1st Term Accomplishments

Fiscal Responsibility

• Lower Property taxes
  • Led the reduction of the city millage rate to 6.000% for FY2026, making Jeremy the first commissioner since 2012 to successfully lower the tax rate
  • Reduced mileage tax rate from 6.1644% to 6.000% (approved September 2025)
• Reject Deficit Spending 
  • Consistently voted against deficit-spending city budgets for FY2024, FY2025 & FY2026 budgets
  • City budgets have grown over 65% since 2021
  • Proposed specific budget areas for reduction each year; measures were ultimately voted down 4-1
• Reduce City Debt
  • Helped eliminate more than $10 million in city debt over four years, by effectively managing new city debt
    1. FY2022:  $40.2M total city debt (Budget p. G-26)
    2. FY2026:  $30.8M total city debt (Budget p. H-256)

• Increase City Reserves
  • Voted to increase city reserve balances by +1% annually, strengthening Cocoa Beach’s financial stability.  City Ordinance 1681
• Impact Fees 
  • Approved city ordinance to implement impact fees for new development, used to offset resident burden to pay entire Capital Improvement project costs.  Forecasted to save residents $500k-$750k per year in property tax obligations.  City Ordinance 1709  (Jan/Feb 2026)
• Florida DOGE initiative
  • Proposed and secured approval of a Florida DOGE resolution to leverage state resources
  • Aimed at removing state-imposed restrictions on the use of Tourist Development Tax funds for public safety costs (April 2025)

Residents First

• Short-Term Rental property enforcement 
  • Initiated Cocoa Beach’s first STR enforcement plan, by proposing a FY2025 budget amendment to add one dedicated Code Enforcement Officer for STR registration and enforcement (October 24, 2024 Commission meeting).
  • Addressed the city’s number one resident complaint after years without an actionable management plan
  • Supported and approved all subsequent STR enforcement measures brought forward by city staff (Spring 2025)
• Nuisance Noise Management 
  • Initiated and approved Cocoa Beach’s Noise Management Ordinance following multiple commission workshops (Spring 2023)
  • Approved Ordinance 1678 (Cocoa Beach LDC Sec. 13.5-20), improving nuisance noise enforcement and resident quality of life (July 2023)
• "In God We Trust" - Led Commission vote to add official motto of United States of America and State of Florida, to all marked Cocoa Beach Police vehicles (Fall 2024)

Quality of Life Initiatives

• Waterway & Recreation Improvements
  • Led commission efforts to renovate the Holiday Lane Boat Ramp by reallocating project under-runs.  Delivered improvements with $0 cost impact to residents (January 16, 2025 Commission meeting)
  • Approved (2) ADA-compliant Beach Crossovers - (Jan 2026)
  • approved 
• Tennis Court renovations
  • Approved contract with United States Tennis Association for $1.2M renovations at $0 impact to resident taxes
• Downtown Beautification
  • Approved matching grants to help local businesses invest in beautification, including:
    1. Juice N’ Java
    2. The Pointe Church
    3. Catalyst Surf Shop
    4. Slow & Low Barbecue
    5. Dirty Birds
    6. Epic Boardsports
    7. Drift House

• Cocoa Beach Centennial Celebration
  • Approved events celebrating Cocoa Beach’s 100th birthday, including an innovative July 4 Drone Show

Strong City Leadership

• Supported key public safety leadership appointments:
  • Chief of Police:  Kris Kuehn (2026), Wes Mullins (2024),  
  • Fire Chief:  Justin Grimes (2024)

City Manager Appointments

• Approved stable and accountable city management:
  • AJ Hutson (2025)
  • Wes Mullins (2026)