Former state Senate Democratic leaders Arthenia Joyner and Chris Smith have filed a measure with the Constitution Revision Commission that would restore voting rights to felons who have served their time and completed any other post-prison requirements.
Florida’s price tag for losing legal battles – which has included courtroom fights over drug testing, voting rights and gay marriage – continues to grow under Gov. Rick Scott. Scott recently agreed to pay $1.1 million to cover the legal bills of physicians and medical organizations in their successful challenge of a law that restricted doctors’ ability to talk to patients about guns. The law had been pushed through the Florida Legislature at the urging of the National Rifle Association.
The Florida Supreme Court is being asked to approve the wording of a proposed amendment that could allow convicted criminals to vote. Backers of the amendment went before the high court on Monday. Justices must decide whether the amendment is misleading. Florida’s constitution bars people convicted of felonies from being able to vote after they have left prison. Convicted felons must ask to have their voting rights restored. The amendment would allow most convicts to have their rights automatically restored…
A panel of state economists and forecastersĀ spent Wednesday editing their notes on the costs of a constitutional amendment on felons’ voting rights. Amy Baker, who heads the Legislature’sĀ Office of Economic and Demographic Research, noted the amendment’s opponents neverĀ submitted written material or testimony. TheĀ proposed Florida VotingĀ Restoration AmendmentĀ would automatically returnĀ voting rights to felons who have completed their sentences. The Financial Impact Estimating Conference has beenĀ struggling to figure out a price tag for the amendment. Changes to the state constitution first require a…
A state panel struggled Monday to figure out a price tag for the proposed Florida Voter Restoration Amendment, which would automatically restore voting rights to felons who have completed their sentences. The Financial Impact Estimating ConferenceĀ heard testimony from a variety of state criminal justice agencies indicating it might be hard to nail down what the amendment would cost. The panel planned to reconveneĀ next week for additional study. Amy Baker, coordinator for the Legislative Office of Economic and Demographic Research, the…
Ā New ID requirements. Unfamiliar or distant polling places. Names missing from the voter rolls. Those are just some of the challenges that could disrupt voting across the country through Election Day. While most elections have their share of glitches, experts worry conditions are ripe this year for trouble at the nation’s polling places. This is the first presidential election year without a key enforcement provision of the federal Voting Rights Act, and 14 states have enacted new registration or voting…
āOnce to every man and nation āComes the moment to decide āIn the strife of truth with falsehood āFor the Good or Evil side ….. āThen it is the brave man chooses, āWhile the coward stands asideā American poet James Russell Lowell wrote those words in 1844 during the intensifying crisis over slavery. They speak to us again. Donald Trump is a uniquely evil candidate for president. It is indeed a moment to decide. Evil? I don’t wield that adjective…