Florida Judge Pulls Amendment 5 Off the Ballot

Tampa Bay Business Journal: A court in Leon County has thrown out a ballot measure advocates say could reduce property taxes by as much as 40 percent citing the measure is not properly explained in voting materials. U.S. Circuit Court Judge John C. Cooper issued the ruling Thursday on Amendment 5, a state constitutional movement offered by the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission that wanted to remove a portion of public education funding from property taxes and move the responsibility to other methods of taxation, including possibly an increase in sales tax or the re-implementation of a service tax. Nancy Riley, president of the Florida Association of Realtors and a proponent of Amendment 5, said the ruling was a disservice to the voters. "The Taxation and Budget Reform Commission is a constitutionally mandated commission that has the unique power to go directly to the ballot without having legislative approval, gubernatorial approval, or signatures," Riley said. "The judges denying this amendment to be put on the ballot is denying the citizens of Florida their constitutional right to have this commission who represents them go directly to them for approval."

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