The Honorable Bruce H. Colton State Attorney Nineteenth Judicial Circuit 411 South Second Street Fort Pierce, Florida 34950 Dear Mr. Colton: You ask substantially the following questions: 1. Does section 817.52 (2), Florida Statutes, apply when an individual hires a taxicab and, upon reaching the destination, refuses to pay for the ride or states that he or she has no money and cannot, or will not, pay for the cab's service 2. Does section 817.52 (2), Florida Statutes, apply to an individual...
The Honorable Ronald W. Mason City Councilman, At-Large District 2 City Hall, 3rd Floor 315 J.F. Kennedy Boulevard Tampa, Florida 33602 Dear Councilman Mason: A majority of the members of the Tampa City Council are considering the adoption of a juvenile curfew ordinance. You, therefore, ask substantially the following question: In light of recent court decisions, what factors should be considered by the city council in adopting a juvenile curfew ordinance In sum: Recent court decisions require...
The Honorable Harry Lee Coe III State Attorney Thirteenth Judicial Circuit 5th Floor County Courthouse Annex Tampa, Florida 33602 Dear Mr. Coe: You have asked for my opinion on the following questions: 1. Whether a company may lawfully possess and/or manufacture slot machines and/or component parts for slot machines in the State of Florida if the slot machines are not used or displayed in contravention of sections 849.15 - 849.23 , Florida Statutes (1993), and are ultimately shipped to states...
Mr. Dennis E. Lyles Fort Lauderdale City Attorney 100 North Andrews Avenue Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301 Dear Mr. Lyles: On behalf of the City of Fort Lauderdale, you ask substantially the following questions: 1. May a city agree through collective bargaining to remove counseling slips and written reprimands from an employee's personnel file and maintain such documents in a separate file pertaining to discipline 2. May a settlement agreement in an employee grievance proceeding involving...
Mr. Victor J. Troiano Troiano Roberts Attorneys At Law Post Office Drawer 829 Lakeland, Florida 33802 Dear Mr. Troiano: On behalf of the Clerk of the Court of Polk County, you have asked for my opinion on substantially the following question: How long is the Clerk of the Court required to keep funds that have been deposited into the registry of the court transferring a judgment lien to security under section 55.10 (6), Florida Statutes (1993) In sum: Funds that have been deposited into the...
Mr. Edward A. O'Connor, Jr. Executive Director Spaceport Florida Authority 150 Cocoa Isles Boulevard, Suite 401 Cocoa Beach, Florida 32931 Dear Mr. O'Connor: You ask substantially the following questions: 1. Is the Spaceport Florida Authority a "special district" as defined in section 189.403 (1), Florida Statutes 2. If so, to which "local general-purpose governments" must the authority report as required by section 189.415 , Florida Statutes In sum: 1. The Spaceport Florida Authority is an "...
Mr. Kurt S. Browning Supervisor of Elections Pasco County Courthouse 705 East Live Oak Avenue Dade City, Florida 33535 Dear Mr. Browning: You have asked for my opinion on the following question: What are the qualifying requirements for commission candidates for road and bridge districts created under the authority of Chapter 336 , Florida Statutes (1983) In sum: Candidates who wish to qualify for election to a special road and bridge district commission created prior to October 1, 1984, are...
Mr. Herbert A. Langston, Jr. Maitland City Attorney 111 So. Maitland Avenue Suite 200 Maitland, Florida 32794-5050 Dear Mr. Langston: On behalf of the Maitland City Council, you ask substantially the following questions: 1. May the mayor or other member of the city council be appointed to serve on the board of trustees of the police officers' and firefighters' pension trust fund without violating the dual officeholding prohibitions of Article II , section 5 , Florida Constitution, when the city...
Ms. Karen L. Bzdyk District Eleven CHPA Board Attorney Dickman Building 4500 Le Jeune Road Coral Gables, Florida 33146 Dear Ms. Bzdyk: On behalf of the District 11 Community Health Purchasing Alliance Board of Directors you ask: Whether a Community Health Purchasing Alliance Board of Directors is authorized to create advisory committees that include persons who are not members or staff of the CHPA board. In sum: A Community Health Purchasing Alliance Board of Directors may create committees of...
Mr. Jorge L. Fernandez Sarasota County Attorney 1549 Ringling Boulevard Third Floor Sarasota, Florida 34236 Dear Mr. Fernandez: On behalf of the Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners, you ask substantially the following question: Does the Government in the Sunshine Law apply to a forum sponsored by a private civic club at which two or more members of the board of county commissioners will serve as panelists and answer questions regarding public issues, some of which may foreseeably come...
Ms. Kimberly Tucker General Counsel Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700 Dear Ms. Tucker: You have asked for my opinion on whether the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services is authorized to pay attorney's fees for an employee of the agency who is called before a grand jury for investigation involving his or her official duties. Florida courts have recognized a common law right of public officials to legal...
Earl G. Peck, MGen., USAF(Ret.) Executive Director Department of Veterans' Affairs Post Office Box 31003 St. Petersburg, Florida 33731-8903 Dear Major General Peck: You ask substantially the following question: May a county or city veteran service officer acting in either his official or personal capacity receive a fiduciary commission for acting as a fiduciary for an incompetent veteran In sum: A county or city veteran service officer acting in his official capacity may not receive a...
Chief B.R. Riggs West Palm Beach Police Department Post Office Box 1390 West Palm Beach, Florida 33402 Dear Chief Riggs: You ask substantially the following question: May the City of West Palm Beach utilize the fees collected pursuant to section 316.655 (6), Florida Statutes, to upgrade the city's communication system to allow other municipalities to participate in such a system In sum: Section 316.655 (6), Florida Statutes, does not currently permit the use of the fees collected thereunder to...
Ms. Sharon V. Thorsen Pompano Beach City Attorney Post Office Box 2083 Pompano Beach, Florida 33061 Dear Ms. Thorsen: On behalf of the Pompano Beach City Commission, you ask substantially the following question: May the City of Pompano Beach allow an employee of the Police and Firefighters' Retirement System to participate in the City of Pompano Beach's selffunded employee medical, dental, vision and hearing expense benefit fund. In sum: The City of Pompano Beach may allow employees of the...
Mr. Gerald T. Buhr Zolfo Springs Town Attorney Post Office Box 1647 Lutz, Florida 33549 Dear Mr. Buhr: On behalf of the Town of Zolfo Springs, you ask substantially the following question: May a municipality, subject to the limitations of section 180.135 , Florida Statutes, grant automatically perfected liens for unpaid utility services against the property served or must it perfect its lien by filing with the clerk of the circuit court In sum: While a municipality may impose a lien for unpaid...
Mr. Randy Ludacer Monroe County Attorney 310 Fleming Street, Second Floor Key West, Florida 33040 Dear Mr. Ludacer: You ask substantially the following questions: 1. May a county limit the owner/builder exception in section 489.103 (7), Florida Statutes, to the construction of single family residences and to persons seeking building permits no more frequently than every three years 2. May rough carpentry work such as framing a house be performed by persons other than those licensed as a...
Mr. Harold D. Lewis General Counsel Agency for Health Care Administration 325 John Knox Road, Suite 301 Tallahassee, Florida 32303-4131 Dear Mr. Lewis: You ask substantially the following question: Does the term "identifying information" as provided in section 641.515 (2), Florida Statutes, refer only to information that identifies patients and the complainant or does it also include the names of the health maintenance organization and its staff In sum: Until this matter is legislatively or...
Ms. Barbara J. Staros General Counsel Florida Department of Education The Capitol PL 08 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400 Dear Ms. Staros: On behalf of the Commissioner of Education, you ask the following questions: 1. Is an individual, who prior to 1988 obtained an expungement order regarding a criminal history record, required to disclose the existence and substance of such a record when so requested in connection for an application for the issuance or renewal of a teacher's certificate 2....
Mr. Howard Scharps, Chairman Gainesville-Alachua County Regional Airport Authority 3400 Northeast 39th Avenue, Suite A Gainesville, Florida 32609 Dear Mr. Scharps: On behalf of the Gainesville-Alachua County Regional Airport Authority, you ask substantially the following question: Does a voluntary dismissal operate to conclude litigation for purposes of section 286.011 (8), Florida Statutes, allowing a plaintiff to voluntarily dismiss a suit, request the record of the strategy or settlement...
Ms. Audrey Vickers, Chairman Highlands County Board of County Commissioners Post Office Box 1926 Sebring, Florida 33871-1926 Dear Ms. Vickers: On behalf of the Board of County Commissioners of Highlands County, you ask my opinion on the following question: Does the publication requirement of section 50.031 , Florida Statutes, require that a newspaper be entered as second-class mail matter in the county where published for a one year period prior to being used for the publication of legal notice,...
