Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law on Friday that will add additional challenges for groups seeking to place citizen-driven amendments on ballots, Politico reported.
Measure HB 1205 passed in the Florida Legislature earier in the day by a party line 28-9 vote. Democrats had opposed the bill, arguing that additional roadblocks would cripple the ability of the average citizen to enact change.
DeSantis had been pushing for new regulations on the amendment process after his administration uncovered fraud by supporters of the abortion rights initiative in 2024.
Under the new law, groups sponsoring ballot initiatives now must put up a $1 million bond, the time for submitting signatures has been decreased, and there are increased financial penalties for violations. The measure also requires petitioners to collect detailed personal information from signatories, such as a driver's license number or part of a Social Security number.
Democrats say the push for restrictions was in response to the abortion measure and another to legalize adult recreational marijuana, which came closing to passing. Both failed to clear the 60% threshold needed to pass initiatives in Florida but put enough of a scare into Republicans that they decided action was neccessary.
"Those pesky Amendments 3 and 4 just came too damn close to passing, so we are going to make sure it doesn't happen again," said state Sen. Tina Polsky, D-West Palm Beach.
Over the past 20 years, Floridians have used the ballot process to decrease school class size, raise the minimum wage, ban offshore drilling, and grant voting rights to convicted felons who have been released.
Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, D-Orlando, one of the nine opposition votes, said it was an example of Big Government overreach.
"This is to stop any citizens' initiative from ever appearing on a ballot again," he said.
Republicans argue the purpose is to maintain the integrity of the process.
"This bill is not an attack on the citizens' initiative process. But it is an attack on those who have corrupted it," said Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, during the April 30 debate. "How much corruption are you willing to tolerate to make sure something terrible doesn't happen to our Constitution?"
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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