[0:49] shortly.

[0:51] >>chair: would everyone please

[0:52] take their seats.

[0:53] We are going to begin now.

[0:54] Thank you.

[0:56] Going to ask my dear colleague

[0:57] commissioner gonzalez to lead

[1:00] us in prayer and commissioner

[1:02] cohen higgins to lead us in the

[1:14] pledge of allegiance.

[1:15] >>commissioner gonzalez: it

[1:17] thank you MADAM Chair. If you

[1:19] can bow your heads, thank you

[1:20] for this wonderful day you've

[1:22] given us, we pray you bless

[1:24] everybody in attendance, bless

[1:25] every commissioner up here in

[1:30] this committeeand in all the

[1:32] committees, every director in

[1:33] miami-dade county, let your

[1:35] will be done and let every

[1:36] decision we make and everything

[1:38] we do before your glory and for

[1:41] the betterment of people of

[1:42] miami-dade county, in your holy

[1:43] name we pray amen.

[1:45] >> I pledge allegiance to the

[1:47] flag of the united states of

[1:48] america and to the republic for

[1:50] which it stands, one nation

[1:52] under GOD indivisible with

[1:54] liberty and justice for all.

[1:55] >>chair: thank you.

[1:55] Ood

[1:56] morning everyone.

[1:58] So MR. Attorney, at this time

[2:00] would it be appropriate to

[2:01] extend reasonable opportunity

[2:05] for the public to be heard?

[2:07] >> thank you MADAM Chair. This

[2:09] would be appropriate time for

[2:10] the reasonable opportunity to

[2:12] be heard on any nonpublic

[2:17] hearing items.

[2:20] >>chair: I don't have any cards

[2:22] for non-public hearing items so

[2:23] is there anyone who wishes to

[2:25] address the commission for the

[2:27] non-public hearing item?

[2:28] Seeing none then we will

[2:29] entertain.

[2:32] A motion to set the agenda.

[2:33] >> MADAM Chair.

[2:35] >>chair: excuse me, my

[2:44] apologies.

[2:46] >> this is my first time here,

[2:47] not sure if I'm here but I want

[2:49] to talk on economic opportunity

[2:51] of miami-dade county for the

[2:53] residents of hialeah, is this

[2:54] the appropriate time or do I

[2:55] come back.

[2:57] >>chair: this is your card,

[2:57] hosea?

[2:59] I believe you filled out a

[3:00] public hearing card.

[3:02] Do you know the item number you

[3:11] are speaking on.

[3:13] >> the grants awarded, how it

[3:15] impacts communities like

[3:17] hialeah for economic

[3:19] opportunity, do I come back.

[3:21] >>chair: you MAY, you have two

[3:21] minutes.

[3:23] >> 7088 southpark drive, I have

[3:25] experienced with cultural

[3:35] affairs holiday award grants

[3:36] and hialeah only received

[3:38] 50,000 of that and it's

[3:40] something I stressed to the

[3:41] cultural affairs department,

[3:43] when you provide a grant your

[3:45] providing economic

[3:45] opportunities.

[3:47] The companies that get million

[3:49] dollar grants are very

[3:50] well-funded, very

[3:51] well-developed and it's not

[3:53] fair for income communities.

[3:55] e pay 28% of our taxes go to

[4:01] miami-dade county and we are

[4:03] 98% spanish-speaking and

[4:05] unfortunately a lot of our

[4:06] residents don't know the system

[4:08] but I asked for the cultural

[4:10] affairs board or even the

[4:11] grants you'll board for

[4:13] projects that they include

[4:14] putting in systems for

[4:16] communities that are

[4:17] disenfranchised, communities

[4:19] that are marginalized, low

[4:21] income, that they have to make

[4:30] an extra effort.

[4:31] I am a retired employee with

[4:33] the parks and recreation

[4:35] department for hialeah and when

[4:37] they built the underlined my

[4:39] friends working for miami-dade

[4:40] county only wanted a bicycle

[4:42] trail but it was when related

[4:44] groups got involved and wanted

[4:45] the economic impact but

[4:46] unfortunately now we are

[4:49] speaking and not heard because

[4:50] how are you going to hear me

[4:51] when you have these big

[4:52] companies.

[4:53] But the underlined went all the

[4:55] way down south, ignoring

[4:56] alapata as north hialeah even

[4:58] though we have green space so I

[5:00] hope you talk about quality and

[5:16] equity, there is no equity in

[5:18] the way you award your grants

[5:19] for cultural affairs.

[5:21] I hope you look into that and

[5:22] sometimes it's not done on

[5:24] purpose but when you make

[5:25] someone aware I hold you look

[5:27] into it and make it equitable

[5:28] we are communities like

[5:30] hialeah, we have the highest

[5:32] percentage of humans and we are

[5:35] rich in cultural affairs but we

[5:36] don't have the know-how and I

[5:38] hope you look out for us.

[5:40] >>chair: thank you josc, seeing

[5:41] no further public input we are

[5:43] ready to set the agenda,

[5:44] correct attorney?

[5:46] >> yes MADAM Chair, matters for

[5:48] consideration in today's

[5:49] meeting are on the final

[5:51] printed agenda with changes

[5:53] noted in the changes memorandum

[5:55] which included the addition of

[5:56] item 3c and 3d so without a

[5:58] motion to set the agenda is in

[5:58] order.

[6:00] >>chair: motion by commissioner

[6:02] cohen higgins, second by

[6:04] commissioner gonzalez, all in

[6:05] favor say aye.

[6:07] Any matters, just so everyone

[6:08] knows I will take up the

[6:10] discussion items at the end of

[6:12] the meeting so we will move

[6:33] towards the public hearing

[6:33] item, 1g1.

[6:35] Would it be appropriate to move

[6:37] to public hearing item 1g1 now?

[6:39] Class and ordinance related to

[6:41] the rules of procedure of the

[6:43] board of county commissioners

[6:43] amending two b

[6:44] one of the code

[6:47] of miami-dade county revising

[6:49] requirements relating to

[6:51] notification provided by the

[6:53] county mayor or designee to all

[6:54] applicable district

[6:55] commissioners of certain

[6:57] matters originating with the

[6:59] administration providing

[7:01] severability inclusion in the

[7:03] code and an effective date.

[7:04] >>chair: public hearing is open

[7:06] if anyone wishes to speak on

[7:07] item 1g1.

[7:08] Seeing none, so the public

[7:10] hearing is now closed, do I

[7:12] have a motion on 1g1 and any

[7:12] discussion?

[7:14] I have a motion by commissioner

[7:16] cohen higgins, second by

[7:18] commissioner gonzalez, MADAM

[7:20] Clerk will you call the roll.

[7:21] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[7:21] for.

[7:24] >>commissioner gonzalez: for.

[7:24] >>chair: yes.

[7:27] >> motion passes unanimously.

[7:29] >>chair: now would you like to

[7:30] bifurcate any of the items on

[7:32] the agenda for discussion?

[7:34] So do I have a motion to

[7:36] approve the agenda?

[7:37] >>commissioner gonzalez: I

[7:38] moved the balance of the

[7:39] agenda.

[7:40] >>chair: seconded by

[7:42] commissioner cohen higgins, all

[7:43] in favor.

[7:44] So I also have a request to

[7:46] waive iiib, 3c and 3d to the

[7:47] JULY 21 bcc meeting.

[7:51] Are there any other requests to

[7:52] waive onto the meeting?

[7:55] Anything else remaining county

[7:57] attorney on the agenda.

[7:59] >> other than the discussion

[8:00] item note.

[8:02] >>chair: we will move to the

[8:03] discussion item.

[8:06] We ve a budget presentation by

[8:11] the internal compliance

[8:11] department.

[8:13] If you already, you MAY

[8:14] approach.

[8:18] >> good morning.

[8:29] >>chair: good morning chief.

[8:31] >> I like to introduce ophelia

[8:33] presenting on behalf of the

[8:35] mayor the internal compliance

[8:37] strategic objectives for the

[8:38] year.

[8:39] >>chair: thank you so much, you

[8:42] are recognized director.

[8:44] >> thank you, good morning

[8:45] gerald and lopez and members of

[8:47] the committee, I'm pleased to

[8:49] provide an overview of the

[8:50] internal compliance department,

[8:54] the results we are delivering,

[8:56] the challenges affecting our

[8:58] work and modernization

[9:00] priorities that position us to

[9:01] provide greater value.

[9:03] at its core icd is an

[9:04] operational partner.

[9:06] We hope departments strengthen

[9:08] internal controls improve

[9:18] business processes recover

[9:19] revenue, manage risk and use

[9:21] county resources more

[9:21] effectively.

[9:23] Based on the scope of

[9:24] responsibilities of the

[9:26] departments preventative focus

[9:28] consideration could be given to

[9:29] referring our role as a

[9:31] counties enterprise risk

[9:32] management function.

[9:35] Our mission is to support

[9:36] county administration and

[9:37] ultimately county residents.

[9:40] By improving operational

[9:42] performance and strengthening

[9:51] accountability across the

[9:52] organization.

[9:53] Our goal is to identify issues

[9:55] early, provide practical

[9:56] recommendations and health

[9:58] management implement

[9:59] improvements before small

[10:01] control weaknesses become

[10:02] larger problems.

[10:04] We do that by working directly

[10:06] with county departments,

[10:08] jackson health system,

[10:09] municipalities and

[10:13] constitutional offices.

[10:15] Icd brings together several

[10:17] functions that reinforce one

[10:18] another to protect county

[10:20] resources by managing risk,

[10:22] strengthening controls and

[10:24] ensuring accountability.

[10:26] Credit and collections covers

[10:28] delinquent receivables and

[10:30] helps protect revenue needed to

[10:31] support county services.

[10:33] Risk management addresses

[10:35] claims, insurance, loss

[10:40] prevention and mitigation of

[10:41] property liability and personal

[10:41] risks.

[10:43] He purchasing card

[10:45] compliance division promotes

[10:47] secure and efficient card use

[10:48] while monitoring transactions

[10:49] for compliance.

[10:51] The process and control

[10:52] management team conducts

[10:55] targeted reviews of operations,

[10:57] contracts revenues and internal

[10:58] controls.

[10:59] These reviews are intended not

[11:01] only to identify deficiencies

[11:03] but improve processes.

[11:05] These divisions collectively

[11:06] strengthen the counties

[11:08] integrity and operational

[11:10] resilience by preventing loss,

[11:24] managing risk, ensuring

[11:26] compliance, protecting revenue

[11:28] and driving continuous

[11:29] improvement.

[11:30] While icd was currently

[11:32] supporting counties enterprise

[11:33] resource planning system, that

[11:35] responsibility is scheduled to

[11:37] be managed by the clerk of

[11:38] court as of AUGUST 3, 2026.

[11:41] Our recent accomplishments

[11:43] demonstrate the value of this

[11:44] integrated approach.

[11:45] It debt collections have

[11:47] increased by 11%.

[11:48] Not just a reflection of

[11:50] stronger collection activity

[11:51] but also effectuating

[11:53] compliance where at equitable.

[11:55] Process and control management

[11:57] completed 52 review reports in

[11:59] the prior year, identifying

[12:01] preventative improvements while

[12:03] also identifying about $402,000

[12:04] in assessments and

[12:06] approximately $613,000

[12:09] recovered from previously

[12:10] issued reports.

[12:12] Within purchasing card

[12:14] compliance process improvements

[12:16] reduced monitoring turnaround

[12:32] time improving responsiveness

[12:34] and making the process more

[12:36] seamless for cardholders and

[12:36] departments.

[12:38] We are also beginning to

[12:40] incorporate artificial

[12:42] intelligence into selected

[12:43] activities.

[12:45] Our goal is not to replace

[12:47] professional judgment, is to

[12:48] automate repetitive work

[12:50] analyzed larger amounts of

[12:51] information and allow employees

[12:53] to focus on higher value

[12:54] activities.

[12:56] At the same time several issues

[12:58] can inhibit our ability to

[13:00] expand these results.

[13:01] The first is a legacy code

[13:02] enforcement system.

[13:02] F age

[13:04] limits automation system

[13:06] integration analytics and

[13:07] reporting.

[13:09] The second issue is workforce

[13:09] capacity.

[13:10] Ecruitment,

[13:12] retention and retirements, the

[13:14] 3rs affect our ability to

[13:15] maintain and service and

[13:16] demands.

[13:18] Risk management is also a major

[13:18] priority.

[13:20] The county faces a wide range

[13:22] of exposures including employee

[13:23] injuries, vehicle accidents,

[13:25] property losses liability

[13:26] claims to be or whether an

[13:28] operational disruptions.

[13:30] A more coordinated data-driven

[13:31] risk management approach can

[13:33] help reduce both the frequency

[13:35] and financial impact of these

[13:36] events.

[13:38] Finally icd must continuously

[13:40] manage competing priorities.

[13:41] Our challenge is to remain

[13:43] responsive while keeping

[13:45] attention on the counties

[13:46] highest risk and highest value

[13:47] needs.

[13:48] Our first priority is replacing

[13:51] the legacy code enforcement

[13:51] system.

[13:52] His should be viewed

[13:54] as a business process

[14:16] modernization effort not simply

[14:18] an information technology

[14:18] replacement.

[14:20] A modern platform can improve

[14:23] case management collections

[14:25] reporting data quality and

[14:26] accountability.

[14:27] Our second priority is

[14:28] expanding the responsible use

[14:31] of artificial intelligence and

[14:32] collections and process

[14:33] reviews.

[14:36] Potential applications include

[14:38] prioritizing accounts analyzing

[14:40] documents identifying

[14:42] anomalies, evaluating trends

[14:43] and responding to routine

[14:44] customer questions.

[14:46] Our third priority is

[14:48] strengthening risk management

[14:50] processes and controls.

[14:51] We want to move from reacting

[14:53] to claims after losses occur to

[14:55] identifying causes and helping

[14:56] departments prevent future

[14:57] losses.

[14:58] These initiatives are

[14:59] connected.

[15:01] Better systems produce better

[15:02] data.

[15:03] Better data supports better

[15:04] analysis and better analysis

[15:07] allows us to direct resources

[15:07] towards the areas where they

[15:09] can produce a greater benefit.

[15:12] Looking ahead our modernization

[15:14] strategy is centered on three

[15:15] outcomes, first we will

[15:17] strengthen internal controls

[15:18] and enterprise risk management

[15:20] through risk-based planning

[15:22] workforce development and

[15:23] stronger follow-up corrective

[15:24] actions.

[15:25] Second we will

[15:29] modernize collections by

[15:31] expanding digital tools,

[15:32] improving customer outreach and

[15:34] giving collectors better

[15:36] information to prioritize

[15:36] accounts.

[15:38] Third we will continue

[15:40] optimizing the purchasing card

[15:41] program through dashboard

[15:43] analytics and more timely

[15:43] reporting.

[15:45] The broader objective is a

[15:47] coordinated effort across the

[15:48] department rather than a series

[15:50] of isolated projects.

[15:52] In closing ultimately icds

[15:54] value should be measured by

[15:55] outcomes.

[15:56] Revenue collector recovered

[15:58] increased compliance, losses

[16:00] prevented, processes improved,

[16:01] internal controls strengthened

[16:06] and risk addressed before they

[16:07] become larger problems.

[16:09] We appreciate the committees

[16:10] support as we continue

[16:12] strengthening roles as a

[16:13] high-impact operational partner

[16:15] to the county administration

[16:17] and departments and ultimately

[16:19] county residents, thank you.

[16:20] >>chair: thank you director,

[16:22] any questions of the director

[16:24] on her presentation,

[16:25] commissioner cohen higgins.

[16:27] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[16:29] to our director I appreciate

[16:31] the presentation on the slides,

[16:32] I'm looking through my papers,

[16:34] do you have a printout so we

[16:42] MAY have a copy on the dais?

[16:44] And our previous hearings where

[16:46] I know a number of departments

[16:48] if not all have been giving

[16:50] presentations I previously

[16:52] mentioned monday I know the

[16:54] charge from the administration

[16:56] was to keep all departmental

[16:58] budgets at no greater than a 3%

[17:00] increase year-over-year.

[17:02] Does your budget reflect that

[17:03] charge and that mandate?

[17:05] and you're passing out the

[17:07] presentations I appreciate it,

[17:08] nothing further.

[17:10] >>chair: any questions, seeing

[17:12] none thank you director for

[17:13] your presentation.

[17:14] Now we will hear from the

[17:16] strategic procurement

[17:17] department.

[17:19] >> we invite namita oppal to

[17:20] present.

[17:21] >>chair: you are recognized.

[17:23] >> namita oppal, director for

[17:24] procurement.

[17:26] What I'm presenting today is a

[17:32] reflection of values and the

[17:33] principles that the board has

[17:35] always focused on.

[17:37] Strategic procurement

[17:39] department division is to be

[17:40] the leader, global leader of

[17:42] purpose driven deployments,

[17:43] purpose matters.

[17:47] Purpose, I'm sorry.

[17:49] Purpose is a reflection of the

[17:52] values the board has adopted.

[17:54] Being transparent, being fair,

[18:04] being inclusive.

[18:06] It's not a matter of just

[18:08] getting a contract done and

[18:10] getting approved, it has value.

[18:11] It delivers value to the

[18:13] residence, delivers value to

[18:14] the department and contracts

[18:16] enable departments to reach out

[18:18] to the customers and deliver

[18:34] service and the board has

[18:35] always proffered on going above

[18:36] and beyond.

[18:38] Make sure the processes are

[18:40] transparent, make sure we are

[18:42] responsive to the constituents,

[18:43] making sure we are resilient

[18:45] and adaptive to the evolving

[18:47] needs of the environment.

[18:49] We are ethical in our business

[18:50] practices, we are efficient.

[18:52] We train our people.

[18:53] We train our vendors.

[18:55] We are inclusive and yesterday

[18:57] we heard community benefits so

[18:59] that is the whole purpose, the

[19:01] word purpose includes all of

[19:01] these values.

[19:03] In our contracts, that is the

[19:05] goal, that is our vision and

[19:06] that's what we strive for.

[19:09] The major functions for my

[19:11] department of course, we bring

[19:13] you the contracts for goods and

[19:15] services, architecture

[19:17] engineering services, design

[19:19] build, public-private

[19:20] partnership.

[19:21] Last year the board approved

[19:23] the merger of small business

[19:25] services with procurement and

[19:27] with that we have all the

[19:29] certification programs we had

[19:31] miscellaneous construction

[19:34] contracts program, equitable

[19:34] distribution.

[19:36] 19 also manages the vendor

[19:38] registration through the county

[19:40] for all county vendors.

[19:41] We do run to academies,

[19:42] procurement academy for

[19:56] training programs for county

[19:56] staff.

[19:58] There are professionals in all

[20:00] county departments and ask a

[20:01] matter of fact there are a lot

[20:03] of jurisdictions cities and

[20:05] counties who have taken

[20:07] advantage of our procurement

[20:08] training.

[20:09] We are also partnering with

[20:11] international companies relying

[20:12] on us for training programs.

[20:14] We also have a vendor training

[20:16] academy that offers a lot of

[20:17] vendor training activities, how

[20:19] to do business with the county

[20:23] and those are provided online

[20:25] as well as in person.

[20:26] We also reach out to your

[20:28] district offices to do training

[20:30] programs, all encompassing the

[20:31] vendor academy that we have.

[20:33] This year as part of the budget

[20:35] the mayor has proffered the

[20:36] movements of real estate

[20:45] management division from pi od

[20:48] to strategic procurement

[20:50] department and with that the

[20:51] acquisition and sale of

[20:53] properties, any development

[20:55] agreement and leases will fall

[20:57] under the strategic procurement

[20:57] department.

[21:01] Our main customers, key

[21:02] customers are obviously the

[21:04] first customers are the county

[21:06] residents that we provide

[21:06] service to.

[21:08] Vendor community, county

[21:10] departments, constitutional

[21:12] offices and municipalities.

[21:13] There are a lot of

[21:14] municipalities who piggyback on

[21:16] our contracts and use our

[21:18] training programs that we

[21:18] offer.

[21:20] Just very high level of key

[21:31] accomplishments, we actually

[21:33] were, are probably one of the

[21:35] first ones to use ai tools and

[21:37] we develop those in the house.

[21:38] One of the ai tools is the

[21:40] appointment of the selection

[21:42] committee, the other is the ai

[21:44] tool to train my staff read

[21:46] that tool is actually includes

[22:02] all of the code regulations and

[22:03] rules and processes and staff

[22:05] can actually go in the tool and

[22:07] say how to do an rfp in miami

[22:08] dade county and we share

[22:10] information that is relevant to

[22:11] miami dade county, not the

[22:13] other jurisdictions so the

[22:15] tools were recognized as one of

[22:16] the pioneer tools.

[22:18] We have, we were selected by fa

[22:19] po for excellence in

[22:20] procurement award.

[22:22] Selected by the national

[22:23] procurement institute.

[22:25] We also launched a

[22:31] certification program, that's

[22:33] probably one of its kind in the

[22:33] country.

[22:35] It's a certification of public

[22:37] procurement professionals and

[22:39] we have certified over 449

[22:40] individuals in the county and

[22:42] other jurisdictions are

[22:44] modeling our program through

[22:45] this certification.

[22:45] E reached

[22:47] out to them, we did 359 events

[22:49] for vendors reaching out to

[22:50] almost 24,000 participants.

[22:52] We bring items to the board in

[22:58] the volume that you see in

[23:00] every board and committee and

[23:01] in 2025 we brought $5.4 billion

[23:03] worth of contracts for board

[23:04] approval, 179 items and be

[23:12] thank the chair for appointing

[23:13] the task force and you will see

[23:15] the recommendations coming very

[23:16] soon.

[23:18] We analyzed 200 pieces of

[23:19] legislation and are making

[23:21] significant recommendations.

[23:37] For making the process better.

[23:39] Like any other department we do

[23:40] have key issues.

[23:41] Ome of them

[23:43] of course complicated when it

[23:44] comes to federal state and

[23:46] local regulations and we are

[23:47] hoping that through the strict

[23:49] we can it on and some of the

[23:51] local regulations so we can

[23:52] expedite the procurement

[23:53] process.

[23:54] We have multiple systems that

[23:56] don't talk to each other so we

[23:58] are trying to figure out and of

[24:00] course informs as our system of

[24:02] record but to get the job done

[24:04] there are multiple systems we

[24:06] use so we are trying to create

[24:08] platforms so staff does not

[24:09] have to rely on multiple

[24:11] systems to get from point a to

[24:12] point b. Staff retention has

[24:14] always been an issue.

[24:15] i did lose and I mentioned it

[24:17] to commissioner cohen higgins I

[24:19] lost six or seven people to

[24:21] constitutional offices in the

[24:23] past year and retention is

[24:24] always key.

[24:25] Which we are trying our best to

[24:25] retain.

[24:26] Few priority

[24:32] initiatives, streamlining,

[24:34] these are the three initiatives

[24:36] we actually came out of the

[24:38] strict and we were working on

[24:39] some of them.

[24:41] Streamlining this small

[24:43] business certification program

[24:45] and what we are proffering is

[24:47] there were 60 requirements,

[24:48] over 60 requirements for a

[24:53] vendor to get certified though

[24:55] we are reducing it down to the

[24:57] board all approval authority

[24:59] and reducing processing time to

[25:01] get certified as a small

[25:03] business by 50%.

[25:05] I know the board is always

[25:07] questioning why procurement

[25:08] takes long and one of our

[25:10] commitments to the board is to

[25:11] reduce the procurement cycle

[25:12] time.

[25:16] Our goal is for procurements

[25:17] and they are 5 million, we

[25:19] should be able to make an award

[25:21] recommendation between 90 to

[25:28] 120 days and over 5 million

[25:30] between 120 to 150 days and

[25:32] that's from the receipt of

[25:33] proposals to the mayor making

[25:36] the recommendation, that is our

[25:37] commitment and that is what we

[25:39] are working towards diligently

[25:41] and lastly creating an online

[25:43] dashboard that's key to our

[25:44] vendors, key to our

[25:45] constituents and the board if

[25:47] you can go online and see what

[25:49] the status of each procurement

[25:51] is and that is one of our key

[25:52] initiatives.

[25:53] future outlook, of course

[25:55] processing time, making sure we

[25:58] do this with speed and

[25:58] efficiency.

[25:59] 98 to 130 days after 5 million.

[26:07] We did launch a comprehensive

[26:09] small local business plan

[26:10] ensuring taxpayer dollars

[26:12] remain within the local

[26:13] economy, that's key and the

[26:17] last one is coming up with one

[26:18] single bidding system for

[26:20] capital projects.

[26:28] And those are the few key

[26:29] priorities we hope to

[26:30] accomplish very soon.

[26:33] I'm here for questions and

[26:34] commissioner cohen higgins, we

[26:38] are also at 3% and budget would

[26:43] reflect that.

[26:45] >>chair: thank you director,

[26:47] any questions of the director,

[26:48] commissioner cohen higgins you

[26:50] are recognized.

[26:52] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[26:56] thank you MADAM Chair. To the

[26:58] director and this is for you in

[27:00] the previous director that gave

[27:02] a presentation, what was it you

[27:08] were asked to present, a budget

[27:08] presentation?

[27:10] I'm not being facetious, was

[27:12] the request a budget

[27:14] presentation, that's my

[27:16] understanding of what was to be

[27:17] presented was a budget

[27:31] presentation or maybe I'm

[27:32] wrong.

[27:33] >> the staff was asked to

[27:34] prepare summaries of the

[27:36] drivers for their budget.

[27:37] The accomplishments for the

[27:39] year so you all would have

[27:41] clarity on the assumptions that

[27:42] went into private how they

[27:44] prioritize their work for the

[27:45] upcoming year.

[27:47] At two or 2:30 today the mayor

[27:49] will be presenting our proposed

[27:49] budget.

[27:51] >>commissioner cohen higgins: I

[27:53] appreciate that but here's the

[27:54] reason I'm asking.

[27:55] On our agenda it says

[27:57] discussion item regarding the

[27:59] proposed fiscal year 26-27

[28:00] budget presentations and it

[28:02] lists the department.

[28:05] We had to presentations devoid

[28:07] of any numbers whatsoever,

[28:08] there is not a number that's

[28:10] been presented and we're

[28:11] talking about accomplishments

[28:13] but not numbers in a budget

[28:14] presentation so I'm not sure

[28:27] I'm understanding whether the

[28:29] presentations meet the request

[28:30] that has been made and I

[28:32] understand the budget will be

[28:34] printed at 2:30 today and there

[28:36] were things that will be

[28:37] revealed at that time but in

[28:46] transportation at started there appropriately

[28:48] because it is a budget

[28:49] presentation.

[28:51] I haven't heard a number from

[28:52] either department on what is

[28:53] their budget.

[28:55] >> through the chair, I'm not

[28:56] sure ophelia or namita if you

[28:58] are prepared to give your total

[28:59] numbers.

[29:01] >> our proposed budget is $53

[29:03] million including the real

[29:05] estate transition of the real

[29:06] estate.

[29:07] F which 33 million as

[29:10] personnel, 1.2 is operating in

[29:14] 7.2 is transferred to the

[29:15] department.

[29:16] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[29:19] your department budget is $53

[29:20] million.

[29:22] >> if the adoption of the real

[29:24] estate function is adopted,

[29:25] yes.

[29:26] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[29:28] that is within or below the 3%.

[29:29] >> yes.

[29:30] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[29:33] from last year to this year.

[29:35] >> one of the things we did

[29:36] last year and that will be

[29:37] reflected is when small

[29:43] business function when it

[29:45] merges with procurement one of

[29:46] the charges I got was a

[29:48] reduction to 50 positions which

[29:50] we did plus this year the real

[29:52] estate function approves 3% and

[29:54] also the eliminations that we

[30:02] have contemplated.

[30:04] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[30:05] thank you and if the director

[30:07] on the icd department can

[30:08] approach and I'm not trying to

[30:10] get into any details before the

[30:12] budget is printed but I think

[30:14] macro numbers are appropriate

[30:15] during a budget presentation so

[30:17] if you don't mind approaching I

[30:27] have a few questions.

[30:29] >> through the chair one of the

[30:31] other things that's important

[30:33] to note about both of these

[30:34] departments is they are not

[30:35] 100% general fund.

[30:37] What we were doing this year

[30:39] when you reflect or focus on

[30:40] the 3% was trying to make sure

[30:42] that we bend the cost curve

[30:44] related to the general fund

[30:46] departments so both of these

[30:47] women actually have departments

[30:51] that are revenue-generating so

[30:53] we are very intentional about

[30:55] making sure we protect the

[30:57] investments and parts of the

[30:58] organization that generate

[31:00] revenue that support the

[31:01] general fund.

[31:03] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[31:05] thank you for clarifying, what

[31:18] is your budget?

[31:20] >> my budget will technically

[31:22] change drastically because the

[31:23] enterprise resource team which

[31:25] is comprised of two different

[31:27] divisions is going to be

[31:27] transferred.

[31:29] that portion represents a large

[31:31] portion of this budget right

[31:31] now.

[31:33] What's remaining will be

[31:34] administration credit

[31:36] collections which is self

[31:37] funded through the collections

[31:38] they do.

[31:40] The process and control reports

[31:41] produced are also not

[31:43] completely general fund.

[31:44] And our risk management is

[31:45] actually self funded through

[31:46] the insurance.

[31:48] Right now as we have proposed

[31:50] through the budget it's about

[31:52] 72 million but again a large

[31:54] portion, half or more is that

[31:56] technology divisions that are

[31:57] going.

[31:59] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[31:59] going where?

[32:01] >> to the clerk of the court

[32:07] and comptroller.

[32:08] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[32:10] on your debt collections page

[32:12] of your presentation you have

[32:14] 11%, sorry if you went over

[32:16] that previously but what is the

[32:22] 11%.

[32:24] >> we have a budget to collect

[32:26] $24 million in a year, gross

[32:26] collections.

[32:28] Right now to date we have

[32:29] collected $21 million and this

[32:31] is what goes back to the

[32:34] departments and to jackson as

[32:34] collections.

[32:36] We are like their last line of

[32:38] collections as you very well

[32:39] know.

[32:40] So our team has been above and

[32:41] beyond in making these

[32:43] collections record than

[32:45] budgeted so that's why we are

[32:46] over our budget number in

[32:51] collections which is a good

[32:52] thing.

[32:54] >>commissioner cohen higgins: I

[32:56] appreciate the explanation but

[32:58] i still don't understand, what

[32:59] is the 11% represent?

[33:01] >> over the budget amount.

[33:03] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[33:05] so you collected 24 million,

[33:06] you've collected 11% above

[33:07] that, I understand.

[33:08] Hank you

[33:09] for clarifying that.

[33:11] >> any other questions.

[33:14] >>chair: commissioner gonzales

[33:17] you are recognized.

[33:18] >>commissioner gonzalez: thank

[33:20] you MADAM Chair. I guess we'll

[33:21] start with you.

[33:23] You mentioned there is a 3%

[33:24] reduction, is that correct.

[33:26] >> we maintain no more increase

[33:27] spending 3%.

[33:29] >> can you explain what 3% is

[33:36] attributed to.

[33:37] >> through the chair

[33:38] commissioner I want to make

[33:40] sure you understand the 3%

[33:42] number that keeps floating

[33:42] around.

[33:44] The departments were asked to

[33:54] reduce by it's almost 5%

[33:56] because the natural inflation

[33:57] was between eight and 9%.

[33:59] We asked them to reduce so that

[34:01] the growth in their department

[34:02] was no more than three.

[34:04] So if you remember the growth

[34:07] the county experienced was only

[34:07] 4.2.

[34:09] We couldn't afford to maintain,

[34:10] if you recall the proposed 7%

[34:17] growth rate, so each of the

[34:19] general fund departments was

[34:20] asked to see if they could

[34:22] reduce their growth rate down

[34:22] to 3%.

[34:27] That was the assignment.

[34:29] >>commissioner mcghee: it would

[34:30] be 4% so what is that for

[34:32] present that you're not

[34:34] counting on, what specifically

[34:35] are, what specifically is the

[34:45] department cutting to avoid

[34:47] that excessive 4% growth?

[34:49] >> great question, we wanted

[34:49] our personnel.

[34:51] We have right sized the

[34:52] personnel so if we have

[34:54] vacancies we didn't need took

[34:55] advantage of that.

[34:56] We've also looked at the

[34:58] operational costs and

[35:04] streamline that as well.

[35:06] If we had consulting costs we

[35:07] also looked at that and saw if

[35:09] our team could do it could save

[35:11] money there as well so we have

[35:13] given back.

[35:15] >>commissioner gonzalez: as the

[35:16] chief stated you are growing by

[35:17] 3% instead of 7%.

[35:18] Iq.

[35:21] And namita, if you could

[35:23] come up because you mentioned

[35:25] that you folks were able to

[35:28] eliminate 50 positions and then

[35:36] so what is the, I guess the 4%

[35:37] savings that you folks, what is

[35:39] that attributed to?

[35:55] >> 50 was because we merged

[35:57] with small businesses in

[35:59] procurement and were able to

[36:01] identify synergies between the

[36:02] operations.

[36:03] On top of that we have

[36:05] proffered elimination of more

[36:06] positions.

[36:07] Plus freezing some of the

[36:09] positions we think we don't

[36:10] need right now but maybe in the

[36:13] future but and also eliminating

[36:14] any other operational costs we

[36:16] could cut down to.

[36:18] >>commissioner gonzalez: so

[36:19] your growth will only be by 3%

[36:20] as well.

[36:21] >> yes.

[36:23] >>commissioner gonzalez: no

[36:24] further questions.

[36:26] >>chair: vice CHAIRWOMAN You

[36:26] are recognized.

[36:28] >> my question is for ophelia,

[36:30] what is the size of your

[36:33] department.

[36:34] >> I have with risk management

[36:36] so risk management division in

[36:38] the new budget year is coming

[36:44] over it's about 311 total but

[36:46] please keep in mind as of

[36:48] AUGUST 3 I will lose the oes

[36:49] division which has 36 oes

[36:51] division which has 36 positions

[36:53] and that ets division which has

[36:55] about 46 positions.

[36:56] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[36:59] so the 311 makes up for the 72

[36:59] million budget.

[37:01] >> but then that signified

[37:12] portion of that.

[37:13] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[37:15] you were touching that but I

[37:17] don't know if you gave us the

[37:18] number and as you're looking

[37:20] for that number what is the

[37:22] breakdown between your

[37:24] operating and personnel costs?

[37:25] >> I will get you that right

[37:26] now.

[37:27] >> through the chair, some of

[37:29] the changes ophelia is speaking

[37:31] of MAY not be reflected in the

[37:32] budget published today, they

[37:34] MAY be in the change memo.

[37:34] E

[37:36] are working with the clerk and

[37:38] comptroller's office to ensure

[37:40] that we transition the right

[37:42] number of employees with the

[37:43] right amount of funding to

[37:51] support this effort so I don't

[37:52] want anyone to have the

[37:54] expectation they will see that

[37:55] this afternoon.

[37:56] Some changes will not be

[37:58] reflected until we are able to

[38:01] finish that project.

[38:03] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[38:04] what is the anticipated time

[38:07] you will figure out the change.

[38:08] >> we are very close, AUGUST 3

[38:10] is the date we are hoping to

[38:13] have the transition completed.

[38:14] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[38:16] we should see those numbers

[38:18] reflected in the budget.

[38:20] >> 2627 budget you will opine

[38:29] on in DECEMBER.

[38:31] >> employee wise it's over 50%

[38:32] county employees.

[38:34] Some operational costs are

[38:35] driven by the consulting

[38:37] services as well and mainly for

[38:39] the system.

[38:40] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[38:42] what do you mean for the

[38:42] system?

[38:44] >> the enterprise resource

[38:45] planning system.

[38:46] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[38:53] so you are 50-50.

[38:54] 50% is personnel costs, okay

[38:56] and do you know how much of

[38:58] that you will offload once it

[38:59] moves over to the clerk's

[38:59] office?

[39:08] Or estimate.

[39:10] >> through the chair, ophelia I

[39:12] prefer we not give an estimate.

[39:13] We are very close MADAM Chair

[39:19] and commissioner milian orbis

[39:21] and I can even give you a

[39:22] head's up as soon as we get

[39:25] that completed over the next

[39:26] week.

[39:28] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[39:28] okay, thank you.

[39:31] I think this presentation would

[39:38] be helpful to have a breakdown

[39:40] of what you are anticipating is

[39:42] going to be shifted away from

[39:44] your department, it would be

[39:45] helpful to see what we are

[39:47] looking at as we look into the

[39:49] budget that's going to be

[39:49] presented.

[39:51] I think that information was

[39:53] helpful and it would have been

[39:55] good to have it so if we could

[39:56] have that updated in this

[39:58] presentation you gave us it

[40:00] would be good to note the shift

[40:02] and how it will look after that

[40:03] transition is done.

[40:11] hank you.

[40:13] >> I have questions.

[40:14] >> we will provide that.

[40:16] >>chair: namita, you can come

[40:18] up as well, I have questions

[40:20] for both so we will start with

[40:22] vacancies which has always been

[40:23] a pet peeve of mine in

[40:23] budgeting.

[40:25] Both of you said you were

[40:27] reducing personnel, do you have

[40:28] a schedule of the remaining

[40:30] vacancies you have an aging for

[40:32] those vacancies, you don't have

[40:33] to have them now but do you

[40:34] have it?

[40:35] I'd like to see those, I'm

[40:37] collecting them for all the

[40:38] departments making budget

[40:40] presentations and it's

[40:41] important to see that aging

[40:43] because you MAY have gotten rid

[40:45] of some of the vacancies but I

[40:48] will need to know how you

[40:50] justify keeping any vacancy in

[40:52] your budget that is greater

[40:53] than 90 days.

[40:54] That's just giving you full

[40:55] warning on that.

[40:57] Namita, you talked about the

[40:59] constitutional officers in your

[41:00] presentation.

[41:02] And I am a little confused.

[41:08] So how much, because we've

[41:10] heard from the constitutional

[41:11] officers on monday.

[41:12] 'll much

[41:13] of what you're doing, I'm

[41:25] trying to understand what part

[41:26] you are doing for them that

[41:28] they are not doing for

[41:28] themselves.

[41:30] I have the impression they are

[41:32] doing their own procurement but

[41:33] I see you are doing

[41:34] procurement, can you explain

[41:36] that in greater detail?

[41:37] >> MADAM Chair, for the

[41:39] sheriff's office we are doing

[41:41] all they are procurements now.

[41:43] clerk and comptroller is doing

[41:45] I would say most of they are

[41:46] procurements but they used

[41:53] county contract.

[41:55] My presentation what I said was

[41:57] I lost seven key professionals

[42:00] to the clerk because they chose

[42:01] to accept positions with the

[42:01] clerk.

[42:03] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[42:04] I'm referring to your

[42:06] customers, which constitutional

[42:18] officers would be helpful.

[42:20] >> we are doing all

[42:21] procurements for sheriff's

[42:22] office.

[42:23] Elections we do the

[42:25] procurements for them for the

[42:26] ones where we are obligated by

[42:28] the florida statute for

[42:33] example, be buying the system

[42:35] and things like that so we do

[42:36] procurements for them.

[42:38] Property appraiser we do not do

[42:40] any procurements for them.

[42:41] Clark and the comptroller they

[42:43] have established their own

[42:46] procurement team to do their

[42:46] own procurement.

[42:47] >>chair: it will be helpful

[42:49] when you can give us the

[42:51] numbers as to what the value of

[42:52] that service you are giving

[42:54] them because then I will ask

[42:55] what are they doing on their

[42:56] end as well.

[42:58] I also wanted to talk with you

[42:59] about the strip committee.

[43:01] Their recommendations, when

[43:03] will those be presented to us?

[43:04] Do you know.

[43:05] >> I am thinking next week I

[43:23] believe, I don't know the

[43:23] answer.

[43:25] >> it's been a question I've

[43:27] been asking since you been

[43:28] doing your work and it's the

[43:30] one place I love to drill down

[43:31] on which is procurement.

[43:33] As we've seen some of the

[43:35] procurement processes be

[43:36] questioned, I've had concerns

[43:38] about how we procure things.

[43:40] It's important for me to

[43:43] understand the work of the

[43:44] committee.

[43:45] It's recommendations and

[43:47] whether or not there were any

[43:49] savings as a result of their

[43:51] recommendations because I'm

[43:52] hopeful not only were we

[43:55] increasing efficiency by having

[43:56] created a committee of people

[43:58] who have used the system and

[44:07] can tell us you know, their

[44:09] experiences and then come forth

[44:11] with recommendations that would

[44:13] make the system more efficient,

[44:15] I'm interested do did they

[44:17] identify any savings and their

[44:18] efficiency studies they were

[44:20] doing with procurements, do you

[44:22] know since you were there.

[44:23] >> I don't know if they were

[44:25] able to quantify but we did

[44:27] identify the savings in the

[44:28] number of days and moving

[44:30] things faster.

[44:32] How do you equate that to

[44:33] dollar savings, I don't think

[44:35] that was the exercise the

[44:36] committee did but definitely

[44:38] the time savings were

[44:40] significant that you will see.

[44:41] >>chair: hopefully someone will

[44:43] tell me when I'm going to see

[44:45] those recommendations, that's

[44:46] one question.

[44:50] The other, you mentioned namita

[44:51] when you were evaluating

[44:53] systems you mentioned that many

[44:54] don't each other.

[44:55] I would like a listing.

[44:57] I was a member of the house it

[45:01] committee when we did this work

[45:03] and I thought it was a useful

[45:05] exercise to understand where

[45:15] are the deficits in our it

[45:16] systems or in any system that

[45:17] doesn't each other.

[45:19] i'd like a list of all the

[45:21] systems not speaking to each

[45:22] other and if they are speaking

[45:24] to a system which ones?

[45:25] It would be helpful for this

[45:27] committee to understand whether

[45:33] or not, because I see a lot of

[45:35] items that come before us that

[45:36] have to do with extending

[45:38] contracts or legacy, I love

[45:45] that word, the legacy systems.

[45:46] I don't know that that's the

[45:48] best use of our funds or

[45:49] whether it's efficient in

[45:51] achieving outcomes which we are

[45:52] purchasing systems for.

[45:56] I'd like to see an analysis by

[45:57] department which systems when

[45:59] they were bought, if they were

[46:01] replaced or if they had to be

[46:03] replaced by something else

[46:05] because it didn't work in those

[46:07] systems not working with each

[46:08] other creating inefficiencies

[46:09] in government.

[46:11] >> MAY I ask for clarification,

[46:13] you one of the list of the

[46:15] systems book procurement team

[46:15] uses.

[46:17] >>chair: just belongs you were

[46:28] referring to because I find it

[46:30] curious we know they don't each

[46:32] other so is a known fact we are

[46:33] inefficient and that's costing

[46:35] us money so I would like to

[46:37] know which ones those are and

[46:38] in addition you mentioned in

[46:40] your proposal priority, under

[46:41] your priority initiatives you

[47:00] had budgetary impact.

[47:02] And I see there's no budget

[47:02] impact.

[47:03] Where do I see savings?

[47:05] I don't hear savings.

[47:06] Et me

[47:07] tell you why I ask this

[47:07] question.

[47:09] When the governor's budget

[47:10] would come to my committee I

[47:13] said thank you and then I would

[47:14] meet with every department and

[47:15] I wouldn't say you get to

[47:17] decrease your growth to 3%, I

[47:18] said go back and reduce your

[47:19] budgets by 3%.

[47:21] So I'm curious, is there any

[47:23] budgetary savings anywhere in

[47:25] your budget anywhere?

[47:25] You can answer it.

[47:27] >> item curious how you define

[47:28] that.

[47:30] >>chair: let's assume I was

[47:31] spending $100 million last

[47:32] year.

[47:33] Is there anywhere you can tell

[47:35] me in that hundred million

[47:37] dollars budget you were able to

[47:38] achieve some savings?

[47:40] >> commissioner, by the mere

[47:42] fact we were able to eliminate

[47:44] 50 positions and some of those

[47:46] were filled that's $5 million

[47:50] right there because we were

[47:52] able to combine the functions

[47:54] and synergies between

[47:55] procurement and small business.

[47:57] That was straightaway $5

[47:58] million.

[48:01] >>chair: it already did, were

[48:02] those filled decisions?

[48:04] Have they been terminated or

[48:13] did you move them to another

[48:13] department.

[48:15] >> some of them had rights, I

[48:23] see where the positions work.

[48:24] >>commissioner lopez: that

[48:26] makes zero sense to me to tell

[48:28] me you eliminated 50 positions

[48:30] but then I find out those 50

[48:32] people are somewhere else in

[48:32] the budget.

[48:34] >> one of the great things

[48:36] about the county is it is a

[48:46] fairly large institution.

[48:48] So when positions are

[48:49] eliminated based on the

[48:51] classification of the employee

[48:53] they have particular employment

[48:55] rights so we worked hard, this

[48:56] board directed us to make sure

[48:58] the hundred 50 people laid off

[49:02] had jobs so the positions

[49:03] eliminated we work and I love

[49:05] to give credit to virginia

[49:06] washington our ahead of people

[49:08] who tried to make sure every

[49:15] human being found a position

[49:17] they were qualified for so they

[49:19] did not necessarily have to

[49:20] leave the county.

[49:21] So the elimination of the

[49:23] positions funded or unfunded

[49:25] did result in savings because

[49:27] those individuals some left the

[49:28] county, others went into

[49:35] positions that had great need.

[49:37] One of our great stories and

[49:38] they are loves to tell is about

[49:40] those who worked in parks as

[49:42] lifeguards and were able to get

[49:43] vacant positions in the fire

[49:45] department as lifeguards that

[49:51] were difficult to fill.

[49:52] So namita, ofelia, anyone of

[49:55] the departments that had to be

[49:56] eliminated or positions that

[49:58] were filled that had to be

[49:59] eliminated.

[50:00] We actually take pride in

[50:02] trying to make sure the

[50:04] individuals, that humans are

[50:05] not displaced to the extent

[50:06] that's possible.

[50:30] It doesn't undermine the

[50:31] savings.

[50:32] >>commissioner lopez: I

[50:34] appreciate that vary much but

[50:35] you know me, truth in

[50:35] budgeting.

[50:37] You will hear me say this until

[50:38] we are done.

[50:40] The public deserves to know

[50:41] that's what you did.

[50:43] The public deserves to know

[50:44] that you eliminated vacancies

[50:46] if there were vacancies, 2 if

[50:48] you had to terminate people how

[50:49] many left the county and how

[50:51] many did you place in another

[50:53] position within the county

[50:54] because in fact I don't know

[50:56] that that's called a savings.

[50:58] That's called a transfer in my

[50:58] book.

[51:00] In my accounting book.

[51:01] So you have to be clear when

[51:03] you're talking about savings

[51:05] because I'm going to be

[51:07] watching very carefully all of

[51:07] it.

[51:09] And if you had to move a person

[51:10] because they had employment

[51:12] rights, that's understandable

[51:14] but that's not a savings.

[51:16] That became a transfer to

[51:17] another position within the

[51:19] county and that is what I am

[51:20] trying to get at, that we have

[51:22] to be honest about what we are

[51:23] doing.

[51:24] It's okay to stand there and

[51:26] tell me we got rid of 50

[51:27] positions, it's not true.

[51:29] If 20 people were transferred

[51:30] to another place because they

[51:32] had employment rights.

[51:33] That's the level of detail I

[51:35] will be looking for during this

[51:37] budget process and let me keep

[51:38] going, I found it interesting.

[51:40] The transfer of positions to

[51:43] the clerk and comptroller's

[51:43] office.

[51:45] He just presented his budget.

[51:47] Did it have, is going to come

[51:49] to us for a budget, here we go

[51:49] again.

[51:50] Listen carefully.

[51:52] I look at a budget from a

[51:53] global perspective.

[51:53] Look at

[51:55] everyone asking us for money.

[51:57] The clerk came with his budget

[51:59] asking us for money so if we

[52:00] are moving, from icd and I

[52:02] don't remember how many people

[52:04] but you said quite a few that

[52:11] showed them that you have a

[52:11] savings.

[52:13] It is the clerk going to come

[52:15] and tell me now when you finish

[52:16] this agreement that needs money

[52:19] for those or did his budget you

[52:20] presented here on monday

[52:26] contemplate that?

[52:28] >> through the CHAIRWOMAN, the

[52:29] budget the clerk presented to

[52:31] us which was due several months

[52:33] ago, weeks ago did not

[52:35] contemplate this particular

[52:37] move.

[52:38] So it will be for all intents

[52:40] and purposes you look at the

[52:42] general fund it will be a

[52:44] transition of people and money

[52:46] from one area to another area.

[52:47] >>commissioner lopez: so it's

[53:01] not a savings.

[53:02] When you present your budget

[53:04] that's what I wanted to hear.

[53:06] I should not have to ask this

[53:07] question is what I'm saying,

[53:09] you should be clear we are

[53:11] moving people to the clerk and

[53:12] the clerk will need that money

[53:14] in my budget that's now going

[53:16] to his budget so it's not a

[53:16] savings.

[53:18] You see where I'm going?

[53:19] This is why the public, listen,

[53:23] I am distressed that we are not

[53:25] transparent with every one of

[53:25] these details.

[53:27] Because that's what the public

[53:29] is requiring and they deserve.

[53:31] And certainly my colleagues and

[53:32] myself in order to make a

[53:34] decision, to tell the public

[53:37] what's happening, I am only

[53:39] getting the information because

[53:41] I'm asking the right questions.

[53:42] And I should not have to do

[53:43] that.

[53:44] It should be totally

[53:46] transparent to this committee

[53:47] and to the full board when we

[53:49] make those decisions and to the

[53:51] points lie colleagues have made

[53:53] here today, the budget will be

[53:55] rolled out this afternoon but

[53:56] actually none of these

[53:58] presentations are what this

[53:59] committee needed, not at all.

[54:03] I think it's wonderful.

[54:05] But without dollars attached to

[54:14] each one of these assumptions.

[54:16] It's difficult for me to say I

[54:17] know what's going on.

[54:19] I don't think my colleagues do

[54:20] either as you've heard today.

[54:23] And honestly, I am somewhat

[54:24] befuddled that we haven't been

[54:27] able to cut our budgets.

[54:54] When you think about the $150

[54:56] billion a budget the state has,

[54:58] every department, every

[54:59] department was required to do

[55:01] at least 3% budget savings.

[55:03] So it's really hard for me to

[55:04] understand how we are not

[55:06] capable of finding a savings

[55:08] and as I like to say and it is

[55:10] not an indictment to any

[55:11] department or person but

[55:14] there's always waste in

[55:15] government, always.

[55:15] 've found

[55:17] it at the state, I'm certain if

[55:19] I did my job here which I

[55:20] intend to do next budget cycle

[55:21] I will find savings.

[55:23] I know how to do it.

[55:24] We certainly have budget chairs

[55:27] and budget staff that knew how

[55:28] to do it at the state.

[55:30] I'm going to pledge to the

[55:32] taxpayers listening here today,

[55:34] this committee will in fact do

[55:35] its job.

[55:36] We MAY not have had enough time

[55:38] to do it this session but we

[55:43] will do it next year and you

[55:45] will see drilling down like

[55:46] you've never seen before

[55:48] because there is ways in which

[55:50] to save money and unfortunately

[55:51] we just haven't had the

[55:53] opportunity to work closely

[55:54] with the administration to find

[55:55] those savings.

[55:57] those are just several of my

[55:58] questions, I'm sure as we move

[56:00] into the budget cycle,

[56:02] commissioner gonzalez and cohen

[56:04] higgins, you are recognized.

[56:05] >>commissioner gonzalez: thank

[56:08] you MADAM Chair. If I could get

[56:09] the directors to come up for

[56:11] one second I think the chair

[56:12] makes a great point.

[56:14] So that's kind of the reason

[56:17] why I started off by asking the

[56:18] difference between that 3% and

[56:20] 7%, I thought it was 6%.

[56:22] That's why I asked for the

[56:26] reduction because in reality,

[56:27] we are not really reducing, we

[56:30] are still growing by 3%.

[56:38] To echo the sentiments of the

[56:39] chair, comparing it to the

[56:41] state and this is one of the

[56:42] reasons I've always been a fan

[56:44] of vicki lopez.

[56:48] The governor for the entire

[56:51] time he's been governor and

[56:54] specifically state under

[57:01] speaker chris sprawls, speaker

[57:03] paul renner, speaker danny

[57:05] perez with the governor have

[57:08] lowered every department and

[57:13] the state budget by 3%.

[57:15] So that's not like they could

[57:16] have grown but they didn't

[57:16] grow.

[57:18] It's more like they did it at a

[57:20] cheaper rate.

[57:22] So this is a conversation that

[57:27] I wanted to and my team is

[57:29] working on scheduling meetings

[57:31] with directors but now I'm

[57:32] listening to this conversation

[57:35] and hearing the chair and also

[57:37] hearing the sentiments of my

[57:41] colleague danielle cohen

[57:42] higgins and natalie milian

[57:52] orbis is there a world off the

[57:53] top of your head and we're not

[57:55] going to hold you this right

[57:56] now but is there a world where

[57:58] you could see your departments

[58:00] having no growth, 0% growth

[58:02] which would mean that what you

[58:03] had last year you could use

[58:04] this year?

[58:13] Do you think that is possible?

[58:16] >> commissioner I think it's an

[58:17] excellent question.

[58:17] Ne of the

[58:19] things I want to make sure it

[58:20] is clear I think you all

[58:22] understand which is the budget

[58:23] we are working with had a 4%

[58:40] cola so that was already

[58:40] pre-negotiated.

[58:42] We also have what are called

[58:44] step increases that are in our

[58:46] collective bargaining

[58:47] agreements than average 5%.

[58:49] So I have 4+5 is nine.

[58:51] Those are two things that we

[58:52] cannot take away out of the

[58:54] budget so those are natural

[58:56] drivers for the increase of the

[58:56] budget.

[58:58] Then you would add on top of

[58:59] that the natural inflation,

[59:01] toilet paper, gas, all the

[59:10] different things we have to pay

[59:11] for in order to run the county.

[59:13] So when you just go baseline,

[59:15] no enhancements, no new

[59:17] programs, no new services, no

[59:18] new employees are at about 89%

[59:20] on average because it's an

[59:22] average, increase

[59:23] year-over-year.

[59:32] The omb projected that we could

[59:33] come in as a 7%.

[59:35] So we started off saying to the

[59:36] departments even though your

[59:38] natural growth is nine, can you

[59:39] cut so that we get down to

[59:40] seven?

[59:44] The things that you can and the

[59:45] first place to go because much

[59:47] of our budget is people is to

[59:49] look at the money that's

[59:50] budgeted for positions.

[59:52] So departments cut and reduced

[59:53] the vacant positions and we

[59:55] tried our best because it's a

[59:58] values statement not to cut

[1:00:05] filled positions unless we were

[1:00:06] eliminating a program or

[1:00:08] service that was commiserate

[1:00:09] with that.

[1:00:11] Once we finally got the tax

[1:00:12] role in and the average

[1:00:16] reflected for the fund was 2%

[1:00:17] growth, we knew we couldn't

[1:00:33] grow by seven.

[1:00:35] We need to be consistent with

[1:00:36] what our revenues would reflect

[1:00:38] so that apartments were then

[1:00:40] asked to go back and cut more

[1:00:41] to get it down to no more than

[1:00:42] 3% growth.

[1:00:44] Remember the natural growth

[1:00:45] looks much higher than that so

[1:00:47] I appreciate that we are saying

[1:00:49] we didn't save any money but

[1:00:51] the departments didn't have to

[1:00:53] do the heavy lifting of saying

[1:00:55] what are we not going to do

[1:00:56] anymore because the revenue is

[1:00:58] not matching the natural growth

[1:01:00] that was incorporated into the

[1:01:02] budget without adding any

[1:01:04] enhancements despite all the

[1:01:05] enhancements that have been

[1:01:07] requested over the course of

[1:01:08] the year.

[1:01:10] So I actually really appreciate

[1:01:12] CHAIRWOMAN Lopez challenge and

[1:01:13] I am thrilled to have a

[1:01:14] strategic partner not just with

[1:01:16] the CHAIRWOMAN With this

[1:01:18] committee on what we are going

[1:01:19] to do to continue bending the

[1:01:21] cost curve next year and to

[1:01:23] actually look for the things we

[1:01:26] need to eliminate or reduce so

[1:01:28] that we are on a positive

[1:01:30] trajectory given the fact that

[1:01:31] revenues are down and inflation

[1:01:32] is up.

[1:01:35] And so I want to make sure

[1:01:37] everyone's clear that the

[1:01:39] department directors were asked

[1:01:43] not to get ahead of the mayor

[1:01:58] and omb as we are literally

[1:02:00] dotting the I's and crossing

[1:02:02] the t's on her budget and we

[1:02:03] are happy to come to you about

[1:02:05] any department budgets you have

[1:02:07] concerns where you see

[1:02:08] opportunity that we MAY have

[1:02:09] missed.

[1:02:10] This is why we are proposing

[1:02:12] and we look forward to the

[1:02:18] county commission saying did

[1:02:20] you think about this, did you

[1:02:21] consider this, I see something

[1:02:23] you all MAY not have considered

[1:02:25] or missed.

[1:02:26] >>commissioner gonzalez: thank

[1:02:29] you chief and I appreciate that

[1:02:31] explanation and want to point

[1:02:38] out I did meet with you and MR.

[1:02:39] Baker and the mayor and I know

[1:02:41] you guys have been working hard

[1:02:43] and I recognize you been

[1:02:44] working very hard.

[1:02:45] But I guess I think the

[1:02:47] hesitation that we are seeing

[1:02:49] from the board members up here,

[1:02:51] this committee in particular

[1:03:00] and other board members as well

[1:03:01] is projection has always been

[1:03:03] for growth and thank you for

[1:03:05] explaining it so eloquently, I

[1:03:06] understand where you're coming

[1:03:08] from but the projection is

[1:03:10] always growth rather than a

[1:03:11] projection to save.

[1:03:12] 've heard

[1:03:13] commissioner cohen higgins and

[1:03:15] lopez say this many times and

[1:03:17] because commissioner lopez

[1:03:19] comes from the state perhaps it

[1:03:20] would behoove this committee to

[1:03:23] as the chief has stated after

[1:03:25] the budget has been presented

[1:03:27] perhaps it would behoove this

[1:03:29] committee to have departments

[1:03:30] come up and perhaps we could

[1:03:32] take a look to help.

[1:03:36] I want to recognize that from

[1:03:38] the conversations we had not

[1:03:40] only with the chief but with

[1:03:41] mr. Baker that they have been

[1:03:51] you know, working very hard.

[1:03:53] But I think it would be a great

[1:03:58] idea as I've heard commissioner

[1:04:00] cohen higgins and lopez have in

[1:04:02] the past for us to take a shot

[1:04:03] at it too.

[1:04:04] And bring whatever cost can be

[1:04:05] brought down down.

[1:04:07] So that perhaps this commission

[1:04:09] and this mayor can deliver for

[1:04:15] the first time ever a reduction

[1:04:20] in taxpayer savings for certain

[1:04:22] departments and there are

[1:04:24] departments that can have

[1:04:24] reductions.

[1:04:28] But maybe there are departments

[1:04:30] that can grow by 1% instead of

[1:04:35] 3%, maybe some departments that

[1:04:37] can lower some departments that

[1:04:38] need the 4% or some that might

[1:04:42] need the 7%.

[1:04:45] Perhaps there is a world where

[1:04:48] government doesn't continue to

[1:04:49] grow and rather it shrinks

[1:04:53] every year because if we just

[1:05:00] keep projecting for growth and

[1:05:01] sometimes that's necessary and

[1:05:03] I understand that but if we

[1:05:05] keep projecting for growth and

[1:05:07] we are telling ourselves it's

[1:05:13] impossible to ever shrink when

[1:05:14] perhaps we just roll up our

[1:05:16] sleeves and get down to it.

[1:05:21] Think this committee is ready

[1:05:22] willing and able to do it,

[1:05:34] thank you MADAM Chair.

[1:05:36] >>chair: I will say before I

[1:05:38] recognize commissioner cohen

[1:05:39] higgins that not only were we

[1:05:41] able to save money at the

[1:05:42] state, we were able to put

[1:05:44] money in reserve which is

[1:05:46] critically important and

[1:05:47] currently as we face what could

[1:05:49] be a severe reduction of

[1:05:50] revenue at the property tax

[1:05:52] reform amendment we should

[1:05:53] still be thinking about saving

[1:05:55] for that rainy day because it

[1:05:57] is here, you're absolutely

[1:05:58] right, commissioner gonzalez,

[1:06:00] it's raining and it's going to

[1:06:02] start storming and we need to

[1:06:04] be fiscally responsible and I

[1:06:06] know that I speak for all the

[1:06:07] members of this committee, we

[1:06:08] are ready and willing to roll

[1:06:10] up our sleeves and do the work

[1:06:12] as soon as the budget has been

[1:06:14] published, you are recognized.

[1:06:16] >>commissioner cohen higgins:

[1:06:17] thank you MADAM Chair. And this

[1:06:22] is an important conversation we

[1:06:24] are having at this committee

[1:06:26] and frankly won the german

[1:06:28] intended us for us to have at

[1:06:29] the committee level and I think

[1:06:31] that there needs to be a

[1:06:32] recognition that things might

[1:06:37] need to be done differently in

[1:06:38] miami-dade county as a result

[1:06:40] of the fiscal climate we are

[1:06:42] forced to face as a reality.

[1:06:44] We are accustomed absent 2008

[1:06:46] and 2009 that real estate clash

[1:06:47] are accustomed to being flush

[1:06:52] with cash until those days are

[1:06:52] over.

[1:07:00] I frankly strongly believe that

[1:07:02] I don't know this is a

[1:07:04] philosophical conversation but

[1:07:06] conversations where we are

[1:07:07] asking questions that

[1:07:09] essentially boil down to is it

[1:07:10] responsible for us to keep

[1:07:12] doing things the way we always

[1:07:12] have?

[1:07:14] I think the answer to that is

[1:07:27] clearly no and the budget

[1:07:28] dashboard which was presented

[1:07:30] to this committee a few months

[1:07:32] ago is my understanding it is

[1:07:34] ready, I plan to use that as a

[1:07:35] tool not only for this budget

[1:07:37] cycle but future budget cycles

[1:07:39] so when we have presentations

[1:07:41] we will have an electronic

[1:07:42] reflection in front of us in

[1:07:44] addition to whatever is placed

[1:07:46] in front of us on a powerpoint

[1:07:48] presentation with actual

[1:07:49] numbers that are, that the

[1:07:51] departments are working with us

[1:07:52] as opposed to stagnant

[1:07:53] snapshots in time by way of

[1:07:55] memos but I wanted to add to

[1:08:07] our chief, I think that we and

[1:08:09] I look forward to working with

[1:08:11] my colleagues because the

[1:08:12] sentiment is the same and I

[1:08:14] don't think the request is an

[1:08:15] unreasonable one and we will

[1:08:17] see what happens come NOVEMBER

[1:08:19] and what the voters ultimately

[1:08:21] decide to do and on monday when

[1:08:23] we have a budget presentation

[1:08:24] from our budget chief I asked

[1:08:26] him and I said is there

[1:08:28] anything in this budget that

[1:08:30] anticipates or contemplates a

[1:08:31] potential yes vote on that

[1:08:33] referendum and the answer was

[1:08:33] no.

[1:08:34] So I get that were going to

[1:08:36] work to try and get through

[1:08:44] this year's budget.

[1:08:46] My concern is beyond.

[1:08:48] My concern is as my colleagues

[1:08:49] said are we planning for a

[1:08:51] rainy day that we believe is

[1:08:52] likely to come that's a few

[1:08:54] months down the road and the

[1:08:55] answer is no and what does that

[1:08:57] mean for us financially?

[1:08:59] I also think it is important

[1:09:00] chief carla denise when we talk

[1:09:02] about the natural growth in our

[1:09:04] budget at 9%, I don't know that

[1:09:06] that's necessarily fair to call

[1:09:08] natural growth only because

[1:09:10] frankly it's contracted growth.

[1:09:12] It's growth we have implemented

[1:09:13] through policies we passed

[1:09:21] saying we agreed 2: at three,

[1:09:23] for which we are contracted to

[1:09:26] do but I don't know if that's

[1:09:27] considered natural growth and I

[1:09:28] don't know if we will reconcile

[1:09:30] that now as we plan the budget

[1:09:32] so to those paying attention I

[1:09:33] think that the chickens are

[1:09:34] coming home to roost.

[1:09:36] I think the way we budget in

[1:09:41] this county needs to be studied

[1:09:43] greatly and I think savings is

[1:09:44] not an unrealistic ask

[1:09:47] considering the size of our

[1:09:49] budget in miami dade county,

[1:09:50] considering the amount of

[1:09:54] dollars that we move.

[1:09:56] So I would like for us to work

[1:09:57] towards that end and as you

[1:10:03] know chief I worked in the

[1:10:04] legislation in the past to

[1:10:06] bring in outside consultants

[1:10:07] and that couldn't come to

[1:10:10] fruition for a number of

[1:10:10] reasons so here we sit tackling

[1:10:12] a difficult budget year we

[1:10:14] anticipate will continue to get

[1:10:15] more difficult, all that to say

[1:10:20] in the end when the budget

[1:10:21] passes everybody has

[1:10:23] conversations about whose

[1:10:25] budget is it, is it the mayor's

[1:10:26] budget or our budget, whose

[1:10:30] budget is it?

[1:10:32] If we decide it's our budget or

[1:10:33] all our budgets we have to put

[1:10:35] in the work along with you the

[1:10:37] administration to do these deep

[1:10:39] dives and I am saying and I

[1:10:41] believe my colleagues has made

[1:10:42] it clear we all willing to do

[1:10:43] that.

[1:10:45] Think we have to do

[1:10:46] that in the time for that is

[1:10:47] now.

[1:10:48] So whether it's special

[1:10:50] committee hearings, whether it

[1:10:52] is special sessions, I don't

[1:11:03] necessarily want 2 budget

[1:11:04] hearings that go 12 hours.

[1:11:07] I don't want that, my colleague

[1:11:08] commissioner gonzalez was

[1:11:10] active a couple budget cycles

[1:11:10] ago.

[1:11:12] He was the only voice covering

[1:11:13] with questions.

[1:11:15] I'm not sure, I think we should

[1:11:17] do it in either special

[1:11:19] meetings or special committees,

[1:11:20] whatever the proper forum is

[1:11:23] what I along with my colleagues

[1:11:24] believe there is opportunity

[1:11:26] for us to do better with the

[1:11:28] numbers in our budget without

[1:11:29] necessarily laying off

[1:11:31] thousands of people and getting

[1:11:33] any kind of dramatic sweeping

[1:11:34] consequential changes.

[1:11:36] There is so much in our budget

[1:11:38] in miami-dade county that I

[1:11:40] believe if we were to dive down

[1:11:42] we could accomplish a budget

[1:11:43] where where we were yielding

[1:11:45] reserves and say yes, we are

[1:11:53] saving for a rainy day we had

[1:11:55] our budget is extremely healthy

[1:11:57] even though we are in

[1:11:59] challenging economic times and

[1:12:00] I look forward to working with

[1:12:02] my colleagues and I don't want

[1:12:04] this to be accepted as words on

[1:12:06] a microphone or going to go

[1:12:08] along our very way no one will

[1:12:10] remember the conversation.

[1:12:11] Let's do that work.

[1:12:12] Hank you

[1:12:13] MADAM Chair.

[1:12:15] >> asked the chair to give us

[1:12:17] the authority to call a special

[1:12:18] meeting to drill down on each

[1:12:20] and every one of the

[1:12:22] departments budgets, vice

[1:12:33] CHAIRMAN Your recognized.

[1:12:35] >> I wanted to put further

[1:12:37] questions and statements on the

[1:12:38] record, let me preface by

[1:12:40] saying I love our county

[1:12:42] employees, I've been a county

[1:12:44] employee for 20 years there

[1:12:45] probably no one here and

[1:12:47] understand better what it is to

[1:12:49] be a county employee and how

[1:12:51] they are the heartbeat of our

[1:12:57] community yet I would like a

[1:12:58] breakdown as we entered the

[1:13:00] budget process of what

[1:13:02] percentage of our employees are

[1:13:02] unionized.

[1:13:04] And not specifically airport

[1:13:06] seaport, jackson, I'm talking

[1:13:08] about the ones that impact our

[1:13:09] general fund the most.

[1:13:11] I think it's important to see

[1:13:11] that.

[1:13:13] I understand this year we are

[1:13:16] not opening our bargaining

[1:13:17] contracts and I think did you

[1:13:19] want to say something?

[1:13:20] , I think it's a mistake.

[1:13:22] Sometimes we need to do hard

[1:13:23] things and letting this moment

[1:13:25] pass by agreeing with what they

[1:13:27] have MAY not be the best

[1:13:27] decision.

[1:13:29] >> want to clarify what we are

[1:13:31] doing with the union contracts.

[1:13:33] >> we've met with other

[1:13:35] bargaining units and all the

[1:13:39] unions agree to zero this year,

[1:13:42] all the contracts are signed

[1:13:44] and we did it in anticipation

[1:13:45] of the election in NOVEMBER and

[1:13:46] they have a reopening in

[1:13:48] JANUARY so we will have to make

[1:13:55] hard decisions in JANUARY.

[1:13:56] >>chair: one about demerits.

[1:13:58] >> demerits are baked into the

[1:14:00] contract when negotiations are

[1:14:03] reopened we will look at all

[1:14:03] those.

[1:14:04] >>chair: I would hate for

[1:14:05] employees to be impacted in the

[1:14:07] end because we don't want to

[1:14:09] make a tough decision today

[1:14:11] that that's what I want to

[1:14:13] avoid and I've asked you in our

[1:14:14] meetings we had prior to this

[1:14:16] for the budget specifically

[1:14:17] about the unions.

[1:14:20] I think it's important to get

[1:14:22] that straightened out before we

[1:14:24] have to impact them in the end.

[1:14:26] What was the cola last year, it

[1:14:28] was approved through our

[1:14:28] employees.

[1:14:30] >> the: that went into effect

[1:14:32] was a 4% increase.

[1:14:34] >>chair: and with the: this

[1:14:36] year.

[1:14:38] >> we did not budget a cola for

[1:14:45] APRIL 27 so that such chief

[1:14:45] palmer.

[1:14:47] >> that means you are flat.

[1:14:47] O

[1:14:48] you left it at four you have

[1:14:51] the option of doing 01234.

[1:14:54] >> through the chair what we

[1:14:56] did was we closed the contract

[1:14:58] with no financial increases or

[1:15:00] impact and we agreed to do a

[1:15:02] real dinner after the election

[1:15:03] in NOVEMBER because we were not

[1:15:07] wanting to commit to flat.

[1:15:09] There is a scenario where we

[1:15:11] MAY need to decrease the

[1:15:12] compensation.

[1:15:26] So I say 001 we are committing

[1:15:28] to something that right now we

[1:15:29] don't have confidence that we

[1:15:31] would be able to sustain.

[1:15:33] If the property tax proposal

[1:15:34] goes into effect.

[1:15:36] >>chair: I need for

[1:15:37] nonunionized employees, what

[1:15:48] was the cola, were you speaking

[1:15:49] about nonunionized?

[1:15:51] >> both, we applied the same

[1:15:53] cost-of-living increase to all

[1:15:54] employees.

[1:15:55] We don't distinguish for

[1:15:57] nonbargaining versus

[1:15:57] bargaining.

[1:15:59] >>chair: just like my colleague

[1:16:04] commissioner cohen higgins said

[1:16:05] we need to look at natural

[1:16:07] growth is and contemplate if

[1:16:08] it's necessary.

[1:16:17] >>.

[1:16:19] >> natural implies there was no

[1:16:19] control.

[1:16:21] The commissioner said it

[1:16:23] eloquently, those were

[1:16:25] decisions made three years ago.

[1:16:26] So if I have the math right we

[1:16:28] did a three 34, that was put

[1:16:30] into place three years ago.

[1:16:33] So again, the policy decision

[1:16:35] was made prior to us

[1:16:37] understanding and appreciating

[1:16:55] today's circumstances.

[1:16:56] >>chair: don't want to harp on

[1:16:58] this, we've all said it but we

[1:17:00] need to contemplate the passage

[1:17:02] of expanded homestead

[1:17:02] exemptions.

[1:17:04] We need to start doing that

[1:17:04] now.

[1:17:06] We shouldn't wait until next

[1:17:08] budget season to plug in those

[1:17:10] reductions that are more than

[1:17:11] likely coming our way.

[1:17:13] It's a reality and we need to

[1:17:14] take that into consideration.

[1:17:16] So thank you.

[1:17:18] >>chair: commissioner gonzalez

[1:17:20] you are recognized.

[1:17:22] >>chair: to piggyback off of

[1:17:24] what commissioner organist said

[1:17:26] because even in NOVEMBER the

[1:17:27] homestead exemption expansion

[1:17:31] doesn't happen, most of the

[1:17:34] candidates for governor,

[1:17:37] especially the front runner are

[1:17:41] already contemplating

[1:17:43] regardless reduction in

[1:17:46] homestead exemptions but even

[1:17:47] if a homestead exemption

[1:17:49] reduction didn't happen, we

[1:17:53] have a chance to make history.

[1:17:58] And actually reduce government

[1:18:00] in miami-dade county because if

[1:18:04] we keep projecting growth it's

[1:18:07] almost like your budgeting for

[1:18:12] next year expecting that you're

[1:18:14] going to win the lottery.

[1:18:19] Or expecting you're going to

[1:18:20] get that promotion.

[1:18:25] But then you don't.

[1:18:27] And you probably shouldn't have

[1:18:28] gone to europe.

[1:18:35] And by the way I say this not

[1:18:37] in criticism, I know you folks

[1:18:39] have been doing a tremendous

[1:18:44] job at trying to match the

[1:18:44] circumstances.

[1:18:46] but there again is the

[1:18:48] suggestion especially with the

[1:18:52] tone of this committee and of

[1:18:57] the chair that we can

[1:18:59] definitely help.

[1:19:01] We can definitely help and I

[1:19:09] look forward to the coming

[1:19:10] weeks and even into AUGUST I

[1:19:12] look forward to working on this

[1:19:14] with the administration and

[1:19:15] figuring out a way how maybe we

[1:19:26] can make history this year.

[1:19:28] >>chair: thank you for that

[1:19:30] comment commissioner gonzalez,

[1:19:32] for all almost we are on the

[1:19:33] ground talking to our

[1:19:35] constituents and their

[1:19:37] tightening their belts and

[1:19:40] there is no reason they should

[1:19:41] be alone, we should be leading

[1:19:43] the charge and I truly believe

[1:19:45] and I'm grateful we can work

[1:19:48] with the administration.

[1:19:49] There should be a very close

[1:19:51] relationship with us trying to

[1:19:52] figure out where could we

[1:19:54] suggest and recommend other

[1:19:55] savings and I think the work of

[1:19:57] this committee will absolutely

[1:19:59] help us do just that.

[1:20:00] Just like we do in the state we

[1:20:02] dig deeply into the details of

[1:20:03] every department's budget.

[1:20:06] We can do it here especially

[1:20:07] since I know I have the

[1:20:09] commitment of my colleagues on

[1:20:09] this committee.

[1:20:12] So I'm looking forward to a

[1:20:13] vibrant discussion on all of

[1:20:15] this looking forward to being

[1:20:25] able to tell the taxpayers of

[1:20:26] miami dade county that we did

[1:20:28] our job ended did it will and

[1:20:30] the outcome was positive so if

[1:20:32] there is no other items I would

[1:20:33] entertain a motion to adjourn.

Intergovernmental and Economic Impact Committee

Agenda

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