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AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION Wednesday, March 4th, 2026 AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Wednesday, March 4th, 2026 The Austin Travis County Public Health Commission convened in a regular meeting on Wednesday, March 4th, 2026, at 301 West 2nd Street in Austin, Texas. Chair Natalie Poindexter called the Austin Travis County Public Health Commission Meeting to order at 2:39 pm. Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance: Natalie Poindexter, Chair Chris Crookham Jacob Whitty Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Enrique Lin Shiao, Vice Chair Jawad Ali William Rice Martha Lujan Cara Dahlhausen Board Members/Commissioners Absent: NONE Ex-Officio and Staff in Attendance: Adrienne Sturrup, Direcor, Austin Public Health Dr. Desmar Walkes, Austin/Travis County Public Health Authority Daniela Romero, Staff, Austin Public Health Ex-Officio and Staff in Attendance Remotely: Ana Almaguel Megan Cermak Juanita Jackson Ex-Officio and Staff Absent: Perla Cavazos PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Austin Travis County Public Health Commission regular meeting on March 4th, 2026. The minutes for the regular meeting of February 4th, 2026, were approved on Commissioner Jacob Whitty’s motion, Commissioner William Rice second on a 6-0 vote. (Off-dais: Commissioner Enrique Lin Shiao and Commissioner Martha Lujan) DISCUSSION ITEMS 2. 3. Presentation by the Refugee Collective. Presentation by Meg Erskine, Co-Founder and CEO. Review and discuss goals set for FY 2026. The Commission reviewed the five primary goals established for the next six months of the 2026 fiscal year. The Chair emphasized defining these goals within the specific scope and capabilities of Public Health. Commissioners will be assigned to each goal by the chair and will be discussed in next months agenda. Goal 1: Food Plan and Support: Focus on the Food Plan Advisory Board and associated committee work. Goal 2: Community Partnerships: Exploring data-sharing and asset mapping with partners like the University of Texas (UT) to support ongoing commission work. Goal 3: Refugee Equity and Health: Addressing the health needs of the refugee community; noted the attendance of the Refugee Collective at the current meeting. Goal 4: Public Health Education and Awareness: Increasing information dissemination to connected communities and amplifying the work of Ex-Officios. Commissioner Crookham will discuss topic with sustainability committee and report back with updates. Goal 5: Economic Impacts of Public Health: Analyzing the preventative value of public health and the economic consequences when it is not prioritized in policy conversations. After discussing, this goal will now explore the increased use of AI, specifically how the city/county can use secure HIPAA-compliant AI licenses to analyze complex population health data sets more efficiently. 4. Received updates from commissioners on assigned action items. Sexual Health Funding: Commissioner Whitty received requested data from Austin Public Health (APH) and will present a draft recommendation at the next meeting. Community Partnership: Vice Chair Lin Shiao, Commissioner Crookham and Commissioner Rice have meeting scheduled with Dr. Khan tomorrow. Commissioners will provide updates during the next meeting. Green Roofs: The Chair proposed exploring recommendations for "green roofs" and rooftop farming (referencing successful models in Malaysia and the UK). This initiative aims to mitigate heat and improve food infrastructure. Director Sturrup (Austin Public Health) suggested consulting with the Planning and Zoning Commission and the Transportation and Natural Resources (T&R) department. The goal is to leverage city development incentives to ensure new builds meet specific public health and environmental standards. 2 5. Discussion of draft recommendation “Bridging Public Health Funding” created by Commissioner Chris Crookham. Commissioner Crookham is currently refining the draft recommendation by incorporating previous feedback and new data from an upcoming consultation with Dr. Kahn. An updated version with these technical insights and revised language will be presented at the April meeting. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 6. 7. 8. 9. Presentation from Communities in Schools of Central Texas Presentation from APH Officer election Redrafting heat related recommendation ADJOURNMENT Chair Natalie Poindexter adjourned the meeting at 3:54 p.m. without objection. 3