Daily Archive
Stories Posted on August 4, 2008
Anti-rail group revives petition
Category: City Government · State: Hawaii · Source: Honolulu Star Bulletin
Leaders of an anti-rail group say they have collected enough signatures for a petition initiative that could stop the city’s proposed $4 billion rail transit system. They planned to submit it to the City Clerk's Office by 2 p.m. today. Cliff Slater, an organizer of Stop Rail Now, said they had collected about 49,000 signatures as of yesterday, when they made their final rally for signatures outside the organization's South Street headquarters.
Backers face trouble with ballot initiatives
Category: Arizona · State: Arizona · Source: Arizona Republic
Too many proposals and not enough time are adding up to heartburn for backers of several state ballot initiatives. Some of the proposals that supporters hope to put before voters this November are chalking up higher-than-normal error rates, potentially imperiling their chances of getting on the ballot. This could have consequences for ballot measures that seek to preserve state trust land, to increase the state sales tax to pay for transportation projects and to block any attempt to institute a real-estate-transfer tax.
Petition seeks referendum on spending
Category: City Government · State: Wisconsin · Source: Fon du Lac Reporter
A petition with more than 400 signatures calls for the Village of North Fond du Lac to go to referendum for all future expenditures that exceed $1 million. The petition was filed in the village office on Thursday, just one day after a heated public hearing during which officials moved plans forward, despite some citizen opposition, for a $37 million lakeside hotel/convention center/marina. Copies of the petition were being circulated during the meeting Wednesday night that ended when members of the village’s Community Development Authority (CDA) approved a resolution that launches the process for formation of a tax incremental financing (TIF) district. The TIF district would help fund redevelopment of land, and the proposed Winnebago Project resort, to be located along Lake Winnebago on blighted property owned by developer Alex Zabel.
Opinion: Commentary - A modern slingshot for voters
Category: Initiative and Referendum · State: · Source: Washington Examiner
Oddsmakers didn’t favor diminutive David over giant Goliath. But in that mismatch of biblical proportions, David had a secret weapon: a slingshot. The voter initiative process — whereby citizens in 24 states and a majority of our country’s localities can place issues directly on the ballot for a decision by their fellow citizens — looks like nothing bigger than a slingshot next to the Goliath powers of government. But sometimes the slingshot works. From the property tax-cutting Proposition 13 in the 1970s to the sweep of term limits in the 1990s, citizens have increased their control over elected officials using this one weapon. Of course, had Goliath been smarter, or allotted more time for reflection prior to meeting David’s rock, he would no doubt have advocated restrictions on the possession and use of slingshots.