* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.
          [00:00:04]
          THANK YOU 
          [ROLL CALL]
ALL. 
          UM, I AM CALLING TODAY'S FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING TO ORDER. 
          THE CALL OF TODAY'S MEETING IS TO REVIEW AND DISCUSS THE CITY BUDGET COVERING THE FISCAL PERIOD JULY 1ST, 2026, TO JUNE 30TH, 2027. 
          THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS IS A ROLL CALL OF MEMBERS PRESENT. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBIE. 
          PRESENT, VICE MAYOR. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT, COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT, COUNCILLOR, SABRINA WHEELER. 
          PRESENT, PRESENT, COUNSELOR ZUI. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT, MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS. 
          RECORDED IS PRESENT, AND TWO, RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU CLERK. 
          THE, UM, PURSUANT TO CHAPTER TWO OF THE ACTS OF 2025, ADOPTED BY MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL COURT AND APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR, THE CITY IS AUTHORIZED TO USE REMOTE PARTICIPATION AT MEETINGS OF THE CAMBRIDGE CITY COUNCIL AND ITS COMMITTEES. 
          NOTE, THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE AUDIO AND VIDEO RECORDS THIS MEETING AND MAKES IT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC FOR FUTURE VIEWING. 
          THIRD PARTIES MAY ALSO BE AUDIO AND VIDEO RECORDING THIS MEETING. 
          IN ADDITION TO HAVING MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL PARTICIPATE REMOTELY, WE HAVE SET UP ZOOM TELECONFERENCE FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. 
          IN ADDITION TO IN PERSON, EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES. 
          CURRENTLY AT THIS TIME, WE HAVE NO ONE SIGNED UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. 
          WE WILL BE KEEPING IT OPEN DURING THE DAY SO THAT PEOPLE WHO COME IN AND WANT TO PROVIDE COMMENT BASED ON THE PRESENTATIONS AND QUESTIONS WE DO HAVE. 
          MAYBE SOMEONE SIGNED UP? NOPE. 
          OKAY. 
          IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT, VISIT THE CITY COUNCIL SECTION OF THE CITY'S WEBPAGE. 
          INSTRUCTIONS FOR HOW TO SIGN UP TO SPEAK ARE POSTED THERE. 
          ONCE YOU'VE COMPLETED SIGNUP PROCEDURE, YOU WILL RECEIVE A LINK TO THE ZOOM MEETING TO WATCH THE MEETING. 
          TUNE INTO CHANNEL 22 OR VISIT THE OPEN MEETING PORTAL ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE. 
          WITH THAT, ALL OF TODAY'S VOTES WILL BE BY ROLL CALL. 
          SO FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT BEEN AT THE EXCITING BUDGET MEETINGS THAT WE'VE HAD IN THE PAST, OR HAVEN'T FORGOT THE PROCEDURE, LET ME EXPLAIN HOW IT IS. 
          IT WILL PROCEED. 
          I AM CHAIRING THE MEETING AS FINANCE CO-CHAIR WITH COUNCILLOR ZUBI. 
          EVERY, UH, COUNSELOR WAS SENT THE, AND THE PUBLIC WAS SENT THE HEARING DEPARTMENTS. 
          WE HAVE ABOUT HALF OF THE DEPARTMENTS WHO WILL BE REVIEWED TODAY, TOMORROW NIGHT AT SIX O'CLOCK. 
          WE WILL DO THE, UH, SCHOOL DEPARTMENT BUDGET AT SIX O'CLOCK, AND THEN NEXT TUESDAY ALSO COMMENCING AT 9:00 AM WE HAVE ABOUT THE OTHER HALF OF THE, UH, CITY DEPARTMENTS. 
          AND THEN IF WE DON'T GET THROUGH EVERYTHING BETWEEN TODAY AND NEXT TUESDAY, WE HAVE RESERVED NEXT THURSDAY, MAY 14TH FOR A POSSIBLE EXTENSION OF THE BUDGET, UH, HEARINGS. 
          AND TO REMIND US ALL AT OUR LAST, UH, REGULAR, UH, CITY COUNCIL MEETING, WE DID HAVE A PRESENTATION FROM THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT REVIEWING BASICALLY THE CONTEXT OF WHERE WE'RE AT, WHICH MEANS WE WILL NOT BE OPENING THIS MEETING WITH THAT SINCE THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN REVIEWED, UH, BY THE COMMUNITY AND BY THE COUNCIL. 
          AND I THINK THE FINANCE TEAM. 
          SO TODAY'S ORDER OF BUSINESS WILL BE, I HAVE A COUPLE JUST OPENING REMARKS. 
          I WILL ASK THE CITY MANAGER AND THE FINANCE TEAM IF THEY WANNA, UH, HAVE ANY OPENING REMARKS. 
          AND THEN WE WILL GO OVER EACH DEPARTMENT OF THE CITY. 
          ALL OF YOU HAVE A PAGE JUST TO LET PEOPLE KNOW. 
          WE'LL BE GOING, STARTING FROM THE LEFT AND GOING DOWN. 
          SO THE FIRST COLUMN, THE ARTS COUNCIL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT HOUSING. 
          AND THEN WE'LL MOVE OVER TO THE MIDDLE COLUMN AND THEN TO THE RIGHT COLUMN. 
          THAT'S THE ORDER IN WHICH WE WILL DO, UH, DISCUSS THE DEPARTMENTS. 
          AS A REMINDER, EVERYONE WAS GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEND IN BUDGET QUESTIONS FOR DEPARTMENTS. 
          ALTHOUGH ANY, ANY QUESTION CAN BE ASKED ON THE FLOOR OF ANY DEPARTMENT HEAD RELATED TO THE QUESTIONS DO NEED TO BE RELATED TO THE BUDGET, SINCE THIS IS A BUDGET HEARING. 
          HOWEVER, IF THE QUESTION WAS NOT SENT IN ADVANCE, IT MAY BE THAT THE, THE STAFF WILL NOT BE FULLY PREPARED TO ANSWER IT, AND THEN WE WILL, UH, LAY THE QUESTION ON THE TABLE AND SOMEONE WILL BE ABLE TO ANSWER THAT IN THE FUTURE. 
          THE OTHER IMPORTANT THING TO NOTE IS THAT ANY DEPARTMENT THAT HAS NOT BEEN POLLED, AND ACCORDING TO THIS, THERE'S ABOUT FIVE, I WILL CONFIRM AND ASK IF THE, IF THE COUNCIL HAS ANY QUESTIONS FOR THOSE DEPARTMENTS. 
          IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS FOR THOSE DEPARTMENTS, I WILL INTEND TO OPEN THE MEETING BY SAYING THAT THOSE DEPARTMENTS WILL THEN BE, UH, FORWARDED TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL FOR IT WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION TO REMIND PEOPLE, EVEN THOUGH WE ARE A COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, EVERYTHING THAT THIS COMMITTEE DOES, LIKE ANY OTHER COMMITTEE OF THE CITY COUNCIL, NEEDS TO BE FORWARDED TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL AT A REGULAR CITY COUNCIL BUSINESS MEETING IN ORDER TO HAVE IT BE AN ACTUAL VOTE OF THE FULL CITY COUNCIL. 
          I THINK THAT COVERS THE LOGISTICS. 
          UM, JUST A QUICK OVERVIEW OF WHERE WE'RE AT. 
          UH, PRIOR TO THE, TO THIS BUDGET, THE FY 27 BUDGET PROCESS, THE CITY MANAGER INSTRUCTED DEPARTMENTS TO IDENTIFY SAVINGS OR OF ABOUT 2.1% WITHIN AN OPERATING BUDGETS. 
          AND THAT IS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE FINANCIAL SITUATION THAT WE FIND OURSELVES, EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS A TWO 2.1% SAVINGS IDENTIFIED IN MOST DEPARTMENTS, THIS, UH, FY 27 RECOMMENDED BUDGET IS STILL 
          [00:05:01]
REPRESENTS A 4.1% INCREASE OVER THE FY 26 ADOPTED BUDGET. 
          THE FIVE YEAR AVERAGE INCREASE HAD BEEN 6.7%. 
          THE 10 YEAR AVERAGE INCREASE WAS 6.1%. 
          SO A 4.1% ONE YEAR INCREASE IS, IS ACTUALLY A SIGNIFICANT DECLINE IN TERMS OF GROWTH FROM OUR PREVIOUS FIVE AND 10 YEAR AVERAGES. 
          THE REDUCED DEBT SERVICE COMPARED TO EARLIER PROJECTIONS DUE TO REDUCTION IN PROJECT SCOPE ON CAPITAL INITIATIVES AND FY 26, THE DEBT SERVICE COSTS INCREASED 7%. 
          BUT IN THIS, UH, RECOMMENDED BUDGET, UH, DEBT SERVICE COSTS INCREASE ONLY 4.3%. 
          I WANNA NOTE THAT ON PAGE SIX AND THE FINANCE COMMITTEE PROCESS MEETINGS ON PAGE SIX OF THE BUDGET BOOK, IT OUTLINES ALL THE, UM, THE, THE SUMMARY OF ALL THE BUDGET INCREASES AND CHANGES THAT WE'VE SEEN. 
          THE MAJOR BUDGET MODIFICATIONS, WHICH IS ON PAGE 10, INCLUDES SOME OF THE LARGEST, WHICH IS $13.25 MILLION INCREASE FOR THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT BUDGET, WHICH WE'LL BE DISCUSSING TOMORROW. 
          THE MOST OF THE OTHER INCREASES JUST FOR SALARIES, WAGES, AND BENEFITS OF $21 MILLION INCREASE. 
          AND THEN IT OUTLINES SOME OF THE OTHER MAJOR INCREASES IN CONTRACTUAL INCREASES. 
          UH, THE GENERAL QUESTION, WHICH I THINK WE'LL GET TO WHEN WE, UH, REVIEW THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT OF WHETHER THERE ARE DEPARTMENTS THAT COULDN'T IDENTIFY SAVINGS WITHIN THEIR BUDGET AND HOW IT IS THAT THAT WAS HANDLED. 
          AND I WANNA NOTE AS WE GO FORWARD WITH SOME OF THESE, THAT, UH, WE, I THINK THE COUNCIL ITSELF AND THE MAYOR'S OFFICE CAN BE GLAD THAT ACTUALLY THE REDUCTIONS WERE GREATER THAN TWO, 2%. 
          THERE'S, THERE'S SOME SIGNIFICANT WORK THAT, UH, I KNOW THE CITY COUNCIL DID AND THE MAYOR'S OFFICE DID TO ENSURE THAT WE WERE FOLLOWING THE CITY, UH, RECOMMENDED, UH, DECREASE IN SOME OF HOW WE MOVE FORWARD BECAUSE IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE SET A ROLE MODEL. 
          SO BEFORE I TURN OVER WITH CITY MANAGER, UH, CO-CHAIR, ZUBIE, DID YOU WANNA ADD TO ANYTHING HERE? THANK YOU. 
          AND THANKS FOR WORKING ON THIS CITY MANAGER. 
          BEFORE I GO TO THE SPECIFIC DEPARTMENTS, IF YOU WANNA WANNA INTRODUCE YOUR TEAM, AND I ALSO WANNA NOTE THAT OUR CITY AUDITOR IS HERE. 
          WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD ANYTHING BEFORE WE MOVE? JUST SAY, HI, . 
          GOOD MORNING. 
          YEAH, USUALLY HE'S BEHIND THE SCENES AUDITING EVERYTHING. 
          YOU'LL THING WE DO, BUT AS ONE OF THE, THE POSITIONS THAT DIRECTLY REPORTS TO THE CITY COUNCIL, IT'S PART OF WHY, UH, THE AUDITOR IS HERE. 
          UH, SO CITY 
          [CITY MANAGER'S AGENDA]
MANAGER, DID YOU WANT TO SAY ANYTHING BEFORE WE GO TO THE DEPARTMENTAL REVIEW? UH, NO. 
          THANK YOU. 
          CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, JUST EXCITED TO BE HERE, LOOKING FORWARD TO THE DISCUSSIONS. 
          UM, AND, UH, WE MAY JUST ROTATE IN AND OUT, UH, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY STAFF ARE COMING UP. 
          UH, BUT LOOKING FORWARD TO DISCUSSIONS. 
          UH, THANK YOU ALL. 
          OKAY. 
          SO THE FIRST ORDER WOULD BE, UM, WE ALL HAVE A SHEET IN FRONT OF US, UH, THE DEPARTMENTS THAT, TO DATE WE DID NOT GET QUESTIONS ON AND THEREFORE ARE NOT INTENDED TO BE PULLED, ARE, IT INCLUDES ASSESSING, EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOTED HERE. 
          I DID, THERE WAS ONE QUESTION I HAD HAD RELATED TO THE BUDGET FOR THE ASSESSING DIRECTOR, AND SHE ANSWERED IT. 
          I WILL FORWARD THAT FOR THE PUBLIC RECORD. 
          UH, AND I TOLD HER, GIVEN THAT I DON'T HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS, SO THAT WOULD BE A DEPARTMENT THAT I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT WE ALSO MOVE FORWARD WITHOUT DISCUSSION, UNLESS THERE ANY OTHER COUNSELOR HAS A QUESTION. 
          SO WHAT I HAVE WOULD BE ASSESSING TREASURY REVENUE, THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE, THE CITY COUNCIL OFFICE, THE MAYOR'S OFFICE, AND TOURISM PURCHASING. 
          OH, AND PURCHASING. 
          SO IT, THOSE ARE THE DEPARTMENTS WE DID NOT GET QUESTIONS ON, WHICH MEANS THAT THE CITY COUNCIL SHOULD BE POISED TO MOVE THEM FORWARD TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          ANY DISCUSSION ON THAT AT ALL? RIGHT. 
          SO I THINK I CAN MAKE A MOTION, RIGHT? YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          SO I, THEN I MOVE THAT, UH, THE DEPARTMENTS I JUST NAMED ASSESSING, PURCHASING, TREASURY REVENUE, CITY CLERK, CITY COUNCIL, MAYOR'S OFFICE, AND TOURISM, UH, BE MOVED TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          AND I NOTE AGAIN, A COUPLE OF THOSE DE DEPARTMENTS, THE, THE CITY COUNCIL AND THE MAYOR'S OFFICE. 
          I APPRECIATE THAT THEY STEPPED UP TO REDUCE SOME OF THE SPENDING. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR ZI? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY AB ABSENT. 
          COUNCIL MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS AB ABSENT COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED THE AFFIRMATIVE AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          NOW, THE NEXT. 
          SO NOW WHAT WE'LL DO IS GO IN ORDER AND ANY QUESTIONS AS WE PULL THIS, ANY COUNSELOR CAN ASK A QUESTION. 
          THERE WERE SOME SUBMITTED AND, AND ANY QUESTION CAN BE ADDED ON THE FLOOR. 
          SO THE FIRST ONE UP IS THE ARTS COUNCIL, AND THE, UM, THE PAGE NUMBER IN THE BUDGET BOOK IS TWO DASH 36. 
          SO ANYONE, I'LL START WITH COUNCILLOR UZI, AND THEN ANYONE ELSE WITH A QUESTION FOR THE ARTS COUNCIL? 
          [00:10:03]
UH, GOOD. 
          GOOD MORNING EVERYONE. 
          UM, AND THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY OVERALL, I, I FEEL AS THOUGH THE BUDGET BOOK, IT MADE ME FEEL REALLY GREAT ABOUT WHAT THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE IS ACCOMPLISHING. 
          UM, I REALLY APPRECIATED THE TRANSPARENCY AND THE THOROUGHNESS OF, UM, INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY CITY'S GOINGS ON IN THE BOOK. 
          AS I'VE TOLD THE CITY MANAGER, I THINK IT COULD USE, HAVE, USE ANOTHER EDIT. 
          BUT, UM, I, I THINK IT'S A FABULOUS DOCUMENT, AND I THANK ALL OF YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR EFFORTS TO PULL IT TOGETHER AND, AND FOR YOUR WORK. 
          UM, BECAUSE IT SHOWCASES WHAT CAMBRIDGE DOES, WHICH IS EXTRAORDINARY. 
          MY QUESTION FOR THE ARTS COUNCIL IS, UM, WHAT ARE THE MAJOR FINDINGS FROM THE THREE-YEAR REGIONAL STUDY MAKING SPACE FOR ART? THE ARTS COUNCIL DOES AMAZING THINGS, BUT WE NEED TO BE WORKING WITHIN A BROADER CONTEXT. 
          SO EAGER TO HEAR WHAT, WHAT YOU LEARNED FROM THAT STUDY. 
          SURE. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR, AND THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION, COUNSELOR. 
          UH, WE WERE REALLY EXCITED TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS STUDY, UH, BECAUSE YOU'RE RIGHT, WE DO GREAT THINGS IN CAMBRIDGE WHEN IT COMES TO THE ARTS, BUT I THINK WE CAN ALWAYS BE BETTER INTEGRATED IN OUR APPROACH. 
          AND THIS STUDY, UH, NOT ONLY HAD US WORKING TO LOOK AT ALL OF OUR RESOURCES HERE IN CAMBRIDGE AND HOW WE APPLY THOSE, YOU KNOW, ACROSS DEPARTMENTS AND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COMMUNITY, BUT IT ALSO HAD US WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITIES OF BOSTON AND THE COMMUNITIES OF SOMERVILLE. 
          SO WE COULD LOOK AT ARTS AND CULTURE REALLY ALMOST AS A CORRIDOR. 
          I THINK WE DO THAT VERY EASILY WHEN WE THINK ABOUT LIFE SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, SOME OF THE OTHER SORT OF COMPONENTS OF THE INNOVATION ECONOMY. 
          BUT AS YOU KNOW, UH, FROM MY PRESENCE AT THIS TABLE, ARTS AND CULTURE IS ALSO A PART OF OUR INNOVATION ECONOMY. 
          AND SO LOOKING AT THAT AS A CORRIDOR, I THINK WAS A REALLY HELPFUL, UH, COMPONENT OF THIS, UH, OPPORTUNITY WITH THE METROPOLITAN AREA PLANNING COUNCIL. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, A FEW OF THE HIGH LEVEL THINGS, UH, IT HAD US THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, AS WE WENT THROUGH THIS WAS HOW WE GATHER AND LOOK AT CULTURAL DATA. 
          SO WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME AT THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE REPORT REALLY DOING THAT WORK, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT ARE OUR CULTURAL ASSETS? WHERE ARE THEY, HOW DO THEY WORK WITHIN THE COMMUNITY? AND WHAT ARE WE DOING OR WHAT ARE WE NOT DOING, UH, TO SUPPORT THEM? AND SO WE CREATED THAT ASSET MAP, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, USING THAT MAP, IT BECOMES, UH, A REALLY EFFECTIVE, UH, RESOURCE WHEN WE'RE THINKING ABOUT DEVELOPMENT REVIEW. 
          YOU KNOW, I THINK HISTORICALLY WHEN WE'RE THINKING ABOUT DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, MAYBE THE LAST THING WE GET TO, IF WE GET TO IT AT ALL, IS ARTS AND CULTURAL SPACE. 
          SO IF WE'RE THINKING ABOUT HOW DO WE MAKE OUR EXISTING SPACE MORE RESILIENT, BUT HOW DO WE CREATE NEW FLEXIBLE SPACE? THAT WAS A REALLY IMPORTANT FINDING FROM THE REPORT. 
          AND TO HEAR THAT REGIONALLY AND FROM THE MAPC, UH, SO THAT IN ADDITION TO THINKING ABOUT HOW WE USE OUR ZONING TOOLS, UH, I DON'T THINK NECESSARILY WE'VE ALWAYS USED THOSE IN AN EFFECTIVE WAY TO THINK ABOUT ARTS AND CULTURE. 
          HOW DO WE THINK ABOUT ARTS ARTISTS LIVE WORKSPACE? UH, WE HAVEN'T MADE A CONCERTED EFFORT TO DO THAT IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          UH, SO THAT WAS ONE OF THE FINDINGS. 
          AND THEN, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE THINK ABOUT ASSETS LIKE OUR CULTURAL DISTRICT IN CENTRAL SQUARE? UH, THERE WAS A GREAT PUSH, UH, FROM THE REPORT TO THINK ABOUT CENTRAL SQUARE AS A DEMONSTRATION IN AN AREA WHERE WE COULD PILOT NEW INITIATIVES, UH, AND DO THAT IN PARTNERSHIP, UH, WITH THE BID AND WITH ALL OF THE DEPARTMENTS, YOU KNOW, THAT HAVE A ROLE IN THINKING ABOUT HOW WE DEVELOP CENTRAL SQUARE. 
          AND SO THAT WAS A BIG PART, UH, TOO, OF HOW WE WERE THINKING ABOUT THE, THE LOT STUDY, YOU KNOW, AND WHAT WE HEARD FROM THE COMMUNITY ABOUT THEIR AMBITIONS FOR AND DESIRE TO SEE ARTS AND CULTURES STAY AND GROW AND DEEPEN. 
          SO THOSE WERE REALLY HELPFUL. 
          WE JUST RECENTLY RECEIVED THE REPORT, SO WE'RE STILL SORT OF DRIVING IT DOWN AND THINKING IT THROUGH AND WORKING TOGETHER WITH, UH, OTHER DEPARTMENTS, UH, TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE ACHIEVE SOME OF THESE OUTCOMES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO, UH, VERY HELPFUL. 
          YEAH, NO, I THINK, YOU KNOW, I FEEL LIKE ARTISTS ARE INCREDIBLE PROBLEM SOLVERS. 
          AND, UH, WE NEED TO HAVE STUDIO SPACES IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          WE, WE NEED TO ENCOURAGE ARTISTS TO BE HERE, UM, TO, UM, PROMOTE OUR VITALITY AND HELP US SOLVE OUR HARD PROBLEMS. SO I, IT SOUNDS LIKE THIS REPORT IS, IS, HAS, WILL PROVIDE A ROADMAP, UH, REGIONALLY FOR US HOW TO, TO, UM, TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE A VIBRANT ARTS CORRIDOR. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          SURE. 
          AND THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR, I MEAN, IT'S A BEGINNING, I THINK, AND THAT'S IMPORTANT. 
          AND I WOULD JUST ON YOUR COMMENT, COUNSELOR, DRAW EVERYBODY'S ATTENTION AS WE START THE CONVERSATIONS THIS MORNING WITH DEPARTMENTS AND ON THE BUDGET TO THE COVER OF THE BUDGET DOCUMENT. 
          AND I WANT TO GIVE GREAT THANKS TO, UH, DIRECTOR JENNINGS, UH, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER FOR FINANCE, CLAIRE SPINNER AND OUR CITY MANAGER AND HIS STAFF FOR THE INSPIRED CHOICE OF PUBLIC ART AS THE COVER. 
          AND THIS PARTICULAR ARTWORK IS AT THE TOBIN. 
          IT'S A BRAND NEW FLORIDA CEILING MOSAIC, UM, MURAL. 
          BUT THE MURAL, IF YOU LOOK AT IT, IS A PICTURE OF A, A WHALE MOTHER AND ITS CHILD. 
          AND THE ARTIST IS A GRADUATE OF CRLS AND WAS 
          [00:15:01]
THINKING ABOUT HOW WE NURTURE THE COMMUNITY, HOW A STUDENT IS NURTURED IN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY BY A TEACHER, HOW THE COMMUNITY MORE BROADLY IS NURTURED BY THE SCHOOLS AND HOW WE THINK ABOUT NURTURING THE COMMUNITY THROUGH THE INVESTMENT OF OUR RESOURCES. 
          SO I THINK IT WAS AN INSPIRED CHOICE, AND I JUST WANTED TO DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO IT AND GIVE IN DRAMA TO LYLE A SHOUT OUT BECAUSE SHE'S THE ARTIST AND, AND CANTOR BRIDGING WHO CREATED THAT WORK. 
          THANK YOU. 
          MAYOR S AND THEN COUNCILOR ZUBI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, AND ONE OF THE THINGS I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IS PORCH FEST BEING EXPANDED. 
          UH, IT WAS A PILOT. 
          SO NOW WE'RE DOING A CITY OF WIDE EVENT. 
          I'M CURIOUS, THIS IS ALL IN HOUSE. 
          I KNOW THERE'S VOLUNTEERS, THERE'S OTHER THINGS, BUT, UM, CAN YOU JUST TALK BRIEFLY ABOUT KIND OF THE, WHAT THAT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE? SURE. 
          UH, THANK YOU MAYOR SIDIKI, AND THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UH, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT PORCH FEST. 
          WE HAD AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE LAST YEAR AS THE PILOT, AND AS YOU SAY, WE'RE GROWING THE EVENT. 
          WE'RE NOT YET CITYWIDE, BUT WE'RE GOING BY YEAR THREE TO BE CITYWIDE. 
          AND THAT'S A, A VERY SPECIFIC AND INTENTIONAL DECISION, UH, SO THAT WE CAN GROW IT WITH PARTNERS IN THE COMMUNITY EACH AND EVERY YEAR. 
          SO WE'RE EXPANDING, UH, FROM OUR CAMBRIDGE PORT NEIGHBORHOOD INTO THE PORT NEIGHBORHOOD AND RIVERSIDE NEIGHBORHOOD. 
          AND TO DO THAT, OF COURSE, WE'RE WORKING WITH THE KEY PARTNERS AND NONPROFITS THAT REALLY, UH, HELP MAKE THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS COHESIVE. 
          UM, AND SO WE'RE BUILDING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER, THE CAMBRIDGE COMMUNITY CENTER. 
          AND SO ALL DAY ON SATURDAY, JULY THE 12TH, YOU KNOW, WE'LL HAVE OUR NEIGHBORHOOD BASED, UH, PERFORMANCES AND EXPERIENCES. 
          AND THEN ON THE SUNDAY DOING IT A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY THAN SOME OF THE OTHER COMMUNITIES THAT HOST PORCH FEST AND PRODUCE IT. 
          UH, WE'RE WORKING WITH OUR BUSINESS AND RETAIL DISTRICTS, AND SO THIS YEAR WE'LL WORK TOGETHER WITH ESSENTIAL SQUARE BID AND ALSO THE HARVARD SQUARE BUSINESS ASSOCIATION TO HIGHLIGHT A LOT OF THE KEY, UM, UH, ASSETS IN THOSE RETAIL DISTRICTS, BUT ALSO BRING AUDIENCES, UH, FROM THE NEIGHBORHOODS UP INTO THE RETAIL DISTRICT SO THEY CAN ENJOY THE MUSIC AND THE PERFORMANCES, BUT ALSO PATRONIZE OUR, OUR RETAIL OUTLETS. 
          AND SO, BY YEAR 3, 20 27, WE'LL HAVE IT CITYWIDE AND WORK, YOU KNOW, ALL THE WAY INTO EAST CAMBRIDGE AND FAR NORTH CAMBRIDGE, AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND JUST TO BE SPECIFIC, AS IT RELATES TO THE BUDGET, YOU HAVEN'T, YOU FELT LIKE YOU CAN DO THIS WITH ALL WITHIN YOUR CURRENT STAFF? UH, WE CAN, AND WITH ALSO, YOU KNOW, OUR PARTNERS IN THE COMMUNITY, IT'S PART OF THE REASON WE'RE BUILDING IT WITH, UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF HANDS, MANY HANDS, UH, IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE. 
          UH, AND SO THEN, YOU KNOW, WE'LL TAKE A BREATHER AFTER YEAR TWO AND LOOK AT THE, THE, THE BUDGET AGAIN AS WE GO INTO THE NEXT BUDGET CYCLE AND, AND, AND SEE, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S POSSIBLE. 
          GREAT. 
          WELL, I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE AROUND THIS YEAR'S PORCH FEST. 
          THANK YOU, COUNCILOR ZUBI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS. 
          I WANNA JUST APPRECIATE ALL THE EFFORT THAT HAS GONE INTO THIS. 
          UM, FIRST, HOW DOES THE ARTS COUNCIL COORDINATE WITH THE COMMUNITY EVENTS AND CELEBRATIONS BUDGET, IF AT ALL? IS THERE ANY CONTEXT TO A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO? UH, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR, WITH THANKS TO THE COUNSELOR? UM, WE DO COORDINATE ON ALL OF, UH, THE CONVERSATION PRODUCTION ASPECTS. 
          USUALLY THERE'S A MEMBER OF THE, THE CAMBRIDGE ARTS STAFF, UH, OFTEN MYSELF, WHO PARTICIPATES WITH THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, OUR GOOD FRIEND MATT NELSON, AND OTHERS WHO HELP TO COORDINATE THE BUDGET AROUND THESE EVENTS. 
          SO WE'RE GENERALLY INVOLVED IN EVERYTHING, IF NOT DIRECTLY AS A PRODUCING PARTNER, AT LEAST AS A THOUGHT PARTNER ON HOW IT WORKS. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND. 
          YEAH, DEFINITELY. 
          AWESOME TO HEAR THAT THAT'S HAPPENING, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO THE LARGER CITY EVENTS. 
          AND THE OTHER QUESTION I HAD WAS, DO YOU HAVE AN EXAMPLE ON WHAT THE ARTIST IN GOVERNMENT RESIDENCY PROGRAM IS EXPECTED TO LOOK LIKE AND HOW IT'S BEING FUNDED THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR AND, AND THANKS AGAIN FOR THAT QUESTION AND FOR BRINGING UP ARTISTS IN GOVERNMENT, BECAUSE I THINK THIS IS SUCH AN EXCITING OPPORTUNITY FOR CAMBRIDGE. 
          WE'RE CLEARLY NOT THE FIRST TO DO ARTIST IN RESIDENCY, BUT I THINK, UH, AS ALWAYS IN CAMBRIDGE, WE'LL DO IT DIFFERENTLY AND BETTER THAN, THAN MANY. 
          UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE THOUGHT A LOT TOO ABOUT THE IDEA OF ARTISTS IN GOVERNMENT. 
          YOU KNOW, THERE'S NOT ALWAYS OUTSIDE OF CAMBRIDGE THE HAPPIEST CONNOTATIONS AROUND GOVERNMENT THESE DAYS. 
          AND SO I THINK THIS IS A WAY, YOU KNOW, WE ALSO RECLAIM THAT AND WORK WITH CREATIVES TO HELP US REFLECT ON HOW WE CREATE GOVERNMENT, HOW WE CREATE PROGRAMS, AND HOW WE WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY. 
          SO WE'RE SUPER EXCITED ABOUT IT, AND WE SORT OF RESIST THE URGE TO THINK EXACTLY WHAT THE OUTCOMES ARE GOING TO BE, BECAUSE IT'S THE CREATIVE EXCHANGE BETWEEN THE SELECTED ARTISTS OR ARTISTS WORKING WITH THE DEPARTMENT WHO SORT OF THINK THAT THROUGH, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE A TANGIBLE, DISCREET, UH, OBJECT IN THE FORM OF, YOU KNOW, SOME TYPE OF, OF PRACTICED ART FORM. 
          UH, BUT IT COULD ALSO BE SOMETHING EXPERIENTIAL. 
          YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT FROM THE BEGINNING, UH, WITH 
          [00:20:01]
ALL OF THE FOLKS THAT HAVE TOUCHED THE PROGRAM AND HOW WE'LL COACH ANY OF THE ARTISTS THAT ARE INVOLVED, IS TO THINK ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT AND THE PROGRAMS AND THE SERVICE REALLY THAT THEY DO ON BEHALF OF THE COMMUNITY, AND HOW DO WE REFLECT THAT? AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE A PRESCRIPTION FOR THAT. 
          WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT'S GONNA PHYSICALLY LOOK LIKE. 
          UH, BUT I THINK IT'S GONNA BE REALLY EXCITING. 
          OF COURSE, THIS IS OUR FIRST YEAR DOING IT. 
          UM, AND WE'LL ALSO, YOU KNOW, BE VERY FOCUSED ON DOCUMENTATION AND HOW WE SUPPORT THE ARTIST IN COMING UP WITH THE IDEAS. 
          SO MORE TO COME ON THAT. 
          BUT WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE PROGRAM AND THE OPPORTUNITIES GOING FORWARD. 
          THANK YOU FOR SHARING A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          I'M DEFINITELY EXCITED TO SEE HOW THAT DEVELOPS. 
          AND CURIOUS, JUST REAL QUICK, HOW IT'S FUNDED AND HOW YOU GUYS ARE WORKING OUT THAT PART OF IT. 
          UH, IT'S FUNDED THROUGH A PARTNERSHIP THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          IT'S FUNDED THROUGH A PARTNERSHIP, UH, BETWEEN CDD, YOU KNOW, OUR, UM, AFFILIATE, UH, LEADERSHIP AREA AND CAMBRIDGE ARTS. 
          AND, UH, WE HAD SOME FUNDING FROM A NUMBER OF YEARS BACK, UM, FROM AN OUTSIDE PARTNER, UM, TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE BUILD CREATIVITY INTO THE CITY. 
          AND SO THIS IS SORT OF THE PERFECT WAY OF EXERCISING THAT AND DOING IT, UM, IN A WAY THAT WOULD HELP US SORT OF DEMONSTRATE THIS AND THEN THINK ABOUT IT GOING FORWARD. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I'LL YIELD COUNCILOR MCGOVERN, UH, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          I THINK WE'D BE REMISS SINCE WE HAVE YOU HERE, IF WE DIDN'T ASK YOU ABOUT THE, UH, BORDER SQUARE GIFT OF THE GIFT OF THE WIND. 
          AND IS THERE ANY MONEY IN THIS YEAR FINALLY TO MAYBE SPRUCE THAT BABY UP, UH, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR, AND THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. 
          UM, IT'S A GREAT QUESTION, AND I THINK WE'RE CLOSER THAN EVER, UH, TO BUILDING THE POSITIVE RELATIONSHIP AND SPECIFIC RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR PARTNERS AT THE MBTA AND GETTING SOMETHING DONE. 
          WE HAVEN'T YET, UH, IDENTIFIED DIRECT FUNDING BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN YET, THE RESTORATION. 
          BUT WE'VE PROVIDED, UH, TO THE MBTA ALL OF THE DETAILS, UH, SINCE 2004 ON WHAT'S HAPPENED WITH THE RESTORATION, SOME RECOMMENDATIONS AND ESTIMATES ON COST. 
          AND WE'VE HAD TWO MEETINGS NOW, UH, IN PERSON WITH, UH, MBTA REPRESENTATIVES, AND WE'RE FOLLOWING UP ON THAT VERY CLOSELY TOGETHER WITH, UH, MEGAN AND THE TEAM AT THE LAW DEPARTMENT, UH, WITH THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE. 
          AND WE'VE BEEN HESITANT TO, YOU KNOW, UH, JUST STEP FORWARD WITH FUNDING BECAUSE OF COURSE, WE DON'T OWN THE PROPERTY. 
          WE NEED TO FIND OUT WHAT THE MBTA IS WILLING TO DO. 
          BUT I'VE NEVER BEEN MORE HOPEFUL, UH, IN 26 YEARS OF WORKING TOGETHER WITH THE CITY AND OVERSEEING PUBLIC ART IN THE CITY, UH, THAT THE MBTA IS GONNA SHOW UP AND DO THE RIGHT THING IN THIS CASE AND THROUGH, THROUGH YOU. 
          SO, BUT IN THE IT, LET'S SAY THEY FINALLY DO, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A LONG TIME, AND IT FINALLY GETS RESOLVED AND THE MBTA SAYS, YEAH, WE CAN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE READY TO GO AND WE'LL PAY THIS AMOUNT. 
          WE'D LIKE THE CITY TO CHIP IN THIS AMOUNT. 
          WE HAVE MONEY IN THE BUDGET TO DO THAT. 
          WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO SAY, OH, WE GOTTA KICK THIS DOWN THE CAN TILL NEXT, DOWN THE ROAD TILL NEXT YEAR, UH, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UH, IT'S A GREAT QUESTION, AND, AND PERHAPS I'LL YIELD ON THAT 'CAUSE I'M NOT EXACTLY SURE HARD ABOUT KNOWING WHAT IT IS, BUT, BUT I KNOW WE HAVE A, A VERY ROBUST BUDGET FOR THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE, AND I EXPECT THAT, UH, WE'LL BE ABLE TO WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE NVTA TO GET SOMETHING DONE. 
          WELL, COUNCILOR ZI AND I CAN GET SOME RED PAINT AND CLIMB UP THERE IF YOU WANT. 
          THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, I WILL ADD A COUPLE QUESTIONS. 
          ONE, THE, UM, INTERESTED PERHAPS AT SOME POINT FOLLOWING UP ON MAYOR SIDIKI ABOUT PORCH FEST BUDGET. 
          I UNDERSTAND SOMERVILLE DOES IT, ALL OF THE COORDINATION IS ALL VOLUNTEER WORK, WHICH I THINK WE'RE USING IN CAMBRIDGE AS WELL, AND THE ACTUAL COSTS ARE MORE IN DPW AND PROVIDING, UH, TOILETS AND THAT KIND OF STUFF, AND THE HARD COSTS. 
          BUT PROBABLY AT SOME POINT IT'D BE GREAT. 
          AND I THINK IT'S A GREAT EXAMPLE OF IT COMES INTO THE BUDGET AND IT WAS THE COUNCIL WHO WAS WORKING WITH THE ARTS TO MAKE IT HAPPEN. 
          SO TOTALLY THRILLED ABOUT THAT. 
          I DO HAVE AN A QUESTION ON THE OVERALL FINANCES HERE OF DO WE, UM, TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE IMPACT ON OVERALL FINANCES OF THE ARTS IN THE BUDGET, AND DO WE EVER OUTLAY THAT? 'CAUSE I KNOW THERE'S BEEN LOTS OF STUDIES STATEWIDE ABOUT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE ARTS, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE IMPLICITLY ASSUME, AND YET, FOR INSTANCE, I'M THINKING OF THE A RT MOVING TO ALSTON BRIGHTON WILL LIKELY HAVE AN, AN ACTUALLY A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON OUR, UM, ON OUR FINANCES. 
          IS THERE ANY KIND OF WORK WE'RE DOING TO UNDERSTAND AND ASSESS THAT ELEMENT OF HOW THE ARTS BRINGS INTO THE CITY VIBRANCY, BUT ALSO ECONOMIC, UH, ADVANTAGES, BUT ALSO IF WE DON'T SUPPORT IT, THEN IT ALSO MEANS NOT JUST WITH THE CITY FUNDS, BUT ALSO ORGANIZATIONS ACROSS THE CITY, WHETHER IT'S CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER CONSTELLATION, WHICH IS ANOTHER HUGE, UM, ARTS PROGRAMMING THAT WE'LL BE BRINGING TO, UH, EAST CAMBRIDGE. 
          I THINK HOPEFULLY A LOT OF, UH, CREATIVITY, BUT 
          [00:25:01]
ALSO SOME ECONOMIC IMPACT. 
          UH, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION, MADAM. 
          AND THAT WAS NOT A QUESTION I SENT IN ADVANCE, SO IF YOU DON'T KNOW, I APOLOGIZE. 
          NO, NO, THAT'S ALL RIGHT. 
          THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          AND I THINK IT'S AN IMPORTANT QUESTION. 
          AND MAYBE HISTORICALLY, YOU KNOW, WE DID AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STUDY BACK IN 2017 OR JUST PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC PERIOD, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, IT MAY BE TIME TO DO THAT AGAIN, SO WE CAN SORT OF SEE, YOU KNOW, COMING OUT OF THAT PERIOD OF TIME, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THINGS LOOKING LIKE. 
          BUT I THINK THAT'S ALSO A BIG PART OF THE REASON WE'RE MORE CLOSELY ALIGNED. 
          AND NOW WITH THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY DIVISION, OUR PARTNERS, YOU KNOW, IN PLANNING AND DESIGN, YOU KNOW, ACROSS HOW WE THINK ABOUT THE CITY, WE CAN FACTOR THIS INTO THAT. 
          AND THAT'S SORT OF A PIECE, YOU KNOW, FROM MY DESCRIPTION OF THE REPORT WE DID WITH MAPC THAT THEY'RE SORT OF PROVOKING AND ASKING FOR AS WELL. 
          SO I, I THINK WE'LL BE ABLE TO RESPOND WELL TO THAT AND DO A BETTER JOB INTEGRATING THAT INFORMATION AND SORT OF LIFTING IT UP IN ALL OF THE WORK THAT WE DID. 
          GREAT. 
          I LOOK FORWARD TO THAT AND LOOK FORWARD TO REVIEWING THE MAPC REPORT THAT I THINK WAS REFERENCED MAYBE WE GOT A COPY OF, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER. 
          IF NOT, PRESUMABLY WE WILL. 
          RIGHT. 
          THAT'S, UM, THAT WAS MY QUESTION. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THE BUDGET, WHICH IS FOR FY 27, THE RECOMMENDED BUDGET IS, UH, 1.4 MILLION. 
          IT, UH, DOES NOT SHOW THE 2% DECLINE, SO THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING SOMEONE ELSE CAN ADDRESS. 
          IT, IT'S A SLIGHT INCREASE OVER FY 26. 
          UM, AND NO OTHER QUESTIONS THEN. 
          IS THERE A MOTION TO FORWARD THE ARTS COUNCIL BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION BY COUNCILLOR ZZI? DISCUSSION? ROLL CALL COUNCILOR ZUBE? YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ALRIGHT, NOW WE'RE NEXT UP IS THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT. 
          THIS IS ON PAGE 240 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          THIS IS A DEPARTMENT THAT IS ONE OF THE LARGEST DEPARTMENTS IN THE CITY. 
          THAT TOTAL RECOMMENDED BUDGET IS 36,334,881, WHICH REPRESENTS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE OVER, UH, LAST YEAR'S FY 26 BUDGET. 
          I BELIEVE THAT'S PARTLY FROM SHIFTING SOME STAFF, BUT I'M SURE WE'LL HOPEFULLY HEAR ABOUT IT FROM, UH, A CM PETERS. 
          UM, THIS IS THE FULL-TIME POSITIONS, FULL-TIME EQUIVALENTS IN THIS DEPARTMENT ARE, UM, 51. 
          SO AGAIN, IT'S ONE OF OUR LARGEST DEPARTMENTS. 
          THIS IS NOW OPEN TO QUESTIONS, AND I WILL START WITH, UH, COUNCILOR UZI. 
          UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, AGAIN, VERY IMPRESSIVE WHAT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IS ACCOMPLISHING AND, UM, I KNOW WE KEEP ASKING YOU TO DO MORE EVERY WEEK, BUT, UM, ANYWAY, I APPRECIATE ALL THAT YOU DO. 
          SO I, I, I WONDERED ABOUT THE INCREASE IN THE BUDGET. 
          IT'S UP 6 MILLION, MOSTLY IN OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE FOR FISCAL YEAR, UH, 27. 
          I WONDERED WHY OR WHAT THAT WILL PAY FOR. 
          YEAH. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. 
          UM, BEFORE I ANSWER THAT, I JUST WANTED TO BRIEFLY INTRODUCE MY STAFF. 
          SO, UH, NEXT TO ME IS JEN RA, OUR DEPUTY CHIEF OF PLANNING, AND NEXT TO HER, SANDRA CLARK, OUR CHIEF OF ADMIN AND OPERATIONS. 
          AND THEY BOTH HELP, UH, LEAD THE, UH, ADMIN TEAM FOR, UH, BOTH COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, BUT ALSO OUR AFFILIATE DEPARTMENTS, UH, CAMBRIDGE ARTS AND HOUSING DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, AND THEN, UH, UH, ALSO IN THE ROOM TODAY ARE JEFF ROBERTS, DIRECTOR OF ZONING AND DEVELOPMENT PARTY, SAFARI DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND DEVELOPMENT. 
          AND NOT HERE, HE'S STILL ON PARENTAL LEAVE, DANIEL MESS PLAY, OUR DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DESIGN. 
          SO THAT ENCOMPASSES OUR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT. 
          UH, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, I THINK THAT THE TOTAL YOU'RE REFLECTING COMBINES THE THREE DEPARTMENTS, CAMBRIDGE ARTS, HOUSING, AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT. 
          IF YOU LOOK AT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, UM, THERE'S ACTUALLY A DECREASE IN JUST OVER 2 MILLION THAT, UM, IN SAVINGS. 
          AND SO WE WENT FROM FY 26 FROM A BUDGET OF JUST OVER 9 MILLION, UH, TO THIS YEAR'S PROPOSED BUDGET AT JUST UNDER 7 MILLION, AT 6.99. 
          UM, AND THAT PRIMARILY, UM, REPRESENTS, UH, A DECREASE, UH, FROM THE TRANSFER OF THE TRANSPORTATION PLANNING DIVISION, UM, THAT IS NOW MOVING OVER TO THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AS WELL AS OUR 2.1 SAVINGS EXERCISE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT'S VERY HELPFUL. 
          BUT I'M JUST, I'M LOOKING AT, SO ON PAGE 2 47, 
          [00:30:01]
OTHER, I KNOW EVERYTHING HAS SHUFFLED AROUND, SO YOU CAN'T COMPARE APPLES TO APPLES, WHICH IS, I THINK, THE POINT THAT YOU'RE MAKING. 
          BUT, UM, SO YOU'RE SUGGESTING THAT THE INCREASE IN ORDINARY MAINTENANCE COSTS IS BECAUSE OF SORT OF THE SHIFTING OF DEPARTMENTS RATHER THAN AN INCREASE IN EXPENDITURES? YES. 
          SO I DEFINITELY, UM, IT'S, IT'S PART OF THAT SHIFT IN REORGANIZATION. 
          UM, ALSO, YOU KNOW, AFTER COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, YOU'LL, YOU'LL TALK ABOUT THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, WHICH HAS A, UH, AN INCREASE AS WELL DUE TO ITS REORGANIZATION AS WELL THAT WE'RE HAPPY TO TALK THROUGH. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. 
          AND THEN AGAIN, I, I THINK PICE AND, UM, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS DOING FABULOUS WORK. 
          I JUST WANTED TO ASK ABOUT, UM, FEWER BUSINESSES ARE RECEIVING GRANTS, AND I WOULD LOVE FOR HER TO SPEAK TO THAT. 
          YEAH. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, PICE IS JOINING ME AT THE TABLE. 
          I CAN START AND PICE CAN ADD ANY ADDITIONAL DETAIL. 
          UM, THE, THE DECREASE IN GR NUMBER OF GRANTS, IT CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO TWO MAIN REASONS. 
          UH, THE FIRST IS, UM, DURING, UH, THE PANDEMIC, WE RECEIVED A LOT OF ADDITIONAL FEDERAL, UH, GRANT MONEY THROUGH ARPA. 
          UM, AT THAT TIME, UH, THERE WAS LESS, UM, THE TRADITIONAL CDD GRANTS WERE NOT UTILIZED AS MUCH, SO WE HAD A, UM, AN INCREASE IN FUNDING OVER THE YEARS. 
          SO WE HAD SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDING THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO, UM, MORE HEAVILY DISPERSE, UH, THE PAST YEAR OR TWO. 
          UM, AND ALSO, UM, THE, UH, WE'VE REALIZED WITH THE COST OF CONSTRUCTION AND PROVISION OF GOODS AND SERVICES, BUSINESSES WERE TELLING US THAT THE GRANT AMOUNTS WEREN'T ENOUGH TO COVER FULL PROJECTS. 
          SO WE MADE A DECISION TO INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF EACH GRANT. 
          SO, UH, SAME POT OF MONEY, BUT FEWER GRANTS, UM, BECAUSE THEY'RE LARGER AWARDS. 
          AND I DON'T KNOW IF PAICE WANTS TO ADD ANY ADDITIONAL DETAIL, UM, THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          I I THINK MELISSA PRETTY MUCH OUTLINED IT. 
          WE'RE, UM, WE HAVE BEEN NEW FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS, ABLE TO PROVIDE, UM, MORE GRANTS JUST BECAUSE OF OUR, UH, UM, THE PREVIOUS YEAR OF FUNDING. 
          BUT, UM, WE'RE CONTINUING, WE HOPE TO CONTINUE, UH, TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THE AMOUNT OF GRANTS WE HAVE HISTORICALLY. 
          SO, UM, WE'RE IN GOOD SHAPE AND POPULARITY IS STILL THERE. 
          THAT ANSWERS MY QUESTIONS. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          OKAY, BEFORE I GO ON, I SCREWED UP THE, I MEAN, I MESSED UP THE  DESCRIPTION OF THE BUDGET. 
          I WAS LOOKING AT THE HOUSING, THIS BUDGET FOR THIS DEPARTMENT. 
          WHILE IT IS A LARGE DEPARTMENT, IT'S, UH, 6.9 MILLION, AND THE TOTAL, THE, IS THE TOTAL FTES IS 41, NOT 50. 
          SO WE'LL GET TO HOUSING IN A MINUTE, BUT I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. 
          I'M SURE EVERYONE WAS REALLY CONCERNED. 
          UM, OTHER QUESTIONS FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL, ZUBI, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR, I NOTICED THAT SOCIAL HOUSING IS NOT NAMED IN THE FISCAL YEAR 27 OBJECTIVE IN ANY WAY. 
          CURIOUS AS TO, UH, WHY NOT? WHEN WE'VE BEEN IN CONVERSATION ABOUT IT AND, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO DEVELOP THE TASK FORCE. 
          AND IT'S BEEN REALLY GREAT TO GET THIS MOVING, AND I RECOGNIZE THAT ANYTHING BIG OR SMALL THAT EACH DEPARTMENT IS TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH IS LAID OUT HERE IN THE BUDGET. 
          UH, SO ANY THOUGHTS ON THIS? I'M CURIOUS TO HEAR MORE. 
          YEAH, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION, UM, THROUGH YOU, UH, CHAIR NOLL AND, UM, SO RECOGNIZING THAT SOCIAL HOUSING, UM, IS A PRIORITY OF THE COUNCIL. 
          WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO, UH, DIVE DEEP INTO, UH, SOCIAL HOUSING TASK FORCE. 
          UM, WE WILL, UM, AS WE'VE BEEN SCOPING THE PROJECT, UM, INTERNALLY AND IN COORDINATION WITH THE LEAD COUNSELORS, WE HAVE, UH, RECOGNIZED THAT THERE, THERE WILL BE AN ADDITIONAL CONSULTANT NEED TO HELP GUIDE THAT, UH, TASK FORCE PROCESS. 
          SO, UM, WE DO EXPECT THAT, UM, IN ADDITION TO WHAT WE'RE PRESENTING TODAY, BOTH THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING DEPARTMENTS, THAT WE MAY COME FORWARD WITH A SUPPLEMENTAL REQUEST FOR SOCIAL HOUSING, UH, RECOGNIZING THE PRIORITY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YEAH, IT WOULD DEFINITELY BE AWESOME TO SEE THAT REFLECTED IN THE BUDGET WHEN IT COMES TO JUNE, AS I KNOW WE'VE BEEN DOING SOME GOOD WORK ON THAT. 
          I'LL YIELD OTHER QUESTIONS. 
          I WILL ASK THE QUESTION I SENT. 
          UM, UH, APPRECIATE THE WORK OF THE DEPARTMENT AND I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IS REFINING AND REVIEWING THE ENTIRE ZONING CODE OF THE CITY, WHICH I STILL THINK WOULD BE APPROPRIATE. 
          AND IT WOULD HELP A LOT OF AREA. 
          AND I KNOW IT'S A HUGE LIFT AND IT WOULD BE SEVERAL YEARS, BUT IF WE HAD STARTED IT SEVERAL YEARS AGO, WE'D BE DONE BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF CONFLICTING AND CONCERNING AND PROBLEMATIC AREAS THAT HAVE TO BE, 
          [00:35:01]
UM, UH, RATIONALIZED AND FIGURED OUT. 
          SO I THINK RELATED TO THIS IS, CAN, THE QUESTION I SENT WAS, CAN THE USE OF AI ADVANCE THE WORK OF THE DEPARTMENT? IT, IT SEEMS THAT IT MIGHT BE ABLE TO STREAMLINE SOME OF THE WORK SHORTENED TIMELINES, WHICH WOULD THEN ALLOW FOR A DIFFERENT ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES. 
          BECAUSE AS COUNCILOR SUZI NOTED, AND WE ALL KNOW WE THROW A LOT ON THE DEPARTMENT, PARTICULARLY WHETHER IT'S ZONING OR ORDINANCES OR CHANGES, AND THAT REQUIRES A LOT OF EFFORT. 
          THE QUESTION IS WHETHER WE HAVE EXPLORED USING THAT IN ORDER TO HELP THE DEPARTMENT MOVE FORWARD. 
          YES. 
          UH, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. 
          SO ABSOLUTELY, WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING AT WAYS THAT WE CAN, UH, BE MORE EFFICIENT USE, UM, GROWING TECHNOLOGIES. 
          I THINK AI IS A GREAT CASE STUDY, UM, AND HELPING THINKING THROUGH, UM, HOW TO, UM, DISSECT AND, UM, SUMMARIZE REPORTS TO, TO LOOK AT PERMITTING PROCESSES, SIMPLIFY INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC. 
          UM, I KNOW IN, UH, ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY DEVELOPMENT, ARDI'S TEAM IS HELPING, UH, BUSINESSES USE A, TO HELP THEM START UP BUSINESSES. 
          SO IT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING THAT WE'RE INCORPORATING INTO ALL AREAS OF OUR WORK. 
          UM, AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE, WE'RE LEADING A, A, A PERMITTING REVIEW PROCESS. 
          AND PART OF THAT, WE ARE LOOKING CLOSELY AT HOW WE CAN USE AI TO, UM, SIMPLIFY THAT PROCESS AND, AND HELP THE PUBLIC AND DEVELOPERS IN NAVIGATING THAT PROCESS. 
          SO CERTAINLY WE'VE MADE A LOT OF IMPROVEMENTS, UH, OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS IN, IN SIMPLIFYING, UH, THE, AS A VERY PERMITTING PROCESS. 
          I THINK THAT HELPS, UM, UH, GETTING MORE CONSISTENCY AND TRANSPARENCY SO THAT ON THE BACK END IN TERMS OF IMPLEMENTATION AND, UM, WE CAN KINDA MOVE FORWARD IN THAT WAY. 
          SO, APPRECIATE THE QUESTION. 
          IT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT WE'RE INVESTIGATING. 
          IT'S, UH, IT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING MOST FORWARD THINKING ORGANIZATIONS IN THE PUBLIC, PRIVATE, AND NONPROFIT SECTOR ARE LOOKING AT AS A WAY TO HELP THE OPERATIONS. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THE BUDGET OF THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT? SEE, UH, MAYOR SIDIKI AGAIN, THAT'S ON, IT'S ON PAGE 240 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          YEAH, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU. 
          THIS CAME UP WHEN, UM, THE RESTRUCTURING WAS, YOU KNOW, BROUGHT TO OUR ATTENTION. 
          UH, ONE THING I'M CURIOUS ABOUT AROUND WHAT'S BEING DONE, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT CONSTITUENTS ARE INFORMED ABOUT THE RESTRUCTURING AND HOW IT IMPACTS THEM. 
          LIKE, HAVE YOU, HAVE THERE BEEN ANY ISSUES AROUND THAT? UM, I KNOW THERE'S THINGS ABOUT SPACE, AND SO ANYTHING YOU CAN SPEAK TO AROUND THAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO IN REGARDS TO THE RESTRUCTURING OF, UH, TRANSPORTATION PLANNING OR SUSTAINABILITY, OR SPECIFICALLY HOUSING? THE HOUSING, YEAH. 
          SO, SO CERTAINLY CHRIS KOTTER CAN SPEAK TO THAT MORE THOROUGHLY, UM, DURING THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT DISCUSSION. 
          BUT I WOULD SAY, UM, THE, THE RESTRUCTURING REALLY, UH, ONE OF THE MAIN GOALS OF THE RESTRUCTURING IS TO HELP WITH THE PUBLIC, UH, RECEPTION AND KNOWLEDGE OF SERVICES AND, AND CONCENTRATING IN IT. 
          SO, UM, WE'RE WORKING HARD IN, IN COMMUNICATING THOSE CHANGES. 
          UM, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT, YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW STAFF, UH, STAY WHERE THEY ARE IN TERMS OF BEING CENTRALLY LOCATED AT THE, UM, UH, AT, AT THE IN CENTRAL SQUARE. 
          AND THEN CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, WE CAN THINK ABOUT, UH, OPPORTUNITIES FOR, UM, CONSOLIDATION AT A LATER TIME. 
          BUT CERTAINLY LOOKING AT, UM, IN COMMUNICATING THAT, I WILL ALSO ADD THAT WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF MOVING OVER THE CDD AND HOUSING WEBSITES TO THE NEW CITY PLATFORM. 
          AND I THINK THAT WILL BE A REALLY POSITIVE CHANGE TO REALLY THINK ABOUT HOW THE COMMUNITY AND RESIDENTS THINK ABOUT HOW THE CITY'S ORGANIZED, NOT NECESSARILY HOW WE ARE ACTUALLY ORGANIZED, AND SO THAT WE CAN BETTER COMMUNICATE, UM, AND EXPLAIN OUR SERVICES AND BE A BETTER RESOURCES FOR THE COMMUNITY. 
          GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT? IF, IF NOT, UH, I THINK I WILL MOVE THAT WE, THE FINANCE COMMITTEES AND THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCIL ZUBIE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR ZE? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCIL OF FLAHERTY, ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDING THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          ALRIGHT, NEXT UP IS THE HOUSING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          A CM PETERS AND YOUR TEAM. 
          GOOD TO SEE YOU ALL. 
          UH, NEXT UP IS THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT. 
          THIS IS ON PAGE 244 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          THIS IS THE 
          [00:40:01]
ONE I MISTAKENLY SAID THE NUMBERS BEFORE, BUT THEY'LL, THEY'RE UP ON THE SCREEN. 
          IT'S A, A DEPARTMENT OF 36 MILLION, AND THE FTE EQUIVALENTS ARE 51. 
          SO I WILL START WITH COUNCILLOR ZZI. 
          UM, THE REASON I'M STARTING WITH, I'M, I'LL START WITH WHICHEVER COUNSELOR HAD SENT IN SOME QUESTIONS IN ADVANCE, AND THEN IT'LL BE OPEN TO THE WHOLE TEAM. 
          COUNCILOR ZZI. 
          UH, THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          I'M REALIZING THAT I, I WAS MIXED UP TOO. 
          SO, THE, UM, ANYWAY, THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK AND AG AND AGAIN, I THINK WHENEVER WE CAN MOVE THINGS FORWARD IN A POSITIVE DIRECTION, IT'S A TRIUMPH. 
          SO I, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THERE, THERE ARE ALWAYS A LOT OF CURRENTS, UH, FLOWING AGAINST EVERY PROJECT. 
          SO, UM, IT'S AMAZING WHAT THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT HAS ACCOMPLISHED. 
          AND I, I THANK YOU. 
          UM, I'M JUST REALIZING THE ADDITIONAL 6 MILLION IN OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE, UM, IS REALLY FROM IN THE HOUSING BUDGET. 
          I THOUGHT IT WAS IN THE CDD BUDGET, BUT NOW IT WOULD BE IN THE HOUSING BUDGET. 
          SO MAYBE YOU CAN SPEAK TO THAT. 
          UM, AND I'D, I HAVE A BUNCH OF OTHER QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE HIP PROGRAM AND THE HOME BRIDGE PROGRAM AS WELL. 
          THANK YOU, UH, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          FIRST, JUST TO INTRODUCE THE HOUSING TEAM, UH, MARA SACK, WHO'S THE CITY'S HOUSING LIAISON, AND THEN, UH, SITTING BEHIND US, UH, ANNA DOL MATCH, WHO MANAGES OUR HOME OWNERSHIP PROGRAMS. CASSIE ARNO, WHO OVERSEES OUR WORK WITH HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AND PRESERVATION, ALEXIS BUCKLEY, WHO MANAGES OUR RENTAL HOUSING PROGRAMS. MARIA MELLOW, WHO IS THE DIRECTOR OF THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER. 
          AND FINALLY, LIZ MENGER, WHO OVERSEES OUR WORK WITH HOMELESS SERVICES AND PLANNING. 
          SO REALLY WHAT YOU SEE IN THE BUDGET HERE AND THE FUNDS THAT WE'RE REQUESTING ARE REFLECT THE FULL RANGE OF, OF THE WORK OF THE REIMAGINED HOUSING DEPARTMENT, RANGING FROM STREET OUTREACH AND EMERGENCY SHELTER, ALL THE WAY THROUGH HOME OWNERSHIP. 
          UM, AND THAT'S WHAT YOU SEE IN THE INCREASE. 
          UH, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. 
          COUNCILLOR ZUI, THE $6 MILLION, UH, IN OOM, AND I THINK IT'S THE $30 MILLION TOTAL, UH, REFLECTS, UH, FUNDING THAT HAD BEEN IN THE, UH, DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES PROGRAM BUDGET LAST YEAR, UH, WHICH LARGELY GOES TO, UH, UH, CITY FUNDED, UH, EMERGENCY SHELTER, STREET OUTREACH, UH, PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING SUPPORT. 
          UM, THERE'S ALSO $2 MILLION IN THERE, ONE 1 MILLION OF WHICH IS NEW IN THE BUDGET THIS YEAR FOR MUNICIPAL FUNDED, UH, HOUSING VOUCHERS OF THE TWO, UH, CITY VOUCHER PROGRAMS THAT ARE NOW UP AND OPERATIONAL. 
          UH, AND THE, THE BIG, THE BIG NUMBER IN THE, UH, BUDGET IS, UH, AS ALWAYS, THE FUNDING FOR THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING TRUST. 
          THANK, THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          UM, AND SO CAN YOU TALK, THERE ISN'T A BREAKDOWN OF HOW YOU USE YOUR BUDGET. 
          SO HOW, HOW MUCH, HOW MUCH DO WE FUND THE HIP PROGRAM, THE, TO IMPROVE EXISTING, UM, HOUSING STOCK? THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN, UH, THE HIP PROGRAM IS ACTUALLY FUNDED, UH, BY THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT, UH, A HUD GRANT. 
          SO, UH, THERE'S NOT FUNDING IN THE BUDGET, UH, FOR THE HIP PROGRAM. 
          IT HAD BEEN THERE IN THE PAST, BUT, UH, THE BLOCK GRANT NOW IS SEPARATELY APPROPRIATED. 
          UH, AND WHAT YOU'LL SEE IN THAT APPROPRIATION, WE'RE JUST WORKING THROUGH THE, UH, UH, PROCESS WITH HUD NOW TO COMPLETE OUR ANNUAL ACTION PLAN WITH THE ALLOCATIONS THAT WE EXPECT FOR FY 27. 
          AND THEN WE WILL, UH, BRING THAT APPROPRIATION UP SEPARATELY. 
          UH, THE BLOCK GRANT, UH, FUNDING FUNDS THE HIP PROGRAM, WHICH IS OFFERED THROUGH TWO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, JUSTICE, ART, AND HOMEOWNERS REHAB. 
          UH, THE FUNDING IN FY 27 WOULD COVER PROGRAM COSTS, STAFF OVERSIGHT OF, OF HIP, UH, PROJECTS. 
          UH, THE HIP PROGRAM HAS BEEN OPERATIONAL NOW FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS. 
          UH, AND WHAT WE'VE DONE OVER THAT TIME IS COMMIT, UH, CDBG AND WHEN OTHER FUNDING IS AVAILABLE, OTHER FUNDING, UH, INTO REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS THAT ARE USED TO ACTUALLY, UH, COMPLETE THE, THE RENOVATION AND THAT THE REHAB WORK. 
          UH, SO, UH, MOST OF THE FUNDING THAT'S USED FOR HIP CASES OR HIP PROJECTS IS, IS IN A REVOLVING LOAN FUND THAT'S, UH, REPAID BY OWNERS FROM TIME TO TIME, UH, AND AVAILABLE FOR, UH, AS IT REVOLVES TO UNDERTAKE NEW WORK WITH NEW OWNERS. 
          UH, SO AS WE LOOK AT FUNDING FOR FY 27, WHAT WE'RE, UH, EXPECT, THE, THE BLOCK GRANT, UH, FUNDS TO COVER IS THE COST OF RUNNING THE PROGRAM WHILE THE FUNDS, UH, FOR COMPLETING THE WORK WOULD BE, UH, IN THE, THE REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS AND WITH, IN A VARIETY OF SOURCES. 
          YEAH, I, I, I ASK JUST BECAUSE I THINK IT'S SUCH AN IMPORTANT PROGRAM, BUT, SO WE DON'T HAVE, UH, SO YOU DON'T HAVE A NUMBER YET FOR THAT PROGRAM 'CAUSE YOU'RE AWAITING THE GRANT, THE BLOCK GRANT. 
          WHAT, WHAT HAVE WE 
          [00:45:01]
RECEIVED IN THE PAST? UH, WE HAVE, WE HAVE THE GRANT AMOUNT. 
          WE DON'T HAVE THE, THE FINAL, UH, APPROACH TO THE APPROPRIATION UNTIL WE SEE THE GRANT AGREEMENT FROM HUD AND, AND GO THROUGH OUR ANNUAL PROCESS TO DO OUR ACTION PLAN, GET THAT APPROVED BY HUD. 
          UH, I, I DON'T HAVE THE NUMBERS HERE. 
          I'M HAPPY TO, TO GIVE THEM TO YOU AFTERWARD. 
          BUT, UH, I'D SAY THE, UH, A LARGE AMOUNT OF THE CDBG FUNDS THAT COME INTO THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT DO FUND THE HIP PROGRAM. 
          UH, AND IF I LOOK AT THE BALANCES IN THE REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'VE BEEN ACCUMULATING FOR MANY YEARS. 
          AND, AND AGAIN, WE'LL ADD TO THAT WHEN WE THINK THAT WE HAVE FUNDING TO DO THAT OR, OR SEE A NEED. 
          UH, BUT THOSE REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS HAVE HELPED HUNDREDS OF OWNERS OVER THE YEARS, AND SO CERTAINLY ARE IN THE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF FUNDS THAT ARE REVOLVING AND AVAILABLE FOR NEW CASES AS OWNERS COME IN TO EITHER TALK WITH, UH, STAFF IN THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT OR, UH, DIRECTLY APPROACH EITHER JUSTICE START OR HOMEOWNERS REHAB. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL, AGAIN, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN, WELL, I'LL LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          I, AGAIN, I THINK THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT PROGRAM BECAUSE IT, UM, ALLOWS MANY OF OUR HOMEOWNERS ARE HOUSE POOR, RIGHT? OR HOUSE RICH, AND, YOU KNOW, THEY, THEY OWN HOUSES, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO FIX THEM UP. 
          AND I THINK THIS PROGRAM HELPS TO PRESERVE NATURALLY AFFORDABLE UNITS, WHICH, UM, AN EXISTING HOUSING STOCK, WHICH IS THE MOST ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY WAY TO, UM, KEEP OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING. 
          UM, I ALSO WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT THE HOME BRIDGE PROGRAM. 
          I KNOW BIG CHANGES HAVE, UM, HAPPENED OR HAVE BEEN HAPPENING TO THAT PROGRAM RECENTLY. 
          UM, I WONDERED WHAT THE AVERAGE COST OF UNITS WERE FOR THAT PROGRAM AND WHAT THE AVERAGE COST OF REPAIRS WERE, UM, OR ARE BETWEEN OWNERS OF THE HOME BRIDGE UNITS. 
          AND THEN FINALLY, UM, BECAUSE I, I KNOW REPAIRS AND MAINTENANCE HAVE BEEN AN ISSUE WITH THAT PROGRAM, I WONDERED HOW WE CAN BETTER MENTOR AND INCENTIVIZE HOME BRIDGE HOMEOWNERS ABOUT THE NEED TO MAINTAIN PROPERTIES AND INCENTIVIZE THEM TO DO IT. 
          THANK YOU THROUGH YOU, UH, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          SO A FEW QUESTIONS THAT I'LL TRY TO TAKE THEM IN THE ORDER THAT THEY, THEY CAME, I, I, IF I CAN. 
          UM, SO THE HOMEBRIDGE PROGRAM, UH, WE HAVE SEEN SOME CHANGES RECENTLY. 
          UH, WE'VE SEEN A, A, A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN INTEREST IN THE HOMEBRIDGE PROGRAM OVER THE LAST COUPLE YEARS. 
          UH, IT, I THINK IS OUR MOST, UH, IN DEMAND, UH, UH, PROGRAM. 
          IF WE LOOK AT THE, THE VOLUME OF APPLICATIONS THAT WE'RE, UH, SEEING, AND WE'VE HAD TREMENDOUS SUCCESS WITH IT OVER THE LAST COUPLE YEARS AND CONTINUE TO SEE, UH, A LOT OF INTEREST IN A LOT OF, UM, BUYERS WITH, UH, HOMEBRIDGE APPROVALS OUT SHOPPING IN THE MARKET. 
          I THINK TODAY WE HAVE 15, UH, BUYERS WHO ARE OUT LOOKING FOR HOMES WITH HOMEBRIDGE COMMITMENTS IN HAND, UH, ON THE, UH, COST OF THE PROGRAM, UH, UH, OVER THE LAST COUPLE YEARS. 
          AND AGAIN, THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT'S BEEN IN EXISTENCE FOR, UH, MANY DECADES, REALLY GOING BACK TO, I THINK 1995 OR 1996 WHEN THE FIRST EARLIEST ITERATION OF THE BUYER BASED PROGRAM, UH, WAS, WAS FIRST ESTABLISHED. 
          UM, WHAT WE'RE SEEING MORE RECENTLY IS, UH, SUBSIDY NEEDS THAT RANGE FROM, UH, ROUGHLY 300,000 FOR A ONE BEDROOM UNIT, 400,000 FOR A TWO BEDROOM UNIT, AND CLOSE TO 700,000 FOR A THREE BEDROOM UNIT. 
          UH, THAT REFLECTS, UH, UH, THE, UH, HOME BRIDGE PRICE LIMITS THAT WE, WE, WE ESTABLISH BASED UPON, UH, UNIT AVAILABILITY IN THE MARKET, LOOKING AT RECENT SALES AND DETERMINING WHAT A, IS A REASONABLE PRICE THAT SOMEONE CAN PURCHASE A HOME WITH CITY ASSISTANCE. 
          AND THEN, UH, LOOKING AT EACH HOMEBRIDGE APPLICANT, UH, REALLY CASE BY CASE IN DETERMINING WHAT CAN THEY AFFORD? WHAT, WHAT, WHAT IS AN AFFORDABLE MORTGAGE TO THEM, HOW MUCH ASSISTANCE WOULD THEY NEED, UNDER WHAT TERMS, WHAT ASSETS DO THEY HAVE TO, TO BRING INTO A PURCHASE? AND, UH, FIGURING OUT, UH, HOW TO, UH, TAILOR EACH COMMITMENT TO EACH BUYER. 
          UH, AND SO, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, UM, HOMEBRIDGE BUYERS, UH, DO AS TO EVERY, UH, BUYER PURCHASING, UH, AN AFFORDABLE HOME WITH ASSISTANCE FROM THE CITY AS ENTER INTO A DEED RESTRICTION TO REQUIRE THAT, THAT THAT UNIT REMAIN AFFORDABLE ON RESALE, UH, WHICH LIMITS BOTH THE, THE RESALE, UH, PRICE. 
          SO THAT IF WE'RE BUYING UNITS AT A MARKET RATE WITH HOMEBRIDGE ASSISTANCE, WHEN THOSE UNITS ARE SOLD, THEY'RE SOLD AT AN AFFORDABLE PRICE THAT'S A AFFORDABLE TO A, TO AN INCOME ELIGIBLE BUYER. 
          AND THAT PURCHASE IS LIMITED TO SOMEONE WHO'S MEETS THE INCOME, UH, CRITERIA. 
          UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE REVIEW WITH FOLKS IS THE, UH, THE DIFFERENCE IN, UH, UH, HOME OWNERSHIP FOR RENTAL, WHERE WHEN THERE ARE REPAIRS OR IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE NEEDED, UH, THAT'S THE RESPONSIBILITY OF, OF, OF, OF HOMEOWNERS. 
          UH, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT OUR, UH, AFFORDABLE HOUSING RESTRICTION DOES IS ALLOW THAT CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS, UH, WITHIN CERTAIN PARAMETERS ARE, UH, INCLUDED IN THE, UH, CALCULATION OF THE RESALE PRICE. 
          UH, SO IF SOMEONE IS, UH, REPLACING, UH, HEATING 
          [00:50:01]
SYSTEMS, APPLIANCES A ROOF, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THINGS THAT, UH, WE WOULD LOOK AT WHEN WE'RE DETERMINING THE RESALE PRICE AND GIVE THEM A, A CREDIT FOR A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF THAT TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY'VE, UH, IMPROVED OR, UH, REPAIRED OR REPLACED, UH, CAPITAL ITEMS IN THE UNIT. 
          UH, AND SO, UH, THERE'S THAT BUILT IN ENCOURAGEMENT TO DO THAT. 
          WE ALSO WORK, UH, PRETTY CLOSELY WITH OWNERS, AND WE DO WORK WITH, UH, UH, THE JUSTICE ART TEAM ON STEWARDSHIP TO WORK WITH CONDOMINIUMS. UH, IF THERE ARE QUESTIONS OR ISSUES ABOUT, UH, THE APPROACH TO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS OVER TIME, UH, AND, UH, ARE AVAILABLE TO TALK WITH OWNERS, UH, IF THERE, IF THERE ARE QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT. 
          VERY HELPFUL. 
          UM, THANK, THANK YOU. 
          UM, I THINK I'LL, I'LL YIELD, 'CAUSE OTHER PEOPLE MUST HAVE QUESTIONS. 
          I DO HAVE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS, BUT I'M EAGER TO HEAR THE QUESTIONS OF MY COLLEAGUES AS WELL. 
          THANK, THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN. 
          THANK, THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, JUST A, A QUICK FOLLOW UP ON, ON SOMETHING THAT, UH, COUNCILLOR ZI MENTIONED, UM, BECAUSE WE HEAR SORT OF ALL THE TIME ABOUT THESE NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE UNITS, AND I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW HOW WE, OR IF WE HAVE ANY SENSE OF THE RANGE OF RENTS OR I DON'T KNOW, WHEN, WHEN I'M TRYING TO HELP PEOPLE FIND A PLACE, WHETHER THEY HAVE A VOUCHER OR NOT A VOUCHER, AND I'M LOOKING THROUGH THE TRADITIONAL CHANNELS, NOT SEEING A WHOLE LOT OF THESE NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE UNITS, AND MAYBE THEY DON'T GO ON THE MARKET, OR MAYBE I'M LOOKING IN THE WRONG PLACE. 
          BUT, UM, I'M JUST CURIOUS. 
          LIKE, DO, DO WE HAVE A, I MEAN, DO WE KEEP TRACK OF ANY RENTS? DO WE KNOW OF PLACE? I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW HOW WE WOULD DO THAT NECESSARILY, BUT I DON'T KNOW. 
          WE THROW THAT AROUND A LOT AND, AND I DON'T SEE A LOT OF 'EM THROUGH YOU JOURNAL. 
          IT'S A GOOD QUESTION. 
          AND I THINK THAT THERE IS A, YOU KNOW, A, A CERTAINLY A SUPPLY OF NATURALLY OCCURRING BELOW MARKET, UH, RENTS THAT ARE OUT THERE. 
          I THINK THE CHALLENGE IS THAT THEY'RE NOT WIDELY ADVERTISED IN THE WAY THAT MAKES THEM VERY ACCESSIBLE. 
          AND I'LL ASK MAR TO SPEAK A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE SHE, UH, WORKS MUCH CL MORE CLOSELY WITH FOLKS LOOKING FOR, FOR HOUSING. 
          UM, BUT WE ARE AWARE OF THEM. 
          AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, UH, TO THE EARLIER QUESTION, UH, THAT, THAT SUPPORTS THE NATURALLY OCCURRING HOUSING IS KEEPING, UH, HOMEOWNERS, UH, UH, COSTS AFFORDABLE. 
          AND SO WE LOOK AT THE HIP PROGRAM AS SOMETHING THAT SUPPORTS NATURALLY OCCURRING HOUSING, BECAUSE ONE OF THE MOST AFFORDABLE WAYS TO, TO BE IN CAMBRIDGE TODAY IS TO HAVE PURCHASED YOUR HOME 40 YEARS AGO AT A VERY LOW AMOUNT. 
          AND AT THIS POINT, PROBABLY WITHOUT A MORTGAGE, YOU'RE LOOKING AT JUST THE, THE OPERATING COSTS, UH, UTILITIES AND TAXES, UM, WHICH, YOU KNOW, FOR FOLKS FOR, UH, LOWER INCOME OWNERS CAN BE, CAN BE CHALLENGING. 
          UH, AND SO KEEPING THAT, UH, THOSE OWNERSHIP UNITS AFFORDABLE IS ONE OF THE, THE, THE GOALS OF THE HIP PROGRAM. 
          UH, WE DO SEE SOME MULTIFAMILY, A LOT LESS MULTIFAMILY BUILDINGS COMING THROUGH THE HIP PROGRAM THAN WE SAW 20 YEARS AGO, 10 YEARS AGO. 
          AS WE SEE MORE CONDOS, UM, WHEN WE SEE THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT RENTS, WE DO ASK THAT, THAT FOLKS KEEP RENTS AFFORDABLE, BUT THERE'S A, A LIMIT TO THAT. 
          UH, AND UM, AGAIN, I THINK THAT THE NATURALLY OCCURRING OF RENTAL HOUSING, IT'S HARD TO FIND BECAUSE IT'S NOT ADVERTISED IN, IN THE SAME WAY. 
          UH, AND SO WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR, UH, TRACKING OF RENTAL DATA OVER TIME, I THINK WE'RE SEEING REALLY WHAT'S ADVERTISED IS HARD TO GET AT, UH, WHAT FOLKS ARE ACTUALLY PAYING. 
          BUT THERE, THERE IS, THERE, IT MAY BE MORE RELATIONSHIP DRIVEN. 
          IT MAY BE FOLKS THAT ARE IN A LOWER COST RENTAL UNITS, BUT THEY'VE BEEN THERE FOR DECADES, RIGHT? UH, WHEN THEY TURN OVER, YOU KNOW, MANY OWNERS WILL LOOK AT THAT AS A CHANCE TO RESET THE RENT AND BRING IT UP CLOSER TO MARKET. 
          UH, I'LL ASK MORE IF SHE'S GOT THOUGHTS ON THAT 'CAUSE SHE'S WORKING MORE CLOSELY WITH, IN HER TEAM, WITH FOLKS THAT ARE LOOKING FOR HOUSING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, YEAH, I WOULD JUST HIGHLIGHT THE VERY LAST POINT THAT CHRIS JUST MADE. 
          UM, THAT IT REALLY IS, I THINK, UH, THE NATURAL OCCURRING RENTS ARE TYPICALLY HAVE BEEN THERE FOR YEARS. 
          UM, AND WE UNFORTUNATELY FIND OUT ABOUT IT EXACTLY WHAT CHRIS SAID WHEN THERE'S TURNOVER. 
          SO THANK YOU. 
          UM, NEXT QUE NEXT THING, UM, THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR, UM, A FEW YEARS AGO, THANKS TO THE, THE WORK OF, UM, MAYOR SADIKI ON THE, UM, LIEUTENANT RIGHTS, UH, TASK FORCE THAT SHE WAS, UH, LEADING, UM, YOU KNOW, WE PASSED, UH, I DUNNO IF THERE'S IN THE ORDINANCE OR WHAT, WE PASSED IT STILL EARLY FROM ME THAT, UM, ABOUT THE TENANT RIGHTS HANDBOOK. 
          AND, AND SO HOW ARE WE, I KNOW SOMETIMES WE GET WE'LL PASS SOMETHING AND THEN THERE'LL BE A LOT OF ENERGY AROUND IT, AND THEN OVER TIME IT KIND OF, HOW ARE WE GETTING THOSE TO PEOPLE? ARE WE ARE, DO WE GETTING THEM OUT TO REALTORS? AND THE EXPECTATION IS THAT WHEN SOMEONE SIGNS A LEASE, THEY GET ONE? OR IS IT JUST PRIMARILY ONLINE? HOW ARE WE INSURING TENANTS ARE GETTING THEIR RIGHTS HANDBOOK THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? UM, 
          [00:55:01]
THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          YES, IT IS STILL A VERY ACTIVE PROGRAM, IF YOU WILL. 
          UM, WE DO SEE ON A REGULAR BASIS, UM, UNFORTUNATELY WHEN PEOPLE GET NOTICED TO QUIT THAT THAT HAS BEEN INCLUDED. 
          UM, THE TIMES THAT WE SEE IT MAY HAVE BEEN FORGOTTEN BY A LANDLORD IS WHEN THEY'RE SMALLER LANDLORDS. 
          UM, BUT WE'RE DOING A LOT OF OUTREACH. 
          UM, WE ADVERTISE THROUGH ALL THE CITY AVENUES, UM, AND IT'S JUST CONTINUING TO, YOU KNOW, KIND OF GET THE WORD OUT. 
          BUT WE DO, FOR THE MOST PART, UM, SEE THAT, THAT PEOPLE ARE ACCESSING THIS, UM, PEOPLE HAVE FOUND IT ONLINE ON BY THEMSELVES. 
          UM, AND, UM, YEAH, YEAH, OKAY. 
          UM, AND ONE LAST QUESTION, MAD CHAIR THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, THE EMERGENCY VOUCHERS THAT WERE PART OF THE FEDERAL STABILIZATION FUND, ARE THOSE GOING TO, ARE THOSE FUNDED IN THE BUDGET OR WHERE ARE THEY GONNA, WHAT'S THE STATUS FOR THOSE FOR NEXT YEAR? UH, THROUGH YOUR CHAIR. 
          I THINK YOU'RE REFERRING TO THE, UM, EMERGENCY SUPPORTIVE HOUSING VOUCHERS THAT WERE FUNDED IN FY 26. 
          YEAH, FOR THE FIRST TIME. 
          YEAH. 
          THROUGH THE FA THROUGH THE FEDERAL, THROUGH THE STABILIZATION FUND. 
          RIGHT. 
          SO THERE WAS, UH, WELL, THERE'S TWO, TWO DIFFERENT VOUCHER PROGRAMS, ONE OF WHICH WAS FUNDED THROUGH STABILIZATION FUND LAST YEAR. 
          YEAH. 
          UH, THE SUPPORTIVE HOUSING VOUCHERS WERE ACTUALLY INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET AND, UH, FOR DHP. 
          SO I'M CONCERNED ABOUT THE FEDERAL STABILIZATION ONES BECAUSE THAT WAS A ONETIME THOSE SO EXPENSE, ARE THOSE CARRIED OVER INTO THE 27 BUDGET SO THAT THEY'RE GONNA CONTINUE? OR ARE THEY GOING AWAY BECAUSE THE STABILIZATION MONEY WAS A ONE TIME? NO, UH, FUNDING FOR BOTH VOUCHER PROGRAMS IS INCLUDED IN THE FY 27 BUDGET. 
          PERFECT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO THAT WILL CONTINUE. 
          PERFECT. 
          A YIELD. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, COUNCILOR ZUBIE, I WILL NOTE TO COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN'S POINT, IF WE HAVEN'T LOOKED AT IT, THE A CS US CENSUS DATA FOR THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY HAS PRETTY EXTENSIVE AND I THINK VERIFIABLE AVERAGE RENTS, AND IT'S TYPICALLY FAR BELOW THE MARKET RATES AS DIRECTOR KOTTER SAID, BECAUSE IT'S THE, IT'S THE RENTS. 
          PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY PAYING, AND IT INCLUDES THEN ALL THE NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, THAT DOESN'T GO ON THE MARKET. 
          SO DID YOU WANNA, WELL, JUST ONE POINT ON THAT. 
          I THINK WE, WE ARE, WE LOOK AT THAT, AND I'M HAPPY TO CONFIRM WITH OUR DATA FOLKS, BUT I, BUT MY UNDERSTANDING OF THAT DATA IS IT REFLECTS WHAT FOLKS ARE ACTUALLY PAYING, UH, EXCLUDING SUBSIDY. 
          SO IT GIVES AN INDICATION, BUT IT'S, UH, MAY UNDER REPRESENT RENTS THAT ARE PAID IN AFFORDABLE UNITS, SO, AND AFFORDABLE UNITS, BUT FOR MARKET RATE UNITS, IT WOULD BE THE SAME MARKET RATE WHEN IT COMES TOGETHER. 
          SO IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S A, CERTAINLY AN IMPORTANT PIECE, BUT IT'S ALL PART OF LOOKING AT KIND OF THE BEST WAY TO EXTRAPOLATE. 
          YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          FOR NOT FOR AFFORDABLE, FOR MARKET RATE. 
          IT SHOWS QUITE A DIFFERENCE FROM, YOU KNOW, THE OTHER IS ALL BASED ON NEW STUDIOS IN KENDALL SQUARE, WHICH IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT THAN SOME PERCENTAGE OF THE HOUSING STOCK HERE. 
          COUNCILLOR ZUBIE, THANK YOU. 
          UH, HOLD ON ONE MINUTE. 
          UH, COUNCILLOR SIMMONS. 
          COUNCILLOR SIMMONS, I SEE THAT YOU'RE PRESENT. 
          COUNCILLOR SIMMONS IS PRESENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          WELCOME. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          UH, JUST HAD A QUICK QUESTION TOO. 
          ON THE VOUCHER PROGRAM. 
          IS THERE A CURRENT UPDATE ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF IT? I KNOW THE LANGUAGE IN THE BUDGET BOOK MAKES IT SEEM LIKE THERE ARE 20 PEOPLE BENEFITING FROM THOSE ORIGINAL VOUCHERS, BUT FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, IN THE MARCH UPDATE, WE GOT THAT ONLY ONE INDIVIDUAL HAD MOVED INTO THEIR NEW HOME. 
          SO I DON'T REMEMBER AT THE TIME IF WE HAD ASKED WHAT THOSE 17 VOUCHERS TO BE ISSUED BY ONLY ONE INDIVIDUAL TO BE MOVED IN MEANT. 
          BUT WOULD LOVE TO KNOW HOW MANY OF THOSE 20 VOUCHERS HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN USED BY SOMEONE, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING IT'S PART OF THIS UPCOMING BUDGET THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          UM, COUNSELOR? YES, ALL HAVE BEEN ISSUED TWO PER TWO INDIVIDUALS HAVE FOUND HOMES. 
          THERE ARE NINE THAT ARE, HAVE ISSUED AN RFTA, WHICH IS A REQUEST FOR TENANCY APPROVAL. 
          SO THEY'RE IN THE LEASING PROCESS AND THE REST ARE STILL HOUSING, DOING HOUSING SEARCH. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT'S REALLY HELPFUL TO KNOW. 
          THANK YOU FOR THAT UPDATE. 
          AND WOULD LOVE FOR IT TO BE REFLECTED IN THE BUDGET, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT WORK IS ONGOING AND SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO GET THOSE UPDATES TOO. 
          I HAD ALSO NOTICED THAT, AND I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO CATCH ANYWHERE, AND PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF CONTENT TO COVER AND BEEN TRYING TO GET THROUGH AS MUCH AS I CAN ON, UM, ANYWHERE IN THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OR PLANNED INITIATIVES OF THE WORK THAT'S BEEN PROVIDING DIRECT CASE MANAGEMENT AND SUPPORT. 
          UM, I KNOW THAT THERE OBVIOUSLY, LIKE THE MERGING IS HAPPENING AND I HAD LOOKED THROUGH DHSP AS WELL AND DIDN'T SEE THAT EITHER. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS TO SEE IF THERE ARE SPECIFICS ON, UM, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WE'VE HELPED WITH CASE MANAGEMENT OR THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE GOTTEN HELP THROUGH THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER. 
          UM, AS I KNOW THAT THERE ARE PERFORMANCE MEASURES SET THAT ARE TARGET FOR THE BUDGET, BUT CURIOUS TO HEAR MORE THERE. 
          [01:00:03]
SURE. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, THE, THE MEASURES THAT WE'VE NOTED IN THE BUDGET BOOK, UM, REFLECT A NUMBER OF THINGS. 
          FIRST, THE NUMBER OF, UM, HOUSEHOLDS THAT HAVE RECEIVED RENTAL, WE'VE BEEN STABILIZED THROUGH OUR RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, AND THAT'S 350. 
          UM, THERE, THE BIGGEST NUMBER IS 3000, AND THAT REFLECTS THE NUMBER OF PERSONS WHO HAVE RECEIVED, UM, STABILIZATION SERVICES THROUGH THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER AND THE OFFICE OF HOUSING LIAISON. 
          AND THAT REALLY IS A RANGE OF SERVICES FROM, YOU KNOW, KIND OF SHORT TERM CASE MANAGEMENT TO VERY LONG, INTENSIVE, UM, SUPPORT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT'S SUPER HELPFUL. 
          I'LL YIELD. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OTHER QUESTIONS I HAVE, UH, ONE QUESTION, WHICH IS, UM, FOLLOWING UP ON SOME OF OUR DISCUSSIONS ABOUT, UH, PLACING PEOPLE IN HOUSING, AND THIS WASN'T SOMETHING I SENT IN ADVANCE, BUT HOW DOES THE, THE BUDGET OF THAT HOUSING DEPARTMENT INTERFACE WITH THE BUDGET OF OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE WORKING ON? ONCE WE GET SOMEONE INTO HOUSING, WE ALSO KNOW THAT THERE'S NEEDS TO BE SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, OTHER SERVICES. 
          IT'S MENTIONED IN YOUR BUDGET ABOUT HOW MUCH IT RELATES TO EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE TRAINING, BUT IS THAT SOMETHING THAT IS, IS PART OF YOUR BUDGET AS WELL TO ENSURE THAT IT'S NOT JUST PROVIDING HOUSING, BUT PART OF THE STAFF IS ENSURING THAT WE ARE WORKING ON THE LONGER TERM ALL IN, UH, HOUSING FIRST, BUT ALSO NOT HOUSING LAST? IF THAT MAKES SENSE AS A QUESTION? UH, YEAH, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN, A COUPLE COMMENTS I'LL ASK MARTA TO, TO ALSO RESPOND, BUT YES, THE, UH, WHAT WE HAVE IN HERE INCLUDES, UH, STABILIZATION SUPPORT SERVICES FOR FOLKS ONCE THEY'RE, THEY'RE HOUSED, UH, A LOT OF THE, UM, FOLKS THAT ARE HOUSED, UH, THROUGH THE WORK OF MARA AND THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER AND STAFF THERE, UM, THERE IS ONGOING SUPPORT PROVIDED FOR SOME, CERTAINLY FOR FOLKS MOVING FROM, UH, BEING UNHOUSED INTO PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING. 
          THE SUPPORTIVE HOUSING IS THERE. 
          UH, SOME OF THAT IS PROVIDED THROUGH ONGOING CASE MANAGEMENT, UH, THROUGH THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT. 
          OTHER, OTHER MAY BE, UH, OTHER SERVICES MAY BE PROVIDED MORE SPECIFICALLY BY NONPROFIT PARTNERS, UH, THAT ARE FUNDED IN THIS BUDGET AND OR THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROVIDERS THAT ARE OPERATING SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, UH, WHERE, WHERE FOLKS ARE PLACED. 
          BUT, UM, ASK, ASK MA TO ADD ANYTHING THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, YEAH, I, WE DON'T HAVE A COMPARISON, I THINK OF OTHER COMMUNITIES, BUT I CAN SAY THAT IN TERMS OF STAFFING, THAT WE PROBABLY HAVE ONE OF THE LARGEST DEPARTMENTS. 
          UM, THERE ARE OTHER COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE WHAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IN THE PAST, THE OFFICE OF HOUSING STABILITY. 
          NEITHER OF THOSE, UM, COMMUNITIES, BOSTON SOMERVILLE IN PARTICULAR HAD A MULTI-SERVICE CENTER. 
          SO WHEN THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER HAS ALWAYS DONE THAT STABILIZATION AND CASE MANAGEMENT WORK, UM, AND HAVE WORKED WITH THE UNHOUSED FOLKS IN OUR COMMUNITY AND, UH, THROUGH THE YEARS, STABILIZATION HAS BEEN ADDED, UM, FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR, AGAIN, FOR THE CONTINUUM, BOTH UNHOUSED AND FOR, UM, FOLKS AT RISK OF LOSING THEIR HOUSING. 
          AND THEN OF COURSE BY ADDING THE LIAISON POSITION AND THAT. 
          SO, UM, IT IS REALLY, UH, VERY ROBUST COMPREHENSIVE SERVICES THAT ARE OFFERED HERE IN THE CITY, AND I THINK IT'S ACTUALLY, UH, SURPASSES MOST OTHER COMMUNITIES. 
          THANKS. 
          YES. 
          UM, PART OF IT IS, I WANTED TO UNDERSTAND HOW THIS FITS IN. 
          IT'S, I MEAN THE, THE NUMBERS, IF YOU HAVEN'T LOOKED AT THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES FOR 3000 HOUSEHOLDS TO BE HELPED WITH THE STABILIZATION 'CAUSE IT'S STABILIZATION AND THEN MOVING OUT OF, SO PERHAPS SOME FUTURE SMART GOALS WOULD ALSO BE OF THOSE HELP THEN WHO MOVES OUT OF THE SUBSIDIZED HOUSING SO THAT WE CAN THEN MAKE SPACE FOR THOSE WHO ARE JUST COMING OFF. 
          YOU KNOW, I KNOW IT'S SOMETHING THE REST OF THE CITY IS WORKING ON, AND YOUR BUDGET IS REFLECTIVE OF THAT COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO HOUSING. 
          SO I'M, I'M GLAD TO HEAR MORE ABOUT HOW THAT STRUCTURES AND I AM VERY MUCH AWARE THAT WE ARE PROVIDING THOSE SERVICES THAT OTHER CITIES WOULD LOVE TO HAVE. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COUNCILLOR UZI? CAN I JUST ASK A FEW MORE? SO, OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE, THE 31 MILLION, IS THAT FOR THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING TRUST, UH, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN? YEAH. 
          SO THE BULK OF THAT, UH, $24.1 MILLION IS FOR THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING TRUST. 
          AND THE REMAINDER, I THINK IS THE $6 MILLION THAT YOU WERE ASKING ABOUT EARLIER, WHICH IS LARGELY, UH, UH, HOMELESS SERVICE AND SUPPORT PROGRAMS THAT ARE MOVING INTO THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT BUDGET FROM DHSP. 
          EXCELLENT. 
          AND, UM, YOU HAVE THREE NEW POSITIONS. 
          I I JUST SAW RESIDENT ENGAGEMENT SERVICES MANAGER AND THE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT PLANNER. 
          CAN YOU TALK TO US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THEIR ROLES? SURE. 
          SO THE, UH, RESIDENT ENGAGEMENT 
          [01:05:01]
MANAGER AND THE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT PLANNER POSITIONS WERE APPROVED IN THE FY 26 BUDGET. 
          AND SO THEY'RE NOW, UH, FILLED AND, UM, UH, WORKING WITH, UH, THE, THEIR VARIOUS CONSTITUENCIES. 
          THE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT PLANNER IS PART OF THE, UH, AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AND PRESERVATION TEAM MANAGING, UH, A NUMBER OF THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING EFFORTS UNDERWAY, INCLUDING, UH, ACQUISITION OF NEW PROPERTIES, UH, ACQUISITION OF NEW, NEW SITES AND BUILDINGS, UH, DEVELOPMENTS THAT ARE MOVING FORWARD INTO CONSTRUCTION AND, UH, WORKING WITH THAT TEAM AND THE RESIDENT ENGAGEMENT MANAGERS ALSO NOW, UH, FILLED, UH, AND BEGINNING TO DO OUTREACH TO, UH, RESIDENTS LIVING IN, UH, HOUSING, UH, UH, OVERSEEN AND, UH, ADMINISTERED BY THE DEPARTMENT, INCLUDING INCLUSIONARY HOUSING AND THE AFFORDABLE HOME OWNERSHIP, UH, PROGRAM. 
          SO WE'RE JUST NOW REACHING OUT TO THE 1800 HOUSEHOLDS, UH, IN THOSE PROGRAMS, AND WE'LL BEGIN TO, UH, DEEPEN OUR ENGAGEMENT AND OFFER THEM A WAY TO BETTER COMMUNICATE WITH US, UH, AND, AND HELP US UNDERSTAND AND HOW WE CAN SUPPORT THEM, UH, IN THESE, THESE TWO CITY CITY PROGRAMS. UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          THOSE SOUND LIKE VERY IMPORTANT POSITIONS TO HAVE FILLED. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR HOUSING THEN? UM, MAYOR SIDIKI MOVES THAT WE MOVE THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT BUDGET FORWARD TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBE? YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          COUNSELOR SIMMONS. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE EIGHT MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND ONE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          HOUSING TEAM AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT. 
          WE ARE NOW MOVING ON TO THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT. 
          THIS IS ON PAGE WHAT? THIS IS ON PAGE 250 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          THIS IS A DEPARTMENT ENCOMPASSING A WIDE RANGE OF CITY PROGRAMS. WE HAVE A, A, A NEW A CM HERE. 
          IF YOU COULD, WELL, ONCE YOU'RE SETTLED, INTRODUCE YOUR TEAM. 
          COUNCILLOR SIMMONS. 
          YOU MAY BE NOT MUTED AND WE MAY BE ABLE TO HEAR YOU IN THE CHAMBER, UNLESS IT'S SOMEONE ELSE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          IF YOU'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE YOUR TEAM. 
          THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, THE CHAIR. 
          GOOD MORNING. 
          MY NAME IS JOSEPH CORINA. 
          I SERVE AS THE ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICE PROGRAMS. TODAY I'M ACCOMPANIED BY A DYNAMIC TEAM, MY LEADER TEAM HERE, UH, MICHELLE FARNAM, WHO LEADS CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILIES. 
          SUE WALSH, WHO LEADS ADULT AND FAMILIES MANISHA, UH, AL WHO SERVES AS OVERSEAS ADMINISTRATION, AND CHERYL OLSON FROM THE OFFICE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD. 
          BEHIND US IS AN INCREDIBLE TEAM OF COMMITTED LEADERS WHO TIRELESSLY WORK EACH DAY TO PROVIDE HIGH QUALITY PROGRAMMING ACROSS THE LIFESPAN TO CAMBRIDGE RESIDENTS, WE HAVE SUE RICHARDS FROM THE AGENDA FOR CHILDREN. 
          MICHELLE GODFREY, VISION, HEAD FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, FAMILY SUPPORT. 
          NANCY TALBERT FOR FAMILY POLICY COUNCIL, PHIL DG LIMO FROM ADMINISTRATION. 
          UM, CHARLENE YANG FROM STEAM, TOYA. 
          GARRETT FROM THE OFFICE OF COLLEGE SUCCESS INITIATIVE. 
          UH, ADAM CORBI, DIVISION HEAD FOR RECREATION. 
          SUSAN PACHECO, DIVISION FOR COUNCIL IN AGING. 
          MAYOR ANO DIVISION FOR COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER, KENYA PAVONE, DIVISION HEAD FOR COMMUNITY SCHOOLS. 
          AND MEGAN WHITE, DIVISION HEAD FOR CHILDCARE AND FAMILY SUPPORT SERVICES AND PROGRAMS THAT ALSO BELIEVE BRIDGET MARTIN'S HERE FROM COMMUNICATIONS AND MY SHORT TIME HERE, I'VE SEEN FIRSTHAND THE PASSION AND COMMITMENT. 
          THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE. 
          UM, THEY'RE COMMIT TO THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE EXPRESSED THROUGH AN UNWAVERING WORK ETHIC WITH A HYPERFOCUS ON EQUITY AND INCLUSION FOR ALL THE BUDGET BEFORE YOU IS THE COLLECTIVE WORK OF THIS DEDICATED TEAM. 
          EACH AND EVERY DAY. 
          THEY WORK TO ENSURE, UH, WE ARE PROVIDING AN INTENTIONAL, HIGH QUALITY PROGRAM TO CITY RESIDENTS. 
          I'D BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T TAKE THE TIME TO RECOGNIZE, UM, THAT THERE'S BEEN SOME TRANSITIONS IN OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM. 
          I'D LIKE TO FIRST ACKNOWLEDGE MY PREDECESSOR, ELLEN SOFF, WHO'S BOTH, UH, WHO HAS BEEN BOTH WELCOMING AND SUPPORTIVE OF ME WITHIN THIS ROLE. 
          SHE'S LEFT AN INDISPUTABLE IMPACT ON THE DEPARTMENT AND ON THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE. 
          ADDITIONALLY, I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE, UH, SOME STAFF MEMBERS, UH, WHO ARE DEPARTING OF, OF SHORT, SUSAN MINS, WHO'S HAD A CRED, INCREDIBLE CAREER WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT, THE OFFICE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, WHO RETIRED, UH, MAY 1ST, JEN BAILEY, UH, FROM 
          [01:10:01]
THE AGENDA FOR CHILDREN'S LITERACY WHO'LL BE RETIRING IN A FEW WEEKS. 
          AND OF COURSE, MELISSA BOLDING, WHO HAS TRANSITIONED ON TO THE CAMBRIDGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. 
          WE STAND HERE. 
          HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE RELATED TO THE BUDGET. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THANKS TO THE WHOLE TEAM HERE PROVIDING SERVICES ACROSS AGES AND GEOGRAPHIES AND NEEDS OF THE CITY. 
          UM, I'LL START WITH, UH, COUNCILLOR SUZI. 
          YEAH. 
          UH, THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          I'M, I REALIZE THAT YOU JUST LOST YOUR LONGTIME LEADER OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, BUT I HAVE A LOT OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT QUESTIONS FOR YOU THAT I HOPE YOU CAN ANSWER. 
          I'M EAGER. 
          UM, I, I THINK, UH, WE MUST PREPARE OUR STUDENTS FOR JOBS OF THE FUTURE. 
          UH, AND I'M EAGER TO HEAR MORE ABOUT YOUR GREEN JOBS INITIATIVE. 
          HOW MANY STUDENTS PARTICIPATE AND ARE THEY GETTING JOBS? I'LL TELL YOU THAT COUNCILOR NOLAN AND I WERE AT THE CLIMATE, UH, TECH CONFERENCE, UH, IN BOSTON LAST, UM, YESTERDAY, YESTERDAY MORNING. 
          AND THERE WERE A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE GOING INTO CLIMATE TECH. 
          IT WAS MOSTLY, WE WERE SOME OF THE OLDER PEOPLE THERE. 
          UH, COUNSELOR NOLAN. 
          UH, ANYWAY, I THINK THIS IS A GREAT FIELD, THOUGH. 
          I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY JOBS THERE ARE IN THIS AREA RIGHT NOW. 
          AND I'M JUST EAGER TO HEAR MORE ABOUT, UM, WHAT YOU'RE FUNDING, WHAT'S WORKING, AND, UH, HOW YOU'RE KEEPING TRACK OF, UM, OF STUDENTS' ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE WORKFORCE. 
          THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          , THIS IS AWKWARD. 
          I'M JUST GONNA MOVE OVER A LITTLE BIT. 
          SORRY. 
          UM, , THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, AND I WILL SAY, UM, WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD IN JUNE WHEN WE ARE SUBMITTING OUR NEXT GREEN JOBS REPORT TO PROVIDE A MUCH FULLER RESPONSE TO YOUR QUESTIONS. 
          UM, THE GREEN JOBS INITIATIVE IS, UM, NOT NECESSARILY A PROGRAM. 
          THE GREEN JOBS INITIATIVE WAS AN EFFORT OF THE COUNCIL TO TRY TO INTRODUCE ALL RESIDENTS, PARTICULARLY LOW INCOME RESIDENTS, MODERATE INCOME RESIDENTS, TO THE OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN GREEN PATHWAYS. 
          AND THOSE ARE MANY. 
          AND SO, UM, THE RESOURCES THAT WE ARE DEVOTING RIGHT NOW IS AN AMAZING STAFF PERSON FULL-TIME, WHO'S WORKING WITHIN OUR CAMBRIDGE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM. 
          BUT HER SOLE FOCUS AND PASSION IS TO CONNECT RESIDENTS TO GREEN OPPORTUNITIES, BUT GREEN OPPORTUNITIES ARE VARIED AND MANY, AND THEY RANGE IN SKILL LEVEL FROM SKILLED ENTRY LEVEL, ALL THE WAY UP TO WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT. 
          SOME OF THE POSITIONS THAT WE WOULD SEE WORKING IN DPW. 
          AND SO THE ROLE OF THE GREEN JOBS SPECIALIST IS TO, UM, CONDUCT, I WOULD SAY TARGETED AND BROAD OUTREACH TO INTRODUCE ALL RESIDENTS TO WHAT THESE OPPORTUNITIES ARE. 
          SHE'LL BE TABLING AT CAMBRIDGE PUBLIC LIBRARIES. 
          WE'RE HAVING A JOB FAIR IN JUNE. 
          SHE'LL BE WORKING WITH THE MAYOR, SUMMER YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM THIS SUMMER TO RUN WORKSHOPS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE SO THEY'RE AWARE OF THE VARIOUS OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE OUT THERE AND HOW TO ACCESS THOSE. 
          AND THEN SHE IS WORKING WITH THE OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY AND LOCAL EMPLOYERS TO TRY TO CREATE PARTNERSHIPS. 
          AND SHE'S DONE A NUMBER OF AMAZING PARTNERSHIP. 
          RIGHT NOW. 
          WE'RE LOOKING AT WHAT'S HAPPENING REGIONALLY. 
          SHE'LL BE PRESENTING TO THE CAREER CENTER. 
          THE CAREER. 
          THE CAREER CENTER IS, UH, OUR PARTNER IN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, BUT EVEN THEIR STAFF ARE LOOKING FOR ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT IN UNDERSTANDING WHAT ARE THE GREEN JOBS. 
          AND SO I WOULD SAY RIGHT NOW WE ARE ABSOLUTELY ALWAYS TRACKING CLIENTS. 
          ANYONE THAT REBECCA IS SERVING IS ON HER CASELOAD RIGHT NOW. 
          SHE HAS ABOUT 10 PEOPLE ON HER CASELOAD, 80% OF WHOM ARE WOMEN OR BIPOC. 
          SHE HAS CONDUCTED, UM, ABOUT, I WOULD SAY OVER 70 INFORMATION SESSIONS. 
          WE HAVE TWO INDIVIDUALS THAT SHE'S VIGOROUSLY WORKING TO GET INTO THE ELECTRICAL UNION RIGHT NOW. 
          'CAUSE 50% OF THESE JOBS ARE GONNA BE CONNECTED TO, UM, THE TRADES. 
          UM, SO HAPPY TO TALK MORE OR TO INVITE ANYONE OVER TO MEET WITH OUR STAFF. 
          UM, BUT THAT WOULD BE MY SUMMARY AT THIS POINT. 
          UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT. 
          SPEAKING MORE BROADLY, SO THE, THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FUND IS $5 MILLION. 
          SO HOW, HOW MANY RESIDENTS ARE ENGAGED IN THE BROADER WORKFORCE PROGRAMS AND, UM, AND AGAIN, HOW ARE WE TRACKING, UH, THEIR ACQUIRING JOBS? THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION AGAIN THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, MADAM CHAIR, WE, UH, UM, ARE FORTUNATE WITH OUR OFFICE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. 
          WE HAVE A VERY PASSIONATE STAFF. 
          OWD SERVES BOTH YOUNG PEOPLE, 14 AND OVER THROUGH OUR  YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM AS WELL AS ADULTS. 
          UM, WE FOCUS ON ADULT RESIDENTS WHO ARE LOW INCOME RESIDENTS OF 
          [01:15:01]
COLOR, UH, RESIDENTS WHO HAVE BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT. 
          OUR CAMBRIDGE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY OPEN TO ANY RESIDENT 18 AND OVER, ANYONE CAN COME IN AND HAVE THREE FREE VISITS WITH A CAREER COUNSELOR. 
          AND IF YOU ARE PART OF OUR TARGETED, UM, RESIDENT POPULATION THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO SERVE, YOU HAVE ONGOING CAREER SUPPORT. 
          THAT PROGRAM SERVES OVER 350 RESIDENTS PER YEAR, AND WE TRACK ALL PLACEMENTS IN JOBS AND TRAINING IN OUR ETO DATABASE SYSTEM. 
          WE ALSO, IN ADDITION TO CAMBRIDGE WORKS FOR ADULTS, WE RUN, SORRY FOR CAMBRIDGE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM. 
          WE RUN CAMBRIDGE WORKS, WHICH IS OUR TRANSITIONAL JOBS PROGRAM. 
          AGAIN, SEP IS BIG, CAMBRIDGE WORKS IS SMALL. 
          THAT PROGRAM IS FOR 18 TO 30 5-YEAR-OLD RESIDENTS WHO HAVE HAD SIGNIFICANT DIFFICULTY IN ACCESSING AND RETAINING EMPLOYMENT. 
          THAT PROGRAM RUNS TWO CYCLES A YEAR, ABOUT 12 TO 15, UM, RESIDENTS PER CYCLE. 
          AND OF COURSE, WE TRACK ALL JOBS, ALL PLACEMENTS, ALL TRAINING. 
          AND WITH BOTH OF THOSE PROGRAMS, OUR SECRET SAUCE IS THAT WE ARE ALWAYS HERE. 
          WE STICK WITH PEOPLE THROUGH THE LONG HAUL. 
          THEY COME BACK TO US IF THEY LOSE JOBS, THEY COME BACK TO US IF THEY WANT A JOB ADVANCEMENT. 
          AND SO WE ARE ALWAYS HERE FOR RESIDENTS. 
          UM, IN ADDITION TO THOSE PROGRAMS THAT SERVE ADULTS, WE HAVE A PROGRAM THAT SERVES YOUNG ADULTS A LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN CAMBRIDGE WORKS, AND THAT'S CALLED NEXT UP. 
          AND THAT FOCUSES ON YOUNG PEOPLE WHO'VE NOT MADE A SMOOTH TRANSITION TO THEIR, UM, ADULT WORLD, AND THEY NEED MORE SUPPORT EITHER WITH EXPOSURE TO CAREERS OR SOME CASE MANAGEMENT. 
          AND THAT PROGRAM RUNS ONCE A YEAR, AND IT'S ABOUT 12 TO 15 BECAUSE IT'S INTENSE. 
          AND THEN IN TERMS OF OUR MARRIAGE PROGRAM, OF COURSE, WE SERVE OVER 1000 YOUTH PRIORITIZING LOW INCOME TEENS IN THE CITY. 
          THOSE ARE OUR PROGRAMS THAT WE RUN OURSELVES. 
          IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE OPERATE AS A PLATFORM AND INFRASTRUCTURE FOR OTHER PROGRAMS TO DO THEIR OWN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES. 
          WE FUND JUSTICE START, UM, TRAINING IN THEIR, UH, THEIR BIOMED TRAINING. 
          WE FUND SLOTS IN THAT WE SUPPORT EN ROUTE, UM, WHICH SERVES IMMIGRANT STUDENTS AT CAMBRIDGE REGION AND LATIN SCHOOL. 
          UM, AND THROUGH THE MAYOR'S PROGRAM, AGAIN, WE PROVIDE OVER $115,000 IN GRANT FUNDING TO NONPROFITS IN CAMBRIDGE TO RUN THEIR TEEN SERVING PROGRAMS IN THE SUMMER. 
          SO WE BOTH A DIRECT SERVICE PROVIDER AND WE SUPPORT THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THE, UH, THIS WORK, UM, IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. 
          UM, THANK, THANK YOU. 
          GOOD, GOOD TO HEAR MORE ABOUT ALL OF THESE PROGRAMS, AND I'LL BE IN TOUCH AT ANOTHER TIME TO LEARN EVEN MORE. 
          UM, I THINK THEY'RE JUST ESSENTIAL FOR PEOPLE TO FEEL GOOD ABOUT THEMSELVES. 
          THEY NEED TO BE CONTRIBUTING, AND WE EACH NEED TO BE ABLE TO GET A JOB. 
          UM, I ALSO, I WANTED TO ASK ABOUT, UM, THERE WAS, UM, MENTION THAT THERE IN FISCAL YEAR 27, WE WERE GONNA BE DOING BENCHMARKING AND ANALYSIS OF TODDLER CARE. 
          UM, AND I JUST WONDERED, I I THINK THAT'S ALWAYS, THOSE ARE GOOD THINGS TO DO, BUT WOULDN'T, WOULDN'T THAT WORK HAVE PROCEEDED THE ROLLOUT OF UPK? SO I'D JUST LOVE TO HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, YES, IT'S A GOOD QUESTION. 
          AND SO MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE TASK FORCE THAT PUT IN QUITE A LOT OF WORK, AS YOU KNOW, BEFORE CPP LAUNCHED A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO, LOOKED COMPREHENSIVELY AT THE BIRTH TO FIVE LANDSCAPE. 
          AND AT THE TIME THEY DID AN ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDED TO THE CITY COUNCIL, UM, THAT THE CITY START WITH PRE-K AND LOOKED AT PRE-K THREE AND PRE-K FOUR AS WELL. 
          UM, WE ARE LOOKING BACK AT THE REPORTS THAT THEY MADE DURING THE TIME OF THE TASK FORCE AND THEN THE B THREE PARTNERSHIP AS WELL. 
          UM, AND NOW LOOKING REALLY CLOSELY AT THE INFANT TODDLER LANDSCAPE TO SEE WHAT ELSE THE CITY CAN DO TO SUPPORT THOSE FAMILIES. 
          SOUNDS GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          UH, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR THROUGH YOU. 
          JUST A, A QUICK QUESTION. 
          FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU. 
          YOU GUYS RUN DEEP. 
          THERE'S A BUNCH OF YOU, UH, BACK THERE. 
          UM, AND I CAN'T THINK OF TOO MANY OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT REALLY TOUCH FOLKS FROM BIRTH TO, UH, THROUGH THEIR, THROUGH THEIR LIFE AND, AND, UM, YOU GUYS DO SO MUCH AND IT IS SO, UH, APPRECIATED. 
          UM, JUST A QUICK QUESTION JUST TO FOLLOW UP ON THE WORKFORCE STUFF. 
          UM, I, I KNOW THAT MOST OF YOUR PROGRAMS, YOUR JOB PROGRAMS ARE FOR, MOSTLY FOR YOUNG ADULTS OR OVER HIGH SCHOOL AGE USUALLY, ALTHOUGH YOU DO OTHER, YOU KNOW, THE MAYOR'S PROGRAM AND WHATNOT. 
          UM, BUT DO YOU, DO YOU WORK WITH ARISTA AT ALL IN TERMS OF THE FACILITIES THAT THEY HAVE? I KEEP, I KEEP COMING BACK TO THIS. 
          I WAS JUST REALLY IMPRESSED WHEN I, 
          [01:20:01]
WHEN I TOURED RISKA WITH THE, UM, THE METAL FABRICATION MACHINES THAT THEY, THEY HAVE THERE. 
          THERE'S LIKE, THEY'RE LIKE TWO $500,000 MACHINES THAT DO SOMETHING, UM, WITH, WITH LASERS AND METAL . 
          UM, IT'S GOOD THAT PEOPLE SHOULD KEEP TOOLS AWAY FROM ME. 
          IT'S NOT MY STRONG SUIT. 
          UM, BUT THESE ARE JOBS THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, PAY WELL, THEY'RE, THEY'RE IN, IN OUR COMMUNITY. 
          IN, IN KENDALL, THERE'S SOME OF THESE JOBS. 
          I'M NOT SURE THAT A COMPANY WOULD HIRE AN 18-YEAR-OLD NECESSARILY TO DO THOSE JOBS, BUT THEY MIGHT HIRE A 24-YEAR-OLD WHO'S CERTIFIED AND TRAINED. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH, IS THERE ANY CROSSOVER? DO WE TRAIN FOLKS USING SOME OF THE GREAT FACILITIES THAT WE HAVE AT THE HIGH SCHOOL? THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          UM, SUE YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, WE HAVE FOR YEARS WORKED REALLY COLLABORATIVELY WITH RISTA IN TERMS OF OUR YOUTH SERVING STAFF. 
          AND SO, UH, WE INTEND TO DO THAT ALSO WITH OUR GREEN JOBS. 
          SO WE'RE IN TOUCH WITH LINDA RADS VILLA, THE DIRECTOR, HER STAFF, OUR STAFF ARE GONNA BE IN CONCERT, REACHING OUT TO EMPLOYERS TO GET THEM IN FOR SOME SORT OF CAREER PATHWAYS IN TERMS OF USE OF SPACE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE OR FOR TRAINING. 
          UM, THAT IS, UH, I WOULD SAY A PLAN, A STRATEGY, UH, UH, THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO DO IN CONCERT WITH THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, AND WE'RE REALLY THRILLED TO BE ABLE TO SAY THAT THROUGH THE AMAZING WORK OF MARIA AU. 
          UM, AND HER STAFF PERSON, ROSALIE , WE WORKED WITH LINDA AND HER STAFF SO THAT OUR COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER STUDENTS WHO WERE IN OUR CNA PROGRAMS, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, WE RUN THREE CYCLES A YEAR. 
          SO THAT'S ABOUT 45 STUDENTS. 
          UM, IN THE PAST IN ORDER TO TEST. 
          SO YOU GO THROUGH YOUR EDUCATION, YOU GO THROUGH YOUR TRAINING PIECE, AND THEN YOU HAVE TO TEST, WE HAD TO TRANSPORT STUDENTS FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS BECAUSE THE TESTING SITES WERE NOT, UM, ACCESSIBLE. 
          AND SO WE BUST THEM THIS YEAR WORKING WITH LINDA AND HER STAFF. 
          WE USED THE TRAINING FACILITY AT RISKA. 
          AND SO ALL OF OUR CLC STUDENTS WERE ABLE TO TEST WITH A PROCTOR ONSITE HERE IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          AND SO THE ATTENDANCE WENT UP, THE COMPLETION RATES WENT UP. 
          WE GOT THOSE, THOSE STUDENTS CERTIFIED. 
          SO I WOULD SAY IN TERMS OF USE OF PHYSICAL SPACE, THAT'S A REAL SUCCESS STORY AND WE WANNA FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO MORE OF THAT. 
          BUT LINDA'S STAFF WERE AMAZING. 
          UM, AND IT'S HARD TO USE SOMEONE'S SPACE AND THEIR, YOU KNOW, THEIR EQUIPMENT, THEIR CONSUMABLES AND LINDA MADE THAT HAPPEN. 
          GREAT. 
          UM, YEAH, I THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          YEAH, I, I HOPE WE CAN CONTINUE THOSE CONVERSATIONS. 
          I MEAN, I THINK, YOU KNOW, BETWEEN THE, BETWEEN THOSE MACHINES, THE FABRICATION MACHINES, AS WELL AS, UM, SOME OF THE GRAPHIC DESIGN STUFF AND, AND BIOTECH STUFF. 
          I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THOSE, THOSE FACILITIES, IT JUST SEEMS LIKE, YOU KNOW, IF IF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AREN'T USING THEM IN THE EVENING WHEN YOU RUN A LOT OF YOUR PROGRAMS, THEY'RE JUST KIND OF SITTING THERE AND COULD BE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, OPEN SOME MORE DOORS, UH, FOR SOME OF OUR YOUNG ADULTS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COUNCIL MCGOVERN, UH, COUNCIL ZU, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          ALSO WANNA APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN DOING, UM, OVER THE YEARS AND HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. 
          UM, THE FIRST IS RELATED TO THE GRADES K THROUGH EIGHT AFTER SCHOOL LOTTERY PROGRAM. 
          I, I KNOW THE BUDGET REFERRED TO THE 90% OF APPLICANTS THAT APPLIED GETTING EXTENDED AN OFFER AND WAS DIGGING THROUGH SOME OF THE LOTTERY UPDATES TO SEE MORE OF THE SPECIFIC OUTCOMES AND, UH, TRYING TO SEE WHAT WE ACTUALLY GOT FOR THE MONEY THAT WAS SPENT. 
          UM, AND THERE WAS THIS UNDERLYING PIECE TO THIS PERCENTAGE THAT I SIT WITH, WHERE THIS MEANS THAT AROUND 48 LOW INCOME FAMILIES DID NOT RECEIVE ANY SORT OF OFFER FROM THE CITY THIS PAST YEAR. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS TO HEAR, YOU KNOW, WHY DOES THIS FUNDING LEVEL PREVENT US FROM MAKING AN OFFER OF SOME KIND TO EVERY SINGLE LOW FAMILY, LOW INCOME FAMILY THAT APPLIES. 
          CURIOUS TO HEAR A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          THANKS FOR THAT QUESTION THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, SO AFTERSCHOOL SEATS ARE FINITE. 
          UM, WE DON'T HAVE ENDLESS NUMBER OF SEATS, UM, TO BE ABLE TO SERVE EVERY FAMILY WHO WISHES TO HAVE AN AFTERSCHOOL SEAT. 
          THEY ARE BASED ON CAPACITY RIGHT, OF SPACE AND STAFF. 
          AND WE ARE, UM, EACH YEAR WE GO INTO THE LOTTERY WITH A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF SEATS THAT ARE ENTERED INTO THE LOTTERY. 
          SO WE DO PRIORITIZE LOW INCOME FAMILIES. 
          UM, IN OUR PRIORITY. 
          THEY ARE THE FIRST TO RECEIVE PLACEMENTS. 
          [01:25:01]
AND SO YOU WILL SEE THAT THE OFFER RATE FOR LOW INCOME FAMILIES IS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN THE 90%. 
          SO IT'S, UM, THE 90% IS AN AVERAGE BETWEEN THOSE, UM, IN THE GENERAL POPULATION AND THOSE IN THE PRIORITY. 
          THE REASON THAT A LOW-INCOME FAMILY MAY NOT RECEIVE AN OFFER IS TWOFOLD. 
          ONE, IF THEY APPLIED LATE TO THE LOTTERY, AND SO WE STILL ACCEPT THEM INTO THE LOTTERY AND OFTEN THEY WILL GET A PLACEMENT, BUT THAT WOULD BE A REASON THAT A LOW-INCOME FAMILY WOULD NOT GET A SEAT IN THE LOTTERY THAT THEY APPLIED LATE. 
          THE SECOND IS THAT THE SEAT THAT THEY APPLIED FOR WAS NOT AVAILABLE WHEN THEIR APPLICATION CAME UP. 
          SO THAT WOULD BE IN, UM, FOR EXAMPLE, IF A FAMILY OF THREE, UM, THAT HAPPENED TO BE LOW INCOME HAD THREE SIBLINGS AGES, UH, IN GRADES KINDERGARTEN, TWO AND FOUR, AND THEY APPLIED ONLY TO THE MORSE COMMUNITY SCHOOL. 
          AND WHEN WE GOT TO THEIR APPLICATION IN THE LOTTERY, THERE WERE NO SECOND GRADE SEATS LEFT. 
          AND SO THAT FAMILY WOULD NOT GET A SECOND GRADE SEAT. 
          UM, THEY MIGHT. 
          AND SO YOU'LL SEE THAT THERE ARE, UM, A, A FEW, THERE ARE SOME SPLIT OFFERS TO FAMILIES. 
          THAT WOULD BE AN EXAMPLE OF A SPLIT OFFER THAT WE WERE ABLE TO OFFER THE KINDERGARTEN STUDENT A SEAT. 
          WE WERE ABLE TO OFFER THE, THE FOURTH GRADER A SEAT, BUT NOT ABLE TO OFFER THE SECOND GRADER A SEAT. 
          ANOTHER REASON WHY A FAMILY MAY NOT GET A SEAT IS THAT THEY HAD ONE CHOICE. 
          UM, AND SO IF THEY ONLY CHOSE THE MOORE SCHOOL AND THOSE SEATS WEREN'T AVAILABLE, THAT'S WHY THEY WOULDN'T GET A SEAT. 
          IF, FOR INSTANCE, THEY CHOSE FOUR POSSIBLE, UM, LOCATIONS, THEIR CHANCE OF GETTING A SEAT IS HIGHER. 
          SO THOSE ARE, THOSE WOULD BE THE REASONS WHY A LOW INCOME FAMILY WOULD NOT GET A SEAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND AND RECOGNIZE THE CAPACITY SPACE AND STAFF CONCERNS AND, AND KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DEFINITELY SHOULD BE WORKING TOWARDS, UM, CLOSING THAT GAP SO THAT ALL LOW INCOME FAMILIES ARE ABLE TO GET AN OFFER. 
          UM, ESPECIALLY 'CAUSE WE SHOULDN'T BE LEAVING ANYONE, UM, FALLING THROUGH THE CRACKS. 
          UH, THE ANOTHER QUESTION I HAD WAS RELATED TO THE, THE ADULT AND SENIORS DIVISION BUDGET. 
          IT SEEMS TO HAVE, UM, FALLEN BY AROUND 2 MILLION OR THEIR SPECIFIC PROGRAMS OR SERVICES HOURS THAT ARE BEING REDUCED IN THIS DIVISION THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? NO. 
          UM, THAT $2 MILLION REDUCTION REFLECTS THE TRANSFER OR REALIGNMENT OF THE MULTI-SERVICE CENTER, WHICH MOVED FROM DHSP OVER TO HOUSING. 
          GOTCHA. 
          OKAY. 
          THAT'S VERY HELPFUL. 
          AND THIS LAST ONE I'M HAPPY TO TAKE OFFLINE. 
          UM, IT'S RELATED TO THE GOLF COURSE, WHICH, UM, IT HAS BEEN A COUPLE OF SEASONS SINCE THE INTAKE PROCESS WAS REVITALIZED. 
          IS THERE ANY CHANCE TO GET AN UPDATE ON HOW IT WENT OR, UM, THE DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION AVAILABLE FROM THE COUNCIL REQUEST THAT HAPPENED A FEW YEARS BACK? THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, I DON'T HAVE THAT WITH ME. 
          WE'RE HAPPY TO, TO PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION. 
          THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          APPRECIATE IT. 
          I'LL, I'LL YIELD OTHER, YEAH. 
          UH, MAYOR SIDIKI, THANK YOU THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, I HAD SIMILAR QUESTIONS TO COUNCIL, SO I'LL JUST CONTINUE ON THE AFTERSCHOOL, UH, TRAIN. 
          UM, I WAS REALLY GLAD, UH, TO SEE, UH, THE, THAT WE RECEIVED FUNDING FOR THE REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM, UM, BACK IN DECEMBER. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT RELATES DIRECTLY TO THE OSD EXPANSION STUDY AND THE FOCUS AREAS THERE. 
          UH, I, I THINK I'M CURIOUS AROUND THE ASPECT AROUND OUR, THE SCHOLARSHIPS THAT WE CONTINUED THROUGH ARPA. 
          UM, AND JUST SO FOLKS KNOW THAT THERE WAS A GREAT REPORT THAT WAS DONE AROUND THE IMPACT OF THESE SCHOLARSHIPS. 
          UH, AND SO ON THAT TRAIN, I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE CONTINUED TO FUND THEM. 
          UH, WE USED ARPA FUNDING FOR A FEW YEARS AND, UH, AS WE KNOW, WE, THE LAST YEAR'S BUDGET THAT CONTINUED AND IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET, IT'S CONTINUING. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK I'M CURIOUS AROUND, THERE ARE SOME KEY KIND OF NONPROFITS THAT WE PARTNER WITH FOR THIS, UM, FOR THESE SCHOLARSHIPS. 
          THAT'S CAMBRIDGE COMMUNITY CENTER. 
          THERE'S CAMBRIDGE, UM, YMCA, CAMBRIDGE ART CENTER, EAST END HOUSE, AND MARIA BALDWIN. 
          UH, I KNOW THAT IT SAYS IN THE REPORT THAT, UM, MARGARET FULLER NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE CLOSED THEIR AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAM. 
          YOU KNOW, I THINK ABOUT KIND OF THE IMPACT HERE, AND I WOULD, IF MY COLLEAGUES HAVEN'T READ THIS, I WOULD SUGGEST THAT THEY DO READ THIS BECAUSE, UH, THIS IS KIND OF A FORM OF, YOU KNOW, SUPPORTING 
          [01:30:01]
OUR FAMILIES DIRECTLY, UH, AND HELPING THEM WITH COSTS. 
          UH, IT IS REALLY EXPENSIVE. 
          UH, WE AREN'T DIRECTLY FUNDING, YOU KNOW, DIRECT CASH ASSISTANCE, BUT THIS IS ANOTHER WAY TO FRANKLY DO IT. 
          AND SO, AND IT'S A POWERFUL WAY. 
          AND THEN, SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT DOES EXPANSION HERE LOOK LIKE WHEN WE'RE DOING THIS? YOU KNOW, HOW MANY, I THINK IT SAYS IN THE REPORT THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO FUND, I THINK IT WAS A HUNDRED AND, UM, 93, UH, FAMILIES WITH 215 CHILDREN. 
          UH, AND THAT'S, THAT, THAT IS REALLY, THAT'S GREAT. 
          UH, BUT HOW DO WE THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, DOING MORE? UM, AND SO HOW OFTEN ARE WE, UH, SAYING NO? ARE THERE OTHER NONPROFITS WHO WOULD WANT TO PARTICIPATE? SO HOW ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT GROWTH HERE AND SCALE? THANKS FOR THAT QUESTION THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR, WHEN WE LOOKED AT EXPANSION OR WE'VE BEEN ONGOING, WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT HOW DO WE EXPAND THE OUTTA SCHOOL TIME PROGRAMS. THE MULTIFACETED APPROACH WAS IMPORTANT. 
          UM, THE RECOGNITION THAT AFTER SCHOOL IS NOT JUST RUN BY DHSP, THAT WE DO HAVE A NETWORK IN THIS CITY THAT INCLUDES THE NONPROFITS THAT YOU MENTIONED. 
          AND SO THOSE NONPROFITS WERE SPECIFICALLY CHOSEN BECAUSE THEY OFFER FIVE DAY A WEEK CARE. 
          AND SO AS WE HAVE PRIORITIZED, WHERE DO WE PUT OUR EFFORTS AROUND AFTERSCHOOL, IT REALLY WAS THE PROGRAMS THAT OFFER FIVE DAY A WEEK CARE FOR WORKING FAMILIES. 
          UM, THAT WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT TO US. 
          AND SO AS WE STARTED TO HIT UP AGAINST, UM, A FEW YEARS AGO, I THINK YOU WILL REMEMBER WE'VE BEEN ADDING AFTERSCHOOL SEATS, UH, FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. 
          UM, AND I THINK THREE YEARS AGO WE KIND OF DID OUR BIGGEST, UH, GROWTH, WHICH WAS ADDING 170 SEATS. 
          AND FOR DHSP, WE KIND OF STARTED COMING UP AGAINST WHAT OUR CAPACITY COULD BE, RIGHT? THROUGH LICENSING, THROUGH SPACE, THROUGH STAFFING. 
          AND SO BEGAN TO LOOK AT WHAT IS THE CAPACITY IN OUR SYSTEM. 
          AND SO WE HAD THE OPERA FUNDING THAT YOU MENTIONED TO FUND THESE SEATS IN NONPROFITS TO GROW THE SYSTEM OF AFTERCARE BECAUSE FOR WORKING FAMILIES, IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MATTER THAT IT'S WITH A-D-H-S-P OR CITY RUN PROGRAM, BUT LOOKING AT OUR NETWORK. 
          UM, AND SO THOSE PROGRAMS THAT THOSE SCHOLARSHIPS THAT YOU MENTIONED WERE CHOSEN BECAUSE THOSE ARE PART OF OUR FIVE DAY A WEEK AFTERSCHOOL NETWORK. 
          AND WE ARE HAPPY TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT WAY CREATIVE WAYS TO EXPAND, UM, AND OFFER MORE AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS. UM, THOSE SITES WERE ALSO SITES THAT, UM, HAVE A LARGE NUMBER OF LOW INCOME, UH, FAMILIES ENROLLED. 
          AND SO THAT WAS IMPORTANT TO US THAT, AGAIN, IN THIS PROCESS THAT WE'RE CONTINUING TO PUT EQUITY, UM, AT THE FOREFRONT AS WE THINK ABOUT EXPANSION. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU. 
          YEAH. 
          I, I DO THINK WE TALK ABOUT HOW, WHAT ARE OUR BUDGETS DOING DIRECTLY TO IMPACT PEOPLE? AND I THINK THIS IS A REALLY CRITICAL WAY AND HOW DO WE REALLY HELP OUR LOW INCOME FAMILIES IN THIS TIME PERIOD WHEN THERE'S SO MANY COSTS? UM, AND SO I DO THINK I CERTAINLY, AND I KNOW THERE'S MANY OF MY COLLEAGUES WHO WOULD LIKELY AGREE, LIKE, HOW DO WE DO MORE IN THIS AREA AND, UM, HELP MORE LOW INCOME FAMILIES HAVE THAT ACCESS? AND SO I, I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW DOES THAT REFLECT IN THE BUDGET? I DON'T KNOW. 
          BUT I, I DO WANT THERE TO BE MORE FUNDING IN THIS AREA, UM, AS A WHOLE, UM, AS WE, I KNOW THERE'S A PLAN WITH THE EXPANSION STUDY AND THERE'S, I'VE READ THE REPORT AND, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD DISCUSSIONS ON KIND OF A APPROACH AND KIND OF HOW WE EXPAND, BUT, AND I'M GLAD WE'VE, WE'VE REALLY, I THINK THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF MOVEMENT. 
          SO I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR LEADERSHIP, UM, AND THE TEAM'S LEADERSHIP ON THIS. 
          UH, AND I THINK WE CAN DO MORE. 
          SO, UM, THAT'S ALL I WANTED TO SAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO I DON'T SEE ANY OTHER HAND, SO I'LL FOLLOW UP ON EXACTLY THAT POINT, WHICH IS, AS MAYOR SIDDIQUI SAID, THIS EXPANSION OF ENSURING QUALITY, PREFERABLY FREE IF AND IF NOT FREE, DEEPLY AFFORDABLE WITH THE EXPANSION OF THE CAMBRIDGE PRESCHOOL, BUT ALSO OUTTA SCHOOL TIME. 
          WE KNOW THAT SOMETHING THAT AFFECTS FAMILIES THROUGHOUT THE CITY AND THAT WE ALSO KNOW IT'S A, IT'S A LARGE PART OF THE BUDGET AND IT WAS THE EXPANSION YET LED BY THIS TEAM. 
          WE WILL BE SEEN, UM, HOPEFULLY SOME ADDITIONAL EXPANSION. 
          I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO 
          [01:35:01]
IT. 
          I KNOW THE, THE MAYOR'S BEEN ADVOCATING FOR, I'VE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR SPECIFICALLY THAT AS A WAY TO, TO HELP FOLKS. 
          AND RELATED TO THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES HERE, IT SEEMS LIKE ONE OF THE KEY ELEMENTS OF THAT, AND I'M CURIOUS AS TO HOW THE, THIS PERFORMANCE MEASURE IN THE BUDGET, WHICH IS ON PAGE 258, A COUPLE OF THEM REFER SPECIFICALLY TO PRESCHOOL PROVIDERS HELPING WITH THE BEHAVIOR RELATED HEALTH OF THE, UM, THE FAMILIES. 
          YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT, A YEAR AGO IT WAS 43%. 
          WE'RE HOPING THIS YEAR WILL BE 60%, THEN IT'LL BE 80%. 
          THERE'S ALSO THE QUESTION OF, UH, ATTRITION OF TEACHERS THAT WE KNOW THAT FOR A WIDE RANGE OF REASONS, YOU HAVE HIGH, HIGH TURNOVER IN THIS GROUP, PARTLY BECAUSE OF INCOME, PARTLY PERHAPS BECAUSE OF TRAINING. 
          THE GREAT NEWS WOULD BE IS IF THE ATTRITION IS BECAUSE THEY HAVE GOTTEN TRAINED AND MOVED UP AND MOVED OUT, THEN NOT GREAT NEWS WOULD BE AS IF JUST VARIOUS THINGS INTERFERE WITH THEIR LIFE AND THEY DON'T, AREN'T ABLE TO STAY. 
          'CAUSE WE KNOW THAT STABILITY MATTERS. 
          AND THEN I'M WRAPPING THIS ALL UP INTO A QUESTION ABOUT HOW WE SEE THESE, UH, PERFORMANCE MEASURES THAT IT ALSO SUGGESTS WE WILL BE ESTABLISHING STANDARDS ACROSS THE COMMUNITY SCHOOLS, UM, WHICH WE HAVEN'T DONE IN THE PAST AND WE'RE EXPECTING TO ROLL OUT THIS YEAR. 
          SO IF SOMEONE COULD JUST ADDRESS HOW IT IS THAT THOSE PERFORMANCE MEASURES ARE RELATED TO STAFFING UP IN THE BUDGET, DO WE HAVE THE APPROPRIATE RESOURCES TO ENSURE THAT THOSE INITIATIVES CAN MOVE FORWARD? BECAUSE THAT IS OBVIOUSLY CRITICAL TO THE SUCCESS OF THIS REALLY CRITICAL ELEMENT OF HOW THE CITY IS STANDING UP FOR PROVIDING SERVICES TO FAMILIES THAT ARE THE MOST VULNERABLE AND ALSO HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO HAVE THE MOST IMPACT ON THE TRAJECTORY OF THEIR LIVES. 
          THAT'S AN AMAZING QUESTION. 
          UM, AND YOU REFERENCED WHAT IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND IN OUTTA SCHOOL TIME, RIGHT? IT IS THE STAFFING. 
          UM, THAT'S WHAT MAKES OUR PROGRAMS GREAT. 
          UH, THE WORK IS HARD. 
          IT REQUIRES A LOT OF TRAINING AND EDUCATION, AND WE DO SEE TURNOVER NOT JUST IN OUR PROGRAMS, IN THE FIELD. 
          AND, UM, THE HONEST TRUTH, IT'S BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT PAID ENOUGH TO DO THE WORK THAT THEY DO. 
          AND IT IS REALLY CHALLENGING TO DO THIS KIND OF WORK DAY IN, DAY OUT WITH CHILDREN AND NOT BE RECOGNIZED THROUGH CPP. 
          WE HAVE DONE SOME AMAZING WORK AROUND PAY PARITY, UM, AND YOU WILL SEE THAT IN THE REPORTS, RIGHT? SO THAT WE ARE LOOKING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE GET THOSE PROGRAMS THAT ARE ENROLLED IN THE CAMBRIDGE PRESCHOOL PROGRAM TEACHERS TO BE AT A PAY PARITY WITH THE CAMBRIDGE PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS, RIGHT? SO WE ARE WORKING ON THAT, AND THAT HAS BEEN PART OF THE STRATEGY, AND WE HOPE THAT THAT WILL HELP WITH SOME OF THE, UH, RETENTION AND TURNOVER THERE IN OUTTA SCHOOL TIME. 
          UM, IT REMAINS A CHALLENGE AS WELL AS WE'VE TALKED, UM, HERE IN THIS, UH, ROOM BEFORE. 
          TURNOVER IS REALLY HIGH. 
          AS WE ALSO KNOW, THE MAJORITY OF OUR WORKFORCE IS PART-TIME. 
          AND SO OVER THE YEARS, ONE OF THE STRATEGIES THAT WE HAVE BEEN USING IS TO CREATE MORE FULL-TIME DIRECT SERVICE STAFF AS A WAY TO PROFESSIONALIZE THE FIELD. 
          AND WE'VE BEEN SUCCESSFUL, AND THIS COUNCIL HAS BEEN GRACIOUS IN, UM, INCREASING OUR BUDGETS SO THAT WE'RE ABLE TO OFFER STAFF BENEFITS AND, UM, A GREATER WAGE IN ORDER TO DO THAT WORK. 
          AND THAT HAS HELPED WITH THE TURNOVER. 
          WE ARE NOT AT A HUNDRED PERCENT, WE ARE NOT EVEN NEAR WHERE WE NEED TO BE. 
          UM, COUNCILOR SIDIKI MENTIONED OUR OUTTA SCHOOL TIME EXPANSION REPORT. 
          ONE OF THE STRATEGIES MENTIONED AND HOW WE CAN CONTINUE, UM, AS A SYSTEM IS TO INVEST IN THE, A STRONG WORKFORCE. 
          WE KNOW THAT. 
          AND SO THIS APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM THAT WAS ALSO MENTIONED IS A RESULT OF THAT. 
          SO ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS THAT CAME OUT OF THAT REPORT IS US LOOKING AT HOW DO WE CONTINUE TO INVEST IN THE WORKFORCE TO CREATE STABILITY, TO INCREASE THE WAGES. 
          AND THIS APPRENTICESHIP WAS AN APPLICATION PROCESS TO THE STATE. 
          UM, AND WE ARE ONE OF THE FIRST, UH, PROGRAMS TO RECEIVE THIS FUNDING. 
          SO THAT WILL BE BEGINNING, UM, THAT IS OUR INVESTMENT, AND WE'RE HOPING THAT THAT STRATEGY, UM, CONTINUES TO WORK SO THAT WE CAN RETAIN TEACHERS, UM, IN OUR PROGRAMS. THANKS. 
          YEAH, YOU JUST POINTED TO IT. 
          I WAS ON THE BOARD OF MY KIDS' CHILDCARE CENTER AND WE LOST SEVERAL TEACHERS BECAUSE THEY BECAME KINDERGARTEN TEACHERS AND LITERALLY DOUBLED THEIR PAY. 
          IT'S CLEARLY AN ISSUE AND GOT BETTER BENEFITS. 
          UM, THE OTHER QUESTION IS RELATED TO, AND I, I LIKE BY THE WAY, SEEING THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES BECAUSE I THINK 
          [01:40:01]
IT'S, IT'S A WAY THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND OURSELVES, PUT IT OUT THERE. 
          SO I THINK IT'S CRITICALLY IMPORTANT IN ANY BUDGET TO HAVE THOSE. 
          SO I APPRECIATE THIS DEPARTMENT. 
          I DID WONDER JUST TURNING TO THE, UM, THE ADULTS AND SENIORS, UM, TWO QUESTIONS AGAIN, BASED ON REVIEWING THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES, HOW ARE WE, HOW DO WE MEASURE AND ENSURE THE NUMBER OF ADULTS AND YOUTH ENROLLED AND OTHERS WHO HAVE INCREASED THEIR CAREER READINESS ACTIVITIES? I MEAN, WE, IS IT THAT BY SURVEYS OR HAVE WE ACTUALLY SAID THEY HAVE ACTUALLY MOVED INTO POSITIONS THAT REPRESENT AN INCREASE IN THEIR, UH, IN THEIR SKILLS? THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          UM, THE WAY THAT WE ARE DEMONSTRATING THAT ADULTS HAVE INCREASED THEIR SKILLS AND EMPLOYABILITY IS THROUGH PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAMS. SO IT'S THROUGH INDIVIDUALIZED CAREER COUNSELING THROUGH PARTICIPATION IN CAMBRIDGE WORKS OR THROUGH NEXT UP. 
          AND SO IT'S A DEMONSTRATION, PARTICULARLY WITH THOSE SMALLER PROGRAMS THAT WE'VE SEEN WHERE THEY STARTED, AND THEN THROUGH THE 10 OR 12 WEEKS WITH US, WE SEE THEIR SKILL GROWTH. 
          THE OTHER THING THAT WE'RE WORKING ON, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IS, UM, WE HAVE HIRED AN AMAZING EVALUATOR, UM, WHO'S LOOKING AT ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS. HER NAME IS LEX NAPA. 
          SHE'S SIGNIFICANTLY, UH, SUPPORTING MICHELLE, BUT SHE'S ALSO SUPPORTING SOME OF OUR ADULT PROGRAMS, UM, TO LOOK AT HOW WE ARE MEASURING COMPETENCY GAINS IN ADDITION TO WHETHER THEY GOT A JOB OR REFERRED TO TRAINING AND ENROLLED IN TRAINING. 
          THANKS. 
          YEAH, IT'S IMPORTANT. 
          I MEAN, IF I DO THE PROGRAM, GREAT, THAT'S ONE THING, BUT IF I DON'T THEN MOVE INTO A JOB OR GET ANOTHER, THEN, THEN IT MEANS WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT MAYBE THERE'S SOMETHING MISSING IN THAT PUZZLE TO ACTUALLY GET THEM THE JOB. 
          YOU KNOW, THAT THE TRAINING'S ONE THING, BUT THE, THE ULTIMATE OUTCOME IS, IS MORE THAN JUST TRAINING. 
          UM, THE OTHER, UH, MAYBE I MISSED THIS, BUT THE NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS, UM, WHO REDUCED SOCIAL ISOLATION ACCORDING TO THIS, WENT FROM BASICALLY 1100 TO 4,000. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS AS TO HOW THAT HAPPENED AND WHAT WE, WHAT WE CAN THINK ABOUT THAT. 
          WAS THAT PART OF A BUDGET INCREASE OR WAS THAT COMMUNITY PARTNERS OR IT'S NUMBER, UM, FIVE. 
          IT'S, IT'S THE THIRD NUMBER FIVE ON PAGE 263 UNDER PERFORMANCE MEASURES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, I APPRECIATE THAT QUESTION, AND I KNOW THAT YOU CARE DEEPLY ABOUT OUR SERVICES TO, UM, SENIOR RESIDENTS IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          THAT, UM, INCREASE IS NOT A RESULT OF, UM, INCREASED RESOURCES. 
          IT'S A COLLAPSING OF GOALS. 
          AND SO IT'S, UM, ANYONE WHO IS ENGAGED IN OUR COA SUPPORTED PROGRAMS THAT ARE WELLNESS PROGRAMS, UM, OUR MEALS PROGRAM, OUR, UM, WELLNESS ACTIVITIES AND LECTURES. 
          SO WE, WE'VE COLLAPSED GOALS THAT LAST YEAR WERE SEPARATE. 
          AND SO THE ASSUMPTION IS BY VIRTUE OF BEING PART OF OUR COMMUNITY AT ONE OF OUR THREE CENTERS, UM, THAT YOU HAVE REDUCED YOUR SOCIAL ISOLATION. 
          OKAY. 
          UNDERSTOOD. 
          MAYBE, I MEAN, I DON'T MIND ASKING THE QUESTION, BUT A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO SAY, THAT'S WHY THERE'S A APPARENT 250% INCREASE TO GO FROM, YOU KNOW, 1100 TO 4,900 IS, IT JUST WAS PRETTY SURPRISING. 
          SO THANKS. 
          THAT WAS, UH, THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR? ALL RIGHT. 
          GIVEN THAT, UH, COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN MOVES THAT WE HAVE THE, UH, COMMUNITY, THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT OF, UH, 58,376,533. 
          AGAIN, ONE OF OUR LARGEST BUDGETS IN THE CITY TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL COUNCILOR ZUBE. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNSELOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNSELOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE EIGHT MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND ONE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          NOW, UM, I'M NOT INTENDING IF PEOPLE NEED A LITTLE FIVE MINUTE BREAK, WE CAN TAKE IT, BUT OTHERWISE I JUST PLAN TO GO THROUGH UNTIL 12, 12 30 WHEN WE WOULD TAKE A LUNCH BREAK. 
          UM, SO RIGHT NOW, NEXT UP IS FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION. 
          THIS IS ON PAGE 222 
          [01:45:02]
OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          THIS, THIS, UH, TOTAL PROGRAM EXPENDITURES FOR THE ENTIRE FINANCE TEAM IS, UH, 23,000,492. 
          BUT THERE ARE SOME SUBSECTIONS THAT WE'VE ALREADY PASSED. 
          SO THIS IS FINANCE ADMINISTRATION, AND I WILL, UH, ASK A CM SPINNER IF SHE HAS ANYTHING SHE WANTS TO, AND TO INTRODUCE YOUR TEAM. 
          AND ANYTHING YOU WANNA SAY BEFORE WE HEAD IN TO QUESTIONS? UH, YEAH. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          UM, UH, JUST I DO WANNA, YOU KNOW, INTRODUCE MY, MY TEAM, UM, DEPUTY, UM, FINANCE DIRECTOR, MICHELLE KINCAID IS AT THE TABLE. 
          I THINK YOUR NAME TAG IS IN THERE. 
          UM, UH, I ALSO WANNA, UM, JUST SORT OF ACKNOWLEDGE, UM, UH, OBVIOUSLY LOIS WU ALSO, WHO IS OUR MANAGER OF PUBLIC INVESTMENT. 
          WE'RE NOT SPEAKING ABOUT PUBLIC INVESTMENT AT THIS TIME, BUT JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE HER AS PART OF OUR ADMINISTRATION. 
          AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, UM, I CERTAINLY COULDN'T DO ANY OF THIS FINANCE WORK WITH ALL, WITHOUT ALL THE ADJACENT FINANCE DEPARTMENTS, UM, WHICH INCLUDE THE BUDGET TEAM, UH, AS WELL AS THE ASSESSING TEAM, UH, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WORKING VERY, VERY CLOSELY AND COLLABORATIVELY WITH THE AUDITING DEPARTMENT, UH, WITH OUR SHARED RESPONSIBILITIES AROUND, UH, FINANCIAL REPORTING, UH, AS WELL, OF COURSE, THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT. 
          SO, JUST WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE ALL OF THAT WORK. 
          AND, AND I'D REALLY LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE AT THIS TIME TOO, JUST, UM, HOW MUCH, UH, IN DOING THIS WORK, UM, AS WE'VE, UM, YOU KNOW, REALLY COLLABORATED, I THINK CLOSELY WITH THE CITY COUNCIL OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS IN TRYING TO BE MORE TRANSPARENT, UH, IN OUR FINANCIAL INFORMATION, UM, UH, AS WELL AS, YOU KNOW, UM, FOR THE COMMUNITY AS WELL, AND EDUCATION, UH, AROUND, UM, THE, THE VARIOUS FINANCIAL, UH, LEVERS AND ISSUES THAT ARE, UH, CONCERNING US TODAY. 
          UM, THAT CERTAINLY, UH, IN, IN VERY CLOSE PARTNERSHIP WITH US HAS BEEN THE STRATEGY TEAM, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, ACROSS THE YEARS. 
          UH, A NUMBER OF THEM, UH, THIS YEAR, PARTICULARLY LEO CAMILA, WHO'S HELPED US, UM, VERY MUCH WITH MANY OF OUR PRESENTATIONS, UH, AS WELL AS REALLY PARTNERING SO CLOSELY WITH THE BUDGET OFFICE IN THAT, UH, TWO, 2.1% SAVINGS PROJECT, UM, YOU KNOW, HELPING AS WELL, UM, OVER THE YEARS WITH OUR CAPITAL, UM, OUR CAPITAL BUDGET, UM, PRESENTATION. 
          SO, JUST WANTED TO, TO SAY THAT IN APPRECIATION, WE, NONE OF US WORK SORT OF IN A VACUUM WITH THIS. 
          THIS IS SOMETHING, AND, AND I'M SURE THAT TAHA WILL SAY THIS, BUT CERTAINLY THE INCREDIBLE WORK THAT ALL OF THE DEPARTMENTS DID IN TRYING TO, IN SUPPORTING THE, THE PRODUCTION OF THIS BUDGET THIS YEAR. 
          YES. 
          I WANNA NOTE THIS IS A NEW BUDGET FORMAT, WHICH WE HEARD ABOUT IN OUR LAST MEETING. 
          IT, UM, I, I DO THINK, YES, IT, IT MAINTAINS A LOT OF THE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES AND THE TOTALS, WHICH I THINK ARE CRITICALLY IMPORTANT FOR US TO UNDERSTAND. 
          YEP. 
          THANK, THANK, THANK YOU FOR NOTING THAT. 
          I JUST WANTED TO ALSO SAY THAT IT IS AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF WORK FOR A TEAM TO PUT IN A NEW SYSTEM WHILE TRYING TO GET A BUDGET OUT. 
          AND, AND ACTUALLY THEY WORKED ALMOST TWO YEARS ON THIS PROJECT, WE'RE ACTUALLY STARTING SOME OF THE PARALLEL WORK WHEN WE WERE, UH, CREATING THE FY 26 BUDGET. 
          SO INCREDIBLE. 
          SHOUT OUT TO TAHA AND HIS TEAM FOR, FOR PULLING THIS OUT, PULLING THIS OFF THIS YEAR. 
          YEP. 
          AND IT, IT'S JUST IMPORTANT TO NOTE, IT'S THE MISSION STATEMENT DESCRIPTION, ACCOMPLISHMENTS, SOME WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE GETTING THERE WHERE ALL OF THE DEPARTMENTS HAVE SMART GOALS, BUT AT LEAST THEY'RE, THEY'RE MOVING TOWARDS ALMOST ALL OF THEM AS SOME PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES. 
          AND THIS IS A DEPARTMENT THAT APPEARS TO HAVE REDUCED ITS BUDGET BY 3.4%. 
          SO I'M ACKNOWLEDGING THAT MORE THAN HIT THE TARGET FOR THIS DEPARTMENT. 
          UH, COUNCILLOR ZZI AND THEN COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN. 
          UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          A AGAIN, I APPLAUD YOU FOR THE, THE PRESENTATION AND JUST THE TRANSPARENCY WITH WHICH WITH YOU, YOU, YOU SHARED, THERE'S SO MUCH INFORMATION THAT YOU SHARED WITH US, NOT ONLY THE BUDGET BOOK, BUT ALSO WE HAD A, UM, A FLASH DRIVE, RIGHT? SO IF WE WANTED MORE, WE HAD, WE HAD MORE. 
          SO I REALLY APPRECIATED THAT. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          UM, I WANTED TO ASK SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT HEALTH INSURANCE. 
          I KNOW WE'RE SELF-FUNDED CITY, SO IS IT THE HEALTH CLAIMS TRUST FUND? UM, WE'RE, WE'RE DEDICATING 8.25 MILLION TO THAT IN FISCAL YEAR 27. 
          SO IS THAT JUST FUNDED THROUGH GENERAL OPERATIONS? UM, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. 
          SO OUR, OUR HEALTH CLAIMS TRUST IS ACTUALLY, UM, A, A A AN ACCOUNT, A A FUND WITHIN THE 
          [01:50:01]
CITY OF CAMBRIDGE, IN WHICH WHEN EMPLOYEES, WHEN WE, UM, EMPLOYEES ALL CONTRIBUTE TO THE COST OF THEIR HEALTH INSURANCE AND THEIR, UM, CONTRIBUTIONS, I THINK, UH, I THINK PERHAPS RANGE, I DON'T KNOW THE FULL RANGE, BUT DEPENDING ON THE, THE UNION AND VARIOUS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS, I THINK RANGE ANYWHERE FROM, UM, MAYBE 18% TO 25%. 
          AND SO, UM, WHEN THEY MAKE THOSE CONTRIBUTIONS EACH WEEK IN THEIR PAYCHECK, THOSE CONTRIBUTIONS ACTUALLY GO INTO THE HAM HEALTH CLAIMS TRUST, UH, WHICH IS, I THINK CURRENTLY AT AROUND, WHAT DID WE SAY, ABOUT $40 MILLION MM-HMM . 
          UM, AND SO, UM, BUT EACH YEAR WE TAKE A TRANSFER FROM THE HEALTH CLAIMS TRUST AS A REVENUE SOURCE TO THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET OF ABOUT EIGHT. 
          THIS, THIS IN FY 27 WILL BE 18 MILLION, TWO 50 OR 2 75, UM, AS, AS, AS PART OF HOW WE FUND, UM, THE HEALTH, UM, COSTS IN THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET FOR FY 27. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT. 
          AND I JUST, I WASN'T CLEAR, UM, IN THE, IN THE BOOK IT SAYS THAT THE ASSUMPTION IS THAT HEALTHCARE COSTS WILL INCREASE ANNUALLY BY 10%, OR, OR IT SAYS THEY WILL INCREASE BY 10% FROM FISCAL YEAR 28 TO 31. 
          IS THAT ANNUALLY, OR IS THAT OVERALL? I THINK AT THIS POINT IT IS OUR PROJECTION ANNUALLY, UH, IN EACH OF THOSE YEARS, UM, JUST BASED ON, UM, SOME OF OUR EXPERIENCES AND WHAT WE'RE SEEING CURRENTLY, YOU KNOW, IN THE ENVIRONMENT. 
          AND IN FACT IS, IS WHAT WE HAVE IN OUR FY 27 BUDGET FOR OUR HEALTH INSURANCE COSTS. 
          AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS JUST OUR, YOU KNOW, WORK OF TRYING TO MAINTAIN A FIVE YEAR OUTLOOK, UM, ON OUR FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS. 
          SO EACH YEAR WE DO UPDATE THOSE PROJECTIONS BASED ON, UM, YOU KNOW, MORE CURRENT INFORMATION. 
          AND SO, YOU KNOW, OUR MOST RELEVANT YEAR IS GOING TO BE FY 27. 
          UM, BUT WE DO, UH, YOU KNOW, MAINTAIN FOR, FOR OUR ENTIRE BUDGET A FIVE YEAR PROJECTION WITH A NUMBER OF, UH, ASSUMPTIONS. 
          YOU KNOW, I'M, I'M HAPPY TO CONTINUE THIS, BUT ISN'T THIS ON EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, NOT FINANCE, ADMINISTRATION? LEADERSHIP? I THINK THIS IS A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY. 
          OKAY. 
          ACTUALLY BETWEEN, BETWEEN THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT OKAY. 
          AND THE HR DEPARTMENT ACTUALLY IN THE PROJECTIONS AND THE BUDGETING OF IT, I THINK THIS, YOU KNOW, GOES BACK TO A TIME WHEN HR ACTUALLY REPORTED INTO THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT. 
          SO WE'VE, WE'VE, WE'VE MAINTAINED THAT SHARED RESPONSIBILITY. 
          OKAY. 
          IT'S, IT'S FINE. 
          I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE ALL IN SYN. 
          YOU CAN CONTINUE. 
          COUNCILOR SUZI. 
          UH, ANYWAY, THAT'S REALLY ALARMING THAT HEALTHCARE COSTS WILL CON YOU. 
          YOU THINK THAT HEALTHCARE CARE COSTS MAY CONTINUE TO INCREASE BY 10% BECAUSE I THINK OUR, UM, THE, THE BENEFITS LIKE WHAT WE, WE PAY FOR SALARIES AND THEN THE BENEFIT COSTS, WHICH INCLUDE HEALTHCARE, UM, AND DENTAL INSURANCE ARE LIKE ABOUT 25% MORE, RIGHT? FOR EACH JOB. 
          E EVERY, UM, STAFF POSITION WE HAVE WHERE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE SALARIES ARE LISTED IN, IN THE BUDGET BOOK, BUT THE IT PENSION AND INSURANCE COSTS AREN'T INCLUDED HERE. 
          SO IT'S IMPORTANT. 
          THAT'S A, THAT'S A BIG NUMBER, SO IT'S ONLY GONNA BE GROWING. 
          SO YEAH, WE'VE GOTTA FIX OUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEM, UM, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. 
          SO I, I WANTED TO ASK, UM, SO SALARY AND WAGES ARE PROJECTED TO CONTINUE TO GROW ANNUALLY THROUGH FISCAL YEAR 31, AND ESPECIALLY WITH GROWING HEALTHCARE AND BENEFIT COSTS. 
          UM, IS THAT PRUDENT? IS IF WE PREDICT WE'RE GONNA HAVE LESS INCOME OVER THE NEXT COMING YEARS, MANY OF OUR COST INCREASES, RIGHT? ARE CONTRACTUAL COST INCREASES. 
          UM, SO IN OUR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT, WE HAVE COST OF LIVING, UM, UH, AGREEMENTS WITH, UM, AND THE VAST MAJORITY OF OUR EMPLOYEES DO BELONG TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS. 
          I THINK IT'S SOMEWHERE BETWEEN, YOU KNOW, UM, 75 AND 80%, UM, PERHAPS CLOSER TO 80. 
          UM, AND SO THOSE ARE CON CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENTS. 
          UM, AS WELL, YOU KNOW, WE ARE, YOU KNOW, RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING HEALTH INSURANCE TO OUR EMPLOYEES, UH, AS WELL AS, YOU KNOW, OUR REQUIREMENTS TO, UM, YOU KNOW, CONTINUE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM, UH, WITH A PLAN TO BE FULLY FUNDED, UH, OF OUR ACTUARIAL LIABILITY BY FY 29. 
          BUT WE WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE AN ANNUAL COST, UM, OF THE, UH, PENSION SYSTEM WHEN WE'RE FULLY FUNDED. 
          IT DOESN'T BRING OUR COST TO ZERO, IT JUST REDUCES OUR COSTS SIGNIFICANTLY ONCE WE'VE, WE HIT THAT FULLY FUNDED MARK. 
          YES. 
          UM, 
          [01:55:01]
THANK YOU. 
          AND I KNOW, UM, I FEEL LIKE YOU'VE DONE A, UM, THE CITY'S DONE A GREAT JOB OF CUTTING, UH, REDUCING OUR, I KNOW WE GREW OUR BUDGET, BUT WE WERE ASKING ALL DEPARTMENTS TO CUT OUT, CUT 2.1% THIS YEAR, BUT I, I CONTINUE TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT, UM, OUR SALARIES AND WAGES GROWING AS WE HAVE LESS INCOME. 
          I, I UNDERSTAND YOUR ANSWER. 
          UM, UH, BUT I, I THINK WE'VE GOTTA BE REALLY CAREFUL ABOUT THAT. 
          'CAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE LESS MONEY, YOU NEED TO SPEND LESS. 
          UM, THANK YOU. 
          AND THEN FINALLY, WITH FOR ORDINARY MAINTENANCE, UM, 1.97 MILLION IS BUDGETED. 
          WHAT WOULD THAT BE FOR? I'M GONNA ASK OUR DEPUTY FINANCE DIRECTOR TO OUTLINE OUR BUDGET, BUT I THINK, UM, A NUMBER OF THINGS PROBABLY INCLUDING YEP. 
          , COST OF BANKING, ET CETERA. 
          I, UH, YES. 
          UM, THE BUDGET THAT'S INCLUDED IN THE ADMIN BUDGET, A GOOD AMOUNT OF IT IS FOR THE CENTRAL SQUARE BID. 
          UM, WE HAVE A FEW, UH, OR THEIR PROGRAMS, UH, ROLLING THROUGH THIS BUDGET SO THAT WE CAN TRACK THEM ALL IN ONE PLACE. 
          SO THERE'S ABOUT $786,000 WORTH OF, UM, BUDGET IN THERE. 
          UM, WE ALSO HAVE A BANKING CONTRACT, UM, THAT WE HAVE TO, UM, WE, UM, RENEW EVERY THREE YEARS. 
          SO THAT WILL BE COMING UP NEXT YEAR FOR A RENEWAL. 
          BUT THOSE COSTS ARE INCLUDED ALSO. 
          WHAT, WHAT WOULD BE A BANKING CONTRACT? AND I KNOW THERE'S ALSO LIKE $500,000 TO, TO GET OUR AAA RATING. 
          I KNOW YOU DO A, YOU DO A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK. 
          UM, SO I THINK THAT WAS ANOTHER COST THAT WAS, THAT MUST BE PART OF ORDINARY MAINTENANCE. 
          BUT WHAT IS, WHAT IS THE BANKING CONTRACT? WELL, WE HAVE A, WE HAVE TO GO OUT TO BID EVERY THREE YEARS TO HAVE A BANKING FOR OUR BANKING SERVICES. 
          SO CURRENTLY WE HAVE EASTERN BANK WHO IS ONE WI BID. 
          UM, SO THAT INCLUDES ALL OF OUR SERVICES, PAYROLLS, VENDOR PAYMENTS, EVERYTHING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I'D NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT THAT PART OF YOUR JOB. 
          THANK YOU. 
          MM-HMM. 
          OTHER COUNCIL MCGOVERN? NO, I THROUGH YOU. 
          I JUST WANTED TO SAY, UM, THANK YOU FOR, FOR THIS AND ALL THE PROGRESS. 
          I THINK MS. SPINNER, YOU PROBABLY REMEMBER THAT, UM, NOT TOO LONG AGO, OUR BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENT WAS GETTING THE BUDGET ALL ON THE SAME COLOR PAPER, . 
          IT USED TO BE DIFFERENT COLOR PAPER AND IT WAS REALLY CONFUSING. 
          AND THAT WAS LIKE OUR HIGHLIGHT AND COUNSELOR KELLY WITH HIS, THE BUDGET NEEDS TO TELL A STORY. 
          UM, I THINK WE'VE GOTTEN THERE, UM, THROUGH ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK, AND I JUST WANNA, UH, APPRECIATE YOU. 
          THANK YOU, ALL OF YOU. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR THIS DEPARTMENT? BUDGET ON FINANCE ADMINISTRATION? I DON'T SEE ANY, SO I MOVE A COUNCILOR ZUBIE MOVES THE FINANCE ADMINISTRATION LEADERSHIP BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBIE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCIL OF FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS IS ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SIX MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND THREE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          WE ARE ONTO AUDITING DEPARTMENT. 
          THIS IS ON PAGE 226 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          THERE IS A BUDGET OF $1.1 MILLION PROJECTED. 
          IT DOES NOT REPRESENT THE 2% DECREASE. 
          SO WE COULD ASK ABOUT THAT IN THE, THE, I KNOW OUR AUDITOR'S RIGHT HERE. 
          UM, AND I HAD POSED A QUESTION, SO I'LL START WITH ME UNLESS SOMEONE ELSE HAS A QUESTION, WHICH IS BASICALLY TO EXPLAIN THE FULL-TIME POSITIONS GOING FROM EIGHT TO NINE. 
          IS THAT INCORPORATING PART-TIME BUDGETS, UH, PART-TIME PEOPLE OR SOMETHING ELSE? JOE, UH, TO YOU, IF YOU DON'T MIND. 
          I THINK I'LL ANSWER BOTH QUESTIONS ACTUALLY. 
          UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AS WE TALKED ABOUT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A NEW BUDGET SYSTEM EVERY TIME THERE, EVERY NOW AND THEN THERE ARE HICCUPS AND THERE ARE HICCUPS ACTUALLY EVERY YEAR. 
          SO I THINK, UM, WHAT WE KNOW, AND, AND, AND TAHA AND I HAVE DISCUSSED THIS, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, LAST YEAR THERE WAS AN INADVERTENT DROPPING OF A 
          [02:00:01]
POSITION, UH, IN THE AUDITING DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, AND THAT WAS JUST, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE'RE TRYING TO PUT TOGETHER SUCH A LARGE BUDGET EACH YEAR, SOMETIMES A MISTAKE CAN HAPPEN. 
          AND THEN THIS YEAR, UM, UM, SORT OF WE FIX THAT MISTAKE OF, UH, SO THERE'S BEEN NO ACTUAL CHANGE IN THE STAFFING IN THE DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, BUT THE, UH, POSITION COUNT JUST GOT, UM, SORT OF, UH, OFF LAST YEAR AND, UH, SO THAT THE INCREASE THIS YEAR IS REALLY JUST TO, UH, FIX THAT MISTAKE. 
          THANKS. 
          AND IT WAS OFF THE YEAR BEFORE ALSO. 
          WELL, UH, THE FFY 25, IF YOU WERE TO LOOK AT THE FY 25 BUDGET, YOU WOULD ACTUALLY SEE THE NUMBER NINE THERE. 
          AND SO FY 25, THE ADOPTED BUDGET WAS NINE FY 26, WHICH IS WHEN ACTUALLY THE ORIGINAL MISTAKE MADE WAS MADE IT IN THE ADOPTED BUDGET WAS EIGHT. 
          AND NOW WE ARE, UH, BRINGING FY 27 BACK TO, UH, WHAT IS INTENDED TO BE THERE. 
          AND I THINK PART OF THE ISSUE IN THE NEW SYSTEM WAS, I'M NOT SURE WHY FY 25 GOT RESTATED TO EIGHT, BUT I THINK YOU CAN GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE ADOPTED FY 25 BUDGET AND YOU WILL SEE NINE, ALTHOUGH THE ACTUAL SHOWS EIGHT IN THE BUDGET BOOK, WHICH IS WHY I ASKED. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL, THE ACTUAL IS TYPICALLY ARE ADOPTED. 
          WE DON'T REALLY HAVE A WAY OTHER TO, TO CHANGE THAT ACTUAL, SO, OKAY. 
          SO WE SHOULD JUST, I, I THINK WE'RE JUST SAYING THAT UNFORTUNATELY, AND, AND PROBABLY WE SHOULD HAVE WRITTEN TO YOU AND, AND NOT NEEDED TO HAVE THE CONVERSATION. 
          YEAH, I, I APOLOGIZE THAT WE DIDN'T DO THAT. 
          YEAH, WELL IT JUST, WHEN YOU SEE EIGHT, EIGHT AND THEN NINE, IT'S NOT, NOT SOMETHING AGREED. 
          AND ANY RATIONALE FOR NOT HAVING THE 2% REDUCTION? UH, YES. 
          I THINK AS YOU NOTED THAT THE, UH, FINANCE ADMIN TOOK A, A LARGER THAN 2.1%. 
          AND SO 3.4. 
          3.4, YES. 
          SO WHAT WE REALLY DID HERE WAS GIVEN THE FACT THAT WE REALLY KIND OF, YOU KNOW, AS THERE MANY OF THESE DEPARTMENTS REALLY FALL UNDER FINANCE ADMINISTRATION, SO BUDGET ASSESSING, AUDITING, FINANCE, ADMIN, WE CAME TOGETHER AND TRIED TO FIND, UH, THE SAVINGS ACROSS THE, THE ENTIRE AREA BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, UM, THE AUDITOR'S DEPARTMENT IS QUITE SMALL AND HE DOESN'T REALLY HAVE A LOT OF EXCESS. 
          AND SO WE WERE ABLE TO SORT OF COLLECTIVELY, UH, FIND THAT 2.1% AND MOST OF IT CAME OUT OF THE FINANCE ADMIN BUDGET. 
          GREAT. 
          THANKS. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          YES. 
          ALTHOUGH AUDITING TECHNICALLY REPORTS TO THE CITY COUNCIL, NOT THE FINANCE. 
          SO IT'S A, IT IS TRUE, BUT WE ARE DIFFERENT RELATIONSHIP. 
          WE HAVE TO BE SUCH CLOSE COLLABORATORS BECAUSE TOTALLY MUCH OF WHAT JOE DOES ALSO IS SOMETHING THAT COMES UNDER MY RESPONSIBILITY, RIGHT. 
          IN TERMS OF FINANCIAL REPORTING. 
          SO WE WORK VERY CLOSELY TOGETHER. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          WELL, THAT WAS MY ONLY QUESTION. 
          ANYONE ELSE HAVE A QUESTION FOR AUDITING WITH THAT, THEN I MOVE THE AUDITING DEPARTMENT, UH, BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBIE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE AND TWO RECORDED AS ABSENT. 
          EXCELLENT. 
          WE'RE NOW ONTO ANOTHER PART OF THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT. 
          THE BUDGET DEPARTMENT, WHICH IS LISTED AS 823,000. 
          SAME NUMBER OF FTES, A SLIGHT REDUCTION FROM, I DUNNO IF IT'S, I DIDN'T CALCULATE WHETHER IT'S 2%, BUT, UM, THIS IS OKAY. 
          UM, I HAD A COUPLE QUESTIONS, I THINK, WHICH I SENT IN ADVANCE. 
          UM, SO I'LL START WITH THOSE UNLESS SOMEONE ELSE HAS QUESTIONS. 
          THE, UM, CURIOUS ABOUT, WE HAD, UH, THIS WAS THE A YEAR WHEN WE HAD COMMUNITY BUDGET WALKTHROUGHS. 
          UM, SO WHAT, WHAT'S THE GOAL ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE EVENTS OR PLANNING FOR FUTURE EVENTS AND RELATED TO HOW IT, YOU KNOW, AFFECTED EITHER THE BUDGET DEVELOPMENT OR THE FINANCE? THANK YOU. 
          AND THROUGH YOU, MADAM CO-CHAIR. 
          UM, YEAH, SO THOSE, WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO PUT ON TWO COMMUNITY BUDGET WALKTHROUGHS AND TENDED TO INTRODUCE OR HELP INTRODUCE THE BUDGET PROCESS, UH, TO INTERESTED RESIDENTS AND HOW, UH, THE BUDGET IS TIED TO COUNCIL AND CITY PRIORITIES AND WHAT OPPORTUNITIES THERE WOULD BE TO WEIGH IN. 
          WE, THESE WERE THE FIRST TIME THAT WE WERE REALLY DOING THIS THROUGH THE BUDGET OFFICE AND KIND OF LOOKED AT IT AS A PILOT AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, GET SOME FEEDBACK AND LEARN, YOU KNOW, FROM THE PARTICIPANTS ABOUT WHAT WAS USEFUL, UM, AND HOW WE CAN IMPROVE IT INTO THE FUTURE. 
          I WOULD LIKE TO ALSO 
          [02:05:01]
ASK OUR PARTICIPATORY BUDGETING AND ENGAGEMENT COORDINATOR, MELISSA LOU, TO COME SPEAK TO THAT A LITTLE BIT AND, AND HOW WE SEE THE NEXT PHASE OF THOSE HAPPENING. 
          YES, THANK YOU, TAHA THROUGH YOU, MADAME CHAIR. 
          UM, MY NAME IS MELISSA LIU. 
          I'M THE PBN ENGAGEMENT COORDINATOR WITH THE CITY'S BUDGET OFFICE. 
          AND, UM, LIKE TAHA MENTIONED, THE INTENTION OF THESE EVENTS WAS REALLY KIND OF A FIRST TIME CHANCE FOR US TO GET A SENSE, NOT ONLY WHAT KIND OF AN EVENT WORKED, BUT WHAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY EVEN WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THE BUDGET. 
          I THINK THAT'S STILL KIND OF AN OPEN QUESTION. 
          UM, SO THIS WAS JUST A REALLY GOOD CHANCE FOR US TO, UM, GATHER A LOT OF OPEN-ENDED FEEDBACK FROM THE PARTICIPANTS THAT ATTENDED. 
          YOU KNOW, DID THEY FEEL LIKE THE CONTENT AND THE LEVEL AND THE COMPLEXITY AND THE DEPTH THAT WE WENT OVER WITH THE BUDGET WAS ACTUALLY APPROPRIATE? UM, SO WE GOT SOME REALLY GREAT, UM, LIKE HOLISTIC FEEDBACK ON THAT FRONT. 
          UM, AND I KNOW YOU ASKED ABOUT, UM, SMART GOALS IN TERMS OF METRICS FROM THIS EVENT. 
          UM, WE HAD TWO SURVEYS THAT WE IMPLEMENTED BOTH AN ENTRY SURVEY AND AN EXIT SURVEY WITH THE INTENT OF TRYING TO CAPTURE WHAT FOLKS WERE EXPECTING FROM THE EVENT AND THEN WHAT THEY'RE HOPING, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEY ACTUALLY EXPERIENCED AND HOW THEY FELT WHEN THEY LEFT. 
          UM, AND OUR ENTRY SURVEY KIND OF, YOU KNOW, IT GAVE US GREAT INFORMATION ABOUT, UM, OUTREACH. 
          THE DAILY UPDATE WAS A VERY COMMON WAY OF LEARNING ABOUT THE EVENT, BUT THAT'S ALSO A LESSON IN THAT PERHAPS FOLKS WHO ARE ALREADY SOMEWHAT TUNED IN WITH THE WAY THE GOVERNMENT WORKS, WE'RE THE ONES WHO CAME. 
          WE CAN PERHAPS REEVALUATE HOW WE DO THAT OUTREACH. 
          AND, UM, IN TERMS OF THE EXIT SURVEY, WE GOT GREAT FEEDBACK IN TERMS OF SATISFACTION. 
          UM, OVER 80% OF THE PARTICIPANTS FELT THAT THEY WERE SATISFIED WITH HOW THE EVENT WENT. 
          UM, AND OVER 88% FELT THAT THEY ACTUALLY BETTER UNDERSTOOD THE BUDGET PROCESS. 
          SO THAT GAVE US REALLY GREAT FEEDBACK IN TERMS OF THE CONTENT, UM, FOR FUTURE PLANNING. 
          I THINK SOME OF THE THINGS WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, UM, ARE THINGS LIKE TIMING, LIKE TIME OF YEAR, AS YOU KNOW, A WEATHER IS A BIT OF A, AN OPPONENT WHEN IT COMES TO PLANNING THESE KINDS OF THINGS AND THINKING ABOUT HOW THIS COULD PERHAPS, MAYBE SLOT AT A DIFFERENT POINT IN THE BUDGET CYCLE, PERHAPS EARLIER. 
          UM, BUT YEAH. 
          THANKS. 
          YES, I DID GO TO THE FIRST ONE AND I AGREE IT'S, THERE'S A LOT OF INTEREST AND YET IT ALSO, I THINK TO, TO FOCUS ON HOW DO WE GET TO OUTREACH. 
          WE ALWAYS TALK ABOUT HOW IT IS THAT WE REACH FOLKS WHO AREN'T ALREADY TUNED IN. 
          UM, 'CAUSE IT'S A REALLY GREAT EFFORT AND I THINK PERHAPS WORKING WITH THE COUNCIL TO SAY HOW WE CAN HELP WITH THAT MIGHT BE REALLY GREAT IN COLLABORATION. 
          THE OTHER QUESTION I HAD, BUT I'M NOT SURE IF THIS MAYBE SHOULD BE CAPITAL BUDGET, UM, WAS THAT THE CITY COUNCIL? KUDOS TO ALL OF US AGAIN FOR STEPPING UP, I THINK, AND UNDERSTANDING THAT IT'S AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR ROLE TO ROLE MODEL. 
          SO WE DID THAT BY, UH, BASICALLY GIVING UP SOME OF THE SPACE THAT THE COUNCIL HAD BEEN USING BECAUSE IT WAS NOT, UH, FULLY UTILIZED. 
          UM, I THINK THAT WAS A REALLY POSITIVE STEP FORWARD. 
          AND MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THAT MAY BE SAVING US MONEY, BUT AGAIN, THIS MAY BE BETTER FOR THE CAPITAL. 
          SO IF THIS IS IN THE WRONG PLACE, I'M HAPPY TO JUST HOLD OFF ON THAT UNTIL NEXT WEEK. 
          UM, UH, TO, UH, CHAIR NOLAN, THIS IS ONE OF THOSE ONES THAT OVERLAPS BOTH AND SO 'CAUSE THE RENT SHOW UP IN THE OPERATING, BUT THE SORT OF LARGER SCALE PLANNING AND SORT OF WHAT ARE WE MAKING THE BIGGER MOVES SHOW UP IN THE CAPITAL. 
          SO I'M HAPPY TO SORT OF TRY TO RESPOND NOW, IF THAT MAKES SENSE. 
          UM, I WOULD SAY A COUPLE THINGS. 
          ONE IS THAT IT'S SUPER HELPFUL IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO HAVE THAT SPACE. 
          AND SO WE DO REALLY APPRECIATE, UM, ALL THE WORK PEOPLE DID TO MAKE THAT WORK. 
          UM, SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK PEOPLE KNOW, AND WE HAD THE, UM, ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION NOT TOO LONG AGO ABOUT OUR OVERALL BUILDING PORTFOLIO, AND I THINK PEOPLE UNDERSTAND SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE'RE FACED WITH IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, SORT OF RIGHT SIZING SPACES FOR PEOPLE. 
          WE HAVE A NUMBER OF SPACES THAT HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY OVER CAPACIT CONTINUED. 
          UM, AND SO BRINGING ON 6 89 MASS S WAS A BIG PART IN SORT OF AN IMMEDIATE PART OF SORT OF, UM, DEPOPULATING SOME OF THESE BUILDING SPACES. 
          SO THAT'S ONE BIG MOVE. 
          AND THEN AGAIN, THE ADDITIONAL SPACE AT CITY HALL IS REALLY HELPFUL. 
          UM, AND WHAT WE'RE SEEING, YOU KNOW, WE'VE MOVED FOLKS INTO THAT. 
          WE HAVE ABOUT SIX PEOPLE THAT ARE IN THAT SPACE THAT IS VERY APPRECIATIVE, UM, IN TERMS OF, AGAIN, UM, PROVIDING PEOPLE BETTER SPACES AND BEING ABLE TO HAVE FOLKS THAT, YOU KNOW, ARE IN THE OFFICE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT, BE ABLE TO USE THAT SPACE. 
          SO THAT'S REALLY HELPFUL. 
          UM, SOME OF THE OTHER SPACES IN CITY HALL THAT ARE UNDERUTILIZED RIGHT NOW, UM, WILL BE USED IN THE IMMEDIATE TERM FOR SWING SPACE. 
          SO WE'RE GONNA BE DOING SOME CARPETING AND OTHER SORT OF IMPROVEMENTS IN SOME OF THE OTHER AREAS OF CITY HALL. 
          AND SO WE'LL USE THOSE SPACES AS SWING SPACES FOR FOLKS. 
          UM, AND THEN AS WE TALKED ABOUT AT THE ROUND TABLE, AND THIS IS WHERE IT SORT OF FLIPS OVER TO THE CAPITAL SIDE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE REALLY CONTINUING TO LOOK AT ALL 
          [02:10:01]
OF OUR OFFICE SPACES AND UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE 10, 15 YEAR PLAN FOR, UM, CITY OFFICE SPACES WITH, YOU KNOW, KEEPING IN MIND, YOU KNOW, PROVIDING QUALITY SPACES FOR EMPLOYEES THAT REALLY HELP THEM DO THE WORK. 
          ALSO THINKING ABOUT WHAT'S THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AS THEY'RE COMING IN AND TRYING TO DO BUSINESS WITH THE CITY. 
          UM, AND THEN ALSO THINKING ABOUT OUR VERY ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE THINK ABOUT 51 INMAN IS A VERY OVER-CAPACITY SPACE IN A BUILDING THAT IS NOT IN GREAT SHAPE. 
          AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE LEVEL OF INVESTMENT WE SHOULD MAKE IN THAT BUILDING OR SHOULD WE BE THINKING ABOUT SORT OF LARGER MOVES? AND SO THOSE ARE ALL THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. 
          UM, IN TERMS OF IMMEDIATE SAVINGS, YOU KNOW, MOST OF THE RENTAL PROPERTIES THAT THE CITY, UM, IS UTILIZING ARE REALLY FOCUSED ON OPERATING SPACES. 
          SO WE THINK ABOUT THE MOONEY STREET PROPERTY. 
          WE ALSO HAVE SPACE OUT IN ELWAY FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND POLICE DEPARTMENT. 
          THE MAJORITY OF THOSE ARE REALLY FOR OPERATIONAL SPACES. 
          AND AGAIN, WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SOME OF THOSE MOVES AT THE CAPITOL, UM, THE BUILDING PORTFOLIO, ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION. 
          AND SO WE'RE CONTINUE TO WORK ON THOSE. 
          AND AGAIN, WE WOULD ANTICIPATE COMING BACK TO COUNCIL WITH SORT OF A MUCH LARGE, MORE DETAILED PLAN SORT OF LATER IN THE YEAR SO THAT WE COULD REALLY CONTINUE THOSE CONVERSATIONS. 
          SO HOPEFULLY THAT IS A HELPFUL RESPONSE, BUT HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS ON THAT. 
          YEAH, NO, IT IS HELPFUL. 
          SPACE IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO PRODUCTIVITY, TO EMPLOYEE ACTUALLY GETTING WORK DONE. 
          I ALSO KNOW THIS COUNCIL TALKED ABOUT, NOW THAT WE HAVE THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, THERE WAS A REAL ISSUE OF CAN WE BRING THEM ALL TOGETHER? DO WE EVEN HAVE THE, THE SPACE FOR THAT? THAT'S THE KIND OF QUESTION YOU'RE ALL ADDRESSING, WHICH I THINK IS IMPORTANT FOR US. 
          IT HAS BOTH A BUDGET IMPLICATION, BUT ALSO A, UM, UH, AN EMPLOYEE BEING, BEING ABLE TO GET THE WORK DONE. 
          AND I CERTAINLY KNOW THOSE OF US WHO SPENT YEARS WONDERING WHY WE CONTINUED TO RENT THE THORNDYKE STREET PLACE FOR THE HEADQUARTERS OF THIS PREEMINENT REALLY EXPENSIVE DISTRICT. 
          AND THERE WAS LIKE PAINT DRIPPING DOWN OFF THE CEILINGS PRETTY MUCH EVERY TIME YOU WENT IN THERE. 
          THE NEW SPACE OF THAT IS PHENOMENAL AND I THINK IS, IS A TESTAMENT TO THAT'S THE KIND OF SPACE WE SHOULD BE PROVIDING. 
          UM, SOMETIMES WE MAY HAVE GONE OVERBOARD ON, ON ON SOME OF IT, AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT BEFORE. 
          WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THE PLATINUM LEVEL FINISHES, BUT THE BRONZE, AND ALSO SHE'S NOT HERE, BUT ON THE CITY COUNCIL SPACES. 
          I WANNA GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO NAOMI WHO WORKED HARD TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT TRANSITION WOULD WORK. 
          AND I KNOW IT WAS, IT WAS SOMETHING WE ALL COMMITTED TO, BUT NAOMI REALLY MADE IT HAPPEN. 
          SO THANKS FOR THAT. 
          UH, THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS RELATED TO THIS ITEM. 
          I'M NOT SURE IF OTHERS HAVE, UH, MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          I WANTED TO JUST GO BACK. 
          IS IT OKAY IF I GO BACK TO THE COMMUNITY BUDGET REALLY QUICKLY? SURE. 
          UH, WALKTHROUGHS, UM, ONE THOUGHT I HAD WAS I THINK WOULD, AS ANOTHER AREA OF FEEDBACK WOULD TO HAVE THE CAMBRIDGE POLICE DEPARTMENT BE A PART OF THIS NEXT YEAR. 
          I WENT TO, UM, YOU KNOW, MY OFFICE WAS AT BOTH EVENTS AND, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THE POLICE DEPARTMENT PRESENTED TO THE COUNCIL AND THEY SPENT A LOT OF TIME TALKING TO US ABOUT THE DIVISIONS, UM, WITHIN THEIR DEPARTMENT. 
          AND I THINK REFLECTING ON THAT, I THINK IT WOULD'VE BEEN MORE APPROPRIATE, UM, IN THE COMMUNITY SPACES. 
          AND I THINK IT, YOU KNOW, THEN THE MEETING COULD HAVE MAYBE, PERHAPS FLOWED BETTER. 
          AND SO, UM, THAT'S JUST A SUGGESTION THAT I HAD. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER COMMENTS, FEEDBACK QUESTIONS WITH THAT THEN MOVE THE BUDGET DEPARTMENT FORWARD TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          AUDITING? NO, WE'RE ON BUDGET. 
          OH, WE'RE ON AUDITING. 
          DID WE MOVE AUDITING? I THOUGHT WE ALREADY DID. 
          AUDITING. 
          DID ALL RIGHT. 
          WE DID. 
          ASSESSING LAST. 
          WE'RE ON AUDITING. 
          NO, WE DIDN'T. 
          WE THAT WAS AUDITING. 
          NOT ASSESSING. 
          WE DIDN'T, WE PULLED, WE PULLED AUDITING, ASSESSING AT THE VERY BEGINNING. 
          OKAY, SO THIS IS THE BUDGET DEPARTMENT DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBE. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR ZE. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNSELOR MCGOVERN. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNSELOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE AND TWO RECORDED AS ABSENT. 
          THAT'S I ALREADY, THAT'S WHY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          WE'RE MOVING ALONG. 
          WE ARE NOW AN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT, WHICH IS ON PAGE 229 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          LOOK, A TINY, TINY LITTLE THING THAT MATTERS IS LAST YEAR EVERY DEPARTMENT WAS SECTION TWO 
          [02:15:01]
OR IV DASH 32. 
          THIS ONE IS JUST IN NUMERIC ORDER, WHICH MAKES IT AT LEAST EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO, UM, TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS. 
          WE ARE THIS, UM, IT DEPARTMENT BUDGET IS BEFORE US. 
          THERE ARE, UM, 43 FULL-TIME POSITIONS. 
          THE GRAND TOTAL IS, THIS IS ONE OF THE DEPARTMENTS THAT DID NOT GO DOWN. 
          IT'S A PROPOSED BUDGET OF, UH, $12.8 MILLION. 
          BEFORE I START, THIS IS, I BELIEVE, THE FIRST TIME OUR NEW IT HEAD IS HERE. 
          WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY ANYTHING BEFORE WE GO INTO ANY QUESTIONS? AND YOU WANNA INTRODUCE YOUR, YOUR TEAM CHAIR? UM, MY NAME IS JAY MIKE. 
          SORRY. 
          IF YOU CAN TURN ON THE MIC, JUST PRESS THE BUTTON. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, MY NAME IS JAY FSCO, UH, CIO, AND I'M JOINED BY DEPUTY CIO OF DIGITAL SERVICES, ERIC BELFORT. 
          UM, YES, IT IS MY FIRST, UH, BUDGET HEARING, AND I DO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THE WORK THAT ERIC'S TEAM HAS PUT INTO THE, HIS BUDGET AND ALSO, UH, MIKE DUGAS, WHO IS THE DEPUTY CIO OF, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES AND HIS TEAM AS WELL. 
          UM, IT'S BEEN AN ABSOLUTE DELIGHT TO WORK WITH HIM OVER THE PAST NINE MONTHS. 
          IT'S, UH, BEEN A SHORT TIME, BUT IT'S BEEN, UH, A VERY, UH, A VERY REWARDING EXPERIENCE AND I, I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH THEM HERE. 
          OKAY. 
          I WAS JUST TOLD WHEN YOU ANSWER QUESTIONS, PULL THE MIC WAY CLOSER. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          I BELIEVE MS. STEFAN IS MAKING SURE THAT THAT HAPPENS. 
          UM, I CAN START UNLESS OTHERS WANT TO. 
          'CAUSE I HAD SENT IN A COUPLE QUESTIONS JUST TO REMIND US ALL THIS, ESPECIALLY IN THIS DAY. 
          WE RELY ON IT TO PROVIDE SERVICES ACROSS EVERY SINGLE DEPARTMENT OF THE CITY, PRACTICALLY EVERY SINGLE EMPLOYEE. 
          AND ALSO THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT THREATS THAT THE IT DEPARTMENT COORDINATES TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CITY CAN CONTINUE TO OPERATE. 
          IT IS NO SMALL, UM, THING THAT, THAT MUNICIPALITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY HAVE BEEN, UH, STRUGGLING, I THINK TO KEEP UP WITH IT AND ALSO TO DEAL WITH THE ONGOING, UH, THREATS FROM A RANGE OF, UH, ACTORS THAT ARE SEEKING TO, TO HURT CITIES. 
          SO I'M VERY GRATEFUL FOR THE STAFF WORK. 
          UM, MY QUESTIONS WERE ABOUT THE, THE INCREASE IN THE SOFTWARE LICENSES AND THE RATIONALE FOR IT, WHICH THESE ARE ONES I SENT BEFORE, SO HOPEFULLY YOU, YOU HAD THEM. 
          AND THEN ALSO, THIS IS KIND OF THAT QUESTION FOR HR FINANCE AND IT, BUT WE MIGHT WANNA ADDRESS IT HERE AS THE SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS OF MANY, UH, MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN ORDER TO SHIFT TO A NEW SYSTEM. 
          IF WE COULD TALK SOME ABOUT, I DUNNO IF IT'S APPROPRIATE HERE OR UNDER, UH, THE HR DEPARTMENT, BUT THE, THE, THE BUNDLED QUESTION THAT I HAD FOR EVERYBODY WAS HOW ARE WE ENSURING THAT THAT INITIATIVE IS IN LINE WITH BEST PRACTICE IN TERMS OF TIMING AND COST? SO WE COULD START WITH THE, UM, THE, UH, MAINTENANCE CONTRACTS AND THE LICENSING INCREASES, AND IT'S, IT'S REALLY THREEFOLD. 
          UM, IN TERMS OF WHY THEY HAVE INCREASED, UM, OVER THE LAST DECADE TO MAYBE EVEN A DOZEN YEARS AGO. 
          UH, THERE'S BEEN A, UH, A FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT IN THE WAY THAT, UH, SOFTWARE VENDORS DO BUSINESS. 
          UH, FROM A ONE-TIME LICENSING COST, THAT WAS TYPICALLY CAPITAL THAT WAS AMORTIZED OVER SEVERAL YEARS TO AN ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION COST FOR LICENSING FOR EACH USER, FOR EACH FEATURE, FOR EACH PLATFORM, WHICH IS FULLY OPERATING. 
          AND AS THAT SHIFT OCCURRED, THE OPERATING BUDGETS OBVIOUSLY HAD TO INCREASE TO COVER THAT NEW EXPENSE. 
          AND, UH, I THINK LARGELY THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SEEING. 
          BUT WITH THAT, WE'RE ALSO SEEING THAT, UM, VENDORS ARE BUNDLING NEW FEATURES INTO TIERED LICENSING, SUCH THAT IF YOU HAVE A LICENSE IN A, SAY A TIER ONE THAT GIVES YOU A SET OF FEATURES TO GET NEW TO, UH, FEATURES, YOU HAVE TO JUMP INTO A TIER TWO OR TIER THREE, WHICH IS THEN AN UPLIFT IN PRICING AS WELL. 
          AND THEN, UH, REALLY UNFORTUNATELY, AS WE'VE SEEN WITH THE ECONOMY IN GENERAL, COSTS HAVE INCREASED, UM, MUCH HIGHER THAT ARE AT A MUCH MORE RAPID PACE THAN THEY HAVE IN THE PAST. 
          SO TYPICALLY WE LOOK AT, UM, A THREE TO FIVE OR MAYBE EVEN A 7% INCREASE YEAR OVER YEAR IN OUR SUBSCRIPTION COSTS. 
          WE'RE SEEING SOMEWHERE CLOSE TO BETWEEN EIGHT AND 13%. 
          NOW, BUNDLING THE THREE, UH, ITEMS THAT I JUST MENTIONED TOGETHER IS WHERE REALLY THE, THE BULK OR THE MAJORITY OF OUR INCREASES LIE. 
          UM, THE OTHER CATEGORIES THAT 
          [02:20:01]
MAKE UP THAT THE, UH, THE OPERATING BUDGET HAVE STAYED RELATIVELY FLAT, IT'S, I WOULD SAY AROUND 95% OF THE, UM, THE INCREASES THAT WE'RE SEEING IS IN THE SUBSCRIPTION COST AND THE LICENSING THAT WE JUST, UH, WE JUST DISCUSSED. 
          THANKS TO THAT QUESTION. 
          I THINK WE'VE SEEN IT. 
          IT'S, YOU USED TO BUY THE SOFTWARE AND NOW YOU HAVE TO PAY AN ANNUAL FEE, WHETHER YOU'RE A RESIDENCE OR MUNICIPALITY OR, AND IT'S A TOTAL JUST INCREASING THE PROFITS OF SOFTWARE COMPANIES. 
          SO I UNDERSTAND THAT. 
          AND THEN ON THE OTHER QUESTION, IT LOOKS LIKE A CM SPINNER MIGHT WANNA ADDRESS THIS QUESTION. 
          AGAIN, IT'S, IT'S, IT WILL BE A SIGNIFICANT EXPENSE OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS THE APPROPRIATE TIME TO, TO TALK ABOUT THAT. 
          UH, YES. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. 
          UM, AND YOU KNOW, I DID SEE THAT YOU PUT THE QUESTION, YOU KNOW, THROUGHOUT THE THREE DEPARTMENTS, AND I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, UM, UH, CHIEF PEOPLE OFFICER, UM, UH, RAY CATCHINGS IS ALSO COMING IN PERHAPS TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. 
          YOU KNOW, I THINK AS WE, WE DID PRESENT, UM, SEVERAL WEEKS AGO REALLY ABOUT THIS INVESTMENT, WHICH IS TO BEGIN WITH A SIGNIFICANT CAPITAL INVESTMENT. 
          SO, UM, YOU KNOW, AND SO IT IS PART OF OUR, OUR, UM, PROPOSAL IN THE, UM, PUBLIC INVESTMENT, UM, AREA BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, FIRST WE WILL BE GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS OF, OF IMPLEMENTATION AND, YOU KNOW, AS WE, UM, YOU KNOW, SORT OF DISCUSSED, UH, SEVERAL WEEKS AGO, CURRENTLY WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH A FINANCIAL, UH, NOT A FINANCIAL ADVISOR, A A TECHNOLOGY, UH, ADVISOR, UH, TO HELP US WORK THROUGH THE PROCESS OF REALLY BEING ABLE TO, UM, UH, DETERMINE EXACTLY THE FEATURES AND, UM, THE, UM, THE SYSTEMS THAT MIGHT CLOSELY ALIGN WITH OUR NEXT SYSTEM WHAT WE NEED, BECAUSE IT IS VERY EXPENSIVE. 
          UM, BUT I THINK WHAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT A LOT THAT WE WENT OVER IS THAT, YOU KNOW, OUR CURRENT LEGACY SYSTEM, PEOPLESOFT IS NOT REALLY MEETING THE NEEDS, UH, ESPECIALLY IN THE HR AREA. 
          UM, THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS, UH, THAT THE, UM, BOTH THE HR DEPARTMENT AND ALL DEPARTMENTS THAT HAVE TO INTERACT ON ANY KIND OF, BETWEEN HR AND PAYROLL, SO MUCH PAPER PROCESSES, SO MUCH RISK ASSOCIATED WITH THAT, RIGHT? UH, ALMOST INCALCULABLE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE KINDS OF MISTAKES THAT CAN HAPPEN. 
          SOME OF THAT SAME IS ALSO TRUE ON THE FINANCIAL SIDE. 
          UM, WE HAVE A LOT OF INFORMATION THAT'S VERY HARD FOR US TO CAPTURE AND REPORT ON. 
          UM, DOING FINANCIAL REPORTING IS QUITE DIFFICULT AND TIME CONSUMING AND MANUAL. 
          AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, AS WE MOVE INTO THIS NEXT ERA OF A, OF AN ERP SYSTEM THAT ACTUALLY SUPPORTS WHO WE ARE TODAY, A MUCH MORE COMPLEX ORGANIZATION THAN WE WERE 25 YEARS AGO, MUCH BIGGER, UH, MORE COMPLEX, WE NEED A SYSTEM THAT FITS US. 
          UM, AND, UH, AND, AND IT'S EXPENSIVE, YOU KNOW, BOTH FOR, I THINK AS, AS JAY JUST VERY ARTICULATELY TALKED ABOUT, JUST THE COST OF SYSTEMS ARE SO MUCH MORE. 
          AND SO EVEN ONCE WE GET PAST THIS INITIAL IMPLEMENTATION, THE, THE, THE, UH, 19 MILLION THAT WE HAVE ESTIMATED RIGHT IN OUR CAPITAL PLAN, BECAUSE OF COURSE THIS IS STILL JUST AN ESTIMATE UNTIL WE ACTUALLY GO OUT TO BID AND, AND, AND, AND DETERMINE, FIRST WE GO THROUGH THE PROCESS OF DETERMINING WHAT IS THE SYSTEM THAT, WHAT IS THE TYPE OF SYSTEM WE NEED, AND THEN GO OUT TO BID FOR THAT OR PROCURE IT. 
          WHATEVER OUR PROCUREMENTS, UH, PROCESS IS, WE WON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT IS. 
          WE HOPE THAT THAT IS A HIGH ESTIMATE THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE. 
          BUT GOING FORWARD, ONCE WE ARE IMPLEMENTED AND IT BECOMES PART OF OUR OPERATING BUDGET, IT WILL BE MORE EXPENSIVE THAN PEOPLESOFT JUST BECAUSE IN GENERAL, THESE SYSTEMS ARE MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE. 
          UM, BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF, UM, AND I CAN LET THE IT DEPARTMENT TALK TO SOME OF THE, UM, SORT OF TECHNICAL, UH, UPSIDE AND EFFICIENCIES, YOU KNOW, UM, AS WELL THOUGH, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ADDITIONAL CAPACITY THAT WE'LL HAVE USING THIS SYSTEM. 
          AND I DON'T KNOW, RAY, IF YOU'D LIKE TO ACTUALLY SPEAK FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE. 
          UM, SURE. 
          THANK YOU THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          I, WE, THE WORK WITH THE ERP AGAIN, IS SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA TOUCH, UH, THE ENTIRE ORGANIZATION. 
          A LOT OF THE REALLY STANDARD ATYPICAL THINGS THAT FOLKS HAVE BEEN ASKING FOR FOR YEARS ARE GROUNDED IN US HAVING THIS UPDATED ERP IN TERMS OF THE, HOW WE ARE ALLOWED TO DEPLOY INFORMATION AND HOW PEOPLE ACCESS INFORMATION TO JUST TAKE CONTROL OF THEIR OWN CAREERS IN TERMS OF CAREER PATHS AND ACCESS THE INFORMATION. 
          SO, UM, THIS IS THE STEP THAT WE'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR. 
          IT'S KIND OF BAKED INTO THIS SORT OF LARGER MULTI-YEAR PLAN. 
          AND SO, UM, AGAIN, ALL OF THE ESS AND SEEING YOUR BENEFITS ONLINE AND TIME SHEETS AND ALL THAT STUFF, THIS IS THE CORE OF THAT. 
          [02:25:01]
AND YOU KNOW, AGAIN, IT, IT'S A MULTI-PHASE, MULTI-YEAR PROJECT, BUT THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS NOW. 
          THANKS. 
          I'M NOT QUESTIONING THAT WE DON'T MOVE TO THAT. 
          MY CONCERN AS IN EVERYTHING ELSE OFTEN OR SOMETIMES DEPENDING ON HOW YOU SPEC IT AND HOW YOU DO IT, WE END UP WITH, AS, AS WE KNOW, YOU CAN HAVE THE PLATINUM LEVEL TITANIUM LEVEL, AND YOU CAN ALSO HAVE THE BASIC, AND SOMETIMES SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN IS WHERE YOU NEED TO END UP. 
          SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO ENSURE THIS IS THE MOST COST EFFECTIVE PLAN THAT MEETS OUR NEEDS. 
          AND ALSO PART OF IT WAS, I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE IT MAY TAKE SEVERAL YEARS BEFORE WE GET RID OF THOSE HANDWRITTEN TIME SHEETS, WHICH IS WHAT PEOPLE ACROSS THE CITY HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR YEARS, IS NOT EMBLEMATIC OF WHAT A 21ST CENTURY, HIGHLY RESOURCED CITY SHOULD, SHOULD BE USING. 
          SO MY, MY REQUEST, AND WE'LL CONTINUE POUNDING THIS DRUM TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO, AGAIN, MEET OUR NEEDS, BUT ALSO ENSURE THAT WE ARE DOING IT IN THE MOST COST EFFECTIVE WAY POSSIBLE, ESPECIALLY GIVEN WHERE WE ARE FINANCIALLY. 
          AND YES, IT'S A CAPITAL BUDGET, BUT IT'S NOT JUST THAT YOU NEVER HAVE A SYSTEM THAT IS ONLY CAPITAL, BECAUSE OTHERWISE, AS YOU KNOW, I'M MARRIED TO A SOFTWARE ENGINEER, IF YOU DON'T HAVE A SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE OF THAT IN TRAINING AND IN STAFF COSTS TO RUN IT AND IMPLEMENT IT, THEN YOU ARE NOT GONNA GET THE BENEFIT OF THE SOFTWARE AND THE HARDWARE. 
          SO, SO IT'S ONE OF THOSE THAT CROSSES, CROSSES, I THINK, OPERATING END CAPITAL. 
          UH, JUST TO ADD TO THAT, THIS COST HERE, THIS 19 MILLION, A COST OF FIVE YEARS IS THE FULL COST OF IMPLEMENTATION AS WELL AS, YOU KNOW, DURING THAT TIME, OF COURSE, WE'LL BE PAYING THE SOFTWARE LICENSE, BUT THIS IS ALSO THE COST OF A THIRD PARTY IMPLEMENTER, UH, TO HELP US DO THAT, UH, WORK. 
          IT ALSO IN, UH, IT ALSO INCLUDES SOME COSTS OF BACKFILLING, YOU KNOW, UH, STAFF WITHIN THE, THE, THE DEPARTMENTS BECAUSE WHEN, WHEN OUR CURRENT STAFF IS WORKING HARD ON THIS PROJECT, WE STILL NEED SOMEBODY TO RUN THE PAYROLL AND, AND DO BASIC. 
          SO WE, WE ARE EXPECTING THAT THIS IS THE, THE FULL COST OF IMPLEMENTATION. 
          AND THEN OF COURSE, ONCE WE'RE IMPLEMENTED, THERE WILL BE ONGOING, TO YOUR POINT, OPERATING COSTS AND OUR OPERATING COSTS. 
          OUR OPERATING BUDGET WILL INCREASE BY VIRTUE OF HAVING PUT IN THIS NEW, MORE ROBUST SYSTEM. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND AS LONG AS WE'RE BENCHMARKING AND, YOU KNOW, COMPARE OURSELVES TO OTHER SIMILAR SIZED CITIES WITH UNIONIZED WORKFORCES, WHICH IS PART OF THE COMPLICATION OF JUST HAVING ONE SYSTEM, AGAIN, EVERYTHING WE CAN DO TO MAKE IT FASTER AND LESS EXPENSIVE WOULD BE GREAT. 
          COUNCILOR UZI, ONE MORE QUICK QUESTION. 
          I'M JUST, AGAIN, LOOKING AT THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES ON PAGE TWO 30. 
          SO WE HAVE AN ANNUAL NIST CYBERSECURITY FRAMEWORK MATURITY SCORE OF 5.3. 
          IS THAT OUT OF SIX? I I WOULD THINK WE WOULD BE PRETTY GOOD. 
          WHAT, WHAT IS THE TOP SCORE YOU COULD GET? YEAH. 
          EXCUSE ME. 
          YES, COUNSEL. 
          THAT'S OUT OF SIX, RIGHT? ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? AND IS SPEAKING OF THAT CYBERSECURITY, IS THERE ANYTHING IN THE FUTURE WE CAN CONSIDER THAT RELATED TO THE BUDGET OF THE THREATS TO CYBERSECURITY? THAT, IF YOU WANNA TALK SOME ABOUT HOW IT IS THAT WE'RE PREPARING FOR THAT? 'CAUSE I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING ON THE MINDS OF A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE CITY, GIVEN A LOT OF THEM HAVE BEEN SUBJECT TO CHALLENGES OR SOME VERSION OF IDENTITY THREAT. 
          WE GET NOTICES EVERY COUPLE MONTHS SAYING, DON'T OPEN THAT EMAIL, OR WE HAVE GUARDS, BUT THE CITY ITSELF IS VULNERABLE. 
          IF I DO SOMETHING THAT I'M NOT SUPPOSED TO, THEN I COULD PUT THE REST OF THE CITY AT RISK. 
          SO IF WE COULD TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW IT IS THAT WE'RE ENSURING THAT AND BUILDING THAT INTO THE BUDGET, AND IF IT'S NOT A, I THINK IT IS A BUDGET QUESTION 'CAUSE IT'S SOMETHING WE'VE PUT RESOURCES BEHIND. 
          UM, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          AND YEAH, SO CYBERSECURITY, WE ARE THE, THE FRAMEWORK THAT, UH, WE JUST DISCUSSED, THAT'S THE, FROM THE, UH, CENTER, UH, CENTER OF INTERNET SECURITY IS THE FRAMEWORK THAT WE USE TO GAUGE OUR, UH, MATURITY LEVEL. 
          NOW WITH THAT SCORE JUST DOESN'T TELL US, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE ARE IN TERMS OF, UM, OUR LEVEL OF MATURITY VERSUS OTHER CITIES OR JUST IN GENERAL. 
          IT ALSO INFORMS OUR INVESTMENTS. 
          SO IF WE ARE FOR, WE SEE THAT WE'RE WEAK, MAYBE POTENTIALLY, OR NOT STRONG ENOUGH IN A CERTAIN AREA OF CYBERSECURITY, FOR EXAMPLE, WE'LL JUST SAY IN, UM, I DUNNO, ASSET MANAGEMENT, I'LL JUST PUT THAT OUT THERE. 
          AND, UH, UH, THAT WE THEN KNOW THAT WE SHOULD INVEST MORE IN THAT PARTICULAR CATEGORY. 
          SO FROM THAT MATURITY SCORE, WE DEEM INVESTMENTS THAT WE NEED TO MAKE TO, UH, HAVE OUR SCORE GET BETTER AND TO BETTER SECURE THE CITY. 
          UM, AS, AS FOLKS KNOW, I AM RELATIVELY NEW AT NINE MONTHS, BUT I AM VERY PLEASED WITH WHAT I'VE SEEN IN TERMS OF THE ROBUST, UM, PROGRAM, THE CYBERSECURITY PROGRAM, THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE HAS, AND THE COMMUNICATION THAT GOES OUT WITH IT. 
          OF COURSE, WE CAN ALWAYS DO BETTER AND WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING TO DO SO, BUT, UM, 
          [02:30:01]
BUT I, I DO THINK THAT WE ARE IN A GOOD PLACE AND, UM, YOU KNOW, FROM, AND WHAT WE, WE DO IS AS WELL AS WE PARTNER WITH OUR, OUR DIFFERENT VENDORS TO MAKE SURE AND UNDERSTAND WHERE THEY ARE FROM A CYBERSECURITY MATURITY PERSPECTIVE THAT INFORMS WHETHER OR NOT WE SHOULD MOVE FORWARD WITH A VENDOR, A PARTICULAR VENDOR, UH, PROCURING, PROCURING A CERTAIN PLATFORM OR A SYSTEM, UM, OR IF THEY'RE EVEN A PLATFORM THAT WE CURRENTLY OWN, WHETHER OR NOT, UM, IT'S KEEPING UP WITH THE, THE NEW THREAT, UH, UH, THREAT ACTORS THAT ARE, THAT ARE OUT THERE. 
          THANKS. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR IT? WITH THAT, WE MOVE, UH, THE IT BUDGET OF 11,654,640 TO THE FULL COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCIL ZUBE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCIL OF FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNSELOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNSELOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED THE AFFIRMATIVE AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE TO CORRECT IT, BUT ON THE SCREEN WAS THE BUDGET FROM LAST YEAR INSTEAD OF THIS CURRENT YEAR? I DON'T THINK THAT MATTERS 'CAUSE WE JUST FORWARDED THE FULL BUDGET. 
          OKAY. 
          WE'RE ON TO CABLE TV, WHICH IS ON PAGE 140 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          OKAY. 
          CABLE TV. 
          THIS IS AGAIN ON PAGE 140. 
          THIS IS, UH, CITY VIEW 22. 
          FULL-TIME POSITIONS ARE UNCHANGED, FIVE FROM, UH, TWO YEARS AGO THIS YEAR AND NEXT YEAR. 
          AND THE BUDGET IS EXPECTED TO BE, OR RECOMMENDED TO BE BASICALLY 1.6 MILLION WITH A SLIGHT DECREASE. 
          THIS WAS, UH, ONE THAT I BELIEVE COUNCILOR SUZI HAD A QUESTION. 
          SO ALTHOUGH WOULD YOU LIKE TO OPEN UP SAY ANYTHING BEFORE WE GO TO QUESTIONS? I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T HEAR YOUR QUESTION. 
          SO WHETHER YOU WANNA INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND SAY ANYTHING BEFORE WE JUST GO TO QUESTIONS. 
          CALVIN LINDSAY WITH THE, UH, DIRECTOR OF THE CABLE TELEVISION. 
          GREAT. 
          WELCOME. 
          WELCOME. 
          NO OTHER, NO OTHER REMARKS, RIGHT TO, NO. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL THEN COUNCILOR SUZI, UH, THANK, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR, UM, BEING HERE TODAY. 
          I, I JUST WANTED TO ASK, UH, YOU HAVE A MILLION DOLLARS IN ORDINARY MAINTENANCE, SO I WONDERED WHAT THAT WAS FOR. 
          AND, UH, AND THEN LATER IN THE, IN THE, IN THE BUDGET BOOK, IT TALKS ABOUT THE NEED FOR NEW COMBINED PLAYBACKS SYSTEM AS PART OF THE 22 CITY VIEW BUDGET. 
          WOULD THAT BE PART OF THE MILLION DOLLAR ORDINARY MAINTENANCE? I, I JUST WANTED TO UNDERSTAND WHY. 
          YEAH, WHY DO YOU NEED A MILLION DOLLARS OF ORDINARY MAINTENANCE EVERY YEAR? ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. 
          UH, THROUGH THE CHAIR. 
          ACTUALLY, THAT MONEY IS THE, UM, CTV CCTVS MONEY THAT IS PARKED THERE IN THAT, UH, THAT LINE OF THE BUDGET. 
          THAT'S NOT FOR MY STAFF. 
          THROUGH, THROUGH YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          SO WHAT, AND SO WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP OF CCTV AND, UH, 22 CITY VIEW, UH, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? UM, SO THERE IS AN AGREEMENT, UH, TO, UH, PROVIDE FUNDING TO CCTV BASED ON THE, UH, UH, LICENSE AGREEMENT COMCAST. 
          SO COMCAST PROVIDES A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF REVENUE TO THE CITY, AND A PORTION OF THAT IS USED FOR TO CONTRACT WITH CCTV. 
          UM, AND SO THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY THE, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT PART THAT OOM BUDGET, IT, IT LIES IN THE CABLE TV DEPARTMENT. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. 
          SO THE NEW COMBINED PLAYBACK SYSTEM IS, IT WOULD BE SOMETHING VERY DIFFERENT. 
          I BELIEVE THAT WOULD, THAT'S MORE OF A CAPITAL ITEM. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER? I'M AFRAID THOSE ARE JUST MY 
          [02:35:01]
QUESTIONS. 
          THANK YOU FOR COMING IN. 
          YOU ARE WELCOME. 
          YEP. 
          COUNCIL ZUBI THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOUR CHAIR, AND HAPPY TO HOLD THIS OFF WHEN WE TALK ABOUT CAPITAL INVESTMENTS. 
          BUT ARE YOU, ARE YOU ABLE TO EXPLAIN A BIT MORE WHAT THE COMBINED PLAYBACK SYSTEM IS? SURE, YES. 
          UH, THROUGH THE CHAIR. 
          SO BASICALLY THE, THERE'S A PLAYBACK SYSTEM THAT IS KIND OF LIKE THE BRAINS OF THE BROADCAST. 
          SO ALL OF THE MEDIA, UH, IS INGESTED INTO THAT SYSTEM, SENT TO COMCAST AND THEN BROADCAST OUT. 
          THE CCTV HAS THE SAME OPERATION. 
          THEIR, UM, BOTH OUR SYSTEM, THEIR SYSTEM ARE IN, ARE GETTING CLOSE. 
          THEY'RE AT END OF LIFE RIGHT NOW. 
          UM, SO WE'VE COME, COME TOGETHER AND DECIDED TO, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT IT'D BE MORE EFFICIENT, COST EFFICIENT, ALL THE WAY AROUND TO HAVE ONE SYSTEM, UM, THAT WILL TAKE CARE OF OUR NEEDS AND CCTVS NEEDS. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ALL YIELD. 
          THANKS. 
          I WILL ADD ONE MORE QUESTION. 
          HOW DO WE ASSESS, UH, LOOKING AT THE VIEWERSHIP? 'CAUSE IT'S BEEN A REALLY GREAT SERVICE. 
          ANYONE WE KNOW, LIKE RIGHT NOW CAN BE LISTENING IN AND, AND HEARING THIS BUDGET, HEARING WE HAVE LOTS OF DIFFERENT MEETINGS THAT ARE COVERED. 
          DO WE HAVE MEASURES OF VIEWERSHIP? AND IF SO, HOW DO WE, UM, UNDERSTAND WHAT'S EITHER OF MOST INTEREST OR HOW IT IS THAT WE CAN ENSURE THAT PEOPLE ARE ABSENT? AND THE WHOLE GOAL OF THE DEPARTMENT AS YOU LAY OUT HERE, IS TO ENSURE THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS ACCESS TO THE RANGE OF PROGRAMMING IN PARTICULAR CITY OPERATIONS. 
          SO, THROUGH YOU CHAIR, UM, IT'S KIND OF A TWO PART QUESTION. 
          I THINK THE, THE, THE FIRST PART OF THAT ANSWER WOULD BE, UM, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE RELY ON THE SURVEYS THAT ARE DONE. 
          UM, BUT I THINK MORE BROADLY WE'VE, AND AND WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING THIS FOR QUITE A WHILE NOW, AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS, YOU KNOW, FROM A VIEWER'S PERSPECTIVE, THERE'S NOT MUCH DIFFERENCE. 
          YOU KNOW, YOU'RE NOT, AS A VIEWER, YOU'RE NOT WORRYING IF YOU ARE WATCHING 22 CITY VIEWERS, CCTV. 
          SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, UH, WE ARE DISCUSSING NOW, WE'RE IN THE VERY EARLY STAGES, IS HOW WE CAN, AND WHERE WE CAN COMBINE A LOT OF THOSE EFFORTS, UM, AND JUST PROVIDE A MUCH BROADER SERVICE TO THE CITIZENS OF CAMBRIDGE, UM, WORKING TOGETHER. 
          SO, BUT AGAIN, WE'RE IN THE VERY EARLY, UM, STAGES OF THAT CONVERSATION, SO THERE'LL CERTAINLY BE MORE TO REPORT. 
          GREAT. 
          I LOOK FORWARD TO THAT. 
          AND I THINK THAT IS A PERFORMANCE MEASURE ALSO TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE'RE BROADENING THE AUDIENCE BEYOND, UH, WHAT IS RIGHT NOW. 
          WE, THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO MEASURE AND UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW, AND THEN HAVE SOME INCREASE. 
          AND CERTAINLY IN THESE DAYS OF INCREASED DRAWS OF ATTENTION ON PEOPLE, ON PEOPLE, IT'S, IT'S GONNA BE EVEN MORE CHALLENGING TO GET THAT. 
          AND YET IT'S A CRITICALLY IMPORTANT PUBLIC SERVICE TO ENSURE THAT PEOPLE DO HAVE ACCESS. 
          YOU KNOW, THERE'S THIS TENSION OF PEOPLE WANT MORE TRANSPARENCY, AND YET THEY ALSO HAVE MANY MORE DEMANDS ON THEIR, UH, EYEBALLS. 
          SO, UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? SEEING NONE, THEN COUNCILOR SUZI MOVES THE CABLE TV BUDGET TO THE FAVOR, TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK. 
          LOOK FORWARD TO THOSE REPORTS AS YOU MOVE FORWARD. 
          ANY DISCUSSION? ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCIL ZUBE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR ZE? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCIL OF FLAHERTY. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCIL MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR EY? UH, YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SIX MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND THREE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          WE ARE MOVING ON TO COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, WHICH IS ON PAGE 146. 
          UH, THE INTENTION HERE, JUST FOR THOSE WHO ARE INTERESTED IN OUR PROGRESS IS THAT AFTER THIS, UM, WE ASSUME IT'LL TAKE 15, 20 MINUTES OR MORE, AND THAT WE'LL BE BREAKING FOR LUNCH AND THEN WE'LL RECONVENE, STARTING WITH THE ELECTION COMMISSION EXECUTIVE AND THE REST OF THE DEPARTMENTS. 
          SO RIGHT NOW, UH, THIS IS AGAIN, PAGE 1 49, NO 1 46 OF THE BOOKS. 
          I KNOW I HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. 
          COUNCILLOR ZU DID. 
          WHO WANTS TO START? I, WE'LL START WITH MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          UM, I'M GLAD TO HAVE YOU HERE. 
          UH, THERE'S BEEN A NUMBER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND THERE'S A LOT OF PLANNED INITIATIVES, UH, COMING UP. 
          UM, I DID HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS AND MY COMPUTER JUST CHOSE TO SHUT DOWN AS I WAS GOING TO LOOK AT THEM, BUT LET ME, UM, TRY TO GET THEM FROM MEMORY. 
          WHAT THERE IS A, A CHARGER THERE. 
          NO, NO, I KNOW. 
          THERE'S, IT'S DOING AN UPDATE. 
           UPDATES UNDERWAY. 
          [02:40:01]
UM, I HAVE, WELL, THANK YOU. 
          MY CHIEF OF STAFF HAS THEM READY. 
          UH, AND SO A FEW QUESTIONS I HAD WERE, UM, I REALLY LIKE THE CIVIC OUTREACH SQUAD. 
          UM, I'VE SEEN THEM AROUND. 
          I AM CURIOUS ABOUT MORE INFORMATION RELATED TO THEIR OPERATING HOURS, THE STRUCTURE, WHEN AND HOW DO THEY GET DEPLOYED? THAT'S MY FIRST QUESTION. 
          GREAT. 
          THANK YOU MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          AND THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, JUST BEFORE I PASS IT OVER TO JACKSON, I JUST WANTED TO TAKE A SECOND AND INTRODUCE WHO I HAVE AT THE TABLE, IF YOU DON'T MIND. 
          UM, TO MY RIGHT IS CRYSTAL ROSA, WHO'S OUR LANGUAGE ACCESS MANAGER. 
          UM, NEXT TO HER IS JACKSON PRICE, WHO'S OUR DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. 
          I'M LEGION EDDIE. 
          AND NEXT TO ME ON MY LEFT IS JEREMY WARNOCK, WHO'S OUR DIRECTOR OF MEDIA RELATIONS AND CONTENT MANAGEMENT. 
          THANK YOU LEE. 
          AND THANK YOU MAYOR SIDIKI FOR THE QUESTION. 
          UH, SO JUST A BIT OF OVERVIEW, 'CAUSE I KNOW THIS WAS A SHARED QUESTION BY SOME FOLKS, BUT THE CIVIC OUTREACH SQUAD IS ALL ABOUT DATA INFORMED, DIRECT ENGAGEMENT. 
          UH, THEIR METHODS INCLUDE DOOR TO DOOR CANVASSING, DROPPING LITERATURE, TALKING TO FOLKS. 
          THEY DO POPUPS IN VARIOUS HIGH TRAFFIC ZONES OF THE CITY, UH, LIKE, UH, T STOPS OR PARKS OR WHATNOT. 
          THEY SUPPORT EVENTS. 
          UH, AND THEY ALSO DO A LOT OF COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS IN THE DAY TO DAY OF THEIR WORK IN, UH, IT WAS A PILOT PROGRAM, AND I'M VERY EXCITED THAT IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE. 
          IN FY 27, UH, IN THE PILOT, THEY SUPPORTED 17 INITIATIVES ACROSS 10 DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS. 
          THEY REACHED, UH, OVER 15,500 PROPERTIES. 
          THEY DISTRIBUTED MORE THAN 16,000 MATERIALS, AND THEY HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH WELL OVER A THOUSAND RESIDENTS ACROSS ALL 13 NEIGHBORHOODS. 
          THEIR HOURS ARE 16 AND A HALF HOURS PER WEEK FOR THE, UH, OUTREACH WORKERS. 
          AND WE HAVE A COORDINATOR WHO, UH, WORKS CLOSER TO 19 HOURS WITH ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE TEAM. 
          THEIR OUTREACH TYPICALLY HAPPENS ON WEEKENDS. 
          THAT'S WHEN FOLKS ARE MORE AVAILABLE FRIDAYS AND SATURDAYS, UH, OUTSIDE OF TYPICAL BUSINESS HOURS. 
          AND, UH, THEY DO SOME PREP WORK BEFORE EACH SHIFT WITH DEPARTMENTS AND PROJECT MANAGERS WHO, UH, THEY'RE GONNA SUPPORT WITH THE OUTREACH FOCUS, UH, THAT WEEKEND BEFORE, UH, I FORGET. 
          I'D LOVE TO JUST THANK THE TEAM, UH, WHO ARE WATCHING ONLINE, UH, VICENTE, TOMMY NA, SOPHIA, WILLIE, AND DANIELA. 
          THEY'VE BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN THE SUCCESS OF THIS PILOT PROGRAM, UH, IN THE LAST, UH, SINCE SEPTEMBER. 
          AND ENSURING THAT THIS WORK AND THEIR COMMITMENT TO REACHING RESIDENTS WHERE THEY'RE AT CONTINUES, UH, BY OFFERING AN ALTERNATIVE MORE OLD SCHOOL METHOD OF OUTREACH AND A COMPLIMENT TO OUR PRETTY ROBUST DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY. 
          THEY'VE DONE THIS IN ALL TYPES OF WEATHER, UH, IN SOME, UH, IN THE HEAT, IN THE RAIN AND EXTREME COLD, AND I'M DEEPLY GRATEFUL FOR THEIR WORK. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THROUGH YOU, THE, UH, CHAIR, THE, I KNOW THAT THERE'S OBJECTIVE AND PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND THE GOALS TO REACH, YOU KNOW, AT LEAST 19,000 PROPERTIES ACROSS THE, OUR NEIGHBORHOODS AND SUPPORTING, UM, 20 INITIATIVES. 
          HOW ARE THE, THESE INITIATIVES CHOSEN THROUGH YOU CHAIR TO MAYOR SIDIKI? UH, MUCH LIKE MANY OF THE SUPPORT SYSTEMS OUR OFFICE PROVIDES, UH, DEPARTMENTS WILL REACH OUT TO US WITH REQUESTS FOR OUTREACH SUPPORT. 
          SO WE ESTABLISH A WORKFLOW WHERE A PROJECT MANAGER AND A SPECIFIC DEPARTMENT, UH, CAN REACH OUT FOR OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT RELATED SUPPORT. 
          WE ASK THEM TO SPECIFY WHAT PROJECT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT, WHAT THEIR PURPOSE AND GOALS FOR THE OUTREACH ARE. 
          WE ASK THEM TO INDICATE ARE THEIR SPECIFIC COMMUNITY MEMBERS OR GROUPS OF COMMUNITIES AND DEMOGRAPHICS THEY'RE HOPING TO REACH. 
          THIS REALLY HELPS INFORM OUR GIS MAPPING APPROACH TO WHERE WE CAN BE MOST IMPACTFUL. 
          UH, EACH REQUEST THAT COMES IN, WE EVALUATE IT MYSELF AND THE LEADS OF THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TEAMS AT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND WE DISCERN WHETHER THE REQUEST IS MOST APPROPRIATELY, UH, FITTING THE SCOPE OF WORK FOR THE CIVIC OUTREACH SQUAD OR THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TEAMS. THE PRIMARY DISTINCTION BEING ONE IS MORE PREDOMINANTLY A STREET TEAM, AND THE OTHER ONE FOCUSES ON COMMUNITIES OF SPECIFIC DEMOGRAPHIC GROUPS LIKE FOLKS WHO SPEAK A LANGUAGE OTHER THAN ENGLISH OR THE AMERICAN BORN BLACK COMMUNITY OR YOUNG PEOPLE, ET CETERA. 
          SO THE WORKFLOWS COME THROUGH DEPARTMENT REQUESTS, AND WE ARE ON HAND TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE, MUCH LIKE A DEPARTMENT WOULD REQUEST LANGUAGE ACCESS SUPPORT OR DESIGN SUPPORT. 
          UH, THAT'S WHERE WE STEP IN TO SUPPORT. 
          [02:45:02]
I THINK YOU, AND JUST ONE FINAL QUESTION RELATED TO THIS, TO CLARIFY THROUGH YOU CHAIR, UH, NOLAN, THE OPERATING HOURS, THE, YOU SAID THE WORKING 16 HOURS EACH, AND THAT WAS IN THE PILOT PHASE. 
          IS THAT GOING TO REMAIN CONSISTENT AS YOU GROW THROUGH YOU CHAIR? YES. 
          UH, THAT, UH, NUMBER OF HOURS WILL BE CONSISTENT MOVING FORWARD INTO FY 27. 
          THAT'S THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF HOURS THEY COULD WORK IN A WEEK. 
          UH, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THAT MANY HOURS EACH WEEK. 
          OKAY. 
          THE NEXT QUESTION I HAD WAS AROUND, UM, THE PA OH, AND INTERNAL COMMS MANAGER POSITIONS, AND WHAT, WHAT'S HAPPENING THERE? SURE. 
          THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, RIGHT NOW WE HAVE TWO VACANCIES IN OUR OFFICE. 
          OUR PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER RETIRED IN SEPTEMBER, AND OUR INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER, UH, MOVED ON TO OTHER OPPORTUNITIES IN NOVEMBER. 
          UM, I'M IN CONVERSATIONS WITH THE MANAGER TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WE ARE GOING TO DO WITH THOSE ROLES. 
          UM, I THINK AS WE ARE IN A TIME OF LOOKING AT OUR BUDGETS, WE'VE BEEN SPENDING TIME TO SEE WHAT IT IS THAT WE REALLY NEED IN THESE ROLES. 
          I'M, I'M GREATLY APPRECIATIVE OF, UH, THE CENTRAL TEAM THAT YOU SEE HERE FOR, UM, ALL OF US ARE PICKING UP THE SLACK OF THESE TWO OTHER ROLES, SO WE'RE NOT ENTIRELY SHORE RIGHT NOW. 
          WE'RE GETTING BY, BUT WE'RE STRETCHED. 
          UM, I KNOW ONE POSITION AT LEAST WE'RE GONNA NEED BECAUSE WE ARE RIGHT UP AGAINST, UM, DEADLINES. 
          AND I FEEL LIKE WE'RE IN A POSITION WHERE WE WERE A FEW YEARS AGO WHERE YOU'RE ABLE TO GET THE WORK DONE, BUT IT'S NOT REALLY DONE TO THE LEVEL YOU WANT IT TO BE. 
          UM, SO IT'S BEEN A REALLY GREAT EXERCISE TO ACTUALLY GO THROUGH BECAUSE I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO SIT THERE AND LOOK AT EACH ROLE AND BE LIKE, WHAT IS IT THAT WE REALLY NEED? SO, UH, MORE TO COME ON WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE DOING, FILLING ON THAT. 
          AND I KNOW WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE BUDGET BOOK, YOU SEE THAT WE ARE UP ONE POSITION AND THAT ONE POSITION IS OUR LANGUAGE ACCESS MANAGER. 
          UM, IN NOVEMBER, WHEN EQUITY AND INCLUSION DID THEIR REORGANIZATION, THE LANGUAGE JUSTICE DIVISION, UH, MOVED OVER INTO OUR OFFICE. 
          UH, SO THAT INCREASE IN THE FTE IS, UH, CRYSTAL COMING IN. 
          AND SIMILARLY, AS YOU LOOK AT, UH, OUR OOM GOING UP HER OOM FROM THE LANGUAGE JUSTICE MOVED OVER FROM THE HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN, UH, COMMISSIONED INTO OUR BUDGET. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THEN DREW, YOU JUST ONE MORE QUESTION. 
          HOW IS, UH, CAPACITY BEING SHIFTED WITH THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MANAGEMENT MOVING OVER? YEAH, SO, UM, I'M REALLY GRATEFUL TO THE WORK OF A BROADER TEAM THAT'S BEEN REALLY TAKING A DEEP DIVE INTO HOW WE ARE STRUCTURING THE MANAGEMENT OF OUR 54 BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT HAVE RIGHT NOW, 545 ACTIVE MEMBERS, UM, SO THAT WE CAN EFFECTIVELY MANAGE THE FULL LIFE CYCLE FROM THE TIME THAT SOMEONE SEES A POSTING AND APPLIES TO ONBOARDING THEM, TO POSTING AGENDAS IN MINUTES TO BEING ABLE TO SUPPORT THEM. 
          SO WE HAVE A NUMBER OF TIERED SUPPORTS. 
          WE HAVE A STEERING COMMITTEE, UM, THAT COMES TOGETHER THAT'S HELPING US WITH THE REALLY BROAD GOALS AS WE LOOK AT OUR DATA SYSTEMS, OUR INFORMATION SYSTEMS, UH, WHAT OUR PROCESSES ARE. 
          SO WE'VE ACTUALLY MAPPED THESE OUT. 
          WE HAVE A WORKING GROUP THAT'S SORT OF DEEPER IN THE DAY-TO-DAY MANAGEMENT. 
          SOME PEOPLE ARE FOCUSING ON, UH, THE AGENDAS OF MINUTES. 
          UH, WE HAVE SOMEONE IN THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE THAT IS REALLY LOOKING AT THE APPLICATIONS AND THE MEMBER MANAGEMENT. 
          UH, JEREMY HAS TAKEN REALLY A LEAD ROLE ON THAT GENERAL RECRUITMENT SORT OF PIECE AND LOOKING AT THE VACANCIES. 
          SO WE'RE DOING A SHARED MODEL, BUT WE'RE DOCUMENTING, AND SOMETHING NEW WE'VE ADDED IS, UM, WE'VE ADDED WHAT WE'RE CALLING DEPARTMENT LIAISON. 
          SO EACH DEPARTMENT HAS IDENTIFIED ONE PERSON WHO WE ARE INTERFACING WITH THAT ARE THEN INTERFACING WITH ALL THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS WITHIN THOSE DEPARTMENTS. 
          SO WE'RE TRYING TO TAKE A DISTRIBUTED APPROACH TO HOW WE ARE MANAGING THE WORK, BUT HAVING ACCOUNTABILITY SITTING WITH OUR OFFICE. 
          UH, PRIMARILY RIGHT NOW IT'S SITTING WITH ME AS WE'RE GOING THROUGH SO THAT WE CAN DOCUMENT ALL OUR PROCESSES. 
          PEOPLE HAVE GUIDES, WE HAVE NEW DATA SYSTEMS THAT ARE COMING IN FOR MANAGING THE MEMBERS. 
          WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF RIGHT NOW TRAINING EVERYONE ON HOW TO USE THE ONE MEETING PORTAL SO THAT THE AGENDAS AND MINUTES WHERE COUNCIL MEETINGS ARE POSTED, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, AGENDAS MEETINGS WILL BE MOVING THERE SO THAT IT'S EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO FIND IT'S NOT SPREAD ALL OVER, UM, THE WEBSITE. 
          SO THAT'S A LITTLE BIT OF THE APPROACH THAT WE'RE, UH, TAKING GOING FORWARD. 
          SO FAR IT'S BEEN REALLY MANAGEABLE. 
          PERHAPS IN THE FUTURE AS WE'RE LOOKING AT THE ITERATIONS OF NEW ROLES, UH, PART OF A, UH, FUNCTION OF SOMEONE COMING IN, WE WILL BE 
          [02:50:01]
A LITTLE BIT MORE HANDS-ON WITH THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, BUT RIGHT NOW, AS WE'RE MOVING THROUGH, WE HAVE A GREAT TEAM THAT'S, UH, GOING IN AND I FEEL CONFIDENT WE'LL BE SUCCESSFUL IN REACHING OUR GOALS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, UH, COUNCILOR SUZI? YEAH, THANK YOU, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, I'M EAGER, AGAIN, I'M FASCINATED WITH THE IDEA AND I'VE, YOU KNOW, I'VE DONE A LOT OF COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND I'M REALLY FASCINATED WITH THE IDEA OF THE CIVIC OUTREACH SQUAD. 
          IS THAT SOMETHING LIKE WE'RE CREATING, OR IS IT SOMETHING OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE DOING? I'D LOVE TO HEAR A LITTLE BIT OF THE HISTORY OF THAT, BUT ALSO I'D LIKE TO KNOW, UM, SORT OF WHAT SORT OF INFORMATION WE'RE GATHERING, WHAT SORT OF INITIATIVES ARE, IS THE SQUAD FOCUSED ON, AND WHAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF SUCCESS OF THE SQUAD'S WORK? AND THEN FINALLY, ONE LAST QUESTION. 
          UH, SO I, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU TALKED ABOUT SOMETIMES YOU'RE FOCUSING ON YOUNG OR AMERICAN BORN BLACK OR THE IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES, BUT ARE YOU ALSO FOCUSING ON ELDERLY RESIDENTS? THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOUR CHAIR TO COUNCILOR SUZI. 
          UM, I'M GONNA TAKE THOSE ONE AT A TIME, SO PLEASE BEAR WITH ME AND IF THERE'S SOMETHING I MISSED, UH, PLEASE FOLLOW UP. 
          I THINK THERE WERE FOUR QUESTIONS THERE. 
          SO THE HISTORY OF THE CIVIC OUTREACH SQUAD, UH, IS AS OLD AS SEPTEMBER. 
          IT'S BEEN A PILOT PROGRAM, AND THE NEED REALLY CAME ABOUT THROUGH CONVERSATIONS WITH THIS BODY, LOOKING FOR, UH, ALTERNATIVE KIND OF OLDER SCHOOL BOOTS ON THE GROUND, UH, DIRECT ENGAGEMENT APPROACHES, AND THE SQUAD IS FILLING THAT GAP. 
          UH, YOU ASKED ABOUT TYPES OF INITIATIVES. 
          THE SQUAD HAS SUPPORTED, UH, 17 DIFFERENT INITIATIVES ACROSS 10 DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS. 
          IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, I'M NOT GONNA NAME ALL OF THEM, BUT JUST ONE EXAMPLE, AND TO PAIR IT WITH SOME SUCCESS IN THE FALL, THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION REACHED OUT AND ASKED FOR SUPPORT RECRUITING FOR THEIR MID CAMBRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD CONSERVATION DISTRICT RECRUITMENT EFFORTS. 
          AT THE TIME, THEY HAD SOME VACANCIES ON THAT BORDER AND COMMISSION, AND THE POSTING HAD BEEN OPEN, I THINK FOR, UH, THREE WEEKS AT THAT POINT. 
          AND THEY HAD ONLY THREE OR FOUR APPLICANTS. 
          SO THEY CAME TO US FOR, FOR HELP. 
          THE, UH, SQUAD, UH, DESIGNED A HALF SHEET FLYER THAT THEY DISTRIBUTED. 
          WE PRINTED IT IN-HOUSE AND WE COVERED THE NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, SPREADING ABOUT 1500, UH, MATERIALS. 
          AND, UH, AFTER ONE SHIFT, I BELIEVE IT WAS JUST A FRIDAY AND A SATURDAY, UH, WITHIN SEVEN TO 10 DAYS, THEY HAD, UH, NORTH OF 20 FOLKS APPLY FOR THAT POSITION, WHICH WAS A HUGE, I THINK THE MOST THEY HAD HAD APPLIED FOR THAT POSITION. 
          AS A RESULT OF THE DIRECT OUTREACH, WE ALSO FOUND THAT FOLKS WERE SCANNING THE QR CODES ON THE PRINTED MATERIALS. 
          I THINK WE HAD OVER, UH, 72 OR 73, IF I REMEMBER THE EXACT NUMBER OF ACTUAL FOLKS SCANNING THE MATERIALS. 
          NOT NECESSARILY SIGNING UP, BUT JUST LEARNING HERE'S WHAT THE MID CAMBRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD CONSERVATION DISTRICT DOES IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          UH, SO THAT'S, THAT'S ONE EXAMPLE. 
          UH, BUT OUTREACH, YOU KNOW, RELATED TO THE BUDGET WALKTHROUGHS, THEY SUPPORTED THE PILOT FOR IMPROVED PROGRAMMING AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER OVER IN WESTERN CAMBRIDGE, FOCUS ON OLDER ADULTS. 
          UH, SO THEY WERE ACTIVE IN STRAWBERRY HILL AND NORTH CAMBRIDGE TO INCREASE AWARENESS SPECIFICALLY FOR RESIDENTS, I THINK 60 AND OLDER, 65 AND OLDER, UH, TO IMPROVE THEIR ENGAGEMENT WITH, UM, THAT, THAT PROGRAMMING EFFORT. 
          UH, THEY'VE SUPPORTED KNOW YOUR RIGHTS TRAININGS. 
          UH, ONE COOL INITIATIVE WE STARTED, UH, AND, AND I'LL DIGRESS AFTER THIS WAS, UH, GUIDE FOR RESIDENTS A HELPFUL RE UH, HELPFUL RESOURCES FOR RESIDENCE GUIDE WHERE WE USED MOVING VAN PERMIT DATA TO IDENTIFY WHERE FOLKS HAD MOVED WITHIN CAMBRIDGE WITHIN THE LAST FOUR OR FIVE MONTHS. 
          AND WE DID TARGETED OUTREACH TO THOSE ADDRESSES, SHARING INFORMATION RELATED TO THINGS LIKE, YOU KNOW, HERE'S HOW TO GET RID OF IT, RIGHT? OR THE STREET CODE, OR HERE IS, UH, OUR GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE HERE IS HOW YOU ENGAGE WITH THE LIBRARIES. 
          JUST A SORT OF A SMORGASBORG OF IMPORTANT INFORMATION THAT FOLKS WHO NEED TO KNOW UPON ARRIVING IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          SOUNDS GREAT. 
          UH, IS, AND AGAIN, IS THIS, IS THIS YOUR IDEA OR IS THIS, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE DOING? NOT, I'M NOT WANTING TO EMBARRASS YOU, BUT IT REALLY IS AN INTERESTING IDEA. 
          I THINK THE NEED, THE NEED WAS COLLECTIVELY IDENTIFIED THROUGH MANY CONVERSATIONS. 
          SO I WON'T TAKE CREDIT FOR SAYING THAT THIS WAS MY IDEA. 
          UH, I WAS ULTIMATELY RESPONSIBLE FOR DEVELOPING THE PILOT, SCOPING IT, UH, HIRING THE TEAM AND SUPPORTING THE TEAM AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO THAT MOVING FORWARD. 
          BUT THE CITY HAS HAD, UH, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FUNCTION AT HUMAN SERVICES AND CDD FOR MANY YEARS, OVER 20 YEARS, UH, WITH MORE OF A FOCUS ON MAKING SURE THAT OUR PROCESSES 
          [02:55:01]
ARE REPRESENTED BY FOLKS WHO ARE TYPICALLY EXCLUDED, UH, FROM, UH, PROCESSES, FOLKS WHO ARE TYPICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED, FOLKS WHO NATIVE LANGUAGE IS DIFFERENT FROM ENGLISH, UH, AMERICAN BORN BLACK COMMUNITY, UH, OLDER FOLKS, YOUNGER, YOUNGER RESIDENTS. 
          SO THE INTENTION AND, AND THE INVESTMENT IN ENGAGEMENT IS IN ANYTHING NEW. 
          I THINK WITH THE SQUAD, WHAT WE WANTED TO DO WAS FILL A GAP IN TERMS OF WE NEEDED A MORE ROBUST, UH, DIRECT ON THE GROUND OUTREACH TO GIVE RESIDENTS IMPORTANT INFORMATION, UH, EVEN RELATED TO SNOW EMERGENCIES OR OTHER IMPACTS THAT CAN HAPPEN. 
          YEAH, AGAIN, THROUGH TO NOLAN. 
          I, YEAH. 
          I WISH YOU, UH, COULD DO SOMETHING ABOUT SHOT SPOTTER. 
          IT WOULD BE SO INTERESTING IF YOU WERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS, LIKE, WE REALLY ARE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHETHER SHOT SPOTTER IS SOMETHING THE COMMUNITY SUPPORTS OR NOT. 
          ALSO, I WONDER IF YOU'RE USING IT, UM, TO THINK ABOUT ZONING. 
          YOU KNOW, WE HEAR AGAIN AND AGAIN THAT BUSINESSES OFTEN HAVE NO IDEA THAT THERE ARE ZONING PLANS ON, YOU KNOW, ON MAJOR ARTERIES. 
          WE HEAR RESIDENTS OFTEN AREN'T AWARE OF ZONING AT ALL. 
          UM, SO I, I SEE MANY DIFFERENT WAYS THAT YOU COULD BE, UM, DISTRIBUTING YOUR SQUAD. 
          UH, ANYWAY, I THINK IT SOUNDS, UH, LIKE A REALLY EXCITING PROGRAM. 
          I WANTED TO ASK YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT, UM, THE CIVIC ENGAGEMENT COMPASS AND, UM, HOW YOU'RE USING THE CITYVIEW TO GET OUT VIDEO STORIES AND ABOUT YOUR UNIFIED BRANDING THROUGH YOUR CHAIR. 
          THANK YOU COUNSELOR FOR THE QUESTION. 
          I'LL START WITH THE COMPASS, UH, AND THEN WE CAN TURN OVER TO CITYVIEW AND, AND BRANDING. 
          THE CIVIC ENGAGEMENT COMPASS IS A TOOL TO HELP STAFF PLAN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROCESSES. 
          IT WAS DEVELOPED IN COLLABORATION AND WITH COORDINATION OF STAFF ACROSS MANY DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS WHO REALLY FOCUS ON COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. 
          AND IT'S REALLY DESIGNED TO BE A STARTING POINT IN A PLANNING PROCESS FOR SOMEONE, UH, ABOUT, TO SORT OF SET OFF ON DESIGNING A NEW PROCESS. 
          IT EMBEDS A FRAMEWORK OF BEST PRACTICES FOR THINGS TO INCORPORATE INTO AN ENGAGEMENT PROCESS. 
          AND IT REALLY GUIDES YOUR THINKING THROUGH PROMPTED QUESTIONS OF THINGS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER WHEN SETTING OUT AND DESIGNING A CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROCESS. 
          THINGS LIKE WHAT IS THE PURPOSE, WHAT ARE THE GOALS, WHAT ARE THE OUTCOMES OF THIS PROCESS? WHAT IS THE AUDIENCE YOU'RE TRYING TO REACH? WHAT TYPE OF ENGAGEMENT IS THIS? ARE WE SIMPLY INFORMING RESIDENTS? ARE WE CONSULTING WITH RESIDENTS? ARE WE COLLABORATING WITH THEM? ARE WE EMPOWERING THEM TO MAKE DECISIONS? ALL THOSE NUANCES ARE EMBEDDED IN THE COMPASS, AND BASED ON THE RESPONSES TO THOSE PROMPTS, STAFF ARE GIVEN A CURATED SET OF RESOURCES TO HELP THEM MEET THEIR GOALS AND MEET THEIR NEEDS. 
          WHAT WE REALLY DID NOT WANT WAS A MORE COMMON STATIC, UH, PDF OF SORT OF A BOOK, A GUIDE THAT FOLKS WILL GET. 
          THIS IS, UH, MUCH MORE DYNAMIC, MUCH MORE ITERATIVE, AND MUCH MORE EVERGREEN IN THE SENSE THAT IT GIVES YOU THE RESOURCES YOU NEED SPECIFIC TO WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO DO. 
          AND IT ALSO SERVES AS A TOOL TO SUPPORT COORDINATION ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION IN TERMS OF THIS PROCESS NEEDS SUPPORT RELATED TO, UH, LANGUAGE ACCESS. 
          AS A HEADS UP, THIS KIND OF REQUEST IS COMING IN HYPOTHETICALLY JUNE OR JULY, AND JUST HELPS US ALIGN OUR SUPPORT STRUCTURES TO MEET THAT NEED BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT PROCESSES HAPPENING AROUND THE CITY. 
          AND JUST TO, TO CLOSE, UM, THE TOOL IS REALLY DESIGNED FOR CITY STAFF SPECIFICALLY. 
          UH, IN TERMS OF YOUR QUESTION THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR, REGARDING UH, 22 AND UM, UH, FOR CITY VIEW, I'M ASSUMING YOU'RE REFERRING TO 22 CITY VIEW OR YOU TALKING ABOUT THE PUBLICATION FOR VIDEO? UH, IN THE BOOK IT SAID THAT YOU WERE WORKING TO GET, YOU WERE USING CITYVIEW TO GET OUT VIDEO STORIES. 
          YEAH, SO, UM, WE'RE INCREDIBLY FORTUNATE THAT CALVIN, UH, WHO WAS JUST UP HERE, UH, IS LIKE AN EXTENDED PART OF OUR, OUR TEAM. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, IN ADDITION, AND I DON'T KNOW HOW THEY DO IT TO BEING HERE AND FILMING EVERY SINGLE COUNCIL HEARING, COUNCIL MEETING, ANY OF THE EVENTS THAT TAKE PLACE IN HERE, PLANNING BOARD AT NIGHT, UH, THEY HAVE AN INCREDIBLY TALENTED TEAM OF FOLKS THAT ARE HELPING US WITH PRODUCING SOME ORIGINAL CONTENT. 
          UM, THEY'RE A REALLY GREAT RESOURCE AS OUR OFFICE PARTICULARLY, UM, ASHLEY CURTIS, WHO IS OUR, UH, DIGITAL MEDIA MARKETING MANAGER, HAS BEEN INCREASING OUR SHORT FORM SORT OF VIDEO. 
          SHE'S FORMING SYNERGIES WITH 22 CITY VIEW ON HOW THEY CAN HELP US WITH LONGER FORM THAT GOES ON THEIR CHANNEL, BUT THEN THE SHORTER FORM THAT'S REALLY GEARED TOWARDS SOCIAL MEDIA. 
          UM, SO WE'RE INCREDIBLY LUCKY TO HAVE THAT, UM, RESOURCE. 
          AND THEN IN TERMS OF YOUR QUESTION RELATED TO BRANDING, 
          [03:00:01]
UM, IN 2024, WE KICKED OFF THROUGH EXISTING CREATIVE DESIGN CONTRACTS THAT WE HAD, UM, A BRANDING EXERCISE FOR OUR COMMUNICATIONS. 
          'CAUSE SOMETHING THAT I THINK ANYONE COULD REALLY SEE IS THERE WAS A LOT OF INFORMATION THAT'S POSTED IN THE CITY THAT GOES OUT, BUT NONE OF IT WAS CONNECTED BACK TO EACH OTHER. 
          IT WAS REALLY HARD TO TELL WHEN SOMETHING WAS ACTUALLY FROM THE CITY. 
          AND SOMETIMES YOU'D HAVE INFORMATION GOING OUT FROM DEPARTMENTS THAT LOOKED COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. 
          SO WE WENT THROUGH AN EXERCISE. 
          WE NOW HAVE 191 PAGE BRAND GUIDE THAT REALLY FOCUSES ON HOW WE CAN CREATE A SCALABLE, UNIFIED LOOK THAT ALLOWS THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND WHEN SOMETHING IS COMING FROM THE CITY. 
          'CAUSE EVEN IF YOU PUT THE CITY SEAL ON SOMETHING, THE WORD CAMBRIDGE IS NOT IN THE CITY SEAL. 
          IT'S NOWHERE ON THERE. 
          SO UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT THE CITY SEAL IS, IT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER TO SOMEONE. 
          SO THAT'S WHY WE'VE STARTED USING THE LITTLE CITY HALL LOGO. 
          WE'RE BEING VERY CONSISTENT AROUND COLORS AND FONT. 
          BUT THIS IS REALLY NOT JUST ABOUT THE LOOK, IT'S ALSO A DESIGN SYSTEM THAT IS BUILT SO WE CAN THINK ABOUT HOW INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE CAN BE DONE SO THE PUBLIC CAN UNDERSTAND IT IN THE GUIDE. 
          ALL OUR COLORS ARE SET SO THAT THEY'RE ACCESSIBLE, YOU KNOW, SO PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO MAKE DECISIONS FOR PEOPLE THAT HAVE, YOU KNOW, COLORBLINDNESS, MAKING SURE WE'RE USING THE APPROPRIATE, UM, FONT SIZES. 
          UM, AND THIS IS ANOTHER AREA WHERE ASHLEY CURTIS HAS BEEN TAKING AN INCREDIBLE LEAD ALONG WITH DOA, WHO'S IN THE IT DEPARTMENT. 
          AND THE WAY WE'VE BEEN ROLLING THIS OUT IS, RATHER THAN DOING A AS OF JUNE 1ST, THIS IS REQUIRED. 
          HERE'S HOW YOU'RE DOING IT. 
          WE'VE BEEN PILOTING IT IN OUR OFFICE. 
          WE'VE BEEN ROLLING IT OUT TO DEPARTMENTS. 
          YOU SEE IT EVERYWHERE FROM ON THE PUBLICATIONS THAT WE MAIL. 
          IF YOU THINK ABOUT THE ELECTION GUIDE THAT WENT OUT, IT IS IN THE CITY BRANDING. 
          WE'RE USING OUR DESIGNERS TO HELP DO IT. 
          BUT THIS IS A GUIDE THAT BEING GIVEN TO ANY OUTSIDE DESIGNERS THAT USE IT. 
          IF YOU ARE AT THE CIVIC LEADERSHIP EVENT THE OTHER DAY, YOU SAW IT IN ITS FULL FORM IN TERMS OF HOW YOU COULD USE A BRAND THAT IS CREATIVE. 
          YOU KNOW, SO WE HAD OUR FONTS, WE HAD OUR COLORS, BUT THERE WAS UNIQUE BRANDING TO THAT EXHIBIT THAT WAS SET UP. 
          AND I THINK THAT IS GONNA REALLY HELP OUR INFORMATION BE CLEARER, MORE ACCESSIBLE, BUT ALSO THAT SUBTLE PIECE THAT PEOPLE START TO KNOW WHEN SOMETHING'S COMING IN THE MAIL. 
          IT'S FROM THE CITY. 
          UM, I THINK BOSTON HAS DONE A PHENOMENAL JOB WITH THIS. 
          LIKE, I KNOW WITHOUT EVEN SEEING THIS BOSTON'S NAME ON SOMETHING, WHEN I SEE THE BLACK AND THE RED AND I SEE A CERTAIN LITTLE B THAT IT IS CITY OF BOSTON. 
          AND WE'RE HOPING THAT'S WHERE WE'RE GETTING. 
          SO THAT'S A LITTLE BIT ON THE BRANDING. 
          FANTASTIC. 
          UM, THANK, THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          I'LL, I'LL YIELD THANK YOU. 
          CLERK CALL 10. 
          COUNCIL COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. 
          I'LL GO TO, UH, COUNCILOR MCGOVERN AND THEN COUNCILOR ZUBIE. 
          UH, THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU FOR YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          JUST TO, UM, MR. GINETTI, JUST TO SORT OF FOLLOW UP ON THAT, THAT YOU, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THINGS THAT MAILINGS AND SUCH. 
          UM, SOMETHING I'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR A LITTLE WHILE IS OUR, OUR WEBPAGES FOR, FOR DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS. 
          YOU KNOW, I UNDERSTAND EVERYONE LIKES TO BE UNIQUE AND DO THEIR OWN THING, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TO DEPEND INFORMATION IS IN DIFFERENT PLACES. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE JUST HAD A MEETING COUNSELOR ZUBIE AND I CHAIRED A MEETING RECENTLY ABOUT, UH, SERVICES FOR THE DISABLED IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          AND I JUST THINK OF, YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAVE SITE ISSUES OR COGNITIVE ISSUES OR WHAT HAVE YOU. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES YOU, YOU GO TO CDD, YOU GOTTA GO CLICK ON THESE FIVE THINGS AND YOU GO TO DPW. 
          IT'S A WHOLE DIFFERENT SET OF THINGS. 
          AND UM, I WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOME UNIFORMITY THERE TOO. 
          UH, AS WELL AS KEEPING THINGS UP TO DATE AND, AND HOT ISSUES STAYING PRESENT ON THE PAGE. 
          WE, WE TALKED ABOUT, UM, I THINK WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, UH, CAN'T REMEMBER IF IT WAS THE A HO OR MULTIFAMILY HOUSING. 
          OH, IT WAS, IT WAS THE MULTIFAMILY HOUSING. 
          UM, FAQ THAT CDD CREATED. 
          YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT MULTIFAMILY HOUSING IS A HUGE ISSUE IN THE CITY RIGHT NOW, YET YOU HAVE TO CLICK ON LIKE FIVE THINGS TO FIND THAT. 
          AND YOU HAVE TO KNOW WHAT FIVE THINGS TO CLICK ON TO FIND THAT THAT SHOULD BE FRONT AND CENTER ON THE PAGE BECAUSE WE, WE KNOW IT'S A HOT TOPIC IN THE CITY. 
          SO JUST WHAT DO WE DO TO, ARE WE DOING ANYTHING TO TRY AND MAKE THAT MORE CONSISTENT OR WHAT, HOW DO WE UPDATE THESE WEBSITES SO THAT THINGS ARE CURRENT AND, AND, AND PEOPLE CAN FIND THEM MORE EASILY. 
          UH, THANK YOU THROUGH YOU, UH, MADAM CHAIR, I APPRECIATE THE QUESTION AND I DO WANT TO GIVE A BIG SHOUT OUT TO THE WEB TEAM IN IT. 
          UM, JUSTIN HANFIELD, WHO OVERSEES THE TEAM, 
          [03:05:01]
HAS REALLY BEEN DOING A LOT OF WORK ON THE BACKEND ASPECT. 
          SO SOMETHING THAT TOOK PLACE BEFORE, UM, E LEFT OUR PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICERS. 
          WE MOVED ALL OF THE SMALL, UM, DEPARTMENTS WHO ARE ON SOME OF THE OLDER WEBSITE TEMPLATES OVER INTO OUR NEW ONE BECAUSE THAT ALLOWS US, AS WE MAKE FUTURE UPGRADES, YOU CAN JUST SORT OF ROLL THEM IN. 
          AS YOU HEARD FROM, UM, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER PETERS EARLIER, WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF WORKING WITH CDD THAT THEY'RE GONNA BE COMING OVER TO THE CITY'S WEBSITE. 
          YOU'RE EXACTLY RIGHT IN TERMS OF THERE IS SO MUCH INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE THAT WE NEED TO SPEND SOME TIME LOOKING AT HOW IT IS ORGANIZED, WHAT NEEDS TO BE THERE, WHAT NEEDS TO BE PROMINENT. 
          UM, WE ARE MAKING IMPROVEMENTS IN TERMS OF LIKE OUR, UM, NAVIGATION BARS. 
          THERE'S AN ACTIVE PROJECT THAT'S GOING ON THERE THAT WE'LL SEE AN UPGRADE. 
          WE'VE SPENT TIME WORKING ON, UM, A NEW SUBSCRIPTION PAGE I'LL BE GOING THROUGH BECAUSE SOMETHING THAT IS REALLY INCREDIBLY VALUABLE IN THE CITY IS OUR BULK EMAIL PROGRAM AS PEOPLE ARE GETTING EVERYTHING FROM DAILY EMAIL UPDATES TO AN OPEN DATA, UM, REVIEW BOARD NEWSLETTER TO PROJECT UPDATES THAT WE'RE IMPROVING THAT. 
          AND THEN WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT OUR PROJECT PAGES. 
          THAT'S A BIG PART WHERE, UH, PEOPLE REALLY STRUGGLE TO FIND INFORMATION. 
          AND THEN AS CD SITE IMPROVES, UM, I THINK THAT WILL HELP WITH SOME OF THE ISSUES RELATED TO WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT. 
          IT WILL GIVE THEM MORE FLEXIBILITY TO BE ABLE TO ADD ITEMS AND, UM, KEEP THINGS FOCUSED. 
          WHERE RIGHT NOW THE WEBSITE THAT THEY'RE ON THAT IS HARD CODED, SO THERE'S NOTHING THEY CAN DO TO CHANGE IT WHEN THEY'RE OVER ON THE NEWER LOOK. 
          IT'S MUCH MORE DRAG AND DROP AND GIVES US MORE FLEXIBILITY. 
          SO, UH, THAT IS SOMETHING WE'RE STARTING SOME VERY INTENTIONAL WORK ON. 
          GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, I YIELD MADAM CHAIR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COUNCIL ZUBI THANK YOU THROUGH YOU CHAIR AND REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN DOING. 
          UM, I NOTICED THERE WAS A PIECE ON PILOTING NEW OUTREACH TOOLS, INCLUDING A RANDOM ADDRESS GENERATOR TO SUPPORT EQUITABLE HOUSEHOLD SELECTION. 
          ARE YOU ABLE TO SHARE A BIT MORE ABOUT THIS AND MAYBE AN EXAMPLE OF, I THINK YOU SELECTED RANDOM ADDRESSES FOR UH, SURE. 
          SO SOMETHING I GREATLY APPRECIATE, UM, THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR ABOUT OUR TEAM IS WE'RE PRETTY DATA INFORMED AND WE TRY TO FIGURE OUT NEW WAYS THAT WE CAN DO IT. 
          SO THIS RANDOM ADDRESS GENERATOR, UM, IS A, A PROGRAM THAT WE WROTE IN-HOUSE. 
          WE'RE USING THE ANNUAL, UH, CENSUS DATA AS OUR, OUR BASE DATA. 
          UM, AND WHAT IT ALLOWS US TO DO IS JUST SIT THERE AND SAY, GIVE US A RANDOM SAMPLE OF HOUSEHOLDS BY, YOU KNOW, JUST A HUNDRED, A THOUSAND, 10,000. 
          IT DOESN'T MATTER. 
          AND THEN WE CAN FILTER IT EVEN BY ZIP CODE. 
          JUST SAY, BREAK IT DOWN BY A PERCENTAGE. 
          UM, SO A FEW WAYS THAT WE'VE USED THIS. 
          WHEN THE CITY MANAGER HELD A MEET AND GREET, UH, BACK IN THE FALL, WE'VE DONE VARIOUS ONES. 
          WE ACTUALLY GENERATED A RANDOM LIST OF 500 HOUSEHOLDS AND MAILED IT TO THEM. 
          UM, AS THE BUDGET, UM, WALKTHROUGHS WERE GOING THROUGH, ONE OF THE WAYS WE WANTED TO INCREASE, YOU KNOW, THE WAY WE WERE DOING OUTREACH IS TO DO A MAILER THAT WE COULD PRODUCE IN HOUSE, BUT WE KNEW WE COULDN'T MAIL EVERY SINGLE ADDRESS IN THE CITY. 
          SO WE SET IT TO, YOU KNOW, WE FIGURED OUT OUR BUDGET AND THEN WE SAID, PULL THIS NUMBER OF RANDOM ADDRESSES BUT DISTRIBUTE IT EQUALLY ACROSS, UM, ALL THE ZIP CODES. 
          AND THAT PRODUCED, UM, A, A LIST FOR US THAT WE WERE ABLE TO SEND OUT. 
          AND IT WAS REALLY AMAZING TO SEE, UM, THAT PEOPLE AT THE EVENT ACTUALLY GOT THE MAILER AND SHOWED UP. 
          SO THAT'S SOME OF THE WAYS THAT WE'RE USING SOMETHING LIKE, UH, THE RANDOM ADDRESS GENERATOR. 
          GOTCHA. 
          THAT'S REALLY HELPFUL. 
          AND YOU GUYS HAVE FOUND THAT IT'S BEEN HELPFUL TO TRY TO BRING MORE PEOPLE IN TO THOSE EVENTS AS WELL? UH, YES. 
          AND IT'S JUST ANOTHER TOOL THAT YOU USE. 
          'CAUSE YOU KNOW, SOME PEOPLE ARE GONNA SEE OUR PRINT MAILERS THAT GO, UM, I THINK IT WAS ONE OF THE HOUSED IN CAMBRIDGE EVENTS. 
          WE WERE ABLE TO TIME THE MAILING OF A CITY VIEW TO THAT EVENT AND PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY BRINGING THE FLYER SO THAT THEY COULD SEE IT. 
          UM, WE SEE THE IMPACT FROM, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE REGISTERING RIGHT AFTER A MAILER GOES OUT. 
          AND THAT'S WHY WE FIGURED WITH THE RANDOM GENERATOR, WE STRIP THE NAME OF THE PERSON ON IT AND IT'S SENDING IT REALLY TO THE CURRENT RESIDENT. 
          'CAUSE IT'S REALLY JUST FIGURING OUT, SO LIKE HOW CAN WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MAXIMIZING THE NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS THAT WE'RE DOING AND WE'RE NOT FALLING INTO A PATTERN WHERE WE'RE GOING TO THE SAME SORT OF ADDRESSES THAT WE KNOW IN COMMON. 
          IT'S JUST REALLY TRYING TO MAKE IT SO EVERYONE HAS A FAIR SHOT AND GETTING IT WHEN WE'RE NOT DOING A COMPLETE CITYWIDE MAILER. 
          GOTCHA. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          I'LL YIELD BEFORE I GO. 
          ANY QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT. 
          THEN I'LL HAVE A COUPLE AND THEN MAYBE THERE'LL BE OTHERS. 
          THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE TEAM. 
          IT'S CRITICALLY IMPORTANT. 
          AS HAS BEEN NOTED, THE COUNCIL'S BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS FOR NOT JUST THE COUNCIL, 
          [03:10:01]
BUT THE CITY AND THE COMMUNITY OF HOW DO WE DO THIS AND EFFORTS NEED TO BE MADE. 
          I KNOW, YOU KNOW, COUNCILLOR SIMMONS HAS TALKED ABOUT IT A LOT. 
          EVERY, UM, COMMUNITY CONVERSATION WE HAVE. 
          UM, I WILL HIGHLIGHT WHAT, UM, COUNCILOR MCGOVERN SAID ABOUT THE WEBSITE. 
          I'M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO AN UPDATE BECAUSE IT IS HOPELESSLY, NOT HOPELESSLY, IT IS DRAMATICALLY, I THINK, UNDER EFFICIENT. 
          IT'S JUST EVEN I KNOW IT AND SOMETIMES I CAN'T FIND WHAT IT IS OR IT'S LITERALLY SIX DIFFERENT CLICKS. 
          SO I'M REALLY GLAD THAT'S A MASSIVE PROJECT, BUT IT'S GONNA BE REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT FOR US MOVING FORWARD. 
          AND HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE DYNAMICALLY UPDATED SO THAT YOU DON'T GO TO WEBPAGE AND HAVE SOMEONE WHO MOVED ON SIX MONTHS AGO LISTED AS AS THE DEPARTMENT HEAD. 
          I DO WANT, I DID SEND A COUPLE QUESTIONS, WHICH I'LL READ, BUT I ALSO WANNA ASK, AND AGAIN, FOLLOW UP ON WHAT SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES HAVE IS HOW IS IT THAT WE'RE MOVING TOWARDS ENSURING THAT THE ENTIRE COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, WE ARE ONE CITY AND YET OFTEN THE COUNCIL WORK DOES NOT GET COMMUNICATED OUT. 
          AND I KNOW I'VE TALKED TO THE STAFF ABOUT THIS. 
          THIS IS, THIS IS A QUESTION ABOUT HOW DO YOU THREAD THAT NEEDLE OR BALANCE THAT, AND YET AGAIN, WE'RE ONE CITY, THE COUNCIL IS THE GOVERNING BODY AND THEN THERE'S THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT AND THE KINDS OF INITIATIVES. 
          HOW IS IT THAT THIS DEPARTMENT, 'CAUSE I DIDN'T SEE IT REFLECTED IN THE BOOK TO DO MORE OF THAT, TO TIE MORE OF THAT COMMUNICATIONS WORK INTO THE COUNCIL WORK. 
          I CAN JUST, FOR, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE SHOTS SPOTTER WAS MENTIONED AS MAYBE WE SHOULD USE THE TEAM TO FIGURE THAT OUT. 
          'CAUSE THE COUNCIL IS ACTIVELY CONSIDERING WHETHER THAT MAKES SENSE GOING FORWARD. 
          THE STREET CLEANING INITIATIVE AND TOW ZONE AND, AND TOWING. 
          WE JUST GOT NOTICE THAT THAT HAS FALLEN BEHIND, UH, RECYCLING INITIATIVES. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, THE DPW ITSELF DID A GREAT JOB WHEN WE DID THE FOOD WASTE COMPOST, BUT THE, THE ISSUES THAT I HAVE OFTEN TALKED ABOUT IS THE FACT IS MANY OF THE INITIATIVES ON THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, WE HAD RESIDENTS ACROSS THE CITY WHO HAD NO IDEA THAT BIKE LANES WERE COMING. 
          WE NEVER SENT OUT A SIMPLE MAP SAYING, HEY, THIS IS WHAT THE COUNCIL'S CONSIDERING. 
          IT NEVER WENT OUT. 
          AND IT STILL IS, IS I THINK SOMETHING THAT MAKES, IT MAKES OUR JOB AND THE ENTIRE CITY'S JOB MORE DIFFICULT. 
          UM, CAMBRIDGE ZONING HAS BEEN GOING ON AND IN PLANNING FOR TWO YEARS AND MY UNDERSTANDING IS WE STILL HAVEN'T REACHED OUT TO THE RESIDENTS OF ROOSEVELT TOWERS AND CHA, SO THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT'S MAJOR CHANGES ARE COMING TO THE STREET. 
          UM, THE MULTIFAMILY ZONING, CERTAINLY LOTS OF PEOPLE, WE DID SEND OUT ONE LITTLE FAQ, BUT WE DIDN'T FOLLOW UP. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS AS TO WHETHER THAT CAN BE PART OF THE PLAN TO ENSURE THAT THE COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT, JUST LIKE YOUR COORDINATING AND WORKING WITH DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THE CITY, ENSURES THAT YOU COORDINATE AND WORK WITH COUNCIL COMMITTEES AND PERHAPS THROUGH THE MAYOR'S OFFICE TO ENSURE THAT THAT THAT INITIATIVES LIKE THIS AS WE MOVE FORWARD ALSO ARE PART OF THE COMMUNICATIONS PLAN. 
          UM, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          I APPRECIATE, UH, THE QUESTION AND I'D SAY I AGREE WITH YOUR STATEMENT IN TERMS OF WE ARE ONE CITY, LIKE THE SUCCESS OF STAFF, THE SUCCESS OF COUNCIL, UH, THE SUCCESS OF ANYONE THAT IS ASSOCIATED OUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS IS OUR SHARED SUCCESS. 
          AND WE DO LOOK TO SUPPORT THE WORK OF THE COUNCIL. 
          I'LL SPEAK SPECIFICALLY TO THE CENTRAL OFFICE WHERE WE'VE REALLY DONE WORK RELATED TO WHAT THE COUNCIL HAS DONE IS AFTER THE PROCESS IS DONE. 
          SO IF YOU THINK BACK, UM, I THINK IT'S OVER THE COURSE OF THE PAST THREE YEARS, YOU MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE NOTICED, BUT THE THEMES FOR OUR PRINTED MAILERS WE'RE REALLY FOCUSED AROUND THE GOALS. 
          MM-HMM . 
          THAT THE COUNCIL HAD SET. 
          SO WE HAD ONE RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION AND, UM, EQUITY AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. 
          SO WE, WE THEMED ALL OF THOSE TO HIGHLIGHT THE WORK THAT GOES THROUGH WHERE WE TRY TO BE CAREFUL IN THE CENTRAL OFFICE IS THAT WE'RE NOT ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN WHAT'S BEFORE THE COUNCIL RIGHT NOW BECAUSE IT'S NOT ALWAYS UNANIMOUS. 
          WE DON'T WANT TO BE SEEN AS INFLUENCING OR BEING A PART OF YOUR DELIBERATIVE PROCESS OUTSIDE OF WHAT THE COUNCIL WANTS. 
          SO WE'RE HAPPY TO CONTINUE TO EXPLORE. 
          WE'VE HAD, UH, CO UH, CONVERSATIONS WITH COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          I KNOW YOU AND I HAVE, UH, TALKED COUNCILOR ZUI AND I HAVE TALKED, IT'S ALMOST EVERYONE THAT HAS, SO WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE A FURTHER DISCUSSION TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN SUPPORT IT. 
          THE OTHER PART BESIDES THE FOLKS THAT YOU SEE SITTING HERE ARE THE COMMUNICATION STAFF AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT STAFF THAT EXISTS WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENTS. 
          SO C, DD AS YOU THINK ABOUT GOING THROUGH A ZONING PROCESS, THEY HAVE A COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER THERE THAT WORK IS MUCH CLOSER IN ALIGNED WITH YOU GOING THROUGH A PROCESS BECAUSE THAT'S REALLY RUNNING THROUGH SOMETHING LIKE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT. 
          CAN WE DO BETTER? YES. 
          ARE THERE NEW WAYS THAT WE CAN TRY TO ACCOMPLISH? I THINK THE GOALS THAT YOU'RE STARTING TO HIGHLIGHT, YES. 
          I THINK WHERE WE'D WANT TO DO IS HAVE SOME CLARITY SO BOTH THE PUBLIC AND THEN STAFF HERE SORT OF KNOW HERE ARE THOSE TRIGGERS IN THE 
          [03:15:01]
WAY THAT WE'RE GONNA MOVE THROUGH SO THAT WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALIGNED WITH THE WILL OF THE COUNCIL AND WE'RE NOT INADVERTENTLY STEPPING IN SOMETHING WHEN YOU MAY HAVE A FIVE FOUR IN A COUNCIL OR UH, A SEVEN TWO, THAT THAT'S A PIECE THAT WE REALLY WANT TO TRY TO AVOID. 
          BUT WE'RE ALWAYS HAPPY TO CELEBRATE THE SUCCESSES OF THE WORK THAT COME OUT OF THE COUNCIL BECAUSE THAT IS OUR COLLECTIVE SHARED SUCCESSES. 
          YOU KNOW, I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          I DIDN'T MEAN THAT YOU WOULD WEIGH IN AND YET OFTEN IF THE ONLY THING THEY GET IS THE END RESULT, IT'S LIKE, WHY DIDN'T YOU EVEN, WHY DIDN'T WE EVEN KNOW THAT THIS WAS BEING DISCUSSED? AND OFTEN IT'S, WELL, IT WAS ON THE AGENDA FIVE TIMES, BUT  AS WE KNOW, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO MAY BE FOLLOWING EVEN THIS MEETING HERE, EVEN THOUGH IT'S CRITICALLY IMPORTANT TO THE FUTURE OF THE CITY. 
          SO I UNDERSTAND, THAT'S WHY I SAID I KNOW IT'S SENSITIVE AND THERE'S A BALANCE, BUT WE, I THINK WE CAN DO A BETTER JOB OF ENSURING THAT THERE IS A NOTICE TO THE COMMUNITY THIS IS HAPPENING. 
          THERE WILL BE A VOTE ON THIS. 
          YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE A STANCE ON IT. 
          BUT OFTEN PEOPLE ARE SURPRISED AND FRANKLY DISAPPOINTED AND FEEL LIKE WITH ALL THIS COMMUNICATION WE GET ALL THIS COMMUNICATION ABOUT OTHER STUFF, BUT WE NEVER GET THE COMMUNICATION TO SO THAT WE THEN KNOW TO WEIGH IN. 
          AND CERTAINLY IN TERMS OF EQUITY, THE PEOPLE, THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO WOULD KNOW WOULD BE PEOPLE WHO GET AN EMAIL FROM SOME OUTSIDE GROUP WITH, WHICH HAS A VERY SPECIFIC, UM, TAKE ON AN ISSUE INSTEAD OF THE BROADER, BROADER POPULACE. 
          SO THAT, SO THAT'S WHAT I THINK AS THIS TEAM, WHICH WAS ONE OF MY QUESTIONS. 
          AND THIS, UM, IS RELATED TO IT, YOU KNOW, HOW DOES THE DEPARTMENT 'CAUSE YOU CONSOLIDATED AND COORDINATED COMMUNICATIONS ACROSS DEPARTMENTS AND YOU WORK WITH, AND YET THERE'S COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS GOING ON IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS. 
          AND AS YOU NOTED, THAT IS THE KIND OF THING THAT YOU WOULD HAVE CDD WOULD MAYBE HAVE AN OPEN HOUSE ON ZONING, BUT WE SHOULD HAVE, FOR ALL ONE CITY, WE SHOULD HAVE EVERYONE BE COORDINATED TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE GETTING AS FULL AND EQUITABLE ACROSS THE CITY INPUT INTO THOSE DECISIONS. 
          'CAUSE I THINK IT, IT INFLUENCES ALL OF US AND ALSO MAKES THE IMPLEMENTATION BETTER IF WE HAVE THE BENEFIT OF THAT. 
          THAT'S TRUE FOR SOME OF THE ZONING, BUT ALSO DEPARTMENTS TRANSPORTATION, AS I JUST NOTED, THERE'S A BUNCH OF TIMES WHEN WE CAN DO A BETTER JOB EVEN BEFORE IT HAPPENS AND, AND RIGHT NOW SOME OF IT IS AFTER IT HAPPENS THAT WE HAVEN'T REALLY COORDINATED THAT. 
          SO I THINK YOU ANSWERED THAT QUESTION UNLESS YOU WANNA SAY MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          UM, I WAS JUST GONNA ADD ONE EXAMPLE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DO A HARD PART FOR US IS WHEN WE DON'T GET TO A YES WHEN SOMEONE COMES TO US WITH LIKE A REQUEST. 
          UM, SOMETHING THAT STARTED MAYBE ABOUT FIVE MONTHS AGO, JEREMY, WE ON THURSDAYS, I BELIEVE IN THE DAILY EMAIL, THERE'S NOW JUST A SECTION REFERRING PEOPLE OVER TO THE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA, UM, THAT WE'VE SORT OF ADDED IN. 
          SO AS WE LOOK AT LIKE HOW WE CAN FIGURE OUT WAYS TO BE RESPONSIVE TO INCREMENTALLY UH, MOVE FORWARD, WE'RE WE'RE MORE THAN WILLING, UM, TO, TO DO THAT. 
          YEAH. 
          AND AS I SAY, THIS IS ALL PART OF COORDINATING AND COLLABORATING AND I THINK WE CAN, WE CAN MOVE FORWARD EVEN, EVEN MORE AND UH, QUITE GRATEFUL FOR THE LANGUAGE JUSTICE BEING PART OF THIS. 
          'CAUSE IT'S CENTRAL TO IT, RIGHT? THERE'S THERE'S PEOPLE ACROSS THE CITY WHO, SO MEANING THERE ARE PEOPLE ACROSS THE CITY WHO WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND IT. 
          'CAUSE WE'RE DOING THIS ALL IN ENGLISH. 
          SO THE OTHER, I DID HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION WHICH  HOPEFULLY THE TEAM'S READY TO ANSWER. 
          VERY GLAD THAT THERE WAS A OBJECTIVE RELATED, WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT EARLIER ABOUT THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS TO CREATE CONSISTENCY WITH ALL MULTI-MEMBER, UH, BODIES ALONG WITH COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN. 
          I'M DYING FOR THE WEBSITE UPDATE PARTLY BECAUSE I HAVE OFTEN GONE TO THE WEBSITE TO LOOK FOR AN AGENDA IN THE MATERIALS FOR A BORDER COMMISSION AND USUALLY FOUND THAT IT'S SEVERAL YEARS OUT OF DATE OR THERE MIGHT BE AN AGENDA, BUT NO BUILDING MATERIAL. 
          SOMEONE JUST REFERENCED ME TO THE WATER BOARD. 
          I RAN INTO THE CHAIR OF THE WATER BOARD AT THE, TO TALK ABOUT THE FACT THAT I'M STILL CONCERNED ABOUT THE DROUGHT. 
          AND SHE SAID, WELL JUST GO LOOK AT THE LAST REPORT WE GOT. 
          AND IT'S, IT'S NOT ON THE WEBSITE. 
          THE AGENDA'S THERE BUT NO MATERIAL. 
          SO I KNOW THAT'S UNDER CONSIDERATION, BUT THE SOONER WE CAN GET TO THAT, I THINK, I THINK THE BETTER BECAUSE IT REALLY DOES THEN MEAN I HAVE TO CALL SOMEONE IN THE CITY TO GET IT. 
          AND THEN THAT IS, IS PRETTY INEFFICIENT. 
          UM, BUT WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT CONSISTENCY WITH ALL MULTI-MEMBER ADVISORY. 
          BUT ARE THERE ADDITIONAL OBJECTIVES TO STREAMLINING OR COMBINING, COMBINING OR PHASING OUT SOME MULTI-MEMBER BODIES WITH RELATED OR OUTMODED FUNCTIONS? I KNOW WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF THE RIGHT NUMBER OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS IS 54 OR IT SHOULD BE 32 OR 79. 
          LIKE I'M OPEN TO THE IDEA THAT WE CAN HAVE MORE, ALTHOUGH I SUSPECT IT PROBABLY IS THAT WE SHOULD HAVE LESS BECAUSE THERE'S SOME THAT ARE MORE NATURALLY ALIGNED. 
          UM, ARE WE WORKING ON THAT? AND UM, AND, AND AGAIN, SOME OF THE REPORTING, WHICH I, I NOTED THAT THERE ARE A BUNCH OF, IF, IF THERE COULD BE SOME KIND OF ANNUAL REPORT OR SOMETHING TO SAY TO EVERYBODY TO KNOW, HEY, THIS THIS 
          [03:20:01]
BOARDING COMMISSION, IT, IT DID MEET ALL THESE TIMES. 
          HERE'S A SUMMARY OF THE WORK. 
          I DON'T WANNA CREATE MORE WORK FOR THEM, BUT I THINK THE WORK IS ALREADY DONE. 
          AND IT WOULD BE REALLY GOOD PRACTICE TO UNDERSTAND ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, HOW MANY TIMES DID THEY MEET? DID THEY DISCUSS, UM, DID THEY MEET QUORUM? 'CAUSE I KNOW THERE'S BEEN A COUPLE WHERE WE FIND OUT SIX MONTHS LATER THAT INFECT SOME BOARDS OR COMMISSIONS DIDN'T EVEN MEET BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T EVEN MEET QUORUM. 
          WHICH AGAIN, SOME OF THESE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ARE ONES THAT COUNCIL ITSELF SET UP. 
          WE SHOULD ACTUALLY KNOW THAT 'CAUSE THEY'RE IN A WAY BODIES THAT WE, WE DETERMINED. 
          UM, AND UH, YEAH, I THINK BETTER UTILIZE. 
          AND THEN I JUST SAID CONSIDER THE PRACTICE OF ANNUAL REPORT SO WE CAN BETTER UTILIZE THE EXPERTISE IN COMMUNITY INPUT THAT WE SEEK TO RECEIVE FROM THOSE BODIES. 
          IT WOULD BE SOME OF THE BODIES UNDERSTAND THE ROLE. 
          BUT HAVING ASKED MANY AT THAT WONDERFUL EVENT, WHICH I AGREE WAS HOSTED BY, UH, DIRECTOR PRICE, UM, WAS QUITE, QUITE WONDERFUL AND TO SEE THE CO THE COLLABORATION ACROSS. 
          BUT THERE WERE ALSO MANY PEOPLE WHO SAID THEY FEEL LIKE THEY NEED TO HAVE MORE UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT THEIR ROLE IS. 
          AND I THINK THEY'RE OPEN TO THE IDEA THAT THERE MAY BE A RESTRUCTURING. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS ABOUT HOW THAT FACTORS IN. 
          UH, NO THANK YOU FOR THOSE QUESTIONS. 
          UM, THE FIRST ONE, I, I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT. 
          IT'S HARD TO FIND AGENDAS AND MINUTES FOR OUR VARIOUS BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS. 
          AND THAT IS SOMETHING IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE IT'LL BE FIXED BECAUSE EVERYONE WILL BE MOVING OVER TO THE ONE MEETING PLATFORM. 
          SO WE'LL HAVE ONE PLACE THAT PEOPLE CAN GO TO FIND THE AGENDAS IN THE MINUTES. 
          I WANNA KNOW IT WON'T BE EXTRA WORK 'CAUSE THEY ALL HAVE THE AGENDAS. 
          IT'S JUST HARD FOR OTHER PEOPLE TO FOCUS E EXACTLY. 
          'CAUSE AGENDAS ARE GETTING POSTED, UH, MINUTES ARE GETTING GENERATED, BUT IT IS DIFFICULT TO FIND IT. 
          A LOT OF TIMES AGENDAS JUST LIVE WITHIN THE CALENDAR ITEM. 
          SO IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE DATE THAT IT EXISTED, IT'S, IT IS REALLY HARD TO FIND. 
          SO THAT WILL BE FIXED IN THE NEAR TERM. 
          UM, IN THE NEXT COUPLE MONTHS, YOU'LL BE GETTING PROBABLY A PROPOSAL FROM US IN TERMS OF HOW WE CAN START AND COLLABORATE WITH, UM, THE COUNCIL ON STARTING ORDINANCE REVIEWS, UM, FOR, YOU KNOW, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT I GO THROUGH. 
          I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT IS HEALTHY AND SHOULD BE DONE ON A REGULAR BASIS. 
          SO WE'RE WORKING RIGHT NOW LOOKING AT IT, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A REASONABLE WORK, UM, PLAN OF HOW WE THINK WE CAN ACCOMPLISH THIS. 
          SO THIS IS SOMETHING WE'LL BE COMING BACK, UM, TO ALL OF YOU. 
          'CAUSE I THINK YOU PLAY OBVIOUSLY AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN IT. 
          UM, AND WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE A PROCESS THAT CAN SORT OF BE FOLLOWED THROUGH. 
          SO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS KNOW HOW TO DO IT. 
          COUNCIL HAS A ROLE, THE PUBLIC HAS A ROLE. 
          ANYONE THAT IS INTERESTED IN ANY OF THE UNIQUE AREA THAT THESE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, UM, PLAY AS SOMETHING THAT WAS REALLY REMARKABLE. 
          UM, AT OUR EVENT THE OTHER NIGHT WE WERE TALKING, I WAS TALKING TO SOMEONE AND HOW PASSIONATE THEY WERE ABOUT TRASH. 
          IT WAS INCREDIBLE. 
          AND IT'S, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT ACROSS ANY OF THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT PEOPLE SERVE ON. 
          THEY'RE INCREDIBLY PASSIONATE ABOUT THE TOPICS. 
          I SEE THE PEOPLE ON THE OPEN DATA REVIEW BOARD THAT I'M ON, UM, AS WELL. 
          AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD CELEBRATE. 
          AND AT THE SAME TIME WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, UM, THE MISSIONS AND THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING IS ALIGNED WITH, UH, WITH THE COUNCIL. 
          SO WE'LL HAVE THAT COMING BACK. 
          IN TERMS OF AN ANNUAL REPORT, UM, I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT. 
          WE DON'T WANT TO CREATE MORE WORK JUST FOR THE SAKE OF WORK. 
          IF THERE'S SOME MEANINGFUL GOALS THAT WE CAN'T GET TO YOU EITHER THROUGH MINUTES OR AT ANY TIME, IF THERE'S SOMETHING SPECIFIC YOU NEED FROM ONE OF THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, FEEL FREE TO TALK TO US AND WE CAN GET SOME INFORMATION. 
          BUT PERHAPS AS WE'RE GOING THROUGH AND WORKING THROUGH SOME OF THESE OTHERS, WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO BETTER SCOPE WHAT, UM, SOME SORT OF ANNUAL REPORTING WOULD LOOK LIKE. 
          SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT IS MEANINGFUL TO THE COUNCIL. 
          UM, BUT I KNOW YOU GET A LOT OF REPORTS RIGHT NOW THAT COME BACK. 
          I DON'T, A LOT OF WORK GOES INTO THEM. 
          I DON'T KNOW HOW HELPFUL THEY ARE TO YOU. 
          SO I WANNA MAKE SURE IF WE DO GO DOWN SOME SORT OF ROAD THAT UM, IT IT'S WORTH THE STAFF TIME THAT'S GOING INTO IT AND THE IMPACT AND VALUE TO EACH OF YOU. 
          TOTALLY AGREE. 
          THAT'S WHAT I SAID. 
          I DON'T WANNA CREATE MORE WORK AND IT MAY BE JUST AS THE AGENDAS ARE THERE. 
          'CAUSE THE FACT IS EVERY BOARD AND COMMISSION PROBABLY EVERY YEAR, IF THERE'S A NEW MEMBER OR TWO LAY IT OUT. 
          THAT'S, THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH. 
          AND THE QUESTION OF POSSIBLY CONSOLIDATING AND AND COORDINATING IT IS, DID YOU ANSWER THAT OR IS THAT, I THINK THAT WOULD BE PART OF THE ORDINANCE VIEW. 
          'CAUSE A LOT OF THESE, UH, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS GOING THROUGH, I THINK THAT WILL BE A PROCESS FOR US TO TAKE A LOOK AT. 
          AND YOU KNOW, IT'S GONNA BE A MULTI-YEAR SORT OF PROCESS TO GET THROUGH, UM, YOUR VARIOUS BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS. 
          54 IS A LOT. 
          YEAH, THAT'S GREAT. 
          AND ONE REASON I MENTIONED THE ANNUAL REPORT IS I KNOW FOR INSTANCE, THE CLIMATE COMMITTEE, WHICH I FOLLOW PRETTY CLOSELY 'CAUSE I'M CHAIR OF THE HEALTH ENVIRONMENT. 
          THEY DO AN ANNUAL LETTER EVERY YEAR AND IT'S NOT FOR SOME REASON SENT TO US AT THE SAME TIME. 
          SO IT MIGHT BE TWO MONTHS LATER WHEN I REMEMBER TO ASK THAT SEEMS AGAIN, IT'S A COMMITTEE ESTABLISHED BY THE COUNCIL. 
          IT SHOULD BE SOMETHING LIKE THAT. 
          SHOULD JUST BE WE, SO WE CAN WORK. 
          THERE MAY ONLY BE A FEW, FEW OF THOSE LIKE THAT. 
          AND WE FOUND OUT WITH THE PA RIGHT, IT WAS REPORTS THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO BE GENERATED AND HADN'T BEEN FOR A YEARS. 
          SO I'M REALLY GLAD IT'S ON TRACK. 
          MY LAST QUESTION WAS, UM, ALSO SENT IN ADVANCE IS HOW DO WE MEASURE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE VARIOUS COMMUNICATIONS ASSESSED? SO THERE ARE SMART GOALS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE NUMBER OF MAILINGS, BUT HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THAT 
          [03:25:01]
COST IS JUSTIFIED? HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THOSE ARE, UM, ARE ARE, IN OTHER WORDS, WHAT'S THE RATIONALE FOR ACTUALLY MAILING THOSE? WHAT'S THE EITHER PROBLEM WE'RE TRYING TO SOLVE OR THE ISSUE WE'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS? UH, NO THANK YOU FOR THAT. 
          UH, QUESTION. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN. 
          UM, WE MEASURE PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING THAT WE DO, UM, IN A, AS WE THINK ABOUT ALL OF OUR DIGITAL EFFORTS. 
          UM, ASHLEY CURTIS, UH, REALLY TAKES A LEAD ON THIS. 
          WE NOW DO QUARTERLY REPORTING INTERNALLY WITH OUR COMMS MANAGERS. 
          WE MEET WITH ABOUT 21, UM, COMMUNICATIONS STAFF FOLKS FROM ACROSS DEPARTMENTS EVERY MONDAY AND NOW QUARTERLY. 
          UM, ASHLEY'S COMBINING ALL OF THE METRICS THAT COME IN FROM OUR SOCIAL, UM, SHE WORKS INDIVIDUALLY WITH DEPARTMENTS TO EVALUATE WHAT'S HAPPENING ACROSS OUR BULK EMAIL. 
          UH, OUR WEB TEAM LOOKS AT WHAT'S GOING ON WITH OUR GOOGLE ANALYTICS AND WE DON'T JUST LOOK AT THEM, BUT WE TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHERE ARE WE BEING EFFECTIVE? WHERE ARE WE PUTTING OUR TIME AND EFFORTS AND IN AREAS THAT WE'RE JUST NOT ABLE TO MOVE THE NEEDLE ON. 
          DO WE THINK ABOUT LIKE SUNSETTING OFF THAT TYPE OF ACTIVITY? AND I THINK THAT IS A NEWER LEVEL OF THINKING FOR THE CITY. 
          'CAUSE OFTENTIMES WE START THINGS AND THEN WE JUST KEEP DOING THEM. 
          UM, SO IF WE'RE NOT ABLE TO SHOW THEM BEING EFFECTIVE, UM, WE'RE TRYING TO STOP THEM. 
          SOME OF THE WAYS THAT WE START TO LOOK AT WHAT WE'D CONSIDER MORE TRADITIONAL, UM, TYPE PUBLIC MAILINGS, DOOR DROPS, WE LOOK AT THE SCANS THAT COME THROUGH IN TERMS OF THE UNIQUE CODES THAT WE PUT ON THEM. 
          UM, BUT FOR ME, WHAT'S MORE IMPACTFUL IS SEEING HOW VALUABLE THEY ARE TO THE RESIDENTS. 
          SO THESE ARE QUESTIONS WE'VE ASKED THROUGH OUR RANDOMIZED SURVEYS. 
          UM, AND SURPRISINGLY AS WE LOOK AT WHERE PEOPLE SAY THEY GET INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY, WORD OF MOUTH IS THE HIGHEST ONE. 
          AND THAT'S SORT OF ALWAYS BEEN THERE. 
          AND THAT IN THE LAST ONE THAT WE DID IN 2025, IT WAS 88%. 
          THE NEXT PLACE THAT THEY GET IT IS FROM CITY PRINT MAILED AND THAT'S AT 68%. 
          UM, AND THAT ECLIPSE LOCAL MEDIA, WHICH WAS AT 52%, YOU ASKED, UM, 22 CITY VIEW EARLIER IN TERMS OF THEIR IMPACT. 
          WE DON'T GET NIELSEN NUMBERS, BUT WE HAD 18% OF THE PEOPLE REPORT THAT THEY'RE USING OUR PEG CHANNEL. 
          SO 22 CITY VIEW, CCTV AS A SOURCE THAT THEY'RE USING TO GET INFORMATION. 
          SO ONE, WE KNOW PEOPLE ARE USING IT AND THEN WE ASK THE SIMILAR QUESTIONS, IS IT VALUABLE TO YOU? AND THESE NUMBERS STAY THERE. 
          PRINT MAILERS ARE EXPENSIVE, BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE REACH THAT THEY ARE GETTING, THEY'RE REALLY PRETTY COST EFFECTIVE. 
          'CAUSE IF YOU THINK ABOUT US GOING THROUGH IT COSTS US ABOUT 47 CENTS PER HOUSEHOLD TO, TO PRODUCE AND SEND THESE AND WE SEND FOUR OF 'EM A YEAR. 
          WE'RE VERY STRATEGIC ABOUT WHAT WE'RE PUTTING IN IT, HOW WE'RE TRYING TO HIGHLIGHT IT. 
          JEREMY HAS DONE A PHENOMENAL JOB OF STARTING TO THINK THROUGH HOW THE CONTENT MAKES SENSE. 
          WE'RE TRYING TO DO SOME BETTER STORYTELLING. 
          WE'RE CONSTANTLY TRYING TO EVOLVE IT, AND IT'S REALLY WONDERFUL TO HEAR PEOPLE RESPONDING TO IT. 
          SO THOSE ARE SOME OF THE WAYS THAT WE GO THROUGH AND REALLY EVALUATE IT. 
          WE TRY AS A TEAM NOT TO DO SOMETHING FOR THE SAKE OF DOING IT OR BECAUSE WE'VE ALWAYS DONE IT. 
          WE DO TRY TO MEASURE THE IMPACT, LOOK AT IT. 
          AND AS WE HAVE LIMITED RESOURCES TO EVALUATE, IS THIS A PLACE WHERE WE COULD SAVE MONEY AND DEPLOY IT INTO A MORE EFFECTIVE MANNER? SO THE PRINT PUBLICATIONS, I THINK PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO GET INFORMATION. 
          AND THEN SOCIAL, YOUR WEBSITE ARE FOR YOUR DEEPER DIVES. 
          IT'S REINFORCING IT, UH, BUT GETTING SOMETHING AT YOUR HOUSEHOLD IS JUST A REALLY IMPORTANT WAY TO REACH ALL OUR RESIDENTS. 
          YEP. 
          NO, I I I HAVE NO QUESTIONS WHATSOEVER ABOUT THAT. 
          AND THE REALITIES IN THE WORLD WE'RE LIVING IN, THE OVERWHELMING OF EMAIL MIGHT BE THE PRINT IS WE'RE GONNA GO BACK TO PRINT BEING THE, THE PRIMARY. 
          AND FOR THOSE 88% OF PEOPLE WHO SAY WORD OF MOUTH, HOW MANY OF THOSE ACTUALLY ORIGINALLY GOT IT FROM A MAILING? SO IT ACTUALLY MAY WELL NOT BE JUST THAT 68% OF THE MAILING, BUT SOME OF THE OTHER PEOPLE GOT IT FROM THE MAILING. 
          AND THEN I TOLD MY NEIGHBOR, DID YOU GET IT? UM, SO VERY GLAD WE'RE, WE'RE MEASURING THIS AND TRYING EVERYTHING WE CAN. 
          WE CAN TALK LATER ABOUT JUST AGAIN, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE WORKING TOGETHER ON, ON SOME OF THE INITIATIVES FOR COMMUNICATION BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING YOU DON'T JUST WANT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE, WE HAVE HAPHAZARD THE COUNCIL AND THE MAYOR DOESN'T HAVE A A COMMUNICATIONS AND IN FACT IT WOULD BE INDIVIDUAL INSTEAD OF FROM THE WHOLE CITY. 
          SO WE CAN TALK MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BODY? OKAY, I THINK WE ARE READY THEN. 
          UH, COUNCILOR MCGOVERN MOVES THAT WE MOVE THE COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL COUNCILOR ZUBE. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR 
          [03:30:01]
SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI? YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI? YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE EIGHT MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE AND ONE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          OKAY. 
          SO FOR EVERYBODY, WE ARE GOING TO TAKE A LUNCH BREAK. 
          IT IS 1235. 
          USUALLY WE DO ABOUT HALF AN HOUR. 
          WHY DON'T WE DO 35 MINUTES? SO WE EXPECT TO BE BACK HERE. 
          WE'LL RECONVENE AT ONE 10. 
          DO WE NEED A VOTE TO RECESS? MADAM CHAIR? OH, SORRY. 
          JUST, JUST, UM, I JUST WANNA NOTE I HAVE TO, I HAVE A, A ZOOM MEETING THAT I CAN'T CHANGE. 
          SO FROM ABOUT ONE 30 TO THREE OR SO, UH, I'M GONNA HAVE TO TAKE MY LEAVE, BUT I'LL BE BACK. 
          OKAY. 
          AND, AND JUST IF YOU THINK OF QUESTIONS THAT YOU WANNA ASKED IN BETWEEN NOW AND THEN, IF YOU COULD JUST, WE'LL, WE'LL MAKE SURE THEY'RE ADDRESSED FOR THE NO WORRIES FOR THE DEPARTMENTS HERE. 
          WORRIES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          IS THAT OKAY? UH, I, CHARLES IS GONNA KNOW I HAVE A ZOOM COMMITMENT FROM TWO TO THREE 30. 
          UM, BUT WE'LL BE BACK AFTER THAT AS WELL. 
          OKAY. 
          SO WHAT DO YOU WANNA SAY? WHAT TIME WE'RE COMING BACK. 
          SO WE ARE COMING, IS THAT OKAY? EVERYBODY, IF WE COME BACK AT ONE 10, NO PEOPLE NEED TO, NO, I THINK WE NEED HALF AN HOUR AND IT'S 1 35. 
          SO I WAS GONNA GIVE EXTRA 5 34 MINUTES. 
          EXTRA FIVE MINUTES. 
          SO, UH, ON THE MOTION TO RECESS UNTIL ONE 10. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBI. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR? YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILLOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILLOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILLOR. 
          SABRINA WHEELER? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR EY? YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI? YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE EIGHT MEMBERS RECORDED THE AFFIRMATIVE AND ONE RECORDED IS ABSENT A QUORUM OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE, COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE OF THE CAMBRIDGE CITY COUNCIL BEING PRESENT. 
          WE WILL RECONVENE FROM RECESS. 
          A ROLL CALL OF MEMBERS PRESENT. 
          CLERK COUNCILOR HUBBY. 
          PRESENT, VICE MAYOR ZE. 
          PRESENT. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILLOR NOLAN. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          COUNCILLOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT, COUNCILLOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          COUNCILLOR ZUI. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          PRESENT. 
          PRESENT. 
          YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED AS PRESENT. 
          AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          CITY TEAM AND ALSO FINANCE COMMITTEE. 
          COUNCIL, WE ARE GOING THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT'S PULLED FOR THIS TUESDAY, MAY 5TH BUDGET HEARING. 
          AND WE ARE NOW ONTO THE ELECTION COMMISSION, WHICH IS ON PAGE 1 49 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          BEFORE I SEE WHAT QUESTIONS THERE ARE FROM THE BODY, UH, DIRECTOR FORD, IF YOU WANTED TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND YOUR TEAM. 
          UH, WITH ME, I HAVE, UM, LESLIE WAXMAN, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS, AND WE HAVE COMMISSIONER CHARLES MARQUARDT. 
          AND I'M TANYA FORD. 
          I'M THE DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I KNOW I HAD SENT A QUESTION, I'M NOT SURE IF OTHERS HAVE AS WELL. 
          SO I'LL START WITH MINE, WHICH, UM, THE, THERE'S A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE BUDGET. 
          UH, THE AMOUNT OF INCREASES, 20% HIGHER FOR SALARIES AND WAGES WITH THE SAME FTES AND 29% FOR OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE. 
          AS I WOULD EXPECT, THIS MAY WELL BE RELAYED TO THE NUMBER OF ELECTIONS THAT WILL BE HELD, BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO GET ON THE RECORD, GIVEN THAT, UH, DEPARTMENTS ARE EXPECTED TO HAVE A 2.1% DECREASE. 
          WHY THIS, UH, DEPARTMENT IS DIFFERENT. 
          AND AGAIN, IF, IF THERE'S SOMETHING OTHER THAN ELECTIONS, BUT I'M, I HOPE DIRECTOR FORD CAN ANSWER THAT QUESTION. 
          MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, YES. 
          IT'S BASICALLY BECAUSE OF, UM, THERE BEING TWO ELECTIONS IN FISCAL YEAR 27, LAST FISCAL YEAR. 
          THERE WAS ONE ELECTION AND ONE PERIOD OF EARLY VOTING. 
          FISCAL YEAR 27. 
          THERE WILL BE TWO PERIODS OF EARLY VOTING, ONE OF SEVEN DAYS AND ONE OF 14 DAYS. 
          UM, WE'VE ALSO HAD SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN POSTAGE FOR THE CENSUS AND MAILINGS RELATED TO, UM, THE ELECTIONS. 
          WE ALSO HAVE INCREASED COSTS FOR, UM, POLICE ASSIGNMENT TO EARLY VOTING LOCATIONS ON AND ON ELECTION DAY. 
          UM, YEAH. 
          AND, AND ALSO THE VENDORS, VENDOR SERVICES, ELECTION SERVICES HAVE INCREASED SUBSTANTIALLY AND THEY'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO INCREASE BECAUSE WE HAVE TO USE VENDORS THAT THE STATE APPROVES AND WE CAN'T USE ANYONE OTHER THAN THAT. 
          SO WE'RE KIND OF STUCK. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YES. 
          AND I, NOT ONLY ARE THERE TWO ELECTIONS, BUT IN EVERY OTHER YEAR, THE FEDERAL ELECTION OF LAST YEAR INCLUDED A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, WHEREAS THIS YEAR IT DOES INCLUDE ALL STATE, UH, MANY STATEWIDE OFFICES, BUT, 
          [03:35:01]
AND SOME OF THE, UH, FEDERAL, BUT NOT THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, WHICH I BELIEVE ACCOUNTS FOR THE DIFFERENCE IN THE EXPECTED, UH, PERFORMANCE MEASURES ABOUT THE VOTE BY MAIL, ET CETERA. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? YES, THAT IS CORRECT. 
          UM, AND CAN YOU REMIND US OF, FOR THE IN-PERSON EARLY VOTING, HOW MUCH OF THAT IS REQUIRED BY STATE? THE AMOUNT? I THINK THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WILL ANSWER THAT. 
          FOR THE STATE PRIMARY, WE'RE REQUIRED TO HAVE SEVEN DAYS. 
          AND FOR THE, UM, GENERAL ELECTION, WE'RE REQUIRED TO HAVE 14 DAYS BECAUSE WE HAVE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF REGISTERED VOTERS, WE ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE AT LEAST SIX HOURS ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY FOR THE STATE PRIMARY AND FOR TWO WEEKENDS ON FOR THE GENERAL ELECTION. 
          GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT WAS A QUESTION SOMEONE ASKED ME WHEN THEY REVIEWED THE BUDGET, SO I WAS GLAD TO HAVE THE ANSWER. 
          ANY QUESTIONS? UH, COUNCILLOR UZI, UH, THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, I'M EAGER TO HEAR MORE ABOUT YOUR PRE-REGISTERING TO VOTE INITIATIVE FOR 16 AND 17 YEAR OLDS. 
          SO WHY DON'T I ASK YOU THAT FIRST? THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          UM, THAT INITIATIVE IS ORGANIZED BY THE COMMISSIONERS, SO I'M GONNA HAVE, UH, COMMISSIONER MARQUARDT ANSWER THAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          DIRECTOR FORD THROUGH YOU. 
          MADAM CHAIR TO COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          WE DO AN AWFUL LOT WITH THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT IN ADDITION TO USING THEIR LOCATIONS AS POLLING PLACES DURING THE ELECTIONS. 
          WE ALSO HAVE WORKED WITH THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE AND THE ADMINISTRATION TO MAKE MOST ELECTION DAYS IN SERVICE DAYS. 
          SO THE STUDENTS AREN'T IN THE SCHOOLS, WHICH ENABLES US TO DO ONE OF THE THINGS WE LIKE TO DO WITH THE STUDENTS, WHICH IS TO HIRE THEM TO BE POLL WORKERS. 
          UM, SO THEY GET TO SEE HOW ELECTIONS WORK, WORK RIGHT UP FRONT THERE. 
          IN THAT CASE, THAT SORT OF ROLLS INTO US, UM, PRE-REGISTERING STUDENTS BECAUSE IF THEY'RE 16 OR 17, THEY'RE GOING TO WORK THAT DAY. 
          IN ORDER TO BE A POLL WORKER, YOU HAVE TO BE REGISTERED. 
          SO WE GET PRE-REGISTRATION THAT WAY. 
          AND THEN WE ALSO WORK WITH SOME OF THE CLUBS AT THE SCHOOL, AT THE HIGH SCHOOL, UM, USUALLY LIKE THE HISTORY CLUB TO REGISTER STUDENTS AS WELL. 
          AND I WILL SAY THAT, UM, PRINCIPAL KAHAN HAS BEEN AN INVALUABLE RESOURCE TO US DOWN THERE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO, UM, SO THEY CAN'T REGISTER TILL THEY'RE 18. 
          SO ARE YOU, ARE THEY FILLING OUT PAPERWORK THAT YOU LET'S SET ASIDE FOR TWO YEARS OR ONE YEAR? UM, THE STATE SYSTEM ENABLES US TO ACTUALLY INPUT PREREGISTERED PEOPLE FROM 16 ON. 
          UM, YOU CAN'T SEE THEM BECAUSE WE CAN'T GIVE MINOR INFORMATION OUT, BUT WHEN THEY TURN 18, THEY CAN VOTE. 
          IT EVEN MEANS THAT WHEN THEY, THEY CAN REGISTER FOR A VOTE BY MAIL BALLOT AS LONG AS THEY TURN 18 BEFORE THE ELECTION EVEN IS, IS AFTER THE REGISTRATION DEADLINE. 
          WOW, THAT'S JUST AMAZING. 
          SO IS THAT BEING DONE THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY AND HOW MANY 16 AND 17 YEAR OLDS ARE REGISTERED? I, I CAN'T SPEAK TO THE COUNTRY. 
          YEAH, I CAN SPEAK THAT IT'S A MA IT'S DEFINITELY A MASSACHUSETTS THING. 
          AND I'M GONNA LOOK AT MS. WAXMAN IF SHE HAS A NUMBER OFF HER HEAD FOR HOW MANY WE HAVE RIGHT NOW. 
          UM, WE HAVE APPROXIMATELY 475 PRE-REGISTRATION. 
          CURRENTLY AS PEOPLE TURN 18, THOSE GET PROCESSED, SO THEN THEY BECOME REGISTERED VOTERS. 
          VERY, VERY COOL. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT. 
          AND THEN I JUST WONDERED, I KNOW, UM, SOME, SOME HOW MUCH FOR ELECTION COMMISSIONERS PAID AND WHAT IS THEIR RESPONSIBILITY? OKAY, YEAH, I'LL LET, UM, COMMISSIONER MARQUARDT REFER, HE CAN EXPLAIN WHAT HIS RESPONSIBILITIES ARE, BUT THEIR SALARIES ARE BETWEEN 34, APPROXIMATELY 34,040 5,000. 
          UM, COMMISSIONER, I'M SORRY, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR TO COUNCILOR LUCY. 
          OUR RESPONSIBILITIES ARE VERY BROAD. 
          IT, IN ADDITION TO BEING THE POLICY MAKING BODY FOR ELECTIONS, WHEREAS THE DE THE DIRECTOR AND EXEC ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, THEY'RE MORE OP ON THE OPERATIONAL SIDE. 
          SO WE WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE SURE EVERYTHING GOES THAT WAY. 
          WE ARE ALSO RESPONSIBLE FOR HIRING AND TRAINING ALL THE POLL WORKERS AND WORKING WITH THE STAFF AND THE OPERATIONAL STAFF TO GET THEM ALL SIGNED UP, WHICH MEANS FILLING OUT THE CITY'S PAPERWORK TO GET THEM SET UP AS EMPLOYEES, WHICH I KNOW ARE WORKING ON WAYS TO STREAMLINE THAT A LITTLE BIT. 
          UM, AND THEN WE'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL SITE. 
          UM, WITH THE ADVENT OF MAIL-IN VOTING AND EARLY VOTING IN PERSON, WE'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR STAFFING THOSE SITES. 
          WE ALSO EMPTY THE DROP BOXES THROUGHOUT THE EARLY VOTING PERIOD 
          [03:40:01]
AT LEAST ONCE A DAY. 
          UM, WE DO OUTREACH TO SENIOR SITES, TO, UM, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS TO JUST ABOUT ANYBODY WHO WILL HAVE US. 
          WE WILL GO AND SPEAK ABOUT ELECTIONS, ABOUT MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS, HOW PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION WORKS. 
          UM, THE ELECTION JUST DOESN'T STOP ON ELECTION NIGHT. 
          SO WE HAVE THE ENTIRETY OF WORK. 
          LIKE FOR INSTANCE, ON THE MUNICIPAL ELECTION, WE, IT GOES FOR ANOTHER THREE DAYS OF PROCESSING THE, THE BALLOTS WE HAVE TO DO HAND VOTED TABULATION FOR. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE ADDITIONAL WORK THAT HAPPENS AFTER THAT. 
          UM, EVERY 10 YEARS WE HAVE THE PRECINCT EFFORTS, WHICH IS SUBSTANTIAL. 
          UM, AND THEN THERE'S A LOT OF WORK KEEPING UP WITH YOUR POLL WORKERS. 
          WE TRY TO REACH OUT TO THEM AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH TO TALK TO THEM, MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE DOING OKAY AND PERPETUALLY RECRUITING NEW ONES. 
          UM, AND WE OFTEN GET CALLS TO MEET WITH MUNICIPALITIES THAT ARE CONSIDERING ADOPTING RANK CHOICE. 
          UM, WE ALSO EACH HAVE, UM, DESIGNATED HEALTHCARE FACILITIES. 
          SO FOR INSTANCE, I COVER BOTH, UM, CAMBRIDGE NURSING AND SANCTON MARIA. 
          SO WE GO THERE, REGISTER 'EM TO VOTE, FILL OUT THEIR VOTE, UM, ABSENTEE BALLOTS, AND THEN GO BACK AND ASSIST THEM WITH THEIR VOTING. 
          UM, AND THAT CAN TAKE ANYWHERE FROM LIKE 10 MINUTES PER VOTER TO, WITH LOTS OF QUESTIONS LIKE WE'RE ANTICIPATING THIS NOVEMBER, I AM PREDICTING IT WILL BE BETWEEN AN HOUR AND A HALF TO TWO HOURS PER VOTER TO HELP THEM VOTE. 
          AND SO FOR HOW LONG, SO IS IT, SO C COUNCILOR SUZI, JUST MAKE SURE THAT IT'S A BUDGET QUESTION. 
          WELL, IT IS A BUDGET QUESTION 'CAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UH, UH, HOW MANY COMMISSIONERS ARE THERE? FOUR. 
          FOUR. 
          OH, THERE ARE FOUR COMMISSIONERS. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          SO IT IS A BUDGET QUESTION. 
          AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, I MEAN, THEY'RE BEING PAID BETWEEN 34 AND $45,000. 
          SO IT'S PART-TIME WORK. 
          I I THINK THERE'S ONE SALARY. 
          IT'S 45,000 EACH. 
          THERE'S NOT A RANGE, DO YOU MADAM CHAIR? UM, THERE IS A RANGE, AND IT DEPENDS ON THE YEARS OF SERVICE. 
          SO WHEN THE COMMISSIONER COMES IN, THEY START AT, FOR INSTANCE, STEP ONE, THE RATE, WHICH WOULD BE AROUND THE 34,000. 
          AND SO THERE'S ONE CURRENTLY AT STEP ONE. 
          AND THEN THE OTHER THREE HAVE ALREADY STEPPED OUT OF ALL THAT, THAT WHOLE COURSE OF STEPS. 
          SO THEY RECEIVE COLA ANNUALLY AND THAT'S ALL THEY RECEIVE. 
          SO YES, THERE IS, UM, A DIFFERENCE IN SALARY. 
          AND DO THEY RECEIVE BENEFITS? IS IT CONSIDERED PART-TIME WORK OR FULL-TIME WORK? UM, IT'S PART-TIME, BUT THEY DO RECEIVE BENEFITS AND IS, AND SO HAVE, UM, COMM COMMISSIONERS GOTTEN PAID FOR DECADES? AND GENERALLY ARE COMMISSIONERS PAID? I CAN ONLY SPEAK TO THE 16 YEARS I'VE BEEN HERE. 
          AND YES, THEY HAVE BEEN PAID, I BELIEVE BEFORE, PRIOR TO THAT. 
          UM, I THINK THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WAS HERE AS A TEMP AND, AND THEY WERE PAID THEN TOO. 
          I THINK AS FAR AS FAR BACK AS ANYBODY CAN REMEMBER, THEY'VE BEEN PAID. 
          MAYBE NOT AT THIS RATE, BUT YES. 
          THANK, THANK YOU. 
          I YIELD, DID YOU MEAN IN CAMBRIDGE OR ELSEWHERE? YEAH, NO, I WONDERED IF IT, IT WAS A COMMON THING FOR ELECTION COMMISSIONERS TO GET PAID IN OTHER COMMUNITIES. 
          THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S RELEVANT TO THIS BUDGET. 
          WE CAN HAVE THAT ANSWERED AT ANOTHER TIME AND DO SOME KIND OF, YOU KNOW, HAVE, HAVE SOME COMPARABLE, DO YOU HAVE AN ANSWER? I DON'T KNOW. 
          MADAM CHAIR, WOULD YOU LIKE ME JUST TO PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION ABOUT YEAH. 
          WHAT SHE'S ASKING. 
          UM, IF, IF YOU HAVE IT, THAT'S FINE. 
          I JUST DIDN'T WANNA YES, JUST A LITTLE BIT. 
          UM, SO AS PER THE SPECIAL ACT IN 1921, UM, THE ANNUAL SALARY WAS PRESCRIBED BY A PRESCRIBED BY THE MAYOR AND THE CITY COUNCIL. 
          BUT SINCE THEN, AND YOU CAN SPEAK WITH THE LAW DEPARTMENT 'CAUSE I AM, I AM NOT A, A LAWYER. 
          UH, THE LAW DEPARTMENT CAN PROVIDE A LEGAL OPINION PLAN E IN THE REVISED CHARTER. 
          HOWEVER, UM, PROBABLY CHANGE THE AUTHORITY TO THE, FROM THE MAYOR AND THE CITY COUNCIL TO THE CITY MANAGER AND CITY COUNCIL TO PRESCRIBE SALARIES FOR THE COMMISSIONERS. 
          UH, THANK, THANK YOU FOR THANK YOU FOR THAT. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OTHER, UH, MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          THANK YOU CHAIR. 
          AND THROUGH YOU. 
          I JUST HAD A CLARIFICATION QUESTION ON PAGE 1 49, UNDER FY 27, OBJECTIVES OF PERFORMANCE MEASURES. 
          YOU, YOU'RE SAYING YOU'RE CONDUCTING IN PERSON EARLY VOTING, WHICH I KNOW IS REALLY POPULAR. 
          VOTE BY MAIL IS REALLY POPULAR. 
          AND THEN THERE'S PROVIDE AN ONLINE ACCESSIBLE VOTE BY MAIL OPTION. 
          AND TO CLARIFY THIS IS, UM, THE, THROUGH THE STATE, THE 
          [03:45:01]
ACCESSIBLE ELECTRONIC VOTE BY MAIL. 
          IS THAT WHAT THAT'S REFERRING TO? YES, EXACTLY. 
          AND HOW MANY REQUESTS DO YOU GET AROUND THAT, DO YOU KNOW? UM, IT'S A HANDFUL. 
          I THINK MAYBE 10 TO 15. 
          GOT IT. 
          YOU I JUST WANTED TO, UM, CLARIFY THAT. 
          I SAW IN THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE ACTUAL VOTE BY MAIL BALLOTS MAIL TO VOTERS IN FY 25 WAS OVER 40,000. 
          BUT THE ACTUAL THAT GOT RETURNED WERE, WAS A LITTLE UNDER, UM, THAT, AND SO THAT GAP, RIGHT, I IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE'RE SEEING? DO YOU KNOW, THAT'S JUST TYPICAL IN MOST COMMUNITIES? IS THAT, UM, I THINK IT'S TYPICAL ACROSS MASSACHUSETTS. 
          UM, FOR US IT'S BEEN TYPICAL SINCE WE STARTED VOTE BY MAIL. 
          UM, PEOPLE WILL SUBMIT THE APPLICATIONS. 
          SOMETIMES THEY SUBMIT AN APPLICATION DURING THE COURSE OF THE YEAR FOR ALL ELECTIONS, AND THEN THEY CHOOSE NOT TO EVEN VOTE IN ONE ELECTION OR THEY DON'T RETURN, YOU KNOW. 
          UM, SO I THINK IT'S TYPICAL. 
          DO THEY VOTE IN PERSON OR THEY VOTE IN PERSON? SOMETIMES THEY DECIDE TO VOTE IN PERSON THROUGH YOU, BUT WE'RE SPENDING ON THAT POSTAGE AT THE UPFRONT. 
          YES, WE ARE. 
          UM, BUT WE'RE SPENDING THE, ON THE GOING OUT THE STATE WILL PAY FOR THE RETURN ON THE BALLOT. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COUNCILLOR FLAHERTY? JUST VERY QUICKLY ON THAT, ON THAT ISSUE ABOUT THE MAIL-IN BALLOTS VERSUS, UH, VOTING IN PERSON, DO WE HAVE A CROSS REFERENCE TO SEE HOW MANY PEOPLE ACTUALLY RECEIVED THE MAIL-IN, UH, BUT ULTIMATELY DECIDE TO VOTE IN PERSON RATHER THAN NOT VOTE AT ALL? UM, THE DATA IS AVAILABLE. 
          I DON'T HAVE THOSE NUMBERS FOR OKAY. 
          IT VARIES BASED ON ELECTION, BUT, UM, WE DO HAVE DATA FOR EVERYBODY WHO REQUESTED A BALLOT AND WHO RETURNED IT AND EVERYBODY WHO VOTED. 
          SO IT'S, IT'S SOMETHING THAT CAN BE FIGURED OUT, BUT IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT THERE'S A REPORT CREATED FOR. 
          THAT'S FAIR. 
          UH, WELL, YOU KNOW, NOT, I THINK EVERYBODY IN THIS ROOM AGREES THAT THE WORK THAT YOU DO IS, UH, AND THE INTEGRITY OF THE WORK THAT YOU DO IS CRITICAL. 
          AND, UH, I GUESS I'LL ASK THE CATCHALL QUESTION. 
          DO YOU HAVE THE TOOLS THAT YOU NEED? DO YOU HAVE ENOUGH DOUGH TO GET EVERYTHING DONE IN YOUR BUDGET? OR IS THERE SOMETHING THAT WE CAN DO TO ENSURE THAT THERE'S NO PROBLEMS WITH ELECTIONS HERE IN THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE? I THINK WE HAVE WHAT WE NEED CURRENTLY. 
          UM, THERE'S BEEN TIMES WE'VE HAD TO COME BACK AND ASK FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS, UM, WHEN THINGS ARISE. 
          UM, BUT I THINK RIGHT NOW WE, WE ARE PRETTY GOOD. 
          UM, POSTAGE AND THINGS I CAN'T DETERMINE, UM, THOSE INCREASES HAPPEN DURING THE COURSE OF THE YEAR. 
          I TRY TO PLAN FOR THEM, BUT, BUT I THINK THAT WE'RE OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          RIGHT NOW. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER RESPONSES TO THAT? NO. 
          OR QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT. 
          WITH THAT THEN, UH, COUNCILORS ZUZU MOVES THE ELECTION COMMISSION FORWARD TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          DISCUSSION. 
          ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBE. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR ZI? YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNSELOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNSELOR EY? YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI? YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          HAVE A GOOD AFTERNOON. 
          NEXT DEPARTMENT IS THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT ON PAGE 1 51 OF THE BUDGET BOOK THIS, IT SAYS UNDER EXECUTIVE THAT IT IS A $2.7 MILLION BUDGET WITH FTES OF 13.8. 
          THERE ARE PLANNED INITIATIVES, THERE ARE NOT PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES, WHICH HOPEFULLY WE CAN RECTIFY IN THE FUTURE. 
          JUST A HINT. 
          UM,  AND, UH, CITY MANAGER, DID YOU WANNA START US OFF, BUT WITH 
          [03:50:01]
ANYTHING OR INTRODUCE THE REST OF THE TEAM BEFORE WE GET STARTED? UH, SURE. 
          UM, EXCITED TO INTRODUCE THE TEAM. 
          UM, SO THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE, UH, WE DID GO THROUGH COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ALREADY. 
          AND THE OTHER FUNCTIONS WITHIN THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE, OUR, THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, INCLUDING THE DEPUTY CITY MANAGER. 
          UM, WE HAVE MATT NELSON, UM, OUR DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS AT ADMINISTRATION, UH, AND THEN JANE LA WHO IS OUR STRATEGIC ADVISOR, UH, AND RUNS THE STRATEGY TEAM. 
          UM, SO HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, UM, AND LOOKING FORWARD TO THE DISCUSSION. 
          OKAY. 
          ON, UM, I'LL START WITH COUNCILOR SABINA WHEELER, THEN COUNCILLOR SUZI, AND THEN OTHERS. 
          COUNCILLOR SABINA WHEELER. 
          THANKS, MADAM CHAIR THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, THANKS TO CITY STAFF FOR PRESENTING. 
          UH, THIS IS A QUESTION COMPOSED TO OTHER DEPARTMENTS AS WELL, BUT CURIOUS TO, TO HEAR FROM THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, UM, INTERESTED IN, IN HEARING ABOUT HOW YOU THINK ABOUT USING CONSULTANTS VERSUS CITY STAFFS FOR VARIOUS REPORTS AND PROJECTS AND SORT OF WHAT, WHAT ARE CRITERIA YOU LOOK FOR TO DETERMINE WHETHER IT WOULD NEED TO BE A CONSULTANT VERSUS WHETHER IT COULD BE DONE IN-HOUSE BY CITY STAFF. 
          AND OBVIOUSLY IF WE'RE, WE'RE USING CITY STAFF, THAT'S NOT AN EXPENSE 'CAUSE WE'RE, WE'RE PAYING FOR IT IN SALARY IN MOST CASES. 
          WHEREAS AS RESTRIC CONSULTANTS IT IS SOMETIMES CONSULTANTS HAVE, UH, EXPERTISE THAT WE DON'T HAVE ON, ON STAFF. 
          BUT WONDERING IF YOU CAN PROVIDE SOME MORE DETAIL ABOUT, UH, WHEN, WHEN YOU LOOK AT CONSULTANTS, WHAT, UH, YOU KNOW, CRITERIA THEY HAVE TO HAVE, WHAT EXPENSE LEVELS PROVIDE SOME MORE DETAIL AROUND THAT. 
          UH, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN, UM, I THINK YOU'VE DONE A GREAT JOB, UH, COUNCILLOR, SABRINA WHEELER, LAYING OUT SOME OF THE DYNAMICS. 
          UM, CERTAINLY AS WE'VE HAD DISCUSSIONS, THERE ARE TIMES WHERE, UH, WE ARE LOOKING AT CONSULTANTS MOSTLY BECAUSE, UH, THERE IS A SPECIFIC KIND OF EXPERTISE THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR. 
          UM, OFTENTIMES THAT TIES TO ECONOMIC ANALYSIS. 
          UM, OR, UH, I KNOW, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THE LAW DEPARTMENT, UH, WE'LL BRING IN EXTERNAL LAWYERS. 
          UM, AS YOU'RE NOTING, FOR THE MOST PART, WE DO PREFER TO DO THINGS IN-HOUSE. 
          UH, IT MAKES MORE SENSE, PARTICULARLY SINCE WE HAVE, UH, FANTASTIC DEPARTMENT HEADS AND STAFF. 
          UM, AND, UH, FITTING IT INTO THEIR EXISTING WORK PLAN AND CAPACITY, UM, IS, UH, IS MORE COST EFFICIENT. 
          AND ALSO I THINK IT DOES END UP PRODUCING BETTER OUTCOMES BECAUSE WE HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE CITY, OUR COMMUNITY, THE WAY THAT WE DO THINGS. 
          UM, THEY HAVE THE NECESSARY EXPERTISE TO RUN MANY OF THESE PROGRAMS. UH, AND WE DO LEAN ON THEM, UH, IN THAT REGARD. 
          UH, BUT THEN SOMETIMES WE DO END UP IN SITUATIONS WHERE, UH, WE ARE RESOURCE CONSTRAINED AND IT DOES HELP TO BRING IN, UH, SOME ADDITIONAL CAPACITY. 
          UH, AND, AND I THINK THAT'S WHERE, UM, WE ARE, YOU KNOW, WE ARE CAREFUL ABOUT HOW WE'RE SPENDING THAT MONEY. 
          UM, AND I THINK OVER TIME WE ARE CONTINUING TO TIGHTEN THAT UP. 
          UM, SO, UM, WE HAVE MORE INTERNAL REVIEW OF CONSULTANT CONTRACTS, UM, AND WE'VE IMPLEMENTED THAT OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF, UH, OF BUDGET CYCLES. 
          UM, AND I THINK, UH, ANYTHING TO ADD DEPUTY CITY MANAGER? SURE. 
          THROUGH YOUR CHAIR, NOLAN? UM, THE ONLY, THE OTHER THING I WOULD ADD, AND I KNOW SOME OF THE OTHER QUESTIONS RELATED A LITTLE BIT TO THE STRATEGY TEAM, AND I THINK THEY'VE DEFINITELY BEEN A BIG PART OF HELPING US THINK THROUGH, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE CAPACITY WE HAVE IN-HOUSE AND THE HAVING THE SEPARATE STRATEGY TEAM AS OPPOSED TO IN INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENTS IS REALLY HELPFUL BECAUSE AS A DEPARTMENT SORT OF WORKLOAD PEAKS OR THERE'S A SPECIAL PROJECT, THERE'S A RESOURCE THAT'S AVAILABLE. 
          SO THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S BEEN REALLY HELPFUL. 
          BUT I WOULD ALSO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, IT IS ALSO ABOUT VOLUME OF WORKS. 
          IF YOU THINK ABOUT A REALLY TECHNICAL PROJECT THAT HAS TECHNICAL SKILLS, WE DON'T NECESSARILY WANNA HIRE FIVE STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS TO BE ON STAFF ALL THE TIME. 
          WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS THEM WHEN, WHEN WE NEED THEM. 
          UM, AND SIMILARLY, LIKE WITH DESIGN PROJECTS AND THOSE KINDS OF, UM, DETAILS, THERE'S A LOT OF SPECIALIZED CONSULTANT WORK THAT SUPPLEMENTS THE STAFF. 
          UM, AND EVEN, UM, SOME COMMUNITY RELATIONS STAFF. 
          I KNOW WE HAD A GOOD CONVERSATION THIS MORNING ABOUT THE SORT OF INCREASING CAPACITY WITHIN, YOU KNOW, THE CENTRALIZED COMMS TEAM, WHICH IS EXTREMELY HELPFUL AND IS REALLY SUPPORTING DEPARTMENTS. 
          BUT WE ALSO WILL HAVE A MAJOR PROJECT LIKE THE PORT RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE MIGHT HAVE REALLY INTENSE EVENTS WHERE WE DO NEED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT. 
          AND SO WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE STAFFING LEVELS TO MEET THAT ALL YEAR ROUND. 
          WE WANNA BE ABLE TO ACCESS THAT, THOSE CONSULTANTS WHEN, WHEN THEY'RE NEEDED. 
          AND SO IT IS ABOUT FINDING THAT RIGHT BALANCE OF WHAT CAN WE TAKE ON IN-HOUSE, UM, AND WHAT CAN WE DO WITH CURRENT STAFF VERSUS WHAT DO WE NEED SPECIALIZED STAFF FOR. 
          BUT UM, AS THE CITY MANAGER MENTIONED, WE ARE ALSO LOOKING MUCH MORE CAREFULLY AT CONSULTANT CONTRACTS AND PROPOSALS WHEN THEY'RE COMING THROUGH FROM THE DEPARTMENTS TO SAY, YOU KNOW, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE HANDLED WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OR ARE THERE CENTRALIZED RESOURCES THAT CAN HELP? 
          [03:55:01]
UM, OR IS THIS SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO DO RIGHT NOW OR CAN THIS BE DELAYED? AND SO I THINK THOSE ARE ALL THE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'RE HAVING TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE USING THOSE CONTRACTS WHERE WE REALLY NEED THEM AND WHERE WE'RE GETTING THAT VALUE. 
          HEY, THANK YOU. 
          ARE YOU BACK, UH, BEFORE I GO ON, I WANNA, 'CAUSE I HAD A DIRECT QUESTION RELATED TO THAT, IF I COULD FOLLOW UP ON THAT. 
          'CAUSE I HAD SENT IN A QUESTION VERY MUCH ALONG THE LINES OF, YOU KNOW, OVERALL WE ARE USING MANY CONSULTANTS. 
          WE'RE HOPING, OR I WAS HOPING THE STRATEGY TEAM WAS REVIEWING, AND I KNOW IT'S BEEN UNDER DISCUSSION AND THE QUESTIONS, WHETHER THERE'S INTERNAL OBJECTIVE AND PERFORMANCE MEASURES TO REDUCE THAT AMOUNT AND TO CONSOLIDATE AND FOR INSTANCE, TO ESTABLISH A LIMIT. 
          LIKE FOR INSTANCE, THERE WAS SOME IN BOSTON OR OTHERS WHERE THEY ESTABLISHED 150 HOUR MAX FOR CONSULTANTS THAT, THAT THE CITY WOULD NEVER PAY MORE THAN X NUMBER OF DOLLARS PER HOUR FOR CONSULTANTS. 
          UM, AND AN EXAMPLE WOULD BE WE, IT SEEMS LIKE WE SHOULD NEVER NEED A REASON FOR CONSULTANTS AT OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. 
          WE JUST HEARD FROM A PHENOMENAL TEAM. 
          I KNOW IN THE CITY, IN THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT, FOR INSTANCE, AT SOME POINT THEY SAID, YOU KNOW WHAT, WE'RE JUST GONNA HIRE A BUILDING SUB INSTEAD OF HAVING DAILY SUBS FOR THIS SCHOOL, WE'RE JUST GONNA HIRE A BUILDING SUB BEYOND THE STAFF. 
          THEY KNOW THE SCHOOL, THEY, THEY KNOW THAT THEY DO THIS. 
          IT WAS COST EFFECTIVE, BUT IT WAS ALSO MUCH BETTER FOR THE SCHOOL TO HAVE ONE PERSON THAT WAS ALWAYS ON CALL. 
          AND I WONDER IF IT'S SIMILAR THAT IF WE'RE FINDING THERE MAY BE A TIMING ISSUE, BUT THEN YOU SAY, WELL, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, YOU DO YOUR COMMUNITY WORK OVER HERE, YOU KNOW, ON TUESDAY, AND THEN CDD CAN DO IT ON THURSDAY. 
          I JUST REALLY HOPE THAT'S PART OF THE CONVERSATION BECAUSE TOTALLY UNDERSTAND THE IDEA OF AN ENGINEER THAT WE NEED OR SOME ECONOMIC ANALYSIS FOR THE INCENTIVE ZONING STUDY. 
          BUT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IS NOT A SPECIALIZED SKILL THAT WE NEED TO EVER BE PAYING 150 OR $200 AN HOUR FOR, IT SEEMS. SO IS THAT SOMETHING THE STRATEGY TEAM IS LOOKING AT? AND WE CAN BE ASSURED THAT THAT'S GOING ON. 
          UM, THREE CHAIR NOLAN, MAYBE I CAN TAKE A START AND THEN IF THERE'S OTHERS THAT WANNA ADD. 
          UM, I WOULD SAY I DON'T THINK WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, SPECIFIC TARGETS. 
          I THINK WE ARE INCREASING OUR OVERSIGHT AND START HAVING THOSE CONVERSATIONS. 
          UM, I WOULD DISAGREE A LITTLE BIT IN TERMS OF SAYING THAT WE WOULD NEVER NEED COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT STAFF. 
          'CAUSE AGAIN, THE EXAMPLE I JUST GAVE AT THE PORT, WE HAVE THESE REALLY HIGH INTENSITY TIMES THAT WE DON'T WANNA STAFF EITHER AT THE DEPARTMENT OR EVEN CENTRALIZED FOR THOSE KINDS OF PROJECTS. 
          AND SO I THINK THERE IS STILL A RANGE OF TIMES WHEN WE DO NEED THAT CONSULTANT SUPPORT OR ELSE WE WOULD END UP WITH A LOT OF STAFF THAT WE DON'T NECESSARILY NEED YEAR ROUND. 
          AND SO THERE ARE DEFINITELY THESE LARGE EVENTS, AND I THINK EVEN SIMILARLY, YOU KNOW, WITH THE COMBINED SEW ARE OVERFLOW PLAN, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THAT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IS HALF TECHNICAL AND HALF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. 
          AND SO THERE ARE THESE KIND OF, SORT OF SPECIALIZED SKILLS THAT FALL INTO THOSE. 
          AND SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE ARE LOOKING TO CONTINUE TO BUILD UP, YOU KNOW, AND UTILIZE THE CENTRAL SUPPORT TO HELP SUPPLEMENT THE STAFF AT THE DEPARTMENTS. 
          UM, AND THEN IN TERMS OF THE RATES, YOU KNOW, WE GO THROUGH, YOU KNOW, COMPETITIVE BIDDING IN TERMS OF GETTING IN CONSULTANTS. 
          WE LOOK AT THAT AS PART OF WHAT WE LOOK AT AND CERTAINLY, UM, MORE SPECIALIZED, UM, SKILLS, AS YOU MENTIONED, ARE GONNA HAVE DIFFERENT RATES. 
          AND SO WE DO LOOK AT THAT IN TERMS OF HOW WE ARE EVALUATED THOSE CONTRACTS IN WHICH CONTRACTS TO USE. 
          UM, IF, IF I WERE TO JUST ADD A LITTLE BIT, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK I WOULD, I WOULD RESIST SORT OF THE ONE SIZE FITS ALL OF TRYING TO FIND THE RIGHT KIND OF BLANKET CONDITIONS. 
          UM, I THINK THE, THE SPIRIT OF WHAT YOU ARE PUTTING FORWARD TO NOLAN IS ABSOLUTELY WHAT WE BUILD INTO OUR DECISION MAKING IN TERMS OF HOW WE THINK ABOUT WHEN WE ARE USING CONSULTANTS, WHETHER OR NOT IT'S COST EFFECTIVE, UM, AND, AND BEING CAREFUL ABOUT HOW WE ACTUALLY GET THE WORK DONE. 
          UM, I THINK THE CHALLENGE WITH SOME OF THOSE BLANKET UM, IDEAS BECOMES, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE MORE EDGE CASE, UM, SITUATIONS. 
          AND SO, YOU KNOW, FOR INSTANCE, I KNOW WE HAVE PRETTY CAREFUL DISCUSSIONS ON THE LEGAL SIDE WHERE SOMETIMES THERE'S A VERY NARROW AREA OF CASE LAW, UM, WHERE THE CITY IS DEFENDING IN PARTICULAR SOME OF THE COUNCIL'S PRIORITIES. 
          AND WE ARE MAKING THAT DECISION IN TERMS OF, UM, HAVING RECEIVED A COUPLE OF BIDS AND, YOU KNOW, THERE MAY BE SOMEBODY WHO'S CHARGING A SLIGHTLY LOWER HOURLY RATE. 
          UM, BUT UM, BUT THERE MAY BE A LEVEL OF EXPERTISE, UM, THAT, THAT WE ACTUALLY FEEL LIKE IS WORTH IT. 
          UM, SO I THINK THERE'S, THERE'S AN ELEMENT OF TRUST IN TERMS OF PROVIDING THE CITY FLEXIBILITY TO MAKE THOSE MANAGEMENT DECISIONS. 
          THAT'S IMPORTANT. 
          UM, I THINK TO YOUR OTHER QUESTION, IN TERMS OF THE ROLE OF THE STRATEGY TEAM, UM, I THINK IT, IT IS NOT NECESSARILY THE CASE THAT THE STRATEGY TEAM IS A CATCHALL FOR, UH, FOR PROJECTS. 
          UM, I THINK A LOT OF WHAT WE ARE RECOGNIZING IS THAT, UM, THERE ARE A LOT OF CHANGES IN PROJECTS THAT WE'RE RUNNING ACROSS THE CITY. 
          UM, AND IN PARTICULAR A LOT OF WHAT, UM, 
          [04:00:01]
WHAT WE ARE USING THE STRATEGY TEAM TO SUPPORT IS SOME OF THE MORE INTERNAL CONSULTING AROUND PROJECT MANAGE MANAGEMENT, DATA ANALYSIS PRESENTATIONS IN WAYS THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY FACILITATE DECISION MAKING. 
          UM, AND, UH, AND THAT'S ACTUALLY AN AREA WHERE THE COUNCIL IS OFTEN PART OF THE RECIPIENTS. 
          UM, AND SO A LOT OF WHAT, UH, WHAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO IN TERMS OF PROVIDING MORE TRANSPARENCY INTO A LOT OF OUR CONVERSATIONS, PARTICULARLY THE FINANCIAL SIDE AND THE BUDGET PROCESS, HAS COME OUT OF A COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE STRATEGY TEAM, THE FINANCE TEAM, UH, BUILDING IN CAPITAL PROJECTS. 
          UM, AND I THINK THAT'S A BIG PIECE OF THE WAY THAT WE'RE THINKING ABOUT WHERE THE STRATEGY TEAM ADDS VALUE. 
          UM, AND I THINK, I THINK IF I WERE TO, IF I WERE TO ESPECIALLY USE SOME OF THE COUNCIL CONVERSATIONS AS AN EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE THAT MUCH TIME IN A COMMITTEE MEETING OR ON A MONDAY NIGHT. 
          AND SO A LOT OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS TAKE A LOT OF INFORMATION, DISTILL IT INTO SOMETHING THAT WE CAN PRESENT AND WALK PEOPLE THROUGH AND ACTUALLY GET TO, UH, UNDERSTANDING AND DECISIONS. 
          UM, SO, SO I HOPE THAT'S A LITTLE BIT HELPFUL IN TERMS OF LIKE WHAT THINGS WE END UP BRINGING THE STRATEGY TEAM INTO AND, AND AREAS THAT WE, UH, WE DON'T, AND MAYBE HAPPY TO ALSO, UH, TURN IT OVER TO JANE IF THERE'S, UH, ADDITIONAL, BECAUSE I, I THINK THIS HAS COME UP A COUPLE OF TIMES, BUT IT MAY BE HELPFUL TO PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT MORE OF THAT COLOR IN TERMS OF THE KINDS OF PROJECTS THAT THE STRATEGY TEAM HAS WORKED ON IN THE WAYS THAT WE, WE ACTUALLY REALLY PARTNER WITH DEPARTMENTS, UH, TO CARRY OUT SOME OF THE KEY INITIATIVES IN THE CITY. 
          YES, TO YOU CHAIR NOLAN, I DO WANNA APOLOGIZE BECAUSE LAST YEAR I DO BELIEVE WE WERE ASKED TO ADD A BLURB ABOUT THE STRATEGY TEAM IN THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          SO WE WILL MAKE SURE TO DO THAT. 
          SO I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. 
          UH, SO THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO OUR TEAM. 
          WE ARE A TEAM OF 2.8, UM, FTES IN THE BUDGET. 
          I'M THE 0.8, AND THEN I HAVE TWO FULL-TIME STRATEGY MANAGERS AND, UM, AN HBS LEADERSHIP FELLOW. 
          AND WE ACTUALLY GOT A FULLY FUNDED HBS SUMMER INTERN FOR THE FIRST TIME, WHICH IS VERY EXCITING. 
          WE WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH DEPARTMENT LEADS, UM, AS IAN AND KATHY WERE TALKING ABOUT, AND SUPPORT THEM ON THE HIGHEST IMPACT AND CROSS-FUNCTIONAL WORK THAT MAYBE THEY DON'T EITHER HAVE THE CAPACITY OR THE, UM, SOMETIMES THE EXPERTISE, BUT, UM, OFTEN IT'S, IT'S A CAPACITY SUPPORT AND ALSO THE FACILITATION OF CROSS-DEPARTMENTAL WORK. 
          UM, AND SO, UM, AS IAN SAID, WE DO PROJECT MANAGEMENT, ANALYTICAL SUPPORT, PRESENTATION, AND PROBLEM SOLVING AND SOME EXAMPLE PROJECTS. 
          WE WORKED ON 30 PROJECTS OVER THE LAST FISCAL YEAR ACROSS 15 DEPARTMENTS. 
          UM, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, SPINNER MENTIONED, UM, OUR WORK ON THE 2.1 SAVINGS INITIATIVE, UM, THAT WAS IN COLLABORATION WITH THE BUDGET DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, WE WORKED ACTUALLY WITH, UM, DIRECTOR NELSON HERE ON SPECIAL EVENTS IN THE APPROACH TO THAT. 
          UM, WE DID A STAFFING ANALYSIS FOR THE ECC DEPARTMENT TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY NEEDED AND HOW THEY COMPARED WITH OTHER, UM, CITIES. 
          AND SOMEONE ON MY TEAM HAS BEEN REALLY CLOSELY WORKING WITH RAY ON THE COMPENSATION AND CLASSIFICATION STUDY. 
          SO THESE ARE JUST FOUR EXAMPLES OF, UM, THE 30. 
          I ALSO WANNA JUST MENTION ANOTHER USE OF OUR TEAM, WHICH IS TO TEST OUT IDEAS AND SEE IF WE ACTUALLY NEED A FULL-TIME STAFF MEMBER TO DO THE WORK. 
          SO, UM, I HAVE TWO EXAMPLES. 
          ONE IS, UM, ZACH, ER DIAZ ON MY TEAM WHO WORKED WITH HR TO ROLL OUT CENTRAL PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT, UM, AT THE REQUEST OF COUNCIL TO HAVE MORE PERFORMANCE REVIEWS BEING DONE. 
          AND SO HE HELPED WORKED WITH RAY ON, UM, THE DESIGN AND THEN THE ROLLOUT. 
          AND THEN ONCE THAT STARTED RULING AND IT WAS CLEAR, IT'S ACTUALLY BEING HANDED OFF NOW TO ELI HOFFMAN, THE LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT MANAGER. 
          AND SIMILARLY, CAROLYN LAME WHO, UM, WAS OUR FIRST LEADERSHIP FELLOW, SHE HELPED, UM, WORKED WITH, UM, WITH MICHELLE KINCAID ON A FINANCIAL MODEL FOR PUBLIC INVESTMENTS AND HELP DEVELOP A FINANCIAL MODEL TO, AND, AND ACTUALLY THE WAY WE WERE TALKING ABOUT LIMITS AND, UM, PRIORITIZATION. 
          AND NOW ACTUALLY, UM, LOUIS WU AND UM, IS OUR PUBLIC INVESTMENT MANAGER. 
          SO I THINK ALSO JUST SHOWING USE CASES OF DO WE REALLY NEED A FULL-TIME STAFF MEMBER? CAN THIS BE PART, SO WE, WE KIND OF DO THAT FUNCTION, UM, AS WELL. 
          SO THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK. 
          THANKS, THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          AND AGAIN, LOOK, I WAS A CONSULTANT AS WAS, IT'S NOT THAT I DON'T THINK THERE'S A ROLE FOR CONSULTANTS, BUT I WAS ALSO A CONSULTANT FOR A VERY SMALL NONPROFIT THAT DID WORKER OWNERSHIP. 
          I MEAN, THERE'S JUST A HUGE RANGE AND WHAT WE'VE SEEN SOMETIMES IT WAS, THE QUESTION CAME OUTTA PARTLY HEARING THAT A CONSULTANT WAS HIRED TO ACTUALLY REVIEW APPLICATIONS FOR A COMMISSION AND TO LEAD SOME, 
          [04:05:02]
YOU KNOW, COMMUNITY MEETINGS, WHICH SEEMED LIKE NOT THE PROPER USE OF CONSULTANTS. 
          GIVEN THAT WE ALSO THEN LOSE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT LEARNING FROM THOSE TO BE RESIDENT AND STAFF. 
          SO THERE, THERE, IT'S REALLY VERY SPECIFIC. 
          AND OF COURSE THERE WOULD BE DIFFERENT DOLLAR AMOUNTS DEPENDING ON THE EXTRA. 
          SO I'M NOT SAYING THAT I, I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE'RE MOVING FORWARD AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT. 
          YES, WE HAD, SOME OF US NOTICED IT WASN'T IN HERE AND WE HAD ASKED FOR IT LAST YEAR AND IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT TEAM WAS. 
          SO, SORRY, I HIJACKED IT 'CAUSE I WAS FOLLOWING UP ON COUNCILLOR, SABRINA WHEELER'S, UM, QUESTION. 
          I BELIEVE COUNCILLOR ZUZI WAS NEXT. 
          UH, THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, CCL FIX, YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB RESPONDING TO THOUSANDS OF, UM, CONCERNS FROM CITIZENS. 
          SO WHAT IS THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT TIMEFRAME FOR C CLICK FIX? IS IT 10 DAYS A WEEK, TWO WEEKS? UM, THREE CHAIR NOLAN? SO THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT REALLY VARIES BY THE TYPE OF ISSUE. 
          SO AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, SOME ARE EASIER AND QUICKER TO TURN AROUND THAN OTHERS. 
          SO FOR EXAMPLE, MISSED TRASH, YOU KNOW, MISSED FOOD WASTE, UM, DEAD ANIMAL ROAD KILL, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. 
          THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT IS TWO DAYS. 
          UM, FOR OTHERS LIKE, YOU KNOW, ELECTRIC, YOU KNOW, STREETLIGHT OUT, IT MIGHT BE MORE LIKE A WEEK. 
          JUST AGAIN, REALLY TYING IT BACK TO THE LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY. 
          UM, AND ONE OF THE THINGS I'D POINT OUT IS, UM, BECKY FUENTES IS HERE, SHE'S OUR DEPUTY CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER. 
          SHE'S REALLY WORKED WITH ALL THE DIFFERENT OPERATING DEPARTMENTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT OR C CLICK FIX AND LOOKING AT THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENTS, REALLY TRACKING IT. 
          THERE'S A NEW DASHBOARD THAT'S AVAILABLE WHERE YOU CAN SEE EACH DIFFERENT TYPE OF, UM, REPORT AND THEN SEE HOW CLOSE WE ARE TO DOING THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENTS AND MEETING THOSE, YOU KNOW, AND SOME OF THOSE WE'RE BETTER ON THAN OTHERS. 
          UM, AND SO WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING AT ARE THERE BUSINESS OPERATION CHANGES THAT NEED TO OCCUR TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN DO, UM, BETTER QUICKER TURNAROUND ON THOSE. 
          BUT IT IS, SEE, CLICK FIX. 
          I WOULD JUST REALLY ADVOCATE THAT IT IS A GREAT WAY FOR THOSE KINDS OF QUICK TURNAROUND KINDS OF THINGS. 
          I'D SAY, YOU KNOW, POTHOLES, MISS TRASH, THOSE KIND OF LIKE SEE SOMETHING AND YOU CAN FIX IT. 
          THOSE, YOU'RE GONNA GET MUCH QUICKER TURNAROUND THAN, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES PEOPLE WANT SORT OF A FULL, YOU KNOW, $10 MILLION, UM, INTERSECTION REDESIGN THAT'S NOT GONNA BE A 24 HOUR TURNAROUND. 
          AND SO JUST TO SORT OF, THERE IS A RANGE OF THINGS THAT COME IN. 
          UM, BUT THE, THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT REALLY VARIES ON THE COMPLEXITY OF THE REPORT. 
          UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          AND I, I DO THINK, OBVIOUSLY LIKE WITH 80, 80% VERY QUICK TURNAROUND, SO I I THANK YOU FOR THE WHOLE CITY FOR THEIR WORK IN RESPONDING TO RESIDENTS CONCERNS, UM, ON BOARDS. 
          UM, SOME BOARDS RECEIVE STIPENDS, OTHERS DON'T, UM, WHICH ONES DO, HOW MUCH AND WHY, UM, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN, UM, ON THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, THERE ARE FOUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT CURRENTLY RECEIVE STIPENDS. 
          UH, THE PLANNING BOARD, THE BZA, THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION AND THE AMERICAN FREEMAN COMMISSION THAT WAS CREATED BY ORDINANCE, UH, STIPULATED THAT MEMBERS SHOULD RECEIVE AN ORDINANCE, UM, PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS RECEIVE AN ANNUAL ORDINANCE. 
          I BELIEVE ALL OF THEM ARE ANNUAL, PAID OUT QUARTERLY, UH, BUT PLANNING BOARD IS $6,000 PER YEAR. 
          BZA IS 3,500. 
          UH, THE ALTERNATES WHO, UM, WHO DON'T SHOW UP TO EVERY MEETING RECEIVE 2000, UH, HISTORICAL COMMISSION IS 2,500 AND I BELIEVE AMERICAN FRIEDMAN COMMISSION IS 3000. 
          AND HOW DID YOU UM, I, I DO THINK, UH, I, I DUNNO WHAT THE FREEDMAN'S COMMISSION IS DOING, BUT I I DO FEEL LIKE THE PLANNING BOARD, THE B, CA AND, WELL, ESPECIALLY THE PLANNING BOARD AND THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION CERTAINLY, OR EARN EVERY, UM, DOLLAR THAT THEY'RE PAID. 
          UM, SO I, I GUESS IS IS IS THAT WHY THEY WERE PAID? BECAUSE THEY'RE ACTUALLY COMMITTING, UM, BIG CHUNKS OF TIME FOR THE GOOD OF THE CITY. 
          UM, THE PLANNING BOARD, THE BZA AND THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION, THOSE DECISIONS WERE MADE ABOUT THREE AND A HALF YEARS AGO. 
          UM, THAT WAS THE DISCUSSION. 
          UH, SO I THINK COUNCILLOR EY, UH, TO YOUR POINT, A LOT OF, A LOT OF HOW WE DECIDED WHICH INITIAL BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS WE WOULD STIPEND, UH, TIED TO THESE THREE, WHICH REPRESENTED THE GREATEST AMOUNT OF VOLUNTEER TIME, UM, SOME OF THE DISCUSSION. 
          AND I THINK THE, THE REALITY IS THAT, UM, THAT EACH OF THESE REPRESENTS A FAIRLY, UM, YOU KNOW, MANY PEOPLE WHO ARE BRINGING A LOT OF PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE, UM, TO THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING. 
          UM, THE STIPEND IS NOT REALLY FULLY COMPENSATING THEM FOR THEIR TIME. 
          AND SO IT, IT PROBABLY IS, AND I THINK THE SPIRIT OF IT IS THAT THE STIPENDS FUNCTION MORE LIKE AN HONORARIUM. 
          UM, AND WE, WE ROUGHLY 
          [04:10:01]
ESTIMATED, UM, AN AN AVERAGE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT A MEMBER WAS SPENDING, UM, BUT WE AREN'T INTENDING TO TRACK EXACTLY HOW MANY HOURS. 
          UM, AND SO IT'S MEANT TO BE MORE, UH, PROPORTIONAL TO ROUGHLY THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT PEOPLE ARE VOLUNTEERING. 
          UM, AND AS A GESTURE OF, YOU KNOW, GIVEN THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT PEOPLE ARE COMMITTING, UM, THAT WE WOULD, WE WOULD GIVE THEM AN HONORARIUM. 
          UH, THANK YOU FOR THAT. 
          I, I WOULD SAY HAVING ATTENDED, I I ATTEND A LOT OF PLANNING BOARD AND HISTORICAL COMMISSION MEETINGS. 
          I, I THINK THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION MEMBERS SHOULD GET A RAISE. 
          I, I FEEL LIKE THEY ARE THE FIRING. 
          THEY'RE LIKE, THEY'RE BEING, YEAH, THEY'RE, THAT IS A VERY, VERY HARD JOB BEING ON THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION RIGHT NOW. 
          AND I, I, UH, I THINK THEY DESERVE PRAISE AND, UM, MAYBE A, UM, A PAY RAISE. 
          UM, SO I DON'T KNOW WHERE I GOT THE NUMBER 24 HERE, UM, BUT IT WAS FROM SOMEWHERE IN THIS BUDGET BOOK. 
          SO I, I GUESS CITY, UM, YOUR STAFF, UM, CITY MANAGER IS, UH, 13.8, SOMEWHERE I SAW 24. 
          AND MY QUESTION I IS HOW MANY FULL-TIME STAFF DID PAST CITY MANAGERS ENGAGE? AND WILL YOU ALWAYS NEED SUCH A LARGE STAFF? SURE. 
          UM, COUNCILLOR JUI, JUST THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN, JUST ONE MORE TIME ON THE, THE, THE STAFFING QUESTION. 
          UM, CAN YOU JUST RE REPEAT THE EXACT QUESTION YOU'RE TRYING TO ASK THAT WE'RE AT 13.8 THIS YEAR, AND LAST YEAR WE WERE AT 13. 
          UM, AND AS, AS, UM, JANE MENTIONED EARLIER, UM, THE 0.8 IS JANE, WHICH WAS IN THE BUDGET LAST YEAR, JUST NOT COUNTED AS AN FTE. 
          OKAY. 
          SO I, I THINK IN PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS THERE'S BEEN A SMALLER CITY MANAGER, STAFF, EXECUTIVE STAFF. 
          SO, UM, UH, DO YOU CONTINUE TO BELIEVE THAT YOU'LL NEED A 13.8 STAFF MEMBERS TO SUPPORT YOUR WORK? I, I REALIZE THAT PAST CITY MANAGERS HAD WORKED FOR THE CITY SOMETIMES FOR 20, 25 YEARS, UM, THROUGH CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, IF I WERE TO CLARIFY A LITTLE BIT OF THE 13.8, UM, ONE IS CURRENTLY VACANT. 
          UH, AND SO WE ARE BEING CAREFUL, UH, AND I THINK, UM, DIRECTOR GINETTI, UH, SAID SOMETHING SIMILAR ON COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. 
          UH, WE ARE BEING PRETTY CAREFUL ABOUT VACANT POSITIONS AND NOT SIMPLY FILLING THEM. 
          AND SO, UM, SO WE DO HAVE ONE VACANCY, UM, AND, UH, AND THAT SITS WITHIN THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, WE'VE ALSO, UM, CUT SOME VACANT POSITIONS, UH, AS PART OF THE SAVINGS. 
          AND WE DO HAVE A-P-T-D-M PLANNING OFFICER THAT I THINK BY, IS IT BY ORDINANCE? BY ORDINANCE, MUST SIT WITHIN THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, BUT FUNCTIONALLY, THE PTDM PLANNING OFFICER IS A ROLE THAT SITS WITHIN TRANSPORTATION. 
          UM, SO THERE IS A BIT OF ODDNESS IN TERMS OF THAT TOTAL COUNT. 
          UM, THE STRATEGY TEAM IS A NEW INVESTMENT THAT WE'VE MADE, UM, WHICH I THINK, UH, IS, IS PRIMARILY ABOUT HOW WE, UH, RUN PROJECTS AND INITIATIVES AND PARTNER WITH DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THE CITY. 
          UH, AND THAT'S 2.8 PEOPLE. 
          UM, AND I THINK THE, THE OTHER DYNAMIC IS, UM, WE ARE WORKING A LOT MORE CLOSELY WITH THE CITY COUNCIL. 
          WE ARE DOING A LOT MORE COORDINATION ACROSS THE CITY. 
          UM, AND I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S PARTLY WHERE THERE'S BEEN A BIT OF GROWTH COMPARED TO THE HISTORICAL SIZE, UM, OF THE DEPARTMENT. 
          AND, AND I'M JUST THINKING, I THINK IN THE PAST, MAYBE THE 24, THE 24 CAME FROM SOMEWHERE, MAYBE THAT INCLUDES COMMUNICATIONS AND, UH, COMMUNITY OUTREACH. 
          'CAUSE I THINK HISTORICALLY THEY WERE PART OF THE CITY MANAGERS OFFICE, UM, THROUGH YOU CHAIR NOLAN MM-HMM . 
          ON THAT. 
          UM, THE, THE BUDGET BOOK IS FOR READABILITY. 
          THEY'RE CALLED OUT AS SEPARATE DEPARTMENTS, BUT COMMUNICATIONS IS TECHNICALLY STILL PART OF EXECUTIVE, RIGHT. 
          IN TERMS OF THE STATUTORY BUDGET HOUSING LIAISON HAS MOVED TO HOUSING. 
          AND SO THOSE, THOSE FULL-TIME STAFF ARE NOW IN THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT. 
          OKAY. 
          SO, SO THE NUMBER 24, UH, WASN'T WRONG. 
          I MEAN, IT, IT DEFINITELY CAME FROM SOMEWHERE HERE. 
          IT MUST HAVE JUST INCLUDED THE COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, ANYWAY, I THINK YOU'RE DOING GREAT WORK. 
          I STILL THINK IT'S A BIG STAFF. 
          UM, AND, UH, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING. 
          OTHER QUESTIONS I CAN ASK. 
          THERE'S A, ANOTHER ONE I SENT THAT, UM, WAS SENT IN IN ADVANCE OF SAYING, WE'VE LOOKED AT SOME DEPARTMENTS POLICE FIRED DPW IN BUDGETS, AND WE'VE COMPARED THEM TO OTHER MASSACHUSETTS 
          [04:15:01]
SIMILARLY SIZED CITIES. 
          HAVE WE DONE, OR ARE WE PLANNING TO DO THE SAME WITH ALL DEPARTMENTS TO LOOK AT STAFFING FOR ALL AREAS TO ENSURE BEST PRACTICE AND EFFICIENT PROVIDING OF CIVIL OF CITY SERVICES, UH, THROUGH CHAIR NOLAN? UM, I THINK YES, AS IT COMES UP, UM, THAT IS CERTAINLY ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE WANT TO ASK. 
          UM, AND SO, UH, A LOT OF THE BENCHMARKING IN TERMS OF HOW OTHER COMMUNITIES OR STAFFING IS BOTH IMPORTANT. 
          AND ALSO, UH, WE NEED TO ACCOUNT FOR THE SCALE OF WORK THAT WE'VE COMMITTED TO. 
          AND SO IN MANY CASES, WE ARE ASKING A LOT MORE OF OUR DEPARTMENTS, UM, OR WE ARE ASKING THEM TO DO THEIR WORK DIFFERENTLY. 
          UM, AND SO, UH, IN SOME OF THE ANALYSIS THAT WE'VE DONE, WE'VE SORT OF DRAWN THAT OUT. 
          UM, BUT I WOULD SAY, UM, THAT ENDS UP BECOMING A BIG PIECE OF HOW WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY COMPARING APPLES TO APPLES. 
          UM, IT'S TRUE, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU COMPARE OUR BUDGET OVERALL RELATIVE TO OTHER COMMUNITIES, UM, WE ARE BOTH SPENDING A LOT MORE. 
          AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, AND THIS IS THE CONVERSATION THAT WE SHOULD BE HAVING, AND I THINK WE CONTINUE TO HAVE, ARE WE GETTING ENOUGH OUT OF THAT? DO WE SEE ENOUGH BENEFIT IN OUR COMMUNITY? UM, AND, AND I THINK A LOT OF, AS WE'RE WALKING THROUGH THIS BUDGET, UM, YOU KNOW, THE CASE WE ARE MAKING IS TO TRY AND SHOW THE COUNCIL TO SHOW THE COMMUNITY AND ULTIMATELY RESIDENTS WHO ARE RECEIVING THOSE SERVICES FOR THEM TO FEEL, OH, IN CAMBRIDGE, YOU KNOW, WE ARE SPENDING MORE, BUT WE ARE ACTUALLY SEEING TREMENDOUS PROGRAMS, SERVICES AND IMPACT IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT OTHER COMMUNITIES WOULD LOVE TO DO, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THE RESOURCES TO MAKE THOSE KINDS OF INVESTMENTS. 
          UM, SO WOULD CERTAINLY BE HAPPY, UM, YOU KNOW, TO THE EXTENT THAT THE COUNCIL HAS PRIORITIES AND WANTS TO, UM, PARTNER WITH US AND LOOK AT CERTAIN DEPARTMENTS OR AREAS, THEN, THEN WE'RE ALWAYS OPEN TO THOSE CONVERSATIONS. 
          THANKS FOR THAT. 
          YES. 
          I MEAN, CLEARLY IN SOME AREAS WE'VE SEEN THAT IN HOUSING, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THE SAME LEVEL OF SERVICES, EVEN MORE. 
          WE DID ONE OF THE FIRST FOOD WASTE PROGRAMS, UPW, AND YET THERE'S OTHERS, INCLUDING FRANKLY, WHAT THE COUNCIL WE CREATED, YOU KNOW, WHETHER WE STILL NEED A, THE PEACE COMMISSION STARTED OUT FOR NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, IS THAT SOMETHING WE CONTINUE? AND THAT'S ON A, ON THE COUNCIL AS WELL, TO BE IN COLLABORATION WITH THE CITY TO SAY WHAT MAKES SENSE MOVING FORWARD FOR A RANGE OF, UM, OF OFFICES, INCLUDING THE COMMISSIONS RECENTLY STARTED, YOU KNOW, INCLUDING THE FREEDMAN'S COMMISSION, WHETHER IN THESE TIMES IT'S, IT'S THAT LEVEL OF, OF STAFFING IS APPROPRIATE. 
          UM, THE OTHER QUESTION I HAD IS FOR THE PROCESS OF IDENTIFYING SAVINGS, SINCE I KNOW THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE WAS VERY INVOLVED, IT'S GREAT THAT THAT OVERALL WAS REACHED. 
          UM, THERE WERE DEPARTMENTS THAT FOUND THE SAVINGS MORE AND THEN OTHERS THAT DID NOT. 
          WHAT IS THE PLAN FOR FUTURE SAVINGS? AND I ASK BECAUSE AS WE'RE AWARE, THIS NEXT BUDGET YEAR IS ALREADY CHALLENGING, AND YET WE'RE STILL GOING UP 4%, EVEN THOUGH WE FOUND 2% SAVINGS. 
          AND YET THE EXPECTATION IS UNLESS SOMETHING CHANGES THE NEXT BUDGET, FY 28 IS GONNA BE EVEN MORE CHALLENGING. 
          IT'S GONNA REQUIRE SOME ADDITIONAL WORK TO ENSURE THAT, AS THE CITY MANAGER JUST SAID, WE, WE ARE USED TO A CERTAIN LEVEL OF SERVICES, AND YET THERE MAY WELL BE SOME SERVICES THAT, UM, THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO PROVIDE PER, PERHAPS NOT AT THE TITANIUM LEVEL, BUT MORE LIKE AT THE BRONZE OR SILVER LEVEL OF SERVICE. 
          MAYBE WE DON'T HAVE TO GO DOWN TO 10, BUT I THINK YOU KNOW, THE QUESTION, SO I'M JUST CURIOUS AS TO HOW THAT PROCESS UNFOLDED AND WHAT WAS LEARNING FROM THERE AND HOW DO WE SEE IT MOVING FORWARD FOR IN ANTICIPATION OF, AS WE'VE SEEN, THIS IS A ONE YEAR BUDGET, AND YET WE'RE, WE'RE VERY CLEAR ABOUT THE CONTEXT FOR FUTURE YEARS. 
          UM, YES, THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, I THINK YOU'RE CAPTURING A LOT OF THE FUTURE TREND ACCURATELY. 
          I THINK WE KNOW THAT FY 28 AND FY 29 WILL BE, UM, A CONTINUED MACROECONOMIC CHALLENGE. 
          UM, AND, UH, WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO HAVE TO DO THE SAME WORK. 
          UM, I REALLY APPRECIATE, YOU KNOW, DEPARTMENTS DID A LOT OF WORK THIS CYCLE, UM, LOOKING AT THEIR BUDGETS, REALLY SCRUBBING IT. 
          AND, UM, AND I THINK WE DID DO A TREMENDOUS JOB, AND YOU CAN SEE IT IN THE BUDGET, BUDGET MODIFICATIONS, UH, FINDING SAVINGS BUDGET, YEAR TO BUDGET YEAR. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, AS WE WORK THROUGH, UM, SETTING THE TAX RATE AFTER WE PASS THIS BUDGET AND ENGAGING WITH THE CITY COUNCIL TO TALK ABOUT BUDGET YEAR FY 28, SETTING TARGETS, UH, UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE FISCAL OUTLOOK, OUTLOOK, UH, IS SHAPING UP TO BE, UM, I WOULD ANTICIPATE THAT WE WOULD BE DOING A SIMILAR EXERCISE IN TERMS OF, UH, SETTING TARGETS, UM, WHERE WE WILL BE THINKING ABOUT BOTH HOW CENTRALLY WE'RE LOOKING AT DIFFERENT WAYS THAT WE CAN FIND EFFICIENCIES AND HOW WE WORK WITH DEPARTMENTS, UM, TO DO THAT WORK. 
          UM, AND, AND, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE WORK THAT, THAT WE REALLY DO VIEW IN TERMS OF MANAGING THE CITY, UM, 
          [04:20:01]
AS A WHOLE IS WE'RE NOT DOING IT JUST WITHIN THE BUDGET PROCESS. 
          UM, A LOT OF THE WORK THAT, UM, THAT WE'RE SETTING UP FOR, UH, REQUIRES LEAD TIME. 
          IT REQUIRES US TO PRIORITIZE. 
          UH, AND SO, UM, SO I THINK THAT THAT'S PART OF THE WORK THAT WE'LL ACTUALLY BE DOING OVER THE SUMMER TO AGAIN, BE PREPARING FOR THAT NEXT BUDGET CYCLE. 
          UM, I THINK YOUR QUESTION AS WELL, IN TERMS OF, UH, SOME DEPARTMENTS HAVING AN ABILITY TO FIND SAVINGS AND SOME DEPARTMENTS NOT BEING ABLE TO FIND SAVINGS IS ALSO REALLY IMPORTANT. 
          UH, I'M ALWAYS VERY AWARE THAT ONE OF THE BIGGEST PARTS OF OUR AUDIENCE IS DEPARTMENTS, UM, AND, AND MANY OF THEM WHO ARE LISTENING, UM, AND WHO WENT THROUGH THIS PROCESS, UM, IT IS, IT IS TRUE THAT NOT EVERY DEPARTMENT IS THE SAME. 
          AND SO WE DO WANNA RESIST A ONE SIZE FITS ALL PROCESS. 
          AND THE WAY THAT WE ROLLED OUT THIS SAVINGS INITIATIVE, UM, WAS TO PUSH EVERY DEPARTMENT TO COME UP WITH IDEAS, UH, BUT THEN TO ALSO REALLY VET THOSE IDEAS AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY WERE ALIGNED WITH THE COUNCIL'S PRIORITIES, THAT WE WERE UNDERSTANDING WHAT KIND OF IMPACT THESE MIGHT HAVE ACROSS THE COMMUNITY. 
          UM, AND, AND AT LEAST FOR THIS YEAR, WE WERE REALLY LEANING INTO SAVINGS INITIATIVES THAT, THAT DIDN'T HAVE AN ENORMOUS IMPACT. 
          UM, AND THERE ARE DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE JUST SMALLER. 
          AND SO IF YOU THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE ANIMAL COMMISSION, IT IS A SET OF PEOPLE AND IT'S A VERY LIMITED AMOUNT OF ADDITIONAL EXPENSES, UH, IN TERMS OF SUPPLIES OR, OR ANY OTHER KIND OF BUDGET. 
          AND SO, UM, THERE ARE GOING TO BE DEPARTMENTS THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO EXPECT SIGNIFICANT SAVINGS OUT OF. 
          UM, BUT I THINK IF YOU GO TO A MUCH LARGER DEPARTMENT, THERE'S A LOT MORE OPPORTUNITY, THERE'S MORE FLEXIBILITY IN TERMS OF HOW WE DO THE WORK. 
          AND AGAIN, THE MORE RUNWAY WE GIVE, AND THE MORE THAT WE PARTNER WITH OUR DEPARTMENTS, THE MORE WE CAN ACTUALLY FIND SOME OF THOSE BIGGER LEVERS. 
          UM, AND I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY THE WORK THAT WE FEEL LIKE WILL BE CONTINUOUS OVER THESE YEARS. 
          AND EVEN WHEN TIMES ARE GOOD. 
          I THINK THAT'S ALSO SOMETHING WE'VE TALKED ABOUT WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE ARE DOING THIS PARTLY BECAUSE WE KNOW WE NEED TO, IN ORDER TO HAVE THE MONEY AND THE FINANCES TO INVEST IN PROGRAMS THAT WE WANT TO EXPAND, WE NEED TO FIND SAVINGS. 
          UM, BUT EVEN WHEN TIMES ARE GOOD, I THINK WE, WE HAVE THAT OBLIGATION TO BE LOOKING AT HOW CAN WE DO THINGS BETTER? HOW CAN WE SAVE SOME MONEY? AND, AND AGAIN, THOSE RESOURCES GO BACK INTO PROGRAMS OR THEY GO INTO KEEPING OUR TAX RATES AT A SUSTAINABLE RATE OF GROWTH. 
          THANKS FOR THAT. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BODY WITH THAT? UH, MOVE THE EXECUTIVE MOTION TO MOVE THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION. 
          SEE SOME HEAD NODDING. 
          SO, ROLL CALL COUNCILOR ZUBE. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR REGIME? YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNSELOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR ZUEY? YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SIX MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND THREE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU, TEAM. 
          LOOK FORWARD TO FOLLOWING UP ON SOME OF THE QUESTIONS RAISED. 
          NEXT UP IS, UH, HUMAN RESOURCES. 
          THIS DEPARTMENT MAY BE FOUND ON BUDGET BOOK PAGE 1 55. 
          THE DEPARTMENT BUDGET IS LISTED AS 5,074,000 WITH THE, UM, FULL-TIME POSITION STAYING THE SAME AT 23. 
          AND THE BUDGET INCREASE OF, OOH, A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT, LIKE 20%. 
          SO WE'LL GET INTO DISCUSSION ABOUT THAT. 
          CHIEF CATCHINGS, DID YOU WANNA INTRODUCE YOURSELF? AND BEFORE WE GET STARTED, OR SAY ANYTHING BEFORE WE GET STARTED? THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK AGAIN ABOUT THE HARD WORK THAT WE'RE DOING, UH, FOR THE CITY AND ACROSS THE CITY. 
          AND SO, UM, I KNOW WE'LL GET INTO THE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE INCREASES THAT YOU SEE ACROSS THE DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, BUT BY AND LARGE, THIS IS SORT OF A CONTINUATION OF BUDGETS THAT I'VE TALKED ABOUT OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS WITH CITYWIDE INITIATIVES THAT ARE ONGOING, UM, AND IN MANY WAYS ALSO GROWING. 
          SO I'LL JUST STOP THERE AND, AND YIELD TO QUESTIONS. 
          GREAT. 
          OKAY. 
          COUNCILLOR SUZI, DO YOU WANNA START US OFF? UM, SURE. 
          THANK YOU, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK. 
          UM, I JUST, I WONDERED, AND 
          [04:25:01]
I THINK THIS WAS SHARED EARLIER TODAY, I, I KNOW IT WAS, BUT WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE CITY STAFF FOR UNION AND NON-UNION UNION, I KNOW THAT MAKES THINGS MORE A LITTLE BIT MORE CHALLENGING, RIGHT? IT DOES. 
          UM, WE ARE HOVERING AROUND 45% UNION. 
          UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, IT CHANGES AS, AS PEOPLE ROLL ON AND ROLL OFF OF, OF THE BOOK. 
          SO INCLUDING THE SCHOOLS, IT GOES UP TO 77. 
          IF WE INCLUDE THE SCHOOLS, IT GOES UP TO 77, EXCUSE ME, , SO AND SO, AND THAT'S ACROSS THE CITY. 
          SO THAT INCLUDES DPW, I KNOW IT INCLUDES THE CLERK'S OFFICE. 
          I MEAN, WHAT SORT OF EMPLOYEES ARE, IS THERE A TYPE OF SKILLED EMPLOYEE THAT IS UNION? UH, IT VARIES. 
          UH, I THINK THE LARGEST UNION IN THE CITY DEFINITELY BE THE TEACHERS. 
          UM, BUT IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ON THE CITY SIDE, NON-SCHOOL DEPARTMENT, IT VARIES FROM, UH, THE TEAMSTERS GROUP, THE POLICE UNION, UH, THEY HAVE TWO UNIONS WITHIN THE POLICE, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, UM, INSPECTION SERVICES AND TEAMSTERS. 
          AND SO THERE'S A LOT OF SORT OF, UM, SKILLED LABOR ROLES THAT ARE BAKED INTO THAT TEAMSTERS GROUP, UM, THAT SORT OF BARGAIN WITH US AS A GROUP. 
          BUT, UH, IT VARIES ACROSS THE DEPARTMENTS. 
          DBW IS ALSO ONE OF THEM AS WELL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, AND YOU HAVE A 1.8 MILLION FOR ORDINARY MAINTENANCE. 
          I, I JUST WONDERED WHAT IS THAT FOR? UM, IN LARGE PART IT IS, UM, WE HAVE CONTRACTS THAT HAVE INCREASED. 
          WE HAVE, UM, SALARIES THAT HAVE INCREASED. 
          WE ARE, UM, WE'VE ALWAYS HAD 24 FTES, AND NOW WE ARE SORT OF FULLY STAFFED. 
          UM, AND SO THERE'S A RANGE OF THINGS THAT ARE KIND OF BAKED INTO INITIATIVES THAT ARE, UH, HAPPENING FOR THIS COMING YEAR. 
          BUT I MEAN, THE ORDINARY MAINTENANCE DOESN'T INCLUDE SALARIES. 
          IT'S, UH, OTHER THINGS LIKE IT WOULD BE CONTRACTS. 
          WHAT ELSE WOULD IT BE? OH, I'M SORRY. 
          I APOLOGIZE. 
          SO A LOT OF WHAT WE HAVE IN, SORRY, IN THE ORDINARY MAINTENANCE INCLUDES A LOT OF THE CONTRACT WORK THAT WE DO. 
          WE HAVE LICENSES, WE HAVE TUITION REIMBURSEMENT, UM, I'M DRAWING A BLANK, I APOLOGIZE. 
          FUTURE COMP, THAT'S THE BIGGEST ONE. 
          SORRY. 
          ONE OF THE LARGEST THINGS THAT WE'VE DONE IS A TAKE ON A THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATOR WITH OUR WORKERS' COMP THAT WE DO, UM, WHICH IN LARGE PART COVERS, UM, WORKERS' COMP, WHICH WE ORDINARILY KNOW. 
          AND THEN WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO FOR NEXT YEAR IS ASSUME WHAT'S CALLED ONE 11 F, WHICH IS INJURY PAY FOR POLICE AND FIRE AS WELL. 
          AND IN ORDER TO DO THAT, WE HAD TO CENTRALIZE THAT BUDGET. 
          SO YOU SEE A HUGE JUMP FOR US THERE BECAUSE WE ARE TAKING ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF ONE 11 F PAYMENTS THROUGH FUTURE COMM. 
          SO DOES THAT MEAN THAT GOING FORWARD, SO WE'VE BEEN PAYING, UM, APPROPRIATIONS TO PAY DIFFERENT POLICEMEN OR DPW WORKERS FOR INJURIES. 
          SO WOULD WE NOT BE PAYING THAT, WOULD THE CITY COUNCIL STILL BE VOTING ON THAT INDEPENDENTLY, OR WOULD THAT BE COVERED WITH, IS THAT IN YOUR POT AND YOU'D BE PAYING IT OUT DIRECTLY FROM OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE IN YOUR BUDGET? SO I THINK THAT'S, I MEAN, IF WE SORT OF, UH, DETANGLE IF YOU WILL. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, SO WITH FUTURE COMP AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF, THERE'S MEDICAL BILLS THAT WE HAVE TO PAY, AND THOSE THINGS ARE, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THROUGH THE THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATOR THAT HELPS US PAY AND REPRICE BILLS AND DO ALL THOSE THINGS. 
          AND THEN IF WE HAVE SORT OF LIKE, LIKE SETTLEMENTS OR BIGGER THINGS, THAT'S A DIFFERENT POT OF MONEY THAT ALSO I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD SORT OF DECOUPLE IN TALKING ABOUT. 
          BUT IN LARGE PART, IT'S THE ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICAL BILLS FOR ANY TREATMENTS THAT HAPPEN FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE ON INJURY PAY OR WORKERS' COMP. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I DON'T SEE OTHER HAND, SO I WILL, I HAD SENT A FEW QUESTIONS IN ADVANCE. 
          I THINK ONE WE, THE FIRST ONE WE TALKED ABOUT, WHICH WAS THIS WHOLE QUESTION OF HOW WE'RE UNROLLING THE ERP, UM, IT WAS SOMEWHAT ADDRESSED, UM, BY CHIEF CATCHINGS, BUT NOT ENTIRELY. 
          AS COUNCILLOR ZUZI NOTED, THIS BUDGET INCREASED 9%. 
          IT'S ONE OF THE LARGEST INCREASES OF ANY DEPARTMENT, AND IT'S ACROSS THE BOARD, INCLUDING IN SALARIES AND WAGES, OTHER ORDINARY MET AND, AND TRAVEL AND TRAINING, UM, ESPECIALLY WITH THE SAME NUMBER. 
          SO IS THERE ANYTHING FOR US TO KNOW ABOUT IT? IS THAT, THAT WAS AN INCREASE? AND IF YOU COULD DESCRIBE THE PROCESS YOUR DEPARTMENT UNDERTOOK TO ACCOMPLISH THIS QUESTION. 
          AND WE KNOW YOU CAN'T JUST DO AN ACROSS THE, WELL, YOU COULD DO AN ACROSS THE BOARD CUT OF 2%, BUT THAT'S 
          [04:30:01]
NOT HOW THIS IS APPROACHED. 
          UM, WERE YOU SUCCESSFUL IN FINDING PERHAPS SOME DEPARTMENT LEVEL SAVINGS FOR THE FUTURE, IF NOT THIS YEAR, THROUGH YOU CHAIR? SO THE OTHER, IN ADDITION TO THE MAJOR ONE WAS FUTURE COMP. 
          THE OTHER, UM, ADJUSTMENTS THAT YOU'LL FIND IN, IN MY DEPARTMENT IS THE ASSUMPTION OF A CENTRALIZED TRAINING, UM, FOR LEADERSHIP. 
          IT STARTED OUT IN ONE DEPARTMENT AND THERE'S AN OVERWHELMING DEMAND FOR IT. 
          SO WE'RE BRINGING IT CENTRALLY LEVERAGING OUR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT MANAGER TO FULLY BUILD OUT THAT CURRICULUM TO SUPPORT OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS AND OTHER SUPERVISORS ACROSS THE, THE CITY. 
          THE OTHER, UM, CENTRALIZED FUNCTION THAT'S HAPPENING IS THE GROWTH OF THE EXPANSION, RATHER OF THE PERFORMANCE REVIEW PROGRAM, WHICH REQUIRES LICENSES AS WELL, UH, TO ACCESS THE TRACKSTAR PLATFORM. 
          AND SO AS WE GROW AND DOUBLE THOSE LICENSES, THAT ALSO EXPANDS AS WELL. 
          IN TERMS OF THE 2.1% EXERCISE, WHAT WE WERE ABLE TO FIND IN TERM, WE DID MEET OUR GOAL. 
          UM, WHAT WE DID IN ORDER TO REDUCE, UM, OUR BUDGET WAS WE LOOKED AT SOME LEGAL SERVICES THAT WE NO LONGER NEEDED TO CONTINUE, UH, BASED OFF OF SOME WORK THAT WE DO IN LABOR RELATIONS. 
          AND THEN WE ALSO LOOKED AT SOME LICENSING THAT WE DO, UM, TO SUPPORT SOME OF THE RECRUITMENT AND TALENT ACQUISITION FUNCTIONS WE DO. 
          AND WITH, WE FOUND REDUCTIONS IN THAT AREA TO MEET OUR 2.1%. 
          COULD I JUST ADD THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY THAT, UM, ALTHOUGH DEPARTMENTS WERE ASKED TO FIND TARGET 2.1% IN SAVINGS, THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THEIR FY 27 BUDGET WOULD GO DOWN BY 2.1% WHEN YOU FACTOR IN OTHER FIXED COSTS AND SALARY COSTS. 
          UM, SOME OF THE INCREASES THAT, UH, UH, DIRECTOR CATCHINGS WAS TALKING ABOUT, THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          SO THERE ARE SOME DEPARTMENTS WHERE THEY'VE ACTUALLY MET THEIR 2.1% TARGET IN TERMS OF FINDING SAVINGS BEFORE HEADING INTO THE FY 27 BUDGET PROCESS, WHERE WE'RE LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME COLA INCREASES, SOME UNION STAFF INCREASES, AND OTHER TYPES OF, UM, INCREASED COSTS, RIGHT? THANKS. 
          BECAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE A 9% INCREASE, BUT YOU SAID YOU FOUND 2% SAVINGS, IT'S IMPORTANT TO EXPLAIN HOW THAT FACTORS IN. 
          UM, THE OTHER QUESTION I SENT WAS, UH, WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE COMPENSATION STUDY, UH, IF IT SHOULD HAVE IDENTIFIED POTENTIAL SAVINGS, AND THIS IS A REALLY SENSITIVE AREA, BUT SOME POTENTIAL SAVINGS IN AREAS WHERE WE ACTUALLY ARE HIGHER THAN OTHER COMPARABLE PUBLIC SECTOR POSITIONS. 
          SO IS THAT SOMETHING WE CAN LOOK FORWARD TO IN THE FUTURE AS WE, UH, WITH A THOUGHTFUL APPROACH, OBVIOUSLY BALANCE OUT TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE NOT COMPLETELY OUTTA SYNC WITH, WITH OTHERS, SO THAT WE ARE IN A, UM, YOU KNOW, USING BENCHMARKING IN A POSITIVE WAY, BOTH TO BRING FOLKS UP, BUT ALSO TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE WHILE BEING COMPETITIVE, THAT WE'RE NOT DOING SOMETHING THAT IS INAPPROPRIATE, GIVEN THAT THESE ARE ALL PUBLIC DOLLARS. 
          THANK YOU, THROUGH YOUR CHAIR. 
          SO THE COMPENSATION STUDY THAT WE INITIATED LAST YEAR STARTED AS AN EFFORT TO, UM, FOR E FOR EQUITY AND TRANSPARENCY. 
          IT WAS NOT INITIATED AS A SAVINGS EXERCISE, ALTHOUGH I DO THINK THAT OVER TIME, YOU KNOW, WITH SOME UNIFORMITY IT MAY YIELD, BUT THAT WAS NOT THE INTENTION OF THE EXERCISE TO ACTUALLY GO AND COME OUT OF THIS LIKE SAVING, UH, DOLLARS, BUT MORE STRUCTURAL, MORE TRANSPARENCY AND MORE EQUITY. 
          UM, AND SO AGAIN, I THINK OVER TIME WHEN WE LOOK BACK, WE'LL SEE THAT WE HAVE UNIFORMITY THAT HELPS US ULTIMATELY GET THERE. 
          UM, BUT IT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WILL, I CAN OUTRIGHT SAY WE'RE GONNA SAVE 10% ON, UH, I UNDERSTAND WHAT, BUT EQUITY TO ME ALSO MEANS THAT WE ARE BEING EQUITABLE ACROSS THE BOARD AND WE DON'T HAVE POSITIONS WHERE THEY ARE, UH, BELOW MARKET IN SOME AREAS, BUT THEN SOMEONE ELSE IS ABOVE MARKET. 
          SO FOR ME, THAT'S ACTUALLY A KEY PART OF EQUITY. 
          AND AGAIN, I TAKE THE FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY OF PUBLIC SECTOR DOLLARS QUITE SERIOUSLY, AND I THINK IT'S REALLY INCUMBENT ON US TO, TO TAKE A MIRROR UP TO OURSELVES AND ENSURE THAT THAT IS PART OF THIS FUTURE. 
          BECAUSE PRESUMABLY IT WAS A VERY EXTENSIVE STUDY. 
          AND WE HAVE ALL THAT DATA AND WE SHOULD BE FRANKLY, TRANSPARENT AND OPEN ABOUT THE AREAS IN WHICH THE, THE EQUITY INCLUDES LOOKING AT SOME AREAS WHERE WE ARE ABOVE MARKET, NOT JUST BELOW. 
          SO AT LEAST I FEEL THAT WAY. 
          AGAIN, IT'S THE FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY OF PUBLIC SECTOR TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE REALLY GOOD STEWARDS OF OUR PUBLIC DOLLARS. 
          AND AGAIN, IT'S PART OF EQUITY FOR ME. 
          SO I JUST WANT TO EXPLAIN, I I, I, I UNDERSTAND THIS CAN BE SENSITIVE, BUT I ALSO THINK, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO BE BE HONEST AND OPEN AND TRANSPARENT ABOUT THE, THE WHOLE RANGE OF POSSIBILITIES THAT WOULD COME OUT OF THAT STUDY. 
          UM, SO I, THOSE WERE, I BELIEVE WE COVERED AT LEAST THE QUESTIONS I SENT IN, ARE THERE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE BODY WHO HAVE QUESTIONS FOR HR? 
          [04:35:02]
ALL RIGHT. 
          SO FORWARDING THE, UM, HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION DISCUSSION, ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBIE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          ABSENT COUNCILLOR ZUI? YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SIX MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND THREE RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          OKAY, NOW WE'RE ONTO, I THINK IT'S THE SAME TEAM WHO ARE GONNA BE HERE FOR, UH, EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, WHICH IS A RELATED DEPARTMENT, VERY KEY TO CHIEF PEOPLE OFFICERS, DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYEE BENEFITS. 
          THIS IS ON BUDGET BOOK, UH, PAGE 2 9 3. 
          OKAY. 
          OH, LOOK AT THAT. 
          PULLED BY COUNCILOR NOLAN . 
          I GUESS, UM, I COULD START WITH OTHERS THOUGH, AND THEN WE CAN GO. 
          SO I'LL START WITH, UH, CO-CHAIR AL ZUBIE AND THEN MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          UH, JUST A QUICK QUESTION, AND MAYBE THIS IS SOMETHING TO GET INFORMATION ON AT SOME POINT. 
          I, I NOTICED THAT THIS YEAR, UM, THE MINIMUM WAGE HAD INCREASED BY AROUND 3%. 
          AND THIS IS IN PLACE OF THE COLA FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, WHICH THE NON MINIMUM WAGE WORKERS RECEIVED. 
          AND I'M RECOGNIZING THAT EVERYTHING IS ALSO CONTINUING TO GET MORE EXPENSIVE OVER THE LAST YEAR. 
          AND I WOULD IMAGINE THAT NEITHER COLA OR THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX ARE KEEPING UP WITH HOW CHALLENGING THINGS ARE RIGHT NOW. 
          SO I'M JUST CURIOUS, IS THE CITY ABLE TO SHARE DATA ON THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES WHO FALL INTO THE CATEGORY OF EARNING THE MINIMUM WAGE? UM, IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE A BREAKDOWN OF THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN EACH DEPARTMENT WHO EARN THE CITY'S MINIMUM WAGE, BUT, UM, RECOGNIZE THAT THAT MIGHT, THAT INFORMATION MIGHT NOT BE AVAILABLE RIGHT NOW THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          THAT IS A REPORT THAT I CAN GET BACK TO THE COUNCIL. 
          I DON'T HAVE THE INFORMATION READILY AVAILABLE NOW. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I'LL YIELD, UM, MAYOR SIDIKI, CITY MANAGER, SORRY, CITY MANAGER THROUGH YOUR JOURNAL. 
          AND I THINK JUST TO, UM, JUST TO SAY WE DON'T ACTUALLY, IN TERMS OF, I THINK WHAT YOU MEANT IS LIVING WAGE, BUT WE DON'T PAY THE MINIMUM WAGE BECAUSE OF THE LIVING WAGE ORDINANCE. 
          UM, THAT GETS ADJUSTED, AS YOU NOTED, UH, COUNCILLOR ZUBE BASED ON THE INCREASE IN THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX. 
          AND WE ACTUALLY, UH, MAKE THAT CHANGE EVERY YEAR. 
          SO, UH, CURRENTLY AS OF MARCH 1ST, THIS YEAR, THE LIVING WAGE IS $20 AND 32 CENTS. 
          UH, AND THAT GETS UPDATED THROUGH PAYROLL EVERY YEAR. 
          YES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YEAH, IT, I HAD SEEN IT INCREASE BY 3.13% TO THAT $20.32 THAT YOU MENTIONED, AND WAS REFERRING TO GETTING THAT DATA ON THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES, JUST TO BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND LIKE THE BREAKDOWN IN EACH DEPARTMENT ON THAT. 
          SO IF YOU'RE ABLE TO GET DATA ON THAT, THAT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL. 
          YIELD. 
          OKAY. 
          AND NOW COUNCIL, UH, MAYOR SIDIKI, THANK YOU, UM, THROUGH YOU. 
          I SAW THE, UM, TRAVEL AND TRAINING BUDGET, UH, WAS UP. 
          I WAS WONDERING WHAT WAS THE, WHAT'S THAT ALLOCATION FOR UP A LOT, , AND MAYBE I MISSED SOMETHING. 
          , PAGE 2 94, IT SHOWS THE TRAVEL BUDGET GOING FROM THREE 80 LAST YEAR TO 30,000 THIS YEAR TO 1.38 MILLION THIS YEAR. 
          YEAH. 
          THROUGH, THROUGH YOU, UH, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          I THINK I CAN ADDRESS THAT. 
          AND I THINK IT SORT OF DOVETAILS WITH SOMETHING THAT, UM, DIRECTOR CATCHING WAS, UH, SPEAKING ABOUT EARLIER IN TERMS OF USING, UM, THIS, THIS ORGANIZATION FUTURE COMP TO HELP US ADMINISTER SOME OF THE RESPONSIBILITIES THAT COME, UM, WHEN WE HAVE EMPLOYEES WHO ARE INJURED ON THE JOB. 
          AND, AND ONE OF THOSE IS THAT, UH, IF THEY'VE BEEN INJURED AND HAVE MEDICAL SERVICE, MEDICAL BILLS, UH, WE PAY DIRECTLY THOSE MEDICAL BILLS FOR INJURIES. 
          IT DOESN'T GO THROUGH OUR HEALTH INSURANCE. 
          IT THEN GOES THROUGH A WORKERS' COMP, UH, PROCEDURE. 
          SO WE ARE BUDGETING CENTRALLY FOR THAT NOW. 
          AND WE MADE THAT CHANGE, UM, I THINK TWO YEARS AGO. 
          UM, BECAUSE IT, IT WAS SORT OF SCATTERED, UH, UH, ACROSS DEPARTMENTS. 
          THEY WERE NOT, WE, WE DID NOT, YOU KNOW, 
          [04:40:01]
WE, BECAUSE IT'S VERY HARD TO KNOW WHAT THOSE COSTS WILL BE, IT'S HARD TO BUDGET ACCURATELY FOR THEM WHEN YOU SCATTER IT ACROSS DEPARTMENTS. 
          AND SO WE WERE REGULARLY NEEDING TO COME TO CITY COUNCIL TO TRANSFER MONEY FROM OTHER PLACES TO THAT PLACE, WHICH MEANT THAT WE WERE DELAYING PAYING THESE BILLS, WHICH WAS REALLY NOT VERY FAIR FOR, UH, EMPLOYEES WHO WERE THEN, YOU KNOW, BECOMING SUBJECT OF GETTING BILLS, YOU KNOW, SENT TO THEM ON A REGULAR BASIS. 
          SO THIS IS AN ATTEMPT TO CENTRALIZE, UH, THOSE COSTS IN ONE PLACE, WHICH ALLOWS US TO PAY OUR BILLS MORE EFFECTIVELY. 
          AND THE INCREASE THAT YOU'RE SEEING ACTUALLY IS, UM, AS DIRECTOR CATCHING SAID, IS TO TAKE ON, UH, THE PROVISION IN THE, THE LAWS AROUND THE, UM, PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENT. 
          SO POLICE AND FIRE, WHICH WE HAD NOT YET MOVED INTO THIS MORE CENTRALIZED. 
          AND SO THAT'S REALLY WHAT YOU'RE SEEING IS THOSE COSTS OF, UM, PAYING THOSE MEDICAL BILLS RELATED TO, TO, TO JOB RELATED INJURIES. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, THANK YOU. 
          YEAH, I THINK IT WAS, IT, IT'S JUST WE DON'T KNOW THAT OFF THE BAT. 
          , MAYOR SKE, I BELIEVE THE, UH, THE AUDITOR WANTS TO, UH, ANSWER SOME OF THIS YEAH. 
          THROUGH THE CHAIR. 
          I'D LIKE TO JUST ALSO POINT OUT THAT THOSE COSTS, CAN YOU JUST PUT YOUR MIC ON? I THINK IT IS ON, BUT YOU GOTTA GET IT. 
          SO THOSE COSTS ARE NOW IN DEPARTMENTS, SO THIS ISN'T REALLY AN INCREASE IN COST, IT'S JUST A SHIFT IN COST. 
          CORRECT. 
          THAT'S, THAT'S MY UNDERSTANDING OF IT. 
          AND IT'S ALSO TAKING A SERVICE THAT IS NOW GOING TO BE DONE BY A GROUP THAT DOES THIS AS A LIVING. 
          SO YOU'RE PAYING A CONSULTANT, BUT FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, IT REALLY STREAMLINES IT AND IT'S A SERVICE THAT, SINCE THEY'VE DONE IT IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS, IT'S WORKED OUT VERY, VERY WELL. 
          AND I CAN'T SAY ENOUGH THAT I THINK THIS WAS THE RIGHT MOVE. 
          IF, IF I COULD JUST MAKE THAT COMMENT. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU. 
          YEAH, NO, I, I, I TOTALLY HEAR KIND OF THE RATIONALE. 
          I JUST LOOK AT IT, TRAVEL TRAINING, IT GOES UP AND I'M LIKE, OH, THEY'RE GOING ON SOME TRIPS AND THEY'RE TRAVELING. 
          YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST ONE OF THE, THE CONTEXT IS REALLY HELPFUL. 
          UM, AND I KNOW WE'VE HEARD ABOUT THIS, BUT THAT'S KIND OF WHAT I SEE. 
          YES. 
          THROUGH YOU. 
          UM, CHAIR HELEN. 
          IT IS, IT'S, IT'S INTERESTING THAT THE CATEGORY IS CALLED TRAVEL AND TRAINING, BUT DAMAGES AND THESE MEDICAL SERVICE BILLS ARE IN THERE AND, AND SERVE TO, YOU KNOW, YOU'LL SEE IT ALSO, I THINK IN THE, THE LAW DEPARTMENT'S BUDGET IN TRAVEL AND TRAINING, BUT OFTEN THOSE COSTS WHEN THEY FLOW THROUGH THERE ARE, ARE, YOU KNOW, FOR SETTLEMENT PAYMENTS, ET CETERA. 
          SO IT'S AN ODDITY OF MUNICIPAL FINANCE. 
          YEAH, NO, I HEAR YOU. 
          I, AND I UNDERSTAND IT. 
          I THINK FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC THOUGH, THEY NEED REMINDERS. 
          UH, THE OTHER QUESTION I HAD WAS, I KNOW DURING OUR FINANCE HEARINGS, UH, HEALTH BENEFITS WAS IDENTIFIED AS AN AREA FOR CITYWIDE SAVINGS. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS, UM, WAS THAT MET? IS THAT REFLECTED ANYWHERE? SURE, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          UM, SO WE HAD DONE A NUMBER OF, UH, SORT OF REVIEWS OVER THE FALL TO LOOK AT OUR HEALTH PLANS. 
          WE ENGAGED A BROKER. 
          UM, SOME OF OUR EARLIER QUOTES CAME BACK WITH  US HAVING INCREASES AS HIGH AS 13%. 
          AND WE WORKED THAT DOWN TO 9.3. 
          UM, JUST LOOKING AT OUR EXISTING PLANS, OUR EXISTING STRUCTURES, FEE STRUCTURES, REBATES, ALL OF THE THINGS THAT KIND OF GET BAKED INTO HEALTH INSURANCE FOR US TO, UH, CURTAIL AND INCREASE AS HIGH AS SOME OF OUR COUNTERPARTS AND OTHER MUNICIPALITIES WERE SEEING, UH, I THINK WE DID A REALLY GOOD JOB OF DOING THAT. 
          UM, AND THEN TO FURTHER, AS WE LOOK FORWARD AND WE THINK ABOUT COST SAVINGS MECHANISMS GOING INTO THE FUTURE, UM, WE ARE LITERALLY DAYS AWAY FROM SITTING DOWN TO, TO LOOK AT, UM, YOU KNOW, LIMITED NETWORK PLANS THAT OFFER, UH, YOU KNOW, STILL A HIGH LEVEL OF SERVICE, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, LESS EXPENSIVE FOR THE EMPLOYEE, WHICH IS ALSO LESS EXPENSIVE FOR US 'CAUSE WE SH WE COST SHARE IN THIS. 
          WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, SMALLER DEDUCTIBLE OPTIONS. 
          AS YOU KNOW, OUR CURRENT PLAN DOES NOT HAVE A DEDUCTIBLE. 
          AND SO THAT IS ALSO SORT OF A COST SHARING MECHANISM THAT COULD, UH, HELP WITH THE OVERALL COST OF PREMIUMS. AND SO WE ARE ACTIVELY DOING THAT WORK NOW TO PREPARE FOR A FALL OPEN ENROLLMENT, UM, FOR, UM, FOLKS WHO ARE ELIGIBLE ON MEDICARE AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY A FEBRUARY, 2027 OPEN ENROLLMENT FOR OUR NEXT PLAN YEAR. 
          SO THOSE ARE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING NOW, WILL PROBABLY CROSS FISCAL YEARS, BUT YOU WOULD DEFINITELY SEE THEM IN THE NEXT YEAR. 
          GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY 
          [04:45:01]
THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          AND THANK YOU. 
          I, I WAS LOOKING AT THE, UH, AT THE PENSIONS AND I, NO, I PRESUME PAR DOES WELL AND THE CAMBRIDGE, UH, RETIREMENT BOARD DOES WELL AS, UH, DOES ALSO DOES WELL. 
          BUT THERE'S TWO CATEGORIES, THE CONTRIBUTORY AND THE NON-CONTRIBUTORY PENSIONS. 
          AND I WAS UNCLEAR WHAT IS THE NON-CONTRIBUTORY PENSION. 
          I, I, I READ IT AND I WASN'T AWARE THAT IT ACTUALLY EXISTED, UH, THROUGH YOU. 
          UH, MADAM CHAIR, I, THERE ARE, I, I THINK DEPENDING ON WHEN AN EMPLOYEE STARTED IN THE CITY, UM, THEY ARE ELIGIBLE FOR PLANS THAT THEY'RE NOT CONTRIBUTING TO. 
          AND SO WE BUDGET FOR THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          SO IT'S FULLY, I GET IT. 
          ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTION CODES OR FLAHERTY OR? NOPE, THAT'S FINE. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANKS. 
          UM, I'LL FOLLOW UP ON SOME OF THE QUESTIONS SINCE I SENT THEM IN. 
          IT WAS, I HAD ASKED ABOUT THE INCREASE OF 9.3% AND THAT'S ALL THE HEALTHCARE, THAT'S WHAT IT WENT UP. 
          UM, BUT THE, AND THE QUESTION IS IF YOU COULD ELABORATE A LITTLE MORE ON THE PROCESS AND TIMELINE FOR ADDRESSING THESE HIGH HEALTHCARE COSTS. 
          YOU, YOU MENTIONED, UH, DIRECTOR, UH, CHIEF CATCHINGS, THAT WE ARE WORKING ON POTENTIAL CHANGES. 
          AS WE ALL KNOW, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S, UH, WE WANNA PROVIDE SERVICES AND YET IT, I MEAN THIS AMOUNT, IF I'M READING IT CORRECTLY IS $118 MILLION  OF JUST THE CITY CONTRIBUTION, WHICH IS RANGES FROM 15 TO I THINK 25% OR, OR SE IT'S A TO UP TO 75% OF THE, UM, BUT THAT IS WHAT THE CITY IS PAYING. 
          IS THERE ANYTHING WE CAN LOOK FOR IN TERMS OF TIMELINE? AND GIVEN THAT WE ARE THINKING ABOUT THIS OPEN ENROLLMENT, WILL, WILL WE BE EXPECTING TO SAVE MONEY? DREW, YOU CHAIR, JUST A POINT OF CLARIFICATION. 
          THE 118 MILLION REPRESENTS A HUNDRED PERCENT OF, OF THE HEALTHCARE COSTS. 
          UM, AND SO TIMELINE, WE ARE, YOU KNOW, WE JUST STARTED OUR PLAN YEAR APRIL ONE, AND SO ONCE WE LAUNCHED THIS YEAR, WE WENT IMMEDIATELY INTO SORT OF RESEARCHING FOR NEXT YEAR. 
          AND SO WHEN I THINK ABOUT TIMELINE, THE EDUCATION FOR WHAT THOSE OPTIONS WILL BE WILL START TO BECOME AVAILABLE FOR EMPLOYEES PROBABLY IN OC THE SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER FOR, FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE ELIGIBLE TO ENROLL IN MEDICARE IN, UH, NOVEMBER FOR PLAN YEAR OF ONE, ONE. 
          AND THEN THE INFORMATION FOR EMPLOYEES, UH, IN BROADER PO UH, EXCUSE ME, IN OUR ACTIVE PLANS WILL BECOME AVAILABLE PROBABLY IN NOVEMBER AS EARLY AS NOVEMBER FOR FEBRUARY 1ST, UM, OPEN ENROLLMENT PERIOD. 
          IT'S JUST KIND OF STAGGERED BECAUSE WE HAVE THIS APRIL ONE PLAN YEAR, WHICH OTHER MUNICIPALITIES AROUND US USE JULY ONE AS A PLAN YEAR AND USUALLY DO THEIR OPEN ENROLLMENT IN MAY, BUT OURS IS KIND OF MUCH EARLIER THAN THAT. 
          SORRY. 
          SO THAT 118 IS MORE LIKE 70 MILLION, RIGHT. 
          'CAUSE WE PAY ABOUT 70% OF THE COSTS ARE 75. 
          UM, YEAH, I CAN'T QUITE DO THE MATH, BUT IT, I THINK WE DISCUSSED THIS EARLIER THAT WE DO A TRANSFER FROM THE HEALTH CLAIMS TRUST OF ABOUT 18,250,000 AS A REVENUE INTO THE SYSTEM. 
          18 MILLION, 18 MILLION. 
          THE CITY'S SHARE IS ABOUT 81 MILLION. 
          UH, I I THINK SHE'S TALKING ABOUT THE OVERALL COST, BUT THE SHARE BETWEEN EMPLOYEES. 
          AND SO YES, THE EMPLOYEE, THE EMPLOYEE AMOUNT THAT WE'RE TRANSFERRING IN FROM HEALTH CLAIMS TRUST AS A REVENUE SOURCE IS, UH, JUST OVER $18 MILLION. 
          SO THE OTHER A HUNDRED MILLION IS FROM THE CITY? CORRECT. 
          OKAY. 
          THANKS. 
          UM, ACTUALLY FOLLOWING UP ON THAT, THE, UM, YOU MENTIONED ON THE MEDICARE, ARE RETIREES INCLUDED IN THIS OR ARE THEY CO TOTALLY OFF THE SYSTEM THAT NOW THEY HAVE TO GO OFF THE SYSTEM AS SOON AS THEY RETIRE OR NO, FOR HEALTH INSURANCE, IT, IT, IT WITHIN THE 118,000 OR 118 MILLION, I'M SORRY, 118 MILLION INCLUDES, UH, THE COSTS THAT WE HAVE AS AN EMPLOYER FOR, UM, RETIREMENT HEALTH INSURANCE. 
          AND SO YES, EMPLOYEES ARE, UH, WHO RETIRE, WHO ARE MEDICARE ELIGIBLE ARE ON MEDICARE. 
          BUT WE STILL HAVE, THERE ARE STILL BENEFITS THAT WE PROVIDE. 
          UM, AND I'LL LET, UM, UH, UH, CHIEF CATCHINGS, UH, TALK TO THANK YOU THROUGH YOU CHAIR. 
          THE ONLY OTHER THING THAT I WOULD ADD IS THAT THERE ARE STILL RETIREES WHO ARE NOT MEDICARE ELIGIBLE, WHICH MEANS THEY'RE ON OUR ACTIVE PLANS. 
          AND SO THEY'RE, THEY SHOW UP AND ARE PRICED AS ACTIVE EMPLOYEES BECAUSE OF THAT SORT OF GROUP RATE. 
          THE OTHER THINGS WE DO, THE REIMBURSEMENT OF THEM, OH, WE ALSO DO MEDICARE REIMBURSEMENT, WHICH IS QUARTERLY, UH, TO OFFSET SOME OF 
          [04:50:01]
THE COSTS, UM, THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THAT AS WELL. 
          THAT IS ALSO BAKED INTO THIS PLANE . 
          SO SOME OF THESE HEALTHCARE COSTS INCLUDE RETIREES, IN OTHER WORDS, IT'S NOT JUST ACTIVE EMPLOYEES. 
          CORRECT. 
          AND WE ALSO HAVE SUPPLEMENTAL PLANS AS WELL. 
          RIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, TURNING ONTO PENSIONS, CAN YOU JUST EXPLAIN GETTING OUR PENSION, UH, LIABILITY FULLY FUNDED, THAT IS ALSO SOMETHING THAT, WHAT'S THE 51 MILLION INCLUDED IN THIS PENSION THAT'S IN THE BOOK? UH, YES. 
          UH, DO YOU CHAIR, UH, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR PLAN DATE OF, OF FULLY FUNDING OUR ACTUARIAL LIABILITY IS, UH, 2029. 
          UM, AND SO, UH, THAT MEANS WE HAVE TWO MORE YEARS, UM, PAST 27 OF HAVING, UH, A PENSION, UH, BUDGET COSTS, YOU KNOW, IN THIS 51 50 2 MILLION, UH, DOLLAR RANGE. 
          UH, AFTER THAT, YOU KNOW, ASSUMING THAT THE ACTUARIAL STUDIES THAT, UH, COME OUT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS, UM, CONFIRM THAT WE HAVE MET THIS FULLY FUNDED BENCHMARK THAT WE HAVE BEEN ROWING HARD TOWARDS FOR DECADES, IT SEEMS. UM, SO OUR, OUR COSTS ARE, OUR OPERATING BUDGET COSTS WILL REDUCE, BUT WE WILL LACK, YOU KNOW, OUR, THERE IS A NORMAL COST THAT WE NEED TO PAY EACH YEAR. 
          UM, AND SO, UM, THE, THE ACTUAL REDUCTION WILL PROBABLY BE, YOU KNOW, IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF ABOUT $30 MILLION IN, IN, UH, ONCE WE'RE FULLY FUNDED. 
          BUT WE'LL CONTINUE TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, SOMEWHERE IN THE RANGE OF 20 TO $30 MILLION AS AN OPERATING COST THAT'S 20 OR 30 MILLION YEARLY. 
          CORRECT. 
          AND I DON'T KNOW IF THE AUDITOR WANTS TO, AS HE SITS ON BOARD, ON THE, UH, THE RETIREMENT BOARD CAN, CAN EXPLAIN A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE, UH, BETTER THAN I CAN  AS PART OF THE, UM, PENSION CONTRIBUTION YOU HAVE YOUR, BASICALLY YOUR CURRENT COST AND THEN YOUR PAST SERVICE COST ONCE YOU GET PAST THE PENSION LIABILITY. 
          IT IS BOTH COMPONENTS OF THAT. 
          THE PAST SERVICE COSTS GO AWAY WHEN YOU'RE FULLY FUNDED, BUT YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE THAT AMOUNT. 
          THE CURRENT PIECE, WHICH ARE BASICALLY WHAT PEOPLE THAT ARE STILL WORKING TODAY, YOU WILL PAY DOWN THE ROAD. 
          SO YOU STILL HAVE TO PAY THAT. 
          WE WILL, THAT WILL BE YOUR NORMAL CONTRIBUTION THEY CALL IT. 
          SO THAT'S THE CURRENT PIECE OF IT. 
          IT WILL STILL BE AT ABOUT $30 MILLION I THINK. 
          I BELIEVE OUR PROJECTION IS, UM, BETWEEN 18 AND 20 MILLION THROUGH 30. 
          30, 20 30. 
          DOES THAT INCLUDE THE SCHOOLS ALSO? YES, IT DOES. 
          OKAY. 
          BUT IT IS STILL A BIG NUMBER IS MY POINT, SO RIGHT, AND THAT'S IN ADDITION TO WHAT PEOPLE THEMSELVES CONTRIBUTE? CORRECT. 
          SO IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT, UH, SELF-FUNDED BY EMPLOYEES. 
          RIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          THAT'S CORRECT. 
          I JUST TRYING TO GET TRANSPARENCY AND UNDERSTANDING HERE. 
          WE'RE MOVING TOWARDS IT. 
          UH, THOSE ARE THE QUESTIONS I HAD. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BODY OR FURTHER COMMENTS NOW THAT WE UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT OPEP AND PENSION AND I WILL JUST SAY TO MAYOR SID'S POINT, JUST A SIMPLE FOOTNOTE NEXT TIME ON WHAT'S INCLUDED IN TRAVEL AND TRAINING WOULD JUST EXPLAIN 'CAUSE ANYONE FROM THE PUBLIC LOOKING AT THIS WOULD HAVE THE SAME QUESTION MAYOR SIDIKI POINTED OUT, WHICH IS WHAT'S GOING ON HERE TO GO FROM 30,000 TO 1.3 MILLION WITH NO EXPLANATION WHATSOEVER IN THE TEXT. 
          SO THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          WITH THAT, IT SEEMS LIKE WE CAN FORWARD THE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS OF $153 MILLION TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL. 
          OH, I BELIEVE, UH, BEFORE I DO THIS, I WILL GET TO COUNCILOR, I BELIEVE COUNCILOR SIMMONS HAS JOINED THE MEETING, BUT WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A, A DISCUSSION AND THEN ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUMI? YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILLOR SINA WHEELER ABSENT. 
          COUNCILLOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          SEVEN MEMBERS VOTING YES. 
          TWO RECORDED AS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THANK YOU. 
          I COUNCILLOR SIMMONS, WE ARE RECORDING YOU AS PRESENT SINCE WE HEARD YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, NEXT UP IS THE LAW DEPARTMENT AGAIN, UNLESS THERE ARE ANY CLOSING REMARKS FROM ALL OF YOU ON THIS. 
          NO. 
          AS WE WAIT FOR OUR CITY SOLICITOR, FOR ANYONE WANTING THE PAGE IN THE BOOK, IT'S 1 59 . 
          [04:55:09]
YES. 
          PAGE 1 59, 1 60. 
          THE TOTAL BUDGET OF 3.876 MILLION. 
          THE SAME NUMBER OF ST. 
          FTES AS THIS YEAR AND LAST YEAR AT 16 FTES. 
          ACCOMPLISHMENTS, PLANNED INITIATIVES, POINTING OUT THERE'S NOT PERFORMANCE MEASURES. 
          MAYBE WE'LL SEE THEM IN NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET. 
          JUST PUTTING THAT OUT THERE. 
          'CAUSE I LOVE TO SEE THEM WITH EVERY DEPARTMENT. 
          UH, MAYOR SIDIKI, WE'LL START WITH, THANK YOU. 
          OH, BEFORE I DO THAT, SORRY. 
          UH, SOLICITOR BAYER, IF YOU WANNA INTRODUCE YOUR TEAM AND IF YOU WANNA SAY ANYTHING TO US BEFORE WE GO TO QUESTIONS, HAPPY TO HEAR FROM YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, THANK YOU CHAIR NOLAN. 
          UH, AS YOU ALL KNOW, I'M THE CITY SOLICITOR, MEGAN BAYER, AND I'D ALSO LIKE TO INTRODUCE FOR THOSE WHO MAY NOT KNOW, UH, DEPUTY CITY SOLICITOR ELLIOT VELOSO, AND THEN OUR LAW DEPARTMENT OFFICE MANAGER, KELSEY MCGUFFEY. 
          UM, AND JUST AS BRIEF INTRO REMARKS, AS I THINK YOU ALL KNOW, UH, THE LAW DEPARTMENT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING LEGAL REPRESENTATION AND ADVICE TO THE CITY AND ITS OFFICIALS. 
          OUR DEPARTMENT STRIVES TO HELP THE CITY AND ITS OFFICIALS ACHIEVE ITS GOALS WITHIN THE PARAMETERS OF THE LAW. 
          AND WE OPERATE AS A FULL SERVICE LAW OFFICE, AND WE'RE VERY LUCKY TO WORK IN A PLACE THAT ALWAYS HAS NEW AND INTERESTING ISSUES COMING UP. 
          UM, SOMETIMES TOO LUCKY, NO ABSENCE OF INTERESTING NEW ISSUES. 
          UM, AND I HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF WORKING WITH A REALLY DEDICATED AND FUN TEAM THAT WORKS EXTREMELY HARD TO PROVIDE THE CITY WITH HIGH QUALITY LEGAL REPRESENTATION. 
          AND HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT THE BODY HAS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I'M SURE WE HAVE LOTS OF OTHER QUESTIONS, BUT WE'RE LIMITING 'EM TO THE BUDGET TODAY OR TYING THEM INTO THE BUDGET. 
          WE'LL START WITH MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIR, ALSO A LAWYER, , BARELY . 
          UM, THOSE WERE THE DAYS. 
          UM, SO I HAD TWO QUESTIONS. 
          I ACTUALLY MORE JUST ONE. 
          I KNOW THERE'S TWO POSITIONS BEING ADDED. 
          THE ASSISTANT CITY, UH, SOLICITOR AND A PARALEGAL. 
          I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT, UM, HOW, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE ANY ADDITIONAL GOALS OR OPERATIONAL CAPACITY THAT, UH, THAT WE, THAT IS BEING FILLED WITH, PRESUMABLY WITH THESE AND KIND OF HOW YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT THAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          YES, WE, UM, ARE ADDING A NEW ASSISTANT CITY SOLICITOR. 
          AND, UM, WE ARE ACTUALLY ALREADY IN THE PROCESS WITH THAT POSITION. 
          AND THEN, UH, PENDING APPROVAL OF THE BUDGET, WE'LL ALSO ADD A PARALEGAL. 
          THE REASON FOR THOSE POSITIONS, UM, IS BECAUSE WE ALREADY FEEL LIKE THE WORK EXCEEDS OUR CAPACITY. 
          SO WITH THESE POSITIONS, WE THINK WE'LL BE BETTER EQUIPPED TO HANDLE OUR CURRENT DEMANDS. 
          UM, WE'RE ALWAYS A BUSY DEPARTMENT, I WOULD SAY, PARTICULARLY WITH THE LAST YEAR AND A FEW MONTHS WITH THE CHANGE IN FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION THAT'S ADDED A NEW, UM, YOU KNOW, A NEW, UH, TYPE OF WORK TO OUR OFFICE OF CONFRONTING OVERREACH FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. 
          HELPING, UH, DEPARTMENTS NAVIGATE CHANGES IN FEDERAL FUNDING, CHANGES IN FEDERAL REGULATION. 
          UH, BEING INVOLVED IN LITIGATION, CHALLENGING SOME OF THE FEDERAL OVERREACH. 
          UH, SO PARTICULARLY WITH THOSE EXTRA DEMANDS ON OUR DEPARTMENT AND ALREADY FEELING THAT, UM, THE WORK WAS EXCEEDING OUR BANDWIDTH, THE ADDING A NEW ASSISTANT CITY SOLICITOR POSITION WILL PROVIDE SOME RELIEF WITH THAT. 
          UH, ADDITIONALLY WITH THE PARALEGAL POSITION, UM, I'VE BEEN WITH THE CITY FOR NINE YEARS, AND THE LAW DEPARTMENT WAS MUCH SMALLER WHEN I STARTED, THERE WERE EIGHT ATTORNEYS. 
          UM, THE PUBLIC RECORDS LAW HADN'T CHANGED TO REQUIRE A DESIGNATED PUBLIC RECORDS ACCESS OFFICER, SO WE DIDN'T HAVE THAT POSITION. 
          AND SINCE THAT TIME, WE'RE NOW 11 ATTORNEYS AND SEEKING TO HAVE A 12. 
          WE HAVE TWO PUBLIC RECORDS ACCESS OFFICERS, BUT WE'VE, UM, THROUGHOUT THAT TIME REMAINED CONSTANT WITH HAVING TWO LEGAL ASSISTANTS AND THEN, UM, OFFICE MANAGER, MCGUFFEY. 
          UH, AND SO THE SUPPORT STAFF, UH, BURDENS, YOU KNOW, ON THE SUPPORT STAFF BECAUSE OF THE WORK, HAVE INCREASED IN SUPPORTING MORE AND MORE STAFF WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT. 
          AND WE THINK THAT ADDING A PARALEGAL POSITION WILL COMPLIMENT THE SUPPORT STAFF ROLES WE ALREADY HAVE AND HELP, UH, WITH SOME OF THE EXTRA WORK THAT EXISTS IN THE DEPARTMENT. 
          UM, AND IF THERE IS A TIME 
          [05:00:01]
IN THE FUTURE WITH EITHER THE ADDITION OF THIS NEW ATTORNEY OR THE PARALEGAL WHERE WORK DEMANDS ARE SHIFTING, UH, AND SOME BANDWIDTH IS CREATED, WE WOULD SEE HAVING THESE POSITIONS AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO POTENTIALLY USE OUTSIDE COUNSEL LESS TO TAKE MORE WORK ON IN-HOUSE. 
          YOU KNOW, AS IT IS, WE ARE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT OUTSIDE COUNSEL. 
          WE LOOK, UM, MAKE CASE BY CASE DETERMINATIONS ABOUT WHEN TO BRING IN OUTSIDE COUNSEL, UM, AND TRY TO KEEP AS MUCH IN-HOUSE AS WE CAN. 
          BUT THERE ARE SOME AREAS WHERE WE HAVE USED OUTSIDE COUNSEL, UH, THROUGHOUT DEPARTMENTS IN THE CITY AND, AND TO ASSIST WITH LITIGATION WHERE IF WE HAD THE BANDWIDTH AT ANY POINT IN THE FUTURE IN THE LAW DEPARTMENT, WE COULD TAKE EVEN MORE ON IN-HOUSE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          AND THROUGH YOU AS FAR AS, I THINK THE OTHER QUESTION THAT WAS COMING UP FOR ME WAS JUST THE PERCENTAGE OF, IF THERE IS A WAY TO QUANTIFY THE HOW MUCH WE'RE SPENDING ON OUTSIDE CANCEL. 
          YES, THANK YOU. 
          UM, AND I, THIS YEAR SO FAR, UM, WITHIN THE, THE LAW DEPARTMENT, WE'VE SPENT 312,000 ON OUTSIDE COUNSEL. 
          UM, AND THAT ACTUALLY IS A REDUCTION FROM LAST YEAR. 
          UM, AND IT'S NOT NECESSARILY AN AREA WHERE WE CAN LOOK AT THE REDUCTION AND SAY THAT'S A COST SAVING MEASURE. 
          WE CAN, UH, YOU KNOW, REDUCE THE BUDGET BECAUSE IT FLUCTUATES DEPENDING ON THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING, UM, WITH LITIGATION OR OTHER THINGS THAT ARE OUT OF OUR CONTROL. 
          UH, BUT THAT I THINK IS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE FACT THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE CAN KEEP THINGS IN HOUSE AND NOT USE OUTSIDE COUNSEL, WE DO. 
          AND, UM, WE DON'T LOOK AT OUR MAXIMUM BUDGET FOR OUTSIDE COUNSEL AND, UH, YOU KNOW, FIND THE WORK TO SEND OUT. 
          INSTEAD, WE DO TRY TO KEEP IT AS SMALL AS POSSIBLE, AND IT'S JUST DUE TO FLUCTUATIONS THAT ARE OUT OF OUR CONTROL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU. 
          UH, GOT IT. 
          AND WANNA ALSO LIFT UP THAT YOU'VE ALSO BEEN INVOLVED WITH HELPING, UH, SUPER SCHOOLS AND OTHER THINGS AS WE LOOK FOR THOSE POSITIONS TO BE FILLED. 
          SO THANK YOU, UM, ON THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE AND SCHOOLS END AS WELL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I YIELD, UH, THANK YOU. 
          OH, COUNCILOR SUZI. 
          AND THEN DID I SAY COUNCILOR ZUBI BEFORE OR NO? OKAY. 
          COUNCILOR SUZI AND THEN COUNCILOR ZUBI. 
          I, I THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK. 
          IT'S ENDLESS. 
          AND, UM, UH, AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. 
          UH, SO BETWEEN JULY 1ST, 25 AND MARCH 31ST, 26, 2,255 PUBLIC RECORD REQUESTS WERE SUBMITTED. 
          AND THIS HAS BEEN MORE THAN PREVIOUS YEARS. 
          UM, I KNOW THERE WAS A CHANGE IN PUBLIC RECORDS LAW, WHICH MAY EXPLAIN PARTIALLY WHY WE'RE RECEIVING SO MANY, AND I KNOW THERE'S A OVERALL, UH, MISTRUST IN GOVERNMENT, WHICH MAY EXPLAIN THE NUMBER OF PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS, BUT IS THERE A WAY THAT WE CAN MAKE INFORMATION MORE READILY, UM, AVAILABLE TO RESIDENTS SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO FILE PUBLIC RECORDS TO ACCESS INFORMATION? AND THEN WHAT SORT OF INFORMATION IS, ARE YOU MOST COMMONLY REQUESTED? THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH MADAM CHAIR, AND I'M GONNA TURN THIS OVER TO DEPUTY CITY SOLICITOR VELOSO. 
          I DID JUST WANNA SAY, WHEN I HAD MENTIONED THAT, THAT THERE'D BEEN A CHANGE IN THE PUBLIC RECORDS LAW, UM, I WAS REFERRING, IT WAS ABOUT EIGHT YEARS AGO. 
          UM, THERE WERE A NUMBER OF CHANGES IN THE PUBLIC RECORDS LAW, AND ONE OF THEM AT THAT TIME WAS THAT, UM, EVERY MUNICIPALITY HAVE A DEDICATED PUBLIC RECORDS ACCESS OFFICER. 
          UM, AND SO THAT WAS WHEN THAT POSITION FIRST WAS INTRODUCED TO THE CITY. 
          BUT THEN TO ANSWER, UM, YOUR QUESTIONS, I'M TURNING IT OVER TO DEPUTY CITY SOLICITOR. 
          UH, THANK YOU. 
          AND, UH, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, THE INCREASE THAT WE'VE SEEN IN PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS THIS YEAR IS IN KEEPING WITH PAST TRENDS, WHICH HAVE SEEN ANNUAL INCREASES IN THE NUMBER THAT REQUESTS THAT THE CITY OF RECEIVED. 
          UH, THIS IS TYPICALLY BECAUSE OF THE INCREASED KNOWLEDGE THAT THE PUBLIC HAS REGARDING THEIR ABILITY TO REQUEST PUBLIC RECORDS. 
          AND ALSO THE CITY IS EMPLOYING BETTER TRACKING OF THE REQUESTS THAT WE ARE ACTUALLY RECEIVING AND RESPONDING TO. 
          AND THAT INCLUDES WITH, UH, CPD THAT, UH, IS RECEIVING AN INCREASED NUMBER OF, UH, REQUESTS BECAUSE OF BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          SO THAT IS CAUSING, UH, THE SPIKE IN NUMBERS THAT YOU'RE SEEING IN TERMS OF PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS THIS YEAR, UH, THE CITY'S LAW DEPARTMENT AND THE CITY ARE CONTINUINGLY LOOKING AT WAYS IN WHICH WE CAN MAKE PUBLIC RECORDS MORE READILY AVAILABLE. 
          [05:05:01]
UH, THE PUBLIC RECORDS ACCESS OFFICER, UH, C LEVY, UH, REGULARLY MEETS WITH THE OPEN DATA FOLKS TO LOOK AT MORE DATA SETS THAT CAN BE ADDED TO THE, UH, CITY'S OPEN DATA PORTAL. 
          AND, UH, WE'VE ALSO WORKED WITH THE STRATEGY TEAM TO FIND WAYS TO MAKE PUBLIC RECORDS PROCESS WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY, BOTH INTERNALLY AS WELL AS EXTERNALLY FOR REQUESTERS. 
          UM, SEVERAL WAYS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, UH, THIS PROCESS IS THAT THE CITY'S PUBLIC RECORDS WEBSITE HAS A SECTION ON IT THAT ADVISES THE PUBLIC TO FIRST CHECK THE OPEN DATA PORTAL TO SEE IF RECORDS ARE ALREADY AVAILABLE, UH, BEFORE SUBMITTING A NEW REQUEST. 
          SO IF YOU GO ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE, YOU'LL SEE A BOX NEXT TO THE OTHER BOX WHERE IF YOU CLICK THE LINK, YOU CAN SUBMIT A REQUEST THAT SAYS, BEFORE YOU SUBMIT A REQUEST, CHECK THESE LINKS TO SEE IF THE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE HERE. 
          AND THE LINKS THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE AVAILABLE IS A LINK TO THE CITY'S OPEN DATA PORTAL, AS WELL AS, UH, TWO LINKS FOR REQUESTS THAT WE TYPICALLY RECEIVE, SUCH AS CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES. 
          IF YOU CLICK THAT LINK, IT'LL SEND YOU TO, UH, THE PORTAL WHERE YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THOSE, AS WELL AS ANOTHER LINK IN WHICH YOU CAN SUBMIT A REQUEST, UH, FOR BIRTH CERTIFICATES. 
          SO THAT'S A TYPICAL REQUEST THE CITY RECEIVES, AND THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE THROUGH THE CLERK'S OFFICE. 
          SO IF YOU CLICK ON THAT LINK, THAT'LL SEND YOU TO THE CLERK'S OFFICE WEBSITE. 
          UM, WE ARE ALSO EXPLORING, UH, INSTANCES WHERE WE GET FREQUENT REQUESTS FOR THE SAME DOCUMENT. 
          SO, UM, CURRENTLY THE CITY, UH, WE USE WHAT IS KNOWN AS GOV QA. 
          SO THIS IS A, A SYSTEM IN WHICH IT NOT ONLY PROVIDES A PORTAL IN WHICH PEOPLE CAN SUBMIT PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST ELECTRONICALLY, BUT IT ALSO PROVIDES THE MEANS IN WHICH THE CITY CAN RESPOND TO THEM BY UPLOADING RECORDS AND THEN SUBMITTING THE RESPONSE, UH, TO THE REQUESTER. 
          UH, WE'RE CURRENTLY EXPLORING WAYS IN WHICH THERE ARE OPTIONS AVAILABLE WHERE THE PUBLIC CAN LOOK UP AND VIEW FREQUENT REQUESTS AND RESPONSES BEFORE PUTTING IN THEIR OWN. 
          SO, UH, THIS COULD REDUCE THE NUMBER OF REQUESTS THAT THE CITY RECEIVES FROM DIFFERENT PEOPLE THAT ARE ASKING FOR THE DA SAME DOCUMENTS. 
          SO, JUST TO USE IT AS A HYPOTHETICAL, LET'S SAY THAT THERE'S THIS BIG PARK PROJECT GOING ON IN THE CITY, AND ALLOTTED NEIGHBORS WANT TO PUT IN A REQUEST FOR, SAY, THE CURRENT PLANS OF THAT PARK PROJECT IF THEY'RE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE. 
          INSTEAD OF PROVIDING THE SAME RECORDS TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THOSE NEIGHBORS, WE COULD RESPOND TO ONE OF THOSE REQUESTS, BUT THEN HAVE THE LINK AVAILABLE SO THAT FOR ANY OTHER REQUEST, INSTEAD OF, AGAIN, SENDING THOSE SAME RECORDS TO ALL OF THOSE REQUESTERS, SAY YOU JUST POINT TO THE LINK AND SAY, HERE, COME TO GOV QA ACCESS THOSE RECORDS THAT ARE AVAILABLE NOT ONLY FOR YOU, BUT ANY OTHER, UH, SIMILAR REQUEST. 
          SO THAT'S, UH, ANOTHER WAY WE'RE EXPLORING POTENTIAL OPTIONS TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF REQUESTS BY HAVING THOSE RECORDS AVAILABLE FOR FREQUENT REQUESTERS. 
          SO AGAIN, PART OF THE EXPLORATION, UH, UH, GOES INTO OTHER LINKS OR OTHER DATA SETS THAT WE CAN PROVIDE ON THE WEBSITE AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO SUBMITTING A SEPARATE REQUEST. 
          SO EXAMPLES COULD BE UNCLAIMED FUNDS FROM THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT, EMPLOYEE LISTS. 
          AND THOSE EMPLOYEE LISTS CONTAIN, UH, PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION THAT ANYONE COULD REQUEST. 
          UH, UNION LISTS, PARKING PERMIT INFO, UH, INFO ABOUT PROPERTIES THAT PEOPLE ARE CONSIDERING BUYING AND SELLING, UH, OTHER RECORDS THAT INSPECTION SERVICES MAY HAVE ON FILE. 
          UH, ALSO THINGS WE'RE EXPLORING ARE FIRE REPORTS AND ACCIDENT REPORTS, THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          SO THAT'S AN OVERALL OVERVIEW OF, OF BOTH EXPLAINING THE INCREASE OF NUMBER OF REQUESTS THAT WE'VE RECEIVED THIS YEAR, AS WELL AS STEPS THAT WE'RE TAKING PROACTIVELY TO TRY TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF REQUESTS AND MAKE THE PROCESS MORE ACCESSIBLE AND EFFICIENT FOR, UH, UH, MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC AS WELL AS OTHER PEOPLE THAT ARE SENDING PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS TO THE CITY. 
          IT SOUNDS LIKE, UH, GOV GOVERNMENT QA COULD BE REALLY, REALLY USEFUL. 
          SO YOU'RE LOOKING INTO IT, OR ARE YOU GONNA PROCURE IT? ARE YOU GONNA, ARE WE, ARE WE GOING TO PROCEED WITH THAT, OR ARE WE CONSIDERING PROCEEDING WITH THAT? UH, THE CITY ALREADY USE USES GOV QA, UH, FOR OUR PUBLIC RECORDS, UH, RESPONSES AND, UH, UH, RECEIVING OF REQUESTS. 
          THERE ARE OPTIONAL MODULES AVAILABLE RELATIVE TO GOV QA. 
          SO THAT'S PART OF THE EXPLORATION PROCESS TO SEE ONE, IF THESE OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE, AND ALSO CAN THEY BE USED EFFECTIVELY TO, UH, YOU KNOW, RESPOND TO FREQUENT REQUESTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          IT'S ONE THING TO HAVE AN OPTION AVAILABLE. 
          IT'S ANOTHER THING TO EVALUATE TO SEE IS IT INTUITIVE WITH THE PUBLIC AND CAN IT BE READILY USED IN A EFFECTIVE AND EASY MANNER? SO JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE AN OPTION DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THAT IT'S EFFECTIVE. 
          SO THAT'S PART OF THE EVALUATION PROCESS AS WELL. 
          YEAH, I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE LOOKING INTO IT BECAUSE IT SOUNDS LIKE IT WOULD, UM, MAKE RECORDS MORE ACCESSIBLE 
          [05:10:01]
AND IT WOULD SAVE YOU TIME IN RESPONDING TO REQUESTS. 
          UM, AND I'M JUST THINKING, UM, IT, YOU KNOW, THE DATA THAT YOU'RE GATHERING OR THE QUERIES WOULD ALSO INFORM THE CIVIC SQUAD TEAM, RIGHT? THE OUTREACH TEAM. 
          LIKE IF PEOPLE ARE ASKING, UH, FOR GOVERNMENT, IF THEY'RE ASKING FOR PUBLIC RECORDS ABOUT, UH, REPEATED ITEMS, MAYBE IT WOULD BE A PLACE WHERE WE SHOULD BE DOING MORE COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND GETTING INFORMATION OUT OF IN OTHER WAYS AS WELL. 
          I MEAN, I FEEL LIKE IT'S, UM, A CANARY IN THE COAL MINE, RIGHT? UM, IF FOR, IF PEOPLE ARE HAVING QUESTIONS, IF I WAS A JOURNALIST, I WOULD GO TO YOUR LIST TO FIND OUT WHAT THE HOT TOPICS WERE IN THE CITY. 
          AND IT SEEMS LIKE THOSE WOULD BE THE AREAS WE'D ALSO REALLY WANNA BE FOCUSING PUBLIC OUTREACH. 
          SO, UM, GREAT, GREAT WORK. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, COUNCILOR SUZI, COUNCILOR, UH, CO-CHAIR ZUBIE, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          ALSO WANNA APPRECIATE YOU ALL'S WORK AND SOMEWHAT OF A FOLLOW UP TO COUNCILLOR SUSIE'S QUESTION AND COMMENTS. 
          IT DEFINITELY, I WOULD IMAGINE IT'D BE HELPFUL TO WORK WITH LIKE DEPARTMENTS SUCH AS CDD TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ALSO, DEPENDING ON THE INFORMATION THEY'RE PUTTING OUT, THAT IT'S ACCESSIBLE THROUGH THEIR WEBSITES SO THAT THAT HELPS THE PUBLIC RECORDS OFFICE AS WELL. 
          AND MAYBE THAT COULD HELP DIRECT PEOPLE TO THOSE INDIVIDUAL WEBSITES SO THAT WE CAN BUILD A BIT OF A, OF A LEGACY OF SAYING, OH, YOU CAN GO TO THE CDD WEBSITE, YOU CAN GO TO THE DHSP WEBSITE. 
          UM, I ALSO SAW THE 2,356 REQUEST NUMBER. 
          I WAS JUST CURIOUS IF YOU HAVE MORE INFO ON THAT DATA. 
          WAS THERE A HUNDRED PERCENT RESPONSE RATE? IF, IF NOT, HOW MANY REQUESTS WERE, WERE NOT RESPONDED TO, UM, OF THOSE REQUESTS? DID MOST OF THEM RECEIVE A RESULT OF INFORMATION? CURIOUS TO HEAR? IF THERE'S MORE DATA ON THOSE REQUESTS, UH, THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR, UH, WE CAN GET YOU MORE DATA ON THE RESPONSE RATES. 
          UM, AND SO GENERALLY WHEN THERE'S A PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST, THE RESPONSE SOMEONE RECEIVES IS EITHER THE RECORDS THEY'VE REQUESTED OR, UM, A DENIAL. 
          IF THE RECORDS FALL UNDER EXEMPTIONS FROM THE PUBLIC RECORDS LAW OR A HYBRID RESPONSE WHERE THEY RECEIVE SOME OF THE RECORDS, UH, BUT MAYBE SOME OF THE RECORDS OR SOME PORTIONS ARE REDACTED AND ARE NOT PUBLIC, UH, THE LAW SAYS THAT THERE, THE CITY, THE RECORDS KEEPER HAS 10 BUSINESS DAYS TO RESPOND. 
          UH, BUT THERE ALSO IS AN OPTION FOR THE CITY TO TAKE A TIME EXTENSION. 
          AND THERE'S ALSO THE ABILITY, IF IT'S GOING TO BE MORE THAN TWO HOURS OF WORK, UH, TO ALSO DO A COST ESTIMATE AND HAVE THE REQUESTER, UM, PAY THE COST BEFORE THE CITY DOES THE WORK. 
          SO THAT'S THE OTHER, UH, TYPE OF RESPONSES SOMEONE MIGHT RECEIVE INITIALLY, A COST ESTIMATE OR, UM, A, UM, A TIME EXTENSION IF IT'S GONNA TAKE LONGER. 
          UM, THERE ARE ALSO SOMETIMES THE REQUESTS ARE, UM, PRETTY OPEN-ENDED AND VAGUE, AND OUR PUBLIC RECORDS TEAM WORKS, UH, WITH THE REQUESTER TO TRY TO, YOU KNOW, SAY IF, IF WE HAVE TO ANSWER THE REQUEST IS WRITTEN, THIS COULD TAKE MANY HOURS, BUT, YOU KNOW, LET'S GET AT WHAT YOU'RE REALLY LOOKING FOR AND I CAN HELP YOU, UH, REFINE YOUR SEARCH TERMS AND COME UP WITH A, A MORE MANAGEABLE WAY. 
          AND THEN IF THAT DOESN'T GET TO WHAT THE REQUESTER IS LOOKING FOR, THEY OBVIOUSLY CAN ASK FOR MORE. 
          UM, BUT WE DO TRY TO, UH, FIND A WAY TO WORK WITH THEM. 
          UM, SO THAT'S, SO I'M HAPPY TO FOLLOW UP WITH MORE STATISTICS, UH, ON WHAT TYPES OF RESPONSES OUT OF THOSE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES I MENTIONED, UM, GO OUT AND THEN THE, THE TIME AND, UM, HOW MANY ARE STILL OUTSTANDING. 
          THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          THANK YOU ALL. 
          YOU'LL COUNCILLOR FLAHERTY AND DREW YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          I WAS FRANKLY SURPRISED BY HOW LOW YOUR BUDGET IS, UM, UNDERSTANDING WHEN I READ THROUGH THIS, UH, HOW MUCH WORK ACTUALLY IS, UH, TAKEN ON AND COMPLETED BY THE LAW DEPARTMENT HERE IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          AND, AND FRANKLY, FROM A PERSPECTIVE OF SOMEONE WHO'S DONE SOME OF THIS WORK AND RECOGNIZING, YOU KNOW, THE LIMITED STAFF THAT YOU HAVE, I HAD NO IDEA THERE WERE 2300 PUBLIC RECORD REQUESTS THAT THE LAW DEPARTMENT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR RESPONDING TO. 
          BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, REALIZING HOW MANY UNIQUEST BRIEFS YOU'VE SIGNED ON TO AND THE WORK YOU'VE DONE WITH SHEPHERDING LEGISLATURE AND THE, UH, THE CHARTER AND HOME REPETITIONS AND THE RESTRUCTURING OF THE ORDINANCES, UH, IN THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE, AND THEN 
          [05:15:01]
THE, UM, ON BANK APPEAL TO THE FIRST CIRCUIT, FRANKLY, I WAS, I, I WAS SURPRISED BY HOW SMALL YOUR BUDGET IS. 
          AND I'M NOT CERTAIN THAT THE GENERAL PUBLIC UNDERSTANDS HOW MUCH WORK THE LAW DEPARTMENT DOES IN RESPONDING TO TWENTY THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY SIX REPORTS FOR PUBLIC RECORDS, UH, OR REQUESTS FOR PUBLIC RECORDS. 
          THAT'S AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF WORK. 
          AND OVER A YEAR, JUST OVER ONE YEAR, THAT'S SOMETHING LIKE 40 OR 50 REQUESTS PER WEEK, ONE AN HOUR FOR A WORK WEEK, WHICH CAN STRANGLE YOUR ENTIRE ENTIRE DEPARTMENT. 
          IT'S AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF LABOR. 
          AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT, ALL THE LAWSUITS THAT THE CITY IS INVOLVED IN, ALL THE AMICUS BRIEFS, THE CHALLENGING THE, UH, THE, UH, FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION AND THEN ASSISTING THE CITY COUNCIL AND THE CITY MANAGER, MAKING SURE THE DECISIONS AND POLICIES ARE, ARE LEGAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL GOING FORWARD. 
          I JUST, I'M SHOCKED BY HOW SMALL YOUR BUDGET IS. 
          AND, UM, I GUESS MY QUESTION IS, HOW MUCH MORE DO YOU NEED TO CONTINUE TO OPERATE AT THE LEVEL THAT YOU DO? BECAUSE $312,000 FOR OUTSIDE COUNSEL, IN MY VIEW, IS A DIMINISH DE MINIMIS AMOUNT, UH, CONSIDERING WHAT THE CITY, UH, OF THE CITY OF 118,000 PEOPLE, WITH ALL THE ISSUES THAT HAPPEN IN THIS UNIQUE CITY IN THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE, IT'S KIND OF MIND BOGGLING TO ME THAT WHAT THE LAW DEPARTMENT DOES IS ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISHED FOR THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE SPEND ON IT. 
          SO DOES, DOES THE CITY GIVE YOU ENOUGH MONEY TO DO WHAT YOU DO? IS MY QUESTION? UH, THANK YOU THROUGH MADAM CHAIR. 
          UH, IT IS NICE TO HAVE A LAWYER, MULTIPLE LAWYERS ON THE COUNCIL WHO, UH, UNDERSTAND THE WORK WE DO. 
          BUT, UM, NO, I, I APPRECIATE YOUR REMARKS. 
          UM, I DO FEEL THAT WE HAVE THE MONEY WE NEED TO DO THE WORK WE'RE DOING, AND I FEEL, UM, WE HAVE TREMENDOUS SUPPORT FROM OUR BUDGET TEAM AND FROM THE CITY MANAGER AND, UH, THAT WE ARE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE HIGH QUALITY LEGAL WORK FOR THE CITY WITH WHAT WE HAVE. 
          WELL, I, I JUST KNOW FOR THE RECORD THAT IT'S INCREDIBLY LABOR INTENSE AND NOT MANY PEOPLE UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH WORK IT REALLY IS TO BE A LAWYER, TO BE A BUSY LAWYER. 
          AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I CONGRATULATE YOU. 
          AND IF THE, UH, THE BUDGET IS IN INSUFFICIENT, PLEASE COME BACK AND ASK BECAUSE, UH, I KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH IT COSTS TO GET THIS WORK DONE. 
          SO THANK YOU. 
          I YIELD . 
          THANKS, COUNCILOR FLAHERTY, WE CAN TALK ABOUT DIFFERENT SALARY. 
          UM, COUPLE THINGS SINCE OTHERS HAVE GONE. 
          UM, VERY HAPPY TO HEAR ABOUT THE FOIA POSSIBILITY OF REDUCING IT THROUGH USING, UH, OTHER MEANS OF FULFILLING THEM SO THAT BOTH BEING VERY RESPONSIVE TO THE PUBLIC AND YET ALSO ENSURING THAT IT'S NOT TAKING UP TIME THAT IS OTHERWISE, UM, MUCH BETTER SPENT AND THEREFORE RESOURCES ON OTHER THINGS. 
          I AM CURIOUS, FOLLOWING UP ON THAT IS IT SEEMS LIKE OFTEN I'VE THOUGHT ONE OF THE BIG BENEFITS OF THE FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION LITERALLY ATTACKS THE LAST FEW YEARS ARE LAWYERS AND IN THE CITY WE'RE SEEING THAT AS WELL. 
          IS THAT A SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE OF THE WORK THAT YOU'VE HAD TO UNDERTAKE? I KNOW WE CAN'T CHARGE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR IT, BUT IT WOULD BE NICE IF WE COULD, DO YOU HAVE ANY SENSE OF, OF HOW IT IS? BECAUSE AS COUNCILLOR FLAHERTY JUST SAID, IT'S, AND WE SAW JUST ON MONDAY NIGHT THAT WE DIDN'T TALK ABOUT IT, BUT THE EXTENT OF THE LAWSUITS THAT WE MAY NOT BE PARTY TO, BUT YOU ARE TRACKING ALSO, TRACKING TAKES TIME EVEN IF WE DECIDE NOT. 
          SO I'M JUST CURIOUS AS TO WHETHER YOU HAVE A SENSE OF THAT. 
          UH, THANK YOU. 
          UM, I, IT'S HARD TO PUT A PERCENTAGE NUMBER ON IT, AND IT DOES SORT OF EBB AND FLOW AS THINGS ARE GOING ON, BUT I WOULD SAY IT'S CONSTANT THAT EVERY SINGLE WEEK THERE IS SOMETHING, UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SEVERAL ONGOING CASES. 
          UM, WE JUST TODAY ARE HEARING FROM LIZ MENGERS IN HOUSING ABOUT, UM, HUD, UH, GRANTS FOR THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR. 
          UM, WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING AT DIFFERENT AMICUS OPPORTUNITIES. 
          UM, A SHOUT OUT TO ASSISTANT CITY SOLICITOR, FRANZ, LAP BIANCA, WHO HAS BEEN UPDATING OUR LITIGATION TRACKER. 
          SO HE'S ALWAYS KEEPING UP WITH NOT JUST LITIGATION THAT WE'RE INVOLVED IN, BUT LITIGATION THAT HAS, YOU KNOW, IMPACTS AND RAMIFICATIONS FOR THE CITY AND UPDATING THE LITIGATION TRACKER. 
          UM, AND WE'RE CONTINUING TO WORK WITH PARTNERS LIKE THE PUBLIC RIGHTS PROJECT THAT HAS BEEN, UM, A 
          [05:20:01]
HUGE HELP IN WHAT THE CITY HAS DONE WITH FEDERAL ACTION, UM, AND THE INTERNATIONAL MUNICIPAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION AND MASSACHUSETTS MUNICIPAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, SOME WEEKS IT'S NOT TOO MUCH WORK AND OTHER WEEKS IT'S A LOT OF WORK, BUT IT'S, IT'S CONSTANT. 
          YEAH. 
          AND I APOLOGIZE, I DID NOT ASK YOU THIS QUESTION IN ADVANCE. 
          SO I, UM, SORRY. 
          IF, IF I, I, I UNDERSTAND IF YOU WEREN'T ABLE TO GIVE A NUMBER, AND AGAIN, THAT'S PLENTY. 
          I JUST, IT'S TO REMIND US ALL OF IT'S ANOTHER SERVICE TO THE CITY AND IT'S NECESSARY BECAUSE SOME OF THIS WOULD HAVE AN IMPACT ON US, IN PARTICULAR, ON OUR BUDGET. 
          AND YET IT'S THROWING YET ANOTHER THING ON YOUR PLATE. 
          I DID ASK A QUESTION. 
          I THINK THE OTHER QUESTIONS I ASKED HAVE BEEN ANSWERED, BUT ONE WAS, UH, BUILDING ON WHAT WE'RE DOING, HOPEFULLY WITH THE OPEN DATA PORTAL AND OTHERS WITH THE FOIAS ABOUT SOME LAW FIRMS ARE USING AI TO BE MORE EFFICIENT IN THEIR OPERATIONS AND REDUCING THE NEED FOR STAFF TIME ON PARTICULAR DELIVERABLES. 
          IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT? AND AGAIN, THAT WOULD THEN TO COUNCILOR FLAHERTY'S POINT, IF YOU HAVE THE SAME NUMBER OF PEOPLE, BUT SOME OF THAT WORK CAN BE DONE, UH, EFFICIENTLY THROUGH SOME, SOME OTHER MEANS, THEN IT MEANS YOU CAN DO MAYBE NOT AS EXHAUSTED. 
          'CAUSE I UNDERSTAND THERE'S, THERE'S ALMOST A NEED FOR, UH, COUCHES UPSTAIRS FOR BEDS FOR THE AMOUNT OF WORK SOMETIMES THAT HAPPENS. 
          UH, THANK YOU. 
          UM, SO TO YOU, WE HAVE BEEN, UH, LOOKING AT DIFFERENT WAYS WE CAN, UH, BE MORE EFFICIENT AND MORE COST EFFECTIVE WITH TECHNOLOGY. 
          UM, WE'VE USED FOR A FEW YEARS NOW A DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM THAT HELPS US ORGANIZE DOCUMENTS BY THE, THE TYPE OF CASE, THE TYPE OF, IS IT A REAL ESTATE DOCUMENT OR A LITIGATION DOCUMENT? AND THAT'S BEEN HELPFUL, BUT WE'RE ACTUALLY LOOKING TO, UM, CHANGE THAT. 
          WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF CONTRACTING WITH A NEW, UM, SOFTWARE PROVIDER THAT'S GONNA DO A CASE MANAGEMENT AND DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE THAT WE THINK IS GONNA HELP US, UH, BE EVEN MORE EFFICIENT, UM, OR KEEPING TRACK OF, UH, YOU KNOW, THE STATUS OF ALL OF OUR CASES, HAVING INFORMATION THAT'S MORE EASILY SHARED AMONGST OUR ATTORNEYS. 
          UM, AND WE, WE DO, UM, HAVE AN ONLINE RESEARCH TOOL THAT, UH, LEGAL RESEARCH TOOL THAT WE USE THAT HAS RECENTLY INCORPORATED AN AI, UM, MODULE TO IT. 
          AND WE DO USE THAT AS WELL. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT A REPLACEMENT FOR ATTORNEYS AND FOR ACTUAL LEGAL RESEARCH, BUT IT'S HELPFUL TO, UH, YOU KNOW, TO GET US STARTED TO, UM, BE ABLE TO DO THINGS, UH, MORE QUICKLY. 
          UM, BUT ULTIMATELY I FEEL LIKE IT'S A FIELD WHERE AI CAN HELP US, BUT AI CAN DEFINITELY NOT REPLACE US. 
          AND WE'VE SEEN IN, UM, COURTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY WHERE, UH, ATTORNEYS OR PRO SE INDIVIDUALS HAVE BEEN SUBMITTING WORK THEY DID WITH AI AND THE COURTS DISCOVERING WHAT THESE HALLUCINATIONS OF CASES THAT DON'T EVEN EXIST. 
          AND, UH, THAT COMES WITH SANCTIONS FOR THE PARTY. 
          SO THAT WOULD BE SANCTIONS AGAINST THE CITY AND PUT OUR OWN BAR LICENSES IN JEOPARDY. 
          SO IT'S DEFINITELY, WE'RE DEFINITELY OPEN AND ALWAYS LOOKING TO FIND WAYS TO WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY, BUT, UM, WE CAN'T HAVE LESS POSITIONS BECAUSE OF AI. 
          UM, WE DID HAVE ONE OF OUR ASSISTANT CITY SOLICITORS HANDLE A CASE AGAINST A PRO SE PLAINTIFF WHO TOLD HIM HE WROTE ALL OF HIS BRIEFS WITH AI, AND WE STILL PREVAILED. 
          SO WE FEEL THAT WE'VE BEAT, BEATEN THE MACHINE THERE, BUT, UM, BUT YEAH, DEF DEFINITELY ALWAYS LOOKING TO TRY TO BE MORE EFFICIENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND I, I JUST THINK IN THE FUTURE AS THESE GO FORWARD, ESPECIALLY IF YOU LIMIT THE UNIVERSE IN WHICH YOU LOOK AT BASICALLY JUST DOING RESEARCH, I REMEMBER IN THE DAYS OF LEXISNEXIS WHEN IT WAS A PHENOMENAL TOOL, AND YET THAT WAS PROBABLY SEVEN GENERATIONS AGO OF LEGAL RESEARCH, BUT IT ACTUALLY HELPED A LOT. 
          SO SIMILAR, YOU WANNA TRUST BUT VERIFY, YOU CONFIRM THAT THERE ARE NO HALLUCINATIONS. 
          ON THE OTHER HAND, IT CAN DRAMATICALLY, UH, SHORTEN THE TIME FOR RESEARCH, AND THEREFORE, AGAIN, THE WORKLOAD WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE. 
          SO THIS IS REALLY ABOUT SAYING, UNDERSTANDING THAT THOSE POSSIBILITIES, THIS IS ANOTHER QUESTION I DIDN'T ASK, SO WE DON'T HAVE TO, UM, UH, ANSWER IT. 
          BUT PART OF THE 10 YEAR WORK PLAN, AT LEAST, OR MAYBE THE NEXT FEW YEARS, UH, AS WE MAYBE OFFLOAD FROM SOME OF THIS OTHER WORK AND THERE'S TIME AVAILABLE, ONE OF THE CHARTER PROVISIONS IS THAT THERE IS A REQUIREMENT FOR REVIEW OF ORDINANCES, WHICH THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT WILL BE INVOLVED IN. 
          SO I DON'T THINK WE NEED TO INCREASE THE BUDGET NOW FOR IT, BUT IT'S ONE OF THE THINGS I WOULD LOOK TO THAT AS OTHER WAYS OF EITHER FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION, ONSLAUGHT OF OF WORK GOES DOWN AND WE ARE NOT HIT EVERY WEEK WITH SOMETHING NEW, BUT, BUT I JUST WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE AND POINT THAT OUT THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WILL, WE'RE, IT'S IN THE CHARTER BECAUSE WE BELIEVE IT WILL BE HELPFUL TO EVERYONE TO HAVE A REGULAR JUST GOOD GOVERNANCE PRACTICE OF REVIEWING OUR ORDINANCES, 
          [05:25:01]
SOME OF WHICH ARE INCREDIBLY OUTDATED AND SHOULD NOT BE AROUND, AND YET THERE WOULD BE, THERE, THERE'S NO BANDWIDTH AND TIME REALLY TO LOOK AT THEM. 
          BUT I DO HOPE THAT'S IN THE EVENTUAL PLAN BECAUSE IT, IT WILL AFFECT THE, UH, FUNDING AND BUDGET FOR THE LAW DEPARTMENT IF WE DON'T FIND A WAY TO, TO, UM, HAVE MORE EFFICIENCY, IF THAT MAKES SENSE. 
          SO, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR RESPONSE FROM THE LAW TEAM BEFORE WE MOVE THE LAW DEPARTMENT FORWARD TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION OF THE $3,876,551 DISCUSSION? ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCILOR ZUBIE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR? YES. 
          COUNCIL OF FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          ABSENT COUNCILLOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          I'M SORRY. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER ABSENT. 
          COUNCILLOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE SEVEN MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, AND TWO RECORDED IS ABSENT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          LEGAL ACES TEAM. 
          AND NOW FOR THE LAST DEPARTMENT OF TODAY, WE HAVE THE EQUITY AND INCLUSION DEPARTMENT, WHICH IS ON PAGE, UH, 225 OF THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          OH MY GOD, SORRY, THAT'S 2 65 I. 
          ALL RIGHT, BEFORE WE GO TO QUESTIONS, CHIEF BROWN, IF YOU WANNA INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND YOUR TEAM, THAT'D BE GREAT. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. 
          MY NAME IS DEIRDRE TRAVIS BROWN. 
          I'M THE CHIEF OF EQUITY AND INCLUSION HERE IN THE CITY, AND I AM EXCITED TO BE HERE BEFORE YOU WITH THE EQUITY AND INCLUSION LEADERSHIP TEAM. 
          I HAVE TO MY LEFT HERE, UM, CAROLINA EL MONTE, WHO IS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION, THE COMMISSION ON IMMIGRANT RIGHTS AND CITIZENSHIP, AND THE POLICE REVIEW AND ADVISORY BOARD. 
          UM, SITTING TO HER LEFT IS SEFANA ANIR. 
          SEFANA IS THE, UH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR, UM, THE PEACE COMMISSION AND, UM, OVERSEES THE OFFICE OF EQUITY INCLUSION, WHICH INCLUDES EQUITY INCLUSION INVESTIGATIONS FOR DIS DISCRIMINATION, HARASSMENT, AND RETALIATION. 
          AND, UM, WE WILL BE HAVING, UH, EQUITY AND INCLUSION TRAINER. 
          WE'RE IMMINENTLY HIRING SOMEONE FOR THAT POSITION. 
          UM, AND, UH, IT ALSO INCLUDES THE MINORITY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM. 
          AND THEN TO HER LEFT, WE HAVE SHAMEIKA GREGORY, UH, SHAMEIKA IS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE COMMISSION, UM, ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN FOR THE DOMESTIC GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE PREVENTION INITIATIVE. 
          AND FOR THE, UM, LGBTQ PLUS COMMISSION ONLINE, WE HAVE ANOTHER SUPERSTAR, UM, WHO'S JOINING US. 
          UH, THAT WOULD BE RACHEL TANNEN HOUSE. 
          VERY RECENTLY, THE, UM, OR LAST YEAR, UH, THE DISABILITY COMMISSION CAME ON BOARD AS PART OF THE EQUITY AND INCLUSION DEPARTMENT. 
          SO, UH, RACHEL IS ONLINE JOINING US. 
          UM, ALSO, UH, AND I ALSO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY, UH, FOR NOW, BUT WE IMMINENTLY HIRING THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE AMERICAN FRIEDMAN COMMISSION. 
          SO I'VE BEEN LEADING THAT CHARGE ALSO. 
          SO WE ARE VERY EXCITED TO BE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          EXCITING TO HAVE YOU ALL HERE. 
          WE WILL START THEN WITH, UM, COUNCIL ZUBIE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. 
          THE FIRST IS RELATED TO THE FREEDMAN COMMISSION BEING NOW FUNDED FOR ROUGHLY 420 5K. 
          THE CITY MANAGER NOTED THAT WE WOULD SEE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE MAYOR AND CITY MANAGER IN THE SUMMER OF 2025 IN LAST YEAR'S BUDGET. 
          JUST CURIOUS TO HEAR UPDATES ON THAT. 
          IS THE PROCESS COMPLETE? I NOTICED IT WAS ALSO PART OF THE EXECUTIVE BUDGET TOO, IN THIS, IN THIS CURRENT BUDGET. 
          SO CAN YOU EXPLAIN ALSO HOW THAT WILL BE INTEGRATED AS WELL, AND WHAT THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROCESS WILL BE FOR DETERMINING ITS DIRECTION THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? UM, THE AMERICAN FRIEDMAN COMMISSION HAS BEEN SEATED AND, UM, BEGAN IN EARNEST, UM, IN THE FALL OF THIS PAST YEAR. 
          [05:30:01]
THE BUDGET FOR IT, UH, WAS ESTABLISHED LAST YEAR AND MOVED FORWARD THIS YEAR. 
          THERE IS SALARY THAT IS A PART OF THAT BUDGET AS WELL AS, UM, $300,000 FOR THE WORK THAT THEY WILL BE DOING. 
          THE COMMISSION IS MADE OF, UH, 11 PEOPLE, UH, PRESENTLY FROM THE CITY OF CAMBRIDGE. 
          UH, AND, UH, A COUPLE FROM OUTSIDE OF CAMBRIDGE. 
          UH, THEY HAVE BEEN MEETING AND ESTABLISHING WHAT THEIR GROUND RULES WILL BE AND HOW THEY WILL OPERATE FOR GOVERNANCE. 
          UH, THEY DO HAVE PLANNED TO DO WORK TO ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY THROUGH STORYTELLING AND GATHERING OF INFORMATION ABOUT AMERICAN FREEMEN. 
          THOSE WHO ARE AMERICAN FREEMEN IDENTIFY AS AMERICAN FREEMEN HERE IN CAMBRIDGE. 
          THEY WILL ALSO BE PARTNERING WITH, UM, THE CAMBRIDGE, UH, BLACK HISTORY PROJECT, UH, WITH LOCAL INSTITUTIONS ALSO TO GATHER INFORMATION FROM THE REPORTS THAT THEY'VE BEEN DOING. 
          IN FACT, THEY WILL BE REVIEWING, UH, SEVERAL OF THOSE REPORTS THAT WE'VE GATHERED TO, UM, HELP US IDENTIFY WHAT HARMS HAVE BEEN DONE AND WHERE WE HAVE GAPS. 
          WE WILL LOOK TO, UM, UH, CONSULTANTS POTENTIALLY, UH, WITH SOME EXPERTISE IN THOSE AREAS TO HELP US IDENTIFY WHERE, UM, AGAIN, THOSE GAPS MAY BE SO THAT WE CAN BEGIN LOOKING AT AND IDENTIFYING WHAT HARMS THERE MAY HAVE BEEN AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE CITY. 
          GOTCHA. 
          THAT'S HELPFUL. 
          SO ARE WE EXPECTING THAT THAT TIMELINE MIGHT BE SHIFTED A YEAR, LIKE A YEAR LATER FROM NOW? LIKE, SO WHEN THE LAST BUDGET SAID SUMMER OF 2025, IS THERE LIKE AN EXPECTATION ON WHEN WE CAN HEAR SOME OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS START TO COME IN? THE WORK WILL BEGIN IN EARNEST, UM, PROBABLY IN THE SPRING OF THIS YEAR. 
          I THINK WE'VE GOTTA DO SOME WORK TO GET THROUGH ALL OF THE REPORTS. 
          WE HAVE ABOUT SEVEN OF THEM THAT WE'RE GONNA BE REVIEWING. 
          UM, AND SO THERE'LL BE WORK THAT'S RELATED TO THAT, BUT WE'LL KEEP, UM, THE COUNCIL UPDATED ON THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING AS WE'RE GOING THROUGH THAT PROCESS. 
          THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          AND, UH, MY NEXT QUESTION IS RELATED TO THE POLICE REVIEW AND ADVISORY BOARD. 
          I NOTICE IT ALSO IS, UH, GETTING A DECREASE BEING FUNDED AT 2,400 AND RECOGNIZE THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS BOARD IS SUPPOSED TO INDEPENDENTLY REVIEW COMPLAINTS, INVESTIGATE MISCONDUCT AND OTHER THINGS. 
          UM, CAN SOMEONE FROM THE DEPARTMENT EXPLAIN WHAT IT CAN ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISH WITH 2,400? IS IS THIS MEANINGFUL TO THE INFRASTRUCTURE? I'D BE CURIOUS TO HEAR MORE. 
          SURE. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH THROUGH, THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION. 
          UM, SO YES, WE ARE SEEING A BUDGET DECREASE, UM, BUT THAT WON'T IMPACT THE WORK OF THE BOARD. 
          UM, THE POLICE REVIEW ADVISORY BOARD'S, UH, CASES ARE INVESTIGATED THROUGH THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS UNIT OF THE C CAMBRIDGE POLICE DEPARTMENT. 
          AND THE MAJORITY OF THAT BUDGET THAT WE'RE SEEING A DECREASE FOR WAS FOR THE NAL TRAINING, UM, THAT I WOULD TYPICALLY BE, UH, ATTENDING THAT. 
          UM, I MOST LIKELY WILL THIS YEAR ASK FOR AN EXCEPTION TO OUR CURRENT OUT-OF-STATE TRAVEL POLICY. 
          UM, BUT IN TERMS OF THE WORK, WE, WE VERY MUCH, UM, CAN CONTINUE, UH, REVIEWING THE CASES THAT ARE INVESTIGATED BY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS UNIT, UM, DURING EXECUTIVE SESSION, UH, WITH OUR PUBLIC MEETINGS. 
          GOTCHA. 
          SO IF I'M UNDERSTANDING CORRECTLY, THAT MAIN DECREASES FROM THE TRAINING ASPECT, OR, YES. 
          YEP. 
          OKAY. 
          GOTCHA. 
          THAT'S DEFINITELY HELPFUL. 
          AND, AND KNOW THAT THE WORK OF THIS BOARD IS INTENDED RIGHT TO DO THE COMPLAINTS INDEPENDENTLY FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. 
          SO THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO WORK ON THAT. 
          UM, ALSO JUST WANNA GENERALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THE WORK OF THE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN PEACE COMMISSION AND OTHERS. 
          AS I KNOW I WAS NOT A PART OF THE COUNCIL AT THE TIME, THE CUTS AND CHANGES HAPPENED LAST YEAR AND DO WISH TO SEE THAT THE APPROACH TO THESE ROLES AND WORK ARE DIGNIFIED. 
          AND, UM, MY LAST QUESTION FOR NOW IS, YOU KNOW, KNOWING SOME OF THESE COMMISSIONS HAVE HISTORICALLY OPERATED WITH SIGNIFICANT INDEPENDENCE AND ALSO ROOTS IN MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES, UH, HOW, HOW DOES THE NEW CONSOLIDATED REPORTING STRUCTURE IN THE BUDGET PRESERVE THEIR AUTONOMY OR COMMUNITY TRUST, UM, OR ABILITY TO HOLD THE CITY ITSELF ACCOUNTABLE? THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR, WE'RE ABSOLUTELY CONTINUING IN THAT WORK AND EXPANDING ON THAT. 
          ALSO, TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE CASTING THE WIDEST NET FOR, UM, THOSE, UM, FOR THE COMMISSIONS WHERE WE HAVE, UH, VACANCIES, UH, WE ARE RECRUITING FOR, AGAIN, THAT WIDE NET OF FOLKS TO JOIN WITH US. 
          UH, LAST YEAR, UM, FOLLOWING THE RESTRUCTURING, WE TOOK IT UPON OURSELVES, WORKING TOGETHER, LOOKING ACROSS, UM, THE DEPARTMENT TO PARTNER TOGETHER TO SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER AND TO ENSURE THAT WE DID NOT LOSE THE TRUST OF THOSE THAT WE WERE WORKING WITH. 
          SO WE SHOWED UP EVERY DAY AND WE ENGAGED WITH, UM, FOLKS FROM THE COMMISSION, FOLKS IN THE COMMUNITY AS WELL, SHOWING UP FOR ALL OF THE IDENTIFIED, UH, EVENTS THAT WERE PLANNED FOR SO THAT NONE OF THEM WOULD GO WITHOUT BEING, WE WOULDN'T MISS 
          [05:35:01]
ANY DATES. 
          SO THE DELIVERABLES WERE THERE, WE WERE ON TOP OF THOSE. 
          REALLY WANT TO GIVE A BIG SHOUT OUT TO, UM, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SHAMEIKA GREGORY, FOR REALLY JUMPING IN THERE BECAUSE IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THOSE MEETINGS THAT WE, WE HAD LAST YEAR, THERE WERE SEVERAL IDENTIFIED EVENTS THAT WERE GOING ON. 
          SO WE ENSURED THAT THOSE WERE HAPPENING AGAIN, SHOWING UP, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT THE RESIDENTS KNEW THAT WE WERE, THESE PROGRAMS WERE PLANNED AND WE WERE DELIVERING ON THEM. 
          UM, AND, UH, SO WE HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL AT THAT AS WELL AS THROUGH THE PEACE COMMISSION AND THE LGBTQ PLUS COMMISSION. 
          ALSO, I HAD SEVERAL MEETINGS WITH, UH, DIFFERENT, UH, THE CHAIRS OF THE COMMISSIONS ALSO TO ASSURE THEM THAT WE WOULD BE, UM, AVAILABLE TO THEM TO DISCUSS ANY CHALLENGES THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE OR CONCERNS THAT THEY WERE RAISING. 
          AND WE HAD, UM, SOME PRETTY GOOD MEETINGS, I THINK. 
          UH, I THINK I GOT SOME REALLY GREAT FEEDBACK, UM, AND LEANED INTO THE FEEDBACK TO ENSURE THAT WE AGAIN, SHOWED UP. 
          UM, SHAMEIKA, WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD ANYTHING? UM, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? I WOULD JUST ADD THAT THE, WELL, ALL OF OUR COMMISSIONS WORK DIRECTLY WITH RESIDENTS. 
          UH, AND SO I THINK WE'VE ALL BEEN ENGAGED WITH CONTINUING TO BUILD THOSE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE COMMISSIONS THEMSELVES AND ALSO THE COMMUNITY. 
          UM, MAINTAINING OUR DEEP ROOTS IN THE COMMUNITY, FINDING NEW WAYS TO, UH, ENGAGE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ENGAGED BEFORE. 
          UH, I KNOW SEFANA JUST FINISHED, I'LL LET YOU SPEAK FOR YOURSELF, BUT JUST FINISHED THE PROCESS OF ONBOARDING NEW COMMISSION MEMBERS. 
          UM, AND I WOULD BE DOING THAT FOR THE WOMEN'S COMMISSION AS WELL AS THE LGBTQ K LGBTQ PLUS COMMISSION. 
          SORRY, VERY SOON. 
          UH, SO REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO, UM, EVEN NEW ENERGY BEING ADDED TO THE COMMISSIONS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE AND APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING, AND DEFINITELY WANT US AS A CITY TO CONTINUE TO MAKE SURE WE'RE, WE'RE BUILDING THAT COMMUNITY TRUST, UM, AND HOLDING OUR CITY ACCOUNTABLE WHEN IT COMES TO A LOT OF THESE, UM, REALLY IMPORTANT, UH, OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE'RE WORKING ON WHEN IT COMES TO THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE PEACE COMMISSION, UH, HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION, AND ALL THE OTHERS. 
          SO THANK YOU ALL. 
          THANK YOU MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU CHAIRNO. 
          AND, UM, I WANTED TO JUST TO TALK ABOUT, UH, CIRC FOR A MOMENT AND ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, THE WORK OF THE COMMISSION, UM, AND CAROLINA, AND, UH, ALSO SHARE THAT COUNCILLOR, SABRINA WHEELER AND I ATTENDED A COMMISSION MEETING LAST WEEK. 
          UH, AND IT WAS REALLY HELPFUL TO HEAR ABOUT KIND OF THE QUESTIONS ON THE COMMISSIONER'S MINDS AND ALL THE WORK THAT, UH, YOU HAVE BEEN DOING DURING THIS REALLY DIFFICULT TIME. 
          UH, I AM REALLY INTERESTED, AND YOU AND I HAVE HAD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THIS AND I'VE TALKED TO CITY MANAGER ABOUT THIS, UM, ABOUT OUR LEGAL AID. 
          AND, UM, I KNOW LAST YEAR'S BUDGET HAD A PART-TIME POSITION, UH, AND I KNOW WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, UH, EXPANDING THAT TO FULL-TIME. 
          AND I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR, UH, FROM YOU ON THE NEED, UH, AND KIND OF WHAT YOU'RE HEARING FROM OUR PARTNERS AT DE NOVO. 
          YES, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU MADAM MAYOR. 
          UM, YES, ABSOLUTELY. 
          AND ALSO THANK YOU MAYOR SIDIKI FOR ALL YOUR PARTNERSHIP, UM, AND FOR JOINING OUR COMMISSION MEETING. 
          UM, SO IN TERMS OF, OF THE NEED, I'M HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT THAT. 
          UM, JUST TO RECAP, WE'RE CURRENTLY FUNDING A PART-TIME PARALEGAL AT DE NOVO, UM, WHICH HAS BEEN REALLY INSTRUMENTAL OVER THE LAST YEAR AT SUPPORTING THE LEGAL AID CAPACITY OF OUR LEGAL CLINIC THAT WE'VE BEEN FUNDING FOR QUITE A FEW YEARS NOW. 
          UM, AND I DO HAVE THE DATA, UM, FROM THE LAST THREE QUARTERS OF FY 26, ABOUT, UH, 181 INDIVIDUAL CLIENTS, UM, UH, RECEIVE SERVICES FROM THIS PARALEGAL. 
          UM, AND THIS IS BRIEF LEGAL ADVICE, LEGAL CONSULTATIONS, AND ALSO FULL REP REPRESENTATION ON IMMIGRATION MATTERS. 
          UM, AND THIS IS, UH, PRETTY IMPRESSIVE. 
          I WILL SAY. 
          UM, THE TYPES OF CASES THAT THE PARALEGAL, UH, TENDS TO FOCUS ON ARE SPECIAL IMMIGRANT, JUVENILE STATUS CASES, ASYLUM CASES, AND VOW CASES. 
          UM, SO THERE'S DEFINITELY, YOU KNOW, INCREASED NEED. 
          OBVIOUSLY OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS ARE VERY NERVOUS RIGHT NOW. 
          THERE'S A LOT OF, UM, DISCOURSE ON JUST FEAR OF WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN IN CAMBRIDGE AND PEOPLE NEED LEGAL SUPPORT AND ADVICE. 
          SO, UM, I'M REALLY EXCITED THAT THE CITY WILL, UM, CONTINUE FUNDING, UM, LEGAL AID CAPACITY BOTH THROUGH THE CLINIC AND THEN THE PARALEGAL. 
          WE'RE LOOKING TO MAKE A FULL-TIME, UM, POSITION TO TAKE ON ADDITIONAL CASES IN THIS NEXT YEAR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU, UH, CHAIR NOLAN. 
          YEAH, I THINK, UM, I KNOW DONO DONOVA WOULD LOVE THIS TO BE FULL-TIME, AND I KNOW THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, CLEARLY 
          [05:40:01]
THERE'S, THAT'S GREAT. 
          THAT'S HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU'VE, THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO HELP. 
          UH, AND SO I, UH, LOOK FORWARD TO THAT BEING. 
          IT'S, I KNOW IT'S NOT REFLECTED IN THE, THE BUDGET RIGHT NOW, UM, BUT I'M HOPEFUL THAT IT'LL, UM, BE IN THE OVERALL BUDGET THAT WE PASS. 
          YES, THANK YOU. 
          COUNCILLOR ZZI? UH, YES. 
          JUST BUILDING ON SOME OF, UM, COUNCILOR ZUBIE QUESTIONS. 
          I, I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND. 
          SO YOU ARE HIRING, BUT YOU HAVE NOT YET HIRED A DIRECTOR OF THE AMERICAN FRIEDMAN COMMISSION, IS THAT RIGHT? OR ARE YOU ACTING DIRECTOR? UH, I AM ACTING DIRECT. 
          EXCUSE ME, THROUGH YOU, UM, MADAM CHAIR. 
          YES, I AM ACTING DIRECTOR AND WE ARE IN SECOND ROUND OF INTERVIEWS AND HOPE TO BE MOVING FORWARD IMMINENTLY TO CITY MANAGER TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          WELL, OKAY. 
          AND, UM, AND SO THE STIPEND OF, UH, 400 AND, WELL, THE, THE, YOU SAID THE COST MIGHT BE ABOUT 3000, $300,000, BUT YOU'VE BUDGETED $425,321 FOR THE COMMISSION. 
          SO, WELL, SOME OF THAT WILL BE FOR THE NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. 
          SOME OF IT WILL BE FOR THE CONSULTANT, SOME OF IT WILL BE FOR THE STIPENDS TO MEMBERS, UM, THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          THE STIPENDS ARE SEPARATE. 
          THOSE COME THROUGH, UM, THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE. 
          UM, THAT DOES INCLUDE THE SALARY FOR THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. 
          UM, AND THE $300,000, UH, WOULD BE DISTRIBUTED FOR, UM, WORK THAT WE'RE DOING AS ENGAGEMENT WITH THE COMMUNITY, UM, POTENTIALLY, UH, FOR THE CONSULTANT EXPERTS THAT WE WOULD BE ENGAGING ALSO AND SEVERAL OTHER THINGS. 
          OKAY. 
          AND SO ARE THE, HOW MANY TIMES HAS THE COMMITTEE MET? AND, UH, SO IT SOUNDS AS THOUGH YOU'RE ALREADY WORKING WITH YOU SERVING AS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND THAT YOU HAVE SEVEN REPORTS YOU'VE BEEN DOING. 
          CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT YOUR WORK? UH, FOR THE PAST SEVEN MONTHS, WE HAVE BEEN MEETINGS. 
          WE STARTED IN OCTOBER, I THINK THAT'S SEVEN MONTHS. 
          UM, WE STARTED IN OCTOBER. 
          UM, AND, UH, WE HAVE BEEN MEETING TO ESTABLISH, UM, SORT OF STORMING, NORMING, COMING TOGETHER, UM, AND IDENTIFYING WHAT THE PLAN IS GOING TO BE, UH, MOVING FORWARD. 
          WE'VE IDENTIFIED SOME PROGRAMMATIC THINGS THAT WE'D LIKE TO DO WITH, UM, IN THE COMMUNITY, BOTH WITH, UM, FOLKS WHO LIVE IN CAMBRIDGE THROUGH THE SCHOOL SYSTEM. 
          ALSO IDENTIFYING, UM, SOME GRANT PROGRAMS THAT WE COULD POTENTIALLY CONNECT WITH. 
          SO WE'VE BEEN DOING ALL OF THIS DA DATA GATHERING, AND WE'LL BE LOOKING, AGAIN, TAKING A DEEPER DIVE INTO THE REPORTS THAT WE DO HAVE, SUCH AS THE, UH, LEGACY OF SLAVERY REPORT, WHICH IS FAIRLY LARGE, UH, AND SEVERAL OTHERS, UH, TO IDENTIFY WHERE THERE ARE GAPS. 
          IF THERE ARE GAPS WE'RE, UM, REACHING OUT TO, UM, THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND FOR THOSE WHO ARE AMERICAN FREEDMEN, WHAT THEIR HISTORY HAS BEEN IN DOING DATA GATHERING RELATED TO THAT ALSO. 
          SO ENGAGEMENT, UH, AND RESEARCH HAS BEEN OUR FOCUS. 
          SO ARE YOU, YOU'RE BUILDING ON THE WORK OF THE BLACK HISTORY PROJECT AND THE WORK THAT, UH, COUNCILLOR SIMMONS HAS BEEN DOING OVER THE YEARS? ABSOLUTELY. 
          UM, SOUNDS GREAT. 
          I WILL LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY, I'LL, UM, I DID SEND A COUPLE QUESTIONS IN ADVANCE. 
          THE, UM, WE KNOW THE DEPARTMENT BUDGET WAS CHANGED THIS YEAR TO REFLECT A NEW STRUCTURE. 
          I THINK IT'S BEEN REFERENCED THAT WAS QUITE A, A SHOCK TO MANY OF US. 
          I HAVE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT WAS QUITE TRAUMATIC. 
          UM, SO THAT IT'S, WE RECOGNIZE THAT MOVING FORWARD AND IT CAN BE POSITIVE PROGRESS, BUT IT WAS CLEARLY SOMETHING THAT WAS, WAS CHALLENGING FOR MANY OF US ON COUNCIL AND IN THE COMMUNITY. 
          I DID, AS I ASKED, PRETTY MUCH EVERY DEPARTMENT, THERE ARE NO, UM, SMART GOALS FOR ANY OF THE DIVISIONS. 
          ARE THOSE IN PLACE? AND IS THE, HOW IS THE WORK BEING ASSESSED THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? YES, WE DO HAVE SMART GOALS. 
          I, I APOLOGIZE THAT THEY ARE NOT IN THE BUDGET BOOK. 
          I WANNA GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THE STRATEGY TEAM, UM, TO ALAN NEEDER WHO GAVE US, UM, EXERCISES AND WALKED US THROUGH THE PROCESS SO THAT IT'S A REPEATABLE PROCESS FOR US. 
          NOW, ON A GO FORWARD BASIS, UH, WE'RE HAPPY TO SHARE THESE WITH YOU. 
          WE'VE ACTUALLY HAD SOME MEETINGS WITH, UH, MANY OF YOU ALREADY. 
          WE WELCOME THE OPPORTUNITY TO WALK THROUGH THIS AND SHARE MORE WITH YOU ABOUT OUR SMART GOALS FOR THE FINISHING OF, UH, FY 26. 
          AND FOR 27, I THINK THAT'D BE HELPFUL 'CAUSE IT IS PART OF THE USUAL BUDGET. 
          THAT'S WHERE MANY OF US GO TO, TO SAY, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S UP. 
          PLUS, IT'S A REALLY GOOD SUMMARY. 
          SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT WORK AND GLAD IT ABSOLUTELY. 
          I'M GLAD IT WAS 
          [05:45:01]
DONE. 
          I DO, UM, WANNA FOLLOW UP ON SOME OF THIS, THE, THE ALLOCATION OF FUNDING FOR OUTSIDE RESEARCH FOR THE FREEDMAN'S COMMISSION. 
          UM, SO MANY OF THE OTHER COMMISSIONS DO VERY SIMILAR WORK AND THEY DON'T HAVE THAT LARGE AN ALLOCATION. 
          AND I'M REALLY CURIOUS AS WHY WE WOULDN'T USE THE INCREDIBLE RESOURCES OF THE CITY ALREADY IN PLACE. 
          THERE'S COMMUNITY MEMBERS, OUR UNIVERSITY PARTNERS, INTELLECTUAL RESOURCES, NATIONALLY KNOWN EXPERTS WHO HAVE DONE A LOT OF THIS WORK COMMISSION MEMBERS. 
          UM, THERE'S HISTORY CAMBRIDGE. 
          SO WHAT, WHY WOULDN'T WE USE THOSE IN THIS EFFORT TO ALSO INCLUDE THE COMMUNITY INSTEAD OF HAVING TO BE OUTSOURCED BECAUSE THAT'S PART OF THE LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND ALSO OTHER COMMISSIONS DO THAT. 
          SO I'M, I'M REALLY CURIOUS AS TO WHY, WHY THAT WOULD BE THE CASE HERE THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UH, THE FUNDING THAT YOU ARE REFERENCING DOES INCLUDE BOTH COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND YES, WE ARE PARTNERING WITH, UH, MANY OF THE INSTITUTIONS THAT ARE ROUNDABOUT OF SCHOOLS, UM, AS WELL AS OTHER EXPERTS HERE IN THE CITY WHO ARE DOING THE WORK HISTORICAL COMMISSION, UM, THE BLACK HISTORY PROJECT, UM, EVEN, UM, SOME WORK THAT THE, UH, SOME OTHER AGENCIES HAVE DONE HERE AROUND IN THIS AREA, UM, AND OVER IN THE CITY OF BOSTON AS WELL. 
          SO WE ARE LEVERAGING THOSE. 
          UH, WE DO RECOGNIZE THAT THERE IS OVER AND ABOVE POTENTIALLY OF THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO. 
          SO THAT ENTIRE BUDGET IS NOT SOLELY FOR RESEARCH. 
          THERE'S A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT THAT WE HAVE TO DO WITH FOLKS. 
          UM, AND SO WE WERE JUST BEING MINDFUL OF WHAT WE NEEDED TO DO TO GET PEOPLE TO COME TO US, WHAT DO WE NEED IN ORDER TO ACTUALLY HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM, TO GATHER ALL OF THIS DATA TO SYNTHESIZE AND THE ANALYSIS THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. 
          SO WE'LL BE USING INTERNAL AND POTENTIALLY EXTERNAL SOURCES FOR THAT, A COMBINATION. 
          THANKS. 
          I THINK IT'D BE GOOD TO GET A BREAKDOWN BECAUSE WE ALSO HAVE A WHOLE COMMUNITY AND ENGAGEMENT TEAM THAT ABSOLUTELY PROBABLY COULD DO SOME OF THAT WORK. 
          SO, AND IT'S PART OF THEIR CHARGE AS WELL. 
          SO AGAIN, IT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL TO HAVE THAT, THAT BREAKDOWN REALLY IMPORTANT. 
          ABSOLUTELY. 
          UM, AND AGAIN, IF IT'S SOMETHING THE COUNCIL SET UP, WE'RE IN A DIFFERENT ECONOMIC TIME THAN WHEN WE SET THIS UP, TO BE HONEST. 
          SO I'M OPEN TO DISCUSSIONS ABOUT HOW IT IS THAT WE ENSURE THAT WE, AGAIN, MEET THE NEED OF THE COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO ARE AWARE THAT THIS IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT TIME THAN THREE YEARS AGO. 
          UM, ON, THIS WASN'T SOMETHING I SENT IN ADVANCE, BUT I AM CURIOUS, AS I REVIEWED EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE COMMISSIONS, UM, I, I AM CONCERNED THAT, UM, THE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN, IT IS JUST AS SERIOUS AN ISSUE AS SO MANY OF THE OTHER, UH, DISCRIMINATIONS AND CONCERNS THAT WE FEEL. 
          AND THERE'S LITERALLY NO BUDGET IN THE ENTIRE THING. 
          IT'S, SOME OF IT'S BEEN TRANSFERRED TO THE DOMESTIC AND GENDER BASED VIOLENCE, BUT OBVIOUSLY SEXISM, DISCRIMINATION, AND THAT KIND OF WORK THAT WAS DONE IS NOT JUST IN THAT AREA. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS AS TO HOW THAT WORK WILL CONTINUE UNDER THIS NEW STRUCTURE BECAUSE IT'S NOT A NEED THAT'S GONE AWAY. 
          IF ANYTHING, IT HAS INCREASED WITH THE, UM, WITH THE NATIONAL MOOD THAT WE'RE IN WHERE, UM, THERE THERE'S BEEN AN ATTACK VERY CLEARLY ON A LOT OF JUST, UM, APPROACH TO, TO GENDER AND TO, UH, WOMEN'S EQUALITY IN SOCIETY, WHICH IS WHY THIS WAS SET UP. 
          AND IT, I WILL ACKNOWLEDGE IT'S THE 50TH YEAR OF THAT SETTING OF THAT COMMISSION. 
          AGAIN, I, I UNDERSTAND THINGS CHANGE OVER TIME, BUT I AM REALLY INTERESTED IN ENSURING THAT THAT WORK CONTINUES BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING THAT, UM, I THINK I LIVE EVERY DAY AND I SEE EVERY DAY THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          AND I'LL PASS IT ALONG TO SHAMEIKA JUST TO UM, BRING YOUR ATTENTION TO THE WAY THE BUDGET BOOK IS SET UP. 
          THE DOLLARS ARE THERE, UM, BUDGET DOLLARS ARE THERE, IT'S JUST WHERE THEY'RE SHOWING UP IN A DIFFERENT WAY THAN THEY WERE SHOWN LAST YEAR. 
          HOWEVER, WE DID, WE WERE CAREFUL TO PLAN BUDGET DOLLARS FOR THE WORK OF THE WOMEN'S COMMISSION AND THE CONTINUANCE OF THAT WORK AND EVEN MORE. 
          AND SHAMEIKA CAN SPEAK TO THAT MORE. 
          YES, TO YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, IF YOU COULD POINT OUT WHERE IN THE BUDGET BOOK IT IS, THAT'D BE HELPFUL 'CAUSE I DIDN'T SEE IT. 
          SO IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT PAGE 273, THANK YOU. 
          THE OTHER ORDINARY, OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE LINE ITEM IS ACTUALLY THE SAME FROM FISCAL YEAR 26 OF FISCAL YEAR 27. 
          SO FOR THE, UM, THE CAMBRIDGE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN. 
          AND SO THE WORK ABSOLUTELY CONTINUES. 
          WHAT YOU SEE THE $0 FOR IS SALARIES AND WAGES. 
          ALL SALARIES AND WAGES FOR THE THREE AREAS THAT I AM UNDER ARE NOW UNDER DOMESTIC AND GENDER BASED VIOLENCE. 
          THAT'S WHERE THEY'RE LISTED. 
          UM, SO 2.7 I BELIEVE, 2.67, UM, FOR SALARY FOR THE THREE AREAS. 
          BUT THE OTHER ORDINARY MAINTENANCE, WHICH IS A LINE ITEM IN WHICH THE WORK COMES FROM, UM, IS, IS LEVEL FUNDED. 
          AND SO I'M VERY WELL AWARE, THANK YOU FOR MENTIONING THE 50TH THAT IS COMING UP. 
          UM, I'M DEEP INTO THE PROCESS OF PLANNING FOR THAT AND HOPE THAT YOU'LL ALL PARTICIPATE IN THE DIFFERENT EVENTS AND GATHERINGS THAT WILL BE 
          [05:50:01]
USED TO HIGHLIGHT AND CELEBRATE, UM, THE 50TH. 
          BUT AS WELL AS RECOGNIZING THAT NOT ONLY DOES THE WORK CONTINUE, BUT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT BACKLASH SOCIETALLY. 
          UH, AND WE NEED TO BE PAYING ATTENTION TO THAT HIGHLY AWARE OF WAY, UM, WAYS THAT THINGS ARE MOVING TO REMOVE THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN SUCH AS THE SAVE ACT, AS WELL AS THE ATTACKS ON REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE AND SO MANY OTHER THINGS THAT ARE TAKING PLACE. 
          SO MORE TO COME, BUT I'M VERY MUCH SO PAYING ATTENTION, PLANNING, UM, AND RESPONDING. 
          SO THAT IS A CONTINUOUS, CONTINUOUS PROCESS. 
          THANKS FOR THAT. 
          I NOTICED THAT, HOWEVER, THEN THE BUDGET BOOK TELLS A STORY AND ANYONE LOOKING AT THIS WOULD THINK THERE IS ZERO STAFF TIME FOR THE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN FOR ALL OF REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS, FOR ALL OF GENDER DISCRIMINATION. 
          SO MAYBE IT'S JUST CHANGING THE TITLE, BUT IT LITERALLY, THAT'S HOW IT READS. 
          AND I KNOW THAT'S NOT THE WORK IS, BUT THAT'S HOW IT READS RIGHT NOW. 
          ANYONE LOOKING AT THIS WOULD THINK THAT'S WHAT WE DID AND WE COMPLETELY JUST EVISCERATED ALL OF THE STAFFING TIME ON IT. 
          AND AGAIN, I'M REALLY GLAD, AND I'M HEARING, AND I KNOW IT'S NOT THE CASE, BUT I AM POINTING OUT WE DO HAVE TO BE ATTENTIVE TO THAT. 
          'CAUSE IT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT'S JUST FEEDING INTO PEOPLE'S SENSE THAT WE DID THAT POSSIBLY IN ORDER TO, YOU KNOW, DO, UM, UH, SIGNAL THAT WE'RE NOT EVEN INTERESTED IN IT. 
          AND I KNOW FOR SURE THAT'S NOT THE CASE, BUT I REALLY ENCOURAGE US TO WORK ON THAT BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S NOT SOMETHING I'M COMFORTABLE WITH AS SOMEONE WHO HAS SPENT MY LIFE ON, ON FEMINIST ISSUES AND AM THRILLED THAT THE CITY IS HIGHLIGHTING THAT AND DOING THAT. 
          AND WE HAVE INCREASED, I KNOW THE BUDGET INCREASE, BUT AGAIN, IT'S REALLY CRITICALLY IMPORTANT I THINK FOR ALL OF US THAT WE STAND FIRM AND, AND MAKE SURE EVEN JUST MERGING THOSE PAGES, IF THAT MAKES SENSE. 
          I, I, I REALLY WANT US TO HONOR THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE AND ALSO NAME THAT IT'S, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S BEEN, UH, SOMETHING THAT, THAT WE NEED TO CORRECT HOPEFULLY, UH, SOON. 
          HOPEFULLY THAT MAKES SENSE TO FOLKS. 
          ANY REACTION TO THAT OR THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? YEAH, AND I, I JUST WANNA RECOGNIZE THAT, YOU KNOW, REFLECTING A REORG LIKE THIS KIND OF IN THE MIDST OF THE REORG IS TRICKY IN THE BUDGET DOCUMENT. 
          I THINK MOVING FORWARD, WE, AS THAT GETS MORE FINALIZED, THE REPORTING STRUCTURE, THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE, EQUITY AND INCLUSION, I THINK YOU'LL SEE THAT REFLECTED IN THE BOOK MOVING FORWARD IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, BUCKETS OF FUNDS GROUPED TOGETHER AND, AND APPROPRIATELY BASED ON KIND OF THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE. 
          SO I DEFINITELY RECOGNIZE THAT AND I, I AGREE THE BUDGET SHOULD TELL A STORY ABOUT THE NUMBERS AND WE'LL, WE'LL DEFINITELY IMPROVE ON THAT NEXT YEAR AS WE HAVE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT AND THE STRUCTURE. 
          RIGHT? NO, I, I KNOW THAT IT'S JUST THAT THAT WAS DONE SIX MONTHS AGO AND FOR IT TO OPEN UP A BOOK AND HAVE ZERO UNDER COMMISSION STATUS OF WOMEN AND, AND APPARENTLY ALL OF THIS UNDER DOMESTIC AND GENDER BASED VIOLENCE, WHICH ALSO IS CRITICALLY IMPORTANT. 
          I JUST, LET'S LET, LET'S BE REALLY SENSITIVE TO THAT. 
          'CAUSE AGAIN, IT FEEDS RIGHT INTO A, A NARRATIVE THAT WOMEN DON'T COUNT. 
          SO, AND I KNOW THAT'S NOT WHAT WAS INTENDED. 
          I'M JUST NAMING IT THAT THAT'S REALLY SOMETHING THAT I AM QUITE ATTUNED TO AND WANNA BE VERY SENSITIVE TO. 
          UH, COUNCILLOR MCGOVERN, UH, THANK YOU. 
          THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, HI, I APOLOGIZE. 
          I WAS AT A, I HAD TO STEP OUT A LITTLE EARLIER FOR ANOTHER MEETING, SO IF YOU ADDRESS THIS, UM, I APOLOGIZE, BUT I WAS JUST TAKING A LOOK AT PAGE 2 73 WHERE COUNSELOR NOLAN WAS TALKING ABOUT, AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I'M READING THIS CORRECTLY. 
          ON OBJECTIVE TWO NUMBER OF GIRLS ENGAGED FROM ANNUAL LARGE SCALE EVENTS FOR YOUNG GIRLS IN CAMBRIDGE, GIRLS IN SPORTS NIGHT, GAME CHANGERS, ET CETERA. 
          THERE WERE 275 IN FISCAL YEAR 25, AND THE TARGET FOR 27 IS 200. 
          IS THERE ARE WE, WHY AREN'T WE TRYING TO, WHY ISN'T OUR TARGET TO GET MORE THAN WHAT WE, WHAT WE GOT IN IN 25? UM, THROUGH YOU MADAM CHAIR, IT'S MORE SO AGAIN, BEING NEW TO THE ROLE, ASSESSING WHAT'S GOING ON AND PLANNING AND WHAT MAKES SENSE. 
          UM, IT'S ALSO WHO IS IN THE ROOM. 
          SO BASED ON, I, BASED ON THE NUMBER OF THE FIRST GIRLS IN SPORTS NIGHT THAT I LED, SO THERE WAS 193 UM, PARTICIPANTS THAT EVENING. 
          AND SO IT IS AN INCREASE FROM THE FIRST, UM, UNDER MY LEADERSHIP. 
          GREAT. 
          JUST WHATEVER, MORE THE BETTER . 
          ABSOLUTELY. 
          OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE BODY? COUNCILOR FLAHERTY, THE, UM, I WAS LOOKING AT THE FIX FISCAL YEAR 26 ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR THE DOMESTIC AND GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE. 
          TIM, CAN YOU BRING THE MICROPHONE ON COUNCILOR FLAHERTY A LITTLE CLOSER? I'M SORRY. 
          I'M SORRY. 
          SO I WAS LOOKING AT, UH, FISCAL YEAR 26 ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR THE DOMESTIC AND GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE, UM, 
          [05:55:01]
PREVENTION INITIATIVE. 
          AND I SAW THE, YOU KNOW, THE SUCCESSFUL OUTREACH FROM, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, MOSES CENTER AND IN THE SCHOOLS IN THE BOSTON METRO AREA. 
          UM, AND I SAW IN FISCAL YEAR 27 THE OBJECTIVES AND PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND, UM, THE BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION, UM, COLLABORATION, WHICH IS TO ME, I THINK INCREDIBLE. 
          AND, AND DO WE HAVE SOMETHING IN PLAN ALREADY FOR THAT? DO WE HAVE A, UH, A PARTNERSHIP WITH THEM AND IS IT, DO WE HAVE A PLAN MOVING FORWARD? I'M JUST CURIOUS. 
          YES, ABSOLUTELY. 
          UM, SO ONE OF MY MAIN FOCUSES HAS ACTUALLY BEEN TO INCREASE REGIONAL CAPACITY IN ALL THREE OF THE AREAS THAT I LEAD. 
          UH, AND SO VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE A COUNTERPART FOR ALL THREE AREAS AND WITHIN THE CITY OF BOSTON. 
          SO I'VE BEEN WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH THE BOSTON MAYOR'S OFFICE OF WOMEN'S ADVANCEMENT, THE BOSTON MAYOR'S OFFICE OF QT TWO I, A, SORRY, LGBTQIA TWO S PLUS VERY LONG FOR CITY OF BOSTON, AS WELL AS THE DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE PREVENTION INITIATIVE WITH THE BOSTON PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION. 
          AND SO ONE OF THE INITIATIVES, WE'VE LED MANY INITIATIVES TOGETHER ALREADY, UM, BUT ONE OF THE ONES THAT WE ARE PLANNING FOR JULY IS ACTUALLY A SUMMIT ON MEN AND GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE. 
          AND SO THAT IS A DEEP DIVE INTO, UM, HOW MEN ARE IMPACTED BY GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE, BOTH AS SURVIVORS, BOTH AS, UH, PERPETRATORS OF VIOLENCE, UM, ACCOUNTABILITY, HOW MEN ARE SOCIALIZED, RIGHT? SO THERE'S THIS A, IT'S A FULL DAY OF WORKSHOPS, UM, AS WELL AS VENDORS AND PLENARY SPEAKERS AND, UM, SO WHAT SO FORTH, UH, TO DIVE INTO A, TO ME, A VERY IMPORTANT ASPECT OF GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE THAT IS TYPICALLY IGNORED. 
          SO, VERY MUCH SO LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT. 
          THAT'S GOING TO BE HELD AT SIMMONS COLLEGE, UM, IN JULY, ON A FRIDAY IN JULY. 
          I WISH I COULD TELL YOU THE EXACT DATE. 
          WELL, I CAN, BUT I'D HAVE TO LOOK AT MY CALENDAR TO PULL THAT UP. 
          WELL, IF THERE'S A WAY TO REPLICATE THAT AND TO BRING THAT PROGRAM RIGHT HERE INTO THE CITY AND TO MEET PEOPLE WHERE THEY LIVE AND PROVIDE THEM WITH THAT REALLY, UH, EXCELLENT PROGRAM AND THE INSTRUMENTALITIES AROUND THAT AND THE, THE UNDERSTANDING OF IT, I THINK IT'S CRITICAL. 
          AND I CAN GO A LONG WAY TOWARDS HELPING ASSIST, UM, EVEN IN A SMALL WAY, SOME OF THE, SOME OF THE THINGS WE'RE SEEING EVERY DAY IN THIS WORLD. 
          SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR WORK. 
          UH, I BELIEVE COUNCILLOR SIMMONS, ARE YOU ON LINE AND HAD A QUESTION, MONEY AND NOTION. 
          THINK, ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. 
          SO PREPARATIONS, THAT'S JUST IMPORTANT TO KNOW. 
          SO YOU ACKNOWLEDGE QUESTION FROM PERSPECTIVE HOW THAT THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? I BELIEVE THE QUESTION. 
          AND , I'M SORRY I DIDN'T MAKE OUT THE LAST PART. 
          SPEAK UP. 
          OH, COUNT. 
          WILL DO. 
          UM, AND JUST TO CLARIFY THE QUESTION IS, HOW IS UM, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT GOING TO BE DONE FOR THE AMERICAN FREEMAN COMMISSION? FOR THE, I I DID NOT SEE IT. 
          [06:00:03]
I MAY. 
          AND THE LAST QUESTION IS, IS IT ADEQUATE THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR? SO WE ARE LOOKING AT EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT, EXCUSE ME. 
          UH, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACROSS THE BOARD, ACROSS ALL OF OUR COMMISSIONS. 
          WE ARE PARTNERING TOGETHER. 
          UM, WE ARE PARTNERING TOGETHER TO ENSURE THAT EACH ONE OF OUR COMMISSIONS AND THE AUDIENCES, UH, THE, OF THE COMMUNITY THAT ARE FALL UNDER EACH ONE OF THOSE KNOWS WHAT'S GOING ON. 
          AND WE ARE ENGAGING WITH THEM. 
          SO WE ARE INFORMING, WE ARE SHOWING UP AND TALKING ABOUT THAT WE ARE IDENTIFYING LIAISONS IN THE COMMUNITY, BUILDING RELATIONSHIP WITH FOLKS SO THAT WE CAN ENGAGE THEM IN ALL OF THE ACTIVITIES, IN ALL OF THE WORK THAT IS BEING DONE. 
          THAT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS REALLY IMP IMPORTANT TO ME, FOR US TO THINK ABOUT THE INTERSECTIONALITY OF THE WORK THAT WE HAVE AND THE AUDIENCES OF PEOPLE THAT ARE REPRESENTED IN EACH ONE OF THE COMMISSIONS THAT WE HAVE. 
          SO WE ARE COMMUNICATING BROADLY, WE ARE COMMUNICATING DEEPLY ABOUT, UM, ALL OF THE WORK. 
          AND AS WE BEGIN TO DO MORE WITH THE AMERICAN FRIEDMAN COMMISSION, WE WILL DO THE SAME WORK. 
          UM, I'D ASK ANY ONE OF MY PARTNERS IF THEY HAVE MORE TO ADD. 
          UM, SEFANA THROUGH YOU, MADAM CHAIR. 
          UM, I DON'T HAVE MUCH TO ADD IN TERMS OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. 
          UM, OTHER THAN TO MENTION THAT WE DO CLOSELY PARTNER WITH DIRECTOR PRICE, UM, WHO'S HEADING UP THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO GET A SENSE OF, UM, THROUGH HIS RESEARCH AND OUTREACH, WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT WE SHOULD KEEP IN MIND SO WE CAN BE EFFECTIVE WITH OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT? WE WANT TO BE COGNIZANT OF, UM, THE COMMUNITIES THAT ARE VERY UNDERREPRESENTED AND TARGET THOSE, UM, AREAS IN CAMBRIDGE FIRST AND WHAT HAS WORKED, WHAT HAS NOT WORKED. 
          UM, ONE OF THE THINGS HE HAD SPOKE ABOUT WAS THE EQUITY COMPASS THIS MORNING, I BELIEVE. 
          UM, HOW CAN WE BETTER UTILIZE THAT AND SOME OF THE OTHER RESOURCES THAT ALREADY EXIST, SO WE ARE NOT REINVENTING THE WHEEL. 
          UH, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          THIS IS VERY HELPFUL. 
          IT WOULD BE GREAT, MAYBE MID BUDGET TERM TO KIND OF GET A REVIEW OR UPDATE ON OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITIES, NOT JUST FOR EQUITY AND INCLUSION, BUT ACROSS, YOU KNOW, THROUGH DIRECTOR PRICE. 
          I WOULD LIKE MUCH MORE TO KNOW HOW, HOW ADEQUATELY WE ARE SPENDING OUR DOLLARS TO REACHING THE PEOPLE THAT WE ARE SET OUT TO SERVE. 
          UH, THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. 
          YIELD THE FLOOR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          COUNCILLOR SIMMONS. 
          AND YES, WE HEARD EARLIER IN THE DAY FROM, UH, DIRECTOR PRICE AND THE WHOLE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TEAM WILL MAKE SURE THAT, UH, THE WHOLE COUNCIL TIES BACK TO THAT SINCE IT'S CLEARLY SOMETHING THE CITY HAS WORKED VERY HARD ON IN ENSURING THAT THAT IS AN EXTENSIVE PROCESS, BUT IT'S COORDINATED IN COLLABORATIVE, UH, IN ORDER TO NOT HAVE, HAVE POCKETS NOT, UH, TALKING TO EACH OTHER. 
          AND I KNOW THIS TEAM IS VERY AWARE OF THAT AND HAS BEEN USING IT. 
          ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS OR FURTHER REMARKS FROM THE BODY FOR THE LAST DEPARTMENT OF THE DAY? EQUITY AND INCLUSION? I DON'T SEE ANY. 
          I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THE WORK, BUT I THINK WE'RE DONE WITH THE BUDGET. 
          SO WE WILL BE, UH, HAVING A VOTE ON, UH, A MOTION TO MOVE THE EQUITY AND INCLUSION DEPARTMENT DE BUDGET TO THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WITH A FAVORABLE RECOMMENDATION. 
          ANY DISCUSSION? ROLL CALL. 
          COUNCIL. 
          COUNCIL ZUBE? YES. 
          VICE MAYOR Z? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN? YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE NINE MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT CONCLUDES TODAY'S LIST OF DEPARTMENTS. 
          UH, BEFORE WE ADJOURN, I WANNA REMIND, UH, THE FINANCE COMMITTEE AND THE WHOLE CITY TEAM TOMORROW NIGHT. 
          WE WILL BE CONVENING WEDNESDAY MAY 6TH, THAT WE WILL START AT 6:00 PM TOMORROW. 
          THERE'S ONE DEPARTMENT ON THE AGENDA, WHICH IS THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT BUDGET. 
          EVERYONE HAS GOTTEN THEIR, UM, ADOPTED BUDGET BY THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE. 
          ANY, IF YOU HAVE NOT SUBMITTED ANY QUESTIONS, UH, FOR THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT RELATED TO THEIR BUDGET, PLEASE DO SO TODAY SO THAT THEY HAVE SOME PREP, 
          [06:05:01]
UH, PREPARATION. 
          AGAIN, YOU CAN ASK QUESTIONS ON THE FLOOR, BUT IF YOU DON'T HAVE QUESTIONS IN ADVANCE, IT IS, UH, NOT SOMETHING THAT DEPARTMENT HEADS MAY BE, UH, READY TO ANSWER. 
          NEXT TUESDAY, MAY 12TH, WE'LL BE COMMENCING AGAIN AT 9:00 AM FOR THE OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS THAT WE DID NOT DISCUSS TODAY. 
          UH, ONCE AGAIN, IN THE NEXT, UM, IT'S NOW BY THE END OF THE DAY TOMORROW, IF YOU COULD, UH, FORWARD ANY QUESTIONS FOR THOSE DEPARTMENTS, UH, TO THE CLERK AND THE COPY THE FINANCE CHAIRS, THEN WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT THE DEPARTMENT HEADS GET THEM BEFORE THE, THE HEARING ON THEIR PROJECTS THAT WILL COVER EVERYTHING ELSE THAT WE HAVE NOT COVERED, UH, TODAY. 
          THANKS VERY MUCH. 
          I THINK IT WAS A USEFUL TIME FOR US TO HEAR FROM DEPARTMENT HEADS AND TO GO OVER SOME OF THE BUDGETS AND ASK SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT THE COUNCIL HAS. 
          AND I THINK ALSO THE COMMUNITY HAS, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE. 
          JUST NOTE THAT NO ONE SIGNED UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. 
          JUST, OH, THE REASON WE DID NOT GO TO PUBLIC COMMENT IS 'CAUSE NO ONE HAD SIGNED UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. 
          SO JUST TO, TO LET FOLKS KNOW WE ARE OPEN TO PUBLIC COMMENT. 
          ALL OF OUR BUDGET HEARINGS HAVE THEM. 
          I TYPICALLY DO IT TWICE, ONCE IN THE MORNING, THEN ONCE IN THE AFTERNOON. 
          AND PEOPLE ARE WELCOME TO ALSO SEND IN QUESTIONS. 
          UH, BUT WE WILL NOT BE GONNA PUBLIC COMMENT 'CAUSE RIGHT NOW THERE'S NO ONE SIGNED UP. 
          ANY OTHER, UM, QUESTIONS ON THE BUDGET HEARING PROCESS FROM THE BODY BEFORE I, WE ADJOURN ON A MOTION BY MAYOR SIDIKI TO ADJOURN. 
          ROLL CALL COUNCILOR ZUBE? YES. 
          YES. 
          VICE MAYOR ZI? YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR FLAHERTY. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR MCGOVERN. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR NOLAN. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SIMMONS. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR SABRINA WHEELER. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          COUNCILOR ZUEY. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          MAYOR SIDIKI. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU HAVE NINE MEMBERS RECORDED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE.
* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.