As the August primary election approaches, voters across South Florida are being asked to elect candidates for offices they have never had to vote on before.
A statewide ballot amendment passed in 2018 mandates every county needs to elect five totally independent “constitutional offices,” which include sheriff, clerk of courts, property appraiser, tax collector and supervisor of elections — and two of the three counties impacted by these new rules are in South Florida.
In Miami-Dade County, positions including a new county sheriff will be independent from the administration and the impact on finances will be "astronomical," a commissioner told WLRN. In Broward, residents could see big changes in various services relating to their vehicles. While across the board the new rules will make these posts political, rather than professional.
The requirement is taking effect this year as voters cast their vote on these offices in the Aug. 20 primary election.
On the latest episode of the South Florida Roundup, WLRN’s Danny Rivero spoke with Miami-Dade County Commissioner Raquel Regalado and WLRN intern Carlton Gillespie about what this means for the way local government works.
READ MORE: Why Three Counties Are Furious About Amendment 10
In Miami-Dade County, residents will elect a county sheriff, a tax collector and a supervisor of elections. Until now, these offices had been under the county mayor’s office.
“This is the most significant thing that has happened in Miami-Dade County since the creation of single member districts,” Commissioner Regalado said. “The impact on our finances is astronomical.”
Commissioner Regalado had estimated in 2020 that transitional costs for the new offices would total to $30 million. Then, she asked the board to establish a fund to set the money away. She said the first year, the commission put $10 million into the fund and this year they are putting $11 million more.
“Thirty [million] is not going to be enough,” she told WLRN. “It completely changes how our systems work.”
The funding of these newly independent offices will also be different. While the county will approve their budget, Commissioner Regalado said these offices can appeal it to the Florida Cabinet. The change also means the board of county commissioners won’t be able to set their policy anymore.
“It’s a completely different dynamic from what these departments had when they were under the umbrella of the county,” she said.
In Broward County, voters will elect a tax collector — a job that was previously handled by the county government.
But the tax collector will be in charge of far more than just collecting taxes. The elected candidate will do things like car and boat registration, tag and titles, and the renewal and update of driver’s licenses, essentially overseeing the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).
“It’s the thing that will probably most directly impact people on a day to day basis,” he said. “It means they can control how many branch offices they have, whether they have weekend hours or extended hours … and some sort of online reservation system to reduce wait times.”
Another change these new offices will pose is the transition from professional to political administration of these services. There are no specific requirements for the candidates to qualify to run. In Miami-Dade County, a candidate for sheriff does not even need to be a police officer.
“I think [for] some of these offices it will be good, because there’ll be some accountability, “ Commissioner Regalado said. “But there are also no term limits and they can’t be recalled.”
She also said these offices can have legislative agendas that are separate from the county.
You can listen to the full conversation above or wherever you get your podcasts by searching: The South Florida Roundup
