Jim Rosica
Nearly 60 people already have applied to Gov. Rick Scott for a seat on the panel that reviews the state’s constitution every two decades.
According to a list the governor’s office released Wednesday, among those seeking to be on the Constitution Revision Commission are:
Frederick Brummer, a Republican former lawmaker and past Orange County commissioner.
Kurt Browning, a former secretary of state and currently Pasco schools superintendent.
Rich Crotty, a veteran Republican politico from Orange County who was in the Legislature and served as Orange County mayor for 10 years.
Rick Dantzler, a former lawmaker and one-time Democratic lieutenant-governor candidate.
Don Eslinger, who is set to retire next year as Seminole County Sheriff.
Sally Heyman, a Democratic former legislator now on the Miami-Dade Commission.
Joseph Little, a professor emeritus of constitutional law at the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law.
Bernie McCabe, the longtime state attorney for Pasco and Pinellas counties.
William Schifino, a Tampa attorney and president of The Florida Bar.
The Florida Constitution allows for a “revision commission” to meet every 20 years to “examine the constitution, hold public hearings and … file its proposal, if any, of a revision of this constitution or any part of it.”
As governor, Scott will choose 15 of the 37 commissioners and selects its chairperson. That means the Naples Republican will indirectly influence the retooling of the state’s chief governing document for an entire generation.
In addition to Scott, the House speaker and Senate president each get nine picks. Assuming they win re-election in November, GOP state Rep. Richard Corcoran of Land O’ Lakes will be speaker in 2017 and state Sen. Joe Negron, a Stuart Republican, will be president.
Republican Pam Bondi is automatically a member as attorney general, and Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Jorge Labarga gets three picks. He announced earlier this week he had begun taking applications.
Under law, the next commission is scheduled to meet 30 days before the beginning of the Legislature’s 2017 regular session.
Any changes it proposes would be in the form of constitutional amendments, which would have to be approved by 60 percent of voters on a statewide ballot.
Scott’s application is here. His “appointments will be made no later than March 6, 2017,” his office said.
The full alphabetical list of applicants as released by the governor’s office is below.
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Avalon, Victoria
Baade, David
Barbee, Donald
Belgard, Tildon
Beltran, Michael
Browning, Kurt
Brummer, Frederick
Carlock, Margaret
Clayton, Robert
Crotty, Richard
Cullen, Lisa
Dantzler, Rick
Dillinger, Robert
Eslinger, Donald
Foster, Brett
Furst, Jr, William
Gillis, Laurence
Goiran, Barbara
Goldstein, Stuart
Gosney, Steven
Handin, Jason
Harding, Nicholas
Haynie, Susan
Heyman, Sally
Kinch, Abby
Little, Joseph
Maier, Christopher
Marsh, James
Mason III, Scott
Matthews, Joseph
Maymon, David
McCabe, Bernie
Mellen III, Robert
Millert, Wayne
Monahan Jr., Gerald
Moore, Edwin
Moriarty, Mark
Patterson Jr, Ralph “Pat”
Primrose, Nicholas
Puig, Diego
Rainka, Michael
Ramswell, Prebble
Robinson IV, Grover
Rosenblatt, Howard
Runcie, Robert
Schifino, William
Simovitch, Audra
Smiley, Judge Elijah
Smith, Daniel
Stelzl, Henry
Svechin, Larisa
Tuck, Andy
Upthagrove, Brett
VanValkenburgh, Jessica
Wigder, Marc
Zilaitis, Frank
Zoes, Caroline
