Florida Senate - 2023 CS for SB 444
By the Committee on Rules; and Senator Ingoglia
595-04049-23 2023444c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to residency of local elected
3 officials; amending s. 124.01, F.S.; prohibiting the
4 consideration of the residential addresses of certain
5 persons during the district-drawing process for boards
6 of county commissioners; providing construction;
7 creating s. 166.0321, F.S.; requiring municipalities
8 to fix the boundaries of their districts in a certain
9 manner; specifying that district changes may be made
10 only in odd-numbered years; prohibiting the
11 consideration of the residential addresses of certain
12 persons during the district-drawing process; providing
13 construction; amending s. 1001.36, F.S.; prohibiting
14 the consideration of the residential addresses of
15 certain persons during the residence-area-drawing
16 process for district school boards; providing
17 construction; amending s. 1001.361, F.S.; providing
18 that an elected candidate for district school board
19 must reside in the district school board member
20 residence area by the date she or he assumes office
21 instead of upon qualifying for office; making
22 technical changes; providing an effective date.
23
24 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
25
26 Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 124.01, Florida
27 Statutes, is amended to read:
28 124.01 Division of counties into districts; county
29 commissioners.—
30 (3) The board of county commissioners shall, from time to
31 time, fix the boundaries of the county commissioners’ above
32 districts so as to keep them as nearly equal in proportion to
33 population as practicable, possible; provided, that changes made
34 in the boundaries of county commissioner districts pursuant to
35 this section are shall be made only in odd-numbered years.
36 Districts may not be drawn with the intent to favor or disfavor
37 a candidate for county commission or an incumbent county
38 commissioner based on the candidate’s or incumbent’s residential
39 address. Any ordinance enacted or adopted by a county on or
40 after July 1, 2023, which is in conflict with this subsection is
41 void.
42 Section 2. Section 166.0321, Florida Statutes, is created
43 to read:
44 166.0321 Division of municipalities into districts.—Each
45 municipality shall, from time to time, fix the boundaries of its
46 districts so as to keep them as nearly equal in proportion to
47 their respective populations as practicable, provided that such
48 changes are made only in odd-numbered years. Districts may not
49 be drawn with the intent to favor or disfavor a candidate for
50 member of the governing body or an incumbent member of the
51 governing body based on the candidate’s or incumbent’s
52 residential address. Any ordinance enacted or adopted by a
53 municipality on or after July 1, 2023, which is in conflict with
54 this section is void.
55 Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 1001.36, Florida
56 Statutes, is amended to read:
57 1001.36 District school board member residence areas.—
58 (2) A Any district school board may make any change that it
59 deems necessary in the boundaries of any district school board
60 member residence area at any meeting of the district school
61 board, provided that such changes are shall be made only in odd
62 numbered years and that no change that would affect the
63 residence qualifications of any incumbent member disqualifies
64 shall disqualify such incumbent member during the term for which
65 he or she is elected. Residence areas may not be drawn with the
66 intent to favor or disfavor a candidate for district school
67 board member or an incumbent district school board member based
68 on the candidate’s or incumbent’s residential address. Any
69 resolution adopted by a district school board on or after July
70 1, 2023, which is in conflict with this subsection is void.
71 Section 4. Section 1001.361, Florida Statutes, is amended
72 to read:
73 1001.361 Election of board by districtwide vote.
74 Notwithstanding any provision of local law or any county
75 charter, the election of members of the district school board
76 must shall be by vote of the qualified electors of the entire
77 district in a nonpartisan election as provided in chapter 105.
78 Each elected candidate for district school board member must
79 shall, by the date at the time she or he assumes office
80 qualifies, be a resident of the district school board member
81 residence area from which she or he was elected the candidate
82 seeks election. Each candidate who qualifies to have her or his
83 name placed on the ballot must shall be listed according to the
84 district school board member residence area in which she or he
85 is a candidate resides. Each qualified elector of the district
86 is shall be entitled to vote for one candidate from each
87 district school board member residence area. The candidate from
88 each district school board member residence area who receives
89 the highest number of votes in the general election shall be
90 elected to the district school board.
91 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023.