Amend This

Changing the rules

(Friday,01/06/2006 © Orlando Sentinel)

The clock is ticking for groups that want ballot amendments.

Jason Garcia
Tallahassee Bureau

January 6, 2006

TALLAHASSEE --

A group that would force the Legislature to spend more money fighting smoking among young people and another that would change the way political districts are drawn both said Thursday they have collected enough signatures to get their proposals on the November ballot.

But the leader of a third high-profile petition drive, which aims to close many of the state's corporate-friendly sales-tax loopholes, said his group would likely fall short.

A fourth group sponsoring an amendment to ban same-sex marriage remains well short of the 611,009 signatures needed to put measures to a vote in a statewide referendum.

The news comes as a state-imposed deadline for citizen initiatives is bearing down. Groups must collect all the necessary signatures -- and have them certified by local elections offices -- by Feb. 1.

"I don't think we're going to make it by that deadline," said former Senate President John McKay, the chairman of the group sponsoring amendments that would force state lawmakers to justify sales-tax breaks for everything from skyboxes in sports stadiums to limousine rides. "I think it'll be very difficult based on the last report we have."

McKay and other supporters have been fighting for several years to eliminate many of the hundreds of exemptions and loopholes that dot Florida's sales tax, breaks they say mostly benefit narrow special interests but which drain more than $20 billion from the state budget. Opponents argue that it could upset the state's economy and hurt efforts to recruit more businesses.

But McKay said Thursday that his group, Floridians Against Inequities in Rates, has nearly abandoned hope of getting the amendments on this year's ballot. Instead, he said, supporters would likely soon shift their focus to the 2008 elections.

"Anyone that offers the opinion that it's too easy to amend the constitution has never tried to do it," McKay said, though he added, "I've still got folks out there working on it."

Anti-smoking activists, however, were buoyant Thursday, as the group Floridians for Youth Tobacco Education Inc. announced that it had submitted more than 830,000 signatures. The roughly 220,000 extra signatures mean backers should have enough wiggle room if election officials are unable to verify some during the next few weeks.

The amendment would require that the state spend 15 percent of the annual payment Florida receives from cigarette companies as part of a 1997 lawsuit settlement on its youth tobacco-control program.

Supporters say the amendment would have generated $56 million this year for the program -- once a national model which has been cut back to $1 million annually. Opponents point out that smoking rates in Florida have continued to drop despite the cuts.

"We will immediately begin a broad, statewide effort to educate voters about this amendment and build on the public support we've already garnered," said Cheryl Forchilli, the group's campaign manager.

The Committee for Fair Elections, meanwhile, said it has turned in even more signatures -- close to 870,000 so far, said campaign manager Paul Dunn. That group is sponsoring an amendment that would strip the power to draw to political districts from lawmakers and give it to an independent commission appointed by lawmakers from both political parties and the chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court.

Amendment backers contend that self-interested lawmakers, using sophisticated computer and voter databases, tailor districts to favor incumbents and the party in power. Opponents counter that drawing district maps is better left to elected officials who answer to voters and that creating a commission would not make the process less partisan.

But Dunn said his group has decided to set aside a second amendment for which it had also been collecting signatures. That measure would have forced the state to draw new maps almost immediately, instead of waiting until the next regularly scheduled round of redistricting after the 2010 census.

Dunn said supporters don't want to risk allowing opponents to seize on that amendment as evidence that redistricting changes are merely an attempted power grab by Florida Democrats, who currently hold far fewer seats in the Legislature and the state's congressional delegation.

"I think we decided, at the end of the day, that we didn't want any distractions," Dunn said.

Perhaps the highest-profile petition drive is racing the clock.

Supporters of the amendment to prohibit same-sex marriages remain short of the required signatures, said John Stemberger, chairman of florida4 marriage.org, which is sponsoring the measure. Dubbed the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment, the proposal would also ban civil unions that offer identical rights and benefits to those of marriage.

Supporters say the amendment is necessary in case a court strikes down an existing state law that already bars gay marriage. But opponents warn that it could cut off other rights for gay couples, such as health-care benefits.

Stemberger estimated his group has collected between 200,000 and 250,000 signatures so far. But he also said the total is growing by tens of thousands of signatures each day.

Backers have ramped up their efforts, he said, making frequent appearances on local talk-radio shows and sending word to churches that they have only three Sundays remaining to gather petitions.

"It's a tough goal," Stemberger said. "But it's a goal that we think we're going to be able to make."

Collecting the necessary signatures does not guarantee any amendment will appear on the ballot. Each must still survive scrutiny from the state Supreme Court, which evaluates proposed amendments to ensure that they are limited to a single subject and that the ballot summaries are clear and accurate. Those hearings begin next month.

Claudia Zequeira of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Jason Garcia can be reached at jrgarcia@orlandosentinel.com or 850-222-5564.