Florida Senate - 2008 SJR 2308

By Senator Carlton

23-03742A-08 20082308__

1

Senate Joint Resolution

2

A joint resolution proposing amendments to Section 4 of

3

Article IV and Sections 2 and 7 of Article IX and creating

4

a new section in Article XII of the State Constitution to

5

create the position of Commissioner of Education as an

6

elected member of the Cabinet, to revise the membership of

7

the State Board of Education, which shall consist of the

8

Governor and the Cabinet, and to revise the membership,

9

terms, and duties of the local boards of trustees and the

10

Board of Governors of the State University System.

11

12

Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

13

14

     That the following amendments to Section 4 of Article IV and

15

Sections 2 and 7 of Article IX and the creation of a new section

16

in Article XII of the State Constitution are agreed to and shall

17

be submitted to the electors of this state for approval or

18

rejection at the next general election or at an earlier special

19

election specifically authorized by law for that purpose:

20

ARTICLE IV

21

EXECUTIVE

22

     SECTION 4.  Cabinet.-

23

     (a)  There shall be a cabinet composed of an attorney

24

general, a chief financial officer, and a commissioner of

25

agriculture, and a commissioner of education. In addition to the

26

powers and duties specified herein, they shall exercise such

27

powers and perform such duties as may be prescribed by law. In

28

the event of a tie vote of the governor and cabinet, the side on

29

which the governor voted shall be deemed to prevail.

30

     (b)  The attorney general shall be the chief state legal

31

officer. There is created in the office of the attorney general

32

the position of statewide prosecutor. The statewide prosecutor

33

shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the state attorneys to

34

prosecute violations of criminal laws occurring or having

35

occurred, in two or more judicial circuits as part of a related

36

transaction, or when any such offense is affecting or has

37

affected two or more judicial circuits as provided by general

38

law. The statewide prosecutor shall be appointed by the attorney

39

general from not less than three persons nominated by the

40

judicial nominating commission for the supreme court, or as

41

otherwise provided by general law.

42

     (c)  The chief financial officer shall serve as the chief

43

fiscal officer of the state, and shall settle and approve

44

accounts against the state, and shall keep all state funds and

45

securities.

46

     (d)  The commissioner of agriculture shall have supervision

47

of matters pertaining to agriculture except as otherwise provided

48

by law.

49

(e) The commissioner of education shall supervise the

50

public education system in the manner prescribed by law, except

51

as otherwise provided in this constitution.

52

     (f)(e) The governor as chair, the chief financial officer,

53

and the attorney general shall constitute the state board of

54

administration, which shall succeed to all the power, control,

55

and authority of the state board of administration established

56

pursuant to Article IX, Section 16 of the Constitution of 1885,

57

and which shall continue as a body at least for the life of

58

Article XII, Section 9(c).

59

     (g)(f) The governor as chair, the chief financial officer,

60

the attorney general, and the commissioner of agriculture, and

61

the commissioner of education shall constitute the trustees of

62

the internal improvement trust fund and the land acquisition

63

trust fund as provided by law.

64

     (h)(g) The governor as chair, the chief financial officer,

65

the attorney general, and the commissioner of agriculture, and

66

the commissioner of education shall constitute the agency head of

67

the Department of Law Enforcement.

68

Article IX

69

EDUCATION

70

     SECTION 2. State board of education.-The governor and the

71

members of the cabinet shall constitute the state board of

72

education, which shall be a body corporate and have such

73

supervision of the public education system as is provided by law.

74

The state board of education shall be a body corporate and have

75

such supervision of the system of free public education as is

76

provided by law. The state board of education shall consist of

77

seven members appointed by the governor to staggered 4-year

78

terms, subject to confirmation by the senate. The state board of

79

education shall appoint the commissioner of education.

80

     SECTION 7.  State University System.-

81

     (a)  PURPOSES.  In order to achieve excellence through

82

teaching students, advancing research and providing public

83

service for the benefit of Florida's citizens, their communities

84

and economies, the people hereby establish a system of governance

85

for the state university system of Florida.

86

     (b)  STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM.  There shall be a single state

87

university system comprised of all public universities. A board

88

of trustees shall administer each public university and a board

89

of governors shall govern the state university system.

90

     (c)  LOCAL BOARDS OF TRUSTEES.  Each local constituent

91

public university shall be administered by a board of trustees as

92

provided by law consisting of thirteen members dedicated to the

93

purposes of the state university system. The board of governors

94

shall establish the powers and duties of the boards of trustees.

95

Each board of trustees shall consist of eleven six citizen

96

members appointed by the governor and five citizen members

97

appointed by the board of governors. The appointed members shall

98

be confirmed by the senate and serve staggered terms of five

99

years as provided by law. The chair of the faculty senate, or the

100

equivalent, and the president of the student body of the

101

university shall also be members.

102

     (d)  STATEWIDE BOARD OF GOVERNORS.  The board of governors

103

shall administer the state be a body corporate consisting of

104

seventeen members. The board shall operate, regulate, control,

105

and be fully responsible for the management of the whole

106

university system as provided by law. These responsibilities

107

shall include, but not be limited to, defining the distinctive

108

mission of each constituent university and its articulation with

109

free public schools and community colleges, ensuring the well-

110

planned coordination and operation of the system, and avoiding

111

wasteful duplication of facilities or programs. The board's

112

management shall be subject to the powers of the legislature to

113

appropriate for the expenditure of funds, and the board shall

114

account for such expenditures as provided by law. The governor

115

shall appoint to the board five fourteen citizens dedicated to

116

the purposes of the state university system. The appointed

117

members shall be confirmed by the senate and serve staggered

118

terms of four seven years as provided by law. The commissioner of

119

education, the chair of the advisory council of faculty senates,

120

or the equivalent, and the president of the Florida student

121

association, or the equivalent, shall also be members of the

122

board.

123

Article XII

124

SCHEDULE

125

     Cabinet, State Board of Education, elected Commissioner of

126

Education, and the State University System.--

127

     (a) The amendments to section 4 of Article IV and sections

128

2 and 7 of Article IX which create a cabinet position for an

129

elected commissioner of education to supervise the public

130

education system as provided by law, revise the membership of the

131

state board of education to be the governor and the cabinet,

132

revise the number of members and manner of appointment for

133

members of the local boards of trustees for the state university

134

system, and revise the membership, terms, and duties of the

135

statewide board of governors, and this section, if submitted to

136

the electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next

137

general election, shall take effect July 1 of the year following

138

such general election.

139

     (b) On the effective date of these amendments, the terms of

140

the members serving on the state board of education, the

141

statewide board of governors, and the local boards of trustees

142

and the term of the commissioner of education shall expire.

143

     (c) On the effective date of these amendments, the governor

144

and cabinet shall appoint a commissioner of education to serve

145

until a commissioner of education is elected in the next general

146

election following the adoption of these amendments.

147

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be

148

placed on the ballot:

149

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS

150

ARTICLE IV, SECTION 4

151

ARTICLE IX, SECTIONS 2 AND 7

152

ARTICLE XII

153

     RESTRUCTURING THE STATE CABINET; ELECTED COMMISSIONER OF

154

EDUCATION; RESTRUCTURING THE LOCAL BOARDS OF TRUSTEES AND THE

155

STATEWIDE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY

156

SYSTEM.--Proposing amendments to the State Constitution which

157

will create an elected Commissioner of Education who will be a

158

member of the Cabinet and will be responsible for the supervision

159

of public education; eliminate an appointed State Board of

160

Education and replace the board with the Governor and the

161

Cabinet; provide that the State Board of Education will be

162

responsible for the supervision of public education; revise the

163

membership of the local boards of trustees by eliminating the

164

authority of the statewide Board of Governors to appoint members;

165

limit the authority and duties of the local boards of trustees;

166

revise the membership of the statewide Board of Governors by

167

reducing the number of appointed members and their terms; limit

168

the authority of the statewide Board of Governors to administer

169

the State University System; provide that the terms of the

170

currently appointed members of the State Board of Education,

171

local boards of trustees, and the statewide Board of Governors,

172

and the term of the currently appointed Commissioner of Education

173

shall expire July 1 of the year following the adoption of these

174

amendments in the next general election; and provide for the

175

appointment of a Commissioner of Education by the Governor and

176

Cabinet until a Commissioner of Education is elected in the next

177

general election following the adoption of these amendments.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.