After the Florida Supreme Court ruled that current Congressional district maps violated anti-gerrymandering laws, State Legislators were brought back to Special Session to resolve the matter, but could not agree on a plan. The bone of contention was the drawing out of Congressional seats in Hillsborough County and lines leading into Orange County. The special session ended abruptly and without an agreed upon map. Earlier this week, Leon County Judge Terry Lewis appealed for guidance to the Florida Supreme Court to resolve this mess. Yesterday, Florida’s Supreme Court offered the requested guidance, by sending the mess back to the trial court where the legal battle began. The ruling holds firm to an October 17 deadline set earlier to finalize a map.
The ruling leaves open how the final map can be agreed upon, including another special session, or perhaps a remedial map that would ultimately be decided upon by Judge Lewis. Chief Judge Jorge Labara wrote, “We remain mindful that the task of congressional redistricting under our current constitutional structure fall first and foremost upon the Legislature”. The decision gives the Legislature an “opportunity to correct the map’s constitutional deficiencies”. Whether leaders of the Florida Legislature take advantage of this opportunity remains to be seen. Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, has been open to the idea of another special session to complete this work. “As we have expressed since the conclusion of the special session, the Senate is willing to reconvene to fulfill our constitutional obligation”. After the decision was announced yesterday, the Senator said in a statement, “This decision has not precluded the opportunity for the House and Senate to draw a map, and each chamber should take advantage of the ..time to address the differences” in the plans that have been drawn up thus far. Florida House Speaker Steve Crisafulli (R-Merritt Island) was measured in his reaction to yesterday’s decision. “We look forward to further reviewing the order and determining our next steps”. We have the makings of a classic game of Kick-the-can.
All this going on as rank and file legislators return to their districts after another expensive special session failed to do the job they were sent to. Many throughout the State held breakfast meetings or town halls to apologize to voters for the “dysfunction” of this year’s Legislative session and subsequent special sessions. Rep. Patrick Rooney (R-Palm Beach Gardens) said in remarks, “We can’t keep acting this way. It’s going to have an adverse impact on all of us at some point”. Some wonder if we are already at the point.
