ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Bradenton Beach City Commissioner Jake Spooner has resigned because of the state’s expanded Form 6 financial disclosure requirements that now apply to all Florida mayors and city commissioners holding office as of Jan. 1.
Spooner is one of many city commissioners in Florida who recently resigned because of the new law and the impacts are also being felt in Anna Maria and Longboat Key.
The Form 6 financial disclosure requirements have long applied to elected state, county and city officials in some of Florida’s larger cities. The Florida Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis expanded the disclosure requirements earlier this year when creating the new state law that now requires elected city officials to annually file a Form 6 disclosure form.
All elected mayors and city commissioners in office as of Dec. 31 are required to file a Form 6 disclosure form by July 1. The expanded financial disclosure requirements also apply to future candidates seeking election to a city office, and to the nine appointed members of the Florida Commission on Ethics.
Bradenton Beach impacts
Spooner was elected in 2015 and remained in office since then. He tendered his resignation in an email sent to City Clerk Terri Sanclemente, Mayor John Chappie and others on Thursday.
“Please accept this letter as formal notification of my resignation from the Bradenton Beach City Commission and CRA, effective December 28, 2023,” Spooner wrote. “It has been an honor and a privilege to serve our community and work towards betterment alongside such dedicated individuals. My time on the commission has been deeply rewarding and educational. I have cherished the opportunity to contribute to our city’s growth and to collaborate on initiatives that have improved our residents’ quality of life. However, due to recent changes in the state law pertaining to financial disclosure requirements for city officials, I find it necessary to step down from my position at this time. Thank you for the opportunity to serve Bradenton Beach. It has truly been a meaningful period in my life. I look forward to watching the city continue to thrive and prosper in the future and know it is in good hands.”
While in office, Spooner suggested the city use its contracted lobbyist to pursue state appropriations. This led to the city receiving millions of dollars in state funds for undergrounding utility lines and other projects. Spooner also proposed the addition of the new finger docks at the Bradenton Beach Pier. He was also a proponent of using Community Redevelopment Agency funds to decorate Bridge Street and the city entrance during the Christmas holidays.
The remaining commission members will appoint someone to fill Spooner’s vacated seat. According to a Florida Commission on Ethics spokesperson, a commissioner appointed after Jan. 1 is still required to file a Form 6 by July 1.
Anna Maria impacts
When contacted by The Sun, sitting Anna Maria commissioners Mark Short, Jon Crane and Charlie Salem each said they were not resigning.
“I just hope it doesn’t discourage others from getting involved,” Salem said.
The city commission anticipated filling two vacant commission seats on Jan. 25. On Dec. 22, Anna Maria City Commission applicant Pat Olesen informed Mayor Dan Murphy and City Clerk LeAnne Addy that she was withdrawing her application for potential appointment to the city commission in late January. Olesen told The Sun she withdrew because of the Form 6 disclosure requirements.
On Thursday (Dec. 28), commission applicant John Kolojeski withdrew his application for similar reasons. In the email he sent to Murphy, Kolojeski stated he was reluctantly withdrawing his application after speaking to Joe Burns at the Florida Commission on Ethics the previous day and confirming that if appointed he would be subject to the Form 6 financial disclosure requirements.
“In my opinion, the residents of Anna Maria did not need to know the value of an elected official’s oriental rug or art collection; such public information would most interest a thief,” Kolojeski stated in his email. “The most important information a voter needs is not required by the new law, namely does a candidate have financial interest in any business subject to actual or potential regulation by the city, e.g., real estate or construction, etc. What interests are financially supporting a candidate? Form 6 requirements I personally find onerous and irrelevant to the conflict issues of far greater importance.”
On Friday, commission applicant Susan Stephen withdrew her application, leaving Gary McMullen and Kathleen Morgan as the two remaining applicants as of 1 p.m. Friday.
In the withdrawal letter she sent to Murphy on Friday, Stephen stated, “I am withdrawing my name from consideration for the position of city commissioner. Unfortunately, the new laws will impede my desire to run. In my opinion, public release of my personal financial information is ripe for abuse. If I only was disclosing to the powers that be, it might be a different story. I must wholeheartedly agree with John Kolojeski and Pat Olesen that it’s an invasion of my personal information and subjects me to abuse of said information.”
On Dec. 13, commission applicant Sharon Wisniewski withdrew her application. It is not known if the new financial disclosure requirements factored into her withdrawal.”
If two new Anna Maria commissioners are on Jan. 25 as previously anticipated, the new commissioners will have to their first Form 6 by July 1.
Holmes Beach impacts
When contacted on Thursday, Holmes Beach City Clerk Stacey Johnston said no resignations were tendered in Holmes Beach. Johnston said she provided the mayor and commissioners with access to Form 6 training materials and other information well in advance of the new disclosure requirements taking effect.
After contacting the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections Office, Johnston confirmed that the city’s elected charter review board members will continue to file Form 1 disclosure forms when qualifying for election and will not have to file Form 6.
Holmes Beach Commissioner Terry Schaefer expressed concerns about the Form 6 disclosure requirements during the commission’s Nov. 14 meeting after attending a presentation that Florida Commission on Ethics Deputy Executive Director and General Counsel Steven Zuilkowski gave after the conclusion of the Nov. 9 ManaSota League of Cities meeting.
“It’s very onerous. It requires detailed financial information, down to the bank accounts, their respective balances, securities and net worth. Is this going to thwart people in the future from even considering running if they have to open their financial statements to the public?” Schaefer said.
Schaefer questioned whether the disclosure requirements would also discourage residents from serving on the city’s non-elected committees and boards.
In response to that concern, Johnston said, “It is not for the committees. It’s only for the elected officials, which are the six of you.”
Longboat Key, statewide impacts
After taking office in March, Longboat Key Town Council member Debbie Murphy submitted her resignation letter on Nov. 20 and her resignation took effect Dec. 24.
“I feel my privacy is being infringed upon in being required to submit the new financial disclosure form and am unwilling to provide personal net worth information being requested. I find these requirements to be more onerous and intrusive than I am willing to share with the public,” she stated in her resignation letter.
Statewide, the new financial disclosure requirements caused many elected city officials to resign. According to various new outlets, four of the five St. Pete Beach Commission members resigned and at least 18 elected municipal officials in Pinellas County resigned. Three elected city officials in Pasco County resigned, the Naples vice-mayor resigned, three North Palm Beach City Commission members resigned and a Fort Myers Town Council member resigned because of the new financial disclosure requirements.
Disclosure requirements extensive
Most Florida mayors and city commissioners were previously required to file the Form 1 disclosure document that doesn’t require a disclosure of net worth. Form 1 requires the disclosure of income sources but not the amount of income received. Form 1 requires the disclosure of business interests, real estate holdings and major debts but does not require the specific amounts of those holdings and debts.
During the Florida League of Cities annual conference in August, Zuilkowski and Commission on Ethics Executive Director Kerrie Stillman gave a presentation titled, “Let The Sunshine In: Everything you need to know about Form 6.”
The presentation is posted at the Florida League of Cities website and provides detailed information about the Form 6 disclosure requirements and the now-mandatory electronic filing process.
Form 6 requires elected officials to report their net worth at the end of the previous calendar year. It requires the disclosure of all income sources and the amount of income earned. It requires the disclosure of bank accounts and year-end balances. It requires the disclosure of land and real estate holdings, tangible and household assets valued at more than $1,000, stock and investment accounts, financial debts and liabilities that exceed $1,000 and the amount owed to each creditor, with the exception of credit card debt and taxes owed.
Senate sponsor
The expanded Form 6 financial disclosure requirements are the result of the new state law created earlier this year with the Florida Legislature’s adoption of Senate Bill 774, and the matching committee substitute bill adopted by the House of Representatives. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the expanded disclosure requirements into law in May.
Sen. Jason Brodeur (R-Sanford) sponsored SB 774. When contacted by The Sun, Brodeur’s office said he was unavailable for a phone interview but his aide provided a written statement Brodeur shared with other media outlets.
“Before the bill took effect, the following individuals holding public office were required to file a Form 6: The governor, the lieutenant governor, executive cabinet members, legislators, state attorneys, public defenders, clerks of circuit courts, sheriffs, tax collectors, property appraisers, supervisors of elections, county commissioners, elected superintendents of schools, district school board members, Jacksonville City Council members – including the mayor, compensation claims judges, the Duval County Superintendent of Schools, Florida Housing Finance Corporation Board members, Florida Prepaid College Board members and members of each expressway authority, transportation authority, bridge authority or toll authority,” Brodeur stated.
“City officials, presumably with the highest spending authority and the lowest vote count thresholds, have very little transparency, so the bill lined them up with everyone else in public office,” he stated.
“The Florida Commission on Ethics said during their public testimony when the bill was heard in committee that more people filed to run for public office last year than ever before, so there likely won’t be a lack of good people running for office. Similar arguments were made by county commissions, school boards and constitutional officers when it became a requirement that they submit a Form 6, and we’ve had no shortage of candidates for any of those positions,” he stated.
“I’m not so much concerned about their pay as I am about their spending authority. It takes 82 votes in the Legislature to spend taxpayer dollars. In a city, you can spend tens of millions of dollars with as little as three votes. Taxpayers deserve transparency. If a simple disclosure that hundreds of other elected officials already do makes someone quit, then voters should be glad,” Brodeur stated.
Ethics Commission insights
When contacted by The Sun, Stillman provided additional insights on the Form 6 financial disclosure requirements first promulgated in 1977.
“It is not a new form. It has been around for decades. It’s a new requirement for city commissioners and mayors. The biggest difference between Form 1 and Form 6 is the requirement to provide net worth and to list specific income amounts,” Stillman said.
“This change is something that’s been recommended by the (Ethics) Commission since 2015 or 2016. Over the years, it has been in bills that have been debated in legislative committees, and the Florida League of Cities was closely following and active in the issue,” she said.
“The state of Florida has very broad public records laws and prioritizes transparency. The filing of financial disclosure forms does provide transparency to the public. The ethics laws, the disclosure requirements and the transparency are designed to help bolster the public’s trust in their government and help identify potential conflicts of interest. The exercise of an official completing the form each year helps the official remember where their interests are and helps them avoid potential conflicts of interest,” Stillman said.
Stillman said Form 6 filers are not asked to provide bank account numbers, social security numbers and other sensitive information. She noted the new law also eliminates paper filing and requires all Form 6 filings to be done electronically using the Ethics Commission’s online filing system.
When qualifying to run for a mayoral or city commission seat, non-incumbent candidates must now fill out Form 6, print a copy of the filed form and submit it to the applicable election qualifying officer, which is generally the supervisor of elections office. Incumbent city candidates seeking reelection must provide their qualifying officer with a printed receipt of their most recent Form 6 filing.
When asked, Stillman said elected fire district board members are not required to file a Form 6 and will continue to file Form 1.
“Currently, there are about 26,000 Form 6 filers. With the addition of city officials, we anticipate that amount will double. Our staff is prepared to assist all these officials as they transition to this new form. They’ll have access to our filing system beginning in January,” Stillman said.
She noted that financial disclosure forms, a video tutorial and answers to frequently asked questions are available at the Ethics Commission website.
“We’re ready to help the folks comply and adjust to the Form 6 requirement,” Stillman said.
The original version of this story was updated on Friday, Dec. 29 at 1:25 pm
