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Committee moves to align petition signatures and filing fees with Florida statutes
Summary
The Charter Review Committee agreed Dec. 15 to revise petition and filing-fee language to match state law—1% of registered voters for initiative signatures and a filing fee tied to a percentage of salary—after the city attorney flagged current flat-fee figures as inconsistent with Florida statute.
The Palm Coast Charter Review Committee on Dec. 15 accepted the city attorney’s guidance that petition thresholds and candidate filing fees in the working charter must conform to Florida law.
Dr. Dumont told the panel the attorney’s note requires signatures equal to 1% of the population for initiative petitions, a filing fee equal to at least 3% of the officeholder’s salary, and an election assessment fee of 1% of salary. “We’re going to have to revise the language from the $100/$400 to the 1% / 3% framework,” he said.
Those requirements mirror state municipal-election provisions cited during the meeting. Committee members who have seen other municipalities’ rules urged verification with staff, noting some Florida cities have historically used flat fees or very small signature counts that are exceptions to the general statute. Chair O’Brien asked staff to follow up with the city attorney and to present revised draft language at the next meeting.
Why it matters: the change affects how citizens place measures or referendums on the ballot and raises the threshold for initiative petitions. Committee members said aligning the charter language with statute avoids legal conflicts and prepares the charter for voter review.
Committee next steps: staff will update the working draft to replace flat-dollar filing numbers with percent-based requirements and will circulate the revised wording for committee review before the January meeting.
