Florida's Constitution Revision Commission considering proposal making it harder to pass tax or fee increases

Jacksonville, FL — It would put Florida in line with 14 others states all across the United States.

The state Constitution Revision Commission's Finance and Taxation Committee has voted to advance a proposed constitutional amendment that would require future tax or fee increases to be approved by a two-thirds vote of the state legislature.

That two-thirds vote would break down to at least 80 members of the House and 27 members of the Senate to approve any tax or fee increases.

The proposal also requires each tax or fee increase to be the single subject of a bill, making it easier to be reviewed.

It now heads to the full Constitution Revision Commission for a vote. If it passes there, it can be placed on the 2018 general-election ballot for Florida voters to weigh in.

Florida Governor Rick Scott's office releasing the following statement about the proposal:

“I want to thank the members of the CRC’s Finance and Taxation committee for protecting Florida families from unfair tax and fee increases by future politicians. As a businessman myself, I understand how the decisions made in Tallahassee can affect companies and families who rely on Florida’s low tax burden to succeed. I will also continue to work with the legislature to get this amendment on the ballot, and will stop at nothing to ensure that we continue to build on our success of cutting taxes more than 75 times during our time in office. I would also like to thank Commissioner Fred Karlinsky for sponsoring this amendment and fighting to ensure our state’s continued economic growth.”