State v. Div. of Bond Fin. of Dep't of Gen. Servs. - 278 So. 2d 614 (Fla. 1973)

Rule:

All provisions of the constitution bearing upon a particular subject matter are to be brought into view and to be so interpreted as to effectuate the great purpose of the instrument. A constitutional amendment becomes a part of the constitution and must be construed in para materia with all of those portions of the constitution, which have a bearing on the same subject.

Facts:

The Circuit Court of the Second Judicial Circuit in and for Leon County laid down a final judgment validating and confirming the issuance of State of Florida Full Faith and Credit Pollution Control Bonds, Series A, in the aggregate principal amount of not to exceed $58,900,000. The State of Florida appeals, contending that, under Fla. Const. art. VII, §§ 11(a) and 12(a), a vote of the electors was required to pledge the full faith and credit of the state or of local political subdivisions. 

Issue:

Did the circuit court err in validating the bonds?

Answer:

No.

Conclusion:

Article VII, Section 14, modified Sections 11(a) and 12(a) (requiring a vote of electors) so as to create a special exception thereto. In Gray v. Golden, 89 So.2d 785 (Fla.1956) which involved a proposed constitutional amendment providing home rule for Dade County in local affairs, this Court opined that where an amendment limits or modifies other provisions of the Constitution, it does so only to the extent defined in the amendment, and that ". . . such limitations are in harmony with constitutional amendments generally and except as to the 'purpose' of the amendment, the parent provision continues in force." It is obvious that in adopting Article VII, Section 14, by a statewide election, the sovereign people of this State intended to provide an alternative method of financing state bonds without a referendum in certain particular instances. The people of this State created a specific exception to the requirement of an election in this type of bond validation proceeding.

The Supreme Court of Florida agreed with the lower court's finding that the Division of Bond Finance of the Department of General Services and the Department of Pollution Control each have authority to agree with the Local Agencies that if the proceeds of the Series A Bonds and the proceeds of certain grants to be made by the United States of America to the Local Agencies for the purpose of completing the Projects of each of the Local Agencies, together with other monies legally available to each of the Local Agencies, are not sufficient to complete the Projects, that the Division of Bond Finance will enter into additional loan agreements with the Local Agencies for the purpose of furnishing sufficient monies to the Local Agencies to complete the various Projects; and, that the Local Agencies in such event may be required to pledge the full faith and credit of the Local Agencies to the State of Florida, without any election of freeholder electors or qualified electors, and such pledge does not violate and such agreement is not violative of Article VII, Section 11, of the Florida Constitution nor of Article VII, Section 12, of the Florida Constitution, inasmuch as Article VII, Section 14 of the Florida Constitution specifically authorizes the Local Agencies to secure the repayment of any loans by the State Agencies to the Local Agencies by the full faith and credit of the Local Agencies without any election of freeholder electors or qualified electors and said Article VII, Section 14, being enacted subsequent to the enaction of the said Article VII, Sections 11 and 12, is a specific exception thereto, and the said Local Agencies may, under the conditions set forth in the Agreement with the State Agencies, pledge their full faith and credit as additional security for the repayment of any additional loans made by the State Agencies. The issuance of the said Series A Bonds is not required to be approved by a vote of the freeholder electors or qualified electors of the State of Florida, inasmuch as such issuance of bonds is specifically authorized by the said Article VII, Section 14 of the Florida Constitution, without any such election of freeholders or qualified electors.