What is Florida Amendment 1?

Florida Amendment 1 is the Florida Water and Land Conservation Amendment. This amendment dedicates funds to protect Florida's water, wildlife habitats, natural areas and parks. Amendment 1 sets aside 33 percent of Florida's existing excise tax on documents, guaranteeing the use of these funds for only conservation purposes.

It is important to note that the money dedicated toward Amendment 1 does not result in any increase in taxes. This is possible due to the aforementioned 33 percent of Florida's existing excise tax on documents, which, in layman's terms, is a portion of the fees the state collects from real estate sales. Although Florida has its fair share of needs, including education, health care and public safety, the state relies heavily on its beaches, lakes and parks to boost the tourism economy. Among the state budget of over $77 billion, Amendment 1 results in the setting aside of only 1 percent.

Amendment 1 made it onto the ballot in November of 2014 due to many elected leaders refusing adequately to fund water and land conservation. In the course of 18 months, 709,976 verified signatures enabled the amendment's placement on the ballot, and Amendment 1 went into effect on July 1, 2015.