Subcommittee advances HB 1205 to tighten rules for citizen initiative petitions, sparking large public turnout

Representative Persons Maluca presented House Bill 1205, a package of reforms to Florida's citizen initiative petition process, telling the committee she aimed to "root out the problem and provide assurances that only those with a stake in our Constitution can change it." The sponsor outlined the bill's main provisions: a requirement that petition sponsors post a $1,000,000 bond before circulating petitions; a requirement that people who collect or handle initiative petitions be Florida residents and U.S. citizens; new identification fields on petition forms (driver's license, state ID number or the last four digits of a Social Security number); background checks and training for paid petition circulators; a 10‑day turnaround for turned-in petitions; and expanded criminal penalties, including potential uses of the Florida RICO statute for coordinated fraud. "Now the process has been taken over by out of state fraudsters looking to make a quick buck, and by special interests intent on buying their way into our Constitution," Persons Maluca said.

The hearing drew a long line of public testifiers. Opponents included students, grassroots organizers and civil‑liberties groups who argued the bill would make citizen-led initiatives effectively unaffordable for ordinary Floridians. "It places the bar of entry for the ability to petition our government at a million dollars that so many of the grassroots organizations and boots on the ground that make our country great don't have," said Casanova Dougherty, a 17‑year‑old testifier. Several speakers said the proposed ID requirements and tighter deadlines would chill volunteer activity and risk exposing personal data.

Supporters included policy and civic‑interest groups who argued the process had been abused in recent cycles by out‑of‑state actors and paid circulators who committed fraud. "HB 1205 establishes and introduces clear evidence based measures to improve the integrity and transparency of our initiative process," said Aaron DiPietro of Florida Family Voice and Florida Family Action. Christian Family Coalition representative John Labriola told the committee that the process needed protections and cited prior fines tied to alleged petition fraud. The sponsor cited reports from the Office of Election Crimes and Security within the Florida Department of State and preliminary audit data showing thousands of allegedly invalidized or mismatched petition forms.

Committee members questioned the policy and constitutional limits of several provisions. Representatives pressed the sponsor on the $1,000,000 bond amount, how the bill would treat volunteers and lawful noncitizens long resident in Florida, and what safeguards would protect sensitive personal information collected on petition forms. The sponsor said training, criminal penalties and the 10‑day turnaround — modeled on rules for third‑party voter registration organizations — would reduce the risk of bulk identity theft and other frauds and would put petitions into the hands of supervisors of elections sooner for verification.

After more than two hours of debate and more than a hundred members of the public appearing or waving in support or opposition, Faith called the roll and the subcommittee reported HB 1205 favorably. Representative Persons Maluca closed by reiterating she wanted to continue to work with colleagues on refinements. The bill will proceed to the next committee of reference.