Apr 11, 2023 City Council Briefing Session

[1. Call the meeting to order.]

[00:00:07]

OFFICIALLY CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER.

GOOD EVENING EVERYONE.

TODAY IS APRIL 11TH, 2023.

THIS IS THE REGULAR SCHEDULED, UH, BRIEFING SESSION.

WE DO HAVE A FOUR, I GUESS, A QUORUM OF CITY COUNCILS PRESENT.

I GUESS.

COUNCIL MS. SHIRLEY, DANS WILL PROBABLY JOIN US A LITTLE LATER ON THIS EVENING.

UM, AND WITH THAT, I GUESS I'M ON THE WRONG CHANNEL HERE.

WITH THAT, UH, NEXT ITEM

[2. City Manager Reports: City Council Calendar/Upcoming Events City Operations Conduct a briefing to discuss items for the 7:00 p.m. regular meeting]

HOW YOU DOING? CITY MANAGER? I'M DOING VERY WELL.

UH, GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.

IT'S GREAT TO SEE YOU ON THIS NICE AND PRETTY SPRING DAY.

UM, LES MELISSA, UH, HAS POINTED OUT TO ME, THEY SET THE BRIDGE AT THE NEW HEART OF THE PARK.

THERE'S THAT LONG THING THAT WE SAW AT THE, AT THE TOPPING OUT PARTY.

IT LOOKS A LOT SHORTER WHEN THEY PUT IT ACTUALLY OVER THE CREEK.

SO THE PROJECT CONTINUES TO TAKE SHAPE.

IT'S REALLY NICE TO BE ABLE TO SEE.

UH, WE HAVE A PACKED BRIEFING, UH, SESSION AND ALSO A PACKED, UH, REGULAR, UH, MEETING TONIGHT.

SO I'M GONNA RUN THROUGH THE CALENDAR VERY BRIEFLY.

WE HAVE A, A PRESENTATION WE WANT TO GIVE ON THE JUNETEENTH ITEM, AND THEN WE HAVE TWO BIG BRIEFINGS FOR TONIGHT.

SO, UM, ON THE ELECTION FRONT, UH, THE C CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IS HOSTING CANDIDATES FORUM ON APRIL THE 13TH.

IT WILL BEGIN AT SIX 30.

IT IS HELD AT THE ALLEN SIMS RECREATION CENTER.

AND THEN THE, UH, CI CITY SECRETARY, UH, ASKED ME TO, UH, REMIND YOU THAT EARLY VOTING FOR THE MAY ELECTIONS BEGINS APRIL 24TH AND RUNS THROUGH MAY 1ST.

AND, UH, THERE ARE TWO EARLY VOTING PLACES IN, UH, IN TOWN, UH, FOR THIS ELECTION.

THE FIRST ONE, AS ALWAYS, THE ALLEN SIMS RECREATION CENTER.

AND THE SECOND ONE IS, UH, COLLEGIATE, UH, HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMY, AND, UH, UH, PEGGY WILSON STEM CENTER.

SO THE, THE COLLEGIATE COMPLEX THERE ON, UM, BELTLINE ROAD, UH, WILL ALSO HOST EARLY VOTING, UH, THIS SATURDAY, APRIL 15TH FROM NINE TO TWO.

UH, THE CEDAR HILL WILL BE HOSTING ITS EARTH AND ARBOR DAY CELEBRATION.

THAT'S, UH, BECOME A BIG EVENT FOR US.

AND WE LOOK, UH, FORWARD TO HOSTING OUR CITY AND CELEBRATING ALL OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL THINGS AND BEAUTIFICATION AND SUSTAINABILITY THINGS THAT, UH, HELPS TO MAKE CEDAR HILL THE GREAT PLACE THAT IT IS.

UH, IT IS FROM NINE TO TWO.

IT WILL BE ON THE GROUNDS, THE EL SIMS RECREATION CENTER, UH, ON SATURDAY, ON TUESDAY, APRIL 18TH, WE HAVE A SPECIAL WORKSHOP, UH, ON, UH, TUESDAY FROM SIX TO ROUGHLY 8:00 PM WHERE IT'S A PRE-BUDGET WORKSHOP.

WE'LL BE SETTING THE STAGES FOR THE BIG ROCKS FOR, UH, THE, UH, 2023 BUDGET, 20 20 23, 24 BUDGET.

UH, THAT'LL BE AT THE FOURTH FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, UH, THERE IN THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE THERE, UH, FROM SIX TO EIGHT.

SO PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THAT ON YOUR CALENDAR.

ON THURSDAY, APRIL THE 20TH IS OUR NEXT CELEBRATION OF DELIVERING PROJECTS RELATED TO OUR 2017 BOND.

WE'LL BE CELEBRATING NEW IMPROVEMENTS TO RAMSEY PARK UP IN HIGH POINT FROM SIX TO 7:00 PM IN RAMSEY PARK.

ALSO ON FRIDAY, APRIL THE 21ST, UM, THAT WE WILL BE HOSTING, UH, THANKS TO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND MANY OF THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS WITHIN THE CITY.

THE HEROES DANCE.

SO THIS IS, UH, A DANCE, UH, HOSTING OUR, UH, SPECIAL NEEDS ADULTS AND, UH, FAMILIES IN OUR CITY, AND WILL BE HELD IN THE FIRE STATION BAY AT FIRE STATION ONE AT 1212 WEST BELTLINE.

THAT'S SIX TO 8:30 PM ON FRIDAY, APRIL THE 21ST ON MONDAY, APRIL THE 24TH, C H I S D EDUCATION FOUNDATION WILL BE HOSTING THEIR ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT.

IF YOU HAVE AN INTEREST IN PLAYING, PLEASE LET BELINDA OR JENNIFER PARISH KNOW WE WILL MAKE ARRANGEMENTS FOR YOU.

THEN THE NEXT REGULARLY SCHEDULED COUNCIL MEETING IS TUESDAY, APRIL THE 25TH.

JUST A COUPLE OF OTHER ITEMS AS WE, UH, END APRIL AND START INTO, UH, UH, A VERY BUSY MAY SATURDAY, APRIL 29TH IS THE NEXT, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD WALK WITH, UH, CHIEF REYES AND, UM, OUR PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENTS.

THAT'S FROM 11 TO ONE, UH, ON SATURDAY THE 29TH.

AND WE WILL BE, UH, CELEBRATING THE HIGHLANDS NORTH NEIGHBORHOOD.

SO THAT'S THE NEXT NEIGHBORHOOD WALK ON APRIL THE 29TH.

UH, AND THEN AS WE GET INTO MAY, WE HIT THE BUDGET DEVELOPMENT PROCESS PRETTY HARD.

WE HAVE OUR FIRST CIP P WORKSHOP OF THE YEAR ON TUESDAY, MAY 2ND, UH, BEGINNING AT 6:00 PM WE'LL BE ON THE THIRD FLOOR, UH, TRADING ROOM HERE AT THE GOVERNMENT CENTER.

THAT WILL COVER STREETS, FACILITIES, UH, DRAINAGE AND PARK PROJECTS.

AND THEN ON, UH, THURSDAY, MAY 4TH, UH, WE HAVE BOTH THE CITIZENS POLICE ACADEMY TAKING PLACE FROM 6 39 30, AND THEN THE BIG CEDAR HILL NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER CELEBRATION TAKING PLACE BETWEEN SEVEN AND 8:00 PM AT THE ALLEN EAST SIMS RECREATION CENTER.

SO YOU MISSED THE, UH, MUSEUM'S GOLF TOURNAMENT ON MAY 1ST, I THINK.

OH, DID I MISS THAT? I APOLOGIZE.

SO, YES, THE MUSEUM FOLKS ARE ALSO

[00:05:01]

AND AGAIN, IF YOU'D LIKE TO PLAY IN THAT, JUST LET US KNOW AND WE'LL HELP, UH, MAKE ARRANGEMENTS ON THAT.

ANY QUESTIONS ON THE CALENDAR? ALL RIGHT, WE'LL GO ON TO THE ORIENTATION TO THE AGENDA FOR, UH, TODAY.

ON THE BRIEFING SESSION, WE HAVE A PRESENTATION FROM OUR OWN TRUSTEE, PRESIDENT ROBERT RIGGS, WITH OUR PARTNERS AT THE ISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES, AND THEN ALSO PRESENTATION OF THE 2022 RACIAL PROFILING REPORT BY DR.

ERIC FRITZ WITH THE JUSTICE RESEARCH UH, CONSULTANTS GROUP.

UM, ON THE REGULAR AGENDA FOR TONIGHT, I'M GONNA ASK MELISSA, UH, TO OUR DEPUTY C MANAGER TO COME UP AND GIVE YOU A BRIEF PRESENTATION ON THE JUNETEENTH ITEM.

GOOD EVENING.

GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL.

IT'S A, A PLEASURE TO BE HERE TONIGHT.

I BELIEVE WE HAVE A QUICK PRESENTATION ON JUNETEENTH.

IT'S AN ITEM ON YOUR COUNCIL AGENDA FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION THIS EVENING.

AND AS YOU KNOW, WE LIKE TO RECOGNIZE AND CELEBRATE THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE AND, UM, OUR FREEDOM, UM, AS, AS A COMMUNITY.

AND SO THAT'S WHAT THIS, THIS, UH, PRESENTATION IS REALLY ALL ABOUT.

NEXT SLIDE.

OH, SORRY, GO AHEAD.

SO, JUNETEENTH FEDERAL HOLIDAYS, JUST GIVE YOU A LITTLE BACKGROUND, WAS COMMEMORATED ON JUNE 19TH, 1865.

THE UNION ARMY MAJOR GENERAL GORDON GRANGER WROTE INTO GALVESTON, TEXAS, OUR OWN AMAZING STATE, AND TOLD THE SLAVES AND MADE THE SLAVES AWARE OF THEIR EMANCIPATION.

CELEBRATED SINCE 1865, TEXAS BECAME THE FIRST STATE TO RECOGNIZE IT AS A HOLIDAY, AND THE FIRST HOLIDAY TO BE, THIS WAS THE FIRST HOLIDAY TO BE APPROVED, UM, SINCE MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.

DAY, WHICH WAS IN 1983.

AND, UM, IN IT WAS ESTABLISHED AS A FEDERAL HOLIDAY IN 2021.

THAT PICTURE OF BIDEN SIGNING, SIGNING THAT WITH MS. OPK IN THE FRONT, DO CEDAR HILL, OBSERVE SEVERAL HOLIDAYS TO INCLUDE NEW YEAR'S DAY, MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY, GOOD FRIDAY, MEMORIAL DAY, INDEPENDENCE DAY, LABOR DAY, THANKSGIVING, THE DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING, CHRISTMAS EVE AND CHRISTMAS DAY, AND EVERY EMPLOYEE GETS A FLOATING HOLIDAY.

SO THOSE ARE THE 11 HOLIDAYS THAT ALL EMPLOYEES GET, UM, PAID TIME OFF.

AND, UM, GOVERNMENT, UH, OFFICES ARE CLOSED.

UM, SORRY, JUNETEENTH CURRENTLY IS NOT, I NEED TO GO BACK.

HOW DO I GO BACK? BELINDA JUNETEENTH IS NOT CURRENTLY RECOGNIZED AS A CITY HOLIDAY AND AS A CITY, THE CITY FIRST RECOGNIZED MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY IN 2014.

ALL ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES CURRENTLY HAVE 11 HOLIDAYS AND 10, WHICH ARE 10 OBSERVED HOLIDAYS AND A FLOATING HOLIDAY JUST TO LOOK AT SOME OF OUR COMPARISON CITIES.

UM, THE CITIES THAT DO THAT HAVE RECOGNIZED JUNETEENTH AS A HOLIDAY OBSERVED FOR BY THE CITY IN TERMS OF OFFICES AND EMPLOYEES ARE CAPEL, DESOTO, DUNCANVILLE, LANCASTER, MANSFIELD, AND, UM, THE OTHER CITIES, EVEN THOUGH THEY'VE EXPRESSED THAT THEY DON'T CURRENTLY RECOGNIZE IT, IT COULD BE IN THE NEXT YEAR OR TWO, WHO KNOWS.

SO ABOUT 55, 50, 40 5% DO OBSERVE.

WHAT WE LOOK AT IN PARTICULARLY, IS, UM, WITH REGARDS TO OUR BEST SOUTHWEST CITIES AND THOSE CITIES DIRECTLY AROUND US ALL.

AS YOU CAN SEE, ALL OF THEM DO RECOGNIZE JUNETEENTH AS A HOLIDAY.

SO, UM, WHEN, UH, UM, COUNCILMAN GLOVER AND COUNCILWOMAN DANIELS AND I ATTENDED A DIVERSITY AND EQUITY SUMMIT ABOUT, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE SIX OR EIGHT WEEKS AGO, UH, MS. OPK WAS SPEAKING, UM, ON THAT DAY, AND IT CAME UP, THIS SUBJECT ITEM CAME UP AND, UH, WAS ASKED TO DO SOME RESEARCH IN OUR AMAZING H HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT.

AND TRACY KREK DID SOME RESEARCH IN WHICH I'M PRESENTING TO YOU TONIGHT.

UM, THE PROPOSAL IS FOR, UH, THE CITY TO ADD JUNETEENTH AS AN OFFICIAL CITY HOLIDAY OBSERVED, OF COURSE, IN ACCORDANCE WITH OUR PAID HOLIDAY LEAVE POLICY THAT AS AN EMPLOYEE, UM, OBSERVED ANNUALLY ON JUNE 19TH, WHICH IS THE ACTUAL DAY OF JUNETEENTH.

UM, WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING TO CELEBRATE THE BEST SOUTHWEST CELEBRATIONS AND WOULD ENCOURAGE EMPLOYEES TO, UM, CELEBRATE WITH US AS WELL.

IF THAT DAY FALLS ON A SUNDAY, THE CITY WOULD OBSERVE THE FOLLOWING MONDAY, AND THEN IF THE HOLIDAY FALLS ON A SATURDAY, THEY WOULD, UH, THE PRECEDING FRIDAY.

SO I AM HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE REGARDING THAT AGENDA ITEM.

YEAH, UH, I THINK WE CAN RESERVE COMMENTS FOR THE, FOR THE COUNCIL MEETING.

THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE.

THANK YOU, MELISSA.

UH, ONTO THE REGULAR AGENDA FOR TONIGHT.

WE HAVE A NUMBER OF THINGS TO CELEBRATE TONIGHT, INCLUDING THE GREAT IMPACT SERVANT LEADER AWARD

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ALSO PRESENTATION OF THE BIRD CITY DESIGNATION, ONLY ONE OF 10 IN THE STATE, WHICH WILL BE STOWED ON THE CITY TONIGHT AS WELL.

UH, PRESENTATION OF A PROCLAMATION DESIGNATING APRIL 9TH THROUGH THE 15TH AS NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY TO ALL COMMUNICATORS WEEK.

THAT'S A BIG MOUTHFUL, BUT BASICALLY, IT'S THE EMERGENCY DISPATCH FOLKS THAT MAKE SURE THAT, UH, POLICE AND FIRE GET TO YOU WHEN YOU NEED THEM THE MOST, AND WE APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT THEY DO.

ALSO, A PROCLAMATION DESIGNATING APRIL 15TH IS ARBOR DAY.

ANOTHER PROCLAMATION DESIGNATING APRIL 16TH THROUGH THE 22ND AS NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK, AND A PROCLAMATION DESIGNATING APRIL 22ND THROUGH THE MAY 12TH AS LIGHTS OUT IN CEDAR HILL TO SUPPORT CRITICAL SPRING BIRD MIGRATION.

UH, WE DO HAVE TWO PUBLIC HEARINGS FOR TONIGHT.

UM, THE FIRST ONE WE HAVE, UH, ASKED THE COUNCIL TO, UH, CONTINUE THE PUBLIC HEARING, UH, TO APRIL THE 25TH, UH, IN WHICH WE'LL TAKE UP, UH, THE ORDINANCE AS WELL AS CONDITIONAL USE PERMITS.

UH, BOTH LASHONDRA, UH, STRINGFELLOW AND TOM JOHNSON, UH, WILL GIVE YOU A SMALL BRIEFING ON THAT ITEM WHEN IT COMES UP, JUST SO YOU'LL BE AWARE OF KIND OF THE THINGS THAT ARE IN THE WORKS AND WHAT TO EXPECT ON THE 25TH.

UH, AND THEN ALSO, UH, CASE, UH, 5 34 20 23, WHICH IS A CONTINUATION OF CONDITION USE PERMIT FOR A WINERY RELATED TO SAVI ON A WINERY.

WE'LL HAVE ANOTHER, A NUMBER OF ITEMS ON CONSENT, AND I WILL ASK, UH, ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE ON THE AGENDA FOR TONIGHT.

ANY, UH, QUESTIONS FROM THE COUNSEL? UH, ANY ITEMS WE PULLED FROM CONSENT, I WOULD LIKE US TO PULL ITEM NUMBER D, CONSIDERING DESIGNATING JUNETEENTH AS AN OBSERVANT HO CITY HOLIDAY IN CEDARVILLE.

ITEM NUMBER D.

GOT IT.

THANK YOU FOR BEING, I'M BEING, I'M TEASING YOU, MR. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER.

UM, ALSO, I WOULD LIKE TO PULL, UH, ITEM I, UH, NOT JUST PULL FORTH THE AGENDA TODAY, BUT, UH, BE MOVED TO A LATER COUNCIL MEETING.

ALRIGHT.

RIGHT, THAT'S ALL.

MS. CITY MANAGER.

THANK YOU, SIR.

ALL RIGHT, COUNSEL.

SO

[3. Presentation from Cedar Hill ISD Board of Trustee President Robert Riggs. ]

GOOD, GOOD EVENING, MAYOR.

GOOD EVENING, CITY MANAGER, CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SIT, ANDREW, TO BE WITH YOU TODAY.

I LOOK FORWARD TO SHARING WITH YOU INFORMATION ABOUT THE BOND THAT IS GOING FOR ELECTION BEFORE THE VOTERS OF CEDAR HILL ON MAY 6TH.

UM, BEFORE YOU, UH, WENT AHEAD AND PLACED SOME INFORMATION THAT'S DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT'S INCLUDED ON THE BOND, AND YOU HAVE THAT IN A LARGE FOLD OUT, UH, FOR YOUR INFORMATION LATER.

UM, YOU ALSO HAVE A ONE PAGE SUMMARY THAT KIND OF GIVES A HIGHLIGHT.

WHAT I WANNA DO TODAY THOUGH, IS STEP BACK AND KIND OF GIVE A LARGE OVERVIEW, UH, GIVE A PRESENTATION TO YOU THAT MIGHT ANSWER SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU WOULD BE ASKED AT WALMART OR IN THE STREET OR AT YOUR CHURCH.

SO THAT'S, THESE ARE THE KIND OF QUESTIONS I'VE HEARD, AND SOME OF THESE QUESTIONS HAVE COME DIRECTLY FROM YOU.

SO THANK YOU FOR THOSE.

I LOOK FORWARD TO ANSWERING ANY OTHER QUESTIONS THAT COME.

AND, UH, I, I'M ALSO HERE AND JOINED WITH OUR SUPERINTENDENT, WHO THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.

AND ALSO TRUSTEE GAL SIMS, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US AS WELL.

SO, AT THE END OF THE PRESENTATION, IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS, I MAY BRING THEM UP FOR BACK SUPPORT HERE AS WE GO.

UM, I WANNA COVER A FEW ITEMS. ONE IS, WHY DO WE DO A BOND NOW? UH, WE JUST WENT IN NOVEMBER WITH A BOND AND A INVADER.

UH, THEY WERE BOTH VOTED DOWN, OR ALL FOUR, UM, PROPOSALS WERE VOTED DOWN BY THE LECTURER.

WHY WOULD WE GO BACK SO QUICKLY AND WHY WOULD WE NOT FOCUS ON THE VADER INSTEAD OF ON THE BOND? I WANNA DISCUSS THAT.

THEN I WANT TO DO, UM, SOME COMPARATIVE TAX RATES.

I WANNA LOOK JUST SIMILAR TO WHAT YOU DID, UM, WITH MS. CUMMINGS PRESENTATION, LOOKING AT HOW, UH, VACATION DAYS OR HOLIDAYS ARE DONE WITHIN YOUR CITY.

IN COMPARISON, I WANT US TO LOOK AT THE COMPARISON OF TAX RATES FROM CEDAR HILL TO THOSE AREAS THAT ARE IMMEDIATELY SURROUNDING US.

AND THEN FINALLY, I WANNA LOOK AT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE.

THAT IS ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT I KNOW WE'VE ALL HEARD VERY MUCH OF WHERE CEDAR HILL SCHOOLS ARE.

I WANT TO PUT IT VERY CLEARLY ON AND, AND LET YOU KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT PLEASED WITH WHERE THEY ARE.

BUT THE FIRST STEP IN, IN TRANSPARENCY IS MAKING SURE EVERYONE IS AWARE, AND THAT ALLOWS US TO MOVE FORWARD.

IT ALSO ALLOWS US TO DISCUSS THE IMPACT THAT SOME OF THE TAX RATES HAVE ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE.

AND THEN FINALLY, I WANT TO DEAL WITH THE SAFETY AND SECURITY.

UM, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF WHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH IN SCHOOLS RIGHT NOW, SAFETY AND SECURITY IS A

[00:15:01]

THAT AND TEACHER SHORTAGES ARE THE TWO ITEMS, UM, THAT KEEP US ALL UP AT NIGHT RIGHT NOW.

SO, FIRST STEP BEFORE WE CAN REALLY TALK ABOUT TAX RATES IS THE IMPACT OF THE STATE AND THE LOCAL TAXING AUTHORITIES.

SO I WANTED TO GIVE YOU A BAR CHART, AND THEN ALSO ON THIS IS A PERCENTAGE OF, UM, AND IT LOOKS ON THE BLUE LINES, REPRESENT THE LOCAL TAX REVENUES.

AND YOU CAN SEE CERTAINLY WHAT A 16% INCREASE IN LOCAL TAX VALUES HAS DONE, UH, WHERE THAT NUMBER HAS NOW GONE UP TO WHERE 43.2 MILLION OF CEDAR HILL ISDS BUDGET COMES FROM LOCAL TAX DOLLARS.

THE STATE REVENUE, HOWEVER, HAS DROPPED FROM 26.8 BACK IN 27 18 TO 11.7 MILLION.

JUST LAST YEAR, THAT INCREASE OF 16%, UM, HAD AN INCREDIBLE IMPACT OF ALMOST 7 MILLION OF LOWER REVENUE FROM THE STATE.

SO YOU CAN SEE WHAT IS HAPPENING, WHERE NOW THE STATE REVENUE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE IS APPROACHING, UM, 20%, AND LOCAL TAX REVENUES IS 80%.

WHEN THE STATE MAKES CHANGES, IT IMPACTS CEDAR HILL SIGNIFICANTLY.

THERE ARE SEVERAL CHANGES THAT ARE BEING CONSIDERED RIGHT NOW BY THE STATE LEGISLATURE, AND THOSE WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE HARMFUL EFFECTS.

CEDAR HILL HAS TO TAKE INITIATIVE AND HAS TO TAKE ITS OWN FUNDING IN THE CAUSE.

THE STATE IS NOT GONNA DO IT ON OUR BEHALF.

SO WHY NOW? WHY WOULD WE FOCUS ON A BOND INSTEAD OF A VADER? WELL, ONE OF THE ISSUES IS THE STATE LEGISLATURE HAS DETERMINED THAT THE ONLY TIME THAT WE CAN GO TO VOTERS FOR A VADER IS IN NOVEMBER.

SO WE'RE NOT ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH A VADER RIGHT NOW.

THAT'S MY HIGHEST NEED, UM, IS TO PAY TO GET THEIR QUALITY AND GET THE NUMBER OF TEACHERS AND TO PAY THEM WELL IN THE SCHOOLS.

UNFORTUNATELY, WE CAN'T DO THAT AT THIS TIME.

WE CAN ONLY ADDRESS BUILDINGS.

SO, UM, ANOTHER ISSUE OF WHY WE'RE NOT GOING BACK IS COMMUNITY FEEDBACK.

IN NOVEMBER, WE HAD CLOSE TO 15,000 VOTERS.

THE BOND FAILED BY A HANDFUL OF VOTES.

THERE WERE MANY THOUSANDS OF VOTERS THAT CAME AND VOTED FOR THE FIRST TIME TO SUPPORT THE CITY, UH, SUPPORT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.

MANY OF THOSE ENCOURAGED US TO COME BACK, UM, THOSE IMPROVEMENTS.

UH, SO WE ARE CONTINUING TO REHEAR THOSE RESPONSES AND WE WANNA MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT.

THE BOND THAT IS BEFORE US TODAY IS ALSO AN IMPROVED BOND.

UH, THERE ARE SOME CHANGES THAT WERE IN THE, THE NOVEMBER BOND THAT ARE BEING MADE IN MAY.

ONE OF THOSE IS WE ARE NO LONGER ASKING TO BUILD A BRAND NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL FOR THE FINE ARTS.

INSTEAD, WE'RE ASKING TO TAKE HIGH POINT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND CREATE A MUCH BETTER ENVIRONMENT FOR THAT TO BECOME THE FINE ARTS SCHOOL.

WE'RE ALSO DOING A MEDICAL PROGRAM THROUGH PLUMBER ELEMENTARY.

SO IN YOUR DETAILED CHARTS, YOU'LL SEE BY INDIVIDUAL SCHOOLS, IT LISTS OUT THE COSTS.

AND YOU'LL SEE AT HIGH, UM, EXCUSE ME, AT HIGH POINT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, THE PROJECTED COST OF THE RENOVATIONS WE'RE INTENDING TO MAKE IS 34 MILLION.

THE REST OF THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS ARE AROUND 10 TO 14 MILLION.

SO YOU CAN SEE THE IMPACT OF HOW SIGNIFICANT OF A RENOVATION THAT WILL BE AT HIGH POINT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.

THERE ARE OTHER CUTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE AS A PART OF THIS.

WE'VE, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO PULL OUT ABOUT 60 MILLION OF ITEMS THAT WERE IN THE NOVEMBER, UM, BALLOT, OR THAT WERE ON THE NOVEMBER BOND FOR THE BALLOT.

UM, THE OTHER ISSUE THAT WELL, WE'LL, DEL IS, UM, THE DELAY IN COST FROM NOT PASSING THIS IN NOVEMBER TO NOW PASSING AND REQUESTING THIS TO GO IN MAY, IS GOING TO COST TAXPAYERS 30 MILLION OF INCREASED PRICES.

SO THOSE COSTS ARE SUBSTANTIAL IF WE WAIT LONGER.

AND THESE BUILDINGS ARE ONLY GETTING OLDER.

THE ROOFS, THE AIR CONDITIONERS, THE LIGHTING, THE SAFETY AND SECURITY, THE DESPERATELY NEEDED ITEMS ONLY GET MORE EXPENSIVE.

IF YOU'RE INVOLVED IN CONSTRUCTION, YOU KNOW THAT OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS, THE COST OF CONSTRUCTION'S GONE UP ABOUT A PERCENT AND A HALF.

ONE OF THE HIGHEST INCREASES THAT I'VE SEEN IN THE LAST 20 YEARS THAT I'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS KIND OF BUSINESS.

NORMALLY, WE WOULD EXPECT IT TO SEE LESS THAN A PERCENT A MONTH.

SO DELAYS COULD BE SUBSTANTIAL.

NUMBER FIVE IS 50 VERSUS 66%.

UM, THE STATE LEGISLATURE HAS BEEN FLOATING THE IDEA OF CHANGING THE THRESHOLD TO PASS A BOND

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SO IF THAT IMPACT HAPPENS TO PASS, A BOND WILL BEGIN EXTREMELY MORE DIFFICULT.

TASK BILLS FILED TO MOVE BONDS TO NOVEMBER ONLY ARE IN ALSO BEFORE THE CITY OR BEFORE THE STATE LEGISLATURE.

SO SOON IT WILL LIKELY BE A TIME WHERE ONLY BOTH VAERS AND BONDS CAN ONLY BE GONE TO THE CITY OR TO THE VOTERS IN NOVEMBER.

ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT WE DID WHEN WE RELOOKED AT WHY WE LOST WHAT WERE ISSUES WE NEEDED TO CORRECT FROM OUR LAST NOVEMBER, WAS THAT IT WAS TOO COMPLICATED.

WE HAD FOUR PROPOSALS.

THE STATE REQUIRED US TO HAVE THREE PROPOSALS BECAUSE THEY DON'T ALLOW STADIUM IMPACT TO BE ON THE SAME BOND AS AS, UM, ACADEMIC OR TECHNOLOGY ITEMS TO BE ON THE SAME.

SO YOU HAVE TO SPLIT THOSE UP.

BUT THE VADER ALSO WAS ITS OWN.

SO BY THE TIME THE VOTERS SAID THAT THEY GOT TO THE BALLOT, THERE WAS SO MUCH CONFUSION AS TO WHICH TO SUPPORT AND HOW MUCH THEY ASKED US TO SIMPLIFY.

SO WE'VE LISTENED AND WE'VE PLACED ONE ITEM ON THE BALLOT FOR MAY A 208 MILLION BALLOT, UH, VOTE.

THE LAST ITEM OF REASONS OF WHY TO MOVE FORWARD IN MAY IS THE STATE RECOGNIZES THAT THERE WILL LIKELY BE ANOTHER COMPRESSION COMING THAT WILL COME OUT OF LEGISLATURE IF THAT DOES HAPPEN.

THE UNDERSTANDING FROM, UH, JEFF ROBERTS, WHO IS WITH HILLTOP SECURITIES, THEY'RE THE BOND FIRM THAT WE USE AND THAT MANY OF THE MUNICIPALITIES USE, INDICATES THAT THERE'LL BE A $23 MILLION MAKE WHOLE AGREEMENT THAT WILL ONLY BE AVAILABLE FOR BONDS THAT PASS THIS PERIOD OF TIME.

SO THAT WOULD SAVE BOND, UM, VOTERS 23 MILLION IF THIS PASSES AT THIS TIME.

THERE ARE OTHER REASONS WHY WE ARE MOVING FORWARD.

UM, WE HAD AN ELECTION, UH, WE KNEW WE WERE GONNA HAVE AN OPENING FOR ONE OF OUR SEATS, SO WE KNEW WE WERE GONNA HAVE THE EXPENSE OF HAVING AN ELECTION ALREADY.

SO FOR US TO PLACE A BOND ON THIS BALLOT WAS A VERY MINIMAL COST.

SO FOR US TO GO AND DO THIS FOR VOTERS, WE'RE NOT BEING FRIVOLOUS WITH THE TAXPAYER MONEY.

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO US.

SO LET ME GIVE A COMPARISON.

WITHIN TAX RATES, I WANNA SHOW YOU THE, WITHIN THE DALLAS COUNTY, WITHIN THE SOUTHERN SECTION, THE CITIES THAT ARE IMMEDIATELY AROUND US, THESE ARE THE, THE DISTRICTS THAT WE COMPETE WITH FOR STUDENTS EVERY DAY.

UM, AND, AND IF I WAS CAPABLE WITHIN POWERPOINT TO BE ABLE TO PULL THIS FORWARD, THAT WOULD BE THE SHAPES YOU GET.

BUT YOU GET A VERY BASIC OUTLINE FOR THIS.

BUT I WANT YOU TO SEE WHAT THE INTEREST IN SAVING THIS IS THE BOND REPAYMENT PORTION OF THE TAXES.

THE TAX RATE IS MADE UP OF A MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION, PLUS AN INTEREST IN SINKING.

AND IF YOU LOOK THROUGH THE INTEREST IN SINKING FEES ACROSS ALL OF THE DISTRICTS, YOU'RE GONNA SEE THAT IN DUNCANVILLE AND DESOTO, THEY HAVE THE LOWEST CEDAR HILL IS ABOUT 5% HIGHER THAN DUNCANVILLE.

UNDER SOTO.

THERE ARE OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS THAT ARE 15 TO 20%, AND THAT NUMBER BELOW IN MIDLOTHIAN IS 40%.

ACTUALLY, IT'S 52% CALCULATED, BUT IT'S OVER 40.

SO IN THOSE, YOU SEE THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENT TAX RATES THAT ARE GATHERED FOR BUILDINGS AND FOR MAINTAINING FACILITIES IN EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT.

SO THAT HAS AN IMPACT OF THE OVERALL TAX RATES.

BUT AGAIN, THAT'S JUST ONE PORTION OF THE TAX RATE.

THE OTHER IS, IS THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION PORTION.

IN THIS CASE, YOU SEE THAT CEDAR HILL AND MIDLOTHIAN HAVE THE SAME MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION BUDGET, AND THEN THOSE DISTRICTS THAT AROUND US ARE 10 TO 15% HIGHER.

ARLINGTON AND DALLAS ARE 15 TO 20% HIGHER.

AGAIN, THAT IS MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION THAT GOES.

NOW, THE TAX FUNDING BILL FOR SCHOOLS IS VERY COMPLICATED.

THERE ARE ITEMS LIKE GOLDEN PENNIES AND COPPER PENNIES, AND YOU'VE HEARD OF THE ROBINHOOD PLAN AND YOU'VE HEARD OF OTHER THINGS LIKE RECAPTURE.

UM, THE, TO SIMPLIFY IT DOWN, I WANTED TO SHOW YOU THE COMBINED M O TAX RATE FOR CEDAR HILL VERSUS ALL OF THE OTHER AREAS AROUND US.

SHOW THAT CEDAR HILL IS BY FAR THE LOWEST, AND THERE ARE SOME DISTRICTS THAT ARE AS MUCH AS 10 TO 15% HIGHER IN LANCASTER IS CLOSE TO 18 POINT HALF PERCENT HIGHER.

SO THE TAX RATE, ONE OF THE ITEMS YOU HAVE ON THE BOND PACKAGE BEFORE YOU IS A VERY IMPORTANT ITEM.

AND IT'S AT THE BOTTOM OF THAT ITEM.

IT SHOWS THE CURRENT IN COMBINED TAX RATE, I, N, S AND M AND O, AND IT SHOWS THE CURRENT

[00:25:01]

IF THIS BOND PASSES, THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE.

AS A MATTER OF FACT, IN THIS BOND PACKAGE, THERE'S 30, THE CITY, EXCUSE ME, THE DISTRICT HAS ABOUT 35 MILLION OF ADDITIONAL CAPACITY WITHIN OUR CURRENT TAXING RATE THAT PROVIDES US FLEXIBILITY IN THE FUTURE.

HOWEVER, THAT'S STILL AVAILABLE TO US.

SO THE, I BELIEVE THAT THE PACKAGE THAT WE'VE GONE TO VOTERS IS A REASONABLE PACKAGE.

IT'S WHAT'S NEEDED AND IT'S WHAT'S NECESSARY.

SO FINALLY, ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT I WANNA SHOW, ESPECIALLY BEFORE WE GET TO THE ACADEMIC, IS THIS IS THE LOCAL AND STATE REVENUE PER CHILD FOR EACH DISTRICT.

I WANT YOU TO LOOK AT, CEDAR HILL RECEIVES $8,867 PER STUDENT.

DESOTO, LANCASTER, DUNCANVILLE, GRAND PRAIRIE, ARLINGTON, MANSFIELD, RED OAK WALKS, AIE, ALL RECEIVE CLOSE TO 9 90, 500 TO $10,000.

MIDLOTHIAN DALLAS, A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT MORE.

AGAIN, THAT'S BASED ON PASSING OF INVADERS IN THE PAST.

IT'S THE, IT'S THE M AND O TAX RATE AS WELL AS THE IN N S ONGOING TAX RATE.

BUT THAT IS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STUDENTS.

YOU CAN RECOGNIZE AT $2,500 PER STUDENT.

AND IF YOU HAVE 22 STUDENTS IN A CLASSROOM, WHAT ADDITIONAL REVENUE YOU HAVE TO PAY TEACHERS, WHAT ADDITIONAL REVENUE YOU HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF OTHER NEEDS.

SO LOOKING AT THESE SCHOOL DISTRICTS, WE'RE GONNA SHOW IN JUST JUST A SECOND.

THE NEXT ONE IS GONNA BE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE.

AND WHAT DOES THAT ADDITIONAL DOLLARS ALLOW YOU TO DO AS A DISTRICT TO BRIDGE THE GAP FOR THOSE STUDENTS THAT DESPERATELY NEED IT? THIS IS YOUR ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE.

CEDAR HILL IS LOW IN THE OVERALL STAR PERFORMANCE.

YOU'RE GONNA HEAR NUMBERS LIKE 36%.

IT IS A HORRIBLE NUMBER, AND WE RECOGNIZE THAT THE VERY BEST IN THE AREA IS 54%.

UM, DALLAS IS HIGH AT 42, BUT AGAIN, AT 2,500 TO $3,000 MORE PER STUDENT, THE RESOURCES THAT THEY HAVE TO BRIDGE GAPS IS SIGNIFICANT AND SUBSTANTIAL.

AGAIN, THERE'S NOTHING THAT WE CAN DO FOR THE VOTERS BETWEEN NOW AND NEXT NOVEMBER WHEN A VADER CAN BE ON A BALLOT.

HOWEVER, WHEN TEACHERS ARE MAKING DECISIONS AS TO WHICH DISTRICT THEY'RE GONNA ACCEPT AND OFFER FOR SOME ISSUES ARE AIR CONDITIONING, LIGHTING, OVERALL BUILDING APPEARANCE, UM, THE STABILITY OF THE STAFF, ALL OF THOSE QUESTIONS, WHICH CAN BE ADDRESSED BY A BOND.

SO WE'RE ASKING, UH, CITY, WE'RE ASKING THE VOTERS OF CEDAR HILL TO CAREFULLY CONSIDER WHAT IS IN THE BEST INTEREST OF STUDENTS, WHAT GETS US TO WHERE WE WANT TO BE LONG TERM AS A VISION FOR WHICH DIRECTION WE WANT AHEAD.

HOW DO WE MAKE AN IMPACT FOR STUDENTS IN CEDAR HILL? AND THIS IS THE DIRECTION, SAFETY AND SECURITY ITEMS THAT ARE INCLUDED.

NOT ALL THE MONEY THAT IS NEEDED.

THERE ARE SUBSTANTIAL 11 MILLION, $200,000 OF THIS BOND ADDRESS INFRASTRUCTURE WITHIN EACH ONE OF THESE BUILDINGS.

AND THAT INFRASTRUCTURE CAN DO THINGS LIKE MASS NOTIFICATION CAN HELP US WITH HIGH DEFINITION CAMERAS.

AND WITHIN THOSE CAMERAS, MORE TECHNOLOGY AND MORE SOFTWARE THAT ALLOWS US TO SEE THINGS THAT MAYBE WITH THE EYE WE CAN'T, BUT UTILIZING SOFTWARE THAT ARE THERE TO HELP BURGLAR ALARM SYSTEMS FOR 10 CAMPUSES.

IN ADDITION, THERE'S ALSO, UM, MAKING THE, THE, UM, VESTIBULE AND THE VISITOR CENTERS MORE HARDENED, UM, MORE CAPABLE OF SEEING PEOPLE AS THEY WALK UP, UM, PROVIDING SECURITY FENCING AROUND ALL OF THE PLAYGROUNDS AT THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.

VERY SUBSTANTIAL COST.

THE LAST QUESTION THAT I OFTEN HEAR IS, WE COULD VOTE FOR THIS, BUT HOW DO WE KNOW THE DISTRICT IS GONNA USE THE FUNDS APPROPRIATELY? HOW CAN WE TRUST CEDAR HILL IS S D UM, ACCOUNTING, THE, THE LEADERSHIP TO APPLY THE FUNDS THE WAY WE WANT? ONE IS THE WE ARE UNDER AS YOU ARE, UM, SCRUTINY THAT COMES FROM THE TEXAS ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL BOARDS.

WE'RE ALSO AUDITED BY WHITNEY PENN, AND WE'RE ALSO SUBJECT TO OPEN MEETINGS REQUESTS OR OPENS RECORDS ACTS.

ALSO, IN JUNE OF 2021 AND AUGUST OF 2022, THE DISTRICT COMPLETED COMPREHENSIVE EFFICIENCY AUDITS WITH AN OUTSIDE AUDITOR EVALUATING THE WAY THAT WE'RE SPENDING

[00:30:01]

IN 2018, UM, WE SWITCHED, OR PRIOR TO THAT, WE SWITCHED TO A COMPREHENSIVE ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT.

WHEN I FIRST JOINED THE BOARD NINE YEARS AGO, OR EIGHT YEARS AGO, WE HAD AN AUDIT THAT CAME FROM OUTSIDE, AND THAT AUDIT HAD FIVE MAJOR FINDINGS.

AND WITHIN THAT AUDIT, IT WAS A 37 PAGE VERY THIN AUDIT.

SHORTLY THEREAFTER, WE'VE FOUND A STABILITY WITHIN OUR ACCOUNTING TEAM.

WE'VE HIRED A C F O TEAM, AND IT HAS BEEN VERY STABLE WITHIN THAT GROUP.

THEY'VE CONTINUED TO PROVIDE AND MOVED US INTO THE COMPREHENSIVE ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORTING SYSTEM.

AND OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS, WE'VE RECEIVED HIGH REWARDS FOR THAT.

SO THE ITEM, THE OTHER ITEM THAT WE HEAR IS, WELL, WHY DON'T YOU JUST MOVE SOME OF THAT MONEY FROM THE IN NS FROM THE BUILDINGS THAT YOU DON'T NEED IN THAT $30 MILLION OF EXCESS CAPACITY AND JUST PAY TEACHERS? AND YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THAT, AND YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THE OTHER, THE REVERSE OF THAT.

UM, THE OTHER ASPECT FROM THE NEXT TO LAST BULLET IS SOMETHING I THINK VERY SIGNIFICANT.

I'M VERY PROUD OF.

ON THE NINE YEARS THAT I'VE BEEN ON THE BOARD, THE BOARD HAS MADE MULTIPLE TIMES WHERE WE HAVE REPAID BONDS EARLY OR RENEGOTIATED BONDS, SAVING TAXPAYERS OF CEDAR HILL, 22 MILLION.

A PORTION OF THAT IS WHY WE HAVE THAT EXTRA BUFFER OF 30 MILLION AVAILABLE FOR US.

SO WE'RE SUBSTANTIALLY, WE'RE, WE'RE DOING WHAT WE SAY.

UM, AND THEN FINALLY, UH, SINCE THAT FIRST YEAR, WE'VE HAD SURPLUSES IN EVERY ONE OF THE SEVEN YEARS.

SO I'M GONNA SAY WITH THE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT OF CEDAR HILL ISD, WE'RE READY TO BE TRUSTED.

SO WE'VE LISTED OUT WHY NOW, WHY MOVE FORWARD AT THIS TIME? WHAT ARE THE DECISIONS IN THE STATE AND WHAT IMPACT ARE THEY HAVING? UH, HOW DO WE COMPARE? WHAT IS THE VISION? HOW DO WE GET ACADEMICS TO WHERE THEY NEED TO BE? HOW DO WE RECRUIT STUDENTS? HOW DO WE RECRUIT THE BEST TEACHERS CAPABLE? HOW DO WE IMPROVE SAFETY AND SECURITY? THOSE ARE THE ITEMS THAT WE'RE FOCUSING ON, AND THAT'S WHAT HOPEFULLY IS ON YOU WILL FIND ON THE BALLOT ON MAY 6TH.

WITH THAT, MAYOR, WANNA OPEN THIS UP TO ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE OR YOUR TEAM.

UH, THANK YOU FOR YOUR, UH, YOUR PRESENTATION AND, UH, YOUR PRESENCE BEING HERE WITH US TODAY.

UM, I ALSO WANT TO, UH, YOU KNOW, COMMEND YOU AND, AND THE SCHOOL BOARD, UH, TO BE RESILIENT.

UM, YOU KNOW, THE NEEDS OF YOUR DISTRICT, YOU KNOW, THE NEEDS WITHIN YOUR ADMINISTRATION, AND, UH, YOU, UM, LISTEN TO THE VOTERS AND, UH, YOU WANT TO TAKE A, ANOTHER, UM, UH, YOU KNOW, OPPORTUNITY FOR US BEING ABLE TO GO AFTER ANOTHER BOND.

UM, I DO HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION OR COMMENT.

I DON'T KNOW, BUT, UM, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS FROM THE COUNCIL? NOT ONE PRO 10.

THANK YOU, MR. UH, MR. RIGGS, PRESIDENT RIGGS, UH, UH, MR. MAYOR, ABSOLUTELY APPRECIATE YOUR PRESENTATION, UH, THAT IT MAKES A STRONG CASE FOR, UH, THE NEED FOR APPROVAL OF THIS.

WHAT I DID NOTICE WHEN I WAS LISTENING TO ALL THIS, ALL THIS INFORMATION MADE A STRONG, STRONG CASE FOR A, A HIGH LEVEL OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS.

YEAH.

AND THAT'S WHEN WE TALKED BEFORE, THAT WAS THE ONLY THING THAT WAS MISSING.

AND I, THE MORE YOU SHOW ME THIS, THE MORE THIS SAYS THAT THE DISTRICT, UH, HAS A HIGH LEVEL, A HIGH NEED OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS.

AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE DISTRICT, UH, I INTEND TO SUPPORT, UH, THE BOND, BUT I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE DISTRICT TO, TO SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE, INCREASE ITS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, MAYOR.

PERK.

ANY OTHER ? UM, TWO, TWO THINGS.

UH, ONE, UM, I GUESS IS A, IS A QUESTION.

UM, I, I GET THIS QUESTION A LOT.

UM, UH, YOUR, I'M GONNA CALL IT PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL IS STATING THAT, UM, THERE WILL NOT BE A TAX INCREASE, CORRECT? UH, A LOT OF THE POTENTIAL VOTERS ARE ASKING.

YEAH, IT'S NOT A, UH, A TAX RATE INCREASE YEAR ONE.

WHAT ABOUT YEAR 2, 3, 4? UM, CAN YOU, CAN YOU RESPOND TO THAT? YOU BET.

UM, SO WE WORK WITH HILLTOP SECURITIES, UM, THE BOND ISSUING PLACE.

WE ASK THEM FOR LONG, LONG-TERM RANGE, AND THEY ARE ALSO PERVE, UM, PROVIDING US THE BOND PAYOUT AS WE GO FORWARD.

THERE ARE PROJECTIONS BASED ON EVEN VERY, VERY CONSERVATIVE, UM, GROWTH RATES FOR THE TAX VALUES IN CEDAR HILL.

AND EVEN WITHIN THOSE, WE SHOW THAT WE HAVE MORE THAN ENOUGH CAPACITY TO ISSUE THE BONDS THROUGHOUT

[00:35:01]

SO THE LAST BOND PACKAGE WAS PASSED IN 2012, SO IT IS CONTINUING TO BE PAID DOWN OVER THE YEARS.

THIS PACKAGE WILL GO OUT FOR 25 YEARS.

IT'S A 25 YEAR INSTRUMENT, SO IT WILL CONTINUE OUT THAT PERIOD, BUT AT THE CURRENT TAX RATE, THERE'S MORE THAN ENOUGH CAPACITY TO CONTINUE FOR EVERY ONE OF THOSE 25 YEARS.

UM, UM, I GUESS MY NEXT IS A COMMENT, UM, AND IT'S JUST REALLY MORE OF A SUGGESTION.

UH, I WOULD, I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU IN THE, IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT TO CONSIDER, UH, AS YOU'RE AWARE, CEDAR HILL HAD A, UH, THE CITY OF CEDAR HILL HAD A 2017 BOND.

YES.

UH, AND YOU MENTIONED, UH, HOW CAN THE COMMUNITY STAY INVOLVED ABOUT YOU SPENDING THE MONEY IN THE RIGHT PLACE? UH, IN THE PRESENTATION YOU MENTIONED ABOUT YOU GOTTA BE PRUDENT, UH, BECAUSE PHYSICALLY WE GOTTA BE ABLE TO RESPOND, YOU KNOW, TO OUR AUDITORS, ET CETERA.

YES.

I WOULD LIKE A LITTLE BIT MORE TRANSPARENCY.

UH, THE CITY OF CEDAR HILL, WE HAVE A WEBSITE THAT'S CALLED LET'S TALK CEDAR HILL.

UH, WITHIN THAT WEBSITE, IT'S, IT'S ALSO PART OF OUR WEBPAGE.

IT ACTUALLY TALKS ABOUT THE PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE PLANNED FOR THE YEAR OF 2020.

THE, IN THE, IN THE, THE PROJECTS WE PLAN OUT, UH, FORECAST FOR 20 12, 21, 22, ET CETERA.

SURE.

UH, MAYBE THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT YOU MIGHT WANT TO CONSIDER JUST SO WE CAN KIND OF KEEP THE COMMUNITY ENGAGED.

UH, AND THEN OF COURSE, WHENEVER WE HAVE OUR RIBBON CUTTINGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, WE INVITE THE PUBLIC FOR THAT.

SO I, I APPRECIATE THAT SUGGESTION.

WE DO HAVE A BOND, UM, UH, WEBSITE OR ON, ON THE C H I S D WEBSITE, YOU WILL SEE AN INFORMATION WITH THE LONGHORN AND THE LOGO THAT'S RIGHT ON THAT ASPECT OF THE CARD THAT YOU'LL SEE.

IF YOU CLICK ON DEAD, IT WILL GIVE YOU A GREAT, UM, VIDEO THAT EXPLAINS THE I N S AND M AND O TAX RATE DIFFERENCE, MAYBE THE BEST I'VE SEEN OF ANY SCHOOL DISTRICT.

AND THEN YOU'LL ALSO HAVE A LAYOUT FOR THE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS, THE INFORMATION THAT YOU HAVE OF THE DIFFERENT PROJECTS THAT ARE ITEMIZED OUT.

AND ALSO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF WHAT THE ESTIMATED COST INCREASE HAS BEEN JUST IN THE SIX MONTH DELAY.

YOU ALSO SEE THE CONTINGENCY THAT WE'VE SET ASIDE FOR EACH ONE OF THOSE.

SO IF YOU, THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION IS CERTAINLY THERE ONCE, ONCE APPROVED BY THE VOTERS, I THINK THAT IS THE RIGHT TIME FOR US TO PUT UP THE, THE SEQUENCING AND THE ORDER.

WE WILL NEED TO THINK THROUGH HOW WE MANAGE RENOVATING ALL THESE BUILDINGS WITH STUDENTS AND MANAGE THAT ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE PROCESS.

SO GOOD POINT.

LET'S, YES, DO, DO THE, THE CEDAR HILL.

WE CONTINUE TO, AS WE GET QUESTIONS, WE'LL ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS AND ADD AN FAQ SECTION TO THAT WEBSITE.

SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

THANK YOU.

I WOULD BE HONORED.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MAYOR.

ALL.

NEXT

[4. Presentation of 2022 Racial Profiling Analysis by Dr. Eric Fritsch with Justice Research Consultants, LLC.]

OH, GOOD EVENING, MAYOR COUNSEL.

UM, TODAY, UH, WE'RE, I WILL BE PRESENTING THE 2022 RACIAL PROFILE ANALYSIS.

AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, WE HAVE BEEN CONTRACTING THIS WORK OUT TO A THIRD PARTY.

UM, AND TODAY, DR.

ERIC FRITZ, UM, FROM JUSTICE RESEARCH CONSULTANTS WILL BE PRESENTING HIS ANALYSIS.

I KNOW YOU HAVE RECEIVED, UH, THE FULL REPORT IN ADVANCE OF THIS WITH, UH, SOME DETAILS.

SO IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS AT THE CONCLUSION OF HIS PRESENTATION, WE'LL BE HAPPY TO A ANSWER THOSE.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

GOOD EVENING.

THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THIS OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE.

I'M GONNA BE PRESENTING THE, UH, 2022 CALENDAR YEAR, UH, TRAFFIC STOP ANALYSIS, RACIAL PROFILING REPORT THAT WE'VE PREPARED.

AND JUST KIND OF A STEP BACK.

FIRST, UM, WHAT WE'LL BE PRESENTING IS THE COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS THAT WE DO.

WE HAVE THE TEXAS CODE OF CRIME PROCEDURE SPECIFIES WHAT WE CALL THE, THE TEXAS RACIAL PROFILING LAW THAT DICTATES WHAT DATA IS COLLECTED AND ON EACH TRAFFIC STOP, WHICH WILL BE PRESENTED THIS EVENING, AS WELL AS THE TEXAS COMMISSION AND LAW ENFORCEMENT T COLE.

THEY ARE OUR TRAINING AND LICENSING BODY FOR PEACE OFFICERS IN THIS STATE.

THEY ALSO, BY STATUTE, HAVE THE ABILITY TO DICTATE KIND OF THE DATA COLLECTION STANDARDS AS WELL AS THE REPORTING STANDARDS.

AND SO SOME OF WHAT YOU WILL SEE THIS EVENING IS ALSO BASED ON, UH, TCO

[00:40:01]

THE FIRST THING THAT WE DO WHEN WE RECEIVE INFORMATION FROM A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY LIKE CEDAR HILLS, WE MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE FULLY IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE LAW.

WE'VE HAD OUR TEXAS RACIAL PROFILE LAW IN THIS STATE SINCE 2001, AND IT SPECIFIES THAT EACH AGENCY MUST HAVE CERTAIN THINGS LIKE A POLICY WHICH PROHIBITS RACIAL PROFILING, MUST PROVIDE TRAINING AND EDUCATION REGARDING RACIAL PROFILING TO ITS OFFICERS MUST HAVE A COMPLAINT PROCESS, PUBLIC EDUCATION ABOUT THE COMPLAINT PROCESS.

AND SO WE MAKE SURE ALL THOSE, ALL THOSE ITEMS ARE IN PLACE WITHIN THE AGENCY.

AND THEN WE SPEND MOST OF OUR TIME LOOKING AT THE DATA THAT WE ARE PROVIDED.

AND SO ON EACH TRAFFIC STOP, A POLICE OFFICER COLLECTS ABOUT 15 DIFFERENT DATA POINTS FROM WHY THE PERSON WAS, WAS STOPPED, WHERE THE STOP OCCURRED, WHAT WAS THE RESULT OF THE STOP, DID THEY RECEIVE A CITATION? WHAT WAS A SEARCH CONDUCTED, WHAT TYPE OF SEARCH? ALL THOSE TYPES OF THINGS ARE COLLECTED.

WE GET THAT DATA IN AGGREGATE, AND THEN WE FOLLOW THE PARAMETERS ESTABLISHED IN THE TEXAS RACIAL PROFILE LAW REGARDING THE COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS THAT IS CONDUCTED.

THE FIRST THING IS TO LOOK AT THE STOPS BROKEN DOWN BY RACE ETHNICITY, WHICH IS PRESENTED ON THIS SLIDE.

SO YOU HAD ABOUT 8,700 TRAFFIC STOPS IN 2022.

AND THEN THAT IS THE RACE ETHNICITY OF THE INDIVIDUALS IN THE MOTORISTS THAT WERE, WERE, WERE STOPPED.

THE TEXAS COMMISSION ON LAW ENFORCEMENT.

T COLE THEN ASKS AGENCIES TO THEN TAKE THAT DATA AND COMPARE IT TO THEIR POPULATION.

AND THAT IS WHAT IS ON THIS SLIDE.

SO TRADITIONALLY, CUZ T COLE SAYS, YOU NEED TO COMPARE IT TO YOUR CITY COUNTY POPULATION.

WE LOOK AT CITY COUNTY AND WE LOOK AT REGION THIS YEAR FOR THE FIRST TIME, CHIEF REYES, UH, REQUESTED AND GOT FOR THE FIRST TIME WE'VE EVER RECEIVED IT, UH, DRIVER'S LICENSE DATA.

SO THE VERY, THE, THE FOURTH LINE THERE IS INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE A ACTIVE DRIVER'S LICENSE WITHIN AND LIVE WITHIN THE CITY OF CEDAR HILL, UM, ZIP CODE.

AND SO JUST KIND OF TO HIGHLIGHT THAT, ABOUT 20% OF YOUR DRIVER'S LICENSES ARE ISSUED TO WHITE INDIVIDUALS.

AND ABOUT 16% OF YOUR STOPS IN 2022 WERE WHITE MOTORISTS BLACKS.

ABOUT 56%, UM, ARE THE DRIVER'S LICENSE POPULATION.

AND ABOUT 63% OF THE STOPS WERE BLACK MOTORISTS.

AND WE ALSO HAVE HISPANICS, AND WE HAVE ASIANS ON THAT SLIDE AS WELL.

WE DON'T SPEND IN OUR ANALYSIS, WE DON'T SPEND A LOT OF TIME LOOKING AT THE STOP DATA BECAUSE THERE'S ISSUES WITH THAT.

ONE OF THE ISSUES IS THE BENCHMARK.

SO WHAT DO WE COMPARE IT TO? AND PROBABLY THE, THE BEST ONE THAT WE HAVE NOW IS THE DRIVER'S LICENSE ONE AT LEAST HELPS NARROW DOWN INSTEAD OF JUST POPULATION NUMBERS OF WHAT WE ARE COMPARING IT, COMPARING THE STOPS TO.

THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS THE DETERMINATION OF RACE AND ETHNICITY.

SINCE 2009, WE'VE COLLECTED THAT ON EVERY TRAFFIC STOP IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.

AND LAST YEAR, 1% OF THE TRAFFIC STOPS.

THE CITY CEDAR HILL POLICE OFFICER KNEW THE RACE ETHNICITY OF THE PERSON PRIOR TO THE STOP.

THAT'S CONSISTENT OVER TIME, NOT ONLY IN THIS CITY, BUT REALLY THROUGHOUT THE STATE.

SO LAST YEAR THERE WERE ABOUT 1200 REPORTING AGENCIES, ABOUT 6 MILLION TRAFFIC STOPS REPORTED.

AND 1.9% OF THE TIME OFFICERS IN THE STATE KNEW THE RACE ETHNICITY IF THE PERSON PRIOR TO THE STOP.

SO WE SPENT LESS TIME LOOKING AT THE STOP DATA BECAUSE OF THAT ISSUE AND SPEND MOST OF OUR TIME LOOKING AT WHAT WE REFER TO AS OUTCOME OF THE STOP.

SO ONCE THE OFFICERS APPROACH THE VEHICLE PART OF THAT PROCESS IDENTIFIED THE PERSON'S RACE, ETHNICITY, THEN HOW ARE PEOPLE TREATED THEREAFTER.

AND SO WHAT WE THEN DO IS THE SECOND COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS, WHICH IS TO LOOK AT HOW THOSE TRAFFIC STOPS MEASURE UP BY RACE ETHNICITY TO THE OUTCOME.

SO IN THE CITY OF CEDAR HILL, ONE OF THREE THINGS IS GOING TO OCCUR TO EACH MOTORIST ON A TRAFFIC STOP.

THEY'RE EITHER GONNA RECEIVE A WRITTEN WARNING, WHICH OVERALL IS ABOUT 50% OF YOUR TRAFFIC STOPS END UP IN A WRITTEN WARNING, CITATION IS GOING TO OCCUR, WHICH ABOUT 47% OF THE TIME IN, IN 2022, A CITATION WAS ISSUED, AND THEN INDIVIDUALS MIGHT BE ARRESTED.

AND THAT'S ABOUT 3% OVERALL OF YOUR STOPS.

AND SO THESE PERCENTAGES THAT ARE PRESENTED HERE ARE COLUMN PERCENTAGES.

SO BASICALLY SAYS OF THE WHITE MOTORISTS THAT WERE STOPPED, 54% RECEIVED A WRITTEN WARNING OF THE BLACK MOTORISTS THAT WERE STOPPED.

51%

[00:45:02]

SAME WITH CITATIONS AND SAME WITH ARREST.

WHAT WE LOOK FOR IS WE LOOK FOR GENERAL COHESION THERE SO THAT THEY KIND OF HANG TOGETHER AND THERE'S NOT SIGNIFICANT DISPARITIES IN THE TREATMENT OF MOTORISTS, UM, BY RACE ON THE OUTCOME IN WHICH THEY RECEIVE, UH, DURING A TRAFFIC STOP.

THE OTHER THING WE'RE ABLE TO DO WITH THE DATA THAT WE HAVE, WE LOOK AT THE REASON WHY THE ARREST, UM, RILEY ARREST OCCURRED.

AND ALMOST ALL OF YOUR ARRESTS ARE BECAUSE OF ONE OF TWO THINGS.

EITHER THE MOTORIST HAD AN OUTSTANDING WARRANT OR THEY, UH, THE OFFICER HAD PROBABLE CAUSE OF THE PERSON, UM, COMMITTED A CRIME VIOLATION OF THE PENAL CODE.

AFTER WE LOOK AT THE TRAFFIC STOPS, WE THEN LOOK AT SEARCHES, WHICH IS THE THIRD COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS THAT WE DO.

SO NOW THE, THE STOP HAS OCCURRED, A PERCENTAGE OF THOSE, IN YOUR CASE, ABOUT 5% OF YOUR STOPS RESULT IN A SEARCH 402 TOTAL IN 2022.

WE DO THE SAME ANALYSIS WE DID ON THE TRAFFIC STOP OUTCOME.

WE LOOK AT WHAT THAT SAYS IS THAT OF THE WHITE MOTORISTS THAT WERE STOPPED, 2% WERE SEARCHED OF THE BLACK MOTORISTS THAT WERE STOPPED, 5.8% WERE SEARCHED.

THE HISPANIC MOTORISTS THAT WERE STOPPED, 3.4% WERE SEARCHED IN OF THE ASIAN MOTORISTS THAT WERE STOPPED, 1.1% WERE SEARCHED.

SO PART OF THAT ASSESSMENT IN PARTICULAR IS LOOKING AT WHY INDIVIDUALS WERE SEARCHED.

AND 60% OF THE TIMES, SIX OUT OF 10 SEARCHES, IT'S BASED ON PROBABLE CAUSE.

SO THE OFFICER HAD PROBABLE CAUSE TO BELIEVE THAT THERE WAS EVIDENCE CONNECTED TO A CRIME INSIDE OF THAT VEHICLE.