Members of the Finance Committee, chaired by Dr. Gwen J. Chandler, At-Large Group 5, are in the process of taking a closer look at the true costs associated with the referendums that will appear on the November ballot. The referendums, which will appear on the general election ballot November 5th, include the Voluntary Universal Pre-Kindergarten Education Amendment and the Reduce Class Size Amendment. The committee plans to invite members of the Duval Delegation to testify on the potential ramifications of the various issues before voters.
Preliminary data indicate that should the initiatives be approved by voters, the cost to implement them may be astronomical. Figures released by the Office of Economic and Demographic Research, The Florida Legislature, show, for example, that the infrastructure costs associated with the Reduce Class Size Amendment may be as high as $27.5 billion with annual operating costs nearly $2.5 billion.
Click the file below to view the attachment. (The file below is in the Adobe Acrobat PDF file format. To open these files, you must have the Acrobat Reader. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, click here for a FREE download.)
'Clearly, persons in positions of leadership need to take a close look at the true cost of these initiatives. We may not want to be hog-tied into paying for programs that, while well intentioned, may not be affordable,' said Dr. Gwen Chandler. 'Our committee plans to focus sharply on these ballot initiatives for the good of all Floridians.'