Gainesville residents may get to vote on future of GRU Authority
Gainesville residents may soon be able to vote on the future of the controversial Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority.
Gainesville City Commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to ask city staff to work toward getting the authority on this year’s ballot. The ballot measure would allow citizens to decide whether or not to keep the article of the city’s charter that created the authority.
The authority board, created and passed by a Republican Florida Legislature, has been contentious since it was first proposed. The board completely stripped the all-Democrat commission of its power over the utility and handed it to a board appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Most recently, all four members of the board submitted resignation letters over a lawsuit that determined many were not eligible for the position as written in the bill, and the applications were not properly noticed by the governor.
Many critics of the bill have called it undemocratic since voters previously rejected the 2018 referendum that called for a board. A similar 2017 bill from Sen. Keith Perry, R-Gainesville, was also previously vetoed by then-Gov. Rick Scott.
The motion, made by Commissioner Bryan Eastman, was supported during public comment by members of the League of Women Voters, the Alachua County Labor Coalition, and Gainesville Residents United, the group responsible for the lawsuit that led to four resignations.
“GRU is now ruled by Governor-appointed members with virtually no oversight. Confusion has reigned,” said Janice Garry, president of the League of Women Voters of Alachua County. “This commission can give voters a choice of who governs our municipal utility. We have an opportunity to regain democratic process and home rule in Gainesville.”
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The unanimous vote asks the city attorney to draft and bring forward an ordinance that will need to be voted on twice before a ballot measure is added. Then, voters may be able to cast their votes on the issue in the August or November election.
“It is a big idea, but it is what our community has been clamoring for,” said Commissioner Casey Willits. “It sounds a little odd, but it's something that the citizens, the voters of Gainesville, could and should have an opportunity to vote on.”
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Commission moves to put future of GRU authority on voters' ballots
