Voters sue Miami Beach for canceling homelessness tax referendum
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios
A group of Miami Beach voters has filed a lawsuit challenging a vote by the City Commission to rescind a referendum that would have funded homelessness services.
Why it matters: The decision to cancel Referendum 8 effectively nullified the votes of up to 20,000 residents who have already cast their ballots ahead of Tuesday's election.
- The referendum called for a 1% food and beverage tax at certain Miami Beach restaurants to fund services for those experiencing homelessness and domestic violence victims.
The latest: The ten plaintiffs, including two former city commissioners and the head of a local women's shelter, requested a judge's order to allow voting to proceed.
- They argued that the commission did not follow correct legal procedures when removing the referendum.
- The commission's action was "unprecedented, shocking and unlawful," the lawsuit argues, claiming that no municipality in Miami-Dade had ever canceled a referendum while voting was underway.
Catch up quick: Every municipality in Miami-Dade except three – Miami Beach, Bal Harbour and Surfside – already collects the 1% homeless and domestic violence tax.
- The three coastal municipalities had been exempt under state law because they also collect a separate restaurant tax, but the law changed in 2023.
- The City Commission voted last year to place Referendum 8 on the ballot. The majority of those commissioners are still in office today.
- In a 4-3 vote on Wednesday, the Commission voted to cancel the referendum, arguing that they already fund homeless services and that it would hurt local businesses.
The intrigue: Miami Beach voters supported the additional tax in a 2021 straw ballot, suggesting it may pass if the referendum is allowed to proceed.
What they're saying: Constance Collins, a Beach resident and founder of the Lotus House Women's Shelter, said in a statement that she already voted in favor of the referendum.
- She said she felt "completely disenfranchised" and "deeply disappointed" by the commission, which she said had "shut down the will of the people in our community."
The other side: The city did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
- In an email to residents Wednesday, Commissioner David Suarez called the anti-referendum vote a "win for truth and transparency."
- He blasted the Homeless Trust and the developers funding their referendum campaign as "unaccountable outsiders attempting to buy our votes for a third-party tax."