What exactly is Amendment 4? Who is sponsoring it? And, what do we have to gain by the passage of Amendment 4 or “Hometown Democracy” as it will appear on the November ballot?
The proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution requires a referendum on changes to the comprehensive plan of a city or county. This appears to be a good way to engage taxpayers, but, upon closer examination, based on the experience of other communities, a vote would be required on changes such as roadway improvements or expansions, changes in hospitals, schools, parkland, fire and police stations, additions to government buildings and expansion of public recreation facilities, traffic signals, and the purchase of municipal vehicles. This is a short list of changes requiring voter approval.
The experience of some Florida cities and counties and the number of changes they have made in recent years predicated on legislation similar to Amendment 4 is very revealing. Here is a partial list:
Orange City: 501 amendments
Alachua City: 605 amendments
Carrabbella: 617 amendments
Frostproof: 310 amendments
Martin County made 23 comprehensive plan amendments in 2009. In addition to the cost of holding referendums (hundreds of thousands of dollars), these changes also open up the potential for endless litigation and millions in litigation fees.
Another unintended consequence of such legislation would be to increase the time and money for
more public planning, costly delays on projects, and a negative climate for business and a deterrent to job creation, as well as putting the county budget in a constant state of flux.
In the end, we believe Amendment 4 would result in increases in taxes at both the local and state levels, cuts in services and impact public education, public safety and local health care services because of the need to increase or divert tax dollars.
What happened to the city of St. Pete Beach, which adopted a similar local version of Amendment 4, is explained by Ward Fdriszolowski, former mayor of St. Pete Beach:
“Once a beacon of prosperity, St. Pete Beach now has a reputation for unpredictable and chaotic investment conditions. The economic situation worsened and hamstrung by Hometown Democracy, the city council was powerless to do anything about it.”
The mayor also stated:
“Elections were chaotic, uncertain, expensive and infrequent. We were unable to update our comprehensive plan and the town soon fell out of compliance with state mandates. Many local businesses, too, became victims of the impossible process.”
He added that the residents of St. Pete Beach have endured endless lawsuits and seen little progress. Even die-hard disciples of these amendments have converted back to a more commonsense approach.
Some of the groups funding Amendment 4 are special interest lawyers, the Sierra Club, adult entertainment interests and population-control advocates. The list of those who oppose the amendment is too long to list here. However, you can find them at www.florida2010.org on the Internet.
The list includes such organizations as Florida Health Care Associates, Florida Association of School Boards, and Citizens for Lower Taxes and EAR-based Comp Plan Amendments.
In summary, the taxpayers association does not support Amendment 4 for the reasons listed above. However, we do believe that the best approach is to hold our elected officials accountable for monitoring and regulating our comprehensive plan — or be voted out of office. This is true democracy in action and the most cost-effective way to run local government. We also caution you not be confused by the term “Hometown Democracy,” because it really means more and higher taxes for the taxpayers of Martin County.
Geisinger is president of the taxpayers association. E-mail: [email protected]
