All proposed amendments and revisions to the Florida Constitution must be approved by a 60% margin of the votes to become effective.
Five of these amendments will impact the work the SPLC does, and we have taken a position on them:
- SPLC urges Yes votes on Amendment 4 and Revision 11.
- SPLC urges No votes on Amendment 1, Amendment 5 and Revision 6.
To request an absentee ballot, find your early voting location, or locate your Election Day polling place, please visit yourvoteflorida.com.
Early voting runs from October 27 to November 3.
Election Day is on November 6.
The 2018 Florida Constitutional Amendments & Revisions
Constitutional Amendment 1
Grants an additional $25,000 homestead property tax exemption for homes worth $125,000 or more, reducing the amount of revenue generated for local government services under existing property tax rates. This amendment will deprive local governments of revenue needed to provide important local programs and services. SPLC urges a No vote on Amendment 1.
Constitutional Amendment 2
Makes permanent what currently is a temporary cap of 10 percent on annual property value increases for vacation homes, apartments and commercial property, effectively limiting increases on tax bills for the owners of these properties.
Constitutional Amendment 3
Requires approval of any new casino gambling through a citizen-initiative constitutional amendment, effectively barring the Legislature from making those gambling decisions by passing laws.
Constitutional Amendment 4
Would give a second chance to 1.4 million Floridians with felony
convictions who have paid their debt to society and completed their sentences by restoring their eligibility to vote. SPLC urges a Yes vote on Amendment 4.
Constitutional Amendment 5
Requires a two-thirds vote of both chambers of the Legislature to approve any new or increased taxes or fees or to approve the repeal of any tax credits, rather than a simple majority vote, making it harder to raise revenue in times of emergencies, such as hurricanes. This amendment would also lock in existing private school tax credit vouchers, as well as billions of dollars’ worth of tax breaks for corporations and industries, funds that otherwise could be used for public education, environmental programs, transportation and public works projects, and vulnerable populations. SPLC urges a No vote on Amendment 5.
Constitutional Revision 6
This amendment bundles a number of provisions into one amendment. It vastly expands the scope of victims’ rights under the state Constitution, including by granting corporations the same rights as individual victims, and would upset the balance between the rights of victims and people accused of crimes by deleting the part of the constitution that ensures balancing the rights of all involved in a criminal case. It also increases the mandatory retirement age for judges to 75 from 70 and forces courts and judges to interpret laws and rules for themselves rather than rely on interpretations by government agencies. SPLC urges a No vote on Revision 6.
Constitutional Revision 7
Creates a supermajority requirement for universities to impose new or increase existing student fees; enshrines in the Constitution guidelines for the State College System; and mandates that employers or the state pay a death benefit to first responders and members of the military killed in the line of duty.
Constitutional Revision 8
Removed from the ballot.
Constitutional Revision 9
Prohibits oil drilling beneath waters controlled by Florida; and prohibits the use of e-cigarettes, also known as vaping, at indoor workplaces.
Constitutional Revision 10
Requires the Legislature to hold its session in early January on even-numbered years; creates an Office of Domestic Security and Counterterrorism within the Florida Department of Law Enforcement; mandates the existence of a state Department of Veterans’ Affairs; forces all counties to elect a sheriff, tax collector, property appraiser, supervisor of elections and Clerk of Circuit Court.
Constitutional Revision 11
Repeals the state’s ability to prohibit non-citizens from buying, owning, and selling property; allows for the Legislature to apply changes to criminal law and related sentences retroactively; and deletes obsolete language having to do with high-speed rail in Florida. The second part of this amendment is very important to efforts to reform Florida’s criminal justice system. SPLC urges a Yes vote on Revision 11.
Constitutional Revision 12
Expands ethics rules for elected officials and government employees,
notably by expanding from two to six years the time that many officials would have to wait before they could lobby state government.
Constitutional Revision 13
Bans wagering on any type of dog racing, notably greyhounds, as of December 31, 2020, while continuing to allow dog tracks to continue offering other types of gambling, including poker rooms.
Photo credit Joe Raedle/Getty Images
