Broward County Commission Regular Meeting
Director's Name: Dale V.C. Holness
Department: County Commission
Information
Requested Action
title
MOTION TO DIRECT County staff to create an online business directory of all Broward County businesses. (Commissioner Holness)
body
Why Action is Necessary
Approval by the Board of County Commissioners (“Board”) is required to direct staff to create an online directory for all Broward County businesses.
What Action Accomplishes
Directs County staff to create an online business directory for all Broward County businesses.
Is this Action Goal Related
Yes
Previous Action Taken
Summary Explanation/Background
The Broward County Board of County Commissioners envisions “A vibrant economy with a diverse, skilled workforce, in a County offering unique advantages that attract all types of businesses to create equitable, countywide prosperity.” This item supports the Commission Value “Ensuring economic opportunities for Broward’s diverse population and businesses” and the Commission Goal to “Attract and retain all types of business, especially high-wage industries that offer employee benefits, through partnerships with the Alliance, chambers of commerce, colleges and universities, CareerSource, and any other available avenues.”
Helping businesses thrive is a win-win situation for local government. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many individuals utilize online resources more than ever. Business directories are a comprehensive channel that allow prospective customers, business owners, and professionals to identify and contact businesses relevant to them. An online business directory is a database that would contain information about a company including the website, address, contact number, and emails. An online directory of all Broward County Businesses will make many businesses more resilient and innovative than ever. The County now gathers some of this information from Business Tax Receipt and so do the cities. Additionally, approximately 79,955 businesses in Broward County have local business taxes (formerly known as occupational licenses). This is important, as the benefits of paying tax revenues allows for the County to generate more money.
Benefits of online business directories include:
• Open Broward businesses to the world
• Enhance online presence
• Help customers easily find businesses and improve local visibility
• Assist businesses build stronger brand awareness
• Increase business credibility
• Help Broward grow our economy
Source of Additional Information
Heidi Richards, Chief of Staff, District 9, 954-357-7009
Fiscal Impact
Fiscal Impact/Cost Summary
None.