Florida Supreme Court: Term Limits On County Commissioners OK

Sarasota and other counties have a right to institute term limits on county commissioners, the Florida Supreme Court ruled today.

This could have implications on Commissioner Jon Thaxton’s bid for re-election, that he would run “until my candidacy is declared invalid.”

Today, Thaxton is going to “sleep on it,” he told The Herald-Tribune: 

“I'm not going to look for technicalities. “I have the utmost respect for the Constitution and the Supreme Court's interpretation. Right now that's all I'm going to say. I want to sleep on it.”

Thaxton said he is exploring all of his options for the future, including the possibility of running for the state Legislature or going back into his original field of real estate.

“I think it would be dishonest to say that I'm thrilled about the decision,” he said. “I think it would be safe to say that I'm disappointed. But when you're faced with a decision over which you have no control and no influence, you have to learn to deal with disappointments and I'm OK with that.”

In the case Snipes v. Telli, that originated in Broward County and was later combined to hear arguments from Sarasota County. Broward County voters, a charter county, had approved an amendment in November 2000 to implement term limits for county commissioners. 

Resident activist group Citizens for Responsible Government  to enforce the term limits that were approved 13 years ago.

The court ruled that the suit, led by Cathy Antunes, shall be consistent with its ruling on the Broward case.

Sarasota’s case stems back in 1998 when votes approved to limit commissioners to two consecutive four-year terms, but wasn’t enforced.

Then was challenged in court when in 2005 Circuit Judge Deno Economu ruled term limits were unconstitutional.

But in 2011, the Fourth District Court of Appeals said Broward County term limits were allowable, setting off the journey to the Supreme Court.

While that has going on, in Sarasota, attempts were made in November to put term limits on a January 2012 referendum ballot, but 

During the Florida legislative session, two related bills to allow voters to decide on term limits on county offices died in committees in both the House and Senate.

CHIME IN: What do you think of the Florida Supreme Court ruling? What should be the next step?