Gaming

OREGON GAMING MEASURE DROPPED: Backers of an initiative to establish Oregon's first non-tribal private casino say they've decided not to go forward. They could revive the proposals, but want to see how proposals for two tribal casinos fare first.

IMMIGRATION COPS: The Arizona legislator who wants to allow police officers to enforce immigration laws is pursuing dual tracks -- a ballot initiative and legislation at the same time. The initiative is back-up, he explains.

COLORADO GOV RAIN ON SPEAKER's INITIATIVE: Gov. Bill RItter, a Democrat, questions the political strategy behind an effort by the Democratic House speaker in his state to qualify a measure lifting some of the state's spending limits. Ritter has been trying to reduce the number of measures on the November ballot.

ONE CENT SALES TAX TO FUND TRANSPORTATION: Arizonans, including Gov. Janet Napolitano, have launched an initiative to pay for $42 billion in transporation spending with a one-cent sales tax. The full plan for how they would spend the money is due next month.

TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL: Here's an important and under-reported story: Nevada's schools will be closed on Election Day in November. That should boost turnout in a swing presidential state. And it also could give a boost to the Nevada teachers' unions, who are attempting to raise gaming taxes to boost education funds. Not having to teach that day will boost turnout. Also, about 800 of the poll workers could be students, says the state's registrar of voters. In related news, a Nevada judge rules that two measures to tax gaming to provide funds for education can remain on the ballot. The judge thinks they make little sense, but says that the voters have the right to decide that for themselves.

AG'S DOMAIN: Some agriculture interests are getting aggressive in opposing Prop 98, one of the two measures on June's California ballot that would put restrictions on eminent domain. The Sacramento Bee says that this represents a divide in the agriculture community, since the California Farm Bureau is one of the initiative's backers. (Prop 98's restrictions include tigher limitations on using condemnation for private purposes and on retn control than its competitor, Prop 99).

DEPARTMENT OF MOON HOWLING: The Las Vegas Review & Journal takes a long look at one of the country's more important signature firms, National Voter Outreach and its CEO Rick Arnold. I've interviewed Arnold in his Carson City home, and found him to be one of the more thoughtful people in the petition trade, critical of its problems and clear-eyed about its limitations. This story is built heavily around criticism from the liberal/progressive Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, which is quick to lable signature gathering as corrupt (at least in cases where it opposes the cause in question). There is a "shocked, shocked" quality to this criticism. The signature gathering business has plenty of problem workers, many of them poorly trained folks who, for lifestyle reasons, have taken a job that usually pays them in cash. But BISC and other critics invariably propopse to criminalize the process of gathering signatures, as in Oklahoma. In supporting these restrictions, liberals are hurting themselves, by establishing precedents restricting political speech that can be used by their political opponents. And such restrictions don't stop direct democracy. They merely slow it down, adding to the costs (and thus the influence of interest groups) that progressives love to denounce. The more you regulate, the more firms like National Voter Outreach will benefit.

The Wall Street Journal devoted its lead op-ed last weekend (unfortunately, the link and story appear to have disappeared from the paper's subscription-based web site) to a battle between casino interests and its teachers’ union.

The Nevada State Education Assn. has drafted an initiative that would raise business taxes on the large casinos to 9.75 percent from 6.75 percent. If the measure makes the ballot, this would be the initiative equivalent of the heavyweight title fights that Vegas loves to host.

Teachers’ unions and gambling interests are the two of the biggest-spending entities in the country when it comes to direct democracy. And this battle could create problems for whomever emerges as the Democratic presidential nominee. The powerful Culinary Workers Union opposes the teachers on this measure, and both unions likely will pressure the Democrat to choose sides.