HomeMy WebLinkAboutO-2012-019 Lobbying Regulation and Registration ORDINANCE NO. 2012-019
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DANIA
BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING THE CITY CODE OF ORDINANCES BY
REPEALING SECTION 2-1.2 ("LOBBYISTS; REGISTRATION AND
DISCLOSURE; ENFORCEMENT") OF THE CITY CODE OF ORDINANCES
AND SECTION 2-1.4 ("ANNUAL LOBBYIST REGISTRATION FEE") OF
THE CODE; FURTHER, CREATING ARTICLE XI, "LOBBYING
REGULATIONS" OF CHAPTER 2, "ADMINISTRATION" OF THE CITY
CODE OF ORDINANCES; PROVIDING FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A
LOBBYIST REGISTRATION SYSTEM IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION
1-19, "CODE OF ETHICS FOR ELECTED OFFICIALS" OF THE BROWARD
COUNTY CODE OF ORDINANCES; PROVIDING FOR DEFINITIONS,
REPORTING OF LOBBYING ACTIVITIES, PENALTIES, AND
INCORPORATION OF SUBSEQUENT BROWARD COUNTY CODE
AMENDMENTS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; FURTHER,
PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners has recently amended Section 1-19,
"Code of Ethics for Elected Officials" of the Broward County Code of Ordinances to generally
subject all elected municipal officials to the Code of Ethics imposed on the Board of County
Commissioners, and such Code as applicable to municipal officials becomes effective on January
2, 2012; and
WHEREAS, the County Ethics Code requires that any lobbyist who intends on engaging
in lobbying activities with City Commissioners must register as a lobbyist with the City; and
WHEREAS, the City Commission desires to create a lobbyist registration system in
order to facilitate compliance with the requirements of the County Ethics Code;
NOW, THEREFORE,BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE
CITY OF DANIA BEACH, FLORIDA:
Section 1. Recitals Adopted. That each of the above stated recitals is adopted and
confirmed.
Section 2. That Sections 2-1.2, "Lobbyists; registration and disclosure; enforcement'
and 2-1.4, "Annual lobbyist registration fee" of Article I, "In General' of the City Code of
Ordinances are repealed in their entireties.
Section 3. City Code Amended. That Article XI to be entitled "Lobbyist
Regulations" of Chapter 2, "Administration" of the City Code of Ordinances is created and
adopted as new provisions of the City Code, and the Article shall read as follows:
ARTICLE XI. LOBBYIST REGULATIONS.
Section 2-230. Definitions.
(A) The following terms, when used in the Article, shall have the meaning ascribed to
them in this Article, unless the context indicates otherwise:
1. "Contractor" means any person or entity having a contract with the City
of Dania Beach, Florida(the "City").
2. "Covered Individual" means (i) any member of the City Commission of
the City; (ii) any member of a final decision-making body under the
jurisdiction of the City Commission; (iii) any individual directly appointed
to a City employment position by the City Commission; (iv) any
individual serving on a contractual basis as the City's chief legal counsel
(i.e., City Attorney) or chief administrative officer (i.e., City Manager),
when such individual is acting in his or her official capacity; (v) any
member of a selection, evaluation, or procurement committee of the City
that ranks or makes recommendations to any final decision-making
authority regarding a City procurement; (vi) any employee, official, or
member of a committee of the City that has authority to make a final
decision regarding a public procurement; and (vii) the head of any
department, division, or office of the City government who makes final
recommendations to a final decision-making authority of the City
regarding items that will be decided by the final decision-making authority
of the City.
3. "Elected Official"means any member of the City Commission of the City.
4. "Filed for Public Inspection" means that a lobbyist registration form is
completed legibly and is filed with the City Clerk, with a copy of the form
or all 'information contained on it placed into the City's governmental
database, which database shall be searchable by internet.
5. "Final Decision-Making Authority" means (i) the City Commission; (ii)
the Mayor; (iii) final decision-making bodies under the jurisdiction of the
City Commission; (iv) any employee, official, or committee of the City
who or which has authority to make a final decision to select a vendor or
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provider in connection with a public procurement by the City; and (v) any
other quasi-judicial boards, appointed boards, and commissions of the
City.
6. "Lobbying" or "Lobbying Activities" means a communication, by any
means, from a lobbyist to a covered individual regarding any item that will
foreseeably be decided by a final decision-making authority, which
communication seeks to influence, convince, or persuade the covered
individual to support or oppose the item. Lobbying does not include
communications:
a. Made on the record at a duly-noticed public meeting or hearing; or
b. From an attorney to an attorney representing the City regarding a
pending or imminent judicial or adversarial administrative
proceeding against the City.
7. "Lobbyist"means a person who is retained, with or without compensation,
for the purpose of lobbying, or a person who is employed by another
person or entity, on a full-time or part-time basis, principally to lobby on
behalf of that other person or entity. "Lobbyist" does not include a person
who is:
a. An elected official, employee, or appointee of Broward County or
of any municipality within Broward County communicating in his
or her official capacity.
b. An individual who communicates on his or her own behalf, or on
behalf of a person or entity employing the individual on a full-time
or part-time basis, unless the individual is principally employed by
that person or entity to lobby.
C. Any employee, officer, or board member of a homeowners'
association, condominium association, or neighborhood
association when addressing, in his or her capacity as an employee,
officer, or board member of such association, an issue impacting
the association or its members; or
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d. Any employee, an officer, or a board member of a nonprofit public
interest entity (e.g., Sierra Club,NAACP, ACLU) when addressing
an issue impacting a constituent of that entity.
(B) All operative words or terms used in this Article not defined in this Ordinance
shall be as defined, in order of priority in the event of inconsistency, by Part III of Florida
Statutes Chapter 112, the Broward County Code of Ordinances, and the Broward County
Administrative Code.
Section 2-231. Lobbyist Registration.
(A) Prior to engaging in any lobbying activities, whether or not compensation is paid
or received in connection with those activities, each lobbyist shall:
(1) File with the City Clerk, in a form prescribed by the City Clerk, an annual
registration statement under oath containing the following information:
a. The lobbyist's full name, residence address, business name,
business address, email address, and nature of business.
b. The full name and address of all persons on whose behalf the
lobbyist will be lobbying. If, after filing the registration statement,
the lobbyist intends to lobby on behalf of any person(s) not listed
on the registration statement, the lobbyist shall, prior to engaging
in any lobbying activities on behalf of such unlisted person(s), file
an amendment to the registration statement in a form prescribed by
the City Clerk, containing all the information required in the
annual registration statement.
C. The general and specific subject matters which the lobbyist seeks
to influence.
d. The extent of any direct business association by the lobbyist with
any current elected or appointed official or employee of City. For
the purposes of this Article, the term "direct business association"
shall mean any mutual endeavor undertaken for profit or
compensation.
e. A lobbyist representing a group, association, or organization shall,
prior to engaging in lobbying, receive appropriate authorization
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from such group, association, or organization to lobby on its behalf
upon a particular subject matter. A copy of the applicable minutes,
motion, or other written documentation of the action providing
such authorization shall be attached to the registration statement.
f. A lobbyist representing a principal or employer shall file a copy of
a written statement of the principal or employer confirming
authorization to lobby for the principal or employer.
(2) Pay to the City Clerk's Office an annual One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)
registration fee for each principal or employer, identified on an annual or
amended registration statement, on whose behalf he or she intends to
lobby, whether he or she was retained directly by the principal or
employer or by another Lobbyist retained by the principal or employer.
The registration fees required by this Section shall be expended by the
City Clerk's Office solely for the purpose of defraying the administrative
costs of implementing, monitoring, and otherwise ensuring compliance
with this Section. A lobbyist, who is lobbying as a volunteer for a non-
profit organization, without any compensation, is not required to pay a
registration fee in connection with those uncompensated lobbying
activities, but shall be required to register.
(B) A lobbyist is required to promptly amend any filed registration statement if any
information in the statement changes.
(C) Registration statements shall cover the time period of January 1 of a given year
through December 31 of the same year. Registration fees paid under (A)(2) above cover
lobbying activities during the effective period of the registration statement. A new registration
statement shall be filed, and all required fees shall be paid, prior to engaging in any lobbying
activities after expiration of a previously-filed registration statement.
(D) Disclosure Statement Required.
(1) On or before January 15 of each year, each lobbyist shall submit to the
City Clerk's Office, in a form prescribed by the City Clerk, a signed
statement under oath, disclosing all lobbying expenditures, and the sources
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from which funds for making such expenditures have come. The statement
shall provide such information with respect to all lobbying activities
undertaken from January 1 of the prior year through December 31 of that
year. Lobbying expenditures shall not include personal expenses for
lodging, meals, and travel; provided however, that any such expenses and
any other costs incurred solely in connection with lobbying activities must
be submitted. A statement shall be filed even if there have been no
expenditures during a reported period. A public official acting in his or her
official capacity shall not be required to file the statement required by this
subsection.
(2) The City Clerk shall provide for a procedure by which a lobbyist who fails
to timely file a disclosure statement shall be notified and assessed fines.
The procedure shall provide for the following:
a. Upon determining that the statement is late, the person designated
to review the timeliness of the statement shall promptly notify the
lobbyist as to the failure to timely file the statement and that a fine
is being assessed for each late day. The fine shall be Fifty Dollars
($50.00)per day for each late day.
b. Upon receipt of the late-filed statement, the person designated to
review the timeliness of the statement shall determine the amount
of the fine due.
C. Such fine shall be paid within twenty (20) days after receipt of the
notice of payment due, unless timely appeal is made to the City
Commission.
d. A fine shall not be assessed against a lobbyist the first time any
statement for which the lobbyist is responsible is not timely filed,
provided all statements for which the lobbyist is responsible are
filed within twenty (20) days after receipt of notice that any
statements have not been timely filed. A fine shall be assessed for
any subsequent late-filed statement.
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e. Any lobbyist may appeal a fine, based upon unusual circumstances
surrounding the failure to file by the designated due date, and may
request and shall be entitled to a hearing before the City
Commission, which shall have the authority to waive the fine in
whole or in part for good cause shown. To be entitled to such
appeal, the lobbyist must, within twenty (20) days after receipt of
the notice of payment due, deliver a letter requesting a hearing to
the person designated to review the timeliness of statements.
(E) List of Current Lobbyists. The City Clerk's Office shall keep a current list of
registered lobbyists and their respective statements required under this Article, all of which shall
be open for public inspection. The City Clerk shall routinely provide a copy of the lobbyist
registration list to City Commission members.
(F) Partial Year Filing Required. Discontinuance of lobbying activities during a year
shall not relieve the lobbyist of the requirement to file the statement required by subsection
(D)(1) above for that portion of the year during which the lobbyist was engaged in lobbying
activities.
Section 2-232. Reporting of Lobbying Activities.
(A) To promote full and complete transparency, lobbyists and their principals or
employers who intend to meet or otherwise communicate with a City Commissioner for the
purpose of engaging in lobbying activities, either at the Commissioner's offices or elsewhere on
the City government's premises, must legibly complete a contact log, listing each City
Commissioner with whom the lobbyist, principal, or employer meets or intends on meeting or
communicating.
(1) The information stated on the contact log shall include the lobbyist's
name; the name of the entity or person by which or by whom the lobbyist
is employed; the name of the person or entity for whom or which he or she
is lobbying; the name of an principal or employer of the lobbyist who is
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present at any meeting at which the communication is made; the name of
each City Commissioner with whom he or she is meeting or
communicating; the date and time of each such meeting; and the specific
purpose and subject matter of each such meeting.
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(2) The contact log shall be completed contemporaneously with the
meeting(s) and shall be filed for public inspection with the office of the
City Clerk.
(B) To further promote full and complete transparency, City Commissioners must
disclose any and all lobbying activity that knowingly occurs between themselves and individual
lobbyists, their principals or employers outside of the City premises. This shall include
communicating by any form of telephonic or electronic media.
(1) The disclosure shall include the lobbyist's name; the name of the entity or
person by which or by whom the lobbyist is employed; the name of the
person or entity for whom or which he or she is lobbying; the name of any
principal or employer of the lobbyist who is present at any meeting at
which the communication is made; the date, time, and location of the
meeting; and the specific purpose and subject matter of the meeting.
(2) The disclosure shall be made within ten(10) business days of the lobbying
activity, but must, in any event, be made prior to any vote on a matter that
was the subject of the lobbying activity.
(3) The disclosure shall be filed for public inspection with the office of the
City Clerk.
Section 2-233. Penalties; Enforcement.
(A) The City Clerk, or designee, shall be informed of any person engaged in lobbying
activities who has failed to comply with the provisions of Section 2-231, and, in each such
instance, shall conduct such investigation as he, she, or they shall deem necessary under the
circumstances. The results of each investigation shall be reported to the City Commission.
(B) The Commission shall warn, reprimand, suspend, or prohibit the violator from
appearing on behalf of any person before the City Commission or any decision-making body
under the jurisdiction of the City Commission or from otherwise lobbying the City for any
person in any fashion for a period of time; provided, however, that any suspension or prohibition
may not exceed a period of two (2) years, and any of such sanctions shall not be imposed unless
the lobbyist (or the principal or employer of the lobbyist, as applicable) allegedly in violation has
been afforded reasonable notice and an opportunity to be heard. The penalties provided in this
Section shall be the exclusive penalties imposed for violations of Section 2-231, except as
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provided in Section 2-231(D). Further, the intentional failure or refusal of any lobbyist to
comply with any order of the City Commission suspending or prohibiting the lobbyist from
lobbying shall be punishable as provided by law and shall otherwise be subject to such civil
remedies as the City may pursue, including injunctive relief.
(C) The validity of any action taken by the City Commission, City employees, or any
decision-making body under the jurisdiction of the City Commission, shall not be affected by the
failure of any person to comply with the provisions of this Article.
(D) In addition to all other penalties in this Section, a principal or employer who has
retained a lobbyist(s) to lobby in connection with a competitive solicitation shall be deemed non-
responsive unless the principal or employer, in responding to the competitive solicitation,
certifies that each lobbyist retained has timely filed the registration or amended registration
required under Section 2-233. If, after awarding a contract in connection with the solicitation,
the City learns that the certification was erroneous, and upon investigation determines that the
error was willful or intentional on the part of the principal or employer, the City may, on that
basis, exercise any contractual right to terminate the contract for convenience.
(E) Except where a specific penalty or sanction is otherwise provided for above in
this Article XI, this Article XI shall be subject to enforcement under the Local Government Code
Enforcement Act, Chapter 162, F.S., as amended, and Section 1-8 of the City Code, as amended.
Enforcement may also be by suit for declaratory, injunctive or other appropriate relief in a court
of competent jurisdiction. The City expressly reserves its right, power and authority to act as the
civil or administrative agency having jurisdiction concerning an alleged violation of this Article
XI, and this reservation shall serve to fully preserve City's investigative and enforcement
authority.
Section 2-234. Certain County Code Amendments. In the event that the County Code is
subsequently amended to require a disclosure log of lobbyist meetings, or communications with
other covered individuals of the City, or both, as that term "covered individuals" is defined in
this Article, beyond that which is required by Section 2-232(A), the provisions of Section 2-232
shall be deemed to be amended accordingly so as to include those additional disclosure log
requirements as to other covered individuals of the City.
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Section 4. Severability. That if any section, clause, sentence or phrase of this
Ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction,
the holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance.
Section 5. Effective Date. That this Ordinance shall take effect immediately
upon its passage and adoption.
PASSED on first reading on July 24, 2012.
PASSED AND ADOPTED on second reading on August 14, 2012.
ATTEST:
LOUISE STILSON, CMC PATRICIA A. FLURY
CITY CLERK MAYOR
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APPROVED AS TO AND CORRECTNESS: 0
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