Attorney General of Florida petitioned for advisory opinion on validity of proposed citizen initiative amendment to Florida Constitution to raise the minimum wage, and corresponding financial impact statement prepared by Financial Impact Estimating Conference (FIEC).
The Justices of the Supreme Court were of the opinion that:
- Proposed amendment complied with Florida Constitution’s single-subject requirement for citizen initiative petitions;
- Ballot title and summary for proposed amendment complied with statutory requirement that they be printed in clear and unambiguous language; and
- The Court lacked original jurisdiction to review financial impact statement, receding from Advisory Opinion to the Attorney General re Referenda Required for Adoption, 963 So.2d 210.
Proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution, which addressed raising Florida’s minimum wage, complied with Florida Constitution’s single-subject requirement for citizen initiative petitions; amendment clearly addressed one subject, raising minimum wage, and although it could affect contracts entered into and wages paid by each branch of government, the effects were incidental to amendment’s chief purpose, which was not to alter or perform any governmental function.
Ballot title and summary for proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution, which addressed raising Florida’s minimum wage, complied with statutory requirement that they be printed in clear and unambiguous language; title clearly and accurately identified subject matter and complied with word-count requirement, and summary was clear and unambiguous and complied with word-count requirement.
Supreme Court lacked original jurisdiction to review financial impact statement prepared by Financial Impact Estimating Conference (FIEC), as it was not considered part of an initiative petition to amend state Constitution, receding from Advisory Opinion to the Attorney General re Referenda Required for Adoption, 963 So.2d 210.