Debate about public campaign financing

BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – Once a candidate reaches a certain number of campaign contributions, they are also eligible to receive state tax dollars.

Citizens petitioned to add this to the constitution in 1998 and approved it with 64% of the vote.

The money comes from sales tax, corporate tax and document stamps. However, lawmakers have decided that this is not a wise use of taxpayer money.

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“I believe this is a stupid thing and that my tax dollars should be used for things like roads and schools and other infrastructure issues and not trying to elect someone,” said Sen. Jay Trumbull.

Some have expressed concerns that public funding creates a level playing field for candidates who don’t have large budgets or come from different economic backgrounds.

District 6 Representative Grif Griffitts responded to concerns that the bill would take away opportunities from the little guy running.

“You can have all the money in the world and still lose if you’re not a good candidate. So if the little guy is the right candidate and he works hard, knocks on doors and meets the public and makes an impression, he doesn’t need money, that alone will get him over the finish line,” Griffitts said.

But the president of the League of Women Voters of Florida, Cecile M. Scoon, doesn’t think this is a realistic scenario.

“It’s really expensive to do it nationwide. So if you take away the support, the public support, from this state, what that means is that we’re only hearing from a narrow layer of people, people with a lot of money, people with millions and billions of dollars,” Scoon said.

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Scoon points out that even Governor DeSantis used this resource to get elected as a middle-class person. It also creates greater incentive for the candidate to diversify his supporters.

“If there’s no provision like this in the Constitution, then they can basically pick a handful of people with big checks and just take care of them. This is anti-democratic because they can only get the money they need by talking to a small group of people. And when people come from a certain economic background, that often comes with a certain perspective on life because they also have life experiences,” Scoon said.

She says the majority of Floridians are struggling and public funding helps candidates who can advocate for those citizens.

If you’re looking for more resources, here’s a guide to nonpartisan voters in Florida, in both English and Spanish.

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