County term limits backed

The Florida House on Wednesday approved asking voters in 2026 to impose term limits on county commissioners throughout the state. House members voted 82-33 to back a proposed constitutional amendment (HJR 679) about eight-year term limits on county commissioners and school board members. The Legislature in 2023 approved eight-year term limits for school board members, but those limits are not in the Constitution. Rep. Michelle Salzman, a Pensacola Republican sponsoring the proposal, pointed to public support for term limits. “Americans, Floridians, they have been begging us for term limits, term limits, term limits, term limits” Salzman said. But opponents said local voters should be able to decide whether to impose term limits on county commissioners, rather than having them imposed statewide. Rep. Lindsay Cross, D-St. Petersburg, said the state should not take a “one-size-fits-all approach.” A Senate version of the proposal (SJR 802) has cleared one committee. If the proposal is ultimately approved by the Legislature, it would go on the November 2026 ballot.