Next up for the Pinellas County Charter Review Commission: dual voting and term limits.
Both are issues that county residents have expressed concern over since the CRC was established last year.
The term-limit debate goes all the way back to the 90s. It’s set for discussion at the CRC’s Wednesday, February 17 workshop. A public meeting, which will include time for public comment, will be held immediately after the workshop.
The CRC will discuss the dual vote matter at its Wednesday, January 20 meeting — which begins at 3:30.
The dual vote issue is about Section 6.04 of the county’s charter, which says that “amendments affecting regulatory authority must be passed by both municipal and county electorates.”
Deemed by both independent and CRC legal counsel to be in violation of Florida’s constitutional rules regarding regulatory powers, the dual vote issue, and examples of past questions that were stymied due to complications from the regulation will be reviewed by the commission.
Other discussion topics planned for the January 20 meeting include consolidation of government services, the Pinellas Suncoast Transportation Authority, and whether or not the charter has the authority to impact the PSTA.
The selection of CRC members and grievance handling and campaign restrictions are also slated for discussion at the meeting.
The CRC has retained the Orlando business consulting firm Diane Meiller & Associates from Orlando to facilitate the process and the Vose Law Firm from Winter Park for legal counsel.
Having begun meeting in August of 2015, the CRC will present its final report to the citizens of Pinellas County by July 2016. Any CRC recommended amendments to the charter will be placed on the November 2016 ballot for a vote by Pinellas County residents. The process occurs every eight years.
Meetings are held on the fourth floor of the Pinellas County Utilities Building, in Clearwater — 14 S. Ft. Harrison Ave. Signs will be posted to guide attendees to alternate parking, should the utilities building parking spaces fill-up — which usually happens.
