HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 101-2026 RESOLUTION NO. 101-2026
A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA,
SUPPORTING THE MISSION OF THE OLDER AMERICAN
ADVISORY BOARD AND CLARIFYING THAT THE
ADVISORY BOARD IS A CITIZEN-LED VOLUNTEER
GROUP IN NATURE, AND DOES NOT OPERATE AS A
FORMAL ADVISORY BOARD OF THE COUNTY;
RESCINDING RESOLUTION NOS. 038-1988, 260-2002, AND
SUCH OTHER FORMAL MOTIONS AND ACTIONS
TAKEN BY THE MONROE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS IN RELATION TO THE OLDER
AMERICAN ADVISORY BOARD IN ORDER TO CLARIFY
THE INDEPENDENT ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF
THE COUNTY MOVING FORWARD; PROVIDING FOR
CONFLICTS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; AND
PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the United States Congress originally passed the Older Americans Act in
1965; and
WHEREAS, the Older Americans Act, as amended in 2020 (hereinafter "Act"), requires
state agencies on aging to perform certain activities and provide reasonable assurances in order to
receive federal funding under the Act; and
WHEREAS, among those activities and assurances is the requirement that each state
agency on aging must select area agencies on aging, and those area agencies must then establish
an advisory council to facilitate community planning with regard to social services, as well as
research and development projects in the field of aging; and
WHEREAS, for the past several years, the State of Florida through the Department of
Elder Affairs, has designated the Alliance for Aging, Inc. as the area agency on aging for the
planning and service area 11 (PSA-11), inclusive of Monroe County; and
WHEREAS, Alliance for Aging, Inc. has established the required advisory council to
ensure compliance with state and federal laws; and
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WHEREAS, although historical records from 1965 have been difficult to assemble, it is
believed that before the Alliance for Aging, Inc. was selected as the area agency on aging, the
Board of County Commissioners (hereinafter "BOCC") facilitated the formation of the Monroe
County Older American Advisory Board, to ensure compliance with the Act and the County's
receipt of federal funds; and
WHEREAS, starting in 2000 and possibly even earlier, the Alliance for Aging, Inc. was
designated as the area agency on aging, and created its own advisory council, thus the nature of
the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board became unclear; and
WHEREAS, exhaustive efforts were made to discover the Monroe County Older
American Advisory Board originating legislation, no resolution nor ordinance was found to
provide an independent authority or purpose for its continuation, and there is no evidence to
support that the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board plays any part in the decision-
making process of the BOCC; and
WHEREAS, in the absence of any formally delegated duties or advisory board functions,
the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board is tantamount to a citizen-led volunteer group
that acts independently from the BOCC, and is not subject to Florida's Sunshine Law; and
WHEREAS, in past transactions, the BOCC has accepted the group's bylaws which were
authored by the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board, itself, intermittently ratified
nominations or appointed its members; and in one instance, passed a resolution in support of an
issue raised by the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board and the AARP Chapters in
the Florida Keys; and
WHEREAS,the BOCC fully supports the mission of the Monroe County Older American
Advisory Board as a civilian-led volunteer group that provides guidance and general
recommendations to service providers and coordinators in relation to programs for older adults
within Monroe County; and
WHEREAS, it is important that the BOCC clarify that it has not created the Older
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American Advisory Board to act as an instrumentality on behalf of Monroe County; furthermore,
the BOCC has not delegated powers, duties, or assigned fact-finding functions to the Monroe
County Older American Advisory Board, nor is there any ascertainable legislative history that
depicts an intent to create or vest powers in the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board
as one of the official advisory boards to the BOCC; and
WHEREAS, moving forward and in furtherance of resolving any ambiguities, the BOCC
hereby rescinds all past actions approved by the BOCC as they relate to the Monroe County Older
American Advisory Board, and clarifies that such volunteer group is not a formal advisory board
of Monroe County, nor the BOCC; and
WHEREAS,the BOCC further clarifies that Monroe County (BOCC) employees will not
be assigned as support staff to the volunteer group, and any role or function assigned to the BOCC
as detailed in the group's bylaws are non-binding upon the BOCC or Monroe County (to wit: the
BOCC will not appoint members to, nor remove members from, the volunteer group, etc.); and
WHEREAS,the BOCC encourages the citizen-led volunteer group to continue its efforts
to fulfill its important mission, and welcomes its involvement in County programs and operations
on equal footing as other citizen-led volunteer groups within the community; and
WHEREAS, the BOCC hereby finds and determines that the actions described herein
serve the best interests of the residents, visitors, and business owners in Monroe County, Florida.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA:
Section 1: That the foregoing "WHEREAS"clauses are hereby ratified and confirmed
as being true and correct and are hereby made a specific part of this resolution.
Section 2: That the County Commission hereby rescinds Resolution No. 038-1988,
Resolution No. 260-2002, and such other formal motions and actions taken by the County
Commission in relation to the Monroe County Older American Advisory Board in order to clarify
that such volunteer organization or entity is not created by law, and is not an advisory board created
by the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners to provide services to Monroe County,
Florida.
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