Amendment  4 will cost jobs and hurt Florida’s economy.

During these difficult economic times, the last thing we need is an amendment that will lead to higher property taxes, fewer jobs, and a weaker economy. But that’s exactly what Amendment 4 will do. If passed, Amendment 4 will hurt every sector of Florida’s economy. A recent study by the Washington Economics Group shows that Amendment 4 is likely to cost over 260,000 jobs and reduce Florida’s economic output by more than $34 billion per year. New businesses will find it harder to bring jobs to Florida. Local businesses will find it tougher and more expensive to grow, and Florida’s working families will suffer the most.

A local version of Amendment 4 has already caused higher taxes, fewer jobs and more lawsuits in one Florida town.

A local version of Amendment 4 has been thoroughly tested in the small Florida town of St. Pete Beach reports the St. Petersburg Times. According to the Times, the measure has been “divisive, expensive, and an impediment to much needed redevelopment.” Since adopting a local version of Amendment 4, the citizens of St. Pete Beach have seen nearly a dozen lawsuits that have cost local taxpayers over half a million dollars in legal fees. When St. Pete Beach voters approved four pro-economy changes to their comprehensive plan in 2008, Amendment 4 lawyers sued to overturn the election. More than a year after voting to change their comprehensive plan, the people of St. Pete Beach are still defending their vote in court. The St. Petersburg Times concludes that Amendment 4 “invites short term thinking and frequent referendums that are even more susceptible to well-financed campaigns by powerful interests.”

Amendment 4 will cost taxpayers millions and lead to chaos at the polls.

Under Amendment 4, the taxpayers will be forced to fund expensive referenda for every technical change to their local comprehensive plan. The Editorial Board of the Orlando Sentinel pointed out that these costs would “soar into the millions.” It would not be uncommon for voters to face 200 or 300 minor plan revisions in a single ballot. According to a review of state records, the residents of Carrabelle – a small Franklin County town, would have voted 617 times if Amendment 4 had been law in 2006.

This amendment is so poorly written that it doesn’t even provide exceptions for vital community needs such as hospitals, police stations or schools.

Amendment 4 advocates do not want to empower voters, they want to stop growth at any cost – just look at what they did to St. Pete Beach. Under this proposal, special interests on both sides of the development debate will gain influence at the expense of ordinary citizens. Important community projects from transit to schools will become the victim of politics and under Amendment 4, sound bites will have more influence than sound planning.

Amendment 4 is opposed by a broad and diverse coalition because it may “kill jobs” and “encourage sprawl.”

Over 200 organizations have opposed Amendment 4 because of its impacts on Florida’s economy, environment and quality of life. The Florida Chamber of Commerce has called the measure a “jobs killer” and 1000 Friends of Florida – our state’s top growth management watchdog group – has expressed concern that Amendment 4 may “encourage sprawling patterns of development.” Altogether, numerous leading business groups, labor unions, citizen coalitions, healthcare groups, environmental leaders and planning organizations have actively opposed Amendment 4.

                                      VOTE NO ON AMENDMENT 4                                   www.Florida2010.org