Tagged: Ballot Measures 2012

Salon profiled Florida's Amendment 6,  one of the most controversial ballot measures facing approval from Florida voters  Nov. 6.

The ballot item is aimed at removing a constitutional right to privacy currently in Florida's Constitution, but it also might cut abortion coverage in some cases for the state's public employees, Salon reports.

The amendment also has language that would prohibit the use of taxpayer money for abortions in the state.

Amendment 3 on Florida’s ballot this year, if passed, will change how the state figures out how much money it can collect in taxes.

Opponents all over the state, however, say this one change could lead to massive cuts in state services such as health care and education.

How Amendment Three Works

In 2011, the Florida Legislature set out to restructure the Florida Supreme Court.

Even though that effort failed, Republican Lawmakers did get a proposal for big changes onto this year’s ballot.

However, some say this effort could politicize and change the face of Florida’s highest court.

Will New Rules Make Florida's Highest Court Less Impartial?

One of the constitutional amendments on the ballot this November takes on the controversial and politically charged issue of abortion.

Amendment 6, if passed, would prohibit public funding for abortions in the state, but it would also take away a right to privacy explicitly contained in Florida’s Constitution.

This has women’s rights activists in the state up in arms over concerns that this could be the beginning of greater abortion restrictions.

A Right To Privacy

In November, Floridians will decide whether or not to remove a state ban that prohibits the use of tax money for the funding of religious groups.

While the Catholic Church in the state remains one of the biggest proponents of this so-called “Religious Freedom” amendment, some religious leaders are weary of the measure.

Guillermo Marquez-Sterling, a pastor at the United Church of Christ in Coral Gables, says he’s concerned that, if Amendment 8 passes, if tax money could fund religious organizations, religious institutions like his will actually lose some of their freedom.

This year, every proposed change to our state's Constitution placed on the ballot came from the state Legislature.

Experts and activists say that this is because getting an amendment on the ballot in Florida is harder than ever before for citizens, yet significantly easier for state lawmakers.

What Happened to Citizen-led Petitions?

Robin Rorapaugh of Hollywood is the president of a political consulting company that helps groups who want to get an issue on a ballot.