Nelson Bellido Guest Stars on ABC News: “This Week in South Florida with Glenna Milberg”

Congratulations to Nelson Bellido for being invited to appear on ABC News “This Week in South Florida with Glenna Milberg” on Sunday, February 4th. He was accompanied by Broward County Inspector General, Jodie Breece, and Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics & Public Trust Executive Director, José Arrojo. They addressed important legislation that can have an adverse impact on ethics investigations by local commissions such as the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission that I serve on.

The bill prior to amendment dealt with changes to the state ethics code and the procedures used by the Florida Commission on Ethics to investigate and process ethics complaints. The last-minute amendment for the first-time addresses s.112.326, F.S., relating to local agencies and prohibits the initiation of a complaint or investigation by the governing body of the political subdivision, agency, or any entity created to enforce local ethics standards. 

In effect, the bill preempts local ethics commission procedures. The Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics could not investigate any matter unless a third-party sworn complaint is filed and would also be prohibited from filing a complaint in our own name. The investigation and complaint procedures that we have used on the Ethics Commission since the late 1990’s and which have led to significant cases over the years would be disallowed.  

You can view the segment at: This Week In South Florida : Feb 04, 2024 (local10.com)