Ord 28-14 THIS ORDINANCE WAS PASSED 5-0 AT THE OCTOBER 7,2014 CITY COMMISSION MEETING. HOWEVER,DUE TO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE ORIGINAL
ORDINANCE IT WAS BROUGHT BACK TO COMMISSION ON NOVEMBER 4,2014 AS A FIRST READING (ORDINANCE NO. 34-14).
ORDINANCE NO. 28-14
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, AMENDING CHAPTER 32,
"DEPARTMENTS, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS", OF THE CODE
OF ORDINANCES; AMENDING THE RULES FOR REMOVAL FOR
MEMBERS OF CITY BOARDS; AMENDING SECTION 32.15,
"DEFINITIONS", AMENDING SECTION 32.17, "GROUNDS FOR
REMOVAL"; PROVIDING FOR A TRANSITION PERIOD FOR
EXISTING MEMBERS OF CITY BOARDS; REPEALING SECTION
32.18 "PROCEDURE" IN ITS ENTIRETY; AND BY REPEALING
SECTION 32.19, "VOTE NECESSARY FOR REMOVAL" IN ITS
ENTIRETY, PROVIDING- A SAVING CLAUSE, A GENERAL
REPEALER CLAUSE,AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City of Delray Beach desires to modify its Code of Ordinances relating to the
procedure for removal of appointed Members to City Boards, and
WHEREAS, appointed Members of City Boards serve in a largely advisory capacity, as unpaid
volunteers,without compensation,and as such should not have any property rights to their position, and
WHEREAS, the purpose of this Ordinance is to revise the City policy with respect to appointed
City Board Members to provide that any Member of a City Board appointed after the effective date of this
ordinance shall serve at the pleasure of the City Commission and may be ,removed for any reason, or no
reason,by a majority vote of the City Commission.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
DELRAY BEACH,FLORIDA,AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. That Chapter 32, "Departments, Boards and Commissions", Section 32.15,
"Definitions",of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Delray Beach be amended to read as follows:
Sec. 32.15. DEFINITIONS_
For the purposes of this Section.,the following definitions shall apply
QtE Board. Any of the Regulatory or Advisory Boards Committees and Commissions of the Cit
Member. Any person who is a member of any of the ragulate.4JA T adviseFy b ra , Cemmittees
and C f the City-,whether they are appeinted by the City GeffHaissien or-elee:�ed, City Board
whether they are a ointed by the Cily Commission or elected.
Abandonment of Office. Includes, but is not necessarily limited to, failure to attend three (3)
consecutive regular meetings of a Q11 Board, r,.wmiiAee or G,,n.,r.:ss
Section 2. That Chapter 32, "Departments, Boards and Commissions", Section 32.16,
"Application", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Delray Beach be amended to read as follows:
Sec. 32.16. APPLICATION.
(A) A Mmember of any City Board, appointed by the City Commission to
serve for a fixed term may be removed during the term of office
in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter. This subchapter shall apply to any City Board,
operating under the auspices of the City, whether created by Charter, special
act,ordinance or resolution, except as provided in [subsection] (B)below.
(B) (1) The Code Enforcement Board shall be governed by F.S. Chapter 162.05(e) and which
provides that W any Mmember of a Code Enforcement Board may be removed for cause or if a
Member fails to attend two(2)of three(3) successive meetings without cause and without prior
approval of the chairman,._ Uponthe occurrence of any of the preceeding events, the
Enforcement Board shall declare the Mmember's office vacant, and the City Commission shall
promptly fill the vacancy.
(2) The Community Redevelopment Agency shall be governed by Florida Statutes Chapter
163.356(4) which provides that the City Commission may remove a Community
Redevelopment Agency Commissioner for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or misconduct in
office only after a hearing and only if the member has been given a copy of the charges at least
ten (10) days prior to such hearing and has had an opportunity to be heard in person or by
counsel.
(3) The Downtown Development Authority shall be governed by Special Act which is codified
as Chapter 7I-604, Laws of Florida, as amended. The Special Act provides that the City
Commission may remove a Mmember of the authority for good cause upon a vote of four-fifths
of its entire membership, authorizes removal after notice which specifies the charges, and after
a hearing. Good cause in the Special Act is defined as willful neglect of duty,incompetence, or
unfitness to perform one's duty or conviction of an offense involving moral turpitude. Members
so removed shall be entitled to review by the circuit court of the action taken.
(4) The Delray Beach Housing Authority shall be governed by F.S. Chapter 421.07 which
provides for the removal of Commissioners for inefficiency or neglect of duty, or misconduct
in office. A Commissioner may be removed by the Mayor with concurrence of the governing
body, but a Commissioner shall be removed only after the Commissioner has been given a
copy of the charges at least ten(10) days prior to the hearing thereon and after an opportunity
to be heard.
(C) The provisions of this subchapter shall be cumulative to such other procedures as specified in other
applicable provisions of law concerning a specific board, Committee or Commission.
Section 3. That Chapter 32, "Departments,Boards and Commissions", Section 32.17, "Grounds for
Removal"be amended to read as follows:
2
ORD.NO. 28-14
See. 32.17. GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL.
In addition te sueh ether grotmds for- the r-emeval of members ef a paAieular- board, Geffifnittee e
the vield&H of aEky prmevisiefi of the Code of Ethics faf Public O-Xflee-vs ;---d Employees efted at Q.,Vtef
-_— l-a . R of the .....a.....,. .a........a..s, .....gar avuvu in cuEy vvux
a
owl duges-er-for-aff other jrst-eause; or ab ndo e4 of o fg .
1 Abandonment of Office. Except as ma be otherwise provided by law, special act or City
ordinance, in the event of Abandonment of Of-flee by a Member of a City Board a notice of removal
shall automaticall y be issued by the City Mana er or designee. The removal shall be effective as of the
date of the notice.
2 Except as otherwise provided by City ordinance general or s ecial law, an appointed
Member of a City Board shall serve at the pleasure of the City Commission notwithstanding that their
appointment may be for a specified term. No Member derives anyproperty rights in his or tier position.
3 The Cily Commission May remove a City Board Member appointed by the Ci
Commission for ggy reaso or no reason, by a ma on vote of the membqEshiR of the City
Commission. The removal shall tale effect immediate) or u on an later date which the Ci
Commission may Mccify.
4 The City Commission may remove an elected Ci Board Member for: i violation of an
provision of the applicable Statute Cop=or Ci ty code of ethics governing the conduct of officials (ii)
malfeasance- misfeasance; neglect of du • or inability to perform his or her official duties or Chi)
conviction of a felony or misdemeanor. The My Commission mqy suspend an elected City Board
Member for: i an arrest for a felony, or arrest for a misdemeanor related to the duties of office ar ii
an indictment or information regarding the commission of a misdemeanor, or felon . The elected Ci
Board Member shall be advised of the basis for his or her removal or suspension, provided reasonable
notice and an ov-portunity for a hearing in accordance with the procedures provided in Section 32.18 .
(5) The vacanc y of either an appointed or elected City Board Member shall be filled in the same_
manner as the original selection.
Section 4. That Chapter 32, "Departments, Boards and Commissions", Section 32.18, "Procedure",
of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Delray-Beach be amended to read as follows:
3
ORD,NO. 28-14
Sec. 32.18. PROCEDURE.
(A) Transition Rules. A Member of a City Board appointed prior to the effective date of this ordinance
shall be subject to the following procedures for the remainder of the Member's current term:
B Grounds for Removal.In addition to such other gTounds for removal of Members of a City Board as
may be prescribed by Ordinance or law, during the transition period described in subsection LA above any
appointed Ci1y Board Member mgy, in the discretion of the City Commission be removed by the Cily
Commission for the violation of any provision of Section 32.17(4)
(CA) Notice of Removal. Except as provided in subsection(EG) below, a notice of removal shall
be served upon the Member sought to be removed upon the direction of a majority of the City Commission.
The notice of removal shall be prepared by the City Attorney and signed by at least one member of the City
Commission,and shall specify the grounds for removal.
LD14) Service of Notice. The notice of removal shall be served by personal delivery or by ordinary
first class mail. Service shall be accomplished as soon as is practicable after the City Commission directs
service of the notice of removal. The notice shall include a statement that the Member has the right to
request a hearing before the City Commission, and that the request for a hearing must be received by the
City Clerk on or before a date to be specified in the notice, which shall be seven (7) days from the date of
service if the notice is personally served, or ten(10) days from the date of mailing if the notice is served by
mail.
(EE) Grounds for Automatic Removal. If the ground(s) for removal is Abandonment of Office,
the notice of removal shall automatically be issued by the City Manager or his designee. In such cases,
subsection (FP) below shall not be applicable, but the person removed may request reappointment at any
time.
(FD) Hearing;Decision of City Commission.
(1) Upon the timely request of the Member for a hearing before the City Commission, the Commission
shall set a date,time and place for a hearing and direct the City Clerk to give the member notice of
the hearing.
(2) At the hearing,the Member will have an opportunity to respond,to present evidence and arguments
on all issues involved, and to conduct cross-examination. The Member may appear in person at the
hearing or be represented by legal counsel or some other representative as the member chooses.
(3) The decision of the City Commission may be to either remove, to suspend, to reprimand or to
absolve the Member.
(GE) Effective Date of Removals.
(1) Except as provided in subsection (G£)(2)below,the effective date of removal of a Member shall be
immediately after the expiration of the time in which the Member has the right to request a hearing
before the City Commission, or any later date which the City Commission may provide, unless the
Member timely requests a hearing before the City Commission. If the Member timely requests a
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ORD. NO. 28-14
hearing, and if the City Commission decides to remove the Member upon the conclusion of the
hearing, the removal shall take effect immediately unless the City Commission specifies a later
date. If a Member timely requests a hearing but withdraws the request prior to the hearing, the
effective date shall be the date on which the request is withdrawn.
(2) If the ground(s) for removal is Abandonment of Office, the removal shall take effect immediately
upon issuance of the notice by the City Manager or his designee.
(M The City Clerk shall notify the City- Commission in writing at such time that the date of
appointment or election of all Members is subsequent to the effective date of this Ordinance. Upon such'
notification the transition rules provided in Section 32,18 shall be deemed repealed without any further
action by the City Commission and all Members shall be governed by the remaining sections of Chapter 32
of the Code of Ordinances.
Section S. That Chapter 32, "Departments, Boards and Commissions", Section 32.19, "Vote
Necessary for Removal", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Delray Beach be repealed in its entirety
as follows:
Refneva4 ef any fflember of a City Board-, GaffHnittee or Genammissiaii shall fequir-e feu,- (4)votes ef
f,.r;tu, of-e ffie
SOSSC.IEffiQ4rQ�2S T
Section 6. That, Chapter 32, "Departments, Boards and Commissions", Section 32.20,
"Reappointment", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Delray Beach be repealed in its entirety as
follows:
Na&iBg eeaWned herein shall prevent the City Gefffinission 40M r-eaffeffi�ing the GWy Beafd,
Gen+miltee E)r- Commission ineiRbef te fill the tt�ir-ad per-tion ef the term if-, upea good eause she
to the City Commission, that member- has requested and demons:tf��d good eause for- si
r�eappein�eiA-.
Section 7. That should any section or provision of this ordinance or any portion thereof, any
paragraph, sentence, or word be declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision
shall not affect the validity of the remainder hereof as a whole or part thereof other than the part declared to
be invalid.
Section 8. That all ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict herewith be, and the same are
hereby repealed.
Section 9. That this ordinance shall become effective immediately upon passage on second and
final reading and shall also apply to all appointments made at the Commission meeting where this was
heard during first reading.
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ORD. NO. 28-14
PASSED AND ADOPTED in regular session on second and final reading on this the day of
-- ,2014.
ATTEST: MAYOR
City Clerk
First Reading
Second Reading
G
ORD. NO. 25-14
Coversheet Page 1 of 1
•
MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor and City Commissioners
FROM- Noel Pfeffer, City Attorney
DATE: September 25, 2014
SUBJECT: AGENDA ITEM 11.A. - REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 7, 2014
ORDINANCE NO. 28-14
BACKGROUND
During the City Commission discussion regarding the nomination process for City advisory
board members on September 4, 2014, the Commission directed the City Attorney to amend
the current rules to provide that all appointed City board members serve at the pleasure of the
City Commission.
The removal procedures for appointment of members to City boards are established by
Chapter 32 of the City Code of Ordinances. The City Attorney's office has prepared a
proposed ordinance amendment which provides that all future appointed City board members
will now serve at the pleasure of the City Commission. The amendment specifically excludes
certain City boards whose membership and removal are governed by state statute or special
law (e.g. Code Enforcement Board, Community Redevelopment Agency, Downtown
Development Agency, and the Delray Beach Housing Authority). Also, appointed board
members currently serving on a City board are legally entitled to complete their term under the
current City rules (i.e. removal for cause).
All City board members appointed after the effective date of the ordinance shall serve at the
pleasure of the majority of the City Commission and may be removed without cause at any
time. Elected members of City boards (e.g. Civil Service Board, Police and Fire Pension
Board) may only be removed for cause, after notice, and a hearing before the City
Commission.
DISCUSSION
The ordinance was prepared at the direction of the City Commission.
RECOMMENDATION
City Commission discretion
http:ll agendas.mydelraybeaoll.com/Bluesheet.aspx?lten-LfD=845 S&MeetingID=535 11/14/2014