OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Louisville Metro Budget Committee Meeting – July 23, 2026: Nonprofit Sector Presentation and General Obligation Bond Authorization

Metro Council & CommitteesThursday, July 23, 2026
BodyLouisville, Kentucky
SessionMetro Council & Committees
DateThursday, July 23, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 49:05

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Their score did get below the 85.

0:02

Now, also a facility might get a C if we had to close them because of an imminent health hazard, such as no electricity, no water, um, infestation of insects and rodents, so facilities might have to close and they will get a C placard posted because of that closure.

0:23

So if they come in and you see a C, um, that means the facility um had does have some problems and we are working um with that facility to make the necessary corrections, but they do have to post that C.

0:37

If they have corrected um the violations that we saw on the routine inspection, then they could be eligible to get an A.

0:47

Now, a facility that fails two routine inspections.

0:53

Um, of course, each of those inspections gives them a C placard.

0:58

But if they do fail two routine inspections, then we have another placard, which would be the B placard.

1:08

If you're curious about any restaurant's scores, there is a link on our website available to find that information.

1:27

Yes, a professional such as an architect or engineer or a property owner can apply for the permit without selecting a contractor.

1:35

However, the permit won't be issued by our department until a licensed contractor is selected and verified.

1:42

We can only issue permits to contractors who are licensed or verified property owners.

1:49

So it's a good idea to have some research before applying for a permit and find a contractor who is licensed by searching online.

2:01

Hi, I'm Althea Jackson, the director of Louisville Metro's boards and commissions.

2:06

Today we're gonna learn about one of our many boards and commissions.

2:17

The Affordable Housing Trust Fund board is made up of stakeholders and Louisville who evaluate projects and ensure that those that are chosen will make the greatest impact on the loyal community.

2:30

We also work to evaluate programs and new and innovative ways to impact the lives of low to moderate income residents in Louisville, Kentucky.

2:47

Hi, I'm Kayla with Louisville Water.

2:50

Welcome to Above the Dirt Garden Shop.

2:52

We're here today to see how this amazing local business is using Louisville PureTap in their daily operations.

2:57

We're honored to be at the heart of their local business.

3:00

Let's head inside to learn more.

3:02

So I've been dreaming of being a crazy plant lady for years.

3:05

And on the same day, my husband and I both drove by this empty gas station and thought this could be it.

3:10

This could be the plant store.

3:11

And that night he came up with the name Above the Dirt, and we've been here ever since.

3:16

So I'm what I call an enthusiastic hobbyist when it comes to plants.

3:21

This is intended to be a very safe place for everyone to learn together.

3:25

Maybe we'll even Google it alongside you.

3:28

So caring for plants comes to a few things.

3:30

One, the best light possible, great water, and humidity.

3:35

So making sure each plant, whether it's inside the store or outside in the lot, is getting the light, the water, and the humidity it desires to thrive.

3:43

We use Louisville Puritap literally all day, every day.

3:47

Whether it be our native plants, our house plants, the veggie garden that we grow here, we are watering one, two, maybe even three times daily, and we use PureTap to do it.

3:57

The quality of water that we have here on Louisville is actually a rather big deal because you know we're buddies with other plant stores around the country, and not everybody is able to simply use their tap water.

4:08

They have to do these crazy reverse osmosis things to just water their plants.

4:12

Where here I can just pick up a hose or a watering can.

4:14

It's actually quite nice!

5:33

One minute Metro TV, one minute.

6:28

Good afternoon, and welcome to the uh July 23rd meeting of the budget committee.

6:34

I'm the Vice Chair Marcus Winkler, uh, taking the place of the chair, Councilman Kramer who has an excused absence today.

6:40

I'm currently joined in chambers by Councilman Joseph, Councilman Herndon, and online by Councilman Wolvery Woolrich.

6:46

Uh, and we expect uh multiple others to join us here momentarily.

6:51

Uh we're just joined by Councilman Parish.

6:54

Right.

6:54

Uh the first item uh on today's agenda is a special discussion uh with representatives from uh Louisville's nonprofit sector.

7:02

And so I will uh do we clerk we don't have to call the item, right?

7:06

I just we're gonna have to read the item.

7:08

Yeah, so um and uh it is titled Louisville's charitable nonprofit sector navigating uncertainty strengthening our community.

7:16

Uh I will turn the floor over to you if you could introduce yourself for the record uh and welcome the floor is yours.

7:21

Great, thank you so much.

7:22

I'm Layla Coshawn, Director of Advocacy and Engagement with the Kentucky Nonprofit Network, also facilitate the Louisville Nonprofit Coalition.

7:30

And I am Mandy Simpson Marlar, Baldwin Consulting with KNN and the Lobal Nonprofit Coalition.

7:35

Wonderful.

7:36

So we'll jump right in.

7:37

So thank you so much for having us here today.

7:40

It is our second opportunity to be before the budget committee to give you all an update about the nonprofit sector in Louisville, and we're gonna dive right in so we don't waste any time.

7:50

This will be a very broad overview.

7:52

We will touch on a number of issues broadly and from a really high level.

7:57

But if there are things that you all hear today that you want follow-up on, we'd love to share that with you.

8:02

We have lots of resources and links that would be overwhelming if I gave them all to you in advance.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Community Engagement██████████████████████████████████████38%
Public Health██████████████████████22%
Public Engagement██████████████14%
Fiscal Sustainability██████████10%
Pending Litigation████████8%
Affordable Housing███3%
Federal Funding███3%
Procedural██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Louisville Metro Budget Committee Meeting – July 23, 2026: Nonprofit Sector Presentation and General Obligation Bond Authorization

The Budget Committee met on Thursday, July 23, 2026 at 4:30 PM in Council Chambers and virtually. Vice Chair Markus Winkler presided due to Chair Kevin Kramer's excused absence. Eight members were present (Winkler, Parrish-Wright, Herndon, Joseph, Chappell, Parker, Piagentini, Mulvey-Woolridge); two were excused (Kramer, Reno-Weber). The committee heard a special discussion on the charitable nonprofit sector and considered pending legislation authorizing the issuance of general obligation bonds. The meeting adjourned at 5:12 PM.

Special Discussion – Louisville's Charitable Nonprofit Sector

  • Laela Kashan, Director of Advocacy and Engagement at Kentucky Nonprofit Network (KNN) and facilitator of the Louisville Nonprofit Coalition, along with Mandy Marler of Baldwin Consulting, presented an overview of the sector.
  • Key data from KNN's More Than Charity report: Jefferson County has over 1,000 501(c)(3) organizations with paid employees, employing nearly 55,000 people (14% of the local workforce), with $4.1 billion in annual wages and $15.1 billion in annual expenditures.
  • The coalition serves over 2.5 million people annually through its members and represents nearly 10,000 employees with $610 million in payroll and expenditures.
  • Presenters highlighted three themes from a 2024 survey of nonprofits: (1) ensuring nonprofits have a seat at the table in decision-making, (2) streamlining government processes (e.g., grant applications), and (3) strategic investment in addressing community issues.
  • Discussion covered federal funding uncertainty, including a lawsuit by the National Council of Nonprofits challenging a funding pause, and a proposed OMB rule change that could allow mid-grant policy changes and increase micromanagement. The proposed rule received over 500,000 comments and is anticipated to take effect in October 2026.
  • A new state opioid abatement spending dashboard was noted, with an opportunity for nonprofits to collaborate on targeting those funds.
  • Committee members expressed appreciation and discussed the need for partnerships, coordination among nonprofit sub-sectors, and the impact of federal cuts and philanthropic withdrawals from Kentucky.
  • No public testimony was received; committee members offered comments and questions.

Pending Legislation – O-185-26 General Obligation Bonds

  • Angie Dunn, Chief Financial Officer of Louisville Metro Government, presented the ordinance authorizing the issuance of general obligation bonds and notes to finance capital projects in the 2026 budget.
  • The original amount was $95,360,000; an amendment increased it to $100,360,000 to include bonds for the Park Authority of Louisville, which will pay its own debt service.
  • Chip Sutherland of Baird, the municipal advisor, noted that interest rates have risen recently due to geopolitical conflicts, with an estimated rate around 4% for this borrowing.
  • Committee Member Piagentini moved to amend the ordinance as shown in the substitute document; the motion was seconded by Committee Member Herndon and passed by voice vote.
  • The amended ordinance was then moved for recommendation by Committee Member Piagentini, seconded by Committee Member Chappell.
  • A roll call vote resulted in 8 yes votes (Winkler, Parrish-Wright, Herndon, Joseph, Chappell, Parker, Piagentini, Mulvey-Woolridge), 0 no votes, and 2 excused (Kramer, Reno-Weber). The ordinance was recommended for approval and sent to Old Business for the full Metro Council meeting on July 30, 2026.

Key Outcomes

  • The committee recommended approval of O-185-26 (as amended), authorizing up to $100,360,000 in general obligation bonds for capital projects, including Park Authority improvements.
  • The item will be heard by the full Metro Council on July 30, 2026.
  • No other business was conducted; the meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Their score did get below the 85. Now, also a facility might get a C if we had to close them because of an imminent health hazard, such as no electricity, no water, um, infestation of insects and rodents, so facilities might have to close and they will get a C placard posted because of that closure. So if they come in and you see a C, um, that means the facility um had does have some problems and we are working um with that facility to make the necessary corrections, but they do have to post that C. If they have corrected um the violations that we saw on the routine inspection, then they could be eligible to get an A. Now, a facility that fails two routine inspections. Um, of course, each of those inspections gives them a C placard. But if they do fail two routine inspections, then we have another placard, which would be the B placard. If you're curious about any restaurant's scores, there is a link on our website available to find that information. Yes, a professional such as an architect or engineer or a property owner can apply for the permit without selecting a contractor. However, the permit won't be issued by our department until a licensed contractor is selected and verified. We can only issue permits to contractors who are licensed or verified property owners. So it's a good idea to have some research before applying for a permit and find a contractor who is licensed by searching online. Hi, I'm Althea Jackson, the director of Louisville Metro's boards and commissions. Today we're gonna learn about one of our many boards and commissions. The Affordable Housing Trust Fund board is made up of stakeholders and Louisville who evaluate projects and ensure that those that are chosen will make the greatest impact on the loyal community. We also work to evaluate programs and new and innovative ways to impact the lives of low to moderate income residents in Louisville, Kentucky. Hi, I'm Kayla with Louisville Water. Welcome to Above the Dirt Garden Shop. We're here today to see how this amazing local business is using Louisville PureTap in their daily operations. We're honored to be at the heart of their local business. Let's head inside to learn more. So I've been dreaming of being a crazy plant lady for years. And on the same day, my husband and I both drove by this empty gas station and thought this could be it. This could be the plant store. And that night he came up with the name Above the Dirt, and we've been here ever since. So I'm what I call an enthusiastic hobbyist when it comes to plants. This is intended to be a very safe place for everyone to learn together. Maybe we'll even Google it alongside you. So caring for plants comes to a few things. One, the best light possible, great water, and humidity. So making sure each plant, whether it's inside the store or outside in the lot, is getting the light, the water, and the humidity it desires to thrive. We use Louisville Puritap literally all day, every day. Whether it be our native plants, our house plants, the veggie garden that we grow here, we are watering one, two, maybe even three times daily, and we use PureTap to do it. The quality of water that we have here on Louisville is actually a rather big deal because you know we're buddies with other plant stores around the country, and not everybody is able to simply use their tap water. They have to do these crazy reverse osmosis things to just water their plants. Where here I can just pick up a hose or a watering can. It's actually quite nice! One minute Metro TV, one minute. Good afternoon, and welcome to the uh July 23rd meeting of the budget committee. I'm the Vice Chair Marcus Winkler, uh, taking the place of the chair, Councilman Kramer who has an excused absence today. I'm currently joined in chambers by Councilman Joseph, Councilman Herndon, and online by Councilman Wolvery Woolrich. Uh, and we expect uh multiple others to join us here momentarily. Uh we're just joined by Councilman Parish. Right. Uh the first item uh on today's agenda is a special discussion uh with representatives from uh Louisville's nonprofit sector. And so I will uh do we clerk we don't have to call the item, right? I just we're gonna have to read the item. Yeah, so um and uh it is titled Louisville's charitable nonprofit sector navigating uncertainty strengthening our community. Uh I will turn the floor over to you if you could introduce yourself for the record uh and welcome the floor is yours. Great, thank you so much.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com