State Ex Rel. City of Miami Beach v. METRO DADE CTY. WATER & SEWER BD.

347 So. 2d 699
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedJune 14, 1977
Docket76-269, 76-1370 and 76-1276
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 347 So. 2d 699 (State Ex Rel. City of Miami Beach v. METRO DADE CTY. WATER & SEWER BD.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State Ex Rel. City of Miami Beach v. METRO DADE CTY. WATER & SEWER BD., 347 So. 2d 699 (Fla. Ct. App. 1977).

Opinion

347 So.2d 699 (1977)

STATE of Florida ex rel. CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, etc., Appellant,
v.
METROPOLITAN DADE COUNTY WATER AND SEWER BOARD, etc., et al., Appellees.
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, etc., Appellant,
v.
DADE COUNTY, Florida, etc., Appellee.
DADE COUNTY, Florida, a Political Subdivision of the State of Florida, Appellant,
v.
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, a Florida Municipal Corporation, Appellee.

Nos. 76-269, 76-1370 and 76-1276.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.

June 14, 1977.
Rehearing Denied July 27, 1977.

*700 Joseph A. Wanick, City Atty. and Lee H. Schillinger, Asst. City Atty., for City of Miami Beach.

Stuart L. Simon, County Atty., Richard M. Dunn and Stanley B. Price, Asst. County Attys., for Dade County.

Before PEARSON, BARKDULL and HAVERFIELD, JJ.

BARKDULL, Judge.

Following this court's opinion reported as City of Miami Beach v. City of North Bay Village, 313 So.2d 126 (Fla. 3rd D.C.A. 1975); opinion rendered May 20, 1975, with rehearing denied June 18, 1975, Metropolitan Dade County, through its Board of County Commissioners, caused to be adopted in July of 1975 an ordinance authorizing the Metropolitan Dade County Water and Sewer Board to assume jurisdiction and authority over water rates charged by municipalities to customers outside of its territorial jurisdiction. The ordinance was scheduled for second reading on September 3, 1975 at 9:00 A.M. and a public hearing thereof was duly noticed on August 27, 1975. At the public hearing on September 3, 1975, the proposed ordinance was read a second time by title, pursuant to the provisions of the Metropolitan Charter.[1] During the course of discussion and debate on the ordinance, the County Commissioners became aware that the City of Miami Beach had scheduled a hearing for 2:30 P.M. that afternoon to fix reasonable rates, pursuant to the mandate of this court in City of Miami Beach v. City of North Bay Village, supra, and upon motion duly made the Metropolitan Dade County Commission proposed to adopt an emergency ordinance extending the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Dade County Water and Sewer Board to supervise rates charged by municipalities in the sale of water outside their geographical city limits.

Pursuant to the provisions of the County Charter, the Board of County Commissioners has the power to enact emergency ordinances provided that, after the adoption of same, the ordinance[2] is advertised within ten (10) days thereof.

The initial ordinance was amended to add the word "emergency" alongside the title and to make the ordinance effective immediately [this ordinance was published as ordinance # 75-68 and will be referred to herein as such], whereas the proposed ordinance would have been effective ten (10) days after passage.[3]

The City of Miami Beach proceeded with its hearing scheduled for that afternoon, and fixed a water rate to be charged for customers outside the City. Shortly thereafter a clerk of the County Commission *701 altered the ordinance as adopted, by inserting a paragraph finding that an emergency existed and paragraphs relating to the publication of the ordinance as an emergency [this will be referred to herein as ordinance # 75-68X]. Thereafter, the Metropolitan Dade County Water and Sewer Board issued a rule to show cause directed to the City of Miami Beach, preparatory to having a hearing to determine whether the water rate charged to customers outside the City limits was reasonable, pursuant to the alleged authority granted to the Board by Ordinance # 75-68. The City then instituted what it styled a "Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the Metropolitan Dade County Water and Sewer Board and Petition for Rule Nisi and for Writ of Prohibition to the Metropolitan Dade County Water and Sewer Board and for Injunctive Relief" and, on January 15, 1976, secured the issuance of a rule nisi in prohibition directed to the Metropolitan Dade County Water and Sewer Board. Upon the return day provided in the rule nisi, the trial judge conducted a hearing in which, among other things, he vacated the rule nisi and proceeded to entertain the matter as a petition for certiorari to review the authority of the Board to issue the rule to show cause. This order was entered on January 30, 1976.

Thereafter, the City of Miami Beach filed an independent law suit, contesting the power of the County Commissioners to enact Ordinance # 75-68 and, further, that if the County had the power they invalidly enacted the ordinance as an emergency ordinance and there was, in fact, no emergency. The trial court proceeded to a final determination and found the following as to the authority of the County to enact the ordinance:

* * * * * *
"2. The plaintiff has also raised the issue of whether Dade County is empowered and authorized by the Metropolitan Dade County Charter to regulate rates charged by municipally owned utilities to other municipalities. The Court finds that the County has the power and authority under the Charter to enact such an ordinance."
* * * * * *

But, the court found that the ordinance or ordinances adopted as # 75-68 and # 75-68X were invalidly adopted as emergency ordinances. The City appealed from the order vacating the rule nisi in prohibition [this is Case no 76-269 in this court]. The City also appealed from that portion of the final judgment, in its independent action, that found that Metropolitan Dade County had the power and authority, under its Charter, to enact an ordinance regulating water rates charged by the municipality outside of its territorial limits [this appeal is filed in this court under Clerk's file No. 76-1370]. Dade County also appealed from the final judgment in this independent action, contending the trial judge was in error when he struck down ordinance # 75-68. These matters were consolidated for purposes of oral argument.

The first question to be determined is whether or not Metropolitan Dade County has the power to regulate the rate charged by municipalities for water to their customers outside of their geographical area. The County contends they have this power pursuant to the constitutional provision authorizing the establishment of Metropolitan Dade County, to wit: Article VIII, Section 11(1)(b), Constitution of the State of Florida (1885); and that the Metropolitan Charter itself contains the following provisions relative to the regulation of water rates:

* * * * * *
"Charter of Metropolitan Dade County, Section 1.01.a:
* * * * * *
"9. Provide and regulate or permit municipalities to provide and regulate waste and sewage collection and disposal and water supply and conservation programs.
* * * * * *
"14. Regulate, control, take over, and grant franchises to, or itself operate gas, light, power, telephone and other utilities, sanitary and sewage collection and disposal systems, water supply, treatment, and service systems * * *.
* * * * * *
"18. Set reasonable minimum standards for all governmental units in the county for the performance of any service or function. The standards shall not be discriminatory as between similar areas. If *702 a governmental unit fails to comply with such standards, and does not correct such failure after reasonable notice by the Board, then the Board may take over and perform, regulate, or grant franchises to operate any such service.

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Related

State v. Hayes
738 P.2d 276 (Washington Supreme Court, 1987)
City of Opa-Locka v. Dade County
379 So. 2d 448 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1980)
City of North Miami Beach v. Metropolitan Dade County
364 So. 2d 510 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1978)
City of North Bay Village v. City of Miami Beach
365 So. 2d 389 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1978)

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Bluebook (online)
347 So. 2d 699, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-city-of-miami-beach-v-metro-dade-cty-water-sewer-bd-fladistctapp-1977.