February 25, 1868
PREAMBLE
We the people of the State of Florida, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, in order to secure its blessings and form a more perfect government, insuring domestic tranquillity, maintaining public order, perpetuating liberty, and guaranteeing equal civil and political rights to all, do establish this constitution:
Article I: DECLARATION OF RIGHTS
Section 1. All men are by nature free and equal, and have certain inalienable rights, among which are those of enjoying and defending life and liberty, acquiring, possessing, and protecting property, and pursuing and obtaining safety and happiness.
Sec. 2. All political power is inherent in the people. Government is instituted for the protection, security, and benefit of its citizens, and they have the right to alter or amend the same whenever the public good may require it; but the paramount allegiance of every citizen is due to the Federal Government, and no power exists with the people of this State to dissolve its connection therewith.
Sec. 3. This State shall ever remain a member of the American Union, the people thereof a part of the American nation, and any attempt, from whatever source, or upon whatever pretense, to dissolve said Union, or to sever said nation, shall be resisted with the whole power of the State.
Sec. 4. The right of trial by jury shall be secured to all, and remain inviolate forever; but in all civil cases a jury-trial may be waived by the parties in the manner to be prescribed by law.
Sec. 5. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship shall forever be allowed in this State, and no person shall be rendered incompetent as a witness on account of his religious opinions; but the liberty of conscience hereby secured shall not be so construed as to justify licentiousness, or practices subversive of the peace and safety of the State.
Sec. 6. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when, in case of invasion or rebellion, the public safety may require its suspension.
Sec. 7. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel or unusual punishment be inflicted, nor shall witnesses be unreasonably detained.
Sec. 8. All persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, unless for capital offences, when the proof is evident, the presumption great.
Sec. 9. No person shall be tried for a capital or otherwise infamous crime, except in cases of impeachment, and in cases of the militia when in active service in time of war, or which the State may keep, with the consent of Congress, in time of peace, and in cases of petit larceny, made under the regulation of the legislature, unless on presentment and indictment by a grand jury; and in any trial by any court the party accused shall be allowed to appear and defend in person, and with counsel, as in civil actions. No person shall be subject to be twice put in jeopardy for the same offence, nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken without just compensation.
Sec. 10. Every citizen may fully speak and write his sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of that right, and no law shall be passed to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech or the press. In all criminal prosecutions and civil actions for libel the truth may be given in evidence to the jury, and if it shall appear that the matter charged as libellous is true, but was published from good motives, the party shall be acquitted or exonerated.
Sec. 11. The people shall have the right to assemble together to consult for the common good, to instruct their representatives, and to petition the legislature for redress of grievance.
Sec. 12. All laws of a general nature shall have a uniform operation.
Sec. 13. The military shall be subordinate to the civil power.
Sec. 14. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house, except with the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, except in manner prescribed by law.
Sec. 15. Representatives shall be apportioned according to population, as well as may be, but no county shall have more than four representatives and less than one representative in the assembly.
Sec. 16. No person shall be imprisoned for debt, except in case of fraud.
Sec. 17. No bill of attainder, or ex post facto law, impairing the obligations of contracts, shall ever be passed.
Sec. 18. Foreigners, who are, or who may hereafter become, bona-fide residents of the State, shall enjoy the same rights in respect to possession, enjoyment, and inheritance of property as native-born citizens.
Sec. 19. Neither slavery or involuntary servitude, unless for the punishment of crime, shall ever be tolerated in this State.
Sec. 20. The right of the people to be secure in either person, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable seizures and searches, shall not be violated, and no warrants issued but in probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, particularly describing the place or places to be searched, and the person or persons and thing or things to be seized.
Sec. 21. Treason against the State shall consist only in levying war against it, adhering to its enemies, or giving them aid and comfort; and no person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the overt act, or confession in open court. This enunciation of rights shall not be construed to impair or deny others retained by the people.
Sec. 22. The people shall have the right to bear arms in defence of themselves and of the lawful authority of the State.
Sec. 23. No preference can be given by law to any church, sect, or mode of worship.
Article II: BOUNDARIES
The boundaries of the State of Florida shall be as follows: Commencing at the mouth of the river Perdido; from thence up the middle of said river to where it intersects the south boundary-line of the State of Alabama on the thirty-first degree of north latitude; thence due east to the Chattahoochee River; thence down the middle of said river to its confluence with the Flint River; from thence straight to the head of the Saint Mary’s River; thence down the middle of said river to the Atlantic Ocean; thence southeastwardly, along the coast, to the edge of the Gulf Stream; thence southwestwardly, along the edge of the Gulf Stream and Florida Reefs, to and including the Tortugas Islands; thence northwestwardly to a point five leagues from the mainland; thence northwestwardly five leagues from the shore, including all islands, to a point five leagues due south from the middle of the mouth of Perdido River; thence to the place of beginning.
Article III: SEAT OF GOVERNMENT
The seat of government shall be and remain permanent at the city of Tallahassee, in the county of Leon, until otherwise located by a majority vote of the legislature, and by a majority vote of the people.
Article IV: DISTRIBUTION OF POWER
The powers of the government of the State of Florida shall be divided into three departments, to wit, legislative, executive, and judicial. No person properly belonging to one of the departments shall exercise any functions appertaining to either of the others, except in those cases expressly provided for by this constitution.
Article V: LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT
Section 1. The legislative authority of this State shall be vested in a senate and assembly, which shall be designated “The legislature of the State of Florida,” and the sessions thereof shall be held at the seat of government of the State.
Sec. 2. The sessions of the legislature shall be annual; the first session on the second Monday of June, ad 1868, and thereafter on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of January, commencing in the year ad 1869. The governor may, in the interim, convene the legislature in extra session by his proclamation.
Sec. 3. The members of the assembly shall be chosen biennially; those of the first legislature on the first Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of May, ad 1868, and thereafter on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November, commencing with the year ad 1870.
Sec. 4. Senators shall be chosen for the term of four years, at the same time and place as members of the assembly: Provided, That the senators elected at the first election from the senatorial districts designated by even numbers shall vacate their seats at the expiration of two years, and thereafter all senators shall be elected for the term of four years, so that one-half of the whole number shall be elected biennially.
Sec. 5. Senators and members of the assembly shall be duly qualified electors in the respective counties and districts which they represent.
Sec. 6. Each house shall judge of the qualifications, elections, and returns of its own members; choose its own officers, except the president of the senate, determine the rules of its proceedings, and may punish its members for disorderly conduct, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds of all the members present, expel a member.
Sec. 7. Either house, during the session, may punish by imprisonment any person, not a member, who shall have been guilty of disorderly or contemptuous conduct in its presence; but such imprisonment shall not extend beyond the final adjournment of the session.
Sec. 8. A majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may compel the presence of absent members in such manner and under such penalties as each house may prescribe.
Sec. 9. Any person who shall be convicted of embezzlement or defalcation of the funds of this State, or of having given or offered a bribe to secure his election or appointment to office, or of having received a bribe to aid in the procurement of office for any other person, shall be disqualified from holding any office of honor, profit, or trust in the State; and the legislature shall, as soon as practicable, provide by law for the punishment of such embezzlement, defalcation, or bribery as a felony.
Sec. 10. Each house shall keep a journal of its own proceedings, which shall be published, and the yeas and nays of the members of either house on any question shall, at the desire of any three members present, be entered on the journal.
Sec. 11. The doors of each house shall be kept open during its session, except the senate while sitting in executive session; and neither shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, or to any other town than that in which they may be holding their session.
Sec. 12. Any bill may originate in either house of the legislature, and after being passed in one house may be amended in the other.
Sec. 13. The enacting clause of every law shall be as follows: “The people of the State of Florida, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows.”
Sec. 14. Each law enacted in the legislature shall embrace but one subject, and matters properly connected therewith, which subject shall be briefly expressed in the title; and no law shall be amended or revised by reference to its title only, but in such case the act as revised, or section as amended, shall be reënacted and published at length.
Sec. 15. Every bill shall be read by sections in three several days in in each house, unless, in case of emergency, two-thirds of the house where such bill may be pending shall deem it expedient to dispense with this rule; but the reading of a bill by sections on its final passage shall in no case be dispensed with; and the vote on the final passage of every bill, or joint resolution, shall be taken by yeas and nays, to be entered in the journal of each house, and a majority of the members present in each house shall be necessary to pass every bill or joint resolution, and all bills or point resolutions so passed shall be signed by the presiding officers of the respective houses, and by the secretary of the senate and clerk of the assembly.
Sec. 16. No money shall be drawn from the treasury except by appropriation made by law, and accurate statements of the receipts and expenditures of the public money shall be attached to and published with the laws passed at every regular session of the legislature.
Sec. 17. The legislature shall not pass special or local laws in any of the following enumerated cases, that is to say: regulating the jurisdiction and duties of any class of officers, or for the punishment of crime or misdemeanor; regulating the practices of courts of justice; providing for changing venue of civil and criminal cases; granting divorces; changing the names of persons; vacating roads, town-plats, streets, alleys, and public squares; summoning and impanelling grand and petit juries, and providing for their compensation; regulating county, township, and municipal business; regulating the election of county, township, and municipal officers; or the assessment and collection of taxes for State, county, and municipal purposes; providing for opening and conducting elections for State, county, and municipal officers, and designating the places of voting; providing for the sale of real estate belonging to minors or other persons laboring under legal disabilities; regulating the fees of officers.
Sec. 18. In all cases enumerated in the preceding section, and in all other cases where general law can be made applicable, all laws shall be general and of uniform operation throughout the State.
Sec. 19. Provision may be made by general law for bringing suit against the State as to all liabilities now existing or hereafter originating.
Sec. 20. Lotteries are hereby prohibited in this State.
Sec. 21. The legislature shall establish a uniform system of county, township, and municipal government.
Sec. 22. The legislature shall provide by general law for incorporating such municipal, educational, agricultural, mechanical, mining, and other useful companies or associations as may be deemed necessary.
Sec. 23. Laws shall be passed regulating elections, and prohibiting, under adequate penalties, all undue influence thereon from power, bribery, tumult, or other improper practice.
Sec. 24. Regular sessions of the legislature may extend to sixty days, but any special session convened by the governor shall not exceed twenty days.
Sec. 25. All property, both real and personal, of the wife, owned by her before marriage, or acquired afterward by gift, devise, descent, or purchase, shall be her separate property, and not liable for the debts of her husband.
Sec. 26. The legislature shall provide for the election by the people, or appointment by the governor, of all State, county, or municipal officers not otherwise provided for by this constitution, and fix by law their duties and compensation.
Sec. 27. Every bill which may have passed the legislature shall, before becoming a law, be presented to the governor; if he approves it he shall sign it, but if not, he shall return it with his objections to the house in which it originated, which house shall cause such objections to be entered upon its journals, and proceed to reconsider it; if after such reconsideration it shall pass both houses by a two-thirds vote of the members present, which vote shall be entered on the journal of each house, it shall become a law. If any bill shall not be returned within five days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to the governor, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it. If the legislature by its final adjournment prevent such action, such bill shall be a law, unless the governor, within ten days next after the adjournment, shall file such bill with his objections thereto in the office of the secretary of state, who shall lay the same before the legislature at its next session, and if the same shall receive two-thirds of the votes present it shall become a law.
Sec. 28. The assembly shall have the sole power of impeachment, but a vote of two-thirds of all the members present shall be required to impeach any officer; and all impeachments shall be tried by the senate when sitting for that purpose. The senators shall be upon oath or affirmation, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators present.
The chief-justice shall preside at all trials by impeachment, except in the trial of the chief-justice, when the lieutenant-governor shall preside.
The governor, lieutenant-governor, members of the cabinet, justices of the supreme court, and judges of the circuit court, shall be liable to impeachment for any misdemeanor in office; but judgment in such cases shall extend only to removal from office and disqualification to hold any office of honor, trust, or profit under the State; but the party convicted or acquitted shall, nevertheless, be liable to indictment, trial, and punishment according to law. All other officers who shall have been appointed to office by the governor, and by and with the consent of the senate, may be removed from office upon the recommendation of the governor and consent of the senate, but they shall nevertheless be liable to indictment, trial, and punishment according to law for any misdemeanor in office; all other civil officers shall be tried for misdemeanors in office in such manner as the legislature may provide.
Sec. 29. The legislature shall elect United States Senators in the manner prescribed by the Congress of the United States and by this constitution.
Sec. 30. Laws making appropriation for the salaries of public officers, and other current expenses of the State, shall contain provisions on no other subject.
Article VI: EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT
Section 1. The supreme executive power of the State shall be vested in a chief magistrate, who shall be styled the governor of Florida.
Sec. 2. The governor shall be elected by the qualified electors at the same time and places of voting for the members of the legislature, and shall hold his office for four years from the time of his installation: Provided, That the term of the first governor elected under this constitution shall expire at the opening of the regular session of the legislature of ad 1873, and until his successor shall be qualified. He shall take the oath of office prescribed for all State officers.
Sec. 3. No person shall be eligible to the office of governor who is not a qualified elector, and who has not been nine years a citizen of the United States, and three years of the State of Florida, next preceding the time of his election.
Sec. 4. The governor shall be commander-in-chief of the military forces of the State, except when they shall be called into the service of the United States.
Sec. 5. He shall transact all executive business with the officers of the government, civil and military, and may require information in writing from the officers of the administrative department upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices.
Sec. 6. He shall see that the laws are faithfully executed.
Sec. 7. When any office, from any cause, shall become vacant, and no mode is provided by this constitution or by the laws of the State for filling such vavancy, the governor shall have the power to fill such vacancy by granting a commission which shall expire at the next election.
Sec. 8. The governor may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the legislature by proclamation, and shall state to both houses, when organized, the purpose for which they have been convened, and the legislature then shall transact no legislative business except that for which they are especially convened, or such other legislative business as the governor may call to the attention of the legislature while in session, except by the unanimous consent of both houses.
Sec. 9. He shall communicate by message to the legislature at each regular session the condition of the State, and recommend such measures as he may deem expedient.
Sec. 10. In case of a disagreement between the two houses with respect to the time of adjournment, the governor shall have power to adjourn the legislature to such time as he may think proper, provided it is not beyond the time fixed for the meeting of the next legislature.
Sec. 11. The governor shall have power to suspend the collection of fines and forfeitures, and grant reprieves for a period not exceeding sixty days, dating from the time of conviction, for all offences, except in cases of impeachment. Upon conviction for treason he shall have power to suspend the execution of sentence until the case shall be reported to the legislature at its next session, when the legislature shall either pardon, direct the execution of the sentence, or grant a further reprieve; and if the legislature shall fail or refuse to make final disposition of such case, the sentence shall be enforced at such time and place as the governor may by his order direct. The governor shall communicate to the legislature at the beginning of every session every case of fine or forfeiture remitted or reprieved, pardon or commutation granted, stating the name of the convict, the crime for which he was convicted, the sentence, its date, and the date of its remission, commutation, pardon, or reprieve.
Sec. 12. The governor, justices of the supreme court, and attorney-general, or a major part of them, of whom the governor shall be one, may, upon such conditions and with such limitations and restrictions as they may deem proper, remit fines and forfeitures, commute punishments, and grant pardons after conviction, in all cases except treason and impeachments, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law relative to the manner of applying for pardons.
Sec. 13. The grants and commissions shall be in the name and under the authority of the State of Florida, sealed by the great seal of the State, signed by the governor, and countersigned by the secretary of state.
Sec. 14. A lieutenant-governor shall be elected at the same time and places, and in the same manner, as the governor, whose term of office and eligibility shall also be the same. He shall be the president of the senate, but shall have only a casting vote therein. If during a vacancy of the office of governor the lieutenant-governor shall be impeached, displaced, resign, die, or become incapable of performing the duties of his office, or be absent from the State, the president pro tempore of the senate shall act as governor until the office be filled or the disability cease.
Sec. 15. In the case of the impeachment of the governor, or his removal from office, death, inability to discharge his official duties, or resignation, the power and duties of the office shall devolve upon the lieutenant-governor for the residue of the term, or until the disability shall cease; but the governor shall not, without the consent of the legislature, be out of the State in time of war.
Sec. 16. The governor may at any time require the opinion of the justices of the supreme court as to the interpretation of any portion of this constitution, or upon any point of law, and the supreme court shall render such opinion in writing.
Sec. 17. The governor shall be assisted by a cabinet of administrative officers, consisting of a secretary of state, attorney-general, comptroller, treasurer, surveyor-general, superintendent of public instruction, adjutant-general, and commissioner of immigration. Such officers shall be appointed by the governor, and confirmed by the senate, and shall hold their offices the same time as the governor, or until their successors shall be qualified.
Sec. 18. The governor shall, by and with the consent of the senate, appoint all commissioned officers of the State militia.
Sec. 19. The governor shall appoint, by and with the consent of the senate, in each county, an assessor of taxes and collector of revenue, whose duties shall be prescribed by law, and who shall hold their offices for two years, and be subject to removal upon the recommendation of the governor and consent of the senate. The governor shall appoint in each county a county treasurer, county surveyor, superintendent of common schools, and five county commissioners, each of whom shall hold his office for two years, the duties of which shall be prescribed by law. Such officers shall be subject to removal by the governor when in his judgment the public welfare will be advanced thereby: Provided, No officer shall be removed except for wilful neglect of duty, or a violation of the criminal laws of the State, or for incompetency.
Sec. 20. The governor and cabinet shall constitute a board of commissioners of State institutions, which board shall have supervision of all matters connected therewith, in such manner as shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 21. The governor shall have power, in cases of insurrection or rebellion, to suspend the writ of habeas corpus within the State.
Article VII: JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT
Section 1. The judicial power of the State shall be vested in a supreme court, circuit courts, county courts, and justices of the peace.
Sec. 2. The style of all process shall be, “The State of Florida;” and all prosecutions shall be conducted in the name and by the authority of the same.
Sec. 3. The supreme court shall consist of a chief-justice and two associate justices, who shall hold their offices for life or during good behavior. They shall be appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate.
Sec. 4. The majority of the justices of the supreme court shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of all business. The supreme court shall hold three terms each year, in the supreme court room at the seat of government. Such terms shall commence on the second Tuesday of October, January, and April, respectively.
Sec. 5. The supreme court shall have appellate jurisdiction in all cases in equity, also in all cases of law in which is involved the title to or right of possession of real estate, or the legality of any tax, impost, assessment, toll, or municipal fine, or in which the demand or the value of the property in controversy exceeds three hundred dollars; also in all other civil cases not included in the general subdivisions of law and equity; also in all questions of law alone, in all criminal cases in which the offences charged amount to felony. The court shall have power to issue writs of mandamus, certiorari, prohibition, quo warranto, habeas corpus, and also all writs necessary or proper to the complete exercise of its appellate jurisdiction.
Each of the justices shall have the power to issue writs of habeas corpus to any part of the State, upon petition by or on behalf of any person held in actual custody, and may make such writs returnable before himself, or the supreme court, or before any circuit court in the State, or before any judge of said courts.
Sec. 6. The supreme court shall appoint a clerk of the supreme court, who shall have his office at the capitol, and shall be librarian of the supreme court library; he shall hold his office until his successor is appointed and qualified.
Sec. 7. There shall be seven circuit judges appointed by the governor, and confirmed by the senate, who shall hold their office for eight years. The State shall be divided into seven judicial districts, the limits of which are defined in this constitution, and one judge shall be assigned to each circuit. Such judge shall hold two terms of his court in each county within his circuit each year, at such times and places as shall be prescribed by law. The chief-justice may, in his discretion, order a temporary exchange of circuits by the respective judges, or any judge to hold one or more terms in any other circuit than that to which he is assigned. The judge shall reside in the circuit in which he is assigned.
Sec. 8. The circuit courts in their several judicial circuits shall have original jurisdiction in all cases of equity; also in all cases at law which involve the title or the right of possession to, or the possession of, or the boundaries of real property; of the legality of any tax, impost, assessment, toll, or municipal fine, and in all other cases in which the demand or the value of property in controversy exceeds three hundred dollars, and of the action of forcible entry and unlawful detainer, and also in all criminal cases amounting to felony. They shall have final appellate jurisdiction in all civil cases arising in the county court in which the amount in controversy is one hundred dollars and upwards, and in all cases of misdemeanor. The circuit courts and the judges thereof shall have power to issue writs of mandamus, injunction, quo warranto, certiorari, and all other writs proper and necessary to the complete exercise of their jurisdiction, and also shall have power to issue writs of habeas corpus on petition by or on behalf of any person held in actual custody in their respective circuits.
Sec. 9. There shall be a county court organized in each county. The governor shall appoint a county judge for each county, who shall be confirmed by the senate, and such judge shall hold his office for four years from the date of his commission, or until his successor is appointed and qualified.
Sec. 10. The county court shall be a court of oyer and terminer.
Sec. 11. The county court shall have jurisdiction of all misdemeanors and all civil cases where the amount in controversy does not exceed three hundred dollars; and its jurisdiction shall be final in all civil cases where the amount in controversy does not exceed one hundred dollars; but in no case shall the county court have jurisdiction when the title or boundaries of real estate is in controversy, or where the jurisdiction will conflict with that of the several courts of record; but they may have coextensive jurisdiction with the circuit courts in cases of forcible entry and unlawful detention of real estate, subject to appeal to the circuit court. The county court shall have full surrogate or probate powers, but subject to appeal. Provision shall be made by law for all other powers, duties, and responsibilities of the county courts and judges. There shall be a regular trial-term of the county courts six times in each year, at such times and places as may be prescribed by law.
Sec. 12. The grand and petit jurors shall be taken from the registered voters of the respective counties.
Sec. 13. In all trials, civil and criminal, in the circuit and county courts, the evidence shall be reduced to writing by the clerk of the court or his deputy, under the control of the court; and every witness after his examination shall have done, shall be at liberty to correct the evidence he has given, and afterwards shall sign the same; such evidence shall be filed in the office of the clerk, with the papers in the case.
Sec. 14. All pleas shall be sworn to either by the parties or their attorneys.
Sec. 15. The governor shall appoint as many justices of the peace as he may deem necessary. Justices of the peace shall have criminal jurisdiction and civil jurisdiction not to exceed fifty dollars, but this shall not extend to the trial of any person for misdemeanor or crime. The duties of justice of the peace shall be fixed by law. Justices of the peace shall hold their offices during good behavior, subject to removals by the governor at his own discretion.
Sec. 16. The legislature may establish courts for municipal purposes only in incorporated towns and cities. All laws for the organization or government of municipal courts shall be general in their provisions, and be equally applicable to the municipal courts of all incorporated towns and cities.
Sec. 17. Any civil cause may be tried before a practising attorney as referee, upon the application of the parties, and an order from the court in whose jurisdiction the case may be authorizing such trial and appointing such referee. Such referee shall keep a complete record of the case, including the evidence taken, and such record shall be filed with the papers in the case in the office of the clerk, subject to an appeal in the manner prescribed by law.
Sec. 18. No other courts than those herein specified shall be organized in this State.
Sec. 19. The governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, shall appoint a State attorney in each judicial circuit, whose duties shall be prescribed by law. He shall hold his office for four years from the date of his commission, and until his successor shall be appointed and qualified. The governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, shall appoint in each county a sheriff and clerk of the circuit court, who shall also be clerk of the county court and board of county commissioners, recorder, and ex-officio auditor of the county, each of whom shall hold his office for four years. Their duties shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 20. A constable shall be elected by the registered voters in each county for every two hundred registered voters; but each county shall be entitled to at least two constables, and no county shall have more than twelve constables. They shall perform such duties and under such instructions as shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 21. Attorneys at law, who have been admitted to practice in any court of record in any State in the Union, or to any United States court, shall be admitted to practice in any court of this State on producing evidence of having been so admitted.
Article VIII: ADMINISTRATIVE DEPARTMENT
Section 1. There shall be a cabinet of administrative officers, consisting of a secretary of state, attorney-general, comptroller, treasurer, surveyor-general, and superintendent of public instruction, adjutant-general, and commissioner of immigration, who shall assist the governor in the performance of his duties.
Sec. 2. The secretary of state shall keep the records of official acts of the legislative and executive departments of the government, and shall, when required, lay the same, and all matters relative thereto, before either branch of the legislature, and shall be the custodian of the great seal of the State.
Sec. 3. The attorney-general shall be the legal adviser of the governor and of each of the cabinet officers, and shall perform such other legal duties as the governor may direct, or as may be provided by law. He shall be reporter for the supreme court.
Sec. 4. The treasurer shall receive and keep all funds, bonds, or other securities, in such manner as may be provided by law, and shall disburse no funds, bonds, or other securities, except upon the order of the comptroller, countersigned by the governor, in such manner as shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 5. The duties of the comptroller shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 6. The surveyor-general shall have the administrative supervision of all matters pertaining to the public lands, under such regulations as shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 7. The superintendent of public instruction shall have the administrative supervision of all matters pertaining to public instruction; the supervision of buildings devoted to educational purposes, and the libraries belonging to the university and the common schools. He shall organize a historical bureau for the purpose of accumulating such matter and information as may be necessary for compiling the history of the State. He shall also establish a cabinet of minerals and other natural productions.
Sec. 8. The adjutant-general shall, under the orders of the governor, have the administrative supervision of the military department, and the supervision of State prison, and of the quarantine of the coast, in such manner as shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 9. The commissioner of immigration shall organize a bureau of immigration for the purposes of furnishing information and for the encouragement of immigration. The office of commissioner of immigration shall expire at the end of fifteen years from the ratification of this constitution, but the legislature shall have power to continue it by law.
Sec. 10. Each officer of the cabinet shall make a full report of his official acts, of the receipts and expenditures of his office, and of the requirements of the same, to the governor, at the beginning of each regular session of the legislature, or whenever the governor shall require it. Such reports shall be laid before the legislature by the governor at the beginning of each regular session thereof. Either house of the legislature may at any time call upon any cabinet officer for information required by it.
Article IX: EDUCATION
Section 1. It is the paramount duty of the State to make ample provision for the education of all the children residing within its borders, without distinction or preference.
Sec. 2. The legislature shall provide a uniform system of common schools, and a university, and shall provide for the liberal maintenance of the same. Instruction in them shall be free.
Sec. 3. There shall be a superintendent of public instruction, whose term of office shall be four years, and until the appointment and qualification of his successor. He shall have general supervision of the educational interests of the State. His duties shall be prescribed by law.
Sec. 4. The common-school fund, the interest of which shall be exclusively applied to the support and maintenance of common schools and purchase of suitable libraries and apparatus therefor, shall be derived from the following sources:
The proceeds of all lands that have been or may hereafter be granted to the State by the United States for educational purposes; donations by individuals for educational purposes; appropriations by the State; the proceeds of lands or other property which may accrue to the State by escheat to forfeiture; the proceeds of all property granted to the State, when the purpose of such grant shall not be specified; all moneys which may be paid as an exemption from military duty; all fines collected under the penal laws of this State; such portion of the per-capita tax as may be prescribed by law for educational purposes; twenty-five per centum of the sales of public lands which are now or hereafter may be owned by the State.
Sec. 5. A special tax of not less than one mill on the dollar of all taxable property in the State, in addition to the other means provided, shall be levied and apportioned annually for the support and maintenance of common schools.
Sec. 6. The principal of the common-school fund shall remain sacred and inviolate.
Sec. 7. Provision shall be made by law for the distribution of the common-school fund among the several counties of the State in proportion to the number of children residing therein between the ages of four and twenty-one years.
Sec. 8. Each county shall be required to raise annually by tax, for the support of common schools therein, a sum not less than one-half the amount apportional to each county for that year from the income of the common-school fund. Any school-district neglecting to establish and maintain for at least three months in each year such school or schools as may be provided by law for such district shall forfeit its portion of the common-school fund during such neglect.
Sec. 9. The superintendent of public instruction, secretary of state, and attorney-general, shall constitute a body-corporate, to be known as the board of education of Florida. The superintendent of public instruction shall be president thereof. The duties of the board of education shall be prescribed by the legislature.
Article X: HOMESTEAD
Section 1. A homestead, to the extent of one hundred and sixty acres of land, or the half of one acre within the limits of any incorporated city or town, owned by the head of a family, residing in this State, together with one thousand dollars in value of personal property, and the improvements on the real estate, shall be exempted from forced sale under any process of law, and the real estate shall not be alienable without the joint consent of husband and wife, when that relation exists. But no property shall be exempt from sale for taxes, or for the payment of obligations contracted for the purchase of said premises, or for the erection of improvements thereon, or for house, field, or other labor performed on the same. The exemption herein provided for in a city or town shall not extend to more improvements or buildings than the residences and business houses of the owner.
Sec. 2. In addition to the exemption provided for in the first section of this article, there shall be and remain exempt from sale by any legal process in this State, to the head of a family residing in this State, such property as he or she may select to the amount of one thousand dollars; said exemption in this section shall only prevent the sale of property in cases where the debt was contracted, liability incurred, or judgment obtained before the 10th day of May, ad 1865. Nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to exempt any property from sale for payment of the purchase-money of the same, or for the payment of taxes or labor.
Sec. 3. The exemptions provided for in sections one and two of this article shall accrue to the heirs of the party having enjoyed or taken the benefit of such exemption, and the exemption provided for in section one of this article shall apply to all debts except as specified in said section, no matter when or where the debt was contracted or liability incurred.
Article XI: PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS
Section 1. Institutions for the benefit of the insane, blind, and deaf, and such other benevolent institutions as the public good may require, shall be fostered and supported by the State, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law.
Sec. 2. A State prison shall be established and maintained in such a manner as may be fixed by law. Provision may be made by law for the establishment and maintenance of a house of refuge for juvenile offenders, and the legislature shall have power to establish a home and workhouse for common vagrants.
Sec. 3. The respective courts of the State shall provide in the manner fixed by law for those of the inhabitants who, by reason of age, infirmity, or misfortunes, may have claims upon the aid and sympathy of society.
Article XII: MILITIA
Section 1. All able-bodied male inhabitants of this State, between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years, who are citizens of the United States, or have declared their intention to become citizens thereof, shall constitute the militia of the State, but no male citizen of whatever religious creed or opinion shall be exempt from military duty except upon such conditions as may be prescribed by law.
Sec. 2. The legislature shall provide by law for organizing and disciplining the militia of the State, for the encouragement of volunteer corps, the safe-keeping of the public arms, and for a guard for the State prison.
Sec. 3. The adjutant-general shall have the grade of major-general. The governor, by and with the consent of the senate, shall appoint two major-generals and four brigadier-generals of militia; they shall take rank according to the date of their commissions. The officers and soldiers of the State militia, when uniformed, shall wear the uniform prescribed for the United States Army.
Sec. 4. The governor shall have power to call out the militia to preserve the public peace, to execute the laws of the State, and to suppress insurrection or repel invasion.
Article XIII: TAXATION AND FINANCE
Section 1. The legislature shall provide for a uniform and equal rate of taxation, and shall prescribe such regulations as shall secure a just valuation of all property, both real and personal, excepting such property as may be exempt by law for municipal, educational, literary, scientific, religious, or charitable purposes.
Sec. 2. The legislature shall provide for raising revenue sufficient to defray the expenses of the State for each fiscal year, and also a sufficient sum to pay the principal and interest of the existing indebtedness of the State.
Sec. 3. No tax shall be levied except in pursuance of law.
Sec. 4. No moneys shall be drawn from the treasury except in pursuance of appropriation made by law.
Sec. 5. An accurate statement of the receipts and expenditures of the public moneys shall be published with the laws of each regular session of the legislature.
Sec. 6. The legislature shall authorize the several counties and incorporated towns in the State to impose taxes for county and incorporation purposes, and for no other purpose, and all property shall be taxed upon the principle established for State taxation. The legislature may also provide for levying a specific capitation tax on licenses. But the capitation tax shall not exceed one dollar per annum for all purposes, excepting for State, county, or municipal taxes.
Sec. 7. The legislature shall have power to provide for issuing State bonds bearing interest, for securing the debt of the State, and for the erection of State buildings, support of State institutions, and perfecting public works.
Sec. 8. No tax shall be levied upon persons for the benefit of any chartered company of the State, or for paying the interest on any bonds issued by said chartered companies, counties, or corporations, for the above-mentioned purposes, and any laws to the contrary are hereby declared null and void.
Article XIV: CENSUS AND APPORTIONMENT
The legislature shall, in the year one thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, and every tenth year thereafter, cause an enumeration to be made of all the inhabitants of the State; and they shall then proceed to apportion the representation among the different counties, giving to each county one representative at large, and one additional to every one thousand registered votes therein, but no county shall be entitled to more than four representatives.
The legislature shall also, after every such enumeration, proceed to fix by law the number of senators which shall constitute the senate of Florida, and which shall never be less than one-fourth nor more than one-half of the whole number of the assembly. When any senatorial district shall be composed of two or more counties, the counties of which such district consists shall not be entirely separated by any county belonging to another district, and no county shall be divided in forming a district, and all counties shall remain as now organized unless changed by a two-thirds vote of both houses of the legislature.
Article XV: SUFFRAGE AND ELIGIBILITY
Section 1. Every male person of the age of twenty-one years and upwards, of whatever race, color, nationality, or previous condition, or who shall, at the time of offering to vote, be a citizen of the United States, or who shall have declared his intention to become such in conformity to the laws of the United States, and who shall have resided and had his habitation, domicile, home, and place of permanent abode in Florida for one year, and in the county for six months, next preceding the election at which he shall offer to vote, shall in such county be deemed a qualified elector at all elections under this constitution. Every elector shall, at the time of his registration, take and subscribe to the following oath:
“I, ——— ———, do solemnly swear that I will support, protect, and defend the Constitution and Government of the United States, and the constitution and government of Florida, against all enemies, foreign or domestic; that I will bear true faith, loyalty, and allegiance to the same, any ordinances or resolution of any State convention or legislation to the contrary notwithstanding: so help me God.”
Sec. 2. No person under guardianship, non compos mentis, or insane, shall be qualified to vote at any election; nor shall any person convicted of felony be qualified to vote at any election unless restored to civil rights.
Sec. 3. At any election at which a citizen or subject of any foreign country shall offer to vote, under the provisions of this constitution, he shall present to the persons lawfully authorized to conduct and supervise such election a duly sealed and certified copy of his declaration of intention; otherwise he shall not be allowed to vote; and any naturalized citizen offering to vote, shall produce before said persons, lawfully authorized to conduce and supervise the election, his certificate of naturalization, or a duly sealed and certified copy thereof; otherwise he shall not be permitted to vote.
Sec. 4. The legislature shall have power, and shall enact the necessary laws to exclude from every office of honor, power, trust, or profit, civil or military, within the State, and from the right of suffrage, all persons convicted of bribery, perjury, larceny, or of infamous crime, or who shall make, or become directly or indirectly interested in, any bet or wager, the result of which shall depend upon any election; or who shall hereafter fight a duel, or send or accept a challenge to fight, or who shall be a second to either party, or be the bearer of such challenge or acceptance; but the legal disability shall not accrue until after trial and conviction by due form of law.
Sec. 5. In all elections by the legislature the vote shall be viva voce, and in all elections by the people the vote shall be by ballot.
Sec. 6. The legislature at its first session after the ratification of this constitution shall by law provide for the registration, by the clerks of the circuit court in each county, of all the legally qualified voters in such county, and for the returns of elections; and shall also provide that after the completion, from time to time, of such registration, no person not duly registered according to law shall be allowed to vote.
Sec. 7. The legislature shall enact laws requiring educational qualifications for electors after the year one thousand eight hundred and eighty, but no such laws shall be made applicable to any elector who may have registered or voted at any election previous thereto.
Article XVI: SCHEDULE
Section 1. That all ordinances and resolutions heretofore passed by any convention of the people, and all acts and resolutions of the legislature, conflicting or inconsistent with the Constitution of the United States, and the statutes thereof, and with this constitution, and in derogation of the existence or position of the State as one of the States of the United States of America, are hereby declared null and void, and of no effect.
Sec. 2. That all acts and resolutions of the general assembly, and all official acts of the civil officers of the State, not inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution and statutes of the United States, or with this constitution, or with any ordinance or resolution adopted by this convention, and which have not been, and are not by this constitution, annulled, are in force, and shall be considered and esteemed as the laws of the State until such acts or resolutions shall be repealed by the legislature of the State, or this convention.
Sec. 3. All laws of the State passed by the so-called general assembly since the 10th day of January, ad 1868, not conflicting with the word and spirit of the Constitution and laws of the United States, or with this constitution, shall be valid; all writs, acts, proceedings, judgments, and decrees of the so-called courts of the State, when actual service was made, as the defendant, all executions and sales made thereunder, and all acts, orders, and proceedings of the judges of probate, and of executors, administrators, guardians, and trustees, provided they were in conformity with the laws then in force, and did not conflict with the Constitution and laws of the United States and this constitution, shall be valid; the sales of the property or effects of deceased persons shall not prevent the widow from claiming said property in kind, in whosesoever hands the same may be found, where the sale had not been made for the purpose of paying the debts of deceased, and where other than lawful money of the United States was obtained for said property.
Nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to make any one who was an officer of any court, or who acted under the authority of any court, individually liable, provided they acted strictly in accordance with what was then considered the law of the State, and not conflicting with the Constitution and laws of the United States.
All fines, penalties, forfeitures, obligations, and escheats heretofore accruing to the State of Florida shall continue to accrue to the use of the State.
All recognizances heretofore taken shall remain valid, and all bonds executed to the governor of the State of Florida, either before or since the 10th day of January, ad 1861, or to any other officer of the State, in his official capacity, shall be of full force and virtue, for the uses therein respectively expressed, and may be sued for and recovered accordingly, unless they were contrary to the laws of the United States or to this constitution, or to any ordinance or resolution adopted by the convention; also, all criminal prosecutions which have arisen may be prosecuted to judgment and execution in the name of the State.
All actions at law or suits in chancery, or any proceedings pending in the courts of this State, either prior to or subsequent to the 10th day of January, ad 1861, shall continue in all respects valid, and may be prosecuted to judgment and decree.
All judgments and decrees rendered in civil causes in any of the courts of the State during the period of time above specified are hereby declared of full force, validity, and effect: Provided, That, unless otherwise provided in this constitution, the statute of limitation shall not be pleaded upon any claim in the hands of any person for the period of time between the 10th day of January, ad 1861, and the 25th day of October, 1865, whether proceedings at law had been commenced before the 25th day of October, 1865, or not: Provided, further, That all claims of widows, minors, and decedents, which were not barred by the statutes of this State on the 10th day of January, 1861, shall be considered good and valid for the period of two years from the ratification of this constitution.
Sec. 4. That State treasury notes, all bonds issued, and all other liabilities contracted by the State of Florida, or any county or city thereof, on and after the 10th day of January, ad 1861, and before the 25th day of October, ad 1865, except such liabilities as may be due to the seminary or school fund, be and are declared null and void, and the legislature shall have no power to provide for the payment of the same or any part thereof, but this shall not be construed so as to invalidate any authorized liabilities of the State contracted prior to the 10th day of January, ad 1861, or subsequent to the 25th day of October, ad 1865.
Sec. 5. No money shall ever be appropriated by this State to reimburse purchasers of United States land who purchased the same of the State of Florida.
Sec. 6. All proceedings, decisions, or actions accomplished by civil or military officers acting under authority of the United States subsequent to the 10th day of January, 1861, and prior to the final restoration of the State to the Government of the United States, are hereby declared valid, and shall not be subject to adjudication in the courts of this State; nor shall any person acting in the capacity of a soldier or officer of the United States, civil or military, be subject to arrest for any act performed by him pursuant to authorized instructions from his superior officers during the period of time above designated.
Sec. 7. That in all cases where judgments have been obtained against citizens of the State after the 10th day of January, 1861, previous to the 25th day of October, 1865, and where actual service was not made on the person of any defendant, such defendant, not served with process, may appear in court within one year after the adoption of this constitution, and make oath that injustice has been done and that he or she has a good and valid defence, stating the defence, and upon making such oath and filing said defence, the proceedings in the judgment shall cease until the defence is heard.
Article XVII: MISCELLANEOUS
Section 1. Any person debarred from holding office in the State of Florida by the third section of the fourteenth article of the proposed amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which is as follows: “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President or Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid and comfort to enemies thereof. But Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of each house, remove such disability,” is hereby debarred from holding office in this State: Provided, That whenever such disability from holding office shall be removed from any person by the Congress of the United States, the removal of such disability shall also apply to this State, and such person shall be restored, in all respects, to the rights of citizenship as herein provided for electors.
Sec. 2. Any person elected to the Senate of the United States by the legislature of this State, or any person elected by the people, or appointed to office by the governor of the State, or by any officer of the State, under the provisions of the constitution adopted by the convention of the people, convened on the 25th day of October, 1865, shall not be empowered to hold such office after the same position or office shall have been filled by election or appointment under the provisions of this constitution: Provided, That all officers holding office under the provisions of the constitution adopted the 25th day of October, ad 1865, and not provided for in this constitution, shall continue to hold their respective offices, and discharge the duties thereof, until the governor shall, by his proclamation, declare such offices vacant.
Sec. 3. The several judicial circuits of the circuit courts shall be as follows: The first judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Escambia, Santa Rosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, and Jackson; the second judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Gadsden, Liberty, Calhoun, Franklin, Leon, Wakulla, and Jefferson; the third judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Madison, Taylor, La Fayette, Hamilton, Suwannee, and Columbia; the fourth judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Nassau, Duval, Baker, Bradford, Clay, and Saint John’s; the fifth judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Putnam, Alachua, Levy, Marion, and Sumter; the sixth judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Polk, and Monroe; the seventh judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Volusia, Brevard, Orange, and Dade.
Sec. 4. The salary of the governor of the State shall be $5,000 per annum; that of the chief-justice shall be $4,500; that of each associate justice shall be $4,000; that of each judge of the circuit court shall be $3,500; that of the lieutenant-governor shall be $2,500; that of each cabinet officer shall be $3,000. The pay of the members of the senate and house of representatives shall be $500 per annum, and in addition thereto ten cents per mile for each mile traveled from their respective places of residence to the capital, and the same to return. But such distances shall be estimated by the shortest general public thoroughfare. All other officers of the State shall be paid by fees as per diem fixed by law.
Sec. 5. The legislature shall appropriate $2,000 each year for the purchase of such books for the supreme court library as the said court shall direct.
Sec. 6. The salary of each officer shall be payable quarterly upon his own requisition.
Sec. 7. The tribe of Indians located in the southern portion of the State, and known as the Seminole Indians, shall be entitled to one member in each house of the legislature. Such member shall have all the rights, privileges, and remuneration as other members of the legislature. Such members shall be elected by the members of their tribe, in the maner prescribed for all elections by this constitution. The tribe shall be represented only by a member of the same, and in no case by a white man: Provided, That the representatives of the Seminole Indians shall not be a bar to the representation of any county by the citizens thereof.
Sec. 8. The legislature may at any time impose such tax on the Indians as they may deem proper; and such imposition of tax shall constitute the Indians citizens, and they shall thenceforward be entitled to all the privileges of other citizens, and thereafter be barred of special representation.
Sec. 9. In addition to other crimes and misdemeanors for which an officer may be impeached and tried, shall be included drunkenness and other dissipations; incompetency, malfeasance in office, gambling, or any conduct detrimental to good morals shall be considered sufficient cause for impeachment and conviction. Any officer, when impeached by the assembly, shall be deemed under arrest, and shall be disqualified from performing any of the duties of his office until acquitted by the senate. But any officer so impeached and in arrest may demand his trial by the senate within ten days of the date of his impeachment.
Sec. 10. The following shall be the oath of office for each officer in the State, including members of the legislature: “I do solemnly swear that I will support, protect, and defend the Constitution and Government of the United States, and of the State of Florida, against all enemies, domestic or foreign, and that I will bear true faith, loyalty, and allegiance to the same, and that I am entitled to hold office under this constitution; that I will well and faithfully perform all the duties of the office of ———, which I am about to enter: so help me God.”
Sec. 11. The legislature may provide for the donation of the public lands to actual settlers; but such donation shall not exceed one hundred and sixty acres to any one person.
Sec. 12. All county officers shall hold their respective offices at the county seats of their counties.
Sec. 13. The legislature shall provide for the speedy publication of all statutes and laws of general nature. All decisions of the supreme court, and all laws and judicial decisions, shall be for free publication by any person. But no judgment of the supreme court shall take effect and be operative until the opinion of the court in such case shall be filed with the clerk of said court.
Sec. 14. The legislature shall not create any office, the term of which shall be longer than four years.
Sec. 15. The governor, cabinet, and supreme court shall keep their offices at the seat of government. But in case of invasion or violent epidemics, the governor may direct that the offices of the government shall be removed temporarily to some other place. The session of the legislature may be adjourned for the same cause to some other place; but in such case of removal all the departments of the government shall be removed to one place. But such removal shall not continue longer than the necessity for the same shall continue.
Sec. 16. A plurality of votes given at an election by the people shall constitute a choice when not otherwise provided by this constitution.
Sec. 17. The term of the State officers elected at the first election under this constitution, not otherwise provided for, shall continue until the first Tuesday of January, ad 1873, and until the installation of their successors, excepting the members of the legislature.
Sec. 18. Each county and incorporated city shall make provision for the support of its own officers, subject to such regulations as may be prescribed by law. Each county shall make provision for building a court-house and jail, and for keeping the same in good repair.
Sec. 19. If at the meeting of the senate at any session the lieutenant-governor has not been qualified or is not present, the senate shall elect one of its members as temporary president before proceeding to other business.
Sec. 20. The legislature shall at the first session adopt a seal for the State, and such seal shall be of the size of the American silver dollar. But said seal shall not again be changed after its adoption by the legislature; and the governor shall, by his proclamation, announce that the said seal has become the great seal of the State.
Sec. 21. The governor, lieutenant-governor, and all the State officers elected by the people shall be installed on the first day of the meeting of the legislature, and immediately assume the duties of their respective offices.
Sec. 22. The governor and lieutenant-governor shall have been, before their election to office, nine years a citizen of the United States, and three years a citizen of the State. All other officers shall have been one year a citizen of the State, and six months a citizen of the county from which they are elected or appointed. No person shall be eligible to any office unless he be a registered voter.
Sec. 23. The governor or any State officer is hereby prohibited from giving certificates of election or other credentials to any person as having been elected to the House of Representatives of the United States Congress, or the United States Senate, who has not been two years a citizen of the State, and nine years a citizen of the United States, and a registered voter.
Sec. 24. The property of all corporations, whether heretofore or hereafter incorporated, shall be subject to taxation, unless such corporation be for religious, educational, or charitable purposes.
Sec. 25. All bills, bonds, notes, or evidences of debt outstanding and unpaid, given for or in consideration of bonds or treasury-notes of the so-called Confederate States, or notes and bonds of this State paid and redeemable in the bonds and notes of the Confederate States, are hereby declared null and void, and no action shall be maintained thereon in the courts of this State.
Sec. 26. It shall be the duty of the courts to consider that there is a failure of consideration, and it shall be so held by the courts of this State, upon all deeds or bills of sale given for slaves with covenant or warrantee of title or soundness, or both; upon all bills, bonds, notes, or other evidences of debt, given for or in consideration of slaves, which are now outstanding and unpaid, and no action shall be maintained thereon; and all judgments and decrees rendered in any of the courts of this State since the 10th day of January, ad 1861, upon all deeds or bills of sale, or upon any bond, bill, note, or other evidence of debt based upon the sale or purchase of slaves, are hereby declared set aside, and the plea of failure of consideration shall be held a good defence in all actions to said suit; and that when money was due previous to the 10th day of January, 1861, and slaves were given in consideration for such money, these shall be deemed a failure of consideration for the debt: Provided, That settlements and compromises of such transaction made by the parties thereto shall be respected.
Sec. 27. All persons who, as alien enemies under the sequestration act of the so-called confederate congress, and now resident of the State, had property sequestered and sold by any person acting under a law of the so-called Confederate States, or the State of Florida, subsequent to the 10th day of January, ad 1861, and prior to the 1st day of January, 1865, shall be empowered to file a bill in equity in the circuit court of the State, and shall be entitled to obtain judgment against the State for all damages sustained by said sale and detention of property. The court shall estimate the damages upon the assessed valuation of the property in question in the year ad 1870, with interest at six per cent. from the time the owner was deprived of the same.
But all judgments against the State shall be paid only in certificates of indebtedness, redeemable in State lands. Said certificates shall be issued by the governor, countersigned by the secretary of state and by the comptroller, upon the decree of the court. Oral testimony shall be sufficient to establish the fact of a sale having been made.
Sec. 28. There shall be no civil or political distinction in this State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude, and the legislature shall have no power to prohibit by law any class of persons, on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude, to vote or hold any office, beyond the conditions prescribed by this constitution.
Sec. 29. The apportionment for the assembly shall be as follows: Escambia, two; Santa Rosa, one; Walton, one; Holmes, one; Washington, one; Jackson, three; Calhoun, one; Gadsden, two; Franklin, one; Liberty, one; Wakulla, one, Leon, four; Jefferson, three; Madison, two; Taylor, one; Hamilton, one; Suwannee, one; La Fayette, one; Alachua, two; Columbia, two; Baker, one; Bradford, one; Nassau, one; Duval, two; Clay, one; Saint John’s one; Putnam, one; Marion, two; Levy, one; Volusia, one; Orange, one; Brevard, one; Dade, one; Hillsborough, one; Hernando, one; Sumter, one; Polk, one; Manatee, one, and Monroe, one. There shall be twenty-four senatorial districts, which shall be as follows, and shall be known by their respective numbers from one to twenty-four inclusive: The first senatorial district shall be composed of Escambia county; the second of Santa Rosa and Walton; the third, of Jackson; the fourth, of Volusia and Washington; the fifth, of Calhoun and Franklin; the sixth, of Gadsden; the seventh, of Liberty and Wakulla; the eighth, of Leon; the ninth, of Jefferson; the tenth, of Madison; the eleventh, of Hamilton and Suwannee; the twelfth, of La Fayette and Taylor; the thirteenth, of Alachua and Levy; the fourteenth, of Columbia; the fifteenth, of Bradford and Clay; the sixteenth, of Baker and Nassau; the seventeenth, of Saint John’s and Putnam; the eighteenth, of Duval; the nineteenth, of Marion; the twentieth, of Volusia and Orange; the twenty-first, of Dade and Brevard; the twenty-second, of Hillsborough and Hernando; the twenty-third, of Sumter and Polk; the twenty-fourth, of Manatee and Monroe; and each senatorial district shall be entitled to one senator.
Sec. 30. No person shall ever be appointed a judge of the supreme court or circuit court who is not twenty-five years of age and practising attorney.
Sec. 31. The legislature shall, as soon as convenient, adopt a State emblem, having the design of the great seal of the State impressed upon a white ground, of six feet six inches fly and six feet deep.
Article XVIII: AMENDMENTS
Any amendment or amendments to this constitution may be proposed in either branch of the legislature; and if the same shall be agreed upon by a two-thirds vote of all the members elected to each of the two houses, such proposed amendment or amendments shall be entered on their respective journals, with the yeas and nays thereon, and referred to the legislature then next to be chosen, and shall be published for three months next preceding the time of making such choice; and if, in the legislature next chosen as aforesaid, such proposed amendment or amendments shall be agreed to by a two-thirds vote of all the members elected to each house, then it should be the duty of the legislature to submit such proposed amendment or amendments to the people in such manner and at such time as the legislature may prescribe; and if the people shall approve and ratify such amendment or amendments by a majority of the electors qualified to vote for members of the legislature voting thereon, such amendment or amendments shall become a part of the constitution.
Sec. 2. If at any time the legislature, by a vote of a majority of all the members elected to each of the two houses, shall determine that it is necessary to cause a revision of this entire constitution, such determination shall be entered on their respective journals, with the yeas and nays thereon, and referred to the legislature then next to be chosen, and shall be published for three months next preceding the time of making such choice.
And if in the legislature next chosen aforesaid such proposed revision shall be agreed by a majority of all the members elected to each house, then it shall be the duty of the legislature to recommend to the electors of the next election for members of the legislature to vote for or against a convention; and if it shall appear that a majority of the electors voting at such election shall have voted in favor of calling a convention, the legislature shall, at its next session, provide by law for a convention, to be holden within six months after the passage of such law, and such convention shall consist of a number of members not less than both branches of the legislature.
In determining what is a majority of the electors voting at such election, reference shall be had to the highest number of votes cast at such election for the candidates for any office or on any question.
Done in open convention. In witness whereof, we, the undersigned delegates, representing the people of Florida, in convention assembled, do hereunto affix our names this twenty-fifth day of February, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-second, and the secretary doth countersign the same.
Horatio Jenkins, Jr., President.
S. Conant, Secretary.
AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION OF 1868a
(RATIFIED 1870)
Article I. The salary of the governor of the State shall be three thousand five hundred dollars per annum; that of each justice of the supreme court shall be three thousand dollars; that of each judge of the circuit courts shall be two thousand five hundred dollars; that of each cabinet officer shall be two thousand dollars; that of the lieutenant-governor shall be five hundred dollars, and he shall receive the same mileage as members of the legislature. The pay of members of the legislature shall be a per diem, to be fixed by law, for each day’s actual attendance, and in addition thereto ten cents per mile for travelling-expenses for each mile from their respective places of residence to the capital, estimated by the shortest thoroughfare, and the same to return. All other officers of the State shall be paid by fees or per diem, fixed by law. No legislature shall increase its own pay.
Art. II. The several members of the cabinet of administrative officers shall be elected by the people.
Art. III. The sixth and seventh judicial districts are hereby abolished, and the limits of the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth judicial districts shall be defined by law.
Art. IV. The offices of surveyor-general and commissioner of immigration are hereby consolidated under the name of commissioner of lands and immigration.
Art. V. The thirteenth section of the sixth article of the constitution is hereby abrogated.
Art. VI. The third, fifth, and twenty-seventh sections of the sixteenth article of the constitution are hereby abrogated.
Art. VII. The number of terms of the supreme court, and the time of holding the same, shall be fixed by law.
Art. VIII. The legislature shall have power to prescribe regulations for calling into the supreme court a judge of the circuit court, to hear and determine any matter pending before the court, in the place of any justice thereof who shall be disqualified or disabled in such case from interest or other cause.
Art. IX. That the following portion of section nine, Article XVI, of the constitution is hereby abrogated:
“Any officer when impeached by the assembly shall be deemed under arrest, and shall be disqualified from performing any of the duties of his office until acquitted by the senate; but any officer so impeached and in arrest may demand his trial by the senate within one year from the date of his impeachment.”
(RATIFIED 1875)
Article I. Section two of article four of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 2. From and after the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January, ad one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven, the regular sessions of the legislature shall be held biennially, commencing on said day and on the corresponding day of every second year thereafter, but the governor may convene the same in extra session by his proclamation.
Art. II. Section twenty-nine of article four of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 29. The assembly shall have the sole power of impeachment, but a vote of two-thirds of all the members present shall be required to impeach any officer, and all impeachments shall be tried by the senate. When sitting for that purpose the senators shall be upon oath or affirmation, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators present. The senate may adjourn to a fixed day for the trial of any impeachment, and may sit for the purpose of such trial whether the assembly be in session or not, but the time fixed for such trial shall not be more than six months from the time articles of impeachment shall be preferred by the assembly. The chief-justice shall preside at all trials by impeachment except in the trial of the chief-justice, when the lieutenant-governor shall preside. The governor, lieutenant-governor, members of the cabinet, justices of the supreme court, and judges of the circuit court, shall be liable to impeachment for any misdemeanor in office, but judgment in such cases shall extend only to removal from office and disqualification to hold any office of honor, trust, or profit under the State, but the party convicted or acquitted shall nevertheless be liable to indictment, trial, and punishment according to law. All other officers who shall have been appointed to office by the governor, and by and with the consent of the senate, may be removed from office upon the recommendation of the governor, and consent of the senate, but they shall nevertheless be liable to indictment, trial, and punishment according to law for any misdemeanor in office. All other civil officers shall be tried for misdemeanor in office in such manner as the legislature may provide.
Art. III. Section seven of article twelve of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 7. The legislature shall have power to provide for issuing State bonds bearing interest for securing the debt of the State, for the erection of State buildings, and for the support of State institutions, but the credit of the State shall not be pledged or loaned to any individual company, corporation, or association; nor shall the State become a joint owner or stockholder in any company, association, or corporation. The legislature shall not authorize any county, city, borough, township, or incorporated district to become a stockholder in any company, association, or corporation, or to obtain or appropriate money for, or to loan its credit to, any corporation, association, institution, or individual.
Art. IV. Section five of article six of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 5. The supreme court shall have appellate jurisdiction in all cases at law and in equity commenced in circuit courts and of appeal from the circuit court in cases arising in the county court as a court of probate, and in the management of the estates of infants, and in all criminal cases commenced in the circuit court. The court shall have power to issue writs of mandamus, certiorari, prohibition, quo warranto, habeas corpus, and also all writs necessary or proper to the complete exercise of its jurisdiction. Each of the justices shall have the power to issue writs of habeas corpus to any part of the State upon petition by or on behalf of any person held in actual custody, and may make such writs returnable before himself or the supreme court, or any justice thereof, or before any circuit judge.
Section eight of article six of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as folows:
Sec. 8. The circuit courts shall have original jurisdiction in all cases in equity, also in all cases at law in which the demand or the value of the property involved exceeds one hundred dollars, and of all cases involving the legality of any tax assessment, toll, or municipal fine, and of the action of forcible entry and unlawful detainer, and of actions involving the titles or right of possession of real estate, and of all criminal cases, except such as may be cognizable by law by inferior courts. They shall have appellate jurisdiction of matters pertaining to the probate jurisdiction and the estates and interests of minors in the county courts, and of such other matters as may be provided by law, and final appellate jurisdiction in all civil cases arising in the court of a justice of the peace in which the amount or value of property involved is twenty-five dollars and upwards, and of misdemeanors tried before any justice’s or mayor’s court. The circuit courts and judges shall have power to issue writs of mandamus, injunction, quo warranto, certiorari, habeas corpus, and all writs proper and necessary to the complete exercise of their jurisdiction.
Section ten of article six of the constitution is hereby abrogated.
Section eleven of article six of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 11. The county court shall have power to take probate of wills, to grant letters testamentary, and of administration and guardianship, to attend to the settlement of the estates of decedents and of minors, and to discharge the duties usually pertaining to courts of probate, subject to the direction and supervision of the appellate and equity jurisdiction of the circuit court as may be provided by law. And the county judges shall have and exercise the civil and criminal jurisdiction of justices of the peace. They may also have jurisdiction of such proceedings relating to the forcible entry or unlawful detention of lands and tenements subject to the appellate jurisdiction of the circuit court as may be provided by law.
Section fifteen of article six of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 15. The governor shall appoint as many justices of the peace as he may deem necessary. Justices of the peace shall have jurisdiction in civil actions at law in cases in which the amount or value involved does not exceed one hundred dollars; and in criminal cases their powers shall be fixed by law. Their powers, duties, and responsibilities shall be regulated by law. They may hold their offices for the term of four years, subject to removal by the governor for reasons satisfactory to him.
Art. V. Section seven of article six of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 7. There shall be five circuit judges appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate, who shall hold their respective offices for the term of six years from the time of their qualification. The State shall be divided into five judicial circuits as defined in this constitution, and the judge of each circuit shall reside in the circuit to which he shall be appointed. Each judge shall hold the terms of the court at such times and places as may be prescribed by law, and he may hold special terms with or without juries. The chief-justice may, in his discretion, order a temporary exchange of circuits by the respective judges, or designate any judge to hold a general or special term, or part of a term, in any other circuit than that one in which he resides.
Section three of article sixteen of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 3. The several judicial circuits of the circuit courts shall be as follows:
The first judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Escambia, Santa Rosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Jackson, Calhoun, and Franklin.
The second judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Liberty, Gadsden, Leon, Wakulla, Jefferson, Madison, Taylor, and La Fayette.
The third judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Hamilton, Suwannee, Columbia, Baker, Bradford, Alachua, and Levy.
The fourth judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Nassau, Duval, Clay, Saint Johns, Putnam, Volusia, Orange, Brevard, and Dade.
The fifth judicial circuit shall be composed of the counties of Marion, Sumpter, Hernando, Hillsborough, Polk, Manatee, and Monroe.
Art. VI. Section twelve of article six of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 12. Grand and petit jurors shall be taken from the registered voters of the respective counties. The number of jurors for the trial of causes in any court may be fixed by law.
Art. VII. Sections seven and eight of article sixteen of the constitution are hereby abrogated.
Art. VIII. Section twenty-four of article sixteen of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 24. The property of all corporations, whether heretofore or hereafter incorporated, shall be subject to taxation, unless such property be held and used exclusively for religious, educational, or charitable purposes.
Art. IX. Section twenty-two of article five of the constitution shall read as follows:
Sec. 22. The governor shall have power to disapprove of any item or items of any bill making appropriations of money embracing distinct items, and the part or parts of the bill approved shall be the law, and the item or items of appropriation disapproved shall be void unless repassed according to the rules and limitations prescribed for the passage of other bills over the executive veto.
Art. X. Section fourteen of article five of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 14. A lieutenant-governor shall be elected at the same time and places and in the same manner as the governor, whose term of office and eligibility shall also be the same. He shall be the president of the senate, but shall only have a casting vote therein. In the case of the impeachment of the governor or his removal from office, death, inability to discharge his official duties, or resignation, the power and duties of the office shall devolve upon the lieutenant-governor for the residue of the term, or until the disability shall cease. In the case of the impeachment of the lieutenant-governor or his removal from office, death, inability to discharge his official duties, or resignation, the power and duties of the office shall devolve upon the president pro tempore of the senate.
In case a vacancy shall occur both in the offices of governor and lieutenant-governor, the legislature shall at its next session order an election to fill such vacancies. But the governor shall not, without the consent of the legislature, be out of the State in time of war.
Section fifteen of article five of the constitution is hereby abrogated.
Art. XI. Section sixteen of article five of the constitution is hereby amended so as to read as follows:
Sec. 16. The governor may at any time require the opinion of the justices of the supreme court as to the interpretation of any portion of this constitution upon any question affecting his executive powers and duties, and the justices shall render such opinion in writing.
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