Laserfiche WebLink
Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final May 11, 2021 <br />Attachments: Staff Report <br />Children's Services Dedicated Millage <br />County Attorney Dylan Reingold referred to staffs memorandum dated April 29, <br />2021, to discuss moving forward with putting the Children's Services Dedicated <br />Millage up for consideration by the voters as a referendum on the November 8, <br />2022 ballot. He provided an overview of the draft ordinance, which included the <br />areas of expertise desired for establishing the 15 member Children's Trust Advisory <br />Board (Advisory Board), and the funding schedule for the 12 years the Children's <br />Trust would be in effect. Attorney Reingold made mention that the municipalities <br />would be asked to approve the referendum prior to moving it forward. He <br />requested that the Board provide him with further direction regarding changes to <br />the proposed draft ordinance. <br />Chairman Flescher inquired if there was an alternative to pursuing the approval of <br />the municipalities. Attorney Reingold responded that he had researched the matter <br />and was not aware of an alternative if the Board wanted a separate line item on the <br />tax roll. Attorney Reingold added that he would gladly accompany the Children's <br />Trust representatives when meeting with the municipalities. <br />Vice Chairman O'Bryan pointed out that all municipalities did not have to approve <br />the referendum to have it placed on the ballot. He then offered clarification as to <br />how the line item would appear on the tax roll and the transparency it would <br />provide to the taxpayer. <br />Jeffery R. Smith, accompanied by fellow members of the Children's Trust <br />Exploratory Committee (the Exploratory Committee), thanked the Commissioners, <br />Attorney Reingold, and County Administrator Jason Brown for meeting <br />individually with them and for providing valuable ideas and support. He reported <br />that the Exploratory Committee had received positive input from individuals <br />throughout the County. Mr. Smith also discussed transparency and the benefits of <br />generating the funding by way of a line item on the tax roll. He then suggested <br />changes to the qualifications of two (2) of the proposed Advisory Board members: <br />1) Proposed Member #14 would not be limited to only an Accountant, the member <br />could be a certified financial expert; and 2) Proposed Member #13 should be <br />replaced with an additional Member -at -Large, due to the perception of involving a <br />member from the Taxpayers' Association Board. <br />Michael Kent, also representing the Exploratory Committee, expressed gratitude to <br />the Board and County staff for the collaborated effort to better care for the kids of <br />the community. He requested consideration for not only the change to the <br />proposed Advisory Board members, but also to the 12 -year funding schedule by <br />Indian River County Florida Page 9 <br />