URGENT CALL TO ACTION – STOP FLORESCENT GREEN LICENSE PLATES

CALL TO ACTION FOR FLOOR VOTES ON HB 1085, SB 1252, AND HB 833

FLOOR VOTES THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2023 FOR HB 1085 AND SB 1252 (RED LETTERING BILLS) and ADDS FLOURESCENT GREEN LICENSE PLATES

Major Concerns:

• Amendments filed by Senator Lauren Book for SB 1252: The department shall assign a distinctive, fluorescent green license plate to vehicles owned, leased or operated by persons who are designated as sexual predators under s. 775.21 11 or are subject to registration as sexual offenders under s. 943.0435 or s. 944.607, or who have a similar designation or are subject to a similar registration under the laws of another jurisdiction. Such person must display the distinctive, fluorescent green license plate on any vehicle owned, leased, or operated by him or her as required in subsection (1), and may not disguise or obscure the plate.  This will be voted on Thursday, April 27, 2023.
• Lauren Book has also filed an amendment to SB 1252 bringing back the red coloring on the driver’s licenses. This amendment will be voted on Thursday, April 27, 2023.
• HB 1085 and SB 1252, bills that would require information on the driver’s licenses to be in red, have a floor vote this Thursday, April 27, 2023.
• HB 833, the bill that would require the 24-hour vacation rental reporting, has passed through all its committees. A date for the floor vote has not been given at the time of the posting of this Call To Action.
• The Senate has an amendment filed to remove the red lettering language from SB 1252. The House has not done so, yet, for HB 1085.
• The Analysis for HB 1085 continues to leave out the Louisiana and Alabama court rulings.
• The Analysis for HB 833 has REMOVED the warnings by FDLE of possible significant litigation due to the changing of the definition of a temporary residence, along with other major concerns about this bill and its expansion of registration laws in Florida.

PLEASE Do the Following:

• Email or call all 160 legislators (or as many as you can).
• Let the Senators (and Representatives) know that you OPPOSE the coloring of the license plates that Senator Book has proposed in her amendments, along with the red lettering on the front of driver’s licenses.
• Let the Florida Representatives know that you OPPOSE only the part of HB 1085 that would require the red lettering on the driver’s licenses for people required to be on the sex offense registry.
• Ask the Florida Senators to vote YES on Senator DiCeglie’s amendment to SB 1252 that removes the red lettering language, and vote NO on Senator Book’s amendment that includes the red lettering and adds florescent green license plates.
• Let the Florida Representatives know that you OPPOSE the part of HB 833 that would require the reporting for registrants who stay in a vacation rental for 24 hours.
• Ask family members and friends to also contact the legislators to OPPOSE these three bills.

Talking Points:

• Lauren Book’s amendments will have registrants along with their spouse or significant other, teenage sons and daughters, and others driving with a target on their backs for vigilantes to come after in a way that this country has never seen before.
• Lauren Book’s red lettering on the driver’s licenses has been declared unconstitutional in the Louisiana and Alabama court cases.
• The analysis for SB 1252 included information about the rulings for the Louisiana and Alabama court cases that determined the colored markings on driver’s licenses are unconstitutional, but the analysis for HB 1085 continues to exclude it. Why?
• There are currently two court cases, one in the Northern District of Florida and the other in the Southern District, challenging the markings on the driver’s licenses for registrants. If passed into law, the red lettering and 24-hour reporting for vacation rentals will only give the plaintiffs more evidence that the registry laws in Florida are punitive and therefore unconstitutional.
• Attorneys are prepared to file a lawsuit, along with an injunction, if the red lettering on the licenses becomes law. People are uniting throughout the state of Florida to fight the possible passage of this unconstitutional law.
• It is the responsibility of the Florida Legislators to ensure that all laws passed in this state are constitutional. The citizens of Florida should not be the ones having to file costly lawsuits to make sure that all laws are constitutional.  Legislators, do the job that you were elected to do.
• The analysis for HB 833 has REMOVED the warnings from the FDLE: FDLE recommends the bill does not amend the definition of “temporary residence” for people on the sex offense registry; the 24-hour reporting of stays at vacation rentals for registrants could seriously impact Florida’s registration laws for people on the registry causing courts to rule that the Florida registry is punitive; the 24-hour reporting could create a burden on Florida sheriffs’ offices; FDLE has warned of possible significant litigation if the 24-hour reporting is left in HB 833.  All of these warnings have been in the previous analyses but have been taken out of the current analysis.  Why?

Emails and Phone Numbers for Florida House of Representatives:

Emails and Phone Numbers for Florida Senators:

Every email/call gets heard and tallied.  Every respectful conversation with a staffer is an excellent opportunity to change a mind about our community with someone who has direct contact with a lawmaker.  YOUR EFFORTS DO MAKE A DIFFERENCE!