Broward County Commission Regular Meeting
Director's Name: Tara Williams
Department: Human Services Division: Community Partnerships
Information
Requested Action
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A. MOTION TO AUTHORIZE County Administrator to negotiate and execute an agreement, based substantially on the terms stated in Exhibit 3 hereto, between Broward County and the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit of Florida in the amount of $330,320, effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026, to establish a Family Court Navigator Pilot Program to increase judicial efficiency and help families in addressing interrelated legal and nonlegal problems, including through referrals, with authority to execute subject to review and approval for legal sufficiency by the County Attorney’s Office; authorize the County Administrator to execute amendments to the agreement subject to review and approval for legal sufficiency by the County Attorney’s Office, provided that such amendments do not impose additional financial obligations on the County; and authorize the County Administrator to take all necessary administrative and budgetary actions to implement the Agreement as same may be amended.
B. MOTION TO ADOPT budget Resolution (Exhibit 1 hereto) within the Court Cost Fund transferring $330,320 from reserves for the purpose of providing one-time funding for a Family Court Navigator Pilot program.
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Why Action is Necessary
A. A delegation of authority is required for the County Administrator to negotiate and execute agreements.
B. Board approval is required to transfer funds from reserves.
What Action Accomplishes
A. Delegates authority to the County Administrator, as referenced above.
B. Transfers funds from reserves as provided above.
Goal Related Icon(s)
☒County Commission
☐Go Green
☐MAP Broward
Previous Action Taken
None.
Summary Explanation/Background
THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT AND THE COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS DIVISION RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THE ABOVE MOTIONS.
These actions support the Commission’s value of “building partnerships and working collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives” and the goal of “delivering accessible human services that holistically address the whole person collaboratively and compassionately.” The funds provide for the establishment of a Family Court Navigator Pilot Program with the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit of Florida.
In the Fiscal Year 2026 Adopted Budget, the projected revenue from the Court Cost Fee is $780,000. Of this $780,000, the portion available for the Chief Judge’s Local Option Programs is approximately $191,000, which is only a small percentage of the $697,480 total cost of the Chief Judge’s Local Option Programs in Fiscal Year 2026. To offset the historical revenue declines and reduce operational impacts to the Chief Judge’s local option programs, the Board of County Commissioners has supplemented revenues from the Court Cost Fund with transfers from the General Fund. This has supported local option programs including the Felony and Misdemeanor Mental Health Court Program, the Justice Alternative Program, and the Domestic Violence Victim Assistance Program.
As a means to provide the commission transparency to the complement of General Fund operating support to judicial programs, the following is important to note. There is additional General Fund operating budget support of $4,900,440 in the Judicial Technology fee fund and $115,410 in the Teen Court fee fund, in the FY26 Adopted Budget, to offset the historical revenue declines in judicial fees. In summary, the total General Fund transfer is $5,461,990 to support the operating judicial programs in FY26.
On May 5, 2025, the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit of Florida (the “Court”) through its Chief Judge submitted a request for funding to the County Administrator under section 29.008(2) to ensure continued service to the local community (Exhibit 2). At the Budget Workshop on May 13, 2025, the Chief Judge presented a request for a new local option program related to Family Court Services. The purpose of this program is to provide support to children and families as they navigate the family court system.
At the second Budget Public Hearing on September 16, 2025, the Chief Judge reiterated the request for the Family Court Services local option program. On September 22, 2025, the Chief Judge submitted an amended budget request for Family Court Services (Exhibit 3). Following Board discussion, the County Administrator proposed a possible alternative solution to address the request and indicated a standalone agenda item proposing a transfer from reserves in the Court Cost Fund’s Fiscal Year 2026 Adopted Budget for a one-time, one-year pilot program for a Family Court Navigator Pilot Program could be brought back for Commission consideration at the October 7, 2025 Commission Meeting. If approved, this action would allocate $330,320 in one-time funds from Court Cost fund reserves for this one-time, one-year pilot program and support the personnel and operating costs of $330,320 for the Family Court Navigator Pilot Program, as requested on September 22, 2025 by the Chief Judge.
The Family Court Navigator Pilot Program will allow the Court to provide a myriad of in-house services for education, therapeutic intervention and other intervention services to assist families during their domestic relations cases, while also providing litigants with navigation and referral services to available service providers in the community. The program’s goal is to support the entire family unit, with particular sensitivity to the needs of children, while ensuring compliance with court orders and connecting families to appropriate resources. As requested by the Chief Judge, funding for this pilot program will allow the Court to hire a Family Court Services Manager, one Judicial Navigator, one Judicial Support Investigator, and one Administrative Assistant. The resulting Agreement will be reviewed and approved for legal sufficiency by the County Attorney’s Office.
Source of Additional Information
Norman Foster, Director, Office of Management and Budget, (954) 357-6346
Cassandra L. Evans, Director, Community Partnerships Division, (954) 357-6398
Fiscal Impact
Fiscal Impact/Cost Summary
The reserves in the Court Cost fund are reduced by $330,320 to fund a one-year Family Court Navigator pilot program.