Legacy 2016 Miami: Black History Month Issue | Page 2

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AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO MIAMI HERALD

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2016

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY CHAIRMAN’S REPORT

Expanding economic opportunities for working people

By Miami-Dade County Commission Chairman Jean Monestime

Miami-Dade County Commission
Chairman Jean Monestime
The privilege of serving on the
Miami-Dade County Commission has
presented me with the unique opportunity
to help steer policy in one of America’s great

urban communities. Many of the challenges
we face are generational and global in
nature, and in most instances require a
sustained, collective effort. My colleagues
and I are committed to moving our
community forward on all fronts.
My attention has been focused on the
issues that make an immediate difference in
the lives of the working people who struggle
daily to make ends meet. Our metropolitan
region ranks among the top 10 communities
in the nation in terms of the income
inequality gap. To the extent that
government can reduce the costs of housing
and transportation, increase the
opportunities for employment and secure
better wages for our workers, we must do
everything within our means to assist
people seeking lasting prosperity.
To advance a policy agenda on behalf of
the working poor, I created the Chairman’s
Council for Prosperity Initiatives (CPI).
Working alongside the standing legislative
committees of the County Commission, and
with the help of experts and academics from

around the nation, the CPI has evaluated
policy on such issues as “inclusionary zoning”
to ensure developers provide affordable
housing units in major projects,
income-based fare structures to provide
discounted passes to transit-dependent
workers, and legislation to address the
injustice associated with employment
applications that inquire about criminal
history.
In the year ahead, the Council will be
considering changes to the County’s Living
Wage policies to factor in rising healthcare
costs, and exploring a pilot program for child
care subsidies. The measure of success for
many prosperity initiatives is often at the
level of individuals and not across the entire
spectrum of society.
I have made structural changes to
improve policy development procedures.
The County Commission adopted my budget
reforms to empower the committees to set
program priorities for each taxing
jurisdiction. The committee system I
established is aligned with the revenue

sources generated countywide and within
the unincorporated areas, and in the
districts served by our fire and library
departments. As the board examines
performance measures of service delivery in
each committee, there is good reason to
expect a realistic budget will be adopted to
better serve residents. My number one
budget priority is to invest in programs and
policies to cut down on senseless gun deaths
among our youth.
I’m honored to serve the people of
Miami-Dade County as my colleagues and I
work to advance the goals of making lasting
improvements to the way we govern and
dramatically improving the lives of the
people we serve. Every day presents a new
opportunity to make decisions that will
make our community a better place to live,
and I welcome the input and advice of the
community. This country has provided me
with tremendous opportunities, and I want
to make sure we continue to be the land
where dreams come true.

THE CITY OF MIAMI CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
By Commissioner Keon Hardemon

Miami City Commission
Chairman Keon Hardemon
The Florida Legislature has introduced
House Bill 475 to prohibit public disclosure
of a witness to a felony for a specified
period. This is essential because many

House Bill 475 & The USA PATRIOT Act

witnesses to violent gun crimes in the inner
city display a reasonable reluctance to
provide their account of such crimes to the
police. Witnesses fear that their personal
identifying information will be provided to
the media and made available to the general
public. When witnesses identifying
information is made public, witnesses are
subject to intimidation tactics or threats by
the perpetrator of the crime. This should be
thwarted because the judicial system cannot
function without the participation of
witnesses, and our community will not be
safe if we do not prosecute those that
terrorize it. Furthermore, such intimidation
and the lack of federal intervention is
precisely the reason our community is
helpless and paralyzed in fear.
The Department of Justice is supposed to
ensure public safety against domestic
terrorism to protect innocent Americans
from the deadly plans of those dedicated to
destroying our American way of life.
Unfortunately, that promise has been
unfulfilled for poor African-American
communities. The USA PATRIOT Act defines
domestic terrorism as activities that involve

acts dangerous to human life that are a
violation of the criminal laws of any State
which appears to be intended to intimidate a
civilian population within the territorial
jurisdiction of the United States. House Bill
475 and the USA PATRIOT Act can be used
together to protect our community when
heartless criminals claim the lives of our
family and friends with high-powered
weaponry. It’s about ѥ