TO: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
THROUGH: John A Titkanich, Jr., County Administrator
John Stoll, Planning & Development Services Director
FROM: Doug Dombroski, Economic Development Manager
DATE: February 11, 2026
SUBJECT: Local Jobs Grant Program
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BACKGROUND
This item requests authorization from the Board of County Commissioners for staff to begin revising the Indian River County Local Jobs Grant Program and its associated grant agreement, for future consideration by the Board. Authorization is requested to allow Planning and Development Services staff and the County Attorney’s Office to dedicate the necessary staff time to evaluate the existing program, incorporate stakeholder input, and develop proposed revisions intended to improve program effectiveness, business participation, and administrative efficiency.
The Board of County Commissioners adopted the Indian River County Economic Development Strategic Action Plan on January 27, 2026. One of the three primary goals of the plan is the utilization and expansion of County resources to support economic development. In response, County economic development staff have begun evaluating existing incentive programs to determine consistency with Florida Statutes, participation levels, and overall effectiveness. This effort is being conducted collaboratively by County staff and the Indian River Chamber of Commerce.
The Local Jobs Grant Program has been one of Indian River County’s primary economic development incentive programs for more than 15 years, providing grant funding to targeted industries that create jobs within the County. Program eligibility requires a business to create a minimum of five new jobs within the first year of hiring. The jobs must pay wages equal to at least 75 percent of the Indian River County average wage, as published annually by the Florida Department of Commerce. The current annual average wage for ...
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