Decisions on abortion, marijuana amendments expected from Florida Supreme Court

The Florida Supreme Court is expected to issue rulings Monday that will determine whether two proposed citizen initiative amendments to the Florida constitution will make it on the Nov. 5 General Election ballot.

One would enshrine abortion rights in the constitution and the other would legalize adult use, sale and possession of recreational marijuana.

The seven justices – five of them appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis – have to decide by April 1 whether the proposed citizen initiative amendments satisfy two tests: is the ballot language "clear and unambiguous," and does the amendment address only a single subject?

Based on the court’s prior rulings on citizen initiatives, this is what the justices may have been debating in the weeks leading up to Monday's rulings.

LANGUAGE

Florida law states a ballot summary not exceeding 75 words shall be an explanatory statement of the chief purpose of the measure. The purpose: "to provide fair notice of the content of the proposed amendment so that the voter will not be misled as to its purpose, and can cast an intelligent and informed ballot.” First, the court asks whether “the ballot title and summary . . . fairly inform the voter of the chief purpose of the amendment.” Second, the court considers whether the language of the title and summary misleads the public.

SINGLE SUBJECT

When it comes to the single-subject requirement, the court looks to the Florida constitution, which says the amendments "shall embrace but one subject and matter directly connected therewith." It will reject an amendment that engages "logrolling," where an amendment lumps unrelated provisions, some of which electors might wish to support, in order to get an otherwise disfavored provision passed. And, as the court ruled in prior similar cases, it considers whether the amendment would require "substantially altering or performing the functions of multiple aspects of government…. A proposal that affects several branches of government will not automatically fail; rather, it is when a proposal substantially alters or performs the functions of multiple branches that it violates the single-subject test.”

So if four or more of the justices find the language confusing or vague, or if it decides the subject matter is too broad, including more than a single subject, the court can reject the amendment.

But the court has stated it is "obligated to uphold the proposal unless it is ‘clearly and conclusively defective.'"

If either of them passes muster with the court, it will appear on the ballot and be added to the Florida constitution if at least 60 percent of the voters approve in November.

Here’s what Amendments Three and Four would do. (There are three other amendments, offered by the state legislature rather than citizen initiatives, already approved on the ballot. They involve the right to hunt and fish, partisan school board elections, and adjusting homestead exemptions for inflation.)

ABORTION (AMENDMENT 4)

TITLE: Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion

SUMMARY: No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature's constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion.

The full text reads: Limiting government interference with abortion.— Except as provided in Article X, Section 22, no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.

(Article X, Section 22, approved in 2004, gave the legislature authority to require in most cases notification of a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion, which it did by passing a parental notification law.)

During oral arguments before the court in February, the state attorney general’s office and amendment opponents argued the ballot title and language do not make clear the full breadth of the amendment’s impact on abortion rights. They also argued, and at least one justice seemed to agree, the phrase “before viability” is not sufficiently explained in the language, as it does not specify a number of weeks after which abortion rights would be restricted.

But Chief Justice Carlos Muniz, a DeSantis appointee, disagreed with the contention the amendment was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Instead, he said, "This is a wolf that comes as a wolf … The people of Florida aren’t stupid. They can figure it out."

If passed, it would take effect in January 2025.

MARIJUANA (AMENDMENT 3)

TITLE: Adult Personal Use of Marijuana

SUMMARY: Allows adults 21 years or older to possess, purchase, or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion, or otherwise; allows Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers, and other state licensed entities, to acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute such products and accessories. Applies to Florida law; does not change, or immunize violations of, federal law. Establishes possession limits for personal use.

If approved by at least 60 percent of the voters in November, beginning in May 2025 anyone 21 or older will be allowed to possess three ounces of cannabis (or five grams of marijuana concentrates).

Medical cannabis dispensaries could "acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute marijuana products and marijuana accessories to adults for personal use." (The legislature could approve additional dispensaries the future.)

Seeking to address previous challenges to proposed ballot language as misleading, this version clarifies that nothing about the proposal “changes federal law."