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ORDINANCE RELATING TO CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS; AMENDING SECTION 12-7 OF THE CODE OF MIAMI DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA; ESTABLISHING MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR THE MUNICIPAL PUBLICATION OF CANDIDATE CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS; REQUIRING MUNICIPALITIES TO PUBLISH MUNICIPAL CANDIDATE CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS ON THE MUNICIPALITY�S WEBSITE; REQUIRING MUNICIPALITIES TO CERTIFY COMPLIANCE WITH SUCH REQUIREMENTS WITHIN A SPECIFIED TIMEFRAME; PROVIDING SEVERABILITY, INCLUSION IN AND EXCLUSION FROM THE CODE, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE

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WHEREAS, section 106.07 of the Florida Statutes requires each candidate�s campaign to file regular reports of all contributions received and all expenditures made on behalf of a candidate (�campaign finance reports�) with the officer before whom the candidate is required by law to qualify; and
WHEREAS, the qualifying officer in each municipality receives and maintains campaign finance reports from candidates for municipal office; and
WHEREAS, ease of access to the campaign finance reports is necessary for the public to make informed decisions about candidates; and
WHEREAS, facilitating the public�s access to candidates� campaign finance reports encourages accountability among elected officials; and
WHEREAS, these campaign finance reports are public records and are accessible by the public; and

WHEREAS, the County and several municipalities, including the City of Miami, publish a website where the public can access a campaign�s campaign finance reports and view a candidate�s campaign contributions and expenditures; and
WHEREAS, the Miami-Dade Home Rule Charter authorizes the Board of County Commissioners to establish reasonable minimum standards for the performance of any service or function by a government unit, including municipalities; and
WHEREAS, this Board desires to require all municipalities to, at a minimum, make information about contributions to the campaigns of municipal candidates more broadly and easily accessible to the public by publishing campaign finance reports for each candidate�s campaign for municipal office,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA:
Section 1. The foregoing recitals are incorporated as if set forth herein and are approved.
Section 2. Section 12-7 of the Code of Miami-Dade County, Florida, is hereby amended to read as follows:1
Sec. 12-7. - [[Reserved.]] >>Municipal publication of candidate campaign finance reports.

(a) Each municipality must, at a minimum, publish the following on the municipality�s website:

(1) A list of all current candidates for municipal office in the municipality;
(2) The campaign finance reports for such current candidates, filed in accordance with section 106.07, Florida Statutes, within seven (7) days of receipt of such reports by the municipality;
(3) A list of all candidates in the previous two elections for municipal office in the municipality; and
(4) The campaign finance reports for such previous candidates, filed in accordance with section 106.07, Florida Statutes, within six (6) months of the effective date of this ordinance.

(b) The campaign finance reports published pursuant to subparagraphs (a)(2) and (a)(4) above shall show all contributions received by the candidate�s campaign and all expenditures made on behalf of the candidate within the reporting period. <<

Section 3. Within six (6) months of the effective date of this ordinance, each municipality shall certify in writing to the Board of County Commissioners that it has complied with the requirements of section 2 of this ordinance.
Section 4. 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 5. It is the intention of the Board of County Commissioners, and it is hereby ordained that the provisions of section 2 of this ordinance 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 6. It is the intention of the Board of County Commissioners, and it is hereby ordained that the provisions of section 3 of this ordinance shall be excluded from the Code of Miami-Dade County.



Section 7. 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.




1 Words stricken through and/or [[double bracketed]] shall be deleted. Words underscored and/or >>double arrowed<< constitute the amendment proposed. Remaining provisions are now in effect and remain unchanged.
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