Save Our Constitution
Grassroots Campaigns for Save Our Constitution
The Challenge
In Florida, an initiative was put on the ballot that would require comprehensive land use decisions be subjected to a vote by the public if it did not strictly follow the most recent usage plan. The so-called "Hometown Democracy" amendment, if passed, would alter the state's constitution and force citizens to regularly decide thousands of intricate land-use planning issues. Even the smallest changes would force a massive public vote, making ballots hundreds of pages long. In one small town in the Florida panhandle, citizens would have had to vote on 750 measures in 2006 alone.
The group behind the proposed "Hometown Democracy" implied the amendment would help protect "Florida's scenic beauty." This position was challenged, and the media focus instead turned to the expected gridlock the continuous voting process would bring, and the consequential prospect of crippling local building improvements (especially in areas that needed it the most), raising property taxes and utility bills, and damaging municipal finances and social services.
Florida allows people to remove their signature from any petition up to 150 days from signing. If enough petition signers revoked their signatures, the proposed amendment would not qualify for a state wide vote.
Opponents to the amendment banded together to form the Save Our Constitution PAC to prevent the Hometown Democracy amendment from coming to a vote. Their objective was to more fully inform citizens on the proposed amendment and ask citizens to remove their signatures from the petition.
Pages in this case study:
- Page 1: The Challenge
- Page 2: The Solution
- Page 3: The Results
