Ryan Ray
According to a new poll released Tuesday morning by the Florida Chamber Political Institute, likely Florida voters’ attitudes on proposed constitutional changes continued to take shape, with support for pro-business group’s “counter-amendment” to environmentalists’ solar energy ballot language gaining steam.
When it comes to Floridians for Solar Choice‘s ballot language to limit or prevent barriers on access to residential solar panels, the new survey suggests it is losing out to a rival group’s amendment that says it is intended to protect “the rights of electricity consumers regarding solar energy choice.”
Respondents indicated the latter proposed amendment, backed by pro-business group Consumers for Smart Solar, is supported by a margin of 76 percent in favor and just 7 percent against.
The environmentalists’ ballot language is more supported than opposed as well – at 41 percent in favor versus 35 opposed – but as it stands now, not by enough to reach the 60 percent threshold required for passage.
Backers of the so-called “smart” solar amendment say their proposal would preserve consumer protections currently in state law that the Floridians for Solar Choice language would circumvent.
“Poll after poll, we are seeing that Florida voters heavily favor the Smart Solar Amendment, while the Shady Solar Amendment continues to lose ground,” said Sarah Bascom, a spokesperson for Consumers for Smart Solar. “It is clear that if Florida voters had the choice today, they would choose to do solar right – through the Smart Solar Amendment that was written specifically with Florida consumers in mind.
“Never in Florida history has an initiative come back from a double-digit deficit and won,” she added.
According to the Consumers for Smart Solar website, their amendment “allows individuals and businesses to own and lease solar equipment to generate their own electricity while providing specific legal authorization for the leasing of solar equipment—a practice that occurs now but is not yet specifically authorized in Florida” and “allows state and local governments to continue to protect consumers from fraudulent practices, such as overcharging.”
Florida Chamber said the poll was conducted between September 16-20, 2015, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent with a 95 percent confidence level.
