Children’s Services Advisory Council Member Asks IRC for Funding So John’s Island Doesn’t “Have to Go To Eastern Europe to Hire People...”
Non-partisan Taxpayer’s Association stands against funding increase. On Thursday, CSAC scheduled 1 of 4 Grant Subcommittee hearings without posting a required agenda for public view.
Back on April 9th, immediately after IRC Community Services Director, Cindy Emerson, gave her very positive and hopeful 30 minute presentation on the progress of the Children’s Services Advisory Council (CSAC), the chairwoman of the Indian River Board of County Commissioners (BOCC), Susan Adams, opened the floor for public comment. First in line was the nearly 14 year member of the CSAC committee and John’s Island resident, Hope Woodhouse. Ms. Woodhouse likened herself to the “bad cop” to Ms. Emerson’s enthusiastically motivated “good cop.”
A Harvard MBA and having a stellar career in finance, including once serving as the former Chief Operating Officer of Soros Funds Management LLC, Ms. Woodhouse struck odd as she chastised the commission of a small county in Florida for their frugality. She brought up that in 2017, the BOCC agreed to ultimately raise the millage rate for CSAC to “.125” which was achieved this fiscal year. Ms. Woodhouse found that to be too slow in reaching that goal.
In 2022, instead of CSAC becoming its own taxing district where it could set its own millage rates, the BOCC voted to increase the goal to .25 millage rate. “I wish we could start the process of living up to the commitment,” she wishfully stated to the commissioners. She added, “Based on the mistakes of the past, we are living now in community where you cannot hire qualified people. You can’t hire therapists. You can’t hire teachers.”
Then, in a moment of realization, she poignantly offered a final rhetorical question straight from her own experience of living with a perceived hardship. “Why does John’s Island have to go to Eastern Europe to hire people every year?” she harangued at the podium.
Like many island residents, Ms. Woodhouse is a modest donor to The Learning Alliance, giving up to $4,999 according to their latest annual report posted on their website. Sitting on CSAC for over a decade, she has participated in steering over $2 million to the non-profit which makes the taxpayer of Indian River County a “Moonshot Milestone Society” member twice over. The Sunshine Journal broke the story about the taxpayer’s great achievement here.
As already noted, Ms. Emerson presented the CSAC request for a budget increase in millage of 10% to the BOCC. The increase from the current millage rate .125 to .1375 which would be added to the 13.6% increase of revenue from the appreciating property values. In the current fiscal year, the CSAC budget is over $2.7 million and if the BOCC did nothing, it would increase $3.15 million for the 2024-25 fiscal year. The recommendation for the additional 10% representing a $3.4 million proposed CSAC budget came from a 5-3 vote among its committee members on April 3rd.
In all, a request for a 23.6% funding hike for next year from the taxpayer.
Ms. Emerson reminded the BOCC that CSAC programs have produced over “18,000 touch points” and brought with her a myriad of statements from national studies about the efficacy of investing in various programs centered around health and education. For example, a 1994 study was cited about graduation rates rising by 42% when kids attend a “youth development program with a strong mentoring component.”
Residents pay for their public schools through taxes. They send their kids to school with the idea that their sons and daughters will be thoughtfully inspired through great instruction, and mentored to fulfill their educational dreams and set a course toward their individual pursuit of vocational happiness. Indeed, Dr. Moore is expanding educational choice opportunities with a classical school initiative to begin enrollment this November for the 2025-26 school year. Recently, the school district achieved an “A rating” from the state.
CSAC funds after school programs that duplicate what the public school system provides or can implement. There is also duplication of health programs that are within the hospital district. Duplication is one of the many concerns of the IRC Taxpayer Association. Doug DeMuth is their Vice President and also has a seat on CSAC. He addressed the BOCC reading excerpts of an unanimous statement from the Taxpayer Association board regarding the proposed budget increase for CSAC. Mr. DeMuth read, “Providing additional money to CSAC before it addresses its duplicate funding problems, accountability issues, and before it has provided clear solutions to the many issues raised in its ‘Needs Assessment’ (Mr. DeMuth gestured air quotes) seems premature. Both the BOCC and the public should be made aware which organizations CSAC intends to fund, for what amounts, and what the public should expect in return.”
Mr. DeMuth expressed how the non-profits are designing programs that are not measured to achieve solution based outcomes. He continued from the statement, “Before the Board of County Commissioners considers increasing CSAC funding for the next fiscal year, it should require the CSAC staff to provide program by program Requests for Proposals outlining to non-profits the solution steps it directs them to take to address each program mission statement.”
In examples of mismanagement, Mr. DeMuth noted how the Crossover Mission hired a development director at $180,000 who in turn writes grant proposals to CSAC for over $100,000. He reasoned, “We’re, in effect paying for that $180,000 fundraiser [position]. The invoice may not come to us, but we’re paying for him.”
He also noted how the Youth Sailing Foundation has received an annual taxpayer stipend of $40,000, even though it has raised over $4 million privately and obtained a donation of lagoon front property from the City of Vero Beach. The non-profit will build a boathouse that is fully financed with private money.
Mr. DeMuth added, “We also have a ton of duplication. $400,000 of duplication with the hospital district that still remains not dealt with.”
At the end of the hearing, the BOCC voted 4-1 to not increase the millage, for now. There is a possibility during the upcoming August budget discussions that the commissioners could change their mind.
Yesterday, the CSAC Grant Subcommittee began 4 days of schedule hearings of proposals from non-profits seeking tax payer dollars. The first meeting was noticed without an agenda, a violation of the Sunshine Law which requires the agenda posted 7 days prior to the scheduled hearing. The Sunshine Journal made a public records request for it Wednesday and received it the day of the hearing.
Keep up the good work as a watch dog for the various on goings with these unregulated agencies. Soros funded? What else do we need to know?