| 1 | House Joint Resolution |
| 2 | A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 4 of |
| 3 | Article VI of the State Constitution, relating to suffrage |
| 4 | and elections, to provide for restoration of voting rights |
| 5 | to certain persons convicted of felonies whose convictions |
| 6 | are subsequently overturned. |
| 7 |
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| 8 | Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 9 |
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| 10 | That the amendment to Section 4 of Article VI of the State |
| 11 | Constitution set forth below is agreed to and shall be submitted |
| 12 | to the electors of Florida for approval or rejection at the |
| 13 | general election to be held in November 2006: |
| 14 | ARTICLE VI |
| 15 | SUFFRAGE AND ELECTIONS |
| 16 | SECTION 4. Disqualifications.-- |
| 17 | (a) No person convicted of a felony, or adjudicated in |
| 18 | this or any other state to be mentally incompetent, shall be |
| 19 | qualified to vote or hold office until restoration of civil |
| 20 | rights or removal of disability, except that the legislature may |
| 21 | provide for restoring the right to vote or hold office for a |
| 22 | person who has been convicted of a felony and subsequently |
| 23 | exonerated after his or her judgment and sentence have become |
| 24 | final. |
| 25 | (b) No person may appear on the ballot for re-election to |
| 26 | any of the following offices: |
| 27 | (1) Florida representative, |
| 28 | (2) Florida senator, |
| 29 | (3) Florida Lieutenant governor, or |
| 30 | (4) any office of the Florida cabinet, |
| 31 | (5) U.S. Representative from Florida, or |
| 32 | (6) U.S. Senator from Florida |
| 33 |
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| 34 | if, by the end of the current term of office, the person will |
| 35 | have served (or, but for resignation, would have served) in that |
| 36 | office for eight consecutive years. |
| 37 | BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the title and substance of the |
| 38 | amendment proposed herein shall appear on the ballot as follows: |
| 39 | RESTORATION OF RIGHTS |
| 40 | Proposes an amendment to Section 4 of Article VI of the |
| 41 | State Constitution to allow the Legislature to restore the |
| 42 | rights to vote and to hold office of a person convicted of a |
| 43 | felony who is subsequently exonerated of the offense. The |
| 44 | amendment also deletes inoperative provisions relating to term |
| 45 | limits for members of Congress and U.S. Senators, which |
| 46 | provisions have been determined by the U.S. Supreme Court to |
| 47 | violate the U.S. Constitution. |