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ORDINANCE RELATING TO SOLICITATION OF TIPS AT MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT; AMENDING SECTION 25-3.8 OF THE CODE OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA; AUTHORIZING FOOD AND BEVERAGE CONCESSIONS TO SOLICIT TIPS AT MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, PROVIDED THAT CONCESSIONAIRES PROVIDE CONSPICUOUS NOTICE TO CUSTOMERS; PROVIDING SEVERABILITY, INCLUSION IN THE CODE, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE

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WHEREAS, the minimum wage in the State of Florida is $8.46 per hour, effective January 1, 2019; and
WHEREAS, because the Florida minimum wage is higher than the federal minimum wage, employees are entitled to earn at least the Florida minimum wage per hour; and
WHEREAS, under federal law and in most states, employers may pay tipped employees less than the minimum wage, as long as employees earn enough in tips to make up the difference; and
WHEREAS, the tip credit is $3.02 an hour, which means Florida employers may pay tipped employees as little as $5.44 an hour as of January 1, 2019; and
WHEREAS, numerous individuals employed as servers and waitstaff at Miami International Airport depend on tips to supplement their hourly wage; and
WHEREAS, chapter 25-3.8, Code of Miami-Dade County, prohibits waitstaff and servers who are authorized to accept tips from soliciting tips or soliciting a specific amount of a tip; and
WHEREAS, many foreign travelers making use of MIA do not tip, as tipping for table service is not common in their home culture; and
WHEREAS, to induce tipping, some concessions at MIA include a suggested gratuity with their bills; and
WHEREAS, such a practice leads to greater tips to local waitstaff and servers, but is not authorized by the County Code; and
WHEREAS, waitstaff and servers at MIA should be able to depend on tips to support themselves; and
WHEREAS, the traveling public should be put on notice that suggested gratuity will be included in a bill,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA:
Section 1. The above recitals are incorporated herein as findings.
Section 2. Section 25-3.8 of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Florida, is hereby amended to read as follows:1
25-3.8 Tipping.

>>Except as authorized herein,<< no person authorized to accept tips for services performed at the Airport shall solicit a tip, or a specific amount of tip, nor harass, insult or display any form of rudeness to the person for whom the service is being performed. >>A concessionaire operating a table service food and beverage concession may include a suggested tip or gratuity of up to 18 percent of the total food and beverage sale in a bill presented to a customer, provided that such concessionaire provides written notice of such suggested gratuity on both the menu and the bill presented to the customer, both in a conspicuous typeface. The notice on the menu and the bill shall specify the percentage of the gratuity, and shall inform the customer as to how such gratuity can be removed or altered at the customer�s discretion. A point of sale device used by a concessionaire at which a customer swipes or inserts a credit card may display options for suggested gratuity, so long as the customer retains the ability to raise, lower, or omit the gratuity at the customer�s discretion prior to completion of the sale. Nothing herein shall allow the concessionaire to impose a mandatory gratuity, and the concessionaire shall allow a customer at all times the ability to raise, lower, or omit the payment of a gratuity. For purposes of this section, table service occurs where waitstaff or a server takes a customer�s order at a table, and where food is delivered to the customer by waitstaff or a server at the same table.<<

Section 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or provision of this ordinance is held invalid, the remainder of this ordinance shall not be affected by such invalidity.
Section 4. It is the intention of the Board of County Commissioners, and it is hereby ordained that the provisions of this ordinance, including any sunset provision, shall become and be made a part of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Florida. The sections of this ordinance may be renumbered or relettered to accomplish such intention, and the word "ordinance" may be changed to "section," "article," or other appropriate word.
Section 5. This ordinance shall become effective ten (10) days after the date of enactment unless vetoed by the Mayor, and if vetoed, shall become effective only upon an override by this Board.