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C <br />ORDINANCE NO. 2010- 016 <br />AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF <br />INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, AMENDING SECTION 207 <br />"LOCAL BUSINESS TAX RECEIPTS" OF THE CODE OF INDIAN <br />RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA, BY ENACTING A NEW SECTION 207.15 <br />ENTITLED "PAIN CLINICS AND PAIN MANAGEMENT CLINICS" <br />ESTABLISHING FOR ONE YEAR FROM JUNE 82 2010 A <br />MORATORIUM AND CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS ON THE ISSUANCE, <br />TRANSFER AND RENEWAL OF LOCAL BUSINESS TAX RECEIPTS <br />FOR THE OPERATION OF PAIN CLINICS AND PAIN MANAGEMENT <br />CLINICS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILTY, A GENERAL REPEALER <br />AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE. <br />WHEREAS, pursuant to Article VII, Section 1 of the Florida Constitution, and <br />Chapter 125, Florida Statutes, Indian River County is authorized to protect the public <br />health, safety and welfare of its residents, and has the power and authority to enact <br />regulations for .valid governmental purposes that are not inconsistent with general or <br />special law; and <br />WHEREAS, on November 19, 2009, the Broward County, Florida Grand Jury <br />released an Interim Report on the Proliferation of Pain Clinics in South Florida, which <br />report detailed the rapid proliferation of pain clinics in South Florida; the excessive <br />prescribing and dispensing of controlled substances through such clinics; the increased <br />deaths resulting from lethal dosages of such controlled substances; the increased <br />crime, including burglaries and robberies in areas where such pain clinics operate; the <br />identity theft and organized criminal activities linked to the excessive prescribing and <br />dispensing of such controlled substances; the increased drug trafficking in controlled <br />substances originating from such pain clinics; and other impacts harmful to the public <br />health, safety and welfare; and <br />WHEREAS, the Indian River County Sheriff has reported to the Board that based <br />on the proximity of Indian River County to 1-95, and considering the expansion of pain <br />clinics northward towards Indian River County from counties located to the south, there <br />will be a definite proliferation of such clinics in Indian River County, and that such clinics <br />will have a direct and immediate impact which is harmful to the public health, safety and <br />welfare of the residents of Indian River County. The Sheriff has also reported that there <br />has been an increase in deaths in Indian River County caused by lethal dosages of <br />controlled substances relating to pain management; and <br />WHEREAS, newspaper and other reports have described the "pipeline" that is <br />used by drug traffickers illegally purchasing controlled substances from pain clinics in <br />Florida and selling the controlled substances to users in other states; and <br />1 <br />