The Board of County Commissioners of Brevard County, Florida, met in special session on August 31, 1999, at 11:07 a.m. in the Space Coast Room, Building C, 2725 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Viera, Florida. Present were: Chairman Truman Scarborough, Commissioners Randy O'Brien, Nancy Higgs, Sue Carlson, and Helen Voltz, County Manager Tom Jenkins, and County Attorney Scott Knox.

ANNOUNCEMENT, RE: WEKIVA RIVER

Congressman Bill Mccollum advised of a trip to Wekiva Springs to announce a new bill that will make the Wekiva River the second wild and scenic river in the State.

DISCUSSION, RE: BREVARD COUNTY ISSUES

Each Commissioner introduced him or herself, and advised of the area encompassed by their District. Chairman Scarborough stated also present is Ed O'Connor, Executive Director of Spaceport Florida Authority; and requested Mr. O'Connor advise of the function of Spaceport Florida Authority. Mr. O'Connor stated Spaceport Florida Authority is a political subdivision of the State which was created in 1989 by the Legislature; and advised of its activities and scope. County Manager Tom Jenkins, County Attorney Scott Knox, and EDC Executive Director Lynda Weatherman introduced themselves.

Congressman McCollum thanked the Board for putting together this meeting; and stated it is a big help to get a good briefing.

Ms. Weatherman advised although the County was once the premier rocket launch site, it has lost much of the market share for launching; and advised of the desire to retain and expand the launch capability. She advised the space industry is not a parochial issue; and advised of its impact to other areas of Florida as well as Brevard County. She advised of changes to the space industry, and the need for concentration on the national space policy and understanding by all Congressional Districts. Congressman McCollum stated he does not think there is that understanding. Ms. Weatherman advised of the need to go out and tell the story, explaining where the dollars are going, and advising of the economic potential tied to the industry.

Mr. O'Connor advised of two new launch systems being constructed at the Cape at a cost of $600 million; and stated the industry is getting into position to be more competitive. He advised of opportunities for improvement in the range system and Air Force support, studies being done, creation of the Volpe Center for further exploitation of space activities, increased focus on space, findings of the Cox Committee, and competition with other countries. He stated inability to launch satellites results in loss of business and loss of technology; and that is dangerous to the technology base of the country. He advised of opportunities coming with the next generation of launch vehicles; stated they may be ready in 2008 or 2009; and outlined the cost savings to launch. He stated the country has put over $20 million into designing and deploying the space station; its forecasted revenue for the first ten to twelve years is another $20 million; that will be foreign money and U.S. taxpayer dollars; and Florida will have an opportunity to get in the front door of a major research opportunity. He advised of plans for the Florida Space Research Institute and ability to put together a financing corporation for space programs. He stated he is trying to outline a picture of a dynamic framework; the space station is going through a fundamental restructuring; and as that occurs there will be opportunities to move to a fully integrated aerospace community.

Congressman McCollum inquired how does everything work together as a coordinated group; with Mr. O'Connor responding under the Bush administration there was the National Space Council; but under the Clinton administration, that was not carried forward. Mr. O'Connor stated the Space Council has disbanded. Congressman McCollum inquired how that happened; with Mr. O'Connor responding it is still a congressionally authorized activity; and explained how it was ended during the Clinton reduction of the size of the White House staff.

Chairman Scarborough stated the Board has worked toward trying to get some of the research activities to the Space Center; and advised of turf problems. Mr. O'Connor stated a $20 billion research budget comes with the space station; and advised of need to develop opportunities. He advised of donation of property for the space station research park facility and request to the State for funding. Chairman Scarborough inquired which Senate committee oversees space; with Congressman McCollum responding he does not know. Chairman Scarborough inquired if Congressman McCollum would be able to get in a position that oversees space, if elected; with Congressman McCollum responding he would love to be there. Congressman McCollum stated a Senator gets to serve on a number of committees, and gets to pick which ones he serves on, except for the two biggest ones; and as a freshman Senator he would not be able to be on the taxing or appropriations committees, so he would like to serve on the committees that are on the cutting edge of technology for Florida. Chairman Scarborough stated the Senators, both Democrat and Republican have failed to recognize the significance of the space program to the State; and there needs to be a focus on the great opportunities. Congressman McCollum advised his service in the Intelligence Committee in the House of Representatives has given him insight into the satellite business; and he knows a little more about this than the average Congressman from a technical standpoint. He stated the launches are extremely important; the next century will be dependent on having satellites commercially available for everyone; and it is not only good for Florida, but also critical for the nation. Mr. O'Connor commented on space lift requirements. Congressman McCollum stated the technology edge has to stay with the United States for national security purposes regardless of the commercial industry, but the commercial comes hand-in-hand with that; and advised of his ability to bring things up in Committee.

Commissioner O'Brien submitted written information; stated the documents point out the financial impact of Kennedy Space Center and NASA on the State and the educational system; and advised of contracts between the University of Florida and NASA. He stated the Florida Space Congress Partnership Status Report for 1999 points out those corporations with shared contracts with NASA; and noted the amount of money being put into other counties in the State. He stated there is a list of universities outside of Florida that also receive millions of dollars from NASA. Congressman McCollum stated first it is necessary to get everyone in Florida aware of this and thinking about it. Commissioner O'Brien advised of Brevard County's attempts to restore the beaches; and stated the County's position is that because of the Canaveral cut by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the beaches south of that point have eroded. Congressman McCollum stated he agrees; he remembers Stumpy Harris showing him this a couple of years ago; and inquired what is the status of the lawsuit; with Commissioner O'Brien advising of the status. Congressman McCollum inquired if this is more than a matter of money, and does it involve continued resistance by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Commissioner O'Brien stated the President has said that beach renourishment is not on his menu; but when the President said that, he forgot that dikes are built along the Mississippi River to stop flooding, and restoration of beach is also building a dike to prevent flooding; and there is equality between the two. Congressman McCollum advised of his defense against people who want to take away flood insurance; and stated there is a group in Washington, D.C. that does not understand there is a large community with a vital interest in keeping the beaches going. He noted beach erosion is not only a Brevard County issue; it applies to everything south of Brevard County; and there are a number of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects that have affected it.

Discussion ensued on cost of repairs, loss of tourism, and Brevard beaches serving all of Central Florida.

Commissioner O'Brien requested help to devise a plan for neighborhood redevelopment; and explained the problems with neighborhoods. He advised of the need for federal assistance to purchase two or three blocks of homes, knock them down, and put up affordable housing. Congressman McCollum inquired if it is not rehab, but putting up new houses; with Commissioner O'Brien responding it would be new affordable housing. Congressman McCollum stated Commissioner O'Brien has his attention.

Commissioner O'Brien stated in order to clean up the Indian River, it is necessary to go beyond the County boundaries; and some federal leadership is needed. He stated the Florida Heritage River system is one thing, but he is looking at a different picture; and it may be necessary to federally fund removal of some septic tanks and purchase of property for water runoff in certain neighborhoods where the residents cannot afford to make improvements. Congressman McCollum stated that is an environmental concern.

Commissioner Higgs applauded Congressman McCollum on his efforts on behalf of the Wekiva River; and stated there are a lot of special places in Florida, including the Indian River and Brevard beaches. She stated there has been a lot of talk about high tech and the space program; Brevard County is special in Florida, but has not done a good job of selling that to everyone; and advised of the County's recognition in a recent study on high-tech features. She stated there is high-tech industry in the County as well as the space program.

Commissioner Higgs stated as the federal and State governments have cut back, they have pushed things down to local government; and requested the federal government help people understand that the federal government downsized and reduced taxes, but the responsibility for delivering services comes to local government. She stated people want better schools, roads, etc., and somebody has to pay for those; and local government can be more efficient, but there has to be a realization that the cost is going to land on the backs of the local citizens. Congressman McCollum stated hopefully there will be a tax reduction in Washington, D.C. and the local governments will do a more efficient job with local taxes. Commissioner Higgs stated local government is being more efficient. Congressman McCollum stated just having money not going to Washington, D.C. and coming back should result in savings. Commissioner Higgs stated people want better schools, cleaner air, etc.; and there should be an appreciation by the federal government that people expect the services from local government. She requested federal government help people understand the switching of the paradigm. Commissioner Higgs stated one of the things the Board dealt with recently was the Oleander Power plant and the concerns of the citizens about clean air; and that is not in the County's control, but goes back to the Clean Air Act and the ability of older power plants to buy and sell credits. She advised of the concerns of the citizens; and requested Congressman McCollum remember them when considering the Clean Air Act. She stated the older power plants need to be brought into the clean-up business; and that is under federal control. Congressman McCollum stated there is a lot of truth to that. Chairman Scarborough stated the County is preempted at a lot of levels. Commissioner Higgs stated the County would be happy to do it if the preemptions were removed and the County had the tools.

Commissioner Carlson inquired in terms of air quality, does Congressman McCollum support the bills in the Senate and House right now that would require the "dirty dozen" to clean up their acts. Congressman McCollum stated he is supportive of enhancing the Clean Air Act as well as the Clean Water Act; the issue on clean air has been more about automotive pollutants than utilities; and commented on power plants having ability to get out of old investments. He stated the power plants bring less efficient units online when there is heavy usage; and those are the ones that pollute. He advised of the need to work with the power plants so there is more of an exchange of electrical power and sale among the utilities, rather than running the dirtier units. He stated the effort at deregulation of the electrical industry is getting to the forefront of debate.

Commissioner Carlson stated the National Association of Counties is starting a committee on the impact of septic tanks on various water areas; and the County is concerned about the Indian River Lagoon. She commented on the issue of beaches, water quality, and monitoring of beaches and lakes. Congressman McCollum inquired who monitors lakes; with Commissioner Carlson responding the County. Commissioner O'Brien advised most of the tar on the beach is natural. Commissioner Carlson stated there are occasional oil spills, but she does not know how that gets to the beaches. Congressman McCollum stated this issue came up in New Jersey a few years ago because of needles, etc. washing up; but he has not heard any discussions relevant to Florida beaches because Florida has not had a crisis.

Commissioner Voltz stated local governments have limited resources; it may be losing millions of dollars because of lack of Internet tax; and inquired what is Washington, D.C. doing about it. She stated she understands there is a bill in the process now. Congressman McCollum stated a moratorium was placed on the Internet taxation issue a couple of years ago, which still has a couple more years to run; and the issue is whether to remove the moratorium sooner or to not tax. He stated Florida is a sales tax state; if sales tax is going to survive as the principal source of revenue, it will be necessary to find a way to tax goods that are sold; and part of this gets into how the tax is collected and who pays it. He explained the complications of collecting Internet sales tax; and stated it will be necessary to solve that, and he is in favor of finding a way to do that. Commissioner Voltz stated it affects local businesses as well as local governments. Congressman McCollum stated there could be some kind of flag built into the system to monitor the sales from Florida. Commissioner Voltz stated the technology is such that there is no reason that could not happen. Congressman McCollum advised of the argument about Internet gambling; and stated there are a number of issues. Commissioner Voltz stated the other issue she works on is juvenile crime; even though crime is going down, juvenile violent crime is going up; and prevention is the key. She advised of the activities related to juvenile justice; and inquired about Congressman McCollum's position on prevention and drug programs. She noted there is not one bed in the County for a juvenile who is on drugs. Congressman McCollum stated the diversion programs in Florida are short; and nationally the juvenile justice systems are not working. He stated the amount of resources the states, including Florida, are devoting to juvenile justice are inadequate; and advised of the need to stimulate the State to do more than it is doing today. He advised of a grant program that is coming through this year; stated there is a juvenile justice portion; and explained the restrictions.

He stated the other prong is the grant program which comes under the Office of Juvenile Justice; it has been reconfigured to make it less complicated; and those two pieces are caught up in the gun debate. He stated his version of the legislation was totally bipartisan; he and Senator Leahy were in agreement, then Columbine occurred; and everything since then has been about guns. He stated he is fearful that the problems will cause them to not get legislation to the President's desk that he will sign.

Commissioner Voltz commented on one voice in Washington, D.C. concerning space; and recommended the Commissioners establish a united front to show how important space is. Congressman McCollum stated many small spin-off businesses exist because of the technology of the space program; and commented on the Simulation Center in Orlando. He stated over the last five years, over 150 businesses have come to Central Florida as a result of the Simulation Center; the space program would be a selling point; and translating the dollars into number of actual businesses and jobs would help market the idea with the other Congressmen.

Chairman Scarborough stated it is a dynamic analysis; if a Harris employee goes to his boss with an idea, and the boss does not have time to listen, that person may start a business; and while historically people have looked at land and machinery, today the world is ideas. He stated the County needs to create a community to bring in idea people; and stated as far as Internet sales, someone can sell from Central Florida as well as anywhere else because their shipment would come from some other place.

Ms. Weatherman stated what is changing is the availability of venture capital; the conventional banking system has looked at physical structures; and explained the nature of entrepreneur banking in Texas.

Congressman McCollum inquired if the intangible tax ends this year or next year; and stated the intangible tax has been blamed by the venture capitalists as the reason they are not in Florida. County Manager Tom Jenkins advised the Legislature voted this year to reduce it. Congressman McCollum stated the State should get rid of that tax; the venture capitalists claim they would love to come to Florida, but they get taxed twice if they come here; and eliminating the tax would help a lot.

Chairman Scarborough stated Mr. Jenkins had some thoughts from staff; there are seven bulleted items on the paperwork provided; and that can be supplemented with, for instance, the financial assistance for Y2000 compliance expenses. He stated Commissioner Voltz had a constituent who wished to come and ask questions, but as that was inappropriate, he submitted his questions to Commissioner Voltz' office. Chairman Scarborough inquired if Congressman McCollum is elected, will he come back to visit the Board annually; with Congressman McCollum responding affirmatively.

Commissioner O'Brien stated there is a problem nationwide with federal funding of State highways; Florida Department of Transportation has a rule that says the County cannot ask or by local rule take down billboards because federal money helped the State money build the State road; and outlined the problems with billboards in Merritt Island. Congressman McCollum stated that is the type of thing they should be able to figure out; and he will talk with Congressman Dave Weldon about it. Upon motion and vote, the meeting was adjourned at 12:07 p.m.

ATTEST:

TRUMAN SCARBOROUGH, CHAIRMAN
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA

SANDY CRAWFORD, CLERK
( S E A L )