OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Finance Committee Budget Hearing #3 - August 20, 2026

City Council — Thursday, August 20, 2026
BodyJacksonville, Florida
SessionCity Council
DateThursday, August 20, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 3:06:30
Transcript — Verbatim
0:01

Meeting three to review the fiscal year 2627 proposed budget by the finance committee.

0:07

We'll start off with introductions starting with my left.

0:11

Angela Moyer, budget officer.

0:13

Mike Weinstein, Mayor's Office.

0:15

Philip Peterson, Council Auditor.

0:17

Brian Parks, Council Auditor's Office.

0:19

Mary Stefopoulis, Office of General Counsel.

0:21

Good morning, Chris Miller, at large group five.

0:23

Will Lane in District Three.

0:26

Good morning, Terrence Freeman at large group one.

0:30

Mike Gay, District Two.

0:31

Randy White, District 12.

0:33

Ron Salem, group two at large.

0:36

Matt Carlucci at large group four.

0:38

Countemor, City Council District 1.

0:41

All right, good morning, everyone.

0:42

Good morning to all of our guests we have here this morning with us.

0:45

A couple of administrative things for the committee members.

0:47

So we do have a few excused uh absences for different parts of the day, so we will have to make sure we are keeping quorum.

0:54

Uh councilmember Diamond has an excused absence until mid morning.

0:58

Uh councilmember Johnson uh is uh he'll be here with us shortly, hopefully, but then he will be out for about an hour around lunchtime.

1:05

And then council member Freeman, I believe you are leaving around three o'clock, is my understanding.

1:10

330, gotcha.

1:12

Okay.

1:12

So those are the only uh absences I have here.

1:16

Uh also want to do a summary like I did at meeting number two, just to show where we are in the budget process.

1:22

Uh so far of the proposed budget of 2.026 billion.

1:27

We've already reviewed 1.67 billion of that.

1:31

So we've reviewed 82 percent of our general fund budget.

1:34

Uh we'll have the uh independent authorities, uh, most of them will be here tomorrow, and then JA will be next week, but within our own general fund budget, we've already done a review of 82 percent of that total dollar amount.

1:45

Of that combined, we have amended about one percent of that, uh, but some of that is just in a special council contingency right now of 2.5 million.

1:53

Uh we've sent 12.7 million to the reserves, and we have 7.6 million in what we're calling the amendment three referendum uh contingency account.

2:03

So the total combined so far of the two billion dollar submitted budget, we have amended about 23 million dollars of that or just over one percent.

2:12

So that is where we are at now.

2:14

I see no committee members in the queue.

2:16

So with that, I will turn it over to Mr.

2:18

Peterson to talk about courts.

2:24

Mr.

2:24

Parks, I mean, all right.

2:27

Through the chair.

2:28

Uh so in in your budget book on page 381 is the general fund courts.

2:32

Um we are going to go through the courts, the state attorney, the public defender, and the clerk of courts today.

2:36

And before we kind of get in that, I just want to mention that we are required as a county to fund the facility costs, construction, maintenance, utilities, security, telephone and computer networks, and systems for all of these areas.

2:47

Um, some of these do have different funding sources, but I do want to just kind of get that out of the way to start with.

2:52

So with the courts general fund, the budget includes the CERC and county courts' expenses as well as the Guardian Ad Lightum.

2:59

Salaries are going from 682,000 up to 691,000 for the standard 3% increase.

3:04

Employer provided benefits are going from $85,605 up to $121,915 for the group health increase we discussed last week.

3:13

Internal service charges are going from $4,571 up to $5,5314.

3:19

This is primarily primarily due to an increase uh related to an all-year's adjustment from in the prior year that reduced this cost.

3:26

Um so it's going up by $1.25 for building cost.

3:30

And then the there's an increase of $371,000 for computer systems maintenance and security due to the change in allocation methodology.

3:38

Professional contractual services are going from $610 up to 18,585 due to water water delivery service being moved into this line item.

3:46

Other operating expenses are going from 173,791 up to 442,473.

3:52

Uh the net increase is mainly due to an increase of 198,000 for the annual lease of new security scanning devices.

3:59

Um there was also an increase of 50 59,399 for furniture and repair equipments that is now being covered with in the FY2526 with a carry forward based on the recommendation below.

4:10

The debt management fund repayments are going from 93,250 down to zero due to the audio visual equipment replacement project being repaid on page four of our handout.

4:19

You'll see the food and beverage of $1,500 for conferences and meetings hosted by the Chief Judge.

4:24

Um next, you'll see the B1A grants, which are the scheduled continuation grants that have no city match.

4:29

There's three grants listed there for a total of 606,953.

4:33

There are no employees or part-time hours associated with those.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Budget█████████████████████████████████████37%
Parks and Recreation███████████████████19%
Public Works████████████12%
Waste Management███████7%
Public Safety██████6%
Procedural████4%
Public Transportation███3%
Public Engagement███3%
Animal Welfare███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Finance Committee Budget Hearing #3 - August 20, 2026

The Finance Committee convened at 9:00 AM and adjourned at 12:38 PM. Chair Will Lahnen presided. The committee reviewed the proposed FY2026-27 budget, having already reviewed 82% ($1.67 billion) of the $2.026 billion general fund. To date, approximately $23 million (1%) of the submitted budget has been amended, with $2.5 million placed in special council contingency, $12.7 million in reserves, and $7.6 million in an Amendment 3 referendum contingency.

Discussion Items

Courts (General Fund, Court System Technology, Teen Court, $65 Fee, Technology Subfund, Public Defender, State Attorney, Clerk of Courts)

  • The committee approved recommendations for the courts general fund, including adjustments to capital outlay carryforwards. No changes to service levels or employee caps.
  • Chief Judge Day reported progress on courthouse security upgrades (Zonar system) and deferred the planned outdoor artwork pending security improvements. He emphasized maintenance needs (pressure washing) and security bollard projects, with a $1 million capital project expected for CIP day.
  • The Public Defender and State Attorney budgets were presented with no recommendations; both offices expressed gratitude for collaboration.
  • The Clerk of Courts budget showed increased revenues from recording fees and passport applications; no recommendations were made.

Tax Collector

  • The committee adopted two recommendations: (1) reduce interest income by $100,904 for double budgeting, offset by fund balance transfer, and (2) add $327,861 to capital outlay carryforward for office equipment. No impact on special council contingency.
  • Discussion included the new St. Johns Square office opening and the use of tag kiosks at grocery stores.

Supervisor of Elections

  • The budget increased from $14.7 million (up $5.3 million) due to three countywide elections in FY2026-27. No recommendations were made.
  • Councilmembers praised Supervisor Jerry Holland for the swift and efficient primary election results (all precincts reported within an hour of polls closing).

Administrative Services (Including Animal Care, Procurement, Ombudsman)

  • The department’s budget increased $2.2 million year over year. No recommendations were made.
  • Discussion focused on the third-party animal licensing program, which has a net negative impact of approximately $230,000 but is expected to improve service delivery over time.
  • Employee cap decreased by two positions (one in procurement, one in animal care) due to vacancy eliminations and targeted pay raises.

Solid Waste

  • The committee approved a recommendation to eliminate $100,000 in private contributions (from haulers), offset by an increased general fund loan, with a negative impact on special council contingency.
  • The main solid waste fund budget is $187.4 million, down $8 million, with a $36.1 million cumulative loan from the general fund. The residential fee increases from $27 to $29.50 on January 1, 2026.
  • Discussion addressed the decline in recyclables revenue due to commodity prices, the landfill closure fund, and the lower construction and demolition tipping fee compared to neighboring counties.

Fleet Management (Including Vehicle Replacement)

  • Approved a recommendation to update a note on Schedule B4C. The vehicle replacement fund budget is $43.2 million, up $9.4 million, with $32.5 million for vehicle replacements.
  • Discussion included fuel upcharges (still below retail), fleet electrification progress (18 electric vehicles), and the elimination of one vacant position.

Parks, Recreation and Community Services

  • The committee adopted two recommendations: (1) move $600,000 for James Well and Johnson Park from contingency to a contractual services account, and (2) attach the Jacksonville Riverfront Alliance (JRA) annual budget to the budget ordinance.
  • An amendment by Councilmember Diamond to move $1,029,841 from special council contingency to a new contingency (subject to future use) passed 7-1 (Councilmember Johnson opposed).
  • Parks budget includes $1.2 million additional for riverfront park maintenance, $264,400 for part-time hours, and $1.257 million for JRA programming. No pool closures are expected.
  • Discussion covered the division of maintenance and programming responsibilities, with Councilmember Salem urging that maintenance remain with the Parks Department.
  • The Huguenot Park trust fund requires a $479,780 general fund subsidy; Hanna Park is self-sustaining. Cecil Field Commerce Center receives a $1.8 million subsidy.

Other Items (Copy Center, Planning and Development)

  • Copy Center: No recommendations; budget is $2.8 million.
  • Planning and Development: No recommendations; a recommendation to move revenues between cost centers was approved. The department budget is $4.9 million.

Key Outcomes

  • Courts recommendations: Approved unanimously.
  • Tax Collector recommendations: Approved unanimously.
  • Solid Waste recommendation: Approved unanimously.
  • Fleet Management recommendation: Approved unanimously.
  • Parks recommendations: Approved unanimously.
  • Planning and Development recommendation: Approved unanimously.
  • Amendment to move $1,029,841 contingency: Passed 7-1 (Johnson nay).
  • All other items received no recommendations and were noted without formal vote.

The meeting adjourned at 12:38 PM, approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes ahead of schedule.

Meeting Transcript

Meeting three to review the fiscal year 2627 proposed budget by the finance committee. We'll start off with introductions starting with my left. Angela Moyer, budget officer. Mike Weinstein, Mayor's Office. Philip Peterson, Council Auditor. Brian Parks, Council Auditor's Office. Mary Stefopoulis, Office of General Counsel. Good morning, Chris Miller, at large group five. Will Lane in District Three. Good morning, Terrence Freeman at large group one. Mike Gay, District Two. Randy White, District 12. Ron Salem, group two at large. Matt Carlucci at large group four. Countemor, City Council District 1. All right, good morning, everyone. Good morning to all of our guests we have here this morning with us. A couple of administrative things for the committee members. So we do have a few excused uh absences for different parts of the day, so we will have to make sure we are keeping quorum. Uh councilmember Diamond has an excused absence until mid morning. Uh councilmember Johnson uh is uh he'll be here with us shortly, hopefully, but then he will be out for about an hour around lunchtime. And then council member Freeman, I believe you are leaving around three o'clock, is my understanding. 330, gotcha. Okay. So those are the only uh absences I have here. Uh also want to do a summary like I did at meeting number two, just to show where we are in the budget process. Uh so far of the proposed budget of 2.026 billion. We've already reviewed 1.67 billion of that. So we've reviewed 82 percent of our general fund budget. Uh we'll have the uh independent authorities, uh, most of them will be here tomorrow, and then JA will be next week, but within our own general fund budget, we've already done a review of 82 percent of that total dollar amount. Of that combined, we have amended about one percent of that, uh, but some of that is just in a special council contingency right now of 2.5 million. Uh we've sent 12.7 million to the reserves, and we have 7.6 million in what we're calling the amendment three referendum uh contingency account. So the total combined so far of the two billion dollar submitted budget, we have amended about 23 million dollars of that or just over one percent. So that is where we are at now. I see no committee members in the queue. So with that, I will turn it over to Mr. Peterson to talk about courts. Mr. Parks, I mean, all right. Through the chair. Uh so in in your budget book on page 381 is the general fund courts. Um we are going to go through the courts, the state attorney, the public defender, and the clerk of courts today. And before we kind of get in that, I just want to mention that we are required as a county to fund the facility costs, construction, maintenance, utilities, security, telephone and computer networks, and systems for all of these areas. Um, some of these do have different funding sources, but I do want to just kind of get that out of the way to start with. So with the courts general fund, the budget includes the CERC and county courts' expenses as well as the Guardian Ad Lightum. Salaries are going from 682,000 up to 691,000 for the standard 3% increase. Employer provided benefits are going from $85,605 up to $121,915 for the group health increase we discussed last week. Internal service charges are going from $4,571 up to $5,5314. This is primarily primarily due to an increase uh related to an all-year's adjustment from in the prior year that reduced this cost. Um so it's going up by $1.25 for building cost.

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