This ordinance provides a variety of worker protections against wage theft. A complaint for non-payment of earned wages, if not resolved through conciliation, is heard by the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Professional Standards. If a violation is established, the hearing order shall: require the employer to pay wage restitution in an amount equal to twice the amount of back wages that the employer is found to have unlawfully failed to pay the employee; require the employer to reimburse the employee for any reasonable costs and attorney's fees incurred by the employee in connection with the administrative hearing; and require the employer to pay to the Board of County Commissioners an assessment of costs in an amount not to exceed actual administrative processing costs and the cost of the hearing. The ordinance also requires repayment to the county of administrative costs and each respondent employer all reasonable costs and attorney's fees incurred by the employer in connection with the complaint.

This ordinance provides real estate developers with incentives, such as density bonuses and flexibility in design, for providing units affordable to families making 70-100% of area median income.

The legal environment for local government in Florida is beginning to change when it comes to sea-level rise. Innovations in institutional structure and governance strategies are underway in the State as well. This paper reviews three recent developments, which relate primarily to comprehensive planning in the State, and explores their implications for Florida’s local governments, among others. It begins with the State’s decision, in 2011 legislation, to give local governments a new, optional tool – referred to as “Adaptation Action Areas” – to address sea-level rise and related issues in local comprehensive plans. The paper then turns to a second piece of Florida legislation, this one enacted in 2015, which also identifies sea-level rise as a concern but this time mandates that local governments begin to address it and other causes of flood-related risks through their comprehensive planning process. Finally, the paper discusses a third initiative, launched in 2009 by four Southeast Florida counties – Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, and Monroe – to foster local government and regional coordination on sea-level rise and other climate change issues

An ordinance setting the procedure for wage theft complaints in St. Petersburg, FL.

An ordinance setting the procedure for wage theft complaints in Miami, FL.

This ordinance creates year-round conservation measures and regulations for the use of water resources during shortage seasons. This ordinance grants county authorities the right to declare a water shortage emergency, during which separate regulations governing water usage go into effect, and requires county facilities to engage in water conservation practices with respect to their lawn irrigation, landscape irrigation, and outdoor water use during the rest of the year.

This ordinance amends the Gainesville Code of Ordinances to add provisions for the purchase of solar generated energy through a standard offer contract for all classes and limits net metering distributed resources rates for general service and large power classes. The ordinance defines Distributed Generation to mean: small, modular, decentralized, grid-connected or off-grid energy systems located in or near the place where energy is used. For purposes of Net Metering, the generation is connected to the customers' premises behind the electric revenue meter. For purposes of Feed-In-Tariff, the generation may be independent of an existing utility customer account or may be at an existing customer premise and connected to the grid beyond the electric revenue meter. Net Metering is defined to mean: where a retail customer has installed a photovoltaic or other approved distributed generation system on the customer's side of the electric revenue meter, the kilowatt hours output by the distributed generation system shall be credited against the kilowatt hours used by the customer. The net of the kilowatt hours used by the customer less the kilowatt hours produced by the distributed generation system shall be the number of hours that the customer is billed at the applicable retail rate. The ordinance also defines the rate at which utility customers will be credited for their generation of electricity through the installation of net metering systems.

This act prohibits wage theft; sets procedures for filing wage theft complaints and complaint adjudication; establishes a conciliation policy; authorizes and establishes procedures for private right of action; authorizes restitution and fines; authorizes a hearing examiner to specify two or more individuals as jointly and severally liable for amounts payable to complainants and the County; and requires the submission of a fiscal report on the cost of implementation.

This ordinance establishes county procedures for the acquisition, rehabilitation, and resale of foreclosed properties located within county boundaries. This ordinance establishes a neighborhood stabilization program and requires county purchasers and employees to rehabilitate foreclosed properties in such a way as to maintain the integrity of the neighborhood in which the foreclosed property is located as well as to limit the property value impact to homes in the neighborhood.

This ordinance prohibits discrimination against applicants for housing services based on any identity trait which is protected under state law and establishes legal recourse for individuals who have experienced discrimination. Moreover, this ordinance consolidates county code and extends anti-discrimination jurisdiction to unincorporated areas within the county's geographical boundaries.