ALL RIGHT. IT IS, ARE WE READY?
[00:00:03]
ARE WE READY? IT IS 1:04 P.M., AND I'M CALLING THIS MEETING OF THE GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE TO ORDER ON OCTOBER 22ND, 2024 AT[Council Government Performance & Financial Management Committee on October 22, 2024.]
01:04 P.M..WE HAVE GOT A COUPLE ITEMS WE'RE GOING TO TAKE OUT OF ORDER.
WE'LL START OFF, THOUGH, WITH THE MINUTES FROM SEPTEMBER 23RD, 2024.
I'VE GOT A MOTION FOR APPROVAL.
SECOND. AND A VERY HESITANT SECOND.
AYE. ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES.
OKAY. NEXT WE WILL MOVE ON TO BRIEFING ITEM A.
AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO TAKE A MEMO.
AND THEN WE'LL GO BACK AND ORDER AFTER THAT.
SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO JACK IRELAND.
OKAY. GREAT. THANK YOU CHAIRMAN WEST.
I'M JACK IRELAND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.
AND YOUR FIRST BRIEFING IS AN ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE CITY'S INVESTMENT POLICY.
WE HAVE JENNY KURZMAN ON THE CALL.
SHE'S OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OVER TREASURY AND THE CITY COMPTROLLER'S OFFICE.
SHE WILL WALK YOU THROUGH A VERY SHORT PRESENTATION.
JUST AS A REMINDER, THIS IS AN ANNUAL PROCESS.
WE ARE REQUIRED TO TAKE TO CITY COUNCIL THE INVESTMENT POLICY OF THE CITY EACH YEAR FOR APPROVAL.
SO, JENNY, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO YOU.
AND IF YOU'LL WALK THROUGH IT REAL QUICKLY.
AND JACK, THIS CAME BACK TO US AT THE REQUEST OF A COUNCIL MEMBER.
WE APPROVED IT FOR THE LAST FISCAL YEAR.
IT WENT TO COUNCIL. THEN IT CAME BACK TO COMMITTEE.
WE'RE HOPING THAT THIS TIME FOR THIS YEAR, WE CAN JUST BRING IT HERE TO COMMITTEE.
AND THEN WE'LL BE READY FOR APPROVAL AT COUNCIL IN NOVEMBER.
GREAT. CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? YES, JENNY, WE GOT YOU NOW.
JENNY KURTZMAN, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF TREASURY, THE CITY CONTROLLER'S OFFICE.
MY APOLOGIES THAT I HAVE TO PROVIDE YOU THIS BRIEFING REMOTELY, BUT I'M ATTENDING A CONFERENCE.
JENNY, YOU'RE. HOLD ON A SECOND.
WE HAVE A TECHNICAL DIFFICULTY.
CLEARLY. WE'RE WORKING WITH IT TO GET THIS FIXED.
I'LL GO AHEAD AND GO THROUGH THE PRESENTATION IF THAT'S OKAY.
SO, WE CAN JUST KEEP THINGS MOVING.
SO AND GINNY, HOPEFULLY WE'LL HAVE YOU AVAILABLE IN A MINUTE TO, TO HELP US WITH ANY QUESTIONS THAT WE MAY HAVE, BUT ON SLIDE THREE, JUST AS BACKGROUND TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE REQUIRES THAT OUR INVESTMENT OF CITY FUNDS COMPLY WITH THE PUBLIC FUNDS INVESTMENT ACT. OUR POLICIES ARE DESIGNED TO FOR PROTECTING THE SAFETY OF THE PRINCIPAL, ENSURING LIQUIDITY ENSURING YIELD DIVERSIFICATION, MATURITY, WITH EMPHASIS ON OUR SAFETY OF THE PRINCIPAL.
SINCE 1997, THE CITY HAS HAD AN INVESTMENT POLICY.
WE LAST HAD CITY COUNCIL APPROVE OUR INVESTMENT POLICY ON APRIL 10TH OF 2024.
SO HERE WE ARE IN OCTOBER TO DO THAT.
ON SLIDE FOUR THE INVESTMENT POLICY IS MANAGED BY PRIMARILY BY GINNY AS OUR TREASURER IN THE CITY COMPTROLLER'S OFFICE. WE DID IN MAY OF 23, THE GOVERNMENT TREASURERS ORGANIZATION OF TEXAS DID CERTIFY OUR POLICY.
WE DO MEET AS THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE ON A QUARTERLY BASIS.
WE THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE IS MADE UP OF MYSELF AS CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, SHERI KOWALSKI AS CITY COMPTROLLER, JEANETTE WEEDEN, DIRECTOR OF BUDGET MANAGEMENT SERVICES, JENNY KURZMAN AS OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF TREASURY, AND THEN SARAH STANDIFER AS DIRECTOR OF DALLAS WATER UTILITY.
SO THAT IS WHO MAKES UP THE COMMITTEE.
[00:05:02]
AND REGARDING ALL THINGS FOR OUR INVESTMENT POLICY.SO ON SLIDE SIX, JUST A COUPLE OF THINGS THERE.
THE COMMITTEE HAS WORKED WITH METERS.
WE DO NOT HAVE ANY CHANGES THAT ARE REQUIRED AS A RESULT OF THE PUBLIC FUNDS INVESTMENT ACT.
SO WHAT YOU WILL SEE IN THE APPENDIX WAS A RED LINE VERSION OF THE POLICY.
AND THERE'S ONLY FOUR CHANGES.
AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE CHANGES HAS TO DO WITH THE DATE SIMPLY CHANGING THE DATE FROM APRIL OF 2024 TO NOVEMBER OF 24. ASSUMING THAT THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVES THIS, AND WHAT WE'RE HOPING IS THAT THIS COMMITTEE WILL MOVE IT FORWARD TO COUNCIL, AND THAT COUNCIL WILL APPROVE THE POLICY IN NOVEMBER.
THERE'S NOT A TIME URGENCY ABOUT IT.
SO IF THE COMMITTEE NEEDS MORE TIME, WE SURELY CAN DO THAT.
AGAIN, IT'S JUST AN ANNUAL PROCESS.
NO CHANGE THIS YEAR IN THE POLICY AT ALL OTHER THAN UPDATING THE DATES.
ALL RIGHT. DO WE HAVE QUESTIONS? COMMITTEE MEMBERS? NO. OKAY.
MR. RESENDEZ, IT LOOKS LIKE NO.
YOU BET. AND SO YOU'RE OKAY WITH US MOVING IT FORWARD TO COUNCIL? YEAH. I DON'T BELIEVE IS AN ACTION ITEM, SO IT DOESN'T REQUIRE AN ACTION.
THANK YOU. NODDING HEADS WAS GOOD.
THIS IS ON THE REPAIRS TO THE FAMILY GATEWAY PROPERTY.
I JUST WANT TO INVITE OHS AND ANY GUEST SPEAKERS WHO MIGHT WANT TO JOIN US TO COME UP TO THE PODIUM.
ARE YOU GIVING THE PRESENTATION? NO, I'M NOT, BUT I'LL MAKE SOME REMARKS.
I THINK PROBABLY BRIAN IS DOING IT.
OKAY, WELL, YOU CAN GO AHEAD IF YOU'D LIKE TO.
OKAY, WELL, I WILL I'M COMING TODAY TO SAY THAT I DON'T ALWAYS COME HERE TO COMPLAIN.
RIGHT. SO THAT'S WHY BRIAN'S COMING AND NOT DONZELL.
I'M SORRY. COULD YOU INTRODUCE YOURSELF? OH, YES. I'M SORRY, I'M ELLEN MAGNESS.
I'M PRESIDENT AND CEO OF FAMILY GATEWAY.
AND SOMEBODY MAY NEED TO CATCH DONZELL WITH ABOUT WHAT I'M ABOUT TO SAY.
AS YOU WILL SEE FROM EVERYTHING WE FOUND AFTER THE ROOF WAS REPAIRED.
AND SO BECAUSE WE HAD MOLD, BECAUSE WE HAD TO ABATE THE MOLD AND TAKE IT DOWN TO THE BRICK, ONCE THE ROOF WAS REPAIRED, IT RAINED AGAIN AND WATER CAME BACK INSIDE THE BUILDING.
AND WE MAY NOT HAVE KNOWN THAT HAD THOSE WALLS BEEN UP.
YOU CAN JUST STAY UP THERE, JOHN, IF YOU WANT.
NO. GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIRMAN WEST.
THANK YOU, ELLEN, FOR THE KIND WORDS.
FIRST OF ALL, I'D BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T ACKNOWLEDGE GLORIA SANDOVAL IN HOMELESS SOLUTIONS, WHO HAS HELPED A GREAT DEAL IN REALLY MOVING THE PEG FORWARD IN RESOLVING THE ONGOING ISSUES.
SO, AS YOU RECALL FROM OUR LAST BRIEFING TO EPFM THERE HAD BEEN SOME DELAYS.
NONE OF THEM INTENTIONAL, OF COURSE, BUT DUE TO LOGISTICS AND PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS THAT WE REALLY HAD TO GET OUR STEPS IN LINE WITH THE NEEDS OF THE BUILDING, AS WELL AS THE REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE IMPOSED ON US, ON US BY THE CITY.
[00:10:05]
ISSUES, AS ELLEN HAD MENTIONED.WE HAD DONE SOME REMEDIATION OF MOLD IN FOUR OF SIX ROOMS. THE OTHER TWO ROOMS THAT REMAIN STARTED ON YESTERDAY, THE 21ST, AND THOSE WILL COMPLETE THIS WEEK.
AS MENTIONED PRIOR TO US BEGINNING RECONSTRUCTION, DURING THE LAST RAIN EVENT, OUR CONSTRUCTION CREW NOTICED THAT WE HAD ADDITIONAL WATER INFILTRATION IN SOME OF THE LOWER ROOMS AND ALTHOUGH NOT ORIGINALLY PLANNED.
AS PART OF OUR EFFORTS TO MOVE FORWARD, WE DID ENGAGE WITH OUR ROOFING CONSULTANT TO PERFORM A WATER TEST ON A CORE SECTION OF THE BUILDING.
THE RESULTS OF THE WATER TEST REALLY CONFIRMED.
WHAT WE HAD SUSPECTED WAS THAT THERE WERE ADDITIONAL WATER PENETRATIONS THAT WERE NOT A RESULT OF THE ROOF, AND WE SAY THAT CONFIDENTLY BECAUSE THE ROOFING REPLACEMENT HAD BEEN COMPLETED.
AND SO WITH THE INFORMATION AT HAND, IT WAS DECIDED THAT IF WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE INVESTING CITY MONEY IN THE REPAIRS, THAT WE SHOULD CONSIDER MAKING THE FULL REPAIRS TO MAKE THIS BUILDING AS WATERTIGHT AS POSSIBLE.
THOSE WILL BEGIN IN SHORT ORDER.
WE ARE MOVING THE JOB ORDER CONTRACTING AND BOND APPROVAL PROCESS THROUGH AS WE SPEAK.
I EXPECT FORWARD PROGRESS ON THE RECONSTRUCTION TO BEGIN AS EARLY AS NEXT WEEK.
AND IN MANY CONVERSATIONS WITH ELLEN AND HER CHILD CARE CONTRACTOR, VOGEL, WE ARE PLACING A PRIORITY ON REPAIRING TWO ROOMS ON THE FIRST FLOOR, ROOMS 108 AND 110, SO THAT THEY CAN RESTART THEIR INFANT AND TODDLER CARE OPERATIONS.
THE GOAL IS TO START AND COMPLETE THAT WORK BY NOVEMBER 1ST.
THAT WORK IS GOING TO BE CONTINGENT AGAIN ON THE BOND APPROVAL AND REVIEW PROCESS, BUT WE'RE CONFIDENT THAT WITH THE CONTRACTUAL PROCESSES THAT WE HAVE, THAT WE CAN GET MOVING ON THAT IN SHORT ORDER.
THANK YOU. WELL, I'LL JUST START OFF BY SAYING I REMEMBER THIS BRIEFING VERY WELL, OR THIS DISCUSSION THE LAST COUPLE OF TIMES AND DID NOT FEEL LIKE WE HAD A HANDLE ON IT LIKE WE DO TODAY.
I MEAN, IT'S CLEARLY YOU GOT THE DATES MEMORIZED, YOU'VE GOT YOUR PLAN READY TO GO.
AND WE'RE CUTTING THROUGH THE RED TAPE TO ACTUALLY GET THIS PROPERTY THE RESPECT THAT IT DESERVES.
AND THANK YOU TO THE WHOLE TEAM.
CHAIR MENDELSOHN. WELL, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU.
I SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE DOING EVERYTHING RIGHT.
THANK YOU. IT'S ALWAYS GOOD WHEN WE CAN END A REAL ESTATE DISCUSSION LIKE THAT.
SO THANK YOU. WE'RE GOING TO COLLEAGUES.
WE ARE WAITING ON A COUPLE OF OUR COLLEAGUES TO COME UP HERE FOR ITEM B, SO WE'RE GOING TO SKIP TO ITEM C, A REVIEW OF CITY REAL ESTATE FOR DEVELOPMENT, SALE AND REDEVELOPMENT AND OPTIONS WITH OUR FAVORITE PROPERTY, THE BULLINGTON TRUCK TERMINAL, NOT THE BURLINGTON TRUCK TERMINAL.
SO WE'VE GOT SOME FOLKS COMING UP AND WE'LL LET YOU TAKE IT AWAY.
ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON, JOHN JOHNSON WITH REAL FACILITIES AND REAL ESTATE MANAGEMENT.
AND I'M JOINED TODAY WITH ASSISTANT DIRECTOR ASHLEY EUBANKS.
GREAT. I KNOW YOU HAVE A FULL AGENDA, SO WE'LL START TODAY ON SLIDE THREE WITH THE PURPOSE.
AND THAT'S TO PROVIDE SOME UPDATES TO THE CITY COUNCIL ON A FEW INITIATIVES THAT ARE UNDERWAY.
WE JUST HEARD ABOUT PICKING BACK UP ON SLIDE FIVE.
YOU'LL SEE THE ORIGINAL LIST OF PROPERTIES THAT WERE IDENTIFIED FOR INVESTIGATION.
[00:15:06]
711 SOUTH SAINT PAUL'S DIVESTITURE IS UNDERWAY.THERE ARE NO UPDATES AVAILABLE FOR CENTRAL SERVICE CENTER OR DALLAS EXECUTIVE AIRPORT, AND THE DWU PARCEL HELD IN HUTCHINS IS CURRENTLY UNDER MANAGEMENT BY THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE. WE CONTINUE ON SLIDE SEVEN, WITH THE RECOMMENDED REMOVAL OF THE FIFTH FLOOR FROM THE 2014 MAIN BUILDING FROM CONSIDERATION.
THE NORTH OAK CLIFF LIBRARY AND PARK FOREST LIBRARY BOTH HAVE DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES THAT ARE UNDERWAY, AND THAT THERE ARE ALSO NO UPDATES AVAILABLE FOR THE OAK CLIFF MUNICIPAL CENTER OR THE VILLAGE AUTO POUND.
ON SLIDE EIGHT, YOU'LL SEE SOME ADDITIONAL PROPERTIES THAT WERE ADDED AFTER THE TEN THAT WERE INCLUDED IN THE ORIGINAL LIST, AND THOSE INCLUDE THE BELLEVUE BUILDING, WHICH IS THE FORMER IBM DATA CENTER, AND THEN CADILLAC HEIGHTS REMAINING PARCELS.
REMAINING PARCELS IS UNDER CONSIDERATION BY THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE.
WE'RE GOING TO SWITCH GEARS NOW AND GO TO BULLINGTON TRUCK TERMINAL, PICKING UP ON SLIDE 11.
SINCE THAT TIME, WE'VE MET WITH VARIOUS CONNECTED USERS WHO ALL VALUED CONTINUED ACCESS TO THE TERMINAL, THOUGH THERE HAS BEEN LITTLE INTEREST IN MANAGING OR PURCHASING IT FROM THE CITY. THERE HAS BEEN NOTED OPPOSITION TO INCLUDING THE CITY'S REQUIRED AND ASSOCIATED PEDESTRIAN LEASE PAYMENTS INTO THE OPERATING COST.
CITY COUNCIL WILL ALSO BE PROVIDED WITH ADDITIONAL DETAILS TOMORROW IN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
SLIDE 12, WE'VE PROVIDED SOME OPTIONS KNOWN TO DATE FOR THE CITY COUNCIL, AND THOSE INCLUDE FOLLOWING THE CURRENT BUDGET AMENDMENT, WHICH WOULD REQUIRE US TO FOREGO THE ANNUAL LEASE PAYMENT TO THANKS-GIVING SQUARE FOUNDATION, PURSUING FULL COST RECOVERY AND PLANNING FOR A MULTI-YEAR RAMP UP FOR THE USERS, OR RECOGNIZING SOME LEVEL OF CITY SUBSIDY RELATED TO THE OPERATING EXPENSES OF THE TRUCK TERMINAL AND THE PEDESTRIAN CONCOURSE.
AND ONCE THE APPROVED FINANCIAL STRUCTURE IS DETERMINED, STAFF WILL THEN NEED TO PREPARE AND PRESENT CODE AMENDMENTS FOR COUNCIL'S VOTING TO ENSURE THAT EVERYTHING IS UPDATED, CODIFIED, AND IN ALIGNMENT WITH ITS CURRENT USES.
AND THEN MOVING TO OUR LAST UPDATE ON FAMILY GATEWAY, WHICH WE JUST HEARD FROM ASSISTANT DIRECTOR THOMPSON, WE CONTINUE TO MEET WITH THE FAMILY GATEWAY STAFF WEEKLY TO ENSURE THAT THEIR REPAIRS ARE MADE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
AND THEN ADDITIONALLY, FACILITIES WILL BE WORKING WITH THE OFFICE OF HOMELESS SOLUTIONS TO IDENTIFY, FUNDING AND DEVELOP THE SCOPE OF SERVICES FOR INCLUDING FAMILY GATEWAY IN A THIRD PARTY PROPERTY MAINTENANCE PILOT PROGRAM.
AND THAT BRINGS ME TO THE END OF OUR PRESENTATION TODAY, WHICH IS NEXT STEPS, AND TO RECEIVE INPUT FROM THE CITY COUNCIL ON THE PROPOSED OPTIONS FOR BULLINGTON TRUCK TERMINAL OPERATIONS. THANK YOU.
SO IS IT ON EVERYTHING THAT WAS LISTED OR JUST BURLINGTON, THE UPDATES? YEAH. WELL, YOU CAN PROVIDE COMMENTS ON ANYTHING THOUGH.
THE ONLY THING THAT'S ACTIONABLE IS JUST SOME FEEDBACK OR INPUT ON THE PROPOSED OPTION.
OKAY. SO ON THE FIFTH FLOOR IT'S BEEN, YOU SAID IT'S REMOVED.
SO IS IT JUST GOING TO REMAIN VACANT OR ARE YOU GOING TO LOOK AT LEASING IT, OR IS IT WHEN YOU SAID REMOVED, WHAT IS IT GOING TO BE REMOVED FROM? WE WANT TO REMOVE IT FROM THE LIST OF CONSIDERATIONS FOR EITHER DEVELOPMENT OR ANY TYPE OF MONETIZATION.
THERE ARE SOME STRUCTURAL ISSUES WITH THE FACILITY THAT IT CAN'T SUPPORT A LOT OF WEIGHT.
AND THEN IF YOU JUST THINK ABOUT IT LOGICALLY, HOW DO WE SELL OR GET RID OF ONE FLOOR OF A BUILDING THAT WE OWN? OKAY, THAT'S WHAT I WAS JUST I WAS UNCLEAR OF WHAT REMOVING WAS AND WHY.
OKAY. AND THEN AND YOU SAID BULLINGTON WERE GOING INTO EXEC, RIGHT TOMORROW? YES, MA'AM. SO ANY FEEDBACK? WE CAN DO IT? I MEAN, I THINK I'D LIKE TO HEAR THAT PERSPECTIVE BEFORE.
OH, ABSOLUTELY. SURE. SO THAT THAT'S ALL I'M GOING TO SAY ON THAT ONE IS THAT IF WE'RE GOING INTO EXEC, I WANT TO HEAR THE WHOLE UNDERSTANDING AND THEN PROVIDE FEEDBACK, I GUESS, THROUGH A MEMO OR PUT IT ON FOR NOVEMBER.
AND I'M CERTAIN WE'LL BE BACK YES, AT THE NEXT GPM.
SO IF YOU WANT TO HOLD ANY COMMENTS ON THAT, WE CAN ACCEPT THEM.
SO I'M GOING TO WHAT'S ONE THING THAT'S MISSING FROM ALL OF THE REAL ESTATE? ITEMS ON SLIDES FIVE AND SIX AND SEVEN ARE REALLY THE DATES THAT WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT THIS.
YOU KNOW, AND THIS HAS BEEN FRONT AND CENTER OF THIS COMMITTEE FOR, SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE, FOR SURE AND I JUST FEEL LIKE SOME OF THESE ITEMS WE'RE JUST NOT SEEING, IT'S ALWAYS JUST NO UPDATE.
SO, I MEAN, IS THERE ANY KIND OF ASK MR. GIBSON THIS OR I GUESS, ASHLEY, LIKE, IS THERE A PLAN FOR A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR REAL ESTATE?
[00:20:08]
DO WE HAVE A COORDINATED EFFORT TO REVIEW OUR REAL ESTATE ASSETS IN THE CITY AND, YOU KNOW, GO SOMEWHERE WITH IT, ACTUALLY TAKE IT FORWARD AND BE RESPONSIBLE STEWARDS IN LIKE A COORDINATED WAY.I KNOW WE'RE KIND OF DOING THESE ONE OFF PROJECTS HERE.
AND YOU GUYS ARE BRIEFING US, WHICH I APPRECIATE, BUT WHEN ARE WE GOING TO BE STRATEGIC ABOUT IT? I'LL TAKE THE FIRST STAB AT THIS ONE, BECAUSE THERE'S A PROCESS THAT'S ALREADY UNDERWAY.
I THINK WE MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY IN ONE OF OUR BRIEFINGS TO GPFM, WE'VE TASKED ALL THE DEPARTMENTS WITH MANUALLY REVIEWING ALL OF THE ASSETS THAT ARE ASSIGNED TO THEIR DEPARTMENT. SOME MAY BE CORRECT, SOME MAY BE INCORRECT.
WHAT IS SURPLUS? WHAT DO WE NEED FOR A FUTURE OR LONG TERM PUBLIC PURPOSE? AND THEN IT IS OUR GOAL ALSO THAT AS WE BEGIN TO DIVEST OF SOME OF THESE PROPERTIES THAT WE NO LONGER NEED, IT CAN FUND EXACTLY WHAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR.
IT'S JUST A VERY LONG AND MANUAL PROCESS FOR EACH DEPARTMENT TO GO THROUGH AT THIS POINT.
I APPRECIATE THAT ANSWER AND YEAH, YOU GUYS HAVE TOLD US THAT BEFORE HERE AT COMMITTEE.
AND IF THERE'S A TARGETED TIMELINE FOR LIKE AN END DATE WHEN THE DEPARTMENTS HAVE TO HAVE THEIR REVIEWS FINISHED TO YOU OR MR. GIBSON OR WHOEVER.
THEY HAVE HUNDREDS OF PROPERTIES.
AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE ALLOWED THEM ENOUGH TIME TO HAVE A THOUGHTFUL REVIEW OF IT.
SO I BELIEVE THAT THEIRS ARE DUE NOVEMBER THE 29TH.
SO THEN, AS I MENTIONED, SOME ARE INCORRECT.
SO WE'LL HAVE TO GO BACK WITH A PHASE TWO AND SAY, HEY, WE FOUND THESE 30 OTHER PROPERTIES THAT WERE ASSIGNED TO A DIFFERENT DEPARTMENT THAT YOU ALSO NEED TO COMPLETE THIS WITH. AND THEN WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH ITS TO HELP US EITHER COPY AND PASTE OVER LBMS AND MAKE SOME IMPROVEMENTS, AND THEN RE INPUT ALL OF THAT DATA INTO A NEW VERSION OF LBMS, WHICH HAS ONLY VERIFIED AND CONFIRMED DATA IN IT.
OKAY, THAT'S A QUICKER TIMELINE THAN I ANTICIPATED.
SO IF NEXT MONTH YOU'LL HAVE THAT DATA WHEN WE BRIEF THIS, BUT YOU'LL YOU MAY NOT BE READY TO LAY IT OUT, BUT YOU CAN IF YOU CAN LAY OUT THE TIMELINE IN HERE. ON AN INDEPENDENT SLIDE, I WON'T HAVE TO ASK THAT QUESTION AGAIN.
WE CAN GIVE YOU SOME OVERALL METRICS TO OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN THE DATA THAT COMES BACK.
OKAY. I JUST WANT TO INTERJECT ONE THING.
GOOD AFTERNOON. DONZELL GIBSON, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.
THIS WAS A DIFFICULT ITEM TO BRIEF.
THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT PROBABLY WOULD BE BEST IN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
WE'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THE ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
SO I THINK WHAT WE OWE YOU AND WHAT'S IN TOW IN JOHN'S CONVERSATION ABOUT BASICALLY AMASSING THE REMAINING PROPERTIES THAT WE THINK THAT ARE OUT THERE THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR MONETIZATION, AND THEN BRINGING THEM BACK IN A PRIORITIZATION ORDER BASED ON, YOU KNOW, VARIOUS ISSUES, WHETHER IT'S, YOU KNOW, EXECUTIVE THAT'S ACTUALLY AN AVIATION PROPERTY.
AND THERE ARE A LOT OF CONSIDERATIONS THAT NEED TO BE GIVEN THERE.
IT'S JUST A LOT OF THINGS THAT PROBABLY WOULDN'T BE BEST HERE.
YEAH, I KNOW IT'S A HASSLE TO PULL US INTO THAT, INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION.
PERFECT. A COUPLE RANDOM QUESTIONS ON HERE.
YOU NOTE ON SLIDE SEVEN THAT YOU'VE ENGAGED WILL ENGAGE BROKERS BY THE END OF 2024.
REMIND ME WHY WE NEED BROKERS FOR LIBRARIES.
THIS IS THIS PART OF AN RFP PROCESS FOR DEVELOPMENT OR WHAT IS IT? GOOD AFTERNOON. ASHLEY EUBANKS, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR COUNCIL MEMBER WEST.
THE I GUESS YOU COULD SAY THE WORDS COULD BE INTERCHANGEABLE CONSULTANT AS WELL, THEY'RE BOTH. WE WILL BE ENGAGING A CONSULTANT TO ASSIST US WITH DUE DILIGENCE ITEMS, AS WELL AS HELP US TO WITH THE FRAMEWORK OF AN RFP
[00:25:01]
FOR THE TWO LIBRARY SITES.THANK YOU. AND LAST QUESTION ON THE BULLINGTON TRUCK TERMINAL.
NUMBER. WELL, THERE'S TWO A POINT AND A QUESTION.
THE PURSUE FULL COST RECOVERY WITH A MULTIYEAR STEP UP 100% SUPPORT FROM ME.
OKAY, WELL, THAT MAKES THAT EASY.
ALL RIGHT. ANYBODY ELSE? CHAIR MENDELSOHN. SO I'M GOING TO START WITH THAT FIFTH FLOOR QUESTION.
DID YOU SAY THAT THE FIFTH FLOOR IS NOT ACCESSIBLE BY ELEVATOR? IT HAS ORIGINAL SHAFTS, BUT THE ELEVATORS ARE NOT BUILT OUT ON THAT FLOOR.
SO ONLY THE FREIGHT ELEVATOR CURRENTLY SERVES THAT.
OKAY, SO IF YOU ONLY HAVE ONE ELEVATOR, DOES THAT LIMIT THE NUMBER OF STAFF THAT CAN BE IN THAT LOCATION? I THINK BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE A FUNCTIONING PASSENGER ELEVATOR, THAT SEVERELY LIMITS ANY STAFF BEING UP THERE.
IT'S CURRENTLY BEING USED FOR STORAGE.
IT CAME IN QUITE HANDY DURING THE PANDEMIC, WHEN A LOT OF THINGS NEEDED TO BE MOVED OUT OF THE WAY, AND SO WE HAD THE FREIGHT ELEVATOR, BUT THAT'S REALLY ALL THAT'S BEEN UP THERE AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME.
IS THE SPACE UP THERE APPROPRIATE FOR OFFICE SPACE? NO, MA'AM, IT'S NOT FINISHED OUT.
IT IS COMPLETELY JUST BARE ESSENTIALLY TO THE CONSTRUCTION.
AND IT'S NEVER BEEN FINISHED OUT.
WHY WAS IT PUT ON OUR LIST TO BEGIN WITH? I CAN'T ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
AND THAT WAS ONE OF THEM. THAT'S WHY WE STRUCK IT FROM THE LIST.
FROM WHAT I GATHERED, THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION PULLED TOGETHER A SERIES OF PROPERTIES WHERE THERE WAS NO MOVEMENT, OR THAT THERE WAS ADDITIONAL WORK THAT WAS REQUIRED BEFORE WE COULD EVEN BRING ANY CONSIDERATION TO COUNCIL.
AS MR. WEST HAS MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, YOU KEEP BRINGING IT BACK AND THERE'S SOME OTHER THINGS THAT WE THINK ARE GREATER PRIORITY THAN MAYBE EVEN THESE THAT ARE HERE, ALONG WITH SOME ITEMS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON BEHIND THE SCENES.
WELL, I GUESS I GUESS I FOLLOW IN SORT OF THE SAME GENERAL IDEA OF COMMENTS, WHICH IS WE KEEP GETTING THESE LISTS AND EVEN SOME ACTIVITY THAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE LISTS, BUT IT'S REALLY NOT OUR ROLE TO BE DEVELOPING THIS PLAN WITH YOU.
OUR ROLE IS GOVERNANCE AND POLICY AND BUDGET.
AND I'M LOOKING FOR YOU TO COME WITH US SAYING, HERE'S A PLAN.
BUT HERE'S WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO.
WE'RE GOING TO DEVELOP THIS INTO HOUSING.
I'M JOKING. BUT LIKE TELL US WHAT THE PLAN IS.
WE'RE GOING TO SELL THIS FOR A PENSION PAYMENT.
WE'RE GOING TO DO THIS FOR THAT.
THAT'S WHAT I'M EXPECTING TO SEE.
AND HERE'S WHAT WE'VE DEVELOPED TO ADDRESS OUR REAL ESTATE NEEDS.
NOW WE HAVE BROUGHT UP THE REAL ESTATE CHALLENGES, WHICH IS, WOW, WHY DO WE HAVE SO MUCH REAL ESTATE? WE HAVE AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF DEBT AND OBLIGATIONS, DEFERRED MAINTENANCE THAT WE'RE NOT INVESTING IN.
AND WE HAVE ALL THESE ASSETS THAT ARE SITTING THERE.
SO AS POLICYMAKERS, AS GOVERNANCE, WE CAN SEE THIS AND WE SAY, HEY, GO ADDRESS THAT.
BUT JUST GETTING THE MONTHLY UPDATE OF HERE'S WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW, WE'VE INVESTIGATED THIS.
THAT'S REALLY NOT WHAT I'M ACTUALLY EXPECTING.
AND SO AS WE TALK ABOUT LIKE THE ROLE OF CITY COUNCIL, I JUST I LOVE TO KNOW THE DETAILS I DO I READ ALL YOUR STUFF, BUT I'M NOT SURE WHY WE'RE AT THIS LEVEL.
YOU BE AT THIS LEVEL? COME TO US WITH A PLAN.
HERE'S HOW WE WILL ADDRESS UNUSED REAL ESTATE IN A BETTER WAY TO BETTER MANAGE THE CITY.
[00:30:07]
SO THAT'S WHAT I'M HOPING TO SEE.WE'VE BEEN TASKED WITH COMING TO THIS COMMITTEE EVERY MONTH.
WE'RE ON THE FORECAST FOR EVERY SINGLE MONTH.
AND TO BE FRANK WITH YOU, THERE'S NOT A PRODUCT TO PROVIDE EACH MONTH.
BUT AGAIN, WE'RE BEING TASKED WITH EACH MONTH BRINGING SOMETHING FORWARD.
RIGHT. AND I AND I WANT TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THAT.
SO THERE'LL BE SOME ITEMS THAT WILL HAVE MORE WORK DONE.
WELL, AND IN RESPONSE TO THAT, I'LL JUST SAY I TRULY BELIEVE IN PUTTING ITEMS ON THE AGENDA EVERY SINGLE MONTH TO TRY TO GET A DEPARTMENT MOVING, AND I'VE DONE THAT, AND I STILL DO THAT.
FRANKLY, IN PUBLIC SAFETY, I DO IT WITH RECRUITING AND RETENTION.
IT'S THE FIRST ITEM. IT'S EVERY MONTH.
WE DID IT WITH DEVELOPMENT SERVICES HERE ON THIS COMMITTEE BECAUSE THE PERMITTING.
BUT THAT HAD SPECIFIC MONTHLY DATA.
RIGHT. I'VE GOT SPECIFIC MONTHLY DATA ON HOW HOW'S IT GOING WITH PERMITTING SPECIFIC MONTHLY DATA ON HOW ARE WE DOING WITH RECRUITING AND RETENTION IF YOU DON'T HAVE A PLAN BAKED, I THINK THAT'S A DIFFERENT ISSUE.
AND, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS CHAIR, YOU CAN WORK WITH THEM ON THAT.
BUT, YOU KNOW, I JUST I'M JUST NOT SURE WHY WE'RE DOING THIS.
SO THANK YOU I THINK THAT'S A GOOD POINT.
AND I ALSO DEFEND STAFF A LITTLE BIT ON THIS IS IN THAT WHEN THE SORT OF ADMINISTRATION CHANGED OVER AND WE THIS COMMITTEE FORMED UP, WE REALIZED WE WE NEEDED A REAL ESTATE PLAN.
AND SO JUST AS YOU MENTIONED, CHAIR, KEEPING IT ON THE AGENDA FOR ME AT LEAST IS A PRIORITY.
BUT WE WANT TO SEE A STRATEGIC PLAN SO THAT WE CAN GET OUT OF THE WEEDS.
AND I THINK THAT'S AT LEAST WHAT MY GOAL WOULD BE FOR, FOR YOU GUYS.
AND WHETHER THAT IF THAT TAKES A RESOLUTION FROM US OR I MEAN, IT SOUNDS LIKE MR. JOHNSON, YOU'RE SAYING YOU'RE MOVING TOWARDS IT.
AND SO I DON'T THINK WE NEED TO BE HEAVY HANDED YET.
BUT I THINK THAT'S WHERE WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT GO IS TOWARDS A COMMITTED STRATEGIC PLAN, ENDORSED BY THE CITY MANAGER AND BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR THIS REAL ESTATE.
YES, SIR. THANK YOU. AND THEN ON THE SEPTEMBER 23RD BRIEFING, IF YOU WANT TO GO BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS, IT LAYS OUT THE VERY HIGH LEVEL PLAN OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO AND ACCOMPLISH.
SO I THINK WE'RE HEARING WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, AND THAT'S INCLUDED IN IN PROCESS.
AND WE JUST NEED TO TWEAK THE WAY THAT WE'RE DELIVERING THE INFORMATION.
CHAIR. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I THINK WE ARE MOVING IN SOME OF THESE PROJECTS.
SOME OF THEM ARE MORE READY TO BE BAKED THAN OTHERS.
ONE PARTICULAR BIG ONE FOR ME, AS YOU GUYS KNOW, IS THE CITY SERVICE CENTER.
AND SO WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO PERHAPS SEE IS A TEMPLATE THAT IS SORT OF A GUIDE THAT WE HAVE IN HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS THAT TRACKS PROJECTS AND GIVES US DIFFERENT MILESTONES.
THAT WAY WE CAN REALLY REFLECT BACK ON WHEN THE LAST UPDATE WAS OR SIGNIFICANT EVENT.
AND AGAIN, THAT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE BY BRIEFING, BUT MAYBE BY JUST A MEMO SO THAT WE CAN TRACK WHAT'S HAPPENING AND HAVE THOSE GOALS AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE REACHING THEM.
AND SO AGAIN, I KNOW THIS IS NEW, BUT IT IS AN EXCITING, EXCITING OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO OFFLOAD SOME OF OUR PROPERTIES AND REPLACE IT WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
WORKFORCE. RECREATION, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND HAVING FIRE STATIONS AND POLICE STATIONS ON THE GROUND FLOORS AND LIVING QUARTERS ON TOP. WE HAVE A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY, ESPECIALLY AT THIS BIG SITE, AND SO I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU GUYS AND PERHAPS SOME FOLKS EXTERNALLY
[00:35:06]
TO REALLY LOOK AT ALL THE COMPLEXITIES OF THIS PROJECT.BUT I APPRECIATE YOU HAVING THIS ON HERE.
JUST ONE LAST COMMENT AND I'LL JUST KIND OF RESTATE WHAT I WAS SUGGESTING EARLIER.
BUT I THINK THAT OUR NEXT BEST STEPS AND DISCUSSIONS WITH THE ATTORNEY'S OFFICE IS TO DO AS MUCH OF THIS WORK WITH THE COUNCIL IN EXECUTIVE SESSION, BECAUSE I THINK FINANCIALLY WE COULD PUT THE CITY UNDER A HARDSHIP, DEPENDING ON HOW WE VOCALIZE OUR THOUGHT PROCESS OR SOME OF OUR STRATEGIES AND HOW WE MAY MONETIZE THE PROPERTY.
SO I WANT TO BE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT THAT.
SO IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE WILL REVISIT THAT I THINK THAT WILL HOPEFULLY MAKE THIS COMMITTEE AND THE FULL COUNCIL VERY HAPPY AND SUPPORTIVE OF THE DIRECTION AND ACTUALLY PHYSICALLY SEE THE WORK THAT'S HAPPENING WOULD BE AN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
NOW TO ITEM B, THE UPDATE REGARDING THE TALENT ACQUISITION AUDIT.
AND WE'LL JUST AS WE GET THIS TEED UP, WE ASK OUR TEAM TO JOIN US UP FRONT.
WE I JUST WANT TO THANK MY COLLEAGUES COUNCILWOMAN SCHULTZ AND COUNCILWOMAN WILLIS, FOR THEIR PATIENCE WHILE WE. THIS HAS GOTTEN BUMPED SEVERAL TIMES AND A LOT OF WORK WENT INTO THIS, THIS AUDIT ON OUR TALENT ACQUISITION.
AND I WOULD JUST ASK STAFF, AS YOU PRESENT THIS, THESE SLIDES ARE EXTREMELY DETAILED AND WORDY.
SO I'M HOPING WE'RE NOT GOING TO READ THOSE.
AND Y'ALL ARE GOING TO SUMMARIZE FOR US RIGHT? MOST CERTAINLY. OKAY.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIR. I'M JARED DAVIS.
AND I'M JOINED HERE WITH MY COLLEAGUES WHO WILL GET US STARTED.
GOOD MORNING. GOOD AFTERNOON, NINA ARIAS, DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES.
GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M ELIZABETH SAAB, THE INTERIM CHIEF OF STRATEGY, ENGAGEMENT AND ALIGNMENT.
AND I'M UP HERE BECAUSE I OVERSEE COMMUNICATIONS AND CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
311. SO OUR AGENDA TODAY WE WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THE FINDINGS AND THE ACTION PLANS RESULTING FROM THE 2023 TALENT ACQUISITION AUDIT.
NEXT WE'LL TALK ABOUT BRANDING FOR TALENT ATTRACTION, WHICH IS ONE OF THE ITEMS IDENTIFIED IN THE AUDIT AND NEXT STEPS FOR EACH ONE OF THOSE ITEMS. SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED WITH THE FINDINGS I'M SORRY.
GOOD AFTERNOON. AS MR. CHAIR MENTIONED, WE'VE BEEN AT THIS FOR SOME TIME, AND WE'RE GLAD TO BE HERE TODAY TO TRY TO ROUND THIS OUT AND MAKE SURE WE MOVE YOU THROUGH AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL, BUT PROVIDE YOU WITH THE DETAIL NECESSARY, BECAUSE IN ALL OF OUR VIEWS, AND MOST CERTAINLY IN MINE, AN AUDIT IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A DEPARTMENT TO LOOK INTERNALLY AND FIGURE OUT WHAT IT NEEDS TO BE DOING DIFFERENTLY, MORE OF OR ABOUT THE SAME.
AND SO I THINK AND I KNOW THAT THAT'S BEEN THE SPIRIT IN WHICH WE'VE TAKEN THESE AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS AND TRIED TO INCORPORATE THEM IN A COMPREHENSIVE AND COLLABORATIVE WAY AND SO THE AUDIT WALKED AWAY, CONCLUDING THAT WE GENERALLY MEET THE CITY GENERALLY FROM A TALENT ACQUISITION PERSPECTIVE.
NOW, WHILE THOSE ARE THE AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS IN GENERAL, WE'RE NOT IGNORANT TO THE FACT THAT THERE'S ALWAYS ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT AND DEFINITELY TO MOVE US MORE INTO THE 21ST CENTURY IN TERMS OF HOW WE THINK ABOUT TALENT ACQUISITION AND MARKETING AND BRANDING AND THINGS TO THAT EXTENT.
YOU'LL SEE HERE, THAT'S WHY WE'RE NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH EACH INDIVIDUAL AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT YOU'LL SEE THAT THERE WERE SIX AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS MADE TO THE CITY MANAGER, EIGHT TO THE DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES, SIX TO CIVIL SERVICE.
AND WE ALSO INCORPORATED BOTH POLICE AND FIRE COMPONENTS WITHIN THIS TALENT ACQUISITION STRATEGY.
AND SO THEY HAVE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS THERE.
BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, MANY OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS YOU'LL SEE REPEAT FROM POLICE FIRE TO HUMAN RESOURCES, AS WE WERE ALL INTERCONNECTED AND HAVE TO ADDRESS THOSE ISSUES ALL THE SAME.
[00:40:01]
AND SO WITH THAT, I'LL ASK ELIZABETH TO WALK US THROUGH A VERY HIGH LEVEL THE CITY MANAGER'S AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS.THANKS, JARED. AND AS JARED MENTIONED, WE ARE AN ORGANIZATION OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT.
AND SO IMPLEMENTING THESE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT I'LL JUST GO OVER FOR THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL REPORTING ON PERFORMANCE METRICS TO HELP US MEET THE CITY'S RACIAL EQUITY PLAN THAT WAS IMPLEMENTED THROUGH WORKDAY DEVELOPING A STRATEGIC WORKFORCE PLAN THAT IDENTIFIES OUR FUTURE HIRING NEEDS.
AND I'D LIKE TO MOVE FORWARD TO SOME SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE SAW AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO IMMEDIATELY ADDRESS WHILE WE WERE CREATING A CITYWIDE COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY.
AND THOSE ARE TO BOTH APPOINT A DEPARTMENT THAT OVERSEES AND CHAMPIONS THE CITYWIDE TALENT STRATEGY AND ASSIGN A SINGLE DEPARTMENT THAT OVERSEES THE MARKETING AND ADVERTISING FOR OUR TALENT ACQUISITION AND RETENTION.
AND BEFORE I TURN IT BACK OVER TO NINA, THE REASON THESE TWO ARE CRITICAL IS BECAUSE WE AS A CITY AS WE KNOW, LIKE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES, ARE COMPETING FOR TALENT ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
THEY ARE A BRAND AND THEY HAVE SUBBRANDS THAT ARE AIRPODS AND IPADS ETC.
BUT THEY ALL GO BACK TO ONE BRAND.
AND AS IT RELATES TO DESIGNATING A SPECIFIC DEPARTMENT FOR TALENT ACQUISITION, WE AS AN ORGANIZATION ARE ALSO COMMITTED TO BREAKING DOWN SILOS AND CREATING GREATER CONNECTIVITY, COLLABORATION AND COMMUNICATION.
SO ALLOWING AIR TO AS THE DESIGNATED DEPARTMENT TO LEAD THAT IN COLLABORATION WITH CIVIL SERVICES FUNCTIONS WERE CRITICAL TO HOW WE GOT HERE TODAY.
I WILL TURN IT BACK OVER TO NINA.
OKAY. I WILL GO OVER ON PAGE EIGHT.
WOULD LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT ON THE SECOND RECOMMENDATION ON THAT PAGE.
WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THE BY CREATING DASHBOARDS, EXTRACTING DATA FROM WORKDAY.
AND HAVE BEEN PUTTING IN THIS INFORMATION IN THE HANDS OF OUR EXECUTIVES ON A MONTHLY BASIS.
AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WAS NOT HAPPENING PRIOR TO THE AUDIT AND WAS A FINDING, HOWEVER, IT WAS IN THE PLANS AND NOW IS IMPLEMENTED AFTER THE IMPLEMENTATION OF WORKDAY.
THE NEXT PAGE I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THE SECOND ITEM REVIEW AND APPROVAL LEVEL REQUIREMENTS BY GRADE LEVEL. THE RECOMMENDATION HERE WAS TO STREAMLINE THE PROCESS.
WE HAD NEO GOV AND WORKDAY, AND THE PROCESS WAS VERY LENGTHY.
IT WAS ACTUALLY THERE WAS DUPLICATE DATA ENTRY BECAUSE OF THAT.
AND NOW WE HAVE ONE SINGLE SYSTEM.
SO THIS IS A FULLY IMPLEMENTED.
HOWEVER, WE HAVE ONGOING EFFORTS TO REFINE THOSE WORKFLOWS TO MAKE THEM AS STREAMLINED AS POSSIBLE.
IN THE NEXT SLIDE, SLIDE TEN, I WOULD LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THE AXIS AND THE ITEM THAT ADDRESSES AXIS. ASSESSING THE VIABILITY OF IMPLEMENTING CONTINGENT HIRE OFFERS.
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE WORKING ON IN COLLABORATION WITH LEGAL.
THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT BASICALLY IT'S ABOUT CAN WE ACTUALLY START WORKING WITH EMPLOYEES BEFORE THE BACKGROUND CHECKS ARE BACK AND WE'RE ACTUALLY IDENTIFYING THAT THAT MAY NOT BE THE BEST PRACTICE.
HOWEVER, WE'RE LOOKING TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY WAY WE CAN DO THERE TO SPEED UP THIS PROCESS.
AND FINALLY, ON SLIDE 11 THERE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO DEVELOP AN ONBOARDING PROCESS, BALANCING EXPEDIENCY AGAIN, LOOKING FOR SHORTER TIME TO FILL A TIME, YOU KNOW, METRIC AND COMPREHENSIVE PROJECT IS IN PLACE TO MAP AND MEASURE THE ITS ONBOARDING PROCESS IN COLLABORATION WITH HR, SO WE CAN MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
I'LL PASS IT ON TO JARED FOR THE CIVIL SERVICE ACTION PLAN AND NEXT STEPS.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, NINA FOR THAT.
WE HAD A TOTAL OF SIX CIVIL SERVICE ACTION PLAN ITEMS AND NEXT STEPS, AND I APOLOGIZE.
[00:45:04]
IN THE ACTION DATE BUT NEVERTHELESS, WE KIND OF LOOKED AT OUR AUDIT PROCESSES TO UNDERSTAND WHEN AN APPLICANT APPLIES FOR ANY POSITION AT THE CITY, WHAT BARRIERS ARE THERE TO PREVENT THAT INDIVIDUAL FROM COMING THROUGH.AND SO WE WERE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT TO, TO SPEED ALONG THE HIRING PROCESS? WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING INTERNALLY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE LEVERAGE OUR HIRING MANAGERS SURVEY DATA TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN FUNNEL THAT INFORMATION BACK TO OUR ANALYSTS.
SO, TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE GETTING AND DOING A BETTER JOB.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT THAT'S WHAT WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING ON.
AND NINA MENTIONED THAT EARLIER.
THE OTHER PIECE THE AUDIT RECOMMENDED FOR BOTH HUMAN RESOURCES AND CIVIL SERVICE AND WE'RE WORKING IN CONJUNCTION ON THIS IS A NEW HIRE SURVEY AND ORIENTATION GUIDE TO GAIN THAT FEEDBACK AS WELL.
SO WE CAN CONTINUE THAT CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT.
AND SO WE'RE WORKING ON THAT AS WELL.
AND WE'VE ALREADY UPDATED OUR NEW HIRE SURVEY.
WE USED TO DO CIVIL SERVICE, WAS DOING A NEW HIRE SURVEY AND HR WAS DOING A NEW HIRE SURVEY AND SO NOW WE HAVE A COMBINED NEW HIRE SURVEY THAT WE CAN GO AND THEN IN THE BACK SIDE, DISAGGREGATE DATA TO SPEAK TO BOTH OUR FUNCTIONS TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS IT WE NEED TO DO BETTER OR DIFFERENT.
THE NEXT SLIDE IS ABOUT WHAT THE IMPLEMENTATION AND SINCE THAT WAS SUCH A BIG PART OF THIS AUDIT, THE SYSTEM AND THE TECHNOLOGY WE WERE USING, WE WANTED TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE. SO ON SLIDE 15 YOU SEE WHAT THE SITUATION PRIOR TO THE WORK WAS THE IMPLEMENTATION.
THIS MODULE WAS IMPLEMENTED IN FEBRUARY OF 2024.
NEXT SLIDE, SLIDE 16 TALKS ABOUT WHAT IS WORK DAY.
SO WHAT DAY IS A SYSTEM FOR TO RECORD AND CONTINUE TO GROW THAT ACTUALLY CONTINUES TO GROW WITH OUR NEEDS AND PROVIDES HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT.
IT'S ACTUALLY A IT'S A SYSTEM THAT ALLOWS US TO MANAGE OUR TALENT CITYWIDE.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT OVER $1 BILLION INVESTMENT EVERY YEAR IN TALENT AND NOT HAVING A ROBUST SYSTEM TO BE ABLE TO MANAGE THAT RESOURCE FROM END TO END.
ACTUALLY, IT JUST IMPAIRS OUR ABILITY TO APPROPRIATELY ADMINISTER THAT RESOURCE.
SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PAYROLL BENEFITS.
IT REDUCES MANUAL PROCESSES, IN PARTICULAR FOR HIRING MANAGERS, FOR SUPERVISORS ALL ACROSS THE CITY.
SO THERE IS AN INCREASE IN DATA ACCURACY.
THERE IS IMPROVED DATA SECURITY.
THERE'S TALENT PIPELINE INSIGHT, WHICH MEANS WE KNOW WHAT IS THE TALENT THAT IS UP AND COMING, THAT WE CAN GROW TO MOVE INTO HIGHER LEVEL POSITIONS WITHIN THE CITY AND ALSO STREAMLINE BUSINESS PROCESSES.
IN THE NEXT LINE? YOU CAN SEE A COMPARISON BETWEEN THE TIME TO FILL PRIOR TO WORKDAY AND POST WORKDAY IMPLEMENTATION.
AND AGAIN, WE CONTINUE TO REFINE THIS WORK.
AND THEN IT IS THEY'RE LISTED BY PORTFOLIO HOW WE ARE AND YOU CAN SEE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE COD AVERAGE, WHICH IS LOWER FROM 70 DAYS TO 54 DAYS FAIRLY CLOSE TO OUR PRIVATE SECTOR BENCHMARK.
SO IN SLIDE 19 YOU CAN SEE WHAT OUR YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE DONE TO IMPROVE THE CANDIDATE EXPERIENCE WITH THIS IMPLEMENTATION? THE EXTERNAL CANDIDATES APPLIED TO ROLES.
THEY CAN VIEW THEIR OPEN ROLES.
THEY CAN SEE WHERE THEIR APPLICATION IS AT.
THERE IS THE ABILITY TO FILL THE APPLICATION UTILIZING THEIR PROFILE, AND THE SYSTEM IS MORE RESPONSIVE SO THEY KNOW WHERE THEY ARE AND WHAT THE REMAINING STEPS ARE. THERE ARE SOME PENDING INTEGRATIONS WITH LINKEDIN AND OTHER SOFTWARE WHICH IS GOING TO MAKE IT EVEN BETTER.
ON SLIDE 20, YOU CAN SEE THE CURRENT SCOPE AND THE MODULES THAT HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED IN THE STATUS COLUMN AND THE ONES THAT ARE UP AND COMING AND OUR TARGET DATES AND SOME OF THE CHALLENGES.
OF COURSE, THIS IS A BIG ENDEAVOR.
SO THERE ARE SOME CHALLENGES WITH THIS IMPLEMENTATION THAT WE'RE ADDRESSING.
[00:50:03]
ON SLIDE 21.WE WILL CONTINUE DEPLOYMENT OF THE REMAINING MODULES.
EVALUATE THE SERVICE DELIVERY MODEL.
WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE IT MORE EFFICIENT.
LOOK AT WHAT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS ARE DOING.
SO LOOKING AT THEIR MODELS AND HOW WE CAN LEARN FROM WHAT THEY'RE DOING, AND THAT IS CURRENT WORK THAT WE ARE UNDERTAKING IN COLLABORATION WITH ITS AND ESTABLISHING A GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK FOR ONGOING MAINTENANCE AND OPTIMIZATION OF THIS RESOURCE.
NEXT, WE'RE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT BRANDING, AND I WILL PASS IT TO ELIZABETH FOR THAT SECTION.
SO AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, WE AS THE CITY OF DALLAS ARE NOT ALONE IN THAT MUNICIPALITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE EXPERIENCING DIFFICULTY HIRING BOTH NON-CIVIL SERVICE AND CIVIL SERVICE TEAM MEMBERS, WHICH INCLUDES FIRE AND POLICE AND I HAVE WITNESSED FIRSTHAND HOW FIRE AND POLICE WORK SO HARD TO ATTRACT TALENT WITHOUT THE NECESSARY TOOLS THAT THEY NEED TO ACTUALLY REPRESENT THE BRAND AS A WHOLE.
THE CITY OF DALLAS, SAME THING WITH OUR NON-CIVIL SERVICE RECRUITING TEAMS. AND SO WHEN WE WERE DEVELOPING THROUGH THE 100 DAY TRANSITION PLAN TO CREATE A COMMUNICATION, CITY WIDE COMMUNICATION STRATEGY, WE RECOGNIZED, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, A TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE A BRAND IDENTITY, TO HELP CLEARLY DEFINE WHO WE ARE AS AN ORGANIZATION AND COMBAT SOME PERCEPTION THAT PEOPLE MAY HAVE ABOUT NEGATIVE PERCEPTION, RATHER ABOUT ENTERING INTO THE PUBLIC SERVICE FIELD. SO WHERE WE ARE NOW IS I'VE REACHED OUT TO EACH OF YOUR OFFICES TO SHARE WITH YOU AND REQUEST TIME WITH EACH OF YOU TO GO OVER OUR PROPOSED CITY WIDE COMMUNICATION STRATEGY AND TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL WHAT OUR REFRESHED BRANDING PROPOSED REFRESHED BRANDING WILL LOOK LIKE. SIMULTANEOUSLY, WE ARE COLLABORATING AS A GROUP TO DEVELOP A STANDARDIZED TOOLKIT WITH STANDARDIZED ASSETS THAT INCLUDES OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR RECRUITING TEAM AND TALENT ATTRACTION TEAMS TO USE AND TAILOR TO THE TYPES OF HIRING THE TYPES OF CANDIDATES.
RATHER, THEY ARE SEEKING TO HIRE.
WE'RE ALSO DEVELOPING A COHESIVE STRATEGY THAT DOES ELIMINATE DUPLICATIVE EFFORTS.
WE HAVE FOUND THAT THERE'S NOT ALWAYS COMMUNICATION BETWEEN HOW WE AS AN ORGANIZATION ARE HAVING AS WE RECRUIT. SO I GUESS IF WE COULD MOVE TO THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
SO OUR NEXT STEPS, WE HAVE CREATED OUR REFRESHED BRAND IDENTITY FOR THE CITY OF DALLAS AS A WHOLE, AND THAT IS ROLLED INTO OUR CITY WIDE COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY.
CURRENTLY, OUR CIVIL SERVICE AND NON-CIVIL SERVICE TEAMS ARE WORKING TO, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, TO DEVELOP A COHESIVE STRATEGY.
WE HAVE SEVERAL POTENTIAL CAMPAIGNS UNDERWAY THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
AND I MENTIONED WE ARE CREATING A STANDARDIZED TOOLKIT.
THIS WILL BE FOR EVERY DEPARTMENT.
ALL OF OUR COUNCIL OFFICES WILL HAVE THE STANDARDIZED TOOLKIT.
IT WILL INCLUDE ACCESS TO GRAPHICS, VIDEO AND PHOTO ASSETS THAT CAN BE USED AND TAILORED TO CANDIDATE PROFILES. AND WE ARE LEVERAGING THE MARKET RESEARCH THAT WE'VE DONE ACTUALLY TO DEVELOP THIS SPECIFIC PIECE OF OUR BRANDING INITIATIVE AS IT RELATES TO RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION.
AND THANK YOU FOR EVERYBODY NOT READING THE SLIDES AND SUMMARIZING.
I'M GOING TO OPEN IT UP TO MY COLLEAGUES.
I MEAN, I'VE GOT A COUPLE COMMENTS.
OKAY. DO YOU WANT WOULD YOU LIKE TO START? YEAH. VICE CHAIR BLACKMON.
THANK YOU. AND THANKS FOR GETTING THIS.
IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S BEEN A LONG HAUL BECAUSE I WAS KIND OF GOING.
NOW, WHEN DID WE START THIS? SO I'VE GOT A BUNCH OF STUFF.
SOME OF IT MAY BE A REFRESHER AND IF I AND IF YOU'VE SAID IT, SAY, WELL, IN THAT LAST BRIEFING OR WHATNOT, BUT FIRST OF ALL, THE WORK DAY AND WE IMPLEMENTED IT, I GUESS THAT WE'RE GOING ON A YEAR NOW.
IT SEEMS LIKE WE PUT A LOT OF EGGS IN THAT BASKET.
[00:55:02]
IS THAT GOING TO BE I MEAN, IF YOU READ IT, IT'S LIKE WORK DAY, THIS WORK DAY THAT.ARE WE SAYING THAT WE DID NOT HAVE THE BACK HOUSE INFRASTRUCTURE TO GET PEOPLE ON BOARDED? IS THAT WHAT A KEY FACTOR WE'RE SEEING HERE? I WILL, I WILL, I WILL MAYBE, YOU KNOW, START BY ANSWERING THAT QUESTION, BY SAYING THAT WE HAD NEOGOV.
SO WE DID HAVE A SYSTEM, BUT THE SYSTEM WAS UPDATED MANY, MANY YEARS AGO AND IT WAS ADMINISTRATIVELY REQUIRED A LOT OF INTERVENTION FROM STAFF.
SO THIS WORKDAY IS A LOT MORE SELF-SERVICE, IT'S MORE NIMBLE.
IT ALLOWS FOR COMMUNICATION BACK AND FORTH A LOT EASIER AND IS WHAT WE'RE USING FOR PAYROLL.
SO THERE IS AN INTEGRATION INSTEAD OF ENTERING INTO NEOGOV AND THEN ENTERING INTO WORKDAY, WHAT WAS IMPLEMENTED ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO, OUR PAYROLL MODULE WAS SO NOW WE HAD HALF OF THE SYSTEM IN ONE AND HALF OF THE SYSTEM IN THE OTHER, AND THAT CREATED QUITE A BIT OF A SLOWDOWN.
SO THIS DEFINITELY SETS US UP FOR SUCCESS.
CHAIR, DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING? YEAH. THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR.
NINA HAS SAID. I THINK WHAT'S ALSO IMPORTANT, I THINK, TO PUT INTO PERSPECTIVE.
I'LL TAKE US ALL THE WAY BACK TO LAWSON BEING THE FINANCIAL PIECE AND THEN IN JUNE, WAY BACK WHEN WE WAIVED ON TO THAT MODULE AND SO WORKDAY IS THE FULL PANOPLY OF MODULES AND TECHNOLOGY, HR, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS THAT YOU NEED, I THINK, TO RUN AN ORGANIZATION, QUITE HONESTLY.
AND YOU SEE IT EVEN IN THE SLIDE ON OUR CHALLENGES.
WHERE WE ARE NOW IS, YOU KNOW, ONCE YOU IMPLEMENT, IT'S LIKE BUILDING A HOUSE.
THEN YOU GO IN WITH YOUR BLUE DOTS AND YOU FIND THE THINGS THAT ARE NOT QUITE THAT NOT QUITE RIGHT.
AND SO WE'RE ON THE TRAIL, WE'RE HOT ON THE TRAIL OF A SOLUTION FOR THAT.
AND BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE PEOPLE BEING THE BULK OF THE DOLLARS THAT WE'RE INVESTING IN.
SO NOW WE HAVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE, THE PLATFORM.
AND YES, I THINK EVERYBODY SHOULD BE ON THE SAME.
WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO DO ONE FOR THE OTHER.
I MEAN, THAT DOESN'T SOUND RIGHT.
AND WE ARE ON THE STATE, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE GOING TO RELY HEAVILY ON A BACK OFFICE INFRASTRUCTURE LIKE THIS, MAKE SURE IT'S HUMMING PRETTY, PRETTY WELL, BECAUSE I'M GOING TO LOOK AT YOU WENT FROM 70 DAYS TO 54 DAYS.
CAN YOU QUALIFY THAT? BECAUSE, I MEAN, WE HEAR THESE STORIES.
I'M JUST GOING TO PUT IT OUT THERE THAT IT'S TAKEN ME 60 DAYS TO GET, YOU KNOW, IN THE DOOR.
AND SO I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW YOU GET HIRED AND SO IS THE 70 DAYS TO THE 54 DAYS.
OKAY. SO HELP ME UNDERSTAND QUALIFY THOSE DAYS.
OKAY. ALL THE WAY TO WHEN THE PERSON IS STARTING TO WORK.
SO IT'S 54 DAYS FROM THE MINUTE THEY POST TO THE MINUTE SOMEBODY STARTS IN THAT WORK FULL TIME.
AND I GUESS WHAT IS THE AVERAGE? LIKE WHAT IS THE BENCHMARK THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING TO STRIVE FOR? BECAUSE I'M JUST CURIOUS.
I'M NOT IN HR AND IF IT IS 30 DAYS, THEN HOW CAN WE SHAVE OFF 24 DAYS? I'M JUST TRYING TO CHALLENGE YOU GUYS.
ABSOLUTELY, AND IF YOU COULD SEE IN A SLIDE 18 THERE IS A LINE GOING THROUGH THAT SAYS PRIVATE SECTOR AVERAGE. SO THAT IS THE AVERAGE FOR PRIVATE SECTOR AND MY APOLOGIES IT'S VERY TINY.
AND SO IT SAYS PRIVATE SECTOR AVERAGE.
AND THERE IS A LINE GOING ACROSS.
AND THEN THERE IS A CITY OF DALLAS AVERAGE.
OKAY. SO IT LOOKS LIKE 40 IS THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
YES. OKAY. LET'S JUST SAY 40 BECAUSE IT'S ROUNDING.
WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO GET THOSE 14 DAYS OFF?
[01:00:03]
AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER THAT BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S I DON'T WANT YOU TO GET ON THE SPOT, BUT I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE SHOULD STRIVE TO BE.I AGREE. AND COME UP WITH A PLAN AND LET'S GET THERE.
SECONDLY WE DO IN KEY POSITIONS.
I'VE BEEN AT CITY HALL FOR A LONG TIME.
I THINK JACK AND I STARTED HERE WHEN WE WERE BABIES AND WE USED TO GROW OUR OWN.
YES. ARE WE DOING THAT ANYMORE? BECAUSE WE. I KNOW I'VE SEEN JOHN HERE.
I REMEMBER WHEN THEY WERE BABY EMPLOYEES.
JARED. I MEAN, AND SO THE THING IS, IS THAT IS A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS MODEL.
AND I DON'T SEE MUCH OF THAT HASN'T HAPPENED IN MY TIME SITTING HERE.
AND I WOULD LOVE TO BRING THAT BACK OF GROWING OUR OWN TALENT.
IT SHOULD BE ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION.
I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT A LOT.
AND THEN SO WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THIS WORK, THERE'S GOING TO BE A COST ADDED TO IT.
DO YOU ALL HAPPEN TO KNOW WHAT THAT COST COULD BE? AND Y'ALL CAN JUST BRING IT WHEN Y'ALL KEEP UPDATING US? BECAUSE TO KEEP WORKDAY HUMMING TO LOOKING AT WHAT IT COSTS TO TRAIN THEM, GET THEM PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, MOVING THEM DOWN THE PIPELINE FOR FOLKS.
I'M JUST CURIOUS WHAT IS GOING TO BE THE COST TO THIS? AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO, BUT EVENTUALLY WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO KNOW THAT.
SO I'M FINISHED, MR. CHAIR. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. ANYONE, QUESTIONS? CHAIR MENDELSOHN. SO I WAS JUST ASKING HOW MANY DIFFERENT REPRESENTATIVES WE HAVE OF DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS HERE, AND I'D LIKE TO ASK EVERY DEPARTMENT TO SEND SOMEBODY UP TO ANSWER A QUESTION, BECAUSE THE QUESTION IS, DOES THIS SEEM ACCURATE, GIVEN THEIR DEPARTMENT, THAT IT'S TAKING 54 DAYS ON AVERAGE TO HIRE SOMEBODY FROM THE TIME THEY PUT IN A REQUISITION? I'M NOT SURE WHAT THIS DATE IS BASED ON, AND IT'S POSSIBLE THAT I'M STILL LOOKING AT THIS THROUGH THE LENS OF WHAT HAD BEEN HAPPENING.
I DON'T HIRE PEOPLE HERE, RIGHT? OTHER THAN IN MY OWN MY OWN OFFICE, AND WE HAVEN'T HAD TURNOVER.
SO I'M JUST GOING TO TELL YOU THAT IT SEEMS LIKE WHEN I SIT IN COMMITTEES, WE HAVE DIRECTOR AFTER DIRECTOR AFTER DIRECTOR COME IN AND SAY, I'VE GOT X NUMBER OF OPENINGS OR A PERCENTAGE OF MY ENTIRE STAFF THAT I DON'T HAVE AND I CAN'T GET HIRED.
AND I'VE HAD OPEN FOR A VERY LONG TIME.
AND IF I MAY SAY, THE BEAUTY OF HAVING WORKDAY NOW IS THAT WE CAN DIG DOWN AND IDENTIFY EXACTLY WHERE THAT INFORMATION COMES FROM AND WE CAN IDENTIFY, YOU KNOW, IS IT THAT THE POSITION IS NOT POSTED? IT HAS NOT BEEN POSTED.
THERE IS A NUMBER OF POSITIONS THAT ARE NEVER POSTED.
IS IT THAT THE POSITION WAS POSTED BUT THEN, YOU KNOW, WAS TAKEN DOWN? WAS IT THAT IT WAS A PARTICULAR ITEM THAT HAPPENED WITH THAT POSITION? BECAUSE YES, JUST LIKE YOU, I HEAR VERY OFTEN ANECDOTAL INFORMATION.
NOW WE CAN SEE HERE IS WHEN THE POSITION WAS POSTED.
HERE'S THE WORKFLOW, HERE'S WHEN IT WAS APPROVED.
HERE'S WHERE THE PERSON STARTED.
AND THAT INFORMATION IS WHAT IS IN WORKDAY.
SOMETHING THAT YOU KNOW IS VERY HARD TO ARGUE WITH.
BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, NOW WE HAVE BETTER DATA.
AND THAT'S WHAT NEOGOV WAS NOT OFFERING TO US THE ABILITY TO DIG DOWN AND IDENTIFY.
DO YOU INDEED HAVE SOMEONE THAT YOU KNOW HAS BEEN THROUGH THE PROCESS FOR 120 DAYS OR NOT? AND AGAIN, THERE WILL BE OUTLIERS.
SOME POSITIONS ARE HARDER TO FILL THAN OTHERS.
SOME POSITIONS ARE HARDER TO RECRUIT AND RETAIN.
SOME ARE A REVOLVING DOOR JUST BY THE NATURE OF THE INDUSTRY.
WHEN YOU DID THIS TRANSITION, YOU DIDN'T EVEN HAVE POLICEMEN OR FIREMEN POSTED ON OUR CITY WEBSITE.
AND YOU FOUND OUT BECAUSE I WENT ON THE WEBSITE TO TRY TO HELP SOMEBODY APPLY.
CORRECT. IS THAT I MEAN, ACTUALLY THEY WERE POSTED.
THEY WERE NOT POSTED MAYBE IN THAT SAME PAGE, BUT THEY WERE POSTED.
THERE WERE THREE JOBS POSTED ON THE CITY WEBSITE.
OKAY. AND I CALLED JOHN FORTUNE SAYING, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? OKAY. I'M SORRY.
COUNCIL MEMBER. IS THAT A I MEAN, IF THAT IS A QUESTION OR SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD RESPOND TO? IS I'M QUESTIONING THE DATA THAT WE'RE BEING PRESENTED.
[01:05:02]
OKAY. AND I'LL BE VERY HAPPY TO PROVIDE MORE DETAILS IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT.YES, SIR. SO WHAT YOU'RE WHAT I'M HEARING FROM YOU IS THAT WHEN WE HEAR FROM A DIRECTOR THAT.
WOW, I'M MISSING 20, 30 OR MORE STAFF MEMBERS IN MY DEPARTMENT, THAT WE SHOULD ASK, HAS THE JOB BEEN POSTED AND WHEN WAS IT POSTED? IS THAT TRUE? THAT IS CORRECT.
OR THE INFORMATION ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR DEPARTMENT'S HIRING PROCESS? WE CAN SHOW YOU BY POSITION WHEN IT WAS POSTED, HOW LONG IT TOOK TO GET, YOU KNOW, EITHER JARED OR THE HR DEPARTMENT TO GIVE YOU A SET OF QUALIFIED INDIVIDUALS.
WHEN DID YOU INTERVIEW? WHEN WAS IT OFFERED? WHEN WE DID THE BACKGROUND CHECKS AND WHEN THE PERSON STARTED.
NOW WE HAVE ALL THOSE DATA POINTS WHICH WE DIDN'T HAVE BEFORE, SO IT WAS VERY HARD TO GET.
SO HOW ARE WE GETTING THAT KIND OF A REPORT? BECAUSE I THINK THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING, BECAUSE FRANKLY, WE STARTED THIS AUDIT WHEN I WAS CHAIR OF GFM.
THIS HAS BEEN A VERY, VERY LONG TIME.
AND AT THE TIME, WHAT WE HEARD FROM NEARLY EVERY DEPARTMENT THAT THEIR MOST FRUSTRATING INTERACTION WAS WITH HR AND WITH HIRING. AND THAT'S WHY THAT WAS THE FIRST THING THAT WE WERE TRYING TO GO AFTER WITH TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE.
AND NOW YOU WANT TO COME BACK AND SAY, NOT ONLY ARE YOU JUST A LITTLE BIT ABOVE THE PRIVATE SECTOR, YOU'RE MASSIVELY OUTPERFORMING LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
AND THAT DOES NOT FIT WITH WHAT WE HAVE HEARD ALL THROUGH CITY HALL AND FROM THE APPLICANT PROCESS.
AND SO THERE'S A DISCONNECT HERE.
AND I DON'T KNOW WHERE IT IS, BUT I SURE WOULD LIKE TO SEE A LOT MORE DATA.
NOT WHAT IS THE AVERAGE TIME FRAME.
I MEAN, ARE YOU TELLING ME DPD, THE AVERAGE TIME FRAME FOR HIRING IS 47 DAYS? I DON'T BELIEVE THAT.
I GET IT. THAT DOES NOT MATCH WITH WHAT I KNOW.
YEAH, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, COUNCILWOMAN MENDELSOHN THAT THIS NUMBER DOES NOT INCLUDE OUR TESTED, SWORN POSITIONS. OKAY.
WHAT ELSE DON'T THESE NUMBERS INCLUDE? WELL, AGAIN, THOSE, SO WE KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT CURRENTLY ADVERTISING OR HIRING FOR POLICE AND FIRE AND 911 CALL TAKERS.
AND I MAY BE MISSING A COUPLE OTHERS, SUCH AS CODE.
I SEE SARAH NODDING HER HEAD IN THE BACK.
I MAY HAVE A COUPLE IN WATER, BUT I DON'T HAVE THE COMPLETE, IT'S JUST A HANDFUL THAT ARE TESTED, POSITIONS THAT DON'T THAT THE NEW SYSTEM DOESN'T HAVE THE CAPABILITY TO IN ORDER FOR US TO EVALUATE THEM AND KIND OF RUN THEM THROUGH THAT, THROUGH THAT PROCESS.
WE KNOW WHAT DATE SOMEBODY APPLIED AND WHAT DATE THEY STARTED.
WE KNOW WHY DON'T WE KNOW THAT.
WHY ISN'T THAT INCLUDED IN HERE.
THAT'S ACTUALLY WHAT THE PROBLEM IS.
THAT'S A VERY AMBITIOUS PLACE TO START.
SO YOU WANT TO ADD IN REQUISITION DATE.
THAT'S GREAT. I THINK THAT'S ACTUALLY A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT NUMBER.
REQUISITION DATE TO APPLICANT.
REQUISITION DATE TO START DATE.
VERY DIFFERENT THAN APPLICANT TO START DATE.
SO, OKAY, DWU, YOU'RE SITTING HERE, HOW MANY JOB OPENINGS DO YOU HAVE AND HOW LONG HAVE THEY BEEN OPEN? AND WE CAN PROVIDE THE REPORT FOR DWU AND WHAT HOW MANY POSITIONS ARE POSTED VERSUS NOT POSTED? WE CAN. HOW ABOUT SANITATION? WE KEEP HEARING WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH DRIVERS.
WE CAN DO THAT TOO WHAT I WAS.
ARE YOU TELLING. SO SANITATION IS HERE.
WHO HERE HAS A JOB OPENING? CAN YOU COME UP AND TELL US HOW LONG YOU'VE HAD YOUR JOB OPENING.
YEAH. AND I MAY WANT TO SAY AGAIN, THIS IS AN AVERAGE.
SO NOT EVERY POSITION IS GOING TO BE AT THAT LEVEL.
[01:10:07]
IT'S AN OWNER CONTROLLED INSURANCE PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR POSITION, AND IT HAS BEEN OPEN FOR ABOUT NINE MONTHS BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET QUALIFIED CANDIDATES TO APPLY.YEAH. SARAH, CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT HOW MANY OPENINGS YOU HAVE AND? AND I DO APPRECIATE THE LINE OF QUESTIONING.
I THINK FOR DEMONSTRATIVE PURPOSES THIS IS VERY USEFUL.
YEAH, WE WAITED A YEAR FOR THIS AUDIT AND I IT DOESN'T FIT IN THE REALM OF WHAT WE HAVE BEEN HEARING FROM OTHER DIRECTORS. GOOD AFTERNOON, SARAH STANFORD, DALLAS WATER UTILITIES.
ON AVERAGE, WE HAVE BETWEEN ABOUT 300 AND 324 VACANCIES.
THEY FLUCTUATE THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE ORGANIZATION.
AVERAGE FILL TIME IS 61 DAYS BETWEEN FEBRUARY AND THE END OF SEPTEMBER.
SOME ARE HARDER TO FILL, SOME ARE HARDER TO FIND, SO THERE ARE VARIATIONS THROUGHOUT.
THANK YOU. SO BACK TO YOU, NINA.
SO IT STARTS THE CLOCK ALL OVER.
IT DOES, IT DOES AND ACTUALLY I WOULD SAY THIS YEAR IT WAS RELATED TO A BUDGET.
IT'S NOT RELATED TO A PROCESS THAT WE HAVE IN HR OR CIVIL SERVICE.
IT WAS RELATED TO BUDGET CONSIDERATIONS.
SO IF THERE ARE BUDGET CONSIDERATIONS THAT DO NOT ALLOW US TO POST REX, WELL, WE CANNOT POST THEM.
BUT WHAT I CAN TELL YOU IS THAT WHEN YOU LOOK AT FOR INSTANCE, YOU SEE DWU, 60 DAYS IS BASICALLY WHAT IS SHOWING ON PAGE 27.
SO IT'S VERY CONSISTENT WITH THE INFORMATION THAT WAS PROVIDED BY SARAH.
OKAY. SO I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THIS INFORMATION RERUN BASED ON THE ORIGINAL REQUISITION DATE, NOT ON WHEN IT WAS TAKEN DOWN AND REPOSTED FOR A NEW DATE, BECAUSE IF YOU HAD IT POSTED FOR FOUR MONTHS AND THEN YOU CAME TO THE NEW FISCAL YEAR, YOU PULLED IT DOWN AND YOU REPOSTED IT AND YOU'RE STARTING THE CLOCK ALL OVER AGAIN.
YOU'VE JUST TAKEN OUT FOUR MONTHS OF THE JOB OPENING.
WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE POLICY OFF OF DATA THAT IS NOT REFLECTING WHAT'S REAL.
AND I DON'T NEED TO HEAR ANY OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
I'M DONE WITH MY QUESTIONS, I'M VERY SURPRISED.
IF I MAY, WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SAY IS THAT THAT IS AN AREA WITHIN OCCUR BECAUSE ANY POSITION THAT WAS OPEN PRIOR TO THE FREEZE BASICALLY JUST CONTINUED TO BE ON THE CLOCK.
AND THE ONLY DIFFERENCE WAS THAT WE DIDN'T ALLOW ANY POSITION TO BE POSTED PRIOR TO OCTOBER 1ST.
SO THOSE POSITIONS WILL BE POSTED ON OCTOBER 1ST, AND THEN THE CLOCK WILL START.
SO YOU WOULDN'T HAVE THAT PERIOD AFFECT THESE METRICS.
AND THE BEAUTY OF HAVING WORKDAY IS THAT THIS IS A SYSTEM THAT HAS A LOT OF CREDIBILITY.
IT BASICALLY GOES THROUGH THE STEPS.
SO I'M VERY HAPPY TO PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION TO MAKE YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE ABOUT THE SYSTEM.
I CAN PROVIDE IT BY DEPARTMENT, BY POSITION, SOME POSITIONS.
THE AVERAGE IS REALLY HIGH BECAUSE THEY'RE DIFFICULT TO HIRE, OTHERS IS VERY LOW BECAUSE WE HAVE OUR ONGOING PROCESS TO BRING PEOPLE IN, BUT IN GENERAL, WE'RE DOING MUCH BETTER BECAUSE OF THE SYSTEM WE'RE USING AND AS JERRY WAS MENTIONING, WE CONTINUE TO IMPROVE.
PART OF THE ISSUE IS, TOO, THAT THERE IS THIS PERCEPTION THAT THE POSITIONS ARE NEVER FILLED.
HERE'S WHERE WE NEED TO DO THINGS DIFFERENT.
THEN THIS DATA BECOMES THAT ACTIONABLE POINT THAT ALLOWS US TO GET BETTER.
OKAY, I THINK THE INFORMATION WE PROVIDED IS NOT THE QUESTION THAT WAS ASKED AND CHAIR, I'D LOVE TO WORK WITH YOU ON REFRAMING THAT QUESTION TO GET EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE ASKING, BECAUSE WHAT WE'RE SEEING IS NOT THE REALITY OF WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE HIRING PROCESS AND YOU KNOW THAT FROM SITTING THROUGH SO MANY BRIEFINGS.
WELL, IT REMINDS ME OF THE PERMIT WHEN WE WERE GOING THROUGH THE PERMIT PROCESS AND REVIEW THAT.
AND THEN IT WAS LIKE, OH, WELL, WE RESTARTED IT.
AND SO IT'S A SIMILAR METRIC THAT I THINK WE'RE DEALING WITH HERE.
[01:15:01]
SURE. THANK YOU.AND SO, YOU KNOW, I BELIEVE, MR. SWANN, THIS COVERS A PERIOD IN 2023 OR 2022 TO 2023.
IS RIGHT. IS THAT 21 TO 22? OKAY. SO THE DATA GOES BACK A BIT.
AND THEN THIS CAME OUT IN FEBRUARY.
AND SO NOW WE'RE LOOKING AT IT AND IT'S MID-OCTOBER.
SO YOU KNOW I APPRECIATE WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE A RERUNNING OF THE NUMBERS TO JUST TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION WHAT THE REALITY IS VERSUS SOME OF THE, YOU KNOW, WHEN THE BUDGET RESTARTS AND THAT SORT OF THING, JUST TO GIVE THE TRUEST PICTURE POSSIBLE OF WHAT THE TIMING IS.
BUT I REALLY WANTED TO DRILL INTO ON PAGE TEN, YOU HAVE AN ITEM AROUND EXCEPTIONAL HIRES.
ONE IS ON ANYONE WHO IS RELATED TO HELPING US MOVE PERMITS THROUGH A SYSTEM, GET BUILDINGS INSPECTED, FIRE INSPECTION, ANYTHING AROUND THAT BECAUSE IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE CANNOT HINDER OUR GROWTH AND THE TAX REVENUE THAT WE NEED TO GENERATE.
WE'VE GOT TO GROW OUR TAX BASE AND WE'VE JUST GOT TO MOVE AT THE SPEED OF BUSINESS.
I WAS AT TALKING TO THE HIGHLAND PARK TOWN ADMINISTRATOR THIS MORNING, AND THEY SAID THERE ARE TWO MILES SQUARE MILES RIGHT NOW, HAS 1700 BUILDING PERMITS.
THEY'VE HIRED THREE NEW PEOPLE.
BUT I MEAN, THAT TELLS YOU WHAT THE MARKETPLACE IS LIKE RIGHT NOW AND SO WHEN I LOOK AT EXCEPTIONAL HIRE AND WHAT WE'RE DOING THERE, I JUST WANT TO KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT GETTING CAUGHT UP IN ANY BUREAUCRACY, THAT WE ARE BEING NIMBLE BECAUSE WE ARE UP AGAINST THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
AND IN SOME OF THESE CATEGORIES, I MEAN, WE REALLY NEED THIS TO CLOSE THAT GAP AND MAYBE AND PASS IT SO THAT WE, THE CITY OF DALLAS, IS OUT THERE GETTING THESE PEOPLE ON BOARD TO HELP US FOSTER BUSINESS.
SO WHAT CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT THAT? WE LOOK AT EXCEPTIONAL HIRES.
THAT IS ACTUALLY AND JUST TO GO BACK TO THAT, PAGE TEN.
WE ARE REDOING AD 3 OR 4 HIRING PRACTICES TO INCLUDE A MORE NIMBLE PROCESS FOR EXCEPTIONAL HIRES, JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE IN COMPLIANCE WITH OUR OWN POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.
BUT OFFER A I WILL SAY, AS YOU SAY, A MORE NIMBLE APPROACH TO DOING SO.
EXCEPTIONAL HIRES ARE TRICKY, ARE DIFFICULT BECAUSE WE ARE LOOKING TO BRING IN SOMEONE THAT MAY BE REQUIRING MORE SALARY THAN WHAT THAT POSITION WAS EITHER BUDGETED FOR OR WAS YOU KNOW, THE RANGE IN WHICH THAT POSITION RESIDES AND WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT COMPENSATION, COMPENSATION IS A STRUCTURE.
SO WHEN YOU IT'S ALMOST LIKE YOU HAVE A WALL.
SO THE MOMENT THAT YOU DO AN EXCEPTIONAL HIRE, TYPICALLY WE WEIGHT IT AGAINST FIRST THE NEED FOR THAT POSITION, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY THERE IS A NEED THAT IS REQUIRED IN THAT EXCEPTION. AND THEN WHO ELSE IS IN THAT POSITION THAT MAY HAVE AN EQUAL JOB THAT MAY REQUIRE AN EQUAL PAY? SO WHAT WE TYPICALLY DO IS LIKE, IF YOU'RE GOING TO BRING IN SOMEONE TO DO X AT A CERTAIN LEVEL, WE'RE LOOKING ALSO AT EVERYBODY ELSE THAT IS DOING THE SAME TYPE OF WORK ALREADY HERE, BECAUSE WHAT WE DON'T WANT TO DO IS TO BRING IN EXCEPTIONAL HIRES THAT REALLY HIGH.
SO WE'RE ALWAYS WITH THAT AND WHENEVER POSSIBLE, IF WE SEE THAT WE'RE JUST PAYING TOO LITTLE, THEN OUR RECOMMENDATION IS TO BRING EVERYBODY AT THE SAME LEVEL SO WE CAN DO THE EXCEPTIONAL HIRE WITHOUT BEING ACTUALLY UNFAIR.
I WOULD SAY TO PEOPLE WHO ARE ALREADY HERE.
SO THAT IS THAT IS WHAT TAKES A LITTLE BIT OF TIME IS DIFFERENT TO DO AN EXCEPTIONAL HIRE FOR A POSITION THAT IS UNIQUE AND THERE'S NO COMPARATORS OR A POSITION THAT HAS MANY ON IT, BUT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO MAKE MORE NIMBLE.
BUT THE SACRIFICE WE ARE MAKING IN THE TENS OF MILLIONS AND MAYBE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN THE POTENTIAL TAX BASE THAT WE'RE GOING TO NEED, I DON'T I DON'T SENSE THAT THAT'S BEING WEIGHED.
BUT WHAT I WOULD ASK AND MS. SAAB MAYBE YOU CAN SHARE.
I MEAN, DO WE HAVE A LIST OF THE CATEGORIES THAT RIGHT NOW ARE CONSIDERED AN EXCEPTIONAL HIRE?
[01:20:05]
NO, WE DO HAVE POSITIONS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED AS HARD TO FILL.AND THAT IS BASED ON, FOR INSTANCE, AS RHONDA WAS MENTIONING, AS BEING OPEN FOR A VERY LONG TIME.
AND THE RECOMMENDATION WITH THOSE POSITIONS IS TO, INSTEAD OF LOOKING AT IT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF AN EXCEPTIONAL HIRE, IS LOOKING AT IT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF IS IT COMPENSATED AT AN APPROPRIATE LEVEL SO WE CAN CLEAN IT UP FROM THE STRUCTURE PERSPECTIVE, NOT FROM THE EXCEPTION PERSPECTIVE.
I REALLY THINK WE NEED TO HAVE OUR HIT LIST OF WHAT IS THE WEIGHT THAT NEEDS TO GO AGAINST THIS LIST OF WHO IS HARD TO HIRE OR AN EXCEPTIONAL HIRE, VERSUS FOR EVERY DAY THAT GOES BY THAT WE AREN'T FILLING THAT, AND WE'RE DELAYING MOVEMENT IN THE MARKETPLACE ON THINGS THAT CAN GENERATE REVENUE, THAT POWER OUR CITY AND OUR CITY SERVICES FOR OUR TAXPAYERS.
I MEAN, WE'VE JUST GOT TO BE ABLE TO ASSIGN THAT WEIGHT AND SAY, WE GOT TO MOVE ON.
WE GOT TO MAKE A DECISION AND MOVE ON, ON THOSE.
AND SO I WOULD ASK THAT WE HAVE THAT TARGET LIST.
I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S 20 CATEGORIES 50 CATEGORIES, I'M NOT SURE.
BUT I THINK UNTIL WE WRAP OUR ARMS AROUND THAT AND CAN LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH TIME ARE WE SPENDING VERSUS HOW MUCH ARE WE LOSING? THAT MAY HELP MOVE SOME PEOPLE ALONG IN DEFINING WHAT THAT PROCESS IS.
THE OTHER SIDE I WOULD LOOK AT THIS IS OVER AND ABOVE.
THE 911 OPERATORS, THE 311 OPERATORS.
I MEAN, WHOEVER IS OUT THERE REALLY DEALING WITH THE PUBLIC, THAT FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE AND THEN THE ONES THAT THEY MAY ULTIMATELY DEAL WITH, I MEAN, WITH CODE COMPLIANCE. ET CETERA.
MR. DAVIS, YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE SOMETHING.
YES. MISS WILLIS, I HEAR YOU WHOLEHEARTEDLY AND INTERNALLY WE HAVE SOMEWHAT OF A SHORT LIST OF THOSE KIND OF CRITICAL POSITIONS, LIKE CODE 911, POLICE AND FIRE, OF COURSE. BUT I'VE HEARD YOU NOW MAKE ME THINK A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT TO MAYBE ADD ANOTHER CATEGORY AROUND THOSE TAX REVENUE RELATED POSITIONS AND SERVICES CONNECTED THERETO AS ANOTHER METRIC, IF YOU WILL, OR A QUALIFIER TO SAY WE NEED TO BE MOVING IN THIS IN HIRING THESE AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN FOR, YOU KNOW, WE TYPICALLY THINK ABOUT IT IN TERMS OF PUBLIC SAFETY.
ARE THEY PUBLIC SAFETY FIRST RESPONDERS? ARE THEY MORE RELATED TO PERMITTING OR TAX RELATED.
OKAY. THANK YOU. AND THE NEXT MS. SAAB ON PAGE 30 I KNOW THERE'S SOME DRAFT DOCUMENTS HERE.
I RECALL SEEING THEM MONTHS AGO WHENEVER WE LOOKED AT THE COMMUNICATION ABOUT THESE ROLES.
SO IS THE PLAN THAT YOU ARE BRINGING TO COUNCIL MEMBERS? IS THAT KIND OF YOUR WHOLE BRAND ARCHITECTURE, TALKING ABOUT THE CITY AS A BRAND AS A WHOLE AND THEN WHERE THIS LIVES, ARE THESE GOING TO BE RETHOUGHT? WE ARE ACTUALLY RETHINKING WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY RETHOUGHT, THE WAY THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT OUR CITYWIDE COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY AND I'M SORRY, I DON'T HAVE THIS, IT'S ON PAGE 30.
I THINK THAT AGAIN, IT GOES BACK TO EVEN MISS WILLIS, COUNCIL MEMBER WILLIS WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE FORWARD FACING TYPES OF HIRES THAT WE NEED TO FOCUS ON. I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW THAT WE AS A CITY HAVE REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT TALENT BEING OUR AMBASSADORS.
RIGHT, AND SO NOW THAT WE HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE A UNIFIED BRAND IDENTITY, THERE IS A TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY TO FOCUS ON HOW ARE WE ATTRACTING THOSE CUSTOMER SERVICE, FORWARD FACING TYPES OF TALENT VERSUS PEOPLE THAT DON'T NECESSARILY WANT TO BE CUSTOMER SERVICE? AND WE'RE ALL CUSTOMER SERVICE, TO BE QUITE HONEST WITH YOU, REGARDLESS IF WE'RE FORWARD FACING OR NOT.
SO AS IT RELATES TO YOUR QUESTION AROUND THE MESSAGING AND THE ARCHITECTURE OF IT, WE ARE CREATING A STANDARDIZED TOOLKIT THAT WILL BE TAILORED TO THE TYPES OF HIRING WE'RE LOOKING TO ATTRACT.
SO I DO THINK THERE ARE DIFFERENT MESSAGES, AND I DON'T CARE IF I NEVER SEE PAGE 30 AGAIN.
YEAH. AND SO WE DIDN'T REALLY TAKE THAT.
WE, NINA AND JARED AND I HAD A LOVELY CONVERSATION ABOUT SLIDE 30, AND IT'S IN THERE BECAUSE IT'S VERY FEATURE ORIENTED, NOT VERY BENEFIT ORIENTED AND THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT THE CITY OF DALLAS IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE UP AGAINST WHEN YOU TRY TO LURE YOU KNOW, WHETHER IT IS THE PUBLIC FACING OUR, YOU KNOW, OUR KIND OF MEAT AND POTATOES PEOPLE WHO ARE DEALING WITH THE PUBLIC DAY IN AND DAY OUT.
AND THEN WHEN WE GET INTO SOME OF OUR CATEGORIES THAT ARE MORE ON THAT FLIP SIDE OF THE REVENUE GENERATING PROFESSIONAL SIDE THAT WE'VE GOT TO KEEP OUR, OUR CITY MOVING AND THE SPEED OF BUSINESS MOVING WHERE IT SHOULD BE.
[01:25:09]
THE CITY ITSELF.I MEAN, THE CITY IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE UP AGAINST THAT.
SO TO COME TO WORK HERE, YOU'VE GOT TO KNOW THAT WHILE YOU'RE PART OF THE ACTION AND MAKING DECISIONS AND HAVING INFLUENCE, AND YOU CAN BE PART OF THAT, IT'S YOU'RE ALSO GOING TO TAKE SOME LICKS.
AND SO I JUST WOULD LOVE TO SEE OUR MESSAGING REALLY THINKING THROUGH THAT SIDE OF THINGS AS WELL.
BUT I JUST THIS PAGE HAS SO MANY FEATURES AND NOT THE BENEFIT SIDE.
AND SO I'M HAPPY TO DISCUSS THAT MORE OFFLINE WITH YOU.
BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, ALONG WITH OTHER THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED TODAY, THESE THINGS I BROUGHT UP, I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE ATTENTION GIVEN TO THOSE BECAUSE, I MEAN, I FEEL LIKE WE'RE REALLY GOING TO GET PASSED BY AND THEN WE WILL SUFFER IN TERMS OF REVENUE AND ALSO IN THE PERCEPTION AND ACTUALLY THE REALITY OF WHAT THE EXPERIENCE IS FOR OUR, OUR RESIDENTS.
AND IF I MAY ADD, I'M SORRY, SLIDE 30 WAS FROM A BRIEFING THAT WAS GIVEN OR DELIVERED, I BELIEVE, LAST YEAR BEFORE WE REALLY EMBARKED ON CREATING THE CITYWIDE COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY AND BRAND IDENTITY.
IT APPEARS THAT IT WAS PART OF A SEPTEMBER 2023 PRESENTATION.
I JUST WANT TO SEE US APPRECIATE IT.
AND I'LL JUST I'LL A LOT MUST HAVE BEEN SAID THAT I AGREE WITH HERE.
SO THERE'S THE PERCEPTION AND THERE'S WHAT'S REALITY.
I AGREE WITH THE REQUEST OF KNOWING SEEING THE BREAKDOWN OF WHEN THE WHAT HAPPENS ONCE THE APPLICATION IS MADE VERSUS THE POSTING DATE, BECAUSE I THINK IF IT'S THE IF THE DELAY IS FROM THE POSTING TO THE APPLICATION, THAT'S A MARKETING PROBLEM.
THAT'S WE DIDN'T WORD IT RIGHT.
EITHER THE APPLICANT IS TOO SLOW OR WE ARE.
ALL RIGHT, COLLEAGUES, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON.
SO WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO TAKE THAT ON NEXT ON THE 20 24-25 DEBT ISSUANCE OVERVIEW.
I'M SORRY. DO YOU NEED ME TO START AGAIN? OKAY, GREAT. AS WELL AS GOING OVER ANY RECOMMENDATIONS AND NEXT STEPS SINCE WE'VE ALREADY PROVIDED THE BACKGROUND BEFORE WE CAN JUMP TO SLIDE FOUR. OKAY.
STARTING WITH GENERAL PURPOSE DEBT.
WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON ISSUING UP TO 353,000,000 IN GENERAL OBLIGATION REFUNDING AND IMPROVEMENT BONDS THIS DECEMBER TO FUND THE FIRST 250 MILLION ISSUANCE OF THE 2024 BOND PROGRAM.
CURRENTLY, THOSE ESTIMATED SAVINGS ARE APPROXIMATELY 9.3 MILLION OR 9 POINT I'M SORRY, 9.5%.
[01:30:03]
13TH, AND PENDING THAT ORDINANCE APPROVAL, THE BONDS WILL BE ISSUED STILL CLOSER TO.AND PENDING ORDINANCE APPROVAL, THE BONDS WILL BE ISSUED VIA COMPETITIVE CELL.
OKAY. AND ON THE NEXT SLIDE, WE CONTINUE WITH EQUIPMENT NOTES, WHICH INCLUDES AN ISSUANCE OF THIS DECEMBER AGAIN OF 35 MILLION TO FUND BUDGET APPROPRIATIONS FOR VEHICLES AND EQUIPMENT.
AGAIN, PREPARATION FOR THIS SALE WAS APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL ON OCTOBER 8TH, WITH RECOMMENDATION FOR BOND ORDINANCE APPROVAL ON NOVEMBER 13TH AND PENDING ORDINANCE APPROVAL. THOSE BONDS WILL ALSO BE ISSUED IN A COMPETITIVE SALE.
ADDITIONALLY, OUR CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION PLANNED IN JANUARY 2025, WHICH INCLUDES A 40 MILLION ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION TO FUND PRIORITY STORMWATER CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS PLANNED IN FY 25.
NOTE, THE DEBT SERVICE ON THESE BONDS ARE PAID FROM STORMWATER REVENUES.
OKAY. ONCE AGAIN, PREPARATION OF THIS CELL WAS APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL ON OCTOBER 8TH AND RECOMMENDATION FOR CITY COUNCIL BOND ORDINANCE APPROVAL IS SCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER 11TH AND AGAIN PENDING THAT APPROVAL.
AND THOSE BONDS WILL BE ISSUED VIA COMPETITIVE SALE.
THE CITY DRAWS ON MASS RELEASE FUNDS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AND THE $48 MILLION IN MASS RELEASE PLAN FOR 2025 WILL FUND PUBLIC SAFETY EQUIPMENT, IT INFRASTRUCTURE, AND GENERAL CITY FLEET AND EQUIPMENT.
IN ANTICIPATION OF THE CURRENT PROGRAM EXPIRING ON NOVEMBER 28TH, 2025.
AS WE KNOW, COMMERCIAL PAPER PROVIDES INTERIM FINANCING FOR CITY CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, ALLOWING THE AWARD OF CONTRACTS AND PAYMENT OF PROJECT COST, TYPICALLY AT LOWER RATES UNTIL THE BONDS ARE ISSUED.
OR I'M SORRY, UNTIL THAT COMMERCIAL PAPER IS REFUND INTO LONG TERM DEBT.
OKAY. BEFORE SEEKING CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL, THE GENERAL OBLIGATION COMMERCIAL PAPER PROGRAM WILL BE REEVALUATED TO ASSESS THE MOST ADVANTAGEOUS STRUCTURE AND ANY BENEFICIAL CHANGES TO THE PROGRAM.
OKAY, ON THE NEXT SLIDE, DWU REVENUE BONDS ARE PLANNED FOR DECEMBER 2024, IN THE AMOUNT OF 34 MILLION TO THE TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD. THIS IS A REQUIRED ISSUANCE UTILIZING THE STATE WATER IMPLEMENTATION REVENUE FUND FOR TEXAS OR SWIFT, PER THE CITY'S ONGOING AGREEMENT WITH THE WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD.
THIS IS THE THIRD ISSUANCE OF A FIVE YEAR FUNDING COMMITMENT, AND WE ARE SEEKING CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL OF AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE SALE OF THE BONDS ON OCTOBER 23RD. ADDITIONALLY, DWU REVENUE REFUNDING BONDS ARE PLANNED FOR DECEMBER 2024 THE ISSUANCE OF WATERWORKS AND SEWER SYSTEM REVENUE REFUNDING BONDS IN THE AMOUNT UP TO 2.95 MILLION, ARE TO REFUND COMMERCIAL PAPER OUTSTANDING AND UP TO 32.7 MILLION OF ELIGIBLE 2012 AND 2013 BONDS OUTSTANDING, WITH CURRENT ESTIMATED SAVINGS OF APPROXIMATELY $1 MILLION, OR 3%.
THESE BONDS PRODUCE PROCEEDS THAT ARE SUFFICIENT TO RETIRE COMMERCIAL PAPER AT THE TIME OF THE SALE, AND PREPARATION OF THE SALE WAS ALSO APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL ON OCTOBER 8TH, WITH A RECOMMENDATION FOR BOND ORDINANCE APPROVAL ON NOVEMBER 13TH.
OKAY. WE CAN GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
REGARDING DWS COMMERCIAL PAPER PROGRAM PREPARATION TO ESTABLISH A REPLACEMENT SERIES G COMMERCIAL PAPER PROGRAM IS CURRENTLY IN THE WORKS IN ANTICIPATION OF THE CURRENT PROGRAM EXPIRING ON JANUARY 2ND, 2025, WITH CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL SCHEDULED IN FEBRUARY 2025.
LASTLY, FOR DWU, THERE IS A POTENTIAL ISSUANCE OF WATERWORKS AND SEWERAGE SYSTEM REVENUE REFUNDING BONDS TO AGAIN REFUND OUTSTANDING ELIGIBLE BONDS FOR SAVINGS IN THE SUMMER OF 2025. CURRENT ESTIMATES INDICATE A REFUNDING OF APPROXIMATELY 285 MILLION OF ELIGIBLE OUTSTANDING 2015 AND 2020 BONDS FOR SAVINGS, WITH AN ESTIMATED APPROXIMATELY 24.9 MILLION, OR 7.7% OF SAVINGS.
OKAY. THE SECOND ISSUANCE OF SPECIAL TAX REVENUE REFUNDING OBLIGATIONS IS PLANNED FOR 2025.
[01:35:07]
BONDING CAPACITY FOR BOND ISSUANCE AND REFUNDING IS DRIVEN BY RATING AGENCY CRITERIA, PRIMARILY CENTERED ON A MARKET STUDY WHICH INCLUDES ASSESSMENTS OF HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX.CHAPTER 334 OR BRIMER BILL TAXES, PROJECT FINANCING ZONE AND CONVENTION CENTER REVENUES.
THE PLANNED ISSUANCE OF THE CONVENTION CENTER VENUE PROJECT INCLUDES SENIOR LIEN AND SUBORDINATE LIEN BONDS, AND AN ESTIMATED PRINCIPAL AMOUNT IN EXCESS OF $1.4 BILLION, SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING FINAL PROJECT COST ESTIMATES.
THE PLANNED ISSUANCE OF FAIR PARK VENUE PROJECT SERIES 2025 BONDS INCLUDE SENIOR LIEN AND SUBORDINATE LIEN BONDS IN AN ESTIMATED PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF 79.3 MILLION, SUBJECT TO CHANGE. BONDS WILL BE ISSUED IN A NEGOTIATED SALE UTILIZING AN UNDERWRITING SYNDICATE APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL ON JUNE 26TH, 2024.
THE LEFT FIELD MASTER PLAN AND CAPITAL PROJECT NEEDS ARE CURRENTLY BEING DISCUSSED WITH TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE AND STAKEHOLDERS, AND A FOLLOW UP CITY COUNCIL BRIEFING IS PLANNED FOR DECEMBER 2024 OR JANUARY 2025.
NEXT SLIDE. TO SUMMARIZE TO SUMMARIZE THE PREVIOUS SLIDES.
ON NOVEMBER 13TH, AND APPROVAL OF ORDINANCES AUTHORIZING THE SALE OF UP TO 353 MILLION OF GENERAL OBLIGATION REFUNDING IMPROVEMENT BONDS SERIES 2024, AND THE SALE OF UP TO 35 MILLION OF EQUIPMENT ACQUISITION CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS.
AND AS ALWAYS, WE WILL UPDATE CITY COUNCIL FOLLOWING THE ISSUANCE OF ANY NEW BONDS VIA MEMORANDUM.
WITH THAT, WE ARE HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
THANK YOU. HAVE YOU CALCULATED WHAT YOU EXPECT TO SAVE WITH ALL THESE REFUNDINGS? WE HAVE ON THE SUMMARY PAGE WHERE THE TOTAL AMOUNTS PART OF THE TOTAL ISSUANCES, INCLUDING WATER NGO, IS ABOUT 300 REFUNDING AMOUNT.
EXCUSE ME. LET ME GRAB MY NOTES.
STEVE JOHNSON, HILLTOP SECURITIES CO, FINANCIAL ADVISOR TO THE CITY.
THE ESTIMATED SAVINGS ON THE GEO BONDS THAT WE'RE ABOUT TO PRICE OR TAKE COMPETITIVE BIDS ON IS ABOUT 9.5 MILLION, OR ABOUT 9.3% OF REFUNDED PAR.
THE SAVINGS ON THE WATER AND SEWER BONDS IS ABOUT $1 MILLION, OR ABOUT 3%, WHICH IS IN LINE WITH THE CITY'S GPFMC CRITERIA FOR CURRENT REFUNDINGS.
LATER THIS SUMMER, THE BONDS ARE NOT CALLABLE UNTIL OCTOBER, SO THE TRANSACTION COULD NOT CLOSE BEFORE JULY, AND THE SAVINGS ON THOSE I BELIEVE WAS ABOUT 7% AS WELL.
SO I SAW THE VARIOUS SCHEDULES FOR COST FOR DOING THE RECALL, THE REFUNDING.
SO IF YOU'RE GOING TO ONLY SAVE $1 MILLION, WHAT'S IT GOING TO COST US TO DO THAT TRANSACTION? THAT WILL BE PART OF THE LARGER COMMERCIAL PAPER.
REFUNDING, WHICH WAS ALSO GOING TO REFUND 269 MILLION OF COMMERCIAL PAPER.
SO IT'S SO ALL THE COSTS ARE ROLLED IN TOGETHER.
SO IT'S ONLY AN INCREMENTAL INCREASE ON THAT ADDITIONAL COST.
WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO ITEM L, WHICH IS A MEMO ITEM FROM THE OFFICE OF THE CITY AUDITOR.
[01:40:01]
MR. SWANN IS THERE.I MEAN, DON'T FEEL LIKE YOU NEED TO BRIEF THIS, BUT IS THERE ANYTHING YOU NEED TO TELL US? I WE MADE A COUPLE REVISIONS SINCE WE, WITH THE FEEDBACK FROM THE LAST MEETING ON THE ANNUAL AUDIT PLAN, AND WE ADDED TWO ADDITIONAL AUDITS.
THAT'S ON THE COVER LETTER TRANSMITTAL THAT WAS SENT OUT.
AND IT'S UP FOR VOTE ON CONSENT FOR TOMORROW.
COLLEAGUES, DID YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR MR. SWANN? SEEING NONE, I WILL.
THANK YOU. WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM D, WHICH IS THE OVERVIEW OF THE CITY'S FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE REVIEW CRITERIA AND PROPOSED REVISIONS TO EXISTING CRITERIA AND NEW CRITERIA.
COME ON AND SET UP THE MR. SWANN, CAN YOU COME BACK UP HERE? WE DO HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU ON ITEM L.
SO THE QUESTION IS ABOUT THE AUDIT FOR TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS WITH THE INTERNAL CONTROLS AND I MEAN, THIS IS A GOOD PRACTICE WHEN YOU HAVE SOMEBODY TAKING OVER A NEW DEPARTMENT, ESPECIALLY ONE AS LARGE AS THIS AREA.
ARE YOU GOING TO MAKE THAT KIND OF A MORE STANDARD PRACTICE? I KNOW YOU DO AUDITS OF COUNCIL MEMBERS, WHICH IS REQUIRED WHEN WE LEAVE OFFICE, BUT HAVE YOU CONSIDERED DOING THAT? I MEAN, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF LEADERSHIP CHANGES, BUT MAYBE ALSO, ARE THERE OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT WOULD BENEFIT FROM THE SAME SORT OF CLEAN SLATE VIEW OF HOW THINGS ARE GOING.
I BELIEVE I WOULD HAVE TO THINK ABOUT THAT FOR A LITTLE BIT AND GET BACK, BUT WE'RE KIND OF AT CAPACITY NOW, SO IT'S PART OF THE RISK ASSESSMENT PROCESS LOOKING AT TURNOVER IN DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS.
AND THAT'S PUT INTO THE PRIORITIZATION OF AUDITS.
WELL I WAS I WAS GLAD TO SEE THAT.
AND THAT WAS REQUESTED BY THE DIRECTOR.
YES. WELL, I'D ENCOURAGE YOU TO THINK ABOUT IF WE DON'T MAYBE CONSIDER A REGULAR PRACTICE OF DOING SOME SORT OF AUDIT WHEN WE HAVE THAT SIGNIFICANT TURNOVER, AND ESPECIALLY AN AREA THAT'S GOT EQUIPMENT AND PROCESSES WHERE WE HAVE REDRESS FOR POOR WORKMANSHIP.
SO, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT THERE IS A STREET IN MY DISTRICT, IT WAS NOT DONE WELL.
IT WAS SAID THAT IT WAS INSPECTED.
I COULD SEE THE PROBLEMS WITH THE ROAD VISUALLY, NOT AN ENGINEER.
AND SO I THINK, I THINK IT WOULD BE A REALLY GOOD PRACTICE TO LOOK AT.
AND WE'D LOVE TO HEAR BACK FROM YOU ONCE YOU HAVE EVALUATED THAT.
SO A WAY TO GO IN AND JUST ENSURE COMPLIANCE AND THE CONTROLS ARE WORKING.
OKAY. LET'S MOVE ON TO ITEM D.
ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON. CAN YOU GUYS HEAR ME? YES. PERFECT.
WE ARE HERE TO PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF OUR CURRENT FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE CRITERIA.
SO MOVING ON TO SLIDE NUMBER THREE.
THE CITY'S FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE CRITERIA REFLECTS THE CITY'S FINANCIAL POLICIES.
THE GOVERNMENT FINANCE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION RECOMMENDS THAT GOVERNMENTS FORMALLY ADOPT FINANCIAL POLICIES THAT ADDRESS THE ORGANIZATION'S STRATEGIC AND LONG TERM APPROACH TO FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT.
THE CITY OF DALLAS HAS DONE THAT.
THE FIRST FINANCIAL POLICIES WERE ADOPTED IN 1978.
THERE ARE CURRENTLY 54 CRITERIA AND SEVEN DIFFERENT CATEGORIES.
AND WE DO HAVE A DIFFERENT SET OF POLICIES FOR DALLAS WATER UTILITIES.
MOVING ON TO SLIDE NUMBER FOUR, THE PROPOSED REVISIONS BEFORE YOU TODAY ARE BASED ON FEEDBACK FROM CITY COUNCIL TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS, BASED ON RECENT CITY COUNCIL ACTIONS RELATED TO PENSION.
THERE ARE NO DELETIONS PROPOSED AT THIS TIME.
[01:45:04]
OF COURSE, COUNCIL MAY PROPOSE ADDITIONAL CHANGES OR REQUEST ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OF EXISTING POLICIES AS WELL.ON THE NEXT FOUR SLIDES, I'LL WALK THROUGH THE PROPOSED RECOMMENDATIONS ON.
SLIDE NUMBER FIVE REFLECTS ONE OF THE PROPOSED CHANGES TO ADDRESS PENSION.
THE PROPOSED CHANGE TO FMPC NUMBER 15, AMENDS THE LANGUAGE TO ADD OR STATE THAT WE NOW COMPLY WITH THE FUNDING SOUNDNESS RESTORATION PLAN AS REQUIRED BY THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE.
AND THEN, OF COURSE, IT KEEPS THE LANGUAGE TO NO CHANGE TO NO LESS THAN ANNUAL REVIEWS.
MOVING ON TO SLIDE NUMBER SIX.
THIS IS ANOTHER CHANGE RELATED TO THE PENSION PROGRAM.
THERE'S NO CHANGE TO THE FIRST SENTENCE.
HOWEVER WE HAVE PROVIDED ADJUSTMENTS IN RED TO CLARIFY HOW CHANGES TO BENEFITS WILL BE MADE AND THE RULES ON HOW TO CHANGE BENEFITS.
SO OF COURSE, AS YOU KNOW, IF CHANGES ARE APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL AND THE VOTERS OF DALLAS, CHANGES TO POLICE, DALLAS POLICE AND FIRE PENSION CHANGES MAY BE REQUIRED BY STATE LEGISLATURE, THE CITY OF DALLAS COUNCIL MEMBERS AND VOTERS, OR AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE DALLAS POLICE AND FIRE PENSION SYSTEM.
THERE ARE NO CHANGES TO THE LANGUAGE REGARDING HEALTH PLANS.
WE HAVE DISCUSSED RESERVES IN THE HEALTH BENEFIT FUND IN THE PAST.
THE HEALTH BENEFIT FUND HAS A RESERVE FOR MEDICAL CLAIMS INCURRED BUT NOT REPORTED.
WE ARE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE REGARDING RESERVES AND TO EXPLAIN THAT WE HAVE UNASSIGNED FUND BALANCE IN BOTH THE GENERAL FUND AND ALL OF OUR OPERATING FUNDS THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND SO WE CONSIDER THAT SORT OF OUR ADDITIONAL RESERVES.
MOVING ON TO SLIDE NUMBER SEVEN.
THIS PROPOSED CHANGE TO FM 23 REFLECTS THE EXTENSIVE DISCUSSION ON OF THIS FM PC AT BOTH GPFM AND CITY COUNCIL. THE PROPOSED CHANGE CHANGES THE COMPARISON FROM THE AVERAGE VALUE TO MEDIAN.
THIS CHANGE DOES NOT CHANGE CITY COUNCIL'S COMMITMENT TO THIS IMPORTANT TAX RELIEF TOOL.
ON SLIDE NUMBER EIGHT, THIS IS OUR LAST RECOMMENDATION.
AND YOU'LL NOTICE IN THE BUDGET DOCUMENT WE HAVE ADDED A NOTE TO EXPLAIN WHY THIS FMPC IS NOT IN COMPLIANCE DUE TO THE FACT THAT WE ARE USING WE'VE ISSUED CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION FOR OTHER FUNDING SOURCES.
ALSO, THIS CHANGE IS IN LINE WITH FMPC NUMBER 34 THAT'S NOT LISTED, BUT THAT PARTICULAR FMPC DEALS WITH CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION.
AND IT ALSO PROVIDES AN EXCLUSION FOR ISSUING DEBT.
THAT'S NON NONPROFIT TAX SUPPORTED.
SO MOVING ON TO SLIDE NUMBER NINE.
WE ARE HERE TO RECEIVE YOUR FEEDBACK ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
BASED ON YOUR FEEDBACK, WE WILL SEEK CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL OF THE PROPOSED CHANGES IN DECEMBER.
AND THEN, OF COURSE, LASTLY, WE WILL CONTINUE REVIEW OF FMPC FOR COMPLIANCE DURING OUR ANNUAL BUDGET DEVELOPMENT PROCESS AT YEAR END AND WITH EACH DEBT ISSUANCE. AND SO THIS CONCLUDES OUR PREPARED REMARKS.
WE ARE AVAILABLE TO RESPOND TO YOUR QUESTIONS.
AND I'LL JUST START OFF BY SAYING I APPRECIATE YOU INCLUDING FMPC 23.
WE SO WE DON'T HAVE TO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION AT COUNCIL AGENDA AGAIN.
I THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE HERE, AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUES ON THAT.
SO FOR NUMBER 16 WHAT STRIKES ME IS ABOUT SAYING THAT OPERATING FUNDS CAN SATISFY THE RESERVE, CAN SATISFY THE HEALTH PLAN.
WHEN THREE OF US WERE ELECTED, I THINK WE HAD, LIKE, $30 MILLION IN OUR HEALTH CARE RESERVE ACCOUNT.
IT WAS WIPED OUT THROUGH THE YEARS.
AND SO IS THERE A CHANGE TO THE AMOUNT THAT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE IN OUR GENERAL RESERVES, OR WE'RE JUST GOING TO TAKE A HIGHER RISK? HOW IS THAT WORKING? AND THEN IF YOU CAN ALSO TALK ABOUT I MEAN, WE'RE SELF-FUNDED FOR OUR HEALTH CARE PLAN.
DO WE HAVE REINSURANCE ON THAT?
[01:50:03]
SO TO ANSWER YOUR FIRST QUESTION, WE'VE WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS IN PRIOR BUDGET DISCUSSIONS.WE HAD A HIGH RESERVE WHEN YOU ALL CAME ON BOARD.
AND IT WAS THE RESULT OF US NOT MAKING CHANGES TO DESIGN PLANS THAT IMPACT EMPLOYEES.
YOU HAD EMPLOYED LOWER CLAIMS, PART OF IT WAS DUE TO THE FACT THAT MAYBE OUR PLAN WAS NOT AS ATTRACTIVE.
SO THERE WERE A NUMBER OF FACTORS IMPACTING SORT OF OUR HEALTH PLANS AND WHY WE HAD A HIGH FUND BALANCE SIMILAR TO THE APPROACH THAT WE TAKE FOR BOTH OUR RISK MANAGEMENT FUNDS AS WELL AND HEALTH BENEFIT FUNDS.
WE USE THAT FUND BALANCE TO SORT OF MANAGE THE COST TO BOTH THE CITY AND EMPLOYEES.
WE DO RECOGNIZE THAT WE HAVE A VERY HIGH UNASSIGNED FUND BALANCE IN THE GENERAL FUND.
WE'VE COME A LONG WAY IN OUR GENERAL FUND UNASSIGNED FUND BALANCE FROM A LOW OF 40, 30 DAYS BACK IN, IN PRIOR YEARS.
IF THERE IS AN ISSUE AND WE AND WE'VE MANAGED THAT OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS.
SO IS IT TRUE? I MEAN, WE'RE SELF-INSURED.
DO YOU HAVE REINSURANCE ON THE HEALTH PLAN? WE ARE. WHAT ARE THOSE LIMITS? AND SO WE ARE SELF-INSURED.
I'D HAVE TO GET THE DETAILS ON.
WE DO HAVE A POLICY ON CATASTROPHIC CLAIMS. AND SO I DON'T HAVE THAT DETAIL BEFORE ME.
BUT AGAIN, I THINK FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE WE HAVE A SIGNIFICANT UNASSIGNED FUND BALANCE.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE FUND BALANCE OF SOME OF OUR OTHER FUNDS, OUR OTHER OPERATING FUNDS, IF I LOOK AT LET'S SEE LET'S PULL UP DALLAS WATER UTILITIES FUND BALANCE.
WELL, IT'S OKAY THAT THAT ACTUALLY IS NOT WHAT MY CONCERN IS.
I THINK THAT'S A PRETTY STANDARD PRACTICE WHEN PEOPLE SELF FUND IS THEY HAVE THEIR OWN ACCOUNT.
AND SO WHILE I RECOGNIZE THAT, YOU KNOW, 70 DAYS OF CASH ON HAND IS, IS A HIGHER NUMBER. YOU KNOW, WE'VE SEEN CATASTROPHIC EVENTS.
PROBABLY MORE THAN OUR FAIR SHARE.
I KNOW BEFORE I WAS ON, IT WAS A LOWER NUMBER.
AND IF I MAY ADD SOME TO IT AS WELL.
WE DID SEVERAL YEARS AGO MAKE A CHANGE TO FMPC NUMBER 14, WHICH HAD TO DO WITH OUR INTERNAL SERVICE FUNDS HAVING FUND BALANCES.
AND WE CHANGED IT TO REQUIREMENT THAT THEY JUST MAINTAIN A POSITIVE CASH BALANCE AND SO THIS IS SIMILAR TO AN INTERNAL SERVICE FUND BECAUSE OUR INTERNAL SERVICE FUNDS ALL OF THEIR CONTRIBUTING FUNDS ARE OUR OPERATING FUNDS.
SO IN THE GENERAL FUND WE HAVE OVER $300 MILLION AVIATION, OVER $100 MILLION CONVENTION CENTER $60 MILLION WATER UTILITY, $90 MILLION.
AND SO IT'S BECAUSE WE HAVE THOSE LEVEL OF RESERVES, AND WE HAVE BEEN GROWING THOSE RESERVES, AND WE'VE BEEN CHANGING OUR FMPC CRITERIA RELATED TO HAVING MORE OF A GENERAL FUND RESERVE.
WE THOUGHT THAT IT WAS APPROPRIATE TO REDUCE THAT IN OUR EMPLOYEE HEALTH BENEFIT FUND.
NOT A PROBLEM. BUT OUR PRACTICE AND OUR INTERPRETATION HAS BEEN, AT LEAST FOR THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, IS NOT TO MAINTAIN A LARGE CASH BALANCE IN THE BENEFITS FUND BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MANY OTHER LARGE CASH BALANCES.
COULD YOU PROVIDE FOR US OTHER CITIES THAT HAVE THEIR OWN? YEAH. SO YOU WANT TO SEE WHAT TYPE OF RESERVE POLICY AND HOW THEY DO IT WITH SOME OF OUR COMPARATIVES.
[01:55:03]
WE CAN DO THAT. THAT'D BE GREAT.AND, YOU KNOW, AND I'LL JUST POINT OUT THAT WHILE WE DO HAVE SOME INSTANCES OF YOU KNOW, DECENT RESERVE LIKE THE CONVENTION CENTER, YOU SAID 60 MILLION, BUT WE STILL ALLOWED A LEAKY ROOF TO CONTINUE.
WE DIDN'T SPEND IT TO FIX THE ROOF.
SO WE'LL GET YOU WHAT YOU REQUESTED.
SO MY NEXT QUESTION IS ABOUT NUMBER 35, WHICH IS ABOUT THE CAPITAL DEBT, AND THIS IS ABOUT THE ADDITION THAT'S BEING MADE WITH CLARIFYING THAT YOU'RE EXCLUDING DEBT TO REPAY BE REPAID BY ANOTHER SOURCE OTHER THAN AD VALOREM TAXES.
SO CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE INCREASED RISK ASSOCIATED WITH THIS? AND, YOU KNOW, SPECIFICALLY OTHER SOURCES? I MEAN, WHAT ARE YOU TYING THAT TO? SO THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
AND WE'RE ONLY WE'RE TALKING SPECIFICALLY ABOUT CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION.
AND THE OTHER SOURCES WE'VE REFERENCED PRIMARILY STORMWATER.
SO THEY GO THROUGH AN ANNUAL RATE PROCESS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEIR RATES THAT THEY PROPOSE FOR THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR COVERS THEIR OPERATING EXPENSES AS WELL AS THEIR PLANNED DEBT PAYMENTS.
THE OTHER SOURCE THAT'S REFERENCED FAIR PARK.
AND SO THEY WENT THEY'RE GOING THROUGH A PROCESS TO RECOVER A SURCHARGE FROM THE INDIVIDUALS THAT USE THEIR FACILITIES.
AND SO THOSE ARE THE OTHER SOURCES THAT I'M REFERRING TO.
I'M NOT REFERRING TO LIKE ANOTHER GENERAL FUND DEPARTMENT, BUT REALLY JUST A DEDICATED REVENUE STREAM TO BE REPAID BY THOSE SOURCES.
OKAY. SO AND SO BOTH OF THOSE ARE EXAMPLES OF WE HAVE ISSUED CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION.
RIGHT. AND IT'S A REVENUE ITEM THAT, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW WE CAN CHARGE FOR.
IT'S GOT A VERY HIGH COLLECTION RATE.
AND I THINK IF IT WAS SPECIFIC TO REVENUE ITEMS LIKE THAT, THAT'S FAIR.
BUT VERY IT COULD BE VARIABLE.
AND THEN LIKE FAIR PARK, I THINK THAT'S A GREAT EXAMPLE WHERE, YOU KNOW, THAT CAN BE PROBLEMATIC.
WHAT IF THEY DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO PAY IT? I MEAN, THERE'S SOME, YOU KNOW, THINGS HAPPENING.
AND SO WE DON'T NECESSARILY KNOW THAT WE HAVE UNMITIGATED RISK WITH A FAIR PARK.
AND SO I JUST THINK THE WAY IT'S WORDED IS TOO BROAD.
AND SO IF IT WAS SPECIFYING FOR.
FOR UTILITY OR EVEN FRANCHISE DEPARTMENTS, SO, YOU KNOW, AVIATION, WATER, SANITATION, THAT'S ONE THING BECAUSE WE'RE DIRECT BILLING FOR THAT.
BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT WE ALWAYS KNOW WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THAT MONEY AVAILABLE FOR THE OTHERS.
YEAH. SO THAT'S MY ONLY OTHER ITEM.
ANYBODY ELSE? ALL RIGHT. WE WILL MOVE ON AND JUST GO DOWN THROUGH THE BRIEFING ITEMS. WE'LL JUST ACTUALLY TAKE THEM COLLECTIVELY F THROUGH N.
COLLEAGUES. I'M GOING TO GO JUST DOWN THE LINE.
GO AHEAD. WHICHEVER. LIKE THAT? YEAH. YEAH. HAVE AT IT RIGHT.
SO THIS IS ON THE TECHNOLOGY ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT.
AND I DID WARN THEM I WAS GOING TO TALK ABOUT THIS.
DO YOU HAVE THE DATE THAT YOU STARTED ON THIS PROJECT?
[02:00:22]
YEAH. SO WE HAVE AN ALERTING SYSTEM IN OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT AND OUR FIRE STATIONS THAT DOESN'T ALWAYS WORK AND IT'S TAKEN US THIS LONG TO PROCURE IT. I UNDERSTAND THEY WANTED TO GO AND UNDERSTAND WHAT WAS HAPPENING.I UNDERSTAND THEY WANTED TO SEE EVERY DIFFERENT POSSIBLE VENDOR GO THROUGH THE STEPS.
THIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY.
AND, YOU KNOW, I'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS WHERE IN MY DISTRICT, THEY LITERALLY WERE SLEEPING.
AND SO I JUST CONTINUE TO BE SHOCKED THAT WE DON'T EVEN HAVE A DATE.
LIKE I ALREADY THINK IT'S WAY, WAY, WAY PAST HOW LONG IT SHOULD TAKE.
I THINK THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN AN EMERGENCY PROCUREMENT.
I THINK WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS WITHIN A COUPLE OF MONTHS.
AND NOW THERE'S NOT EVEN A DATE.
OKAY, WELL, THIS IS WHY PEOPLE ARE SHOCKED ABOUT CITY GOVERNMENT.
THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, BEFORE WE LEAVE, I JUST HAVE A COUPLE COMMENTS ON HERE ON THE.
DO WE HAVE ANYONE FROM THE FIRE DEPARTMENT TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FIREARMS INVENTORY AND AUDIT? DOES ANYONE HERE I KNOW WE HAD ONE OF THE CHIEFS HERE.
ALL RIGHT. I DO HAVE SOME QUESTIONS.
I'LL FOLLOW UP ON A MEMO ON THAT ONE AND THEN THE WORKERS COMPENSATION AND RETURN TO WORK PROGRAMS. ONE OF MY OUR COLLEAGUES ASKED FOR THAT.
I CAN'T REMEMBER WHO IT WAS FOR THIS TO BE BRIEFED IN GPFM.
SO Y'ALL ARE MY WITNESSES, IF THAT GETS BROUGHT UP AGAIN.
THAT ITEM WAS HERE AND THEY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO ASK QUESTIONS.
WITH THAT BEING SAID, IT IS 3:07 P.M.
AND WE WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING.
THANK YOU.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.