After a three-hour discussion about how the Leon County Commission can have more oversight over the Council on Culture & Arts (COCA), commissioners agreed to what they said was a “compromise” on a model that would maintain COCA’s leadership and expertise while providing the county with more say in the organization’s finances.
From the start of the meeting, county staff and commissioners reiterated the fact that the agenda before them June 16 wasn’t to determine whether the arts should be funded but rather how the county can gain more oversight over COCA’s $2-million budget that’s largely funded by public dollars.
“I think that the hysteria that’s been created over this issue is unfortunate,” Commissioner Brian Welch said. “I think there’s been some misinformation in the community. I think that the idea that we’re cutting arts fundings, we’re gutting COCA — I think those terms are inflammatory; they are incorrect.”
Commissioner Christian Caban noted that there seemed be “a disconnect” between the county and COCA, as many of the arts organization’s concerns over the prospect of a change were addressed and debunked in the county’s research of the different options they could pursue.
Supporters of COCA and the arts were mainly concerned that if the county looked to change the organization’s current contract it would cut into their eligibility for certain grants they rely on now. But staff reported to commissioners that they checked with the national agencies and were told switching to a model with more governmental oversight wouldn’t hinder their ability to apply and secure those grants.
“We’ve got to figure this out moving forward,” Caban said at the meeting. “No matter what option we vote on today … we just got to be able to have everyone on the same page.”
Commissioners initially split on path forward
The commission voted 6-1 — with only Commissioner Bill Proctor in opposition — to move forward with a service model that preserved COCA and created a path to more commission oversight, but the majority of support came after a long back-and-forth.
During the commissioners’ special workshop, they debated three different models that COCA could continue under: moving COCA’s operation in-house, creating a new service model or maintaining the status quo.
The move wasn’t the preferred option of COCA, which had urged residents ahead of the meeting to lobby commissioners for keeping the status quo.
Support for the different options was split across the board, with at least one commissioner backing each option.
Following county staff’s presentation, Commissioner Carolyn Cummings immediately offered her approval of the second model saying it’s a “win-win”: “I moved for option two because I think it captures a lot about Leon County; it captures a lot about COCA. I think it demonstrates who we are.”
Commissioner Nick Maddox said he too was initially concerned about what changes could mean for COCA’s access to funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, but when he learned they wouldn’t be excluded from grant opportunities, he was on board for the compromise.
“Everybody gives a little bit; nobody gets exactly what they want,” Maddox said. “We can move forward but nobody’s hurt too bad to where it’s not working for our community.”
Commissioner Rick Minor originally supported keeping the status quo until he learned COCA would still be able to apply to NEA grants under the service model. Before this information became apparent, he noted that he thought an in-house operation would cause COCA to “die within a few years.”
“I don’t think model one will allow the arts and culture community to thrive, nor do I think it’ll allow COCA to thrive,” Minor said.
Proctor, Caban and Welch, however, all thought moving COCA’s function in-house was perfectly acceptable when considering that the majority of their funding came from the county and the rocky future of the county’s revenue stream if property taxes get cut in November.
COCA collects interest on money provided by the county, and Welch said this money belongs to taxpayers, which ultimately means the commission has an obligation to directly oversee those dollars.
“My position on it is ultimately this: We have a management responsibility to do this at a minimum,” Welch said.
Proctor stood by the in-house option saying he was fully confident the tourism director, Kerri Post, was capable of maintaining a thriving arts community. Moving the operation in-house was also projected to save the county more than $200,000 annually, and Proctor said this was important to consider in the context of the greater conversation about property tax cuts.
“I think that we’re in a moment where central control and the consolidated oversight of monies is compelled by the storm cloud on the fiscal horizon that we’re facing,” Proctor said.
What’s next?
Although there is no timeline for when the matter will come back before the board, the commission will be eventually reviewing new ordinance language that supports the service model they voted on during the county workshop.
A public hearing on the new ordinance will also be scheduled in the future before it is finalized.
Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Leon County backs ‘compromise’ to boost oversight of COCA funds
Reporting by Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat | USA TODAY Network
