* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:04:58] IF THERE ARE, OH, HELLO. [00:05:07] IF THERE ARE ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN ZOOM THAT WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON ITEMS NOT LISTED ON THE AGENDA, PLEASE USE A RAISE HAND FEATURE. IF DIALING IN, PLEASE PRESS STAR NINE. NOW. FIRST PUBLIC COMMENT IS LIMITED TO A TOTAL OF 10 SPEAKERS, COMBINING BOTH IN PERSON AND ZOOM PARTICIPANTS, [00:20:08] THERE'S [00:20:09] SMOKE [00:20:11] SO I CAN HAND OUT TWO. IF THERE ARE ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN ZOOM THAT WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON A CONSENT CALENDAR, ITEMS ON THE AGENDA OR SECOND PUBLIC COMMENT, PLEASE USE A RAISE HAND FEATURE. IF DIALING IN, PLEASE PRESS STAR NINE. NOW. SHE GOES EVERY TWO WEEKS AND SHE COOL. [00:25:11] ALRIGHT, [CALL TO ORDER] WELL, THANKS EVERYONE FOR JOINING US. IT'S TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8TH, AND WE'RE GONNA NOW CALL TO ORDER THE MEETING OF THE LONG BEACH CITY COUNCIL. WE'RE GONNA GO TO, WE'RE GONNA, UM, DO [ROLL CALL] ROLL CALL PLEASE. COUNCILWOMAN ZENDEJAS PRESENT. COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN PRESENT. COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN. HERE. COUNCILMAN SUPER HERE. COUNCILWOMAN KERR. PRESENT COUNCILWOMAN SORROW. PRESENT VICE MAYOR YANG COUNCILWOMAN THRASH OOK. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER RICK SODI. PRESENT. MAYOR RICHARDSON. I AM HERE. WE HAVE A QUORUM. THANK YOU. WE'RE GONNA GO TO COUNCIL MEMBER RICK SODI [PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE] FOR THE PLEDGE IN THE MOMENT OF SILENCE. OKAY. UH, GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US THIS EVENING. UM, TODAY WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE, UH, THE MOMENT OF SILENCE, I'M ACTUALLY JUST GONNA ASK YOU ALL TO THINK OF SOMEONE IN YOUR LIFE THAT IS MOST PRECIOUS TO YOU, UM, AND HOW YOU WISH THEM, UH, THE BEST AS THEY MOVE FORWARD IN EVERY STAGE OF THEIR LIFE. IF YOU ARE ABLE, PLEASE RISE AND JOIN ME FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. HAND OVER YOUR HEART AND WE'LL BEGIN. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE. ALL RIGHT. WELL, UH, TODAY IS, UH, A BIG DAY IS BUDGET ADOPTION DAY HERE IN LONG BEACH. UH, WE, WE WILL, UH, GO THROUGH A NUMBER OF ITEMS AND THEN WE'RE GONNA, UH, OPEN UP THE BUDGET HEARING. THEN AT SOME POINT, WE'RE GONNA CLOSE THE BUDGET HEARING, GO THROUGH THE REST OF THE AGENDA, THEN REOPEN THE BUDGET HEARING AT THE END TO FULLY ADOPT THE BUDGET. SO ON PRESENTATIONS, [CEREMONIALS AND PRESENTATIONS] WE'RE GONNA WITHDRAW TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION BECAUSE IT'S, UH, BUDGET TIME. WE'RE GONNA TAKE UP CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS [CONSENT CALENDAR (1. – 18.)] ONE THROUGH 18, PLEASE. ALL RIGHT, LET'S, UH, FACILITATE PUBLIC COMMENT, PLEASE. THERE IS NO PUBLIC COMMENT FOR, I'M SORRY. THERE IS GOOD. I SEE TWO LISTED ON PUBLIC COMMENT. AH, I STAND CORRECTED. UH, WE HAVE TWO SPEAKERS, SAM WISE, GAJI AND CAROLYN ESSEX. IF WE CAN HAVE SAM WISE COME TO THE LECTERN, I'M SORRY, SHE'S DIALING IN. PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF. HELLO? CAN EVERYBODY HEAR ME? WE CAN HEAR YOU. PLEASE BEGIN. FIRST OF ALL, UH, F**K I F**K ISRAEL ON FREE PALESTINE. SO I'M NOTICING THAT ON ITEMS 5, 6, 7, AND EIGHT, THEY'RE ALL ABOUT DESTRUCTION OF RECORDS. ONE FOR THE OFFICE OF CITY ATTORNEY, ONE FOR THE OFFICE OF CITY AUDITOR, OFFICE OF CITY MANAGER, AND DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT. LIKE ALL OF THIS SEEMS TO BE COMING AT A TIME WHEN A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE QUESTIONING HOW THE MONEY IN THIS CITY IS BEING USED. SO I KIND OF JUST WONDER LIKE, WHAT ARE THOSE, WHAT RECORDS ARE BEING DESTROYED AND LIKE, WHY, WHY IS THE PUBLIC ALLOWED TO KNOW THAT THEY'RE BEING DESTROYED, BUT WE DON'T ACTUALLY GET TO SEE WHAT, WHAT IS BEING DESTROYED? THAT JUST STRUCK ME AS A LITTLE BIT ODD, A LITTLE BIT SUSPICIOUS. AND THEN I SEE, UH, A RECOMMENDATION FOR THE CITY MANAGER TO ACCEPT THEY HAVE THE LONG BEACH UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT EXCEPT $400,000. THAT SOUNDS PRETTY GOOD. LIKE IT'S ONLY AT 20,000, $20,000 MORE THAN WHAT OUR CITY MANAGER ACTUALLY MAKES EVERY YEAR. SO YEAH, THAT SOUNDS GREAT. I I THINK THEY SHOULD APPROVE THAT, BUT IT DOES LOOK LIKE IT HAS TO LAST THEM TWO YEARS. AND SO THAT KIND OF SUCKS ON THAT. I'M ALSO SEEING ANOTHER ITEM, ITEM 11, WHICH IS ABOUT THE CITY OF LONG BEACH AND BABY TO BABY. UH, THEY'RE LOOKING FOR A DONATION FOR ESSENTIAL BABY GEAR. SO YEAH, LIKE PEOPLE WHO COULD HAVE USED ESSENTIAL BABY GEAR, PROBABLY, UH, THEY DISPLACED PEOPLE IN GAVA [00:30:01] THAT ARE BEING DISPLACED BY THE CURRENT GENOCIDE THAT IS BEING ENACTED BY THE STATE OF ISRAEL WHILE THE CITY STILL CONTINUES TO LIKE FUND WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION. SO, YOU KNOW, JUST MAKING A POINT OF SAYING THAT. I ALSO SEE ANOTHER ITEM ACCEPT AND EXPAND GRANT FUNDING IN THE AMOUNT OF $300,000. THAT'S PRETTY GOOD TOO. ONLY ANOTHER $80,000, AND THAT WOULD EQUAL SAN MOCA'S SALARY SHIPPING FORWARD. LOOKS LIKE THERE'S ALSO A RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT AND EXPEND GRANT FUNDING IN THE AMOUNT OF $250,000. YEAH, SO ONLY ANOTHER $130,000. AND THAT WOULD EQUAL TOM MOA SALARY. THOSE RECOMMENDATION FOR A CONTRACT WITH EVOLUTIONARY COMMERCIAL SYSTEMS INC. OF HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA IN A TOTAL ANNUAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED, EXCEED $326,000. YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS. NEXT SPEAKER IS CAROLYN ESSEX, PLEASE APPROACH THE PODIUM. WELL, GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY. UM, I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT, UM, ITEMS 1, 2, 9, AND 12 I BELIEVE. SO ONCE AGAIN, WE'RE ALLOCATING COUNCIL DISTRICT ONE TIME PRIORITY FUNDS FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, GALAS AND COMMUNITY EVENTS. SOME APPEAR TO BE ORGANIZATIONS WE'VE SEEN RECEIVE THESE ALLEGATIONS BEFORE. REPEATEDLY, I'M NOT OBJECTING TO THE RECIPIENTS. I'M ASKING WHETHER EVERYONE HAS AN EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME ONE OR EVEN TO SUPPORT AND ATTEND THESE EVENTS. UM, IF PUBLIC DOLLARS ARE BEING HELPING SUPPORT GALAS AND CELEBRATIONS AND COMMUNITY EVENTS, WHERE ARE THE PUBLIC INVITATIONS? HOW DOES THIS AVERAGE LONG BEACH RESIDENT LEARN ABOUT THEM AND PARTICIPATE? I'M JUST SAYING, UM, PUBLIC DOLLARS, PUBLIC OPPORTUNITY, PUBLIC INVITATION. LET'S MAKE SURE EVERYBODY KNOWS THE DOOR IS OPEN. UM, ON ITEM NINE, I STRONGLY SUPPORT ACCEPTING THE 400,000 STRONG WORKFORCE GRANT, BUT I WOULD ALSO ENCOURAGE US TO EXPAND THE VISION. AND I PROPOSE THAT LONG BEACH DELIBERATELY AND INTENTIONALLY BUILD A MORE ROBUST SCHOOL TO PORT NOT PRISON PIPELINE, BEGINNING WITH K THROUGH 12 CAREER EXPOSURE AND LEADING INTO MARITIME AND PORT CAREERS, CLEAN ENERGY, ENGINEERING, TECHNOLOGY, LOGISTICS, AND THE SKILLED TRADES. AND I WOULD LIKE TO SEE US GO ONE STEP FURTHER AND EXPLORING ACTUAL MARITIME FOCUSED HIGH SCHOOL IN LONG BEACH, POTENTIALLY DEVELOPED AS, UM, A CITRUS SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP WITH THE, WITH THE POLIS, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE L-B-U-S-D, WE HAVE LONG BEACH CITY COLLEGE. WE, WE HAVE ORGANIZED LABOR AND WE HAVE ONE OF THE WORLD'S GREAT PORTS RIGHT HERE IN OUR CITY IN LONG BEACH. AS BUILDING THE PORT OF THE FUTURE, WE SHOULD BE BUILDING THE WORKFORCE OF THE FUTURE AT THE SAME TIME. UM, ITEM 12, UM, MEASURABLE PUBLIC SAFETY APPROVE IT, UH, SHOW RESIDENTS WHETHER THE 300 K ACTUALLY IMPROVE PEDESTRIANS BICYCLE SAFELY. SO I SUPPORT THE 300,000 UH, DOLLARS IN PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY GRANT. THIS IS GOOD. UH, WE NEED MORE OF THAT. I WOULD JUST ASK THAT RESIDENTS BE ABLE TO SEE AND MEASURE THE INVESTMENT, WHERE THE FUNDS ARE DEPLOYED, UM, WHICH HIGH RISK QUARTERS ARE TARGETED, AND WHETHER PEDESTRIANS AND BICYCLE INJURIES AND FATALITIES ACTUALLY DECLINE. SO PLEASE HIGHLIGHT THOSE RESULTS IN YOUR PUBLIC REPORTING SO WE CAN SEE WHAT THE INVESTMENT ACCOMPLISHED. THANK YOU SO MUCH. EXCUSE ME, COUNSEL, PUBLIC COMMENT. I, I PUT IN MY NAME, UH, FOR CONSENT. CALENDAR FOR CONSENT. MADAM CLERK, DO YOU HAVE HIM? I'M SORRY. I'M BEING TOLD IT WAS NOT SUBMITTED BEFORE THE ITEM WAS READ. OKAY. SO I WAS HANDING IT TO THE BACK. ARE YOU ALSO ON PUBLIC COMMENT FOR GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT? NO, I, I DIDN'T. OKAY. YOU CAN DO YOUR PUBLIC COMMENT NOW. THANK YOU MAYOR. UH, HELLO EVERYONE. I'M JUST A CONCERNED RESIDENT AND, UH, I HAVE A COUPLE THINGS ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, UH, THAT I'D LIKE TO JUST DISCUSS. UM, THE FIRST ONE IS, UH, NUMBER THREE RECOMMENDING, UH, TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE OTHER CITY COUNCIL MEETING. AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY THE PEOPLE DON'T REALLY HAVE A ROLE IN APPROVING OR DISAPPROVING OF THE MINUTES, [00:35:01] BUT I WILL SAY ALL THE PEOPLE I KNOW DISAPPROVE OF EVERY MINUTE OF LAST MEETING, ESPECIALLY ITEM NUMBER 26. AND, UM, I REALLY THINK IT, IT BEARS LIKE REPEATING THAT THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY THAT GAVE COMMENT IN THE MEETING OUTSIDE OF THE MEETING THROUGH EMAIL ALL TO A NUMBER, WERE OPPOSED TO LIMITING AND CHANGING PUBLIC COMMENT. YOU TRIED TO DO IT ONCE AND WE BEAT IT BACK AND THEN YOU SNUCK IT THROUGH IN A PRETTY DEVIOUS BUDGET WAY. OKAY. SAVING $150,000 LEVERAGING FUNDING FOR THE LIBRARY IN ORDER TO PRETEND THAT WAS GONNA SAVE THE LIBRARY, WHEN REALLY IT WAS SAVING YOU FROM HEARING FROM YOUR CONSTITUENTS. I'D LIKE TO EXCLUDE, IN THIS CASE COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN AND COUNCILWOMAN DUGGAN. YOU WERE THE ONLY ONES THAT THAT STOOD UP AND SPOKE OUT AND PUSH BACK AGAINST WHAT WAS CLEARLY. AND LIKE YOU GUYS DEFINITELY SAT WITH YOUR CHIEFS OF STAFF AND CAME UP WITH REALLY CLEVER WAYS TO DECIDE THAT THIS WAS A GOOD, THAT SOMEHOW IT WASN'T INFRINGING ON OUR FIRST, UH, AMENDMENT RIGHTS. UM, MEGAN KERR AND SULI SORROW IN PARTICULAR MASTERCLASS OF GASLIGHTING US AND MAKING IT SEEM LIKE THIS WAS LIKE YOU HAD A REASONABLE REASON TO VOTE FOR THAT MEASURE. SHAME ON YOU BOTH. AND I KNOW THIS IS JUST THE MINUTES FROM LAST WEEK, BUT THOSE MINUTES ARE THEIR RECEIPTS AND EVERY ONE OF YOU THAT VOTED YES AND CITY MANAGER TOM AND MAYOR REX, WE'RE GONNA REMEMBER THIS. AND YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM THE FACT THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO COMPLETELY INFRINGE ON OUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT ARE YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR FROM YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND IT'S SHAMEFUL 'CAUSE THAT'S YOUR JOB. THAT'S WHY YOU DO THIS JOB. I NOTICE THE ONES THAT SQUEAKED THROUGH AND DIDN'T HAVE TO DO A RUNOFF IN MY DISTRICT, MEGAN KERR. THE FIRST THING YOU DID AFTER JUST AVOIDING A RUNOFF IS VOTING TO INFRINGE ON OUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS. DO BETTER ALL OF YOU IN THIS CASE, EXCEPT FOR CINDY AND CHRISTINA. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. WE'RE NOW GOING, UH, LET'S READ HEARING, HEARING ITEM 19, [19. 26-55956 Recommendation to receive supporting documentation into the record, conclude the public hearing, and take the actions necessary to adopt the Fiscal Year 2027 budget as listed in Attachment A. (Citywide)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] PLEASE. HEARING ITEM 19, REPORT FROM FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION INTO THE RECORD. CONCLUDE THE PUBLIC HEARING AND TAKE THE ACTIONS NECESSARY TO ADOPT THE FISCAL YEAR 2027 BUDGET AS LISTED IN ATTACHMENT A CITYWIDE. ALL RIGHT, SO TONIGHT WE CONSIDER ADOPTION OF THE FY 27 BUDGET. I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE AND THANK ALL THE COLLABORATION, ALL THE PUBLIC INPUT, UH, THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS SINCE JANUARY. AND THE FACT THAT THIS BUDGET HAS IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY AT EVERY STEP ALONG THE WAY. UH, MOVING FROM UH, DEPARTMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S PROPOSAL TO THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION. AND THEN TONIGHT WE'LL HEAR THE BLCS, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS AND ULTIMATELY COUNCIL DELIBERATION. UH, WE, IN TERMS OF THE PROCESS, UH, WE'RE GONNA START AND DO PUBLIC COMMENT FIRST AND THEN WE'RE GONNA PROCEED THROUGH. THERE ARE 16 VOTES TO ADOPT THE CITY COUNCIL, UH, 14. AND THEN WE TAKE A BREAK TO CALCULATE THE BUDGET WHILE WE'LL HANDLE THE REST OF THE AGENDA ITEMS. THEN WE HANDLE 15 AND 16 IN TERMS OF COUNCIL DELIBERATION. THAT WILL TAKE PLACE WHEN WE GET TO THE MOTION ON BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. SO, UH, WE'LL HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC FIRST, THEN WE'LL HEAR FROM THE COUNCIL AS WE GET TO THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, THAT, THAT WERE JUST ADOPTED EARLIER TODAY. I WANNA THANK EVERYONE FOR THEIR, UH, PARTICIPATION IN THE PROCESS. WE'LL HEAR FROM THE BOC CHAIR AND EVERYONE WHEN WE GET TO THAT STAGE. UH, BUT RIGHT NOW IS THE TIME FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. SO I'M GONNA GO TO OUR, UH, OUR MADAME CLERK TO FACILITATE PUBLIC COMMENT, PLEASE. 37. SO WE HAVE 37 SPEAKERS SIGNED UP FOR BUDGET HEARING ITEM NUMBER 19. THE FIRST SPEAKER IS OSCAR ZAMORA, AND THEN ROSARIO, ROLL DOWN, SHAYLA DIAZ, KAYLEE L VERONICA, DIEGO MAYEN, MICHAEL GARCIA STEVENS, CAROLYN ESSEX, GUS OROZCO, AND KAT MAYS. IF YOU HEARD YOUR NAME, PLEASE LINE UP AT THE LECTERN. THE FIRST SPEAKER IS OSCAR. YOU CAN COME FORWARD. HELLO CITY COUNCIL AND MAYOR. MY NAME IS OSCAR ZAMORA. I'M A FAITH ROOTED COMMUNITY ORGANIZER WITH CLUE JUSTICE. CLUE JUSTICE IS CLERGY AND LADY UNITED FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE. TODAY I'M HERE IN THE GOOD SPIRIT OF THE FAITHFUL COMMUNITY OF LONG BEACH TO SUPPORT THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. I URGE YOU GUYS TO DO SO ON THE FUNDAMENTAL BASIS OF REPRESENTING YOUR CONS CONSTITUENCY. [00:40:01] WE RECOGNIZE THAT THE CITY'S BUDGET IS A MORAL DOCUMENT IN WHO, WHAT, AND WHERE WE CHOOSE TO INVEST OR FUND. OUR DOLLARS IS A REFLECTION OF OUR PRIORITIES AND BELIEFS FOR MANY HOURS ACROSS MANY WEEKS. YOU ALL HEARD THE CRIES AND RIGHTEOUS CAUSE OF OUR BELOVED COMMUNITY TO PROTECT OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY, WE HAVE BEEN RIGHTEOUSLY ASKING FOR $3 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. THIS IS SPECIFICALLY TO MEET THE MATERIAL NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY. TO GO ANYTHING BELOW LESS THAN THE $2.2 MILLION THAT WE HAD IN THE PREVIOUS YEAR WOULD BE A DISGRACE TO A CRITICAL GROUP OF OUR BELOVED COMMUNITY. PLEASE, I URGE YOU TO PASS THE RECOMMENDATION FOR $1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. AND I JUST QUICKLY WANT TO SAY THAT I AM HEAVILY MOTIVATED BY MY RELIGIOUS FAITH, AND MAYBE SOME OF YOU ON THIS COUNCIL ARE AS WELL. AND COMING FROM A CHRISTIAN BACKGROUND, I FREQUENTLY THINK OF JESUS CHRIST AND THE WAY THAT HE WOULD USE HIS FAITH TO PROTECT THE OPPRESSED. AND I CAN SAY CONFIDENTLY THAT IF JESUS WAS ALIVE TODAY, HE WOULD SUPPORT YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. THANK YOU. OKAY. WHEN I STARTED SENIOR, UM, JOSE ROSARIO. GOOD EVENING MAYOR. MY NAME IS ROSARIO. I'VE BEEN, I'M LIVING IN LA BEACH FOR 20 YEARS NOW. I'VE BEEN LIVING IN DISTRICT FIVE, UM, MEGAN KERR AND I'M HERE REPRESENTING EVERYONE WHO IS NOT ABLE TO BE HERE. ALL THE WORKERS AND ALL THE SINGLE MOTHERS WHO ARE, UM, ALSO NOT BE HERE. UM, DR. A AND I'M HERE TODAY TO ADVOCATE FOR THE JUSTICE FUND TO ADVOCATE MORE THAN ANYTHING FOR $3 MILLION FOR ALL THE FAMILIES LIVING HERE IN LONG BEACH. I KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS. UH, WE'VE SEEN DR. JOAN WITH OUR KIDS. I HAVE OUR KIDS AT SCHOOL. UM, MORE THAN ANYTHING, SINCE WE'RE PROTECTING OF OUR CHILDREN AS WELL, OUR FAMILIES, WE DON'T WANT OUR KIDS TO BE SCARED ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON AT HOME. WE DON'T WANT THEM TO BE FEAR, TO BE FEARFUL OF WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN TO THEIR PARENTS. WE'RE NOT ONLY HERE TO ASKING FOR HELP, BUT WE'RE HERE TO ASK THAT OUR CITY, UM, INVEST IN THEIR OWN PEOPLE. OUR COMMUNITY IS IMPORTANT, OUR FAMILIES ARE IMPORTANT, OUR CHILDREN ARE IMPORTANT. AND LONG BEACH DESERVES JUSTICE AND MAKE SURE THAT NOBODY IS LEFT BEHIND. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER IS SHAYLA. YEAH. GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. UM, MY NAME IS SHAYLA DIAZ, RESIDENT OF DISTRICT SEVEN AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZER ON LANES LONG BEACH FOR JUST ECONOMY. LONG BEACH, UH, LIKE SO MANY OF OUR CITIES AND TOWNS, IS A PRODUCT OF MY IMMIGRANT LABOR AND CULTURE AND THE URGENT NEED TO KEEP WORKING FAMILIES TOGETHER AND PROTECT OUR MOST VULNERABLE GOALS WITHOUT SAYING PUBLICLY. FUNDING PROGRAMS LIKE THE JUSTICE FUND ARE CRUCIAL, NOT ONLY TO PREVENT DEPORTATIONS, BUT TO PROVIDE LIFE-CHANGING RESOURCES AND SERVICES THAT CAN LEAD TO PERMANENT STATUS. EVERYONE DESERVES A RIGHT TO FREE LEGAL REPRESENTATION, ESPECIALLY WHEN FACED WITH THE THREAT OF SEPARATION FROM THEIR HOMES AND LOVED ONES. AMIDST THESE CHALLENGES AM AMIDST THESE CHALLENGING TIMES THAT JUSTICE FUND HAS BEEN A BRIGHT LIGHT FOR OUR FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES TO FIND SAFETY AND SUPPORT HERE IN LONG BEACH. THAT IS WHY WE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR THE $3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUND. WE DESERVE SUMMERS TO BE FILLED WITH LAUGHTER, ESPECIALLY BY OUR CHILDREN WHO DIDN'T GET TO DESERVE, EXCUSE ME, THEY DIDN'T DESERVE TO BE IN ENDORSED ALL THIS SUMMER. THEY DESERVE TO ENJOY THE POOL WITH THE HEAT THAT WE HAD, HAVE FUN WITH THEIR FRIENDS AND NOT BE SCARED THAT THEIR FAMILIES WOULD BE TORN APART. DO SOMETHING. NEXT SPEAKER IS KAYLEE, AND THEN VERONICA. KAYLEE, I'M HERE TO SPEAK ON BEHALF OF THE LIBRARIES AND I ALSO WANT TO, [00:45:01] UH, TALK ABOUT THE WAY THAT, UH, THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE PRESENTED, UH, THEIR SUGGESTIONS AT 10 30 THIS MORNING. UM, AS SOMEONE WHO TOOK SEVERAL DAYS OFF WORK TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS BUDGET HEARING PROCESS, UM, I FELT LIKE THERE WASN'T A LOT OF, UM, ABILITY TO ENGAGE IN A SERIOUS MANNER WITH WHAT WAS PRESENTED. UM, EVEN IF IT'S NOT A VIOLATION OF THE BROWN ACT AND IN THE SPIRIT OF THE BROWN ACT AND IN THE SPIRIT OF, UH, PUBLIC PARTICIPATION, I JUST URGE YOU TO, UH, MAKE THAT AVAILABLE SOONER. BUT THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE LIBRARIES. THANK YOU FOR, UM, UH, NAVIGATING A HARD BUDGET YEAR. AND ALSO I WANNA, UM, UH, ASK YOU TO CONSIDER THE PART-TIME TEEN MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE BECAUSE OUR TEENS ARE WATCHING HOW, UH, THEY'RE BEING TREATED DURING THIS CRISIS. AND, UM, HAVING THE CONTINUOUS SUPPORT OF THE EXISTING, UM, MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE WILL BE MORE VALUE THAN CONTRACTING IT OUT TO SOMEONE ELSE. THANK YOU SO MUCH. NEXT SPEAKER IS VERONICA, AND THEN DIEGO, AND THEN MICHAEL VERONICA, IF YOU CAN COME FORWARD. DIEGO. UH, GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS DIEGO. I'M THE RAPID RESPONSE ORGANIZER WITH . I'M HERE TO URGE THE COUNCIL TO STRONGLY CONSIDER INCREASING, UH, FUNDING FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND AT 3 MILLION, UM, AND SUPPORT THE RECOMMENDATION PUT FORWARD BY, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER ORANGA, UH, FOR 1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING. UM, THE NEED FOR THE JUSTICE FUND HASN'T SLOWED DOWN. OUR COMMUNITY IS IN DESPERATE NEED OF A RESOURCE LIKE THE JUSTICE FUND. SOMETHING THAT CAN'T BE MEASURED THROUGH THIS PROGRAM IS THE IMMENSE AMOUNT OF RELEASE THAT PEOPLE FEEL WHEN THEY'RE ABLE TO HAVE A LEGAL CONSULTATION, UM, FOR FREE. AND RIGHT NOW, A VERY REAL CHOICE THAT PEOPLE ARE BEING FACED WITH IS HAVING TO CHOOSE BETWEEN, UH, PAYING FOR RESOURCES FOR THEIR FAMILY OR HAVING TO PAY, UH, FOR A LAWYER FOR LEGAL REPRESENTATION. UM, AND SOMETIMES PEOPLE AREN'T ABLE TO AFFORD BOTH. SO THAT MEANS FALLING BEHIND ON RENT OR MAYBE FALLING BEHIND ON GROCERIES FOR THE WEEK AND HAVING THE JUSTICE FUND BE A FREE RESOURCE THAT, UH, THE LONG BEACH COMMUNITY CAN, UM, ACCESS MEANS THAT PEOPLE AT LEAST HAVE A FIGHTING CHANCE TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THE BEST DECISION THAT THEY CAN, UM, FOR THEIR FAMILY. SO AGAIN, I MERGING THE COUNCIL TO STRONGLY CONSIDER, UM, INCREASING THE FUNDING FOR THE JUSTICE FUND OF 3 MILLION, UM, FOLLOWING ANYTHING BELOW THE PREVIOUS YEAR ALLOCATION, UM, WOULD MAKE IT VERY DIFFICULT TO CONTINUE SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY THAT ALREADY NEEDS THE SUPPORT AND ALL THE COMMUNITY THAT WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO HELP. UM, SO AGAIN, I URGE THE COUNCIL, UH, FOR 3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUND AND I SUPPORT, UM, ORANGS RECOMMENDATION FOR 1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING FOR THE JUSTICE FUND. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER IS MICHAEL. MICHAEL GARCIA, PLEASE COME FORWARD. HI, GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M MICHAEL. I'M A STUDENT, A COLLEGE STUDENT. UM, AND I'VE LIVED IN LONG BEACH MY ENTIRE LIFE. I WAS BORN AT ST. MARY'S HOSPITAL. I'LL PROBABLY DIE AT MEMORIAL. UM, . OH MY GOD. THE POINT IS THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF ISSUES THAT WE HAVE GOING ON THAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS. UM, OBVIOUSLY IMMIGRATION IS A MASSIVE ISSUE RIGHT NOW. IT IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY AND INCREDIBLY URGENT THAT OUR CITY WORKS TO PROTECT ITS IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES. UM, THESE COMMUNITIES MAKE THE BACKBONE OF OUR WHOLE CITY. UM, OUR PORT IS OUR POWER AND PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD BEEN WORKING IN OUR CITY FOR DECADES. ADDITIONALLY, ANY THE PROPOSED CUTS TO PUBLIC SERVICES AND, UM, JUST IN GENERAL IN THE NEXT BUDGET, UM, ARE RIDICULOUS. UM, AGAIN, I'VE LIVED IN LONG BEACH MY ENTIRE LIFE. I GREW UP, I WAS IN DR. SORROW'S DISTRICT. UM, I'VE LIVED THERE FOR A LONG TIME. UH, THE ALLEY BEHIND WHERE I LIVE USED TO NOT BE PAVED. WE HAD A DIRT ROAD. UM, OUR TRASH PICKUP ISN'T REGULAR. WE HAVE ISSUES WITH THAT. THEY DON'T COME ALL THE TIME. UM, UH, NEXT TO US AND ACROSS THE STREET FROM US, THERE ARE ABANDONED LOTS, UM, THAT CAUSE ISSUES. WE NEED GREATER FUNDING FOR PUBLIC SERVICES TO TAKE CARE OF THESE ISSUES. TO ADDRESS THESE ISSUES. THE AVERAGE LONG BEACH RESIDENT MAKES LESS THAN $90,000 A YEAR. IT, IT IS RIDICULOUS AND WE DON'T HAVE PUBLIC SERVICES. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS. THE NEXT SPEAKER IS CAROLYN ESSEX, THEN GUS OROZCO AND KAT MAYS. PLEASE COME FORWARD. UM, HELLO EVERYONE AGAIN. UM, UM, I'M REALLY IMPASSIONED ABOUT PUBLIC SAFETY AND SO MY ASK IN THE BUDGET IS TO SAVE ENGINE 14. UM, IF I'M READING AND HEARING CORRECTLY, THE PROPOSAL IS TO TAKE ENGINE 14 OUT OF SERVICE AND ELIMINATE THE STAFFING ASSOCIATED WITH IT, PRODUCING APPROXIMATELY THREE POINT 88 MILLION IN ONGOING SAVINGS. SO STATION 14 WOULD REMAIN OPEN AND THE PARAMEDIC RESCUE [00:50:01] AMBULANCE WOULD CONTINUE OPERATING. AND, UM, HERE'S ANOTHER FACT THAT MAKES THIS ESPECIALLY RELEVANT. UM, THIS WEEKEND THE WEATHER WAS WEATHERING AND CHIEF BUCHANAN HAS ALREADY WARNED THAT PROPOSED REDUCTIONS COULD PRODUCE CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH NO ENGINE IS AVAILABLE FOR AN EMERGENCY. SO I ALSO, I WANNA UNDERSTAND THE ROLE OF MEASURE A. IF FUTURE MEASURE A REVENUES ARE PROJECTED TO INCREASE, UM, WHICH I'M READING ABOUT, WILL THE CITY CONSIDER A BRIDGE STRATEGY THAT WOULD ALLOW ENGINE 14 TO BE PRESERVED OR ONLY AS A LAST RESORT TEMPORARILY SUSPEND WITH A SPECIFIC RESTORATION MECHANISM? THIS IS PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHEN STATION 14 REOPENED FOLLOWING APPROXIMATELY 4.5 MILLION IMPROVEMENTS IN MARCH OF 2025, AND I LOOKED CITY OFFICIALS DESCRIBE THAT AS INVESTMENT, AS STRENGTHENING EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY. SO THIS IS MY, UM, LITTLE AS SEARCH, UH, FOR ALTERNATIVE, UM, FUNDING SEARCH AND RESCUE ENGINE 14. NEXT SPEAKER. GOOD EVENING MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME IS GUS AND I AM A ARMY COMBAT VETERAN AND A RESIDENT OF DISTRICT NINE. IN THE MAYOR'S BUDGET RECOMMENDATION WE SAW WEEKS AGO, IT RESTORES THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROFESSIONAL THREE IN THE OFFICE OF VETERAN SERVICES FROM A FULL-TIME STAFF POSITION TO A 0.5 FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT CUTTING THIS POSITION IN HALF. SO THAT'S A, A RESTORATION THAT WE'RE CUTTING THAT POSITION IN HALF TODAY WE SAW THAT THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE IS RECOMMENDING, IS RECOMMENDING THAT THAT POSITION BE SLASHED AGAIN. WHILE I RECOGNIZE THAT THE FINANCIALS CHALLENGES FACING THE CITY, I AM CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE REDUCTION AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR VETERANS OF LONG BEACH. THIS POSITION SUPPORTS THE OFFICE OF VETERAN SERVICES AND IT CARRIES SIGNIFICANT RESPONSIBILITIES. THIS INDIVIDUAL STAFFS THE STAFFS AND COORDINATES THE CITY'S VETERANS COMMISSION PLANS AND EXECUTES MILITARY AND VETERAN RECOGNITION EVENTS AND CEREMONIES AND BRINGS TOGETHER THE LONG BEACH VA LONG BEACH BANNERS PROGRAM. THESE ARE MEANINGFUL RESPONSIBILITIES THAT CONNECT THE CITY'S HISTORY WITH SERVICE TO VETERANS FAMILIES THAT CALL LONG BEACH HOME. YET UNDER THE NEW BUDGET DISPOSITION WILL BE REDUCED TO LESS THAN 18 HOURS A WEEK. OUR VETERANS HAVE GIVEN MUCH TO SERVICE TO THIS COUNTRY. MAINTAINING A STRONG COMMITMENT TO THEM IS NOT ONLY AN EXPENSIVE AN AN, AN EXPRESSION OF GRATITUDE, BUT IT IS ALSO A REFLECTION OF THE VALUES THAT HELP BUILD OUR CITY. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR RECOMMENDATION TODAY OR THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME TODAY AND, UH, HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. AND I AM GONNA READ THE NEXT 10 SPEAKERS. KAT, YOU ARE UP NEXT AFTER KAT IS JOHN MATTHEWS, JANE DOE, JOHN DOE, JANE DOE, B JANE DOE, A, TORI ZER, JEANETTE DOE, GIOVANNI FERRARO, FERNANDO ACEVEDO, AND VERONICA GARCIA. IF YOU HEARD YOUR NAME, PLEASE LINE UP BEHIND THE LECTERN. YOUR TIME BEGINS. KA THANK YOU. THERE. THE VIBES ARE S****Y IN A CRUMBLING CITY. I JUST WANT YOU TO REMEMBER THAT I AM A UNION CLERK. I AM A RESIDENT AND I'M A CITY EMPLOYEE OF EIGHT YEARS. AND I'VE NOTICED THREE KEY COMPONENTS OF MOST OF THE BUDGET ASSETS THAT I'VE BEEN, OR BUDGET ASPECTS THAT I HAVE BEEN PRIVY TO. THE FIRST IS THAT YOU SEEM TO BE GETTING RID OF MANY ADMIN AND NON-CAREER POSITIONS, WHICH IN AND OF ITSELF IS A LITTLE BIT OF A SLAP IN THE FACE. THE SECOND IS THAT YOU SEEM TO BE SHUFFLING AROUND PEOPLE AND DIVISIONS LIKE DECK CHAIRS ON THE TITANIC. THE THIRD IS THAT YOU ARE INVESTING IN THINGS THAT THE RESIDENTS DO NOT WANT. LIKE THE AUTOMATED SPEED ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM, WHICH WILL BE TELL YOU SOMETHING LIKE $5 MILLION TO INITIALLY IMPLEMENT AND $2 MILLION TO OPERATE POSSIBLY BRINGING IN $5 MILLION A YEAR. THOUGH I HAVE SERIOUS QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW MUCH THAT CAN BE ENFORCED AND THEN CUTTING THINGS THAT WE WANT, LIKE NEW TECHS OR FIRE ENGINES OR CROSSING GUARDS. UM, REM RAMIFICATIONS OF THIS BUDGET AS IT STANDS NOW, IS GOING TO RESULT IN MORE DAMAGES AND MORE DEATHS, MORE INJURIES. AND YOU CAN LOOK AWAY AT ME ALL YOU LIKE, BUT THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS, I KNOW IT'S NOT ENTIRELY FALLING ON DEAF EARS BECAUSE MS. DUGGAN AND MS. ALLEN AT LEAST SEEM TO LISTEN. BUT I WILL TELL YOU THAT IT'S GONNA RESULT IN MORE DEATH, MORE DAMAGES, MORE LITIGATION, MORE CLAIMS, AND A REALLY, REALLY, REALLY S****Y VIBE FOR THE CITY. PLEASE DO BETTER. I KNOW YOU CAN. GOOD EVENING MAYOR, COUNCIL MEMBERS AND MY LONG BEACH NEIGHBORS. MY NAME IS JOHN MATTHEWS. I'M A RESIDENT OF DISTRICT SEVEN AND I'M PROUD TO SERVE AS PRESIDENT OF THE LONG BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION. OVER THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS, THOUSANDS OF RESIDENTS MADE ONE THING VERY CLEAR. OUR PUBLIC LIBRARIES ARE ESSENTIAL AND REDUCING ACCESS TO THEM WOULD BE DEVASTATING. AS A DAD TO A [00:55:01] 4-YEAR-OLD NAMED NATALIA WHO LOVES OUR LIBRARIES, I KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THESE SPACES ARE FOR FAMILIES, STUDENTS, SENIORS, JOB SEEKERS AND RESIDENTS ACROSS OUR CITY RELY ON LIBRARY PROGRAMS AND SERVICES EVERY SINGLE DAY. IT IS A SAFE SPACE WHERE FAMILIES DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT GETTING TORN APART, WHERE PEOPLE CAN ESCAPE THE A HUNDRED DEGREE HEAT AND CHILL. NEARLY 7,000 PEOPLE SPOKE UP TO PROTECT MONDAY LIBRARY HOURS AND THE CITY LISTENED. MAYOR RICHARDSON HAS PROPOSED A PATH TO PRESERVE THAT ACCESS BY PROVIDING STRUCTURAL FUNDING, ONGOING FUNDING FOR MONDAY PUBLIC LIBRARY HOURS. AND THE LONG BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION SUPPORTS IT. THE LIBRARY FOUNDATION IS ALSO STEPPING UP, COMMITTING AN ADDITIONAL 750,750,000 OVER THREE YEARS TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR LIBRARY PROGRAMS AND SERVICES. THIS IS IN ADDITION TO THE $30 MILLION WE HAVE PROVIDED OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS. THIS IS WHAT PARTNERSHIP LOOKS LIKE. THE COMMUNITY SPEAKS, CITY LEADERS RESPOND, AND THE FOUNDATION INVEST. WE URGE THE COUNCIL TO ADOPT THE MAYOR'S BUDGET PROPOSAL TO KEEP CRITICAL LIBRARY SERVICES. WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUE OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER IS JANE DOE AND THEN JOHN DOE, JANE DOE B AND JANE DOE A. IF JANE DOE CAN PLEASE COME TO THE LECTERN. HI, GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS LENNY BOYER AND I'M A DISTRICT THREE RESIDENT AND AN ATTORNEY AT PUBLIC COUNSEL. I HAVE LED OUR HABEAS AND REMOVAL DEFENSE WORK THROUGH THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND THIS YEAR. I WANT TO SPEAK ABOUT, UM, WHAT THIS WORK LOOKS LIKE IN PRACTICE. MANY OF THE INDIVIDUALS WE SERVE WERE SUBJECT TO RAIDS AND UNLAWFUL ARRESTS HERE IN LONG BEACH. UNABLE TO SECURE RELEASE ON BOND AS BEFORE, THEY HAD BEEN FORCED TO SEEK RELIEF IN FEDERAL COURT. MANY OF OUR CLIENTS HAVE EXPERIENCED PROLONGED DETENTION THREATS, THEIR HEALTH AND WELLBEING AND SERIOUS DIFFICULTY FINDING QUALITY, LEGAL REPRESENTATION. THESE ARE OUR NEIGHBORS, PEOPLE WHO LIVE AND WORK IN LONG BEACH, WHO HAVE DEEP TIES TO THIS COMMUNITY AND WHO HAVE BEEN UNJUSTLY DETAINED WITH NO CLEAR PATH FORWARD. ALONG WITH OUR COLLEAGUES AT ESPERANZA, WE PROVIDE ONSITE CONSULTATIONS, A DETAINED HOTLINE, PRO SE CLINICS, AND FULL SCOPE LEGAL REPRESENTATION FOR OUR LONG BEACH COMMUNITY. WE HAVE FREED SEVERAL COMMUNITY MEMBERS FROM DETENTION THIS YEAR. ONE OF THEM, ROBERTO GAVE ME HIS PERMISSION TO SHARE HIS STORY TONIGHT. ROBERTO, A CONSTRUCTION WORKER, WAS AT A HOME DEPOT LAST OCTOBER. UM, THE ONE ON CHERRY WHEN IMMIGRATION AGENTS VIOLENTLY ARRESTED A NUMBER OF LATINO APPEARING INDIVIDUALS OUTSIDE, ROBERTO WAS ONE OF THEM. HE WAS SENT TO ATO, SEPARATED FROM HIS PREGNANT WIFE AND THEIR TODDLER. HE SPENT NINE MONTHS LOCKED UP IN SUBHUMAN CONDITIONS. HE MISSED THE BIRTH OF HIS SECOND CHILD IN JULY, HE WAS RELEASED AFTER A FEDERAL JUDGE GRANTED OUR HABEAS PETITION AND RULED HIS ARREST AND DETENTION TO BE UNCONSTITUTIONAL. NOW HE'S BACK HOME WITH HIS FAM. SORRY. YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. NEXT SPEAKER. NEXT SPEAKER. PLEASE COME FORWARD. JOHN DOE. JANE DOE. B JANE DOE A TORI FLANGER. IF YOU HEAR YOUR NAME, PLEASE LINE UP WITH THE LECTERN AND BE PREPARED TO COME FORWARD AND SPEAK. HELLO MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME IS NANDO VEDO. COMMUNITY LAWYER WITH OR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND COALITION HAS BEEN ADVOCATING FOR 3 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING FOR LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. WE'VE ALSO SHARED THE NEED TO AT LEAST MAINTAIN MINI, UH, MAINTAIN THE MINIMUM, UH, FUNDING LEVELS FROM LAST YEAR, WHICH REACHED 2.2 MILLION. UM, AS ANYTHING LESS WOULD BE A DISSERVICE TO OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY, UM, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THAT IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT HAS INCREASED AND BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, UM, ARE GOING TO FURTHER EXPAND IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT. I'M VOICING MY SUPPORT FOR THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION OF 1 MILLION FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND, BUT ENCOURAGE THE CITY TO CONSIDER AUGMENTING THIS BUDGET ALLOCATION AND FURTHER INCREASING STRUCTURAL FUNDING. I RECOGNIZE THIS IS A TOUGH BUDGET YEAR FOR THE CITY, BUT I URGE YOU TO THINK ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT FINDING ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND, UM, AND WHAT THOSE CONSEQUENCES WILL BRING TO THE LOCAL IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY WHO DEPEND ON THE FUND FOR IMMIGRATION LEGAL SUPPORT. YOU JUST HEARD, UH, THE GREAT WORK THAT, UH, THE LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS ARE DOING TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY MEMBERS. AND THE TRUTH OF THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS THAT THIS FUND REALLY RELIES ON THOSE DOLLARS TO BE ABLE TO HELP INDIVIDUALS LIKE THAT. LASTLY, I'M SHARING MY SUPPORT FOR CITY WORKERS FACING LAYOFFS, OUR LIBRARIES AND BUDGET PRIORITIES FROM COMMUNITY PARTNERS INCLUDING 2.24 RIGHT TO COUNCIL AND 200,000 IN COUNTY MEASURE A FUNDS FOR, UM, THE COMMUNITY LAND TRUST. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE COME FORWARD. COUNCIL. HELLO MR. MAYOR. UH, YOU'RE STARTING TO RECOGNIZE MY FACE. PROBABLY, UM, I'M KIND OF TIRED OF COMING OUT, BUT KEEP DOING SILLY STUFF UP HERE. UM, I'M HERE ONCE AGAIN FOR THE LIBRARY, WHICH I AM DELIGHTED OF COURSE THAT THE LIBRARY IS RECEIVING FUNDING FROM THE PUBLIC LI FROM THE UM, FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY FOUNDATION. BUT THAT IS A DONATION AND THE MAYOR KEEPS TELLING PEOPLE WHO REACH OUT TO HIM OVER AND OVER AGAIN THAT ONE TIME FUNDING [01:00:01] DOESN'T PLUG THE BUDGET. AND HE KEEPS TURNING DOWN PEOPLE'S IDEAS THAT ONE TIME FUNDING DOESN'T PLUG THE BUDGET AND THAT'S WHY HE WON'T HEAR OUT IDEAS. BUT FOR SOME REASON THIS ONE DOES COUNT. THIS ONE DOES COUNT BECAUSE IT KEEPS THE LIBRARIES OPEN ON MONDAYS, WHICH OF COURSE IS WHAT WE WANT. BUT WHAT HAPPENS IN THREE YEARS? WE'D LIKE THE LIBRARY TO BE OPEN ON MONDAYS IN THREE YEARS. SO IS THAT, IS THAT GONNA BE WRITTEN IN? I'D LIKE TO KNOW. SO THAT WOULD BE SPECIAL. I DON'T WHAT A LIBRARY IS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT A LIBRARY IS IF IT'S OPEN ON MONDAYS, BUT THERE'S NO ONE TO STAFF IT. THAT'S JUST A BIG EMPTY BUILDING. THAT'S JUST THE ROOM WITH BOOKS IN IT. IF THERE'S NO MONEY FOR THE STAFF, IF THERE'S NO MONEY FOR THE CLERKS, FOR THE LIBRARIANS, FOR THE PEOPLE WHO KEEP THE INDIVIDUAL SERVICES RUNNING, THE THING THAT MAKES THE LIBRARY SO VALUABLE, THAT MAKES IT A SPECIAL PLACE. IT'S NOT MUCH OF A LIBRARY THAT'S JUST A REC ROOM. THANK YOU. YES. NEXT SPEAKER. PLEASE COME FORWARD. GOOD EVENING MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME IS TORI FLANGER AND I'LL BE SPEAKING TONIGHT. ON BEHALF OF DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS OF AMERICA LONG BEACH. WE ARE STANDING HERE TONIGHT BECAUSE THIS CITY COUNCIL IS CHOOSING AUSTERITY OVER HUMAN SURVIVAL. YOU ARE TELLING OVER 54,000 NON-CITIZEN NEIGHBORS OVER 12% OF OUR CITY, THAT BALANCING A BUDGET SHEET MATTERS MORE THAN PROTECTING THEM FROM BEING TORN AWAY FROM THEIR FAMILIES. RIGHT NOW ICE IS TERRORIZING OUR STREETS. PEOPLE IN LONG BEACH ARE BEING SNATCHED IN BROAD DAYLIGHT. PARENTS ARE TERRIFIED TO WALK THEIR CHILDREN TO SCHOOL. NEIGHBORS ARE SKIPPING CRITICAL MEDICAL CARE AND WORKERS ARE AFRAID TO GO TO JOB SITES. AND BECAUSE DEPORTATION IS CIVIL, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HANDS DOWN LIFE ALTERING SENTENCES WITHOUT PROVIDING A LAWYER TO THOSE WHO CAN'T AFFORD ONE. WE KNOW THE FACTS. WHEN AN INDIVIDUAL HAS AN ATTORNEY IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS, THEY ARE NEARLY FIVE TIMES MORE LIKELY TO WIN THEIR CASE AND STAY HOME WITH THEIR LOVED ONES. THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND IS NOT OPTIONAL. IT IS AN EMERGENCY SHIELD RELYING ON THE A STRUCTURAL BASE OF JUST $300,000. AND A TEMPORARY YEAR TO YEAR BANDAID IS AN INSULT TO OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY. REFUSING TO RAISE THE JUSTICE FUND. STRUCTURAL ALLOCATION TO 3 MILLION IN NEW CITY DOLLARS IS A CHOICE TO LEAVE OUR NEIGHBORS DEFENSELESS AGAINST AN AGGRESSIVE FEDERAL DEPORTATION MACHINE. YOUR TIMES CONCLUDED. THANK YOU. CAN I GET THE NEXT SPEAKER? JOHN DOE. JANE DOE, JEANETTE DOE GIOVANNA. VERONICA, IF YOU CAN COME FORWARD PLEASE. IF YOU HEARD YOUR NAME CALLED HELLO MAYOR CITY COUNCIL. UM, I'M GIOVANNA FERRARO. I AM A RESIDENT. I'VE BEEN A RESIDENT HERE FOR 20 YEARS. SOME OF YOU UP THERE KNOW ME. YOU KNOW ME. WELL, YOU'VE BEEN INSIDE MY BUSINESS WHEN I OWNED ONE AND COVID TOOK THAT AWAY. SO I HAD TO GET MY LIFE BACK TOGETHER, RIGHT? I DID. I WORK FOR YOU. I WORK IN HOMELESS SERVICES. WHY? BECAUSE MY DAD DIED A HOMELESS MAN YEARS AGO. I'VE BEEN AN ADVOCATE FOR THIS CITY. I'VE PUT YOUR SIGNS WITH YOUR NAMES IN THE WINDOWS OF MY BUSINESS, IN SUPPORT OF YOU. AND NOW I'M HEARING IN A FEW MONTHS HERE, I'M GONNA LOSE MY JOB FIVE MONTHS AWAY FROM GAINING MY PENSION. FIVE MONTHS FROM GETTING A PENSION. YOU'RE GONNA MAKE ME LOSE MY JOB ON YOU. I'VE GOT A DISABLED MOM WHO, BECAUSE OF THE STREETS OF LONG BEACH ARE NOT THE SAFEST AT TIMES IS DISABLED. 'CAUSE WE WERE BOTH HIT BY A CAR THREE MONTHS BEFORE COVID HIT. I'M TRYING TO GET MY LIFE TOGETHER IN FIVE MONTHS BEFORE MY PENSION HITS. YOU'RE GONNA TAKE MY JOB IN HOMELESS SERVICES WHERE I HELP THOSE LESS FORTUNATE THAN MYSELF EVERY DAY. I'M TRAUMATIZED. YOUR TYPES INCLUDED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS. PLEASE DO SOMETHING. PLEASE, PLEASE SOMETHING. CAN I START? PEOPLE SAY THE COST OF COMMUNITY IS INCONVENIENCE. I BELIEVE THE COST OF SERVING YOUR COMMUNITY IS THE INCONVENIENCE OF ACTUALLY LISTENING TO THE PEOPLE YOU SERVE. IF YOUR GOAL WAS TO WAGE RATE THE PEOPLE OF LONG BEACH INTO [01:05:01] CIVIC ENGAGEMENT BY DISAPPOINTING US AT EVERY CITY BUDGET MEETING, THEN MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. I KNOW YOU BELIEVE THAT YOUR LEGACY WILL BE LA 28, BUT IT WILL BE SOWING FURTHER DISTRUST THROUGHOUT LONG BEACH IN THE JOB THAT YOU'RE MEANT TO DO. I HOPE YOU'VE LISTENED TO ALL THESE PEOPLE BEGGING FOR THEIR LIBRARIES, CROSSING GUARDS, IMMIGRATION REFORM, AND IN SOME CASES THEIR SURVIVAL. I URGE YOU TO CONSIDER THE PROGRAMS THAT ACTUALLY SERVE THE CITY AND NOT CUT THE THINGS WE NEED WHILE SELLING US OUT FOR THE IMAGINARY OLYMPIC ACCOLADES. YOU THINK WE'LL GET SHAME? WE CAN'T. WE CAN'T PAY RENT WITH ACCOLADES. THE COSMETIC SPENDING, THE COSMETIC ADJUSTMENTS THAT WE'RE SPENDING ON ARE MEANINGLESS. WHEN THE LA OLYMPICS ARE OVER, WE WILL STILL BE HERE. AND IF THIS BUDGET SHOWS WHERE YOUR PRIORITIES ARE, THEN WE WILL LIKELY STILL BE STRUGGLING. DO BETTER. YAY. GOOD EVENING. I'M HERE TO SPEAK IN SUPPORT OF THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. MY NAME IS GINA AMATO LOWE. I'M THE DIRECTING ATTORNEY OF PUBLIC COUNCIL'S IMMIGRANTS RIGHTS PROJECT. WE ARE YOUR LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDER FOR THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. UH, WE ARE GRATEFUL TO THE CITY, TO THE MAYOR, TO OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS AND TO RESIDENTS FOR THEIR PARTNERSHIP IN THIS PROJECT. ALTHOUGH THE CITY HAS, UM, ADMINISTERED THIS PROGRAM SINCE 2018, THE NEED HAS NEVER BEEN GREATER. AS MY COLLEAGUE LENNY WAS SAYING, WE HAVE BEEN SIMPLY SHOCKED BY THE NEED, BY THE UM, PROLONGED ATTENTION THAT PEOPLE ARE BEING SUBJECTED TO BY THE WARRANTLESS RAIDS, BY THE CRUEL TREATMENT THAT THEY'RE RECEIVING IN DETENTION. AND BY THE DIFFICULTY IN ACCESSING LEGAL COUNSEL, FRANKLY, EVEN WITH TWO LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS ON DECK, THAT'S PUBLIC COUNSEL AND ESPERANCES IMMIGRANTS RIGHTS PROJECT. UH, WE WERE AWARDED THE CONTRACT IN NOVEMBER. UM, SINCE THAT TIME WE HAVE DONE, UH, WELL IT'S MORE NOW, BUT AT THE END OF JUNE IT WAS 55 CONSULTATIONS. WE HAVE TAKEN ON 46 CASES FOR FULL SCOPE REPRESENTATION. WE HAVE DONE NUMEROUS WEBINARS AND ONSITE DOCUMENT PREP SESSIONS. WE ARE CREATING FIVE MANUALS, UM, THAT PEOPLE CAN USE TO NAVIGATE THE PROCESS ON THEIR OWN IF THEY'RE UNABLE TO ACCESS SERVICES. AND WE ARE DOING OUR ABSOLUTE BEST TO MEET THE NEED HERE IN THE LONG BEACH COMMUNITY, WHICH IS, BY THE WAY, MY COMMUNITY. I HAVE BEEN A LONGTIME RESIDENT OF DISTRICT SIX AND TAKE THIS WORK VERY, VERY PERSONALLY. WE'RE ASKING, UH, THIS MA'AM, YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. NO, IT'S NO PROBLEM. THANK YOU. I'M SORRY YOU'RE NOT, UH, CONTINUE TO FUNDING. I'M GONNA CALL THE JUST ONE MOMENT. I'M GONNA CALL THE NEXT 10 SPEAKERS TO LINE UP AT THE LECTERN. CAN I GET VERONICA GARCIA? LIZ ARLO? KEN OSBORNE, MARIEL, NANA ANNA, SAMANTHA RIVAS, CARLOS V RE GI AM SHOP STEWARD. IF YOU CAN PLEASE LINE UP BEHIND THE LECTERN IF YOU HEARD YOUR NAME. THANK YOU. HERE, TALK S**T. OKAY, COUNCIL. HI. UM, GOOD EVENING MAYOR AND COUNCIL. MY NAME IS VERONICA GARCIA DAVALOS. I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE LIBRARY LONG BEACH LIBRARY FOUNDATION AND A RESIDENT OF THE FIFTH DISTRICT. I'M HERE TONIGHT TO VOICE OUR STRONG SUPPORT FOR THE MAYOR'S PROPOSED BUDGET RECOMMENDATION. SPECIFICALLY THE PROVISIONS THAT PROTECT MONDAY HOURS AND STAFFING ACROSS OUR LIBRARY BRANCHES. THESE ARE NOT SMALL CONVENIENCES FOR FAMILIES. MONDAY, IT'S A DAY THEY COUNT ON FOR HOMEWORK HELP, STORY TIME, OR SIMPLY A SAFE, WELCOMING PLACE TO BE IN AFTER THE WEEKEND. THE FOUNDATION IS PROUD TO STAND BEHIND THIS BUDGET AS A PARTNER, NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR THE CITY'S INVESTMENT IN OUR LIBRARIES. THIS YEAR ALONE, WE'RE PROVIDING $1.3 MILLION TO SUPPORT EXISTING LIBRARY PROGRAMS. AND BECAUSE WE KNOW FEDERAL AND STATE CUTBACKS ARE PUTTING PROGRAMS LIKE THE CREATIVITY LAB AT RISK, OUR BOARD HAS COMMITTED AN ADDITIONAL $750,000 OVER THREE YEARS TO HELP CLOSE THAT GAP. WE BELIEVE LIBRARIES ARE ONE OF THE BEST RETURNS ON OUR INVESTMENT THE CITY MAKES. WE ASK YOU TO SUPPORT THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS AND KEEP OUR BRANCHES OPEN, STAFFED AND THRIVING. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE COME FORWARD, LIZ AND THEN ARLO. OH, OKAY. GOOD EVENING MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME IS ELIZABETH CIS POLIO AND I'M SURE YOU'RE GETTING TIRED OF SEEING ME AS WELL. UM, BUT UNFORTUNATELY I'M NOT DONE FIGHTING FOR WHAT I BELIEVE WE NEED. WHY IS MEASURE US BEING RECONSOLIDATED AT THE EXPENSE OF YOUTH? WHY ARE WE LAYING OFF AN EMPLOYEE WHEN WE HAVEN'T LOST FUNDING? WHILE I AM SO GRATEFUL THAT YOU HAVE HEARD THE COMMUNITIES CRY TO KEEP THE LIBRARY HOURS, I CANNOT HELP BUT FEEL SADDENED [01:10:01] AND HONESTLY DEVASTATED BY THE REMOVAL OF THE LIBRARY'S ONLY TEEN MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATE IN THE CITY. ESPECIALLY WHEN WE KNOW THAT LINCOLN PARK IN DOWNTOWN HAS SEEN A CONTINUED RISE IN VIOLENCE, MAYHEM, TRAFFICKING AND DRUG USE, ESPECIALLY AMONGST TEENS AND TRANSITIONAL AGE. YOUTH TAKING THAT POSITION AWAY ONLY DEMONSTRATES TO STAFF AND TO THE CITY THAT YOUTH ARE NOT A PRIORITY. HER POSITION WOULD END OCTOBER 1ST, BUT WE'VE BEEN TOLD THERE'S NO SERVICE PROVIDER IDENTIFIED FOR THE CONTRACT THAT YOU ARE REPLACING HER WITH. REALISTICALLY, THAT MEANS WE WILL LOSE ALL MOMENTUM AND RAPPORT, UH, THAT WE HAVE BUILT UP HERE WHILE WE GO THROUGH THE PROCESS TO IDENTIFY AND CONTRACT WITH A GROUP, A PROCESS THAT WE KNOW MOVES AT A GLACIAL RATE. PLEASE HELP THE TEENS THAT ARE IN OUR AREA. PLEASE SUPPORT THE YOUTH THAT ARE COMING TO THE LIBRARY BECAUSE IT'S A SAFE SPACE. WE DO NEED MORE TEEN MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT AND I JUST DON'T SEE HOW REMOVING A TRUSTED ADULT WHO HAS THE ACTUAL EDUCATION TO TALK TO TEENS ABOUT WHY THEY'RE WEARING THE SAME CLOTHES FOR THE PAST WEEK. WAIT, LEAVING. WHY A TEEN HAS A BRUISE ON THEIR FACE THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO HIDE. WHY A TEEN IS WEARING LONG SLEEVES IN THE SUMMER THAT ARE HIDING FRESH MARKS FROM SELF-HARM. MA'AM, YOUR TIMES' CONCLUDED. YES. CAN I GET THE NEXT SPEAKERS PLEASE? ARLO KEN OSBORNE TO YOU GUYS. MAYOR MARIBEL. OKAY, GOOD. PLEASE COME FORWARD. GOOD AFTERNOON COUNSEL. I'M ARLO ALLEGRE. ALL RIGHT, JUST A MOMENT. I HAVE TO STOP THIS. SO THE ZOOM STOP WORKING, THIS IS A PART OF SB 7 0 7. THAT'S WHY I NEEDED TO STEP OUT TO TALK TO THE CITY ATTORNEY. UH, SO WE HAVE TO TAKE A RECESS UNTIL THE ZOOM KEEPS GOING. UH, SO WE'LL BE BACK. WE'RE GOING ON A TEMPORARY RECESS. OKAY. SO WE'RE CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING A DISRUPTION TO OUR REMOTE ACCESS SERVICES THAT'S PREVENTING MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC FROM ATTENDING OR OBSERVING THE MEETING REMOTELY. STAFF'S WORKING TO RESTORE CONNECTIVITY. AND COUNCIL WILL RECESS. WHILE THOSE EFFORTS CONTINUE, WE'LL PROVIDE AN UPDATE IN FIVE MINUTES. THANK YOU. [01:17:48] THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. THE CITY STAFF HAVE NOT IDENTIFIED THE CAUSE OF THE DISRUPTION. THEY'RE STILL ACTIVELY INVESTIGATING. WE'LL PROVIDE AN UPDATE IN ANOTHER FIVE MINUTES. WE'RE STILL INVESTIGATING. WE'LL PROVIDE AN UPDATE IN ANOTHER FIVE MINUTES. [01:21:38] T TEST TEST TESTING. 1, 2, 3 TEST. OKAY. WE HAVE ANOTHER UPDATE. WE DO HAVE ANOTHER UPDATE. CITY STAFF HAS IDENTIFIED THAT THE ISSUE IS WITH OUR AUDIO EQUIPMENT. THEY'RE CURRENTLY WORKING TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE. WE ARE GONNA GIVE AN UPDATE IN FIVE MORE MINUTES. WE EXPECT THIS TO BE RESOLVED SHORTLY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. [01:28:43] WE ARE STILL ATTEMPTING TO RESTORE CONNECTIVITY. WE WILL COME BACK IN ANOTHER FIVE MINUTES WITH AN UPDATE. WE ARE STILL ATTEMPTING TO RESTORE CONNECTIVITY. THANK YOU. SO MAKE SURE YOU [01:30:27] TEST, TEST TESTING 1, 2, 3. WE ARE CALLING IN THE COUNCIL MEETING BACK TO ORDER IF YOU CAN PLEASE. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. GET BACK TO YOUR SEATS. WE'RE GONNA CALL THE MEETING BACK TO ORDER. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU MADAME CLERK. LET'S PROCEED WITH ROLL CALL. HM. COUNCILWOMAN ZENDEJAS. PRESENT. COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN. PRESENT. COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN. HERE. COUNCILMAN SUBINA? HERE. COUNCILWOMAN KERR. HERE. COUNCILWOMAN SORROW. PRESENT. VICE MAYOR URANGA. PRESENT. COUNCILWOMAN THRESH OOK? HERE. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER RICK OTI. HERE. MAYOR RICHARDSON. I AM HERE. WE HAVE A QUORUM. ALRIGHT, WELL THANK YOU. UH, THANK YOU CLERK FOR UH, YOU AND T I'S WORK WORK TO GET US BACK UP AND GOING. WHAT WAS THE EXPLANATION FROM TID? WE [01:35:01] WERE HAVING SOME AUDIO EQUIPMENT ISSUES. THEY WERE ABLE TO REESTABLISH CONNECTION WITH THE ZOOM AND WE WERE ABLE TO STRESS TEST AND MAKE SURE THAT THE PARTICIPANTS WHO ARE IN ZOOM ARE ABLE TO HEAR AND PARTICIPATE IN THE MEETING GOING FORWARD. GREAT. THANK YOU. IN SHORT, IT'S WORKING AGAIN. SO WE'RE GONNA GO BACK TO PUBLIC COMMENT. LET'S PROCEED WHERE WE LEFT OFF AND LET'S WHOEVER WAS SPEAKING LAST, LET'S START THEIR TIME. IT WAS PUBLIC COMMENTER ARLO. AND THEN FOLLOWING ARLO IS KEN OSBORNE, MARIBEL, NANA, ANNA, SAMANTHA RIVAS, CARLOS V SHERAY, G AND IAM SHOP STEWARD. IF YOU CAN PLEASE LINE UP AT THE LECTERN AND BE PREPARED TO COME FORWARD WHEN YOUR NAME IS CALLED. THANK YOU. OH, OKAY. GOOD EVENING AGAIN, COUNSEL. UM, I AM HERE ADVOCATING FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND AT THE B UH, BOC MEETING TODAY WE WERE DISAPPOINTED TO HEAR THAT THE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ADDITIONAL STRUCTURAL FUNDING FOR THE JUSTICE FUND WERE LEFT TECHNO, LEFT ACKNOWLEDGED AND NOT RECOMMENDED. PLEASE CONSIDER THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF YOUR COLLEAGUES, UH, TO PROVIDE $1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING FOR THE JUSTICE FUND. URGE YOU ALL TO CONSIDER MAKING THE $1 MILLION FROM THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION. STRUCTURAL, LAST YEAR THE CITY ADOPTED 2.2 MILLION BUDGET, A 2.2 MILLION BUDGET TO THE FUND. UM, AND WE ARE REALLY USING THIS, UH, WE ARE WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS AND, UH, MAKING SURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS ARE PROTECTED. RESIDENTS ARE INCREDIBLY MOVED BY THE RESOURCES THAT THEY RECEIVE THROUGH THE JUSTICE FUND AS YOUR COLLEAGUES IN THE OFFICE OF EQUITY. THEY KNOW THEY'VE BEEN PERSONALLY CALLED BY, UH, BY THE RESIDENTS OF LONG BEACH ABOUT HOW THIS HAS BEEN HELPFUL FOR THEM. UM, I UPLIFT THE COMMENT OF OUR LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS EARLIER. THEY HAVE REACHED CAPACITY, UH, FOR THE, OR THEY'RE CLOSE TO CAPACITY OF LIKE WHAT THEY PROMISED, UH, BUT THEY ARE STILL COMMITTED TO DOING THE WORK. UH, THE JUSTICE FUND IS SUPPOSED TO BE A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE SERVICE PROVIDERS. WE ARE GONNA KEEP DOING THE WORK, BUT WE CAN ONLY DO THAT WORK AS EFFECTIVELY IF YOU ARE COMMITTED TO GIVE IT, GIVING IT THE MATERIAL FUNDS IT NEEDS AS YOU DELIBERATE THE BUDGET. LET'S REMEMBER WHERE THE FUNDS REALLY COME FROM, FROM THE BACKS OF THE WORKING FAMILIES IN LONG BEACH. SO LET'S ENSURE TO PROTECT THEM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE PUT THAT UP. HI, MY NAME IS KEN OSBORNE. I AM NOT HERE AS A VETERAN COMMISSIONER. I'M HERE AS A PRIVATE CITIZEN. UM, FOR US, THE BUDGET DID NOT APPROVE. WE WENT FROM 40 HOURS TO 20 HOURS TO 12 TO 15 HOURS FOR THAT COMMISSION. UM, THAT'S APPROXIMATELY 750 HOURS FOR THE YEAR. LEMME RUN THE NUMBERS REAL QUICK. BANNER'S PROGRAM IS ABOUT 650 HOURS, RECOGNIZED 65 VATS. REVIEW 112 APPLICATIONS, DIVERSITY OUTREACH, REVIEWING OUT PHOTOS, REVIEW WITH THE CITY ATTORNEY, COORDINATE THE APPLICANTS, AND THEN YOU ADD IN A HUNDRED HOURS FOR MEMORIAL DAY, A HUNDRED HOURS FOR VETERANS, 200 FOR VETERANS DAY, A HUNDRED HOURS FOR MEETINGS IN PREP. THAT'S 1175. AT HALF AT A THOUSAND HOURS. WE WERE LOOKING BARELY ABLE TO STRETCH TO DO WHAT WE WERE TRYING TO DO. AS A CITY, WE CLAIM TO BE CLAIM TO SUPPORT OUR VETERANS. THIS DOESN'T LOOK LIKE SUPPORT TO ME. THIS LOOKS LIKE SUN SETTING THE VETERANS COMMISSION IN ACTION. IF NOT, ONLY ON PAPER. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING. I'M MARIBEL WITH ORLE. THROUGHOUT THIS BUDGET PROCESS, OUR ASK HAS BEEN CLEAR, $3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUND. FAMILIES DEPEND ON THE JUSTICE FUND FOR FREE LEGAL REPRESENTATION. DURING ONE OF THEIR MOST TRAUMATIC TIMES IN THEIR LIVES, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CONTINUES TO STRIP IMMIGRANTS OF THEIR RIGHTS AND ANY FORM OF IMMIGRATION RELIEF. THESE PEOPLE ARE NEIGHBORS, OUR FRIENDS AND OUR FAMILY. AND ONE TANGIBLE WAY TO HELP THEM IS BY CONTINUING TO FUND THE JUSTICE FUND. IMMIGRATION LEGAL SERVICES ARE EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE. OUR FAMILIES ARE ALREADY FACING CHALLENGING CHOICES, PAYING FOR THEIR EXTREMELY HIGH RENTS, THEIR GROCERIES, THEIR BASIC NEEDS, AND ON TOP OF THAT, AN ATTORNEY THAT CAN CHARGE THEM HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS AN HOUR, THEY'RE MOST LIKELY NOT ABLE TO MAKE THOSE EXPENSES. I'M ASKING THE CITY TO ALLOCATE $3 MILLION WITH ONE OF THAT MILLION BEING IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING. THIS IS REAL ACTION THAT ALL OF YOU CAN TAKE BECAUSE THIS ACTION WILL SPEAK LOUDER THAN ANY PUBLIC STATEMENT. THANK YOU. HELLO. I AM A STUDENT AT C-S-U-L-B AND A LIFETIME RESIDENT OF LONG BEACH. I AM HERE CALLING ON THE COUNCIL AND THE MAYOR TO APPROVE THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION FOR $1 MILLION TOWARDS THE JUSTICE FUND AND MAKING IT A STRUCTURAL PART OF OUR YEARLY BUDGET. THAT WAY WE DO NOT HAVE TO CONTINUE TO COME HERE AND FIGHT IT OUT EVERY SINGLE YEAR. WASTING OUR RESOURCES, [01:40:01] WASTING EVERYBODY'S TIME. UM, WE ALSO ASK FOR AN ADDITIONAL $2 MILLION TOWARDS THE JUSTICE FUND. UM, THE PEOPLE WHO BEST KNOW THE FUNDING THAT'S REQUIRED TO CARRY OUT THESE SERVICES ARE THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UM, THAT HAVE COME UP HERE TODAY. AND AS THEY'VE EXPLAINED, THEY ARE REACHING CAPACITY ON THE SERVICES THEY'RE ABLE TO PROVIDE. PLEASE, UH, FULLY FUND OUR JUSTICE FUND. AN INVESTMENT INTO OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY IS NOT ONLY INVESTING IN THEM AND THEIR HUMANITY, WHICH IS CRITICAL, BUT UM, IT'S ALSO AN INVESTMENT INTO OUR COMMUNITY. MASS DEPORTATIONS ARE NOT ONLY A FORM OF ETHNIC CLEANSING, UM, THEY'RE ALSO A WAY TO DESTABILIZE A COMMUNITY. UM, FOLKS ARE WORKERS, THEY'RE PARENTS, THEY ARE COMMUNITY MEMBERS. THEY, AN INVESTMENT IN THE JUSTICE FUND IS AN INVESTMENT IN PUBLIC HEALTH, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND JUST THE STABILITY OF OUR CITY, UH, WHICH BENEFITS US ALL. SO IT IS A COMMON SENSE DECISION. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. MY NAME IS SAMANTHA RIVAS AND I'M THE ECONOMIC JUSTICE COORDINATOR AT . I AM ALSO A LIFELONG RESIDENT OF LONG BEACH. I'M HERE TODAY WITH A CLEAR AND URGENT REQUEST TO ALLOCATE 3 MILLION TO THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND IN THE 2027 BUDGET WITH A MILLION DEDICATED TO STRUCTURAL FUNDING. THIS IS, THIS IS PERSONAL FOR ME. LIKE SO MANY PEOPLE IN THIS ROOM AND IN THIS CITY. I GREW UP IN A FAMILY BUSINESS IN NORTH LONG BEACH CALLED USED WORK CLOTHES THAT WAS BUILT BY MY GRANDMA, A SINGLE IMMIGRANT MOTHER OF THREE. SHE CAME HERE WITH VERY LITTLE, WORKED HARD, BUILT A BUSINESS, AND CREATED A LIFE FOR OUR FAMILY. THAT SMALL BUSINESS WASN'T JUST A SOURCE OF INCOME, IT WAS OUR STABILITY, OUR HOME AND OUR FUTURE. AND THE REASON I'M HERE TODAY, I KNOW FIRSTHAND WHAT IT MEANS WHEN FAMILIES ARE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO BUILD SOMETHING AND PUT ROOTS IN LONG BEACH. THE JUSTICE FUND PROVIDES THAT SAME OPPORTUNITY TO IMMIGRANT FAMILIES TODAY. IT KEEPS FAMILIES TOGETHER, PROTECTS ECONOMIC STABILITY AND HELPS PEOPLE CONTINUE CONTRIBUTING TO THE COMMUNITIES THEY CALL HOME. ANYTHING BELOW 2.2 MILLION IS SIMPLY NOT ENOUGH TO MEET THE SCALE OF THIS NEED. IF LONG BEACH IS SERIOUS ABOUT EQUITY AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY, THEN OUR BUDGET MUST REFLECT THOSE VALUES. PLEASE INVEST THE FULL 3 MILLION WITH A MILLION INSTRUCTIONAL FUNDING. SO THE JUSTICE FUND ISN'T JUST HERE FOR IMMIGRANT FAMILIES TODAY, BUT IS STRONG ENOUGH TO BE HERE FOR GENERATIONS TO COME. THANK YOU. WOO. ALL RIGHT. UH, HELLO. MY NAME IS CARLO. I'M HERE WITH , UH, DISTRICT EIGHT RESIDENT AND I'M ALSO HERE TO ASK FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO ACCEPT THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION OF THE $1 MILLION TO THE JUSTICE FUND AND MAKE THAT STRUCTURAL FUNDING SO THAT UH, COMMUNITY DOESN'T HAVE TO COME HERE EVERY YEAR TO FIGHT FOR IT. THE ICE RAIDS ARE STILL CONTINUING AND FAMILIES ARE STILL BEING HURT AND NOT PROPERLY FUNDING THE JUSTICE FUND. LEASE FAMILIES BEHIND VULNERABLE, OPEN TO THE THIRD OF DEPORTATION, FAMILY SEPARATION. AND SO MUCH MORE THAT COMES AS A RESULT OF THIS. F**K GUYS, THIS SHOULD BE $3 MILLION TO BE HONEST, BUT IT REALLY SHOULDN'T BE ANYTHING LESS THAN THE LAST YEAR'S ALLOCATION OF 2.2 MILLION. UH, THE NEED IS GREAT AND THERE'S STILL FAMILIES THAT ARE TRYING TO TURN TO THINGS LIKE GOFUNDME AND FUNDRAISERS, UH, TO NOT HAVE THEIR LOVED ONES WHIPPED AWAY FROM THEM. UH, AND IT SHOULDN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY. YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD BE LOOKING OUT FOR OUR FOLKS. PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE THE MONEY FOR THIS REPRESENTATION. UH, AS Y'ALL MIGHT KNOW, UH, IMMIGRATION REPRESENTATION IS REALLY, REALLY EXPENSIVE AND STRETCHED THIN RIGHT NOW. UH, THE JUSTICE FUND IS A RADICAL CHALLENGE TO STRUCTURAL RACISM THAT SETS FAMILIES UP TO LOSE THEIR IMMIGRATION CASES. 1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING IS THE BARE MINIMUM FOR NOT LEAVING AN ENTIRE COMMUNITY OUT IN THE DARK. TO FUND THIS, UH, TO FUND AGAINST THIS BASICALLY ALL ALONE, ONLY BACKED BY UH, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND MEMBERS WHO'VE STEPPED UP. PLEASE ADOPT THE MAYOR'S BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS AND TAKE ACTION TO FUND THE JUSTICE FUND WITH $3 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS RE GONZALEZ. I'M THE HEALTH JUSTICE COORDINATOR WITH AND I'M HERE TO DEMAND $3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUNDS AND SUPPORT ALSO THE $1 MILLION BASED ON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE MAYOR. ANYTHING LESS WILL BE A DISSERVICE TO EVERYBODY HERE IN THE COMMUNITY OF, UM, LONG BEACH. UM, AS WE NEEDED 2.2 MILLION BEFORE FOR THE IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY, 3 MILLION MUST BE PRIORITY WITH NO EXCEPTION. WE UNDERSTAND THAT LONG BEACH IS FACING A BUDGET DEFICIT, BUT BALANCING THE BUDGET SHOULD NOT COME AT THE EXPENSE OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ALREADY CARRYING THE GREATEST BURDEN. FACE BARRIERS. THE CITY HAS OPPORTUNITIES TO SAY CLEARLY THAT IMMIGRANT FAMILIES BELONG IN LONG BEACH, THAT THEIR FAMILIES ARE WORTH KEEPING TOGETHER, THAT THEIR [01:45:01] SAFETY AND STABILITY ARE WORTH INVESTING FOR. SO 3 MILLION IS NOT TOO MUCH TO ASK. IT'S THE BARE MINIMUM YOU GUYS CAN DO. COMMITMENT TO OUR COMMUN IN THE COMMITMENT THAT OUR COMMUNITY DESERVES. SO AGAIN, I'M HERE TO DEMAND THE $3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUND, BUT ALSO IN SUPPORT WITH THE $1 MILLION BASED ON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE MAYOR. THANK YOU. HELLO, MY NAME IS ANNA MENEZ. I AM HERE TODAY TO ADVOCATE FOR OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND TO ASK THE CITY OF LONG BEACH TO PROVIDE $3 MILLION IN CITY FUNDING FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. I SUPPORT THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION OF $1 MILLION TOWARDS THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND, BUT I URGE THE CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE FULL $3 MILLION BECAUSE THIS INVESTMENT IS NECESSARY TO ENSURE THAT LONG BEACH CAN MEANINGFULLY SUPPORT AND CONTINUE PROTECTING OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY MEMBERS. THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND IS A BLUEPRINT FOR WHAT LOCAL POWER AND SOLIDARITY CAN LOOK LIKE AT A TIME WHEN IT IS EASY TO POINT FINGERS AT THE FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION AND SHRUG OUR SHOULDERS. WE MUST CHOOSE TO ACT. WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ESTABLISH $1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING FOR LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND, AND EVEN MORE IMPORTANTLY, TO STRENGTHEN AND EXPAND IT SO THAT LONG BEACH CAN DEMONSTRATE TO OTHER CITIES WHAT IS POSSIBLE WHEN WE FIGHT BACK AT LOCAL LEVEL. WOO. CITY COUNCIL, YOU HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE THIS INVESTMENT. I URGE YOU TO USE THAT POWER AND APPROVE $3 MILLION FOR THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY HAS A MASSIVE BUDGET DEDICATED TO ADVANCING ITS AGENDA. IT'S TIME FOR US TO EQUIP OURSELVES WITH THE RESOURCES NECESSARY TO PROTECT OUR COMMUNITIES. THANK YOU. I'M GONNA CALL THEM THE REMAINING SPEAKERS. WHEN YOU HEAR YOUR NAME, PLEASE LINE UP AT THE LECTERN, RODRIGO ZAMARANO, ALIO GARCIA, BRIAN COCHRAN, KAYA BETH, MARIA DOLORES, ERIC GARCIA, ZARIA RODRIGUEZ, JOHN EDMOND, AND SELENA LUNA. IF YOU HEARD YOUR NAME, PLEASE LINE UP AT THE LECTERN AND BE PREPARED TO SPEAK. GOOD AFTERNOON, I MEAN, GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS NAISH SCHUSTER AND I'M A PROUD I AM MEMBER AND SHOP STEWARD. I'M HERE TODAY ASKING YOU TO PLEASE THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO DO TONIGHT AS YOU PLAN ON INDUCTING THIS BUDGET. PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT BEHIND EVERY LINE ITEM IS A LOYAL EMPLOYEE THAT IS ABOUT TO LOSE THEIR LIVELIHOOD. ALL BECAUSE CITY LEADERS AND DEPARTMENT HEADS FAILED TO BUDGET SUCCESSFULLY. TWO WEEKS AGO AT CITY COUNCIL MAYOR RECS RICHARDSON PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGED THAT CITY COUNCIL GOT IT WRONG BACK IN 2020 WHEN FEDERAL FUNDS WERE RECEIVED. THIS HAS BROUGHT US TO WHERE WE ARE TODAY. TO BE CLEAR, FINANCE FINANCIAL IRRESPONSIBILITY HAS BEEN A PROBLEM SINCE BEFORE 2020. THE PUBLIC ACCOMPLISHMENT DOES NOTHING TO SOFTEN THE BLOW, ESPECIALLY SINCE ONLY 17 MANAGERS AND SUPER, UM, DIRECTORS CITYWIDE WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE LAYOFFS. MEANWHILE, TOM MARCA STILL HAD A RAISE THIS YEAR. SOME MANAGERS AND DIRECTORS ARE GETTING RAISES. UM, WHY WAS IT MORE OF THE PROVERBIAL FAT CUT FROM THE TOP? WHY WAS IT PUT ON THE FEET OF THE LINE WORKERS THAT HOLLOW APOLOGY WON'T PAY RENT, MORTGAGE, GROCERIES, OR MEDICAL INSURANCE. THE MAYOR, THE CITY COUNCIL, TOM MOGA AND DEPARTMENT HEADS WILL GO HOME TONIGHT KNOWING THEY STILL HAVE JOBS DESPITE CREATING THE FINANCIAL DISASTER THAT WE'RE IN AT THIS TIME. AND I WOULD LIKE TO THANK CINDY ALLEN AND CHRISTINA DUGGAN FOR BEING ABLE TO THINK CLEARLY ON THEIR OWN AND NOT THE MIND. THINK AND VOTING IN FAVOR OF THE PEOPLE. AND SHAME ON YOU GUYS FOR PIVOTING THE PUBLIC AGAINST THE LIBRARY. 150,000. GET RID OF THE VIBE CITY SLOGAN. THERE YOU GO. DONE AND DONE. OR START CLOSE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS. NEXT SPEAKER, RODRIGO AND THEN AIO. BRIAN COCHRAN. KAI BETH. GOOD AFTERNOON, UM, MAYOR AND CITY COUNCILS AND, UH, CITY MANAGER. UH, MY NAME IS RODRIGO. I LIVE IN THE DISTRICT FIVE, UH, FOR MORE THAN 10 YEARS AND I'M HERE TODAY FOR ADVOCATE FOR THOSE, UH, ALL COME, THEY DO IT. I'M GONNA REPEAT ALL. SO BECAUSE WE GO OVER AND OVER THIS, BUT I, UH, COME TO SUPPORT THEM. FIREFIGHTERS, UH, POLICE OFFICER, LIBRARIES, UH, COMMUNITY LAND TRUSTS, UH, FOUNDING FOR THE IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY. AND I JUST CAME OVER HERE FOR LIKE, UH, TELL YOU GUYS THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS BECAUSE IMPACT, I'M A BUSINESS OWNER AND I GET IMPACT FOR THIS BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE AFRAID OF GOING OUT AND THEN, UH, WE NEED IT. SO WE VOTE FOR PUT YOU GUYS IN HERE. EVERYBODY. YOU GUYS SITTING IN HERE. WE HAVE A CITY MANAGER FOR MANY [01:50:01] YEARS IN OUR CITY. AND ALL OF YOU GUYS ARE THE COUNCIL. MEMBERS AND THE MAYOR ARE LIVING IN LONG BEACH. SO WE JUST, I JUST COME FOR ASKING YOU GUYS FOR SUPPORT. ALL THESE SUGGESTION, WE HAVE IT BECAUSE WE, WE KNOW IT'S, UH, NOW WE GONNA, UH, ON THE BUDGET SHORT BECAUSE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, BUT WE HAVE YOU GUYS IN HERE. OUR LEADERS FOR YOU GUYS CAN DO THE BEST FOR OUR COMMUNITY. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME'S IS ENIO GARCIA. I LIVE IN THE EIGHTH DISTRICT AND I'M THE PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL I AM 1930. AS YOU FINALIZE THE BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS, IT'S IMPERATIVE THAT YOU TAKE A FIRM STAND IN SUPPORTIVE LABOR. THE VOICE OF THE PUBLIC THAT THE UNION AND OUR DEDICATED EMPLOYEES HAVE ARE CLEAR AND UNIFIED. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO IGNORE THEIR CALLS FOR THEIR, FOR A FAIR TREATMENT AND EQUITABLE RESOURCES. IT IS YOUR DUTY TO AS REPRESENTATIVES TO PRIORITIZE THE WELLBEING OF YOUR WORKFORCE. SUPPORTING LABOR IS NOT MERELY A CHOICE, BUT IT'S NECESSITY. WE DEMAND FAIR WAGES, IMPROVE WORKING CONDITIONS, AND JOB SECURITY FOR ALL EMPLOYEES. IGNORING THESE NEEDS JEOPARDIZE NOT ONLY THEIR LIVELIHOOD, BUT THE PROSPERITY OF OUR ENTIRE COMMUNITY. YOUR COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT SUPPORTING LABOR IS AN INVESTMENT IN OUR FUTURE. A STRONG, EMPOWERED, EMPOWERED WORKFORCE DRIVES ECONOMIC GROWTH, FOSTERS COMMUNITY STABILITY, AND ENHANCES THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR EVERYONE. STAND WITH US, SUPPORT OUR MEMBERS AND ENSURE OUR EMPLOYEES RECEIVE AND RESPECT SUPPORT THEY DESERVE. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, HONORABLE MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS. YOU KNOW, THERE ARE PLENTY OF PROGRAMS THAT WORK. THERE ARE PLENTY OF CITY EMPLOYEES THAT DO THE JOB, BUT WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD LEADERSHIP PROGRAM UNDER THE MANTLE OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, THERE ARE 30 PLUS YEARS OF INTEGRATED VITAL COMMUNITY LIFEBLOOD IN THE, IN THE MEMBERS OF THE STAFF WHO PROVIDE THIS PROGRAM. UH, I'M A 2022 GRADUATE. I'M A VOLUNTEER FACILITATOR FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS. THERE ARE SOME OF US HERE TONIGHT TO ADVOCATE FOR THIS PROGRAM. IT'S IN DANGER OF GOING AWAY IF YOU DON'T PRESERVE THE JOBS OF THE PEOPLE THAT DO THIS. YOU HAD MARGARET MADDEN, YOU HAVE RENO OCHOA, AND YOU HAVE FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ WHO ARE THE FACE OF THESE PROGRAMS TO OUR COMMUNITIES. THEY ARE THE GLUE THAT TIED MANY OF THESE PEOPLE HERE TONIGHT TO DOING SOMETHING BETTER FOR THEIR COMMUNITIES. INDIVIDUALLY AND COLLECTIVELY. YOU'RE IN DANGER OF OUTSOURCING THIS TO THE MINIMUM PROGRAM OF A SERIES OF WORKSHOPS. YOU'VE LOST MARGARET MADDEN ALREADY. SHE TOOK A BULLET FOR THE TEAM. SAVE FRANCISCO'S JOB, SAVE RENA'S JOB, SAVE THE COHORT PROGRAM, BUILD AROUND THAT. DO THE YES AND THAT THE NLP PROGRAM STANDS FOR. PRESERVE WHAT'S THERE, BUILD ON IT. LET PEOPLE CONNECT. THIS IS ESSENTIAL TO OUR COMMUNITIES. THANK YOU WORKER. GOOD EVENING, KIBA SANCHEZ. I'M THE HEALTH JUSTICE MANAGER AT . I'M HERE TO DEMAND $3 MILLION BE ALLOCATED TO THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND SO WE CAN PROVIDE LEGAL SERVICES TO IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES. UH, WE SUPPORT THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION OF $1 MILLION, BUT THIS IS NOT ENOUGH. A MILLION DOLLARS FALLS WELL BELOW WHAT IS NECESSARY TO MEET THE INCREASING NEEDS OF OUR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY. IT'S UNACCEPTABLE THAT WE ARE UNWILLING TO PROVIDE A SAFETY NET FOR FAMILIES WHO ARE ALREADY STRUGGLING TO PAY FOR GROCERIES, RENT, AND THEN HAVE TO NAVIGATE PAYING THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FOR AN ATTORNEY DURING THE WORST MOMENTS OF THEIR LIVES. THROUGH MUCH COMMUNITY ADVOCACY, WE WERE ABLE TO LOCALIZE IMMIGR IMMIGRATION LEGAL SERVICES TO VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES HERE IN LONG BEACH INSTEAD OF SENDING THEM ALL THE WAY TO LA. UM, AS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CONTINUES TO RAMP UP TACTICS, UM, AND FUNDING TO CONTINUE TEARING OUR FAMILIES APART, WE NEED PROGRAMS LIKE THE JUSTICE FUND FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO LEAN ON. WHILE THIS WAS A TOUGH BUDGET YEAR, I WOULD HOPE OUR COMMUNITY IS NOT A TOUGH DECISION FOR LONG BEACH TO ACT AND ENSURE WE DO NOT GO BELOW THE 2.2 MILLION THAT WAS ALLOCATED LAST YEAR, FUND THE JUSTICE FUND AND SHOW YOUR COMMITMENT FOR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES, NOT ONLY THROUGH WORDS, BUT THROUGH THIS YEAR'S BUDGET. THANK YOU. WHAT'S UP Y'ALL? ERIC GARCIA. I'M THE ORGANIZING AND PROGRAM DIRECTOR WITH OR, AND I'M HERE TO ASK YOU TO ALLOCATE 2.2 MILLION TOWARDS TENANT'S RIGHT TO COUNCIL, UH, 200 K TO THE COMMUNITY LAND TRUST AND 3 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING, AND ASK THAT THE COUNCIL MEMBER ORANG GAS'S RECOMMENDATION MADE TO THE BOC OF 1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL FUNDING, WHICH DIDN'T MAKE IT ONTO THE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TONIGHT, UH, BE AT LEAST CONSIDERED AND DISCUSSED, UH, BY THE COUNCIL. UH, IT'S BEEN, UH, AN ABSOLUTE PLEASURE AND AN HONOR FOR ME TO ADVOCATE FOR PROGRAMS LIKE THE JUSTICE FUND OVER THE LAST 12 YEARS. UH, PROGRAMS LIKE THESE WEREN'T AROUND WHEN I WAS NINE YEARS OLD AND I WAS PUT INTO DEPORTATION PROCEEDINGS AS A RESULT OF ATTORNEY FRAUD. I CAN PERSONALLY ATTEST TO THE IMPACT OF HAVING [01:55:01] TO JUSTIFY YOUR EXISTENCE TO A SYSTEM THAT WANTS NOTHING MORE THAN TO SEE YOU GONE. AND WHAT IT DOES TO THE PSYCHE, ESPECIALLY DURING FORMATIVE DEVELOPMENTAL YEARS, I'VE BEEN FIGHTING MY DEPORTATION FOR OVER 20 YEARS AND 10 OF THOSE ACTIVELY IN COURTROOMS MULTIPLE TIMES A YEAR. IF A PROGRAM LIKE THIS EXISTED WHEN I WAS FIGHTING MY CASE, I KNOW IT WOULD'VE BEEN LIFE CHANGING BECAUSE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE BEHIND IT, YOU'VE HEARD FROM GINA TONIGHT, YOU'VE HEARD FROM HP, THE LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS, THE PEOPLE WHO ARE BEHIND THESE PROGRAMS THAT ARE DOING IT WITH THE CITY ARE TRUSTED, THEY'RE PASSIONATE, AND THEY DO SO HOLISTICALLY. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THE WINS AND LOSSES AND IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THE RESULTS. UH, $3 MILLION AND AND 1 MILLION IN STRUCTURAL. THANK YOU. WHEN I STARTED THIS, MAYOR RE, RICHARDSON RE, BEACH, CALIFORNIA. GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR RICK RICHARDSON, MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL. MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. MY NAME IS MARIA LORE, RESIDENT OF LONG BEACH, UH, CALIFORNIA FOR MORE THAN 27 YEARS, AND I BELONG TO DISTRICT NUMBER ONE AND I'M A MEMBER OF . I ASK THAT YOU APPROVE THE $3 MILLION TOWARD LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. THE RECENT RATES HAVE IMMENSELY IMPACTED THE HISPANIC COMMUNITY, LEAVING BROKEN FAMILIES, HARDWORKING FAMILIES THAT HELP A LONG BEACH ECONOMY NOT TO DECLINE OR FALL BEING PARENTS YOURSELVES. UH, WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF SOMEBODY BROKE DOWN YOUR FAMILY, UH, BY KIDNAPPING ONE OF YOUR KEY MEMBERS, WHETHER IT'S THE MOTHER, THE FATHER, AND ITALIANS CHILDREN OR YOUNG ADULTS THAT ARE PART OF OUR COMMUNITY AS IMMIGRANTS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO LONG BEACH ECONOMY? LONG OUR COMMUNITY IS IN FEAR. LONG BEACH IS SAD LAMENTING FOR THE ABSENCE OF THE FATHER THAT WILL NOT COME BACK FOR THE MOTHER THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE NECESSARY FUNDS TO PAY FOR RENT FOR THE CHILD DOES THAT DOES NOT WANT TO ATTEND SCHOOL DUE TO FEAR OF BEING DETAINED BY IS AGENTS BEACH. WHAT'S THE USE OF BEAUTIFYING, UH, THE CITY OF LONG BEACH WITH GORGEOUS BUILDINGS WHEN ITS PEOPLE ARE BEING EVICTED FROM THEIR HOMES DUE TO NOT HAVING ENOUGH FUNDS TO PAY RENT CONCLUDED, PLEASE, PLEASE, COMMENTS I ASK FOR $3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUND. THIS WILL IN TURN BENEFIT IMMIGRANT FAMILIES THAT ARE SUFFERING BECAUSE OF SEPARATION AND HARASSMENT FROM THE RECENT RATES. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS, I'M HERE TO ASK YOU TO PLEASE APPROVE $3 MILLION FOR THE JUSTICE FUND ALONG WITH $1 MILLION FOR, UH, AL FUNDS. WE COUNT WITH YOUR SUPPORT. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, HONORABLE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME IS JOHN EDMOND AND I SERVE ON THE LIBRARY FOUNDATION BOARD. IF I CAN ASK ALL THE BOARD MEMBERS TO STAND AND SUPPORTERS OF THE LIBRARY, UM, [02:00:01] MAYOR AND COUNCIL, WE KNOW IT'S A VERY DIFFICULT TIME. IT'S VERY CHALLENGING AND I REMEMBER ROLLING BROWNOUTS AND ALL THE OTHER THINGS THAT WERE GOING ON, BUT I THINK YOU'RE MANAGING THROUGH THIS PROCESS WELL. UM, WE STRONGLY SUPPORT THE MAYOR'S FRAMEWORK AND THE STRUCTURAL RESTORATION OF MONDAY LIBRARY HOURS. THE 11 POSITIONS AND PROTECTING LIBRARIES SHOULD BE A TOP PRIORITY. WE SUPPORT THE, UM, RESTORATION THAT INCLUDES THE CITATIONS FOR THE MOST SERIOUS PARKING VIOLATIONS. WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT SIMPLE PARKING TICKETS. WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BLOCKING BIKE LANES, RED CURBS, FIRE HYDRANTS, AND OTHER SAFETY VIOLATIONS, NOT ORDINARY TICKETS. WE CAN'T SAY THAT WE'RE SERIOUS ABOUT PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY WITHOUT ACCOUNTABILITY. THIS FEE IS COMPARABLE TO SAN FRANCISCO AT $108. OAKLAND AT $110 SAN DIEGO AT $117. I WOULD SAY THAT LONG BEACH IS MUCH LOWER THAN THAT. FINALLY, DON'T TAKE MONEY FROM SPECIAL ADVERTISING. DESTINATION MARKETING TOURISM GENERATES NEARLY 2 BILLION IN ECONOMIC IMPACT. 14,600 WELL-PAYING JOBS. THANKS FOR YOUR POLICY AND BEING ABLE TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN. 171 MILLION IN STATE AND LOCAL TAXES. TOT GREW 40% WHILE THE CITY TOURISM CONTRACT ESSENTIALLY REMAINED FLAT. DON'T PROTECT LIBRARIES, INVESTMENTS THAT HELP GROW THE YOUR TIMES CONCLUDE. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL. MY NAME IS SELENA LUNA AND I SERVE AS VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS FOR THE LONG BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION. I WANNA THANK MAYOR RICHARDSON FOR LISTENING TO THE COMMUNITY AND HELPING TO BRING US TO THIS POINT. MORE THAN 7,000 PEOPLE SPOKE UP TO PROTECT MONDAY LIBRARY HOURS, AND THE MAYOR RESPONDED WITH A PROPOSAL THAT PROVIDES ONGOING FUNDING TO PRESERVE THAT ACCESS. BUDGETS ARE MUCH MORE THAN NUMBERS ON A PAGE. THEY ARE SOME OF THE CLEAREST WAYS A CITY DEMONSTRATES ITS PRIORITIES AND SHOWS ITS RESIDENTS WHAT IT VALUES PRESERVING ACCESS TO. OUR LIBRARY SENDS A STRONG MESSAGE THAT LONG BEACH VALUES EDUCATION, OPPORTUNITY, COMMUNITY CONNECTION, AND EQUITABLE ACCESS TO OUR PUBLIC RESOURCES. PART OF THE FUNDING FOR THIS PROPOSAL DOES COME FROM INCREASING PARKING PENALTIES FOR SOME OF THE MOST EGREGIOUS VIOLATIONS, BUT EVEN WITH THOSE ADJUSTMENTS, WE WILL BE LOWER THAN OTHER MAJOR METROPOLITAN CITIES. AND TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, I WOULD PREFER TO HAVE SAFER STREETS AND KNOW THAT PEOPLE THAT ARE UNSAFE IN OUR STREETS, OUR FUNDING OUR LIBRARIES, THAT'S A WIN-WIN FOR EVERYBODY. AND WHEN WE HEARD THERE WAS A BUDGET DEFICIT, THE LIBRARY FOUNDATION STEPPED UP AND WILL BE PROVIDING AN ADDITIONAL $750,000 OVER THREE YEARS TO SUPPORT LIBRARY PROGRAMS AND SERVICES, INCLUDING THE CREATIVITY LAB. AND THIS COMMITMENT BUILDS ON A VERY LONG HISTORY OF PARTNERSHIP. THIS YEAR. THE LONG BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION CELEBRATES 30 YEARS OF SUPPORTING OUR PUBLIC LIBRARIES, AND WE HAVE PROVIDED MORE THAN $29 MILLION OVER THE COURSE OF THOSE 30 YEARS, AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE. THANK YOU. YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. THANK YOU. THAT CONCLUDES PUBLIC COMMENT. ALRIGHT, WELL THANK YOU ALL FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. UH, AND THANK YOU CLERK. YOU WERE, UH, YOU DID A GREAT JOB CLERKING TONIGHT, UH, AND GETTING THROUGH OUR TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES. ALRIGHT, NOW IT'S OUR TURN. SO THE ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET, UH, IS A VERY COMPLICATED PROCESS. AGAIN, THERE'S 16 DIFFERENT MOTIONS. UH, WE WILL GO THROUGH, UH, THE, THE INITIAL, UH, MOTIONS WHEN WE GET TO THE PART WHERE IT'S THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS. THOSE WERE ALREADY PUBLISHED. NOTHING NEW THERE. WE'LL GIVE SOME BRIEF COMMENTS THERE. THEN WHEN WE GET TO THE MOTION ON THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS, MANY OF THEM ARE BRAND NEW. IT JUST GOT APPROVED TODAY. SO WHEN WE GET THERE, WE WILL PAUSE, WE WILL HEAR, UH, FROM OUR BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE CHAIR, UH, WE'LL HEAR FROM STAFF. WE'LL READ OUT THE MOTION AND THE DETAILS. WE'LL GET THAT SPECIFIC. THEN WE GET INTO COUNCIL DELIBERATION ON THAT PORTION. AND THEN ONCE THAT IS DONE, THEY SORT OF FEED TOGETHER. THEY BUILD ON ONE ANOTHER EACH OF THESE MOTIONS. UH, AND SO THAT IS OUR PROCESS. SO WE'RE GONNA GET STARTED, UH, WITH THE FIRST, UH, FIRST MOTION. MADAM CLERK, DID YOU ALREADY READ THE FIRST ONE I READ? UH, 19. YES. OKAY. SO DO YOU NEED TO DO 19 A 1 19 1 [19.1. 26-55993 Recommendation to adopt the Mayor’s proposed budget recommendations, as amended, to the Proposed FY 27 Budget. (A-1)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] RECOMMENDATION TO ADOPT THE MAYOR'S PROPOSED BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS AS AMENDED TO THE PROPOSED FY 27 BUDGET. ALRIGHT, SO ON THIS ONE, THIS IS THE FIRST STEP IN THE RESTORATION PLAN. SO, AS OUTLINED, JUST SOME HIGHLIGHTS, THIS RESTORES ABOUT 70 POSITIONS THAT WERE ORIGINALLY PROPOSED TO BE CUT IN THE MANAGER'S, UH, INITIAL PROPOSAL. UH, EXAMPLES ARE THE DISRUPTIVE ROLLING, ROLLING BROWN OUT OF FIRE ENGINES. THAT'S INCLUDED HERE. UH, PATROL POSITIONS, UH, SOME CERTAIN PUBLIC SAFETY PRIORITIES, PORTION OF QUALITY [02:05:01] OF LIFE. UH, A BIG ELEMENT HERE WAS MEASURE ER. SO WE DO KNOW THAT OUR HEALTH DEPARTMENT'S BEEN UNDER A LOT OF CHALLENGES FROM FEDERAL FUNDING UNCERTAINTY AND COUNTY AND STATEWIDE FUNDING UNCERTAINTY. THESE NEW DOLLARS OF MEASURE ER ARE ALLOCATED IN THIS SECTION, UH, TO PRESERVE POSITIONS AND SERVICES. UH, THIS ALSO, UH, HAS A NUMBER OF INVESTMENTS, UH, LIKE WHAT WAS MENTIONED, THE $1 MILLION IN THE JUSTICE FUND, UH, RIGHT TO COUNSEL. A LOT OF THOSE MEASURE A AND LA COUNTY MEASURE A RECOMMENDATIONS ARE ALL REFERENCED HERE. NOW, THIS IS NOT A COMPLETE SET OF RESTORATIONS. ONCE THESE ARE ADOPTED, THE BLCS ARE BILLED UPON THAT, UH, THAT IS WHAT WILL BE TAKEN NEXT. UH, AND THEN WE'LL, WE'LL KEEP GOING FROM THERE. SO, UH, WE'LL TAKE A, A VOTE ON, UH, B UH, MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS. I HAVE COUNCILWOMAN ZENDEJAS, COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN, COUNCILWOMAN DUGGAN, AND COUNCILWOMAN KERR. IF YOU CAN CAST YOUR VOTE. UH, IT'S NOT POPPING UP ON THEIR SCREENS. OH, I DON'T HAVE A BUTTON. OKAY. CAN I GET A, A VERBAL FROM COUNCILWOMAN ZEN? AYE. COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN NO. AND COUNCILWOMAN KERR. AYE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. SO NEXT WE GO TO THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT [19.2. 26-55994 Recommendation to adopt the Budget Oversight Committee’s proposed funding recommendations, as amended, to the Proposed FY 27 Budget. (A-2)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS. SO BEFORE I TURN IT OVER TO THE CHAIR OF THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, I JUST WANNA FIRST THANK THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE, INCLUDING, UH, OUR CHAIR. UH, UH, DR. JONI RICKS OTI. SHE HAS DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB STANDING UP THIS PROCESS. UH, AND, AND THIS WAS NOT, NOT AN EASY BUDGET YEAR. LOTS OF CONCERNS, LOTS OF NEEDS OUT THERE, BUT THE REALITY IS, UH, WITH FEDERAL FUNDING CHALLENGES AND LOTS OF DEME NEEDS OUT THERE COMING IN FROM THE COMMUNITY, UH, THERE'S NO WAY THAT WE OUT RESOURCE ALL THE NEED THAT'S THERE. AND SO, UH, WE CERTAINLY APPRECIATE, UH, YOUR HARD WORK IN DELIBERATELY CRAFTING THESE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WERE STRUCTURAL, EQUITABLE, AND AVOIDED, UH, INCREASING OUR DEFICIT. WE MADE IT VERY CLEAR AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS PROCESS THAT ANY ACTION FROM THE BOC AND THE CITY COUNCIL, INCREASING THE STRUCTURAL DEFICIT BY ADDING RECURRING EXPENDITURES WITHOUT AN IDENTIFIED SUSTAINABLE AND EQUITABLE OFFSET OR FUNDING SOURCE, UH, WOULD UNDERMINE OUR PROGRESS AND JEOPARDIZE A LONG-TERM FINANCIAL STABILITY. ALL OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE BLCS RECOMMENDATIONS MEET THAT FRAMEWORK. UH, AGAIN, I ACKNOWLEDGE THERE'S MORE NEED OUT THERE, BUT THIS, UH, IS A GOOD PLAN AND IT'S, AND IT'S, UH, A CERTAINLY A CHALLENGING BUDGET YEAR, BUT I CERTAINLY, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR WORK. I ALSO WANNA THANK VICE MAYOR URANGA. THIS IS HIS LAST YEAR, LAST BUDGET THAT HE'S WORKING ON. SO WE, WE THANK YOU VICE MAYOR URANGA AND YOUR INPUT. UH, SO WE DON'T WANNA NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT WAS YOU, UH, WHO HAVE CHAMPIONED AND MADE SURE IN GOOD YEARS AND BAD YEARS, YOU CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON OUR PROMISE TO THE WEST SIDE. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. UH, VICE MAYOR URANGA. SO AGAIN, WORKING, THIS IS THE MAYOR'S SET WAS NOT A COMPLETE SET OF RESTORATIONS. THE BOC ADDS ONTO THOSE RES RESTORATIONS. UH, AND WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE IS THAT, UM, THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS WERE ABOUT 70 JOBS. THE BOC WILL TAKE THAT A BIT FURTHER TO A LARGER NUMBER OF RESTORATE RESTORED FILLED POSITIONS, WHICH HAS BEEN A PRIORITY THROUGH THIS PROCESS, IS TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO RETAIN AS MANY FILLED POSITIONS AS WE CAN AS WE GET THROUGH, UH, THIS BUDGET PROCESS. SO THAT SAID, I WANNA PASS IT OVER TO OUR CHAIR, UH, JONI DUNNY, COUNCILWOMAN, RICK SODI, UH, THANK YOU MAYOR. UM, AND THANK YOU TO MY COLLEAGUES AND TO ALL OF YOU ALL WHO ARE HERE TODAY. UM, AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR ADVOCACY AND ENGAGEMENT IN THIS PROCESS. UH, THE VOC RECOMMENDATIONS PRESENTED TODAY ARE MEANT TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THE NEEDS HEARD FROM COUNCIL COLLEAGUES, OUR MAYOR, OUR RESIDENTS, UM, FOR ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE BEEN COMING OUT TO ALL OF THESE BUDGET MEETINGS. UM, AND I JUST LIKE TO SAY THAT INVESTING IN OUR COMMUNITY MEANS A LOT OF THINGS. IT MEANS LOOKING AT FUNDING SOURCES THAT WE MAY, MAY NOT HAVE CONSIDERED BEFORE. IT MEANS PRIORITIZING INVESTING IN SPACES LIKE OUR LIBRARIES AND PARKS TO MAKE THEM SAFE PLACES FOR OUR COMMUNITY. IT MEANS PRIORITIZING VIOLENCE PREVENTION, PARTICULARLY FOR OUR YOUNG PEOPLE IN OUR MOST VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES. AND IT MEANS INVESTING IN PUBLIC SAFETY IN ALL ITS FORMS AS WELL AS, UM, BEING FORWARD THINKING TO PREPARE OURSELVES FOR THE CITY THAT WE ARE BECOMING. WHILE I KNOW THAT WE ARE NOT ABLE TO INCLUDE EVERY REQUEST ON THESE RECOMMENDATIONS, THAT IS CERTAINLY NOT A REFLECTION ON THEIR IMPORTANCE OR THEIR MERIT. THE ITEMS WE COULD NOT FUND ARE ACKNOWLEDGED IN THE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CONSIDERATION IF AND WHEN FUNDS BECOME AVAILABLE IN FISCAL YEAR 27. AS WE OFTEN SAY, AND I THINK SOME OF THE FOLKS IN PUBLIC COMMENT SAID, BUDGETS ARE [02:10:01] A REFLECTION OF VALUES. THESE INVESTMENTS ARE NOT JUST NUMBERS. THEY'RE A REFLECTION OF OUR COMMUNITY VALUES. WE ALL WANT A SAFER, MORE AFFORDABLE, MORE ENVIRONMENT LONG BEACH SUPPORTED BY STRONG SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY. AND I HOPE YOU WILL SEE THOSE VALUES DISPLAYED IN THESE RECOMMENDATIONS. UM, I WANNA THANK THE MEMBERS OF MY COMMITTEE, UH, FOR THEIR ENGAGEMENT IN THIS PROCESS. UM, WE HAD A REALLY ROBUST, UH, SET OF AGENDAS WHERE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT A VARIETY OF THINGS THAT ARE IMPACTING OUR CITY, WHICH MANY OF YOU HAVE SEEN. UM, AND THOSE WENT INTO THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT YOU ARE GOING TO HEAR, UH, TONIGHT. UM, AND SO I'M GOING TO, UM, SHIFT IT OVER TO OUR BUDGET MANAGER, REBECCA BERNOFF, WHO IS GOING TO READ THROUGH THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS. THANK YOU. UH, MOTION TO SUPPORT THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE'S, PROPOSED BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS AND CHANGES TO THE MAYOR'S BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS AND APPROPRIATE THE FOLLOWING. ONE TIME INSTRUCTIONAL ENHANCEMENTS OR PROVIDE POLICY DIRECTION B ONE MOTION REPEALING THE PREVIOUS 1% TAX RATE REDUCTION FOR CANNABIS ADULT USE. RETAILERS INCREASING THE TAX RATE FROM 7% TO 8%, WHICH IS BELOW THE MAXIMUM OF 12%. AND ALSO SETTING THE RATE FOR CANNABIS CULTIVATORS AT $15 PER SQUARE FOOT UNDER CULTIVATION. THE ADJUSTMENT TO THE TAX RATE FOR CANNABIS CULTIVATORS IS EQUIVALENT TO ONE REPEALING THE 1% EQUIVALENT REDUCTION. THE TAX RATE FROM $14 AND 96 CENTS TO $13 AND 9 CENTS PER SQUARE FOOT UNDER CULTIVATION PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IN 2024. TO ALLOWING THE ANNUAL CONSUMER PRICE INDEX ADJUSTMENT TO THE NEW TAX RATE TO TAKE EFFECT ON OCTOBER 1ST, 2026. THESE ADJUSTMENTS WOULD RESULT IN A TAX RATE WELL OVER $15 PER SQUARE FOOT UNDER CULTIVATION. THIS ACTION IS ESTIMATED TO BRING BACK GENERAL FUND GROUP REVENUES IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,154,304 TO FURTHER SUPPORT ITS INTENDED USE OF REGULATION AND ENFORCEMENT AND PUBLIC HATE HEALTH AND SAFETY SERVICES. B TWO, MOTION TO RECOGNIZE REVENUE ESTIMATED TO BE $1,500,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP FROM THE INCREASE IN SPECIFIC PARKING CITATIONS TO $100 AS OUTLINED IN THE FISCAL YEAR 27, PROPOSED FEE SCHEDULE TO OFFSET STRUCTURAL COSTS PROPOSED BY THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. THESE INCLUDE FINES SUCH AS PARKING AND BIKE LANES, RED CURBS, FIRE HYDRANTS, AND NO PARKING ZONES. B THREE MOTION TO AMEND THE FISCAL YEAR 27 PROPOSED MASTER FEE AND CHARGES SCHEDULE TO RAISE STREET SWEEPING PARKING CITATION RATES FROM $75 TO $80 AND RECOGNIZE REVENUE ESTIMATED TO BE 700,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP TO OFFSET STRUCTURAL COSTS PROPOSED BY THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. B FOUR MOTION TO RESTORE $1,275,575 AND 11 FTES IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE LIBRARY ARTS AND CULTURE DEPARTMENT. OFFSET BY $150,623 BY REALLOCATING FUNDING FROM THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS PLAN TO SUPPORT SB 7 0 7 COSTS CONTINGENT ON THE REVISED COUNCIL MEETING. PLAN TO BE APPROVED BY OCTOBER ONE AND $1 MILLION $124,952 IN REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASED PARKING CITATIONS TO PRESERVE MONDAY HOURS AT THE BAY SHORE, BURNETT, EL DORADO HAR, AND MICHELLE OBAMA NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARIES. THIS INCLUDES THE RESTORATIONS OF FIVE LIBRARY CLERKS, FOUR LIBRARY ASSISTANTS, A VACANT GENERAL LIBRARY AND EDUCATION OUTREACH SERVICES AT BILLY JEAN KING MAIN LIBRARY, ONE FTE OF PAGE HOURS, THE OVERTIME BUDGET FROM MONDAY HOURS AND A RESTORED BUDGET FOR SECURITY SERVICES B FIVE MOTION TO RESTORE 932,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP AND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT OFFSET BY 610,000 FROM THE PROPOSED CAN PROPOSED ACTION ON CANNABIS TAX REVENUE AND 322,000 IN PROPOSED REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASING STREET SWEEPING PARKING CITATIONS, ONE FTE QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE SERGEANT AND TWO FTE QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE OFFICERS FROM THE CITY MANAGER'S PROPOSAL TO ELIMINATE A QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE SERGEANT AND SIX QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE OFFICERS IN THE COLLABORATIVE RESPONSE DIVISION. BUT THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS THIS ACTION BRINGS THE TOTAL RESTORED POSITIONS TO FOUR QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE OFFICERS AND ONE QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE SERGEANT FTES AND THE TOTAL CRITICAL SERVICES SECTION TWO SIX, QUALITY OF LIFE POLICE OFFICERS AND TWO QUALITY OF LIFE. UH, SERGEANTS MOTION TO ADD B SIX. MOTION TO ADD STRUCTURAL FUNDS OF 131,969 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OFFSITE BY REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASED PARKING CITATIONS TO CONVERT ENGINE 22 TO A PARAMEDIC ASSESSMENT UNIT SO THAT ALL THREE RESPONDING ENGINES SURROUNDING STATION 14 ARE NOW PARAMEDIC ASSESSMENT UNITS. B SEVEN MOTION TO ADD ONE TIME FUNDS OF $103,120 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE CITYWIDE ACTIVITIES DEPARTMENT. OFFSET BY THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS ONE-TIME DOLLARS FOR UTILIZATION BY THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE AND CITY COUNCIL TO FURTHER COMMUNITY PRIORITIES AND BUDGET RESTORATIONS ON A ONE-TIME BASIS TO SUPPORT PRIORITY INITIATIVES IDENTIFIED BY EACH COUNCIL DISTRICT THAT IMPROVE NEIGHBORHOOD AND COMMUNITY SERVICES DIVIDED EQUALLY BETWEEN THE CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS FOR DISTRICT PRIORITIES. B EIGHT MOTION TO ADD STRUCTURAL FUNDS OF 50,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT. OFFSET BY REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASED PARKING CITATIONS TO FUND SUMMER BLOCK PARTIES AND NEIGHBORHOOD ACTIVATIONS. B NINE MOTION TO ADD ONE-TIME FUNDS OF $200,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP AND THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OFFSET BY THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS ONE-TIME DOLLARS FOR UTILIZATION BY THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE AND CITY COUNCIL TO FURTHER COMMUNITY PRIORITIES AND BUDGET RESTORATIONS ON A ONE-TIME BASIS TO FUND AN INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY LONG BEACH FIRE AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY AND GOVERNANCE FEASIBILITY STUDY BUILDING UPON THE CITY'S [02:15:01] PREVIOUSLY COMPLETED FIRE OPTIMIZATION AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES ANALYSIS. B 10 MOTION TO ADD $325,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT OFFSET BY $33,921 FROM THE ACTION ON CANNABIS TAX REVENUE. $98,000 FROM THE PROPOSED REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASING STREET SWEEPING PARKING CITATIONS AND $193,079 FROM REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASED PARKING CITATIONS TO STRUCTURALLY FUND THE SAFE PASSAGE PROGRAM. B 11 MOTION TO ADD $272,234 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT. OFFSET BY THE ACTION ON CANNABIS TAX REVENUE TO STRUCTURALLY FUND THE COMPLAINT RESPONSE UNIT. A COORDINATED EFFORT TO ENFORCE REGULATIONS AGAINST UNPERMITTED SIDEWALK FOOD VENDORS TO HELP EDUCATE VENDORS DISCARD FOOD AND CONFISCATE ON PERMITTED FOOD VENDING EQUIPMENT. B12 MOTION TO RECOGNIZE THE EXTENSION OF THE CITY'S TREE TRIMMING CYCLE FROM SIX YEARS TO EIGHT YEARS AND THE ASSOCIATED REDUCTION OF $522,000 IN UNBUDGETED COSTS THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN THE CURRENT SIX YEAR CYCLE. SUPPORT THE EXISTING PROPOSAL FOR A POSITION IN THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO SUPPORT AN EQUITY BASED PILOT PROGRAM PROVIDING SLIDING SCALE REBATES TO RESIDENTS WHO WISH TO PARTICIPATE IN MORE FREQUENT TREE TRIMMING AND ADD STRUCTURAL FUNDS OF $50,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP AND THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT. OFFSET BY PROPOSED REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASING STREET SOUPING PARKING CITATIONS TO PROVIDE SEED FUNDING FOR REBATES THROUGH THE PILOT PROGRAM AND REQUEST THAT THE CITY MANAGER THROUGH THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT REPORT BACK TO THE CITY COUNCIL AFTER SIX MONTHS OF THE PILOT START ON THE PILOT PROGRAM'S IMPLEMENTATION PARTICIPATION OUTCOMES AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE FUNDING B 13 MOTION TO PARTIALLY RESTORE 230,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE PARKS, RECREATION AND MARINE DEPARTMENT. OFFSET BY PROPOSED REVENUE GENERATED BY INCREASING STREET SWEEPING PARKING CITATIONS WITH 115,000 TO SUPPORT WEED ABATEMENT SERVICES AND 115,000 TO SUPPORT REDUCTIONS TO MATERIAL SUPPLIES AND SERVICES TO SUPPORT PLANTING PROJECTS, MAINTENANCE OF VANDALIZED ITEMS, REPLACEMENT OF DAMAGED SAFETY CONES, SIGNS BARRICADES, AND OTHER DEFERRED MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONAL NEEDS MOTION. UH, B 14 MOTION TO ADD STRUCTURAL FUNDS OF $238,149 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT, OFFSET BY THE ACTION ON CANNABIS TAX REVENUE TO BRING ON A PROGRAM SPECIALIST ALONG WITH OPERATIONAL SUPPORT NEEDS. IF FUNDING REMAINS AFTER ACCOUNTING FOR THE FULL COST OF THE POSITION TO ESTABLISH AND LEAD A DEDICATED HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND SEXUAL EXPLOITATION FOCUS AREA AND SERVE AS THE CITY'S CENTRALIZED LEAD FOR IMPLEMENTATION AND COORDINATION OF THE REACT FRAMEWORK AND RELATED INTERDEPARTMENTAL AND INTER-JURISDICTIONAL EFFORTS CONSISTENT WITH THE CITY'S ADOPTED LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES, WHICH IDENTIFY COMBATING HUMAN TRAFFICKING AS A TOP LEGISLATIVE PRIORITY. AS RECOMMENDED BY THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE AND APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL B 15 MOTION TO DIRECT 200,000 IN FUNDING WITH COUNTY MEASURE A LA CASA TO SUPPORT A COMMUNITY LAND TRUST, A NON-PROFIT MISSION DRIVEN ORGANIZATION WITH A DEMONSTRATED COMMITMENT TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING PRESERVATION, COMMUNITY STEWARDSHIP, AND EQUITABLE OWNERSHIP MODELS. THE FUNDING IS INTENDED TO LEVERAGE ADDITIONAL FINANCING FOR THE ACQUISITION AND LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF LOWER INCOME HOUSING UNDER ACL T. THIS SHOULD BE A COMPETITIVE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY AND THE APPLICATION CRITERIA SHALL INCLUDE HOW THE GOV THE GRANT WILL LEAD TO SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS WITHOUT FURTHER CITY FUNDING. B 16 MOTION TO RESTORE THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATION OF RESTORING $86,150 FOR HALF A PUBLIC HEALTH PROFESSIONAL. THREE IN THE OFFICE OF VETERAN AFFAIRS TO $61,150 TOWARDS FUNDING A POSITION AND REALLOCATE 25,000 TOWARDS THE VETERAN BANNER PROGRAM. 20,004 BANNERS AND 5,000 FOR RECOGNITION SERVICE OF THOSE ON THE BANNERS IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP AND THE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT. B 17 MOTION TO DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER TO ESTABLISH A THREE-YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LONG BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION. AND ITS $250,000 ANNUAL FUNDING COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT THEIR CREATIVITY LAB AND ITS MODIFIED PROGRAMMING AND SERVICES. LEVERAGING PHIL PHILANTHROPIC PARTNERSHIP TO PRESERVE THIS IMPORTANT COMMUNITY RESOURCE AND AUGMENT EFFORTS CURRENTLY FUNDED WITH MEASURE UFS FUNDS WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE CITY'S FINANCIAL COMMITMENT WILL NOT INCREASE TO OFFSET ANY SHORTFALL IN THE FOUNDATION'S ANNUAL FUNDING COMMITMENT AND THAT PROGRAMMING AND SERVICES WILL BE ADJUSTED OR DISCONTINUED AS NECESSARY BASED ON AVAILABLE FUNDING. BE 18 MOTION TO RECOGNIZE THE CITY MANAGERS PROPOSED 140,000 AND ONE-TIME FUNDING IN THE SPECIAL ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION FUND GROUP FOR THE JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION. AND CLARIFY THAT THE FUNDING IS INTENDED AS SEED FUNDING FOR THE CITY TO ESTABLISH AND HOST A CITY LED JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION FOR THE COMMUNITY B 19 MOTION TO RECOGNIZE THE CITY MANAGERS PROPOSED $50,000 IN ONE-TIME FUNDING FOR THE LONG BEACH WALLS AND COMMUNITY ART MURALS PROGRAM AND DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER TO ENCOURAGE GEOGRAPHIC DISPERSION OF FUNDED PROJECTS THROUGHOUT THE CITY WHEN CONSIDERING INVESTMENTS WITH CONSIDERATION GIVEN TO PROVIDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR NEIGHBORHOODS ACROSS LONG BEACH TO PARTICIPATE B 20 MOTION TO ADD ONE-TIME FUNDING OF 120,000 IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP IN THE CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT TO FUND AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY REUSE AND RECYCLING HUB FEASIBILITY STUDY CONSISTENT WITH THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE CLIMATE RESILIENT AND SUSTAINABLE CITY COMMISSION. AND 30,000 AND ONE-TIME FUNDING IN THE GENERAL FUND GROUP AND THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO SUPPORT INITIAL PLANNING, REGULATORY ENGAGEMENT AND STAKEHOLDER COORDINATION RELATED TO EXPLORING AN UMBRELLA MITIGATION BANK IN LONG BEACH. RECOGNIZING THAT BOTH EFFORTS SUPPORT THE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT OF POTENTIAL CITY INFRASTRUCTURE AND ARE ELIGIBLE USES OF CITY MEASURE A FUNDS OFFSET BY RESERVING 150,000 FROM SIX FISCAL YEAR 26 CITY [02:20:01] MEASURE A CRITICAL NEEDS FUNDS TO BE SET ASIDE AND CARRY OVER TO FISCAL YEAR 27. ADDITIONALLY REALLOCATE 150,000 FOR THE MARINE AMPHITHEATER FEASIBILITY STUDY WITHIN THE CITY. MEASURE A ELEVATE 28 FISCAL YEAR 27 BOND PROGRAM TO THE CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE RESERVE. B 21 MOTION TO DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER TO WORK WITH THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO AMEND THE ADOPTED FISCAL YEAR 2024 BUDGET ACTION TO ADJUST THE CITY PLACE PARKING GARAGE RATES FROM ONE HOUR FREE WITH $2 PER HOUR WITH A $12 DAILY MAXIMUM TO 90 MINUTES FREE AND $2 PER 30 MINUTES WITH A $12 DAILY MAXIMUM. THIS AMENDED ACTION IS EXPECTED TO GENERATE AN ADDITIONAL 250,000 IN GENERAL FUND REVENUE AT THE CITY PLACE PARKING GARAGE, WHICH WILL BE REINVESTED INTO TO THE CITY PLACE PARKING GARAGE ASSETS IN THE SURROUNDING AREA. ADDITIONALLY, THIS FUNDING WILL STRUCTURALLY FUND THE PUBLICLY ACCESSIBLE SECURED RESTROOM LOCATED AT HARVEY MILK PARK FOR PARKING PATRONS AS WELL AS THE GENERAL PUBLIC B TWO MOTION TO DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER TO WORK WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO REQUEST THAT THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES PROVIDE A FINANCIAL SUPPORT MATCH TO THE $394,701 IN THE MAYOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS TO PROVIDE CLEANUP SUPPORT ALONG LOS ANGELES COUNTY RIVERS B 23 MOTION TO REQUEST THE CITY MANAGER AND UTILITIES DEPARTMENT WORK TOGETHER TO REVIEW ALL APPROVED AB 32 PROJECTS AND ALLOCATIONS TO DETERMINE WHETHER ANY FUNDS MAY BE AVAILABLE TO REPURPOSE, TO SUPPORT CITYWIDE PRIORITIES AIMED AT REDUCING OPERATIONAL COSTS AND GHG EMISSIONS AND IMPROVING INFRASTRUCTURE. DETERMINE FEASIBILITY OF CITY COUNCIL PROJECT PRIORITIES SUCH AS A SOLAR STREETLIGHT CONVERSION PROGRAM TO ENHANCE THE CITY STREETLIGHTS AND CONVERSION TO SOLAR, WHICH WILL REDUCE THE THREAT OF VANDALISM AND INOPERABILITY WHILE REDUCING GHG EMISSIONS THROUGH REMOVING RELIANCE ON HARDWIRED POWER AND PRESENT ANY UPDATES ON PROJECT REALLOCATION TO THE UTILITIES BOARD. AND UPDATE THE CITY COUNCIL VIA MEMORANDUM B 24 MOTION TO REQUEST THE CITY MANAGER TO EXPRESSLY ALLOW UP TO $500,000 IN SETTLEMENT ASSISTANCE FUNDING AS AN ALLOWABLE USE UNDER THE COUNTY. MEASURE A CATEGORY OF HOMELESS PREVENTION AND RENTAL ASSISTANCE. B 25 MOTION TO REQUEST THE CITY MANAGER ESTABLISH A LIMIT OF NO MORE THAN TWO REGULAR MEETINGS PER MONTH FOR EACH CITY COMMISSION UNLESS OTHERWISE AUTHORIZED BY THE CITY COUNCIL. IN RECOGNITION OF THE LIMITED STAFF RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT THE CITY'S COMMISSIONS AND THE RESTORATION OF ONE EQUITY POSITION DEDICATED TO COMMISSION SUPPORT AND TO PROVIDE AN INVENTORY OF ALL CITY COMMISSIONS, INCLUDING THE NUMBER OF ACTIVE AD HOC COMMITTEES ASSOCIATED WITH EACH COMMISSION AND WHERE AVAILABLE THE STAFF RESOURCES REQUIRED TO SUPPORT THOSE COMMITTEES. AND BASED ON THIS INFORMATION, RETURN TO THE CITY COUNCIL WITH RECOMMENDATIONS FOR REDUCING BOTH STAFF TIME AND COSTS FOR COMMISSIONS WITH THE GOAL OF ENSURING EQUITABLE USE OF STAFF RESOURCES ACROSS COMMISSIONS AND AVOIDING A DISPROPORTIONATE ALLOCATION OF STAFF CAPACITY TO A SUBSET OF COMMISSIONS OR COMMITTEES. B 26 MESH MOTION TO RECOGNIZE THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE EQUITY AND HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION TO ESTABLISH A CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS INVESTMENT SCREENING POLICY DEVELOPED FULLY FOLLOWING COMMUNITY ADVOCACY AND PUBLIC INPUT AND SUBSEQUENTLY REVISED IN RESPONSE TO CONCERNS RAISED BY THE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT REGARDING FISCAL IMPACTS, FEASIBILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION. AND CONSISTENT WITH THE CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDATION THAT FURTHER CONSIDERATION OCCUR THROUGH THE FISCAL 27 BUDGET PROCESS. DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER TO WORK WITH THE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT TO AMEND THE CITY COUNCIL'S INVESTMENT POLICY TO INCORPORATE A CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS INVESTMENT SCREENING ELEMENT INCLUSIVE OF THE FOLLOWING MODIFICATIONS DISCUSSED AND AGREED UPON BY THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT CAN BE ON AUGUST 28TH, 2026. ONE, EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLIANCE STANDARD. REPLACE THE PROPOSED PRESUMPTION OF NON-COMPLIANCE WITH AN EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLIANCE STANDARD BY REVISING SECTION 2.5 TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY'S INVESTMENT MANAGER TO MAKE A GOOD FAITH DETERMINATION OF COMPLIANCE BASED ON CREDIBLE, INDEPENDENTLY VERIFIABLE INFORMATION FROM A LIABLE THIRD PARTY SOURCES SPECIALIZING IN CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS RISK ASSESSMENTS AND RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT SCREENING. TWO, INTEGRATION WITH EXISTING INVESTMENT REPORTING. REMOVE THE PROPOSED STANDALONE ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENT AND INSTEAD INCORPORATE REPORTING ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE POLICY INTO THE CITY'S EXISTING INVESTMENT REPORTING PROCESS TO REDUCE ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN WHILE MAINTAINING TRANSPARENCY AND PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY. THREE. IMMIGRATION DETENTION AND BORDER SURVEILLANCE EXPAND THE PROHIBITED INVESTMENT CRITERIA TO INCLUDE COMPANIES THAT OWN OPERATE FINANCE OR MATERIALLY SUPPORT BORDER SURVEILLANCE OR IMMIGRATION DETENTION FACILITIES, INCLUDING COMPANIES THAT MATERIALLY FACILITATE BORDER SURVEILLANCE OR IMMIGRATION DETECTION THROUGH GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS. CONSISTENT WITH THE POLICY'S BROADER CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS FRAMEWORK, THE AMENDED INVESTMENT POLICY SHALL OTHERWISE INCORPORATE CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS INVESTMENT SCREENING CRITERIA, ADDRESSING ENTITIES SHOWN TO BE COMPLICIT IN GENOCIDE, APARTHEID, OCCUPATION DISPLACEMENT OR OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, LABOR RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, STATE VIOLENCE, ENVIRONMENTAL HARM, INADEQUATE SUPPLY CHAIN DUE DILIGENCE, AND OR INADEQUATE CORPORATE GOVERNANCE STANDARDS. DIRECT THE CITY MANAGER TO RETURN THE CITY COUNCIL WITH THE PROPOSED AMENDED INVESTMENT POLICY FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL ALONG WITH ANY FUNDING REQUEST NECESSARY TO IMPLEMENT THE POLICY THROUGH SPECIALIZED SCREENING SOFTWARE OR AN ADVISOR MANAGED SOLUTION. B 27 MOTION TO CLARIFY LANGUAGE FROM FISCAL YEAR 26. ADOPTED BUDGET BOC MOTION B 44 TO ESTABLISH THE SECOND TO LAST BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE MEETING AS THE DEADLINE FOR CITY COUNCIL BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS TO BE HEARD AND CONSIDERED BY THE COMMITTEE, ENSURING ADEQUATE TIME TO DEVELOP FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CITY COUNCIL AS A RESULT OF A MEMO TO THE CITY COUNCIL IN JULY 1ST, 2025. PROVIDING ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE AND TRANSPARENCY REGARDING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE BOC. THIS MOTION WOULD REQUIRE ALL CITY COUNCIL BUDGET REQUEST MEMOS TO BE SUBMITTED WITH SUFFICIENT TIME FOR THE RECOMMENDATION TO BE [02:25:01] AGENDIZED AND HEARD NO LATER THAN THE SECOND TO LAST BOC MEETING. THE FINAL BOC MEETING WOULD NOT INCLUDE COUNCIL CORRESPONDENCE OR CONSIDERATION OF NEW BUDGET REQUEST MEMOS AND WOULD INSTEAD BE RESERVED FOR FINALIZING THE COMMITTEE'S RECOMMENDATIONS TO CITY COUNCIL COUNCIL. CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED AFTER THE SUBMISSION DEADLINE WOULD BE INCLUDED IN, IN THE LEGISLATIVE RECORD UNDER NON AGENDA AND PUBLIC COMMENT. HOWEVER, ITS INCLUSION WOULD NOT PROVIDE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMITTEE DISCUSSION. B 28 MOTION TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT REQUEST FOR FUNDING FROM COUNCIL DISTRICTS FOR VARIOUS PROGRAMS AND SERVICES HAVE BEEN RECEIVED AND REVIEWED AT THIS TIME. DUE TO FISCAL CHALLENGES LIMITING POSSIBLE FUNDING RESOURCES, THESE REQUESTS CANNOT BE RECOMMENDED FOR A CORPORATION INTO THE PROPOSED FISCAL YEAR 2027 BUDGET. THE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES LISTED BELOW REMAIN ON FILE FOR FUTURE CONSIDERATION PENDING AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES OR ALTERNATIVE FUNDING MECHANISMS. THIS MOTION SERVES TO RECOGNIZE THE VALUE OF THESE INITIATIVES WHILE MAINTAINING FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY AND TRANSPARENCY IN THE BUDGETING PROCESS. ONE. RESTORATION OF FIRE ENGINE 14 TWO. RESTORATION OF POLICE PATROL STAFFING. THREE. ADDITIONAL STRUCTURAL FUNDING TOWARDS THE LONG BEACH JUSTICE FUND. FOUR. ADDITIONAL FUNDING TOWARDS YOUTH PARTICIPATORY BUDGETING. FIVE. FUNDING FOR THE ART YOUTH ART CONTEST. SIX. RESTORATION OF CODE ENFORCEMENT INSPECTOR SEVEN. FIRE STATION 14. FAST RESPONSE VEHICLE PILOT EIGHT. RESTORATION OF HOMELESS EMPLOYMENT WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. NINE. RESTORATION OF WEEKEND HOMELESS OUTREACH AND 10 FUNDING TO THE NON-PROFIT PARTNERSHIP TO CONTINUE ITS WORK SUPPORTING NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS AND COMMUNITY-BASED PARTNERS IN WEST LONG BEACH. AT THE WEST SIDE PROMISE. ALRIGHT, ANY OTHER COMMENTS? NO. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UH, BUDGET TEAM. UH, GO TAKE A SIP OF WATER, REBECCA. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, WELL THANK YOU. WE ARE NOT DONE YET. UH, PER OUR CITY ATTORNEY, WE HAVE, UH, UH, TO ADD A NUMBER OF STATEMENTS RELATED TO THE TIMING OF HOW WE PAY FOR SOME OF THESE THINGS. SO THE BUDGET BEING CONSIDERED FOR ADOPTION THIS EVENING INCLUDES ADJUSTMENTS THAT ARE CONTINGENT UPON THE COUNCIL'S ADOPTION OF TWO SEPARATE ORDINANCES AMENDING SECTIONS OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE. TO THAT END, FIRST THE CITY COUNCIL IS DIRECTING THE CITY ATTORNEY TO PREPARE AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ON AN EMERGENCY BASIS FOR THE SEPTEMBER 5TH, 2026 CITY COUNCIL MEETING TO AMEND THE LONG BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION 3.8 0.261 TO ONE REPEAL THE 2024 REDUCTION OF BUSINESS LICENSE TAX FOR ADULT CANNIBAL RETAIL RETAILERS, THEREBY REVERTING THE TAX TO 8% OF GROSS RECEIPTS, WHICH IS BELOW THE MAXIMUM OF 12%. ADJUST THE BUSINESS LICENSE TAX FOR CANNABIS CULTIVATIONS TO 15 PER SQUARE FOOT UNDER CULTIVATION. AND THREE, UH, SUNSET. THE PILOT TAX PROGRAM FOR BUSINESSES THAT APPLIED FOR THE PROGRAM BEFORE SEPTEMBER 8TH, 2026. THE COUNCIL IS WAIVING ANY AND ALL PROVISIONS FROM THE LONG BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE THAT RESTRICT AN ORDINANCE FROM BEING PUT ON THE SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA. NEXT SECOND. AS THE CITY COUNCIL HAS PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED, THE CITY ATTORNEY SHALL ALSO PREPARE AN ORDINANCE WITH RETURN TO CITY COUNCIL BEFORE THE END OF SEPTEMBER, AMENDING LONG BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE TITLE TWO, SECTION 2 0 3 TO ONE, CONSOLIDATE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIODS AT THE CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS INTO A SINGLE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD AT THE BEGINNING OF MEETINGS. TWO AT THE, AT THE CITY COUNCIL IS IMPORTANT. IT IS IMPORTANT, I HAVE TO START THAT OVER. UH, PLEASE RESTORE THE MEETING TO THE STATE OF ORDER. THE DISRUPTIONS ARE NOT ALLOWED. UH, WE HAVE TO CONDUCT THIS BUSINESS. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, SO, UH, CONSOLIDATE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIODS AT, AT CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS INTO A SINGLE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD AT THE BEGINNING OF MEETINGS. TWO, AFTER THE CITY CLERK IS CITY CLERK, MAKE A VERBAL REPORT OUT OF THE WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENT RECEIVED BEFORE PUBLIC COMMENT IS HEARD. THREE. ALLOW FOR THE CHAIR OF THE MEETING, HAVE THE DISCRETION TO EXTEND PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD BY 30 MINUTE INCREMENTS IF SPEAKERS ARE STILL WAITING IN THE QUEUE AT THE END OF NINE MINUTE PUBLIC COMMENT. PERIOD FOUR. SET A HARD DATE FOR RECEIVING PRESENTATIONS WITH THE LATEST TIME FOR PRESENTATIONS TO BE INCLUDED. AND AGENDA MATERIALS WITH THE SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA ON FRIDAY. AND FIVE, CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENT, SPEAK, COMMENT LIST ONCE THE LAST SPEAKER IS IN QUEUE. SO THAT IS A PART OF THIS RECOMMENDATION. UH, WE ALSO, UH, SO THIS WAS A LOT OF RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, BOC CHAIR AND BOC, UH, ALL YOUR MEMBERS, YOU HEARD A LOT OF PUBLIC COMMENT. I SAW ALL YOUR MEMOS, YOU MADE A LOT OF, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS. WE ALLOW OUTLINE THAT FRAMEWORK AND YOU STUCK WITHIN THAT FRAMEWORK. AND I SUPPORT YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE TAKE THIS TIME TO WALK THROUGH, UH, HOW THESE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE PAID FOR. SO I'M ASKING TOM TO TALK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT, UH, THE PARKING AND THE CANNABIS. THE TWO MOST SPECIFIC ELEMENTS, THE LARGEST ELEMENTS OF THESE RESTORATIONS. AGAIN, ANY ADDITION OR RESTORATION TO THE BUDGET HAS TO BE ATTACHED TO SUSTAINABLE STRUCTURAL FUNDING. SO IT DOES NOT, UH, IMPACT THE DEFICIT OR GROW THE DEFICIT OVER TIME. UH, OUR GOAL HERE IS NOT TO PASS ANY OF THESE INVESTMENTS ONTO FUTURE COUNCILS OR FUTURE GENERATIONS. SO WALK US THROUGH THE PLAN TO PAY FOR THESE. YES, THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. SO, UM, YOU OBVIOUSLY, THE BUDGET WENT THROUGH A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT CYCLES. WE STARTED WITH THE CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATIONS, THEN THE MAYOR MADE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS, AND THEN [02:30:01] THE BOC CHAIR LISTENED AND CAME UP WITH SOME RECOMMENDATIONS TO BOC, WHICH ARE THEN PRESENTED TO YOU TONIGHT. AND SO THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT I PUT FORWARD WERE MOSTLY BASED ON REDUCTIONS. UM, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF REVENUE IN THERE. WE TOOK A REDUCTIONS APPROACH TO TRY TO HAVE THOSE OPTIONS FOR THE COUNCIL. AND THEN THE COUNCIL THROUGH ITS DELIBERATIONS, UH, WAS VERY CLEAR THAT LIBRARIES AND QUALITY OF LIFE WERE TWO OF THE BIG THINGS THAT THEY REALLY WANTED TO, UH, RESTORE AND THEN, UH, WORK ON THE NUMBER LISTS THAT CAME THROUGH THE, THE BOC PROCESS AS WELL. AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW THAT THE LIST OF RESTORATIONS IS SLIGHTLY OVER $3 MILLION. AND SO THOSE NEED TO EITHER COME OUT OF REDUCTIONS OR THEY NEED TO COME OUT OF ADDITIONAL REVENUE IN WORKING WITH THE CHAIR. EXCUSE ME, MR. MAYOR. MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU WERE STEWARD STEWARD THE ROOM TO A STATE OF ORDER. SO YOU'VE BEEN ISSUED A SECOND WARNING. UM, IF YOU INTERFERE WITH THE MEETING AGAIN, WE WILL HAVE TO ESCORT YOU OUT OF THE BUILDING. THANK YOU. SO LET'S GET THROUGH THIS PROCESS. THERE'S OTHER OPPORTUNITIES FOR PUBLIC COMMENT IN THE MEETING, BUT LET'S GET THROUGH THIS PROCESS BECAUSE IT'S VERY LEGAL AND WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THERE ARE NO DIS DISRUPTIONS TO THE MEETING. MR. MOCA, PLEASE CONTINUE. YES. AND SO, UM, THE MAYOR'S AGENDA, OR MAYOR'S, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS DID HAVE ABOUT 300, $3,000 WITH, OF ONE TIMES THAT THE, UH, BUDGET OVERSIGHT CON, UH, COMMITTEE COULD CONSIDER. AND SO THEY DO HAVE A RECOMMENDATION FOR THAT. BUT FOR THOSE STRUCTURAL FUNDING TO MAKE SURE THAT IF WE'RE GONNA RESTORE LIBRARY HOURS OR QUALITY OF LIFE, THERE NEEDS TO BE A STRUCTURAL FUNDING SOURCE. UH, WHAT THE, UH, CHAIR OF THE BOC IS HAS PUT FORWARD AS THE MOTION TO BOC, UH, WAS TO, UH, LOOK AT THE AREA OF CANNABIS. UH, LONG BEACH HAS GRANTED CANNABIS RELIEF IN THE PAST, KIND OF, UM, BELOW WHAT WE ARE, WHAT VOTERS HAVE APPROVED AS THE TAX. AND SO, UM, THAT WOULD BE PUTTING THAT BACK TO WHERE WE HAVE HISTORICALLY BEEN TAXING CANNABIS. UH, THAT ACTUALLY HAS, UH, A NUMBER OF ASSUMPTIONS IN IT TO NOT ASSUME THAT IT'S THE FULL AMOUNT, IT'S A CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATE KNOWING, UH, THAT NOT EVERYBODY PAYS THOSE TAXES. AND WE'RE IN THAT PROCESS OF, OF COLLECTING THOSE. AND SO THAT, UH, THE TEAM FEELS IS A, A VIABLE SOURCE. IT'S ABOUT $1.1 MILLION. AND THEN THE OTHER, UH, WAS LOOKING AT SOME SELECT PARKING CITATIONS. UH, THE PARK, UH, THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT HAS REALLY LOOKED, UH, IN THE AREA OF SAFETY AND SECURITY. SOME PLACES WHERE PEOPLE ARE PARKING THAT ARE CREATING HAZARDS IN OUR COMMUNITY, UH, AND TO THEN, UH, RAISE THOSE UP TO ESSENTIALLY COMPARABLE RATES, UH, AT OR BELOW, UH, WHAT OTHER NEIGHBORS ARE AT OR WHAT OTHER NEIGHBORING CITIES ARE AT OR OTHER LARGE CITIES. SO, UM, THAT BRINGS IN ABOUT $1.5 MILLION BETWEEN THE TWO OF THEM. UH, AND THEN, UM, LOOKING AT SOME, UH, UH, INCREASES TO STREET SWEEPING FEES AS WELL TO GO TO ADDITIONAL LEVELS OF RESTORATION. AND THE DEPARTMENT OF, UH, PARK PUBLIC WORKS CAN, UH, EXPOUND FURTHER ON THAT IF YOU WANNA KNOW SPECIFICS ABOUT THE PARKING CITATIONS. SURE. GIVE US A FEW LINES ON, UH, THE APPROACH HERE, THE TIMING, WHAT, WHAT THE PROCESS WAS LIKE AND HOW THIS FITS INTO THE OVERALL TRAFFIC SAFETY PICTURE. THANKS. I'LL CALL UP JOSH HICKMAN, UH, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR CITY COUNCIL. UM, HAPPY TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION. SO AS FAR AS OUR, HOW DID WE GO ABOUT THIS PROCESS? SO WE'VE BEEN REALLY INTENTIONAL OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS ABOUT FOCUSING IN ON TRAFFIC SAFETY. UH, WE HAVE APPROXIMATELY 18 DIFFERENT FEES THAT ARE RELATED TO TRAFFIC SAFETY, INCLUDING, UH, PARKING AT RED CURBS, PARKING ON CROSSWALKS. AND CURRENTLY THOSE ARE ALL WITHIN THE RANGE OF 70, 74, $90. SO WE'RE AGGREGATING ALL THESE TOGETHER AT $100. UH, TO CONTINUE OUR FOCUS ON TRAFFIC SAFETY, THERE'S A NUMBER OF OTHER, UH, FEES THAT ARE NOT BEING ADJUSTED AS PART OF THE PROPOSED BUDGET. SO THERE ARE A COUPLE DOZEN OTHERS, UH, MORE RELATED TO PARKING MANAGEMENT. LET'S SAY A FEW PARK AT A METER, UH, AND YOU OVERSTAY UH, WHAT YOU PAID ON THE METER. THOSE FEES ARE NOT CHANGING. AND THEN FINALLY, ON THE MASTER FEE AND CHARGING THE UPDATE PROCESS, YOU HAVE TO PUBLISH THESE IN THE NEWSPAPER, CORRECT. THESE PARTICULAR FEES. WE, WE DO INCLUDE THE FEES IN THE CITY'S FEE SCHEDULE IN CONJUNCTION WITH OTHER FEES AS THEY'RE ADJUSTED AS PART OF THE BUDGET PROCESS. OKAY. AND WERE THESE FEES, UH, UH, NOTICED IN THE, THE NEWSPAPER IN THE PRESS TELEGRAM? YEAH, THE, UH, PARKING CITATIONS INCREASED, UH, FOR THE RED CURBS AND THOSE OTHER VIOLATIONS WERE NOTICED ON, UH, AUGUST 21ST TO THE LONG BEACH PRESS TELEGRAM. THANK YOU ALSO TO INTERESTED PARTIES AND THEN NOTICE TO FACILITIES ON AUGUST 24TH. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. SO I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THIS IS A PART OF AN ONGOING STRATEGY, BUT THIS ONE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS WAS NOT PROGRAMMED AND IT'S ONGOING AND STRUCTURAL. THIS IS A RESOURCE THAT CAN BE USED FOR STRUCTURAL RESTORATIONS. THAT'S WHY THESE WERE TAPPED [02:35:01] FOR LIBRARIES, THE, THESE LIBRARIES AND OTHER THINGS BECAUSE IT NEEDED AN ONGOING STRUCTURAL SOURCE. SO WANNA THANK THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE AND STAFF FOR MAKING SURE THERE'S A THOUGHTFUL APPROACH ON HOW WE DON'T WANT TO JUST RAISE FEES FOR THE SAKE OF IT. YOU LOOK AT THE INDEX, YOU LOOK AT THE BENCHMARKS, AND YOU MAKE SURE THAT IS, IT IS, UM, UH, DETERRING ACTIVITY THAT IS CONTRIBUTING TO POOR, UH, OUTCOMES ON PEDESTRIAN SAFETY, WHICH IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. AND THIS BUDGET SPEAKS TO THAT IN OTHER AREAS OF THE BUDGET. THANK YOU. SO THAT, THAT CONCLUDES THIS PORTION. NOW WE'RE GONNA TAKE TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR DELIBERATION. THE SECONDER OF THE MOTION IS COUNCIL MEMBER TH TOOK ALL. THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND THANK YOU FOR READING ALL OF THAT OUT. THAT WAS QUITE A LOT. BUT I KNOW THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL ELEMENTS, UM, THAT OUR AUDIENCE MEMBERS WERE PLEASED TO HEAR ABOUT. UM, I WILL SAY THAT I BELIEVE THAT THE PROPOSALS THAT ARE BEFORE US TONIGHT, UH, REALLY REFLECT A LOT OF THE PRIORITIES, UH, THAT WERE HEARD EITHER DURING OUR BUDGET HEARING OR THROUGH A BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE HEARING. AND REALLY FOCUS ON THE FISCAL TOOLS THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE TO US IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THE LEVEL OF RESOURCES THAT ARE NEEDED, UH, TO FUND THESE ITEMS. ESPECIALLY THOSE WHERE WE ARE LOOKING FOR STRUCTURAL RESOURCES. I TOO WANT TO EXTEND MY SINCERE THANK YOUS TO THE MAYOR, THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, THE CHAIR, AND ALL OF ITS MEMBERS TO CITY MANAGER MOCA, ALL OF OUR DEPARTMENTS WHO CAME FORWARD, THE DEPARTMENT HEADS AND OUR CITY STAFF FOR YOUR DILIGENT EFFORTS DURING THIS PROCESS. THESE LAST SIX WEEKS HAVE BEEN QUITE INTENSE AS YOU'VE GONE THROUGH AND TRIED TO IDENTIFY WHERE, WHO AND WHEN WE COULD LOOK AT PAIRING DOWN RESOURCES. IT WAS TAKEN US, UH, YOU KNOW, PRETTY MUCH ALL THROUGH AUGUST IN ORDER TO IDENTIFY SOME CREATIVE SOLUTIONS. AND I BELIEVE THAT THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE HAVE HERE, UM, SUPPORTING OUR LIBRARIES, MAKING SURE THAT FROM A PUBLIC SAFETY STANDPOINT AND QUALITY OF LIFE, WE UNDERSTAND WHAT THE FUTURE COULD LOOK LIKE WITH OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT AND SEEING RESOURCES THAT ENSURE THAT WE HAVE THE STAFFING TIME TO COMBAT HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE A RESPONSE AND PREVENTION EFFORTS. THERE'S OTHER CRITICAL INVESTMENTS THAT FOCUS ON ENSURING THAT WE CONTINUE TO PRESERVE AFFORDABLE HOUSING. AND ALL OF THESE MEASURES, I BELIEVE HAVE BEEN THOUGHTFULLY CONSIDERED, UM, AND REALLY DIRECTED TOWARDS, UH, MANY OF THE FISCAL PRIORITIES THAT THIS AUDIENCE, UM, AND THIS COUNCIL HAVE SUGGESTED. UM, I LOOK FORWARD TO MORE DISCUSSION. I WILL STOP HERE. UM, BUT I DO HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS, BUT I WANNA GIVE OTHER COLLEAGUES AN OPPORTUNITY TO WEIGH IN AS WELL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND JUST, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS, UH, UNDER THE FIVE MINUTES, BUT I WANNA BE CLEAR 'CAUSE I WAS CALLED OUT THAT WE DON'T USE THE FIVE MINUTES, WE'RE USING THE FIVE MINUTES. SO QUEUE UP IF YOU GO PAST FIVE MINUTES, I'M HAPPY TO ACCOMMODATE. UH, NEXT IS COUNCIL MEMBER ALLEN. OKAY. UM, CAN YOU GO TO PAGE ONE, PLEASE, OF THIS, OF THE PRESENTATION? WHOEVER HAS A PRESENTATION? OKAY, THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. UM, SINCE THE MAYOR, SO RUDELY AND IMMATURELY DIDN'T THANK ME, UM, FOR MY SERVICE, UM, LET ME JUST START THIS OVER AGAIN. OKAY. UM, SO DR. JONI, RICK SODI, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE. YOU ARE AWESOME AND YOU DID A GREAT JOB, UH, SHARING AND VICE MAYOR, THIS IS MANY, MANY YEARS OF YOU DOING THIS. AND CINDY ALLEN, YOU CAME TO EVERY MEETING, YOU LISTENED TO EVERY COMMENT, AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. WELL, THANK YOU, MAYOR. OKAY. ALRIGHT, SO NOW LET ME, LET ME CONTINUE. SO, UM, I, I HAVE A LOT OF ISSUES WITH THE BUDGET AND AS YOU GUYS KNOW, I SIT ON THE BOC AND I KNOW THE MAYOR KEEPS SAYING THAT THESE RECOMMENDATIONS CAME FROM THE BOC, BUT I DON'T KNOW HOW THESE RECOMMENDATIONS COME TO BOC WHEN I DIDN'T EVEN SEE 'EM TILL TODAY. SO I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW, WE HEAPS, I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT, IT, IT, THESE ARE HIS RECOMMENDATIONS. AND SO, UM, WE JUST, UM, ARE EXPECTED, OR I I, I'M DEFINITELY NOT GONNA RUBBER STAMP A $4 BILLION BUDGET WHEN I'VE ONLY HAD MINUTES TO REVIEW AND THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT STUFF IN THE BUDGET. I'M NOT SAYING THAT, BUT IF I HAD ABSOLUTELY NO TIME BUT MINUTES TO REVIEW THIS AND, UM, WHEN IT CAME TO THE BOC, UM, AND I WANNA SAY, UM, YOU KNOW, DOING THIS IN THE 11TH HOUR IS JUST NOT ACCEPTABLE TO ANYONE WHO HAS TO EVALUATE A BUDGET LIKE THIS. AND, UM, I JUST, I DON'T APPROVE THE BUDGET IN A SLAP DASH MANNER. UM, I DO WANNA SAY TO MY COLLEAGUES THAT I THINK IF YOU GUYS APPROVE THIS BUDGET TONIGHT WITHOUT A REAL OPPORTUNITY FOR SUBSTANTIAL [02:40:01] DISCUSSION, UM, THAT YOU ALSO ARE COMPLICIT IN RUBBER STAMPING A BUDGET THAT CONTAINS SIGNIFICANT SERVICE REDUCTIONS. UM, THIS BUDGET IS GONNA CUT JOBS AND, UH, AND AFFECT PEOPLE'S LIVELIHOOD. I MEAN, MY GOSH, YOU HEARD GEO TODAY TALK ABOUT HER, YOU KNOW, FIVE DAYS IN HER RETIREMENT. I MEAN, THIS IS JUST NOT GOOD GOVERNANCE. SO I, I SURE HOPE THAT YOU'LL CONSIDER THAT TODAY. UM, I KNOW THAT THIS BUDGET, UM, WAS ADOPTED IN PREVIOUS YEARS THIS WAY, BUT, BUT MAYBE WE CAN LOOK AT THAT. UM, I THINK THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT. WE'RE, WE'RE NOT FAD, WE'RE FACING BUDGET CUTS. AND SO I THINK WE HAVE TO BE REAL MORE SENSITIVE ON THIS TIMING AND DISCUSSION AND RE RECOMMENDATIONS. UM, SO I AM, UM, I ON B TWO, WHICH WAS READ OUT LOUD ALREADY. UM, WITH THE, UH, CUTS TO, UM, WITH ADDING A HUNDRED DOLLARS TO PARKING, UM, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCE CAN I SUPPORT A NEW PROPOSAL THAT RAISES PARKING TICKETS TO A HUNDRED DOLLARS. UM, THIS NEW FEE PROPOSED IS WITHOUT PUBLIC INPUT. UM, WE NEVER HEARD ABOUT THIS IN THE BOC, I'VE NEVER GOT A PRESENTATION ON THIS, IT JUST WAS DROPPED ON ME. SO I THINK, UM, WHEN PEOPLE ARE STRUGGLING TO AFFORD RENT, GROCERIES, AND GAS, UM, AND THIS IS, THIS IS A PREDATORY FEE, UM, THAT WILL HURT WORKING CLASS FAMILIES ACROSS LONG BEACH AND ESPECIALLY IN MY DISTRICT. AND SO, AND I'M ALSO CONFUSED OVER, YOU KNOW, LAST WEEK IT WAS, WE NEEDED TO SAVE THE LIBRARIES FOR THE 150,000 AND THIS WEEK IT'S PARKING TICKETS, BUT WHATEVER IT IS, I WANNA SAY THE LIBRARIES. BUT, UM, I, UH, SO I HAVE A MINUTE AND A HALF AND I WANNA RESPECT THE FIVE MINUTES. SO, UM, WHAT I'M ASKING IS THAT INSTEAD OF RAISING THE PRICE OF PARKING TICKETS FOR WORKING CLASS PEOPLE, UM, I MADE SEVERAL CHANGES. UM, I'D LIKE TO MAKE SEVERAL CHANGES TO THE, TO THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS. UM, UM, JUST SOME SUGGESTIONS. AGAIN, I'VE ONLY HAD, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE HOURS TO REVIEW ALL THIS, BUT YOU KNOW, YOU COULD MOVE B EIGHT, B 14, B 18, B 19, UM, REDIRECT SOME OF THOSE FUNDS. THAT COMES UP TO ABOUT 478,000. UM, AND I DO UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF ALL OF THESE, BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE PRIORITIZE, UM, WHAT THE RESIDENTS WANT US TO RESTORE AND WOULD'VE ASKED US TO RESTORE. BECAUSE I'VE BEEN IN EVERY ONE OF THOSE BOC MEETINGS AND I'VE, I, I'VE HEARD THESE REQUESTS. UM, SO, UH, ALSO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME, THERE'S SOME, UM, OPENINGS IN THE MAYOR'S OFFICE. MAYBE YOU TAKE THAT BUDGET AND PUT IT TOWARDS THIS, UM, INSTEAD OF REPLACING THOSE EMPLOYEES. SO, UM, BUT I, UM, BUT THOSE ARE SOME SUGGESTIONS. I ALSO THINK THAT, UM, I, I'M, I'M GONNA MAKE A MOTION THAT WE, UH, DO EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN, UM, THIS VIBE CITY BRANDING, UM, JUST WORK WITH THE CITY MANAGER, WORK WITH THE, UH, THE CITY ATTORNEY TO SEE IF WE CAN MOVE ANY OF THOSE FUNDS, IF THAT'S LEGAL. AND IF NOT, THEN MAYBE WE LOOK AT, UM, CHANGING OUR ORDINANCE SO WE CAN MOVE THAT WIFE CITY MONEY TO THE JUSTICE FUND. WOO. AND, UM, I'LL CUE, I'LL CUE YOU BACK UP FOR THE REST. THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER SAAR. YEAH, THANK YOU MAYOR. UH, I ALSO JUST WANNA THANK YOU KNOW EVERYBODY FOR THEIR INPUT IN THIS REALLY CHALLENGING BUDGET PROCESS. YOU KNOW, THIS IS REALLY THE BUDGET PROCESS WHERE PROPOSALS ARE MADE, VARIOUS FEEDBACKS ARE GIVEN, CONSIDERATIONS ARE MADE AROUND HOW DO WE ADDRESS THIS REALLY LARGE DEFICIT BEFORE US TO RESPONSIBLY FIGURE OUT HOW DO WE, UH, CONTINUE TO PROVIDE THE SERVICES THAT ALL OUR RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES, UH, LIKE TO CONTINUE. SO UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAVE TO MAKE SOME VERY DIFFICULT DECISIONS IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THINGS DON'T GET WORSE IN THE FUTURE. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE KNOW WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO PRIORITIZE SAFETY, WE CONTINUE TO PRIORITIZE COMMUNITY HEALTH AND WELLBEING, AND ALSO MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE SAFE STREETS, UM, AS WELL AS LIGHTING AND ALL THE MANY THINGS THAT, UH, AS A CITY WE PROVIDE. AND I DO WANNA SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT IS A RIGOROUS PROCESS TO GO THROUGH ALL OF THE DIFFERENT WAYS THAT DEPARTMENT, UH, YOU KNOW, SPENDS THEIR MONEY AND, AND HOW DO WE CONTINUE TO INVEST IN THOSE SERVICES THAT ENSURE THERE'S A GOOD QUALITY OF LIFE FOR EVERYBODY IN THIS CITY. AND THAT'S REALLY THE PRIORITY ON WHAT THIS BUDGET IS ABOUT. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL GIVING YOUR FEEDBACK. AND IT'S OBVIOUSLY VERY DIFFICULT FOR US TO DECIDE, UM, ALL THE STAFF, ALL OF US AS COUNCIL MEMBER, MAYOR, ALL OF US IN FIGURING OUT, WELL WHAT, WHAT POINT CAN WE MEET IN A WAY WHERE IT'S NOT GONNA BE DETRIMENTAL IN FAR AS THE CUTS THAT WE NEED TO MAKE. NOBODY WANTS TO CUT JOBS, NOBODY WANTS. OUR GOAL HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO PRIORITIZE MAKING SURE [02:45:01] THAT WE INCREASE EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, UH, IN OUR CITY. SO WITH THAT SAID, I DO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE, UM, ONE ITEM IN THE BOC RECOMMENDATION THAT I REALLY APPRECIATE. THAT'S BEEN AN ONGOING CONVERSATION. AND THAT IS B 26TH, THE MOTION TO RECOGNIZE THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE EQUITY AND HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION TO ESTABLISH A CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS INVESTMENT SCREENING POLICY. WE'VE BEEN HEARING THIS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, AND THIS IS THE TIME IN WHERE WE'RE TAKING THE FEEDBACK AND PUTTING IT TO ACTION. I THINK THAT WHILE WE CANNOT COMMENT DIRECTLY TO THE PUBLIC COMMENTS MADE, THIS IS ONE OF THE WAYS TO DEMONSTRATE THAT WE DO HEAR THE FEEDBACK THAT'S, THAT'S BEEN GIVEN. THE OTHER QUESTION I HAVE IS ON B 25, UM, THE REVISING THE MOTIONS TO REQUEST THAT THE CITY MANAGER TO ESTABLISH A LIMIT OF NO MORE THAN TWO REGULAR MEETINGS PER MONTH FOR EACH CITY COMMISSION. I JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY THAT. LONG BEACH UTILITIES, LONG BEACH TRANSIT AND HARBOR COMMISSION IS EXCLUDED FROM THIS, OR ARE THEY PART OF THIS BECAUSE THEY DO HAVE TO MEET REGULARLY? UH, I'M WILLING, DEFINITELY WILLING TO ACCOMMODATE THAT. AND I THINK THE MOTION ALSO RECOGNIZES THAT WE WERE ASKING THE CITY MANAGER TO COME BACK WITH SOME POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS AROUND THAT. SO WE CAN DEFINITELY ACCOMMODATE THAT CONCERN. UM, COUNCIL MEMBER SORROW. SO THANK YOU FOR, THANK YOU FOR BROACHING IT. THANK YOU. THE OTHER THING WITH TWO MINUTES LEFT TO COMMENT IS THAT, UH, WE HAVE SEEN THAT BUDGET WHILE IT'S THIS TIME AROUND, WE MAKE THE APPROVAL ADJUSTMENTS ALSO GETS MADE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AS WE DETERMINE, UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DO BRING IT BACK AND HAVE DISCUSSION WHEN, UH, THE FINANCIAL SITUATION CHANGES. SO I DO WANNA SAY THAT WHILE WE MAKE THIS DECISION, FIRST AND FOREMOST, WE'RE GONNA THINK CONSTANTLY IN WAYS THAT WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO MAKE SURE WE RECOVER THE THINGS THAT WE HAD TO CUT TODAY. AND THAT IS FIRST AND FOREMOST, MAKING SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO PROVIDE THE SERVICES AT A LEVEL THAT'S GONNA MAKE SURE THAT RESIDENTS FEEL SAFE, THAT THE CITY'S CLEAN AND THAT IT'S HEALTHY AND TAKING AND PROVIDING THE WELLBEING SERVICES AND RESOURCES NEEDED. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU COUNCILMAN . UH, THANK YOU. I JUST HAVE, UM, ONE, UH, REQUEST THAT WE CHANGE ONE WORD AND ONE ITEM. SO IT'S ON PAGE 11. IT'S ITEM B 22 AND THE VERY LAST WORD IS THE WORD RIVERS. AND THIS IS THE ITEM WHERE WE'RE ASKING FOR COUNTY SUPPORT, UH, TO PROVIDE CLEANUP SUPPORT ALONG LOS ANGELES COUNTY RIVERS. I POINTED THIS OUT IN A PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETING THAT WE HAVE FOUR WATERWAYS IN, UH, THE FOURTH DISTRICT. ONLY ONE IS A RIVER CALL, THE RIVER THAT'S THE SAN GABRIEL RIVER. WE ALSO HAVE TWO CREEKS, UH, COYOTE AND BOUT, AND THE LOS CITAS CHANNEL. SO I THINK THE WORD WATERWAYS, ONE WORD WATERWAYS COVERS ALL THAT. IF WE CAN REPLACE RIVERS WITH, UH, WATERWAYS, I THINK THAT'D BE A, A GREAT IMPROVEMENT. THANK YOU. ABSOLUTELY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. UM, I FIRST WANNA START WITH THANKING THE CITY MANAGER, DEPARTMENT HEADS AND CITY STAFF FOR THE TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK THAT GOES INTO, UM, DEVELOPING THIS BUDGET. IT TAKES A LOT OF TIME AND A LOT OF WORK, SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. IT'S NOT AN EASY PROCESS. WE'VE HAD SO MANY DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS AND WE'VE HAD TO MAKE SOME DIFFICULT DECISIONS OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS. AND AS WE'VE SEEN HERE TONIGHT FROM TESTIMONY, THERE ARE REAL HUMAN IMPACTS BEHIND THESE REDUCTIONS, BOTH FOR OUR EMPLOYEES AND FOR THE RESIDENTS WHO RELY ON THE CITY'S SERVICES. SO I WANNA RECOGNIZE THAT, UH, CHAIR RICKS ODI AND THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, YOU SPEND AN INORDINATE AMOUNT OF TIME WORKING ON THE BOC, SO I APPRECIATE THE TIME AND EFFORT THAT GOES INTO, INTO THIS AND TRYING TO FIND A PATH FORWARD IN A DIFFICULT YEAR. SO THERE, AND THERE ARE SEVERAL THINGS THAT I'M REALLY HAPPY ABOUT WITH, UM, THIS BUDGET, INCLUDING SEEING ANOTHER YEAR OF A POLICE, UM, A POLICE ACADEMY FOR ANOTHER 70 POTENTIAL OFFICERS, AND THE ADDITIONAL MEDIAN MAINTENANCE. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER ALLEN, THANK YOU FOR RAISING CONCERNS ABOUT THE BUDGET PROCESS. I SERVED ON THE BOC DURING MY FIRST TWO YEARS IN OFFICE, AND ONE OF THE THINGS I LEARNED IS THAT ONCE THE PROPOSED BUDGET IS RELEASED, THERE ARE VERY LIMITED OPPORTUNITIES FOR INDIVIDUAL COUNCIL MEMBERS TO MAKE SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES. THE MAYOR HAS ABOUT A MONTH [02:50:01] TO DEVELOP AND RELEASE HIS RECOMMENDATIONS. THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE CHAIR THEN HAS TO DEVELOP ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT SET OF RECOMMENDATIONS TODAY, THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS AS UH, HAS BEEN POINTED OUT OR RELEASED, ONLY MINUTES BEFORE THE BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE MEETING, THE OTHER COMMITTEE MEMBERS HAD VERY LITTLE TIME TO REVIEW THEM BEFORE BEING ASKED TO VOTE. AND THAT'S WHAT I EXPERIENCED WHEN I WAS ON THE BOC. NOW, THE FULL COUNCIL HAS ONLY PART OF A DAY TO REVIEW SIGNIFICANT CHANGES BEFORE BEING ASKED TO ADOPT THE BUDGET TONIGHT. AND I'LL TELL YOU, MY TIME TODAY WAS SPENT WORKING ON SOME IMPORTANT CHALLENGES I'M HAVING IN DISTRICT THREE. SO IT MAKES IT DIFFICULT WHEN WE DON'T HAVE THE TIME TO REALLY REVIEW AND SEE WHAT RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE BEEN MADE. THIS ALSO MEANS THAT I HAVEN'T HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE SOME OF THESE PROPOSALS WITH MY RESIDENTS AND HEAR THEIR FEEDBACK BEFORE VOTING ON THEM. I DON'T THINK THAT IS A GOOD WAY TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT POLICY DECISIONS. WHAT TIME DO I HAVE? TWO MINUTES. ALL RIGHT. UM, I'M GONNA START WITH MY FIRST EXAMPLE, AND IT'S BEEN BROUGHT UP SEVERAL TIMES. IT'S THE PROPOSAL TO INCREASE SEVERAL OF THE PARKING CITATIONS TO $100, GENERATING ONE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS ANNUALLY. SOME OF THESE CITATIONS ARE GOING TO INCREASE BY 30%, AND I'M CONCERNED ABOUT THE IMPACTS, PARTICULARLY ON RENTERS BECAUSE THEY HAVE LIMITED PARKING. IF THEY'RE LIVING IN APARTMENTS. RENTERS ARE MORE LIKELY TO DEPEND ON STREET PARKING WHILE HOMEOWNERS HAVE ACCESS TO GARAGES AND DRIVEWAYS. IN MANY CASES. AT THE SAME TIME, WE ARE APPROVING NEW APARTMENT PROJECTS WITH LESS THAN ONE PARKING SPACE PER UNIT, AND IN SOME CASES EVEN LESS FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING. SO BEFORE INCREASING THESE FINES, THIS SIGNIFICANTLY, I'D LIKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR FROM THE PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO BE PAYING THEM. I ALSO DON'T THINK WE SHOULD BE VIEWING TICKETS, PRIMARILY PARKING TICKETS AS A REVENUE SOURCE TO FUND UNRELATED CITY SERVICES. THE PURPOSE OF A CITATION, AND WE TALK ABOUT THIS, IT SHOULD BE TO CHANGE BEHAVIOR. THAT'S WHY WE DO ENFORCEMENT. IT OFFERS CHANGING BEHAVIOR, SUPPORTING PUBLIC SAFETY, AND IT SHOULDN'T BE JUST TO GENERATE REVENUE. UM, THE RECOMMENDATION IS ALSO TO INCREASE THE STREET SWEEPING CITATIONS FROM 75 TO 80, GENERATING AN ESTIMATE ESTIMATED $700,000 A YEAR. WE ALREADY RECENTLY INCREASED THIS CITATION. RESIDENTS WOULD NOW BE PAYING $80 FOR THIS. AND AGAIN, I THINK WE NEED TO ASK WHAT THE LEVEL OF A FINE IS ACTUALLY NECESSARY TO ENCOURAGE COMPLIANCE RATHER THAN LOOKING AT CITATIONS AS A REVENUE SOURCE. I'LL QUEUE UP AGAIN. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER KERR. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. FIRST, I WANNA THANK THE PUBLIC WHO HAVE COME OUT AND ENGAGED IN THIS BUDGET PROCESS STARTING WAY BACK IN JANUARY. THOSE OF YOU WHO ATTENDED MEETINGS THAT FIRST MEETING IN JANUARY, THOSE VIRTUAL MEETINGS IN JANUARY SHOWED UP AGAIN IN THE SPRINGTIME AND HAVE BEEN HERE CONSISTENTLY TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR VOICE IS HEARD, UM, OVER AND OVER AGAIN. I AM VERY GRATEFUL FOR YOUR ENGAGEMENT. I WELCOME IT. THANK YOU FOR IT. UM, I WANNA THANK THE BOC, UM, AND CITY STAFF. WELL, BOC FIRST FOR HEARING THAT I SEE IN THE RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, BOTH WITH THE MAYOR AND WITH THE BUDGET RECOMMENDATION. BUDGET COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS. TODAY, I HEAR THE ECHOES OF THE THINGS YOU HAVE BEEN ASKING FOR AS COUNCILWOMAN SORROW SAID. UM, OUR INVESTMENT PLAN, UH, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT LIBRARIES, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, UM, QUALITY OF LIFE OFFICERS. THIS HAS BEEN A DIFFICULT BUDGET SEASON. I WANT TO THANK CITY STAFF. I WANT TO THANK THE DIRECTORS WHO THOUGHTFULLY AND METICULOUSLY WENT OVER THEIR BUDGETS, UM, TO GIVE US RECOMMENDATIONS THAT THEY DEFINITELY DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE US, BUT KNEW THAT IT WAS IMPERATIVE TO DO. I WANT TO THANK ALL OF YOU, UM, FOR SUPPORTING YOUR DEPARTMENTS IN THIS PROCESS. AND THE PEOPLE WHO DO THE HARD WORK EVERY SINGLE DAY. AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE KNOW THERE IS NOT ENOUGH REVENUE TO SUPPORT EVERYTHING WE WANT TO FUND. THERE ISN'T. WE HEAR IN THIS ROOM, PEOPLE FROM TALKING ABOUT ALL DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AND HOW RES WE CAN, WE WANT TO REST, RESTORE THIS AND RESTORE [02:55:01] THAT. AND WE KNOW IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO CREATE AND PASS A BALANCED BUDGET, WHICH MEANS WE EITHER HAVE TO A INCREASE REVENUE SOMEWHERE, OR WE HAVE TO MAKE CUTS SOMEWHERE ELSE. AND IT, THAT'S HOW IT IS AND IT'S HARD AND IT'S PERSONAL, UM, FOR EVERYONE. AND IT WILL NOT, IT'LL BE REALLY DIFFICULT ON FAMILIES ACROSS THIS COMMUNITY, BOTH THOSE EMPLOYEES WHO ARE IMPACTED AND THE SERVICES, UM, THAT THEY MAY NOT GET MOVING FORWARD. I DEEPLY APPRECIATE, UM, THE PAIN THAT THIS CAN CAUSE. IT DOESN'T MAKE THE DECISIONS THAT ARE IN FRONT OF US EASY TODAY. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE AS WE TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO THIS TOGETHER, UM, IN A WAY THAT, AS IS AS RESPONSIVE AS IT CAN BE. I UNDERSTAND THE CONCERN AROUND INCREASING REVENUE VIA PARKING, PARKING CITATIONS, BUT I DO APPRECIATE THAT THESE ARE THE MOST EGREGIOUS PARKING VIOLATIONS THAT WE HEAR FROM PEOPLE ALL THE TIME. PARKING IN FRONT OF FIRE HYDRANTS, PARKING IN BIKE LANES WHERE IT'S UNSAFE. UM, PARKING IN NO PARKING ZONES AND RED ZONES WHERE WE'VE SAID, DON'T, PLEASE DON'T PARK HERE, AND PEOPLE CHOOSE TO PARK THERE. SO I UNDERSTAND THAT. UM, SO I APPRECIATE THAT YOU WERE TARGETED IN THAT SUGGESTED INCREASE. UM, NOBODY LIKES IT, BUT IF, BUT WHAT WE ASK FOR IS ENFORCEMENT SO THAT PEOPLE DON'T DO IT AGAIN. UM, SO I APPRECIATE THAT IT WAS NOT A BROAD STROKE. UM, I DID NOT KNOW IT WAS NOTICED IN THE PAPER A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO AS AN OPTION. UM, SO THAT IS GOOD TO HEAR THAT WE'VE STARTED THAT PROCESS ALREADY. I AM GRATEFUL. SO THAT WAS B TWO. UM, IN B FOUR, I'M A HUGE PROPONENT OF LIBRARIES. I LOVE OUR LIBRARIES. I LOVE OUR LIBRARY STAFF. SO I'M SO THRILLED TO SEE THE RESTORATION THERE, WHICH COMES WITH B TWO, WHICH IS PART OF THE FUNDING IS COMING OUT OF THAT INCREASE. WHAT WOULD BE MORE DIFFICULT FOR ME TONIGHT IS IF WE WERE TO PASS RESTORATIONS BASED ON FUNDING PROJECTIONS AND THEN BE IN THIS POSITION LAST YEAR WHERE WE ARE BACK TO LOOKING AT REDUCING POSITIONS THAT WE RESTORED. UM, CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE WAYS THAT YOU MADE THE PROJECTIONS ON THE REVENUE FOR B TWO, PLEASE? SURE. UM, SO WE TOOK THE VARIOUS FEES TO THE 18 DIFFERENT, UM, CITATIONS THAT, THAT WE HAD CALLED OUT WITH, UM, THE PROPOSALS FOR THE INCREASES. SO AGAIN, NOT ALL OF THEM, BUT THE ONES RELATED TO AND WITH THE INTENTION OF DETERRING UNSAFE PARKING BEHAVIOR. SO WE TOOK THOSE 18 FEES, WE LOOKED AT, UH, THE DIFFERENT CITATIONS THAT ARE GENERATED ACROSS THE CITY ANNUALLY, AND THEN EXTRAPOLATED FROM THERE AND MADE AN ESTIMATE. SO THAT'S HOW WE CAME UP WITH THE $1.5 MILLION ESTIMATE. UM, IT IS AN ESTIMATE AND IT KIND OF FLUCTUATES DEPENDING ON THE NUMBER OF PARKING CONTROL CHECKERS. AND THEN OF COURSE, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT ARE, ARE PARKING IN THIS MANNER AND THEN GETTING THOSE CITATIONS. SO, UH, WE'LL, WE'LL BE MONITORING, BUT WE FEEL PRETTY CONFIDENT, YOU KNOW, WE GENERALLY GO INTO THESE ESTIMATES WITH A CONSERVATIVE TYPE APPROACH. UH, SO WE BELIEVE THE, THE 1.5 MILLION, UH, IS, IS, UM, ACCURATE AND CONSERVATIVE. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. MY TIME. I'LL CUE AGAIN. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. WE HAVE COUNCILMAN NU OR DID YOU CUE TWO TIMES? OKAY. UH, YEAH, THIS, THIS SYSTEM COUNCIL MEMBER THRASHING TOOK, DID YOU CUE AGAIN? I DID. OKAY. IT'S YOUR TURN. OKAY. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AS WE ARE CONTEMPLATING HERE, I RECOGNIZE THAT IT IS HARD TO MAKE CUTS, BUT WHAT'S EVEN HARDER IS IDENTIFYING WHERE CAN WE IDENTIFY SUSTAINABLE REVENUE SOLUTIONS AND OPTIONS. SO I DO WANNA THANK THE COMMITTEE AND THE CHAIR FOR IDENTIFYING WHAT SOME OF THOSE MIGHT BE. AND THEN AS I WAS CONTEMPLATING THAT, UM, COUNCILWOMAN KERR, I HAD A VERY SIMILAR QUESTION IN THE SENSE THAT I SAID, OKAY, IF WE ARE LOOKING AT THESE ADJUSTMENTS, UM, HOW CAN WE BE CONFIDENT THAT THOSE ARE ENOUGH OR THAT WE WILL GET WHAT WE NEED IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD GIVEN THOSE ESTIMATES? SO I WANNA THANK, UM, DIRECTOR HICKMAN FOR SHARING THE STRESS TESTED ASSUMPTIONS THAT THE DEPARTMENT HAS USED IN ORDER TO DETERMINE, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH IN RESOURCES. AND I'M BELIEVING THAT THOSE ARE CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATES THAT GET US, UM, THE NUMBERS SO THAT WE CAN RESTORE QUALITY OF LIFE, OUR LIBRARIES, ET CETERA. SO THE OTHER QUESTION THEN THAT I'LL ASK IS RELATED TO, UM, TREE TRIMMING. AND, UM, THIS PROGRAM IS QUITE, YOU KNOW, CREATIVE AND UNIQUE, UM, IN IDENTIFYING WAYS TO GIVE THE PUBLIC THE ABILITY TO BE PART OF [03:00:01] THE PROCESS IN HELPING TO ENSURE THAT THEY ARE ABLE TO GET THEIR TREES TRIMMED IN A SHORTER TIME PERIOD. THE TERM EQUITY IS USED, UM, TO DESCRIBE, UH, THIS PROGRAM. AND WHENEVER SOMETHING LIKE THAT IS USED, I I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT FOR MY COMMUNITY, UM, IT'S SOMETHING THAT PEOPLE CAN ACTUALLY ACCESS AND USE. UM, SO I WANNA JUST GET A SENSE AS TO, UM, HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT RESIDENTS WHO MAY NOT HAVE THE INCOME TO FRONT THE ABILITY TO PAY FOR, UM, THE COST OF TREE TRIMMING, STILL HAVE ACCESS TO CITY REBATES AND RESOURCES IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE WITH THE PILOT PROGRAM? YEAH, SO I'LL START, AND JOSH, YOU CAN JUMP IN. SO ONE TO GET YOUR TREE TRIMMED, UM, THAT IS A CITY SERVICE, BUT IT'S ON A SCHEDULE. SO UNDER THE NEW BUDGET, IT'LL BE ONCE EVERY EIGHT YEARS. NOBODY HAS TO PAY FOR THAT. THAT'S PART OF WHAT, YOU KNOW, GOVERNMENT WOULD TAKE CARE OF. SO IF YOU JUST WANTED YOUR TREE TRIMMED ON THE NORMAL CYCLE, THERE WOULD BE NO ADDITIONAL COST TO YOU. THIS IS A PROGRAM TO SAY IF YOU WANT TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND THAT AND REQUEST ANOTHER TRIM, UM, WITHIN THAT CYCLE, THEN YOU WOULD HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO THAT ON YOUR OWN, UM, DOLLAR. IF YOU JUST WANTED TO GO OUT AND GET A PERMIT OR YOU CAN APPLY FOR A MATCHING PROGRAM WITH THE CITY, UH, WE WILL BE BRINGING BACK TO YOU A PROGRAM, UH, WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE USING AN EQUITY LENS. AND WE SEE IT AS OVERLAYING PROBABLY AN ABILITY TO PAY MATRIX AND SAY IN THESE AREAS, BASED ON THIS DATA, WE BELIEVE PEOPLE IN THIS AREA, IF THEY REQUEST IT, HAVE LESS ABILITY TO PAY THAN SOMEWHERE ELSE, BUT EVERYONE WOULD GET SOMETHING. SO WE, WE WOULD DO A SLIDING SCALE. UH, YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAD MORE ABILITY TO PLAY PAY, YOU'D GET A SMALLER DISCOUNT. IF YOU HAD LESS ABILITY TO PAY, YOU'D GET A LARGER MATCHING DISCOUNT. THANK YOU. THAT COVERS IT FOR NOW. UM, THANK YOU MAYOR. I'LL QUEUE UP IF I NEED TO. THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN, I QUEUED UP RIGHT AFTER MY, WHEN I SPOKE. YEAH, IT'S NOT SHOWING ON HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER ALLEN. THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OKAY. UM, SO I WANNA GO BACK TO, UM, TO B TWO, UM, WHICH IS THE PARKING. AND IT SAYS THIS, THIS INCLUDES FEES SUCH AS, SO ARE YOU SAYING THAT, THAT THERE ARE A BUNCH OF PARKING CITATIONS THAT ARE NOT INCLUDED IN THIS? IT'S ONLY THESE THAT'S CORRECT. THERE ARE SOME PARKING CITATION FEES THAT WILL GO UP OR WE HAVE PROPOSED AS PART OF THE FY 27 PROPOSAL TO GO UP. AND THERE ARE SOME THAT WOULD REMAIN, UH, UNCHANGED. OKAY. WHICH, WHICH ONES WILL REMAIN UNCHANGED? SO WE HAVE, UH, I BELIEVE IT'S 40 OR SO, UH, I, YEAH, 40 DIFFERENT CITATIONS THAT WOULD REMAIN THE SAME. WOULD OKAY. YOU WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO LIST THAT? CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THOSE 40 CITATIONS WOULD BE? YEAH, UM, . ALRIGHT. GIVE GIMME TWO SECONDS TO TO PULL THAT UP PLEASE. OKAY. ALRIGHT. AND THEN, UM, AS YOU'RE PULLING THAT UP, UM, I ALSO, UM, SO I, I LOOK AT DISTRICT 1, 2, 3, 6, AND NINE I THINK ARE REALLY, UH, PARKING IMPACTED. I MEAN, I SEE IN DISTRICT SIX WHERE THEY'RE PARKED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET AND, AND, AND WE JUST HAVE A DIFFERENT SITUATION DOWN HERE THAN, THAN ME, THAN PERHAPS, UM, MY FRIEND AND COUNCILMAN KERR MAY HAVE IN HER DISTRICT. WE DON'T HAVE DRIVEWAYS AND OUR DISTRICT TWO IS THE MOST PARKING IMPACTED IN THE CITY. AND SO I JUST WORRY THAT, UM, THESE FEES WILL BE ON THE BACKS OF PEOPLE, UM, THAT ALREADY ARE JUST, ARE, ARE STRUGGLING IN A WAY AND DON'T HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO PARK ON A STREET OR PARK IN A DRIVEWAY. SO I, I JUST, UM, AND, AND SO WHAT I'M GONNA DO AS YOU DO THAT, I WANNA, I WANNA, I WANNA SEE, BECAUSE ARE THESE THE MOST EGREGIOUS I WANNA SEE, LIKE WHERE, WHERE THESE, THESE FEES LAY. BUT WHAT I WOULD ASK MY COLLEAGUES TO CONSIDER IS TAKING THIS MOTION B TWO OFF UNTIL WE HAVE TIME FOR PUBLIC INPUT. UM, I JUST THINK THAT'S THE FAIR WAY TO DO THAT. UM, I HAVE TO SAY, WHILE YOU'RE, I'LL JUST KEEP TALKING WHILE YOU LOOK THAT UP. BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I, UM, I REALLY RESPECT ALL THE PEOPLE THAT CAME OUT AND TALKED TO THE BUDGET PROCESS. PEOPLE WERE REALLY ENGAGED AND HERE WE ARE AT THE FINAL HOUR WHEN IT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT DECISIONS BEING MADE THAT WE HAVEN'T GIVEN THEM TIME FOR ENGAGEMENT. SO THAT'S, THAT'S MY CONCERN ON SOME OF THESE ISSUES LIKE THIS. UM, WHICH, WHICH, UM, WOULD REALLY, UH, IMPACT NOT JUST MY DISTRICT BUT THE ENTIRE CITY. SO, UM, I WOULD LIKE FOR MY COUNCIL MEMBERS OR DO A FRIENDLY TO CONSIDER HOLDING OFF ON THAT UNTIL WE GET SOME MORE. UM, I'M NOT SAYING THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS NOT SOMETHING WE'RE GONNA MOVE FORWARD WITH, BUT I JUST, WE HAVE, I FEEL LIKE WE HAVE TO GIVE, UM, THE COMMUNITY TIME TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS PROCESS. AND WE ALWAYS TALK ABOUT THE SPIRIT OF TRANSPARENCY AND, AND ALL THIS STUFF, BUT YEAH, WE'RE JUST PUSHING THIS STUFF THROUGH WITHOUT, WITHOUT, UM, WITHOUT US HEARING IT. AND ALSO I'D LIKE FOR MY, UM, FOR THE, UM, MY CHAIR OF THE BOC TO CONSIDER MAYBE IN THE NEXT YEAR US LOOKING AT, UH, GETTING THESE, UM, RECOMMENDATIONS [03:05:01] OUT LIKE A WEEK PRIOR AND THEN WE HAVE TIME. UM, I THINK, UH, UH, THAT WOULD JUST BE SO MUCH EASIER ON EVERYBODY AND IT GIVES, UH, US COUNCIL MEMBERS, EVERYONE HAS TIME. I MEAN, I KNOW YOU'RE ALL BUSY AND YOU ALL HAVE OTHER JOBS AND PEOPLE, IT'S JUST TO GET THIS IN ONE DAY AND HAVE TO MAKE THESE DECISIONS HAS BEEN TOUGH. SO ANYWAY, I'D JUST LIKE TO, UM, I'D LIKE, UM, TO THROW THAT OUT FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. UM, I CAN RESPOND TO THAT. UH, FOR THE FIRST FRIENDLY, I HAVE TO REJECT THAT JUST BECAUSE I DON'T SEE AN ALTERNATIVE FUNDING MECHANISM PRESENTED. AND IF WE CAN'T DO THIS, LET'S NOT DISRUPT, BE UPSET, BUT THEN WE CAN'T FUND THE LIBRARIES. THAT FUNDING IS BEING USED FOR THE LIBRARY SYSTEM. SO IF WE REJECT THAT, WE'RE SAYING NO TO FUNDING OUR, OUR LIBRARY HOURS ON A MONDAY, LET ME FINISH. MM-HMM . SECOND. UM, I HEAR YOU ABOUT THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS. UM, BUT I ALSO WILL SAY THAT, LOOK, WE HAVE A PROCESS HERE IN THE CITY, UM, RELATED TO OR ON COUNCIL RELATED TO WHEN PEOPLE GET ME THEIR BUDGET REQUESTS, WE ASK PEOPLE TO GET US OUR BUDGET REQUESTS AS EARLY IN THE PROCESS AS POSSIBLE. MANY OF THE, THE, THE COUNCIL MEMBERS HERE, YOU KNOW, THEY NEEDED TO DO THEIR OWN PROCESSES. I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT A LOT OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT I GOT, I RECEIVED AT THE SECOND TO LAST MEETING, RIGHT. LEAVING ME CITY STAFF, ET CETERA, A WEEK IN ORDER TO DO THIS. AND TO BE QUITE FRANK, COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN, YOU TRIED TO BRING RECOMMENDATIONS TODAY FOR A, FOR CONSIDERATION, RIGHT? SO YOU'RE ASKING ME TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS LAST WEEK WHEN YOU WEREN'T ADHERING TO THE PROCE POLICIES AND PROCESSES YOURSELF, RIGHT? SO THE IDEA THAT SOMEHOW I DON'T, I LACK INTEGRITY THAT I'M NOT TAKING THIS PROCESS SERIOUSLY. I TAKE OFFENSE TO WELL, AND SO I, SO I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT I, MY PERSPECTIVE HERE IS THAT I'M WORKING TO MAKE A TRANSPARENT PROCESS THAT COMMUNITY CAN ENGAGE IN, RIGHT? AND THAT IS REC AND THAT IS, THAT IS RESPONSIVE TO THE FACT THAT I'M TRYING TO GIVE PEOPLE AS MUCH ABILITY AND AS MUCH BANDWIDTH IN ORDER TO GET THEIR SUGGESTIONS, THEIR COMMENTS, THEIR QUESTIONS IN. BUT THERE HAS TO BE A LIMIT, UH, TO THAT IN ORDER FOR ME TO EVEN CONSIDER THE SUGGESTION THAT YOU'RE MAKING RIGHT NOW. OKAY. BUT TO JUST BE, BE HONEST, I HAVE TO SAY NO TO, TO BOTH OF THOSE CURRENTLY. BUT IF IN THE FUTURE I'M HAPPY TO DISCUSS. OKAY. UM, THAT, ALRIGHT, WELL LET ME RESPOND TO THAT, UM, BECAUSE THANK YOU. THIS YOUR TIME. THIS IS A PASSION. I'M, I'M, I'M NOTHING PERSONAL. YOU CAN QUEUE UP, RESPOND IF YOU, AND I APOLOGIZE IF YOU'RE TAKING IT THAT WAY. I JUST WANT TO, UM, I JUST WANTED TO ASK, UM, WELL, UM, MAYOR, YOU CAN QUEUE UP WITH ME. CAN I QUEUE BACK UP? OKAY. THIS IS NOT WORKING. SO I'LL DO THAT. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, SO I, NEXT I HAVE COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN, THEN KERR, AND THEN SORROW. ALL RIGHT. I AM GOING TO JUMP BACK INTO ANOTHER CONCERN I HAVE, WHICH IS WITH THE PROPOSED CANNABIS TAX CHANGES. WE SPENT MONTHS DISCUSSING THE APPROPRIATE CANNABIS TAX REVIEWING STUDIES WE HEARD FROM THE INDUSTRY. WE DEBATED ON HOW TO BALANCE REVENUE WITH KEEPING LEGAL BUSINESSES COMPETITIVE. TONIGHT WE'RE BEING ASKED, AGAIN, WITH ONLY A FEW HOURS NOTICE TO REVERSE THE PRIOR 1% REDUCTION FOR ADULT USE, RETAILERS INCREASING THE RATE FROM 7% TO 8% AND MAKE ADDITIONAL CHANGES TO CULTIVATION TAX. THE RECOMMENDATION ESTIMATES APPROXIMATELY 1.15 MILLION IN ADDITIONAL GENERAL FUND REVENUE. AND THAT MAY ULTIMATELY BE THE RIGHT POLICY OR MAYBE IT ISN'T. BUT MY CONCERN IS THAT WE DON'T HAVE THE INFORMATION OR STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK TONIGHT TO MAKE THAT DETERMINATION RESPONSIBLY. UM, I THINK THESE REVENUE PROPOSALS DESERVE ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION AND PUBLIC INPUT BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD ON THEM. UH, AND THEN LET'S GO TO MY BIGGEST CONCERN THAT HAS BEEN THROUGHOUT THIS WHOLE BUDGET PROCESS, AND IT STILL REMAINS THE PROPOSED ELIMINATION OF ENGINE 14. I CONTINUE TO BELIEVE THAT OUR LONG-TERM GOAL NEEDS TO BE THE FULL RESTORATION OF ENGINE 14. AND I RECOGNIZE THE DIFFICULTY OF IDENTIFYING $3.8 MILLION IN ONGOING STRUCTURAL FUNDING EVERY YEAR, THIS YEAR, AND THEN FUTURE YEARS. BUT OVER THE LAST THREE DAYS, I SPENT A VERY SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME AT THE CITY'S INCIDENT COMMAND CENTER DOWN IN THE CLAREMONT PARKING LOT WITH FIRE, POLICE, EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS, AND OTHER RESPONSE PERSONNEL WHO ARE HANDLING THE ISSUES THAT WE'RE EXPERIENCING ON THE PENINSULA. AND THAT EXPERIENCE HAS ONLY REINFORCED MY CONCERN ABOUT RE REDUCING EMERGENCY RESPONSE CAPACITY. WE'RE HEADING INTO WHAT IS EXPECTED TO BE ONE OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT STORM SEASONS WE'VE SEEN IN DECADES. EL NINO SEASON IS GOING TO BE STRONG THIS YEAR. AND WHEN OUR STORM WATER SYSTEM IS OVERWHELMED, STREETS, FLOOD TREES COME DOWN, POWER IS DISRUPTED AND EMERGENCIES [03:10:01] HAPPEN ACROSS THE CITY AT THE SAME TIME. ENGINE 14 IS PART OF THAT RESPONSE. IT CHANGES RESPONSE TIMES CITYWIDE BY HAVING ENGINE 14 IN SERVICE. SO I CANNOT IN GOOD CONSCIOUS VOTE TO REDUCE OUR EMERGENCY RESPONSE CAPACITY, KNOWING THE KIND OF CITYWIDE IMPACTS WE COULD FACE THIS WINTER. AND THAT'S WHY CONTINUE TO BELIEVE A FAST RESPONSE VEHICLE PILOT AT STATION 14 PROVIDES A REASONABLE BRIDGE. IT'S NOT GONNA REPLACE AN ENGINE. I WILL ALWAYS FIGHT TO RESTORE ENGINE 14. IT DOESN'T PROVIDE THE SAME FIREFIGHTING CAPABILITIES, BUT IT WOULD PRESERVE AN ADDITIONAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE RESOURCE AND ALLOW RESCUE FOUR TO REMAIN AT STATION FOUR IN BELMONT HEIGHTS RATHER THAN MOVING AN EXISTING RESOURCE FROM ONE PART OF THE CITY TO THE OTHER, TO ANOTHER. GIVEN OUR FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS, I THINK WE SHOULD BE WILLING TO TEST INNOVATIVE SERVICE MODELS THAT PRESERVE AS MUCH SERVICE AS POSSIBLE. THE CURRENT BOC RECOMMENDATIONS ACKNOWLEDGE BOTH THE RESTORATION OF ENGINE 14 AND THE STATION 14 FAST RESPONSE VEHICLE PILOT AS PRIORITIES THAT WERE CONSIDERED BUT NOT FUNDED. I WOULD ASK FOR A FRIENDLY AMENDMENT THAT WE INCLUDE 1.6 MILLION IN ONE TIME, MEASURE B RESERVE FUNDING FOR A ONE YEAR FAST RESPONSE VEHICLE PILOT AT STATION 14. AGAIN, MY GOAL REMAINS THE FULL RESTORATION OF ENGINE 14, BUT THIS COULD PROVIDE A BRIDGE WHILE WE WORK THROUGH THE CITY'S CURRENT FINANCIAL SITUATION. UH, THANK YOU COUNCIL. UH, COUNCILWOMAN, UH, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR CITY STAFF. UH, AND THIS IS PROBABLY FOR OUR CITY MANAGER, UH, CITY MANAGER MOCA. CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT MEASURE B DOLLARS ARE THAT THE COUNCILWOMAN DUGGAN IS REFERRING TO? SURE. WHEN WE PASSED MEASURE A, UH, IT ALSO INCLUDED WHAT'S CALLED A RAINY DAY FUND OR MEASURE B, UH, THAT WAS APPROVED BY VOTERS. UH, AND IT WAS DESIGNED FOR PERIODS OF INSTABILITY. UH, AND IT WAS TO CREATE THE FUNDS SO THAT YOU COULD DRAW A PORTION FROM IT WHEN YOU'RE EXPERIENCING REVENUE LOSS. AND SO THERE ARE SOME SPECIFIC CRITERIA, UM, TO BE ABLE TO USE THAT. UM, THOSE FUNDINGS, UH, IN PARTICULAR, IT IS RECOGNIZED THAT THOSE ARE, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU HAVE A, A SUDDEN DROP OR SOME KIND OF, UM, SUDDEN FISCAL EMERGENCY. AND THEN ALSO, UM, THAT YOU CAN ONLY REMOVE ABOUT 50% OF THE FUNDS EVERY YEAR. SO WE HAVE NOT TOUCHED THAT IN MANY YEARS. UH, WE DID REMOVE, UM, OR WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT YOU USE APPROXIMATELY FOUR AND A HALF WHAT IT IS. YEAH, APPROXIMATELY FOUR AND A HALF THIS YEAR. UH, AND SO WHAT WE HAVE REMAINING IS ABOUT, UM, IN THE $4 MILLION RANGE. UH, I WILL SAY THAT MIGHT BE NECESSARY, YOU KNOW, TO CLOSE, EVEN IF YOU ADOPTED A BUDGET, UH, BALANCED BUDGET, WE HAVE VERY FEW RESERVES LEFT THAT MIGHT BE NECESSARY FOR US TO USE THIS YEAR. IF ANY OF THESE REVENUE ESTIMATES COME IN, YOU KNOW, LOWER THAN EXPECTED OR IF ANY OF THE COSTS COME IN HIGHER THAN EXPECTED. OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UM, CITY MANAGER MOCA. UM, WITH THAT UNDER CONSIDERATION, COUNCILMAN DUGGAN, I WANNA SAY I DO APPRECIATE YOUR ADVOCACY FOR, UM, FIRE ENGINE 14 AND I OR FOR ENGINE 14. UM, BUT BASED ON WHAT THE CITY MANAGERS DESCRIBED, I THINK, I DON'T THINK IT'D BE FISCALLY PRUDENT, UM, TO DO THAT BECAUSE WE MAY NEED THOSE FUNDS THIS YEAR TO CLOSE OUT FISCAL YEAR, UH, 26. ADDITIONALLY, WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR, UM, BUDGET DEFICIT FOR SOME TIME. UM, AND THE WAY THAT I HEAR, UH, CITY MANAGER MOCA DESCRIBE IT AS IN LIKE, THIS IS LIKE A FISCAL EMERGENCY, SOMETHING THAT WE DID NOT EXPECT. UM, AND I WOULD SAY THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, SO I JUST, I DON'T THINK THAT THAT IS AN APPROPRIATE USE, UM, OF THE FUNDS. BUT I APPRECIATE YOU COMING WITH A FUNDING, UM, SOLUTION FOR FIRE ENGINE 14. UH, MEASURE B IS, THIS IS WHAT MEASURE B WAS MADE OUT, MADE FOR, THEY PASSED MEASURE A AND MEASURE B WAS MADE FOR EMERGENCIES LIKE THIS. WE ARE IN A DEFICIT. WE'RE CUTTING AN EMERGENCY VEHICLE THAT IS CRUCIAL TO OUR RESPONSE TIMES. CITYWIDE MEASURE B, THIS FALLS WITHIN THE CATEGORY. I'VE, I'VE READ ON IT, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT, THIS FALLS WITHIN IT. SO I'D LIKE TO MAKE A SUBSTITUTE MOTION. I'D LIKE TO CONTINUE THIS HEARING TO NEXT WEEK SO THIS CITY COUNCIL CAN GET MORE FEEDBACK ON THE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES BEING PROPOSED TODAY. AND WE CAN INCLUDE 1.6 MILLION FROM MEASURE B OR A SOURCE IDENTIFIED BY THE CITY MANAGER TO BE USED FOR A PILOT FAST RESPONSE VEHICLE AT STATION 14. AND I'D LIKE TO, YES, SECOND. ALRIGHT, IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED. WE'LL CONTINUE DISCUSSION. NEXT IS COUNCIL MEMBER KERR. AND MR. MAYOR, IF I MAY, JUST TO GIVE THE EXACT NUMBER FOR MEASURE B FOR THE RECORD, IT WAS $3.4 MILLION THAT WE'RE RECOMMENDING [03:15:01] TO USE FOR FY 26. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER KERR. UH, YES, THANK YOU MR. MAYOR. UM, ON THAT NOTE, I THINK DIPPING INTO EMERGENCY RESERVES AND ONE-TIME FUNDING FOR AN ONGOING PUBLIC SAFETY NEED PUTS US IN THE EXACT SAME POSITION NEXT YEAR THAT WE'RE IN THIS YEAR. UM, SO NOT, I'M NOT A FAN OF THE IDEA OF DIPPING INTO RESERVES THAT ARE AN EMERGENCY. SO THANK YOU TO THE BOC CHAIR FOR EXPRESSING THAT CLEARLY. UM, BACK TO MY QUESTIONS FROM BEFORE. UM, I WANTED TO THANK THE BOC RECOMMENDATION FOR ADDING STRUCTURAL FUNDS TO SUMMER BLOCK PARTIES AND NEIGHBORHOOD ACTIVATIONS. UM, SOME OF THE WAYS THAT WE BUILD COMMUNITY AND THAT WE BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER SO THEY KNOW THEIR NEIGHBORS, SO THAT IN EMERGENCIES THEY HAVE CONTACTS AND RELATIONSHIPS IN THEIR COMMUNITY IS THROUGH NEIGHBORHOODS ENGAGING WITH EACH OTHER. UM, AND THIS SMALL AMOUNT OF MONEY HELPS NEIGHBORHOODS ACROSS THE CITY APPLY FOR THAT TO GET TO KNOW THEIR NEIGHBORS, TO BE ABLE TO SUPPORT EACH OTHER, UM, IN DIFFICULT TIMES. UM, SO I APPRECIATE THE RECOGNITION, UM, UH, REGARDING THE CITY'S TREE TRIMMING CYCLE FROM SIX YEARS TO EIGHT YEARS. UM, MY COLLEAGUE COUNCILMAN THRE TOOK, UH, ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THAT. AS YOU'RE BUILDING THE, THE PILOT PROGRAM, IS THERE GOING TO BE AN APPROPRIATE SPACE FOR, UM, US TO GET, UH, FEEDBACK FROM OUR RESIDENTS TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE TO PUBLIC WORKS FOR INPUT ON THAT PILOT PROGRAM AND WHAT THAT STRUCTURE COULD LOOK LIKE BEFORE YOU REPORT BACK? YES. SO AS FAR AS THE, THE PILOT PROGRAM IS CONSIDERED, SO WE'D BE AS PART OF THE FY 27 PROPOSED BUDGET, WE ARE PROPOSING TO UPGRADE A POSITION TO GO THROUGH THE PROCESS THAT MR. MOCA HAD DESCRIBED IN FIGURING OUT WHAT AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO ROLL OUT THIS PROGRAM MOVING INTO THE, UH, INTO THE FUTURE. SO WE DO ANTICIPATE THAT THERE'LL BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SOLICIT FEEDBACK AND WE'LL BE BRINGING BACK AN ITEM TWO CITY COUNCIL THAT, THAT HELPS ADDRESS AND RESOLVE ISSUES THAT WE'VE HEARD FROM THE PUBLIC. THANK YOU. UM, BACK TO ITEM B TWO, WHICH I KNOW IS IMPORTANT FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THIS ROOM. UM, B TWO IS THE BASIS OF LIBRARY RESTORATIONS. AND WHEN WE HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT, LET'S REMOVE IT FOR TONIGHT, LET'S TALK ABOUT IT MORE, THAT MEANS WE'RE REMOVING LIBRARY RESTORATIONS FOR TONIGHT AND WE WANT TO TALK ABOUT THAT MORE WHEN WE'VE BEEN REALLY CLEAR THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S IMPORTANT, UM, OR IT'S IMPORTANT TO ME AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO, UM, CONSTITUENTS WHO HAVE REACHED OUT TO ME. SO I WANTED TO, TO PUT THAT ON THERE AS WELL. UM, DR. JOE OTTI, AGAIN, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR, UM, THE BOC PROCESS. I KNOW OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS YOU'VE WORKED TO CLARIFY HOW IT WORKS. SO I AM NEW TO COUNCIL. UM, THIS WAS, YOU KNOW, IN 2022, SO THAT YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS ARE THE WAY THAT I KNOW BOC WORKS. I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SUNSHINE IDEAS THAT ARE BROUGHT TO ME BY MY RESIDENT THROUGH A COUNCIL LETTER AT YOUR MEETINGS. UM, I DID WANNA ASK CONSIDERATION. SO AS IT STANDS NOW, YOU'RE ASKING OUR OFFICE TO SUBMIT TO THE BUDGET OFFICE BY THE TUESDAY PRIOR, WHAT THAT LETTER WOULD BE AND THAT THE BUDGET OFFICE NEEDS TO SUBMIT THAT THEN ON WEDNESDAY FOR CONSIDERATION THE FOLLOWING WEEK. UM, I'M GONNA ASK FOR A LITTLE GRACE AND WONDERING IF MAYBE THERE'S A TWO DAY WINDOW TO CONSIDER IT. SO WE KNOW PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ENGAGING IN THIS PROCESS SINCE JANUARY AND WE KNOW SOME PEOPLE STARTED THEIR ENGAGEMENT TONIGHT OR LAST WEEK OR THE WEEK BEFORE BECAUSE WE KNOW IN THE FIVE WEEKS THAT WE TALK ABOUT BUDGET, THE CONVERSATION GETS BIGGER AND IT SNOWBALLS. AND SO THERE'S MORE OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR FROM CONSTITUENTS AND ADVOCACY ADVOCACY GROUPS WHO MAY NOT EVER REACH OUT TO OUR OFFICES BEFORE. UM, AND SO WHAT WE FOUND IN OUR OFFICE IS THAT THAT TUESDAY DEADLINE, UM, WE WERE HAVING MEETINGS LIKE ON THAT WEDNESDAY AND THAT THURSDAY, BUT WE DIDN'T HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE YOUR COMMITTEE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT IT. SO WONDERING IF YOU WOULD CONSIDER GIVING US, YOU KNOW, MAYBE WE HAVE TO GET IT TO THE BUDGET OFFICE BY THURSDAY AND THEY'VE GOTTA GET IT THERE BY FRIDAY TO PUT IN A SUPPLEMENTAL FOR TUESDAY, IF THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH TIME. BECAUSE I DO THINK THE SUN SHINING OF IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT GIVES PEOPLE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT LINE ITEMS THEY MAY NOT HAVE SEEN. BUT I THINK IN A VERY COMPRESSED FIVE WEEK PERIOD THAT EIGHT DAY LEAD TIME IS, WAS HARD FOR US THIS TIME. SO I WOULD ASK FOR SOME CONSIDERATION, UM, AND ADDING A DAY OR TWO FOR OFFICES TO BE ABLE TO GET INFORMATION TO THE COMMITTEE, UM, EITHER AS A FRIENDLY OR A CONSIDERATION. SO THAT'S JUST OUR EXPERIENCE AS WE CONTINUE TO ENGAGE WITH DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PEOPLE FARTHER ALONG IN THE PROCESS. IT JUST, WE JUST DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH TIME LEFT IN THE WEEK TO GET INFORMATION TO THE BOC [03:20:01] UM, FOR CONSIDERATION. SO I WOULD PUT THAT OUT THERE TO YOU AS WELL. UM, AND I KNOW YOU PUT OUT A SCHEDULE OF WHEN YOU WOULD LIKE TO DO THAT, AND I KNOW YOU, THE FIRST OPPORTUNITY TO GET INFORMATION TO THE BOC WAS I THINK BACK ON JULY 25TH WHEN I LOOKED AT WHAT IT WAS. UM, BUT WE JUST FOUND OUR EXPERIENCE AS RESIDENTS GOT MORE ENGAGED TWO OR THREE WEEKS INTO THE PROCESS AS THEY LEARNED MORE FROM THEIR FRIENDS AND THEIR ADVOCACY GROUPS, UM, TO ENGAGE WITH US. SO I WOULD ASK THAT CONSIDERATION PLEASE. UM, I'M GONNA, OH, I'M SORRY, FL, WILL YOU COMPLETE IN YOUR STATEMENT? YES. OKAY. UM, SO I'D LIKE TO HAVE, ACTUALLY HAVE A CONVERSATION OR ASK SOMETHING OF OUR CITY ATTORNEY AND OUR CITY CLERK. 'CAUSE SOME OF THIS IMPACTS THE, THE AGENDA AND THE TIMES IN WHICH WE NEED TO HAVE THINGS ON THE AGENDA, UM, AHEAD OF TIME. SO, UH, THIS IS GONNA BE A CITY CLERK AND A CITY ATTORNEY. UM, QUESTION WHEN IS LIKE THE KIND OF THE, IF WE NEED TO HAVE SOMETHING AGENDIZED FOR THAT TUESDAY, ASSUMING WE'RE STILL GONNA DO THE TUESDAY BOC MEETINGS, IF WE WERE GONNA PUT SOMETHING POTENTIALLY ON SUPPLEMENTAL, WHICH WAS THE, THE ADDITIONAL SAY COUNCIL REQUEST, WHEN WOULD THE CITY CLERK, LIKE LEGALLY WHEN WE WOULD NEED THAT TO GET TO THE CITY CLERK? SO YOU WANNA KNOW WHEN THE ITEM NEEDS TO GET SUBMITTED TO US TO GET ON THE SUPPLEMENTAL FOR SEPTEMBER 15TH. SO WE, SO THE WAY WE DID IT THIS YEAR IS WE ADDED A, AN ITEM ON EVERY SINGLE BOC AGENDA FOR COUNCIL REQUEST. YES. SO I THINK WHAT COUNCIL MEMBER KERR IS SAYING, IF WE WANTED TO THEN ATTACH HER LETTER, SAY FOR THE CD FIVE OFFICE TO THAT AGENDA SO THAT WE CAN DISCUSS IT AT THE TUESDAY MEETING, MEANING THAT IT'S AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW BY THE PUBLIC, UM, BEFORE THAT TUESDAY MEETING. WHEN DOES THAT NEED TO HAPPEN FOR BOC? IT IS THE WEDNESDAY, THE WEEK PRIOR AT NOON. SO THAT'S WHY. SO PLEASE IT. I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. COUNCIL MEMBER KERR AND LEGITIMATELY I ACTUALLY AGREE, BUT WE ARE ALSO TRYING TO MANAGE A PROCESS WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO BE RESPECTFUL OF THE, THE, THE TIME NECESSARY FOR OUR, OUR CITY CLERK. AND SO THAT'S BEEN A REQUEST THAT THEY'VE MADE OF US FOR, FOR THE BOC PROCESS. BUT HAPPY TO, TO TO HEAR ANY INPUT FROM CITY STAFF ON HOW WE MIGHT AUGMENT THAT TO ACCOMMODATE WHAT I THINK IS A REASONABLE REQUEST FROM COUNCIL MEMBER KERR. THANK YOU. AND EVEN IF WE COULD JUST ADD THAT, WE'LL DISCUSS IT MOVING FORWARD AND AS WE PREPARE FOR THE BUDGET SEASON NEXT YEAR, MAYBE A RECOMMENDATION, UH, COULD HAPPEN NEXT SPRING AHEAD OF TIME, BUT THANK YOU. UM, SO I GUESS THAT'S AN, AN ADDITIONAL QUESTION TO THE CITY ATTORNEY. MAYBE THE CITY MANAGER IS, IS THERE ANY WIGGLE ROOM WITH THE, UM, SUGGESTION THAT COUNCILWOMAN OR THE REQUEST THAT COUNCILWOMAN COURAGE JUST MADE? I'LL START. UM, SO THE WEDNESDAY, UM, THAT THE CLERK MENTIONED THAT WAS ACTUALLY A COUNCIL POLICY RATHER THAN A LEGAL REQUIREMENT. SO IF YOU REMEMBER LAST YEAR, THE COUNCIL WANTED TO BACK ALL THAT UP AND HAVE THINGS IN ADVANCE TO BOCA WEEK IN ADVANCE. SO, UH, THAT WAS SOMETHING YOU DIRECTED US TO DO LAST YEAR IF YOU WANTED TO AMEND THAT POLICY. I BELIEVE THAT, UM, 72 HOURS IS THE MINIMUM UNDER THE BROWN ACT UNLESS YOU CALL A SPECIAL MEETING WITH 24 HOURS NOTICE. ALRIGHT, JUST THANK YOU. WANNA NOTE THAT THAT IS TIME, BUT THAT IS SOMETHING WE CAN WORK ON SINCE IT'S UNDER THE COUNCIL'S PURVIEW. ALRIGHT, NEXT IS COUNCIL MEMBER SORROW. YEAH, I APPRECIATE COUNCIL MEMBER KERR'S QUESTION ABOUT THIS PROCESS. I KNEW THAT WE HAD TO MAKE SURE WE GET OUR REQUESTS IN EARLIER. SO I DID SPEND MY, YOU KNOW, I HAVE A FULL-TIME JOB AND I DID SPEND MY TIME MAKING SURE THAT I TRY TO MULTITASK WHILE I'M WORKING, LISTENING TO BOC MEETINGS, BUT ALSO MAKING SURE TO GET MY REQUESTS IN EARLY ON. AND ONE OF MY REQUESTS WAS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ASKED STAFF TO EXPLORE ALL OPTIONS POSSIBLE IN ORDER TO KEEP OUR BRANCH OPENS. THE, THE FIVE LISTED BRANCH OPEN ON MONDAYS. AND THE PROPOSAL THAT CAME BEFORE US, WHICH, UH, WAS SHARED IS B TWO, WHICH IS TO, UM, YOU KNOW, INCREASE SPECIFIC PARKING CITATION AS WELL AS, SO I, I MADE SURE TO MAKE SOME CALLS TODAY TO CONSIDER SOME FEEDBACK, BUT I ALSO WANNA MAKE SURE, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT WE ADDRESS THAT THERE HAS BEEN AN INCREASING NUMBER OF FRUSTRATION AROUND WAYS THAT PEOPLE HAVE PARKED IN PLACES THEY SHOULDN'T. WE HAVE ALSO HEARD INCREASING NUMBER OF PEDESTRIAN AND TRAFFIC FATALITIES. AND SO A LOT OF THESE ARE DIFFERENT FORMS OF EN ENFORCEMENT, BUT I ALSO UNDERSTAND, YES, MY DISTRICT IS ALSO PARKING IMPACTED WHERE PEOPLE DOUBLE PARK AND I WANNA MAKE SURE THEY'RE HELD ACCOUNTABLE. THEY BLOCK OTHER CARS FROM GETTING OUT. SO I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL TAKE A LOOK AT THOSE 40 TYPES OF CITATION, BUT I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, UM, IN ADDITION TO B TWO AND B THREE IS, CAN WE ALSO GET A SENSE ON WHERE THESE CITATIONS ARE MADE? BECAUSE THERE IS, YOU KNOW, LIKE DISTRICT LIKE MINE AND OTHERS THAT ARE PARKING CONDENSED, BUT CAN WE GET A SENSE ON MAYBE A REPORT BACK, UH, ON WHERE THESE CITATIONS ARE BEING MADE SO WE HAVE A SENSE ON WHICH DISTRICTS [03:25:01] THEY'RE BEING DISTRIBUTED? UM, AND THEN ALSO AROUND THE ISSUE AROUND SWEEPING PARKING CITATION. I KNOW THAT NOBODY LIKES TO GET THEM, BUT IT'S A REALLY GOOD REMINDER FOR ME TO MAKE SURE I MOVE MY CAR. BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT WE HAVE RESIDENTS WHO ALSO WORK LATE AT NIGHT AND SOMETIMES CANNOT WAKE UP IN TIME. SO ARE THERE CASE BY CASE CASE CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE WE CAN MAKE SURE WE HAVE SOMEBODY WORKING WITH INDIVIDUALS WHO CAN DEMONSTRATE THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY WORK AT NIGHT SO THEY OVERSLEPT AND COULDN'T MOVE THEIR CAR OR FOR SOME OTHER REASON. RIGHT. UM, WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WHILE, YOU KNOW, IT SEEMS LIKE MAYBE SOME $5 ISN'T A LOT, IT IS A LOT TO A LOT OF OTHERS WHO ARE STRUGGLING. SO I'M JUST WONDERING IF THERE'S SOME FLEXIBILITY THERE THAT WE CAN CONSIDER FOR GETTING MORE DATA AND WHO IS, WHO IS IMPACTING, BUT ALSO CAN WE MAKE SURE WE'RE MEETING WITH PEOPLE CASE BY CASE IF THEY ARE HAVING FINANCIAL HARDSHIP AT THE SAME TIME? YEAH, I'M PREPARED TO DISCUSS THIS EVENING THE, WHERE THE CITATIONS ARE FOR BOTH ENFORCEMENT AND STREET SWEEPING. IF, IF THE COUNCIL IS SO INTERESTED, I'M ALSO PREPARED TO GO THROUGH THE 40 DIFFERENT FEES THAT, UH, ARE NOT SLATED TO CHANGE AS PART OF FY 27 IF THE COUNCIL IS SO INTERESTED. I AM, I HAVE TWO MINUTES. OKAY. UH, SO, UM, FOR, FOR ALL OF YOU, UH, STATISTICIANS OUT THERE, WE HAVE A TOTAL OF 200,001 PARKING CONTROL. THAT'S OUR STREET SWEEPING CITATION ISSUED AS PART OF FY 25. UH, WE HAVE JUST OVER A HUNDRED THOUSAND PARKING ENFORCEMENT CITATIONS ISSUED. AGAIN, THESE NUMBERS ARE CITYWIDE FOR FY 25, UH, BROKEN DOWN BY BY COUNCIL DISTRICT. UH, IF WE'RE LOOKING AT THE STREET SWEEPING, UH, WE HAVE ABOUT 16% IN CD ONE 21% AND CD TWO 15% AND CD THREE 7% AND CD FOUR 7% AND CD FIVE 12% AND CD SIX 8% AND CD EIGHT, UM, UH, I APOLOGIZE 8% AND CD SEVEN, UH, 7% AND CD EIGHT AND 7% IN CD NINE. UH, SHIFTING OVER TO OUR PARKING ENFORCEMENT, UH, WE HAVE 36% IN CD ONE, 16% IN CD TWO, 11% IN CD THREE, FOUR IN CD FOUR, 6% IN CD FIVE 12 IN CD SIX, UH, FIVE IN CD SEVEN, FOUR IN CD EIGHT, AND FIVE IN CD NINE. OKAY. WELL THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE YOU HAVING THE DATA AVAILABLE SO THAT WE CAN TAKE A LOOK AT THIS. YEAH, I'M, I'M DONE WITH MY TIME. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. UH, ALRIGHT, UH, COUNCILMAN ALLEN. ALRIGHT. ALRIGHT, SO LET ME FINISH, UM, WITH, UH, WITH, UH, CHAIR RICK SODI. UM, DEFINITELY, UM, NOT QUESTIONING, UH, YOU PERSONALLY, WHAT I'M SAYING IS THE PROCESS COULD BE EASIER FOR US AS A COLLEAGUE WHO JUST, WHO HAD, WHO HAD NO INPUT ON A LOT OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, THAT, UM, TO GET THEM AND THEN EXPECT TO BE, MAKE A DECISION WITHIN MINUTES OF GETTING THEM IS REALLY DIFFICULT. SO WHAT I'M ASKING, UM, YOU KNOW, THIS, IT'S NOT A LEGAL PRIORITY FOR THE NOTICES, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT CAME FROM YOU. I'M JUST ASKING FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION MOVING FORWARD. YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER, DON'T CARE. I'M JUST, I'M JUST PUTTING IT OUT THERE FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION THAT IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING THIS, UM, EASIER IN THE FUTURE, THAT WE JUST SEE THE BUDGET A WEEK AHEAD OF TIME. AND I THINK YOU COULD BACK IN WHAT ALL THAT LOOKS LIKE BECAUSE YOU AND THE MAYOR AND THE CITY MANAGER HAVE HAD MONTHS TO TALK ABOUT THIS, WHERE I'VE HAD MINUTES TO REVIEW THIS. SO I'M JUST THINKING AS A PROFESSIONAL COURTESY TO YOUR COLLEAGUES, IT WOULD REALLY HELP ALL OF US IF WE HAD A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME BEFORE WE HAVE TO MAKE SUCH A MONUMENTAL DECISION. AND, UM, BUT THAT'S JUST FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. OKAY. UM, AND I KNOW, UM, I DID SUBMIT A LETTER AND I KNOW THAT THERE WERE TWO OF MY FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS LIKE WITH, UH, REVIEW OF BOARD AND COMMISSION MEETING FREQUENCY THAT YOU USED AND FUNDING DISTRICT PRIORITIES THAT WERE USED. UM, SO ALTHOUGH I THINK UP TO THE VERY LAST MINUTE, THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO REASON WHY COUNSEL CAN'T MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS UP TO THE VERY LAST HOUR. EVEN RIGHT NOW. THERE'S NOTHING THAT SAYS THAT WE CAN'T MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS RIGHT NOW. SO I DON'T THINK ALL OF THAT REALLY MATTERS, TO BE HONEST. UM, SO I, UM, SO I DO WANNA GO BACK TO MY PARKING. UM, DO WE, SO CAN WE GO BACK AND WHEN YOU TALKED ABOUT, UM, THESE IN FLU, UH, THESE, THESE INCLUDE FINES SUCH AS PARKING AND BIKE LANES, RED CURBS, FIRE HYDRANTS, AND NO PARKING ZONES. UM, IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE, BECAUSE IT JUST SAYS SUCH AS, SO WHAT I'M ASKING IS WHAT OTHER VIOLATIONS WOULD BE INCLUDED IN THAT AND WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED? [03:30:03] YES, CERTAINLY. UM, WE CAN DIVE INTO THOSE. UM, I'M, I'M HAPPY TO, TO READ OFF ALL OF THEM, UH, OR I COULD GIVE YOU A, A SAMPLING OF WHAT'S INCLUDED. I'LL KIND OF START OFF WITH THE, THE SAMPLE APPROACH AND THEN IF YOU STILL WANT MORE, WE CAN, WE CAN GO THROUGH THROUGH SOME MORE. OKAY. UM, SO WHAT IS BEING INCLUDED WITHIN THE PRO PROPOSED CHANGES? AGAIN, THIS IS ALL RELATED TO, UH, THE EFFORT TO DETER UNSAFE PARKING BEHAVIOR ACROSS THE, ACROSS THE CITY. SO THE PROPOSED CHANGES INCLUDE, UM, DISPLAYING OF PLATES, UH, DOUBLE PARKING, UH, PARKING IN NO PARKING ZONES, UH, PARKING IN, NO STOPPING AREAS, PARKING, UH, OUTSIDE OR OF THE 18 INCHES WITHIN THE CURB. SO YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO PARK WITHIN 18 IF YOU'RE PARKED WAY OUT IN THE MIDDLE, UM, THAT WOULD BE CHANGING PARKING IN AN ALLEY, PARKING IN A BICYCLE LANE, PARKING IN THE INTERSECTION, A TUNNEL, A CROSSWALK, A SIDEWALK, UH, ON OR NEAR A RAILROAD TRACK. I DON'T THINK WE SEE THAT ONE OFTEN, BUT NONETHELESS, UH, THE INCREASE THERE. AND THEN, UH, THE RED CURB. SO WE HAVE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT RED CURBS, UH, RELATED TO FIRE HYDRANTS, FIRE STATIONS, AND OTHER SAFETY RELATED AREAS. SO THOSE ARE, THOSE ARE ALL PROPOSED TO CHANGE FROM, UH, MOST OF THEM ARE EITHER 74 OR 90 TODAY. THEY WOULD BE GOING UP TO, AS PART OF OUR PROPOSAL TO $100 ACROSS THE BOARD WITH ALL THOSE DIFFERENT RECOMMENDATIONS THAT HAD NAMED THE OTHER, UM, FEES OR CITATIONS THAT WOULD NOT BE CHANGING. INCLUDE, UM, ILLEGAL PARKING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, UH, NO CURRENT REGISTRATION, UH, PARKING ON CITY PROPERTY, UH, PARKING IN TEMPORARY ZONES, OVERSIZED VEHICLE PARKING, UH, PARKING WITHIN FIRE LANES. UM, AND THAT'S BECAUSE THAT'S ALREADY OVER A HUNDRED, THAT'S 110. UH, PARKING NEAR ACCESS RAMPS. UH, THESE ARE OUR, OUR CURB RAMPS AND THOSE ARE ALREADY AT 315. AND, UH, WE'RE ALSO NOT PROPOSING TO CHANGE RED CURBS AT BUS ZONES. UH, THOSE ARE CURRENTLY AT $290. UH, SO AGAIN, THAT WAS THE SAMPLING, UH, BUT HOPEFULLY THAT GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF WHAT'S PROPOSED TO CHANGE AND WHAT WOULD REMAIN THE SAME. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I'LL QUEUE BACK UP. UH, YOU'RE THE LAST ONE IN LINE. YOU CAN CONTINUE. ALL RIGHT, WELL I SEE THERE'S MORE SPEAKERS ON HERE. OH, OKAY. THIS THING IS, ALRIGHT, JUST ONE SECOND. LET ME REFRESH AND SEE. . YEAH, THIS SYSTEM ISN'T SHOWING ME ANYONE ELSE. WHO ELSE IS QUEUED UP? CHRISTINA? THREE TIMES. OKAY. I GOT CHRISTINA THREE TIMES HERE. OKAY. COUNCIL MEMBER DOUG . IT'S THE SYSTEM. I WILL SAY, GO AHEAD. NO MORE . OKAY, GREAT. COUNCIL MEMBER DOUG. UH, ALAN, ANYTHING ELSE? YES. SO, UM, HOW DO I PROCEDURALLY I WANT TO MAKE, I DON'T KNOW IF THE SUB SUB, BUT I WANNA MAKE A MOTION THAT WE PULL OFF, UH, B TWO, UM, AND AS WE DO, UM, SOME, UH, COMMUNICATION WITH THE PUBLIC AND, UM, I WOULD ASK THAT, I WOULD ASK THAT THIS BE, UM, TAKEN OFF THIS RECOMMENDATION AND UNTIL THERE'S MORE PUBLIC INPUT. RIGHT? IS THERE A, WELL YOU SECONDED THE LAST SUBSTITUTE IS, WE'RE STILL ON. I THINK WE'RE STILL ON. TECHNICALLY WE NEVER VOTED ON THE ORIGINAL SUB. WELL YOU DON'T VOTE UNTIL THE END. YEAH. SO IS THERE A SECOND? 'CAUSE YOU SECONDED THE SUBSTITUTE MOTION. IS THERE A SECOND ON YOUR SUBSTITUTE? SUBSTITUTE MOTION? OH MY GOD, SECOND. OKAY, SO YOU TWO, JUST SO YOU KNOW, YOU TWO CONTROL THE SUBSTITUTE AND THE SUBSTITUTE SUBSTITUTE MAKER. AND SECOND. ALRIGHT, WELL THANK YOU. ANY OTHER, ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS? UM, NO, THAT'S IT. ALRIGHT, LET'S LAND THIS PLANE. SO, UH, WE'RE GONNA GO TO A VOTE. JUST, UH, SOME, IT, IT'S FINE. IT'S, THE PROCESS IS OKAY. YEAH. ALRIGHT. JUST, UH, AS WE LAND THIS PLANE. SO I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, THE COUNCIL WAS GIVEN SOME DIFFICULT DECISIONS AND TRADE OFFS. WE KNEW THAT SINCE THE VERY BEGINNING, UH, I THINK COUNCIL MEMBER KERR ARTICULATED THERE'S JUST ISN'T ENOUGH MONEY TO DO EVERY PRIORITY. BUT I CERTAINLY DON'T WANNA MISS OR NOT HIGHLIGHT, UH, WHAT YOU ARE ACCOMPLISHING TONIGHT. UH, YOU ARE PROTECTING A NUMBER OF JOBS THAT OTHERWISE WOULD'VE BEEN CUT AND THAT NEEDS TO BE ACKNOWLEDGED. UH, YOU ARE PRESERVING CRITICAL, UH, SERVICES AND RESOURCES. UH, YOU ARE MAINTAINING YOUR UNWAVERING FOCUS ON YOUR PRIORITIES LIKE HIRING AND CONTINUE THAT WORK. YOU ARE RESTORING CRITICAL LIBRARY HOURS THAT OUR FAMILIES DEPEND ON, THANKS TO, UH, UH, THE OVERWHELMING, UH, VOCAL SUPPORT THERE. UH, YOU ARE CONTINUING. UH, YOU THANK YOU. I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS IN DEJAS. I WON'T BE ACKNOWLEDGING EVERY COUNCIL MEMBER JUST SOME CERTAIN THINGS HERE. UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS OF DEJAS LIFTED UP THE, THE PARKING IN THE GARAGES. THAT WAS A LATE DISCUSSION THAT WAS VERY PUBLIC. JUST [03:35:01] SO WE'RE CLEAR, THAT RESTORES 90 MINUTES. AND TO BE CLEAR, NO OTHER COMPARABLE DOWNTOWN OFFERS FREE PARKING. WE, WE ARE WITH THIS MOTION OFFERING 90 MINUTES FREE IN OUR GYMS. AND SO WE WANNA, IN OUR GARAGES, WE WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE GYMS AND THE BUSINESSES IN DOWNTOWN FOR THAT. UH, SO THIS IS CERTAINLY GENEROUS. SO WE CERTAINLY APPRECIATE THAT. WE ALSO KNOW WE HAVEN'T HAD THE RESOURCES TO ADDRESS TRAFFIC SAFETY. IT'S BEEN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT IN THIS BUDGET. LET'S NOT BE LOST. LET'S NOT LET IT BE, BE, BECOME LOST. THAT WE ARE ADDING POSITIONS TO FOCUS, REFOCUS ON VISION ZERO IN OUR CITY. I WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN AND FIRE RESCUE, UH, FIRE ENGINE 14, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN, I SEE YOU OUT THERE WORKING AND I KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO LOSE A RESOURCE OR HAVE THAT CONSIDERED IN YOUR COMMUNITY. I APPLAUD YOU FOR YOUR HARD WORK. I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT DIFFICULT CHOICE THAT'S IN FRONT OF YOU. AND I WILL TELL YOU, I'VE BEEN THERE BEFORE WITH ENGINE 12 AND IT FELT VERY ALONE THAT YOU HAD TO FIGHT FOR THE RESTORATION ALONE. HEAR ME RIGHT NOW. YOU ARE NOT ALONE. WE'RE GONNA WORK VERY HARD ON DAY ONE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE A PLAN THAT MEETS THE FISCAL CRITERIA OF MAKING SURE IT'S SUSTAINABLE AND STRUCTURAL TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF OUR COMMUNITIES HAVE WHAT THEY NEED. UH, SO I DO WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT WE ARE NOT BY NO MEANS DISMISSING YOUR WORK. WE APPRECIATE THE CARE AND THE ATTENTION THAT YOU HAVE GIVEN AND YOUR RESIDENTS AND YOUR FIREFIGHTERS, BUT ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE THREE WITH THIS BUDGET, THE THREE SURROUNDING FIRE ENGINES ARE BEING UPGRADED TO PAU. SO THERE'S ADDITIONAL FUNDING IN THIS BUDGET TO MAKE SURE THEY HAVE ADDITIONAL CAPACITY FROM MEDICAL RESPONSE. AND WE'RE BEGINNING WITH FUNDING IN THIS BUDGET TO BEGIN TO LOOK AT A SUSTAINABLE LONG-TERM STRUCTURAL SOLUTION TO ADDRESS EMERGENCY RESPONSE WITHIN THE CITY. A NUMBER OF MODELS THAT THE COUNTY AND OTHERS HAVE ADOPTED. WE'RE FORMALLY BEGINNING THAT PROCESS NOW TO GIVE THE STABILITY THAT OUR EMPLOYEES CERTAINLY DESERVE. SO I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I ALSO, YOU KNOW, SIMPLY WANNA SAY THAT YOU DO HAVE A DEADLINE. IT IS SET OUT IN OUR CHARTER. MUCH OF THIS PROCESS IS SET OUT. THE MANAGER HAS A DEADLINE, THE MAYOR HAS A DEADLINE, AND THE CITY COUNCIL HAS A DEADLINE. BUT THERE'S ALSO WORK THAT HAS TO BE DONE STARTING TOMORROW, UH, WITH ENSURING THAT THE EMPLOYEES GET AS MUCH NOTICE. THE ONES WHO ARE IMPACTED GET AS MUCH NOTICE AS POSSIBLE. 'CAUSE THERE'S A CASCADING PROCESS IF ANYONE IS LOSING THEIR JOBS. SO THERE IS THE, BUT THERE IS THE CHARTER PROCESS. THERE'S ALSO THE HUMAN CONSIDERATION OF MAKING SURE THAT WE DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR MEMBERS OF OUR CITY FAMILY WHO ARE IMPACTED, WE DO EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO HELP WITH THEIR TRANSITION TO WHATEVER THAT MAY BE. WHETHER IT'S GOING, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE A RAP EMPLOYEE AND YOU'RE TRANSITIONING, UH, TO THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OR WHATEVER THAT IS. SO THAT IS CERTAINLY HAS TO BE A CONSIDERATION. UH, AS YOU VOTE. I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE PRESSURE THAT THE COUNCIL HAS UNDERTAKEN. WE HAVEN'T HAD A BUDGET LIKE THIS IN MANY YEARS. I REMEMBER THE TOUGH BUDGETS UNDER MAYOR FOSTER. I WAS A STAFF MEMBER. I REMEMBER THE COVID BUDGET. SOME OF YOU WERE HERE, SOME OF YOU WERE NOT. I KNOW IT'S CHALLENGING. I GET IT. WE HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT OUR JOB IS TO ADDRESS THE STRUCTURAL DEFICIT THAT YOU ALL INHERITED FROM COVID $91 MILLION OVER FIVE YEARS. THIS, WITH THIS BUDGET AND WITH RESOURCES. NEXT YEAR, YOU POSITION THIS CITY TO FINALLY ADDRESS THE STRUCTURAL DEFICIT. WE, WE HAVE A SMALL, SMALLER DEFICIT NEXT YEAR, SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER. AND THE NEXT FOUR YEARS SHOW STRUCTURAL SURPLUSES. IF WE, IF WE FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THIS PLAN, WE'RE NOT PASSING DEFICITS AND DEBT ONTO FUTURE GENERATIONS. SO THIS, ALL OF THESE RE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE RESPONSIBLE AND I THINK IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT NOT TO MAKE A TOUGH DECISION. NOT JUST MAKING A TOUGH DECISION, BUT HOW YOU TREAT ONE ANOTHER IN THAT PROCESS. HOW WE TREAT OUR RESIDENTS IN THAT PROCESS. HOW WE SET AN EXAMPLE FOR DIFFICULT DISCU DECISIONS IN THE FUTURE IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. SO THAT SAID, MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. SO YOU GOT A SUBSTITUTE. SUBSTITUTE, WHICH RESTATE MAAM? MAAM? ATTORNEY. THE SUBSTITUTE. SUBSTITUTE. UM, YES, MAYOR, THE SUBSTITUTE SUBSTITUTE IS TO, UH, TAKE BOC MATTER B TWO OFF THE LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS IN ORDER TO GET MORE PUBLIC INFORMATION. SO THAT IS THE FUNDING ME MECHANISM FOR RESTORATION OF THE LIBRARIES. CORRECT. THAT IS NOT THE COMPLETE MOTION THOUGH. THAT'S, THAT'S CINDY'S MOTION. SUB SUB, YEAH. TO GET, UM, TO GET PUBLIC INPUT ON THIS ITEM. OKAY. SO MY SUB, WE'RE NOT ON YOUR SUBJECT YET. I, OKAY. WE, WE WILL GO TO YOUR SUB. OKAY. WE'RE HANDLING THE VOTES. THE DISCUSSION PART IS OVER. SO WE'RE JUST BEING CLEAR ON WHAT THIS IS VOTING ON. OKAY. MEMBERS. SO YOU, IF YOU WANT TO GET TO THE MAIN MOTION, WHICH IS ADOPTING THE BUDGET, [03:40:01] YOU HAVE TO GET PASSED, YOU WOULD VOTE. IF YOU WANT TO PULL OFF THE FUNDING MECHANISM FOR LIBRARIES, THEN, THEN VOTE YES. IF YOU DON'T AND YOU WANT TO ADOPT THE FULL BUDGET AND RESTORATIONS, THEN YOU VOTE NO. SO ON THE SUBSTITUTE, SUBSTITUTE MOTION, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. FY CITY CLERK. MY, UH, TERMINAL ISN'T WORKING CORRECTLY. OKAY. ARE YOU AN AYE OR I'M A NO. AND COUNCILMAN SUPERMAN. A MOTION FAILED. THANK YOU. NOW WE GO TO THE SUBSTITUTE MOTION. WHAT IS THE SUBSTITUTE MOTION? UM, YES, MAYOR. SO THE SUBSTITUTE MOTION IS TO CONTINUE THIS HEARING TO NEXT WEEK REGARDING MEASURE B FUNDING, UM, OR SOURCE IDENTIFIERS FOR THE PILOT FIRST RESPONSE VEHICLE FOR FIRE STATION FOUR. OKAY, SO THIS 14. 14. 14. OKAY. WHICH ELEMENT, WHICH ELEMENT OF BUDGET ADOPTION. WAS THAT BE WHAT CONTINUE THE BUDGET HEARING? YEAH, IT WAS TO CONTINUE THE BUDGET HEARING TODAY. SO THIS CONTINUES, THIS DELAYS THE WHOLE BUDGET HEARING YES. TO NEXT WEEK. OKAY. IF YOU WANT TO DELAY THE BUDGET HEARING, VOTE YES. IF YOU DON'T AND CONSIDER IT THE FULL ADOPTION. YOU VOTE NO MEMBERS PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. UH, I'LL NEED TO DO A VERBAL AGAIN. I'M VOTING. NO THANK YOU. MOTION FAILS. ALRIGHT, NOW THE MAIN MOTION, WHICH IS THE, I'M SORRY. SORRY. UM, UM, MAYOR, I JUST AS A POINT OF CLARIFICATION, I DID HAVE A FRIENDLY ON THE RECORD BY, UM, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER SUPERAL TO UM, ADJUST ON THE MAIN MOTION. ON THE MAIN MOTION, OKAY? YES. WE'RE IN THE MAIN MOTION NOW. SO REFRAME RIVERS TO WATERWAYS, CORRECT? RIGHT. AND THEN AS AN ADDITIONAL POINT OF, UM, CLARIFICATION, THERE WERE TWO POTENTIAL MOTIONS RAISED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ALLEN THAT I THINK I WOULD LIKE TO GET SOME CLARITY ON JUST SO WE I DIDN'T HEAR A SECOND ON THOSE. OKAY. OKAY. ACTUALLY THOSE WERE NOT SECOND. THOSE WERE FRIENDLIES. THOSE WERE FRIENDLIES. OH, THAT'S RIGHT. SHE REJECTED THOSE FRIENDLIES. BUT I SAID YES TO THE WATERWAY. WELL, YES TO THE WATERWAYS. OKAY. ARE WE CLEAR ON THE MOTION? THIS IS THE MAIN MOTION, WHICH IS ADOPTION OF THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS WITH THE ONE FRIENDLY AMENDMENT. UM, JUST TO CLARIFY, MARIO, IF YOU'RE TAKING THE MOTION ON THE BOC RECOMMENDATIONS, THAT ALSO HAS TO INCLUDE THE DIRECTION TO THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE ON THE TWO ORDINANCE THAT NEED TO BE PREPARED THAT YOU READ EARLIER, RIGHT? THAT WERE READ INTO THE RECORD IN ADDITION TO THE WATERWAYS FRIENDLY. ALRIGHT. MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. AND THEN I'M A YES. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. OKAY, SO WE ARE NOT DONE, UH, WE STILL HAVE A NUMBER OF MOTIONS. UH, LET'S CARRY THROUGH, UH, UH, THE REST OF THE MOTIONS IF WE CAN TAKE, UH, 19 AND TAKE A VOTE TO CONCLUDE THE HEARING. OKAY. SO SAME MOVER AND SECOND, YOU HAVE IT. ARE YOU READY? OKAY. MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. COUNCILMAN SUPER, ARE YOU AND I THANK YOU. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. NEXT VOTE. [19.3. 26-55995 Recommendation to adopt the expenditures and revenues as identified in the Proposed FY 27 Budget, as amended. (A-3)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] RECOMMENDATION TO ADOPT THE EXPENDITURES AND REVENUES AS IDENTIFIED IN THE PROPOSED FY 27 BUDGET AS AMENDED. ALRIGHT, SAME MOVER AND SECOND MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, NEXT RECOMMENDATION [19.4. 26-55996 Recommendation to adopt resolution amending the Master Fees and Charges Schedule for specified City services for Citywide fees and charges for the City of Long Beach. (A-4)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION. AMENDING THE MASTER FEES AND CHARGES SCHEDULE FOR SPECIFIED CITY SERVICES FOR CITYWIDE FEES AND CHARGES FOR THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. ALRIGHT, UH, SAME MOVER AND SECONDED. SECONDER. UH, MAYOR, I WAS ASKED TO MAKE, UM, THERE'S SPECIFIC AMENDMENT. UH, THERE'S AN AMENDMENT THAT NEEDS TO BE MADE TO, TO NUMBER FOUR. OKAY, LET'S READ INTO THE RECORD PLEASE. UM, UH, SO I'M MAKING THE MOTION, UM, RECOMMENDATION TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION AMENDING THE MASTER FEE AND CHARGE A SCHEDULE FOR SPECIFIED CITY SERVICES FOR CITYWIDE FEES AND [03:45:01] CHANGES FOR THE CITY OF LONG BEACH. AS AMENDED BY THE APPROVED BUDGET OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE'S, FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS, AMENDING THE MASTER FEES AND CHARGES SCHEDULE. ALRIGHT, UH, WE HAVE A MOTION, A SECOND. MEMBERS PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. NEXT IS THE CIP RECOMMENDATION [19.5. 26-55997 Recommendation to approve the FY 27 One-Year Capital Improvement Program. (A-5)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] TO APPROVE FY 27 1 YEAR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM. ALL RIGHT. SAME MOVER AND SECONDED. SECONDER, PLEASE, UH, CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT. NEXT IS, UH, READ THE NEXT MOTION PLEASE. RECOMMENDATION TO [19.6. 26-55998 Recommendation to declare ordinance amending the Departmental Organization Ordinance read the first time and laid over to the next regular meeting of the City Council for final reading. (A-6)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] DECLARE ORDINANCE AMENDING THE DEPARTMENTAL ORGANIZATION ORDINANCE. READ THE FIRST TIME AND LATER THE NEXT REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL FOR FINAL READING. THANK YOU. SAME MOVER AND SECONDER. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. NEXT IS THE SALARY RESOLUTION RECOMMENDATION TO ADOPT THE [19.7. 26-55999 Recommendation to adopt the amended Salary Resolution for FY 27. (A-7)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] AMENDED SALARY RESOLUTION FOR FY 27. THANK YOU. SAME MOVER AND SECONDER. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. NEXT IS THE HARBOR AND UTILITIES BUDGETS. ITEM EIGHT, PLEASE. RECOMMENDATION TO [19.8. 26-56000 Recommendation to adopt resolution approving the FY 27 budget for the Long Beach Harbor Department as adopted by the Board of Harbor Commissioners on June 22, 2026. (A-8)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] ADOPT THE RESOLUTION APPROVING THE FY 27 BUDGET FOR THE LONG BEACH HARBOR DEPARTMENT AS ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF HARBOR COMMISSIONERS ON JUNE 22ND, 2026. ALRIGHT, UH, SAME MOVER AND SECOND MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. NUMBER NINE, RECOMMENDATION TO [19.9. 26-56001 Recommendation to adopt resolution approving Resolution No. UT-1561, a resolution of the City of Long Beach Public Utilities Commissioners fixing rates and charges for the gas services to all customers. (A-9)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] ADOPT A RESOLUTION APPROVING RESOLUTION NUMBER UT DASH 1561. A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF LONG BEACH PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSIONERS FIXING RATES AND CHARGES FOR THE GAS SERVICES TO ALL CUSTOMERS. THANK YOU. SAME MOVER AND SECONDER MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. 10. PLEASE. RECOMMENDATION TO ADOPT A [19.10. 26-56002 Recommendation to adopt resolution approving Resolution No. UT-1562 a resolution of the City of Long Beach Public Utilities Commissioners of the City of Long Beach fixing rates and charges for water and sewer services to all customers. (A-10)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] RESOLUTION APPROVING RESOLUTION NUMBER UT DASH 1562. A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF LONG BEACH PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSIONERS OF THE CITY OF LONG BEACH FIXING RATES AND CHARGES FOR WATER AND SEWER SERVICES TO ALL CUSTOMERS. THANK YOU. MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE COUNCILWOMAN RICK SODI. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALL RIGHT. 11. RECOMMENDATION TO [19.11. 26-56003 Recommendation to adopt resolution approving the FY 27 budget of the Long Beach Public Utilities Department as adopted by the Board of Public Utilities Commissioners on June 4, 2026. (A-11)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] ADOPT A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE FY 27 BUDGET OF THE LONG BEACH PUBLIC UTILITIES DEPARTMENT AS ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSIONERS ON JUNE 4TH, 2026. ALRIGHT, MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. NUMBER 12, PLEASE RECOMMENDATION [19.12. 26-56004 Recommendation to adopt a motion approving the FY 27 budget for the Long Beach Community Investment Company in the amount of $7,299,655. (A-12)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] TO ADOPT A MOTION APPROVING THE FY 27 BUDGET FOR THE LONG BEACH COMMUNITY INVESTMENT COMPANY AND THE AMOUNT OF 7,299,655. THAT IS HOUSING MONEY. SAME MOVER AND SECONDED SECONDER MEMBERS, PLEASE CASH YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. 13, PLEASE RECOMMENDATION [19.13. 26-56005 Recommendation to adopt a motion approving the estimated transfer of $28,726,936, from the Harbor Fund Group to the Tidelands Operations Fund Group. (A-13)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] TO ADOPT A MOTION APPROVING THE ESTIMATED TRANSFER OF 28,000,700 HUNDRED 26,936 FROM THE HARBOR FUND GROUP TO THE TIDELANDS OPERATION FUND GROUP. THANK YOU. MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. 14. RECOMMENDATION [19.14. 26-56006 Recommendation to adopt resolution establishing the Gann Appropriations Limit for FY 27 pursuant to Article XIII (B) of the California Constitution. (A-14)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING THE GAN APPROPRIATION LIMIT FOR FY 27 PURSUANT TO, TO, UM, ARTICLE B OF THE CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTION. ALRIGHT, MOVER, SAME MOVER AND SECOND MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, SO THE NEXT TWO I NEED TO ASK, DO WE NEED A BREAK TO CALCULATE? BECAUSE THERE ARE NO FINANCIAL CHANGES MADE ON THE FLOOR. WE DON'T NEED A BREAK. FANTASTIC. ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA GO TO ITEM 15. RECOMMENDATION [19.15. 26-56007 Recommendation to declare an emergency to exist pursuant to City Charter Section 211 for the Appropriations Ordinance for FY 27, creating and establishing the fund groups of the Municipal Government and appropriating money to and authorizing expenditures from said funds and for said fiscal year. (A-15)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation.  ] TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY TO EXIST PURSUANT TO CITY CHARTER SECTION TWO 11 FOR THE APPROPRIATIONS ORDINANCE FOR FY 27, CREATING AND ESTABLISHING THE FUND GROUPS OF THE MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT AND APPROPRIATING MONEY TO AND AUTHORIZING EXPENDITURE FROM SAID FUNDS AND FOR SAID FISCAL YEAR. ALL RIGHT. UM, UH, MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT. SO THAT IS THE FY 27 BUDGET. SO I WANNA THANK, UH, THE PUBLIC. I WANNA THANK STAFF CITY MANAGER MOCA, REBECCA FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, OUR CLERK HAS BEEN CLERKING TONIGHT. I WANNA THANK EVERY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC WHO'S PARTICIPATED IN OUR PROCESS. I WANNA THANK EVERY MEMBER OF OUR CITY COUNCIL FOR ENGAGING IN THIS PROCESS. WE, WE HAVE, AGAIN, THIS IS TWO MORE VOTES. WE HAVE, UH, I THOUGHT YOU WE'RE DONE. 16. WE JUST DID 16. OKAY. LET'S DO 16. 19. 16. YEAH. ALRIGHT. RECOMMEND IT'S TWO VOTES. RECOMMENDATION TO DECLARE [19.16. 26-56008 Recommendation to declare the Appropriations Ordinance for FY 27, creating and establishing the fund groups of the Municipal Government and appropriating money to and authorizing expenditures from said funds and for said fiscal year as an Emergency Ordinance, read, and adopted as read and laid over to the next regular meeting of the City Council for final reading. (A-16)       Office or Department: Financial Management         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] THE APPROPRIATIONS ORDINANCE FOR FY 27. CREATING AND ESTABLISHING THE FUND GROUPS OF THE MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT AND APPROPRIATING MONEY TO AND AUTHORIZING EXPENDITURES FROM SAID FUNDS. AND FOR SAID FISCAL YEAR AS AN EMERGENCY [03:50:01] ORDINANCE. READ AND ADOPTED AS READ AND LAYER OVER TO THE NEXT REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL FOR FINAL READING. ALRIGHT, UH, MOTION AND SECOND. SAME MOTION. SECOND MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. AND WE NEED ONE MORE VOTE ON THIS ITEM AND ANOTHER VOTE ON THE SAME ITEM. LET'S MAKE SURE WE GET ALL THE VOTES. MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT. AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION. UH, THAT IS THE FY 27 BUDGET PROCESS. UM, AND IN THE, JUST A NOTE, THIS ALSO HAS BEGUN OUR PROCESS OF REPLENISHING OUR RESERVES. $10 MILLION TO SET ASIDE TO BEGIN REPLENISHING OUR RESERVES. UH, JUST A WORD OF OF CAUTION. UH, WE DON'T WANT TO GO BACK ON OUR PROGRESS. WE HAVE ONE MORE BUDGET TO GET THROUGH BEFORE WE'RE AT. WE HAVE SUSTAINED STRUCTURAL SURPLUSES. SO NEXT YEAR, NOT AS CHALLENGING AS THIS YEAR. WE DON'T ANTICIPATE THAT THE LEVEL OF IMPACT SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER. BUT, UH, IF WE CONTINUE WITH THIS, UH, DISCIPLINE, WE'LL DELIVER AGAIN, OUR FIRST STRUCTURAL SURPLUS SINCE PRE PANDEMIC. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION. NOW LET'S START OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETING. UH, DOES THE COUNCIL NEED A, A, A BREAK BECAUSE, UH, FIVE MINUTES. OKAY. LET'S DO A FIVE MINUTE RESTROOM, RESTROOM BREAK. AND THEN WE'RE GONNA RECONVENE AND, AND CONTINUE THE COUNCIL MEETING. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. I REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYONE. I NOT BECAUSE UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, AMERICANS, UNLESS IT REALLY TOUCHES US, YOU KNOW, AND YES. I, I THINK EVERYONE'S BEEN OUT HERE FOR, YOU KNOW, FOUR YEARS THAN NOT BEEN OUT HERE. UM, AND THOSE WHO ARE THE [04:04:18] YEAH. [04:04:20] CLERK WAS CALLED TO ORDER RECONVENE THE CITY COUNCIL ROLL CALL PLEASE. COUNCILWOMAN ZENDEJAS. PRESENT. COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN. COUNCILWOMAN ALLEN. COUNCIL MEMBER. YES. HERE. THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER DUGGAN. HERE. COUNCILMAN SUPERAL. HERE. COUNCILWOMAN KERR. PRESENT. COUNCILMAN SORROW. PRESENT. VICE MAYOR URANGA. COUNCILMAN THRESH OOK. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER RICK SOTE. HERE. MAYOR RICHARDSON. I AM HERE. WE HAVE A QUORUM. ALRIGHT, LET'S GO TO PUBLIC COMMENT. [PUBLIC COMMENT: Obtain speaker card from the City Clerk Opportunity to address the City Council (on non-agenda items) is available to the first 10 individuals, combined across in-person and remote participation, who submit a request to speak beginning 15 minutes before the meeting starts. Each speaker is allowed up to three minutes to provide comments.] GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT IS NUMBER ONE. YEAH. THE HEARING, THE HEARINGS GO AHEAD OF GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT. SO NOW'S GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT. UH, [04:05:01] MS. CLERK, MS, PLEASE, UH, ADMINISTER PUBLIC COMMENT. CAN I PLEASE HAVE SAM WISE GAJI, WHO IS CALLING IN ON ZOOM, READY TO SPEAK? NEXT IS ELMO. CALVIN JOHNSON. CHESTER MOBLEY, ANTHONY HOLMES FB CHARLIE ISN'T IN ZOOM, LEE CHARLIE IS IN ZOOM. SOCIAL UPRISING. SOCIAL UPRISING AGAIN. AND CONCERN RESIDENT NUMBER TWO, IF YOU CAN BE PREPARED TO SPEAK. IF YOU HEARD YOUR NAME AND YOU'RE IN PERSON, PLEASE LINE UP AT THE LECTERN. OUR FIRST PUBLIC COMMENT SPEAKER, SAM WEIS GAJI, I HAVE YOU IN AS A REMOTE SPEAKER. CAN YOU PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF? YEAH. CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. THANK YOU. SO FIRST OFF, F**K ICE, F**K ISRAEL FREE PALESTINE AND F**K ANDAL INDUSTRIES. LIKE, GET THEM THE F**K OUTTA HERE AND OR A OUT OF LONG BEACH AND OR OUT OF EVERYWHERE. AND, UH, WHAT THIS CITY COUNCIL AND THIS MAYOR DID TO ANTHONY HOLMES IS F*****G DISGUSTING. TWISTING HIS INTENT TO MAKE IT SEEM LIKE HE WAS A THREAT, WHICH DIRECTLY AFFECTS HIS LIVELIHOOD WAS AWFUL. IT WAS EVIL. F**K YOU, REX RICHARDSON, FOR NOT ONLY LETTING THAT HAPPEN, BUT SPEARHEADING IT AND LIMITING OUR PUBLIC COMMENT. HAVE TO EXPLAIN THAT ONE AGAIN. YOU'RE STEALING OUR TIME. LIKE I SAID, EVEN IF YOU IGNORE YOUR OWN 10 PER OVER 10 PERSON AND OVER 20 PERSON RULES, THAT GIVES US ONLY THREE MINUTES TO COVER ALL THE THINGS ON THE AGENDA. PLUS ANY UNRELATED NON AGENDA COMMENTS. THAT'S IT. YOU ALL HAVE BEEN B******G ALL NIGHT, LIKE, OH, OH, I ONLY HAVE A FEW MINUTES LEFT TO SPEAK. YEAH, TRY THREE MINUTES TOTAL. AND I KNOW THAT THAT GALLERY WAS GIVING US A HARD TIME FOR OUR FOUL LANGUAGE LAST TIME, BUT THERE ARE MUCH MORE IMPORTANT THINGS THAN F*****G LANGUAGE. SO CONSIDER THIS A TRIGGER WARNING BECAUSE HERE COMES SOME OF THE THINGS THAT ARE WORSE. GENOCIDE LANGUAGE, MASS GRAVES OF PALESTINIANS WITH HANDS, ZIP TIED BEHIND THEIR BACKS. LANGUAGE, RAPE AND ICE CONCENTRATION, CAMPS, LANGUAGE, PHYSICAL ABUSE, TORTURE AND MURDER AND ICE CONCENTRATION CAMPS, LANGUAGE BULLETS IN CHILDREN'S HEADS IN GAZA LANGUAGE SOUNDS KIND OF F*****G RIDICULOUS, RIGHT? SO THINK ABOUT THAT THE NEXT TIME YOU'RE SPENDING ALL OF OUR MONEY ON COPS THAT RAN SECURITY FOR ICE. AND THOSE 5 MILLION BUCKS YOU'RE PLANNING ON SPENDING ON ALL THOSE A LPR FLOCK CAMERAS WASTING MY TAX DOLLARS ON F*****G FASCISM. THAT'S F*****G RIDICULOUS. AND EARLIER, DOES THIS MEAN THAT YOU DIDN'T APPROVE THE MONEY FOR THE LIBRARY? THAT WAS KIND OF UNCLEAR WITH ALL THAT BACK AND FORTH THAT YOU GUYS WERE DOING. SO ANYWAY, F**K ICE, F**K ISRAEL AND FREE, FREE PALESTINE. YOUR, ARE YOUR COMMENTS CONCLUDED? THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER IS ELMO, AND THEN KELVIN JOHNSON. HOW YOU DOING, MAYOR? I JUST WANTED TO COME UP TODAY TO BRING SOME THINGS TO YOUR ATTENTION ABOUT, UM, WORKPLACE, UH, CULTURE IN A REFUGE DEPARTMENT. UM, WE HAVE A SUPERVISOR BY THE NAME OF DMITRI CRAWFORD WHO, UM, HE MUST HAVE HAD ABOUT MAYBE TWO MEETINGS WITH, UH, THE SUPERINTENDENT, UH, BASIL CANTU ABOUT MAYBE WITH 40 TO MAYBE 50 EMPLOYEES, PUTTING COMPLAINTS IN ON HIM ABOUT, UM, HOW AGGRESSIVE HE'S SPEAKING TO THE EMPLOYEES, HOW, UM, THREATENING HE IS. AND WHAT THE DEPARTMENT CHOSE TO DO IS NOT PUT HIM UNDER INVESTIGATION. WHAT THEY CHOSE TO DO WAS MOVE HIM TO THE SUPPLY ROOM WHERE HE'S NOT SUPERVISING ANYONE. HE'S SO OUT, OUT OF CONTROL. HE WAS DEBATING AND ARGUING WITH THE SAFETY OFFICER DERRICK LAW, ABOUT THE MUNICIPAL CODES THAT DERRICK LAW WAS TRYING TO ENFORCE. HE WAS LITERALLY ARGUING WITH HIM ABOUT SIMPLE READING OF THE MUNICIPAL CODES. RIGHT? UM, THE DEPARTMENT DOESN'T HAVE ENOUGH VEHICLES. THAT'S WHY THEY'RE RENTING VEHICLES. SINCE I WILL SAY MAYBE ABOUT 2018, YOU GUYS HAVE WENT UP ON THE TRASH RATES ABOUT MAYBE TRIPLE, ALMOST TRIPLE. NOT QUITE TRIPLE, BUT I THINK ALMOST TRIPLE. WE HAVE NOT SEEN THE REVENUE SO THAT THE, UH, REFUGE DEPARTMENT SHOULD BE GENERATING FROM GOING UP ON THE RATES THREE TIMES ON THE PUBLIC. THAT'S NOT EVEN INCLUDING THE GREEN WASTE, JUST THE TRASH. JUST, [04:10:01] WE WE'RE, WE ARE THE SECOND LARGEST CITY IN LA COUNTY. LA IS THE LARGEST. WE'RE, WE'RE CHARGING THE CITIZENS FOR THE TRASH MORE THAN LA IS CHARGING MORE THAN, UH, ALMOST ALL THE OTHER SURROUNDING CITIES. AND WE ARE HAVING PEOPLE LEAVE THE DEPARTMENT LEFT AND RIGHT BECAUSE THEY CAN GO TO OTHER, THEY CAN GO TO PRIVATE COMPANIES, THEY CAN GO TO OTHER CITIES AND MAKE MORE MONEY FOR LESS WORK. WHEN YOU GUYS ADDED THAT GREEN WASTE, WHICH ISN'T A PROBLEM, IT IS JUST A LOT MORE WORK, NOT ENOUGH VEHICLES. I KNOW THE DEPARTMENT IS TELLING YOU GUYS THAT, UM, IF THEY HIRE, YOU KNOW, 20 MORE EMPLOYEES, WELL THEY DON'T HAVE THE VEHICLES TO PUT THESE EMPLOYEES IN. THEY DON'T HAVE THE, THE VEHICLES. THAT'S WHY THEY'RE RENTING THEM. THEY DON'T HAVE THE VEHICLES. SO IF THE DEPARTMENT IS MAKING ALMOST TRIPLE OR CHARGING TRIPLE FROM WHAT THEY WERE CHARGING MAYBE EIGHT, NINE YEARS AGO, THE DEPARTMENT SHOULD BE BRINGING IN THAT SAME REVENUE. THEY'RE NOT, I DON'T KNOW WHERE THE MONEY IS, CITY MANAGER, BUT THEY'RE NOT BRINGING IN THE SAME AMOUNT OF MONEY. AND THAT'S A FACT. I CAN, I CAN, I CAN HAVE A MEETING WITH YOU AND GO OVER THE NUMBERS. UH, MAYOR, EVEN WITH THE CITY MANAGER, THEY'RE NOT BRINGING IN THE SAME AMOUNT OF REVENUE. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. I APPRECIATE IT. THANKS SO MUCH. NEXT SPEAKER. HI, MY NAME IS KELVIN JOHNSON. I'VE BEEN AN EMPLOYEE FOR 30 YEARS OF SERVICE. I'VE BEEN HERE A BUNCH OF TIMES WITH MY, FOR, UM, FOR PARKS AND RECREATION AND, AND PUBLIC WORKS. BUT I NOW, I'M HERE FOR A REFUGE OPERATION. ELMORE'S WRIGHT. WE GOT LESS, UM, LESS, UM, TRUCKS ON THE STREET THAT'S BROKEN AND, AND WE GOT, JUST GOT LIKE THREE OR FOUR NEW TRUCKS AVAILABLE. BUT, BUT THEY SAID THEY WAS GONNA BRING LIKE, MAYBE LIKE A WHOLE FLEET OF NEW TRUCKS AND THEY STILL DIDN'T HAVE 'EM AVAILABLE FOR US. AND, UM, SOME PEOPLE SAY THAT, UH, WHEN WE WAS ON A, A NEWSPAPER SAYING THAT WE FULLY STABBED, WE HALF OF US ARE INJURED. BUT WHEN YOU BRING SOME NEW PEOPLE AND YOU HAVE NO, UM, AUTHORITY TO GET, UM, LIKE, UM, LIKE HELP, UM, DOING LIKE, TAKE YOUR TIME. YEAH, BUT WE DON'T GET NO TRAINING. THEY DON'T GET NO TRAINING AT ALL. AND UM, SOON AS THEY, SOON AS THEY GET HIRED, THEY GET BACK ON. THEY, AS SOON AS THEY GET HIRED, THEY, THEY PUT 'EM ON THE, ON ON THE TRUCK. THEY DON'T EVEN TRAIN THEM TO GET OFF THE TRUCK, JUMP OFF THE TRUCK AND, AND UH, AND UH, HANDLE THE, THE AUTO CARTS. RIGHT? AND THAT'S HOW THEY GET INJURED. AND THAT'S WHY WE GOT LESS, UH, LESS PEOPLE ON, ON THE, UH, IN OUR, IN OUR ORGANIZATION. SO UNDERSTAND THAT WE, WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE, WE, WE WORK HARD EVERY DAY AND I THANK Y'ALL FOR GIVING ME OVERTIME. 'CAUSE EVERY EVERY DAY I GET OVERTIME. BUT THEN AT NIGHTTIME I'D BE SO TIRED I WOULDN'T EVEN WANT TO WAKE UP IN THE MORNING. 'CAUSE I KNOW NO STAFFING AND PROBLEM AND EVERY OTHER, THE SUPERVISORS ALWAYS SAY, HEY, YOU DIDN'T, YOU WANT OVERTIME? ANYBODY WANT TIME? I SAY, I, I DO BECAUSE I NEED THE MONEY. BECAUSE NOBODY GIVING NO NO NO FUNDS. THEY GIVE US GIVE NO RAISE. IF I HAD A A DECENT WAGE, I WOULDN'T HAVE TO DO OVERTIME. BUT THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME OVERTIME. BUT MY BODY IS, I'M, I'M 30 YEARS IN, I GOT LIKE MAYBE TWO MORE YEARS LEFT. I'M NOT, I'M NOT NEGOTIATING FOR ME. I'M NEGOTIATING FOR THE, UM, THE, THE NEW, THE NEW RECRUITS THAT HERE TODAY. BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND I'M A I'M, I'M A VETERAN OF THIS PLACE. I GOT 30 YEARS IN SERVICE IN HERE. BUT, UH, BUT THEY, THEY NEED MORE AND MORE, MORE RESPECT AND, AND AND MORE DIS THE DISCIPLINE WITH THE SUPERVISORS. 'CAUSE SUPERVISORS REALLY DON'T, THEY NEED HELP. 'CAUSE EVERY TIME THEY BE ASKING EVERYBODY WANT, YOU GET NEED OVERTIME. YOU NEED OVERTIME. HAVE THE STUFF BE OUT, HAVE STUFF BE ON THE GROUND. PEOPLE BE CALLING. SIR, YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS. THANK YOU. THANKS FOR COMING DOWN. NEXT SPEAKER IS CHESTER MOBLEY AND THEN ANTHONY HOLMES AND FB. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS CHESTER MOBLEY. AND TODAY, TODAY I'M HERE TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING THAT NOT ONLY AFFECTS ME, BUT AFFECTS MANY OF MY COWORKERS. AND THAT'S OUR CURRENT WORKPLACE CULTURE. I LIKE TO DESCRIBE IT AS DYSFUNCTIONAL, UNORGANIZED, AND VERY TOXIC. WHEN WE ARRIVE, UM, TO THE OFFICE IN THE MORNING, PRIOR TO THE START OF OUR SHIFT, WE HAVE MANAGERS AND RFIS THAT STAND AT THE GATE. CAT CALLINGS, THREATEN TO WRITE US UP FOR, FOR BEING LATE DESPITE [04:15:01] BEING TOLD THAT THERE'S A GRACE PERIOD. UM, BUT THINK ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT THAT CREATE. WHEN WE GET INTO THE OFTEN, OFTENTIMES WE HAVE TO PRIORITIZE OUR ROUTES 'CAUSE WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TRASH, UM, FUNCTIONAL TRUCKS AND PERSONNEL TO FULFILL THE PREVIOUS DAY ROUTES OF TRASH AND ORGANICS. WHEN WE GET OUT INTO THE FIELD, WE HAVE RFIS AND MANAGERS THAT FOLLOW US AROUND AND THEY MONITOR US. THEY LEMME JUST READ IT . THEY FOLLOW US AROUND AND THEY MONITOR US. UH, WHERE AM I AT? TELL ABOUT THEY CALL THE PHONE EMPLOYEES JUST STARTED. UH, THEN WE GET INTO THE OFFICE AND FIND OUT THE ROUTES HAVE TO BE PRIORITIZED. SO WE'RE STILL TRYING TO COMPLETE ORGANICS AND TRASH ROUTES LEFT OVER FROM THE PREVIOUS DAY. FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE, THE PROBLEM ISN'T THAT WE DON'T WANNA DO THE WORK. IT'S, WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH FUNCTIONAL TRUCKS AND PEOPLE TO DO THE JOB THAT'S PROVIDED. YEAH. THEN WE GET INTO THE FIELD WHERE RFIS AND SUPERVISORS MAY FOLLOW US AROUND AND MONITOR US TO MAKE SURE WE'RE WORKING SAFELY AND QUICKLY ENOUGH TO GET THE ROUTES PICKED UP. WE UNDERSTAND ACCOUNTABILITY AND WE UNDERSTAND SUPERVISORS HAVE A JOB AND RESPONSIBILITY. BUT THERE'S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ACCOUNTABILITY AND CREATING A CULTURE WHERE EMPLOYEES CONSTANTLY FEEL WATCHED, MICROMANAGED, PRESSURE THREATENED AND RUSH. THE PRESSURE HAS CONSEQUENCES. IT CREATE MENTAL STRESS, IT CREATE PHYSICAL STRESS. AND IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THE WORKPLACE STRESS CAN HAVE ON OUR MENTAL HEALTH. WHEN THE DEMANDS OF THE JOB BECOME OVERWHELMING, THE STRESS DOESN'T ALWAYS STOP WHEN THE WORKDAYS ENDS. IT CAN AFFECT OUR WELLBEING, OUR FAMILIES, AND ABILITY TO CONTINUE TO GIVE IN OUR BEST TO THE COMMUNITY WE SERVE. WHEN EMPLOYEE PERFORMING, DEMANDING PHYSICAL LABOR FEEL PRESSURE AND STRESS TO WORK FASTER BECAUSE THERE AREN'T ENOUGH PEOPLE OR ENOUGH TRUCKS TO COMPLETE THE ROUTES, WE HAVE TO ASK WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR OUR SAFETY? WHEN I WAS HIRED, I UNDERSTOOD THAT WE WOULD BE SERVICING TRASH RECEPTACLES. BUT TODAY OUR JOB TEST HAS CHANGED. OUR WORKLOAD HAS CHANGED. WHEN I GOT HIRED, WE DIDN'T HAVE ORGANICS IMPLEMENTED THE WAY IT IS TODAY. AND WE ARE NOW EXPECTED TO HANDLE BOTH TRASH AND ORGANICS. THE JOB HAS CHANGED BUT HAVE THE STAFFING, THE EQUIPMENT, THE TRAINING, THE COMPENSATION, THE SUPPORT CHANGED ENOUGH FOOT HERE. THAT'S THE QUESTION I ASKED LEADERSHIP. AND I WANNA MAKE THIS VERY CLEAR. MY ARGUMENT TODAY IS NOT ABOUT BLACK AND BROWN. IT'S ABOUT RIGHT AND WRONG. WHEN THE CITY GUARD OR DEPARTMENT IMPLEMENT NEW PROGRAMS, WE ASKED THE LEADERSHIP CONS. CONSIDER THE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY HAVE TO CARRY OUT THE PROGRAM BEFORE ADDING MORE WORK. LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES AVAILABLE. LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF FUNCTIONING TRUCKS, THE EXISTING ROUTE, THE INJURY, THE FATIGUE, AND THE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL STRESS IS BEING PLACED UPON EMPLOYEES THAT HAVE TO CON DO THE JOB. WE AREN'T ASKING TO TAKE ACCOUNTABILITY AWAY. WE'RE ASKING TO MAKE ACCOUNTABILITY. SIR, YOU'RE CONCLUDED. THANK YOU. ONLY GOD CAN JUDGE ME. WE SAY WITH OUR CHEST WHEN WE COME UP HERE FOR FOUR YEARS. I STOOD BEFORE YOU RAISE THE CONCERNS ABOUT THE CONDITION AND WORKPLACE CULTURE INSIDE THE THE REFUGE DEPARTMENT. I HAVE SPOKEN UP, NOT BECAUSE I WANT ATTENTION, BUT BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT THE PEOPLE WHO WORK THERE AND THE ONES THAT CAME BEFORE US WHO DEDICATE YEARS OF THEIR LIVES IN THIS DEPARTMENT. VETERANS HAVE CAME AND RAISED THE SAME CONCERNS. WORKERS HAVE CAME AND RAISED THE SAME CONCERNS. I HAVE TAKEN THESE CONCERNS TO EVERY CORNER OF LEADERSHIP, BELIEVING EVENTUALLY SOMEONE WILL LISTEN, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY AND DO SOMETHING. YEP. BUT FROM THE DECO ERA UNTIL TODAY, NOTHING HAS TRULY CHANGED. FOUR YEARS LATER, WE ARE STILL IN THE SAME PLACE TALKING ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEMS WHILE THE PEOPLE ARE SUP, WHILE THE PE, WHILE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SUPPOSED TO BE LEADING AND PROTECTING THE EMPLOYEES CONTINUE TO LET THESE ISSUES GO UNRESOLVED. LET ME BE CLEAR. THE COUNCIL AND THE MAYOR PROBLEMS ARE WHAT YOU WERE ELECTED TO SOLVE. THAT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY. I'M STANDING HERE TONIGHT BECAUSE I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THAT THIS IS AS GOOD AS IT GET. I REFUSE TO ACCEPT THAT FOUR YEARS OF RAISING LEGITIMATE CONCERN SHOULD END WITH SILENCE AND INACT IN INACTION. THE WORKERS OF THE REFUSE DEPARTMENT DESERVE DIGNITY, RESPECT, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND THE WORKPLACE CULTURE WHERE THEIR VOICES MATTER. WE HAVE BEEN PATIENT, WE HAVE BEEN PERSISTENT. WE HAVE GONE THROUGH THE PROPER CHANNELS. NOW I'M ASKING THIS COUNCIL AND THIS MAYOR TO STOP TALKING AROUND THE PROBLEMS AND START SOLVING IT. BECAUSE, BECAUSE WHEN THE PEOPLE ELECTED TO SOLVE THE PROBLEMS, BECOME THE REASON, THE PROBLEMS CONTINUE, THEN WE HAVE TO ASK A VERY SERIOUS QUESTION. WHO IS REALLY SERVED BY THE SYSTEM? YOU KNOW, I WANNA SAY MORE. I WANT TO CRY 'CAUSE IT'S F****D UP WHAT Y'ALL DO TO ME IN THE REFUSE DEPARTMENT. UM, BUT I GOTTA KEEP MY HEAD HIGH FOR THE PEOPLE THAT'S ROOTING ON, ROOTING FOR ME. STAND IN FRONT OF Y'ALL AND COME AND GIVE Y'ALL PEACE OF MY MIND. NOW REX, WHAT I MENTIONED LAST, LAST WEEK ABOUT CHRISTOPHER DONNER. IT [04:20:01] WAS HIS MENTAL HEALTH. WHAT GOT HIM, WHAT TOOK WHAT, WHAT HE WENT THROUGH FILING COMPLAINTS AFTER COMPLAINTS AFTER COMPLAINTS AFTER COMPLAINTS. AND HE WAS RETALIATED AGAINST AND HE GOT FIRED. HE WAS A BLACK MAN. STANDING UP FOR YOU TO SAY WHAT YOU SAID AND TELL ME FOR WELL, WHATEVER YOU DID. MADE THE CALL. PUT THE CALL IN AND PUT ME ON ADMINISTRATION. ADMINISTRATION LEAVE, ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE. I THINK THAT'S F****D UP. STRAIGHT UP. YEP. YOU GUYS HAVE A BLESSED DAY AND PROTECT ALL WORKERS. WOO. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR ALL THE VICTIMS AND FAMILIES THAT HAVE BEEN NEGATIVELY AND FATALLY AFFECTED BY THIS VERY CITY COUNCIL AND THEIR SLAVE CATCHER PERSONNEL, THE LONG BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT AND ICE. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, WHITE SUPREMACIST. AND THANK YOU FOR THE PUBLIC FOR STAYING THIS LONG WHILE OUR MAYOR THANKED THE DISHONORABLE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS FOR A HORRIBLE, UH, BUDGET LINEUP. THE REASON I COME TO CITY COUNCIL EVERY TUESDAY UNPAID, UNLIKE YOU, IS BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT OUR HUMAN CITIZENS AND AM AND IMMIGRANTS. THERE'S A COP IN HERE THAT TOLD ME, BASICALLY HE GETS HIS NEWS FROM US. HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THE CITY COUNCIL IS DOING. HE KNOWS WHAT'S GOING ON BECAUSE WE COME AND ELABORATE ON THE, UH, LACK OF TRANSPARENCY THAT YOU ALL HAVE. SHAME ON YOU. WHAT CITY COUNCIL NEEDS TO DO RIGHT NOW IS SUPPORT THE 3 MILLION FOR THE LB JUSTICE FUND, STRUCTURAL FUNDING, OUR LIBRARIES, OUR CROSS GUARDS, AND OUR UNION JOBS. AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, ESPECIALLY FOR TONIGHT, REX, YOU NEED TO APOLOGIZE TO ANTHONY HOLMES OF THE COALITION AGAINST ANTI-BLACKNESS FOR THE F*****G DISRESPECT THAT YOU SHOW HIM EVERY SINGLE TIME HE COMES UP HERE AND YOU'RE NOT EVEN LOOKING 'CAUSE YOU DON'T GIVE A F**K ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE. THAT'S THE F*****G TRUTH. AND EVERYBODY HERE KNOWS IT. I GOT ABOUT A MINUTE LEFT HERE, SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND DO WHAT I DO EVERY TIME I COME TO CITY COUNCIL IS TO MAKE SURE THAT, LET ME SEE IF I EVEN HAVE MY STUFF RIGHT HERE. ACTUALLY. THERE IT IS. REMEMBER THAT CITY COUNCIL NEEDS TO, UH, END ITS CITY CONTRACTS WITH COMPANIES, LEXINEXIS GENERAL DYNAMICS, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES GOV, INC. CTW, GOVERNMENT CONNECTION AND DRILL A WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION COMPANY THAT'S, UH, BEING BUILT BY THE AIRPORT FLOCK THAT WEAPONIZES SURVEILLANCE AGAINST CITIZENS. UM, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW IF PEOPLE KNOW THAT THIS WHOLE PANEL, THEY'RE ALL WHITE SUPREMACISTS. CINDY, I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A COUPLE OF FLOWERS, BUT PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE SPEAKING UP FOR BLACK WORKERS AND OUR IMMIGRANT WORKERS HERE TOO. UM, I DON'T KNOW. FREE PALESTINE. F**K ISRAEL. F**K YOU REX. F**K YOU TOMOKA. YOU F*****G PIECE OF S**T. F*****G LOSER. YOU WHITE SUPREMACISTS. YEAH, YOU'RE GONNA HEAR IT. YOU'RE GONNA HEAR IT EVERY SINGLE TIME BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT F*****G DOING WHAT WE'RE TELLING YOU TO DO. WELL, THAT'S TIME. NEXT SPEAKER. SPEAK. NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. NEXT SPEAKER IS CHARLIE. GO F**K YOURSELF. CAN YOU PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF, CHARLIE? YEAH, I'M HERE. I WISH, I WISH I COULD SAY I WAS SAYING ANYTHING DIFFERENT THAN MY PREDECESSOR, BUT I'M REALLY JUST NOT A RENTER IN DISTRICT FIVE. I DO NEED TO THANK ALL OF THE PEOPLE IN THE AUDIENCE WHO HAVE BEEN THERE ALL NIGHT AND ALL THE PEOPLE WHO ARE STILL ON ZOOM WITH ME BECAUSE THIS IS A LONG ASS WAIT. AND Y'ALL HAVE JUST PUT US THROUGH IT. UM, THANK YOU TO THE TECH FOLKS WHO GOT THE TECH WORKING 'CAUSE OH MY GOD, THE AUDIO WAS F*****G TERRIBLE. UM, I'M HERE TO CALL ON CITY COUNCIL TONIGHT TO RESTORE FULL PUBLIC COMMENT TO THE CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS IN PALESTINE. ISRAEL IS EXACTING A GENOCIDE IN LONG BEACH. YOU'RE OPENING THE DOORS WIDE OPEN TO ISRAEL'S INDUSTRIES AND SILENCING THOSE OF US WHO WOULD CALL YOU OUT FOR IT. YOU HOLD GOVERNMENT SERVICES HOSTAGE WHILE SMILING IN YOUR HARD HATS. BREAKING GROUND ON BUILDINGS THAT YOU THAT SERVE THE SURVEILLANCE STATE THAT LINES YOUR POCKETS. 18 NEW A LPR CAMERAS, NEW SPACES FOR AI RUN AND DRILL AND THE HANDING HANDLING OF [04:25:01] THIS YEAR'S BUDGET. DISCUSSIONS DON'T LEAVE A LOT FOR YOUR CONSTITUENTS TO BE PROUD OF. NOT TO MENTION THIS WEEK'S SPECTACULAR WAVES THAT LED TO MULTIPLE HOMES IN THE PENINSULA BEING EVACUATED. EVERYWHERE I LOOK, Y'ALL ARE FALLING SHORT PUBLIC COMMENT. YOUR BEST LINK TO YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND WHAT MATTERS TO THEM IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG. DON'T LOSE THAT CONNECTION TO THE REALITY OF LIVING IN THIS CITY. NO ONE HAS THAT LUXURY, ESPECIALLY NOT THOSE IN CHARGE OF MAKING SURE THE CITY IS SAFE AND EQUITABLE FOR EVERYONE. RESTORE PUBLIC COMMENT. IN FACT, YOU SHOULD DOUBLE IT ALSO. MEG, YOU ARE KOWTOWING TO THE PARTY LINE AND I'M FED THE F**K UP. YOU ARE A DISAPPOINTMENT ON I REGRET YOU BEING IN OFFICE. THANK YOU. HAVE A WONDERFUL EVENING TO EVERYONE IN THE AUDIENCE, YOU'RE ALL FABULOUS. I YIELD MY TIME. NEXT SPEAKER LEE CHARLIE, CAN YOU PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF? LEE CHARLIE, PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF. NEXT SPEAKER SOCIAL UPRISING AND THEN CONCERN RESIDENT NUMBER TWO, IF YOU CAN MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE LECTERN. SO THE OTHER DAY I WAS, I WAS DOWN BY THE BEACH AND, UH, OH, MY, MY FRIENDS AND I WERE, WERE USING THE RESTROOM AND YOU KNOW, I WAS SWEARING. THERE'S JUST A POLICE OFFICER ON A BIKE JUST SITTING AROUND THERE, JUST WAITING AROUND. UH, YOU KNOW, KNOW A FEW OF US USE THE RESTROOM, WE GET DONE AND JUST COMES UP AND, AND LOCKS THE DOORS. THAT'S A BATHROOM ATTENDANT THAT BY MR. MOCA'S. UH, PRESENTATION IS MAKING OVER $200,000 A YEAR. I GO TO THE NICEST CLUB. NICEST PART OF LA ISN'T NOT BATHROOM ATTENDANT MAKING 200 KA YEAR . THIS IS WHY WE'RE P*****G AWAY ALL OUR MONEY. 'CAUSE EVERY SINGLE LITTLE THING HAS TO BE DONE BY THE POLICE. LIKE, WHAT'S NEXT? YOU'RE GONNA REPLACE THE, THE FINE MEN WHO SPOKE EARLIER WITH POLICE. 'CAUSE THERE MIGHT BE A CRIMINAL HIDING IN MY TRASH. LIKE THAT'S, THAT'S THE, THE KIND OF LOGIC THIS CITY IS OPERATING ON. THIS IS WHY OUR FISCAL SITUATION IS SO JACKED UP. 'CAUSE WE JUST KEEP GIVING MONEY TO THE POLICE. LIKE THEY'RE OUR TEENAGE KID THAT WE JUST CAN'T SAY NO TO. PLAYED CALL OF DUTY ONE TIME. AND HE IS LIKE, I WANT A ROCKET LAUNCHER. , I WANT HELICOPTER. YOU'RE LIKE, YES, JIMMY O OKAY. OKAY, WE'LL GET YOU THE ROCKET LAUNCHER, WE'LL GET YOU THE HELICOPTER LIKE SH SHOW, SHOW SOME FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY. SHOW SOME WILLINGNESS TO MANAGE THE LIABILITIES THAT THE DEPARTMENT IS PUTTING ON, PUTTING ON THIS CITY AND OUR TAXPAYERS FI HI. HIRE PEOPLE TO DO THE JOBS THAT MAKE SENSE. HIRE TRAINED CRISIS MANAGEMENT WORKERS. HIRE MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS. F FIX FIX THE STREETS. FIX THE CONDITIONS THAT ARE CAUSING THIS SO-CALLED CRIME, WHICH I, I DON'T UNDERSTAND IF IT'S A PROBLEM BECAUSE IT'S EITHER LIKE THAT CRIME HAS GONE UP SO WE HAVE TO FUND THE POLICE 'CAUSE THAT'S THE ONLY THING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT. OR CRIME IS DOWN, WHICH MEANS THE POLICE ARE WORKING. SO WE HAVE TO GIVE THEM MORE MONEY AS A, IT'S A LOSE LOSE. UH, IL LAST CAN CAN, CAN WE FIX THAT G*****N SCREEN? ? I AM A LEFT HAND A I GOTTA LAUGH OUTTA YOU, REX. I KNOW, I KNOW, I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE. SO YEAH, I'M A LEFTHANDED INDIVIDUAL. I JUST NATURALLY WRITE MYSELF THIS WAY. LIKE, I CAN'T TELL HOW MUCH TIME I HAVE LEFT. I, YEAH, I DON'T KNOW IF NOTHING ELSE, JUST DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT MAN. . NEXT SPEAKER. CONCERN RESIDENT NUMBER TWO. IF YOU'RE IN THE AUDIENCE, PLEASE COME FORWARD. WELL, AND THIS [04:30:01] HAS BEEN A LONG NIGHT AND, UM, I COME HERE OFTEN, UM, BECAUSE I CARE. I, I REALLY CARE ABOUT MY COMMUNITY. I CARE ABOUT EVERYONE. AND THAT IS PAID OR NOT PAID, BUT THEY'RE HERE. UM, I CARE ABOUT MY NEIGHBORS AND PEOPLE THAT HAVE BECOME MY FRIENDS. AND I'M WONDERING, UM, THIS PLACE IS LIKE A PLACE OF, UM, DYSFUNCTION AT TIMES TOO MANY TIMES. UM, I THINK THAT THERE'S A LOT OF MIS UH, INFORMATION, A LOT OF MISEDUCATION, UH, UM, AND A LOT OF DISRESPECT, UM, GOING ON AND, AND, AND WHEN MY NEIGHBORS ARE ANGRY LIKE THEY ARE. 'CAUSE I'M ANGRY TOO, BUT, YOU KNOW, MY MOM REST IN PEACE. SHE WOULDN'T ALLOW ME TO SAY SOME OF THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE ARE ALLOWED TO SAY, BUT THEY'RE ALLOWED TO SAY IT. AND I FEEL IT DEEPLY. I FEEL IT. AND, UH, I FEEL LIKE THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS, IS CREATED IN A WAY WHERE WE'RE REALLY NOT ABLE TO, TO SPEAK TO YOU GUYS UNLESS WE COME HERE. MM-HMM . THEY DON'T ANSWER EMAILS, THEY ANSWER 'EM MAYBE MONTHS LATER. UH, PHONE CALLS. WHY EVEN CALL, YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T GET A RETURN RESPONSE. AND WE HAVE IDEAS. WE HAVE GREAT IDEAS. SOME OF US, LIKE WHEN YOU FIRST MET ME, I FIRST MET YOU, YOU, I TOLD YOU I'M, I'M A CITY NERD, OKAY? I WORKED 18 YEARS FOR THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES. I GET IT. I HAD TO FIGHT FOR MY JOB TOO WHEN THEY TRIED TO GET RID RID OF THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, UH, EMPLOYEES, RIGHT? AND SO ALL I'M SAYING TODAY IS WE HAVE TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING DIFFERENT. WE HAVE TO COME UP WITH A WAY TO COMMUNICATE AND TO SEE THAT YOU'RE LISTENING. TO SEE THAT THE RECEIPTS ARE RECEDING AROUND HERE. AND IT LOOKS LIKE MIS IT IS GIVING MISMANAGEMENT. AND I'M TRYING VERY, VERY HARD TO BE UNDERSTANDABLE. BUT THAT'S WHAT IT'S LOOKING LIKE. IT'S LOOKING LIKE WE'RE NOT LOOKING INTO, LIKE CHRISTINA DUGGAN SAID, LOOK INTO ALTERNATIVES. DO THAT YEARS IN ADVANCE BEFORE ALL THIS S**T HAPPENS. I I, I'M JUST SO DISTURBED BY IT AND I JUST WANT THINGS. I WANT US TO ALL PUT EACH OTHER IN EACH OTHER'S SHOES. 'CAUSE MY NEIGHBORS ARE COMING UP HERE ANGRY FOR A REASON. AND WE NEED TO FIND OUT WHY. AND WE NEED TO FIND OUT TO FIX HOW WE CAN FIX IT. WE NEED TO DO MORE AND WE NEED TO NEED TO TO SHOW THE PEOPLE THAT ARE AN ADDITIONAL, YOU DON'T HAVE AN ADDITIONAL MINUTE, BUT I CAN HEAR YOU. YOU WANNA FINISH THAT THOUGHT? I COULD JUST SAY, I WANT SAY THIS, PROTECT HUMAN RIGHT STAND AGAINST RIGHTS AND VOTING ARMS COMMITTED UNDER COLOR OF LAW. THANK YOU. IF YOU'RE NOT DOING ENOUGH, FAMILIES ARE LIVING IN TERROR. AND I'M SICK TO MY SON. THANK YOU MORE OUT HERE LIVING IN TERROR BECAUSE I COME FROM A LINEAGE OF CARE. THANK YOU IN THE CRIME SCENE. OUR FINAL SPEAKER IS LEE CHARLIE, CAN YOU PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF, LEE? CHARLIE, I SUBMITTED NOT FOR THIS PUBLIC CUP. THIS IS NOT FINAL PUBLIC COMMENT. THIS IS FIRST PUBLIC COMMENT FOR 10 SPEAKERS. SECOND PUBLIC COMMENT WILL BE SHORTLY. LEE, CHARLIE, CAN YOU PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF? WORK. HELLO. WE CAN HEAR YOU. PLEASE PROCEED. OH, OKAY. THANK YOU. I HOPE EVERYONE HAD A HAPPY LABOR DAY. THIS IS LEE CHARLIE, DISTRICT TWO RESIDENT ALAMEDO SPEECH NEIGHBORHOOD. AND I, UM, THINK TONIGHT WAS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF WHAT I'VE BEEN DYING TO SPEAK ON. SO I'M GONNA READ, OH, AND UNFORTUNATELY I HAVE SPENT PRETTY MUCH THE MAJORITY OF THIS YEAR IN COURT FI FIGHTING FREE SPEECH. AND SO, UM, I'VE LEARNED A LOT UNDER THE CALIFORNIA RALPH M. BROWN ACT. THE STATE'S [04:35:01] OPEN MEETING LAW, THE CONCEPT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE OR SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE PRIMARILY APPLIES TO TWO SCENARIOS REGARDING MOTIONS AND AGENDA ITEMS. WHICH AN EXAMPLE THAT JUST HAPPENED IS AGENDA 19, THE SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE AGENDA RULE. A LEGISLATIVE BODY IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED FROM TAKING ACTION ON AN ITEM. WHEN THERE'S A MOTION OR AGENDA THAT HAS SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE, THE PUBLIC HAS TO BE ALLOWED TO SPEAK LIKE ON AGENDA ITEM B TWO. SO CONGRATULATIONS, Y'ALL JUST VIOLATED THE BROWN ACT BY NOT LETTING TENS OF THOUSANDS OF RENTERS WEIGH IN ON THE PARKING. SO I'M GONNA CONTACT THE LAW FIRM ABOUT YOU GUYS VIOLATING THE SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE OF THE BROWN ACT. NUMBER TWO, THE CONSEQUENCE, AND I'M READING FOR THE LAW GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 5 4 9 5 4 0.3 SPECIFICALLY OUTLINES IT. AND THEN THE SECOND PART IS COMBINING ALL PUBLIC COMMENT AND SPEECH AGENDA. HYPOTHETICALLY, AGENDA ONE, TWO, AND THREE, RIGHT? ONE, TWO, AND THREE. THEN THAT MEANS THAT ALL AGENDA ITEMS HAVE TO BE CONDENSED AS AGENDA ITEM ONE A, ONE B, ONE C 1D. BECAUSE IF YOU'RE GONNA GROUP ALL OF US TO SPEAK ON 60 SECONDS ON ALL THE AGENDA ITEMS, YOU NOW HAVE TO VOTE ON ONE AGENDA ITEM WITH ALL SUBSETS JUST LIKE YOU DO IN THE, UM, CONSENT CALENDAR. IF NOT, YOU JUST VIOLATED THE BROWN ACT. SO I APPRECIATE CINDY ALLEN AND DUGGAN. THE WAY TO GET AROUND IT GUYS IS CINDY ALLEN CAN DO A MOTION. DUGGAN JUST NEEDS TO APPROVE IT, AND THEN THE PUBLIC HAS TO COME UP. SO THEREFORE YOU DON'T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT OUR TIME BEING SHORTENED EVERY AGENDA ITEM. IF THIS MOTION IS NOT, IF IT PASSES AND THE ORDINANCE CHANGE, EVERYBODY CAN COME TO CITY COUNCIL. CINDY ALLEN AND DUGGAN CAN DO A MOTION. THEY CAN SECOND IT AND THEN IT HAS TO OPEN UP PUBLIC COMMENT. SO THANK YOU TWO LADIES FOR STAYING UP. AND UM, LASTLY, I'M FORMING A PACK DISTRICT ONE AND NINE. I'M COMING FOR YOUR RECALL. LET ME KNOW, GUYS, I'VE GOT THE MONEY, I'VE GOT THE TIME. WHOEVER WANTS TO INCREASE OUR PARKING, REACH OUT TO LEE, CHARLIE, AND LET'S GET THE RECALL GOING ON FORMING AN FEPC IMPACT DR. JONI AND MARY, GET READY FOR A RECALL. THAT'S YOUR NOTICE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THAT CONCLUDES PUBLIC COMMENT. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. NOW LET'S START THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING. UM, ITEM 20 IS WITHDRAWN ON BEVERLY O'NEAL WAY. SO LET'S READ ITEM 21. PLEASE REPORT FROM HEALTH AND HUMAN [20. 26-56040 WITHDRAWN Recommendation to request City Manager to coordinate with Community Development and Public Works Departments to take necessary actions to provide commemorative and directional signage and execute a street name change on East Lew Davis Street, from Clark Avenue to Faculty Avenue, to “Beverly O’Neill Way”; and Authorize City Manager to direct the Public Works Director to change maps and street signs as necessary and transmit information to all relevant departments.       Office or Department: Megan Kerr, Councilwoman, Fifth District; Roberto Uranga, Vice Mayor, Seventh District         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] [21. 26-55957 Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute an agreement, and all necessary documents or subsequent amendments, including amendments to the award amount or terms, with the Board of State and Community Corrections to accept and expend grant funding in the amount of $4,499,948, for the Proposition 64 Public Health and Safety Grant Program to enhance youth prevention, community education, and responsible cannabis retail efforts that promote public health and safety in Long Beach, for the period of July 1, 2026, through December 31, 2031 at the discretion of the City Manager; and  Increase appropriations in the Health Fund Group in the Health and Human Services Department in the amount of $4,499,948, offset by grant revenues. (Citywide)       Office or Department: Health and Human Services         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] SERVICES RECOMMENDATION TO EXECUTE AN AGREEMENT AND ALL NECESSARY DOCUMENTS OR SUBSEQUENT AMENDMENTS WITH BOARD OF STATE AND COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS TO ACCEPT AND EXPEND GRANT FUNDING IN THE AMOUNT OF FOUR 4,499,948 FOR THE PROPOSITION 64 PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY GRANT PROGRAM TO ENHANCE YOUTH PREVENTION, COMMUNITY EDUCATION, AND RESPONSIBLE CANNABIS RETAIL EFFORTS THAT PROMOTE PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY AND INCREASE APPROPRIATIONS IN THE AMOUNT OF 4,499,948 OFFSET BY GRANT REVENUES CITYWIDE. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. IS ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM? ALRIGHT, COMMENT, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. YES. SO LUCY MOTION IS CARRIED. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. 22. PLEASE REPORT FROM HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES RECOMMENDATION TO EXECUTE [22. 26-55958 Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute an agreement, all necessary documents, and any subsequent amendments, to the award amount or term, with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, to accept and expend funding in the amount of $1,490,000, for the Community Crisis Response Team for a one-year period estimated to begin September 30, 2026, with the option to extend for three additional one-year periods, at the discretion of the City Manager; and  Increase appropriations in the Health Fund Group in the Health and Human Services Department by $1,490,000, offset by grant revenues. (Citywide)       Office or Department: Health and Human Services         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ] AN AGREEMENT, ALL NECESSARY DOCUMENTS, AND ANY SUBSEQUENT AMENDMENTS WITH THE SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION TO ACCEPT AND EXPEND FUNDING IN THE AMOUNT OF 1,490,000 FOR THE COMMUNITY CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM AND INCREASE APPROPRIATIONS BY 1,490,000 OFFSET BY GRANT REVENUES CITYWIDE. ALRIGHT, IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? THERE'S, THERE ARE THREE SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM, SEYMOUR MENTAL HEALTH LAW AND FB, IF YOU CAN MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE LECTERN ALL PLEASE PROCEED, SEYMOUR, PLEASE. GOOD EVENING, COUNSEL. UM, THIS ITEM NUMBER 22 KIND OF SPOKE TO ME BECAUSE, UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S SUICIDE PREVENTION MONTH, UH, MENTAL HEALTH WAS MENTIONED THROUGHOUT THE BUDGET, UH, PROCEEDINGS. AND, UH, I THINK THIS IS GREAT. UH, ONE ALMOST $0.5 MILLION GRANT TO FUND, UH, THE CCR, THE COMMUNITY CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM IS FABULOUS. BUT THEN I WONDER, WHAT IF THIS GRANT WASN'T THERE? DOES THAT MEAN THE CCR TEAM IS GONE BECAUSE IT'S ALREADY BARE BONES? UH, RIGHT NOW THE COMMUNITY CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM IS I BELIEVE, FIVE STAFF MEMBERS AND THEY'RE OPEN LESS THAN BANKER'S HOURS FROM 10 TO FIVE. SO IF YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS, [04:40:02] UH, BE POSSIBLY ABOUT TO DO SELF-HARM AND CALL FOR HELP OR NEED A WELFARE CHECK, IT HAS TO BE BETWEEN 10:00 AM AND 5:00 PM I SEE ALL THE TIME IN MY COMMUNITY AND ALL OVER LONG BEACH, UH, UNHOUSED FOLKS, PEOPLE IN MENTAL HEALTH CRISES, AND WHO'S THE FIRST PERSON TO SHOW UP? A POLICE OFFICER WITH A BADGE AND A GUN? OKAY? POLICE OFFICERS WITH BADGES AND GUNS GENERALLY DO NOT DEESCALATE SITUATIONS WHERE PEOPLE ARE TRIGGERED AND TRAUMA AND YOU KNOW THAT THEY DON'T. I'M JUST, WHAT I SEE WHEN I GO AND I'M A CONSPICUOUS WHITE SUBURBAN GUY AND I GO AND STAND CONSPICUOUSLY AND I OBSERVE, I NOTICE THE BEHAVIOR IN THE TIMUR OF HOW THE POLICE OFFICERS INTERACT IN PARTICULARLY WITH THE, UH, UNHOUSED POPULATION CHANGES DRAMATICALLY. OKAY? THOSE AREN'T THE FOLKS WE SHOULD HAVE IN CRISIS SITUATIONS. SO THIS GRANT IS GREAT, BUT RIGHT NOW THE LBPD HAS ALMOST 12 THOU 12 1,200 TOTAL PERSONNEL. CCR HAS FIVE. OKAY? SO FORGET THIS GRANT. WE SHOULD BE TAKING SOME OF THAT MONEY FROM THE POLICE BUDGET. $80 MILLION HAS GONE INTO THE POLICE BUDGET FOR THE LAST, UH, FIVE YEARS. SO IT'S GONE UP BY 80 MILLION, RIGHT? I KNOW YOU'VE LIKE, THERE'S SOME REDUNDANCIES OR VACANCIES THAT YOU ARE NOT GONNA REFILL AND, UH, OKAY, THAT'S GREAT WHEN WE'RE DOWN $60 MILLION IN OUR BUDGET, UH, THAT'S A START. BUT IT SEEMS TO ME LIKE THE POLICE ARE ALWAYS SAFE AND THEY'RE BEING ASKED TO DO JOBS THAT THEY SHOULDN'T BE DOING. WE SHOULD HAVE PEOPLE LIKE THE CCR. THERE SHOULD BE ONE OF THOSE IN EVERY COUNCIL DISTRICT 24 HOURS A DAY READY TO RESPOND TO NON-LIFE THREATENING EMERGENCY OR NONVIOLENT EMERGENCIES. DO BETTER STOP GIVING THE COPS ALL OF OUR MONEY. OKAY? I, I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY LIKE THIS HAPPENS EVERY BUDGET SEASON. THEY SEEM TO BE THE ONLY ONES THAT ARE ABOVE GETTING CUT. OKAY? WE DON'T NEXT SPEAKER'S LAW AND THEN FB. ALRIGHT, SO I'VE BEEN HOLDING UP THIS SIGN AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE CAN SEE IT. BUCKEYE FREE PALESTINE. UM, HI ALL. UM, I MISSED YOU GUYS A LOT. NOT, UM, HOW ARE YOU ENJOYING YOUR BONUSES? IT MUST BE NICE, RIGHT? I KNOW MANY OF YOU SAID THAT YOU'RE GONNA GIVE IT TO THE CHARITY OF YOUR CHOICE. . SORRY, THAT WAS JUST B******T. UM, AND TOMMY, MR. MONICA RIGHT THERE, THE ONE THAT NO ONE VOTED FOR, UM, THE ONE THAT YOU GUYS VOTED FOR, WHICH WE INTERN VOTED FOR YOU GUYS, WE DIDN'T KNOW WHO THE F**K THIS GUY IS. WE STILL DUNNO WHO HE IS. UM, THIS IS THE $400,000 PLUS. UM, HOW ARE YOU ENJOYING THE BONUS THAT YOU GAVE YOURSELF? BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHAT, YOU GUYS PUT US IN THIS SITUATION THAT YOU HAVE TO MAKE CUTS. IT'S LIKE, HMM, REMINDS ME OF TRUMP, RIGHT? GOING AND INVADING IRAN AND THEN, UH, CREATING A MESS THAT HE HAS TO CLEAN UP. SO, UH, YOU GUYS ARE ACTUALLY REALLY GOOD STUDENTS OF HIS, YOU KNOW, YOU GUYS REALLY SCREWED THE POOCH AS YOU HELP THIS COMMUNITY PACK THE HOUSE. FINALLY, WE GET MORE PEOPLE IN HERE BECAUSE IT'S AFFECTING THEM. AND IF YOU GUYS THINK THAT'S GONNA STOP, IT'S NOT. AND THANKS TO YOU GUYS, I APPRECIATE IT. THAT'S THE ONE GOOD THING YOU A******S HAVE DONE. I HOPE THIS CONTINUES. AND THE LEAST YOU GUYS CAN DO IS EXPAND THE COMMUNITY CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM. I WORK IN MENTAL HEALTH. I KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON OUT THERE. PEOPLE ARE IN CRISIS, EITHER DUE TO ICE RAIDS THAT YOU GUYS ARE NOT HELPING WITH. YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ARE GETTING ABDUCTED, KIDS ARE HAVING THEIR FAMILIES TAKEN AWAY. PEOPLE ARE ON THE STREETS, THEY DON'T HAVE FOOD OR THEY HAVE TO CHOOSE WHICH BILL AM I GONNA PAY? HMM. DO I FEED MY FAMILY TODAY? OR, UM, DO I PAY THE BILLS THAT'S GONNA LEAD THE LIGHT ON SO THAT MY KIDS COULD ACTUALLY DO THEIR HOMEWORK THAT CAUSES MENTAL HEALTH STRESS? AND YOU GUYS ARE THE CULPRITS. YOU, YOU KNOW, THIS IS F*****G FUNDAMENTALS. THIS IS WHAT WE, WELL, I DID IT. I DIDN'T VOTE FOR ANY OF YOU M***********S. AND BY THE WAY, I WILL BE ASSISTING [04:45:01] WITH TAKING AS MANY OF YOU OUT AND PUTTING PEOPLE THAT WANNA COME IN AND ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING FOR THEIR CONSTITUENTS. YOU KNOW, I ASK, EVEN THOUGH I KNOW YOU'RE NOT GONNA DO IT, DO THE F*****G RIGHT THING. OH YEAH, F**K ICE FREE PALESTINE, FREE CUBA, FREE VENEZUELA, FREE IRAN, AND JUST WAIT. PEOPLE ARE COMING FOR YOUR JOBS. F**K YOUR HELLO AGAIN. WHITE SUPREMACIST. UM, AGENDA ITEM 22 IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, UH, BECAUSE IT DOES EMPHASIZE MENTAL HEALTH. SEPTEMBER IS SUICIDE AWARENESS MONTH. UM, A LOT OF THE MISCALCULATIONS THAT YOU GUYS HAVE ALL COMMITTED ON THIS BUDGET CREATES A MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE FOR RESIDENTS AND WORKERS IN LONG BEACH. UM, LIKE, UH, SEYMOUR EARLIER, WE KNOW WHERE YOU GUYS CAN FUND OUR MENTAL HEALTH BUDGET, UM, AND PREVENT SUICIDE PREVENTION JUST BY SIMPLY, I DON'T KNOW, TAKING SOME OF THAT MONEY FROM TOM MOCA WHO'S EATING RIGHT NOW, UH, TAKING SOME OF THAT MONEY FROM THE POLICE THAT SECURES YOUR PROPERTY AND, UM, CONTINUES TO, UM, HARASS THE COMMUNITY ON BECAUSE YOU'RE SPEAKING OF MENTAL HEALTH AND I'M SPEAKING ABOUT DEFUNDING THE POLICE. BRANDON BOYD, WHO WAS SHOT AT THE CHURCH BY THE LBPD, HI. HIS NAME NEEDS TO BE, SAY, SAID, SAY HIS NAME. BRANDON BOYD. BRANDON BOYD. WE ARE CONCERNED FOR OUR COMMUNITY. THIS IS THE REASON WE COME HERE EVERY SINGLE TUESDAY. UNPAID. UNLIKE YOU, MENTAL HEALTH IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANYTHING BECAUSE OUR HEALTH AND MENTAL, OUR, OUR, OUR MENTAL HEALTH AND AWARENESS OF HOW TO COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER AS CITIZENS AND RESIDENTS, IT MAKES A, IT'S A BIG DEAL. WE LOVE LONG BEACH. WE LOVE LONG BEACH SO MUCH THAT WE COME EVERY TUESDAY TO MAKE SURE TO HIGHLIGHT, UH, THE INFORMATION THAT YOU ARE KEEPING AWAY FROM THE, FROM THE PUBLIC. A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE TUNING IN TO CITY COUNCIL NOW BECAUSE THE PUBLIC IS AWARE OF WHAT YOUR LACK OF IS. AND IT SUCKS BECAUSE YOUR OWN WORKERS COME UP TO US AND TELL US, HEY, WE KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON IN LONG BEACH NOW BECAUSE YOU GUYS COME. HOW DARE YOU AGAIN FOR THIS 1.4, UH, ALMOST $1.5 MILLION BUDGET. TAKE THAT FROM THE POLICE, TAKE THAT FROM YOUR RAISES, TAKE THAT FROM THAT WHITE SUPREMACIST SITTING OVER THERE PRETENDING TO MIND HIS OWN BUSINESS. HE CAN HEAR ME TOM MOCA PIECE OF S**T. . I FEEL GOOD. MY MENTAL HEALTH IS GREAT BECAUSE I GET TO COME UP HERE AND I GET TO UTILIZE MY FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT. F**K YOU, FREE PALESTINE. F**K ISRAEL, F**K ICE. PROTECT BLACK WORKERS BECAUSE WE KNOW YOU DON'T. MAYOR RICHARDSON. THANK YOU. F**K YOU. ALRIGHT, MEMBERS, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. MOTION IS CARRIED. THANK YOU. NOW WE'LL GO TO OUR CLOSING PUBLIC COMMENT. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE FACILITATE. CAN I GET CAROLYN ESSEX, ERIC WOODBY, RITU RUBY TO LINE UP AT THE LECTERN. IF YOU ARE STILL IN THE AUDIENCE, JANE AND JANE DOE. IF YOU ARE HERE FOR SECOND PUBLIC COMMENT, PLEASE LINE UP AT THE LECTERN, PLEASE COME FORWARD. THANK YOU [04:50:02] WAS THE MIRACLE, PLEASE. OKAY, WELL, UM, I AM FRANKLY EMBARRASSED TO ADMIT TO THIS BODY, INCLUDING THE MARERE. I DON'T KNOW WHERE HE WENT. UM, I'M EMBARRASSED TO ADMIT TO THIS BODY THAT I AM DISAPPOINTED. UM, IT'S EMBARRASSING TO ADMIT THAT I'M DISAPPOINTED BECAUSE I REALLY DID THINK THAT, UM, THIS WOULD WORK. SO MANY PEOPLE CAME OUT. I I, I MEAN THIS EARNESTLY. I'M NOT TRYING TO BE MELODRAMATIC. I'M TRYING TO MAKE EYE CONTACT WITH EACH OF YOU. IT IS 9:30 PM THIS IS NOT MY JOB. I KNOW IT IS YOUR JOB. I AM NOT ON THE CLOCK. I REARRANGE MY SCHEDULE FOR THIS . WHEN THE PEOPLE WHO COME OUT TO THESE, WHEN THIS ROOM IS PACKED, EACH OF US ARE LIKE A HUB IN OUR SOCIAL NETWORKS. AND THEN LIKE SPOKEN WHEEL, EACH OF US THEN TELL EACH AND EVERY PERSON IN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK WHAT HAPPENED AT COUNCIL, WHAT'S GOING ON IN SILLY CITY POLITICS? WE ARE LIKE MULTIPLIERS. LIKE, NO, NO OFFENSE, NO ONE'S READING YOUR NEWSLETTERS, BUT THE DORKS WHO COME TO THESE MEETINGS, WE ARE THE ONES WHO EXPLAIN WHAT'S GOING ON. SO WHEN YOU PULL SHENANIGANS, LIKE FIND THE MONEY FOR THE LIBRARY AT THE 11TH HOUR THROUGH INCREASING PARKING FINES, HONESTLY, LIKE WHATEVER PARKING FINES, LIKE THAT'S THE SINGLE LEAST CREATIVE METHOD YOU COULD HAVE POSSIBLY COME UP WITH. BUT LIKE, SURE FINE. WHAT'S SO SLIMY IS TO PULL IT OUTTA YOUR BACK POCKET. AND FOR EVERYONE HERE, THE MOST PLUGGED IN PEOPLE IN THE CITY TO FIND OUT THAT THAT'S THE FUNDING MECHANISM AT THIS MEETING, THAT'S SLIMY FOR EVERYONE TO HAVE NO OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE INPUT ON IT. THAT'S SLIMY. THAT'S WHY PEOPLE DISLIKE YOU GUYS SO MUCH. I'M, I AM EMBARRASSED TO BE DISAPPOINTED BECAUSE SO MANY PEOPLE, HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE, GAVE YOU THEIR EARNEST AND SINCERE GOOD IDEAS THAT THEY PUT TIME AND THOUGHT AND EFFORT INTO IDEAS FROM OTHER MUNICIPALITIES. PROVEN IDEAS, IDEAS WITH TRACK RECORDS, IDEAS FROM OTHER BUDGET RECONCILIATION. LIKE THEY, PEOPLE REALLY TRIED. AND I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW IF INCREASING PARKING FINES WAS AN IDEA FROM A CONSTITUENT, BECAUSE A LOT OF CONSTITUENTS GAVE YOU GUYS REAL IDEAS AND IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU DIDN'T SERIOUSLY CONSIDER ANY OF THEM. UM, AND THAT'S IT. IF YOU WANNA KNOW WHY YOU ALL WIN BY 1500 VOTES BY 2000 VOTES IN A CITY OF HALF A MILLION PEOPLE, PEOPLE FEEL LIKE WHY BOTHER PARTICIPATING? IT'S NOT LIKE THEY GIVE A CRAP ANYWAY. I I THINK IF YOU DIDN'T JUST SAY, I HEAR YOU MM-HMM . AND THIS IS PART OF THE PROCESS AND THIS IS THE PROCESS AND THIS IS THE PROCESS. I WISH THE MAYOR WERE HERE 'CAUSE HE TOLD ME OVER AND OVER AGAIN, THIS IS THE PROCESS. THIS IS A PROCESS. THIS IS A PROCESS. 11TH HOUR PARKING FINES, THAT'S THE PROCESS. YOUR TIME'S CONCLUDED. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE IS FRANCIS EMILY DAWSON IN THE AUDIENCE. RUBY ARRINGTON. OKAY. RETU ANDAR ON ZOOM. YES. HI, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, PLEASE PROCEED. YEAH, PLEASE. OKAY. UM, I'M SORRY, I'M, I'M SPEAKING OFF THE CUFF HERE, BUT I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU TO EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO STAYED AND SPOKEN UP ABOUT ALL OF THE B******T THAT WE'VE JUST BEEN HEARING FOR THE PAST MONTHS. UM, I FEEL LIKE NOT ONLY IS A COUNCIL JUST COMPLETELY INEFFICIENT AND COMPLETELY INCOMPETENT, BUT GOING BACK ONTO THE MY PREDECESSORS, YOU KNOW, WHO JUST SPOKE, IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE AS TO HOW YOU COME UP WITH MIRACULOUS IDEAS AND SAVING, BEING ABLE TO SAVE LAST MINUTE LIBRARIES WITHOUT ANY CLEAR DIRECTION AS TO HOW OTHER THAN DONATIONS. UM, NO CLEAR, I NO CLEAR PATH OF WHETHER MY FRIENDS WHO ARE LIBRARIANS ARE GONNA KEEP THEIR JOBS. UM, I APPRECIATE THAT YOU ARE KEEPING THE LIBRARIES OPEN AND ALSO USING THAT, UH, TO POST TODAY ON INSTAGRAM, LETTING PEOPLE KNOW THAT WITH THE HEAT WAVE, THEY'RE ALLOWED TO GO TO THE LIBRARIES, WHICH ALSO WASN'T YOUR IDEA. IT WAS GIVEN BY PEOPLE AT PUBLIC COMMENT. JUST WANTED TO POINT THAT OUT. UM, BUT WHAT'S REALLY INCREDIBLY FRUSTRATING IS MONTHS AGO WE HAD COME TO A CONCLUSION AND DECISION FOR WHAT I THOUGHT WAS PUBLIC COUNCIL NOT BEING CUT, AND IT WAS GONNA BE ALLOTTED TO HAVING SECOND PUBLIC COMMENT. WE WERE GONNA HAVE AMPLE AMOUNT OF TIME TO SPEAK AS RESIDENTS. AND IT'S INCREDIBLY FRUSTRATING AT THE LAST MINUTE, REALLY SHADY THAT YOU JUST WANNA, YOU GUYS JUST WANNA PUT IT IN, UM, AND, AND, YOU KNOW, COMPLETELY DISREGARD WHAT PEOPLE HAVE TO SAY. UM, IT'S INCREDIBLY DUPLICITOUS. [04:55:01] UM, IT ALSO FEELS LIKE YOU GUYS ARE JUST CIRCLE JERKING AND JUST COMPLETELY INCOMPETENT. IT'S, IT'S, IT'S ACTUALLY INSANE. UM, I FEEL LIKE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO COME UP HERE AND SPEAK PASSIONATELY BECAUSE THEY TALK TO PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY, YOU HAVE ZERO REGARD FOR IT. YOU HAVE ZERO REGARD, ZERO UNDERSTANDING. UM, NOR DO YOU CARE. AND HONESTLY, I'M NOT EVEN SURE WHY ANY OF YOU ARE SITTING IN OFFICE BECAUSE IT, IT IS VERY CLEAR THAT YOU, YOU DON'T GIVE A S**T ABOUT WHAT THE PUBLIC WANTS AND OR THINKS. SO, UM, F**K ICE, F**K YOU ALL, UH, FREE PALESTINE AND THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY WHO SHOWS UP BECAUSE THOSE ARE THE REAL PEOPLE. YOU GUYS ALL SUCK. AND ALSO, UH, TOM MOCA, WHY DON'T YOU USE SOME OF THE MONEY THAT YOU GET, YOU KNOW, FROM YOUR SALARY AND ACTUALLY IMPLEMENT THAT TO THE PEOPLE AND TO ALL OF THE JOBS THAT YOU WANNA CUT. MAYBE MAYBE USE YOUR SALARY FOR THAT. IN FACT, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY YOU'RE IN THIS POSITION. I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY HIRED YOU. YOU CLEARLY ARE INCOMPETENT. UM, YEAH, THAT'S, I YIELD MY TIME. THAT CONCLUDES SECOND PUBLIC COMMENT. THANK YOU. WE ARE ALL AT, UH, THAT COMPLETES FROM THE COMMENT NOT ANNOUNCEMENTS. [ANNOUNCEMENTS] YEAH. UH, YES. UM, I JUST WANNA ADD ON TO WHAT THAT COMMENTER JUST SAID. I THINK THAT, UM, IT WOULD BE INTERESTING, TOM, TO HAVE A, A AN EXPLANATION HOW YOU HEARD, UM, THAT YOU PUT OUT A NOTICE IN THE NEWSPAPER TO, UH, LOOK AT FINE INCREASES, BUT YET WE'VE NEVER HEARD OF THIS IN BUDGET. THIS IS THE FIRST I HEARD OF THAT TODAY. SO IT'D BE INTERESTING TO HEAR HOW, UM, ALL OF THIS WAS KEPT FROM, UM, THE COMMITTEE. UM, SO I LOOK FORWARD TO TALKING WITH YOU MORE ABOUT THAT. OKAY. UM, SO PLEASE JOIN THE FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION FOR THE NINE 11 STAIR CLIMB THIS SATURDAY IN LONG BEACH AT THE WORLD TRADE CENTER. AND WE'RE GONNA HONOR ALL OF THOSE WHO LOST THEIR FAMILIES AND LIVES WHO WERE FIRST RESPONDERS. AND REMEMBER, THIS IS OUR 25TH YEAR, SO COME OUT AND SUPPORT THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND PARTICIPATE IN THIS STAIR CLAIM. THANKS A BUNCH. THANK YOU. UH, , THANK YOU SO MUCH, VICE MAYOR. UM, I DO HOPE THAT EVERYONE HAD A RESTFUL LABOR DAY WEEKEND. UM, AND AS WE LOOK TOWARDS THIS WEEK, UM, THIS COMMEMORATES THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF NINE 11 AND WE JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE TAKE A MOMENT TO THINK OF THOSE FAMILIES AND THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO LOST THEIR LIVES THAT DAY. I AM EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE WILL BE HOSTING A UNITY FAMILY FUND DAY THIS WEEKEND ON SATURDAY IN THE NORTH PART OF THE CITY. IT'LL BE HELD AT THE NORTH POINT APARTMENT STARTING AT 10:00 AM TO 3:00 PM THIS IS CALLED THE LONG BEACH UNITY FEST, AND IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO BRING OUT LIVE MUSIC, FOOD, ENTERTAINMENT, SPORTS AND ACTIVITIES FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY. WE HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE AND LATER THIS MONTH, I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COMMUNITY WAS AWARE THAT WE'LL BE HOSTING A CONVERSATION WITH THE CITY REGARDING THE DEL LAMO BOULEVARD RENOVATION PROJECT. THIS IS A MAJOR CORRIDOR WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY AND IT PROVIDES ESSENTIAL, UM, ACCESS FOR BOTH, UH, CARS AND PEDESTRIANS. AND WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE GET A CHANCE TO LOOK AT SEVERAL OTHER TRANSIT OPTIONS. SO JOIN OUR TEAM ALONG WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS ON THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24TH AT 6:00 PM AT SHEAR PARK TO LEARN MORE. THANK YOU, TANYA. COUNCIL MEMBER. COUNCIL MEMBER KERR. YES. UH, THANK YOU. UH, THIS WEEKEND RESIDENTS HAVE THE OPTION OF ATTENDING ANY OR ALL OF THREE POPUP MARKETS, POPUP MARKETS AT THE LONG BEACH EXCHANGE. THEY HAVE THE FRIDAY NIGHT MARKET, UH, ON SEPTEMBER 11TH FROM FIVE TO NINE PUPS AND PALS IS A PET FRIENDLY MARKET ON SEPTEMBER 12TH FROM 12 TO FIVE AND SCHOOL SOCIAL DAYS ARE BACK TO SCHOOL MARKET ON SUNDAY THE 13TH FROM 12 TO THREE. THERE'LL BE ACTIVITIES, ENTERTAINMENT, AND VENDORS AT EACH WHILE SUPPORTING LOCAL BUSINESSES AT THE LONG BEACH EXCHANGE. THIS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12TH, UH, PARKVIEW VILLAGE, UH, ON THE EAST PART OF DISTRICT FIVE AND THE BETTER HALF BOUTIQUE AND BIXBY ARE BOTH CELEBRATING SECOND SATURDAY EVENTS. YOU CAN CHECK OUT INFORMATION ON THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES. AND LASTLY, I INVITE ALL BEER ENTHUSIASTS TO VISIT RANCHO LOS CERRITOS FOR THE 10TH ANNUAL CRAFT BEER LB FEST FROM ONE TO 5:00 PM ENJOY TASTINGS FROM LOCAL BREWERS WHILE EXPLORING THE BEAUTIFUL HISTORIC GROUNDS. TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE AT CRAFT BEER LB FEST.COM. OKAY, COUNCIL MEMBER. COUNCIL MEMBER MARY. YES. I WANTED TO INVITE EVERYONE TO THE CAMBODIA TOWN FILM FESTIVAL OCCURRING THIS FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. IT'LL BE HOSTED AT THE ART THEATER, UH, ON FOURTH STREET, [05:00:01] AND YOU CAN GO TO CAMBODIA TOWN FILM FESTIVAL.COM TO PURCHASE TICKETS. UH, SEE YOU THERE. THANK YOU. ANYMORE ANNOUNCEMENTS, MEMBER SOMEWHERE ELSE. UH, THANK YOU. UH, TONIGHT WE CLOSE THE MEETING IN HONOR OF BARBARA SHORE WHO PASSED AWAY THIS AFTERNOON. BARBARA WAS THE MOTHER-IN-LAW OF CD FOUR, COMMISSIONER BRUCE DD MCCRAE, AND THE MOTHER OF HIS WIFE BARBIE. SHE WAS A LONGTIME LONG BEACH RESIDENT WHO LOVED HER NINE CHILDREN, 24 GRANDCHILDREN, AND 31 GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN. SHE WAS DEEPLY INVOLVED WITH OUR LADY OF REFUGE CHURCH IN CD FOUR WITH FEEDING THE NEEDY AND OTHER CHURCH DUTIES, AND WAS A MEALS ON WHEELS VOLUNTEER FOR MANY YEARS. BARBARA LOVED GOLFING AND CARD GAMES. SHE WAS A PHENOMENAL MOM LOVING GRANDMOTHER AND THE BEST MOTHER-IN-LAW. SHE WAS A GIFT TO EVERYONE WHO IS FORTUNATE. FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO CALL HER MOM OR NANA. MAY SHE REST IN PEACE AND OUR DEEPEST CONDOLENCES GO TO THE SHORE AND MCCREE FAMILIES. THANK YOU. JUST FROM THE CITY COUNCIL TO THE FAMILY AS WELL. SEEING NO MORE ANNOUNCEMENTS. THIS MEETING'S ADJOURNED. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.