A Republican-controlled Florida Senate Committee is on the cusp of potentially nuking key provisions from an elections bill that would enhance the integrity of the state’s elections.
On Wednesday, the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee filed a substitute to SB 7050 that includes numerous changes to the original version of the proposed law. As originally written, SB 7050 would expand the power of the state’s Office of Election Crimes and Security to review and conduct preliminary investigations into “any alleged election irregularity,” as well as “make referrals for further legal action” to the Office of Statewide Prosecution, the Department of Law Enforcement, and the “state attorney with jurisdiction over the matter.”
“The statewide prosecutor receiving a complaint referred by the office shall investigate the complaint promptly and thoroughly, undertake any related criminal action as justified by law, and report to the office the results of any such investigation, any related action taken, and the final disposition of the complaint,” the bill reads.
Launched last year, the Office of Election Crimes and Security was created to “investigate election law violations” throughout the state. While the aforementioned provisions would provide Florida officials with greater oversight in ensuring election laws are being followed, the Republican-controlled Senate Fiscal Policy Committee’s proposed substitute bill omits such changes.
The proposed committee substitute for SB 7050 also doesn’t incorporate a key provision from the original version that would have required individuals registering to vote for the first time in Florida and who the state “has verified has not
