According to the staff report, the city already carries legal fee reimbursement coverage through the Florida Municipal Insurance Trust, which reimburses the city for qualifying legal expenses paid on behalf of elected officials, up to $100,000 per covered action, provided the official is ultimately cleared of wrongdoing.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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See Member Benefits<\/a>Join Our Newsletter<\/a><\/p>\n Mayor Nick Nesta said repealing the policy would avoid advancing taxpayer dollars when insurance coverage is already available.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to make sure we\u2019re not double paying,\u201d Nesta said.\u00a0<\/p>\n City Attorney Cliff Shepard\u00a0said\u00a0the insurance endorsement reimburses legal expenses only after an official has first paid an\u00a0attorney,\u00a0and\u00a0the city reimburses the official\u00a0before seeking\u00a0reimbursement from the insurance carrier.\u00a0<\/p>\n Anderson argued the insurance policy and the repealed resolution served different purposes because the city policy authorized advancement of legal fees rather than reimbursement after the fact.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t taken a dime from this,\u201d Anderson said, noting she is defending an\u00a0ongoing lawsuit challenging her residency\u00a0as a commissioner<\/a>. She said the policy could help elected officials who cannot afford legal representation while defending lawsuits arising from their public service.\u00a0<\/p>\n Also\u00a0in the\u00a0special\u00a0meeting,\u00a0which was announced Friday<\/a>,\u00a0the commission also changed Apopka\u2019s representation on the\u00a0MetroPlan\u00a0Orlando Board, a\u00a0regional transportation planning partnership for Orange,\u00a0Osceola\u00a0and Seminole counties.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The item was presented as an opportunity to reconsider an appointment made by the\u00a0previous\u00a0City Commission in March, when\u00a0it appointed\u00a0Anderson to fill the seat vacated by former Mayor Bryan Nelson. Staff recommended appointing Nesta as the city\u2019s representative and Vice Mayor Diane Velazquez as the alternate.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Nesta said he had advocated since serving as a commissioner for the mayor to occupy the city\u2019s\u00a0MetroPlan\u00a0seat, saying the arrangement better aligns Apopka with other governments represented on the regional transportation planning board.\u00a0<\/p>\n Anderson opposed the change, calling it \u201ca straight attack on me as a commissioner\u201d and arguing the commission should instead devote its attention to ongoing budget decisions.\u00a0<\/p>\n After discussion, the commission unanimously approved Velazquez\u2019s proposal to appoint Nesta as Apopka\u2019s\u00a0MetroPlan\u00a0representative, remove Anderson from the position and\u00a0designate\u00a0all four commissioners as\u00a0alternates.\u00a0<\/p>\n Throughout\u00a0the meeting, Anderson\u00a0said\u00a0the agenda items\u00a0targeted her.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis special meeting was all a personal attack on me,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Several residents questioned the timing of both agenda items and urged the commission to treat Anderson fairly, while another supported revisiting appointments made by the\u00a0previous\u00a0commission shortly before new elected officials took office.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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