If you’ve been watching television lately chances are good you’ve seen ads for and against a couple of constitutional amendments on the upcoming general election ballot. There’s Amendment 3, which would legalize the possession of up to three ounces of marijuana. And there’s Amendment 4, which limits government interference with abortion.
But did you know there are four other amendments voters will be asked to consider? And with mail ballots going out next week–and the final day of voting just 42 days away, WMNF WaveMakers with Janet & Tom interviewed Teresa Potter, president of the Hillsborough/Pasco League of Women Voters to go over each amendment in detail.
Four of the six amendments were placed on the ballot by the Florida Legislature. The amendments about abortion and recreational marijuana were put there through citizen-led petitions. Gov. Ron DeSantis is campaigning hard against both citizen initiatives.
The League of Women Voters is a non-profit, non-partisan group founded nationally in Chicago in 1920, just six months before the 19th amendment was ratified and women won the vote. Its work is focused largely on the right to vote. It does not endorse candidates but does take positions on issues, including constitutional amendments.
The Florida League of Women Voters opposes Amendment 1, which would make all school board elections in Florida partisan, flipping a provision in the Florida Constitution that voters approved in 1998 that made school board elections non-partisan. The Republican-controlled Legislature placed Amendment 1 on the ballot because the races already are injected with partisanship and the party affiliation of candidates should be transparent. The League and others oppose the amendment because they say it will further inject partisan politics in schools and make it more difficult for independents to run or vote in the races.
Amendment 2 puts the right to hunt and fish in the state constitution for the first time, including “by the use of traditional methods.” Although the right is already in Florida statutes, the amendment would, supporters say, would ensure there could be no future bans on hunting and fishing. Opponents, including the Sierra Club, say the amendment could bring back prohibited ways of hunting and fishing, including steel traps, spearfishing and gill nets.
Amendment 3 would legalize the possession of up to 3 ounces of marijuana for adults 21 and above. It was placed on the ballot largely through the backing of Trulieve, Florida’s medical marijuana provider. It is opposed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida GOP, who say it would enrich Trulieve and would not allow people to grow their own weed. Supporters say it would eliminate the roughly 17,000 arrests for simple possession every year, and say allowing grow your own would have violated Florida’s single subject rule for constitutional amendments.
Amendment 4 would limit government interference in a woman’s decision to have an abortion. It is also opposed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who contends it would allow late-term abortions. Supporters, including the League of Women Voters, say it would restore the right to abortion in place for 50 years and removed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Amendment 5 would tie the homestead exemption for property taxes to the rate of inflation. It was placed on the ballot by the Legislature but is opposed by the Florida League of Cities because local it could reduce the amount of property taxes available to local governments.
Amendment 6 would repeal public campaign financing for governor and members of the Cabinet.
Hear the entire conversation by clicking the link below, going to the WaveMakers archives or by searching for WMNF WaveMakers wherever you listen to podcasts.
