINGS. SO IT'S NOT THIS DOES NOT COVER ANYTHING. IF A REPAIR NEEDED TO HAPPEN AN EMERGENCY REPAIR WE WOULD HAVE TO FIND THAT WITHIN OUR OPERATING BUDGET. THIS IS JUST STRICTLY MAINTENANCE DOLLARS TO UPKEEP IT. THERE'S NOTHING TO REPAIR THERE. NOT YET. NOT YET. YES. AND THEN GRAFFITI REMOVAL. DOES THAT INCLUDE FUNDS FOR JOHN COMER SKATE PARK? BECAUSE I KNOW

[01:45:04]

WELCOME, MA'AM. COUNCILMEMBER WILLIAMS, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. EXCELLENT PRESENTATION. JUST A FEW NOTES. ONE, THOSE SAID RENDERING FOR SERVING SWIMS STILL ON DISPLAY DOWN AT THE REC CENTER. YES OKAY OKAY OKAY. PLEASE HAVE IT AVAILABLE FOR THE TOWN HALL. I DON'T HAVE A DATE YET, BUT BUT YOU'LL YOU'LL GET THAT INFORMATION. OF COURSE. SECONDLY. DO YOU HAVE.

MAINTENANCE ONGOING MAINTENANCE FOR CERTAIN. FOR CERTAIN SWIM. EXPLAIN AGAIN THAT IS THAT MONEY COMING FROM. AND IS THAT A ONE TIME COST OR IS ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE TO COME BACK NEXT YEAR AND RE-UP THAT MAINTENANCE COST. SO THE TOTAL ASK FOR THE SURF AND SWIM IS $1.4 MILLION. PART OF THAT IS STAFFING. PART OF THAT IS THE MAINTENANCE, THE WAY THAT BUDGET AND IF THEY WANT TO CHIME IN, CAN HELP OUT. BUT THEY'RE FUNDING 759,000 OF THAT OUT OF ONGOING MONEY FOR THIS YEAR, AND THEN THIS $647,000 THAT SHOULD BE ONGOING IS BEING FUNDED THROUGH ONE TIME FUNDING THIS YEAR. SO AGAIN, NEXT YEAR WE'D COME BACK AND ASK FOR IT AS ONGOING OR IN BUDGET WORK WITH BUDGET ON WHETHER THAT WOULD BE AGAIN FUNDED AS ONE TIME OR PUT INTO THE BUDGET AS ONGOING. IT WILL BE DONE. IT WILL BE LOOKED AT YEARLY. RIGHT? RIGHT. YES. UNTIL PUT IN AS ONGOING. OKAY, OKAY, OKAY. I SAW A COMPLAINT OR. I HAVE SOME SENSE FROM THAT. YOU NAME THIS THE CENTER.

AUDUBON. NO, THE ALFRED. I SAW A COMPLAINT. LOOKED LIKE IT HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE USE OF AQUATICS OVER THERE. I DON'T I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS, BUT A LADY COMPLAINED ABOUT FEES AND WHAT HAPPENED TO IT. I DON'T KNOW, BUT. BUT YOUR FEE SCHEDULE AND YOU MENTIONED AFTER HOURS.

DO YOU HAVE A FEE SCHEDULE FOR SENIORS FOR RENTAL? IF SO, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? WE DON'T HAVE THAT INTO OUR FEE STRUCTURE RIGHT NOW. IT IS SOMETHING THAT IF COUNCIL WISHES FOR US TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT, WE COULD DEFINITELY DO. DO YOU HAVE? THOSE FOR SENIORS AT AT THE OTHER FACILITIES AT THE RECREATION CENTERS FOR THE FITNESS THEY HAVE, THEY HAVE POOLS. OH NO. NO. DO YOU HAVE THAT HAVE SIMILAR SPACE RENTALS. DO YOU HAVE HAVE THOSE FACILITIES. CAN YOU GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE? I CAN'T ON THE FEES. NO. YEAH. THAT RIGHT THERE. DO YOU DO YOU HAVE DO WE HAVE A FACILITY WITH SIMILAR LAYOUT. SO THE ONLY THING THAT WOULD BE SIMILAR FOR EXAMPLE THE PARTY ROOM. SO WE HAVE THAT AT HOLFORD AQUATICS AND WE HAVE THAT. WE HAVE PARTY ROOMS AVAILABLE AT ALL OF OUR RECREATION CENTERS AND SENIOR CENTERS. SO THE ONLY DISCOUNT YOU HAVE WITH THAT, WITH THAT SAID, DO YOU HAVE A SENIOR RENTAL RATE FOR THOSE AT AT HOLFORD? NO. ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT THINKING ABOUT CONSIDERING A SENIOR RATE FOR THE FACILITY? WE WEREN'T AT THIS TIME PROPOSING A SENIOR RATE. AND MAY I ASK WHY? IT'S JUST AS PART AS THE FEE STRUCTURE AT THIS TIME. IT WAS JUST NOT SOMETHING THAT CAME UP AS A PRIORITY, EITHER IN THE MASTER PLAN OR THROUGH OUR CONVERSATIONS. BUT IF IT IS PRIORITY FOR COUNCIL, WE CAN DEFINITELY GO BACK AND LOOK. THERE ARE SOME FACILITIES THAT OFFER SOME DISCOUNTS LIKE THAT THROUGHOUT THE METROPLEX AND WE CAN EXPLORE THAT. WELL, I JUST MENTIONED THAT BECAUSE HOPEFULLY SURF AND SWIM WILL BECOME A REGIONAL, NOT JUST A GARLAND. AND ATTRACTING SENIORS FROM OTHER AREAS, WHETHER THEY ARE GRANDMAS OR WHATEVER, YOU YOU YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER, NOT

[01:50:01]

THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER MOORE THANK YOU. LEE JOHN PAUL JONES SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK, NOT NECESSARILY CONSTRUCTION BLOCK, FOR QUITE SOME YEARS NOW, QUITE SOME TIME.

AND I STILL DON'T SEE IT ANY PLACE IN THE WAY OF THE MAINTENANCE AND THE WAY OF SOMETHING THAT'S EXCITING THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE FINISHING UP. CAN YOU GIVE ME SOME INSIGHTS ON WHAT'S HAPPENING THERE? SO JOHN PAUL JONES IS STILL UNDER REVIEW WITH DALLAS WATER UTILITIES.

IT'S CURRENTLY UNDER THAT REVIEW PROCESS. IT'S A LENGTHY PROCESS. SO IT IS NOT PROJECTED TO BE FINISHED WITHIN THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR. SO BECAUSE OF THAT, YOU'RE NOT SEEING IT AS INCLUDED IN MAINTENANCE DOLLARS. HOW MANY YEARS NOW HAVE WE BEEN DEALING WITH THIS ONE. OH, OKAY. THAT'S GOING TO I'M GOING TO HAVE TO. YOU'RE NOT THAT OLD EITHER. I'LL HAVE TO PHONE A FRIEND. ALRIGHT.

I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO SEE SOMETHING THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO EVEN TALK ABOUT, BUT I THINK THAT WE REALLY NEED TO SEE SOMETHING IN THE WAY OF SOME IMPROVEMENTS OR SOME PROGRESS OR SOMETHING THAT RELATES TO THAT PARK. IT'S BEEN I KNOW I'VE BEEN A COUNCIL MEMBER FOR FIVE YEARS, AND THIS WAS AN ISSUE EVEN BEFORE THEN. SO MONIES WERE ALLOCATED, AS I RECALL, FOR THE PROJECTS. WE ARE GIVING YOU AN UPDATE ON MONDAY ON WHEN JOYCE WILL GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON THAT AND JOHN PAUL JONES. SO HOPEFULLY THAT MAYBE WILL ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS. MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. COUNCIL MEMBER DUTTON, I WOULD LIKE TO AGREE WITH. I'M SORRY, I JUST WENT CRAZY FOR A SECOND WITH BJ. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO SEE SOME SENIOR RATES FOR THE POOLS, ESPECIALLY SINCE ONE OF THE BIGGEST. POINTS OF CONTENTION WITH THE SENIOR CENTER IS NOT HAVING AQUATICS THERE. I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE THAT, GIVE THEM THAT LITTLE, GIVE THEM THAT LITTLE TIDBIT OF INCENTIVE TO GO CHECK OUT THE OTHER POOLS IN SENIORS ON THE WAVERIDER WOULD BE FANTASTIC.

JUST SAYING. YOU MIGHT BREAK SOMETHING, BUT I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE A NICE LITTLE, A NICE LITTLE TOKEN THAT WE COULD GIVE THEM JUST A FEW BUCKS OFF OR WHATEVER IT MAY BE. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, MA'AM. COUNCIL MEMBER THOMAS YES, I, I KNOW THAT HOLFORD IS IN MY DISTRICT IN DISTRICT SEVEN, AND I'M LOVING THE HOLFORD AQUATIC CENTER AND HEARING GREAT THINGS ABOUT IT. BUT I HAD ONE LADY THAT SENT ME A THING. YOU'RE CHARGING WAY TOO MUCH. $8 IS TOO MUCH. I CAN SWIM AT BARFIELD FOR $3. AND IT'S LIKE BARFIELD IS NOT THE SAME AS HOLFORD. MADAM, IF YOU WANT TO SWIM LAPS, THERE'S A SPOT FOR YOU AT HOLFORD. BUT IT'S NOT QUITE THE SAME. AND SHE, SHE AND. MR. HESTER GAVE ME SOME FACTS ABOUT HOW WE GOT TO OUR RATES. AND THERE WERE WELL REASONED TO ME AND I AND HIS THING. WE HE SAID WE DON'T OFFER A SEASON PASS.

[01:55:02]

[02:00:03]

I'VE HOSTED A NINE YEAR OLD BIRTHDAY PARTY THERE ALREADY THIS SUMMER. ALL THE KIDS HAD A WONDERFUL TIME, RENTED A COUPLE CABANAS AND THEY ALL ENJOYED CERTAINLY ENJOYED THEIR TIME THERE. SO I KNOW THAT WHEN SURF AND SWIM COMES ONLINE, IT' EVEN BIGGER AND BETTER COMPLEX THERE AND EVEN BETTER VALUE. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR TIME AND THANK YOU FOR THIS PRESENTATION. ALL RIGHT. WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR NEXT PRESENTATION. IT'S THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, CHIEF LEE.

YOU CAN TELL I DIDN'T DO IT, CAN'T YOU? COUNCILMAN? MR. MAYOR, COUNCIL, CITY STAFF HONORED TO BE HERE TODAY. THIS IS A NEW ADVENTURE FOR MARK LEE. I'M USUALLY HERE ASKING YOU FOR MONEY TODAY. I'M TRYING TO RAISE IT, SO WE'LL SEE HOW WE GO HERE. PROPOSED EMS FEE SCHEDULE. WE HAVE HAD MANY DISCUSSIONS IN THE PAST ABOUT OUR EMS FEES, AND WE'RE HERE AGAIN THIS YEAR.

WE'RE LOOKING TO RAISE OUR FEES. THE CURRENT FEES CHARGED BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ARE NOT OPTIMIZED FOR RECOVERY OF ANY OF OUR COSTS, OR VERY MINIMUM OF OUR COSTS THAT WE HAVE OUT THERE. EACH EMS AGENCY IN TEXAS IS ALLOWED TO SET THEIR FEES FOR THE SERVICES THAT THEY PROVIDE.

COMMERCIAL INSURANCE REIMBURSES US BASED ON THEIR POLICIES AND COVERAGES, WHICH CAN VARY FROM COMPANY TO COMPANY. AS YOU WELL KNOW, SIMILAR TO YOUR INSURANCE THAT YOU PAY YOUR PHYSICIAN, THEY ALL CONTRACT DIFFERENTLY. GOVERNMENTAL PAYERS LIKE MEDICARE AND MEDICAID. THEY ESTABLISH THE FEES THAT THEY WILL PAY. IT'S NOT NEGOTIABLE FOR US OR ANYBODY ELSE.

CURRENTLY, GARLAND FIRE DEPARTMENT CHARGES LESS THAN WHAT MEDICARE ALLOWABLE IS FOR AN ALS TO CALL. AN ALS TO CALL IS ONE IN WHICH WE PROVIDE THREE ADVANCED SKILLS OR INTERVENTIONAL METHODS ON THE PATIENT. SO CURRENTLY, MEDICARE ALLOWS $759.79. GARLAND IS CHARGING $675. SO THIS THIS SHOULD GIVE YOU A GOOD IDEA OF WHERE WE ARE IN THE MARKET. OF NOTE, COMMERCIAL PAYERS WILL PAY THE LESSER OF THE DEPARTMENT'S FEE, OR 325% OF MEDICARE RATE.

SO IF YOU TAKE THAT SAME 759 THAT THEY WILL PAY, IT GETS UP AROUND $2,600. IF THEY WILL

[02:05:06]

SO WE'RE LOOKING TO MAXIMIZE REIMBURSEMENT FROM THE COMMERCIAL INSURANCE AND ALIGN THE AGENCY WITH CURRENT INDUSTRY PRACTICES. FOR COMPARISON DATA. HERE'S WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING.

ALS TWO CALLS $1,750. AGAIN, THE COMMERCIAL INSURANCE ALLOWS WHAT WE WOULD BILL OR UP TO THAT 325%. SO ROUGH NUMBERS, $2,600 WOULD BE ALLOWABLE. THE BLS NON-EMERGENCY WOULD GO TO 1350.

MILEAGE FEE GOES UP TO $24. A DISPOSABLES FEE FOR ADVANCED CARE AND BLS CARE. OXYGEN RATE TREATMENT. NO TRANSPORT. I KNOW THAT EVERYBODY IS LOOKING AT THIS AND IS IN SHOCK RIGHT NOW.

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

AND THEN WE WOULD COME IN BEHIND IT. SO THE DEDUCTIBLES HAVE BEEN MET. CO-PAYS ARE LIKELY TO HAVE BEEN MET AS WELL. AND WE WILL TAKE WHAT THE COMMERCIAL INSURANCE PROVIDES FOR US AND WRITE OFF THE REST OF THAT BILL. SO BIGGEST CONCERN IS FOR OUR RESIDENTS. THEY'RE THE ONES THAT

[02:10:01]

AND OUR CURRENT REVENUE ON EMS FEES IS 4.3 MILLION, PROJECTED WOULD GO TO 5.08 MILLION.

QUESTIONS INVOLVING RESIDENT WRITE OFFS. HOW DOES RESIDENT WRITE OFF POLICY IMPACT OUR CHARITY CARE? WE COVERED THAT CHARITY CARE WOULD HAVE TO GO AWAY IF WE DO. RESIDENT WRITE OFF POLICY WOULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR AMBULANCE SUPPLEMENTAL PAYMENT PROGRAM.

YES IT WOULD. WE WOULD GO TO RESIDENT WRITE OFF AND FOREGO THE NEARLY $300,000 THAT WE GET FROM THE STATE AT THE END OF THE YEAR. CURRENTLY, IS IT LEGAL TO WRITE OFF RESIDENT BALANCES AND BILL NONRESIDENTS? YES IT IS. WE CHECKED WITH OUR LEGAL FOLKS AND THEY DID A LITTLE RESEARCH ON IT, AND THEY SAID YOU CAN CHARGE DIFFERENT FEES FOR RESIDENT VERSUS NONRESIDENT. SO RESIDENT WRITE OFF WOULD BASICALLY BE A ZERO FEE. AND FOR NON INSURED AND NONRESIDENTS THE RATE WOULD BE IDENTICAL. BUT THE PERCEPTION WOULD BE WE CAN WRITE OFF THE RESIDENT UNINSURED FEES. DOES IT NEGATIVELY IMPACT MEDICARE OR MEDICAID. NO. THOSE FEES ARE SET AND STANDARD. WE SEND THEM A BILL. THEY SEND US A CHECK. AND DO PRIVATE INSURERS INSURANCE PROVIDERS ALLOW THIS PRACTICE? CURRENTLY THE PRACTICE IS YES, THEY CAN CERTAINLY CHANGE THAT AT ANY POINT IN TIME, BUT IT'S NOT FORESEEN THAT THEY WILL. AGAIN, THEY WE COULD BE BILLING UP TO $2,600 ON THAT ALS TWO CALL, AND WE'RE ONLY PROPOSING 1750. SO THEY'RE PROBABLY GOING TO BE PRETTY HAPPY WITH THAT FEE TAKING THEIR DEDUCTIBLES AND CO-PAYS AND SENDING THE CHECK. WITH THAT, I'LL ENTERTAIN ALL THE QUESTIONS. COUNCILMEMBER WILLIAMS, THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR.XCELLENT PRESENTATION. CHIEF, THESE ALL OF THESE WITH THE CHANGES AND PROPOSED FEE SCHEDULES. HOW HOW DO YOU ANTICIPATE GETTING THIS INFORMATION, THE NEW FEES, IF THE COUNCIL APPROVES IT OUT TO

[02:15:08]

BUT BUT EXPLAIN BRIEFLY HOW HOW THIS INFORMATION IS GOING TO GET GET OUT TO HOPEFULLY THE USERS.

BECAUSE AS A AS A ONE TIME USER, I EXPERIENCED BUT IT WAS POSITIVE ONE. BUT A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE THAT EXPERIENCE. SO PAINT A PICTURE FOR ME ON HOW YOU PLAN ON GETTING IF THE NEW FEE SCHEDULE IS ADOPTED, HOW HOW ARE YOU ENVISION GETTING THE WORD OUT? SO YOU DON'T HAVE THE NEGATIVE DOWNFALL THAT IS COMMON IN SOME OTHER CITIES? THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION, SIR, AND I WILL I WILL TELL YOU MY FEAR. AND THIS IS WHETHER IT'S A $500 BILL OR A 1750 INVOICE THAT I WOULD BE SENDING SOMEBODY. I'M HESITANT TO PUSH THAT MESSAGE REAL STRONGLY IN FEAR THAT SOME OF THOSE THAT NEED OUR SERVICES THE MOST WON'T CALL. AND SO I THINK IT WOULD BE BETTER FOR US TO DELIVER THAT BILL, THAT INVOICE THAT SAYS, DO YOU HAVE INSURANCE? AND IF THEY CHECK NO, OR THEY CHECK MEDICARE OR THEY CHECK BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD AND LET US DO THE BILLING ON THAT, LET THEIR CO-INSURANCE APPLY. IF THERE IS CO-INSURANCE, IF IT'S A MEDICARE BILL, THEY'LL NEVER GET ANOTHER MESSAGE FROM US. SO I WOULD RATHER REMAIN. IN THE FEE SCHEDULE. OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE TO DO THAT, BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT I WANT TO PUSH THAT MESSAGE OUT IN FEAR THAT SOMEBODY WILL SAY, I CAN'T AFFORD TO CALL 911, BECAUSE THAT'S MY BIGGEST FEAR IN THE WORLD, IS THAT SOMEBODY WILL SUFFER FOR FEAR OF BEING ABLE TO MAKE PAYMENT. AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE ARE VERY SOFT ON COLLECTIONS ANYWAY. WE HAVE WRITE OFFS AT THE END OF THE YEAR, EVERY YEAR FROM THOSE THAT CAN'T PAY US, WE JUST WRITE IT OFF ALREADY OR IF WE CAN APPLY IT TO CHARITY CARE WE DO, BUT THOSE THAT WE CAN'T AND THEY STILL CAN'T AFFORD IT, THEY, THEY MAKE A MODEST INCOME, BUT IT'S ABOVE THAT 400% LINE AND THEY STILL CAN'T PAY AN AMBULANCE BILL. WE'RE GOING TO INVOICE THEM 2 OR 3 TIMES JUST TO MAKE SURE THEY DIDN'T THINK IT WAS JUNK MAIL, BUT THEN IT'S JUST GOING TO GO AWAY. AND I WOULD SEE THE SAME THING HAPPENING HERE TODAY. MR. MR. CITY MANAGER HAVING THOUGHTS ON ON THIS? I'M NOT ADVOCATING. I'M JUST ASKING IS IT'S WE MAYBE THIS MAYBE THIS IS A SOLUTION LOOKING FOR A PROBLEM. BUT DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS. YEAH. I MEAN I CONCUR WITH CHIEF THAT OUR FEAR IS THAT PEOPLE ARE NOT GOING TO CALL 911 IF THEY THINK THAT THE CITY IS GOING TO SHAKE THEM DOWN FOR AN AMBULANCE RIDE, AND THAT THAT'S NOT THE CASE. AND SO WE SHOULDN'T SORT OF PUT OURSELVES OUT THERE IN THAT WAY.

THE INFORMATION IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE. I MEAN, IF SOMEBODY DOES WANT TO COME IN AND SCRUTINIZE WHAT, WHAT THE FEES ARE, THE INFORMATION IS THERE, IT'S IN THE FEE SCHEDULE. AND CERTAINLY ANYONE TUNING IN ON THE BUDGET CONVERSATION WILL KNOW ABOUT IT TOO. BUT AND WE'RE NOT TRYING TO HIDE FROM HIDE ANY FEES OR ANYTHING. I THINK IT'S JUST WE'RE CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT THE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES ARE OF, OF, I GUESS, PUTTING TOO MUCH INFORMATION OUT THERE AND GIVING THE RESIDENTS THE PERCEPTION THAT WE'RE GOING TO SHAKE THEM DOWN FOR, FOR MORE THAN MORE THAN WE WANT TO. SO, I MEAN, THE REALITY OF, OF, OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH HERE IS THAT WE'RE WE'RE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE FOR PEOPLE THAT HAVE INSURANCE THAT COVERS AN AMBULANCE, AN AMBULANCE CALL. WE'RE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE. AND IT'S NOT MONEY THAT'S GOING TO COME OUT OF RESIDENTS POCKET. IT'S GOING TO COME OUT OF THE INSURANCE THAT THEY'RE ALREADY PAYING. VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE DID LAST YEAR WITH WITH SOME OF OUR ACCIDENT RESPONSE FEES AND THAT SORT OF THING. SO IT'S JUST A CONTINUATION OF US TRYING TO NOT LEAVE MONEY ON THE TABLE. I APPRECIATE, I APPRECIATE, I APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE I HAVE HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS FROM SOME PUBLIC. AND THAT I FOUND OUT WAS NOT TRUE. BUT THEY SAID ANYWAY, SO I WAS I WAS THAT'S WHY I SAID QUESTION HOW HOW WE WERE GOING TO COMMUNICATE. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR RESPONSE. THANKS. THANK YOU, MR. CITY MANAGER. I'D MUCH RATHER PUT OUT TO THE PUBLIC THAT WE DON'T HAVE A CREDIT CARD MACHINE IN THE AMBULANCE, AND THERE'S NO TIPPING EITHER. YES, YES, YES, I'VE HEARD THAT ONE TOO. OKAY. THANK YOU, THANK YOU MAYOR, PLEASE ANSWER THIS ONE QUESTION AS YOU GET YOUR COFFEE. YES. COUNCILMEMBER. THOMAS. YES,

[02:20:05]

THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. MAYOR PRO TEM LUCK. SO LAST YEAR YOU HIRED A WELL CITY, HIRED A NEW COMPANY TO DO COLLECTIONS FOR FEES. HAVE YOU SEEN AN INCREASE IN THE ABILITY TO COLLECT FEES FROM PEOPLE THROUGH THAT IMPLEMENTATION? I WOULD HAVE TO GET THAT INFORMATION FOR YOU. I DON'T HAVE IT AVAILABLE FOR ME TODAY. WHEN I PREPARE A LIST OF FIVE QUESTIONS THAT I HOPE YOU DON'T ASK, THAT W NOT ONE OF THE FIVE, SO THANK YOU FOR ASKING THAT. NUMBER SIX.

WE'LL GET THAT INFORMATION FOR YOU. THANK YOU. AND SO OTHER OTHER CITIES HAVE LIKE PRIVATIZED EMS SERVICES IN A CASE WHERE THERE IS A PRIVATIZED EMS SERVICE, THEY ARE IN CONTROL OF THE FEES. WE WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO THOSE OTHER CITIES DON'T TELL THEM WHAT TO CHARGE. NOT REAL SURE ON THAT. I'M SURE THAT COULD BE A CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENT OR A NEGOTIATING TOOL IN IT, BUT TYPICALLY THEY CHARGE THEIR OWN FEES AND SET THEIR OWN FEE SCHEDULE. OKAY, I WAS JUST CURIOUS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SURE. SOUNDS LIKE GREAT INFORMATION THAT WE'RE GOING TO RESEARCH. I THINK WE MIGHT BE TALKING ABOUT THAT AGAIN VERY SOON. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MA'AM, THANK YOU MA'AM. COUNCIL MEMBER BEARD OKAY, FIRST OF ALL, WE NEED TO CHARGE MORE FOR AMBULANCE SERVICES. I'VE HAD TWO AMBULANCE CALLS IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. BOTH WERE ASL TWOS. ONE WAS GARLAND, ONE WAS DALLAS. I DID NOT CALL IN ADVANCE TO ASK HOW MUCH THE FEES WERE GOING TO BE, BUT WHEN I GOT THE BILLS, DALLAS WAS ALMOST THREE TIMES AS MUCH AS GARLAND'S NOW FILLED OUT THE INFORMATION. YES, I HAVE INSURANCE. HERE'S MY INSURANCE INFORMATION. I EXPECTED TO RECEIVE A BILL FOR THE DIFFERENCE. STILL GOT A EOB FROM MY INSURANCE COMPANY THAT SAYS YOU DON'T OWE ANYTHING. SO I THINK THAT'S A GREAT POLICY AND WE SHOULD NOT BE LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE. IF MEDICARE AND INSURANCE WILL ALREADY PAY THESE FEES, OUR SERVICES FAR EXCEED THE FEES WE'RE CHARGING. SO I'M IN FULL AGREEMENT THAT WE NEED TO BE CHARGING MORE. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. THANKS I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU. MA'AM. COUNCIL MEMBER BASS THANK YOU. THANK YOU. CHIEF. WHEN IS THE LAST TIME WE REVIEWED THESE FEES FOR AN INCREASE? TWO YEARS AGO. REALLY? OKAY. WOW. JUST I DON'T RECALL THAT, BUT IT JUST SEEMS LIKE.

MAN, IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE WAY BEHIND, YOU KNOW? JUST A SECOND. WAS IT TWO YEARS AGO? MATT AND ALLISON? YEAH. TWO YEARS AGO. WE WERE TALKING ABOUT ELASTICITY OF THE MARKET. AND WHAT CAN THE CITY WITHSTAND? WE KEPT THAT IN MIND WITH THESE FEES BECAUSE AS A RESIDENT, THESE FEES ARE PROBABLY MORE THAN I COULD COULD STAND FOR. BUT THE RESIDENT RIGHT OFF POLICY AND THE NO BALANCE BILLING THAT IS IMPLEMENTED IN 23 BY THE LEGISLATURE HAVE MADE THIS MORE

[02:25:03]

STEAMER COMING IN HERE. YEAH, A LOT OF QUESTIONS. TEXT, SOMETHING. IT'S JUST A MESS WITH HIM. OH. OH, YOU WANT TO DO ALL THE TALKING? I'M GOING TO DO AWESOME. IT IS HOT. WHY IS THIS? IMPLEMENTATION SCREWED UP? YEAH, I'LL DO IT RIGHT. YES, SIR. OKAY. WELCOME, EVERYONE. THANK YOU EVERYONE. GOOD MORNING. WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE LANDFILL FEE CHANGES. SO TO BEGIN WITH JUST A REVIEW OF REVIEW OF OUR REVENUES OVER THE LAST TEN YEARS BASICALLY AND A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE IN IT, WHAT WE'VE SEEN SINCE 2021 IS ABOUT A 21% INCREASE IN OUR TONNAGE THROUGHOUT THAT PERIOD, AND ABOUT A 42% INCREASE IN OUR REVENUE, WHICH IS MOST OF IT CAME IN 2023, OBVIOUSLY, BUT JUST JUST SHOWING YOU THIS HISTORY AND THE LINE IS THE GAS PLANT REVENUE, WHICH IS STILL REALLY SUCCESSFUL. IT'S IN EXCESS OF $1 MILLION A YEAR, ALTHOUGH IT HAS SORT OF FLATTENED OFF THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. AND WHAT I'M HEARING ABOUT THAT REVENUE STREAM IS THAT IT'S EXPECTED TO STAY STABLE. THAT MARKET IS VERY VOLATILE, AND THE RECENTLY PASSED THE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL HAD SOME SOME ENERGY INCENTIVES IN IT. AND MOST OF THAT WAS DISINCENTIVES FOR SOLAR AND WIND. AND IT REALLY DIDN'T AFFECT THE LANDFILL GAS SIDE AT ALL. SO THE PEOPLE IN THAT MARKET ARE EXPECTING IT TO STAY STABLE AND MAYBE INCREASE OVER A LONGER PERIOD, BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF NEW SPECULATION ABOUT THAT BEING BOLSTERED BECAUSE IT DIDN'T GETISINCENTIVIZED. SO THAT'S GOOD NEWS FOR THE GAS REVENUE. AND THIS IS JUST A SHORT REVIEW OF OUR TIPPING FEE INCREASES OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS. SO IN 2021, WE RAISED OUR RATES BY 8%. AND THEN IN 20 ON THE CONTRACT RATE ONLY, WE HAVE SEVERAL RATES. IF YOU RECALL, THE CONTRACT RATE IS WHAT WE CHARGE OUR LARGE COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS WHO HAVE GUARANTEED VOLUMES, BIG VOLUMES. THE NEXT RATE WE HAVE IS CALLED THE GATE RATE. THAT'S WHAT WE CHARGE, WHAT I CALL WALK UP CUSTOMERS. BUT THEY'RE DRIVING IN AND THEN WE HAVE ANOTHER RATE THAT'S FOR C AND D WHICH IS $60. SO IN 2021 WE INCREASED THE CONTRACT RATE 8%. IN 2022 WE INCREASED THE MINIMUM FEE. THE MINIMUM FEE IS WHAT WE CHARGE. SOMEONE WHO HAS LESS THAN ONE TON. IT'S JUST A FLAT RATE. IF YOU HAVE LESS THAN ONE TON IT WAS $10. NOW IT'S $25. AND THEN IN 2023 WE INCREASED THE GATE RATE BY 4%. WE ALSO INCREASED THE CONTRACT RATE BY 7%. AND THAT'S THE YEAR THAT WE CREATED THE C AND D RATE. AND I'M SURE YOU ALL RECALL THE REASON WE DID THAT. IT'S AN EFFECTIVE RATE SO THAT WE'RE GETTING THE SAME AMOUNT OF DOLLARS FOR THE AIRSPACE BECAUSE OUR COMMODITY IS AIRSPACE, BUT WE SELL IT BY THE TON. SO

[02:30:01]

WE'VE ROUNDED THE NUMBERS SO THAT ALL OF OUR RATES ARE EVEN DOLLAR AMOUNTS. SO WE'RE PROPOSING TO TAKE THE GATE RATE, WHICH IS CURRENTLY45 A TON, AND RAISING IT BY $2 TO 47.

WE'RE PROPOSING TO TAKE THE C AND D RATE, WHICH IS $60 A TON, AND RAISING IT TO $63. THE MANUAL UNLOAD RATE IS WHAT WE CHARGE. MOST OF THEM ARE ALL C AND D TRUCKS, BUT THE FOLKS WHO DON'T HAVE AUTOMATIC TIPPING TRUCK OR TRAILER, THEY TAKE UP A LITTLE MORE TIME, THEY TAKE UP A LITTLE MORE SPACE. SO WE HAVE A PREMIUM ON THAT. SO THAT'S WHAT THAT RATE IS. IT'S $65 A TON, AND WE'RE PROPOSING TO MOVE IT TO 68. THE MINIMUM FEE WE'RE PROPOSING TO TAKE TO $50 FOR A MINIMUM FEE IF YOU'RE UNDER ONE TON. AND WE WANT TO POINT OUT THAT GARLAND RESIDENTS ARE NEVER CHARGED ANY FEE WHEN THEY COME TO THE LANDFILL, AS ARE RESIDENTS AND ROWLETT RESIDENTS.

I'D ALSO JUST TO PUT A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE ON THAT FEE IN THE REGION, THERE ARE A COUPLE OF LANDFILLS WHO HAVE A TWO TON MINIMUM, AND SO THOSE RATES LOOK LIKE 101, $103 AND ONES 104 14.

THERE ARE SOME MINIMUM FEES THAT ARE LOWER THAN OURS. THERE'S A THE LOWEST MINIMUM FEE IS $34.

THAT'S DALLAS MCCOMBS BLUFF LANDFILL. SO OUR RATES RIGHT KIND OF IN THE AVERAGE SWEET SPOT FOR THAT. THE AVERAGE MINIMUM RATE CHARGED ACROSS OUR REGION IS $54. AND THEN OUR NEXT SLIDE IS A COMPARISON ACROSS LANDFILLS IN OUR REGION. SO YOU CAN SEE THE HIGHEST RATE IS AT $60. THAT'S LEWISVILLE LANDFILL WHICH IS ACTUALLY OWNED BY A PRIVATE COMPANY. IT'S PUBLIC LANDFILL. AND THE LOWEST RATE IS FERRIS, WHICH IS A LITTLE BIT OUT OF THE RANGE OF WHERE A TRUCK MIGHT GO, WHO COMPETES WITH US. BUT IT'S IN OUR REGION THAT'S ALSO A PRIVATELY OWNED LANDFILL BY WASTE MANAGEMENT. SO THE REST OF THESE ARE MUNICIPALLY OWNED LANDFILLS, WITH FORT WORTH BEING ON THE HIGH END, ARLINGTON BEING AT THE LOW END. SO OUR PROPOSAL TO $47 IS PUTTING US RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT AVERAGE RATE. AND REALLY THAT'S IT WOULD BE THE FASTEST MUCH. MAYOR PRO TEM LUCHT. SO I MENTIONED THIS EVERY SINGLE YEAR. WHAT ARE OUR OUR CONTRACT RATE. THAT IS OUR RATE FOR COMMERCIAL WASTE COMPANIES LIKE WASTE MANAGEMENT. YOU'RE NOT GOING UP ON THAT RATE THIS YEAR. WE. WE ARE NOT GOING UP ON THAT RATE THIS YEAR. WE ALSO DON'T HAVE ANY OF THOSE CONTRACTS COMING UP FOR RENEWAL THIS YEAR. SO ALL OF THOSE CONTRACTS WILL RENEW. WE'LL HAVE ANOTHER CHANCE TO LOOK AT THAT RATE BEFORE THE CONTRACTS RENEW.

OKAY. DO YOU KNOW WHEN THEY RENEW? I'M SURE THEY'RE ALL LIKE DIFFERENT TIMES. BUT WHEN WILL WE SEE THOSE AGAIN? THERE ARE FOUR CONTRACTS. TWO OF THEM ARE GOING TO RENEW AT THE END OF NEXT YEAR. OKAY. I MEAN, I'VE, I'VE BEEN A WITH MY PREVIOUS JOB, WE HAD A CONTRACT WITH REPUBLIC. IT WENT UP FROM $1,400 A MONTH TO $3,200 A MONTH UNDER THEIR CONTRACT. WE COULD DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. THE SOME OF THOSE COMPANIES ARE REALLY PRICE GOUGING PEOPLE, AND I'M NOT SAYING PRICE GOUGE THEM, BUT I AM SAYING THAT LIKE OUR 2023 INCREASE WAS 7%. THEY'RE CHARGING THEIR CUSTOMERS WAY MORE THAN THAT. SO I THINK IT'S ONLY FAIR. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT CONVERSATION. WE'LL HAVE A CHANCE TO LOOK AT THAT. WE DID HAVE SOME CONVERSATION, BUT SINCE THERE WEREN'T CONTRACTS, I ALSO THINK THAT THE I'M GOING TO SAY THE DISTANCE BETWEEN OUR GATE RATE AND OUR CONTRACT RATE, WE MIGHT WANT TO TALK ABOUT CLOSING THAT GAP.

OKAY, GREAT. I'M OPEN TO IT. OKAY. NOW'S THE TIME. NO, BUT THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YOU'RE WELCOME. THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER BASS. THANK YOU. CHRIS, CAN YOU GO TO SLIDE TWO, PLEASE? SORRY. THIS ONE. ONE MORE BACK. ONE MORE. THERE YOU GO. RIGHT THERE OKAY. COOL.

[02:35:06]

COUNCILMEMBER. EXCUSE ME, DEPUTY MAYOR PRO TEM. MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU CHRIS. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION, ESPECIALLY THE LANDFILL GAS. THAT WAS ONE OF THE QUESTIONS I HAD WAS WHETHER THE BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL WAS GOING TO HAVE AN EFFECT ON IT, AND THANKFULLY IT DOESN'T. SO THAT'S GOOD. AND WE APPROVED A GRINDING MACHINE FOR THE LANDFILL I THINK IT WAS LAST YEAR. HAS THAT YIELDED THE BENEFIT THAT YOU EXPECTED? AND SINCE WE'RE SELLING AIR SPACE AND ULTIMATELY HOW MUCH WE CAN COMPACT THINGS. THAT'S ANOTHER GREAT QUESTION. THE ANSWER IS YES. I THINK IT IS YIELDING A BENEFIT. I DON'T HAVE NUMBERS PREPARED RIGHT NOW, AND WE'VE HAD A BIT OF TIME LEARNING HOW TO USE THE MACHINE. SO AT THIS TIME WE REALLY ARE HITTING OUR STRIDE USING THAT MACHINE. IT'S DEFINITELY PROVIDING A BENEFIT OF REDUCING THE VOLUME, AND I WOULD LOVE TO COME BACK AND GIVE YOU MORE DETAILS ABOUT THAT PROGRAM. SURE. I'LL JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU FOR YOUR HARD WORK. THE LANDFILL, IT'S AN UNUSUAL REVENUE SOURCE FOR A CITY, BUT IT WORKS VERY WELL FOR US. AND SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR STEWARDSHIP OF IT. YOU'RE WELCOME. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. ONE QUESTION I HAD REGARDING THIS IS THAT WITH THE WE'VE CONSTANTLY BEEN INCREASING FEES OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS. HAVE YOU SEEN ANY. OF THE COMPANIES COMING TO DROP OFF AT OUR LANDFILL? HAVE THEY DECIDED TO GO OTHER PLACES? ARE WE DRIVING CUSTOMERS AWAY BY OUR CONSTANT INCREASE OF FEES? THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. AND THE ANSWER IS PROBABLY OUR TONNAGE IS DROPPED AFTER WE INSTITUTED THE NEW CAP RATE. THE PREVIOUS YEAR, WE HAD AROUND 762,000 TONS TOTAL. AND THEN THE NEXT YEAR, WHICH WAS 2024, OUR TONNAGE DROPPED 2% TO 749,000. I THINK THIS YEAR WE'RE GOING TO BE ABOVE THAT. WE'RE GOING TO I'M PROJECTING PROBABLY AROUND 760,000. SO WE'LL BE BACK UP 1%. MOST OF THAT WAS WE GOT A LOT OF ROOFERS WHO CAME TO OUR LANDFILL BEFORE, AND THEY'VE GONE AWAY. IT'S NOT A BAD THING, OPERATIONALLY SPEAKING. THAT'S VERY HARD MATERIAL TO MANAGE AND BURY TAKES UP CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF SPACE. THE OTHER, THE OTHER C AND D NUMBERS DID DROP OFF, BUT OUR REVENUE INCREASED AS A RESULT OF CHANGING OUR C AND D RATE. SO IT'S A GOOD THING TO HAVE LESS TONS BECAUSE WE'RE KEEPING THE LANDFILL LONGER, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU CAN KEEP THE SAME OR EVEN A LITTLE BIT MORE REVENUE. SO IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF A MIXED ANSWER. ON THE SURFACE IT SOUNDS BAD. YEAH, I THINK WE LOST SOME TONS. BUT A LITTLE BIT DEEPER DIVE. I THINK WE'RE BENEFITING IN THE LONG RUN BECAUSE THE REVENUE IS THE SAME AND WE'RE USING LESS AIRSPACE. AND POSSIBLY THAT COULD DO WITH THE MARKET, WITH MORE OR LESS CONSTRUCTION HAPPENING ACROSS THE METROPLEX. IF MY INDUSTRY, I'VE SEEN CONSTRUCTION SLOW DOWN A BIT, THEN PRODUCES LESS DEBRIS, POSSIBLY. SO MAYBE AN ANSWER, BUT THANK YOU VERY MUCH. COUNCIL. ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THIS ITEM? ALL RIGHT I SEE NONE THEN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. AND COUNCIL, WE'LL TAKE A BRIEF RECESS AND I ASK YOU TO BE BACK AT NOON. WE WILL RECESS FOR LUNCH. THANK YOU.

GOOD AFTERNOON AND WELCOME BACK TO OUR AUGUST 16TH, 2025 SPECIAL BUDGET WORK SESSION. WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ITEM DISCUSSION OF TAX INCREMENT FINANCE ZONE NUMBER TWO. MR. WATSON, PLEASE.

THANKS, MAYOR. THIS THIS IS A PROPOSAL THAT WILL BENEFIT BOTH THE GENERAL FUND AND FUTURE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES ALONG THE I-30 CORRIDOR THAT WE WANTED TO PUT IN FRONT OF YOU ALL AS A PART OF THE 20 2526 BUDGET. SO FIRST, I JUST WILL GIVE YOU A QUICK HISTORY ON TIF NUMBER TWO. SO TIP NUMBER TWO IS ESTABLISHED JANUARY 1ST, 2005 WITH A BASE VALUE OF $75 MILLION. AND WHAT I MEAN BY THAT, IF YOU LOOK AT THIS TRIANGLE, WHAT WHAT A TIF DOES

[02:40:02]

[02:45:02]

THEY ARE SCHEDULED TO HAVE A MEETING AUGUST 20TH NEXT WEEK, WHERE WE WILL PROPOSE THE SAME THING YOU'RE SEEING HERE. WE'VE ALSO HIRED A CONSULTANT TO HELP US IDENTIFY POTENTIAL CHANGES IN THE TIF BOUNDARY. SO THIS WILL COME LATER. THIS WON'T BE DISCUSSED AT THE AUGUST 20TH MEETING, BUT WE DO WANT TO LOOK AT THE OTHER BOUNDARY LINES OF THE TIFF TO SEE IF WE NEED TO EXPAND IT, CONTRACT IT, AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT THE MOST EFFICIENT PIECES OF PROPERTY WITHIN THESE PROPERTY LINES, SO THAT IN THE FUTURE, WE DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT MISSING OUT ON OPPORTUNITIES. RIGHT NOW, WE'RE PROJECTING IN SEPTEMBER WE'LL HAVE THE CONSULTANT'S FULL REPORT AND WE'LL GO BACK TO THE TIF BOARD. AND AT THAT TIME, WE'LL BE ASKING THE TIF BOARD TO TAKE DIRECT ACTION ON THE PROJECT AND FINANCING PLAN, WHICH IS THEIR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY, AND THEY WILL BE ASKED THEY WILL BE CONSIDERING EXPANDING THE TIF FOR ANOTHER 20 YEARS, AND THEN ANY POSSIBLE BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENTS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED THROUGH THE CONSULTANT. AFTER THAT, WE'LL BE BACK IN FRONT OF THE COUNCIL IN OCTOBER TO NOVEMBER. THE NEXT STEPS WOULD BE IF THE TIF BOARD AGREES WITH THESE CHANGES, THEY THEN WILL HAVE TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL. SO THEY WILL COME BACK TO COUNCIL IN OCTOBER TO TALK ABOUT THESE CHANGES. WE WILL NEED TO HOLD A PUBLIC HEARING AND ALL OF THIS NEEDS TO OCCUR BEFORE OBVIOUSLY THAT DECEMBER 31ST TIMEFRAME. BUT WE'RE THIS IS THE SCHEDULE. WE'RE PROPOSING TO HAVE EVERYTHING PRETTY MUCH BUTTONED UP ON THIS IN NOVEMBER, WITH THE TIF EXPANDED AND A NEW PROJECT AND FINANCING PLAN FOR THE TIF. WITH THAT, I'LL ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER BASS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MADAM. I'M GLAD YOU TALKED ABOUT BOUNDARIES TOO, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT THE LOOKING AT THE CURRENT CURRENT BOUNDARIES AND SEE SOME OPPORTUNITY FOR GEOGRAPHICALLY EXPANDING IT, HAVE WE HAD WHAT KIND OF BOUNDARY CHANGES HAVE WE HAD ON THIS TIF? NONE. IT'S NEVER HAD A BOUNDARY CHANGE. IT HAS NOT HAD. OKAY COOL. ONE QUESTION I HAD. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON TIP NUMBER TWO. I SEE NONE. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. COUNCIL WILL THEN MOVE ON TO OUR NEXT ITEM. IT'S WATER AND WASTEWATER UTILITY FUNDS.

GOOD AFTERNOON MAYOR COUNCIL. SO FOR THE WATER UTILITY DISCUSSION I JUST HAVE AN INTRO SLIDE THAT'S GOING TO REALLY JUST SORT OF ENCAPSULATE WHAT I'VE SEEN FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE AT GARLAND, AND JUST BRIEFLY TOUCH ON A FEW THINGS THAT ARE CURRENT AND SOME FUTURE CHALLENGES THAT WE HAVE IN THE WATER DEPARTMENT, AND THEN WE'LL GET INTO THE BUDGET REQUEST. SO JUST ON A BIG MACRO PERSPECTIVE, SOME OF THE THINGS WE'RE SEEING IN IN WATER UTILITIES, SIGNIFICANT AGING INFRASTRUCTURE. GARLAND IS ONE OF THE OLDER CITIES HERE. AND THE NORTH TEXAS SERVICE AREA. BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF AGING INFRASTRUCTURE. AND WHAT I'VE

[02:50:04]

[02:55:06]

WASTEWATER INFLOW. THESE ARE FOUR FTES THAT WOULD FOCUS ON ENI AND TRYING TO PREVENT ENI GOING INTO THE SYSTEM. SO AS I SAID WE HAVE CUSTOMER CITIES THAT ARE HAVE INCREASED ENI, BUT SO DOES GARLAND. SO WE'RE TRYING TO QUANTIFY THAT, BUT WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH STAFF DEDICATED TO THAT PROGRAM. SO WE'RE PROPOSING ADDITIONAL STAFF TO BE ABLE TO GO AFTER THIS ENI PROGRAM. THAT WOULD THEN IF WE DIDN'T DO THAT, WE WOULD THEN DOMINO INTO SOME MORE PLANT EXPANSIONS, WHICH IS EVEN MORE EXPENSIVE TO. YEAH. SO THE ENI IS INFLOW, WHICH IS FROM CREEKS OR STREAMS THAT FLOW INTO YOUR SYSTEM, OR INFILTRATION, WHERE YOU HAVE CRACKED PIPES IN THE GROUND AND GROUNDWATER CAN GET INTO YOUR SYSTEM. THUS THEN TAXING YOUR WASTEWATER COLLECTION SYSTEM. AND IT'S REALLY TREATING WATER YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE HAD TO TREAT BEFORE. YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE TO TREAT CREEK WATER. IT'S NOT DESIGNED FOR THAT. AND OUR PLANTS AREN'T DESIGNED FOR THAT.

SO INFLOW AND INFILTRATION IS A BIG CHALLENGE FOR MOST CITIES. AND SO AS WE HAVE BEEN REACTIVE IN THE CITY OF GARLAND, WE'RE TRYING TO PUT SOME MORE PROACTIVE EFFORTS TO TRY TO PREVENT THOSE ISSUES THAT THEN DRIVE US INTO ADDITIONAL COST FOR TREATMENT. SO WE HAVE SOME CHALLENGES AT OUR PLANTS. THEY'RE AGING PLANTS. A LOT OF MAINTENANCE HAS BEEN DEFERRED, AND WE'RE ENCOUNTERING A LOT OF THOSE PROBLEMS. AND SO WE'RE LOOKING TO HIRE TWO MORE MECHANICS TO ONE AT DUCK AND ONE AT ROWLETT CREEK PLANT TO HELP US CATCH UP ON AND TRY TO MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE FAILING PUMPS, FAILING VALVES, SOME OF THOSE THINGS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH AGING PLANTS. BUT WE'RE VERY LEAN AT THESE AREAS. SO FOR SOME REASON, AND WHAT I'M UNDERSTANDING IS PROBABLY IN THE 2010 TIMELINE. 2008 2010 TIMELINE, THEY REALLY STREAMLINED AND MINIMIZED STAFF. AND SO WE'RE SEEING THE EFFECTS OF THAT. THEY USED MORE OUTSOURCED CONTRACTS, AND WE'RE SEEING THAT CATCH UP TO US NOW. AND SO WE'RE TRYING TO PROACTIVELY ADDRESS THOSE CHALLENGES TO KEEP THESE PLANTS RUNNING TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T HAVE ANY EMERGENCIES. SO THESE TWO MECHANICS WOULD HELP US TOWARDS THOSE EFFORTS. WE'RE LOOKING FOR MORE HYDRO EXCAVATORS FOR THE FIELD MAINTENANCE, WHICH CAN HELP US FOR A VARIETY OF PURPOSES, BUT IT HELPS US PREVENT HITTING OTHER UTILITIES, AND PARTICULARLY WHERE UTILITIES CROSS, WE CAN AVOID THOSE HITS. IT CAN ALSO HELP US WITH OUR ENI PROGRAM ON HELP CLEANING MAINS. SO A COUPLE OF DUAL PURPOSES THERE FOR HYDRO EXCAVATORS.

WE'RE LOOKING FOR A COMPACT TRACK LOADER TO HELP US MAKE REPAIRS TO THE SEWER MAINS.

THESE ARE SMALLER TRACKED LOADERS THAT CAN. IT'S JUST ONE THAT WE CAN HELP MAKE REPAIRS TO THE SEWER COLLECTION SYSTEM. WE OF COURSE, AS WE REORGANIZED WE HAVE NOW MORE IN-FIELD SUPERVISION WITH REGARDRD TO R FOREMAN. SO WE'RE LOOKING FOR SOME SUPPORT TRUCKS FOR THOSE SUPERINTENDENTS. AND THEN A MINI EXCAVATOR. THIS IS NOT A LARGE ONE. THIS IS A VERY SMALL ONE THAT CAN GET INTO SMALL UTILITY EASEMENTS TO MAKE REPAIRS ON OUR MAINS OR IN SOME CASES, LATERALS THAT GO INTO THE MAINS FOR THE SEWER SYSTEM. SO WE FIND OURSELVES FREQUENTLY IN REALLY TIGHT CONFINES, AND WE NEED SOME SMALLER EQUIPMENT TO BE ABLE TO GET ACCESS TO THOSE REPAIRS. AND THEN WE'VE HAD SOME MOWING CONTRACTS BEFORE. WE REALLY HAVE HAD STAFF TRY TO TAKE ON SOME MOWING ATTEMPTS AND TRY TO MAINTAIN, BUT WE'RE TRYING TO FOCUS OUR STAFF ON CORE BUSINESS

[03:00:02]

WE BUY WHOLESALE WATER, BUT WE DO NOT USE THEIR WASTEWATER TREATMENT SERVICES. CITIES THAT USE NORTH TEXAS FOR TREATMENT. THEY ARE LOOKING AT 15 TO 30% INCREASES OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS FOR THOSE TREATMENT SERVICES. THAT COVERS PLANO, RICHARDSON, SOME OF THE OTHERS AROUND HERE. SO NORTH TEXAS IS HAS SOME HUGE RATE INCREASES ON THE WATER SIDE, BUT EVEN WORSE ON THE WASTEWATER SIDE. SO WE'RE NOT REQUIRED. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE OUR OWN TREATMENT PLANT CAPACITY, WHICH IS REALLY IT SHOULD SAVE MONEY FOR THE RESIDENTS IN THE NEXT DECADE, AS NORTH TEXAS RATES KIND OF SKYROCKET. THAT'S IT. AND WITH THAT, ANY QUESTIONS? YES, MAYOR PRO TEM LUCK. HI. SO OTHER OTHER CITIES USE OUR WASTEWATER SERVICES, CORRECT? CORRECT. OH,

[03:05:09]

WITH OUR ACTUAL RATES IN LINE. ALSO, TO KIND OF CONTINUE OFF THAT, SOME OF OUR MAJOR INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS, THEY HAVE RATES THAT ARE SET BASED ON THE STRENGTH OF THEIR WASTEWATER, AND SOME OF THEM ARE INCREASING AT HIGHER RATES THAN OUR OUR REGULAR RETAIL, RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS. THEY SHOULD BE. YEAH. AND CATCH THEM UP BECAUSE I'D, I'D RATHER, YOU KNOW, CHARGE PEOPLE WHO ARE USING THAT SYSTEM MUCH MORE AND YOU KNOW, RESIDENTS ARE PAYING FOR IT THROUGH TAXES. SO THEY SHOULD HAVE THE LOWEST OF THE FEES. I KNOW THAT THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, OUR OUR WASTEWATER FACILITIES ARE OLD AND HAVEN'T HAD A LOT OF ATTENTION, WHICH IS WHY THERE ARE SO MANY ASKS FOR ALL THE THINGS IN THESE SLIDES. WHEN DO YOU ANTICIPATE US NEEDING TO DO LIKE AN ACTUAL OVERHAUL OF OUR SYSTEM? SO OUR FACILITIES AT YOUR AT THE NEXT COUNCIL MEETING, WE HAVE A PROPOSAL FOR A WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT MASTER PLAN EFFORT. OKAY. SO IT WILL LOOK AT BOTH PLANTS AND THEN ACTUALLY LOOK AT BOTH PLANTS IN TANDEM TO FIGURE OUT IF THERE'S A WAY TO OPTIMIZE ALL THREE OR MAYBE THREE SCENARIOS THERE. SO THAT'LL COME ON HOPEFULLY FOR YOUR PRESENTATION TUESDAY. AND THEN THAT'LL TAKE ABOUT A YEAR TO EVALUATE ALL THE OPTIONS. BUT THEN WE SHOULD HAVE A PLAN, NOT ONLY A PLAN FOR TYPES OF TREATMENT AND MEETING THE REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS THAT THE STATE LIKELY WOULD PUT ON US, BUT ALSO DESCRIBE OUR CAPACITY AND THEN A CAPITAL PLAN THAT SOMEHOW WE'VE GOT TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO PAY FOR THAT. AND SO THAT'S A BIG CONCERN OF OURS RIGHT NOW IS, YOU KNOW, THE CAPACITY THAT WE HAVE IS PRECIOUS. AND SO WE'RE ANXIOUS TO GET THIS CONTRACTOR ON BOARD AND START LOOKING AT THIS MASTER PLAN FOR US TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS OUR PATH FORWARD. OKAY. YEAH.

AND SAME THING. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO PAY FOR THIS. AND THAT COST SHOULD BE KIND OF SUBSIDIZED BY OTHER USERS. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.

COUNCILMEMBER WILLIAMS. THANK YOU MAYOR. JUST A COUPLE QUESTIONS ON BACK UP TO THE SLIDE THAT SHOWS THE EQUIPMENT THAT YOU ARE DREAMING ABOUT ASKING FOR. IS THERE A SPECIFIC ONE YOU WANTED TO SEE BACK UP? THE SLIDE THAT HAS ALL OF THEM? OH, OKAY. SORRY. YEAH. RIGHT THERE. MICHAEL HAS HAS SINCE YOU'VE BEEN BEEN ON BOARD, HAS THERE BEEN A, AN AN INVENTORY TO ASSESS EXISTING EQUIPMENT COMPARED TO THAT. AND IF SO HOW WOULD THAT COME OUT? IF NOT, WHEN DO WE PROPOSE IT TO INVENTORY THE EXISTING EQUIPMENT. THAT'S THAT'S MY FIRST QUESTION. SO WE HAVE A GOOD INVENTORY OF ALL THE EQUIPMENT THAT WE POSSESS. SOME OF THE CHALLENGES, PARTICULARLY LARGE EQUIPMENT IS GETTING REPLACEMENT PARTS AND HAVING DOWNTIME ON THAT EQUIPMENT THAT IMPACTS OUR OPERATIONS. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE OF THE FACTOR COMBOS, IN SOME CASES, YOU COULD BE LOOKING AT SIX MONTHS JUST WAITING ON A PART. AND SO WE HAVE STAFF THAT'S ASSIGNED TO THAT PIECE OF EQUIPMENT. SO WE'LL HAVE TO REDIRECT THAT STAFF TO OTHER DUTIES UNTIL THAT EQUIPMENT IS REPAIRED. SO THOSE ARE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES. BUT BUT ALSO WE USED TO HAVE SOME EQUIPMENT FOR CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES THAT THEY HAVE LET LAPSE IN AND DIDN'T CHOOSE TO RENEW. AND SO SOME OF THAT EQUIPMENT HAS IS NOT THERE

[03:10:01]

RATE INCREASES. OKAY. TELL ME AGAIN. NO. COME AGAIN. WHAT WHAT WE'RE WHAT OUR GOAL IS AND WHY.

SO WE HAVE SEVERAL METRICS THAT WE ARE. IT'S OUR GOAL TO MEET EACH YEAR. SO ONE OF THOSE IS OUR DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO. IT'S SOMETHING THAT OUR RATING AGENCIES LOOK AT VERY CLOSELY.

WHENEVER WE GO OUT FOR REVENUE BOND SALE TO GET THOSE BEST INTEREST PRICES. SO THEY WANT TO SEE A 1.6% COVERAGE TO KNOW THAT WE CAN COVER THOSE DEBTS. SO THAT'S THAT'S ONE OF THE MAJOR THINGS. ANOTHER IS JUST RECOVERING OUR COSTS. SO OVER THE FIVE YEAR RATE PLAN PERIOD, WITH OUR PROJECTIONS, THE INCREASED COSTS FOR WATER FROM NORTH TEXAS AS WELL AS OUR INCREASING OPERATIONAL COSTS, WE WANT TO KIND OF MAINTAIN THAT POSITIVE COST RECOVERY SO WE DON'T START LOSING MONEY. SO THOSE ARE THE TWO MAIN METRICS THAT I'M TRYING TO MAINTAIN WITH OUR FIVE YEAR RATE PLAN. SO WE ALSO WANT TO KEEP THOSE RATES SMOOTH. YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT'S NOT GOING UP AND DOWN EACH YEAR. IF WE CAN COME UP WITH A KIND OF SMOOTH RATE PLAN, SIMILAR RATE INCREASES EACH YEAR FOR OUR CUSTOMERS. THAT'S ANOTHER THING THAT WE TRY TO MAINTAIN. WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE ANY VOLATILITY THERE. I THINK I SAW ONE, ONE OF THE CHARTS, YOUR FIVE YEAR PROJECTION AS IT RELATES TO RATES. WHAT'S THE GOAL AND HOW DO YOU PLAN ON IMEMENTING THAT. THOSE INCREASES OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. YEAH. SO EACH YEAR WE'RE LOOKING AT ABOUT 4.5% RATE INCREASES. AND LIKE I SAID EARLIER THAT THAT'S JUST TO MAINTAIN THOSE MINIMUM METRICS OF DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO AND COST RECOVERY. SO WE REALLY THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE WORK WITH ON OUR RATE CONSULTANT TO MAINTAIN. AND IF WE FALL BELOW THOSE THINGS, YOU KNOW, OUR OUR FINANCING COSTS FOR OUR DEBT CAN BECOME MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE. SO IT'S REALLY, YOU KNOW, MAINTAINING THAT COST OF SERVICE AND MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE RECOVERING OUR COSTS AS UTILITIES. SO YOUR MESSAGE TO THE RATEPAYERS IS WHAT WOULD BE WOULD BE WHAT BASED ON YOUR FORECAST PROJECTIONS FOR THIS, THIS BUDGET WOULD BE WHAT HOW WOULD YOU SELL THIS TO RATEPAYERS THAT WE HAVE INCREASING COSTS FROM OUR WHOLESALE WATER PROVIDER. THOSE THOSE COSTS ARE INCREASING BY NINE, 10%. AND THAT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT CONTRACTUALLY WE HAVE TO PAY. AND SO WHEN OUR COSTS GO UP, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO PUSH SOME OF THOSE INCREASES TO OUR CUSTOMERS AS WELL TO MAINTAIN THE, THE FINANCIAL STABILITY OF THE UTILITY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, I THINK. I THINK ONE ADDITIONAL THANK YOU. YOU'RE ABOUT TO SAY SOMETHING. I THINK ONE ADDITIONAL COMPONENT TO THAT IS FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, GARLAND HAS A TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY HERE WITH ITS TWO PLANTS, TO BE ABLE TO KEEP RATES LOWER THAN WHAT OTHER SURROUNDING CITIES ARE SEEING FOR WASTEWATER CHARGES. SO THERE'S A BENEFIT TO OWNING THEIR OWN PLANTS COMPARED TO OUTSOURCING THAT AND ASKING SOMEBODY ELSE TO PROVIDE THOSE

[03:15:04]

THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO GET TO. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM COUNCIL? WATER, WASTEWATER. THAT'S NEXT TIME YOU COME. MAKE SURE YOU BRING THE AGE OF THE TRAILER THAT YOU'RE. WHEN YOU'RE ASKING FOR EQUIPMENT. ALL RIGHT, WE'LL MOVE ON THEN TO OUR NEXT ITEM. IT'S THE SANITATION UTILITY FUND.

ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. MAYOR. COUNCIL. MR. CITY MANAGER, THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT ON BEHALF OF THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT TODAY, WE HAVE A PRETTY STANDARD REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL TO HELP US MAINTAIN OUR CURRENT SERVICE LEVELS IN OUR RESIDENTIAL SERVICES DIVISION AND ALSO TO HELP US CONTINUE GROWING OUR COMMERCIAL SERVICES DIVISION. AND AT THE END, WE'LL ALSO HAVE SOME RATES THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO PROPOSE TO COUNCIL. SO OUR FIRST REQUEST IS GOING TO BE FOR $65,000 FOR A SANITATION DRIVER TO THAT WILL BE USED AS A FLOATER BETWEEN THE RESIDENTIAL WASTE AND RESIDENTIAL RECYCLING DIVISION.

CURRENTLY WE HAVE 18 COLLECTION ROUTES IN RESIDENTIAL WASTE AND SEVEN COLLECTION ROUTES IN RESIDENTIAL RECYCLING, AND WE HAVE A TOTAL OF 26 EMPLOYEES. THAT ONLY GIVES US 3.5% BACKUP RATIO. THE INDUSTRY STANDARD IS 20%. SO WE'RE HOPING THAT ADDING THIS POSITION WILL GIVE US SOME FLEXIBILITY. WHENEVER WE HAVE EMPLOYEES EITHER OUT SICK, INJURED, OR TAKING TIME OFF.

COUNCIL. I ALSO WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO BRAG ABOUT THIS EMPLOYEES. THEY DO THIS TWO DIVISIONS COMBINED DO ABOUT 405,000 COLLECTIONS PER MONTH. THAT'S 4.8 COLLECTIONS, 4.8 MILLION COLLECTIONS PER YEAR. THE COLLECTION RATE FOR THIS TWO DIVISIONS COMBINED IS. 99.9996%.

[03:20:13]

HOWEVER, OUR MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS ARE 36 EMPLOYEES. THAT'S SIX CREWS OF SIX EMPLOYEES EACH.O THAT ONLY GIVES US A BACKUP RATIO OF 5%. ONCE AGAIN, INDUSTRY STANDARD IS 20%. IN THE TRANSFER STATION, WE HAVE A TOTAL OF NINE EMPLOYEES. WE DON'T HAVE AN BACKUPS.

THAT'S OUR MINIMUM. SO WHENEVER SOMEBODY IS OUT ON VACATION SICK RIGHT NOW, I HAVE TWO DRIVERS FROM THE TRANSFER STATION. THEY'VE BEEN OUT FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS ON MEDICAL LEAVE, SO I'VE HAD TO USE DRIVERS FROM OTHER DIVISIONS TO SUPPLEMENT AND CONTINUE THE OPERATION. ON AVERAGE, THE BRUSH AND BULKY DIVISION DOES ABOUT 91212,000 COLLECTIONS PER YEAR, AND THEIR COLLECTION RATE IS 99.9979%. REALLY GOOD NUMBERS. REALLY PROUD OF THOSE THOSE GUYS. WE'RE ALSO ASKING FOR FUNDING FOR THREE SANITATION HELPERS FOR THE BRUSH AND BULKY DIVISION. THESE ARE THE EMPLOYEES THAT YOU SEE IN THE BACK OF THE REAR LOADERS. WITHOUT A DOUBT, THIS IS THE MOST DIFFICULT JOB WITHIN THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT. IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW COLD IT IS, IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW HOT IT IS. THESE GUYS ARE OUT THERE PICKING UP TRASH, TAKING CARE OF OUR CITIZENS. WE CURRENTLY HAVE NINE FULL TIME POSITIONS, AND WE HAVE TO DEPEND ON TEMPORARY LABOR FOR THE OTHER THREE. THE PROBLEM WITH THAT IS, ONCE AGAIN, IT'S 100 DEGREES OUTSIDE. YOU'RE GETTING $16 AN HOUR. WE GET EMPLOYEES, TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES THAT SHOW UP FOR HALF A DAY.

THEY GO TO LUNCH AND THEY JUST DON'T COME BACK. HOWEVER, WE HAVE SEEN CONSISTENCY WITH THE FULL TIME EMPLOYEES. THE REASON FOR THAT IS THEY HAVE MOTIVATION, THEY HAVE INCENTIVES, THEY GET RETIREMENT, THEY GET SICK TIME, THEY GET VACATION TIME. SO WE HAVE A LOT MORE CONSISTENCY WITH THIS FULL TIME EMPLOYEES. IF I CAN CHIME IN ON THAT AS WELL. YOU'VE ALSO DONE A GREAT JOB IN BUILDING WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT A GROWTH MODEL FOR THOSE THAT ARE INDIVIDUALS THAT COME IN THAT MAY NOT HAVE A COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSE OR EXPERIENCE OPERATING EQUIPMENT, THIS IS REALLY A STARTING POINT FOR THEM WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT. SO THEY CAN COME IN, THEY GET THAT FULL TIME JOB, THEY GET THE BENEFITS THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, AND THEN THEY HAVE AN ABILITY TO GROW FROM THERE. IF THEY IF THEY HAVE THAT. SO HAVING THOSE THAT ARE FULL TIME EMPLOYEES, THEY CAN GET PUT ON THAT TRACK IF THEY HAVE THAT INITIATIVE.

CORRECT. WE ACTUALLY PAY FOR THEIR CDL FOR THOSE HELPERS THAT HAVE BEEN WITH THE DEPARTMENT FOR A YEAR OR TWO, AND THEY WANT TO CONTINUE GROWING WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT. WE HELP THEM GET IS GOING TO BE FOR ANOTHERQUEST SANITATION DVER, TWO FOR COMMERCIAL SERVICES DIVISION.

UNLIKE THE OTHER DRIVER POSITIONS, THIS ONE IS NOT GOING TO BE USED AS A BACKUP. THIS IS GOING TO BE USED TO CONTINUE GOING OUT THERE PURSUING NEW ACCOUNTS. WE HAVE A LOT OF COMPETITION IN GARLAND. WE COMPETE AGAINST 49 PRIVATE HAULERS, BUT WE STILL THINK THAT THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO CONTINUE GOING OUT THERE MAKING MONEY. SO FAR THIS YEAR, WE'RE UP BY $561,000. THROUGH THE END OF JULY, WE ARE PROJECTING APPROXIMATELY $8 MILLION IN REVENUE JUST FROM THE COMMERCIAL SERVICES DIVISION. WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT? OUR COST OF SERVICE FOR THE COMMERCIAL SERVICES DIVISION IS ONLY $5 MILLION. THAT'S $3 MILLION OF ACTUAL PROFIT. AND THE WAY WE'RE USING THAT PROFIT IS WE'RE USING IT TO SUBSIDIZE RESIDENTIAL SERVICES DIVISION. HISTORICALLY, IT WAS THE OPPOSITE. SO THAT'S WHAT ALLOWS US TO KEEP OUR RESIDENTIAL RATE SO LOW, WITH THE LEVEL OF SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDE. SO IN SUMMARY, WE ARE ASKING FOR A TOTAL OF SIX EMPLOYEES, THREE DRIVERS AND THREE HELPERS FOR THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT. THAT'S $307,000 IN ONGOING FUNDING. AND WE'RE ALSO PROPOSING SOME RATE INCREASES.

WE ARE PROPOSING A $1.90 RATE INCREASE ON THE SINGLE CONTAINER RATE. CURRENTLY IS $24.08. IF COUNCIL APPROVES, THAT WOULD BE THE NEW RATE WILL BE $25.98. AND WE ARE PROJECTING APPROXIMATELY $1.3 MILLION IN NEW REVENUE. NOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WANT TO POINT OUT IS WE'RE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN THE OTHER TWO UTILITIES, ELECTRIC AND WATER. AND THE REASON FOR THAT IS WATER AND ELECTRIC. THE MORE YOU USE IT, THE HIGHER YOUR BILL IS GOING TO BE AT THE END

[03:25:01]

TYPICALLY, IF WE RUN INTO A BUSINESS THAT IS NOT TIED TO A MULTI-YEAR CONTRACT, WE PICK THEM UP ON THE SPOT AND ONCE WE PICK THEM UP, THEY DON'T LEAVE US. EVEN WHEN WE DO 10% RATE INCREASES. IF COUNCIL APPROVES, WE ARE PROJECTING APPROXIMATELY $793,000 IN NEW REVENUE FROM THIS RATE INCREASE. THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, SIR. COUNCIL MEMBER DUTTON. THANK YOU. MURIEL, CAN YOU TELL ME, WHAT IS IT COST THE CITY TO REPLACE A POLYKARP $57? OKAY. I WOULD PERSONALLY LIKE TO SEE THE SECOND CART RATE BE INCREASED. FAR MORE THAN $12.10.

IF WE'RE CHARGING 24, $25 FOR ONE CART. I FEEL LIKE OUR SECOND CART SHOULD BE AS CLOSE TO EQUAL TO THAT AS POSSIBLE. I DON'T THINK THAT. AND I HAVE A SECOND CART. OKAY, JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, I HAVE TWO CARTS BECAUSE SOMETIMES I FORGET TO PUT MY ONE CART OUT AND SO I NEED IT FOR THE NEXT LEAP. AND I, I DON'T I DON'T FEEL LIKE YOU NEED A. YOU DON'T NEED A GOLD STAR FOR NEEDING A SECOND CONTAINER. AND IF IT'S COSTING US $57 TO REPLACE THOSE, THEN WE NEED TO BE MAKING UP THAT DIFFERENCE SOMEHOW. SO I AM 100% ON BOARD WITH INCREASING THAT SECOND CONTAINER RATE FAR MORE THAN JUST $2. OTHERWISE. I APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT YOU GUYS DO. YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING. OUR CREWS ARE KNOCKING IT OUT OF THE PARK, AND I AM THANKFUL THAT WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY CATASTROPHIC, CATASTROPHIC EVENTS TO KEEP YOU GUYS IN OVERTIME THIS YEAR. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH OVER YET. THANK YOU MAYOYOR. THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBR BASS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU GUYS. AND I KNOW I'VE TALKED TO YOU ABOUT THIS BEFORE, BUT MAN, WHAT

[03:30:05]

SO JUST A GREAT PROGRAM. REALLY APPRECIATE WHAT IT DOES TO REDUCE THE TAX BURDEN ON THE CITIZENS AND JUST KEEP UP THAT GOOD WORK. THANK YOU. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU SIR.

COUNCILMEMBER WILLIAMS, YOU'RE WELCOME BACK. THANKS. I'M GLAD YOU'RE BACK. GLAD TO BE BACK, SIR. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. YOU'VE DONE AN EXCELLENT JOB I HAVE NO I HAVE NO NO PROBLEMS WITH ANY OF YOUR PROPOSED RATE INCREASES. THAT'S FIRST THING, BUT MAIN THING IS, I WANT TO PUBLICLY THANK YOU AND JUDGE. BUT YOU AND YOUR YOUR TEAM FOR ADDRESSING SCHOOL. JUST OPEN AND GSD THIS WEEK. AND WE HAD A CONSOLIDATION AMONG MONTCLAIR WITH HEATHER GLENN AND WHICH CREATED A PLETHORA OF PROBLEMS. AND ONE WAS TRASH AND YOU GOT ON IT AND YOU GOT WITH CODE AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S SOME ONGOING EFFORTS TO ADDRESS THAT SITUATION, BUT I WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR SO QUICKLY GETTING ON TOP OF THAT AND TO PROTECT THE STUDENTS FROM THAT, THAT BECAUSE A NUMBER OF STUDENTS WALK DOWN THAT SIDEWALK, I'M NOT GOING TO GIVE THE ADDRESS EVERY DAY. AND I I WAS CONCERNED THAT, YOU KNO, AFTER A WHILE, YOU KNOW, KIDS SHOULD JUST BE KIDS. AND SO THANK YOU FOR STEPPING UP AND ADDRESSING THAT. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU, THANK YOU MAYOR.

THANK YOU SIR. COUNCILMEMBER THOMAS. YES, AERIAL I'M LOOKING AT YOUR JUST LOOKING AT YOUR NUMBERS HERE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND. SO ON SLIDE SIX THERE $307,000 IN NEW SALARIES OVER AND ABOVE. WHAT WHAT ELSE WE HAVE ON SLIDE. IS THAT RIGHT? YES, SIR. ENTERED 7000. AND IF WE IF WE LOOK AT YOUR OTHER SLIDES FOR NEW REVENUES ON SEVEN, NINE AND 11. IS THAT AM I LOOKING THE RIGHT. YEAH. MILLION THREE. THERE ARE 50 THERE AND ANOTHER 700. THAT'S 2.45 MILLION. THAT'S A LITTLE OVER. YEAH. 2.5 MILLION IN NEW REVENUES VERSUS 300,000 IN NEW SALARIESES. IS THAT THE BIGGESTO BRAINER IN THE HISTORY OF CITY BUDGETS, OR AM I MISSING SOMETHING? SO LET ME EXPAND A LITTLE BIT. SO THE WE HAVE THREE PRIMARY EXPENSES THAT ARE DRIVING THIS GREAT INCREASES. NUMBER ONE JUDD TALKED ABOUT THIS. OUR FLEET RATE IS GOING UP FOR THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT IS GOING UP BY $872,000. WE'RE ALSO INCREASING THE TIPPING FEE FOR COMMERCIAL TONNAGE. THAT'S GOING TO GENERATE APPROXIMATELY $1.5 MILLION FOR THE LANDFILL. AND THE LAST THING IS WE'RE ALSO INCREASING OR RESERVE FUND FROM 45 DAYS TO 69 DAYS. THAT IS THE EQUIVALENT OF $1.5 MILLION. AND THE REASON FOR THAT IS THERE'S IT'S JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE WE GET ANOTHER HURRICANE GARLAND. SO WE JUST WANT TO HAVE THE FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR UNFORESEEN EXPENDITURES. SO THOSE ARE THE THREE EXPENSES THAT ARE DRIVING THIS RATE

[03:35:02]

[3. Council discussion and deliberation on FY26 Proposed Budget]

I THINK A BREAKDOWN OF THE SPECIAL EVENT BUDGETS IN TOTALITY LAST YEAR AS PART OF THE DISCUSSION, AND THOSE STILL REMAIN TO BE THE TOTAL BUDGETS. I'M HAPPY TO RECIRCULATE THAT INFORMATION. I WOULD DEFINITELY CLARIFY. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. BECAUSE THE WAY IT LOOKS RIGHT NOW, YES. DOES NOT LOOK GOOD. SORRY. I TRIED TO MARK THINGS TO WHERE I COULD JUST ASK PER PAGE ON PAGE NINE. SPONSORSHIPS. WHAT ARE THOSE SPONSORSHIPS? SAYS TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR EVENTS THROUGH SPONSORS, SPONSORSHIPS. JUST CURIOUS WHAT THOSE INCLUDE. SO THIS IS A LINE ITEM IN THE RECREATION PERFORMANCE FUND RELATED TO OUR SPECIAL EVENTS. SO OUR SPECIAL EVENTS DEPARTMENT ON AN ANNUAL BASIS TRIES TO SEEK SPONSORSHIP FUNDING. AND SO THEY ARE BUDGETING A REVENUE ASSOCIATED WITH AN ANTICIPATED AMOUNT OF SPONSORSHIP DOLLARS. THIS IS THE EXPENDITURE THAT THEY WILL INCUR TO ENHANCE THE EVENT IF THAT REVENUE COMES THROUGH. SO IF WE DO NOT RECEIVE ANY SPONSORSHIPS FOR OUR EVENTS, THIS LINE ITEM WILL BE REVISED DOWN TO ZERO BECAUSE THEY WILL

[03:40:04]

HOPEFULLY ONE OF THOSE OTHER SOURCES CAN HELP US WITH THAT. WE DO HAVE VARIOUS BUDGETS. SOME ARE NEW ADDITIONAL, SOME ARE WITHIN OUR BASE BUDGET FOR ADVERTISING. SO WE'LL PULL TOGETHER A COMPREHENSIVE PACKAGE FOR YOU ON THAT. AND THE VARIOUS SOURCES. GREAT. IT'S JUST IMPORTANT TO GET OUR NAME OUT THERE. SO AND THEN THE LAST PAGE. PAGE 12 DOWNTOWN ARTIFICIAL TURF. VERY EXCITED TO SEE THAT WE'RE PUTTING ARTIFICIAL TURF DOWNTOWN I KNOW THAT IT IT IT WAS A WONDERFUL DREAM TO HAVE REAL GRASS BUT I. IT'S HARD TO TAKE CARE OF. IT'S HARD FOR ME TO TAKE CARE OF MY GRASS. AND YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST A LITTLE TINY LAWN. SO I APPRECIATE THAT THAT IS HAPPENING. AND I'M KIND OF EXCITED TO GO PLAY ON IT. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU MA'AM. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS COUNCIL. I DON'T SEE ANY COUNCIL. AS YOU KNOW WE HAVE A CALENDAR FOR THIS BUDGET. ADOPTION WILL BE HOLDING A HEARING THIS COMING WEEK ON OUR TAX RATE AND OUR BUDGET, AND THEN ANOTHER HEARING TO FOLLOW AS WELL WITH AN ADOPTION SOON IN SEPTEMBER. MR. CITY MANAGER, DO YOU HAVE ANY CLOSING WORDS FOR US? NO. JUST AS YOU GO HOME AND OVER THE WEEKEND, IF YOU THINK ABOUT SOMETHING, SEND AN EMAIL AND WE'LL WE'LL BE BACK TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS. COUNCIL, I APPRECIATE ALL YOUR WORK TODAY AND ALL YOUR QUESTIONS. AND WE HAVE SOME WORK TO DO TO READ THROUGH ALL THE MATERIAL PRESENTED TODAY. AND IF YOU HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS, PLEASE SUBMIT THEM. SO AT 104 WE ARE ADJOURNED. THANK YOU. GOOD NIGHT. 32.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.