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RESOLUTION URGING THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO REPEAL THE STATE PREEMPTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS' ABILITY TO ADDRESS ABANDONED SHOPPING CARTS

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WHEREAS, shopping carts left in the right-of-way and on other public and private property has been a persistent problem in Miami-Dade County for several decades; and
WHEREAS, abandoned shopping carts are a nuisance to property owners at or near where they are left and are harmful to the image and appearance of our community; and
WHEREAS, in 1997, this Board passed Ordinance No. 97-213, which:
1. Required stores that use shopping carts to affix an identification sign to the shopping cart with the name, address and phone number of the store;
2. Provided that County Public Works & Solid Waste Management staff would pick up shopping carts found on public property, collect them, store them and provide notice to the owner, who could then retrieve them and pay the fees to cover the costs of removal and storage; and
3. If shopping carts were not retrieved by the store owner, then the store owner was responsible for the cost of retrieval, storage and disposal; and

WHEREAS, under Ordinance No. 97-213, each store owner, and not County taxpayers, was responsible for the cost of retrieving and storing that store�s shopping carts, providing an incentive for each store owner to keep its shopping carts on the store premises; and
WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 97-213 was successful and showed tangible results in improving the problem of abandoned shopping carts in Miami-Dade County; and
WHEREAS, during the 1998 session, however, the Florida Legislature passed SB 1944, Chapter 1998-396, Laws of Florida, which among other provisions, preempted local governments from imposing a fee, fine or cost against the owner of a shopping cart found on public property; and
WHEREAS, the law was targeted at Miami-Dade County�s shopping cart ordinance, as it was the only ordinance of its kind in the State of Florida at that time; and
WHEREAS, as a result of SB 1944, County taxpayers now must bear the cost of retrieving and storing shopping carts left in the public right-of-way and on other public property, rather than store owners; and
WHEREAS, this Board would like to regain the ability to address the issue of abandoned shopping carts,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Urges the Florida Legislature to repeal the state preemption of local governments' ability to address abandoned shopping carts.
Section 2. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit certified copies of the resolution to the Governor, Senate President, House Speaker, and the Chair and Members of the Miami Dade State Legislative Delegation.
Section 3. Directs the County�s state lobbyists to advocate for the issues identified in Section 1 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to include this item in the 2013 state legislative package when it is presented to the Board.