Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Amendment 5 Removed from Ballot

Great news! The Florida Supreme Court has ruled that Amendment 5 be removed from the ballot.

Only hours after the Florida Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the appeal, the Court issued a unanimous ruling affirming the decision of the Circuit Court, keeping the controversial constitutional tax overhaul off the ballot.

The Court''s decision marks the end of a four-month battle as a broad coalition of business groups, including the AAF - 4th District, fought to defeat the proposal. The Court''s decision effectively prevented what could have been a costly media war, as opponents fought to inform Florida voters about the many problems of Amendment 5.

The proposal, advanced earlier this spring by the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission, came to be popularly known as the "tax swap" amendment. Under the guise of offering property tax relief to Floridians, Amendment 5 could have opened the door to a tax on advertising services. The proposed constitutional amendment would have cut the property tax by an average of 25 percent — an estimated $9 billion in 2011. The property tax is the main source of education funding in Florida. The amendment would have required the legislature to maintain same level of education funding. While it did not mandate where the new revenues would come from, it specified that the legislature could have raised the six-cent sales tax by one cent and instituted a possible variety of new taxes.

Most in the advertising – and in the greater business community – believed this change would ultimately necessitate looking at a new tax on services. The legislature tried a similar move in 1987, only to see the unpopular measure repealed less than six months later.

The AAF - 4th District and our Florida Federations have been hard at work from the start of this issue educating the public and lawmakers as to the potential harmful economic consequences of this proposal. As a grassroots organization, the support and interest in defeating this amendment from our membership has been nothing short of amazing. Protecting our industry is the primary focus of the AAF and why local Federations and Districts exist. Our alliances with other trade organizations have allowed us the resources to fight this amendment. Fortunately, the fight is longer necessary – unfortunately, the great creative campaign set to launch is also no longer needed.

The service tax threat is always looming on the distant horizon and so we will continue to be vigilant. As a part of our efforts, we hold the annual "Rally in Tally" in April giving us a opportunity to meet with legislators and inform them of the positive impact advertising has on Florida''s economy.

Our Government Relations efforts are funded through the Florida Ad Pac. These funds allow us to support those candidates that support and protect the advertising industry. With election season upon us, we urge you to donate today.

Thank you again for your continued support – and a special thanks to those members who went above and beyond the call to help in this battle. The appropriate recognition will be forthcoming from the District.