1. 20240828 JSC Minutes for approval — original pdf

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JOINT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING SPECIAL CALLED MEETING MINUTES August 28, 2024 The Joint Sustainability Committee convened in a hybrid meeting via videoconferencing and at Austin Energy Headquarters. Board Members in Attendance in Person: Heather Houser, Kaiba White, Rodrigo Leal, Haris Qureshi, Natalie Poindexter, Charlotte Davis Board Members in Attendance Remotely: Jon Salinas, Anna Scott, Melissa Rothrock, Chris Campbell, Diana Wheeler, Yure Suarez, Amy Noel Board Members Absent: Larry Franklin, Alberta Philipps, Chris Maxwell-Gaines, Lane Becker City Staff in Attendance: Zach Baumer Braden Latham-Jones CALL TO ORDER Chair Kaiba White called the meeting to order at 6:10pm. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL N/A 1. Approval of minutes from the July 8th special called meeting of the Joint Sustainability Committee. Qureshi motion, Houser second, passes 12-0 with Suarez off dais. 1. Sustainable Purchasing Update – Amanda Mortl, Office of Sustainability a. Scott – When will we see the first purchase from this work? i. Mortl – Landscaping example, have a list of upcoming contracts and are monitoring when they expire/up for renewal, looking ahead to mid-2025 as the next opportunity. Current contracts have updated preference language. b. White – Can you share preference language? i. Mortl – Can do so, yes. c. White – Can you speak to the upcoming concrete contract opportunities?  i. Mortl – Can direct you to that plan. d. White – No progress to changes to that plan? i. Mortl – Not able to speak to that fully, but that’s the latest that I’m aware of. e. Yure – Those first few slides, those are based on spending model? i. Mortl – Industry-wide averages f. White – Any other product areas you’ll be moving on to next? i. Mortl – These two pilots are based on Council priorities, are currently doing those. 2. Updates from Environmental Investment Plan effort and City Budget; JSC next steps. a. White – What will quarterly briefings look like? i. Baumer – Still in the process of creating that, I expect that we’ll present on the Environmental Investment Plan as the first quarterly briefing b. Qureshi – Since the resolution directs City Manager to update Council on Climate Bond and Environmental Investment Plan. Is there a timeline for that? i. Baumer – We’ll be playing a role because we’re coordinating the comprehensive Climate Equity Plan implementation. My hope is that we have multiple departments participating in these briefings moving forward. c. Poindexter – With part of land acquisition include multiple goals. When we’re looking at this acquisition, will that include public health concerns and affordable housing? i. Baumer – My understanding is that there will be a holistic approach, so part of the goal is layering multiple goals with each purchase. d. Discussion on next steps related to the bond, including Bond Advisory Task Force and future City budgets e. Discussion on potential policy changes, such as: i. Austin Climate Equity Plan; ii. Land acquisition purchases; iii. Food waste and food insecurity; iv. Affordable housing; v. Sustainable buildings, including solar on city buildings; vi. Sustainable purchasing; vii. Future City budgets; viii. Climate fee f. General agreement to restart working groups 3. Update from the Resource Management Commission on recommendations regarding advising on gas utility matters and support of progressive natural gas rates. – Charlotte Davis a. Scott – Are natural gas utility rates in the jurisdiction of the Resource Management Commission or the Public Utilities Commission? 4. Update from Urban Transportation Commission on recent recommendation to update the Urban Trails Plan map – Diana Wheeler 5. Update from the Electric Utility Commission on Austin Energy Resource Planning, solar program development, and Austin Internation Energy Conservation Code update – Kaiba White  6. Update from the Environmental Commission on the ATX / Travis County Food Plan, Cities Connecting Children to Nature, Infill site plan lite, how Watershed measures water quality, Umlauf Museum Plan, and Kunming Montreal biodiversity framework – Haris Qureshi FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS • Heat island mitigation and heat management • Public transportation and frequency of bus routes Meeting adjourned at 7:30pm. 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 call Zach Baumer with the Office of Sustainability at 512-974-2836, for additional information; TTY users route through Relay Texas at 711. For more information on the Joint Sustainability Committee, please contact Zach Baumer at (zach.baumer@austintexas.gov or 512-974-2836).