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Clean Pittsburgh Commission finance update: trail cameras quote, PRC payment and planned grants for outreach events
Summary
Treasurer Afton Jowes reviewed the commission's budget priorities April 10, including a $3,000 quote for trail cameras for environmental enforcement, confirmation of a Pennsylvania Resources Council carryover payment, and draft estimates for yard-sign awareness and the Garbage Olympics.
Afton Jowes, principal sustainability and resilience planner in City Planning and the Clean Pittsburgh Commission treasurer, presented April 10 funding items under consideration and recommended timing changes for the invoice cutoff to avoid end-of-year processing problems.
Jowes said the commission received a $3,000 quote for trail cameras to support environmental enforcement work and that a Pennsylvania Resources Council (PRC) request from last year had been paid after an earlier delay. "We, met this last Tuesday and discussed a couple of things. So 1 was the request for city cameras purchased for environmental enforcement. So that's a $3,000 quote for them," Jowes said.
The finance committee also discussed a tentative $2,000 estimate to support yard-litter awareness connected to the Greenfield School pilot. Jowes called that figure preliminary and said the commission would need a formal quote before voting. "I don't have an actual quote for that quite yet," she said, and volunteered to supply a firm estimate before members vote.
Jowes told members the commission was considering a $5,000 line item for the Garbage Olympics this year; she said last year's line item had been higher but not fully spent and that $5,000 was a conservative estimate. She also raised whether the commission should revive the Bob Awards to recognize waste-reduction work in the city.
To improve year-end processing, Jowes proposed moving the commission's spending cutoff earlier in the year (to an October meeting) so invoices can clear before December deadlines. Several members agreed this would provide additional time to encumber and spend funds.
Procedural action: the meeting opened with approval of the March minutes after an edit was noted. Debbie Steinberg made the motion and Helena Procopio Ross seconded; members approved the minutes by voice/raised hands. The transcript did not record a numeric roll-call vote.
Ending: The finance committee planned to return with a formal vendor quote for trail cameras and firmer cost estimates for the yard-sign awareness and Garbage Olympics before the commission votes on spending.
