Councilmember Bushnell.

Present.

Deputy Mayor Daniels.

Absent.

Councilmember Diaz.

Councilmember Hines.

Councilmember Rumba, absent.

Councilmember Sidalgay.

Here.

Councilmember Scott, absent.

Councilmember Walker.

Here.

Mayor Woodards.

Here.

The study session material is sent to you at 11.

Thank you.

I uh want to apologize for starting late today.

We had a few items to take care of before the council before the study session, so I apologize.

But we're going to go ahead and jump in and get started, and we're going to start with our first agenda item, which is the revenue strategy.

And I'd like to call on interim city manager Kim to begin the presentation.

Thank you, Madam Mayor, members of council.

Council, we are have been discussing, bringing to council a revenue presentation for some time now for the last uh six months.

We've talked in uh public about the notion of having a conversation.

So Director Torillo will be presenting today just an overview of all the actions that have been taken by this council and previous councils over the last 10 years, as well as going through some of the options that are before you, and then I think we'll get into some of the substantive discussions before us for consideration here in the next 30 to six months, potentially.

So I from there I'm just gonna kick it off right to to Andy.

Thank you very much.

Uh good afternoon, Mayor, members of the council.

I'm Andy Chirulo, the city's finance director.

Uh our city manager gave a good overview of what we're gonna talk about, so we'll jump right into it.

Um this slide is a look back um going all the way back to the 2017-2018 biennium of all the revenue actions and restructuring uh city councils have done to increase additional dollars for the priority needs of the city.

So just to orient you to the page, uh the items above that are in black are general fund actions that benefited the general fund.

You can see those added up to over 18 million dollars annually in new revenues in the general fund.

The items below the line in green are items that are either dedicated revenues for a specific purpose or we're restructuring that benefited um the general fund, and those actions have added up to over $36 million per year in revenues.

Um so the two major takeaways from this slide are uh the city's been very active in seeking additional revenue solutions every biennium that has come up.

Um it also illustrates the second big takeaway is um many of the actions that we're allowed to take are dedicated to specific purposes and don't necessarily help the general fund, as you can see.

Uh there's about twice as many dollars recurring in other funds than there are in the general fund.

Um we're not gonna walk through everything on this slide, but just to highlight a few things in the general fund.

Way back in 2017-18, we raised animal license fees to help pay for animal control officers.

Uh we've raised business license fees in 2017, 2023, and 2024.

Uh we've eliminated last biennium, uh, a recent one.

We eliminated the tax exemptions related to uh certain gross earnings taxes on utilities.

Um in the other funds, uh, we've raised one-tenth of one percent for Tacoma Creates.

The first time that was voted by the people in 2017, and you all just voted to extend that uh last month at a council meeting.

We did one tenth of one percent for affordable housing, uh, and then we did the excise tax for uh tidy up Tacoma.

So those were a pretty major revenue raises in recent history.

Uh on the next slide is the long laundry list that you have seen before in various forms of all the revenue options available to the city at a very high level.

Um so just to get oriented to the table on the far left-hand side is the uh revenue source, whether the authority is councilmanic or voter approved, the annual estimated amount of revenue it would raise and some notes to provide some more detail.

Um the line uh the items above the line, the big black line in the middle of the page are councilmanic.

So the councilmanic stuff is sorted on the top.

The stuff below that line are require voter approval.

Uh and just again to get you oriented to some of this, the first thing on there uh business and occupation taxes.

We have many different rates depending on the type of businesses, wholesaling, retailing, manufacturing, services.

If you were to maximize every single B and O rate up to its allowed maximum, that's what the 20 million dollar revenue estimate would be for the B and O taxes.

Again, business license fees, as we've said, the they've been raised in 2017, 2023, and 2024.

A lot of the actions we've taken related to those are to add tiers and charge businesses based on their gross revenues, so larger businesses pay more than smaller ones.

Impact fees, you all just had a presentation a couple weeks ago at study session for traffic impact fees and also assistant development charges in ES.

You can also do impact fees for fire, school, and parks.

So some of those other entities, schools, and parks may be discussing impact fees of their own as well.

Excise taxes again can be structured in a whole different variety of ways.

The two most recent examples are tidy up, and then the food and beverage excise tax at the Tacoma Dome to help support community events.

On the vehicle fees, we currently have a $20 tab fee per vehicle.

That's what raises about three to four and a half million dollars per year through the TBD, the Transportation Benefit District.

You could raise the $20 to $40 council manically.

And then after 24 months, you could raise that up to $50.

Anything over the $50 would require a vote of the people, and there is a cap of $100 on tab fees.

Just a side note, the only city that has been successful in asking people to pay more than $50 has been the city of Seattle.

Everyone else has failed on that front.

On the other fees and fines, this is uh they get reviewed every biennial budget process.

There's a lot of different city fees and fines.

It's a really mixed bag.

Some of these are restricted to covering the cost of service.

For example, a taxi inspection fee can only be at the amount it costs us to actually inspect the taxi.

Um other fees are set in ways to influence behavior.

An example of that is the lift assist fee that fire charges, uh, assisted living facilities.

Fire set the fee at a very high level to have assisted living facilities quit calling us every time they needed assistance on lifting a patient to avoid that behavior of our firefighters being augmented staff for assisted living facilities and having a very high fee, change that behavior.

So it's been pretty successful for fire to not being called to do a lot of those lifts.

Um we get below the line and we start looking at uh things that require voter approval.

The first thing on the list is gross earnings taxes.

Uh we're currently charging at the maximum amount for some of the utilities.

Uh I do know that the initial streets initiative added an additional one and a half percent uh to our power utility, so that is currently at seven and a half percent.

That will uh in April roll back to six percent because that is when the streets initiative originally expires.

Um our charter caps uh utility gross earnings taxes at eight percent, so anything over eight percent would require a charter amendment on that one.

For property taxes, again, voter approval.

There's lots of different ways you can ask the voters to increase the property taxes to pay for things.

These can be permanent, they can be temporary, they can be for general purposes, just general operating funds.

The school district is very successful at passing levies just to support their operating dollars.

Um there are specific ones in there for affordable housing and cultural access.

Um the capacity is a very big number, um, but we are capped at what our property taxes can be.

There's a $3.60 cent limit on what the share going to the city can be.

So again, for conservative purposes, we wouldn't recommend uh a property tax levy anywhere in the nearer range to the maximum, uh leaving some capacity for future emergencies should they be there.

Uh the last item on here is in the sales tax world.

Um there is under the transportation benefit district the ability to charge a second and a third one-tenth of one percent sales tax that would support the transportation network in the city.

Uh, those additional uh one-tenths would require voter approval.

So when we talk about the revenue strategy that uh has been working on the past few years, this slide summarizes that.

Um the first few items on the list have already taken place.

There's a lot of things here that are under consideration.

So just very quickly walking top down the EMS levy that was placed on the ballot in August of 23, and that passed.

Uh the fire levy went in November of 24, that failed.

The streets initiative was in April of 25, that also failed.

Um you guys put on your legislative agenda to ask the state legislature to increase the 1% cap on property taxes to 3%.

Tacoma Creates is on this list, and you all passed that one tenth of one percent to continue that for that was back in uh just last month in October.

Traffic impact fees and system development charges again.

You were presented at study session, uh, those options and what those look like to include those.

Uh the fire department came and did a really good presentation on a regional fire authority option, and that study is underway looking at uh whether a regional fire authority would uh benefit taxpayers in the service delivery for uh fire services.

The last thing on this list in the revenue strategy is the at the last legislative session, uh the legislature passed House Bill 2015, which created a public safety grant program and the ability to charge a one-tenth of one percent sales tax to support uh public safety, and we will get into more in that one.

Uh few slides.

So uh House Bill 2015 did create two separate programs.

One was a local law enforcement grant program that has a hundred million dollars dedicated to it.

Uh the purpose is to uh increase community policing and public safety by providing direct grants.

The grant covers 75% of a salary up to 125,000 per year.

The city county of tribe pays the other 25% or any amount over the 125,000 dollar cap.

Um the grants are for three years after the third year, 100% of the cost of those people would be borne by the city, county, or tribe.

Uh on the one-tenth of one percent sales tax.

Again, there's the option the city has councilmanically to raise sales tax by one tenth of one percent and dedicate it to uh criminal justice services.

I'm gonna take a quick side note and give a huge shout out to the city's government relations staff.

They worked very hard in the legislative session to expand the definition of what's allowable under the criminal justice sales and use tax and what you can spend it on.

So they worked really, really hard to get that definition expanded to include things like alternative response, domestic violence, and mental health crisis response.

So as you can see on this slide, the sales and use tax is councilmanic up to one tenth of one percent.

There are some limitations.

The voters can't have denied rejected a similar measure in the last two years, and the city has to have be charging at least one of the other two allowable criminal justice sales taxes currently on the books, which we are.

Um if the city does not councilmanically pass this by June 30th, 2028, it's still available, but at that point it would require a vote of the community to pass.

So there is councilmanic authority up through June of 2028 to do this one.

The ordinance, if the city were considering it must include a finding that we meet all the requirements for the grant program, which are fairly extensive.

So to be eligible for the sales tax, you have to also be eligible for everything they require for the grant.

Um the legislation does contemplate a hundred and eighty-day compliance window.

Um so if we are not yet in compliance, there is a hundred and eighty days which with which to get in compliance.

If after the 180 days the city is still not in compliance, the penalty in the statute is 100,000 per month out of the sales tax raised until uh city would get in compliance.

This slide is the worst slide ever in a PowerPoint.

It's not meant to be read.

That's like a good thing, because I I can't any of that.

You can't.

And the the point is this is all the requirements that you need to pass to be eligible for both the grant and the sales tax, and there's a lot of them, and they're extensive.

Uh a lot of them have to do with complying with the Keep Washington Working Act.

So it's expecting uh police departments to have adopted that or something similar.

Um we have to have policies on and training on de-escalation tactics.

We have to comply with data collection requirements from the state on the use of force.

We have to have a hundred percent of our police officers trained in trauma-informed gender-based violence interviewing, investigation response, and case review training.

Our police chief must be certified by the criminal justice training council and has not been convicted of a felony or gross misdemeanor.

Um, so this is just illustrative, there's a long list of compliance things that we have to be to have to get done to be eligible to either apply for a grant or the sales tax.

Andy, I never do this.

I never stop and ask the question in the middle of a presentation.

I'm normally a stickler for that, but I just have to ask.

And if and if not, how long would it take us to get into compliance?

And I just want you to know in case you haven't seen her that your phone a friend is behind you.

Nice.

So yes, thank you, Mayor, for that question.

Uh we currently do not meet everything, but we are in the process.

I know our legal department is working with TPD to review everything.

Again, there's a lot of nuances to this.

When we have to be in compliance with the Keep Washington Working Act, they in the application there's all these sections.

They say, Do you have this language that's out of the Keep Washington Working Act?

We we didn't adopt that word for word.

We have a policy that's similar.

So we have a lot of work to do to say, hey, we have similar language, but not this.

On the training requirements, again, we might not quite be at the threshold.

There's 25% requirements for to have a 40-hour crisis intervention training.

So 25% of the officers being in compliance with that.

There's the 100% being in compliance with other things.

So TPD is working right now on that, and we're getting closer and closer.

And the timeline, uh, we can give you an update on exactly when we think we'll be in compliance, but it's not quite yet, but hopefully very soon.

Okay.

I guess just my comment would be would love to know, and I'm sure my colleagues would like to know this too.

What what obviously what we've met, what we haven't met, and then what what what what what it when we think we're gonna get there?

But my biggest question is will because of the delay and when you can collect it.

So when we pass it, might be sooner rather than later, so that we can start to collect it on time.

I don't I certainly wouldn't want us to wait till we had everything in place to file, because that might take a little longer, especially when we have the 180 days to get into compliance.

So my question would would be in addition to when we think we're gonna be in compliance, how that relates to the 180 days, because let's say you say we get we're gonna get it done in 90 days, then we should pass it sooner rather than later since we have 180.

Exactly.

Thank you, Madam Mayor.

Um, I just met with the team with Chief Jackson and our legal advisors um that are in TPD um today this morning.

Um we will have provide you with a timeline for where our confidence, my confidence is that we'll be ready.

We've been running this process in parallel uh in anticipation that the council will have an option.

Okay.

The staff is not foregoing that this is a foregone conclusion, but that we will provide you with the option to take action potentially as soon as here in the next 60, 90 days.

Right.

Thank you.

I'd like the next uh 50 days.

Yes, ma'am.

Yes, ma'am.

Okay.

Um and here is the last slide of our presentation here today.

And this is just looking at sales tax rates in anticipating questions related to hey, what are other people charging for sales tax currently and who else has applied?

So again, this slide we took everyone that charges a sales tax rate over 10.2 percent uh and put them on this list um as you can see.

Uh we have the county on there, we have the jurisdiction, we have the rate.

Um so of the 10.2 percent, you can kind of see Tacoma's current 10.3 is about the middle of a pack on this group of folks that charge this.

There's an asterisk, very small one in the column, kind of to the right.

Those are all cities that have already applied for the one-tenth of one percent sales tax.

So you can see folks on there like Seattle and Renton and Des Moines and Kent.

Um another thing to note is the uniqueness of this sales tax is that both a city and a county can apply for this and they're additive.

A lot of the other sales taxes, it's first come, first serve, and then you have a revenue share idea.

This one is additive.

So when you look at example, Kent, yeah, Kent's current rate is 10.2 percent.

If Kent uh passes this and can increase it to 10.3, and then King County passes their one-tenth, the Kent rate would go from 10-2 to 10-3 to 10-4 at the end of the day.

So you'd have just cities here.

Have any counties?

Or I don't see any.

Have any counties?

So King County is the only one that I know of at this point.

I can go and check um now that the CJTC website is up and running, they have updates fairly regularly on who's King County passed it yet, or they're they're they're quite.

I submitted an application.

Okay, great.

And do you have to submit the application before you can pass it?

You submit the application to the criminal justice training committee, and they approve you or not.

And so they are in the process of approving folks as we speak.

My understanding, though, mayor, to your question.

And my understanding, though, Mayor, to your question, I do believe the council does have to um certify through a resolution ordinance that we are in compliance to submit that application.

King County applied.

My understanding is um CJTC has not approved their application.

But they are cordially working with the county.

Gotcha.

Okay.

So I think the goal of the program is to work with jurisdictions to make sure you get in compliance.

Um and again, the act talks about corrective periods and stuff, anticipating that there would be some work to get done for these.

So uh with that, Mayor, our presentation is done, and we'd be happy to answer any questions you all may have.

Thank you for this, and thank you for the detail.

I've been super curious, and um thank you, Andy, for making it really plain as to what the requirements are.

May I ask, and I I will ask this for all of my colleagues, slide number eight.

If we could get just get that section emailed to us, certainly.

Um, because I'm never going to be able to read it on this presentation.

So if you would just email that one, maybe take it out of the slide and just put this information in the body of the email so we can actually read it.

Mayor, would you also like with that slide those those sections that we believe believe we were already in compliance with that?

You know what?

That would be absolutely that that's perfect.

And if we have to wait a few minutes to do that, that that's fine.

I say that so cavalier, but I've got our amazing team in the back that will be updating that.

Yep, they're all shaking their heads like we got this.

They all they don't they they're they're internally shaking their heads, I can still see them.

Okay.

I will open it up for sorry, I I jumped in with questions.

This I'm really interested in um in this public safety sales tax, as we've been calling it.

I know there are a lot of names for it, but very interested in um in in seeing this happen in Tacoma just because we have so many needs.

I guess as people are getting ready for questions, I'm gonna hop in first.

As it relates to the sales tax, when you submit the application, do you have to in the application or should maybe I should say at what point do you need to declare how you're gonna deploy that funding?

A very good question.

Um declare in it, there are restrictions in the legislation of what you can spend these dollars on.

And you just have to meet those restrictions.

So yes, and I thought there used to be a slide in our deck, and maybe I skipped it.

No, you know, it's it's it's slide nine.

Slide nine.

And I probably didn't talk a whole bunch about that one.

You know what?

Good I'm glad I thought I thought maybe I was just looking down too long as a few.

But you okay, good.

You you missed it too, so I feel better now.

No, so yeah, the the restrictions again in in the code are uh since will you go back to slide nine?

I think we try to do that.

Yep, oh hang it.

There you go, right there.

Nope.

One more forward.

That's the one.

There we go.

So these are what are the requirements of what you can use it for uh if you pass it.

It has to again be related to criminal justice and public safety.

Um so that's related not only to police officers, but it here's the expanded list of domestic violence services, public defenders, diversion programs, re-entry, things that we would be calling alternative response, again related to mental health crisis and uh homelessness uh improving behavior health.

Again, it has to have a reasonable relationship to criminal justice, um, but they don't define that in the statute, but it's pretty expansive.

And again, I'm gonna give a shout out to our government relations team because they worked really hard to make sure that this definition included a lot of the programs that are already um being done here in Tacoma.

I am super excited and just want to call out that last bullet um where it talks about alternative response programs.

Um and then I guess just another question I have is um in the fifth bull it says local government programs that have a reasonable relationship to reducing the number of people.

Well, I'm not gonna read that thing.

I'm assuming that would include any of our youth violence prevention programs as well, correct?

That is correct again, as long as we can show they have a reasonable relationship to reducing criminal justice interactions with the system.

And then is there so let's say for 2026-2027 we allocate it for certain programs.

And then maybe in the next year or mid-mod or the next biennium.

Again, I'm assuming that it's up to the jurisdiction to be able to make changes where they see necessary, you know.

Let's say we get more federal dollars around violence prevention, and we can let some of the dollars go that we had put in violence prevention and put it back into an alt response or or you know, or something else.

Is am I correct in that it's up to us when we change it and how we change it again?

Yes, ma'am.

These are uh dedicated revenues that if the council were to pursue a councilmanic option would be available for the council to budget for, plan for, and it would be staff's recommendation that even before submitting an application that we would have not just a contour but a plan for how we're gonna uh potentially uh deploy these dollars to support existing programs and perhaps even new programs, and so that we can support the community in what we need to do.

And and I I will say it just candidly um between Hope, heel, CSOs, alternative response, uh those programs that our community came through mid mod and and and voiced their great support for um this this is an option for the council to pursue.

Well, and that that's why I asked, because I I think um what what uh uh what I and others committed to is is that we we are committed to alt response.

That wasn't just to get it off the ground and then see it die.

That we're we're really committed to making that investment.

So that's why I asked kind of about the timing.

Once we pass it, how long how long until it goes into effect?

So this now becomes another layer of the state.

So we would there's timing we need to notify the department of revenue for this.

There's a cutoff in early January, so if you passed it before the end of this year, we would notify the Department of Revenue before their January cutoff, it would be effective April.

Um if we miss that, there's another cutoff that would make it effective in June.

Once we get past uh notifying them in July, July is the last time DOR changes sales tax for 2027.

So we would be stuck then again, notifying them and not having this in effect till January of 2028.

I'm just gonna make my desire known.

I'd love to get it done this year.

Put it out there.

Um but I it does it does probably require lots more conversation about how we want to spend it and where we want to focus it at.

But but I I think uh we heard from our community.

We we heard the cries from our community about something, some decisions we had to make at mid-mod, and I think they're worth it.

We still have a ton of overtime that we're gonna need to pay.

I mean, they're just so there are more needs than there are money, but but I that's why it's gonna be really important for this council to have a conversation around what our priorities are for this funding.

And Hyang, I'll get together with you to figure out when we can do that.

But I just I think it's incredibly necessary, but it also depends on where we are with meeting those requirements and when we think we can meet those requirements.

So okay, I I have more questions, but I'm gonna stop for a second and I'm gonna turn to Councilmember Bush now and then to Councilmember Walker.

Uh thank you, Mayor.

Uh, thank you for the um the third presentation.

Um I think it's really clear that you know local jurisdictions all across the board are facing some really uh challenging situations, and our state is as well, um, and ongoing federal uh so a lot of challenges there.

Um, I do have some clarifying questions on these um criminal justice sales and use tax.

Sorry, there's like a nap right here.

Go away.

Um so is this is this list that's you have on slide nine, is that a uh exhaustive, or is there more also, or is this all that is there?

That is the list that is in the statute.

Okay.

Um I I have some questions uh maybe it's tangential to it.

Is is capital improvements also like as it relates to uh you know, maybe justice-involved youth and other things, and is that is that something that this could be utilized for?

I know that the county's currently exploring opportunities to uh look at Raymond Hall, things of that nature.

Um I don't know if there's opportunities to partner with with uh young um diversion programs for young juveniles that are uh caught up in the justice system, and maybe there's a capital investments that need to be made.

Um and part of the reason why I bring that up also is because of the nature of a sales tax and that it ebbs and flows based on the economic conditions.

Um partly why our reliance on it is so challenging here at the city is because uh next year we could see a huge dip in that.

And I'm concerned about any programming funding that we do put it towards, uh, we could see layoffs, we would have to do reductions of services and things like that.

Not that I don't want to increase those things, but it's something that I think about and do we have an idea of what a baseline uh we can expect from this sales tax if it is implemented, and then how can we how can we find ways to help kind of level out those valleys, those peaks and valleys?

Um maybe knowing what a baseline may be, we can kind of guess where we would put programming dollars that aren't subject so much to uh cuts uh every few years.

Um and then if there are surpluses, maybe it goes towards one-time projects like those capital and uh expenses that could also contribute to um supporting those different programs and things of that nature.

So I'm just kind of thinking about the nuance behind the that.

Thank you.

Okay.

Um, you know, the reading the statute is silent on the use of capital.

Again, this has to be related to criminal justice and public safety stuff.

It doesn't mention capital in there.

So the statute's silent.

Um interpret that as you will.

Uh, as far as uh the money it raises, it's it's approximately seven to seven and a half million dollars a year based on current estimates.

Um that's what uh the amount of money would be.

And the peak and valley, we have some really good examples of how to measure that.

Think of Tacoma Creates.

They have their one tenth, it's about the same seven, seven and a half million.

And so again, they uh they collect some and budget uh accordingly, so they don't spend everything they're getting that year, they have some reserves built in to smooth some of that out.

So we do have some really good examples of folks that have been managing in the sales tax world to kind of smooth out those peaks and valleys that we could model in this world as well.

Yeah, I think it would be really good for us to kind of try and model that so we don't end up in situations where we'd have to make significant slashes to programming because that could impact a lot of people in a really negative way.

Um I'm also thinking about our municipal courts and their therapeutic courts and the work that they're doing and where we might be able to support.

So I want to make sure we're having conversations with with them.

I'm assuming it's already happened, but I just want to say it out loud.

Because I think they're they're they're heading down the great path and they're doing a lot of good work there, and we want to make sure we're continuing to support them as well.

Yeah.

Um thank you very much, Councilmember Bushnell.

The only thing I wanted to add to uh Director Trillo's um this council and previous councils have been quite innovative and progressive in um deploying new programs predicated on one-time dollars.

Um, it may very well be a staff recommendation that we take a look at those programs that are predicated on those funds that have been declining or are no longer existing to see how to buttress and support that programming.

Um, and your point is so well taken.

Um, there are other public safety unfunded mandates that the count the city is gonna face in the coming years, mainly in defense, public defense costs.

Um you know, it's a constitutional requirement that we provide a vigorous defense for defendants in our system.

Um that's that's a sunk cost that we're gonna be anticipating um growing over the course of the next 10 plus years.

Um so we'd like to do an overview of what that looks like, build the capacity, and then also take a look at.

I think you're right on the where we the staff would also like to join the council and being prudent with these dollars as well, um, and at the same time supporting the programs that we have made some changes on due to our financial conditions as well.

Great, thank you.

And then um I appreciate the um the opportunity that the legislature's given us for this public safety uh sales tax.

Um but I do want to just re-emphasize to uh folks that are listening or to our um our partners at the state that the sales taxes are very regressive in nature and they impact those that um you know cannot spend uh most uh impacts you know folks that are uh uh in poverty or uh you know low income at the highest levels.

Um and I really want to see um some movement or change at the state legislative level regarding uh progressive revenue options, including uh property tax and other ways that we can dissipate the cost, and so it's not uh unfairly burdening those that are our lower income in our community.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Councilmember Walker.

Thank you, Mayor, and thank you, Councilmember Bushnell for all your comments.

I think I mostly just want to say ditto to that.

I wanted to clarify, and you might have said this.

Um if we if this comes before council and we pass it or we vote to pass it, are we passing just the sales tax or a um like work plan that says which of these things we're going to put the money to work doing?

We we would tee it up so that the council has that vigorous um discussion about how you would plan to use the dollars before you actually authorize a resolution or ordinance to pass the potential uh one-tenth of one percent.

And then what we've not we did um Director Trillo talked about there's also a competitive grant process that's a first come first serve that hundred million dollars.

Um that also would be something that we'd want to take a look at too.

And but the plan should be we daylight how we plan to expend those dollars for 26 at a bare minimum, um, and then going forward, what would that look like?

The timing is actually uh fortuitous for the city of Tacoma in the sense that we are building out our budget for 27-28 in the coming months, um, so that the council coming in January, February will start to talk about those probably quicker than ever before.

Um, and so we're gonna be building those budgets, and it's gonna be predicated on potentially um we never forego the the conclusion that you're gonna take this action, but we should have that conversation um during this springtime.

Okay, thank you.

That's really great.

Or sooner.

And just to clarify, is that knowing what we're gonna spend the dollars on it?

Is that part of the of House Bill 2015?

Is that a requirement from the state or just something we'll do in the middle of the year?

It's something we'll we'll do.

We'll bring to you for your consideration if you would allow us.

Um we'll we'll bring a presentation to you about where we would propose on how to buttress or bring back uh funding levels to our alternative response programs as well as ongoing overtime, other programs.

Um you all approved a lateral incentive program.

Now we have to pay for this is an example.

We have to pay for uh additional fleet for uh those additional officers.

I think that's something you might want to want to look at on the grant side.

So we'll bring that to you for discussion.

Okay, great.

Thank you.

Um glad to hear that.

That's my only question, and then just to say, like my colleagues have said, how important that alternative response program is and making sure that is in part in the proposal.

I understand the need to keep some flexibility within this and not bind us 100% because we don't know where the needs are, but that one um in particular.

Um, and I appreciate Councilmember Bushnell bringing up the diversion programs as well as something that's really important for us to fund.

So thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Walker, Councilmember Diaz.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um, I have quite a few other questions.

I think some folks um that I can ask later.

Folks cover some other questions that I had, but the one that um still lingers a little bit in my mind is particularly because I've been thinking a lot about how we can try to as we're building out alternative response and looking at um what we want to do in the future, how we can try to bring um domestic violence co-responders to Tacoma.

Um, sorry, newslush.

Police she's had a chance to talk to you about it yet.

Um, but I um am wondering since that is something that's covered here.

I'm hoping that that might be something that we could explore further potentially in this funding.

Um my question is, and knowing that y'all are not the ethers because you didn't write the law.

Is there anything in here about us being able to use any of those funding for workforce development?

Because I know that we've had an issue around how we um the workforce that exists around our our mental health co-responders for the hope team, and then I think there's gonna be some capacity issues that are trying to build up a DV co-response team, and then um some of the other things that are mentioned here today, um, and new things that we want vision forward.

So I'm just wondering if that's something we can look into going forward, if that is a piece of this or not a piece of this, and how we might plan for that in our own budgets.

Uh really good question, Councilmember Diaz.

Um, so workforce development wasn't explicitly called out anywhere in this to my memory.

I will go back and double check to make sure.

And again, when they're talking about some of these things, again, we as a jurisdiction just have to make a linkage to uh public safety and and criminal justice.

So again, I think there's some leeway in there for us to define what that is and why we think it makes that link.

So I think that's a good idea.

I'd love to see how we can do maybe that capacity creation.

Um, because some of these alt responses might be new to us, and whether or not it's something that we have to have stood out before we pass this to include it as part of the funding.

I don't know if it's chicken or egg if we need to have things ready to go first, or if we can use this funding to help build that, or then the ongoing piece around um workforce development specifically to these types of um professions, I think so it doesn't get lost in other workforce development we need as a as a county and our region, but just there's a deep need, I think, in the co-response realm.

No, I um thank you, uh, Councilmember Diaz.

I that is such a substantial substantive um consideration.

Uh, the chicken and egg of of talking to our community from a regressive tax source on taxing more for not just the existing programs, but how about how this will actually improve the lives of Tacomans?

Um, that is a conversation I've been thinking about, and I'm I and glad to hear that's something you'd like to consider.

I don't know if there's an actual um limitation.

I don't think anything I I read House Bill 2015.

I'm a layperson.

Um obviously we have amazing people right behind me that can give you that interpretation.

I did not I cannot recall that there was a limitation on having existing programs being eligible because I don't I think that would defeat the purpose of giving the council the discretion to start programs to address pub safety.

Great.

Usually if they wanted to do that, they would include it, they would they would preclude us.

So just sometimes it's vague is better on purpose.

Thank you.

Okay.

Thank you, Councilmember Sidalgay.

Uh thank you, Mayor.

Um, most of my colleagues have actually asked many of the questions I was gonna ask.

Uh I have one real clarifying one.

Um is the mental health and substance abuse dollars.

Is that a one-tenth of one percent as well?

Yes, it is.

That's currently one of the one-tenth percent we should.

Oh, I just didn't see it on our list.

Uh did that happen more than 10 years ago, is that way.

I did.

That's that one's been existing for quite a bit.

Okay.

That that makes sense.

All right, because I thought that was there.

Um, I only have one real question.

The grant program and the sales uh and use one-tenth of one are they connected or are they two separate kind of beings?

They are two separate programs with the same requirements.

So we could start on the grant program without having to do the sales tax increase.

You could, and you could start on the sales tax increase without doing the grant program.

Got it.

You just have to meet the requirements for both.

But if you do one of them, you meet the requirements.

You meet the requirement for the other, and it gives you the ability to do it if you would like.

Okay.

Um I do appreciate um the flexibility that's given in the monies that are used.

Uh you know, there are lots of ideas that we all have.

I think if this were to go forward, the question is how do we keep it flexible for future needs is really what my concern is is how do we write it in some way that we can identify our priorities today, plus the ability to be flexible in spending them in the future.

So that's if we were to go down that road, that's kind of my thought process because there are a lot of things that we uh fund.

Um thank you.

Thank you.

Uh Councilmember Hines.

Uh uh, thank you, Madam Mayor.

No.

Am I there?

I go.

No, uh, thank you for the presentation, Andy.

I think just also laying out kind of all the revenue strategies we've taken over the last few years is good.

Um I do think it's important for us to show our work of how we have kind of land in all these things.

So I think that's really important for us.

I think my my only question was around the kind of clawback provision that's in here.

So we we've we've done the we've done all the pre-work to be able to move this forward, correct?

That's what I heard.

We're close to being complete with that, but we will get you a better list of where we are and what needs to be done.

So and so the 180-day compliance window is we do this work, we authorize it, and they would look at it for 180 days, and then after that we're good, or is there is the legislation say there's constant periodic updates?

So, again, the way the legislation was drafted, there was a period where this became effective and the criminal justice training committee didn't have yet an application or the rules or policies what they were doing.

Um so I think the statute contemplated there was a period.

Again, this is my interpretation that people could apply, because some of these people did apply pretty quickly before there was an application process and said here we believe we meet all of these.

I think they wrote in the corrective period, assuming that there may be some communities that uh don't meet it but are working diligently toward it.

They do talk about being able communities being able to get a grant to do training to meet the training requirements.

So again, the statute contemplates people not necessarily beating every requirement, but getting there eventually.

And I again the 180 days, I don't think there's magic to that besides giving again jurisdictions time to some of these.

If you were far behind on training 100% of your officers, it might take take a while.

But again, that's my interpretation.

We'll talk with our legal folks to make sure we're we're square with that.

But I that was just my question.

It just is that something that we are well, I guess this I I've heard this some of my consciousness, my colleagues from other cities, right?

So, but this will be we authorize this.

Does this mean the CJCC will be continue to re-evaluate this and add additional requirements upon us over time by which we need to meet to continue to maintain the funding?

So part of this is uh an annual reporting requirement.

So if you were to pass this, we would need to file an annual report about the monies we raise and how we spent it.

That goes to I think the association of Washington Cities.

Um the grant program, there's requirement to file how again the positions we funded or whatever we did with the grant program to file that with the I believe it's the sheriff's association annually to show that.

Um so those are the ongoing requirements in the statute as far as stuff as far as again this program changing or them changing rules.

Um again, this the statute's silent on that in my reading of it, but yeah.

Okay.

That was my question, was just um one of the concerns that I had heard from some of the cities looking authorizing this was that it would then kind of create, I guess, a funded mandate from the state, whereas they continue as each year goes by, if they want to change or do things differently, they can predicate our continued access to these dollars to meeting specific state requirements.

Is that I mean, we don't know that for sure, but I that it's a measure that's a concern.

Yeah, um, thank you very much.

Now, Councilmember Hines, I don't think we can speak to that, but we can speak to the fact that I think you're right on that's a concern, especially with the portion um CGTC will be administrating the grant process.

And so if we hired officers or we hired alternative response uh folks predicated on an approved allocation, 75% and the rules change in the coming years.

I think that's where it's probably your domain as we talk to the legislature about you know certainty.

We need certainty as well as with Councilmember Sidalgi on making sure that we have flexibility that the council is not bound to programs expenditures because we can't bind successive councils to those options with revenues.

Um, I think the part around the model policies that the you know that it's some you know that we're at some level we're outsourcing our policy manual to the state attorney general's office.

That is the incentive, I would say that on the record.

Yeah.

Okay.

Uh so that was that was my one question to kind of that I had going ahead of this.

Um something I would just really like to see um is um how what are we currently so something I'd asked the city manager and finance director for is what are we currently spending money on that would qualify as expenses and what what are the were that what are those allocations look like?

Because I guess my question would be that whenever we talk about new revenue source.

I mean, I want to I, as an elected official, want to do something new and exciting and spend more money on something new and exciting, but often a lot of these things were are underfunded or not funded in full capacity.

So I'd really love to see kind of what we're already doing and maybe how this could be allocated along with potentially looking at doing more.

Yeah, so that there's a quick answer to that one, and literally probably anything currently going on in the police department would qualify for funding under this.

So we spend 250 million dollars in the biennium on our police department, and this money could go straight to that.

It could cover overtime.

We do have we have a ton of money when we talk about heel teams, hope teams, hot teams.

So we could give you a list.

Teams that don't start with H?

Yeah, there is a ton uh ton of spending we do right now that would qualify under this under current programs that far exceed the seven million dollars this would raise annually.

So yeah.

Yeah, I mean, I think I I I agree in with my colleagues to the need, um, definitely would be supportive of exploring this.

I just want us also be recognized, be cognizant of what we're already spending money on that may be underfunded or not fully funded, along with that.

Um, I'd I would really I'd be cautious about pre-allocating all of this money ahead of time.

Um, but that's just something I've been thinking through there.

My only other question, Annie, and you said this just to clarify.

So, unlike M said, where if the county goes first and we go that we don't get it, there's like this impetus that we need to go first to get the money off the table.

We don't assume that these are not, it's not if the county approves it first, then we don't get it versus there's no they they just additive on top of each other.

Yeah, this is unique and it's an additive thing, so it doesn't matter who goes when the sales tax rate just goes up when someone does it.

So okay.

Well, that makes uh that that makes a lot of sense.

And thank you for the the chart of where we are on the sales tax regional comparison.

I think that's really good.

Uh thank you, Madam Mayor.

Those are all of my questions.

Uh thank you very much, Councilmember Hines.

All right, I don't see any other questions, and I think everybody got to ask some.

So um thank you.

Um obviously Young will work together to get this discussion going amongst the council um and then decide what get wait to get that report from you to figure out what our next steps are around this one.

Thank you.

All right, we're gonna move on to other items of interest.

Um our second agenda item is a C CR that I am bringing forward.

Um if you all remember back in September, we announced um when we did welcoming week, we talked about um the year of belonging.

Um that that we were gonna launch, and this initiative is focused on building understanding and collective growth across the city with a special focus on celebrating and fostering unity with our immigrant and refugee community, BIPOC community in the LDBT QIA plus community.

Um at this time, it is more important than ever to make sure um that people understand that Tacoma is a place that they belong.

Um, and so in this time when um immigrant and refugee communities are faced with insurmountable risk and uncertainty, we want to make sure that people know that Tacoma will continue to be a place of opportunity.

Um this funding will be provided to Tacoma Community House to support the overall cost of the initiative, um, including the production of free of charge community events, a communications campaign and outreach.

There have already been several successful events under the umbrella of the year of belonging, including a community convening and discussion, as well as an educational symposium and lunch hosted and supported by Tacoma Community House.

And if you all also remember, this year's Tacoma Reads program was also in partnership with the Year of Belonging, featuring in an interview with author Valerie Korr and a large community event that was produced by the Tacoma Public Library and the Tacoma Public Library is actually partnering with uh Tacoma Community House to uh produce this year of belonging and the library itself will be having events.

Some that were already planned or some that they're planning to be included in the year of belonging.

So I I um I'm asking for your support of this contingency request, and I want to thank co-sponsors, council members Sidalgay and Scott for signing on, and I also want to thank Council Member Walker, who is a board member and whose leadership has been really helpful in um making this partnership successful.

Um, and I will turn to council member Diaz if are there any additional questions.

Thank you.

Um I love it.

Sounds great.

I was just wondering, I don't know if there's too many people on the bus or not, or if I can sign on.

You know what?

Sign up.

We don't have too many people on the bus yet.

You did look, you just got on the bus.

Yeah, now there are no one else.

All right, unless unless we do it at the council meeting, and every council member wants to sign on, we can do that too.

Absolutely, council member Diaz.

Cool.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Councilmember Sabal.

I just want to thank you for the opportunity to co-sponsor this, and you you said exactly what I was gonna say uh now more than ever.

I think it's really important that we um support an initiative like this that goes to our values as a city and its people.

So thank you.

Thank you.

I guess very much.

I did have one other question.

Hi, Councilmember Diaz.

Um I don't know that anybody's in the room who could answer this question unless you happen to know the answer, Mayor.

But I'm wondering if, since this is such a critical component to make sure that folks belong in our community and feel that sense of belonging, that to me sounds cultural.

Is this something that they could use arts funding for if they apply it in the future for?

You know what?

That I would just pause it after the other.

Yeah, no, no, no, let's letters for future possibilities.

Look, noted and we'll look, thank you.

Thank you for for because there will be parts of it I think that could be considered under arts funding.

So we'll we'll find out.

Thank you.

Thank you for the first time.

I don't know if Tacoma Community House has applied for those funds before, but I think if they have it, they should.

I think that's a great great idea because some of the belongings are gonna be those community events.

That that is that is a great idea.

And I also want to say that um we are also so we're coming to council contingency for part of the request, but we also had a little bit of funding left over from the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation funding we got.

So we're gonna match this so they get it actually get a total of $50,000 to do to do this year.

And and just a really simple goal of mine is I don't know if you remember several summers ago when we did we um during COVID, there was a kind of like a thing for youth, like kind of youth belong here going along in partnership.

You remember UWT had that that that that's that theme as well, um, where people hung signs in any of their storefronts where kids where kids were welcome.

We want that kind of feeling where every place you walk into has something that says you belong here.

So um, what a great way just to show just to without everybody having to say, just the way to visibly show that when you walk in here, this is a place where you are welcome to be.

So um, but but thank you for that.

That's a great idea.

And we'll get we'll find out if they can, and if they can get them the information.

All right.

So that is that one.

If there are any further questions, our third agenda item is a CCR for centralized grant tracking system and policy.

And I'm gonna call on council member Diaz, as me.

Um great.

So I think I have talked with um several of my colleagues, but not everyone, over probably the last at least six months, if not longer, about the um CCR before y'all today.

This is um essentially my unveiling of where we've landed.

Um if folks remember, I have been trying to figure out how we as a city can do a more holistic job of tracking the grants that we apply for and accept, and this CCR would help us get to that place of asking the city manager to create a centralized grant tracking system.

Um, one of the big goals of this is to try to get um some more of the grants that we accept on to the city council agenda, just at least on that consent agenda.

Um, I think that's gonna help us be able to share with the community who is often watching our agendas and watching what we're doing, getting just some more transparency and eyes on what kind of grants that we're accepting as a city.

It is a no means a mechanism to try to stifle creativity from staff or from programs who are applying for grants.

So we're really looking at this sort of at the last step of the stage where folks are where the city is sort of signing wet contracts and accepting.

We want as a council to be able to sort of have an eye on that, have some approval over that, maybe even pull things off of a consent agenda if there are more questions from community or from ourselves.

But the thresholds that I'm looking at are for over a hundred thousand dollars or fund operations for folk for that stuff to be on the consent agenda, and for over $500,000 in capital fund projects or as required by our funding agency.

And so some of this particulars are spelled out in here.

They're big, I think note in here is doing this policy, is also gonna help us be better in line with um different grant requirements from the federal government.

So staff has already started working on a sort of very simplified tracking system over the last couple months as we've been trying to get that all streamlined.

So this is almost also a second step to that work that's already been going on.

Um you'll notice on the fiscal impact side, there's a pretty good flesh out of the amount of impact that this could have.

I have, I think Andy, I have some friends who can help answer some of the questions as to how we got to these numbers.

But I'm hoping that folks can ask some more questions as to the content, the how we got here, and as staff have or folks have questions around the dollar amount.

I'm welcome to help have staff facilitate those as well.

But I just wanted to cover my overall intent, help daylight this and see what questions folks have so that we can um either take them offline or get them um sort of some one-on-ones or some two-on-ones to get the policy even more crafted, um, and then hopefully bring this forward uh before the end of the year so that we can make sure that we've got some more protections and transparency for next year and some ability to bake that into future budgets.

Um thank you, Councilmember Diaz.

And I just want to start by saying thank you.

Um, I think this is a really good idea, and to be able to have people just be able to go and access it and see for themselves.

I think the other part, the the unintended consequence, which is a good one in this case, is that is that um people can see how much money, how hard we really do work to bring additional dollars to the city.

And I think a lot of times people have no idea about that, and this is another great way to be able to educate our community as to how the city is funded.

So thank you.

Thank you for this idea.

I'm gonna call on council member walker, followed by council member Sabalke.

Thank you.

Um, and thank you, Councilmember Diaz, for bringing this forward.

And it seems like a really thoughtful approach that makes sense to me.

Um, excited to have a little bit more or a lot more transparency around what grants we are the city is approving as a whole.

Um, and then specifically the looking or being able to look at the details um on some of them.

So I have two clarifying questions.

One, um, there's two bullets in here that require city council approval, the over 100,000, blah, blah, blah, over 500,000, blah, blah, blah.

Are those two brand new, or is are any of those already in effect?

So, for example, if we're approving a uh, let's say public works roads project that's 750,000 at this time that would not come to council.

Is that what I'm understanding?

So, this is all new.

Okay.

Thank you.

Um, and then I'm wondering in this maybe city manager, can you talk a little bit more of the fiscal impact and um I guess maybe I just missed this, like the ongoing cost of a grant management system.

So we don't have a grant management system at all right now, or this is adding more capacity to it.

Can you just walk through a little bit more of the fiscal impact?

Because I'm not understanding how it's so much.

Absolutely, Councilmember Walker.

Um, I'm gonna back up a little bit.

Um, I think I I'd like to just give this CCR is coming at a very good time for the city.

The paradigm yesterday in terms of of grant funding.

Um, we've we've let and we've continued to celebrate our departments and our divisions seek out grant funding for anything and everything, you know, yesterday.

Um, and with the changes that have happened since um January of this year, uh, we have been limping along with the notion of we need to get it, we need to centralize.

And so we've been doing this process without the software, the programs, and so we're doing a lot of um really amazing work, but in order to keep that work ongoing, that's the fiscal impact.

We need to look at systems, a systems approach of actually tracking and uh making sure that those programs are those grants that we're seeking out or capital funding that we're seeking out, it's not only for transparency say coming to the council on your consent agenda or in other ways in which that this would fulfill the CCR, um, but also that um we would have the staffing uh complement as well.

Um, and this would not, and I I want to make sure that for my colleagues across our whole enterprise.

This is not to say that we're gonna centralize all grants within one office within OMB.

Um that's not what we're proposing here, but as far as having the software, the tracking software to have the folks that are actually uh looking at that.

That's mainly what the fiscal impacts are.

We've done a pretty prudent course of how to put these numbers in here.

This could change as well as as we're designing this program um to June of 2026.

This gives us enough time to come back to you all in dialogue with you that maybe we don't need that.

Maybe we already have existing programs.

Maybe our existing URP can actually hold this.

Maybe this is a module that we could turn on.

Um we're gonna pursue all those options.

Yeah, absolutely.

Great, thank you.

Thank you.

That's super helpful.

So, does this propose an uh it does it in uh propose one FTE, or it's up to the city manager to tell us what you need?

Both and it proposes one, and the city manager has the flexibility to figure out what more or less is needed.

I think one of the things that we talked through, I sort of underplayed how long we've been working on this and how many conversations we've had.

We um we and the royal we more Linda than I, but also I was in some of the conversations with all the different departments around what they would need.

That's how we landed on the different threshold amounts, so they're all really informed by what staff has seen.

Um it's part of why we got to um grants that the city receives annually, so public works won't have to come in here every time we get whatever allocation it is we always get from the state on something, those kinds of things, but come through looking like a grant.

Um, and then there was a lot we talked through with TPU, and we've landed on their board is gonna pass a complementary policy for them to work through and then centralize into the system.

But one of the pieces that we talked around around capacity in FTE is because we're adding something the consent agenda.

I think all of the folks in the course office would appreciate the bandwidth help too.

Um since grants have kind of come in kind of fast, we're not trying to delay any grants, but we also make sure they have capacity to appropriately notice things and get things into our packets and agendas, and for some reason we are pulling stuff out, folks are prepared for that kind of work too.

Does that cover it?

Thank you both for those, and thank you, Councilman Rodiaz and Linda for all the work on this.

I'm really excited to move this forward.

You welcome co-sponsors.

Do you not have do you not have them all yet?

I haven't asked anyone.

This is my unveiling.

Uh oh.

My mic's on.

I want to be co-sponsor.

Yay.

Um council member.

Look, that I was gonna call on council member Sadalgi, but I figured I should just chime in before I call on him so he doesn't get the last slot.

Uh go ahead, Councilmember Sidalge.

Thank you, Mayor.

Uh yeah, I'm generally supportive of this idea.

Um, because first of all, we need transparency and and visibility.

But one thing that I think is is a potential uh benefit over here that could offset this cost that I'd love to um think about maybe more intentionally is the um operational efficiencies we can get organizational organizationally, right?

I mean let's face it, grants are a type of uh you know additional revenue, and if we can be better about getting additional revenue matching or not, that helps us in every way, shape, or form.

Um can you talk about some of the visions or if if you need it written in here about also using this as a vehicle to just help us be more efficient, spread knowledge between departments, etc.

Yeah, I would I would thank you very much, Councilmember Sidalgi.

Um as Councilmember Diaz has been um dialoguing and giving staff a lot of space to anticipate, you know.

The the I I think we should all probably pause and celebrate our team in fiscal year 25, just in federal federal grant funding.

Um, we have a little over 70 million dollars that are going through our system.

And from a 460 million dollar general fund budget on a biannual basis, that is not only material, it is we should celebrate our team that is 70.

You said 70.

70, 70 million.

That's seven tenths of one percent on our tax, by the way.

It is how we leverage um Tacoman's.

Sorry, that's 10.

It's seven million a year, so it's like 10 of these.

It's it's it's it's so I think we should celebrate our team.

This this CCR is not to say that's not what we want to, you know.

This is about efficiencies to your point.

Um, this is about well, I don't think you can say anything more efficient instead you could have had an 11.3% sales tax, but we had a 10 point three because we had a 1070 million dollars in the city.

This council should celebrate that.

This is something that you are doing on behalf of your constituents.

I'll stop there because yeah, no, it's I this is why I said this is this part of nobody understands like how hard our staff work and how how much we do with grant money, and so that's that's that's amazing.

And I'm again, I just leave when I heard this heard the number, I'm like, oh my god, this is so exciting to be able to share this.

It might create a little bit more work, but the end result of educating community around this and letting other people, even local funders see where they where they fit in, how they it just I think is it's just a great opportunity.

So on the yes end over here is I don't know if you need this in this or or I can talk to council member Diaz about you know maybe putting a little more intentionality about using this as a way to strengthen the entire organization, spread knowledge amongst everyone on how we're winning um uh grants, best practices, etc.

Yeah, I'm sorry, I intercepted that question.

Um from a staff perspective, Councilmember Sidalge.

I anticipate um that councilmember Diaz's C CR.

This is an iterative process.

We're gonna launch something by by summer next year, um, or sooner if we can, and we're gonna iterate and say, you know, there might be you know we have you authorize through TMC signature authority for signing off on contracts as your interim city manager.

I sign off on contracts over a hundred or five hundred thousand dollars.

This is an iterative process, maybe a hundred thousand is too low, maybe it's too high.

We're we're gonna we're gonna iterate and see what this looks like because the spirit of this is it's transparency first and foremost for our community, but also letting the council have um uh not just a say but uh buy-in authorization for what we're doing, and then maybe that's the way mayor we're we'll talk to the community about what what this city is doing on behalf of our constituents and how we're leveraging other dollars, not just local taxes.

Thank you.

I think I would just add two things to that.

One is part of the goal of the transparency is in our council agendas.

I know that there are things that are very contentious with community members, particularly purchase agreements or um different MFTEs, and we often bring things to council that are required to come here, and I think creating a new requirement for us to have different things on the consent agenda it gives an opportunity to have some of those bragging stories beyond just the press release of the other ways that we communicate out when we get big braggable grants.

I think this lets us sort of brag about everything and have some scrutiny on anything that folks might not be as excited about.

Um I think part of, and I don't know that we outlined in here, but Councilmember Sadalga's question reminded me that it might be very helpful to staff on the institutional knowledge front.

So do you have so many people retiring or folks come and go?

I think having a central database would help in the future for folks to know.

Oh, we used to get that funding for this or that, or I think it can only be a helpful tool for folks.

All right, Councilmember Bush now.

Oh, thank you, Mayor.

And thank you, Councilmember Diaz for bringing this forward.

I I do think this is very timely given all the the grants, and it's a really fantastic number, 70 million in grants is huge, but it could be more.

And that's where I think our process improvement and the CCR could really help with that.

Uh, one of the questions I had is oftentimes grants do you have like a certain percentage that's allocated towards like administrative costs.

Would would this um these ongoing annual costs would we be able to build towards that?

Councilmember Bush.

No, I think that would be case by case.

Um, on there's no two grants that are alike.

Actually, that's probably not a true statement.

There probably are some grants that are the same.

We'd case by case take a look at that in terms of how we can fully cost recover uh for administrating on those, and we have a number of grants too.

Of that 70 million, it's not just for Tacoma, too.

We also wield dollars from the federal government to neighboring jurisdictions as well, uh, the city of Lakewood for when it comes to community development block grant funding.

Um we wield those dollars on behalf of Lakewood as well.

And so when we're trying to cost recover administrative costs, that's where our fiscal discipline, that's where I do anticipate we will be doing and and the teams already do the teams, the individual amazing folks that are are seeking out these grant funds on an annual basis, monthly basis.

They'll be looking at that.

Great.

Thank you.

And and I also think about um, you know, we're we're competing for these grants in a lot of in a lot of ways, a lot of times, and we want to make sure that whatever we're doing is the most uh strongest application, and uh would would having a system like this be able to help with that and would be able to get beyond 70 million in the future potentially.

I I will be optimistic.

I I I don't think this hurts.

Um, I think this is this can only help in taking a look, and then also from uh accountability standpoint too, on behalf of the community.

Um we can also tell that story of what we were receding last year, 10 years ago to today.

We'll take a look what where are we um doing really well, and that's where we get to celebrate our team.

I think it can hurt it can absolutely help.

Absolutely.

Great, thank you.

I'm looking forward to supporting us.

Thank you.

All right, council member Hines.

Oh uh, thank you, Madam Mayor.

I think I have a uh sounds like a I I no real questions about this proposal.

I think it sounds great.

My question though is about the last bullet point, which is in the case of grants for Tacoma Public Utilities.

So do they have a process by which they approve grants to the utility board?

Not to my knowledge, not currently, but we can't direct them as a separate board to do it.

So we're essentially going to pass this here.

Should we pass it and then hand it over and say, hey, would you like to adopt a similar policy?

Okay.

So don't we have to sign off on larger grants to come through them if they're of a sizable amount?

I don't have that answer.

I would like to get back to you on that one.

Uh yeah, I'd love to know because I know that they have grants that are in the excess of millions, tens of millions, hundreds of millions of dollars that if we're gonna bring this level of transparent to some see that some of the things we're signing on to from the grant side at the city side, I think it would be incumbent upon us to say about how we continue to bring that kind of transparency to the utility side.

So I guess my question would be what is your current authorized authority to sign a contract without council approval?

What is yours?

I mean what cut the thousand 500,000.

What's the utility director's authorized?

I wish I do that.

I apologize.

So that's another question.

This is uh this is a process question I have.

It's 500,000 for TPU direct person.

And so anything above that has to go to the utility board for that approval.

And corresponding to the council.

Okay.

Yeah, I think just the way we can align some of that as much as we can.

I mean, we're gonna have utilities like environmental services that is also doing grant funding, large amounts of dollars from state and federal partners that we're gonna be approving through this process.

I I think it would be good for us to be operating on the same level of transparency with our other utilities too.

And we did meet with Director Hore, so we're happy to revisit that conversation too.

That'd be great.

Uh I'll have it, all the details in my memory right now.

Yeah, I it's just something it's just uh got into my mind as we're looking at that part about how we kind of are transparent.

And then do they maybe this is for the either the motion maker, do they have a grant tracking system for the utility?

No.

Don't they get an upwards of like hundreds of millions of dollars in grants?

And there's no grant tracking.

Uh undoubtedly our financial um reporting reports out um uh the grants that we're receiving each year, but as far as a grant tracker, a centralized repository, um, I'll speak for the general government.

Um our departments are keeping track, but our finance at the end of the day, we have that.

It's just not fair.

Okay.

I yeah, I recognize the balance we have to strike between speed and flexibility versus transparency.

Like, and usually they don't have to be mutually exclusive, but sometimes they are in tension.

Um that the this is just I'm sure that someone from the utility is listening and watching this right now.

Um just making me think about how we're tracking all this across the entire organization, especially when I think about some of the grants that we have applied for and received on the utility side that are very large.

Yeah.

Um and Councilmember Hines, this is probably a little bit adjacent to answering that that central propository on an annual basis as a municipality when we receive more than 750,000, I believe, in federal funding, we're required to do a single scope audit of all federal funds that we actually receive in terms of conformity to CFR regulations, all those things.

So we do have that report.

It's in our I'm gonna say um it's our ACFER so our annual comprehensive financial report, or is it CAFER?

I'm I'm juxtaposing what what you call that report, but there is a report that goes out to the community.

I don't expect that Tacomans are are getting that report and reading it, even though we have a finance department that's award-winning um with that act for report, but it is there.

So okay.

I I probably have offline questions about exactly what we're buying with this if all these things exist in many different forms that uh we should we have chatted about before.

Um then I'll talk to the the um the the person the what I'm losing the term the it's not the motion maker, the sponsor is brought forward last questions off the line.

Thank you.

Be helpful, thank you.

All right, uh Deputy Mayor Daniels.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um, and thank you, Councilmember Diaz for bringing this forward.

I think um I know just over the past few years just thinking about different things expenditures that we've taken on and um different things that we didn't know that we had signed up to do that have kind of caused confusion in the community.

I assume that that's what is inspired.

This I haven't heard anybody else talk about anything other than that, so I I could only assume that that's kind of where this is coming from.

And I think it's a great idea.

I don't I feel like we should have a system to not only what we say yes to, but like what and how we're applying for things.

Like what are we applying for things?

Like, is there a value system for what we're applying for?

Um, kind of at the beginning.

Um, and I don't think I have any concerns about this except for the fiscal impact.

Um, I'm looking at $390,000 and then 281 year over year and an FTE.

That's concerning to me.

Um, not because I don't think that we should be tracking, but I wonder if this if taking on this kind of debt after we just did cuts is the right first step.

I wonder if there is another way, a more um financially responsible way to manage grants.

I I know that we have spreadsheets.

I know there's a way that we could probably do this more efficiently just in this time.

I just am hesitant about taking on um year over year debt like this that doesn't something that I know that people have been like really asking for, and um I guess that's my only hesitance um just in the cost, and I just wonder if there's other options to that.

I apologize.

Deputy mirror, I'm it it sounds like I'm intercepting another uh comment question.

Um the the great thing about the CCR in directing myself and the staff is that we would be coming to council with a fully vetted plan with fiscal impacts, and the council will consider those as we develop those uh fiscal impacts and whether or not that is something that the council is willing to do.

It's not tomorrow, but it will be in the coming months.

And we would be pursuing all efficiencies if we have existing programs that we can utilize existing modules within our ERP to track grants if that's something that we can do without a cost burden.

We're always gonna seek that first.

Okay, so this is just the this doesn't allow you to spend this much money and hire this person.

Um is there's a is there another process of the yes or no?

Like you need to find something cheaper, or like is there another process before we spend this kind of money that happens after the CCR?

Or is this just saying like you have the power to spend this much money now?

No, we're not saying this is the this is the amount of money the city manager needs to go spend.

We're directing the city manager to create a program, and these were the estimates that staff gave us that might cost.

It could come in different.

And the yes or no point's gonna be at the next biennial budget because it's gonna be in that conversation.

So the so the budget will be the yes no.

Yeah.

Um, and then will you need the funds before the budget to be able to spend?

I don't think so.

I mean you can't do this until the next biennial, till the end of next year, basically.

Okay.

Given given step enough time to be able to do their homework and exactly programs could be out there, what software packages might be out there to aggregate.

We're ordering a plane.

This is not at all what kind of seats or carpets.

Got it.

Okay.

Sounds good.

All right.

I don't see any other comments.

Thank you, Councilmember Diaz.

All right.

Um, I uh I'm gonna ask um Cheryl Bidelman to come up to the table real quickly.

You stay right there, Hyung.

You don't don't nope, you no you all see me being prescriptive to the city manager.

He knows why.

Um I asked Gerald to come up to the table to join just in case you all have any questions.

I wanted to give kind of just a brief update.

Um, we have some things that'll be happening before next Tuesday.

Next Tuesday, we're gonna bring you a full update on the OSAC committee, but wanted to give you a brief update of of what's been happening and what you're gonna see in um in the coming week or so before um before um we get to sit down and do a full report out with you around what OSEC has been up to.

Um, you all remember we've been going back and forth and got some input from you.

This has been approved by OSAC, but on this Friday, the 14th, um, the qual the the um the profile for the city manager position will be released.

And basically the profile is just announcing that the position is open and where to apply.

And all of you got a cop should have gotten a copy in your in basket, but Cheryl Cheryl has copies for everyone today.

Um, take a look at it if for something something stands out to you and you feel like it needs to be changed.

Please reach out to me before close of business um before noon tomorrow, because this is planning to be released on Friday, um, so that we have enough time to get the job description out there on next Tuesday.

Um we will bring forward a full report of what OSAC's been doing.

Um I do have the timeline kind of in front of me, but we'll also bring forward to you OSAC meets on Friday.

We're gonna bring forward to you some questions about how you all want to engage and a proposal about how what that engagement may look like.

Um and so OSAC will kind of refine that and then share it with all of you and then have you all answer some questions so we know what you want OSAC to do versus what you want um what you want the council to be fully engaged in just so that everybody can meet whatever their specific needs are.

Um but but the position will open up on this Friday and we'll close on December 12th.

Um and then um Prothman will begin to as a matter of fact, Profman who the who the committee has hired, um will then begin to um no excuse me, Prothman is the group that the that OSAC voted for the city to hire for human resources to hire and work with on this search.

Um but um Prothman as soon as I get them will begin to review the applications with the goal that um towards the end of January you all will begin to conduct your first round of interviews with an ideal, and I won't go through all that through all of it, but with the ideal that a new set city manager could start um as soon as the 30th of March.

So that's that's kind of how it's set up again.

I'll give you all the details.

Um, but just wanted to make sure that the announcement didn't get out, and you all say, wait a second, nobody even told us the announcement was going out.

So just wanted to make sure that you knew that.

Cheryl, am I missing it?

Anything you want to add there?

I would just add one other thing, and that is that about a month ago we launched a stakeholder survey.

Thank you for that.

Um is a survey for the community and for staff to give input for city council to review about what they think are the most important knowledge skills and abilities for the new city manager.

And in addition to that, we're asking um the stakeholders if there were any one question they would want to ask a candidate.

What would it be?

So we'll use those questions as part of the process and use that input to um craft our interview questions and that sort of thing.

Um we're intending that that survey will close this Friday, but we'll also be visiting that conversation with OSAC on Friday to see if we want to extend that survey.

We still have a little bit of time, we could extend it.

Um at this point, we received uh near nearly 200 responses, so I think that's a decent-ish response, but we could we could certainly have more.

And so we'll we'll discuss that this Friday.

Um, and I think those are the main points.

Um, for those of you as council members who do newsletters, and I'm saying this the staff too.

If you have a newsletter that's coming out in the next couple weeks, or if you want to send out a note to everyone you mail a newsletter to attaching um the um link to take in the survey, be more than happy to get the link to all of you if you want to share it with others.

It would be great to get as many responses as we can around um around what people feel they want to see in the city manager as well as what questions they want to ask, and then as we go through the rest of the process, we'll be able to incorporate that information into the process.

Yes.

We have um there's a sandwich board out in the hallway that has the QR code that's a direct link to the site, and the site is uh Tacoma.gov slash CM recruitment.

So if anyone types that into the browser, the site will pop up.

We're working on a set of FAQs.

Um we'll have a link to the application for the position, and there's a lot of other information there for the community to be aware of.

Great.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Cheryl.

Cheryl, thank you for being my phone if I don't move yet, though.

Are there any council questions or comments at this time?

I want to thank OSAC for getting all this work done.

I haven't been able to be present at a couple of meetings, so just really grateful to the to the OSAC team and um the team being both council members Walker, uh Bushnell, and Scott, and then to our HR team and Ben Thoroughgood, who is our staff liaison.

So thank you.

Thank you, Cheryl.

Seeing no questions.

All right, city manager, agenda review.

Thank you, Madam Mayor, um uh deputy mayor and council.

Um no ceremonials on tonight's agenda, no modifications proposed for the agenda.

Uh, two opportunities for the public to comment under public comment as well as uh for our second opportunity for regular public comment regarding motion.

I'm sorry, the first public comment is regarding motions and ordinances on this afternoon's agenda for the special meeting of the transportation benefit district governing board.

Uh this will take place before our 3 p.m.

city council meeting.

So it's a little bit reverse order, and then we'll have a second public comment regarding any actions that are before this council.

So that is my report.

And the meeting will still start at three.

It's just we'll start with the transportation benefit district to see you all.

Just just don't think you need to come before three.

We're just going to do that one first and then roll into our regular council meeting.

So perfect.

City manager, thank you.

Any questions for the city manager?

Nice to have you back, City Manager.

Um, all right.

If there aren't any other questions or comments, I'll entertain the final motion for this meeting.

I move to adjourn.

Second.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

All those opposed.

Before I adjourn, it's just a reminder.

We have a special council meeting today that will start at three o'clock.

Um, and then once that meeting has concluded, we will take part in the 150.

I'm not going to try to say the word, the 150th set sesquinces.

It's sesque centennial.

Sesquincent Sesque Centennial.

Yes.

Yes, exactly what Councilmember Scott said.

For those of you who need interpretation, 150 year anniversary of the um the celebration of Tacoma becoming part of a city in 150 years ago.

So with that, hope to see everyone tonight.

Um, but we uh stand adjourned.

See you at three o'clock, and the community.