HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemorandumCITY OF MIAMI
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
MEMORANDUM
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Victoria Mendez, City Attorney ?)
DATE: March 8, 2018 .,
RE: Proposed amendment to Chapter 2 of the Code of the City of Miami,
Florida, as amended, for the City Commission Meeting on February 8,
2018.
File No. 3458
Chapter 2 of the Code of the City of Miami, Florida, as amended ("City Code"),
entitled "General Provisions," is being amended to update the language to comply with
current legal standards and practices.
Attachment(s)
VM/BLM
cc: Emilio T. Gonzalez, City Manager
Anna Medina, Agenda Coordinator
City of Miami File ID: 3458 (Revision:) Printed On: 3/28/2025
City of Miami
Legislation
Ordinance
Enactment Number:13749
City Hall
3500 Pan Ameican Drive
Miami, FL 33133
www.miamigov.com
File Number: 3458 Final Action Date: 3/8/2018
Chapter 2 of the Code of the City of Miami, Florida, as amended ("City Code"),
entitled "General Provisions," is being amended to update the language to comply with
current legal standards and practices.
Attachment(s)
VM/BLM
cc: Emilio T. Gonzalez, City Manager
Anna Medina, Agenda Coordinator
WHEREAS, Chapter 2/Article 1 of the Code of the City of Miami, Florida, as amended
("City Code"), was last amended by the City Commission in 2007 with some portions of the City
Code not being amended since 1980; and
WHEREAS, laws, standards, and practices have changed over the last decade; and
WHEREAS, Chapter 2/Article I of the City Code should be amended to comply with the
current legal standards and practices;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
MIAMI, FLORIDA:
Section 1. The recitals and findings contained in the Preamble to this Ordinance are
adopted by reference and incorporated as if fully set forth in this Section.
Section 2. Chapter 2/Article I of the City Code, entitled "Administration/In General", is
amended in the following particulars:1
"CHAPTER 2
ADMINISTRATION
ARTICLE I. IN GENERAL
1 Words and/or figures stricken through shall be deleted. Underscored words and/or figures shall be
added. The remaining provisions are now in effect and remain unchanged. Asterisks indicate omitted and
unchanged material.
City of Miami File ID: 3458 (Revision:) Printed On: 3/28/2025
Sec. 2-1. - City offices to be closed on Saturdays; exceptions.
Saturday of each week is hereby designated a legal holiday; and the public offices of
the City shall be closed on Saturday; except those offices whose personnel render services
essential to the health and,_safety, and general welfare of the citizens of the City, such as the
including but not limited to the Police, Fire -Rescue,. and General Services Administration
Departments and such other departments as shall be designated by the city manager to
remain open in the interest of the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens of the city.
Sec. 2-2. - Hearings and investigations —Authority of City officers to issue subpoenas, require
attendance of witnesses, etc.
Every officer of the City who is authorized in and by any provisions of the City Charter
to conduct hearings or investigations is hereby authorized and empowered to issue
subpoenas which shall require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books,
papers, records, and other evidence thereat, and is further authorized and empowered to
administer to any person the oath usually administered to witnesses and to require such
person to make a full and fair disclosure of all facts within his the witness' knowledge which
are properly relevant to the subject matter of any such hearing or investigation.
Sec. 2-3. - Same —Right of person subject to hearing or investigation to require attendance of
witnesses, production of books, papers, etc.
Every person whose conduct or activities are the subject of any hearing or
investigation by an officer of the City shall have the right to require subpoenas to be issued in
his or her behalf to require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers,
records, or other evidence thereat. For the purpose of exercising such right, such person shall
file a praecipe for the issuance of witness subpoenas with the officer conducting such hearing
or investigation, setting forth in such praecipe the name and the address of each person upon
whom a subpoena is to be served and describing with adequate clearness any books, papers,
records, or other evidence to be produced at such hearing or investigation; and;
contemporaneously with the filing of such praecipe, shall deposit with such officer the amount
provided for in Section 2-5 as witness fees for one (1) day for each person, other than
members of the City Commission or officers or employees of the City, upon whom a subpoena
is to be served. Upon the filing of such praecipe and the deposit of such witness fees, the
subpoenas covered thereby shall be issued forthwith by the officer conducting such hearing or
investigation; and they shall be served and returns shall be made in accordance with the
provisions of the relevant Sections of this Article.
Sec. 2-4. - Same —Contents, service, and return of subpoenas.
Each subpoena issued pursuant to Sections 2-2 and 2-3 shall set forth the general
purpose of the hearing or investigation to which the subpoena pertains; shall bear the
signature of the officer issuing the same; shall be directed to all the police officers of the City;
shall command the person named therein to be present at the time and place therein stated;
and, in the event that such person is to be required to produce books, papers, records, or
other evidence at such time and place, shall describe with adequate clearness the books,
papers, records, or other evidence to be so produced; and shall be served upon such person
b y any police officer of to city ho shall at the time of s i h service deliver d ily
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authcnticatcd copy of this subpoena to such person. The police officer process server
charged with the duty of serving any such subpoena shall make a written return to the officer
issuing the subpoena; setting forth in such return whether service was duly completed and, if
so, the time, place, and manner thereof.
Sec. 2-5. - Same —Witnesses' fees.
(a) Every person upon whom a subpoena shall be served as provided in
Sections 2-3 and 2-4, and who is not a member of the City Commission or an officer or an
employee of the City shall be entitled to receive, upon demand by him of the witness and in
City of Miami File ID: 3458 (Revision:) Printed On: 3/28/2025
advance, witness fees at the rate of $3.50 per diem if lae-the witness resides i -within the
municipal boundaries of the City, and at the rate of $4.00 per diem if #e-the witness resides
outside the municipal boundaries of the City in the county, for each day upon which his the
witness' attendance at any such hearing or investigation is required, and it shall be the duty
of such person to attend such hearing or investigation from day to day until #e-the witness
is discharged from further attendance thereat by the officer conducting the same, provided
that, if lae-the witness shall demand payment in advance of such witness fees and such
payment is not made in compliance with his the witness' demand, #e-the witness shall not
be required to attend that session of such hearing or investigation to which such demand
applied; and lae-the witness shall not be entitled to demand in advance at any one time
payment of an amount in excess of the witness fees payable to him the witness under this
Section for attending the next scheduled daily session of such hearing or investigation.
(b) All amounts paid as witnesses fees to persons subpoenaed upon the
initiative of the officer conducting such hearing or investigation shall constitute and be
recognized as municipal expenses and shall be made available and paid in such manner as
the City Manager shall prescribe.
(c) All amounts paid as witness fees to persons subpoenaed as the result of the
filing of the praecipe described in Section 2-3 shall be advanced by and shall constitute an
expense of the person filing such praecipe, unless the officer conducting such hearing or
investigation should otherwise direct.
Sec. 2-6. - Same —Failure to attend hearing or give testimony.
No person regularly served with a subpoena under the provisions of Sections 2-
2 through 2-5 shall fail to attend a hearing or investigation as directed in such subpoenaer,
attending, refuse to be sworn as a witness,,, Lor refuse to testify, or to give evidence, or to
answer fully and fairly any proper question propounded to himthe witness.
Sec. 2-7. - Service charge on refused checks.
At any time the City is in possession of a check, draft, or order and payment which has
been refused by the drawee because of lack of funds or credit, a service charge for the
handling of such instrument is hereby imposed upon the drawer and/or last endorser of the
instrument, not to exceed maximum as provided by F.S. § 166.251 state law.
Sec. 2-8. - Disclosure requirement.
(a) Each person or entity requesting approval, relief, or other action from the City
Commission or any of its boards, authorities, agencies, councils, or committees regarding
any issue, shall disclose, at the commencement (or continuance) of the public hearing on
the issue, any consideration provided or committed, directly or on its behalf, for an
agreement to support or withhold objection to the requested approval, relief, or action.
(b) The disclosure shall:
(1) Be in writing;
(2) Indicate to whom the consideration has been provided or committed;
(3) Describe the nature of the consideration; and specify the amount of any
funds paid or committed;
(4) Describe what is being requested in exchange for the consideration; and
(5) Be read into the record by the requesting person or entity prior to submission
to the secretary/clerk of the respective board.
(c) Upon determination by the City Commission, board, authority, agency,
council, or committee as applicable that the foregoing disclosure requirement was not
timely satisfied by the person or entity requesting approval, relief, or other action as
provided above, then:
(1) The application or order, as applicable, shall immediately be void without
further force or effect, and
City of Miami File ID: 3458 (Revision:) Printed On: 3/28/2025
(2) No application from said person or entity for the subject of the request shall
be reviewed or considered by the applicable board(s) until expiration of a period of one (1)
year after the nullification of the application or order.
(d) The validity of any action or determination of the City Commission or any of
its boards, authorities, agencies, councils, or committees shall not be affected by the failure
of any person or entity to comply with the provisions of this Section unless a challenge is
presented to the City Commission or any of its boards, authorities, agencies, councils, or
committees at the first regularly scheduled meeting of such board authority agency, council,
or committee following the date such violation of the disclosure requirement is alleged to
have occurred.
(e) "Consideration" shall be defined to include any gift, payment, contribution,
donation, fee, commission, promise, or grant of any money, property, service, credit, or
financial assistance of any kind or value, whether direct or implied, or any promise or
agreement to provide any of the foregoing in the future.
(f) It shall be unlawful to employ any device, scheme, or artifice to circumvent
the disclosure requirements of this Section and such circumvention shall be deemed a
violation of the disclosure requirements of this Section.
(g) The provisions of this article shall not apply to or affect individuals retained or
employed by a principal as lobbyist as defined in Section 2-653.
Secs. 2-9-2-30. - Reserved."
Section 3. If any section, part of a section, paragraph, clause, phrase, or word of this
Ordinance is declared invalid, the remaining provisions of this Ordinance shall not be affected.
Section 4. This Ordinance shall become effective thirty (30) days after its adoption and
signature of the Mayor.2
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND CORRECTNESS:
end e ezCiity Attor
2 This Ordinance shall become effective as specified herein unless vetoed by the Mayor within ten (10)
days from the date it was passed and adopted. If the Mayor vetoes this Ordinance, it shall become
effective immediately upon override of the veto by the City Commission or upon the effective date stated
herein. whichever is later.
City of Miami File ID: 3458 (Revision:) Printed On: 3/28/2025