With a unanimous vote on June 23, the Jacksonville Port Authority board granted JaxPort CEO Eric Green a five-year contract extension and a 15% raise in his base compensation.
Green, JaxPort’s top administrator for the past eight years, will receive an annual base salary of $550,000 through 2032 under the extension.
The agreement also includes a bonus enhancement for Green, who will now be eligible to receive up to 50% of his base salary in bonuses versus the current 35%. The bonuses are based on JaxPort achieving growth metrics in financial performance and shipping volume.
In another change, Green will be compensated for flying business class at his discretion on flights eight hours or longer.
The salary increase for Green is effective July 1. The bonus enhancement is set to begin in two years when Green’s work agreement was set to expire before the extension.
Budget approved
The extension came on the same day the board approved an operating budget with $74.85 million in operating revenue, an increase of 12.38% over the original 2024-25 fiscal year budget, and $58.7 million in operating expenses, an increase of 6.89% over the 2024-25 original budget.
The board also approved a $173.1 million capital project budget for the coming fiscal year, the majority of which ($94.29 million) is funded through federal, state and tenant contributions.
Green told board members that unlike him, the CEOs of most ports are not natives of the cities where the ports are located.
He said he was proud “not only to serve my community but also watch individuals that I grew up with obtain jobs that I participated in helping come to Jacksonville.”
“It becomes a little emotional when I look around the room and see people I went to school with who work at the port,” he said.
“The board is proud of you. We trust you,” board member Patrick Kilbane said. “Your relationships with federal, state and local partners, in addition to the team you’ve assembled and lead, warrant this.”