LobbyComply Blog

Miami-Dade’s clerk of courts introduced an upgrade to the online lobbyist system.

The system will have new capabilities such online fee payment, principal removal, lobbyist authorization, and contingency fee declarations without the need of paper forms.

To implement the new system, the old system will go offline on September 23 at 11:59 p.m. and will remain offline until October 1.

Access to the new system will be granted on October 2 and it is encouraged to have all critical submissions completed before the cutoff date.

Training and support resources will be available to help users get acquainted.

Finally, if registration is required during the black-out period, lobbyists and principals will be required to contact the Office of Clerk of the Board Division.

The Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust selected Jose J. Arrojo as its new executive director.

Arrojo is currently a Chief Assistant State Attorney and will be the third director of the commission since it was created in 1996.

Arrojo, will assume the post when Joseph Centorino steps down at the end of August.

With the court battle over for the time being, a ballot issue affecting campaign finance and ethics laws in Miami-Dade County will not appear on the ballot this November.

Earlier this month, the county appealed a circuit court’s order requiring the measure be placed on the ballot. The 3rd District Court of Appeal reversed the lower court this week, stating the County Commission acted within its authority to block the measure after determining it was not sufficient.

The appeals court left open the possibility of a challenge of the commission’s conclusion. An Accountable Miami-Dade, however, issued a statement following the ruling vowing to continue the fight in a future election.

A judge has ordered a campaign finance ballot measure be placed on the ballot in November. After the County Commission rejected the proposal for containing legally insufficient language, An Accountable Miami-Dade filed a petition for a writ of mandamus last week.

The political committee asked the court to force the County Commission, the Mayor, and the Supervisor of Elections to place the measure on the ballot. Circuit Court Judge William Thomas granted the petition, stating the group met all of the requirements to get a proposal on the ballot, including gathering nearly 130,000 signatures.

The County has appealed the ruling and a hearing has been set for next week before the Third District Court of Appeal.

If successfully passed, the measure will reduce the campaign contribution limit from $1,000 to $250 and ban vendors, their lobbyists, and immediate family members from contributing to county candidates.

A political committee called An Accountable Miami-Dade is sponsoring a proposal to change campaign finance rules for county elections.

The proposal would limit contributions to candidates to $250, rather than the state-set limit of $1,000, and county vendors and lobbyists would be prohibited from making contributions. A system of matching contributions with public funds would also be created.

The group delivered 125,000 signed petitions to the county clerk of courts. If enough are verified, the county commission will decide whether to adopt the measure or to place it on the ballot. The proposed changes would not take effect until the next county election cycle.

A group of current and past politicians have announced an initiative to strengthen ethics laws in Miami-Dade County.

The group, named An Accountable Miami-Dade, is leading the charge to place a measure on the November ballot. The measure would strengthen enforcement of existing campaign finance laws, create pay-to-play restrictions on large contractors, create a ban on gifts from lobbyists, and institute a $250 per-election contribution limit to mayoral and commission candidates.

An Accountable Miami-Dade is headed by Monica Russo, president of the SEUI Florida Council, and Bettina Rodriguez, a former mayor of Doral. It also includes several local officeholders and party leaders.

The Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust gave its support for a proposed City of Miami Beach ordinance amending campaign finance rules. The ordinance, if passed, would prohibit the mayor and city commissioners, as well as candidates for those offices, from soliciting contributions on behalf of PACs donating to city candidates. The change would be in addition to the prohibition on city vendors, lobbyists, and real estate developers from making contributions.

The proposed amendment, from Commissioner Jonah Wolfson, is in response to an investigation into $1.5 million raised by a PAC established by Wolfson and Mayor Philip Levine. The contributions were from local businesses and lobbyists.

The Miami-Dade Clerk of the Courts has announced a new online lobbyist registration system will launch on June 1, 2015.

Current lobbyist information will be transferred to the new system and lobbyists will receive temporary log in information via email in order to create a profile.

This release only affects registration; however, plans to incorporate expenditure reporting are forthcoming.

Former Doral mayor Juan Carlos Bermudez has been appointed as a commissioner to the Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust. Bermudez is one of Doral’s founders and previously served as president of the Miami-Dade County League of Cities.

Marcia Narine, an assistant professor of law at St. Thomas University, was also sworn in as a new commissioner.

Commissioners are appointed to four-year terms.

Just over a month ago, the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust cleared David Beckham of a complaint charging he violated county ethics law by failing to register as a lobbyist. At the time, Beckham’s meetings with Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez were characterized as “meet and greets” regarding potential interest in bringing a Major League Soccer franchise to Miami. Once the plans start to take shape, however, individuals meeting with county officials would need to register as lobbyists, according to the Commission’s report.

Now, with potential sites being discussed, Beckham and his business partner Simon Fuller have registered as county lobbyists ahead of their meeting with county commissioners. But, the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners may not be the only government body to need convincing on stadium site approval. One of two potential waterfront stadium sites is under the city of Miami’s jurisdiction, and Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado has cautioned voter approval may be required.

David Beckham’s Lobbyist Registration, courtesy of the Miami Herald.

Photo of David Beckham courtesy of Paulblank on Wikimedia Commons.

It seems that following Obama’s Twitter Town Hall, politicians across the nation are following suit and making the effort to use social media to connect to their followers more than ever. Hopeful Republican presidential nominee Newt Gingrich, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont are three examples of such politicians.

Being one of the first politicians to utilize the new Google+, Newt Gingrich hosted his first Hangout, posting the 13 minute long video of him having a conversation with up to 10 regular Americans at a time onto YouTube. TechPresident published an article written by Nick Judd providing the video and more information here.

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Members of the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission will have 39 applicants to choose from when replacing current Executive Director Robert Meyers, who is resigning his position after 12 years with the commission.

Included in the 39 applicants, among other professions, are two retired former Miami-Dade prosecutors, a former assistant attorney general, an assistant public defender, and a former daytime television judge.

The commission is expected to narrow the list of candidates at their upcoming meeting on May 26, 2011. After narrowing the list, interviews of the finalists will take place and a new executive director is expected to be named during the summer.