Florida’s contentious Amendment 8, which would remove barriers for public funding of religious institutions, is supported by only 28 percent of registered voters, according to a poll released Tuesday from Suffolk University/WSVN-Miami. Fifty-two percent opposed the amendment, while 19 percent remained undecided.
The amendment, which requires 60 percent support from the electorate, would remove language preventing “any political subdivision or agency thereof” from sending public funds to the “aid of any church, sect, or religious denomination.” The amendment would allow that “no individual or entity may be denied, on the basis of religious identity or belief, governmental benefits, funding or other support.”
While supporters claim that the amendment would allow the state to more fully fund charitable organizations sponsored by religious organizations, detractors believe the amendment’s passage would allow the state to implement a school voucher program, funneling public school funds to religious and sectarian institutions.
