[00:00:02] GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYONE. [1. Call to Order.] THIS IS TIME NOW 124. WE ARE BACK TO CONTINUE WITH OUR REST OF THE BUDGET HEARING, ESPECIALLY THIS AFTERNOON, AS WE ALL KNOW, SIP [2. Conduct Budget Workshops.] AND ALSO THE HR RECOMMENDATIONS. WE WILL BE TALKING PAMELA. YES, SIR. SO WHAT I HAVE ON THE SCHEDULE IS JUST LISTED AS OTHER BUDGET ISSUES. I KIND OF LEFT IT GENERAL AND VAGUE SO THAT WHATEVER THE COURT MAY DECIDE TO COME UP, THAT NEEDS TO BE DISCUSSED. WE CAN DISCUSS IT THEN. HOWEVER, THE FIRST ITEM THAT WE WILL BE DISCUSSING IS SOMETHING THAT WAS PROPOSED BY COMMISSIONER MCCOY ON PARENTAL LEAVE, AND NICOLE IS GOING TO SPEAK TO THAT. ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS. GOOD AFTERNOON, JUDGE. THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK THIS AFTERNOON AS WE ARE IN OUR BUDGET CYCLE. THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS THAT THE COURT HAS TO CONSIDER. POSITION REQUEST COUNTY PROGRAMING ALONG WITH OPERATIONAL NEEDS TO KEEP THIS ORGANIZATION GOING FORWARD. AS WE HAVE HEARD FROM SO MANY LEADERS THROUGHOUT THESE HEARINGS REGARDING HOW THEIR DEPARTMENT'S NEEDS AFFECT STAFF. I WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE AN INITIATIVE THAT I BELIEVE WILL MOVE US FORWARD AS AN EMPLOYER OF CHOICE. THE INTRODUCTION OF A MODERN 21ST CENTURY PROGRAM THAT OFFERS WORKPLACE FLEXIBILITY ENHANCES OUR TOTAL REWARDS BENEFITS TO OUR EMPLOYEES. EMPLOYEES IN TODAY'S WORKFORCE ARE SEEKING MORE THAN JUST DIRECT COMPENSATORY BENEFITS. THEY ARE LOOKING TOWARD COMPANIES THAT OFFER A MORE DYNAMIC AND ROBUST TOTAL REWARDS PACKAGE. THE INTRODUCTION OF A PAID PARENTAL LEAVE OPTION WILL TAKE US ONE STEP CLOSER TO THAT AS A COUNTY. I PROVIDED FOR YOU THIS AFTERNOON A PACKET THAT INTRODUCES THIS PROGRAMING INITIATIVE. LAST YEAR, HR MADE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE BUDGET OFFICE AND TO THE COURT FOR DIRECT COMPENSATORY INJECTIONS INTO THE BUDGET TO SUPPORT PERSONNEL. THIS YEAR WE'RE ASKING THE COURT TO BUILD ON THAT WITH A MORE HOLISTIC PROGRAM. I LAY OUT THE CONSTRUCT FOR THIS BENEFIT IN YOUR PACKET IS A PAID PARENTAL LEAVE OPTION. PAID PARENTAL LEAVE IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE STAFF TIME AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO ADJUST TO THE ADDITION OF A NEW FAMILY MEMBER DURING THE PERIOD IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE BIRTH ADOPTION OR FOSTER TO ADOPTION OF A CHILD. SOME OF THE BENEFITS THAT WE ASSESS FOR THIS RECOMMENDATION IS THAT WE WOULD LIKE THE COURT TO CONSIDER IN THIS OPTION PROVIDING UP TO SIX WEEKS OF PAID PARENTAL LEAVE. NUMBER ONE. NUMBER TWO, IN THIS BENEFIT OPTION THAT DURING THE SIX WEEKS, EMPLOYEES ARE COMPENSATED AT THEIR REGULAR RATE OF PAY. THIS LEAVE OPTION WOULD BE TAKEN CONCURRENTLY WITH FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE. LET ME STOP HERE AND JUST SAY FOR THE COURT THAT FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE, WHICH IS A FEDERAL BENEFIT OPTION, IS AN UNPAID, UNPAID LEAVE OF ABSENCE. THERE IS NO DIRECT COMPENSATION THAT COMES ALONG WITH THAT. THE WAY THAT EMPLOYEES RECEIVE A PAYCHECK, IF THEY'RE OUT ON FMLA IS THROUGH THEIR ACCRUALS THAT THEY RECEIVE. THIS PARTICULAR OPTION, WE BELIEVE SHOULD BE TAKEN BEFORE ANY OTHER LEAVE IS USED FOR THOSE QUALIFYING EVENTS THAT I LAID OUT BEFORE, AND THAT IF SO, UP TO THREE WEEKS OF THIS LEAVE OPTION CAN BE USED IN THE EVENT OF A STILLBIRTH, A MISCARRIAGE OR PLACEMENT FOR ADOPTION OR FOSTER CARE. SOME OF THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS THAT WE LAID OUT FOR THIS OPTION WERE ARE AS FOLLOWS. THE EMPLOYEE SHOULD BE EMPLOYED AS A FULL TIME REGULAR EMPLOYEE OR PART TIME EMPLOYEE. TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES AND INTERNS WOULD NOT BE ELIGIBLE. [00:05:02] EMPLOYEES WOULD HAVE TO CONTINUOUSLY BE EMPLOYED BY FORT BEND COUNTY FOR A ROLLING 12 MONTH PERIOD PRECEDING THE EVENT, AND THE EMPLOYEES WOULD HAVE HAVE TO HAVE COMPLETED, EXCUSE ME, AT LEAST 1250 CONSECUTIVE SERVICE HOURS IN THAT 12 MONTH ROLLING PERIOD. ELIGIBILITY FOR THIS PROGRAM ALSO EXTENDS NOT ONLY TO A SPOUSE BUT ALSO A COMMITTED PARTNER. ALSO, THE EMPLOYEE SHOULD HAVE ADOPTED A CHILD OR HAVE BEEN PLACED WITH HAVE BEEN PLACED WITH A FOSTER CARE CHILD. AND THAT CHILD MUST BE OF AGE 17 OR YOUNGER. THESE ARE JUST SOME OF THE FEW THINGS THAT WE HAVE IDENTIFIED FOR A ROBUST FOR A PROGRAM SUCH AS THIS. ALSO INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET OF INFORMATION ARE VARIOUS COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES HERE IN THE STATE OF TEXAS THAT HAVE TAKEN THIS STEP TO PROVIDING THIS TYPE OF HOLISTIC PROGRAM FOR THEIR EMPLOYEES. CITY OF SUGARLAND CURRENTLY OFFERS A PAID PARENTAL LEAVE BENEFIT OF UP TO SIX WEEKS. CITY OF WACO. CITY OF HOUSTON. BIERI COUNTY. CITY OF AUSTIN. CITY OF FORT WORTH. AND LASTLY HARRIS COUNTY. NOW, THE FRAMEWORK FOR THOSE MUNICIPALITIES AND COUNTIES AND THEIR PROGRAMS ARE ALL DIFFERENT. SOME OF THEM RUN CONCURRENTLY WITH FMLA AND SOME OF THEM DON'T. BUT THE POINT IS THAT THERE IS AN OFFERING OF THIS LEAVE BENEFIT ACROSS THE STATE. THERE ARE ALSO NINE STATES AS WELL AS THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES THAT OFFER A PAID LEAVE BENEFIT PROGRAM. SO WE KNOW THAT THE THIS TREND IS GROWING. WHAT WE DID HERE AND INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET WAS TO TAKE A LOOK INTERNALLY AT OUR OWN POPULATION. WE HAVE 300 I'M SORRY, 3305 EMPLOYEES, CURRENT STATE, PART TIME, FULL TIME AND TEMP IN FORT BEND COUNTY. WHEN WE TOOK A LOOK AT OUR EMPLOYEES THAT GO OUT WITH A LEAVE BUT DO NOT RECEIVE ANY COMPENSATION FOR IT BECAUSE THEY MAY NOT HAVE ANY MORE ACCRUALS IN THEIR BANK TO RECEIVE COMPENSATION. WE AVERAGED THAT OVER A SPAN OF FIVE YEARS AND WE PROVIDED THAT INFORMATION FOR YOU. BUT IF WE LOOK AT JUST CARVING OUT 2022, SINCE THAT WAS A YEAR THAT HAS PRECEDED US, WE KNOW OR WE HAVE FOUND THAT AT LEAST 116 OF OUR EMPLOYEES WENT OUT ON THE LEAVE WITHOUT PAY AND STAYED OUT AN AVERAGE OF 3.7 WEEKS. THAT'S SIGNIFICANT BECAUSE IT MEANS THAT SOME OF OUR EMPLOYEES DID NOT RECEIVE A PAYCHECK. THE OTHER THING THAT IS NOT INCLUDED IN YOUR DATA POINTS THAT I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT IS THAT WE HAVE 998 FULL TIME EMPLOYEES IN THIS COUNTY THAT MAKE BELOW $50,000 A YEAR. AND WHY IS THAT SIGNIFICANT? BECAUSE IF NOT, ALL OF US CAN AFFORD TO BE OUT WITHOUT A PAYCHECK. MANY OF US LIVE PAYCHECK TO PAYCHECK. AND SO A BENEFIT OPTION LIKE THIS, IF WE LOOK AT AN AVERAGE OF 26.20 $6.21 AN HOUR FOR SIX WEEK BENEFIT OPTION WOULD GIVE THAT EMPLOYEE $6,290.40 OF INCOME FOR THAT SIX WEEKS. THE OTHER THING THAT I INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET WAS THAT A BENEFIT OFFERING LIKE THIS WOULD ALSO HELP TO SUPPORT, WE BELIEVE, A POTENTIAL REDUCTION TO OUR SICK LEAVE POOL, WHICH IS A GREAT BENEFIT OPTION THAT THIS COUNTY OFFERS. BUT IF I DON'T HAVE TO TAKE HOURS FROM THE SICK LEAVE POOL BECAUSE I NEED IT FOR PARENTAL LEAVE, THEN THOSE HOURS COULD GO TO BENEFIT ANOTHER EMPLOYEE THAT HAS ANOTHER NEED THAT IS NOT IN THAT CATEGORY. IS MY POINT. WE PROVIDED FOR YOU IN LOOKING AT THIS PROGRAMING INITIATIVE. SOME ESTIMATED COST IF WE AVERAGE OVER THE PAST 3.5 YEARS. [00:10:04] WE KNOW THAT 206 EMPLOYEES HAVE TAKEN A LEAVE. NOW, LET ME STOP HERE AND BE TRANSPARENT, BECAUSE I'VE TALKED TO EACH OF YOU INDIVIDUALLY. WE'VE GOT SOME CHALLENGES IN THE WAY THAT WE TRACK LEAVE THAT WE NEED TO. ENHANCE SO THAT WE CAN BETTER IDENTIFY WHO'S GOING OUT FOR WHAT PURPOSE. BUT THE OVERALL POINT HERE IS THAT THIS 206 THEN IS ON THE HIGH END, RIGHT. SO IT COULD BE A LESSER AMOUNT PROJECTED FOR THIS. SO WE'RE CONSIDERING THAT AMOUNT. WHAT IS THE FINANCIAL. THE ESTIMATED COST FOR THIS, BASED ON WHAT WE AVERAGED OUT WAS 1.3 MILLION FOR THIS PROGRAM. IS THAT AN ANNUAL COST YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT? CORRECT. BASED ON THOSE NUMBERS. OKAY. IN CLOSING, I WOULD LIKE TO JUST SHARE A PAID PARENTAL LEAVE BENEFIT ALLOWS WORKERS TO AVOID HAVING TO CHOOSE BETWEEN CARING FOR THEIR FAMILIES AND KEEPING THEIR JOBS. RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT PAID PARENTAL LEAVE IMPROVES FINANCIAL SECURITY FOR MANY DISADVANTAGED GROUPS THAT CANNOT AFFORD TO TAKE UNPAID LEAVE. OFFERING PAID LEAVE IMPROVES BUSINESS PRODUCTIVITY BY BOOSTING EMPLOYEE MORALE AND MAKING IT EASIER TO RETAIN SKILLED STAFF. PAID LEAVE HELPS WORKERS STAY IN JOBS THAT ARE GOOD, THAT ARE A GOOD MATCH FOR THEM, AND WHERE THEY HAVE DEVELOPED THE SKILLS WHICH INCREASES OVERALL PRODUCTIVITY. THANK YOU. SURE. SO ONE QUESTION I HAVE IS SORRY, I JUST WANTED TO ASK ONE MORE QUESTION IS I DEFINITELY SEE THE BENEFIT FOR ESPECIALLY PEOPLE WHO ARE MAKING LESS THAN $100,000. I REALLY SEE IT. ARE YOU RECOMMENDING ALL ACROSS THE BOARD OR CERTAIN INCOME CAPACITIES, I MEAN, SALARY RANGE OR IS THERE ANY SPECIFIC THOUGHT ON THAT? NO, I'M NOT RECOMMENDING A SPECIFIC SALARY RANGE. I HIGHLIGHT THAT THAT PARTICULAR DATA POINT TO EMPHASIZE THE FACT THAT WE HAVE EMPLOYEES IN OUR ORGANIZATION WHO MAKE, YOU KNOW, BELOW A CERTAIN PRICE POINT. BUT THE PROGRAM WOULD BE APPLICABLE ACROSS THE BOARD FOR FULL TIME AND PART TIME PERSONNEL. AND LET ME STOP HERE AND SAY WHY PART TIME PERSONNEL ARE INCLUDED. THEY'RE INCLUDED BECAUSE THEY ACCRUE HOURS THAT COULD ACCUMULATE TO THAT ELIGIBILITY POINT. AND SO THEY SHOULD NOT BE LEFT OUT OF THIS BENEFIT OFFERING AS WELL. SO IT'S NO SECRET, BECAUSE I TALK ABOUT IT A LOT, AND IF YOU FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA, YOU KNOW THAT EIGHT MONTHS AGO MY WIFE AND I WELCOMED OUR VERY FIRST CHILD INTO OUR LIVES. IT WAS A VERY, VERY BIG DEAL WHEN THIS HAPPENED, AND IT WAS A COMPLETE LIFE CHANGE FOR US. AS I KNOW EACH OF THE MEMBERS ON THIS DAIS AND MANY IN THE ROOM CAN SYMPATHIZE WITH OR YOU UNDERSTAND FROM YOUR PAST EXPERIENCES. I HAD THE BLESSING OF HAVING LEFT MY JOB AND BEING OUT CAMPAIGNING FULL TIME. AND SO IN BETWEEN THE RUNOFF AND THE GENERAL ELECTION, I GOT TO TAKE THREE WEEKS TO JUST FOCUS ON MY MY NEW CHILD AND MY WIFE. AND I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW GRATEFUL I WAS TO BE ABLE TO BE THERE UNENCUMBERED BY OTHER STRESSES OR STRAINS, BOTH MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL, AND JUST FOCUS ALL THAT ENERGY ON CONNECTING WITH MY NEW BABY. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I REALIZED, THOUGH, IS THAT WHILE I WAS AFFORDED THAT OPPORTUNITY AND WE HAD THE LUXURY OF DOING THAT BECAUSE OF OUR SAVINGS AND MY WIFE'S INCREDIBLE JOB, A LOT OF FOLKS IN THIS COUNTY DON'T HAVE THAT ABILITY. AND AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT OUR ABILITY TO ABILITIES TO HOLD ON TO PEOPLE, WE'RE STRUGGLING WITH OUR ABILITIES TO COMPENSATE PEOPLE WHO SACRIFICE SO MUCH IN THIS ORGANIZATION EVERY DAY WHERE WE CAN MAKE UP FOR SOME OF THAT IS IN OUR BENEFITS OFFERING. I MENTIONED EARLIER THAT I'M ON A TEN STOP TOWN HALL TOUR AND I'M GOING TO DIFFERENT PARTS OF PRECINCT FOUR. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE TOWN HALL, I ASKED EVERYONE TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES HOW LONG THEY HAVE LIVED IN THIS COMMUNITY, AND THEN I ASKED THEM TO DESCRIBE IF THEY COULD DESCRIBE OUR COMMUNITY IN ONE WORD, WHAT WOULD IT BE? THE MOST COMMON ONE IS FAMILY. [00:15:03] FORT BEND IS A PLACE THAT IS THAT WHERE FAMILIES THRIVE. IT'S WHERE PEOPLE MOVE TO START THEIR FAMILIES. IT'S WHERE PEOPLE COME TO LIVE TO TAKE CARE OF THEIR FAMILIES. AND IF WE'RE GOING TO SET THE EXAMPLE OF BEING A PLACE FOR FAMILIES, I THINK THAT. IT STARTS WITH HOW WE TREAT OUR FAMILY HERE IN THIS COMMUNITY WHO ARE OUR EMPLOYEES. I BELIEVE THAT WE SHOULD SUPPORT THIS BECAUSE IT SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCES ATTRITION RATES AND, AS NICOLE SAID, IMPROVES EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION, ULTIMATELY BENEFITING OUR COMMUNITY. ACTUALLY, ACCORDING TO A STUDY BY THE SOCIETY FOR HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT, COMPANIES THAT OFFER PAID PARENTAL LEAVE EXPERIENCE A 90% RETENTION RATE AFTER ONE YEAR, COMPARED TO ONLY 76% RETENTION RATE FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT OFFER THAT BENEFIT. SO THIS CAN RESULT IN SIGNIFICANT COST SAVINGS FOR US AS A COUNTY. AND AS WE TALK ABOUT COST SAVINGS TO OUR TAXPAYERS, WE DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ALL OF THE ADDITIONAL COSTS IN TRAINING AND REPLACING AN EMPLOYEE. BUT THE COST TO REPLACE AN EMPLOYEE IS ABOUT 213% OF THEIR SALARY. AND SO BY IMPLEMENTING THIS PROCESS, WE RETAIN OUR VALUED EMPLOYEES, WE REDUCE RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING COSTS AND IMPROVE OUR OVERALL PRODUCTIVITY BECAUSE WE'VE SHOWED VALUE. WE'VE DEMONSTRATED A VALUE IN THE PEOPLE WHO DO SO MUCH WORK HERE. SO I BELIEVE PAID PARENTAL LEAVE CAN HELP US REDU REDUCE OUR GENDER AND ECONOMIC INEQUALITY AS WELL BY PROVIDING BOTH MOTHERS AND FATHERS AND ANY OTHER CARETAKERS WITH THE NECESSARY TIME OFF TO CARE FOR THEIR CHILDREN WITHOUT FACING FINANCIAL HARDSHIP OR DISCRIMINATION. ULTIMATELY, OFFERING PAID PARENTAL LEAVE IS A WIN WIN POLICY THAT SUPPORTS FAMILIES, PROMOTES GENDER EQUALITY, AND CREATES A MORE PRODUCTIVE AND SUSTAINABLE WORKFORCE. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I DON'T THINK YOU HAVE ANY MAJOR RESISTANCE TOWARDS THIS. AND SO THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU. LET'S MOVE ON WITH THE CIP. YES, SIR. SO IN YOUR PACKETS AT THE VERY BACK, YOU HAVE A LIST OF ALL OF THE CIP PROJECTS WITH THEIR DESCRIPTIONS. IF WE COULD. NICOLE, DON'T SIT DOWN. ONLY BECAUSE SINCE NICOLE WAS UP HERE BEFORE I GOT TO SPEAK, NICOLE HAS AN ITEM ON HERE. BUT SINCE YOU'RE UP AND HAVE IT IN THIS FOLDER, LET'S FINISH IT. CAN WE FINISH UP WITH NICOLE? SO THERE IS AN ITEM I DON'T REMEMBER. I DON'T KNOW WHICH NUMBER IT WAS, BUT IT'S ON HERE SOMEWHERE. BUT SHE DOES HAVE KIND OF A TIDBIT IN THE FOLDER, SO I FIGURED WHY NOT JUST GO AHEAD AND CONTINUE ON WHILE YOU'RE UP HERE WITH THE NUMBER TEN. TEN. OKAY. I'M SO GLAD I STOPPED AND WROTE SOME NOTES ON THAT. SO WE GOT ON ITEM TEN OTHER FRIENDLY LACTATION ROOMS. OKAY. OKAY. GOOD. GOOD AFTERNOON. SO CURRENTLY UNDER OUR LACTATION POLICY. ELECTED OFFICIALS AND DEPARTMENT HEADS MUST ALLOW TO REASONABLY ACCOMMODATE EMPLOYEES WHO NEED TO EXPRESS BREAST MILK. EMPLOYEES SHALL BE PROVIDED A SPACE OTHER THAN A MULTI-USER BATHROOM SHIELDED FROM VIEW AND FREE FROM INTRUSIONS DURING THE WORK DAY. IN ADDITION, REASONABLE BREAK TIME SHALL BE PERMITTED. THIS TOPIC CAME UP ACTUALLY FROM THE COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE SOMETIME LAST YEAR NOW, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS BROUGHT TO LIGHT WAS NOT JUST THE FACT THAT WE HAVE A POLICY, WE HAVE A POLICY. AND THAT'S GREAT, RIGHT? BECAUSE IT IS A FEDERAL MANDATE. BUT TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT OUR POLICY TO ENSURE THAT WE AS AN EMPLOYER WAS PROVIDING ALL OF THE THINGS NECESSARY IN THE STATUTE. AND SO WHAT WE DID, A COMMITTEE WAS FORMED, PUT TOGETHER THAT COMPRISED OF THE COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, HUMAN RESOURCES, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES FACILITIES AND THE BUDGET OFFICE TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE POLICY AND OUR LOCATIONS TO DETERMINE IF WE WERE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE CURRENT STATUTE AND OUR WORKSITE LACTATION PROGRAMS PROGRAM EXCUSE ME. SO IN FEBRUARY OF 2023, HR ADMINISTERED A SURVEY TO DEPARTMENTS AND ELECTED OFFICIAL OFFICES TO DETERMINE THE FOLLOWING. [00:20:02] ONE IS THERE A SPACE DESIGNATED IN YOUR DEPARTMENT, ELECTED OFFICIAL OFFICE, OR IN YOUR BUILDING FOR LACTATION PURPOSES? AND NUMBER TWO, IF THERE IS SUCH A SPACE, PLEASE DESCRIBE OR IDENTIFY WHAT THAT SPACE LOOKS LIKE. AND SO WE DID DO THAT IN FEBRUARY. WE RECEIVED THE SURVEY RESPONSES BACK, WHICH IS WHAT I PROVIDED FOR YOU IN YOUR PACKET. AND SO THE CIP ITEM THAT'S LISTED IS REALLY THERE. SO THAT FOR THOSE LOCATIONS THAT EITHER DON'T HAVE A DEDICATED SPACE OR IT NEEDS A SPACE THAT NEEDS TO BE ENHANCED, THEN FACILITIES HAS THE ABILITY TO GO OUT AND, AND DO ANY MODIFICATIONS THAT THEY WOULD NEED TO DO TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE, WE'RE MAKING A SPACE AVAILABLE FOR LACTATION PURPOSES AND FINALLY TO BECOME A MOTHER FRIENDLY, DESIGNATED EMPLOYER, WHICH AGAIN LENDS ITSELF TO A BENEFIT OPTION THAT WE CAN UTILIZE TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN TALENT. SURE. AND THE AMOUNT THAT WE PUT IN HERE IN THE BUDGET AND, YOU KNOW, WE TALKED ABOUT IT AT OUR LAST MEETING, YOU KNOW, $25,000. WE DON'T KNOW HOW MANY ROOMS THAT WILL NECESSARILY GET US, BUT WE'LL DO AS MANY AS WE CAN WITH THAT 25,000. IT JUST ALL DEPENDS. I THINK THE ONE THAT WE DID IN THE ROSENBERG ANNEX WAS A LITTLE OVER $1,000. SO IT JUST ALL DEPENDS ON DO WE NEED TO ADD A DOOR? DO WE NEED TO LIKE WHAT KIND OF MODIFICATIONS DO WE NEED TO MAKE? SO WE COULD GET, YOU KNOW, 20 ROOMS, WE COULD GET FEWER ROOMS. IT JUST ALL DEPENDS ON WHAT KIND OF MODIFICATIONS WE NEED TO GET. AND I THINK IT IS A GOOD STEP FORWARD, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE ARE GOING THROUGH AN UNCHARTERED TERRITORY. SO VERY UNDERSTANDABLE. I DON'T SEE ANY PROBLEM HERE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. LET'S MOVE ON TO THE FIRST THING. SO THE FIRST ONE IS THE DISTRICT CLERK RENOVATION OF THE FILE ROOM INTO LARGER PASSPORT OFFICE. DESCRIPTION. ALL RIGHT. ONCE AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR LISTENING EAR. THIS IS REALLY SIMPLE. WE HAVE AN OLD FILE ROOM WHERE WE USED TO HOUSE ALL OF OUR PAPER FILES, FAMILY FILES, CIVIL CRIMINAL, ETCETERA. BUT WE HAVE DIGITIZED ALL THOSE FILES NOW, AND THE ROOM IS JUST VACANT FOR NOW. AND SO WE WOULD LIKE TO TAKE THAT ROOM AND USE IT AS OUR PASSPORT OFFICE. THAT WAY WE COULD EXPAND BECAUSE RIGHT NOW WE'RE IN A ROOM THAT'S LIKE A LITTLE BOX. IF YOU'VE BEEN OVER TO IT, WE COULD EXPAND INSTEAD OF THE SIX AGENTS, WE COULD DO TEN AGENTS AND WE COULD MEET SOME OF THE DEMAND THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING. THIS WOULD REQUIRE MORE EMPLOYEES. AND THE REASON WHY I DIDN'T INCLUDE IT IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET IS BECAUSE WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE BUILD OUT FIRST AND THEN HIRE THE EMPLOYEES AT SOME DATE WHEN WE'RE FINISHED WITH THE BUILD OUT. BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, WE THINK THE FIRST YEAR IT WOULD BE $662,230, AND THAT'S INCLUDING THE BUILD OUT AND THE COST OF SALARIES AND SO FORTH FOR EMPLOYEES. AND THEN AFTER THAT, IT LEVELS OUT. YOU HAVE OPERATING COSTS IN THERE IN ADDITION TO YOUR CONSTRUCTION COSTS. THAT'S WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE. YEAH, THAT'S WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE. YEAH. THAT'S GOING TO BE MY NEXT. SHOULD I NOT HAVE DONE THAT? NO, NO, YOU DID IT. CORRECT. SO WHEN WE WHEN WE HAVE THE WAY WE HAVE THE CIP FORMS IS WE WANT TO KNOW THE TOTAL IMPACT ONTO THE BUDGET, WHICH IN THIS CASE INCLUDES HER, HER PERSONNEL. SO SHE HAS THE POSITIONS, DOES JUST SIMPLY CONSTRUCTION. THREE 2413 HALF OF THAT IT'S THE AMOUNT -337 RIGHT, RIGHT. JUST THE CONSTRUCTION IS 324 813 THAT INCLUDES 151,000 FOR THE CONSTRUCTION. THE REST IS FOR FURNITURE, THE TEN DESKS, TEN CHAIRS, TEN GUEST, 20 CHAIRS, TEN TASK CHAIRS, 20 GUEST CHAIRS, MONITORS, KEYBOARDS. WE'LL LOOK AT ALL OF THAT BECAUSE I THINK YOU ALREADY HAVE ALL OF THAT IN YOUR BUDGET. WE DO. SO IT'S FOR THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS. IT'S 151,450. SO, PAMELA, THIS IS ALSO ANOTHER QUESTION I HAVE IS SO THIS. 337 417 ONGOING, THAT'S AN EMPLOYEE EXPENSE, CORRECT? THAT IS CORRECT, YES. THAT'S WHY IT LEVELS OFF IN 2025 FORWARD TO 337,417 AND I GAVE YOU THE FIGURES FOR THE KIND OF REVENUE THAT WE BRING IN [00:25:07] YEARLY. AND THIS IS, WHAT, ABOUT ONE THIRD OF IT, RIGHT? SO IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY FROM YOUR PREVIOUS DISCUSSION, YOU CURRENTLY HAVE SIX AND SIX PLUS THE TWO ARPA, AND THEN YOU'RE REQUESTING FOUR FOR A TOTAL OF TEN. A TOTAL OF TEN. YES. OH ACTUALLY ARPA IS I'M GOING TO PRETEND LIKE ARPA DOESN'T EXIST RIGHT NOW. SO SHE HAS SHE HAS SIX COUNTY EMPLOYEES EMPLOYEES NOW. SO AND SHE'S REQUESTING FOR MORE THE TWO ARPA PLUS TWO ADDITIONAL. SO THAT'S TEN. SO THAT'S WHAT'S INCLUDED HERE. BUT ONLY THING IS GRANT FUNDED. YES. YES, SIR. OKAY. THAT'S RIGHT. YES. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? SO THE CONSTRUCTION ONLY IS 151,450. SO THAT OPERATIONAL COST IS IN OUR PROPOSED BUDGET. THE YES, THE PERSONNEL IS IN HER BUDGET THAT SHE JUST TALKED ABOUT AT NOON TODAY. AND AS FAR AS THE FURNITURE. THAT IS IN TWO PLACES. THE FURNITURE IS IN TWO PLACES. OKAY. CAN WE WORK WITH YOU ON THAT? YEAH. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU. REALLY? WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE 151,000 FOR THE CONSTRUCTION. YEAH, AND THAT'S WHAT OUR FACILITY IS BUILDING OUT. YES, MA'AM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. YEAH. MR MS BEASLEY, GENERATOR STATION 614. AFTERNOON. GOOD AFTERNOON. WE FACILITIES IS PUTTING A PERMANENT STRUCTURE IN BEASLEY FOR STATION 14 DUE TO THE THE COST OF THAT THERE WAS NOT ENOUGH MONEY TO FUND A GENERATOR. WE FEEL A GENERATOR IS CRITICAL DURING TIMES OF INCLEMENT WEATHER DISASTER THAT TYPE OF THING WHERE THE CREW CAN KEEP THEIR FOOD CAN CAN BE ABLE TO STAY THERE, KEEP THE ELECTRICITY ON, ETCETERA, ETCETERA, ETCETERA. SO WE WE TALKED TO FACILITIES ABOUT THAT AND WANTED TO PUT THAT IN AS A CIP ITEM FOR STATION 14. SURE. THANK YOU. YOU BET. ABOUT THESE. ENGINEERING TRAFFIC SIGNALS. HOWDY. YES, SIR. WE'VE INCLUDED A $2 MILLION TO COVER FIVE PROPOSED TRAFFIC SIGNALS. WE HAVEN'T IDENTIFIED WHICH SIGNALS THOSE ARE. SO IT'LL BE UP TO THE COMMISSIONERS COURT TO DETERMINE WHICH FIVE SIGNALS ARE MOST WARRANTED WITHIN THE NEXT YEAR. WE DO HAVE A LIST OF WARRANTED SIGNALS BASED ON TRAFFIC STUDIES AND REQUESTS THAT WE'VE RECEIVED. AND SO FIVE IF WE DO FIVE THIS YEAR, THEN THAT WOULD MAKE A DENT IN THE THE LIST THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS DEFINITELY NEEDED. IT'S PRETTY STANDARD EVERY YEAR. YES, SIR. YEAH. OFTENTIMES WE'LL REQUEST, YOU KNOW, 3 OR 4. WE'RE KIND OF BEHIND. LAST YEAR, I THINK WE'VE ONLY HAD TWO IN THE BUDGET LAST YEAR AND WE'RE ASKING FOR FIVE IN ORDER TO TO CATCH UP THIS YEAR. ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. THANK YOU, STACY. OKAY. THANK YOU. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH. MOSQUITO CONTROL UNIT. AFTERNOON. JUDGE COMMISSIONERS, THIS IS THE LATEST PACKET FROM THE ONES THAT I'VE VISITED WITH YOU EARLIER ABOUT. IT'S MORE UP TO DATE. I'LL WAIT FOR. AS THE COURT MEMBERS ARE AWARE, PUBLIC HEALTH HAS BEEN LOOKING AT ESTABLISHING A MOSQUITO CONTROL UNIT TO SERVE THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS OF HARRIS COUNTY OR FORT BEND COUNTY. THIS WOULD BE A TRANSITION OF RESPONSIBILITY FROM ROAD AND BRIDGE TO PUBLIC HEALTH. ROAD AND BRIDGE WOULD CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN THEIR CURRENT FTES AND AND NON MOSQUITO RELATED DUTIES. THIS IS A BRAND NEW PROGRAM FOR FORT BEND. DURING THOSE CONVERSATIONS, THERE WERE DISCUSSIONS OF MOVING ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH TO THE SAME PROPOSED LOCATION OF MOSQUITO CONTROL, WHICH IS WHAT IS INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET. IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING THE MOSQUITOES ARE THE DEADLIEST ANIMALS ON THE PLANET DUE TO THEIR RAPID REPRODUCTION RATE AND ABILITY TO CARRY MANY DISEASES. AS OUR POPULATION IN FORT BEND COUNTY GROWS AT AN EXPONENTIAL RATE, WE NEED TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE PUBLIC HEALTH INTERVENTIONS FOR OUR COMMUNITY. THE MOSQUITO CONTROL PROGRAM WOULD ALLOW EXTENSIVE EDUCATION AND OUTREACH, CONSTANT INCREASED SURVEILLANCE OF MOSQUITO ACTIVITY AND THE ABILITY TO BE PROACTIVE [00:30:03] AND REACTIVE USING LARVICIDE, ADULTICIDE AND BIOLOGICAL CONTROLS. I'VE INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKETS THE BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF MOSQUITO CONTROL. THE CIP, THE POSITION, JUSTIFICATIONS AND NEW POSITION FORMS THAT WAS REQUESTED BY PAMELA AND ALSO NOTED THAT THIS HAS NOT BEEN FULLY VETTED, VETTED BY FACILITIES, AND IT CAME BY WAY OF A CIP FOR LACK OF ANY OTHER AVENUE. SO WITH THAT I WILL OPEN IT UP FOR ANY QUESTIONS. YEAH, I SEE THIS. THIS YEAR'S EXPENSE IS 2.3 MILLION. THEN IT GOING TO GO TO 9.2 PLUS AND EVERY YEAR IT IS KIND OF DIFFERENT NUMBERS. CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHY? WHAT'S THE PROJECTED THE TOTAL COST ANNUALLY? YOU'VE GOT 2.32 MILLION 349,000,246 6,000,602. 3,000,001 34 AND 3,000,001 18. YOU KNOW, TOO MUCH VARIATION. 228 SO. SO IT'S TOO MUCH VARIATION. IT'S A COMBINATION OF BOTH THE OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, LIKE YOUR EVERYDAY EXPENSES AND THE CAPITAL IN AND OF ITSELF. SO OVER THE THREE YEARS OF CAPITAL EXPENDITURES, THAT WOULD BE 11.3 MILLION. THE ADDITIONAL WOULD BE SPLIT OUT UNTIL YOU GET TO YOUR FOUR, WHICH IS YOUR FULL OPERATING BUDGET. BUT IT SPLITS OUT SLOWLY ON OPERATING AND YOUR ONE THEN INCREASES YOUR TO THREE AND BY FOUR THEN YOU WOULD BE FULLY, FULLY OPERATIONAL AND UP AND RUNNING. THE OTHER 11.3 IS THE CAPITAL. WHAT KIND OF WORK RELIEF IT IS GOING TO BRING IT TO ROAD AND BRIDGE. WHAT KIND OF WORK WILL BE LEFT IN ROAD AND BRIDGE RELIEF? I MEAN, THEY DO A CERTAIN AREAS, SO THEY THEY DO ALL THE SURVEILLANCE. RIGHT NOW THEY HAVE 24 LOCATIONS. THEY DO SURVEILLANCE AND WHEN NEEDED, THEY DO ADULTICIDE AND LARVICIDE, WHICH THEY DON'T SPRAY VERY OFTEN BECAUSE WE ONLY RESPOND TO DISEASE, HUMAN CASES OR ANY HITS THAT THEY GET ON THEIR TRAPS. SO DO YOU. MOVING FORWARD, BASED ON THIS PROJECT, YOU WILL BE FOCUSED ON THAT 24 LOCATIONS? THAT IS CORRECT. AND WE WOULD BE DOING NOT ONLY THE EXISTING SURVEILLANCE, BUT RIGHT NOW IT'S ABOUT A 25 MILE RADIUS AND WHICH IS NOT INDICATIVE OF WHAT DISEASES ARE BEING SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. THAT WOULD BE TIGHTENED UP MUCH, MUCH MORE. WE WOULD ALSO BE DOING A LOT OF THE LAB TESTING RATHER THAN SENDING THEM TO THE STATE. AND WE WOULD ALSO BE RESPONDING TO THE THOUSANDS OF COMPLAINTS THAT ROAD AND BRIDGE GETS TODAY. SO ANNUALLY OPERATING COST WOULD BE HOW MANY PERSONNEL AND WHAT ELSE WOULD BE INCLUDED. SO BE BY THE YEAR FOUR BY THE END OF YEAR THREE GOING INTO YEAR FOUR, JUST FULL OPERATIONS, WE'D HAVE 18 FTES AND WE WOULD. SO KEEP IN MIND IT'S 3.1 MILLION IF WE DO AERIAL SPRAYING. AERIAL SPRAYING RIGHT NOW COSTS APPROXIMATELY $600,000. SO IF WE WERE TO GO THROUGH A COMPLETE YEAR OF NOT DOING AERIAL SPRAYING, IT WOULD BE 2.5 MILLION. THAT'S JUST FOR THE FEEDS. SAY IT AGAIN. THE $2.5 MILLION WOULD COVER WHAT? THE SALARIES PLUS WHAT SALARIES, EQUIPMENT, CHEMICALS, ANYTHING THAT'S USED FOR THE ENTIRE MOSQUITO CONTROL. 11.3 MILLION IN CAPITAL COSTS. FOR WHAT? SO THE 11.3 IS TO COVER FOR WE LOCATED A SPOT ON 90 AND 36, WHICH USED TO BE AN OLD LUMBER YARD. SO WE WOULD TAKE BOTH MOSQUITO CONTROL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND BUILD IT FROM GROUND UP AT THAT LOCATION. 11.3 WOULD BE THE COST OF THE LAND PLUS THE COST OF A BUILDING. SO WE CURRENTLY OWN THE LAND. SO IT WOULD BE THE THE COST OF DEVELOPING THAT LAND, THE BUILDINGS AND ALL THE EQUIPMENT THAT WOULD GO IN IT BECAUSE IT WOULD ALSO HAVE A MAINTENANCE FACILITY BUILDING, CHEMICAL BUILDING, AND THE TWO STORY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, WHICH INSIDE THAT BUILDING ALSO INCLUDES OUR LABS AND AVIAN AND BIOLOGICAL CONTROLS. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? CAN YOU TALK TO US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT RISK, IF ANY, EXIST? IF WE DON'T DO WE DON'T BUILD A MORE ROBUST MOSQUITO PROGRAM? SURE. SO THE RISK COMES IN THE FACT THAT AS YOU'RE SEEING LIKE IN THE DALLAS FORT WORTH AREA WITH POPULATION GROWTH BECOMES MORE OF A FEEDING GROUND AND WE ARE OUR OWN WORST ENEMIES. HUMANS CREATE THE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH MOSQUITOES THRIVE. SO THE LARGER YOUR ENVIRONMENT, THE LARGER THE POPULATION, THE LARGER YOUR MOSQUITO GROWTH. AND I'LL GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE. ONE POOL THAT'S NOT TAKEN CARE OF HAS ONE MILE RADIUS, CAN PRODUCE 30,000 MOSQUITOES A DAY. OKAY. SO AND THE TRICK IS TO TRY TO FIND THAT POOL THAT'S PRODUCED IN THAT ONE MILE RADIUS. SO AS WE CONTINUE TO BROADEN, YOU KNOW, THROUGHOUT FORT BEND, WHICH WE CAN SEE IT HAPPENING EVERYWHERE, IT'S COMING. [00:35:05] WE JUST NEED TO STAY AHEAD OF THE GAME. SO ANY MECHANISM WE HAVE IN IN SPECTING, I KNOW IT IS HARD. THE POLES PERSONALLY OWNED POLES, IF THERE IS ANY ANNUAL INSPECTION OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT AVAILABLE. RIGHT NOW, CURRENTLY IN EXISTENCE. YEAH. SO THE NEIGHBORHOOD NUISANCE SIDE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH IS THE ONE THAT DOES THE PRIVATE SWIMMING POOLS. AND THEN THE POOL PROGRAM THAT'S BEING INITIATED IS FOR THE COMMERCIAL SIDE AND PUBLIC SIDE. SO THE NEIGHBORHOOD NUISANCE WOULD WORK IN IN LINE WITH OUR MOSQUITO CONTROL UNIT. I JUST RECENTLY HAD ALL OF MY FOLKS OBTAIN THEIR PESTICIDE APPLICATOR LICENSE SO THAT BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF FOLKS THAT ARE OUT THERE ON THE GROUND, WE CAN, WHILE WE'RE THERE, APPLY LARVICIDE TO HELP BRING DOWN THAT REDUCTION. BUT THAT'S JUST, YOU KNOW, SCRATCH OF THE OF THE ICEBERG. BUT THEY WOULD COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER. THE REASON I ASKED THE PUBLIC POOLS ARE VERY MUCH IN YOU KNOW IN PUBLIC EYE BUT WHEN WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IS GOING ON IN SOMEBODY'S BACKYARD, WE HAVE NO IDEA. YES, I COULD SHOW YOU SOME SOME PICTURES THAT YOU WOULD BE LIKE, WOW. YEAH. THAT'S WHY I ASKED A NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH GROUP OR WHATEVER THAT IS IN EXISTENCE. IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING? YEAH. NEIGHBORHOOD NUISANCE EXISTS RIGHT NOW, AND WITH INCREASED SURVEILLANCE, YOU CAN NARROW DOWN WHERE THOSE WHERE THOSE MOSQUITOES ARE COMING FROM. WE CAN'T DO WITH OUR CURRENT RESOURCES BY ANY MEANS. WE'RE JUST RESPONDING TO CITIZEN COMPLAINTS WHEN IT COMES, AND WE'LL FIND IT LIKE A DIRTY POOL IN THE BACK. AND SO WE'LL USE THE REGULATORY MEANS BY WHICH TO MAKE THEM COME INTO COMPLIANCE. BUT BASICALLY IT IS VERY HARD TO DO ANYTHING PROACTIVELY. THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. YES. HAVE WE HAD A MAJOR OUTBREAK OF MOSQUITO BORNE DISEASES IN FORT BEND? NO, I NICHOLETTE. IS SHE HERE? EPIDEMIOLOGY. HI. I CAN ANSWER SOME OF YOUR QUESTIONS ON THE HUMAN CASE SIDE. SO IN 2019 WE DID HAVE A LARGE WEST NILE OUTBREAK ALL OVER TEXAS. REALLY? SO IN FORT BEND COUNTY THEY ALSO SAW AN INCREASE NUMBER OF CASES THEN. BUT WHAT WE SEE A LOT MORE OFTEN IS I MEAN, I'M SURE YOU ALL KNOW OUR POPULATION IS VERY DIVERSE. AND SO WE SEE A LOT OF TRAVEL AND A LOT OF MOSQUITO BORNE DISEASES FROM TRAVEL. SO THAT THAT LEADS A DIFFERENT RISK TO OUR COMMUNITY AS WELL, BECAUSE YOU CAN HAVE A SMALL WINDOW FOR CERTAIN DISEASES WHERE HUMANS CAN THEN INFECT MOSQUITOES. SO YOU KNOW THAT THAT'S REALLY WHAT WE'RE SEEING. AND WE ALSO HAVE I MEAN, WE'RE VERY CLOSE TO MEXICO AND HAVE A LOT OF TRAVEL BACK AND FORTH FROM OUR RESIDENTS AND FOR BOTH VACATION AND FAMILY, THINGS LIKE THAT. AND THEY FREQUENTLY HAVE MOSQUITO BORNE ILLNESS PROBLEMS IN DALLAS FORT WORTH AREA. THERE'S ALSO A VERY TYPICALLY A LARGE MOSQUITO POOL TESTING THAT THAT TESTS POSITIVE ON ON A REGULAR BASIS. SO IT'S NOT UNKNOWN FOR IT'S DEFINITELY HERE IN TEXAS. YEAH. AND AS I RECALL, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE HAD THE OUTBREAK, WE DID AN INVESTIGATION, IDENTIFIED THE AREA AND THEN BASICALLY TREATED IT. AND I DON'T THINK IT SPREAD MUCH FURTHER THAN IT STARTED OUT. AND AS I RECALL, YEAH, SO I WASN'T HERE IN 2019, SO I DON'T KNOW. I CAN'T REALLY SPEAK TO THAT. I MEAN, BUT I KNOW SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE, WE HAVE HAD MOSQUITO BORNE. I DON'T LIKE MOSQUITOES START WITH. SO YEAH, I DON'T KNOW ANYBODY WHO DOES. YEAH, NO, THEY'RE UNCOMFORTABLE SOMETIMES, ESPECIALLY IF AND THEY CAN BE VERY SEVERE IN CERTAIN SITUATIONS, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT WEST NILE ENCEPHALITIS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. BUT YEAH, SO I MEAN, SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE, WE, I MEAN, TYPICALLY IT'S BETTER TO TEST THE MOSQUITOES AND SPRAY THE MOSQUITOES BEFORE THEY INFECT HUMANS, YOU KNOW? BUT SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE, WE'VE GONE THE OPPOSITE ROUTE, WHICH IS WE'LL GET A HUMAN CASE BEFORE WE'RE ACTUALLY SPRAYING. SO, I MEAN, IT'S BETTER TO PREVENT DISEASE BEFORE YOU KNOW, IT. IT ACTUALLY AFFECTS THE HUMAN POPULATION. SURE. OKAY. WE DO WE DO RESPOND FAIRLY QUICKLY TO AN OUTBREAK, AS I RECALL. YES. YES. I MEAN, WE WE NOTIFY IMMEDIATELY WHEN WE HAVE A HUMAN CASE AND, YOU KNOW, HAD ANYTHING REALLY SERIOUS IN FORT BEND. MY RECOLLECTION, UH, NOT NOT IN THE PAST. [00:40:03] I'M NOT SAYING THAT IT COULDN'T HAPPEN IN THE FUTURE. BUT, YEAH, THE RATES HAVE BEEN RELATIVELY LOW. OKAY. THANK YOU. MICHAEL. I HAVE A QUESTION. I'M LOOKING AT YOUR FORM OF JUST THE NEW POSITIONS. AND I THINK I COUNTED EIGHT ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. SEVEN, 7 OR 8 POSITIONS FOR 2024. I'M GUESSING. I DON'T REMEMBER THAT MANY POSITIONS IN YOUR IN YOUR OPERATING BUDGET. SO THOSE ARE NOT IN YOUR OPERATING BUDGET YET. THEY ARE NOT IN MY OPERATING BUDGET. THAT'S WHY I HAD COMMUNICATED ASKING DO I INCLUDE IT IN CIP? AND SO THAT'S WHERE I PUT THEM, AS WELL AS THE POSITION, JUSTIFICATIONS AND POSITION FORMS. SO THAT'S WHY YOU'LL EVENTUALLY YOU MENTIONED THE NUMBER 18. SO YOU'RE GOING TO START OFF AT 7 OR 8 AND BUILD TO 18. THAT IS CORRECT. YEAH, IT'S SIX AND 20, 24. THEY'RE NOT IN ORDER. LET'S SEE ONE. TWO, THREE, FOUR AND 2025. AND TO. SIX, SIX AND 20. 26. YEAH, THAT SOUNDS CORRECT. AND 2 IN 2027. SO, PAMELA, I HAVE A QUESTION THERE. SO EACH YEAR, LIKE 2024, WHATEVER, WE ARE ADDING PART OF THE SKIP THE NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET, THAT'S GOING TO BE PART OF GENERAL BUDGET. SO IF THE COURT CHOOSES TO DO THIS IN 2024, THEN WE WOULD ALSO BE LOOKING AT THESE POSITIONS TO GO WITH THAT PROGRAM, ALL POSITIONS OR WHATEVER, REQUESTING FOR 24 6 IN 2024. SO WHAT I'M SAYING IS THE NEXT YEAR COME THAT IT WOULD BE THE SIX PLUS ANOTHER FOUR BECAUSE THEN IN 25 HE'S REQUESTING FOUR MORE. AND THAT'S GOING TO BE PART OF THE GENERAL. GENERAL. IT WOULD BE IN THE OPERATING BUDGET. AND I LOVE THE WAY THIS IS PUT OUT. YOU YOU DID THIS EXACTLY HOW IT WAS INTENDED. THANK YOU. WE HAVE WE HAVE ALL OF THE WHOLE PROGRAM IS GOING TO THIS IS WHAT IT'S GOING TO COST EACH YEAR, INCLUDING THE PEOPLE THAT HE HAS TO ADD ALL OF THE EQUIPMENT, THE CONSTRUCTION, EVERYTHING. AND SO I WANTED TO SHOW AND WHAT HE DID A VERY GOOD JOB OF OF INCLUDING ON THIS FORM IS HOW MUCH IT'S GOING TO COST EACH YEAR FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. SO WE COULD BETTER PLAN SO WE CAN BETTER PLAN. AND IT'S NOT JUST THE CAPITAL, BUT ALSO THE OPERATING THAT GOES WITH IT. AND IF YOU GO TO ONE PAGE PRIOR TO THE CIP, I TRIED TO LAY OUT LIKE AN ACTIVITY SCHEDULE OF KIND OF HOW TO ROLL THAT OUT. AND I AS YOU SAID, I PUT IT OUT AS HOW I'M GOING TO SPEND IT. THANK YOU, SIR. IS THERE ANY OTHER QUESTION OTHERWISE? THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. I APPRECIATE YOU. FACILITIES. NORTH ANNEX PARKING LOT EXPANSION. SECURE PARKING LOT EXPANSION. HEY, GUYS. SO I DON'T SEE A TIE. YEAH, I KNOW. IT'S FRIDAY, KIP, RIGHT? NO ID, NO TIE. I ONLY HAVE TWO. YEAH, I KNOW. THAT DIDN'T COUNT. I ONLY HAVE TWO THIS YEAR. AND NO ROOF REPLACEMENTS, WHICH MIGHT BE A RECORD. IT COULD BE A FIRST THAT I'M NOT HERE TO REPLACE ROOFS. YEAH, WE'RE CAUGHT UP ON ROOFS. OKAY, SO I HAVE TWO TWO PARKING LOT PROJECTS. ONE IS LET'S START WITH COMMISSIONER ONE, THE SECURE PARKING AREA IN THE BACK THAT'S ALREADY FENCED IN BEHIND THE NORTH ANNEX PRIMARILY FOR CONSTABLE PARKING IS HAS GOTTEN PACKED BECAUSE OF GROWTH SINCE 2008. COMMISSIONER WHEN WE BUILT THAT BUILDING. 0809 SO WE'RE JUST LOOKING AT EXPANDING THE CONCRETE. ANOTHER SECTION TO ADD ABOUT 2021 SPACES TO IT, WHICH TAKES CARE OF THAT PROBLEM. I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT ROSENBERG IS ADDED HERE. YES, THAT IS, YOU KNOW, WE DEFINITELY NEED TO. THAT'S IN PRECINCT FOUR, RIGHT, COMMISSIONER? YES, THE ANNEX. YEAH. SO THAT PARKING LOT NEEDS. SO THE SECOND ONE, YEAH, WE'RE GOING TO ATTACK THIS IN PHASES BECAUSE A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO WE GOT A PRICE TO JUST DEMO IT ALL AND REDO IT. AND IT WAS STAGGERING WHAT IT WOULD COST BECAUSE A BIG PARKING LOT. SO WE'RE ADDRESSING THE TWO WORST AREAS THAT ARE THE MAIN DRIVE AISLES THAT REALLY GET ABUSED AND ARE FALLING APART AND THAT TAKES CARE OF A LOT OF IT. BUT WE CAN COME BACK AND DO SOME MORE SECTIONS AS TIME. A LOT OF THE PARKING LOT IS FINE, SO YOU DON'T WANT TO TEAR IT ALL OUT AND REPLACE IT IF IT MAKES SENSE. YOU KNOW, 60% OF IT'S GOOD, SO WE'LL JUST CHIP AWAY AT IT AND AS NEEDED. AND BUT THAT'S ALL I GOT, YOU KNOW, I GUESS COST OF DOING BUSINESS. LOTS OF TRAFFIC IN THAT PARKING LOT. THANK YOU. I HOPE THERE IS NO OTHER QUESTION. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. YOU BET. THANK YOU FOR. NUMBER SEVEN IS FAIRGROUNDS RENOVATIONS. [00:45:15] GOOD AFTERNOON. FAIRGROUNDS IS ASKING FOR SOME REPAIRS TO A FEW OF OUR BUILDINGS ON THE FLOORS. THEY ARE STARTING TO CHIP AND BECOME TRIPPING HAZARDS. SO WE WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO REPAIR THAT. AND THEN WE ARE TAKING JAMIE'S ROOFING PLACE, THE ARENA. WE JUST GOT A QUOTE TO REDO THAT AND IT HAS TO BE COMPLETELY REDONE. SURE. LISA, THAT'S 2.3. YOU'RE ASKING FOR 200? YEAH, IT'S 200,000 FOR THE FLOORING AND THEN 2.1 FOR THE ROOF. OH, FAIRGROUND NEED, NEED THIS KIND OF STUFF. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU GO THERE, YOU WILL SEE THAT. AND I'M SURPRISED TO SEE THAT THERE IS SOME OF THAT PARKING LOT IS NOT INCLUDED IN THIS. THAT'S A LARGER PROJECT. SO WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET THAT TAKEN CARE OF. AND ALSO MAYBE AN APPROACH LIKE JAMIE JUST MENTIONED, THE WORST AREAS, FIXING IT RATHER THAN TEARING ALL OUT. SO PROBABLY NEXT YEAR YOU COULD LOOK INTO IT AND. YES, SIR. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. THE BIGGER ISSUE IS THE MIDWAY. THE. YES, SIR. YES, SIR. AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE THE THE WHERE THE BUILDING THAT THE FAIR ASSOCIATION IS OFFICED OUT OF. KIND OF IN THE SAME VEIN OF WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT YESTERDAY WITH SOME OF OUR OTHER BUILDINGS, I SAW VIDEOS OF WHEN IT RAINS OUT THERE, THEY HAVE WATER ON THE FLOOR IN THEIR BUILDING. SO WE YEAH, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE A HARD LOOK AT WHAT WE CAN DO FOR THE FAIRGROUNDS. AND ALSO, THIS FAIRGROUND IS A REVENUE PRODUCING FACILITY. YES, SIR. SO IS THERE ANY NUMBER ON THAT? WHAT KIND OF REVENUE IT BRINGS TO THE COUNTY? ANNUAL BASIS? I DO NOT HAVE THAT OFFHAND, PAMELA. I HAVE TO PULL UP. I HAVE TO PULL IT UP. YEP. KNOW I'M GOING TO LET I'M. I'M GOING TO LET THAT THAT SIDE OVER THERE PULL IT UP. HORATIO. NO, BUT WE COULD WAIT ON IT. I'M JUST CURIOUS. AND, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT EXPENSES, YOU JUST TALK ABOUT EXPENSES. BUT THIS IS THIS FACILITY IS BRINGING A LOT OF REVENUE TO OUR COUNTY ALSO THAT NEED TO BE CONSIDERED. THAT'S WHY I ASKED. BUT I COULD WAIT ON THAT. NO, IT'S RENTED EVERY WEEKEND, SO. YES, SIR, IT IS. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. FIRE MARSHALS, LADDER TRUCK. GOOD AFTERNOON, JUDGE. COMMISSIONERS. THE REQUEST HERE FOR THIS LADDER TRUCK IS A COOPERATIVE OR JOINT ITEM WITH THE CITY OF RICHMOND. WE'RE LOOKING AT I SPOKE TO ALL Y'ALL ABOUT SOME HARDSHIPS I'M HAVING WITH THE OFFICE AND THE BUDGET, LOOKING AT FEES AND THINGS LIKE THAT THAT WE ARE PAYING OUT. AND SO THE APPROACH WITH THIS IS TO LOOK AT A NEW WAY TO TRY AND WORK WITH THE CITIES THAT WE'RE PAYING OUT FOR FEES AND SEEING WE CAN DO TO HELP OFFSET SOME COST AND TAKE THE AMOUNTS THAT WE'RE PAYING OUT ANNUALLY AND DIVIDE IT OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. I'VE MET WITH ED OVER THIS AND IT WAS ACTUALLY A DIRECTOR FROM ED, BUT I WISH HE WAS HERE TODAY TO HELP ME EXPLAIN A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS MORE. SO MY QUESTION IS, IS THIS 18,000 OR 18 MILLION? NO, SIR. THIS IS A LARGE TRUCKS, 2.5, 2.5 MILLION. OH, BUT I'M LOOKING AND RIGHT NOW LOOKING AT IT BASED ON SOME OF THE ITEMS. THAT'S. OH, I HAVE TWO ITEMS ON THERE. ONE'S 18,000, ONE'S 2.5 MILLION. NUMBER 800, OH. I'M SORRY. I'M. I WAS LOOKING AT THE WRONG ONE. OKAY. THIS IS ONE TRUCK. ONE TRUCK. 2.5. YES, SIR. BUT IT IS RICHMOND. RICHMOND. CONTRIBUTE ANYTHING FINANCIALLY? NO, SIR, NOT AT THIS POINT. THIS IS TO STRETCH OUT THE AMOUNTS THAT WE'RE PAYING OVER A PERIOD OF TIME TO DO A DEBT SERVICE VERSUS US PAYING OUT CASH MONEY FOR THEM ANNUALLY. OKAY. WHAT IS THE PARTNERSHIP WITH RICHMOND? IT'S PROVIDING THEM THE APPARATUS FOR THEIR RESPONSES IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREA OF FORT BEND COUNTY. OKAY. INCLUDING THE COUNTY BUILDINGS, RIGHT? YES, SIR. INCLUDING THE BUILDING NEXT DOOR. MANY STORIES TO THE EXTENT WE'RE LOOKING AT 100 FOOT TRUCK. 100 FOOT LADDER TRUCK. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT YOU CAN PROBABLY GET IT TO THE SEVENTH FLOOR OF THE TRAVIS BUILDING. SEVEN FLOORS. YES, SIR. AND THAT'S WHERE THE OTHER ITEMS LOOKING AT THIS, THE COST, WE'RE LOOKING AT A BUCKET TRUCK. THE BUCKET ALLOWS FOR EASY ACCESS AND MOVEMENT OF PERSONNEL AND VICTIMS COULD BE TRAPPED ON THOSE FLOORS FOR IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY. G. OUR AUDITOR'S OFFICE IS ON THE SEVENTH FLOOR. [00:50:02] THIS IS REDUCING FIRE RUN COSTS, RIGHT? THAT'S WHAT OUR GOAL IS WITH THIS. YES, SIR. I'M SORRY. THE FIRE RUNS. YEAH. AND SO WITH THIS, I'M LOOKING AT MEETING WITH EVERY CITY AND FINDING A WAY TO HELP TO START THE RENEGOTIATION OF OUR MOU WITH THEM FOR THE UNINCORPORATED AREA. COMMISSIONER, IS YOUR MIC ON? BECAUSE WE CAN'T HEAR YOU. IT IS. I JUST NEED TO GET CLOSER, I GUESS. PULL IT UP TO YOU. SO AND ALSO IT IS WE WORK WITH CITY OF RICHMOND IN MANY OF THESE AREAS IN THE PAST. AND THIS IS MORE LIKE A CONTINUATION OF. YES, SIR, IN THE PAST. AND I BELIEVE 2007 OR 2008, THE COUNTY BOUGHT THEIR CURRENT LADDER TRUCK, THAT CURRENT LADDER TRUCK SEEING AT 25 YEARS OF SERVICE, ROUGHLY. ONCE YOU GET ABOUT 20 YEARS OF SERVICE ON ANY KIND OF LARGE PIECE OF APPARATUS, YOU'RE REACHING THE MAXIMUM LIFE OF THAT. THEY'VE BEEN HAVING TO EXHAUST LOTS OF MONEY TO MAINTAIN IT AND KEEP IT RUNNING. RIGHT NOW, THE HYDRAULIC SYSTEM ON THE LADDER TRUCK IS AT ITS MAXIMUM LIFE. THEY'RE HAVING ISSUES FINDING PARTS FOR THAT, THE GENERATOR ON THE TRUCK AND OTHER SAFETY ITEMS. THAT INCLUDES THE AIR SYSTEM THAT'S USED FOR THE FIREFIGHTERS WHEN THEY'RE WHEN THEY'RE TRAVERSING UP THE LADDER. SO THERE'S A LOT OF SAFETY CONCERNS WITH THAT AS WELL AS IT COMES TO RESPONSE HERE FOR OUR OWN COUNTY BUILDINGS HERE LOOKING OUT FOR THE SAFETY OF OUR EMPLOYEES. YOU MENTIONED THAT IT'S GOING TO APPLY TO THE UNINCORPORATED AREA WE HAVE. HOW MANY HOW MANY ESDS DO WE HAVE THAT COVER? THE UNINCORPORATED AREA. THIS IS NOT THIS IS NOT FOR THE ESD. THIS IS FOR THE NINE DEPARTMENTS THAT WE PAY OUT FOR THAT I'M LOOKING AT TO STRETCH THIS OUT. IT'S A VERY LENGTHY PROCESS, COMMISSIONER, AND I WILL GLADLY SIT DOWN WITH YOU TO GO OVER THIS BECAUSE WHAT I'M LOOKING AT DOING AND TALKING WITH ED AND HOW TO HOW TO HOW TO STRETCH THIS OUT SO THAT WE CAN WORK OUT WAYS FOR THEM TO FIND ALTERNATIVES FOR THE FUNDING SOURCES FOR THE UNINCORPORATED RESPONSE AREAS. HE'S TRYING TO REDUCE THE COST THAT WE PUT OUT NOW FOR FIRE RUNS. OKAY. TO OFFSET MY COSTS FOR PERSONNEL. WELL, SO GLAD TO HEAR THAT BECAUSE I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT. SORRY. THAT'S OKAY. THAT IS MORE THAN 300,000 AT ANNUAL COST OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. TOTAL IS LIKE 900,000. 900,000. YEAH. SO THIS CAN GO DOWN THAT. YES, SIR. TOTAL AMOUNT. YES, SIR. OKAY. AND I CAN GET MORE I CAN GET MORE DETAILS FOR WITH THAT. HE'S HE WAS HELPING ME. I WAS HOPING HE WAS HERE TODAY TO HELP. TO HELP WITH THIS ITEM. SURE. LET'S MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ITEM. OKAY. NEXT ITEM IS FOR THE CAPITAL ASSET ASSET TRANSPORT PROGRAM. WE'RE LOOKING AT A BALLISTIC MATERIAL AND ITEMS FOR THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT OF OUR TAHOES. CURRENTLY, THERE'S NOTHING IN PLACE WITH THOSE TAHOES BESIDES JUST A REGULAR TAHOE. I BELIEVE YOU ALL ARE AWARE THAT THAT PROGRAM IS WHAT TRANSPORT ALL OF OUR MONEY FOR THE TREASURER'S OFFICE AND EVERYTHING. MOVING THE MONEY AROUND. WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR IS A SAFETY MEASURE FOR THOSE OFFICERS WHILE THEY'RE MAKING THE TRANSPORT. WE DON'T HAVE ARMORED VEHICLES WE PURCHASE FOR THEM. WE'RE ABLE TO LOOK AT TAHOES AND THINGS LIKE THAT. THAT'S $18,000 WOULD PUT BALLISTIC WINDOWS, WINDSHIELDS IN SIDE SIDE PANELS AND REAR PANELS TO HELP BETTER PROTECT THE OFFICERS THAT WAY IN CASE THEY IF THEY ARE AMBUSHED, THEY HAVE A SAFETY MEANS TO PROTECT. I BELIEVE THE ROUNDS THAT PROTECTS UP TO LIKE A THREE AND EIGHT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT THAT WE'VE LOOKED AT FOR THIS BALLISTIC. AND SO WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS TO BE IN PLACE OF THE TWO NEW TAHOES WE HAVE FOR THOSE THAT THAT THAT WAS MY QUESTION IS FOR 1 OR 2 FOR TWO IT'S I THINK IT'S 9000 APIECE TOTAL OF 18,000. ABSOLUTELY. UNDERSTAND ANY QUESTIONS? I DON'T I DON'T LIKE THIS TRANSPORT THING. I'LL BE FINE. BLANK. I DON'T LIKE IT. I DON'T LIKE IT. I DON'T WANT TO SPEND ANY MONEY TRYING TO OUTFIT NO TAHOE. WE SHOULD HAVE A CAR SERVICE. YEAH, BUT SO IRRESPONSIBLE TO HAVE. THEN PICKING UP OUR MONEY. YOU GOT OTHER JOBS TO DO. THIS SHOULD BE DONE BY A BONDED, INSURED ARMORED CAR SERVICE. BUT WE GOING BACK TO THE 60S. THAT'S JUST RIDICULOUS. OKAY. THAT'S. MAYBE WE WILL TALK. THAT'S FINE. BUT THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU ALL. SO TO GO BACK TO THE FAIRGROUNDS, THEIR REVENUE IS APPROXIMATELY $300,000 A YEAR. OKAY. THANK YOU. IT. WE'VE ALREADY DONE THE LACTATION ROOMS. SO WE'LL START WITH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY. THE FIRST ONE IS BACK UP EXPANSION. AND ALSO IT REMOVED ONE OF THE PROJECTS. IT WAS A I'LL LET YOU TELL US WHICH ONE WAS REMOVED. THANKS, PAMELA. GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONER. JUDGES. I'M JOANNE TOLLIVER, IT ASSISTANT DIRECTOR. I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO ALLOW US TO PRESENT OUR KPS. WE'VE GOT, LIKE PAMELA SAID, WE HAD 12, WE NOW HAVE 11. BUT I ALSO WANT TO THANK YOU FOR ALL THE SUPPORT YOU'VE GIVEN TO IT DEPARTMENT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS. WE REALLY APPRECIATE THAT. SO SHARING SOME GOOD NEWS WITH YOU. WE DID HAVE 12 KPS, WE NOW HAVE 11. [00:55:03] WE'VE REMOVED OUR ENTERPRISE DATABASE BACKUP AND RESTORE TOOL. SO THAT WAS ABOUT 75 K SO IF MY MATH IS CORRECT, OUR TOTAL KPS HAS GONE FROM 7.8 MILLION OR 7.8 8 MILLION TO 7.81 MILLION. AND THE OTHER GOOD NEWS IS ALL OF OUR SHIPS, ALL 11, APPEAR TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR DEBT FINANCE PER A CONVERSATION WITH ED LAST WEEK. SO THIS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THAT MEANS THERE WILL BE NO IMPACT TO OUR OPERATING BUDGET AND OUR PLAN IS TO APPROACH OUR PURCHASES IN PHASES AND LIST THE EXPECTED LIFE LIFESPAN OF EACH ACQUISITION. SO IF AND WHEN THEY ARE APPROVED FOR DEBT FINANCE, WE WILL STRUCTURE THE DEBT TO ALIGN WITH THE BENEFIT OF EACH PURCHASE. SO YES, WE HAVE 11 KPS. OUR LIST IS LONG, BUT OUR NEED AS LONG AS WELL. WHAT YOU WILL HEAR TODAY FROM OUR IT MANAGERS AND SUPERVISORS IS NOT ONLY A SUMMARY OF EACH CIP, BUT ALSO THE RISK ASSOCIATED WITH NOT FUNDING THE CIP. JUST TO BE SURE, THERE ARE SEVERAL CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE ITEMS THAT NEED TO BE PURCHASED DUE TO END OF LIFE. THERE IS A LACK OF STORAGE. WE'RE BEEFING UP OUR SECURITY NETWORK, MONITORING TOOLS AND THERE ARE DATA RETENTION LEGAL REQUIREMENTS THAT WE HAVE TO MEET. WE ALSO HAVE INITIATIVES THAT WILL PROVIDE MORE A MORE EFFICIENT SOLUTION FOR COUNTY RESIDENTS AND EMPLOYEES. SO IN SUMMARY, THESE CAPITAL INVESTMENT PROGRAMS ARE NECESSARY IN ORDER TO HELP US STAY AHEAD OF THE IT CURVE. NOT ONLY WILL THEY HELP MAXIMIZE OUR OUTPUT VALUE, BUT THEY WILL ALSO ALLOW US TO BE MORE EFFICIENT SO WE CAN HELP BRING MORE REVENUE TO FORT BEND COUNTY. SO WE'RE GOING TO START WITH CLAYTON ELLIOTT, OUR OPERATIONS MANAGER, WHO WILL BRIEF OUR FIRST FOUR SIPS. SO THE FIRST FIRST FOUR THAT WE HAVE ARE THE BACKUP EXPANSION, ENTERPRISE STORAGE DEVICE REPLACEMENT, PHYSICAL SERVERS AND THE PRODUCTION SERVERS. I'M GOING TO KIND OF GO FROM BOTTOM TO TOP, TO BE HONEST. IT IT'LL EXPLAIN THE ENTIRE STRATEGY THAT WE'RE GOING THROUGH. SO THE PHYSICAL SERVERS, WE HAVE ABOUT EIGHT SERVERS THAT ARE NOT VIRTUALIZED. THEY'RE ACTUAL INDIVIDUAL PHYSICAL BOXES. WE'VE HAD THEM FOR SEVEN YEARS. WE'RE HAVING HARDWARE FAILURES. THEY'RE JUST GETTING LONG IN THE TOOTH. WE JUST NEED TO REPLACE THEM. QUESTION YES, SIR. RIGHT THERE. SO WHY CAN'T WE GO EVERYBODY GOING ON CLOUD SO WHY CAN WE DO THAT? IT'S POSSIBLE THE CLOUD IS ACTUALLY I DON'T KNOW. NO, IT'S A GOOD VERY GOOD QUESTION, SIR. SO THE CLOUD IS A GOOD STRATEGY IN CERTAIN PLACES. WE ARE A HYBRID UNIT OURSELVES, SO WE HAVE ON PREM AND CLOUD APPLICATIONS. CLOUD FITS IN CERTAIN AREAS, BUT IT DOESN'T FIT ACROSS THE ENTIRE SPECTRUM OF EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING. WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO PUT ALL YOUR SERVER INFRASTRUCTURE UP THERE, WHERE YOU'RE TRYING TO PUT ALL OF YOUR UNSTRUCTURED DATA UP THERE, WHERE YOU'RE TRYING TO PUT ALL YOUR APPLICATIONS. IT ACTUALLY IS QUITE EXPENSIVE TO GO CLOUD BECAUSE YOU HAVE INGRESS AND REGRESS CHARGES FOR THE DATA. SO NOT ONLY ARE YOU PAYING FOR THE USE OF THE FACILITY AND THE TIME YOU'RE PAYING FOR THE DATA ACTUALLY COMING BACK AND FORTH, SO THERE ARE CERTAIN PLACES WHERE IT IS A VERY GOOD FIT AND THERE ARE CERTAIN PLACES THAT WE DON'T SEE IT AS BEING OPTIMAL ACROSS THE BOARD. OKAY. WHERE ARE YOU STARTING? ARE YOU STARTING ON NUMBER? HE STARTED AT NUMBER 14. NUMBER 14. SORRY, SIR. SO WE'RE GOING 14, 13, 12. 11 ACTUALLY IS WHERE? OKAY, YOU'RE BACK. GOING BACK? I'M GOING BACKWARDS. AND THE REASON I'M GOING BACKWARDS IS TO EXPLAIN THE ACTUAL FIRST ITEM IS THE BACKUP STRATEGY IN ORDER TO EXPLAIN THE BACKUP STRATEGY. IT'S GOOD TO SEE WHERE WHERE I'M GOING FROM FROM THAT BECAUSE IT'S A CASCADING EFFECT. SO IN OPERATIONS. SO YOU PUT THE SMALLER NUMBER ON THE TOP TO MAKE US FEEL FEEL REALLY GOOD. OKAY. SO IS THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THAT PIECE? NO. OKAY. THEN THE NEXT PIECE THAT WE WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS THE PRODUCTION SERVERS. SO ALWAYS CALL NUMBER NUMBER 13. NUMBER 13 IS THE PHYSICAL REPLACEMENT FOR 90,090. THAT WAS THE ONE I JUST DID. SO WHAT WAS THE THE OTHER ONE WAS 2.14. SO. OKAY, 14 SO I'M ON 14. I'M SORRY. I GOT ALL MIXED UP. SO I AM ON 14. I'M ON 1314. SO I MESSED UP ON THAT ONE. SO YEAH, SO I'M GOING 14. SO THE PRODUCTION SERVER ENVIRONMENT, THIS IS OUR VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT OF OUR SERVERS. WE HAVE JUST I'M AT CAPACITY ACROSS THE BOARD AND THIS AND I SHOULD STATE THAT THIS INCORPORATES COUNTY ITE AND THE SO THIS IS JUST NOT A COUNTY ITE. THIS IS A REPLACEMENT OF SERVER INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THE SOA AND COUNTY ITE. SO AND THIS IS TO REPLACE AGING EQUIPMENT AND TO EXPAND ACROSS THE ENTIRE SPECTRUM OF WHAT WE'RE DOING JUST BECAUSE OF THE NEED FOR OUR SQL DATABASE INFRASTRUCTURE, THE APPLICATION SETS THAT WE'RE BEING ASKED TO STORE. I JUST NEED THE ADDITIONAL CAPACITY AND RESOURCES TO MAINTAIN AND KEEP UP WITH THE BUSINESS AND WHAT THEY'RE TRYING TO DO. OKAY, COOL. AND THEN ON NUMBER 12, ENTERPRISE STORAGE. [01:00:02] THIS IS THE BIG ONE FOR US. WE'VE BEEN ASKED BECAUSE OF THE TEXAS ADMINISTRATIVE CODE, TITLE 13, CHAPTER SIX, WE'RE IN. WE'RE WE'RE REQUIRED TO KEEP DATA. SO I HAVE TO CAPTURE ALL CELL PHONE DATA. I HAVE TO CAPTURE ALL DESKTOP AND LAPTOP DATA. I HAVE TO MAINTAIN OUR SERVER INFRASTRUCTURE DATA AND PUT A RETENTION AROUND ALL OF THIS FOR A FIVE YEAR LIFESPAN. THAT REQUIRES A TON OF SPACE. JUST TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA, TODAY WE HAVE 210TB WORTH OF PRODUCTION DATA IN ORDER TO MEET THIS RETENTION POLICY THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE, I HAVE TO INCREASE THAT TO 1.2PB. SO IT'S A MASSIVE INCREASE OVER WHAT WE CURRENTLY DO TODAY ON OUR PRODUCTION. DID I SAY PRODUCTION? SO YOUR H DRIVE AND YOUR I DRIVE. I HAVE TO JUST BECAUSE OF WHERE WE'RE GROWING. WE'RE GROWING AT A 30% CLIP PER YEAR. I NEED TO INCREASE IT AS WELL TO 833TB. SO THIS IS ONE QUESTION I HAVE. YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT A LOT OF STORAGE DEVICES. YES, SIR. HOW DO YOU PROTECT THIS? YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THAT'S ANOTHER WHOLE DISCUSSION. RIGHT. SO YOU HAVE IT. YOU HAVE IT. YOU HAVE IT ALREADY. YOU'RE GOING TO BE TALKING EVENTUALLY OR JUST. YES, SIR. AND THAT'S A GOOD POINT. SO WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS COMING AT THIS FROM A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES. SO THE BACKUP HAS A PRODUCTION SIDE. THIS IS OUR CURRENT DRIVE AND I DRIVE. THEN WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A RETENTION STORAGE AREA FOR DEEP AND CHEAP. THIS IS THE LEAST EXPENSIVE WAY THAT I CAN KEEP THAT RETENTION DATA BECAUSE WE DON'T ACCESS IT VERY OFTEN. WE'RE JUST REQUIRED BY LAW TO HAVE IT. SO I'VE GOT TO HAVE A PLACE TO KEEP THAT AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A REPLICATION POINT OF THIS DATA TO ANOTHER SITE. AND THEN WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR IS AN AIR GAP STRATEGY. AIR GAP MEANS THAT I'M GOING TO HAVE ALL OF OUR STRUCTURED OR UNSTRUCTURED DATA THAT OUR AIR DRIVE, THE CRITICAL STUFF THAT WE DO ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS WITHIN THE BUSINESS FUNCTION, WE CALL IT AIR GAP. IT'S KIND OF SEPARATED OUT. SO IF WE WERE TO GET HIT WITH A RANSOMWARE ATTACK AND KNOCK ON WOOD, I DON'T I LOSE BACKUP, I LOSE FULL PRODUCTION DATA AND EVERYTHING ELSE, THIS DATA STAYS SAFE BECAUSE THE RANSOMWARE CANNOT GET TO IT. SO WE'RE PROPOSING THAT AS A SOLUTION INTO THIS TO KEEP EVERYTHING SECURE. OKAY. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. AND THEN. THEN IT GOES TO THE BACKUP. SO THIS IS NUMBER 11. THE REASON FOR THE SMALL ONE? YEAH, THE SMALL ONE. WELL, COMPARATIVELY, I GUESS. BUT THE REASON AND THE WHOLE REASON IS BECAUSE I HAVE TO EXPAND ON OUR SERVER INFRASTRUCTURE AND FOR ALL OF OUR PRODUCTION APPLICATIONS AND I HAVE TO EXPAND ACROSS OUR WHOLE DATA STRUCTURES, DATA STORAGE STRUCTURE. I HAVE TO BACK ALL THAT UP AS WELL. SO I HAVE TO EXPAND OUR BACKUP STRATEGY JUST IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THAT WE KEEP ALL THAT DATA SAFE. YOU FINISHED, RIGHT? YES, SIR. ANY QUESTIONS? YOU'RE GOOD. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. NEXT, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SARAH NUZHAT. SHE'S GOING TO BRIEF NUMBER 15 VITALS AND LAND RECORDER. GOOD AFTERNOON, ALL MEMBERS OF COMMISSIONERS COURT. I'M SARAH NUZHAT, SYSTEMS PROGRAMING MANAGER. PULL IT DOWN TO YOU. ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON, ALL MEMBERS OF COMMISSIONERS. A LITTLE BIT FURTHER. ALL RIGHT. RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOUR MOUTH. OH, THERE YOU GO. OKAY, STEP UP TO IT. OKAY, GOOD. NOW, CAN YOU HEAR ME? OKAY? ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON, ALL MEMBERS OF COMMISSIONERS COURT. I'M SARAH NUZUHATH, SYSTEMS PROGRAMING MANAGER. WITH ME, I HAVE NICOLETTE ROSS, OUR CHIEF DEPUTY FOR WITH COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE. TOGETHER WE ARE REQUESTING THE APPROVAL FOR A NEW SOFTWARE IMPLEMENTATION FOR A NEW PRODUCT, WHICH IS VITALS AND LAND RECORDER. AS THE NAME SUGGESTS, VITALS. THE SOFTWARE WOULD RECORD VITAL STATISTICS SUCH AS BIRTH, DEATH AND MARRIAGE CERTIFICATES, ALONG WITH LAND RECORDS SUCH AS REAL ESTATE, PROPERTY TAX PLATS, DEBAS BRANDS, ETCETERA. THE CURRENT SOFTWARE THAT WE HAVE IS ON MOMENTUM. IT'S ABOUT TEN YEARS OLD AND HAS SEVERAL ISSUES. WE WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT SOME OF THESE ISSUES TO THE COURT'S ATTENTION AND THE NEED FOR COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE TO MOVE TO A NEW SOFTWARE. THE FIRST ISSUE DEALS WITH DATA LOSS. COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE SUFFERED THE LOSS OF SOME OF THE DATA BECAUSE OF THE MIGRATION PROCESS TO A POINT THAT EVEN TODAY, WHEN SOME OF THESE DOCUMENTS ARE ACCESSED, THERE IS A HIGH POSSIBILITY THAT THE RECORDS DISAPPEAR FROM THE END USER SCREENS. THE OFFICE WAS ABLE TO RECOVER CERTAIN SOME AMOUNT OF DATA WHICH WAS STORED ON CDS, MICROFILM, MICROFICHE, ETCETERA, IN PAST. THE SECOND ISSUE HAS TO DO WITH NO MAJOR ENHANCEMENTS ON THIS PRODUCT. SOFTWARE IS NOT USER FRIENDLY FOR CUSTOMERS OR STAFF. [01:05:02] IT REQUIRES A LARGE AMOUNT OF STAFF, TIME AND RESOURCES, WALKING THE CUSTOMER THROUGH SEARCHING THEIR OWN DOCUMENTS, EITHER ON PHONE, THROUGH EMAILS OR IN-PERSON MEETINGS. OTHER ISSUE IS WITH PRODUCT INTEGRATION. WITH OTHER SOFTWARE APPLICATIONS. IT'S EXTREMELY CHALLENGING CURRENTLY TO INTEGRATE THIS VERY OLD PRODUCT INTO OTHER VENDOR APPLICATIONS. OTHER VENDORS HAVE SCOUTED THAT THERE IS NOT ENOUGH OF CUSTOMER BASE THAT ALSO USE MOMENTUM TO BUILD INTEGRATIONS INTO THEIR PRODUCT. THIS LEAVES COUNTY OFFICE, COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE, NO OTHER CHOICE OTHER THAN ENTERING HUGE AMOUNT OF DATA MANUALLY INTO THIS APPLICATION. FINALLY, THE PRODUCT TRAINING AND SUPPORT THE VENDOR HAS FAILED TO PROVIDE TRAINING SUCH AS TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES SUCH AS PHYSICAL AND ONLINE CONFERENCES. THERE ARE NO ONLINE FORUMS WHERE THE CUSTOMERS CAN SHARE THE INFORMATION OR THEIR EXPERIENCES. THIS VENDOR PARTICULARLY HAS SEVERAL OTHER PRODUCTS IN WHICH THEY HAVE FOCUSED THEIR MAIN ATTENTION AND HAS NOT ADVANCED THE AUMENTAM PRODUCT. OKAY, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE CURRENT, THE CURRENT PRODUCT AND ITS ISSUES. YES, SIR. SO DUE TO ALL THESE ISSUES, COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE ALONG WITH IT IS REQUESTING THE COURT TO FUND THIS NEW SOFTWARE, WHICH WOULD BE RELIABLE, ROBUST, SECURE, BUILT ON LATEST TECHNOLOGIES THAT CAN SUPPORT THE BUSINESS NEEDS, ALONG WITH OUR CITIZENS. FOR FORT BEND COUNTY, I HAVE A QUESTION. THERE IS THIS CAN THE NEW SOFTWARE CAN ALLOW SOME OF OUR CITIZENS, IF THEY WANTED TO ENTER A ORDER ONLINE? IS THAT IS THAT A POSSIBILITY? I WOULD THINK SO. BUT I WOULD LET ABSOLUTELY WE HAVE THAT AVAILABLE NOW WITH THE CURRENT SYSTEM. BUT IT DOESN'T WORK VERY WELL. OKAY. THERE'S ISSUES. YEAH. SO YOU'RE CONFIDENT YOU'RE CONFIDENT THIS SYSTEM CAN ADDRESS THAT ISSUE BECAUSE THAT IS GOING TO BE A GREAT HELP FOR HONESTLY, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IF THEY PUT A REQUEST IN AND IF YOU VERIFY THE PERSON AND THE DATA THEY ARE REQUESTING EVEN, IS THERE ANY WAY THEY CAN RECEIVE IT BACK ONLINE OR THEY HAVE TO COME IN PERSON? NO, NO, NO. THEY CAN RECEIVE IT ONLINE. YEAH. RIGHT NOW IF YOU SO IF YOU ORDER A SAY YOUR COPY OF YOUR DEED AND ONLINE, YOU CAN PRINT A PLAIN COPY ON YOUR PRINTER. OR IF YOU WANT A CERTIFIED COPY, THEN WE CAN PRODUCE IT AND THEN SEND IT DIFFERENT METHODS. ONCE, WITH THE NEWER PRODUCTS, ONLINE CERTIFICATION IS AVAILABLE, WHICH THIS PRODUCT DOESN'T HAVE AND THEY CAN'T SEEM TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO IT. CAN WE KNOW WHAT THE 800,000 IS THE FIRST YEAR AND THE 200,000 EACH YEAR THEREAFTER IS MAINTENANCE. WHAT'S IT FOR? SO THAT IS THE ESSER TO THE MIC. YES, SIR. SO THAT IS THE ESTIMATED COST FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRODUCT. SORRY, YOU SAY THAT IS THE EIGHT. HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS IS THE IMPLEMENTATION COST FOR THIS VITAL AND LAND RECORDER SOFTWARE. IS THAT 800 OR 200? 800 FOR THE FIRST IMPLEMENTATION COST AND THEN FOLLOWED WITH EVERY YEAR THERE WOULD BE A MAINTENANCE AND SUPPORT COST TOTALING TO $200,000. PAMELA, COULD THIS BE FUNDED OUT OF THE COUNTY CLERK'S RECORD MANAGEMENT FUND? OH, I'LL HAVE TO LOOK AT THEIR FUND BALANCE. I DO KNOW THAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE SEVERAL POSITIONS THAT ARE FUNDED OUT OF THEIR RECORDS MANAGEMENT FUND CURRENTLY. OKAY, I'LL HAVE TO CHECK. ALL RIGHT. THIS I COMPLETELY. SHE'S ABOUT TO TELL US. I BELIEVE THE ANSWER IS YES TO YOUR QUESTION, BUT I'M ALREADY FUNDING ABOUT 17 PEOPLE OUT OF MY RECORDS MANAGEMENT, SO I BELIEVE I'VE CONTRIBUTED QUITE A BIT ALREADY VIA RECORDS MANAGEMENT. AND THIS WOULD TAKE A HUGE, HUGE BITE OUT OF IT. SO I DON'T THINK I COULD CONTINUE TO DO BOTH, IS MY ANSWER RIGHT? AND THAT'S WHAT I WAS SAYING. I SAID, I KNOW WE I KNOW WE DO A LOT OF POSITIONS, SO I DON'T KNOW HOW. WELL, I JUST I JUST A QUESTION. YEAH. AND I THINK THE ANSWER IS YES, IT COULD BE OKAY. THE ANSWER IS NO, IT CAN'T BE BECAUSE. THAT'S CORRECT. BECAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE THE MONEY AVAILABLE. THAT'S CORRECT. UNLESS WE FUND THE POSITIONS OUT OF OUT OF THE ORDINARY BUDGET, RIGHT? YES, SIR. SO THE ANSWER IS NO. OKAY, I GOT IT. THAT'S FINE. I TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER. AND ALSO, I JUST GO AHEAD. AND IF I COULD JUST ADD IN THE BEGINNING, REMEMBER I STATED THIS COULD QUALIFY FOR DEBT FINANCE. SO THIS IS DEFINITELY ONE THAT WOULD FALL UNDER IT SUBSCRIPTION BASED AGREEMENTS IN ACCORDANCE WITH GASB 86 AND 97. SO 96. THANK YOU. YEAH. SO THIS COULD DEFINITELY BE. THANK YOU. THIS COULD DEFINITELY BE DEBT FINANCED. YEAH. BUT I WHAT I'M EXCITED ABOUT THIS THING IS UPGRADING AND MAKING IT TO TODAY'S LEVEL, TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY [01:10:04] LEVEL AND IT SAVES OUR TIME. THEY ON HOW TO COME TO THE COUNTER AND YOU KNOW THEY DON'T HOW TO APPLY FOR SO IT'S AND IT SAVES QUITE A BIT OF STAFF TIME TOO, I WILL SAY SO SO POSSIBLY THIS MONEY IS GOING TO SAVE US A LOT OF MONEY, TOO, AS FAR AS MANPOWER AND ALL THAT STUFF. SO ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. SURE. GENTLEMEN. NEXT UP IS ITEM 16 ARCGIS ENTERPRISE CLOUD DEPLOYMENT SERVICE. GOOD AFTERNOON, MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSIONER. COURT. THANK YOU. THIS IS THE WHOLE. WHOLE THING. YEAH. YEAH. THANK YOU FOR THIS. THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. TODAY I WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THE GIS BUDGET. MY NAME IS VIVIAN NGUYEN AND I'M THE APPLICATION SYSTEMS SUPERVISOR. AND I ALSO MANAGE THE GIS TEAM AND THE GIS ARCHITECTURE. GIS STANDS FOR GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND IS USED BY BOTH THE PUBLIC AND OUR DEPARTMENTS. THERE ARE TWO. THERE ARE TWO CATEGORIES OF INFORMATION IN GIS, HUMAN GEOGRAPHY, AND PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. SO WE GOT THE G, WE GOT THE I, BUT MY S IS GNAGE IMPROVEMENT. SO LET'S TALK ABOUT OUR SYSTEMS. CURRENTLY WE HAVE 11 ON PREMISE SERVERS AND SOME OF THESE SERVERS ARE HAVING PERIODS OF PERFORMANCE ISSUES AS WE ARE EXPERIENCING HIGHER THAN NORMAL TRAFFIC AND INCREASED USE OF STORAGE. WE HAVE SEVERAL TICKETS SAYING THAT THE PUBLIC MAP IS SLOW. WE ARE GETTING MORE AND MORE REQUESTS AND RESOURCES FOR MORE STORAGE. I HAVE A REQUEST FROM ENGINEERING TO LOAD 2019 TO 2023 IMAGERY INTO OUR IMAGERY SERVERS. THE POINT IS WHEN THE SERVERS ARE EXPERIENCING ANY PERFORMANCE ISSUES, THIS COULD INTERRUPT OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND YOU AND THE RESIDENTS FROM ACCESSING THE PUBLIC MAP. TO SUMMARIZE, WE'RE FACING MEMORY STORAGE AND PROCESSING ISSUES. LAST YEAR WE HAD 600 TICKETS AND THE UPTICK OCCURRED DURING ELECTIONS. COVID AND NATURAL DISASTER SEASONS. AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, WE SUPPORT SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS SUCH AS HOMELAND SECURITY, PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AND FOR ELECTIONS. WE CREATED A ELECTION WAIT TIME APP TO LET RESIDENTS KNOW WHAT THE WAIT TIMES ARE AT EACH VOTING LOCATIONS. WE ALSO CREATED A KNOW YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL REP FROM A CITY, COUNTY, STATE AND FEDERAL LEVEL. I APPRECIATE ALL THE INFORMATION, BUT I CAN TELL YOU THAT I USE GIS JUST ABOUT EVERY DAY. YES, AND IT GETS EXTREMELY FRUSTRATING TO ME WHEN IT DOESN'T WORK BECAUSE I CAN'T I CAN'T GET THE INFORMATION AND I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING. SO YOU SOLD ME ALREADY. IT JUST KEEP IT UP ALL THE TIME. WE'LL BE VERY HELPFUL. AND ALSO, FOR YOUR INFORMATION, IF YOU SOLD IT TO COMMISSIONER MYERS, YOU GOT IT. I THINK YOU'RE GOOD. SO BEFORE I MENTIONED THE SOLUTION, THE THE THE SOLUTION IS TO GO BRING OUR 11 GIS SERVERS TO CLOUD. AND THE ADVANTAGES OF CLOUD IS THAT YOU PAY AS YOU GO. IT'S KIND OF LIKE UTILITY FOR WATER OR ELECTRICITY. THAT'S WHERE I HAVE A QUESTION. I SEE THAT THE INITIAL COST IS 503,000 AND THE ONGOING COST IS ALMOST 75% OF THAT COST. SO I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A CORRECTION THAT OUR OUR BUDGET IS $714,000 AND THAT THE OPERATING COST IS $153,000 FOR THE FIRST YEAR. OH, THAT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE. AND YOU KNOW, YOU'RE TALKING THE FIRST YEAR IS HOW MUCH? SEVEN $14,000, AND THAT INCLUDES THE GIS SOFTWARE, THE GIS SUPPORT, THE CLOUD ARCHITECTURE AND THE MANAGED CLOUD SERVICE PROVIDER. YEAH. WHAT IS THAT NUMBER? $714,000. THAT IS A BIG DIFFERENCE. 115 153 GOING FORWARD. EXCUSE ME, 153,000 GOING FORWARD. SO THE $153,000 IS ALREADY THE ESRI CONTRACT. AND SO THE REST OF THAT IS ABOUT 2018, 18 TO 21% AROUND THAT BALLPARK OF THAT BUDGET ALREADY. SO THIS IS THE WHOLE PICTURE FOR GIS. YOU'VE LOST ME. I'M SORRY. NO ROUND NUMBERS. HOW MUCH FOR THE SECOND, THIRD AND FOURTH YEAR? SO THIS SEVEN $14,000 IS ACTUALLY THE HIGH END. YOU PAY FOR WHAT YOU USE. SO 714 IS ON THE HIGH END. YOU COULD ACTUALLY BE SIGNIFICANTLY CHEAPER. SO THE FIRST YEAR COST IS THE INITIAL UPFRONT COST AND PROCURING THE ACTUAL CLOUD SERVERS. AND THEN AT THE YEARS AFTER THAT, IT'S JUST MAINTENANCE. [01:15:03] OKAY. WHAT DOLLAR AMOUNT FOR MAINTENANCE. SO THE DOLLAR AMOUNT OF MAINTENANCE COULD BE AROUND. I THINK I HAVE IT IN THE IT IS 461,000 FOR THE. SORRY, SORRY. IT IS IT IS AROUND $500,000 FOR MAINTENANCE EACH YEAR. $1 MILLION A YEAR IN MAINTENANCE? YES. YOU SURE? BECAUSE HERE THE NUMBER SAYS 393. COMMISSIONER MYERS. I WAS. I DON'T LIKE THAT NUMBER. WILL. DOUBLE CHECK THOSE NUMBERS. GENTLEMEN, PLEASE. WE'LL DOUBLE CHECK THOSE BECAUSE ACTUALLY, IS THERE ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE TO RATHER THAN GOING TO THE CLOUD, THAT SOUNDS AWFULLY EXPENSIVE. AND THE MAN BACK THERE IS NODDING HIS HEAD. WERE YOU NOT IN YOUR HEAD? CAN WE STEP UP HERE AND TELL US? WELL, YEAH, BUT IN THE FIRST TWO YEARS, YOU'RE SPENDING A MILLION. 200,000 BUCKS. YEAH. AND THEN HALF $1 MILLION THEREAFTER. SO THERE IS THERE IS SOME VERY GOOD ADVANTAGES ON THE ARCGIS SIDE GOING TO THE CLOUD. SO I DON'T WANT TO DIMINISH THAT WHATSOEVER. THERE ARE SOME VERY SOLID, JUSTIFIABLE THINGS JUST BECAUSE OF THE WAY THEY CAN DESIGN THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE. IT BECOMES. OH, I'M SORRY. SO I THOUGHT I WAS. I WAS CLOSE. ANYWAY, IT'S WE CAN DO IT ON PREMISE, BUT THAT GOES INTO THE EXPANSION OF MY INFRASTRUCTURE ON THE BACK END WHERE I WAS SAYING THAT WE DON'T HAVE THE CAPACITY AND THE RESOURCES TO HANDLE THAT. GIS IS KIND OF A VERY PRIME EXAMPLE, RIGHT? WE NEED TO BUILD AND REALLY INFLATE THE THE INFRASTRUCTURE ON THE BACK END WITH THE INTERNALLY IN ORDER TO HANDLE THE CAPACITY OF GIS. IF YOU GO TO THE CLOUD, THEY ALREADY HAVE ALL THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND EVERYTHING. THIS IS OUR GIS WORLD. AS AN EXAMPLE, YOU'VE KIND OF EXPLAINED IT TO ME. YOU'VE GOT A READY MADE DEAL VERSUS SOMETHING. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GO CREATE THE WILL. YES, SIR. OKAY. SO THAT MEANS IT CAN BE MORE EXPENSIVE WHEN WE ARE TRYING TO DO THE INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THAT PARTICULAR PURPOSE WOULD BE INADEQUATE. YEAH, YEAH. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. I MEAN, THERE'S THERE'S A TON OF STORAGE EXAMPLES. SHE HAS SOME OF THE STUFF SHE WAS TALKING ABOUT IS REALLY BIG, SO THAT'S WHERE THE COSTS ARE. I DON'T WANT TO REINVENT THE WHEEL. YES, SIR. GOOD. GOOD. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THIS WOULD NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR DEBT FINANCING? NO. BUT I'M TALKING ABOUT THE CLOUD. THE CLOUDS ARE SUBSCRIPTION BASED. SUBSCRIPTION? YEAH. SOUNDS LIKE THERE'S SOME MOVING PARTS IN THERE. SO IT CAN BE RIGHT? I BELIEVE IT CAN BE. AND I TALKED ABOUT IT LAST WEEK, CHRIS, AND HE STRONGLY BELIEVES IT CAN BE BECAUSE IT IS A SUBSCRIPTION BASED MODEL. YEAH. CORRECT. FLAT OUT. CORRECT. OKAY. CORRECT. NEXT. MOVING TO ITEM 17 ON YOUR LIST. ITEM 17. YEAH. GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS AND JUDGE. THANK YOU FOR THIS. SORRY. THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. MY NAME IS RUSSELL HILL. I'M THE IT SECURITY SUPERVISOR. MY ITEM TODAY IS TO REPLACE SOME LEGACY CONFERENCING EQUIPMENT, WHICH, AS YOU KNOW, LIKE COMPUTERS, THEY DO GET OLD AND SO YOU NEED TO REPLACE THEM. OFTEN THESE ARE ACTUALLY FROM THE DEPARTMENTS, THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, THE DISTRICT CLERK AND THE MEDICAL EXAMINER. THEY DO HAVE SOME OF THESE LEGACY CONFERENCING EQUIPMENT AND THEY ARE END OF LIFE CYCLE. THE COUNTY IS MOVING TO STANDARDIZE THE CONFERENCING EQUIPMENT AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE ROBUST MODERN FEATURES THAT ARE BUILT INTO OUR CISCO SYSTEMS. OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD OF TIME, WE WILL ACTUALLY SAVE $50,000 IN MAINTENANCE FEES ON THIS LEGACY EQUIPMENT. AND IF WE DO NOT REPLACE THE LEGACY EQUIPMENT, WE RISK LOST PRODUCTIVITY DUE TO COMPATIBILITY ISSUES. AND SPENDING ADDITIONAL FUNDS TO REPLACE PARTS. SO THIS 101,000 IS ENOUGH TO DO THAT. YES. PLACING IT BECAUSE I, I, IF YOU RECALL, I MEAN, I'M TALKING TO ROBIN. I DON'T SEE. SO WE HAD THIS CONVERSATION MANY TIMES STANDARDIZING EVERYTHING. AND JOHANNE, YOU KNOW IT BECAUSE WE FIVE YEARS AGO WHEN I CAME INTO OFFICE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT SO MANY DIFFERENT SOFTWARE IS BEING USED. SOME OF THEM ARE NOT COMPATIBLE, SOME OF THEM DOESN'T TALK TO EACH OTHER AND ALL THAT STUFF. BUT YOU GUYS DID AN AMAZING JOB SO FAR, BRINGING AS MUCH STANDARDIZATION YOU CAN DO. AND I WILL ENCOURAGE CONTINUE TO DO THAT BECAUSE IT'S LESS COMPLICATION, LESS CONFUSION, THINGS OF THAT NATURE. [01:20:01] SO THAT'S MY THOUGHT. ANY ANY QUESTIONS ON IT? AND IT'S ALSO A SMALL PRICE TO PAY, COMPARING WHAT WE CAN ACCOMPLISH FROM IT. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING ACTUALLY, I HAVE ONE MORE. I THINK RUSSELL ALSO HAS ITEM 19. THE NEXT ONE. YEAH. SO I THINK THIS NEXT ONE WILL SPEAK TO YOUR HEARTS. THIS ONE IS AN ITEM FOR A NETWORK TRAFFIC ANALYZER. THIS WILL INCREASE THE COUNTY'S. OH, SORRY. THIS WILL INCREASE THE COUNTY'S POSTURE AND REDUCE RISK BY SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASING THE IT SECURITY'S RESPONSE TIME, AS WELL AS PROVIDE TOTAL VISIBILITY AND DISCOVER MITIGATING THREATS SUCH AS RANSOMWARE. I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT AN ISSUE THAT HAPPENED A FEW YEARS AGO. WE WERE DOING A PROOF OF CONCEPT WITH THIS SPECIFIC DEVICE, AND WE WERE ACTUALLY ABLE TO DISCOVER AND RAPIDLY RESPOND TO AN ISSUE USING THIS DEVICE THAT ALLOWED US TO ACTUALLY STOP IT BEFORE IT SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. THIS WOULD HAVE ACTUALLY HALTED COUNTY BUSINESS IF IT ACTUALLY SPREAD. AND IT JUST HAPPENED SOMETHING IN DALLAS, RIGHT? THAT IS CORRECT, SIR. OKAY. WOW. I THINK JUST TWO DAYS AGO. SO IT'S IT'S A REAL, REAL ISSUE. AND THAT'S THE QUESTION I HAVE FOR YOU AS A SECURITY SUPERVISOR. ARE ARE YOU FEEL CONFIDENT WE ARE STAYING ON TOP OF ALL THAT STUFF? YES, SIR. BECAUSE IT IS SO IMPORTANT. SO IF I CAN ADD A PLUG IN TO THAT. FOR ME, THE NUMBER ONE THREAT TO ANY ORGANIZATION IS PEOPLE. SO THIS IS MY SHORT PLUG TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE COMPLETES THE CYBERSECURITY AWARENESS TRAINING BECAUSE WE CAN HAVE ALL THE TOOLS IN THE WORLD AND WE CAN HAVE ALL THE MONITORING GREAT WHIZ BANG STUFF. BUT CYBERSECURITY STARTS WITH PEOPLE. SO IF WE HAVE NOT COMPLETED OUR CYBERSECURITY TRAINING, PLEASE DO SO. THANK YOU. SO DO YOU HAVE A NEXT WEEK? NEXT WEEK? OKAY. DO YOU HAVE JOHN, DO YOU HAVE I MEAN, IT'S GOOD TO SAY. I MEAN, YES, SIR, PEOPLE ARE ALREADY DONE OR. YES, SIR. THE LAST TIME I CHECKED, WE WERE ABOUT 83%. HOWEVER, I DO KNOW WE ARE HAVING A CLOSED SESSION, THE COMMISSIONERS COURT COMMISSIONERS COURT TO BRIEF THE EXACT NUMBERS. OKAY. YES, SIR. WHEN IS THAT CLOSED SESSION? I HAVEN'T DONE MINE YET. MAY 9TH. MONDAY. MONDAY. I STAND CORRECTED. IT'S NOT A CLOSED SESSION. IT'S A WORKSHOP. 42 MINUTES. YOU PUT IT ON ONE AND A HALF SPEED AND JUST. YEAH, YEAH. SO ANY QUESTION ON THIS, OTHERWISE, WE WILL MOVE TO THE NEXT ONE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE GOOD WORK. 19. GENTLEMEN. THE NEXT ITEM IS ITEM 20 ENTERPRISE. ENTERPRISE PERMITTING SOLUTION. THANK YOU. SO WE ARE COMING BACK TO 19. THAT WAS 19 OH OH. NUMBER 20. I'M JUST. YES, I'M SORRY. THAT WAS 19 WAS REMOVED. 18 WAS REMOVED. YEAH. OH, OKAY. GO AHEAD, PLEASE. OKAY. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M COMMISSIONERS AND COUNTY JUDGE. MY NAME IS PAMELA BOGART. I AM THE PMO MANAGER HERE AT FORT BEND COUNTY. IT I COME TODAY TO PRESENT THE ENTERPRISE PERMITTING SOFTWARE SOLUTION CIP. THE INTENT IS TO ACQUIRE A ONE STOP SHOP PERMITTING SOLUTION THAT WILL BENEFIT SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS WITHIN FORT BEND COUNTY TRYING TO LOCATE AND IMPLEMENT A SINGLE PERMITTING SOLUTION WITHIN FORT BEND COUNTY TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS AND THOSE DEPARTMENTS. THREE OF THOSE DEPARTMENTS HAVE BEEN INVITED HERE TODAY. STACEY FROM STACY FROM ENGINEERING, MICHAEL SCHAEFER WITH ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH, AND JUSTIN JURICH WITH FIRE MARSHAL'S OFFICE. BASED ON THE NUMBER OF DEPARTMENTS THAT WILL BE THAT WE WILL BE WORKING WITH TO SELECT AND IMPLEMENT AN ENTERPRISE PERMITTING SOLUTION, THIS WILL PROBABLY BE A MULTI YEAR PROJECT. THERE ARE SEVERAL FACTORS THAT WE WILL TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION CLOUD BASED VERSUS ON PREM ANNUAL MAINTENANCE FEES, SUPPORT MODELS, SECURITY SOFTWARE COSTS, FUNCTIONALITY, CUSTOMIZATION AND TRAINING. THOSE ARE JUST SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT WE WILL HAVE TO CONSIDER IN TODAY'S ENVIRONMENT. WITHIN FORT BEND COUNTY, CONSTITUENTS ARE OFTEN COMPLAINING TO YOUR STAFFS ABOUT THE ISSUES THAT THEY HAVE, KNOWING WHO TO ASK QUESTIONS FOR, ABOUT PERMITS AND WHERE TO GO FOR PERMITS. SO WITH THIS, I THINK RIGHT NOW, I KNOW RIGHT NOW, TODAY MY PERMITS NOW IS USED FOR THE ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT. WE'RE WE WOULD LIKE TO ALSO LOOK FOR THE SOLUTION THAT WOULD BENEFIT, AGAIN, THESE DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE HERE AND OTHERS. WHAT WE HOPE TO BENEFIT FROM THIS. AND OUR DESIRE STATE IS TO HAVE A CENTRAL PERMITTING INTERFACE THAT WILL ALLOW CONSTITUENTS THE ABILITY TO APPLY FOR PERMITS ONLINE TO BE ABLE TO UPLOAD, SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION, MAKE PAYMENTS, REVIEW THEIR PLAN APPROVALS, AS WELL AS SCHEDULE INSPECTIONS AND [01:25:04] DOWNLOAD THEIR PERMITS. SOME OF THE OTHER BENEFITS WOULD BE TO DECREASE THE COST TO OUR CITIZENS WITH BY HAVING A BUILT IN WORKFLOW. ALSO TO PROVIDE THE CONSTITUENTS A WEEKLY UPDATE ON THEIR ENTIRE PROCESS FOR THEIR PROJECTS. ALLOW THE CONSTITUENTS TO TRACK THEIR TASKS AS WELL AS DIRECT COMMUNICATIONS AND HAVE HAVE DIRECT COMMUNICATIONS WITH WITH TEAM MEMBERS WITHIN FORT BEND COUNTY. AND THIS WOULD ALSO CREATE ACCOUNTABILITY. WE WILL BE ABLE TO HAVE AN EASIER USE FOR PROJECT TRACKING AS WELL AS AUTOMATING THE PROGRESS REPORTS. WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF NOT COMPLETING THIS? WELL, COMPLAINTS, OF COURSE, AS YOU'RE AS OUR CONSTITUENTS COMPLAIN, YOU'LL GET MORE COMPLAINTS. WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE MOVING INTO THE COUNTY. YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE MORE COMPLAINTS COMING INTO YOUR OFFICE. THERE WILL BE AN INCREASED COST BY TRYING TO SUPPORT MULTIPLE PERMITTING SOLUTIONS ACROSS THE COUNTY. THE STAFF CURRENTLY IN SOME OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS ARE HAVING TO MANUALLY PRINT OUT VIOLATIONS AND INSPECTIONS AND THEN HAVING TO STORE THOSE DOCUMENTS AS WELL. AND THEN THE CONSENSUS, OF COURSE, WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO MANAGE THEIR ONLINE PAYMENTS. THE COST FOR THIS SOLUTION FOR THE FIRST YEAR, WHICH INCLUDES POSITIONS, THERE WERE THREE POSITIONS RECOMMENDED BY THE ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, WOULD BE $786,395 FOR THE FIRST YEAR. THE COST OF THOSE POSITIONS EACH YEAR FOR THOSE THREE, IT RUNS $376,395. WE LOOK AT THIS OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD, JUST THE COST ON THE POSITIONS ALONE WOULD BE 1 MILLION, $1.8 MILLION OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD. THE SOLUTION AND THE STAFFING WOULD BE 2.2 MILLION. THE COST FOR THE POSITIONS WITHOUT I MEAN, THE COST FOR THE CIP WITHOUT THE POSITIONS IS 410 MILLION IN YEAR ONE. 410,000. I'M SORRY. THANK YOU. 410,000. OKAY. IF FUNDING IS APPROVED, THIS WILL ALLOW IT TO WORK WITH THE DEPARTMENTS, TO WORK WITH YOUR STAFF TO DO A DEEPER DIVE AND UNDERSTAND THE COMPLAINTS THAT YOU'RE RECEIVING. YES, SIR. QUESTION IS THIS IS A SOMEBODY WANTED TO GET A PERMIT. THEY COULD GET ON THEIR COMPUTER, GO TO THIS SITE AND APPLY FOR IT, OR THEY HAD TO COME TO THE COUNTY OR HOW DID THAT WORK? WE COULD HAVE IT SET UP THE PLAN. THE THE VISION IS TO HAVE IT EITHER WAY. SOME PEOPLE MAY NOT HAVE COMPUTERS WHERE THEY CAN DO THAT. I GET IT. BUT THOSE THAT DO, THOSE WHO BE ABLE TO DO IT AT HOME. YES, SIR. THEY CAN DO IT ANYTIME, DAY OR NIGHT. THEY COULD INITIATE THAT REQUEST. OKAY. WE ALL GET ENOUGH COMPLAINTS FROM PEOPLE ABOUT THE DIFFICULTY, THE DELAY AND HAVING TO RUN FROM ONE OFFICE TO ANOTHER OFFICE TO THE OFFICE TO A FOURTH OFFICE. IT'S THE PRICE ALONE. GETTING RID OF THE GRIEF WE HAVE TO PUT UP WITH IS WORTH IT. YEAH. SO AGAIN, COMMISSIONER MYERS SAID, OKAY, SO WE NEED WE NEED TO MOVE THAT TO NEW TECHNOLOGY BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE COMPLAINING. OKAY. YEAH. AND I WAS VERY EXCITED TO HEAR THAT WHEN WE INITIALLY TALKED ABOUT IT, EVEN FIRE MARSHAL AND ENGINEERING. SO THIS IS ENVIRONMENTAL. ENVIRONMENTAL. YEAH, THAT THAT IS ALL IMPORTANT. SO I LIKE TO SEE THIS HAPPEN SOONER THAN LATER. OKAY. WELL, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS? NO. OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS? NO, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALMOST DONE, GENTLEMEN. SO NEXT IS ITEM 22 OPEN RECORDS REQUEST SOFTWARE. DOING 21. 21. IS THAT. IS THAT 21 EVENT LOGGING PHONE? YES, THAT IS CORRECT. I JUMPED IN FRONT OF RUSSELL. SHE WAS READY. YOU'RE RIGHT. THANK YOU. 21. GOOD AFTERNOON AGAIN. THIS ITEM IS FOR LOGGING EVENTS ON THE PHONE SYSTEM AND NETWORKING EQUIPMENT. WE WOULD LIKE TO ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO COLLECT LOGS FOR UP TO A YEAR. THIS WOULD ALLOW US THE ABILITY TO DISCOVER POTENTIAL THREATS AND DETERMINE HOW THREAT ACTORS ACCESS OUR SYSTEM. IN ADDITION TO SECURITY, WE CAN RETAIN LOGS TO HELP US TROUBLESHOOT FOR ISSUES THAT COULD DISRUPT COUNTY BUSINESS. IF WE DON'T HAVE SUFFICIENT LOGGING, WE RISK DISRUPTING COUNTY BUSINESS, OF COURSE, AND HAVING MAJOR BREACHES OF SECURITY DEBT IN THE EVENT OF A CATASTROPHIC DISASTER. WE WOULD NOT HAVE ANY HISTORICAL EVENTS TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT. AND ALSO ALL YOUR ITEMS ARE NOT THAT EXPENSIVE. SO IT'S COMPARING COMPARING OTHERS, TRYING TO BE GOOD. OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS FROM ANY. [01:30:02] ANY COURT MEMBERS. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU. NOW TURN IT TO. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. ITEM 22 PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST MANAGEMENT SOLUTION. SO, AS YOU KNOW, THE COUNTY DOES NOT HAVE A DEDICATED DEPARTMENT TO PROCESS OPEN RECORDS REQUESTS. CURRENTLY, ANY CONSTITUENT CAN EMAIL A REQUEST OR SEND A REQUEST TO AN EMPLOYEE DEPARTMENT HEAD ELECTED OFFICIAL, AND THAT IS AN OFFICIAL SUBMISSION. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE LOOKING FOR AN AUTOMATED SOFTWARE SOLUTION THAT WILL ALLOW US WILL ALLOW THE CONSTITUENTS TO PROPERLY SUBMIT TRACK AND PAY ONLINE. SO THIS NOT ONLY AFFECTS THE COUNTY ATTORNEY, DISTRICT ATTORNEY, IT AFFECTS SHERIFF'S OFFICE, CONSTABLE'S AIR ENGINEERING, PURCHASING, THE LIST GOES ON AND ON. AND EACH YEAR WE CONTINUE TO PROCESS MORE OPEN RECORDS REQUESTS. IN 2021, WE PROCESSED 1092, 2090 2022, WE PROCESSED 1986, AND THIS YEAR WE'RE ON PACE TO PROCESS 1959 OPEN RECORDS REQUESTS. SO THE RISK ASSOCIATED WITH NOT FUNDING THIS SOFTWARE LEAVES US OPEN TO LAWSUITS, COMPLAINTS AND LEGAL PENALTIES OR SANCTIONS BY THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE. SECTION 5522615. SO THAT SOUNDS GOOD, BUT I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THIS. I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO THE LETTER SO SHE CAN BRING IT HOME. IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S ALL ABOUT MORE INFORMED CITIZENS. YEAH. GOOD AFTERNOON, JUDGE AND COMMISSIONERS COULD BRING THAT PHONE DOWN. OKAY, GOOD. THAT'S MUCH LOWER THAN THE LAST ONE. THAT IS GOOD. THE NUMBERS THAT JOANNE GAVE YOU, THE THOUSANDS. THAT'S ONLY THE ONES THAT WE PROCESS FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE. THEY'RE MUCH HIGHER BECAUSE THE COUNTY DOESN'T HAVE A PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER. SO EACH COUNTY DEPARTMENT, EACH ELECTED OFFICIAL IS RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN OPEN RECORDS. WHAT WE'RE SEEKING TO DO IS TO BE MORE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT. WE KNOW WE ALWAYS WANT TRANSPARENT GOVERNMENT. IF YOU GO TO THE FORT BEND COUNTY WEBSITE NOW, YOU'LL BE HARD PRESSED TO FIND WHERE YOU CAN SUBMIT A PUBLIC INFORMATION REQUEST. IF YOU DO FIND THE LINK, IT'S ON THE COUNTY ATTORNEY'S PAGE. IT'S AN EMAIL ADDRESS THAT COMES TO ME. SO IN ADDITION TO CONTRACTS, OPINIONS AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT I DO AS THE GENERAL COUNSEL CHIEF, I'M GETTING EMAILS FROM THE PUBLIC AND HAVING TO TRANSFER THOSE EMAILS TO DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS FOR THEM TO PROCESS AS WELL AS FOLLOW UP TO SEE IF IT WAS DONE OR NOT. THE COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE IS TAXED WITH OTHER THINGS THAT WE DON'T HAVE. YOU ALL WANT US TO BE DOING THE LEGAL SIDE OF THE COUNTY, SO WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF PHASING OUT THAT EMAIL ADDRESS UNLESS ANOTHER DEPARTMENT WANTS TO TAKE IT OVER. I THINK SHANIKA HAD STATED SHE WOULD TAKE THAT OVER. YEAH. YOU SEE? YOU SEE. YOU SEE WHAT SHE'S SAYING? RIGHT. SO THIS IS MY QUESTION. WHY YOU SAID WE DON'T HAVE A COUNTY WIDE PIO, SO I REALLY DON'T KNOW. I'M JUST ASKING WHY WE DON'T HAVE A SECOND. IS THAT THE PRACTICE? WHAT DO WE SEE OUTSIDE OF OTHER COUNTIES? DO THEY HAVE SOMEBODY LIKE THAT MOST SMALLER? WE'RE A SMALLER COUNTY COMPARED TO LIKE HARRIS OR WHATNOT, BUT THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE A PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER. BUT THEY DO HAVE PUBLIC MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE. AND SO IN ORDER TO HAVE A PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE A DEPARTMENT THAT'S GOING TO MANAGE ALL THE COUNTY RECORDS. SO THIS IS GOING TO ADDRESS THAT PROBLEM. YES, THIS IS THIS IS GOING TO ADDRESS THAT PROBLEM AND IT'S A CHEAPER SOLUTION. SURE. WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE A PUBLIC INFORMATION DEPARTMENT HERE. AND IT'S ONE OF THE IT'S I THINK IT'S CHEAPER THAN RUSSELL'S THING. SO MUCH CHEAPER THAN A PERSONAL. SO BUT THE WAY THE SOFTWARE WOULD WORK, IT'D BE ON THE WEB PAGE. WE COULD DIRECT INDIVIDUALS. YOU CAN ONLY MAKE A REQUEST THROUGH THIS INFORMATION PAGE. RIGHT NOW IF SOMEONE FROM ROAD AND BRIDGE RECEIVES AN OPEN RECORDS REQUEST, THAT MEANS THE COUNTY RECEIVED IT. AND AS SOON AS AN EMPLOYEE RECEIVES IT, IT STARTS THE CLOCK. SO AND ALSO IT IS BETTER WE COULD TRACK IT BETTER, WE COULD TRACK IT AND IT ALSO PREVENTS DUPLICATION. SOME REQUESTERS WILL SEND A REQUEST TO ALL COUNTY DEPARTMENTS. WE GET THAT ALL THE TIME. SO WE HAVE DIFFERENT PEOPLE TRANSFERRING IT TO DIFFERENT PLACES AND IT JUST GETS CONFUSING. SO THIS HELPS US KEEP TRACK OF IT. IT'S EFFICIENT AGENT AND IT'S ALSO JUST A TRANSPARENT WAY OF HAVING OPEN RECORDS. SO AS I SAID, WE LIKE CHEAPER. YAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING WELCOME. APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. SO THAT WAS MY LAST ONE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. AND YOU FINISHED? YES. YES, SIR. THAT WAS IT FOR IT. BUT THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT. THANK YOU. YES, SIR. CHRIS WILL IN THE NEXT GO ROUND. THERE WERE SOME OF THESE THAT LOOK FAVORABLE. YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE A CREATIVE WAY OF FINANCING THESE TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT TO THE COURT. I WILL BE ABLE TO WE WILL BE ABLE TO TO SUGGEST WAYS OF FINANCING THESE. THAT'S WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR. GO AHEAD. GO AHEAD, DAN, THANK YOU. [01:35:01] JUDGE PURCHASE HAS TWO ITEMS. THIS'LL WILL BE REALLY QUICK. ONE IS A PLAYGROUND REPLACEMENT FOR. KING COUNTY PARK. WE'VE BEEN SUCCESSFUL USING THE CIP TO HAVE REPLACED TWO PLAYGROUNDS ALREADY AND WE HAVE TWO SCHEDULED. AND THEN WE HAVE THE TAYLOR HOUSE SEPTIC SYSTEM. SO I WASN'T AWARE UNTIL JUST RECENTLY THE TWO BUILDINGS DOWN AT BATES ALLEN PARK, WHICH COMPRISED THE HERITAGE MUSEUM. ONLY ONE OF THEM IS HOOKED UP TO A SEPTIC SYSTEM, SO WE CAN'T BUY THE PERMITS OF ENVIRONMENT TCU, THINGS LIKE THAT HOOK UP TO THE SEPTIC SYSTEM THAT'S THERE. WE WOULD HAVE TO PROVIDE A NEW ONE IF WE WERE GOING TO PROVIDE RESTROOM SERVICES IN THAT OTHER BUILDING. SO THE ADDITIONAL FUNDS ARE JUST TO DO SOME LUMBER MAINTENANCE REPAIRS TO THE BUILDINGS DOWN THERE. SO I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE. THAT WAS NUMBER 24, 23 AND 24 AND 24. MOVED TO MOVE TO 24. TALK ABOUT BOTH OF THEM. I I'VE YOU'VE BEEN HERE A LONG TIME. I'M MOVING QUICK. OKAY. OKAY. IT'S CINCO DE MAYO. LIKE, WAIT, WHAT? AND WHERE ARE WE MEETING DARREN? ANYWHERE. NOW. ANY QUESTIONS? DON'T SEE ANY PROBLEM. AND THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, JUDGE. I JUST WANT TO GO OVER SOMETHING REAL QUICK BECAUSE IT DIDN'T COME UP DURING OUR BUDGET REVIEW. AND YOU DID BRING UP THE QUESTION ABOUT REVENUES FOR THE FAIRGROUNDS. I JUST WANTED TO POINT OUT THE AUDITORS JUST POINTED OUT THE FIRST QUARTER REPORT. SO FIRST QUARTER, FISCAL YEAR 22 PARKS HAD BROUGHT IN ROUGHLY $80,000 IN REVENUE, FIRST QUARTER OF FISCAL YEAR 23. WE'RE AT 230,000. SO THAT IS 188% INCREASE FROM WHERE WE WERE BEFORE. SO WHEN I'M TELLING YOU THAT THE PARKS ARE BUSIER THAN THEY EVER HAVE BEEN, THIS IS THE EVIDENCE OF THAT. TO PUT THAT IN GREATER PERSPECTIVE. OUR FISCAL YEAR TOTAL WAS ONLY 244,000 AND WE'VE ALREADY BROUGHT IN 230,000. SO. SO PAMELA SAW THIS EARLY ON AND SHE PUT INTO MY BUDGET OUR TARGET OF 338,000, WHICH AT THE TIME I WAS LIKE, OH MY GOSH, PARKS HAS NEVER DONE THAT. WE'RE ON TARGET TO DO THAT. SO PARKS ARE BECOMING MORE POPULAR THAN EVER IN FORT BEND COUNTY. AND I THINK AS THE POPULATION INCREASES, THAT'S GOING TO CONTINUE TO INCREASE. AND THAT IS GOOD INFORMATION. THANK YOU. AND PARK BECOMING A REVENUE PRODUCING DEPARTMENT. AND THAT IS AND ALSO IT IS GETTING EXPONENTIALLY GROWING UP. AND THAT IS GOOD INFORMATION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. PARKS ITSELF IS NEVER BEEN A REVENUE PRODUCING DEPARTMENT AT THE LEVEL THAT IT IS RIGHT NOW, BUT IT IS CHANGING. IT IS ABSOLUTELY CHANGING. YES, SIR. I GOT A COMMENT. I WANT TO GO BACK TO THE BATES ALLEN. YES, SIR. SITUATION. AND I WANT TO BRING IN COMMISSIONER MCCOY ON THIS, TOO, SO. WE TALKED ABOUT PUTTING ANOTHER SEPTIC SYSTEM. ANOTHER SEPTIC SYSTEM IN TO ACCOMMODATE A BUILDING THAT'S ALREADY THERE JUST TO HAVE IT PLUMBED UP. THAT'S BEEN THE REQUEST OF THE MUSEUM. AND SINCE THIS IS A CIP REQUEST, WHICH WE'RE GOING TO DEFINITELY MAKE DEBT AND NOT PAY CASH. IT MIGHT BE THE TIME TO LOOK AT BRINGING PUBLIC WATER AND SEWER SERVICE TO THE PARK. I KNOW THAT ON CHARLIE ROBERTS ROAD IS THE LAST. HOUSE ON THAT SYSTEM, ON COUNCILMAN SYSTEM. AND WE'RE RIGHT THERE. THERE'S NOTHING BETWEEN THE PARK AND THAT OTHER THAN A LITTLE CEMETERY AND SOME OF THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT COMMISSIONER MCCOY IS WORKING ON. IT MIGHT BE WELL ADVISED TO GO AHEAD AND PUT IN AT LEAST A SEWER SYSTEM IN. IF WE CAN CONNECT THERE, ASSUMING THAT IT DOESN'T REQUIRE A LIFT STATION, I DON'T KNOW IF IT REQUIRES A LIFT STATION. CHANGES THE MATH TOTALLY. BUT BUT FOR EVEN FOR THIS HOUSE, IF WE USE A. SOMETHING CALLED A GRINDER PUMP. BASICALLY IT'S PUTTING SEWER UNDER PRESSURE AND SHOOTING IT TO TO THE CLOSEST MANHOLE OR WHATEVER TO GET INTO THAT SEWER SYSTEM. ONLY DOWNSIDE ABOUT A GRINDER PUMP IS THAT IT'S POINT A TO POINT B, NOTHING IN THE MIDDLE. YOU CAN'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE CONNECTED TO IT. BEFORE WE SPEND THE MONEY ON THIS, I SUPPORT THIS. BUT BEFORE WE SPEND THE MONEY ON IT, LET'S LOOK AT LONG GAME, YOU KNOW? PUBLIC WATER AND SEWER SERVICE TO THE PARK WOULD FACILITATE A WHOLE LOT OF THINGS IN THE FUTURE THAT WE'RE LIMITED TO RIGHT NOW. SO JUST WANT TO PUT THAT IN THE ATMOSPHERE. AND AS COMMISSIONER MCCOY, I DIDN'T I WASN'T PAYING ATTENTION TO THIS THING. [01:40:03] I PROBABLY WOULD HAVE TALKED TO YOU OR DARREN, BUT BEFORE SPRING IT ON YOU IN THIS MEETING. BUT LET'S LOOK AT THAT, PLEASE. YEAH, HAPPY FOR THAT. I KNOW WE'VE STARTED SOME OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND IT SEEMS LIKE GRAVITY IS WORKING AGAINST US FOR DEEPER IN THE PARK. IT MAY BE AN OPTION FOR THIS ONE SINCE IT'S IN THE FRONT OF THE PARK. BUT YEAH. YEAH, THAT WE SHOULD LOOK INTO THAT. NO QUESTION. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THE NEXT ONE FOR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION NEEDS TO BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST. REMOVED? IT'S BEING DONE. HARRY WAS ABLE TO GET SOME GRANT FUNDING. SO THAT RIGHT. AND THEN NUMBER 26 IS ROAD AND BRIDGE TRAFFIC SIGNAL UPGRADES. HELLO, GENTLEMEN. HOW ARE YOU ALL THIS EVENING? SAVE THE BEST ONE FOR LAST, HUH? I DIDN'T THINK ABOUT THAT ONE. I SHOULD HAVE NAMED IT SOMETHING DIFFERENT OTHER THAN ROAD AND BRIDGE. YOU'RE STANDING BETWEEN US AND ADJOURNING. YOU KNOW THAT. I KNOW THAT. SO HERE WE GO. UM, THIS ONE IS ALL BASED ON. BASED AROUND TRAFFIC SIGNALS AND TRAFFIC SIGNAL UPGRADES. BRIAN HAD COME TO ME ABOUT ABOUT DOING THE UPGRADES ON THE SIGNALS. THERE'S OTHER SIGNAL REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE IN HERE. I WENT TO OEM AND TALKED TO GREG TO TO SEE ABOUT TRYING TO GET THE CAMERA SYSTEM SET UP TOGETHER. IT'S ALREADY SOMETHING WE'RE WORKING ON THAT HAD ALREADY BEEN GOING IN PLACE. AND I TALKED TO BRIAN PETRILLO WITH MS ON THE PREEMPTION DEVICES. SO THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS THAT ARE ALL IN THE SAME PACKAGE. SO WE JUST THREW THEM ALL TOGETHER AT ONE TIME AND I FIGURED I'D PUT IT IN THE CIP RATHER THAN TALKING TO ED DIRECTLY. AND WE'LL GO FROM THERE AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS. BUT WHAT THIS IS IS BROKEN IN THREE DIFFERENT DEALS, 25 SIGNALS WE'RE WANTING TO UPGRADE WITH A VIDEO DETECTION UPGRADE DEVICES AND TO INCLUDE EVERYTHING ON THOSE 25 SIGNALS TO BUY ALL OF THE EQUIPMENT, THE INSTALLATION, EVERYTHING. TURNKEY PRODUCT IS $942,000. OKAY. BEFORE I BEFORE YOU MOVE ON, YOU SAID YOU'RE YOU'RE WORKING WITH EOC ON THAT. YES, SIR. BECAUSE HOMELAND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE ACTUALLY IN THE PROCESS OF, YOU KNOW, PUTTING THESE SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM THROUGHOUT. SO WE WE YOU'RE GOING TO BE INCORPORATING WITH THEM? YES, THEY'LL BE INCORPORATING WITH THEM IN IN EMERGENCY DEVICES. ALL OF THESE CAMERAS CAN BE WORKED IN TOGETHER. THEY CAN HELP US WITH CONTRAFLOW. THEY CAN HELP US WITH WATCHING EVERYTHING BECAUSE IT'LL ALL BE WORKED TOGETHER. ALL ONE SYSTEM. EXACTLY. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE WANT. BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WHEN IN CASE THERE IS AN EMERGENCY AND THINGS LIKE THAT AND WE DON'T WANT TO GO BACK AND DO IT TWICE OR, YOU KNOW, CORRECT DUPLICATE, NO DUPLICATION. WE'RE TRYING TO GET THE SAME EQUIPMENT TOGETHER ALL TOGETHER, THE SAME EQUIPMENT. SO WE'RE NOT HAVING 2 OR 3 DIFFERENT VENDORS OR ANYTHING ELSE. OKAY. THE SECOND ONE IS AND I'LL GO AHEAD AND THROW BRIAN IN THEM RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF IT, THE WHILE WE'RE PUTTING IN WORKING ON DOING THE SIGNALS, MS IS WANTING TO PUT IN THE PREEMPTION DEVICES ON 30 DIFFERENT UNITS, 30 DIFFERENT VEHICLES. AND FOR FOR IN ORDER TO DO THAT, THEY'D HAVE TO BUY THEM, BUY THE EQUIPMENT AND TO GET THEM INSTALLED IN THE 30 DIFFERENT UNITS, THAT WOULD BE 171,305. AND WHAT THAT DOES IS WHEN AMBULANCE COMES UP TO THE SIGNALS, IT TURNS IT GREEN SO THE AMBULANCE CAN KEEP ON GOING AND THEY DON'T SIGNIFICANTLY HAVE TO HAVE THE LIGHTS ON AND EVERYTHING ELSE TO DISRUPT ALL THE TRAFFIC. IT WILL JUST KEEP THEM GREEN AND THEY'LL KEEP ON FLOWING THROUGH. OKAY. AND THAT'LL WORK WITH THE TOLL ROAD LIGHTS. IT'LL BE WITH ALL OF THEM AS LONG AS THAT DEVICE IS IN THE BOX. AND WHEN WE GET THE BOX, WHEN WE GET THE UNIT AND WE PUT IT IN AND IT'S INSTALLED, ALL OF THAT MATERIAL IS ALREADY INSTALLED IN THE BOX. AND THE TRAFFIC SIGNAL, IT'S JUST THE PREEMPTION DEVICES ARE NOT WITH THEM. SO BRIAN WANTS TO DO THAT TO UPGRADE ALL OF THEIR OTHER UNITS ON THE MS. THE LAST ONE IS SOMETHING THAT TEXDOT SENT US AND AND IF WE ALL, BRIAN WILL BE BRIAN FIELDS WILL BE MORE ON DETAILS ON THIS ONE BUT THEY HAVE RIGHT NOW WE HAVE 99 SIGNALS THAT ARE OUTDATED THAT ARE 20 SOMETHING YEARS OLD, 25 YEARS PLUS. BUT WHAT THEY ARE IS THEY NEEDED TO BE UPGRADED. AND TEXDOT IS PRETTY MUCH SAYING MANDATORY. THEY'RE MANDATED THAT YOU HAVE TO GET THESE SIGNALS UPGRADED. ITS SIMPLE THINGS AS FAR AS WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE POWER AND YOU DON'T HAVE ANY LOOSE POWER WHATSOEVER, IT'S A REFLECTIVE BACKGROUND ON IT TO LET PEOPLE KNOW THAT THERE'S A THERE IS A SIGNAL THERE, THERE'S SOME TYPE OF DEVICE THERE. IT'S IT'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS THAT ARE INVOLVED IN THAT TEXDOT TELLING US IN ORDER TO BRING THEM UP, WE HAVE TO GET THEM UP TO STANDARDS TO GET THEM TO BE TO MEET THE THE MINIMUM STANDARDS THAT TEXDOT HAS TODAY. OKAY. LIKE I SAID, THAT'S 99 SIGNALS THAT WE HAVE THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. AND THAT WAS $842,694. WOW. OKAY. AND THAT'S THE THAT'S THE EQUIPMENT. THAT'S THE TURNKEY VENDOR TO COME IN AND DO THE WORK AND EVERYTHING. [01:45:03] THAT'S EVERYTHING. TURNKEY. OKAY. OKAY. UNFUNDED. WOULD YOU CALL THAT UNFUNDED MANDATE WOULD BE. THAT'S ALSO A SAFETY ISSUE. YES, IT IS. YES, IT IS ALL BASED ON SAFETY. BUT ACTUALLY, DEFINITELY. I COMPLETELY AGREE. WE HAVE TO UPDATE THAT ANYWAY EITHER WAY. SO WHAT ELSE? THAT'S IT. THAT'S IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND I JUST THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, SIR. I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU FOR EVERYBODY. UM, WE ARE KIND OF CONCLUDING OUR FIRST BUDGET HEARING, SO THERE'S. YEAH, SO THESE LAST THREE DAYS HAVE BEEN THE EASY PART. AND NOW COMES THE REALLY HARD PART FOR THE BUDGET OFFICE TO GO AND FIGURE ALL OF THIS OUT AND MAKE IT WORK. ALL THE CONFIDENCE IN THE WORLD, IN YOUR FAMILY, IF YOU HAVE IT DONE BY MONDAY, YOU HAVE IT DONE BY MONDAY. THANK YOU. BUT WE WILL DEFINITELY BE WORKING WITH ALL OF THE DEPARTMENTS, GETTING BACK TOGETHER WITH THEM. WE'LL BE HAVING MEETINGS WITH THEM. ALL OF MY STAFF, THOSE YOU KNOW, EACH ANALYST HAS THEIR DEPARTMENTS THAT THEY WORK WITH THAT THEY'LL BE GOING OUT VISITING AND TRYING TO GET. YEAH. AND ALSO, PAMELA, FOR YOUR CREDIT, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT THIS YEAR THE BUDGET HEARING WENT MUCH SMOOTHER THAN BEFORE, I THINK, IN MY OPINION. AND SO THANK YOU FOR ALL THE GOOD WORK. AND, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE WORKING WITH, OF COURSE, WITH HR INTO THE POSITIONS AND ALL THAT STUFF IS ACTUALLY MAKING, I THINK, THE WHOLE PROCESS MORE SMOOTHER. THANK YOU FOR YOUR LEAD IN THAT. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. ANY OTHER COMMENTS? OTHERWISE, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN WITH? NO OBJECTION. THIS PRELIMINARY BUDGET HEARING MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED. TIME IS 310. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.