| 1 | Representatives Legg, Corcoran and Young offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Remove lines 4131-4132 and insert: |
| 5 | Section 77. Effective upon this act becoming a law, |
| 6 | subsections (1) and (2) of section 101.161, Florida Statutes, |
| 7 | are amended, and subsection (4) is added to that section, to |
| 8 | read: |
| 9 | 101.161 Referenda; ballots.- |
| 10 | (1) Whenever a constitutional amendment or other public |
| 11 | measure is submitted to the vote of the people, a ballot summary |
| 12 | the substance of such amendment or other public measure shall be |
| 13 | printed in clear and unambiguous language on the ballot after |
| 14 | the list of candidates, followed by the word "yes" and also by |
| 15 | the word "no," and shall be styled in such a manner that a "yes" |
| 16 | vote will indicate approval of the proposal and a "no" vote will |
| 17 | indicate rejection. The ballot summary wording of the substance |
| 18 | of the amendment or other public measure and the ballot title to |
| 19 | appear on the ballot shall be embodied in the joint resolution, |
| 20 | constitutional revision commission proposal, constitutional |
| 21 | convention proposal, taxation and budget reform commission |
| 22 | proposal, or enabling resolution or ordinance. Except for |
| 23 | amendments and ballot language proposed by joint resolution, The |
| 24 | ballot summary substance of the amendment or other public |
| 25 | measure shall be an explanatory statement, not exceeding 75 |
| 26 | words in length, of the chief purpose of the measure. In |
| 27 | addition, for every amendment proposed by initiative, the ballot |
| 28 | shall include, following the ballot summary, a separate |
| 29 | financial impact statement concerning the measure prepared by |
| 30 | the Financial Impact Estimating Conference in accordance with s. |
| 31 | 100.371(5). The ballot title shall consist of a caption, not |
| 32 | exceeding 15 words in length, by which the measure is commonly |
| 33 | referred to or spoken of. This subsection does not apply to |
| 34 | constitutional amendments or revisions proposed by joint |
| 35 | resolution. |
| 36 | (2) The ballot summary substance and ballot title of a |
| 37 | constitutional amendment proposed by initiative shall be |
| 38 | prepared by the sponsor and approved by the Secretary of State |
| 39 | in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to s. 120.54. The |
| 40 | Department of State shall give each proposed constitutional |
| 41 | amendment a designating number for convenient reference. This |
| 42 | number designation shall appear on the ballot. Designating |
| 43 | numbers shall be assigned in the order of filing or |
| 44 | certification and in accordance with rules adopted by the |
| 45 | Department of State. The Department of State shall furnish the |
| 46 | designating number, the ballot title, and the ballot summary |
| 47 | substance of each amendment, unless otherwise specified in a |
| 48 | joint resolution, to the supervisor of elections of each county |
| 49 | in which such amendment is to be voted on. |
| 50 | (4)(a) Whenever a constitutional amendment or revision is |
| 51 | proposed by joint resolution, the joint resolution shall include |
| 52 | a ballot title consisting of a caption, not exceeding 15 words |
| 53 | in length, by which the measure is commonly referred to or |
| 54 | spoken of. The joint resolution may include a ballot summary or |
| 55 | alternate ballot summaries, listed in order of preference, |
| 56 | describing the chief purpose of the amendment or revision in |
| 57 | clear and unambiguous language. The joint resolution shall |
| 58 | specify placement on the ballot of a ballot title and either a |
| 59 | ballot summary embodied in the joint resolution or the full text |
| 60 | of the proposed amendment or revision. As specified by the joint |
| 61 | resolution, the ballot title and ballot summary, or the ballot |
| 62 | title and the full text of the proposed amendment or revision, |
| 63 | shall be printed on the ballot, with a designating number |
| 64 | assigned by the Secretary of State pursuant to subsection (2), |
| 65 | after the list of candidates, followed by the word "yes" and |
| 66 | also by the word "no," and shall be styled in such a manner that |
| 67 | a "yes" vote will indicate approval of the proposal and a "no" |
| 68 | vote will indicate rejection. The Department of State shall |
| 69 | furnish the designating number and, as specified by the joint |
| 70 | resolution proposing an amendment or revision, the ballot title |
| 71 | and a ballot summary or the full text of the amendment or |
| 72 | revision to the supervisor of elections of each county. |
| 73 | (b) If the court determines that each ballot summary |
| 74 | embodied in a joint resolution is defective, the full text of |
| 75 | the proposed amendment or revision shall appear on the ballot in |
| 76 | lieu of a ballot summary unless the Secretary of State certifies |
| 77 | to the court that placement of the full text on the ballot is |
| 78 | incompatible with voting systems that must be utilized during |
| 79 | the election at which the proposed amendment will be presented |
| 80 | to voters and that no other available accommodation will enable |
| 81 | persons with disabilities to vote on the proposed amendment or |
| 82 | revision. If the Secretary of State submits such certification |
| 83 | or the court determines that all ballot summaries in the joint |
| 84 | resolution are deficient and that the full text of a proposed |
| 85 | amendment or revision may not be placed on the ballot, and |
| 86 | further appeals are declined, abandoned, or exhausted, unless |
| 87 | otherwise provided in the joint resolution, the Attorney General |
| 88 | shall prepare and submit within 10 days to the Secretary of |
| 89 | State and the court a revised ballot summary that corrects |
| 90 | ballot summary deficiencies identified by the court. That court |
| 91 | shall retain jurisdiction over challenges to any revised ballot |
| 92 | summary submitted by the Attorney General, and any challenge to |
| 93 | a revised ballot summary shall be filed within 10 days after the |
| 94 | revised ballot summary is submitted to the court by the Attorney |
| 95 | General. |
| 96 | (c)1. If the full text of a proposed amendment or revision |
| 97 | delineates existing text in the State Constitution that will be |
| 98 | removed or replaced if approved by the electors, the full text |
| 99 | shall be presumed to be a clear and unambiguous statement of the |
| 100 | substance and effect of the amendment or revision, providing |
| 101 | fair notice to the electors of the content of the proposal and |
| 102 | sufficiently advising electors of the issue upon which they are |
| 103 | voting. |
| 104 | 2. In determining whether a ballot summary, the ballot |
| 105 | title, or the full text of a proposed amendment or revision is |
| 106 | legally sufficient, the court shall use the same rules of |
| 107 | construction to interpret language in a proposed constitutional |
| 108 | amendment as it does when interpreting existing constitutional |
| 109 | provisions. |
| 110 | (d)1. Any legal action challenging placement on the ballot |
| 111 | of a ballot title, any ballot summary, or the full text of a |
| 112 | proposed amendment or revision embodied in a joint resolution on |
| 113 | constitutional, statutory, or other grounds must be commenced by |
| 114 | filing a complaint or petition with the appropriate court within |
| 115 | 30 days after the joint resolution is filed with the Secretary |
| 116 | of State. Furthermore, in any legal action challenging placement |
| 117 | on the ballot of any ballot summary embodied in a joint |
| 118 | resolution, the complaint or petition shall assert all grounds |
| 119 | for challenging the ballot title, each ballot summary embodied |
| 120 | in the joint resolution, and the full text of the proposed |
| 121 | amendment or revision. Any such grounds not asserted within 30 |
| 122 | days after the joint resolution is filed with the Secretary of |
| 123 | State shall be deemed waived. |
| 124 | 2. If a court finds the ballot title, a ballot summary, or |
| 125 | the full text of a proposed amendment defective for purposes of |
| 126 | placement on the ballot, the court shall, in its written order |
| 127 | or judgment, describe each deficiency with specificity in order |
| 128 | to facilitate the Attorney General's preparation of a revised |
| 129 | ballot summary. |
| 130 | (e) Legal actions challenging ballot language specified by |
| 131 | a joint resolution proposing an amendment or revision to the |
| 132 | State Constitution shall be accorded priority over other pending |
| 133 | cases by the courts, including any appellate court, and the |
| 134 | courts shall render decisions in such actions as expeditiously |
| 135 | as possible. |
| 136 | Section 78. The amendment of section 101.161, Florida |
| 137 | Statutes, by this act applies retroactively to all joint |
| 138 | resolutions adopted by the Legislature during the 2011 Regular |
| 139 | Session, except that any legal action challenging a ballot title |
| 140 | or ballot summary embodied in such joint resolution or |
| 141 | challenging placement on the ballot of the full text of the |
| 142 | proposed amendment or revision to the State Constitution as |
| 143 | specified in such joint resolution must be commenced within 30 |
| 144 | days after the effective date of the amendment of section |
| 145 | 101.161, Florida Statutes, by this act or within 30 days after |
| 146 | the joint resolution to which a challenge relates is filed with |
| 147 | the Secretary of State, whichever occurs later. |
| 148 | Section 79. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this |
| 149 | act and except for this section, which shall take effect upon |
| 150 | this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1, |
| 151 | 2011. |
| 152 |
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| 153 |
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| 154 | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| 155 | T I T L E A M E N D M E N T |
| 156 | Between lines 426 and 427, insert: |
| 157 | amending s. 101.161, F.S.; revising terminology; transferring to |
| 158 | a new subsection requirements applicable to joint resolutions; |
| 159 | providing that a joint resolution may include a ballot summary |
| 160 | and alternate ballot summaries; providing that a joint |
| 161 | resolution may include a ballot summary or alternate ballot |
| 162 | summaries, listed in order of preference, describing the chief |
| 163 | purpose of the amendment or revision in clear and unambiguous |
| 164 | language; requiring a joint resolution to specify placement on |
| 165 | the ballot of a ballot title and either a ballot summary |
| 166 | embodied in the joint resolution or the full text of the |
| 167 | proposed amendment or revision; requiring placement on the |
| 168 | ballot of the ballot title and ballot summary, or the ballot |
| 169 | title and the full text of the proposed amendment or revision, |
| 170 | as specified by a joint resolution; requiring placement on the |
| 171 | ballot of the full text of an amendment or revision if the court |
| 172 | determines that each ballot summary embodied in a joint |
| 173 | resolution is defective unless the Secretary of State certifies |
| 174 | to the court that placement of the full text on the ballot is |
| 175 | incompatible with voting systems that must be utilized during |
| 176 | the election at which the proposed amendment will be presented |
| 177 | to voters and that no other available accommodation will enable |
| 178 | persons with disabilities to vote on the proposed amendment or |
| 179 | revision; requiring the Attorney General to revise a ballot |
| 180 | summary under certain circumstances; requiring the court to |
| 181 | retain jurisdiction over challenges to any revised ballot |
| 182 | summary submitted by the Attorney General; requiring challenges |
| 183 | to revised ballot summaries to be filed within 10 days after the |
| 184 | revised ballot summary is submitted to the court by the Attorney |
| 185 | General; creating a presumption that the full text of an |
| 186 | amendment or revision must be considered a clear and unambiguous |
| 187 | statement of the substance and effect of an amendment or |
| 188 | revision proposed by joint resolution and sufficient notice to |
| 189 | electors under certain circumstances; establishing rules of |
| 190 | construction for construing proposed ballot titles, ballot |
| 191 | summaries, or the full text of proposed amendments or revisions; |
| 192 | requiring legal challenges to ballot language to be filed within |
| 193 | certain time periods; requiring complaints or petitions |
| 194 | challenging ballot language to assert all grounds for such |
| 195 | challenges; providing that any grounds not asserted are waived; |
| 196 | requiring the courts to describe with specificity each |
| 197 | deficiency in a ballot title, summary, or full text of a |
| 198 | proposed amendment or revision; requiring the courts to accord |
| 199 | actions challenging ballot language specified by a joint |
| 200 | resolution priority over other pending cases and issue orders as |
| 201 | expeditiously as possible; providing retroactive applicability |
| 202 | to joint resolutions passed during the 2011 regular session; |