POLITICO Florida via POLITICO Playbook
November 29, 2017

TODAY – A host of Constitution Revision Commission state legislative committees meet, including Ethics and Elections, which will consider a ban on public financing for political campaigns; the Legislative committee, which will consider lawmaker residency requirement; and the Declaration of Rights Committee will consider a proposal to prohibit state money from going to aid churches.

ALL FOR NAUGHT? – We’ll have to wait until the CRC is done, but considering the volume of proposed constitutional amendments it’s considering, it could be tougher than ever to pass anything because voters might just experience ballot fatigue and vote no out of pique. It seemed to happen in 2012 when the state Legislature overloaded the ballot with initiatives that went down in flames.

CRC DRAMA – “Political, procedural intrigue swirl as proposal to expand CFO’s role stalls,” by POLITICO Florida’s Matt Dixon: A proposal to expand the authority of the CFO’s role in state contracting was derailed Tuesday morning amid procedural confusion and 2018 political intrigue. The proposal would have placed language in the state constitution requiring state contracts of more than $10 million to get certification from the Department of Financial Services, which is overseen by the Florida CFO’s office. State Sen. Tom Lee, who was appointed to the CRC by House Speaker Richard Corcoran, is sponsoring the proposal, but said he did not think there would be a vote at the meeting. “I thought it was originally going to just be a workshop,” Lee told POLITICO. “I asked my staff to follow up with the staff director, and they just there was a misunderstanding. I think I’ll just leave it at that.” Read more

– Proposal to mandate E-Verify use sails through CRC committee stop. Read more

– CRC panel moves proposal requiring state veteran’s department. Read more

UP FOR DEBATE – “Business groups, environmentalists differ widely on constitutional proposal,” by POLITICO Florida’s Bruce Ritchie: Representatives of business and industry groups on Tuesday said a proposed constitutional amendment providing for a “clean and healthful environment” would increase frivolous lawsuits and regulatory uncertainty. Environmentalists countered that the proposal before the Constitution Revision Commission would send a message to state leaders and compensate for the “chipping away” of access by residents to the courts in environmental disputes. Proposal 23 provides that a “clean and healthful environment” also includes “clean air and water.” And any person “may enforce this right against any party, public or private, subject to reasonable limitations, as provided by law.” Read more