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City attorney: repeal outdated civil service code, create independent personnel appeals board
Summary
The city attorney told the Winter Park Civil Service Board much of the current civil service code conflicts with Florida law and should be repealed; staff proposes replacing it with an independent personnel board that would hear disciplinary appeals for police, fire and general employees.
The city attorney told the Civil Service Board the municipality’s civil service code contains multiple provisions that are inconsistent with current Florida statutes and case law and recommended repeal followed by a targeted replacement.
“Because it is wholly illegal, if you went through every line, there was really no reason for a referendum,” the City Attorney said, arguing the City Commission can repeal the ordinance and then use the regular ordinance process with two readings to adopt a new personnel structure. She told the board she compiled a matrix highlighting where the code diverges from statute, relevant case law and collective bargaining protections.
The attorney described a draft approach that would repeal the existing civil service code and revise the independent personnel board to preserve employees’ appeal rights. Under the proposal the board would serve primarily as a disciplinary appeal body — convening on an on‑call basis when an eligible employee files an appeal after internal processes conclude.
Board members asked whether the commission has already been presented with repeal language; the attorney said it has not and that administration is seeking the board’s feedback before moving forward. Staff said the civil‑code cleanup is part of a larger municipal code update this year and that the personnel policy rewrite will incorporate protections such as promotional procedures where appropriate.
The board did not take formal action on repeal at the meeting; the attorney said the next steps are drafting ordinance language and coordinating the two‑reading process at the City Commission.
