Forward is committed to allowing candidates to formulate positions on all issues without adhering to a party platform or litmus tests. We also are committed to improving the incentives that drive the integrity of elections and governance. Our Legislative Agenda, then, focuses on bills before the Florida Legislature that may enhance or detract from these incentives. We will advocate for the support of or opposition to such bills. Individual Forwardists may hold a different view which, of course, we will respect.
***UPDATE*** This bill has been signed into law
The Florida Forward Party opposes this bill as it reduces voter rights and limits debate on issues important to Floridians by effectively eliminating citizen-sponsored amendments to the Florida Constitution. (We similarly oppose the Senate companion bill SB 7016).
In 2024, our ballots included two citizen-sponsored amendments to the Florida Constitution – one on recreational marijuana use and one on abortion rights. Both received more than 50% support from voters – obviously important issues for many people.
Had HB 1205 been enacted prior to 2024, you likely would not have had the opportunity to vote on either of these ideas. It is challenging to get an amendment on the ballot, as it should be, within reason. This bill creates new obstacles, big and small and mostly cynical. It creates unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles that make compliance nearly impossible and dramatically increases fines for simple mistakes in an effort to intimidate sponsors. Specifically, the bill would:
- Create stiff fines for administrative errors, including $50,000 if signature collectors do not meet certain requirements
- Requiring a $1 million bond in anticipation of such fines indeed being levied
- Making registration for petition circulators cumbersome and expensive.
- Mandating the state to reach out to every person who signed a petition, which could prompt them to revoke their signature
We encourage you to reach out to your Representative and Senator and ask them to oppose this bill. We also ask you to spread the word via your personal networks, social media communities, letters to the editor and the like. To make this easier, we are providing links to connect with your Representative and Senator and a variety of suggested ways to talk about this bill.
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Suggested Comments for Legislators and Letters to the Editor
- Please do not support HB1205. Our constitutional amendment process is not perfect, but it works. This bill is not reform, but decimation. Please fight to retain this right.
- HB 1205 makes me angry. It is a transparent effort to silence many of our citizens and voters. Please do everything you can to stop this power-grab of a bill.
- I enjoy competition, especially when it comes to ideas. Citizen-sponsored amendments to our Constitution allow ideas to compete - compete for our imaginations, for our hearts, for our analytical approval and ultimately for our vote. HB 1205, by effectively destroying this right, destroys the meritocracy that robust competition brings.
- I just read an article about HB 1205. I could not believe how bad this bill seemed. So I Googled around and found it might be even worse than the article suggested. Please save our amendment process and STOP THIS BILL.
- What are the Governor and Legislature so afraid of? They are poised to smash our ability to identify changes to the state’s constitution that we voters want. HB 1205 makes it virtually impossible for a group of citizens to get an amendment onto the ballot. God forbid we lowly citizens have ideas the ruling class does not like.
- I am totally against HB 1205. The bill is not a reform but a demolition of citizen-led constitutional initiatives. Current qualification requirements and the 60% voter approval threshold are sufficient safeguards against abuse. We should encourage more ideas, richer debate and greater voter engagement. This bill does exactly the opposite and further empowers the political class.
Suggested Comments for Friends and Social Media Posts
The Florida Legislature is on the path to effectively eliminating citizen-sponsored amendments to the Florida Constitution. In recent years, citizen-sponsored amendments addressed recreational marijuana, abortion rights, homestead property tax exemptions, open primaries, the minimum wage and more. You likely favored some of these and not others, but for the most part these are important issues that the Legislature often addresses without listening to the public.
I reached out to my Representative and Senator and told them I am against HB 1205. Please do the same, and spread the word! We need to fight to hang on to this important right.
