House plan makes it harder to raise taxes

Proposal would put constitutional amendment on Nov. ballot

TALLAHASSEE — Florida voters could get a chance to make it harder for the Legislature to increase taxes and fees, under a proposed ballot measure passed by the House on Thursday.

The bill, HJR 7001, would place a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that, if approved by voters, would require a two-thirds vote of the Legislature for any tax or fee increase instead of the current simple majority.

The bill is a top priority of Gov. Rick Scott and House Speaker Richard Corcoran, who is considering a run for governor this year.

“We should always make it much more difficult to raise taxes than it is to cut them,” said Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, in a statement. “This amendment will secure and protect that legacy from future legislatures bent on raising taxes.”

It passed on an 80-29 vote, largely along partisan lines, with 10 Democrats joining Republicans to pass the measure.

Rep. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, sponsor of the bill, argued it was needed because tax increases should require more deliberation and greater consensus.

“I believe that taking a citizen’s hard-earned money should not be done lightly,” Leek said.

Democrats countered that the measure would hamper the ability of lawmakers to respond to emergencies.

“We have to have some confidence in each other; we have to have some confidence in future legislators,” said Rep. Joe Geller, D-Aventura. “I don’t see why we need to tie the hands of future legislators.”

The proposed constitutional amendment still needs to be approved by the Senate before making it on the November ballot, where it would require 60 percent support from voters to make it into law. But the Senate version of the bill, SJR 1742, differs significantly from the House measure.

The Senate proposal creates a three-fifths threshold for a tax increase, and it would not apply to fees. It also offers some wiggle room, exempting bills that raise some taxes but reduce others, so long as the net tax increase is less than 1 percent.

“I don’t know what the future holds, and since this is going into the constitution, I think there needs to be a little bit of flexibility,” said Sen. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, sponsor of the Senate version. “But I absolutely agree with the intention of making sure that we have a supermajority for raising revenue for the state.”

Scott, who is term limited and cannot run again, has called the measure a top priority during his final year in office. In a statement celebrating the House vote, he made it clear he prefers the House’s approach.

“Today, the Florida House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed this proposal in a bipartisan vote to give Floridians the chance to go to the polls and vote to make it harder for politicians in Tallahassee to raise taxes and fees,” Scott said. “I look forward to the Senate swiftly voting on the House’s bill.”

The last time the Legislature raised fees or taxes was in 2009, when the state was facing a severe budget shortfall during the Great Recession. Lawmakers increased drivers’ license fees and added $1 to the cigarette tax. The bill passed by more than two-thirds in both chambers.

Since then, however, the GOP-controlled Legislature has cut billions in taxes, including adding exemptions to the corporate income tax, tax holidays on back-toschool items and cutting back the drivers’ license fee they passed in 2009.

Florida’s Constitution already requires a three-fifths vote to increase corporate income taxes higher than 5 percent. There are 14 other states that require supermajority votes for at least some tax increases, according to a House staff analysis of the bill.

Rep. Sean Shaw, D-Tampa, noted Florida ranks near the bottom of states in per capita mental health funding, Medicaid payments to doctors and other social services, a situation that won’t be helped by making it harder to increase revenue.

“I’m no smarter than someone who’s going to come here 10 years from now to vote,” Shaw said. “I don’t think I should have more power than they do.”

“I believe that taking a citizen’s hard-earned money should not be done lightly.”

Rep. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, sponsor of the bill