City Council - Regular Meeting

conduct in the city council chambers. Rules of decorum for the public. Members of the audience shall not engage in disorderly or boisterous conduct, including the utterance of loud, threatening, or abusive language, clapping, whistling, stamping of feet, or other other acts which disturb, disrupt, impede, or otherwise render the orderly conduct of the city meeting in feasible. A member of the audience engaging in any such conduct shall at the discretion of the presiding officer or a majority of the city council be subject to ejection from the meeting per government code section 54954.3C. Removal from the council chambers. Any person who commits the following acts in respect to a meeting of the cities shall be removed from the council chambers per government code section 54954.3C. A disorderly, contemptuous, or insolent behavior towards the city council or any member thereof tending to interrupt the due and orderly course of said meeting. a breach of peace, boisterous conduct, or a violent disturbance tending to interrupt the due and orderly course of said meeting. Disobedience of any lawful order from the mayor, which shall include an order to be seated or to refrain from addressing the city council, and any other unlawful interference with the due and orderly course of said meeting. Welcome everybody to the TAP City Council Successor Agency joint regularly scheduled meeting for Tuesday, May the 5th, Cinco de Mayo, 2026. City of TAP Council meetings are being held in person with full capacity seating and are livereamed at www.youtube.com

user city oft. Public comment can be made in person and also can be received per the following. Written comments may be dropped off in the dropbox in front of city hall. Comments may be emailed to the city clerk at city clerk at cityoftaft.org. They may also be made by phone to the city clerk's office at 6617631222. Public comments will be accepted up until 5:00 PM the day of the meeting and all comments received shall be read into the record. We're going to begin this evening's meeting with a pledge of allegiance led by Councilman Waldrop followed by an invocation from Shan Piper. So, if you would stand and join us, please.

Salute. Pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Let us pray. Our heavenly father, uh, tonight as we recognize some folks, we want to ask your special blessing upon all of them. As we think about giving week that's coming up, we recognize you as the great giver, the originator of all generosity. We pray that you would bless those who bless others with what you've given them. We think about the city officials that are being honored and we ask, Lord, that you would also bless them for their service. May they rightfully feel honored and respected for what they do. And for Police Week, we thank you for those that run into the face of danger so we could be safe. We ask you, the great protector, to protect them and to help them in their work, which is your work. We also, Lord, want to thank you for the nurses for nurse week coming up as the great physician that you would aid them and assist them as they aid and assist us when we are sick, when we're hurting. Help them to do their work effectively. And may they be honored and blessed by what uh by what they're given or the resolution that's made for them tonight. And we pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen. Amen. Thank you very much, Sean. Madame clerk, may we have a roll call, please? Mayor North here. Council member Crier here. Council member Waldrop here. Council member Shiver here. And Mayor Proen Bryant is absent with notice. All right. Thank you very much. We have, like Sean said, Yeah,

a lot of people uh to be honored this evening and to be to thank for what they do and the part that they play in this community as well as all quality of life. So I get to begin I get the first one and that is for our finance director Teresa Binkley City of Taft State of California certificate of commenation. It's a big piece of wood Teresa. I suggest you have buddy carry this certificate of accommodation presented to Terresa Binkley in recognition of her many years of dedicated service to the city of Taft. Whereas Terresa Binkley has faithfully and honorably served the city of Taft for more than two decades, beginning her career with the city of Taft on July 28th, 2003 as an accountant. And whereas through her hard work, professionalism, and dedication, Teresa was promoted to finance director on December 6th, 2006, a position that she has held with distinction for nearly 20 years. Whereas Teresa's educational achievements laid the foundation for her outstanding career, earning her an AS in business administration from Taft College in 1998, followed by a bachelor's degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting from California State University Bakersfield in 2001. And whereas Teresa has used her skills to fund many projects to benefit Taft while prioritizing general funding, she was in close collaboration with the city clerk on financial components and timeconsuming reporting on numerous grant programs and was involved with the passage of measure A that provides funding in public safety. And whereas Teresa has been instrumental in TR transit funding without the use of the

general fund. She is a committee member on current COG advisory committee to help with funding various road projects and success successfully implemented portal logic software to manage the city's dump station operations and implemented the Tyler Munis financial software system within the finance department. Whereas finance as finance director, Teresa has demonstrated exemplary leadership, training and mentoring her staff with professionalism, integrity, and a commitment to excellence. And she is also known for her dedication to her team and her enjoyment of traveling all the United States and North America with her husband, Buddy Binkley. Whereas the city of Taft wishes to recognize and honor Terresa Binkley for her exceptional public service, her years of loyal dedication, and the lasting impact she has made on the city and its residents. Now therefore, the city council of the city of TAC does hereby extend its deepest appreciation to Terresa Binkley for her outstanding service and contributions and offers its sincere congratulations upon her retirement with best wishes for happiness and fulfillment in the years ahead. Signed this day by myself and all four council members, Terresa Binkley. So, congratulations Whatever works for you, Doug.

Are you going to photobomb this? You're welcome to be here. Where? Dead center. Dead center. Okay. You tell us where you like it just missed me by a half an inch.

You got it. Teresa, thank you so much. Thanks for all your years of dedicated service. Would you like to address the council?

All right. Mic's all yours. I'll see if I can get through this. So, I really, really, really appreciate this opportunity that I had when I started here. I never thought that it would lead to this. I've really enjoyed all the council members we've had over all these years. just to think how many people we've had up here and the ones that are still here. I've had over the many years I've had some wonderful staff members. Currently, I have some great staff members that I'm leaving with you guys to continue on. I know Buddy and I, we talk about it that the city existed 100 years before me and it will continue, but it's just really hard.

I want to thank everybody for everything. Well, you're a big part of the city and the city will always be a big part of you. No doubt she's going to she'll be back. Well, thank you.

Thank you very much. All right. Next up, Give Big Karna Giving Day. Oh, this one's mine, too. All right. This certificate of recognition declaring May the 5th, 2026 Giving Day. Whereas Kern Community Foundation is a charitable organization whose mission is growing community, growing philanthropy. And whereas Kern Community Foundation is a member of the TAP Chamber of Commerce, has 40 scholarships available for TAP students, and has placed 15 paid interns at the Westside Recreation and Park District in the past years. And whereas Kern Community Foundation runs the annual fundraiser event, Give Big Kerna, a nonprofit strengthening initiative of the Kern Community Foundation, a charitable organization. And whereas Give Big Kerna brings Kern County together as one community by helping Kern County nonprofits raise unrestricted dollars. Now in its 10th year, the event has grown to include more than 100 nonprofits, raising more than 1.7 million collectively last year alone. And whereas Give Big Current's purpose is to raise funds and volunteer hours for local nonprofits through online crowd crowdfunding, matching gifts and pledges, and collaborative efforts help Kern County and the Westside community-based organizations raise unrestricted resources while growing their visibility, capacity, and sustainability. And whereas donors realize that nonprofit organizations do important work throughout Kern County in the west side. And with give Big Kerna, they are

able to select a nonprofit to support as part of their giving process. Now therefore, the city council of the city of Tap does hereby proclaim May the 5th, 2026 as giving day and encourages local giving through the annual give big kerna fundraiser dated this fifth day of May 2026 signed by myself and all four council members. Do we have anybody here from Give Big Karna? I don't see anybody. Okay. Well, then we will make sure and give this to Give Big Kerna. Oh, the chief wants to accept this. Of course he does. All right. Well, you know what? I'm gonna let him do that. I thought there was a single de mile. Yeah. Thank you so much.

I'll give us some beer. What do we give? There you go. Oh, awesome. Perfect. Congratulations. Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. What do you think? Huh? Uh, no. You got six of them. Yep. Thank you, sir. Mayor, I have a question. I thought it was going to be my

Okay. Next up, Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week. Councilman Shivera. Excellent. Okay. Proclamation declaring peace officers memorial day and police week of 2026. Whereas in 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed a proclamation which designated March 15th as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the week in which that date falls as police week. end. Whereas police, excuse me, peace officers memorial day and police week pay tribute to the local, state, and federal law enforcement of officers who serve and protect us with courage and dedication. These observances also remind us of the ongoing need to be vigilant against all forms of crime, especially to acts of extreme violence and terrorism. And whereas the dedicated members of the Taft City Police Department, Kern County Sheriff's Department, and California Highway Patrol play an essential role in safeguarding the rights and freedoms of the citizens of Taft. And whereas the city of Taft wishes to honor all peace officers who through their courageous deeds have lost their lives or have become disabled in the performance of their duties. Now therefore, the city council of the city of Taft does hereby formally recognize all peace officers for their faithful and loyal devotion to their responsibilities and their dedication to our community. Accordingly, the city council hereby declares May 15, 2026 as peace officers memorial day and May 11th through May 17th, 2026 as National Police Week, dated this fifth day of May 2026. Signed by all the council members,

corrections officers, come up here as well, please. Do you want me to read the other? Everybody, you guys are all with us. I know that's a separate group. Okay. I know. Come on up. Come on up, guys. All of us.

And the reason I'm doing this, it is also corrections week and they have a they have a separate week than we do. But to me, we're all one family here. We all work together. if it's wasn't for the ones that we have out on the streets and the individuals that are taking care of the ones that we have that we take off the streets. This is why we got to be here. We work together as a group. We we have good camaraderie. They help us out daily uh the corrections division. So, I just it's better to me that we have everybody up here and um this is the way I want it. So, that's the way it ought to be. This way it's going to be. That's why they called a team. Absolutely. Absolutely. And we appreciate it so much and thank you guys very much. Thank you.

And then everybody then I want to get you guys up here too, but I want to get a picture. Hey, FYI, I didn't want to chief I didn't want to spoil the surprise, but the next thing that Councilman Sha is going to read is going to be the proclamation. We're going to do that as well. Okay, good. I don't want anybody leaving. We're going to do that again. Okay.

Do I need to get out of the picture, Doug? No, you guys don't need to get in the picture. You know what? I'm gone. I will. Come on, guys.

Come on. Down here. I'll get it. I'll get in here.

Hold it. Hold it. Jerry. Good. One more, guys. Come on in. Jerry's gonna get one real quick. Lord, Jerry, hold on. That's my assistant. I do whatever she says. Now you guys come in here. I want many pictures. Come on in. Squeeze in, guys. Come on. Squeeze in.

I think I'm going to put my only my Okay. Okay.

Okay. Thank you guys.

Thank you. Hey, we're Do you see that guy you in front of? He was three times bigger than you, man. Why you want to go down there? Oh, no. I I time I get down there, it'd be just down the back. Too many Okay. Next item on the agenda, correctional officers and correctional employees week proclamation.

Councilman Shivera.

Yes, sir. Okay. Proclamation declaring May 3rd through the 9th of 2026. Correctional officers and correctional employees of week 2026. Whereas the city of Taft correction officers and correctional employees are responsible for supervising offenders of convicted of crimes and sentenced to serve time in TAS community correctional facility. And whereas correctional officers are trained law enforcement professionals dedicated to maintaining safe correctional facilities and ensuring public safety. And whereas these highly devoted individuals do more than supervise. They train, teach, mentor, counsel, preach, and treat inmate, excuse me, treat inmates while providing hope and guidance. They work to rebuild lives. And whereas correction officers and correctional employees rise to meet any challenge and serve this honorable profession nobly and admirably. And whereas correction officers week offers an opportunity to acknowledge and honor taps correctional officers and correctional employees for the important work they perform each day and for the sacrifices they make to protect the citizens of our community. Now therefore, the city council of the city of Taft is proud to join the rest of the nation in honoring the dedication and professionalism of the women and men who are correctional officers and correctional employees by declaring May 3rd through the 9th, 2026 correctional officers and correctional employees week dated this fifth day of May 2026 signed by the mayor and the rest of the council members. Oh, you're good.

Yeah, he's pointing fingers.

Thank you guys. Uh, if you know me, and you probably have gotten to know me over the last few years, I tend to shy away from recognition and all that good stuff. So, uh, like I always say, we'll put it back on these guys. These are the one these are the guys and gals that run the facility. Uh, I liken it to driving a car. I'm just sitting behind the wheel and occasionally got to just a little adjustment to keep it going straight on 119, you know, and then very rarely you got to make a hard left every now and then, but luckily with these guys that hardly ever happens. So, uh, all the credit goes to them. I appreciate the hard work they do every day. And it's, uh, and it is that it's hard work. So, thank you guys. And thank you.

COOL. Stay on. Get here. That was in the first round. We're already We already made the Christmas card.

Double left. Double left. Mary, you're a little off center. We got to get right there. Perfect. Beautiful. Okay, here we go. Don't worry, Doug. I'll get you the picture. I got it. All right.

Thank you, GUYS. Before we go to the next one, just a brief word. Safety in a community is the most critical component of quality of life. We know that. And there were times here in the United States when unfortunately, especially in big cities, uh people forgot that. They forgot to appreciate it. They forgot to support law enforcement. with all the garbage that I read about going on in different cities throughout the country. Defund the police and that madness. Fortunately, that disease never entered the minds of the city of Taft, the people of the city of Taft, nor the city council. It was never even considered. We wouldn't think of it. If we had all the money in the world, we'd have a lot more law enforcement. I guarantee it. We do everything we can to keep you all staffed up, get you the equipment you need to do your jobs, your critical jobs, and we don't forget just exactly how important that is. By the same token, what you all do at corrections is just as critical. You're actually helping fund law enforcement and you're a business. You're business partners. when we as a city council faced the closure of the CCF last time, we worked hard during the course of its uh opening to put money away because we knew that we had to have it. We knew that civilization unfortunately is always going to produce people who need to be behind bars because their behavior is not the same as those that live in a freeze civil environment. So, we were able to put that money away, reopen the CCF, and you all are a critical

component of that. You're in business with the people of the city of Taft. So, don't take what you do lightly. Don't ever let anybody tell you that it is not a critical component of quality of life right here in this community because it truly is. and you kind of control your own fate and that you provide a quality service, the best in the game. You get audited and and the customer looks at you and we're proud that you provide that premium service that helps us only to make it a better facility. So, thank you all for your contribution, every one of you, day in and day out. I can't thank you enough. That's all I have to say. Thank you. All right. Next up, National Nurses Week. Councilman Waldrop.

Proclamation declaring May 6th through the 12th, 2026, National Nurses Week. Oh my goodness. Whereas we have come to appreciate more than ever the complex and expanding role of nurses play in our health care system. And whereas the wisdom, skill, and dedication nurses show every day sets them apart as very special people. And whereas the high quality of nursing professions is making it possible for more Americans to enjoy better health services and improved patient outcome. And whereas nurses have a critical responsibility to uphold the highest level of ethical standards in their practice, including fostering a safe work environment. And whereas it is most appropriate that we recognize and honor the nation's indispensable registered nurses for their tireless commitment 365 days a year. Now therefore, the city council, the city of Taft is proud, very proud to join in with the rest of the nation in honoring the excellent standards that characterizes the practice of nursing. declared May 6th through the 12th, 2026 National Nurses Week, dated this fifth day, May 2026, signed by the mayor and the four council member. Is anybody here to represent them?

I think they're all working. Okay, they're all working or over at the mixer. I was just over there prior to the meeting. So anyway, nurses are There you go. Next up, the 56th anniversary of Municipal Clerk's Week. Councilman Crier.

Thank you, Mayor. This proclamation declaring May 3rd through May 9th, 2026 57th anniversary of the municipal clerk's week. Whereas the office of the municipal clerk, a timehonored and vital part of local government, exists through the world. And whereas the office of the municipal clerk is the oldest among public servants. And whereas the office of the municipal clerk provides the professional link between the citizens, the local governing board bodies and agencies of governments at other levels. And whereas the municipal clerks have pledged to be ever mindful of their neutrality and impartiality rendering equal service to all. And where else the municipal clerk serves as the information center on functions of local government and community. And where else the municipal clerk continually strive to improve administration of the off affairs of the office of municipal clerk through participation in education programs, seminars, workshops, and the annual meetings of their state, provincial, county, and international professional organization. or else the most appropriate that we recognize the accomplishment of the office of the municipal clerk. Now therefore, the city council of the city of Taft does hereby formally recognize the city of Taft's local office of municipal clerk and accordingly hereby declares May 3rd through May 9th, 2026 as municipal clerk's weeks dated this fifth day of May 2026 signed by Dave Mayor Dave No and four council members. In honor of that, we have a little something for you. Faith.

More years you do this, eventually you'll get an extra treat like we did. Come on in here. Y'all want to come on down here and be a part of this? Oh, okay.

Here comes Come slow.

Got a spot for you right here. Yes, sir. Okay, in honor of all the people we gave proclamations to, in order for able to be able to uh quietly funnel out of here, unless all of you want to stay for the entire agenda because we love having you. We're going to take about a fivem minute break. and then we'll be back.

Before we start, Teresa, you want your shipping box for your I'm sorry, I meant to give you that. Thank you, Faith. That made a good pizza ball for Josh. That's a dandy. Okay. All right. Is everybody ready to get back to work? Get started on our agenda.

Okay, then call this meeting back in session. Next item on the agenda, item number two, presentation by HFNH consultant, solid waste and recycling update. Good evening. Are you guys able to hear me? Yes. Awesome. Um, I'm going to share my screen. We did this earlier and it worked. So, hopefully it works again. Oh, Faith, I went to share and it said it sent a request to you. Play.

And as an introduction, this is Caitlyn Barbosa with HFNH Consultants. They work on behalf of the city. Caitlyn. Kaitlyn. All right. Very good. Hello, Caitlyn. Hi, council members. Thank you, Craig. I'm going to see if I can present now. Great.

I'm glad to hear that. Sorry. Presenting with PowerPoint is always a bit of a challenge. Screen two. Okay. Are you guys able to see my slides without the notes and all that? There we are. Yes. Very good.

Excellent. Okay. So, um, thank you again for having me. Um, and good evening, council members. Thanks for the introduction, Craig. Um, my name is Caitlyn Barbosza. I'm a senior associate with HF&H Consultants. Um, sorry I couldn't be there in person, but thank you for having me and allowing me to present virtually this evening. Um I am joined virtually by my colleague Philip Maneli um a program manager with HFNH and I'm here tonight to provide an update on solid waste and recycling program implementation um in the city of Taft with your Holler Westside Waste. We go. So first I'll start with an overview of state recycling requirements. Um, next we'll dive into the recent performance review and gap analysis that we completed and we'll finish off with the findings of that analysis and the next steps. So this slide shows a bit of history related to solid waste and recycling mandates. Every year the legislature adopts several new waste related laws. Um, but the ones shown on this slide represent the most significant in terms of their scope. um the sectors they regulate, whether that's commercial or residents or both, as well as the costs up for jurisdictions to comply. We can see here that um as early as the year 2000, the state set a 50% diversion requirement, meaning that half of the materials generated in the state must be diverted from landfill. So that can be either by recycling, composting, or reuse. Then over time we see more specific programs being required such as blue and green bin recycling for commercial businesses through AB 341 and 1826. Most recently jurisdictions have been implementing SB 1383 which requires both residents and businesses to divert recyclable and compostable materials. So this law SP 1383 is what prompted the

changes to TAS programs as there are fines for jurisdictional non-compliance. Looking forward we have SB54 which is a very comprehensive extended producer responsibility law and that is going to require um all single-use plastic packaging in the state to be recyclable or compostable. So back to SP 1383, um we can see that this regulation touches on multiple branches of local government as well as their communities. Local jurisdictions are required to adopt new ordinances and policies as Taft did in 2020 and 2021 in order to roll out compliant programs in time for the regulations when they took effect in 2022. So this led to implementation of new programs with the support of purchasing departments, um, code enforcement, public works, and others. Haulers such as Westside Waste are also directly impacted. And as is true in many other communities, the hauler is really the city's conduit to the rest of the public stakeholders. Um, you know, people like residences, businesses, food recovery organizations, um, and all their basically their customers. So this slide shows the programmatic requirements of SB1 1383 on local governments and I really want to highlight this this was a fundamental change in how programs had been implemented previously. Now instead of just offering recycling programs jurisdictions are required to provide recycling programs to all residences and businesses as well as enforce on non-compliant entities. Westside Waste implements SP 1383 compliant collection programs on behalf of the city. The franchise agreement also requires Westside Waste to conduct inspections, complete route reviews, and provide education to their customers, alleviating the need for the city to

hire more staff. Westside Waste also regularly reports on program implementation to the city. Lastly, jurisdictions do have some requirements that cannot be delegated. So, cities are required to procure recycled content and recyclable paper products as well as what are referred to as quote unquote recycled recovered organic waste products. Excuse me. So, these are just products that are made from what goes into your green bin. So, products like compost and mulch. In addition to implementing all these programs, there are substantial recordkeeping requirements as well as annual reporting to the state. All the records required by SP 1383 are maintained in what is called an implementation record. And this slide shows the highle categories of records that are required to be maintained. But each one contains several data points. For example, education provided to residents and businesses needs to include the date of distribution, which customers received the educational material and how many, how the material was distributed. So via mail, email, social media, a billing insert, um as well as the topics covered in that education. So the point here is to show that there are 50 or so items in the implementation record, but it actually contains thousands of data points and this has been a key area of focus for our work with the city as well as the regular reporting that Westside Waste provides. It provides crucial data for this implementation record. So, as I mentioned, what sets SP 1383 apart from previous recycling legislation is the potential for enforcement from the state on local jurisdictions. How recycle is the state agency responsible for implementing these programs and JACE is the department that

conducts reviews of local jurisdictions. By 2027, all jurisdictions will have their review initiated and then that review will occur every four years. Jace will be reviewing the implementation record we were just talking about as well as conducting a site visit to evaluate program implementation on the ground. Non-compliance can lead to notices of violation and potential financial pen penalties. We're talking up to $10,000 per day per violation. I know. So, onto our program uh a performance review and gap analysis. Um the program review and gap analysis we did recently um focused on city staff and westside waste implementation of these SB 1383 programs in anticipation of that Jace audit we just mentioned. HFNH has been supporting Taft with SB1 1383 programming since the very beginning. We supported development of the SB 1383 compliant franchise agreement and ordinances and policies back in 2020 and 2021 and we've been supporting with on call support ever since. using SP1 1383 local assistance grant funds from the state. We reviewed the city's implementation record for compliance and also conducted a site visit in November 2025. So while I was intact, I met with city staff. We did some trainings and some Q&A sessions. I also met with Westside Waste. I shadowed some of their inspections and their contamination monitoring. And we also um viewed some records in person at their offices there in Taft. So this slide shows a list of the programs that Westside Waste is responsible for implementing as well as their compliance status. Green means that the program is fully compliant, while yellow means that the program is only partially compliant. Westside Waste has really done an amazing job. They've implemented all the

required programs, including the new three container system that I'm sure you guys are all very familiar with by now. Um there's only really minor opportunities for improvement um related to some of the educational requirements of the regulations and specifically recordkeeping and even for some of these items such as inspections. You know, they are going out and doing inspections regularly. We just don't have great records of as evidence and that's what the state will be looking for when they do the Jace audit. And I also want to highlight that these results are not atypical. Um, Westside Waste has been a great partner to the city and at this point um, all they really need is some refinement in some of their programs. So then this slide shows the city um, program responsibilities where we also generally found overall program compliance. Taft has adopted the SP 1383 compliant ordinances and policies and implemented the new programs with Westside Waste. The city is also implementing compliant waiver and paper procurement programs. All that's missing is a bit of recordkeeping around enforcement actions as well as compost and mulch procurement. Um, but this isn't for a lack of trying. HFNH and city staff have been trying to set up a compost and mulch procurement program for several years. Um, we just haven't been able to get something to work out to date. Um, and again, these results are not atypical and Taft is actually doing a lot better than a lot of other jurisdictions. Uh compost and mulch procurement is one of the most commonly non-compliant programs for jurisdictions throughout the state. Um otherwise, Taft and Westside Waste are really doing a good job imple implementing all the changes um that you've seen over the last couple years.

Thank you. Oh, did you have a question or comment? You know what? I might have a comment.

Okay, let me go back. Uh let me go on a record as saying from the very beginning that this program as it was proposed before it was voted on. I mean it's it it's a piece of crap. It is horribly expensive. It doesn't accomplish anything. There was a time when we had one large waste uh container in the alleyway per household. And what we did when we decided to save the planet through this ridiculous garbage uh was we collected those one large plastic containers and we distributed three different colored brand new plastic containers. Thank God for oil and gas and petrochemicals so that we could provide all those brand new plastic containers so we could save the planet. At the same time, I spoke with the people from Westside Waste and since implementing this in 2021, their diesel consumption, because they have to collect with three trucks now instead of one, their diesel consumption has gone up 325%. The number of trips that they are on our roads up 325%. The wear and tear on the surface streets in the front of our houses because we no longer collect trash in the alleyways is subjecting the streets in the front of the houses where the kids play to the traffic of heavy vehicles. Not your 5,0007,000lb car or pickup truck, but a trash laden 44,000 lb two axle vehicle that is slowly grinding brake dust and tire wear. uh turning it into actually resuspendable emissions, PM10 and PM2 and a half emissions in those streets and in the front yards where our kids play prematurely wearing out our roads, which the only way to repair those roads because they're asphalt, is with hydrocarbons. I checked, I drive by a

lot of solar panels, a lot of windmills, and I haven't found one yet that spits out asphalt to repair the roads. On top of that, I got to looking at the cost to the consumer. And I have those figures right here. Between 2015 and 2021, 7 years, the cost to the consumer for trash collection went up a total of 4%. That seven years, it went up 4%. Between 2021 and 2022, when we started these programs, it went up 20% that year. The next year, up 29%. Next year, 2024, up 5%, 2025, up 5%, 2026, up four and a half percent. So, prior to this, over seven years, it went up 4% and in the ensuing five years since, it's gone up 63.5%. Now then, do I think this entire program represents a value to the people, a value to the community, or is going to save the planet? Absolutely not. When we're burning 325% as many hydrocarbons, and there is no money in the increased wear and tear on our roads and the replacement schedule to make up for what we're losing. There's no extra money to repair the roads. That's all going to be on us. It's not there. It's not even a consideration. Of course, in California, we never consider the uh economic impact when we come up with these ideals. We just jump right in the middle of it and keep on in spite of the fact that emerging facts show that is a dismal program with horrible economic uh repercussions. So, in case everybody out there hasn't figured it out, I am not a

fan. I think what is it? By 2032, if they don't have battery powered garbage trucks, we as a city get fined. Is that right? Then I would have to guess by 2035 if you as a family cannot sustain life based on consuming your neighbor's garbage, you're all going to go to prison. This is a ridiculous concept and and the people are sold a bill of goods and they continue to feel the economic impact which is why people continue to leave the state of California because we buy into this stuff. So now that is only one man's opinion. That's just Dave Nor's opinion. I want to be clear on that. Now the people sitting on either side of me, they are separate thinkers and they have their own opinions about this. I know, ma'am, that you don't work for the state and I know you're not responsible for this. Thank you for your help in keeping us out of prison cuz heaven knows you can commit murder and arson and rape and still be on the streets. But you cross pollute your blue trash can with your green one, you're going to prison. Ain't no doubt.

That is my comment. I thank you for your patience. I have a I'm gonna say a couple words here maybe more than a couple but I I agree with our mayor no what he said I think the whole council will agree with them what's going on with the state the state just went overboard they they they passed things without looking at the consequences because their reaction there's a reaction to things and it cost the they're supposed to be helping the so-called disadvantaged cities disadvantaged people. They say they're helping the the poor and it's for the children, of course. But is it really? They're just there to make them look good. They wrote a they wrote a bill that passed to to give us uh headaches to everybody, not just the city or the government, but to everybody, but themselves. And the question I have would be on uh SB54, the packaging uh uh for the restaurants and stuff, they have to follow with the plastic bottles and and and uh be in compliance to it. Now, if I understood that the all the restaurants and stuff in town that um uses to go trays, plastic bottles for sodas and whatnot, um what's what's what's who's going to be responsible? Is it back to the the manufacturing of those products or it rests upon the city and the restaurants that generate those uh trash or not trash but recyclables?

So, I'll take this one, Caitlin. Um, so it's a great question. As a jurisdiction, your sole responsibility is to accept all packaging in your blue container. Um, statewide, they need to achieve a 65% diversion rate for all of those materials. Um, so things like PET and HGPE are very easily recyclable and have an economic value. Those currently hit the rates as you start getting into the three through seven plastics. Those are not hitting the recycling rates that are required. Um, but there is the producer responsibility organization which is a nonprofit consisting of all the packaging manufacturers and they're responsible for recouping the costs of these collections. So there will be funding available um through grant programs and through applications to recoup those costs. Now on the grant program you're going to give that that's going to go ahead and they're going to give so much money to each businesses that have to follow and and maintain uh the implement implementation of it and follow the the different um 50 plus uh items that have to be uh maintained and implemented. Who pays for that? The the consumer and the business owner.

Mhm. where we get what we get. Great. The way the law was written is it's supposed to be the producers of the packaging. Um but ultimately that would be likely passed on through the product costs, right? If packaging prices go up, Amazon's going to charge you more.

If if I may jump in there to to piggyback on what you said. So to be clear, Senate Bill 54 says in your your slideshow presentation here that 100% of packaging must be compostable or recyclable by 2032. That means every single thing in a grocery store, everything that you as a consumer purchases anywhere in the state of California by 2032, its packaging will comply with this mandate or it won't be able to be sold in the state of California. Is that what that means?

That is correct. And you bring up an astute point that that's a very challenging uh proposition. Obviously looking at the grocery store example, you have your microwave TV dinners, you need food security. Um there's PLAS in a lot of the cardboards and moisture retention. So there'll have to be a lot of material redesign in order to make that occur. Oh, that won't make things more expensive for the consumer now, will it? It likely will. Um it's supposed to be passed on from the manufacturers. But

so there'll be right now there are automobiles and in the I can tell you in the construction industry there are cranes and heavy trucks that are quote unquote 49 state legal. This is these are quite common. So, with the implementation of Senate Bill 54, there's going to be potato chips and drinks and Twinkies that are 49 state legal, but if you want a California legal Twinkie with a California legal package, you'll pay an extra$18 or something like that. Is that where we're headed? That's a feasible option for many product. Thank you very much. Yeah,

I I can see it. We're we're paying uh 5 cents for every soda can or bottle of water stuff. And I can see it. We're be paying 5 cents for every uh potato chip bag, uh everything with paper. We're going to be paying a deposit on everything and then uh getting it redeemed like anything else. We'll never get our money back what we put into it. But it is it's a I see it as a deal where is to punish the people of this great state to make things uh difficult especially the ones I always say because I'm a a retired person trying to learn how to retire I should say but we're on a fixed budget a lot of pe retirees a lot of people who are on a fixed income you know the air time inflation hits us um that we have to decide what we're do best with our money, where it's going to go to, where we're going to cut back, and where we're going to spend it on. And uh being on the council and other committees, I'm just a voice here representing my great city here in staff. You know, what can we do to let the people in uh in in our uh legislature know that enough is enough? What can we do to cut back on our fuel taxes that we're paying? all the things that's involved. You we can go to, you know, everybody claims uh Trump for the fuel. Yeah, there were some things that increased it, but California is still a $152 bucks more a gallon than a lot of states, you know, more for fuel. Why don't we go ahead? They can't cut back on some of the taxes. Give us a relief until things get a little better so we can go ahead and keep our cost down because whenever fuel goes up, cost of goods go up, cost of labor goes up for transportation. All everything generated goes up for the

cost. There's there's things that they can do to help us in the short term and um to get us over this hump that we're going through. Uh the other another question I have is will there be a template because there's like they have like 50 items to be to be watched. Will each business we get a template like a check off deal with a line next to it on percentages, how many pounds and stuff that we could uh they can write off because uh I can see uh us having to hire another person or outside uh business that's going to specialize that to do the work for our small businesses in order to keep going. You know, it just it just frustrating because it get all gets passed down to the consumer. All boils down to it. So, is there a template out there that they'll be giving us to all the businesses and stuff to help make things life a little bit more easier, especially for the restaurants and stuff?

There currently isn't. Um, so the manufacturers are working through their payment mechanism, but the way it looks like it's going to shape up over the next few months is that it wouldn't be an individual business that would be filing these. So the city could file them and your hauler could file the costs for all of this and then it would be rather than your rates going up, your rates would maintain the same and all those incremental costs would be absorbed. So you're not going to see businesses getting a lot of money written to them, but would offset the increased costs of collection and processing and diverting that material. Well, I agree with the mayor what he said that people are leaving California, especially the ones are productive part of our of our citizens here. There are business owners, taxpayers that retirees, everybody leaving here because of the things like this coming down the pike. Uh rules and regulations on everything you do. You can't even do anything without possibility getting fined, getting in trouble, and like like our mayor said, get get thrown in jail possibility. But, you know, it's just it's ridiculous what they do to uh to to implement this because I I know I I was a fighter. A lot of our council members were fired, especially our mayor was when they brought up the three cans things, we saw the writing on the wall was going to happen with it. And I I and I think in a way um with this uh other um SB things upside down uh 1383 I I can see the I can see the the end result would be Yep. You don't have to worry about finding any food in the trash can because there be people will be starving to death because they can't afford to buy food. So, they'd be in there in a dumpster trying to get the food out to worry about uh some of the

stuff going to the dump. But, I'm just I'm just I'm really uh fed up with what is is happening to our great state. You know, I know I know we got election coming up and for the last 20 plus years, our state's been had a supermajority or or the Democratic party that's running our state over a super majority. It's come to the point there's got to be a revolt. Pendulum's got to swing somewhere. If you guys if people out there like to enjoy what's going on and happy for it, vote that way they want. But they want to if you really want to change, you really want to make things get back to where there's common sense issues, common sense uh by common sense people. We need to try another party to run this state and see what happens if the state does not get a lot better than it is right now. because uh right now it is not in a very good shape and I also don't think that it's going to be able to make it another four years. That's all I have to say. Mayor.

All right. Thank you, Councilman Sha. I believe question. Hey, Philip. Hey, I appreciate I know you guys are just updating us, but you're you're listening to uh to what we have to say and we appreciate you being so patient. Listen, is in regards to the compliance status for uh 1383. It says here that we're in the red for compost and mulch procurement and that's correct, right? Correct. Yes. And that's that's typical statewide. Um the majority of jurisdictions are not complying with that.

And and so my question would be is when do we need to have this rectified and what are your suggestions in order for us to to get compliant with this? Um well the I guess the honest answer is when to get it rectified is you will be inspected by cal cycle. So by the end of that inspection period which usually takes about a year. If they find you non-compliant you have about a year to work through getting into compliance. Um so if you want to wait until the last possible date then I would probably wait until they come and start knocking. Um, with that said, um, we are meeting with Kern County actually on Thursday of this week to see how they can help facilitate compliance. Um, we were looking for them since they have a composting facility for what outlets they have available. Um, currently the cheapest outlet we could find to be in compliance was to buy credits for the compost and the recovered organic waste product procurement, which is about 8 to$10,000 a year. Like, you get nothing in return other than a piece of paper that says you're compliant. You're not getting material delivered to residents. It's not out there, they can't go through with it.

We've, you know, working with city staff, we don't believe that paying, you know, $10,000 a year for a piece of paper makes sense at this point. Um, so we're trying to work through with the county now that there's new people there and their compost facilities up. Um, and some of the other local suppliers to see how we can have a a better deal that costs less because the transportation and the material alone. May may I uh stop for a second and ask city manager Jones, could you help uh interject just a little bit into this conversation regarding what the reality of the state requirement would be regarding how much compost the city of Taft would have to purchase and and bury in our city?

Uh do uh Philip or Caitlin, do you have the actual tonnages for the city of Taft estimates? I know it's8 uh 08 or 08 tons per person. 08 per person. Um it's about 400 tons. It's 350 400 tons annually. Annually, correct. And and as you well know, the problem with that is not for one, we don't need it, and for two, the trucking 25 tons per semi-truck load. Yeah. How many hundred tons did you say, sir? 400. roughly roughly 400 400 tons. So So if you were to have a semi, you're looking at 16 loads.

16 truckloads of compost. And we all know what compost is and smells like. We need to bring 16 truckloads a year into our little city and put somewhere where we don't need it. I'm sure there's safety measures as well, right? That's a great idea. Great idea. I can't imagine anything possibly better. than that. Thank you. Hey, thanks, Philip. And again, I'm just asking those questions. We have viewers here that that are watching as well, and I'm sure they're interested in in in knowing uh knowing some of these answers and so they have a better understanding of of what's going on and and what we're expected of. So, again, I appreciate you both. I know it's not the the

they're there are compliance professionals and I I kind of feel like don't shoot the messenger, you know? Absolutely. No, no, no. They're they're on our side. Absolutely. And it's stuff that we're forced into, right? So, we have a choice. Either we comply or we pay ridiculous fines, then we become under scrutiny of compliance plans and then we comply.

Right. And that is why uh and you're right, Councilman. Thank you. It's it's like you threaten the people with increased cost. You being the state. What the hell do you think that is? You think that's not impacting everybody's budget? That's not increased cost. So the state says you either spend money you don't have and comply so that way we can hire more state employees and and run up the state budget deficit or if you don't spend money you don't have in order to comply and check the box then we're going to charge you money for not complying. Doesn't seem to me that the consumer wins no matter which way we go here. It just does not. So I do thank you very much and I know what your job is and and we appreciate your help. We do uh mostly also like Councilman Shafer said I'm just trying to voice my frustration as a representative of the people. I want the people out there in TV land in the city of Taft to know that I do not support this madness. I don't believe and I fought against it when it first came to light. So, I'm sorry everybody out there. We tried to keep this madness out of the city of Taft and we could not. Uh, so here we are.

So, could I just add to that? Uh, again, he mentioned that we don't support the madness. However, we do understand that there are some local folks out there that uh that need to be that they do need to be responsible and uh making sure that their trash and area is kept up. Uh, and that just includes around our community. So, again, thanks Phillip. We appreciate your help, buddy. You're welcome. Okay, get back to any more questions or get to finish. This is the last slide. I promise. All right, it is National Nurses Week, so if you got shot up here, you know, there'll be plenty of nurses out there. Be appreciative.

Well, thank you both very much. And I know that obviously our city manager Jones will keep us updated regarding the compliance scorecard that you provided. U so I think she's going to finish. She got one more slide. Got one walled up I think want to say something. Okay,

just some next steps that you might see um you know in the community um one of the things that we noticed while we were doing this this review of the programs um was I mentioned Westside Waste Education needed a little bit of finetuning and one of the things we we happened on was that they the public or sorry not the bulky item program collection um had decreased tonnages in the new franchise agreement and so we just think residents aren't really aware of the new on call system. um it did change from alley collection to an on call. So you might see some increased um education and a campaign campaign around that in the near future to try to increase participation in that program. And then yeah, we're just going to be working with city staff with Craig and his team um and Westside Waste to make some minor tweaks to some of the reporting. Um and then as uh Phil mentioned, we do have that meeting with the county later this week to try to talk about compost and mulch procurement. So with that, I think we we are complete. I thank you guys for your comments.

All right, Caitlyn, thanks again. Appreciate you guys' help and uh hopefully we can make sense of it all at some point in time. Of course, we're here to help. Thank you. Now, didn't say anything. Nope. I think Ronnie soaked it all up. Oh, I had a comment, but it's probably best I didn't say it.

Okay. Well, then that was an adventure. All right. Next up, item number three, citizens request public comments. Do we have any this evening? No. All right. Very good then. Okay. Item number four, council statements non- action. Ronnie, I'm going to begin with you because you can go ahead and say whatever it is you wanted to say. Well, I was just going to tell them that uh I thought the government worked for the people and it doesn't sound like we're being represented, right? And all we got is a vote. So, we need to get them Democrats out. I'm not a Democrat no more, by the way. Congratulations.

Uh, they're they're they're they're being very uh stupid, put it that way. Uh, I'd like to comment too on the I I for one have been in the hospital for uh drag racing and uh few other things that get knocked out of a tree 20ome feet uh get messed up real good. And them nurses, my hat is off to them. They are a blessing. Uh they don't get paid enough or treated well. Um I can't say enough for them. So I just wanted to throw that in. All right. Very good. Thanks, sir. I'd have to agree with you wholeheartedly there, Ronnie. They do a difficult job and uh

God bless them. Everybody is happy they're there when they need them. Councilman Shivera.

Yes, sir. So elections are coming up and there's nothing more important uh in in our society. Um but the importance behind it is is to make informed decisions. And I'd encourage the community and any any voter to make sure that they're doing their due diligence and and uh and finding out the right information for each candidate so they can uh make an informed decision. Don't rely on social media. Don't rely on the news. do your own due diligence and make an informed decision. You know, our community, uh, our country is depending on it. So, and I'll leave you with a couple of quotes because they're inspiring. The right to vote is the most powerful nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. Our democracy, excuse me, our democracy isn't a given. It isn't self-executing. We as citizens have to nurture and tend to it. We have to work at it. And in that task, we have to vigilantly preserve and protect our most basic tool of self-government, which is the right to vote. And finally, nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves. And the only way they could do this is by not voting. And that's it, mayor. Thank you.

Oh, well said. Thank you very much, sir. Thanks for the reminder, Councilman Crier.

Thank you, Mayor. I have to agree with Councilman Shaba is that you you have the right to vote. If you vote, you have the right to complain. If you don't vote, don't complain at all to us. You got what you wanted and stuff. But look at how our country is being run, our state being run. If you like the way it's being run right now, you're happy with all the things your cost of goods, the rules and regulations and everything, vote the vote the same party. If you really want to change, maybe try something different. It might surprise you how better our state will run and hopefully get our feet back on our feet again. Another thing, too, I think a lot of people probably noticed is the state is really going kind of low on funds. When you see so many CHPs out there writing up tickets, it drives you crazy. You know, on my travels and stuff, going to Oregon, going to Yuma and just going to Modesto back and forth. It's just this weekend. I I I and or today, you know, there's two CHPs running on 119. There's seven or eight on each side of the road going up five going north. There's a whole mess of them. Depends on which which road you take. coming in from uh down south. There's they're all over the place pulling people over. Yes, sure they do a great job, but I think they got an extra order or two to really be nitpicky because a lot of times is you get pulled over, there are some gray areas or you could be innocent and you're be guilty as all hell. But I think they know that it's easier to pay the ticket than go to court or try to fight it. So, let's go ahead and pay it. There's a good revenue generations on there. And um if like myself, I do drive on on the high side, so I have to rely on cruise control, but I don't rely on cruise control. Have a tendency going above the speed limit.

And I don't want to do that because, you know, a lot of times they're the CHP, they're there to save lives. They have a big they have a big battle on their hands, you know, trying to weigh justice and everything and their opinion, but they they they they hear it, but uh they just try to be reasonable and know that they're doing their job. Make sure make sure your tags are paid, your lights are all working, your brake lights are working and all that because it's g excuse not to pull you over because it it's a it's a it's a headache. but they're just doing a job. But but there's a they're out there big time out there right now pulling people over. And I just want to say that we do I keep stressing that we have a great town, really great town here. And uh we we have to support our businesses much as we can help out with our youth and uh to be active in our community. So with that,

thank you. You bet. Thank you very much, sir. You know, there's a common thread, it seems, amongst so many of the state programs. There truly is. And one piece of the puzzle we continue to ignore, completely ignore, not just miss, but ignore is affordability. Affordability doesn't seem to matter in the state of California. And it doesn't matter if it's this, what this is actually costing. the fact that I showed you that prior to this, it took seven years for trash collection to go up 4%. And in the five years since, it's gone up 63 and a.5%. Is that affordable? Is that the affordable alternative? When you talk about gasoline fuel costs, because of what we've done in the state of California to drive out the refining industry, we have energy insecurity and it's we have not seen the worst yet, folks. We have it. Yesterday, the last tanker laden with oil from Saudi Arabia that was loaded before they closed the straight of Hormuz unloaded in the port of Los Angeles yesterday. That's 35 days away. That means there's not another one coming. All right. So, we have to try to find other ways to get crude oil into California. In spite of the fact that we cannot refine enough just to support our own consumption, we are relying on India, China, and the Bahamas for refined goods. Well, you know whose oil they're refining? Because they're not getting it out of the Middle East either. They're getting it from Russia. So the state of California now is getting their refined products from India, from China, from the Bahamas because they're getting discounted Russian oil. So we are enriching them so they continue to kill people in the Ukraine. Congratulations. If you look hard at what's going on, like I say, the affordability side of

the equation has left the state of California a very long time ago. California as a state has been operating with a deficit budget and uh actually having to serve a deficit budget for the last three years in a row. Last three years in a row, we've been in the hole. Right now, the legislative analyst's office and the governor's office both say we have a structural deficit that going to exceed $30 billion a year every year through 2029. Do you really think that we're going to be able to continue to spend the money we are right now? No, we're not. Budgets are going to be cut. People are going to lose their jobs and there's going to be other places. You cannot by 2032 take the trash trucks, the garbage trucks that we have right now. They're burning diesel fuel and they're very efficient. As a matter of fact, we've talked about this. Particulate matter that's getting kicked up on our roads is not coming from diesel fuel anymore, people. It's coming from tires and brake dust is where it's coming from. And it will still come that way if it's an electric powered vehicle actually more so. And that's been proven in multiple countries around the world. But what is really interesting is I just went to Con Expo a month and a half ago and I looked at the most modern equipment offered by global companies. The most modern construction equipment of all types. You know how many class 8 trucks or heavyduty uh construction equipment pieces that I saw that were powered by batteries? I saw hundreds of the newest, latest, greatest of all types. None of them. None. Zero were powered by batteries. None. Honda just came out and announced they took a 15.7 billion dollar write down because of the three electric vehicles that they were going to produce in America. They're not now. And because of the 15.7 billion they lost, the

current model years for the vehicles they're producing going are going to have to stay current for at least another three years because of all the money they lost on the EV side. The same is true for Ford, although they're trying to change something, come out with a new smaller electric pickup, Volvo, all the manufacturers. Okay, we need to face an economic reality. An economic reality. Yes, we need to be concerned with the environment. Yes, we need to do things as efficiently as we can with everything we had. You know, we all have kids. We all have grandkids. We want to leave them a better world than we were born into. But if they're dead broke and they can't afford to eat and they can't afford their utilities and they can't afford to clothe their children, what have we done? So affordability has just disappeared from the mindset in California government. And unfortunately because of it, we're all paying for it and it's not going to end anytime soon. That is all I have. Next up, item number five, department reports. Do we have any department reports this evening? Seeing none, item number six, city manager statement. City Manager Jones.

Thank you, Mayor. Nothing additional. All right. Thank you for your comments earlier and helping educate us on that. Item number seven, city attorney statements. Jason, thank you, Mr. Mayor. Item number eight, future agenda requests this evening, gentlemen.

Seeing none, let's go on to consent calendar items 9 through 16. All items listed on the consent calendar shall be considered routine and will be enacted by one roll call vote. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a member of the city council requests specific items to be removed from the consent calendar for separate action. Any item removed from the consent calendar will be considered after regular business items. Are there any items on the consent calendar that any member of the public would like to comment on? Seeing none, those items are item number nine, the minutes of the April 16th special meeting and April 21st, 2026 regular meeting. Item number 10 is the payment of bills, some $583,000 worth. Item number 11 is the treasures report. Recommendation is a motion to receive and file the treasures report for the month ending February 28, 2026. Item number 12, information on upcoming Brown Act provisions required by Senate Bill 707. Recommendation is to authorize staff to complete all policies, procedures, platform integrations, and public communication measures necessary to achieve full compliance with Senate Bill 707 by July the 1st, 2026. Item number 13 is the approval of special event permit for the TAP Chamber of Commerce to host the 18th annual Rails to Trails car show on May 16th, 2026 and approval of street closures for the event. Recommendation here is a motion to approve a resolution entitled a resolution of the city council of the city of Taft approving special event permit number 202608 authorizing the TAP Chamber of Commerce to host the 18th annual Railsto Trails car show along the trails between Fourth Street and 10th Streets, including the

closure of Sixth Street between Main Street and Supply Row on Saturday, May the 16th, 2026, and find that the activity is not a project per the California Environmental Quality Act, SQA, as set forth in section 15061B3 of the SQA guidelines. Item 14, it's a special event permit carnival by Shopener Shows at Supply Row and Sixth Street, May the 9th through the 16th of 2026. Recommendation. Here's a motion to approve a resolution entitled a resolution of the city council of the city of Taft approving a special event permit authorizing Schopener shows to operate a carnival on city property at Sixth Street and Supply Row from May the 5th to May 19th, 2026 and find that the activity is not a project for the California Environmental Quality Act SQUA as set forth in section 15060C3 and section 15378 of the SQA guidelines. signs. Item 15 is the purchase of upgraded portalologgic hauler access station located at the wastewater treatment facility. Recommendation is a motion to authorize the city manager to sign the quote to authorize the purchase of the upgraded equipment and find that the activity is not a project for the California Environmental Quality Act. SQA is set forth in section 15060c3 and section 15378 of the SQA guidelines. Item 16, affirmation of approval to include an effective dates for memorandum of agreements, resolutions and employee compensation plans for CalPERS reporting. Recommendation is motion to adopt the following resolutions plural. One resolution of the city council of city of Taft affirming the approval to the following resolutions and memorandum of

agreements to include an all over effective date of October 6, 2015. Two, resolution of the city council of the city of Taft affirming the approval to the following resolutions and memorandum of agreements to include an all over effective date of July the 1st, 2017. Item three or I'm sorry, three, resolution of the city council of the city of Taft affirming the approval to the following resolutions and memorandum of agreements to include an all over effective date of August 1st, 2017. Four, resolution of the city council of the city of Taft affirming the approval to the following resolutions and memorandum of agreements to include an all over effective date of July the 1st, 2019. Five, resolution of the city council of the city of Taft affirming the approval to the following resolutions and memorandum of agreements to include an all over effective date of August the 1st, 2023. Six, resolution of the city council of the city of Taft affirming the approval to the following resolutions and memorandum of agreements to include an all over effective date of July 1st, 2024. Wow, my head's spinning after that one, folks. I'm sorry.

Does any councilman wish to remove any of these items from the consent calendar? Hearing none. At this time, I would entertain a motion to approve consent calendar items 9 through 16. Motion. Second. I have a motion and a second. Madam clerk, may we have a roll call, please? Council member Crier. Yes. Council member Waldrop, yes. Council member Shira. Yes. Mayor North.

Yes. That's approved on a 40 vote. Thank you very much, gentlemen. Next up, item number 17. Report from the past five calendar years of the amount of money given to the Taff Chamber of Commerce from the transit occupancy tax along with the agreement and resolution. City Manager Jones. Thank you, Mayor. The city of Taff and the Taft Chamber of Commerce entered into an agreement September 16th, 2008 where the city council recognized it was in the best interest of the city to financially support the chamber. City council agreed to fund the chamber in the amount of 25% of the actual toot tax received and paid quarterly to the chamber not to exceed 50,000 in one calendar year. The toot tax referred to as a hotel motel vacation rental or bed tax is authorized under state revenue and taxation code 7280. The amount of money the chamber received for each calendar calendar year is 2001 $43,9624. 2022 $48,782.85 85. 2023 51,562.15. Obviously, that was an overpayment on the city. Uh 2024 47,6322. 202547,557.84 with a total amount received from 2021 to 2025 is $238,962.30. chamber staff and the city staff have been in contact with one another and uh to this date the next item is that we have received our financial statements.

Okay. October 18th. So you actually have received we have received and this at the time of the staff report we were working they were working on getting those to us. So okay next item is the rece.

Thank you very much. See manager Jones recommended action on this. This is a discussion item. It was actually the mayor prom that requested information regarding the funding to the chamber over the course of the last 5 years. And it's been remarkably consistent when one considers that we as a city council made a commitment to consider the possibility of actually awarding 25% of the toot tax each quarter to the chamber uh to help fund the operations in order to enhance quality of life in the city and go out there and advertise for us. the one year that we overpaid, like city manager Jones said, in 2023, we paid 51,56215. Uh, I guess that's good and bad. We exceeded our maximum by that $1,562. We didn't any of the other years, but we did that year. Um, we will definitely keep an eye on that in the future. Regarding the the financials, I will tell everybody this this agreement goes way back uh back 2003 and then 2008 uh there was a an amendment to it. So we it's been in place for a very long time because the city council in spite of the fact that council members came and went, they all agree on one thing and that is it is in the best interest of the city to have a healthy chamber of commerce to promote um businesses promote opportunities as well as functions that actually shed a positive light on the city of Taft. and they have done just that for many many years ever since they signed those agreements. They being the city. Uh then along came COVID and CO interrupted the normal flow of information as well as people's work activities globally. Uh

and we all know because we're all victims of that. And then postreovery we did not quite get back in the groove the way that we should have. and that came to light when this information was asked for. So it has uh renewed our interest on exactly how this should work and will work in the future and we have had the opportunity to get these things caught up. So that is all I have to say about that. Does any other council member wish to comment or discuss any of these issues? not to discuss is that a chamber like the mayor was saying is is vital to our community. It's it's their heartbeat, their eyes and ears for our council and for our city and our business people that we have here uh trying uh to do business and then uh to bring new money into our town to uh having different events that goes on to draw people in to showcase our community. And hopefully they like it enough that uh they spend their money here, open a business or buy a home or find a job or or any numerous uh reasons and to attract uh other industries here in order to make our town a better place uh to live and work and live our former mayor Randy Miller. But uh we have we we have great leadership in our in our city in the past and present and they all the vision and stuff to have the chamber and to fund the chamber and uh I I fully support what the chamber is doing and uh I see better things coming and uh let's go forward with it and uh and thank God we have a good chamber that uh in our city that's doing the job for us.

That's all I have. All right. Thank you very much, Councilman Shiver. Yeah. I just want to thank uh I just want to thank the relationship with that we have with the chamber. Uh clearly they're doing great things for our community. We have a lot of activities and events that goes on because of them that host them and uh I appreciate the relationship and I and I'm looking forward to the relationship with them and that's all I got to say about that. All right. I thank you Councilman Waldrop. I too uh appreciate the chamber and uh they've done a lot of good and hopefully in the future we can make things work even better. That's all I got to say.

All right. I thank you very much gentlemen for the discussion. We move on to the next item on our agenda which is item number 18. City of TAP request income statements for year 2024 and 2025 from TAP chamber commerce city manager Joan. Thank you mayor. is privileged to reported uh the city uh council to the city council and city disclosed the toot amounts provided to the chamber in accordance with the agreement requested income statements for calendar outstanding calendar years 2020 24 and 25 are included uh to be submitted to the council for to be uh accepted.

All right. Thank you very much manager Jones. The recommended action now, gentlemen, is a motion to receive and file the TAP Chamber of Commerce income statements for years 2024 and 2025. At this time, I would entertain a motion to receive and file the TAP Chamber of Commerce income statements for years 2024 and 2025. Motion. Second. I have a motion and a second. Any additional discussion on this item, gentlemen? Um, I'll reserve it until we get the the statements. Okay. Here. Statements are attached, sir.

Council Wall Drop. No, no, no, thank you. All right, then. I'm sorry. Do I Do I have a motion and a second? I gave you second. All right. I have a motion and a second. Madam Clerk, may we have a roll call, please? Council member Crier? Yes. Council member Waldrop? Yes. Council member Shiver, yes. Mayor North,

yes. That passed on a 40 vote. Thank you very much, gentlemen. Okay, that actually brings us to the end of the open session portion of this meeting, this evening's meeting. This council will be going into close session for the following items. Item A, conference with labor negotiator Craig Jones, city manager, government code section 54957.6, all units. Item B, conference with real property negotiator Craig Jones, city manager. Government code section 54956.81, undisclosed parcel. Lastly, item C, conference with legal counsel, existing litigation. Government code section 54956.9A. Taft Union High School versus the city of Taft. Kern County Superior Court case number S-1500-CV-283804. I want to thank you all for being a part of this evening's meeting and being here to honor all of those that we did earlier in the meeting. Thank you. We're in a journ.