25.02(A) Enforcement. Code enforcement shall be informed of any Person engaged in Lobbying activities who has failed to comply with the provisions of § 25.01, and, in each such instance, shall conduct such investigation as deemed necessary under the circumstances.
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25.02(B) Sanctions. The City's Special Magistrate, pursuant to Chapter 31, shall have jurisdiction to hear and rule upon violations of this Chapter. The Special Magistrate shall issue enforcement orders and impose fines pursuant to § 31.22 of the Code as well as have the power to reprimand, suspend, or prohibit the violator from appearing on behalf of any person before the City Commission or any decision-making body under the jurisdiction of the City Commission or from otherwise Lobbying the City 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 years, and any of said sanctions shall not be imposed unless the Lobbyist (or the employer or principal of the Lobbyist, as applicable) allegedly in violation has been afforded reasonable notice and an opportunity to be heard, in accordance with Chapter 31 of the Code. Further, the intentional failure or refusal of any Lobbyist to comply with any order of the Special Magistrate suspending or prohibiting the Lobbyist fromLobbying shall be punishable as provided by law and shall otherwise be subject to such civil remedies as the City may pursue, including injunctive relief.
25.02(C) Validity. The validity of any action taken by the City Commission, City employees, or any decision-making body under the jurisdiction of the City Commission, shall not be affected by the failure of any person to comply with the provisions of this Chapter.
25.02(D) City's Right to Terminate Contract. In addition to all other penalties in this Section, an employer or principal who has retained a Lobbyist(s) to Lobby in connection with a competitive solicitation shall be deemed non-responsive unless the employer or principal, in responding to the competitive solicitation, certifies that each Lobbyist retained has timely filed the registration or amended registration required under § 25.01. 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 or principal, the City may, on that basis, exercise any contractual right to terminate the contract for convenience.
25.02(E) Failure to Comply with Disclosure Statement Requirement. In addition to all other penalties in this Section, the City Clerk shall not accept any lobbyist registration statements from any Person who fails to comply with the disclosure statement requirement as set forth in § 25.01(D) of this Code until the required disclosure statement has been filed.
(Ord. 2011-16, passed 12-5-2011; Am. Ord. 2013-01, passed 3-18-2013)
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