Opinion ID: 2534868
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The 2002 Class Size Amendment

Text: Because Amendment 8 would amend the 2002 Class Size Amendment passed by the voters, we begin with a review of that amendment. In 2002, an amendment to article IX, section 1, of the Florida Constitution was proposed by citizen initiative. The summary for the proposed amendment provided: Proposes an amendment to the State Constitution to require that the Legislature provide funding for sufficient classrooms so that there be a maximum number of students in public school classrooms for various grade levels; requires compliance by the beginning of 2010 school year; requires the Legislature, and not local school districts, to pay for the costs associated with reduced class size; prescribes a schedule for phased-in funding to achieve the required maximum class size. Advisory Op. to the Att'y Gen. re Fla.'s Amend. to Reduce Class Size, 816 So.2d 580, 581 (Fla.2002). In its evaluation of the initiative, this Court first analyzed whether the proposed amendment met the single subject requirement. A group who opposed the ballot initiative contended that the amendment violated the single subject requirement because it requires voters who may favor a reduction in class size in Florida to also vote for whatever unspecified and unlimited expenditure of State funds may be necessary to construct or purchase additional classrooms for public schools. Id. at 582. This Court rejected that argument: [T]he ballot initiative deals with a single subjectthe reduction of class size. The fact that the ballot initiative requires the Legislature to fund this reduction does not constitute ... impermissible logrolling..., but rather provides the details of how the ballot initiative will be implemented.... Id. at 583. The Court further concluded that the initiative would not substantially alter or perform multiple functions of state government because it did not specify a certain percentage of the budget or a specific amount to be spent on reducing class size. Id. at 584. The Court also stated that the amendment would not substantially alter or perform the functions of the local school boards: Although, as a result of the amendment, the Legislature may choose to fund the building of new schools to achieve the maximum classroom size set as a goal of the proposed amendment, this is not the only method of ensuring that the number of students meets the numbers set forth in the amendment. Rather than restricting the Legislature, the proposed amendment gives the Legislature latitude in designing ways to reach the class size goal articulated in the ballot initiative, and places the obligation to ensure compliance on the Legislature, not the local school boards. Id. at 584-85. In addition to whether the amendment met the single subject requirement, this Court evaluated whether the ballot information properly informed the voters in accordance with the requirements of section 101.161(1). The Court concluded that the ballot language informed voters of the amendment's chief purpose and effect: The title of this initiative is Florida's Amendment to Reduce Class Size. The ballot summary makes clear that the Legislature is responsible for providing funding to reduce the number of students in public school classrooms in various grade levels. Thus, when read together, the ballot title and summary clearly inform voters of the amendment's chief purpose, and provide an accurate description of the amendment. Id. at 585. The Court also stated that the primary purpose of the amendmentthe legislative funding of reduced classroom sizeis adequately disclosed in the ballot title and summary. Id. The Florida voters subsequently approved the 2002 Class Size Amendment, adding both a maximum class size requirement and an obligation on the Legislature to fund the class size requirement to article IX, section 1, of the Florida Constitution.