A Senate panel approved a revised version of a ban on automatic payroll deductions for labor unions after adopting an amendment that would narrow the restriction to money used for political purposes.
The amendment helped win the tentative support of state Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami, who voted against the measure when it narrowly cleared the Senate budget committee earlier this week. It is not clear whether the House, which has already passed a tougher version of the measure, will be interested in adopting the changes approved today.
Ron Meyer, representing the Florida Education Association, said some parts of the bill, such as the provision requiring unions to get written approval from their members before using the money for political purposes, still placed unfair restrictions on unions and were poised to draw a constitutional challenge.
The sponsor of the measure, Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine said the bill was the right thing to do, and that he wasn’t going to fret over “threats” of legal action.
