President Carrico, Members of the City Council, and people of this great city—good morning.
By choosing hope over fear, solutions over slogans, and partnership over politics, Jacksonville is stronger, safer, healthier, and more connected than it’s been in decades.
Our new day is dawning.
Our time is now. And time is something we can’t get back.
When Council President Carrico accepted the gavel, he noted that this work is for young people like his daughter, Monroe May.
He believes—just as I do—that the decisions we make in the present will ripple out for generations to come.
And we have no time to waste. When we delay, defer, or distract—we don’t just lose days, weeks, and months—we lose momentum.
That’s why this budget is not just balanced—it is urgent.
It is not just disciplined—it is bold.
It reflects the values we share: smarter spending, greater safety, better health, and more opportunity.
And it builds on the immense progress we’ve made together.
RIGHT NOW - JSO and JFRD are working under historic contracts—compensating our first responders with the respect they deserve.
A move that is resulting in better recruitment for both departments. Applications to work for JSO have increased by nearly 50%.
RIGHT NOW - Reading scores are on the rise for children participating in literacy programs supported by our Transition Task Force.
Investing in those Transition programs also means that RIGHT NOW - more mothers and children are getting health care earlier; More seniors are receiving hot meals at home; More affordable homes are being built; and our veterans are more connected to benefits and services than ever before.
RIGHT NOW - We are turning around permits in half the time we used to.
In the past, commercial permitting turn-around time averaged 30 days… it’s now 15.
And on the residential side it was 25 days… today it’s just eight.
Soon, we will be announcing another initiative which will provide an express lane for civil and building permit reviews. So the development community has the tools to step on the gas and keep up with our booming population.
We’re changing the way we award city contracts to ensure opportunities are available for more small businesses
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In fact, participating Jacksonville Small and Emerging Businesses have grown by 56% since last year, and we’ve met our JSEB utilization goal for key projects.
For the second year in a row, we are fully staffed with lifeguards so that once again, nearly all our public pools are open for summer. This boosts the health and safety of our youth.
It may seem small in the grand scheme of things – but if we can’t figure out how to get the pools open – how can the public have any trust in us to do the big things.
Like transforming our city by securing the Stadium of the Future and a Community Benefits Agreement that will send real dollars into neighborhoods that need it most.
And most recently, cementing our role as a city of innovation with the arrival of the UF graduate campus and Florida Semiconductor Institute—raising Jacksonville’s profile as a nationwide leader in AI and tech.
These last two years are a resounding success by any objective measure. The public is encouraging us to continue our successful partnership and capitalize on this momentum.
I want to make one thing very clear – this budget belongs to the people.
Earlier this year, I held town halls across the city and asked a simple question – “what’s important to you; your family; your neighborhood”.
Frenchy Bryant told us – “trash and blight”.
Monique Highsmith wanted greater access to mental health and wanted more on our Jacksonville Journey Forward program.
Monica Richardson wanted to make sure we had a strategic plan for homelessness and affordable housing.
We also heard repeatedly about the condition of streets, sidewalks, and septic tanks.
The people told us how they want their hard-earned tax dollars spent – and we listened, making investments that also put our city on strong financial footing.
In addition to receiving a Distinguished Budget Award from the Government Finance Officers Association, our stewardship of the budget has just earned Jacksonville another top tier “Double A-plus” rating from Fitch.
We cannot express enough gratitude to our incredible budget and finance team for all they do.
Today – we’re investing in our neighbors’ priorities with a Two-billion dollar general fund budget and 687- million dollars in the 2026 portion of the Capital Improvement Plan, also known as the CIP.
And, we’re doing so in fiscally responsible ways. This balanced budget takes zero dollars from our reserves.
When appropriate in the future, we should not be afraid to spend from those ample reserves on projects and programs that increase the quality of life for our citizens.
We continue right-sizing the way we approach the CIP, our five-year list of infrastructure projects. In any given year, we have the capacity to finish about 250- million dollars worth of projects. Right now, the project list totals 2.5- billion dollars, including 800- million that was authorized years ago but never completed.
If we added nothing new – it would take us up to 10 years to get it all done. Adding new projects means adding new debt. Doing that without adding capacity to get those projects completed in a reasonable timeframe hurts our financial health.
Our strategy is to be responsible and close the list to new debt-funded projects for the next few years. Additional needs will come up. When they do, they should be “pay go” projects – in other words, paid for with cash. This strategy will strengthen the city’s already strong financial posture and get projects done in a timely manner.
We are grateful to our partners at JEA for agreeing to a one-time increase in their contribution for the city. This one-time revenue is going to one-time costs for prior commitments made by our administration, this City Council, as well as those who came before us.
The one-time costs in our budget include projects to spur economic development; enliven downtown; pay for our share of a new burn building where firefighters will train; provide new library materials; and fully fund the City Council’s strategic initiatives.
Our administration has also deployed LEAN process improvements across departments. We’ve streamlined workflows and created more efficient ways of serving the people. Earlier I provided the best example of this with our permitting department cutting the average turnaround time in half.
This commitment to efficiency has kept the number of non-public safety employees flat, even as our population continues to grow.
To borrow a phrase – “the people are coming”. We are one of the fastest growing cities in America each year. So we are cutting the red tape to serve our people better and faster.
Bottom line – while the city is growing – your government is not.
We're no longer budgeting for programs just because “that’s how we’ve always done it”. This budget prioritizes projects and programs that offer the best return on investment for our citizens.
That includes supporting Jax Hub, a fintech industry incubator, which will help us continue growing one of our city’s most important business sectors.
I remain committed to making Jacksonville the small business capital of the southeast. In order to get there, we have to create new opportunities for entrepreneurs and workers alike.
To that end, we are partnering with the Urban League on a new workforce center that’ll provide skills and job training. And we are expanding the resources and reach of our JSEB office.
Our budget also doubles down on Jacksonville’s appeal as a great place to live: our low cost of living and high quality of life compared to peer cities in Florida. As families continue to face higher prices that squeeze their pocketbook, our budget offers some much-needed relief.
It includes more than 12- million dollars in programs that address the twin crises of housing and homelessness.
The need for housing that’s affordable came up repeatedly in our town halls. And for the first time ever, it has surpassed crime as the top concern of our citizens.
This budget accelerates our mission to ensure every Jacksonville resident has options for safe housing they can afford.
More than five thousand below market rate housing units are currently in planning, under construction, or hitting the market because of our focus on this issue over the past two years.
But we need tens of thousands more. And we don’t have time to waste.
Housing costs affect everyone. Large swaths of our population spend well above the recommended 30% of their annual income on housing. That means medicine and groceries are even harder to afford. And forget about saving up for a downpayment. The American Dream of homeownership has become completely out of reach.
That’s why our budget proposal invests millions into building more housing that’s affordable and keeping people in their current homes.
That money will fill the financing gaps needed to make these vitally important housing developments possible. And it’s in partnership with developers who understand the urgency.
We’re scaling up successful pilots that help working families avoid evictions and transition from renting to owning as well. We will build a city where teachers, nurses, first responders, paralegals, hospitality and childcare workers can live where they serve.
When it comes to homelessness, our efforts are on the right track since we launched JFRD’s homeless outreach team and expanded shelter beds last year. And we know there is much more to do.
This budget funds mitigation strategies that include more overnight shelter beds; increased outreach; programs that offer transitional housing, address the chronically homeless, provide homelessness prevention vouchers, and extend daytime programming.
We can’t be a vibrant city if we’re not a healthy city. This budget provides more than Seven- million in proven healthcare programs. And it’s needed now more than ever.
The JaxCare Connect program that coordinates care for the underserved at six safety net clinics; the Healthlink Jax telehealth program that has already saved our emergency rooms more than Five- million in uncompensated costs; and the eldercare food insecurity program that has already delivered more than 271,000 meals to seniors and decreased the waiting list by 66%.
We continue to invest in effective mental health programs and the 988 crisis call center, which has a 98.7% deescalation rate. We will add support for dental care access and further infant mortality reduction efforts. UF Health provides a critical service taking care of the most vulnerable populations, and so we committed $56- million dollars to our annual support of this vital work.
Our focus on health benefits the entire city. When workers stay healthy, our economy prospers. When we keep people out of the ER for basic medical needs, it keeps costs down for everyone.
As ever, public safety remains our top priority. This budget continues historic investments in police and fire.
The women and men of the Sheriff’s Office have successfully brought the crime rate down and the feeling of safety and security up. Their work creates an environment where families feel free to work, play, and spend.
This year’s 638- million dollar JSO budget delivers every request made by Sheriff Waters so his team can keep building on that progress which is vital to improving the quality of life for everyone
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We are also investing Two- million dollars in the Jacksonville Journey Forward initiative to proactively address the root causes of crime, such as underemployment; lack of access to education and opportunities; and mental health challenges.
The citizens, community leaders, and law enforcement representatives who make up the Journey Forward Board are building a plan which will help address the attendance crisis facing our schools; while providing more holistic resources for at-risk youth, job training, and family support services that will strengthen the foundation of our neighborhoods.
I want to thank Sheriff Waters and his team for their engagement and support throughout this process. Our collaboration is a shining example of what is possible when we work together for the good of our city.
Before getting into some of the details of the JFRD budget – please allow me a moment to reflect on the change in leadership of the best fire and rescue department in the country.
Chief Powers dedicated his adult life to JFRD and the people of Jacksonville. For 29 years, every time duty called, he answered.
Now – the calls he’ll be getting are for “GRANDPA”.
Chief Power’s commitment to operational excellence and continuous improvement left JFRD in a position to build on its elite reputation.
And I am fully confident that our new Chief, Percy Golden II, will do just that. And not just by adding dollars.
JFRD is leveraging our brilliant Technology Solutions department and implementing AI-powered analytics to deploy resources faster, reduce response times, and eliminate costly inefficiencies.
Our 387- million dollar JFRD budget doesn’t just help keep our city safe and healthy, it helps homeowners save on their property insurance – to the tune of 300- million dollars per year.
You see – faster response times mean a higher score for safety, which means a lower insurance rate. Even though it’s a state responsibility to bring down that cost – this is one area where we can make an impact.
The JFRD budget isn’t just about making sure that you and I are taken care of. We are spending millions to update equipment and ensure their safety in the face of unpredictable and dangerous situations.
Our commitment to public safety and to the women and men who put their lives on the line for us is a solemn promise.
One we will always keep.
Beyond these core priorities – there’s no better investment than the one we make in our children.
We all know that for kids – the greater their ability to read, the greater their ability to succeed. So when we saw a troubling trend in literacy scores, we committed to building a strategy to fix it.
One of our plans was to launch a targeted Literacy Afterschool Pilot Program through Kids Hope Alliance. In two schools where we focused these efforts, there have been tremendous results:
- At Northwest Legends, third grade reading proficiency rose from nine percent at the start of the school year to 49 percent by the end, a 40 point increase.
- At the beginning of the year, proficiency at Reynolds Lane was eight percent. By the end of the year it was 54 percent, a 46 point gain.
That’s the kind of return on investment that we want to keep building on. And that is why our budget provides Kids Hope Alliance with a nearly $3 million dollar increase over last year’s proposed budget.
In addition to this targeted approach, we launched River City Readers to provide a city-wide focus on the importance of literacy.
In the 18 months since we started this fun and interactive competition, nearly 1,400 kids have completed more than 3.2 million minutes of reading.
And thanks to the teachers, school and district leaders, parents, and guardians, there are positive results to report district-wide.
At the start of last school year, only 22 percent of Jacksonville’s 3rd graders were reading on grade level. By the end of the year, that number had more than doubled to 51 percent!
I also want to congratulate Dr. Bernier and the entire Duval County Public Schools team on achieving a countywide “A” rating for the first time in 21 years!
This budget continues our push for smoother streets, safer sidewalks, and greener parks.
We are re-striping, re-paving, re-planting, filling potholes, and mowing at an historic pace.
And that must continue to beautify and build pride in our city.
We put an additional One- million dollars into litter and blight cleanup and 500- thousand dollars toward new trash and recycling bins.
Sidewalks are being built in neighborhoods that haven’t had them in decades.
Septic tanks are being removed. Our stormwater systems are getting modern upgrades to keep streets dry and homes safe.
Parks are being designed with shade, access, and inclusion in mind. A shade structure is being added to the Veterans Memorial Wall.
Because when we talk about “infrastructure,” we don’t just mean concrete and pipes.
We mean connection.
We mean community.
We mean quality of life
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And quality of life also means maintaining our commitment and financial support of Jacksonville’s vibrant arts and non-profit communities.
Investments in Cultural Service Grants bring exponential return; millions in revenue; benefiting hundreds of thousands of kids; and more than a thousand jobs.
Investments in Public Service Grants give tens of thousands of our most vulnerable citizens access to critical support.
Two years ago we talked about how this council was full of members who, like myself, are “generational Jacksonville”.
We had the chance then to start moving our city forward for generations to come.
And we took it.
So today – we don’t just have cranes in the air – we have a feeling of optimism.
Where we once were a city of renderings and potential, we are now a city of construction and achievement.
This isn’t a time to pat ourselves on the back and slow down.
It’s time to lengthen our stride.
We owe the people of Jacksonville nothing less than ALL our passion and ALL our love for the city to keep us moving forward.
If you believe—as I do—that we have a responsibility to our future generations to have both bold ideas and fiscal responsibility—then let’s keep our successful partnership going.
Expect results. Celebrate progress. And deliver the Jacksonville we deserve—not by wishing for it, but by working for it—together.
Momentum is a fragile, fleeting thing.
We have it right now.
So let’s push forward.
Time is of the essence.
Our new day is dawning.
Thank you.
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