• Source: 2024 Florida Amendment 4

Florida Amendment 4 was a proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution, which failed on November 5, 2024. Through a statewide referendum, the amendment achieved 57% support among voters in the U.S. state of Florida, short of the 60% supermajority required by law. Despite its failure to pass, the double digit percentage majority that it received is considered by some to be indicative of a nationwide consensus on abortion, similar to similar referendums in other moderately conservative swing states such as Michigan, Ohio, Missouri, and Arizona, the last of which had an abortion rights amendment pass with a 3/5 majority, although unlike Florida it did not actually need one.
The amendment would have enshrined a right to abortion in the Florida Constitution before fetal viability (generally considered to be between 21 and 24 weeks gestational age) and nullified then-existing statutes such as the Heartbeat Protection Act. It would have also permitted abortion after viability (23 weeks to birth) for any reason a healthcare provider determined to be related to health.




Content


The ballot summary for the amendment stated the following:No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability, or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's health-care provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature's constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion.
The initiative would have added the following text to Article I of the Florida Constitution:

Except as provided in Article X, Section 22, no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability, or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's health-care provider.




Financial impact statement


The financial impact statement for the amendment stated the following:The proposed amendment would result in significantly more abortions and fewer live births per year in Florida. The increase in abortions could be even greater if the amendment invalidates laws requiring parental consent before minors undergo abortions and those ensuring only licensed physicians perform abortions. There is also uncertainty about whether the amendment will require the state to subsidize abortions with public funds. Litigation to resolve those and other uncertainties will result in additional costs to the state government and state courts that will negatively impact the state budget. An increase in abortions may negatively affect the growth of state and local revenues over time. Because the fiscal impact of increased abortions on state and local revenues and costs cannot be estimated with precision, the total impact of the proposed amendment is indeterminate.
The financial impact statement was strongly criticized by amendment supporters, such as Floridians Protecting Freedom, who accused it of being a misleading political statement.




Legal challenges






= Ballot access

=
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, a Republican, has opposed the ballot initiative since October 2023, when she asked the Florida Supreme Court to analyze the ballot initiative. In November 2023, Moody urged the Florida Supreme Court to block the ballot initiative, as she questioned the definition of "viability" and argued that the ballot initiative will "lay ticking time bombs that will enable abortion proponents later to argue that the amendment has a much broader meaning than voters would ever have thought".
The Florida Supreme Court in April 2024 approved Florida Amendment 4 to be placed on the ballot for voting in November 2024, because it adequately satisfied the requirements set. Despite Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody arguing that some of the language was deceptive, the Florida Supreme Court instead ruled that "it cannot be said that the ballot summary will mislead voters regarding the actual text of the proposed amendment." The Florida Supreme Court further stated that "the broad sweep of this proposed amendment is obvious in the language of the summary. Denying this requires a flight from reality", while ruling that there is "no basis for concluding that the proposed amendment is facially invalid under the United States Constitution."




= Attempted censorship of campaign advertising

=
On October 4, 2024, the Florida Department of Health's general counsel John Wilson sent cease and desist notices to multiple Florida television stations, threatening prosecution if they did not retract a campaign advertisement for Amendment 4. The department alleged the ad falsely implied that abortions to protect the life of the mother were not possible under current state law; while the Heartbeat Protection Act does contain exceptions for these scenarios, they are considered vague, and there have been reports of patients turned away by Florida hospitals due to uncertainties under the law. The letter asserted that the ad "threatens or impairs" the health of Florida residents by encouraging them to delay their abortion or pursue one out-of-state, therefore constituting a "sanitary nuisance" punishable as a criminal misdemeanor under state law. One station—WINK-TV in Fort Myers—complied with the cease and desist order.
The threat was criticized by Floridians Protecting Freedom (FPF)—the organization who produced the ad—who stated that it was an "unconstitutional state action", and "a textbook example of government coercion that violates the First Amendment." FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel stated that "threats against broadcast stations for airing content that conflicts with the government's views are dangerous and undermine the fundamental principle of free speech." On October 12, it was reported that Wilson had quietly resigned.
On October 16, FPF filed a lawsuit against the Florida government, alleging "unconstitutional coercion and viewpoint discrimination" in its threats against television stations. The suit argued that the Florida government "cannot use its coercive powers as the state to attempt to chill or suppress the speech of FPF or others who would speak in support of the amendment or facilitate that speech. Wilson and surgeon general Joseph Ladapo are named in the lawsuit. The next day, a 12-day restraining order was granted against Ladapo by Judge Mark Walker, stating "to keep it simple for the State of Florida: it's the First Amendment, stupid."
In an affidavit, Wilson revealed that he had been directed to send the letters by Ryan Dean Newman and Jed Doty—the general counsel and deputy general counsel of Governor Ron DeSantis. He stated that he was not involved in the writing of the letters, and that he had resigned from his position in condemnation of their actions. FPF subsequently dropped Wilson from the suit.




Support and opposition



Florida governor Ron DeSantis in April 2024 criticized Florida Amendment 4 as "radical" and "very, very extreme". Florida State Senator Shevrin Jones supported the amendment, stating "Abortion IS healthcare, and every Floridian should be able to access the care they need without government interference."
Former President Donald Trump, who is a Florida resident and the Republican presidential nominee for the 2024 presidential election, has stated that he will vote "No" on the amendment, after previously stating that he is "going to be voting that we need more than six weeks".




Polling


A 60% supermajority vote is required for the amendment to be approved.




See also


Abortion in Florida
2024 Florida Amendment 3
2022 Kansas abortion referendum
2022 California Proposition 1
2022 Michigan Proposal 3
2022 Vermont Proposal 5
November 2023 Ohio Issue 1
2024 Arizona Proposition 139
2024 Colorado Amendment 79
2024 Maryland Question 1
2024 Missouri Amendment 3
2024 Montana Initiative 128
2024 Nebraska Initiative 439
2024 Nevada Question 6
2024 New York Proposal 1
2024 South Dakota Amendment G




Notes



Partisan clients




References






External links


Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion 23-07 at Florida elections full text and other official information
Advisory Opinion to the Attorney General re: Limiting Government Interference with Abortion – issued April 1, 2024 by the Supreme Court of Florida
Florida Amendment 4, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) at Ballotpedia

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Presiden Amerika Serikat
• Barack Obama
• Konfederasi Amerika
• Kebebasan akademik
• Perbudakan
• John F. Kennedy
• Kepulauan Cayman
• 2024 Florida Amendment 4
• 2024 Florida Amendment 3
• 2024 Florida elections
• 2018 Florida Amendment 4
• 2024 Missouri Amendment 3
• 2024 Colorado Amendment 79
• 2024 United States presidential election in Florida
• 2024 South Dakota Amendment G
• 2024 New York Proposal 1
• 2008 Florida Amendment 2