CS/CS/HB 1261

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to election ballots; amending s. 101.161,
3F.S.; revising terminology; transferring to a new
4subsection requirements applicable to joint resolutions;
5providing that a joint resolution may include a ballot
6summary and alternate ballot summaries; providing that a
7joint resolution may include a ballot summary or alternate
8ballot summaries, listed in order of preference,
9describing the chief purpose of the amendment or revision
10in clear and unambiguous language; requiring a joint
11resolution to specify placement on the ballot of a ballot
12title and either a ballot summary embodied in the joint
13resolution or the full text of the proposed amendment or
14revision; requiring placement on the ballot of the ballot
15title and ballot summary, or the ballot title and the full
16text of the proposed amendment or revision, as specified
17by a joint resolution; requiring placement on the ballot
18of the full text of an amendment or revision if the court
19determines that each ballot summary embodied in a joint
20resolution is defective unless the Secretary of State
21certifies to the court that placement of the full text on
22the ballot is incompatible with voting systems that must
23be utilized during the election at which the proposed
24amendment will be presented to voters and that no other
25available accommodation will enable persons with
26disabilities to vote on the proposed amendment or
27revision; requiring the Attorney General to revise a
28ballot summary under certain circumstances; requiring the
29court to retain jurisdiction over challenges to any
30revised ballot summary submitted by the Attorney General;
31requiring challenges to revised ballot summaries to be
32filed within 10 days after the revised ballot summary is
33submitted to the court by the Attorney General; creating a
34presumption that the full text of an amendment or revision
35must be considered a clear and unambiguous statement of
36the substance and effect of an amendment or revision
37proposed by joint resolution and sufficient notice to
38electors under certain circumstances; establishing rules
39of construction for construing proposed ballot titles,
40ballot summaries, or the full text of proposed amendments
41or revisions; requiring legal challenges to ballot
42language to be filed within certain time periods;
43requiring complaints or petitions challenging ballot
44language to assert all grounds for such challenges;
45providing that any grounds not asserted are waived;
46requiring the courts to describe with specificity each
47deficiency in a ballot title, summary, or full text of a
48proposed amendment or revision; requiring the courts to
49accord actions challenging ballot language specified by a
50joint resolution priority over other pending cases and
51issue orders as expeditiously as possible; providing
52retroactive applicability to joint resolutions passed
53during the 2011 regular session; providing an effective
54date.
55
56Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
57
58     Section 1.  Subsections (1) and (2) of section 101.161,
59Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (4) is added to
60that section, to read:
61     101.161  Referenda; ballots.-
62     (1)  Whenever a constitutional amendment or other public
63measure is submitted to the vote of the people, a ballot summary
64the substance of such amendment or other public measure shall be
65printed in clear and unambiguous language on the ballot after
66the list of candidates, followed by the word "yes" and also by
67the word "no," and shall be styled in such a manner that a "yes"
68vote will indicate approval of the proposal and a "no" vote will
69indicate rejection. The ballot summary wording of the substance
70of the amendment or other public measure and the ballot title to
71appear on the ballot shall be embodied in the joint resolution,
72constitutional revision commission proposal, constitutional
73convention proposal, taxation and budget reform commission
74proposal, or enabling resolution or ordinance. Except for
75amendments and ballot language proposed by joint resolution, The
76ballot summary substance of the amendment or other public
77measure shall be an explanatory statement, not exceeding 75
78words in length, of the chief purpose of the measure. In
79addition, for every amendment proposed by initiative, the ballot
80shall include, following the ballot summary, a separate
81financial impact statement concerning the measure prepared by
82the Financial Impact Estimating Conference in accordance with s.
83100.371(5). The ballot title shall consist of a caption, not
84exceeding 15 words in length, by which the measure is commonly
85referred to or spoken of. This subsection does not apply to
86constitutional amendments or revisions proposed by joint
87resolution.
88     (2)  The ballot summary substance and ballot title of a
89constitutional amendment proposed by initiative shall be
90prepared by the sponsor and approved by the Secretary of State
91in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to s. 120.54. The
92Department of State shall give each proposed constitutional
93amendment a designating number for convenient reference. This
94number designation shall appear on the ballot. Designating
95numbers shall be assigned in the order of filing or
96certification and in accordance with rules adopted by the
97Department of State. The Department of State shall furnish the
98designating number, the ballot title, and the ballot summary
99substance of each amendment, unless otherwise specified in a
100joint resolution, to the supervisor of elections of each county
101in which such amendment is to be voted on.
102     (4)(a)  Whenever a constitutional amendment or revision is
103proposed by joint resolution, the joint resolution shall include
104a ballot title consisting of a caption, not exceeding 15 words
105in length, by which the measure is commonly referred to or
106spoken of. The joint resolution may include a ballot summary or
107alternate ballot summaries, listed in order of preference,
108describing the chief purpose of the amendment or revision in
109clear and unambiguous language. The joint resolution shall
110specify placement on the ballot of a ballot title and either a
111ballot summary embodied in the joint resolution or the full text
112of the proposed amendment or revision. As specified by the joint
113resolution, the ballot title and ballot summary, or the ballot
114title and the full text of the proposed amendment or revision,
115shall be printed on the ballot, with a designating number
116assigned by the Secretary of State pursuant to subsection (2),
117after the list of candidates, followed by the word "yes" and
118also by the word "no," and shall be styled in such a manner that
119a "yes" vote will indicate approval of the proposal and a "no"
120vote will indicate rejection. The Department of State shall
121furnish the designating number and, as specified by the joint
122resolution proposing an amendment or revision, the ballot title
123and a ballot summary or the full text of the amendment or
124revision to the supervisor of elections of each county.
125     (b)  If the court determines that each ballot summary
126embodied in a joint resolution is defective, the full text of
127the proposed amendment or revision shall appear on the ballot in
128lieu of a ballot summary unless the Secretary of State certifies
129to the court that placement of the full text on the ballot is
130incompatible with voting systems that must be utilized during
131the election at which the proposed amendment will be presented
132to voters and that no other available accommodation will enable
133persons with disabilities to vote on the proposed amendment or
134revision. If the Secretary of State submits such certification
135or the court determines that all ballot summaries in the joint
136resolution are deficient and that the full text of a proposed
137amendment or revision may not be placed on the ballot, and
138further appeals are declined, abandoned, or exhausted, unless
139otherwise provided in the joint resolution, the Attorney General
140shall prepare and submit within 10 days to the Secretary of
141State and the court a revised ballot summary that corrects
142ballot summary deficiencies identified by the court. That court
143shall retain jurisdiction over challenges to any revised ballot
144summary submitted by the Attorney General, and any challenge to
145a revised ballot summary shall be filed within 10 days after the
146revised ballot summary is submitted to the court by the Attorney
147General.
148     (c)1.  If the full text of a proposed amendment or revision
149delineates existing text in the State Constitution that will be
150removed or replaced if approved by the electors, the full text
151shall be presumed to be a clear and unambiguous statement of the
152substance and effect of the amendment or revision, providing
153fair notice to the electors of the content of the proposal and
154sufficiently advising electors of the issue upon which they are
155voting.
156     2.  In determining whether a ballot summary, the ballot
157title, or the full text of a proposed amendment or revision is
158legally sufficient, the court shall use the same rules of
159construction to interpret language in a proposed constitutional
160amendment as it does when interpreting existing constitutional
161provisions.
162     (d)1.  Any legal action challenging placement on the ballot
163of a ballot title, any ballot summary, or the full text of a
164proposed amendment or revision embodied in a joint resolution on
165constitutional, statutory, or other grounds must be commenced by
166filing a complaint or petition with the appropriate court within
16730 days after the joint resolution is filed with the Secretary
168of State. Furthermore, in any legal action challenging placement
169on the ballot of any ballot summary embodied in a joint
170resolution, the complaint or petition shall assert all grounds
171for challenging the ballot title, each ballot summary embodied
172in the joint resolution, and the full text of the proposed
173amendment or revision. Any such grounds not asserted within 30
174days after the joint resolution is filed with the Secretary of
175State shall be deemed waived.
176     2.  If a court finds the ballot title, a ballot summary, or
177the full text of a proposed amendment defective for purposes of
178placement on the ballot, the court shall, in its written order
179or judgment, describe each deficiency with specificity in order
180to facilitate the Attorney General's preparation of a revised
181ballot summary.
182     (e)  Legal actions challenging ballot language specified by
183a joint resolution proposing an amendment or revision to the
184State Constitution shall be accorded priority over other pending
185cases by the courts, including any appellate court, and the
186courts shall render decisions in such actions as expeditiously
187as possible.
188     Section 2.  This act applies retroactively to all joint
189resolutions adopted by the Legislature during the 2011 Regular
190Session, except that any legal action challenging a ballot title
191or ballot summary embodied in such joint resolution or
192challenging placement on the ballot of the full text of the
193proposed amendment or revision to the State Constitution as
194specified in such joint resolution must be commenced within 30
195days after the effective date of this act or within 30 days
196after the joint resolution to which a challenge relates is filed
197with the Secretary of State, whichever occurs later.
198     Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.


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