The Metro Board of Directors have their monthly full Board meeting this Thursday, May 25, at 10 a.m. The full agenda with links to staff reports is here.

A link will also appear on that same page to watch/listen to the livestream shortly before 10 a.m. on Thursday. The public is also welcome to attend in person; the meetings are held in the 3rd floor Board Room at Metro headquarters adjacent to Union Station’s East Portal.

For those who want to give public testimony, here are the instructions:

Live public comment can be given by telephone or in-person.

The Board Meeting begins at 10:00 AM Pacific Time on April 27, 2023; you may join the call 5 minutes prior to the start of the meeting. Dial-in: 888-251-2949 and enter English Access Code: 8231160# Spanish Access Code: 4544724#

Public comment will be taken as the Board takes up each item. To give public comment on an item, enter #2 (pound-two) when prompted. Please note that the live video feed lags about 30 seconds behind the actual meeting. There is no lag on the public comment dial-in line.

Instrucciones para comentarios publicos en vivo: Los comentarios publicos en vivo se pueden dar por telefono o en persona. La Reunion de la Junta comienza a las 10:00 AM, hora del Pacifico, el 27 de Abril de 2023.

Puedes unirte a la llamada 5 minutos antes del comienso de la junta. Marque: 888-251-2949 y ingrese el codigo Codigo de acceso en ingles: 8231160# Codigo de acceso en espanol: 4544724# Los comentarios del público se tomaran cuando se toma cada tema. Para dar un comentario público sobre una tema ingrese # 2 (Tecla de numero y dos) cuando se le solicite. Tenga en cuenta que la transmisión de video en vivo se retrasa unos 30 segundos con respecto a la reunión real. No hay retraso en la línea de acceso telefónico para comentarios públicos.

Here are brief descriptions of a few of the more high-profile items to be considered by the Board on Thursday:

•The Board will consider approving Metro’s draft $9-billion balanced budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The budget his year emphasizes our commitment to serving customers, stakeholders, residents and efforts to address their top concerns: public safety, better and more frequent service, and connecting unhoused riders and riders with mental health issues to the social services they need.

Please see this Source post for more on the proposed budget. The Metro staff report and attachments are here, including feedback we received in the public hearing on the budget held May 19.

•The Board will consider receive-and-filing an update on Metro’s work to shift to a zero-emission bus fleet no later than 2035.  Staff report

•The Board will consider a motion to create a permanent Business Interruption Fund [BIF] to help local businesses during construction of Metro projects. The Board first approved the BIF in 2014 and since it has helped firms located near the K Line, Regional Connector and Purple (D Line) Extension projects. Motion

•The Board will hear an oral update on public safety on the Metro system.

•The Board will consider a motion calling for Metro to update signage and maps to include the new name of County-USC Hospital — which going forward will be Los Angeles General Medical Center. Motion