(A) The City Attorney or designee, shall be informed of any person engaged in lobbying activities who has failed to comply with the provisions of this ordinance, and, in gross instances of violations, shall conduct such investigations as he or she shall deem necessary under the circumstances.
(B) A first violation of this section shall result in the Council issuing a warning, reprimand, suspension, or prohibit the violator from appearing on behalf of any person before the Council, Board or any decision-making body under the jurisdiction of the Council or from otherwise lobbying for any person in any fashion for a period of time; provided, however, that any suspension or prohibition may not exceed a period of two (2) years, and no sanction shall be imposed unless the lobbyist allegedly in violation has been afforded reasonable notice and an opportunity to be heard. The penalties provided in this section shall be the exclusive penalties imposed for violations of this ordinance, except as may be adopted from time to time or provided elsewhere in the Code of Ordinances. The intentional failure or refusal of any lobbyist to comply with any order of the Council suspending or prohibiting the lobbyist from lobbying shall be punishable as provided by law and shall otherwise be subject to such civil remedies as the City may pursue, including injunctive relief.
(C) A second violation shall be punishable by a fine imposed on the lobbyist in the amount of $250.00, in addition to the penalties set forth in subsection (B). There will be a $250.00 fine for each violation thereafter.
(D) Each incident of a lobbyist engaging in lobbyist activities with a City official or protected employee without first being registered shall constitute a separate violation.
(E) The validity of any action taken by the Council, City employees, or any decision-making body under the jurisdiction of the Council, shall not be affected by the failure of any person to comply with the provisions of this ordinance.
(F) In addition to all other penalties in this section, an employer who has retained a lobbyist(s) to lobby in connection with a competitive solicitation shall be deemed non-responsive unless the employer, in responding to the competitive solicitation, certifies that each lobbyist retained has timely filed the registration or amended registration required under this ordinance. If, after awarding a contract in connection with the solicitation, the City learns that the certification was erroneous, and upon investigation determines that the error was willful or intentional on the part of the employer, the City may, on that basis, exercise any contractual right to terminate the contract for convenience.
(Ord. 2018-24, passed 8-2-18)