RESOLUTION 90-20079 RESOLUTION NO. 90-20079
A RESOLUTION CALLING FOR A SPECIAL ELECTION TO
BE HELD ON NOVEMBER 6, 1990 FOR THE PURPOSE OF
SUBMITTING TO THE ELECTORATE OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH AMENDMENTS TO SECTION 8 OF THE
MIAMI BEACH CITY CHARTER PROVIDING FOR FOUR
YEAR STAGGERED TERMS FOR CITY COMMISSIONERS,
WITH THE MAYOR'S TERM REMAINING AS TWO YEARS
AND PROVIDING FOR "RUN-OFF" ELECTIONS BETWEEN
THE TWO CANDIDATES WITH HIGHEST NUMBER OF VOTES
IF NO CANDIDATE RECEIVES A MAJORITY OF VOTES,
"RUN-OFF" WILL OCCUR TWO WEEKS AFTER THE
ELECTION, COMMENCING WITH THE NOVEMBER 1991
ELECTION.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH:
SECTION 1.
In accordance with provisions of the Charter of the City of Miami
Beach, Florida and the general laws of the State of Florida, a Special
Election is hereby called and directed to be held in the City of Miami
Beach, Florida, from 7 : 00 a.m. to 7: 00 p.m. on November 6, 1990 for the
purpose of submitting to the electorate the question as set forth
hereinafter.
SECTION 2 .
That the appropriate and proper Dade County election officials
shall conduct the said Special Election hereby called, with Dade
County' s certification of the results of said Special Election being
accepted by the City Commission. The official returns for each precinct
shall be furnished to the City Clerk of the City of Miami Beach as soon
as the ballots from all precincts have been tabulated and results duly
accepted by said appropriate Dade County Officials.
SECTION 3 .
Said voting precincts in the City of said Special Election shall
be as established by the proper and appropriate Dade County Election
Officials. All electors shall vote at the polling places and the voting
precincts in which the OFFICIAL REGISTRATION BOOKS show that the said
electors reside. A list of the voting precincts and the polling places
therein (subject to change by the Supervisor of Elections of Dade
County, in accordance with the laws of Florida) is attached hereto as
Exhibit A.
SECTION 4.
Registration of persons desiring to vote in the Special Election
shall be in accordance with the general law of the State of Florida
governing voter registration. Qualified persons may register to vote
at the City registration office located in the lobby of City Hall, 1700
Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, Florida 33139 , each and every
Wednesday until October 8 , 1990, between the hours of 9 : 00 a.m. and 4 : 30
p.m. , and at such other voter registration centers and during such times
as may be provided by the Supervisor of Elections of Dade County. All
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questions concerning voter registration should be directed to the Dade
County Elections Office, 111 N.W. 1st Street, Floor 19 , Miami, Florida
33130 ; Mailing Address: P.O. Box 012241, Miami, Florida 33101 ;
Telephone: (305) 375-5553 .
SECTION 5.
Copies of the proposed amendment shall be made available to the
electors at the office of the City Clerk from 9 : 00 a.m. to 5 : 00 p.m.
each day, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays excepted, not later than
thirty days prior to the date of said election.
SECTION 6.
Not less than thirty days ' notice of said Special Election shall
be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in Miami
Beach, Dade County, Florida. Such publication shall be made at least
once each week for four consecutive weeks next preceding said Special
Election.
SECTION 7 .
The notice of election shall be substantially in the following
form:
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA
NOTICE OF SPECIAL ELECTION
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT A SPECIAL ELECTION HAS
BEEN CALLED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, AND WILL BE HELD IN SAID CITY
FROM 7 : 00 A.M. UNTIL 7 : 00 P.M. ON THE 6TH DAY OF
NOVEMBER, 1990, AT WHICH TIME THERE SHALL BE
SUBMITTED TO THE DULY REGISTERED AND QUALIFIED
VOTERS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH THE FOLLOWING
QUESTION:
AMENDMENT TO CHARTER ESTABLISHING FOUR-YEAR
STAGGERED TERMS FOR CITY COMMISSIONERS AND RUN-OFF
ELECTIONS .
"SHALL MIAMI BEACH CITY CHARTER SECTION 8 BE AMENDED
TO ESTABLISH FOUR-YEAR STAGGERED TERMS FOR CITY
COMMISSIONERS, EXCLUDING THE MAYOR, BY DRAWING LOTS
TO DETERMINE WHICH HALF OF THE COMMISSION TERMS WILL
EXPIRE IN NOVEMBER, 1993 AND 1995 ; AND TO ESTABLISH
RUN-OFF ELECTIONS BETWEEN THE TWO CANDIDATES WITH
THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF VOTES IF NO CANDIDATE RECEIVES
MAJORITY OF VOTES ; RUN-OFF ELECTION WILL OCCUR TWO
WEEKS AFTER GENERAL ELECTION, COMMENCING NOVEMBER,
1991 ELECTION.
YES
NO
SECTION 8.
The official ballot to be used in the Special Election to be held
on November 6, 1990, hereby called, shall be in substantially the
following form, to-wit:
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OFFICIAL BALLOT
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA
NOTICE OF SPECIAL ELECTION, NOVEMBER 6, 1990
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT A SPECIAL ELECTION HAS
BEEN CALLED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, AND WILL BE HELD IN SAID CITY
FROM 7 : 00 A.M. UNTIL 7 : 00 P.M. ON THE 6TH DAY OF
NOVEMBER, 1990, AT WHICH TIME THERE SHALL BE
SUBMITTED TO THE DULY REGISTERED AND QUALIFIED
VOTERS OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH THE FOLLOWING
QUESTION:
AMENDMENT TO CHARTER ESTABLISHING FOUR-YEAR
STAGGERED TERMS FOR CITY COMMISSIONERS AND RUN-OFF
ELECTIONS .
"SHALL MIAMI BEACH CITY CHARTER SECTION 8 BE AMENDED
TO ESTABLISH FOUR-YEAR STAGGERED TERMS FOR CITY
COMMISSIONERS, EXCLUDING THE MAYOR, BY DRAWING LOTS
TO DETERMINE WHICH HALF OF THE COMMISSION TERMS WILL
EXPIRE IN NOVEMBER, 1993 AND 1995 ; AND TO ESTABLISH
RUN-OFF ELECTIONS BETWEEN THE TWO CANDIDATES WITH
THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF VOTES IF NO CANDIDATE RECEIVES
MAJORITY OF VOTES; RUN-OFF ELECTION WILL OCCUR TWO
WEEKS AFTER GENERAL ELECTION, COMMENCING NOVEMBER,
1991 ELECTION.
YES
NO
SECTION 9 .
Absentee voters participating in said Special Election shall be
entitled to cast their ballots in accordance with the provisions of the
laws of the State of Florida with respect to absentee voting.
SECTION 10.
That the City of Miami Beach shall pay all expenses for
conducting this Special Election and will pay to Dade County or directly
to all persons or firms, upon receipt of invoice or statement approved
by the Supervisor of Elections of Dade County, Florida.
SECTION 11.
This resolution shall be effective immediately upon its passage.
PASSED and ADOPTED this 5th day of September , 1990 .
ATTEST: MA'OR
FORM APPROVED
CITY CLERK LEGAL DEPT.
JKO/rg By
Date 0
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PROPOSED RELATED LAWS AMENDMENTS FOR
NOVEMBER 6, 1990 SPECIAL ELECTION
PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT RE:
STAGGERED TERMS AND RUN-OFF ELECTIONS
A. Proposed Ballot Question:
"SHALL MIAMI BEACH CITY CHARTER SECTION 8 BE AMENDED TO
ESTABLISH FOUR-YEAR STAGGERED TERMS FOR CITY COMMISSIONERS,
EXCLUDING THE MAYOR, BY DRAWING LOTS TO DETERMINE WHICH HALF
OF THE COMMISSION TERMS WILL EXPIRE IN NOVEMBER, 1993 AND
1995 ; AND TO ESTABLISH RUN-OFF ELECTIONS BETWEEN THE TWO
CANDIDATES WITH THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF VOTES IF NO CANDIDATE
RECEIVES MAJORITY OF VOTES; RUN-OFF ELECTION WILL OCCUR TWO
WEEKS AFTER GENERAL ELECTION, COMMENCING NOVEMBER, 1991
ELECTION.
YES
NO
B. Proposed Text:
Section 8 - Designation City officers; government vested in
certain officers; election and terms of office of commission;
organization of commission; powers and duties of mayor and
vice mayor; meetings of commission; commission restricted as
to other offices; forfeiture of office by elected and
appointed officials.
The form of government of the City of Miami Beach provided for
by this Charter shall be that known as the "commission-city
manager plan" . The city manager shall be appointed by and
serve at will of a majority of the commission. His
compensation shall be fixed by the city commission by
ordinance. He shall be chosen solely upon the basis of his
executive and administrative qualifications, and he need not
be a resident of the city or state at the time of his
appointment. During the absence or disability of the city
manager, the city commission may designate a properly
qualified person to temporarily execute the functions of the
office. The city manager shall be the chief administrative
officer of the city, with powers appropriate to the office.
He shall have power to appoint, with the approval of the
commission, the department directors herein provided for, who
shall thereafter serve at the will of the city manager. He
shall have power to appoint and remove at will, all other
officers or employees in the unclassified service of the city,
except those elected by the people; or appointed by the
commission; the employees in the mayor' s office who are in the
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unclassified service, for whom the mayor shall be the
appointing authority; the chief librarian; and the
unclassified personnel in the legal department who shall be
appointed and removed by the city attorney.
The city commission shall appoint a city manager,_a city
attorney, a municipal judge and two associate municipal
judges, who shall serve at the will of a majority of the
commission. The city commission may, by ordinance, abolish
all offices except those filled by the people, and except the
offices of the city manager, city attorney, municipal judge,
and the two associate municipal judges.
The city commission may, by ordinance, create such new offices
and departments, under the control of the city manager, as the
commission shall deem necessary or proper for the efficient
administration of the city government, and to provide for such
other matters necessarily or properly related to a commission-
city manager form of government. The city commission shall
deal with the administrative affairs of the city only through
the city manager; provided, however, that the commission shall
not be precluded from requesting or receiving information from
its administrative agencies. The city commission shall
consist of seven members who shall be legally qualified voters
of the city. The seven members who shall hold office
immediately prior to the election to be held in June, 1965,
shall hold office until the expiration of the terms for which
they were elected. In the general election to be held in said
city in June, 1965, there shall be three members of the said
city commission elected, one being elected for each Group
numbered I, II, and III respectively, as said groups are
hereinafter designated, and each of whom shall hold office for
a term of four years, and there shall also be a mayor elected,
who shall hold office for a term of two years. At the general
election to be held in June 1967 , there shall be three members
of the city commission elected, one being elected for each
Group numbered IV, V, and VI respectively, as said Groups are
hereinafter designated, and each of whom shall hold office for
a term of four years; and there shall also be a mayor elected
for a term of two years; and a general election shall be held
in November every two years thereafter to fill the offices of
those commissioners and the office of the mayor whose terms
shall have been expired. City Commissioners and the Mayor
shall be elected from the City at large. The City
commissioners shall be elected for Groups numbered and
designated I through VI in the manner hereinafter set forth:
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Those offices of commissioner held by the persons who received
the highest, second and third highest number of votes
respectively in the general election held in the city in June,
1961 are hereby designated as Groups I, II and III
respectively, and those offices of commissioner held by the
persons who received the highest, second and third highest
number of votes respectively in the general election held in
the City in June, 1963 , are hereby designated as Groups IV,
V, and VI respectively.
In the general election to be held in June 1965 for the
election of commissioners and the mayor, an incumbent
commissioner who seeks re-election to the office of
commissioner, whose term expires with said election, may
qualify for election for either Group I, Group II or Group
III, provided, however, that he shall designate the Group for
which he seeks election not later than ten days before the
last day for qualifying as a candidate in the said general
election to be held in June, 1965.
Following the said general election to be held in June 1965,
an incumbent commissioner seeking re-election to the office
of commissioner may thereafter qualify only for the group then
occupied by him, and no other.
No candidate for the office of commissioner shall be permitted
to qualify for more than one group, or for the office of
mayor.
Any incumbent commissioner who desires to qualify as a
candidate for mayor or commissioner at an election at which
his own term does not expire must qualify as such candidate
not less than ten days before the last day for qualification
for candidates and his office shall be deemed vacant on the
day of said election, and any eligible elector may qualify as
a candidate for election for the unexpired portion of the term
of the office so vacated.
Commencing with the election in November, 1973 , there shall
be no primary election, and commencing in November 1973 and
every two years thereafter, there shall be but one general
election for commissioners and the mayor, and the candidates
receiving the highest number of votes cast at said election
shall be deemed elected.
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All commissioners, and the mayor, of the City of Miami Beach,
shall be elected at a general election to be held on the first
Tuesday in November, 1975, as their terms expire, and every
two years thereafter, and candidates for the office of
commissioner and mayor to be voted upon by all the electors
of the City of Miami Beach.
Commencing with the general election on November 4 , 1975, and
every two years thereafter, all commissioners and the mayor
of the City of Miami Beach shall be elected for a term of two
years.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Charter, no later
than March 1, 1991, the City Clerk shall publicly draw lots
to determine whether each officials' term of office will
expire in November, 1993 or November, 1995. Three
Commissioners (and the groups they represent) shall have their
terms expire in November, 1993 and three Commissioners (and
the groups they represent) shall have their terms expire in
November, 1995. The Commission groups expiring in November,
1993 shall be designated groups I, II, and III ; and the
remaining three Commission groups shall be designated groups
IV, V, and VI , and the names of the incumbents shall be
reassigned to an appropriate group after the lot is drawn.
All subsequent Commission groups shall _receive four year
terms. The Mayor shall receive two year terms.
Commencing with the general election in November, 1991, a
candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be
deemed elected. If no candidate receives a majority of the
votes cast, there will be a run-off election between the two
candidates in each group receiving the highest number of
votes; should a tie result, the outcome shall be determined
by lot. This run-off election shall occur two weeks from the
date of general election.
In the event that no candidate has qualified in any group, or
for mayor, a vacancy shall be deemed to have occurred, and
shall he filled as provided by the Charter of the City of
Miami Beach for the filling of a vacancy in the office of
commissioner.
The mayor shall be the presiding officer at the meetings of
the commission and shall bear the title of mayor and shall
have a voice and a vote in the proceedings of the city
commission but no veto power, and he may use the title of
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mayor in any case in which the execution of legal instruments
in writing or other necessity arising from the general laws
of the state so requires; he shall sign all deeds, contracts,
bonds or other instruments of writing to which the city is a
party when authorized so to do by ordinance or resolution of
the city commission, but he shall not have the administrative
or judicial functions and powers of a mayor under the general
laws of the state. He shall be recognized as the official
head of the city by the courts for the purpose of serving
civil processes, by the governor in the exercise of military
law and for all ceremonial purposes and he shall, in addition
thereto, perform such other duties as may be by ordinance
prescribed by the city commission. The city commission shall,
at its first meeting after each general election, which shall
be within three days after the general election (or within
three days after the run-off election, if a run-off election
is held) , elect from its membership a vice-mayor who during
the absence or disability of the mayor, shall perform the
duties of mayor. In the absence or disability of both the
mayor and vice-mayor the said duties shall be performed by
another member appointed by the commission. The city
commission shall meet at such times as may be prescribed by
ordinance or resolution. The mayor, or the city manager, may
call special meetings of the commission upon at least twenty-
four hours ' written notice to each member, served personally,
or left at his usual place of abode; provided, however, that
the requirement of such written notice may be waived at a
special meeting by the unanimous vote of the commission. No
member of the city commission shall, during the time for which
he was elected, be appointed or elected to any city office
that has been created or the emoluments thereof shall have
been increased during such time.
There shall be a health advisory board that will hold regular
meetings to review and advise the administration and the
commission of all matters that relate to the health, welfare,
and safety of the citizens of Miami Beach.
The composition of the board shall consist of administrators
of local hospitals, an administrator from an ACLF, a
representative from the nursing profession, two (2) citizens
who are health providers, and three (3) consumers. There
shall be ex-officio a representative from the social services
department, a representative from the police department, and
a representative from the fire rescue department. These
appointments shall be made by the city manager for a period
not to exceed two (2) years.
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ORIGINAL
RESOLUTION NO. 90-20079
Calling a Special Election to be held on
November 6, 1990 for the purpose of sub-
mitting to the Electorate of the City of
Miami Beach Amendments to Section 8 of
the Miami Beach City Charter providing
for four year staggered terms for City
Commissioners, with the Mayor's term
remaining as two years and providing for
"Run-Off" Elections between the two
candidates with highest number of votes
if no candidate receives a majority of
votes, "Run-Off" will occur two weeks
after the Election, commencing with the
NOvember 1991 Election.