Federal Lobbyist Discussion

1:50:02gentlemen, I got great faith in you. Thank you very much and look forward to the report and to meet with you as well. Thank you. Uh next item, R59, federal lobbyist discussion.

1:50:19Good morning, Carrie Roberts, Purchasing Director of the County. We have a short presentation today on the federal lobbyist contract and your options with it. So the contract originally had a start date of January 1st with an initial three-year term, which would leave it as a expiration date of December 31st of 2027. There are two optional renewals with that as well. For your termination options, we have two types of terminations, a convenience and termination for cause.

1:50:49Um in easy terms, a termination for convenience is like the divorce where you just decide you're not happy with each other anymore and you want to just walk away. A termination for can for cause is when there's something that has happened that is causing that rift. According to our contract, those things are adequate progress has not been made of the direct results of the of the consultants' failure to perform. If they have a quality of essential work is not at acceptable standards. If the consultant is non-compliant in any of the provisions of their contract, or if the consultant or their agent

1:51:19has been charged in a crime arising from their performance of the service or is involved in a bankruptcy. Under either termination scenario, termination for convenience or cause, the county would be responsible for paying any outstanding fees that we owe the consultant. At this point, our options moving forward are to continue with the contract as is until the termination date of December 31st of 2027, or we can terminate it under one of those two options for cause or convenience. And then at that point we have three options to either not

1:51:49seek a new federal lobbyist and just kind of let it lie. We could pursue a new federal lobbyist under a piggyback or a cooperative contract. Or we could go out to another RFP explicit again, and those are our options. Any questions?

1:52:06Questions, comments?

1:52:12Sorry, I was doing something. Um

1:52:19I um had mentioned before

1:52:23And maybe it's not fair to just base it on one year, but I didn't see a lot of help from them when we were in Washington. I have not reached out myself much, but I do feel that when Harry was with us I had a lot more interaction. Um

1:52:46So also I know there was a bit of a fallout with the our current lobbyist in the White House and affected their ability. Um so um I think my choice would be to go back to Harry. Um I guess it's not Harry's what's the part?

1:53:09That's right.

1:53:12Uh my feelings were I didn't see much out of the new fertile obvious the work that was done. It just seemed to not near be what we expected. And um found out some things I didn't know before about our lobbyists that we had prior that of the work they had been doing for us. I don't know that it ever highlighted very much up there, but it that he was doing much more than what we got this year I think. So I I would like to go back to this federal office we had before.

1:53:46Commissioner Yeager?

1:53:47Oh I think his name. Sorry.

1:53:48Yeah. Um I will say I mean I I I like Terry's great guy. Uh he actually helped us with safety grants. But I will say with The new lobbyists, one of the reasons I lo I wanted to pick him was his close relationship with the White House. And I've heard that it's not and I still haven't got the information you're gonna get me some people to go talk to. I haven't got any information from you about going to talk to those people about What they have in the White House, government affairs.

1:54:12Oh well so um that friend So at one point Mr. Kabal was talking about hiring an internal federal person, like similar to Ralph, but it'd be an internal federal uh employee, a person that worked on federal stuff. My f my friend who runs one of the biggest stuff in the world said he would do that for help us, not to hire anyone internal. Not saying that we shouldn't have an external.

1:54:43But but um Yeah. So I d I'm not sure if I explained that. Because he was looking at hiring an internal federal.

1:54:58Well he also lives there. But that that's for a different position.

1:55:02Yeah Yeah, what Commissioner Starkey is referring to I briefly entertained the idea of bringing in another intergovernmental affairs officer. You know, whether or not that's the right a right move or not, that that remains to be seen. That was just you know kind of batting that idea around. So Commissioner Starkey brought these individuals up as potential folks that could assist us on an internal basis, but still require, we would still require a an external federal lobbying firm to still do the work of the lobbyist. Whether or not

1:55:32we needed the additional assistance that they could provide additional assistance to Ralph, perhaps during session. Um you know, there's federal things going on to provide just a surge in manpower if we needed it. That was really what the conversation was about.

1:55:44So sir as far as surge in manpower, house is in session for sixty days plus sixty days of committee reports, et cetera. All year if you listen to what's going on right now. Well, who knows, but I If we're gonna have I mean frankly I've been waiting for things to develop with public works, et cetera, to try to go forward and If there's nothing to ask for the right-of-way. Then we didn't need one. And frankly the past year between what was going on up in DC, still going on up in there, it's been hard to get them activated.

1:56:14Um I've reached out to them before about trying to help us with a full 401 permit with the Army Corps. Willing to help. We're gonna bring another firm minute that's an expert to to help us, but It hasn't happened yet, it might have happened now, but it's it's been a year on that. So it's uh that's on our end.

1:56:30Yeah.

1:56:30So if we haven't asked for help, how do you get help? So I think

1:56:33it's enough.

1:56:35Well and so so it's not the lobbyists' fault, it's just we haven't done it in between what's gone on DC. I don't think anyone could have done Too much up there, has done too much up there. Because you know well with all the cuttings going on, all the doge cuts, etcetera, it hasn't been the prime year to go. I I don't wanna Terminate. and go h rehire. If we're going to terminate let's Terminate, but I think we need to go work internally first to what we want to go do. Let's go get Ralph Lair uh up there, let him go work on this stuff for us and

1:57:05not have to increase our budget at all and just go that way. But to go bring on an a lob another lobbyist when I just went the lobbyist when, as we just said, nobody asked for anything. Well you can't get a lobbyist to help you well unless you ask. We're much more engaged with the state than we are up there. And who go who goes up there? You and I. Commissioner Starkey.

1:57:23Well and I and I do want to talk about that. Um we do need to go up again like we did for FEMA, I mean uh Army Corps before. Uh but I think what we need to be going where we need to be going is FDA or whatever they call it up there. Um you know, we have a couple of Big grant ass that are are are coming for help with some of our roads. And listen, we're not gonna be able to build ourselves, we're not gonna be able to fix it ourselves. We have got to go up to Washington and start those relationship buildings. And Commissioner

1:57:53Long, they did that, it took them a couple years, but they went up, they made relationships. And they made relationships and they got their money. It didn't happen in one year but they and they did it with Harry but but I I agree with you. If we don't start being proactive ourselves, then we're throwing money out the window. We cannot hire somebody and then not use them. We have to have a plan, we have to go execute it. And we have we have to walk the halls and we have to

1:58:23sit at those tables.

1:58:25So let me ask this question. Can we pause the contract for a few months until we put a plan together and decide what we want to do? Okay. All right, so as far as transportation goes, I'm gonna bring this because I think it's something we need to look at. Our MPO that we have it set up right now, we we're pushing for city people to kind of run it. I think we need to change that, especially if we're gonna be looking to a merger coming in. So I'm gonna ask uh the two commissioners of actually three commissioners, actually border, right along 41, where we've got our biggest house

1:58:55coming up, we've got a both closest connection to Tampa. Are either of the three of you, Commissioner Yeager, Starkey, or Wigman, are you interested in serving as far as the MPO chair coming up?

1:59:09Probably left that up to the cities.

1:59:11Yeah, what left. We have

1:59:13we have, but I'm gonna tell ya, we're gonna be going in and there's no cities at forty one. If you get someone who's a district commissioner for the area and the three of you qualify in the sense of right along forty one.

1:59:23But I would take the MPO chair up with us to Washington if that if you think that makes a difference.

1:59:31I'm gonna tell you, those guys went to Orlando. I I cut my wedding trip short, flew in from Atlanta to Orlando to go to see Metro Plan Orlando. I was the only commissioner there. I don't know what was going on with everyone else. But

1:59:45schedules.

1:59:45R Our three MPO people were there. The cities.

1:59:53Anyway, so transportation is something that we can go as far. As far as for economic development I think like the Amp skills we should be asking for the new building, for the the help of the industrial park up in Hudson, et cetera. The

2:00:06president just rolled out a whole bunch of money for reports training in manufacturing.

2:00:10The Safer Grant, we got money the previous year. We were lined up for that as well. That's another one we can go after.

2:00:16And what what about this program to try and stop flooding on over here on the east side? With the the Swift Mud, the Four Four Rivers?

2:00:24Project.

2:00:24The Four Rivers. We got a lot to go up there and talk about.

2:00:33And that's been a a a heated I don't know, whatever you want to call it, Mike, but I mean ho uh th last October we tried to get this going on.

2:00:41I think we've got

2:00:41it. Because they have done it set. So I I guess we're close to being set, et cetera. But Dawson Associates, I I talked with them and with our current federal lobbyists. They've worked together before, they love to work together. They think they get something going. And I think with when we get Ridge Row done The trip uh Commissioner Starkey you myself and Commissioner Weight went up? To the Army Corps directly met, and guess what? Between what Trump had done with Congressman Belarakis signing off, Governor Scott signing off, and Trump setting up a new people to look over the Army Corps, we expedited off it's done. And

2:01:12I think with the issues we got between four rivers, between uh canal restoration up and down, we need them. And with all the other things that Brantford struggles with, Jason struggled with, trying to get projects to approve like Seapines. That project's twenty something years sitting. We've got all the land in place, we've got everything set, and the Army Corps's holding us up now. So we've got plenty to work on.

2:01:33There's a there's a couple others. There's the using the C D B G D R money for an emergency operations center. Um there is um Uh okay, when I you know, I'm Chair of the Federal Committee at VAT. I went around la this was two years ago when we went around I uh you know all the counties jumped in with me, Charlotte and Lee and Some other counties were in with me. And I can tell you they're all thanking Senator Scott and Senator Rubio for the money they got for septic

2:02:03to Seward. Have we ever gotten a federal penny for septic to sewer? We haven't done one yet in this county, but

2:02:13So

2:02:13um And they're getting federal money. to uh to to stop polluting their waters. So I think w uh I would like to suggest Mr. Chair, that we have a little um R workshop on a federal agenda and then we work on a plan to execute it.

2:02:35I'm good with that. Um I don't want to change Right now? until we've had that workshop and gone through it because I said this this dialogue is great. We're actually talking about stuff that we're gonna get done now and now that I hear that we've got uh Dawson Associates on board with us through an indirect, great. We've got we're talking about things right now to get done. Let's go put the plan together, let's sit down, and I will tell you, as much as I liked Harry, he helped us with the Safer Grant, but I didn't see a lot of other things funded. You you can tell me something, tell me. But Um

2:03:06I think we should keep who we have for right now until we come up with this plan and then look at the decision, talk with the lobbyist and then see what they think they can do. We can see what they can do. If we don't get results right away. then we can move on and start again. But I hate to see us lose when we did have that strong connection to the White House. I don't know how bad it is, um and I I don't think we should be talking Unless we know for sure to what's going on, but maybe talking to your friend, et cetera. No. Anyway, so all right so we need we need a federal agenda. What do you want to do with the lobbyists? That's the next

2:03:37decision. If we want to make one.

2:03:41Yeah.

2:03:43I'm indifferent too.

2:03:44I'm I'm happy to stay the course for right now until we put a plan together. Then we'll take a look at it.

2:03:49Um do we have to make decisions today?

2:03:51No. No, I'm not sure.

2:03:52Okay, um you know what I will do is I'm gonna ask my call.

2:03:56But I think we should talk to all of us. I mean I definitely want to talk to him but I think

2:04:02it's a

2:04:02Share the information.

2:04:06Um

2:04:09I don't I I don't want to burn a bridge. And uh I uh you know, he's doing us a favor and I don't know if he'll talk to every single person.

2:04:18Uh

2:04:18okay. Um but I'm just gonna try and get some insight.

2:04:21Okay. All right, so we'll table this.

2:04:24Yeah, so next meeting.