Showing posts with label ethics reform. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ethics reform. Show all posts

Sunday, April 15, 2018

You only thought you knew how evil and corrupt former Hallandale Beach mayor Joy Cooper was. You have no idea. But you will soon! Don't worry, the Broward State Attorney's Office now has all the documents and info they need, thanks to the Broward Inspector General. Uh-oh!

You only thought you knew how evil and corrupt former Hallandale Beach mayor Joy Cooper was. You have no idea. But you will soon! 
Don't worry, the Broward State Attorney's Office now has all the documents and info they need, thanks to the Broward Inspector General. Uh-oh!


Coming soon: How former Hallandale Beach mayor Joy Cooper OBSTRUCTED public records requests for YEARS, violated Florida Sunshine Laws, even while head of the Florida League of Cities and deeply involved with the National League of Cities, as she was always quick to brag about at Hallandale Beach City Commission and CRA meetings, even when it was NOT germane to anything being discussed.

Of course, all that time, Hallandale Beach taxpayers were forced to pay for Cooper to attend their meetings all over the country as she tried to pass herself off as something other than what she was: respected.
But she was corrupt with a capital “C.”
As I had been saying and writing year-after-year even while the local news media largely refused to look into any of the dozens of matters that would have been reported upon if they happened in other parts of the country.

But don’t worry, the Broward States Attorney now has all the documents and information they need, thanks to the Broward Inspector General.
But David, isn’t the Broward SAO the same LEO office that knew for OVER 5 years, via recordings, that Hallandale Beach mayor Joy Cooper had already committed numerous felonies and misdemeanors, blatantly, yet still refused to have her arrested and charged?

Which means that the last five years of Joy Cooper in office were completely unnecessary and could have been prevented, since Florida Gov. Rick Scott would have removed Cooper from office then if SAO simply acted responsibly and with the public's best interests at heart? Oh sure, there's always that! 🙄🤨😠🤫🤔
The case involved hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars 💰💰 and was a subject that I blogged abt frequently at The Future Foundation, a so-called non-profit that was run by Mayor Cooper and city employees with offices at city hall, but which had a very adversarial attitude towards thepublic knowing what they were doing.
Or even letting electdd officials know what they were doing, and why.

When I gave details of what was going on to the Miami Herald, South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the four English-language TV stations in Miami, the  news media was NOT interested! Surprise!








Sunday, November 27, 2016

On Monday night, things change for GOOD in Hallandale Beach! Anabelle Taub and Michele Lazarow to be sworn in and welcome in an era of common sense, competency, transparency and lots of hard work and public accountability at City Hall for the city's long-suffering residents



Frustrated Hallandale Beach voters have finally taken their years of disappointment and anger out at the ballot box and in doing so, have consciously chosen to usher out the consistently failed policies and smirking, anti-democratic attitudes of Mayor Joy Cooper's Rubber Stamp Crew.

Now, with a 3-2 majority on the HB City Commission in favor of logic and reason actually making an appearance once in a while at 400 S. Federal Highway, people from all over the city are prepared -with open arms- to welcome in an era of common sense, competency, transparency and lots of hard work and public accountability for the city's residents.

To actually let public policy arguments and disagreements be over who has the best or most-sensible ideas and means for solving the city's many long-standing problems.
Which is exactly what its long-suffering residents and Small Business owners have desperately longed for the past 13 years -but never received in a tangible way that made a lasting, positive difference at City Hall.

But that was then and this is NOW...
On Monday night, please join your neighbors and concerned people from all over Broward County and visit Hallandale Beach City Hall at 6 PM to witness the swearing-in ceremony for Anabelle Taub and Michele Lazarow
And just watch what happens next...


All original photos on this page are by me, South Beach Hoosier© 2016 Hallandale Beach Blog, All Rights Reserved.


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South Florida Sun Sentinel
As Hallandale Beach gears up for shift in power, more fireworks expected

Susannah Bryan, Reporter Sun Sentinel
November 11, 2016 7:26 PM

The nasty election season may have ended, but the drama in this oceanfront city is far from over.

The balance of power on the dais has now shifted from Mayor Joy Cooper to her political rivals, Commissioners Keith London and Michele Lazarow. The two, along with newly elected Anabelle Taub, vow that changes are coming.

Those changes could include a new city manager and city attorney, government meetings held at times more convenient to the public and a ban on Styrofoam pushed by London but blocked by Cooper.

The changing political landscape could even impact development in a city known for its gridlock.


Read the rest of the article at:






South Florida Sun Sentinel
Taub, Lazarow win big in Hallandale Beach after vowing to fight corruption
Susannah Bryan, Reporter Sun Sentinel
November 8, 2016 10:46 PM

Incumbent Hallandale Beach Commissioner Michele Lazarow and political rookie Anabelle Taub won their races in what some called Broward County's nastiest election.

Taub, a real estate agent, won in a landslide against incumbent Bill Julian, a retired horse trainer under state investigation for allegedly accepting favors from a developer.

"The residents of Hallandale Beach struck corruption with a fatal blow tonight," said Taub. "Hallandale Beach government will be restored to doing what it is supposed to — serving the residents."

Lazarow, an animal activist first elected four years ago, won handily despite a challenge from Alex Lewy, a former commissioner who stepped down in 2014, and Ann Henigson, a retired secretary making her fifth run for office.

"Tonight, we turned the page to a new chapter for Hallandale Beach," Lazarow said. "After the ugliest election cycle in our city's history, I am grateful that the residents of Hallandale Beach continue to have faith in me to fight for their interests."

Both winners vowed to root out corruption at City Hall if elected.


Read the rest of the article at:



South Florida Sun Sentinel
Editorial: To change decorum and direction, choose Anabelle Taub and Michele Lazarow in Hallandale Beach 
October 18, 2016 9:09 PM
Citizens deserve so much better than what they're getting from today's five-member Hallandale Beach City Commission, which has divided into camps like two high school cliques.
The city faces serious challenges with traffic, flooding, crime and the pressure to build more high-rises. But the city commission, charged with finding solutions, is dysfunctional.
Arbitrary time limits squelch discussion on big issues, shouting matches break out and police have been called to remove certain commissioners. Relationships have gotten so bad that a parliamentarian had to be hired to enforce Roberts Rules of Order.
Neither side looks good in this 3-2 commission split. Both have attitude, mud stains and investigations into backroom shenanigans, one worse than others. Something has got to give. The Nov. 8 election offers that opportunity.

We have probably knocked on several thousand doors by now. My feet may never be the same. 😅 Rain or shine we are knocking on doors and I get to meet so many sweet elderly men and women (some of their circumstances break my heart), most speak Spanish or Russian, and are so grateful to having someone at their door speaking their language (I only know a few words in Russian). While  I ran because I wanted #Hallandale to be safer for my mom, I am now doing this for them too. I can't wait to start some volunteer efforts to reach out to seniors in my city (especially those who don't speak English). Nursing a nasty cold and painful feet, but taking this time to ponder on all the possibilities to be able to #payitforward. Giving back feeds my soul. 🌹#thiscoldcantholdmedown #communityoutreachgoals #hallandalefl #hallandalebeach
A photo posted by Anabelle Taub (@anabelletaub) on


South Florida Sun Sentinel
Silencing me silences the people who elected me 
Opinion - By Michele Lazarow
September 3, 2016 2:37 PM
Video at http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/89577225-132.html

When political power becomes more important than public service, the public loses. Unfortunately, that is what has happened in Hallandale Beach.

We have seen an Office of Inspector General investigation that found "gross mismanagement" of our CRA swept under the rug. Now there's an active investigation into a majorly flawed "community benefit" program, and an admission by an elected city official that he made a side deal with a developer before approving their massive project. Mayor Joy Cooper made matters worse when she not only had the microphones cut off at the city commission meeting, but also had Commissioner Keith London and me removed from the dais for attempting to discuss Bill Julian's public admissions of wrongdoing.

Though the mayor will say she is trying to maintain order, her move also has the effect of protecting her political majority. When she shuts off the microphones and silences the voices of two of the city's elected officials, the people she is really silencing are the residents of Hallandale Beach who elected us to be their voice on the commission.

Following Commissioner Julian's public admissions, I thought it was important that we discuss how the city plans to handle the situation before he played a role in deciding how we allocate more than $100 million of our taxpayer's funds. Cooper thought it more appropriate to have dissenting opinions removed from the dais by police. Imagine in Congress, one party having the other removed from the floor so that they cannot debate or vote on the issues they were elected to decide. It would be the leading headline on every national news broadcast and in every major newspaper in the country.

I will continue to raise this issue until I believe it has been appropriately addressed and remedied. I owe that to the people who elected me.

I got into politics as an advocate for animals. Now I am an advocate with a title and an important vote. I take that vote and the platform it provides very seriously.

As we move into election season, I would encourage the voters of Hallandale Beach to educate themselves on the candidates. I am one of those candidates. So is Bill Julian. We are not running for the same seat.

Voters have a chance to take back their city from a political system that is failing them. To do that, they must elect people who care more about public service than they do political power.

Our next commission meeting is Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. I encourage residents of Hallandale Beach to attend and sign up to speak during public comment. Your voice matters, but it must be heard.

Michele Lazarow is a city commissioner in Hallandale Beach. She can be reached at MLazarow@cohb.org
----
Dave 

Tuesday, January 5, 2016

The view from here: Connecting the collective energy of a community and channeling it into positive results has never been easy. But in Hallandale Beach, city officials are USUALLY a big part of the problem, not part of the solution. And that behavior continues apace...

May 20, 2012 photo of Hallandale Beach's very own "South Beach" by South Beach Hoosier. 
© Hallandale Beach Blog, All Rights Reserved
The view from here: Connecting the collective energy of a community and channeling it into positive results has never been easy. But in Hallandale Beach, city officials are USUALLY a big part of the problem, not part of the solution. And that behavior continues apace...
The following post is an expanded version of an email that I sent out last Thursday afternoon to about 300-plus concerned residents, Small Business owners, civic activists, politicians and members of the news media in Hallandale Beach, Hollywood, Broward County and South Florida.

It's an email that I actually wrote many weeks ago and have kept in cold storage, waiting until last Thursday to send out, chiefly, for reasons concerning the calendar year that make perfect sense from my point of view.

Last Thursday, Dec. 31st was, officially, Renee C. Miller's last day as City Manger of Hallandale Beach, where, three-and-a-half years after being selected over candidates that I thought were better, and after she promised me and her many other doubters in this community to tangibly change the culture -and pathology!- of the city's bureaucracy and management style, top-down, she was finito.

It's clear in retrospect, as it was to me after just six months on the job, that Miller accomplished little of the things that she promised me and other concerned residents and small business owners to directly improve the quality of life in the city and the city's management. 

Those of you who were at the city's poorly-attended Town Hall meeting over on the beach in January of 2013 who saw Miller alternately ignore or obfuscate when I asked her some fact-filled questions that directly called her out on unfulfilled promises she had made to city residents -and to me to my face- including ones about Dept. heads ignoring longstanding citizens complaints that were self-evident, even after they were told about them or shown contemporaneous photos of the problem, know exactly how pathetic it was.

Yes, continuing the pattern in Hallandale Beach where ignoring a genuine problem was treated by City Hall as the same as actually solving it.
Like it was a question of psychology, not competency.

Yes, the red tape at HB City Hall is as exhausting and thick as ever, and the mood is as autocratic as ever, too. Which is why Small Businesses continue to move out of the city rather than continue having to jump thru hoops -or continue hitting their heads against the wall.

All of this continues to take place while the city's poorly-run and crony-filled HB Chamber of Commerce acts like an ostrich, with its head buried in the sand, instead of being innovative and proactive.
That is, unless it's time for its president and its Board to play the role of taxpayer-subsidized cheerleader for certain entrenched pols and business interests in the city who already have undue and outsized influence in this city of under 40,000, relative to their contribution to making it better.
Or at least as good as it ought to be already -but clearly isn't. 

My blog post about new Hallandale Beach City Manager Daniel Rosemond will be up on the blog later in the week. Teaser Alert for you newcomers to the blog -I'm NOT a fan of Rosemond.


My comments are below the article



South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Hallandale city manager quits
By Susannah Bryan, Staff writer
October 15, 2015

After more than three years at the helm, Renee Miller plans to step down as city manager by the end of the year.

Her resignation will take effect Dec. 31.

Miller, 38, cited a desire to spend more time with family in a resignation letter to her five City Commission bosses.

"I know it was a surprise to most of the members of the dais," said Miller, who is married and raising a two-year-old daughter. "But as family people, they understand the need to seek a better work-life balance. And that's what I'm really looking for."

In her resignation letter, Miller described her past three years as city manager as both a blessing and a challenge.

Read the rest of the article at:

Connecting the collective energy of a community and channeling it into positive results has never been easy.
But it’s especially difficult when the people running the city at City Hall have a LONG track record of NOT being either particularly competent or inspired, consistently DON’T follow Best Practices -or even Common Sense- and NEVER feel the slightest bit of public remorse for continually refusing to be held personally accountable to the public for their actions, words and votes.

No, unfortunately, the people currently at HB City Hall DON’T sweat the details the way they should, nor do they show any tangible interest in dramatically improving the city’s present and future Quality of Life and capture its true potential, thru either proven sensible ideas or meaningful innovation, to satisfy the citizenry and the Small Business community.

Year-after-year, the powers-that-be at City Hall have rejected adapting to new realities and making the overdue needed changes or improvements, despite concerned citizens and business people conscientiously pointing out the many, many self-evident problems at public meetings that anyone who lives and work here see and experience every day, but which City Hall continues to ignore.

Because this city has the wrong caliber of people making policy AND carrying it out, lots of potential opportunities to markedly improve and revitalize this city in exciting and innovative ways come and go –completely unrealized, leaving others to benefit from the city’s myopia and indecision -and bad judgment.

To this city’s current and future residents’ detriment, we’ve seen a culture take root at City Hall of arrogant,  self-interested elected officials and bureaucrats who are demonstrably anti-democratic and anti-accountability in their mindset, and impervious to change, even when it’s obvious to everyone but them.
It’s the difference between selflessness and selfishness.

The current crew prefers to continue doing things in the same old unproductive and unsatisfactory way that they have done them for years, even when it’s clear to everyone concerned that these tired, old methods and practices simply DON’T work and produce positive results and outcomes.

That reluctance to change was highlighted by their years of denial of the facts and engaging in completely self-serving and promiscuous behavior with respect to employing crony capitalism with limited public (CRA) funds, so that their friends and political supporters benefited.

In fact, more than three years and a half years later, many of these very same officials who did NOT provide anywhere close to the level of oversight and accountability they were legally bound to perform, still can NOT bring themselves to posting onto the city’s website, the Broward Inspector General’s damning report about their years of completely negligent and unsatisfactory oversight of the city’s CRA.

You have to be willing to imagine a different future and strategy for success before you can make it a reality.
Faking it, as this city has done for so many years, simply doesn’t work.

Me? I’m just someone working hard to spark and accelerate change for a better and more dynamic South Florida for EVERYONE, not just certain favored people, or forces in town who think they have a veto on every good idea that comes into town.

I'll have some more thoughts to share with you next week about the city and some thoughts about the caliber and quality of people we need to be willing to step up to the challenge of confronting the longstanding idiocy and incompetency that has held this city back, and as we are all too aware, kept its beleaguered residents unhappy with the results HB City Hall has continually portrayed as "normal," but which would clearly be unacceptable in 99% of this state's cities and towns.

My most recent previous blog post is here:
Happy Holidays from Hallandale Beach: A taste of chutzpah, hypocrisy & incompetency with your eggnog -again!- thanks to Mayor Joy Cooper

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

#Ethics in government still matter to some of us in #Broward County -why we need Tougher #EthicsReform: excerpts from my written comments to 2014 meeting of the Oversight Committee for the Office of Broward Inspector General under John W. Scott; the useful examples of the #HallandaleBeach CRA, Joy Cooper, Renee Miller, Shevrin Jones, Lisa K. Aronson

#Ethics in government still matter to some of us in #Broward County -why we need Tougher #EthicsReform: excerpts from my written comments to 2014 meeting of the Oversight Committee for the Office of Broward Inspector General under John W. Scott; the useful examples of the #HallandaleBeach CRA, Joy Cooper, Renee Miller, Shevrin Jones, Lisa K. Aronson 

What follows are selected excerpts from my written comments to the 2014 meeting last Thursday of the Oversight Committee for the Office of Broward Inspector General, via the group's liaison, Kevin Kelleher.
I will have more excerpts posted soon, as I had two other short pages full of facts and anecdotes that I want to share with you that I felt the Oversight Committe really ought to know about before Broward General John. W. Scott spoke and answered their questions, since he would NOT answer the questions about his Office's performance and resolve to improve when they were sent to him directly.

Recent useful predicates for understanding this matter are, in reverse chron order:








   
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December 4, 2014

Dear Mr. Kelleher:

I'm writing to you today in your capacity as liaison to the Oversight Committee for the Office of Broward Inspector General.

Since I will be unable to appear in-person at this afternoon's meeting, I am sending my comments to you via email, with this being the first of three emails documenting my concerns.

I want to make sure that my voice, as well as the voices of other concerned residents of Broward County, have the opportunity to continue to push-back and call-out the stealthy, frequently anti-democratic and very antagonistic actions taken by so many elected public officials, who for some reason persist in thinking that they are beyond the reach of both the law and society's norms.

At last year's annual meeting of the Broward IG Oversight Committee, I spoke in some detail about some of the matters that I was most concerned with involving the evolving structure, operations and public outreach responsibilities of the Broward IG's office. I noted specific areas that I believed the office was deficient in and called for much-needed improvement in those areas IF it wanted to truly satisfy Broward County's much-beleaguered citizenry's very strong interest in seeing unethical behavior investigated, pulled-out by the roots and fully-prosecuted.

I said that in my opinion, IF the Broward IG's Office wanted to continue to maintain the public's trust, the area that most-needed tangible improvement was the allocation of adequate resources and personnel to public outreach in cities that were being formally investigated, so that the public would know with certainty just what WAS and was NOT being investigated, and how the public could best assist the office with respect to perhaps gathering additional relevant facts and evidence, to say nothing of context.

The latter was something that, to my astonishment, was NEVER done in Hallandale Beach in 2012 and 2013 when the Broward IG was investigating the longstanding Hallandale Beach CRA scandal involving tens of millions of dollars, since in my opinion, it would have produced a LOT more useful information and context for the IG's Office to peruse and consider.
In my opinion, they barely saw the the tip of the iceberg.

As someone who was frequently the only member of the public attending those early morning meetings years ago of the appointed Broward County Ethics Committee, someone who actually videotaped many of them so that I could later describe in accurate detail what had transpired in those meetings, esp. with respect to which appointed member was consistently voting FOR meaningful ethical standards and thresholds and which appointed members had consistently tried to obfuscate, misdirect or otherwise water-down any serious effort to hold people with power, influence and opportunity to account, I take what happens with the Office of Broward IG very seriously.

I don't think I or others need to apologize for wanting to make sure that the will and best interests of the Broward citizenry is represented as often as possible, NOT pushed to the side of the road by self-interested politicans, government employees and outside groups, esp. ones with zero public oversight like the Broward League of Cities, a group that STILL clearly wants its member cities and officials to have as low a threshold as possible, to meet and carve-out exceptions to common sense -as if common sense was something that we'd been enjoying too much of over the years, instead of its opposite.

Obviously, many of these individuals and groups would very much like to keep their perks and the trappings of the pay-to-play culture that had long flourished in Broward, and want to un-do the very small, positive things that have FINALLY taken place.
Sorry, that ship has sailed!

Despite my fact-filled warnings and anecdotes last year to the IG Oversight Committe and the public attending that meeting about the reality on-the-ground at Hallandale Beach City Hall, that same corrosive attitude and anti-citizen culture I described then persists from top-to-bottom at HB City Hall.

As my other emails today make clear, there has been no let-up by Mayor Joy Cooper and City Manager Renee Miller since either the April 2013 issuance of the IG's damning report on the Hallandale Beach CRA scandal that involved tens of millions of dollars, or, even since Mr. Scott and the Chief Counsel's own descriptions last year of the sorts of foolish and entirely self-serving gambits and attempts at misrepresentations engaged in by those women and the city.

Right down to Mayor Cooper intentionally sending her inaccurate letter and account of the facts to everyone scheduled to attend last year's IG Oversight Comm. meeting
That is, everyone BUT the IG's Office itself.

Yes, it was hard not to see that desperate and pathetic effort for precisely what it was. A shameful effort to obfuscate and blame others for their own unethical behavior and lack of proper governance, due diligence and meaningful oversight for SO MANY YEARS, which is just how I described it last year since that's precisely how the majority of Hallandale Beach's best-informed residents and Small Business owners see it

Despite his office having my contact information from my previous email over the years, after my testimony before you last year, here's the totality of what I heard back from Mr. Scott and his staff: NOTHING.

Nothing at all.
Not one phone call and not one email about about any of the useful suggestions that the Committee, any member of the public who testified, or that I made myself to tangibly improve the Office and the public's support of it.

It's important that members of the Oversight Committee fully understand one thing.
As someone who has followed this ethics and enforcement issue closely from the beginning, more than 99% of the county's populace, I strongly support a pro-active person in a leadership position at the Broward IG Office.

I am NOT wedded at all to the idea that Mr. Scott gets to keep that position indefinitely if he continues to ignore the advice and counsel that the Committee and the public gives, but which he and his staff seem to have no intention of taking and implementing.

Frankly, I'm sorry that I can't be there in-person to say that in front of Mr. Scott so that he can know how thin the ice is that he is on these days as far as I and many other civic activists are concerned.
If he is to succeeed, he has to be MUCH MORE accountable to the public and get outside of his current comfort zone.

I mean at what point do you insist that someone who is stubbornly refusing to adapt and evolve to the circumstances -and engaging in what is, ultimately, self-defeating behavior- that they have had their
opportunity and that the time is right to make a change?
And it's not like I'm the only one who thinks this, even if I'm the only one willing to say it publicly today.

There are many hundreds of concerned people throughout Broward County and up in Tallahassee who know how important establishing this IG Office is in the larger scheme of things.
People who know that it's very important thet the Office succeeed, and yet because of what I have learned and experienced first-hand -and shared with them- they wonder what's really going on, too.
Why so little apparent effort to improve and make things better?

The residents of this county need the office, we do not need necessarily the person in office now.

I should also mention that in the view of many people, including myself, having the office physically located where it is, in Tamarac, does NOT properly serve the long-term interests of the public, since it is not convenient to either Downtown, 1-95 or Tri-Rail. It's almost as if they are a collection of old historical parade floats being stored in a warehouse, and are wheeled out once a year -like today.

I'd be remisss if I didn't close by again emphasizing the importance of the Committee strongly urging the the Broward IG's Office to wake-up and smell the coffee about their current failed communication outreach to the public, whose support it so desperately needs.
It continues to be so inadequate to the current task and when you combine their elementary and unsatisfactory current use of Social Media, it almost makes the whole enterprise comical.
But nobody's laughing, certainly not me or other concerned Broward residents who see how for themselves everyday how much current ethics laws need to be strengthened, NOT weakened.

DBS, 11-year Hallandale Beach resident

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Below are just three recent examples of many dozens that I could choose from throughout the area that amply demonstrate that things have NOT changed for the better regarding elected officials adhering to the spirit and letter of the ethics law throughout Broward County since last year's Oversight Comm. meeting, which I attended and spoke at.

Whether it's the matter of lobbyists who are elected officials lobbying other city's elected officials, complete compliance with the ethics rules, or simply elected officials actually paying attention to what the Broward IG says and does, these are some rather self-evident examples that MUCH MORE work needs to be done in changing the pay-to-play, "special rules for special people" political culture of Broward County, via City of Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper, City of Coconut Creek Commissioner Lisa Aronson and FL State Rep. Shevrin Jones.

The latter represents the part of Hallandale Beach that was the epicenter of the longstanding HB CRA scandal, and admits that he was NOT paying any attention to it at all, despite the millions of dollars involved and the years of wasted opportunities it represents.
That certainly explains a lot of what we see with our own eyes:

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: DBS
Date: Wed, Apr 30, 2014 at 12:17 PM
Subject: Hallandale Beach Mayor's latest example of revisionist history, re Broward IG; I'll be writing something about this on blog over weekend and will be highlighting her self-evident lies and mis-truths

Hear the latest from the woman who told the Broward IG's office that the campaign aide of hers that filmed her appearance and testimony at their office was actually an attorney.
But wasn't, of course, as we heard from the IG himself at last November's annual IG Oversight meeting in FTL that I attended and testified at.

The very meeting where Cooper's name was mentioned more frequently by the IG and the Oversight Board than any other individual's, and NOT in a positive way.
Joy Cooper just can't help lying, even about small things.

South Florida Sun-Sentinel
OIG's recommendations should be opposed
Joy Cooper , mayor, Hallandale Beach
April 27, 2014

Last week the a task force meeting was held to review the OIGs recommendation to establish yet another new position of ethics czar and establish a Broward Commission on Ethics to centralize ethics opinions.

I have written before about my objections to the OIG recommendations. It is akin to having the jury, judge and executioner in one position. Currently there is a state Commission on Ethics paid for by our tax dollars. There are also State Attorney's offices around the state to prosecute violators.

Having gone through an investigation that was prompted by a former commissioner and candidate, I understand how centralized power and the current system can be utilized for political reasons. To create another layer of government that would duplicate the work of the county attorney, every city attorney and state Ethics Commission and State Attorney's would be an ineffective use of our taxpayer dollars.

A vote was taken by the taskforce to support the OIG's recommendation with a 3-2 vote. The separation of the two offices was included. The problem is this action nor the creation of yet another layer of government does not address the root problems that prompted the OIG's report; a poorly written ordnance.

Rather than wasting more taxpayer dollars over and above the $3 million-plus for the OIG's office, the ordinance needs to be amended. With or without the establishment of the czar and commission, the County Commission needs to clarify the poorly written sections of the ordinance that were mentioned in the OIGs report.

Every elected official should have the ability to due process. The current ordinance provides a safe harbor clause that provides there is a fair and equitable process for all elected officials. The County Commission should work with all the stakeholders to amend the ordinance before spending another tax dollar.

Joy Cooper, mayor, Hallandale Beach
-----
Broward Beat
Attacks Begin in County Commission
Race
By Buddy Nevins 

April 18, 2014


The gloves are off in the five-candidate race for an open County Commissionseat in North Broward.
In what is the first attack in the campaign, former Commissioner *CharlotteRodstrom* of Fort Lauderdale branded Mayor *Lisa Aronson* of Coconut Creekan enemy of ethics reform.
Aronson and Rodstrom are both vying for the seat now held by long-timeCommissioner *Kristin Jacobs*, who is term limited after 2014 election.There are three other candidates.
Read the rest of the article at:
http://www.browardbeat.com/attacks-begin-in-county-commission-race/


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excerpt from my email of Tue, Mar 18, 2014 at 3:04 PM, titled, More proof -as if needed- that Broward's state legislators AREN'T paying attention -State Rep. from area where most of wasted HB CRA millions were mis-spent, now publicly claims to know nothing about the issue, or the efforts to get a JLAC audit.

My comments are below the email I received this afternoon.

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So, given how open Shevrin Jones is about now acknowledging NOT knowing anything about this important issue of longstanding public interest and controversy in Hallandale Beach, and within the district he represents, do you want to bet that he also never got around to reading the Broward Inspector General's damning report from last April either, re the lack of official oversight by Mayor/Chair Joy Cooper and the HB City Comm./CRA Board?

The Broward Inspector General’s final report that labeled as “gross mismanagement” the way millions in tax dollars by Hallandale Beach were mis-spent and the lack of attention to detail and lack of common sense oversight by Mayor Cooper and her Rubber Stamp Crew.
The detailed report that said that Cooper & Company have shown a “basic misunderstanding” of what’s gone wrong."

Yes, the IG final report that never appeared on the city's website, along with the city's own response because Mayor Cooper wants to keep everything about that matter on the down low?

Guess Rep. Jones also never heard about the collective attempts of myself and so many others for months to get that much-needed independent JLAC audit to find out where the millions really went, and why none of the many elected officials and highly-paid city officials at Hallandale Beach City Hall who were/are directly responsible for the ingrained and palpable culture of perennially looking the other way, obstinate stealthiness and craven crony capitalism, were ever properly punished.

Given that, I guess Rep. Jones still doesn't know what we do, 

That many of the people who are most personally responsible for that scandal -the wasted million$ and lost opportunities to really put a dent in the self-evident problems- are STILL drawing paychecks from Hallandale Beach taxpayers.