Senate Bill sb0940

    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SJR 940

    By Senator Smith





    5-201A-02

  1                 Senate Joint Resolution No. ____

  2         A joint resolution proposing the creation of

  3         Section 20 of Article III of the State

  4         Constitution to authorize the proposal of

  5         legislation by citizen initiative and prescribe

  6         standards and procedures for such proposals and

  7         the amendment of Section 5 of Article XI of the

  8         State Constitution to modify the requirements

  9         for referenda to amend the Constitution.

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

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13         That the following creation of Section 20 of Article

14  III, and the following amendment to Section 5 of Article XI,

15  of the State Constitution are agreed to and shall be submitted

16  to the electors of this state for approval or rejection at the

17  next general election or at an earlier special election

18  specifically authorized by law for that purpose:

19                           ARTICLE III

20                           LEGISLATURE

21         SECTION 20.  Citizen initiative.--The power to propose

22  legislation by initiative is reserved to the people. The power

23  may be invoked by filing a petition with the chief elections

24  officer of the state which contains a copy of the proposed

25  legislation, which petition is signed by a number of electors

26  in each of one half of the congressional districts of the

27  state, and of the state as a whole, equal to eight percent of

28  the votes cast in each of such districts respectively and in

29  the state as a whole in the last preceding election in which

30  presidential electors were chosen. A statement must appear on

31  the ballot which states the economic impact of each proposal.

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SJR 940
    5-201A-02




  1  Legislation proposed by initiative must be approved by

  2  three-fifths of those electors voting on the proposal in order

  3  to be adopted. Special laws and general laws of local

  4  application may not be proposed by initiative. Such proposed

  5  legislation must comply with the requirements of this

  6  constitution applicable to laws enacted by the legislature

  7  with respect to single subject and prohibition of amendment by

  8  reference. The legislature shall establish by general law, no

  9  later than July 1, 2003, procedures to be used in proposing

10  and voting on legislation proposed by initiative.

11                            ARTICLE XI

12                            AMENDMENTS

13         SECTION 5.  Amendment or revision election.--

14         (a)  A proposed amendment to or revision of this

15  constitution, or any part of it, shall be submitted to the

16  electors at the next general election held more than ninety

17  days after the joint resolution, initiative petition or report

18  of revision commission, constitutional convention or taxation

19  and budget reform commission proposing it is filed with the

20  secretary of state, unless, pursuant to law enacted by the

21  affirmative vote of three-fourths of the membership of each

22  house of the legislature and limited to a single amendment or

23  revision, it is submitted at an earlier special election held

24  more than ninety days after such filing. To be effective, a

25  proposed amendment or revision must be approved by two-thirds

26  of the electors voting on the issue.

27         (b)  Once in the tenth week, and once in the sixth week

28  immediately preceding the week in which the election is held,

29  the proposed amendment or revision, with notice of the date of

30  election at which it will be submitted to the electors, shall

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SJR 940
    5-201A-02




  1  be published in one newspaper of general circulation in each

  2  county in which a newspaper is published.

  3         (c)  If the proposed amendment or revision is approved

  4  by vote of the electors, it shall be effective as an amendment

  5  to or revision of the constitution of the state on the first

  6  Tuesday after the first Monday in January following the

  7  election, or on such other date as may be specified in the

  8  amendment or revision.

  9         (d)  The ballot statement of a proposed amendment must

10  include a brief statement of the amendment's economic impact.

11  The legislature shall establish by general law the required

12  content of the economic impact statement.

13         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be

14  placed on the ballot:

15                    CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

16                     ARTICLE III, SECTION 20;

17                      ARTICLE XI, SECTION 5

18         LEGISLATION BY INITIATIVE; CONSTITUTION AMENDMENT OR

19  REVISION ELECTIONS.--Proposing an amendment to the State

20  Constitution to allow legislation to be proposed by

21  initiative, prescribe standards for such proposals, and

22  require that the Legislature adopt procedures governing such

23  initiatives and to increase the number of votes required to

24  approve a constitutional amendment or revision and require

25  that the ballot statement of a proposed constitutional

26  amendment include a statement of the amendment's economic

27  impact.

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