Item Q2
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BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
Meeting Date: December 17. 2003
Division:
County Administrator
Bulk Item: Yes
No ----X-
Department: County Administrator
AGENDA ITEM WORDING:
Approval to have a new Assistant County Attorney position to work in the County Attorney's office.
ITEM BACKGROUND:
The County Attorney's office presently has the County Attorney, the Chief Assistant County Attorney
and two Assistant County Attorneys. Other legal work is handled by a variety of outside consultant
counsel. Since the new County Attorney assumed his position in January of 2003, he has been
reorganizing the workload and bringing additional work in-house that was previously done by
consulting attorneys on an hourly basis. As identified in the attached letter from the County Attorney,
those efforts and the new Article V responsibilities are increasing the workload on the County
Attorney's office. An additional attorney would also assist in bringing more revenues to the County.
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION:
N/A
CONTRACTI AGREEMENT CHANGES:
N/A
STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
Approval.
TOTAL COST:
$62.000 (Est.) + Benefits
BUDGETED: Yes
NoL
COST TO COUNTY: $62.000 (Est.) + Benefits SOURCE OF FUNDS: Ad Valorem
REVENUE PRODUCING: Yes _ No lL AMOUNT PER MONTH_ Year
APPROVED BY: County Atty-X-
OMB/Purchasing X Risk Management _
-~~--
DMSION DIRECTOR APPROVAL:
James L. Roberts
DOCUMENTATION:
Included X
To Follow
Not Required_
DISPOSITION:
AGENDA ITEM #~
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Office of the County Attorney
PO Box 1026
Key West, FL 33041-1026
305/292-3470 - Phone
305/292-3516 - Fax
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
MAYOR Murray E. Nelson, District 5
Mayor Pro Tem, David P. Rice, District 4
Dixie M. Spehar. District 1
George Neugent, District 2
Charles 'Sonny" McCoy, District 3
O~~3~~E
(3051294~1
November 25, 2003
James L. Roberts
County Administrator
1100 Simonton Street
Key West, FL 33040
Re: New attorney position
Dear Jim:
When I became County Attorney earlier this year, I resolved to enhance the legal
services that this office provides to the Commission. To that end, we have kept some
litigation in house that would have been referred to outside counsel in previous years.
We have also taken a more aggressive approach in instituting collection proceedings for
money owed to the County. Staff attorneys have also become more engaged in
addressing a variety of issues within County government including land use,
construction management, and employment matters.
Because the current legal staff has absorbed the increased workload, an
additional attorney is needed. The legal workload will only increase during the next six
months given the evolving relationship with the County's special land use counsel as
well as the additional prosecutorial responsibilities that the County will have when the
Article V reforms take effect. Moreover, this office may take on a greater role in
providing legal services to the various constitutional officers than have been provided in
the past.
The new attorney would be a litigator, preferably with a prosecutorial
background. A new attorney would work with current staff in appearing before all four
County Court Judges who hear County ordinance violations. Beginning in July of 2004,
those violations will no longer be prosecuted by the State Attorney's office. Since there
is little coordination of the Judges' calendars, these matters are often heard at the same
time at opposite ends of the County. Courtroom coverage is simply too large a task for
the current legal staff to handle. This position could be funded, in part, by the costs of
prosecution that are taxed against defendants convicted of violating a County
ordinance.
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J.L. Roberts
Attorney Position
November 25, 2003
Page 2
The looming Article V reforms provide a potentially lucrative incentive to hire an
additional attorney irnmediately. On July 1, 2004, the State will assurne ownership of
countless liens that are currently held by the County. In the past, the County has had a
passive collection policy that amounted to collecting only when a convicted person sold
real property. If the County is to realize any of the millions of dollars that these liens
represent, this office will need to implement an aggressive lien collection and resolution
program immediately. Because current staff is working at or above capacity, an
additional attorney would be necessary to implement such a program.
Moreover, with an additional attorney, this office will be able to litigate some of
the more routine tort, land use, and employment matters that are currently handled by
outside counsel. Having these matters handled by staff counsel instead of outside
counsel will result in untold savings to the County.
In light of the foregoing, I respectfully request that you create an additional
attorney position for this office as well as authorize me to begin searching for a qualified
person to fill it. Because this office is taking a more aggressive approach to collecting
money owed to the County, the revenue generated by the additional attorney should
more than offset the salary and benefits costs incurred in the creation of that position.
Thank you for your anticipated cooperation with this request. Please contact me
should you have any questions regarding this matter.
Sincerely,
q~
County Attorney
JRC/RBS:dct
cc: County Commissioners