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       2017 CRC                                                  P 6003
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                                             20176003er
    1                                                                   
    2                             REVISION 3                            
    3   A proposal to revise the State Constitution by the Constitution 
    4                   Revision Commission of Florida.                 
    5  
    6         A proposed revision relating to education; amending
    7         Section 4 of Article IX and creating a new section in
    8         Article XII of the State Constitution to establish a
    9         limitation on the period for which a person may serve
   10         as a member of a district school board; amending
   11         Section 4 of Article IX of the State Constitution to
   12         specify which schools are operated, controlled, and
   13         supervised by a school board; and creating a new
   14         section in Article IX of the State Constitution to
   15         require the Legislature to provide for the promotion
   16         of civic literacy in public education.
   17          
   18  Be It Proposed by the Constitution Revision Commission of
   19  Florida:
   20  
   21         Section 4 of Article IX of the State Constitution is
   22  amended, and a new section is added to that article, to read:
   23                             ARTICLE IX                            
   24                              EDUCATION                            
   25         SECTION 4. School districts; school boards.—
   26         (a) Each county shall constitute a school district;
   27  provided, two or more contiguous counties, upon vote of the
   28  electors of each county pursuant to law, may be combined into
   29  one school district. In each school district there shall be a
   30  school board composed of five or more members chosen by vote of
   31  the electors in a nonpartisan election for appropriately
   32  staggered terms of four years, as provided by law. A person may
   33  not appear on the ballot for re-election to the office of school
   34  board if, by the end of the current term of office, the person
   35  would have served, or but for resignation would have served, in
   36  that office for eight consecutive years.
   37         (b) The school board shall operate, control, and supervise
   38  all free public schools established by the district school board
   39  within the school district and determine the rate of school
   40  district taxes within the limits prescribed herein. Two or more
   41  school districts may operate and finance joint educational
   42  programs.
   43         SECTION . Civic literacy.—As education is essential to the
   44  preservation of the rights and liberties of the people, the
   45  legislature shall provide by law for the promotion of civic
   46  literacy in order to ensure that students enrolled in public
   47  education understand and are prepared to exercise their rights
   48  and responsibilities as citizens of a constitutional republic.
   49  
   50         A new section is added to Article XII of the State
   51  Constitution to read:
   52                             ARTICLE XII                           
   53                              SCHEDULE                             
   54         Limitation on terms of office for members of a district
   55  school board.-This section and the amendment to Section 4 of
   56  Article IX imposing term limits for the terms of office for
   57  members of a district school board shall take effect on the date
   58  it is approved by the electorate, but no service in a term of
   59  office which commenced prior to November 6, 2018, will be
   60  counted against the limitation imposed by this amendment.
   61  
   62  BE IT FURTHER PROPOSED that the following statement be placed on
   63  the ballot:
   64  
   65                      CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT                     
   66                 ARTICLE IX, SECTION 4, NEW SECTION                
   67                      ARTICLE XII, NEW SECTION                     
   68         SCHOOL BOARD TERM LIMITS AND DUTIES; PUBLIC SCHOOLS.—
   69  Creates a term limit of eight consecutive years for school board
   70  members and requires the legislature to provide for the
   71  promotion of civic literacy in public schools. Currently,
   72  district school boards have a constitutional duty to operate,
   73  control, and supervise all public schools. The amendment
   74  maintains a school board’s duties to public schools it
   75  establishes, but permits the state to operate, control, and
   76  supervise public schools not established by the school board.