The Amendments

Sponsor: Florida Hometown Democracy PAC
Title: Referenda Required for Adoption and Amendment of Local Government Comprehensive Land Use Plans

Environmental and land-use attorney Ross Burnaman founded the Hometown Democracy committee with Lesley Blackner.

What It Does: Would require citizens to vote directly on changes in local 'comprehensive" land-use plans.

Background: Lesley Blackner, a Palm Beach lawyer who specializes in environmental law, says she conceived the Hometown Democracy amendment to give citizens more control over growth management, which she believes has run amok and contributed to sprawl throughout the Sunshine State. Both sides have spent millions on the contentious issue.

Proponents: Palm Beach lawyer Lesley Blackner; Tallahassee lawyer Ross Burnaman; Sierra Club of Florida; Save the Manatee Club; other smaller groups focused on the environment, neighborhood protection or population control

Opponents: Florida Chamber of Commerce; Realtor and home builder groups; Associated Industries of Florida; Florida TaxWatch; prominent landholding family businesses such as Duda and Lykes, unions, municipal and county elected officials and administrators and school boards. Opponents call the amendment 'Vote on Everything" and say it will lead to wasted tax dollars, fewer jobs and endless litigation. 'Under this measure, it would not be uncommon for voters to decide 200 to 300 technical land-use planning amendments every year at the ballot box," says Citizens for Lower Taxes and a Stronger Economy, an umbrella group organized by the Florida Chamber of Commerce to fight the amendment.

Blackner

Financial Impact: Opponents cite a study by the Washington Economics Group that estimates Amendment 4 would reduce Florida's annual economic output by $34 billion annually. Local governments will incur additional costs to conduct referendums in order to adopt comprehensive plans and amendments. According to state economists, at a minimum, general election costs will be increased by the additional expenditures for printing ballots and noticing and advertising the ballot information. If special elections are required, and every Florida voter is impacted by a special election, costs could range between $10 million to $20 million.

Sponsor: FairDistrictsFlorida.org
Title: Standards for the Legislature to Follow in Legislative Redistricting

Miami attorney Ellen Freiden

What It Does: Would change the way the Legislature draws legislative district boundaries to reflect population shifts. Currently, the party in power draws those lines, with the only requirements being that the districts are roughly equal in population and that they consist of contiguous territory. New rules in this amendment would prohibit lawmakers from drawing districts that favor an incumbent or a political party. The districts would still be required to be contiguous and equal in population where possible, but they would have to be compact and make use of existing city, county and geographical boundaries where possible. Additionally, the districts would have to be drawn in a way that wouldn't deny minorities an equal opportunity to elect representatives of their choice.

Background: The group Fair Districts Florida — founded by Miami attorney Ellen Freiden and backed by a bipartisan group that includes former Democratic Gov. Bob Graham and Republican attorney Thom Rumberger — says the current method of redistricting allows politicians to rig districts that 'unfairly perpetuate their own political power." The group collected more the 1.65 million signatures to get this amendment and a companion amendment regarding congressional redistricting (Amendment 6) on the ballot. The new criteria for redistricting would go into effect in 2012.

Diaz-Balart

Proponents: Fair Districts Florida's effort enjoys wide support among Democratic lawmakers at the state and federal level, many editorial boards and groups such as the NAACP, the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, the AFL-CIO, the Florida Education Association and the Service Employees International Union.
Opponents: State Republican leaders; former legislative Black Caucus Chairman Gary Siplin (D-Tallahassee); Minority Leader Sen. Al Lawson (D-Orlando); U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Miami); U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Jacksonville); Florida Chamber of Commerce; Associated Industries of Florida. Arguing that the proposal could undermine minority-controlled districts, Republican state leaders tried to push through Amendment 7, which would have allowed other factors to be considered when drawing district boundaries. The Supreme Court struck their amendment from the ballot ('Removed")

Financial Impact: State government and state courts may incur legal expenses because the amendment increases the number of factors that could be litigated and will likely result in more legal challenges.