CopyCited 36 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 2000 WL 1804707
...the Boards voted to conduct countywide manual recounts. See §
102.166(5), Fla. Stat. (2000). Because the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board was concerned that the recounts would not be completed prior to the seven-day deadline set forth in sections
102.111 and
102.112, Florida Statutes (2000), the Board sought an advisory opinion from the Division....
...ntywide manual recount pursuant to section
102.166(5); and under what circumstances should the Secretary and Commission accept such recounts when the returns are certified and submitted by the Board after the seven-day deadline set forth in sections
102.111 and
102.112? [7] III....
...tatute. Having concluded that the county canvassing boards have the authority to order countywide manual recounts, we must now determine whether the Commission [12] must accept amended returns filed after the seven-day deadline set forth in sections
102.111 and
102.112 under the circumstances presented. VI. AMENDED RETURNS A. Statutory Ambiguity In regard to this case, the provisions of the Code are ambiguous in the following areas. First, the deadline for submitting county returns to the Department under sections
102.111 and
102.112 is in conflict with the time frame for conducting manual recounts under section
102.166(4). [13] Second, the language in sections
102.111 and
102.112, authorizing the Secretary to ignore amended or late returns submitted by the Boards, is contradictory....
...[17] Otherwise, the recount provision would be, in effect, meaningless. Courts should construe statutes to give effect to all provisions, and not to render any part meaningless. See Unruh v. State,
669 So.2d 242, 245 (Fla.1996). The recount provision thus conflicts with sections
102.111 and
102.112, which state that the Boards "must" submit their returns to the Elections Canvassing Commission by 5 p.m....
...For instance, if a party files a precertification protest on the sixth day following the election and requests a manual recount and the initial manual recount indicates that a full countywide recount is necessary, the recount procedure in most cases could not be completed by the deadline in sections
102.111 and
102.112, i.e., by 5 p.m. of the seventh day following the election. 2. The "Shall" Versus "May" Conflict Section
102.111, which sets forth general criteria governing the Elections Canvassing Commission, was enacted in 1951 as part of the Code and provides that late returns "shall" be ignored:
102.111 Elections Canvassing Commission. (1) Immediately after certification of any election by the county canvassing board, the results shall be forwarded to the Department of State concerning the election of any federal or state officer....
...the Division of Elections. If the county returns are not received by the Department of State by 5 p.m. of the seventh day following an election, all missing counties shall be ignored, and the results shown by the returns on file shall be certified. § 102.111, Fla....
...by s.
106.32. *1287 (3) Members of the county canvassing board may appeal such fines to the Florida Elections Commission, which shall adopt rules for such appeals. §
102.112, Fla. Stat. (2000) (emphasis added). The above statutes conflict. Whereas section
102.111 is mandatory (i.e., the Department "shall" ignore late returns), section
102.112 is permissive (i.e., the Department "may" ignore late returns, or the Department "may" certify late returns and fine tardy Board members)....
...Further, where two laws are in conflict, courts should adopt an interpretation that harmonizes the laws, for the Legislature is presumed to have intended that both laws are to operate coextensively and have the fullest possible effect. See T.R. v. State,
677 So.2d 270 (Fla.1996). In the present case, whereas sections
102.111 and
102.112 state that County Boards must submit vote returns to the Department by 5 p.m....
...The "Shall" Versus "May" Conflict First, it is well settled that where two statutory provisions are in conflict, the specific statute controls the general statute. See, e.g., State ex rel. Johnson v. Vizzini,
227 So.2d 205 (Fla.1969). In the present case, whereas section
102.111 in its title and text addresses the general makeup and duties of the Elections Canvassing Commission, the statute only tangentially addresses the penalty for late returns, noting that such returns "shall" be ignored by the Department....
...d and that dilatory Board members "shall" be fined. Based on the precision of the title and text, section
102.112 constitutes a specific penalty statute that defines both the deadline for filing returns and the penalties for filing late returns, and section
102.111 constitutes a nonspecific statute in this regard....
...The specific statute controls the nonspecific statute. Second, it also is well settled that when two statutes are in conflict, the more recently enacted statute controls the older statute. See McKendry v. State,
641 So.2d 45 (Fla.1994). In the present case, the provision in section
102.111 stating that the Department "shall" ignore late returns was enacted in 1951 as part of the Code....
...Thus, if a request is filed on the sixth day following an election and a full manual recount is required, the Board, through no fault of its own, will be unable to submit its returns to the Department by 5 p.m. of the seventh day following the election. In such a case, if the mandatory provision in section 102.111 were given effect, the votes of the county would be ignored for the simple reason that the Board was following the dictates of a different section of the Code....
...ion (i.e., the ballots do not have to be received by 7 p.m. of the day of the election, as provided by state law). In light of the fact that overseas ballots cannot be counted until after the seven-day deadline has expired, the mandatory language in section
102.111 has been supplanted by the permissive language of section
102.112....
...[10] See Broward County Canvassing Bd. v. Hogan,
607 So.2d 508, 510 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992). [11] See §
102.166(4)(d), Fla. Stat. (2000). [12] The Commission is composed of the Secretary of State, the Director of the Division of Elections, and the Governor. See §
102.111, Fla....
...In this instance, Florida Governor Jeb Bush has removed himself from the Commission because his brother, Texas Governor George W. Bush, is the Republican candidate for President of the United States. Robert Crawford, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture, has been appointed to replace Florida Governor Jeb Bush. See §
102.111, Fla. Stat. (2000). [13] We emphasize that because the certification of the Elections Canvassing Commission and the deadlines in sections
102.111 and
102.112 apply only in the case of statewide and federal elections, the conflict between the two statutes exists only for those elections and not for local or county elections....
CopyCited 11 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 2000 WL 1725434
...n." Based on this determination, several canvassing boards voted to conduct countywide manual recounts pursuant to section
102.166(5)(c). B. The Appeal Proceedings Concerned that the recounts would not be completed prior to the deadline set forth in section
102.111(1), Florida Statutes (2000), requiring that all county returns be certified by 5 p.m....
...on the seventh day after an election, the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board, pursuant to section
106.23, Florida Statutes (2000), sought an advisory opinion from the Division of Elections, requesting an interpretation of the deadline set forth in sections
102.111 and
102.112....
...ces may a Board authorize a countywide manual recount pursuant to section
102.166(5); must the Secretary and Commission accept such recounts when the returns are certified and submitted by the Board after the seven day deadline set forth in sections
102.111 and
102.112? [10] IV....
...uage of the statute. Having concluded that the county canvassing boards have the authority to order countywide manual recounts, we must now determine whether the Commission [17] must accept a return after the seven-day deadline set forth in sections
102.111 and
102.112 under the circumstances presented....
...[35] VI. STATUTORY AMBIGUITY The provisions of the Code are ambiguous in two significant areas. First, the time frame for conducting a manual recount under section
102.166(4) is in conflict with the time frame for submitting county returns under sections
102.111 and
102.112. Second, the mandatory language in section
102.111 conflicts with the permissive language in
102.112....
...Although the Code sets no specific deadline by which a manual recount must be completed, logic dictates that the period of time required to complete a full manual recount may be substantial, particularly in a populous county, and may require several days. The protest provision thus conflicts with section
102.111 and
102.112, which state that the Boards "must" submit their returns to the Elections Canvassing Commission by 5:00 p.m....
...For instance, if a party files a pre-certification protest on the sixth day following the election and requests a manual recount and the initial manual recount indicates that a full countywide recount is necessary, the recount procedure in most cases could not be completed by the deadline in sections
102.111 and
102.112, i.e., by 5:00 p.m. of the seventh day following the election. B. The "Shall" and "May" Conflict In addition to the conflict in the above statutes, sections
102.111 and
102.112 contain a dichotomy. Section
102.111, which sets forth general criteria governing the State Canvassing Commission, was enacted in 1951 as part of the Code and provides as follows:
102.111 Elections Canvassing Commission. (1) Immediately after certification of any election by the county canvassing board, the results shall be forwarded to the Department of State concerning the election of any federal or state officer....
...the Division of Elections. If the county returns are not received by the Department of State by 5 p.m. of the seventh day following an election, all missing counties shall be ignored, and the results shown by the returns on file shall be certified. § 102.111, Fla.Stat....
...created by s.
106.32. (3) Members of the county canvassing board may appeal such fines to the Florida Elections Commission, which shall adopt rules for such appeals. §
102.112, Fla.Stat. (2000) (emphasis added). The above statutes conflict. Whereas section
102.111 is mandatory, section *1234
102.112 is permissive....
...In light of this ambiguity, the Court must resort to traditional rules of statutory construction in an effort to determine legislative intent. [41] First, it is well-settled that where two statutory provisions are in conflict, the specific statute controls the general statute. [42] In the present case, whereas section 102.111 in its title and text addresses the general makeup and duties of the Elections Canvassing Commission, the statute only tangentially addresses the penalty for returns filed after the statutory date, noting that such returns "shall" be ignored by the Department....
...that dilatory Board members "shall" be fined. Based on the precision of the title and text, section
102.112 constitutes a specific penalty statute that defines both the deadline for filing returns and the penalties for filing returns thereafter and section
102.111 constitutes a nonspecific statute in this regard. The specific statute controls the non-specific statute. Second, it also is well-settled that when two statutes are in conflict, the more recently enacted statute controls the older statute. [43] In the present case, the provision in section
102.111 stating that the Department "shall" ignore returns was enacted in 1951 as part of the Code....
...Thus, if a protest is filed on the sixth day following an election and a full manual recount is required, the Board, through no fault of its own, will be unable to submit its returns to the Department by 5:00 p.m. on the seventh day following the election. In such a case, if the mandatory provision in section 102.111 were given effect, the votes of the county would be ignored for the simple reason that the Board was following the dictates of a different section of the Code....
...i.e., the ballots do not have to be received by 7 p.m. of the day of the election, as provided by state law). [47] In light of the fact that overseas ballots cannot be counted until after the seven day deadline has expired, the mandatory language in section
102.111 has *1236 been supplanted by the permissive language of section
102.112....
...
536 So.2d at 1008-09 (quoting Boardman v. Esteva,
323 So.2d 259, 267 (Fla.1975)). X. CONCLUSION According to the legislative intent evinced in the Florida Election Code, the permissive language of section
102.112 supersedes the mandatory language of section
102.111....
...the present case, misses the constitutional mark. The constitution eschews punishment by proxy. As explained above, the Florida Election Code must be construed as a whole. Section
102.166 governs manual recounts and appears to conflict with sections
102.111 and
102.112, which set a seven day deadline by which County Boards must submit their returns. Further, section
102.111, which provides that the Secretary "shall" ignore late returns, conflicts with section
102.112, which provides that the Secretary "may" ignore late returns....
...[15] See Broward County Canvassing Bd. v. Hogan,
607 So.2d 508, 510 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992). [16] See §
102.166(4)(d), Fla. Stat. (2000). [17] The Commission is composed of the Secretary of State, the Director of the Division of Elections, and the Governor. See §
102.111, Fla....
...In this instance, Florida Governor Jeb Bush has removed himself from the Commission because his brother, Texas Governor George W. Bush, is the Republican candidate for President of the United States. Robert Crawford, Florida Commissioner or Agriculture, has been appointed to replace Florida Governor Jeb Bush. See § 102.111, Fla....
...Stat. (2000). [23] §
102.012(4), Fla. Stat. (2000). [24] §
102.071, Fla. Stat. (2000). [25] §
102.141(3), Fla. Stat. (2000). [26] §
102.141(1), Fla. Stat. (2000). [27] §
102.141(2), Fla. Stat. (2000). [28] §
102.141(3), Fla. Stat. (2000). [29] §§
102.111-.112, Fla.Stat. (2000). [30] §§
102.111, .121, Fla....
CopyCited 7 times | Published | District Court, S.D. Florida | 29 Media L. Rep. (BNA) 1190, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 16333, 2000 WL 1687185
...discrepancy which could affect the outcome of an election." Fla. Stat. §
102.166(3)(c). After the vote counts are certified, the results are forwarded to the Department of State for any election involving a federal or state officer. See Fla. Stat. §
102.111(1); Fla....
...g Commission, consisting of the Governor, the Secretary of State, and the Director of the Division of Elections, is granted authority to "certify the returns of the election and determine and declare who has been elected for each office." Fla. Stat. § 102.111(1)....
...Security of ballot storage and the counting room is provided under the direction of the Canvassing Board with Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Volusia County Sheriffs Office personnel. The Volusia Canvassing Board has adopted a motion stating that it will comply with the requirements of Florida Statutes, § 102.111, to certify the results of the election to the Department of State no later than 5:00 p.m....
...on Tuesday, November 14, 2000, unless the time is extended by lawful authority. The Canvassing Board also has authorized the County Attorney and such other attorneys as he may appoint to seek state or federal judicial relief from the time limit for certification provided in Florida Statutes, § 102.111....
CopyCited 2 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 1988 Fla. LEXIS 1292
...to declare the winner of the seat at issue here without the Flagler County votes, and to enjoin certification of that winner to Congress until further order of this Court. We find that the Flagler County Canvassing Board substantially complied with section 102.111, Florida Statutes (1987), and, therefore, deny the requested relief....
...ppell received 124,735 in the race for Florida's Fourth Congressional District. Because less than one-half of one percent of the votes cast separated the candidates, the votes had to be recounted pursuant to section
102.141, Florida Statutes (1987). Section
102.111, Florida Statutes (1987), provides that county canvassing boards shall forward election results to the Department of State immediately after certifying those results....
...election and recount by 5:00 p.m., November 15, the seventh day after the election. The Flagler County Canvassing Board's original certificate, however, did not reach the Department of State until November 17, 1988. Chappell, therefore, argues that section 102.111 mandates that the Flagler County votes not be counted and that he be declared the winner of the Congressional seat because, without the 11,000 Flagler County votes, his tally is more than two hundred votes greater than his opponent's....
...med the Department of State of the results of the recount by telephone on November 14. Moreover, the Department of State received a facsimile telecopy of the written certificate early on November 16. Contrary to Chappell's claim, we do not find that section 102.111's "all missing counties" language turns the certification process into "an imperative, ministerial" duty, "involving no judgment on the part" of the state canvassing commission. The statute says that returns shall be received by 5:00 p.m. of the seventh day after the election. The Department of State received Flagler County's returns on November 14. Granted, the returns arrived telephonically, rather than in writing, but section 102.111 does not explicitly require that the returns be in writing....
...ed and registered to vote, and that they do so in a proper manner, then who can be heard to complain that the statute has not been literally and absolutely complied with?" Id. at 267. There has been substantial, and perhaps complete, compliance with section 102.111....
