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   Discussion Regarding Legislative Priorities for the 2024 Florida Legislative Session

   discussed

   Lobbyist Mike Moore of the Southern Group presented an update on the 2024 Florida Legislative Session, including the City's two appropriation requests: $1.12 million for Fire Station #2 construction and $800,000 for elevated storage tank high-service pump improvements. City Manager Manns reviewed the Florida League of Cities' five legislative priorities and discussed bills from prior sessions worth monitoring. No formal action was taken; this was a discussion item.

   📍Fire Station Number 2📍elevated storage tank near Starkey Boulevard / Cubilous Road🏢Florida League of Cities🏢Southwest Florida Water Management District (Swift Mud)🏢The Southern Group👤Ben Albritton👤Brad Yeager👤Danny Perez👤Dave Shep👤Ed Hooper👤Jennifer Canady👤Josie Tomkow👤Kathleen Passidomo👤Kaylee Tuck👤Keith Perry👤Laura Beamer👤Manns👤Mike Moore👤Paul Renner👤Robert Rivera👤Seth McKeel👤Stephanie Cardozo👤Will Weatherford#2024 Florida Legislative Session#Elevated Storage Tank Improvements ($800,000 appropriation request)#Enterprise Fund Transfers#Fire Station Number 2 construction project ($1.12M appropriation request)#Florida League of Cities 2023 Legislative Priorities#Mobility Plans#Sadowski State and Local Housing Trust Fund#Short-Term Rentals#Water Protection and Sustainability Trust Funds#Water Resource Planning and Comprehensive Watershed Management

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   [00:00:19] And it's your game. [00:00:20] Thank you Mr. Mayor and thank you members of the council for your attendance here this [00:00:23] evening. [00:00:24] I have invited Mike Moore to be here with us this evening as you know Mr. Moore is representing [00:00:38] us now in Tallahassee and I thought it would be a good opportunity for him to give us a [00:00:47] bit of an update on the culture of things currently in Tallahassee as well as to bring [00:00:57] you up to date on where we are in respect to a couple of legislative priorities that [00:01:05] we have advanced for consideration and at the conclusion of that I think that he intends [00:01:13] to tell you a little bit about a couple of bills that have already been introduced and [00:01:18] then I thought that I would talk to you about some bills that have failed in the last legislative [00:01:24] session that are at least worthy of us continuing to watch in case they are reintroduced this [00:01:30] session and with that I'd like to turn it over to Mr. Moore. [00:01:39] Thank you Ms. Manns. [00:01:40] Mr. Mayor, council, thanks so much for allowing me to be here. [00:01:44] It feels like old times, you know, being at a workshop. [00:01:47] I was just telling the councilwoman it's been literally tomorrow will be a year, you know, [00:01:52] it'll be a year so it brings back the old days. [00:01:56] So I'm going to go, I do have a presentation. [00:01:57] You got a chair if you want one over here. [00:01:58] I'm good. [00:01:59] You can't get a spot on this thing. [00:02:06] So I am thrilled and excited and our entire team at the Southern Group to represent the [00:02:12] city of New Port Richey and Ms. Manns did invite me to come and just talk a little bit about the priorities [00:02:19] your legislative asks that we have so far and we'll talk a little bit about what Ms. [00:02:23] Manns stated, some bills that have been filed that could possibly have an impact. [00:02:31] Nothing too exciting just yet that will come within the next couple to three weeks as things [00:02:38] move forward. [00:02:41] So just a little bit about your team here. [00:02:44] I am your lead but we have a number of people that will be assisting you in Tallahassee [00:02:49] as well. [00:02:50] So some of our teammates here in the Tampa Bay market would be Laura Beamer. [00:02:54] I think some of you probably know Laura. [00:02:56] Stephanie Cardozo, Seth McKeel. [00:02:59] You probably remember Seth. [00:03:00] Seth actually wrote the budget for the state house under Speaker Will Weatherford and he [00:03:07] was appropriations chair and then Dave Shep as well. [00:03:12] Just a little bit about our different offices and where we're located. [00:03:15] So we do have offices across the state of Florida, not just in Tallahassee and not just [00:03:20] the Tampa Bay and Pasco County area as you'll see. [00:03:24] There's our team members from Tallahassee. [00:03:25] The rest of our Tampa Bay team members, Jacksonville, Orlando and South Florida. [00:03:30] One of the reasons we have so many offices across the state is it gives us the ability [00:03:35] to engage with our legislators and local elected officials. [00:03:40] These people are part of the community on a continuous basis. [00:03:42] So if I have an issue come up, let's say there's a committee chair which maybe I don't have [00:03:47] a great relationship with because there's 120 house members, 40 senators and then you [00:03:52] have all the agencies and then you actually have the executive branch as well. [00:03:58] So it's very difficult for one, two, three or four people to get to know 160 legislators [00:04:04] and have a strong relationship. [00:04:05] So if I don't, one of my teammates definitely does. [00:04:11] So let's talk about the timeline a little bit. [00:04:13] So we're already in committee weeks now. [00:04:15] I've been going back and forth to Tallahassee. [00:04:18] We do have two committee weeks left. [00:04:22] The week of December 4th and the week of December 11th and then we'll jump into session on January [00:04:28] 9th. [00:04:29] A little bit about the timeline. [00:04:31] August to September, that's when our agencies finalize their budget requests for 24-25. [00:04:37] October 15 was when the legislative requests were officially submitted by them. [00:04:44] We talked a little bit about the governor's priorities. [00:04:45] We don't know what those are just yet because he hasn't put them out. [00:04:49] So early December, coming up in probably a couple of weeks, the governor will release [00:04:54] his recommended budget to the legislature and then we'll learn a little bit about what [00:04:59] his focus is going to be. [00:05:01] And then you also have the Speaker of the House and you have the Senate President which [00:05:05] also will talk a little bit more about their priorities. [00:05:09] They mentioned a couple of things. [00:05:10] Senate President Pasadena has talked to me, you've heard this about, you know, really [00:05:14] big on workforce training. [00:05:16] But one of the things she's really big on is trying to bring more nurses to the area [00:05:20] and get more nurses obviously through school and to graduate as well as physicians because [00:05:25] there's such a void in the state of Florida right now when it comes to health care workers [00:05:29] in general. [00:05:30] And it's obviously putting, it's making it very difficult for our hospitals and nursing [00:05:37] homes and such to keep moving along and fill their budgets without having to pay travel [00:05:46] nurses $100 and $200 an hour whereas they would rather obviously have people that are [00:05:52] working full time. [00:05:54] So that's some of the things she's spoken about. [00:05:58] The Speaker, Speaker Renner, I mean he's big on water projects but he really again [00:06:01] has not really talked too much about their priorities. [00:06:04] And that will come in a couple of weeks. [00:06:06] Again we talked about session beginning and let's just move on to the next slide. [00:06:13] So you all know who your local legislators are obviously. [00:06:16] So I only put one up there because he is Ted Appropriations Chair. [00:06:21] These are some of the people in leadership that you'll obviously want to get to know [00:06:26] over time if you have a chance. [00:06:29] Currently you know Kathleen Pasadena is our Senate President and Paul Renner is our Speaker [00:06:34] of the House. [00:06:36] Next year Ben Albritton, Senator Ben Albritton will be the Senate President. [00:06:41] Senator Albritton is from Polk County so he's close by which is great. [00:06:45] And Danny Perez from South Florida will be your Speaker of the House. [00:06:50] And some other folks, Senator Hooper being Ted Appropriations, now he's going to, he'll [00:06:55] be Appropriations Chair next year. [00:06:57] So everything that runs through when it comes to appropriations is going to come across [00:07:01] Senator Hooper's desk. [00:07:02] And so it's great to have somebody that, as you all know, Senator Hooper is no longer [00:07:07] a Pinellas County resident, he's a Pasco County resident. [00:07:09] So he lives here. [00:07:12] Some other folks, like Josie Tomko, she's in Polk County. [00:07:16] Kaylee Tuck over there as well, good to know, great people to know. [00:07:21] Keith Perry from Northern Florida in leadership. [00:07:24] And Kennedy, so Jennifer Kennedy will be Speaker of the House in 2018 and 2010. [00:07:31] So it's a great time to really get to know some of these folks because they're going [00:07:34] to be in these leadership positions for years to come. [00:07:40] Let's talk about your priority request. [00:07:43] And Ms. Manns, if you'd like to jump in, you just let me know at any time. [00:07:48] So appropriate request for the City of New Port Richey for 2425. [00:07:51] So we have two appropriation requests. [00:07:53] The first one is funding of $1.12 million for the Fire Station Number 2 construction [00:08:00] project. [00:08:01] As you probably know, you need to replace that aging One Bay Fire Station that was opened [00:08:06] in 1974, located in a residential area, and you've continued to, you know, obviously develop [00:08:12] and you continue to grow here in the area. [00:08:15] So we need to have obviously more room. [00:08:18] There's more demand for emergency services because you have your increased call volume [00:08:22] of 21%, over 21% over the previous five years. [00:08:27] So Ms. Manns, obviously in our team with the Fire Chief and such, had obviously strategically [00:08:32] selected and did a study on this. [00:08:35] Do you want to get into a little deeper? [00:08:37] I just wanted to comment, if you'd allow me to interject, that we have had discussions [00:08:44] with Senator Hooper in the past about this project. [00:08:50] He has shown particular interest in this project in the past. [00:08:56] It was one of your recommended projects last year for appropriation requests. [00:09:05] This certainly, to receive some funding for this project, certainly would be to our advantage [00:09:12] and it would help take some of the stress off of the current budget for this project. [00:09:21] Based on discussions with Mr. Moore, it sounded as if there was some interest amongst the [00:09:29] legislators in finding projects that were shovel-ready. [00:09:33] Well, we're certainly there and that's one of the reasons that we thought this would [00:09:41] be a good project to advance for consideration. [00:09:45] We had several others that we put forward for consideration by Brad Yeager and Hooper [00:09:54] and Senator Hooper, but this was one of two that they felt would be most favorably received. [00:10:05] So yes, Senator Hooper and Rep. Yeager both agreed to move this forward, which is great. [00:10:17] Like Ms. Mann stated, anytime you have a shovel-ready project, it's a good thing. [00:10:22] It obviously shows that when you have a match of this magnitude, it's very helpful as well. [00:10:29] I always tell folks that you want a match of some type. [00:10:33] Never go up there and ask for 100% of a cost of a project, because you're probably going [00:10:39] to get this and if it moves forward, it'll probably go bye-bye. [00:10:43] So you have a great match here of a local match of 3.275. [00:10:49] We're very thankful, very grateful for Senator Hooper and Rep. Yeager to allow this to move [00:10:55] forward and they will – and what happened – look, actually, when we do the next project, [00:10:59] I'm going to tell you a little bit about how this works after we submit the project, if I could. [00:11:05] So if you like, Ms. Mann, I can pass this off to you. [00:11:08] It's funding for $800,000 for elevated storage tank improvements. [00:11:12] I'd like to ask Mr. Rivera to talk a little bit about this project. [00:11:18] It was one that he suggested that we submit for consideration and it relates to our – to high-service pumps and – go ahead. [00:11:36] Yeah, come on in. [00:11:44] Thank you, Robert. [00:11:46] Everybody's familiar with our elevated tank and right now, it doesn't have any high-service pumps that are capable of basically the two functions that this project would do, [00:11:57] and it is shovel-ready, by the way, would be an extensive water conservation element to it. [00:12:03] Right now, we have a discharge pipe that if we can't keep our chlorine residuals at a certain level, we have to start flushing. [00:12:13] It would also conserve electricity. [00:12:17] We would be able to take and keep our pressure for the elevated tank on the south end of town. [00:12:24] If we could keep those pumps running with the PLCs not always at 100%, we'd be able to conserve the water. [00:12:31] We'd be able to keep the electricity down because right now, we're running with the pump pressure from our plant off of the cubulus, [00:12:40] and so when your pressure goes down on the south end, you're doing everything you can to run those pipes up there at 100% to keep your, number one, [00:12:49] water levels up, your pressure up, as well as your residuals. [00:12:52] So I think water conservation is really a key point here with this. [00:12:58] And the other element that I didn't talk about as well, fire protection. [00:13:03] If we did have a major fire that occurred, an event that occurred on the south end of town, [00:13:09] those pumps would be able to kick in and maintain that pressure that the fire department would need to be able to eradicate the event. [00:13:18] Say the south end of town, that's where our water comes from. [00:13:23] Yes, sir. [00:13:24] So right now, it's working like back in the old days. [00:13:26] You just fill it up with water, and it's susceptible to all the natural elements. [00:13:31] Keeping your pressures the same, being able to estimate how much water you're going to be able to use to where you can keep the residuals, [00:13:40] that water, you know, new water coming in, basically, so to speak. [00:13:44] Right now, you'd have more control over all of that. [00:13:48] When you say the south end of town, what pressure on the north end of town? [00:13:54] The plant, all the pumps from the plant that we have. [00:14:01] No, the one off into Cubilous Road. [00:14:04] Right there by Starkey Boulevard, yeah, correct. [00:14:12] Based on the fact that there are a number of bills that have both been introduced in the last legislative session, [00:14:20] and the fact that water is an item or an issue that's very much of interest to the legislators, [00:14:29] we thought that this was a good project also to advance for funding consideration. [00:14:35] Well, these pumps, they'd be located near the tower, right? [00:14:41] Right there on the property where the tower is at. [00:14:44] Does this pump just provide pressure to pipes, or is it just high pressure to drop in the tank to keep the pressure that way? [00:14:51] It would keep the pressure that way. [00:14:53] They both would work concerted. [00:14:56] Right. [00:14:57] And then you'd have PLCs installed. [00:15:00] where your pumps, if it was in the evening [00:15:03] and people weren't using a lot of water, [00:15:05] then your pumps wouldn't be running at 100%. [00:15:09] So this is really a 50% match. [00:15:13] Heard, heard. [00:15:14] Heard. [00:15:15] And we think that it. [00:15:16] Well, I was looking at eight, [00:15:19] that's supposed to be funding of 800,000. [00:15:22] Our match is 400. [00:15:24] We have 400, they have 800. [00:15:25] Your ask is 800,000. [00:15:27] You know what I'm pointing to? [00:15:29] No. [00:15:31] Yeah, 800,000. [00:15:32] Oh, after the, yeah. [00:15:33] Yeah, okay. [00:15:34] Oh, gotcha. [00:15:34] Yeah. [00:15:35] Well, that's, you know, you guys all look at me, [00:15:37] I was just saying. [00:15:38] Okay, I gotcha. [00:15:43] One last thing. [00:15:44] I appreciate it, Tom. [00:15:45] Yeah. [00:15:46] Yeah. [00:15:47] And that's where my question is now, [00:15:48] then really, where is the 800,000? [00:15:50] You know, is that gonna be over two years? [00:15:53] No. [00:15:54] We're asking for 800, and we'd go into 400 [00:15:57] and the total is 1.2. [00:15:57] Okay. [00:15:58] Yeah, it's not a reoccurring ask. [00:16:00] Okay, that's okay. [00:16:00] Yep. [00:16:01] It's one year. [00:16:02] Yeah, that's what the number, [00:16:03] I mean, I had a number problem. [00:16:04] Yeah, understood. [00:16:05] Got it. [00:16:07] Final thing that we're looking at as well [00:16:09] is that water conservation. [00:16:12] We know that Swift Mud went into their modified rule now [00:16:16] to where we're in a, acknowledged of a drought. [00:16:19] I think those rules are in effect until July of 2024, [00:16:23] and then they'll review it again. [00:16:25] This makes this project very attractive [00:16:28] because you, the water that's being, [00:16:31] it's accounted for, but is basically not being used [00:16:35] as just being discharged, [00:16:36] you'd be able to pretty much eliminate that. [00:16:40] I like that the senator was a retired fireman as well. [00:16:44] Correct. [00:16:44] So pretty smart there too. [00:16:46] We got two arguments for fire suppression [00:16:50] and a fire station. [00:16:56] This is correct. [00:16:58] Yeah. [00:17:00] Thank you. [00:17:01] And I will say your team is amazing. [00:17:02] And I say that because, you know, [00:17:05] you're part, you are part of the team, [00:17:07] but you obviously hired us, [00:17:12] was it a week before last? [00:17:14] I think it was a Tuesday that you brought us on board [00:17:17] and Ms. Manz and her team had the forms ready to go [00:17:21] the next day. [00:17:22] Here I am in Tallahassee, [00:17:24] because our deadline was the next Tuesday [00:17:27] for house forms to be, not Senate forms, but house forms. [00:17:30] So they had them ready and they were beautifully done. [00:17:33] And I will tell you, I see lots of these forms [00:17:36] and they're not always beautifully done. [00:17:39] There's lots of editing that I need to do [00:17:41] and amending at times, and theirs were spot on. [00:17:43] So it made life really easy, let's be honest, [00:17:47] easier for me, but it also made it very nice [00:17:49] when I was with the senator and the rep [00:17:51] and their team and their staff, [00:17:54] that we didn't have any issues. [00:17:55] There was nothing that we needed to amend or edit [00:17:57] on their side either, which would have made it very nice. [00:18:00] Thank you for commenting. [00:18:04] That's his line. [00:18:06] Yeah, I didn't catch that, I'll be honest with you. [00:18:11] I just did it. [00:18:14] So how the process works a little bit, [00:18:16] just so you know, is when we put these requests in, [00:18:20] you need a house sponsor and a Senate sponsor [00:18:22] for an appropriation. [00:18:25] Again, we have both now, which is great. [00:18:26] We have time, there's really no deadline on the Senate, [00:18:29] but I don't like to wait [00:18:29] because their list gets very, very full. [00:18:32] They have lots of requests that are constantly, [00:18:34] constantly coming in for appropriations. [00:18:36] Well, it's not unlimited appropriations, right? [00:18:40] There's only so much money in the budget. [00:18:42] Now I will say in this, as we move on to the next slide, [00:18:47] which I think Ms. Manz is gonna talk about League of Cities, [00:18:49] but we hear this a lot every year. [00:18:54] We're not as gonna have as many appropriation requests [00:18:58] that get through this year to previous years. [00:19:01] Budget's gonna be tighter, we shall see, right? [00:19:05] Again, that's something we hear [00:19:07] pretty much every year up there, [00:19:09] that we're gonna tighten our belts a little bit [00:19:11] and we're not gonna give as many appropriation requests out, [00:19:15] but we'll see. [00:19:17] I love your projects, I think they're great. [00:19:19] I really, I really feel good about it. [00:19:21] So the process basically is, so we have both sponsors [00:19:24] and then when in January comes, [00:19:27] obviously those things will start moving. [00:19:29] So they have to go in front of committees [00:19:30] and the key is the committee chair [00:19:32] has to be willing to hear your project. [00:19:35] They don't hear them all. [00:19:37] So the committee chair will look and go, [00:19:39] no, no, no, yes, yes, yes. [00:19:43] And then it has to move, continue to move through the process [00:19:45] and make it in the budget and then it's in the budget, [00:19:49] in the House budget and the Senate budget [00:19:51] and then it has to survive the governor's desk, right? [00:19:56] So if you look at, there's not, [00:19:59] I don't wanna say there's always a rhyme or reason [00:20:01] why things are vetoed. [00:20:02] Sometimes you look at things that get vetoed [00:20:05] and you just, it's like, wow, I'm amazed that got vetoed [00:20:09] and other things get through you thought may get vetoed. [00:20:11] But that's our job, what we do [00:20:14] is to work with not only the sponsors, [00:20:16] but work with the committee chairs [00:20:18] and work with other members of the legislature [00:20:20] as well as the governor's office [00:20:22] to make sure that your priorities get through at the end. [00:20:25] And that's our goal. [00:20:27] Yes, that's what we, yes, correct. [00:20:30] That's always the goal. [00:20:32] Ms. Maynards. [00:20:35] Right, right, right. [00:20:39] But I do like them. [00:20:39] I like what your team put forward. [00:20:42] Ms. Maynards, did you wanna, [00:20:43] did you wanna go ahead? [00:20:44] I could introduce us if you'd like me to. [00:20:48] The Florida League of Cities has advanced five priorities [00:20:53] as their legislative platform for 2023. [00:20:57] This is something that I have shared with you already. [00:21:00] And so I won't spend a lot of time reviewing it. [00:21:03] In short, they're supporting five topics in general. [00:21:09] The first being enterprise fund transfers. [00:21:15] And what they're asking for specifically [00:21:18] is that the state allow cities in particular [00:21:23] to preserve our authority [00:21:25] to manage our municipal revenue sources [00:21:30] and realize gains on our proprietary assets. [00:21:36] A pretty fair consideration. [00:21:41] Mobility plans is the second priority that is noted. [00:21:46] And what the league is suggesting there [00:21:50] is that there needs to be clear [00:21:54] and concise regulatory framework advanced [00:21:58] for Florida cities to acquire and construct [00:22:01] and implement alternate modes of transportation. [00:22:07] Short-term rentals is the third priority [00:22:11] which has been established by the Florida League of Cities. [00:22:16] And although we do not currently have [00:22:19] any form of legislation, [00:22:23] the Florida League of Cities is supporting [00:22:27] an opportunity for local units of government [00:22:31] to have the authority to restore [00:22:36] to local units of government [00:22:38] an opportunity to regulate short-term rental properties [00:22:42] as a necessary quality of life. [00:22:47] Because of the fact that there have been some problems, [00:22:53] I don't know, we haven't heard, [00:22:55] our community, that we have a particular problem [00:22:58] with short-term rentals, [00:22:59] but many communities across the state [00:23:02] have experienced problems with short-term rentals. [00:23:06] The accessible housing priority deals principally [00:23:10] with the Sadowski State and Local Housing Trust Fund. [00:23:15] And the impetus behind it is to use that fund [00:23:20] to support affordable housing programs [00:23:23] that will meet the needs of workforce housing [00:23:26] and provide for home ownership opportunities [00:23:30] and rental housing availability. [00:23:33] And lastly, the Water Resource Planning [00:23:37] and Comprehensive Watershed Management [00:23:41] is suggesting that legislation [00:23:43] establishing a statewide coordinated planning [00:23:47] and prioritization approach [00:23:50] for water resource investments and funds [00:23:53] current and projected needs to be established [00:23:57] in an equitable manner, [00:23:58] authorizing comprehensive management projects [00:24:03] to qualify for funding under Water Protection [00:24:07] and Sustainability Trust Funds. [00:24:11] With that being said, the... [00:24:16] Oh, sure. [00:24:18] I went to the Florida League of Cities discussion [00:24:22] a couple of years ago about the... [00:24:27] They found that one of the main things [00:24:30] that people are using, [00:24:31] how they're using that, [00:24:32] I think they use it, [00:24:33] but they don't use it for that reason, [00:24:34] is the... [00:24:38] How people park on the grass, [00:24:40] therefore, whatever the availability is... [00:24:45] This is the extent of the parking you can walk. [00:24:47] So, you know, we're ahead of the ballgame [00:24:49] because we chose it. [00:24:54] But for people in some other cities, we're using that. [00:25:08] I recall one of the reasons that we decided [00:25:13] that we needed to regulate it [00:25:15] related to the appearance of neighborhoods [00:25:19] and the fact that it could be said [00:25:21] that it devalues a neighborhood [00:25:23] if you allow cars to be parked. [00:25:29] We did it for a different reason. [00:25:30] They're using that in other communities. [00:25:33] Right. [00:25:34] Oh, certainly. [00:25:37] Certainly, I understand that, and that's accurate. [00:25:43] Using what we have. [00:25:45] True. [00:25:48] Were there any other comments, [00:25:49] or should we move on to the legislative platform priorities [00:25:56] as advanced by the Board of League of Cities [00:25:59] for the upcoming legislative session? [00:26:04] Yeah, I'm not really... [00:26:07] The Enterprise Fund Transfers, anybody else? [00:26:13] Yeah, I can... [00:26:15] Yeah, I mean, when the 2007-08 came [00:26:20] and the economy tanked, [00:26:22] our CRA went into the negative effect. [00:26:25] I remember explaining that when you were [00:26:26] a county commissioner, [00:26:27] because it looked like you had to take balance. [00:26:29] It was really a negative balance. [00:26:31] Because we had $18 million worth of loans, [00:26:35] and we were upside down [00:26:37] because all of the increment disappeared [00:26:40] when the property taxes dropped by 40%. [00:26:43] So in the CRA, we had trouble. [00:26:47] And to solve it, [00:26:49] we took money from the Water and Sewer Fund [00:26:52] and gave it to the General Fund. [00:26:55] We had a reason to do it [00:26:56] because it was money from proceeds of the sale [00:27:00] of the Starkey Wellfield. [00:27:02] So it wasn't like we were taking it from operating revenues. [00:27:05] And I think what they don't like [00:27:07] is to see operating revenues being used. [00:27:10] They're already being used to pay a share [00:27:13] of the cost of running the buildings and all of that. [00:27:16] But there's a... [00:27:18] It's a in lieu of taxes type of thing [00:27:22] that is oftentimes allocated in the rate studies. [00:27:28] And so I was just recently talking with Rep. Tillis, [00:27:32] who was doing the rate study in Dade City about this. [00:27:34] And they mentioned the uncertainty [00:27:38] of continuing to be able to take profit. [00:27:43] This means they're taking profit from your water business. [00:27:48] And so that's why it says [00:27:50] a reasonable return on investment. [00:27:53] There is... [00:27:55] City of New Port Richey. [00:27:58] Would impose a utility tax [00:28:01] like we do with the electric and the water. [00:28:03] So if worse came to worse, [00:28:05] and we needed those revenues [00:28:07] because they would be taken away from us, [00:28:10] there's a statutory limit. [00:28:11] Oh, I was supposed to do a utility tax [00:28:18] on your own system. [00:28:21] And in fact, Dade City does that. [00:28:24] But the shortcoming of that is [00:28:26] it only can apply to the municipal limits [00:28:29] and you can't send the utility tax [00:28:30] on anything outside the city limits. [00:28:33] So we have an increased price on our water bills [00:28:35] for people that live outside. [00:28:37] We're allowed that 25% increase, [00:28:40] which is theoretically to help us [00:28:42] to cover the investment and the cost of it. [00:28:47] So that's my best answer. [00:28:59] At risk, and so some cities are worried [00:29:01] that they're gonna take that away from us. [00:29:04] That'd be a big revenue stream. [00:29:12] Obviously what we do now, [00:29:14] or what we're looking for, [00:29:15] we'll just have to monitor. [00:29:17] Will any bills drop that pertain to these? [00:29:20] Short-term rentals, for example, [00:29:22] comes up every year. [00:29:24] It's never ending. [00:29:26] I would assume that there'll be bill, [00:29:29] or plural, bills that do drop because of that. [00:29:35] The Senate president feels very strongly [00:29:40] about affordable housing and accessible housing. [00:29:44] So we'll see when she puts out her additional priorities, [00:29:50] if there's something that relates, again, [00:29:51] to affordable housing. [00:29:53] That's definitely a possibility. [00:29:56] That's all we do now is we. [00:30:00] monitor and see what what falls portable housing again we had the discussion at [00:30:07] the map meeting [00:30:13] Oh [00:30:21] be interested to see I set on in the delegation meeting and a lot of them but [00:30:27] this one was Manatee County even in senator Boyd which will be another [00:30:33] Senate president after all senator Auburn becomes Senate president the it [00:30:37] was the city of Longboat Key had asked for a local bill and the response was [00:30:46] we're not going to move this forward now I had to do with live local we're not [00:30:50] gonna do this for now because there you possibly could see some amendments to [00:30:55] the current legislation but everybody's just in wait-and-see mode on that one [00:30:59] we'll see what happens but he said let's let's wait until after session and then [00:31:04] if we feel it's pertinent we'll bring your local bill back next year so we'll [00:31:10] see this means anything else in this mayor again okay [00:31:22] you want sure the policy positions the first one in particular is one that we [00:31:33] need to advocate for strongly and that's property tax protection there were a [00:31:39] good number of bills introduced last session that erodes our property taxes [00:31:47] by providing exemptions from paying property taxes to for a good number of [00:31:56] reasons and we need to stay connected to those so that we can help navigate some [00:32:04] of those and take positions as is appropriate residential zoning is [00:32:11] another matter that the state has wanted to play a part in and it is of paramount [00:32:22] importance that the city's keep that in their toolbox and play a part in land [00:32:29] development decisions and those should be preserved as local decision-making [00:32:35] and preserve our ability to decide how we grow and in advance and not allow [00:32:46] other units of government to usurp our authority in that respect [00:32:53] trance well said and transportation funding is really a directive more than [00:33:12] anything for the Florida Department of Transportation to develop and implement [00:33:19] some plans to either combine or to develop municipal innovation and [00:33:32] provide for loads of transportation that people are relying on last water and [00:33:45] wastewater plant operating licensure relates to the allowing credit licensure [00:33:53] for military and I believe out-of-state if I remember right operators and [00:34:01] considering them critical and essential workers for workforce I think you're [00:34:13] going to see this when it comes to this reciprocity you're going to see that [00:34:24] with quite a few different types of licensures I would I would assume we'll [00:34:27] see something passed this year it's been brought up a lot in the past but some of [00:34:32] the legislators I spoke to even very recently mentioned how they can [00:34:37] outline what they would like to see that reciprocity here in Florida because we [00:34:42] do have such a shortage of some consider like some of these essential [00:34:47] workers out there so I think you'll see something get through this year and it's [00:34:52] not just this with the other other professions as well [00:35:52] projects in the city the bill also prohibited the trust fund from being [00:36:21] used for executive direction or from support services by state agencies it is [00:36:30] a very large grant fund and it would I believe be to the state's advantage to [00:36:40] continue to fund that trust fund and the city would continue to apply for [00:36:48] funds if it extended its retirement date so keep an eye on that if you can the [00:36:56] next one is House Bill 1197 and Senate Bill 1240 and it's one that I would [00:37:08] suggest would be opposed to and that is consistent with the league's position on [00:37:15] this and the bills both prohibit local units of government from adopting rules [00:37:22] regulations or policies related to water quality pollution control pollutant [00:37:28] discharge prevention or removal of wetlands and preempt such regulation to [00:37:35] the state on all of those matters this would again be more power to the state [00:37:46] and wouldn't allow us to have a voice in those local matters the next one is [00:37:55] House Bill 1331 which relates to municipal utilities again the Florida [00:38:06] League of Cities did oppose it last legislative session and it amends [00:38:11] provisions of the law related to municipal water and electrical utility [00:38:17] and it wants or it is designed to remove extraterritorial surcharges an [00:38:28] extraterritorial service and the transfer of enterprise funds from [00:38:35] municipal utilities. [00:38:37] That could significantly impact our... [00:38:42] correct [00:38:45] Our argument might be to say if you're going to do that then you should be allowing us to control the public utility service tax. [00:38:54] Right. [00:38:56] So if we have that extra tax already, or the 25% [00:38:58] It is. [00:39:00] In a way, maybe, if they're going to do it, maybe we could work towards letting them relax the rules on the tax with respect to all services. [00:39:12] Right. [00:39:14] I can't get much leg slack here. [00:39:16] To this point. [00:39:18] Issue... [00:39:20] Senate Bill 682 and in the House is House Bill 671 and the bill required four things on local units of government. [00:39:42] The first was to reduce the permit fee by 75% if an owner was to hire a private provider to conduct inspections. [00:39:56] The second was to reduce the time frame of when an applicant must be notified that additional information is required on their plan documents. [00:40:06] And it also reduced the number of times that a municipality could request additional plan information. [00:40:14] And it permitted an application to be deemed approved if a municipality failed to meet any of the time frames. [00:40:22] And it was a very short amount of time that all of those things needed to be facilitated within. [00:40:34] That would have been a hardship for the city and would have significantly reduced our permit fees. [00:40:42] I expect to probably see some of this come back. I don't know if all of it will. [00:40:50] But I expect some of this to come back. [00:40:52] I've spoken to a number of legislators that have expressed their concerns. [00:40:56] Well, other constituents have expressed their concerns in the industry that's related to this. [00:41:02] Of the amount of time it's taking for permits to get through. [00:41:08] So I expect to see some of it. [00:41:10] Well, how does that work? [00:41:12] You know, I look at these bills and I see many of them where somebody's gotten frustrated with the county or the city in what they do. [00:41:24] And rather than go there and try to fix this, they jump up and try to get Big Brother to fix it. [00:41:34] And so then it imposes, even though I would say that the vast majority of municipalities don't need this fix, [00:41:46] and they're operating to get it held to that standard. [00:42:00] Like, you know, if you've got a problem with your city or you've got a problem with your county, be a developer. [00:42:10] And get it done there, you've got a good run in Tallahassee. [00:42:18] If you look at the number of bills that are filed each year, obviously there's quite a few of them that are related to statements we've made. [00:42:30] Because, you know, one person or one entity has an issue or has an issue with something. [00:42:36] And I help on groups, and it's sponsored by the transportation board. [00:42:44] Get it done there, rather than work on the county commission or the city. [00:42:50] What about the experience in the city? [00:42:58] So to add in that, the answers of AI that were heard at the more recent meetings, [00:43:10] there are programs that we were informed that legal cities were coming out now that could do massive detailed evaluations of the technical issues that were posed. [00:43:33] The question would be, when you see the bills coming in, when we fight them, you know, one of the things I work with says all the time is that the elements that are successful for the development or redevelopment, [00:43:52] one of them is good regulation services. [00:43:56] And people have come from the county to the city or left the city to go to the county and screen their passes, no matter what's sitting on their circumstances. [00:44:06] The second part of it is, the planning department here, I've got to say, oftentimes I've heard in the private sector that they can't get the plans out of the design people. [00:44:19] But there are holdups all across the board for construction. [00:44:23] That's been a real common concern is how bad it is. [00:44:27] You may know some of the delays caused by the private sector. [00:44:33] Particularly if you go back to building the buildings. [00:44:50] But my only point is that we should be working to be sufficient and taking advantage of all of the resources that can allow us to comply with these laws. [00:45:00] coming and not spend all their time fighting them, I mean, we could take their stand, I don't know how powerful that is, [00:45:08] but I'd be curious to learn from the lobbyists' comments. [00:45:12] I definitely never 100%, but I think you'll probably see something that has to do with the time frame it takes to get a permit out the door and come back. [00:45:38] But it's only fair to take advantage of the most current ways to observe them. [00:45:50] And so, I mean, it was presented to us, and I mentioned it, and I think it would be worth looking at to see what this AI is so incredible, [00:45:59] able to scan documents and find it. [00:46:03] It's reliable, maybe it didn't help us do that before. [00:46:13] The next item that I'd like to introduce to you relates to the communications service tax, [00:46:21] which is a considerable source of revenue to the city. [00:46:26] For example, there was a House Bill 1153 and a Senate Bill 1482, [00:46:32] both of which proposed that the current rate for the communications service tax would be frozen for three years, [00:46:40] and it additionally would prevent local governments from charging franchise fees for the location of utilities within our public right-of-way. [00:46:52] Lastly, the bills would reduce the state tax rate for communications service taxes by 1.44%. [00:47:01] Typically, our communications service tax is nearly a million dollars per year. [00:47:11] This certainly would have an impact on us as well as the provision relating to the location of utilities in our public right-of-ways, [00:47:23] so it's worthy of watch for us. [00:47:27] I don't know what the state rate is. [00:47:41] If we were getting a million, we'd be losing $15,000. [00:47:44] The last subject that I have for you is not a new subject, but one that is of critical consequence, and it's sovereign immunity. [00:48:11] Again, this is a bill that's been introduced over several legislative sessions. [00:48:19] In the last session, it was introduced as House Bill 401 and Senate Bill 604, [00:48:25] and it would, as usual, increase the limits of liability on tort claims against the state and its subdivisions, which are its cities. [00:48:36] The current limit for claims is $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident. [00:48:43] I've indicated for you on the slide what the House Bill would have raised the caps to, $2,500,000 per person and $5,000,000 per incident. [00:48:55] The Senate bill actually just doubled what the existing limit for tort claims is, [00:49:05] but in any event, wherever they land, it's going to have a significant impact on our insurance premiums, which already have skyrocketed. [00:49:18] Over the last year, our insurance premiums have increased by 25% through our risk manager. [00:49:30] This certainly would have another negative impact, [00:49:37] and so we're very much of a position that sovereign immunity should be preserved at its current rate. [00:49:50] I'm going to ask Mr. Moore to pay special attention to that and to keep us posted so that we can advocate to retain those limits on sovereign immunity, [00:50:03] and if there are any other items that you think we haven't covered tonight that we need to ask Mr. Moore and his group to pay special attention to, [00:50:17] any topics, please let us know what they are so that we direct them appropriately, [00:50:24] and if there are any questions about any of the material that has been presented, please let me know so that I can respond. [00:50:33] And we have one more slide? [00:50:34] We have a couple more slides, yeah. [00:50:35] And there are more slides, apparently. [00:50:37] Yeah, if that's okay. [00:50:47] I'm going to go back to that one, if that's all right. [00:50:51] So, like I mentioned before, you know, we'll start seeing a large number of bills. [00:50:57] They'll start filing, start dropping in the next couple weeks. [00:51:01] Just a couple things we pulled up that could have an impact. [00:51:07] You know, the first one, you have a Senate and House sponsor, Cabrera and Hooper, our Hooper, [00:51:16] cost-of-living adjustment retirement benefits, revises calculation for cost-of-living adjustments of benefits for certain retirees, [00:51:23] and I think that would actually, it goes back a little bit to, if I apologize, give me one sec here, it goes back, there we go, [00:51:38] commencing on July 1st and, yeah, so we go back to July 1st of 87, and I just bring that up because, obviously, [00:51:52] you're part of FRS, you as a city obviously put money into that, so there could be an outcome that could possibly affect you. [00:52:02] So, they're doing a cost-of-living adjustments dating back to 87 for people, yeah, no, it would be more cost-of-living adjustments to raise what they receive. [00:52:16] And it would go back and pay those people back to 87? [00:52:19] No, it's people that retired prior to 87, pull that up again. [00:52:25] Okay, commencing on 87, anybody whose effective retirement date is before July 1st, so it shall be adjusted annually each July 1st, going forward. [00:52:48] It's something to keep an eye on, obviously, any time you've got to pay more money, it affects your budget, right? [00:52:53] Yeah, well, that'd be a big chunk. [00:52:56] This comes up every year, and I don't know if your city attorney's here? [00:53:01] He's not present. [00:53:02] You have the audience or not? [00:53:03] Okay. [00:53:04] There's not a Senate sponsor yet, I'm sure there will be, but this provides a public record exemption for the personal identification and location information of current and former retirees. [00:53:16] Current and former city attorneys, deputy city attorneys, et cetera, and obviously counties as well. [00:53:24] I mean, this is something I was very supportive of, I wrote a letter of support over the last several years as well. [00:53:31] I think it should move forward, we'll see. [00:53:36] Continuing contracts, just has a house sponsor now, no Senate sponsor, raises the threshold for government entities estimated construction costs for individual projects, continuing contracts from 4 million to 10 million. [00:53:51] And then when it comes to DOT requires, again, that would affect you, but part of the bill also has something written in about DOT when it comes to their bid process of having at least three and no more than five firms, but, again, that's DOT, it wouldn't affect you. [00:54:01] But that would be something that possibly, you know, Ms. Manns and her team would want to continue to monitor as well. [00:54:25] This one, so the chiefs, I know the chiefs are in the audience, right? [00:54:29] Okay, so this one has a house sponsor and a Senate sponsor impeding, threatening, or harassing first responders. [00:54:37] So basically defining the terms what a first responder is and what a first responder is, obviously, is somebody in law enforcement, it could be fire rescue, there's a couple other things that folks that are included in that as well. [00:54:51] But it would make it unlawful after warn for those, for individuals to engage in their, during their line of duty. [00:55:01] And if they receive a warning, it will allow that person to be arrested and cited with a first degree misdemeanor. [00:55:07] But it gives them the opportunity to, obviously, keep folks away and not impede during a possible arrest or if there's a car accident or whatever it is. [00:55:21] We know we see nowadays, you see it all over the social media, and you have people that are always trying to roll up when it comes to an accident or during an arrest and get in people's faces, well, this will stop that. [00:55:27] I don't see, I think, I think it's great. [00:55:31] Obviously, we need to, our first responders need to have that space to conduct what they're doing, whether it be taking care of a patient or whether it be, obviously, dealing with unruly people. [00:55:40] But this would give them that ability that they currently don't have within that 14 feet. [00:55:45] So, I think it's great. [00:55:48] I don't know, really, I don't know if this is really going to have much of an effect on you currently, but it's just HB1C. [00:55:54] It's a bill that gives additional tax relief when it comes to the hurt, when it comes to the unruly people. [00:56:02] So, I think it's great. [00:56:05] I don't know, really, I don't know if this is really going to have much of an effect on you currently, but it's just HB1C. [00:56:14] It's a bill that gives additional tax relief when it comes to the hurt, when it comes to the unruly people. [00:56:23] Going back to Hurricane Adelia, refund some money for fuel taxes. [00:56:30] But when it comes to locally, again, I don't know, Ms. Manns or Councilor Mayer, if this would affect you at all. [00:56:37] But there are different additional funds that will be available through this when it comes to grants, additional resources. [00:56:48] There's that $10 million for the, that's a county one, never mind. [00:56:52] There's, I think, $50 million for grants and loans to provide resources for local projects to fill funding gaps. [00:57:01] I don't know if you have anything, really, you're still trying to work on after Adelia or not, or if you're pretty in good, if you guys are in good shape. [00:57:08] Okay, so this probably would not have much of an impact on you now. [00:57:13] It might be for the county, the drainage improvement. [00:57:22] I think there was flooding. [00:57:25] Okay, and that does have an impact on you as well, the city, does it not? [00:57:28] Well, because people come to us, they complain. [00:57:31] Oh, okay, gotcha, understood. [00:57:34] But it does, we share green PPEs with them. [00:57:37] Right, okay, okay. [00:57:40] So there's something there, maybe a possibility that they could look into. [00:57:46] Yeah, if there's funds available, then it's something I would obviously suggest a city or county to, it's always worth a shot. [00:57:55] That one you're not going to qualify, not the small county outreach, no. [00:58:02] So, back to questions. [00:58:08] I don't know if, I think Ms. May has had a couple other things. [00:58:11] Did you have a couple more, you were still going over on yours? [00:58:15] Going back to your retirement in a position of authority, [00:58:21] something that has been placed, probably, which is the law, the state law, [00:58:29] that has given exclusive control to the county. [00:58:39] Transport. [00:58:41] And I know where one of the few fire departments in Black Gate City, [00:58:45] you know, our fire department is protected by Carter. [00:58:54] So, our folks are all highly trained, and we have a hospital right in town, [00:59:02] and part of the commentary for the grant to get for the new fire station [00:59:07] is the fact that we are so close to Highway 19. [00:59:11] I've always wished that the operative agreement that we do have, the mutual aid thing, [00:59:19] would be more well managed to the benefit of the residents, [00:59:27] but I've made this argument before, and all of, you know, [00:59:32] our firefighters are trained, and many of them are, would be already qualified [00:59:40] to be able to transport. [00:59:44] Well, there's extra expenses to it, and I don't know, maybe there's the potential, [00:59:48] but it seems like that. [00:59:50] And we've talked about it with the county. [00:59:53] It's been, well, you know, well, let us take you over. [00:59:56] And that's not something that our city is interested in, but... [01:00:00] I'd be curious for you to talk to Senator Cooper and get his opinion on it. [01:00:09] We're so close, and it doesn't seem to make sense for us to roll out all of our... [01:00:20] get that person as quickly as we can to the hospital, because I know that's a critical part of recovery, is getting there quickly. [01:00:27] So, to make sure I have it correct, let's say there's an accident and your fire rescue team shows up on the scene, paramedics, and you can't transport. [01:00:43] It'll be a county fire or ambulance that will come and do the transport to the hospital, correct? [01:00:51] John Gallagher, when he was the county administrator, his comment to us was, [01:00:56] well, you lose a lot of money on fire. [01:00:59] And it's like, well, we pay money for fire services, so we're not trying to make money, [01:01:04] but if we can provide that service, number one, if it's a better service to our residents, why don't we? [01:01:12] I don't know if it's a cooperation agreement, if there are sort of... [01:01:18] pain of the county and they don't want us to be participating in it, [01:01:24] or don't understand why we aren't, you know, we have, from the new fire station we're building, [01:01:30] we're only a mile and a half to the big new fire station the county's building, [01:01:36] and they've got another one on Massachusetts Avenue. [01:01:40] The calls that we do to Highway 19 are not city residents to begin with, [01:01:46] but we accept it fully as our responsibility and want to save lives. [01:01:51] I don't understand why we can't take that next step, and I'm not sure where the problem is, [01:01:56] but we've always been told that it's the health department or the main doctor that has to be in charge, [01:02:06] that they won't let us use that doctor or there's a fee involved, but we're not being allowed to do it. [01:02:13] I know that the county has to grant the city the authority, [01:02:17] and in the past the county administrator has indicated a reluctance to do that. [01:02:24] I haven't had a recent conversation with the new county administrator about that, [01:02:32] though, and if it's your direction for me to do that, I certainly will do that. [01:02:38] Well, I mean, we may not want to take over all the billing and collection function. [01:02:42] Maybe there's something we could do that would be effective, [01:02:46] but it doesn't mean that we couldn't be a member of that group, you know. [01:02:51] I mean, we have, and I just think it's worth exploring, and I don't know why it doesn't happen. [01:02:58] You may be in an interesting position to be able to figure that out. [01:03:01] Well, like Ms. May has just stated, that's a discussion you would have directly with the county administrator, [01:03:09] from city manager to a county administrator, from direction from this council. [01:03:15] It's not a legislative. [01:03:17] Yes, it is. It's the law. [01:03:19] Well, but like she mentioned, you can have the opportunity to work through something, [01:03:25] kind of like what Councilman Peter said before. [01:03:28] It's like if you have the ability to possibly work hand-in-hand with each other [01:03:32] versus going through and trying to have a bill to do it, right? [01:03:36] So there's the possibility that Ms. May, under your direction, could ask Mike Carballa [01:03:43] to see if there's interest there, and maybe that could be done. [01:03:47] Well, that would be a good first step, I guess, to find that out, [01:03:50] but it's in lieu of the first step not working, which it hasn't for how many years. [01:03:59] It's been discussed that there's the potential for legislation. [01:04:05] Yeah, you could. I mean, yeah, that's the possibility, [01:04:09] but I would always try to go to that first step first. [01:04:14] Pinellas County is the same way. [01:04:18] I'm trying to remember how many cities Pinellas County has, but a lot. [01:04:21] Twenty-something, right? Cities. [01:04:25] And it's interesting there is because a lot of the cities do have their own fire departments. [01:04:31] They don't transport, and the county actually contracts with a company named Sunstar, [01:04:37] and Sunstar does all the transports. [01:04:40] We do the same here in Pasco, but I'm talking emergency. [01:04:44] No, this is all the transports. [01:04:47] Yes, there's no—yes, they do them all, [01:04:51] and it's the contracted company that does every single one of them. [01:04:56] We're not talking about inter-facility transfers. [01:04:58] We're talking about from the scene of the accident to the hospital. [01:05:01] So, for example, Dunedin or whatever fire rescue will come on the scene, take care of the patient. [01:05:09] Sunstar—same here. [01:05:12] Sunstar comes in and— [01:05:13] Five blocks to me. [01:05:15] Yes. [01:05:16] Yes. [01:05:17] Yes. [01:05:18] Yes. [01:05:19] So there were certain— [01:05:20] A taxicab to take you to a dentist in St. Petersburg costs $200 because it's a government deal. [01:05:26] Yes. [01:05:27] Yes. [01:05:28] So there's things to take into consideration would be billing and things in the process. [01:05:32] I thought we had done that. [01:05:34] I thought we had talked about doing a study. [01:05:45] File box. [01:05:46] Yes. [01:05:47] Yes. [01:05:48] Oh, I mean, I think even beyond the money, it's a safety issue. [01:05:53] It's a public service, and, you know, it's— [01:05:58] It's more efficient getting a patient to the hospital quicker. [01:06:01] I mean, I think we could more look at that avenue, you know, [01:06:05] and that's certainly the money. [01:06:07] It's about getting there quicker and more timely. [01:06:11] And that's working together, which is a big issue that I think is— [01:06:17] a small county, a city of 2% of the population. [01:06:21] A small county, a city of 2% of the population. [01:06:28] Great. [01:06:29] Great. [01:06:34] I suppose at night our police department has got them out there. [01:06:38] They flee home until 3 o'clock in the morning, which we enjoy the revenue, [01:06:44] so we're not complaining, but have a different situation, I think, [01:06:49] that— [01:06:53] Understood. [01:06:54] Thank you. [01:06:57] Could you talk to the senator, just ask him— [01:06:59] I'm happy to—at your direction, I'm happy to have that conversation. [01:07:03] Not just to touch base while we have a fireman there. [01:07:06] Sure. [01:07:07] If things fail. [01:07:08] Understood. [01:07:09] I see him all the time up there. [01:07:12] Sometimes he—I think he sees me more than I see my wife sometimes these days [01:07:17] on my travels to Tallahassee. [01:07:21] The only other thing I'd like to say is I don't know how you help. [01:07:23] We've talked all about legislation and special— [01:07:28] asking Christmas in July of whether he signs the bill or whatever. [01:07:34] But as to—I recently spoke with a senator. [01:07:39] I spoke with a senator. [01:07:45] Commissioner, so, yep. [01:07:46] Where he has expressed, surprisingly, that he told me when he was 16 or 15 [01:07:53] that he drove the crew over from Dade City to remove the asbestos [01:07:58] from the Schweppan building, and that he'd been there three times. [01:08:02] All the asbestos has gone from that building except for asbestos in the blocks [01:08:06] because he was in the asbestos removal business when he was young. [01:08:10] So that's a little tidbit of information. [01:08:13] But along the way, he was bragging about the seagrass removals. [01:08:18] And since he's in the agricultural thing, I'm curious to see what opportunities [01:08:25] we can pursue that don't require a special bill. [01:08:29] What are some of the standard revenue streams? [01:08:36] The City of Stewart has five electric transit vehicles that they use. [01:08:42] They're about the same size. [01:08:44] And I did get some preliminary reports. [01:08:46] During our Chasco Fiesta, we were equal to the City of Stewart [01:08:51] in terms of the revenue stream for that particular 10 days. [01:08:54] Oh, wow. [01:08:55] Really, you know, a big point. [01:08:59] But they have an active—talking about the mobility thing— [01:09:03] and Stewart has had three or four of their fleet [01:09:06] that have all come from DOT money. [01:09:11] I'm very aware of how that works. [01:09:13] Mr. Manson, I had preliminary conversations about that with somebody. [01:09:18] So helping us with just the regular processes, [01:09:22] is that something that's part of the service that you provide for us? [01:09:26] I guess—okay, I'm sorry. [01:09:28] I just don't—what's the question? [01:09:31] As you're involved so much in Tallahassee, you see the bills. [01:09:34] You know how much money is put in the funding. [01:09:36] For example, when they first came out with the resiliency funding [01:09:40] and the vulnerability study requirements, [01:09:43] and we got the $900,000. [01:09:46] It's up here at 19. [01:09:51] Evacuation, water clearing, flood control. [01:09:57] As part of a redevelopment project, [01:10:00] there was like $500 million that came in from the American Rescue Act for the state. [01:10:04] And so when you see what's coming down and how much money is there [01:10:08] and what pots of money to go after, as an example, I think. [01:10:14] Money now going into the funds for the coast-to-coast bicycle trail. [01:10:20] And so the very successful Pinellas Trail, [01:10:24] and Matt's been advocating on the MPO for us, [01:10:28] but that trail comes across the Suncoast Parkway [01:10:32] and then leads into Hillsborough County at this point. [01:10:35] We've already—we're investing quite a bit to bring that trail in. [01:10:41] The vision, really, of Gunther Flagg—I don't know if you know Gunther, [01:10:44] but he's a chicken dance, European. [01:10:50] The vision was to go through trouble-free property that his family owned [01:10:53] out to the county park out there. [01:10:56] So years ago, when I talked to the state folks that were at the DOT, [01:11:02] they said that these side trails, creating that sort of ecotourism connection, [01:11:09] is something that we're in the process of doing. [01:11:12] We've got in our budget for the next several years. [01:11:16] Green parkway to the Grand Bridge, the bridge down into town and down out. [01:11:22] Some way to get us to let that tourist go out, [01:11:27] that ecotourist come from Cape Canaveral who wants to take that trip across the state [01:11:32] from the coast to coast, to try to see that recreational, environmental tourism. [01:11:42] He said there was a lot of money that was going to be placed in those kinds of things. [01:11:46] I'm happy to check on it. [01:11:47] One of the things I do, obviously, we monitor if there's any type of grants [01:11:50] that might be beneficial, obviously, to the city that come up. [01:11:54] Like the first one out there, you talked about transit, like micro transit. [01:11:59] There's a match out there from DOT that will help assist [01:12:03] for a portion of that for three years, for example. [01:12:06] So yes, for sure. [01:12:08] So keeping in touch with our staff, seeing where we're going, [01:12:11] and being part of the team, I think. [01:12:13] Oh, yeah, 100%. [01:12:15] Yep, happy to do so. [01:12:18] Anything else? [01:12:19] Yeah. [01:12:23] Thank you. [01:12:24] Well, thank you all. [01:12:25] Appreciate it. [01:12:26] Thank you all. [01:12:27] Happy to be here. [01:12:28] I know everybody has my number, but I'm going to go ahead and just pass these out as well [01:12:33] because it has my email. [01:12:48] The red phone. [01:12:50] That's top secret. [01:12:52] Thank you. [01:12:53] Thank you. [01:12:54] I appreciate it. [01:12:55] We're back at 7 then? [01:12:57] We're back at 7?

   This text was generated automatically from the meeting video. It is not a verbatim or official record. For exact wording, consult the video or the city clerk.

3. 4Adjournment▶ 1:12:58
4. 3Communications