| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard and Gary Fineout | | Presented by |  | | | |  Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during an event with Florida Physicians Against Amendment 4 in Coral Gables, Florida, on Oct. 21, 2024. | Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images | Good morning and happy Halloween. Gov. Ron DeSantis has been issuing a scary warning to Floridians about the possibility of voters approving constitutional amendments on pot and abortion. If they pass, it’s “playing for keeps,” he cautioned this week in Clearwater and in Tampa. “Once it’s in there, the Legislature cannot amend it through normal legislation,” he said. “This is something that is going to be a part of Florida forever.” “This trumps anything that’s in Florida law," he continued. "The Legislature cannot legislate around this. This will be permanent.” While it’s true the Legislature would be unable to ignore the amendments entirely, lawmakers can still make some changes to how exactly they’re carried out — and you can bet there will be lawsuits over implementation from outside advocacy organizations. But let’s be clear about all of this. Florida has a history of its governors and lawmakers challenging voter-approved referendums , with legislators retooling and interpreting ones on class size, conservation, medical marijuana and restoring voting rights for convicted felons. If the latest marijuana measure passes, the Legislature will still have to make decisions about where tax revenue will go from sales. State Sen. Joe Gruters (R-Sarasota) has been pushing a measure to ban public smoking of marijuana despite supporting the overall referendum. Other options include banning marijuana sales near schools or letting counties and cities opt out of sales. The Legislature also might have some ways to shape ambiguous language in the abortion referendum if it passes. While it’s clear from the amendment’s language that a 6-or-15-week abortion limit would be off the table, they could, for instance, try to specify which health care providers can offer abortions. The amendment’s language does not limit care specifically to doctors but instead gives “health care providers” broad discretion to determine fetal viability, as well as to decide which health reasons qualify patients for abortions after viability. Incoming Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez, the Miami Republican who will take over next month, acknowledged that legislators will have a role to play. “If one or both pass, which would be an unfortunate position to be in, the Legislature will go forward with whatever responsibility it has to implement those amendments,” said Perez, who is opposed to both measures. Any of these attempts would almost surely face legal challenges by amendment backers, making the whole process time-consuming and expensive. And agreements among lawmakers over exactly which direction to go in could create strife and gridlock. But that doesn’t mean the Legislature can’t try to water down the measures, especially while keeping in mind that DeSantis appointed five of seven state Supreme Court justices who’d eventually be tasked with looking at any regulations. Florida courts overall have been increasingly reluctant to second guess the Legislature. In its majority opinion that allowed the amendment on the ballot, the Supreme Court stated “the proposed amendment would not prohibit the Legislature from passing laws ‘interfering’ with abortion after the point of viability and when the mother’s health is not in jeopardy.” Finally, it’s worth acknowledging that if both measures fail, that doesn’t mean it’ll be the last word in Florida on abortion or pot. A future governor and Legislature could still have broad leeway to expand — or contract — abortion rights or debate a marijuana recreational legalization bill. — Kimberly Leonard and Gary Fineout Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget in the campaign reporting that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com.
| | | | A message from Uber: Thank You, Florida Uber Drivers For stepping up during Hurricanes Milton and Helene by helping thousands of Floridians get to shelters and support centers. Your efforts helped keep our communities safe. Learn how Uber drivers stepped up. | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Property owners speak with an official as they process the damage to their homes and community following Hurricane Milton on Manasota Key in Englewood, Florida, on Oct. 13, 2024. | Rebecca Blackwell/AP | CAT FUND UPDATE — “Florida insurance fund facing $4.6B in storm losses — but 'hurricane tax' unlikely,” reports POLITICO’s Gary Fineout . “A state-created fund that backs up private insurers in Florida may have to pay as much as $4.6 billion to cover losses from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, deadly storms that ripped across the state in the past month. But state officials remain optimistic about the overall health of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund and, right now, are not predicting a need to borrow money, a move that would trigger a so-called “hurricane tax” on residents.” GEN Z VIBES — “Florida's 'intellectual freedom' survey: College students overwhelmingly believe campuses protect free speech,” reports POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury . “Florida’s free speech survey, claimed by organizers to be the largest ever conducted, shows that campuses do not appear to be overrun with, as Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis labels it, ‘woke indoctrination.’ Yet, the data also shows there are some lingering concerns among faculty members about self censorship, and a seemingly high number of students who found it ‘acceptable’ to block students from attending certain speeches.” WHOOPSIE — “Florida accidentally banned banks from doing business in Sunshine State,” reports The Wall Street Journal’s Alexander Saeedy . “Banks for four weeks weren’t allowed to sell securities such as corporate bonds or shares of private companies in the state of Florida because of a law that went into effect Oct. 1. The law sought to make it easier for startups and other companies to fundraise while ensuring that bad actors with a criminal record couldn’t take advantage of Floridians. But it wasn’t written as the Florida Legislature had intended. The law appeared to ban any bank that had been punished by the Securities and Exchange Commission or other authorities from selling a range of securities to investors, according to people familiar with the matter.” CATCH-22 — “More money, more problems: Loss of benefits can stop Floridians from seeking higher pay,” reports Max Klaver of the Miami Herald . “[A third] of polled Florida businesses reported employees turning down jobs for fear of losing benefits. Without state help, those workers wouldn’t be able to afford the cost of having a family on the salary they’d be making. Part of the problem is that income qualifications are low — as prices have risen, so have wages, excluding many financially struggling households from accessing benefits. The federal government underwrites many of the childcare benefits that Florida families receive. As such, income qualifications depend on wages nationwide, not Florida wages.” CUTTING BACK — “As gambling addiction surges, Florida’s hotline stops receiving funding from the state,” reports Shira Moolten of the South Florida Sun Sentinel . “Florida’s helpline is operating without $2 million in funding from the Legislature, thanks to a dispute with the state gambling control board, advocates say. The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling, founded in 1988, has long stood as the main gambling addiction prevention organization in the state, according to executive director Jennifer Kruse. … [It is] a lifeline for gambling addicts in their worst moments that has become increasingly strained since online sports betting became fully operational last December.”
| | | | A message from Uber:   | | | | 15-MEMBER COMMITTEE — “UF names committee to pick Ben Sasse’s replacement as president,” reports the News Service of Florida . “The search committee will be chaired by Board of Trustees member Rahul Patel, an attorney who received his bachelor’s and law degrees from UF. Other committee members include two UF trustees, alumni, a student representative, a leader of the UF Foundation and Charles Lydecker, a representative of the state university system’s Board of Governors.” CUT OFF FROM BENEFITS — “Immigrant workers who are building South Florida fight for better pay, work conditions,” reports the Miami Herald’s Syra Ortiz Blanes. “Over a half a dozen workers, all but one an immigrant, told the Miami Herald that wage theft is commonplace, that the arduous labor is done in unbearable heat and unsafe conditions, and that several of them had suffered injuries or lost colleagues in accidents.”
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | | | 
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) waves before former President Donald Trump arrives at a campaign rally at the Resch Center in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. | Alex Brandon/AP | CAMPAIGN ROUNDUP — Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) is campaigning with former President Donald Trump in Atlanta … Democratic Rep. Kathy Castor voted early on Wednesday. NOT SWINGY — “Something has been missing in Florida this presidential election year,” by WLRN’s Tom Hudson. “Florida used to see a gold rush of spending by candidates and special interest groups during presidential election years. But not this year. Not on TV. And not online. Digital targeted ad spending can be counted in the thousands of dollars. … Four years ago, $177 million was spent by presidential campaigns on advertising in Florida. This year, that spending has all but disappeared — dropping by more than 99 percent — according to advertising tracking company AdImpact.” POLICY IMPLICATIONS — “A million Floridians would be kicked out under Trump’s mass deportation plans, report says,” by the Miami Herald’s Syra Ortiz Blanes . “The American Immigration Council, based in Washington D.C., put numbers to Trump’s sweeping plan to deport 13.3 million undocumented or otherwise removable immigrants in the United States should he return to the White House. The immigration advocacy think tank found that the policy would be economically devastating for Florida, one of the states with the largest foreign-born populations, as well as for the country overall.” LOOMER’D — “Rick Scott appears on Laura Loomer’s podcast a week before Election Day,” by Kirby Wilson of the Tampa Bay Times . “The Republican senator’s decision to appear on Loomer’s show a week before the election shows how confident Scott seems to be in his chances of winning another term in the race against Democrat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell. While Trump’s team saw Loomer as enough of a political liability to tell reporters she had no bearing on the campaign’s policy decisions or strategy, Scott spent one of the final nights before the election with her. It also shows the lane Scott appears to be occupying in the race for Senate leader. He’s running as the Trumpiest candidate.” ON ALERT — “Machete-waving Trump supporter arrested outside Florida early voting site,” reports David Bauerlein of the Jacksonville Florida Times-Union . “Neptune Beach Police Chief Michael Key Jr. angrily denounced the actions of an 18-year-old man who waved a machete during a confrontation at the busy early voting site for the Beaches and said it crossed the line from First Amendment speech to criminal activity. The arrest came after a group of teenagers supporting former President Donald Trump showed up at the polling site.”
| | Odds and ends | | — Sen. Marco Rubio took President Joe Biden’s “garbage” comments to heart and updated his profile picture for his personal account on X. BIRTHDAYS: Former Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuño of Steptoe and Johnson ... former U.S. Rep. David Jolly.
| | | | A message from Uber: Thank You, Florida Uber Drivers
In the face of Hurricanes Milton and Helene, Uber drivers gave Floridians rides to shelters and support centers. We thank the thousands of Uber drivers who went above and beyond, ensuring that during a time of crisis, no one was left behind. Your dedication made a difference when it mattered most. Learn how Uber drivers stepped up. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
