By now we all know that Frantzie likes to fly the friendly skies.

North Miami Beach Councilcritter Frantz Pierre’s wandurlust is nothing new.  I’ve been documenting his taxpayer funded excursions as far back as February of 2011 when I first reported on his trips to Boston, Chicago, Baltimore and Washington DC.

In addition to leaving on jet planes to cities near and far, we also spent $1,302.77 for Frantzie to join the Haitian American Elected Officials Network (HAEON), an organization that counts among its ranks many familiar faces in the Haitian community in South Florida.

This is an organization which lists no events – past, present or future, and hasn’t posted any articles or board meetings since September of 2013.

But, it does have an “Honorable” Members Directory page, where the Truly-Honorable (i.e, former North Miami City Clerk Alix Desulme), the Hardly-Honorable (i.e., State Rep. Daphne Campbell), and the Nowhere-Near-Honorable (i.e, the Two Pierres in Pod) elected officials have their pictures prominently displayed.

Yeah, that was money well spent.

In addition to enjoying City sponsored vacations, Frantzie also likes to attend galas.  Lots and lots of galas.  As I previously reported, The P Man attended the “Haitian American Nurses Association Scholarship Gala on April 17, 2010 for $100.00.  Or, and this one’s a real head-scratcher, Mr. Pierre’s attendance at the Haiti Tourism Development Gala on December 4, 2010, also for $100.00.  Why are we spending our tax dollars to PROMOTE TOURISM TO HAITI??  We don’t spend money to promote tourism to North Miami Beach!”

I more recently reported on Frantzie’s outrageous spending habits: “During the previous fiscal year, L’il Frantzie P asked for and received expense reimbursements in the amount of $7,104.04.  In the first eight months and two days of the current fiscal year, The P Man has gouged our city’s coffers for a whopping $4,450.33.”

Trust me, folks.  That’s money we’ll never get back.

Frantzie latest blatant act of chutzpah, traveling to Haiti for a “Leadership & Management Seminar in Port-au-Prince,” caused such a ruckus at City Hall, that City Attorney Jose Smith was forced to drop everything he’s currently working on to draft an Elected Officials Allowable Travel Expenses Memorandum on July 18, 2014.  In said Memo, Mr. Smith cites the Need for a Travel Expense Police, a recommendation by the Ethics Commission, Florida Statutes and case law, before making his recommendation that the City Council “Enact a Resolution establishing policies and procedures of allowable travel expenses.”

First on his list is that there be “a legitimate identifiable public purpose…that directly benefit residents and property owners in North Miami Beach.”

This means NO MORE $1,676.80 SOCCER COACH CONVENTIONS IN BALTIMORE, MARYLAND FOR YOU, FRANTZIE!

(Oh, yes.  He did!)

Lastly, Mr. Smith recommended that “For transparency purposes, all travel reimbursements and supporting documents should be posted on the City’s website.”

City Clerk Pamela Latimore, who has been diligently responding to countless public records requests for all that stuff, just breathed a very audible sigh of relief.  I’m pretty sure I hear it all the way from here!

While such a Resolution is desperately needed, one hopes that this proposed policy, once enacted, will be strictly enforced.

At least more strictly enforced than is the current Travel Policy, which became effective on November 7, 2012, and which spelled out in great detail all the rules of reimbursement for travel, including methods of transportation, lodging and meal allowances, among other things.

This Travel Policy also specifically referred to a Travel Authorization Form, which “must be completed prior to the incurrence of any travel related costs.”  This form is supposed to “include reasonable supporting documentation such as conference registration forms and agendas, hotel, air fare, meal allowance, car rentals and mileage estimates.  Unauthorized travel expenditures will not be reimbursed by the City…”

As you might expect, I have already made a public records request to the City Clerk for a copy of Frantzie’s “Travel Authorization Form” for his already reimbursed trip to Haiti.

The Clerk advised she will obtain the form for me.

Since the form is supposed to be “completed prior to the incurrence of any travel related costs,” I also asked for one that was date stamped.

Hopefully the Clerk will be able to scare that one up for me, too.

City officials have yet to address the matter of Frantzie’s “donations” of $5,000.00 our money to questionable organizations.  I will be reminding them.

Yeah, I know.  I’m being picky.

But cut me some slack.

It’s been a tad boring around here since Sweet Micky and the Traveling Government Road Show left town.

What can I say?

Lest you think I’m only picking on L’il Frantzie P…

A recent Miami Herald article about this travel expense mess published “a transaction analysis from October 2013 to July 15, the council members spent as follows from their contingency fund which includes fees associated with travel, registration fees, memberships, subscriptions and sponsorships:

Mayor George Vallejo, $5,110.10.
Councilman Frantz Pierre, $4,450.33.
Councilman Anthony DeFillipo, $2,638.33.
Councilwoman Marlen Martell, $2,243.28.
Councilwoman Phyllis Smith, $1,824.33.
Councilwoman Barbara Kramer, $1,322.28.
Councilwoman Beth Spiegel, $1,165.00.”

As such, I sent an email to our beleaguered City Clerk asking for, “a breakdown of all these expenses and copies of the Travel Authorization Forms where applicable.”

Hopefully, there will be no other surprises.

But, if there are, you’ll be the first to know.

Stephanie Kienzle
“Spreading the Wealth”