July 11, 2001

The Board of County Commissioners of Brevard County, Florida, met in regular session on July 11, 2001, at 9:00 a.m. in the Florida Room, Building C, 2725 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Viera, Florida. Present were: Chairman Susan Carlson, Commissioners Truman Scarborough, Nancy Higgs, and Jackie Colon, County Manager Tom Jenkins, and Assistant County Attorney Terri Jones. Absent was: Commissioner Randy O'Brien and *County Attorney Scott Knox.

ANNOUNCEMENT

Chairman Carlson announced Commissioner O'Brien will not be present because he is having surgery this morning.

DISCUSSION, RE: RESCHEDULING SCHOOL CONCURRENCY WORKSHOP

County Manager Tom Jenkins stated at the regular meeting yesterday the Board mentioned the upcoming Space Summit meeting; staff has confirmed that it is on July 30, 2001 at UCF; and each Commissioner will be receiving an invitation. He stated a school concurrency workshop is scheduled for the same day; and suggested doing a status report on that subject on July 24, 2001 at the regular meeting.

Commissioner Higgs stated her office contacted 1000 Friends of Florida, which would like to be part of the discussion; and requested the meeting be rescheduled.

Motion by Commissioner Higgs, seconded by Commissioner Scarborough, to direct staff to reschedule the school concurrency workshop.

Chairman Carlson inquired if the Space Summit will be all day; with Mr. Jenkins responding he assumes it is a full day event. Chairman Carlson inquired if the workshop can be rescheduled the same week; with Mr. Jenkins responding if he is directed to do so. Mr. Jenkins noted the Board has items coming up on August 2, 2001 dealing with the school issue; and he will work to reschedule that same week.

The Board reached consensus to reschedule the school concurrency workshop.

DISCUSSION, RE: LETTER OF SUPPORT FOR NEW MEDICAL FACILITY

County Manager Tom Jenkins stated the County has been trying to get a new central health unit including clinic and offices for several years through the State; and Dr. Heshmati, who has been working vigorously on this initiative, advises there is an opportunity to combine the Central Brevard Public Health Unit and the Children's Medical Services facility into one facility, and if

that is done, the project will probably be ranked first in the Health Department's priorities for next years budget at the State level. He stated in order to do that, the Board will need to commit to providing the land for the new facility; the facility will cost approximately $8 million to build, so contributing the land will be a minor cost; and the other benefit to the County is that the old Health Clinic will revert to the County. He stated the County has real needs for that space for the Emergency Operations Center and other potential uses; so by committing to buy or provide the land, the County will be able to take advantage of that building as well. He stated co-locating the facility at Viera on surplus land is one option; but if that location does not meet the requirements of the Health Department, the County may have to buy land further north, and that is something that will be negotiated. He stated in order for this to go forward, Dr. Heshmati needs to send a letter indicating the Board's commitment to work to provide the site for the new clinic; and he has provided a draft letter for the Board's consideration.

Commissioner Higgs inquired how many acres are they going to need; with Mr. Jenkins responding his guess would be five acres. Commissioner Higgs inquired if the Board is committing to providing land but not to location; with Mr. Jenkins responding if the Viera location is used, it is free, but if that does not meet the operational needs, the County will be looking for property further north, and will have to acquire the five acres. Commissioner Higgs inquired about locating further north; with Mr. Jenkins advising it is in Rockledge now, and that is where the client base is. Mr. Jenkins stated there is bus transportation to Viera, so the location may work fine; and Viera is the geographic center of the County.

Motion by Commissioner Higgs, seconded by Commissioner Colon, to authorize the County Manager to send a letter of support to Dr. Heshmati for the construction of a new medical facility for Central Brevard County on land to be donated by the County. Motion carried and ordered unanimously.

Commissioner Higgs stated she has concern about putting the facility at Viera, but the Board will look at it.

PERMISSION TO TRAVEL, RE: MAX BREWER BRIDGE ISSUE

Commissioner Scarborough stated Congressman Dave Weldon was able to get $3 million in the budget for the Max Brewer project; he got a letter from Mike Snyder yesterday; and he and Mr. Jenkins were just on the telephone with Lobbyist Guy Spearman. He stated to get the money, it will be necessary to transfer the road from the County to the State; the road meets every criteria to be a State road; and Mr. Spearman is working with the Delegation and the Speaker of the House as well as sending a letter to Roy Bridges. He requested permission to go to Deland to speak with Mr. Snyder. Commissioner Higgs noted Mr. Snyder will be here on Thursday; with Commissioner Scarborough advising he would like to go up to make a point of discussing it with him individually. He stated Mr. Snyder has a good relationship with the County; he would like to explain the dilemma and status of the issue; and if he drives to Deland it makes the point that it is important to the County.

Commissioner Higgs stated she would like to expand the permission to travel to go to Tallahassee to talk to Secretary Barry who denied it. Commissioner Scarborough stated this is the first low level run on it; the fact that there is $3 million in the federal budget should move in the County's favor; and he does not want Mr. Snyder fighting it. Commissioner Higgs recommended expanding the authorization for Commissioner Scarborough to represent the County on all fronts whether it is Washington, D.C., Tallahassee, or Deland.

Motion by Commissioner Higgs, seconded by Commissioner Scarborough, to authorize Commissioner Scarborough to meet with Mike Snyder, FDOT District 5; and to travel to Washington, D.C., Tallahassee, Florida, or wherever necessary to represent the County concerning the Max Brewer Causeway and Bridge. Motion carried and ordered unanimously.

PRESENTATION, RE: REVIEW OF REQUESTED AD VALOREM FUNDED BUDGETS

County Manager Tom Jenkins stated the primary purpose of today's workshop is to focus on the ad valorem funded agencies in County government; and staff will provide a detailed snapshot of where the County is at and where it is headed so the Board can provide input. He stated because of statutory requirements, he is required to have a preliminary budget by July 14; staff may not have time to incorporate some of the direction given today into that preliminary budget; but typically in past years, the budget has been modified prior to the setting of the tentative millage. He stated as the Board goes through the various budgets, there will be built-in costs that are required to be absorbed; and the other overriding rule that has been applied is the 3% cap-it limit. He noted there are several exceptions such as program changes that the Board has expressed an interest in supporting; so there will be some minor deviations. He stated the chart is a summary of all ad valorem agencies; and it is important for the Board to see how limited the budget is in terms of where the money is going.

Commissioner Higgs inquired when the 3% cap-it is calculated, is it on all the MSTU's as well as the General Fund; with Assistant County Manager Stockton Whitten responding it is the aggregate which includes the General Fund and the MSTU's. Mr. Jenkins stated TRIM is based on what is legally defined as aggregate; but cap-it is total revenues, which goes beyond the aggregate. He stated traditionally when staff has used the term aggregate, it has been the TRIM definition, which are the non-voter approved millages; at the bottom of the bill, there were voter-approved millages; but those are not included in the aggregate.

Discussion ensued on aggregate, TRIM, total revenue, and cap-it.

Commissioner Higgs stated there are three new voter-approved recreation districts; that revenue would exceed the 3% cap-it; and how is it added in. Mr. Jenkins advised it is 3% increase over the prior year; those are not current revenue; so they are not considered part of the 3%. Mr. Jenkins noted the Parks and Recreation O&M portion of the referendum is included in the TRIM calculation, but not cap-it. Commissioner Higgs inquired if even though the total revenue would exceed the 3% because of the voted revenues, it would not count toward cap-it; with Mr. Jenkins responding that is correct. Mr. Jenkins stated historically the word aggregate has been used, but the word being used for cap-it is total revenue, so it is a slightly different calculation.

Assistant County Manager Stockton Whitten stated the first column of the spread sheet shows the department; the second is the current budget; the third is the preliminary budget; the fourth is the funding increases; the fifth is the percentage increases; the next columns show the built-in expenses for the FY 2002 budget, program changes that are funded, and other increases in the budget; and the last column shows the unfunded program changes. Budget Manager Dennis Rogero noted it only relates to the General Fund transfer portion of the departments.

ADA COORDINATOR OFFICE

Mr. Whitten stated the first department is the ADA Coordinator's office; the current budget is $67,275, and the preliminary budget is $69,984, which is a 4.3% increase. Mr. Jenkins stated that reflects the built-in increase; and there are no program changes.

AGRICULTURE AND EXTENSION SERVICES OFFICE

Mr. Rogero stated the Agriculture and Extension Services Office has a 7.34% reduction in the General Fund transfer.

ANIMAL SERVICES AND ENFORCEMENT

Mr. Whitten stated Animal Services and Enforcement shows a 4.03% decrease primarily attributed to FRS savings. Mr. Jenkins stated there may be user fee increases that have not yet been brought to the Board that may provide additional revenue to improve services in Animal Services; and they will be bringing that to the Board.

Commissioner Scarborough inquired about FRS; with Mr. Whitten responding the State has lowered retirement rates.

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

Mr. Rogero stated the next agency is the Board of County Commissioners, which includes the administrative account; there is a 1.76% increase; and that is primarily due to full-year impact of pay increases approved by the Board in the current year.

*County Attorney Scott Knox's presence and Assistant County Attorney Terri Jones' absence were noted at this time.

BREVARD CULTURAL ALLIANCE

Mr. Rogero stated the Brevard Cultural Alliance remains constant with no increase or decrease.

BUDGET OFFICE

Mr. Whitten stated the Budget Office shows a .12% increase. Mr. Jenkins stated there are no major changes.

CLERK OF COURTS

Mr. Rogero stated the Clerk of Courts indicates a 7.24% increase in the General Fund transfer; and a little over $150,000 of that is due to the built-in increases. Mr. Jenkins stated the far right column is the unfunded program changes; a lot of the agencies have a significant number of requested unfunded program changes; the Clerk has identified some savings in the Finance Department, but has $1.2 million in unfunded requests; and suggested allowing the Clerk to have the benefit of those savings. He stated rather than a 3% increase, it is a 7.2% increase; and some of those are pass-through costs. Mr. Rogero stated taking into account those savings, the overall increase would be less than 3%. Mr. Jenkins inquired what is the balance for; with Mr. Rogero responding increased court costs, such as court reporting fees, indigent person defense, and witness coordination, and other revenue projection reductions. Mr. Jenkins noted he has not had a chance to explore the possibility of increasing fees to assist in making up that portion of the budget request which the County is not able to fund.

Commissioner Higgs inquired what are the 19 new positions that the Clerk has requested at $1.2 million; with Mr. Jenkins responding they are 19 positions that have been temporary for the last year and used because of the difficulties with the new software put in by the prior Clerk.

Discussion ensued on part-time and temporary workers.

Mr. Rogero advised it is 50 to 80 part-time positions that are equivalent to 19 full-time positions. Commissioner Higgs inquired what is the consequence of not funding the positions and what do the people do.

Clerk of Courts Scott Ellis advised when he took office, there were 80 part-time employees on the payroll, but only 25 were in the budget. Mr. Jenkins stated they were added as a result of the new software. Mr. Ellis stated they go back over a year to early or mid-2000 and equal 19 full-time equivalent positions; and four people are for the new judges. Commissioner Scarborough stated temporaries came on because the software was not working; the current Clerk inherited that situation and has been trying to work through the problem; and in working through the problem, he will get rid of temporaries and bring the Department back to normal operation. He requested the Clerk define the problem and how it is being solved with the software and the personnel. Mr. Ellis responded his office is trying to get down to approximately 30 students; as students are lost, they are replaced with a full-time position; and the problem this year is a $400,000 accounting error in last year's budget. He stated when the Clerk gave the County back $130,000 last year, the office was actually $120,000 in the red; $250,000 in software licenses were not in the budget; and the previous Clerk allocated all the overhead in the office 50/50 between the County and Circuit Court even though County Court has far more cases than Circuit Court and takes up more Clerk's Office time. He stated a lot of the increase is due to the reallocation of overhead between the County and Circuit Court, and for health insurance.

Commissioner Higgs reiterated if the County does not fund the $1.2 million, what will happen operationally; with Mr. Ellis responding it would probably reduce the workforce by 50 people. Chairman Carlson stated there must be some plan; with Mr. Ellis advising there is no plan, and he inherited the budget from the previous Clerk, so it is not an accurate budget. Mr. Ellis stated if the Board does not want to allocate the $1.2 million, it will determine the number of people that will be taken out of work, and then have to determine how many courts it wants to shut down. Commissioner Higgs stated she is trying to understand the relationship between dollars and services for the public; with Mr. Ellis advising the $1.2 million is to continue as things are now. Chairman Carlson noted it was not in the budget; with Mr. Ellis advising there were grossly inflated numbers for fees and budget expenses that were not placed in the budget; and the only things that are really additional are two computer techs, three court clerks, and an EDP operator. Commissioner Higgs stated the $1.2 million being requested, which appears to be an increase, is not. Mr. Ellis stated a lot of things were based on fees, but there is no way the Circuit Court could run off the fees that are generated, even with the recording fees; and he is struggling to the end of the fiscal year to break even. Commissioner Higgs inquired if the $1.2 million is not to correct the software problems; with Mr. Ellis responding a lot of it is basic operational cost. Mr. Ellis noted there is $600,000 in capital; within that $300,000 is software related; and $250,000 is for licenses and maintenance agreements. He stated they are looking at approximately $100,000 to $150,000 for Tiburon next year, and are investigating ways to get around it with current staff and software. Mr. Jenkins stated a history of the positions would be helpful because the Board has been operating under the impression that a number of positions were added temporarily when the system was installed and work got behind, and part-time students were brought in to keep paper flowing. Mr. Ellis stated that is not what he found when he took office.

Mr. Jenkins stated t in previous years the Circuit Court, which was fee funded, is paying a greater percentage of the cost; Mr. Ellis has moved more of that cost to County Court because the volume is greater; and according to research done by the County Attorney's Office, there is opportunity to raise fees in the Clerk's Office to offset some of the cost increase.

Mr. Ellis inquired if there is an option to eliminate being a fee officer and becoming a budget officer; and stated the County Commission would then appropriate the Clerk's Office the same way it does the Supervisor of Elections, and in return all fees would be handed over to the County.

Commissioner Higgs inquired if the County would set all fees; with Mr. Ellis advising the County sets the fees regardless. County Attorney Scott Knox stated the Board has control over some fees, but not all as some are set by Ordinance. Mr. Ellis stated he can request a change, but the Board actually enacts the change.

Commissioner Scarborough stated he has a lot more questions than answers right now; he thought the problem was a software problem that brought on the temporaries, and when that problem was resolved, it would be possible to get rid of those temporaries, but it appears to be much more complex; and he would like to visit with Mr. Ellis. He stated in terms of fees, some are statutory issues; and it would be beneficial to find out where the County is in line with the rest of the State. Mr. Ellis noted some of the fees he collects go to other agencies. Commissioner Scarborough stated he is talking about fees that would assist the Clerk in meeting his budget.

Commissioner Higgs stated Mr. Ellis may have a perspective on some of the other fees that the Board may not be aware of. Mr. Ellis stated he can find out exactly which fees go to the Clerk and what can be done with them; and it is usually a very small percentage.

Commissioner Scarborough stated Mr. Whitten advised going to cap-it would be just a little over a million dollars in additional revenue; with Mr. Whitten responding on the total, it is more than that. Commissioner Scarborough requested staff provide that number; and stated this year there are tremendous constraints on how far taxes can be increased, but the Board does not want to close down courts, and there are going to be hard decisions. Mr. Ellis stated that is why he did not consider a full increase for employees because if he had, he would have been another $500,000 short going into next year.

Commissioner Higgs stated Mr. Ellis understands the dilemma the Board will face this year; and any information on options he can give the Board would be helpful. Mr. Ellis stated all the agencies will be bringing the Board suggestions as it works through the budget; and he will look at the fees, but one option would be to go to a budget office and not be a fee office. Commissioner Higgs stated either way the Board will still have to be willing to look at the fees. Mr. Ellis stated the difference is then the fees would accrue to the Board and not the Clerk; with Commissioner Higgs advising either way this budget is still revenue challenged. Mr. Ellis stated the way last year's budget was done was to add whatever was necessary on the fee side to balance the budget, whether those fees would be collected or not.

Chairman Carlson inquired about advantages to going to the budget scenario that Mr. Ellis is talking about; with Mr. Ellis advising all the fees would accrue to the Board, and there would be no issue of whether fees were up or down; and it would be just like the Supervisor of Elections' budget.

Discussion ensued on fee offices, budget offices, and preference of the previous Clerk.

Mr. Jenkins stated the only conclusion he can draw based on what Mr. Ellis has said this morning is that the former Clerk added daily service positions without the Board's authority. Mr. Ellis stated the intent when they were added may have been that they would be temporary, but it did not work out that way. Mr. Jenkins stated because of the difficulties with the software system, the County is operating off of fine and forfeiture estimates that are three years old at the 1999 rate; based on the fact that judges have been added, the volume of court transactions has gone up; and though the current Clerk did not cause the problem, he cannot give an accurate |count of how much fines and revenue are coming in. He stated since 1999 numbers are being used, there are probably some significant increases in the revenues that the County is not getting the benefit of.

Commissioner Higgs inquired when will Mr. Ellis have those figures; with Mr. Ellis advising they finally made it up to April 2000 before the program blew out again; they had to begin again at November 1999; and every time the program crashes, it is necessary to go all the way back and begin again at November 1999. Mr. Ellis stated there is a second development server, so staff can run just the fee books, but only a week or two can be run in a day on the fee books; and as they are 18 months behind, it will take two to three months just to run all the fee books through when the program is fixed. Commissioner Higgs inquired if there would be any advantage in estimating the revenues if a more current date than 1999 was used, to see what was actually happening in January 2001. Mr. Ellis responded it could be done; and stated all the money still accumulates in a bank account; money is handed out on a bi-weekly basis; some of the cities have been asking for more money because they have been writing more tickets; and their allotments have been increased because in the end it is all going to wash out.

Commissioner Scarborough inquired when does it end; with Mr. Ellis responding from the day the program is fixed, it will be approximately two months. Mr. Ellis noted it is a proprietary software issue, and he cannot get the code. Commissioner Higgs inquired about getting a more current estimate. Mr. Ellis responded it would be possible to get a day, but then the issue is whether it is a normal or abnormal day. Mr. Jenkins inquired if the funds are in a separate bank account; with Mr. Ellis responding yes, that is how the $400,000 error came about. He stated since they were not running the fee books, they were double-counting money, counting it as an income that could be spent for capital and then counting it again as a recording fee that could be spent for operating expenses. Mr. Jenkins inquired if it would be possible to look at the cash amount in the bank account and get a sense about how the fees are coming in versus what the County is projecting them at.

Discussion ensued on running more than one day's worth of data, counting deposits for three months and comparing to projections, more accuracy in the aggregate, and inability to determine who is bringing the money in.

Mr. Jenkins stated he does not think it would be risky to increase revenue projections by 3% as that is a fairly conservative estimate. Mr. Ellis stated it is possible to plug in any number the Board wants for fees, and it will all come out in the end. Mr. Ellis stated there is a million dollars in the traffic surcharge account; that is the account that is being used to build the courthouse; and that is more than they thought would be there at this time. Mr. Ellis stated his office only gets approximately a dollar or two from a ticket, and the main revenue is from court filing fees; the County has not suspended a license since November 1999; there are 80,000 tickets on which money is owed; they are preparing to send out 10,000 letters per month advising if they do not pay their tickets, their licenses will be suspended; and there is a big pot of potential revenue. He advised they are looking to do a trial run on a 1,000 in August, 2001; from that point they will start sending the 10,000 letters per month to work through the backlog; and there are upgrades being done to the phone system and the phone room hours will be expanded to deal with the phone calls about tickets. Chairman Carlson stated whatever the method, it would be helpful to get accurate figures.

Commissioner Scarborough stated if it is known there will be some money, and it can be conservatively estimated, it is easier in budget planning. He stated there is money that the County will get back that it advanced, money that is one-time occurrence, and recurring money; they are looked at in different levels of analysis; and the easiest one to do is when money is put out that will come back. He stated if the Board knows the Clerk will be giving revenue back once it is balanced, it is easier to work with him because in the end everything will come together. Mr. Ellis noted it will be a one-time surge in revenue. Commissioner Scarborough stated they are funding something to correct the problem that will end in positive results.

COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE

Mr. Whitten stated the County Attorney's Office has decreased by 2% due to FRS savings. Commissioner Higgs inquired how much is being saved; with Mr. Jenkins responding approximately $250,000, which would be added to cash forward, except for the $16,000 that was spent yesterday for speed enforcement. Commissioner Higgs inquired how much will be saved on FRS from the General Fund; with Mr. Whitten responding approximately $250,000, as the Sheriff is included in the General Fund.

Commissioner Scarborough stated he had conversations with Mr. Jenkins about what should and should not be litigated; and this goes beyond a budgetary issue. He stated when the County Attorney is litigating a case, which could be significant, he is out of the office; and sometimes he is needed as the Board's attorney; and the Board has asked him to do some analysis on different things. He stated a lot of large corporations have corporate counsel, but when they go into a specialized issue, they hire a specialized firm for that purpose; and requested an analysis as part of the budget, including calling other counties to see how they operate. He stated the Board should have good representation on day-to-day issues; and as it gets to bigger litigation items, it may look to go outside. He stated he does not know if it is a budget or an organization issue; with Mr. Knox advising it is a budget issue.

Discussion ensued on saving money, being proactive, what the County Attorney's staff can and cannot handle in terms of litigation, the Miorelli case, collection issues, and dealing with less significant issue inside and higher level issues outside.

Mr. Jenkins stated he was particularly talking about foreclosures, because if a foreclosure is given to a collection agency, it may be harsh whereas the County Attorney may have more diplomacy. He advised of a scenario with an elderly gentleman who had many extenuating circumstances; a collection agency is just to get the money; but the County Attorney would take the extenuating circumstances into consideration and come to the Board.

Commissioner Scarborough stated Mr. Knox brought up something about an unethical or illegal action on the part of one of the County's collection attorneys; and requested he prepare a report.

COUNTY MANAGER'S OFFICE, EDC, AND EMS

Mr. Rogero stated the County Manager's Office has a 0.9% increase due to the built-in increases.

Mr. Whitten stated the Economic Development Commission of the Space Coast has a zero percent increase.

Mr. Rogero stated the Emergency Management Office has a 1.09% increase in the General Fund Transfer.

HOUSING AND HUMAN SERVICES

Mr. Rogero stated the Housing and Human Services Department consists of a number of programs, and has a reduction in General Fund transfer of .62%.

Commissioner Higgs inquired about estimates on the Medicaid costs. Mr. Rogero responded they are projected to remain constant.

HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICE

Mr. Whitten stated the Human Resources Office has a 4.91% increase due to full-year funding of pay increases, health insurance increases, as well as some FRS savings.

INFORMATION/COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS

Mr. Rogero stated the Communications Program of the Information/Communications Systems Department has a preliminary budget representing a 2.49% reduction in the General Fund transfer. Mr. Jenkins stated it is fee based; but there are a large number of unfunded program increases.

Information/Communications Systems Director Gino Butto stated it is easier to look at the programs in the order of when they will need to be done; stated some are at the point where if nothing is done, there could be serious consequences while others are on the verge of needing to be addressed very soon; and they have included a couple of stopgap measures, which could mitigate some of the needs. He stated the biggest project is the storage area network project, and another is the enterprise backup system project, which are related; and by doing the enterprise backup system project first, it can postpone the need to do the storage area network project. He stated with the increased number of users and increased use of each user, it would be more cost effective to have a repository that is managed by Information Systems; it would insure that backups are done in the proper fashion; and long-term, if there was a catastrophic event, there would be the ability to relocate to an EOC-type environment.

Commissioner Higgs stated there are two projects; one is the $100,000 wiring of the Government Center and the EOC, and another is a related system in the mobile communication and command center backup. Mr. Butto stated the names are deceiving; there are several buildings at the Government Center that were initially wired incapable of handling the type of data that is done today; the wiring is causing a lot of problems; and the mobile communications command center is a non-Information Systems function. He stated Public Safety, Law Enforcement, and the Emergency Operations Center all worked to use an approach where they have a completely mobile semi-tractor trailer setup; Law Enforcement is pursuing it, and has gotten parts of it in place; and he is asking to have that for the entire County.

Chairman Carlson inquired if there is any way to prioritize the items that would allow the operation to be more cost effective long-term rather than the short fix. Mr. Butto stated they have done that; and he could package that for the Board. Chairman Carlson inquired if Mr. Butto has looked outside to contract with industry for storage; with Mr. Butto responding the number includes the possibility of engaging with somebody to do that. Chairman Carlson requested staff provide some detail on that.

EDC

Commissioner Colon advised the Board gets a quarterly report from Lynda Weatherman giving the status of the Economic Development Commission; and inquired if the Board gets a breakdown of where the County money is spent. She stated the Board discussed this before and thought it was audited, but the reality was the EDC had not been audited. Commissioner Scarborough inquired if the Contract was recently amended to allow that; with Mr. Jenkins responding yes. Commissioner Colon inquired when that will be done; with Mr. Jenkins responding there is an Audit Committee meeting on Friday and he will bring up making that a first priority.

Chairman Carlson stated there was a report that just came out for the last two quarters. Mr. Jenkins noted that is the progress report, but Commissioner Colon is talking about the financial audit. Commissioner Higgs stated the Board needs to be sure the Contract is either a cost reimbursement type contract or outcome oriented contract; the Board's approach
with the EDC; it is outcome oriented; and the Board pays for the outcome not for the process. Chairman Carlson stated it would be difficult to do it any other way. Commissioner Higgs stated the Board needs to audit the outcomes and be sure that the outcomes define what the Board wants. Chairman Carlson stated in the annual meetings with the EDC, it has defined the outcomes and given a report to show how close they have come; and she assumes there is oversight by Management Services.

Commissioner Scarborough stated the question is whether funds have been spent for legitimate purposes; and there could be good outcomes, but someone may have gone on a junket for no business reason. He stated the question has been asked if there was no EDC would the County be any worse off; and the outcomes become the issue. He stated if the Board is funding it, it has to ask what measure it is getting more than it normally would; and commented on events in Orlando involving improprieties. Commissioner Scarborough stated in Volusia County, the EDC was terminated; and he is not saying there is anything wrong with the EDC, but when the Board gives $750,000, it needs to have accountability.

Discussion ensued on outcome based contracts, auditing, appropriate use of money, and bond closings previously held in New York.

Commissioner Colon stated the EDC welcomes the scrutiny because of questions that have been asked in the past; it is a lot of money; and the EDC is comfortable sharing information with the Board and the public. She stated she is not speaking against what the EDC has done; the EDC charges fees to business to be part of it; and it is totally different when a company contributes versus taxpayers money.

Commissioner Higgs stated the Board needs to look at some of the other agencies and determine if that is the way to go; commented on the Community Services Council reallocation yesterday; and advised if the Board wants to go into cost reimbursement, it will have to rethink the way it is doing things as it has been oriented toward outcomes.

Commissioner Scarborough stated when the County puts $750,000 in and it is a substantial portion, there needs to be a level of accountability; and it is not just for results but also whether money is being spent wisely. He noted there are some things happening regionally; people have called him about newspaper articles; and they want to know how things are done in the County.

Mr. Jenkins stated an audit will do both; the auditors will look at the outcomes that were contracted for; but they will also do some sampling of the propriety of the expenditures and that kind of thing. He stated it is standard practice to look at outcomes and basic accounting standards.

Chairman Carlson stated the Board needs to look at the different agencies it does business with on a contractual basis and those that it supports but does not have a contract with, such as BCA; and there is cost reimbursement with the grant money also. Commissioner Higgs stated is it not cost reimbursement as the County pays for a service. Chairman Carlson stated they do not release the grant money until they get receipts. Mr. Jenkins stated an example is Alco-Rest; the County had a contract for services; on the other hand, Alco-Rest was not paying the IRS the money it owed, which presented an accounting issue; so it is a combination. Commissioner Scarborough stated while the Board may be buying a service, it should be aware if the business is conducting itself under appropriate County practices. Chairman Carlson stated there are a lot of different questions in terms of accountability; and the Board should look at it for all the agencies. Commissioner Higgs stated yesterday the Board dealt with the CBO and CDBG Contracts; and recommended insuring that those as well as others that are being reissued and renegotiated include the provisions being discussed. Mr. Jenkins stated that was Board direction; 99.9% of the Contracts had the audit clause; and the only one that did not was the EDC Contract, which has it now.

Discussion ensued on auditing contracts, inability to audit all practices, inability to see the big picture, audit of private money being invasion of privacy, level of risk higher with greater contribution, general accounting matters, and need to know about financial responsibility.

Mr. Jenkins stated once there is an auditing firm on board, he will have them write a report as to how it will do the audits.

COURT ADMINISTRATION

Mr. Rogero stated the Judicial Branch Administration has a 2.4% increase in the General Fund transfer, primarily associated with the built-in increases, a criminal collection coordinator position that is expected to generate additional revenue, and operating expenses.

Mr. Whitten stated the Law Library reflects a 14.01% decrease in its budget.

LEGISLATIVE DELEGATION

Mr. Rogero stated the Legislative Delegation Coordinator's office indicates a reduction of 65.97% in the General Fund transfer; and that is due to transfer out of two positions.

Commissioner Higgs requested an explanation. Mr. Jenkins stated Mr. Lugar's position is being transferred to Mr. Whitten, and the secretary position is going with that. Commissioner Higgs inquired if there is only one person; with Mr. Jenkins responding yes. Commissioner Scarborough stated the budget for Mr. Whitten will increase; with Mr. Jenkins agreeing.

MOSQUITO CONTROL

Mr. Whitten stated Mosquito Control reflects a 17.27% General Fund transfer decrease primarily attributable to the one-time expenditure for capital items.

Commissioner Scarborough stated his office receives more complaints about Mosquito Control than anything else; and the average person thinks more money should be spent on Mosquito Control. Mr. Jenkins stated that reduction is primarily aquatic weed control. Mr. Whitten noted last year Mosquito Control was given additional funding for positions and capital. Commissioner Scarborough stated no matter what the Board has done, the average person thinks it has not done enough. Commissioner Higgs stated at the Florida Association of Counties, she spoke to someone who provides privatization of mosquito control as well as selling chemicals; and she requested Mr. Jenkins explore that for special needs. Mr. Jenkins stated that would be supplementing what the County is currently doing; and he is investigating it.

NATURAL RESOURCES

Mr. Rogero stated Natural Resources, the Environmental Management Program, reflects a 15.5% increase in the General Fund transfer primarily attributable to the built-in increases and a Board-approved uncontrolled wells project.

JUDICIAL SERVICES

Mr. Whitten advised Other Judicial Services reflects an 18.93% increase, primarily attributable to decrease in revenues, fine, and forfeitures, and operation increases. Mr. Jenkins stated State funding was lost; with Mr. Whitten stating that was a decrease in approximately $500,000 in revenue with corresponding increase in expenditures. Commissioner Higgs stated how did they do that; with Mr. Whitten responding the revenues lost were grants from State agencies, court reporting grant, other State grants, Article V funding, and child dependency funding; and that amounted to approximately $604,000. Commissioner Higgs stated when the State enjoys the tax-free days in August, the Board will know that some of it could have gone here, and the County is actually paying for it. Mr. Jenkins stated the Article V Constitutional Amendment was supposed to say the State was going to pay for the court system, but it is working the opposite way as the County is spending more rather than less. Commissioner Scarborough stated it was refreshing to hear Representative Ball say he sees the impropriety. Mr. Jenkins advised Representative Ball saved the County more than $2 million just by resisting pressures.

PERMITTING AND ENFORCEMENT

Mr. Whitten stated the next department is Permitting and Enforcement; the budget reflects a 5.65% decrease due to increases in fees, which will relieve the General Fund Transfer and other built-in increases. Mr. Jenkins stated there are some significant fee increases built into the budget.

PARKS AND RECREATION

Mr. Rogero stated for the Parks and Recreation Department, which consists of the North, South, and Central Operations Areas and the Golf Operations Program, the preliminary budget represents an 8.86% increase; but in looking at the overall increase, it is not as much as the built-in increases, so they have made cuts in other areas to bring in a balanced budget.

Commissioner Higgs stated under Parks and Recreation unfunded programs is the South Mainland Community Center Gym staffing; there is staff for South Mainland, but inquired if there is a plan for an increase that has not been funded. She stated the gym is currently under construction under the CDBG Program. She inquired what the $113,000 represents; with Parks and Recreation Director Charles Nelson responding the operational costs for the new building. Mr. Nelson noted there are actually two buildings there and staffing to increase the hours to provide recreational programming; a gymnasium is being added with an additional meeting facility; and it is basically implementing the operation of the new structure. Commissioner Higgs inquired about funding for the community center, but none for the gym. Mr. Nelson advised that is reflected in the request; the typical community center would have this level of staffing; what was on hand was supplemented by the request to make it a total operation; and there was no duplication as additional staff is needed to run the two buildings. Commissioner Higgs inquired is that what has been requested that is not funded; with Mr. Nelson responding affirmatively. Commissioner Higgs inquired if other community centers of a similar size and layout are staffed in line with what was requested; with Mr. Nelson responding yes. Commissioner Higgs stated she has a problem with that.

Commissioner Colon inquired if the golf operations are paying for themselves. Mr. Nelson responded considering operation and maintenance and debt retirement for construction of the golf courses, they do not pay for themselves, so they are subsidized by the Board. Commissioner Higgs stated the subsidy was $469,000; with Mr. Nelson advising next year it will be greater than that. Mr. Nelson advised the revenue stream, particularly at the Habitat Golf Course, has not been what it has been historically and is below the seven year historic average. Commissioner Higgs inquired if the $469,000 transfer includes any raising of fees; with Mr. Nelson responding not at this point. Mr. Nelson stated based on the Golf Advisory Board's recommendation, there may be some improvement in terms of the final number; that group meets tomorrow to finalize, so there could be some softening of the number; but it is still a significant number. Commissioner Carlson inquired if the courses raised their fees last year or the year before; with Mr. Nelson responding it was three years ago, and they eased into it, reaching the top of the rate structure at three years. Mr. Jenkins noted there are increases for things such as utility change increases, Workers Compensation, general liability health insurance, and pay increases. Mr. Nelson advised there have been significant increases in utility costs, which are hard to recapture.

Commissioner Higgs inquired about the Hoover Athletic Complex at $310,000. Chairman Carlson requested staff explain the County's Agreement with the School Board for that. Mr. Nelson stated the arrangement with the School Board is that it is a community park where recreation facilities are operated; there are active soccer, softball, and tennis programs in the hours the school is closed; and they recently participated with the school in the air conditioning of the gym. Chairman Carlson inquired if the $310,000 is augmenting what the School Board is putting in or is the County paying the entire cost of the renovation. Mr. Nelson stated the County is the majority user of the facility; the improvements will benefit the Parks and Recreation Program more than the school; and the improvements are to make the Parks and Recreation program better, not the school's program. Chairman Carlson inquired if the school uses the track and field area and tennis courts; with Mr. Nelson responding yes, but the County uses it for summer programs as well as after-hours programs. Mr. Jenkins inquired why some of the items were not put in the referendum; with Mr. Nelson responding it would have been $80 million in South Brevard rather than $45 million.

Chairman Carlson stated in the referendum, there was a community center for Wickham Park; and inquired if it will be staffed; with Mr. Nelson responding yes, operation and maintenance have been provided for. Chairman Carlson stated throughout North, Central, and South, there is an increase in staffing for SAP support; in the Clerk's budget there was a reduction; and inquired why additional staff is needed to support SAP when it is supposed to make things more efficient. Mr. Nelson responded it is for the financial aspects of the operation; and it was intended that would be funded out of the referendum. He advised the daily operation requires additional purchase orders and manpower to process and keep materials flowing to the maintenance operation; additional help is needed to pay the bills as they are at the breaking point now in what they are able to accomplish; and numerous new parks are being added as part of the referendum. Chairman Carlson stated that should be clarified.

Commissioner Colon inquired how many other government entities have golf courses and do they pay for themselves. She noted it is costing the County $500,000 to keep up with the golf courses. Mr. Nelson responded the Cities of Melbourne and Cocoa Beach each operate a golf course; and they are probably paying for themselves as they have been there for almost 30 years. He stated Statewide, it runs the gamut; some agencies subsidize golf on a regular basis; and the intent of all is to get to an enterprise scenario, although the County is short of that. He stated Spessard Holland continues to be a great performer, the Savannahs has improved dramatically; and the concern is the Habitat Golf Course because more golf courses are being built and there are a limited number of people to play golf in that vicinity.

Commissioner Colon inquired if the Board has considered selling the golf courses. Mr. Nelson responded the previous Commission asked staff to go through that exercise to try to determine if the County was able to get out of golf; and the answers are different at each of the golf courses for different reasons. He stated in the end it was determined it was so complicated, and in some cases impossible, that the Board committed to continuing operation of golf courses as a recreational service, understanding there would be attempts to minimize the General Fund going to it, but recognizing that may not be possible in the short term. Mr. Jenkins stated the reason the Board decided to have golf courses was to provide affordable golf; one of the biggest users is the senior citizen population; and the County is providing recreation opportunities for senior citizens much in the same way it provides recreation such as Little League, boat ramps, or other recreational amenities. He stated staff looked extensively at the possibility of disposing of golf courses; the Habitat Golf Course is on FAA land; the County pays rent to the Airport and owns only the improvements to the land; so what it would be selling would be the improvements, which makes it difficult to sell. He stated once the golf courses pay off their debt service, they will become profitable. Commissioner Higgs noted there is a volume of history on the golf courses that Commissioner Colon may wish to read. Commissioner Colon stated she is aware of the history; this is the first time she has asked about it publicly, but it hurts when the County is spending $500,000 when there are other needs in the community. She stated she will not bring it up again; but she cannot justify spending a half million dollars for golf when it could be allocated for children, the aging, or the homeless, and it almost seems like a luxury.

Chairman Carlson inquired if there has ever been a report on how much is spent on recreational services per capita; with Mr. Jenkins responding it would be high as it is a $9 million budget. Mr. Nelson stated that is just General Fund, and does not include the fees that are charged. Commissioner Higgs noted it is heavily fee supported. Chairman Carlson requested staff provide those percentages. Mr. Nelson stated staff will break out voter-approved Beach and Riverfront and Endangered Lands as being part of the services.

Commissioner Higgs inquired in similar facilities to the South Mainland Community Center, are CDBG funds use to fund staff; with Mr. Nelson responding no, they are either General Fund or Special District. Mr. Nelson stated the budget staff asked why that was not part of the referendum; and explained why it would have been inappropriate.

The meeting recessed at 10:35 a.m. and reconvened at 10:50 a.m.

SHERIFF

Mr. Rogero stated the Sheriff's preliminary budget for the next fiscal year represents a 4.62% increase, primarily due to the built-in increase in pay raises, health, and insurance increases. Mr. Jenkins noted there were also some funded program changes. Mr. Rogero stated those changes include the addition of five new court security deputies and the funding of a new computer-aided dispatch system. Mr. Jenkins noted in the course of the year the Board made some grant commitments, and they are funded as well.

Mr. Whitten stated the MSTU budget for law enforcement has increased by 11.72% primarily attributable to some built-in increases; and it includes a funded program change of eight additional road deputies.

Commissioner Scarborough stated the Sheriff is part of cap-it; and inquired if there is any way to have it as a separate item on the TRIM notice, and would that take it out of cap-it; with Mr. Rogero responding it would not. Commissioner Scarborough inquired if any counties have figured out a way to look at it separately; with Mr. Rogero responding not that he knows of. Mr. Jenkins noted that is a legal issue; and it would require an act of the Legislature to get it as a separate line item on the tax bill; and there were discussions about it a few years ago. Commissioner Scarborough stated the School Board is not under cap-it; and inquired if it is possible for the Sheriff to become independent. Commissioner Higgs advised he could then set his own millage. Commissioner Scarborough stated TiCo Airport sets the millage, but it is approved by the Board; and inquired if that comes under cap-it; with Mr. Whitten responding yes. Commissioner Scarborough stated any time the Board sets the millage, it is under cap-it; but TiCo Airport is an entity of the State. Mr. Whitten clarified it is an independent special district; with Commissioner Scarborough advising the County did not create it. Mr. Jenkins advised TiCo Airport is part of cap-it. Commissioner Higgs inquired if under the Charter the Board can establish an independent special district for law enforcement. Commissioner Scarborough stated he is willing to consider it. Mr. Jenkins stated if it is Countywide, it will be necessary to get municipal concurrence on a city-by-city basis. Commissioner Higgs inquired if there is any advantage to separating the MSTU's into districts. Commissioner Scarborough stated his problem this year is with cap-it; it ends up being a problem again and again; and he does not know if there is a way to restructure, but there is more freedom with the Sheriff's budget than the Board had historically. Chairman Carlson stated if there were districtwide MSTU's, it would be possible to know where the dollars are going. Commissioner Scarborough stated the MSTU is under cap-it, and the Sheriff needs more money. Chairman Carlson stated the issue is it is hard to get that accountability; with Commissioner Scarborough advising the issue is the capacity to bring in revenue. Commissioner Higgs stated the Board has the ability, with a supermajority vote, to put an amendment before the voters to set up an independent special district for the Sheriff. Commissioner Scarborough inquired if that would take the Sheriff out of cap-it; with Commissioner Higgs responding that would depend on how the amendment is structured. Commissioner Scarborough stated the Board has been struggling with trying to make this work; and going to November may be worthwhile. Chairman Carlson requested staff report back on the possibility of doing that.

Discussion ensued on Charter amendment, cap-it, other prospects being put forward for referendum, how the amendment should be structured, need for additional flexibility, and checks and balances on the Sheriff's Office.

Chairman Carlson stated the Board will get a report from Mr. Knox. Commissioner Scarborough recommended Sheriff Williams also do some research.

Sheriff Williams stated his office has gone from 125,000 calls in 1992 to over 300,000 in 2000; and displayed a chart showing the trend. He displayed a chart showing deputy time analysis; stated overtime is a Band-Aid solution to the traffic concerns in South Brevard; there are 129 deputies serving in the unincorporated area of the County; and each one has four minutes per hour to perform report writing and so forth, so the time is not there for traffic enforcement. He stated traffic enforcement generates revenue which goes to the General Fund or MSTU; when the Clerk of Courts unravels the situation he has been left with, it will be possible to be better apprised of what money comes from what sources and what money is available for the Board to reapportion; but with only four minutes per hour of free time, the traffic issues and other concerns cannot be met. He stated the Board appears to want to fund eight additional MSTU deputies in the next budget year; and that is great, but free time, if the calls continue, will go from four minutes to two minutes. He stated Commissioner Scarborough's concern is how to catch up given the cap-it restrictions; services are running away from the resources; the time of seven deputies could be saved by not writing tickets; and it would be possible to stop going on calls that are non-criminal such as accompanying Animal Control, but those are double-edged swords. He noted he is not advocating those actions, but they are options that are available; and service needs that are being met will not be met next year with the proposed funding. He stated the positions for domestic violence were unfunded; and urged the Board to look at the hard numbers. He commented on increase in money captured through grants, going from $1 million in 1996-97 to $4,900,000 in 1998-99; and noted that could not be done without the help of the Board. He stated one of the most important things to look at is the ever-shrinking amount of time that each deputy has available; they are asking for 16 MSTU deputies; he understands the cap-it issue; but they are at the point where services will go down even with eight additional deputies.

Chairman Carlson requested the Sheriff explain if there is a relationship between the calls increasing and the decrease in crime. Sheriff Williams stated there were 25 Highway Patrolmen in 1974, and today there is the same number; the deputies spend a tremendous amount of time at accident scenes rendering aid and waiting for Highway Patrolmen; and that time does not go down in the index of rape, robbery, homicide, or motor vehicle theft, but it is deputy time that is obligated. Chairman Carlson inquired if the percentage decrease is offset by some increase in traffic problems. Sheriff Williams stated there were 300,000 calls for service; deputies rolled on 170,000 of the calls; and time is time.

Commissioner Higgs stated what is hard to calculate is that while the percentage of crime have gone down, the volume and number of crimes has gone up, and the ability to provide the number of deputies needed has not gone up proportionately. Sheriff Williams stated they are the services that the community demands; and commented on calls that could be handled in another manner. He stated there has been a spike in bomb calls as well as domestic violence. Chairman Carlson inquired how the County compares to the municipalities in terms of number of officers per capita; with Sheriff Williams responding Melbourne is at 2.3 per 1,000 residents; the County is at 1.7; and the ration is 129 deputies for 200,000 residents. Sheriff Williams urged the Board to approve the domestic violence investigators. He stated there have been a tremendous number of signature bond warrants; efforts are being duplicated when an individual had to be arrested and then re-arrested twice for not showing up in court; over 4,000 people have been released on signature bonds since 1996; the total unsecured debt, if they failed to appear, would be over $22 million; and recommended some tightening by the judiciary. He stated the request for additional corrections officers has not been funded; but there are 1,200 people a day in the County jail; and forcing some bond things would drive up that number.

Chairman Carlson inquired how would that issue be addressed. Sheriff Williams responded it will have to be addressed with the judiciary as to whether or not they want to continue signature bonds or lenient conditions of release; and somehow it will be necessary to capture those who fail to appear. He requested the Board assist in urging the judiciary to take that action.

Commissioner Scarborough inquired if the computer problem has made it difficult to track signature bonds; with Sheriff Williams responding the Clerk would have to shut down and devote a month of research for the information the Sheriff's office needs for bonds; and he cannot ask the Clerk to do that. Sheriff Williams advised the Clerk has tried to meet his informational needs; but right now the whole criminal justice system from fines to appearance is untrackable. Commissioner Scarborough expressed concern about people being released who may harm the community, such as someone with a DUI, because the computer is not providing the information; and inquired if that is a tracking problem. Sheriff Williams advised they can track prior history of the individual; but generosity of release is creating a failure to appear problem, which makes the work of the Sheriff's office three ties as difficult. He stated arresting everyone who failed to appear would swell the jail population in the short term, but the message would be if you get a court appearance and post bond, you had better show up or you will be back in jail until your case is disposed of. Chairman Carlson suggested putting up tents. Sheriff Williams stated there are some fast track operations going on in Seminole County with the State Attorney and Public Defender, but are not as far along in Brevard County; and he has worked with Mr. Russo to do some cost savings with initial appearances through closed circuit television. He stated they are constantly retasking to save money.

Commissioner Higgs stated the Sheriff has requested four domestic violence deputies; and inquired if a lesser number would be useful or does it require the full number. Sheriff Williams
explained how they would be divided into the four precincts; stated no district is immune from the problem; and he needs four. Commissioner Higgs inquired if it has to be four, or would two be better than none; with Sheriff Williams responding two would be better than none, but it is a problem that must be faced. Sheriff Williams stated they are servicing the court system; he needs additional deputies because the State has given more judges; and he hears about Article V funding reversing resulting in the local governments picking up the tab for the State. Commissioner Higgs stated there is no one on the Board who would be unhappy with providing all the services to the people of the County; but if the State is cutting taxes, it eventually will have to be paid for somewhere; and as the County picks up services, it will have to find a way to do so. Sheriff Williams stated it is a pass-along; and if the raw materials cost a manufacturer more money, then the consumer pays in the end. Commissioner Higgs stated that is the difficulty in helping people understand the situation with federal, State, and local funding. Sheriff Williams stated he has captured the information on how much time is spent on each thing; it is possible to report on every call the deputies go on and the number of minutes spent on the call; and it is possible to tell over a year's time how many deputies are tied up each year with things like a cat in a tree.

Chairman Carlson inquired if there is a five-year plan that structures the 16 deputies over that time period; and inquired if it is possible to stretch things over time so it does not require such a huge amount all at once. Sheriff Williams stated the issue is best practices, which is what is needed to meet the needs; if 16 deputies are added to the road, it will be possible to deliver services at the same level as last year; but with anything less, services will be cut. He stated 16 deputies for the next five years will get the County, if the population increases as projected, to 1.91 deputies per 1,000 in the unincorporated area; and two is the ideal number, so it will be closer than the County has ever been. He noted that is 16 deputies a year for the next five years, not 16 spread over five years; and the issues do not change. Chairman Carlson inquired if the Sheriff will draw from the same plan; with Sheriff Williams responding the plan is the plan; and if 200,000 move out of the unincorporated area of the County, he will have the largest budget cut the Board has ever seen.

Commissioner Higgs stated it appears there will be a Countywide referendum in November, and the Board may want to present the voters with the option as a five-year plan. Commissioner Scarborough stated that is a good idea; and if the Board is going to pay $250,000 for the election, it might as well use it. Commissioner Colon stated it would have to be supported by the Commissioners and explained to the community, rather than leaving it to the Sheriff to justify it. Mr. Jenkins stated the five-year plan is more than just 16 deputies; with Sheriff Williams advising it encompasses all the issues.

PLANNING AND ZONING

Mr. Rogero stated for the Planning and Zoning office, the General Fund in the preliminary budget for next fiscal year represents a 6.34% decrease, primarily attributable to an increase in fees, which will allow the transfer to be cut by $93,000.

Chairman Carlson inquired can that be applied to the unfunded side; with Mr. Jenkins responding it is being used to get the 6% reduction in the General Fund transfer.

Commissioner Scarborough inquired if the fee increases are anticipated actions of the Board that have not taken place yet; with Mr. Jenkins responding affirmatively. Commissioner Scarborough commented on things being totally fee supported and taxpayers subsidizing the activities of businesses; and inquired if a complete analysis of fees is being done. Mr. Jenkins stated each County agency that charges fees has been challenged to look at minimal cost of living adjustments, and in some cases, it is more than cost of living. Commissioner Scarborough stated if a person is coming to the County for the purpose of a business operation, he or she should pay for that particular business activity; the question is whether the fee is paying for that function; and the County needs to be fair to the taxpayer so the taxpayer is not subsidizing somebody who should be paying for that service. Mr. Jenkins stated staff is balancing the issue of actual cost versus what is a realistic adjustment; and some of the permitting fees are going up 25%. Commissioner Scarborough stated it may be necessary to triple them. Mr. Jenkins stated staff is exercising some level of constraint based on prior planning; the Board can be provided with a more detailed analysis of cost versus actual revenues; and 100% reimbursement of the cost would be significant. Commissioner Scarborough stated a developer may have to pay several thousand dollars, but the development may be worth tens of millions, so it would be a very minute portion of the person's budget; and if the Board is raising taxes for the average taxpayer, it should also be making sure that it is not subsidizing those persons who should be paying as part of their business operation. Mr. Jenkins stated a 25% increase is proposed in Permitting and Enforcement; Natural Resources is increasing fees to fund a new position; and raising the fees by 10 to 25% is still not recovering the full cost. Commissioner Scarborough requested staff provide the full cost so the Board can make those calls. Chairman Carlson suggested comparative analysis with neighboring counties. Mr. Jenkins stated a lot of that information has already been acquired and it will be put together for the Board.

PROPERTY APPRAISER'S OFFICE

Mr. Whitten stated the Property Appraiser's General Fund transfer portion increased by 3.33%, largely attributable to funding salary increases, heath insurance increases, general liability, and property insurance increases. Mr. Jenkins noted the Property Appraiser had a significant number of unfunded requests totaling $784,000.

Commissioner Higgs inquired what kind of increase was represented by the Property Appraiser's original request; with Mr. Rogero advising he will add it up.

Mr. Jenkins noted the figures do not include the salary increases for next year; all of the budgets are going to go up by the amount of the salary increase next year; the salary dollars are always kept in a separate fund and transferred during the course of the year; so while the budget shows a 3.3% increase, it will actually be higher. Commissioner Scarborough requested a footnote be made; with Mr. Jenkins advising it would be for everyone; and he will break it out.

Commissioner Higgs stated when the Property Appraiser does valuations each year and sets the value on which the millage is applied, they go through the County regularly, but not annually; with Mr. Jenkins advising there is a schedule so that every so many years they cover the County. Commissioner Higgs stated if someone's property value increases 3% a year and the fourth year is when they are evaluated, they have actually had a 9% increase, but that cannot be fully applied based on State law. She inquired what percentage can be applied; with Mr. Jenkins responding 3%. Commissioner Higgs stated they are not calculating the 3%, so when they get to the year when they do the valuation, they are already behind and the full value of the property cannot be recaptured at the valuation point. Mr. Jenkins stated it is primarily a issue of resources and the number of people it takes to verify; and he would be more comfortable asking for that information. Commissioner Higgs stated that would be helpful because the impact of the Save Our Homes Amendment on the budgetary process is significant.

Commissioner Scarborough inquired what is the significance of the GIS request. He stated he hates to say he does not want to spend the $250,000 for things that can be helpful to the community. Mr. Jenkins stated GIS is the future, and the applications and uses are growing all the time; and outlined the things that are covered in the database. He stated it has become the framework of the Property Appraiser's system, so the information is critically important; and they continue to look at ways to enhance and expand its use.

Chairman Carlson inquired about the improved website; with Mr. Jenkins responding he would need to get an explanation from the Property Appraiser as to what the expansion is, but it is already possible to get information from the Property Appraisers home page. Commissioner Scarborough requested staff get some information on that; and stated the Board may not want to spend the full quarter million dollars, but it may wish to pick up a portion.

Mr. Whitten stated if the unfunded program changes are added back in, that would have represented a 15% increase over the current year's budget. Commissioner Scarborough stated that is substantially different; and requested similar figures be presented for all agencies including calculations for salaries.

PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE

Mr. Rogero stated the Public Defender's office General Fund transfer represents a 9.62% increase in the preliminary budget; the office is funded from Other Judicial Services Program, which originated partly with the General Fund transfer; and the $57,000 increase is attributable primarily to increased court costs including court reporting services and some physician fees, as well as the full-year impact for salary and health insurance increases.

Commissioner Higgs stated the Public Defender's unfunded programs are not very large; but the Property Appraiser's unfunded programs were large; and inquired if someone is present from the Property Appraiser's office to explain the impact of the unfunded requests. Mr. Jenkins noted they were not invited. Chairman Carlson suggested that information be brought back in a report. Commissioner Higgs noted the Clerk and the Sheriff were present; with Mr. Jenkins advising they came on their own. Chairman Carlson inquired if it is necessary to invite the constitutional officers.

Commissioner Scarborough stated in the past the Board has requested information from constitutional officers and they have been displeased with the request; and inquired if the Board is getting what it is asking for this year; with Mr. Rogero responding affirmatively.

PUBLIC SAFETY

Mr. Whitten stated the General Fund transfer portion for the Public Safety Department represents an increase of .94%, largely attributable to the built-in increases referenced earlier.

Chairman Carlson requested Mr. Parker comment on the year-round lifeguard coverage at $202,000 that is unfunded. Public Safety Director Jack Parker stated it is the result of the best practices exercise; the Board has greatly improved lifeguard services by expanding seasonal lifeguard coverage; but in order to have a best case scenario, they would like to have three year-round lifeguard towers for the citizens and tourists. He stated one tower is in operation at Jetty Park year-round, but the County does not operate that; and the request by staff is to consider upgrading the two seasonal towers to year-round towers, one at Lori Wilson Park and the other at Paradise Beach Park. Chairman Carlson inquired if those three areas are where more of the population goes, and is not Fifth Avenue in Indialantic one of them; with Mr. Parker responding that is a pretty populated area, but the two most populated areas are Paradise Beach and Lori Wilson Parks. Chairman Carlson inquired about the impact of not funding the request. Mr. Parker responded when he first got into Public Safety he thought there was not a lot of participation at the beaches in the wintertime; but staff convinced him to come down in the winter months; and he was amazed at how many people were in the water on the unguarded beaches. He stated a lot of the people are visitors who are not familiar with the beaches or the rip current situation; and that is why staff would like to see year-round coverage. Chairman Carlson inquired if the TDC has been approached for funding; with Mr. Parker responding that was done in the past and could be revisited, but the response several years ago was it would probably not be a suitable place to put money. Mr. Jenkins stated the beach money in the TDC is going for the beach renourishment project. Commissioner Higgs inquired if it would have to be beach money; with Mr. Jenkins responding there could be reallocated; but there is a formula that says "x" percentage goes to beach renourishment; and except for beach cleanup, all of the existing beach dollars are being set aside for renourishment. Commissioner Higgs inquired when the Board will see the TDC budget; with Mr. Jenkins responding at one of the other workshops. Mr. Parker stated currently there is one full-time lifeguard who is the lifeguard supervisor; and if this were to go through, it would add six additional lifeguards, who during seasonal coverage would become the officers and provide consistent supervision. Mr. Jenkins advised the budget also shows moving the Medical Examiner's office from Housing and Human Services to the Public Safety Department.

PUBLIC WORKS

Mr. Rogero stated the Public Works Department consists of Engineering Services, Facilities Construction, Facilities Management, and Traffic Engineering programs; the preliminary budget represents a 10.50% reduction in the General Fund transfer; but there are many significant unfunded program change requests.

Mr. Jenkins stated he is proposing to add an engineering position in Traffic Engineering; right now there is only one Traffic Engineer and it is necessary to have another; and he is proposing to take that from Gas Tax funds.

Facilities Management Director Hugh Muller stated he would like to address two areas; one is the energy savings feasibility study for $50,000; currently the County is spending approximately $360,000 a year on electrical energy at the jail; there are approximately 19 air conditioners on the roof cooling the air, but generating heat; on the first floor are boilers that use gas to generate heat to provide hot water for the showers and laundry; and suggested hiring an engineer to do a study on that. Mr. Jenkins noted the study would cost $50,000; and inquired about the capital cost. Mr. Muller responded the study may prove that the capital cost would pay for itself over six or seven years.

Commissioner Higgs inquired if there are vendors who would invest in an RFP asking for the full package, instead of the County funding it. Mr. Muller responded staff could explore that option; he is not sure there would be a vendor for this unique area where heat generated by air conditioning would be converted to heat usable for hot water. Chairman Carlson inquired if the study would look at all the government facilities such as the Government Center; with Commissioner Higgs noting there is no hot water demand at the Government Center. Mr. Muller noted of his $1.5 million, the jail accounts for one-third.

Motion by Commissioner Higgs, seconded by Commissioner Scarborough, to direct staff to solicit an RFP for vendors to convert heat from the air conditioning system at the jail to hot water.

Commissioner Scarborough stated if no one can be found, Mr. Muller can come back to the Board. He stated he likes to spend one-time costs that eliminate recurring costs. Chairman Carlson stated this is talking about a specific case; and inquired about alternatives for keeping the lights on at the Government Center and Judicial Center. Mr. Muller advised staff is looking into that; several years ago a proposal was brought forward for the Government Center to generate its own energy; now that energy costs are going up, they are dusting off those figures to see if it makes more sense to do something like that now; and they are constantly in an energy conservation mode. He stated they have been working with FP&L and gas suppliers to reduce costs; and they are pretty far along with that kind of thing. Mr. Jenkins stated recently there was a consultant to do what Commissioner Higgs was suggesting on the other project, to see if it is feasible to do additional energy conservation; and they concluded they did not have a lot of work to do based on what the County is already doing. Mr. Muller advised consultants came in who thought they could pay for themselves and save lots of money; but they did not consider the idea of tying the air conditioning heat into the heating of the hot water. Chairman Carlson requested staff to bring back summary information of what was found when research was done and recent information from to the Clean Cities people on opportunities for generating energy.

Mr. Jenkins stated retired Sheriff's Commander George Wilson is the one who suggested five or ten years ago that the County have its own power plant.

Chairman Carlson called for a vote on the motion. Motion carried and ordered unanimously.

Commissioner Scarborough stated if the figures have been done previously, it would just be a matter of dusting them off and getting a report to the Commission.

Mr. Muller stated the other item he would like to bring up is vehicle replacement; the vehicles are between ten and fifteen years old; and the desire is to replace four this year at $80,000, and have a nine-year replacement cycle to replace four vehicles a year. He expressed concern about the condition of the vehicles.

Public Works Finance Director Greg Pelham stated there were two other unfunded program changes; and one is $170,000 to convert the incandescent bulbs in traffic signals to LED lights. He stated currently the bulbs are being replaced every two years; the LED's have a guaranteed life of three years; and to replace all of the red lights in traffic signals would be $170,000, with an estimated resulting power savings of $71,000 a year. He stated the cost of replacement would be recouped in two and one-half years. He stated the other unfunded program is reevaluating the timing of the traffic signals; as the County continues to grow and capacity and volume on roads increase, some of the timing of traffic signals is not where it needs to be; the recommendation is on an every two-year basis to go out and reevaluate the timing of each traffic signal, especially the ones on interconnected systems; and the cost would be approximately $135,000 a year.

Commissioner Higgs inquired if that is gas tax eligible; with the County Manager responding affirmatively. Mr. Pelham clarified the replacement of the lights would be eligible for gas tax; but gas tax can only be used on traffic signals for installation and repair; and he will check to see if timing falls under that.

PURCHASING AND CONTRACTS ADMINISTRATION

Mr. Whitten stated the Purchasing and Contracts Administration budget reflects a 9.7% decrease largely attributable to FRS savings.

Chairman Carlson stated there is another SAP individual in this budget under unfunded; and inquired if that can be absorbed the same way it was in Parks and Recreation; with Mr. Jenkins advising that was part of the referendum for Parks and Recreation. Chairman Carlson stated she is interested in seeing how much efficiency is being gained from SAP if people are having to be hired to support it. Mr. Whitten advised it is not because SAP is inefficient, but to relieve the Property Control Director for other duties. Mr. Jenkins stated the SAP has allowed the Finance Department to downsize. Chairman Carlson stated she was confused that Finance was able to reduce but other departments were saying they needed to improve their efficiency by hiring somebody. Mr. Jenkins stated they chose the wrong way to describe it, and it is really a workload issue having nothing to do with SAP.

SPACE COAST GOVERNMENT TELEVISION

Mr. Rogero stated the General Fund transfer in the preliminary budget for next fiscal year for Space Coast Government Television represents a 2.71% increase due to the built-in expenses.

Commissioner Scarborough inquired about the unfunded coverage of workshops and meetings from the Florida Room. Mr. Jenkins stated that refers to putting permanent cameras in the Florida Room; and it will probably be paid for over a two-year period with commercial paper. Chairman Carlson inquired about current costs to have personnel on the cameras; with Mr. Whitten responding it is approximately $60,000 annually. Chairman Carlson inquired about the item to provide live broadcasts via fiber from the EOC to SCGTV; stated the Board has talked about ability to do its own programming and broadcasting; and inquired if there is a way to work with the School Board. Mr. Jenkins noted the School Board is talking about building a full-service studio. Chairman Carlson inquired if the County wanted to be able to broadcast live from the EOC in an emergency situation would it have to build a studio of some sort; with Mr. Jenkins responding no. Mr. Jenkins noted there is the ability to do live broadcasting from the County Commission Meeting Room; the item is specifically to have live remote coverage from the EOC instead of the Government Center; and the studio the School Board wants to build would have no bearing on it. Commissioner Higgs inquired if currently there is no ability to broadcast directly from the EOC in an emergency situation; with Mr. Jenkins responding there is radio but no live television coverage. Commissioner Higgs inquired if the request would allow the County to broadcast directly from the EOC in an emergency situation such as a hurricane; with Mr. Jenkins responding yes. Commissioner Higgs inquired if the County has tried to get grant funding for this; with Mr. Whitten responding he is not sure if a grant application has been made for this project, but will check on it.

STATE ATTORNEY

Mr. Rogero advised the State Attorney's General Fund transfer in the preliminary budget represents a 6.45% increase, the bulk of which is the built-in expenses and increase in the judicial services program costs.

Commissioner Higgs inquired if anyone is present from the State Attorney's office. No response was heard.

SUPERVISOR OF ELECTIONS

Mr. Whitten stated the Supervisor of Elections' budget reflects 3.33% increase due to the built-in expenses.

TAX COLLECTOR

Mr. Rogero stated the Tax Collector is not required to submit his budget until August 1; but the estimate of the Tax Collector's budget represents just under a 10% increase in the General Fund transfer, which is largely due to the built-in costs. He stated they have also programmed some funding for an anticipated upgrade of software in association with the Property Appraiser's office. Mr. Jenkins noted the Tax Collector typically turns back approximately $1.5 million.

Commissioner Scarborough stated he had conversations with Supervisor of Elections Fred Galey about the cost of running elections versus not having elections; there are certain things that must be operated; a special election costs $250,000; and inquired how that is reflected in the budget. He stated had it not been for the special thing happening in November, this would have been a lean budget for the Supervisor; and the State is paying for the Senate race election, and things can not be tacked onto that ballot. Mr. Jenkins stated timing was the real issue.

Discussion ensued on figuring out cost allocations, State paying for Senate race, cost of election, and difficulty in adding referendums to the Senate race.

Mr. Jenkins noted the Supervisor of Elections sent a memorandum indicating he was displeased with the proposed budget as he was underfunded. Commissioner Scarborough inquired how much did he want; with Mr. Jenkins responding the things that were not funded are additional pay increases above what the County is budgeting, new positions including an Elections GIS Computer Operator and a Voter and Student Civic Education Coordinator position, and a replacement van. Chairman Carlson inquired how much is the County getting for reimbursement for the election this year; with Mr. Jenkins advising that is being used to pay for debt service. Chairman Carlson stated it would be nice to give his employees an increase; with

Mr. Jenkins responding it is proposed they will get what the County is getting. Commissioner Scarborough stated if the Supervisor's employees are given an additional increase, it will lead to questions about why not give additional increases to others.

LIBRARY SERVICES

Mr. Whitten stated the Library District budget has increased by 3.37% largely attributable to health insurance increases, general liability and property insurance increases, commercial payment, and pay increases. He stated there are FRS savings; and included in that percentage increase are book purchases for the Melbourne Beach Library and the opening of that facility.

Mr. Jenkins stated one of the things that has been discussed with the Library Director is increasing delinquent book fines from ten cents to twenty cents; systemwide that would generate several hundred thousand dollars, as well as being a greater deterrent for people not returning books on time; and those funds go back to each individual library to spend on that library's needs. He noted there are a number of program changes that were requested but not funded; and the Board needs to be aware of them.

Mr. Jenkins inquired about the Merritt Island issue; with Library Director Cathy Schweinsberg responding it is funded over two years. Mr. Jenkins inquired about the increase in the library millage; with Mr. Rogero responding it was increased to .7204 mill.

Commissioner Higgs stated the cultural events program is not funded but has potential of being funded from Florida Endowment for the Humanities; the request is for $35,000; and inquired what is the program. Ms. Schweinsberg stated it came out of the best practices exercise and looking at systems across the country thought to be excellent; typically such systems have a program in place where people get grants from different cultural agencies to do programming across the County instead of doing it piecemeal whenever time can be found; and this would provide a position Countywide to make a cohesive effort at increasing programming for citizens. Commissioner Higgs stated the $35,000 invested might easily be matched with significant dollars; and inquired what happens if the County does not fund additional media; with Ms. Schweinsberg responding the libraries will not have the kinds of books available that citizens request. Ms. Schweinsberg stated a couple of years ago, the Board asked that staff look at increasing its position in the State in terms of books per capita; the request would allow them to do that; and without it, they will not be able to. Chairman Carlson inquired what is the figure for books per capita; with Ms. Schweinsberg responding 2.06 per capita. Chairman Carlson inquired what level do they wish to attain; with Ms. Schweinsberg responding 2.40 per capita by 2004. Chairman Carlson inquired if that is consistent with other communities similar to Brevard County; with Ms. Schweinsberg responding yes. Commissioner Higgs stated the County rates number one in facilities; and inquired how it ranks for books; with Ms. Schweinsberg responding sixth. Chairman Carlson inquired if there is coordination with the School Board as to its needs; with Ms. Schweinsberg responding affirmatively. Mr. Jenkins noted there is also access to the interlibrary system. Commissioner Colon inquired about computer and Internet training for library users; and stated there are computers in the libraries, and if the citizens are not able to use them, it is defeating the purpose. She stated it is frustrating for the librarians not being able to keep up; and it is important for the Board to look at that. Commissioner Higgs stated several of the requests are substantial and important; and she will continue to look to see if there is any way to do them. Ms. Schweinsberg stated the libraries have been significantly impacted by computers; they cannot do much training individually; and every time they offer a computer training course, there are waiting lists.

FIRE RESCUE

Mr. Rogero stated the Fire Rescue MSTU preliminary budget calculated a 6.17% increase in the millage above the rollback rate; however it is less than a 2% increase above the current millage rate for the MSTU. He stated the increases total over $3 million including approximately $1.2 million for health insurance increases, general liability and property increases, an indirect cost increase associated with administrative overhead for General Fund services, Workers Compensation reclassifications, an increase in payment for the Tax Collector and Property Appraiser necessitated by the increase in tax revenue, and an increase in debt service payment partially mitigated by some FRS savings at a little over $200,000. He stated the millage does fund a portion of the Fire Medic incentive increase program change. Mr. Jenkins stated Mr. Parker has briefed the Commissioners on the incentive.

Public Safety Director Jack Parker stated the biggest impact to this year's budget is to increase the fire/medic incentive by $3,011 a year for the fire fighter/paramedics; over the past 18 months there has been a much higher turnover rate because the classification fire/medic is becoming extremely competitive in surrounding agencies; and distributed a graph. He stated many agencies within the County and in surrounding counties are going to advanced life support fire engines; as a result fire/medics are becoming limited; and outlined salaries in the County and in various other municipalities and counties, ranging from the County's $30,509 to Orange County and Orlando at $37,000 and $39,000. He stated the proposal is to increase the fire/medic incentive by $3,011, which would bring the starting salary for that position to $33,509 and hopefully deter people from working for other counties. He stated this requires an EMS increase as many individuals are assigned to the ambulance service, and an MSTU increase for fire/medics who are assigned to the engines.

Discussion ensued on the graph.

Commissioner Higgs requested an explanation of the request on first responders and what will not occur unless there is a change. Mr. Parker responded the Municipal Fire Chiefs of Brevard County have asked for an increase to the first responder program; the original request was for a 10% increase across the board; these funds are provided from EMS funds that are paid through the EMS assessment; and a certain amount of the funds go to all the fire agencies, including the County, to offset expenses for provision of first responder services. He stated there has not been an increase in three years; the request was for 10%; and they would be amenable to that being done over a multiple year period instead of 10% upfront increase. He stated 3.5 CPI is reasonable; that results in the need to create $50,000 in additional revenue; and the Fire Chief's recommendation is to do something with the commercial rate to generate those funds. He stated to do a flat increase of the existing commercial rate for EMS would take it from $15 to $20.30, and that would bring in the $50,000 revenue; and approximately $25,000 would be divided between the municipal first responders and $25,000 would go into the County Fire Department.

Commissioner Higgs stated by changing the commercial EMS rate by $5.30 would allow provision of additional resources to the municipal fire fighters who are providing crucial first response; and the Board needs to consider that.

Commissioner Colon stated it is crucial to take care of that because it is frustrating for the municipalities to be the ones responding and just having someone pick up and take the patient to the hospital. She inquired if it is just because of pay that fire fighters are leaving, and how many people from Harbor City Volunteer Ambulance Squad were hired, and is it those people who left or employees who have been with the County a long time. Mr. Parker stated jobs were offered to everybody who met the requirements and even to some who did not meet the requirements; the only people who were not offered jobs were the few who had extensive DUI histories or criminal records; and although many took jobs elsewhere, the County hired approximately 60 personnel. He stated some who were not happy about the transition used the position as an interim place of employment and then sought other employment with other agencies; but that number is relatively low. Commissioner Colon inquired if the employees who left were ones who have been here a while or ones who have just been with the County for a couple of years. Mr. Parker advised Human Resources did a turnover study for the County; Public Safety is sitting at 17% turnover, which is not bad in light of the fire/medic situation; and when his staff crunched the numbers they found that 93% of the 17% turnover was in the fire/medic classification.

Commissioner Higgs inquired what is the difference between a fire/medic and a fire fighter/EMT. Mr. Parker stated to become a fire fighter/paramedic is an extreme commitment; and outlined the requirements including attending the fire academy and obtaining State certification. He stated all of the area agencies are competing for the few fire fighter/paramedics that happen to be here; during the exit interviews, 95 times out of 100 the response to why they are leaving is more money; and employees who have worked a year and a half with the County do not have an investment in the retirement system, and can go and work for another city or county for three to five thousand dollars more a year. He stated it is easy for fire fighter/paramedics to leave for those jobs because they only work one day on and two days off; it is not necessary for them to relocate their families to the new county; and a lot of fire fighter/paramedics are going to Indian River, Osceola, St. Lucie, and Orange Counties because they can commute every third day. Commissioner Colon noted with gas prices going up, she does not know how successful that will be once they do the math. She inquired about the price for ambulance services doubling when the County took over for Harbor City Volunteer Ambulance Squad. Mr. Parker advised Harbor City was at $17.92 and it went to $34.99. Commissioner Colon inquired how is the response now; with Mr. Parker responding very good, with response times decreasing greatly. Mr. Parker stated the Board put two additional ambulances in that area, so that helped bring the response times down; and Chief Farmer upgraded that level of service so there are two fire fighter/paramedics on all the rigs in lieu of one paramedic and one certified EMT. Mr. Jenkins stated in order for Harbor City to stay in existence it was going to have to raise its rates to $32 or $33; it could not financially stay in business at $17; and when the Board made its decision, it was not comparing the $17 rate to a $32 rate, but comparing what Harbor City was going to have to go to in order to stay solvent, which was considerably more than what it had been charging. Commissioner Colon inquired about tracking response time. Chief Bill Farmer responded they track response time through the computer dispatch center. Commissioner Colon stated she did not want to hear the average response time because actual response could be one minute or sixty minutes, if all she is hearing is the average; and she wants to be able to justify to the constituents that it was a better decision for HCVAS to have gone under the County. Chief Farmer stated he can send the Commissioners a comparison report that was done for six months over the initial transition comparing the rescue that was there in the Harbor City days to what is there now, and how those response times have gone down over a minute. Mr. Parker stated with two additional ambulances they were expecting a savings of 40 seconds; and they were impressed with the response times. Commissioner Colon stated she would expect a shorter response time with more manpower and ambulances. Mr. Parker stated there are other things involved; there is a lot of supervision and critiquing after the events; and there are a lot of reasons other than just the two additional ambulances that the response time has gone from 8 minutes to 6.4 minutes.

Chairman Carlson requested staff provide a status report on the response times and survivability. Chief Farmer stated there are two difficult issues; the first is patient confidentiality and how the patient did in the hospital; and it is difficult to get patient records to do the follow-through. He stated the second thing is that EMS sometimes reverses death, but more often it prevents death; when a person is doing poorly and is ready to terminate, they intervene and prevent that from happening; but it is very hard to say if they were not there that the person would have died. Chairman Carlson inquired if it could be given in terms of delivering "x" number of patients at the hospital alive; with Chief Farmer responding he would be happy to work on that study.

Commissioner Colon inquired about working closely with municipalities; and commented on the frustration of the municipalities in terms of ambulance service. Mr. Parker stated the relationships with the municipalities are exceptional; the municipal departments came to the County's aid in 1998 with the wildfires and proved their worth; and the County stepped up to the plate when the municipalities asked for support of the first responder program. He stated there is not a lot of redundancy in the system; in the unincorporated area Chief Farmer's fire engines will generally be first on the scene and County ambulances will respond to transport; in the cities the municipal engines will be first on the scene to stabilize the patient and County ambulances will transport; and it is nice to have these people working and interfacing together. He stated he is not saying that the municipalities would not like to also run an ambulance service; but Countywide ambulance reduces the redundancy and decreases the change of five or six different ambulance services getting into a turf situation. He stated if Palm Bay needs seven ambulances today because of three car accidents that happen at the same time, they will get that; and they will get what they need because the County makes the system work to accommodate whatever has to happen in the County.

Mr. Jenkins stated the first responders actually wear two hats; they are fire fighters who are available to put our fires, and when they are not putting out fires, they provide a fire response to the emergency medical response. He stated if any municipality were to get into the emergency medical transport business, it would have to double or triple its workforce in order to do both functions; and by the County providing a single-tier service, it avoids duplication of service and territorial boundaries, which saves the taxpayers a significant amount of money.

Mr. Jenkins stated the other thing staff has is a summary of revenue changes; the second page of the report lists user fees that are factored into the budget; and they are continuing to look at additional user fee increases in Animal Services and Surveying, as well as others. He stated staff will provide that report in more depth. He stated the next step is to provide a preliminary budget; and there will be two more workshops to discuss the budget in total. He stated at the next budget workshop they will talk from a more comprehensive approach of all the budgets and all the revenues; there are a number of funds which operate without General Fund dollars; and staff will be going through those and tying all those together in terms of General Fund budget.

Chairman Carlson inquired when is the last time staff looked throughout the agencies for consolidation of services, and has there been any consideration of consolidation of fleets or going into partnership with the Sheriff or Fire Rescue to potentially cut costs for fleet maintenance. Mr. Jenkins stated he does that perpetually to look for more cost effective ways of delivering services. He stated in specific reference to fleet, the emergency vehicles are unique; and the reason the Sheriff and Fire Rescue have their own fleet management is because of the necessity of treating those vehicles with very high priority. He stated they have received a side benefit by Fire Rescue having its own fleet services; in their spare time they are building brush trucks from surplus military vehicles; and the County is acquiring a $50,000 to $100,000 vehicle for a $10,000 to $15,000 investment, so there are benefits to the current arrangement. He stated fleet services was at a higher level of centralization previously, but there has been some breaking down of certain specialized functions, and it continues to work; they have looked at contracting out certain maintenance functions to the private sector as it may be more cost effective; and they are constantly looking at ways to do things more efficiently.

Commissioner Higgs stated in the Sheriff's budget a new CAD is being funded; and expressed concern about lack of consolidated dispatch for the Sheriff, Fire Rescue, and the municipal departments. She stated if people are fearful of the County operating the consolidated system, a separate board can be set up; and the 911 system would work more effectively if there was central dispatch. Mr. Jenkins stated there is a task force headed by Gino Butto looking at that issue; the first step is to look at consolidating parts of the Sheriff's and Fire Rescue's dispatch functions in the same building; and the one stumbling block is cost. He stated if the County is able to acquire the Health Department building, which is next to the EOC, it would be the perfect place to co-locate some dispatch functions as there are already major installations of antennas, towers, etc.; and there may be a window of opportunity to move the consolidation process along. Commissioner Higgs stated it needs to not only be between County agencies but also with the cities; and it would be advantageous to the citizens and their safety. Mr. Jenkins noted it will be a major capital installation initially.

Chairman Carlson stated the Clean City people are in the process of doing a survey of all the fleets in the County, and have identified 56 fleets that could use alternative fuels; they are trying to justify putting an alternative fuel station in. She stated alternative fuels would reduce the cost of fuel and produce cleaner fuel; and she is interested in seeing the results of the study. Mr. Jenkins stated the County could partner with that initiative. Chairman Carlson stated there is interest in seeing if there is co-location of fleets to justify the station; and the best place to start with alternative fuels is with fleets that governments use. Mr. Jenkins reiterated the County would be amenable to partnering in such a project; and it would be feasible to do that jointly with the cities.

Chairman Carlson requested Mr. Jenkins go over what it means to have a balanced budget in terms of the millage. Commissioner Higgs inquired what millage is required by the funded projects the Board saw today. Mr. Jenkins stated the preliminary budget is a balanced budget; it reflects a 2.99% increase above the current ad valorem millage rate as defined by the Truth in Millage legislation; and it is 7.21% over the rollback, which is what TRIM requires the Board to state. He explained if an individual's property stays the same and the millage stays the same, that person would not have a tax increase; if the property value stays the same and it goes to rollback, there would be a tax reduction; and if the property assessment goes up and the Board does anything other than rollback, there would be a tax increase. Chairman Carlson inquired what is the next step, and can staff provide the Commissioners with a list of all the items requested from the various departments. Mr. Jenkins stated staff will provide a summary of what was discussed today; it will go forward with the preliminary budget because it has to give the Board a document, and will be the same document unless there has been specific direction otherwise; and there are still several workshops until the end of July to set a tentative millage. Commissioner Higgs stated for a number of years there has been a millage decrease; and inquired what year the millage was the same as the one represented in the tentative budget. Mr. Jenkins stated that information will be provided at the next workshop.

Commissioner Colon inquired if pay raises are being included; with Mr. Jenkins responding that is all part of it.

Chairman Carlson stated it has the built-in expenses, which also includes some savings from FRS; and inquired if there is any other issue regarding the millage and is any other revenue foreseen. Mr. Jenkins responded no, what staff has outlined for the Board is what it expects although there could be some changes as the budget develops. Mr. Jenkins advised he does not expect any significant changes.

Commissioner Scarborough stated he would like information on the study by Mr. Abbate on attrition from various departments.

Chairman Carlson inquired when is the next meeting; with Mr. Jenkins responding next Thursday.

PUBLIC COMMENT, RE: BREVARD CULTURAL ARTS GRANTS

Kay Burk, represent Brevard Cultural Arts, distributed a copy of the FY 2000-2001 County Community Cultural Grants Guidelines; and stated she has questions that need to be answered in order to do the update for the 2001-2002 grant program. She stated it is a general revenue funded grant program for arts and cultural programs and arts and cultural organizations; other non-profit organizations are eligible to apply to the program as long as it is for an arts-related program; it was the intent in 1987, when the program was started, to do general program support funding as well as specific project funding; and with accountability standards increasing each year at the State and local level, it is more difficult to be sure that when general program support is projected to an organization that money is being applied responsibly. She stated it is easier to track specific project funding; and she needs guidance from the Board as to whether it wants to continue to provide general program support funding or to take it strictly to specific project funding for the coming year. She stated currently there is certification that is required to be signed by the board of directors, authorizing official, and chief fiscal officer about compliance and how the program is run; and she needs to know if the Board wants to add language for the president and treasurer to certify that all taxes, corporate filing fees, and charitable solicitation filing fees are being paid annually and if they are current. She noted that is not a requirement at this time, but she would recommend that it be added, if the Board finds it to be appropriate; and it would place the onus where it legally belongs with the board of directors of non-profit organizations.

Commissioner Scarborough stated the Board looks to BCA to do the investigations and take care of the grants; if organizations take advantage of the grants, it will reflect poorly on BCA; and he does not want the Board to get in a posture of telling BCA how to do its job.

Chairman Carlson inquired if BCA requires financial statements; with Ms. Burk responding the groups are required to provide the past completed fiscal year funding history, current fiscal year funding history, and proposed funding history. Ms. Burk stated three different organizations took issue with requiring that much accountability, and one organization director took issue with the language. She advised of the provision that organizations receiving funding support from other Brevard County government sources, with the exception of the community based organizations or the TDC Category E Grants Program, relinquish their County cultural grant funding; stated that is included in State guidelines; and it is to avoid organizations coming on their own before the Board of County Commissioners to access grants and applying to the grant program as well.

Commissioner Scarborough stated the Board is constantly thrown in the CBO/CDBG environment; both groups want to know what the other is giving; and the sharing of information allows wise decisions to be made. He stated Assistant County Manager Don Lusk may be able to share some of the scenarios about CBO and CDBG, the ability to have knowledge, and how it can be helpful in making wise decisions. He stated BCA has the right to know where funds are coming from and how they are being used to attract other funds; and if it does not have that information, it is not going to do its job as well.

Commissioner Higgs stated the provision discourages anyone from coming directly to the Board seeking funds; and that is meaningful because otherwise it would open it up and the Board would be looking at 50 different program, which would not be productive.

Chairman Carlson stated the BCA is tasked with looking at all the organizations and making them stay accountable, just as BCA is accountable for what it is doing on an operations basis; the Board does not want the train of people coming before it to ask for money when they could have gone through the process; but if an institution came forward needing help with capital, the Board could put it on referendum or something. She stated so far BCA has done a great job; and hopefully it will have a strategy on how to apply the cultural plan that is in place.

Upon motion and vote the meeting adjourned at 1:00 p.m.

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SUSAN CARLSON, CHAIRMAN
ATTEST: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA

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SCOTT ELLIS, CLERK

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