2016-29527 Reso RESOLUTION NO. 2016-29527
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE EXPENDITURE
OF BUDGETED FUNDS IN REASONABLE AND NECESSARY
AMOUNTS FOR THE PUBLIC PURPOSE OF INFORMING AND
EDUCATING VOTERS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH REGARDING
BALLOT QUESTIONS ON THE CITY'S NOVEMBER 8, 2016 SPECIAL
ELECTION BALLOTS IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE A MORE INFORMED
ELECTORATE VOTE.
WHEREAS, the voters of the City of Miami Beach will be presented with City ballot
questions on November 8, 2016; and
WHEREAS, the Miami Beach City Commission believes that educating the voters on
these matters is in the public interest and serves a public purpose; and
WHEREAS, in an effort to explain and educate voters on each of these questions
through various methods, which may include a video presentation on the City's cable channel, a
voter's guide, and other means, the Administration is requesting approval to spend reasonable
and necessary budgeted amounts for video production, printing, graphics, translation services,
layout, mailing, advertising, and other miscellaneous costs as needed; and
WHEREAS, these expenditures will further serve the public purpose, given the City's
reasonable expectation that these efforts to explain the ballot questions and educate the voters
thereon will result in a more informed electorate vote, benefiting the public good.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT DULY RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the Mayor and City
Commission herein state that the public purpose is served by explaining to and educating the
City's voters on the City's ballot questions, which will appear on the City's November 8, 2016
Special Election ballots, and thus hereby approve the expenditure of budgeted funds in
reasonable and necessary amounts in furtherance of the aforestated public purpose, which is
intended to benefit the public good.
40
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 14th day of September, 2016. "/
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Resolutions - C7 C
MIAMI BEACH
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager and Rafael E. Granado, City
Clerk
DATE: September 14, 2016
SUBJECT: A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING AN EXPENDITURE OF BUDGETED
FUNDS IN REASONABLE AND NECESSARY AMOUNTS FOR THE PUBLIC
PURPOSE OF INFORMING AND EDUCATING VOTERS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI
BEACH REGARDING BALLOT QUESTIONS ON THE CITY'S NOVEMBER 8,
2016 SPECIAL ELECTION IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE A MORE INFORMED
ELECTORATE VOTE.
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt the Resolution.
ANALYSIS
The voters of the City of Miami Beach will be presented with City ballot questions on November
8, 2016. The City Administration believes that educating the voters on these matters is in the
public interest and serves a public purpose. In an effort to explain and educate voters on each
ballot question, the Administration will be preparing public education information through various
methods, which may include a video presentation on the City's cable channel, a voter's guide,
and other means. No additional funding is required to educate the public as the Administration
will use funds budgeted and appropriated in FY 2015/16 for MB magazine and MBTV for video
production, printing, graphics, translation services, layout, mailing, and other miscellaneous
costs as needed to disseminate the information. However, the Administration is requesting
authorization to spend these previously appropriated funds for this public purpose.
These expenditures will further serve the public purpose given the City's reasonable expectation
that these efforts at explaining the ballot questions and educating the voters will result in a more
informed electorate vote, benefiting the public good.
A copy of the Voter's Guide, which was authored by the Office of the City Attorney and edited by
the Office of the City Clerk, is attached hereto as Exhibit"A."
CONCLUSION
The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission adopt the Resolution.
KEY INTENDED OUTCOMES SUPPORTED
Page 370 of 2277
Enhance External And Internal Communication From And Within The City
FINANCIAL INFORMATION
No additional funding is required to educate the public, as the Administration will use funds
budgeted and appropriated in FY 15/16 for MB Magazine and MBTV.
Legislative Tracking
Office of the City Clerk/Marketing and Communications
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
❑ ExhibtA- Voter's Guide
❑ Resolution -Voter Education
Page 371 of 2277
VOTER'S GUIDE
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH'S NOVEMBER 8, 2016 SPECIAL ELECTION
GENERAL INFORMATION — DATES:
October 11, 2016: Deadline to register to vote.
October 24 through November 6, 2016: Early Voting. Vote at any of the Miami-Dade County Early Voting
sites, including the two sites located within the City of Miami Beach:
• Miami Beach City Hall (1st Floor Conference Room), 1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, and
• North Shore Branch Library (Program Room), 7501 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach.
For Early Voting times and additional Early Voting sites in Miami-Dade County contact the Miami-Dade
Elections Department at 305.499.VOTE (8683) or 305.499.8480 (TTY), or visit their website at
http://www.miamidade.gov/elections/home.asp.
November 2, 2016: Deadline to request a Vote-By-Mail ballot.
November 8, 2016: Election Day. Vote at the designated precinct printed on your Voter Information Card
issued by Miami-Dade County.
PURPOSE OF THIS VOTER'S GUIDE:
During the November 8, 2016 General Election, the City of Miami Beach will be conducting a Special Election
for the purpose of submitting three ballot questions to the City's voters. The City's ballot questions, as set forth
herein and followed by a brief explanation, will appear on the November 8, 2016 ballot, following any national,
state, or county issues.
The purpose of this Voter's Guide is to provide objective, impartial, and fact-based explanations of the City's
ballot questions, so that City voters may, in casting their votes, be more informed with respect to the City
issues presented to them at the polls. The explanations are intended to provide general information, and
members of the public seeking further information may contact the Office of the City Clerk at 305.673.7411 or
visit the City Clerk's website at http://www.miamibeachfl.gov/cityclerk/elections/.
Additional information regarding voter registration, Vote-By-Mail, Early Voting, finding your precinct, and how to
obtain a customized sample ballot may be obtained by visiting the Miami-Dade County Elections Department
webpage at http://www.miamidade.gov/elections/home.asp or calling 305.499.VOTE (8683) or 305.499.8480
(TTY).
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Page 372 of 2277
CITY BALLOT QUESTIONS WITH EXPLANATIONS:
Ballot Question 1
City Code Section 2-459: Establish Additional Exception to Prohibition on Lobbying by City Board
Members
City Code Section 2-459 prohibits City board members and their associates from lobbying City personnel and
agencies. Should this section be amended to include an exception allowing land use board (Board of
Adjustment, Design Review Board, Historic Preservation Board, Panel of Architects, and Planning Board)
members who are architects or landscape architects to lobby City personnel and agencies on land
development applications, except for applications before the board on which they serve?
Explanation of Ballot Question 1
In 1997, the Miami Beach City Commission adopted several laws affecting the City's Code of Conduct for City
officials and employees. These laws included City Code Section 2-459, which prohibits City board members
from directly or indirectly lobbying (seeking to encourage particular action on a specific issue) City personnel,
boards, and agencies.
Since its enactment almost two decades ago, however, the broadly worded lobbying prohibition in City Code
Section 2-459 has hindered the City's ability to recruit and retain qualified architects and landscape architects
to serve on the City's land use boards (Board of Adjustment, Design Review Board, Historic Preservation
Board, Panel of Architects, and Planning Board). City Code Section 2-459 prohibits City board members,
including architects and landscape architects who serve on land use boards, from appearing before any City
board (including the City's land use boards) to seek relief on behalf of their clients. As a result, fewer qualified
architects and landscape architects have applied for membership on the City's land use boards.
The City's land use boards are (by law or practice) primarily composed of architects or landscape architects.
As such, the City's inability to attract and retain qualified architects and landscape architects to serve as
members of the City's land use boards has disrupted the City's ability to fill vacant membership seats on these
boards. Vacancies on land use boards often result in the boards' inability to take action due to lack of quorum
(requiring the continuation of agenda items to a future board meeting and delays to land development
approvals).
This ballot measure addresses the above concerns by proposing a City Code amendment that would add the
following limited exception to the lobbying prohibition in City Code Section 2-459: architect and landscape
architect members of the City's land use boards would remain prohibited from lobbying members of the board
on which they serve and that board's related City staff. Such board members could, however, lobby the City's
other land use boards.
This proposed City Code amendment is consistent with Miami-Dade County's ethics rules for its board
members. (The Miami-Dade County Ethics Code prohibits members of County boards from lobbying only those
boards on which such members serve.)
Ballot Question 2
Lobbyists' annual disclosure of expenditures/compensation
City Code section 2-485 requires that lobbyists file annual statements listing all lobbying expenditures and
compensation received for the preceding calendar year regarding each issue the lobbyist was engaged to
lobby, such statement to be filed even if there were no such expenditures or compensation. Shall this Code
section be amended to provide that annual statements need not be filed by lobbyists if there have been no
such expenditures and compensation during the reporting period?
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Explanation of Ballot Question 2
The City's Ethics Code currently requires that persons who lobby (seek to encourage particular action on a
specific issue) City personnel must file with the City Clerk an annual statement disclosing all lobbying
expenditures and compensation received for the preceding calendar year regarding each issue the lobbyist
was engaged to lobby. Lobbyists who fail to timely file these annual disclosures are subject to fines imposed by
the Miami-Dade County Ethics Commission, even if a lobbyist has no expenditures or compensation to report
during a particular reporting period.
Pursuant to the request of the Miami-Dade County Ethics Commission, the City Commission has presented to
you the above ballot measure, proposing a City Code amendment that would delete the requirement that
lobbyists file these annual statements in those instances in which a lobbyist has no expenditures or
compensation to report. In 2012, the Miami-Dade County Commission removed an identical reporting
requirement from the County's Ethics Code, based in part upon its concern that a disproportionate amount of
the County Ethics Commission's investigatory resources was being devoted to these reports. The County
Ethics Commission, which enforces alleged violations of the City's Ethics Code, has stated that the City's
reporting requirement may no longer serve a significant public purpose, particularly because of the fact that a
vast majority of lobbyists subject to penalties for untimely filing have not incurred any expenditures or
compensation during the reporting period. (The City Clerk has analyzed lobbyist reports filed in 2015, and has
determined that 84% of the lobbyists cited for filing an untimely report had no compensation or expenditures to
report.)
If the voters approve this City Code amendment, lobbyists will still be required to file an annual expenditure
and compensation statement, but only in the event they have expenditures or compensation to report during
the preceding calendar year. This City Code amendment will not change the City Code's requirement
pertaining to mandatory annual lobbyist registration.
Ballot Question 3
Advisory, Non-binding Straw Ballot Question: Alcohol regulations for Ocean Drive between 5th - 15th
Streets
Should the Mayor and City Commission adopt an Ordinance stopping the sale and consumption of alcoholic
beverages at 2:00 a.m., instead of 5:00 a.m., for alcoholic beverage establishments located on Ocean Drive
between 5th and 15th Streets, except for indoor portions of alcoholic beverage establishments that are
completely enclosed and located entirely within hotels?
Explanation of Ballot Question 3
Currently, alcoholic beverage establishments located on Ocean Drive, between 5th and 15th Streets, are
permitted to serve alcoholic beverages until 5:00 a.m. each day. This advisory, non-binding straw ballot
question asks the voters whether the Mayor and City Commission should adopt an Ordinance requiring that
alcoholic beverage establishments located on Ocean Drive, between 5th and 15th Streets, stop the sale of
alcoholic beverages at 2:00 a.m., except for indoor portions of alcoholic beverage establishments that are
completely enclosed and located entirely within hotels.
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