Approved Minutes — original pdf

Approved Minutes

Technology Commission http://www.austintexas.gov/cttc REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Wednesday –June 11th, 2025 – 6:30PM Austin City Hall– Boards and Commissions Room – Room 1101 301 W 2nd St., Austin, TX 78701 Please go to http://www.austintexas.gov/cityclerk/boards_commissions/meetings/10_1.htm for backup materials associated with this agenda. All ATXN (City Channel 6) programming is cablecast on Spectrum, Grande Communications, and Google Fiber on their cable channel 6, on AT&T U-Verse Channel 99 and webcast online. Over 20 meetings per month, including this commission meeting, are available on demand online, typically within a found at: http://www.austintexas.gov/page/atxn-video-archive. the cablecast. Schedules and video can be few hours of The Technology Commission convened in a REGULAR meeting on Wednesday, June 11th, 2025, at 301 W 2nd St. in Austin, Texas. Current Commission Members Keith Pena-Villa ‐ Mayor Kirk Watson Brian AM Williams ‐ Council Member Natasha Harper‐Madison, District 1 Steven Apodaca – Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, District 2 Carina Alderete ‐ Council Member José Velasquez, District 3 Suzanne Heritage ‐ Council Member José “Chito” Vela, District 4 Thomas Rice‐ Council Member Ryan Alter, District 5 Rachel Frock‐ Council Member Krista Laine, District 6 Benjamin Combee ‐ Council Member Mike Seigel, District 7 Nicholas Eastwood ‐ Council Member Paige Ellis, District 8 Ibiye Anga – Council Member Zohaib “Zo” Qadri, District 9 Milena Pribic ‐ Council Member Marc Duchen, District 10 Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance in person: Steven Apodaca, Chair Nicolas Eastwood Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Carina Alderete, Vice-Chair Thomas Rice 1 Rachel Frock Benjamin Combee Board Members/Commissioners Not in Attendance: Ibiye Anga Keith Pena-Villa Milena Pribic Suzanne Heritage CALL TO ORDER Chair Apodaca called the Community Technology and Telecommunications Meeting to order at 6:50 p.m. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first ten speakers who register to speak no later than noon on the day before the meeting will be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. There were no speakers registered to deliver comments. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Technology Commission regular meeting on May 14th, 2025. Motion to approve the meeting minutes was made by Commissioner Eastwood and seconded by Commissioner Combee. The minutes were approved on a vote of 6-0. DISCUSSION ITEMS 2. 3. Presentation on PANO AI, a wildfire tracking system (Christopher Vetromile, Wildfire Mitigation Manager, Austin Energy) The presentation on PANO AI’s Wildfire Tracking System was delivered by Christpher Vetromile and can be viewed at this link: https://austintx.new.swagit.com/videos/345480 Presentation on the applications received for the Grant for Technology Opportunities Mini and Capacity Pathways (Dan Martinez, Business Process Specialist, Economic Development Department)  The presentation on the received GTOPs Mini and Capacity applications was delivered by Dan Martinez and can be viewed at this link: https://austintx.new.swagit.com/videos/345480 DISSCUSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2 4. Technology Commission 2026 annual workplan, final revisions and approval Chair Apodaca began by summarizing all sections of the annual review and highlighting key items for the commission. After running through the document at a high level, Chair Apodaca opened the floor to additions, edits, and questions. Commissioner Frock asked for clarification on the ability to form working groups not mentioned on the 2026 work plan to which Chair Apodaca confirmed that working groups could always be established at a later date. Commissioner Combee inquired about the commission’s lack of items related to cable and telecommunications and if that was even the current focus of the group. Chair Apodaca mentioned that a lot of those efforts have shifted to state level discussions and is now considered a legacy item for this commission. The chair explained that the item was left on the bylaws after the revision to ensure it is still within the group’s scope. Chair Apodaca read the notes sent by Commissioner Williams who was not able to attend this session. The first item was looking for specificity on how the group defines Community Technology to which Chair Apodaca responded that Community Technology relates to technologies that benefit the community and empower residents around digital communication and resources surrounding the subject matter. Commissioner Williams next question was “Do we have anything that outlines our collaboration with City departments on their AI and technology pursuits?” Commissioner Eastwood noted that Item C under subsection 2 of the document answered that question. Commissioner Williams also wanted an update now that the Texas legislative session has come to a close as well as on the City’s AI policy for the sake of the AI working group. Chair Apodaca recommended focusing on the commissions itinerary for the year by having each meeting revolve around a particular theme. July was designated for AI and surveillance. August’s meeting will revolve around digital workforce and upskilling. September’s focus will serve as a legislative recap (Executive liaison, Ann Eaton, suggested bringing the Intergovernmental Relations team into this session to give that recap). October’s meeting may revolve around updates and edits for the Grant for Technology Opportunities Program as well as Digital Inclusion Week. November will be set aside for infrastructure, broadband equity, and affordability since BEAD and state funding challenges will likely be resolved by then. The commission does not meet in December, so the January meeting will highlight opportunities for city process improvements and emerging technologies updates. The Community Listening sessions were discussed as a possible focus of a meeting, but the commission will discuss it further before assigning it to any particular meeting. Ann Eaton mentioned that the commission could host a community listening session in lieu of a standard commission meeting. Vice Chair Alderete offered to help lead that working group. Motion to approve the annual workplan was made by Commissioner Eastwood and seconded by Vice Chair Alderete. The workplan was approved on a vote of 6-0. 5. Approval of a Community Listening Sessions planning work group 3 This item was not addressed at this session due to a lack of time. WORKING GROUP UPDATES 6. 7. Public Surveillance working group updates regarding further meetings with surveillance stakeholders The chair of this working group was not present to deliver an update on this group’s progress. This working group has not met for some time. Artificial Intelligence Working Group updates surrounding development of recommendation post stakeholder engagement This working group update was mentioned in an earlier item. This group will meet now that the new AI legislation has been passed. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS • Final list of GTOPs Mini and Capacity Awardees • Topics related to AI and surveillance ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:08pm. 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 request. Meeting locations are planned with wheelchair access. If you require Sign Language Interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least 2 days before the meeting date. Please contact Dan Martinez at the Community Technology Divison at (512) 974- 3510, for additional information; TTY users’ route through Relay Texas at 711. For more information on the Community Technology & Telecommunications Commission, please visit their website at http://www.austintexas.gov/cttc or contact Dan Martinez at dan.martinez@austintexas.gov The Minutes were approved at the July 9th, 2025 Meeting on Commissioner Combee’s motion and Commissioner Pena-Villa’s second with a final vote of 6-0-1. Commissioner Williams abstained. 4