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Attack plan is 'no' to them all
By STEVE BOUSQUET, Times Staff Writer TALLAHASSEE -- Lobbyists for some of Florida's most influential businesses are discussing plans for a costly campaign to oppose every constitutional mendment on the November ballot. The idea is to persuade Floridians to just vote no. It's the brainchild of former House Speaker John Thrasher, now an executive branch lobbyist, and Jon Shebel, president of Associated Industries of Florida. Nothing has been decided, but Thrasher said initiatives to reduce class sizes and provide universal prekindergarten would cost billions of dollars to implement. It is more practical to oppose all the questions than mount individual campaigns, he said. "I don't think you can address them all individually. I think you wipe the slate clean and start all over again," Thrasher said. The campaign also would take aim at proposals to require the Legislature to examine every sales tax exemption, reinstate the Board of Regents, protect pregnant pigs from being confined in small pens and ban smoking in restaurants. John Sowinski, a political adviser to the Smoke Free for Health campaign, said the proposal sounds like an effort by business strategists to make money. He predicted it would fall flat. "It seems like bad strategy," Sowinski said. "But it's good consulting practice-building." Sowinski said it is a myth, perpetrated by lawmakers, business groups and editorial writers, that citizen initiatives are out of control. He said about half of the questions on the 2002 ballot were placed there by the Legislature, including one that revises the legal definition of capital punishment and goes on for 649 words. The Legislature is exempt from the 75-word limit that applies to citizen initiatives. "The Tallahassee insiders are perturbed," Sowinski said. "They can't stand how irrelevant they generally are to these ballot initiatives." Shebel said a statewide campaign could cost $15-million, a figure that is hard to swallow when business interests already are underwriting statewide and legislative campaigns. "We've said it costs $15-million. Everybody winces, and it's still being talked about," Shebel said. Such a strategy carries big risks for big business. If several amendments pass easily despite the campaign, the business lobby could suffer a loss of credibility. It also could undermine amendments legislators and the governor favor. The summer vacation season also is a difficult time to build momentum for a political coalition. Still, the talking continues. Thrasher said he would take part in a Thursday conference call with businesses interested in joining the campaign. "There are some troublesome things on the ballot," Shebel said. "What are these things going to cost, and what are the governor and Legislature going to have to do in terms of tax increases to fund these things?" A state panel meets Thursday to determine the cost of the class size proposal. Damian Filer, a spokesman for the Coalition to Reduce Class Size, said the reason the proposal is so popular with voters is that it's an issue they live with daily. Filer said the citizen initiative is a remedy for legislative irresponsibility. "This affects real people in their everyday lives. This is hitting home to people because their own kids are in classes with too many other kids," Filer said. Businesses are most concerned with the Legislature's proposal to create a legislative committee to review tax exemptions over three years. In Orlando last week, representatives of Florida's pro sports teams, NASCAR and the pro golf tour met to discuss the implications of a possible tax on admissions, concessions and other sports-related expenditures.
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From the Times state desk
From the state wire
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