Mayor Gimenez vetoes new Tallahassee lobbying contracts

Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, exercising his veto muscle for the first time, blocked a county commission move that would have increased spending on Tallahassee lobbyists ? the polar opposite of what the commission purportedly set out to do.

?My concern is they started out to save money and ended up costing the county more,?? Gimenez said in an interview. ?I vetoed it because I didn?t think it was the right thing to do, so they can go back and try again.??

At the Dec. 19 meeting, the commission voted to pay $450,000 to four lobbying firms for government representation and consulting services at the state level. That was $50,000 more than the two incumbent firms had offered to take to keep the work.

That commission vote of 10-3 came after 90 minutes of debate and five failed motions. Commission chairman Joe Martinez ? who had spearheaded the effort to search for new lobbying firms with the goal of reducing spending ? ended up voting against the measure. Also voting against it were Commissioners Xavier Suarez and Lynda Bell.

?I?m so thrilled. It put a smile on my face,?? Bell said Wednesday after receiving the mayor?s veto message. ?We don?t need to spend that kind of money on lobbying.??

Gimenez, who resigned as a county commissioner in April to run for the mayoral-seat vacancy created by the recall of Carlos Alvarez, has worked to build a cooperative relationship with the commission and has played an active role at meetings. And the veto isn?t likely to disrupt those ties.

Commissioner Sally Heyman, who said she reluctantly supported the lobbying contracts in order to be on the board?s prevailing side, said she was pleased with Gimenez?s action. ?This is the mayor?s first veto, and it was an appropriate one. While the [commission?s] intention was to save costs as it ended up, it didn?t ? so applause to the mayor.?

The commission?s money-saving effort began in October, shortly after the county?s new austere budget kicked in and the prospect of employee layoffs and labor concessions began to hit home. Martinez said in an Oct. 7 letter to the mayor that to ?drastically reduce? costs it would be necessary to advertise for lobbying firms to be selected through a competitive process.

The threat of losing the county work spurred the incumbent firms ? Ron L. Book P.A. and Rutledge, Ecenia & Purnell ? to offer to cut their fees to $200,000 a year each, down from $225,000. The proposed cuts were in addition to reductions in 2009 and 2010.

But the commission brushed aside that offer and pushed forward with the search, directing the administration to bring the panel all qualified firms for it to choose. That resulted in four suitors: The two incumbents plus Akerman Senterfitt & Eidson and Ballard Partners Inc. Book subcontracts with the Pittman Law Group. Rutledge subcontracts with Becker & Poliakoff; Dutko Worldwide LLC; and Gomez Barker Associates Inc.

Instead of picking among the four firms, the commission voted to include all four on the county?s Tallahassee team. Book and Rutledge would each have gotten $170,000 a year under the new contracts, while newcomers Akerman and Ballard would each have gotten $55,000 a year.

?What happened was everybody wanted to have all the parties included in the contract, and you cannot do that if you are trying to reduce costs. You can?t have it both ways,? Commissioner Jean Monestime said. ?Having four firms may be better, but since the idea was to reduce the costs, I?m OK with reconsidering it.?

The veto means the issue will come up at the Jan. 24 commission meeting, although the board could agree to bring it up at its Jan.?5 session. A two-thirds vote would be needed to override the mayor?s veto.

For now, the county will continue on a month-to-month basis with the incumbents, Book and Rutledge, at the old rate of $450,000 a year. But Gimenez says he?ll push for less. ?I?ll try to renegotiate that right away.?

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/12/28/2564782/mayor-gimenez-vetoes-new-tallahassee.html

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