§ 2-503. Appointment and tenure.

(a)

Nominating council. Trustees shall be appointed by resolution of the Board of County Commissioners (hereinafter known as "Board") after having been selected by the Miami-Dade Economic Advocacy Trust Nominating Council (hereinafter known as "Nominating Council") established and described herein. The Nominating Council shall be comprised of five (5) voting members, two (2) of whom shall be the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Trust and the Chair of the Board's committee with jurisdiction over economic development issues, who shall serve as the chair of the Nominating Council and three (3) of whom shall be appointed by the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners and ratified by the Board. No acting Trustee of the Trust, other than the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, shall serve on the Nominating Council, nor shall any acting member of the Nominating Council, other than the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, be eligible to serve on the Board of Trustees of the Trust. In serving on the Nominating Council, the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Trust shall not vote on or participate in any way in any matter affecting the Chairperson's appointment to the Board of Trustees of the Trust. The members of the Nominating Council shall be appointed for staggered three-year terms and shall not serve more than two (2) consecutive and complete three (3) years each as set forth in Section 2-503(d) of this article. The sole function of the Nominating Council shall be to solicit, screen, interview and recommend for appointment the best qualified candidate for each vacancy of the Board of Trustees. The Nominating Council and the procedures under which it will operate shall be approved by the Board of County Commissioners. The Nominating Council shall submit to the Board of County Commissioners one (1) nominee for each vacancy on the Trust Board. The slate of nominees shall be submitted directly to the Board of County Commissioners no later than September 1 of each year. As applicable, Section 2-11.36 et seq. of the Code of Miami-Dade County shall govern the establishment and activities of the Nominating Council. In the event the Commission is unable to appoint a member to the Board of Trustees pursuant to said section(s), no action of the Trust shall be rendered void because of such inability on the part of the Commission. The County Mayor shall designate a liaison to coordinate the Nominating Council process.

In the event of a vacancy during the term of a Trustee, the Trust shall notify the Board of County Commissioners of the vacancy and shall request that it be filled in accordance with the applicable criteria set forth herein either as a part of the annual appointment process or by a special meeting of the Nominating Council.

(b)

Composition. Notwithstanding Section 2-11.1 of this Code with respect to eligibility of membership on the Board of Trustees, the voting membership shall include representatives from the following areas of professional expertise: (1) economic and business development; (2) criminal justice; (3) community based organizations; (4) educational organizations; (5) banking and finance; and (6) health organizations. In addition, the Board of Trustees shall have at least one (1) voting member from the Miami-Dade County School Board and one (1) voting member from State or local government. At least seven (7) members of the initial Board of Trustees shall be selected from members of the existing Trust Board of Directors. With respect to the appointment of the balance of Trustees, careful consideration shall be given to the expertise needed to accomplish the goals and objectives of the Trust. In addition, a majority of the membership of the Board of Directors shall be members of the African-American community.

(c)

Qualifications. Each member of the Board of Trustees shall be a United States citizen, a permanent resident and duly qualified elector of Miami-Dade County unless the Board of County Commissioners waives the residency requirement by a two-thirds vote of its membership. No person shall be qualified to sit as a Trustee if that person is an officer, representative, administrator or employee of any consultant, contractor or agency contracting with or receiving funding from the Trust except if that person is employed by or is serving on the Board of Trustees as a representative of State or local government. Trustees who are representatives of or who are employed by any State or local governmental agency may not vote on matters affecting the governmental agency by which they are employed or whom they represent.

(d)

Tenure of Trustees. The Trustees shall serve terms of three (3) years each; provided, however, that of the original Board of Trustees, the Board of County Commissioners shall select one-third ( 1/3 ) for a term of one (1) year and one-third ( 1/3 ) for a term of two (2) years. No Trustee shall be permitted to serve more than two (2) consecutive and complete terms of three (3) years each unless so authorized by a two-thirds ( 2/3 ) vote of the full membership of the Board of County Commissioners. All Trustees serving on the Board of Trustees on the effective date of this ordinance shall continue to serve on the Board of Trustees. Current Trustees shall be eligible to serve up to two (2) consecutive and complete three-year terms. Service on the Board of Trustees by current members prior to the effective date of this ordinance shall not count towards the maximum term of service provided for in this ordinance. The initial Board of Trustees, appointed after the effective date of this ordinance, excluding Trustees serving on the Board of Trustees on the effective date of this ordinance, shall serve staggered terms. One-third ( 1/3 ) of Trustees appointed after the effective date of this ordinance shall serve for a term of one (1) year, one-third ( 1/3 ) shall serve for a term of two (2) years, and one-third ( 1/3 ) shall serve for a term of three (3) years. Straws shall be drawn to determine the terms.

(e)

Compensation. Trustees shall serve without compensation but shall be entitled to reimbursement for necessary expenses.

(Ord. No. 92-12, § 3, 2-18-92; Ord. No. 01-01, § 1, 1-23-01; Ord. No. 08-86, § 2, 7-1-08; Ord. No. 09-70, § 3, 9-1-09)