Issue Overview: The 2002 and 2004 elections revealed a new force in Florida's political and legislative systems: the Constitutional Initiative process. Designed to give citizens the opportunity to change the state constitution, this process has instead become a way to bypass the representational form of government. Funding an expensive campaign to amend the constitution is prohibitive for ordinary citizen groups, but cost is no deterrent for large, well-funded special interest groups that fail to pass their projects through the Legislature. The class size and mininuim wage amendments approved by voters are perfect examples of this practice. Anyone willing to spend approximately $2 million can place an issue on the ballot. The battle of ideals is no longer a debate on the merit of an idea, but a battle to raise money and 30-second sound bites.
NFIB Position: Florida's flawed constitutional initiative process must be changed so that ordinary citizens' needs are balanced against special interest groups that can spend vast dollars to buy the constitution. Sixty-five percent of members who voted NFIB's 2003 ballot agreed the threshold to pass a constitutional amendment should be 66 percent instead of the current 50 plus one percent.
Issue Status: Reforming the constitutional amendment process was one of the top three issues of the 2004 legislative session. While one reform (moving the deadline for getting an amendment on the ballot back six months) was passed, more substantial reforms failed due to tensions between House and Senate leadership. The 2005 session should be a different story. Sen. Jim King (R-Jacksonville) has filed SB 4 and SB 6 and Rep. Joe Pickens (R-Palatka) will sponsor the reform legislation in the House.
