City Council's New Public Comment Registration to Start 10-1-24

City Clerk Heather Stasny previewed the new public comment restrictions at City Council today.  She said:

I just want to remind the public that on October 1st is when the new changes to the public comment policy will go into effect....(Mayor Gunter could not hear) ... 

the public comment that Council approved months ago will go into effect October 1st.  Just to remind citizens they will need to sign in for public comment before the meeting.  Speakers will be called in the order that they signed up giving priority to citizens of San Angelo first.  The times to speak remain the same at three minutes.  Comments must be directed to Council.  Questioning of staff is not appropriate at that time, of course Council has no obligation to respond and comments must be relevant to the authority of the city.

They will sign up with City Clerk or the deputy, which will be right here (the staff desk next to the raised City Council seating) before the meeting starts.

The new rules mean citizens will not be able to respond to any comments by the Mayor or Councilmembers during an agenda item.  Their positions on any item are not included in the background packet.  

Council practice is for the Mayor to interject her thoughts first on agenda items.  It takes a brave Councilmember to challenge her position, thus most members avoid comment during the meeting.

Today's City Council had few members of the public in attendance.  One person referenced the permission to speak change and wondered how to do that.  That opened the door for staff to preview the new rules.

Listening to someone (who took the time out of their day to attend) for three minutes is a small gift for an elected official/public servant to grant.  I imagine Council watchers got the hint that citizen feedback is generally unwanted.  

Government should be responsive to the people.  It will be interesting to see what happens when an item compels many people to attend.  Will the rules cause complications, extending the meeting length to deal with the new bureaucracy?

We shall find out how these "reasonable rules" work when many citizens wish to have their voice heard on an agenda item.

ASAC Meets & Welcomes New Members

San Angelo's Animal Shelter Advisory Committee welcomed three new members.  The meeting kicked off with public comment.  Director of Neighborhood and Family Service Bob Salas stated the temporary shelter is being permitted and he expects construction to begin in a month or so.

New board member Penny Roberts asked about the location of the temporary facility.  Shelter Chief Morgan Chegwidden said she would get Roberts a presentation as "they want us to be careful and not dialogue in this section."  Sharing a fact with a new board member relative to earlier public comment by a city leader hardly seems like dialogue.

I took the liberty of including information on the temporary shelter's location in the above image.  New board members asked questions during the meeting which the agenda did not accommodate.  So future agenda items include:

1. Shelter capacity
2. Enforcement of ordinances
3. Budget 
4. Barriers for the public to access shelter services

Morgan admitted the ASAC failed to comply with city ordinance by only meeting twice in 2023.  She did not say city leaders had over two months to schedule and hold a committee meeting but chose not to do so.  Bob Salas instructed Morgan not to reschedule, according to an 11-14-23 internal e-mail.

Bob, missed you at 4pm – wanted to clarify this messaging. Brian’s referencing a reschedule of ASAC but you’d previously discussed proceeding with the 2024 calendar with no additions. Will there be a meeting in the near future?

Nope, as Bob instructed there were "no additions."  Salas gave an update on the temporary Animal Shelter but provided no information on renovating the existing facility (City Council approved financing for the project in early 2023).  The last official word was the project would go out for bids in May.  That is yet to happen.

New board members have much to learn.  I hope staff answers as many questions in public as possible.  That is the open and transparent thing to do.

Gov. Abbott Issues New Hospital Regulation

The Hill reported:

Beginning Nov. 1, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is directing hospitals in Texas to gather data on “patients who are not lawfully present in the United States,” as well as the number of inpatient discharges and emergency visits and the costs of care.

The Texas Hospital Association responded with:

Texas Governor Greg Abbott“This would be a new requirement, and we are reviewing it as quickly as possible. Right now, hospitals don’t ask about patient immigration status as a condition of treatment. Hospitals are required by law to provide life-saving treatment to anyone, regardless of ability to pay or status.”

That's less than three months for hospital electronic medical record systems to add this field.  Surely, the Texas Health and Human Service Commission has ways of estimating the financial cost of treating undocumented persons in Texas hospitals.  

Texas has not participated in Medicaid expansion and as a result:

there are about 5 million uninsured Texans

The Governor left federal money to pay for hospital care on the table since he was sworn into office.  He passed over a bonus for recalcitrant states, those yet to participate. 

Hospitals have a difficult job to begin with.  Gov. Abbott just made it harder for those providing and those seeking care. It's a shame.

Update 8-12-24:  Gov. Abbott and the political Red Team have turned hospitals into no treatment zones for women with ectopic pregnancies.  New Mexico is recruiting Texas OB/GYN physicians as a result.

Council Subsidizes Businesses, Cracks Down on People

San Angelo City Council approved the sale of 17 acres in the Industrial Park to LTG Real Estate Group LLC in Grapevine, Texas.  The property was appraised in January at $48,000 per acre.  Council approved selling the property for $25,000 per acre due to site issues.  

The Development Corporation approved the item in their July meeting.

The City approved a tax rate as part of the budget process.  Council stressed that fees should reflect the cost of providing the service during a previous budget meeting.  That seems to conflict with today's discounted land sale.

A citizen spoke during public comment about an upcoming Tom Green County Appraisal District board meeting.  She encouraged people to attend and shared her concerns about the board appointment process as well as the move to appraise properties annually instead of once every three years.  

Tax abatement for significant capital projects that provide some measure of employment also passed 7-0 in today's meeting.  In order to receive tax breaks up to 85% applicants must provide at least one full time job.  

Corporations as a whole did much better than financially stressed citizens as Council restricted the ability for homeless people to be in certain areas from 10 pm to 6 am with a camping ordinance change.  The head of San Angelo's Homeless Coalition thought he had five minutes to offer public comment as an affected party but was cut off at three.

Citizens should take advantage of free and open public comment while it lasts.  Today's meeting, had it occurred in October would've had far fewer public comments.  

Update:  City Council raised the tax rate from 70.42 cents per hundred valuation to 75.57 cents,  That nickel increase is a 7.3 percent increase in the tax rate.  Inflation is not going away for San Angelo homeowners.  Neither the prior rate nor the increase were included in the City Council background packet.  Truth in Taxation and transparency should ensure that information is shared as a bare minimum.

Old rate:  70.42 cents per $100 valuation

New rate: 75.57 cents per $100 valuation 

Increase:  5.15 cents or 7.3%

Tom Green County Appraisal District Uses Valuebase

The City of San Angelo is waiting for final appraisals from the Tom Green County Appraisal District.  Those valuations are needed to finish the city's budget.  Valuations have been an issue for several years as the District first caught up on property valuations, then did likewise with land values.  

Concho Valley Homepage reported on last year's valuations:

Dozens of property owners crowded into the Tom Green County Appraisal District Review Board meeting Thursday, May 11, 2023, and dozens more waited outside. Almost all of them were looking for answers about why their property appraisals had increased so much.

People were angry and looking for answers.  The responsible folks were not in the room.

Ryan Newlin, the owner of ERA Newlin and Company real estate in San Angelo, said that the State Comptroller’s office sets property values.

“The State of Texas mandates what the tax office does,” said Newlin. “It comes out of the Comptroller’s office.”

Appraisals are driven by the State of Texas.  In 2023:

The Tom Green County Appraisal District delivered over 50,000 notices of appraised value this year, according to the press release. While mass appraisals are done by the appraisal district, Johnson shared that protesting values and resolving protests will be done on a case-to-case basis.  

Citizens may not be aware of the vendor currently assisting the Appraisal District with mass appraisals.  It's Austin based Valuebase. Tom Green County is listed as one of four localities on Valuebase's website.

That website states:

An automated valuation model (AVM), or mass appraisal model, is a service that uses mathematical equations to value properties by analyzing relevant data points and making comparisons across a large number of properties. By taking into account features such as size, sale conditions, and quality of construction, as well as statistical measurements of amenities, location, and depreciation, AVMs provide a fast, fair and cost-effective conclusion of a property’s value.

So who is behind Valuebase?  The Texas Comptroller's Taxable Entity Search provided no information.

A search using Geo Land Solutions, Valuebase's prior name, also produced no information.

Pitchbook shows the firm began in 2022 and had two funding rounds.  The latest $6.3 million funding round was led by Narya Capital.  

America's tech dynasty is backing Narya Capital, Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen and Eric Schmidt.  Narya founder, J.D. Vance was just named Vice President under former President Donald Trump.  Narya backer Vivek Ramaswamy has been cited as a possible Senate replacement for Vance after the election.

J. D. Vance stepped away from Narya Capital when he was elected to the U.S. Senate.  His latest financial disclosure form show he holds both limited partner and general partner stakes in Narya.  That means he is in a position to profit from Narya's Valuebase holdings.

Valuebase is small peanuts for this group of tech bros, however their work will impact thousands of real people very soon.  Citizens have been angry over the last few appraisal cycles.  If this round comes back bad again, who are the people to blame?  It could be artificial intelligence.

Valuebase CEO Will Jarvis said his company is "delivering cutting-edge solutions that empower governments with world-class AI valuation models."

Artificial intelligence can utilize incorrect or outdated information.  AI brings to mind an impenetrable system.   

It all seems structured to de-power people.  The accountable people aren't in the Appraisal District board room, the software uses "precision tailored" algorithms and those profiting from the process live in a world separate and distinct from the common person.  

J.D. Vance may not forget his upbringing.  Citizens in Tom Green County need Vance to see them as they deal with their latest valuation.  Big changes could cause some to struggle.

Update:  WaPo wrote about tech bros sudden love for Trump and the Red Team.  The Guardian did as well.  

Update 8-8-24:  A citizen spoke in public comment at San Angelo City Council regarding the Appraisal District's shift to appraising properties annually, instead of once every three years.  She encouraged people to attend the upcoming Tom Green County Appraisal District board meeting.

City Council to Hold Budget Session

San Angelo City Council will hold a budget workshop after their regular meeting.  Staff will present General Fund budget plans for a number of city departments. 

The draft budget for Animal Services is $1,350,000 for the upcoming fiscal year.  This is a $96,000 increase from the original budget for this fiscal year.  It will be interesting to hear Shelter Chief Morgan Chegwidden's presentation to Council given San Angelo's ever increasing loose pet crisis.  Morgan informed Council of a dog pack around the 2000 block of Bryant Blvd. in their last meeting.  She did so in public comment (which Council may alter on Tuesday).

A separate capital improvement project for the Animal Shelter has lingered since April 2023 when the city received financing specifically for that renovation.  Project complexity pushed finished construction back from January 2024 to April 2024.

Construction Manager Al Torres informed Council the project would be bid in May.  That is yet to happen.   The City's capital improvement plan shows a November 2024 completion date but that is hard to believe given the project is expected to take six months.  Will it be finished by January 2025?

Below is CIP information from the city's website (beware the poor contrast resolution).

 A screenshot of that page shows its unread ability:

I requested a custom PDF to see if that improved resolution and readability.  The process took just over 15 minutes and the document received was dramatically better.  See the print screen below:

City Council prioritized compliance with the Americans for Disabilities Act and staff have working hard on changes.  Clear.gov needs to do likewise for the web based CIP document.  

It remains to be seen if Council asks about shelter renovations while Morgan is answering operating budget questions.  There are few signs that a strategic review is underway regarding Pets Alive/Best Friends Animal Society policies and "community sheltering" practices incorporated by Animal Services.  An invitation to do so has been outstanding for years.

Update 7-16-24:  Morgan did not appear before council during their budget workshop.  Finance Director Tina Dierschke covered the $232,000 for temporary shelter facilities, saying they had previously been approved by Council.

The city plans to use federal COVID funds for the temporary shelter.  Staff provided no updates on the timeline for either shelter renovation.  This may be the slowest urgent renovation project in San Angelo history.  

After October 1st the city will not take public comment for workshop meetings.  Council approved staff recommended changes but passed on moving public comment to the end of City Council meetings.

City to Further Restrain Public Comment

San Angelo City Council will entertain staff recommendations to reign in comments from the public.  A major move involves shifting open public comment from the beginning of the meeting to the end.  The resolution states:

Any member of the public attending a regular open meeting that wishes to address the governing body or board may do so either during the open public comment period at the end of the meeting or during the agenda item at the meeting when the presiding officer calls for public comment on that item. There will be no public comments taken at workshops or special meetings where no action will be taken.

The agenda shows the item relative to public comment in the Consent portion.  Items in this section are often approved en masse with no discussion or public comment, unless pulled by a Council member.

Consent Agenda

j.  Consider a resolution amending reasonable rules for public comment to be effective October 1, 2024. (Heather Stastny)

Staff's memo to Council states: 

Public comment will be allowed during all regular City Council and City board meetings. No public comment will be taken at special meetings or workshops where no business will be conducted.

Each member of the public wishing to speak shall be required to sign in with the City Clerk or Board Secretary prior to the meeting starting and indicate the item they wish to speak on. The City Clerk or Board Secretary will call names in order with City residents being given priority to speak first.

Members of the public may only speak about the items they indicated on the sign-in sheet and should be comments related to the authority of the City.

Documents or slides to be projected at the meeting will only be accepted for agenda items and not the open public comment period.

These rules will become effective as of October 1, 2024.

No public comment will be taken at workshops or special meetings?  Tuesday Council will hold a budget workshop (on the General Fund which covers many city departments).  Animal Services shows nearly a $100,000 increase from the current budget.  Many citizens are concerned about our significant loose pet problem, caused in part by years of shelter shutoff and releasing thousands of unaltered dogs from the shelter to owners.  This workshop includes public comment.  Does the proposed change mean next year during the budget process City Council will omit/not allow public comment?

City Council meetings are a significant time commitment for a member of the public.  Gone will be the opportunity to slip in for an agenda item, make public comment and then leave.  People will have to show up early enough to do the sign in with City Clerk.  I imagine that will close at a specific time, 8:20 or 8:25 am.  

There will be no opportunity for someone in attendance to contribute their thoughts or knowledge on a spur of the moment basis.  Citizens interested in running for City Council often reacted to city business in public comment.  

The City Clerk will call names for people signed up for that item to come forward.  If someone is not on the list their comments will not be allowed.

The City frequently conducts public hearings in Council and other board meetings.  It will now institute rules for public unhearing.  This feels unnecessary and a more than a little "tone deaf."

In December 2022 Council restricted public information requests.  In July 2024 it may limit public comments.  These moves raise questions about its desire to serve the public.

At the top of the City's organizational chart sits "Citizens of San Angelo."   The public will learn Tuesday if Council answers to citizens or is there to serve staff.

Update 7-16-24:  City Council approved all public comment changes but one.  Public comment will remain at the beginning of the meeting and not be moved to the end.  

Yesterday the city asked for citizen comments via its news feed.