STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, APPELLEE. (TWO CASES)
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The Florida Supreme Court upheld the City of Miami Beach's $5 million in bond issues after the city obtained validation votes from both freeholders alone and all qualified electors, anticipating the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in City of Phoenix v. Kolodziejski that bond elections must include all qualified voters, not just property owners. The decision confirms that the Phoenix ruling did not invalidate the entire electoral authorization but only the property-owner restriction, making the bonds validly authorized by the vote of all electors.
The court held that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Phoenix voided only the limitation restricting voting to freeholders, not the entire electoral authorization. The remaining authorization for conducting a bond election was therefore valid and effective, permitting the vote by all qualified electors without requiring new enabling legislation. The city's bonds were validly authorized by the vote of all electors.
[1] A change in the class of qualified voters for a bond election does not automatically void the authorization for the election itself.
[2] A U.S. …
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“A change of the class qualified to vote does not ipso facto void the entire authorization for an election to be held.”
Establishes the core holding that restricting the class of voters does not invalidate the underlying election authorization.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe City of Miami Beach proposed two bond issues—$2.5 million for sanitation facilities and $2.5 million for parks—and submitted them for dual votes: …
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Before us for validation are City of Miami Beach bond issues of $2.5 million for sanitation disposal facilities and another $2.5 million for public parks and extension of a community center there. Instead of submitting these proposed issues for vote of only the qualified freeholders in accordance with then effective provisions of the Florida Constitution,1 statutes,2 and City Ordinances,3 the City, with advice of its able counsel, submitted the bond issues for separate votes, one by the freeholders and a second by ALL qualified electors, in anticipation of a ruling on this point by the U. S. Supreme Court in City of Phoenix, Arizona v. Kolodziejski, 399 U.S. 204, 90 S.Ct. 1990, 26 L.Ed.2d 523 (June 23, 1970), then pending, and earlier similar decisions.4 All bond issues passed by the vote of all electors and only one passed (sanitation facilities) in the separate vote limited to qualified freeholders as in the past.
The City’s clairvoyance was confirmed by the later holding in Phoenix requiring the vote upon such bond issues to be only by all electors and holding unconstitutional a vote which has been limited to freeholders. The wisdom of the City Fathers resulted in a rare savings for the taxpayers by their wise anticipation in providing the dual vote.
This vote was in April preceding the Phoenix decision in June. The State Attorney argues that the decision in Phoenix requiring bond approval by all electors left the City without any authorization for any election on bonds. This does not follow. A change of the class qualified to vote does not ipso facto void the entire authorization for an election to be held.
Phoenix did not declare unconstitutional the election procedure contained in the Constitution, statutes and City Charter. Only the limitation to freeholders was voided; the remainder was in effect and therefore the vote was perfectly valid, without the aid of subsequent enabling legislation passed on May 12, 1970, by the Florida Legislature which made express provision for such special elections. The authorizing City Resolutions for issuance of the bonds were therefore also valid and timely.
*865The question is settled by Phoenix and related U. S. Supreme Court cases 5 and we are accordingly mandated to approve the vote by all qualified electors and the ensuing City Resolutions thereon. The vote being otherwise valid and no other valid objection appearing, the trial court’s validation of the proposed bonds is
Affirmed.
ROBERTS, C. and ERVIN, CARLTON, ADKINS, BOYD and McCAIN, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Kramer v. Union Free Sch. Dist. NO. 15, 395 U.S. 621 (U.S. 1969)
- Cipriano v. City OF Houma, 395 U.S. 701 (U.S. 1969)
- City OF Phoenix v. Kolodziejski, 399 U.S. 204 (U.S. 1970)