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>> good morning, everyone. It is nine '06 a.m. I would like to call the august 6, 2026 meeting of the

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harris county commissioners court to order. Commissioner garcia is on zoom, and commissioner garcia, go

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ahead. >> thank you good morning, everyone. I would like to welcome a dear friend to lead us in prayer this morning.

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I have had the distinct pleasure and honor and privilege to have

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worked alongside this gentleman for a number of years since my days on city council. I will tell you that if there is

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a way to describe consistent, constant, ever present, it is by

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simply saying the name pastor david smith.

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he presides with the new bethlehem missionary baptist

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church baptist church and he is going to help lead us in prayer this morning but let me share a little bit about this

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individual. Pastor smith has been presiding

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over new bethlehem missionary baptist church and helping to preach the gospel of jesus christ, leading with a

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kingdom focused vision inspired by proverbs chapter 29 verse 18

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when there is no vision the people perish. He has been doing that for 40 years.

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and I will tell you that the community is absolutely much

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better because of him. A proud houston native, pastor smith is a graduate of macarthur senior high school,

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general, attended the college of biblical studies and graduated from the southern reform college and seminary.

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he has devoted his life to serving both the church, the

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east jensen and northeast houston communities as the

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founder and president of the houston northeast community

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development corporation. He has championed initiatives that promote health and wellness, education advancement

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and economic empowerment for through his practical bible

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centred teaching, pastor smith encourages believers to deepen their faith and faithfully use their god given gifts to make a

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lasting difference in the lives of others pastor smith has been

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happily married to his beloved and beautiful wife linda, the

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first lady of the church for 41 years. Together they are blessed with three beautiful daughters, all

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who take after only the first lady.

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he has three granddaughters, two grandsons, his greatest desire

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is to leave a legacy marked by unwavering character, faithful

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commitment and a life that honors god pastor smith, thank you for being here. I hate that I am not in your

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immediate presence but just know that you are always top of mind for me and always appreciate the prayers and thoughts you send my

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way on any given day. Pastor smith, you have the

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podium. >> amen god bless you pierre good morning to everyone, to our county judge, to all of our

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commissioners, to the directors of these various departments and to the public, god bless you this morning.

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thank you for the opportunity to give the invocation this morning, commissioner garcia. Let us bow our heads for a

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moment of prayer. Most holy righteous and everlasting father we come to you this morning with an

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attitude of gratitude, thanking you because it was last night as we lied down in the very image of death.

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we were unconscious to the things going on around us, even though we may live in gated communities, we may have set our

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launch last night but it was your angels that you dispatched over us and you protected us and kept us from all hurt harm and

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danger. It was you who touched us this morning with your theme of love and you woke us up to see a

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brand new day. We thank you lord, that your mercy is new every morning and we thank you god that you gave

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us your only begotten son jesus christ who came down to a

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lost worth of sin, lived a sinless life but died a death on

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a cross at calvary. He died, was buried rose again,

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early sunday morning and declared our power, heaven and earth in his hands. After 40 days on this earth, he

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took a glory cloud back to heaven and he left us the holy

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spirit that speaks to us and guides us and reveals truth to

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us, discloses and we just come to say thank you. We realize that we have all seen and come short of your glory but

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we thank you that you are a prayer here in god and you are faithful in your just to forgive us of all unrighteousness so we

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come to say thank you dear god, now we come this morning, we

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come praying, we come praying for our county judge we come

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praying for our commissioners we come praying for every director that is here today, that lead our harris county.

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we thank you for the public, those who come to advocate,

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those who come to express and are representatives of various

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communities in harris county we come to say thank you. The word of god says in romans 13 that every soul is subject

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under the power and not only just a power here on earth but

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all powers on earth are subject unto the power of god and so god

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you have ordained these representatives, our commissioners, our county judge, all the directors and everyone

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who is in charge here you have ordained this day. You have ordained their positions and god, we are to

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line it with you. So we want to say thank you and we pray you will continue to get wisdom, that you will continue

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to give knowledge and that you would continue to give understanding. And sometimes we know that we

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may not agree on everything but father god, let us be able to compromise and let us remember who they are representing.

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they are representing the constituents of harris county. We say thank you, god, for all that you are doing and wherever

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I come short on this prayer, I know that you are able and

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faithful and loving to make up the difference. This we ask in your son name and they all said amen.

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>> amen. >> thank you, pastor. Let's recite the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag

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of the united states of america and to the republic for which it

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stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Honor the texas flag; I pledge

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allegiance to thee, texas, one state under god, one and

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indivisible. I pledge allegiance to the flag

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>> okay, so some housekeeping. We have commissioner garcia

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virtually. If you don't mind when you need to speak to put the little hand icon.

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colleagues, if I don't see it please let me know. We will have speakers and then we will have corrections and we

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will go through the consent agenda process. I would like to respectfully request to take item 349 ahead

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of executive session. We have quite a few executive session items. Following executive session, we

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will break for lunch break after lunch, right at 1:30 p.m.,

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commissioner ellis request to take item 240.

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I know we have a tier that's going to be here at the time.

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then commissioner ellis requests to take items one and 313 together and then commissioner ramsey requests to take items

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five and 329 before we go into the remaining discussion list then we will go into the remaining items for discussion.

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how does that sound? Okay we will let all speakers

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address the court tiffany, if you could introduce the speakers. >> yes, ma'am.

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speaking on items two and 16, eve speaking on items two and

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16. Esmeralda speaking on item five. You each have one minute. >> good morning commissioners

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court. My name is josette dowdell. I'm the area organizing director for esmie harris county and a

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supporter of harris county workers. We would like to thank all of the county offices that have

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worked together to implement the consultation policy.

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since march, there hasn't there has been significant participation with the harris county workers, and we

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appreciate the collaboration that has brought us to this point. From the workers perspective,

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the most important priority is to stay on track for the october first effective date. We support providing additional

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resources in the office of county administration, human

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resources and talent and the county attorney's office determined they are needed we understand that each harris

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county department has a designated grievance coordinator

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to help address many of these matters for maintaining the

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timeline demonstrates -- >> thank you, your time is up. >> I'm going to be careful to enforce the time limit with

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everybody. Thank you. >> thank you. >> I would like to donate my

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time to josette to finish her time. >> maintaining the timeline demonstrates the court's

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commitment to improving communication, strengthening the

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employee engagement and making this policy successful. Thank you for your leadership and your continued commitment to

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the harris county workers. We look forward to continuing working with this commissioner's court.

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thank you. >> thank you.

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thank you all so much. Thank you.

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>> esmeralda, crystal on item 115, kendall on item 126.

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you each have one minute. >> good morning. My name is esmeralda. I live in precinct one.

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I'm here demanding that commissioners stop funding surveillance like flock cameras. Flock cameras make us less safe,

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not more. They track our daily movement which puts us at risk with surveillance, violence and

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deportation. Flock cameras operate with no oversight and people have a right to know where these

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cameras are, what information they gather and who has access to it right now, there are no clear answers to these questions

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in harris county, we've seen harris county abuse flock data for personal reasons using a to stalk women.

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that is what happens when powerful surveillance tools have no accountability. Once our taxes fund these

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cameras, the data is entered into a nation wide network that any agency can access. For these reasons, I implore you

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to stop -- through funding green spaces, libraries and real places on the ground. Harris county should not fund a

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surveillance system that makes us less safe and less protective, especially for the immigrant families and the women

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that call this country home. >> :and thank you commissioners.

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I'm with the economy for working houston. I am proud to support the final passage of the worksite safety

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policy. This policy ensures that workers who build our city and keep it running are provided with safety

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protections that will ensure that they can do their job safely and with protection from retaliation.

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this policy also provides clarity for contractors to ensure that they understand what to expect and what standards are

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required. It lays out accountability measures that are fair, enforceable and designed to keep

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workers safe without being unnecessarily prohibitive. I want to express gratitude to the county staff who have worked

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on developing and implementing this policy and thank you all for keeping harris county workers safe on the job.

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>> thank you. >> shanice flax on item five.

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crystal casey on item 115. Cesar espinosa on item 240 and

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lynda morales on item 240. You each have one minute.

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>> hello, commissioners. I'm new economy for working

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houston. I'm here to encourage you today to make sure that working people and their needs are met with

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this new budget. Houstonians are working so hard to just pay their bills, to buy groceries, to take care of their

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kids making sure that you plan the budget according to our

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needs. People's needs for housing, health care, good jobs and the ability to live in harris county

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are how we keep our cities safe and secure so thank you.

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>> thank you. >> good morning.

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I'm with the gulf coast labor and -- is here to speak on 240 but support item number 2, the consultation policy and item

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number 126, I urge you to support agenda 240. This is not a vote against the law enforcement, it is not a

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vote on immigration policy, it is a vote for the public's right to know the truth through an independent, impartial review of

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a death that has shaken our community. If enforcement actions are carried out in vehicles that are

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not clearly identifiable as law enforcement and without lights or sirens that people commonly recognize, any driver

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could be confused or frightened. I also ask this court not to lose sight of the bigger picture that this body not forget that

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we must continue investing in immigration legal services.

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these funds are part of the same larger public commitment to justice, accountability, due process and legal representation

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for. >> thank you, your time is up. >> thank you so much. >> good morning, my name is

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cesar espinosa and I'm executive director. Today I'm asking for the support in item number 240 to support

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and truly support a full and independent investigation on the

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murder that happened on the morning of july 7th in magnolia

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park. For those people who may be against it, put yourself in his shoes, literally and what would

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you do if unmarked, masked people in houston, texas,

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westchester brown jaka? Today, this morning, and I take

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this as a sign I found this memento cactus soccer ball that was given to us at the memorial of lorenzo, something that

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should have never existed because lorenzo should still be

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with us today. So keep this in mind as you move forward and the family, the community and the nation

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deserves transparency and accountability. >> thank you, your time is up. >> thank you.

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>> chris mccarthy on item 240, sergio lira, item 240 and 354,

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jacob clements, item 241. You each have a minute to.

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>> good morning, my name is chris mccarthy, I'm congressman garcia's chief of staff first I want to express

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gratitude to everyone who assisted with the congressional field hearing last week. It was an exceptional effort by

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everyone, the judge's office, the county administrator and her team did a phenomenal job and the congresswoman -- secondly, I

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want to express her support for agenda item 240 for the funding

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for the investigation. Unfortunately, we have seen the federal government is not investigating in good faith and

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so right now we need to rely on harris county and our da to

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deliver justice for our community. She is fully supportive of this measure.

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she can't be here this morning but thank you commissioner ellis for bringing it up. We hope everyone will support it

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thank you. >> thank you so much. >> tell your boss I got a note. I know she was up early.

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she texted me at 6:00 a.m. Tell her I was awake and I knew you were coming. >> good morning, everyone I

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represent council 4967. I want to speak on the harris

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county program. I just want you to imagine ten whales going up a hill called economic prosperity.

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eight of the whales are white whales. Two of them in 2020 are smarter whales and they represent

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minority women, asians, african americans and latinos. Those two whales, if they stop going up that hill and someone

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suspends this program, those two small whales are going to roll back down the hill and we cannot allow that to happen.

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second of all, I want to thank commissioner ellis for your support in the sean tier investigation.

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is doing a fabulous job and he is doing an independent

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investigation. We stand here for justice for lorenzo and I want to help -- I. Want to thank you and all

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of you who voted last week on the resolution of antiice

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policies thank you and we are going to stay here until we find justice. Thank you.

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>> that is right. Thank you.

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>> this comes from precinct one a request for discussion and

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possible action on the economic impacts and the 2026 fifa world

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cup for harris county and harris county sports.

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it should be done. It should be discussed and

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action taken and unless you get a pay raise -- that's what I s

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say. The honorable tom ramsey, I have

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a yard sign and he wants me to give it to you so do you want to

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have a yard sign from ken pa paxton?

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>> thank you. >> next is regina duncan

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speaking virtually on item 135. You have one minute.

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>> thank you so much. Thank you so much. Hello, everybody and commissioner garcia.

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we are so grateful for the opportunity to work together again on this grant project. It is much needed.

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the current generator, sometimes it's getting harder to get equipment or material for it and we experienced surges out here

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so it's not just emergency basis so we are so grateful for that opportunity again and just want to say thank you.

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>> it's a pleasure, thank you for being here. >> yes, sir, thank you all. >> next is pre-west shama on

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item 254, lauren hodge on item 269 and alexis villarreal on

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item 326. Do you each have one minute.

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>> good morning, judge and commissioners. I am here to represent minority women businesses, which are

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mostly local houston businesses fear my farm is family owned and

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was founded 33 years ago here at the heart of houston.

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and wb programs have kept our business for three plus decades

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here taking these certifications away will hurt small businesses in a grave manner. These businesses as we all know

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are backboned off the economy. Small businesses like mine

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employ local houstonians. I would request you reassess the proposed agenda item. Thank you.

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>> ma'am, can you state your name for the record? >> I am priya sharma. >> thank you.

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>> good morning. I'm lauren hodge, an attorney speaking on item 269. We greatly appreciate the time

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that the commissioners this morning but after the request to be on the agenda for approval, the issuer was provided with

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additional information confirming the development is located within the city of houston city limits and as such

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the county's approval is not required. Thank you. >> good morning.

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my name is alexis and I'm here on behalf of mental health america of greater houston in support of agenda item 326 we

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are here to support the harris county public defender's office and their strong stewardship of public trust and dollars through

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meaningful partnerships with community based organizations like ours. Their work ensures that low

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income individuals have access to high quality legal representation and their partnerships allow them to

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provide a more holistic defense for their clients. Through our care connect program, we partner with the

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public defender's office to connect clients and their

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families to mental health and substance use services across a network of more than 900 providers statewide our

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bilingual helpline and pro bono counsel program ensures access

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to care regardless of ability to pay. This partnership reflects a shared commitment to holistic

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community based solutions and we look forward to continuing to grow this work together. Thank you.

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next on item 326, item 327 and 354.

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you each have one minute. >> good morning.

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thank you for being here. I am here representing magnificent houses. Thank you for the opportunity to

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speak about the importance of community partnerships and the

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value of the collaboration through memorandums of

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understandings and magnificent houses in the harris county public defender's office. At magnificent offices, we serve

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our community's most valuable residents including individuals experiencing homelessness, those facing barriers to stability and

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to many returning from incarceration. When individuals leave the justice system they often face

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impossible choices. With this mou, we are able to give multiple options and not be a.

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but a, in someone's life and future. Thank you for the opportunity. >> good morning, commissioners

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my name is cassandra fox known as chef kassi, even in the

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harris county space, as I was born and raised and still reside and proudly do business in the city of houston and harris

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county both. I'm a proud owner of chef cassie

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stable, a minority business enterprise. I stand before you today because people have believed in me and

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believed in my business and deserved the opportunity to compete equally. I was selected because many

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times small businesses deliver exceptional quality and also we

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are the executors and we are still hands on in our business.

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supplier diversity didn't guarantee me success but it did give me access to everything after that I earned on my own by

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building relationships in rooms just like this one. My business has worked with large companies like walmart

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across the great state of texas but now the conversation of removing that bridge before others come behind me is up for

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discussion. Protect supplier diversity. >> thank you, your time is up. >> good morning.

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my name is arletta sykes and I serve as the director for dale divergent and jail reentry at the harris institute for mental

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health I'm here today to show our support for the manage the

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sign council. The partnership between the mcc team and the harris centre is an example of how the criminal

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justice system and behavioral health services can work together to improve outcomes. Through this collaboration we

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are able to connect individuals with resources they need while continued justice involvement. The mcc team plays a vital role

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for advocating for their clients access to housing, treatment benefits and other services today, we are creating

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opportunities for stability, reducing recidivism and helping individuals successfully reintegrate into the community.

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thank you for your continued support of partnerships that strengthen our justice system and improve the lives of harris

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county residents that may be dealing with barriers and mental health. Thank you.

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>> thank you. >> veronica weaver rivers on

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item 354. Adriana davis on item 354 and brian jackson on item 354. You each have one minute for

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>> good morning. My name is veronica weaver

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rivers, speaking in support of supplier diversity. I am a new small business owner one year in, a professional

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-- a. Licensed professional engineer like commissioner ramsey and a disabled veteran who honorably served in the u.s.

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army for the counties and wbe program is supported by data in the disparity study. It is a tool that is rooted in

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facts and should inform fair policy decisions. I urge the court to protect this program so small minority women

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and disabled veteran business owners like myself can continue

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to participate in the market access opportunity and strengthen the local economy. Thank you.

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>> thank you. >> good morning, judge, commissioners and directors I am adriana davis, the founder and

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executive director of the harmony grace foundation.

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county nonprofit dedicated to supporting neonatal intensive care unit families and advancing maternal health.

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as a black woman leading a nonprofit, I know the importance of access to opportunity, it matters.

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programs like harris county and wb program help ensure organizations and businesses like mine have a fair chance to

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compete, grow, create jobs and expand impact. This program is about fairness, opportunity and building a

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stronger harris county where qualified nonprofit businesses

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can exceed -- can succeed. Thank you for your time and

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consideration. >> thank you.

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>> :honorable judge and honorable commissioners good to see you today my name is crystal casey with unicorn.

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I'm a local business owner third generation harris county resident. I strongly support ai and tech

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for permitting and I commend the court for moving these items forward. It's important to know that ai

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cannot fix a flawed system. Real improvement requires technology but specifically for the ahj, that both the applicant

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and reviewer are facing capabilities for permitting and plotting. From 22 to 24, we engage with a

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foreign owned company on the agenda item today. Their focus was primarily cad files, pdf processing took

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24 hours. We were never able to upload actual plans and local officials requested performance data and

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none were ever provided so we moved on for as a third

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generation resident of precinct one who is deeply involved in permitting and planning, I felt it was important to speak up

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here at the end of the day it's in god's hands but we are called to share the knowledge we've been given.

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>> thank you, your time is up. >> thank you.

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>> good morning, judge, commissioners. I'm brian jackson. I am a small business owner and

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I am here to express my support for the nw db program.

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I ask that you humbly take it upon yourself the difficult task of not only protecting the program but strengthening it.

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I have worked with the county since 2019. I have seen the progress that you have made with your

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political will and I ask that you take that political will and strengthen the program even further.

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thank you. >> next is terry rich in on item

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five, darnell joseph on item 354, milton thibodeau on item

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354. You each have one minute. >> good morning. My name is terry chen, I'm the

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senior community organizer and resident of precinct one. The number 1 concern of our community members is the fear to

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move around our own hometown to simply be anywhere outside of the home in fear of deportation. You need to stop funding mass

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surveillance tech such as flock cameras which ice has been using with local law enforcement. You can put guardrails on

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companies that profit off of mass surveillance. They turn fear and death into a commodity.

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last I checked, surveillance cannot prevent crime, they just prevail at. Historically targeted

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communities such as black and brown people, immigrants, women and trans people are getting targeted and criminalized for

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living when we talk about what community keeps us safe, our community is what programs like heart, they want language access

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child care, food security, access to health care, good public transportation, affordable housing or

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protections from the next big hurricane. Please use our taxes to keep us safe by investing in our

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communities and stop flock spending. Thank you. >> thank you.

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>> good morning, court and judges. My name is darnell joseph. I'm president and ceo of a

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company called make steel fabrication. I'm here in support of the mwb program.

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it's very simple, if we are not in the room, if we don't have the conversations, we don't have the friends, we don't get that

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access. So in the effort of an mba program that at least allows us to be in the room when the

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conversations are being had. As an mba recently, I was able

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to hire several people because of the mba program and that's really what it's all about. We are audited and it's all

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because of the mba program and it's not something that you just

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give an mba. You still have to bond, you still have to make sure you can do the work and you still have

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to deliver the bottom line, it's very important to keep the mba

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program going because it allows other people that are not friends and not automatically in the room to be in the room.

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so I am in support of it. Thank you so much.

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>> thank you. >> good morning.

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I am milton thibodeau, president of the greater houston business

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procurement forum. I would like to thank county judge hidalgo and the county commission for giving me the

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opportunity to speak for just a bit about the harris county and wb program. As recent as this past may 26,

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we hosted doing business with harris county, which included

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many of the most active harris county departments in all of the

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major precincts. You have continued to perform,

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you never stop working in lightning and strengthening the

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program. As a result, I am in total

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support of the county's program and your continued efforts to

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enlighten, grow and develop the communities we live and serve.

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my sincere appreciation and thank you for your opportunity

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for. >> doctor ashley atkins on item 254. Lennart johnson on item 254.

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non-agenda speaker lopez -- you each have one minute to. >> good morning and thank you all for having me.

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I'm dr. Ashley atkins, president and ceo of the greater houston black chamber of commerce I'm here today to encourage the

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court's continued support of the program recent federal rulings

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attempted to dismantle this initiative across the region and it ignores an undeniable reality.

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disparities are real and they persist. Data from the city of houston study reveals that while mwb

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accounts for over 28% of city contracts, black firms capture a

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mere 5.5%. Most critically, this study identified significant disparities for black-owned

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businesses across all categories especially professional services

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without remedies like the mwb program, these barriers will

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widen. This program is not a preference, it is vital to the economic lifeline of many small

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businesses and the city of houston as a hole. For ghb c., our members and essentially all minority

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entrepreneurs in the city of houston -- >> thank you, your time is up. >> thank you.

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>> good morning, judge, good morning, commissioners.

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education and line development -- education and mind development in its totality are the quintessential elements for

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all human prosperity. For without them, what can one

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do? We are part of a community and

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of course the mwb program is a part of the community and

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needed. I am the executive director of immanuel educational services and we have come up with a

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program that has developed a nonpartisan civic engagement

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education initiative designed to help residents better understand local government, public finance, civic responsibilities

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and opportunities for constructive community

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participation. So I am asking you all to help us help you help us. Thank you.

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>> can you please state your name for the record? >> bernard johnson. >> thank you.

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>> good morning, thank you for having me. I am an associate professor at the university of texas in the

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cancer centre. The reason I am visiting today is because I am part of a new initiative to collect

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researchers like me with local policy makers -- counties across

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the united states for the project covers any child and

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family policy challenge that you are facing in our county. Here is a bit of how it works. First I'm visiting to introduce

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myself today and after the meeting, I will send follow up emails describing the initiative and include a way to sign up to

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meet with me. I also ask you to forward it to

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others who do work-related to children and family agencies in our county. For those who respond I will

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have a short meeting to learn about the challenge in family policies you are focusing on and where you think research would

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be helpful. Based on that I will create a tailored research brief with relevant research and share it

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with you. >> thank you, your time is up.

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>> next is douglas hemmerich, non-agenda speaker, broderick

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butler and one more. You each have one minute.

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>> good morning. I'm here speaking about harris county animal control and harris county pets, harris county

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health. With their transparency, they have a tendency of hiding things. I've had an ongoing issue with them for four years with my pet

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bobcat. I know it is a very niche thing but I have since found there are many that have exotic animals

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like this I have requested emails and anything related to

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my case. Instead of freely giving them to me, they waited until the last minute and then sent it to ken

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paxton because they are trying to hide the fact that they have changed rules after the fact. The pamphlet said one thing, the

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affidavit said another thing. Was in my favor but they didn't like that. Somebodys ego.

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unfortunately, you can't have a regulation or rule that you can't abide by there's not an area in harris county.

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I paid for a survey showing t this.

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>> thank you. We will visit with you before you leave, sir. >> I live in precinct four.

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we bring to you today as houstonians an issue of our funds being wasted on alpr they do not keep us safe here if

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anything, it's the opposite. Unfortunately but not surprisingly there have been a number of incidents where

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law enforcement abuses a lp ahs to stop people specifically women or sending out tickets to the wrong people because the ai

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read a licence plate incorrectly. Our funds should be spent on pollution control because it's

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directly required -- requiring ai data centres to be built on our community, specifically black and brown communities,

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affording housing and living infrastructure. I urge you to not fund a lp in harris county.

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>> thank you. >> good morning, judge and

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commissioners my name is broderick butler and I'm a resident of northeast houston harris county.

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I wanted to sincerely thank the court for approving harris

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county district repairs to project p118 -- 09-00-x01 for

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the tributary that runs through my neighborhood of scenic woods. Repairs began two weeks ago and are expected to be completed in

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about nine months. In 2019, I stood before this court and asked that this project received the attention

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it deserves. Today I am grateful to return simply to say thank you. Your decisions show that the

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residents voices matter and the response government can make a real difference for these repairs will improve drainage,

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reduce flood risk and help protect the families of scenic wood and we celebrate this progress.

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I encourage you to continue investing in flood mitigation

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projects throughout the northeast harris county whereas my community still faces -- >> thank you, your time is up.

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>> thank you, sa. >> next is non-agenda speaker

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and -- stephen and noah, you each have one minute.

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>> good morning judge hidalgo, fellow commissioners my name is

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stephen fraga. I'm with teo's office products. We are a distributor of office supplies and related products in

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the houston area. We've been in business for 64 years. My father started the company

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along with my mother. We are in support of keeping the

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mwb program. Like many have said here, the program provides us opportunity. We still don't have -- we still

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have to be financially sound, we still have to run our company like a majority owned company. A lot of you folks have

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advocated for these programs at the state level your commissioner ellis, the hub program, what they've done to

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that is destroyed a lot of companies here it's very important that harris county does not follow what the city

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did and does not follow what the state did. We just need opportunity. We just need access and that's

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what these programs have offered us. Thank you very much. >> -- name is noah melendrez.

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I live on precinct one. Today on behalf -- I'm here on behalf of my friend brian. One of the county services I am

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most proud of is that we provide low cost mental health to all houstonians and not just the wealthy.

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I'm sure you agree that the counselors who do this work deserve all the support we can give them unfortunately, as

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wayne young was finishing his tenure as ceo, the board voted to give mr. Young a bonus while cutting benefits to counselors

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as well as attempting to disempower the union that represents counselors. I encourage you to look into the

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recent decisions the harris centre board made around this work if you agree our mental health professionals deserve

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better, I encourage you to ask the board to reverse their decision as they can as a show of respect and good faith to

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these workers. Since I have time, please cancel the flock contracts. Thank you.

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>> next is non-agenda speaker coretta brown. You have one minute. >> good morning, judge and

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commissioners my name is coretta brown and I am the founder -- we

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joined a coalition, harris county coalition to end cyberbullying. I'm here today because

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cyberbullying and online harassment are no longer just social issues they are public safety issues.

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everyday harris county residents are subjected to online threats,

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intimidation, impersonation -- and defamatory attacks that can destroy careers, damage mental health and in some cases lead to

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physical violence or suicide. While I fully support and

403
00:44:41,466 --> 00:44:45,133
respect the first amendment, some of these threats are not covered under the first amendment and so today I

404
00:44:48,033 --> 00:44:51,933
respectfully ask this court to direct the appropriate county department to study the creation of a dedicated cyber harassment

405
00:44:56,866 --> 00:44:59,566
investigation unit or to allocate investigators within the harris county district county attorney's

406
00:45:01,633 --> 00:45:01,633
office to receive and evaluate complaints involving potential

407
00:45:06,733 --> 00:45:06,733
criminal online conduct. >> thank you, your time is up

408
00:45:12,000 --> 00:45:12,000
here. >> that is all of the speakers,

409
00:45:16,033 --> 00:45:18,833
judge. >> thank you so much. Let me go over any corrections item for, oc request no action.

410
00:45:34,366 --> 00:45:34,366
144, council precinct one request no action.

411
00:45:38,433 --> 00:45:38,433
191, d.a. Request no action item 240 we need to add:bye bye

412
00:45:45,200 --> 00:45:47,900
commissioner precinct one commissioner precinct two, commissioner precinct four and the county judge.

413
00:45:52,333 --> 00:45:56,300
commissioner precinct one, two, three, four and county judge for action et cetera. 241 precinct one request no

414
00:46:02,133 --> 00:46:02,133
action. 333 purchasing request, no

415
00:46:06,400 --> 00:46:10,400
action. 342, we have a correction we need to replace the word estate with the word property so it

416
00:46:13,666 --> 00:46:13,666
says and the guest for real property broker services.

417
00:46:22,900 --> 00:46:22,900
and item 348, we need to replace the agenda caption so it reads

418
00:46:28,433 --> 00:46:28,433
request for approval to uphold the office of purchasing agent

419
00:46:32,633 --> 00:46:35,166
determination pure courteous and concluded that the evidence presented by the protester did not meet the burden of proof

420
00:46:38,966 --> 00:46:42,333
necessary to rescind the may 142026 award under the harris county protest and appeals procedures.

421
00:46:46,066 --> 00:46:49,100
specifically under the provision that alleges an error of law by the purchasing agent peer commissioners court

422
00:46:51,833 --> 00:46:54,300
determination of the appeal will be the final administrative action of harris county and shall exhaust all administrative

423
00:46:57,133 --> 00:47:00,866
remedies available to the firm. No further appeal will be permitted. Did I miss any corrections?

424
00:47:05,200 --> 00:47:05,200
>> judge, I think item 269 is no action as well.

425
00:47:12,933 --> 00:47:12,933
>> item 269, all right. Item 269 is no action.

426
00:47:20,200 --> 00:47:20,200
I'm just trying to figure out what that one is.

427
00:47:26,133 --> 00:47:28,133
those are family housing revenue bonds. Anything else? Okay.

428
00:47:31,733 --> 00:47:31,733
let's move on to the consent agenda.

429
00:47:35,833 --> 00:47:35,833
executive session items. Item two, I believe we have to

430
00:47:40,733 --> 00:47:43,966
go to executive session for. Is that right? >> yes, judge. >> okay, the consultation policy

431
00:47:49,466 --> 00:47:49,466
item 254, this is on the mwb program executive session.

432
00:47:55,966 --> 00:47:55,966
>> yes, judge. >> item 300 is on executive

433
00:48:01,500 --> 00:48:03,566
compensation for certain appointed officials. Commissioner ellis, do we need to go to executive session on

434
00:48:07,300 --> 00:48:07,300
that one? >> yes.

435
00:48:12,166 --> 00:48:12,166
>> 301, appointment of doctor kampani to lead the institute of

436
00:48:17,800 --> 00:48:21,800
forensic sciences. We need to go into executive session? >> I am supportive.

437
00:48:22,833 --> 00:48:26,833
>> you are good so we will put that on the consent agenda. Did the administrator say something?

438
00:48:30,133 --> 00:48:30,133
>> judge. >> yes, commissioner garcia?

439
00:48:35,233 --> 00:48:35,233
>> yes, judge, I just want to say that I to support the

440
00:48:40,033 --> 00:48:40,033
appointment of the doctor but I also want to thank him for his

441
00:48:44,200 --> 00:48:44,200
strength and leadership in this recent tragic event involving

442
00:48:49,433 --> 00:48:49,433
mr. Saldano. I appreciate his strength and

443
00:48:57,000 --> 00:48:59,900
steadiness to maintain independence in his important work. Thank you, doctor.

444
00:49:02,833 --> 00:49:02,833
>> I couldn't agree more. Thank you for saying that.

445
00:49:09,100 --> 00:49:09,100
>> that will show approved as presented.

446
00:49:14,100 --> 00:49:17,533
>> thank you, yes. Okay. Now let's keep going here. Item 302, county attorney on

447
00:49:23,133 --> 00:49:26,900
economic development options. We go to executive session on that. 303, data and cybersecurity

448
00:49:29,233 --> 00:49:29,233
needs, I'm guessing yes? >> yes.

449
00:49:33,966 --> 00:49:33,966
>> and then we have 323, that is on civil rights litigation?

450
00:49:39,233 --> 00:49:39,233
>> yes. >> 324, it is an approval with

451
00:49:44,966 --> 00:49:44,966
-- approval of an agreement. >> only if you have questions.

452
00:49:49,366 --> 00:49:49,366
>> does anyone have questions on 324?

453
00:49:53,700 --> 00:49:57,266
do we need to discuss in executive session? >> if the commissioner has questions, we have to do it in

454
00:50:00,866 --> 00:50:03,000
executive session. >> commissioner ramsey, I believe your microphone may be off here 351 is landscape

455
00:50:10,900 --> 00:50:10,900
consultants of texas versus harris county, texas.

456
00:50:17,066 --> 00:50:17,066
354 and wb executive session 355, compensation for certain

457
00:50:25,333 --> 00:50:28,733
officials executive session. >> yes, judge. >> we have executive session 254, 300, 302, 303, 323, 324,

458
00:50:40,533 --> 00:50:40,533
351, 354, 355. Regular agenda.

459
00:50:45,200 --> 00:50:48,366
item one, I know we would like to discuss and we would like to take items one and 313 together. They are both about selling

460
00:50:54,066 --> 00:50:54,066
real estate assets. Item three, puck.

461
00:51:00,000 --> 00:51:03,433
commissioner ramsey, would you like to discuss that? >> yes. >> item five, we will take with

462
00:51:08,933 --> 00:51:11,233
329 and 349. They are all related to the county budget. >> can we add five so it will be

463
00:51:16,933 --> 00:51:16,933
five, 329 and 349. >> five, 329 and 349.

464
00:51:22,633 --> 00:51:22,633
item seven, commissioner briones?

465
00:51:26,866 --> 00:51:28,566
>> yes. >> item eight, commissioner ramsey and mobility budget. Item 14, commissioner ramsey.

466
00:51:33,233 --> 00:51:33,233
the paid mental health leave. Okay.

467
00:51:38,966 --> 00:51:38,966
item 15 requested by commissioner ramsey.

468
00:51:44,533 --> 00:51:47,466
hrt. >> yes. >> item 16, commissioner ramsey, we would take with item 18 as

469
00:51:52,466 --> 00:51:52,466
they relate to employee matters so then item 18 as well.

470
00:51:58,633 --> 00:52:02,600
item 115, commissioner ramsey. A I. Okay, 126, ramsey and brian is on worksite safety.

471
00:52:06,533 --> 00:52:06,533
>> yes, please. >> 130, commissioner ramsey on

472
00:52:11,200 --> 00:52:11,200
the food and beverage expenditures.

473
00:52:15,466 --> 00:52:15,466
133, commissioner ramsey gift card on wellness on wheels

474
00:52:20,333 --> 00:52:20,333
135 commissioner garcia, cvdgr. >> item 136 commissioner garcia

475
00:52:28,000 --> 00:52:28,000
in a local agreement with the city of port.

476
00:52:33,500 --> 00:52:33,500
168, commissioner ramsey and brian is on an amicus brief.

477
00:52:37,700 --> 00:52:37,700
>> yes, please. >> 228, brian, this is on bear

478
00:52:45,033 --> 00:52:45,033
creek village subdivision. >> , please.

479
00:52:50,500 --> 00:52:50,500
>> 240, commissioner ellis. I know this is on the da

480
00:52:55,966 --> 00:52:57,600
investigation. 273, commissioner briones, energy efficiency fund. 274, commissioner briones, the

481
00:53:02,966 --> 00:53:06,966
harris county strategic plan and action. 289, commissioner briones update on the erp transformation

482
00:53:11,233 --> 00:53:14,933
strategy project. 291, commissioner briones, the access to care report and low cost clinic finder.

483
00:53:19,433 --> 00:53:19,433
310, commissioner ramsey, this is on the regular court meeting

484
00:53:23,900 --> 00:53:23,900
for october sixth and turning october 15th business meeting

485
00:53:28,800 --> 00:53:28,800
into a regular court meeting. So we will put item 310 back on

486
00:53:35,766 --> 00:53:39,666
the consent agenda. 313 we will take with item one on real estate asset sales. 325 is flagged by commissioner

487
00:53:46,233 --> 00:53:46,233
ramsey on 17 positions for the county attorney.

488
00:53:51,500 --> 00:53:51,500
326, precincts one and four, harris county public defender's

489
00:53:55,533 --> 00:53:59,133
office. 327 that's flagged by commissioner briones. 329 we will take with item five

490
00:54:04,433 --> 00:54:04,433
and then the other 15 and 329 and then 332, commissioner

491
00:54:18,666 --> 00:54:18,666
ramsey, this is on an agreement with cgl management group for

492
00:54:25,400 --> 00:54:25,400
337, commissioner ellis, design, build and construction services

493
00:54:29,733 --> 00:54:33,400
for riverside pier 346, commissioner briones. North central texas council of governments, cooperative

494
00:54:37,633 --> 00:54:41,566
contract award for 349, commissioner ramsey and county judge on the 2026 tax rate. Let me go through the final list

495
00:54:51,100 --> 00:54:51,100
it is here, executive session items two, 254, 300, 302, 303,

496
00:55:05,333 --> 00:55:05,333
323, 324, 351, 354, 355. Regular agenda items one, three,

497
00:55:17,166 --> 00:55:17,166
five, seven, eight, 14, 15, 16, 18, 115, 126, 130, 133, 135,

498
00:55:38,500 --> 00:55:38,500
136, 168, 228, 240, 273, 274, 289, 291, 313, 325, 326, 327,

499
00:56:01,700 --> 00:56:01,700
329, 332, 337, 346, 349, and that's it.

500
00:56:08,700 --> 00:56:08,700
did I miss anything? >> I have a question, ma'am, on

501
00:56:13,000 --> 00:56:13,000
item six. >> okay, item six.

502
00:56:35,700 --> 00:56:35,700
that is request possible action for accounts receivable?

503
00:56:41,766 --> 00:56:41,766
>> yes. >> anything else?

504
00:56:47,233 --> 00:56:47,233
>> judge, may I please ask that we take item seven up when we

505
00:56:51,633 --> 00:56:51,633
take up 30350 -- 355 because they are related.

506
00:56:58,000 --> 00:57:01,533
>> yes, item seven when we take 30355. Just a moment here. We don't have 300 right now.

507
00:57:13,233 --> 00:57:16,100
>> I believe that is in executive session. >> got it. Okay.

508
00:57:17,933 --> 00:57:17,933
so would you like to take that one in executive session or?

509
00:57:22,466 --> 00:57:25,666
>> just when we come out to make motions because they are inextricably linked in terms of posting notice et cetera.

510
00:57:31,566 --> 00:57:34,466
that's why -- you are looking at me. >> when are we -- when we are making motions.

511
00:57:38,766 --> 00:57:38,766
>> okay. So it will go with 355 and

512
00:57:44,033 --> 00:57:44,033
number 7. Okay.

513
00:57:49,800 --> 00:57:49,800
anything else? Okay.

514
00:57:53,900 --> 00:57:53,900
so then is there a motion for all of the items one through 356

515
00:57:59,500 --> 00:58:03,033
with the exception of items already voted on and discussion items just listed. >> second.

516
00:58:05,100 --> 00:58:08,366
>> motion by commissioner ellis, seconded by commissioner briones. All in favor any opposed motion

517
00:58:11,866 --> 00:58:11,866
carries unanimously. So we will begin the discussion

518
00:58:24,800 --> 00:58:24,800
and the discussion is item 349 and then we will go into

519
00:58:31,066 --> 00:58:31,066
executive session for ten items so that will probably take us

520
00:58:35,233 --> 00:58:35,233
through lunch. So let me thank the speakers for

521
00:58:43,300 --> 00:58:43,300
participating earlier. Item 349 is the early childhood

522
00:59:05,533 --> 00:59:05,533
education item. My motion would be to set a

523
00:59:14,666 --> 00:59:18,633
public hearing on august tenth, 2026, attending to consider for the harris county general fund the proposed 2026 tax rates per

524
00:59:24,266 --> 00:59:24,266
$100 of taxable value .3796 for maintenance and operations and

525
00:59:30,433 --> 00:59:30,433
0.05538 for debt service for a total tax rate of 0.4934 which

526
00:59:34,666 --> 00:59:37,900
is greater than the voter approval rate for the purpose of maintaining a portion of critical harris county early

527
00:59:42,666 --> 00:59:42,666
childhood programing and other relevant departments to execute

528
00:59:47,233 --> 00:59:47,233
and publish all related notices as required by applicable law.

529
00:59:55,100 --> 00:59:55,100
so that would be, I just sort of wanted to set the scene for all

530
01:00:01,700 --> 01:00:01,700
of this. In 2022, we invested more than

531
01:00:07,133 --> 01:00:10,766
$149 million in federal american rescue plan funding for early childhood education programs we have served more than 97,000

532
01:00:15,666 --> 01:00:15,666
families and kids. Right now, there are more than

533
01:00:19,966 --> 01:00:23,233
30,000 families on the wait-list for subsidized child care in harris county, meaning they need child care but can't afford it.

534
01:00:31,333 --> 01:00:31,333
so 30,000 families, an enormous number.

535
01:00:46,966 --> 01:00:49,933
then we ask why isn't there support from the state and some of the public schools and some other agencies so 30,000

536
01:00:55,300 --> 01:00:55,300
families and children on a wait list is even despite what

537
01:01:01,733 --> 01:01:01,733
already exist and despite the programs we already have.

538
01:01:06,066 --> 01:01:09,766
so 30,000 people is the population of towns like key west florida and it fills about half of 60,000 person football

539
01:01:20,000 --> 01:01:20,000
stadium. Going back here to the item, in

540
01:01:24,900 --> 01:01:27,400
harris county, the average family spends more on child care than they would pay for the cost of in state college tuition at a

541
01:01:33,133 --> 01:01:33,133
four year university. The average cost of one year of

542
01:01:37,233 --> 01:01:37,233
college tuition at a four year university is $8195 for the

543
01:01:42,733 --> 01:01:42,733
average family in harris county spends $11,000 per year on child

544
01:01:49,000 --> 01:01:49,000
care for one of the most impactful programs is early

545
01:01:53,966 --> 01:01:57,666
reach, which provided children with free high quality early childhood education who wouldn't have been able to afford early

546
01:02:00,866 --> 01:02:00,866
childhood care otherwise and allowed the parents to work who

547
01:02:05,566 --> 01:02:08,033
perhaps otherwise wouldn't have been able to do it. The program has been evaluated four times by brazelton

548
01:02:14,000 --> 01:02:14,000
touchpoints and independent evaluators so the program has

549
01:02:18,866 --> 01:02:18,866
been evaluated for times by an independent evaluator that we

550
01:02:24,566 --> 01:02:24,566
selected via an rfp process, a competitive process.

551
01:02:28,633 --> 01:02:28,633
they found that early reach has found child care more affordable

552
01:02:32,900 --> 01:02:32,900
that early reach has improved kids socio emotional development

553
01:02:38,533 --> 01:02:38,533
and that early reach is strengthening the early

554
01:02:42,600 --> 01:02:42,600
childhood workforce. Today, I am proposing letting

555
01:02:47,766 --> 01:02:47,766
the voters decide whether to continue funding our successful

556
01:02:52,366 --> 01:02:52,366
early childhood programs with a penny.

557
01:03:02,033 --> 01:03:05,400
-- a. Penny tax would be in addition to the tax bill of an average homeowner in harris county.

558
01:03:08,166 --> 01:03:08,166
so this is $10 per $100,000 of home value per year so actually,

559
01:03:16,166 --> 01:03:16,166
the average is around $250,000 so an average of $25 increase

560
01:03:22,200 --> 01:03:22,200
for the average taxpayer. This would generate

561
01:03:29,500 --> 01:03:33,366
$66.6 million to fund the early reach and other successful programs, including programs to improve the skills of the early

562
01:03:37,433 --> 01:03:37,433
childhood workforce and all of these early childhood education

563
01:03:42,600 --> 01:03:42,600
facilities are meeting the absolute highest standards.

564
01:03:48,533 --> 01:03:51,366
again, is not just a matter of having facilities that meet the standards, it's a matter of the children and families being able

565
01:03:53,600 --> 01:03:53,600
to afford this. $66.6 million pales in

566
01:03:59,266 --> 01:04:02,900
comparison with some other major investments that have been made without going to the voters. And this is the key thing that I

567
01:04:10,800 --> 01:04:13,866
am asking my colleagues to consider. Colleagues, I'm not asking you to vote for a tax increase for

568
01:04:17,466 --> 01:04:20,300
taxpayers. That's not what I'm asking for. I am asking you to let the voters decide whether they would

569
01:04:25,466 --> 01:04:25,466
like to pay a penny tax in order to fund early childhood

570
01:04:32,033 --> 01:04:33,933
education. The request is simply will you put this on the ballot to let voters decide?

571
01:04:40,333 --> 01:04:43,533
I believe that we should be willing to live with the verdict of the people of harris county. We do that when we put our names

572
01:04:47,766 --> 01:04:47,766
on the ballot and we should do that when we have items that are

573
01:04:51,900 --> 01:04:55,166
as important as this one. There are item -- other items we've passed without discussion that I've said we need to put on

574
01:04:58,633 --> 01:04:58,633
the ballot and this one I would like to give the constituents

575
01:05:05,733 --> 01:05:05,733
the opportunity to decide. A "yes" vote is not a vote to

576
01:05:11,533 --> 01:05:15,233
raise taxes, it is simply allowing the people of harris county to vote this november on whether or not they would like

577
01:05:19,766 --> 01:05:19,766
to pay a penny tax to continue early childhood education.

578
01:05:24,933 --> 01:05:28,533
it will help increase turnout. Already, a lot of people are going to come out this november. It is only fair for them to be

579
01:05:32,600 --> 01:05:36,200
able to vote because we all are already running this election so it's not going to be a negligible increase in the cost

580
01:05:39,433 --> 01:05:39,433
of running this election. Let us not fear our own

581
01:05:47,133 --> 01:05:49,533
constituents. There has been fear to put this before constituents since 2013. In 2013, a group of community

582
01:05:55,533 --> 01:05:55,533
leaders requested that this go before the public.

583
01:06:01,200 --> 01:06:04,133
the people sitting behind this dais refused to put this before the voters. This happened around this time

584
01:06:06,300 --> 01:06:09,266
last year. Let us not fear our own constituents. Let us live with the verdict of

585
01:06:11,966 --> 01:06:11,966
our constituents. Let us not vote for a tax

586
01:06:16,433 --> 01:06:16,433
increase in fact, we could advocate against it but let the

587
01:06:21,033 --> 01:06:21,033
voters decide. These programs are so worthy,

588
01:06:28,733 --> 01:06:28,733
and I have such faith in the people of this county and their

589
01:06:33,633 --> 01:06:36,433
judgment. My idea is simply to ask them if they are willing to pay a penny more to keep these programs

590
01:06:41,666 --> 01:06:41,666
going, around $26 a year for the average homeowner.

591
01:06:47,766 --> 01:06:47,766
on this issue and any issue, I am happy to live with the

592
01:06:52,500 --> 01:06:52,500
verdict of the people on harris county and certainly let's not

593
01:06:58,566 --> 01:07:02,433
default on the promise we made when we decided to support these programs and over the years have said we will continue to support

594
01:07:08,633 --> 01:07:08,633
these, we will ask the voters. There are parents, there are

595
01:07:20,500 --> 01:07:20,500
children who had a plan for their lives, whose services for

596
01:07:25,466 --> 01:07:29,133
early childhood kaku's ability to go to work, whose ability to put their kids in early childhood cactus as their -- my

597
01:07:33,000 --> 01:07:35,766
colleagues put their kids in early childhood is going to be cut short at the end of this year.

598
01:07:41,700 --> 01:07:44,900
already, if we vote for this, there will be a one year gap but this will allow us to at least be able to continue it in the

599
01:07:49,033 --> 01:07:49,033
future. All I am urging you to do is to

600
01:07:54,633 --> 01:07:54,633
simply make sure that we hear the people that we recognize

601
01:08:02,133 --> 01:08:02,133
that this is a worthy, successful evaluated and

602
01:08:07,666 --> 01:08:07,666
admirable cause, that unlike pretty much every other

603
01:08:12,300 --> 01:08:15,566
jurisdiction, republican or democrat that has passed an early childhood bonder, put it to the voters.

604
01:08:19,233 --> 01:08:23,200
we have a working program. Pretty much every other jurisdiction, I don't know of one that did it like us.

605
01:08:25,833 --> 01:08:28,600
first they put it to the voters and then they built the program. It was not clear that the program would be successful or

606
01:08:31,666 --> 01:08:34,900
not. Our program is already successful. Let us not kill the program, let

607
01:08:37,266 --> 01:08:37,266
us let the voters decide. That is my request.

608
01:08:42,300 --> 01:08:42,300
my request and plea to my colleagues.

609
01:08:47,500 --> 01:08:47,500
commissioner ramsey? >> thank you, judge.

610
01:08:53,766 --> 01:08:53,766
I think as we discussed taking issues to the voters, such as

611
01:08:59,900 --> 01:08:59,900
the early childhood program, obviously there is a clear need

612
01:09:07,666 --> 01:09:07,666
there, clearly there are dollars that would be needed to support

613
01:09:12,966 --> 01:09:16,400
it. As we said, 1 penny, that's $64 million in terms of what would be taken to the voters.

614
01:09:19,733 --> 01:09:19,733
I don't think you can talk about 349 cactus initiative, in terms

615
01:09:24,100 --> 01:09:24,100
of taking something to the voters without understanding

616
01:09:28,933 --> 01:09:32,666
where we are with the tax rate potential. We just had published, and it's been provided to us through a

617
01:09:39,366 --> 01:09:39,366
transmittal in agenda item 329 where we understand clearly what

618
01:09:48,500 --> 01:09:48,500
our likely tax rates. >> I motion -- motion by

619
01:09:57,966 --> 01:10:01,466
commissioner ramsey seconded by commissioner briones. Any opposed motion carries unanimously.

620
01:10:04,733 --> 01:10:04,733
>> we are currently, I'm going to use rough numbers, we are

621
01:10:09,433 --> 01:10:09,433
currently $0.62. Remember, every one of those

622
01:10:13,700 --> 01:10:13,700
pennies is $64 million we are at $0.62 is the current.

623
01:10:18,466 --> 01:10:18,466
if tax rates have been since 2019,

624
01:10:23,733 --> 01:10:23,733
they have been down as low as 58, 54 in that range.

625
01:10:30,266 --> 01:10:30,266
we are roughly 62 right now. Based on what we understand the

626
01:10:39,500 --> 01:10:42,233
budget and mr. Reynolds, thank you for what you do in making sure we understand what we are spending.

627
01:10:46,033 --> 01:10:48,566
so many times people operate in the dark because they don't know what they're spending, they don't know what the costs are.

628
01:10:51,166 --> 01:10:54,700
I think your office does a good job of maintaining the report and agenda item number 5 affirms that we are within

629
01:10:59,600 --> 01:10:59,600
26 million give or take. Understand that 26 million

630
01:11:04,700 --> 01:11:04,700
within a budget of 3 billion. Mr. Ramos is reporting that

631
01:11:10,733 --> 01:11:12,933
level of detail, that level of understanding. It's not like we don't understand what our budget needs

632
01:11:16,700 --> 01:11:16,700
are today but we also know our projected budget needs going

633
01:11:21,666 --> 01:11:21,666
forward so just to give you a glimpse into your future

634
01:11:27,100 --> 01:11:31,066
tax rate that we will consider, we are not considering a tax rate today. As judge hidalgo referenced, we

635
01:11:33,966 --> 01:11:37,366
are only talking about taking one to the voters, should that be something we want to do. Please understand the tax rate

636
01:11:41,666 --> 01:11:41,666
that we will be considering in just a few short weeks is

637
01:11:48,500 --> 01:11:48,500
probably the greatest tax rate increase in the history of

638
01:11:53,466 --> 01:11:53,466
harris county. It will likely go to $0.62 up to

639
01:11:59,033 --> 01:11:59,033
probably into the 68-cent range. If the hospital district goes to

640
01:12:05,733 --> 01:12:05,733
their var, voter approved rate, that could be as high as $0.71

641
01:12:12,033 --> 01:12:12,033
per so we will discuss the merits of whether we do a voter

642
01:12:17,066 --> 01:12:20,466
approved rate, whether we do a voter approved rate for the general but I think mr. Ramos, your budget is based on the

643
01:12:26,100 --> 01:12:28,800
voter approved rate. Is that correct? >> for the general fund and flood control.

644
01:12:31,300 --> 01:12:35,100
>> and that's roughly $0.68? >> thereabouts. A little less depending what happens.

645
01:12:38,633 --> 01:12:38,633
>> but the hospital district, if it was a var, that is 72.

646
01:12:44,900 --> 01:12:44,900
they may go -- they are having discussions and this is

647
01:12:49,533 --> 01:12:49,533
premature in terms of really understanding what that number

648
01:12:54,233 --> 01:12:57,733
is. But clearly if we simply adopted what the state legislature would allow us to do in terms of var,

649
01:13:01,666 --> 01:13:05,033
it would be an increase of roughly 62 to 68, the largest increase since I have been on commissioners court for I think

650
01:13:08,133 --> 01:13:11,466
the largest increase that I can find in the history of the county in one year. So we are facing some pretty

651
01:13:16,566 --> 01:13:16,566
stiff headwinds. This is to find our statutory

652
01:13:22,700 --> 01:13:22,700
responsibilities I understand out of the $3 billion budget

653
01:13:26,933 --> 01:13:26,933
that we are anticipating, considering in the near future

654
01:13:31,700 --> 01:13:31,700
the $3 billion budget we are considering in the future, over

655
01:13:37,400 --> 01:13:37,400
500 million of those are nonstatutory activities I'm not

656
01:13:43,166 --> 01:13:43,166
saying they are bad. I'm just saying we are having a

657
01:13:48,466 --> 01:13:51,466
bad -- a. Hard time finding our statutory responsibilities. What are some of those? The court system.

658
01:13:54,633 --> 01:13:57,500
every one of the entities involved in our court system, they are coming to us saying just to keep up, we are going to

659
01:14:01,466 --> 01:14:01,466
need a few extra dollars to do this and a few extra dollars to

660
01:14:05,566 --> 01:14:05,566
do that so we are going to have a very interesting next few

661
01:14:11,666 --> 01:14:11,666
weeks deciding what we are going to fund or not fund.

662
01:14:16,000 --> 01:14:16,000
but I can probably guarantee you based on the budget needs that

663
01:14:20,600 --> 01:14:20,600
are on there, if we just fund what we did last year with some

664
01:14:26,800 --> 01:14:26,800
few minor cuts, we are going to be at a very high tax rate, a

665
01:14:32,933 --> 01:14:32,933
very high increase for a given year and again, we are going to

666
01:14:37,166 --> 01:14:40,900
be having those discussions in the coming weeks. My recommendation is we go with a "no" new revenue rate.

667
01:14:45,566 --> 01:14:45,566
that's going to cause a lot more of a need to look at everything

668
01:14:50,066 --> 01:14:50,066
we do and how we do what we do here I am pointing those things

669
01:14:56,200 --> 01:14:56,200
out as we consider judge hidalgo's proposal to take

670
01:15:00,866 --> 01:15:00,866
it to the voters. I for one would not agree that

671
01:15:05,466 --> 01:15:08,266
this would be an item we would take to the voters. There would probably be others that could be but at this point

672
01:15:12,033 --> 01:15:15,666
I think we need to do our homework on our budget before we get to the tax rate. But no, we have some stiff

673
01:15:19,833 --> 01:15:19,833
headwinds on our tax rate co coming.

674
01:15:26,633 --> 01:15:26,633
>> commissioner ramsey, may I respond to some of that?

675
01:15:31,433 --> 01:15:31,433
I agree that we need to make sure that the discussions going

676
01:15:37,333 --> 01:15:37,333
forward, irrespective of this about the tax rates that are,

677
01:15:43,433 --> 01:15:43,433
take into consideration, what the voters, what we think the

678
01:15:49,033 --> 01:15:49,033
voters might like to see. Of course when we set the

679
01:15:53,233 --> 01:15:56,666
tax rate later on this year, we just set it. We don't have to approve it. We set it by virtue of the fact

680
01:15:59,966 --> 01:16:03,266
that we were elected and we decide. I am proud of the fact that every year since we took office

681
01:16:06,433 --> 01:16:09,733
the tax rate has been lower than it was under my predecessor. It has gone down every year. It went up one year and anyway,

682
01:16:15,433 --> 01:16:19,433
we have not decided what it will be this year I think that's a separate conversation. I think that what we have in

683
01:16:22,966 --> 01:16:22,966
front of us right now is are we willing to put this before the

684
01:16:29,400 --> 01:16:31,900
voters? Are we willing to let the voters decide? Are we willing to live with the

685
01:16:33,833 --> 01:16:37,833
verdict of the voters on this matter? And just to put this in perspective, there is another

686
01:16:44,666 --> 01:16:47,900
expense that I have been saying I would have liked for this to go to the voters and I talked to the folks, this big pay increase

687
01:16:53,600 --> 01:16:57,000
that we did. It was going to cost $300 million a year starting in a couple of years.

688
01:16:58,800 --> 01:17:02,633
right now it's every year that we are phasing it in. $300 million a year compared to early childhood would be 66.

689
01:17:09,466 --> 01:17:09,466
so $300 million a year cost $118 for the average household in

690
01:17:15,033 --> 01:17:15,033
harris county we did not go to the voters on that.

691
01:17:19,733 --> 01:17:23,733
I said let's go to the voters on that item. I will push back early childhood education, that was last year.

692
01:17:26,933 --> 01:17:29,500
we did not go to the voters on that. And that's why the vote is so tight.

693
01:17:32,000 --> 01:17:32,000
because instead of contributing to the justice system, to flood

694
01:17:36,133 --> 01:17:36,133
control, we made the unilateral decision.

695
01:17:41,733 --> 01:17:41,733
so I think there is certainly merit in what you are saying,

696
01:17:46,500 --> 01:17:48,666
commissioner. I just think it is two different things and if we are talking about needs, we made this

697
01:17:53,233 --> 01:17:53,233
unilateral decision to allocate $300 million a year to raises

698
01:17:58,333 --> 01:17:58,333
for a particular set of people and therefore to have to make

699
01:18:03,666 --> 01:18:06,900
the respective cuts or in the future have to figure out how we are going to pay for that, and we did not ask the voters.

700
01:18:12,000 --> 01:18:12,000
so this is simply a penny and I am pleading with you that we go

701
01:18:19,166 --> 01:18:23,166
to the voters. I think that you can certainly vote against it, you can certainly campaign against it

702
01:18:27,666 --> 01:18:27,666
but I think there is no excuse to not let the voters decide,

703
01:18:31,933 --> 01:18:35,300
especially when we've been discussing this since last year. We've known about the financial outlook of the county for

704
01:18:39,333 --> 01:18:42,566
several years. And again cactus does not have anything to do with the tax rate that we are going to set, that

705
01:18:46,933 --> 01:18:50,366
is a unilateral decision. This goes to the voters. I'm with you, that I don't want to see a high tax rate.

706
01:18:55,166 --> 01:18:55,166
I don't believe that it was wise to put $300 million of expenses

707
01:18:59,300 --> 01:18:59,300
without going to the voters and so it's hard for me to justify a

708
01:19:04,133 --> 01:19:07,500
tax increase in order to fund something that the voters did not agree to. This I am just asking for us to

709
01:19:12,700 --> 01:19:15,400
live with the verdict of the voters and therefore to be willing to ask the voters what they would like to let the

710
01:19:20,333 --> 01:19:22,766
voters decide. This is not a proposal to increase taxes cactus is a proposal to let the voters

711
01:19:25,666 --> 01:19:25,666
decide so that the children of harris county have the

712
01:19:29,733 --> 01:19:33,266
opportunity to have child care just as the children of the folks on this dais and people that work for us, behind us have

713
01:19:37,600 --> 01:19:37,600
the opportunity to put their children in early childhood

714
01:19:42,033 --> 01:19:42,033
education so that their children can have a strong start in life.

715
01:19:47,633 --> 01:19:49,566
commissioner ellis, did you have a comment? Commissioner ramsey? >> quickly, judge.

716
01:19:54,866 --> 01:19:57,900
thank you. The 2023 tax rate we adopted was $0.53 per the 2024 tax rate we adopted was $0.60 per the 2025

717
01:20:04,166 --> 01:20:04,166
tax rate we adopted was 0.62 $0.04.

718
01:20:09,133 --> 01:20:09,133
so the last two years have been significant increases in the

719
01:20:14,700 --> 01:20:18,600
tax rate and if we adopted the var including the hospital district this year, that would be $0.71.

720
01:20:23,766 --> 01:20:23,766
I'm just saying to put it in the context of where we are on a

721
01:20:30,566 --> 01:20:30,566
tax rate because in this time of affordability where you can't

722
01:20:36,300 --> 01:20:36,300
turn on the tv, that's what people want to talk about.

723
01:20:40,566 --> 01:20:40,566
for us to be considering a significant tax increase this

724
01:20:46,733 --> 01:20:46,733
year would be not listening to the folks that are out there.

725
01:20:51,300 --> 01:20:54,600
so just putting a number out there as we look forward to going through our budget discussions.

726
01:20:57,266 --> 01:20:59,766
these tax rates have not been agreed to at this point in terms of what we're going to do this year.

727
01:21:01,900 --> 01:21:04,366
we've got to work through our budget which is an appropriate thing to do but these are the numbers, these are the rates

728
01:21:09,066 --> 01:21:09,066
these are where we are and as a point of context.

729
01:21:17,566 --> 01:21:20,600
thank you. >> commissioner ellis. Just briefly, I commend your commitment to the notion of

730
01:21:25,666 --> 01:21:28,600
child care. I think all of us are committed to it. I do think that it would be good

731
01:21:33,433 --> 01:21:33,433
if other parties, the state in particular took an interest in

732
01:21:38,533 --> 01:21:40,933
the subject. At some point the federal government may take an interest in it, they have in the past

733
01:21:43,800 --> 01:21:46,566
where it would be good if other local units of government stepped up. But on the broader issue, I want

734
01:21:49,200 --> 01:21:52,166
to say how proud we should all be that with the federal money that came to us, we created unprecedented programs to really

735
01:21:58,633 --> 01:21:58,633
help take people out of poverty. I think that when we had the

736
01:22:03,733 --> 01:22:07,066
opportunity, we didn't do what many others around the state and the country did. They took the money to fill

737
01:22:10,466 --> 01:22:12,466
holes. Even when they did it, those were programs that would end. Even if they supplemented the

738
01:22:15,133 --> 01:22:18,233
budget, once the federal money went away, they had to figure out how to fill it up here so it was a good thing.

739
01:22:21,900 --> 01:22:25,366
you and all of us, I think ought to be proud peer commissioner ramsey, you as well, and your predecessors, for the things

740
01:22:28,866 --> 01:22:32,566
that we did when we had that money. And I made the comment when we did that, there were a lot of

741
01:22:36,866 --> 01:22:40,566
people who felt like we would raise expectations and what would we do when the money went away?

742
01:22:43,800 --> 01:22:43,800
one that I championed, and you supported, judge, was the

743
01:22:48,133 --> 01:22:50,233
guaranteed income program. I remember some commentators said what would you say to those people who don't win in the

744
01:22:53,500 --> 01:22:55,600
lottery? And my response was I never take the position of government I'm not going to help anybody

745
01:22:58,466 --> 01:23:00,566
because I can't help everybody, we could just turn off the lights and get out of here. When we have the opportunity, we

746
01:23:05,466 --> 01:23:08,900
put a large amount of money. I think housing, you were helpful, what was the largest category of the administrator,

747
01:23:12,966 --> 01:23:12,966
the largest category of what we put our federal money, the

748
01:23:18,300 --> 01:23:22,100
biden-harris money, do we put it in housing or child care? >> housing. >> what was number 2?

749
01:23:23,733 --> 01:23:25,600
>> child care. >> that's pretty significant because we didn't have to do that here so I hope, judge, you

750
01:23:29,000 --> 01:23:31,366
feel good. You championed that issue. I think at some point child care was largely we couldn't get the

751
01:23:34,500 --> 01:23:36,133
money out. It would be slightly larger but they were close to one another. Mr., well we owned this subject

752
01:23:41,066 --> 01:23:43,866
because I assume -- I. Assume this motion is not going to get a second pair for what it's worth, I made the motion twice

753
01:23:46,433 --> 01:23:49,000
to go to voters. I know the state was setting us up when we did that we've had unprecedented growth in this

754
01:23:52,666 --> 01:23:55,600
county, and it's going to keep growing. It's interesting, our colleagues, there's no cap on

755
01:23:59,400 --> 01:24:02,933
the sales tax at state. They keep slapping that up here but the most painful form of taxation is to ask people for

756
01:24:08,800 --> 01:24:11,600
money on their property. It's a big challenge. For what it's worth, I want that laid out here but just take us

757
01:24:15,233 --> 01:24:18,333
back down history lane so we know how we got to where we are here I am defining even if we agree, what we are dealing with

758
01:24:21,433 --> 01:24:21,433
is a structural deficit when I was a banker, if you had a

759
01:24:25,766 --> 01:24:28,866
shortfall five years in a row, used to be three years in a row, we say structural. But five years in a row, that is

760
01:24:31,500 --> 01:24:31,500
a structural deficit. And we are out of smoke and

761
01:24:36,833 --> 01:24:38,733
mirrors. If all this stuff passes, selling property, fire sale, everything you come up with, if

762
01:24:42,233 --> 01:24:46,066
all of the smoke and mirrors are gone, when we come back in the next cycle, we are still going to have that shortfall.

763
01:24:50,133 --> 01:24:54,133
these one time fixes are nice. I was a merchant in debt, I know about that business. Here's my sense of how we got to

764
01:24:57,266 --> 01:25:00,933
where we are. First, when the revenue cap passed, a couple of our colleagues for whatever reason

765
01:25:03,833 --> 01:25:07,366
disagreed they didn't come. We found out that language in the statute, four people have to be in a room so we ended up

766
01:25:12,700 --> 01:25:15,766
losing $100 million. >> that's compounded to $150 annually. >> it will never come back.

767
01:25:17,566 --> 01:25:19,333
>> correct. >> the second time it happened, we made the money up here. >> I know the one time shortfall

768
01:25:25,266 --> 01:25:27,600
of 95. >> I'm saying that commissioner ramsey because it wasn't you, it was before.

769
01:25:31,533 --> 01:25:31,533
so the 150, that continuous hole was still there.

770
01:25:36,400 --> 01:25:36,400
and then we made up a number of decisions, one being that we

771
01:25:40,500 --> 01:25:40,500
decided that we would -- once I saw with the votes, even if it

772
01:25:47,000 --> 01:25:50,300
was late I figured I'm going to take the heat. If you can't ask the voters for more money if it's for

773
01:25:53,700 --> 01:25:53,700
law enforcement, you think I'm going to get it for housing?

774
01:25:57,800 --> 01:25:57,800
I am no genius but if you did a little polling, I don't think

775
01:26:02,533 --> 01:26:02,533
housing or child care or a host of other issues would be nearly

776
01:26:10,466 --> 01:26:10,466
as universally supported enough to get at least get 50 plus one.

777
01:26:15,033 --> 01:26:15,033
but you know, we didn't do that so I have done it twice and I

778
01:26:19,500 --> 01:26:19,500
don't plan to ever do it again. I may change my mind but we've

779
01:26:23,833 --> 01:26:27,400
got to make tough decisions. I don't think any of us ought to feel bad over what we have done here when we had money coming

780
01:26:32,066 --> 01:26:35,933
from the federal government we could have done what the state did they just plug holes and then in a few areas where they

781
01:26:41,600 --> 01:26:45,333
were strong, partizan political support, in my judgment, they did go do new things but we did not do that so despite the fact

782
01:26:50,366 --> 01:26:54,266
that we can't continue a lot of those things that we started when we had the opportunity to make once in a lifetime

783
01:26:59,766 --> 01:27:03,266
opportunities to help pull people out of generational poverty in harris county, we did it.

784
01:27:05,800 --> 01:27:05,800
and for that, I am very proud. >> yes, commissioner garcia?

785
01:27:12,866 --> 01:27:15,900
>> thank you. And I just want to add my comments as well that I am proud of the work that we have done

786
01:27:21,066 --> 01:27:21,066
with our one time funding. We always knew and it was not

787
01:27:30,700 --> 01:27:30,700
the mission statement but it was in a statement that we would not

788
01:27:34,966 --> 01:27:34,966
be using this money or we would not be asking for money to

789
01:27:42,766 --> 01:27:42,766
continue these programs right off the bat but we needed to

790
01:27:47,433 --> 01:27:47,433
have evaluation. All that being said, in

791
01:27:51,633 --> 01:27:54,866
fairness, I wanted to understand my precinct. I want to understand if what I hear from my constituents is

792
01:27:59,466 --> 01:27:59,466
accurate and what I hear from my constituents on a daily basis is

793
01:28:05,633 --> 01:28:09,266
that affordability is still not within their reach they are still struggling. And so in fairness, I pulled my

794
01:28:17,066 --> 01:28:20,500
community regarding whether they would pay more property taxes for child care. And the answer was a resounding

795
01:28:24,566 --> 01:28:24,566
no. So my vote here today, not to

796
01:28:28,700 --> 01:28:28,700
support your motion, is not just because I don't want to do it

797
01:28:33,000 --> 01:28:33,000
but I have heard from my constituents that this is not

798
01:28:38,633 --> 01:28:38,633
the time to tax them more so for even a good program.

799
01:28:45,266 --> 01:28:45,266
so I thank you for the work that you've done but I think that the

800
01:28:49,366 --> 01:28:52,066
work that commissioner briones and I are doing with stakeholders will get us to a better place because I'm hopeful

801
01:28:55,666 --> 01:28:55,666
that the governor and the state will see the way we are

802
01:29:01,700 --> 01:29:04,733
constructing a strategic approach to addressing this important need will gain us the support of our much needed state

803
01:29:11,366 --> 01:29:11,366
partner to get this done for our local community.

804
01:29:15,533 --> 01:29:17,600
thank you. >> thank you, commissioner. And I do want to raise the point of affordability.

805
01:29:20,466 --> 01:29:20,466
the whole idea behind this is to make child care more affordable.

806
01:29:24,900 --> 01:29:24,900
that is the whole point. You may be able to afford child

807
01:29:29,800 --> 01:29:29,800
care but tens of thousands of families in harris county

808
01:29:35,433 --> 01:29:37,366
cannot. 30,000 families are on the wait-list they cannot afford to put their kids in school so that

809
01:29:41,300 --> 01:29:45,066
they can go to work and make more money. They cannot afford to give their children the start in life that

810
01:29:48,100 --> 01:29:48,100
you gave your children. And so this is an affordability

811
01:29:53,200 --> 01:29:55,400
proposal. If we are talking about affordability. And if we are talking about what

812
01:29:57,433 --> 01:30:00,900
the voters would like, let's go to the voters and ask them what they would like. I also pulled on this last year

813
01:30:03,733 --> 01:30:07,566
and I shared the poll and it was with an independent pollster that looks at ballot items both republican and democrat.

814
01:30:11,933 --> 01:30:11,933
we found that three quarters of people said child care was more

815
01:30:16,000 --> 01:30:18,366
important, and they wanted to vote on this. They wanted to have a say on it. So yes, we've had great programs

816
01:30:22,833 --> 01:30:26,533
and we can pat ourselves on the back for that I don't know if there's another program that helped 100,000 families.

817
01:30:28,766 --> 01:30:31,200
I don't know if there's another program evaluated four times but if there is, let's put that before the voters let's put this

818
01:30:36,133 --> 01:30:36,133
$300 million commitment before the voters.

819
01:30:40,300 --> 01:30:43,966
and I'd like commissioner ellis's point of the smoke and mirrors because what we will see after this and what we are

820
01:30:46,833 --> 01:30:46,833
seeing is this attempt to say we are going to try to get money

821
01:30:51,733 --> 01:30:54,500
from the state. We have been trying to get money from the state and let's see if we can develop a committee.

822
01:30:59,533 --> 01:31:03,366
we have had a committee for four years we've had the stakeholders, we've had the families, we've had the

823
01:31:05,800 --> 01:31:08,466
nonprofits, we've had the for profits. So all of that we have done but there is nothing that is being

824
01:31:15,733 --> 01:31:15,733
proposed that would raise or that would allow the voters to

825
01:31:20,000 --> 01:31:20,000
decide on whether or not child care should be more affordable,

826
01:31:27,366 --> 01:31:29,066
$60 million that would be collected for this. I don't see that in any proposal and I certainly do not see that

827
01:31:32,200 --> 01:31:32,200
coming from the state any time soon.

828
01:31:36,833 --> 01:31:36,833
we all know that they are not ones to send harris county

829
01:31:41,400 --> 01:31:43,800
money. So I'm so sorry that this is your position, really. My heart hurts about it.

830
01:31:47,566 --> 01:31:51,333
I don't have children but I know that people with children want the best start for their children.

831
01:31:53,233 --> 01:31:56,233
it makes me so sorry that you are willing to give the best start to your children but you're not willing to let the

832
01:31:59,233 --> 01:31:59,233
voters decide on whether they would like to see child care be

833
01:32:03,433 --> 01:32:07,233
more affordable I'm so sorry for what we are telling the people of harris county that we do not trust them.

834
01:32:10,800 --> 01:32:10,800
I am so sorry that the people of harris county will not have the

835
01:32:15,100 --> 01:32:15,100
opportunity to vote on whether they would like to see more

836
01:32:19,766 --> 01:32:22,600
affordable early childhood education. So the question before commissioners court is simple,

837
01:32:25,166 --> 01:32:25,166
do we trust the people of harris county enough to let them decide

838
01:32:29,733 --> 01:32:33,733
on whether or not they would like to see more affordable child care and we are not willing to let them decide.

839
01:32:38,366 --> 01:32:38,366
I honestly don't know the reason but I am afraid these are the

840
01:32:44,266 --> 01:32:44,266
kinds of decisions that turn people off from politics.

841
01:32:48,600 --> 01:32:51,433
let's move on to executive session. I am really very sorry that these are your choices.

842
01:32:56,266 --> 01:32:59,400
let's move on to executive session. Do I need to name the items? >> if you don't mind going

843
01:33:04,333 --> 01:33:04,333
through the list one more time. >> let's see.

844
01:33:28,233 --> 01:33:28,233
>> I was just looking at this other note.

845
01:33:34,333 --> 01:33:34,333
since we came into office, we reduced the tax rate under my

846
01:33:38,633 --> 01:33:38,633
predecessor was 0.62998. For us, it has been the same

847
01:33:43,000 --> 01:33:43,000
then 0.61 more than 0.599 then 0.581, .530, .530, .60.620.

848
01:33:51,266 --> 01:33:54,333
it's always been a lower tax rate than under my predecessor. But again, it's two different

849
01:33:57,666 --> 01:33:59,533
things. If we want to go to the voters to fix the budget, let's go to the voters on $300 million worth

850
01:34:03,466 --> 01:34:05,866
of raises. I'd like to see that. This is to let the voters decide.

851
01:34:09,866 --> 01:34:09,866
anyways, these are the executive session items item 220300 --

852
01:34:17,266 --> 01:34:17,266
200, 302, 323, 324, 351, 354, 355, did I miss anything?

853
01:34:26,966 --> 01:34:26,966
>> that is all I have, judge. >> it is 10:40 a.m., we are

854
01:34:33,633 --> 01:34:37,300
going into executive session. I am very sorry that we are not letting the voters decide on whet

855
01:34:42,688 --> 01:34:42,688
>> alright.  So it's 1:19 and we're back from executive

856
01:34:47,122 --> 01:34:47,122
session so there is two topics we had quite a bit of discussion

857
01:34:51,588 --> 01:34:55,455
on so we'll discuss those after we return for lunch. Thosely tell two on the consultation policy and items 7,

858
01:35:00,755 --> 01:35:00,755
300 and 355 on compensation for appointed official, so we'll get

859
01:35:05,788 --> 01:35:08,622
to those later. As far as other executive session items, item 254 is no action, item 302, no action.

860
01:35:17,855 --> 01:35:17,855
and 303, I don't know if you got the motion from director but

861
01:35:25,055 --> 01:35:25,055
that's okay if not. I can come back to 303.

862
01:35:31,455 --> 01:35:31,455
323, no action. 324, as presented.

863
01:35:44,422 --> 01:35:47,722
354, no action. And 355 is one of the ones that we'll discuss later. >> judge I have the motions for

864
01:35:51,455 --> 01:35:52,755
303. >> what are they? >> on item 303 a motion to direct services to move forward

865
01:35:58,755 --> 01:36:02,622
with a threat analysis of the u.s. Manage network. That's a motion one on that? >> second.

866
01:36:06,155 --> 01:36:06,155
>> alright. Motion by commissioner briones.

867
01:36:12,588 --> 01:36:15,922
motion carries unanimously. >> then there was a second motion on it just a motion to direct universal services to

868
01:36:19,888 --> 01:36:23,888
provide an update of any findings and action plan if any is required >> moved.

869
01:36:25,355 --> 01:36:28,688
>> second. >> motion by commissioner ellis and second by commissioner briones all in favor?

870
01:36:31,022 --> 01:36:34,755
any opposed. Motion carries unanimously. Okay so you got those? >> yes but I believe there is a

871
01:36:38,488 --> 01:36:41,822
motion that needs to be made for 324. As present but can we take a vote on it?

872
01:36:44,455 --> 01:36:47,088
>> so motion by commissioner ellis on 324s. There a second? That's a d church and

873
01:36:51,722 --> 01:36:54,388
associations. >> second by commissioner briones. All in favor? Any opposed. Motion carries.

874
01:36:58,488 --> 01:37:00,788
unanimously. When we come back we can determine whether to discuss these the executive session ones

875
01:37:04,722 --> 01:37:04,722
we didn't finish or the order that we had earlier but for now

876
01:37:09,688 --> 01:37:12,922
it's 122 and we'll break for lunch. >> when we come back we'll take the d.a.'s item.

877
01:37:17,055 --> 01:37:17,055
>> the d.a., yeah, he'll send as number two so I told him after

878
01:37:22,488 --> 01:37:22,488
2:30 so we'll >> alright.

879
01:37:30,227 --> 01:37:30,227
it's 2:36 and we're back. Continuing.

880
01:37:36,827 --> 01:37:36,827
I know we had executive session items we wanted to discuss but I

881
01:37:41,427 --> 01:37:41,427
think that I bloelieve he's sti here so I suggest we turn to

882
01:37:47,094 --> 01:37:50,627
that item first and I'll allow commissioner ellis to present it. >> thank you judge.

883
01:37:52,027 --> 01:37:52,027
and colleagues. Judge, in addition to, if I can

884
01:37:57,794 --> 01:37:57,794
read the motion and make a few comments I'd like to hear from

885
01:38:02,561 --> 01:38:02,561
her son who's here as well if he'd like to speak.

886
01:38:06,627 --> 01:38:06,627
if not, it's okay and we'll hear from da then.

887
01:38:10,661 --> 01:38:10,661
so the fatal shooting of ms. Salgado really captured the

888
01:38:16,127 --> 01:38:19,727
attention of most people in houston, harris county and around the nation and the world. The district attorney made the

889
01:38:24,394 --> 01:38:24,394
decision he wanted to do his own independent investigation.

890
01:38:29,427 --> 01:38:32,694
I called him to congratulate him and made the comment to him that I would do anything that I could to make sure he had the

891
01:38:36,661 --> 01:38:36,661
resources that he needed to conduct it, and then it was my

892
01:38:43,261 --> 01:38:45,161
suggestion press conference to make that comment. Obviously I couldn't talk to but one of you also I didn't call

893
01:38:49,161 --> 01:38:49,161
any. Sometimes I tell you I forget.

894
01:38:53,761 --> 01:38:53,761
sometimes I forget who I spoke. To rarely will I call on you on

895
01:38:59,094 --> 01:39:02,561
something because I forget from time-to-time but that was something about that case. I think in part a reaction of

896
01:39:08,994 --> 01:39:08,994
his two son who is had been quite visible throughout this

897
01:39:13,461 --> 01:39:13,461
tragedy that really touched me. We couldn't come up with funding

898
01:39:19,527 --> 01:39:19,527
every time there was an incident but some cases I think rise to

899
01:39:25,161 --> 01:39:28,761
that level of significance where they really touch one soul and certain ly did that with me. I think this is good public

900
01:39:34,661 --> 01:39:34,661
safety measure because law enforcement people, like you

901
01:39:41,561 --> 01:39:44,661
commissioner garcia, I've heard you say many times that to do your job you had to have confidence of the people that

902
01:39:49,127 --> 01:39:49,127
were protecting because when an act of violence or some crime

903
01:39:55,361 --> 01:39:57,761
ha happens you have to rely on the public to have confidence in what you do because we couldn't

904
01:40:01,527 --> 01:40:01,527
afford to put a police officer on every corner and when people

905
01:40:05,961 --> 01:40:05,961
lose that confidence, I think it costs us a lot more money in the

906
01:40:10,361 --> 01:40:14,261
public sector in the long run to deal with law enforcement issues. I personally think what's going

907
01:40:16,861 --> 01:40:16,861
on with ice around this country is a tragedy.

908
01:40:21,627 --> 01:40:21,627
having been african-american for 72 years even in a neighborhood

909
01:40:26,127 --> 01:40:26,127
that I live in always have felt the need to tell my son in

910
01:40:30,561 --> 01:40:30,561
particular, when he goes out, if something happens, how to react

911
01:40:35,827 --> 01:40:35,827
and I'd like so say in this country in 2026 that still

912
01:40:43,494 --> 01:40:43,494
shouldn't have to happen. What has happened ice now I even

913
01:40:48,027 --> 01:40:48,027
worry sometimes when my wife goes out.

914
01:40:53,561 --> 01:40:53,561
I don't mind revealing it but she carries her passport because

915
01:40:58,027 --> 01:40:58,027
sometimes people don't know what her ethnicity is and she's very

916
01:41:02,794 --> 01:41:02,794
proud of her ethnicity and really sort of go off the deep

917
01:41:09,127 --> 01:41:09,127
end if somebody does not know she's of african ancestry but it

918
01:41:14,627 --> 01:41:17,661
shouldn't be like that in this country in particular. This is a community of immigrants.

919
01:41:20,594 --> 01:41:20,594
sometimes I jokingly point out that everybody here is an

920
01:41:26,061 --> 01:41:26,061
immigrant other than the ancestors of those an african

921
01:41:30,661 --> 01:41:34,361
who is were forced into this country but I'm a pretty good student of history and I know who occupied this land before

922
01:41:38,461 --> 01:41:38,461
the alan brothers showed up, before the employ a soar owes

923
01:41:45,161 --> 01:41:47,994
showed up. But it is a simple motion. Motion to allocate $2.5 million over three years the district

924
01:41:53,061 --> 01:41:53,061
attorney's office for labor, overtime, outside counsel and

925
01:41:57,361 --> 01:41:57,361
software in coordination with the county attorney's office for

926
01:42:02,194 --> 01:42:04,694
- >> thank you. The purposes of investigating a shooting and killing by an

927
01:42:08,927 --> 01:42:08,927
immigration and customs enforcement ice officer.

928
01:42:14,327 --> 01:42:14,327
ms. Salgado was 52 years old when he was kill in the historic

929
01:42:19,994 --> 01:42:19,994
east end on july 7th, 2026. After being pursued by federal

930
01:42:25,994 --> 01:42:25,994
agents driving unmarked vehicles while he was taking his crew to

931
01:42:31,094 --> 01:42:31,094
their latest job site. He'd been there for over three

932
01:42:37,161 --> 01:42:37,161
decades and raised a family. Built homes and he helped build

933
01:42:42,961 --> 01:42:42,961
this great texas economy and as someone who is a descendant of

934
01:42:49,794 --> 01:42:49,794
african slaves who were the original developers of western

935
01:42:56,394 --> 01:42:56,394
civilization not just here but in europe, as well, knowing that

936
01:43:00,994 --> 01:43:00,994
we would be nowhere without our immigrant workers in texas.

937
01:43:08,594 --> 01:43:08,594
we are fortunate to have a nation to the south of us that

938
01:43:13,994 --> 01:43:13,994
has a much younger population that places around the world who

939
01:43:19,227 --> 01:43:19,227
wish that's a they have an asian population they have neighbor

940
01:43:23,894 --> 01:43:23,894
was younger population who would play a in the economy so it's an

941
01:43:29,861 --> 01:43:32,861
important motion and thank you commissioner garcia for seconding it and with that I'll turn it to the da if that's

942
01:43:37,994 --> 01:43:41,761
appropriate. >> garcia and ramsey would like to speak. Would you like to speak after the da speak? >> I'm happy to go after him and

943
01:43:46,194 --> 01:43:49,794
he put his hand up first so I'll go after both of them. >> alright. >> yeah.

944
01:43:53,194 --> 01:43:56,227
we'll wait for the d.a.. His time is precious. >> go ahead. >> thank you also much for

945
01:44:00,927 --> 01:44:03,994
having me. Commissioner ellis thank you for voicing your support the day of this tragedy and continuing by

946
01:44:10,294 --> 01:44:10,294
this motion. I've heard from most of the

947
01:44:15,027 --> 01:44:15,027
people on the court and the support is truly felt.

948
01:44:21,261 --> 01:44:21,261
this is a critical motion. This money is important for this

949
01:44:29,694 --> 01:44:30,727
investigation. We're full. We're fully staffed because of this court in the day in and day

950
01:44:36,261 --> 01:44:36,261
out business of ministering justice in what is soon the

951
01:44:41,594 --> 01:44:45,161
second largest county in the united states. This isn't unique case. This is one that if we believe

952
01:44:50,761 --> 01:44:50,761
charges are appropriate and file charges, we fully anticipate

953
01:44:55,461 --> 01:44:55,461
having to fight against the federal government.

954
01:44:59,594 --> 01:45:02,527
this is not something that as you said commissioner we would do in every case but this is a case of significance.

955
01:45:09,161 --> 01:45:09,161
the way we have set out this money is over three years and it

956
01:45:13,227 --> 01:45:16,694
does not go into the d.a.'s office general fund. Every time that I have come before this body and asked for

957
01:45:20,461 --> 01:45:23,694
money, it is with a direct reason for it. I'm not in the business nor will I ever be to come in front of

958
01:45:27,827 --> 01:45:27,827
this office or this body and ask just for money to grow.

959
01:45:33,327 --> 01:45:33,327
this will be specifically laid out in the ways that it is laid

960
01:45:37,794 --> 01:45:37,794
out for us to come back and keep this body informed as we utilize

961
01:45:43,727 --> 01:45:45,961
the money. If at the end of our investigation we deem that there are no criminal charges that are

962
01:45:49,194 --> 01:45:49,194
appropriate to be filed then we won't use the vast majority of

963
01:45:53,327 --> 01:45:53,327
this. If, however, it is a case where

964
01:45:57,361 --> 01:45:57,361
we file it and need to go forward, having the fore site to

965
01:46:01,861 --> 01:46:01,861
already be ready to go forward with that funding is the only

966
01:46:06,527 --> 01:46:06,527
way that we're going to be successful in an investigation

967
01:46:11,327 --> 01:46:14,494
and prosecution so with that I'm going to stop talking and answer any questions you all have but again thank you also much.

968
01:46:17,794 --> 01:46:20,827
>> thank you. Commissioner fernandez y garcia and then commissioner briones and then ramsey and ellis.

969
01:46:24,994 --> 01:46:28,161
>> thank you. Commissioner ellis thank you for the item and district attorney thank you for your work.

970
01:46:32,661 --> 01:46:32,661
I want to say to the family, I apologize I can't be there in

971
01:46:38,227 --> 01:46:38,227
person but I just wanted to say to you that we shouldn't be

972
01:46:43,727 --> 01:46:47,027
doing the federal government's job. We shouldn't be the ones waiting to determine weather or not

973
01:46:58,694 --> 01:47:01,661
we're getting accurate or factual information. This is a change of events. When I was sheriff and we had

974
01:47:07,294 --> 01:47:10,994
incidents that would take place involving our federal partners they were always very quick to call and brief and share and

975
01:47:18,994 --> 01:47:21,194
communicate. Unfortunately that is not the case and that's why if we can't depend on them to provide us

976
01:47:29,461 --> 01:47:29,461
facts and provide us an insight to any challenges, concerns,

977
01:47:37,761 --> 01:47:41,527
real investigations that they may be coming across, then we have to depend on our ability to do whatever we can locally, and

978
01:47:48,227 --> 01:47:48,227
while your office is willing to stand up and help us come to or

979
01:47:58,227 --> 01:47:58,227
be able to work to find some degree of insight and truth,

980
01:48:05,294 --> 01:48:08,161
then I applaud you for your willingness to do that. I know it's uncomfortable for you, but I applaud your

981
01:48:11,961 --> 01:48:11,961
willingness to do it. It's the right thing to do.

982
01:48:16,461 --> 01:48:16,461
district attorney, I applaud you for doing that.

983
01:48:20,561 --> 01:48:20,561
and we're going to do what we need to do that while we have a

984
01:48:26,794 --> 01:48:26,794
local ability to find truth and evidence then that's what we

985
01:48:32,194 --> 01:48:32,194
have to do when we cannot depend on our federal partners to do

986
01:48:39,527 --> 01:48:41,327
that. And so, district attorney, I just want to thank you. I saw your staff out there

987
01:48:46,594 --> 01:48:46,594
talking to people, communicating folks, you know, writing

988
01:48:51,294 --> 01:48:51,294
information down, canvassing the community, so I really really do

989
01:48:55,794 --> 01:48:55,794
applaud the work that I saw your team doing in real time to help

990
01:49:02,894 --> 01:49:06,594
collect any valuable evidence that we can come across. So I'm looking forward to some conclusion whether definite or

991
01:49:11,861 --> 01:49:14,294
not. I'm looking to some conclusion that your agencies may help us with, and especially help the

992
01:49:17,694 --> 01:49:20,661
family with. They are the ones that deserve clarity. They are the ones that deserve

993
01:49:24,327 --> 01:49:26,727
facts. They are the ones that deserve the truth and so thank you for your willingness to do this and

994
01:49:30,727 --> 01:49:30,727
I'm happy to second the motion. >> thank you.

995
01:49:35,894 --> 01:49:39,827
commissioner, and just briefly before we move on I want to recognize sal ga da who is here. So his son and so we are behind

996
01:49:48,794 --> 01:49:51,227
you. We respect your father and we are behind you and each of us represents so many more people

997
01:49:55,427 --> 01:49:59,394
so I just want to pass on some additional courage and love from those of us here. Alright.

998
01:50:05,994 --> 01:50:09,294
commissioner briones? >> yes. Likewise,, thank you commissioner ellis and team for bringing forth this item.

999
01:50:11,694 --> 01:50:11,694
I will proudly support it and thank you for stepping up and

1000
01:50:16,561 --> 01:50:16,561
leading this independent investigation, and commissioner

1001
01:50:22,527 --> 01:50:25,794
I echo everything you said. The federal government should be the one leading and owning up to the entire set of evidence but

1002
01:50:31,094 --> 01:50:31,094
tomorrow will be a month, and we still don't have answers and

1003
01:50:40,661 --> 01:50:40,661
senior lawrence was and the community and the country

1004
01:50:45,161 --> 01:50:47,527
deserves answers and accountability and thank you for leading this charge and I'll support it and to echo the

1005
01:50:52,394 --> 01:50:52,394
comments made, we honor you and your family and we are

1006
01:50:58,427 --> 01:51:01,494
incredibly sorry for the pain and the loss and the suffering that you and your family are having to endure.

1007
01:51:06,861 --> 01:51:10,694
I have been so moved every time I hear you speak and I think about your dad and I wish I had, had the opportunity to know him.

1008
01:51:15,927 --> 01:51:15,927
to me your dad represents generations of my family that

1009
01:51:22,161 --> 01:51:22,161
came to this country and generation of so many not just

1010
01:51:26,327 --> 01:51:28,994
here in harris county but across this country. He came here to pursue the "american dream" for you and

1011
01:51:32,161 --> 01:51:35,894
your brothers and raised you here and give you the education. You're an educator pouring into youth and literally he was

1012
01:51:42,127 --> 01:51:45,894
building the "american dream" for other families through this work as a construction worker, and I think of that sacrifice

1013
01:51:50,661 --> 01:51:50,661
and service that he made for your family and for our

1014
01:51:55,827 --> 01:51:58,927
community. And now to have our federal government not want to own it's work.

1015
01:52:06,161 --> 01:52:06,161
so I'm so proud to live in houston, harris county and I'm

1016
01:52:10,261 --> 01:52:13,761
so grateful that the people have given us the opportunity to serve where we can take action and invest the funds to have an

1017
01:52:18,061 --> 01:52:20,927
independent investigation because this is about justice. This is about truth and transparency and to what the

1018
01:52:24,761 --> 01:52:24,761
d.a. Said, once the evidence is assessed there is nothing but

1019
01:52:30,127 --> 01:52:33,561
without assessing the evidence and without that accountability and as a lawyer and former judge, I mean to me the rule of

1020
01:52:37,494 --> 01:52:37,494
law is non-negotiable for everybody and governments should

1021
01:52:41,661 --> 01:52:45,294
be leading by the power of it's example. All levels of government, so I'm very proud to live in harris

1022
01:52:49,994 --> 01:52:53,627
county and to be able to take this vote today because to me what happened and tomorrow will be a month, I just think of the

1023
01:52:58,827 --> 01:53:02,761
horror you've had to live this month and I'm so sorry my heartbreaks for you. A month later here in local

1024
01:53:05,761 --> 01:53:05,761
government because we need to address what I believe is

1025
01:53:10,694 --> 01:53:12,827
un-american. And unconstitutional and only the evidence will tell and that is what we're doing in this

1026
01:53:16,927 --> 01:53:20,127
credible rigorous, independent investigation and I proudly support it and I thank you for stepping up.

1027
01:53:25,594 --> 01:53:29,527
>> commissioner ramsey and then commissioner ellis. >> commissioner ellis thank you for bringing this to the court.

1028
01:53:34,427 --> 01:53:34,427
thank you for quickly not hesitating but jumping into the

1029
01:53:42,261 --> 01:53:44,494
fray. Many things were not comfortable and to lorenzo's family, you need answers.

1030
01:53:49,494 --> 01:53:49,494
that is the least we owe you. We owe you much more than that

1031
01:53:54,327 --> 01:53:54,327
but we owe you answers and in the spirit of governor abbott

1032
01:53:59,661 --> 01:54:03,161
bringing in the texas rangers and I know you'll be working with them, as well, to find answers to what is clearly a

1033
01:54:12,961 --> 01:54:15,961
tragedy. It's one that I think has given all of us pause in terms of what we're doing, but more

1034
01:54:20,861 --> 01:54:20,861
importantly, how we're doing it. So, we grieve with your family.

1035
01:54:25,994 --> 01:54:25,994
this 2.5 million is a small token of what we need to do to

1036
01:54:30,361 --> 01:54:30,361
try to provide the answers. Provide the support for the

1037
01:54:35,394 --> 01:54:35,394
family in the coming weeks and da, thank you for your very

1038
01:54:41,994 --> 01:54:41,994
specific plan, not your generic plan or your political plan, but

1039
01:54:46,861 --> 01:54:49,794
your very specific 2-3 year plan, your budget. You are going to review that and so I celebrate that part of it

1040
01:54:55,594 --> 01:54:55,594
and again, this is a first step of many that I think we in

1041
01:55:05,327 --> 01:55:05,327
government in harris county will take to try to get the family

1042
01:55:09,494 --> 01:55:10,561
some answers. Thank you. >> commissioner ellis? >> just quickly, to commissioner

1043
01:55:14,461 --> 01:55:14,461
garcia I want to commend you. I just remember I did call, I

1044
01:55:19,161 --> 01:55:22,261
called you doing the window we had along commission meeting and you were headed out of town and we didn't catch one another but

1045
01:55:26,194 --> 01:55:26,194
I know it was in your precinct. County attorney thank you. I did

1046
01:55:30,494 --> 01:55:33,827
call you as we were working through this but thank you for your help and to renaldo, you know you and your brother that I

1047
01:55:40,727 --> 01:55:40,727
heard speak publicly, I haven't heard the third one, but I

1048
01:55:45,627 --> 01:55:48,694
really do believe for those of us and I know you are a people of faith and we see our ancestors again and your dad

1049
01:55:53,494 --> 01:55:53,494
would be just so proud of you three young men so thank you for

1050
01:55:57,661 --> 01:55:57,661
the way you have conducted yourself and we feel your pain.

1051
01:56:02,194 --> 01:56:05,794
okay. I'll make the motion. Thank you. >> alright.  So we have a motion by commissioner ellis and seconded by commissioner garcia.

1052
01:56:08,894 --> 01:56:11,861
all in favor? Any opposed? Alright. Thank you so much colleagues.

1053
01:56:15,794 --> 01:56:19,661
harris county commissioner court passes this motion unanimously. Thank you. >> thank you.

1054
01:56:26,094 --> 01:56:29,994
>> I'll say one last thing I know da earlier you were talking about how helpful the reports from community have been, so I

1055
01:56:33,594 --> 01:56:33,594
just want to, you know, first thank so many members of the

1056
01:56:38,761 --> 01:56:42,694
public that have reached out to the district attorney's office to share what evidence they have and I want to also request that

1057
01:56:46,594 --> 01:56:46,594
the community continue helping our da and his investigators so

1058
01:56:50,727 --> 01:56:50,727
I looked at the form myself. You don't have to put your name.

1059
01:56:54,927 --> 01:56:57,061
you don't have to put your phone number. Just your e-mail and I understand some people may be

1060
01:57:00,961 --> 01:57:03,394
reticent but the district attorney's office is not the federal government. They are not, they are going to

1061
01:57:07,627 --> 01:57:07,627
be very careful with the information but I just want

1062
01:57:12,094 --> 01:57:16,027
folks to know that we need to continue receiving those report, so we'll have that. I know it's on the da's website

1063
01:57:19,394 --> 01:57:23,327
and that will be on mine and try to put it on the home page of the county. Did you want to add anything?

1064
01:57:25,561 --> 01:57:28,727
>> thank you. You should probably butt put the minute clock on me and buzz me. That is such an important caveat

1065
01:57:34,127 --> 01:57:37,227
to this, that portal is completely secure. We are not sharing information about anyone that is giving us

1066
01:57:43,027 --> 01:57:45,594
information with any other partners. The information that is gleaned from it, absolutely we're

1067
01:57:48,527 --> 01:57:48,527
working as collaboratively as we can but your identity at the

1068
01:57:53,894 --> 01:57:53,894
outset will be protected from anyone else regardless and I

1069
01:57:58,627 --> 01:57:58,627
said it earlier but the outpouring and the rallying of

1070
01:58:05,561 --> 01:58:05,561
houston for the salgado family here is just continues to

1071
01:58:10,794 --> 01:58:14,761
reenforce why I love my hometown and seeing what we've done in this investigation has gone much quicker because of the

1072
01:58:19,094 --> 01:58:19,094
community, so thank you also much for this vote and the faith

1073
01:58:24,261 --> 01:58:28,261
and trust that you have in this investigation and we will make you proud. >> thank you.

1074
01:58:30,194 --> 01:58:33,061
we'll keep going and we'll find answers. Thank you so much. Alright.  So let's go back to

1075
01:58:36,794 --> 01:58:40,694
the items that we had pending from executive session. So why don't we go to the various compensation items.

1076
01:58:45,294 --> 01:58:48,227
commissioner briones I know you would like to make several motions on there. >> yes to I'm going to make them

1077
01:58:51,927 --> 01:58:51,927
related to item 7, 300 and 355. These pertain to our constables

1078
01:59:01,061 --> 01:59:01,061
and fire marshal. So county attorney's office I'll

1079
01:59:05,194 --> 01:59:07,394
read seven and then stop for a voten those. Would you like me to read them in totality?

1080
01:59:10,161 --> 01:59:12,594
>> no. Commissioner if you can do them individually so the clerk can keep track of them.

1081
01:59:15,761 --> 01:59:19,227
>> okay. >> thank you. Item seven, this is a three part motion.

1082
01:59:23,627 --> 01:59:23,627
move to direct omb to include in the draft fiscal year 2027

1083
01:59:29,161 --> 01:59:29,161
budget a proposed salary for each elected constable of

1084
01:59:38,027 --> 01:59:38,027
$305,000. Second part, move to direct hrt

1085
01:59:42,127 --> 01:59:42,127
to circulate notice of the proposed elected official

1086
01:59:46,161 --> 01:59:46,161
salaries for fiscal year 2027 in accordance with local government

1087
01:59:51,061 --> 01:59:51,061
code chapter 152 subchapter-b. And the third motion within

1088
01:59:56,127 --> 01:59:56,127
number seven, move to direct the county clerk in conjunction with

1089
02:00:00,661 --> 02:00:00,661
the district clerk to prepare randomized lists of individuals

1090
02:00:04,827 --> 02:00:04,827
eligible to serve as public members of the salary grievance

1091
02:00:10,161 --> 02:00:10,161
committee. Those are the three from seven.

1092
02:00:17,161 --> 02:00:17,161
>> second >> yes, commissioner ellis?

1093
02:00:22,127 --> 02:00:25,827
>> so I have a motion, as well. That I want to add to it. Maybe it should be a friendly amendment and we'll probably

1094
02:00:29,194 --> 02:00:29,194
vote on it first instead of separately and I move to direct

1095
02:00:33,994 --> 02:00:33,994
omb to do in the budget a proposed salary of $205,000 for

1096
02:00:40,127 --> 02:00:40,127
the county attorney, district attorney, district clerk, county

1097
02:00:44,694 --> 02:00:44,694
clerk and the tax assessor. I think it's only fair if we

1098
02:00:49,227 --> 02:00:49,227
were to make a decision to raise the salaries for the constables

1099
02:00:53,294 --> 02:00:53,294
that we also do it for the other county-wide elected officials.

1100
02:00:57,527 --> 02:00:57,527
leave us out and we've had issues with one other office.

1101
02:01:02,327 --> 02:01:02,327
sign off on it's a friendly, I offer that's a motion

1102
02:01:08,194 --> 02:01:12,194
>> so is it okay if we vote separately. I'd like to vote on the part about the additional raises for

1103
02:01:14,994 --> 02:01:18,227
the constable, so if we could vote on that first part. Do we need to repeat the motion? >> you don't need to repeat them

1104
02:01:25,527 --> 02:01:27,827
but you can take them one at a time. There's four separate motions, one is a constable motion.

1105
02:01:31,661 --> 02:01:33,561
>> commissioner brandon's, read the motion. Was there a second? >> there was a second by

1106
02:01:36,494 --> 02:01:36,494
commissioner ramsey. So on that one, the constable's

1107
02:01:41,927 --> 02:01:41,927
in 2024, their salary was $133,000, these are eight

1108
02:01:48,761 --> 02:01:48,761
elected constables and then there was a 9.2% increase up to

1109
02:01:53,627 --> 02:01:53,627
144,000 and later in 2024. And that was a 17.8% increase.

1110
02:02:01,261 --> 02:02:01,261
and then we go into 2025, we have a 46.1% increase and now

1111
02:02:07,894 --> 02:02:07,894
that is a 17.3% increase. So the constables were making

1112
02:02:13,661 --> 02:02:16,127
$133,000. And the proposal on the table is for them to each be making $305,000.

1113
02:02:19,994 --> 02:02:22,627
we have talked about this before, it is more than the vice president of the united states makes, it is more

1114
02:02:28,694 --> 02:02:28,694
than a lot of big positions with much larger -- more than

1115
02:02:36,027 --> 02:02:36,027
astronauts make. And so I am against that,

1116
02:02:41,894 --> 02:02:41,894
especially given the county budget situation.

1117
02:02:45,927 --> 02:02:49,427
I recognize that this needs to match the increases that we are giving to other politically influential elected officials.

1118
02:02:53,127 --> 02:02:56,794
but when we did that we knew that we didn't have funds for these enormous raises. So I know that the community was

1119
02:02:59,561 --> 02:02:59,561
just up in arms when we gave -- I. Think it was a 60% pay

1120
02:03:04,027 --> 02:03:06,927
raise to the toll road director. I still don't understand where that came from or how it's justified.

1121
02:03:09,961 --> 02:03:13,027
and I think the community ought to know that -- how much total is the percentage from the first -- from 2024 to today?

1122
02:03:17,894 --> 02:03:21,394
anyways, it is an unbelievable number. Percentage wise, that we are giving to these politically

1123
02:03:25,761 --> 02:03:29,161
influential elected officials. So on that 1i wanted to make that comment and I wanted to register my no vote.

1124
02:03:32,327 --> 02:03:32,327
is there anyone in favor of that?

1125
02:03:36,461 --> 02:03:39,461
>> so I want to pass on this, which is why I want to vote. I will be against it, unless we do it for the district attorney,

1126
02:03:43,494 --> 02:03:45,827
district clerk. Which is why I prefer to vote on the amendment first and then I can make a decision.

1127
02:03:49,894 --> 02:03:49,894
>> I hear you. And on that point, if we look at

1128
02:03:56,594 --> 02:03:56,594
the folks -- so it is a 129.3% increase in the salary of the

1129
02:04:03,927 --> 02:04:05,594
constable's. So that is when the community looks at our work and I think it's disillusioned by politics.

1130
02:04:11,427 --> 02:04:13,927
so commissioner ellis, I hear you and maybe you can help us untangle this, because on your proposal, which I appreciate,

1131
02:04:18,761 --> 02:04:18,761
commissioner ellis, I go back to who are the lowest paid.

1132
02:04:23,961 --> 02:04:23,961
I think that is a great idea at the same time.

1133
02:04:28,794 --> 02:04:28,794
if you look at the head of the children's assessment center,

1134
02:04:33,927 --> 02:04:36,627
which deals with children that have been sexually abused. The head of the juvenile probation department which deals

1135
02:04:38,694 --> 02:04:38,694
with children that are in the justice system and need to be

1136
02:04:45,427 --> 02:04:45,427
rehabilitated. And the veterans department, the

1137
02:04:49,627 --> 02:04:53,027
research for children and adults, working with seniors, working with foster kids. Those are the department heads

1138
02:04:56,061 --> 02:04:59,527
that are making orders of magnitude less than the department heads we have increased funding for.

1139
02:05:03,594 --> 02:05:03,594
so I would like to make a substitute motion to that one,

1140
02:05:09,527 --> 02:05:09,527
that says to direct hr to review all appointed department head

1141
02:05:13,894 --> 02:05:13,894
salaries to be in alignment with the 2024 department head salary

1142
02:05:18,294 --> 02:05:21,894
study, 50th percentile recommendation and for omb to include these salaries in the draft fiscal year 2027 budget.

1143
02:05:25,894 --> 02:05:29,494
a lot of the salaries the court has voted for I believe are opposed -- are beyond the percentile of.

1144
02:05:31,761 --> 02:05:31,761
I know none of us likes this 2022 salary -- 2024 salary

1145
02:05:36,261 --> 02:05:39,994
study, but that is how these other massive salaries were selected. So I think it is only fair for

1146
02:05:41,461 --> 02:05:41,461
folks who take care of children and veterans and the elderly and

1147
02:05:47,727 --> 02:05:47,727
have departments bigger than a lot of these folks to be able to

1148
02:05:53,461 --> 02:05:56,727
make -- to see a salary increase. >> so on that item, that pertains to the appointed

1149
02:06:02,794 --> 02:06:05,894
officials item. So right now we are on the item related to number 7, which is elected -- we can vote on, we

1150
02:06:12,294 --> 02:06:15,227
just have to wait until we get to that item. So what is on the floor right now is a four part -- four

1151
02:06:21,294 --> 02:06:24,894
separate motions related to -- >> well now it is commissioner ellis item. But to me it is all tied.

1152
02:06:27,327 --> 02:06:27,327
I think it is weird to give an elected official 129% increase.

1153
02:06:32,027 --> 02:06:35,594
>> all I'm saying is that right now there is a separate item for elected officials -- >> let's vote on that one then

1154
02:06:37,494 --> 02:06:37,494
let's vote on yours. Did you catch that motion,

1155
02:06:42,361 --> 02:06:44,227
james? >> we voted on three -- >> we have not voted on the other three.

1156
02:06:46,527 --> 02:06:49,461
>> here's what I will do, I will withdraw my motion to get out of here and just pass on it I will see what happens and I can go

1157
02:06:52,361 --> 02:06:55,227
back and change it. >> right now the motion on the floor is the first motion which is to raise the constable salary

1158
02:07:00,661 --> 02:07:03,327
to 305,000. >> all in favor? >> I will pass. >> any opposed?

1159
02:07:06,394 --> 02:07:06,394
I am against 129.3% salary increase for politically

1160
02:07:13,927 --> 02:07:17,194
influential elected officials between 2024 and 2026. What is the next motion? >> this one you announced a vote

1161
02:07:20,794 --> 02:07:24,461
on it. >> that is 41. 3-1, one abstention, thank you. >> and that vote carried for the

1162
02:07:29,194 --> 02:07:29,194
three different sub motions under item seven, correct?

1163
02:07:33,861 --> 02:07:35,561
>> no that one was just the first motion. The second one are the two administrative motions.

1164
02:07:38,561 --> 02:07:41,961
>> let me read the two corresponding administrative ones. Move to direct hr to circulate

1165
02:07:44,961 --> 02:07:44,961
notice of the proposed elected official salaries for

1166
02:07:49,627 --> 02:07:52,461
fiscal year 2027 in accordance with local government code chapter 152 subchapter b. >> second.

1167
02:07:56,961 --> 02:07:56,961
>> we have a motion by the commissioner and seconded, any

1168
02:08:02,727 --> 02:08:02,727
comments? Okay.

1169
02:08:07,461 --> 02:08:10,627
so commissioner, I'm so sorry but I had to stop for a quick question. Which one is this one?

1170
02:08:12,294 --> 02:08:12,294
>> the second part of item seven, moved to a direct hr to

1171
02:08:16,494 --> 02:08:19,994
circulate notice of the proposed elected official salaries for fiscal year 2027 in accordance with local government code

1172
02:08:24,694 --> 02:08:27,294
chapter 152 subchapter b. >> this is an administrative requirement in order to make any changes to elected official

1173
02:08:32,161 --> 02:08:35,561
salaries. >> I disagree with 129.3% salary increase in two years so I think I will just abstain on that one.

1174
02:08:39,594 --> 02:08:41,027
did we already mention the motion and second? All in favor? Garcia is for it.

1175
02:08:47,927 --> 02:08:51,061
I will abstain. And then commissioner ellis, did you catch the motion? We have two abstentions and

1176
02:08:54,427 --> 02:08:54,427
three are for it. What is the next motion?

1177
02:08:59,361 --> 02:09:01,227
>> this is the third part of item seven. Move to direct the county clerk, in conjunction with the district

1178
02:09:05,061 --> 02:09:08,227
clerk, to prepare a randomized list of individuals eligible to serve as public members of the salary grievance committee.

1179
02:09:12,794 --> 02:09:16,561
again, another procedural requirement. >> second. >> motion by commissioner?

1180
02:09:19,794 --> 02:09:19,794
seconded by commissioner ramsey. And then perhaps just for the

1181
02:09:24,794 --> 02:09:24,794
public, the grievance committee, if you could just go over it

1182
02:09:30,861 --> 02:09:31,561
briefly. >> go ahead. >> you want me to walk through the whole process?

1183
02:09:38,527 --> 02:09:42,127
this is procedural, we have the grievance committee regardless of what their salaries are changed or not.

1184
02:09:45,594 --> 02:09:49,227
>> the grievance committee. That is just going to happen. Okay. Is that for everybody or just

1185
02:09:50,794 --> 02:09:54,127
the elected officials? >> any elected official can have a grievance, regardless -- >> that's what the district

1186
02:09:57,894 --> 02:10:01,227
clerk did and the board determines whether or not they're going to get an increase. And of course commissioners court has also decided to do

1187
02:10:04,594 --> 02:10:06,827
that. So there's a motion and a second, all in favor any opposed?

1188
02:10:11,561 --> 02:10:11,561
I also will. So this is 3-0.

1189
02:10:15,827 --> 02:10:19,727
the motion passes. So I know you like reading the motions, commissioner briones, what is the next one?

1190
02:10:22,361 --> 02:10:22,361
>> the next is mine. >> commissioner ellis is next.

1191
02:10:27,027 --> 02:10:30,927
I will direct them to include in the draft fiscal year 2027 budget a proposed salary of $305,000 for each of these

1192
02:10:37,627 --> 02:10:37,627
offices, the county attorney, district attorney, district

1193
02:10:41,761 --> 02:10:41,761
clerk, county clerk and tax collector, the cost will be

1194
02:10:47,527 --> 02:10:49,927
$681,000 a year. And I make that motion. >> I will second that. >> I would like to do a friendly

1195
02:10:53,994 --> 02:10:53,994
amendment to that one. To ensure that all appointed

1196
02:10:58,761 --> 02:10:58,761
department head salaries are at least at the 2024 department

1197
02:11:04,427 --> 02:11:07,727
head salary studies 50th percentile recommendation. So I think yours might be -- is certainly not below that,

1198
02:11:10,861 --> 02:11:12,761
commissioner ellis and I'm okay to vote for that. But I want to make sure that these departments have been left

1199
02:11:16,527 --> 02:11:16,527
behind that deal with the most vulnerable, are at least in the

1200
02:11:22,694 --> 02:11:24,527
50th percentile of recommendation. Can I make that? >> I think the company that we

1201
02:11:28,027 --> 02:11:31,861
get to those offices appointed, the department heads, this is just for elected officials. >> that's right.

1202
02:11:34,327 --> 02:11:34,327
>> I get it. I just think that discrepancy is

1203
02:11:40,261 --> 02:11:44,227
unfair. So just for that reason, commissioner, and I echo -- I. Think you mentioned this

1204
02:11:46,927 --> 02:11:46,927
earlier many times, because these studies have been so

1205
02:11:51,261 --> 02:11:51,261
delayed and you have been really pushing for everything to be

1206
02:11:57,527 --> 02:12:00,594
fair and for the entire bureaucracy, I think I will sort of use one of your phrases, which is that we have done -- it

1207
02:12:05,561 --> 02:12:08,661
has come back, we have talked about it, these guys have always been left behind. >> judge, if I can recommend

1208
02:12:12,094 --> 02:12:13,661
something. It might make more sense to just vote on this as a separate one and then if you want to tie the

1209
02:12:17,794 --> 02:12:17,794
appointed and elected together, that would be an additional

1210
02:12:21,861 --> 02:12:23,394
motion. I think we just make this process cleaner and easier to understand if that's okay.

1211
02:12:27,827 --> 02:12:29,194
>> sure. Commissioner ellis made the motion, who had the second? >> briones.

1212
02:12:34,127 --> 02:12:36,727
and I want to stress that these elected offices ought to take this money out of their existing budgets.

1213
02:12:42,027 --> 02:12:45,461
this is not additional money. So let them do it out of their existing budgets and if they don't want to take it, don't

1214
02:12:48,194 --> 02:12:49,961
take it. They can let their successor take it if they choose to do so. >> all right.

1215
02:12:54,427 --> 02:12:54,427
motion and second all in favor? Any opposed?

1216
02:13:00,494 --> 02:13:00,494
I think I will abstain on that one.

1217
02:13:06,994 --> 02:13:09,894
and I know -- I. Agree commissioner ellis, we don't have the funds. But we can give $300 million to

1218
02:13:14,761 --> 02:13:18,761
some and then others who are asking for the budget, these smaller -- not smaller but less properly funded departments that

1219
02:13:22,294 --> 02:13:22,294
deal with the veterans and the elderly and the children, they

1220
02:13:26,561 --> 02:13:29,861
certainly -- I. Don't see how they could take from their salary. I work with them from their

1221
02:13:32,194 --> 02:13:32,194
budget to pay for the salaries. I'm not sure that I agree with

1222
02:13:37,161 --> 02:13:38,894
that part. I know the votes don't make a difference so I'm also making a comment for that reason.

1223
02:13:41,861 --> 02:13:44,627
this will pass 4-0 and I will abstain. >> thank you, judge. Before we move on, commissioner

1224
02:13:47,327 --> 02:13:50,027
ellis when you say you pass, do you mean you abstain? >> I pass on this one. >> earlier you abstained.

1225
02:13:56,027 --> 02:13:56,027
going back to the constable's -- >> if this passes, I make a

1226
02:14:00,127 --> 02:14:00,127
motion to change my vote. Has this passed for the district

1227
02:14:04,694 --> 02:14:07,294
clerk, county clerk? For and one abstention? Okay, then I will go back and ask for unanimous consent.

1228
02:14:13,727 --> 02:14:13,727
I'm just being consistent. >> yes, and all previous three

1229
02:14:21,894 --> 02:14:25,827
motions. >> can I get a raise? Just joking! [laughs] >> judge on the first one, you voted no.

1230
02:14:29,161 --> 02:14:29,161
>> yes, no. No 129% raise.

1231
02:14:33,394 --> 02:14:33,394
so what is next -- >> 300.

1232
02:14:37,694 --> 02:14:37,694
that motion is just one, move to direct omb to include in the

1233
02:14:41,927 --> 02:14:41,927
draft fiscal year, 2027 budget, a proposed salary for the fire

1234
02:14:46,827 --> 02:14:49,461
marshal of $305,000. >> second. >> which one is that again? >> item 300.

1235
02:14:52,227 --> 02:14:52,227
and then it will relate to item 355, which I will move to in a

1236
02:14:58,061 --> 02:15:00,827
second. >> so the motion by commissioner briones, second by ramsey. Any discussion?

1237
02:15:09,927 --> 02:15:13,827
so can I discuss the earlier item here? >> this is a discussion around it, judge.

1238
02:15:17,961 --> 02:15:17,961
>> why is it that the children's assessment center, the resources

1239
02:15:24,327 --> 02:15:24,327
for children and adults, juvenile probation and the

1240
02:15:28,827 --> 02:15:28,827
veterans department, why do they make so much less money than

1241
02:15:33,461 --> 02:15:35,327
other folks? At what point did we increase everyone else's and not theirs? Because they were not increased

1242
02:15:37,827 --> 02:15:37,827
by the same order of magnitude. >> I believe there is a

1243
02:15:43,494 --> 02:15:45,927
different county administrator and I wasn't overseeing that process, but my understanding is that because those folks report

1244
02:15:48,561 --> 02:15:52,527
to boards, they were left off of the original study and then added later. >> I mean, I think if we --

1245
02:15:57,694 --> 02:16:01,327
would you say that was sort of an oversight? >> I don't think it is my place to -- I. Think the original

1246
02:16:05,061 --> 02:16:07,561
motion was for the departments of reported directly to the county administrator, I don't think it is my place to

1247
02:16:11,627 --> 02:16:11,627
question. >> I will say -- yeah, I mean I

1248
02:16:17,627 --> 02:16:17,627
think we can look at the size of the workforce.

1249
02:16:23,327 --> 02:16:26,594
let's take juvenile probation. We have given such pay increases to the detention officers in the jail.

1250
02:16:29,494 --> 02:16:33,194
what about making sure that the folks that take care of the children in the children's facilities are properly

1251
02:16:35,394 --> 02:16:35,394
compensated so that they can do a good job?

1252
02:16:39,527 --> 02:16:42,561
we just forget these -- I. Think the fact that they report to a board doesn't mean that they shouldn't get a salary increase.

1253
02:16:46,794 --> 02:16:49,161
of course the board -- and I serve on one of them -- we have a limited budget that commissioners court assigns.

1254
02:16:53,561 --> 02:16:53,561
so we are already dealing with the officers that aren't even

1255
02:17:01,027 --> 02:17:04,861
paid properly. So I would just go back to my -- I. Would just go back to the suggestion I have here in the

1256
02:17:11,227 --> 02:17:11,227
note that if the korn ferry recommendation was implemented

1257
02:17:17,427 --> 02:17:17,427
for juvenile probation director we're making $353,000 if you

1258
02:17:23,494 --> 02:17:27,327
follow the same calculations that they followed. So I would request that we please ask hr to review all

1259
02:17:33,994 --> 02:17:36,561
appointed department head salaries to be in alignment or you could even say the board appointed department heads -- an

1260
02:17:43,261 --> 02:17:43,261
appointed oversight salaries to be in alignment with 2024 salary

1261
02:17:49,927 --> 02:17:52,794
study to take on and for omb to include these proposed salaries in the draft fiscal year 2027 budget.

1262
02:17:56,127 --> 02:18:00,027
if we are going to bring increases for these other electeds. >> I think the commissioner has

1263
02:18:01,927 --> 02:18:05,127
his hand up. >> yes? >> do you finally got there. My motion was going to be let's

1264
02:18:09,127 --> 02:18:09,127
just include the board appointed directors to have their salaries

1265
02:18:17,394 --> 02:18:17,394
reviewed and corrected. When I served on the same board

1266
02:18:24,727 --> 02:18:27,294
for probation, it was a matter of advocacy. Someone should have spoken up at the right time.

1267
02:18:30,761 --> 02:18:30,761
but I think we finally got there with your request.

1268
02:18:35,727 --> 02:18:37,061
>> all right, thank you commissioner garcia. Is there a second for my motion? I think commissioner garcia's

1269
02:18:43,961 --> 02:18:45,894
motion was cleaner than mine, frankly. Which one makes the most sense? >> I am highly supportive of

1270
02:18:49,627 --> 02:18:53,294
making sure that we are being fair and equitable to all departments, whether elected, appointment, board, no board.

1271
02:18:56,561 --> 02:19:00,061
and given that we had the korn ferry study and we had the gallagher pay equity study, now we have different studies.

1272
02:19:02,761 --> 02:19:02,761
and so if we can generalize the language so that hr are looking

1273
02:19:07,127 --> 02:19:07,127
at the various studies, compensation data and making

1274
02:19:11,994 --> 02:19:11,994
recommendations given that we have more data than the initial

1275
02:19:16,527 --> 02:19:20,194
study. >> I will take it as a friendly amendment. >> yes commissioner ellis?

1276
02:19:26,027 --> 02:19:28,427
>> for those of you all by commissioner garcia is so much younger than me, you probably have heard this saying, but when

1277
02:19:31,494 --> 02:19:31,494
I was a kid and we'd eat a nice dinner on juneteenth that said

1278
02:19:36,894 --> 02:19:40,327
your eyes are bigger than your stomach. So I would suggest we are not accused of having eyes bigger

1279
02:19:43,127 --> 02:19:46,361
than our stomachs. We get some sense of the dollar amount we are talking about. The pay raise for constable's

1280
02:19:51,827 --> 02:19:54,427
cannot be forced to come out of their current budgets. You can't do that under state law.

1281
02:19:57,627 --> 02:19:57,627
you can encourage them to take it out, but you can't do that.

1282
02:20:02,227 --> 02:20:02,227
I've mentioned $681,000 that we spend for the one, two, three,

1283
02:20:07,727 --> 02:20:10,561
four, five elected officials that I was talking about. So I am fine with the motion, but I think what we did use

1284
02:20:15,527 --> 02:20:15,527
those other things from my past, sometimes they say you go hog

1285
02:20:19,894 --> 02:20:22,094
wild. I think when we were given these department heads pay raises, we kind of went a little hog wild.

1286
02:20:26,494 --> 02:20:29,927
and it needs to be reined in a little bit. And I'm very -- cognizant of the fact that people have a

1287
02:20:33,561 --> 02:20:35,927
structural deficit. And you don't want to say it, but I'll say it. In the smoke and mirrors are

1288
02:20:39,694 --> 02:20:42,427
over with. Mr. Ramos, any smoke and mirrors after this next cycle? >> I am currently out.

1289
02:20:48,694 --> 02:20:52,294
>> I would just say we ought to be cognizant of what we are spending before we spend it. That appears not to be the

1290
02:20:56,161 --> 02:20:56,161
appetite. So going to the voters and I can

1291
02:21:00,194 --> 02:21:01,927
understand that. Most folks I talk to, everyone will tell me what they want and they'll say we'll raise your

1292
02:21:05,861 --> 02:21:05,861
taxes to pay for it, no. Take it from somewhere else.

1293
02:21:10,227 --> 02:21:10,227
so I just say be cautious, that is not a good thing to have a

1294
02:21:15,261 --> 02:21:18,461
structural deficit. At some point that impacts the quality of our bonds and a host of other issues if it is an

1295
02:21:22,461 --> 02:21:25,961
instance where it is a lot easier to spend money than it is to figure out where it is coming from.

1296
02:21:28,361 --> 02:21:28,361
>> I think the motion, if I understand it, is the county

1297
02:21:33,894 --> 02:21:33,894
administrator will evaluate these in light of our current --

1298
02:21:38,661 --> 02:21:38,661
>> that's correct. >> so we will evaluate it.

1299
02:21:43,327 --> 02:21:47,194
your eyes are bigger than our stomach comment, will hold true. I know the county administrator --

1300
02:21:50,027 --> 02:21:50,027
>> you'll remember that? >> just to be clear on that one,

1301
02:21:54,127 --> 02:21:54,127
are we evaluating all of them in relation to the budget?

1302
02:21:59,461 --> 02:22:01,727
or just the -- >> all of them. >> or just the board ones? >> I want to make sure the board

1303
02:22:05,961 --> 02:22:05,961
ones are included. Because the others have already

1304
02:22:10,627 --> 02:22:10,627
been included and evaluated. This is a very separate item.

1305
02:22:18,261 --> 02:22:21,394
>> sorry judge, can commissioner garcia or you reread the motion? I don't think it was sent around.

1306
02:22:25,094 --> 02:22:28,127
can you reread that motion so it is being substituted right now and we will go back to the motion -- the motion that I

1307
02:22:31,161 --> 02:22:35,061
already read? >> that commissioner briones did already. Go ahead commissioner, sorry.

1308
02:22:37,661 --> 02:22:37,661
>> the motion is to evaluate the salaries of all board appointed

1309
02:22:45,661 --> 02:22:45,661
and overseen directors and to bring the recommendations back

1310
02:22:49,994 --> 02:22:49,994
to commissioners court. I think that is the motion.

1311
02:22:57,961 --> 02:23:01,861
>> all right. So this -- go ahead commissioner. >> and with the amendment that

1312
02:23:04,027 --> 02:23:07,227
commissioner briones wanted to add. >> second. >> I'm sorry, is there a date

1313
02:23:09,094 --> 02:23:09,094
associated with that? >> september eighth is fine.

1314
02:23:15,361 --> 02:23:17,994
>> second. >> motion and a second, all in favor? Any opposed?

1315
02:23:20,127 --> 02:23:20,127
motion carries unanimously. >> I will just make a request, I

1316
02:23:25,227 --> 02:23:27,327
will force it to vote so we can get out of here. When you put that item on the agenda, my request comes back

1317
02:23:31,494 --> 02:23:33,394
with recommendations on department heads as well. And if you can't do it, I would just add an item to the agenda

1318
02:23:37,327 --> 02:23:39,761
just to make sure our eyes are not bigger than our stomachs and we don't go hog wild again. >> and hog wild, commissioner

1319
02:23:47,361 --> 02:23:47,361
ellis, I think it was your motion that pushed for the

1320
02:23:57,961 --> 02:24:00,394
director of equity. And we are working with it. >> oh that motion was done years ago.

1321
02:24:03,994 --> 02:24:07,661
and all of these department heads preempted all of that. But that had been around for years.

1322
02:24:09,861 --> 02:24:09,861
it was around a long time. I'm proud to have made that one.

1323
02:24:15,761 --> 02:24:15,761
>> to go back to the first motion under 300, moved to

1324
02:24:20,027 --> 02:24:20,027
direct them to include in the draft fiscal year 2027 budget, a

1325
02:24:24,427 --> 02:24:24,427
proposed salary for the fire marshal of $305,000.

1326
02:24:29,427 --> 02:24:31,561
>> second. >> motion by commissioner briones, second by commissioner ramsey.

1327
02:24:33,761 --> 02:24:36,861
any other discussion? All in favor? Any opposed? I will abstain just out of

1328
02:24:41,461 --> 02:24:44,794
consistency. Motion carries 4-0. So the next is 355, which is related to what we have been

1329
02:24:49,161 --> 02:24:51,561
discussing. Moved to approve the agreements, releasing claims with the eight elected constables and the fire

1330
02:24:54,461 --> 02:24:58,061
marshal. >> second. >> so that is a motion and a second.

1331
02:25:01,227 --> 02:25:01,227
and just so that folks are clear, this is because there was

1332
02:25:06,361 --> 02:25:06,361
a big res, $300 million worth of raises or some big percentage

1333
02:25:13,194 --> 02:25:15,694
raises to the sheriff. So then we need to give the same level to the other law enforcement, is that right?

1334
02:25:25,494 --> 02:25:25,494
I don't know if that is a county attorney question or

1335
02:25:29,994 --> 02:25:33,727
administrator question. >> judge, I'm sorry. Can you reread it? >> there is this motion that

1336
02:25:36,527 --> 02:25:40,027
says something about the constables and the fire marshal and I am just confirming that the reason we are giving these

1337
02:25:44,161 --> 02:25:44,161
raises right now, the 129% raise to the constables in two years

1338
02:25:50,494 --> 02:25:50,494
is because there were these big raises earlier and we knew that

1339
02:25:54,894 --> 02:25:58,427
the statute meant that we had to up everything by the same. But maybe I am misremembering. >> part of it is because of the

1340
02:26:05,661 --> 02:26:05,661
pay equity parity bill that was passed.

1341
02:26:09,694 --> 02:26:11,361
>> so that is the bill we knew about. If we will raise for one law enforcement agency, we will

1342
02:26:14,027 --> 02:26:17,961
raise for all of them. >> that is correct, judge. >> just to make clear that connection, right?

1343
02:26:21,894 --> 02:26:21,894
because the $300 million -- the cost of the downtown building,

1344
02:26:29,827 --> 02:26:29,827
the galleria building, this ties back.

1345
02:26:35,461 --> 02:26:38,861
so I'm going to say no to this, because it is just all a big mess in my mind. >> judge, just to clarify in the

1346
02:26:42,961 --> 02:26:46,627
record, I'm sorry, it is not necessarily required under state law. But I don't want to necessarily

1347
02:26:48,194 --> 02:26:48,194
also go back into the negotiation process and the

1348
02:26:53,527 --> 02:26:55,927
particulars as to why this is important, but it was recommended and agreed to. >> so it is not a requirement.

1349
02:27:00,161 --> 02:27:00,161
so all in favor? Any opposed?

1350
02:27:05,627 --> 02:27:09,061
unopposed motion carries 4-1. Any other motions that you would like to read? >> that wraps it up.

1351
02:27:13,127 --> 02:27:15,361
thank you, county attorney team and thank you to our constables and our fire marshal and everyone who helped.

1352
02:27:21,161 --> 02:27:23,927
>> yes, agreed. And absolutely thank you to all of these folks. So that was on this topic.

1353
02:27:31,094 --> 02:27:31,094
I know that folks wanted to discuss the mwb topic as well,

1354
02:27:35,961 --> 02:27:39,594
but we are done with that one. The other one was the buildings -- >> it is a consultation policy.

1355
02:27:42,027 --> 02:27:44,861
>> that's the one it was, thank you. So let's discuss the consultation policy,

1356
02:27:49,594 --> 02:27:52,027
commissioner ellis. >> I think those are the motions that were recommended by the county administrator's office.

1357
02:28:01,661 --> 02:28:01,661
this is 216 and 218. >> I'm sorry, do you want --

1358
02:28:06,027 --> 02:28:10,027
some of you had questions about policy. Does anyone want to do any more questions or do you want to talk

1359
02:28:12,394 --> 02:28:12,394
about the motions? >> at some point we need to

1360
02:28:16,427 --> 02:28:16,427
discuss the policy and changes to the draft, to the language,

1361
02:28:20,994 --> 02:28:24,161
correct? >> I know we have some motions. >> but you have slides for that, right administrator?

1362
02:28:26,994 --> 02:28:29,961
>> I have slides for reference and I can help. >> I just think commissioner ramsey, if it's okay, when we

1363
02:28:33,661 --> 02:28:35,461
make changes to the document, I think it would make things easier for all of us for the slide to be up so we don't get

1364
02:28:40,061 --> 02:28:43,961
confused where we are. The question is if folks would like to start with policy questions or if folks would like to start with the language. >> I would go with the

1365
02:28:50,194 --> 02:28:53,061
amendments you all worked out for us. >> sure, we can pull them up. So the policy was approved

1366
02:29:04,961 --> 02:29:07,094
march 19th, 2026. And then they convened with the county attorney's office and hr to review the language and

1367
02:29:10,094 --> 02:29:10,094
make sure we can walk through what potential implementation

1368
02:29:15,194 --> 02:29:17,527
looked like. So what is in these slides and the red line versions are these adjustments, they are not policy

1369
02:29:21,927 --> 02:29:25,461
changes. We have been working with your staff over the past couple of months as well to share it with

1370
02:29:29,694 --> 02:29:29,694
them. You can go on to slide three,

1371
02:29:33,961 --> 02:29:36,994
tiffany. So these are just key definitions that are used repeatedly that were already in

1372
02:29:39,461 --> 02:29:39,461
it as of march 19th. And the main body that would be

1373
02:29:45,194 --> 02:29:48,794
a priority for that comes up are eligible employees. And hrt is working and is nearly final on county employees that

1374
02:29:52,494 --> 02:29:52,494
would be eligible under this agreement.

1375
02:29:57,727 --> 02:30:00,961
slide four. This is noting one change where the officer is already on the management team, they were on as

1376
02:30:05,427 --> 02:30:07,661
a non-voting member and we adjusted to make sure they were a voting member of the management team, which is the

1377
02:30:12,894 --> 02:30:15,627
county personnel representatives. Item slide five shows the departments that were listed as

1378
02:30:20,361 --> 02:30:20,361
march 19th. I think we discussed removing

1379
02:30:24,727 --> 02:30:26,827
the fmo per guidance that we have received. And so we have moved to make that adjustment.

1380
02:30:32,994 --> 02:30:35,994
slide six, that starts following along with your actual document. We list the page number on the actual full agreement.

1381
02:30:39,761 --> 02:30:39,761
and this is just a clarification of voting representation for the

1382
02:30:48,394 --> 02:30:48,394
chief people officer. Slide next.

1383
02:30:55,227 --> 02:30:55,227
same thing. It is just a clarification.

1384
02:31:00,661 --> 02:31:00,661
these are just clarifications, not changing the intent of the

1385
02:31:06,527 --> 02:31:06,527
subsection. Page 3 -- slide eight, page 3

1386
02:31:11,227 --> 02:31:13,561
further defines and the county attorney may want to chime in, they may want to further define a grievance.

1387
02:31:15,561 --> 02:31:19,461
I don't know if you want to add -- >> this is consistent with the statute that compels the county

1388
02:31:21,994 --> 02:31:21,994
to have a grievance procedure. >> slide nine.

1389
02:31:29,227 --> 02:31:31,527
slide nine was just one clarification, making sure they are under the jurisdiction of harris county of course.

1390
02:31:36,894 --> 02:31:36,894
slide ten, page 6. Just a reference, a one change.

1391
02:31:43,894 --> 02:31:43,894
slide 11, which is on page 7 of the full agreement is about

1392
02:31:49,194 --> 02:31:52,994
compliance with existing county policies. And our facility, how they can access county facilities.

1393
02:32:00,494 --> 02:32:03,794
slide 12, which is on page 7 of the main agreement is to standardize terminology that is used throughout the document.

1394
02:32:09,961 --> 02:32:09,961
slide 13, which is on page 8, section 4.6, is consistent

1395
02:32:14,627 --> 02:32:14,627
language and facility access and is existing county policy and

1396
02:32:20,661 --> 02:32:23,027
changes. Slide 14, then in the main agreement it will be page 9. The county attorney may want to

1397
02:32:27,294 --> 02:32:27,294
comment about the code. >> again, this is to make the

1398
02:32:31,627 --> 02:32:33,994
language and the policy consistent with the language in the government code. >> slide 15, which shows up in

1399
02:32:41,261 --> 02:32:41,261
the main agreement on page 9, is for clarity.

1400
02:32:45,861 --> 02:32:45,861
and then compliance on privacy for employees.

1401
02:32:54,927 --> 02:32:54,927
slide 16 and page 9 through ten, overall on section five of the

1402
02:33:01,361 --> 02:33:03,794
main agreement. Repeats clarification on facility and ensures department heads have authority on employee

1403
02:33:07,161 --> 02:33:07,161
overtime and comp time. And it emphasizes what the

1404
02:33:11,761 --> 02:33:13,927
county's current grievance procedures are, which are the ones currently in the policy and procedures manual.

1405
02:33:20,527 --> 02:33:20,527
slide 17 is just an additional clarification related to

1406
02:33:24,761 --> 02:33:24,761
employee -- new employee orientation.

1407
02:33:31,894 --> 02:33:31,894
slide 18, page 10 in the main agreement, the county attorney

1408
02:33:35,927 --> 02:33:35,927
may want to comment, it is about tpi compliance.

1409
02:33:41,994 --> 02:33:45,494
no comment? Okay. Slide 19, page 10 is the same authority related to comp and

1410
02:33:52,294 --> 02:33:55,727
overtimes. And slide 20, which is page 11 in the main agreement, county attorney edition on the

1411
02:34:00,461 --> 02:34:00,461
government code. Those are the edits the group

1412
02:34:09,594 --> 02:34:12,994
made. And we are asking for approval. >> I will move approval of those items, do I need to call them

1413
02:34:17,994 --> 02:34:19,994
individually? I will make a motion to approve those items laid out by the county administrator.

1414
02:34:24,494 --> 02:34:24,494
>> can we have some discussion before we -- some amendments to

1415
02:34:29,061 --> 02:34:29,061
these as well, right? >> those are our edits in

1416
02:34:36,461 --> 02:34:39,794
proposal, if you have additional amendments, feel free. >> what about the fire marshal? >> yes, we have that as a

1417
02:34:46,761 --> 02:34:48,527
proposed option. >> that is one of her motions to take the fire marshal out. >> the motion said I understood

1418
02:34:56,927 --> 02:34:56,927
that were going to be made and we are going to vote on these

1419
02:35:01,894 --> 02:35:04,294
separately, and not in a group, it sounds like we are trying to vote on it -- >> I will run back through them.

1420
02:35:08,694 --> 02:35:08,694
>> are you talking about the fire marshal and when the court

1421
02:35:13,794 --> 02:35:16,861
office can opt in or out? Are you referring to those? >> I've got three motions I will be making.

1422
02:35:19,361 --> 02:35:19,361
there's three other motions, one related to the fire marshal, the

1423
02:35:24,027 --> 02:35:24,027
fire marshal's administrative staff is another.

1424
02:35:28,161 --> 02:35:28,161
and then there is language in the policy with the consultation

1425
02:35:33,094 --> 02:35:35,361
team once formed to take development of a grievance policy that allows for grievance for discipline and discharge.

1426
02:35:44,227 --> 02:35:44,227
as a priority first act of this grievance will act on a later

1427
02:35:49,261 --> 02:35:49,261
vote. We are saying we are setting up

1428
02:35:53,694 --> 02:35:53,694
a grievance system separate from we are going to turn over these

1429
02:35:58,927 --> 02:36:01,294
responsibilities of grievance related to discipline and grievance related to discharge to this third party.

1430
02:36:08,161 --> 02:36:08,161
and that is to be voted on, separate from this.

1431
02:36:13,461 --> 02:36:17,194
>> but the fire marshal we have already removed because that was discussed in executive. >> I think commissioner ramsey

1432
02:36:21,894 --> 02:36:21,894
is right. Motion one is what the county

1433
02:36:27,294 --> 02:36:27,294
administrator will refer to, which is to propose the

1434
02:36:31,961 --> 02:36:31,961
amendments framework, henceforth referred to as the consultation

1435
02:36:36,594 --> 02:36:38,461
policy. That is the administrative changes that were made. Subsequent to that there were

1436
02:36:40,927 --> 02:36:40,927
another set of potential changes of which one of them is a motion

1437
02:36:46,994 --> 02:36:50,561
to amend the consultation policy, to remove the fire marshal's office from section 2.9.

1438
02:36:53,327 --> 02:36:57,261
which is what you are referring to. And I know commissioner ramsey has some motions as well.

1439
02:37:01,294 --> 02:37:05,294
>> I want to vote -- >> on each one individually? >> I want to remove the fire marshal.

1440
02:37:06,961 --> 02:37:06,961
I vote yes for that. But I do not agree with the

1441
02:37:13,927 --> 02:37:13,927
language associated with the grievance policy.

1442
02:37:18,061 --> 02:37:18,061
and that is a separate motion. We talked about this last week,

1443
02:37:24,794 --> 02:37:28,094
right? >> yes. >> could you pull up the relevant slide to what commissioner ramsey is -- so that way he can -- go ahead,

1444
02:37:34,827 --> 02:37:36,661
commissioner. >> make your motion. >> as I understand, oh see a motion section 2.11 vote to

1445
02:37:43,194 --> 02:37:46,894
exclude harris county fire marshal's office, law enforcement personnel from the policy.

1446
02:37:48,594 --> 02:37:48,594
and we are going to vote on t that.

1447
02:37:53,494 --> 02:37:53,494
and then also, the harris county fire marshal personnel.

1448
02:38:01,461 --> 02:38:01,461
that would be the second motion. The third motion is section 5.1

1449
02:38:08,627 --> 02:38:12,627
point a, include language and policy that directs in consultation team to take development of a grievance

1450
02:38:15,927 --> 02:38:15,927
policy that allows for grievance and discipline and discharge.

1451
02:38:21,861 --> 02:38:21,861
I do not agree that we should be turning grievance over to

1452
02:38:27,694 --> 02:38:30,994
unelected, bureaucrat, third party folks. We need to retain that responsibility within hr.

1453
02:38:36,627 --> 02:38:36,627
so as I understood, provided to me yesterday, that is the motion

1454
02:38:40,927 --> 02:38:44,194
we were going to consider and that was the motion we will talk about the vote on. >> yes, we can.

1455
02:38:48,827 --> 02:38:48,827
it is in the appendix. >> but we weren't going to vote

1456
02:38:53,661 --> 02:38:57,061
on the entire, one time -- somebody read a powerpoint that you can't even read the words on.

1457
02:38:59,227 --> 02:38:59,227
we are not going to do that, we will vote on specific motions.

1458
02:39:03,494 --> 02:39:03,494
as I understand those are the three motions related to changes

1459
02:39:08,927 --> 02:39:08,927
in the policy. >> those were the three

1460
02:39:13,494 --> 02:39:16,461
remaining decisions, yes. And then you can make motions how you choose on those. So we can bring up the appendix

1461
02:39:22,627 --> 02:39:22,627
where it shows that listed. We can bring up the slides so

1462
02:39:27,261 --> 02:39:27,261
everyone can look at that? Slide 24.

1463
02:39:44,261 --> 02:39:47,594
>> so do we remove the employees -- >> you can just remove the fire marshal as a whole and then you

1464
02:39:49,561 --> 02:39:51,927
would need a separate -- >> that is what the county attorney's office was suggesting, right?

1465
02:39:59,727 --> 02:39:59,727
>> you will make that motion? Related to and the fire

1466
02:40:08,194 --> 02:40:08,194
marshal's office and administrative staff.

1467
02:40:14,727 --> 02:40:14,727
>> I think the proper scope would be to remove the entire

1468
02:40:18,794 --> 02:40:20,827
department. >> that covers everyone, that covers what he is saying. Just remove the fire marshal's

1469
02:40:25,861 --> 02:40:25,861
office in total, that covers everybody you are talking about,

1470
02:40:29,927 --> 02:40:33,894
right? >> we are bringing it right now. That's different from what you described yesterday. But that sounds good. >> it would simply read as a

1471
02:40:39,427 --> 02:40:42,861
motion to amend the consultation policy to remove the fire marshal's office from section 2.9.

1472
02:40:49,094 --> 02:40:51,061
>> second. >> commissioner ramsey, is that all right? >> yes.

1473
02:40:53,827 --> 02:40:55,561
>> motion made by commissioner ramsey. >> commissioner ramsey has a motion seconded by commissioner

1474
02:40:58,361 --> 02:40:58,361
garcia, all in favor any opposed motion carries unanimously.

1475
02:41:03,261 --> 02:41:03,261
>> and now the other thing unresolved is the creation of

1476
02:41:07,827 --> 02:41:07,827
this grievance policy. Related to discipline and

1477
02:41:15,394 --> 02:41:18,627
discharge. And it is being advocated to include language in the policy the consultation team once

1478
02:41:21,927 --> 02:41:21,927
formed to take development of a grievance policy that allows for

1479
02:41:29,227 --> 02:41:32,427
grievance of discipline and discharge. And I do not agree with that. I don't think we should be

1480
02:41:36,327 --> 02:41:39,661
turning that over to the third party. And the other motion related to that is what about our employees

1481
02:41:46,394 --> 02:41:50,161
that are not eligible? Not eligible. We have two policy manuals in terms of grievance.

1482
02:41:55,527 --> 02:41:55,527
I do not support that amendment related to a grievance.

1483
02:41:59,794 --> 02:41:59,794
someone else will have to make that motion, I don't agree with

1484
02:42:04,661 --> 02:42:04,661
that. >> so section 5.18 is already

1485
02:42:11,827 --> 02:42:11,827
written into policy. >> we approved it on march 19th.

1486
02:42:17,727 --> 02:42:17,727
>> that wasn't what was described, it was said in

1487
02:42:21,894 --> 02:42:25,294
section 5.1 point a, including language in the policy that directs the consultation team once formed, that allows for

1488
02:42:32,261 --> 02:42:35,361
grievance of discipline and discharge. So you're saying it's already in there.

1489
02:42:37,961 --> 02:42:41,327
>> it was submitted march 19th and then voted on already having that language. >> how was that separated out to

1490
02:42:44,227 --> 02:42:46,994
me? >> it was separated through the review, staff, you and others had questions.

1491
02:42:48,894 --> 02:42:52,561
we separated them out in case -- like we are doing right now, you all can discuss it further. >> I would make a motion that we

1492
02:42:57,894 --> 02:43:00,694
not include that in the new policy. >> so you would think it would be to remove grievance of

1493
02:43:04,294 --> 02:43:05,694
discipline and discharge. >> yes. >> let me just ask the county attorney's office.

1494
02:43:08,627 --> 02:43:12,527
I'm told that the city of austin permits employees to file grievances with support from a representative attorney,

1495
02:43:15,227 --> 02:43:15,227
consultation agent with the municipal civil services

1496
02:43:19,794 --> 02:43:19,794
commission. The reason we put it in there is

1497
02:43:24,194 --> 02:43:27,094
because until we have put a structure in place of the consultation team, once it is created, then you have more

1498
02:43:29,927 --> 02:43:29,927
clarity around this position. But what is your thought on

1499
02:43:34,961 --> 02:43:38,194
this? >> what I want to clarify is already the county has a statutory consultation to apply

1500
02:43:41,094 --> 02:43:41,094
a grievance procedure and we do that.

1501
02:43:45,261 --> 02:43:45,261
the consultation policy that was adopted in the spring allows for

1502
02:43:49,694 --> 02:43:49,694
the procedure for a consultation agent and management agents to

1503
02:43:54,361 --> 02:43:54,361
discuss a proposed two commissioners court, the scope

1504
02:43:58,994 --> 02:44:01,861
and parameter of including discipline and discharge in our existing grievance procedures. As items that can be challenged

1505
02:44:07,361 --> 02:44:11,061
through grievance procedures. So notwithstanding the language that is in the policy today, this matter will come back

1506
02:44:14,294 --> 02:44:14,294
before commissioners court as the policy stands, a

1507
02:44:18,461 --> 02:44:18,461
recommendation will come back to commissioners court as to how to

1508
02:44:23,194 --> 02:44:25,594
and whether to include discipline and discharge and what that will look like in our existing --

1509
02:44:29,261 --> 02:44:31,561
>>   we already have a grievance process. Why do we need another one reference, called out and this

1510
02:44:38,961 --> 02:44:41,994
consultation, quote, unquote, agreement? >> it is true that our current grievance procedure does not

1511
02:44:44,661 --> 02:44:44,661
allow employees to challenge any disciplinary actions for their

1512
02:44:49,694 --> 02:44:49,694
terminations and discharge. >> hold on a second.

1513
02:44:59,094 --> 02:44:59,094
county attorney, there is a grievance process because we --

1514
02:45:06,194 --> 02:45:06,194
I know that at least once, maybe twice since I have been here, we

1515
02:45:12,027 --> 02:45:12,027
have had an employee come and complain directly to court about

1516
02:45:18,494 --> 02:45:20,894
some action, I can't remember what it was. But we have had that. Is there not some process in

1517
02:45:26,194 --> 02:45:28,361
place? >> we do have a grievance process and it does culminate in commissioners court review.

1518
02:45:33,261 --> 02:45:36,027
but the occasion you are calling commissioner, it was not related to employees discipline or discharge, it was the

1519
02:45:38,827 --> 02:45:38,827
application of county policy for that person's employment.

1520
02:45:43,261 --> 02:45:46,061
that is the scope of our grievance procedure today but discipline and discharge are not.

1521
02:45:50,827 --> 02:45:51,827
>> thank you. >> I think it was harris health that I was thinking about. >> the one that I'm recalling is

1522
02:45:59,561 --> 02:46:03,227
pollution. >> pollution control. >> essentially we already have a grievance process.

1523
02:46:06,727 --> 02:46:06,727
my motion would be to remove that from the consultation teams

1524
02:46:17,061 --> 02:46:17,061
policy or whatever you call it. >> remove the grievances and

1525
02:46:21,994 --> 02:46:25,494
discharge from the consultation team. Is that a second? Any more discussion?

1526
02:46:29,661 --> 02:46:32,527
the motion fails for a lack of a second. >> the next motion is to create a second harris county personnel

1527
02:46:39,761 --> 02:46:39,761
policy and procedures manual designated for eligible

1528
02:46:45,261 --> 02:46:45,261
employees of noneligible employees would adhere to the

1529
02:46:49,561 --> 02:46:49,561
existing manual. So we would essentially need two

1530
02:46:54,061 --> 02:46:57,961
manuals of, one for those in the union and those that aren't in the union. Because not everybody will be in

1531
02:47:00,494 --> 02:47:00,494
the union. >> so let me ask, if I may

1532
02:47:05,927 --> 02:47:05,927
commissioner, did we address that on march 19th, in the

1533
02:47:10,927 --> 02:47:13,194
policy? >> the policy does not speak to splitting the systems, no. >> it could be the impact of

1534
02:47:17,994 --> 02:47:21,527
this. Of this motion. >> it ultimately will depend on what -- if you will split the

1535
02:47:25,394 --> 02:47:28,827
handbooks, it will depend on what you include, which is in the discretion of commissioners, what terms you include in each

1536
02:47:33,294 --> 02:47:35,961
handbook. >> I know we will be the first county to handle policy like this.

1537
02:47:38,261 --> 02:47:41,394
but in terms of the entities that have policies like the city of austin, how do they handle that?

1538
02:47:45,427 --> 02:47:45,427
neil, if you know. >> I'm sorry, I don't know.

1539
02:47:49,794 --> 02:47:49,794
>> maybe chief raleigh, would you like to come up and share

1540
02:47:53,927 --> 02:47:53,927
your perspective? >> sure.

1541
02:47:59,861 --> 02:48:02,094
we have been looking into this and trying to figure it out as we work our way through and learn, I don't know about

1542
02:48:05,927 --> 02:48:09,694
answering the question about austin but we can certainly figure that out. It seems possible that we can deal with it all within one policy and procedures manual if

1543
02:48:14,161 --> 02:48:14,161
we indicate that one protocol serves those who are covered by

1544
02:48:19,961 --> 02:48:22,061
the consultation agreement and one protocol serves as those who are not, regarding grievances. If things evolve in their

1545
02:48:27,894 --> 02:48:30,961
different policies that are impacted over time, then we may have to do two. >> again, we are putting this

1546
02:48:36,594 --> 02:48:36,594
together with bubblegum. We should have all of this

1547
02:48:41,394 --> 02:48:44,994
organized and prepared and we don't know what we don't know. So clearly there is going to be some people that are eligible

1548
02:48:47,927 --> 02:48:50,527
and some people that are not going to be eligible. They need to be addressed. And today we are not fully

1549
02:48:55,694 --> 02:48:55,694
understanding how that is going to be.

1550
02:48:59,761 --> 02:48:59,761
thank you to our director that that is what we could do.

1551
02:49:04,361 --> 02:49:08,161
and I guess that is what I am asking that we do. It sounds like we are in a rush to get this thing done and we

1552
02:49:12,161 --> 02:49:12,161
are trying to identify all the issues that are on the table.

1553
02:49:17,294 --> 02:49:19,661
this will be one. It will be eligible, you will have non-eligible, you have to know how to deal with them.

1554
02:49:22,761 --> 02:49:26,294
>> I want to add commissioner, that any employee can avail themselves of our existing grievance procedure, whether

1555
02:49:28,961 --> 02:49:30,961
they have a union affiliation or not. And under the existing grievance procedure, any employee can have

1556
02:49:33,727 --> 02:49:37,094
a representative of their choosing. So even excluded employees would still avail themselves of that

1557
02:49:41,094 --> 02:49:42,694
process. >> but that needs to be -- we are introducing a whole new group of folks within our

1558
02:49:49,894 --> 02:49:49,894
personnel policy to be dealt with, according to this

1559
02:49:55,827 --> 02:49:58,394
consultation policy. So I do think that there is a need to clearly communicate what and how we will be dealing with

1560
02:50:04,094 --> 02:50:04,094
these individuals. That is why I made the motion.

1561
02:50:09,594 --> 02:50:13,094
>> commissioner, it sounds reasonable to me -- I'm just trying to gauge if we've got to decide that today.

1562
02:50:17,427 --> 02:50:17,427
I came up with this policy along with commissioner briones, I

1563
02:50:21,727 --> 02:50:21,727
know that the plan is started on october first.

1564
02:50:25,927 --> 02:50:29,727
but if administration comes back to me and says we are not ready on october first and maybe folks will be upset, but as the guy

1565
02:50:33,727 --> 02:50:37,361
who put it out here, if we are not ready, I would say to wait and they can get as angry as they want to get, but we are the

1566
02:50:40,894 --> 02:50:44,594
first to do it, I want to make sure it is done right. >> we hadn't slowed down any safety policy, we were ready on

1567
02:50:48,327 --> 02:50:51,561
that, we hadn't slowed down on minimum wage and we moved forward on that. I think we set these dates and

1568
02:50:54,761 --> 02:50:54,761
we are just not ready. But there are some issues here.

1569
02:51:00,994 --> 02:51:04,494
I don't want to go ahead and take 2 minutes, commissioner, going through the concerns I've got.

1570
02:51:06,561 --> 02:51:06,561
I've got two more motions that can be ignored if you want to.

1571
02:51:11,194 --> 02:51:14,327
but we have learned more since this policy was approved, we have heard from departments, elected offices, employees

1572
02:51:17,894 --> 02:51:21,861
across here in the county, what we are hearing is not excitement from the employees out there, it is concern.

1573
02:51:25,894 --> 02:51:28,627
concerns about increased administrative burden at a time that we really can't afford to add these kinds of costs,

1574
02:51:32,194 --> 02:51:34,761
additional costs, questions about how this process is carried out. Take time to fully understand

1575
02:51:38,961 --> 02:51:38,961
the second and the third and the impacts of this policy.

1576
02:51:43,327 --> 02:51:47,161
no one is doing it. But we will implement a policy that we don't fully understand and don't fully understand the

1577
02:51:50,894 --> 02:51:53,027
impacts on our people and everything else. But we will be the first. And we can hopefully get an

1578
02:51:56,594 --> 02:52:00,527
award for that. But we need to get it right for this 17, 20,000 people that work in the county.

1579
02:52:04,861 --> 02:52:04,861
the organizing process is a concern, I've got reports of

1580
02:52:09,561 --> 02:52:13,327
organizers violating county policies, overstating the membership numbers, making promises they may not be able to

1581
02:52:17,494 --> 02:52:20,661
keep, benton county work sites, pressure employees that volunteer and organize events, obtaining employees home

1582
02:52:24,927 --> 02:52:28,161
addresses. Really? Obtaining employees home addresses? I don't think that is legal. I do not think that is right.

1583
02:52:32,294 --> 02:52:32,294
even if it is legal. And even appearing in employees

1584
02:52:38,194 --> 02:52:41,227
homes. I don't think this is right. Some of these may not be a concern to some, but they are

1585
02:52:44,827 --> 02:52:44,827
definitely a concern to me. Is this the right time?

1586
02:52:51,994 --> 02:52:51,994
obviously from a financial standpoint, taxpayers spent

1587
02:52:56,161 --> 02:52:59,427
roughly 1.5 million on the study on implementing the pay equity study. We have talked about that.

1588
02:53:01,361 --> 02:53:04,727
that has been an $80 million impact. That has been baked into next year's -- next year's budget.

1589
02:53:13,394 --> 02:53:16,794
I'm not sure whether there is a big appetite from the employees in terms of what they would want.

1590
02:53:18,227 --> 02:53:21,827
I would also like to know how many eligible employees have actually signed up. That is like a basic metric we

1591
02:53:25,894 --> 02:53:29,394
are looking at, I guess we are getting those numbers of when they tie it up. The policy that was adopted in

1592
02:53:37,461 --> 02:53:37,461
march identified 5% as gauging a lot of interest.

1593
02:53:43,027 --> 02:53:43,027
so that gives one particular union an opportunity to move

1594
02:53:50,894 --> 02:53:50,894
forward in a kind of enhanced fashion, 5%.

1595
02:53:56,427 --> 02:53:56,427
when they get to be 20%, that means that they are selected in

1596
02:54:05,094 --> 02:54:08,561
so many ways. 20%. In most elections, you've got a majority.

1597
02:54:12,627 --> 02:54:12,627
and it's interesting that after five years, replacing the

1598
02:54:17,627 --> 02:54:17,627
existing consultant agent requires support from 50% of

1599
02:54:21,927 --> 02:54:21,927
eligible employees. So to get the contract, you've

1600
02:54:26,061 --> 02:54:26,061
got to have 20%. To keep the contract, you've got

1601
02:54:30,194 --> 02:54:30,194
to get to 50. This is just laughable how this

1602
02:54:36,394 --> 02:54:36,394
thing has come about. I have concerns about the

1603
02:54:41,394 --> 02:54:41,394
process. We have heard that a fscm has

1604
02:54:45,661 --> 02:54:45,661
spent nearly two years developing this policy.

1605
02:54:50,561 --> 02:54:50,561
I think they wrote the policy, I think they wrote it.

1606
02:54:56,961 --> 02:54:56,961
if you were working through purchasing on doing anything, we

1607
02:55:01,661 --> 02:55:01,661
don't let the people being considered to be selected write

1608
02:55:06,427 --> 02:55:06,427
the rfp on how to get selected. But that is exactly what we did

1609
02:55:12,761 --> 02:55:15,694
here. I think what's true is every potential union given the same opportunity, to help write our

1610
02:55:21,061 --> 02:55:23,127
policy. That is not a question of being against unions, this is a question of fairness.

1611
02:55:27,261 --> 02:55:27,261
it hasn't been fair, up to this point.

1612
02:55:31,427 --> 02:55:31,427
it has been heavily weighted towards afscme.

1613
02:55:39,761 --> 02:55:39,761
and we at least ought to be aware where the process and how

1614
02:55:47,427 --> 02:55:47,427
the process went through. So I guess whatever afscme

1615
02:55:56,394 --> 02:56:00,261
wants, afscme gets. That is what we are voting on today. Whether it is a grievance

1616
02:56:02,827 --> 02:56:04,994
committee, let's give it to them. They need one. I don't agree with that.

1617
02:56:08,227 --> 02:56:08,227
I am not agreeing to turn over our responsibilities related to

1618
02:56:13,894 --> 02:56:13,894
it. My other two motions to be

1619
02:56:19,127 --> 02:56:19,127
considered, no one seconded the motion related to at least

1620
02:56:25,894 --> 02:56:25,894
writing a policy manual in our current hr policies that

1621
02:56:31,461 --> 02:56:34,761
addresses the issues of eligible and non-eligible. We've got two categories of people.

1622
02:56:37,627 --> 02:56:40,794
my other motion would be a motion to change the language of this policy to allow for the commissioner court to opt out at

1623
02:56:44,561 --> 02:56:44,561
any time after implementation. Why wouldn't we be able to opt

1624
02:56:49,894 --> 02:56:53,027
out at any time after implementation? Right now you are giving a specific day.

1625
02:56:56,227 --> 02:56:56,227
one day. You are in, october first, or

1626
02:57:00,694 --> 02:57:00,694
you are out october first. My third motion is if

1627
02:57:06,394 --> 02:57:06,394
commissioners court offices opt out, they maintain the ability

1628
02:57:10,894 --> 02:57:10,894
to fill their seat on the nine person management representative

1629
02:57:15,561 --> 02:57:17,894
team. Just because I don't agree with it, just because I am not in support of how this is being

1630
02:57:23,294 --> 02:57:23,294
done, should not mean I give up my right as harris county

1631
02:57:29,994 --> 02:57:33,894
commissioner, to participate in the process. So those are my three motions. I think they are appropriate in

1632
02:57:38,061 --> 02:57:38,061
light of what we don't know and in light of where we are headed

1633
02:57:44,194 --> 02:57:44,194
with this. November first implementation.

1634
02:57:49,794 --> 02:57:52,994
so I am concerned, I put those three motions out there. I think it is pretty clear it doesn't seem fair to me that

1635
02:57:57,827 --> 02:58:01,661
those of us which, at this point, looks like I'm going to be opting out because of all of the concerns I have just listed.

1636
02:58:06,794 --> 02:58:06,794
but I don't know enough, frankly at this point, all of the

1637
02:58:10,994 --> 02:58:12,594
details of how this is going to work. I might want to opt in at some point.

1638
02:58:16,294 --> 02:58:20,127
but you are forcing people, I think, to make a decision far in advance of when they have enough information to make the dec

1639
02:58:25,894 --> 02:58:27,894
decision. >> so commissioner, I will go after you. >> I just want to make a couple

1640
02:58:34,561 --> 02:58:38,027
comments. Afscme stands for the american federation of state county municipal employees.

1641
02:58:40,927 --> 02:58:40,927
it is the largest public sector employee trade union in the

1642
02:58:48,094 --> 02:58:49,594
country. 1.3 million workers and retirees in health care, corrections, sanitation, public safety and

1643
02:58:53,927 --> 02:58:53,927
child care and was founded in 1932 with 3500 chapters across

1644
02:59:00,261 --> 02:59:00,261
the country. The court adopted a consultation

1645
02:59:05,894 --> 02:59:08,594
policy on march 19th, 2026. It would make harris county the first county in texas to create this type of consultation

1646
02:59:13,094 --> 02:59:15,794
policy. It does not give them the right to organize a union. The reason I was interested in

1647
02:59:19,327 --> 02:59:19,327
the subject is because some of our employees are able to go

1648
02:59:26,594 --> 02:59:29,894
organize and under state laws they can have a union and they have been pretty effective in getting the attention of

1649
02:59:33,861 --> 02:59:33,861
commissioners court, historically.

1650
02:59:37,894 --> 02:59:41,661
you made reference to the pay equity study, mr. Ramos, was that three years ago when I first put that on agenda?

1651
02:59:44,127 --> 02:59:47,094
what's your guess? Three, four years ago? >> it was three and took about a year to get a bid out.

1652
02:59:50,861 --> 02:59:53,461
>> three years ago I put it on the agenda, took a year to go and find somebody to come back with it.

1653
02:59:56,261 --> 02:59:56,261
we have done that historically for our other great county

1654
03:00:01,327 --> 03:00:03,161
employees, all of them more important. But they have been able to come in and make that case for

1655
03:00:07,427 --> 03:00:07,427
benefits and quite frankly, I was interested in the subject

1656
03:00:12,027 --> 03:00:12,027
because I thought that we needed some help when these issues come

1657
03:00:17,727 --> 03:00:20,127
up. Health care benefits, could be left to any one of our five individual offices that go

1658
03:00:23,494 --> 03:00:26,794
trying to collect people to go in and make the case. We need somebody speaking for these workers.

1659
03:00:30,161 --> 03:00:33,327
when we decided to do that pay, we didn't go through a big comprehensive study, whoever dug up whatever that group was, came

1660
03:00:36,827 --> 03:00:36,827
in here real quick. Just as I jokingly said, we went

1661
03:00:41,194 --> 03:00:41,194
hog wild. But for these other employees,

1662
03:00:45,361 --> 03:00:45,361
who catch the early bus, as I like to say, that is not

1663
03:00:50,561 --> 03:00:53,927
happening. That is why I pushed for the consultation policy. Starting with when we did it

1664
03:00:58,794 --> 03:00:58,794
with some of the workers over at the harris center.

1665
03:01:04,761 --> 03:01:04,761
and that was cwa, communication workers of america.

1666
03:01:09,327 --> 03:01:09,327
so this may not be perfect, some of you are concerns may be

1667
03:01:16,327 --> 03:01:18,594
legitimate. And look, with me it's not the politics, if the unions get mad, get mad.

1668
03:01:22,494 --> 03:01:25,461
I'm the one that when cwa came to me, they wanted me to write a letter about some employees concerns.

1669
03:01:27,561 --> 03:01:27,561
if we need to work on this and implement it january first, I'm

1670
03:01:32,261 --> 03:01:32,261
not trying to do it seat of the pants at this table.

1671
03:01:36,461 --> 03:01:36,461
we had a process, a union colleague there were a big part

1672
03:01:41,327 --> 03:01:43,194
of it on coming up with what we had. We had a working group for folks who were interested in

1673
03:01:46,394 --> 03:01:49,227
participating in the process to come up with it and while this policy may not be perfect, we needed somebody to make the

1674
03:01:54,194 --> 03:01:57,294
case. Colleagues, for these other employees. It went an inordinate amount of

1675
03:01:58,627 --> 03:01:58,627
time before we did simple colas. How do we go with no colas in

1676
03:02:03,861 --> 03:02:03,861
this county? >> I'm not 100% sure,

1677
03:02:08,861 --> 03:02:11,827
commissioner. >> I mean we made progress, I'm just saying these other employees need a voice.

1678
03:02:13,927 --> 03:02:13,927
I get it, I've told them it. Somebody out there, at some

1679
03:02:19,827 --> 03:02:22,894
point under the new rules we have to operate under with state law, it is not just a matter of everybody coming here and trying

1680
03:02:25,327 --> 03:02:29,094
to move the seats around on the titanic. For any labor folks it's easy to come in and say I want this, I

1681
03:02:32,227 --> 03:02:34,961
want that. But we have to pay for it. And they had to play a role in that as well.

1682
03:02:37,594 --> 03:02:37,594
I'm just telling you, these employees, the ones who catch

1683
03:02:41,927 --> 03:02:41,927
the early bus need a seat at the table, just like our other

1684
03:02:46,794 --> 03:02:48,561
friends. In law enforcement. Who have a pretty good seat at the table.

1685
03:02:51,727 --> 03:02:54,961
as evidenced by how they can go to the state and make changes. So it is not perfect, we need to do something.

1686
03:02:58,127 --> 03:03:01,094
and it was the best that we could come up with. And with that said, if someone raises an issue, I agree with

1687
03:03:06,794 --> 03:03:08,494
them. But we ought to see if they want to go and change some of the stuff that we have.

1688
03:03:11,361 --> 03:03:14,361
I don't mind telling my friends at labor, you know that, no strings on my back. I put my record up against a

1689
03:03:17,927 --> 03:03:17,927
whole lot of them who have been as effective as I have been on

1690
03:03:22,061 --> 03:03:25,594
these decades that I have been in public life. But there needs to be some balance here.

1691
03:03:28,194 --> 03:03:28,194
an end that does not exist right now.

1692
03:03:37,894 --> 03:03:39,494
>> commissioner? >> thank you doctor and thank you to the county attorney team for your partnership and to

1693
03:03:44,461 --> 03:03:44,461
administrator carter. I am proud to continue with what

1694
03:03:49,827 --> 03:03:52,727
commissioner ellis is saying. We have taken various actions to make sure we are showing up for our harris county employees.

1695
03:03:55,927 --> 03:03:55,927
whether it was raising the minimum wage to $20 an hour,

1696
03:04:00,027 --> 03:04:03,694
completing this pay equity study and now implementing those adjustments for equitable pay. I see this as another step to

1697
03:04:06,461 --> 03:04:09,327
make sure that we are showing up for harris county workers, just the way that they show up for our community every single day.

1698
03:04:14,227 --> 03:04:17,194
our folks who were taking care of our parks and roads and helping us after disasters and beyond.

1699
03:04:21,594 --> 03:04:21,594
I agree and the coo, you have all seen how type a I am about

1700
03:04:26,194 --> 03:04:28,127
everything. I agree that we need to do the right thing and we need to do the thing right.

1701
03:04:30,994 --> 03:04:34,694
we need to be as thoughtful about the implementation as possible and then keep iterating, keep improving and we

1702
03:04:38,127 --> 03:04:41,294
need to do something, right? To administrator carter's point, we passed this in march, we are seeing things that need to be

1703
03:04:44,427 --> 03:04:47,694
clarified and updated. That is what we are doing here today. Making that improvement.

1704
03:04:49,294 --> 03:04:49,294
and as we continue learning we will continue making

1705
03:04:53,994 --> 03:04:57,127
improvements. So I appreciate y'all quarterbacking this and the goal here is to give our workers a

1706
03:05:03,527 --> 03:05:03,527
chance to more easily express their views, their concerns,

1707
03:05:08,194 --> 03:05:11,894
their ideas. This is to give our workers a voice and a greater seat at the table.

1708
03:05:13,894 --> 03:05:17,894
on several things -- one of your motions, commissioner ramsey, I do want to support that you can opt in or out at any time.

1709
03:05:21,361 --> 03:05:21,361
and I hope that you will opt in once these operational items are

1710
03:05:26,761 --> 03:05:29,594
ironed out. And so on that one, I would second that motion. In terms of a manual, having one

1711
03:05:34,461 --> 03:05:34,461
manual creates more clarity and you can have specific provisions

1712
03:05:39,961 --> 03:05:42,694
clearly called out if there are different processes or anything that needs to be flagged. But for the most part, there is

1713
03:05:48,727 --> 03:05:51,461
one manual here in harris county. And there are processes that are open to all employees.

1714
03:05:55,761 --> 03:05:58,627
so for that, I think one manual will create clarity and will be more complicated if it is to. And if we learned later in

1715
03:06:01,294 --> 03:06:01,294
months or years that we need to, we can pivot accordingly.

1716
03:06:06,761 --> 03:06:06,761
so in summary, thank you and to the point about doing the right

1717
03:06:11,927 --> 03:06:11,927
thing and doing the thing right, just to confirm, the

1718
03:06:16,927 --> 03:06:19,994
implementation date is octo october first. Can you talk us through the steps being taken to make sure

1719
03:06:23,194 --> 03:06:23,194
that we can implement as thoughtfully and excellently as

1720
03:06:28,761 --> 03:06:29,694
possible? >> administrators, do you want to take that? >> I will let her start it.

1721
03:06:33,894 --> 03:06:33,894
>> it is true that oca and the county attorney have been

1722
03:06:38,561 --> 03:06:42,561
working fast and furious. But also methodically to do it right. And that we have identified

1723
03:06:44,194 --> 03:06:45,694
those issues as the administrator went through earlier that we wanted to get clarity in the existing

1724
03:06:49,161 --> 03:06:50,561
document. So we believe we have set the stage to be able to effectively put it out on october first.

1725
03:06:57,627 --> 03:06:58,761
>> thank you. >> what you should add as part of that is addressing staffing capacity which is also on the

1726
03:07:04,527 --> 03:07:06,994
agenda. >> so for hrt for example, we know that with the inclusion of additional elements that can be

1727
03:07:11,561 --> 03:07:11,561
grieved to include disappointment that we expect a

1728
03:07:17,427 --> 03:07:17,427
significant increase. And we have asked for additional

1729
03:07:21,927 --> 03:07:25,427
investigators and relations experts so to to your point, we can be sure we are doing everything right consistently

1730
03:07:29,227 --> 03:07:29,227
with how much we have done. And then we also have other

1731
03:07:33,894 --> 03:07:33,894
things to add. >> I will make the motion again

1732
03:07:42,161 --> 03:07:45,961
22nd, motion to change the language of this policy to allow for commissioners court offices to opt out at any time

1733
03:07:50,061 --> 03:07:53,894
afterwards. >> can you put opt in not opt out? >> opt in or opt out.

1734
03:07:56,527 --> 03:07:56,527
>> I will second that one. >> so there is a motion on the

1735
03:08:02,561 --> 03:08:05,727
table, second by commissioner briones. Any other discussion? Commissioner ellis?

1736
03:08:08,227 --> 03:08:08,227
all in favor? Any opposed?

1737
03:08:12,294 --> 03:08:16,194
I am in favor, motion carries unanimously. >> other motion was if commissioners court offices opt

1738
03:08:19,527 --> 03:08:23,327
out, they maintain the ability to fill their seat on the nine person management representatives.

1739
03:08:26,294 --> 03:08:26,294
>> I am also okay with that one. I think in case they want to opt

1740
03:08:35,327 --> 03:08:35,327
in later, we can look at that. >> again, I am 1 of 5 court

1741
03:08:39,994 --> 03:08:43,894
members responsible for employees in harris county. And even though I may not be a part of the union, I may have

1742
03:08:56,227 --> 03:09:00,027
employees or other -- I think it would be a part of my responsibility to at least offer comment.

1743
03:09:04,161 --> 03:09:04,161
obviously mine would be the minority voice in a room.

1744
03:09:08,194 --> 03:09:11,994
but to make anything better, you better have a minority voice in a room that can give an opinion that is hearing from folks that

1745
03:09:14,394 --> 03:09:17,894
may have a different opinion than you. The people I am talking to are not union people.

1746
03:09:20,261 --> 03:09:20,261
the people I am talking to are employees of harris county.

1747
03:09:28,094 --> 03:09:28,094
so the workers in harris county are the ones talking to me about

1748
03:09:32,227 --> 03:09:35,027
their concerns. And the reason I have made more of a big deal about this today is my representative on these

1749
03:09:40,361 --> 03:09:40,361
discussions have been totally ignored.

1750
03:09:44,627 --> 03:09:47,194
any issues commissioner related to this over a. Of time when we bring these issues up, it is just ignored

1751
03:09:51,194 --> 03:09:51,194
and moved on. It would be helpful if everybody

1752
03:09:56,861 --> 03:09:58,861
would listen when we are bringing it up. And again, at the end of the day we may not agree on the next

1753
03:10:01,961 --> 03:10:05,794
steps or not agree on the process, but we at least ought to pay attention because I think a lot of the issues that we are

1754
03:10:09,894 --> 03:10:09,894
talking about here need to be. So again, that motion -- if

1755
03:10:14,861 --> 03:10:17,727
commissioners court offices opt out, they maintain the ability to fill their seat on the nine person management

1756
03:10:20,961 --> 03:10:20,961
representatives team. >> commissioner, for

1757
03:10:25,161 --> 03:10:28,761
clarification, the county attorney's office, the policy right now says an eight person management team.

1758
03:10:31,361 --> 03:10:31,361
you have not voted yet to create a nine person management team.

1759
03:10:36,394 --> 03:10:40,394
so your motion does not need the language of nine person at this time. >> this management team?

1760
03:10:41,927 --> 03:10:41,927
>> yes. >> so commissioner ellis --

1761
03:10:48,027 --> 03:10:51,827
>> from the legal department, you see any other problems with that? Any policies you have looked at at other places? Consultation policies?

1762
03:10:55,227 --> 03:10:55,227
>> I don't see any legal concern.

1763
03:11:00,294 --> 03:11:00,294
>> motion by commissioner ramsey, I'm happy to second it.

1764
03:11:04,761 --> 03:11:07,694
all in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries unanimously. >> thank you for that part of

1765
03:11:11,561 --> 03:11:14,527
it. And again, obviously we are all working to the legislative folks.

1766
03:11:18,394 --> 03:11:21,794
they are in session next year, hopefully all this is as it should be, thank you. >> a series of other motions, I

1767
03:11:28,427 --> 03:11:28,427
do them or you do them, I think we need to go, okay?

1768
03:11:32,527 --> 03:11:32,527
one is, I'm getting tired of this, I could go with a nap

1769
03:11:37,461 --> 03:11:39,694
around here. One is a motion to approve a proposal of amendments to the consultation framework hensworth

1770
03:11:42,894 --> 03:11:42,894
-- henceforth as a consultation policy, why don't we do those,

1771
03:11:48,627 --> 03:11:49,927
administrator? My first one is motion to approve the proposed members of the consultation framework as

1772
03:11:53,394 --> 03:11:53,394
referred to as the consultation policy, is that what you did?

1773
03:11:57,494 --> 03:11:57,494
>> that is needed. >> I make that motion.

1774
03:12:02,961 --> 03:12:06,061
>> second. >> should we vote on each of them? No?

1775
03:12:07,727 --> 03:12:11,627
keep going. Okay, if you disagree please speak up. >> I can go through all of them.

1776
03:12:15,227 --> 03:12:18,927
the second one, go ahead. >> go ahead commissioner. >> a motion to direct office county administration and

1777
03:12:21,994 --> 03:12:24,561
office of management budget to incorporate the county attorney's office, service enhancement request related to

1778
03:12:26,594 --> 03:12:26,594
the consultation policy of $332,560 into the draft

1779
03:12:32,861 --> 03:12:36,194
fiscal year budget, 2027? >> second. >> motion to direct to incorporate the oca budget

1780
03:12:40,894 --> 03:12:40,894
related to the consultation policy of $183,928 into the

1781
03:12:46,161 --> 03:12:46,161
draft fiscal year 2027 budget? >> second.

1782
03:12:50,261 --> 03:12:52,427
>> motion to put human resources talents and budget requests to the consultation policies recommended by the office

1783
03:12:54,694 --> 03:12:54,694
of county administration in the fiscal review request form for

1784
03:13:00,127 --> 03:13:01,927
item 18? >> second. >> motion to direct the omb to incorporate h budget requests

1785
03:13:07,361 --> 03:13:07,361
related to the consultation policy draft fiscal year budget

1786
03:13:12,794 --> 03:13:16,227
with authorization to reduce the funding amount related on whether and what consultation agent may be designated?

1787
03:13:22,094 --> 03:13:24,094
>> second. >> that is my last one. So I move all of those. >> all of those motions by

1788
03:13:28,527 --> 03:13:30,894
commissioner ellis, seconded by commissioner briones. All in favor? Any opposed?

1789
03:13:35,427 --> 03:13:35,427
motion carries, 4-1. >> I have a couple friendly

1790
03:13:40,627 --> 03:13:42,861
amendments you had. >> I was simply going to ask if we could please do item 326 next because we have the judge chief

1791
03:13:47,927 --> 03:13:47,927
public defender draper here and then if we could do 327, we have

1792
03:13:53,261 --> 03:13:55,094
director brown. >> so we will do items related to the public defender's office and welcome to the chief public

1793
03:13:59,127 --> 03:14:00,694
defender. Thank you. >> what number was that? >> thank you team.

1794
03:14:07,227 --> 03:14:10,227
326. >> 326 and you wanted to see that one with 327, right? >> 327 after.

1795
03:14:13,494 --> 03:14:13,494
one was public defender, one was not.

1796
03:14:18,727 --> 03:14:18,727
>> welcome chief draper. >> thank you very much.

1797
03:14:22,827 --> 03:14:26,327
I think we have a slide deck that we have submitted. So that could also be brought up.

1798
03:14:30,894 --> 03:14:33,894
the hour is late and so I will be brief. Do not be alarmed by the 32 slides that we have submitted,

1799
03:14:37,461 --> 03:14:40,761
we will do a very accelerated version of this. Many of us have spoken about these items already.

1800
03:14:43,127 --> 03:14:45,994
I want to start by thanking this commissioners court and the county judge for your support of this office and the

1801
03:14:49,161 --> 03:14:53,027
defense as a whole here at harris county, it is very much appreciated. I would also like to take a

1802
03:14:54,227 --> 03:14:54,227
brief moment to thank my team. I have an outstanding executive

1803
03:14:58,361 --> 03:15:01,694
leadership team as well as my entire office. I work with some phenomenal professionals, there at the

1804
03:15:04,261 --> 03:15:08,161
public defender's office so to the extent any of them are watching, I want to take a moment to thank them for their

1805
03:15:10,261 --> 03:15:12,761
hard work. There has been a lot of movement a lot of pilots, a lot of policy changes and our office has

1806
03:15:16,227 --> 03:15:16,227
really leaned into those changes to execute the mission of

1807
03:15:20,894 --> 03:15:22,994
expanding our services. So I want to take a moment to thank them for that. We will jump right into this.

1808
03:15:27,594 --> 03:15:27,594
as you are all well aware, march 19th I came before this

1809
03:15:33,527 --> 03:15:36,494
court, we discussed the state of defense in harris county and this court asked me to return today with a comprehensive

1810
03:15:41,727 --> 03:15:45,661
strategic plan about how this office would grow to meet the task of representing at least 50% of the people here in

1811
03:15:50,761 --> 03:15:52,361
harris county, indigent folks accused of crimes. So we have come back today with that comprehensive plan, hence

1812
03:15:57,827 --> 03:16:00,261
the 32 slides and the accompanying report. We will just jump right into it. If we can go to the next slide?

1813
03:16:05,494 --> 03:16:05,494
and I will breeze through some of these that are just some

1814
03:16:10,494 --> 03:16:10,494
explanations. You can move forward.

1815
03:16:15,627 --> 03:16:17,361
all right. So I think it is important to note that the court's mandate was to grow to accept at least

1816
03:16:21,927 --> 03:16:24,127
50% of the appointments here in harris county. We have been asked to come back with a 3-five-year plan.

1817
03:16:28,661 --> 03:16:28,661
so this plan here includes a few iterations, ranging from 3-5

1818
03:16:34,461 --> 03:16:37,194
years. It is important to note that this plan is aggressive, very aggressive.

1819
03:16:40,761 --> 03:16:40,761
and this plan is substantive and dynamic, meaning that it changes

1820
03:16:46,127 --> 03:16:49,894
with changing conditions. For example, if we see higher case filings that could alter some of these calculations.

1821
03:16:54,361 --> 03:16:58,127
or if funding is affected and we are not able to hire at the same rate that likewise could affect the rate of this growth.

1822
03:17:01,927 --> 03:17:01,927
next slide, please. We are looking at this growth

1823
03:17:07,761 --> 03:17:09,894
from basically three different pillars. One focusing on depth, which means focusing on what we

1824
03:17:13,461 --> 03:17:17,294
already do very well. But we want to continue to strengthen that. That is representing people

1825
03:17:19,361 --> 03:17:23,061
accused of crimes here in harris county at the highest level. And in a client centered and

1826
03:17:25,361 --> 03:17:27,861
holistic way. So we want to make sure that as we grow that level of representation is not

1827
03:17:31,494 --> 03:17:33,961
compromised. The second pillar of this plan is breadth. So making sure that we take that

1828
03:17:36,461 --> 03:17:39,361
skill set and applying it to more people here in harris county, which is what the court has asked.

1829
03:17:41,794 --> 03:17:41,794
so essentially scaling that across all of our existing

1830
03:17:46,527 --> 03:17:50,427
practice areas and also including adding practice areas, meaning capital defense. That was also the mandate from

1831
03:17:53,361 --> 03:17:55,794
the court. So we will be talking about what it looks like to expand into new practice areas.

1832
03:18:00,961 --> 03:18:02,927
and the third pillar is holistic. As we provide these services, it is important that we provide a

1833
03:18:06,027 --> 03:18:09,794
holistic model of service so that we reduce the chances that people re-encounter the criminal legal system.

1834
03:18:12,494 --> 03:18:14,227
that is our contribution to public safety. So we want to make sure that we continue to provide those

1835
03:18:18,794 --> 03:18:18,794
services in our representation. Next slide, please.

1836
03:18:26,761 --> 03:18:29,994
really quickly we want you all to know that this strategic plan of course is consistent with the county's overall strategic plan,

1837
03:18:32,961 --> 03:18:32,961
which is to of course move away from its overreliance on the

1838
03:18:37,994 --> 03:18:37,994
private bar as well as to make harris county a safer and more

1839
03:18:42,294 --> 03:18:42,294
just county, hence our holistic approach.

1840
03:18:48,027 --> 03:18:50,727
next slide, please. And you can actually move to the next slide. We will focus primarily on the

1841
03:18:53,527 --> 03:18:56,194
breadth portion of this. Meaning taking the services that we already do and scaling that. And so in looking at the breadth

1842
03:19:01,694 --> 03:19:01,694
portion of this, you can skip to the next slide.

1843
03:19:05,861 --> 03:19:05,861
we are looking -- the framework is in two ways.

1844
03:19:11,294 --> 03:19:13,994
expanding our existing services so we want to look at a target of getting to 50% by the end of fiscal year 2031.

1845
03:19:21,094 --> 03:19:23,694
and in calculating whether or not we are meeting that goal, we want to make sure we are all working from the same

1846
03:19:27,927 --> 03:19:29,894
measurement. So we want to establish a measurement for how you see the percentage of our share.

1847
03:19:35,561 --> 03:19:37,894
and I think this is also later in the presentation, I want to take a moment to shout out the office of court administration,

1848
03:19:42,294 --> 03:19:42,294
they have been very helpful with us in figuring out a good and

1849
03:19:46,327 --> 03:19:49,627
accurate way to calculate our percentage of the case share. It is currently calculated by appointment, right?

1850
03:19:53,827 --> 03:19:57,227
so there are multiple appointments in one case with the private bar. That gets counted multiple

1851
03:20:00,727 --> 03:20:02,461
times. Instead, when we get appointed to a case, it gets counted once. So it has a way of

1852
03:20:05,927 --> 03:20:05,927
overinflating, in some cases, the private bar's share of

1853
03:20:10,561 --> 03:20:13,794
appointments. So we will now be working to also calculate our case share by the percentage of cases.

1854
03:20:18,261 --> 03:20:18,261
so one case will be looking at who gets appointed and that way

1855
03:20:23,594 --> 03:20:23,594
over inflate the private bar's percentage of the case share

1856
03:20:27,827 --> 03:20:30,694
cactus that make sense to everyone? >> chief, I know that commissioner ellis and

1857
03:20:33,461 --> 03:20:35,461
commissioner garcia have their hands up, I just want to give an opportunity to see if you guys want to -- let her finish?

1858
03:20:39,794 --> 03:20:40,661
okay. Commissioner garcia, do you want to stop for a moment to ask a question?

1859
03:20:45,527 --> 03:20:47,661
>> no, ma'am. You finish your presentation. >> I will continue. If at any moment you do have a

1860
03:20:50,461 --> 03:20:50,461
question, please stop me. So we are looking at the one

1861
03:20:56,061 --> 03:20:58,994
part of expanding our current services and I already mentioned that the second part of this expansion includes getting into

1862
03:21:04,927 --> 03:21:08,327
case types that we don't currently do, which is capital cases. So we will talk about both of

1863
03:21:09,961 --> 03:21:09,961
those in this presentation. Next slide, please.

1864
03:21:14,594 --> 03:21:17,761
so I want to talk about where we currently are in our case here. And I think this slide is really important.

1865
03:21:20,361 --> 03:21:23,861
not only to give us a lay of the land and where we are now, but to really highlight the work that has been done in the last

1866
03:21:26,894 --> 03:21:28,994
several years. And in particular, the last 12 months. We've seen a lot of growth.

1867
03:21:31,761 --> 03:21:34,327
currently our office handles 100% of the bail hearings. We are essentially the only lawyers that represent people at

1868
03:21:37,561 --> 03:21:41,494
their initial appearance at the joint processing center at their bail hearings. We also currently handle

1869
03:21:45,827 --> 03:21:49,094
approximately 48% of cases. So we are nearly half there. We also handle 49% of juvenile cases.

1870
03:21:50,994 --> 03:21:50,994
so we are nearly half there. In the misdemeanor courts, we

1871
03:21:56,327 --> 03:21:59,561
currently represent 32% of people appointed counsel. This time last year we were at 16%.

1872
03:22:02,261 --> 03:22:02,261
that is a pretty big jump in the last 12 months.

1873
03:22:06,761 --> 03:22:09,194
and we are excited about that accelerated growth. And we are currently at 50% in felony courts.

1874
03:22:12,761 --> 03:22:15,294
so that of course is the place with the most opportunity. And we will talk a little bit about how we plan to get there

1875
03:22:18,527 --> 03:22:20,661
for that. I have already spoken about the updated methodology about how we calculate our case share.

1876
03:22:24,427 --> 03:22:27,794
so no need to go over that. But I think this particular slide highlights the momentum that we have at this point.

1877
03:22:30,861 --> 03:22:30,861
and we are asking the court to continue to support that

1878
03:22:36,794 --> 03:22:39,294
momentum. Next slide. So this slide is where it gets a little bit complicated.

1879
03:22:44,394 --> 03:22:47,661
my very sharp team, they love the numbers. So we crunch it a lot of different ways.

1880
03:22:49,527 --> 03:22:49,527
so you will see these models in pie graphs, line graphs,

1881
03:22:54,227 --> 03:22:57,594
whatever we think may appeal to the way people receive information. So I appreciate them for doing

1882
03:22:59,961 --> 03:23:02,094
that. But what I really want to highlight is that we have scenario one, scenario two and

1883
03:23:05,627 --> 03:23:05,627
scenario three for how you would get to a 50% case share.

1884
03:23:09,761 --> 03:23:09,761
in the next three years. All of these are extraordinarily

1885
03:23:16,227 --> 03:23:19,027
aggressive. So I need to preface it with that. And the first scenario, scenario

1886
03:23:22,861 --> 03:23:25,861
one, which is essentially mirroring our ask this year for the budget, it really is a three year plan that assumes all

1887
03:23:31,194 --> 03:23:33,994
things are perfect. That we get all of our budget, that we have all types of law students leaving law school that

1888
03:23:37,027 --> 03:23:40,494
want to be public defenders, that we are able to track lateral hires. That case filings stay stagnant,

1889
03:23:43,761 --> 03:23:47,161
that the courts appoint us at the rate that they should. So as harris county is well aware, perfect conditions are

1890
03:23:50,561 --> 03:23:50,561
yet to be seen in harris county. I just want to preface it with

1891
03:23:54,794 --> 03:23:56,994
that. We also have scenario two and scenario three and the changes in these scenarios account for

1892
03:24:00,561 --> 03:24:04,427
some of those changes. So if we have a slower hiring rate or if case filings go up in any way.

1893
03:24:08,194 --> 03:24:08,194
our budget ask is consistent with scenario one.

1894
03:24:13,961 --> 03:24:17,027
with a caveat that I would argue that since we never have perfect conditions, that the three year time frame is not a realistic

1895
03:24:21,861 --> 03:24:21,861
time frame. So I would say that scenario one

1896
03:24:26,427 --> 03:24:30,027
plus a five year timeline is what is really more of a realistic and responsible way to grow as well as still a very

1897
03:24:35,061 --> 03:24:35,061
aggressive plan. I would like to point out at

1898
03:24:40,194 --> 03:24:42,961
this point -- we have seen some growth in all of our areas and I have to shout out some of our partners that have been helpful

1899
03:24:45,961 --> 03:24:49,694
in this year with some of the growth that we have already seen. In our misdemeanor courts, the

1900
03:24:51,961 --> 03:24:51,961
judges have really leaned in to working with our office, the

1901
03:24:57,094 --> 03:24:59,927
office of managed design counsel to make sure that indigent defense is where it should be. So we have seen significant --

1902
03:25:03,794 --> 03:25:06,561
>> is there a motion -- >> continuing until we finish the item. >> motion, seconded to continue

1903
03:25:08,994 --> 03:25:11,994
until we finish the item, all in favor any opposed? The motion carries unanimously, go ahead.

1904
03:25:13,961 --> 03:25:17,527
>> I will move quickly. So we have seen a lot of growth there. But I want to highlight that

1905
03:25:19,227 --> 03:25:19,227
that is really a result of the judges leaning into what is

1906
03:25:25,027 --> 03:25:27,794
necessary and working with my office. So we have seen a lot of improvement in that area.

1907
03:25:30,827 --> 03:25:34,461
I think what you will hear is that we have seen a decrease in calls, but that is also accompanied with an increase in

1908
03:25:37,194 --> 03:25:40,894
our ability to get a larger percentage of the case share. In our felony courts, we have received support from oca and

1909
03:25:47,627 --> 03:25:50,561
adding what we call a sunday drop, we have not traditionally been appointed cases from the weekend, we now do that, which

1910
03:25:55,694 --> 03:25:59,561
averages nearly about 80-85 additional cases each week. We currently don't even have the capacity to accept all of those,

1911
03:26:02,361 --> 03:26:06,027
but we are trying to get there. But that has been a really big help. That is a change we made in the

1912
03:26:07,594 --> 03:26:10,961
last month and we have already seen at least a two percentage increase in just that month. Additionally, we have expanded

1913
03:26:15,127 --> 03:26:15,127
our misdemeanor mental health defense to felony and three

1914
03:26:19,627 --> 03:26:23,227
courts, we are about to add a fourth that is also helping to increase our percentage of the case share in felony courts.

1915
03:26:29,961 --> 03:26:33,361
next slide, please. It is a little bit of an easier target for misdemeanor. We are well on our way, we went

1916
03:26:37,594 --> 03:26:40,594
from 16 to 32%. So I do think that a three year time frame for getting to 50% is more realistic.

1917
03:26:43,827 --> 03:26:45,594
we just have the wind at our back. We have automation, we have judicial support, we have the

1918
03:26:49,061 --> 03:26:51,261
mac. So we do think that the conditions are right there with the appropriate funding that we

1919
03:26:53,594 --> 03:26:53,594
can get to that 50% within the three year time frame.

1920
03:27:01,894 --> 03:27:03,961
next slide, please. I'm going to breeze past a few of these because several of these show the same information

1921
03:27:07,761 --> 03:27:11,361
but in a different way. So you can see here it talks about what it looks like to see this growth in scenario one and

1922
03:27:16,894 --> 03:27:16,894
how it would look for the felony and misdemeanor cases getting to

1923
03:27:21,894 --> 03:27:24,994
50%. Next slide, please. Same for this slide. For felonies, this shows

1924
03:27:29,427 --> 03:27:31,427
scenario one versus scenario three. So you can see getting to 50% by the end of fy25, versus the end

1925
03:27:35,461 --> 03:27:35,461
of getting to it by fy23. Which is our suggestion.

1926
03:27:41,894 --> 03:27:41,894
next slide, please. Just a glimpse at how we look at

1927
03:27:48,694 --> 03:27:52,327
our budget forecasting. So most of what we think about is our capacity. What lawyers do we need, support

1928
03:27:55,994 --> 03:27:59,427
staff, any funds we need to support our efforts. That is primarily what guides our budget decisions.

1929
03:28:02,027 --> 03:28:02,027
also case assignments. Any pilots.

1930
03:28:07,727 --> 03:28:10,294
this is how we've been using our existing budget to pilot these things and we are planning to do so in the upcoming year.

1931
03:28:14,327 --> 03:28:14,327
and also external factors that our office has to adjust to.

1932
03:28:25,127 --> 03:28:25,127
next slide, please. This allows you to get a glimpse

1933
03:28:32,661 --> 03:28:32,661
of our fy27 ask. You can see the ask here, you

1934
03:28:38,427 --> 03:28:38,427
can see 79 felony attorneys and we are asking to add 22 who go

1935
03:28:45,561 --> 03:28:45,561
into felony division as well as 35 attorneys for our program

1936
03:28:50,861 --> 03:28:54,861
that go into the misdemeanor and bail divisions. And so the second chart there kind of gives an idea there of

1937
03:28:58,494 --> 03:29:02,161
scenario one scenario two scenario three. With our ask being more akin to scenario one.

1938
03:29:07,427 --> 03:29:10,361
next slide, please. All right, the moment you have all been waiting for. We have had several

1939
03:29:16,727 --> 03:29:16,727
conversations with people about adding capital representation to

1940
03:29:21,827 --> 03:29:21,827
our office. So we want to address that.

1941
03:29:27,461 --> 03:29:30,561
you mentioned this in our conversations with commissioner garcia, we want to spend fy27 really assessing what that looks

1942
03:29:33,961 --> 03:29:37,194
like. What is the current state of capital representation, what is the cost, what is the most

1943
03:29:39,227 --> 03:29:39,227
effective way for us to affect that representation as well as

1944
03:29:43,627 --> 03:29:46,027
that cost? It is also important to note that it would be more than this court supporting it from a

1945
03:29:49,994 --> 03:29:52,827
budget standpoint. It would be more than me having lawyers in my office ready to do that work.

1946
03:29:57,394 --> 03:29:57,394
the capital list is, for lack of a better term, controlled by the

1947
03:30:03,861 --> 03:30:06,594
11th judicial district. Judge susan brown decides who is on that list. So we need to work with the

1948
03:30:09,527 --> 03:30:09,527
courts with judge brown to be added to that list.

1949
03:30:13,561 --> 03:30:13,561
so it is a longer conversation, there are lots of things there

1950
03:30:17,894 --> 03:30:17,894
that need to happen before we are able to commit to taking

1951
03:30:22,627 --> 03:30:24,494
capital cases. But what we can commit to is making sure that we do an appropriate assessment this year

1952
03:30:27,561 --> 03:30:27,561
and coming back to this court with a recommendation in 28 that

1953
03:30:32,094 --> 03:30:32,094
will likely accompany of course, a budget ask to get into that

1954
03:30:36,294 --> 03:30:39,494
area of practice. I will stop for a second there. Are there any questions related to capital cases?

1955
03:30:44,061 --> 03:30:47,127
>> commissioner garcia? >> yes. Chief, I couldn't be more grateful to you for your work

1956
03:30:51,694 --> 03:30:53,327
over all. Just in hitting the ground running as our public defender. But I do want to absolutely say

1957
03:31:00,294 --> 03:31:01,761
thank you for your thoughtfulness in working to build this new capacity within your office.

1958
03:31:07,761 --> 03:31:11,061
I see it from a couple of vantage points. One is that there have been individuals in our custody that

1959
03:31:16,394 --> 03:31:16,394
have been charged with capital offenses and have been there for

1960
03:31:24,294 --> 03:31:27,361
years. Because they're hired or assigned counsel just wasn't working to get the job done.

1961
03:31:32,661 --> 03:31:32,661
so that coupled with the fact that this is one of our more

1962
03:31:36,894 --> 03:31:36,894
costly areas when we have folks get assigned defendants, I think

1963
03:31:43,627 --> 03:31:43,627
that is also a effective part of your career, a career path for

1964
03:31:50,327 --> 03:31:50,327
your office. So I was just anxiously waiting

1965
03:31:55,694 --> 03:31:55,694
as I went through your report, waiting to see where the capital

1966
03:32:01,127 --> 03:32:03,961
capacity was going to be discussed and I was so excited when I saw it. So I just want to say thank you.

1967
03:32:07,594 --> 03:32:10,227
and that harris county is absolutely much better because of your work as our public defender.

1968
03:32:12,627 --> 03:32:12,627
thank you so very much. And I will be ready to help

1969
03:32:19,327 --> 03:32:21,894
support your work, because we are absolutely moving in the right direction, thank you very much.

1970
03:32:24,127 --> 03:32:26,994
>> thank you, I appreciate that. I will fast forward really quickly to the depth portion of this and what the depth focus is

1971
03:32:29,561 --> 03:32:32,194
on is just making sure that we are able to maintain the people that we have. We want to make sure we are

1972
03:32:34,294 --> 03:32:36,727
taking care of the folks that we have because it doesn't help for us to grow. And if people are jumping out of

1973
03:32:39,794 --> 03:32:43,127
the back door, I have already mentioned we have very talented professionals that work there at the harris county public

1974
03:32:45,861 --> 03:32:48,561
defender's office. So this portion will be focused on making sure that we have pay parity, which the county has

1975
03:32:51,661 --> 03:32:54,227
been really good about supporting us and we want to make sure that they have manageable workloads, that they

1976
03:32:56,861 --> 03:32:59,894
have the appropriate training and supervision. And the resources that they need to do this work.

1977
03:33:02,161 --> 03:33:02,161
so I would be remiss to submit a plan that does not include

1978
03:33:07,194 --> 03:33:10,661
making sure that we support our existing group of professionals so that we don't lose them. And so you will see throughout

1979
03:33:14,761 --> 03:33:18,161
the depth portion what that looks like. We have been taking a look at other offices to see how they

1980
03:33:21,527 --> 03:33:24,561
retain, recruit, we have been recruiting students from all over the country, 18 different schools for this incoming class

1981
03:33:28,361 --> 03:33:32,327
and we want to continue to do this nationwide recruiting effort. So if you take a look here, you

1982
03:33:33,861 --> 03:33:37,094
can kind of see what we have been doing. But I think it speaks for itself.

1983
03:33:39,261 --> 03:33:41,927
so I will save us all some time there. We can skip right to the holistic portion, which talks

1984
03:33:46,727 --> 03:33:50,327
about our holistic work. A few slides down. And I just want to point out a few things about our holistic

1985
03:33:55,861 --> 03:33:59,361
division. This fiscal year we have supported 1559 clients and connecting them with housing,

1986
03:34:01,761 --> 03:34:04,227
treatment or supportive services. We have worked with our misdemeanor court judges and

1987
03:34:06,527 --> 03:34:09,361
their fresh start program to ensure that people conceal their record after they have completed the conditions of their case.

1988
03:34:13,861 --> 03:34:13,861
we have a huge supreme court win out of our holistic division

1989
03:34:19,927 --> 03:34:19,927
where the opinion noted this county s support of a holistic

1990
03:34:24,861 --> 03:34:28,594
indigent defense program. So we have had a very successful year and our holistic division, I have no doubt it will have an

1991
03:34:31,194 --> 03:34:31,194
impact on public safety. I think that concludes most of

1992
03:34:36,694 --> 03:34:39,261
what I wanted to speak with you all about. I wanted to give a few minutes for any questions, if anyone

1993
03:34:43,161 --> 03:34:43,161
should have any. >> commissioner ellis and then

1994
03:34:49,861 --> 03:34:49,861
commissioner briones. >> I want to thank you, judge.

1995
03:34:53,927 --> 03:34:53,927
it says a lot about you that you would walk off the bench to take

1996
03:34:59,727 --> 03:35:01,827
this position. It's your passion, I know the first thing you did when you got out of law school was be a

1997
03:35:06,161 --> 03:35:07,661
public defender. And it really says a lot about you that you give up the independence of running your

1998
03:35:12,694 --> 03:35:12,694
courtroom to come and be with the wonderful five of us.

1999
03:35:16,827 --> 03:35:19,294
it really does say a lot about you. That office was handling 6% of cases, if my memory serves me

2000
03:35:24,527 --> 03:35:27,427
right. You went back to 2018, you show 6.7. But when I got in in 2017, was

2001
03:35:30,427 --> 03:35:30,427
handling 6% of the cases. And to be where you are now at

2002
03:35:35,194 --> 03:35:35,194
22% of the cases is phenomenal. It was 72,000 cases in 2018 and

2003
03:35:47,527 --> 03:35:48,994
91,000. And we made that commitment, that goal to get up to 50% unanimously, it's going to get a

2004
03:35:57,061 --> 03:36:00,761
bipartisan vote. It said a lot about us. So at the appropriate time I will make a motion to keep that

2005
03:36:05,661 --> 03:36:05,661
50% in place. And I will read it now, I think

2006
03:36:10,461 --> 03:36:13,861
I sent it around, I will move the public defender's office, in accordance with its august sixth, 2026 strategic

2007
03:36:17,861 --> 03:36:17,861
plan, increase this capacity, take at least 50% of defense

2008
03:36:23,327 --> 03:36:27,194
case appointments by 2031 as the office expands, it should ensure that best practices are met, including workload standards,

2009
03:36:31,661 --> 03:36:35,194
training, provision for holistic services, recruitment and retention efforts. And I will stress -- I. Was

2010
03:36:38,394 --> 03:36:38,394
joking earlier about our eyes being bigger than our stomachs.

2011
03:36:42,494 --> 03:36:44,361
commissioner ramsey, we need your help. Particularly your help because we need to go back in and reform

2012
03:36:49,861 --> 03:36:49,861
that defense act passed in 2001. Because this would be revenue

2013
03:36:54,994 --> 03:36:57,194
neutral. We can get there if we stop that other big item that drops a big hole in this budget.

2014
03:37:02,594 --> 03:37:02,594
when the judges come in and by law we have to pay it.

2015
03:37:09,061 --> 03:37:11,627
and the quality of representation that people get when it's at a public defender's office is so much better than

2016
03:37:15,594 --> 03:37:15,594
those court appointed lawyers, just a whole notion just reeks

2017
03:37:20,861 --> 03:37:20,861
of a foul odor, the idea of a judge picking the lawyer to

2018
03:37:27,094 --> 03:37:30,494
represent somebody accused of a crime in that courtroom. Nobody in their right mind would ever think the judge ought to

2019
03:37:34,161 --> 03:37:34,161
pick the prosecutor, that is just not the way you get the

2020
03:37:39,627 --> 03:37:40,527
justice. But commissioner ramsey, I'm waiting on you. I will do everything I can when

2021
03:37:43,694 --> 03:37:43,694
we pass that fair defense. Stated the $113 billion biannual

2022
03:37:50,361 --> 03:37:53,194
budget is much bigger now, but it is the first time the state put any money in indigent defense.

2023
03:37:56,261 --> 03:37:59,494
it is a constitutional requirement. But we have to foot the bill. State just putting a nickel in

2024
03:38:04,694 --> 03:38:04,694
in the general fund. And that bill comes from the f

2025
03:38:10,861 --> 03:38:12,627
fee. It's a fee on people that want their day in court. And they were just using it,

2026
03:38:16,461 --> 03:38:19,761
smoke and mirrors to balance the budget. So I swept the fund and put the money somewhere.

2027
03:38:22,694 --> 03:38:24,094
it was just sitting there not being used. But that's an awful way to fund indigent defense, off the backs

2028
03:38:28,527 --> 03:38:31,694
of people going into the system that want their day in court. I hope they make that change and it's an appropriate time to move

2029
03:38:34,661 --> 03:38:34,661
the motion. >> I will second it.

2030
03:38:39,327 --> 03:38:39,327
>> commissioner briones, ramsey and garcia.

2031
03:38:43,494 --> 03:38:46,027
>> chief draper, and this last year, to see what you and your team have accomplished is deeply energizing and I have profound

2032
03:38:52,394 --> 03:38:52,394
gratitude, thank you. Several things.

2033
03:38:57,427 --> 03:38:57,427
first, I would love to hear just very briefly, in terms of

2034
03:39:01,494 --> 03:39:05,094
outcome measures. So as we continue to grow, the amount of representation, how are we tracking exactly the

2035
03:39:12,227 --> 03:39:13,927
outcome measures? Because to me it's clear as day, we get higher quality at lower cost with the public defender

2036
03:39:17,694 --> 03:39:20,294
office, how are you tracking that? >> this office has a long history -- even though we are a

2037
03:39:22,461 --> 03:39:25,961
young office, we have a history of tracking our outcomes. So we will continue to do that. We have phenomenal data analysts

2038
03:39:30,561 --> 03:39:30,561
on our team who track time to disposition, length of time in

2039
03:39:37,161 --> 03:39:40,061
jail, acquittals, dismissals, all of the things. We track those types of things and our office, in addition we

2040
03:39:42,894 --> 03:39:42,894
will be adding more formalized evaluation process to make sure

2041
03:39:48,561 --> 03:39:51,827
that it's not a moving target. Lawyers know what is expected of them and have an opportunity to achieve those goals.

2042
03:39:55,127 --> 03:39:55,127
but we have regularly tracked that we generally put it out by

2043
03:39:59,394 --> 03:40:01,227
report. But we have that information at the ready. >> and particularly, thank you

2044
03:40:04,427 --> 03:40:04,427
for the holistic approach with which you do defense.

2045
03:40:08,761 --> 03:40:11,794
to piggyback on what commissioner ellis was saying, we are waiting on the final draft from the auditor.

2046
03:40:14,894 --> 03:40:14,894
but we requested yet another report, itemizing the private

2047
03:40:19,494 --> 03:40:19,494
counsel that had been appointed. And there is usually around a

2048
03:40:24,427 --> 03:40:27,027
dozen each year that make more than a million or right about a million. So we are paying more for less

2049
03:40:29,161 --> 03:40:31,194
and they don't have the case caps. And that is deeply problematic from a quality of justice and

2050
03:40:34,894 --> 03:40:34,894
deeply problematic from a fiduciary perspective and a

2051
03:40:39,627 --> 03:40:41,894
planning perspective. So I cannot wait for us to hit this at least 50%. And I just appreciate the

2052
03:40:47,027 --> 03:40:50,727
quality with which you represent these individuals. So my question is, just to confirm, my understanding is

2053
03:40:56,227 --> 03:40:59,561
they are working to commissioner ellis's point in this bipartisanship, commissioner ramsey, that we will need when

2054
03:41:02,761 --> 03:41:02,761
we have these private attorneys that I know one in particular,

2055
03:41:08,794 --> 03:41:08,794
vouchered 1000 felony cases in fy24.

2056
03:41:13,394 --> 03:41:14,694
1000. And we need tons of improvement as to when the vouchers are due and this continuous oversight

2057
03:41:20,361 --> 03:41:24,094
and transparency. We have many streams of work and progress that are indigent defense here in harris county

2058
03:41:26,061 --> 03:41:29,927
and I look forward to executing all of the different levers. But my question to you is, could you please just, so that

2059
03:41:32,861 --> 03:41:36,761
everyone is level set in terms of the case cap at your office, can you please remind us of that?

2060
03:41:39,794 --> 03:41:43,161
>> sure. For felonies, our attorneys are kept at 128 cases and for misdemeanors it is 226.

2061
03:41:47,727 --> 03:41:50,794
that is consistent with the standards that have been working for us thus far. >> and for clarity, we will get

2062
03:41:53,261 --> 03:41:56,727
into it more when we have the final updated report from the auditor, but to be clear, these private attorneys who are being

2063
03:42:01,427 --> 03:42:04,427
appointed, they are not subject to this case cap, correct? >> that is correct. >> and we have no insight to all

2064
03:42:07,627 --> 03:42:10,561
of the other cases they are handling in other counties, and their own private practices, et cetera?

2065
03:42:15,027 --> 03:42:18,361
correct? And   that is deeply problematic. Any thoughts?

2066
03:42:19,527 --> 03:42:19,527
>> I make no secret to that. It is in the best interest of

2067
03:42:25,561 --> 03:42:28,394
the county of people accused of crimes to have people with reasonable case laws. Because what is a fantastic

2068
03:42:31,961 --> 03:42:35,694
lawyer can quickly become not a fantastic lawyer. And a terrible lawyer when they are overloaded.

2069
03:42:38,427 --> 03:42:38,427
so I have a lot of interest in making sure that all attorneys

2070
03:42:42,461 --> 03:42:45,094
are handling cases in an appropriate way. >> thank you for everything you do to provide quality defense

2071
03:42:48,094 --> 03:42:48,094
and I cannot wait to hit 2031 and like the commissioner, I

2072
03:42:53,227 --> 03:42:56,427
cannot wait to add the capital component as well that is so needed. And I thank you for your service

2073
03:42:58,227 --> 03:42:58,227
and count me in 100%. >> thank you.

2074
03:43:03,194 --> 03:43:03,194
>> thank you. >> commissioner ellis?

2075
03:43:07,294 --> 03:43:07,294
commissioner ramsey and then commissioner garcia?

2076
03:43:13,294 --> 03:43:15,761
>> thank you for -- I know you may be surprised on what I am about to say, thank you for the powerpoint.

2077
03:43:19,527 --> 03:43:20,927
>> you're welcome. >> I normally don't think anybody for any kind of powerpoint but facts matter.

2078
03:43:26,394 --> 03:43:26,394
and the most important thing than anything bipartisan, is

2079
03:43:31,961 --> 03:43:33,961
being organized. And you are going to make that case really well. What we have now, unfortunately

2080
03:43:39,627 --> 03:43:39,627
in harris county, is chaos. It is not any particular

2081
03:43:44,327 --> 03:43:47,894
person's fault. But we find ourselves with an overloaded court system. People are spending far too much

2082
03:43:51,327 --> 03:43:51,327
time in jail. I think one of the things I read

2083
03:43:56,094 --> 03:43:57,994
in the constitution was a speedy trial. We are not doing a very good job on a speedy trial side of

2084
03:44:04,061 --> 03:44:06,161
things. The people I visited with on occasion in the county jail, some of them have been there far

2085
03:44:09,961 --> 03:44:12,261
too long. The court will decide their guilt or their innocence but no one should have to sit in jail

2086
03:44:16,761 --> 03:44:16,761
as long as some of these folks have had to sit in jail.

2087
03:44:20,961 --> 03:44:20,961
I think you were the key to making that more effective in

2088
03:44:25,861 --> 03:44:29,394
terms of representation, the court, get the process moving. I know you were spending time with judges.

2089
03:44:32,727 --> 03:44:32,727
and they are telling that there is a better way.

2090
03:44:36,961 --> 03:44:36,961
I echo the concerns that commissioner briones has with

2091
03:44:43,194 --> 03:44:46,727
the public sector. I was consulted for many years. I think there is a place for folks to come in from the public

2092
03:44:50,427 --> 03:44:53,294
private sector and provide support. We shouldn't be running it. And at this point, I think

2093
03:45:00,227 --> 03:45:00,227
mr. Ramos and I are extremely optimistic in terms of if we can

2094
03:45:05,527 --> 03:45:05,527
get the courts organized at the dare I say it judges organized

2095
03:45:12,294 --> 03:45:12,294
and how they invoice for attorney's fees, the process

2096
03:45:16,327 --> 03:45:20,127
according to attorney's fees, we need to start tracking the number of cases that an attorney is handling.

2097
03:45:24,827 --> 03:45:24,827
I know that if I was working for harris county doing engineering

2098
03:45:29,894 --> 03:45:29,894
work, and I had 25 assignments at one time, using the same

2099
03:45:34,627 --> 03:45:34,627
project manager, I would probably fire them.

2100
03:45:40,361 --> 03:45:44,227
because there is enough effort to monitor what people do. It is very difficult to monitor the level of effort and the

2101
03:45:49,461 --> 03:45:49,461
quality of effort that they do. So you are going to find a great

2102
03:45:55,627 --> 03:45:59,027
bit of support, bipartisan support in trying to accomplish what you are doing. I think we've just got to keep

2103
03:46:03,761 --> 03:46:03,761
our eye on the speedy trial part, keep our eye on the waste

2104
03:46:09,927 --> 03:46:13,861
that is the nature of court appointed attorneys. Not saying any one of them necessarily wake up to do bad

2105
03:46:18,261 --> 03:46:21,861
things, but when you are spending that much money over that. Of time, there is something I

2106
03:46:23,861 --> 03:46:23,861
think that we can do better. Thank you chief.

2107
03:46:28,861 --> 03:46:32,227
I look forward to this getting better every year. >> thank you. >> commissioner garcia?

2108
03:46:36,861 --> 03:46:39,994
>> thank you again for your work. I wanted to number 1, just hear it from you, I know what's

2109
03:46:47,127 --> 03:46:49,827
happening. But aside from capital, it's to make sure that we are growing or at least maintaining our

2110
03:46:57,961 --> 03:46:57,961
immigration specialization capacity within your team.

2111
03:47:07,794 --> 03:47:07,794
and I didn't see that spelled out but I know that it is

2112
03:47:12,061 --> 03:47:13,894
happening. So can I just have you comment on that? >> sure.

2113
03:47:17,761 --> 03:47:20,494
that is an ever increasing important part of our office, given all that is happening right now.

2114
03:47:22,494 --> 03:47:26,494
people are in desperate need of making sure that they understand their exposure where it relates to their status here in this

2115
03:47:32,094 --> 03:47:34,994
country. So we have an immigration division, that division currently does not provide

2116
03:47:37,394 --> 03:47:37,394
direct representation, what they do provide is advice related to

2117
03:47:43,327 --> 03:47:45,527
how a criminal case may affect their status. We provide that not only to attorneys within our office, we

2118
03:47:50,327 --> 03:47:50,327
also provide that advice to private attorneys who submit a

2119
03:47:54,727 --> 03:47:57,727
referral and have a question. So we do provide that as well to the private bar. In this particular fiscal year,

2120
03:48:01,227 --> 03:48:05,194
we did not make an ask as you have heard, this is a tough year. So we did try and although a big

2121
03:48:07,827 --> 03:48:10,461
ask, it is still a conservative ask based on all of the things that we need. So in this particular year, we

2122
03:48:12,761 --> 03:48:12,761
did not have a specific ask to grow that division.

2123
03:48:17,427 --> 03:48:20,161
but to your point it is well taken, we do need to make sure we keep pace and that we are able to continue to provide that

2124
03:48:23,527 --> 03:48:23,527
very necessary advice to people accused of crimes.

2125
03:48:34,394 --> 03:48:37,661
>> chief, just brief on this one. And I don't know if this is necessarily a question for you,

2126
03:48:40,361 --> 03:48:40,361
I think it might be. But on the fact that we -- that

2127
03:48:44,994 --> 03:48:44,994
there are still so many cases where the attorney is -- there

2128
03:48:52,027 --> 03:48:54,927
are still so many attorneys that the county pays an enormous amount of money to. And on the other hand, we have

2129
03:48:59,061 --> 03:49:03,061
this budget deficit and we know that is an area where as we improve indigent defense through the public defender's office, we

2130
03:49:05,427 --> 03:49:05,427
are going to save some money. I see your piece of this, or

2131
03:49:10,994 --> 03:49:10,994
your efforts here as being perhaps a piece of that goal.

2132
03:49:15,594 --> 03:49:19,494
and I'm just wondering, what the other parts of that goal are. In other words, this is in your hands and it is in our hands to

2133
03:49:23,161 --> 03:49:27,127
the extent that we support you and that we support you with the county budget, which I am committed to doing.

2134
03:49:29,894 --> 03:49:32,694
but what else could we be doing independently of funding your office and your efforts in order to change that?

2135
03:49:37,694 --> 03:49:37,694
>> this is a really large question.

2136
03:49:41,794 --> 03:49:45,027
and I will try to answer it in some succinct ways. I do think that -- some people have asked when will we start to

2137
03:49:48,327 --> 03:49:50,827
see some savings? What I can tell you is when you will start to see us take a larger percentage of cases.

2138
03:49:54,094 --> 03:49:58,061
or when you can start to see us accepting fewer vouchers because we are handling those cases. There is not the same level of

2139
03:50:02,694 --> 03:50:02,694
oversight in a felony case for what is happening with those

2140
03:50:08,327 --> 03:50:09,627
vouchers. So I encourage you all to continue to work with our courts and we are doing the same and

2141
03:50:12,894 --> 03:50:12,894
the other office is doing the same to try and get some support

2142
03:50:18,561 --> 03:50:21,461
there for the private bar. Because I do think that is where we are going to start to see some efforts for efficiency

2143
03:50:27,894 --> 03:50:29,961
purposes. I think if you look at the misdemeanor model, where the public defender works in tandem

2144
03:50:32,894 --> 03:50:36,194
and there is no way to circumvent it because we have now automated it, the system works.

2145
03:50:38,727 --> 03:50:41,994
you cannot go around it. So while there have been bumps in the road in building that, every important change is.

2146
03:50:46,594 --> 03:50:49,527
but that is where we are going to see savings, that is where we are going to see better representation, that is where we

2147
03:50:51,994 --> 03:50:55,227
will see quality and oversight and accountability. So I would say to really focus on how we get more support and

2148
03:51:00,627 --> 03:51:00,627
oversight for the private bar. And the other area I am not in

2149
03:51:06,694 --> 03:51:06,694
the business of necessarily championing every one, but there

2150
03:51:11,727 --> 03:51:14,994
are some cross shared goals, is what I would say with some of our other stakeholders. We have some bottleneck

2151
03:51:17,894 --> 03:51:20,894
happening at the jpc, so we are very supportive of pretrial services and making sure that they are supported in the way

2152
03:51:22,727 --> 03:51:22,727
that they need to be there so that people are not housed there

2153
03:51:27,461 --> 03:51:27,461
for longer than necessary. And the same for the ask about

2154
03:51:31,927 --> 03:51:33,961
magistrates. That has been an ongoing issue, even dating back during my time in the judiciary and I do think

2155
03:51:37,894 --> 03:51:40,961
that those salaries are no longer competitive enough to do what we need to do here in the county.

2156
03:51:43,494 --> 03:51:43,494
so those are some areas that our office is invested in making

2157
03:51:48,994 --> 03:51:50,794
sure that those areas are supported as well. So that the system works as well as it can for the people who

2158
03:51:54,161 --> 03:51:58,061
have to encounter it. >> and maybe -- I. Don't know if you have this off the top of your head, director ramos or

2159
03:52:02,794 --> 03:52:05,594
even chief, the amounts of the paper that I know did something on this, some of these attorneys that the judges select, they are

2160
03:52:11,661 --> 03:52:14,527
getting paid -- it's like -- am I right, it's upwards of a million dollars in some cases? Or did that get corrected?

2161
03:52:19,027 --> 03:52:22,027
>> that is correct, there are some attorneys that are at a million dollar plus. But we also don't know how much

2162
03:52:25,561 --> 03:52:28,994
they have in private clients. >> right. So that is almost like -- that is just us, right?

2163
03:52:34,861 --> 03:52:34,861
and so I do think -- we were talking earlier about a

2164
03:52:40,494 --> 03:52:43,861
particular legal case being unique. And I think that there is some -- some tangential parallel here

2165
03:52:54,527 --> 03:52:54,527
and that a million dollars for attorneys that are representing

2166
03:52:59,527 --> 03:52:59,527
people whose freedom is at stake, who might not have done

2167
03:53:04,294 --> 03:53:08,194
what is being said they did and then us having to pay that amount of money when we are facing a structural deficit, it

2168
03:53:12,027 --> 03:53:12,027
just seems like something that we really should tackle more in

2169
03:53:17,061 --> 03:53:17,061
earnest. So I am just wondering if jay or

2170
03:53:21,527 --> 03:53:24,494
team, if there is anything in here that we can use this opportunity to make a motion or direct that the folks that are

2171
03:53:29,061 --> 03:53:29,061
working on the criminal justice issues, really dig in on this.

2172
03:53:34,461 --> 03:53:37,694
and what we as a commissioners court can do. And I would say perhaps ahead of the budget discussions, is this

2173
03:53:42,694 --> 03:53:46,561
a way to find savings? Or something we can start now that will produce savings next year.

2174
03:53:50,361 --> 03:53:50,361
because not only is it really just wrong and wasteful, but it

2175
03:53:56,361 --> 03:53:56,361
also is a low-hanging fruit when we are in a tough financial

2176
03:54:02,361 --> 03:54:04,927
position. So is that possible? Are you already working together on that?

2177
03:54:06,827 --> 03:54:09,994
what can we do? >> I would say there's a lot of work with the stakeholders to try and come up with some

2178
03:54:13,327 --> 03:54:15,794
solutions here. What I will say is that I think a really important step is investing in the space.

2179
03:54:18,194 --> 03:54:18,194
because as you have all identified, this bill has to get

2180
03:54:22,827 --> 03:54:25,827
paid. Is a constitutionally required cost. So we are going to pay it

2181
03:54:27,794 --> 03:54:31,127
regardless, because it is required. So to invest here allows you to be able to predict your cost

2182
03:54:35,194 --> 03:54:37,627
from year to year, instead of the surprise bill. Right now when you think about representing 22% of the

2183
03:54:44,361 --> 03:54:46,561
population. But if we are properly funded over the next several years as we have laid out in our

2184
03:54:49,794 --> 03:54:52,427
strategic plan, then we could be at 50%. That way you don't have as big of a guess.

2185
03:54:55,927 --> 03:54:59,094
there will still be some, we need to focus on how we get oversight of the other side. But I think this is a huge step

2186
03:55:03,027 --> 03:55:03,027
in the right direction, to make sure that you sink your money

2187
03:55:07,794 --> 03:55:07,794
into the predictable cost. And I will just say, I have to

2188
03:55:13,194 --> 03:55:16,661
add that we appreciate the support, we appreciate the runway. But that runway depends on the

2189
03:55:19,894 --> 03:55:23,727
support. The budgetary support. If the budgetary support isn't there for whatever reason, we just can't do it in a particular year.

2190
03:55:26,327 --> 03:55:28,627
then that means that slows the growth. So these projections are based on plans to grow and hire.

2191
03:55:33,761 --> 03:55:33,761
so I want to make that caveat. >> quick question on that point.

2192
03:55:39,127 --> 03:55:42,294
I am hearing you that to the extent that we support you, we are also kind of taking from that problematic system and

2193
03:55:46,061 --> 03:55:46,061
giving it to a system that is much more transparent and to the

2194
03:55:50,161 --> 03:55:53,461
extent that we are able to provide some oversight over that, then that is great as well.

2195
03:55:57,927 --> 03:55:57,927
what about -- what about us decreasing or limiting the

2196
03:56:05,894 --> 03:56:09,861
ability of cases to go through that problematic path? Is that at all a possibility? >> what I will say to that is

2197
03:56:15,327 --> 03:56:17,827
that the way it is set up in misdemeanor court right now is the best example of that. When somebody qualifies for

2198
03:56:22,161 --> 03:56:25,161
counsel, the courts decide that they will be appointed counsel and then they are out. It is automated at that point.

2199
03:56:28,661 --> 03:56:31,327
>> in commissioners court we couldn't decide that. That was incredible work by you and other judges when you were

2200
03:56:34,394 --> 03:56:36,461
there. But is there something the court can decide on? >> you all cannot control that.

2201
03:56:40,227 --> 03:56:43,061
that will need to be the stakeholders involved in the criminal legal system. And those conversations are

2202
03:56:45,161 --> 03:56:49,161
being had. I don't want to misrepresent that. But those conversations are being had. But those conversations are

2203
03:56:50,661 --> 03:56:50,661
going to have to manifest into action for us to really start to

2204
03:56:55,594 --> 03:56:58,261
see the progress that we have seen in misdemeanor courts. >> it takes a lot of courage to tie up the hands and I hope the

2205
03:57:04,194 --> 03:57:04,194
judges -- add their fabulous -- they also do this.

2206
03:57:09,261 --> 03:57:11,027
that's what I had. But I echo the comments, I think this is great, I'm really excited.

2207
03:57:15,061 --> 03:57:17,961
and the public defender's office is stronger and stronger. More people will want to come intern and work there so it is

2208
03:57:21,894 --> 03:57:25,327
all just a really positive cycle. So yes. >> thank you.

2209
03:57:28,061 --> 03:57:31,161
>> thank you chief. We have motions, commissioner ellis and I have a couple motions and he asked me to read

2210
03:57:36,361 --> 03:57:39,327
his. Motion that the public defender's office in accordance with its august sixth, 2026

2211
03:57:43,727 --> 03:57:43,727
strategic plan increase its capacity to take at least 50% of

2212
03:57:48,694 --> 03:57:48,694
indigent defense case appointments by 2031, as the

2213
03:57:52,994 --> 03:57:52,994
office expands, it should ensure that best practices are met,

2214
03:57:57,461 --> 03:57:57,461
including workloads standards, training, provision of holistic

2215
03:58:01,627 --> 03:58:01,627
services, recruitment and retention efforts.

2216
03:58:08,494 --> 03:58:08,494
>> second. >> commissioner I. Just read.

2217
03:58:13,127 --> 03:58:16,861
so there is a motion by commissioner briones, seconded by commissioner ramsey, all in favor?

2218
03:58:19,561 --> 03:58:22,194
any opposed? Motion carries unanimously. >> there's one more. We'll be so exciting in 2031,

2219
03:58:24,727 --> 03:58:28,294
chief draper, that will be the 20th anniversary. And it will be your five year anniversary as our chief public

2220
03:58:32,394 --> 03:58:35,494
defender. And the second motion is motion to direct, please, the harris county public defender's

2221
03:58:38,327 --> 03:58:41,861
office and the office of managed assigned counsel we will hear from next, to please provide an annual update on their strategic

2222
03:58:45,094 --> 03:58:45,094
plans to commissioners court by august 15th of each year, every

2223
03:58:50,394 --> 03:58:50,394
year through 2031. >> motion by commissioner,

2224
03:58:54,894 --> 03:58:57,961
seconded. All in favor? Any opposed? The motion carries unanimously.

2225
03:59:01,761 --> 03:59:03,094
>> thanks again, phenomenal work. >> thank you all for your time and your support.

2226
03:59:07,461 --> 03:59:07,461
>> thank you. >> director brown?

2227
03:59:13,694 --> 03:59:17,527
>> good afternoon commissioners. Commissioners court,.ca, director carter, office of management and budget.

2228
03:59:25,961 --> 03:59:28,361
>> go ahead, thank you. >> thank you for this opportunity to present our five year strategic plan for the

2229
03:59:31,627 --> 03:59:33,927
office of manage assigned counsel. My name is portia brown and I want to take just a quick moment

2230
03:59:36,961 --> 03:59:40,561
to thank our staff. We are a small staff, but we are lean and we are mean and we are getting work done.

2231
03:59:43,461 --> 03:59:45,994
additionally, I also want to thank our appointed panel attorneys that are in the courthouse every single day,

2232
03:59:48,694 --> 03:59:48,694
fighting for their clients. We have grown our list to 225

2233
03:59:52,761 --> 03:59:55,927
attorneys, as well as 40 investigators and every single day they are out there being efficient and effective.

2234
04:00:00,261 --> 04:00:03,161
additionally, I want to make sure to thank some of our partners that came and spoke today on behalf of the mac

2235
04:00:06,527 --> 04:00:06,527
earlier during public comment. Specifically the harris center,

2236
04:00:11,127 --> 04:00:13,494
directors sykes and jones came here and discussed how great it is that we have holistic resources for some of those

2237
04:00:16,794 --> 04:00:18,694
private attorneys in the misdemeanor courts. So we are very thankful to our county partners as well as our

2238
04:00:22,827 --> 04:00:22,827
community partners. Next slide.

2239
04:00:27,894 --> 04:00:30,494
a few things today that I want to go over. I know we are close to 5:00, I want to make sure we hit on our

2240
04:00:34,394 --> 04:00:37,794
strategic initiatives as well as some of our metrics and our timeline. Next

2241
04:00:42,861 --> 04:00:42,861
>> the way we see it at mac, is by 2031, our vision, we, along

2242
04:00:48,361 --> 04:00:49,894
with our harris county stakeholders, will elevate the defense to be on par with state averages, as well as to the

2243
04:00:55,561 --> 04:00:56,627
highest level of service efficiency among comparable programs nationwide. And we have our guiding

2244
04:00:59,961 --> 04:01:03,027
principles. Something I want to make sure to note, it is client to center representation.

2245
04:01:05,927 --> 04:01:09,227
that's those holistic services you used to get someone a social worker. To get them an investigator.

2246
04:01:10,461 --> 04:01:14,027
to make sure they have that advisable opinion. As well as accountability when it comes to the work we are

2247
04:01:17,161 --> 04:01:17,961
doing. And additionally stakeholder engagement. Next line.

2248
04:01:24,027 --> 04:01:24,027
so, our initiatives that we planned out for the next years

2249
04:01:29,161 --> 04:01:29,161
directly reflect back to the ones that harris county have

2250
04:01:33,227 --> 04:01:37,061
established. For example, reducing reliance on court aborted council, expanding the effectiveness of the efficiency of mac-pdo, as well as revamping the holistic

2251
04:01:42,094 --> 04:01:43,727
point system and revamping those services. Let's discuss a few of those initiatives that relate erectly

2252
04:01:47,561 --> 04:01:47,561
back to the mac. Next slide.

2253
04:01:51,894 --> 04:01:54,361
first, and the thing that I am most excited for, as a 10-year public defender, is to talk about expanding our training

2254
04:01:59,094 --> 04:01:59,094
levels for those 225 attorneys. And as we plan to expand our

2255
04:02:03,161 --> 04:02:03,161
list, we want to make sure that not only are our-- are our

2256
04:02:09,894 --> 04:02:11,494
attorneys trained, but also the investigators. Additionally, we are moving towards-- excuse me.

2257
04:02:14,894 --> 04:02:14,894
we are moving in to including valuations for attorneys.

2258
04:02:20,794 --> 04:02:20,794
and so, in that process, we plan on reaching out to the

2259
04:02:24,861 --> 04:02:25,761
judiciary. Working with focus groups within the local bar, as well as our advisory board.

2260
04:02:29,927 --> 04:02:29,927
so we want to make sure we have the best of the best when it

2261
04:02:34,327 --> 04:02:34,327
comes to attorneys in harris county.

2262
04:02:39,127 --> 04:02:41,861
secondly, when it comes to initiative number 3, broadening access, we want to look at language access.

2263
04:02:43,994 --> 04:02:43,994
we want to make sure we have social workers that speak

2264
04:02:48,327 --> 04:02:48,327
spanish and other languages. In addition to that, we want to

2265
04:02:52,961 --> 04:02:55,994
decrease our turnaround time when we do get those requests for attorneys. Meaning that when you request a

2266
04:02:58,094 --> 04:03:01,361
social worker on monday, we want to make sure that you don't have to reset your case. You don't have to keep people in

2267
04:03:04,227 --> 04:03:07,427
jail for and additional day. And we have a quick turnaround on the services so folks can get what they need, come back to

2268
04:03:12,394 --> 04:03:15,127
court, and also hopefully not come back again. Third, I want to highlight our enhancement of the appointment

2269
04:03:19,827 --> 04:03:22,027
and review system, as well as internal audits. I know audits are an exciting thing to talk about.

2270
04:03:24,661 --> 04:03:28,561
but I have to say that it has been wonderful, because we had tremendous assistance from the district court staff,

2271
04:03:33,094 --> 04:03:34,727
administrators, who have been working with our office to streamline things. They have been helping with our

2272
04:03:39,027 --> 04:03:41,327
appointment system and our voucher review system. So we are thankful to the district court offices.

2273
04:03:44,027 --> 04:03:44,027
I would also like to note and highlight that our misdemeanor

2274
04:03:48,394 --> 04:03:51,927
attorney appointment-- appointment system delivers fair and unbiased appointments. And it's been doing so the last

2275
04:03:53,761 --> 04:03:56,427
five years in spirit with the defense act. I would be remiss to not note that everything we plan to do in

2276
04:04:01,527 --> 04:04:01,527
the next five years is a part of our overall justice ecosystem.

2277
04:04:05,861 --> 04:04:05,861
meaning, when you affect one part, it affect something else.

2278
04:04:11,294 --> 04:04:11,294
-- it affects something else. I want to echo what chief draper

2279
04:04:16,961 --> 04:04:20,694
said. Number 1, when it comes to developers for the district court staff administration that help us improve our systems to make sure that we provide

2280
04:04:23,294 --> 04:04:27,027
unbiased appointments, we want to make sure that that also happens. That if there-- that there are

2281
04:04:29,561 --> 04:04:33,194
service officers that need to have more staff who-- so that they can do the financial affidavit, so our clients are

2282
04:04:35,561 --> 04:04:38,894
not delay in getting to court and getting processed out. That's important as well. And additionally with the

2283
04:04:41,561 --> 04:04:41,561
magistrate just sit-- judges, that is important to ensure we

2284
04:04:46,227 --> 04:04:48,194
are processing quickly and efficiently-- efficiently. Next slide. So I want to talk a little bit

2285
04:04:52,594 --> 04:04:54,427
about mac-pdo, and what we call the model system in the misdemeanor courts. So, over time, currently in

2286
04:04:58,627 --> 04:04:58,627
july, the mac has increased their share to 34%.

2287
04:05:04,227 --> 04:05:07,861
and what we have seen is that over the last couple of months, we have been able to look at what are the technology

2288
04:05:11,561 --> 04:05:14,294
improvements that need to happen to ensure that this happens as seen look-- seamlessly as possible.

2289
04:05:16,861 --> 04:05:19,361
but one of the things that mac needs to make sure we can get clients to their attorneys as fast as possible.

2290
04:05:21,894 --> 04:05:23,627
whether that be public defenders or mac attorneys. So that is why, in a few slides, you will hear me as for and

2291
04:05:28,361 --> 04:05:31,527
assignment specialist, that is someone that does that appointment process and ensures that those cases that are

2292
04:05:33,627 --> 04:05:33,627
typically automated that get to the attorney, the ones that

2293
04:05:37,861 --> 04:05:40,194
cannot be, the manual system, those are happening at just as fast of a rate, so that we can ensure we are as efficient with

2294
04:05:43,394 --> 04:05:43,394
our time as possible. And I also want to make sure to

2295
04:05:49,227 --> 04:05:49,227
note here that when it comes to the mac-pdo and reaching parity

2296
04:05:55,961 --> 04:05:59,394
with our mac appointed assignments in the near future, that kind of system is going to equal out to be a fixed cost for

2297
04:06:05,894 --> 04:06:09,694
the pdo, the mac being an additional cost, and the mac will serve as a shock absorber for additional cases.

2298
04:06:12,894 --> 04:06:15,727
let's say you have an attorney from the pdo, who has reached their caseload max. The mac can come in.

2299
04:06:20,094 --> 04:06:22,294
maybe at specialized our spanish kate-- speaking. And they will be a shock absorber, based on supply and

2300
04:06:25,927 --> 04:06:28,961
demand. And that is another reason why this system is ideal. Next slide.

2301
04:06:35,127 --> 04:06:35,127
I want to talk a little bit about hours-- holistic services.

2302
04:06:45,094 --> 04:06:45,094
since 2024, our social services have gone up 47%.

2303
04:06:49,794 --> 04:06:53,327
our investigative services have gone up to 50 percent, and our immigration services have increased by 6% thus far.

2304
04:06:56,627 --> 04:06:56,627
whenever we are doing any kind of this work, it is important to

2305
04:07:00,694 --> 04:07:04,527
look at the supply and demand. That way we can ensure that, number 1, we are making sure that our attorneys have

2306
04:07:06,394 --> 04:07:09,827
everything they need and the tools they need, and we can ensure that service delivery happens as fast as possible.

2307
04:07:12,527 --> 04:07:15,494
you will hear me say that frequently in this presentation. Because every time an attorney has to wait, that's a court

2308
04:07:18,127 --> 04:07:20,061
reset. Another date in jail. Another dollar that harris county does not need to

2309
04:07:22,261 --> 04:07:25,427
spend. And so, another thing that is important is that our social services, we try to rely upon

2310
04:07:30,294 --> 04:07:32,327
other county partners and community partners as much as we can so that 1 dollar in harris county can be spent

2311
04:07:35,194 --> 04:07:35,194
multiple ways, and with different departments.

2312
04:07:39,294 --> 04:07:39,294
for example, we rely upon our connections with county partners

2313
04:07:43,327 --> 04:07:45,561
like public health. Harris center. Harris county rides, and our community partners like the

2314
04:07:47,661 --> 04:07:49,361
beacon and the coalition for homelessness. Next slide. So let us look at effectiveness.

2315
04:07:57,161 --> 04:07:57,161
thus far, since 2022, the mac has been able to keep a steady

2316
04:08:02,294 --> 04:08:02,294
rate of dismissals at 68%. And so, the effectiveness that

2317
04:08:07,294 --> 04:08:07,294
we looked at as a mac office is going to be measured by increase

2318
04:08:11,694 --> 04:08:11,694
and-- in dismissed cases, holding all the variables the

2319
04:08:15,761 --> 04:08:17,994
same. And secondly, we make sure to look at disposition time. So previously noted, there was a

2320
04:08:20,661 --> 04:08:20,661
lot of questions about how long does it take for a case to get

2321
04:08:25,161 --> 04:08:26,361
resolved. We also review that. And since 2022 we have seen a reduction to 44%.

2322
04:08:30,194 --> 04:08:30,194
next slide. Let's look at efficiency.

2323
04:08:38,427 --> 04:08:38,427
on efficiency, since q3 in 2025 year to date we have seen a one

2324
04:08:42,527 --> 04:08:42,527
million-dollar reduction in total cost, and we have seen

2325
04:08:47,427 --> 04:08:47,427
decreases in three of our four high cost voucher categories.

2326
04:08:52,127 --> 04:08:52,127
in this graph you will see that we have broken down the top ten

2327
04:08:56,627 --> 04:09:00,227
voucher categories for misdemeanor cases only. But it is still very important-- important information we can use

2328
04:09:03,894 --> 04:09:07,327
moving forward. At the end of the day, when we are looking at performance for attorneys, we look at

2329
04:09:11,261 --> 04:09:14,761
effectiveness and efficiency. So that efficiency is average cost per case compared to state and nationwide standards.

2330
04:09:17,861 --> 04:09:17,861
next slide. So the next five years.

2331
04:09:26,361 --> 04:09:29,894
and we have presented this slide before because it creates a road map on our goal to get to the national gold standard for mac

2332
04:09:34,727 --> 04:09:36,494
offices. So we want to make sure we have the strongest foundation possible.

2333
04:09:40,327 --> 04:09:43,527
this year we are focusing on stakeholder engagement, our attorney evaluation system, and looking at new and innovative

2334
04:09:46,894 --> 04:09:50,494
kpi's. Next year we are moving in to a structured feedback system where we can get responses from all 16

2335
04:09:54,094 --> 04:09:54,094
words, as well as targeted staffing expansions that help us

2336
04:09:59,394 --> 04:09:59,394
continue for effectiveness and efficiency.

2337
04:10:03,527 --> 04:10:06,461
and in year three, we are expanding our holistic capacity. We want to make sure we have language access for social

2338
04:10:09,894 --> 04:10:13,761
services. And lastly, we want to make sure that our fh-- officinalis and-- efficient and effectiveness is

2339
04:10:19,627 --> 04:10:22,327
up to 10%. That's a high goal, but I hope we can get there. Next slide, I want to highlight

2340
04:10:30,394 --> 04:10:30,394
for the commissioners court some of our high impact ser's.

2341
04:10:35,127 --> 04:10:38,194
the largest are a wide's. And we believe that's that person connecting the client with the cases.

2342
04:10:41,061 --> 04:10:43,627
and addressing some of the manual cases that need to be appointed because the public to pender-- public defenders

2343
04:10:47,061 --> 04:10:50,527
offices act is at capacity or we have to make sure that clients get to eternity's-- attorneys. And second, a resource attorney.

2344
04:10:54,827 --> 04:10:58,361
that is someone that will help us evaluate our attorneys to make sure they are effective and efficient.

2345
04:11:10,727 --> 04:11:13,061
>> I think we should continue this discussion. >> all in favor? Any opposed?

2346
04:11:16,827 --> 04:11:18,594
motion carried. >> and those resources, we hope the capacity is large enough so that they can second chair.

2347
04:11:23,827 --> 04:11:27,661
so instead of having to pay for second chair attorneys, we will be able to provide so our attorneys are supported.

2348
04:11:29,394 --> 04:11:29,394
in the future we want to make sure that we do highlight that

2349
04:11:33,594 --> 04:11:33,594
we plan to request a bilingual social worker in the future.

2350
04:11:41,694 --> 04:11:44,094
enclosing, the mac strategic plan delivers measurable improvements in quality, timeliness, efficiency and

2351
04:11:46,927 --> 04:11:49,494
equity. With your continued support we can achieve the national gold standard envision for

2352
04:11:52,927 --> 04:11:56,061
harris county and improve outcomes for those who depend on this defense. Thank you very much.

2353
04:11:58,561 --> 04:12:02,427
I am available for question. >> thank you. Commissioner briones. >> director brown.

2354
04:12:04,294 --> 04:12:06,127
thank you for the project to have led. This is deeply energizing. We are so lucky to have you at

2355
04:12:08,861 --> 04:12:08,861
the helm of our mac. And chief draper at the helm of

2356
04:12:13,161 --> 04:12:15,661
our pdo office. Thank you for being so thorough and clear. My question, something that has

2357
04:12:18,894 --> 04:12:18,894
been weighing on me, is how the local rules were changed before

2358
04:12:26,127 --> 04:12:26,127
you took your position? I have great respect for a

2359
04:12:33,294 --> 04:12:33,294
judiciary, and I have great respect for the mac, and the

2360
04:12:38,261 --> 04:12:39,994
fundamental need for it to have it's independence. And I know that you have been incredibly collaborative with

2361
04:12:42,361 --> 04:12:45,794
the judiciary. And have been trying to work through. So my question is-- without

2362
04:12:49,094 --> 04:12:49,094
further commentary, have those local rules, which I believe

2363
04:12:53,994 --> 04:12:53,994
undermine the independence of the mac, have those been

2364
04:12:58,594 --> 04:13:01,694
amended? >> so, they have not been amended completely. We have been working with the

2365
04:13:05,127 --> 04:13:05,761
judiciary often. Weekly. Almost daily meetings with the judges and as a group to address

2366
04:13:11,027 --> 04:13:13,927
individual rules one at a time. So we are also addressing the total local rules there and they are open and leaning in.

2367
04:13:19,661 --> 04:13:19,661
and we are having discussions. And they are discussions that

2368
04:13:24,061 --> 04:13:26,461
are based on actual information exchange and collaboration. Which is ideal. Because there maybe things that

2369
04:13:29,294 --> 04:13:29,294
we want to see as a mac office included in their defense plan.

2370
04:13:35,627 --> 04:13:39,161
so that has been one benefit. We can get our commentary and say, hey, we know you feel this way on a plan of operations, but

2371
04:13:42,261 --> 04:13:42,261
let us see what else we can do to effect meaningful change for

2372
04:13:47,027 --> 04:13:49,261
both systems. So we are not there yet completely. But we are taking it one by one.

2373
04:13:52,061 --> 04:13:52,061
and I have had really good progress.

2374
04:13:56,461 --> 04:13:57,827
>> again, that is because of your leadership, and I appreciate it. And find those win-win's.

2375
04:14:05,094 --> 04:14:07,127
I'm all for collaboration and communication. And approaching everything in a great spirit of partnership.

2376
04:14:12,627 --> 04:14:14,794
100%. And some of that language is just deeply problematic with regards to the independence.

2377
04:14:16,894 --> 04:14:19,861
so I know you are working through thing by thing. To me, that is contrary to the very essence of what a mac is.

2378
04:14:25,627 --> 04:14:25,627
and I know we have been in discussions.

2379
04:14:31,861 --> 04:14:34,661
but I am all into do anything that we need to do to make sure that you are able to truly run the briones-- the mac with the

2380
04:14:39,994 --> 04:14:42,861
independence that it needs. And I know everything you have done, and everything you will do.

2381
04:14:45,027 --> 04:14:47,594
and I look forward to 2031. >> thank you so much. Looking forward to it too. >> anybody else?

2382
04:14:52,561 --> 04:14:56,461
commissioner garcia. >> thank you. Thank you so much for your work. I just want to say, thank you

2383
04:15:02,361 --> 04:15:02,361
for taking through the specialization of immigration

2384
04:15:08,094 --> 04:15:11,261
attorneys that need to be thought of. Over the years I have heard of so many cases being made more

2385
04:15:15,894 --> 04:15:19,861
complicated and harder to represent because the wrong attorney got involved in a case that needed someone with some

2386
04:15:26,694 --> 04:15:28,294
degree of specialty. So I appreciate the work that you are doing there. And I had an appointment to the

2387
04:15:35,961 --> 04:15:39,461
mac. And he has since stepped down. If you could, and you don't have to do it today.

2388
04:15:43,427 --> 04:15:43,427
if you could, please send out the qualifications that are

2389
04:15:49,327 --> 04:15:49,327
required for folks to serve on the board, and they commissioner

2390
04:15:55,527 --> 04:15:55,527
to help you and any vacancies that you might have as well.

2391
04:16:00,327 --> 04:16:00,327
>> will do. >> thank you.

2392
04:16:06,661 --> 04:16:06,661
and I just want to thank you. Commissioner-- from here until

2393
04:16:15,227 --> 04:16:18,861
now, and commissioner ellis took this on way before, but it's impressive and heartening. Thank you so much.

2394
04:16:23,727 --> 04:16:25,194
>> thank you. >> thank you. Good job. >> thank you, dr. Brown.

2395
04:16:29,494 --> 04:16:32,427
>> I kind of wanted to clap when you guys were done. You and chief draper. It's really wonderful.

2396
04:16:34,727 --> 04:16:37,094
thank you so much. >> is there any action on this item? Thank you.

2397
04:16:41,994 --> 04:16:41,994
>> so, then we are looking at the-- we are looking at the

2398
04:16:47,094 --> 04:16:47,094
real estate assets. >> back to one.

2399
04:16:53,261 --> 04:16:55,261
>> number 1, judge . >> and that one has 313 as well. They go together. And commissioner ellis is the

2400
04:17:00,027 --> 04:17:00,027
one who wanted to talk about it? >> was this one that I pulled?

2401
04:17:19,727 --> 04:17:22,261
I let it go. You have all beat me down. I am tired. >> just let it go.

2402
04:17:24,661 --> 04:17:24,661
all right. That is one and...  And 313.

2403
04:17:32,561 --> 04:17:36,527
so we will just have no action online? >> we are requesting action. You can take no action.

2404
04:17:44,061 --> 04:17:47,194
>> all push that one through. >> what is presented. Is there a motion? >> I would like some comments

2405
04:17:49,261 --> 04:17:49,261
before we get there. I know this is not steps.

2406
04:17:57,527 --> 04:17:57,527
is 313 the committee? >> I think so.

2407
04:18:02,894 --> 04:18:02,894
>> 313 as hybrid sites. Item one is surplus property for

2408
04:18:09,294 --> 04:18:09,294
the general fund fy27 budget. >> where are you trying to set

2409
04:18:14,094 --> 04:18:17,694
up the committee? >> it is 313. The process to identify assets and to recommend to

2410
04:18:20,227 --> 04:18:20,227
commissioners court...  Made up of designated commissioners

2411
04:18:29,861 --> 04:18:33,394
courts members to identify-- >> the lca motion is motion to direct oca, oce, omb, to convene a surplus property workgroup

2412
04:18:41,994 --> 04:18:41,994
with court staff as voting members to identify high value

2413
04:18:47,027 --> 04:18:48,994
underutilize real estate assets to recommend to commissioners court for the usurp-- surplus property sale by september

2414
04:18:57,094 --> 04:19:00,727
17th, fiscal year 27 general budget. >> short-term committee, ending that date.

2415
04:19:04,427 --> 04:19:04,427
>> she has read my mind again. The only comment I would have

2416
04:19:11,461 --> 04:19:11,461
here, rather than have a committee, short-term as it is,

2417
04:19:17,094 --> 04:19:20,261
oca, ocd, oab, to me it would make more sense for the commissioner whose precinct the property is in to work with the

2418
04:19:27,427 --> 04:19:27,427
director of omb, and the county administrator, a three-person

2419
04:19:34,061 --> 04:19:34,061
committee, to make decisions on what is done.

2420
04:19:39,694 --> 04:19:41,461
that gets a decision-maker in a room with other decision-makers and they are making decisions. I think if we set up a working

2421
04:19:46,827 --> 04:19:49,794
group we are going to be working on that from now until kingdom come. >> I second that motion.

2422
04:19:56,661 --> 04:19:59,961
you don't need us to set up a working group. If you want to make sure we get out the dime-- some of the stuff

2423
04:20:02,927 --> 04:20:06,227
on the list we cannot sell anyway. One that franco is using, I am still using.

2424
04:20:08,261 --> 04:20:08,261
that's not going anywhere. >> that's why this precinct is

2425
04:20:15,827 --> 04:20:19,227
going to be that committee-- for documents a property, is going to be the commissioner, the county administrator, and

2426
04:20:22,161 --> 04:20:25,727
our budget officer getting in a room and making a decision. >> we can do that. The only downside is if the

2427
04:20:28,194 --> 04:20:31,894
commissioner were to decide no, I don't want to sell any property on my committee and we don't get the $25 million number

2428
04:20:36,627 --> 04:20:39,594
that is currently a placeholder in the budget, then we are going to have a-- have to identify somebody else.

2429
04:20:45,127 --> 04:20:47,661
>> we paid a consultant money to identify property. Is that correct? >> yes, sir,.

2430
04:20:50,694 --> 04:20:52,661
>> okay. We have someone that is out there saying we think this would be good property to cell.

2431
04:20:56,027 --> 04:20:56,027
so all I am saying is that we already paid a consultant.

2432
04:21:00,094 --> 04:21:01,927
on expert. More than an expert than anybody in these departments to provide that menu of these options.

2433
04:21:08,261 --> 04:21:12,061
>> your model is much more linear, but we are not able to get-- if we are not able to get that 25 million, I would have to

2434
04:21:15,661 --> 04:21:18,961
come back. >> so I would say that might happen, but not-- put it on the agenda and say the commission

2435
04:21:20,894 --> 04:21:20,894
voted no. One is that property they bought

2436
04:21:24,961 --> 04:21:28,161
out they are-- what's the name of that? Pyrmont. -- pine montt.

2437
04:21:31,461 --> 04:21:31,461
and I take the heat for housing. People are still mad at me

2438
04:21:40,127 --> 04:21:41,894
because I put affordable housing out there because it's something they need. Their mad at me because I put a

2439
04:21:45,661 --> 04:21:45,661
storage facility out there. For them to throw stuff away.

2440
04:21:50,227 --> 04:21:53,627
but just bring it back if it is a problem. And we paid a consultant they full 500,000, 300,000?

2441
04:22:01,227 --> 04:22:01,227
>> last. All get you the exact number.

2442
04:22:06,361 --> 04:22:06,361
>> all do this quick motion. Motion-- we don't need a space

2443
04:22:12,561 --> 04:22:12,561
planning committee. Just make sure if you serve plus

2444
04:22:17,494 --> 04:22:17,494
property that it's now being used by the county department.

2445
04:22:22,661 --> 04:22:26,527
resolve that with the precinct, and we certainly can't go sale where the old jail was. That's where the courthouse will

2446
04:22:28,661 --> 04:22:28,661
go one day. So they want to retain it for

2447
04:22:33,627 --> 04:22:33,627
get-- they want to retain it to get a commission.

2448
04:22:40,461 --> 04:22:42,527
>> I hear each commissioner having a say on this. But maybe some of these could have served or surveyed

2449
04:22:45,527 --> 04:22:48,961
countywide purpose. So I would also like to be involved. Will it come to court

2450
04:22:50,727 --> 04:22:50,727
ultimately? >> ultimately it would need to

2451
04:22:55,827 --> 04:22:58,627
come to court. >> $25 million, they all have to come to court. If you get $25 million, I'll buy

2452
04:23:01,261 --> 04:23:01,261
you a rib dinner. I know a bit about balancing

2453
04:23:06,461 --> 04:23:09,294
budget. >> one of your staffers from the state said you guys have italian suits.

2454
04:23:12,561 --> 04:23:12,561
so we can talk about dinner. >> don't talk about my suit.

2455
04:23:18,327 --> 04:23:18,327
it looks good though, doesn't it?

2456
04:23:22,527 --> 04:23:22,994
>> yeah. Anyway. I-- I don't love it. >> you can put it together and

2457
04:23:27,694 --> 04:23:31,127
it will be part of the budget briefings that we do now. >> and just so you know, I will be asking what we will be using

2458
04:23:33,861 --> 04:23:33,861
it for if we were not selling it.

2459
04:23:38,794 --> 04:23:39,594
so, yes. Anyway. Do we need a motion there? >> ramsey, I will second your

2460
04:23:45,594 --> 04:23:48,194
motion. >> all right. >> motion by commissioner ramsey.

2461
04:23:50,127 --> 04:23:51,094
>> could you repeated. >> motion to create a three-member working group with county administrator

2462
04:23:57,294 --> 04:23:57,294
director ramos, was standing commissioners in the third seat

2463
04:24:01,461 --> 04:24:01,461
rotating as identified by the real estate asset.

2464
04:24:06,194 --> 04:24:10,194
>> if the commission doesn't show up, put it on the agenda to be approved. >> second.

2465
04:24:12,194 --> 04:24:13,927
>> can I have a nonvoting staff member or something. Would you object-- object to that?

2466
04:24:16,694 --> 04:24:20,661
okay. Thank you. >> so we are going to add-- >> a nonvoting staff member from

2467
04:24:23,261 --> 04:24:23,261
the judges office. >> thank you.

2468
04:24:33,694 --> 04:24:36,194
we have a motion, a second. All in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries.

2469
04:24:40,127 --> 04:24:43,094
>> you have two other motion. >> was that item one or item 313. >> just to be clear, you will

2470
04:24:48,461 --> 04:24:49,994
bring all these recommendations to court by when? We can target the goal we. >> given the time sensitivity

2471
04:24:54,994 --> 04:24:54,994
and the with fact that we need this funding in fiscal year 27,

2472
04:25:01,861 --> 04:25:04,827
we should have the list done by september 28th. Far before the budget, ideally. >> thank you.

2473
04:25:06,894 --> 04:25:06,894
I know you will do better th than...  I have great faith.

2474
04:25:13,727 --> 04:25:17,427
>> you know which ones are controversial and which ones are not. >> thank you.

2475
04:25:22,927 --> 04:25:22,927
>> are there any on 313? >> administrator carter, could

2476
04:25:32,761 --> 04:25:34,694
do very quickly please recap the difference between what we just talked about versus hybrid? >> sure.

2477
04:25:42,727 --> 04:25:42,727
and basically when putting assets together in 2024, there

2478
04:25:49,161 --> 04:25:49,161
was a yield which was to sell for some revenue, maybe the

2479
04:25:53,461 --> 04:25:53,461
highest, and the hybrid, which had strong committee benefit,

2480
04:26:00,261 --> 04:26:01,961
housing, part, trail and potential small business incubators on land and have other uses.

2481
04:26:06,394 --> 04:26:09,861
so this is to restart that process because there was a pause. And come back with a plan not to

2482
04:26:12,827 --> 04:26:12,827
select every address and figure out what we are going to put on

2483
04:26:17,327 --> 04:26:17,327
that land, but to restart it because there was a long pause

2484
04:26:22,261 --> 04:26:22,261
and there has been no forward motion on that part of the-- how

2485
04:26:27,527 --> 04:26:27,527
we could reimagine certain parcels of land.

2486
04:26:34,127 --> 04:26:34,127
>> a p-a-w. >> yes.

2487
04:26:43,094 --> 04:26:46,961
>> so do we have a motion for that one. >> is that approved as presented? Administrator carter? >> yes.

2488
04:26:53,694 --> 04:26:53,694
>> thank you, director kostas. >> I moved 313 to move as

2489
04:27:00,661 --> 04:27:00,661
presented. >> all in favor we any opposed?

2490
04:27:05,227 --> 04:27:05,227
the motion carried unanimously. Thank you.

2491
04:27:09,527 --> 04:27:11,527
>> administrator you are going to be sure these are sharp meetings and not many of them. >> director kostas will.

2492
04:27:17,094 --> 04:27:17,094
>> thank you. >> okay.

2493
04:27:21,861 --> 04:27:21,861
so we have item three on pcn, commissioner ramsey, flagged

2494
04:27:26,361 --> 04:27:26,361
that one-- flagged that one. Strategic hiring consumptions

2495
04:27:35,261 --> 04:27:35,261
for pcns and nonrelated departments.

2496
04:27:41,594 --> 04:27:41,594
three commissioners. >> so we are moving right along.

2497
04:27:47,327 --> 04:27:47,327
>> motion by commissioner ellis. Second by commissioner briones.

2498
04:27:52,394 --> 04:27:56,194
all in favor? Opposed? Motion carried unanimously. Five goes with 329.

2499
04:28:04,627 --> 04:28:04,627
>> I think we've covered this. Are you good?

2500
04:28:09,727 --> 04:28:11,594
I read done you earlier. >> do you need any action on either of these? >> no, judge.

2501
04:28:16,894 --> 04:28:16,894
>> so, item five is nonaction, and item 329 is no action.

2502
04:28:21,861 --> 04:28:21,861
then item eight, the mobility budget and funding plan,

2503
04:28:27,061 --> 04:28:27,061
commissioner ramsey? >> I think the item's discussion

2504
04:28:37,361 --> 04:28:40,694
of possible action to prove fiscal year 27 mobility budget and funding plan for office county engineer, and I

2505
04:28:46,127 --> 04:28:46,127
think the motion for that-- >> commissioner, I got it.

2506
04:28:58,027 --> 04:29:01,794
motion to fully fund the oed's mobility budget at 24.9 million. And direct oh mds to budget transfers from the

2507
04:29:07,794 --> 04:29:11,027
preallegations to oce to make the funds available at the outset cleared 27 to be used for eligible projects under section

2508
04:29:15,594 --> 04:29:19,161
284 dodd 031, transportation hub. >> did you add 44.9? >> motion by commissioner

2509
04:29:26,427 --> 04:29:29,961
ramsey. Second by commissioner garcia. I see commissioner garcia's hand up. Go-ahead. >> you are good.

2510
04:29:32,794 --> 04:29:36,561
I was just making sure to support the item. >> thank you. Motion by ramsey. Second by garcia. [indiscernible]

2511
04:29:42,327 --> 04:29:42,327
>> go-ahead. >> the other thing we need to

2512
04:29:47,794 --> 04:29:50,961
add is that the precinct has been fully informed that be for the transfer occurs, what the money will be spent for.

2513
04:29:54,894 --> 04:29:54,894
I think that's consistent, we need to know what this money is

2514
04:30:00,861 --> 04:30:00,861
spent on. >> commissioner ramsey, I'm glad

2515
04:30:06,427 --> 04:30:06,427
you are saying that, because that's also been my point in why

2516
04:30:11,361 --> 04:30:11,361
I made the changes to the investment policy.

2517
04:30:15,861 --> 04:30:18,594
whenever we are doing a mobility transfer, it needs to come to court before anyone decides it should be put in investment.

2518
04:30:23,961 --> 04:30:27,061
>> for example, I am just now finding out where the money was spent for fiscal year '26 from the county engineer's office.

2519
04:30:33,294 --> 04:30:33,294
so, august 2026 is not the find out-- not the time to find out

2520
04:30:41,294 --> 04:30:45,027
where your money is being spent. We need to know in october of 2026 what the money will be spent for in 2027.

2521
04:30:50,361 --> 04:30:52,761
and, director, I don't think-- it should be pretty straightforward. If I understand the plan.

2522
04:31:02,227 --> 04:31:03,561
>> commissioner, absolutely, we will provide you the information. You already have the information

2523
04:31:07,227 --> 04:31:10,927
for the spending and where the division is going and what were doing. So if you need additional information we are happy to provide it.

2524
04:31:14,694 --> 04:31:16,394
>> it's projects are going to be done. >> absolutely. >> okay.

2525
04:31:20,594 --> 04:31:23,294
so it's just as director ramos has read. And the precinct has been fully informed before october 1st

2526
04:31:29,861 --> 04:31:33,594
2026. >> commissioner, one more caveat, a lot of the times the projects get initiated in the

2527
04:31:35,294 --> 04:31:35,294
middle of the fiscal year. So we will not be able to tell

2528
04:31:39,694 --> 04:31:39,694
you what projects, because the money is still in your bank

2529
04:31:44,661 --> 04:31:44,661
account for what projects we are working on today.

2530
04:31:49,261 --> 04:31:51,327
so free talk about staffing resources, right now there are some does it-- dedicated staffs for your precinct, for example

2531
04:31:57,194 --> 04:31:57,194
the capital projects. You have 24 staff dedicated to

2532
04:32:02,161 --> 04:32:04,527
you. 200 staff dedicated to commissioner ellis. A lot of the staff are moving

2533
04:32:08,061 --> 04:32:11,194
from one place to another place when the job is there. When you do a permit and an expansion-- inspection for

2534
04:32:13,994 --> 04:32:16,727
example. So we don't know when the inspection will be required when the permit goes end.

2535
04:32:18,927 --> 04:32:21,861
so we can give you in general what the volume we do, and how we do, how we do last year. But it would be difficult for us

2536
04:32:25,494 --> 04:32:29,194
to tell you we will be working for this particular project. Because we don't even know what projects you guys are going to

2537
04:32:33,027 --> 04:32:36,994
issue. >> I guess my only point is, because, properly this money needs to be properly accounted

2538
04:32:42,061 --> 04:32:42,061
for, and being sure that it is spent on transportation related

2539
04:32:46,161 --> 04:32:49,294
projects. The documentation needs to be there. I am willing to work with

2540
04:32:52,894 --> 04:32:54,227
the county engineer's office with the details. But the conversation needs to be had on october 1st, 2026, not

2541
04:32:59,694 --> 04:32:59,694
august the 27th. >> understood.

2542
04:33:04,894 --> 04:33:06,461
>> so, can we just approved as presented? >> I have a question. >> commissioner briones.

2543
04:33:11,661 --> 04:33:14,527
>> I am very supportive of the motion and I could not agree more. Every single dollar mobility

2544
04:33:18,127 --> 04:33:18,127
fund must be used for the eligible projects under section

2545
04:33:26,394 --> 04:33:27,594
284.0331 under the transportation code. And I appreciate the collaboration between all the

2546
04:33:31,394 --> 04:33:32,494
departments. The progress has been excellent in terms of coding, recording, et cetera.

2547
04:33:37,761 --> 04:33:37,761
my question to you, and mainly to commissioner ramsey.

2548
04:33:42,261 --> 04:33:44,194
it says to execute budget transfers from the precinct mobility allocations, I remain deeply committed to the mobility

2549
04:33:50,394 --> 04:33:52,727
formula. Commissioner ramsey, that you designed and we past unanimously in 2025.

2550
04:33:56,294 --> 04:33:56,294
the mobility formula? >> I'm familiar.

2551
04:34:02,027 --> 04:34:05,227
>> so from the precinct's mobility allocations, to be clear, is that transfer in accordance with that formula, or

2552
04:34:10,261 --> 04:34:10,261
did you envision-- >> the emotion has been made to

2553
04:34:15,627 --> 04:34:15,627
fully find oce fiscal year 27 mobility budget at 44.09 million

2554
04:34:19,761 --> 04:34:19,761
per precinct. >> divided between the precinct.

2555
04:34:26,427 --> 04:34:29,927
>> divided between the precincts. So I wanted to confirm-- >> last year it was an even

2556
04:34:33,561 --> 04:34:33,561
contribution by each precinct. That's how we would do it unless

2557
04:34:38,094 --> 04:34:38,094
otherwise obstructed. >> I think that's how we always

2558
04:34:42,427 --> 04:34:44,427
do it. >> but then we switched to a funding formula. I want to be consistent and

2559
04:34:47,927 --> 04:34:47,927
transparent and in accordance so there is not later confusion.

2560
04:34:52,827 --> 04:34:52,827
so my question is, when we use the words, precincts, mobility,

2561
04:35:00,294 --> 04:35:00,294
allocations to oc, I understand the totality.

2562
04:35:05,327 --> 04:35:08,627
and now that we have this formula, are we going to do it via the formula, or for this it's okay to default back?

2563
04:35:12,127 --> 04:35:12,127
I want to make sure we are on the same page.

2564
04:35:16,461 --> 04:35:16,461
>> is the issue how would we do it proportionate?

2565
04:35:21,194 --> 04:35:21,194
is that we were suggesting? >> if the question is the 44.09,

2566
04:35:29,161 --> 04:35:29,161
that the precinct place a higher percentage on the transfer

2567
04:35:36,627 --> 04:35:36,627
because I have more roads to complete, in theory I guess that

2568
04:35:41,861 --> 04:35:41,861
looks good. In practice I'm not sure it is.

2569
04:35:54,661 --> 04:35:54,661
number 1 your talent director would be reminded he is supposed

2570
04:36:00,594 --> 04:36:00,594
to spend a more proportionate time doing projects in precinct

2571
04:36:04,827 --> 04:36:08,327
three. If we are going to do that, my expectation has just gone up 30%.

2572
04:36:09,761 --> 04:36:12,594
>> I just want to make sure we are on the same page, commissioner ramsey. So it is a question to you.

2573
04:36:16,461 --> 04:36:19,461
I remain committed to the formula in terms of the allocation. What mobility dollars each

2574
04:36:20,827 --> 04:36:20,827
precinct gets is based on road miles, condition, the formula

2575
04:36:25,861 --> 04:36:26,894
designed and that you past unanimously. So I want clarity and with the cost associated, how are we

2576
04:36:34,494 --> 04:36:35,661
framing it? I don't want light between us when we go together and make sure we are on the same page

2577
04:36:38,794 --> 04:36:42,361
with regard to the mobility dollars. So I want to make sure to ask you what your preference was and

2578
04:36:46,961 --> 04:36:49,361
interpretation of this language of the motion, which I find unclear. >> and again, the thought would

2579
04:36:53,061 --> 04:36:53,061
be that each precinct would need about the same amount of help

2580
04:36:59,027 --> 04:37:01,094
from the county engineer's office. And if it is anticipated that commissioner ellis--

2581
04:37:06,394 --> 04:37:07,227
>> who gets the least amount of money. So you have to do as much work on the least amount.

2582
04:37:12,027 --> 04:37:14,094
are you doing that on somebody who gets more? I'm just asking a question. >> if, in fact, that's how we

2583
04:37:18,427 --> 04:37:18,427
are going to do it, then the doctor would be waking up

2584
04:37:24,161 --> 04:37:24,161
preparing to do a lot less of your precinct than my precinct.

2585
04:37:28,461 --> 04:37:31,027
>> he's going to have a whole lot less money to spend in my precinct. But if you can do more work with

2586
04:37:32,594 --> 04:37:32,594
less money I'm for it. If you give me more roads and

2587
04:37:36,894 --> 04:37:40,761
less money I'm for it. >> I think the needs and the precinct in terms of signals are set.

2588
04:37:41,927 --> 04:37:41,927
>> but if it may help, we have done economic-- economic

2589
04:37:47,261 --> 04:37:47,261
analysis to see how much needs to be spent, and there is a

2590
04:37:51,961 --> 04:37:51,961
significant variance from one precinct to another precinct.

2591
04:38:00,927 --> 04:38:00,927
it depends on the project. If you do 100 million in your

2592
04:38:05,061 --> 04:38:05,061
precinct this year and 100 million next year, of course

2593
04:38:09,561 --> 04:38:09,561
you're providing support. And in the recent allocations,

2594
04:38:18,494 --> 04:38:21,427
our project looked fairly even. Not exactly to the.. But there's not a significant amount of variance.

2595
04:38:28,661 --> 04:38:32,061
>> so last year the 180 million in mobility, the actor transfer to mobility was dover in accordance with doctrine.

2596
04:38:35,327 --> 04:38:35,327
to the deal. And last year the commissioners

2597
04:38:41,861 --> 04:38:44,261
funded roughly $36 million to the commissioners court that was divided equally. So the court wants to do

2598
04:38:46,094 --> 04:38:48,427
something other than that, we would need a motion here. Which is part of the reason we put this item on.

2599
04:38:52,961 --> 04:38:52,961
so-- we are going to continue to do it that way.

2600
04:38:56,994 --> 04:38:56,994
and others will do it that way unless directed otherwise.

2601
04:39:02,294 --> 04:39:04,527
>> I have a final comment. >> go ahead commissioner garcia. And commissioner briones. >> thank you.

2602
04:39:09,161 --> 04:39:09,927
thank you dr. Ramon for your work. And I guess, commissioner briones and I are trying to get

2603
04:39:13,661 --> 04:39:13,661
to the same place. Commissioner ramsey.

2604
04:39:17,761 --> 04:39:20,827
we adopted a formula and I wanted to make sure we are being consistent with how mobility is being separated.

2605
04:39:28,627 --> 04:39:31,194
>> it is all about the amount of effort that the county engineer's office will put forth in each precinct.

2606
04:39:36,794 --> 04:39:38,494
you just heard the county engineer say he put forth about the same effort in all four precincts.

2607
04:39:45,194 --> 04:39:48,494
now with the county engineer going forward, we need him to do 2% of his effort in precinct three.

2608
04:39:50,161 --> 04:39:50,161
20% precinct one. And 25% precinct six.

2609
04:39:58,227 --> 04:40:01,194
four and two, that's where we can tell him. It's about providing direction to the county engineer.

2610
04:40:03,927 --> 04:40:03,927
where he spends his time and his money.

2611
04:40:09,994 --> 04:40:13,061
>> you think you would do roughly a fourth of each precinct this coming year as well.

2612
04:40:15,361 --> 04:40:17,994
>> that, commissioner I do think is going to be-- >> I would suggest let it go for now.

2613
04:40:20,627 --> 04:40:20,627
but assuming it changes. But leave it as is.

2614
04:40:24,961 --> 04:40:27,461
>> commissioner garcia, did you put your hand up again? >> I apologize. I did have a more question.

2615
04:40:30,161 --> 04:40:32,261
I know you're talking about mobility. We pulled 325-- can we hold 325 for discussion?

2616
04:40:37,294 --> 04:40:37,294
>> it's bold. >> thank you.

2617
04:40:45,661 --> 04:40:45,661
>> I am completely fine doing the 25% split with regard to

2618
04:40:49,927 --> 04:40:49,927
these transfers. And committed to falling-- are

2619
04:40:55,894 --> 04:40:55,894
you okay? >> yes.

2620
04:40:59,994 --> 04:41:03,461
>> I didn't know if you are choking. The formula remains intact and committed to for the allocation

2621
04:41:06,827 --> 04:41:09,794
of mobility. It's 100%. Correct? >> the interesting thing,

2622
04:41:11,894 --> 04:41:14,761
according to form, precincts two and four is the same whether you do it equally or proportionately they won person in the room

2623
04:41:21,427 --> 04:41:21,427
that's going to be last-- if we want them spending more time in

2624
04:41:29,594 --> 04:41:29,594
three then one, we can do that. But right now it's equally

2625
04:41:33,994 --> 04:41:36,861
split. And it made the most sense. >> I'm fine with equally split. For us it's not about the number

2626
04:41:39,161 --> 04:41:39,161
in precinct four. It's about consistency and

2627
04:41:43,927 --> 04:41:46,161
making sure being transparent with all of our partners here and across the county, and with the state and the city.

2628
04:41:53,327 --> 04:41:55,194
>> this is the deal you worked on. So I'll live with it. I have a seat at the table.

2629
04:42:01,461 --> 04:42:02,827
>> the formula was passed unanimously. We were all here in 2025 for the mobility formula.

2630
04:42:08,994 --> 04:42:11,494
so these annual oac expenses, what we are voting on, is to keep the precedent of the four way split.

2631
04:42:16,794 --> 04:42:19,061
>> it's one of those threes that turns into five. I'm just saying now. >> is there a motion?

2632
04:42:30,627 --> 04:42:32,461
>> I second the motion that commissioner ramsey made. >> as presented? Is that what I'm hearing?

2633
04:42:36,294 --> 04:42:36,294
>> yes. >> the one I read with the

2634
04:42:41,394 --> 04:42:44,361
addition of commissioner ramsey. >> do you have that? Or do we need to read it again. >> it's what daniel read, plus,

2635
04:42:53,427 --> 04:42:55,494
director raman will advise each precinct on what projects will be done there on october 1st each year.

2636
04:42:59,394 --> 04:43:02,427
>> there is a motion by commissioner ramsey. I can't member who made the second.

2637
04:43:05,094 --> 04:43:06,261
>> I did. >> commissioner garcia has a second. All in favor.

2638
04:43:09,727 --> 04:43:11,694
any opposed? Motion carried unanimously. Now we move on to item 14. Commissioner ramsey flagged this

2639
04:43:17,261 --> 04:43:18,361
one. It's the mental health leave item. >> I would make the motion--

2640
04:43:30,727 --> 04:43:30,727
using 24 hours of accrued sick leave for mental health for

2641
04:43:35,661 --> 04:43:37,761
psychological well-being, we have a pretty healthy sickleave. I wouldn't add to that. My motion would be option one,

2642
04:43:45,927 --> 04:43:45,927
use 24 hours of accrued sick leave for mental health.

2643
04:43:50,027 --> 04:43:53,861
>> motion by commissioner ramsey, second by commissioner garcia. All in favor?

2644
04:43:55,127 --> 04:43:58,127
any opposed? Motion carried unanimously. Thank you, colleagues. Item 15.

2645
04:44:00,927 --> 04:44:00,927
by commissioner ramsey. A proposal for oca reporting,

2646
04:44:10,527 --> 04:44:10,527
human resources personnel. >> director, I think as we look

2647
04:44:16,827 --> 04:44:16,827
at hr,-- hr staff scattered throughout the county, this is

2648
04:44:24,361 --> 04:44:24,361
an attempt for lack of a better word, for consolidation of those

2649
04:44:30,261 --> 04:44:33,227
individuals. >> that is correct, commissioner. >> I like the potential for more

2650
04:44:37,361 --> 04:44:41,094
efficiency. That is the objective. The potential savings are-- I think you had that number.

2651
04:44:49,327 --> 04:44:49,327
>> we put-- what we put in the potential language was 250,000.

2652
04:44:54,327 --> 04:44:57,194
but we believe we can obtain a lot more than that and that is consistent with what was identified in the bcg work done

2653
04:45:02,227 --> 04:45:03,027
august 24. It's a different approach somewhat they laid out. But consistent thinking.

2654
04:45:06,361 --> 04:45:10,361
>> it's a good idea. Thank you. >> commissioner garcia? >> thank you.

2655
04:45:12,861 --> 04:45:12,861
director, I want to propose a bit of a change on this, only

2656
04:45:20,394 --> 04:45:24,094
from the standpoint that there are jobs around the county, and then there are very technical jobs around the county.

2657
04:45:31,727 --> 04:45:31,727
and the ones that tend to be technical in nature tend to be

2658
04:45:36,427 --> 04:45:36,427
in our big organizations, which include the county engineering

2659
04:45:41,461 --> 04:45:41,461
department, the control district, the tollroad, public

2660
04:45:49,961 --> 04:45:49,961
health, pollution control, and universal services.

2661
04:45:54,761 --> 04:45:54,761
and what I would propose to my colleagues is that we allow this

2662
04:46:01,327 --> 04:46:01,327
consolidation to move forward with the smaller organizations.

2663
04:46:07,727 --> 04:46:07,727
there is going to be some learning taking place.

2664
04:46:16,194 --> 04:46:18,827
my concern is just because were talking about how much work is being done in our respective precincts, I need the work done

2665
04:46:23,727 --> 04:46:23,727
sooner rather than later. So I want to make sure that our

2666
04:46:30,661 --> 04:46:34,194
organizations have the ability to get the personnel onboard that they need and as quickly as they can.

2667
04:46:37,894 --> 04:46:41,194
they become very efficient at it. I fit most of these departments have a short vacancy rate.

2668
04:46:50,694 --> 04:46:50,694
so my preference is to separate those six departments and allow

2669
04:46:56,061 --> 04:46:56,061
this process to move forward. Learn from it, and see if we can

2670
04:47:00,394 --> 04:47:00,394
adopt it in a meaningful way for the six big organizations.

2671
04:47:06,827 --> 04:47:06,827
my motion is to separate out the departments that I mentioned.

2672
04:47:11,661 --> 04:47:11,661
>> I second that, commissioner garcia.

2673
04:47:17,361 --> 04:47:17,361
>> motion by commissioner garcia, second by commissioner

2674
04:47:22,927 --> 04:47:25,394
briones. Will this create the same unequal treatment we have going on with the salary?

2675
04:47:27,927 --> 04:47:27,927
I'm not sure we should pick favorites?

2676
04:47:32,427 --> 04:47:34,694
>> if I may comment, and respectfully, commissioner garcia, I appreciate your point. We have some backup, I know it's

2677
04:47:38,194 --> 04:47:38,194
late b brief, I see the merit to your recommendation,

2678
04:47:43,594 --> 04:47:46,961
commissioner. I don't respectfully believe it will be successful if we approach it that way.

2679
04:47:49,561 --> 04:47:52,161
but a couple of slides I'd like to show you. And we can fast-forward. Next slide, please.

2680
04:47:57,861 --> 04:47:57,861
keep going. One more.

2681
04:48:03,427 --> 04:48:04,161
okay. You are right in that the resources are low. This is the slide I wanted to

2682
04:48:07,594 --> 04:48:09,627
show you. August of 2024. I don't know the current state. You can see that for the three

2683
04:48:14,661 --> 04:48:14,661
support functions highlighted here, that most of our sets

2684
04:48:25,861 --> 04:48:29,761
don't have as much resourcing out in the different departments as we do. And I think there is a reason

2685
04:48:33,727 --> 04:48:33,727
for that and I think that's because their economies scale

2686
04:48:41,727 --> 04:48:44,827
efficiencies, processes and performances can be obtained when you bring them together. But you are right. There are some that tend to have their own sheriff's office, for

2687
04:48:49,527 --> 04:48:53,127
example. And there are very good reasons. So we do contemplate we can move-- we can move forward a few

2688
04:48:57,427 --> 04:48:58,294
slides. >> back on that one, I'm not catching that chart. Real quick.

2689
04:49:01,461 --> 04:49:01,461
and I know it's late. >> if you look at the left-hand

2690
04:49:06,527 --> 04:49:06,527
side, it shows you human resources, and it shows by some

2691
04:49:10,827 --> 04:49:14,661
of our counties. The green bullets are harris county. And it shows you while we do have central hr, we have an hr dispersed all throughout all of

2692
04:49:19,627 --> 04:49:22,927
those departments with the green. Whereas our peers set only has additional hr with subsets where

2693
04:49:26,361 --> 04:49:29,761
the dark blue dots are. >> okay. Got it. >> if you move forward a few

2694
04:49:34,994 --> 04:49:36,494
slides, please. All highlight what the proposal is. It's right here.

2695
04:49:39,927 --> 04:49:39,927
forgive me. One more back.

2696
04:49:44,994 --> 04:49:48,694
one marbach, please. Thank you very much. The proposal initially, and we would work very closely with

2697
04:49:51,361 --> 04:49:51,361
departments to ensure that we get this right, but it

2698
04:49:55,594 --> 04:49:57,194
contemplates what you're saying, commissioner garcia, that some departments do need in bedded hr and they need it in a very tight

2699
04:50:04,561 --> 04:50:06,827
partnership to make sure they understand the complexities and the unique requirements. But currently we do have that,

2700
04:50:10,861 --> 04:50:10,861
and you can see on shared services, centers of expertise.

2701
04:50:18,927 --> 04:50:20,661
that's talent development, talent acquisition. Compensation, et cetera. And finally shared services.

2702
04:50:26,994 --> 04:50:29,727
in any model we would contemplate that there needs to be in bedded resources that support those large and complex

2703
04:50:33,861 --> 04:50:37,761
departments. What would change here, to your question, judge, his we would have a resource pool of hr that

2704
04:50:41,561 --> 04:50:44,461
could help everyone and we could promulgate the best practices and some of these large departments and what there able

2705
04:50:45,827 --> 04:50:45,827
to do. Like developments and items like

2706
04:50:50,894 --> 04:50:52,861
that throughout all the organizations if we can share resources. Initially we would keep them in

2707
04:50:58,461 --> 04:51:01,161
place and come back in march and explain after having worked with the departments. Raking it down how we would

2708
04:51:05,227 --> 04:51:07,194
achieve this over what period of time. But that is when we do anticipate it.

2709
04:51:15,927 --> 04:51:16,927
better digital tools. Process improvements, best practice adoption, that would benefit everyone.

2710
04:51:21,394 --> 04:51:21,394
there is a slide about three or four ahead.

2711
04:51:25,861 --> 04:51:25,861
keep going. Keep going.

2712
04:51:31,461 --> 04:51:31,461
I think about two more. Right here.

2713
04:51:40,561 --> 04:51:42,561
this lays out the implementation road map we would consider. And it starts with shifting resources like the april

2714
04:51:46,994 --> 04:51:50,594
directive asks us to look at. Switching the resources to a hard-line reporting ration-- relationship in to hr about

2715
04:51:55,394 --> 04:51:57,327
maintaining that dotted line relationship to the current departments and keeping them in place and not moving anyone

2716
04:52:00,327 --> 04:52:02,394
until we had a buildout aligned plan. >> commissioner briones? >> this is a very helpful slide.

2717
04:52:08,727 --> 04:52:11,661
for small, I share your commitment to wanting us to be more consistent and cohesive and really harness resources and

2718
04:52:16,627 --> 04:52:19,661
better leverage them and create the multiplier effect. Absolutely. And, I share commissioner

2719
04:52:25,027 --> 04:52:27,194
garcia's concern, with all due respect, you come in and you had to pick up a lot. But whether we look at the

2720
04:52:32,727 --> 04:52:35,561
implementation and how the pay equity study was done and implemented, the retiree benefits, we can go down the

2721
04:52:39,761 --> 04:52:39,761
list in execution-- execution is an area where we need a lot of

2722
04:52:45,494 --> 04:52:48,027
improvement. End. This arguably would assist so that things are implemented

2723
04:52:53,094 --> 04:52:53,094
better. And this transition given the

2724
04:52:57,261 --> 04:52:57,261
nuance of the more complex departments, the larger

2725
04:53:02,927 --> 04:53:04,761
departments, less specialized skills, et cetera, I think there's a great way to look at this that minimizes the strain

2726
04:53:09,961 --> 04:53:13,861
in the transition. And just maximizes efficiencies rather than creating inefficiencies.

2727
04:53:16,661 --> 04:53:16,661
and my worry was getting all the feedback from departments who

2728
04:53:22,961 --> 04:53:26,894
were very bothered with the pay equity results and the level of work needed to do that one project for the entire county.

2729
04:53:29,761 --> 04:53:29,761
I worry about the executing with excellence and implementation

2730
04:53:36,394 --> 04:53:38,727
piece of this. So I wanted to get your candid thoughts. On if there is a way to further

2731
04:53:42,794 --> 04:53:42,794
staircase or create clarity. We obviously want to maximize

2732
04:53:48,094 --> 04:53:50,861
efficiencies and create economies of scale. Not set it back, but is there a sweet spot?

2733
04:53:53,194 --> 04:53:56,461
and is it just coming back with an update? Could you be more clear in what you see as the opportunity and

2734
04:54:00,894 --> 04:54:00,894
what you see as the risks in implementation, and how we can

2735
04:54:05,394 --> 04:54:05,394
solve for them? >> absolutely, commissioner.

2736
04:54:12,561 --> 04:54:14,494
and I appreciate they are always thinking about the end. I tried to do that as well and emulate that as well.

2737
04:54:17,794 --> 04:54:20,761
I feel the partnership with departments will be essential. And frankly that's a reason that I think that clarity, as we go

2738
04:54:24,427 --> 04:54:27,527
in to fy27, there will be this alignment that will help us go in with clear eyes. That this is the plan, let us

2739
04:54:30,994 --> 04:54:33,127
work together to move forward. We are fully committed to making sure that we create service-level agreements.

2740
04:54:36,861 --> 04:54:36,861
that we create governance so that there is-- we are

2741
04:54:41,994 --> 04:54:43,061
explaining customer satisfaction and experience. And what I'd like to do is take a baseline right off the bat.

2742
04:54:47,927 --> 04:54:51,861
find out where are things. Find these different departments and the customer satisfaction is a lazy alluded to.

2743
04:54:55,594 --> 04:54:58,294
how quickly are you feeling roles, what else is important to you and how are you performing today so we have that baseline

2744
04:55:02,527 --> 04:55:05,861
that we are always gaging ourselves against an holding ourselves accountable against. So I think laying that out in a

2745
04:55:09,361 --> 04:55:09,361
timely fashion, you alluded to the retiree, pharma benefits on

2746
04:55:15,594 --> 04:55:17,461
the compensation pay equity study. I think we've learned a lot about better project-management,

2747
04:55:19,761 --> 04:55:19,761
better planning, and to yield better executions.

2748
04:55:24,561 --> 04:55:28,494
you are right about those. Neither was executed very well. But we have learned and improved as we have gone along.

2749
04:55:33,694 --> 04:55:33,694
>> director, thank you for your comments.

2750
04:55:39,761 --> 04:55:39,761
and I think you're going to eventually get me there.

2751
04:55:46,561 --> 04:55:49,294
but the only model I have to go by is the city of houston. They have consolidated and decentralized.

2752
04:55:56,327 --> 04:55:57,194
they have consolidated and decentralized. Consolidated and decentralized. Every time they've decentralized

2753
04:56:00,861 --> 04:56:00,861
it's because their technical departments end up needing--

2754
04:56:06,127 --> 04:56:06,127
they get constrained and they need adjustments.

2755
04:56:11,261 --> 04:56:11,261
so let's just get a portion of this executed and then have a

2756
04:56:20,127 --> 04:56:20,127
more-- a broader conversation with these bigger departments.

2757
04:56:25,561 --> 04:56:25,561
just to make sure that there is full understanding and

2758
04:56:32,161 --> 04:56:32,161
appreciation about how to make it work.

2759
04:56:41,361 --> 04:56:41,361
>> it sounds like if I'm hearing correctly that we are all in

2760
04:56:46,127 --> 04:56:48,894
agreement of go and bring it back and reevaluate. And at that point, if we still think that-- whether we now

2761
04:56:55,027 --> 04:56:55,027
agree they should all be the same or whether some departments

2762
04:56:59,461 --> 04:57:01,861
need something different-- can we just agreed to go forth until the next phase. And we are not deciding

2763
04:57:06,361 --> 04:57:09,994
anything. >> I'm being completely candid. The only risk I see as these departments are under sorest.

2764
04:57:18,994 --> 04:57:20,327
>> but we can revisit the question of does there need to be any kind of separation of the larger departments.

2765
04:57:25,527 --> 04:57:29,527
and that gives you time to talk to commissioners that are not sure about it. And for the commissioners to think about it. I have a tendency to-- with what

2766
04:57:39,094 --> 04:57:42,627
you guys recommend. And also, if my memory serves me right, some of the grievances that were raised, I don't know

2767
04:57:45,961 --> 04:57:49,061
that you were-- I don't know that we can hold you responsible for that. I think you've been doing a

2768
04:57:56,961 --> 04:58:00,327
good job. And my instinct is to say-- but often times a think something is a good idea and it turns out not

2769
04:58:02,561 --> 04:58:02,561
to be. So I think it's valid to say-- I

2770
04:58:07,394 --> 04:58:09,927
don't think we need to commit to what I'm calling special treatment, but I think it's okay to revisit, like commissioner

2771
04:58:13,894 --> 04:58:16,994
garcia said. So what would you like us to approve today? >> my motion is as stands.

2772
04:58:22,327 --> 04:58:22,327
I think I would like to just get the beginning of the process

2773
04:58:29,894 --> 04:58:32,394
started. But let there be a conversation with the big organizations before it becomes potentially

2774
04:58:37,761 --> 04:58:37,761
disruptive to try to deal with the entire county all at once.

2775
04:58:44,694 --> 04:58:44,694
that is my concern. I don't want to disrupt the

2776
04:58:49,661 --> 04:58:52,994
important work. I know mission control is working to fill some positions. And I think there are still some

2777
04:59:00,127 --> 04:59:02,827
in public health. So I want to make sure that those organizations that have very dynamic work are allowed to

2778
04:59:06,027 --> 04:59:06,027
continue while they have a conversation on what to expect

2779
04:59:11,361 --> 04:59:14,627
out of this process. >> administrator carter, it seems like you want to say something.

2780
04:59:19,394 --> 04:59:23,094
>> respectfully starting small, I do not think it will work. They won't be able to make a pir budget and they won't have the

2781
04:59:25,894 --> 04:59:25,894
flexibility of vacancies. I'm happy to have her come back

2782
04:59:30,327 --> 04:59:33,627
another time and not have a motion. But I think that would cause more confusion.

2783
04:59:35,261 --> 04:59:35,261
because most that are left already rely on them and may

2784
04:59:40,494 --> 04:59:40,494
have half an fte allocated to hr.

2785
04:59:46,894 --> 04:59:46,894
>> then I will work with no action on this today.

2786
04:59:54,227 --> 04:59:54,227
>> I would say, if these larger departments think this will be a

2787
04:59:58,927 --> 05:00:01,094
problem for them, please come and state that case. Because I don't think that one member of court needs to speak

2788
05:00:06,127 --> 05:00:06,127
for all these departments when the expert here is advocating

2789
05:00:13,127 --> 05:00:14,494
for something. Once this comes back, if this continues to be a sense of we need to treat certain

2790
05:00:20,261 --> 05:00:22,794
departments differently, I will say that I'm going to ask that those department heads come up and explain why they believe

2791
05:00:26,761 --> 05:00:29,627
that this will be a problem for them, and why they believe that this should or should not be done.

2792
05:00:31,494 --> 05:00:31,494
and that way, I think we just need to hear from them.

2793
05:00:39,594 --> 05:00:41,861
>> director, it's a good idea. I think the questions that commissioner garcia has asked related to what you are going to

2794
05:00:46,794 --> 05:00:49,761
embed in these departments and what are you not going to embed. What resources? Those are good questions.

2795
05:00:53,694 --> 05:00:56,861
I know that was going to be a part of what you were going to answer. So probably do that bit of

2796
05:01:01,094 --> 05:01:02,661
homework. Missionary work, if you will. With each one of the departments to see what-- in fact there

2797
05:01:08,027 --> 05:01:08,027
maybe some that agree with you. Why don't you take this, and you

2798
05:01:12,494 --> 05:01:16,327
take that, and you might agree with that, you might not. But in any case there ought to be a good conversation within

2799
05:01:19,527 --> 05:01:19,527
these major departments on what we are going to do are not.

2800
05:01:24,961 --> 05:01:24,961
>> agreed. So no action on the item?

2801
05:01:29,094 --> 05:01:31,494
>> all right. Thank you. So, let's move on to item 16. That is to mr. Ramsey requested

2802
05:01:41,294 --> 05:01:41,294
taking 16 and 18 together. These are hr investigator

2803
05:01:46,727 --> 05:01:49,027
positions. >> we did that. >> we did? We passed all those?

2804
05:01:52,561 --> 05:01:52,561
>> I voted no. >> got it.

2805
05:01:57,427 --> 05:02:00,094
rego to 115 on the aip check platform. That was commissioner ramsey. >> the concern I have here is

2806
05:02:07,427 --> 05:02:07,427
this rfp. >> commissioner, we didn't do

2807
05:02:14,961 --> 05:02:14,961
item 16 or 18. >> we didn't?

2808
05:02:19,727 --> 05:02:23,494
>> we did a motion on 18, for sure. They took it as part of two. >> so 16 is a request for

2809
05:02:29,161 --> 05:02:33,161
approval of amendments to the personnel policies and procedures. Did we do that already?

2810
05:02:35,894 --> 05:02:37,994
all right. Who needs to present on that one? >> as presented.

2811
05:02:44,627 --> 05:02:44,627
>> I move it. >> motion is presented, all in

2812
05:02:49,227 --> 05:02:49,227
favor? Any opposed?

2813
05:02:53,694 --> 05:02:55,894
motion carried unanimously-- excuse me. 4-1. Commissioner ramsey again--

2814
05:03:00,427 --> 05:03:01,527
against. Item 18. Request for approval three. Charter positions and labor

2815
05:03:04,994 --> 05:03:04,994
relations liaison... [indiscernible]

2816
05:03:10,061 --> 05:03:13,727
motion by commissioner ellis? Second by commissioner garcia. All in favor? Any opposed?

2817
05:03:17,627 --> 05:03:17,627
motion carries 4-1. With ramsey opposed.

2818
05:03:22,894 --> 05:03:22,894
we move on to 115. Supplemental funding for aip

2819
05:03:27,761 --> 05:03:29,427
check program. Requested by commissioner ramsey. >> we need to talk about it.

2820
05:03:35,927 --> 05:03:37,827
>> there is a motion by commissioner ellis. Seconded by commissioner garcia. >> my concern is how this was

2821
05:03:42,794 --> 05:03:44,794
done. It was done in a quick and rapid way. Was there an rfp process

2822
05:03:48,727 --> 05:03:48,727
associated with it? I have looked at the rfp

2823
05:03:53,561 --> 05:03:56,561
process. I have concerns about how that was done. I'm not sure that we got a lot

2824
05:04:01,861 --> 05:04:05,561
of clarity. And it's not necessarily the person or the engineer. I know all three of them to some

2825
05:04:10,461 --> 05:04:10,461
degree have been involved. But there is enough of a concern

2826
05:04:16,461 --> 05:04:16,461
on this selection process that I would ask that we take no action

2827
05:04:21,194 --> 05:04:21,194
until we can get questions answered.

2828
05:04:29,994 --> 05:04:33,161
>> commissioner, the... [indiscernible] >> it afternoon, commissioner, kim williams.

2829
05:04:37,727 --> 05:04:38,494
harris county. For this particular solicitation, it follows one of the solicitation approaches we

2830
05:04:43,761 --> 05:04:46,227
often take. It was done on a cooperative. And there are other cooperatives on the agenda today.

2831
05:04:50,127 --> 05:04:53,294
we use them frequently. We did a request for offer. So this particular scope of work went out to the four vendors on

2832
05:04:57,461 --> 05:04:59,794
that co-op. And they all had a chance to respond to that bid. And that bid was evaluated by

2833
05:05:03,527 --> 05:05:06,961
universal services and engineering. So it follows a normal practice that we often follow.

2834
05:05:09,727 --> 05:05:09,727
so I guess if you could help me with what the question is?

2835
05:05:14,361 --> 05:05:17,794
>> the question is I think there were probably other vendors too that were not on the buy board. But were having conversations

2836
05:05:21,927 --> 05:05:21,927
with-- I think the county engineer's office, maybe

2837
05:05:28,361 --> 05:05:28,361
universal services. That brought experience and

2838
05:05:32,394 --> 05:05:32,394
expertise. And were not a part of it.

2839
05:05:37,361 --> 05:05:39,627
if you are satisfied that we've checked all the boxes and the people that you've selected are capable, I, again, we spent a

2840
05:05:46,127 --> 05:05:46,127
lot of time today talking about small businesses and their

2841
05:05:50,161 --> 05:05:52,127
involvement. But sometimes small businesses get precluded because we don't include.

2842
05:05:55,294 --> 05:05:58,627
and they are not involved in buy boards and other things, maybe because they've never been told how to do that.

2843
05:06:02,594 --> 05:06:06,394
>> point well taken. We work very hard to have an inclusive procurement process, and we have conversations with

2844
05:06:08,461 --> 05:06:12,294
vendors leading up to these activities. However, because of the size and volume of this particular work,

2845
05:06:14,594 --> 05:06:14,594
we did want to find experience vendors because we are

2846
05:06:18,794 --> 05:06:18,794
implementing a new program. So, based on the scope that was

2847
05:06:24,627 --> 05:06:24,627
agreed on between engineering and with universal services, the

2848
05:06:29,861 --> 05:06:29,861
minimum was seven years of experience.

2849
05:06:34,861 --> 05:06:36,861
so we did think that the solicitation, that the co-op provided gave us the firm robust experience to deliver the

2850
05:06:42,094 --> 05:06:42,094
project. >> harris county experience?

2851
05:06:46,827 --> 05:06:47,727
>> not necessarily harris county. This is a national co-op. >> again, there are very

2852
05:06:52,727 --> 05:06:54,594
experienced people in our planning process. These are universally done the same.

2853
05:06:58,961 --> 05:07:02,327
I don't know if planning is any more complicated in any other county as it is complicated in harris county.

2854
05:07:05,794 --> 05:07:09,794
>> I would clarify, there is a difference between services for the permitting process and creating the system.

2855
05:07:13,861 --> 05:07:15,961
this is not for that permitting service. It's for the system that would do the project.

2856
05:07:19,861 --> 05:07:19,861
so this is different from providing those services.

2857
05:07:24,161 --> 05:07:24,161
>> commissioner, if I may add one thing, I value your opinion

2858
05:07:29,094 --> 05:07:31,694
in terms of having local resources. So during the implementation process, we did extensive

2859
05:07:33,261 --> 05:07:33,261
outreach to make sure that local knowledge and the process has

2860
05:07:37,694 --> 05:07:37,694
been transferred in to this. The city of boston has not

2861
05:07:43,361 --> 05:07:45,361
implemented these. We have good contact with the folks who have done it before. So we will be watching to

2862
05:07:49,027 --> 05:07:50,394
understand their experience, how they did it. As you know, the city of austin has a lot more regulations and

2863
05:07:53,127 --> 05:07:56,594
we do. So we will be looking very closely to make sure processes have been embedded in the side

2864
05:07:58,394 --> 05:07:58,394
of that. >> please go ahead.

2865
05:08:05,194 --> 05:08:05,194
>> thank you. Dr., and miss williams,

2866
05:08:11,527 --> 05:08:14,461
thank you for your work. I have been very anxious to see this item get put on the agenda. So thank you for working through

2867
05:08:17,827 --> 05:08:17,827
all of that you have done. I noticed the folks using this

2868
05:08:26,927 --> 05:08:29,794
particular firm includes the city of austin, as you mentioned, doctor. But it also includes los

2869
05:08:33,894 --> 05:08:35,861
angeles county. Did I see that correctly? >> that is correct. The city of los angeles as well.

2870
05:08:41,361 --> 05:08:41,361
>> maybe not harris county specific experience, but

2871
05:08:45,861 --> 05:08:45,861
definitely complicated county experience is what these folks

2872
05:08:52,961 --> 05:08:54,427
are bringing. So I am anxious to move this item forward. >> my colleagues have already

2873
05:09:02,894 --> 05:09:06,627
asked some other questions. Which is to be crystal clear, this item 113 corresponds to 346?

2874
05:09:08,327 --> 05:09:08,327
is that correct? One quick second.

2875
05:09:15,194 --> 05:09:15,194
to reconfirm, purchasing agent williams, everything within this

2876
05:09:19,894 --> 05:09:19,894
process was customary and by the book?

2877
05:09:26,727 --> 05:09:30,427
>> yes. >> thank you for highlighting the other jurisdictions in which they do work. I think that's a helpful data point.

2878
05:09:35,694 --> 05:09:35,694
in terms of-- I know we've been eagerly waiting for this.

2879
05:09:39,961 --> 05:09:39,961
but for the plats and permits we get so many calls about delays.

2880
05:09:44,027 --> 05:09:47,061
so I can't wait to see the efficiency that will be responsibly deployed so we can get better at moving projects

2881
05:09:48,961 --> 05:09:48,961
along for the people. My understanding, and this is a

2882
05:09:54,527 --> 05:09:57,161
question, dr., would you confirm current estimates are at this ai system would process roughly 32,000 residential permits,

2883
05:10:01,794 --> 05:10:01,794
26,000 commercial permits and 450 pl 80 applications this

2884
05:10:07,527 --> 05:10:07,527
year? Which leads me to my next

2885
05:10:14,127 --> 05:10:15,261
question. When will this ai system be implemented and active? >> commissioner, our goal is

2886
05:10:21,361 --> 05:10:23,994
buying new year we will have the residential permitting and everything done. For the commercial, I would

2887
05:10:28,461 --> 05:10:28,461
think one more quarter. >> you 22027.

2888
05:10:33,161 --> 05:10:33,161
>> and another thing we have to do is extensively test and do

2889
05:10:37,661 --> 05:10:37,661
the calibration ahead of time. Because we have a lot of

2890
05:10:42,461 --> 05:10:45,594
handouts with our office and development committee with different jurisdictions. We want to make sure that

2891
05:10:51,094 --> 05:10:53,027
everybody gets an opportunity to provide their feedback before we go live. >> thank you.

2892
05:10:57,127 --> 05:10:58,727
you answered my next question which is on beta testing and going live. Lastly on this concept that I

2893
05:11:01,761 --> 05:11:01,761
know we are committed to with regard to inclusive procurement,

2894
05:11:06,894 --> 05:11:09,427
making sure that we have workshops that are publicly available, local businesses, wbe, small business, et cetera.

2895
05:11:15,094 --> 05:11:15,094
learn how to become a part, to bid to be on co-ops for the

2896
05:11:21,861 --> 05:11:25,061
future. I know there are so many different co-ops regionally and nationally. So the more information we could put out there to help our local

2897
05:11:29,227 --> 05:11:30,661
businesses, the better. And based on all the confirmations you have given us, I am in favor of these two

2898
05:11:37,061 --> 05:11:38,061
items. But purchasing agent williams, are you going to say something? >> I agree completely.

2899
05:11:42,494 --> 05:11:42,494
this is a lesson learned in terms of getting info out.

2900
05:11:47,761 --> 05:11:49,927
these co-ops are a valuable procurement tool that we use often. >> it maybe this next phase

2901
05:11:53,127 --> 05:11:53,127
maybe more appropriate involvement of local folks.

2902
05:11:58,294 --> 05:11:58,294
you bring in someone with that national platform experience,

2903
05:12:05,627 --> 05:12:05,627
partnered up with some local firms that maybe have some

2904
05:12:09,994 --> 05:12:13,527
experience unique to harris county. So maybe we can talk, dr. Going forward, about the

2905
05:12:17,327 --> 05:12:20,394
implementation, particularly by december. You will probably need a little help.

2906
05:12:21,994 --> 05:12:23,627
>> commissioner all take you up on that offer. >> thank you for what you both do.

2907
05:12:26,894 --> 05:12:28,861
>> thank you. >> I move on both items as presented. >> second.

2908
05:12:33,161 --> 05:12:33,161
>> both items being-- >> 115 and 346.

2909
05:12:37,294 --> 05:12:40,161
>> I thought we already-- we did not. Motion by commissioner garcia on both items as presented.

2910
05:12:43,661 --> 05:12:47,361
seconded by commissioner briones. All in favor? Any opposed? Motion carried unanimously. 126, requested by precinct three

2911
05:12:52,961 --> 05:12:55,594
and four. About the worksite safety policy. Commissioner briones?

2912
05:13:04,161 --> 05:13:04,661
>> sure. Thank you. I have a few quick questions. I believe deeply in our worksite

2913
05:13:09,127 --> 05:13:09,127
safety policy. I look forward to making sure

2914
05:13:13,394 --> 05:13:17,294
any and all workers on county projects are kept as safe as possible. Everyone deserves to get home

2915
05:13:19,894 --> 05:13:23,894
safely to their families. And based on the updates we have been receiving, I have a few quick questions.

2916
05:13:27,827 --> 05:13:29,894
namely how many of the worksite safety positions have been filled across this area. Flood control district de oh,

2917
05:13:34,194 --> 05:13:34,194
and the county engineer? >> currently 21 positions have

2918
05:13:38,361 --> 05:13:38,361
been filled. There is still 24 that are

2919
05:13:42,794 --> 05:13:42,794
actively in process. >> 21 out of 24?

2920
05:13:48,327 --> 05:13:49,961
thank you. So how many eligible projects do we anticipate advertising for bid between now and the end of

2921
05:13:53,161 --> 05:13:53,161
the calendar year that would fall under this worksite safety

2922
05:13:57,294 --> 05:13:57,294
policy? >> we are estimating about 91.

2923
05:14:01,894 --> 05:14:05,261
>> for the calendar year? Thank you. My last question is in terms of worksite safety committee,

2924
05:14:09,694 --> 05:14:13,561
making sure we are continuously learning and improving, how exactly is del engaging this committee and what will be the

2925
05:14:17,427 --> 05:14:17,427
regular cadence of engagement? >> --

2926
05:14:24,394 --> 05:14:27,327
>> the worksite safety committee has been meeting since january on a monthly basis. Between february and may we've

2927
05:14:32,461 --> 05:14:34,094
been about seven different times. On top-- met about seven different times.

2928
05:14:36,727 --> 05:14:38,727
following that, we are meeting monthly through october and we will transition from there. >> thank you for the level of

2929
05:14:44,727 --> 05:14:44,727
engagement you have done and continue doing.

2930
05:14:49,227 --> 05:14:53,027
and we are very committed to implementing this with excellence. To year earlier points. We want to do the right thing and do it right.

2931
05:14:56,461 --> 05:14:59,427
so keep us posted how we can best support you. Because safety is nonnegotiable. Thank you.

2932
05:15:03,227 --> 05:15:03,227
>> with the hiring of 40 plus people.

2933
05:15:07,661 --> 05:15:07,661
>> total of 46. >> clearly getting 46 onboard in

2934
05:15:16,161 --> 05:15:16,161
a directed, managed program, how is that going?

2935
05:15:20,927 --> 05:15:20,927
>> I can talk about it. 21 out of 46 positions are

2936
05:15:26,927 --> 05:15:26,927
filled. So for the de oh, we filled four

2937
05:15:33,494 --> 05:15:35,227
positions fully trained. And the other one, one position is filled out of 12. Total, 4 out of 7.

2938
05:15:41,361 --> 05:15:41,361
engineering is 12 out of 23. And they prioritize hiring

2939
05:15:48,627 --> 05:15:48,627
through these factors. >> for engineering it's 19.

2940
05:15:56,127 --> 05:15:56,127
>> so those are-- are they monitors?

2941
05:16:00,361 --> 05:16:00,361
or inspectors? >> for the de '08 three monitors

2942
05:16:06,227 --> 05:16:08,261
and an analyst. They are trained and we are working with training to the inspectors.

2943
05:16:13,861 --> 05:16:13,861
specifically we are programming e comply.

2944
05:16:19,961 --> 05:16:22,594
the module that we are going to train all the inspectors on making sure that they are fully trained, knowing how to fill out

2945
05:16:27,061 --> 05:16:27,061
the forms in the system. Mark, you can talk a bit about

2946
05:16:31,494 --> 05:16:35,261
the training? >> yes. I want to let you know for worksite safety we've introduced

2947
05:16:38,027 --> 05:16:38,027
the executive manual which is a version one right now.

2948
05:16:43,927 --> 05:16:47,527
a 547 page comprehensive manual that will be used universally between infrastructure departments and the de oh.

2949
05:16:51,527 --> 05:16:54,527
it has standard operating procedures. Workflows. The unified inspection forms that have been in-- approved by the infrastructure departments

2950
05:16:59,127 --> 05:16:59,127
as part of the training process. That zero we are going.

2951
05:17:03,194 --> 05:17:03,194
so whichever amendments come up will be put into the new manual.

2952
05:17:11,927 --> 05:17:14,627
>> and the infrastructure workgroup, we talked about this. The infrastructure department is coordinating their training and

2953
05:17:16,727 --> 05:17:19,227
we will get them together as well. But they are kind of leading their training and working with

2954
05:17:23,294 --> 05:17:24,261
the... >> it sounds like we have monitors and dr. -- the doctor and his group have more

2955
05:17:27,727 --> 05:17:27,727
inspector types? >> the infrastructure department

2956
05:17:32,127 --> 05:17:32,127
has in specters. >> okay.

2957
05:17:36,394 --> 05:17:36,394
thank you. >> commissioner ramsey?

2958
05:17:40,894 --> 05:17:44,861
yes, commissioner briones, to drive anything else? >> move as presented, administrator carter.

2959
05:17:49,127 --> 05:17:50,527
>> yes. Move it as presented. >> motion by commissioner mac. Seconded by commissioner alice.

2960
05:17:56,861 --> 05:17:56,861
all in favor? Any opposed?

2961
05:18:01,461 --> 05:18:01,461
sorry, was at a no? Motion carries four to one.

2962
05:18:05,627 --> 05:18:05,627
130, flagged by commissioner ramsey.

2963
05:18:10,361 --> 05:18:14,194
>> moved. Spec-- >> second. >> moved by commissioner alice. Second by commissioner garcia. All in favor?

2964
05:18:17,161 --> 05:18:18,194
opposed? Motion carries 4-1 with commissioner ramsey opposed. Commissioner ramsey?

2965
05:18:24,027 --> 05:18:25,961
moved by commissioner garcia, second by commissioner alice. All in favor? Any opposed?

2966
05:18:29,294 --> 05:18:29,294
motion carries. 135, flagged by commissioner

2967
05:18:36,761 --> 05:18:37,927
garcia. >> yes, thank you. On this one, I am excited to move this item forward.

2968
05:18:42,261 --> 05:18:44,661
it is an infrastructure upgrade that reflects my revived-- revived to thrive initiative to bring safer more resilient

2969
05:18:49,727 --> 05:18:49,727
neighborhoods. And replacing this item--

2970
05:18:54,494 --> 05:18:58,227
specifically replacing three outdated diesel generators with natural gas units in cloverleaf facilities.

2971
05:19:02,394 --> 05:19:02,394
that would serve roughly 20,000 low to moderate income residents

2972
05:19:07,094 --> 05:19:07,094
in the area. So today's item advances a

2973
05:19:13,361 --> 05:19:16,827
agreement with harris county water control and improvement in district number 36. This is what the young lady

2974
05:19:19,627 --> 05:19:19,627
spoke to earlier. They have installed new

2975
05:19:25,894 --> 05:19:27,327
generators and protective grounding systems. And the current diesel units are past their use of life.

2976
05:19:33,894 --> 05:19:35,694
creating risks to pumps and sensitive electronic equipment during outages. This project ties directly to

2977
05:19:41,861 --> 05:19:44,494
the hurricane beryl and other events when our facilities endured nearly a weeklong power outage.

2978
05:19:47,694 --> 05:19:49,994
natural gas provides a continuous fuel source without emergency refueling. Performs reliably in extreme

2979
05:19:56,027 --> 05:19:56,027
cold where diesel may solidify. And reduces the likelihood of

2980
05:20:01,394 --> 05:20:01,394
boiled water notices and sewage and brainstorm events.

2981
05:20:11,427 --> 05:20:11,427
this investment is almost 1,000,005.

2982
05:20:15,894 --> 05:20:17,761
revive to thrive. Making critical water and sewer infrastructure more resilient, strengthening global

2983
05:20:21,727 --> 05:20:24,594
partnerships and protecting the health and safety of families across precinct two. I'm excited to move this item is

2984
05:20:28,027 --> 05:20:30,661
presented. >> second. >> motion by commissioner garcia, second by commissioner

2985
05:20:33,061 --> 05:20:33,561
briones. All right. All in favor? Any opposed?

2986
05:20:38,094 --> 05:20:41,961
motion carries unanimously. Good work, commissioner garcia. 136. Commissioner garcia.

2987
05:20:47,161 --> 05:20:49,861
>> yes. This is an item on a partnership agreement. As we all know, strong

2988
05:20:53,627 --> 05:20:56,594
partnerships, especially at the local level can help put us deliver better services to our residents.

2989
05:21:00,227 --> 05:21:00,227
today's agreement is with the city of port.

2990
05:21:04,327 --> 05:21:06,961
which continues a successful transit partnership that expands transportation options for people in la porte.

2991
05:21:12,961 --> 05:21:12,961
over the next year this service is expected to provide nearly

2992
05:21:17,794 --> 05:21:17,794
9000 passenger trips, helping residents get to and from work,

2993
05:21:21,927 --> 05:21:23,894
school, medical appointments, and other important destinations. Reliable transportation makes a

2994
05:21:27,327 --> 05:21:30,327
real difference for working families, seniors, people with disabilities, and investments like this help to keep our

2995
05:21:34,494 --> 05:21:37,261
communities connected while making it easier and more affordable for residents to access the services and

2996
05:21:40,661 --> 05:21:44,461
opportunities that they need. So I want to thank mayor rick hilton and the city of la porte for their continued partnership.

2997
05:21:49,094 --> 05:21:49,094
and I'll look forward on building on the program and

2998
05:21:53,461 --> 05:21:56,861
finding more opportunities to work together to make services much more affordable for our working families.

2999
05:22:00,661 --> 05:22:03,261
I move on this item as presented. >> second. What an awesome partnership,

3000
05:22:05,927 --> 05:22:08,261
commissioner. >> motion by commissioner garcia. Seconded by commissioner briones. All in favor?

3001
05:22:12,594 --> 05:22:15,661
any opposed? Motion carries unanimously. Item 136. Thank you, commissioner garcia.

3002
05:22:17,961 --> 05:22:17,961
item 168. It is on an amicus brief.

3003
05:22:24,127 --> 05:22:26,994
>>  county attorney came in, if I can ask you a few quick questions. County attorney, if you can

3004
05:22:32,627 --> 05:22:35,961
provide us a brief overview of this case? >> thank you, judging commissioners.

3005
05:22:38,094 --> 05:22:40,427
with the item before you I'm respectfully requesting authorization to file as amicus in a very important public

3006
05:22:44,194 --> 05:22:44,194
safety case which is now pending before the circuit.

3007
05:22:50,927 --> 05:22:53,494
we would be filing in support of our state's right under the texas penal code to restrict firearms in sensitive locations

3008
05:23:00,294 --> 05:23:00,294
like bars, schools, professional sporting events, as well as

3009
05:23:05,861 --> 05:23:07,827
racetracks. Texans and local businesses have relied on these protections for decades.

3010
05:23:10,894 --> 05:23:13,927
unfortunately the plaintiffs in this case are seeking to strike protections down at sensitive locations, needlessly

3011
05:23:18,027 --> 05:23:18,027
endangering residents, alleging on grounds of constitutionality.

3012
05:23:25,894 --> 05:23:25,894
that these rules under state law are unconstitutional.

3013
05:23:30,061 --> 05:23:32,694
notably, I will point out, judge pitman, who issued the lower court ruling in this case back and is a trump appointee,

3014
05:23:37,061 --> 05:23:37,061
firmly disagreed, and held that state laws are constitutional.

3015
05:23:42,061 --> 05:23:42,061
and his-- in his opinion, he noted that ken paxton, "the

3016
05:23:48,661 --> 05:23:50,094
attorney general of texas declined to defend the merits of the legislature's duly enacted laws."

3017
05:23:53,861 --> 05:23:55,394
so the court had to appoint outside lawyers to make sure that their estates-- their estates own statute was

3018
05:24:00,194 --> 05:24:02,861
defended. Those attorneys did prevail. But this makes it all the more important that we file to convey

3019
05:24:07,594 --> 05:24:07,594
our governmental interest in protecting residents and

3020
05:24:13,994 --> 05:24:13,994
businesses, as well as local law enforcement.

3021
05:24:18,194 --> 05:24:20,294
again, judge pitman firmly upheld the right of our state to have reasonable laws like this rooted in our country's history

3022
05:24:23,861 --> 05:24:23,861
that allows places like the rodeo, a baseball game, or a bar

3023
05:24:32,427 --> 05:24:32,427
to restrict our firearms. And an amicus to the circuit

3024
05:24:36,927 --> 05:24:40,727
will stand behind the laws of this texas legislature, and judge pitman's decision to uphold them.

3025
05:24:43,527 --> 05:24:43,527
>> thank you county attorney kamen.

3026
05:24:48,994 --> 05:24:48,994
commissioner garcia has his hand up.

3027
05:24:53,694 --> 05:24:56,494
>> commissioner garcia. >> thank you, county attorney. Thank you for your presentation and thank you for your quick

3028
05:24:59,861 --> 05:25:03,061
work on some important issues. You said something that caught my attention. And I just wanted to get some

3029
05:25:04,394 --> 05:25:08,261
clarity on it. Did you say that the texas attorney general did not want to represent on this particular

3030
05:25:16,594 --> 05:25:16,594
issue? >> that is correct.

3031
05:25:21,561 --> 05:25:25,094
paxton may not want to defend texas, but here in harris county, we will stand up for the rule of law.

3032
05:25:28,761 --> 05:25:30,961
we will make arguments related to public safety and law enforcement, as well as critical economic points about

3033
05:25:33,927 --> 05:25:33,927
what this can do to diminish economic generation for

3034
05:25:41,094 --> 05:25:41,094
important entities. And it is anticipated that the

3035
05:25:46,294 --> 05:25:46,294
rodeo, the astros and the dynamo will be filing as amicus.

3036
05:25:51,594 --> 05:25:54,894
>> thank you for that responds. And it looks like that between you and our district attorney we are having to do the state and

3037
05:25:58,794 --> 05:26:01,194
federal governments job. Thank you for what you are doing. >> thank you.

3038
05:26:03,361 --> 05:26:03,361
>> I have a motion. Are there other or comments?

3039
05:26:08,061 --> 05:26:08,061
>> all right. Is the motion as presented?

3040
05:26:13,561 --> 05:26:15,527
>> county attorney, move as presented-- or read the authorization to file? >> move as presented.

3041
05:26:19,994 --> 05:26:23,094
>> move as presented. >> thank you. >> motion by commissioner..., second by commissioner ellis.

3042
05:26:29,127 --> 05:26:31,994
all in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries unanimously. This was flagged by commissioner

3043
05:26:36,927 --> 05:26:39,127
briones. It's about bear creek village subdivision. >> this is an exciting project

3044
05:26:42,427 --> 05:26:46,227
that I am so grateful for the collaboration. We are moving forward with this key project.

3045
05:26:49,427 --> 05:26:49,427
and it's incredibly important. Especially in the bear creek

3046
05:26:55,661 --> 05:26:57,061
village. Bear creek village experienced some of the most intense flooding impacts after harvey,

3047
05:27:01,894 --> 05:27:01,894
and generally. During harvey, more than 1300

3048
05:27:07,861 --> 05:27:07,861
homes took on water during harvey.

3049
05:27:12,527 --> 05:27:12,527
and hundreds more flooded during numerous other storms.

3050
05:27:16,661 --> 05:27:16,661
so this fall we will get to work and these critical improvements

3051
05:27:20,961 --> 05:27:24,027
that will improve drainage across bear creek village because we know it's just a matter of when the next storm

3052
05:27:25,927 --> 05:27:29,761
will hit. And these improvements specifically will include large storm sewers, regraded streets

3053
05:27:33,761 --> 05:27:33,761
and new surface drainage paths. And this particular portion of

3054
05:27:38,594 --> 05:27:38,594
the project is going to help reduce flood risk for a

3055
05:27:42,894 --> 05:27:42,894
substantial number of homes. So when they hold bear creek

3056
05:27:50,061 --> 05:27:53,261
project is complete, 2300 homes will be better protected during the next storm. I think all the harris county

3057
05:27:57,661 --> 05:28:00,194
team members who have made today possible, to be able to move forward with this segment, I look forward to make sure that

3058
05:28:07,627 --> 05:28:10,127
we are delivering this protection to our harris county family. As such, I move item 228 as

3059
05:28:17,494 --> 05:28:19,927
presented. >> motion to move the item as presented. All in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries unanimously.

3060
05:28:24,827 --> 05:28:28,827
good job commissioner briones. Item 243. Commissioner briones on the r reef.

3061
05:28:37,594 --> 05:28:38,494
>> 273? >> revolving energy efficiency fundus be-- >> very briefly.

3062
05:28:42,027 --> 05:28:45,194
we have 3 minutes to hear about the steeply energizing-- no pun intended, project we are making with the reef program.

3063
05:28:48,894 --> 05:28:48,894
that would be great. >> our reef is self-sustaining--

3064
05:28:54,661 --> 05:28:54,661
reef is a self-sustaining model. Over the past three years has

3065
05:29:00,127 --> 05:29:02,661
generated 3.6 million in savings unfunded 3.8 million in energy efficiency projects, labor and training.

3066
05:29:07,094 --> 05:29:07,094
and the county is 40% gs hg reduction goal.

3067
05:29:11,127 --> 05:29:11,127
thank you to the director and the office of sustainability and

3068
05:29:16,227 --> 05:29:18,927
the team for the great work. They have partnered with engineering as well, and I want to give them kudos.

3069
05:29:25,461 --> 05:29:27,127
>> thank you, director, and thank you county administrator. It's wonderful to see this progress, as we look into our

3070
05:29:30,261 --> 05:29:30,261
climate action plan to reduce the county's own admissions by

3071
05:29:34,861 --> 05:29:38,861
40% by 2030. Thank you for the progress. >> thank you. Very exciting.

3072
05:29:42,094 --> 05:29:42,094
transmittal. We accept the transmittal.

3073
05:29:46,594 --> 05:29:46,594
274 is the quarter q3 update. Harris county strategic plan.

3074
05:29:55,161 --> 05:29:57,494
>> and this too, county administrator carter, would you briefly share some of the highlights in the progress we

3075
05:30:01,094 --> 05:30:04,461
are making towards our harris county strategic plan? >> I won't pull up the slides, but there are slides.

3076
05:30:09,561 --> 05:30:09,561
the strategic plan, we are 21 months in.

3077
05:30:14,627 --> 05:30:14,627
81% of our strategic initiatives are accurately underway and are

3078
05:30:20,261 --> 05:30:20,261
making meaningful progress. And that's up 6% from quarter

3079
05:30:25,361 --> 05:30:27,694
two. All of our fy26 priorities are on track. And the compensation in pay

3080
05:30:30,261 --> 05:30:30,261
equity is great progress. And of course our housing plan.

3081
05:30:35,194 --> 05:30:39,127
big wins that included the new jail dashboard. D6. The division zero dashboard. The data is being refreshed more frequently.

3082
05:30:42,627 --> 05:30:42,627
on the safety side, 60% of felony cases have been exposed

3083
05:30:46,894 --> 05:30:46,894
within 180 days as of june 2026. Our average decrease to 139 days

3084
05:30:54,027 --> 05:30:54,027
at 21% reduction compared to the same period last year.

3085
05:30:58,494 --> 05:31:00,194
our public health has been in coordination with advancing efforts across many organizations in the region, and

3086
05:31:05,861 --> 05:31:08,827
purchasing equipment. But they are also working on sustainable procurement with internal stakeholders.

3087
05:31:11,227 --> 05:31:11,227
anything else you want me to highlight?

3088
05:31:15,294 --> 05:31:17,494
also we are working on fy27 plants with all departments in the strategic plan. Thank you.

3089
05:31:22,127 --> 05:31:22,127
>> great progress, team. Thank you for your leadership.

3090
05:31:27,727 --> 05:31:30,427
>> thank you, guys. We accept the transmittal. 289 transmittal. A universal services update to

3091
05:31:37,127 --> 05:31:37,127
the strategy project. >> if we could just congratulate

3092
05:31:43,127 --> 05:31:45,994
you and your team again, you named one of-- were named one of the most 100 most innovative technology organizations by cfo

3093
05:31:51,227 --> 05:31:53,527
magazine. Thank you for the progress you are driving. With regards to the erp, if you

3094
05:31:55,694 --> 05:31:59,561
could remind us where we have been, where we are, and where we are going, and what the value add will be for the county, and

3095
05:32:03,494 --> 05:32:06,727
how we can better support you to make this a reality and execute it with excellence. >> thank you, commissioner

3096
05:32:12,527 --> 05:32:15,794
briones. Be received from the commissioners...  Execute...  We have a slide, we are not going

3097
05:32:19,794 --> 05:32:22,061
to go through it. But-- we are now going to go through the slide and I will make a few points I want to

3098
05:32:25,527 --> 05:32:27,394
make. Commissioner you asked in february 2026 you asked us to proceed working closely on next

3099
05:32:30,494 --> 05:32:30,494
steps to modernize our peoplesoft environment and to

3100
05:32:35,427 --> 05:32:35,427
bring efficiencies into. Looking at the systems we have,

3101
05:32:39,894 --> 05:32:43,794
and looking at how we can bring it all together to generate returns on investment. So we did a thorough

3102
05:32:48,427 --> 05:32:49,861
collaboration with all the departments. So I do want to start by saying thank you to your offices,

3103
05:32:55,127 --> 05:32:56,327
because there was a great deal of participation from all of your offices. And from all the departments

3104
05:33:01,494 --> 05:33:01,494
that we reached out. And our reach was pretty wide.

3105
05:33:05,727 --> 05:33:08,894
we reach out to every single department. We made an effort to bring everyone to the table to get

3106
05:33:10,694 --> 05:33:10,694
their feedback. So I'm joined today by our

3107
05:33:15,027 --> 05:33:15,027
project managers to provide the quick update to the commission.

3108
05:33:20,594 --> 05:33:20,594
it's not going to be a long one. It will be a quick one.

3109
05:33:24,794 --> 05:33:24,794
>> thank you. >> thank you, guys.

3110
05:33:35,327 --> 05:33:36,594
>> thank you court, for allowing me to be here. My name is clint bailey, I'm t the...  As I said, we are going

3111
05:33:43,727 --> 05:33:47,327
to talk about what we have done and where we are heading. So, the core theme for this whole initiative has been around

3112
05:33:52,861 --> 05:33:52,861
the fact that the counties erp system is aging.

3113
05:33:57,294 --> 05:34:01,227
and some of the results of an aging erp system that we have found is that there are a lot of manual processes.

3114
05:34:03,927 --> 05:34:03,927
there are off-line workarounds and disparaged systems.

3115
05:34:08,127 --> 05:34:08,127
the county, to be clear, the county departments are able to

3116
05:34:12,961 --> 05:34:15,594
still complete their work. But with these types of challenges you can over time have inconsistent data across

3117
05:34:20,627 --> 05:34:24,227
the county. Reduced efficiency, and a higher workload on the staff, and greater difficulty when you try

3118
05:34:28,661 --> 05:34:28,661
to standardize processes. Therefore this initiative was

3119
05:34:34,627 --> 05:34:34,627
launched and our directives were to establish a clearly defined

3120
05:34:40,894 --> 05:34:43,827
erp strategy, which we will go over briefly. Which would also enable us to do a compliant and defensible

3121
05:34:48,427 --> 05:34:48,427
vendor selection process. With that we completed an rfi,

3122
05:34:55,027 --> 05:34:55,027
request for information process, to allow us to gather

3123
05:35:00,027 --> 05:35:01,994
information of what modern erp systems are offering today. We conducted demos from the vendors who replied to that and

3124
05:35:06,094 --> 05:35:09,827
invited all the county departments to participate. As a result that we gathered feedback from the county

3125
05:35:12,227 --> 05:35:12,227
members, which is going to inform our process and make our

3126
05:35:18,461 --> 05:35:20,261
rfp process that much more meaningful and drive that for us. Then our erp strategy

3127
05:35:23,261 --> 05:35:26,894
initiatives, which our partners helped us with. And alternate to brine here in a moment.

3128
05:35:29,394 --> 05:35:33,294
we held three executive level workshops which allowed us to really define the strategy, holes and guiding principles and

3129
05:35:38,561 --> 05:35:38,561
establish a vision statement. And we held 15 capability

3130
05:35:43,861 --> 05:35:46,861
workshops that include members from across the county departments, in order to allow us to gather the details we

3131
05:35:49,927 --> 05:35:49,927
needed to move in to the rfp. So the vision statement, I will

3132
05:35:55,061 --> 05:35:56,427
read it to you, it's in the slide deck. It is to enable a unified modern erp environment that is

3133
05:36:03,294 --> 05:36:03,294
simplified and standardizes how the county operates, empowers

3134
05:36:08,427 --> 05:36:10,627
employees with intuitive tools, timely information, and provides a flexible foundation to support efficient, data driven

3135
05:36:16,327 --> 05:36:19,494
decision-making and evolving service needs. So the strategy we took here, as we said, was one of

3136
05:36:25,727 --> 05:36:25,727
collaboration, not isolation. So that will continue as we go

3137
05:36:31,361 --> 05:36:31,361
through the rfp and on in to the implementation, because we've

3138
05:36:35,694 --> 05:36:37,094
established a governance structure that we will implement for that. Without alternate over to brian.

3139
05:36:44,061 --> 05:36:45,927
>> good afternoon, members of the commissioners court. My name is brian chee. And I'm one of the erp subject

3140
05:36:49,827 --> 05:36:49,827
matter experts. From the team working with

3141
05:36:56,094 --> 05:36:58,027
harris county. I have been with gartner for more than 15 years. And I am one of the senior

3142
05:37:00,961 --> 05:37:00,961
practitioners in our applications.

3143
05:37:07,561 --> 05:37:10,861
we don't have the slide that I will be discussing, but as clint mentioned, we have been conducting 15 capability

3144
05:37:15,927 --> 05:37:17,294
workshops. And that runs the gambit of departments that will be part of the overall erp scope.

3145
05:37:20,994 --> 05:37:24,294
and that scope is what is shown in the model represented on slide six. Encompassing finance and

3146
05:37:28,661 --> 05:37:31,427
accounting, budget management, procurement, asset management, and human capital management. On the following slide, on slide

3147
05:37:37,527 --> 05:37:37,527
seven, as part of the work that we have done already, we studied

3148
05:37:42,894 --> 05:37:46,627
the four main ways that public-sector organizations similar in size, complexity and needs to harris county, the

3149
05:37:52,394 --> 05:37:56,061
approach for implementing a large system like an erp. In our evaluation of these four approaches, we believe that the

3150
05:38:01,127 --> 05:38:01,127
one most aligned with the county's needs is the capability

3151
05:38:05,894 --> 05:38:05,894
aced release model. This is a best practice--

3152
05:38:11,561 --> 05:38:15,527
capability based release model. This is a best practice that allows the erp to release and a model work that is easily

3153
05:38:18,927 --> 05:38:21,827
managed and in a controlled way that provides good balance between implementation risk, budget risk and organizational

3154
05:38:25,861 --> 05:38:28,794
readiness. The specific implementation approach will ultimately be proposed by the erp software

3155
05:38:32,427 --> 05:38:32,427
vendor and system integrators selected.

3156
05:38:37,627 --> 05:38:40,594
but the framework establishes the most balanced direction for a county. If I move forward to slide nine,

3157
05:38:47,494 --> 05:38:51,194
which shows the representative high level multiyear road map for how harris county can move forward with the erp

3158
05:38:54,727 --> 05:38:54,727
transformation process, and this road map follows industry best

3159
05:39:00,194 --> 05:39:01,461
practices. There are multiple key activities that are underway at the same time.

3160
05:39:06,761 --> 05:39:09,061
to lay the groundwork for a successful erp project. We are voting the foundation. We are preparing the teams.

3161
05:39:14,861 --> 05:39:14,861
we are aligning governance, and ensuring that technology and

3162
05:39:19,294 --> 05:39:19,294
data are ready as well. Once an erp platform systems

3163
05:39:25,261 --> 05:39:27,327
integrator is selected, we will transition in to implementation and ongoing support. The timing of each of these

3164
05:39:33,461 --> 05:39:36,394
steps will depend on organization readiness, the chosen vendor, and the departments involved.

3165
05:39:39,194 --> 05:39:42,027
but the project is already proceeding, and with our current focus right now on preparation and readiness.

3166
05:39:45,627 --> 05:39:48,394
on a final note about the selection of the erp platform and systems integrator, we want to preserve the integrity of the

3167
05:39:54,961 --> 05:39:54,961
process, so we will be very careful not to influence any

3168
05:40:00,394 --> 05:40:04,061
numbers or vendors, as there will be an rfp process to select the platform and systems integrated.

3169
05:40:07,961 --> 05:40:09,961
without, thank you for giving me the time to present in front of you. And now I will pass it back to

3170
05:40:13,861 --> 05:40:14,861
you. >> thank you so much. This will make things more simplified, streamlined,

3171
05:40:19,427 --> 05:40:21,827
efficient and innovative. And more cohesion across the county. Very quickly, when do you

3172
05:40:24,261 --> 05:40:27,761
anticipate releasing the rfp, how long will it open, and how long do expect for an update in court?

3173
05:40:30,094 --> 05:40:33,627
>> thank you for that question. Commissioner, we are working on the scope of work. Our goal is to get the scope of

3174
05:40:37,027 --> 05:40:40,061
work back to departments by september so they can review and provide us an approval. As soon as we have an approval,

3175
05:40:43,561 --> 05:40:43,561
we will work with the purchasing department to get the rfp

3176
05:40:49,327 --> 05:40:51,194
released. As early as september or october. That is when we see the rfp being released. From the timeline, we are trying

3177
05:40:56,427 --> 05:41:00,394
to make it as soon as possible. That is the goal. Because the implementation is going to take some time.

3178
05:41:02,061 --> 05:41:02,061
so we have some prep work to do. Selecting the tool, and the

3179
05:41:07,961 --> 05:41:07,961
implementer is going to help us pick up the process of-- drying

3180
05:41:12,827 --> 05:41:12,827
up the process. So we are working with the

3181
05:41:16,994 --> 05:41:20,194
purchasing department very closely, and along with our primary stakeholders to move it as fast as possible.

3182
05:41:26,661 --> 05:41:30,094
though we are trying to make it as quickly as possible, generally what we have seen is that it takes approximately six

3183
05:41:33,961 --> 05:41:36,594
months. And we have also talked to the purchasing agent, and I believe we are in agreement that it

3184
05:41:38,927 --> 05:41:38,927
could take up to six months. >> thank you for all the

3185
05:41:44,927 --> 05:41:46,827
stakeholder engagement and leading what will be a transformative project. Thank you.

3186
05:41:51,294 --> 05:41:54,394
>> commissioner garcia and commissioner ramsey? >> thank you. Director, thank you for your work on this. You know I've been chirping

3187
05:41:58,627 --> 05:42:01,161
about this for quite some time. So I'm excited that there is more progress being made on this.

3188
05:42:06,894 --> 05:42:09,861
I have been shy about the fact-- I've not been shy about the fact that I believed that we needed to implement people soft, that

3189
05:42:18,727 --> 05:42:18,727
there is a lot of value that harris county lost.

3190
05:42:27,261 --> 05:42:30,794
I use b2 g as an example. We could have had that module working for us a long time ago. A lot of money was wasted.

3191
05:42:38,427 --> 05:42:38,427
so part of that process was that we did not have a real plan and

3192
05:42:48,094 --> 05:42:48,094
vision and road map to get it implemented.

3193
05:42:52,994 --> 05:42:52,994
so I want to ask you, is there time for you to put together an

3194
05:43:02,061 --> 05:43:02,061
overall vision and strategic road map for the implementation

3195
05:43:06,294 --> 05:43:06,294
of this? >> commissioner, thank you for

3196
05:43:11,294 --> 05:43:13,061
that question. We didn't bring up the slide deck because we don't have the time to go through all the

3197
05:43:17,894 --> 05:43:20,694
slides, but the slide includes a road map there. Commissioner. The slide number.

3198
05:43:30,027 --> 05:43:32,527
slide number 9 draws up the road map. We have embarked on the journey. We have embarked on the change

3199
05:43:36,827 --> 05:43:40,661
management. We are prepping up the department. So the work has started on this particular project, commissioner.

3200
05:43:43,694 --> 05:43:46,861
and to the point about people soft, that is one of the reasons why we are doing so much prep work.

3201
05:43:49,161 --> 05:43:51,794
because what we learn from the departments was that they did not feel that they were part of the people soft implementation.

3202
05:43:55,294 --> 05:43:55,294
that was one of the biggest lessons learned from that

3203
05:43:59,327 --> 05:44:00,861
project implementation. So we are starting off with making them a part of this project.

3204
05:44:05,694 --> 05:44:08,827
and also the business processes. To the point that you make, commissioner, that there were opportunities lost.

3205
05:44:11,494 --> 05:44:15,294
we want to start off at looking at all the opportunities that exist in our space so that they are looked at in scope

3206
05:44:18,727 --> 05:44:21,261
accordingly. >> my question is do you need a motion to solidify the erp vision statement approved meant?

3207
05:44:30,794 --> 05:44:32,894
>> yes. What we wanted from the court today with this presentation was to get--

3208
05:44:38,894 --> 05:44:40,961
>> this is a transmittal. So doesn't require emotion. You you can just director. >> good.

3209
05:44:44,927 --> 05:44:44,927
so let me offer this direction. That the universal services

3210
05:44:49,827 --> 05:44:49,827
return to commissioners court on the 17th meeting with an item

3211
05:44:56,427 --> 05:44:56,427
requesting formal approval of the erp vision statement.

3212
05:45:05,727 --> 05:45:08,894
>> thank you, commissioner. >> thank you. >> thank you also much for your great work. >> I have a quick question. When you bring that road map,

3213
05:45:13,661 --> 05:45:13,661
can there be a date? Asap is not a date.

3214
05:45:18,061 --> 05:45:21,461
so if we could have a date on the road map? Even-- and I would hate to use the word "best guess."

3215
05:45:28,461 --> 05:45:31,527
but we should be close enough based on everything we are doing now to come back with specific dates.

3216
05:45:36,494 --> 05:45:39,061
>> yes, sir. We can come up with a tentative date to the point you made. It depends on the tool we

3217
05:45:42,794 --> 05:45:44,861
procure as well as the implementation partner. And also there is a level of discipline that will be required

3218
05:45:47,494 --> 05:45:47,494
as we go through this project. >> I feel like discipline is

3219
05:45:53,894 --> 05:45:57,561
improved when you are working towards a specific date. >> yes. We will come up with tentative

3220
05:45:58,961 --> 05:45:58,961
dates when we bring the plan. >> all right.

3221
05:46:05,194 --> 05:46:07,561
the next one is public health transmittal. 2026, access to care report. >> director barton and team,

3222
05:46:15,927 --> 05:46:19,427
thank you for your work on this. Can you share some of the highlights based on this collaboration with the city of

3223
05:46:21,127 --> 05:46:21,127
houston health department? And any highlights in terms of

3224
05:46:27,861 --> 05:46:29,894
actions that we should be thinking about for the future would be much appreciated. >> happy to.

3225
05:46:34,427 --> 05:46:38,361
I am leo barton. Harris county director of public health. And it's too hard for too many people to access the charon coverage they deserve.

3226
05:46:41,461 --> 05:46:44,561
our team has worked very hard in collaboration with the houston health department over the last few months, and our director of

3227
05:46:47,361 --> 05:46:50,627
planning and innovation is here together with the doctor from the health department to tell you more about our findings and

3228
05:46:53,194 --> 05:46:54,861
commitments. And they have promised a speed run. >> speed run.

3229
05:46:58,761 --> 05:47:01,861
>> we will get through this quickly. Hello, everybody. Good evening. My name is brandon. I serve as the director for

3230
05:47:04,994 --> 05:47:07,927
planning of-- and innovation for harris county public health. And I'm jointure by my colleagues.

3231
05:47:10,027 --> 05:47:12,527
both teams have worked closely together over the past year to develop develop the access to care report.

3232
05:47:15,427 --> 05:47:18,927
and we have been very prime for this this year. Because on the next slide, in 2024, we conducted a community

3233
05:47:24,927 --> 05:47:28,594
health assessment, which we then used to inform our community health improvement plan. That community health

3234
05:47:30,394 --> 05:47:33,861
improvement plan is governed by a steering committee of our partners. And it identified three priority

3235
05:47:35,527 --> 05:47:35,527
issues for a community of which health insurance and community

3236
05:47:39,594 --> 05:47:42,994
care and access is one of those priority issues. And the next slide shows the more than 20 partners in our

3237
05:47:47,327 --> 05:47:51,227
local public health system who helped us to shape the report. These are the organizations that helped us prioritize the most

3238
05:47:55,627 --> 05:47:57,794
meaningful findings, and opportunities for action that are included in the report as well.

3239
05:48:00,294 --> 05:48:00,294
as we move to the next slide, you will see that the barriers

3240
05:48:05,194 --> 05:48:05,194
to care that exist across a continuum, first it's very

3241
05:48:10,194 --> 05:48:11,927
difficult for many of our community members to afford the care that they need, which impacts the decision of whether

3242
05:48:16,194 --> 05:48:19,461
they seek care at all. Next, when someone does choose to seek care, it can be difficult for them to find the

3243
05:48:23,661 --> 05:48:25,927
care they need to. Often because health care resources can be unevenly distributed.

3244
05:48:30,261 --> 05:48:33,127
or may not provide the specific services that they need near them. Lastly when a community members

3245
05:48:36,727 --> 05:48:36,727
in the exam room, the type of care they receive, the fact of

3246
05:48:41,794 --> 05:48:45,027
is that care provided in language, and with the cultural values that they resonate with, those factors influence whether

3247
05:48:49,127 --> 05:48:50,994
that individual trusts the health care system men chooses to continue with treatment. So those things are likely

3248
05:48:55,561 --> 05:48:58,061
familiar, because they represent barriers that are persistent in our community for a long time. But what is new, is the shared

3249
05:49:02,227 --> 05:49:04,894
commitment we have made to address these issues, and to talk about those on going to pass to dr. Shelton for the

3250
05:49:08,361 --> 05:49:08,361
collective work that we are going to be doing.

3251
05:49:13,094 --> 05:49:15,761
>> thank you for allowing us to be here today. Next slide, please. There are four basic areas that

3252
05:49:18,394 --> 05:49:18,394
we are going to share commitments as a response of the

3253
05:49:22,827 --> 05:49:24,627
barriers. The first one of course is both health departments and other areas to coordinate benefits

3254
05:49:29,227 --> 05:49:29,227
enrollment. And this helps to increase

3255
05:49:33,727 --> 05:49:37,327
enrollment, annual isaiah not the public, identify programs. Also, our next one is to a shared commitment to improve

3256
05:49:39,527 --> 05:49:39,527
service delivery. And we want to make sure that we

3257
05:49:44,427 --> 05:49:47,627
are seeing... There we have illustrated by the harris county and our city health department, having a

3258
05:49:50,461 --> 05:49:50,461
mobile unit that works together. Because again, a lot of our

3259
05:49:55,294 --> 05:49:58,461
populations that we do serve actually come to both areas for services. Then we have a shared policy

3260
05:50:02,427 --> 05:50:04,127
agenda. And this is basically, we want to make sure that one of the items that came out in the

3261
05:50:08,227 --> 05:50:09,761
report was the community health workers. And we want to make sure to have something sustainable for

3262
05:50:13,861 --> 05:50:16,494
reimbursement. And resources for navigation to help our community to access care.

3263
05:50:19,261 --> 05:50:19,261
lastly, share data, and our commitment.

3264
05:50:26,827 --> 05:50:29,727
what we are going to be doing, both health departments are accredited. His--'s for started starting

3265
05:50:34,361 --> 05:50:36,694
this fall will have a joint community health initiative that will be taking place. For the next two years.

3266
05:50:39,994 --> 05:50:41,861
and following that, a joint community health improvement plan. Thank you.

3267
05:50:45,827 --> 05:50:48,394
>> thank you so much. Welcome. >> so, moving to the next slide, one of the commitments that

3268
05:50:52,827 --> 05:50:56,127
dr. Shelton just mentioned was never-- better navigation of our existing resources. So I project we are excited

3269
05:50:57,894 --> 05:51:00,261
about that moves that forward is a low-cost identifier. There are resources all over the county, but finding them is

3270
05:51:03,994 --> 05:51:07,594
another matter. And this is a simple and six-- accessible way for community health workers and community

3271
05:51:10,127 --> 05:51:13,861
members to find accessible and relative care near them. Right now it includes critic from harris county public

3272
05:51:16,727 --> 05:51:20,194
health. Houston health department. The harris center, and harris health. And we are on boarding community clinics and other places to find

3273
05:51:24,794 --> 05:51:26,427
care. For our final slide, we just want to encourage everybody to find the report on our website.

3274
05:51:31,027 --> 05:51:34,394
it is located on the joint harris county public health, houston health data and reporting website.

3275
05:51:37,861 --> 05:51:40,961
we also have an upcoming webinar this tuesday, august 11th, where we will dig in further on the findings in the subsequent

3276
05:51:44,027 --> 05:51:46,261
actions, and we would really like to invite everyone to attend as well. I want to say thank you to

3277
05:51:51,594 --> 05:51:52,961
dr. Shelton and the houston health department team. They've been incredible partners over the past year.

3278
05:51:55,861 --> 05:51:55,861
I want to say thank you to our doctors for showing what

3279
05:52:01,861 --> 05:52:03,961
collaborative leadership looks like between two major systems. And I want to say thank you to the great team who joined behind

3280
05:52:08,227 --> 05:52:11,994
me. The office of planning and innovation. They dug in and did the work and applied the high standards that got us to where we are today.

3281
05:52:14,961 --> 05:52:17,061
thank you to them. Thank you for letting us talk about access to care. >> okay.

3282
05:52:22,761 --> 05:52:22,761
we approved the transmittal. Next--

3283
05:52:28,661 --> 05:52:31,827
>> I did have something for the folk. >> sorry, go-ahead, commissioner garcia.

3284
05:52:33,461 --> 05:52:33,461
>> director barton, will you be sharing some of the findings

3285
05:52:39,261 --> 05:52:39,261
that were found by my team in terms of the difficulty getting

3286
05:52:46,561 --> 05:52:46,561
registered for services, or getting registered in to the

3287
05:52:53,227 --> 05:52:53,227
public care systems? >> yes.

3288
05:52:57,894 --> 05:53:01,861
and making that benefits enrollment here is one of our commitments. >> wonderful.

3289
05:53:03,627 --> 05:53:06,927
the city is looking at making sure that their systems are as refined as ours? >> yes.

3290
05:53:16,294 --> 05:53:20,061
we are working closely with that. >> wonderful. Thank you. >> thank you for the collaboration and leadership.

3291
05:53:24,427 --> 05:53:26,627
>> thank you. Now we have item 325. Requested by commissioner ramsey on positions for the county

3292
05:53:33,727 --> 05:53:36,827
attorney. >> I think commissioner garcia has got-- >> commissioner garcia. >> some motions on that. >> thank you.

3293
05:53:51,461 --> 05:53:52,994
my motion is going to be pretty simple. It's going to be to move 15 positions as presented with no

3294
05:54:03,194 --> 05:54:05,861
general fund or mobility fund in pack. And the second motion will be to approve two positions funded

3295
05:54:10,594 --> 05:54:10,594
through the budget enhancement authorized under item two.

3296
05:54:16,594 --> 05:54:18,894
>> second. >> motion by commissioner garcia, second by commissioner briones. All in favor? Any opposed?

3297
05:54:21,694 --> 05:54:21,694
motion carries. Four to zero.

3298
05:54:29,494 --> 05:54:31,294
anything else on that? Thank you, county attorney for your work. Next, 329, flagged by

3299
05:54:36,527 --> 05:54:39,661
commissioner ramsey. It was supposed to go with item five. But I'm bringing it back up and

3300
05:54:40,627 --> 05:54:40,627
it's transmittal. >> I think we covered that

3301
05:54:44,927 --> 05:54:48,761
pretty well. >> I think we did to. So we accept the transmittal. And then we go 332.

3302
05:54:50,627 --> 05:54:50,627
flagged by commissioner ramsey. Agreement with cgl management

3303
05:54:57,194 --> 05:54:57,894
group. Additional services and professional services to provide a feasibility study for glp.

3304
05:55:04,427 --> 05:55:08,227
>> is a motion on that create motion by commissioner garcia. Second by commissioner briones. All in favor?

3305
05:55:11,961 --> 05:55:13,594
any opposed? Motion carries three to one. 337. Flagged by commissioner ellis.

3306
05:55:18,627 --> 05:55:21,561
it is on an agreement for design build construction services for the riverside hospital. The health and safety complex.

3307
05:55:26,194 --> 05:55:28,261
>> we can just move that is accepted. We can do a separate motion, but the contract has been

3308
05:55:31,094 --> 05:55:33,194
distributed. >> so we are good. Do we need to do anything? >> no.

3309
05:55:37,494 --> 05:55:40,094
just approved as presented. >> moved. >> motion by commissioner garcia, second by commissioner

3310
05:55:42,194 --> 05:55:42,827
briones. All in favor? Any opposed? Motion carried unanimously.

3311
05:55:47,327 --> 05:55:47,927
anything else? Questions? A county-- county clerk? Administrator?

3312
05:55:53,861 --> 05:55:55,194
it is 6:54 p.m.-- >> oh, judge. I have one last item. >> okay.

3313
05:55:59,927 --> 05:55:59,927
>> item 340. This is the revitalization of

3314
05:56:05,894 --> 05:56:05,894
denver harbor park. This is part of our revive to

3315
05:56:11,227 --> 05:56:14,527
thrive initiative. And I'm so excited because this is now finally the second phase of the denver harbor park

3316
05:56:20,294 --> 05:56:23,227
improvements. We've been working with the city for way too long to get this project done.

3317
05:56:27,161 --> 05:56:27,161
but I'm glad we are finally at this particular point.

3318
05:56:32,327 --> 05:56:34,727
this item will be to award the architectural package contract, which is funded by precinct two to the lowest bidder, b&d

3319
05:56:42,261 --> 05:56:42,261
contractors, appropriated for approximately 1,000,000.3.

3320
05:56:48,261 --> 05:56:48,261
it includes a concession stand, rest room, breezeway, and solar

3321
05:56:52,394 --> 05:56:54,827
lighting. The design of the concession stand was presented to and selected by the community during

3322
05:56:57,061 --> 05:56:57,061
a public meeting held in march of last year.

3323
05:57:01,827 --> 05:57:01,827
the chosen decide was inspired by the vibrant colors and

3324
05:57:10,527 --> 05:57:10,527
patterns of latin fabrics. The phase one package included

3325
05:57:17,861 --> 05:57:20,827
constructing one concrete walking trail, installing benches, and reconstructing the west parking lot, completing

3326
05:57:23,694 --> 05:57:26,961
civil site work, such as drainage and grading. The work was completed in november last year with a

3327
05:57:31,027 --> 05:57:31,027
precinct two contribution of another 1.3 million.

3328
05:57:35,927 --> 05:57:37,761
harris county precinct two in partnership with the city of houston is contributing more than 2.6 million towards

3329
05:57:42,261 --> 05:57:46,027
improvements of this particular park. This project reflects our commitment to communities

3330
05:57:49,861 --> 05:57:52,694
throughout precinct two, but as well as those inside the city of houston. And I want to thank my team.

3331
05:57:56,427 --> 05:57:57,694
my engineering team. They have been working so hard on this. It has had a lot of slippery

3332
05:58:02,861 --> 05:58:02,861
moments. Working through some complicated

3333
05:58:07,294 --> 05:58:08,994
issues involving the city and the state. But I'm so excited we are finally at this point.

3334
05:58:13,861 --> 05:58:13,861
and hopefully we will have a much more smoother roadway to

3335
05:58:18,527 --> 05:58:18,527
getting it completed then we have with a previous project.

3336
05:58:23,127 --> 05:58:23,127
so talk about getting permitting issues fixed.

3337
05:58:27,927 --> 05:58:27,927
this is the city's-- this was a challenge for the city.

3338
05:58:41,561 --> 05:58:43,227
>> congratulations. It's awesome. >> I move it as presented. >> second.

3339
05:58:46,761 --> 05:58:47,394
congrats. >> thank you. I think we voted for it already. >> it was approved on the

3340
05:58:51,027 --> 05:58:51,027
consent agenda. >> I'll try