Miamians to vote on independent investigator

As corruption allegations continue to swirl around city hall, Miami will ask voters during the August primary election whether they want to establish an independent body to investigate malfeasance within the government.

Despite a heated Miami City Commission meeting Jan. 11, elected officials set aside their differences and voted unanimously in favor of forming an Independent Inspector General’s Office to look into alleged corruption. A measure will be placed on the August ballot to determine whether voters wish to replace the existing Office of the Independent Auditor General with a new entity that will have broader investigative powers.

The proposal, introduced by Commissioner Manolo Reyes, follows recent controversies involving several key city officials, such as Mayor Francis Suarez, City Manager Arthur Noriega, City Attorney Victoria Mendez, Commissioner Joe Carollo and former Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, who have been accused of a wide range of wrongdoing.

“The faster we place this, the faster we can implement this. It is quite important.… You see the news that came out that the inspector general discovered a board member that was misusing funds,” said Mr. Reyes to his colleagues, referencing an investigation conducted by the Miami-Dade Office of the Inspector General that led to the Jan. 11 arrest of former school board member Lubby Navarro, who was accused of charging $100,000 to district credit cards for personal use.

Mr. Reyes said the city needs a structural change and an independent inspector general with the authority to investigate any alleged misconduct, at any level of government.

Under the city charter, the existing Office of the Independent Auditor General performs internal audit functions including financial, operational, compliance, investigative and performance audits of government, officials and independent agencies.

The proposed Independent Inspector General’s Office would have a wider scope of duties and be granted more power in investigating potential corruption cases. It would have the authority to issue subpoenas, requiring individuals to appear before it and provide answers as part of its investigations.

Miami residents have been calling for a stronger mechanism for accountability as corruption allegations have flooded city hall over the past year.
Mr. Suarez is currently under a state ethics investigation after accepting tickets to expensive events, including the Miami Formula One Grand Prix and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Ms. Mendez is embroiled in a lawsuit that alleges she and her husband Carlos Morales used deceptive acts to acquire and resell real estate.

Mr. Diaz de la Portilla was arrested in September on felony corruption charges and subsequently suspended from office, and Mr. Carollo was found guilty in July by a federal jury and ordered to pay $63 million for violating the First Amendment rights of two Little Havana business owners who accused him of trying to destroy their livelihood as political retaliation.

Most recently on Jan. 8, a group of former Miami city managers called for an investigation into whether Mr. Noriega violated any ethical code or law after WLRN reported that companies connected to his wife’s family have received over $440,000 in contracts since he was appointed in 2020.

During the Jan. 11 meeting, Mr. Noriega addressed the allegations and said he would come back at the next commission with a full report of city dealings with his wife’s business.

Investigations into the allegations surrounding the mayor, city attorney and manager are ongoing and have yet to be fully resolved.

The city administration is currently drafting the proposal for the Independent Inspector General’s Office and preparing a comprehensive outline of the department’s duties. It will need to be approved by the city commission before being submitted to the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections to be included on the August primary ballot.