Florida 2018 ballot measures
As of May 4, 2017, two statewide ballot measures were certified for the ballot in Florida in 2018.
| HIGHLIGHTS | |
Getting measures on the ballot
As of May 4, 2017, a total of 15 initiatives had been filed for potential spots on the 2018 ballot in Florida. The deadline to file petition signatures for the 2018 ballot is February 1, 2018. Supporters of an initiative need to submit at least 753,603 valid signatures to put their measure on the ballot.
The Florida Constitution Revision Commission (CRC) convened in 2017. The CRC is an organization provided for in the state constitution that reviews and proposes changes to the Florida Constitution. The 37-member commission meets every 20 years, with the last meeting in 1997 The CRC of 2017-2018 was sworn in on March 20, 2017, and has until May 10, 2018, to hold public hearings, review proposals, and refer amendments to the ballot for the election on November 6, 2018.
- Learn more about the CRC: Florida Constitution Revision Commission
The 2017 state legislative session ran from March 7, 2017, through May 5, 2017, during which time the Florida State Legislature can place constitutional amendments on the ballot. The legislature can put a proposed amendment on the ballot upon a 60 percent supermajority vote in both legislative chambers via a joint resolution. Constitutional amendments, be they legislatively referred or initiated, must be approved by at least 60 percent of the electorate.
Historical facts
- A total of 79 measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1995 and 2016.
- From 1995 to 2016, an average of seven measures appeared on the ballot during even-numbered years in Florida.
- The number of measures appearing on even-year statewide ballots between 1995 and 2016 ranged from three to 13.
- Between 1995 and 2016, 73 percent (58 of 79) of statewide ballots were approved by voters, and 27 percent (21 of 76) were defeated.
- In 2006, Florida Amendment 3 raised the requirement for approving a constitutional amendment to 60 percent. Between 2008 and 2016, four measures were approved by simple majority, but failed to meet the supermajority requirement and thus were defeated.
On the ballot
| Type | Title | Subject | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| LRCA | Permanent Cap on Nonhomestead Parcel Assessment Increases Amendment | Taxes | Makes the cap on nonhomestead parcel assessment increases permanent |
| LRCA | Homestead Exemption Increase Amendment | Taxes | Increases the amount of a home's value exempted from property tax |
Potential measures
Note: Not all initiative petitions listed as active by the Florida Division of Elections are being circulated by proponents for the 2018 election, as petitions are considered active until proponents choose to file termination paperwork. Therefore, the number of potential initiatives listed below does not match the number displayed on the Division of Elections website.
Initiatives
| Type | Title | Subject | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| CICA | Voting Rights Restoration for Felons Initiative (#14-01) | Suffrage | Restores the right to vote for most people with prior felony convictions upon completion of their sentences |
| CICA | Voter Approval of Casino Gambling Initiative (#15-22) | Gambling | Requires voter approval of casino gambling |
| CICA | Cannabis Act (#16-02) | Marijuana | Legalizes marijuana for users at least 21 years of age, regulates marijuana production and sales |
| CICA | Abolish Abortion Amendment (#16-05) | Abortion | Makes procuring or executing an abortion a first degree murder offense and attempt to perform or procure an abortion an attempted felony murder offense |
| CICA | Voter Approval on Tolls Amendment (#15-07) | Transportation | Requires voter approval for the creation of tolls and toll increases |
| CICA | Primary Elections Voter Inclusion Amendment (#15-18) | Elections and campaigns | Allows voters to vote in primary elections—including legislative, congressional, and gubernatorial—and eliminates government-funded party nominations for those offices |
| CICA | Red Light and Speed Camera Prohibition Amendment (#16-04) | Law enforcement | Prohibits the use of red light cameras and speed cameras to enforce traffic citations |
| CICA | Acupuncture Healthcare Coverage Initiative (#15-02) | Healthcare | Provides for basic acupuncture coverage for certain illnesses and conditions through insurance |
| CICA | Cannabis Rights Amendment (#16-03) | Marijuana | Legalizes cannabis and establishes certain cannabis-related rights |
| CICA | Complementary and Alternative Healthcare Coverage Initiative (#15-03) | Healthcare | Requires health insurance to provide coverage for complementary and alternative health treatments |
| CICA | Employees Earned Sick Time Amendment (#15-10) | Labor | Requires employers with at least five employees to provide paid sick time and employers with fewer than five employees to provide unpaid sick time |
| CICA | Florida Supermajority Repeal Amendment (#16-01) | Supermajority requirements | Repeals the Supermajority Requirement Amendment of 2006 |
| CICA | Right to Produce and Sell Solar Energy Initiative (#14-02) | Energy | Permits businesses and individuals to produce up to 2 megawatts of solar power and sell that power to others |
| CICA | Minimum Wage Increase Initiative (#15-09) | Min Wage | Increases the hourly minimum wage to $12.50 |
| CICA | Recreational Marijuana Amendment (#15-20) | Marijuana | Legalizes marijuana for use by persons 21 years of age or older and allows the state to regulate its purchase and sale. |
Legislative referrals
| Type | Title | Subject | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| LRCA | Elected Secretary of State Amendment | State Exec | Makes the secretary of state an elected position |
| LRCA | Judicial Term Limits Amendment | Term Limits | Creates a term limit of 12 consecutive years for judges of courts of appeal and the supreme court |
| LRCA | Law Enforcement Exempt from Firearm Purchase Waiting Period and Check Amendment | Firearms | Exempts law enforcement officers from the waiting period to purchase a firearm |
| LRCA | Elected Officials Personal Representation for Compensation Amendment | Gov't Acc | Prohibits elected officials from representing another entity for compensation before government, except judicial tribunals, for six years |
| LRCA | Election and Duties of Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser Amendment | Elections | Requires elections for county property appraisers |
State profile
This excerpt is reprinted here with the permission of the 2016 edition of the Almanac of American Politics and is up to date as of the publication date of that edition. All text is reproduced verbatim, though links have been added by Ballotpedia staff. To read the full chapter on Florida, click here.
More than 500 years ago, in March 1513, the Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León spied the coast of Florida. For the next 400 years, anyone sailing along Florida’s 1,197 miles of coastline and 663 miles of beach would not have seen anything much different from what Ponce de Leon saw. But within the past century the state has been transformed, from a swampy, undersettled, mostly rural state of 1.5 million people (the smallest population in the South), to a metropolitan powerhouse of almost 20 million people. In 2014, the Census Bureau estimated that Florida had overtaken New York as the third most populous state in the country. The result is a heterogeneous nation-state, historically Southern, demographically Northeastern and Mid-western, and culturally, at least partly, Latin American. It has been economically vibrant for most of the past century, but vulnerable to sudden contractions, as in the mid-1920s when a hurricane abruptly ended the Miami real estate boom and during the Great Recession. But Florida has bounced back before, and it is growing again.
Florida is the only Atlantic Coast state that was not part of the colonial United States. In ... (read more)
| Demographic data for Florida | ||
|---|---|---|
| Florida | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 19,361,792 | 314,107,084 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 53,625 | 3,531,905 |
| Gender | ||
| Female: | 51.1% | 50.8% |
| Race and ethnicity | ||
| White: | 56.6% | 62.8% |
| Black/African American: | 16.1% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2.5% | 5% |
| Native American: | 0.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.3% | 2.9% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 23.3% | 16.9% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 86.5% | 86.3% |
| College graduation rate: | 26.8% | 29.3% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $47,212 | $53,482 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 16.7% | 14.8% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2014) | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Florida
Florida voted Republican in three out of the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016.
More Florida coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Florida
- United States congressional delegations from Florida
- Public policy in Florida
- Influencers in Florida
- Verbatim Florida fact checks
- More...
See also
- 2018 ballot measures
- List of Florida ballot measures
- History of Initiative & Referendum in Florida
- Laws governing the initiative process in Florida
- Florida State Legislature
- Florida Constitution Revision Commission
External links
| ||
 |
State of Florida Tallahassee (capital) |
|---|---|
| Ballot measures |
List of Florida ballot measures | Local measures | School bond issues | Ballot measure laws | Initiative laws | History of I&R | Campaign Finance Requirements | Recall process | |
| Government |
Florida State Constitution | House of Representatives | Senate | Office of Economic and Demographic Research | Auditor General | |
| State executive officers |
Governor | Lieutenant Governor | Attorney General | Secretary of State | Chief Financial Officer | Commissioner of Education | Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services | Commissioner of Insurance Regulation | Secretary of Environmental Protection | Director of Economic Opportunity | Chair of Public Service Commission | |
| Elections | |
| School boards |
Florida Department of Education | Florida school districts | |
| Judiciary |
Florida Supreme Court | District Courts of Appeal | Circuit Courts | County Courts | Judicial selection in Florida | |
| Transparency Topics |
Sunshine Law | Transparency Legislation | Transparency Advocates | State budget | Taxpayer-funded lobbying associations | |
| Divisions |
State |
List of Counties |
List of Cities |
List of School Districts | |
