CITY OF HIALEAH LAW DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM TO: Council Member Bryan Calvo 4? FROM: Elsa I. Jaramillo-Velez, Interim City albsk ce: Mayor Esteban Bovo, Jr. and Council Members DATE: July 18, 2023 RE: Request for Legal Opinion (LO 2023-1)! Investigations and Inquiries into City Departments and Other Municipal Affairs You have requested a legal opinion on the followin; Can a City Council Member, on his/her own accord/individually, conduct an inquiry or investigation into the conduct of a department or any other municipal affair? For the reasons set forth below, your question is answered in the negative ANALYSIS A. Municipal Charter. “The paramount law of a municipality is its charter...and gives the municipality all the power it possesses...” Burns v. Tondreau, 139 So.3d 481 (Fla. 3d DCA 2014), review dismissed, 153 So. 3d 902 (Fla. 2014). The executive and legislative bodies of a municipality are bound by the municipal charter. McQuillin the Law of Municipal Corporations, § 15:17. City of Hialeah Charter Mayor and City Council Powers and Duties. Article I. - Corporate Existence, Form of Government, Boundary and Power, provides in Section 1.02 for the form of goverment as follows: The City shall have a Strong Mayor-Council form of government. Article IL, - Mayor. Article II of the City Charter provides for the powers and duties of the Mayor in Sections 2.01, and 4.01. The Mayor exerci the executive powers of the city, * This legal opinion is being issued in accordance with Article IV Administrative ~ Section 4.03 ~ City Attorney, Subsection (b) “The City Attorney shall have the following duties ond responsibilities in his orher official capacity.) Provide legal opinions when requested by the mayor, the city council and individual councilmembers on legal questions pertaining to their respective powers ‘and duties or as otherwise required by the duties ofthe office.”supervises all departments, and is the chief administrative officer responsible for the administration ofall city affairs. The Mayor also hires employees, supervises, and disciplines employees. Article II. - City Council. Article II of the City Charter provides for the powers and duties of the City Council in Section 2.02. The City Council adopts legislation, adopts the annual budget, determines the organization of the City government and the powers and duties of departments, and approves or ratifies Mayoral department head hiring or discipline. C. City Council Communication with employees. 1, Inquiry and investigation by City Council. Section 2.02 — City Council ~ by its very title outlines the duties and powers of the City Council as a whole. In particular, Section 2.02(a)(6) of the Charter states that the City Council may inguire into the conduct of any municipal office, department, agency or officer and to investigate municipal affairs, and for that purpose, may subpoena witnesses, administer oaths, and compel the production of books, papers, or other evidence. The City Charter does not provide for a definition of what constitutes an inguiry or investigation. The court in Sherri Myers v. Ashton Hayward & the City of Pensacola (a strong Mayor form of government) with identical charter provisions to that of the City of Hialeah, found that an inquiry is arequest for information and that, an investigation “is a formal inquiry conducted by the Jegislative body incident to its legislative authority.” 2012 WL 6964434 (Fla. Cir. Ct 2012). In. the City of Pensacola case, the Court stated “In general, the Mayor has the authority to regulate all communications and recommendations by individual City Council Members. The one exception is that the Mayor cannot regulate communications and ‘requests’ that are good faith inquiries and investigations when undertaken under the authority of the City Council to conduct inquiries and investigations.” /d. Additionally, the Court stated that “individual City Couneil members may conduct inquiries and conduct investigations on behalf of the City Council as a legislative body.” Id. A municipal legislative body can only act when it sits as a joint body, and individual members can do no valid act except through the body. Turk v. Richard, 47 So. 2d 543 (Fla, 1950). 2. Communications to employees through the Mayor. Section 3.02 of the City Charter provides for “prohibitions” to the City Council and Councilmembers. Section 3.02(b) Interference with administration specifically states: Except for the purpose of inquiries and investigations made in good faith, the city council or councilmembers shall deal with city officers and employees, who are subject to the direction and supervision of the mayor, solely through the mayor. Neither the city council nor councilmembers shall give orders to any such officer or employee, either publicly or privately. It is the express intent of this charter that recommendations for improvement of municipal governmentoperations by individual councilmembers be made solely to and through the mayor. The City of Pensacola court held that “The Mayor, consistent with his authority under the City Charter, has the authority to enact a policy that requires communications by individual ity Council members to City employees be made solely through the Mayor's office, unless such communications are good faith, bona fide inquiries or investigations.” 2012 WL. 6964434 (Fla. Cit Ct 2012). Therefore, these bona fide inquiries and investigations may be made after the City Council has decided jointly, as a legislative body, that an investigation is deemed necessary. At the June 27, 2023 City Council meeting, Council Member Calvo requested the City Council's support for an investigation to be conducted of the City’s 911 Call Center. The City Council, jointly as a legislative body, took no action, Therefore, all inquities and communications must be done solely through the Mayor. It is important to note that on multiple occasions Mayor Bovo, Jr. communicated with department directors/administrators and Council Members regarding the administrative protocol as it relates to communications and activities of the City Council”, CONCLUSION A thorough review of the City Charter delineates the powers and duties of the executive and legislative bodies. The Mayor has the power to inquire into the conduct of any municipal office, department, agency or officer and investigate municipal affairs. Similarly, the City Charter clearly outlines the power of the City Council to inquire into the conduct of any municipal office, department, agency or officer and to investigate municipal affairs, and for that purpose may subpoena witnesses, administer oaths, and compel production of books, papers or other evidence, If the City Council wishes to conduct an inquiry into the conduct of any municipal office, department or agency or investigate municipal affairs, that request would have to be made as a legislative body. A single council member shall not have the authority to conduct inquiries ot investigation on his/her own accord/individually. 2 Administrative Protocol Memorandum issued on March 22, 2022 and September 1, 2022.