Written by Don Byrd
Opponents of a proposed constitutional amendment headed to the ballot box in Florida scored a big victory last month when a judge threw out the official ballot summary for being misleading. Without a legal summary the referendum would never make it to voters, and that would be a good thing. The troubling measure would undo more than 100 years of religious liberty protection by allowing taxpayer funds to flow directly to religious organizations.
Now that the state’s Attorney General however has rewritten the summary in accordance with the judge’s ruling, advocates are not planning a challenge to the summary itself.
A lawyer for education groups and clergy members said on Tuesday that it would be non-productive to challenge Bondi’s fix.
Attorney Ron Meyer said that’s because Bondi’s rewrite is identical to one the judge had suggested.
Meyer said his clients, though, haven’t yet decided whether to appeal another decision by Lewis. It upheld a new law that lets the attorney general rewrite flawed ballot summaries.
