OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

St. Paul Finance & Budget Committee Meeting: Nov 5, 2025

Budget Committee — Wednesday, November 5, 2025
BodySt Paul, Minnesota
SessionBudget Committee
DateWednesday, November 5, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:27:02

Transcript — Verbatim
2:28

St.

2:28

Paul City Council Finance and Budget Committee to Order.

2:32

Good morning, everyone.

2:34

We are have three presentations today.

2:39

I am open to the order.

2:41

We were gonna maybe do shortest.

2:43

Start with the shortest ones first.

2:46

Is that all right with you?

2:47

We'll have a 15-minute presentation for SBNN and then we'll go second.

2:51

Yeah.

2:51

So we're gonna change the order up just a little bit for order of operations, just for time meetings of staff.

2:57

Thank you again for your flexibility.

2:59

Um I would like to then welcome up who are our presenters.

3:04

We have for us PNN.

3:07

Oh, we've got Chase Maxwell, Bonnie Schumacher, the executive director from St.

3:12

Paul Neighborhood Network, and Chase Maxwell, Communications and Digital Media Manager from OTC.

3:17

Hello, welcome.

3:18

Thank you so much for being here.

3:20

So we're budgeting about 15 minutes.

3:22

We've got three presentations today, so if you can kind of keep it within that time, that would be wonderful.

3:27

And I will kick it off to you.

3:28

Thank you so much for being here.

3:29

Um great to be here.

3:30

Um Chair, Council members.

3:32

Uh Chase Maxwell Communications and Digital Media Manager in OTC.

3:36

Uh my team uh is the folks who are in the control room who actually do the broadcast of our telecast services.

3:42

Um I'm excited to be joined by Bonnie Schumacher, uh, the executive director of St.

3:45

Paul Neighborhood Network.

3:46

I'll just let you briefly introduce yourself.

3:48

Hi, as Chase said, my name is Bonnie Schumacher.

3:50

I'm the executive director at SPN, St.

3:52

Paul Neighborhood Network.

3:54

I've been with SPNN for um almost twenty three years.

3:58

Um the executive vector for the last year and a half, and um we're a community media center that um works within the city limits.

4:05

Great.

4:06

That's fun.

4:07

So uh today we'll just give you uh a broad understanding of what our telecast services.

4:12

Uh, what are the services that my team provides?

4:15

Uh we'll talk about the current telecast service model in the city.

4:18

Uh we'll talk about why uh we're entering into some important milestones in 2026 related to telecast services that we want to make sure the council is is fully aware of.

4:27

Um Bonnie will speak to some specific national trends impacting community media.

4:32

Um I'll talk briefly about meeting resident expectations for information, all the different ways that my team and folks throughout the city uh try to get information in front of residents in addition to what we do through telecast services.

4:43

Um and then we'll briefly talk about um some potential options uh that we're considering as we look at modernization of telecast services uh into 2026.

4:53

So first, uh, how does public access work?

4:55

Uh what are telecast services?

4:57

Uh throughout today's presentation, we'll use an acronym known as PEG.

5:01

PEG stands for Public Educational and Government Access.

5:04

This concept was really kind of inaugurated through the Cable Act in the 1980s.

5:10

Really, it's the way that through cable franchising, our franchising authorities provide resources to communities to allow them to do telecast broadcast of public meetings and providing information through cable to residents.

5:43

What you may not know is that as part of the telecast model and as part of our Comcast franchise agreement, we have a relationship with St.

5:51

Paul Neighborhood Network.

5:52

They are what's known as our designated entity in the franchise agreement, uh nonprofit to provide the public and educational access through the channels that they maintain that they broadcast on.

6:03

So think of SPIN as sort of the P and the E of PEG, and then my team in OTC is the G.

6:11

So with that, um I want to talk about the current telecast service model.

6:16

So first starting with the city charter.

6:19

So the city charter specifically requires that OTC ensures number one, the council meetings air live on our government access channel, uh, that meetings are replayed within two days on a council approved schedule, and that meetings are streamed live and remain available online afterwards on the city's website.

6:36

So digging into the model more specifically, what does OTC's video team do?

6:41

How do we support these meetings?

6:43

So my team directs and records approximately 200 meetings a year.

6:47

Uh that includes meetings of both the city council, our boards and commissions, and then also uh the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners as well through the joint City Council telecast service agreement.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Technology and Innovation██████████████████████22%
Public Engagement██████████████████████22%
Racial Equity██████████10%
Conduit Revenue Bonds█████████9%
Public Works████████8%
Procedural██████6%
Procurement██████6%
Financial Technology Regulation█████5%
Public Policy█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

St. Paul Finance and Budget Committee Meeting - November 5, 2025

The St. Paul City Council Finance and Budget Committee held a meeting to review three departmental presentations focusing on the modernization of telecast services, the city's debt portfolio for 2026, and the Human Rights, Equity, and Recruitment Operations (HERO) department's annual performance and hiring plans. The committee received reports on the convergence of franchise negotiations, a proposed partnership between OTC and SPNN for broadcast services, a recommendation to increase the property tax debt levy, and HERO's strategy to maintain fiscal stewardship while expanding equity initiatives.

Consent Calendar

  • No routine approvals or unanimous actions were discussed as the focus was on departmental presentations and deliberation.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments or testimony were recorded during this committee meeting transcript.

Discussion Items

Telecast Services Modernization (OTC & SPNN)

  • Current State: The Office of Telecommunications (OTC) currently manages live broadcasts of approximately 200 meetings annually, including City Council, boards, commissions, and the Ramsey County Board. St. Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN) serves as the designated entity for Public (P) and Educational (E) access channels, while OTC manages Government (G) access.
  • Challenges: SPNN Executive Director Bonnie Schumacher reported a 40% decline in franchise/PEG fee income over the last five years (approx. $300,000), attributed to reduced cable subscriptions statewide. Simultaneously, OTC faces a 10-year Comcast franchise renegotiation, the expiration of a two-year County-City telecast service agreement, and a natural vacancy from a nearly 30-year staff retirement.
  • Positions Presented:
    • Chase Maxwell (OTC): Expressed support for Option Two (Community Partnership Model) as the preferred path forward. He stated, "we feel like this proposal is sort of a win-win-win for the city, for SPNN, and our residents." He emphasized that moving to a partnership would allow OTC to increase capacity for strategic communications work, including video storytelling and social media strategy.
    • Bonnie Schumacher (SPNN): Expressed full support for the community partnership model, noting that SPNN staff are prepared to operate live meeting coverage on-site to ensure uninterrupted service.
    • Council Member Cherrier: Expressed support for Option Two, citing the clarity of the options and the potential for collaboration.
  • Proposed Models: Three options were discussed: Status Quo, Community Partnership (SPNN staff running control rooms under OTC oversight), and Vendor Managed Services (Granicaus taking full control). The Vendor Managed model was noted to be higher cost and misaligned with local community values.

Debt Portfolio and Financial Outlook (Debt & Investment Division)

  • Outstanding Debt: Neil Youngins reported total outstanding debt of $631.1 million, comprising $250.4 million in General Obligation (GO) bonds and $380.7 million in Revenue Bonds. The high Revenue Bond total is attributed to the Lake McCarran water treatment plant and lead service line replacement projects.
  • Positions and Questions:
    • Council President: Expressed curiosity regarding the city's debt as a percentage of overall capacity and asked for best practice metrics, acknowledging the city holds more debt than median peers but retaining its Triple-A rating.
    • Neil Youngins: Stated the current modeling assumes no additional "one-off" bonding beyond annual programs. He confirmed that potential interest rate savings from refinancing would be incorporated into future debt modeling and could reduce the required property tax levy over time.
  • Proposals: The team recommended a $1.5 million annual increase to the property tax debt levy in 2026 to balance the fund, with increases tapering off until 2026 when no further debt service increases would be needed based on current projections.
  • Refinancing Opportunities: Youngins noted the Federal Reserve is cutting rates, creating opportunities to refinance 14-15 callable bond issues to save on interest costs, though some existing debt (e.g., PFA notes) is deemed too cheap to refinance currently.

HERO Department Performance and Budget (Hearing Office)

  • Performance Highlights: Directors Beth Commerce and Andrea Ledger reported significant outcomes following 2023-2025 investments, including a dedicated Public Information Specialist and Labor Standards Investigators.
  • Positions and Outcomes:
    • Council Member Kim: Expressed strong approval of the data showing a 65% increase in Public Complaints and Review Center (PCRC) cases, attributing this to successful outreach. He emphasized that increased case volume indicates community trust rather than solely an increase in violations.
    • Council Member Bowen: Expressed concern regarding the processing times for Request for Proposals (RFPs), noting the reduction from 136 days to 74 days was positive, but asked for further clarification on the customization of solicitation windows.
    • Beth Commerce: Expressed commitment to advancing equity through the CERT (Certified Small Business) program, noting that 60% of contract dollars went to small businesses according to the state disparity study. She confirmed that federal EEOC/HEW contracts for 2026 are likely to be discontinued due to the new administration's "substantially equivalent" standard, which they believe St. Paul's stronger ordinances do not meet.
    • Andrea Ledger: Expressed satisfaction with procurement efficiency gains achieved through training and technology, reducing RFP cycle times significantly without increasing buyer headcount.
  • Future Proposals: HERO proposed reducing the workforce by 0.5 FTEs (1.1 unfilled positions total) in 2026, specifically reducing the Labor Standards investigator count from five to four and eliminating a partial-time Human Rights position. They requested to hold several key positions open due to an existing hiring freeze.
  • Administrative Citations: Directors stated readiness to implement enabling language for administrative citations regarding wage theft, Earned Sick and Safe Time, and Minimum Wage ordinances immediately upon council approval.

Key Outcomes

  • Telecast Services: The committee received a presentation outlining the "Community Partnership Model" (Option Two) as the preferred strategy to maintain broadcast continuity amidst declining PEG fees and staff turnover. Council Member Cherrier formally voiced support for this option.
  • Debt Levy: The Finance and Budget Committee noted the recommendation for a $1.5 million increase in the property tax debt levy for 2026 to maintain fund balance, contingent on current annual bonding patterns.
  • HERO Budget: The committee noted the HERO department's strategy to operate with reduced staffing (0.5 FTE reduction in specific roles) while maintaining service levels through existing efficiencies and unfilled vacancy management. The department confirmed it will not seek federal reimbursement contracts for 2026.
  • Administrative Citations: The committee expressed strong support for moving forward with administrative citation authority for labor standards violations, with the expectation that enabling language will be drafted and presented in the next legislative cycle." }

Meeting Transcript

St. Paul City Council Finance and Budget Committee to Order. Good morning, everyone. We are have three presentations today. I am open to the order. We were gonna maybe do shortest. Start with the shortest ones first. Is that all right with you? We'll have a 15-minute presentation for SBNN and then we'll go second. Yeah. So we're gonna change the order up just a little bit for order of operations, just for time meetings of staff. Thank you again for your flexibility. Um I would like to then welcome up who are our presenters. We have for us PNN. Oh, we've got Chase Maxwell, Bonnie Schumacher, the executive director from St. Paul Neighborhood Network, and Chase Maxwell, Communications and Digital Media Manager from OTC. Hello, welcome. Thank you so much for being here. So we're budgeting about 15 minutes. We've got three presentations today, so if you can kind of keep it within that time, that would be wonderful. And I will kick it off to you. Thank you so much for being here. Um great to be here. Um Chair, Council members. Uh Chase Maxwell Communications and Digital Media Manager in OTC. Uh my team uh is the folks who are in the control room who actually do the broadcast of our telecast services. Um I'm excited to be joined by Bonnie Schumacher, uh, the executive director of St. Paul Neighborhood Network. I'll just let you briefly introduce yourself. Hi, as Chase said, my name is Bonnie Schumacher. I'm the executive director at SPN, St. Paul Neighborhood Network. I've been with SPNN for um almost twenty three years. Um the executive vector for the last year and a half, and um we're a community media center that um works within the city limits. Great. That's fun. So uh today we'll just give you uh a broad understanding of what our telecast services. Uh, what are the services that my team provides? Uh we'll talk about the current telecast service model in the city. Uh we'll talk about why uh we're entering into some important milestones in 2026 related to telecast services that we want to make sure the council is is fully aware of. Um Bonnie will speak to some specific national trends impacting community media. Um I'll talk briefly about meeting resident expectations for information, all the different ways that my team and folks throughout the city uh try to get information in front of residents in addition to what we do through telecast services. Um and then we'll briefly talk about um some potential options uh that we're considering as we look at modernization of telecast services uh into 2026. So first, uh, how does public access work? Uh what are telecast services? Uh throughout today's presentation, we'll use an acronym known as PEG. PEG stands for Public Educational and Government Access. This concept was really kind of inaugurated through the Cable Act in the 1980s. Really, it's the way that through cable franchising, our franchising authorities provide resources to communities to allow them to do telecast broadcast of public meetings and providing information through cable to residents. What you may not know is that as part of the telecast model and as part of our Comcast franchise agreement, we have a relationship with St.

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