REPRESENTATIVE CORRINE BROWN; REPRESENTATIVE ALCEE HASTINGS; REPRESENTATIVE CARRIE MEEK; SALLIE STEPHENS; and SENATOR JOHN McKAY, President of the Florida Senate, Appellants, v. ROBERT A. BUTTERWORTH, Attorney General; JIM SMITH, Secretary of State; TOM FEENEY, Speaker of the House of Representatives; STATE OF FLORIDA, Appellees.
CASE NOS. 4D02-2353 & 4D02-2401
COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA, FOURTH DISTRICT
October 11, 2002 Filed
Three members of Congress and a qualified voter have filed a declaratory judgment action in the Circuit Court in Fort Lauderdale challenging the Florida Legislature's reapportionment of their Congressional districts following the 2000 census. n1 They claim that as applied to them the plan deprives them of the equal protection of law by gerrymandering their districts [*685] on the basis of political party affiliation. The Circuit Judge dismissed the action on the grounds that the Circuit Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction to hear claims involving the reapportionment of Congressional districts. They now appeal. The President of the Florida Senate also appeals an order denying his motion to intervene after plaintiffs voluntarily dropped him from the suit. We reverse.
In concluding that it lacked jurisdiction, the trial court reasoned that article III, section 16, Florida Constitution, n2 vests the Florida Supreme Court with the power to review reapportionment of state legislative districts only, because the constitutional provision omits any reference to Congressional redistricting within the state. The court also took special note of article I, section 4, United States Constitution, which provides that the time, place and manner of elections for both houses of Congress "shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof...." Proceeding from article I, section 4, the court reasoned that because article III, section 16, does not expressly vest the Supreme Court with jurisdiction to hear Congressional district reapportionment claims, even the Supreme Court must therefore lack such jurisdiction. In short, the Circuit Judge concluded, separate provisions of the United States and Florida constitutions deny the state courts in Florida any judicial review in Congressional redistricting matters. n3 Accordingly, the court dismissed the case.