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Review of Florida constitutional amendments

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A lawyer friend told me that if you aren't sure or don't completely understand an amendment, vote no. He mentioned Amendment 4 from 2008 that sounded good but he said it gave big tax breaks to rich people to avoid paying taxes on large tracts of land.
 
Even after all I've read, I admit to being puzzled at why the method of selecting the student body president is deserving of a constitutional amendment. What's next, an amendment on whether to replace a flashing red light somewhere in Tallahassee with a regular traffic light? In all seriousness, though, is this a trojan horse of some sort?
 
Jdarg said:
Florida League of Women Voters amendment guide. Clear explanations of the amendments, and the good reasons to vote no on all.

http://www.thefloridavoter.org/resources/issues/2012-constitutional-amendments
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excellent information!

the intro was especially helpful in understanding the impact of these amendments in the long term:
The titles of the amendments below are those that voters will actually see on the ballot this November; the League opposes all 11 amendments. These amendments were all placed on the ballot by the Florida Legislature and, if approved, would become part of the Florida Constitution.
There are five amendments on the ballot that address reductions in local property taxes. If all five (2, 4, 9, 10, 11) were to pass, local governments would lose over $1 billion over the first three years of implementation. In addition to concerns that this lost revenue could result in cuts to essential services, such as education, transportation and public safety, the League’s position has always been that no tax sources or revenues should be specified, limited, exempted or prohibited in the Constitution.
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TreeFrog said:
Even after all I've read, I admit to being puzzled at why the method of selecting the student body president is deserving of a constitutional amendment. What's next, an amendment on whether to replace a flashing red light somewhere in Tallahassee with a regular traffic light? In all seriousness, though, is this a trojan horse of some sort?
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As I understand it, and I could be wrong each college/ university has a student body president and those that pay dues to the organization pick one president to sit at the board of education... Well FSU did not participate in the presidents of the student bodies by paying dues and that did not sit well with Rep Matt Gaetz so he wanted to change how that was done hence this amendment. Also realize that all these constitutional amendments were the brainchild of the legislature, not one was placed on the ballot by a citizen initiative as I understand it.
 
This statement is the key regarding 2, 4, 9,10, and 11- "no tax sources or revenues should be specified, limited, exempted or prohibited in the Constitution."

I read a good reason to vote no on most amendments- amendments to constitutions tend to take away rights of people, not expand them.
 
meggiemom said:
A lawyer friend told me that if you aren't sure or don't completely understand an amendment, vote no. He mentioned Amendment 4 from 2008 that sounded good but he said it gave big tax breaks to rich people to avoid paying taxes on large tracts of land.
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Indeed! In 2008, we the voters made it possible for billionaires to avoid paying property taxes by claiming that land was "conservation land". So you and I pay property taxes and a billionaire who finances the campaigns of Walton County's elected officials probably pays zero in property tax. That must make the taxpayers association jump for joy.
 
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