Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission

Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission
Basic facts
State: Florida
Year established: 1988
Learn more about Florida ballot measures
• Laws governing the initiative process in Florida
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The Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission (TBRC) is an official state commission established in the Section 6, Article XI of the Florida Constitution with the authority to "...examine the state budgetary process, the revenue needs and expenditure processes of the state, the appropriateness of the tax structure of the state, and governmental productivity and efficiency."

Structure

Membership

The commission is composed of 25 members:

• 11 members appointed by the governor and who are not current members of the state legislature;
• seven members appointed by the speaker of the House and who are not current members of the state legislature;
• seven members appointed by the president of the Senate and who are not current members of the state legislature; and
• four non-voting ex officio members who are current members of the state legislature: two appointed by the speaker of the House (one being a member of the minority party in the House), and two appointed by the president of the Senate (one being a member of the minority party in the Senate).

Vacancies

In case of a vacancy, the member will be replaced in the same manner they are appointed.

Responsibility

The Florida Constitution requires the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission to convene every 20 years on the following schedule: 2007, 2027, 2047, 2067, and so on.

The commission is charged with examining:

• the state budgetary process;
• state revenue needs and expenditure processes;
• the appropriateness and efficiency of the state's tax structure;
• the state's revenue-raising capabilities; and
• the state's constitutional limitations on taxation and expenditures.

The commission must review policies related to the government's ability to tax and fund governmental operations over the next 20-year period and determine methods for raising revenue for the state. The commission is charged with reviewing the state's comprehensive planning, budgeting, and needs assessment processes and determining "whether the resulting information adequately supports a strategic decision-making process."

Process

The commission holds public hearings as it deems necessary. The commission must issue a report of the results of its reviews and propose statutory changes relating to taxation and budgetary laws to the state legislature. The commission must file any proposed constitutional amendments to the custodian of state records no later than 180 days before the general election in the year following the year that the commission was convened.

A minimum of 18 of the 25 commissioners must agree to place a measure on the ballot.

Constitutional requirements

Section 6 of Article XI of the Florida Constitution sets out the requirements of the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission. The text of Section 6 is as follows:

Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.

Text of Section 6: Taxation and Budget Reform Commission

(a) Beginning in 2007 and each twentieth year thereafter, there shall be established a taxation and budget reform commission composed of the following members:

(1) eleven members selected by the governor, none of whom shall be a member of the legislature at the time of appointment. (2) seven members selected by the speaker of the house of representatives and seven members selected by the president of the senate, none of whom shall be a member of the legislature at the time of appointment. (3) four non-voting ex officio members, all of whom shall be members of the legislature at the time of appointment. Two of these members, one of whom shall be a member of the minority party in the house of representatives, shall be selected by the speaker of the house of representatives, and two of these members, one of whom shall be a member of the minority party in the senate, shall be selected by the president of the senate. (b) Vacancies in the membership of the commission shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments.

(c) At its initial meeting, the members of the commission shall elect a member who is not a member of the legislature to serve as chair and the commission shall adopt its rules of procedure. Thereafter, the commission shall convene at the call of the chair. An affirmative vote of two thirds of the full commission shall be necessary for any revision of this constitution or any part of it to be proposed by the commission.

(d) The commission shall examine the state budgetary process, the revenue needs and expenditure processes of the state, the appropriateness of the tax structure of the state, and governmental productivity and efficiency; review policy as it relates to the ability of state and local government to tax and adequately fund governmental operations and capital facilities required to meet the state's needs during the next twenty year period; determine methods favored by the citizens of the state to fund the needs of the state, including alternative methods for raising sufficient revenues for the needs of the state; determine measures that could be instituted to effectively gather funds from existing tax sources; examine constitutional limitations on taxation and expenditures at the state and local level; and review the state's comprehensive planning, budgeting and needs assessment processes to determine whether the resulting information adequately supports a strategic decisionmaking process.

(e) The commission shall hold public hearings as it deems necessary to carry out its responsibilities under this section. The commission shall issue a report of the results of the review carried out, and propose to the legislature any recommended statutory changes related to the taxation or budgetary laws of the state. Not later than one hundred eighty days prior to the general election in the second year following the year in which the commission is established, the commission shall file with the custodian of state records its proposal, if any, of a revision of this constitution or any part of it dealing with taxation or the state budgetary process.

History

Creation

See also: Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission, Amendment 6 (1988)

The Taxation and Budget Reform Commission was established in the state constitution through voter approval of Amendment 6, an amendment referred to the ballot by the Florida State Legislature. The amendment was approved with 57.85% of voters in favor and 42.15% opposed.

The language that appeared on the ballot was as follows:

“

Transfers authority to review matters relating to state and local taxation and the budgetary process from the Constitution Revision Commission to a newly created Taxation and Budget Reform Commission to be established in 1990 and every 10 years thereafter. The new commission will issue a report and it may propose statutory changes to the Legislature, and submit proposed constitutional changes to the voters.

”

In 1998, the Florida Constitution Revision Commission referred an amendment to the 1998 ballot changing the meeting schedule of the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission from every 10 years to every 20 years. That amendment was approved with 55% of voters in favor to 45% of voters opposed.

Taxation and Budget Reform Commission, 2008

The 2007-2008 Taxation and Budget Reform Commission, which held its first meeting on March 16, 2007, created four committees: Finance and Taxation, Governmental Procedures and Structure, Governmental Services, and Planning and Budgetary Processes, as well as workgroups related to property taxes, sales taxes, and local school funding. The commission heard expert testimony on a variety of issues from July to September 2007. Between September 20 and December 5, 2007, the commission held seven public hearings. During the 14-month period from March 2007 to April 2008, the commission had held 127 meetings, conference calls, and public hearings.

Proposals needed a majority vote from the committees to be referred to the full commission. Proposed statutory changes needed a majority vote from the commission (13 of 25 members) to be recommended to the legislature. Proposed constitutional amendments required a two-thirds supermajority vote of commissioners (27 of 25 members) to be submitted to the secretary of state to be placed on the November 2008 ballot.

The commission voted to put seven statewide measures on the November 2008 ballot:

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Result
CR	Amendment 3	Taxes	Excludes certain improvements from being considered in property value assessment for taxation purposes	a
CR	Amendment 4	Taxes	Provides property tax exemptions for lands that fall under conservation laws	a
CR	Amendment 6	Taxes	Bases tax assessment of waterfront property on current use	a
CR	Amendment 8	Taxes	Authorizes counties to levy local option sales taxes for community college funding, subject to voter approval.	d

Amendments 5, 7 and 9 removed from ballot by state Florida Supreme Court

On September 3, 2008, the Florida Supreme Court unanimously ruled to remove three TBRC amendments from the 2008 ballot. They were Amendments 5, 7 and 9.

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Result
CR	Amendment 5	Taxes	Cut property taxes by average 25%, eliminate property taxes that school districts are required to levy in order to get state aid	Removed
CR	Amendment 7	Taxes	Eliminates the ban in Florida's constitution against sending state tax money to religious institutions.	Removed
CR	Amendment 9	Education	Requires that at least 65% of school funds be spent on classroom instruction.	Removed

See also

• Laws governing the initiative process in Florida
• Types of ballot measures in Florida
• List of Florida ballot measures
• Florida Constitution

External links

Suggest a link

• 2007-2008 Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission Final Report