UF experts available to comment on Crist's call for special legislative session

July 15, 2010

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Almost three months after the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico, Gov. Charlie Crist has called a special session of the Legislature to permanently ban offshore drilling in Florida waters.

Florida already has a statutory ban against offshore drilling in state waters, but Crist hopes the Legislature will add a question to the November ballot that would amend the state constitution to permanently ban drilling. If a majority of legislators OK the referendum during the July 20-23 session, 60 percent of Floridian voters need to vote in favor of the permanent ban for the law to pass.

However, political science professor Daniel A. Smith doesn’t believe the special session will yield significant results from Florida’s Republican majority Legislature. Crist’s former Republican colleagues do not want to see Crist achieve political victories, Smith said, especially on a potential point of contention in the upcoming U.S. Senate race, in which Crist will run as an independent candidate against Republican candidate Marco Rubio.

Additionally, Smith said prior to the oil spill there was every indication that the Republican-controlled Legislature intended to change the Florida law to permit offshore drilling.

Because Republican lawmakers are strongly influenced by the business community, Smith said residents in legislative districts who aren’t personally witnessing the effects of the spill consider the permanent ban unnecessary. Those who see the aftermath of the spill may support Crist’s proposed amendment, but there will probably not be enough legislative support to approve the referendum, Smith said.

Smith received his doctorate in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is the director of the UF political campaigning program and is a senior research Fellow at the Initiative and Referendum Institute.

UF law professor Jon Mills, a former speaker of the House of Representatives, has participated in past special sessions. However, Mills isn’t sure what to predict for Crist’s upcoming session. Whatever the outcome though, he believes the meeting will call vital attention to offshore drilling.

If the question appears on the November ballot, Mills said there is a good chance the constitutional ban will pass based on the current situation. Because the public is concerned about oil and offshore drilling, the special session may have a positive impact on Crist in his future, Mills said.

Mills earned his juris doctorate from UF. He served in the Florida House of Representatives is now a dean emeritus of the Levin College of Law. He is the director for the Center for Government Responsibility and is a member of the UF Oil Spill Task Force.

Smith can be contacted at 352-283-6482 or by e-mail at dasmith@ufl.edu. Mills can be contacted at 352-273-0835 or by e-mail at mills@law.ufl.edu.