CEO 78-68 -- September 29, 1978

MUNICIPAL FINANCE AND BUDGET REVIEW COMMITTEE

APPLICABILITY OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE LAW TO MEMBERS

To: Drusilla C. Salsinger, City Clerk, St. Petersburg Beach

Prepared by: Phil Claypool

SUMMARY:

A municipal finance and budget review committee whose powers, jurisdiction, and authority are solely advisory constitutes an "advisory body" as that term is defined for purposes of the Code of Ethics. Section 112.312(1), F. S. 1977. Accordingly, members of said committee do not constitute "local officers" subject to the annual filing of financial disclosure. See s. 112.3145(2)(b) and (1)(a)2., F. S. 1977.

QUESTION:

Are the members of the St. Petersburg Beach Finance and Budget Review Committee "local officers" subject to the requirement of filing financial disclosure annually?

Your question is answered in the negative.

The Code of Ethics for Public Officers and Employees provides that each "local officer" shall file a statement of financial interests annually. Section 112.3145(2)(b), F. S. 1977. The term "local officer" is defined to include:

Any appointed member of a board, commission, authority, community college district board of trustees, or council of any political subdivision of the state, excluding any member of an advisory body. A governmental body with land-planning, zoning, or natural resources responsibilities shall not be considered an advisory body. [Section 112.3145(1)(a)2., F. S. 1977.]

In turn, an "advisory body" is defined as

any board, commission, committee, council, or authority, however selected, whose total budget, appropriations, or authorized expenditures constitute less than 1 percent of the budget of each agency it serves or $100,000, whichever is less, and whose powers, jurisdiction, and authority are solely advisory and do not include the final determination or adjudication of any personal or property rights, duties, or obligations, other than those relating to its internal operations. [Section 112.312(1), F. S. 1977.]

St. Petersburg Beach City Ordinance No. 287, which created the five-member finance and budget review committee, provides in relevant part:

The Finance and Budget Review Committee shall review requests for budget appropriations and requests for supplemental appropriations, shall review annual audit reports, monthly financial reports; and in general, the Committee shall monitor and review the financial position of the City. Thereafter, the Committee shall make such comments and such recommendations to the Board of Commissioners as are deemed appropriate.

In addition to the above duties, the Finance and Budget Review Committee shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to it by the Board of Commissioners. [Ordinance 287, ss. 4 and 5.]

In a telephone conversation with our staff, you advised that the committee has been assigned no additional duties by the board of commissioners and that it has no budget or authorized expenditures.

At this time, the committee clearly meets all requirements for constituting an "advisory body." Accordingly, we find that so long as the committee has not been assigned any duties which are not solely advisory or which relate to land-planning, zoning or natural resources, the members of the finance and budget review committee are not "local officers" subject to the requirement of filing financial disclosure annually.