The Florida Conservation Voters is a tax-exempt advocacy organization that focuses exclusively on Florida environmental issues. It was originally called Florida’s Water and Land Legacy and was formed for the sole purpose of sponsoring Amendment 1, a successful 2014 state constitutional amendment requiring a 20-year, $20 billion funding increase to Florida’s Land Acquisition Trust Fund.¹

In 2015, the organization rebranded itself and became the Florida Conservation Voters. It expanded its agenda to include solar energy initiatives and a statewide fracking ban, and its 501(c)4 tax-exempt designation allowed it to advocate on behalf of candidates for local, state, and federal office.²

FCV pressures local and state lawmakers through legal action, voter outreach and mobilization, grassroots activism, and lobbying.³ FCV is a state affiliate of the Washington, D.C.-based League of Conservation Voters, a national left-wing environmentalist consortium.

Background

The Florida Conservation Voters is one of 29 state affiliates within the League of Conservation Voters national political action network. LCV almost exclusively supports members of the Democratic Party, spending more than $20 million nationwide in the 2016 election cycle to either support Democrats or attack Republicans, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.⁴

LCV’s 2016 “Dirty Dozen” list of top candidates to unseat were all Republicans, including President Donald Trump, and its Florida scorecard diverges along party lines.⁵⁶ The Florida Conservation Voters claims to be nonpartisan and not interested in turning Florida into a “blue or red state,” but a “green” state.⁷

Amendment 1

The Florida Water and Land Conservation Initiative, also known as Amendment 1, was a Florida constitutional ballot amendment that was approved by state voters on November 4, 2014. It was sponsored by Florida’s Water and Land Legacy, a political action committee that later became Florida Conservation Voters.⁸ The measure enshrined a 33 percent revenue increase from the state’s excise tax on real estate and financial transaction documents to the state’s Land Acquisition Trust Fund.

The Land Acquisition Trust Fund was created by the Florida Legislature in 1963 to purchase public land for parks and recreational use.⁹ Amendment 1 backers raised $6.3 million and successfully expanded LATF funding to an estimated $20 billion over 20 years, while further providing a mandate requiring public management of purchased lands, including wetlands and forests.¹⁰

Then amendment’s appeal hinged significantly on the notion that it was not a tax increase. However, opponents claimed that increasing the Land Acquisition Trust Fund portion of the state’s existing document tax to 33 percent would require new sources of public revenue to pay for other items affected by the redirected funding. Critics also emphasized the amount of land the state already owned. The measure’s opponents included the Florida Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Farm Bureau, and the Coalition for Property Rights.¹¹

The Florida Conservation Voters has assisted EarthJustice and the Florida Defenders of the Environment to sue the state government over accusations that the state is improperly spending Amendment 1 proceeds.¹³

FCV claims to have rallied thousands of citizens to pressure state lawmakers into co-sponsor a pair of bills that would have permanently abolished certain oil and natural gas extraction techniques throughout the state. Both bills ultimately failed, but FCV asserted it will continue its efforts in 2018, and until a statewide ban passes.¹⁴

In May 2022, the FCV was one of several organizations that opposed Florida Senate Bill SB2508, previously passed by the state legislatures, claiming that the bill would allow, “Big Sugar [in] getting the irrigation water it wants to siphon off Lake Okeechobee over the Everglades ecosystems’ health.” The bill would later be vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June of that year. ¹⁵

Leadership

Aliki Moncrief is the executive director of the Florida Conservation Voters. Moncrief is a Harvard Law School-trained environmental activist who says she “truly found” herself when she discovered Harvard’s Public Interest Office. In 2016, the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper named Moncrief as one of “25 Women You Need to Know.” Moncrief previously served as Deputy General Counsel for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Enforcement Section.¹⁶

Lindsay Cross is the Water and Land Policy Director for Florida Conservations Voters. ¹⁷ Cross is running for office in the 2022 midterms for the House District 60 seat within the Florida House of Representatives as a Democrat against Republican candidate Audrey Henson. ¹⁸

Funding

In 2013, Florida Conservation Voters reported nearly $2 million in total revenue, according to its public Internal Revenue Service records. It spent $2.3 million, mostly on Amendment 1 petition and signature related items.¹⁹

In 2014, FCV reported $3.7 million in revenue with most of its expenditures gong to out-of-state political consultants.²⁰

1. “FAQ.” Florida Conservation Voters. Accessed August 3, 2017. http://www.fcvoters.org/about/faq/
2. Ray, Ryan. “Amendment 1 Sponsors Reorganize, Launch Anew as Florida Conservation Voters.” Florida Politics. August 12, 2015. Accessed August 10, 2017. http://floridapolitics.com/archives/188163-amendment-1-sponsors-reorganize-launch-anew-as-florida-conservation-voters
3. “FAQ.” Florida Conservation Voters. Accessed August 3, 2017. http://www.fcvoters.org/about/faq/
4. Center for Responsive Politics. “League of Conservation Voters.” Opensecrets.org. May 18, 2017. Accessed August 7, 2017. https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/lookup2.php?strID=C00486845
5. “2016 Dirty Dozen.” League of Conservation Voters. Accessed August 5, 2017. https://www.lcv.org/dirty-dozen/
6. “2016 National Environmental Scorecard.” League of Conservation Voters. Accessed August 5, 2017. http://scorecard.lcv.org/
7. “About FCV.” Florida Conservation Voters. Accessed August 4, 2017. http://www.fcvoters.org/acerca/
8. “Florida’s Water and Land Legacy, Inc.” Committee Tracking System. Florida Department of State. Accessed August 11, 2017. http://dos.elections.myflorida.com/committees/ComDetail.asp?account=59894
9. “Florida’s Landmark Programs for Conservation and Recreation Land Acquisition.” Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Accessed August 10, 2017. http://www.dep.state.fl.us/lands/AcqHistory.htm
10. “Proposed Constitutional Amendments to be Voted on November 4, 2014.” Florida Division of Elections. Accessed August 11, 2017. http://dos.myflorida.com/media/693796/constitutional-amendment-booklet-2014.pdf
11. “Florida Water and Land Conservation Initiative, Amendment 1 (2014). Ballotpedia. Accessed August 10, 2017. https://ballotpedia.org/Florida_Water_and_Land_Conservation_Initiative,_Amendment_1_(2014)#cite_note-support-2
13. Treadway, Tyler. “Amendment 1 lawsuit suspended while Florida Legislature is in Session.” TCPalm. May 2, 2017. Accessed August 11, 2017. http://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/local/indian-river-lagoon/health/2017/05/02/amendment-1-lawsuit-florida-legislature/101162328/[/note] State courts were considering two separate lawsuits as of May 2017.

    Activities

    The Florida Conservation Voters 2017 state legislative agenda largely focused on solar energy initiatives and a statewide ban on natural gas extraction by hydraulic fracturing. According to its annual Capitol Report, FCV and its allies influenced the passage of SB 90, an implementing bill for a solar energy equipment tax exemption. FCV referred to the legislation as a “significant policy shift.” ¹²“Capitol Report 2017.” Florida Conservation Voters. Accessed August 4, 2017. http://www.fcvoters.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FCVoters_2017legi_report.pdf

14. “Capitol Report 2017.” Florida Conservation Voters. Accessed August 4, 2017. http://www.fcvoters.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FCVoters_2017legi_report.pdf
15. Chesnes, Max. “DeSantis vetoes Lake O water supply bill after environmentalist outcry. ‘We are watching.” TC Palm, June 8, 2023. https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/local/indian-river-lagoon/2022/06/08/florida-gov-ron-desantis-veto-controversial-water-bill-2508-big-sugar-agriculture-lake-o-dischar/7552398001/
16. Brown, Marina. “25 Women: Aliki Moncrief Finds Place Making Case for the Environment.” March 6, 2016. Accessed August 8, 2017. http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2016/03/06/25-women-aliki-moncrief-finds-place-making-case-environment/81208132/
17. “Our Team.” Florida Conservation Voters. Accessed October 25, 2022. https://fcvoters.org/our-team/
18. “What You Need to Know about the Hometown Battle for Florida House District 60.” Tampa Bay Times, October 21, 2022. https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2022/10/21/what-you-need-know-about-hometown-battle-florida-house-district-60/.
19. “Florida’s Water and Land Legacy, Inc.” Form 990. 2013. Statement of Functional Expenses. Accessed August 11, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2013/460/560/2013-460560492-0b06ed8d-9O.pdf
20. “Florida’s Water and Land Legacy, Inc.” Form 990. 2014. Compensation of Officers, Directors, Trustees, Key Employees, Highest Compensated Employees, and Independent Contracts, Section B, Independent Contractors. Accessed August 11, 2017. http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2014/460/560/2014-460560492-0c28bf9c-9O.pdf