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Agenda 09/15/2009 Item #16J10 Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15. 2009 Page 1 of 9 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Recommendation that the Board of County Commissioners of Collier County approve an Interlocal Agreement for Election Services pertaining to senrices and voting equipment us cd by the City of Everglades City in connection with an election to be held on November 24, 2009. OBJECTIVE: To obtain Board of County Commissioner approval and authorization for its Chair to sign and enter into a Interlocal Agreement for Election Services with the Collier County Supervisor of Elections and the City of Everglades City for election services for the November 24, 2009, Everglades City election. The agreement is among the Collier County Board of Comissioners as owners of the voting and ballot tabulation equipment, the Collier County Supervisor of Elections as custodian of the County's voting and ballot tabulation equipment and the City of Everglades City as the party holding the election. ' CONSIDERATIONS: Past practice in Collier County has been that the Board of County Commissioners, being the owners of the voting equipment, have granted authorizaton to permit municipalities within the county to use county owned voting equipment. In accordance with past-practice, the attached interlocal agreement identifies the equipment and services that will be provided for the Everglades City election to be held November 24,2009, and the respective duties and responsibilities of the parties. __ FISCAL IMPACT: The Collier County Supervisor of Elections will render a bill to the City of Everglades City to be paid to the Collier County Board of County Commissioners. LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: 'fhis item has been reviewed and approved by the County Attorney's Office, is not quasi-judicial and requires no ex parte disclosure, requires only a majority vote for approval, and is otherwise legally sufficient for Board action.-SRT GROWTH MANAGEMENT INP ACT: There IS no Growth Management Impact associated with this Executive Summary. RECOMMENDA TION: That the Collier County Board of County Commissioners approves the proposed lnterlocal Agreement for Election Services and authorize its Chairman to sign the Agreement. Prepared by: Jennifer J. Edwards, Supervisor of Elections Attachments: Interlocal Agreement for Election Services ,-. . \A.b""".l .....,1..... ... Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15, 2009 Page 2 of 9 COLLIER COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Item Number: 16J10 Meeting Date: . Recommendation that the Board of County Commissioners of Collier County approve an Interlocal Agreement for Election Services pertaining to services and voting equipment used by the City of Everglades in connection with an election to be held on November 24, 2009. 9/15/200990000 AM Item Summary: Approved By OMB Coordinator OMB Coordinator Date County Manager's Office Office of Management & Budget 9/2/2009 10:14 AM Approved By Laura Davisson Management & Budget Analyst Date County Manager's Office Office of Management & Budget 9/2/2009 11 :11 AM Approved By Jeff Klatzkow County Attorney Date County Attorney County Attorney Office 9/2/2009 4:07 PM Approved By Leo E. Ochs, Jr. Deputy County Manager Date Board of County Commissioners County Manager's Office 9/2/20094:52 PM C1 _. 11r"-.\ A. ____..J _ 'T" _ _.4\ T:__~_ ~ _-L\ 1 ..., A ~ ___.4 ____ 1_ _~_O I I'"\f\ 1 C 0 I"" f\""f\f\t"\\ 1 ~ 0 I """,""",AlIr.. T("1 T:lIr.. T'T"O I.., f\ ^ r"q--:,lIr.. T {'\ In I"" Ar\tI Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15, 2009 AUG 26 2a~~1l1S12 INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT FOR ELECTION SERVICES By and Among the City of Everglades City, Collier County and the Collier County Supervisor of Elections This Agreement for Election ,Services (Agreement) is for the November 24,2009 City Council Election, and is by and aJ.l1ong the City of Everglades City ("City"), Collier County, by and through the Collier County Board of County Commissioners ("County") as owners of the County's voting and ballot tabulation equipment, and the Collier County Supervisor of Elections ("Supervisor"), as custodian of the County's voting and ballot tabulation equipment. WITNESSETH In consideration of the premises and covenants set out below, and for $10 and other valuable consideration in hand received by the County and the City, it is hereby acknowledged and agreed by the parties hereto as follows: 1. This Agreement is entered into pursuant to the prOVlSlOns of the Florida Interlocal Cooperation Act of 1969, set forth in 9163.01, et seq., Fla. Stat., and is further authorized pursuant to the parties' respective home rule powers granted by the Florida Constitution. 2. The City represents that under the terms of the City Charter, the City is responsible for the conduct of all its municipal elections except when the City chooses to call a special election to be held by mail ballot. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to imply that the County or the Supervisor interpreted the provisions of the City's charter or interfered in any way with the City's exercise of its home rule powers pursuant to the conduct of the City election. 3. To facilitate the City's conduct of its November 24, 2009 election, the Supervisor shall do those items enumerated in Exhibit A identified as s.19.1, Security Procedures for Stand Alone Municipal Elections of Collier County. 4. The City shall provide to the Supervisor and the Florida Attorney General a copy of the City's letter of submission and response to and from the U.S. Department of Justice relative to any chaJ.lges, which the City makes relative to polling site locations, or any applicable charter amendment referendum questions. Such copy shall be provided no later than 5:00 p.m. on the fourth day preceding the election. 5. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the County agrees to lease the following items to the City for use at the polls in its election: . 2 DS200 optical scanners . 2 EViDs with battery backups . I iVotronics ADA unit with booth . 1 laptop computer (only if needed) · Precinct signs with flags . 1 precinct file caddy and supplies · 3 voting booths Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15, 2009 Page 4 of 9 . I Cell phone for use by Clerk _._-------_..._---~-----'_..~.- 6. The City shall arrange for the voting equipment preparation to occur between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Thursday and/or Friday preceding the election date. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to require the County or the Supervisor to arrange for the installation and delivery and pickup of voting machines or equipment to the City or to the poll sites for use on Election Day, or to provide the setup of equipment for use by the City. 7. The City shall arrange to accept delivery of voting equipment supplies from the Elections Warehouse between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on the Monday preceding the election date. The Supervisor shall provide all oaths, forms, and training materials to the City's Election Workers. 8. No later than the day following the election, the City shall check and clean out the equipment to ensure that no City election supplies remain in the file caddy. 9. The Supervisor shall remove all election materials from the voting booths and return the same to the City for retention. 10. No later than 5:00 p.m. of the Friday immediately following the election, the City shall remove its supplies -- both used and unused -- and transfer them to the City's own storage facility. 11. The City shall use the County's certified tabulating systems, and pay directly to the Supervisor all costs for programming, on-site election support, and any repairs required as a result of the City's use. 12. Nothing in this Agreement shall require the County or the Supervisor to arrange for the acquisition of additional equipment for use by the City at its poll sites should such equipment not already be in the County's inventory. 13. Neither the County nor the Supervisor shall be hel~ accountable for equipment needs not contained within this Agreement. There shall be no last minute adjustments to this Agreement for equipment or consumable supplies. 14. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the County agrees to lease to the City the ballot tabulation equipment components enumerated herein: . Unity Election System including . Data Manager . Ballot Image Manager . Hardware Programming Manager . Data Acquisition Manager 15. The County agrees to lease the foregoing ballot tabulation equipment to the City subject to the following additional conditions: . The City shall utilize the services of the staff of the Supervisor to program the system for ballot tabulation of the City election. Agenda Item No. 16J10 . September 15, 2009 Page 5 of 9 · The City shall not remove the ballot tabulation equipment from the Collier County Government Center where it is in the Supervisor's custody or take any action, which would jeopardize the security of the system or interrupt the custody chain. · The City shall be present to conduct the Logic & Accuracy Test at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, one week prior to the election at the office of the Supcrvisor. · After Certification, the City shall arrange for storage of the Logic & Accuracy Test at a sIte other than the Collier County Government Center. · The City's failure to comply with any of these provisions, as determined by the Supervisor, shall constitute adequate grounds for termination of this Agreement for convenience by the Supervisor, on behalf of the Supervisor and the County, upon five (5) calendar days notice from the Supervisor to the City. However, any such termination for convenience by the Supervisor shall not relieve the City from fully complying with any of its outstanding obligations under this Agreement. 16. The Supervisor's office shall be and is solely responsible for the content and format of any affidavits and training materials used in the course of its election. 17. The Supervisor shall be responsible for any training of City's election workers, and the development of its training materials. The City Clerk or her representative will attend all training sessions. The City shall be liable for all actions taken by the City's poll workers during the course of its election day. The City shall enforce 9102.031(4) and (5), Fla. Stat. (2008), which provides: (4 )( a) No person, political committee, committee of continuous existence, or other group or organization may solicit voters inside the polling place or within 100 feet of the entrance to any polling place, or polling room where the polling place is also a polling room, or early voting site. Before the opening of the polling place or early voting site, the clerk or supervisor shall designate the no-solicitation zone and mark the boundaries. (b) For the purpose of this subsection, the terms "solicit" or "solicitation" shall include, but not be limited to, seeking or attempting to seek any vote, fact, opinion, or contribution; distributing or attcmpting to distribute any political or campaign material, leaflet, or handout; conducting a poll except as spccified in this paragraph; seeking or attempting to seek a signature on any petition; and selling or attempting to sell any item. The terms "solicit" or "solicitation" shall not be construed to prohibit exit polling. (c) Each supervisor of elections shall inform the clerk of the area within which soliciting is unlawful, based on the particular characteristics of that polling place. The supervisor or the clerk may take any reasonable action necessary to ensure order at the polling places, including, but not limited to, having disruptive and unruly persons removed by law enforcement officers from the polling room or place or from the 100-foot zone surrounding the polling place. (5) No photography is permitted in the polling room or early voting area. The Supervisor shall train all deputies on the above-referenced rule. Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15, 2009 Page 6 of9 18. The City shall be responsible for all activity relating to any absentee ballots it chooses to provide voters for its election, including processing requests; addressing absentee envelopes; and verification of voter signatures, the Supervisor will verify signatures that are faxed to the office. 19. The Supervisor shall prepare and advertise bilingually the voter registration book closing in accordance with general law and obtain an Affidavit of Publication for same. Said advertisement shall subsequently be billed to the City, which shall be responsible for payment. With the sole exception of the voter registration book closing advertisement, the City shall publish bilingual advertisements for all required election notices in a newspaper of general circulation within the County . 20. The City shall provide the necessary training and personnel on Election Day to verify absentee voter signatures, open absentee ballots, and prepare the voted ballots for actual tabulation. Such work shall be conducted under the rules established by the City Canvassing Board. 21. The City shall be responsible for retention and destruction of all election materials 111 conformity with applicable State and Federal laws. 22. With the exception of activities relating directly to the Supervisor's determinations regarding voter registration and eligibility, and to the extent permitted by law, the City shall pay for the SupeI:Visor's selection of defense counsel and indemnify and hold harmless the County, the Supervisor, their officers, agents, and employees, from and against any and all actions, in law or in equity, from liability or claims for damages, injuries, losses, and expenses including attorney's fees, to any person or property which may result now or in the future from City's activities associated with this City election, arising out of or resulting from any and all acts of omission or commission relating to the City's election or the City's responsibility under this Agreement. Further, to the extent permitted by law, the City shall pay for the Supervisor's selection of defense counsel and indemnify and hold harmless the County, the Supervisor, their officers, agents and employees, from and against any and all actions, in law or in equity, from liability or claims for damages, injuries, losses, and expenses, to any person or persons authorized by the City, its employees, or agents to participate in the City election when not otherwise authorized or eligible, or from events relating expressly to City election activity. 23. All costs, including attorney's fees and court costs, shall be paid by the City for: a. Litigation involving payment due to the County or Supervisor and for collection for any judgment recorded against the City, and b. Litigation involving the City's election whether brought by an elector, the U.S. Department of Justice, or others. 24. To lease voting units, and other supplies listed within this contract, the fee shall be $100 per voting unit ($100 x 3 units = $300). The fee shall cover replacement parts and shipping necessary to repair any damages to the County's voting unit or equipment leased to the City. In the event the cost of such replacement parts exceeds the amount of the fee, the City shall reimburse the County for the difference. The fee of $300.00 shall be paid to the Supervisor no less than 45 days prior to Election Day. The City agrees to pay for training, tabulation materials, ballot setup and precinct registers in the amount of $1,800.00, additional charges may apply for Spanish translation at a rate Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15, 2009 Page 7 of 9 of $ .25 to $ .50 per word with a minimum charge of $25.00. The Supervisor will bill this amount after the election. 25. Within 10 calendar days of the City election date, the City shall provide any replacement parts or equipment that were lost, stolen, or damaged while in the City's possession. ,26. If the Supervisor's actual City election costs exceed the amount of the fee, the City shall pay the Supervisor's bill within ten calendar days of its receipt. Rates for the Supervisor's bill shall be actual costs associated with the following: · Advertising the voter registration book closing · Staff labor costs for work unique and peculiar to the City's election · $.0125 per page of county Precinct Register paper (does not include data processing sorts or printing costs) · $.15 per page for 8.5" x II" or 8.5" x 14" copies · $.20 per page for duplexed copies · Any expenditures required by the City's election and paid by the Supervisor. 27. Notwithstanding all provisions for payment set forth in this Agreement, the City shall be responsible for all costs associated with manpower, equipment, postage, and any other election costs, whether or not specifically set forth in this Agreement. 28. Nothing in this Agreement relieves the City of its responsibility to develop security procedures for its election. The County and Supervisor responsibility for security regarding the City's election are limited to those items contained in the attached Exhibit A. 29 The County and the Supervisor have no liability for costs or expenses or other liability incurred by the City in preparation for this election should the U.S. Department of Justice note an objection in its response to the Mayor's request. Further, should there be a response noting' an objection which would delay or prohibit the conduct of the election, the City is not relieved of any related financial obligation owed to the County and Supervisor arising from fees, goods and services, or other costs and expenses whether or not specifically set forth in this Agreement, incurred by the Supervisor up to the time the City notifies the Supervisor in writing of the Department of Justice objection. 30. The City shall obtain an insurance policy which shall name the County as additionally insured or agree to provide coverage through the City's self-insurance and shall assure that the County will have no financial obligation which includes the City's responsibility for paying any deductible for any damages to the County's voting and ballot tabulating equipment and systems used in a City election. A copy of the City's Certificate of Insurance identifying the County as an additional insured is attached hereto as Exhibit "B." 31. In the event there is an election protest, contest, or sequestration order arising from the City's election involving any component of the County's voting system and/or equipment which would preclude its further use until the matter has been resolved by the courts, and the County has an election scheduled where the equipment must be used, the City shall make a $25,000 security deposit to Collier County within four calendar days of the issuance of the sequestration order for the tabulation component and an additional $25,000 if voting units are involved. The unused Agenda Item No. 16J10 September 15, 2009 Page 8 of 9 balance on the security deposit shall be returned to the City when the legal matter has been resolved and the equipment has been returned. 32. The City shall arrange for candidates, candidate supporters, and members of the press to congregate and await election results in some publicly accessible meeting area such as the County Commission meeting room, City Hall, or other comparable location. Candidates only may be given tours of parts of the secured areas of the Elections Office.' The City Canvassing Board, its precinct election workers, its election night workers, and the Elections employee designated with custodial supervision ofthe facility for the day will be admitted to the secured area for processing, 33. This Agreement shall be valid only for the City's election held November 24, 2009. 34. In the event any part of this Agreement is determined to be unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiCtion, said ruling shall not invalidate the remaining parts of the Agreement. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto authorize this Agreement and affix their hand and seal this day of , 2009 by the City Council of the City of Everglades, and this _ day of , 2009 by the Collier County Board of County Commissioners and the Supervisor of Elections of Collier County. ATTEST: Dwight E. Brock, Clerk Collier County Board of County Commissioners , Deputy Clerk Donna Fiala, Chairwoman Approved as to form and legal sufficiency for the County: :;;tt- ;? 1~1 Scott Teach Deputy County Attorney Supervisor of Elections of Collier County Jennifer J. Edwards, Supervisor of Elections ATTEST: ~. - .~~ Dottie Smallwood, City Clerk City of Everglades City of Everglades City ~4-~@~L Sammy Hamilton, Mayor Approved as to form and legal sufficiency for the Ci : . k.. '~1) Agenda Item No. 16J 1 0 September 15, 2009 Page 9 of 9 Exhibit A Collier County, Florida 5.19.1 SECURITY PROCEDURES for Stand Alone Municipal Elections (not scheduled concurrently with state/county dates or mail ballot elections) 1. The Elections Office will advertise the registration book closing, 2. The Elections office will provide the City with a precinct-by-precinct demographics report within seven days ofregistration book closing. 3. On the 6th day preceding Election Day, the Elections Office will run the computer sort to produce precinct registers for use by the City (not required for mail ballot election or if EViDs are used). 4. On the 4th day preceding Election Day, the Elections Office shall deliver the precinct register(s) to the City Clerk no later than 5:30 p.m. (not required for mail ballot election or if EViDs are used). 5. If the City leases the County's voting equipment (not supplies), permission must be obtained from both the Board of County Commissioners and the Supervisor of Elections for each election date, The City shall provide the County with an itemized list of requested equipment no less than 45 days prior to Election Day. The County shall not be required to provide equipment it does not have nor shall it be required to provide all equipment requested. 6. If authorized by the County, the City shall arrange to pick up the leased equipment and deliver it to their polling place(s). 7. The City shall return leased County equipment to the Elections Office no later then the day after the election. The equipment shall be in the same condition as when it was received by the city. ' 8. If the City issues absentee ballots, the Elections Office will, prior to the canvass of votes, provide the City with records access for their verification of voter signatures on absentee ballots brought to the Elections Office by the City or the Supervisor will verify signatures that are faxed to the office. 9. No later than the 2nd day after the election, the City shall deliver to the Elections Office the precinct register(s), if used, organized in ascending precinct order. No later than the 3rd day after the election, the City shall deliver to the Elections Office, the voter affidavits organized in alphabetical order for use to the Elections Office in updating elector records, 10. If the City leases the County's ballot tabulation system, only the Supervisor of Elections Security procedures for building and system access shall apply. The City shall be responsible for all other security measures for its procedures and supplies. 11. The Elections Office shall retain the precinct register(s) for twenty-two (22) months, if used, and then shall seek Bureau of Archives authorization for destruction. 12. All candidate information, amendments, and referendums must be submitted to the Supervisor of Elections no later than the 46th day prior to the Election, the last day of qualifying. All audio files with tape recorded spoken name of candidate will be made available to the Election Systems and Software at the same time. The Supervisor of Elections will invoice The City of Everglades all costs of the audio ballot. 13. Elections costs shall include, but not be limited to expenditures for all paper supplies including envelopes, instructions to voters, affidavits, precinct registers, reports, ballots, postage, notices to voters, advertisements, testing of equipment, sample ballots, data processing time and supplies, delivery and pick up of equipment, records retention and labor costs, including those costs uniquely associated with absentee ballot preparation and canvassing. These costs will be the responsibility of the County and billed to the City. 14. The cost of pollworkers, feds, and polling locations shall be the responsibility of the City.