Advisory Opinion to the Governor, In re

• Decision Date: 31 January 1963
• Citation: 150 So.2d 721
• Parties: In re ADVISORY OPINION TO THE GOVERNOR.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

Page 721

150 So.2d 721

In re ADVISORY OPINION TO THE GOVERNOR.

Supreme Court of Florida.

Jan. 31, 1963.

PER CURIAM.

SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA

Tallahassee

January 30, 1963

Honorable Farris Bryant

Governor of Florida

The Capitol

Tallahassee, Florida.

Dear Governor:

We have the honor to acknowledge your communication of January 29, 1963, requesting our advice pursuant to Article IV, Section 13, Florida Constitution, F.S.A., regarding certain executive powers and dulties under the Constitution.

Omitting the formal parts, your letter reads as follows:

'In March of 1962, two cases, styled Sobel vs. Adams and Swann vs. Adams, were filed in the District Court of the United States in and for the Southern District of Florida. These suits were designed to question the constitutionality of the Florida constitutional and statutory provisions relating to apportionment. The District Court, on July 23, 1962, entered an Interlocutory Judgment declaring the existing constitutional stitutional and statutory provisions of the Florida Constitution, relating to the apportionment and reapportionment for the nomination and election of the Senate and House of Representatives of the Florida Legislature, to be invidiously discriminatory and repugnant to the equal protection clause of the Federal Constitution and, therefore, prospectively null, void and inoperative. There is attached hereto the complete text of the above-mentioned Order and the Opinion ¹ rendered pursuant thereto.

'An extra session of the Florida Legislature was convended an August 1, 1962, pursuant to my Executive Order calling the Legislature into session for the sole and exclusive purpose of considering reapportionment. After ten days of deliberation, the Legislature passed House Joint Resolution No. 30-X providing for 135 House members and 46 Senators. On September 5, 1962, the District Court entered its Order and Opinion ² wherein it was stated that this reapportionment proposal satisfied the requirements of the Equal Protection clause of the Federal Constitution. There is attached hereto the complete text of the above-mentioned Order and Opinion rendered pursuant thereto.

'This proposed consitutional amendment was placed on the ballot for the General Election on November 6, 1962, at which time the amendment failed of adoption by a vote of 373,259 to 306,442. Subsequent to the General Election, the Legislature was again called into extra session on November 9, 1962, and labored until November 28, 1962, at which time the extra session terminated by operation of law without effecting a solution to the apportionment problem.

'The responsibility for apportionment of the membership of the Florida Legislature is delegated to that body by the Florida Constitution. In an effort to preserve to the elected representatives of the people of Florida this decision-making power, I entered my Executive Order of January 23, 1963, again calling into extra session the Florida Legislature for the sole and exclusive purpose of considering reapportionment.

'The Florida Senate, on January 29, 1963, passed Senate Bill No. 1-X(63) providing for the reapportionment of he Senate by statutory means in conflict with Article VII of the Florida Constitution, which action ripened the doubts created by the Federal Court's action.

'In view of the Federal Court's decision and the resulting doubt cast on the composition of the Florida Legislature, it is felt that unless a proper legal course is followed by me as Chief Executive and by the Legislature, there is a distinct possibility that Florida will be without a legally constituted Legislature for the ensuing regular session. The State, therefore, is facing a serious crisis in that it may be without legal methods to provide the necessary governmental services to the people of Florida.

'Article VII, Section 3, Constitution of Florida, among other things, provides: '* * * In the event the Legislature shall fail to reapportion the representation in the Legislature as required by this amendment, the Governor shall (within thirty days after the adjournment of the regular session), call the Legislature together in extraordinary session to consider the question of reapportionment and such extraordinary session of the Legislature is hereby mandatorily required to reapportion the representation as required by this Amendment before its adjournment (and such extraordinary session so called for reapportionment shall not be limited to expire at the end of twenty days or at all, until reapportionment is effected, and shall consider no business other than such reapportionment).'

'Article IV, Section 6, of the Florida Constitution imposes upon me, as Chief Executive, the responsibility to 'take care that the laws be faithfully executed.' Upon assuming my official duties as Governor, pursuant to the requirements of Article XVI, Section 2, of the Florida Constitution, I solemnly swore to uphold the Constitutions of the United States of America and of the State of Florida. As a result of the above-mentioned action of the District Court and the divergency of views as to the legal effect of such action, I am in grave doubt as to the proper exercise of my executive powers and duties in the handling of affairs of state, including my obligation to see that the laws are faithfully enforced and the exercise of my power of executive veto; and the holding of the Legislature in continuous session by recurring calls.

'In light of the foregoing responsibilities imposed upon me by the Constitution of the State of Florida and in view of the critical conditions existing by reason of the Federal District Court decision, from which an appeal has not been taken, I have the honor to...