June 9, 2026 - Budget Work Session — Transcript

Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Tuesday June 9th, 2026. Part two or the second work session meeting on our budget. Today we'll be discussing constitutional officers budgets, but first we'll go ahead and begin with an invocation from Pastor Brock Patterson followed by a pledge of allegiance from Commissioner led by Commissioner Mike Brown. >> Let us pray. Gracious God, we thank you again for bringing us here together, Lord, for all of the things that you have done this morning in each of our lives to make our presence possible. We thank you for watching over us. And Lord, I thank you for all of the commissioners gathered here and ask that you watch over them. And Lord, over all the staff who work so diligently to make to make this stuff happen and to and to make this week productive. I thank you for them and ask your blessings upon them. And of all of us, Lord, who support these folks who serve our community so diligently, Lord, we just offer our very best and our very most blessings to them. So, watch over them, Lord. Give them a great week. Strengthen and encourage them. We pray this in your holy name. Amen. All right. Thank you all very much. I'll turn it over to Ms. Campos. >> Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us on day two of our recommended budget presentation. To review the constitutional officers and judicial programs. So, constitutional officers are made up of clerk of the circuit court, property appraiser, supervisor of elections, tax collector, and judicial programs, court administration, guardian ad litem, public defender, state attorney. Which are all funded by the general fund as well as a judicial programs. They have court technology fees and those are a separate fund. The combined combined constitutional officers and judicial programs budget for FY recommended 27 is 49.8 million. Combined support cost is 1.2 million. And let's start with the judicial programs. Yesterday, I briefly touched upon the sheriff's recommended requested budget of 287.1. However, the Sheriff's budget will be presented with all corresponding adjustments at the July 30th work session. Let's move right into the Clerk of Court recommended budget. The total recommended budget for FY27 is 11.6 million, out of which they are requesting three new positions totaling 244,000. Um salaries uh compensation around 288,000, health insurance at around 103 104,000. The only other adjustment that we'll be doing at uh reconciliation for them will be FRS. They like to wait until the official FRS numbers from the state um are published around the end of June, and we'll be bringing that forward towards reconciliation. The Supervisor of Elections budget came in at 3.7 million, and it is roughly a little bit under $200,000 less than last year. Thank you. The Tax Collector's budget came in at 2 21.3 million, roughly 4% increase of 735. Um as per Florida Statutes 128, the Tax Collector follows the calculation based on assessment values, and that is calculated at every single fund that houses ad valorem taxes and up 2%. The Property Appraiser's budget is um we kept it flat. Um at recommended, the budget is flat until their budget is relieved after the July 1st um certific uh estimate, which they already have uh sent it to us. It came in at about $300,000 more. So, the increase will be uh shown at reconciliation. And now, we can move on to judicial programs. Court administration's recommended budget is $2 million a decrease of overall 68 or $69,000. Their overall increase, um they did have show us late increase and that is in personnel due to colon health insurance. However, their expenditures did go down significantly. By their expenditures went down by an overall 118,000 causing the net decrease of 68. Overall, before I continue, all of the judicial's programs are uh budgets went down uh roughly a little bit under 300,000. >> Here's a question. It doesn't matter. It's more just for show, but all of these like the sheriff clerk courts all of like their biggest expenses our biggest expenses are capital expenses. Do we not show even just kind of like a side thing of their actual budgets and budget recommendations? Cuz like the the the courts they got a lot of expenses we talked about yesterday. And they're wholly for them. Uh roofs and chillers and redoing things and chasing termites and all that that's still court. If the court didn't exist, we wouldn't be spending that money yesterday. Um I understand that from a accounting standpoint, their operating budget is different than our capital budgets. Our money um is our building. So, we have the the fiduciary responsibility for them. but I still think it's relevant cuz we're talking like look their budget went down. Well, yes, their operating budget went down but the total cost of the operations of you know, especially when we're trying to have this conversation with the public of look these are costs that are not niceties like a boat ramp. These are these are state mandated level costs and the costs yesterday that the largest line items were things that were not County quote unquote. It was 14 different line items for stuff for the sheriff and flooring for people and chillers for people. Do do we not show like hey, this is the actual full all-in cost for courts or >> Their overall operating cost for court for the building itself is was found in the other County funded programs under court cost total court cost. >> Okay, we don't show them on the same side. We don't say this is the total increase in a budget even if some of that budget increase just from a a discussionary purpose is capital that that's borne by us but for their exclusive benefit. >> Correct. Those are part of our budgets that those are the other funded items that are not ours that we fund and maintain. >> At their at their request. Effectively. It's it's theirs. If the courts didn't exist, we wouldn't be chasing termites. >> And so Claudia just if I remember correctly yesterday that number was about 68 million for other County funded programs. >> Yes. Guardian ad litem as well the recommended budget came in at 294,000 and overall decrease of 17,000. >> Why were they a decrease? Every year we've talked about them being underfunded. Every year they come in and say that they're underfunded and need more people and need more staff and need more office space. How did their budget go down? >> of their their over they did have slight decreases as you can see up at the top in personnel of $5,000, $6,000 and that's due to attributed to vacancies that that were filled in at a lower rate. Overall as well, we charge all judicial our internal service fees for for maintenance ASM charges all IT charges and this year's calculation they showed to go significantly down. Some of them also now oversee their own replacement cost of computers. So that also overall will decrease their budget. >> All right. Are they also officially moved over to this building? >> No, sir. >> Not yet. Okay, because I know there are some capital costs associated with that. Okay, that's all. >> So in in the assumptions here you can see how it's the in-house communication for IT, uh recovery fees and automated systems that the overall effect cause them to go down. Public Defender same concept recommended budget is 1.3, uh overall decrease of $83,000. Their overall increase is mainly due to personnel costs. However, their operating expenditures significantly went down due to the same items. Their contracted contractual services for support and maintenance decreased by $13,000, in-house communication 700 and then um the this is one of the ones that they now oversee themselves and it is for recovery fees for equipment uh decreased by 11 as well as automated systems 42 and their supplies decreased due to reallocation of funds of 52,000. So, their overall decrease is 83 for the year. State Attorney's budget came in at 1.3 with an overall decrease of 73,000. They show a slight increase in personnel of about 15,000 due to personnel issues and operating overall decrease of 129,000. And that is it. >> Any questions? >> [laughter] >> Anyone on the phone questions, comments? All right. Well, then I'll open up public comment. Anyone for public comment on the budget today? Well, that's what I was referring to. Actually, can I see the presentation view? All right. See no public comment. I close public comment. Any final closing thoughts, commissioners? >> Yeah, can you Can we rethink how we do do these days next year? I mean, seriously, it's 11 minutes. And yesterday we were done by lunch. So, I don't know if we need to keep spreading these over the three days, but it's just me. Constitutionals can certainly be blended in with other days. >> Okay. >> Well, cuz historically, and I'm not sure what changed this year. Historically, all the constitutionals actually came here. We asked them to present, and they were much more detailed. Like, the judicials would come in, and they would explain what's going on. And we'd also use this as an opportunity to get a little bit of an update, cuz we don't talk to them on a daily basis. The public doesn't hear from them on a daily So, it wasn't just a run-through of here's their budget, it's $30,000 less because of software. It was more like, this is what we're doing with the drug court, and these are the people we hired, and this is our plan for next year. It was almost like everyone was given their their own 10 to 15 minutes to almost do a state of kind of situation. >> Time constraints this year, many of them weren't unable to attend. However, they did express that if there is a later date, they some would like to come back. >> No, because I don't care. I mean [clears throat] I meant more for the fact that the public it was nice to be able to update people on here's what Guardian was doing. We're moving over here in in 6 months and this is what we're our focused on and this is new program we have. It was more of an opportunity so it's not for me. I just talked to Larry and Ed and and Scott and >> [clears throat] >> Angel I have these people like it just not that long ago. I just meant it was an opportunity so there's usually it was always the shortest day but it wasn't 13 minutes of which I've taken up half of it. So. >> Second year of a two-year budget also. It's also just not very efficient dragging everyone here for a short meeting. Much of the conversation this year >> excluded. >> Much like like in prior years the the bringing of constitutional officers is a fairly new thing under hopes and for whatever reason. So much of the conversations have been handled by between staff. I have some a few of us my understanding of meetings is the sheriff and have had conversations with the constitutional. So it's not a very efficient way to do a state of. They do this in Bradenton, Quanas, and other places so No, very efficient. I have nothing else. No one has anything. Take care. >> Thank you. >> Mhm.