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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007 11 27 Regular 600 Code Enforcement Policy and Procedures Manual Code Enforcement of the City of Winter Springs. Florida Policy & Procedures Manual I. NAME The name of this Board shall be the "Code Enforcement Board of the City of Winter Springs, Florida." II. INTENT It is the intent of this Board to promote, protect, and improve the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Winter Springs as an administrative Board with authority to impose administrative fines and other noncriminal penalties to provide an equitable, expeditious, effective, and inexpensive method of enforcing any City Codes and Ordinances in force, where a pending or repeated Violation continues to exist per Section 162.02 FSS. III. JURISDICTION The Board has jurisdiction over City Codes of the City of Winter Springs, Florida as provided in the City Code and Chapter 162, Florida Statutes. When these Rules as outlined in the Winter Springs Code Enforcement Board Policy & Procedures Manual, herein known as WSCEB Policy conflict with any provision of the City Code, Florida Statute or other law, the City Code, Florida Statute or other law shall prevail. IV. OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES A. The Officers shall be a Chainnan and Vice-Chairperson. The City of Winter Springs shall provide a Clerk to assist the Board per Section 162.07(1) FSS. B. The Chainnan shall preside at all Meetings and Hearings of the Board and shall have the duties normally conferred by parliamentary usage of the Officers. C. The Chairman shall sign all official correspondence from the Board. D. The Chairman shall be one of the Members of the Board. To be eligible for the position of Chainnan, the Member must have a minimum of one (1) year's service on the Board. The Chainnan shall have the privilege of discussing all matters before the Board and shall have the same Voting rights as all Board Members. E. The Chairman has the authority to Approve the absence of any Board Member per Section I 62.05(3)(e) FSS. F. When the Chainnan is declared absent, the Vice-Chairperson shall assume the title, duties and rights as Chairman for the Meeting or Hearing. Upon adjournment of said Meeting, title, duties and rights as Chairman returns to the original Officer. G. In the absence of a Chairman and Vice-Chairperson at a Meeting or Hearing, the Board Member with the longest level of service shall assume the title, duties and rights as Chairman for the Meeting or Hearing. Upon adjournment of said Meeting, title, duties and rights as Chairman returns to the original Officer. V. ELECTIONS OF OFFICERS A. Nomination of Officers shall be made from the Board Members at the Annual Organizational Meeting held in January, and the Election shall be held immediately thereafter. The Election of Officers will always take precedence over an Agenda Item and as such shall be first to be conducted during the evening. Following its conclusion the newly elected Officers will take their roles to complete the rest of the meeting. If the Election does not occur at the January Meeting, it shall be held as soon thereafter as is reasonably possible. B. A candidate receiving a majority of the Votes cast shall be declared elected and shall serve a term of one (I) year or until a successor shall take Office. C. Vacancies in the Office of Chairman/Vice-Chairperson shall be filled as soon as possible for the remainder of the term by following the Election procedure described above. VI. MEETINGS A. Regular Meetings: Regular Meetings shall be held as needed. The Board may set Meetings more frequently if necessary. Regular Meetings shall be held on the third Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the City Commission Chambers of City Hall, 1126 East State Road 434, Winter Springs, Florida, unless otherwise scheduled. B. Special Meetings: Special Meetings may be called by either the Chairman by request of a Code Inspector. A Hearing may also be called by written notification whereof at least three (3) Members of the Board to the Chainnan per Section 162.07(1) FSS. C. Notice: 1. Notice of all Meetings, both Regular and Special, shall be given to each Board Member at least twenty-four (24) hours in advance of the Meeting. 2. Notice of all Meetings shall be provided to the City Clerk's Department for inclusion on the City's schedule of Meetings and events. D. Attendance: 1. Members shall notify the Clerk of the Board if they cannot attend a Meeting. 2. The Clerk shall then contact the Chairman to determine if the absence is considered excused/unexcused per Section 162.05(3)(e) FSS. 3. The absence, whether excused or unexcused shall then be noted in the Meeting Minutes for the Record. The Chairman shall also note for the Record the absence and whether it is excused/unexcused during the Meeting or Hearing. 4. If any Member of the Board fails to attend two (2) of three (3) consecutive Meetings without cause and prior approval of the Chairman, the Board shall declare the Member's office vacant and the City Commission shall promptly fill such Vacancy per Section 162.05(3)(e) FSS. E. Quorum A quorum of the Board shall consist of four (4) or more Members and an affirmative Vote of a majority of those present and Voting shall be necessary to pass any Motion or adopt any Order; provided, however, that at least four (4) members of the Board must Vote in order for the action to be official per Section 162.05(4) and Section 162.07(4) FSS. F. Voting For all Motions, Voting shall be by voice and shall be recorded by individual 'aye' or 'nay'. G. Participation by Alternate Board Members 1. There are two (2) alternate Members of the Board. When present they may act as fully participating, Voting Members of the Board when: a) a Regular Board Member is absent for a Regular or Special Meeting, or portion thereof or b) a Member abstains from Voting due to a conflict 2. In the event an Alternate is participating for a Regular Member, the Chairman shall make the appropriate announcements for the Record identifying which Member is no longer participating and which Alternate Member is now participating as a Voting Member. 3. Alternate Members may participate in questioning Respondents and Witnesses and discussing the merits of a Case. Alternate Members may not make Motions or V ote unless they are participating in place of a Regular Member. 4. Alternates shall be designated as "First Alternate" and "Second Alternate" where the Alternate Board Member designated as "First Alternate" will fill the first vacancy and the Alternate Board Member designated as "Second Alternate" shall fill the subsequent vacancy. H. Abstention and Conflict of Interest 1. Board Members should avoid conflicts of interest and appearance of conflicts with interest. Board members shall conduct themselves in accordance with the Code of Ethics for Public Officers as set forth in Chapter 112, FSS. A Board Member cannot Vote in a official capacity upon any measure which inures to the Board Members "special private gain or loss" or to the special private gain or loss of any private entity by whom retained, relative or business associate per Section 112.3143 FSS. 2. Procedure to follow if conflict should exist: a) Prior to the Vote, publicly explain the conflict. b) Abstain from Voting. c) Within fIfteen (15) days of the Vote, document the disclosure In a written memorandum flIed with the City Clerk. A Board Member barred from Voting due to conflict, may partIcIpate in the discussion of the matter, provided the Board Member first discloses the nature of his/her interest in the matter. This disclosure should be made in writing prior to the Meeting. If the conflict was not anticipated prior to the Meeting, however, the disclosure should be made verbally prior to any participation in the matter and must be followed up within fifteen (15) days with a written memorandum filed with the City Clerk. G. Procedure: 1. Parliamentary procedure in Board Meetings shall be governed by the Rules of Procedure contained herein and by Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, except that Robert's Rules of Order shall be advisory and not mandatory. In the event of conflict between Robert's Rules and the Rules of Procedure contained here, these Rules of Procedure shall govern. 2. All Board Members shall be recognized individually by the Chairman through the use of the Board Members' dais light prior to addressing the Board, Code Inspector, Respondent, or Witness. This is to ensure that all questions and discussion are clearly on the recording tape for the Record. 3. All Board Members, Code Inspectors, Respondents and Witnesses are required to use an active microphone when speaking as all testimony must be accurately recorded on tape. 4. Private conversations between Board Members will be prohibited while Meetings or Hearings are in session. Any such conversations may Violate the Florida Sunshine Law per Section 286.011 FSS. 5. Each Regular Board Member shall have a microphone and dais light assigned to them by the Clerk. Alternates shall be assigned seating and resources closest to the Clerk's seat with the "Second Alternate" being closest to the Clerk. 6. During a Hearing, the Respondent and their Witnesses shall be seated in the front row of the East Side seating area. The East Side seating area is located farthest from the Clerk. 7. The Code Enforcement Bureau and their Witnesses shall be seated in the front row of the West Side seating area. 8. The Code Enforcement Board shall use a standardized Finding of Fact and Relief Order Script to render its verdicts. The verdicts shall be read into the record by the Clerk in their entirety upon the motion of a Board Member. VII. ORDER OF BUSINESS A. 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Invocation 4. Pledge Of Allegiance 5. Agenda Changes 6. Swearing In Of Code Officers 7. Informational Agenda Items 8. Approval Of Previous Meeting Minutes 9. A wards and Presentations 10. Reports 11. Public Input (Non-Case Specific) 12. Public Hearings Agenda - Continued Cases 13. Public Hearings Agenda - Repeat Cases 14. Public Hearings Agenda - New Cases 15. Public Hearings Agenda - Non-Compliance Cases 16. Regular Agenda Items 17. Adjournment B. The Order of Business may be suspended by a Majority Vote of the Code Enforcement Board. VII. ANNUAL ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING A. The Annual Organizational Meeting shall be held in January of each year during the regularly scheduled Board Meeting. This Meeting shall be held regardless of the quantity of Cases which comes before the Board. B. The first Agenda Item during the Organizational Meeting shall be the Election of Officers as defined in Section V of the WSCEB Policy C. The Second Agenda Item during the Organizational Meeting shall be to obtain a Motion to Approve an acceptable 'Qualification of Posting' for the current year as described in Section 162.12 FSS. D. The Third Agenda Item during the Organizational Meeting shall be to obtain an Motion to Approve the Qualifications of the Winter Springs Code Enforcement Officers. The process will be as follows: 1. The Chairman will ask each Code Officer who will present testimony in front of the Board for the current year to state their name, title and current qualifications for the Record. 2. Upon completion, the Chainnan will ask for a Motion to Approve the Qualification as presented. E. The Fourth Agenda Item during the Organizational Meeting shall be a Motion to Re- Adopt the WSCEB Policy for the current year with any amendments as applicable. F. The Fifth Agenda item during the Organization Meeting shall be a Motion to Re- Adopt the Finding of Fact and Relief Order Scripts for the current year and any amendments, as applicable. G. The Agenda should continue as any other Regular Board Meeting once these Items have been completed. IX. HEARINGS 1. The Chairman shall open the Hearing and request the Clerk to read the Case Information. 2. The Chairman shall ask if the Respondent is present at the Hearing. 3. Swearing in of any Respondents/Witnesses. 4. The Chairman shall ask if the Respondent wishes to contest the charge(s). a) If charges are not contested, then Board, at its discretion, may make a Motion for Finding of Fact and Order of Relief. b) The absence of a Respondent at a Hearing does not provide the Respondent to the opportunity to answer this question on the record. Therefore, the Code Officer must present their case before the Board. 5. The Chairman will ask the Code Officer who is representing the City in this Case. 6. The Chairman will ask the Respondent who is representing the Respondent in this Case. 7. The Code Officer will be asked to present his/her Opening Statement. This will include any Witnesses, Evidence and Affidavits. 8. The Code Board will be provided an opportunity to ask questions to the Code Officers and his/her Witnesses. 9. The Respondents will be asked to present his/her Opening Statement. This will include any Witnesses, Evidence and Affidavits. 10. The Code Board will be provided an opportunity to ask questions to the Respondents and his/her Witnesses. 11. The Code Officer will be asked to present his/her Closing Statement. This will include any rebuttals to testimony, or Evidence presented to the Board. 12. The Respondent will be asked to present his/her Closing Statement. This will include any rebuttals to testimony, or Evidence presented to the Board. 13. The Code Board will be provided an opportunity to ask questions to either the Code Officer or the Respondent. 14. The Chairman shall close the Q&A session between the Board and the parties and the Board shall go into deliberation. A) Deliberations 1. The Board may only consider Evidence and testimony which was presented at the Hearing. 2. Upon completion of deliberation, the Board shall issue a Motion for Finding of Fact and Relief Order, if applicable. 3. For Finding of Fact, a Board Member will state the page number and that the Respondent is 'Guilty' /'Not Guilty' and have or have not Violated the Section Number of City Code and request that the Clerk give a full reading of the Motion. 4. For Relief Orders, a Board Member will state the Relief Order letter, what the fine will be; what the fine for a Repeat Violation will be; and whether or not the Respondent is present at this Hearing. The Board Member will then request that the Clerk give a full reading of the Motion. 15. Upon completion of deliberation, the Chainnan will request the Clerk to call the next Case. B.) Hearing Procedures 1. Objections. a) During testimony, a presiding Code Officer, Respondent or their representative, may "Object" to any statement or Evidence. At the moment of the Objection, the Hearing and any testimony must stop and the Chairman must make a Ruling on the Objection before the Hearing can continue. C. Introduction of Evidence. 1. Items entered into Evidence will be designated with a evidentiary label with designation prefix of 'WS' for Evidence submitted by the City and a designation prefix of' R' for Evidence submitted by the Respondent. Each item submitted into Evidence shall be identified with a unique sequential number for that Case. 2. The Chairman is responsible for allowing/disallowing each item into Evidence and by doing so shall designate each item into Evidence using the evidentiary label described above. The Chairman shall identify the Evidence and its evidentiary label for the Record. 3. It is the responsibility of the presiding Code Officer, Respondent or their representative to submit items into Evidence for approval by the Chairman. X. MISCELLANEOUS 1. 2. If a Board Member has a change of contact information, the Board Member haves (30) days to contact the Clerk to update the information. This is to guarantee that all contact information on file is current and correct.