Jacksonville, Florida
| Jacksonville, Florida | |
 | |
| General information | |
 | |
| Mayor: | Lenny Curry |
| Mayor party: | Republican |
| Last mayoral election: | 2023 |
| Next mayoral election: | 2027 |
| Last city council election: | City elections in Jacksonville, Florida (2019) |
| Next city council election: | 2023 |
| City council seats: | 19 |
| City website | |
| Composition data | |
| Population: | 842,583 |
| Gender: | Female 51.5% |
| Race: | White 59.4% African American 30.7% Asian 4.3% Two or More 2.9% |
| Ethnicity: | Hispanic or Latino 7.7% |
| Median household income: | $48,143 |
| High school graduation rate: | 87.2% |
| College graduation rate: | 24.7% |
| Related Jacksonville offices | |
| Florida Congressional Delegation Florida State Legislature Florida state executive offices | |
Jacksonville is a consolidated city-county in Florida. As of 2013, its population was 842,583.[1]
On October 1, 1968, the government of Duval County was consolidated with the government of the City of Jacksonville, although the Duval County cities of Atlantic Beach, Baldwin, Jacksonville Beach, and Neptune Beach are not included in the corporate limits of Jacksonville, and maintain their own municipal governments.[2]
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Jacksonville utilizes a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.[3]
Mayor
The mayor serves as the city's chief executive and is responsible for proposing a budget, signing legislation into law, appointing departmental directors and overseeing the city's day-to-day operations. The mayor also represents the city on the state, national and international levels.[3] Lenny Curry (R) is the current mayor of Jacksonville.[4]
City council
The Jacksonville City Council is the city's primary legislative body. It is responsible for adopting the city budget, approving mayoral appointees, levying taxes, and making or amending city laws, policies and ordinances.[5]
Membership
The Jacksonville City Council is made up of nineteen members. Fourteen are elected by district, while five are elected at large.[6]
A current list of council members can be found here.
Council Committees
The Jacksonville City Council features five standing committees and two special committees that focus on individual policy and legislative issues. Generally, the drafting of city legislation begins with the committees.[7]
A current list of Jacksonville City Council committees can be found here.
Boards and commissions
A series of advisory boards and commissions that are made up of non-elected citizens, whom city council members have appointed and approved, advises the Jacksonville City Council. The roles of these boards and commissions are to review, debate, and comment upon city policies and legislation and to make recommendations to the city council.[8]
For a full list of Jacksonville city boards and commissions, see here.
Other elected officials
Duval County residents also elect the following public officials:
| Office title | Officeholder name | Date assumed office | Party affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Duval County Clerk of Courts |
January 5, 2021 |
Republican Party |
|
|
Duval County Property Appraiser |
July 1, 2023 |
Democratic Party |
|
|
Duval County Supervisor of Elections |
July 1, 2023 |
Republican Party |
|
|
Duval County Tax Collector |
2019 |
Republican Party |
|
|
Jacksonville Sheriff |
January 3, 2023 |
Republican Party |
Special districts
Duval Soil and Water Conservation District
| “ | The Duval Soil and Water Conservation District was created in September of 1953 under the authority created by the Soil Conservation Act, passed by Florida Legislature in 1937. The Duval SWCD was organized by concerned citizens of Duval County to help landowners and users to conserve land, water, forests, wildlife and related natural resources.[9] | ” |
| —Duval Soil and Water Conservation District website[10] | ||
The Duval Soil and Water Conservation District is composed of five supervisors who are elected at large to four year terms. The table below provides information on each of the supervisors:
| Supervisors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Name | Party | Term start | Term end |
| Group 1 | Allen Moore |  Nonpartisan
|
2019 | 2023 |
| Group 2 | Edward Wright | Nonpartisan
|
2018 | 2021 |
| Group 3 | Jennifer Casey | Nonpartisan
|
2019 | 2023 |
| Group 4 | Hunter Anderson | Nonpartisan
|
2017 | 2021 |
| Group 5 | James Cook | Nonpartisan
|
2019 | 2023 |
Mayoral partisanship
Jacksonville has a Democratic mayor. As of September 2025, 66 mayors in the largest 100 cities by population are affiliated with the Democratic Party, 23 are affiliated with the Republican Party, one is affiliated with the Libertarian Party, three are independents, five identify as nonpartisan or unaffiliated, and two mayors' affiliations are unknown. Click here for a list of the 100 largest cities' mayors and their partisan affiliations.
Mayoral elections are officially nonpartisan in most of the nation's largest cities. However, many officeholders are affiliated with political parties. Ballotpedia uses one or more of the following sources to identify each officeholder's partisan affiliation: (1) direct communication from the officeholder, (2) current or previous candidacy for partisan office, or (3) identification of partisan affiliation by multiple media outlets.
Elections
2019
2018
Jacksonville, Florida, held a special election for tax collector and District 12 of the city council on August 28, 2018. A runoff election was held on November 6, 2018. The filing deadline for candidates for tax collector was June 22, 2018, and the deadline for candidates for city council was June 27, 2018.[11][12]
2015
The city of Jacksonville, Florida, held elections for mayor and city council on May 19, 2015. A primary took place on March 24, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was January 16, 2015. All 19 city council seats were up for election.[13]
Census information
The table below shows demographic information about the city.
| Demographic data for Jacksonville, Florida (2015) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville | Florida | |
| Total population: | 846,951 | 20,244,914 |
| Land area (square miles): | 747 | 53,625 |
| Race and ethnicity[14] | ||
| White: | 60.1% | 76% |
| Black/African American: | 30.6% | 16.1% |
| Asian: | 4.5% | 2.6% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.3% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Two or more: | 3.4% | 2.4% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 8.5% | 23.7% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 88.2% | 86.9% |
| College graduation rate: | 26.3% | 27.3% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $46,764 | $47,507 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 17.7% | 19.8% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) | ||
Budget
The city's budget process operates by fiscal years (FY) running from October 1 to September 30 of the next year. The budget process begins with a review of department budget proposals by the city's Budget Division. The Budget Division passes along these proposals to the Mayor's Budget Review Committee (MBRC). The mayor presents a budget draft produced by the MBRC to the city council by May 1. The City Council Finance Committee reviews the budget proposal before presenting to the full council. Two public hearings about the proposed budget must be held prior to approval of a final budget by October 1.[15]
2016-2017
Jacksonville's total budget for the 2016-2017 fiscal year was $2.2 billion. The general fund comprised the largest portion of the budget at $1.2 billion.[16]
Highlights from the budget included:
| “ |
|
” |
2015-2016
Mayor Lenny Curry proposed an operating budget for the 2015-2016 fiscal year on July 20, 2015. The 2015-2016 city budget was approved by the city council in a 19-0 vote on September 21, 2015.[17] The approved budget included $1.04 billion in expenditures and $1.04 billion in revenue, which are both 3 percent increases over the 2014-2015 budget. Highlights from the approved budget included no increase in property taxes and $1 million to increase library hours by 10 percent.[18]
Infrastructure
Some items that received funding from this portion of the budget included:
- $37 million for repairs to Liberty Street and surrounding roads
- $6.5 million for storm water drainage system upgrades
- $1.8 million for inspection and maintenance of the St. Johns River Ferry
- $1.6 million for sidewalk construction and repairs[17]
Public safety
Some items that received funding from this portion of the budget included:
- $3 million in additional funds for crime prevention activities by Jacksonville Journey
- $2.7 million for 40 additional police officers and 40 community service officers[18]
Contact Information
Mayor's Office
City Hall at St. James Building
117 W. Duval St. Suite 400
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Phone: (904) 630-1776
Email: mayorbrown@coj.net
To contact individual council members, see here
Lobbying
- See also: Florida government sector lobbying and Florida League of Cities.
Jacksonville reported that it spent a total of $2.6 million on lobbying between 2000-2011 (see table). No data is available after 2011.[19]
| Year | Amount spent on lobbying |
|---|---|
| 2011 | 120,000 |
| 2010 | $210,000 |
| 2009 | $400,000 |
| 2008 | $360,000 |
| 2007 | $360,000 |
| 2006 | $200,000 |
| 2005 | $260,000 |
| 2004 | $400,000 |
| 2003 | $280,000 |
| 2002 | $260,000 |
| 2001 | $120,000 |
| 2000 | $120,000 |
Jacksonville pays membership dues to the Florida League of Cities, a government sector lobbying association.[20]
Ballot measures
- See also: Duval County, Florida ballot measures
The city of Jacksonville is in Duval County. A list of ballot measures in Duval County is available here.
Issues in the city
Council opposes extending term limits for city officials
On August 22, 2017, the Jacksonville City Council defeated a bill which would have authorized placing a referendum before city voters in 2018 to ease the term limits for elected city officials. City council members are currently restricted to serving just two consecutive four-year terms, which was instituted in a 1991 referendum. The new proposal, which was rejected by an 11-6 council vote, would have asked residents whether to increase that limit to three terms, or 12 years. Supporters of the measure argued that current voters should have the opportunity to weigh in on the term limits issue, since the original referendum was decided over 25 years ago. Opponents stated that they believed that few city residents wanted to revisit the issue and were concerned that the council would be perceived as self-serving.[21]
Nondiscrimination laws
In July 2015, the Movement Advancement Project described Jacksonville, Florida, as a city or county that did not prohibit discrimination in employment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity via ordinances that apply to public and private employers. At that time, a total of 71 of America's largest 100 cities prohibited private employers from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation, while 69 of those cities also prohibited discrimination based on gender identity. This did not include those jurisdictions that prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity for government employees.[22]
Nondiscrimination laws can cover a variety of areas, including public employment, private employment, housing, and public accommodations. Such laws may be enacted at the state, county, or city level.
See also
External links
- Official website of the City of Jacksonville
- Office of the Mayor
- City Council
- Jacksonville Municipal Code
Footnotes
- ↑ U.S. Census, "State and County Quick Facts," accessed August 19, 2014
- ↑ The Jacksonville Historical Society, "Consolidation," accessed April 18, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 City of Jacksonville, "Government," accessed October 29, 2014
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "Office of the Mayor," accessed October 29, 2014
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "City Council," accessed October 29, 2014
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "Council Members," accessed October 29, 2014
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "Standing Committees," accessed October 29, 2014
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "Boards and Commissions," accessed October 29, 2014
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Duval Soil and Water Conservation District, "Home," accessed September 21, 2017
- ↑ Duval County Elections, "Notice of Special Election for the Office of City Council District 12," accessed June 14, 2018
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, Duval County Elections, "Notice of Special Election for the Office of Tax Collector," accessed June 14, 2018
- ↑ Duval County Supervisor of Elections, "Upcoming Elections," accessed September 19, 2014
- ↑ Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "Budget Process," accessed September 22, 2015
- ↑ City of Jacksonville, "FY 16-17 Budget Summary," accessed June 25, 2017
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 The Florida Times-Union, "Council approves city budget that doesn't raise property tax rates, prioritizes public safety," September 22, 2015
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 City of Jacksonville, "FY15-16 Proposed Budget," accessed September 22, 2015
- ↑ Open Secrets, "City of Jacksonville, FL," accessed October 19, 2014
- ↑ Florida League of Cities, "Membership Directory," accessed August 19, 2014
- ↑ WJCT, "Jacksonville City Council Votes Down Term-Limit Referendum," August 22, 2017
- ↑ Movement Advancement Project, "Local Employment Non-Discrimination Ordinances," accessed July 7, 2015
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