JOINT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE HYBRID MEETING FORMAT SPECIAL CALED MEETING July 8th, 2024 at 7 pm Shudde Fath Conference Room, Austin Energy Headquarters 4815 Mueller Blvd, Austin, TX 78723 Some members of the Committee may be participating by videoconference Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely via 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 by telephone. To register to speak remotely, email or call Rohan Lilauwala at (Rohan.lilauwala@austintexas.gov or 512-974-9394). CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS: Home Commission Electric Utility Commission Resource Management Commission Urban Transportation Commission Environmental Commission Zero Waste Advisory Commission Community Development Commission Austin Travis County Food Policy Board Economic Prosperity Commission Water & Wastewater Commission Parks & Recreation Board Design Commission Planning Commission Austin/Travis County Public Health Commission City Council Mayor’s Representative Mayor’s Representative Mayor’s Representative Mayor’s Representative Mayor’s Representative Alternate Randall Chapman Member Kaiba White (Chair) Charlotte Davis (Vice-Chair) Genell Gary Diana Wheeler Haris Qureshi Melissa Rothrock Vacant Larry Franklin Amy Noel Chris Maxwell-Gaines Stephanie Bazan Jon Salinas Vacant Vacant Vacant Richard Brimer Craig Nazor Miriam Garcia Vacant Luis Osta Lugo Vacant Lane Becker Ben Luckens Alberta Phillips Vacant Vacant Rodrigo Leal Anna Scott Yure Suarez Christopher Campbell Heather Houser Vacant For more information, please visit: www.austintexas.gov/jsc AGENDA CALL TO ORDER PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first 10 speakers signed up 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. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approval of minutes from the June 26, 2024 meeting of the Joint Sustainability Committee. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2. Recommendation of investments the City should fund as part of council resolution 20240215-025 ‘Environmental Investment Plan’. 3. Recommendation in support of a ‘Climate Fee’ as outlined in the staff response to council resolution 20240215-025 ‘Environmental Investment Plan’. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT 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 requiring Sign Language Interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least 2 days (48 hours) before the meeting date. Please contact Rohan Lilauwala at rohan.lilauwala@austintexas.gov or 512-974-9394 for …
JOINT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MEETING MINUTES June 26, 2024 The Joint Sustainability Committee convened in a hybrid meeting via videoconferencing and the Permitting and Development Center. Board Members in Attendance in Person: Charlotte Davis, Haris Qureshi, Jon Salinas, Chris Maxwell-Gaines Board Members in Attendance Remotely: Heather Houser, Anna Scott, Alice Woods, Rodrigo Leal, Diana Wheeler, Yure Suarez Board Members Absent: City Staff in Attendance: Rohan Lilauwala and Zach Baumer CALL TO ORDER Vice-Chair Charlotte Davis called the meeting to order at 6:16 pm. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION • Kathy Mitchell – On behalf Community Investment Budget. Includes support for Climate Equity Plan + Food Plan. Looking for JSC endorsement before August. 1. Approval of minutes from the May 22nd meeting of the Joint Sustainability Committee. • Davis correction – on item 2, reflect that no action was taken. • Maxwell-Gaines motions to approve, Qureshi second, passes 10-0. 2. Recommendation of investments the City should fund as part of council resolution 20240215-025 ‘Environmental Investment Plan’. • Item struck from agenda 4. Update on regional climate planning efforts as part of the EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program – Mali Calvo, Office of Sustainability • Qureshi - will we be doing county-specific workshops? Do we have ideas on how o We’re doing outreach to different municipal/county governments. • How are we pursuing funding for four measures not applied for a grant? o We’re opportunistic, looking for funding where available. Supporting EPA Community change grant for trees + AE Solar for all. 5. Climate Fee Best Practices – Rohan Lilauwala, Office of Sustainability • Qureshi – in support of progressive rather than regressive taxation • Salinas – what is the large retailer fee in Portland? o 1% surcharge on companies with more than $1 billion in annual revenue and more than $500,000 in revenue in Portland • Leal - Is Legal department looking into more comprehensive fee approaches? o Unclear at the moment • Woods – are these on utility bills? o Yes • Scott – could projects with revenue/savings be compatible with a climate fee? o Yes, but there could be other revenue streams (green bank, revolving funds) that those projects could fund • Maxwell-Gaines – could hotel tax fund this? Or other tourist taxes fund this? o Potential pushback from hospitality industry • Salinas – is there revenue from micromobility? Could energy/water rates be tiered further? o Fee could be put on …
Joint Sustainability Committee Resolution 20240708-02: Supporting the Environmental Investment Plan WHEREAS, the purpose of the Joint Sustainability Committee is “to advise the council on matters related to conservation and sustainability; and review City policies and procedures relevant to the Austin Community Climate Plan and the Austin Climate Equity Plan, including planning, implementation, community engagement, goal setting, and progress monitoring”; and WHEREAS, it is the duty of the Joint Sustainability Committee to “promote close cooperation between the council, City management, City boards, commissions, committees, and taskforces, and individuals, institutions, and agencies concerned with the politics, procedures, and implementation of the Austin Community Climate Plan and the Austin Climate Equity Plan with the goal of coordinating all similar activities within the City and the community in order to secure the greatest public benefit”; and WHEREAS, the Joint Sustainability Committee has had working groups for the past two and a half years that have gathered information from city staff, the Austin community and experts and advocates in other cities to identify funding needs to implement the Austin Climate Equity Plan; and WHEREAS, the Joint Sustainability Committee solicited and received public input on what needs funding through the Environmental Investment Plan to meet existing environmental goals through a written form, at a public hearing on March 27, 2024, and at the April 30, 2024 Joint Sustainability Committee meeting; and WHEREAS, the public comments received by the Joint Sustainability Committee on the Environmental Investment Plan emphasized the need for action, including more funding to meet a variety of environmental and climate goals established by the City of Austin; and WHEREAS, on August 8, 2019, the Council unanimously approved Resolution No. 20190808- 078 declaring a climate emergency in the City and calling to accelerate the timeline for achieving the City's climate goals; and WHEREAS, the climate crisis continues to worse each year and the window of opportunity to preserve a livable climate is rapidly closing due climate tipping points are likely already being reached; and WHEREAS, it is a scientific fact that greenhouse gas emissions reductions made sooner will yield climate benefits sooner and are therefore more valuable in avoiding tipping points that could make preserving a livable climate impossible; and WHEREAS, land acquisition, increasing the use of solar energy and battery storage, and tree planting are strategies that are adopted within multiple City of Austin plans (including the Climate Equity Plan, Water Forward, Austin/Travis County …
Joint Sustainability Committee Resolution 20240708-03: Resolution on Climate Fee WHEREAS, it is the Joint Sustainability Committee’s responsibility to advise “on matters related to conservation and sustainability and review City policies and procedures relevant to the Austin Community Climate Plan and the Austin Climate Equity Plan, including planning, implementation, community engagement, goal setting, and progress monitoring”, and WHEREAS, the greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal established by the Austin City Council in the Climate Equity Plan is to achieve “net-zero community-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, utilizing a steep decline path followed by negative emissions” that translates to approximately 75% reduction in emissions by 2030; and WHEREAS the Joint Sustainability Committee identified over $2.24 billion in one time costs and $96.14 million in ongoing expenses for implementing the Austin Climate Equity Plan and associated city plans; and WHEREAS increasing pressures on the city budget and utility rates will make funding the identified sustainability needs very difficult without a new source of revenue; and WHEREAS other cities have implemented dedicated fees to fund sustainability needs; and WHEREAS the City of Austin already utilizes dedicated fees to fund certain sustainability needs, including at Austin Energy, Austin Water and Austin Resource Recovery; and WHEREAS funding from existing fees is insufficient in magnitude to fund all existing needs and existing fees can only be used to fund certain programs; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Joint Sustainability Committee recommends that the Austin City Council and the City Manager actively pursue establishing a new Green Fee to help fill the funding gap for implementing the Austin Climate Equity Plan and associated city plans, including: ● Austin Energy Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan ● Austin Strategic Mobility Plan ● Austin Resource Recovery Master Plan ● Water Forward ● Watershed Protection Strategic Plan ● Austin/Travis County Food Plan ● One Austin: Climate Resilience Action Plan ● Central Texas Regional Air Quality Plan ● Urban Forest Plan This new fee should be structured to be progressive, not regressive, should provide predictable revenue and should be paid by residents, businesses, corporations and/or visitors.
Joint Sustainability Committee Resolution 20240708-02: Supporting the Environmental Investment Plan WHEREAS, the purpose of the Joint Sustainability Committee is “to advise the council on matters related to conservation and sustainability; and review City policies and procedures relevant to the Austin Community Climate Plan and the Austin Climate Equity Plan, including planning, implementation, community engagement, goal setting, and progress monitoring”; and WHEREAS, it is the duty of the Joint Sustainability Committee to “promote close cooperation between the council, City management, City boards, commissions, committees, and taskforces, and individuals, institutions, and agencies concerned with the politics, procedures, and implementation of the Austin Community Climate Plan and the Austin Climate Equity Plan with the goal of coordinating all similar activities within the City and the community in order to secure the greatest public benefit”; and WHEREAS, the Joint Sustainability Committee has had working groups for the past two and a half years that have gathered information from city staff, the Austin community and experts and advocates in other cities to identify funding needs to implement the Austin Climate Equity Plan; and WHEREAS, the Joint Sustainability Committee solicited and received public input on what needs funding through the Environmental Investment Plan to meet existing environmental goals through a written form, at a public hearing on March 27, 2024, and at the April 30, 2024 Joint Sustainability Committee meeting; and WHEREAS, the public comments received by the Joint Sustainability Committee on the Environmental Investment Plan emphasized the need for action, including more funding to meet a variety of environmental and climate goals established by the City of Austin; and WHEREAS, on August 8, 2019, the Council unanimously approved Resolution No. 20190808- 078 declaring a climate emergency in the City and calling to accelerate the timeline for achieving the City's climate goals; and WHEREAS, the climate crisis continues to worsen each year and the window of opportunity to preserve a livable climate is rapidly closing due to climate tipping points are likely already being reached; and WHEREAS, it is a scientific fact that greenhouse gas emissions reductions made sooner will yield climate benefits sooner and are therefore more valuable in avoiding tipping points that could make preserving a livable climate impossible; and WHEREAS, land acquisition, increasing the use of solar energy and battery storage, and tree planting are strategies that are adopted within multiple City of Austin plans (including the Climate Equity Plan, Water Forward, Austin/Travis …
Joint Sustainability Committee Resolution 20240708-03: Resolution on Climate Fee WHEREAS, it is the Joint Sustainability Committee’s responsibility to advise “on matters related to conservation and sustainability and review City policies and procedures relevant to the Austin Community Climate Plan and the Austin Climate Equity Plan, including planning, implementation, community engagement, goal setting, and progress monitoring”, and WHEREAS, the greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal established by the Austin City Council in the Climate Equity Plan is to achieve “net-zero community-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, utilizing a steep decline path followed by negative emissions” that translates to approximately 75% reduction in emissions by 2030; and WHEREAS the Joint Sustainability Committee identified over $2.24 billion in one time costs and $96.14 million in ongoing expenses for implementing the Austin Climate Equity Plan and associated city plans; and WHEREAS increasing pressures on the city budget and utility rates will make funding the identified sustainability needs very difficult without a new source of revenue; and WHEREAS other cities have implemented dedicated fees to fund sustainability needs; and WHEREAS the City of Austin already utilizes dedicated fees to fund certain sustainability needs, including at Austin Energy, Austin Water and Austin Resource Recovery; and WHEREAS funding from existing fees is insufficient in magnitude to fund all existing needs and existing fees can only be used to fund certain programs; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Joint Sustainability Committee recommends that the Austin City Council and the City Manager actively pursue establishing a new Green Fee to help fill the funding gap for implementing the Austin Climate Equity Plan and associated city plans, including: ● Austin Energy Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan ● Austin Strategic Mobility Plan ● Austin Resource Recovery Master Plan ● Water Forward ● Watershed Protection Strategic Plan ● Austin/Travis County Food Plan ● One Austin: Climate Resilience Action Plan ● Central Texas Regional Air Quality Plan ● Urban Forest Plan This new fee should be structured to be equitable and responsive to Austin’s wealth gaps and the fee should provide predictable revenue. A legal analysis of options that could be paid by residents, businesses, corporations and/or visitors should be conducted and presented to the City Council for consideration as soon as possible. Motion: Anna Scott Second: Alberta Phillips Vote: 11-0 Yes: Diana Wheeler, Lane Becker, Kaiba White, Heather Houser, Jon Salinas, Alberta Philipps, Anna Scott, Rodrigo Leal, Melissa Rothrock, Chris Campbell, …
