SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
                            CHAMBER ACTION
              Senate                               House
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11  Senator Cowin moved the following amendment:
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13         Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 
14         Delete everything after the enacting clause
15  
16  and insert:  
17         Section 1.  Section 16.061, Florida Statutes, is
18  amended to read:
19         16.061  Initiative petitions Proposed constitutional
20  revisions or amendments.--
21         (1)  The Attorney General shall, within 30 days after
22  receipt of a proposed revision or amendment to the State
23  Constitution by initiative petition from the Secretary of
24  State, petition the Supreme Court, requesting an advisory
25  opinion regarding the compliance of the text of the proposed
26  amendment or revision with s. 3, Art. XI of the State
27  Constitution and the compliance of the proposed ballot title
28  and substance with s. 101.161. The Attorney General shall,
29  within 30 days after receipt of the initiative petition's
30  fiscal impact statement or revised fiscal impact statement
31  from the Revenue Estimating Conference, or immediately after
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1  receipt if received less than 120 days before the election at
 2  which the question of ratifying the amendment will be
 3  presented, petition the Supreme Court requesting an advisory
 4  opinion regarding compliance of the statement with s.
 5  100.371(6).  and the compliance of the fiscal impact statement
 6  with ss. 100.371 and 101.161. For all other proposed revisions
 7  or amendments to the State Constitution, the Attorney General
 8  shall, upon the Revenue Estimating Conference finalizing the
 9  fiscal impact statement, petition the Supreme Court requesting
10  an advisory opinion regarding compliance of the text of the
11  fiscal impact statement with ss. 100.371, 100.381, and
12  101.161. The petition may enumerate any specific factual
13  issues which the Attorney General believes would require a
14  judicial determination.
15         (2)  A copy of the petition shall be provided to the
16  Secretary of State and the principal officer of the sponsor.
17         (3)  Any fiscal impact statement that the court finds
18  not to be in accordance with s. 100.371, s. 100.381, or s.
19  101.161 shall be remanded solely to the Revenue Estimating
20  Conference for redrafting.
21         Section 2.  Subsections (2), (6), and (7) of section
22  100.371, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
23         100.371  Initiatives; procedure for placement on the
24  ballot.--
25         (2)  Such certification shall be issued when the
26  Secretary of State has received verification certificates from
27  the supervisors of elections indicating that the requisite
28  number and distribution of valid signatures of electors have
29  been submitted to and verified by the supervisors. Every
30  signature shall be dated when made and shall be valid for a
31  period of 18 months 4 years following the such date of
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1  signature certification to the Secretary of State, provided
 2  all other requirements of law are satisfied complied with.
 3         (6)(a)  Within 45 days after receipt of a proposed
 4  revision or amendment to the State Constitution by initiative
 5  petition from the Secretary of State, or within 30 days after
 6  such receipt if receipt occurs 120 days or less before the
 7  election at which the question of ratifying the amendment will
 8  be presented, for any initiative approved by the Florida
 9  Supreme Court for the general election ballot for 2002, within
10  45 days after the effective date of this subsection, whichever
11  occurs later, the Revenue Estimating Conference shall complete
12  an analysis and fiscal impact statement to be placed on the
13  ballot of the estimated increase or decrease in any revenues
14  or costs to state or local governments resulting from the
15  proposed initiative. The Revenue Estimating Conference shall
16  provide an opportunity for any proponents or opponents of the
17  initiative to submit information and may solicit information
18  or analysis from any other entities or agencies, including the
19  Office of Economic and Demographic Research.
20         (b)1.  Members of the Revenue Estimating Conference
21  shall reach a consensus or majority concurrence on a clear and
22  unambiguous fiscal impact statement, no more than 50 words in
23  length and immediately submit the statement to the Attorney
24  General. Nothing in this subsection prohibits the Revenue
25  Estimating Conference from setting forth a range of potential
26  impacts in the fiscal impact statement. Any fiscal impact
27  statement that a court finds not to be in accordance with this
28  section, s. 100.381, or s. 101.161 shall be remanded solely to
29  the Revenue Estimating Conference for redrafting. The Revenue
30  Estimating Conference shall redraft the fiscal impact
31  statement within 15 days.
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1         2.  If the members of the Revenue Estimating Conference
 2  are unable to agree on the statement required by this
 3  subsection, the following statement shall appear on the ballot
 4  pursuant to s. 101.161(1): "The fiscal impact of this measure,
 5  if any, cannot be reasonably determined at this time."
 6         3.  Any fiscal impact statement that the Supreme Court
 7  finds not to be in accordance with this subsection shall be
 8  remanded solely to the Revenue Estimating Conference for
 9  redrafting, provided the court's advisory opinion is rendered
10  at least 75 days before the election at which the question of
11  ratifying the amendment will be presented. The Revenue
12  Estimating Conference shall prepare and adopt a revised fiscal
13  impact statement no later than 5 p.m. on the 15th day after
14  the date of the court's opinion.
15         4.  If, by 5 p.m. on the 55th day before the election,
16  the Supreme Court has not issued an advisory opinion approving
17  a fiscal impact statement prepared by the Revenue Estimating
18  Conference for an initiative amendment that otherwise meets
19  the legal requirements for ballot placement, the following
20  statement shall appear on the ballot pursuant to s.
21  101.161(1): "Due to time constraints, the fiscal impact of
22  this measure, if any, could not be included on the ballot."
23         5.  If, by 5 p.m. on the 55th day before the general
24  election, the Supreme Court has not issued an advisory opinion
25  approving a fiscal impact statement prepared by the Revenue
26  Estimating Conference for an initiative amendment that
27  otherwise meets the legal requirements for ballot placement at
28  the general election, the following statement shall appear on
29  the advance general election absentee ballot pursuant to s.
30  101.161(1): "Due to time constraints, the fiscal impact of
31  this measure, if any, could not be included on the ballot."
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1         6.a.  In addition to the financial impact statement
 2  required by this subsection, the Revenue Estimating Conference
 3  shall draft an initiative financial information statement.
 4  The initiative financial information statement should describe
 5  in greater detail than the financial impact statement any
 6  projected increase or decrease in revenues or costs that the
 7  state or local governments would likely experience if the
 8  ballot measure were approved.  The sponsor of an initiative
 9  amendment may also draft an initiative financial information
10  statement that includes the sponsor's estimated increase or
11  decrease in any revenues or costs to state or local
12  governments resulting from the proposed initiative.  Where
13  appropriate, the initiative financial information statements
14  may include both estimated dollar amounts and a description
15  placing the estimated dollar amounts into context.  The
16  initiative financial information statements must include both
17  a summary of not more than 500 words and more detailed
18  information that includes the assumptions that were made to
19  develop the fiscal impacts, work papers, and any other
20  information deemed relevant by the Revenue Estimating
21  Conference or amendment sponsor.
22         b.  The Department of State shall have printed, and
23  shall furnish to each supervisor of elections, a copy of the
24  summary from the initiative financial information statements.
25  The supervisors shall have the summary from the initiative
26  financial information statements available at each polling
27  place and at their main office upon request.
28         c.  The Secretary of State shall make available on the
29  Internet the initiative financial information statements in
30  their entirety.  In addition, each supervisor of elections
31  with a web site shall post the summary from the initiative
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1  financial information statements on their web site.
 2         (c)  The fiscal impact statement must be separately
 3  contained and be set forth after the ballot summary as
 4  required in s. 101.161(1).
 5         (7)  The Department of State may adopt rules in
 6  accordance with s. 120.54 to carry out the provisions of
 7  subsections (1)-(5) of this section.
 8         Section 3.  Section 100.381, Florida Statutes, is
 9  repealed.
10         Section 4.  Subsection (1) of section 101.161, Florida
11  Statutes, is amended to read:
12         101.161  Referenda; ballots.--
13         (1)  Whenever a constitutional amendment or other
14  public measure is submitted to the vote of the people, the
15  substance of such amendment or other public measure shall be
16  printed in clear and unambiguous language on the ballot after
17  the list of candidates, followed by the word "yes" and also by
18  the word "no," and shall be styled in such a manner that a
19  "yes" vote will indicate approval of the proposal and a "no"
20  vote will indicate rejection. The wording of the substance of
21  the amendment or other public measure and the ballot title to
22  appear on the ballot shall be embodied in the joint
23  resolution, constitutional revision commission proposal,
24  constitutional convention proposal, taxation and budget reform
25  commission proposal, or enabling resolution or ordinance.
26  Except for amendments and ballot language proposed by joint
27  resolution, the substance of the amendment or other public
28  measure shall be an explanatory statement, not exceeding 75
29  words in length, of the chief purpose of the measure. In
30  addition, the ballot shall include following the ballot
31  summary a separate fiscal impact statement concerning the
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1  measure prepared by the Revenue Estimating Conference in
 2  accordance with s. 100.371(6) or s. 100.381. The ballot title
 3  shall consist of a caption, not exceeding 15 words in length
 4  by which the measure is commonly referred to or spoken of.
 5         Section 5.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section
 6  101.62, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
 7         101.62  Request for absentee ballots.--
 8         (4)(a)  To each absent qualified elector overseas who
 9  has requested an absentee ballot, the supervisor of elections
10  shall, not fewer than 35 days before the first primary
11  election, mail an absentee ballot.  Not fewer than 45 days
12  before the second primary and general election, the supervisor
13  of elections shall mail an advance absentee ballot to those
14  persons requesting ballots for such elections.  The advance
15  absentee ballot for the second primary shall be the same as
16  the first primary absentee ballot as to the names of
17  candidates, except that for any offices where there are only
18  two candidates, those offices and all political party
19  executive committee offices shall be omitted.  Except as
20  provided in ss. s. 99.063(4) and 100.371(6)(b)5., the advance
21  absentee ballot for the general election shall be as specified
22  in s. 101.151, except that in the case of candidates of
23  political parties where nominations were not made in the first
24  primary, the names of the candidates placing first and second
25  in the first primary election shall be printed on the advance
26  absentee ballot. The advance absentee ballot or advance
27  absentee ballot information booklet shall be of a different
28  color for each election and also a different color from the
29  absentee ballots for the first primary, second primary, and
30  general election.  The supervisor shall mail an advance
31  absentee ballot for the second primary and general election to
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1  each qualified absent elector for whom a request is received
 2  until the absentee ballots are printed.  The supervisor shall
 3  enclose with the advance second primary absentee ballot and
 4  advance general election absentee ballot an explanation
 5  stating that the absentee ballot for the election will be
 6  mailed as soon as it is printed; and, if both the advance
 7  absentee ballot and the absentee ballot for the election are
 8  returned in time to be counted, only the absentee ballot will
 9  be counted. The Department of State may prescribe by rule the
10  requirements for preparing and mailing absentee ballots to
11  absent qualified electors overseas.
12         Section 6.  For the purpose of incorporating the
13  amendments of sections 100.371 and 101.161, Florida Statutes,
14  in references thereto, section 15.21, Florida Statutes, is
15  reenacted to read:
16         15.21  Initiative petitions; s. 3, Art. XI, State
17  Constitution.--The Secretary of State shall immediately submit
18  an initiative petition to the Attorney General and to the
19  Revenue Estimating Conference if the sponsor has:
20         (1)  Registered as a political committee pursuant to s.
21  106.03;
22         (2)  Submitted the ballot title, substance, and text of
23  the proposed revision or amendment to the Secretary of State
24  pursuant to ss. 100.371 and 101.161; and
25         (3)  Obtained a letter from the Division of Elections
26  confirming that the sponsor has submitted to the appropriate
27  supervisors for verification, and the supervisors have
28  verified, forms signed and dated equal to 10 percent of the
29  number of electors statewide and in at least one-fourth of the
30  congressional districts required by s. 3, Art. XI of the State
31  Constitution.
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1         Section 7.  For the purpose of incorporating amendments
 2  to section 100.371, Florida Statutes, in references thereto,
 3  paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section 216.136, Florida
 4  Statutes, is reenacted to read:
 5         216.136  Consensus estimating conferences; duties and
 6  principals.--
 7         (3)  REVENUE ESTIMATING CONFERENCE.--
 8         (a)  Duties.--The Revenue Estimating Conference shall
 9  develop such official information with respect to anticipated
10  state and local government revenues as the conference
11  determines is needed for the state planning and budgeting
12  system.  Any principal may request the conference to review
13  and estimate revenues for any trust fund. Also, the conference
14  shall prepare fiscal impact statements for constitutional
15  amendments pursuant to s. 100.371(6).
16         Section 8.  The Secretary of State shall immediately
17  submit to the Revenue Estimating Conference any active
18  initiative petition that met the requirements of section
19  15.21, Florida Statutes, before the effective date of this
20  act.
21         Section 9.  This act does not apply to any
22  constitutional amendment proposed by initiative which has been
23  certified for ballot position by the Secretary of State before
24  the effective date of this act.
25         Section 10.  This act shall take effect July 2, 2003.
26  
27  
28  ================ T I T L E   A M E N D M E N T ===============
29  And the title is amended as follows:
30         Delete everything before the enacting clause
31  
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1  and insert:
 2         An act relating to constitutional amendments;
 3         amending s. 16.061, F.S.; requiring the
 4         Attorney General to immediately petition the
 5         Supreme Court for review of certain fiscal
 6         impact statements; deleting duties of the
 7         Attorney General with respect to constitutional
 8         amendments proposed other than by initiative;
 9         amending s. 100.371, F.S.; reducing the period
10         for which initiative petition signatures remain
11         valid; revising times within which the Revenue
12         Estimating Conference must complete its
13         analysis and fiscal impact statement for
14         amendments proposed by initiative; prescribing
15         ballot language to be used if a fiscal impact
16         statement is not timely approved by the Supreme
17         Court; requiring the Revenue Estimating
18         Conference and authorizing the amendment
19         sponsor to produce a financial information
20         statement and summary; providing for
21         distribution and publication of the financial
22         information statement and summary; repealing s.
23         100.381, F.S., relating to fiscal impact
24         statement requirements for amendments proposed
25         other than by initiative; amending s. 101.161,
26         F.S.; prescribing placement of the fiscal
27         impact statement on the ballot; amending s.
28         101.62, F.S., relating to absentee ballots, to
29         conform; reenacting ss. 15.21, 216.136(3)(a),
30         F.S., to conform to the changes by this act;
31         providing procedures for commencing the fiscal
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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT
    Bill No. HB 1883
    Amendment No. ___   Barcode 965450
 1         impact statement development and review process
 2         for certain proposed initiatives; exempting
 3         certain proposed initiatives from the fiscal
 4         impact statement requirement; providing an
 5         effective date.
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