Rep. Roth carries resolution for seventh year to raise voter threshold for amendments

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – For the seventh straight year, Rep. Rick Roth, R-West Palm Beach, is carrying a house joint resolution, HJR 335, that would move forward with increasing the threshold to approve constitutional amendments.

The resolution would change a threshold required to approve an amendment or revision from 60% of the electors voting on a constitutional amendment on the ballot to 66.67% of such electors.

It passed 11-6 through the Ethics, Elections & Open Government Subcommittee agenda. A Senate version has yet to be filed.

The joint resolution would require a three-fifths vote of the membership of each chamber in the Legislature to then be put on the ballot. Floridians would vote on whether to approve the threshold change.

“The best way we can protect our Florida constitution is to make sure that everyone understands and supports a new constitutional amendment before they vote yes on it,” Roth said.

Rep. Kristen Aston Arrington, D-Kissimmee, asked Roth why he believes the 60% threshold is not high enough.

“You know, there’s people in America today that are not aware that 250,000 people are coming across the border every month, they have absolutely no knowledge of it, because the media is not telling them about it,” Roth said.

Roth said there is a “major problem” in America when they are counting on the media.

“A lot of times, campaigns do not really go with the facts, they go with what they want you to feel in order to support the amendment,” Roth said. “So, we just want to make sure that everybody understands what the amendments really trying to do, and that it will solve the problems that we’re trying to solve.”

Roth said “many times when [groups] put constitutional amendments on the ballot, they make them as vague as possible.”

Roth said he “can’t think of a better way to protect our Constitution than to raise the bar.”

During debate, Rep. Chase Tramont, R-Port Orange, told a story about his experience at a Walmart a few weeks ago. He said he watched two men “who were clearly paid by wherever their funding came from” to “get petitions signed from folks and their narrative.”

Abortion rights activists recently received enough signatures for a constitutional amendment to appear on the 2024 ballot which aims to protect the right to abortion.

Tramont said the men were telling people “there are no exceptions here in the state of Florida for abortion, you have to do this.”

He said he corrected the men on their “mistaken facts.”

“By trying to get that on the initiative, they were lying to the people, that being said, I would say this, I’m always fascinated with the the fear that this resolution brings to people and the scare tactics that are promulgated,” he said.

Tramont said this resolution “does not tie the hands of the people – it literally puts the their destiny in their hands.”

“My problem is you trust the people to decide, but you don’t trust them to decide on an issue that you disagree with, and that is the real threat to democracy,” Tramont said.

Rep. Mike Caruso, R-Delray Beach, also spoke in favor of the bill.

“This bill’s not a threat to our democracy, it’s not a threat to our right to vote, and it’s not a threat to our process,” Caruso said.

Caruso said the constitution “should not be like the wind – changing direction all the time.”

Rep. Ashley Gantt, D-Miami, said she will not be voting for the bill during debate.

“I think that this is really, really doubting our constituents that we serve and their ability to make informed decisions, because they were informed in us enough to vote for us so maybe voters should go back and think about that,” Gantt said.

The joint resolution, if passed by the Florida Legislature, would be considered by the electorate at the next general election on Nov. 5.

If adopted at this election, the joint resolution would take effect Jan. 7, 2025.