Coraggio Consulting
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Environmental Committee, Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Date: Tuesday, July 18, 2023
Place: Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Virginia
Length: 1h 27m (video)
Official meeting video (Fairfax County): https://video.fairfaxcounty.gov/player/clip/2971
Official Board of Supervisors page (Fairfax County): https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/boardofsupervisors/

Machine transcript (speech-to-text) produced by Coraggio Consulting. Not an official county record. Names and numbers may be misspelled; check the video at the timestamp before quoting.
Speech-to-text: whisper.cpp, model large-v3-turbo. Produced 2026-11-03. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video.

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[00:00:04] Environment committee is going to come to order, and we are going to get started. We've got a number of items on the list today to discuss. I did want to acknowledge something that happened at lunchtime today, which is, I think it's a first, and if not, it's hopefully a first of a tradition that we will set at least for environment committee days, is that the different environmental staff members of each of our supervisor offices got together and an opportunity to chat and kind of talk about, obviously, each of the environmental issues that are not only exclusive to our districts but also affect all of us countywide.

[00:00:43] And it's a great chance for them to connect and look at how they can add to our efforts to ensure that Fairfax County is an environmental leader. So thank you, Kamala Speer, for helping organize that. And I know that there are a number of other people there, and I just appreciate them being there.

[00:00:59] And again, I would look at this and hopefully we'll be able to do this at a minimum when the Environment Committee meets once a quarter to just look at that as being a standard date that the aides can meet and talk about environmental initiatives, not only in our district, but countywide and so on.

[00:01:18] So thank you. The first item we have is we've got the April 25th, 2023 meeting summary. I had just one minor change, which somebody mentioned to me, and I'll go ahead and make that. It's on page six, so I'll go ahead and make that change.

[00:01:37] Are there any other comments, changes from anybody on the notes? If not, I'll then ask if there are any expected updates from the last meeting that board members have not received a follow-on response. I know there's one item that is in here that Supervisor Gross had mentioned, and we'll cover that at the very end.

[00:01:58] it's a staff response. And then if there are no further comments or suggestions, let the minutes stand as a record of the meeting. And we will now move on to John Silcox and the public information outreach in support of climate action. John, good afternoon. Okay. Thank you, Supervisor Stork, Chairman McKay, supervisors and full committee. I want to thank you for the opportunity to provide an update today on our public information and outreach efforts that are supporting our climate

[00:02:31] action plans here in Fairfax County. And I want to start just by kind of reminding all of us about kind of our goals for public information and outreach. We know that achieving the long-term goals that our county has for carbon neutrality is going to be a shared responsibility. Only 5% of greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed specifically to county and school operations, so we know it's critical that we engage our full community in public education and awareness that's focused on high emissions reduction areas like electric vehicle adoption, home energy efficiency,

[00:03:07] electrification, installation of solar power and renewable energy, and encouraging the use of public transit and other sustainable forms of transportation. And so it's really incumbent that we help our residents understand both the financial costs and benefits of these specific climate actions. So the goals of that public information outreach are really to educate our community and our stakeholders. And that includes businesses, organizations, individuals, neighborhoods about the need for climate action, providing that information in a clear way that helps them take that action so that it's suited for people of all ages and abilities and backgrounds

[00:03:42] and supporting them on their journey to help them take measurable climate action through the information resources and programs that we can provide that can help them overcome any barriers they have to participation. And certainly trying to prioritize that action with an equity lens and using the One Fairfax approach. In terms of what we're doing for education and outreach through our office and the partnerships that we're doing across the county with our county partners,

[00:04:19] both within county government and in the community, it's really in service to those goals I mentioned before. And those include a number of tactics that we're using to educate and outreach to the community. Deploying and developing web-based content and tools that can help people understand these important topics. Providing testimonial videos that spotlight individual and corporate climate champions in our community to inspire other people to take similar actions. Providing information and resources in multiple languages so we can make

[00:04:55] our entire community aware of these important issues, providing both in-person and virtual opportunities for presentations and events so we can connect on a ground level with our community, doing social media campaigns and partnering with nonprofits, advocacy groups, and other stakeholders to help expand our reach and influence on these issues, and providing programs that can leverage incentives and remove some of the barriers to participation.

[00:05:28] Everything I've talked about can only be successful when we apply that one message, many voices approach. So we're engaging with various partners and stakeholders to try and amplify our message on climate action.

[00:05:43] And that includes how people can reduce their carbon emissions at home and on the road. And we're working with our board offices, obviously, to help us get that message out there. And we appreciate all the help your staff is giving us in sharing those messages on your communication channels.

[00:05:58] and we ask that you continue to do so and certainly contact us if we can help you do that on even a larger scale. We're working with champions in the faith-based community and the business sector to help get these messages out into those industries.

[00:06:15] We're working with advocacy groups to engage them in similar efforts to promote climate action, which they, in many cases, are already doing, and they're helping support our efforts. And there is a lot of resources on these issues, a lot of information, but sometimes it is still not widely understood by the community and still can be confusing at times.

[00:06:37] So what we've really worked to do is to try to provide this information in a clear, more informational way that will help people take these actions. And I'm going to speak to some of those resources in a moment. But that's really, you know, we've been listening to the feedback this board has given us about let's make this information accessible to people.

[00:06:58] Let's make it information that people can use. So we're certainly working on that effort. Just wanted to note a couple of, you know, highlights from this past fiscal year in our communication and outreach. Recently, earlier this year, publishing our Climate Action Dashboard, which is sort of a single site for explaining and sharing progress with our community on the county's climate action goals, developing a climate action presentation that we've delivered to the community and will continue to do so, giving people information and resources on both county and other partner programs that can help them take the climate actions that we're talking about.

[00:07:37] We've given over two dozen of those presentations already, and we'll continue to do so, and that doesn't include a lot of the work we're doing, interagency meeting with different staff and county partners. We've been providing hands-on demonstrations of simple energy and water efficiency improvements that people can make through our HomeWise program, which includes handing out close to 500 energy efficiency kits at multiple events.

[00:08:03] And those kits include things like LED light bulbs, socket sealers, window weather stripping, things that people can take home and actually start using in their home to get a start on some of this. And then publishing a suite of educational materials, including fact sheets, infographics, social media content and videos that help people understand these everyday climate actions that they can take.

[00:08:27] We're currently in the process of finalizing translations on a number of print materials that have been developed so that we can make those available to the community, and we'll have those on our website within the next few weeks. And in the next few slides, I'm just going to share a little bit more specifics about some of the information resources that we have available that highlight the importance of home energy use, solar power, electric vehicles, and more sustainable forms of transportation.

[00:08:55] So we know that climate actually really start at home, and it only takes small actions to make some impact. So we're providing our community with a lot of information and resources to help them identify ways that they can reduce their home energy use, curb emissions, and save money in many cases.

[00:09:12] And our suite of materials includes a lot of fact sheets, infographics, video, and social media content that will explain how they can use EPA's carbon footprint calculator to identify what is their own carbon footprint and how can they start to make changes. That describes the purpose of a home energy assessment and also suggests some do-it-yourself options for people who don't have the resources to do a full home energy audit.

[00:09:36] That emphasizes the importance of simple actions like switching to LED light bulbs, installing weather stripping, using ENERGY STAR appliances, and unplugging devices when they're not in use. Again, we're talking about small actions, but they can add up to savings and carbon impact.

[00:09:54] We're also addressing some questions that we know people have about the costs and the environmental impact of these choices and promoting the incentives and tax credits that are available to help people reduce those costs. Sometimes people don't know that those incentives exist, and we want to make sure that they're taking advantage of those.

[00:10:10] And as previously mentioned, our HomeWise program helps residents take energy-saving actions in their homes by providing them information, resources, including those do-it-yourself home energy kits I mentioned. Of course, we're also providing the community with information and resources to encourage the use of solar energy for both community, home, and county buildings.

[00:10:33] Our suite of materials includes a lot of fact sheets, infographics, videos, and social media content that explains the basics of solar power, how it works, helps residents assess their home's own solar potential, take advantage of county incentives and federal tax credits, and addresses some of the questions about cost, about the impacts of weather on solar, and on the overall environmental impact that can be made.

[00:10:58] And we are also spotlighting county residents who've actually installed solar to encourage other people to follow suit and learn from their example. And additionally, as I'll mention a little bit later, we're working with some nonprofit partners, including the Local Energy Alliance Program and Solar United Neighbors to promote co-op purchasing programs which can leverage the power of group purchasing to help residents reduce the cost and sort of navigate the complexity of solar if they're not that familiar with it.

[00:11:28] So we'd like to briefly show you a clip of one of our solar testimonials just to give you a feel for the kind of information that we're sharing with the community and how we're really spotlighting people in our own community who are climate champions. So some tips for people considering installing solar would be to shop around.

[00:11:56] There's so many vendors out there, installers, and they have different products, different prices, installation, different warranties. The Solarize Fairfax program was a great way to meet vendors, but reach out to your community and others that have installed solar and get their experience.

[00:12:19] So what you saw is just a brief segment of a larger video that talks a lot about the content that I described earlier around solar power. We're also promoting the adoption of electric vehicles as a way to help curb greenhouse gas emissions.

[00:12:42] And our suite of materials also includes a lot of fact sheets, infographics, videos, and social media content that explains the basics of EVs, how they're different from gas-powered vehicles, helps consumers select and purchase an EV that is right for them and their needs, addresses questions of range anxiety, charging at home and on the go, maintenance and financing options, and incentives that are available right now for people who are interested in purchasing an EV.

[00:13:09] We're also spotlighting county residents and employees who've made the switch to driving an EV to encourage others to follow suit. And additionally, the county is facilitating shared EV charging in homeowner and condominium associations through our Charge Up Fairfax program, which I believe there are some updates on that program in the report that was shared with the board today.

[00:13:33] So we also wanted to show you a brief segment of one of our EV videos to give you a flavor for the information we're sharing with the community about EV adoption. So on average, I spend about $35 a month on charging electricity.

[00:14:00] And to put that in comparison, if I had a gas car, my typical monthly fuel cost would be about $95 a month. Now, this is based on mostly charging at home where electricity is cheaper. If I charge at a public charging station, the rates could be anywhere from three to five times higher.

[00:14:18] Probably what's changed most is how much we've saved, honestly. We did the math. A comparable car to the one that we were looking at, we saved about $800 in gas money since we got this car.

[00:14:39] Again, we just wanted to give you a slice of a larger video that talks about EV adoption and talks about a lot of the issues we discussed earlier.

[00:14:55] We know that transportation accounts for nearly 40% of the greenhouse gas emissions in Fairfax County. So we also want to provide the community with information and resources that helps them evaluate their options for using public transit and other more sustainable forms of transportation. So our suite of materials includes fact sheets, infographics, and social media content that offers information on commuting, ride sharing, and public transit options.

[00:15:18] Emphasizes the cost savings and environmental impact from driving less and walking and biking more. And again, a lot of this information, we've worked with our partners at the Department of Transportation to make sure it reflects a lot of the great community programs and incentives that are available.

[00:15:37] So as we look ahead this summer, we'll be continuing to promote the solar programs I mentioned before, Solarize Virginia and Capital Area Solar Switch, that can really help make solar easy and cost effective. In addition to competitive pricing on solar panels, those programs do provide residents with a direct line to ask questions about the process, access to a team that actually vets qualified installers and provides them all the support they need as they're going through the process.

[00:16:07] We have a couple of educational webinars coming up where residents can hear from those programs, also speak to installers, and find out more. So that information is on our website for folks who want to sign up for those webinars. And later this far, we'll be doing informational campaigns around EB adoption as we roll out the Charge Up Fairfax program more widely, continuing to talk to our community about home energy and home energy retrofits, promoting our climate champions,

[00:16:39] and continuing to focus on the other side of the climate issue, which is resiliency and adapting to changing climate.

[00:16:47] And with that, I'll just mention we have a number of resources. Folks can find a lot of the information that I shared and we talked about on our website. We also share a lot of information through our social media channels on Twitter and Facebook. And we invite everyone to subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter where we provide updates on a lot of environmental, climate, and energy news that's going on in the county. And with that, I'll pause. Thank you for your time, and I'm happy to answer any questions.

[00:17:20] Well, thank you John and and as you can hear and as we I think most of us know Which is the reason we did this particular segment today is we have a lot going on the county There's so much going on It's not always clear what it is and where you go to find it and we're looking for simple ways ways that can help people Capture the particular interest that they have help them take that passion and feed it with with data and information and resources that can make them Successful so gain residents engaged in the results of the programs that we've been running for the past year is to do just that We have I think an opportunity Among all of us and we're going to we're looking for

[00:18:00] OE staff to prompt to bring back in October Some ways that we can maybe create a little bit of friendly competition among future board members and district Representatives and and Jeff you know I mean you got the whole county so maybe you got a natural edge so But we're looking at ways to kind of tie into what we all do naturally is really we're communicating.

[00:18:23] We have newsletters. We have obviously Facebook posts and lots of other things that we do looking for ways to do that. But to do that really effectively, we need some kind of initial base data that would help us to get a sense of how we're doing. We think that little bit of energy around that would allow us to better move Fairfax County truly forward more quickly than we would otherwise get.

[00:18:46] Because the core of this isn't the 5% of the county. The 5% of the county matters, of course. It's the other 95%, which means our education campaigns have to be successful. And it comes back down to all of us. At some piece of it, obviously OEC and really all the other departments and areas of the county, OPA, et cetera, to do that.

[00:19:05] So we know we're going to be coming back with something more, and OEC is working on how do we get some data or some baselines to make that something we can actually use effectively. I also know that we've got our own monthly newsletter from OEC that we get data on that we turn around and use and put in our newsletters.

[00:19:28] So that kind of information from OEC, OPA, to kind of recirculate that is a key part of that success as well. So I'm happy to take comments, questions from Robert Alcorn.

[00:19:44] Thank you. Yeah, I just wanted to make sure as we do our public outreach, I think I heard weatherization mentioned as one of the content items for educating the public, but also in terms of building electrification, certainly heard from some constituents as part of the Citizens Climate Lobby that want to make sure people are aware of the tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act.

[00:20:07] Is that going to be part of the outreach as well? Yeah, we've been doing some communication, and I think in our last e-newsletter, in fact, we had some information about those tax credits specifically for some of those electrification projects as well as some of the other home energy upgrades.

[00:20:25] So we'll continue to do that, and we'll continue to build out more resources over time as we continue to add to our suite of materials. But yes, I think that's part of also, it's in our personal climate action presentation that we give to the community. We talk about electrification.

[00:20:41] All right. Fantastic. Thank you. Supervisor Herdy. Just a few questions on metrics. Do we have any, are you tracking views on the videos? We will be. We just had, in the process of updating our website to kind of reorganize information in a more easy-to-find way.

[00:21:03] So as we move forward, we want to continue to refine and improve our approach. So we'll be looking at metrics. But I don't know what those YouTube views are as of today. I'd have to get that information for you. I'm happy to follow up, though. And how many people have used the carbon footprint calculator, that sort of thing?

[00:21:23] I think it's important to put a lot of resources in this just to see that it's actually getting out. Agreed. Supervisor Lusk? Yeah, just a quick question. I appreciate the solar testimonial and also the electric vehicle one.

[00:21:41] And to the point that Supervisor O'Connor made on the weatherization, that would be helpful if there's a video on it as well. But then the question I wanted to ask is specifically if these videos are translated in Spanish, because we'd love to push them out to the communities that aren't English-speaking.

[00:22:01] So just wanted to see if that's a possibility as well. To your question, I would just say we don't have videos yet translated in those languages. We're working on a number of translations for some of our materials, and I think that's part of what we want to do.

[00:22:16] We don't have it yet, but we're working towards that. I'll just say once you have that, let us know, and we'll be happy to kind of push it out and let others know as well. So thank you. Yes, thank you. I have Supervisor Palachuk and then Supervisor Wakashaw. Thank you so much, Chairman, and thank you so much to Johns and Johnson Cox for your presentation.

[00:22:38] I love that we're really focused on this. I think this is critical, like you said. creating those programs, but also making it easier, and then the friendly competition. I was looking at the Green Business Partners page, I believe, almost half are in Providence.

[00:22:53] I'm looking at it correctly, but I'm wondering what are we currently doing to push that out or to encourage and incentivize, I guess, enrollment in that program? So that's an ongoing effort. Our team is working on doing a full outreach plan for that program.

[00:23:14] We launched earlier this year with our Green Business Partners Forum, which was a great event. We had a good turnout, and we've started to see applications immediately after that event, and we've been doing communications on all of our digital channels to really promote that. But we're also working with, like, Economic Development Authority and our other economic partners who have the ear of the business community.

[00:23:39] So we're really working with them to try to figure out how we can get our reach into the business community more. But we're continuing to work on that and doing a full sort of outreach plan around that program. That's really good to hear, because I do, I think you've got like the first steps, it seems, in there in place and thinking about how can we grow both the current program but also incentives and other recommendations the business community might have.

[00:24:05] I know there's so much happening. and how we incentivize it. And then my only other comment, I believe in the green vehicles program-- I think it's great you've got a lot about electric vehicles. For me, using the Capital Bikeshare e-bike was a game changer.

[00:24:23] We are a very large, hilly area. And I know it's not everywhere, but certainly in the eastern parts of the county all the way up to Reston, I believe now, even though that's a separate area. I think being able to really showcase and share out the electric bike program and not just cars I think would be wonderful.

[00:24:43] So thank you. And I guess scooters, I think bikes are a little better personally. Yes, we would definitely be doing that. We included some information about e-bikes in a recent news article we published, and we'll continue to promote that. Thank you.

[00:24:59] Thank you. And anybody else in need wanted to comment? If not, I would thank John to particularly what we're looking for is people to champion, to drive. I mean, education really is a continuum. I think there's a passive part of education.

[00:25:15] There's a more active part of education. There's a championing of education, learning, and change. And then there's literally the driving, somebody who's going to just really push us all to do that. And we're looking to rev that up, if you will, over the next many months and truly help us become the leader, at least on the East Coast, about those things.

[00:25:37] So thank you very much. And the granular data is a key part of that. I know we all recognize that. That's going to help us see where we are and if we need to be doing more in different ways. And with that, again, thank you, John. And the next item is introducing Charge at Work campaign, and we have John Morrill who's going to take us with that.

[00:25:55] Thank you, John. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and members of the Board of Supervisors. My name is John Morrill. I'm the Acting Director of the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination. I'm happy to provide this introduction to and recommendation regarding the Charge at Work campaign, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Energy to stimulate EV charging in workplaces around the country.

[00:26:22] I understand staff from the local Charge at Work campaign have been in touch with every supervisor's office in recent weeks, and several of your offices have reached out to OEEC seeking guidance on this campaign. As described in the community-wide energy and climate action plan, there is no single silver bullet solution to achieve the county's goal of carbon neutrality.

[00:26:54] Increasing energy efficiency in buildings, growing the widespread use of renewable energy, and sharp reductions in transportation emissions are all critical to that goal. That said, a strong rapid increase in the use of electric vehicles in place of gasoline and diesel can be the single largest contributor toward achieving carbon neutrality.

[00:27:17] The chart on this slide shows the role of the 12 key strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Fairfax from the CCAP report, with strategy seven, increasing EV adoption, providing 19% of the needed reduction.

[00:27:36] The county and its fleet are moving steadily toward greater use of EVs. As outlined in the staff report distributed with today's meeting materials, the county has 94 charging ports in place at county facilities, with many of them available to the public, and there are many more to come.

[00:27:57] However, we ourselves understand from experience the many challenges of installing charging stations, including here at the government center. I'll note that we are redoubling our efforts to locate and power EV charging infrastructure for the parking lot in front of this building for the public and employees alike.

[00:28:24] To address some of these challenges, the Charge at Work campaign offers outreach, education, and technical assistance to employers to help support increased use of EVs by employees. They provide tools and advisory services to help businesses navigate the process of installing EV charging at existing facilities.

[00:28:46] As the program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, it is free. However, the program does not offer financial incentives. We are particularly interested in leveraging the Charge at Work campaign for use by members of the Green Business Partners program, which we relaunched this spring.

[00:29:05] We held a webinar promoting outstanding commuter services to our green business partners a month ago, and with the Charge at Work program, referrals to EV charging technical assistance would be another benefit to those members.

[00:29:22] The campaign simply asks employers and also public officials, if they wish, to pledge to consider action. For example, the county can use Charge at Work's best practices to inform our own workplace charging, and we can share their information resources with employees without reinventing the wheel and riding it on our own.

[00:29:48] Charge at Work and their outreach partners can support organizing ride-and-drive events to promote EVs. Such ride-and-drive events have been shown to boost interest in electric vehicles among skeptics. And so I'm here today recommending the county join the program for two reasons.

[00:30:09] First, as an employer itself, awareness and growth in the use of EVs among employees improves air quality for all. And second, county staff can collaborate with Charge at Work to share their resources to businesses large and small, help demystify EVs, and spur their use by employees, and accelerate workplace charging.

[00:30:33] Certainly, joining the Charge at Work campaign is just a small step on our carbon reduction journey, but one that complements our existing efforts with Charge Up Fairfax, green business partners, and our own EV infrastructure investments. On a related note, I'm pleased to inform you our office-led county participation in a regional grant-seeking effort organized by Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.

[00:31:02] Last month, COG submitted a joint application for EV charging infrastructure to the Federal Highway Administration, including 25 proposed EV charging sites at Fairfax County facilities for use by the public.

[00:31:17] And there was an emphasis on locating them in vulnerable and historically disadvantaged communities. We don't expect award decisions to be announced before the end of this calendar year, however. And with that, I'm happy to take any questions.

[00:31:38] Thank you, John. And I know we have probably a number of questions, so I'll save my comments. Let's start with you, Supervisor Walkershaw. Walter. Walter. We'll take it. That works. Close enough. It starts with a W. It does. It does. Just a quick question.

[00:31:54] I know this is the charge at work, but how's charge up Fairfax coming along? Thank you for asking. We are in the pilot stage now. We have four communities that we are in discussion with.

[00:32:10] Two are in the Hunter Mill District. One is in Braddock, and one is in Springfield. Okay, so that's coming along into the pilot. Look forward to an update on that at some point, too. Understood. All right, thank you. Thank you. We'll try the other W now. Supervisor Wanchot, you're good?

[00:32:27] Okay. Anyone else down the line? Supervisor Paul Csik. It's more of a question. I've been trying to do a little bit of research on this. And having previously lived in D.C. and used car sharing to help get rid of a car, do you have data about the possibility, I think D.C. has a few car sharing companies.

[00:32:48] I don't know that we have any here, but especially as we go into electric vehicles and trying to reduce total car ownership. We know that to get around sometimes people still want that car and that option without maybe having that full-time ownership and usage. So I don't know if you all have more data or if that's something we could look into to see if that would be beneficial here in our EV and car sharing.

[00:33:14] Are you speaking of car sharing in general or electric vehicle car sharing? So I was thinking now that we're going into electric vehicle, My experience was pre-electric vehicles, but I was wondering, as we go into electric vehicles and trying to incentivize that, also looking at the possibility of combining that with car sharing, or if you have data on car sharing in general, on helping reduce car ownership and reliance on car ownership.

[00:33:42] Thank you. I have no data on that at the moment, but that's something we can follow up on. Thank you. I was trying to catch you. There's a lot out there, so it's probably going to take a bit of time, but I've been curious about those programs. Thank you. If no other comments from colleagues, I'm hearing this is something that they're interested in moving forward with, so we would be looking forward with bringing a board matter to engage and have the county be part of this. All right. Thank you, John. Sounds good. And we have the next matter, which I think is going to be yours as well. So

[00:34:17] you want to take it on, sir? Good afternoon. I'm still John Morrill, acting director of the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination. I'm pleased to give this update on activity toward establishing a green bank to serve Fairfax County. Since the last update to the board on April 30th, staff have continued to meet with community representatives and potential collaborators locally and regionally. To that end, staff are part of the robust network of existing and emerging

[00:34:57] green bank entities around the country, participating in weekly calls about developments in this area. You may have seen in the news that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released its Notice of Funding Opportunity last week for the $20 billion intended for Green Bank-style operations. OEEC staff are in touch with the very large entities expected to be among the primary recipients and administrators of those awards. EPA has made it clear that they are going to award very few awards, but we remain confident in our ability to be a subrecipient

[00:35:36] of funds once the Fairfax entity is established. The focus of this presentation is the draft ordinance and related documents needed to establish the proposed Fairfax Green Bank as a 501c3 organization. There are several key policy questions that need your guidance, as the answers will inform the final proposed ordinance, bylaws, and articles of incorporation, as well as the memorandum of understanding that will outline many details of the roles and responsibilities

[00:36:10] in the relationship between the county and the Green Bank entity. But first, a review of the rationale for this effort. As a matter of public policy, to avoid the worst-case climate change scenarios, the nation and Fairfax County require a tremendous reinvestment in energy efficiency, widespread deployment of renewable energy technologies, and rapid transition to electric vehicles. But decades of experience in the promotion of energy efficiency and renewable

[00:36:47] energy technologies by manufacturers, states, utilities, and the federal government have shown that financial incentives alone, including the availability of funds, is not sufficient to achieve change. Energy costs remain a low priority for many consumers and businesses, and once a customer becomes interested, they often find a very crowded market with many competing claims, often resulting in uncertainty and inaction. To address this challenge, the Green Bank model has emerged as a

[00:37:22] trusted broker or concierge, an essential bridge between potential customers of clean energy improvements and the contractors, service providers, and financial lenders who can make it happen. In short, a green bank can stimulate market demand by both promoting clean energy projects and actively helping customers implement those projects through technical and financial assistance. The mission of a Fairfax County green bank is therefore to leverage relationships and

[00:37:56] private capital to develop a clean energy economy, and this is informed by the definitions of clean energy provided in the enabling legislation signed by Governor Northam in 2021. The mission includes a commitment to access to clean energy for all countywide with intentional focused efforts to provide clean energy solutions in vulnerable communities. In its early stage, the Green Bank will necessarily focus on stimulating local market demand. The initial startup funds from

[00:38:34] the county, largely from a formula grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, will be used to establish the entity, promote federal and state rebates, tax credits, and other programs, and perhaps administer clean energy programs on behalf of the county. OEEC staff are in frequent contact with the Virginia Energy Office, and the state office is watching our Green Bank development with great interest. We have identified to state staff the forthcoming Green Bank as a collaborator and potential administrator for some state programs, including the federal Solar for All

[00:39:13] initiative, in anticipation of the state's allocation from that $7 billion program. Over time, as Green Bank staff obtain additional federal or state funding and develop relationships with private capital lenders, the Green Bank could provide credit support for more significant energy efficiency in renewable projects and programs. But the extent of financial assistance will depend on the balance sheet of the non-profit, and direct loans to residential

[00:39:46] or commercial projects are unlikely to be made immediately. The enabling legislation allows for a locality to establish a Green Bank as either an agency of the government, a quasi-governmental agency, a depository bank, or a non-profit corporation. Our consultant's feasibility study for the Green Bank recommended a non-profit corporation as the most suitable form for the Fairfax entity. An internal working group of staff from multiple agencies, including finance and legal,

[00:40:25] concurred with that recommendation. A 501c3 will be less constrained by county procedures that might hinder its agility or creativity in program development. Still, by its origin and initial funding, the Green Bank entity will be a public body subject to Virginia FOIA. The draft ordinance and bylaws also provide an initial focus on Fairfax County without preventing future regional

[00:40:59] collaboration with neighbors and beyond. In short, the documents thread a needle carefully to protect the county against risk, while also allowing initial county support and some flexibility in activity and future operation. The long-term goal of the Green Bank is to become independent and self-supporting, but initial support from the county is required, and that support leads to county control to manage risk. Still, county control over this entity presents

[00:41:39] risks of its own as the green bank's finances will be reflected in the financial statements of the county. And long-term county control presents some questions regarding corporate governance. The vision desired for the entity is a structure where county control decreases over time as the green bank matures and as the balance sheet grows.

[00:42:04] Guidance is needed on the policy questions that follow as the answers will inform either the ordinance, bylaws, articles of incorporation, or the MOU between the county and the Green Bank entity. These questions really can't be deferred until further down the road because the implications are contained within those documents. I will outline the six questions addressing the rationale for the staff recommendation, and then happy to answer

[00:42:40] your questions in discussion afterward. Each of these questions concerns the degree and extent of county control threading that needle between protecting the county's interests and minimizing risk while not tying the hands of the Green Bank in a manner that undercuts its ability to function and grow as a 501c3. The first two questions concern the selection of the board of directors and the composition of those directors. I should note at the outset that these positions are expected to be working directors, as launching the new entity and recruiting an executive director

[00:43:18] will involve substantial in-kind support by those individuals. We recommend the initial board be appointed by the county executive based on nominations from staff, this interagency working group I've mentioned, as we've been looking for candidates during the course of our relationship building with potential collaborators. This recommendation also partly seeks to remove political consideration from board selection. Of course, suggestions or nominations from supervisors are very much welcomed, as you may know, of individuals with relevant expertise and or

[00:43:57] interest. Following the initial appointments to two or three-year terms, the board of directors would become self-selected, self-selecting as outlined in the bylaws, thereby providing organizational leadership in a manner consistent with typical corporate governance. In addition to at least five voting directors, the board would include at least two non-voting members from county staff appointed by the county executive. Inclusion of these members would continue indefinitely and

[00:44:33] their roles outlined in the MOU. In this way, the county government has a view inside the operation of the entity without infringing on independent corporate governance. Desirable skills and expertise for board members include backgrounds in law or finance, real estate development and renovation, clean energy expertise, and or strong connections to the local community. However, board members will not be required to live or work in Fairfax County. One best practice seen

[00:45:11] elsewhere is Green Bank staff or board members, other Green Bank board members, serving on the boards of still other green banks. The community of green banks is generous and cohesive, and there's a strong sense of helping each other succeed because they're all mission-driven organizations. And right now, we're all learning from each other. On question number three, staff have wrestled with whether to require the name Fairfax or Fairfax County in the legal name

[00:45:49] of the entity. And of course, while the Fairfax name is a source of pride and offers credibility, there are some concerns that an emphasis on Fairfax in the legal name may strike potential collaborators as parochial, perhaps inhibit future regional collaboration. Instead, a neutral name like Northern Virginia Clean Energy Fund may be a kind of placeholder that might be used.

[00:46:19] Question four also speaks to corporate governance. On the one hand, the long-term goal of the Green Bank is to have flexibility and autonomy, suggesting the county should not interfere with internal governance. However, as a new startup, initially dependent on county support, the county requires awareness of entity activity to protect the county's interests. Therefore, by requiring notification of proposed changes to the entity's articles of incorporation or bylaws,

[00:46:55] The county has advanced notice of activity and can advise the Green Bank of its concerns, if any, through the non-voting members of the board. Question five addresses financial risk, protecting the county by requiring an authorizing resolution from the Board of Supervisors prior to purchasing, guaranteeing, or incurring any indebtedness.

[00:47:19] As a practical matter, this language does not mean that each and every individual loan will come before the Board of Supervisors. but rather concepts and programs would be outlined and described for these resolutions.

[00:47:36] For example, collaborating with X lender on a residential retrofit program expected to serve Y number of, you know, some number of homes in the first year with possible exposure to the green bank of fill-in-the-blank dollars.

[00:48:00] And last, question six, reasserts the independence of the Board of Directors to manage its affairs, including election and removal, if necessary, of any voting members. And I realize that this is a lot, and I welcome your discussion and questions.

[00:48:21] Thank you. Thank you, John. And it is a lot. It's complex, and we've been working on this for a good while because I think we recognize the potential impact it can have on accelerating our progress, not only as a county, but frankly, the Northern Virginia region.

[00:48:37] And with that, one of the champions of this has been the chairman, and I wanted to turn to the chairman to see if he has any initial question or comments. Yeah, well, thank you. First, good presentation. I'm glad we're at this point. As was acknowledged, it's been a long time coming. I mean, for folks, just as a reminder, we had to get General Assembly authorizing legislation to start this process, and a lot of folks didn't think that was possible and it was and you know we have that authorization now and frankly we need to act on it and so I'm glad we're at this point. I guess one of the questions that I have and I'm glad to see this on slide seven where you talk about county funding

[00:49:15] being required initially while seeking outside federal funding long-term goal is to become truly independent. Absolutely that has to be the long-term goal of this. I guess my question is if you could forecast the future and looking at folks who have already set up green banks elsewhere, what is the timeline realm of possibility to achieve that?

[00:49:40] What would be your estimate of what would have to happen for us to become truly independent financially and what's a reasonable time frame under which something like that could happen? That's a difficult question to answer.

[00:50:00] It could be, to be truly independent may well be on the five, ten-year horizon or longer, but what has changed is the availability of substantial federal funding.

[00:50:17] And so as we follow those developments, we know that the notice of funding opportunity is out. There are a lot of discussions going on, but still smart people who think they have an inside knowledge think that actual awards won't be given until mid-2024.

[00:50:46] And so it would be several years before the entity is really on its own. So one of the reasons I asked that question is to the federal piece, we're in this narrow window of opportunity.

[00:51:04] maybe it's not narrow. I hope it's not narrow, but let's assume it is narrow right now where there is federal funding to support these types of initiatives. And obviously, if we don't have the infrastructure in place, we can't tap into any of that opportunity. And I know we've had conversations around this table and others about the tenacity of our staff and of the county to go after every federal dollar we can possibly get, especially with the emphasis on climate change and the federal dollars that are available to that.

[00:51:34] And so my hope is that this infrastructure, meaning this structure, puts us in a position to be able to achieve that because ultimately I think we are going to need help, federal funding and other outside funding, and the speed at which we can get that will certainly help the program substantially.

[00:51:55] And I ask the timeline question only because if there's initial county funding required, which obviously there is. It's one thing to say initial means get it set up and going. It's another to say initial is be prepared for a multi-year commitment to this over a long period of time. And that's what we really need to understand because this is absolutely critical to be done, but we do need to go in with eyes wide open and understand what some milestones are so that we don't just put initial funding into a program, set it up, and then not have it doing the work that we really wanted to do.

[00:52:31] And so I think understanding kind of that life spectrum and how the funding ramp up would be needed, and I think there's models out there of other jurisdictions that have done this that we can draw from. Maybe we're not exact, but we can say that X jurisdiction was able to, this was the path they took and here's where they are today.

[00:52:49] Something along those lines I think would be helpful for us knowing what type of a longer term commitment that we're getting into. In terms of the individual questions themselves, you know, they're pretty granular. I mean, I would just suggest that the independence piece of this is absolutely critical.

[00:53:07] I would also suggest, however, that if we were to initially appoint board of directors by the county executive, I have no qualms with that. But I do think there should be some board confirmation of that, not necessarily board solicitation or vote, but a confirmation of those appointees.

[00:53:27] And then I do think that, you know, as independent as this can get is where we want it, because we don't want some of the involvement that you suggested earlier. And frankly, I think the independence also helps us achieve some of the longer term funding that might be necessary to make this happen.

[00:53:45] But we need to seize on this opportunity. We have to keep this momentum going, and I think what you've given us is a path forward to position ourselves to be able to take advantage of some of those other incentives that are out there, and I appreciate that. Thank you.

[00:54:02] I have just a reminder. We do have the six questions I'm looking for feedback on, and just there is detailed, in addition to the presentation, you should have with you the ordinance, the draft ordinance, as well as the draft bylaws, so please take a look at that. And Professor Walkinshaw, did you want to start this, or I'm happy to go?

[00:54:24] Man, you're not going to look that good. Yeah, the W doesn't usually get to go first. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And this is exciting. We should be excited about this. Thank you for the work to get to this point.

[00:54:39] You know, I'll just say I think it's really important that we meet the timeline for the public hearing in the fall. A lot of work has gone into this already. Important questions you've laid out. You know, I think a lot of these questions, there isn't a right answer. We're trying to look into the future a little bit.

[00:54:56] But let's meet that fall timeline. I was impressed by some of the payback periods that were in the consultant report. That surprised me, a four-year payback on single-family home energy efficiency for equipment, three-year for office equipment, three years on multifamily EV charging.

[00:55:18] I mean, I think, like, really logical investments. And I think you made the point that a lot of times the barriers here are technical knowledge, confusion, and contractor resistance, quite frankly. And, you know, I grew up in the construction industry, and in the construction industry, you learn how to do things when you show up on the job site and you're 20 years old and a 50-year-old guy teaches you how to do it, right?

[00:55:43] And he teaches you what the 50-year-old guy taught him when he was 20, right? And that means you learned how to install a boiler or a gas-powered water heater, and you don't know how to install other things, and there's resistance.

[00:55:58] So this entity being a way to break down those barriers is really important. Just, you know, on a couple of the questions, I won't go through them all, but on the issue of Fairfax County being in the legal name, I don't have a strong view of it, But could you describe, Mr. Morrill, the mechanism by which other local governments in the region might participate and collaborate in this?

[00:56:25] So what is it that they might want to do? Thank you for that question. Again, John Morrill. We have heard from staff and even some residents on neighboring jurisdictions commissions speaking of interest by some of our neighbors to put forward money to essentially they could pass their own ordinance saying, yes, we're going to stand up our green bank and it's

[00:57:03] going to be that thing, which is the thing that Fairfax County stood up. And then they would put their dollars into that to boost the kind of market development and potential financial programs in their jurisdiction.

[00:57:21] So I think there have been several jurisdictions who are very interested in this, and they're also very curious to see how we birth this so that instead of them having to go through the whole process themselves, they can essentially just join in.

[00:57:43] Okay. I mean, is there any indication that Fairfax being in the name would discourage them from doing that? Has anyone said that, or that's just kind of an intuition that it might? It's intuition, because if it becomes robust, the region could be very large.

[00:58:08] Okay. Number four and number five, and I'm just trying to understand. So number five, question number five on slide nine. Um, so the board of supervisors would authorize, um, any purchasing guarantee or incurring any indebtedness. Uh, so pretty significant role for the board of supervisors there. Why, why is it though that, that the recommendation is only that the board of supervisors receive advanced notice

[00:58:43] of amendments to the bylaws and the articles of corporate incorporation, which are, are, fundamental, right? So it concerns me a little bit that there isn't, and I don't think this is how we operate with other entities, that you're not recommending that the Board of Supervisors approve amendments to the bylaws or the Articles of Incorporation. In theory, I'm sure this wouldn't happen, but a Board of Directors could amend the Articles of Incorporation in the bylaws and completely shift the mission of of the organization in a direction that is far from what we're

[00:59:20] envisioning today is that or does the enabling legislation prevent them from doing that and keep them within certain bounds yes the the enabling uh the ordinance the ordinance that is up for consideration is uh the constitution if you will and then the uh articles of incorporation and bylaws are all aligned with that ordinance, and so the ordinance does set some guardrails and consistent

[00:59:54] with the mission. The other thing that, the other notion that it hasn't been written yet, and so it's not part of the packet, but this memorandum of understanding between the county and the entity would really lay out the details of that relationship and the roles and responsibilities. And so that is a key controlling document. The reason that only advance notice of changes to the articles or the bylaws is given to the board of supervisors

[01:00:31] is because, and this I know from experience on the board of a nonprofit, is sometimes there end up being things in the bylaws that you have to tweak, and they're not material to the organization's operations. They're largely administrative, but they get tweaked. Similarly, for the articles of incorporation, the registrar, the entity that sends the form to the state corporation commission

[01:01:06] to establish the organization sometimes that the registrar may change and and again it's an administrative item and so the idea is to not uh not trouble the board with with things like that board of supervisors that is okay i guess i just asked the county executive or county attorney i mean are there other entities that that this board has created where we have taken a similar posture, and maybe Supervisor Paltrigger, is it like the Tyson's Alliance, have we taken that posture that they can amend their own bylaws, and our relationship is governed just

[01:01:46] by the MOU, and they can do what they want with the bylaws? It's Supervisor Walkinshaw, Beth Teer, County Attorney. I think we can take a more careful look at this. In general, the board appointed boards, authorities, and commissions require board approval in advance of making any bylaw changes. Outside of that specific universe of entities, again, we can take a look at it, but they are not, to my knowledge, subject to a pre-approval from the

[01:02:20] board of supervisors. We can certainly follow up with you via memo. Okay. Yeah, I'd like to just, I take Mr. Morrill's point, but to me that seems like there's an element of risk there and not having any approval of that kind of potential change, but thank you.

[01:02:40] Thank you, Mr. Walkershaw, Supervisor Walkershaw and Supervisor Herdy, and then I think I'm going to go down the table because I think pretty much everybody has said, Supervisor Palachuk, forgive me, you'll be. I wanted to respond a little bit to this, but yeah. I'm just going to be quick and address rather than the overall thing, the questions here because I think that's the most important thing for now.

[01:03:01] I think for question number one, I think it should be appointments made by county executive, but with board concurrence, second the board composition to staff that are non-voting I I think the most important thing rather than somebody from finance and environment somebody with business and investment experience since that's really what you're doing here I mean that's it's that would be more important criteria for me than whatever department that they work for that they have actually business and

[01:03:37] investment experience I'm have concern with number four - I think it's the Board of Supervisors audit at least get a notification, but I would think approval of major changes in the construct. So I think I'm on the same page there. Number five, absolutely.

[01:03:58] Authorization before any purchasing, guaranteeing, or indebting of any indebtedness. I think those were the ones I had comments on. I agree with the other recommendations. Thanks, Supervisor Herdy. Supervisor Alcorn, yes.

[01:04:18] All right. Thank you. Yeah, on the six questions, I'm, yeah, number one, I think concurrence that also the Board of Supervisors be at least notified of that is a good idea. On some of the other ones, I think some of the couple ones that Supervisor Herdy brought up and Supervisor Wackenshaw asked about in terms of articles of incorporation bylaws amendments. I think there's a time whenever it becomes more independent. As long as we're primarily funding it, I could see a role like that. But at some point, it probably, you know, should sunset, if you will, in terms of, you know,

[01:04:57] direct county oversight. I do want to note, well, first of all, I want to make sure the county attorney's office has looked at this for gifting, you know, that if it is an independent 501c3, we're not, you know, that we're okay with the gifting laws and restrictions. But then the only other thought I had was on number three, which is requiring Fairfax County. We could go either way, but I think the MOU is going to be so critical. And I'm thinking about the Fairfax County Employees Credit Union, which no longer has the name. It's now Nexmark Federal Credit Union.

[01:05:34] And so some people are like, wait a minute, who is this, you know, vendor? And there's a long history there. And frankly, the county has benefited, county employees have benefited greatly over the years. And I think that's just an example of we need to make sure there is a connection going forward, even after they become independent, so that our initial investment continues to bear fruit for Fairfax County government, for Fairfax County residents, you know, and I think an MOU is a way to keep that going. So that all sounds good to me. Thank you.

[01:06:07] Thank you, Supervisor. Supervisor Gross. Walter, thank you for bringing that up. That's for another discussion with the county executive. Um, I think that on question number six, um, the board of directors is independent. Um, it would seem to me that as long as Fairfax County has any financial contribution to this, um, and we, we, we want them to be independent, but as long as the board needs to be involved, as long as there's financial, um, uh, consideration from the county. Um, but I do

[01:06:44] have a question on this, I guess it's both the, no, it's the Articles of Incorporation and the bylaws. I don't see anything here about who actually would provide legal advice. There is a reference to special legal counsel. There is also a reference to attorney-client privilege.

[01:07:09] But I'm wondering, at least for the first, you know, until it becomes truly independent, Who would be providing, who would be expected to provide legal advice to this new entity? And depending on the answer to that, I may have another question.

[01:07:32] That's to Mr. Morrill. I think I'd like to hear his response. As envisioned, the new entity would seek their own insurance and their own legal counsel.

[01:07:49] There would certainly be a lot of engagement with county staff along the way, just in terms of in-kind consultation, but these are things that setting up a non-profit 501c3, it'll need its own insurance and counsel.

[01:08:10] And we'll ask Beth for her guidance on this, but then could we have, based on that response, Could we have a template that shows what you anticipate the costs would be for an executive director, for staffing, for legal counsel, for rent, all of these things that would be set up, that would be incurred at the beginning because you're setting up an entirely new entity.

[01:08:44] So it would be helpful, I think, if we could get some sort of cost estimation, even if It's just ballpark, see just exactly what, because that's even before you're granting any, you know, loans or funding for the whole purpose.

[01:09:02] So I'd like to see what that is, and you can get back to us on that. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'll go quickly here, but just wanted to articulate that it might be helpful since we know, I think, that Montgomery County has a green bank.

[01:09:26] It might be helpful on the questions that you've raised if we could know what they've done, at least with regard to their green bank. And then if there's any other best practices from other jurisdictions that have green banks, just to kind of see their protocols.

[01:09:45] But I think the questions that you've asked and certainly want to give you some feedback agree with my colleagues on the first. I think that certainly the county executive can have some input in those initial appointments, but that we should have the board have some ability to weigh in on that.

[01:10:07] With regard to the board's composition, I would say if we're talking about the voting members, and it seems like the county staff would be non-voting members, so I don't have personally an issue with staff from finance and environmental departments being selected.

[01:10:30] but we should obviously have folks who have knowledge and experience in the areas that we're going to need support, specifically in finance, and making sure we address those for the voting members specifically.

[01:10:49] I'm kind of torn on the name Fairfax County not being a part of the legal entity, but I'm going to reserve judgment for that later, meaning I think we should allow those who are selected to help us in the naming of the organization.

[01:11:11] So I think the board of directors should be instructing us on that name. So I want to reserve that responsibility for them. On the articles of incorporation, I think your recommendation here, I'm certainly fine with it.

[01:11:34] So I support that. On the review of the lending activity, do appreciate that the board will get the opportunity to see prior to the purchasing, guaranteeing, or incurring of indebtedness.

[01:11:54] I think that's something that we should have a role and responsibility in. So appreciate that. So support that recommendation. And then on the removal of board of directors members, I think, yeah, that should be at the direction of the board because they're going to be working most directly with those members and I think that's something I think we could cede to them so I would support that recommendation as well. I'm obviously very excited about the direction that this is going and I'll

[01:12:30] say I appreciate the work that's been done and I acknowledge that we're going to probably learn a few things along the way. This is going to be an iterative process, and I would imagine, Mr. Merrill, you're going to have to advise us on how things are kind of pivoting and need to pivot as you move forward. So I think there needs to be some flexibility here, obviously, and I just want to acknowledge that as well. And then I'd say, I think I made this point before if there's um support that the board that we individually can provide uh please you

[01:13:08] know ask ask for that and we want to be as supportive and helpful in the success of this uh of this endeavor and last point I'll make is I like the idea that this could be regional so I want to say that with COG we just had a number of discussions this past weekend and they're all regionally based. And obviously the success of this could be predicated on having that regional focus. So I don't want to impede the ability of that to happen. So I want to just uplift the

[01:13:44] thought that you have there and to say, I am supportive of it having that regional component and making sure that we do. And I think each of us has connections to these other jurisdictions too and how we can support in helping it have that regional focus.

[01:14:02] So with that, I'll conclude, and thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Supervisor Lecce, Supervisor Faust. Thank you, and thank you to staff and Supervisor Stork and Chairman McKay for moving this along.

[01:14:18] I think it's really important. A couple questions. One, based on experiences we've had with other organizations and so forth, my reaction is that the county attorney, if she can, be the attorney for this organization i would prefer to see that i don't know how everybody else feels but i would ask you if it i mean to even look into it or think about it you don't have to you know give me an answer today but i from experience i know that there are advantages to

[01:14:52] having that type of counsel for an organization that is advancing our mission we'll be happy to look into that question and i can get back to you as part of the response that i've already promised on the other issue. Yeah, I know the attorney's office represents the Mosaic Community Development Authority, which I think is a non-profit organization separate from the board. So anyway, something to think about. On the bylaws, I mean, John, the examples you gave are, you know,

[01:15:27] de minimis, but there are many really relevant or material things in those documents that I would think as an example, we could say that have, again, Beth, you're going to hate me after today. Have the county attorney make a determination whether it is something that is administrative and de minimis and should not be held up by the need to bring before the Board of Supervisors.

[01:15:59] But if it is a material governance issue that they're recommending, then you could make that recommendation to the board and we could get it, like we do all the other bylaws that we approve. So the promised response that I'm going to send you is getting longer and longer, but I'm going to talk with our folks and staff and we'll get back to you.

[01:16:23] Yeah, and I mean, it's not, I'm not falling on my sword of it, that's just the part. You know, I don't know why the board wouldn't make the appointments to the directors of this organization i don't see the value of having you know sending them off and then having them making their own appointments would be like the cda you know we we appoint i would say you know 10 is not a bad number i mean you know we do it with everything else uh and if each member i mean

[01:17:02] you know i'm not going to get an appointment no matter what we do here but uh i think it's I mean, this is really important. It's an extension. If I understood, you said that the finances of this organization will be reflected on the books of Fairfax County.

[01:17:19] Did you say that? Would their financial statements be incorporated into the financial statements of Fairfax County? Initially. That's a big deal.

[01:17:35] That's a big deal. Supervisor Faust, I think we should follow up with the board about that question in more detail. Okay, perfect. Now, you know, I don't think it's going to happen with the Green Bank, but those of us who, you know, are still scarred by the CPACE experience, a lot of effort, a lot of work, a lot of ballyhoo, no results.

[01:18:04] So what I would ask, you know, you say that we're going to have to cover the initial costs, which is, you know, one thing if that's a million dollars. It's another thing if it's $20 million. You know, we don't know what you mean by initial costs.

[01:18:20] I think we need a pro forma, is that the right terminology? We need to know the cash flow you see. I know you're going to say it's speculative, and I agree, but speculation is all we've got at this point, I think. It's going to be an informed speculation based on all the research that you've done and the experts that you've got and so forth.

[01:18:41] So what's it going to cost, and when do we start seeing results? And to the best of your ability, I mean, I can't visualize. what's going to happen, you know, what the products are going to be, what we're going to start seeing.

[01:19:02] So to the extent you can, you know, explain that to us, it would be helpful. I think kind of adding on, I mean, you've given us a lot of great information. It's just I'm starting from zero on this, so I appreciate it.

[01:19:21] Thank you. Thank you, Supervisor Faust. And my expectation along with yours and I'm sure everybody else here is there will be, upon the interactions here, and there'll be obviously a lot of conversations. We have some time before September to bring something back in September, October. I know we're all, I think, looking for a lot more, including a plan and some costs with that and timelines and so on.

[01:19:47] We wanted to have this conversation today for all the reasons that I think all of us are adding to this. This is wonderful. Appreciate it. Thank you. Well, since I'm closing it up, just first of all, I really want to thank you, John, and your team for working on this is very exciting I think there's a reason there are only I think a handful around the country at this point and I appreciate I believe you've been doing a lot of research and I appreciate that I have I think just two questions following up on the conversation so far and the first one going back to the discussion about the makeup of the board the MOU and we have

[01:20:26] done a lot of work in the past three and a half years over at Tyson's and I know there have been other associations and organizations in the county and I think my question and concern and feeling also that wanting to make sure that it's independent but also that we do have that right level of support control I'm wondering because part of what I think what is important in the new Tyson's alliance is that there is a voting role on the county side that was not there before. So I know it's not, I guess I'd be curious as to why not having that and maybe while it's

[01:21:05] before becomes independent, I would feel more comfortable if the CFO did have more than just an ex officio rule. But I think a little, there have been other recommendations. And so something to have a little bit more county control while it's still funded is something I would, I guess, just have us consider or if there's another recommendation for that I would appreciate that and then the other one I'm glad CPACE was brought up I was looking at the Montgomery County Green

[01:21:37] Bank their members and what they focused on and I believe some of their partners in addition to the roles like Counterpoint SRE do do quite a few projects in CPACE my hope is this this will help us move forward in CPACE and some of those other opportunities so I don't know if you share that with us already.

[01:21:59] I think you've probably worked with a lot of other partners, including the Latino Economic Development Center that we also work with. I saw Ipsum Solar is also one of their partners. And they are based right here in Fairfax. So I'd just be curious. I assume you've done this research.

[01:22:15] But just for us to know who you've worked with in order to help ensure that the research you've done will help us achieve those goals. I know we've had a lot of learning across the board and want to make sure that this will be successful. But overall, I'm very excited. I think we're all ready for it to go forward, to be approved, and then just making sure we have the right checks and balances in place.

[01:22:37] Thank you. Thank you, Chief Advisor Palachuk. And John, did you have any last final comments you wanted to make? Well, we obviously gained the information that we were looking for today, feedback to not only our legal folks, but also our program development folks.

[01:22:56] We will be coming back in September, October with more information to further move this process along. and, frankly, I'll only be the first, at least outside of Montgomery County. I know D.C. has one. They're different. But we can truly be a leader in this area and I think make a difference, and that still remains to be seen.

[01:23:16] We have a little bit of work to do, but I'm looking forward to that. The last points to make are we have an excellent update from the OEEC staff, including the question that Penny Supervisor Gross had asked regarding compatibility of electric bus fleet charging, connector transit, and Travis County Schools.

[01:23:35] If you look at that, you see they're not compatible. And how that changes over time, I think we'll all have to be paying attention to, but at the moment, at least, they're not. So good question, not the answer we wanted to hear, but I'm sure that we know over time there'll be some resolution of that.

[01:23:53] And then the last one, I have a quarterly meeting with the OEC staff about kind of all the things that we're doing environmentally, There was the operational energy strategy, community-wide energy and climate action plan, Resilient Fairfax, all those kinds of things. And at the last meeting that I had with them, I had an excellent report that I wanted to share with you and that they ultimately took and actually added a few things to it to make it a little bit more readable and usable.

[01:24:18] But if you all took a look at the packets that you had, you'll see that there was a cash report with the operational energy strategy projects, Energy efficiency, sustainable development policy, solar installations, electric vehicle charging station installations.

[01:24:34] In particular, that was one that I was concerned and very frustrated about because if you look at it, you'll see the county facilities. Some of the county facilities have them, but many of them don't. And I was pleased to hear John Merle mentioned earlier that they're going to expedite their look at that to ensure that this complex right here doesn't go without electric vehicle charging facilities.

[01:24:59] It was actually the product of repeated emails and questions and comments I've gotten from community members from Mount Vernon District who drive a long way to get here and drive a long way back. In an electric vehicle, it's problematic. So it does matter, and we need to do more, and we can't wait a year and a half to two years to get something at this government center here to be able to charge public vehicles.

[01:25:23] And then you'll see the community climate action programs that are in here, too, charge of Fairfax Green Business Partners, which needs a lot of attention. In my mind, we're off to a very slow start there, and I know we need champions. We need folks to help us build that process. And then resilience hubs, solar sanctuaries, the resilient Fairfax strategy status, and interagency climate teams for implementation of all climate plans.

[01:25:46] The key to that is champions. If we don't get champions, we're going to be moving along very, very slowly. We need folks who are willing to take the lead, whether it's in their HOA or whether it's a commercial shopping center developer, whether it's Faith Alliance. We need folks to move and champion these different initiatives.

[01:26:04] And I see Supervisor Smith. Yes. Just a quick question. I don't know if there were things I was supposed to click on. It referenced that there were 26 HOAs with the charge of Fairfax. Do we know what they were? Is that information out there? I mean, it's always about that we're covering all parts of the county.

[01:26:22] And I don't need details now, but if we can get that information, that would be informative. Will do. Thank you. Yeah, and I would highlight that there's some really excellent graphs in here. If you've not looked at this, there's really some excellent graphs in here about what the county has been doing and what it hopes to do that are useful to engaging your community in.

[01:26:45] And I would argue you can put it in your newsletter so people understand the direction that the county is going and how we're working through this issue. So with that, without any further questions, this meeting is adjourned.

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