[MEETING TO ORDER]
[00:00:17]
>> AFTERNOON. IT IS NOT 4:00 P.M. AND I WOULD LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THE MEETING OF THE FORT PIERCE UTILITY .
>> HEAVENLY FATHER AS WE COME BEFORE YOU TODAY WE ASK THAT YOU PROVIDE ARE BORED WITH YOUR WISDOM AND COMPASSION AS THEY DEAL WITH DECISIONS THAT AFFECT BOTH FPUA AND THE CITIZENS WE SERVE. WE ACKNOWLEDGE AND IS PROVERBS 21:1 STATES, THEIR HEARTS ARE IN YOUR HANDS AND YOU MOVE THEM LIKE RIVERS OF LIVING WATER SO WE PRAY THAT THEIR HEARTS DESIRES MATCHUP WITH THE DESIRES YOU HAVE FOR THEM AS THEY GOVERN OVER FPUA
IN JESUS NAME WE PRAY AMEN. >> I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS ONE NATION UNDER GOD INDIVISIBLE WITH
LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. >> THANK YOU, YOU MAY BE
[A. SET THE AGENDA]
>> LET THE RECORD REFLECT WE HAVE A QUORUM PRESENT. THE NEXT ITEM IS SETTING THE AGENDA. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO SET THE
AGENDA ? >> MADAM CHAIR I HAVE A QUICK EDIT. ITEM D6 IS BEING PULLED FROM THE AGENDA AND WE WILL PRESENT THAT ITEM AT A LATER DATE.
>> I MOVED TO APPROVE WITH THAT CHANGE.
>> THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS PUBLIC COMMENTS. IF THERE IS ANY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC THAT WOULD LIKE TO COME FORWARD AND SPEAK, YOU MAY DO SO NOW. WHEN YOU COME, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS FOR THE RECORD. IT WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES TO ADDRESS THE BOARD. SEEING NO ONE HAS COME FORTH, I
[C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES]
WILL NOW CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENTS AND MOVED TO THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES. EACH OF YOU SHOULD HAVE A COPY OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING ON JUNE 18TH , 2024.[D. CONSENT AGENDA]
ANY CHANGES REQUESTED, OR DO I HAVE A MOTION?>> MOVED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES.
>> I WILL SECOND. >> MADAM CLERK, WILL YOU PLEASE
>> YES. >> THANK YOU. WE HAVE A MOTION IN THE SECOND. CLERK -- I'M SORRY, THE MOTION HAS PASSED.
MOVING TO THE CONSENT AGENDA, ARE THERE ANY ITEMS THE BOARD WOULD LIKE TO PULL FOR DISCUSSION ON THE CONSENT
[E.1. Mutual Aid Assistance to City of Tallahassee Electric Utility - Mutual Aid Commendation]
AGENDA OR DO I HAVE A MOTION? >> MOVE APPROVAL.
>> YES MA'AM. WE WILL NOW CONVERT TO THE REGULAR AGENDA .
>> THE FIRST ITEM PUTS THE SPOTLIGHT ON MAY 10TH AFTER WE ANSWER THE CALL FROM THE CITY OF TALLAHASSEE. THEY WERE HIT WITH THREE TORNADOES IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME THAT CAUSED WIDESPREAD OUTAGES OF ABOUT 80,000 RESIDENTS. FPUA CREWS PREPARED TRACKS AND SUITCASES THAT VERY AFTERNOON AND WERE READY TO SHOW UP TO WORK THE FOLLOWING MORNING. THE TALLAHASSEE ELECTRIC DIRECTOR, TONY, SAID IT WAS THE WORST STORM RELATED EVENT HE'S BEEN INVOLVED IN OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS TO INCLUDE MULTIPLE HURRICANES HE HAS BEEN THROUGH.
AS PART OF THIS, FPUA CREWS RECEIVE PUBLIC ACCOMMODATION FROM THE POWER ASSOCIATION AND THE CREWS ARE HERE TODAY. WE HAVE TONY GONZALEZ, MICHAEL GOLDSMITH, DADE CAPER, LOGAN BECKETT, BRANDON RICHARDSON AND RYAN SPENCER, WHO IS NOT HERE TODAY AND WE WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR NOT ONLY JUST WORKING ON THE FPUA SYSTEM EACH AND EVERYDAY BUT ALSO STEPPING UP TO HELP . A TIME OF NEED FOR TALLAHASSEE AND WHAT WE ARE LOOKING TO DO IS WE WILL TAKE A PICTURE WITH THE BOARD DOWN HERE AND THEN WITH ALIGNMENT THEN AFTERWARDS WE WILL TAKE THE ONE WITH FINANCE SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO GO DOWN TWICE.
COME ON UP, GUYS. WE WILL TAKE A QUICK PICTURE.
[00:05:14]
ANYWHERE, ANYWHERE.>> THANK YOU SO MUCH. >> NOT A PROBLEM. WE WILL GET
THE FINANCE TEAM UP HERE. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH.
[E.2. GFOA Distinguished Budget Presentation Award]
>> MADAM CHAIR, THE NEXT ITEM PUTS THE SPOTLIGHT ON FPUA'S FINANCE TEAM AND WE HAVE A PRESENTATION FROM MICHELLE.
FISCAL YEAR 24 ANNUAL BUDGET. THE ANNUAL BUDGET HAS BEEN RATED EITHER PROFICIENT OR OUTSTANDING IN FOUR AREAS.
POLICY DOCUMENT, THE FINANCIAL PLAN, OPERATIONS GUIDE AND COMMUNICATIONS TOOL. THIS YEAR WE WERE AWARDED SPECIAL RECOGNITION FOR BUDGET PROCESS. THAT MEANS ALL THREE REVIEWERS RATED THE DOCUMENT OUTSTANDING . FOR A DESCRIPTION FOR PREPARING, REVIEWING AND ADOPTING THE BUDGET. VISUAL PRESENTATIONS TO ENHANCE THE NARRATIVE WERE ALSO WELL-RECEIVED. VIEWERS HAVE AN OPTION TO WRITE AND COMMENT THOUGHTS AND SUGGESTIONS AND I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THEIR COMMENTS BECAUSE COMMENTS THIS YEAR WERE THE BEST THAT WE HAVE EVER GOTTEN, SO KIND OF LIKE YELP REVIEWS, JUST WANT TO SHOUT OUT SOME OF THEIR COMMENTS. THE COMMENTS WERE THE STAFF PRETTY MUCH TOGETHER DID A GREAT JOB. THE PRESENTATION
[00:10:01]
OF PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS WERE SOME OF THE BEST THIS REVIEWER HAS EVER SEEN. THE USE OF INFOGRAPHICS THAT TIE AUTHORITIES TO STRATEGIC GOALS WAS GREAT. THE DISCUSSION ABOUT COMPLIANCE AND ADOPTION OF THE STATEMENTS WERE KNOWS -- NOTEWORTHY AND IT APPEARED TO BE AN EFFICIENT PRESENTATION WITH THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF DETAIL FOR THE READER AND THE LAST ONE IS IMPORTANT FOR US BECAUSE WE STRIVE TO MAKE THE DOCUMENT APPEALING TO OUR READERS AND NOT JUST A BUNCH OF NUMBERS AND I KNOW THERE IS A WHOLE GROUP PRESSURE BEHIND ME BUT IF IT WAS NOT FOR THEM THE VISUAL WOULD NOT BE HAPPENING SO IF YOU GIVE ME A MINUTE TO IDENTIFY THEM INDIVIDUALLY, THAT WOULD BE GREAT, AND TELL ABOUT WHAT THEY DO WITH THE BUDGET. LORI AND TONYA , STAND AND WASTE. THEY DO OUR O AND M SECTION OF THE BUDGET AND KEY AND TRACY ARE IN CHARGE OF CAPITAL BUDGETING AND LONG-TERM PLANNING AND AND OR DOES THE DEBT MANAGEMENT AND THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES. AND YOU KNOW BARBARA. IF IT WAS NOT FOR THAT TEAM -- YES, THANK YOU[E.3. Quarterly Financials]
GUYS VERY, VERY MUCH. WE'RE REALLY PROUD OF THIS CONGRESSMAN AND THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE THEM ASHOUT OUT. >> YES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO
MUCH. WHAT AN OUTSTANDING JOB. >> MADAM CHAIR, MICHELLE IS PRESENTING THE NEXT ITEM, WHICH IS THE QUARTERLY FINANCIAL PRESENTATION SO WE WILL LET HER MOVE ON TO THAT ONE AND SHOW US
WHY SHE WON THE AWARD. >> YES, DO YOUR THING.
>> THANK YOU AGAIN, MR. CISNEROS, MADAM CHAIR, MAYOR HUDSON AND BOARD MEMBERS. I WILL BE PRESENTING TO YOU TODAY THE FINANCIAL OPERATING RESULTS FOR THE END OF THE SECOND QUARTER FOR FISCAL YEAR 24. THE FIRST OF OUR COMPARATIVE DATA COMPARES THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF FISCAL YEAR 24 AGAINST THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF FISCAL YEAR 23. OUR OPERATING REVENUES DECREASED $6 MILLION AND THAT WAS PRIMARILY DO TO THE REDUCTION IN THE PCA BILL TO ELECTRIC CUSTOMERS. IF YOU RECALL DURING THE FIRST SIX MONTHS LAST YEAR IT ARRANGED ANYWHERE FROM $19-$30 PER KILOWATT HOUR AND THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THIS YEAR THE PCA WAS AT ZERO. OPERATING EXPENSES DECREASED $6 MILLION DUE TO THE DECREASE IN PURCHASES FOR RESALE. OPERATING INCOME INCREASED ABOUT $380,000 .
INVESTMENT AND OTHER INCOME INCREASED ABOUT 1.5 AND THAT IS DUE TO THE INTEREST EARNINGS WE ARE EARNING ON BOND PROCEEDS AND OR GRANT REVENUE THAT HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED HAS INCREASED 1.7 COMPARED TO SIX MONTHS LAST YEAR. THE FOLLOWING CHARTS WILL COMPARE ACTUAL REVENUES AND EXPENSES VERSUS BUDGETED AND THE BUDGETED FIGURES APPEAR ON THE RIGHT. TOTAL REVENUES VERSUS BUDGET ARE BOTH BELOW PROJECTION BY ABOUT 12 MILLION, OR 15% BUT ACTUAL EXPENSES VERSUS BUDGET ARE BELOW PROTECTION BY ABOUT 4.8 MILLION. THE CHANGE IN THAT POSITION, WHICH IS ALL REVENUES LESS ALL EXPENSES IS A POSITIVE $14.5 MILLION, WHICH IS THEN IN TURN USE TO FUND CAPITAL PROJECTS AND MAINTAIN SYSTEMS INFRASTRUCTURE. THE FOLLOWING WILL LOOK AT EACH SYSTEM ALONE. THE ELECTRIC ACTUAL REVENUES ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY ABOUT 6.3 MILLION, BUT THEN AGAIN, ACTUAL EXPENSES ARE ALSO BELOW ALMOST 5.5 MILLION DUE TO THE PASTOR AND THE PURCHASES FOR RESALE. THE CHANGE IN THE POSITION FOR THE ELECTRIC SYSTEM IS A POSITIVE 3.7 MILLION AND AS FAR AS CONSUMPTION IS CONCERNED, MEGAWATT HOUR SOLD COMPARED THIS YEAR TO LAST YEAR IS RELATIVELY FLAT. WATER REVENUES VERSUS BUDGET ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY 3% AND ACTUAL EXPENSES VERSUS BUDGET ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY ABOUT 10%, OR 1.1 MILLION. THE CHANGE IN THAT POSITION FOR THE WATER SYSTEM IS ABOUT 5.1 MILLION AND AS FAR AS CONSUMPTION IS CONCERNED, IS RELATIVELY FLAT TO THE SAME TIME LAST YEAR. OR WASTE WATER REVENUES ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY 5 MILLION. AS STATED BEFORE, DUE TO THE TIMING OF THE $15 MILLION REVENUE RECOGNITION FOR RESILIENT FLORIDA BUT LAST BOARD MEETING YOU SIGNED AN AMENDMENT WHERE WE CAN NOW ALLOW INTERIM REIMBURSEMENT.
THERE WAS AN AGREEMENT, SO OVER THE NEXT TWO OR THREE MONTHS YOU'RE GOING TO SEE LESS REVENUE BEING RECOGNIZED SINCE WE ARE AND OUT ALL THE DETAILS OF THAT GRANT AGREEMENT. ACTUAL EXPENSES ARE BELOW $600,000 AND THE REPORTED NET CHANGE IN THE WASTEWATER SYSTEM IS A POSITIVE 5.2 MILLION GALLONS COMPARED TO LAST YEAR DID INCREASE ABOUT 2%. OR GAS REVENUES ARE BOTH PROJECTIONS BY ABOUT 3.5% AND EXPENDITURES ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY ABOUT 9% LEADING INTO A CHANGE IN THE POSITION
[00:15:01]
FOR THE GUEST SYSTEM BY ABOUT $.5 MILLION AND IS INCREASING 11% FROM THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR. FPUA NET REVENUES ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY $300,000 IN ACTUAL EXPENSES ARE BELOW PROJECTIONS BY ABOUT 115,000. THE CHANGE IN THAT POSITION HAS THEM IS A SLIGHT DECREASE OF $22,000 FOR THE YEAR. OUR DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO IS THE RATIO OF THE 12 MONTH AVERAGE OF NET AVAILABLE INCOME TO DEBT SERVICE, WHICH IS PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDING MARCH OF 24 AT THE DEBT TO INCOME RATIO IS 2.67 AND THE RIGHT IS THE MINIMUM REQUIRED BY BOND COVERED AT 1.25. DURING THE BUDGET WORKSHOP YOU ARE PRESENTED WITH GOALS. WE WENT OVER THE DAYS OF CASH ON HAND. WE REALLY WANT TO BE AT 90 DAYS OF CASH EXCLUDING RATE STABILIZATION FUND.MILLION AND WE'VE ALSO CREATED A TIMELINE TO GET ADDITIONAL FUNDS OVER THE NEXT 10 OR 12 MILLION YEARS TO BE AT 5 MILLION AT THE END. THE DAYS OF OPERATING CASH FROM THE BEGINNING OF FISCAL YEAR 23 IS SHOWN ON THE SLIDE IN CURRENT UNRESTRICTED EQUITY AND POOL OF CASH INVESTMENTS AND EXCLUDING RSM. THE TOTAL IS ABOUT 32.4 MILLION, ABOUT 114 DAYS. THE BLACK LINE INDICATES OUR GOAL OF 90 DAYS ON THE RED LINE IS WHERE OUR MINIMUM REQUIRED 45 DAYS FROM BOND COVENANTS. THIS IS SHOWING OUR RATE STABILIZATION FUND, AND THAT IS GOING BACK INTO THE BEGINNING OF FISCAL YEAR 23, AS WELL. THE RATE STABILIZATION FUND AT THE END OF SECOND QUARTER IS AT $9.8 MILLION AND 9.6 OF THAT IS IN THE ELECTRIC SYSTEM. THIS SLIDE SHOWS THE BALANCE IN OUR EMERGENCY FUND, CURRENTLY AT $900,000. IT HAS BEEN THAT WAY SINCE 2016 BUT IN LIGHT OF TIMES AND WE ARE CLOSE TO UTILITY WITH A 900,000 IS GOING TO GET US A LOT AND WE'VE BEEN LUCKY OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS WHERE WE HAD A P.M. WE HAD TO PREPARE AND THAT HAS ALREADY COST US $300,000 WITHOUT REALLY HAVING TO DO MUCH RESTORATION SO WHAT THE SLIDE IS GOING TO SHOW US WHERE WE ARE GOING TO SIT AT THE END OF EVERY FISCAL YEAR TO GET TO OUR PROJECTED 5 MILLION AT THE END OF 2023 AND THIS ITEM IS INFORMATION ONLY BUT I WOULD BE GLAD TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SLIDE OR YOUR PAPERWORK.
>> I'M GOOD. >> THANK YOU, MICHELLE. I'LL GO
[E.4. Sodium Hypochlorite]
TO THE NEXT ITEM IF THAT'S OKAY. THE NEXT ITEM IS A REQUEST TO APPROVE A BID AND CONTRACT FOR THE PURCHASE OF SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE. THE OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR WILL PRESENT THIS ITEM OF THIS ITEM IS FOR THE ENTIRE ORGANIZATION, WATER AND WASTEWATER SO HE IS PRESENTING FOR BOTH DIVISIONS.>> GOOD AFTERNOON. THANK YOU. I AM HERE TO REQUEST THE APPROVAL OF THE BED AND AWARD THE CONTRACT WITH ALLIED UNIVERSAL FOR ROUGHLY $425,000 FOR SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE FOR WATER AND WASTEWATER PLANT TREATMENT CAN'T PROCESSES FOR CONTRACT VALUE NOT TO EXCEED $633,000 ANNUALLY. THIS IS GOING TO TAKE EFFECT JULY 1ST YESTERDAY AND BE GOOD FOR FOUR ONE-YEAR RENEWALS AFTER THIS NEXT YEAR. SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE IS THE LIQUID BLEACH SOLUTION WE USED TO DISINFECT WATER AND WASTEWATER PLANT PROCESSES. SOMETHING WE REALLY CAN'T OPERATE WITHOUT, SO IT IS IMPORTANT. THAT BEING SAID, PRICES OF BEEN ESCALATING OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE WENT OUT FOR COMPETITIVE BID ON THIS.
THE INVITATION TO BID WAS UPLOADED TO OUR DEMAND STAR SITE BACK IN MAY. ONLY TWO COMPANIES RESPONDED WITH REAL NUMBERS, ALLIED BEING ONE OF THEM AND ODYSSEY. ALLIED CAME IN AT A DOLLAR 49 PER GALLON, MUCH CHEAPER THAN ODYSSEY AND WE HAVE A LONG HISTORY WITH ALLIED AND WE KNOW THEY HAVE GOOD SERVICE AND STAFF RECOMMENDS MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS CONTRACT AND I WOULD BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS
YOU MAY HAVE. >> OTHER THAN ALLIED WERE THERE
ANY OTHER COMPETITORS? >> ODYSSEY CORPORATION CAME IN AT $1.70. THOSE ARE THE ONLY TWO THAT RESPONDED. I AM NOT AWARE OF ANY OTHER COMPANIES IN SOUTH FLORIDA THAT WOULD BE A REASONABLE ENOUGH DELIVERY TURNAROUND. YOU KNOW, WE WOULD PROBABLY GET WORSE SERVICE BECAUSE WE WOULD HAVE TO GET UP
[00:20:12]
TO NORTH FLORIDA OR EVEN OUT-OF-STATE. TRANSPORTATIONCOST WOULD FIGURE. >> SO, THIS IS THE BEST WE CAN
DO. >> IT SEEMS LIKE IT. THE MARKET JUST TOLD US THAT, UNFORTUNATELY.
>> AND NOTHING IS DOWN SOUTH? >> DOES NOT SEEM TO BE. LIKE I SAID, I THINK 240 VENDORS GOT OUR REQUEST FOR BID AND LIKE I SAID, ONLY TWO OF THEM CAME BACK WITH REAL SOLID NUMBERS SO FOR A MATTER OF MARKET FORCES ONLY TWO OF THEM WANTED TO SERVICE NOW. THAT MAY CHANGE IN THE NEXT GO ROUND.
>> I HAVE A QUESTION. I KNOW THIS PRICE HAS BEEN ESCALATING.
I THINK KEITH MAY HAVE DONE LAST YEAR'S DISCUSSION ON THIS BUT I'M CURIOUS AND MAYBE JUST BECAUSE I CAN'T REMEMBER, HOW HAS IT BEEN TRENDING IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS SINCE COVID KIND OF THING JUST SO WE CAN O O KINDA SEE THE BIG PICTURE OF HOW FAR WE HAVE COME AND WHERE WE STARTED AND IF IT IS
LEVELING OFF AT ALL . >> I THINK IT IS LEVELING OFF BUT IT HAS GONE UP QUITE A BIT SINCE COVID. IN 2020 WE WERE PAYING $0.49 PER GALLON. $0.59 LAST YEAR -- THE NEXT YEAR THEN IT WENT TO $0.84 AND THEN LAST YEAR WAS $1.36 FOR A LOT OF THOSE SAME INFLATIONARY MEASURES AND NOW WE ARE AT $1.49 SO IT ONLY WENT UP REALLY 9% FROM LAST YEAR TO THIS NEXT YEAR SO THAT IS A MUCH BETTER TREND THAN THE LAST FOUR. YOU ARE SEEING 200% INCREASES OVER THE LAST FIVE BUT WE ARE FEELING PRETTY CONFIDENT NOW THAT THIS 10% WILL BE STRAIGHTFORWARD. I DON'T KNOW HOW IRONCLAD THE CONTRACT IS BUT THE CONTRACT HAS LANGUAGE THAT EVERY YEAR IT IS CAPPED AT A 3% ESCALATION FACTOR, DEPENDING ON ANY MACROECONOMIC HUGE CRISES EVENTS LIKE COVID SO WE SHOULD BE FAIRLY PROTECTIVE FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS ACCORDING TO THE CONTRACT
NUMBERS. >> AND AGAIN, EXCUSE MIND -- MY NAÏVETÉ, IS THIS SOMETHING YOU CAN HARVEST?
>> I HAVE LOOKED INTO THIS. YOU CAN MAKE SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE LIKE A CHLORINE GENERATR IN A POOL BUT IT IS INTENSELY COST PROHIBITIVE TO MAKE THE AMOUNT WE WOULD NEED TO TREAT ON A NORMAL DAILY BASIS. HE WOULD USE PROBABLY TWO TIMES THAT AMOUNT INSULT TO MAKE THE BRINE SOLUTION THEN YOU WOULD HAVE A BRINE SOLUTION YOU WOULD HAVE TO GET RID OF. IT JUST DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE, UNFORTUNATELY. ALLIED, IN FACT, USES ONE OF OUR DEEP WELLS TO DISPOSE OF THEIR BRINE SOLUTION.
>> TO MAKE MONEY OFF OF THEM? >> WOULD YOU CHARGE THEM, YES.
>> SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPS ALWAYS WORK OUT WELL LIKE THAT.
>> YEAH. >> I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND. YOU SAID THE PRICE HOLDS FOR FOUR YEARS ?
>> ACCORDING TO THE CONTRACT LANGUAGE AND I'M SURE THE LAST CONTRACT HAD THIS, TOO. COVID WAS UNPRECEDENTED SO THEY USE THAT AGAINST THEIR CUSTOMERS A LITTLE BIT BUT RIGHT NOW THERE IS A 3% MAXIMUM CONSUMER PRICE INDEX CAN INFLATIONARY MEASURE NOTATED IN THAT. BARRING ANY MAJOR PROBLEMS HOPEFULLY THAT IS THE ONLY INFLATION WE WILL SEE FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
>> AIM OF APPROVAL. >> SECOND.
[E.5. Cisco Unified Communication System Upgrade and Cisco WebEx Contract Amendment No. 1]
>> THANK YOU. THE NEXT ITEM IS A REQUEST TO APPROVE A CONTRACT AMENDMENT WITH CISCO WEBEX . THE COO WILL PRESENT THIS ITEM.
>> THANK YOU, MR. CISNEROS. GOOD AFTERNOON, MADAM CHAIR, MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. IF YOU WILL ALL REMEMBER LAST YEAR 2023 AND OUR STRATEGIC PLANNING SESSION IN PREPARATION FOR 2024, ONE OF THE MAJOR INSTITUTIONS YOU HAD US CHECKOUT WAS BASICALLY A DIGITAL PLATFORM AND OUR PROCESSES AND WHAT WE ARE DOING WITH A LOT OF OUR DIGITAL THINGS. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CAME UP IN CONVERSATION WAS BASICALLY OUR TELEPHONE SYSTEM. WE HAVE HAD A LOT OF CONCERN WITH CUSTOMERS ON JUST DROPPED CALLS AND LONG WAIT TIMES AND SUCH, SO WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS PRESENT TO YOU TODAY A RECOMMENDATION FOR -- LET'S SEE HERE. FOR OUR WEBEX CONTACT
[00:25:05]
CENTER UPGRADE. CURRENTLY WE HAVE A CISCO BASIC SYSTEM WITH SOME OVERLAYS. WE WOULD LIKE TO GET RID OF THE OVERLAYS. WE WOULD LIKE TO UPGRADE CISCO WITH A NATIVE SOLUTION AND TURN IT INTO A CLOUD SOLUTION. THERE IS A LOT OF BENEFITS TO THAT. I WOULD LIKE TO GO OVER SOME OF THOSE DIFFERENCES, SOME OF WHAT THE IMPROVEMENTS MIGHT MEAN TO US IN THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE DIFFERENCES AND ASK FOR YOUR APPROVAL TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE UPGRADE. RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A VISTA POINT, WHICH IS OUR CUSTOMER CONTACT CENTER THAT WORKS WITHIN OUR CISCO SYSTEM. SOME OF THE FEATURES OR NON-FEATURES, THE DIFFERENCES HERE, THERE IS NO CALLBACK OPTION WITH OUR CURRENT SYSTEM.IT IS A NON-PREMISE SOLUTION, WHICH MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE ALL OF OUR SERVICE AND OUR BUILDING AND POWER UP AND RUNNING WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATION BUILDING FOR ANY OF THIS TO WORK EVEN IF WE ARE TRYING TO WORK REMOTELY. ALL THAT HAS TO BE UP AND RUNNING WHICH MEANS WE CAN'T REALLY AFFORD AN EMERGENCY. WITH THE CISCO WEBEX UPGRADE SOLUTION, WE HAVE A CALLBACK OPTION WITH Q RESILIENCE WHICH MEANS IF YOU CALL IN AND YOU WOULD LIKE A CALLBACK YOU MAINTAIN YOUR SPOT IN THE QUEUE. THEY WILL CALL YOU BACK AND YOU DON'T LOSE YOUR SPOT IN THE QUEUE. IT'S A CLOUD-BASED SOLUTION WHICH MEANS EVERYTHING IS IN THE CLOUD. YOU CAN OPERATE FROM ANY LOCATION. WHICH MEANS IF WE LOSE ADMINISTRATION OR SOMETHING HAPPENS IN A MASSIVE STORM, WE CAN STILL TALK TO OUR CUSTOMERS REMOTELY WHETHER IT BE FROM HOME OR MCDONALD'S OR WHEREVER ELSE WE CAN FIND POWER AND GET CONNECTED TO THE INTERNET SO THOSE ARE SOME REALLY GREAT IMPROVEMENTS.
RIGHT NOW WE DON'T HAVE CRADLE TO GRAVE CALL REPORTING. WE LIKE TO HAVE THOSE RECORDING THINGS ONE FOR RECORDS MANAGEMENT WHEN PEOPLE CALLED TO ASK FOR RECORDS AND ALSO FOR TRAINING PURPOSES. WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO GO BACK TO SOME OF THOSE CALLS AND DO SOME OF THOSE THINGS WHERE CISCO HAS COMPLETE CALL RECORDING. EVERYTHING IS RECORDED. IT'S EASY TO CALL AND GET TO AND ALSO WITH CISCO WEBEX WE CAN ADD ADDITIONAL STAFF ON THE FLY. RIGHT NOW, WE ARE LIMITED SPACE. WE HAVE A CALL CENTER WITH FIVE PEOPLE. IF WE FIND OURSELVES IN A MASSIVE EMERGENCY WHERE WE NEED TO ADD PEOPLE WE CAN ADD THEM FROM THEIR OFFICES. PEOPLE CAN LOG ON. IT IS A WEB SERVICE. YOU LOG ON AND NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU ARE A STAFF MEMBER TO HELP TAKE THE CALLS. ON THE TRAINING SIDE OF THINGS, CURRENTLY WITH OUR VISTA POINT SITUATION , OR SUPERVISORS HAVE TO REALLY SIT WITH OUR REPRESENTATIVES, AND THEY HAVE THIS BULKY DUAL RECEIVER FOUND THAT THEY USE AS A TRAINING AID TO HELP EACH OTHER THROUGH THE PROCESS .
RIGHT NOW, AND ESCALATING CALL BASICALLY GETS TRANSFERRED OFFICE THE CSR'S DESK AND INTO THE SUPERVISORS DESK AND NOW THE CSR IS REMOVED FROM THE ENTIRE PROCESS. THEY DON'T GET TO SEE ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS IN THE ESCALATION TO LEARN FROM THAT. WITH CISCO WEBEX THERE IS BUILT IN COMMUNICATIONS WITH CSR AND THE CUSTOMER. BOTH THE SUPERVISOR AND THE CSR CAN BE ON THE CALL AT THE SAME TIME. THERE IS A WHISPER FUNCTION WHERE I CAN WHISPER IN YOUR EAR WHEN YOU'RE WORKING ON THIS AND THE CUSTOMER DOESN'T GET TO HEAR IT SO YOU CAN MONITOR, COACH AND ASSIST ALL OF THE NEW PROGRAM. THAT'S PRETTY GOOD STUFF THERE. WITH VISTA POINT THERE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS. WE CAN ALSO , IN ONE UNIT USER INTERFACE, A SUPERVISOR CAN SEE ALL INCOMING CALLS, ALL CUBICLES, PEOPLE WANTING CALLBACKS, ALL THE EMAILS, ALL THE TEXT, AND IT ALSO HAS AN AI ASSISTANT. THOSE THINGS AREN'T AVAILABLE IN OUR VISTA POINT SYSTEM. WE'VE HAD VISTA POINT FOR QUITE A WHILE AND EVEN BEORE THAT WE HAD A VERY OLD VERSION OF THE CISCO BASE THAT WE HAVE KIND OF CAME FREE WITH OUR PROGRAM SO WE ARE LOOKING TO DO A LOT OF REALLY GOOD THINGS. WE HEARD YOU. WE LISTEN TO WHAT YOU AND THE CUSTOMERS HAD TO SAY AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO GET ALL THAT IN THE PACKAGE AND PUT TOGETHER THROUGH OUR NATIVE PROGRAM AND REMOVE SOME OF THOSE LITTLE THINGS A PART OF WHAT YOU ASKED US TO DO IS TRY TO STREAMLINE SOME OF THESE PROCESSES AND GET SOME OF THE REDUNDANT THINGS OUT OF THE WAY. THIS FIX THAT PERFECTLY. WHAT DOES IT COST? IT IS NOT CHEAP. ADDING THIS CISCO WEBEX INTERFACE BASICALLY UPGRADE IS ABOUT $122,000 UP FRONT COSTS. THERE IS $26,000 WHICH TAKES HER CURRENT SYSTEM BECAUSE RIGHT NOW, WE ARE IN A THREE-YEAR CONTRACT AND WE HAVE ABOUT 18 MONTHS LEFT SO THAT $26,000 GIVES US THE UPGRADE TO ALL THE PIECES THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER 2025 THEN THERE ARE SOME ONE-TIME COSTS, 36 GRAND FOR AN INTEGRATION AND 46 GRAND FOR THE PURCHASE OF THE PLATFORM ITSELF. AFTER NOVEMBER 2025, WE ARE LOOKING AT AN ANNUAL COST . THE SYSTEM ITSELF WOULD BE A0 . WE ARE
[00:30:08]
PLANNING RIGHT NOW WITH OUR CURRENT PLATFORM WE'RE LOOKING AT 15,600 ANNUAL COST COME NOVEMBER 2025. WITH THE NEW SYSTEM IT'S GOING TO BE 41,000 BUT WE ARE CAPTURING $10,000 RECOVERED COSTS BY GETTING RID OF THE OTHER TWO PLATFORMS IN A COUPLE SERVICE AND THE ADMINISTRATION COST OF KEEPING THE SERVICE UP AND RUNNING SO ALL IN ALL , THE REAL ANNUAL COST INCREASE AFTER THESE INITIAL COST STARTING 2025 IS ABOUT $15,000 A YEAR AFTER INITIAL COSTS. AS YOU CAN SEE, THESE ALIGN WITH THREE OF OUR STRATEGIC GOALS. WE WILL GO THROUGH THOSE BUT THESE ARE THE THINGS YOU ARE ASKING US TO WORK ON AND THIS IS A RESPONSE TO THAT SO TODAY ARE STAFF REQUESTS RECOMMENDATION FOR APPROVAL TO INCREASE THE ORIGINAL THREE-YEAR CONTRACT PRICE TO UPGRADE TO WEBEX THROUGH NOVEMBER 2025. THAT IS THE REQUEST. FOR INFORMATION ONLY. AGAIN, THE ANTICIPATED ANNUAL COST FOR THE SYSTEM AFTER 2025 IS APPROXIMATELY $41,000 REPRESENTING AN INCREASED ANNUAL COST OF APPROXIMATELY $16,000 AFTER 2025 AND I WILL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS RELATED TO THE WEBEXUPGRADE. >> MADAM CHAIR OF COURSE I'VE GOT QUESTIONS. YOU ARE LOOKING AT ME LIKE YOU KNEW I WAS GOING TO ASK THEM. A COUPLE OF THE THINGS THAT YOU NOTED ON HERE THAT I THOUGHT WERE INTERESTING, CHAT AND TEXT. IN THAT Q THAT YOU ARE SAYING THEY WILL BE ABLE TO MONITOR, ARE YOU SAYING NOW, TOO, THAT THEY WOULD HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO DO LIVE CHAT ONLINE, OR HOW DOES WHAT IS --
>> AS FUNCTIONS ARE AVAILABLE. WHAT WE ARE LOOKING AT RIGHT NOW IS EMAIL, PHONE, THE CALLBACK FUNCTION QUEUE. THOSE RIGHT THERE. WE HAVE THE ABILITY THAT COMES WITH IT FOR AN AI CHAT. THAT IS A ROBO CHAT. WE BUILD IN THE ANSWERS TO FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND IT KIND OF HELPS HIM THROUGH THAT. THERE IS A FUNCTION IN THERE FOR LIVE CHAT. RIGHT NOW, WE ARE NOT INCORPORATING THAT IN THERE IS A FUNCTION IN THERE FOR REAL-TIME TEXT. YOU TEXT ME, I TEXT YOU BACK AND FORTH JUST LIKE WE WOULD BUT IT GOES TO THE SYSTEM. I HAVE NOT GOT THAT SET UP YET. WE HAVE NOT GOT THAT SET UP WITH THAT GROUP YET BUT IT IS AVAIABLE AS PART OF
THE PROGRAM. >> AS THAT INCLUDED IN THE
COST? >> TEXTING IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE COST. IF WE WANT TO ADD THAT, WE CAN BECAUSE IT IS A.
TEXT TYPE THING. EVERY TME SOMEONE TEXT BACK AND FORTH THAT'S ANOTHER .14 CENTS, LIKE THAT IN THE LIVE CHAT IS AN ADDITIONAL COST. THOSE ARE AVAILABLE THOUGH WITH THIS
UPGRADE. >> SO THE INCREASE IN ANNUAL COSTS, IS THAT GOING TO ALSO INCLUDE UPDATES? IS IT GOING TO BE AN ANNUAL UPDATE SO IT WILL CONSTANTLY STAY UP-TO-DATE OR IS IT SOMETHING YOU FORESEE WE MAY NEED A DIFFERENT PROGRAM
LATER? >> THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
THIS BEING A CLOUD-BASED SYSTEM, THE UPDATES WILL JUST HAPPEN. RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A NATIVE SYSTEM BUILT ON SITE.
THEY SEND US UPDATES AND WE HAVE TO UPDATE OUR SYSTEM AND WE DO THAT MANUALLY IN HOUSE. BEING A CLOUD-BASED, THEY UPDATE THEIR SYSTEM. IT JUST STAYS UPDATED.
>> THERE ARE THREE BASIC VERSIONS FOR CISCO. THERE'S THE VERSION WE HAVE RIGHT NOW. THEY HAVE A WEB-BASED VERSION THAT IS NOT CLOUD-BASED. THEN THERE IS THIS VERSION WHICH IS THE
CLOUD-BASED SYSTEM. >> TO KNOW OFFHAND HOW MUCH ADDITIONAL IT IS FOR THE CHAT FEATURE OR THE TEXT OR
WHATEVER? >> KNOW BUT I HAVE THAT
INFORMATION. >> I WOULD BE CURIOUS, YOU
KNOW. >> WILL THE LAST CHAT BE AN
EXTRA COST PER CHAT? >> THE LIVE TEXTING , THE REAL-TIME TEXTING, I BELIEVE, WOULD BE A PER TEXT COST. THEY HAVE A FEE-BASED SCHEDULE WORKED OUT FOR HOW MANY TEXTS YOU USE, BASICALLY. THE LIVE CHAT , I DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION . WE DO HAVE THAT. IT'S JUST SOMETHING WE ARE NOT
RECOMMENDING RIGHT NOW. >> MADAM CHAIR.
>> I JUST AM CURIOUS THIS IS AN UPGRADE OR AN ADDITIONAL, SO WHAT IS IT THAT WE HAVE NOW ? WHAT IS WEBEX RIGHT NOW?
>> RIGHT NOW, OUR BASIC PHONE SYSTEM IS CISCO. IT IS A CISCO-BASED SYSTEM. IT IS ALL MADE OF. IT IS MANAGED ON SITE.
[00:35:04]
THEY SEND US UPDATES OR PATCHES OR WHATEVER AND WE UPDATE. WE HAVE AN OVERLAY ON TOP OF THAT WHICH IS OUR VISTA POINT. VISTA POINT WORKS WITH IN OUR PHONE SYSTEM AND IT IS OUR CUSTOMER CONTACT CENTER. IT IS BASICALLY OUR OPERATOR AND IT IS WHAT GIVES US THE ABILITY FOR WHEN YOU CALL IN, IT GOES TO THE OPERATOR AND THE OPERATOR SENDS YOU OFF TO THE RIGHT PLACE. IT IS THAT SYSTEM THAT DOES THAT. IT IS VERY BASIC, DOESN'T HAVE ANY FUNCTIONS THEN WE HAVE A SEPARATE SYSTEM WHICH IS CALLED KAREN, AND THAT IS A RECORDING SYSTEM SO WE KIND OF PEACE THIS THING TOGETHER. WHAT WE ARE DOING IS AND PIECING IT AND WE HAVE FAST CYSTS GO -- CISCO DO THEY HAVE AN UPGRADE THAT COVERS ALL OF THAT STUFF AND THAT IS ALL OF THIS.>> SO WHEN THE CUSTOMER CALLS IN YOUR CALL MAY BE RECORDED FOR TRAINING PURPOSES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, WHICH WE ALL ENCOUNTER SOME, RIGHT? AND SO BUT THEY WILL GET A LIVE
PERSON RIGHT NOW? >> ABSOLUTELY. WHEN THE CALL COMES, IT WILL GO THROUGH A CALL TREE. IT IS A NEW AND IMPROVED CALL TREE. WE WILL WORK OUT THE CALL TREE AND SAY IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK TO CUSTOMER SERVICE, PRESS ONE. WE CAN EVEN GO EVEN DEEPER. MAKE THE CALL TREES PRESS ONE FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY CAN ASK YOU? WOULD YOU LIKE TO START A NEW ACCOUNT, WOULD YOU LIKE TO MAKE A PAYMENT. WE CAN DIAL SOME OF THAT DOWN WHICH GETS TO ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE DOING IN CONJUNCTION WITH THIS, WHERE CROSS TRAINING ALL OF OUR REPS SO WE HAVE A BACK AREA FOR THE CALL CENTER IS THAT WE HAVE A FRIEND AREA FOR THE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPS ARE AND WE HAVE INDEPENDENT CASHIERS AND WE HAVE SATELLITE OFFICES THAT DO THESE INDEPENDENT THINGS. CROSS TRAINING CUSTOMER SERVICE GROUP SO THAT ULTIMATELY ANY ONE PERSON CAN HANDLE ANY OF THOSE THINGS AND ALL OF THEM SEE THIS HEADS-UP DISPLAY OF WHAT PEOPLE ARE ASKING FOR AND THEN THE SUPERVISOR OR WITH PROTOCOLS, WILL BE ABLE FOR THE RIGHT PEOPLE TO PICK UP THE RIGHT
>> SO MR. RUTHERFORD, IF I WAS GOING TO SUMMARIZE. I'M GOING TO SUMMARIZE TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY SO I UNDERSTAND WHAT WE ARE BEING OFFERED HERE, THE BENEFITS TO THIS NEW SYSTEM QUALITY OF CUSTOMER SERVICE, DECREASED I.T. HOURS AND MAINTENANCE AND OVERSIGHT AND THINGS LIKE THAT, FLEXIBILITY SO WE ARE ABLE TO ADD MORE PHONES OR TAKE AWAY OUR PHONES ARE AT THEM IN REMOTE LOCATIONS KIND OF I DON'T KNOW AND IT'S A BETTER TRAINING PLATFORM. ONE OF THE DRAWBACKS THAT YOU MENTIONED WAS COST THEM A LOT OF THOSE COSTS ARE OFFSET BY SOME OF THESE OTHER VALUE ADDS THAT WE WILL TAK ABOUT THEIR, I.T. MAN-HOURS PROBABLY BEING A MAJOR ONE. ARE THERE ANY OTHER DRAWBACKS TO UPGRADING THE SYSTEM THAT MADE YOU CONSIDER WHETHER OR NOT THIS UPGRADE WAS THE BEST THING FOR THE COMPANY?
>> GREAT QUESTION. EVERYTHING, EVERY FEATURE WE LOOKED AT APPEARED TO US WE'VE ALREADY BEEN THROUGH SOME TRAINING AND HAVE SUPERVISORS GO THROUGH THE TRAINING. WE'VE HAD DEMOS.
WE'VE HAD AN ENVIRONMENT WHICH WE CAN GO IN AND WORK IN EVERYTHING WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO FIND IS AN IMPROVEMENT. IT IS REALLY SOMETHING THEY ARE EXCITED ABOUT. WE WERE EXCITED TO GIVE THIS TO OUR CUSTOMERS. RIGHT NOW WE HAVE NO REAL MEASUREMENT OF WAIT TIME WITH OUR CURRENT SYSTEM. IT'S NOT EVEN A METRIC WE CAN MEASURE. WITH THIS, WE GET A FULL MEASUREMENT OF METRICS, WAIT TIMES, WHY THEY HAVE CALLED. WE CAN EVEN LOOK AT OUR REPS AND SAY YOU KNOW, HOW MANY CALLS ARE YOU TAKING DAY, HOW MANY THINGS ARE BEING TRANSFERRED TO SUPERVISORS, HOW MANY ESCALATIONS ARE THERE . THERE ARE A NUMBER OF METRICS WE ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO TAKE A LOOK AT REALLY IMPROVE HOW WE OPERATE. RIGHT NOW WE DON'T HAVE ANY OF THAT SO EVERYTHING WE FOUND WAS AN IMPROVEMENT. IT WAS NOT CHEAP. THE GOOD THING ABOUT IT IS MOST OF THE COST IS AN UP FRONT CAPITAL INVESTMENT AND AN UPGRADE FROM A VERY BASIC SOLUTION, PRETTY ADVANCED SOLUTION SO WE REALLY LIKE HAT. WE THINK IT IS A GOOD THING. WE THINK IT IS WORTH THE VALUE AND THE INCREASE IN ACTUAL ANNUAL COSTS ONCE WE ARE PAST THAT IS NOT A LOT WHEN WE THINK ABOUT WHAT WE ARE ACTUALLY GETTING FOR THE SYSTEM AND OUR CUSTOMERS.
>> THERE USED TO BE A CONCERN WHEN WE WERE MOVING SOME KIND OF SOFTWARE FROM BEING ON-SITE INTO THE CLOUD THAT LEFT YOU MORE VULNERABLE TO CYBER SECURITY ATTACKS. MY PERSPECTIVE HAS ALWAYS BEEN 99.99% OF THE TIME, THE CYBER SECURITY OFFICERS FOR THE PEOPLE RUNNING THE CLOUD SYSTEM ARE PROBABLY 20 TIMES BETTER THAN WHAT WE COULD AFFORD TO HAVE IN-HOUSE. IS THAT A CONCERN AT ALL WITH THINGS BEING HOSTED AND RECORDED ON THE CLOUD THAT WOULD BE A
CYBERSECURITY CONCERN? >> THERE ARE REALLY TWO CONCERNS WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT MOVING THINGS INTO THE CLOUD ENOUGH OF THE NATIVE BASE. WHAT IS YOUR DATA. A LOT OF TIMES IF YOU HAVE IT ON A CLOUD-BASED SOLUTION, THEY ON YOUR DATA. IN THIS CASE THAT'S NOT GOING TO BE -- WE ARE GOING TO HAVE ACCESS TO OUR DATA IN THEIR USING OUR DATA THAT WE HAVE SO
[00:40:02]
WE WILL NEVER LOSE OUR DATA NUMBER ONE AND NUMBER TWO FOR THE CYBERSECURITY ASPECT, LAST YEAR, EARLY THIS YEAR WE ACTUALLY HIRED -- WE HAVE A CYBERSECURITY TEAM THAT WE HAVE ON-CALL . OUR CYBERSECURITY IS OUTSOURCED SO THAT WE HAVE A PROFESSIONAL INTERNATIONAL FULL-BLOWN COMPANY HAILING THAT FOR US AND THEY WILL BE WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH THEIR CYBER GROUP TO MAKE SURE WE ARE SOLID AND I AGREE WITH YOU CISCO IS A PRETTY BIG COMPANY AND I THINK THEY'RE GOING TO PROBABLY DO AGOOD JOB PROTECTING OUR DATA. >> MADAM CHAIR. SO, DO YOU RECORD THE CONVERSATIONS NOW THE CUSTOMERS HAVE WITH YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE REPS? AND, DO YOU USE THOSE -- DO YOU EVER USE THOSE FOR YOU WANT TO GO BACK AND SEE WHAT THE CUSTOMER REALLY -- I MEAN DOES THAT BECOME A PUBLIC RECORD FOR THE
PUBLIC TO HAVE ACCESS TO? >> ABSOLUTELY.
>> AND SO YOU CAN USE IT FOR VERIFICATION OF SOMETHING AS
WELL AS TRAINING? >> WE DO. WE DO, AND RIGHT NOW IT IS VERY CUMBERSOME TO GET THE DATA. IT'S A PRETTY BIG DEAL TO GO BACK AND SEARCH THROUGH THE LIBRARIES AND FINDINGS THAT CALL WHO IT WAS. THIS SYSTEM, IT IS THE SNAP OF THE FINGER. IT IS REALLY EASY TO GET TO. ONE THING I WOULD LIKE TO MENTION ON THE CYBER THING, WE ARE LEARNING. THERE IS A SHIFT. WE ARE LEARNING IN THE LAST YEAR OR SO WITH ALL OF THE RENTS AND THINGS GOING ON FOR UTILITIES AND GOVERNMENTS, WE ARE LEARNING WITH THE CLOUD-BASED SOLUTIONS, THAT DON'T NECESSARILY HOUSE DATA, THEY DON'T HOUSE CUSTOMER PERSONAL DATA. IF WE CAN TAKE SOME OF OUR SOLUTIONS AND GET THEM OUT INTO SEPARATE CLOUDS INDEPENDENTLY WE FIND THAT WHEN WE DO GET RANSOMED -- WE MAKE IT RANSOMED ON ONE OR THE OTHER OR SOMETHING BUT IT LOSES THE ABILITY TO STILL TALK TO OUR CUSTOMERS ARE STILL TO FINANCE OR DO THESE OTHER THINGS. WHAT YOU PUT THEM ALL INTO A SINGLE SOLUTION WHEN YOU GET WHACKED, YOU'RE DOWN. ALL OF IT IS DOWN SO THERE IS A SHIFT IN THE WAY THEY ARE THINKING. WE LEARNED A LOT OF THAT FROM THE TAX COLLECTOR IN THE COUNTY. WE WENT AND MET WITH HIM AND GOT SOME LESSONS LEARNED FROM MR. GRAFT ABOUT WHAT DID THAT LOOK LIKE AND WHAT WOULD HE DO DIFFERENT SO THAT IS KIND OF LEADING US DOWN SOME DIFFERENT PATHS THAT WE WOULD NOT HAVE
WENT DOWN 10 YEARS AGO. >> COUPLE QUESTIONS, SO OTHER THAN ROUGHLY $120,000 UP FRONT CAPITAL COSTS, YOU MENTIONED IT'S ABOUT $16,000 PER MONTH ?
>> PER YEAR. >> PER YEAR MORE.
>> RIGHT NOW IF WE DID NOTHING AND WAIT UNTIL 2025, WE WOULD HAVE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF MONEY WE WOULD BE SPENDING EVERY YEAR
ON THIS SYSTEM. >> WHAT IS THAT MONEY? I DON'T THINK I HEARD THAT AMOUNT. WHAT DO WE SPEND PER YEAR RIGHT NOW?
>> RIGHT NOW IF WE DID NOTHING WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT ABOUT $15,600 ANNUALLY STARTING NOVEMBER 2025 AT LEAST FOR THREE YEARS. WE WENT AHEAD AND ASK THEM FOR WHAT DOES THE NEXT THREE YEARS LOOK LIKE SO IT'S 15.6 PER YEAR STARTING IN 2025.
>> SO IF WE DO SOMETHING TODAY NEXT YEAR IT'S GOING TO BE 32,000 PER YEAR OR JUST 16,000?
>> NOVEMBER 2025 IT'S GOING TO BE BASICALLY 41,000 - RECOVERED
COSTS. >> SO AND YOU THINK IN YOUR BEST BUSINESS JUDGMENT, THIS IS A GOOD DEAL.
>> ABSOLUTELY. >> BEFORE YOU MENTIONED YOU NEVER HAD AN ABILITY TO TRACK METRICS OF CUSTOMER SERVICE, HOW LONG THERE ON HOLD, WHAT QUESTIONS THEY'RE ASKING, IS
THAT CORRECT? >> HOLD IS CURRENTLY ONE OF OUR BIGGEST CHALLENGES. OUR CURRENT SYSTEM RESETS IN 15 MINUTES. WE HAD A CHALLENGE OF BUMPING COLLARS OFF SO ABOUT SIX MONTHS AGO STEVE AND HIS GROUP MAYBE A YEAR AGO STEVE AND HIS GROUP UPDATED SOME SERVICE AND DID SOME THINGS AND NOW WE HAVE LIKE THREE TIMES THE CAPACITY THAT WE HAD BEFORE, SO THAT WAS OUR PROBLEM WITH BUMPING COLLARS OFF. PEOPLE SIMPLY HANG UP NOW. WE HAVE A LOT OF DROPPED CALLS BECAUSE THEY'RE TIRED OF WAITING AND WE HAVE NO REAL METRIC TO SEE HOW LONG THEY'VE BEEN WAITING. PEOPLE TELL US THEY'VE BEEN WAITING FOR 40 MINUTES. WE HAVE NO WAY TO TELL. OUR SYSTEM, THE WAY TO SET UP, AFTER 15 MINUTES IT RESETS THEIR TIMER TO ZERO AND
THEY ARE STILL ON HOLD. >> HOW MANY COMPLAINTS FROM RESIDENTS ABOUT HOLD TIMES AND NOT BEEN TENDED TO THEIR NEEDS AND CALLING BACK ? I BELIEVE THAT IS WHAT IS STIMULATING THIS ENTIRE UPGRADE? IS THAT WHAT I'M HEARING?
>> OUR CUSTOMERS HAVE TOLD US ALL THOSE THINGS , LONG WAIT
[00:45:07]
TIMES. NO CALLBACK FUNCTION. WHY? WE KNOW IT'S AVAILABLE , SO WE HAVE LISTENED. WE HAVE LEARNED AND NOT ONLY FROM OUR CUSTOMERS BUT IT BECAME A PRIORITY FOR THIS BOARDED OUR STRATEGIC PLANNING SESSION SO WE FOUND A SOLUTION LIKELY IN OUR NATIVE SOLUTION THAT WE ALREADY HAVE UPGRADED AND WECAN HAVE ALL THOSE THINGS. >> SIMILAR UTILITIES HAVE A SIMILAR SYSTEM SO WE ARE JUST A LITTLE BIT ANTIQUATED AND WE
NEED TO CATCH UP . >> WE ARE. WE ARE JUST
ANTIQUATED. >> MADAM CHAIR, I'D LIKE TO ADD A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO LOOK AT METRICS BUT THEY ARE VERY BASIC YOU KNOW, ONE EMPLOYEE RECEIVED A CALL, HOW LONG PEOPLE ARE ON HOLD BUT WE DON'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO FIND OUT WHY THEY CALLED UNLESS YOU GO INTO THE ACCOUNT ITSELF SO YOU HAVE TO DIG QUITE A BIT INTO THE DATA OR INTO THE SYSTEMS TO GET TO THE DATA TO BE ABLE TO COLLECT THAT. THE SYSTEM HERE WILL GIVE US THE ABILITY TO CATALOG CALLS INTO A WAIVER WE CAN PULL DATA MORE EFFICIENTLY AS FAR AS BEING ABLE TO FIND OUT WHAT THOSE NEEDS ARE SO WE DO HAVE THE ABILITY TO COLLECT SOME METRICS BUT NOT TO THE DETAIL THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR US. THIS IS DEFINITELY A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION AND IT ALIGNS WITH OUR STRATEGIC INITIATIVES THAT WE DEFINED LAST YEAR.
>> IS THAT A COMMON THING THAT PEOPLE ARE ON HOLD FOR A LONG TIME? IS THE SYSTEM GOING TO ADDRESS THAT? THAT SOUNDS LIKE
COMCAST KIND OF HOLD TIMES. >> I THINK IF I WERE TO FORECAST WHAT THIS IS GOING TO DO FOR US ONE, IS GOING TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO NOT BE AS FRUSTRATED WITH THE CALLBACK FUNCTION. I THINK THAT IS REALLY BIG FOR US. THEY WILL KEEP THEIR SPOT IN THE QUEUE AND WHETHER IT IS 15 MINUTES OR
45 MINUTES -- >> AND WE ARE GOING TO DELIVER
ON THAT? >> IT IS AN INTRINSIC, BUILT IN FUNCTION OF THE SYSTEM SO WRITE UP ON THE SCREEN IS GOING TO COME UP SO AS YOU WORK DOWN AND YOU ANSWER THESE CALLS, YOU MAY SEE THREE CALLS COMING IN RIGHT NOW AND THE NEXT CALL ON YOUR SCREEN IS GOING TO BE A CALLBACK. THE SYSTEM CALLS THEM BACK . SO, THE SYSTEM AUTOMATICALLY CALLS. THEY ARE NEXT TO THE SYSTEM CALLS HIM BACK. ONE OF OUR CSR IS SITTING THERE WITH THEIR HEADSET ON. IT CALLS THEM BACK SO IT'S A FUNCTION BUILT IN. AS FAR AS WAIT TIMES I THINK WHAT THIS IS GOING TO DO FOR US IS DATA. WE ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO TELL HOW LONG PEOPLE OF BEEN ON HOLD, HOW MANY PEOPLE, HOW LONG, WHAT IS THE TIME OF DAY, WHAT IS THAT NORMAL THING AND WE CAN PLAN NOW TO GET AROUND THAT. RIGHT NOW WHEN PEOPLE TELL US 30 MINUTES OR 45 MINUTES WE HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING WHETHER THAT'S A THING.
>> RIGHT. >> ATTESTS SO ABOUT ONCE OR TWICE A WEEK I'LL CALL FROM MY OFFICE AND I'LL CALL FROM THE OUTSIDE AND GET ON HOLD AND LC. I'VE NEVER BEEN ON HOLD THAT LONG AND THEY DON'T NOTICE ME CALLING BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN
THAT IT DOESN'T HAPPEN. >> RIGHT. IS IT BUSIER AT
CERTAIN TIMES OF THE MONTH? >> ABSOLUTELY. DURING THOSE TIMES I'M SURE IT'S BUSY AND WHAT THIS WILL ALLOW US TO DO AGAIN THIS WILL ALLOW THE LADIES ON THE FRONT LINE, THE FOLKS ON THE FRONTLINE TO ACTUALLY HELP THE CALL CENTER IF THEIR LOBBY EMPTIES OUT A LITTLE BIT, THEY'RE RIGHT THERE. THEY HAVE THE SAME DISPLAYS THE PEOPLE IN THE CALL CENTER. THEY CAN OPERATE ON THE PHONE AND START HELPING OUT BUT THE IMPORTANT THING I THINK IS THE DATA. WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO SEE THOSE DATA SETS AND SEE WHERE WE CAN MAKE
IMPROVEMENTS . HOW WE CAN PLAN. >> I WOULD THINK THAT YOU WOULD ALSO -- YOU CAN'T REALLY MEASURE THE PERSON WHOSE CUSTOMER SERVICE BY HOW LONG THE CALL IS BECAUSE SOME PROBLEMS ARE MORE DIFFICULT THAN OTHERS. SOME PEOPLE ARE MORE DIFFICULT THAN OTHERS. I MEAN, YOU CAN'T JUST EVALUATE SOMEBODY BY HOW LONG THEY ARE ON THE PHONE, I WOULDN'T THINK,
LENGTH OF TIME. >> I THINK WITH A LARGE ENOUGH DATA SET, WITH ENOUGH TIME WITH THIS DATA WE CAN START TO DEVELOP SOME NORMS AND AVERAGES. I THINK WE CAN START TO DEVELOP SOME OF THAT STUFF BUT AGAIN, THAT IS JUST TO HELP US PLAN AND UNDERSTAND WHAT OUR CUSTOMER BASE IS NEEDING.
>> DO YOU THINK YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO TELL WITH THE SYSTEM LIKE 40% OF THE CALLS ARE ABOUT MY POWER HAS BEEN CUT OFF FOR DO YOU THINK YOU'LL BE ABLE TO CATALOG IT LIKE THAT?
>> MADAM MAYOR, ACTUALLY, TO YOUR POINT, I PROBABLY HAVE TEXTED I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE EIGHT TIMES IN THE LAST YEAR OR SO HEY DANNY, CAN YOU PLEASE HAVE SOMEBODY CALL THIS PERSON BACK, THEY'VE BEEN ON HOLD FOR 30 MINUTES OR WHATEVER SO I DO THINK IT'S GOING TO HELP A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT WITH WAIT
[00:50:01]
TIMES AND WITH SOME FEELING LIKE THEY'RE ACTUALLY GETTING THE HELP THAT THEY NEED. I DID NOT REALIZE THAT THE 15 MINUTE RESET -- THAT IS -- THAT EXPLAINS A LOT AND THEN IT DOESN'T PUT THEM IN A Q SO YOU'RE JUST PICKING UP WILLY-NILLY IS WHAT IT FEELS LIKE.>> SO, AS WE ARE TALKING, THAT OUTAGE QUESTION, I ACTUALLY HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THAT WRITTEN DOWN BECAUSE I WAS CURIOUS AS YOU'RE TALKING THROUGH SOME OF THE CALLS IN FOR THE ROUTING FOR THOSE QUESTIONS I DEFINITELY THINK THAT NEEDS TO BE ONE OF THOSE THINGS. PLEASE PRESS TWO IF YOU HAVE AN OUTAGE AND THEN YOU CAN SAY PLEASE PUT IN THIS INFORMATION WHATEVER .
WE WILL CALL YOU BACK OR GIVE YOU AN UPDATE, WHATEVER IT IS OR YES WE ALREADY KNOW THAT THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG IN THAT AREA. I'M ASSUMING THERE'S SOME KIND OF AN AUTOMATED THING THAT WE CAN HAVE THAT SET UP, TOO, CORRECT? SO THAT WE ARE NOT FIELDING PHONE CALLS FOR ALL THE STUFF THAT WE ALREADY KNOW IS A PROBLEM AND JUST EATING UP THE CALL LINE SO HOPEFULLY THAT IS SOMETHING WE ARE GOING TO THINK THROUGH, AS WELL. ANOTHER THING YOU BROUGHT UP WHAT YOU ARE TALKING TO MR. LAMMERS WAS THE TRAINING. THE TRAINING ON THIS , IT SOUNDS IN THE ACTUAL PROGRAM SOUNDS RATHER ROBUST COMPARED TO MAYBE WHAT THEY ARE USED TO NOW. WHAT ARE YOU EXPECTING FOR A TRAINING PERIOD AND ARE THEY GOING TO BE COMING TO HELP DO THIS TRAINING WITH US, AND SO IS THAT PART OF THE SERVICE THAT WE ARE PAYING THEM FOR?
>> YES, AND YES. ONCE WE ARE APPROVED HERE, IF WE ARE APPROVED HERE WE CAN GO AHEAD AND EXECUTE, GET EVERYTHING WRAPPED UP, GET IT INSTALLED. WE WILL HAVE A TRAINING PERIOD SO WE WILL HAVE ALREADY GONE THROUGH THIS TO MAKE SURE THAT WHAT WE ARE GETTING IS SOMETHING THEY CAN USE, SO THE NEXT STEP IS TO OPEN UP BACKUP IN A TRAINING ENVIRONMENT FOR EVERYONE SO THAT EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS WHAT THAT TRAINING MAY FEEL LIKE LIVE , SO IF THEY GET A CALL THAT THEY NEED TO ESCALATE THEY CAN DO THAT ON THE PHONE. THEY CAN HEAR THE WHISPERS ARE ACTUALLY ESCALATED TO THE SUPERVISOR AND LISTEN IN AND SEE HOW THAT GOES DOWN AND SEE HOW THAT SUPERVISOR SOLVED MAYBE THAT CHALLENGING QUESTION OR ISSUE THAT THE CUSTOMER MIGHT HAVE, SO ALL OF THAT IS GOING TO BE WORKED OUT UP FRONT . LOOKING AT LIKE PROBABLY 90 DAYS. IF APPROVED TODAY, PROBABLY 90 DAYS WE CAN HAVE OUR TRAINING WRAPPED UP. WE CAN HAVE EVERYTHING INSTALLED, ALL OF OUR DATA INTEGRATED. IT WILL PROBABLY BE LIVE IN 90 DAYS. THAT IS A FAIR DATE.
>> IT'S PRETTY EXCITING. >> WILL THEY HELP WITH ON BOARDING GOING FORWARD IS THAT GOING TO BE SOMETHING THAT FALLS TO THE MANAGER OF THAT DEPARTMENT IF THERE IS ANY PERSON IN THE CALL CENTER OR WHATEVER? THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION . I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE EXTENDED SUPPORT FOR ON
BOARDING. WE CAN FIND OUT. >> OKAY AND THEN HOW ABOUT DO THEY HAVE A PROGRAM OR -- I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU WOULD CALL IT, A SYSTEM IN PLACE THAT LET'S SAY WE ALL OF A SUDDEN HAVE A TON OF CALLS AND LIKE YOU WERE SAYING, THAT WE CAN HAVE PEOPLE THAT CAN DO IT REMOTE OR WHATEVER. DO THEY HAVE PEOPLE THAT MAY BE ABLE TO ASSIST RIGHT OUT OF THE GATE, OR WOULD YOU TRY TO HAVE A BACKUP BUILT-IN TO FPUA FOR
THOSE EXTRA HANDS WE MAY NEED? >> ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING THAT I HAVE LEARNED FROM THE NEW SYSTEM DOES NOT HAVE ANY TYPE OF A CUSTOMER CALL SUPPORT. THEY DON'T HAVE FOLKS READY TO HELP US. I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE UP TO US TO MAKE SURE TO IDENTIFY WHO THOSE FOLKS ARE GOING TO BE AND WHAT THAT MIGHT
LOOK LIKE. >> WELL, I'M EXCITED TO HEAR IT FOR ONE. THIS WILL HELP WITH OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE FOR SURE
BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL. >> FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE OF CALLING, I UNDERSTAND SOMETIMES WITH THE 15 MINUTE WAIT TIME AND THEN IT PUTS YOU BACK AT ZERO, SOMETIMES THE SYSTEM WILL HANG UP AND THEN YOU HAVE TO CALL BACK AND THAT REALLY FRUSTRATES THE CUSTOMER. SO, I THINK IT IS A FABULOUS JOB THAT YOU ALL HAVE DONE TO GO OUT AND FIND THIS COMPANY THAT WILL DO THAT BECAUSE I CAME IN AND WAS TALKING WITH ASHLEY AND SHE SAYS YOU ARE A DAY TOO LATE. WE WERE THINKING ABOUT -- WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THIS YESTERDAY AND I'M LIKE THANK YOU SO MUCH BECAUSE YOU KNOW , THAT DAY AFTER I HAD THE EXPERIENCE AND IT IS FRUSTRATING BECAUSE YOU REALLY DON'T KNOW, SO TO PUT A SYSTEM IN PLACE SUCH AS THIS WOULD BE -- IT WOULD HELP OUT
[00:55:13]
WITH THE CUSTOMERS ON THE CALLS AND YOU KNOW, PEOPLE COMING AND CALLING US SAYING HEY, ALL YOU TALK TO THEM ABOUT CALLING US BACK AND LIKE OKAY, THEY ARE DOING THEIR BEST. YES, I WILL, AND THIS WILL HELP BECAUSE IF YOU TELL A CUSTOMER BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT I WAS WAITING ON BECAUSE I KNOW OTHER COMPANIES, YOU KNOW, WE WILL CALL YOU BACK IN 15 MINUTES. OKAY, I CAN GO DO SOMETHING ELSE AND THEN I'M WAITING ON THAT CALL AND I KNOW THAT YOU KNOW, I'M IN LINE. I DON'T HAVE TO CALL BACK, AND THAT IS A PLUS THERE SO I AM EXCITED ABOUT THAT.>> WE ARE, TOO. >> MADAM CHAIR, DO YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE SPEAKERS, TOO? DO YOU HAVE SPANISH OR
CREOLE? >> THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION.
RIGHT NOW I BELIEVE WE HAVE ONE SPANISH SPEAKER. I DON'T THINK WE HAVE A CREOLE SPAKER. THAT IS SOMETHING WE HAVE RECOGNIZED IN THE LAST TWO MONTHS THAT WE NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO, AND SO WE HAVE HAD OUR PAY STUDY TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT THAT MIGHT LOOK LIKE. SOME COMPANIES PROVIDE AN INCENTIVE PAY FOR THINGS LIKE THAT, SO I DON'T KNOW WHETHER THAT IS SOMETHING WE CAN DO BUT ACTUALLY, WE ARE HAVING OUR PAY STUDY GROUP AT LEAST TELL US WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE IN THE MARKET SO WE CAN MAKE SOME DECISIONS. WE ARE GOING TO PAY ATTENTION TO IT IN OUR INTERVIEWS IF WE CAN GET FOLKS WHO SPEAK THOSE ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE S THAT SHOULD BE A PLUS, SOMETHING WE
ARE PAYING ATTENTION TO. >> WELL, THIS -- I WOULD AT SOME POINT LIKE FOR THE BOARD TO SEE WHO THESE PEOPLE ARE, THE CSR IS, WHAT THE -- AND ALSO BECAUSE THESE PEOPLE ARE THE ONES WHO ARE DEALING EVERY DAY WITH OUR CUSTOMERS AND TOUCHING OUR CUSTOMERS AND THAT IS, IN A WAY, THE ONLY INTERFACE THEY HAVE TO EVALUATE US, SO I THINK IT IS REALLY -- I'M GLAD ABOUT THE SYSTEM. I'M GLAD TO LEARN ABOUT THE SYSTEM, BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE A GOOD LEARNING -- I JUST WOULD LIKE TO HEAR WHAT THE CSR SAY. THIS IS WHAT IS MOST FRUSTRATING. THIS IS WHAT THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND. THIS IS WHAT -- BECAUSE I HOPE THAT WE ALREADY DO THAT AS A COMPANY.
WE TAKE THE INFORMATION THAT COMES FROM THEM IN DEALING WITH THE DIFFERENT PROBLEMS OR ISSUES AND SAY, WE CAN IMPROVE ON THIS THAT ARE, BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE NOT UNDERSTANDING THIS, OR SOMEHOW IMPROVE COMPANY-WIDE SERVICE THROUGH
THAT FUNCTION. >> WE ARE GREATLY IMPROVING YOUR TEAM MEETINGS NOW WITH GETTING EVERYONE INVOLVED IN REALLY GETTING EVERYONE AT EVERY LEVEL INVOLVED IN THE DECISIONS AND THE TRAINING AND THE PLANNING. WE STOPPED LOCKING OURSELVES IN A ROOM AND FIGURING IT OUT BY OURSELVES.
WE ARE GETTING DOWN TO ASKING EVERYONE THEIR OPINION AND WHAT IS THIS LIKE AND WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO USE A GREAT IDEA AND SOMETHING THAT IN THE LAST EIGHT MONTHS TO A YEAR THAT WE HAVE BEEN WORKING REALLY HARD ON.
>> YES, BECAUSE WE ARE A PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY. I MEAN, WE ARE -- WE SERVE PEOPLE AND I THINK WE TEND TO THINK IN TERMS OF TRANSFORMERS AND SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE AND ALL THAT OTHER
STUFF. >> AND, WILL WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY SEE THE SYSTEM AT WORK AND ACTUALLY GET SOME OF THE TRAINING? WE CAN STAND THERE AND WATCH TO SEE GOING ON IN THE FRUSTRATIONS AND THE CALLS COMING IN?
>> I THINK ONCE WE STARTED TRAINING I CAN MAYBE LET YOU KNOW WHAT OUR TRAINING SCHEDULE LOOKS LIKE, AND MAYBE IF YOU LIKE, YOU CAN STOP IN AND OBSERVE.
>> IF IT IS THE FIRST OF THE MONTH, WE'LL GET YOU ON A
CHAIR. >> I THINK THAT WOULD BE FUN
FOR JUST A LITTLE WHILE. >> YES, YES.
>> SO, WE ARE LOOKING FOR AN APPROVAL ON THIS?
>> LOOKING FOR AN APPROVAL . >> CONSIDERING THE MONEY WE SPEND ON A WHOLE BUNCH OF OTHER THINGS THIS IS --
>> WAY WORTH IT. >> MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE.
[E.7. Resolution UA 2024-08 for the Appointment of Members to the Utility Advisory Committee]
>> YES, MA'AM. >> THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
MADAM CHAIR, D6 WAS PULLED FROM THE AGENDA SO WE WILL MOVE DIRECTLY TO D 7, WHICH IS THE LAST ITEM OF THIS AFTERNOON,
[01:00:05]
REQUEST TO APPROVE MEMBERS TO THE UTILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.RACHEL TENET, DIRECTOR OF AFFAIRS AND SUSTAINABILITY,
WILL PRESENT THIS ITEM. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MADAM CHAIR, MAYOR HUDSON, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON. I AM VERY HAPPY TO BE HERE PRESENTING. I WILL GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF AN UPDATE ON THE UTILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE IN ADVANCE OF REQUESTING YOUR APPROVAL TO APPOINT TWO NEW MEMBERS TO THIS COMMITTEE . AS A QUICK REMINDER, THE UTILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE IS OUR CITIZENS-LED ADVISORY COMMITTEE. WE MEET ONCE A MONTH. THEY SCHEDULE THEMSELVES SIX MONTHS OUT, ONCE IN AN ANNUAL REPORT AND ONCE IN A MEDIA REPORT LOOKING BACK AND LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT SIX MONTHS. THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAVE BEEN VERY INTERESTING. WE HAVE BEEN MEETING ABOUT FPUA, LEARNING ABOUT THE INTERNET, WORKING ON MISSION AND VISION STATEMENTS FOR THE UTILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE . WE WILL FINISH THAT UP IN THE NEXT MEETING. JULY'S MEETING HAS BEEN CHANGED.
TYPICALLY, THEY ARE THE FIRST WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH. THIS MONTH'S MEETING WILL BE JULY 10TH. WE MOVED IT BECAUSE OF THE JULY 4TH HOLIDAY , AND THE TOPIC WILL BE THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT RELOCATION PRESENTED BY BO HUTCHINSON, MIKE MARTIN, AND LINDY DAWSON AND WE WILL BE PREPARING FLYERS AND POSTING THOSE IN OUR LOBBY, PUTTING THEM ON FACEBOOK, SENDING THEM OUT IN AN EMAIL STARTING TOMORROW TO INVITE THE PUBLIC BECAUSE THIS IS A TOPIC OF GREAT INTEREST TO THE PUBLIC, SO WE WOULD LIKE THEM TO KNOW AND PERHAPS MAKE AN EFFORT TO JOIN THIS PARTICULAR ONE AND LEARN ABOUT THE TREATMENT PLANT PROJECT . IN AUGUST, WE WILL BEGIN PREPARING FISCAL YEAR 25 ANNUAL REPORT WHICH INCLUDES A LOOK BACK AT THE PREVIOUS SIX MONTHS. HOW DID WE DO ON MEETING OUR GOALS THIS YEAR, AND TO LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT SIX MONTHS OF WHAT WE ARE PLANNING TO DO AND IN SEPTEMBER, WE ARE HOSTING A CAREER YOUTH FAIR WHICH IS CURRENTLY STILL BEING DEVELOPED. FOR TODAY'S REQUEST, WE HAVE ONE UTILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER WHO HAS STEPPED DOWN. HE WAS AN AT-LARGE MEMBER THAT NEEDED TO STEP DOWN FOR PERSONAL REASONS AND WE HAVE TWO NUMBERS BEING APPOINTED. ONE IS THAT LARGE .
MARSHALL STERLING, WHO IS LOCALLY INVOLVED IN REAL ESTATE, SO HE HAS ALREADY BEEN A GREAT ADDITION TO DISCUSSIONS AT THE UAC AND THE SECOND IS BOB LYNCH, WHO IS BEING APPOINTED BY LARRY LAMMERS. BOB HAS BEEN VERY ACTIVE IN FORT PIERCE AND WITH THAT, I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS, OR WE CAN READ THE RESOLUTION. I'M NOT SURE.
>> MADAM CHAIR, PLEASE RAISE THE ROAD -- READ THE
RESOLUTION. >> RESOLUTION UA 2024-08 RESOLUTION APPOINTING TWO NEW MEMBERS TO THE UTILITY ADVISORY
COMMITTEE. >> I HAVE A QUESTION. WHEN IS THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT PRESENTATION?
>> THAT WILL BE ON JULY 10TH AT 4:00 P.M. AT THE ENERGY SERVICES CENTER AND THE WAR ROOM. IT IS THE SAME LOCATION AND TIME AS USUAL, JUST ONE WEEK LATER.
>> OKAY, THANK YOU. >> I WOULD BE GLAD TO MAKE A
MOTION FOR APPROVAL. >> I HAVE THE SECOND.
[F. DIRECTOR COMMENTS]
>> THAT CONCLUDES THE REGULAR AGENDA. NOW, DIRECTOR, DO YOU
HAVE ANY COMMENTS? >> YES, MA'AM, ON JUNE 20TH, THE BOARD APPROVED SOME ADDITIONAL PURCHASE OF GAS FOR POWER GENERATION. THE TIME FRAME THEY WERE ABLE TO DO THIS FOR WAS THE SUMMER OF 2026. IT RANGED FROM AN ADDITIONAL 24% STRIPPED TO AN 11% STRIP VARYING BASED ON PRICED, AND THEY WILL CONTINUE TO EXECUTE ADDITIONAL STRIPS IF THE PRICE STAYS BELOW THE BENCHMARK WHICH RIGHT NOW IS 360 . I'VE MENTIONED BEFORE THAT 350 IS THE NUMBER WE NEED TO BE OUT FOR GAS FOR IT TO BE GENERALLY AT ZERO. 360 DURING THE SUMMER
[01:05:01]
BECAUSE POWER PRODUCTION IS HIGHER, WE HAVE A LOWER UNIT COST BECAUSE OVERALL PRODUCTION IS HIGHER SO 360 WILL STILL GET US AT THAT ZERO PCA OR LOWER , DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH POWER THEY PRODUCE. CURRENTLY WE ARE AT 70% FROM JUNE TO OCTOBER THIS YEAR. 50% FOR NOVEMBER 24 THROUGH APRIL 25. I HAVE A BUNCH OF OTHER NUMBERS ON HERE BUT I REALIZE THAT'S NOT GOING TO TRANSLATE WELL VERBALLY BUT, THE POINT BEING THAT THERE ARE STILL ACTIVE IN LOOKING TO MAKE SURE THEY LOCK IN PRICES TO KEEP OUR COSTS LOW , SO TO LOCK IN THOSE FUEL GAS PRICES TO KEEP OUR COSTS LOW. THE NEXT THING IS OUR NEXT BOARD MEETING WILL BE JULY 16TH AT 4:00 AND ALSO, AT THE NEXT MEETING WE WILL GET AN UPDATE FROM PETE TESH. PETE, NICK AND MYSELF HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT A SCOPE OUTLINE FOR THE WORK FOR THEM TO HELP US LOOK AT THE WAY THE CITY IS GOING TO GROW. IT'S ONE OF THE THINGS WE DISCUSSED AT THE PLANNING WORKSHOP ABOUT A MONTH AGO SO THEY WILL BE HERE TO GIVE THE BOARD AN UPDATE ON WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH DEVELOPMENT AND TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT THAT SCOPE LOOKS LIKE. WE WILL BE CLOSED ON JULY 4TH TO HONOR AND CELEBRATE AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE, SO HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY. I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO MRS. CAROLINE HERE TO TALK ABOUT.>> THANK YOU. JUST GIVING YOU A QUICK UPDATE ON THE GENERAL COUNSEL SEARCH. WE'VE RECEIVED THREE APPLICATIONS SO FAR THAT SEEM TO BE STRONG CANDIDATES SO WHAT WE WILL LIKELY DO IS DISTRIBUTE THOSE APPLICATIONS , AS YOU CAN SEE, AS WELL AS ANY THAT COME IN IN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS AND THE NEXT BOARD MEETING MAYBE HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT YOU WOULD LIKE TO START INTERVIEWING SOME OF THESE CANDIDATES.
>> MADAM CHAIR, IF YOU GET ANOTHER ONE , YOU WILL SHIP
THAT OUT TO US? OKAY. >> THEN AT THAT POINT YOU CAN LOOK AT THEM AND SAY EVEN IF THERE ARE EXCELLENT CANDIDATES, I THINK YOU WILL THINK SO, YOU CAN WAIT A LITTLE BIT LONGER BUT
[G. BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS]
START INTERVIEWING. >> ANYONE ELSE? ARE THERE ANY
COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS? >> MADAM CHAIR. I WOULD LIKE TO BRING UP , SINCE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THE STRATEGIC PLANNING MEETING, MAYBE LOOKING INTO MOVING THE SOLID WASTE OFF OF OUR BILL FURTHER IF WE CAN GET SOME INFORMATION. I FEEL LIKE MAYBE THAT WOULD BE A GOOD TALKING POINT FOR US TO BE ABLE TO BRING BACK TO THE COMMISSION AND THE CITY AND COME UP WITH A PLAN. WE NEED TO SEE HOW MUCH OF IT WOULD SAVE SOME MONEY, ALSO WHAT MAYBE THE PROCESS WILL LOOK LIKE WORKING TOWARDS
THAT. >> YES, MA'AM. I AM ACTIVELY WORKING ON THAT ITEM, SO WE WILL PREPARE SOMETHING WE CAN BRING TO THE BOARD. WE WILL PROBABLY DISCUSS ONE-ON-ONE BEFORE WE BRING TO THE BOARD BUT WE ARE WORKING ON IT.
>> WAS THE TOPIC? >> REMOVING A SOLID WASTE
BILLING OFFICE THE BILL. >> GOT IT. I JUST DIDN'T
UNDERSTAND. >> AGAIN, I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT AND THE LINEMAN FOR THEIR OUTSTANDING WORK. ANYBODY ELSE?
>> DITTO. >> ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS? OKAY,
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.