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Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final September 10, 2025 <br />Administrator Titkanich mentioned that the letter included a Memorandum of <br />Understanding concerning the maintenance of facilities to uphold the arrangement. He <br />highlighted that the inmate medical contract, one of the five he reviewed, amounted to <br />$4.2 million and covered off-site care provided by a contractor. This contract <br />specified a line item of $350,000 for off-site care and an additional $250,000 set <br />aside as a reserve in case the expenses exceeded these amounts. <br />Vice Chairman Loar further discussed the Sheriff's Budget and emphasized that <br />relying on Reserve Fund dollars was neither a sound policy nor a practice. He <br />suggested that there were alternatives to this approach that did not require utilizing any <br />of the County's fund balance dollars. One possible solution he mentioned was through <br />budget amendments. He noted that the Sheriff had utilized budget amendments in the <br />past. He added that the County's AAA bond rating was crucial, and that the Board <br />must also consider the possibility of a catastrophic event in this County. There were <br />times when the County had to self -fund a crisis, whether natural or man-made, <br />because when such events occur, funding the response must be provided while <br />waiting for federal and state assistance, which can sometimes take years. Misusing the <br />County's fund balance posed a risk. He suggested engaging decision -makers at the <br />Sheriff s office to discuss amending the budget on an as -needed basis. <br />Administrator Titkanich reviewed through the Budget cuts to get the Sheriff s budget <br />the additional $6.8 million, stating the County would eliminate the following: the new <br />Park Foreman position, a full-time maintenance worker in Parks, the guest services <br />attendant position for Jones' Pier would be reduced to a part-time role, and a <br />full-time staff assistant on Conservation Lands (new position) was eliminated. There <br />was also a partial cost related to the Assistant Project Manager for Building Facility <br />Services, which was cut. A part-time Recreation Leader position was removed, and <br />funding for a senior maintenance worker crew leader in Road and Bridge was cut. <br />Recognizing that the County was developing a new framework for Animal Control <br />and animal sheltering, the County sought to reduce the Humane Society's annual <br />contract funding by $335,000. Funding for the Animal Services Division was reduced <br />by $729,828. Additionally, the Hospital District agreed to cover half of the Mental <br />Health Court costs, totaling about $250,000. When these cuts were taken into <br />account and added to the budget, along with the General Fund adjustments, the <br />reduction of the 911 surcharge, and the optional sales tax increase for capital, the total <br />was $6,852,364. <br />Indian River County, Florida Page 11 <br />