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20240320-006: Budget Recommendation Regarding Current Early Childhood Investments — original pdf
Recommendation
Agenda Item 3: Draft board recommendation on renters — original pdf
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION 20240320-003A Date: March 20, 2024 Subject: City’s FY 2024 – 2025 Budget (Renters) Motioned By: Seconded By: Recommendation The Budget of the City of Austin should respect renters as the equal of homeowners. Description of Recommendation to Council Require that the City of Austin 2024-25 Budget respect renters as "Typical" residents of Austin. Require that the City of Austin 2024-25 Budget's "Taxpayer Impact Statement" add a line for the average tax per rental unit, which includes the property tax and all other taxes and annual fees on rental properties. Require that the City of Austin 2024-25 Budget's "Taxpayer Impact Statement" rename the line "TOTAL YEARLY IMPACT" to "TOTAL YEARLY IMPACT (homeowner)" and add a line for "TOTAL YEARLY IMPACT (renter)", which includes the average taxes and fees paid per rental unit. Require that the City of Austin 2024-25 Budget's "Taxpayer Impact Statement" include a calculation of "TOTAL YEARLY IMPACT (renter)" for the previous budget, Fiscal Year 2023- 24, and compute a percentage increase from Fiscal Year 2023-24 to Fiscal Year 2024-25. Require that the City of Austin 2024-25 Budget's "Taxpayer Impact Statement" use the bottom half of the page to hold a table of "TOTAL YEARLY IMPACT" for Austin residents at all income levels. Rows should be by household income for every 10th percentile, from bottom 10% to top 10%. City Staff should estimate what proportion of each income bracket are homeowners and renters and assign an average (mathematical mean) property tax weighted by that proportion, based on properties that income bracket would rent or own. Unless City staff have more detailed knowledge, they can assume that residents in the bottom 10th percentile of income uses the average (mathematical mean) of the bottom 10th percentile of residential Austin Energy usage, residential Austin Water usage, etc.. Rationale: The City of Austin 2023-24 Budget's “Taxpayer Impact Statement” refers to a ““Typical” Resident Ratepayer” who pays property tax with a homestead exemption and, therefore, must be a homeowner. The 2023-24 budget claims that this “Typical” Austin resident owns a house worth $499,524. 1 of 2 In fact, the City of Austin actually has a majority of renters. The U.S. Census Bureau for the time period 2017-2021 reports that only 44.7% of the housing units in Austin are owner-occupied. A household owning a property worth $499,524 is likely in the top 25th percentile of income for the City of Austin. …
Agenda Item 3: Draft board recommendation on retirement programs — original pdf
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION 20240320-003B Date: March 20, 2024 Subject: City’s FY 2024 – 2025 Budget (Retirement Programs) Motioned By: Seconded By: Recommendation Reduce risk by moving retirement programs from pensions to defined contribution. Description of Recommendation to Council Remove risk by changing our retirement programs from pensions to defined-contribution programs. Remove risk by paying other parties to accept Austin’s existing pension liabilities. Payment could be either a series of future annual payments or an immediate payment, using funds raised by General Obligations bonds. Rationale: The City of Austin currently promises pensions to its employees. That is, we specify benefits after they retire for as long as they live. This sounds nice, but the hard truth is that we do not know the financial future. We do not know the price today of those promises. Those promises have already created a gigantic problem. The 2023-24 Budget says our unfunded actuarial accrued liabilities in 2020 were “nearly $2.4 billion”. That is more than one-and-a-half years of the annual General Fund. Every resident, adults and children, lost more than $100 benefits in Fiscal Year 2023-24 because the City of Austin spent that money fixing just 1/30th of our pension liability. Pensions are dangerous. They crippled America’s car industry. They almost ended America’s steel industry. And multiple cities have declared bankruptcy due to the burdens of pension: Detroit MI, Stockton CA, San Bernardino CA, and more. Pension programs can harm more than the City of Austin; they might harm our employees in the future who would be relying on the City of Austin for those pension in their retirement. To ensure the City of Austin’s economic prosperity, it should not make unpredictable promises about the future. It should “pay as we go” with its employees. That means a defined contribution plan, which puts a fixed-multiple of the employee’s salary into a retirement program this fiscal year, without any promises about the future. 1 of 2 The risk from existing liabilities caused by past pension programs should be removed from the City of Austin budget. That can be done by paying a financial firm to accept the risk, in exchange for fixed future payments or a lump sum, raised with General Obligation bonds. The risk could also be removed by offering fixed or lump sum payments to holders of the pensions. Vote For: Against: Abstain: Absent: Attest: [Staff or board member can sign] 2 …
Agenda Item 3: Draft board recommendation on sales-tax income — original pdf
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION 20240320-003C Date: March 20, 2024 Subject: City’s FY 2024 – 2025 Budget (Sales-Tax Income) Motioned By: Seconded By: Recommendation Investigate hedging sales-tax income to reduce uncertainty and increase the budget. Description of Recommendation to Council Ask the City Manager to investigate hedging as a way to reduce the uncertainty in sales-tax income. Specifically, the City Manager should ask financial institutions how much they might bid in exchange for 80% of next fiscal-year’s sales tax revenue. If City Council accepted such an offer, the City of Austin would have a more stable and predictable income, allowing us to plan better and increase the budget. Rationale: The City of Austin’s income from sales tax is large and unpredictable. The 2023-24 Budget states that sales tax was 7% of income. But it also shows that, over the last decade, its income is unpredictable: growing 25% some years and 0% in others. But most of the City of Austin’s expenses are predictable and fixed. According to staff, “70 to 80%” of the expenses are wages, which are steady expenses. With a variable income and fixed expenses, it is easy for the City of Austin to overspend and run out of money. The result would be drastically slashing programs during the middle of a fiscal year, which would be harmful to the economic prosperity of all Austinites. The City’s staff knows about this danger and warns about it in the 2023-24 Budget: “City financial staff have long advocated thoughtfulness and restraint in projecting sales tax revenues, in the knowledge that periodic economic disruptions and resulting contractions of sales tax revenue—such as the one witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic—are inevitable.” and “… actual sales tax receipts falling short of budgeted levels can have severe repercussions with respect to maintaining a balanced General Fund budget, there are no corollary consequences should this revenue exceed projections.” The City of Austin could plan better and have a larger budget if we exchange the variable income from sales tax for a steady predictable income. That is, find a financial institution that is willing to trade: it will pay Austin a stead income in return for the accepting the unsteady income from sales tax. In the financial lingo, this is called 1 of 2 “selling risk” or “hedging”. It is very common in the business world. For example, Southwest Airlines could lose a lot of money if …
Answers to ECC Budget Workgroup questions — original pdf
Answers to ECC Budget Workgroup questions Updated 3/19/2024 1. Is there usually demand for 8 pre-K classrooms? Are there ever issues with being able to use up these funds? And if there were extra funds, could they go to Pre-K partnerships? There was only one year during the pandemic in which the City had trouble finding districts that could use all of these funds. That year, we provided funds for classroom supplies to PKP classrooms through UWATX by adding the funds into the City’s exis�ng ARPA agreement with UWATX. If there were an issue being able to use the funds in a given year, we would likely need Council approval to use the funds for a different need/purpose. 2. What is the impact of each of the ARPA funded programs? How many people served, etc.? They are trying to understand the impact of not having this funding anymore. Child care In 2023, WFS used ARPA funds to provide child care for 189 unduplicated children. ARPA direct child care funds were focused on providing care for families needing con�nuity of child care to avoid disrup�ons in care, care for essen�al workers living outside of Aus�n Full Purpose area who were not eligible for other essen�al worker funding, and care for children aged three years and younger and their older siblings. 62% the families served within this funding were from single parent households. These funds prevented child care disrup�ons, reduced the number of families and children on the child care subsidy waitlists, improved access to early educa�on for these children, and helped their parents remain in the workforce. Premium pay essen�al worker wage s�pends 2022 - $2500 • 92 creden�aled child care teachers (AA, BA, or MA) • 29 teachers with CDAs • 137 non-creden�aled child care staff who work in high quality programs 2023 - $1200 • 343 non-creden�aled child care staff who work in high quality programs • (Note, in 2023, Workforce Solu�ons used other quality dollars – i.e. not ARPA funds – to provide premium pay wage s�pends to 81 creden�aled child care teachers and 20 teachers with CDAs.) A follow up survey was sent to the 2023 Jeanete Watson recipients in February. This included those who received addi�onal ARPA Premium Pay S�pends. Of the 212 recipients who completed the survey roughly 1 year from ini�ally applying for Jeanete Watson, 88% (187 out of 212 responses) reported s�ll being …
Item 5: Children's Funding Project presentation — original pdf
Strategies for Local Investment in Early Child Care Margo Kinneberg (United Way) on behalf of the Children’s Funding Project Work Group Austin Early Education Council • March 2024 Agenda 1 1. About the Children’s Funding Project Cohort 2. Additional Background 3. The Case for an Investment in Early Child Care 4. Policy Proposal: Four Investment Strategies 5. Cost of Implementation 6. Administration and Governance 7. Next Steps Strategies for Local Investment in Early Child Care Children’s Funding Project Work Group | 2024 About the Children’s Funding Project Cohort 2 • CFP is a national nonprofit that helps communities expand equitable opportunities for children and youth through strategic public financing. • 17+ months in a cohort of municipalities nation -wide • Austin Work Group comprises members of City and County agencies, elected officials and their staff, WFS Capital Area, United Way for Greater Austin, and additional child care stakeholders Strategies for Local Investment in Early Child Care Children’s Funding Project Work Group | 2024 Additional Background 3 • 35+ years of community engagement Success by 6 Coalition, Austin Early Childhood Council • Lessons learned from the pandemic and ARPA investments • Urban Institute study on nontraditional hour care and subsequent pilot • CFP Cost Modeling Strategies for Local Investment in Early Child Care Children’s Funding Project Work Group | 2024 The Case for a Significant Investment in Child Care 4 • Workforce • Affordability • Accessibility • School Readiness • Market Failure • Equity • Social Returns “The business model for child care, which is a market-based system, is broken.[….] Bottom line – it is almost impossible to deliver sustainable, high-quality, full-day, year-round child care for infants and toddlers at a price that families can afford or are willing to pay.” - “Child Care and Economic Development,” TXP, Inc. (Dec 2023) Strategies for Local Investment in Early Child Care Children’s Funding Project Work Group | 2024 Recommended Investment Strategies 5 We propose four strategies to stabilize the industry and increase access to affordable, high quality child care for families in our community: 1. Subsidize birth through age 3 contracted slots 2. Expand nontraditional hour care 3. Build quality and capacity 4. Create a business-government alliance Strategies for Local Investment in Early Child Care Children’s Funding Project Work Group | 2024 Strategy One: Subsidize Birth through 3 Contracted Slots 6 • What are contracted slots? Guaranteed capacity • P a y for …
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Recommendation 20240320-002- Immediate and future funding for the Red River Cultural District — original pdf
RECOMMENDATION DOWNTOWN COMMISSION Recommendation Number: 20240320‐002 Immediate and future funding for the Red River Cultural District WHEREAS, On February 9, 2024, City Council approved a resolution directing the City Manager to return to Council with an Economic and Cultural District Framework, identifying funding and support for Red River Cultural District, and WHEREAS, The Red River Cultural District is the Austin’s largest geographically contiguous collection of live music venues hosting local and touring artists from a diverse range of backgrounds and a wealth of genres, from hip‐hip to Latin to LGBTQIA+ to independent rock and more; and WHEREAS, other designated Austin Cultural Districts have received recent funding in amounts ranging from $120,000 to $300,000; and WHEREAS, Austin’s live music industry is a primary driver of tourism; and WHEREAS, Austin’s live music venues face dramatically escalating rent and operating costs; and WHEREAS, the Red River Cultural District produces two annual festival which are completely free and open to the public, and on February 15, 2024 City Council passed a resolution directing the City Manager to investigate ways to preserve accessible, inclusive, open‐to‐the‐public events and to identify opportunities for the City to support and promote community events NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Downtown Commission recommends that Austin City Council to allocate immediate and future funding to include in the Fiscal Year 24‐25 Budget to the Red River Cultural District consistent with amounts allocated to other Cultural Districts, through its managing entity, Red River Merchants Association. Date of Approval: March 20,2024 Record of the vote: 6‐0 For: Chair Harris, Vice Chair Ishmael, Commissioners Coufal, Lavigne, Levinson and Shifferd Absent: Commissioners Cardona‐Beiler, Major and Ortega (Staff or board member can sign) Attest: Christine Maguire, Executive Liaison 3/22/2024
Recommendation 20240320-003 - Downtown Vehicle Safety Mitigation Plan FY 2025 Budget — original pdf
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Downtown Commission Recommendation Number 20240320-003: Downtown Vehicle Safety Mitigation Plan FY 2025 Budget Recommendation The Downtown Commission recommends that the Austin City Council appropriate funding in the amount of $518,291.19 purchase 65 Meridian Archer movable street barricades and associated equipment and training as shown on the attached Quote from to Meridian Rapid Defense Group Sales LLC and thereby equip the Austin Police Department and Transportation and Public Works Department with sufficient barricades to enhance pedestrian safety for Downtown activities and events. Motioned By: ________________________ Commissioner Levinson Seconded By: __________________________ Commissioner Coufal Date of Approval: March 20, 2024 Vote: ___-___ 0 6 0 0 Against: Abstain: Absent: Vacant: two vacancies For: Chair Harris, Vice Chair Ishmael, Commissioners Coufal, Lavigne, Levinson and Shifferd Commissioners Cardona-Beiler, Major and Ortega Attest: Christine Maguire, Commission Executive Liaison, Economic Development Department __________________________________________
Recommendation:20240320-004: Recommendation Study to Understand Real-World Needs — original pdf
Recommendation
Recommendation 20240320-006: Create a Department of Veteran Affairs and Military Affairs — original pdf
Recommendation
Approved Minutes — original pdf
Meeting of the Codes and Ordinances Joint Committee March 20, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. Permitting and Development Center (PDC) – Room #2103 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive Austin, TX 78752 Some members of the Codes and Ordinances Joint Committee may be participating in the video conference. Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely by telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once, either in-person or remotely, and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration no later than noon the day before the meeting is required for remote participation. To at 512-974-7288 or email Jordan.Feldman@austintexas.gov. Jordan Feldman, the board call or register, liaison, COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT Claire Hempel (Chair) Alejandra Flores (Vice-Chair) Greg Anderson Felicity Maxwell Lonny Stern COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT Awais Azhar Betsy Greenberg CITY STAFF PRESENT Jordan Feldman, Planning Department Paul Books, Planning Department Donald Jackson, Economic Development Department CALL TO ORDER Chair Hempel called the meeting to order at 6:04 pm. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL 1 Speakers signed up prior to commencement of the meeting will be allowed to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. No speakers signed up for public communication. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approval of the February 21, 2024, meeting minutes. On a motion by Vice Chair Flores, seconded by Commissioner Maxwell, the minutes from the February 21st, 2024, meeting were approved unanimously (5-0) with Commissioners Greenberg and Azhar absent. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2. C20-2023-026 Live Music and Creative Space Bonus Phase 2. Discussion and possible action to recommend amendments to City Code Title 25 (Land Development) to create a Creative Combining District and Development Bonus Program to enhance the development and preservation of live music venues and creative sector businesses. City Staff: Donald Jackson, Economic Development Department, (512) 974- 2214, DonaldE.Jackson@austintexas.gov. Chair Hempel motion to recommend the amendment to Planning Commission seconded by Commissioner Maxwell 5-0, Commissioners Greenberg Azhar absent. 3. Update on Potential Upcoming and Active Code Amendments: City Staff: Jordan Feldman, Planning Department, (512) 974-7288, Jordan.Feldman@austintexas.gov. DISCUSSION ITEMS Jordan Feldman presented. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT Meeting adjourned at 7:19 pm. The minutes were approved at the April 1st, 2024 meeting on Chair Hempel motion, Commissioner Azhar second on a vote of 6-0. (Commissioner Maxwell Absent) The City of Austin is committed to compliance with the American with Disabilities Act. Reasonable modifications and equal access to communications will be provided upon …
Approved Minutes — original pdf
Downtown Commission Meeting Minutes Wednesday, March 20, 2024 DOWNTOWN COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY, March 20, 2024 The Downtown Commission convened the regular meeting on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, at 301 W. 2nd Street in hybrid meeting format. COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE August Harris, Chair Ralph E Ishmael, Jr. Vice-Chair Liz Coufal Kimberly Levinson Sania D. Shifferd COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE REMOTELY Jennifer Franklin David Holmes Mike Lavigne Anne Charlotte Patterson Spencer Schumacher CALL TO ORDER Chair Harris called the meeting of the Downtown Commission to order at 5:32 pm APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Downtown Commission February 21, 2024 meeting. The minutes from the meeting on 02/21/24 were approved on Vice Chair Ishmael’s motion, Commissioner Levinson’s second on a 6-0 vote. Commissioners Cardona- Beiler, Major and Ortega were absent. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEM 2. Approve a recommendation to City Council for immediate and future funding that is consistent with other Cultural Districts to support activities in the Red River Cultural District through its management entity, the Red River Merchants Association. Presentation by Nicole Klepadlo, Interim Executive Director, Red River Cultural District. Downtown Commission Meeting Minutes Wednesday, March 20, 2024 A motion to approve Recommendation 20240320-002 was made by Commissioner Levinson, Commissioner Coufal’s second. Chair Harris recessed the Downtown Commission meeting without objection at 6:03pm. Chair Harris reconvened the Downtown Commission meeting at 6:15pm. A motion to amend was made by Vice Chair Ishmael and seconded by Commissioner Levinson. The amendment was to edit the final passage to read as follows: “…that the Downtown Commission recommends that Austin City Council to allocate immediate and future funding to include the Fiscal Year 24-25 Budget to the Red River Cultural District consistent with amounts allocated to other Cultural Districts, through its managing entity, Red River Merchants Association.” The amendment was approved on a 6-0 vote. The motion to approve Recommendation 20240320-002 as amended was approved on Commissioner Levinson’s motion, Commissioner Coufal’s second on a 6-0 vote. Commissioners Cardona-Beiler, Major and Ortega were absent. 3. Approve a recommendation to City Council to appropriate funding during the FY 2025 Budget to equip the Austin Police Department and Transportation and Public Works Department with sufficient barricades to enhance pedestrian safety for Downtown activities and events. The motion to approve Recommendation 20240320-003 was approved on Commissioner Levinson’s motion, Commissioner Coufal’s second on a 6-0 vote. Commissioners Cardona-Beiler, Major and Ortega were absent. 4. Approve a …
Approved Minutes — original pdf
COMMISSION ON VETERAN AFFAIRS REGULAR MEETING MINUTES WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 2024 The COMMISSION ON VETERANS AFFAIRS convened in a REGULAR Meeting on WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 2024, at the City of Austin Permitting & Development Center at 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr, Austin, TX 78752. Chair CHRISTOPHER WILSON called the COMMISSION ON VETERANS AFFAIRS MEETING to order at 7:04pm CST. Commissioners in Attendance: Christopher Wilson (Chair) Armando Gonzales Curtis Wyman Michael Mcinerney Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Mark Balch Patrick Bissett William Dahlstrom Amber Schleuning Commissioners Absent: Philip Reichert Kevin Lenau (Vice-Chair) Maria Brown-Spence Staff in Attendance: Jesus Simental – Veterans Administrator, Office of Civil Rights PUBLIC COMMUNICATION – GENERAL APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. The minutes from the meeting of 2/21/2024 were approved on Chair Christopher Wilson’s motion, second by Michael Mcinerney on a 8-0 vote. Commissioner Kevin Lenau, Maria Brown-Spence and Philip Reichert were absent. STAFF BRIEFINGS DISCUSSION ITEMS 2. Commissioner Marc Balch updated the rest of the commission on his talk with the Veterans Administration on what they are doing for veteran outreach. Individual was identified at the Temple VA that would assist with identifying what the VA is doing. 3. Commissioner Maria Brown-Spence was not present at the March meeting so item 3 was skipped on the agenda and will carry over to the April meeting. Discussion on results and findings from Commissioner Maria Brown-Spence on a list of nonprofits from I Live Here I Give Here Amplify Austin nonprofit. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 4. There was a discussion and vote to resubmit Recommendation 20240320-004 Requesting a study to understand real world needs of Travis County-based veterans. Chair Christopher Wilson made a motion to approve the resubmission and Commissioner Michael Mcinerney second the vote. Recommendation was passed on an 8-0 vote. 5. There was a discussion and vote on joining the Joint Inclusion Committee (JIC). Chair Christopher Wilson made a motion to join JIC and Commissioner Michael Mcinerney second the vote. Passed on an 8-0 vote. 6. There was a discussion and vote to resubmit Recommendation 20240320-006 To create a department of Veterans Affairs and Military Affairs. Chair Christopher Wilson made a motion to approve resubmission and Commissioner Michael Mcinerney second the vote. Recommendation was passed on an 8-0 vote. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT END: 8:03 PM 7. Chair C. Wilson made the motion to adjourn. M. Mcinerney second the motion. Pass unanimously 8-0. Kevin Lenau, Philip Reichert, and Maria …
Approved Minutes — original pdf
EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 20, 2024 EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MINUTES WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20, 2024 The Early Childhood Council convened in a regular meeting on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, at Permitting and Development Center, Room #1406, 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive, in Austin, Texas. Chair McHorse called the Early Childhood Council Meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. Board Members in Attendance: Chair McHorse, Vice Chair Green-Otero, and Members Cormie, Gordon, Hamilton, Hedrick, McCollum, Menard, Navarro, and Vargas Board Members in Attendance Remotely: Staff in Attendance: Caitlin Oliver, Donna Sundstrom, Cindy Gamez, and Rachel Farley PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first five speakers to register prior to the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three- minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. There was no public comment. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Early Childhood Council Regular Meeting on February 14, 2024 The minutes from the meeting on 2/14/2024 were approved on Vice Chair Green-Otero’s motion and Member Hamilton’s second, on an 8-0 vote. Members Navarro and McCollum not present at time of the vote. STAFF BRIEFINGS EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES 2. MARCH 20, 2024 Updates from Caitlin Oliver, Austin Public Health, regarding a planning grant from Home Grown to build a comprehensive network for local child care home providers and SX6 FBCC Workgroup Tour of Family Based Homes on April 20 Caitlin Oliver, staff liaison, gave the following updates: • The Austin application for the Home Grown Building Comprehensive Networks cohort was accepted. APH will be receiving $25,000 in planning grant funds. Once the planning grant period is over, the City would be eligible to apply for the implementation grant funds in November, which would require matching funds from the City. More information is in the one-pager posted as backup. • The Success By 6 Coalition’s Family-Based Child Care Workgroup, or FBCC Workgroup, is hosting a Tour of Child Care Homes on Saturday, April 20, from 8:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. The tour gives child care workers & local leaders the opportunity to visit four home care providers and learn more about various programs. Participants will receive a certificate with four hours of professional development credit. The tour is free of cost. Spaces are limited, register by next Monday, March 25, 2024. • The Week of the Young Child is April 6-12. Council Member Fuentes …
Approved Minutes — original pdf
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION REGULAR CALLED MEETING MINUTES Wednesday, March 20, 2024 The Economic Prosperity Commission convened in a REGULAR CALLED meeting on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, at 301 W. 2nd Street, Room 1101, Austin, Texas. Vice Chair Michael Nahas called the Economic Prosperity Commission Meeting to order at 6:37 p.m. Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance in Person: Raquel Valdez Sanchez (3), Michael Nahas (4), Luis Osta Lugo (8), Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Benjamin Salazar (2), Kelsey Hitchingham (10), Laura Dixon (Mayor) Absent: Tina Cannon (9), Christiana Ponder (1), Amy Noel (7) Vacancy: District 5, District 6 PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Economic Prosperity Commission Regular Meeting on February 21, 2024. The minutes from the meeting of February 21, 2024, were approved on Commissioner Osta Lugo’s motion, Commissioner Valdez Sanchez’s second on a 6-0 vote. Commissioners Cannon, Ponder, and Noel were absent. WORKING GROUP/COMMITTEE UPDATES 2. Updates from the Jobs, Procurement, and Infrastructure working groups. At the commission’s February 21, 2024 meeting, the working groups were asked to contribute to the commission’s budget recommendation to City Council (Agenda Item 3). The Procurement and Infrastructure working groups were not able to meet since the February 21, 2024 meeting; they have no updates. Update from the Jobs working group (Commissioners Nahas, Valdez Sanchez, Salazar): they met yesterday to discuss potential budget recommendations, talked mostly about City Council’s proposed resolution for an Austin 1 Infrastructure Academy, whose goal is to train people in construction and infrastructure jobs. They also discussed the Austin Urban Technology Movement, which offers training in the technology industry and is a potential speaker at a future commission meeting. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 3. Discuss and approve the commission’s recommendation to City Council for the City’s FY 2024-2025 budget. Vice Chair Nahas shared with the commission potential budget recommendations related to renters, retirement programs, and sales-tax income. During this agenda item Commissioner Dixon moved off the virtual dais, creating a loss of quorum, so the commission did not take action on any potential recommendation and moved on to the remaining discussion-only items. DISCUSSION ITEMS 4. Discuss entrepreneur-in-residence programs at universities and how these programs can foster and retain talent locally. Commissioner Osta Lugo led discussion on the limited availability of these types of programs, the potential for them to be used in Austin for international students to …