Bill Text: FL S0094 | 2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Partisan Election of Members of District School Boards
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-04-18 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see HJR 31 (Passed) [S0094 Detail]
Download: Florida-2023-S0094-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2023 SJR 94
By Senator Gruters
22-00247A-23 202394__
1 Senate Joint Resolution
2 A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 4
3 of Article IX and the creation of a new section in
4 Article XII of the State Constitution to require
5 members of a district school board to be elected in a
6 partisan election.
7
8 Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
9
10 That the following amendment to Section 4 of Article IX and
11 the creation of a new section in Article XII of the State
12 Constitution are agreed to and shall be submitted to the
13 electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next
14 general election or at an earlier special election specifically
15 authorized by law for that purpose:
16 ARTICLE IX
17 EDUCATION
18 SECTION 4. School districts; school boards.—
19 (a) Each county shall constitute a school district;
20 provided, two or more contiguous counties, upon vote of the
21 electors of each county pursuant to law, may be combined into
22 one school district. In each school district there shall be a
23 school board composed of five or more members chosen by vote of
24 the electors in a partisan nonpartisan election for
25 appropriately staggered terms of four years, as provided by law.
26 (b) The school board shall operate, control and supervise
27 all free public schools within the school district and determine
28 the rate of school district taxes within the limits prescribed
29 herein. Two or more school districts may operate and finance
30 joint educational programs.
31 ARTICLE XII
32 SCHEDULE
33 Partisan election of members of district school boards.
34 This section and the amendment to Section 4 of Article IX
35 requiring members of a district school board to be elected in a
36 partisan election rather than a nonpartisan election shall take
37 effect upon approval by the electors, except that members of
38 district school boards may not be elected on a partisan basis
39 until the general election held in November 2026. However,
40 partisan primary elections may occur before the general election
41 held on November 3, 2026, for purposes of nominating political
42 party candidates to that office for placement on the 2026
43 general election ballot.
44 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
45 placed on the ballot:
46 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
47 ARTICLE IX, SECTION 4
48 ARTICLE XII
49 PARTISAN ELECTION OF MEMBERS OF DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARDS.
50 Proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to require
51 members of a district school board to be elected in a partisan
52 election rather than a nonpartisan election and to specify that
53 the amendment only applies to elections held on or after the
54 November 2026 general election. However, partisan primary
55 elections may occur before the 2026 general election for
56 purposes of nominating political party candidates to that office
57 for placement on the 2026 general election ballot.
