Judge lets religious groups defend ballot initiatives
Published: 07.10.08
TALLAHASSEE | Florida’s bishops and other Catholic and non–Catholic religious interests won the right July 10 to be heard in a lawsuit that seeks to block from the ballot two proposed state constitutional amendments that would protect the ability of sectarian organizations to receive state funding for providing health, education and social services.
Second Judicial Circuit Court Judge John C. Cooper approved a motion allowing five Florida religious organizations to intervene in a lawsuit challenging amendments 7 and 9, both of which were placed on the November general election ballot by the state’s Taxation and Budget Reform Commission. The religious organizations, which also include Mercy Hospital and Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Miami, seek to derail the lawsuit. They say success of the ballot initiatives would help put religious organizations on equal footing with nonsectarian institutions when reaching out to vulnerable citizens.
“We are faith–based institutions committed to providing services to Floridians regardless of their religious backgrounds,” said Michele Taylor, a spokesperson for the Florida Catholic Conference, which is the intervening group that represents Florida’s bishops. “Our organizations all have certain programs that could be subject to future constitutional challenges.”
Under Florida’s constitution, the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission meets every 20 years to review how Florida raises money and spends it, and then make recommendations on how to improve the tax and budget structure. The judge also allowed eight of the 25 commission members to intervene in the suit on behalf of their constitutional proposals.
Ballot Initiative 7 eliminates the so–called Blaine Amendment from Article I, Section 3 of the constitution. The clause in question, a relic of 1870s anti–Catholic fervor, prevents the state from providing aid to religious organizations.
Ballot Initiative 9 would amend Article XI, Section 1a, to open the way for the Legislature to re–enact the Opportunity Scholarship Program, which allowed students in failing schools to attend the private schools of their choice at state expense. The initiative also requires school districts to spend a minimum of 65 percent of their funding on classroom instruction.
In 2006, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that the Opportunity Scholarship Program violated Article XI, Section 1a’s guarantee of a uniform system of free public schools. But some legal scholars felt that the appeals’ court interpretation upheld by the high court could be used to protest the use of any state money by any religiously affiliated organization, including hospitals, disaster relief organizations and social service agencies.
The current legal challenge to both ballot initiatives alleges that the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission overstepped its constitutional authority by placing the amendments before voters.
In a written statement, Patricia Levesque, a commissioner, rebutted that argument.
“Funding education and social service programs comprises a tremendous portion of the state’s annual budget and the programs remain some of the government’s top priorities,” she asserted.
On Aug. 4, Judge Cooper will hold a hearing to decide whether the amendments will appear on the ballot. The non–Catholic religious organizations allowed to intervene in the suit are Friends of Lubavitch of Florida and Association of Christian Schools International.
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