Proposed charter changes seem to be a go - for now
Nine Indian Rocks amendments make it out of the starting gate, but timing could trip them up.
By SHEILA MULLANE ESTRADA
Published December 14, 2003
INDIAN ROCKS BEACH - Proposed restrictions on government taxing powers took a step toward voter consideration Wednesday, but whether these and other charter changes will appear on the March ballot is uncertain.
The City Commission on Wednesday gave initial approval to nine charter amendments and has scheduled a final vote for Dec. 30, one day before the deadline for submitting ballot items.
The problem is, Mayor Bob DiNicola may miss the meeting for family reasons, and the commission has a long-standing policy of not voting on major items when less than the full commission is present.
"If the mayor cannot be there, there won't be a vote until January," said Acting City Manager John Coffey. "That will mean that the referendum questions won't go to the voters until either the August or November elections."
Complicating the issue, three commission seats are up for election in March. The new commission could change or even cancel the proposed charter changes.
After a six-month study, a committee of residents and former elected officials proposed nine amendments.
The most far-reaching change is a requirement for a "super majority," four of five commissioners, before property taxes could be raised more than 7 percent.
Other measures include:
- Requiring a super majority commission vote to establish any new taxes or fees that are not in effect as of Jan. 1, 2004.
- Reducing the number of required signatures on citizen-initiated referendum petitions from 15 to 10 percent of registered voters.
- Prohibiting city commissioners, charter officers and city employees from supporting or opposing election candidates during working hours or at city meetings.
- Deleting charter sections dealing with special assessments and local improvement programs, defaulting to existing Florida law.
- Increasing the time interval for charter reviews from the two years to no less than every five years, with a mandatory review every 10 years.
- Requiring the commission to consider long-range goals and objectives each year.
One charter change that will appear on the March ballot was initiated by a citizen petition. It would restrict the commission's ability to approve new development, either through new ordinances, codes, special exceptions or planned development agreements. The change would require a super majority vote for any increase to development density, maximum building height or floor area ratios.
