Florida House of Representatives member Michelle Salzman (R) has introduced a bill proposing to limit county commissioners’ tenures.
County commissioners are currently enabled by Florida law to compete for re-election indefinitely.
If passed, Representative Salzman’s joint resolution 19 would bar commissioners who have, or will by the end of their term have, served eight years from applying for re-election.
“I’m looking forward to seeing this on the 2024 ballot,” Salzman said. “The people of Florida have been asking for this opportunity to choose for a while. I fully support term limits at all levels of government.”
Salzman’s resolution presents a legislative proposal. Legislative proposals are one avenue the Florida Constitution entertains for proposing amendments. First, they must be proposed by individual legislators for a vote within the legislature. Second, if approved, legislative proposals are ultimately submitted to Florida residents for a vote. Finally, if voters approve of the proposal by a 60% majority, the amendment is adopted.
Salzman’s proposed term limits would, if approved by the legislature, appear on Floridians’ ballots during the next elections. Floridians would then have the opportunity to directly decide whether to impose term limits on county commissioners.
Salzman simultaneously floored a separate bill to exempt Florida’s Reform school abuse victims from public record disclosure requirements.
Florida’s Reform school program was created at the turn of the 20th century to house children demonstrating gross academic and disciplinary misconduct.
Hundreds of students who attended schools forming part of the program have since reported physical, mental, and sexual abuse by school staff from the 1940s through the 1970s.
The Florida legislature recognized in 2017 student participants in the program underwent treatment that “was cruel, unjust, and a violation of human decency”.
Salzman’s bill would protect Florida Reform school abuse victims from abiding by public disclosure requirements when attempting to claim compensatory damages Florida has offered them.
