December 22, 2008

ISSUE 1249

The Florida Supreme Court on Dec. 18 approved a constitutional amendment proposed by Floridians for Smarter Growth. The court agreed that the Smarter Growth Petition meets all legal requirements. The decision is a major win for business leaders who have supported the Floridians for Smarter Growth petition as a more reasonable alternative to the so-called "Hometown Democracy" amendment.

Unlike Hometown Democracy, the Floridians for Smarter Growth petition would not place all minor and technical comprehensive plan changes on the ballot. Instead, voters would be able to hold a vote on major issues by collecting petitions from 10 percent of the electorate. Florida has averaged 10,599 comprehensive land-use plan changes each year for the past four years. Under Hometown Democracy, all of them would have been on the ballot.