Okaloosa County BOCC — October 20, 2015 — TDD Manual draft revision 10 20 15 — reading text

BCC 10-20-2015  e. Recommendation on reserve levels. 2) Council Review. The Council is responsible for conducting at least one public meeting on the proposed budget recommended by the Director before the proposed budget is submitted to the County Administrator. 3) Board Review. The Director will present the Council’s recommended budget to the County Administrator, who will use the recommendation in preparing the budget submission to the Board during its budget review process. 4) Council Review of Adopted Budget. The Director will present the budget adopted by the Board to the Council. The Council shall review the adopted budget to ensure conformity with the Tourist Development Plan and the provisions of Section 125.0104, Florida Statutes. If the Council has any objections to the adopted budget, the objection(s) shall be presented to the Board. 5) Budget Modifications and Reserve Expenditures. The Director shall present to the Council any proposed modifications to approved budget line items or allocation of reserve funds during the course of the budget year which require Board action. The Council shall provide its recommendation on the proposed changes to the Board. C.400. ACCOUNTS All present tourist development tax revenues and those carried forward from year-to-year shall be placed in an interest-bearing trust fund in accordance with Florida Statutes, which shall then be re-allocated to various areas as required by Section 125.0104, Florida Statutes. In no case shall the Tourist Development Trust Funds be co-mingled with the general revenue of the County. D. FINANCIAL AND TOURISM PROMOTION MONITORING Financial and tourism promotion monitoring is governed by Florida Statutes and the County’s Tourist Development Plan ordinance. Specifically: D.100. FINANCIAL REPORTS 1) The Director is responsible for presenting financial reports, at least quarterly, to the Council and Board. Financial reports shall contain, at a minimum, the following budget-to-actual information: a. Revenues. b. Expenditures. 2) The Director is responsible for presenting detailed expenditure information, at least quarterly, to assist the Council in identifying possibly unauthorized expenditures. D.200. TOURISM PROMOTION AND MARKETING REPORTS 1) The Director is responsible for presenting reports on tourism promotion and marketing campaigns, at least quarterly, to the Council and Board. Reports shall address, at a minimum, the following areas: a. Ad Agency. b. Destination Sales. c. Convention Center Sales. 10 of 34 TDC 09-24-2015 BCC 10-20-2015  d. Film Commission. E. PROCUREMENT PROCEDURES E.100. PROCUREMENT AND PAYMENT 1) All operating, advertising/marketing/promotional, and capital expenditures made during the fiscal year shall be in conformity with the County Purchasing Manual. Additionally: a. All procurements in excess of $25,000 shall be approved by the TDD attorney prior to starting the County purchasing approval process. b. All payments in excess of $25,000 shall be approved by the TDD attorney prior to starting the County payment approval process. 2) Property defined as fixtures and other tangible personal property of a non-consumable nature must be included in the inventory listing of Okaloosa County and tagged accordingly pursuant to Section 274.02, Florida Statutes. a. Capitalization threshold for equipment: $1,000. b. Capitalization threshold for improvements: $5,000. E.200. CONTRACTS 1) All functions to be handled by contract with third parties shall be entered into in accordance with the County Purchasing Manual. Additionally: a. All contracts, regardless of dollar amount, shall be approved by the TDD attorney prior to starting the County contract coordination process. b. To the extent practical and feasible, contracts shall include a provision for submission of written monthly and/or quarterly reports as to the status of all matters which are the subject of the contract. c. The Council shall review and provide a recommendation for all proposed contracts requiring Board approval. 2) Any purchase of equipment over $2,500 shall be handled through the County Purchasing Department, rather than through contracted entities. F. TRAVEL AND ENTERTAINMENT-RELATED EXPENSES The TDD Travel Reimbursement Form (see Appendix) serves as the “travel expense voucher” pursuant to Section 125.0104(9), Florida Statutes. F.100. County Travel and Related Expenses 1) Defined as travel undertaken and expenses incurred in the context of usual business travel for purposes including, but not limited to, staff development and professional education, meetings of professional affiliations, and staff retreats. Reimbursement for this travel and related expenses is governed by the County Purchasing Manual as applied under the provisions of Section 112.061, Florida Statutes. Additionally: a. Council members must receive travel approval in advance from the Board. 11 of 34 TDC 09-24-2015 BCC 10-20-2015 F.200. Promotional Travel and Entertainment-Related Expenses 1) Defined as travel undertaken and entertainment-related expenses incurred in the performance of promotional activities carried out pursuant to the Tourist Development Plan, Strategic Marketing Plan, and/or annual budget. Reimbursement for this travel and entertainment-related expenses is governed by the County Purchasing Manual as applied under the provisions of Section 112.061, Florida Statutes, as well as the provisions of Section 125.0104(9), Florida Statutes and this Manual. Additionally: a. Travel outside the United States requires approval in advance from the Board. b. The County recognizes the rental of furniture, services, and accessories may be required for attendance at trade shows in connection with the performance of promotional duties. These types of purchases shall be considered to be part of the registration fee for the trade show and shall not be considered payment in advance requiring Board approval. c. The County recognizes that deposits are typically required for the reservation of meeting space (e.g. road show) or catering services (e.g. familiarization tour) in connection with the performance of promotional duties. As long as the amount of the deposit does not exceed 50% of the total quoted cost, the deposit shall not be considered payment in advance requiring Board approval. d. The County recognizes that a glass of wine or other alcoholic beverage with dinner is customary within the tourism industry (e.g. meals for familiarization tours). As long as these expenses are reasonable and necessary in connection with the performance of promotional duties, they are authorized by Florida Statutes. County staff and the advertising agency will remain cognizant of the public perception of county funds being used to purchase alcohol. e. The County recognizes that tips and gratuities are customary within the tourism industry (e.g. tours, excursions). As long as these expenses are reasonable and necessary in connection with the performance of promotional duties, they are authorized by Florida Statutes. County staff and the advertising agency will remain cognizant of the public perception of county funds being used for this purpose and will limit tips and gratuities to no more than 20% of the retail cost exclusive of taxes or other fees. f. The County recognizes that giveaways (e.g. overnight stay, tour tickets, airline tickets) are customary within the tourism industry (e.g. familiarization tours, road shows). As long as these expenses are reasonable and necessary in connection with the performance of promotional duties, they are authorized by Florida Statutes. County staff and the advertising agency will remain cognizant of the public perception of county funds being used for this purpose and will attempt to receive such items on a compensatory basis from partners prior to purchase with tourist development tax dollars. F.300. Promotional Entertainment-Related Expenses (Not Travel-Related) 1) Defined as entertainment-related expenses incurred in the performance of promotional activities carried out pursuant to the Tourist Development Plan, Strategic Marketing Plan, and/or annual budget. Most commonly, these expenses will be food and beverage for meetings held with stakeholders related to authorized activities. Reimbursement for these entertainment-related expenses is governed by the County Purchasing Manual, the provisions of Section 125.0104(9), Florida Statutes and this Manual. 12 of 34 TDC 09-24-2015 BCC 10-20-2015 F.400. GIFTS, GRATUITIES, DISCOUNTS, SERVICES, FAVORS 1) TDD staff is prohibited from soliciting money, loans, credits, discounts, gifts, entertainment, favors or services (collectively referred to as “gifts” in this section) from present or potential vendors and partners for personal benefit. 2) TDD staff is prohibited from knowingly accepting, directly or indirectly, gifts from present or potential vendors and partners which might influence or appear to influence decisions or exhibit favoritism by the TDD and/or County. 3) Gifts offered less than nominal value (<$100) shall be evaluated as to intent and perception of acceptance to ensure that it is legal, that it will not influence decisions, and that it will not be perceived by the TDD, County, or tourism industry as unethical. 4) Gifts offered exceeding nominal value (>$100) shall be returned with an explanation or either 1) if perishable, donated to a charity in the name of the vendor or partner or made available to all TDD staff or 2) if non-perishable, turned over to the TDD Director for use in a future promotional activity or sweepstakes. G. DELEGATION OF SIGNATURE AUTHORITY G.100. DELEGATION OF SIGNATURE AUTHORITY In the Director’s absence, the Finance, Administration, and Compliance Manager shall have full signature authority of the Director. 13 of 34 TDC 09-24-2015 BCC 10-20-2015  SECTION THREE: OPERATIONAL & CAPITAL FUNDING REQUESTS ANNUAL APPLICATION DEADLINE: MAY 1 H.100. PURPOSE The TDD may provide operational and capital funding support to organizations promoting tourism within the sub-county taxing district, as authorized under Section 125.0104, Florida Statutes, and Okaloosa County’s Tourist Development Plan. H.200. AUTHORIZATION The TDD will set aside a portion of the overall annual budget as a budgeted line item to fund operational and capital funding requests approved in accordance with this Manual. H.300. APPLICATION PROCESS 1) The application must be completed in its entirety in order for the funding request to be presented to the Tourist Development Council for consideration. Supplemental information may be provided, but summary