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Home My WebLink About02/25/2020Indian River County Florida Indian River County Administration Complex 1801 27th Street, Building A Vero Beach, Florida, 32960-3388 www.ircgov.com Meeting Minutes - Final Tuesday, February 25, 2020 9:00 AM Childrens Services Referendum and Ordinance Workshop Commission Chambers Board of County Commissioners Chairman Susan Adams Vice Chairman Joseph E. Flescher Commissioner Tim Zorc Commissioner Peter D. O'Bryan Commissioner Bob Solari Jason E. Brown, County Administrator Dylan Reingold, County Attorney Jeffrey R. Smith, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller Jacqueline Rizzo, Deputy Clerk Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final February 25, 2020 1. CALL TO ORDER Present: 5 - Chairman Susan Adams Vice Chairman Joseph Flescher Commissioner Tim Zorc Commissioner Peter O'Bryan Commissioner Bob Solari 2. A. A MOMENT OF SILENT REFLECTION FOR FIRST RESPONDERS AND MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES 2. B. INVOCATION Jeffrey R. Smith, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Commissioner Susan Adams, Chairman 4. ADDITIONS/DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA / EMERGENCY ITEMS A motion was made by Commissioner O'Bryan, seconded by Commissioner Zorc, to approve the Agenda as presented. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 5 - Chairman Adams, Vice Chairman Flescher, Commissioner Zorc, Commissioner O'Bryan, and Commissioner Solari 5. GENERAL OVERVIEW OF CHILDREN'S SERVICES TRUST MILLAGE AND ISSUES Dylan Reingold, County Attorney County Attorney Dylan Reingold stated that on January 14, 2020, the Board of County Commissioners voted to hold a special workshop to discuss a proposed referendum concerning the establishment of a millage for children's services. Attorney Reingold thanked the members of the exploratory committee for their assistance in coordinating the workshop. Attorney Reingold referred to his February 19, 2020 memorandum and detailed the following key issues discussed with representatives of the group supporting the referendum: millage rate, sunset date, millage phase in, committee membership, role of the Executive Director, committee staff duties and responsibilities, and the use of funds. County Administrator Jason Brown felt it was important to establish a policy that ensured funds would not be expended on programs that were funded by other entities. A. 20-1338 Children's Services Millage Recommended Action: The following is a summary of the staff recommendations on the key issues. Indian River County Florida Page 1 Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final February 25, 2020 County staff recommends that the Board approve a millage rate of 1/6th of a mill (0.1667 mills) County staff recommends a 12 year term Based upon the recommended 1 /6th of a mill rate, County staff recommends a 3 -step phase in over 5 years County staff recommends that the County adjust the current committee as detailed above County staff recommends that the administration of the program be funded from the millage with an eight percent (8%) cap County staff recommends deleting the use of funds for leasing and purchasing property County staff recommends establishing a policy that the funds are not to be expended for those programs that fall within the jurisdiction of other funding entities Attachments: Staff Report Children's Services 5 Year Funding History Children's Services Millage Scenarios Children's Trust Potential Staff Childrens Trust millage and step up schedule Cost to the average homeowner Draft Referendum v2 Heckman ROI Chart IRC County Needs Report Card 2-18-20 Return On Investment 2-18 Snapshot of need 2-18 The following members of the exploratory committee spoke on the statistics and importance of early intervention, investing in services and resources, the quality of children's programs, the return on the County's investment, and the enhancement the community would receive by investing in children at an early age. Indian River County Florida Page 2 Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final February 25, 2020 Lisa Kahle, 6755 4th Street, facilitator of the exploratory committee Michael Kint, CEO of the United Way of Indian River County, utilized a PowerPoint Presentation to provide a model comparison of the current Children's Services Advisory Committee (CSAC) and the proposed Children's Trust Advisory Board, the County's key indicators quantifying the need for funding and the return on investment. Jeffrey R. Smith, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller Hope Woodhouse, 199 Island Creek Drive Caryn Toole, 233 37th Drive SW Bob Schlitt Jr., 4340 62nd Terrace Robert Paugh, 4010 12th Place SW Sheriff Deryl Loar, Indian River County Sheriffs Office Ray Oglethorpe, 629 Lake Drive Wanda Lincoln, 511 Shores Drive The Chairman called for at recess at 10:41 a.m., and reconvened the meeting at 10:54 a.m., with all members present. 6. PUBLIC COMMENT The following public speakers, representing non-profit organizations and community leaders, discussed the importance of early childhood quality education, and the necessity of funding non-profit organizations which provide services to children. Andrea Berry, 4384 NE Skyline Drive, Jensen Beach Shannon Bowman, Executive Director of Childcare Resources of Indian River Barbara Hammond, 4683 Pebble Bay Circle Keith Touchberry, Chief of Police for the City of Fellsmere Freddie Woolfork, Director of Public Relations & Facilities Operation for the Gifford Youth Achievement Center Jeff Pickering, President and CEO of Indian River Community Foundation Steve Boyle, 3790 7th Terrace Brett Hall, 7445 N 16th Manor Tiffany Justice, School Board of Indian River County Dale Jacobs, 5150 St. Andrews Island Drive Melissa Ellison, Retired Communications Director for Congressional Budget Office Sandy Kahle, 275 66th Avenue Dr. Jacqueline Jacobs, Retired Principal School District of Indian River County Sabrina Sampson, Regional Executive Director of Children's Home Society The Chairman called for at recess at 11:47 a.m., and reconvened the meeting at 11:53 a.m., with all members present. Indian River County Florida Page 3 Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final February 25, 2020 Chairman Adams indicated that staff had made recommendations on the proposed key issues and sought direction from the Board. She suggested discussing each key issue individually. The Chairman mentioned that staff had proposed a 12 -year term limit instead of the 15 -year sunset date for the children's services millage; the Board was in agreement. She then referred to the proposed membership of the Children's Services Advisory Committee (CSAC). Staff recommended modifying the composition of the 13 -member committee to include Board -appointed individuals who had some expertise in the arena of children's services such as a physician, mental health professional, or child advocate. Also, staff recommended including representatives from the Indian River School and Hospital Districts. Commissioner O'Bryan felt it was important that the majority of the CSAC was appointed by the Board. Additionally, he recommended adding financial oversight with two additional members: 1) a representative from the Taxpayers' Association of Indian River County; and 2) a member of an accounting firm to oversee the committee's finances. Chairman Adams turned the Board's attention to the proposed ordinance that set forth the different uses of funds for programs and services. She stated that there was no clear list of the types of programs and services that could be funded with children's services money. A discussion followed on the proposed use of funds, with the Board recommending the following modifications: 1) adding physical activity programs, 2) funds were not to be expended on programs that fall within the jurisdiction of other funding entities, such as the Indian River County School District and Hospital District, 3) removing the duty to lease real estate, but maintaining the ability to lease or purchase equipment and other items as needed, 4) an 8% cap on the use of millage for administrative expenses, and 5) clarification on the language for the roles of the Executive Director and staff. Commissioner O'Bryan referred to the proposed Option One of the draft referendum contained in the PowerPoint Presentation as he proposed a 3 -step phase in of the millage rate over 12 years: .2 mills for the first three years, .25 mills for the second three years, .33 mills for the remaining six years, and re-evaluate at the 12 year re -authorization with all commissioners in agreement. Chairman Adams thanked everyone for their time and diligence supporting children services. Indian River County Florida Page 4 Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final February 25, 2020 7. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the Chairman adjourned the meeting at 12:20 p.m. Indian River County Florida Page 5 Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes — Final February 25, 2020 ATTEST: Jeffrey . Smit , 6A, CGFO, CGMA Clerk of Circuit Court and Comptroller By: aV, o �� Deputy Clerk BCC/JLR/2020 Minutes Approved: Indian River County Florida Page 6