Florida House passes bill requiring criminals to pay court fees before voting

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The Florida House on Wednesday passed a bill that would require criminals to pay all court fees and costs, in addition to restitution, before they can vote.

According to the Miami Herald, this measure, which would significantly restrict a constitutional amendment of a state restoring the right to vote of criminals released from prison, was passed 71-45 by the parties.

The newspaper said the approval of this measure would likely create a dispute between Florida's lower house and the state's Senate.

The Senate version of the bill implementing Amendment 4 does not require that criminals pay a restitution, provided that court fees and fines have been converted into civil privilege. The measure has not been heard by the Senate yet.

The passing of the bill Wednesday comes just months after Florida voters approved an amendment that automatically restores the voting rights of about 1.5 million criminals in the state.

The voting rights of former offenders who completed "all of their sentences, including parole or probation" were automatically reinstated in January. However, the law does not apply to Floridians convicted of murder or sexual offenses.

These cases would apparently be examined individually by the state's leniency review committee.

The new measure to restrict rights is criticized by Florida's Democratic legislators as well as on the national scene. State Representative Adam Hattersley (D) called the House bill a "manifestly unconstitutional tax" after the measure was approved by the House's Criminal Justice Subcommittee in March.

Sen. Cory BookerCory Anthony BookerK: Street's support for testing Buttigieg We should applaud the "mighty victory" of workers in the Stop & Shop strike, but Harris is adding a new one to his sponsorship list in South Carolina. (D-N.J.), A presidential candidate from 2020, called the bill "electoral tax" in a tweet on Wednesday.

The state's representative, James Grant (R), sponsor of the bill, said the measure clarified the voting proposal that voters had backed last November. He also argued that Amendment 4's lawyers testified before the Supreme Court that fees and fines are part of a sentence, according to The Tallahassee Democrat.

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