Florida

FLORIDA HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY AMENDMENT 4

What is Hometown Democracy? Hometown Democracy is a nonpartisan, grassroots group of citizens across Florida working to pass Amendment 4 on the statewide ballot this November. We believe that when politicians approve new developments in a community, voters should get a "seat at the table"-a chance to vote. We're the ones who pay our tax dollars to extend the police, fire, water, sewer, schools and roads to these new developments. Is a new development worth it? We should get a vote before we're forced to pay.

What is a comprehensive land use plan and what is a "plan amendment?" The answer is simple. Every community in Florida has an overall master plan (called a comprehensive land use plan) that sets out where growth will occur. Hometown Democracy ensures that local residents will get a vote when politicians change (amend) the plan. Amendment 4 adds one new step to the existing process. Local city or County commissions will study, hold public hearings, and vote on proposed changes to the local comprehensive land-use plan just like they do now. The new step: Voters will veto or approve their decision on the next Election Day. No special elections required.

What plans exactly will Hometown Democracy affect? Citizens will only vote on changes to the local comprehensive land use plan. They won't vote on routine rezonings, variances, or individual development approvals. Voters won't weigh in on every new grocery store or hotel, but will vote when a speculator wants to change, for example, farmland to apartments, or turn a residential area into a commercial zone. Only speculators who insist on building outside the community's already agreed-upon areas will face a vote.

How many times will I have to vote?

Amendment 4 requires voter approval only for changes to the overall master plan (local comprehensive plan). On average, there are two to three plan changes a year.

How much will this cost?

Amendment 4 doesn't cost voters or local governments anything because it doesn't require special elections. Votes will happen on the next regularly scheduled Election Day.

I don't want to be burdened with voting if it's not directly in my neighborhood.

All voters pay tax dollars for county-wide services. When a new development requires new roads, sewer, schools, police and fire services, we all pay, whether it is in our neighborhood or not. Is a new development affordable for the community? We should all get a vote before we're forced to pay.

Won't Amendment 4 cut jobs that Florida needs?

Overdevelopment crashed Florida's economy, leaving us with empty buildings and foreclosed subdivisions. Our local master plans have plenty of land set aside for development and builders could be building right now if it weren't for the busted real estate bubble. In fact, there's enough land set aside in Florida's local comprehensive plans right now accommodate 100 million people - five times more than the 18 million people we have living here now.

It is ridiculous to suggest that giving people a vote will affect the job market.

What about my property rights?

Amendment 4 protects everyone's property rights, because it ensures that new development is both affordable and desirable for the entire community. As it stands now, politicians rubber-stamped so many plan changes that they overbuilt, crashed our economy, and hurt everyone's property values. The rights of powerful developers are too often considered more important than the rights of existing residents. Amendment 4 will provide better balance. It protects our property rights, and our property values, because it gives existing residents a seat at the table - a chance to vote.

What about St. Pete Beach?

The problem in St. Pete Beach was that land speculators wanted to put more high rises in the quaint beachfront community. They fought with each other and tried to bypass Florida's long-established planning process. It was NOT the same process as Amendment 4 at all. What happened there demonstrates the need for Amendment 4, because Amendment 4 allows voters to veto developments that will endanger the local quality of life.

We elected our local officials, isn't it our job to trust the decisions that they make?

Our homes and communities are too important to leave in the hands of politicians, lobbyists hired by developers and special interests. Candidates may claim that donations don't influence them, but deeds speak louder than words. Can we really trust them to keep the public's interest over the Big Developers who paid for their campaigns? Hometown Democracy will give citizens common-sense oversight over "pay-to-play" politics.

Shouldn't growth and development plans be left to the experts? What do I know about approving a change to a master growth plan?

The land speculators are just scared that voters will stand up for their own interests. They think that voters don't understand enough to be able to vote on growth and development. That's just wrong. Voters deserve a seat at the table for decisions that directly impact their homes, communities and taxes. Your local commission and local planners will study proposals and hold public hearings just like they do now. You'll just vote them up or down.

Florida needs to keep growing. Tourism is down and we need to be able to attract visitors by building and developing.

Hometown Democracy will not halt growth in Florida. What it will do is curb reckless real-estate speculation that leaves taxpayers footing the bill. It will give voters a chance to approve or veto changes to the overall growth plan, ensuring that development is affordable to the community and doesn't hurt existing taxpayers.

Who is the opposition to Amendment 4 and why do they care?

Let's face it; real estate speculation in Florida is VERY big business. This is the Big Money that overbuilt so much of Florida and crashed our economy, leaving us with foreclosed subdivisions and empty buildings. At the same time that they are poor-mouthing the bad economy, Amendment 4's opponents raised a whopping $6 million to try to deny you the right to vote, and they are talking about raising another $15 million.

Overdevelopment created eyesores and cost local taxpayers millions of dollars. Giving voters the chance to approve or veto projects will protect our homes and our pocketbooks.

Generally not. Unemployment is meant for those who are unemployed through no fault of their own. It would be very rare for the state to pay a person who quit voluntarily.

As mentioned above, generally not. However, due to the broadness of the question, there are exceptions to the rule. For instance, on page 9, under "Your benefit payments can be denied", in the Related Link below, You can quit voluntarily and receive benefits if: you quit as a result of conditions attributable to your employment (i.e. harassment, toxic work conditions, terms of work contrary to those when hired, etc.); or reasons of personal illness or disability. Its best to contact the state's employment security office for clarification.
It depends on the reasons you quit.

The approximate driving time and mileage information -

Between: Dallas, TX

and: Pensacola, FL

Driving miles: 695

Driving time: 10 hrs 45 mins

- is based on traveling non-stop in good driving conditions. Driving time does not take into consideration conditions which may extend travel time such as weather, road work, border crossings, and rush hour traffic in urban areas. Mileage denotes actual road miles covered as opposed to Point A to Point B linear distances on a map.