Res No 035-21-15655RESOLUTION NO. 035-21-15655
A Resolution of the Mayor and City Commissioners of the City of South Miami
urging all members of the Florida Legislature to oppose unwarranted or overly
broad preemptions of municipal home rule powers.
WHEREAS, municipalities are voluntarily created and chartered by their citizens as the
embodiment of local self-determination; and
WHEREAS, in 1968, Florida voters amended the state constitution to confer broad
"Home Rule" powers to municipal government, under Article VIII, Section 2(b); and
WHEREAS, numerous bills being considered by the Florida Legislature contradict the will
of the people of Florida, who expressed an unequivocal desire for broad Home Rule powers in
their state constitution; and
WHEREAS, these bills undercut the intent of the citizens of every municipality in Florida,
who voted to incorporate their community and exercise the broad Home Rule powers granted
by the Florida Constitution to govern themselves and, thereby, effectively address the unique
concerns of their communities; and
WHEREAS, these bills would impair municipal charter and ordinance provisions
specifically adopted and approved by local communities to define their preferred form of self-
government and safeguard issues of perennial importance to their communities; and
WHEREAS, a municipality's ability to timely act on local problems and opportunities will
be limited by these bills to a state Legislature that holds session only once a year, and whose
ability to address local problems will be contingent on the relative effectiveness of its
representative in the state Legislature; and
WHEREAS, under these bills, state legislators will find themselves spending increasing
amounts of time arbitrating over local problems and legislating on local issues, and less time
attending to pressing statewide needs; and
WHEREAS, the City of South Miami believes opposing these bills is in the best interests
of the residents and businesses of the municipalities in the State of Florida, and ultimately the
state itself; and
WHEREAS, the City of South Miami would respectfully ask the state legislature to be
mindful that regulations enacted by local governments have to be enforced by those same
governments and, if excessive or burdensome, the peoples' local elected representatives are
quickly made aware of those burdens and any unintended consequences; and
Page 1 of 3
Res. No. 035-21 —1 5655
WHEREAS, should these bills become law, and not be overturned, the ability of Florida's
municipalities to narrowly address local issues of public concern would be destroyed.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSIONERS OF THE
CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI, FLORIDA:
Section 1. The foregoing recitals are hereby ratified and confirmed as being true and they
are incorporated into this resolution by reference as if set forth in full herein.
Section 2. The City of South Miami Commission hereby opposes the State of Florida's
overbroad attempt to repeal or restrict constitutional municipal home rule powers to protect
the health, safety and welfare of citizens and urges all members of the Florida Legislature to
oppose the adoption of unwarranted or overly broad preemptions.
Section 3: The City Clerk shall forward a copy of this Resolution to:
Governor Ronald Dion DeSantis,
State Senate President.;
State Speaker of the House;
all municipalities in Miami -Dade County,
members of the governing bodies of all 67 counties and their respective league of cities.
the Florida Cabinet,
the Florida League of Cities
Miami -Dade County
Miami -Dade County League of Cities
members of the Miami -Dade Legislative Delegation
Miami -Dade County Board of County Commissioners
Miami -Dade County Manager
Section 4. Corrections. Conforming language or technical scrivener -type corrections
may be made by the City Attorney for any conforming amendments to be incorporated into the
final resolution for signature.
Section 5. Severability. If any section clause, sentence, or phrase of this resolution is for
any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, the holding will
not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this resolution.
Section 6. Effective Date. This resolution will become effective immediately upon
adoption.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 2311 day of March, 2021.
ATTEST: j } APPROVED-
CITY dl RK AYOR
Page 2 of 3
Res. No. 035-21-15655
READ AND APPROVED AS TO FORM,
LANGUAGE, LEGALITY, AND
EXECUTI THERE F
CITY ATTORNEY
COMMISSION VOTE:
4-0
Mayor Philips:
Yea
Commissioner Harris:
Yea
Commissioner Liebman:
Yea
Commissioner Gil:
Yea
Page 3 of 3
Agenda Item No:Bc.
City Commission Agenda Item Report
Meeting Date: March 16, 2021
Submitted by: Thomas Pepe
Submitting Department: City Attorney
Item Type: Resolution
Agenda Section:
Subject:
A Resolution of the Mayor and City Commissioners of the City of South Miami urging all members of the Florida
Legislature to oppose unwarranted or overly broad preemptions of municipal home rule powers. 3/5 (Mayor
Philips)
Suggested Action:
Attachments:
Reso opp Preemption of Municipal Home Rule Powers.docx