While state and federal officials discuss the looming threat of election interference by foreign governments, county supervisors of elections and the sponsors of statewide ballot initiatives are focused on a threat closer to home.
They’re worried about a proposed overhaul of the state’s petition-gathering system for ballot initiatives that would take effect during efforts already under way to get proposed constitutional amendments on the 2020 ballot.
The changes — revived in the last day of session and stuck on the back of an obscure bill dealing with local sales surtax referendums — would upend the way petitions are gathered in Florida.
For election supervisors, it would mean a lot of new work without any money to pay for costs as they face printing out millions of petitions for over two dozen proposed citizen initiatives.
