American Senior Alliance Opposes the “Energy Choice” Amendment
American Senior Alliance is a not-for-profit organization that brings together our nation’s senior citizens to defend their values and to protect the rights and services they’ve earned. Through strong and targeted advocacy, American Senior Alliance helps preserve the financial resources of seniors and keeps dollars in their wallets. As a representative of Florida seniors, American Senior Alliance has an interest in this Amendment because of the negative affects the Amendment would have on Florida seniors’ utility bills and the Amendment would open up Florida seniors to the predatory practices and fraud seen in other states with deregulated electricity markets.
The proposed amendment is clearly and conclusively defective. The Court must strike the Investor-Owned Utilities Amendment from the ballot because it violates the single-subject requirement and because its ballot title and summary violate the requirements of clear and accurate disclosure and instead “fly under false colors,” “hide the ball,” and the ballot summary is demonstrably false.
The Amendment shifts legislative power to the judicial branch by leaving it to the judiciary impose its judgment on whether the legislature fulfills its obligation to “adopt complete and comprehensive legislation to implement (the Amendment) in a manner fully consistent with its broad purposes and stated terms…” It is the people’s representatives elected to the house and senate who are empowered by the Florida Constitution to mandate, establish, or regulate by making or enacting laws.
This Amendment demands that the judiciary and not the legislature determine what is necessary to mandate, establish, or regulate to enact legislation entitling electricity customers to purchase competitively priced electricity consistent with the Amendment. This shift in the balance of power between the legislative and judicial branches is an impermissible second subject not necessary or incidental to the chief purpose.
Read their full legal brief filed with the Florida Supreme Court here.
