CEO 75-144 -- July 9, 1975

ADVISORY PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD

MEMBERS NOT PUBLIC OFFICERS

To: Henry L. Cabellero, Parks and Recreation Board, Naples

Prepared by: Bonnie Johnson

SUMMARY:

The local ordinance which established the City of Naples Parks and Recreation Board provides that members of the board serve in an advisory capacity and that no recommendations by the board are binding upon the city council. The board therefore is deemed to be solely advisory and its members are exempt from financial disclosure requirements of part III, Ch. 112, F. S. (1974 Supp.).

QUESTION:

Am I, as a member of the City of Naples Parks and Recreation Board, a solely advisory body, a public officer within the meaning of that term as found in part III, Ch. 112, F. S. (1974 Supp.), and therefore subject to disclosure provisions applicable to public officers?

Your question is answered in the negative.

Section 112.312(7)(b), F. S. (1974 Supp.), defines the term "public officer" to include "[m]embers of boards . . . however selected but excluding advisory board members."

Article II or Ordinance No. 1662 of the City of Naples establishes the Parks and Recreation Board and defines its duties. Section 16.4(a) of this ordinance states that the board "shall be composed of seven (7) members appointed by the City Council and shall serve without compensation and in an advisory capacity." (Emphasis supplied.) Section 16.8 further states that "[t]he recommendations and findings of the Parks and Recreation Board shall not be binding on the City Council and shall be advisory only." The duties of the board encompass no planning or zoning jurisdiction, thus excluding board members from s. 112.312(7)(i), supra.

We are therefore of the opinion that members of the City of Naples Parks and Recreation Board are not public officers pursuant to part III, Ch. 112, supra, and thus are not subject to disclosure provisions applicable to public officers.