HomeMy WebLinkAboutcocc_ordinance_no_30-2021_202106151 ORDINANCE NO. 30-2021
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3 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CAPE
4 CANAVERAL, FLORIDA; AMENDING SECTION 2-300 OF THE CITY
5 CODE RELATED TO THE CITY'S TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT POLICY;
6 PROVIDING FOR THE REPEAL OF PRIOR INCONSISTENT
7 ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS, INCORPORATION INTO THE
8 CODE, SEVERABILITY AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
9
10 WHEREAS, the City is granted the authority, under Section 2(b), Article VIII, of the State
11 Constitution, to exercise any power for municipal purposes; and
12
13 WHEREAS, the City also has the express authority to establish reasonable per diem and
14 travel allowances pursuant to Section 166.021(4), Florida Statutes; and
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16 WHEREAS, the City Council is aware that the U.S. General Services Administration ("GSA")
17 annually updates per diem and travel reimbursement allowances by destination for official
18 government travel and that said allowances may be used to guide municipal per diem and travel
19 allowances; and
20
21 WHEREAS, upon recent review of the current per diem and travel allowances permitted
22 by GSA, the City Manager has determined several of the City's per diem and travel allowances are
23 outdated and therefore, the City Manager is recommending that the City Council increase several
24 of the City's per diem and travel allowance amounts to equal the maximum amounts allowed by
25 GSA; and
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27 WHEREAS, the City Council also desires to incorporate Google Maps into the City's travel
28 policy for purposes of establishing a uniform and widely accepted standard for calculating mileage
29 when mileage is necessary for reimbursement; and
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31 WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Cape Canaveral, Florida, hereby finds this
32 Ordinance to be in the best interests of the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of
33 Cape Canaveral.
34
35 NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CAPE CANAVERAL HEREBY
36 ORDAINS, AS FOLLOWS:
37 Section 1. Recitals. The foregoing recitals are hereby fully incorporated herein by
38 this reference as legislative findings and the intent and purpose of the City Council of the City of
39 Cape Canaveral.
40
41 Section 2. Amending Section 2-300 of the City Code. The City of Cape Canaveral
42 Code of Ordinances, Section 2-300, is hereby amended as set forth below (underlined type
City of Cape Canaveral
Ordinance No. 30-2021
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1 indicates additions and ;trikcout type indicates deletions, while *** indicate deletions from this
2 Ordinance of said applicable Division that shall remain unchanged in the City Code):
3
4 CHAPTER 2 - ADMINISTRATION
5
6 ***
7 ARTICLE VII. TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
8
9 Sec. 2-300. Reimbursement policy and procedures for official travel.
10 (a) Purpose. It is the intent of this section to regulate official travel expenses of city officers,
11 employees, and other authorized persons, as defined in F.S. § 166.021. It is also the intent of
12 this section that the provisions of F.S. § 112.061, pertaining to municipalities, and any
13 amendments, additions, or modifications to such provisions, shall be incorporated herein by
14 reference, to the extent this section does not address a subject matter that is addressed in
15 F.S. § 112.061, and that the provisions contained in this section shall be supplemental and in
16 addition to the provisions of F.S. § 112.061. In the event of any conflict between this section
17 and F.S. § 112.061, this section, in accordance with F.S. § 166.021, shall prevail.
18 (b) Definitions. For purposes of this article, the following terms shall have the meanings
19 indicated:
20 (1) Officer or public officer. An individual who, in performance of his/her official duties is
21 vested by law with sovereign powers of government, who is elected by the people
22 (mayor and city council).
23 (2) Employee or public employee. The city manager or an individual, whether commissioned
24 or not, other than an officer or authorized person as defined herein, who is filling a
25 regular or full-time authorized position and is responsible to the city manager.
26 (3) Authorized person.
27 (A) A person, other than a public officer or employee, as defined herein, whether
28 elected or commissioned or not, who is authorized by the city manager or city
29 council to incur travel expenses in the performance of his official duties; or
30 (B) A person who is called upon the city to contribute time and services as consultant
31 or adviser.
32 (4) Traveler. A public officer, public employee, or authorized person, when performing
33 authorized travel.
34 (5)Travel expense. The usual, ordinary and incidental expenditures necessarily incurred by
a traveler.
35
36 (6) Common carrier. Train, bus, commercial airline operating scheduled flights, or rental cars
37 of an established rental car firm.
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Ordinance No. 30-2021
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1 (7) GSA (General Services Administration). The Federal government agency tasked with
2 managing government buildings and real estate, providing product and service
3 procurement, and developing policies and regulations.
4 (8) GSA Rate or Amount shall mean the most current rate adopted by the GSA and in effect
5 at the time the travel expense is incurred.
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7 (c) Authority to incur travel expenses.
8 (1) All travel of public employees must be authorized and approved by the department
9 head and city manager. Multiday travel of the city manager or a public officer must be
10 approved by the city council.
11 (2) Day trips may be authorized by the department head without approval of the city
12 manager.
13 (3) The city shall not authorize or approve such a request of a public employee unless it is
14 accompanied by a signed statement listing the purpose of such travel, the dates and
15 expenses involved, and a copy of the travel itinerary attached.
16 (4) Travel expenses of travelers shall be limited to those expenses necessarily incurred by
17 them in the performance of a public purpose authorized by law to be performed by the
18 city and must be within the limitations prescribed by this policy.
19 (d) Computation of travel time for reimbursement. For purposes of reimbursement and methods
20 of calculating fractional days of travel, the following principles are prescribed:
21 (1) Travel categories. The following travel categories are prescribed:
22 Class A. Continuous travel of 24 hours (or more) away from the city.
23 Class B. Continuous travel of less than 24 hours with an overnight absence from the city.
24 Class C. Travel for short or day trips when the traveler is not away from the city overnight.
25 (2) Travel reimbursements. All travelers shall be reimbursed for the actual dollars spent with
26 a maximum of the GSA rate for meals at the destination location. A detailed receipt is
27 required for reimbursement. Reimbursements shall be made according to the following
28 schedule:
29 (A) Meals for class B and class C shall be reimbursed for travel which:
30 (i) Breakfast - Begins before 6:00 a.m. and extends beyond 8:00 a.m., $8.00 for
31 breakfast; or
32 (ii) Lunch - Begins before 12:00 noon and extends beyond 2:00 p.m., $10.00 for
33 lunch; or
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Ordinance No. 30-2021
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1 (iii) Dinner - Begins before 6:00 p.m. and extends beyond 8:00 p.m. or -when -travel
2 occurs during nighttime hours due to special assignment, $18.00 for dinner.
3 (B) Meals for class A travel shall be authorized up to a maximum of the GSA rate for
4 the destination location. A detailed receipt is required for reimbursement. $36.00
5 per day in lieu of individual meal allowance rates.
6 (C) When a traveler attends an event on the city's behalf and the fixed price of the
7 meal exceeds the per meal allowance, the traveler shall be reimbursed the actual
8 cost of the meal as authorized by the city manager.
9 (D) Receipts shall not be required for meals on authorized overnight travel.
10 (E) No traveler shall be reimbursed for meals gratuitously provided by another party.
11 (F) No traveler shall be reimbursed for meals when travel is confined to the city or
12 immediate vicinity, except as authorized by the city manager.
13 (G) Reimbursement for overnight travel shall be for actual lodging expenses at the
14 single occupancy rate, to be substantiated by paid receipts, and shall be
15 reimbursed at a maximum of the current GSA lodging rate for the destination
16 location.
17 (H) Lodging will be reimbursed for out of county, multiday activities, and shall be
18 reimbursed at a maximum of the current GSA rate for lodging at the destination
19 location.
20 (I)
21
22 (J) Items specifically disallowed for reimbursement purposes:
No sales tax shall be reimbursable to any person, unless the city is also required by
law to pay such tax.
23 (i) Alcoholic beverages;
24 (ii) Entertainment;
25 (iii) Any expenses incurred by dependents;
26 (iv) Attendance at political rallies; and
27 (v) Travel for the specific purpose of promoting the candidacy of an individual
28 for public office.
29 (K) Other reimbursable expenses:
30 (i) Toll charges;
31 (ii) Taxi fares;
32 (iii) Parking and storage fees;
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1 (iv) Fuel for city vehicle;
2 (v) Common carrier transportation —When required. (Must be approved by the
3 city manager);
4 (vi) Valet parking —When necessary;
5 (vii) Convention registration fees; and
6 (viii) Baggage handling at $0.50 per bag up to $2.00 upon arrival and departure.
7 (e) Transportation.
8 (1) In no circumstance shall the city vehicle be used for purposes other than authorized
9 official travel.
10 (2) All travel must be a usually traveled route. The city manager shall designate the most
11 economical method of travel for each trip.
12 (3) All employees should utilize municipal vehicles when traveling on official business. This
13 requirement insures adequate liability coverage in the event of an accident or injury. In
14 those instances when a city vehicle is not available, and with the prior approval of the
15 department head and the city manager, the use of privately owned vehicles may be
16 authorized. Whenever travel is by privately owned vehicles, calculating the mileage for
17 travel shall be deemed to start from the employee's usual city work building/location
18 (not from the employee's place of residence) to the official travel destination and the
19 traveler shall be entitled to a mileage reimbursement at the "standard mileage rate."
20 The standard mileage rate is set annually by the Internal Revenue Service. All mileage
21 shall be from point of origin to point of destination based on a current Google map
22 submitted with the travel expense report. Mileage will be based on the estimated most
23 direct Google map route.
24 (4) Travel reservation for official travel on a common carrier shall be made through the city's
25 purchasing division, or other group or individual designated by the city manager to
26 coordinate travel reservations. The purchasing division shall insure that travel is cost-
27 effective and pursuant to all procurement procedures adopted by the city.
28 (f) Fraudulent claims. Any individual receiving an allowance or reimbursement by means of a
29 false claim shall be liable for the amount of the overpayment, plus interest at a rate equal to
30 the average rate currently received on investments and may be subject to termination or
31 disciplinary action as provided by the City Charter, personnel policy or any other applicable
32 policy or law adopted by the city council.
33 (g) Standard procedures.
34 (1) Travel voucher. Travel expense reports, on a form prescribed by the city manager, shall
35 be submitted by all individuals performing official travel within ten working days of the
36 individual's return. Each approved travel expense report will be audited when received.
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1 Individuals requesting reimbursement are responsible for mathematical computation.
2 Any report which is not approved or properly prepared, or is prepared in such a way as
3 to be unauditable, will be returned for resubmission. Travel authorization and all
4 required receipts must be submitted with the expense report in order to claim a
5 reimbursement.
6 (2) Travel advances.
7 (A) Travel advances for overnight travel must be requested at least two weeks in
8 advance of the departure. An explanation as to the reason for travel, the amount
9 of money and correct account to be charged must be indicated on the request.
10 (B) No travel advances will be made for class C travel. Due to tax implications,
11 reimbursement will be made to the employee in the payroll following submission
12 of approved expense report.
13 (C) Any unused portion of money advanced to a traveler shall be repaid immediately
14 upon the return of the traveler. Any unused advance money not repaid within 15
15 calendar days after return of the traveler shall accrue interest at the average rate
16 currently received on city investments. Any city employee not repaying any unused
17 portion of a travel expense advance within 30 days after his/her return will have
18 his/her salary withheld by the city until repayment is made.
19 (D) In instances where a trip should arise for a member of the city council that does
20 not provide ample notice to the council at a public meeting, then, with a minimum
21 of 24 hours' notice, the traveler shall request the city manager to send a memo to
22 the mayor, each council member, city attorney and city clerk advising them of the
23 trip, departure date, justification and return date. At the first regular city council
24 meeting after return from an official trip, the council member shall make a verbal
25 report to the council on the text of the trip.
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27 Section 3. Repeal of Prior Inconsistent Ordinances and Resolutions. All prior
28 inconsistent ordinances and resolutions adopted by the City Council, or parts of prior ordinances
29 and resolutions in conflict herewith, are hereby repealed to the extent of the conflict.
30
31 Section 4. Incorporation Into Code. This Ordinance shall be incorporated into the
32 Cape Canaveral City Code and any section or paragraph, number or letter, and any heading may
33 be changed or modified as necessary to effectuate the foregoing. Grammatical, typographical,
34 and like errors may be corrected and additions, alterations, and omissions, not affecting the
35 construction or meaning of this ordinance and the City Code may be freely made.
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37 Section 5. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, word or
38 provision of this Ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of
39 competent jurisdiction, whether for substantive, procedural, or any other reason, such portion
40 shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision, and such holding shall not affect
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Ordinance No. 30-2021
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1 the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance.
2
3 Section 6. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall become effective immediately upon
4 adoption by the City Council of the City of Cape Canaveral, Florida, and pursuant to the City
5 Charter.
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7 ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Cape Canaveral, Florida, this 15th day of June,
8 2021.
10 Bob Hoog, Mayor
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12
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14 ATTEST: For Against
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16 Mike Brown X
17
18 Robert Hoog X
19
20 Mickie Kellum Motion
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22 Wes Morrison Second
23
24 Angela Raymond X
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27 First Reading: April 20, 2021
28 Advertisement: June 3, 2021
29 Second Reading: June 15, 2021
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31
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33 Approved as to legal form and sufficiency
34 for the City of Cape Canaveral only by:
35
36
37 Anthony A. Garganese, City Attorney
Mia Goforth, CMC
City Clerk
Anthony A. Garganese, City Attorney
City of Cape Canaveral
Ordinance No. 30-2021
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SEAL of
City of Cape Canaveal, Florida