The Florida Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday for and against the constitutional amendment to ease class-size restrictions in public schools.
The Florida Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state, originally brought the lawsuit to have Amendment 8 stricken from the ballot. They claim the language of the amendment does not specify that it will lead to less spending to keep class sizes down.
We dont see how you can justify that kind of omission in a ballot summary that is going to make such a fundamental change, Ronald Meyer, a lawyer representing FEA, told the court.
Leon County Circuit Court Chief Judge Charles Francis has already ruled that the ballot summary was very clear and unambiguous, and an appeals court forwarded the case to the Supreme Court for review because of the timeliness of the case before the election.
At the hearing Wednesday, Justice Barbara Pariente seemed to take Judge Francis view.
How can anyone read this and not understand that if they change the size ... that flowing from that will probably be a decrease in how much the Legislature or the state will have to fund? she countered.
Despite the earlier ruling and the reticence of the court to strike the amendment from the ballot, opponents of Amendment 8 are confident the court will lean their way.
When asked at a press conference Tuesday about the case, state Sen. Alex Villalobos, R-Miami, said, Well win.
But Amendment 8 supporters are equally confident the issue will be decided by the voters, not the courts. State Rep. Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, started the "Right Size Class Size" campaign two weeks ago to urge voters to support the amendment at the ballot box, hardly a sign that the amendment wont make it there.
Amendment 8 would allow schools to use averages instead of strict class-size caps in determining class sizes, giving administrators what amendment supporters say is much-needed flexibility in lieu of resorting to busing, canceling classes and doubling up on teachers in classrooms. Supporters also point to a study by Florida Tax Watch that states up to $1 billion could be saved if the amendment is passed.
Opponents counter that any money saved is unlikely to be spent in the classroom and that schools should be able to cope with the requirements without sacrificing students education.
A decision is expected to be rendered Thursday, but Amendment 8 will appear on the ballot anyway because it is too close to the Nov. 2 general election to alter the ballots. The court will merely decide whether the votes on the amendment will be counted.
Even if the Supreme Court allows the votes to be counted, Amendment 8 supporters have a hard fight ahead of them. A recent poll shows just 35 percent of voters are in favor of the amendment. Under Florida law, it needs the approval of 60 percent of the electorate to pass.
Reach Gray Rohrer at grohrer@sunshinestatenews.com, or at (850) 727-0859.
