With little opposition, Amendment 1 likely to pass

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Money for land buying and conservation has dropped more than 90 percent over the last five years in Florida, and that's resulted in Amendment 1 on Tuesday's ballot.

It is one of the least controversial measures on the ballot this year, designed to set aside a tax that is already being collected, for land conservation.

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On every sale of every property, the state collects what is known as a documentary stamp tax. Beginning in 1990, a portion of the money – $300 million a year -- was used to buy conservation land under the Florida Forever Program. Until the bottom fell out.

Environmentalists collected more than a million petitions to let voters decide if the funding should be restored.

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"This is an existing funding source. It has been used for decades for water and land conservation. It was diverted," said Will Abberger of Yes on One. "And what we are doing is restoring it back to its original purpose."

The Amendment has token opposition. The Florida Chamber doesn't want the funding written into the constitution, but even its polling shows it a slam dunk.

"It appears to be hovering in the mid 70s of support, so it will likely pass, but that doesn't mean it's the right thing to do," said David Hart, vice president of the Florida Chamber.

Without big bucks for TV, the campaign has been mostly by mail.

But environmentalists did enlist the help of Jim Fowler. He's the former host of one of TV's longest-running animal programs.

"The number of tourists that come into Florida because of your open space, wildlife, and wilderness, is probably one of the greatest revenue producers of anything," said Fowler.

In its first year, the amendment is expected to allocate more than $600 million to land and water conservation.

A new poll by the Florida Chamber, conducted Monday and Tuesday among 500 likely voters, shows Gov. Rick Scott beating challenger Charlie Crist 44 percent-39 percent. With a margin of error of 4 percent, it is one of the first polls to predict a Scott lead outside the margin of error. The Chamber supports Scott. Hart said a lot can still happen before Tuesday night.

"For Gov. Scott supporters who view this poll as encouraging news, the work can't let up," Hart said. "We believe Florida Chamber members and other Scott supporters around the state need to keep pushing hard to the finish line."

The poll also shows Libertarian Adrian Wyllie at 4 percent. The first poll to show the Libertarian below 7 percent.

The poll also found Amendment 2, the medical marijuana amendment, losing 55 percent-40 percent with 5 percent undecided.