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BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS 1801271n Street, Vero Beach, Florida 32960-3388 Office of The County Administrator Telephone: (772) 226-1408 July 6, 2018 Board of County Commissioners Indian River County 180127 th Street Vero Beach, FL 32960 Dear Commissioners: As required by Florida Statutes, transmitted with this message is the recommended budget for Fiscal Year 2018/2019 (FY18/19). The proposed budget represents the general operating framework for providing all County services for the forthcoming year. As presented, it reflects the County Administrator's plan of implementing and funding the recommended service levels. The budget has been developed with a combination of guidelines provided by the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) throughout the year, critical input from all departments, Budget Department guidance, the Administrator's perception of needs, responses from the community, and requests from the Constitutional Officers. Major Issues Impacting FY2018119 Budget Development Service demands have increased as Indian River County recovers from the economic downturn and as the population continues to grow. There is a delicate balance in meeting service needs and maintaining low tax rates for the citizens in Indian River County. Following the Parkland, Florida school shootings, school safety became a major issue; this was a major focus in the most recent legislative session, as state legislators adopted a comprehensive bill regarding school safety. This fill requires a school safety position in each school. The Sheriff's Office budget includes funding for seven additional positions, which will provide a minimum of one School Resource Officer at every school. The recommended commitment to this program is for one year only. Ongoing costs of SRO's borne by the County will be an issue if the referendum for an additional homestead exemption is approved by the voters. A future legislative priority will be to secure long-term recurring revenue from the State to fund this program. A further recommendation is that the Sheriff accounts for these expenses separately from other Law Enforcement costs, as the legislature will likely inquire how much counties have spent to implement the school safety program. Another major issue impacting budget development is the pending sale of Vero Beach Electric to Florida Power and Light (FPL). Electricity budgets were reduced approximately 20% for County facilities currently served by Vero Beach Electric due to FPL's lower rate structure. As the pending sale continues 3