HomeMy Public PortalAboutRES 04/01RESOLUTION NO. 004 -01
A RESOLUTION OF THE TOWN COMMISSION OF THE
TOWN OF GULF STREAM, PALM BEACH COUNTY,
FLORIDA,URGING MEMBERS OF THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE
TO SUPPORT THE FOLLOWING MUNICIPAL ISSUES DURING
THE 2004 LEGISLATIVE SESSION.
WHEREAS, legislation p assed (BB 113A) during the 2 003 Special S ession "A" t hat is the
implementation of Article V, a 1998 constitutional amendment, that requires the state to fund the
county court system; and
WHEREAS, HB223A prohibits state attorneys from appearing in county courts for the
purpose of prosecuting municipal ordinances; and
WHEREAS, the bill also prohibits a municipality from contracting with a sate attorney for the
prosecution of municipal ordinances, and public defenders will not be allowed to represent
indigents charged with ordinance violations; and
WHEREAS, HB113A requires a filing fee of $200 for each code or ordinance violation; and
WHEREAS, several cities enforce code enforcement through a citation process, which are
filed through the county court system; and
WHEREAS, many of the fines for these citations are less than half of the proposed $200
filing fee, which would make the citation process ineffective for code enforcement activities; and
WHEREAS, the intent of the Municipal Revenue Sharing hold harmless provision in HB
I I 3 was intended to not reduce any revenues currently shared with municipalities; and
WHEREAS, clean drinking water is a precious resource that must be adequately planned for
to meet the needs of future growth in Florida; and
WHEREAS, cities are implementing several innovative methods to assure an adequate supply
of drinking water is available for its citizens; and
WHEREAS, efforts were made during the 2003 legislative session to mandate that cities
establish water conservation rate structures, impose drought rates, require submetering in
apartment buildings or condos, mandate statewide irrigation standards, implement "informative
billing ", and meter reclaimed water; and
WHEREAS, municipalities would be negatively impacted by legislation mandating
conservation measures on a "one size fits all" approach and many of the conservation measures
being considered had no demonstrable conservation benefit but will be very expensive to
implement; and
WHEREAS, THE GEOGRAPHIC EMPHASIS AND RESTRICTIVE NATURE OF
Florida's current annexation policies causes disruption in historical service delivery
responsibilities and results in a continuous conflict and inefficiencies in the financing and
delivery of many local public services.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE TOWN OF GULF STREAM;
Section 1. That the Town of Gulf Stream urges Governor Jeb Bush and members of the
Florida Legislature to support legislation that:
Preserves the authority of individual local governments to determine
and implement the specific water conservation measures required
under a water use permit, and which preserves a local government's
control over reclaimed water that is created by the local government.
Section 2. That the Town of Gulf Stream urges Governor Jeb Bush and
members of the Florida Legislature to support legislation that:
Allows municipalities to contract for the services of public defenders
and state attorneys to enforce local ordinances; and
Eliminates the fee schedules for the enforcement of municipal code or
ordinance violations.
Provides a modification of the distribution formula for revenues
Transferred from the Half -Cent Sales Tax Program to the Revenue
Sharing Trust Fund for Municipalities.
Section 3. That the Town of Gulf Stream urges Governor Jeb Bush and
Members of the Florida Legislature to support legislation that:
Strengthens the ability of municipalities to eliminate all enclaves
regardless of size or use, and provides reasonable procedures to
expeditiously annex areas that are contiguous to their boundaries.
Section 4. That a copy of this resolution shall b e provided to Governor Jeb
Bush, Senate President Jim King, House Speaker Johnnie Byrd and members of the Florida
Legislature.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Town of Gulf Stream this 9 th Day of
January 2004.
ATTEST: =>
Rita L. Taylor, Town Jerk
Co issione
Commissioner
Commissioner.
Vice` Mayor
4r
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ATTEST: =>
Rita L. Taylor, Town Jerk
Co issione
Commissioner
Commissioner.
Vice` Mayor