No Oil Drilling in Florida Waters Constitutional Ban

The Florida Chapters are part of a large group of NGOs and citizens, that want the public to have the chance to vote on near-shore oil drilling and to ban the possibility of this destructive practice. Our state relies on clean beaches for our economic and environmental well-being. Oil drilling in our state marine waters, which extend approximately three miles into the Atlantic Ocean and 10 miles into the Gulf of Mexico, is simply too great a risk to take. Unfortunately, some of our elected leaders disagree, and as recently as the 2009 Legislative Session, voted to end the present statutory drilling ban. Floridians again asked the Legislature, at the Special Session held in July 2010, to place the issue before the voters. Unfortunately, the Legislature did not agree to allow Floridians to vote to amend the State Constitution in the November 2010 general election. In light of the inaction of the Legislature and new Governor, and to forestall any future attempt to allow near-shore oil drilling, the groups has coordinate a citizens’ petition drive to place the ban on the November 2012 ballot. We will need approximately 700,000 verified petitions by March 2012.