Charter Review Commission to send five proposed charter changes — including ethics, compensation and vacancy rules — to town council

The Fort Myers Beach Charter Review Commission on Tuesday reviewed proposed amendments to the town charter and approved a matrix of five substantive recommendations and several scrivener corrections to forward to town council for consideration for placement on the November ballot.

The commission’s chair opened the meeting at 2 p.m. and said the group had pared the charter to three remaining substantive articles and a consolidation matrix to present at a working session on April 7 and to town council on April 20. The chair read proposed language that would place ethics requirements — including prohibitions on unlawful gifts and a requirement to disclose ex parte communications in quasi‑judicial hearings — into the charter itself. “Pursuant to its municipal powers, the town of Fort Myers Beach shall adopt ordinances, promote transparency and ethics in government by the adoption of an ordinance prohibiting the acceptance and unlawful gifts and disclosure of ex parte communication in quasi judicial hearings,” the chair read aloud.

Why it matters: If council advances the recommendations and voters approve them, the charter would explicitly emphasize ethics and ex‑parte disclosure at the town level. The commission also addressed several governance items that would affect how quickly appointees…