"Gun control among issues teed up for CRC" via the News Service of Florida - The debate over gun control is ready to move to a new forum, as the Constitution Revision Commission ... begins the process of deciding what issues to place on the November ballot. ... One measure (Proposal 3), sponsored by Commissioner RobertoMartinez of Miami, is likely to generate debate, as it has attracted several amendments related to gun control in the wake of the Feb. 14mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. ... Meanwhile, Commissioner Chris Smith of Fort Lauderdale has another proposed amendment that would ban assault-style weapons. Also, Commissioner Hank Coxe of Jacksonville has filed an amendment that would raise the age of buying a firearm to 21 and would impose a 10-day waiting period. It also would ban bump stocks. Commissioners Arthenia Joyner of Tampa, Sherry Plymaleof Palm City and Frank Kruppenbacher of Orlando are supporting Coxe’s amendment.
The Constitution Revision Commission (CRC) kicks off its own Session this morning at 10 a.m.
The panel is expected to meet through May 4; on May 10, it must file a report with Secretary of State Ken Detzner.
There now are 36 “active” proposals being considered as additions to the state's governing document.
They run the gamut from banning dog racing to raising the retirement age of judges, also from a crime victims’ bill of rights to a clean-up proposal that would “delete an obsolete provision regarding the development of a high speed (rail) system.”
Commissioners also criss-crossed the state in the last year, holding public meetings to discuss ideas, including a final meeting in St. Petersburg that attracted about 1,200 people.
“With a ban under consideration, greyhound racing brings out surprising defenders” via Sharon Kennedy Wynne of the Tampa Bay Times — … as legislators consider a proposed constitutional amendment asking voters to phase out greyhound racing by 2021, the people who love the dogs on both sides of the issue worry about their future. It is the dogs’ apparent contentment that has caused even die-hard racing opponents to say the situation is nuanced. Of the 18 dog racing tracks in America, 12 are in Florida, with an estimated 7,000 greyhounds working in the state. If racing ends, what happens to all those dogs? … "I think they just don’t understand that the dogs are bred for this, that we love the dogs. The trainers love those dogs. They aren’t in that business because they hate them. You aren’t going to win if you have an underfed dog or a hurt dog. It wouldn’t make sense." … Stuck in the middle of the detractors and the supporters is Greyhound Pets of America. … Adopting a greyhound is unlike adopting any other pet. Dogs that have worked at a track may be so unfamiliar with everyday household features that they walk into a swimming pool or balk at stairs. … "It’s like a 70-pound house cat," GPA volunteer Don Koppin said.
“Anti-smoking group continues to oppose constitutional amendment” via Florida Politics – Despite a proposed tweak to a constitutional amendment, the Protect Tobacco Free Florida coalition says it still opposes the underlying measure. The proposal (P94), filed by Constitution Revision Commission (CRC) member and House Speaker pro tempore Jeanette Nuñez, originally would have redirected dollars from tobacco-prevention efforts to cancer research. Nuñez on Wednesday filed an "amendment to the amendment" deleting the section about cancer research funding, however. That change would have to be adopted by the commission, which meets in Session beginning Monday in Tallahassee. "Despite this change, her proposal would still remove the requirement that one-third of Florida’s tobacco prevention funding be dedicated to countering Big Tobacco’s massive marketing efforts in the state," the coalition said. "Because the one-third provision is required to follow CDC best practice standards for tobacco prevention programs, the Protect Tobacco Free Florida coalition still opposes Proposal 94.”
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