The Jacksonville City Council Rules Committee on Oct. 6 approved amendments to a local J bill (20250693) that governs elements of the Jacksonville Aviation Authority’s (JAA) role at Cecil Field, clearing the measure by an 8‑0 vote.

The amendment removes a proposed name change and cuts a requirement that a governor and mayoral appointee be from the aerospace industry. It instead refines the language to require the JAA to present — rather than submit — an annual plan for economic development at Cecil Field and to adopt state procurement thresholds in place of the JAA’s current dollar thresholds.

“Those who were in neighborhoods this morning already know. … We have agreed with JAA on a path forward to accelerate job creation and aerospace industry growth at Cecil Field,” said Vice President Nick Howland during discussion of the amendment. Howland (introducer of the redline) said the JAA agreed to create an economic development committee composed of JAA board members and city council members tasked with attracting an international route to JAX and driving Cecil aerospace growth.

Procurement thresholds in JAA’s charter were updated to reference categories in Florida Statute 287.017. The amendment replaces current charter thresholds — $50,000 for certain construction and $25,000 for supplies — with the state categories referenced in the amendment: category 5 (currently $325,000 for construction contracts) and category 3 (currently $65,000 for supplies contracts), according to committee testimony.

Council members praised the compromise with JAA. “I was not looking forward, to some respects, this morning's conversations. But clearly, you did some — you and Mr. Hodges, and Mr. Stewart and others at management, JAA, did some yeoman work last week in order to get to a good landing on this one,” Council Member Michael Boylan said.

The committee approved the amendment and then passed the bill as amended by a recorded vote of 8 yeas and 0 nays (bill 20250693).

The amendment attached a revised Exhibit 1 (the local J bill text), corrected scrivener’s errors, updated procurement thresholds to align with Florida Statute 287.017, and removed the special appointment requirement for aerospace appointees; it also revised reporting and procurement language and corrected oversight department references.

No immediate budget appropriation was enacted at the committee level. Proponents said the changes are intended to accelerate aerospace‑industry job creation at Cecil Field by clarifying JAA’s role and creating a joint economic development committee to pursue routes and industry recruitment.

Action: motion and second on amendment and bill as amended; amendment passed and bill passed 8‑0.