Hillsborough County residents are voting this election whether to expand the size and makeup of the county commission. It would drastically change the way county voters choose their representatives.
The amendment to the county charter would expand the commission from its current seven to nine members. It would again expand the board to 11 members if the county adds another million people and reaches 2.5 million residents.
Currently, voters cast ballots for one of four districts and three more for at-large seats, which represent the entire county. That means every elector now votes for a majority of the commission. If the measure passes, each voter would be able to elect one commissioner.
Apollo Beach Republican Rep. Michael Owen - a former county commissioner - introduced the amendment before state lawmakers earlier this year.
"Currently in Hillsborough County, we have 7 county commissioners," he said. "So it would get rid of the 3 at-large and make 9 single-member districts."
Owen argues countywide elections concentrate power in the city of Tampa, and dilute the influence of voters in suburban areas.
The ballot initiative would also require a “majority plus one” vote of the commission in order to appoint or remove the county administrator and county attorney - in addition to proposing amendments to the county charter.
In a recent letter to the Tampa Bay Times, Owen said this would end a loophole in term limits that had been passed by voters.
"The charter has an escape hatch: hit the limit in a district seat, run countywide, or vice versa, and the clock resets," he wrote. "That is how one commissioner first elected in 2002 is still on the board 24 years later, having gone from a district seat to a countywide seat and back."
He also said having voters elect and report to one commissioner would make it easier to reach them with concerns than having to reach out to four members.
