2007-26441 Reso
RESOLUTION NO. 2007-26441
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, APPROVING THE CITY'S
STATE LEGISLATIVE AGENDA FOR THE 2007 SESSION
OF THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE.
WHEREAS, the City must avail itself of all potential sources of funds; and
WHEREAS, State legislation may need to be enacted to protect and enhance the
City's interests; and
WHEREAS, it is imperative that the City's legislative consultant is aware of, and has
a list of, City priorities; and
WHEREAS, the City's State legislative team has met with the Mayor, City
Commissioners, and the Administration relative to the City's needs and priorities with
regard to the 2007 Session of the Florida Legislature; and
WHEREAS, the City's numerous State-level needs have been assessed and
prioritized to produce the most effective use of its legislative team.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the recommended State
Legislative Agenda for the 2007 Session of the Florida Legislature be approved.
PASSED and ADOPTED this 17th
day of January
,2007.
ATTEST:
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City Clerk
Robert Parcher
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COMMISSION ITEM SUMMARY
Condensed Title:
A Resolution approving the City's 2007 State Legislative Agenda
Key Intended Outcome Supported:
I Supports Multiple KIOs.
Issue:
Shall the City Commission approve the recommended list of State Legislative Priorities?
Item Summarv/Recommendation:
Each year, the Mayor and City Commission adopt the City's legislative priorities that will be
pursued by the City's representatives in Tallahassee during the regular session of the Florida
Legislature. The attached list of priorities was developed by the Administration in consultation
with the City's lobbyists, and by meetings held on December 12-13, 2006, between the Mayor
and each Commissioner and the City's lobbyists.
The recommended 2007 agenda includes legislative, funding, property insurance and
administrative issues. The critical priority areas are property insurance, claims bill, hurricane
mitigation, affordable housing, condominium reform, infrastructure funding, and education.
Advisory Board Recommendation:
I nla
Financial Information:
Source of Amount Account Approved
Funds: 1
D 2
3
4
OBPI Total
Financial Impact Summary:
City Clerk's Office Legislative Tracking:
I Kevin Crowder
Si n"()ffs:
Department Director
nt City Manager
City Manager
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MIAMIBEACH
AGENDA ITEM
DATE
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/-17-07
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1\1\ I ;\/\/\ I BEAC H
City of Miami Beach, 1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, Florida 33139, www.miamibeochfl.gov
COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
FROM:
Mayor David Dermer and Members of the City Commission
City Manager Jorge M. Gonzalez \,....- ~
January 17, 2007 0
TO:
DATE:
SUBJECT:
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY
OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, APPROVING THE CITY'S STATE
LEGISLATIVE AGENDA FOR THE 2007 SESSION OF THE FLORIDA
LEGISLATURE.
ADMINISTRATION RECOMMENDATION
Adopt the Resolution.
ANALYSIS
Each year, the Mayor and City Commission adopt the City's legislative priorities that will
be pursued by the City's representatives in Tallahassee during the regular session of the
Florida Legislature. The list of priorities included below was developed by the
Administration in consultation with the City's lobbyists, following meetings held on
December 12-13, 2006, between the Mayor and each Commissioner and the City's
lobbyists.
This year's recommended State Legislative Agenda includes issues that have appeared
on prior agendas and remain priorities of the City, as well as new issues that have been
identified.
The Administration has identified the following critical priority areas:
. Immediate rate reduction for property insurance;
. Approve the Tunc Claims Bill;
. Expand the eligibility requirements of the My Safe Florida Home Program;
. Create an affordable housing ad valorem tax deferral program;
. Implement condominium reform;
. Fund the City's stormwater, wastewater, and drinking water projects;
. Fund the City's West Avenue Bridge project;
. Increase funding for education.
In addition to the critical priorities identified above, the proposed State Legislative
Agenda has been separated into legislative, property insurance, and funding priorities
and is included below for Commission review, comment and approval.
January 17,2007 Commission Memorandum
State Legislative Priorities
Page 20f6
LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES
Claims Bills
The City supports Senate Bill 0076 (Tunc).
Condominium Reform
Increase the disclosure requirements and the level of detail that must be included
in engineering report results for condominium conversions, and create a conduit
financing mechanism for major condominium repairs.
Affordable Housing / Property Tax
Pursuant to Resolution No. 2006-26178, the Legislature should create an ad
valorem tax deferral program for the owners of apartment buildings who meet
certain rental rate thresholds and property maintenance standards, in an effort to
encourage their retention. The preservation of rental apartment buildings has the
greatest potential for addressing affordable housing issues. To this end, the
underlying fiscal and economic issues that are impacting inventory and cost must
be addressed. The Waterfronts Florida legislation adopted in 2005 sets forth a
process for application and administration of the tax deferral program, which
could be applied to a new program targeting affordable rental properties.
Pursuant to Resolution No. 2006-26131, the City supports legislation, including a
joint resolution proposing a constitutional amendment if necessary, to provide
property appraisers statewide an alternative assessment approach for multifamily
affordable housing properties.
Citywide Wireless Network
Oppose legislation that will limit or prohibit the City's ability to move forward with
this project.
Telecommunications and Cable Reform
Protect local authority over rights-of-way; require full build-out; retain local
funding from franchise agreements. (Resolution No. 2006-26169)
Bert J. Harris Act
The City opposes legislation that weakens or removes the sovereign immunity
provision in the Bert Harris Act, and further will work to support legislation that
not only maintains, but strengthens the sovereign immunity provision.
Convention Center Sales Tax Refund
The City supports the introduction and passage of legislation in the Florida
Legislature that will return 50% of the sales taxes remitted by eligible convention
centers to the municipality that owns the center for economic development
purposes.
Property Taxes
Oppose legislation that implements expenditure and/or revenue limitations on
local governments. The City supports the recommendation of the Property Tax
Reform Committee that the Committee should be allowed to continue to meet
and formulate recommendations. The Committee has recommended further
January 17, 2007 Commission Memorandum
State Legislative Priorities
Page 3 of 6
study of a number of issues.
Cellular Telephones
Pursuant to Resolution 2006-26241, the City of Miami Beach urges the Florida
Legislature to change Florida law to preclude cellular telephone usage by motor
vehicle operators while located in a school zone.
Equal Rights Amendment
Pursuant to Resolution No. 2006-26130, the Legislature should ratify the
proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Water Safety
Pursuant to Resolution No. 2006-26413, the City supports strengthening of
vessel safety regulations with regard to personal flotation device requirements to
conform to federal regulations that are stricter with regard to child age
requirements and vessel length.
Education Policy Statements
The City supports implementation of a student-specific, sliding scale for
administration of the FCAT, in order to bring the score up through the years, and
adjustments to the timing of its administration.
Monitor legislation that subverts local control of local school boards and
superintendents.
Fully fund the operating and capital outlay costs of implementing the class size
reduction constitutional amendment.
Oppose any attempt to equalize the 2 mill levy. (If equalized, Miami-Dade funding
would go to the other school districts)
Support state funding for a high quality, full-day Voluntary Pre-K program under
the Florida Department of Education.
Support amending the Florida Teacher Lead Program to include full-time pre-
kindergarten teachers. (Currently, all teachers, except pre-k teachers receive
$250 reimbursement for supplies they buy)
Modify the Jessica Lunsford Act to require Level II background screening only for
those persons who enter school grounds unsupervised and are in direct contact
with PreK-12 students.
PROPERTY INSURANCE PRIORITIES
Pursuant to Resolution No. 2006-26279, the Florida Legislature should address
the insurance crisis in Florida by incorporating the following guidelines:
. Solutions should provide immediate rate reduction;
January 17, 2007 Commission Memorandum
State Legislative Priorities
Page 4 of 6
. Consideration should be given to proposals that will depopulate Citizens;
. Allowing private insurance companies more freedom to raise rates is not
a suitable solution;
. Waiting on the federal government to create a national catastrophe fund
or tax-free savings accounts is insufficient;
. The Legislature should not be limited to only private market solutions;
. Give due consideration to proposals which restructure or expand the
Florida Catastrophe Fund, or create a larger reinsurance pool for
companies or a more affordable layer of statewide windstorm insurance.
Expand the eligibility criteria for the My Safe Florida Homes Program to include
hurricane mitigation measures for multi-family buildings. (Resolution No. 2006-
26302)
Create a grant program that assists multi-family buildings in complying with the
alternative power source requirement of Section 553.509, Florida Statutes.
(Resolution No. 2006-26302)
Place priority on the distribution of available mitigation funds to the highest risk
locations, as identified in part by the methodology used and the insurance rates
established by Citizens Property Insurance Corporation. (Resolution No. 2006-
26302)
The City supports the following recommendations of the Property Insurance
Reform Committee:
. Standardize discounts that policyholders receive for mitigation measures;
. Require insurers to offer dwelling limits for windstorm coverage that only
covers the outstanding balance of the mortgage;
. Begin state funded research concerning mitigation of commercial
structures;
. Require use of the FlU public model by all carriers to justify rates, and
require all modeling firms to recalibrate their models to take into account
the results of mitigation in Florida;
. Apply a uniform statewide building code.
FUNDING PRIORITIES
COMMUNITY BUDGET ISSUE REQUESTS (CBIR):
Stormwater Infrastructure Improvements
The City has submitted a CBIR to seek funding assistance for stormwater
infrastructure improvements in the amount of $5,000,000.
Wastewater Infrastructure Improvements
The City has submitted a CBIR to seek funding assistance for wastewater
infrastructure improvements in the amount of $2,000,000.
Drinking Water System Infrastructure Improvements
January 17, 2007 Commission Memorandum
State Legislative Priorities
Page 5 of 6
The City has submitted a CBIR to seek funding assistance for drinking water
infrastructure improvements in the amount of $7,000,000.
Transportation Improvements
The City has submitted a CBIR to seek funding assistance for the West Avenue
Bridge Project in the amount of $6.1 million. This project was authorized to
receive $1.4 million from the Transportation Equity Act.
Other Miami Beach Funding
The City will monitor funding levels for Miami Beach based organizations during
the budget process. In the past, organizations and projects that provide services
to the Miami Beach community have received earmarks, such as the Miami
Beach Senior Center and the meals program.
EDUCATION FUNDING:
Florida Education Finance Program
Increase educational funding through the Florida Education Finance Program
(FEFP) towards the national average in per pupil expenditures, taking into
account actual student enrollment, cost of living, equalizing features in the FEFP
fonmula, inflation, increasing utility and insurance costs, the actual cost of
delivering programs to special populations, and the principals of adequacy and
equity .
Teacher Housing
Create and fund a housing supplement for teachers whose district housing costs
are above the state average. Eligibility will be determined by household income.
GRANT PROGRAMS:
Support full funding of City projects in the FY 07 Hazard Mitigation Grant
Program and FY 05 Pre-disaster Mitigation Grant Program, and for City projects
submitted through Miami-Dade County to the State of Florida's FY 06/07
Domestic Security Program.
Create a grant program that assists in compliance with Section 558.509, F.S.
(Alternative Power Source for certain multi-family buildings).
The City supports full funding of cultural arts and historic preservation programs.
STATE BUDGET I.SSUES:
Affordable Housing
The City supports removal of the cap on the Sadowski Act Trust Funds and an
increase of the funding available through the State Housing Initiatives
Partnership (SHIP) and other programs. Increase the funding available through
the Community Workforce Housing Innovation Program (CWHIP and establish
this as a penmanent program). Modify the CWHIP program criteria to allow more
flexibility regarding the public/private partnership requirement.
January 17, 2007 Commission Memorandum
State Legislative Priorities
Page 6 of 6
Beach Renourishment
Fully fund beach renourishment at $30 million and support Miami-Dade County's
$5.5 million request for beach renourishment and Alternative Sand Test Beach
project funding.
Hurricane Mitigation / Property Insurance
Distribute the latest $100 million of federal Community Development Block Grant
funding in accordance with Congress's intent that particular emphasis be placed
on the repair, rehabilitation and reconstruction of affordable rental housing.
Adequately fund free inspections and matching grants for hurricane mitigation
improvements to multi-family buildings (apartments and condos), similar to the
My Safe Florida Home Program.
Create a grant program that assists multi-family buildings in complying with the
alternative power source requirement of Section 553.509, Florida Statutes.
Entertainment Industry Incentives
The City supports full funding of the Entertainment Industry Incentive Fund.
Conclusion
The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission review the
proposed legislative package, establish the priorities and adopt the attached Resolution.
JMG:HF:kc
Attachment
T:\AGENOA\2005\oec0705\RegularlState Legislative Agenda memo.doc