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Board reviews counsel guidance: incumbents should hold separate candidate events to avoid Sunshine Law issues
Summary
District Counsel advised incumbents interested in participating in a "Coffee with Candidates" to ensure election-code compliance and consider separate events by seat to avoid potential Sunshine Law violations; the board noted differences between District Counsel and HPCA attorney opinions.
Board members discussed District Counsel's written response about a proposed "Coffee with Candidates" event and how election and open-meeting rules apply to incumbents. Chair Kathleen Lonergan read counsel's guidance aloud: "If any incumbent Supervisor is interested in participating they will need to ensure compliance with the election code and I think it would be a fair request for them to ask them to arrange separate events per seat to avoid any potential Sunshine Law violations." The counsel's note also observed that several of Vice Chair Arthur Rhodes' questions might be appropriate for the Florida Election Commission, which enforces complaints rather than providing advisory opinions.
Vice Chair Rhodes said "our guy" would not attend because of the interpretation of campaign and Sunshine rules, and board members compared District Counsel's interpretation with the HPCA attorney's differing view and cited portions of the Florida statute. The board did not adopt a formal policy at the meeting; the discussion recorded differing legal perspectives and a suggestion to hold separate events for each seat if incumbents choose to participate.
