Brevard tourism board adopts tighter grant rules, sets $5,000 minimum for marketing support

The Brevard County Tourism Development Council voted March 25 to adopt a package of revisions to its Marketing Support Program that tighten compliance requirements and change payment and reporting deadlines.

Peter, the tourism office director, told the council the updates reflect two years of program experience and clarified operational gaps. Among the changes adopted, the council set the eligible event period for the next funding round at Oct. 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2027, and established a minimum $5,000 allocation for any marketing support campaign, staff said. “All marketing support campaign allocations are, a minimum of $5,000 to participate,” Peter said. The change is intended to reduce staff time spent on small campaigns that have limited impact.

The revisions add a clawback for year‑round grantees that cease operations more than 30 days during the fiscal year: the grantee must return funds within 30 days on a case‑by‑case basis, staff said. The council discussed exceptions for closures caused by an act of God (for example, a hurricane) and suggested a case‑by‑case approach and a possible three‑year limit on seeking recovery for long‑standing operations. Peter told members the staff will add clarifying language about extraordinary circumstances and discretionary relief.

Board members also debated how strictly to enforce reimbursement deadlines for event reimbursements and year‑round program reporting. Deborah, a TDO staffer working with finance, said her office generally finds 60 days workable but acknowledged recurring late submissions create administrative strain. “Everyone has said, 60 60 days is plenty,” Deborah said. Several members proposed a more flexible compromise: 90 days as the standard with the director allowed to grant exceptions in special circumstances; the council signaled support for that approach.

The update adds compliance requirements intended to strengthen the county’s audit trail. Applicants will be required to document background screening for event personnel and to provide a notarized affidavit verifying status checks on national offender registries (references to the cited Florida statutes are included in the criteria). Staff also requires a certificate of insurance and specific supporting documentation—photos of signs and first‑responder deployments, venue invoices, and other materials—within specified timelines; failure to comply can trigger forfeiture and legal recovery of reimbursed funds.

The changes also clarify allowable and non‑allowable expenses (allowable: staging, sound, traffic management, advertising outside Brevard County, first‑responder support; non‑allowable: paying debt obligations, scholarships/prize money, routine maintenance), and set reporting deadlines: final event reports must be submitted within 30 days of event conclusion or by Sept. 30, 2027, while reimbursement requests are expected within a standard window (the council favored moving toward a 90‑day standard with staff discretion in exceptional cases).

The council approved the criteria package on a roll‑call vote, with the motion made by Julie Braga and seconded by Mayor Medina; all members present voted in favor. The board then voted to approve the updated application form in a separate roll‑call vote (motion by Mayor Connors, second by Mayor Medina). The adopted timeline calls for the program to open in May, accept applications through June, provide recommendations to the Tourism Development Council in July, and bring awards back to the board for final approval in August and September.

The adopted criteria give the Tourism Development Office more discretion to recover funds when grantees do not meet requirements, while staff said they will retain flexibility to make case‑by‑case judgments for events and year‑round operators affected by extraordinary events. The council did not change the legal references in the packet; the guidance references Florida statutory sections used to define offender classes and screening requirements.

The next step is that the TDO will publish the updated application and open the funding window; staff said they will present recommended awards to the TDC in July and return to the board for final action in August or September.

The motion to adopt the criteria and the motion to approve the application were both passed by roll call and recorded as adopted.