Amendment
Bill No. 1723
Amendment No. 551843
CHAMBER ACTION
Senate House
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1Representative(s) Gelber offered the following:
2
3     Amendment (with title amendment)
4     Remove everything after the resolving clause and insert:
5     That the amendments to Sections 3, 5, and 7 of Article XI
6of the State Constitution set forth below are agreed to and
7shall be submitted to the electors of Florida for approval or
8rejection at the general election to be held in November 2006:
9
ARTICLE XI
10
AMENDMENTS
11     SECTION 3.  Initiative.--
12     (a)  The power to propose the revision or amendment of any
13portion or portions of this constitution or to propose
14legislation by initiative is reserved to the people, provided
15that, any such revision or amendment or legislation, except for
16those limiting the power of government to raise revenue, shall
17embrace but one subject and matter directly connected therewith.
18Any revision or amendment to this constitution proposed by
19initiative shall:
20     (1)  Amend or repeal an existing section of this
21constitution on the same subject and matter;
22     (2)  Address a basic or fundamental right of a citizen of
23this state; or
24     (3)  Change the basic structure of state government as
25established in Article II, Article III, Article IV, or Article V
26of this constitution, except that no revision or amendment shall
27deprive the branches of government of any existing powers
28granted in these articles.
29     (b)  The power to propose an amendment or revision to this
30constitution by initiative It may be invoked by filing with the
31custodian of state records a petition containing a copy of the
32proposed revision or amendment, signed by a number of electors
33in each of one half of the congressional districts of the state,
34and of the state as a whole, equal to eight percent of the votes
35cast in each of such districts respectively and in the state as
36a whole in the last preceding election in which presidential
37electors were chosen.
38     (c)  The power to propose legislation by initiative may be
39invoked by filing with the custodian of state records a petition
40containing a copy of the proposed legislation, signed by a
41number of electors in each of one half of the congressional
42districts of the state, and of the state as a whole, equal to
43four percent of the votes cast in each of such districts
44respectively and in the state as a whole in the last preceding
45election in which presidential electors were chosen. The vote
46required for passage of legislation proposed by initiative is a
47simple majority of the votes cast on the initiative.
48     (d)  Once ten percent of the number of signatures required
49to place an amendment or revision to this constitution on the
50ballot have been verified, the Attorney General shall, in
51conjunction with the request for review of the validity of the
52ballot language and compliance with single subject requirements
53and as directed by general law, request the opinion of the
54justices of the supreme court as to whether the proposed
55amendment or revision contains subject matter that is
56permissible for such an amendment or revision. The justices
57shall, subject to their rules of procedure, permit interested
58persons to be heard on the questions presented and shall render
59their written opinion expeditiously.
60     SECTION 5.  Amendment or revision or proposed legislation
61election.--
62     (a)  A proposed amendment to or revision of this
63constitution, or any part of it, or any legislation proposed by
64initiative shall be submitted to the electors at the next
65general election held more than ninety days after the joint
66resolution or report of revision commission, constitutional
67convention or taxation and budget reform commission proposing it
68is filed with the custodian of state records, unless, pursuant
69to law enacted by the affirmative vote of three-fourths of the
70membership of each house of the legislature and limited to a
71single amendment or revision, it is submitted at an earlier
72special election held more than ninety days after such filing.
73     (b)  A proposed amendment or revision of this constitution,
74or any part of it, or proposed legislation by initiative shall
75be submitted to the electors at the general election provided
76the initiative petition is filed with the custodian of state
77records no later than February 1 of the year in which the
78general election is held.
79     (c)  The legislature shall provide by general law, prior to
80the holding of an election pursuant to this section, for the
81provision of a statement to the public regarding the probable
82financial impact of any amendment or legislation proposed by
83initiative pursuant to section 3.
84     (d)  Once in the tenth week, and once in the sixth week
85immediately preceding the week in which the election is held,
86the proposed amendment or revision or the proposed legislation,
87with notice of the date of election at which it will be
88submitted to the electors, shall be published in one newspaper
89of general circulation in each county in which a newspaper is
90published.
91     (e)  Unless otherwise specifically provided for elsewhere
92in this constitution, if the proposed amendment or revision is
93approved by vote of at least sixty percent of the electors
94voting on the measure, it shall be effective as an amendment to
95or revision of the constitution of the state on the first
96Tuesday after the first Monday in January following the
97election, or on such other date as may be specified in the
98amendment or revision.
99     (f)  For the first three years following the effective date
100of legislation approved by the voters under this section,
101legislation passed by initiative may be amended or repealed by
102two-thirds vote of the membership of each house of the
103legislature.
104     SECTION 7.  Tax, or fee, or significant fiscal impact
105limitation.--Notwithstanding Article X, Section 12(d) of this
106constitution:
107     (a)  Any amendment or revision to this constitution that
108imposes or authorizes the imposition of a, no new State tax or
109fee or increases or authorizes an increase in an existing tax or
110fee shall become effective only if be imposed on or after
111November 8, 1994 by any amendment to this constitution unless
112the proposed amendment or revision is approved by not fewer than
113two-thirds of the voters voting in the election in which such
114proposed amendment or revision is considered. This subsection
115shall apply to the imposition or authorization of an existing
116tax or fee that is not currently being collected, to an increase
117in the rate of an existing tax or fee, and to the modification
118of an exemption, exclusion, deduction, credit, or other
119mechanism which currently eliminates or reduces the liability of
120a person or entity for an existing tax or fee. For purposes of
121this section, the phrase "new State tax or fee" means shall mean
122any tax or fee which would produce revenue subject to lump sum
123or other appropriation by the Legislature, either for the State
124general revenue fund or any trust fund, which tax or fee is not
125in effect on November 7, 1994, including without limitation such
126taxes and fees as are the subject of proposed constitutional
127amendments appearing on the ballot on November 8, 1994. The
128phrase "new tax or fee" also means any tax or fee which would
129produce revenue for a county, school district, municipality, or
130special district. This section shall apply to proposed
131constitutional amendments relating to State taxes or fees which
132appear on the November 8, 1994 ballot, or later ballots, and Any
133such proposed amendment or revision which fails to gain the two-
134thirds vote required hereby shall be null, void, and without
135effect.
136     (b)  Any amendment or revision to this constitution that
137imposes a significant fiscal impact on the state, counties,
138school districts, municipalities, or special districts shall
139become effective only if the proposed amendment or revision is
140approved by not fewer than two-thirds of the voters voting in
141the election in which such proposed amendment or revision is
142considered. For purposes of this section, the phrase
143"significant fiscal impact" means having a collective annual
144fiscal impact in an amount greater than one-tenth of one percent
145of the total state budget for the state fiscal year ending in
146the year prior to the election in which such proposed amendment
147or revision is considered. The dollar amount for the
148determination of a significant fiscal impact shall be certified
149pursuant to the process established in general law. Any such
150proposed amendment or revision which fails to gain the two-
151thirds vote required hereby shall be null, void, and without
152effect.
153     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the title and substance of the
154amendment proposed herein shall appear on the ballot as follows:
155
CONSTITUTIONAL REVISIONS, AMENDMENTS,
156
OR LEGISLATION PROPOSED BY INITIATIVE
157     Proposes an amendment to Section 3 of Article XI of the
158State Constitution to provide that a constitutional revision or
159amendment proposed by initiative must amend or repeal an
160existing section of the State Constitution on the same subject
161and matter; must address a basic or fundamental right of a
162citizen of this state; or must change the basic structure of
163state government as established in Article II, Article III,
164Article IV, or Article V of the State Constitution, except that
165no revision or amendment may deprive the branches of government
166of any existing powers granted in these articles; to provide the
167people the power to propose legislation by initiative; to
168require the signatures of four percent of the number of electors
169in each of one-half of the congressional districts of the state
170for placement of proposed legislation on the ballot; to require
171a simple majority of the votes cast on legislation; to require
172the Attorney General to request the opinion of the Supreme Court
173on whether a proposed amendment or revision to the constitution
174contains permissible subject matter. Proposes an amendment to
175Section 5 of Article XI of the State Constitution to require
176that any proposed amendment to or revision of the State
177Constitution, whether proposed by the Legislature, by
178initiative, or by any other method, must be approved by at least
17960 percent of the voters of the state voting on the measure,
180rather than by a simple majority; to provide proposal and
181passage procedure requirements of legislation proposed by
182initiative to be similar to procedure requirements of proposed
183amendments or revisions to the constitution; to require at least
184a two-thirds vote of each house of the Legislature to amend or
185repeal legislation passed by initiative. Proposes an amendment
186to Section 7 of Article XI of the State Constitution to require
187approval by at least two-thirds of the voters of any proposed
188amendment or revision to the State Constitution imposing or
189authorizing imposition of any new tax or fee, increasing or
190authorizing an increase in any existing tax or fee, or imposing
191a significant fiscal impact on the state, counties, school
192districts, municipalities, or special districts; to delete a
193provision limiting application of such voting requirement to
194only state taxes or fees; to expand the definition of the term
195"new tax or fee" to include revenue-producing exactions for
196counties, municipalities, school districts, and special
197districts; and to define the term "significant fiscal impact" to
198mean having a collective annual fiscal impact in an amount
199greater than one-tenth of one percent of the total state budget
200for the state fiscal year ending in the year prior to the
201general election in which such proposed amendment or revision is
202considered.
203
204
205================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T =================
206     Remove the entire title and insert:
207
House Joint Resolution
208A joint resolution proposing amendments to Sections 3, 5,
209and 7 of Article XI of the State Constitution to provide
210the permissible subject matter of revisions or amendments
211to the State Constitution proposed by initiative; to
212provide the power to propose legislation by initiative and
213requirements to propose legislation by initiative; to
214require that any proposed amendment to or revision of the
215State Constitution be approved by at least 60 percent of
216the electors voting on the measure; to require approval by
217at least two-thirds of the voters of any proposed
218amendment or revision to the State Constitution imposing
219or authorizing imposition of any new tax or fee,
220increasing or authorizing an increase in any existing tax
221or fee, or imposing a significant fiscal impact on the
222state, counties, school districts, municipalities, or
223special districts, and to delete a provision limiting such
224voting requirement to only new state taxes or fees.


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