Advertisement
Written by Genevieve Bowen on January 21, 2026
Amid growing scrutiny of foreign ties in South Florida commerce, Miami may create a task force to conduct a citywide review of businesses to uncover possible connections to the Cuban government.
City commissioners are scheduled to discuss the proposal during today’s (1/22) meeting after it was placed on the agenda by Commissioner Ralph Rosado. If approved, the resolution would establish a Task Force on Business Compliance and Foreign Ties, led by the City of Miami’s Office of the Inspector General, to examine business tax receipts and investigate potential violations of federal law.
The proposal comes amid broader scrutiny of businesses operating in South Florida following reports that some local companies may have financial or operational connections to the Cuban regime, which is subject to strict US sanctions.
According to the agenda item, the City of Miami is authorized under state law to issue local business tax receipts and may revoke or refuse to renew them if a business or its parent company is found to be doing business with Cuba in violation of federal regulations. Similar provisions also exist under the Miami-Dade County Code.
Recent enforcement actions at the county level have highlighted the issue. In October, Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez’s office mailed letters to 75 businesses requesting proof that they were legally authorized under federal law to conduct business with Cuba. After multiple notices and an extended period to respond, 20 businesses had failed to provide documentation and had their licenses revoked in December.
The proposed task force would conduct a comprehensive review of all business tax receipts issued by the City of Miami to identify businesses with potential ties to the Cuban government or entities under its control. The task force would be responsible for investigating allegations, reviewing documentation such as licenses issued by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control or the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security, and determining whether violations have occurred.
The resolution emphasizes due process, requiring that affected businesses be notified and given an opportunity to respond before any recommendations are final. The task force would then submit recommendations to the city commission, which could include referrals to federal authorities, suspension or revocation of business tax receipts, or policy changes to strengthen compliance monitoring.
The task force would be chaired by the city’s inspector general and include one appointee by the mayor, one by each city commissioner, representatives from the departments of Code Compliance and Finance, and additional designees as deemed necessary by the inspector general.
Meetings would be publicly noticed and subject to Florida’s Sunshine Law, with the task force required to meet at least monthly once a quorum is established.
An initial report would be due to the city commission within 90 days of the task force’s first meeting and would outline findings, businesses identified for further investigation, and enforcement or policy recommendations.
If commissioners vote to create the task force, appointments and departmental designations would be made within 30 days, and the group would sunset one year later.