Recall Signatures Delivered To Clerk Of Courts

MIAMI (CBS4) - The recall effort against Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez took another step forward Friday when billionaire Norman Braman delivered more than 100,000 signatures to the County Clerk's office for certification.

Braman only needed a little more than 50,000 signatures to recall Alavrez, but wound up with more than twice that many. All total, there were 113 boxes with roughly 1,000 signatures in each one when it was delivered.

But, Miami-Dade County Clerk Harvey Ruvin said the verification process will incur a mountain of paperwork for his office.

"Due to a fairly recent amendment in the recall ordinance which used to allow 20 signatures a page; we are now going to see one signature per page," Ruvin said. "Which of course just amplifies the amount of paper involved and makes it a little bit more of a challenge in terms of dealing with the process."

Braman launched the recall effort in October after county commissioners approved Alvarez's budget for the coming year that raises the property tax rate and raises the salaries of most county employees.

"$174 million in property tax increases to fund $132 million in salary increases is not acceptable," Braman said as he launched his signature-collecting efforts.

When the South Florida auto magnate started his campaign, some questioned whether he would be able to collect the required 52-thousand signatures in 60 days. But momentum built quickly and lines soon formed at three sites across the county where petitions could be signed.

If Alvarez is recalled before his term ends in 2012 it would only happen after petitions have been certified, legal challenges, and a hotly contested recall election which the mayor vows he would wage.

"I think people have reached a point where they are tired of complaining and they are ready to do something about it," Braman said in October two weeks after he launched his effort. "I think that's been the universal reaction. It's interesting. It hasn't been a reaction of anger as far as the mayor is concerned. It's a feeling that they've been empowered. That they have a right to change government."

The mayor has collected $200,000 so far through a political action committee. Who's donating though is raising eyebrows. From the firms building the new Marlins stadium for $5,000 to the actual Marlins baseball team that kicked in $20,000.

Marlins president, David Samson, even cut a personal check for another $10,000. One could see that as a conflict since the mayor pushed the stadium deal through.

Norman Braman thumbed through the list today and put it bluntly, "Kind of stupid."

The list goes on and on including stadium contractors as well as lobbyists and lawyers who have done plenty of business with the county.

"I'm surprised at the audacity of it and the lack of smarts because it's so obviously a payoff." said Braman. "Every single one of the contributors including the Marlins has received something substantial from the county."

The mayor didn't deny that today.

At an informal news conference Thursday afternoon Alvarez fired back at Braman saying, "He's making it sound like I'm the only person that accepts checks from people who have anything to do with the county."

The mayor says the checks just came. "I certainly didn't ask for it, but I am thankful for it," Alvarez said