North Central Florida regional council redraws membership, county faces dues rise

Representatives from the North Central Florida Regional Planning Council briefed Alachua County commissioners on proposed amendments that add Marion and Levy counties, revise representation and remove an obsolete dues‑credit provision.

Scott, the council presenter, told commissioners the legislature revised regional boundaries and assigned two counties to North Central Florida; the council recommended keeping total local representatives at 48. Under the proposed formula larger jurisdictions with populations over 100,000 (Alachua County, Marion County and Gainesville) would each have three representatives rather than the larger allocations they previously held. The changes also delete a decades‑old dues credit provision tied to local planning spending; staff estimated the county’s annual dues would rise by roughly $20,000–$30,000 beginning FY17.

Commissioners probed the effect on county budgets and representation; the county attorney advised the draft interlocal and resolution will be returned for legal review before signature. Commissioners moved to sign a resolution indicating the county’s intent to adopt the amendments pending attorney review and to request any desired changes from the council; the vote to adopt the intent language passed unanimously.

Next steps: attorney to review the interlocal; staff to relay commission comments to the regional council and return finalized documents for signature.