In the wake of the Florida Constitution Revision Commission's approval this week of a ballot amendment to ban greyhound racing, the organization representing the state's greyhound tracks is preparing a lawsuit to invalidate the measure.

Attorneys for the Florida Greyhound Association began drafting the suit Tuesday, hours after the commission voted to place the ban on the November ballot. It will ask the Florida Supreme Court to strike down the amendment, arguing the measure's supporters used false information to secure its passage.

"Lying to the CRC is very sad - that can't be done in front of the courts," said the association's chief lobbyist, Jack Cory. "This is going to cost 3,000 direct jobs, 10,000 indirect jobs, but equally as important is the lives of those 8,000 animals. There is no way to absorb eight thousand animals over the next two years into the adoption program."

During a Monday night debate on the amendment, Attorney General Pam Bondi - a member of the CRC - assured her fellow commissioners that greyhounds forced to retire if racing in the state were to end would be adopted, not euthanized. She also cited state-confirmed cases of racing greyhounds that have tested positive for steroids and cocaine.

"We all know these dogs end up with broken legs, serious injuries and they're shipped from track to track until they're either dead or can no longer race at all," Bondi said.

But the FGA disputes claims that dogs at the state's 12 tracks have been mistreated. The arguments made in support of the amendment were disingenuous, Cory said, violating established rules.

"We feel there are standard grounds within the Constitution that the proposal is incorrect, should not have been adopted by the CRC. It is easy to tell lies to the CRC and sell an issue. You can't do that in front of a court of law without severe penalties."

The Supreme Court has an active history of invalidating ballot amendments passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature, often deeming them misleading. It has limited power to strike down amendments that have cleared the CRC, however, which would appear to stymie the FGA lawsuit before it's even filed.

But Cory is optimistic.

"Our legal team is very confident and we have trust in them," he said.