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Lobbyist Information:
Definitions
Compensation means monetary
consideration of any kind, either received or expected,
including but not limited to, salary, payment, retainer,
commission, consideration of any type, forbearance, forgiveness
or any combination thereof. For purposes of this section,
compensation shall only include something of monetary value.
Lobbying means any communication,
written or oral, or any meeting or discussion by a Lobbyist with
any member of City Council, Staff Decision Maker or board member
wherein there is communicated, disclosed or discussed any matter
which is or may be pending before City Council, Staff Decision
Maker or the respective board in order to influence the action
or inaction of the City Council, Staff Decision Maker or the
respective board. The definition of lobbying includes
appearances before City Council and boards but does not include
the act of filing an application on behalf of or as authorized
agent for another.
Lobbyist means any person who
shall engage in lobbying as defined herein for compensation for
(1) an entity other than his or her employer; or (2) for any
entity including his or her employer if a principal function of
his or her position is lobbying or governmental relations.
Staff Decision Makers means the
following employees of the City of Orlando who have been
delegated final decision making authority by ordinance to make
decisions on behalf of the City, when they are acting within the
scope of that final decision making authority: Appearance Review
Officer, Building Official, Deputy Building Official, City
Engineer, Fire Marshall, Historic Preservation Officer, Planning
Official, Transportation Engineer, Vehicle for Hire
Administrator and Zoning Official.
Prohibitions on Lobbying of Board Members
Lobbying of the members of all City boards by
Lobbyists shall be prohibited outside of open, posted public
meetings; provided however, in advance of any City board meeting,
Lobbyists may provide written documents and information to the
Recording Secretary of any City Board for dissemination to all Board
members. Lobbying at public meetings shall be subject to the
registration and reporting requirements.
The prohibitions and requirements are in addition to the City’s
Public Works and Office of Purchasing & Materials Management
policies that prohibit proposers from any and all communication
regarding the procurement process with Council members, selection
committee members, and City staff until Final Award is made, except
through the assigned staff member.
Registration
All Lobbyists shall register at the time of lobbying
or no later than the next City business day from the date of such
lobbying. Such registration shall provide the Lobbyist’s name and
business address and the name and business address of the person,
firm, corporation, principal or other entity providing compensation
to the Lobbyist. Such registration shall be on forms provided by the
City Clerk and maintained in the offices of the City Clerk for
storage and public inspection. This registration requirement shall
apply to all activity by Lobbyists whether it takes place in City
offices or outside City offices.
Reporting
A Lobbyist shall on or before February 1 and August 1
of each year submit to the City Clerk’s office a signed statement,
executed under oath, listing all lobbying expenditures involving
City Council, Staff Decision Makers, and/or City boards for the
preceding six month period (January- June, July-December), the
source of the funds and an itemization of the amount expended for
each member of City Council, Staff Decision Makers, and/or board
member by each registered Lobbyist. Lobbyists who have incurred no
City lobbying expenses during the preceding period shall not be
required to file a report. It shall be the responsibility of the
Lobbyist to obtain this form from the City Clerk’s office. The City
Clerk shall maintain such filings available and open for public
inspection. Any Lobbyist required to file a report who fails to file
on or before the due date for the previous period, in addition to
any other penalty provided for herein shall not be permitted to
engage in any Lobbying activity until their reports are brought
current. Exceptions
The following categories of persons shall be exempt
from the registration and reporting requirements set forth in
paragraph 3 of this section.
- Employees or representatives of any federal,
state, county, municipal or independent authority discussing the
business of their government or authority;
- An elected official or government employee
acting in his official capacity or in connection with his job
responsibilities;
- Law enforcement personnel conducting an
active investigation;
- Persons or representatives of organizations
contacted by the City Council member when such contact is
initiated by the member;
- A person who appears under compulsion or
subpoena by the City Council, Board or staff member of a board;
- Any person in contractual privity with the
City who appears only in his or her official contractual
capacity in connection with the performance of the current
contract.
Violations/penalties
Violation of any provision of this section shall
be punishable as provided in section 1.08, Orlando City Code.
Failure of any Lobbyist to comply with the provisions of this
section shall not in any way effect the validity of any action
taken by City Council or any City official.
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